#thankfully she was a good sport about this and we were dying laughing but what the fuck

[ivansergeyevichturgenev]

i'm convinced my roommate never wants me to have another guest over again. i told her i had plans a while ago and she was working until she wasn't and i was like that's fine but i still have plans bc i'm cooking dinner. here is a list of things that happened last night:

- she played creepy carnival music right outside my room

- screamed multiple times throughout the night

- texted me multiple times saying gravy was in the my room and needed to let her out (she wasn't)

- bitched about the plates in the sink (she left dishes in there from 2 months ago. these were from tonight and most of them were done)

[peony-pearl]

Thanks to @projecthypocrisy for tagging me!! I'm so excited to be learning about some wonderful ocs!!!

Rules: Answer the following questions in your character's voice

Are you named after anyone?

"I've heard I was named for my father's late sister. I was born around the time she passed. The way Dad spoke about her, I get the feeling he would have rather she lived than I be born," she shrugs. "Can't win them all."

When was the last time you cried?

Her mouth goes taut. She's cried many times. She does her best to not do it in front of others. Her time ensnared in Corneo's ring taught her to calcify her emotions, lest they be used against her or she be punished for them. But she has cried lately.

"I was in Gongaga... the first time since Meteorfall. It's been a few years. Reeve told me the land he died in was now covered with grass and flowers; and he was right. It was just dead land before, and now," her voice breaks ever so slightly. "It's beautiful. It looks the way I felt when I was with him."

Do you have kids?

"Oh no; no no. I can't have them," horrible memories of 'clinic trips' while in Corneo's possession flash through her memory. "And I don't want them. I don't have the fortitude, the patience, the stability. I wasn't a wanted child; I wouldn't put that on another."

Do you use sarcasm a lot?

"I don't do sarcasm. I'm not good at it. I've never been good at knowing if it's being used. I appreciate straightforwardness and the truth. Or just lie to me and mean it."

What’s the first thing you notice about people?

"Body language. Or I scout them out if they're wearing symbols or tattoos. I learned that while in Corneo's group. Different ones had different motives and intentions and specialties. Thankfully Shinra likes to display theirs loud and clear so I knew who was working for them very quickly and I could make quick work of them."

What’s your eye colour?

"An olive green. Corneo always told me how ugly a shade it was."

Scary movies or happy endings?

"How about a scary movie with a happy ending? That would be nice. But I don't watch a lot of movies. I get too restless."

Any special talents?

"I'm very handy with materia. I enjoy studying them and casting spells. When I escaped Wall Market, I was given my first materia by someone I was once friends with, and I started working so hard to master it. It was a thunder materia and I'd never once cast a spell in my life. When I finally tapped into that feeling it was so liberating after being imprisoned for so long. I felt strong for the first time in my life.

"I also know some good card games and a few sleight of hand tricks from some of Honeybees when I was stationed at the Inn."

Where were you born?

"In a town called Imerta. It doesn't exist anymore. Any trace of it is smothered under the rubble of Sector 6. It was a trading town, a halfway point for merchants. It was already dying by the time Shinra claimed it for Midgar and promised us part of the money that would come from the Mako harvesting.

"He was never good on promises."

Do you have any pets?

"I have my chocobo, Paprika. My first pet. She's a practical one, since she can be used as transportation. She's a good bird, and I try to spoil her. She's no gold chocobo but she can cross rougher terrain and quicksand, as well as some smaller bodies of water."

What sort of sports do you play?

She laughs. "Sports? No thanks."

How tall are you?

She hums. "Five... four? Five six? I don't know."

What was your favourite subject in school?

"School was suffering by the time I was enrolled; we learned basic history and math and science. I daydreamed all day. The only good part about school was lunch and leaving and getting to chat with my girlfriends. They all left Imerta by the time I was a teenager."

What is your dream job?

"I suppose I'm living it. I'm a materia supplier. I go around, disposing of fiends, mastering materia. When materia is mastered, new materia is 'born'. I sell these new orbs to vendors in different towns. It's good profit. I don't have any ties, I don't have any dependents, save for Paprika. No one to answer to."

She sighs, putting her hand in her pocket to feel his Shinra id badge, now worn and bent over time.

"Just me," she says with a sad smile. "But... it's safer that way, at least."

*****

Thank you so much again for tagging me!!

Consider this an open tag for anyone who wants to do this! I want to find more FF7 ocs!

[sweet-sammy-kisses]

I'm Not Bad I'm Just Drawn That Way

For @flufftober day 24 melting

Title: I'm Not Bad I'm Just Drawn That Way Fandom: 911 Pairings: Buck/Eddie and Hen/Karen Rating: Mature Summary:

Eddie wasn’t sure that he still knew how to breathe as he took in the sight of Buck, his Buck, dressed up as Jessica Rabbit. Her famous red dress fit him perfectly and the leg slit all the way up to the edge of his ass showed off a little too much for Buck to be able to wear his boxers and Eddie had a pretty good idea as to what Buck was wearing under that dress. The bashful smile Buck flashed his way made Eddie want to pin him against the wall and mess up that bright red lipstick that Buck was wearing.

Or Karen helps Buck melt Eddie's brain. You can read it on AO3

Buck could only stare at the outfit that Karen had presented to him with a flourish of what would be his Halloween costume. “You can’t be serious?” 

Karen gave him a smirk, “Oh honey we both know that I am very serious.” 

Letting out a long drawn-out sigh Buck took the outfit from her, “I guess it’s not all that bad.” Fingering the red satin fabric he looked up at his friend, “Do you think Eddie will like it?” 

A startled laugh escaped Karen, “I will be amazed if you and he last half ‘n’ hour at that party before he drags you off and the next time that we see you, you will still be limping.” 

Buck had no doubt that his face was a flaming mess but it was true Eddie had left him limping a few times and he loved it. "Do you really think Eddie will like this?"

"Honey; if you two weren't already sickeningly sweet in love this would have been his breaking point. Now let's get practicing, you have some heels to break in." Karen held up a pair of purple pumps that Buck thankful didn’t think he would break his ankles in. 

One would think that it would be a well-known fact that Buck and Karen should never be left alone together because they either managed to create chaos or chaos finds them and that should be especially true when it comes to having a bet about the other picking the loser Halloween costume. 

No one knew what Buck had lost to Karen despite how hard Eddie and Hen were to get the answer and boy did they try. Buck had been still limping when he came into work after their two days off. He hadn’t been able to look Bobby in the eyes for the whole day while Eddie just had an air of smugness about him that not even Bobby’s dad's look could wipe away. 

Athena on the other hand had been a very different story. 

“I see you are still sulking beside the punch bowl.” Hen teased as she joined him, she looked amazing as Harley Quinn, she had gone Batman the Animated style, Denny had become obsessed with the show and had been sporting his own impressive Batman suit he happily showed off before May took him, Harry and Christopher off trick and treating. DC superheroes had been a theme for them, Harry had gone as the Flash, Christopher as Superboy because he had a cooler look than Superman and May had been rocking the Black Bat look. 

“Like you are any better.” Eddie pointed out, that they had both come without their partners as Karen and Buck would arrive together as Karen put it to make sure that “Eddie didn’t make all of her hard work for nothing when he dragged Buck to bed and made him his own treated.” Eddie had been dying to know what Karen had chosen for him. 

“You speak the truth Aragorn.” Hen gave Eddie a knowing smirk, “I take it Buck had fully approved of your costume?” 

Eddie sent her a smug smirk as he picked up a cup of Athena’s special witch’s brew and took a sip. It turns out that Lord of the Rings was one of the few movies that Buck had seen and he admitted to Eddie that Aragorn had been his bisexual awakening and it had been easy for Eddie to decide what his costume was going to be this year. “Oh yeah, he liked it.” Eddie could still see the desire in Buck’s eyes as he fell to his knees and gave Eddie a blowjob in their thankfully emptied and door-closed kitchen. 

Shaking her head Hen opened her mouth to say something when she was tackled from behind, “There she is the Harley to my Ivy.” Karen pressed a kiss against Hen’s cheek. 

“You look amazing Karen.” Eddie praised and she did, she went all out with her costume including painting her skin green. 

“Thank you. And if you think my costume looks great take a look at your boy there.” Karen pointed to the doorway. 

Eddie wasn’t sure that he still knew how to breathe as he took in the sight of Buck, his Buck, dressed up as Jessica Rabbit. Her famous red dress fit him perfectly and the leg slit all the way up to the edge of his ass showed off a little too much for Buck to be able to wear his boxers and Eddie had a pretty good idea as to what Buck was wearing under that dress. The bashful smile Buck flashed his way made Eddie want to pin him against the wall and mess up that bright red lipstick that Buck was wearing. 

“Damn, Karen you really went all out with Buck’s costume. You may have won the bet sweetheart but I think Eddie is the real winner tonight.” Hen praised her wife. 

Swallowing hard Eddie kept chanting to himself: ‘We are in Bobby’s home. The same Bobby that is Buck’s dad in all ways that matter. That Athena is Buck’s adopted mother and also one of the scariest women in the world and she would not be happy with him defling her baby in the middle of her living room.’ But it was really hard to keep that in mind as Buck made his way over towards him, he even had Jessica’s sensual walk down to a tee. 

"Hello Ranger, nice to see you here." Buck purred as he drank in the sight of Eddie dressed as the Aragorn and he was really rocking the leather look.

Eddie wasted no time in pulling Buck into his arms and kissing him senselessly. Forgetting that they were in public and in the same house that Buck’s sister and adopted parents were in Eddie couldn’t contain his hands and he slipped his hand up Buck's bare leg and under the dress, Eddie let out a low curse as his fingers brushed across satin. 

Feeling daring, Buck whispered in Eddie’s ear, "I am wearing your favourite pair." 

A hiss escaped Eddie, "Alright time to call it a night."

Pulling back and looking at his boyfriend innocently a pout formed on Buck’s face as he pointed out, “We haven’t even danced yet.” 

“We can dance at home.” Eddie countered right now dancing was the furthest thing from his mind, right now all that mattered was getting home and letting Buck know just how much he enjoyed his look. 

Biting his lower lip Buck knew he was melting under the smouldering look Eddie was giving him, his dark lust-filled eyes promising him a night to remember and as much as he would like to tease Eddie a little longer being naked and sweaty in their bed was a far more tempting offer. “You will be dealing with all the teasing at work.” 

“Deal.” Dealing with Hen and Chimney would be a fair price to pay if it meant he got to see what else Buck was wearing under that dress. 

Chimney’s question, “Who had Eddie lasting less than a minute?” was followed by Maddie’s ‘that’s my brother Howie,” and Athena’s smug, “That was me,” followed behind them as Eddie all but dragged Buck out of the Nash-Grant house thankful that Chris was going to be spending the night at his Abuela’s and they didn’t have to work tomorrow.

+*****+

Somehow Eddie managed to keep his hands and mouth to himself and get both him and Buck into their house before pinning Buck against the closed front door and devouring his mouth like a man starving. 

“I think this would be more comfortable in our room, don’t you agree?” Buck whispered as Eddie began leaving a trail of kisses down his neck. Buck dug his nails into Eddie’s leather-covered shoulders wanting nothing more than to ride Eddie’s dick while he was still dressed as his first crush. 

“I think that might be a very good idea. I have plans for you Evan, you and that dress.” Eddie growled as he forced himself to pull away from his tempting partner. Grasping Buck’s hand in his he all but dragged the blond to their room. “Just so you know you are keeping that dress.” Eddie informed him, “I plan on seeing you in it many more times.” 

“Good thing I own it. I can wear it whenever you want Eight Pack.” Buck promised as he pushed Eddie onto their bed and gave a little shimming of his hips. 

Eddie let out a deep growl as he reached out and pulled Buck onto his lap, oh yes the dress was going to be used a lot and he would take his time removing Buck out of it but right now he wanted to see what Buck looked like in it as he rode him. 

+*****+

“So just how did Karen win your bet?” Eddie asked as he ran his hand up and down Buck’s bare back. 

“She cheated. She bet me I couldn’t last a whole day at the sight of you in your slutty black tank top and she knows I am weak to you like that. So of course she tricked me into a bet on the day that you would be working on your truck in said tank top and a dirty, sweaty, oil-covered Eddie Diaz was just too much for me. I phoned her and told her she won then I dragged you to bed.” 

Eddie remembered that day he had barely been able to close the front door before he had a horny Buck pawing at his clothing. It had been a very good day. He really would have to get Karen a bottle of her favourite wine. 

+*****+

A long whistle escaped Chimney as he caught sight of the marks that Buck was still trying to cover up, "Damn Eddie really liked your costume?"

There was no missing the twinkle of happiness in Buck's eyes as he responded, "I think he did."

"Oh I really did and I already sent Karen a bottle of her favourite wine as a thank-you gift." Eddie agreed as he joined Buck, his eyes darkening as he took in the marks he had left on Buck's neck and they weren’t the only ones, they were just the easiest to see. The others were for his eyes only. 

[king-maven-calore]

prompt #25 “your hair is really soft” for marecal please 😙

I did this and "10 cal and mare please. idc who says it lol"👀 in a single drabble, I hope you guys don't mind. It's a modern AU I guess

Cal had been volunteering at the Scarlet Guard summer camp for two seasons now, this would be his third. The first time he’d been here as moral support for Ptolemus, who’d been sent here for his community service sentence. Ptolemus had signed up again for the following summers for Wren, a med student in charge of the infirmary, and Cal kept signing up because he found out he loved working with children.

He always had a great time helping the kids, training them in archery and other sports, patting their backs when they got homesick, leading them on walks through the woods belting out marching songs, sitting with them at lunch, and making good use of his excellent puns arsenal. The kids had a blast, and he did too.

In this part of the Greatwoods Region, he found paradise. His dad disapproved and Maven did not understand but was he too happy to mind.

It would have been a shame if he’d proven them right on his third year here when he almost died out of sheer stupidity. But could he be blamed? Could he be blamed when the five new counselors got down from one of the early buses and one of them looked like that?

Among the newbies, there was a petite girl with golden skin that seemed to sparkle under the early morning sun. She jumped down from the bus and a cloud of dirt exploded around her already dirty Vans, her toned legs were generously exposed under her jean shorts, and the lines of her abdomen peeking out from under the camp’s counselor reglementary red polo shirt as she stretched and arched her back to tie her dyed brown and purple hair in a bun, scowling at her surroundings with something akin to distrust. She was the loveliest girl he’d ever seen in such a violent way... was it really his fault he didn’t pay attention to the lightbulbs he’d been changing at the side of the dining hall, perched atop a rickety ladder 10 feet above the ground? It wasn’t. Electricity didn’t give a shit about whose fault was it though when he blindly stuck his hand in the exposed wires next to the light socket.

A white explosion, sparkles, and a sensation of being pulled away at 1000 miles per hour.

Next thing he knew, he was on his back and there was a warm mouth against his. Warm, soft, insistent— on breathing air into him. And good god, this person smelled like heaven; jasmine and rain. Much to his dismay, the scent and the mouth left him and his chest started getting crushed in rhythmic, urgent motions.

Cal gulped air and shot upright. He was surrounded by 20 consternated young faces and one barely inches away from his face. Beautiful, wide brown eyes, thick long eyelashes that brushed against high cheekbones when the girl who’d just saved his life blinked twice.

“Dude.” Kneeling next to him, the girl with the purple hair knitted her brow. “What the fuck?”

And Cal couldn’t help but smile at her. A reflex. She was even prettier up close.

“I think we should check for brain damage,” a blond with bottle green eyes muttered.

Oh, but his brain was fine. It was his heart he should get checked, for he’d just been struck by Cupid’s arrow.

And electricity, of course. The smell of burnt hair, clothes, and flesh reminded him.

The result of that encounter turned out to be quite positive. Yes, he got a second-degree burn on his right hand and a dislocated shoulder from the fall but he refused to be sent home, it had been worth it to get to meet Mare Barrow.

She was 18, from Albanus, only here for the money, best friends with the blondie jokester and— as he learned after a dubiously moral social media stalking session —single and interested in men.

The only thing he regretted from that “meet cute” was that he’d been mostly unconscious (technically dead) for 99% of the time her lips were on his.

He lived for the moments they crossed paths during their daily activities around the camp. His heart grew in size about five times when she teased him and lightly punched his stomach or ruffled his hair.

Ptolemus cocked a brow but kept his mouth thankfully shut when Cal decided to start sitting on the counselor’s table during dinner instead of with the kids, as he had grown accustomed to.

It was miserable and extraordinary how he even found the way she ate her food endearing. More often than not, miserable because he couldn’t A: get her to like him, for she was too laser-focused on doing her job efficiently and getting the hell out of the camp; B: touch her as casually as she did with him because his hand was bandaged, and C: relationships between counselors were strictly forbidden.

By the time his hand was healthy enough to be of any use, three weeks had passed and he was head over heels, neck-deep (to not use other body parts for reference), stupidly in love with the sarcastic girl who had put her own breath into his lungs, challenged him every time they got the chance and looked at him like she wanted to sink her hand into his ribcage to take a bite out of his heart. Needless to say, he wanted to touch her. Badly. Ok, maybe do a bit more than 'touch', but you get the idea.

His excuse was handed on a silver platter by one of his favorite campers, Luther Carver. The kid who was usually off-standish and grim— just misunderstood, in Cal’s opinion – had signed up for the braiding lessons that Mare was unhappily in charge of.

On his way back from the lake, his crew of kids trailing behind him, he passed along the group of girls and Luther taking their lesson, sitting in a circle on the grass between the pine trees. An idyllic image of children focused on their task, and Mare’s poorly concealed discomfort as she sat on a log bench and supervised the activities, biting the inside of her cheek, elbows on her knees. It should be illegal to be that beautiful without meaning to.

“Hi, Cal!” Luther chirped as a girl behind him stared with furious determination at her handiwork. “How does my hair look?”

Cal signaled for his group to keep walking back to the camp and approached the small clearing.

“It looks amazing, buddy!” Cal gave him a thumb up. To be honest, his braid of long black hair was slightly (very) crooked to the left, and Mare noticed. She hid her laugh behind cough and a fist. “It is very original.”

Luther beamed and turned slightly to wink in his fellow camper’s direction. The girl blushed and giggled and Cal wanted nothing more than to give them a bear hug and tell them how smart and kind they were. Kids were the best thing in this world. Especially when they said things like...

“Mare’s hair is still the same,” Luther sighed wearily. “Someone should do something about it.”

All the girls hummed and nodded in agreement and Mare closed her eyes and Cal could read her thoughts as she counted to ten.

“Fine, you guys win.” Ah, so her untouched hair had been a recurring topic. “Cal can braid my hair!” she said with fake excitement that went over the kids’ heads, thankfully. “If he knows how to, that is.” Her brown eyes locked with his in camaraderie, fully expecting him to turn down the task with some excuse to appease their audience.

“Ok,” he shrugged happily as he walked over to her and her smug face dissolved into a confused frown and the kids cheered.

He made a shooing motion with his hand and she moved to sit on the grass awkwardly while he took her place on the log bench, sitting with his feet placed on either side of her body.

“What the hell are you doing?” she whispered through gritted teeth so only he could hear her, craning her neck up to glare at him, when he started cracking his knuckles for dramatic effect.

Were this any other context, he would savor the warmth her body radiated to the inside of his legs. Not this context. Absolutely not.

“What does it look like I’m doing?” he smirked down at her. “Now stop moving and let me braid your hair.”

With one last suspicious look, she heaved a breath and stared ahead as he tugged the scrunchie off her hair and let the brown and purple waves spill down her back.

Cal had no fucking clue how to do braid but how hard could it be? It was like a knot with hair. Right? He looked at what the girls sitting on the grass were doing. Ok, that seemed doable. He combed his long fingers through Mare’s hair to loosen any knots and... Holy. Fucking. Shit.

He successfully hid a shudder while Mare uninterestedly hugged her knees to her chest.

He was choking on his own breath. Her hair was so soft and the scent of it was so amazing it pierced his fingertips, reached his bloodstream, and shot to his head. Jasmine and rain like that first day. Cal stilled for a moment and blinked forcefully to regain some semblance of rational thought.

“What is it?” Mare muttered curtly. Was it his imagination or did it sound more like a gasp than scolding?

“Nothing,” he said and started imitating the nearest girl’s technique. No point in lying, he bent down to whisper in her ear. “Your hair is really soft.” It wasn’t meant to come out so raspy and needy, and still...

Mare turned to the side and they were face to face. She seemed offended, but not really, with a confused glare darkening her burning gaze, a lovely red tint spreading all over her cheeks and neck, slightly parted plush lips.

She looked on the verge of kissing him or punching him. Cal prayed and ached it was the former because she licked her lips, leaving a glossy sheen and he wanted nothing more than to...

“OHHH Mare and Cal sitting in a tree!” A girl squealed, pointing at them from across the clearing and suddenly 10 pairs of devilish eyes were on them and chanting. “K-I-S-S-I-N-G!”

They jumped away from each other so fast one might think they had been electrocuted again as they rushed to explain that “No, they were NOT doing anything of the sort!”

[heresathreebee]

Wearing THAT

[Dewey Finn X Female Reader]

Summary: Reader teases Dewey in a Poison Ivy costume. You have a really hard time saying exactly what you want... Masterlist Next

Word count: 3.1k words (no beta) 

Warning(s): 17+ | teasing, lots of teasing and boners, lap sitting, near nudity, touching

AN: only Thots here, thots about Dewey Finn also is Ned British? He's British in my head

This was some sort of test. It had to be. God was testing him through you and you were not playing fair. It’s a costume party not a competition, you pompous little sycophant. And yet he can’t help but tug at the collar of his shirt. It’s not even anywhere near his throat but why else would he feel so constricted? It’s certainly not because of you…

You walked into his shared apartment wearing that and you had no idea the effect it had on him. 

Dewey watches you sling an arm around Ned and kiss Patty���s cheek in greeting. “Hi guys! Thanks for inviting me, I’ve been dying to put this on.” 

“Oh you look lovely,” Patty coos. She plucks at one of the plastic leaves on your corset. “Did you make this?! It’s so intricate.” 

You bark out a laugh. “Oh hell no! I have this cousin, right? And him and his fiancé own this shop where they make costumes for movies and theatre and if you pay ‘em right, ‘personal use.’ And they don’t ask questions what ain’t their business either.” 

“Well, I’m sold.” Ned raises his beer for a toast and Patty clinks it with her bottle of mysterious green juice. “Prost! What’s the name of the shop? Wanna see if they’re online– you know, for... support.” 

“Ned,” Patty swatted his empty hand (no need to be shy, we already know they’re freaky). 

You pat your friends on their backs and take a step towards the kitchen. “Gonna get myself a beer.” 

“Oh honey you don’t have to do that. Dewey!” The man in question nearly covered himself in his own drink when he heard his name. “Be a good host and get this lady her beer!” 

“Yes captain,” Dewey salutes and Patty can do nothing but glare in her Star Trek yellow shirt costume. Original series, of course, nothing but the best for Patricia Di Marco. 

Dewey takes a hold of the moment he has his back to you to take deep, calming breaths. He will not let this be the end of him. Your friendship means so much more to him than that and a little fancy green corset was not going to make him fuck things up with you. 

He’s ready for you when he hands you your beer. Your one arm hug is appreciated because he’s sporting a bit of wood and he’d hate to find out your corset isn’t thick enough to hide it– or god forbid you feel him on your thigh. And god, your thighs… those sheer green nylon tights were doing unspeakable things to him. Maybe if he kept you close and kept your legs out of his peripherals he could make it through the night without embarrassing himself. 

Or maybe not. 

“Are yoooouuu a college student?,” you ask and point at his inconspicuous clothes. 

“Actually– ” he opens the buttons of his shirt to reveal another shirt with a superman logo on it and buttons it back up clumsily as you laugh. “Ssshhh! Don’t tell anybody. Protect my secret.” 

“Of course,” you giggle. God you feel good hanging off him– usually he loves how physical you are but he has to figure out a way to keep his distance without offending you and quickly. “You like mine?” 

The way you pick up a thick swirling red lock and direct his attention to the very thing he’s trying not to look at is killing him. Of course you look even better up close. The leaves of your corset give the thing depth and texture, your gloves are fingerless and go over your elbows, and your heels are high, like make- him- feel- his- below- average- height high. 

“I like these.” Dewey plucks at the ring of leaves at the top of your gloves. It’s a way to keep his mind off your everything else. “Did you dye your hair?” 

“It’s a wig.” You tug on the top and then the bottom, wincing a little. “Sew in, so don’t go snatch it.” 

“I would never!” 

“Poison Ivy, eh? Think that’s one of Dewey’s favorites,” Ned blabs. 

Dewey sends him a death glare so powerful Ned chokes on his beer but you’re looking at your Spock-dressed friend so you can’t see it. 

“Oh, really?” You return your gaze to Dewey and say, “well you must be loving this, then.” 

Dewey swallows. No words come to him and there is nothing to stop the awkward silence that follows. You appear unbothered by it, maintaining eye contact as you smile almost knowingly… 

“We should play twister,” he says with the most unsure voice ever. 

“We don’t even have twister,” Patty mumbled. “Come on, there are like twenty other games setup, let’s play!” 

~

Dewey gives it a minute and when he’s free from you, he catches Ned by his pointy green ear and drags him into the hall. “Hey? What the fuck are you doing?” 

“Whah– what are you talking about?” Ned slaps at the hand fisted in his shirt but Dewey doesn’t budge. 

“You can’t just go telling people I’m into them, dude! Do you know how close you came to giving me away?!”

Ned scoffed. “Her? I hardly think she’s ignorant to your feelings, you’re not like that Steven from Austin fellow.” 

“– Are you talking about stone cold Steve Austin?"Dewey buries his face in his hands- "It’s his last name, not his birthplace–” 

“And besides…” Ned peeks around the corner to see you in the middle of some sort of posing game. Everybody's trying to take the form of some sort of vehicle, and you've got Chloe in a headlock and Vance's leg in the other hand. Ned never got to finish his thought because someone dropped a huge bowl of popcorn and that too became a game of ‘how many can you eat off the floor before Patty cleans it up.’ Ned’s got to help and he’s got to help now. 

Dewey finds himself on the couch with his fifth beer of the evening. Vance, Jeremiah, and Chloe are talking baseball stats when suddenly Dewey’s vision is filled with green and red just before you sit down. Right between his legs. He unconsciously scoots up to make room for you and before he catches on to your game, you nestle into his space by the arm of the couch and sling your legs across his like you belong there. 

Ok, something is definitely up with you. 

Would he describe you as cuddly? A little. Perhaps a more appropriate word would be… hands on. Long before he started wanting more than friendship with you, you two were always just touching. Your presence and your love language was physical. Dewey never felt like you were invading his personal space or overstepping his boundaries because he simply had none with you and the feeling was mutual. But this was something else. Something that wasn’t there before. 

Was it him? Was he fucking up his perfectly in sync companionship with you because he couldn’t keep his dick in his pants or (his heart for that matter)? He wasn’t sure if he wanted to drag you closer or push you flat on your ass right now. 

You were listening to Chloe chew Vance out for hating Gritty the mascot when you felt Dewey plant a hand on your forehead. “Hey, are you feeling ok?” 

You gently shake him off and raise a single eyebrow. He seems serious, his voice gone all soft and making you feel gooey inside. 

“You just seem… I dunno,” he fumbles, “do you want me to take you home after this?”

Hellooooo opening! “Actually, can I stay here tonight?” 

“Yeah, of course.” Fuck, who said that? Dewey? Ah, shit… 

 “Thanks,” oh oh you should not be rubbing his thigh right now… “I think I’ll go change here in a minute.”

Oh please do, please please puh-leeaaase–  

~

After a brilliant movie drinking game (which Dewey tapped out of), the crowd began to disband. 24 became 20, then 18, then 12. You went out to your car to grab your overnight stuff and Dewey was hoping for a brief reprieve from the assault of your visage. He just needed a few more people to leave so he can sequester himself and rub one out– you know, get his head straight. Ever since you left his lap he’s been rock hard, there’s not enough blood flowing to his brain. The guest count is down to 3– 2 with you in your car, and he can’t wait anymore. 

Dewey slipped into the only bathroom in the house and prayed to god nobody noticed him. He barely got his hand wrapped around his shaft when Patty’s fist banged on the door demanding he help clean up. Sulking and agitated, Dewey managed to calm down while cleaning up red solo cups, glass beer bottles, cans, and small pocket sized objects that would need to be returned to the guests after their hangovers subsided (no keys, thankfully, everybody’s got a DD). His “predicament’ is nearly forgotten when you finally return with a bundle of clothes, disappear into the bathroom and reemerge in loose sleepwear with your makeup wiped clean and uh… braless. 

You catch him looking. Dewey– surprisingly sober after he gave up drinking half way through his sixth beer– does nothing short of raise a slightly irritated eyebrow at you. “Cold in here, huh?” 

“Shut up. You know how uncomfortable it is to sleep in a bra?” 

You help him collect a couple bottles that rolled under the couch and walk with him down to Ned’s car. Patty would sort the recyclables from the trash in the morning (late morning, she did a couple rounds of tequila shots thanks to you). It’s almost like the party never happened; you’re shooting the shit again and everything is right in the world. He’s got no ulterior reaction to putting a hand on your hip– that’s just a normal thing in your perfectly platonic relationship. God, he really must have been imagining things, he was beginning to think you were actually trying to flirt with him! 

Ned’s bent over the kitchen sink with Patty and holding her hair back. He looks up as you enter the apartment and shakes his head. You and Dewey make yourself scarce by slipping into the shared bathroom to hide. You try to giggle quietly as Dewey surveys the skincare products you covered the counter with. He points to your head and asks, “you wearing that to bed?” 

“It’s sewed in, I’m not taking this off for three weeks at least,” you answer. “Get my money’s worth. I can work it like my natural hair.” 

Dewey nods. You rub your arm nervously and look for something to say, something to circle back to the whole point of showing up looking like a sexed up goddess. What do guys like? Girls wearing their clothes, right? But you need to phrase it perfectly… 

“Dewey?” He looks up from the scrubby lip balm in his hands. “I’m not quite ready to go to sleep yet and it… it is a little chilly in your place. Can I wear your jacket?” 

Just to bring your meaning home, you tug on his sleeve– the very jacket on his back. You don’t want just any jacket, you want that one, already warm and scented by him. You don’t miss the way his eyes glance past you like he was reluctant to comply. And yet… 

“Yeah, here.” He slips out of it with ease and drapes it over your shoulders. You miss the sigh of relief he makes when you pull the zipper closed and obscure your pebbling nipples. “Think I’m gonna go help Ned put Patty to bed.” 

Ned was a scrawny little thing and couldn’t carry her by himself, and she needed to be carried. Competitive by nature, it’s easy to talk her into virtually anything, especially if it feels like girl time. You need Patty in a deep sleep for your plans tonight (sorry not sorry). Dewey’s very sexy as he bears most of Patty’s weight. She’s clinging to Ned, arms around his neck and babbling incoherently while Dewey’s got an arm around her waist and legs, keeping Ned on his feet. You skirt ahead of them and open the bedroom door, help pull her shoes off, her captain insignia, her earrings, you even wipe the spit from her lips and the eyeliner smeared on her cheek. 

“You’re my favorite ever,” she whimpers, “I love you so much, you’re like my best friend ever…” 

You shush her gently. “You say that about everybody when you’re drunk, baby. I promise I’ll make you a fat breakfast in the morning but you gotta go to sleep now, OK?” 

Patty nods. She snuggles into her pillow just as Ned is taking up position as the big spoon when she looks back up at you and asks, “can we go for a run together?” 

You blink evenly. “Yes.” You already regret it as she smiles big and wide. It would be just your luck this is the one thing she doesn't forget in the morning.

Finally it's just you and Dewey in the hallway. It feels like you're standing between two choices: his open bedroom door and the living room. But it seems like only you can feel the weight of it. 

"Are you sure you want to stay over?," Dewey asks, "you can use my bed." 

You perk up out of your heavy mood. "Really?" 

"Yeah, I'll take the couch tonight." 

He can't possibly miss the way you instantly deflate but he's still not putting the pieces of the puzzle together. "Dewey. I'm not going to kick you out of your own room." 

He shrugs. "Suit yourself. I'll grab a few blankets." 

There's a storage closet in the main building with this one extra soft blanket that Dewey knows you'll love. You on the other hand have got no more patience left. Once the man leaves, you stomp your foot and decide to try one final act.

Dewey returns to the apartment to find an empty, quiet living room. Ned and Patty are in bed, but where are you? He wanders past the bathroom door because it's dark inside and checks his room. There you are reclining on his bed. He could have sworn you were wearing pants before but your legs are bare and his jacket hugs the tops of your thighs. He also could have sworn you were wearing a shirt. He finds both items folded neatly beside you with your underwear right on top. 

Oh…

This cannot be happening right now. He just survived tonight by the skin of his teeth and now you were doing this to him. He’s going to pull his hair out, going to scream, it’s so frustrating because he can’t just ask you what you want– you’ll turn the question back on him and he’ll fuck it up. He lets the blanket fall from his grip and with a heavy sigh he whispers in a weak voice, “straight answers only. What are you doing to me? Why you doin’ this?” 

You cock your head and answer leisurely, your eye drifting across the items in his room. “You know that’s not how I roll, but if you want me to address the elephant in the room: I'm naked in your bed right now." 

Against his better judgement, Dewey moves closer. "I can see that." 

One step closer and your eyes find him again. Like an invitation you lean back more, even uncross your legs but go no further. Dewey swallows his tongue and waits for you to elaborate and every second is agonizingly slow. 

"You think you can just walk around here with your pretty face and cocky little attitude like it’s nothing,” you said accusingly. 

Dewey glared at you. “That’s the pot calling the kettle black.” 

“Well we're in agreement then,” you’re almost sneering at him, but he knows it’s because you’re really frustrated with yourself, “I look and I touch and I feel but I don’t know, you know?” 

“Not a clue,” he sighs and sits himself beside you. He’s done trying to keep his distance. “Let’s go back to you being naked in my bed.” 

“Do you like it?” 

“Do I like it?,” he repeats incredulously. Dewey leans back on his elbow to look you over from top to bottom. You look damn good in nothing but his jacket. You’ve got the long ends of your red hair in braids that sweep down to your navel. The zipper rests tantalizingly right below your ribcage. Dewey dares to reach out a mollifying hand and give a tiny stroke to that silver keeper. He cannot bring himself to speak above a whisper as he nods, “yeah, I… I like it.” 

The tension leaves your shoulders and you wear a small grin. “It’s not too late to take it back. Say no, and I’ll put my clothes back on and sleep on the couch like none of this ever happened. This,” you point between the two of you, “doesn’t change unless we want it to.” 

… this was real. In answer, Dewey’s chin wrinkles and he watches his finger travel upwards, drawing a light line up the expanse of your chest between your breasts to feel you shiver at his touch. Thing is he doesn’t want to say no, but wouldn’t it be better? Safer? He asks the question he’s been dying to know all night. “What do you want from me?” 

“Whatever I can get,” you answer truthfully. “Whatever you’ll allow. Don’t trouble yourself with labels and things ‘cause what we have has always been so much more than that.” 

Dewey feels a weight lift off of his chest. His hand works around your waist and drags you closer, halfway under him and he rests his perspiring forehead on your breastbone. Whatever happens next happens, for better or for worse. 

You’re not troubled when Dewey moves the jacket to expose one of your breasts, however you are taken aback when he bites you. You barely manage to stifle your yelp when you feel him growl against your flesh and the sound vibrates straight to your core. Dewey drags his head up and stares you dead in the eye as he kneads your savaged breast. 

“All night,” he growls, “all fucking night for this? We could have done this ages ago. The salon, the drive in, Chloe’s cat’s birthday– grocery shopping last week. But no, instead you pick a party full of people and you’ve had me riled up for hours.” 

Dewey pinches your hardened peak and you keen. “‘m sorry…” 

“No you’re not, but don’t worry: you will be.”

AN: Check Out Part 2 @hoodoo12 @go-commander-kim @escape-your-grape @softbeej @imma-fucking-nerd @werwulfy

[daveyjacobss]

skeletons in the bathroom

racetrack higgins x reader

summary: it’s spooky season, and is there anything scarier than having to confront and admit your feelings for one of your closest friends? (or, in which y/n is helping race get ready for a halloween party and desperately trying not to think about how much she wants to kiss him.)

a/n: i did it!! a halloween fic out for october 2020!! sorry it’s so late in the month, life has been very hectic with an overload of assignments and plenty of politics induced stress. anyway this is unedited so sorry in advance but i hope you like it :)

masterlist

__________

This had been such a bad idea. Why on earth had she agreed to this? What kind of astounding lack of brain cells had led to her saying yes to attending her own goddamn funeral?

"Albert, you would leave flowers at my grave, wouldn't you?" She turned to look at him just in time to see him roll his eyes. Jojo and Finch, sitting across from them at their table in the library, both stared at her with equally confused and amused expressions.

"Y/N if you tell me you're gonna die one more time, I'll literally kill you myself." Albert fixed her with a halfhearted glare, brushing his hair out of his face. She groaned and dropped her head down on top of her arms, resting lazily in the tabletop. Jojo laughed quietly at her, but she didn't have the heart to give him a death stare in return.

"Out of curiosity," Finch started, effectively abandoning his work, "what kind of flowers would you want?" She lifted her head, pursing her lips in concentration as she thought the question over.

"I don't know, either something really pretty or something ridiculously dramatic." Albert sighed beside her, finally putting his pencil down. Jojo had stopped actually trying to get work done a half hour prior. "Like, some pretty marigolds or daisies would be cool, ya know? But, also, a single red rose would have a very nice effect." Jojo nodded along with her.

"What about black dahlias?" He asked. Y/N perked up at that.

"Oh, yes! Definitely achieving that she-was-probably-murdered-and-the-killer-is-leaving-flowers vibe." She high fived Jojo while Finch shook his head at them. Albert hit her from her right side—lightly, but she let out a loud "ow!" anyway.

"Can you stop moping and acting like you're gonna die? You're the one who got yourself into this mess." She went back to being miserable immediately, groaning again for effect.

"Will someone please explain why she's dying?" Finch asked, directed more at the other two boys than at Y/N. Albert rolled his eyes again.

"Race asked her to do his makeup for his skeleton costume before the party tonight and she said yes, but now she thinks she's gonna die when she does it." He punctuated his words with a pointed look at her which effectively communicated all of his exasperation as well as the sentiment he had been expressing to her for almost two years, that she should just go for it and ask Race out. She ignored it completely.

"I am going to die!" She threw her hands in the air for dramatic effect, giving Finch and Jojo her best 'I'm in despair' look. "I'm gonna have to be ridiculously close to his face—and his lips—for way too long! I'm gonna either go insane and launch myself out the fucking window or die of embarrassment."

All three boys laughed at her. Insulted, she crossed her arms over her chest and pouted at them.

"Y/N, it'll be fine," Finch said, pretending to wipe tears from his eyes. "Anyway, why can't you just ask him out already and not have to deal with the funeral arrangements?" She offered him her best deadpan stare.

"C'mon, Y/N," Jojo chimed in. "What's the worst that can happen?"

"Oh no, don't get her started," Albert groaned.

"The worst that could happen? Are you kidding?" She looked at them incredulously. "Well, for starters, I could tell him I like him and then he could be disgusted because why would he ever like me back when he's him and I'm me, and then, because he was your friend first and things are super awkward between me and him, we drift apart, and then I lose all of my friends and I die alone with no one to leave black dahlias on my grave in order to entertain my dramatics." Finch blinked, staring at her with wide eyes as if he couldn't quite believe what he had just heard.

"Hold on," Jojo spoke up again, face contorted with anger. "He would not be disgusted. Even if he didn't like you back, which he does—"

"Does not," she grumbled.

"Does too," they all answered in unison.

"He wouldn't be mean about it," Jojo continued.

"And we wouldn't stop being your friends," Albert added.

"Plus, even if we suddenly become arch enemies I'm totally still leaving black dahlias on your grave for dramatics," Finch grinned, winking at her. That got her to laugh a little, smiling back at him.

"I just..." She sighed, her shoulders slumping. "I don't want to ruin anything, and I don't want everything to change between us. I'm fine being his friend, that's enough for me. It's just hard to keep my feelings in check when he gets too close to me." Her eyebrows furrowed while she fidgeted with her fingers, not liking how vulnerable she felt while telling all of them that. Albert's arm slid around her shoulders, bringing her into his side. It was awkward and uncomfortable leaning across the gap between their chairs, but she enjoyed the comfort anyway.

"You don't have to do anything you don't want to," he said gently. "You have our support either way." Jojo and Finch nodded, both smiling encouragingly at her. She smiled back at them, moving to gather up all of her papers. The boys followed suit, shoving everything back in their backpacks.

"Thank you," she said quietly just as they were all pushing their chairs in.

"Anytime," Albert grinned brightly, throwing his arm around her again and leading them out of the building. A wind blew as they walked out into the October sun, sending a chill through her body and causing her to lean into Albert's body for warmth. They all started walking in the direction of their on-campus apartments, pointing out the most colorful trees and joking about the upcoming party with easy smiles.

"Speak of the devil," Jojo muttered from behind her. She went to turn back to look at him and ask what he meant, but Albert pulled her more securely against him and she laughed.

"Hey guys!" Finch called out, waving wildly. She looked in the direction he was facing and saw Race walking in the opposite direction with Romeo across the street from them. She felt heat rush to her face automatically, lifting her hand in a small wave while sporting a shy smile. Albert and Jojo waved enthusiastically with Finch, receiving an equally energetic wave from Romeo and a small wave from Race. Y/N tilted her head in confusion, frowning. Race never missed the chance to make an ordeal out something as small as seeing his friends across the street, was something wrong? No one else seemed concerned, though, and their small group kept moving. If anything, Finch and Jojo seemed amused, snickering quietly behind her and Albert.

They parted to go to their respective apartments, all three boys giving Y/N a hug goodbye. She took full advantage of their attempts at comfort, holding them tightly and burying her head in their chests. Once she was back in her apartment, her roommates thankfully back home for the weekend, she dropped her bag on the floor and took a deep breath. Race was set to come over a little while later to get ready for the party, that left her some time to clean up a little. He wouldn't care if the apartment was dirty, but she couldn't get rid of the urge to make sure the counters were decluttered and the bathroom where she would be doing his makeup smelled nice. Plus, at least it would give her something to do to distract herself from her ever growing anxiety.

She was definitely going to die.

__________

Race was ten minutes late, but Y/N had already figured he would be when his "omw" text didn't come until a minute after he was supposed to be at her apartment. He grinned at her when she opened the door, arms (adorably) holding the straps of his backpack that she assumed was carrying his costume.

"I wasn't sure if you would want me to put on the costume before or after the makeup," he said as he walked in. "So I just brought it to change into." She liked the way he looked so comfortable in her apartment, facing her casually with his hair messy from the wind. She smiled softly at him, unable to contain her ever present joy at seeing him.

"Before, definitely. If you put it on after you might mess your face up." He nodded, already shrugging his bag off his shoulder.

"Your room okay?" He asked, gesturing in the direction of her bedroom.

"'Course. Just don't mess with anything in there." She playfully pointed a finger at his chest and he laughed as he moved into her room and closed the door behind him. She walked into the bathroom, taking deep breaths and trying to tell herself everything would be okay. Her and Race were friends, and she was perfectly capable of helping him with his Halloween makeup like a normal person. Maybe. Hopefully. Kinda. Probably not. God, she was hopeless.

He found her in the bathroom obsessively reorganizing the makeup, dressed in his full skeleton getup. She smiled when she saw him in it, happy that he hadn't picked something with a good that would have concealed his beautiful curls. With his lanky stature and gangly limbs, the costume worked perfectly for him. He grinned back at her, doing a little shimmy that made her laugh.

"You like?" He wiggled his eyebrows at her and she shook her head in a amusement.

"It looks good," she confirmed, their usual joking banter hindered by her nerves. "We should get started so we have enough time, I still need to get changed and finish my makeup, too." She patted the bathroom counter and he followed her hand, hoisting himself up so he was sitting on the counter facing her, swinging his legs.

She tried not to think too hard as she started on his face, going in with a layer of white before anything else. She could feel his breath on her wrist, but she tried not to think about it. Thinking about it meant her own breath would hitch and then, because their faces were so close, he would notice. She brought a hand up to his jaw to steady his face and resolutely did not think about how easy it would be to pull him to her and kiss him.

Part of her wanted to listen to the boys. She wanted to say fuck it and tell him how she felt about him. She wanted to flirt with him while she had him at her mercy like this, wanted to lean in and put a hand on his thigh for balance just to see how he would react. She wanted to know if his breathing would change, if his heart would skip a beat, if he would look at her with wide eyes or if he would simply smirk and carry on. Or maybe he wouldn't do anything, because it would nothing but a meaningless gesture to him. But, god, she wanted to try. And she wanted to kiss him so badly.

Still, the other part of her triumphed. The part that told her he didn't feel the same way about her, that to him she was just a good friend and if she went and did something stupid she would ruin that.

She asked him to close his eyes and he did so obediently. She took the chance to look at his lips while he wouldn't be able to notice, realizing how quiet he'd been the whole time so far. Once his face was fully covered with white he opened his eyes and she took a small break, giving herself some time to calm down her erratic heart beat. He kicked his legs out again without her standing in front of him to block them.

"So," he started, staring down at his feet instead of looking at her. She tilted her head slightly, waiting for him to continue. "You and Albert, huh?" Her eyebrows furrowed and she stopped short as she went to grab a brush, paused in confusion. "What's going on there?"

"What do you mean?" She asked, trying to laugh to diffuse whatever tension had just overtaken the room but only managing a nervous chuckle.

"You two looked pretty cozy earlier, outside. Do I gotta start preparing myself for you to be acting all gross and couple-y whenever we go out now?" His voice sounded strained, like he was trying to force the question to be casual. She figured it was because he was upset Albert and her wouldn't tell him something like—which, they totally would if that was at all a possibility. Which it wasn't. The whole idea was so ridiculous a strangled laugh bubbled out of her throat.

"Oh, god no. There is nothing romantic happening between me and Albert." She looked down at her hands, avoiding having to look at his face. "No, it was just cold, you know? And he was trying to comfort me because I was upset." Suddenly he was there, standing in front of her. He gently tilted her chin up to look at him and used his other hand to grab hers.

"Babe, what's wrong? Are you okay?"

She was going to cry. She was going to burst into tears, standing in her own bathroom with Race's touch overwhelming her senses. It wasn't fair. It wasn't fair that he was so handsome and funny and kind and loving. It wasn't fair that whenever he looked at her she felt like no one else existed. It wasn't fair that she couldn't breathe with his hand still resting just under her chin. And the universe was just playing dirty having him call her babe like it was nothing, like it didn't make her heart swell in her chest. Like it didn't absolutely break her. She was definitely gonna cry, her eyes already watery.

His concern only seemed to increase when he saw the distraught look on her face. He tried to take another step toward her but she moved backward, detaching herself from his hands. She breathed deeply, running her hands through her hair as she tried to keep herself from sobbing. He looked so worried—so sad—and it just wasn't fair.

"I'm—" Her words got caught on the lump in her throat. "It's nothing, really. I'm just being dumb." He looked at her disbelievingly.

"Y/N c'mon, you're clearly upset, let me—" He cut himself off at the way she back away from him again while he reached out, hurt flashing across his face. "Here, why don't we just skip out on the party? I'll stay here with you and we can watch old Disney Halloween movies or something." She wanted that so bad, she wanted that more than anything she had ever wanted. But she couldn't, it would only hurt her more.

"No," she sniffled, regaining her composure. "No, you should go. I might stay back, I dunno. But I don't wanna keep you from having fun."

"Hey." His voice was soft, the corners of his lips turning upwards just slightly. He was so beautiful she could have died over it. "I always have fun with you, party or not. If you don't go, I don't go."

"God, Race. You can't just—you can't say things like that." She huffed while he blanched in confusion. "It's not fair."

"What? I don't—"

"Listen, I'll finish your makeup, yeah? And then we'll go to the party and we can pretend like this never happened. Okay?" He nodded mutely, slowly positioning himself back on the counter. The concern wasn't gone from his eyes and his mouth was set in a frown, but he complied.

Not crying was a constant effort the entire time she finished his skeleton makeup. She felt her lip quiver at more than one point and Race's eyes kept darting down toward it. She did her best to keep it steady, not wanting him to see her cry. He had seen her cry before, of course, over classes and movies and the like, but there was a special kind of shame associated with him seeing her cry over him.

It wasn't until after she was done that he spoke up again. "Do you not want to be alone with me?" He asked it so quietly she was sure it must not have come from him, used to his loud, boisterous voice. Her heart broke all over again.

"That's not it, Race. You know that, right? It's not your fault I'm upset." It wasn't, really. If she was going to blame anyone it would all be on herself.

"What, then?" The joking tone was back in his voice, clearly trying to diffuse the tension and brighten the mood. "Too afraid you won't be able to control yourself around me?" Yes. "I know you'd love to jump these bones." She laughed despite herself, playfully hitting his arm. Her reaction made him smile again, and she was glad. He always knew how to cheer her up.

It only took a little while longer for her to change into her costume (just a regular witch in shades of black and purple) and put on her makeup. Race watched her as she put on her dark lipstick, making her nervous and subsequently causing her hands to shake, but she made it through alright.

They left just a bit before the party was supposed to start, Y/N shivering in the cold air as they walked. Race glanced at her a few times, seemingly conflicted, before cautiously wrapping an arm around her. She leaned into his touch and he gripped shoulder more firmly, pulling her into his side. When they stopped to let a car go by she turned to him and wrapped both her arms around him, basking in his warmth. Race was like a heater, generating warmth from the day she met him. He returned her embrace, rubbing her back soothingly.

"Are you sure you're okay?" He mumbled into her ear. A shiver went down her spine at his voice so close to her ear, but she nodded, holding him tighter. They were later to the party then they should've been, having spent a good amount of time in that embrace. It had made her heart all fluttery, not to mention the way it did somersaults every time Race looked at her for the rest of the walk (which was a lot, he must have been really worried).

She expected him to split off once they entered, going to look for some of his other friends, but he stuck by her side. It made her smile, the butterflies in her stomach going wild. They went to grab drinks together and ran into Finch.

"Hey!" He smiled dopily, clearly a little tipsy already. "The makeup looks great," he gestured at Race's face. "And you two look so cute together." Heat rushed to Y/N's face as she quickly took a sip of her drink in order to avoid having to respond. Race simply laughed.

"Yeah, Y/N did an awesome job, right? I knew she would, though. I could feel it in my bones." Y/N groaned and Finch cringed.

"That was awful, dude." Race grinned proudly anyway, waving as Finch left to go back to the friends he was with.

"Did you pick this costume just so you could make bad jokes?" Y/N turned to face Race, raising an eyebrow. He winked, which was all the answer she needed. She wanted to give some sort of sarcastic remark in return, but the wink made her giggle nervously. He seemed content with her response all the same.

About three thousand skeleton jokes later (he had literally greeted Davey by saying "bonejour." Davey had promptly turned around and left the two of them without saying a word), Y/N and Race were sat on the couch together, chatting amicably. She felt better with a bit of alcohol in her veins and a few buckets of false hope from the fact that Race hadn't tried to leave her side once the whole time they'd been there.

"You're such an idiot," she laughed uncontrollably as he relayed a story about him following a squirrel across campus the week prior.

"What can I say?" He grinned cheekily. Her smile dropped.

"Don't you dare—"

"I'm a bonehead." He knocked on his head for good measure.

"Okay that's it, I'm leaving." She moved as if to get up before Race reached out to grab her arm.

"Y/N, no!" He managed to get out through his laughter. "Don't leave me bonely!" She stared at him in disbelief.

"You're the worst," she groaned as she let him pull her back into her seat next to him.

"But you love me anyway." He poked her side and she looked at his face. The makeup looked good, she had to admit, but she wished it had been able to mask his face better. Because looking at his face was still looking at his face, makeup or no makeup, and she had a bad habit of getting caught up in looking at his face. His features seemed to tense, his Adam's apple bobbing as he swallowed harshly. "Drinks!" He said suddenly, breaking their staring contest and practically jumping out of his seat. "I'm gonna go get us more drinks." She nodded, eyebrows furrowed as she watched him scurry off. That had certainly been strange.

"Fancy seeing you here." She turned to see Albert falling into Race's spot beside her, grinning around his own drink.

"Hey," she smiled, adjusting her witch hat.

"You and lover boy work things out yet?" She punched his arm and he gaped at her.

"Shut up," she hissed. "It's not gonna happen, let it go." He rolled his eyes.

"You sure? Because, from what I've seen, he hasn't stopped staring at you all night." She glared at the redhead, pouting.

"Stop giving me hope, asshole. It just makes this worse."

"Makes what worse?" She looked up to find Race standing in front of them, two drinks in hand. She took one from him with a smile.

"Nothing," she shook her head. "Albert's just being annoying."

"Isn't he always?" Race asked with a smirk the same time that Albert said "hey!" Deciding this would be her best chance at payback for teasing her about her crush on Race, she pushed Albert off the couch. Race laughed loudly, stepping over his friend to return to his seat. She smiled brightly at him and he grinned back, bumping her shoulder with his. She had to take a drink to stop the flustered laughter from escaping her throat.

"You two suck," Albert groaned from their feet. It only made them laugh more, still giggling even as Albert stood up grumpily and walked away without saying goodbye.

"Your costume looks really good, by the way." She turned to Race, her smile faltering. "I didn't tell you earlier, but I like it." He said it so earnestly, looking right into her eyes. The only thing she could think of was hoping the boys were ready with those black dahlias, because she was a total goner.

"Thank you," she said softly, lost in his gaze. She thought about them in the bathroom, how she had wanted to put her hand on his thigh just to see how he would react. Thinking of what Albert had said and taking another gulp of her drink, she did just that. She leaned forward and put her hand on his thigh to steady herself. He froze. It was hard to tell over the noise of the party, but she thought she might have heard his breath hitch. She couldn't look away from him, her eyes once again finding his lips.

"You spent so long on this makeup," he muttered. "And it looks really cool." She tilted her head in confusion.

"Huh?"

"I really don't wanna ruin it. I'm sorry."

"Why would you—"

But then he kissed her, so no question she could have asked mattered anyway. He was kissing her. Oh, Albert was gonna laugh so hard when he heard about this.

She kissed him back fervently, one of her hands tangling in the curls at the back of his head while the other remained on his thigh to keep herself steady. One of his hands rested lightly on her waist, squeezing just slightly, while the other caressed her jaw. It felt like in the bathroom earlier that night when he had tilted her chin to look at him, but so much better.

He pulled back before she was ready, eyes still closed as she unconsciously chased his lips. She opened her eyes to see his makeup smudged and definitely some her lipstick on his lips, a warm feeling settling in her chest. But his mouth was pulled into a frown and it sobered her quickly. He was pulling at his hair, his eyes wide with panic and sorrow.

"I'm sorry," he panted. "You're upset, I shouldn't have done that. I've been trying to cheer you up and now I've, like, totally taken advantage of you when you're vulnerable and—"

"Race." He looked at her, face practically begging for forgiveness. She reached for his hands with a small smile. "You're not taking advantage of me. I was only upset because I thought I didn't have a chance with you." She shrugged slightly, averting her eyes. He gaped at her.

"You didn't have a chance with me? Are you kidding?" He tightened his grip on her hands, pulling himself closer to her. "Y/N, I've been pining after you since, like, the day we met. You're ridiculously out of my league." She looked at him with wide eyes, meeting his gaze. They both broke out into grins at the same time before she was leaning in again and he was following.

He tasted like candy and alcohol and she couldn't have asked for anything better. They slid closer to each other on the couch until her hands were clasped together behind his neck, playing with his curls, and his were holding her waist. She couldn't get enough of him. She didn't think she would ever get enough of him. They were both breathing heavily when they pulled away again, foreheads resting against each other.

"You know," Y/N breathed. "If that whole 'just the two of us spending the night at my apartment and watching old halloween movies' offer is still on the table...." He laughed quietly, his head falling to the crook in her neck.

"Definitely still on the table." He pressed a light kiss to her neck and she was dragging him into a standing position immediately, fully ready to get away from all the other partygoers. She wouldn't be able to handle it if his hands wandered any further than they had already gone, she needed time to breathe and process—preferably away from the crowd.

He held her hand and lead her through the sea of people to the front door. Jojo caught sight of them as they made their way out and, presumably seeing their joint hands and messed up makeup, whooped at them. Y/N laughed and Race stuck his tongue out at his friend.

"Which movie do you wanna watch first?" She asked as they walked back, holding onto his arm and leaning into his side.

"Oh, definitely Halloweentown." She smiled, pulling him in for another kiss. He chuckled when they pulled apart. "You know, I would say a skeleton pun right now, but I don't have the guts to ruin this moment."

"Oh my god, Race."

__________

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[percywinchester27]

A lot like ‘Us’ (Part-34)

Word count: 3.4K

Pairing: Sam X Reader AU

Warnings: Feels, fluff

Series Summary: Y/N Y/L/N is eager and honestly, still in awe that she managed to get herself an acceptance from Stanford Law School. On the face of it, her life seems as put together, mysterious and independent as one might hope for. On the insides, she carries the burden of past that haunts her till date. Seemingly, she’d left it all behind; that is until she sets foot in the class of the Law School’s youngest, most promising professor.

A/N: The story employs two different timelines. The present timeline for the story takes place in 2014. Please let me know what you guys think :)

Beta: @deanssweetheart23​​. I love you so much, darling <3

A lot like ‘Us’ masterlist

The rest of the week was hard.

There were things you wanted to do and then things that you had to do. Unfortunately for you, the Venn diagram of those two things were two circles that did not touch.

Normally, you loved your job, you loved studying and your classes. But sitting through Sam’s class was becoming a new, different type of torture. The pretension was wearing you down. You could see it grating him, too. You rarely spoke up in his class now, trying not to draw attention, neither did he call upon you like he did with other students. 

The library was still your second home, though, thanks to the untimely desertion of the other odd shifts librarian, you were left to run double shifts. Molly was sorry about it, but she didn’t have a solution for you, not until she had a new hire. That meant you were stuck in the library all the time. The guys in the apartment were starting to miss you. Kevin came over one evening to inform you everything sucked when you weren’t around. His face had made you hug him.

As for you? Without the free evenings, you couldn’t go over to see Max. You missed him terribly and it would do no good to whine about that to Sam, since you were still unsure about how he would take your excessive attachment to his son. 

Not that you didn't have the chance to talk to Sam. After Sam put Max to bed, each night he’d call. You would sit in the alcove of the library widow and talk to him for hours- about the day, the classes and everything under the sun. Sam told you about the cases he was working on, the judges he really disliked and the girl Chase was chasing. Sam thought he was named aptly. He was also your faithful informant about Max. Apparently the playground bullies were back at it with the mean words. You blurted out loud how you wanted to punch the kids and Sam piled on top of that. Cheerful conversations about shaking kids followed.

It felt so juvenile to talk with him over the phone, like when he worked in New York and you were stuck in Lawrence, but not quite. Now, it was exciting to imagine him blushing on the other end when you accidentally said something complementary. Or if a student decided to stay in the library late night, you had to giggle in hushed voices so they wouldn’t overhear your conversations. The thrill of it was exciting. Those few hours had become the highlight of your day.

So, when Madison asked you what you were smiling about in the last lecture on Friday, you had to make up a reason. You couldn’t very well tell her that the bruise Sam was sporting on his cheek was because Max outran him on the basketball court and Sam slipped and fell.

“Just thinking of something funny.”

“Wouldn’t have to do with the green eyed hottie from Monday, would it?” Madison wiggled her eyebrows.

“Who, Dean?” You burst out laughing. “Maddie! He’s married to my sister.”

She laughed with you, face apologetic. “Dang! He’s really hot. Is it bad that I’m sorry he is married?”

“Definitely not,” you giggled. The good old Winchester genes had caused many casualties.

On the dais below, Sam collected his things.

“Ooohh, Professor Winchester is heading out. I better catch him before he leaves. You wanna come? Talk about the assignment?”

“No, you go on.” Sam had given you a run down of the assignment last night. You wanted to pout that he was right. You could have done better.

“Still awkward about the whole drowning thing, huh?”

You looked away, not wanting to remember the pool.

Madison wasn’t paying attention. “You were… I don’t know, delirious. You kept calling him by his name and…” Madison looked at you warily. She did not complete the sentence.

“Y/N saw the opportunity and took it,” said Rebecca from the next row. “I would sell my soul to be lifted like that.”

You slung your bag around your shoulders and made a move to get up. For all you cared, Rebecca could get hit by a truck. Not only were you furious at her for planning that prank with Brad, it made you feel murderous when she objectified Sam like that, reducing him to some greasy creep of a professor. It was insulting.

“Wait up now, sweetie!” She came up from behind. “Don’t act so prissy now. We all know you’re not as innocent as you make yourself out to be.”

“Excuse me?”

“You think I’m blind? To not see how you’re playing with all these men to get what you want? First, you have Brad panting after you, so you get the attention? Then you’re dancing with some random blue eyed man at the induction dance. The very next day you’re swaying in the arms of Chase Lincoln of all people. The moment you touch the pool water, somehow Sam Winchester is miraculously saving you… and two days later you’re crying like a damsel in distress in the arms of yet another man!” She was counting off her fingers. “And people call me slutty! I’m going to find out what your secret is, Y/N. Because I know you have one! And when I do...”

“You know what, Rebecca?” You said as calmly as you could. “Why don’t you go screw yourself.”

With that you headed straight for the library. When Madison caught up with you, her face was red. “Can’t believe I was ever friends with that hag! Gave her piece of my mind.”

“Madison, you should catch professor Winchester before he leaves. I’ll be okay.”

She assessed your words against your expression, then nodded and left.

You wanted to be by yourself. 

Thankfully, cataloging was time-consuming and tedious. It took your mind off of Rebecca’s awful words. For the life of you, you couldn’t understand why she was so mean to you. 

“Excuse me, miss, can I borrow this book?” Enquired a sweet voice. 

You dropped the marker in your hand and looked up. Max was standing beyond the desk, a huge grin on his face. You gave a little yelp of your own and hurried from behind the counter to throw your arms around him, kissing him on his cheek. 

“Gosh, I’ve been dying to meet you,” you said, pulling back to look at him. 

He was wearing a plaid shirt over a small faded t-shirt and jeans. Such a mini-Sam. You couldn’t resist the urge to lean over and kiss his other cheek.

Max started blushing, looking down at his shoes.

“What’re you doing here?” You asked, leading him to one of the benches.

“Alex broke her arm last night. She couldn’t come over today. Dad’s got work. He asked me to hang out here.”

“Oh, no, is Alex okay?”

Max snickered. “Yeah. She was trying to sneak out for a party and fell out of the window.”

You pursed your lips trying not to laugh with him. “Poor girl.”

“Aunt Jody’s super-mad!” He added and you couldn’t help the giggle that burst through your lips.

“Max, is that you?” Molly asked, sticking her head from behind the shelves. “Darn kid! It’s been ages. Where did you run off to?”

“Mechanics camp!” He told her. “I know where an engine goes now. And how to hot-wire a car.”

“They taught you that at the camp?” You asked, skeptic.

“No, uncle Dean did.”

This time you laughed in earnest.

“You know Max?” Molly frowned.

You nodded. “Remember my little friend I told you about?”

“The one you were holding a bake sale for?”

“Yep, he’s the one.”

Molly put her hand to her lips. “Well, no shit! Do you know who his father is?”

You and Max immediately looked at each other, confirming your secret with a tiniest of nods. 

“He’s Sam’s boy, this cute little nugget here.” Molly pulled his cheek. To Max’s credit, he didn’t rub his cheek afterwards.

Which reminded you. “You wait right here, Max. I’ll be back in a minute.” You quickly found the stash of cookies you were saving for tonight's dinner and hurried back to him. Eating at the library wasn’t allowed, but Max was an exception to every rule. “Cookies for you. I know these are your favourite.”

Max’s entire face lit up. True to his nature, he offered you one before digging in. You watched as he took a few bites, sneaking looks to the book he was holding- Adventures of Sinbad. 

“I read one of those when I was kid. It had a monster bird that carried Sinbad away to its nest.”

“Oh, the Roc! That one’s my favorite!” Max clapped his hand and the cookies clattered to the floor.

“I’m so sorry,” he said, trying to pick up the bag.

You stopped him with a gentle nudge. “Let me.” After cleaning the cookie crumbs from the carpet, you unwound the scarf from around your neck and used it to clean the crumbs stuck to Max’s mouth and shirt, fussing over getting it all away.

When you made him stand up to clean the hem of his pants, you noticed Sam standing behind you, arms crossed over his chest. He had a peculiar expression on his face- tender but also guarded.

“You’re not supposed to eat the library, young man!” Sam tried for stern, but ended up sounding amused.

You straightened up. “I make the rules here. Max can do whatever he wants.”

Max gave Sam a smug look, before running to him. In a motion that must have been more of less a reflex, Sam reached out and hefted Max up in his arms. 

“Look, what I found!” Max showed him the book.

Sam made a face. “Sinbad again? That sixth voyage was lame.”

“I wanna find out how it ends. There’s only one adventure left!”

“Alright, but this is the last of Arabian tales for the year. I get second hand sea-sickness just reading about it. I’m starting to miss Charlie and the chocolate factory.”

“You hated Charlie and the chocolate factory!”

Sam smirked. “You’re this close to getting my point.”

Max turned the book over. “We’re out of authors,” he told you.

The words shook you out of your quiet and you smoothened your expression. The scene before you was making your throat close up. You had never seen them together before. Max’s entire body language changed- his shoulders relaxed and he became less polite… just a bit more demanding, the way a child should be. Sam on the other hand radiated contentment. His voice changed, becoming softer, loving when he spoke to Max. You were sure you had been staring at them hungrily as if you couldn’t get enough of the interaction.

“Any suggestions?” Sam asked, tone still mild.

“T-Tolkein,” you stuttered. “You should try The Hobbit.”

Sam rolled his eyes. “Elven songs. Wonderful.”

Molly came over to greet Sam and you excused yourself to go back to the desk and take a stock of the emotions coursing through you. At any point it could get too much and you didn't want either of them to see that.  

On their way out, Max waved at you. “Bye, Y/N!”

“Bye, Max.” You blew him a kiss. “You turned my day around, bud!”

There were too many people in the vicinity, so when it came to Sam, you nodded. “Professor.”

He mirrored your gesture. “Ms. Y/L/N.” And with a look full of promise of later, he walked away. You waved at Max till he was out of sight.

“Such a lovely boy,” Molly sighed. “Horrendous business what happened to him.”

“Yeah.” You cut the topic short, still unable to think of Max’s past without feeling faint. Thinking about it was so hard for you, Max had lived through it. 

Molly was in no mood to change the subject.

“Sam’s an amazing guy to give up the lawyer life and settle down here for that kid.”

You narrowed your eyes. “What do you mean?”

Molly threw out her hands, slightly embarrassed. “It’s Sam’s personal choice and all that, but he had a solid career in LA. After that Simmons affair blew up in the media, he could’ve stuck around and bagged A-list celebrities as clients. He moved out to this place for Max’s sake- so there was some normalcy and stability in his life. Then, again, Sam’s had his share of downs.”

Your back felt like ice, knowing what was coming.

“I’m not supposed to talk about it but it’s just you.” Molly leaned in closer. “Did you know his wife left him?”

She must have interpreted whatever your face showed as shock, because Molly continued. “Don’t know much about the whole thing. I heard bits and parts from the grape wine. Some girl he met in Kansas straight out of Yale. Took a plunge in a couple of months and this girl bolted not even a year into the marriage. Can you believe that? I mean, look at him… What the fuck was she looking for that he didn’t have!”

You could taste the blood by biting into your lip too hard.

“Never heard of him dating anyone since. I think he’s still in love with her.” Molly whistled. “At least they have each other- Max and Sam. That kid spends a lot of time here. You’ll keep finding reasons to feed your little friend cookies.” Molly flashed you a grin. You couldn’t quite return it.

It was past twelve when your phone rang. You’d just locked the library behind you and had given up on all hopes of the call.

You hurried to pick it up.

“Hey,” Sam breathed. “Sorry it took me so long.”

“It’s alright,” you sighed in relief at the sound of his voice. The sinking feeling in your stomach since the talk with Molly began to dissipate. 

“It’s your fault really,” Sam said. “Max liked The Hobbit too much and went to bed real late. How am I supposed to wake him in time for his class tomorrow?”

His concerns were so normal, comfortingly mundane. Sam made it sound so easy, when in fact, all this must have been so hard. One time you heard someone say a mean thing about Sam’s wife and it had you rankled. Sam must’ve lived through years of whispers, stories and ugly rumours. He must’ve had to defend his choice of staying committed so many times. Hadn’t the words shred his heart?

“Y/N? Everything okay?”

You cleared your throat. “Uh it’s just… it’s good to hear your voice.”

He was immediately on alert. “What happened?”

“Nothing. Weird day.”

“Where are you?”

You looked about your dark surroundings. “Crossing the playground, almost to my building.”

“Do you want to come over?” He asked, voice hopeful but unsure. “We can sit in the front lawn if you want.”

You made an impulse decision. “Yeah okay.”

Ten minutes later you were sitting on one of Max’s swings. Your tan sweater wasn’t helping much as you shivered in the chill, waiting for Sam to show up. Weird how you made it before him. He lived right there!

Noiselessly the front door opened and closed. Sam walked briskly towards you. He was dressed in dark grey sweatpants and a black full sleeve t-shirt. In his hand he carried an afghan, a thermos and two mugs.

“Here,” he handed you the afghan. It was the same one that was wrapped around you on the night of the pool party. The memory brought blood to your face.

“We don’t have adult juice around here today, but we do have hot chocolate.” Grinning impishly, he tilted the thermos in your direction. He sat on the ground in front of you, carefully filling up the two mugs with the rich, brown liquid while you wrapped yourself in the Afghan. 

Eagerly, you took a sip and moaned indecently.

“Good, isn’t it?” Sam chuckled. 

This was very close to what heaven would feel like. 

“So, what’s the deal, huh?” He asked after a few sips. 

You hesitated, not wanting to admit what the real problem was. It would be the case of a teapot crying to a boiler.

“You know you can tell me things, right?” His voice was soft, beguiling. 

“It’s something Molly said after you left.” You gave in, selfishly spilling it all. 

Sam listened to the whole story, then shook his head at you in exasperation and beckoned you with his hand. You blinked a couple of times, then gave up and went in willingly. 

What the hell, right?

 Sam tucked his arms around your shoulder once you slid on the ground next to him.

“You and I, we know what the truth is,” he said. “How does it matter what anyone else says?”

“Is that what you told yourself all these years?” You asked in a small voice, unable to meet his eyes.

Sam sighed. “Why are you doing this to yourself, Y/N?”

“You didn’t answer me.”

His fingers curled around your shoulder over the afghan. “No, I didn’t have to tell myself anything. I knew I loved you. That was enough.”

“I don’t know if I can be as strong as you.”

“That’s because you’re so much stronger,” he said. “None of those people have lived your life, they don’t know what you’ve been through. I can bet my ass, they wouldn’t have made it out of half of it in one piece. It’s easy to judge.”

“That’s not my problem,” you argued. “I don’t care what they think about me. But I can’t stand how it makes you look!”

Sam surprised you by chuckling lightly. “You’re cute when you’re indignant. Especially on my behalf.”

“Quit making this into a joke, Sam.”

“I seriously don’t know what else to do.” He put a finger under your chin, tilting your face up. “Look at me. I’m the happiest I've been in years! Do you really think I give a rats ass about what anyone’s got to say about me? My personal life has never been anyone’s concern except mine and yours. The only other person who has any say in this is Max. And that kid doesn’t shut up about you.”

Sam’s eyes were scorching, melting against the night sky.

“Molly’s wonderful, and I know she has a soft spot for me. But by the end of the day, it's just gossip. There’s no substance to it. So will you please drop it?”

At long last you nodded. 

“That’s like my Y/N.”

A rustle from the other side of Sam’s fence made you stiffen. The bushes behind the planks began to shake.

“What’s that?”

Sam shrugged. “Probably Alex sneaking out.”

You frowned at him. “Didn’t she break her arm doing exactly that?”

He snorted. “When has that stopped teenagers? It does make life a bit difficult. Jody’s grounded her. She can’t babysit Max for a while and I got work tomorrow.”

You saw Alex creeping on the sidewalk in front of the lawn. She saw the two of you huddled and froze like a deer caught in the headlight. Sam winked and waved a salute at her. After a minute she unfroze, returned the gesture and went off on her way. 

“Why don’t you drop him off at the library in the morning? I’ll keep an eye on him. I’m covering the first shift.” You worked to not sound too excited.

“Yeah, that still doesn’t fix the afternoon. I won’t be back before four.”

“Easy. I’ll wait with him here.”

Sam looked at you, hazel eyes wondrous. “You’d do that?”

“Sure. I owe him a pie anyway.”

“You’re a lifesaver!” He exhaled. “Seriously, I could kiss you right now!”

All you had to do was look up. Sam was right there.

Another crash sounded over the fence, louder than the first, followed by a muted ‘ow.’  You saw lights flare up in what must be the living room. From somewhere inside you heard Jody curse. “Jesus fucking Christ! Claire, what’re you doing on the ground.”

“Why do you always have to catch me!” Claire whined in the darkness. “Alex just left!”

“What. The. Fuck!” Jody yelled. “Get in the fucking car! We’re going to find your sister.”

That did it for you as you buried your face in Sam’s chest, smothering the giggles. His arms wrapped tightly around you. Sam himself was shaking with silent laughter over you.

Yeah, this was pretty close to heaven.

*********************

A/N 2: Thank you for all the support over the last week. 

Sam was right when he said-  “You and I, we know what the truth is. How does it matter what anyone else says?”

I’m going to take his advice :)

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[noona-clock]

What’s Your Sign?: Leo

Genre: Road Trip!AU

Pairing: Jiyong x You (Female!Reader)

Warnings: Mild cursing, Mentions of serial killers/death

Words: 6,291

Author’s Note: Since I’m so fascinated by astrology, I decided to do a Zodiac series! I will be writing a one-shot fic for each sign featuring different members from different groups (and even an actor!). Each story will be posted on the 5th of the month during that sign’s season. Please reblog, comment, or send in an ask with your feedback! Thank you for your support 💜

“Why do you keep looking at the map?” Jiyong asked for probably the eighteenth time.

“Because,” you muttered through clenched teeth -- for probably the eighteenth time. “I don’t trust your navigation skills, and I think we’re lost!”

Actually, you’d thought he’d gotten lost about two hours ago. If only you’d had the courage to tell him back then -- the two of you would be back on the right track now!

...Oh, wait.

You had told him back then! He, being the insufferable, stubborn ass that he was, just hadn’t listened! And now you were still lost!

Though, not according to him.

“We are not lost,” he sighed, his annoyance very obvious as he spoke to you. “I know exactly where I’m going, so just calm down.”

“Don’t tell me to calm down,” you retorted.

You quickly snapped your gaze back to the map because you knew Jiyong’s response to your words would be a frustratingly annoying roll of his eyes, and you weren’t sure what you would do if you saw him roll his eyes at you. Your patience was already hanging by a thread -- it could (and likely would) snap at any time.

But looking back at the map reminded you that... you had no idea where you were.

“I can’t even find where we are on the map!” you pointed out, your forehead wrinkled with both irritation and concern.

“I told you,” Jiyong sighed. “I know where we are. Just put the map down, you’re getting --”

“Don’t,” you interrupted harshly. “Even finish that sentence.”

To be honest, you were actually kind of afraid what you would’ve done if he had finished that sentence. Absolutely nothing good, of that you were certain.

Thankfully -- and somewhat surprisingly -- Jiyong took your advice, pressing his lips together and continuing on driving.

Also somewhat surprisingly, you took Jiyong’s advice and put the map down. It was very clear he didn’t know where he was going, but it was also very clear that he wasn’t going to admit it. He was just going to keep driving until... well, you had absolutely no idea. Until he fell asleep, probably. And then where would you be?

With an internal sigh, you leaned over and pressed your forehead against the cool glass of his car window, closing your eyes and trying to think of exactly what to say to your best friend when you finally saw her again.

You wouldn’t even be in this mess if it wasn’t for her, after all. This was all her fault! ...Sort of. Right now, she was the easiest person to blame, so that’s what you were going to do. Blame her -- and her soon-to-be husband, of course.

Okay, here’s the backstory of how you’d gotten to this point: Your best friend had been dating Jiyong’s best friend since your university days. You had met Jiyong several times, obviously, but you’d never actually hung out, gotten to know each other, or become friends in any way, shape, or form. Not because you didn’t want to, just... because you didn’t. Jiyong had majored in music production, and you had majored in cognitive science with a focus on artificial intelligence.

So, basically, the two of you had lived in two completely different worlds.

But, now, quite a few years after graduating, your best friends were getting married.

Jiyong had been chosen as the Best Man for the groom, and you had been chosen as the Maid of Honor for the bride. But you hadn’t really had to interact or plan anything with each other... until now.

For some reason you really and truly couldn’t explain, the bride and groom had chosen to have a joint bachelor and bachelorette party up in some remote cabin in the mountains -- a perfect setting for a horror film, in your opinion.

But what’s even worse: they had asked you and Jiyong to go up ahead of time to get things ready.

Together.

In the same car.

For... bonding time.

So, that’s how you’d gotten here. In the car. With Jiyong. Lost. On some practically deserted, hardly paved, winding road with no cell phone service (hence the paper map you’d had to resort to).

“Oh, come on,” Jiyong chuckled. “We’re almost there, trust me.”

You weren’t even going to dignify that with a response -- mainly because you didn’t want to divulge your trust issues to someone you barely knew. But also because you just didn’t want to give him the satisfaction of any sort of reply.

But when you just barely lifted your eyelids, you noticed that the sun was beginning to set.

Great.

If you had been in charge of this little road trip, the two of you would be at the cabin right now. But, no. You had been too nice and had let Jiyong drive, and now look where that had gotten you: in the middle of nowhere.

And you would never, ever, ever admit to him that the reason you’d been too nice and had let him drive was because you were actually kind of scared of him.

You didn’t even want to admit that to yourself.

But you worked with technology all day! Machines, you were used to. People... not so much.

And Jiyong was just... a lot. He was quiet on the outside but definitely not on the inside.

He was supremely confident and wildly intimidating, two traits you’d never quite gotten the hang of.

Although, he did occasionally sport some wild hair colors -- currently, his locks were a nice mix of bright orange and fiery red -- so he wasn’t always quiet on the outside.

But, anyway -- his supreme confidence wasn’t going to help you now because whether he knew it or not, you were, indeed, very, very lost. And it was going to be getting dark within the hour.

You then spotted a building way up ahead, sitting up straight and squinting to try and make out what it was.

“If you know where we are,” you began, not doing anything to hide the skepticism in your voice. “Then what is that?”

“That... is a building,” Jiyong answered.

“Oh, wow,” you scoffed. “Now I definitely believe that you know where we are. There’s no way you could’ve known that was a building without being familiar with this area.”

You took a risk and glanced over at him, but instead of seeing some smug, smarmy expression on his face... he was smiling. But not in a way that made you want to slap it right off his lips. His smile was... like... amused. And then you realized he was laughing.

“Well, I’m glad you think you’re funny because I certainly don’t,” you told him, your brow knit together so tightly that you were fairly certain you would have a headache soon.

Jiyong sputtered out a chuckle, returning your gaze briefly as he sported a pretty adorable grin on his face.

Oh, god. Why had you just thought his grin was adorable?

I mean... objectively, it was adorable. When he wasn’t smiling, he looked scary and threatening and like he was meticulously plotting your slow demise.

But when he smiled? It lit up his face and his eyes crinkled and you could see just a smidge more of his gums than your average smile and just -- he looked like a totally different person in a very good way.

But no matter how adorable his grin was and no matter how much his face was transformed by it, he was still an overly arrogant piece of --

“What?” he said with a somewhat taunting lilt to his voice. “It is a building.”

You simply replied with a scowl. Not only because you were not amused by his observation but also because he had interrupted your thoughts before you could properly, in your mind, call him an overly arrogant piece of --

“Okay, okay,” he relented. “Since you’re so concerned, I’ll stop at that building and make sure we’re going the right way. Because we are.”

“What if that building turns out to be abandoned? Or the house of a serial killer?” you asked, deciding to just give up on calling him silent names and turning away to look out the window. 

Jiyong simply shrugged. “Then we keep going. Or we die.”

“Uh, excuse me,” you sputtered. “There is no we. You’re getting out of this car by your damn self.”

“But we’re supposed to be bonding,” he pointed out, and even though you were no longer looking at him, you could so very clearly hear the smirk in his tone.

“Dying together is not my idea of quality bonding time.”

A breathy chuckle escaped through Jiyong’s nose, and you looked back over at him with a very triumphant expression.

“See? You’re not the only one who can be funny,” you quipped.

“So, you admit what I said was funny,” he stated rather than asked.

“You thought it was funny.”

“And that’s really all that matters,” he nodded. “At least to me.”

At that, you merely raised your eyebrows and, yet again, shifted your gaze toward the car window. 

There was semi-awkward silence between the two of you as Jiyong drove up to the building -- which turned out to be just a house, presumably. After parking off to the side of the road you’d been traveling, Jiyong turned off the car and leaned forward a bit in his seat to look at you.

“You sure you don’t wanna come with me?” he asked, his voice low as the engine cutting off had made it eerily silent.

“Oh, I’m sure,” you nodded. “You go right ahead.”

Jiyong took the keys out of the ignition then, jingling them a little before closing his fist around them. “Well, I’m taking these.”

“I wasn’t going to drive off without you!” you scoffed.

“Yeah, but now if I do get abducted by a serial killer, you have to come in and rescue me if you want to escape.”

...Okay, you had to admit. That was... kind of a genius plan.

Damn it.

“Just go,” you sighed with a weary shake of your head.

Jiyong murmured an ‘okay’ before unlocking the car door and hoisting himself out. You jumped slightly when he slammed it closed, but your eyes never left him as he loped up toward the house.

Your heart began to race as he approached the front door. You gulped anxiously when he lifted one hand and knocked. You clenched your fists in your lap when the door opened.

A short, middle-aged woman answered, and you almost immediately eased up a bit. She certainly didn’t fit the serial killer profile, and Jiyong was quite a few inches taller than her. He was skinny as a rail, but he could still probably take her if he had to.

You were too far away to make out any of the conversation between them, but the woman’s body language and expression both seemed very warm and welcoming. If you were a gambler, you would bet she was giving Jiyong directions to lead him to the right way.

Jiyong simply stood there nodding, though you knew without a doubt he was taking every and any opportunity to smooth-talk her.

Then, suddenly, Jiyong turned around and gestured to you, his lips curved into a smile. The woman waved at you, and you lifted one hand to awkwardly wave back.

If she was just giving him directions, why in the world would he bring you into it? There was no need for the woman to know about or wave at you... What, exactly, was he doing?

After another minute or two of conversation, the woman began to back into her house, one hand on the side of the front door as she got ready to close it. Jiyong, on the other hand, turned sideways a bit in preparation for turning around and heading back to the car. He quickly put his hands together palm-to-palm in front of his chest and bowed slightly to the woman, thanking her before turning on his heel and striding toward you.

Your eyes got wider as you watched him head, not for the driver’s side, but to the passenger’s side -- to your side. Why was he coming over here? And he had the keys, so you couldn’t roll the window down.

When he got to his car, he reached for your door handle and pulled it open. You instinctively leaned back a little, but then he leaned forward, ducking his head into the car and getting uncomfortably close to you.

“So, yeah,” he murmured. “We’re lost, and the closest way back is the way we came, but I don’t have enough gas to get us back there, and it’ll be too dark to drive soon.”

Before you could let out a victorious ha! and rub it in his face that you’d been right all along, Jiyong continued.

“This happens on occasion, so the woman who lives here has set up an extra room for people like us to stay in overnight.”

“Are you --”

“It’s our only choice,” he cut in, his voice sharp. “Either that or we sleep in the car.”

You honestly weren’t sure which one sounded less appealing: sleeping in a stranger’s house in the middle of nowhere or sleeping in Jiyong’s car in the middle of nowhere.

Well, at least in a house, there was food. And better protection from bears. Or mountain lions. Or whatever creatures lived around here.

So, you relented with a sigh and a shrug of your shoulders.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” he muttered.

You moved to undo your seatbelt, but Jiyong stopped you with a soft clear of his throat.

“Oh, and... uh... but there is this... one... stipulation.”

You paused, furrowing your brow with confusion and tilting your head up to look at him. “...What?”

“So... here’s the thing.”

Oh, you did not like the sound of that.

“Just tell me,” you ground out.

“She only has one room, and I had to tell her we’re engaged otherwise I don’t think she would’ve let us stay here.”

...Your heart jumped into your throat. Your stomach fell down to your feet.

You stared at him, blinking.

And then you finally managed to get out, “You had to tell her what now?”

“She asked if I was alone, so I said I wasn’t and that’s when I turned around to show her you were waiting in the car, and then she asked if you were my wife, so obviously, I said you weren’t, but then she started to say something that sounded like she really doesn’t let just anyone in -- I mean, you can’t blame her because, like you said, there could be serial killers. So, I just blurted out that we’re engaged and will be married soon, and she said that was perfect and we can stay for the night.”

So... if you were hearing him correctly, the woman inside that house -- the only building around for miles, so it seems, and the only way you’ll be sleeping safely for the night -- was letting you and Jiyong stay here under the misconception that the two of you were... engaged? To be married?

You inhaled deeply, letting it out very slowly before politely and quietly asking Jiyong to let you get out of the car.

He stepped aside, and you methodically unbuckled your seatbelt. You swung your legs over the side of your seat, and you put your feet on the ground. You stood up, and you turned to face Jiyong.

And then you reached out and hit his upper arm.

“Are you crazy?!” you hissed, feeling your frown on every inch of your face.

“Ouch!”

“Oh, we haven’t even scratched the surface of ouch,” you warned him before hitting him again. “Why -- why would you tell her that we’re engaged?!”

When you geared up for another hit, Jiyong’s hand darted out to grab onto your wrist. “Didn’t you hear me?! I don’t think she was going to let us stay here if we weren’t! She must be one of those super old-fashioned ladies -- I mean, come on. We’re in the middle of nowhere. The last time she watched something current on TV was probably decades ago.”

“But still! Engaged?!” you cried, using every mental muscle in your body to not sound like a shrill witch.

“I’m sorry! It didn’t feel like I had a choice, and I panicked!”

“Yeah, you should be sorry! You’re the one who got us lost in the first place, and you wouldn’t have been in the situation to panic if you had just listened to me!”

Jiyong carefully let go of your wrist, though he still kept his hand up at the ready in case he needed to protect himself again. And then he plastered a very convincingly apologetic expression on his features.

“You... are right. You’re right. I did get us lost, and if I had listened to you, we wouldn’t be in this situation right now. I’m sincerely sorry, and I understand and accept that you have every right to be angry with me.”

Your jaw fell open with utter shock.

...All of those words had really come out of his mouth?

His mouth? Jiyong’s mouth?

“When we actually get to the cabin, I give you full permission to shit talk me as much as you need to, but tonight... I really need you to play along. Without this lady’s help, we’ll probably just get lost again, and we won’t get any gas or food, so we just --”

“Okay, fine,” you interrupted. “I just have one question.”

Jiyong’s eyebrows rushed up his forehead, and he waited for you to ask it.

You simply lifted up your left hand, your palm facing you, and wiggled your fingers. “Where’s my ring?”

“I, being so much in love to the point of distraction, bought a ring that was too big, so it’s at the jeweler’s getting resized.”

Your head jerked back with surprise. “Wha -- um... you thought of that really quickly.”

“What can I say?” Jiyong smirked, lifting his shoulders in smug satisfaction. “I’m quick on my feet. She said she’s putting dinner on the table right now, so just leave all the talking to me.”

Well. Humble, repentant Jiyong had been nice while he’d lasted.

God, this was so painful.

After lugging your overnight bags into the house, you and Jiyong had almost immediately sat down to dinner with Mrs. Elderberry, and she had almost immediately started asking about the two of you.

You had been incredibly curious to hear what Jiyong would come up with, but to your slight disappointment, he had basically told her the actual story of how you knew each other -- you had gone to university together and your best friends had dated each other. He had simply added on that you had fallen in love and were now getting ready to be married.

And, apparently, your first date had been to an old-fashioned drive-in movie theater. Mrs. Elderberry had thoroughly enjoyed that, and it was then you realized just how smart Jiyong was.

Not when it came to directions, of course, but when it came to people. He knew your hostess for the night was old-fashioned, so he’d thought of an old-fashioned first date to endear the two of you as a couple to her.

She had also believed his story about getting your ring resized, so you decided that leaving all the talking to Jiyong (he’d explained that you were frightfully shy) had actually been a good idea.

But still. It was painful. Listening to Jiyong wax poetic about how in love the two of you were was not a pleasant dinner soundtrack. Or one you’d ever thought you’d have to experience.

Ever.

Though... you had to admit... the way he described you to Mrs. Elderberry was scarily accurate. He knew your job, he knew you were shy and reserved unless it mattered (like when he had gotten you more lost than you’d ever been in your life -- you certainly hadn’t been willing to keep quiet about that), he knew you preferred video games over books even though you did still like books, and he knew you were a cat person. He even called you “smart as a whip.”

At the end of the meal, Jiyong volunteered the two of you for clean up duty, something which you heartily agreed to since Mrs. Elderberry had refused to take any money for the room.

Your hostess shuffled into her living room to “catch up on her stories” -- though when you heard the television come on, you definitely heard the theme song for a soap opera that was at least twenty years old... -- and you sidled up next to Jiyong at the sink to help with the dishes.

And since this whole situation was just absurd, you found your shyness had basically vanished completely. So, you came out and asked, “How do you know so much about me? Everything you told her was true, and it kind of freaked me out, to be honest.”

Jiyong lifted one shoulder into a half-shrug, letting out a breathless chuckle as he rinsed off a plate. “I’m just observant. I pick up on things easily, and I get to know people quickly.”

“That’s... impressive,” you admitted.

He murmured his thanks, and then the two of you continued on doing the dishes in companionable silence.

As soon as the kitchen was clean, Jiyong poked his head into the living room and let Mrs. Elderberry know the two of you had been in the car for so long today and were simply exhausted and were going to head up to bed.

...You froze right there at the sink.

How had you completely forgotten about that? The whole... sleeping situation. The fact that Mrs. Elderberry had a room -- one. One room. A single room.

And there were two of you.

And if she wouldn’t let an unmarried -- or unengaged -- couple spend the night here, you had to assume there was just one bed.

“Hey, you coming?” Jiyong murmured, interrupting your thoughts and making you jump a little bit.

“Hmm? Oh -- yeah. Yeah, I’m coming.”

He raised one eyebrow at you, obviously suspicious of your awkward stammering. “Are... you okay?”

You just nodded quickly but, apparently, it was enough for Jiyong because he headed over to your bags and picked both of them up to carry upstairs.

“Up the stairs, first door on your left!” Mrs. Elderberry called out as you began to ascend the staircase following Jiyong.

“Thank you so much, Mrs. Elderberry,” Jiyong called out in response. “We truly appreciate this.”

“Yeah, unless she kills us in our sleep,” you muttered.

“Good night!” Jiyong cried, but you knew he’d heard you. And, sure enough, once he reached the landing at the top of the stairs, he turned to you with a reprimanding expression. “You really think she could kill us?”

“Did you watch and make sure she was eating from the same serving plates as us? Our dinner could have been poisoned.”

You knew it wasn’t likely -- in the least -- but still! You never know!

“Okay, if anyone is going to kill you, it’s going to be one of those robots you work with,” he chuckled, shaking his head.

“That is absolutely not true. And I don’t work with robots! I just help design smart AI --”

Jiyong opened his mouth to interject, but you finished your sentence before he had the chance.

“For tech support chats. You know when you’re on shopping websites and that little thing pops up asking if you need help?”

“...That’s you?”

“That’s me,” you grinned. “Well. Kind of. I help design it. And make it smarter.”

“Ah... so... you’re not helping build an army of robots who are going to eventually take over the world?”

You shook your head. “No. Not yet. But probably someday.”

Jiyong snorted with amusement before turning and heading to the first door on the left, standing aside to allow you to open it since he was carrying both of your overnight bags.

Even though you knew there would only be one bed, you had still held out some hope that maybe -- just maybe -- there would be two smaller ones instead of one bigger one. If Mrs. Elderberry was truly old-fashioned, she would’ve set up her guest room like the mom and dad’s bedrooms on those black and white television shows -- the kind where they slept in separate beds even though they were married.

But, alas. When you opened the door... there it was.

The one bed.

“I can sleep on the floor,” you said hastily, not even waiting a second after closing the door behind you.

You were expecting Jiyong to let you, but surprisingly, he replied with, “No, that’s okay. I got it. I’m the one who got us into this, so it’s only fair.”

Would you ever get used to Jiyong admitting he had been wrong? For as long as you’d known him, you’d never witnessed him do that -- and now, he had done it twice. In the same night.

“Are you sure? You could probably use a comfortable mattress. You must be exhausted from accepting so much guilt tonight.”

“Hey, now,” Jiyong chuckled. “When I’m wrong, I say I’m wrong.”

“Uh, only after you’ve found unavoidable proof that you are,” you pointed out. “Do you remember how many times I said we were lost?”

“Yeah, well --”

“You just don’t trust me,” you said, half-teasing but half-serious. He had every right not to trust you, though -- you’d known each other for a long time but not well enough to have developed any sort of trust.

Plus, you still had the aforementioned trust issues, but we won’t get into that.

“I thought I knew where I was going!”

“So, you just wouldn’t even listen to me,” you tsked. And then you let out a soft gasp. “You wouldn’t listen to me because I’m a girl, and girls are bad with directions!”

Jiyong had been rifling around in his bag to find his toothbrush, but your words made him spring up and look at you aghast.

“That’s not true!”

“Oh, really?” you smirked. “You just honestly thought you were 100% right and there was no way you could be wrong?”

And then something happened you truly never expected: Jiyong looked... embarrassed. And shy. 

“No...” he said slowly, drawing the word out in a very unconfident manner.

What was going on? You’d only ever seen Jiyong in a state of complete self-assurance, so this was kind of throwing you off-balance.

“I just...” he continued, lifting one shoulder into a half-shrug. “I didn’t want to look stupid in front of you.”

You almost choked on the air you were breathing.

Jiyong? Didn’t want to look stupid? In front of you?

“Wh --”

“You’re, like, crazy smart,” he interrupted. “And I guess... I just wanted to prove that...”

But he trailed off and didn’t finish his sentence, leaving you just as dismayed.

“But... I mean, you kind of are a genius,” you pointed out after a few awkward moments.

“Yeah, when it comes to music.”

Ah. There was the confidence. But, according to your best friend, he really was a bomb music producer. So, his confidence wasn’t unfounded in this particular instance.

“Well, I certainly couldn’t create or produce or even sing a song if my life depended on it. That’s something I can’t figure out with an algorithm.”

“True,” Jiyong replied softly with a little chuckle. And then he waved his toothbrush at you and said, “Well, I’m gonna get ready for bed, I guess.”

You shot him a swift grin before he headed to the small en suite bathroom, and when you heard the door close behind him, you dashed to your own bag so you could change into your pajamas before he came back out.

You had no idea what time it was, and at this point, you were too afraid to look. You only knew you’d been lying in bed -- in Mrs. Elderberry’s guest bed in Mrs. Elderberry’s house in the middle of nowhere -- for a very long time, and you hadn’t been able to manage one wink of sleep.

And... by the sounds of it. Jiyong hadn’t been able to, either. He had been fairly quiet and still so far, but just a few moments ago, you heard the telltale signs of tossing and turning.

Since you were awake... and since you now knew he was awake... you would feel kind of awkward if you didn’t say anything.

“Jiyong,” you whispered hesitantly into the darkness of the room.

“Hmm?”

“Okay, just making sure you were actually awake.”

“Yeah,” he sighed. “Can’t sleep. You?”

“Nope.”

He moved around again, and this time, you saw his silhouette move into a sitting position and turn to fluff the pillow you’d given him.

“You can’t sleep because... you’re too uncomfortable?” you guessed. Your heart began to beat just a bit quicker because you knew what you were going to follow-up with if he said ‘yes.’

“...I mean, yeah. It’s the floor.”

And here we go.

“Just come up here. The bed is big enough.”

Unsurprisingly, Jiyong didn’t answer right away. He waited a couple of moments before replying with a very wary, “...Are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure right now, but if you wait too long, I’ll probably change my mind.”

You immediately heard some rustling, and not even ten seconds later, the side of the bed next to you dipped down.

“I don’t know if it’ll help much,” you whispered, keeping your eyes glued on the ceiling. “Because I’m still awake, but it’s gotta be better than the floor.”

Jiyong let out a satisfied sigh, and for some reason, the sound of it made a tiny smile appear at the corners of your lips.

“Much better,” he murmured. “Thanks.”

You simply hummed in response, and then the room went quiet again.

That is, until you found yourself asking something which had been on your mind for... well, however long ago it was that he’d said this.

“Why did you not want to look stupid in front of me?” you asked with an almost undetectable waver in your voice -- almost. It was definitely there because you were definitely nervous, both to have him lying right beside you and to hear his answer.

“You just couldn’t let it go, huh?” Jiyong chuckled. You could tell he turned over, and when he spoke next, his voice was more clear -- he had turned over to face you. “I didn’t want to look stupid in front of you because I think you’re cool.”

A laugh burst from your chest, and you immediately brought a hand up to cover your mouth, not wanting to wake your gracious hostess. “I’m sorry, what?” you choked out. “Me? Cool? I am not cool.”

“You are to me.”

“But... I’m a technology, video game nerd. It’s a well-known fact that you are the cool one.” You glanced over at him, but only briefly. Your heart was racing enough as it was; looking at him would only make it worse.

“You’re authentic,” he replied. “You’re genuine. You don’t care what other people think. You’re 100% totally yourself, and to me... that’s cool.”

Your forehead had started wrinkling as he’d started answering you, and the wrinkles had only gotten deeper as he’d kept talking.

“I... I had... no idea you thought that,” you said with a breathless laugh of disbelief. “Why didn’t you ever tell me before?”

“Because I just started thinking you were cool earlier today,” he answered without missing a beat.

“Shut up,” you chuckled, reaching out absently with your hand and swatting his shoulder -- or, at least, you thought it was his shoulder. You still weren’t facing or looking at him.

“No, in all seriousness... I just... didn’t think you’d care.”

And you could definitely understand why he would’ve thought that. Because you’d thought the same thing.

You finally turned your head to the side, meeting his gaze through the darkness. “I thought the same thing about you. I thought you were way too cool for me, and there was no way you’d ever want to be friends with a geek like me.”

“So, we both were idiots then, huh? Me more than you, of course.”

Your brow knit together in confusion. “Why’s that?”

“Because I’m a guy.”

“Oh,” you chuckled, your lips curving into a smile. “Well, yeah. I can agree with that.”

“So... are we friends now?” he asked -- and you could’ve sworn you heard a hopeful lilt in his tone.

“Yeah, I guess. And from one friend to another? A good leader isn’t the one who has all the right answers. A good leader is the one who recognizes the right answer when he hears it.”

“Wow, okay, how many times do I have to admit that you were right about being lost?”

“As many times as it takes me to forget.”

“So... for the rest of my life, then.”

...Why did the thought of knowing Jiyong for the rest of his life make your heart flutter? Just this afternoon, this thought would have almost disgusted you -- it definitely would’ve made you uncomfortable.

But now you were realizing -- pretty quickly -- that he wasn’t exactly who you thought he was. He was certainly still arrogant and stubborn, but he was also generous (letting you have the bed), determined (willing to do whatever it took to let Mrs. Elderberry give you her guest room), and... actually pretty sweet.

“Okay, my turn -- from one friend to another.”

His words interrupted your thoughts, but you were kind of glad about that. You didn’t really need to be thinking about how sweet Jiyong was when he was lying right next to you in bed.

“Go for it,” you murmured.

“...Would it be super weird if we cuddled?”

“Wha --!” you choked.

“I need something to cuddle when I sleep! That’s why I couldn’t sleep on the floor! And unless you want to give me your pillow...”

You immediately lifted your head, grabbed your pillow out from under you, and threw it over at him. There was no way you were going to cuddle with him. That was a very bad idea.

...Mainly because you were worried it wasn’t a bad idea at all.

One Year Later

You knew Jiyong was tired when he fell asleep before you.

That man could labor away in his studio basically all night, so when he was already in bed when you got home from work? 

Granted, you had been clocking some late hours at work the past few days. Your team had been busy with a new project, and you’d even had to bring your work laptop home with you tonight to finish things up.

But, still. When you’d popped your head into your shared bedroom and seen with your own eyes that Jiyong was fast asleep, you knew he had been working himself too hard for too long.

...Which didn’t stop you from bringing your laptop with you to bed and getting your own work done, though. You had a deadline to meet!

You tried to get into bed as stealthily as possible, not wanting to wake your boyfriend up from his much-needed rest, but as soon as you opened up your laptop, Jiyong managed to throw the pillow he’d been cuddling over his shoulder and onto the floor. He scooted closer to you and snaked his arm around your waist, his leg over yours, resting his head on your arm as you sat up next to him.

“Ji, I have some more work to do,” you chuckled, trying to shrug him off -- to no avail.

“You can still work,” he muttered, his words slurred with sleep. “I need cuddle.”

“No, you need sleep.”

“Mm mm. Cuddle. You.” He nuzzled your arm, pressing his cheek into the crook of your elbow before turning his head and brushing his lips gently over your skin. “I tried to wait up for you.”

“I know, I’m sorry,” you frowned. “We’re almost done with this project.”

“Almost?”

You hummed positively, glancing down at him with a soft, adoring grin.

“And when you’re done --”

“We’ll celebrate, for sure.”

“By getting married?”

Your head jerked back with surprise, and even though his eyes were closed, you stared down at him. “...Excuse me? Since when are we getting married?” Because this was the first you’d heard of it!

“Since forever,” Jiyong mumbled. “Since Mrs... Mrs... Blueberry. What’s her name.”

“Mrs. Elderberry,” you laughed. “Oh, I’d almost forgotten about her.”

“How could you forget? That’s where we got engaged,” he sighed.

“Oh, it is? So, we’ve been engaged this whole time?”

Jiyong nodded, his hair scratching your skin slightly and causing shivers down your spine.

“Then I just have one question,” you said with a smirk.

“Hmm?”

You pulled your left arm out from his embrace, sticking your hand palm-down in front of his face and wiggling your fingers. “Where’s my ring?”

You were expecting him to reply that it was getting resized -- the excuse you’d given Mrs. Elderberry as to why your ring finger was... well, ringless.

But, to your complete and utter shock, Jiyong dug one hand underneath your pillow, emerging with the most beautiful, the most sparkly, the most perfect ring you’d ever seen in your entire life.

OTHER SIGNS: ARIES, TAURUS, GEMINI, CANCER, VIRGO, LIBRA, SCORPIO, SAGITTARIUS, CAPRICORN, AQUARIUS, PISCES

[fellulahh]

He accidentally sees MC nude: Lucifer, Mammon, Beel and Satan

Lucifer:

MC and Asmo were having one of their slumber parties together. Nails were painted, hair was curled and a mountain of clothes were piled on Asmo’s bed as they did their own fashion show.

“MC my love we must play truth or dare now.” Asmo giggled, clinking his wine glass against hers. “I’ve got some absolutely filthy ones we can do tonight.”

“Asmo!” MC giggled. “Why do you always have to lower the tone?”

He placed a hand on his chest, almost offended by her accusation. “Well excuse me for being daring! I’m sorry - I didn’t realise you’re not on my level.”

MC furrowed her eyebrows “Now wait a minute, I didn’t say anything about not doing them.”

“Excellent! Then you’ll go first.” He jumped up excitedly.

“Give me a dare.” She challenged, taking another sip of her cocktail.

“Right. To prove you’re as daring as I am, I dare you to run to the kitchen and back naked.”

MC’s eyes widened and her cheeks dissolved into a furious blush. “Asmo!” She gasped. “It’s not even midnight yet, your brothers could still be up.” She laughed.

“All the more reason to do it.” He nudged her.

MC sat back and pondered over the dare for a minute. Downing the rest of her drink, she slammed her glass on the table “Fine.” She spoke. “But only because I want to prove I am as daring - if not more daring than you.”

Asmo clapped his hands excitedly, spilling wine on himself. “Oh no!” He whined as the red liquid bled into his trousers. Meanwhile, MC stood up taking a deep breath. Turning around so that Asmo couldn’t see her torso, she slid her dress over her head, followed by her panties. “MC your figure is simply divine, you must tell me your secret once your back!”

Walking up to the door, she gripped the handle, ignoring Asmo’s comment. “Just to the kitchen and back?” She asked.

“Just to the kitchen and back.” He confirmed.

She nodded her head confidently, opening the door. Sliding out of his room, she looked left and right before sneaking down the corridor and the first set of stairs. Thankfully the house of Lamentation was warm otherwise MC would have been naked and cold.

Nearing the foyer, MC peeked her head round the corner of the wall she was hid behind - staring down the last hallway. The longest one.

Taking a deep breath, she quickly walked down the carpet, determined to not be caught. She could see the staircase getting closer and closer as she paced down the hallway. Suddenly, her view was compromised by an open door. Freezing in her spot, MC’s heartbeat grew rapid. The first thing she saw was that soft black hair, followed by a gloved hand. ‘Oh no, not Lucifer’ she thought. Her cheeks grew red - the one brother who made her completely and utterly weak at the knees was about to see her stood in the middle of the hallway with no clothes on.

Lucifer turned his head, sensing somebody else’s presence.

“MC!” He exclaimed, surprised to see her before immediately realising she was stark naked. “What do we have here?” He smirked, leaning against the wall. “Dying to take your clothes off for me, were you?” He asked, placing a gloved hand over his chest.

MC folded her arms to cover her breasts. “A—Asmo and I were playing truth or dare.” She admitted, embarrassed.

”I didn’t expect this of you.” He spoke slowly, eyes lingering on her figure. He licked his lips. “You’re more daring than I imagined.”

MC felt a familiar feeling in her stomach and a wetness between her legs. A shiver went down her spine and she shuddered, Lucifer noticing.

“Come here, my darling.” He offered his arm “I don’t want you getting cold.”

MC lifted her arm, delicately placing her hand in Lucifer’s. She took a step forward until he was embracing her, wrapping her exposed skin in his cloak. Looking up at him in awe, she fluttered her eyelashes innocently. ‘Maybe this wasn’t such a bad idea after all’

“Perhaps you could dare Asmo to leave us alone for a couple of hours.” He smiled down at her before nodding his head toward his bedroom door.

Mammon:

Mammon had zero sense of privacy. He happily barged into MC’s bedroom whenever he wanted - which was a daily occurrence. Despite this, it never occurred to MC that she should always be prepared for a wild Mammon appearing at her door.

Stepping out of the shower, MC wrapped her hair in a towel. She leant over her sink and brushed her teeth, getting ready for bed. Dabbing her skin dry with a towel, she then made her way into the bedroom nonchalantly.

However, unbeknownst to her, Mammon was in the room waiting for her on the bed. She pushed open the bathroom door in all of her naked glory.

“FINALLY - I was wondering what ya were doing in there!” Mammon sighed, rolling over to look her.

“Mammon!!” MC squealed, quickly covering up her body with her hands.

“Oh jeez—I didn’t mean to..” Mammon stammered, trying to hide his blushing face. “Ya could have warned me ya were naked?!”

“You could have knocked!” MC shot back.

Mammon peeked through his hands before blushing harder, his stomach doing flips.

MC quickly found some panties and threw on a top. With Mammon still hiding his face, she sat down on the bed next to him. “Mammon I have clothes on now, you can look.” She sighed, placing a hand on his cheek.

Dropping his hands relieved, his eyes immediately trailed to her braless chest and then her exposed legs. “G’ah! MC I can still see ya!” He exclaimed, jumping off the bed, covering his eyes again.

He quickly left the room, not wanting MC to realise he was enjoying the view a little too much. She watched him shut the door, an amused smile creeping onto her face as her cheeks were tinted with a pinkish glow.

As he slammed the door behind him, Mammon leant against the wall letting out the loudest sigh. He couldn’t believe what he’d just seen. “How am I ever going to try and forget this?!” He thought to himself.

Beel:

Beel had asked MC to help him out in the gym - he wanted an early start so that he could get in a workout before attending RAD.

Despite agreeing to it, MC was not a morning person. Even after being awake for half an hour and already drinking two cups of coffee, she was still half asleep. Entering the gym, Beel showed a toothy grin as soon as he saw her.

“MC!” He beamed “You came.”

“Anything to help you, big guy.” She smiled sleepily at him, ruffling his hair.

They started their workout together - Beel doing his bench presses and MC doing...something. She definitely didn’t have the motivation that Beel had that morning.

Developing a sweat, MC sat up on her yoga ball, pulling off her tight top. While this was usually a normal thing to do, it hadn’t occurred to her that while she dressed herself half asleep, she’d forgotten to put on a sports bra.

Therefore, as soon as she removed the material, her entire chest was exposed. Both MC and Beel noticed immediately - MC feeling incredibly embarrassed, wishing she’d never gotten out of bed as she tried to grab her top off the floor.

“MC!” Beel exclaimed. Her attention turned to him. “It’s like you read my mind. It really is hot this morning.” He spoke before pulling off his top too.

MC’s eyes practically fell out of their sockets seeing his sweaty, toned body.

He did a couple of reps before turning his head to look at her. She watched his eyes flicker to her breasts. “You know you’ve got a good body - we should work out together like this next time.” He smiled before going back to his workout.

MC tried to utter a ‘thanks’ but she was too busy wondering if she’d died and Simeon had dragged her to heaven.

Satan:

MC and Satan were visiting the library, trying to find him a book that he hadn’t read yet. If you think you’ve ever done something difficult, it’s guaranteed that trying to find a book that Satan hasn’t read is more difficult

It didn’t help that it was a really warm day in Devildom too. Layers of clothing had been removed and MC was left in her crop top and leggings. Her and Satan were the only beings in the library because everyone else in Devildom was making the most out of the warm day.

“Why don’t you let me pick you a book?” MC asked, eyeing up the dusty collection of ‘human literature’ at the very top of a bookcase. “You’ve probably read everything Devildom has to offer - perhaps you could expand your reading to human work?” She asked.

Satan thought for a moment before sighing. “Perhaps I have no other choice.”

Wanting to break him out of his dampened mood, MC went to retrieve the ladder so that she could get a closer look at the books - she leant it against the bookcase, ensuring it was sturdy before beginning to ascend.

“Do you mind holding it?” She asked him, worried that’d it’d start wobbling as she climbed. MC glanced down at Satan momentarily, waiting for a response.

Satan stepped closer, placing his hands around the wooden frame, ensuring it didn’t move. “Got it.” He assured her.

Turning her attention back to the collection of books that were still a few feet away, she continued climbing. However, after reaching the end of the ladder she had no choice but to stretch her arm out, using her finger to tilt each book toward her individually so that she could read the title on the spine.

Without realising, every time she stretched her arm up, her top would move with her. And on a hot day like this why would anyone want to wear a bra?

Satan was glancing back and forth around the library before looking up to check on MC. As soon as he noticed her wardrobe malfunction, he couldn’t help but smirk up at the site. Both of her breasts were exposed, barely being covered by the material of her top.

“Are you okay up there?” He asked. “Want me to take over?”

“No thanks, I’m good!” MC called back

“Good. Because I much prefer the view down here.” Satan chuckled.

MC, confused with his comment, turned her head to look down, instantly realising what he was looking at. “Oh my god!” She squealed, quickly lowering her arm.

“He won’t help you now!” Satan laughed. “Out of all of the books I’ve read, nothing has left me as speechless as this.”

“Satan!” MC exclaimed, embarrassed.

(Beginning to bring more of the other boys into my writing yay!)

[asian-hero]

i was wondering if i could do a mina x fem!reader where the reader is pretty butch and is friends with mainly the guys; however all of them still think that she likes guys, so they are all trying to set up todoroki (who has no clue on what the guys are doing) with her, until one day they see them talking in a cafe and they think that they’re actually together, until one of them sees/hears her gushing over mina with big brother todoroki paying for her coffee because f endeavor’s credit card ❤️❤️

A/N: I’m glad that the entire fandom collectively agrees that Todoroki would absolutely steal his father’s credit card to buy the dumbest things

Maybe I’ll write a part two where the reader tells Mina how she feels

Summary: The guys of 1-A, while they absolutely owned your heart and you’d do anything for them, all collectively shared a total of three brain cells, and most of the time it was either Bakugou or Iida who held them. So, while you thought it was clear that there was a certain pink haired girl you were crushing on, it somehow got lost in translation, and instead you were set up with a red and white haired boy instead.

They were so close.

Words: 1,970

Ever since you were little, you always found yourself gravitating towards your male classmates versus your female ones. It wasn’t as if you had anything against the girls in your classes, no, it was quite the opposite, in fact. You were just so enamored by them that it often rendered you speechless, so instead of trying to overcome your slight fear of a woman’s rejection, you instead sought comfort with the male students, and then it just became natural for you to gravitate towards them instead. 

By the time you had enrolled in U.A. practically nothing had changed, you were the same girl-avoiding woman you had been growing up, but at least now you knew why you were so infatuated, yet so afraid. On your first day in class 1-A, you immediately found yourself drawn to a nerdy green-haired boy and the seemingly strict glasses wearing kid. It only took a few minutes for you to become fast friends with the two of them, as you and Midoriya found yourself geeking over pro heroes and reading his journal with all of their stats. Iida, while not quite sure how to react to having two extreme pro hero fans, merely watched as you and Midoriya talked a mile a minute about every hero on the scene currently, who your favorites were, and who’s quirk you’d like to switch with for a day. It also didn’t take long for you to be introduced to Uraraka Ochako, though it took much longer for the two of you to become friends. Not because she was hard to get along with, but because she was just so cute that you were having a hard time forming any coherent sentences. You did get past it, eventually, but the two of you knew that you weren’t as close as you and the other two boys.

As you had progressed in your class, gaining more control over your quirk, you also had progressed in terms of how many friends you had gained as well. Shortly after the first week of class, you had somehow managed to be caught in Kaminari, Sero, and Kirishima’s little group, though you mostly acted as their mom and made sure that the three of them didn’t end up of the receiving end of a certain blonde-haired porcupine’s explosive quirk. 

Shouji, Ojiro, Tokoyami, and Sato were also quick friends of yours as well. Though you didn’t hang out with them much, you always knew that you were welcome to hang out with them and just have a relaxing time. Sato had even baked you a few things as the two of you got closer, and now you were currently his sole taste tester when it came to baked goods. 

You did try to befriend Mineta, but quite honestly, you’d rather take Bakugou’s anger issues and insults over the tiny boys perverted stares and attempts to touch you. Thankfully, Bakugou also recognized this as an issue for you, and even though he’d deny it to his dying day, he’d make sure that the perverted boy was never within six feet of you.

The most surprising friend you’d made, and the closest one you had, was the one and only Todoroki Shouto. How the two of you clicked was a mystery to the both of you. With his cold, aloof attitude at the beginning of the school year, and your rather boisterous personality, the two of you had formed some sort of mutual agreement to never speak to one another, both because Todoroki didn’t have the mindset of wanting to make friends, and you didn’t have the mental capacity and patience to deal with that boy without smacking him. However, shortly after the sports festival, he found himself sitting near Midoriya, formerly his only friend, which also meant that he was sitting close to you as well. After a few weeks of awkward silence between the two of you, you finally tried to start a conversation, hoping that your love for pro heroes and maternal personality would make him feel more at ease with you. While it worked to an extent, what really drove Todoroki to becoming your best friend was when you had accidentally let it slip that you didn’t really care for Endeavor, and before you could even attempt to take back what you said, Shouto told you he felt the same, and soon after the two of you became what seemed like the anti-Endeavor club. Instead of the two of you feeling awkward during lunch, you two had actually found yourself ignoring the rest of the group unintentionally, instead lost in your own conversation. 

It was also safe to say that you did have relationships with the girls of 1-A as well, though they were more superficial than the ones that you’d made with the boys. You always made sure to exchange pleasantries with them in the morning, and you made it clear that if any of them needed someone to talk to, they could always reach out to you. Other than that, though, your friendships with them weren’t quite as deep as they were with the boys.

This didn’t stop them from caring about you, though. Even though you never hung out with them, they always made sure to pay close attention to you and your needs, in case you ever needed them.

So, it truly couldn’t be helped that, upon further inspection, they had come to the conclusion that, because you spent so much time with him, you were absolutely, one hundred percent without a doubt, in love with Todoroki. 

It seemed obvious to them, as why would you spend so much time with the boy if you didn’t feel anything for him. You were always smiling around him, and you were one of the only people in the class who could get him to laugh and smile like a regular teenager. They didn’t even think that he could do that! So, in order to be the perfect wingwoman for you, Ashido, Uraraka, and Hagakure decided to plant the seed into some of the boys’ head, more specifically, Midoriya, Kaminari, and Kirishima’s heads. While the first had acted as he normally does, with a flustered look on his face, the other two had some of the most devious smiles you had ever seen. 

Not long after, all of the boys, minus Todoroki, had been let in on your little “crush,” and they decided to hatch a plan to get the two of you together. 

They weren’t subtle by any means, in fact, if you and Todoroki had more than one braincell shared by the two of you at any given point, you both probably would’ve recognized what your classmates were up to. Unfortunately for the both of you, while you were book smart, you were rather dense when it came to social cues, so every obvious attempt made by the other boys went over your head. You did start to pick up on certain things though, like how whenever there was a partner project, everyone would automatically push you towards Todoroki, saying that they already have a partner. Or when the two of you were sitting together at lunch, Midoriya, Iida, and Uraraka “conveniently” forgot to tell you that they weren’t able to sit with you, leaving you and Todoroki to eat by yourselves, not that you minded. 

The most obvious way that the boys attempted to get you two together was whenever you all had hero training, whether it be in rescue or media, if there was a way that they could get you partnered together, then you better believe that was what they were planning. 

Around the tenth time the boys had tried to set you up once again, only to fail miserably, as the two of you genuinely enjoyed each other’s company, and were about as smart as a brick. They were all so close to pulling out their hair, and before they could just call it like it was, Kirishima was the “voice of reason:”

“Those two already hang out a lot as is, right? Maybe they’re dating but they’re hiding it from us, so we should see if we can tail them,”

While most of the boys were agreeing to tail the two of you, with Iida going purely to put an end to any chaos they could cause, they missed the way you were wistfully sighing, and the way that Todoroki was trying to hold back his laughter at your love sick attitude. They also missed the way his eyes lit up with mischief as a certain pink haired girl walked by, waving at the two of you while holding back her pleased grin. Or how you immediately punched his shoulder to get him to stop from doing anything that would embarrass you more.

So, once school had let out, Kaminari, Kirishima, Midoriya, Sero, and Iida had followed closely behind you and Todoroki, hoping that the two of you would do something more interesting than just walking back to the dorms.

Luckily for them, the two of you had planned to head to one of your favorite cafes, just a little ways away from the campus. Blissfully unaware of the eyes glaring holes into the backs of your heads, you carried a pleasant conversation, talking about the training from today, and how both of you thought the other could improve. As you headed into the cafe, the stalkers you had acquired waited a couple of seconds before going in after the two of you, hoping that you two would keep being ignorant of your surroundings, for at least a few more minutes. 

They couldn’t help but be amazed at the sight in front of them: with your arm wrapped securely around his, waiting in line as you pointed out all of the options you thought he’d like. Once the two of you were up to order, Todoroki had ordered for the both of you, and even paid with a shiny credit card that they were sure wasn’t his. Kirishima thought it was rather manly of him, whereas Kaminari was impressed that Todoroki could be “suave.” As the two of you sat down at one of the tables, they were starting to believe in Kirishima’s little theory before they heard you talking about someone else:

“Did you see how cool Mina looked during training today?” You sighed, resting your face against your palm as you stared off to the side.

“‘Mina?’” He teased, sipping on his drink and enjoying the way you seemed to grow embarrassed, “Since when were you two on a first name basis?”

You hid your face in between your hands, mumbling out a quiet “shut up.” He couldn’t help but laugh, leaning in to flick your head.

“You should just tell her you like her, I don’t see the harm from doing so,”

Your head shot straight up, sending a non-threatening glare towards the boy in front of you, “I can think of so many things that could go wrong. One: she could not like me, and then tell the rest of the girls in the class and get them all to hate me,” You took a minute to shove two fingers into his face, “Or two: she could just not like girls in general, and I could make her so uncomfortable that she’ll never want to see me again.”

“You are the most dramatic person I’ve ever met,”

“Well clearly you’ve never met yourself.”

As you both continued to bicker back and forth about your huge crush on the pink girl, the four boys, who were sitting right behind your table, found themselves dumbfounded. Kaminari turned towards the rest of the group, a puzzled look on his face.

“So, she doesn’t like Todoroki?”

[rosemarypasta]

➤ pairing : oikawa tooru x female reader (karasuno manager)

➤ chapter warnings : slowburn (?)

➤ summary : You just recently joined the Karasuno boy’s volleyball team as their first year manager. As you grow closer to your teammates, you also unexpectedly grow closer to one of their biggest rivals, Oikawa Tooru

➤ chapter word count: 1939

-ˏˋ chapter four ˊˎ-

THURSDAY

4:00 PM

"TANAKA AND NOYA, KEEP IT DOWN!" Daichi yelled, his head turned to the back of the bus where a mixture of wild and feral first year and second year volleyball players sat. He turned back and sank into his seat in the first row of the bus where he was sat with the rest of his first years players who were seated across you and Shimizu. The scolding Daichi gave his team was very much effective however, all hell breaks loose once more as the bus stops for a toilet break in a gas station and everyone chaotically raced to get off the bus. You didn't need the toilet so you stayed back and remained seated.

You felt your pocket vibrate and you mentally squealed with glee. You rushed to pull your phone out and read the message sent to you.

Oikawa: hey :) are you there yet?

You looked around to see if anyone was snooping but thankfully, a good 9/10 of the team went to to use the toilet so no one was there to read your messages.

Y/N: We're almost there! Hinata begged for another toilet break...

Oikawa: hahahaha if he were on my team i would've just left him

You smiled at his playful message and began to type another reply.

"Watcha smiling at?" A voice in front of you said out of nowhere. You jumped in your seat at the sight of the charismatic yet cunning vice captain and accidentally threw your phone up in the air. The silver haired boy laughed at your overreaction and bent down to pick your phone up as you felt your cheeks and ears burn up.

"Man, we're never gonna reach Seijoh at this point." He groaned as he handed your phone back. The Karasuno volleyball team was headed to another practice match with Aoba Johsai but this time, it was held in their school.

It has been over a week since you last saw OIkawa and traded phone numbers with him. You've been texting him on a daily basis at this point and you felt ecstatic when Takeda sensei announced the practice match. You had to conceal your smile as the announcement was taking place as you felt Tanaka and Nishinoya's eyes burning a hole on your back, as if they knew exactly what was going through your head. Of course, you kept the fact that you've been getting friendly with their rival's team captain under wraps, though it wasn't like anyone has come up to you and asked who you were texting so you weren't technically lying about anything but you did feel guilty for some reason.

"What are you thinking about Y/N?" Sugawara hummed as he fixed some bags on the overhead compartment above your seat. "O-oh um nothing, I was just wondering why we don't have practice matches with other schools," you lied, "I never knew Karasuno had such strong ties with Seijoh." Sugawara rested his chin on top of the seat beside me, furrowing his eyebrows in deep thought. "That's true, it's odd how Aoba Johsai asks for a practice match so soon after our last one, especially because they won previously. During my entire three years in this club, Seijoh has only reached out to us a total of three times so they must really like us now huh." He shrugged. You were about to continue the conversation but the bus was shortly filled back in with the rest of the team and you were forced to continue the journey to the practice match.

You arrived in another fifteen minutes and the boys immediately started to stretch and warm up for the practice match they were all so pumped about, still unsatisfied with the result from the match they previously had. You took a seat beside coach Ukai and Shimizu and pulled out a notebook and a pen from your backpack to take down notes of the match. A student from Seijoh playing as the referee blew his whistle and commenced the match.

You looked over to Aoba Johsai's side of the court to see Oikawa serving first. His brown hair was styled as usual with no hair out of place and his veins on his right arm popped ever so slightly as he held the volleyball he was going to serve with one hand. He threw the ball up in the air and your eyes unexpectedly met. He smirked in the midst of jumping to deliver his signature jump serve and hit the ball with all the power he had. Though the power he had could leave anyone in awe, the word "OUT" echoed the gym and Oikawa was greeted with a smack on his head by his vice captain, Iwaizumi, who he frequently mentioned in your conversations.

The entire team glanced menacingly at their captain while he rubbed the back of his neck and gave them a playful wink, making you giggle at the sight of the peculiar volleyball captain. You thought all captains of any sports team would be more reliable and mature like Daichi but you guess you were wrong.

The matched resumed and the ball Kageyama served turned to be a chance ball for Seijoh. The ball fell into Oikawa's hands and he perfectly and accurately sets to his vice captain, allowing him to spike. The white uniformed team momentarily cheered at their first point of the day and their first years gave Oikawa showers of praises for the performance he just did. "I guess he is reliable in his own special way." You quietly whispered to yourself, subtly smiling at him.

The game resumes as usual. Aoba Johsai snatched the win for the first set and the two teams took a five minute break before resuming the match. Oikawa winks at you before running towards his bench to get a drink and to discuss tactics with his fellow teammates.

"Dude, what is up with you." Iwaizumi asked his captain after dragging him out of the crowd of resting volleyball players. "What are you talking about?" Oikawa innocently replied, casting a smile towards his childhood friend. The shorter of the two tightened his grip on his water bottle as he saw his fabricated smile. "Don't tell me you went all the way to beg the coach to set up a practice match with Karasuno just to hit on a girl." Iwaizumi sighed as he came to the realization of his best friend's intentions, "I know you're a bit messed up in your head but this is the first time I've seen you go this far just to get a girl's attention." He started, putting his hand on his captain's shoulder but before he could go on any further, a whistle was blown, commencing the start of the next set. Oikawa slyly grinned, mentally thanking the referee for getting him out of a lecture and started to jog back to the court. "Just quit staring at her, I'm sure blondie over there already got a hint on what you're after." The Seijoh ace whispered to the captain, averting his gaze from a not so happy Tsukishima, who was trying to look at Oikawa dead in the eye.

6:00 PM

The two schools managed to finish two three set games by the time the sun has already begun to set. Fortunately, Karasuno was able to win a game which means each Seijoh and Karasuno won three sets by the end of the day. This improvement left a happier and satisfied impression with the Karasuno team which made you happy as well, seeing them so proud with their performance.

Everyone was already outside, getting ready to board the bus back home and were all noisily discussing the match. Knowing how immature and irresponsible the boys can be, Shimizu took it upon herself to take a quick scan of Seijoh's gym to make sure none of them left any of their belongings like the responsible manager she is but, you stopped her as you felt bad that you didn't do nearly as much work as she has done. You told her not to worry and to save you a seat on the bus before running back into the gym.

You knew the boys were exhausted from the intense and long rallies they had throughout the game so they were dying to go back home to get a proper rest so, you sprinted into the gym and attempted to get back to the bus as fast as you can.

You scanned the floors for any familiar bags and the area where you and Shimizu sat and realized that nothing was left behind. You turned sharply after checking under the benches and expected to see the view of the gym's polished wooden floors but all you can see was pitch black nothingness as your face made "thud" noise.

"Y/N-chan?" The wall you just collided with spoke. You raised your head quickly in embarrassment as you realized you just ran into Oikawa, to be specific, ran into his torso. You shifted your gaze from his white uniformed abdomen to the confused look he was wearing on his face.

You were speechless. You didn't know what to say or do. A million thoughts are running through your head, attempting to find ways to cope with the embarrassing act you've just done but a laugh interrupted your thinking. "Man, Y/N-chan, you gotta be more careful from now on! What if you did this to Mad Dog-chan? He'd bite your head off!" He chuckled as he patted your head softly. You stared at him in disbelief, trying to piece your thoughts together as your whole face turned red. All you could say was "sorry" in the midst of his fits of laughter.

"But I'm glad I was able to bump into you alone Y/N! Metaphorically and physically." He said as he finally calmed down, his face beaming at yours. "W-Why?" You stammered, still not over what just happened. Oikawa bent down close to your left ear promptly, not giving you time to fluster over his abrupt move. He was so close you could feel his warm breath on the left side of your neck. "Well afterall, I did arrange all this just so I could see you again." His voice soothed. You felt your surroundings go mute again, just like the last time you saw him. Without skipping a beat, he continued. "Y/N-chan." His voice was deeper than usual, a serious tone draped over your name. Without realizing, you held your breath in anticipation of his next words.

"Will you go on a date with me?"

You turned your head to face him. A date? The captain of Seijoh's volleyball team is asking you on a date? Everything felt surreal and the whole world seemed to spin. Your breathing was deep and slow as your gaze met his sickly sweet smile.

You were ecstatic. Never in a million years, you would've thought your classic case of unrequited love and admiration would turn up like a protagonist's love story in a shojo manga. Your heart was beating so fast, it felt like it could leap out of your throat. You wanted to scream yes immediately, however a series of coughs from the entrance of the gym interrupted the golden moment you were experiencing.

Both you and Oikawa, whose bodies were an inch apart, diverted your attention to the tall blonde boy leaning against the door, just a few steps away from where you were.

"We're waiting for you, Y/N."

next:  -ˏˋ chapter five ˊˎ- 

previous:  -ˏˋ chapter three ˊˎ-

[cowboisadness]

Hang ‘Em High {Arthur Morgan x OC} Chapter 13

Pairing: Arthur Morgan x FemOC

Summery: Belle Hawthorne is high society looking to escape her mean husband. A robbery by the Van Der Linde gang could be her chance. Can she escape his cluches and possibly discover what love should feel like?

Warnings: Micah being Micah

.....

Chapter 13

I couldn’t stop thinking about Arthur's reaction after telling him I wanted to kill that no-good bastard. Currently stood in the cover of Arthurs tent as Miss Grimshaw checked my wound for any infection and helped me apply fresh dressings. She had seen so much of me at this point it didn't bother me anymore. She really was the mother hen of this gang. His reaction was one of confusion at first. His brows furrowed and his mouth hanging open like he had a million questions but didn’t know which one to start with. The moment I began to laugh his expression relaxed, snorting out a laugh along and shaking his head. Like it was a lighthearted joke shared amongst friends. To be honest, I am undecided on if it was a joke or not, I couldn’t see myself going through with something like that but I imagined it none-the-less The rage was true, I felt it from the depths of that pit in my stomach and as it spread throughout me. I wanted him to die, to be rid of him for once and for all, it would be the only thing to quell this feeling. 

My wound travelled from my breastbone and down just shy a couple of inches from my navel. A clean-cut that wasn’t deep enough to require stitches but enough to scar. Another to add to the collection.

Once done I made my way to the scout fire just on the edge of camp. It was hardly used by other members of the camp so the fire was out, everyone preferring to sit amongst each other at the main fire. Kicking the burnt logs on top I collected what I was after, the charcoals that sat at the bottom. Old wood that was burnt for so long and almost starved of oxygen. It was perfect for what I needed. I took my blackened treasure to the lakeside, collecting a pestle and mortar as well as a spare metal cup on the way. Sitting on the small jetty I began to make my concoction, breaking down the charcoal till it was nothing but dust and adding small amounts of water. Mixing it all together till a black paste was formed. I kept at it crushing as much of the charcoal until it was thoroughly mixed. The sun was high in the sky at this point, its rays reflecting off the ripples as it licked the stony shore. I continued what I was doing even as I heard footsteps on the jetty coming towards me. The person stopping just a couple of feet away from me, my back still turned away from whoever it may be. “What you up to girly?”

It was Micah. I had only interacted with him a few times since being here. His comments always seem condescending and slimy. The girls had warned me about him, none of them liked him and actively tried to keep away from him after comments he had made towards each of them. I wouldn’t have guessed he had been here only a handful of months given how he hangs around Dutch like a bad smell. “Charcoal mixed with water. Going to use it as eye makeup to hopefully make me less recognisable while out of camp.” “I thought only whores painted their faces. Whores and clowns.” He sneered 

“They possibly do.”

“Bit of a shame to ruin that young pretty face with makeup don’t you think? If you ever want to leave camp for a drink just come along with me. I’ll make sure to take care of you.” His voice turned lower with seductive tones. Worthy to make the bile from your stomach make its way up and stick to the back of your throat.

“Um, thank you for the offer, Micah, but I think I’ll feel much safer disguising myself somehow no matter who is with me.” I still didn't turn to him, hoping that he would take the hint that I didn't want his company. 

“Suit yourself. But the offer still stands, I’m willing to take you out on the town. Show you how us folks really party. None of that pricey wine and fancy petticoats you’re probably used to.”

I finally turned to him, looking at him deadpan in the hopes he would get the hint. He seemed too as he raised his hands in defeat and began walking backwards back into camp. That man desperately needs to go into town himself and pay for a woman. Hopefully, then he might just be a bit more bearable to converse with. But no woman would be paid enough to lay with that man. 

 Once done I poured the contents into the metal cup then cleaned out the pestle and mortar before returning it. The camp was much quieter than this morning when Sadie threatened to slice up Pearson. Arthur decided to take her out of camp and help with collecting any provisions Pearson needed. Knowing what Sadie had been through, losing her home and husband brutally and thus having her life flipped completely on its head, I wasn’t surprised by her overall behaviour. A once hardworking and happy woman with nothing to lose. I understood that in a way. They both arrived back, Sadie now sporting pants instead of a dress. They both unloaded the wagon and then Arthur was off again to meet Dutch back in Rhodes. I made my way over to the wagon to help organise the provisions and to offer my help in preparing the stew. Give Sadie and Pearson a break from each other. “Nice look you got going on, Sadie.” I smiled at the woman as I approached. She turned towards me, a box of vegetables in her hands. 

“Why, thank you. Thought I would take a leaf outta your book. They are sure more practical than a damn dress.”

“More comfortable too.” She hummed her agreement, placing the box down and then leaning against the wagon and lighting a cigarette. She offered me one to take from the box and I gladly accepted. She lit another match and presented it to me for me to light it with. Smoke quickly fills the air between us. 

“So how are you doing?” She asked, waving the match in the air and then flinging it into the dirt.

“I’ve had worse. What about you?”

“This place is driving me nuts. Glad I could get out for a while. Shooting those no good Raiders that ambushed us helped me relieve some of the rage.”

“You got ambushed?” I looked at her with wide eyes, smoke being exhaled as I spoke. 

“Relax, I ain’t afraid to hold my own...Ain’t afraid of dyin’ neither.”

“Hmm, I knew that feeling once,” I replied, thinking back to that night looking over the balcony railings in Saint Denis. Dying by his hand was a petrifying thought but dying by my own was something I thought about often back then.

“Oh, I got what you asked for. Sumac flowers and beet juice?”

“Thank you so much, Sadie. This is perfect.” I boasted, taking the items from her.

“What you need it for anyway?”

“Sumac and beets are natural dyes. Hoping together they will change my hair colour to a dark red.” 

“Well, that sounds mighty smart.” She smiled, blowing out smoke into the air above and then flinging the cigarette into the dirt along with the matches. We parted ways after that and I began to help Pearson prepare the stew. He seemed considerably more at ease with me as his assistant chef this time around. We exchanged mindless chatter about the weather and what variations of stew he could create. That was until he mentioned his time in the Navy. Once he started he couldn’t stop. But I listened along with a smile on my face and the occasional ‘uh huh’. After the threats he received this morning and gave out no less, I wasn’t in the position to stop him from having this moment of happiness.     Once everything was in the pot and beginning its slow boil, I made my way over to Karen for a towel I could borrow. Collected a fresh pair of clothing and a bar of soap and made my way to the lake. Beet juice and Sumac in hand. I'd crushed the Sumac into a powder after preparing dinner then mixed it in the jar that held the beet juice. It was very dark red, like old blood or wet artists paint. With my dark blonde hair, it should have no problem changing the overall colour while still looking somewhat natural. I’ll look like a new woman no doubt.  I followed along the waters edge until I was out of sight from the camp but still close enough I would be heard if anything was to happen. Placing the towel and soap on an old fallen log I made work on stripping my clothes and dressings, dropping them on the dirt around me. They were sweat-soaked anyway with how hot it can get here during the day. Opening the jar I was met with the powerful smell of beets, that earthy smell along with the scent the sumac was giving off was overwhelming but thankfully not too unpleasant. Making my way into the lake I began pouring the mixture onto the top of my head, making sure to get every strand completely saturated and not paying any mind to how it will stain my skin on the back of my neck and down my back where it lays. Leaving a trail in my path I flung the jar back onto the shore once I was waist-deep. Thankfully the lake remained shallow quite far out, given that I couldn’t get my wound wet. I began to wash, humming to myself at the delightful coolness the water granted. I’m starting to get used to this. Bathing in lakes instead of warm and deep porcelain tubs. Fish surrounding me instead of bubbles and the smell of the earth instead of Lavender hair oils. Although I'd probably be saying the exact opposite if I was in colder climates. I spent more time than I usually would bathing. Cupping the water and letting it pour over my shoulders and arms to wash away the soap and dirt, being careful to avoid the cut as I went. The scabs formed a ridge along my flesh, the skin tight and red around the edges. A constant reminder. 

Leaning back I dipped my head into the water to remove the dye and just hoping it had done its job. The water surrounding me turned the same deep red as I ran my fingers through my hair, pulling out any knots as each digit travelled from the top to the ends. An overwhelming sense of tranquillity washed over me as I looked out beyond the lake to the land ahead and around me. A small flock of ducks milling about further up, diving under the water to catch any small fish swimming below them. I slowly started making my way along, hoping I didn't disturb them. The cool water lapped around my waist and rippled behind me. Perching myself next to a large boulder standing out of the water to watch them as they quacked and ruffled their feathers. I was lost in my thoughts once again for a short while, the sounds of my name being called from the shore behind me bringing me back to where I was. I made my way around the boulder to see Arthur standing at the shore beside my scattered clothing. We saw each other at the same time, my arms coming up to cover myself, him turning around to face away from me. No doubt he saw. I could feel the heat flushing to my face, my cheeks probably as red as my hair should be. “Jesus...are you okay? Your cut opened up?” He asked, fidgeting on his feet as he looked in the direction of camp

“What? Erm, no, I’m fine.” I shook my head. He turned back slowly then, his eyes going everywhere else until they landed on me, then looked down to where my clothes lay.

“W-well what's with the blood all over here?”

“Oh...that’s beet juice. I’m fine, Arthur. I’m coming out in a moment.”

“Okay...Well, Hosea is looking for you.” 

“Okay...Thank you, Arthur.” I said more quietly, my cheeks still burning and my arms wrapped tightly around my chest. His eyes met mine for a moment and I expected him to turn away again like the gentleman he usually is, but he didn't. And neither did i. He inhaled deeply, nodding his head then turned to make his way back to camp with some haste. 

I leaned against the boulder, exhaling a breath I didn't know I was holding in. The chill of the water returning as my body began to cool down.

Despite the embarrassment of what just happened I thought to myself, out of all the men in the camp he was the only one I was glad came looking for me. Anyone else I would be mortified. 

I didn't mind Arthur seeing me like this. I trusted him...I liked him. 

My whole body shivered, goosebumps forming all across my arms and chest. It wasn’t caused by the water or the air was beginning to lower in temperature. 

With my lips curving up into a smidgen of a smile and a quiet sigh I admitted to myself that I liked that he saw me. I wanted him to.

@kashasenpai​

[the-creative-lie]

Quarantined

pairings: steve rogers x reader; nat x bucky if you squint

genre/warnings: the fluffiest fluff

word count: 2.3k

summary:  Steve and the reader are quarantined together and dancing around their feelings for each other, so Buck and Nat decide to take matters into their own hands.

notes: based on an ao3 request. we could all use a little steve love right now lol

 “This is the fourth time I’ve found you like this,” you hear Steve say. Honestly, how does he manage to be cute even upside down? From this angle, his disapproving frown almost seems like a smiley face.  Oh right, upside down. You’ve been laying on the couch, legs up, head dangling over the ground, for the past twenty minutes or so. You are certain your face is ruby red right now and you’re starting to feel a little bit dizzy, but the whole world is on quarantine goddamit, and you’re bored.

 “I heard sending a bunch of blood to your brain is supposed to make you smarter,” you justify, coming out of your not-so-comfortable posture and laying your now throbbing head on the armrest of the couch. He sits on the other end, lifting your legs and putting them back down on top of his knees.

 “And who exactly told you that?” he asks amused.  You look away, rolling your eyes at your own stupidity. “Bucky,” you mumble.

 “And you believed him?”

 “No. Well, yeah. But I’m not smart, that’s why I was doing this in the first place! That was the whole point!”

 “Seriously, Y/N. It doesn’t work.”

 “How do you know? You’re not smart either!” you protest. His nose wrinkles and his mouth forms a perfect O.

 “Excuse you?” he exclaims, pretending to be offended.

 You smirk. “I said what I said, Rogers.”

  His eyes twinkle with mischief and you frown, confused. Before you can ask him what the hell is going on in that blonde head of his, he grabs your legs and throws you off the couch. You groan from the floor and send him a glare. He giggles. Captain America giggled. And he looks so pretty when he does that. It’s kind of unfair.

 “I’m going to try to clean out my closet for like, the seventh time this week,” you huff “Feel free to come help me, if you’re bored.”

 “Sure. I’ll be right there,” he smiles, as he watches you leave for your room.

 From the kitchen, Bucky Barnes just stares in utter disbelief as his best friend sits on the couch with the goofiest grin plastered on his face, looking at the empty spot you just left beside him. He can tell Steve is head over heels for you, and Nat has already told him about your huge crush on him. He can put two and two together, but apparently you lovebird idiots can’t, because you’ve been dancing around each other since the quarantine started. And he’s starting to get bored too. So, he does the only thing that could make this lockdown more interesting and gives himself a mission. Well, him and Nat. There’s no way he’s doing any of this without her help.

                                   **********************************

 “I can’t believe you still have this,” Steve laughs, as he unfolds an old t-shirt that was rolled into a ball in the back of your closet. It’s a very old shirt, and to be fair, you bought it as a joke. It sports a very discolored picture of his shield on the front.

 You snort. “I just wear it to bed sometimes. It turned out to be incredibly comfy.” That’s totally true. I mean, yeah, it could also be the fact that it reminds you of him, but no. No, definitely the levels of comfort the t-shirt provides are what drove you to grab it in those five minutes when you packed as fast as possible before leaving the Avengers Tower for good, when the Accords mess was in full swing and when you decided to follow Steve Rogers to the end of the world and back.   It’s been a few months since that, and yeah, you are fugitives now, but honestly? It’s not so bad. You, Steve, Bucky and Nat got yourselves a small house on the mountains for the time being. You’re near a small town that you go to when you need supplies. Truth be told, it wasn’t like you’d go out a lot before the quarantine started, trying not to show your faces too much and all that, but you could still go for a walk, buy dinner somewhere. But isolation hits differently when it’s not by choice.

 “I still don’t get why you bought it though.” He places down the t-shirt and takes a sip off his mug. Currently you are both sitting on the ground, in your room, drinking coffee and laughing at your poor fashion sense. Hey, a lady can only do so much when running away from the law okay?

 “I just thought it’d be funny,” you say, folding some jeans and starting to make a pile. “Also the lady at the store didn’t recognize me at first, and that was hilarious. I got to pretend to be one of your fangirls, remember?”

 His face goes red and he covers it with his hand, embarrassed. “Of course I remember. I was there. You asked for a selfie with me and started to fake cry. ”

 “HA. I forgot about that part.”

 “I remain impressed by the fact that you can cry on command, by the way. ”

 “What can I say, Stevie? I’m an actor,” you say theatrically, standing up and bowing as if on stage. Steve starts clapping and wooing.

 “Then I’m your number one fan,” he replies. You stare at him, stammering for a moment before regaining composure. You two are always doing this, even more so now that you are forced to spend basically 24/7 together. You flirt, he flirts back, someone blushes. He says an amazing one liner; you’re left with your heart racing and your stomach doing flips. But it’s just friendly banter, right? It’s just the fact that you’re locked up together and that the only two other humans you guys see on a daily basis are Russian assassins.  Speaking of Russian assassins, your train of thought gets interrupted by Nat screaming from the living room that her and Bucky are about to facetime with Sam and that you two should get your tushies to the couch.  Yeah, she actually said tushies. Isolation is doing things to her.

 “Sam, babe, how you doin’?” You shout, climbing over Bucky to get the good spot on the couch. He bats a hand at you, annoyed, and you stick out your tongue at him. He sucker punches you in the arm but just when you’re about to pull his hair, Steve easily lifts you up like you’re made of paper and scoots you away from Buck. Sometimes you forget how strong he actually is.

 “Behave, children. Uncle Sam is on the FaceTime.” You lock eyes with Nat and you both let out a laugh.

 “THE FaceTime?” you ask, giggling.

 Steve frowns, confused. “Isn’t it called the FaceTime? That’s what you said last time.”

 “It’s just FaceTime, Steve. No the,” Nat corrects him.

 “Man, c’mon. We talked about this, Rogers. You did the same thing with the Google and it drove me crazy for like a month,” Sam chimes in from the screen.

 “Yeah, Steve. Get with the times, old man.”

 “Buck, we’re the same age.”

 “Yeah, but I’m hip and modern.”

  You roll your eyes. “The fact that the words hip and modern just left your mouth disqualifies you immediately, Barnes.”

 He huffs and returns his attention to Sam. “How about you, Birdman? How you holding up?”

 “Things are pretty chill, I guess. I’m using the FaceTime to have online meetings with the therapy groups. It’s not the same, and of course we’d wish we could have a more personal contact as usual, but we’re doing what we can, you know. Trying to get used to the new normal.”

 “Is the FaceTime going to be a thing now?” Steve groans, “Fuck, this one’s sticking right? I’m gonna regret it?”

 “Language,” you say, trying not to laugh. He just glares at you.

 Sam is, thankfully, not a fugitive. The government considered (after a few pulled strings and a trending hashtag on the Twitter) that he could be pardoned of his crimes, based on the fact that he did a lot of important work on the community; and that his participation on the whole Accords debacle wasn’t so big, and therefore, could be swept under the rug.  You four, on the other hand, were not as lucky. After all, here you are, aren’t you? In the middle of Germany, or Canada, or who knows at this point.

 “Anyways, guys, I just wanted to check on you. Y’all know this things can’t last very much or you risk exposure. I’m glad you’re all okay, and I’ll try calling again as soon as I can without raising suspicion. Take care!"

 A chorus of goodbyes and take cares erupts from the couch, and the screen turns black.

 You get up, stretching your back. “Well, I’m gonna take a shower. If you guys are hungry just have dinner without me, I’ll have something later,” you state, heading to the bathroom you all share.

 The only problem with you leaving is that Steve is now left alone between two giddy assassins, who both look at him like they’re Cheshire cats. Frankly, it’s terrifying.

 Steve gulps, considering running and risking his life by breaking the quarantine instead of dying here on this couch, because he already knows what’s coming. Every time you’re gone and the three of them are alone, the conversation always shifts to…

 “So, Y/N huh?”

 “Smooth, Buck.”

 “You’re the talker, woman, you do the talking!”

 “And what are you supposed to be?”

 “I’m the muscle. In case he tries to run away.”

 Oh no, there goes his only plan. Poor Steve.

 Natasha turns to him and stares him down, “Rogers, when are you going to tell that woman you’re in love with her?”

 “We- I- huh. Whenever I have time.”

 “You’re on goddamn quarantine. There’s nothing but time.”

 “Yeah. Loads of time.”

 “Seriously, if only you removed your head from your tushie for a little bit you would see she clearly feels the same.”

 “That’s right. Head, tush. That’s a no-no.”

 “This is your chance, Rogers. Y/N’s super stressed out with the locked down, she’s practically climbing up the walls. Do something nice for her, and tell her how you feel.”

 “Be a gentleman, yo.”

 “Barnes I thought we agreed I’d do the talking.”

 “Alright, damn. I was just trying to help. Also what is it with you saying tushie now? ”

 “IT’S A QUARANTINE THING!”

 Before things could get any further (or worse, for all that matters), Steve stands up and shuts both super spies up, “Okay, fine. I’ll do it. You’re right. Just, huh. Go to your rooms, please? I need to think.”

 Natasha smirks at him, “Sure thing, dad. Come on, James, let’s go watch some crap TV show in my room.”

 Steve looks around, panicked. And then he has an idea.

                              *********************************************

 After getting out of the shower and putting on some fuzzy pajamas and, why not, the infamous Captain America t-shirt, you head to the kitchen in search for some late night dinner slash snack. The lights seem to be out, so you assume the gang already ate and went to bed. But what surprises you when you get to the living room is the tiny table where you usually have breakfast, simply adorned with a white tablecloth and one of those crappy candles you guys keep in the bottom drawer in case there’s a blackout.  And standing next to it all, in his own fuzzy pajamas, is Steven Grant Rogers, looking like he’s about to pass out but still standing, and holding a piece of paper.

 “Steve? What’s all this?”

 He just starts to ramble, “Okay so. Huh. I’ve been trying to say something to you for quite a while now. And lately the voices in my head, that sound a lot like Bucky and Nat by the way, would not shut up about it. And I just thought, you know what? We’re on a goddamn quarantine. The world apparently has its own plans, and does whatever it wants, it’s not gonna wait for me. So fuck it. I’m saying it.”

 “Saying what?” you breathe out, heart pounding on your chest.

 “I’m in love with you, Y/N,” he smiled softly, raising his eyebrows as if to say and I guess there’s nothing I can do about it.

 You’re speechless. He stares at you and starts panicking, “Oh God. Huh, it’s okay if you don’t feel the same, I- This was all so stupid, and I just put you on the spot and- oh no, now you’re trapped with me because of the quarantine. I’m so sorry, I’ll just stay locked in my room so you won’t have to see me and Bucky can just pass me some crackers through the door-”.

 You cut his rambling, “Steve. It’s okay.”

 “No, it’s not, I shouldn’t have listened to them-”

 “Steve, I’m in love with you too.”

 He looks up at you like a deer in headlights, “You are?”

 “Yeah,” you shrug, smiling.

 He frowns, “Why?”

 “Must be all that blood going to my head, ” you close the distance between you two and wrap your arms around his neck, “Guess it just made me dumber.”

 “I’ll have to thank Bucky for that.”

 “Could you stop talking about Barnes and kiss me already?” he laughs and leans down to kiss you, sweet and gentle, and suddenly everything makes sense.

 You separate a little, arms still around him and look around.

 “What’s all this?”

 “Well I was going to ask you out, but because of the quarantine we can’t really go out,” he explains, sheepish, “So I thought we could go in, you know?” He lets go of you and points at a plate on the table, “Also, we´re having sandwiches for dinner because we haven’t gone on the supply run yet. And since I can’t buy you flowers- ”, he hands you the piece of paper, a bouquet of wild flowers beautifully drawn.

 “Steve, these are so pretty. This is perfect, it’s all perfect,” you beam.

 He brings out a chair for you, “Shall we?”

 You laugh. Maybe quarantine is not that bad.

[thewritingstar]

Prompt list 5: some greens for the soft tender kissing please? 🥺 maybe they just finished fighting an awful monster or just got out of a rough sparring session and needed some affection to help ground each other again. Pretty please and thank you!! You’re the best!!

This is cute! Hope you enjoy :)

Pairing: Greens (Butch x Buttercup)

----

No matter how old she was fighting monsters never got easier. Maybe the planning and how to fight them did. Blossoms leadership had grown over time and everyone’s skill had too. What didn’t change was the feeling of pain that rapidly spread through her body everyone she got hit or smacked down.

The feeling of her head rushing with to much blood and white noise playing had never ceased to get easier. You can prepare and say it will be a bloody battle, but the bone crushing blows and the scraping of the knees always caught her off guard.

The chemical X that jolted through her system and sent a rush through her was also unprepared. The sensation of a cool liquid almost exploding in her veins and organs felt weird as if she was feeling death being sucked out of her. Yeah, it never got easier.

The only thing that helped over time was the turning of age RowdyRuff Boys. During their middle school years, the boys, mostly Brick, had enough of dear old dads. Being bossed around and left for the aftermath of the puff fights had gotten old, especially when they began to realize that none of what they stole for their fathers ever showed up for keeping.

They rebelled in an odd way. Coming to the good side and practically fighting against their creators. It was weird when Brick had approached Blossom during the beginning of high school and nearly demanded that she allow them to join the team cause he was fed up with monkey brains. Princess cried saying she was never allowed to join and Blossom only rolled her eyes and agreed for the safety of the city and not because they were secretly making out behind closed doors and Brick wanted to impress his “flower”.

So they joined forces in high school, big deal. They grew as a team and possibly closer. It wasn’t long before the notorious leaders of both groups had hooked up and apparently Bubbles and Boomer had secretly been together since middle school, but for the green duo, it was another story. 

They were both alike, naturally as counterparts. Always picking fights and holding stupid grudges against each other. Even with two years of high school down and their teamwork with the city, they still never moved past the frenemies tier. 

And maybe it was because they were both afraid. Sure they teased each other and everyone was dying to see them get together but those strange warm feelings that kept them both up at night were shut down as the sun rose in the sky. It was easier to be friends, maybe they had become best friends at the start of junior year, sue them. 

And maybe, just maybe after a brutal fight on the battle field where they had flown to hid from the monster, Butch had wiped the dirt off her face. And maybe that sent a jolt of electricity to powerful to contain through them both as they began to lean forward. And maybe, maybe, they had kissed. 

And maybe that kiss broke through that barrier of fear she was holding onto. The tears she shed as she faced death one too many times had slipped away as his lips fell to hers. They should be focused on the wounds they had received from the wonderful monster fight but her mind was only on him. She never thought that he could be so delicate and tender as he careful cupped her cheek. The way his body pressed against hers felt so right and she swore that this explosion of fireworks was due to her hitting her head hard, not the breathtaking kiss she was currently involved in. No, the monster was at fault, but god his lips were so soft. 

By the end of winter break junior year, the green duo had completed the dating between the puffs and ruffs. 

So no, monster fights didn’t get easier, but the people you fought along side made it better.

--

And now here she was at age twenty two. In the middle of her college studies looking towards a degree in sports medicine and a teaching credential, she didn’t know either, don’t ask. But instead of her studying for her exam on Friday, she was up in the sky blasting laser beams and sending punches that could easily kill a person towards a giant ass monster. 

It was all yellow and fuzzy and Bubbles thought it looked like a baby duck, yeah know, before it spit poisonous acid out of its mouth and melted half a skyscraper. Gross. 

She kept hitting harder and harder, letting her muscles tense to the extreme as she fought alongside the others. She had lost sight of her boyfriend a while go, Brick had yelled at him to create a barrier of some sort and she was only focused on beating the living shit outta this thing. 

Its roar was loud as the sound rumbled the town but Bubbles sonic scream nearly caused an earthquake from the high pitch shatter of her vocal cords, p.s. you will never win a fight with her, she learned that the hard way when she was seven. She can still feel her eardrums ringing. 

As her fist collided again and again, she felt the dripping and burning sensation on her forearm as the acid fell from its mouth, Blossom sending the monster tumbling towards the ground. It stung like hell as the thick goop made her skin bubble and her eyes welded into tears because it was literal fucking acid. 

There was nothing she could do as it rushed through her skin. The chemical X fighting back as quickly but the pain was harsh. 

The whimper of her voice caught the attention of her leader and soon a nice layer of ice had coated the burns but left her skin bubbly and puffy as Blossom worked quickly. 

“Not suppose to put ice on burns.” Buttercup muttered but it was better than letting the acid reach her bones and take her whole arm off. Her sister smiled lightly and just patted her head. 

All she wanted to do was fly back to her dorm and study. 

“Wicked burn babe.” Butch flew up next to her and her eyes widened as she saw that half of his shirt had melted off and his chest showed the same sickly bubbling that her arm did. 

She just stared at the scars and even though the chemical x would cover it, it somehow made her feel worried. She had seen him in a worse state. Broken ribs, hips, arms, you name it and hes broken it. But in a matter of days, hes brand new. Still sucked. 

“Hey, hey.” He brought her into a hug. “Come on babe.” His voice was low and soothing. Buttercup only hugged him tight as she buried her face into his chest, avoiding the burned area. 

Her body felt heavy and her eyes even heavier and she assumed he had talked to their red leaders because the next time she opened her eyes they were in his own apartment. She was being carried bridal style. Usually she would complain about being treated like this but she had a massive headache and snuggled closer to her carrier. 

“Damn Butters I haven’t seen you like this since we got totally shitfaced during freshman spring break.” She felt the vibration of the laugh against her head and soon 

She picked her head up and looked at him through her lashes. “I want kisses.” She muttered and she felt his hold tighten on her as he brought her into his room.

He let out a low laugh before setting her on the bed and patting her head. “Easy Babe. Let me just wipe the dirt off and you can have me.” She mentally pouted as he went into the bathroom and she heard the faucet turn on.

She kicked off her shoes and peeled off her shirt that had become ruined but thankfully her tank top didn’t take as much damage.

He came back with a clean face and a wet rag before sitting on his knees and gently wiping it around her face to reveal the fair skin that was caked under dirt and dust.

Her head pressed into his palm and he swiped the rag around her mouth, purposefully making some of it go into her mouth which she scowled out.

“Maybe I don’t want those kisses any more.” She began to say but he only laughed before scooping her up so that he could lay on his bed with her against his chest.

“Fine.” Butch smirked but she rolled her eyes and pressed a soft kiss to his lips.

His hands traveled to the back of her thighs as he began to rub her skin that was most likely sore. She made a small noise against his lips as she rocked her hips and took his face in her hands, her thumb gliding gently along his jaw. 

“You should shave.” She kisses his lips again.

“I know.” He mumbled as one of his hands came to rest on her behind. “Kinda annoying right?” He laughed lightly and he loved the feeling of her kissing his cheek.

“Mmmm” she hummed with another peak to his face. “You just look better with a clean face. And maybe a few cuts and bruises.” She kissed the dark circle that was forming under his eye from when he got hit today.

Some people might think it’s weird but she really liked watching the skin expand and turn to deep shades of blue and purple before it quickly fades from chemical x taking care of it.

He leaned up causing her to lightly gasp before holding her against his chest and kissing her neck.

“But for me babe. I prefer to see you crystal clean. Don’t get me wrong you look hot as fuck with scratches and burns but I like to see you in prestige condition.” Butch bit her neck gently drawing out another noise from her lips.

“But you know what I like best?” He asked. And she shook her head as he kissed the bite mark. “I like the feeling of you after a battle. Scars or no scars. This soft feeling of your lips on mine and the way that you act so shy, really gets me going love.” She silenced him with another tender kiss.

She longed for these soft and quiet moments. The world would crumble around them and her focus would be on him as they laid peacefully. 

“I love you.” She said to him and she loved the way his expression soften and the ends of his lips turned up into a smile. 

“I love you too.” He kissed her temple before she felt her eyes flutter close and they fell asleep in a calm bliss. 

--

just something cute. Hope you enjoyed :) 

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #387

“today i woke up, & i hate myself”

What common problem have you never experienced? The loss of a close family member (that doesn't include pets). Alternatively, what's an uncommon problem you have experienced? Homelessness. Do you know anyone who opposes marriage equality? I sure do. What was the last thing you got really emotional about? Meerkat Manor: Rise of the Dynasty premiering. What's the longest amount of time you've been ill for? I don't really know. I don't get sick a lot at all. Who is your closest male friend? Girt. Do you know anyone who hunts for meat? Sadly. I say "sadly" because it's not like they need it. Have you ever lived with a boyfriend/girlfriend? Yes, although I wasn't a technical resident. I was there all the time, though. What do you wash dishes with? Sponge, scrub brush, rag, something else? A sponge. Is there anything you prefer to do the old-fashioned way? There's probably something, but I can't think of anything. Do you put your glasses and mugs right side up or upside down on the cabinet shelf? Upside-down. What was the worst part of your childhood? My parents fighting. Have you ever seen a high school relationship last long-term? (like 10+yrs) Yeah. Do you know any cancer survivors? Quite a few. Leftover pizza for breakfast... yay or nay? Good shit, man. Do you personally know anyone who's a psychopath or sociopath? I don't think so. What is your most used kitchen appliance? Lately, it's been the apple slicer. I've been on a real apple slices + peanut butter kick lately. What is something that you would personally like to be remembered for? For being a caring person towards all living things. Have you ever been diagnosed as clinically depressed before? Yes. Do you like bowling? Yeah, it's fun. Do you own binoculars or nonoculars? What do you use them for? No. Do you ever wish you had a telescope on the roof or attic to stargaze? Yeah, that'd be cool. Have you ever had to deal with someone close to you going off to war? No, thankfully. Who do you feel you have the most in common with? Sara, easily. Who in your life causes you the most stress or negative feelings? My damn self lmao. Have you ever had a teacher that also taught your parents? No. My parents didn't grow up in NC. What’s one thing that people definitely CAN’T count on you for? To remember like... anything. What about something they definitely can count on you for? Someone to listen to encourage them. What’s one food that you want to try but haven’t yet? I've always thought macaroons look good. Do you have anything planned for the summer? No. Do you walk fast or slow? Slow. Would you consider yourself an adrenaline junkie? No. What is a common slang word from where you live? Plural "you" does not exist. It's "y'all," lol. What’s the scariest thing you’ve accidentally found on the internet? *shrug* Probably something as a kid, going on those sketchy websites with loads of games and stuff. Thinking of every Halloween costume you’ve had, which one was the most creative? I don't think I've had any creative costumes for Halloween. What’s one random city you want to visit? It's not exactly "random" as it's a popular location, but anyway, I would love to visit Venice. What subjects do you or did you get the worst grades in? Math. When was the last time you ate cake and what type of cake was it? That's a good question, actually. Maybe my niece's birthday in February? I don't remember what kind of cake it was. Do you have photos to go with all of the contacts in your phone? No; I don't have any. Do you like snowy winter days or do you prefer rainy days? SNOWY! Name 3 things you find most beautiful in nature: Mountains, large waterfalls, and desert dunes in the wind. If you could ask one person one questions and get a completely honest answer who would it be and what would you ask? Jason. I'd ask if he thought I was emotionally abusive. What is your favorite winter activity? Building snowmen. Who is the greatest singer who is no longer living? Freddie Mercury. What is your idea of heaven? I don't know, really... I have to ask myself IS there a heaven in eternity? Living forever just... doesn't appeal to me. "Living" is an odd word to use there, but hopefully you get it. Existing on and on and on and on seems like it'd just be a drag, but at the same time I do like the thought of feeling relentlessly happy and peaceful with my loved ones. I guess that would be my definition of it, if it does exist. What’s one of the scariest things you’ve ever done? ODed. Have you ever watched the Superbowl all the way through? Just once, on my 16th birthday because I was at Jason's place and all of his family was watching it. I had absolutely zero interest, but we wanted to hang with the family. If you had to move to another country, where would you move? Canada. Do you watch American Horror Story? I haven't in years. It was Jason's and my first "show," and the first season was excellent. I lost interest in the second one, honestly. I'd be up for watching other seasons, though. How many relationships have you been in this year? None. What's your favorite cereal? Probably Cinnamon Toast Crunch. That's also the only cereal where I can happily drink the milk afterwards. Twitter or Facebook? Facebook. Do you like to paint your nails? No. What's the coolest place you've ever been to? Disney World, probably. Have you ever punched anyone? No. What's something you wish you knew how to do? Cook. :/ I really need to make an effort to learn. It'd be great to not rely on a microwave for the rest of my life. What's a celebrity that everyone likes but you don't? *shrug* What food do you eat the most? Probably bread in some form or another. That really needs to stop. Green or purple grapes? Either one, but they have to be firm. I cannooooooot with soft grapes. Have you ever cried over a text? Yeah. What's the background of your phone of? My lock screen is this pretty, simplistic periwinkle color with "work on you for you" written on it. It's one I plan on keeping for probably a long time because I connect to it so deeply with my stupid damn head frequently demanding I have to improve "for Jason" to prove him wrong. Which is a very unhealthy mindset to have, I know. My home screen is a cute lil Mark edit someone made with a very similar pale blue background, so my phone is just currently an #aesthetic. Do you have a Snapchat? No. What's your favorite sports team? (if you like sports)? I don't like sports, but I'm biased towards the Carolina Hurricanes hockey team because of my dad. Last thing you ate? I had Honey Nut Cheerios for breakfast. Do you take a lot of selfies? Definitely not. I just hate how I look so much; it takes way too much effort for me to get an "acceptable" one. Do you prefer strawberries or cherries? Strawberries. I hate cherries. How many hours of sleep did you get last night? Maybe like, three. -_- Our A/C is still out, and it was like, 87 in the house last night. It was impossible to sleep. Do you listen to music daily? Not EVERY day, but usually. Biggest insecurity? My weight. Do you play video games? Not as much as I used to. I'd probably play way more if I actually had a PS4 + the games I'm DYING to have. Do you consider yourself lazy? "Yes, but a lot of it is also health related for my lack of energy and motivation." <<<< This for me as well. What recently made you laugh? I was watching a bit of The Nanny with Mom yesterday. We love that show. Do you like gummy bears? Yep. What was the last song you listened to? I'm randomly hooked on "My Nocturnal Serenade" by YOHIO. Like, I've known the song for a long time, but NOW I'm bingeing it???? Describe your mom with one word. Selfless. What's the biggest turn-off? Probably being misogynistic. But being a cocky ass is definitely high up there, too. What fish scares you the most? Mfkng whale sharks terrify me. How do you feel about snails? They're cuties!!! What's your favorite app? Pokemon GO. Would you rather time travel into the past or future? The future, to see what's coming. I feel like you could come back with some pretty valuable information. What is the saddest song you've ever heard? I think "Terrible Things" by Mayday Parade has to come on top. What insect do you hate the most? I was reminded that stag beetles exist last night, and omfg those. Well, "hate" is the wrong word, really, I'm just terrified of them. Would you ever have a wild animal as a pet if possible? I 110% want to rescue an opossum, emphasis on "rescue." I'm not plucking one from the wild or anything like that. I would be in HEAVEN raising one of those angels. Are there any decorations that makes you happy? (lights, candles, plants..) I love those beds decorated with fairy lights, and just Christmas lights in general. Halloween and Christmas decor tend to give me sparks of happiness when I see 'em. Does race matter to you when it comes to dating? Not at all for me. When was the last time you painted something? Not since I was still in school and took a Painting course. When was the last time you really felt alive, and what were you doing? I have NO idea. What is one question you would like an answer to? Why the worst things tend to happen to good people. Name one favorite thing to do with kids while babysitting. I don't babysit, but if I was to be in charge of a kid, I'd love to teach them to play video games from my childhood. Playing Pokemon with my niece and nephew is always a blast, ahhhh. Name one flavor you like. Strawberry is pretty consistent. Name one thing you are hoping for. Venus' new terrarium soon... big sigh. I can't for the life of me find one that's a reasonable price and also adequately sized. I'm willing to put the rest of my cash into it, but Mom is helping, so I can't just buy the first one I see. Then I'd need more substrate, I seriously want a temperature gun and hygrometer, a cool hide, sticks and stuff for cover... It's going to be expensive, but I want Venus to have a truly proper environment she can thrive in. Write the name of one of your imaginary friends from when you were younger. Oddly enough, I can't remember the imaginary wolf that was my "friend." I say "oddly" because his whole idea was important to me as a weird-ass kid. Name one girl's name that starts with a "J" that you like. "Justine." Name one boy's name that starts with a "J" that you like. Maybe "Jaxson." Have you ever been kissed? Yeah. Have you ever feared that you would be killed? It's never been like, a fear I actively worry about. I just acknowledge it's always a possibility for anyone. What is the last great opportunity you missed? This was quite a while ago by now, but I'd say by dropping out of school, I really let photography opportunities slip since I became the newspaper photographer...

[viktorrotkiv]

Every Single Flavor of Feeling

Hey @impossiblyizzy ​, here is my gift to you for the @b99fandomevents​ Summer 2021 Fic Exchange.

I picked the prompt “A coffee shop AU revolving around the impending closing of the coffee shop - can include a ship if you want but I’m always happy just seeing the squad as friends!” I played around with the prompt slightly, really hope you don’t mind <3

Rating: G

Words: 2.6k

Read on AO3

Jake crossed the street towards the coffee shop, a piece of paper in his hands, looking glum. Gina watched him from behind the counter, polishing mugs in preparation for the shop opening in forty minutes.

Jake was late, as usual. They were both supposed to be there an hour before opening time. But as he pushed the door open, sending the bell dinging, he looked too sad to reprimand. “Hey, G.”

“Hey, Jake.” Gina warily put the mug down. “What’s up?”

“Nothing.” Jake looked around the shop helplessly, his gaze blank. “Um, what do you need me to do?”

Gina decided not to push him. Jake always talked eventually. “You can turn everything on.”

Jake lumbered around the shop, preheating the ovens for the frozen pastries they made each morning, turning on the coffee machines and the milk frother, setting up the AC.

*

Forty-five minutes later, Gina and Jake shared their mandatory start-of-work cinnamon bun. Stuffing the last sticky bite into his mouth, Jake seemed somewhat cheered up.

“So…” Gina picked at her half of the pastry, savoring it. “Are you going to tell me what that is?” She pointed at the paper Jake had been holding, just visible over the side of his bag.

Jake took a big breath. “Yeah, I guess I should. I, uh…”

The bell dinged again, signaling the first customer’s arrival.

“Later, then. I promise.” Jake put on his cheerful customer face and manned the register.

*

At the end of every shift they had together, Jake and Gina tossed a coin to decide who would do the good part of cleanup and who got the bad parts. Mopping the floors and wiping the table was of course on the good list, since you could pretend the mop was a microphone and dance around. Cleaning the ovens and coffee machines was bad, since you had to crouch and sometimes your clothes got dirty.

Today, Gina was slightly happy that she got the bad chores. Two minutes sliding around on the wet floors and Jake’s mood would be improved. By the time he got to the tables, he would talk.

“G.” She was right. Jake cleared his throat before continuing. “I have some news. I, uh, I passed the last of the tests. I graduate from the police academy next week.”

Gina straightened up so fast that she banged her head against the oven’s ceiling, but she was so excited she could hardly feel it. “That’s amazing! Jake! Why have you been moping around all day?”

Jake had his back to her, so she couldn’t see his face, but she could hear his voice breaking. “It’s just… It’s the first thing we’re not doing together since… since gym classes were separated into boys and girls in middle school. Remember how devastated we were? And this is so much bigger.” He sniffled. “G, we’ve done everything together. Elementary school, middle school, high school, now this job. I went through the police academy alone, but I still saw you here all the time. What am I supposed to do without you?” He finally turned to look at her, eyes wet.

Gina dropped everything she was holding and ran to hug Jake, banging her ribs against the counter in her urgency. “Jakey, who knew you were so sweet and sentimental?”

“Ew. No. No, Gina, get off of me. You’re covered in oven gunk! Gina!” Jake leaped back and crashed into a table. Rubbing his lower back, he glowered at Gina, but he couldn’t stay mad at her for long.

Gina took a step back and adopted a rare serious expression. “You’ll be fine. You’re one of the smartest, bravest, best people I know.” Her gaze turned mischievous. “And I know a lot of people. Because actually the first thing we didn’t do together was me being popular in high school, and you weren’t. And you got through that.”

“Hey! Not nice.” Jake punched her shoulder half-heartedly, but he was clearly touched. “Thanks, Gina. But it’s still going to be sad leaving you.”

“I got an idea.”

“Why do you have an extra evil spark of joy in your eyes?”

“We are going to pull the best, grandest, most fuck-with-their-minds pranks you have ever seen before you leave.”

Jake’s eyes lit up with a similar passion. “Let’s brainstorm most prank-able coworkers.”

*

The first prank didn’t go as planned.

Gina kicked Jake behind the counter. “Here he comes,” she hissed.

“Yes, Gina, I can see that. I am also facing the door.” Jake turned back towards the entrance. “Hey, Mike! I just made us some coffee before the customers start coming in. Do you want anything?”

Mike was a little bit confused, but not enough to raise suspicion. Sure, Gina and Jake mostly only spoke to each other, but they were nice enough when they needed to talk to him. “Um, yeah, thanks. I’ll just take a cappuccino.”

“Cool. Cool cool cool. Um, unrelated, can you please go tidy the back room?”

With Mike definitively out of sight, Jake proceeded to pour a shot of every single flavor in the shop into his cup. “Gina, he’s not allergic to anything, right?”

“Who cares?”

“Gina!”

“Fine, yeah, I looked at his personnel file. He’s not allergic to anything. Ooh, but I heard him say he hates blueberries, pump in a bunch of that.”

Jake finished making the coffee and went to find Mike in the back room. “Here, this is yours.”

“Thanks, Jake.” Mike sipped. “Mm. I love having coffee this early in the morning.”

“Notice anything… special?” Jake glanced back at Gina, who shrugged.

“No. Not really. It’s really good.”

“Oh. That’s, uh, great. I was worried because the… uh… milk is almost expired. Glad to hear that it’s not.” Jake backed out of the room slowly and looked at Gina, bewildered.

Gina whispered, “What did you do?”

“Nothing! It had every single possible flavor in the shop! It should taste gross! Way too sweet and completely mismatched.” Jake glanced towards the back room. “We’ve gotta taste that.”

Gina nodded. “Hey, Mike, can you help me with the oven?” She glanced at Jake and waved her hand at him. “Scram!”

Mike emerged from the back room, holding his coffee. “Sure. What do you need?”

“These trays are too heavy for me to put in by myself. Here, take this side.”

“Sure.” Mike placed his coffee on the counter and bent down to help Gina. He didn’t notice Jake sneaking back in from the bathroom and picking up his coffee. Jake sniffed it, shrugged, and took a sip. His look of surprise almost made Gina drop her side of the tray.

“Thanks, Mike.”

“Sure thing, Gina. Oh, Jake, you almost gave me a heart attack. Didn’t see you there.” Mike picked up the coffee and walked away.

Gina motioned for Jake to come closer. “So?”

“It was so disappointing. All the flavors cancel each other out and it just tastes like regular coffee.”

Gina started giggling, which soon turned into full-on stomach-hurting, tear-bringing laughter. “I mean, that wasn’t the plan at all, but you’ve gotta admit that’s kind of hilarious.”

Jake started laughing too, mostly at Gina’s amusement. “I guess. “But, oh, I was so looking forward to seeing his face when he took that first disgusting sip…”

*

The second prank was much more successful.

A few days later, in the middle of a shift, Gina pulled Jake aside. “I have our next idea. So, you know how Tina is always talking about how she can’t live without caffeine, but every Thursday she makes herself a decaf at the end of her shift.”

“Of course I know! It’s the biggest mystery ever. I’ve been dying to ask her for months, but she’s such a bitch.”

“Well, I figured it out.” Gina smiled very smugly. “Every Thursday, her boyfriend asks her to hang out with his boring friends. And she tells him she’s too tired from work. And since she doesn’t get her outrageous amount of caffeine on Thursdays, she falls asleep on the couch, and he has no choice but to let her stay home.”

“Hold on, how do you know all of this?”

“Yesterday she complained to me about how her boyfriend only does boring things, and then she made me follow her puppy’s Instagram account. Her boyfriend comments on almost every post, and since he’s insanely hot, I started following him. Every Thursday he posts a super embarrassing picture of her drooling on the couch, captioned something sappy like ‘my adorable girlfriend works so hard!’, and an hour later—”

“Aww, that’s actually sweet.”

“It’s disgusting, Jake. Anyway, around an hour later he always starts posting pictures with his friends at the least Tina-like places ever. Sports bars, bowling alleys, restaurants that only serve fried chicken, no wonder she never wants to go out with him.”

Jake’s eyes lit up with understanding. “So tomorrow…”

“We’re going to graciously offer to make her coffee.”

“And not use decaf.”

“And she won’t fall asleep embarrassingly early for a grown woman.”

“And then she won’t have any excuse not to hang out with her super boring boyfriend.”

“You got it, Jake!”

“You’re a genius, Gina.”

*

“You okay, Tina?” Jake was behind the counter, and his coworker was clearly getting ready to leave.

“Oh, yeah, I’m okay. I was just going to make myself a coffee and, uh... leave.” She wasn’t really sure why Jake was talking to her.

“Oh, I could make it for you. I’m already on coffee duty.”

“Really?” Tina smiled absentmindedly. “Um, yeah, thanks. Decaf.”

“I know.” Jake turned to Gina, who was restocking the pastry display, and gave her a ridiculously exaggerated wink. She shot him a look that clearly meant, ‘Calm the fuck down.’

Tina was thankfully distracted on her phone, and Jake made her coffee with no hitches, sending her on her way with a cheerful “Good day!” and getting a confused and slightly snarky look in return, as if she had somehow tricked him into making her a drink.

“Now we wait.”

“Woah, G, don’t sneak up on me like that. But yes. Now we cross our fingers and wait.”

*

“Jake!” The next morning, Gina burst into the shop waving her phone excitedly. “Jake, it worked! Look!”

She held her phone uncomfortably close to Jake’s face, but he could clearly make out a picture of a group of guys at a dark and sticky bar, all smiling goofy grins and drinking the most boring beer brands. And, smack dab in the middle of the group, Tina, grimacing.

“It worked!” Jake’s eyes lit up.

“I know! That’s what I said. And guess what! She just called me and said she was going to be late and asked if I could cover for her– because she has a massive hangover. She started telling me how you must be too dumb to find the decaf coffee because she had clearly asked for it. It was hilarious.”

Jake grinned. “Well, I can stand being called stupid by Tina, of all people. Especially since I’ll be gone soon.” He seemed to realize what he had just said and drooped slightly.

“We’re in denial, Jake. Denial. Now go back to work.”

*

The third and final prank was the most preposterous, and arguably the meanest.

A week before Jake was supposed to leave, he and Gina noticed that one of their coworkers, Brian, only had shifts with either one or both of them for the entire week.

“We’re going to pretend we don’t know him. At all. Be confused when he comes in, be baffled when he goes behind the counter. Eventually concede and let him help out, but don’t acknowledge that he’s always worked here.”

“Gina, that’s insane.” Jake was seriously worried about whatever hellscape Gina was going to put their coworkers through when he left.

“Fine. Then we’ll just convince him everyone else was fired and it’s going to be the three of us from now on.”

Jake considered this. “Okay. But if he threatens to quit or anything I’m going to tell him the truth.”

“Gosh, you’re boring. But fine.”

*

“Hey, Brian. How are you dealing with everything?”

“Hey, Jake! What everything?”

Jake tried to keep hold of his serious expression and kept on cleaning the counter. “You know. It’s going to be so much busier now.”

Brian put his bag down tentatively on a chair and started putting on his apron. “Why?”

Jake stared at him. “You’re joking, right? It’s just us and Gina now.”

“Oh, you mean today!” Brian chuckled and stepped behind the counter to help Jake.

Jake finally stopped wiping. “No, I mean from now on.” He lowered his voice and leaned in conspiratorially. “Didn’t anyone tell you? They let everyone else go. Everyone.” He added in an even quieter voice: “Budget cuts.”

Brian became red, then white. “Are you serious?”

Jake was starting to feel bad, but he kept going for his best friend. “Yup. So, how many shifts can you take? Because you know I’m leaving soon, and they’ll probably bring someone to replace me, but, you know, it’s not the same with a new guy… Aaand you’re on the floor.”

Brian had fainted.

*

“So, how did it go?” Gina called Jake at the end of his shift.

“It was fun for a minute, but I had to tell him the truth.”

“Boo. I didn’t even get to see it. How long did it last?”

“Actually, when I said a minute, I wasn’t exaggerating. The second I finished explaining the whole story he fainted. Sorry, G, I know it’s my last week and you wanted to do something big… Maybe—”

“Hold up, hold up. He fainted? After one minute?”

“Um, yep.” Jake pulled the phone away from his ear to make sure he hadn’t hung up by accident. “G? Gina? I can’t hear you.”

“That’s because—” wheeze, “I’m dying—” wheeze, “of laughter.”

“Oh.” Jake’s shoulders lost some tension he hadn’t realized was there, and then he started laughing too. “It was so great. I had to pick him up, and then when I explained everything he almost fainted again…”

*

Jake crossed the street towards the coffee shop, a piece of paper in his hands, looking excited. Gina watched him from behind the counter, polishing mugs in preparation for the shop opening in forty minutes.

Jake was late, as usual. Wait. No. Jake didn’t work there, as of two days ago. He had gotten a job at a police precinct, he shouldn’t be in the shop before opening time. But as he pushed the door open, sending the bell dinging, his enthusiasm was too contagious to reprimand. “Hey, G.”

“Hey, Jake.” Gina gently put the mug down. “What’s up?”

“Nothing.” Jake looked around the shop casually, taking his time. “Except that I’m the best best friend ever and I got you a job interview, if you want it.” He then turned to look directly at her, smiling his mischievous grin in all its glory.

“What?!” Gina practically jumped over the counter to hold Jake and jump around excitedly. “What job? No, whatever it is, it’s better than this, with the oven gunk and the disgusting customers and Tina.”

Jake’s grin still hadn’t let up. “So, it turns out, the precinct that hired me is looking for a receptionist, and I recommended you, and they said they would let you interview. You just need to sit at a desk, your own desk, and answer some phone calls and emails, know where the officers are, maybe file some reports.”

Gina stopped jumping and wrapped her arms around Jake. “And we would work together again. Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you.”