#the second i read 'shaped by imagination' i knew what this guy was about it was so obvious

[spearxwind]

not fucking AI generated art on the tumblr radar 💀💀💀💀💀

[winwintea]

stop posting about BALLER - zhong chenle

PAIRING ↬ boyfriend!zhong chenle x reader

GENRES ↬ pure crack idk... fluff, romance, some angst if you look in between the lines, chenle loves basketball more than you. unfortunately.

AUTHOR'S NOTE ↬ inspired by a fic i read on ao3, a tiktok i watched where op got mad at their boyfriend for having headphones in while making out, plus my post here. and also chenle's recent fanboying activity in la. ignore the title its a placeholder for now, in honor of my dear friend @syatchy london stop writing for chenle challenge

WORD COUNT ↬ 1.3K

Everyone had their hobbies. You knew your boyfriend liked basketball, you just didn’t realize he liked it that much. 

Making it your life’s goal to win over the heart of Zhong Chenle, you spent countless hours studying quizlet flashcards, watching a couple of basketball games, even trying to learn the sport as well. Although you were surprised when it didn’t take more than a few dates for you to begin dating. 

Your best friend Ning Yizhuo, on the other hand, had other ideas. 

“I just think he’s a big red flag. Who the hell puts “I’m always ballin’” as their twitter bio?” She’s sprawled across your bed, mindlessly stalking your boyfriend’s social media accounts. “What if your man loves another man more than he loves you?” 

You’re paying her no mind, working on a basketball basics test on your laptop. Eight teams from each of the league's two conferences qualify for the playoffs. The top two teams play each other in the conference finals, to determine the Conference Champions from each side. The winners then play in the NBA Finals. 

Yizhuo suddenly stands up, “Hello? Earth to Y/N? Are you ignoring me?” You’re about to answer your next question, until she starts waving her hands in your face.

“What the hell, Yizhuo?” You turn around annoyed. “I was locked in!”

“Studying for basketball is crazy… Just warning you Y/N. Don’t come crying to me when your boyfriend calls you Stephen Curry’s name instead of your own.” 

You punch her in the shoulder, “I swear to god-” 

But Yizhuo seemed unfazed by your attacks, continuing on, “I’m just saying from experience hon. Sports guys like him will never love you as much as he loves his balls.”

“Um.. that’s what she said.”

—

Despite Yizhuo’s warnings and what she seemed so sure of, you and Chenle clicked in a way that none of your exes ever did. If he invited you to the gym, you’d show up with a yoga mat, pretending to do Pilates while sneaking glances at him bench pressing. If Chenle said he was hungry, you’d learn how do use a frying pan, determined to whip up something edible. And if he asked you to come over, you’d throw on your best outfit, adding an extra touch of appeal, and never forget to bring a treat for Daegal.

Spending time with Chenle was easy. It seemed almost too easy, that you began to slightly question why everything seemed so perfect. 

If there were any red flags like Yizhuo pointed out, it was probably too small to see in the mix of fun times you spent together.

Times spent together usually and often ended with the two of you cuddling or making out on his couch. 

Unsurprisingly, Chenle was a really good kisser. Plus, he was good at cuddling. You had no doubts in that moment you laid eyes on him, but everything was certainly up to expectations. He knew exactly how to hold you in his arms and make you feel like you were on top of the whole damn world. 

As you leaned in closer for another this time, your hands running through his hair, you took notice of his features. His incredibly sharp jawline (mewing tutorial when?), the flushed pink splashed across his collarbones up to his cheeks, and now that he grew out his hair longer, it was much harder to see the shape of his ears-

Hold on.

You blink and then squint your eyes for a couple of seconds, hoping you’re just imagining things.

“Chenle. Are those Airpods?”

Chenle immediately pushes you off of him and then freezes.

You see every single emotion flash through Chenle’s eyes, but he’s still speechless. You’d honestly thought you’d been through the entire spectrum of men in your life, from guys who had memes tattooed on their chest to guys who brought their mother to dates to guys with an extremely interesting savior complex, but nothing could’ve prepared you for this.

Relax. You still had your dignity to protect. “What… are you listening to?” Maybe he was into listening to music while making out, maybe some relaxing sounds people used to cope with traumatic intimate experiences??? You were thinking of anything at this point, trying to brace yourself for the absolute worse. 

“Highlights” Chenle begins, looking at you nervously, “For uh, for the Warriors game.” Before you can even process the info, Chenle rambles on, “We’re so so close to a wild card spot and I wanted to turn the game on earlier, but you were talking about your project you were working on and I really wanted to listen, and right now it’s not like we’re talking about anything important, so I figured it might be alright if I-“

what the fuck… yeah shut the hell up right now please, you think as he keeps rambling, and turn around to grab a pillow behind to smack this big headed shit right in the head. 

“Ow-“ Chenle throws his hands up in defense, trying to block the pillow that comes crashing down. “What? Hey!”

“Zhong Chenle. I’m going to chop your fucking dick off.”

—

In the end, Chenle’s dick remains intact. 

After letting himself get beaten up by a pillow, he manages to get you to calm down, taking the airpods out, which makes you a little bit happier than you were before. 

Chenle leaves you on the couch to take a shower, allowing you to ponder for a bit. Were you being too restricting this way? Chenle seemed to still care about you, and didn’t want to take away time from your own interests as well. I mean… maybe you needed to get into basketball as well to fully understand. 

As you lounge on the couch, scrolling aimlessly through Pinterest, you hear the faint sound of the shower turning off. Before you know it, Chenle slips onto the couch beside you, his presence warm and comforting. In one smooth motion, he curls himself around you, arms gently wrapping around your waist as his head nestles into the crook of your neck. The familiar scent of the shampoo you gifted him lingers in the air, blending with the soft warmth of his skin. 

Your mind's racing, caught between conflicting emotions. And damn, Chenle smells incredible, which really isn’t helping right now.

A minute of silence passes before he finally speaks, his voice soft but serious. “Look, I get if you’re uncomfortable. I didn’t mean to push any boundaries. If that was too much, I won’t do it again. And if this is something that’s going to be a dealbreaker for us, I get it—we can end things here.”

“No, wait—no,” you cut in, setting your phone aside to face him. “I was just surprised, that’s all.”

Okay, it was weird. You’ll give him that. Maybe his “casual” obsession with basketball wasn’t as casual as you thought. And sure, that might be a red flag for some.

But Yizhuo’s wrong. Maybe Chenle’s got a deeper connection with his basketballs than you or whoever she’s comparing him to, but at least he’s never moaned or called you Stephen Curry in the heat of the moment.

That’s gotta count for something, right?

Yeah, maybe this wasn’t so bad. You could get used to this. Besides, he already promised he wouldn’t do it again.

Your thoughts bounce back and forth, but after a while, you break the silence with a quiet, “Did you win?”

His head lifts from your shoulder instantly, excitement buzzing in his voice. “Yeah, we did! Secured our spot in the conference finals.”

Conference finals. Oh, right. You recognize that term—studied it on Quizlet like the good, supportive partner you are.

You take a deep breath, bracing yourself, swallowing down the nervous lump in your throat. Chenle might be a bit obsessed with the sport, but he was supportive of your own goals and actually a really nice boyfriend. 

“Tell me about it.”

PERM TAGLIST ↬ @lyvhie @aquaphoenixz @galacticnct @ldh0000

[jackiehicks]

Written In The Stars

Wyatt Lykensen x Reader

request: wyatt x werewolf!reader and them finding out they're each other's mates (maybe they both have matching markings??)

A/N: this one was kinda fun!! i was stumped at first bc i’m not big on soulmate au’s and i’ve never written a werewolf reader before, but i made it there in the end. i attached a pic of what i imagined the mark to look like when i was writing at the end teehee. i also took some creative liberty with this one, i decided to go for a soulmate thing instead of them being typical wolf mates or whatever, plus the reader is gender neutral so you can read this however you want to perceive it! i hope you guys enjoy <3

words: 1.3k

content warnings: very light mentions of sex

in old wolf legend, there was the story of soulmates. on the 18th birthday of a wolf, they would get a marking on their hand. if two marked wolves were to share genuine love for each other in an embrace, the mark would glow to signify their souls being intertwined. if no glowing occurs, they cannot be soulmates. however, soulmate markings are only for werewolves. if one’s soulmate is not a wolf, no mark will appear. in today’s society, a wolf with a soulmate mark was rare. especially in seabrook, a town where werewolves live in harmony with humans, zombies, and aliens.

so on the 18th birthday of the lykensen twins, when a soulmate mark appeared on the hand of wyatt lykensen, everything changed.

-

wyatt inspected the mark on his hand for the millionth time that day. he liked how it looked - the design was intricate with overlapping lines and little triangles hidden in it - but despite that, he hated everything about it. the mark was a burden. every wolf his age was suddenly trying to make some sort of love connection with him in hopes that he would be their soulmate. half of them didn’t even have their soulmate marks yet.

wyatt wouldn’t have minded if it was because they wanted to be with him, but he knew it wasn’t that. his sister was the alpha werewolf, making him second in command. they wanted his power and his position within the pack. he knew that if willa had received a mark then all of this attention would be on her, but willa had already found a soulmate in a-spen. that’s what wyatt wanted. not some sort of forced relationship because of a magical tattoo, he wanted the kind of love that you would travel galaxies to find.

he sighed, looking away from his mark for the first time in what felt like hours. he was sitting on the top of the wolf-den, under the stars. when he was little, he would sit up here and try to make words and shapes out of the stars. he looked up at the night sky, inspecting something new for the first time all day. soulmates were supposed to be written in the stars, right? maybe he could find a clue up there…

“BOO!” came a voice from behind him. wyatt jumped, startled, then let out a sigh of relief when he saw it was only y/n, his best friend since they were pups.

“what is it with you and scaring me?”

y/n shrugged, sitting down next to him, “it’s fun.”

“yeah, for you.”

“shut up, you know you love me.”

wyatt looked back up at the stars, raking an exasperated hand through his hair.

“you’ve got that look about you again.” y/n nudged him with their shoulder.

“yeah… it’s-“

“the mark? dude, it’ll be fine.”

“i know, but… why did it have to be me?”

“don’t complain so much, you’ve got 20 age-appropriate werewolves trying to jump your bones. even waverley is trying to get a piece of you, and waverley is hot. who wouldn’t want that?”

“me, y/n. also, gross - don’t talk about jumping bones. i’m having a crisis here.”

y/n leaned back on their elbows, “yeah, but you need to lighten up - what better way to do that than to be wildly inappropriate?”

wyatt chuckled and looked at the rocks below him.

“see, there’s a smile!” y/n nudged him again, “and hey, at least you know now that you have a soulmate. i’m 18 in like… a month. i’m still in the process of wondering if my soulmate even exists.”

-

the weeks passed quickly. there weren’t many 18th birthdays so soon after wyatt and willa, only waverley - the really good-looking it-wolf of the pack. no mark appeared on waverley’s hand, to wyatt’s secret delight. waverley was cute and all, but he wasn’t interested. the werewolves that had tried to make a love connection with wyatt had all given up, deciding that it was a whole lot of work for something that wasn’t even that important. he was relieved in the end; he had started to get real sick of hugging.

it felt like no time had passed until it was the night before y/n’s birthday. wyatt was looking all over the wolf den for his friend, nowhere to be found. it was late, everyone else was asleep. he stepped outside of the cave when he heard a frustrated sigh from above him. he didn’t even have to look before he knew that he had found y/n. wyatt climbed up the front of the cave, hoping to scare the birthday wolf. he was met with a pebble to the head as he jumped up.

“ow?? why are you throwing stones??”

“sorry wy, i’m not having a great time up here and there are a bunch of loose rocks.”

wyatt clambered up and sat himself next to y/n. “every year, i forget just how much you hate birthdays.”

“why do birthdays have to be so weird? i don’t want all the attention on me. it’s gonna be so much worse this year with these stupid soulmate marks…”

“it’s really not that bad. plus, there’s like 6 of us with markings, so it’s not even a common thing.”

“i guess you’re right… i mean, i don’t know how i feel about even, like, the concept of soulmates. like, to be tied to one person for the rest of your life? i’ve never even been in a relationship. that’s terrifying.”

“yeah, i hear that. i don’t know, i hated it too when i first got it. i kinda find comfort in it now, though. like, there’s someone out there who is for me and will understand me and look out for me, and they’ll be there for the rest of our lives. something about that is reassuring, don’t you think?”

y/n scoffed at that. “it’s creepy! ‘ooh, we’re soulmates, i don’t know you and you don’t know me but i’m gonna love you and be there for you forever and ever and ever until we die’.” y/n shuddered, “super creepy.”

wyatt couldn’t help but laugh. “don’t be such a drama-wolf. it’ll be fine.”

y/n smiled, but the smile quickly faded into a melancholy sadness.

“hey,” wyatt started, “don’t be worried. soulmate or no soulmate, you got me. i’m here for you. nothing’s gonna change that.”

he could hear y/n’s silent tears in the night-time silence. wyatt put his arm around his dear friend, and y/n’s head sank into the crook of his neck. they sat like that for a while, until wyatt noticed a glowing golden light out of the corner of his eye.

“hey, what’s that?” he asked. y/n sat up, and the light moved. wyatt looked at his hand, and the delicate marking on his hand was shining a stunning ethereal gold. it looked beautiful. he heard y/n gasp gently, looking at the mark that had appeared on their own hand. y/n checked the time on her phone.

“12.02am. it’s my birthday.”

“you have a mark.”

“we didn’t even notice.”

“you have a mark.”

y/n tore their eyes away from the marking, which was now glittering a more subtle gold.

“it was-“

“i can’t believe-“

the two laughed lightly as they talked over eachother.

“this whole time,” wyatt began, “this whole time, i’ve been worrying who my soulmate could be. i didn’t even think… y/n…”

“we’ve been inseparable since, like, forever. god, it was the most obvious thing in the world! are we stupid?”

they laughed, revelling in this new and exciting feeling.

“we’re idiots.”

they looked up at the night sky once again, entangled in each other’s arms, and wyatt could swear he saw a glimmer of y/n’s smile gazing down at him.

[mufos-photo-album]

The Spearmaster, dressed up as his primary design inspirations

If you like reading, I've included commentary about the Spearmaster's inspirations below the cut.

I don't have as much to say about the Spearmaster's design compared to the Swordmaster, since his design doesn't stray that far from Piripu's base design. The biggest departure is the mane the Spearmaster has, which is directly inspired by Goku's (of Dragon Ball, if I needed to tell you) Super Saiyan 3 design. The thing is, I never referenced the SS3 design at all when first drawing the Spearmaster, so his hairstyle is moreso based on my vague memory of what super saiyans with long hair look like. As a result, the Spearmaster's hair looks a lot softer than Goku's, which is so spiky. Not something I'm upset about, but I do find it very funny.

Ah right, there's also the second guy in the drawing — Bobby from the Deadcells animated trailers. He's technically called the Beheaded but Bobby is the named used for the guy in the trailers. From the start I knew I wanted the Spearmaster to be cool, but I also wanted him to be charming (an aspect which may not carry visually all the time but one I try to keep in mind while writing). In the animated trailers, Bobby depicted equal parts cool and equal parts silly. Can hold himself up in a fight, but no doubt has an arrogant/cocky side that leads him to, for lack of better words, eat shit. I think there's also something somewhere about Bobby having a flair for the dramatic. Some of these aspects are reflected in how I see the Spearmaster. Goku also has some charming aspects about him but I can only describe them in vaguer terms. Like, look at the reference photo I put in the image above. Doesn't his smile scream "It's me, Goku!"?

These characters have more to do with how I see the Spearmaster carrying himself in battle as opposed to more mundane situations.

Kyoko Sakura, from Puella Magi Madoka Magica: Probably the character that solidified my choice in making Piripu the Spearmaster after realizing Sayaka was an inspiration for the Swordmaster. Kyoko has a specific lunging attack she does which I often imagine the Spearmaster doing as well.

Morganite, from Land of the Lustrous: When thinking about how the Spear/Swordmaster fight, there was this one video I'd watch a lot as reference. It mainly features Morganite fighting alongside their partner Goshanite. Aside from the swaggy animation, I'll point out that the dialogue between Morganite and Goshanite is very similar to how I see an exchange between the Sword/Spearmaster going. Morga/Gosha even have vaguely similar color schemes to the Spear/Swordmaster!

Bort, also from Land of the Lustrous: As you might see from the reference photo of them I used, Bort's hair lends itself to making very unique shapes while Bort is in action. I forget where in the manga this scene appears, but there's a moment where Bort is depicted descending upon an enemy, but its shot from afar. Despite the distance, you can still tell its them from the abstract shape of their hair. This aspect is something I'd like to tap into if I drew the Spearmaster in action.

[friedbaekhyunandeggso]

found you - ch. 5 (part I)

pairing: gojo satoru x female oc (ara natsuna)

tropes: psycho! rival! athlete! yandere! gojo x introvert! booksmart! sheltered! rbf! oc

warnings: 18+ only babes, stalking/possessive themes, profanity, coercion, pet names (kitten, baby), begging, mentions of abusive parents, w33d, dub/non-consented sex, unprotected & protected sex, rough sex (just pls be an adult before reading this)

word count/plot: [17.3k!] ara catches gojo's attention when news breaks that she is the top academically ranked student in their grade. he is ranked second. he tries to befriend her but she ignores him. despite her obvious disinterest, his obsession begins...

a/n: ahaaa so i know this has been a long time coming tbh i wasn't even sure if i was ever going to end up finishing writing this chapter bc it is soooo long. prolly the biggest chapter yet. i just didn't want to post it without completing it all and maybe at the end of this chapter (in part 4) you'll see why. regardless tysm for even being interested & pestering me enough to feel guilty about leaving u guys on a cliffhanger for so long haha. u guys got me thru writing this toxic bs but here it finally is!! enjoyy

ch. 1 , ch. 2 [ part 1 | part 2 ] , ch. 3 , ch. 4 , chapter 5 [ part 1 | part 2 | part 3 | part 4 ]

She couldn’t stop crying. The loud pitter-patter of the rain behind her felt like her tears.

Gojo clutched her so tight, it was almost reassuring. She almost wished he could crush her to dust. She was tired of herself.

And now, she reached rock bottom. She went to him.

She knew what that meant. What stepping into Ijichi’s car would entail. And she hadn’t stopped.

She went to him.

And now her consequences were own to bear.

Ijichi grabbed her fallen duffel bag from the ground beside her. He’d offered to carry her bag for her but she refused. She supposed it didn’t matter now because she dropped it the second Gojo held her in his arms. 

Gojo’s voice was faint to her ears, “That all her stuff?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Take it to my room.”

Her breathing evened out as the last of her tears slipped down her face. She had no tears left to cry.

The moonlight streaming through the windows casted shapes along on the floor, a slanted reflection of the tall windows. The outlines luminous enough to subtly brighten the dimly lit living room–if that’s what this expansive space even was. It was so quiet, her sniffles and uneven breath felt like the loudest thing in the room.

His fingers ran down her hair, “You done?” he whispered, voice soft.

She glanced up at him-heat scattering along her cheeks as she realized this was the second time she’d cried on him as if he weren’t a part of the reason. She supposed it didn’t matter anymore, especially not after the decision she’d made.

His iridescent eyes searched her face as he whispered once-more, “Can I kiss you now?”

Her puffy eyes narrowed, “Seriously?” she croaked.

A low, whiny sound left him as he tugged her further up his lap-pressing his forehead to hers. “Just one, just one,” he insisted-trying to convince her, “On the cheek.”

It seemed he was helpless to his instincts because he didn’t wait for an answer-quickly tilting his head to press a short yet eager peck to her cheek.

She felt him pause, his lips ghosting up her temple before kissing her forehead. She sighed, she knew it wouldn’t be just one.

Suddenly he was kissing her all over—showering her face with short, chaste kisses that landed everywhere but her lips.

She writhed on his lap before placing a hand on his chest to push him back, “Satoru!”

“Sorry, sorry.” he sighed, “I just missed you. A lot.”

She merely stared at him, searching his crystalline eyes. She could only imagine why.

My body, you mean.

“All of you.” he corrected, a light smile slipping across his lips.

She instantly tensed. She hadn’t meant to say that outloud.

He lightly flicked her forehead, “Your mind..”

He lowered his hand, brushing his thumb over her bottom lip, “..your naughty mouth..”

His fingertips trailed down her navel, “I guess I missed this place too..”

Her eyes widened, quickly catching his hand before it went lower.

His lips curled into a smirk, “But your panties kept me company.”

“You-?” Her face instantly heated up when she realized. She threw his hand away from her, “Ugh. You’re actually disgusting.”

His eyes glittered with amusement, “Yet you came back.”

She glared, her face simultaneously blazing brighter as she hastily turned her face aside.

He laughed-the sound too triumphant for her liking. 

A yawn suddenly left her lips. It seemed her lack of sleep finally caught up to her.

“You tired?”

She froze-her eyes flitting to him. If she said yes he’d most likely take her to his bedroom and she didn’t trust what that would entail. She didn’t trust him. She truly couldn’t tonight. Especially not with the way her whole body ached.

“No.” she replied instinctively.

“Hmm,” his blue eyes raked over her countenance, “Are you hungry?”

She shook her head.

“Are you…staying the night?”

She swallowed before whispering, “Yes.”

“Just tonight?” he asked-a little too quickly.

She paused, her voice hollow, “Longer.”

She saw something flash through his glowing eyes. His arms around her tightening possessively.

He nuzzled her hair, inhaling sharply-before exhaling when he pressed his forehead to hers, “Are you gonna tell me what happened?”

She hesitated, voice shaky, “N-not right now.”

His gaze sharpened, eyes colder than ice, “Why?”

“Because..” she slipped her shaky hand over his jaw, “I don’t want to be sad anymore.”

He went quiet at that, seemingly still for a moment. Her fingers stroking his jaw wavered as something close to fear made her stomach knot.

Suddenly he tilted his face into her palm, his eyes flickering close like a cat enjoying their scratches.

“Hm..” he murmured before kissing the bottom of her palm, his eyes bright, “I got an idea.”

He showed her ‘their’ home (he kept calling it that)—giving her a house tour. Well, estate because that's what it really was. There were so many rooms, so many floors. It was entirely impossible for her to remember them all.

It was 4 am and they still weren’t done with touring the ‘house’ yet. It was truly unreal. It was nothing like she’d ever seen, not even in her dreams. The architecture was so ‘old world’–everything exquisitely detailed down to a T. It was breathtaking, and overwhelming.

A music room. ball room. library. gym. balconies–several balconies, as well as living rooms, dining halls. engraved ceilings. statues–real-life, hand carved statues. She couldn’t fathom it. She couldn’t understand how someone could have so much.

Her head was spinning.

She stared at the marble steps growing larger behind him as he carried her upstairs. Looks like her tour was done for the night.

She glanced up at the sky themed mural on the vast ceiling and walls. She could only imagine how long that took to paint. It suddenly struck her that every part of the house contained some sort of blue. Not always the exact same shade but there were hues of blue everywhere.

Especially the main areas. The kitchen, the foyer, the extravagant pool directly in front of the manor—she couldn’t help but notice that those areas were the same shade of blue. The blue felt oddly familiar, maybe because it meshed so well with the rest of the white and tan-ish gold theme of the manor. She couldn’t help but commend whoever the interior designer was-they’d truly done the estate justice.

She glanced up at him and suddenly everything clicked into place. His eyes. Everything blue was a similar shade to his eyes. Even now, the sky themed mural on the ceiling above matched perfectly with his eyes.

“Gojo..?”

He glanced down at her. His platinum hair was slicked back today-for what reason, she didn’t know but it seemed the gel couldn’t tame him either because unruly white strands hung all over his forehead.

He pouted, “You know how I feel about that name, sweets.”

“Satoru.” she corrected quietly.

A subtle smirk formed on his lips as he perused her countenance fondly, “Mhm?”

She absentmindedly held onto his shirt tighter, “Does everyone in your family have blue eyes?”

He raised a playful brow, “Why do you ask?”

“Cause.. there's a lot of blue everywhere. You said this has been your family home for generations so I thought-maybe-“ she fumbled with her words, “It wasn’t a coincidence.”

A sly smile slipped across his lips, “Smart girl.”

He lowered his head to dramatically blink in her face, purposely showing her his big diamond blues up-close. She pushed his chin away, squinting in disapproval.

His smile widened, “Yeah, everyone in my family’s got blue eyes. It doesn’t matter who we marry, the kid always gets blue eyes.”

He glanced up at the sky mural above them as he made it to the top of the steps, “I guess we made it a personality trait.” he teased.

She glanced at the rest of the floor ahead of them. It looked empty. In fact, the only people they’d encountered during her tour was a maid here and there.

“Where is everyone?” she asked impulsively.

“What do ya mean?”

She glanced up at him, “Is there no one else here?”

She’d known he was an only child but.. all this space? There had to be others.

He nodded before pressing a delicate kiss to her neck as he continued to carry her through the hallway.

“No one but us.” he smirked.

A cold shot of fear entered her system as she rapidly became hyper-aware of her situation, who she was with–what she was doing–his arms carrying her, bridal style, at that. 

She tensed, “Put me down.”

He glanced down at her-walking a bit slower, “But we’re almost to my room.”

Her eyes widened ever so slightly-an uneasy feeling swirling in her gut, “We’re going to your room?”

“Yeah,” He blinked, “What—you wanna stay up?”

She paused, “No.. It’s late, I’m tired.”

When he didn’t respond, she added, “A-and we have school tomorrow..”

A short laugh left him, “Oh, we’re not goin’ to school tomorrow.”

She stared at his room. It was the size of her living room–quadrupled. It was dauntingly surreal, the level of luxury he was encircled with. It was nothing short of royalty. She didn’t understand how he eagerly stayed all those nights in her room when he had access to this much space.

It felt irregular for her to even be seeing all of this–like she shouldn’t be here.

His chest brushed the back of her head. His hands lightly touching her waist, “You gonna stand here all night?”

She hesitated before stepping past the threshold. His hands sliding off her as she walked into his room.

He waited a beat, watching her step further into his domain with slow, unhurried steps. It was almost teasing, the way she took her sweet time, as if he hadn’t repeatedly dreamt of her being here with him countless of times. Whether it be a passionate fantasy of them intertwined on his bed or a glimpse of a future where they made this home less empty–he never dared to believe he’d get here this soon. 

The feeling that settled in his gut was so utterly possessive-it was visceral in its intensity. This was their room now. Everything here was hers as much as it was his.

She looked so curious, so hesitant-maybe for good reason. He watched her twirl around slightly, taking in the room as if it were too much to accept. Her eyes swept over the lounge area, the sliding glass doors that lead to the balcony, the leveled embroidered ceiling. Her neck arching as she tilted her head back to peer at it.

A subtle smile slipped across his lips. Too damn cute. Her eye for art was too obvious, her eyes always catching little details. His great-great grandfather also had an eye for such things. He utilized that interest when he designed this place.  She’d fit right in here.

He quietly closed the doors behind himself-his eyes never leaving her. He covertly followed behind when she stepped through the short pathway that led into the private area of their room. Her eyes skimmed over the king sized bed, the flat screen TV across it, the multiple doors at each corner-those leading to his closet, bathroom and study. He’d show her them all tomorrow.

She stood beside his bed, completely distracted by her surroundings when he silently approached her. His arms snaked around her sides, drawing her close to kiss the crown of her head. She gasped.

“Do you know how much I missed you?”

His low voice sent a shot of fear up her spine. His hands traveled up her hip bones to the dip of her waist, squeezing lightly. She winced-hard.

“W-wait-“ she quickly turned around, hastily sitting on the edge of the bed. Her eyes wide, “I can’t tonight. I really can’t.”

His white brows drew together when he spotted her arm over her stomach, “Why?”

“B-because-“ she came up with something on the spot, “I’m on my period.”

He took a step towards her, “You know a little blood doesn’t scare me.”

Shit. Shit! She did know that. Her frantic mind couldn’t come up with a good excuse.

She slowly shifted further back on the bed-trying not to move too fast. She knew if she made it too obvious that she was trying to gain some distance from him, he’d act without a second thought.

“M-my cramps are really bad. It hurts-a lot, please.” her voice shook.

He held her gaze for a long moment. She thought her anxiety would end her before he responded.

“Take your shirt off, Ara.”

Her eyes widened, “I-I’m in pain, Toru-please.”

His eyes flared, “Not for that.”

He moved towards her and she instinctively scrambled back. Just as she made it halfway across the bed, he grabbed her by the leg. She screamed as he dragged her back to the bed’s edge.

She struggled against him, crying and writhing as he pinned her wrists above her head-forcing her in place. He ripped her shirt off with his free hand.

She sobbed, turning her face aside, keeping her eyes squeezed shut. She couldn’t bear this-she never let anyone see her like this.

His lucid eyes slowly took in the sight of her body. Her skin tone matching bra the only article of clothing on the upper half of her body. Bruises of varying colors blooming all over her torso—especially along her clavicle, sternum and abdomen. There were also thin red cuts on her skin-some longer than others, some scabbed over and others still bubbling with caked blood.

He released her wrists, standing over her in pure, unadulterated silence. He stared as she instinctively turned to her side, curling in on herself as she sobbed-unintentionally revealing her back. It was in worse condition than her front, with a few larger cuts marking her shoulder blades and spine. Most were already scabbing. A bruise faintly resembling the shape of a hand on her upper arm.

“He cut you.” his voice was flat, purely factual.

She shook her head, her voice cracking, “N-no, I fell on broken glass.”

“Don’t lie.” he snapped.

“I’m not!” she shouted through tears, partially sitting up, “He kept kicking me so I fucking fell on the pieces of the mirror. H-he dragged me t-through it s-so-“ 

Her voice cracked and she curled in on herself once more—trembling.

“He.. dragged you?” he repeated, voice hollow.

“He threw so many things..” she murmured to herself, a bit zoned out,  “I don’t know how he’s gonna clean it all up.”

His eyes widened. Suddenly she sat up, “He remembered you, y’know. He asked me who the white haired boy was.”

He stared down at her-appearing to consider that, “Is that right?”

She glanced aside-deep in thought, “Yes. He remembered you.. hurt him that night. I-I don’t know how.” her voice ended as a whisper.

“So he knows of me then..” he nodded a few times, “That’s good.”

He sauntered backwards a couple steps, “I should pay him a visit.” His tone was oddly light.

Her eyes snapped up, refocusing on him, “What?”

He glanced down at his rolled up sleeves, eyeing the Patek on his wrist, “It’s not too late now, is it? He should be up.” he mused.

She rose from her seat on the bed, “W-what are you talking about?” her voice slightly raspy.

He lowered his arm, shrugging, “It’s about time we officially met, no? I’ve been wanting to introduce myself for a while..”

His eyes raked over her body once more before he tugged at his tie-easily loosening it as he turned around, “There’s a lot I want to ask him.”

Her eyes widened. His tone was too light. His attitude too airy. Something wasn’t right.

She closed the distance between them-nearly tripping as she ran on wobbly legs to stand in front of him, “What are you saying?!” her voice panicked, “You can’t see him-You can’t-He’s n-not okay. I didn’t tell you so-“

“Relax, Ara,” his voice was silkier than honey as he touched the side of her face, “I just wanna talk, that’s all.”

She gripped his shirt, staring up at him through tear-filled eyes as she spoke, “No, you don’t. You don’t!”

She searched his face wildly, heart beating erratically in her chest as she whispered, “You’re angry.”

He stared down at her for a long moment before a fervid smile slowly blooms across his lips, “You got me all figured out, don’t you?”

He tilts his head, his hands slipping around her loose fists at his shirt. He tugs her wrists-forcing her close-close enough that his lips brush hers with every word he spoke.

“No one touches what’s mine, remember? No one.”

He yanks her wrists off him-with enough force to make her stumble backwards. She gasped out, clutching the armrest of a nearby loveseat to keep from falling. She quickly glanced up to see him stalk towards the door.

“No!” she ran towards him, attempting to grab the back of his shirt, “Toru! Toru-please!”

He easily side-stepped her.

She lunged, clutching onto him with all her might. Her arms locked around his waist as she buried her face in his back.

“Stop, toru! Stop–STOP!” she cried out, he could feel her body trembling with the force of her cries, “It doesn’t matter! It doesn’t fucking matter–I hate him!”

He froze. If there was one thing about Ara, she never-ever-spoke badly about her dad. Even if he brought up an obvious disparity, it didn’t matter. She would easily shoot him down with a cold look or say ‘don’t talk about him’ with such a severe edge that even he decided it wasn’t worth the argument.

Her arms tightened around him as she whispered off, “I hate him, I hate him, I hate him, I hate him–” her voice cracked.

Suddenly her arms disappeared from his waist and he immediately turned around. Her back was to him, her hands running rampantly through her hair as she sobbed, “I HATE HIM–I HATE HIMMM!”

The pain in her voice, the frustration echoed throughout the walls and seemed to rack through her own body as she visibly shook.

He reached for her, “Ara-”

She smacked his hand away, “No!”

He reached for her again, voice softer, “Ara—”

“NO!” she screamed before scurrying away from him, “You don’t get it—you don’t get it!”

She shook her head, another sob leaving her lips before she raked her hands through her hair once more, “I did everything for him-everything! I did everything for my family but guess what? GUESS WHAT?”

She went on, “No one gives a shit! My dad doesn’t give a shit. My mom doesn't give a shit. And n-now I don’t give a shit. I’m done. I’m done!”

But she was lying. Her watery eyes, trembling lips, wobbly knees. Every part of her was hurting.

She dropped to her knees and he immediately went to her. He lowered himself before her but before he could get a word out, she shoved him back—barely making him budge.

She yelled, “I don’t wanna see him again! I don’t want to-” her voice cracked.

He pulled her close, letting her lean against his chest. His long arms easily enclosing around her back, one hand at the crown of her head, “You don’t have to.” he murmured into her temple before kissing her forehead, “You don’t ever have to.”

A deep sob left her, the kind that made her feel so utterly vulnerable. She’d been trying to hold it back, gritting her teeth so tightly to the point that it hurt but it was useless. Useless, when it came to being held in his arms.

She clutched his arms as he sank lower to the floor, letting her fully lean into him-in between his long legs. He gently rubbed her back, trying to quell her trembling as she buried her face into his chest.

Suddenly her head shot up-a lost look to her tear stained eyes, “Y-you can’t see him either! No one can see him-” her voice was so small, so hoarse from all her yelling and crying. Her frail hands tightened around his sleeves, over his biceps, as she shook her head.

“You can’t leave me,” her voice cracked again, “You can’t–”

His eyes widened before he instantly cupped her face, “No, kitten, no, no, no,” his voice oh so gentle as he planted sweet deft little kisses all over her face as she cried, “I’m not leaving you, I’m never leaving you.”

“You promise?”

How could I ever deny you?

“I promise.”

Her shoulders sagged before she curled into his chest once more. He wrapped his arms around her again-one hand at her lower back and the other in between her small shoulder blades. One long leg semi raised beside her while the other was bent at the knee, outstretched on the floor. His fingers raked through her hair as he rested his chin atop her head.

He patiently listened to the pace of her uneven breaths as she cried, listened to the way her breathing gradually staggered less and less and grew into something more slow, more shallow. 

“Why is it always you..” she suddenly asked. her voice low, a subtle scratchiness to it before she repeated herself, slightly stronger, “Why’s it always you?”

She pulled back from him slightly and he loosened his arms to give her some room. He glanced down to find her staring-somewhat zoned out-at his chest.

“Why are you always there-“ for me, her voice cracked, “..why do you always know what to do… what to say… to make me feel better… why.. why? why!” she didn’t know when she started to hit him but she was. Her tiny fists connected with his chest, blow after blow–continuously yelling ‘why!’ as she did so.

His lips were moving, probably saying her name but she didn’t hear it–not until her arms were pinned to the floor and he was over her.

“Ara!” his voice wasn’t angry at all, maybe a bit admonishing but even then he didn’t appear offended. She wasn’t sure if she wanted him to be.

His bright blue eyes stayed on her for a lingering moment. He was slightly out of breath, she felt it against her skin as puffs of air traveled down her neck. She watched his eyes slowly look her up and down-as if just now realizing their proximity. His hands unconsciously tightened around her wrists.

She quickly turned her face into her elbows, “No–”

Suddenly he yanked her wrists higher, forcing her arms to straighten. No where for her to hide now.

Her eyes widened as he leaned closer, his face merely millimeters away, “I make you feel good..” his eyes trailed up and down her face once more, “cuz your mine, Ara, your mine.”

Her mouth parted a hair's breadth and suddenly his lips were on her. In that all consuming manner that she’d nearly forgotten–no, more like tried to forget. Every part of her lit up in that heedy addictive way that only he knew how to ignite. His tongue sweeped her mouth as he tilted his head, needing to taste all of her. A broken whimper left her lips as he kissed her like a madman, an addict who hadn’t gotten its fix in too long.

His jaw opened up as he pulled back for a millisecond only to attack her mouth again. Her lips were merely his to use with how demanding he was being. It was like he was trying to prove his words to her, by branding her lips with his own. She could feel the desperation of his obsession thrumming through him, through the force of his hands on her wrists, through the pressure of his lips on hers.

When he finally pulled away, his vivid eyes were hazy with lust–his hair infinitely more disordered than usual.

Her elbows shook as she attempted to move her hands underneath his grip, “Toru.. let me touch you.”

He froze-as if in shock-before instantly letting her wrists go. She placed her hands on his chest, pushing him aside so that he laid on his back, on his elbows. She climbed atop him, planting her ass on his abs–inches away from where she knew he’d prefer her to be. He stared at her with wide eyes as her hands slid up his chest to either side of his neck.

She took her time lowering her face above his.. before kissing him. Her kiss was slow, light and teasing at first. Her lips pressing his sweetly before nipping at his lower lip-a trick she’d learned from him. She felt his breath hitch–and reacted a millisecond before he could. Her tongue slipped past his lips and intertwined with his. She gripped his jaw-controlling the pace as she turned the kiss into something molten hot and sensual to a degree that made him dizzy.

So much so, he nearly lost strength in his elbows and fell back but she broke the kiss. He leaned up slightly-chasing her lips-but she pushed his shoulders, making him fall back.

He groaned.

She smiled slightly. He never wanted their kisses to end.

Her palms rested over his pecs as she stared down at him. She mumbled something, her voice entirely too faint to hear.

His head immediately snapped up. His big blue eyes blown wide, “What?”

She squinted, “I’m not saying it again.”

A seductive grin split across his lips as he sat up, she slid into his lap in the process.

“You missed me?” His forehead pressed into hers as his eyes sparkled with satisfaction, “I knew it.”

“Your hearing things.”

His hand slipped into her hair, around her nape and suddenly they were kissing again. His lips insistent at first before growing more gentle, more probing.

He pulled away, his nose nudging hers, “You're staying here.”

He hadn’t asked but she heard the undercurrent of question in his tone.

She nodded.

His fingers around her nape tightened slightly, “Not just tonight right?”

He already asked her this but she hesitated anyway, “I’m here now, aren’t I?”

A slight laugh left him as he recalled the countless times she vehemently denied him from bringing her here whenever he offered, “Right.”

He watched her glance away, unsurely, “I’ll stay here as long you let me.”

Something within him swelled so strongly he nearly crushed her in his arms then and there, but instead he snaked his arms slowly around her shoulders, drawing her as close as possible.

She felt his smirk against her lips, “I’ll keep you here forever then.”

She awoke to the sweet smell of waffles and maple syrup. She jolted upright on the bed, only to immediately crumple in on herself at the pain that consumed her. It looked like all the pain-numbing salves the nurse applied last night could only deter so much.

She gasped slightly, hand over her stomach as she writhed.

“Ma’am-Ma’am, are you okay?”

Her eyes shot open to see she was in an extravagant, sunlight lit room-Gojo’s room. Last night had been real then.. not just a bad nightmare…

She pulled the covers up when she saw an elderly woman in a monochrome outfit standing at her bedside. A cart filled with several trays of breakfast food behind her.

She blinked, completely at a loss for words.

“Should I call the doctor?” The woman inquired-despite her monotone voice and wary gaze she seemed genuinely concerned.

“N-no,” she croaked before clearing her throat. She slowly straightened to a sitting position, “.. Who are you?”

“I’m Marin.”

Ara gave her a once-over and belatedly realized that her outfit could surpass as a maid uniform. She supposed her all black attire was a requirement, similar to Ijichi-who always wore black head to toe. The only color being that tiny blue emblem at the chest pocket—the Gojo family sigil.

Ara swallowed, “Where’s Satoru?”

“He wanted me to inform you that he had a family matter to attend to. He won’t be long. He’d like for you to eat breakfast without him.”

“He didn’t go to school?” she questioned.

She shook her head, “No, ma’am.”

Her brows furrowed as she glanced at the several trays on the cart beside her. There was too much-food-drinks-fruits-it was completely excessive.

“He doesn’t.. expect me to eat all of that, does he?”

Marin paused, “I’m sure he’d want you to eat as much as you like.”

She stared at the cart in wonder. The entire contents of the cart was enough to feed a family of ten-maybe even fifteen.

Marin followed her gaze to the cart and clasped her hands together in front of herself. “Please let me know if you need anything else.”

“Erm-“ Ara stammered, “I’m good. Thank you.”

She slightly bowed her head and exited the room.

She felt the sheets shift slightly and immediately opened her eyes. Gojo sat on the edge of the bed, beside her.

He looked absolutely breathtaking. The sunlight streaming through the open windows lit the edges of his white hair, casting an angel-like glow to one side of his face. His blue eyes glittered as he smiled.

He tousled her hair, “Wakey, wakey.”

His touch drew out of her daze. She quickly shoved her face back under the sheets, groaning. She heard him laugh.

He tugged the blanket lower-revealing her face again. “Araa, you barely ate y’know.”

“I ate enough.” she muttered, “Who eats that much in the morning?”

“Me.” he said, rather upbeat.

She narrowed her eyes before freezing when he leaned close. She turned away a millisecond before his lips touched hers.

“I-I didn’t brush my tee—“

His hand found her throat, rendering her frozen when he pressed a sweet yet passionate kiss to her lips.

He withdrew, a satisfied smile on his lips, “You know I don’t care about that stuff, kitten.”

His blue eyes looked her up and down slowly. In the midst of his silent perusal she asked, rather quietly- “Did something happen with your family?”

His eyes widened before he smiled again, “Ah, right-you met Marin. What’d you think of her? She was so curious about you.”

Ara blinked, “.. she was?”

His smile turned impish, “I don’t usually have girls running into my arms and crying on my doorstep-despite what you may think.”

She buried her face into the sheets once more, “Shut up.”

“You were so cute y’know-”

She squeezed the sheets tighter, “Stop talking!”

He chuckled, tugging her blanket down again. He leaned towards her, “Make sure to call her if you need anything when I’m not here, ‘kay? She knows where everything is. She’s been with my family for 50 years.”

Her eyes shot open, “50 years?!”

He smirked at her shock, “Mhmm..”

He cupped the side of her face, his thumb playing with her bottom lip, “You’re gonna be with me for much longer..” he grinned.

She smacked his hand away. “Go away.” she mumbled before pulling the sheets up once more.

He laid down atop her, tickling her through the blanket. She gasped before laughing uncontrollably. She twisted underneath him-making a mess of the sheets as she did so.

His grin widened, “Never.”

“Toru-toru! Wait, wait. It hurts.” she whined through laughs.

He paused, immediately tugging the blanket down to see her flushed face. He watched her gather her breath, “Sorry.” he replied.

He waited a moment before resting his head on her chest, continuing to stare at her. He absentmindedly twirled a strand of her hair until her breath returned to normal.

“Are you gonna lay in bed all day?”

She turned her face aside, not meeting his gaze, “.. Is it bad if I do?”

He stared at her-his blue eyes searching her face for a moment, “Course not.”

She glanced down at him, holding his gaze for a few seconds before her face heated up. She didn’t know how he managed to look so innocent sometimes-despite being the most chaotic individual she knew. Maybe it was those big baby blue eyes. They ought to swallow her up whole at this point.

She placed her hand over his eyes, “You should’ve went to school.” she muttered.

He shook his head to move her hand away, “And leave you here all by yourself? After I just got you back? Hell no.”

“Satoru-”

He nuzzled his face between her collarbones-making her squirm from ticklishness, “I wanna stay with you.” he whined.

“Okay, okay.” She huffed, turning her face aside to cover her eyes with her arms. She didn’t want him to see the effect his words had on her.

A moment of silence ensued until she felt him kiss her cleavage, somewhere along the soft skin that treaded above her breasts. She shivered, shifting slightly, “Toru..”

She was grateful he hadn’t tried to touch her again after everything that occurred last night. She wasn’t sure if her wounds would stop him when he kept kissing her before bed. She could tell he wanted to go further.. but it seemed he had enough decency to hold back.

She felt his breath whisper down her skin as he hummed, “This doesn’t feel real.. you being here…doesn’t feel real.”

She raised her arms slightly to look down at him laying over her. Her breath caught at the sight. He was looking at her as if.. as if he had everything he wanted.

She gently cupped his jaw, her chest inadvertently rising as she forced herself to breathe. If someone had told her at the start of this semester that Gojo would look at her like this she would’ve told them to go back to the psych ward they were discharged from. And yet, here she was.

Her eyes flitted between his before she swallowed inaudibly. She used her hands on his face to lure him closer, gently pressing her lips to his.

He instantly deepened the kiss-his head pushing her further into the pillow. A subtle sound left her, “mmmh!”

His tongue moved eagerly against hers-unrelenting. She slipped her fingers through his hair, swiftly kissing him back with just as much strength.

He immediately tilted his head, intensifying their lip lock-until she began to run her fingers through his hair, somewhat coaxingly. Her lips moved softly over his-kissing him sweetly before using her hands in his hair to gently pull him back.

Their shallow breaths filled the minimal air between them. She ran her hand over his smooth cheekbone as she spoke quietly-through uneven breaths, “What if I’m not real..”

He exhaled in faint humor, his gaze flitting between her lips and eyes, “Yeah?”

A subtle smile bloomed on her lips, “I’m just a figment of your imagination..” she teased.

He nuzzled her nose with his own, his typical smirk on his lips. “Nah.”

“You’re dreaming.” she continued.

His smirk widened, “We do different stuff in my dreams.”

Her eyes widened before she shoved his face away. His bright laughter filling the room.

“I really don’t wanna go..”

“Should we both skip?”

“No.” She glanced up at him, “You should go to class.”

Gojo blew out a puff from his joint, “Now that’s not fair.” he complained.

“Why’d you park all the way out here?” Another voice pitched in from nearby.

Gojo glanced over from his perch against the car before tossing his unfinished joint in the air and rushing to- “Suguru!” he slipped his arm over the male’s shoulder, greeting him enthusiastically.

Suguru accepted his liveliness with a mere shake of his head. He lightly elbowed Gojo before returning his hands to his pockets, “What’s got you all-oh.”

Suguru’s dark eyes landed on Ara and nodded in greeting, “Glad to see you back.”

Gojo used his free hand to gesture towards her, “You see, Ara here is going through a little..” he paused, as if considering the right word for it, “-social anxiety moment so I parked all the way here for her sake.”

She glared, “What?!”

It was true to some extent. When they pulled up to school in his car, he’d pulled into his unofficial yet ‘official’ parking spot-which was the first one closest to the school. No one else parked there but him-it seemed no one else ‘dared’ to. But Ara wasn’t mentally prepared to step out of his car and have all eyes on her again. She’d gotten comfortable slinking back to her semi-unnoticeable demeanor at school and wasn’t ready to be forced back into the spotlight again.

“It looks like you're tryna’ hide.” Geto muttered, kicking a nearby rock to cover the joint on the ground.

Gojo blinked at Ara, “Am I wrong?”

Ara’s glare intensified, “I asked you to park away from the school entrance, not the furthest spot in the entire lot! Now we look even more sus.”

The boys watched her discreetly peek past the car. She instantly noticed the other students glancing their way-a few even pointing at Gojo’s car-before murmuring amongst themselves. She raised her hands to her head, turning her back to them as she made a noise of frustration.

Geto chuckled under his breath before glancing at Gojo beside him, “You didn’t kidnap her, did you?”

Gojo beamed, “Nope. She came back to me by herself.”

“For real?”

“For real real.”

Ara closed her locker door only to jump when she saw Millie behind it.

Millie stood with her hands on her hips, “You and Gojo are back together?!” 

“Holy shit, Mills,” She glanced around before snapping quietly, “Can you talk lower?”

Millie threw her hands up, “How come you didn’t tell me?”

Ara sighed, readjusting her tote bag over her shoulder before turning to walk down the hallway. Millie walked in stride beside her.

“I’m living with him now.” Ara mumbled.

Millie’s eyes nearly popped out of her head, “What?! No way.”

Ara kept her eyes low, “Yeah.”

“How?” Millie asked.

Ara’s eyes shot to her, “I told you. My dad kicked me out.”

Millie stared at her before stammering out, “Wait so.. your Dad was legit about that?”

Ara raked a hand through her lengthy hair, barely keeping the annoyance from her tone as she responded lowly, “Yes.”

Millie pried, “He hasn’t contacted you since then?”

Ara stopped walking, not looking Millie in the eye as she nodded.

Millie merely stared at Ara in shock-while she fidgeted uneasily under her gaze. Millie knew how Ara was, there was no way she was comfortable living without her Dad.

Millie asked, “What are you gonna do?”

Ara shrugged.

“Are you really not gonna call him?”

Something flashed through Ara’s eyes before her poker face returned. She merely shrugged again-still avoiding eye contact.

Millie’s brows furrowed. This behavior was completely unlike the Ara she knew.

Millie belatedly added, “Also.. I thought you never wanted to get back with Gojo? You seemed so sure..”

Ara winced, “Um..”

“Ara!”

The girls both turned around to see Gojo waving his hands wildly from the other end of the hall. A bright, boyish smile on his face.

Millie glanced back at Ara to see her gnawing at her bottom lip. She finally met her gaze, her voice low, “Gotta go. See you.”

Ara quickly walked past her.

Millie watched Ara walk up to him-completely unaware of the students moving aside to make room for her. She watched a cute yet shy smile bloom on the girl’s face the second Gojo engulfed her in his arms. Light laughter coming from her as he squeezed her obnoxiously.

Millie couldn’t believe her eyes. Ara wasn’t the type to enjoy PDA. Even when her and Gojo dated before, she never accepted his PDA without her typical grumpiness or scolding. This was.. different.

Gojo lowered his face to kiss her and she welcomed it-a small, pretty smile on her lips when he withdrew. He automatically returned her smile with a cheeky one of his own.

Wow. She really is different. Millie concluded before staring at them a little longer. Something about them was just so intriguing to watch.. 

Ara looked so small compared to him-especially with the way she had to turn her face up to look at him. Even her hand on his chest looked small. Maybe it was the height difference-maybe it was their clashing personalities-she couldn’t pinpoint it.

I guess I’d cave too if I had the chance. Millie giggled to herself before glancing down at her phone to check the time.

Shit. She only had two minutes to get to her class. Just as she turned to head in the direction of her next class, she froze.

She slowly turned around to see she was standing directly beside the door. Ara must’ve stopped walking here on purpose.

She smiled, glancing over to check where she’d last seen her-only to find that she was gone, as well as Gojo.

She sighed. Ara was always the considerate type-once you got to know her anyway.

At least, that hasn’t changed.

“What the hell?”

“What is it?”

Ara spun around, she hadn’t expected him to be here. He must’ve skipped basketball practice again. This was the third day now-coincidentally the same amount of days since she’d been here, living with him. It seemed he was trying to find every excuse to be home now.

She stared at him leaning against the entrance of their shared closet. Half of the closet had been cleared out and replaced with feminine clothes, accessories, shoes-you name it. It was completely excessive.

She blinked before pointing at the countertop where her duffel bag had been, “Where’s my bag?”

“I dumped it.”

“What?!” she snapped, her voice sharper than a blade.

He held his hands up, laughing airily as he sauntered towards her, “Heh-heh! Just kidding—kidding!” (a/n: he wasn’t kidding, he’s about to make Marin go dumpster diving)

He grasped her shoulders before spinning her around to face the various rows of high-end, maybe even fresh off the runway items.

“Your clothes were dirty so I put ‘em in the wash. You can use all this now ‘kay? I ordered a lot cuz I didn’t know what you’d want—a stylist helped me but we can always do more shopping if you don’t like it.”

She stared at ‘her’ side of the closet in shell-shocked silence. Everything about it was just… unfathomable. A stylist? Did he seriously go to a stylist?

She unconsciously gravitated towards a floor length dress on a hanger. It was undoubtedly stunning. It might’ve looked plain and simple to some but it was quite literally everything to her. A pure white silk dress that looked almost perfectly tailored to her frame. It had the most unique ruching around the chest area and was backless.

She moved the dress aside to look at the other dresses behind it and nearly gaped. A blue thin strap, beautifully detailed, high-low style dress lay before her eyes. It was somewhat early 2000s inspired as well, clearly haute couture. The following dresses-a nearly sheer purple dress, a more modern-esque black dress, an elegant silky light pastel yellow dress-weren't any less impressive.

She found herself touching the angelically soft material of the pastel yellow dress, “This is insane.” she murmured.

The corner of his lip curled upwards.

She immediately withdrew her hand, facing him, “Where the hell would I wear this.”

He shrugged, “Galas, soirées, red carpets, any black tie event.”

She stared at him like he’d grown three heads before remembering he was somewhat known in the media for his father's name—and basketball, annoyingly enough. She was sure his last name contributed to that as well since his family was listed yearly on Forbes richest families, aka billion dollar dynasties. The media would never leave those families alone.

She fixed him with a glare, “I’m not going to any of that.”

He whined, “You have tooo. I need a plus one.“

“No-“ she cut herself off when she saw the classic Louboutin’s amongst the several women’s shoes arranged on the built in shelves, “Red bottoms, seriously?”

His grin reappeared, “They’re hot.”

She rubbed her temple, “Baby, y’know I can barely walk in kitten heels.”

His eyes widened momentarily before his arms slipped around her-drawing her small back against his chest. It was hard to focus on her little complaints when she oh-so-rarely called him pet names.

He kissed the spot of her temple she’d been rubbing moments ago, “You can practice in them?” he suggested lightly.

He kissed her cheekbone while winding his arms a bit tighter around her waist, “M’sorry, kitten. I know I got carried away. I jus got excited cuz you look so sexy in everything-“

He kissed her neck, “-had to spoil you..”

She flushed deeper, “Satoru..”

Her breath scattered all over the place when he continued to kiss and nip her neck.

She pushed at his arms around her, “Toru—Toru, wait, I need pajamas.”

His head suddenly shot up, “Pajamas? Hehe—I got you.”

Her brows furrowed when he quickly released her and began to open several drawers, efficiently searching for whatever he was looking for. He usually never let go of her that easily—or eagerly, at that. It made her nervous.

“Aha~” he grinned brightly, holding up something that she couldn’t see until he tossed it to her. She instinctively caught it as he said, “Wear this.”

She didn’t miss the glint of mischievousness in his eyes before she caught it. She held open the nightgown. She immediately bunched it up-a bright flush on her face.

“I’m not wearing this.“

“Pleaseeeee, don’t be mean.” He was suddenly behind her again. His arms slipping around her waist as he buried his face into her neck, “I got it for you.”

She squirmed slightly, “Toru-“

“Try it, just try it. You can take it off later if you hate it that much but I wanna see it on you.”

She pushed at his arms around her waist, “Let go-“

He dug his face into the crook of her neck once more, “No.” he whined, squeezing her in his arms, “No. no. no-not til you tell me you're gonna try it.

She pushed at his arms again, “Let go, you fool.”

He began to tickle her and she shrieked before laughing. “Oh- my god! Stop! Stop!”

He kept tickling her and she doubled over in laughter. He grinned boyishly as she tried to push his arms.

“Stop what?”

“Toru!” she yelled before shaking her head, “Okay! Okay! I will-let go,”

He didn’t stop. “Promise?”

“Promise-!” she squeaked through giggles.

He instantly let go, a bright smile on his face, “Really?!”

She immediately shoved him, “Fuck you!”

He was laughing now, “You promised~”

She stepped out of the closet, covering the top half of the thin nightgown with her arms. The material was incredibly soft, in fact she might’ve liked it if it wasn’t… the way it was. The straps were awfully thin, it ended a little higher than mid-thigh—in fact she wasn’t sure if it even fully covered her ass—and the chest area of the nightgown was see-through.

“Satoru,” she called out-a bit hesitant, “I’m not wearing this. I’m taking it off, okay?”

When she didn’t hear a response, she walked further into the bedroom, “Okay?”

She’d kicked him out of the closet to change-despite him wanting to stay-but she hadn’t expected him to leave the room. She supposed that saved her the trouble.

Just as she speedily turned around to zip back into the closet and steal one his shirts, an arm slipped around her and she yelped.

“Woa, woa–where you runnin’ off to..”

She tensed when she was pulled flat against his chest. Her back against him as he slowly slid his hands down her sides. He sighed-in a way that was anything but regretful.

“You look so cute, Ara.”

He gently kissed her below the ear and she shifted slightly, turning her face into her opposite shoulder. She wrapped her arms tighter around her chest. 

“Can I take it off now? You saw it..”

“Hold on, hold on,” he whined a bit before pausing, “But I didn’t see all of it, did I?”

She blinked, “What?”

He moved his arms over her own wrapped around her chest. “You’re hiding something, aren’t you?” he teased-though there was an undecipherable undercurrent to his tone.

She swallowed, too dumbstruck to respond when he grasped her hands and slowly led them down to her sides–unveiling her ample chest, barely contained within the lace bust.

He inhaled sharply through his nose.

She closed her eyes, unable to bear the weight of his gaze. She felt his gaze from above her shoulder-in fact, she felt it all over. From the strands of her hair pressed against his chest to the goosebumps rising along the skin his eyes pierced. She couldn’t bear it–and his silence only made it more unnerving.

He squeezed her hips, making her jolt.

“Does that hurt?” he asked, a bit quietly.

She swallowed, “N-no.”

His hands slid higher up her sides, into the dip of her waist. He squeezed lightly, “What about here?” he murmured.

She was so tense, she wondered if he sensed it, “No.”

His hands slid higher, his fingers fitting right underneath her plushy underboobs as he gently squeezed her over her ribs.

“And here?” he asked, not a trace of emotion in his low voice.

A sprinkle of pain spread from his hold but it was rather faint. It seemed the wounds her father had given her had healed some. The nurse’s ointments were more effective than she thought.

“A little.” she murmured.

Suddenly he pressed his face into the side of hers.

The sound of his low groan was muffled by her hair as he fisted her nightgown needily. Her nightgown bunching up between his fingers.

“Okay,” he breathed out, his nose grazing her temple as he withdrew-his voice ragged, “That’s okay..”

Her heart thumped rapidly in her chest. She didn’t understand what he was on about.

“I can work with that.” he murmured.

Suddenly he tugged down her straps, “Let’s take this off-“

She didn’t get the chance to react when she was getting walked to his bed-his firm frame walking behind her forcing her to stumble ahead. She held onto the front of her nightgown to keep it from falling.

“Wait-“ she tried to fast walk ahead but couldn’t when she was suddenly grabbed by the hips. She yelled when she was held up and tossed onto the bed. She landed face down in the sheets with her hips in the air.

He hastily unbuckled himself-the sound of his belt hitting the floor and zipper quickly followed. 

She attempted to turn around only for him to steady her hips and flip her nightgown up. He caressed the soft skin of her hips, groaning under his breath, “Fuck, jus’ looking at you..”

She twisted partially to look at him, her movement rather restricted due to his grasp. Fear bloomed in her gut at the hunger in his eyes. She instinctively reached towards him, “Toru, wait-Toru–”

He grabbed her forearm, pinning it to her lower back, “What is it, kitten?”

She winced at the uncomfortable angle he held her arm at, “I’m not ready, Toru-please, I’m not ready.” she pleaded futilely, “My body hurts..”

He bent over her, pressing short needy kisses along her jaw and temple as he rasped, “You said only a little..”

She felt his cock ghost along her inner thigh. He was hard-hard enough that she had to look.

She glanced underneath her partially twisted body to see his rigid cock between her raised hips. His cockhead a prominent shade of pink, as if it was swollen for attention. She couldn’t ignore the veins popping out against his pale length. Her eyes widened as his angry cockhead twitched and touched her belly, a clearish white substance dribbling out the tip.

She buried her face into the sheets, holding back a sob.

“Ara..” his voice was ragged-speaking into her temple, “I miss you, Ara. I wanna be in you..”

She felt his tip graze her pussylips and jolted.

“Toru-toru! Be gentle, be gentle-please.” she begged.

Her begging made him want to do anything but. He straightened to hold his cock at her entrance. He released her restrained arm to keep a hand on her ass.

He pushed his cockhead through her narrow hole, groaning through his teeth, “Fuck, Ara..”

He’d only gotten an inch past the tip in and her cunt was already acting like she couldn’t take it. Her pussy was too damn tight. He would’ve burst right there if he hadn’t gotten himself off that morning-well, every morning since she’d moved in. Sometimes it’d be multiple times a day. It was the only way he kept his hands off of her for this long.

He gripped the rest of his length, trying to push himself deeper—she yelled out, gripping the sheets, “Toru-Toru! Please-nngh—“

He pulled out slightly, only leaving the tip in. Her cunt was so tight it wasn’t letting him leave.

Fuckin’ hell. He glanced down at the sight of his cock stuck in her pussy—only a fourth or so in. The rest of his veiny length waiting to be fully drenched. He was desperate-delirious-addicted.

He squeezed her ass cheeks, hard, “Been two months and you forgot me already, hmm? Do I need to reshape you all over again?”

She gasped, “N-no, please, be gentle with me, please..”

“Sh, sh, sh..” he pressed his hand into her nape, pushing her down, “S’okay…”

He spoke into her temple, “Just listen to me and you’ll be okay, kitten. I promise.”

She cried silently into the sheets.

His hand slid down her nape, along her spine. He gently pressed the middle of her back, “Bend more here.”

He watched her back arch further-her nightgown dropping low to reveal her waist. He just wanted to hold that pretty little waist and fuck her senseless.. but that would have to wait.

He caressed her hips, his tip still lodged in her cunt. His eyes flitted closed as his cockhead nudged her walls, “Raise your hips a bit.”

She complied, her thighs trembling oh so bad as she did so. God, she’s so cute.

He lowered his hands, letting his palms run over her soft ass before his thumbs touched her pussylips right where it suctioned his cockhead. She jolted, whimpering.

“Loosen up here.” he ordered, raspily.

“I-I can’t!” she cried out, face buried in the sheets-hidden from him.

“You didn’t even try, kitten.” he teased.

She merely whimpered in response.

He bent over her once more, pressing his hands to the sheets beside her head while pushing his hips into her slightly.

“You won’t like it if I do it.”

A low, weak whiny sound left her before she wriggled her hips slightly. He watched eagerly as she spread her knees, angling her hips up high around his cock, only to tremble when she tried to lower herself over him.

He groaned, her cunt walls sucking him in so fucking tight. He grabbed her hips, his long fingers leaving marks on her soft skin as he attempted to work with her and slowly push himself in.

I missed this… so much—so fuckin’ much.

Her pussy walls were wrapping around him just right. The rigidness of her cunt gradually giving way the further he seated himself.

Her mewls and whines didn’t stop-only getting louder the deeper he sank into her cunt. His cock was half-way in when he lost it. His fingers dug into her waist-forcing her still-before savagely thrusting his cock all the way through.

“Toru!” she shrieked, “Toru-toru!—fuck!”

His forehead dropped to her nape as he groaned. His grip on her waist unforgiving as he delivered short desperate thrusts to her cunt. Lewd sounds echoing throughout his room.

“-m’sorry, Ara-m’sorry, I can’t—I can’t stop.” he rushed out, completely lost in the feeling of her.

“nnngh-torunnh-ngh! unh-unh-toru!”

His speed picked up. The lewd sound of their sex louder now that her pussy had grown slippery within.

“Missed you s’much-so fuckin’ much—“ he half groaned, half-growled into her ear. His grip on her waist relentless as he pounded into her.

“Never gonna let this pussy forget me again.”

She moaned when his cock reached a spot too deep. She couldn’t take it. He promised he would be gentle and yet here she was. She should’ve known.

His cock twitched and her eyes widened. Oh no.

“Satoru!” she cried, “not inside, not inside-please-“

Suddenly his hand fisted her hair, forcing her face into the sheets as he bent over her. His voice ragged beside her ear, “Let me, Ara, let me-I deserve it.”

“T-toru-nnghf-f-fuck-uungh.”

He didn’t slow down, “Be good to me and take it-all of it.”

“Toru-uh!-ngh! ohhh.” she moaned through tears.

His cock throbbed within her slick cunt. His tip pulsating against her cervix before spurting within her. She felt his warm cum fill her cunt up—it’d been too long since he’d had her bareback.

His mouth was half-open, his eyes squeezed shut as he buried his face into her neck. His hands clasping the back of hers as he groaned.

She felt so fucking good he couldn’t stop. The tip of his cock twitched as it spilt load after load within her. 

He needed her—he needed this.

He squeezed her tits while looking down at her. Her tits bouncing hypnotically with each rough fuck.

His free hand fisted the sheets beside her head, her hair splayed out all over his fingers. The heels of her feet knocking into his lower back as she lay spread open between his knees. Her smooth legs supported by his firm thighs. Her body trembled-addictingly-with each deep rut of his cock. Her eyelids sewn shut as she bit into her lower lip.

He let go of her right breast to grasp her jaw. His thumb swiftly tugging her bottom lip free from her teeth.

“Don’t quiet yourself. It’s just me.”

She merely reddened.

His cock pistoned into her harder—forcing her to cry out.

“Toru-uh-ungh!-hnn-” Broken moans left her.

He bent over her, his hand finding her tits once more. He squeezed greedily before palming her perky nipple. She was breathless—and so helpless to his advances he couldn’t help but fuck her harder. It didn’t help that her tiny pussy walls seemed to gobble him in.

“Be as loud as you want.” he urged-wanting to hear it all. She would always have to keep quiet at her father’s house.

She held onto his forearm as her body jerked.

“unngh-satoru!-p-please-nngh!!”

Her cunt tightened around him. She was close.

He saw it in her face-her trembling lips, her strained expression. She always tried to hide her pretty face when she came, as if she were doing something wrong. It was truly adorable, but she couldn’t hide from him now.

Nor did they have to hide from anyone else.

His lips ghosted her neck as her entire body arched, “This is our home now.”

His cock slipped out of her with a lewd sound. A low sigh left her lips as she plopped onto the sheets. Her breasts pressing into the bed uncomfortably but she was too tired to care.

She felt something warm and thick slowly slip out of her cunt, traveling down her thighs. She couldn’t even think straight.

Suddenly she felt his cockhead touch her leaking cunt again-she jolted, “T-toru!”

But he was already back inside her, buried half-way to the hilt. She was so gummy inside that there was no resistance. He nuzzled her cheekbone, strands of his light hair sticking to her skin. “One more time. One more,” he urged.

She whined through strangled gasps as she felt him push his cock deeper, shoving his spilled cum back in.

“Hhnngh, toru..” She shook her head, her voice cracking, “Y-you said that last time.”

He thrust his hips into her and she cried out-quickly fisting the sheets once more.

She lay in bed, facing him. The moonlight streaming through the thin curtains the only light in the dark room.

Her short uneven breaths loud in the silence.

The air felt thick from their nonstop activities. The scent of sex stuck to the sheets. Her breath still hadn’t recovered-neither had her heartbeat.

His blue eyes glimmered in the dark-not one emotion on his face as he stared at her. He appeared completely composed, a calm aura radiating from him. As if completely satisfied.

He looked agitatedly beautiful. His pale face flushed as he lay his head atop his lean bicep. Strands of his white hair pointed every which way from their sex. She couldn’t count how many times she’d sifted her fingers through his hair to draw him near or away whenever she came.

Light pink nail marks decorated his tautly muscular chest. There were a few along his bulging shoulders as well. She hadn’t realized she marked him that much.  She didn’t even want to think about the marks he left on her.

His hand ran up and down her side reassuringly, lightly squeezing her over her ribs.

He scooched closer, “Breathe, Ara..”

He kissed her forehead, “You’re perfect yanno.. perfect.” A low, slightly rugged edge to his voice.

She closed her eyes when he began to lightly thumb the sensitive skin of her under boob. He always liked to touch her there.

She instinctively held onto his arm, stopping the subtle movement. Her eyes flickering open to find his eyes still on her.

The silent stream of fear coursing through her couldn’t be withheld as she shivered. Her hand wavered over his elbow; her gaze dropped to his arm to reel herself in. She needed to focus on something that wasn’t his eyes.

Her eyes followed the bright green veins protruding against his triceps, down his forearm-like little pathways along his skin. She didn’t notice her hand following her gaze, her fingertips lightly tracing his dark veins.

When her fingers made it up to his wrist, she took his hand-gently lifting it off of her. She intertwined her fingers with his before placing their connected hands beside her cheek, using it as a makeshift pillow for the lower half of her face.

She glanced up at him-finally confident enough too-and immediately flushed at his expression. His light, clear-ish blue eyes were looking at her as if she was the only thing in the universe.

She glanced away from him again, inadvertently squeezing his hand as she did so.

“Toru..” she whispered.

“Hm?”

Her eyes flickered back to his, “What would you do if I didn’t come back?”

She felt his hand subtly twitch in hers before a short silence ensued. It was hard to make out his expression in the dark. They’d fucked all evening since they got back from school so no one had gotten the chance to turn on any lights-in his room anyway.

Suddenly his hand in hers yanked her close. His lips caught hers mid-gasp. The kiss was needy—desperate—and unrestrained. His tongue lashing against hers as he winded his arm around her lower back, keeping her close as she twisted slightly. Her hands on his chest the only thing keeping some distance between their bodies.

He drew his face back, a small grin on his lips as their noses grazed each other.

His arm subtly tightened around her back, “I had a few ideas…”

His eyes shimmered as he searched her face, “You’d hate me if I told you.”

Her breath hitched. She didn’t doubt his words.

Her tone was flat, “You don’t think I hate you already?”

His white teeth were visible in the dark. She hated how attractive his smile was.

He leaned closer, his forehead nudging hers, “Nahh..”

His hand on her lower back traveled down to her ass, squeezing her with enough strength to make her yelp.

He watched her cry out with a grin before whispering into her ear, “You moan like you love me.”

Her face instantly went hot. She pushed his hand away from her ass and quickly turned around to face the other side of the bed—only to be stopped by a firm hand on her hip.

“Where are you goin’ Araa?” A bit of laughter intertwined in his tone.

She didn’t have time to answer because suddenly she was pushed to her back and her hands were pinned to the bed.

He squeezed her wrists before moving her arms so that only one of his hands was necessary to keep her down. His one hand was large enough to curl his fingers around both of her wrists.

His blue eyes were fierce in the dark as he leaned above her, nearly panting as he looked her up and down. She suddenly wished that she wasn’t naked.

She turned her face aside, raising her elbows slightly as if they could cover her.

“What are you doing?” she asked shakily.

His head dropped low, making their foreheads touch, “I’m showing you how I woulda had you tied to my bed..”

Her eyes widened as his free hand touched her arm-his knuckles grazing her skin-making her hands buckle slightly. His gaze was distant, yet alert.

He cupped her breast, making a low whimper leave her lips. Her tits were already so marked up and sore from his attention, she wasn’t sure she could handle anymore.

He continued, “If Suguru wasn’t around you would’ve been right here a week in. Tied up, spread open..”

He squeezed her wrists, “I pictured it.”

His voice dropped low as he looked her up and down again, “I had the rope, just no you.”

His forehead against hers pressed her deeper into the sheets, “I missed you so much, Ara.” She couldn’t miss the desperation running rampant in his tone.

He palmed her breasts, needily, “Suguru stopped me from getting you so many times—I hated it. I jus wanted you back.”

Her eyes widened, “H-he knows?” -that you would literally kidnap me?

“He knows I don’t like being abandoned.”

She gasped when his thumb pressed into her nipple, “Toru!” she squealed.

He leaned back to watch her writhe below him. His gaze growing fond as he played with her. He missed those pretty expressions on her face so damn much.

“He kept telling me to leave you alone..” he tilted his head, tips of his white hair tickling her face, “but look at you.”

Her body arched, pressing her chest into his to slide his hand off her breasts. Her nipples were too sensitive, his touch was too much.

“Toru!” she whined, “No more, toru, please.”

He pecked her lips, loving the feel of her bare tits pressed up against him. He let himself lean into her with all his weight, nearly crushing her petite body. His free hand slipped under her thigh, tugging her leg around his waist.

She moaned weakly. If she’d known her question would lead to this..

He pecked her once more, “Suguru said you’d come back if we were meant to be.”

Her eyes widened as he kissed the heart of her throat.

“He was right.” he whispered, before shoving his length through her slick walls. Her pretty whines masking his groan.

He was right.

“Ara Natsuna?” Mrs. Finch called.

“Absent.” Gojo’s voice answered.

Mrs. Finch raised her head from her clipboard to cut a glance towards Ara’s desk—to find it empty. She’d been ready to scold him but it seemed he was being honest-for once.

She merely squinted at him before continuing down the list.

He smiled to himself, completely unaware of the looks coming from the other students glancing his way. He sat propped up on his elbow, hand supporting his head. His posture lax as he absentmindedly spun a pencil in his free hand.

Suddenly the pencil was snatched away, instantly drawing him from his thoughts.

He blinked to find Geto staring quizzically at him-pencil in hand, “What’s with you?”

The corner of his lip curled, “Oh, nothing.”

Ara glanced down at the steamy dish on the ornate plate before her, with several utensils set out on either side of the plate. She hesitantly raised her hand only to freeze when she heard a camera click.

She immediately glanced up to see Gojo lowering his phone, a smirk on his lips, “Shit-“

She reached out, trying to snatch his phone, “What the hell—“

He easily stretched his arm out of her reach, his grin widening, “Aht, aht, this is for me.”

She leaned back in her seat, scowling, “Why?”

She watched him scroll through his phone with a stupidly wide grin, “Because,” he explained lightly, “I don’t have enough pics of you.”

Her brows furrowed as he continued, “I always take pics on your phone cuz I want you to think of me but when you left I realized I didn’t have you on my phone.”

He set his phone down on the table before resting his face on his propped arm. He reached over to flick her chin with his free hand.

“You won’t give me the chance to miss you like that again but I don’t wanna make the same mistake twice.”

A smug smile slipped across his lips before he gestured towards her food, “Eat. You asked the chef for it after all.”

More like he had asked for her since she was still shy with the house staff. She wasn’t used to having people at her beck and call but she also wanted to test if his chef really could cook everything.

It was simple banter with Gojo at first-with him trying to convince her that his chef could truly cook anything-but it ended with her googling an uncommon dish to purposely throw off the chef. Now, they both sat at the lavish long table in one of the several dining rooms with a steaming bowl of Käsespätzle in front of her. And it smelled delicious.

She’d only picked the German dish because she remembered once seeing a microwavable, frozen food tray version of it at the grocery store. She never saw it again so she assumed it was seasonal.

She scooped up a bit with her fork before taking a hesitant bite. She was careful to school her reaction as she chewed—heavily aware of Gojo’s eyes zoned in on her.

“How is it?” he asked.

It seemed the chef had defied her expectations.

She swallowed-doing her best to keep her poker face intact, “It’s… okay.”

His eyes glittered with amusement as he watched her grip over her fork waver and her little tongue deftly swipe her bottom lip to lick up a bit of cheese sauce.

“Oh?” he raised a brow before reaching out to her plate with the bowl atop it, “I’ll take it then-“

She instinctively smacked his hand, “It’s mine.”

He grinned and she immediately flushed-belatedly seeing through him.

She quickly withdrew her hand, crossing her arms, “Nevermind, it’s yours.”

He suddenly grabbed the bottom rim of her chair and tugged her seat close. He shoved aside the several neatly aligned utensils to place her plate before her.

“You’re a bad liar, kitten,” a teasing grin on his lips as he raised a forkful to her lips, “just eat.”

Ara grabbed her lunch tray and turned around. She didn’t meet anyone’s eyes as she walked through the cafeteria to the courtyard entrance.

She used her back to open the courtyard door before stepping outside. The weather was nice enough to make her feel warm through her blazer.

She took a moment to scan the freshly landscaped expanse of green before her eyes landed on the familiar gazebo. She took her time as she made her way towards it. The closer she walked she began to overhear their voices.

“That’s not the answer.” Geto’s voice.

“Yes it is!” Gojo.

“It’s not, where’d you even get that equation from?“

“Ara!!” Gojo exclaimed the second she entered his line of sight. 

He reached for her as she set her tray down beside his. His muscular arms winding around her to bury his face in her sternum, a low whine coming from him.

She placed her hand over his head, absentmindedly raking her fingers through his fluffy white hair as she half-sat, half-stood on the bench attached to the table. 

“What is it?” she muttered as she glanced down at the open notebook and ipad-displaying a textbook page-laying on the table.

She instinctively reached for the notebook just as he raised his head to look up at her from against her chest. She read over his scribbles as he complained.

“Suguru is saying I’m wrong~”

She recognized the problem immediately, it was a physics problem.

“Is this Mr. Langard?” she asked.

“Yes.” “Yep~” Geto and Gojo answered simultaneously. She’d taken his class last semester.

She pointed at an equation in Gojo’s notebook, “That’s wrong.”

Geto immediately pitched in, “Exactly.”

“But that’s what photomath used!”

“Seriously.” Geto grumbled.

“That equation isn’t bad-if you're looking for an estimate,” she leaned over to use her fingers and zoom in on a specific sentence in the online textbook, “You need precise numbers for this question.”

Geto quietly read over the zoomed in text-which confirmed her words. He hadn’t known that, he’d merely been following Mr. Langard’s instructions. Gojo’s lips made a small ‘o’ shape.

Geto then went on to use his apple pencil to minimize the textbook to one half of the screen and reveal his own notes in the other. He swiped to a specific point in his notes before circling an equation. 

Geto added, “This is the equation you're supposed to use.”

She peered at his work before reaching out to swipe her index finger across the screen to see if there was more, only to find blank sheets.

A subtle frown graced her features before she responded, “Yeah but your answer is incomplete.”

Both boys merely stared as she slipped the apple pencil from Geto’s fingers and scribbled in a new formula underneath his numerical work.

She continued to deftly solve the equation until she circled the answer, “This is the answer.”

Geto’s brows furrowed as he turned the iPad to himself—quickly readjusting it for him and Gojo to see when Gojo loosened his hold around her to lean towards the ipad.

Gojo silently assessed the work as Geto glanced up towards her, “How?” he asked.

“We need to convert it back to its original units.” Gojo answered-rather quickly.

Ara nodded, before sitting down beside Gojo.

Geto shook his head, gradually retreating into his slouched position as he did so. “I completely missed that.”

Just as she handed the apple pencil back to Geto, Gojo pressed a haste yet passionate kiss to her cheek. She immediately shoved his face away.

He was beaming, “I love having a smart girlfriend.”

Geto’s attention returned to the ipad, his thin brows furrowed in concentration, “This formula.. do they ever ask for estimates on exams?”

Ara shook her head briefly, “No but that formula is mainly for checking your work. If your answer is far off from the estimate then you probably did something wrong.”

“Ah, makes sense.” Geto said, until Toji plopped into the seat beside him.

Toji was peeling an orange in his hands, “What’re you guys talking about.” he asked, though he didn’t sound too interested.

“Nothing you would understand.” Gojo answered sweetly.

“Fuck you.” Toji retorted.

Toji’s head was suddenly shoved and they all looked to see Shoko behind him, cigarette in hand. Toji rubbed his head, “The hell?”

“You skipped again? Are you planning on repeating this year too?”

Toji frowned, “Why do you care?”

“I don’t. Miss Payton was asking about you.”

Toji raised a brow, grinning, “Was she?”

Shoko rolled her eyes before sitting beside him, “Don’t tell me you gave her STDs too.”

Geto's brows raised, “too?”

“Yeah, didn’t you hear Inez got herpes?” Shoko gave Toji a dramatic side-eye, “Zenin was messing with her last sooo we all know who the herpes handler here is.”

Geto and Gojo burst out laughing while Toji’s face twisted in annoyance.

Geto shook his head, “Herpes handler is crazy.”

Gojo reached out to high-five Shoko, “Syphilis sampler.”

Shoko high-fived him back, “Gonorrhea gobbler.”

“Will ya shut the fuck up.” Toji spoke up, rubbing his temple as if he had a headache.

Suddenly Haibara ran up to the table, all huffing and puffing.

“Hi guys.” he chirped through breaths.

Shoko looked him up and down, “Why are you running?”

He used his thumb to point behind him, “Nanami wanted to race here—“ he turned around to glance behind himself. No one was there.

Shoko snorted, “Idiot.”

Haibara barely frowned before slipping into the seat next to Ara. Ara was diligently eating her lunch.

He greeted her politely, “Hi Ara.”

She glanced over, “Hey.”

He smiled shyly, “Can I have one of your mozzarella sticks?”

“Don’t give it to him,” a male voice stated. Ara glanced over to see Nanami walk upto the table, “He already ate mine.”

Nanami lightly smacked Haibara on the back of the head before sitting down next to Shoko.

Shoko offered him her cigarette and Nanami took it without a second’s hesitance, only to toss it on the ground and stomp it out.

“What-!” Shoko exclaimed.

He glanced over at her, “I thought you were tryna quit?”

Toji snorted, “She says that every week.”

Shoko shot him a look, “Noo.”

Gojo’s tone was teasing as he tilted his head, “Are you actually tryna quit then?”

She scratched her head, “I was..”

“How long did you last?” Geto asked.

“30 minutes.”

Geto chuckled while Nanami shook his head.

Gojo faced Nanami, “Yo, what’d you get on your exam?”

Nanami answered flatly, “Ninety eight.”

Shoko smiled-nudging him, “I knew you were gonna ace it. We should celebrate.”

Haibara immediately piped in, “Yeah! Let’s.”

Nanami kept his eyes on Shoko, “Don’t we have to go to the mall today?”

“Oh shit, you're right. I need to get a gift for my aunt.”

“Can I come too?” Haibara asked.

Shoko nodded, “Yeah, yeah, come,” her eyes landed on Ara, “You come too.”

Ara’s eyes lifted up from her lunch, “Me?”

“Yeah, we don’t hang out enough,” her eyes cut to Gojo, “since Gojo’s gatekeeping you.”

Gojo smirked, “I’m not gatekeeping her~”

“Then why don’t you bring her to the hangouts?”

“Because she’s always studying!” he pouted.

“Oh c’monnn,” Shoko tilted her head at Ara, “You gotta come out sometime. How about this weekend?”

Ara glanced at Gojo to see him looking at her with thinly veiled anticipation. Ever since they got back together he’d been asking her to come hang out with his friends with him or not-so-subtly tell her who was throwing a party this weekend—she always declined, using studying as an excuse. Though it wasn’t entirely an excuse. She wasn’t like Gojo who didn’t have to try to keep up stellar grades.

She would tell him to hang out with his friends by himself, which he sometimes did, but he never went to parties—since it was against his self-assigned rule of not going without her.

She knew not attending these ‘parties’ was making his social butterfly ass itch.

She ran a hand through her hair, “..how about after midterms?”

“So next weekend?” Shoko asked.

“Yeah.”

She felt Gojo’s hand at her back, “Really?” he asked.

She glanced at him, noticing the subtle spark in his gaze before rolling her eyes, “Yeah.”

Shoko announced, “She can get ready at mine.”

Gojo immediately responded, “Wha—no, she’s getting ready with me.”

“No-“

“Yes-“

“You see! You are gatekeeping her.”

“I’m not!”

Gojo bounded up the steps before scurrying down the hallway to his room. He gathered his breath before entering the bedroom.

The doors opened soundlessly as he stepped within. There were some lo-fi beats playing from the speaker and he smiled slightly before his gaze fell on Ara.

She was sitting on his bed, papers splayed out before her. She used a textbook as a firm surface to write on as she shifted her attention between her notebook and laptop.

Her hair was down loose, tucked behind her ears to keep her hair from falling in front of her face. She wore a pair of fuzzy shorts and a tank top. One baby pink ankle sock on her left foot whereas the other sock lay a foot away on the floor. Her face a mask of deep concentration.

His smile widened subtly, tilting his head as he watched her.

He told her she was free to use the desk but she always seemed to find her way to the bed.

He deftly picked up his drawstring bag and backpack off his shoulder before letting it drop to the floor. Her eyes immediately darted up.

Her eyes widened, “Satoru.”

He walked towards the bed, a wide smile on his lips, “Hey.”

“How was practice—aah!”

He jumped atop the bed, letting his head rest on her lap and the rest of his long limbs crinkle her papers.

His arms slipped around her, “I missed you.”

Her eyes widened as the bed shifted from his weight and her Macbook tipped over the bed’s edge.

“TORU—“

Suddenly his arm shot out and he caught its edge a millisecond before it tumbled off.

“Got it.”

At her silence he glanced up and instantly grinned at her shell-shocked expression. He placed the Macbook on a safer area of the bed before slipping his arms around her again.

He tilted his head on her lap, “Can I have a kiss now?”

She blinked-gathering herself from her shock to respond, “You think you deserve one?”

He pouted, “I don’t?”

She stammered out, “Y-you literally jumped on my homework and damn near broke my laptop—“

“But did it break?”

She glanced down at him, “What?”

His bright eyes didn’t waver, “Did your laptop break?”

Her brows furrowed slowly, “.. no but-“

“Aht aht. I saved it, so we’re good.”

She squinted, opening her mouth to refute him only to get interrupted by a whiny nonsensical sound, “It’s not like I can’t get you a new one if it broke, okay?”

He partially raised his head from her lap. His adam's apple bobbing within his neck as he spoke, “Now gimme a kiss.” he pleaded.

She rolled her eyes before gently slipping her hands around either side of his face, “You’re so annoying.”

He grinned delightfully, “I know.”

She bent low, letting her nose lightly nudge his before pressing her lips to his.

He couldn’t deny the butterflies that erupted in his gut.

He leaned up slightly, trying to access more of her lips but she continued to peck him—some of her pecks longer than others. She was truly such a tease.

Just as he leaned in some more, she broke the kiss. Her hands cupping his face slid down to his neck, her thumbs stroking the skin along his sharp jaw..

“Toru—“

She yelped when his arm around her grabbed her thigh, deftly tugging her down so that she was no longer sitting. Instead she now lay beside him.

His hand clasped her throat before he kissed her—deep and with tongue. Just the way he liked.

He lightly bit her lower lip before breaking the kiss. His gaze was fond as he looked down at her, “You know how perfect you look on my bed?”

She couldn’t find any words—to breathless by his kisses to speak.

“I used to dream about you being here..” His piercing eyes slowly looked her up and down, making her skin rise with goosebumps wherever his gaze touched, “..never thought I’d get to see it this soon.”

He kissed her cheek, “Now I get to see you sitting pretty on it everyday,”

He kissed the corner of her lip, “I’m too lucky..”

His lips hovered over hers, “I get to come home to you.”

She placed her hand on his chest-stopping him a millisecond before he leaned in.

“Toru wait—w-we can’t.”

He made a short sound of dismay before continuing to shift himself over her. He easily angled himself between her legs, “Why not?” he whined once-more.

She cupped his jaw just as he leaned in again, “Cuz you stink, fool.” 

He chuckled as she went on, “Go shower.”

“Liarrrr.” His nose nudged hers playfully, “You’re just tryna get rid of me.”

She reddened, “Nooo.”

He shook his head wildly, letting strands of wet hair touch her face.

She immediately faced elsewhere, “Ew! Get your sweaty hair off me-“

He laughed, his lips ghosting her cheek as he stopped shaking his head, “It’s not sweat, baby. I showered in the locker room.”

She swallowed inaudibly, her eyes widening with indecision.

Suddenly his hand found her throat, his long fingers gently probing her to face him.

She cupped his hand over her throat, “Toru, we have homework..” she whined hesitantly.

He pressed his forehead to hers, “Sh, sh, sh. No more excuses..” he murmured before unbuttoning her top one by one.

“nngh-ngh!-unnn—“ She gripped the sheets tight as he pounded into her. Her macbook and papers scattered along the ground.

His fingers dug into her hips as he panted. She looked so fucking good, he couldn’t stop.

Her back was to him, his large hands easily fitting into the curves of her waist as he moved her hips as fast as he liked. She could barely moan properly due to his pace.

Her hair swayed sexily with each deep thrust of his cock. Her body jolted when the tip of his cock reached somewhere deliciously deep.

“toru…!” she rasped, “oh god—oh godohgodohgod—nnnh!”

She bent over, her hands resting on his knees as her cunt twitched around him.

He groaned, “fuckkk, ara, ara, ara..”

He sat up straight from his position against the headboard. He cupped her tits-squeezing them heartily-as he pushed her small back against his chest. He shoved his cock deeper into her, making her yelp.

“toru please!” she cried as her cunt tightened drastically, “please-t’much, toomuch.”

He didn’t stop fucking her through her high. His bright eyes peered down at her over her shoulder, kneading her tits greedily with one hand and keeping his palm against her stomach with the other.

“cum, ara. cum.” he huskily urged her, his eyes only growing brighter with each squeeze of her cunt, “cum on me jus like that.”

He groaned when her body listened to him. He’d been fantasizing about fucking her like this all day—the feeling of her cunt suctioning his cock like this. Fuckk, her pussy was perfect. perfect.

“a-araa..” he groaned into her ear as his cock throbbed. He knew she felt it too when a whimper left her lips. Her legs continued to shake as he burst inside her—his cum so warm she could feel it through the condom.

Her head was spinning as he squeezed her tits hard. She knew there’d be marks left behind. She closed her eyes, breathing heavily as she ran a hand over forehead to move her hair out of her face.

His haggard breaths trailed down her skin as he began to massage her breasts—more kindly.

She kept her eyes closed as his lips ghosted her neck, “Again.”

His fingers found her clit and she instinctively squeezed her legs together. His fingers didn’t budge, neither did his stiff cock within her.

“Let’s do it again,” he murmured-almost drunkenly as strangled gasps left her when he rubbed her clit, “again and again and again.”

“You don’t understand, this one has 12 new weapons-“

“You said that about 30 times.” Nanami muttered.

Haibara was too distracted by Toji and Geto heading towards the kitchen.

“Yo! Where you guys goin? Let’s go to the spot.”

Toji opened the french door refrigerator, “I’m tryna eat something first.”

“C’monnn, we can eat later-“

Nanami ruffled Haibara’s hair, “Aren’t you a little too excited for a game?”

Haibara immediately faced him, “It’s not just a game!”

“Can you tell he gets no bitches,” Toji closed the fridge when he spotted nothing but fresh ingredients, “Where’s the chef here?”

Haibara pouted, “Hey.”

“Me and you both, Haibara,” Geto slid off the stool beside the island counter, “I’ll get Marin.”

Toji raised a brow, “Marin?”

“The maid,” Geto answered, “She’s cooked for you a thousand times and you still don’t know her name.”

Toji scratched the back of his neck, “Oops.”

Geto disappeared down a hallway just as Haibara announced, “Alright, you all get ten minutes to do your shit before you're required to show up to the game room, okay? Be fast. I don’t wanna start without everyone.”

“Okay, dweeb.” Toji muttered.

“Shut up, don’t act like you're not hype.” Haibara replied lightheartedly.

Toji grinned, “True.”

“Where’s Gojo?” Nanami asked.

“Dunno, but Toji can let him know he has to get to his ass to the game room, okay? Let’s goooo!” Haibara’s voice faded out as he bolted from the kitchen in the direction of the game room.

Nanami shook his head.

Suddenly her airpod disappeared from her ear. She glanced over and screeched.

“Oh my god!! What the fuck, Satoru!” Ara yelled while scurrying out of the chair, hand over her heart. “Scared the shit outta me.” 

He smiled-a bit too brightly, “Heh, I wanted to surprise you.”

She glanced over at the clock before frowning, “Aren’t you supposed to be at practice?”

He set the airpod down on her desk, “We got out early today.”

She stared as he stepped towards her. He cupped the sides of her face, keeping her eyes on him.

“Aren’t you happy to see me?”

She lightly grasped his forearms, tilting her head back when he leaned over her.

“No..” she smiled slightly when his lips grazed hers, “Never.”

He pouted, “Meanie.”

She didn’t have to go on her tiptoes to press a light peck to his lips. He eagerly returned it, his arms sliding around her waist to tug her against him.

He tilted his head, prying her lips open with his own before going still. He then kissed the corner of her lip, her jaw, her neck..

“Tell me the truth, kitten.”

She blushed, quickly closing her expectant mouth. She turned her face aside and pressed her forehead against his chest. His large hands rubbing her lower back as he lightly nipped at her ear.

She shivered. Her hands grasped his firm biceps as she spoke-her voice wavering, “You already know how I feel about you..”

“Do I?” he squeezed her hips, “Tell me again.”

She squealed slightly before shaking her head, voice small, “You don’t need to hear it.”

He chuckled slightly. She was always worried about making his ego too big, wasn’t she? Too late.

He kissed her forehead, “Fine. Then show me.”

Her brows furrowed only to loose all train of thought when his hand wrapped around her neck and tilted her face up.

She stared at him as he nudged her nose fondly, “Show me you're happy to see me..”

“Where the hell is he..” Geto muttered.

They’d been waiting in the game room for a good five minutes before Haibara got restless—constantly asking him about Gojo's whereabouts as if he knew. Gojo wasn’t answering his texts either, just like the rest of them.

He sighed while walking up the steps, hands buried in his pockets. He made it Gojo’s bedroom, pushing open the door with his shoulder.

“unngh—nngh! ohh, toru..”

“Yo-“ he immediately cut himself off when he processed what he heard.

His eyes instinctively landed on the bed and froze when he got a split second glimpse of Gojo propped over someone. Even with the blanket over them it wasn’t hard to tell that whoever it was had their legs around his waist. A short feminine yelp came from under sheets and the blanket suddenly got yanked higher, only revealing the top of her lengthy hair.

Geto immediately turned around, hastily running a hand over his face in shock. Ara. He’d completely forgotten she lived with him now.

Even through his breathlessness, he could still hear the smirk in Gojo's voice, “Suguru!! hi~”

Geto’s face burned, “Dammit, I didn't know y—“ he quickly cut himself off when he swore he heard not-so-subtle sounds of the bed moving and a whispery ‘stop’.

Geto raised his hands, “Fuck, I’m out.”

Just as he bolted towards the door, Gojo called out, “Suguru, wait!” The little shit was laughing.

He continued heading out the door, face still hot.

“Sorry!” Gojo called out, his voice laced with humor. “You guys can start without me!”

Just as Geto closed the door he faintly overheard Ara’s voice, “You didn’t lock the fucking door?!”

Ara hesitated before entering the semi-dark room. Her eyes followed the atmospheric lights dancing along the high ceilings and walls while recalling the first time Gojo showed her this room—ironically, the last time she’d been in there.

The huge flat screen TV on the center wall was the main source of light. It would’ve resembled a movie theater if it weren’t for the gunshots blasting infinitely from the speakers in the walls. She didn’t know how they managed to sound proof this room.

“Haibara what are you doing?” Nanami snapped.

“I’m reloading! Wait, wa—“

Suddenly the sound of a bomb rang from the speakers.

“What the fuck!” Toji hollered.

Gojo’s maniacal laughter filled the room, “Oops~”

“You said you had no bombs left!” Haibara protested.

She watched Suguru smack the back of Gojo’s head as he continued to laugh.

Gojo suddenly raised his hands, one hand clutching the video game controller as he shouted in his typical whimsical demeanor. It wasn't hard to tell that he was-unapologetically-explaining himself from his body language but his words were suddenly too far to make out. too distant to decipher.

Her eyes had latched onto his hands and her mind had gone elsewhere…

She couldn’t believe those hands were pinning her wrists to the sheets moments ago. or that sly voice of his was in her ear—all breathy, whiny and worshipping.

She didn’t even need to close her eyes to remember…

...

"ara—araa," he whined over the repeated smacking sound of his cock pummeling into her. her inner thighs growing slicker with each thrust.

...

"T-toru!" she cried out. she couldn’t take it anymore. He'd grown bigger inside of her and was stretching her to her limit. She’d lost her ability to think eons ago.

He didn’t stop. He spoke haggardly, between fucks, "your cunny knows what it wants right—how to milk Toru dry."

...

His cock throbbed within her.

"gripping me so tight," He groaned out—ever so desperately, "you wanna get knocked up so bad."

...

“mmmm,” He groaned from above her.

She felt his eyes on her skin—his hands on the back of her thighs—his hot cum on her stomach.

He spread her knees further apart, letting her watch as he rubbed his length through her folds—over her clit.

“toruuuuu—“ she pleaded, weakly.

He watched her body arch, trying to give her overstimulated pussy some space but he refused-merely lowering himself against her to keep his cock glued to her clit. She moaned when the pace of his grinding picked up.

He pressed his forehead to hers, his eyes never leaving her face, “y’know how beautiful you are, ara? sodamnperfect, i can’t take it.” he was breathless.

Her hands found his chest, trying to push at him, “stop toru—please—“ she whined. He came twice already, it should be enough.. should be enough..

“Stop telling me to stop kitten—“ he rammed his length into her, thrusting without a second thought, “-you know i can’t.”

...

“Ara!”

She blinked, suddenly back in the game room. She glanced over to see Haibara beside her.

He smiled, “When did you get here?” He was about to greet her with a side hug until he heard-

“Ara?” another-all too familiar-voice piped up. Haibara stepped out of the way to let her see Gojo. His face was upside down as he looked at her, his head against the couch’s backrest.

“Toru.” she instinctively responded before walking towards him.

“Toru.” Toji mocked under his breath.

Gojo immediately straightened in his seat as she approached, his eyes bright and curious. When she stood close enough he tugged her onto his lap.

“You were lookin’ for me?” he asked her, a note of verve in his voice.

Her eyes met Geto-who was seated right beside him-and immediately flushed. Geto glanced away, seemingly red himself.

“Yeah..” she answered Gojo hesitantly. She placed a hand on his shoulder to adjust herself on his lap more comfortably before facing him, “Why’s the game paused?”

“Cuz Haibara will get his panties inna twist if we play without him.” Toji answered.

“He went to the bathroom.” Geto supplied.

“Ara~” Gojo suddenly whined, tugging her chin to make her face him, “What happened?”

He deftly searched her face before smiling in a way that was endearing yet smug. He murmured, “You came to me.”

“Yeah..” he playfully pinched her cheeks as she spoke on, “I jus wanna know how late you’re gonna stay up.”

“Oh?” he raised a brow, deliberating, “Why? You want me to join you in bed?”

She flushed, “No I was just checking cuz you have a midterm first period tomorrow..”

His eyes sparkled, “You’re worried? How cute~”

Suddenly her face and throat was getting peppered with kisses. She laughed, pushing at his chest to get him off. He didn’t budge, continuing persistently.

She finally managed to push him back a little, “Stop you idiot,” she breathed out through giggles.

He was still grinning, “You’re worried about me~”

She shoved his shoulder, “I’m leaving.”

He immediately grabbed her hips and planted her back down, “Nope, you're gonna stay here.”

She tried to pry his hands off her as he continued, “C’monnn, watch me play.”

She glared, “That’s boring.”

“Then you play.”

“I’m not a kid.”

She faintly heard Toji say, “Wowww.”

Gojo smirked, “You never played video games before, have you?”

“Nope.”

“Yep, you’re not goin’ anywhere.”

He glanced down at her and grinned.

She sat in between him and Suguru, his controller in her hands. She was doing surprisingly well for a beginner, he wasn’t sure if she was truly picking it up that fast or if it was pure luck. Maybe a mix of both.

She was definitely more engaged than she let on, her bottom lip stuck between her teeth and steady gaze on the screen gave her away.

Suguru leaned over to give her a pointer and she nodded before opening her inventory as he instructed.

Suddenly the sound of a bomb going off blasted through the speakers.

“Yo, what thE FUCK! WHO THREW A BOMB???” Toji bellowed. Poor guy was in the lead. was.

She yelled back, “It was an ACCIDENT!”

“How DO YOU ACCIDENTALLY THROW A BOMB?!”

Gojo opened his mouth only to get interrupted-

“LIKE THIS!”

His laughter was masked by the sound of another bomb exploding through the speakers.

He skipped several steps as he bolted upstairs. He boisterously shouldered open his bedroom doors, tossing his duffel bag to the floor before catapulting straight to the bed—

He stopped a second before lift-off, staring at the neatly made bed.

Where is she?

He didn’t move, merely turning his head to aptly scan the room. Her backpack was nowhere to be seen. Her home slippers were left in place. Her daily afterschool coffee left untouched on the nightstand.

She didn’t come home? Marin would’ve said something.

He took a step towards the nightstand only to note a lighter brown line of foam within the rim of the clear mug residing a slight bit higher than the coffee itself. She did come home.

He didn’t waste a second slipping a hand into his pocket and retrieving his phone. He tapped the screen twice before a location showed up.

His brows furrowed, “555 Palm Avenue..” he murmured to himself before his eyes widened.

Shoko’s house.

He tilted his head, faint confusion passing over his features before he raised the phone to his ear.

She picked up on the second ring.

“Hi loser.” Shoko.

He tilted his head, “Ieiriiiii, why’d you steal her?”

“What the hell did you do to her phone that it won’t turn off location sharing with you?” she huffed, “I wanted you to have a panic attack.”

“Heheh. Nice try,” his smile flipped into a pout, “Now give her back.”

“Never.”

He slipped his car keys out his pocket before tossing them into the air and catching it, “I’m coming.”

“NO! This is a pre-game for the girls only.”

“Eh? I’m one of the girls too,” he said before adding, “the fuckk.” -in a feminine voice.

“Shut the hell up. And don’t do that again.”

He was cracking up as she continued, “She’s getting ready here.”

“I wanna seeeee.”

“Nope.”

“Can I talk to her then?”

“Nope.”

He whined, “C’monn, don’t do this to me, Ieiri~”

When she remained silent he continued, “pleasepleaseplease-“

“You’re like a puppy with separation anxiety. How is she not sick of you?”

He grinned, “She loves me.”

“She said that?”

He blinked before his brows furrowed slightly, “Not yet.”

“Then don’t assume.”

He knew she only meant that in jest but suddenly he was thinking about it.

He heard the sound of footsteps over the phone, a door opening before the sound of a lot feminine voices. He heard Shoko say something and then-

“Hi baby,” My sweet Ara. She sounded worried, “I’m so sorry, I wanted to call you when she picked me up but she wanted to prank you.”

He shook his head, smiling, “s’okay, kitten. i jus miss your pretty face.”

He heard her exhale softly, “You’ll see me tonight, all dressed up.”

He groaned, “ughh, i don’t wanna waittttt.”

He could hear the smile in her voice, “stop whining you child.”

He grinned, “let me see you at shoko’s then.”

He heard shoko yell, “NO!” in the background.

“did you hear that?” Ara asked with a light laugh.

“yes. tell her i said she sucks bootycheeks.”

Shoko yelled once more, “i know!”

Ara spoke, “i’ll see you at brit’s okay?”

He pouted, “fineeee.”

“bye baby.”

He smiled slightly, he couldn’t help but feel warm whenever she said that. “see you, kitten.”

Shoko sat her down in front of a vanity.

“Alright, now that hair is done, we can do makeup.”

Ara stared as Shoko opened all the drawers of the extravagant vanity before her, revealing a countless amount of high-end makeup. Most of it barely touched.

“Shoko!!” a girl yelled from downstairs.

“What!” Shoko yelled back only for silence to follow.

She rolled her eyes as she mumbled to herself, “What does Arden want now,” she gestured toward the makeup, “Knock yourself out, I’ll be back.”

“Wait—“

Shoko turned around, eyes alert.

Ara hesitated before admitting, “I don’t know how to do my makeup.”

Her eyes widened, “Forreal?” She then crossed her arms, “Actually I can’t even blame you, I only started doing my own makeup like a year ago.”

“Would your Mom do it for you?” she asked, considering the fact that the vanity before them was hers.

“Nah, I had a makeup artist.” Shoko appeared to be in thought before she said, “Hold on.”

She walked out of the room and yelled, “Anybody here good at makeup??!”

A ton of feminine voices arose, answering her. Ara wasn’t the least bit surprised since half of their school’s female population was here.

She heard Shoko yell something before peeking her head back in the room, “Alright, we got help for makeup. Do you want anything to drink?”

Ara hesitated. She’d told herself that she wouldn’t drink after the last party but—

“SHOKO!!”

“IM COMING IDIOT!” Shoko yelled back before saying, “I’ll be back.”

She left within a blink of an eye, only for someone else to enter the room a second later. Karina.

Ara stared as Karina walked closer, looking insanely perfect as usual. She also had a bottle of Pink Whitney in her hand.

She set the bottle down on the vanity, “You need help with your makeup?”

a/n: continued in chapter 5 [ part 2 ] >:) & here's a link to the previous chapter if anyone needs it

[upon-a-starry-night]

Number Neighbors Pt. 14

Natasha Romanoff x Fem! Reader

Natasha Masterlist Series Masterlist

Word Count: 1k

Summary:  When you catch sight of the newest trend going around you know you’re all but bound to at least try it, it was harmless anyway. What could possibly stem from something so little?

----

(This chapter takes place a little before last chapter of Nat’s pov)

The taste of the dessert was still simmering on your tongue as you walked home from your date. The thought that Nat had maybe seen you hadn’t left your brain since you got that note. The one you were still desperately clutching in your hand, rereading it over and over again and imagining Nat writing it. Her handwriting fits her personality so much. You wondered if she would be open to the idea of becoming pen pals. 

The second you’d read the note you’d scrambled out of your seat to catch the waiter and ask if she was still there but he only shook his head and gave you a pitying smile.

“Can you at least tell me what she looked like?” You didn’t know if you were breaking some unspoken rule of whatever game you were playing with Nat but you had to know. More than anything you had to know.

The waiter picked up a few glasses and plates and put them on his tray before turning to you

“I couldn’t see much, she was wearing a hoodie and sunglasses. You’d think she was a celebrity or something. Is she… your stalker?” 

Before he could get the wrong idea you quickly shook your head no at his accusation

“She’s… a friend?” you don’t know why it sounded so much like a question, both of you had agreed you were beyond strangers now but… what you felt towards Nat didn’t always feel like friendship. It felt like those moments when time stood still;

Like when you feel a cool breeze on the hottest day of the summer,

Or when you snuggle under warm blankets in the winter,

Or settling down somewhere with a cup of something warm and a good book.

She felt like all the little moments you loved about life combined into a person.

Your mother would probably call you naive for feeling so strongly about someone you’d never even met but she’d technically already approved of Nat anyway.

“Is there nothing you can remember about her?” you tried to keep up with the guy as he walked to pick up after another table

You felt a few expensive-looking people look your way but you didn’t pay them any mind.

The waiter huffed and stopped in his tracks, turning to you with the patience only a person who works in customer service could have.

“Look- a bit of her hair was sticking out from under her hoodie, it seemed- brownish? Maybe more of an auburn? I don’t really know I wasn’t paying attention. But if you really need to know so badly we have a tech guy coming up in a few weeks, I could have him send you the alley surveillance footage?” You could tell this guy was over you asking a million questions so you nodded your head enthusiastically. Glad to have at least that much. As you scribbled down your email you thought of your number neighbor with brownish-auburn hair. Somehow, you felt like you already knew her hair would be darker.

~

As you were rounding the corner onto your block your phone pinged with a notification and you were surprised to see Nat’s contact on your screen.

‘It’s about time’ you thought to yourself as you realized this was the first time Nat had texted you first, completely unprompted.

You swiped open the message with a satisfied smile on your face.

         Nat🔪:

Nat🔪:

Enjoy your dinner?

Y/n🍦:

It was okay.

The dessert was the best part.

Nat🔪:

Oh yeah?

Y/n🍦:

Definitely.

Putting your phone away, you unlocked the door to your apartment, entered the flat, and locked the door again before making a B-line for your fridge. You snatched an old grocery list off and replaced it with the napkin. It settled nicely under your baguette-shaped magnet.

You started at the note for a few minutes, unsure how to go about addressing what had transpired.

If you even should address it.

What if it made her run again? You wouldn’t be able to handle her silence like last time. You’d grown too attached. 

Shaking your head you decide to just go for it, rip the band-aid right off. If she disappeared again then it was her loss.

But if she was confident enough to text you first this time then maybe things would be different?

         Nat🔪:

Y/n🍦:

You were there

The reply took a few seconds and you tried your best to channel your inner monk for some patience

Nat🔪:

I stopped by

Y/n🍦:

You were there.

Again the three little typing bubbles taunted you and you wanted to pull them out of your phone and throw them in a blender but you knew it just meant she was second-guessing every answer she could give you. You’d gotten used to her texting habits.

Nat🔪:

…

I was.

Y/n🍦:

Did you… see me?

Nat🔪:

No.

You don’t know why you breathe out a sigh of relief. Part of you thinks it’s because you want your first meeting to be mutual. To see each other for the first time at the same time. So you can know what she thinks of you by just the look in her eyes.

At least if she had seen you and she was lying you could know that she thought you were pretty enough to continue texting.

Nat🔪:

I never even stepped foot in the restaurant

That much you knew from the waiter, but it still felt good that she was telling you. Like she was validating your unspecified want of seeing each other for the first time together. It always felt like she just knew things about you without you ever telling her. Maybe she was a long-distance mind reader. If that were the case she should really get hired by The Avengers.

The thought makes you huff out a light laugh and reminds you of when the two of you first started talking. It felt like so long ago now. You’d come a long way since then.

Y/n🍦:

Thank you.

It was delicious

It made my night honestly

Nat🔪:

Anytime, Y/n.

I’m glad.

You didn’t know what Nat was doing on her side of the city but you wondered if maybe she was grinning at her screen like a fool the same way you were.

You changed the topic of your conversation with Nat as you began getting ready for bed and not once did it occur to you that you hadn’t thought of your actual date the entire night.

Pt 15

A/n: Y/n learns a little about what Nat looks like!!

I meant it when I said slow burn guys but don't worry this story won't be too long!!~ Starry

---Taglist--

@marvelwomen-simp @cd-4848 @wandanatlov3r @rebeltombraider @ctrlamira @fxckmiup @aliherreraaa @natsxwife @la-douler-ne-finite-jamais @romanoffsgal @moistblobfish @natashaswife4125 @elenimoris @how-to-disappearrr @screechcat @toouncreativeforausername @ordelixx @autorasexy @blacklightsposts

[bvidzsoo]

Love Me Like A Rockstar (2)

ー☆ Chapter 2: RunRunRun

Author: bvidzsoo

Pairing: Song Mingi x female reader

ー☆ Warning: cussing really ー☆ Word count: 6.6k ー☆ Genre: university!au, enemies to lovers!au, rockstar!au ー☆ Rating: sfw ー☆ Summary: Love. You wanted none of it. You had already been heartbroken very badly once, you didn't wish to go through that ever again. But the Universe works in intricate ways and, somehow, you found yourself webbed up in a local rockstar's life, Song Mingi. He was everything you expected him to be, yet nothing like you imagined him he would be. What happens when you find mutual understanding and have heartful conversations? Will he be able to break down your walls? Will you be able to chase away his darkness?

A/N: Hihi, second chapter is out!! I hope you all enjoy it and leave feedback, I really really appreciate that!! Taglist is still open for those interested. Do not forget to check out the playlist and listen to the song before or while reading (RunRunRun)!! Thank you. Now, enjoy!

Taglist: @orshii @lovely-red2 @juicy-red @scarfac3 @sunaswifes-blog

⟨Series M.list ↭ Previous Chapter⟩

♫Playlist♫

『I always thought it would be easy (easy)

To get you out my mind (mind)』

            Certainly my sleep could’ve been more peaceful, but after the shit I pulled—drew Mingi’s eyes, for fuck’s sake—I knew I was in for a long night of overthinking and overanalyzing everything. Just for a second I allowed myself to place aside all judgement and foulness I felt towards the smug prick and, yes, admitted, that perhaps he wasn’t too bad to look at. Not a little bit, not even at all. However, this thought unsettled me and quickly made me remember how my blood boiled and nerves rose caused by his stuck-up attitude and irritating smirk. He was an asshole full of himself, and there was no way in hell I would allow his mild handsomeness overshadow his good for nothing personality. Guys like him were only by your side for a short while, while the relationship would feel new and exciting, and after that they dip like you have never even existed on the surface of Earth. That thought alone made me groan last night and punch a pillow before I finally willed my mind to calm down and erase the knowledge of his existence—or of the very obvious drawing of his eyes in my sketchbook, which I started considering my journal at some point.

If the lack of sleep wasn’t enough to put me in a sour mood, then the chilly air of the morning certainly made me grit my teeth as I stormed back inside the house to grab my beige and maroon plaid flannel shirt before running off to catch the bus to university. Currently, Seulgi and I were sat in the cafeteria enjoying our lunches—well, she was, my appetite never found me today—as I chewed the last bits of my quite simple sandwich I have packed in a haste this morning, Seulgi’s mouth, despite being full, was constantly moving and spouting information after information. I was only half-heartedly listening to her at this point—I swear to God, Wooyoung has been the center of our conversation for the past half an hour—as I held my pencil between my fingers and mindlessly doodled in my sketchbook. I wasn’t drawing anything particular, just random shapes which my brain felt necessary to draw as Seulgi suddenly hiccupped, face turning red. I cast her a glance as she quickly opened her bottle of water and chugged down at least half of its contents.

“Are you good?” I asked amused as she fanned her face.

“I think I almost just died.” Her answer made me snort as I grabbed the apple off my tray and bit into it, almost instantly regretting it as I was never a fan of apples.

“No wonder, you keep talking with your mouth full.” I muttered and Seulgi rolled her eyes as she went back to eating her lunch, smiling to herself like an idiot. I rolled my eyes but basked in the silence, finally able to have a little bit of peace of mind. I loved Seulgi and her random rambles, but not when they were about Wooyoung. And lately he seemed to be the only thing she talked about.

“Did you get to rest last night?” She asked as she gulped down her soup, eyebrows furrowed as she took in my appearance, seemingly finally aware that I looked tired. I shook my head with a sigh and turned the page of my sketchbook as I have filled the other one with shapes. Seulgi glanced down at the clean page and grimaced, leaning in closer towards me, “Just how stressed are you right now? That’ll be your third page in the past fifteen minutes.”

“I’m not really stressed,” I corrected her, taking another bite of the apple and regretting it again, “I’m just bored and probably restless.”

“Why?” Seulgi inquired and I shrugged, pressing the pencil against the white sheet of paper and carefully starting to draw sharp and precise lines.

“Don’t know,” I muttered, eyebrows furrowing when suddenly the cafeteria was filled with noise as if a whole crowd entered it, “Mom says it’s the full moon.”

“That was like…almost two weeks ago.” Seulgi gave me a deadpanned look and I chuckled, shrugging again. I most certainly wasn’t going to tell her that I haven’t slept well last night because I drew Mingi’s eyes and then freaked out over it, and was still pretty much freaking out about it, because I didn’t know what this meant and why it happened. And I really didn’t want to find out as I mindlessly pressed a small but firm dot underneath the lines I drew on the left side of the paper.

“I don’t know then, Seulgi, you know I have periods when I can’t sleep.” Seulgi hummed at my response and then a coy smile made its way onto her lips and I raised my eyebrows, pressing her to go on and tell me what was on her mind.

“What did you think of Noir Zenith?” I didn’t want to talk about this.

“They were fine.” I answered boredly, drawing a small semi-circle underneath the sharp lines, “Nothing too impressive. I’m now convinced you only like them because of Wooyoung.”

“Stop!” Seulgi shushed me with a blush and pointed her fork at me threateningly, “I actually enjoy their music, alright?! I liked the band before I started liking Wooyoung, so stop being mean.”

“Whatever,” I stuck my tongue out at her as I added a bit of shading to the drawing, “I expected their music to be worse, that I’ll admit, however, I only vibed with Seonghwa and Wooyoung—”

“Yeah, you made that very clear, Y/N.” Seulgi cut me off with a sharp tone and it brought a sheepish smile onto my lips as I was about to take another bite of my apple just as I narrowed my eyes at the drawing, staring at it for a second longer. And then it clicked. Fuck. I quickly shut my sketchbook closed as I threw my pencil on the table, groaning loudly. I couldn’t believe it. Why was I doing this? Why was I drawing Mingi’s eyes again?

『I think I found a new addiction

It feels so right』

“What?” Seulgi asked confused as she gazed at my closed sketchbook.

“Nothing.” I muttered lowly, banging my head against the table once before taking another bite of my apple, trying to ignore the way my heart started to race. There must be something about his eyes if my brain decided to burn it into its memory and recall it at any given time my pencil touched a piece of paper as I let loose to draw mindlessly.

“You’ve been acting weird all day long, Y/N.” Seulgi raised an eyebrow and I sighed, slouching down in my seat as suddenly there was a roar of cheers. I wasn’t interested at all to know what was happening behind me; therefore I found no desire in myself to turn around and look. It was probably the football team or some noisy first year’s having a little bit too much fun in the cafeteria while they totally disregard that, perhaps, some people would like to hear their own thoughts while given a longer break from their studies. My lips pulled into a sneer and I almost turned around to find the culprits I could glower at, but Seulgi found her voice again now that she was done with her lunch, “Wooyoung complimented my outfit twice last night, Y/N, twice! I was seriously freaking out!”

“Oh, wow,” I muttered unimpressed, not having it in me to tell her that she’s told me that information three times now, “and yet you kept stressing about it.”

“I couldn’t help myself,” Seulgi pushed a strand of hair behind her ear, “I was so nervous. It was the first time he invited me to their performance—”

“Haven’t you seen them countless of times before last night?” I asked with narrowed eyes and Seulgi rolled her eyes with a tsk.

“But this was different, Y/N, you’re so impossible I don’t even know why I’m telling you all of this—”

“Yeah, me neither.” I gaped at her fakely, making Seulgi roll her eyes, “This is the third time I’m hearing everything, Seulgi.”

“Well, sorry for being excited about my crush finally showing interest in me.” Seulgi’s voice hardened as she snapped and I pouted, knowing that I have upset her. She threw me a glare as she grabbed her phone, acting uninterested as I reached over the table and softly gripped her wrist. I knew she couldn’t resist when I acted cute.

“Sorry, you know I’m cranky when I don’t sleep, don’t get mad.” I coerced her with a sweet voice and she just spared me a glance before going back to her phone. I sighed dramatically and retreated my hand, falling back into my chair and groaning as I closed my eyes briefly. My muscles were sore from sitting almost all day long, and my eyes hurt from too much light and staring at my sketchbook even when it wasn’t necessary. I opened my eyes and allowed them to roam over the cafeteria as I decided to quickly finish the little apple I have left over and took in the students around us. All groups were enjoying their free time quietly, speaking amongst themselves in a moderate tone, not loud enough to disturb anyone, yet there was one fucking table which just wouldn’t shut up, and fed up with it, I whirled around in my chair and searched for them, nose flaring in irritation. However, when my eyes landed on the culprits, my heart fell into my ass and my jaw clenched as I allowed the vicious glare to overtake my features as I sent daggers towards them. There he sat. At the table closest to the entrance, clad in a much more casual outfit compared to last night with sunglasses obscuring his view—who the fuck wears sunglasses inside—as he was surrounded by at least five girls. Mingi was leaning back in his chair, body falling against it awkwardly as his limbs were too long for it, legs spread out wide as he currently had his hands behind his head, smirking up at the blonde girl from the pub. Huh, so she goes to our university, should’ve expected that.

“Disgusting.” I sneered quietly, enticed by the view as my body wallowed in irritation, hatred and disgust, wishing for nothing more than to slam my sketchbook against Mingi’s head and scream the most creative profanities in his face. He was just asking for it with his smug face and shit eating grin, acting like he was a God, above everyone else, making girls swoon for his ass when he wasn’t even all that great.

“What’s—oh.” Seulgi cut herself off once her eyes followed my gaze and she chuckled. I could see her raise an eyebrow from the corner of my eyes as she watched me before looking back at Mingi, leaning back in her chair as she crossed her arms in front of her chest, “You never explained why you hate him so much.”

“Ugh, just look at him!” That was all Seulgi had to say to set me off, “He’s self-centered and conceited! He’s a jerk and he treats everyone else like they are less than him, and oh, my God, don’t even get me started about his stupid smirk which screams, ‘oh, look! I’m better than you ever will be, and by the way, you’re dumb as fuck!’, God, I hate the guy.”

Seulgi’s eyebrows went up to her hairline that’s how high they were raised as I turned around to look at her, having seen enough of Mingi’s stupid side profile as he smirked and laughed at every stupid thing those girls were probably saying to him, “Okay, Miss I hate his pants so much I can’t stop staring at him; that was intense, what the fuck. Poor Mingi, he didn’t even do anything to you and here you are—dragging his ass like he killed your cat or something, Y/N.”

“That would be the last straw—”

“You don’t even have a cat.” Seulgi deadpanned and I sighed exasperated, throwing an irritated smile her way. She was supposed to be on my side, not defending an asshole when she could clearly see how much distaste I had towards him.

“Whatever, I just can’t stand him, alright?” I muttered at last with a huff and Seulgi cocked an eyebrow as her phone pinged, quickly looking down at it. Her mouth instantly stretched into a huge smile and she started bouncing her legs up and down as she slapped the table once very loudly.

“I’m about to die—” She took a deep breath as she squealed quietly, looking at me like she has won the lottery or something, “Wooyoung finally asked me to hang out!”

I smiled at my best friend, happy that things were going well for her, “So, it’s a date then?”

“Not yet.” She smiled as she was texting back, biting her lower lip with a huge smile on her face, “But perhaps soon.”

“Oh, he better ask you out soon,” I muttered just as another roar of squealing disturbed my pace of mind and I have reached my limit for today, that was it, “Or I’ll make him regret being born.”

Seulgi cackled at that as I grabbed my sketchbook and pencil and showed them inside my backpack, “Y/N! That’s too much, don’t you think—Where are you going?”

“Class.” I answered curtly, throwing my flannel shirt around my exposed shoulders as I wore a dark blue off-shoulder long sleeved blouse, paired with black ripped jeans and fishnets underneath.

“We’ve got like ten more minutes until then—”

“Yeah, but if I hear Mingi’s bitches squealing again in the next three seconds I might go ahead and jump out the fucking window.” I deadpanned and Seulgi bit her lower lip as it quivered, threatening to burst out into laughter. It wasn’t funny, and so, I gave her a harmless glare.

“Oh, God, you’re impossible. I can’t believe you’re this cranky.” She said as she finally started laughing.

“This isn’t me being cranky, this is me being irritated by someone’s whole ass existence, anyways, see you!” I called as I took off before Seulgi could say anything else, I knew she’d be following me soon after as we had to walk to the other side of campus to reach the Art’s building.

『Run, baby, run

Run for your life

I'ma tear out your heart

It'll always be mine』

I steeled my expression and pushed my shoulders back as I took off towards the exit, gripping the straps of my backpack tightly. The closer I got to it—which meant I was also getting closer and closer to the table Mingi sat at—the louder those girls voices got. Anyone close enough could hear what they were screaming about—okay, they weren’t screaming, but they were loud—and it made me bite my lower lip as I started tapping my finger against the strap of the backpack, trying to calm my nerves. But Mingi was just sitting there, basking in the attention, grinning and laughing loudly at the very shitty and poor attempts of flirting of the girls, and I really didn’t mean to, but my eyes landed on them and my jaw fell a little bit open when I noticed him signing some stupid looking banner with his face plastered all over it as a black-haired girl was gushing about his looks and deep voice. Where the hell were we? Highschool?! I knew Seulgi was praying right now to all the existing Gods and asking them to let me pass by their table without no disturbances, but that just wasn’t possible as my cheeks flushed in disgust and anger, shooting a sharp glare at the side of Mingi’s face.

“Even your autograph is pretty.” One of the girl’s sighed dreamily, “Can you get any more perfect?”

“Oh, angel, you haven’t even seen everything and you’re already head over heels for me?” Mingi’s voice dropped a few octaves as he blinked up at the girl seductively and I might have as well thrown up in my mouth. I scoffed as I passed behind him, stomping my feet perhaps a little bit too hard as I noticed two girls glance my way.

“Assuming things once again, aren’t you?” My tone was snappy and ice cold as I threw in the comment in passing. I didn’t intend on stopping, but Mingi’s instant reply made me halt.

“Insulting others once again, aren’t you?” I huffed quietly as I bit my lower lip, whirling around. For a second I was taken aback by the unimpressed looks thrown my way by the girls, but I didn’t let it show on my face.

“Only those worthy of getting put in their places, Mingi.” I allowed a cheeky smile slip onto my lips as I stared him down, his eyebrows slightly furrowing. I was surprised to see the dark eyeshadow give more depth at the outer corner of his eyes, the makeup being absent last night. His lips were shiny and you could see the blemishes clearly on his jawline now, his black hair still covering his forehead messily. His grey jumper was oversized and reached mid-thigh over his denim jeans; matching jacket draped around his chair.

“Isn’t it a delight seeing you today as well, Y/N.” Mingi’s tone was mocking as he raised one eyebrow, making me roll my eyes, “Good morning.”

“My morning was good until I heard your puppets and you giggling as if we were in highschool—and it’s noon, Mingi, thought you were smart enough to know lunch time was during noon.”

“What’s your problem?” The blonde snapped and placed a possessive hand on Mingi’s shoulder, which made him cast her a side glance. His lips twitched, and for a second—just a little second—I was able to see the irritation in his eyes at the unwanted touch; it almost made me furrow my eyebrows and throw a questioning glance at Mingi, but I stopped myself. I was certainly misreading his expressions. He loved this, the attention and praises. He was pathetic.

“You and the dude you’re worshiping as if he were a Greek God—” I sighed dramatically, leaning down a little as I made eye contact with Mingi, “Get over yourself.”

It made him chuckle and his nose scrunched up, eyes slightly becoming smaller, but there was no humor in the sound he made, “At least they don’t show up to a performance without knowing the artists and start shitting on them unwarranted, insulting them as if they were superior to them. I say you’ve got something to learn from these girls, Y/N.”

I scoffed and crossed my arms in front of my chest, “Yeah, like what? How to pucker my lips and bat my eyelashes at you to gain your attention? Or throw in cringey flirting and nonconsensual touches?” 

The girls seemed shocked as I threw them all a glare before my gaze landed on the embarrassing banner as I felt Mingi’s heated gaze on my face. He didn’t say anything as his jaw clenched, palms balling up into fists. My eyes fell back on him and our gazes locked, both of us annoyed at this point, as we stared each other down, glares molding into one sharp look as we both refused to look away first. If he thought I was going to back down, he was wrong. His sharp eyes were narrow as a fierce look glazed over them, and for a split second, my eyes fell on the mole underneath his right eye. The drawing I was doodling not even half an hour ago flashed in my mind and I clicked my tongue, suddenly irritated with myself and with Mingi for getting to me so easily.

『Oh, there she go

Losing my head』

“Your silence says everything I needed to know—”

“Don’t get too cocky, smarty pants, silence speaks louder at times and you’re down right embarrassing yourself right now.” My jaw hung open at Mingi’s next words, which were harsh and hissed out as his raspy voice reached my ears, and I sneered at him.

“The only embarrassing one here,” I looked around, “are your puppets, bro. And that fucking shit ass banner.”

Before anyone could say anything I whirled around and stormed off, aware that Seulgi had seen the exchange from afar and was up on her feet, basically scurrying around to gather her things and come to the rescue of Mingi. I just knew she’d have his back and I really didn’t have the energy to sit around and listen to her chastise me in front of him and his baboons. However, I did hear the girls throwing insults after me, Mingi remaining an awful lot silent. It’s not like he could’ve said anything. And I knew he wished to say them to my face, to see the rise he got out of me. I scoffed as I stormed out the building, wanting to let out a frustrated cry in the meantime.

『Please don't waste any time

The sirens are turning red

I found a whole another vice』

            It had gotten dark outside by the time Seulgi and I headed to our curricular art class, fog slowly settling upon our little town as the lampposts illuminated the dark streets, casting an aery yet comforting feeling. I would have to walk home later tonight, but I found the thought relaxing and much needed after the tumultuous day I have had. I couldn’t stand still all day after the encounter with Mingi and his baboons, I couldn’t help but mull over his words over and over again, so much so, that I got called out in one of the classes by the professor. It was embarrassing, but what was even more embarrassing was that one of the girl’s from the table shared three classes with me and kept sending me unwanted glares, pissing me off to no end. If Seulgi wouldn’t have been by my side the whole day, I probably would’ve confronted the girl and cussed her out, ruining my image more in her eyes, if that was even possible.

I was slouched forward, chin resting on my palm and elbow pressing into my thigh as I listened to Seulgi ramble on about how her hangout with Wooyoung went. Her cheeks had a constant flush on them and I grinned as she sucked in a deep breath as she desperately needed it after talking for a few good minutes without stopping.

“And he bought me coffee too even though I never asked,” She bit her lip, trying to contain herself, “He was waiting for me with it in his hands.”

“That’s sweet of him.” I mumbled and looked behind Seulgi, looking out towards the class. Today not many could make, there was a total of five students sitting around the room, working diligently on their sketches. Today’s theme was the human body, a shape or an outline of your choice. It could be a face, a body, or a shadow like figure. Everyone had free reign of choosing the style as long as it was a human shape.

“I know, and his hands were freezing cold,” Seulgi gushed, “So, I gave him my gloves.”

“The Hello Kitty ones?” I asked with a quiet chuckle, turning the pencil over in my hands. I was itching to get started on our assignment, but Seulgi was on her rant once again and I didn’t want to interrupt her again. I have felt bad all day long for upsetting her in the cafeteria; I shouldn’t ruin her mood just because I’m cranky myself.

“Yes!” Seulgi laughed while covering her mouth, “And he looked so cute wearing them, Y/N! We couldn’t stop giggling about it. Pink might be his color.”

“You should’ve dared him to wear something pink at their next performance.” I added with a chuckle, making Seulgi giggle as her cheeks flushed even a darker shade of red. If she kept up with this, her whole face would turn red and she’d look like a tomato.

“I don’t think that would fit the whole rocker concept they have going on.” She muttered with a chuckle and I just shrugged, glancing at my bare paper. I hoped Seulgi would get the hint that I really wanted to start drawing now, but she opened her mouth again.

“He suggested we take a selfie—” Seulgi let out a dreamy sigh, “I don’t think I have enough self-control to not set it as my lock screen.”

“Wouldn’t that be too fast?” I wondered, raising an eyebrow at her. Seulgi nodded, looking slightly defeated.

“It would, I just hope the day will come when I’ll be able to do so.” Her voice got quieter as she looked down at the ground and I didn’t like the sudden drop of confidence. So, I grabbed her shoulder and gave it a squeeze, smiling at her encouragingly.

“It will come, stop doubting everything and just go with the flow.” I offered her a big smile, “I know Wooyoung is a generally nice guy, but his kindness feels different with you. It’s sweet.”

“Stop.” Seulgi hushed me, lightly slapping my arm, “You’re feeding into my delusions, I don’t want to get hurt if things really don’t end well.”

“Have some faith in him, yeah?” I slapped my hands together as I straightened in my seat, glancing at Seulgi’s usual spot, “Shouldn’t you start drawing, though? We’ve got an hour only today.”

“Shit!” Seulgi exclaimed loudly as if she just remembered where we were and what we were doing, “I totally forgot what I’m supposed to be doing right now, this is embarrassing.”

“Off you go!” I shooed her off with a laugh and Seulgi scrambled to her place, face red as she quickly tied her long hair in a low ponytail, eyebrows furrowing as she opened her sketchbook. Despite Wooyoung being the only thing on her mind, I knew she wouldn’t be drawing him. Seulgi was spontaneous and very creative. She found it easy to draw whatever was on her mind, whether it was human shaped, abstract, or a landscape. She had a natural talent when it came to human figures and she absolutely loved drawing anyone whom she had in mind. Which was the opposite of me. I couldn’t draw just anyone. It took me lots of hours of studying and tracing ones features with imaginary lines, mapping out their faces and bodies in my mind carefully before putting them on paper. I needed a muse when it came to drawing humans, and before dating Yunho, I never even had one. Before dating Yunho, I could barely draw an eye. During our relationship I learned many things about myself, and one of them was that I needed to hyper fixate on something—or someone—if I wanted to place them on a paper. It wasn’t obsession, I wouldn’t call it that, it simply was something I found beautiful and inspiring enough to put on paper. I usually did it mindlessly too, used to always drawing Yunho when it came to this subject, so I didn’t bat an eyelash as I relaxed my muscles and allowed my mind to rest as my hand took over, bravely creating lines on the blank paper.

『I always thought it would be easy (easy)

To get you out my mind (mind)』

However, to my utter shock, it didn’t take long for me to realize that the man in my drawing, even by its simple outlines, wasn’t Yunho. It looked nothing like him. My quiet thoughts started to get louder and louder the longer I allowed my hand to trace new lines, go over the older ones and bolden them. Shadows casted over the sharp eyes as I traced the outline of their tall nose, eyebrows scrunching when it seemed like the man was glaring back at me. I couldn’t help but glare back, repulsed by the nagging name ringing through my mind the second I placed the mole underneath his right eye. Mingi. Song Mingi. I didn’t want to admit it. This wasn’t him. The man in my drawing wasn’t Song Mingi. It looked nothing like him. It was pure coincidence that his nose and eyes and moles were in the same spot as Mingi’s. My hand faltered and grip tightened around the pencil once I got to draw the lips, wondering whether I wanted to finish this sketch today—or any other day at all. Deep down I knew I didn’t, but I also hated leaving my works unfinished and there was something deep inside me telling me to suck it up, to stop being childish. It was just a damn drawing. It meant nothing. It really didn’t. Especially since I couldn’t stand him. His annoying stupid smirk. My jaw clenched when Mingi’s smug face stared back at me, almost as if my brain took a picture of his face during lunch break and decided to taunt me by recalling every single detail as I worked diligently.

『I think I found a new addiction

It feels so right』

I have long finished the drawing, giving up to finishing it thoroughly as I felt my muscles spasm just at the thought of perfecting Mingi’s face in my own sketchbook. Anyone could see this. Hell, the other students in this class could ask me to show them my drawing for some inspiration and then I’d be fucked. There’s no way others didn’t know about Mingi and his band. Perhaps I had been the only one living under a rock this whole time, oblivious to the music department and their endeavors at our university. And if word got out that I started drawing Song Mingi, I’d rather die than face him ever again. That simply just wasn’t possible. I refused to even entertain such thought. I’d rather draw my ex of five years and have others think I still wasn’t over him—I seriously am—and bash me for living in the past than start talking about my—inexistent—crush on Song Mingi. The shuffling of papers and sudden movement of others in the room brought me out of my glaring contest with the fake Mingi on my paper and I turned around when I heard my name being called out.

“Could you check this out for me?” Jake, a second-year student, asked shyly. I nodded with a smile and got off my stool, stretching, before I headed his way. He wasn’t an art major, but he apparently had always enjoyed drawing, so he joined our little club. His skills were pretty good, but he still had a lot to learn. As I stopped by his desk, I was met with the face of a girl. She was smiling brightly and the drawing was really good, the shading lacked, but that wasn’t such a big problem.

“Oh, this one is really good, Jake. You’ve gotten a lot better lately.” I offered him an encouraging smile as I patted his back, “Maybe adding a bit more shading next time will do the trick better, hm?”

“Thanks!” Jake beamed as he started gathering his stuff, making me nod as Krystal, a classmate of Seulgi and I, beckoned me over.

“I suck at human shapes, you know that.” She said with a sharp chuckle, lips pulled into a grimace as she slowly turned her sketch around. Yeah, Krystal was really bad at human shapes but it wasn’t something to get judged for. Drawing humans was very difficult and I couldn’t blame her for struggling with it, when, I, myself struggled most of times. However, this drawing presented itself as her best so far.

“This is amazing, Krystal, what are you talking about?!” I exclaimed as I gaped at the outline of two girls leaning onto each other, hugging around the shoulders. One of them was taller and the other one had longer and lighter hair. It must’ve been her older sister and her in the drawing. Their faces weren’t detailed or defined, but their shapes were very beautiful and precise.

“Good, God, I never struggled this hard in my life before.” She said with a sigh and got off her stool as Jake and Yunjin waved goodbye and left. Seulgi bounced over, curious to see Krystal’s drawing, and squealed when she saw it.

“You have to show this to Professor Yoon!” Seulgi exclaimed, “He’ll pass you in a second straight to next year’s class.”

Her comment got Krystal laughing and I shook my head as I walked away once I noticed Yiren struggled packing her stuff away. She was the youngest in our club and a little clumsy, always bumping into things and dropping paint on the floor whenever we were painting. She thanked me quietly as she scrambled around to pack her things and then rushed away shyly, quietly thanking me as she ran out the door. I stopped for a second and wondered why she always looked so intimidated by me. Seulgi walked up to her desk and started putting her things away as well as I walked back to my place, grabbing my backpack to put my pencils away. Krystal and Wheein greeted us in unison before walking out the door, leaving Seulgi and I alone. She approached me with a huge grin on her face, dangling her drawing carelessly between her fingers. I chuckled as I watched her, raising an eyebrow, “Who did you draw?”

“Oh, Joohyun!” Seulgi grinned and showed me her drawing eagerly, her cousin’s face staring back at me as she was laughing hard. I could hear Joohyun’s cackling laughter echo in my head and I smiled at the drawing, missing the girl. She was a few years older than us and had moved away to a different country in order to pursue her modelling career. Seulgi and Joohyun were like sisters, and being Seulgi’s best friend, I had the pleasure of meeting the phenomenal woman her cousin was.

“This is so gorgeous, Seulgi.” I said with a pout and a sigh, “You made me miss Joohyun now.”

“She’s visiting in two months!” Seulgi exclaimed, the news sweeping excitement into my veins as my eyes widened.

“Really?!”

“Yes!” Seulgi grinned, closing her sketchbook, “I can’t wait for us to hang out, it’s been too long since we’ve seen Joohyun.”

“Indeed.” I sighed and picked up the rubber I have dropped like an hour ago, “I also wish I had your skills when it comes to drawing human shapes.”

“Why? So that you can draw Yunho better?” Seulgi’s cackle wasn’t malicious but there was slight judgement in her eyes as I rolled mine.

“You’re so funny today, have I already told you?” I mocked her and Seulgi huffed, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

“What? Tell me I’m wrong.” But before I could tell her she was wrong, she was speaking again, “I know you drew him again, Y/N.”

“I didn’t!” My response was too fast and defensive and I regretted speaking up the second I saw Seulgi’s eyes flash with interest.

“You didn’t draw Yunho?” She asked shocked, not even bothering to hide it. I sighed lowly, awaiting the questions tumbling off her lips for the next thirty minutes, “Who is it then?”

“No one important.” I muttered, eyes falling on the drawing, making me realize that I had to put it away before Seulgi got the chance of seeing it. I wouldn’t live another day if she got even a glimpse of it, “Let’s go.”

But as I reached for the sketchbook, Seulgi slapped my hand away hard—it started stinging instantly—and ripped my sketchbook off the drafting board. Her eyebrows furrowed for a second as her eyes took in the drawing, and then, a loud gasp left her lips as her eyes shot up, staring at me wide eyed, confusion written all over her face.

『Run, baby, run

Run for your life

Gonna tear out your heart

It'll always be mine』

“This isn’t Yunho—”

“I told you—”

“Bitch, this is Song fucking Mingi?!” Seulgi’s voice raised and I gulped, mentally preparing myself for the screaming and nagging to follow. But Seulgi sounded an awful lot composed despite the various emotions written all over her face, “What is Song Mingi doing in your drawing?”

“That’s not Song Mingi.” Was the best I could do as I scoffed, gripping the sketchbook as I tried to yank it out of her hands, but Seulgi was gripping it firmly.

“Yeah, sure, and I’m fucking blind then—” Seulgi rolled her eyes before giving me a deadpan look, “This is Mingi, Y/N, you’re not bullshitting your way out of this. Now, explain.”

“There’s nothing to explain.” I didn’t mean to snap, but it happened, “It’s not Mingi. Why the hell would I even draw that fucker? It’s just a random face which popped into my head and I drew it mindlessly, alright? Maybe it looks like Mingi, but it’s not him.”

“Yeah, sure, and I’m the fucking Pope in Vatican—”

“Seulgi!” I snapped and tugged on the sketchbook again, finally getting her to release it. She didn’t seem too impressed as I quickly shut the sketchbook and grabbed my backpack, slinging it over my shoulder, “Shut up and let’s just go.”

“The hell am I shutting up, bitch.” Seulgi scoffed as she got her backpack too, “That’s Mingi and you can’t gaslight me with this one. Are you into him—”

“Oh, my God!” I exclaimed with disgust ridden all over my face, “Do you even hear yourself right now?! How could I be into him? I hate his guts!”

“That’s why you fucking drew him—”

“I didn’t draw him!” I finally exclaimed just as we got out the room, Seulgi shutting the door loudly behind us after she turned the lights off.

“You’ve been acting hella weird ever since we’ve been to Outlaw, Y/N, what are you not telling me?” Seulgi leaned against the wall as I locked up the room.

“I am not acting weird and there’s nothing I’m not telling you, so, will you just drop this whole thing?” I snapped, raising my eyebrows at her in irritation. Seulgi bit her lower lip and crossed her arms in front of her chest as she looked like she was contemplating. But one another glance at my face and she knew she wouldn’t get anything out of me, so she just sighed and shook her head as she pushed off the wall.

“Fine, let it be your way,” She muttered, falling in step with me by my side, “At least it’s not Yunho anymore. You’re finally getting over him—”

“Bitch, I’ve been over him for ages.” I threw my best friend a sharp glare and she just chuckled, shaking her head at me. I held back the urge to slap the back of her head hard in hopes that her delusional thoughts would get slapped out of her head with the effort.

“Whatever helps you sleep at night.” She mocked and before I could go off on her again, she faced me and smiled brightly, “Want to get McDonald’s before we head home?”

All thoughts of Mingi and wanting to hold a whole ass speech to Seulgi about him flew out of my mind at the mention of said junk food and I nodded eagerly, linking my arm with Seulgi’s as she started talking about a girl in her history class and how she managed to embarrass herself and her professor at the same time today.

『Run, baby, run

Run, baby, run』

❱❱ Next chapter

[goodlucktai]

name your courage now

one piece word count: 2k pairing: usopp & luffy my piece for the @opfluffzine ! @beasttrash drew some absolutely lovely art to go with my fic, go take a look if you'd like ! title borrowed from the moon will sing by the crane wives read on ao3

x

When Usopp was seventeen, he met a man who made him feel small. 

It wasn’t the first time in his life someone looked at him and found him wanting. But it was the first time elevator eyes and a sneer had caused a deep pang of uneasiness to take up residence in his gut.

“This guy?” the stranger had said to Luffy, incredulous. “Come on, you can tell just by looking between us that I have more to offer than he ever could.”

He was trying to cozy up to the rookie captain already making a name for himself across the blues. He wanted to tag along, take the easy street to adventure and infamy. He couldn’t seem to understand why Usopp, of all people, had a spot, while he didn’t. 

Until that point, Usopp had never had any compunctions about his own physicality. He had a runner’s body, lithe muscle that got him from Point A to Point B swiftly, and the excellent cardio required to scream every step of the way. He would never try to go toe-to-toe with someone like this man—a little taller than Zoro, a little broader in the shoulders, more muscled than the nineteen-year-old former pirate hunter by virtue of being about a decade older. 

But Luffy’s first mate had a devil in him that made him an actual walking natural disaster. This stranger just seemed like the type of bully who was used to using his size to get what he wanted, and his handsome, chiseled face when brute force failed him. 

Luffy had looked at the man the way Usopp imagined the sun might look at a satellite, a glancing interest in this tiny, inconsequential thing that decided to cut boldly across his view. 

Then he looked at Usopp and the shape of that regard changed completely, all warmth and light and safekeeping—the sun looking at one of its planets, Luffy looking at someone who was his. 

Usopp knew how special it was to have that sunlight in his life. He knew better than to think, even for a second, that the special one was him. 

“Who are you?” Luffy said plainly, as if he hadn’t been present for the introductions that had happened literal minutes before. 

The stranger’s face flushed with humiliation, and Zoro’s low chuckle rumbling around them like thunder certainly didn’t help. 

“Shall I get rid of him, captain?” Zoro said with a courteousness that felt dangerous in the moment. 

Luffy, as petulant as any spoiled little brother or soon-to-be king, said, “Just get him out of the way! Usopp was telling a story.”

The stranger chose to take himself out of the way, proving he was at least a little smarter than most wannabe big shots they bumped into. Even after he had disappeared down the road—even after the encounter had drifted back into the company of one thousand other encounters that wouldn’t even make it into the footnotes of their crew’s grand tale—that oily uncertainty remained in Usopp’s stomach. 

Looking back, it was stupid. But it was the first time Usopp felt worried that his place could be snatched away; that someone more deserving could take his spot. 

He knows that he’s lucky, that fate decided to be kind to him that day it brought his future right to his front door. He knows he never would have mustered the courage to go meet his destiny on his own, because Usopp was a runner, and a coward, and only as strong and fast as he needed to be to race away from danger, not towards. 

Then his family was ripped apart. Then Luffy suffered, alone and out of his reach. Usopp clutched a newspaper in hands that shook and imagined, for one second, a world without Luffy’s sunny smile. 

He needs me, Usopp thought. It wasn’t a lie to bolster himself in a moment of crippling insecurity. It wasn’t an act of silly, self-important grandeur to make Nami scoff or Chopper giggle or Sanji roll his eyes. It was a frightening, heavy thing to hold, something he was halfway tempted to put down, and that’s how he knew it was the truth. That’s how he knew he had to keep holding it. 

Usopp worked hard on himself in those two painful years apart, let himself go and then dragged himself back kicking and screaming. He has plenty to show for it, his body a machine as trustworthy as the ones he and Franky build together in their workshop. Just let someone try to take his nakama away again. 

I could carry any one of you, he thinks sometimes, gazing at them over drinks or under the stars, feeling settled in his skin and bones in a way he never was before. If you needed me, I'm strong enough to carry you now.

They meet that man again one more time, when Usopp is twenty.

On the main street of a city they’re poking around for the afternoon, they stumble upon a seaside restaurant's soft opening. Sandwich board menus planted in the street boast cheap specials for couples due to some local holiday. 

Usopp and Luffy lock eyes, and grin, and slide into each other’s space with the ease of people who have put their lives in each other’s hands on the regular. When they amble up to join the queue, they don’t get any second glances.

The shape of Luffy against Usopp’s side is familiar. His hair is stiff, starched with sun and sea salt, but it bends to Usopp's whims when he finger-combs it back into waves. 

Luffy isn’t handsome in a textbook way, isn’t pretty the way people like Vivi and Cavendish are, but he stops strangers in their tracks regardless. Gazes linger where he goes, maybe because humans at a base level can tell when a god is walking with them. 

Or maybe it’s his huge brown eyes. Even odds, Usopp decides, grinning when Luffy pushes into his touch like a pampered pet monster. 

“If we don’t have enough for the bill we can just run away,” Luffy says none too quietly, because he’s very much a product of the two half-feral older brothers who raised him.

“We’ll have enough,” Usopp reassures, even though he’s not entirely sure. Things will work out one way or another. He's learned from the best, after all, and while he’s no Nami, he can charm a few hundred bellies off the bill at the very least. 

Their chatter attracts attention. One of the two girls holding hands in line ahead of them scoffs, good-humored, and her partner giggles. A man walking down the street does a double-take and stops in his tracks.

Usopp recognizes him, even if it takes a minute. He’s smaller than Usopp remembers. The years haven’t been kind, weathering away his roguish good looks. Now he wouldn’t stand out of a crowd one way or another. 

In a split second, Usopp can see the spark of something like blame in his eyes. He looks like he’s about to start a fight.

“Hey, Lu, I bet they’ve got free samples up at the front,” Usopp says, giving his captain a nudge. “Get us something good, I'll save our spot in line.”

“Good idea!” Luffy’s off like a shot, thankfully barreling around the queue of customers instead of through it. Usopp spares a moment of sympathy for the waitstaff if there aren’t actually any samples up there and then turns his attention back to the stranger. 

Usopp folds his arms and sets his shoulders back, a broad wall between Luffy and this guy who thinks he has a right to ruin their fun day off. 

“For all you know, we’re on a date,” he says dryly. “Make it quick.”

“I just don't get it,” he says, jaded and unhappy with whatever turns his life has taken. “Why did he take you with him? What makes someone like you so special?”

“Yeah, you really don’t get it,” Usopp replies, not unkindly. 

None of us were special until he picked us out of the blues and made us that way, he could say. He saw something in us that no one else did, that hadn’t even existed yet, he could try to explain. Maybe we just got lucky. 

But there’s more to it than that. That’s only half the truth. 

They chose Luffy, too. And that’s not a small thing. It’s not simple, or easy, or a choice they only had to make once. Luffy picked them, and they picked him right back, and all the hard work that came with him. 

Every so often, when his friends are being noisy and annoying, Usopp thinks I would do anything for them and he means it . He would fight tooth and nail to stay at their side. He would cling with his last breath to Luffy's flag. Even when it hurts. Even when he’s scared. 

There is nowhere else that he belongs, Usopp realized one day, and it’s the truth. It’s something he made true, over and over and over again. Maybe he did get lucky that day Luffy happened to meet him. 

But maybe Luffy got lucky, too. 

“I put in the work,” Usopp finally settles for saying. “This is how far it got me. I’m nowhere near done yet.”

The man scoffs, but it doesn’t have the condescending edge it did the first time they met. When he sizes Usopp up again, it’s not nerve-wracking the way it would have been once. 

If Robin was there to make it really funny, Usopp would say excuse me, my eyes are up here, like he does in dive bars when flirty strangers get a little too close for comfort, only to shriek in alarm at the extra ice blue eyes staring unblinkingly at them from Usopp’s face. 

The man glances over Usopp's shoulder and quickly withdraws himself from their conversation. Usopp didn’t need his obvious reaction to tell him that Luffy is scampering back, because his passive observation haki is finely tuned to his captain’s presence at all times. That, and the audible oof from a stranger in the crowd who didn’t dive out of Luffy’s path in time not to get trampled over was kind of a giveaway. 

“Oh, score,” Usopp cheers when he sees what is probably six times the suggested number of samples for any one customer clutched in Luffy’s hands. 

Luffy is watching the stranger depart, a confused frown on his face. He looks back and Usopp meets his eyes easily, a smile already curling the edges of his mouth because he knows what’s coming. 

Sure enough, his best friend says, “Who was he?”

The line moves up and now they’re within line of sight of the hostess podium, so Usopp resumes their fake date by slinging an arm around Luffy’s waist. He squeezes playfully, and Luffy actually squeaks in surprise like a rubber monkey, then bursts into bright peals of ringing laughter. 

It settles over the street the way sunlight falls on everything, casting the world in warm, rich gold.  

“He was nobody worth worrying about,” Usopp says, wishing he could say it to himself at seventeen.

Usopp used to be a liar and could even trick himself into thinking he was somehow worth standing next to his friends, the brilliant, incredible people that they were. 

Usopp is still a liar, when it suits him, and even a coward, but only when it’s good for a laugh. More than that, he’s an inventor and a storyteller and the best sharpshooter in the New World. Maybe sometimes he still flinches from danger, but he doesn’t let his crew run to meet it without him. He builds things and helps people and nobody has the power to make him feel like anything except what he is.

He’s someone worth betting your last beli on. Somehow, Luffy knew that from the very first moment they met. Usopp took the long way around, but he caught up eventually.

[angel-of-the-moons]

NSFW

Ive been dying for a part two of intrusive thoughts, or just Pavitr being a good loving husband if that alright wanting to try something new like a position or technique you choose.

Btw I REALLY love your work<33

ILYSM AND I AM SO SO SO SO SOOOOO SORRY THIS TOOK SO LONG???

My first attempt at real NSFW with a GN!Reader! (Related to my previous ask, Intrusive Thoughts)

Impending Actions

Pavitr Prabhakar x GN!Spider Person!Reader

TW/CW: NSFW, SMUT, just plain ole smut, semi-public sex, risky sex. Pavitr can read minds! :D

MINORS DNI I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR CONTENT YOU CONSUME

And, of course... Pavitr is aged up, before an anon comes shouting into my inbox about him again. (Seriously, does that guy just not read my warnings at all in my pinned post??)

Dividers by @/across-the-art-verse

When Pavitr had developed his latent mind-reading powers, you didn't anticipate him on just reading your thoughts out of the blue. Let alone at work.

Especially not the rather... risque thoughts you had about him.

You were ever the power couple, defending Mumbattan and your universe from threats both big and small, as well as helping out other dimensions from time to time when Miguel called on you.

But sometimes, bless his golden-retriever shaped heart, Pavitr was naturally curious. He would read your mind sometimes without even meaning to, just usually wanting to "pop in" to see how yo u were really feeling in the moment. If you were secretly upset, angry, sad... And of course, inasenly horny.

That one he discovered, came from a rather risky fight, typically if you'd gotten hurt in some way. To "remind you that you were alive" one of your thoughts had said.

And, well... Today, you were recouping from a tough fight with one universe's Rhino variant. He had tossed you rather roughly into a wall, knocking you unconscious and leaving Pavitr to carry you back to Spidey HQ's medical bay, where Peter A (the Spider-Man everyone affectionately referred to as "Spider-Medic") began to treat you.

When you woke up, you were sore for sure, but otherwise perfectly fine. Your minor healing factor had been sped up a little with a serum from Miguel's universe to heal any fractures you had, and Peter A had given you a clean bill of health, but recommended you take time off to rest properly.

Pavitr had sought you out, immediately threading your hands together as he left you through the halls.

"Pav, I'm okay." You assured him as he pulled you along, "Really. Peter just said I need some rest and I'll be fine in a few days."

"I know..." Pavitr mumbled, his fingers squeezing yours tightly for a second. "I'm just... I'm happy you're okay. It was... It was scary watching you just--just fly through the air like that, y'know?"

You ought his hand back until he comes to a stop, pulling your masks up before giving him a soft and sweet kiss, "I know, honey. But I'm here. I'm alive. So let's just take that for what it is, okay?"

Pavitr's mouth hung open in a short breath as he processed your words; before yanking his mask back down as he dragged you around a corner and to a nearby door. Looking around to see if anyone was following you two or coming, Pavitr opened the door and pulled you inside.

It was some kind of utility closet. One that didn't appear to be frequently used, judging by the thin layer of dust that covered the metal boxes stacked so meticulously.

"Pav, what are we--"

He cut you off by ripping his mask off and dropping it to the floor, cupping your cheeks as his lips crashed into yours. The gasp that left your lips giving him an opening to slip his tongue past them to eagerly dance with yours.

You moaned softly, sinking your fingers into his silky dark hair; your mouths only parting when you needed to breathe.

"P-Pav..." You groaned when he turned you around and pushed you against the wall, one of his hands yanking the bottom half of your suit down to your thighs--giving him access to where he knew you had imagined him being more than once. Maybe not in a storage closet, but...

You yelped and whimpered when he spit onto his fingers, slipping them between your legs to prep your hole, gently probing and thrusting them in and out of you to stretch you out in preparation for him.

Your moans and squirming had his dick already half-hard, the thrill of it all sending a rush through his bloodstream.

"S-somebody might catch us, P-Pavitr..." You whimpered, your cheek pressing into the thin dust that coated the box; dirtying half of your mask and the front of your suit as heat coiled low in your belly while Pavitr playing with your clenching hole.

"Th-that's what you like, isn't it?" He panted, trying to keep his voice level. But it was difficult, the sounds you were making, the way your body felt around his fingers, and oh how painfully hard he was...

"Y-you like the thought that s-somebody might catch us?" He asked, pulling his fingers out of you gently; leaning in to whisper in your ear. "Just let it happen, lovie..."

You groaned as you felt his erection press against your ass while he leaned in. You arched your back, grinding against him. The way his teeth snagged his bottom lip to suppress the groan that stayed trapped in his throat had your toes curling.

"Fuck..." You gasped softly.

Pavitr leaned back, his dark chocolate eyes hazy and needy for you as he fished his dick from his suit, not wasting any time in guiding it into your prepped entrance.

The sound that came from you when he pushed into you had Pavitr lunging to cover your mouth, "E-easy!" He shushes you, panting softly as he bottomed out.

You moaned against his hand, eyes rolling back as he set a quick, sharp pace for the both of you. The adrenaline from your near-death experience coupled with the thrill of possibly being caught had you both so strung out you knew neither of you were going to last long.

Especially not with hoe the head of his cock brushed that sinfully divine spot inside of you, pressing hard against it with every grind of his hips.

His name leaves your lips, muffled by his hand as he whimpers and grunts in your ear; the soft slap of his suit against your skin even more quiet than the pleasured sounds you both were making.

Your thighs ached and trembled as that familiar burn snaked its way through your core; pleasure thrumming along your veins like a potent drug as Pavitr drove himself deep with evert frantic rut of his hips.

"A-are you g-gonna--" He moaned, "Gonna..."

You nodded, whimpering and whining into the palm of his hand. You both knew full well how loud you could get--and if he removed his hand from your mouth you would definitely give the two of you away and the embarrassment would last a lifetime afterwards--so he kept it firmly planted over your lips, his other hand gripping your hips to help guide you back against his every thrust.

Your orgasm slammed into you with a dizzying punch; your sounds of euphoria muffled still; maybe he could hear them when you two got home.

The way you clenched, your silky, searing walls gripping him so tightly... it was the most addictive feeling he ever could indulge in. He would never get tired of how good it felt to be inside of you when you orgasmed.

"I-I'm gonna--" He grunted tightly, his jaw clenched so hard you thought he might snap his mandible.

His heavy breaths ghosted over the exposed skin of your neck as he thrust once, twice... and you shuddered and cried softly as you felt his hot spend coat your walls and paint them a nice, milky white.

His body went slack, collapsing against you as his cock throbbed and twitched in the aftermath of his own climax. He wrapped his arms around your midsection and pulled you against him, kissing your exposed neck and tickling the short hairs there.

"Ah..." You sighed in bliss. "We... mmm. We should hurry up and go before we're missed..."

"Y-yeah..." He babbled, pulling out of you and making you both trembled and your breath stutter at the loss of warmth.

You both fussed, brushing the dust (as best you could, anyway) from each other's suits and hair and yanking your masks back down to conceal your flushed expressions--but not before exchanging a quick kiss.

You left the storage room, hand in hand, a sway in your steps due to your jelly-legs, absolutely content. And... excited, thinking about what kind of trouble the two of you were going to get up to when you got home...

"Really?" Pavitr gasped, his mask-eyes going wide as he gawked at you. "Y-you're already thinking about..."

"Hey! We had a deal, you jerk!" You laugh, bumping his shoulder to yours.

Pavitr chuckled softly, "Okay, okay... I can't help it sometimes, though! It's like my brain looks for yours for like--like a hug or something!"

You roll your eyes with a sarcastic snort.

Your watches beep, and as you looked at them, Lyla's tiny avatar appeared on your wrists.

"Heya, kids! Have fun with your little closet rendezvous?" She grinned, flicking her glasses down the bridge of her nose as she waggled her eyebrows suggestively.

You were thankful for your masks, because... ohhh... your faces. Your poor, poor faces...

"H-how do you--" You sputtered.

Lyla laughed and tapped her foot, "Well, next time you two are gonna sneak off for a quickie... Make sure there are no cameras."

You both simultaneously felt your hearts drop, before she started talking again.

"And take off your watches. Your bio-signs were definitely telling a story, there. Whew!" She laughed, slapping her knee.

The AI smirked up at the two of you as you began to panic, and she smirked playfully.

"Don't worry." She winked, "I disabled the cameras and switched your monitors to my private feed. As far as the Big Guy is concerned, you guys just took them off for a while and are resting in one of the suites."

"Lyla, don't you ever--" You blurted.

"Hey, I'm not gonna tell! I'm your homie, kids. Remember that! Snitches and stitches and all that. Bye!" She laughed comically before vanishing.

You and Pavitr shared shell-shocked expressions, about to speak before Lyla blipped back into view to say something;

"Oh, and my advice? Wrap it before you tap it, kids!"

As her avatar winked out of existence, you and Pavitr made a dead sprint, hastily typing your dimension into your Goobers so you could make it home to avoid dying of embarrassment.

[aprilthearcher]

burning red [roman roy x reader]

word count: 1.8k

[somewhat angst]

warnings: curse words, ooc roman ?, english is not my first language, not edited, rushed ending.

a/n: somewhat inspired by “red” and “false god” by taylor, idk i was just listening to these two songs on loop. i’m also supposed to be studying, but instead i wrote this, so enjoy! love me some greg sprinkles, couldn’t not include him. alsooo, this could read as being part of the same story as my previous roman blurb, but you won't have any problems if you haven't read it.

Loving Roman was complicated yet insanely easy, too tiresome at times and then incredibly invigorating. He had that effect on people, or maybe just her. Everyone else was probably too complicated for her to like. Not funny enough, not witty or smart enough, not loud enough. No one was Roman enough, not even across the whole damn world. 

Getting him off her mind had been more difficult than she’d expected, probably because (Y/N) only realised her feelings for him after she couldn’t stop thinking about him. He had taken over her whole body without knowing. It was Roman’s lips she imagined when kissing blonde, ginger, brunette guys at pubs; it were Roman’s eyes she thought of when her friends would ask her about her favourite colour; it was Roman’s face she conjured up in her head when they’d ask about her type of man. 

At first, she believed it to be some sort of sick joke the Universe was trying to play on her: discovering she had feelings for her long-time friend — one she’d known since they were in diapers, who would grab her by her ponytail whenever she was paying attention to his siblings instead of him (just him) —, barely two or three weeks in her first year of university, a university that was on a whole other continent, separated by an entire ocean. Still, (Y/N) knew she could fly back home in a couple of hours — “I’ll arrange a jet for you if you wanna come down”, her dad would always say over the phone —, but the idea of seeing him again with this new information in her head and heart (that couldn’t help but jump at the mention of him) terrified her.

Her mind would make her remember him and his antics in the worst possible times: while dancing with some random guy at a club, his hands on her hips, the cheap cologne contrasting the rich scented one Roman couldn’t get enough of. On a first date, set up by her friends who believed she had to let go of this “prude” behaviour and just let someone take her to their bed. When joking with the guys that approached her and her friends at the bar, knowing exactly what Roman would think of them, the cruel comments he’d throw, the silly faces. The soft eyes when they were both too drunk to even speak a coherent sentence, although most times nothing was coherent with Roman. She had tried looking for those same bright eyes; once more, she ended up disappointed. None of them were Roman. None of them ever will be, no matter how much (Y/N) tried to shape them into a replica of him. All of Roman was unique. 

Hence, the dreadful turmoil inside her stomach once Shiv, with some tint of malice in her eyes directed at Roman, introduced her to Tabitha. “Roman’s companion”, she’d said. The blonde, curly haired woman greeted (Y/N) with an eager smile on her face. She said her name at the same time both of them shook hands. A voice inside her head told her this was all wrong. How long? Where did it happen? Why? Why? Why now that she was back?

“Oh, you don’t need to tell me your name,” Tabitha mentioned playfully, a short roll of her eyes a second later. “You’re all Roman’s been talking about lately”.

“Only lately?” Shiv laughed, taking a sip from her glass she focused her eyes on Roman , then (Y/N). “Roman’s always talking about (Y/N). I mean, he was practically her lap dog when they were children.”

“Oh, fuck off Siobhan,” Roman bark back.

“Well, he only mentioned you as of now.” The knot in her stomach tightened. The worst part was she could see Tabitha hadn’t said it out of spite, nor jealousy, but as a fleeting comment to add something more to the conversation.

He hadn’t mentioned her to Tabitha? Not even once? She had tried everything to block him out of her head, to keep him out of her dreams and fantasies; to catch herself every time she was going to bring up him in a conversation again, and he didn’t say her name until he found out (Y/N) was coming back to New York? What kind of sick fuck was he? What kind of sick fuck was she, devoting probably her whole life to Roman fucking Roy?

“Oh,” (Y/N) managed to croak out before her father appeared beside her and whispered in her ear that she should spend some time chatting with the other guests.

                                                       * * *

Cousin Greg was great company, quite weird before you took in the awkwardness that seemed to surround him and make him stick out like a sore thumb in the midst of all these old, rich people, but great nonetheless. He had asked her about her years in London, what she studied and what she did for fun, her friends and hobbies. (Y/N) found herself enjoying the night, sitting on a couch by his side, meanwhile both of their cheeks were getting rosier and rosier with every new cup of alcohol brought to them. Greg was in the middle of telling her about how he had screwed up the first day at his job on one of the parks owned by Waystar, cracking up from time to time from how she tried to hide her laugh in order to keep the attention away from them, when two hands settled on his shoulders, hard and making a noise that was apparent that the gesture was meant to at least hurt him a little. Roman was behind him with a clench jaw and big, maniac eyes. 

“Greeeg, I think Tom was looking for you, man”.

“Oh, really?” Greg turned his upper body in Roman’s direction, which from the side looked somewhat weird because of his tall, lanky form. “Because, because I just saw him and he didn’t say anything”.

“Yes, oh really, man. And he said if you didn’t go talk to him right now, he would fire your sorry ass”.

Greg was on his feet quicker than she'd expected after seeing him drown glass after glass with her. He towered over her for a moment, saying a quick “see you later” before going in search of Tom. 

“You’re mean, Roman”.

“Yeah, well, tell me something I don’t fucking know”. 

They fell silent for a second. Around them, people were still in mindless conversation, setting down empty cups on the waiter’s tray while picking up new ones from another one. Alcohol seemed to be the only way to survive a family gathering at the Roy’s, even a harmless one. 

“You wanna get out of here?” Roman asked. She turned her head to the right to face him, he was already looking at her. His eyes no longer had the maniac fog blurring them, there was now a tranquil pool of honey.

                                                    ***

“My dad is probably gonna be mad if he finds out I ditched the party”.

“Please, (Y/N), since when did you become such a goody two shoes?” Roman leaned against the railing of the terrace, following her with his eyes while she approached him and finally set her elbows on top of the banister. From this position, he looked taller. “Don’t tell me you were like this in London. I mean, with no one to hover over you, you sure had a looot to do, didn’t you?”

“I went to London to study, remember? Not to go out and get drunk every night.”

“Well, I’m sure if you had been with me, you could’ve done both.”

“Yeah, probably, but you weren’t with me.”

“Whose fault is that, huh?” He crossed his arms over his chest. Her eyebrows raised.

“Are you saying it was my fault? We haven’t seen each other for how long and it was all my fault?”

“Why are you acting like it isn’t? It literally is, (Y/N), you left m.. you left and, and you never came back.” He had walked a few steps away from her. 

“It’s not like you couldn’t have visited, Roman. Just ask daddy for one of his jets, it’s literally that easy.”

“Yes, but - but you left, (Y/N). You left, and it’s not like you chose some university a state away, you chose one a whole continent away! That’s got to mean something!”

“As if Roman fucking Roy couldn’t get one goddamn plane and fly over to London!” She had abandoned her previous position, now fully facing Roman, who was still a couple of feet away, getting closer to the door. He was trying to run, just like it he always did whenever they fought.

“I didn’t - I didn’t want you to get annoyed by me! To realise what a true moron I was. Then you barely talked to me after you arrived at your fancy university and - and started your very difficult subjects.”

(Y/N) closed her eyes in confusion for a moment. Though it was easier to throw everything at him, (Y/N) knew that she was also responsible for their lack of communication over these last years. 

Only the bustling, almost never-ending nightlife of New York could be heard. Her chest hurted, her eyes would fill with tears at any point now. She was tired and drunk, and just fucking missed Roman too much for them to be fighting the first night she was back in the city.

“Now you are not saying anything?” Roman broke the silence. He was closer to the door, she noticed. “You know what? Fuck you, (Y/N). Fuck you for making feel all this – all this fucking, fucking shit!”

“What fucking shit?” She asked quietly, desperate for an answer, the answer.

“I - I don’t know what fucking shit, just shit, okay?”

“Say it.”

Roman didn’t respond, instead he turned her back on her, walking towards the door. Before he could reach the handle, she screamed at him.

“Fucking say it, Roman.”

“I’ve just told you, I don’t know. It’s just shit, okay? All of it,” he screamed back, opening up his arms, exaggerating his point. “I - I run out of breath and then my chest is all funny, and and I hate seeing you laughing with fucking Greg of all people. It’s shit, fucking shit!”

Drawing closer to him, she tested his limits. He was breathing hard from all the screaming and moving around the terrace to put distance between them, but he didn’t stop when (Y/N) got so close their bodies were almost touching. It was her with whom physical closeness wasn’t a problem, he always told himself it was because of how close they were pretty much their whole lives.

They only looked at each other for a few moments, the waves of conflict had calmed down fast and efficiently enough that for anyone else it would seem like nothing had happened between them. 

Roman wished — deep, deep down — that they could stay like this forever, without having to go back and confront his family, especially his father; that they could make this terrace, above Logan’s place ironically enough, a little haven, only for them; that they would never be found.

[verdemoun]

Wait even Micah makes an exception to call Bessie 👀 can we hear about them and their relationship?

I always kinda imagined Micah would have a hard time with timewarping, he very much was a man shaped by his father and by the era, his sole goal was to survive, and by proxy whatever enabled that. I imagine he'd have had a hard time readjusting not only to the drastic changes, but also not having to constantly think about his next move yk

Yeah no Micah had a bad time timewarping.

Firstly, he died! He died and there was no consequences. Died and popped up in modern era. What is survival worth if death is seemingly not finite?

Second, he wasn't allowed a gun! This is magical modern au America with something resembling gun control. Whatever meager test he had to do to get a gun, he failed it. While Micah's infatuation with guns was very much linked to his overwhelming belief in survival, he also liked the power of a gun.

Third, Micah was weird with Dutch. He followed Dutch. He reunited with Dutch after Dutch walked away from him in Beaver Hollow. Why? Because he desperately wants something resembling family, and Dutch was part of whatever that meant to Micah. And his father was a piece of shit sure but Dutch shot him? Dutch took away everything Micah believed in only to indirectly warp him to a world where everything was ugly and foreign and he had nothing. And Dutch wasn't turning up for a while.

Fourth, the gang didn't immediately decide to trust Micah again. Can you imagine the anger the 1899 gang felt towards Micah? They didn't want anything to do with Micah! They were more than happy to let him walk into the woods unarmed and let him become a hermit, or die again of natural causes. Micah was the first 'bad guy' to timewarp and they hadn't really considered how they were going to deal with that. Micah was a traitor. What had the gang always done to traitors?

Bessie was not immune to the general anger the gang felt towards Micah but she was a self-made woman from the 1880s. She had to learn all about how the world had changed sociologically on her own. She had to unpack so many of her own issues. She wasn't going to let anyone go through that on their own.

She also had the bonus of being a historian. While a womens' history professor, she'd used to access at the university to research the gang in an attempt to figure out timewarp. She's read all their rap sheets. She knows Micah was only a boy when he committed his first murder alongside his father. She's read the few historians who are interested in the psychology of the Old West wonder if Micah Bell III, notorious outlaw, ever had a choice - if he ever knew life could be more than survival.

And she's just soft. She's a tough bitch who can fend for herself but give her a troubled outlaw who's that bit helpless and confused and she can handle the misdirected anger. So she helped him get his shitty trailer home, and sat at the table while he looked around the shipping-container sized building squinting suspiciously at the concept a permanent structure that was meant to be his private camp now.

It was almost like going through a foster kid cliche but with an adult man helping Micah adjust. He learned to drive faster than anyone else in the gang because sitting in 'camp' constantly was counter-productive to survival, and got a map so he could learn the layout of the area. Not having a gun meant he always needed escape routes. He kicked the windows out of his trailer.

Bessie would never say it because Hosea would kill her, but Micah without a gun really reminded her of teen Arthur. Just angry and scared and assuming everyone was out to get him. And Bessie is soft but she is no pushover. Micah make a comment like he used to with Grimshaw? She'll slap him. That doesn't mean she won't drop off leftovers and sit and try to make small-talk.

And Micah still has issues. He craves connection. Being completely isolated is counter-productive to survival. Bessie sets boundaries but she's for the most part more patient than he deserves and does what she can to teach him about modern era survival.

She helps him get a job so he can buy his dumb truck and takes him grocery shopping, teaches him about tracking money because Micah gave most of his money to the gang too in VDL days. He's not used to paying for things because he's always stolen what he needs. She buys him clothes and has to turn up to wash them because he is useless but little acts of kindness actually mean a hell of a lot to Micah.

He's still a brash pig at best most days but she notices the 'come near her and i'll fucking kill you' glares he gives people on the street because he's that little bit protective of his perceived family. And how awkward he sounds the first time he calls to ask about what the hell his frozen meal means when it says fan-forced oven.

Micah's sole goal, purpose, reason for being is still survival, because really what else is there? He still doesn't have anything to live for more than living for living's sake. Not pissing off Bessie supports survival. And maybe the little 'good work!' comments and praise when he does the bare minimum like actually putting clothes in a laundry basket completely alter his brain chemistry because he's never received praise for something that wasn't directly linked to criminal or gang activity.

So yes Micah makes an effort to talk to Bessie and sometimes when he's feeling more lonely and isolated than usual he knows Bessie will always answer.

[anzyll]

For my next post, I thought I'd ramble about something random and uninteresting; so there's not particularly anything new going on. The second area of my game is an underground city inside of a Labyrinth, heavily inspired by Greek mythology. While it's inspired by Greece, it's also heavily inspired by typical nightlife shenanigans, shady dealings -- an entire city of back alleys. I've drawn inspiration from a lot of things for this area, and it's definitely the most dense thing I've ever made, not just with content, but also with characters I love and really want to be able to show other people. So for this little spotlight blog, I decided to choose the two I was working on right now: Lazlo and Brock.

Now, Brock and Lazlo aren't anything particularly standout, as far as characters go, but that makes me feel like they exemplify the standard. They're not mindblowers, they just dudes. I made them in around 2019-ish. It was notably before the Techbro boom in popularity, which I will try to avoid naming for fear of bots and blocked words. I thought it would be really funny to have two guys in a basement somewhere, mining some coins, just totally lame dudes. Brock, the orange-haired one, was originally called Bob Musk, which in the current day and age would be just the corniest overused joke ever. The name Bob came from YouTuber Muyskerm, who I felt he somewhat resembled. His surname, Fuller, is a parody of Ferris Bueller, and his titular Day Off. Brock Fuller is sort of a corruption + jumble of Ferris Bueller, who kind of exemplifies the devil-may-care attitude of the residents of the city of Labyrinth that Brock lives in. I wanted to make a character who would attack you with a calculator; doubling and subtracting stats and HP, adding buffs, dividing damage, etc. When I was a kid I imagined having "calculator powers" once or twice in math class -- my fault for reading so much Rick Riordan. Percy Jackson's weird pen sword probably rubbed off a lot on me, gave me a great appreciation of both Greek culture AND urban fantasy, both of which play in heavily to this area. For Brock's clothes, I wanted to do a sort of "business casual" look, like someone who doesn't know how to dress but is trying to look professional. For colours, the orange hair came naturally, but I just knew I had to give him Joker colours for his shirt and tie.

Good old purple and green. The Joker (2019) movie was still rather new at the time, and all of the memes had me thinking about it. 'Course, I've never actually WATCHED Joker (2019), but I don't think he wears purple in the film, so my brain kinda autocorrected to Heath Ledger's. Better design either way, if you ask me. Techbros and Joker go together like arson and kerosene. Lazlo is comparatively more simple. I really wanted to give him one of those "not really a tuxedo" t-shirts. They're so incredibly lame, but also so incredibly charming at the same time, it really screams "nerdy 20-something" to me.

His face was on a whim, I can't recall exactly what inspired me for that sort of "teeth hanging off the bottom of a top lip" overbite sort of look, but if I had to guess it was probably at least partially Futurama.

My art was subconsciously influenced by the stupid mouth shape that Matt Groening makes an unfortunate amount around the time, it always pissed me off because I don't ACTUALLY like how it looks. It took a lot of restraint to sort of pull back my art style from this big-lip sorta overbite exaggeration that was really common in my circles at the time, and Laz is a product of that, but one of the few that I think I actually nailed in regards to it. That said, it's very possible that I just accidentally and unintentionally ripped it from something I can't name at the moment. His name however, was directly inspired by Camp Lazlo; wow, we're 3 for 3 on references to things I've never watched. I think all I know about Camp Lazlo is that at the end they reveal that one of the main characters was a fraud from an insane asylum the whole time, which is definitely the kind of energy I vibe with for gags. With his face, I felt like he'd fit in on that show... and also maybe if he was an animal of some kind. His surname, Doherty, was just the surname of someone I used to know IRL as a kid. He looks kinda similar to my old friend in some ways, though thankfully not due to his ungodly overbite. For Lazlo's power, I believe I was heavily inspired by Shin from Dorohedoro, due to this panel where Shin cuts off his arms to find the "magical smoke veins" inside of them.

(Smoke in Dorohedoro, for those uninitiated, allows the user to perform magic.) I thought it was interesting that Shin could just do this and get away with it. It occurs in a flashback, in a world with magic, so it's clear when he cuts his arms off that they'll come back, but it's still quite an impressive stunt to perform surgery on yourself like this. How the fuck did he even cut off the second arm? Isn't one arm enough? I couldn't tell you, but it leaves quite the impression. Back on topic though, I thought it was quite interesting to have a character based on this and "phantom pain", where you can still feel the limb as if it's still there, despite it not being. So, Lazlo can emit smoke from where his arm was severed, and use it to create a new giant arm made entirely of smoke. I assume if he were to lose a second arm or leg or such, it would also be replaced with smoke. Maybe if he was decapitated, he'd survive with a smoke head, sort of like an Elsen from OFF.

It is the most important element, after all. I do enjoy portraying people with disabilities rather normally, and Lazlo is a nice usage of that. I really enjoy having him wave with his missing arm, for example. Makes the world feel a bit more real to me.

That's right fuckos, I lured you in with 5 consecutive smaller posts about women, and then sucker punched you with a literal essay about my WEIRD LITTLE MEN. ...Sorry.

[sircesimblr]

Stam: Am I? Already bubbling with love for her? Haha, I guess I am. I do. When I look in the mirror, I can see her face right next to mine. I feel I can ask her things, I feel I want to listen to her, even when I've just woken up. She feels familiar. And I also think I may have seen her before, when she was in the bistro with her friend. You know, the singer from the band.

Manon: She has a friend in a band? Like, a troubadour-friend? My goodness. Rachel, dear, dear Rachel, please be careful. Don't mingle with such people until you've got your husband. These kind of things can reflect badly upon your pure self.

Stam: Don't worry. It is a really great band. Having such a friend cannot harm Rachel's virtue, haha, if that's what your concerned about. But please, let's talk about me. Tell Rachel something nice. Why am I the most rounded package she can get? Haha. Not fishing for compliments or anything.

Klaus-Ove: Obviously.

Manon: Where do I begin? First of all, Miss Rachel, this man might be a prince! His fair Northern mother, a hardworking nurse, met a tall and dark stranger in Al Simhara, who never revealed his name. I mean, look at Mr. Hardenes: that must have been a prince!

Stam: Let's not talk about the guy who knocked my mother up. He could just as well have been a troubadour, Miss de La Haye. I've never met him.

Manon: Oh? Yes, you've been raised by your dear mother alone, but surely you must feel, a certain kind of nobility... in your veins...

Stam: Nope.

Manon: But your looks!

Stam: Ah. My looks. I don't really care about that. Neither does Rachel I'm sure. I'm proud I have my mum's eyes and I'm proud I am strong and never ill, so I can pursue my dreams and be a good son to my beloved mother. She's my everything.

Manon: You don't care about it, yet you look in the mirror long enough to imagine your dream wife's face beside your own.

Stam: I practise my charisma skills.

Manon: I'm sure you do. Early in the morning. Right out of bed. I'm sure you practise your athletic skills too, not to build those fine muscles I notice beneath your far too gaudy shirt, but to...

Stam: Do you have any idea how hard the work of a chef is? If you don't keep your body in shape, you'll simply perish preparing meals. You won't make it a single night. Besides, I told you, I don't care about looks. All I aspire my body to be in the future, is soft and chubby, so my kids can use me as a teddybear or a trampoline, or a doormat, for all I care. I want to be the greatest dad in the world. I want to be the dad I never had. I want to be the dad that should have supported my mother every step of the way.

Manon: Goodness me, I knew you wanted a family. But this... So, one really has to read between the lines, with your person. And all these jobs you have, the whole rigmarole, besides being, simply put, gorgeous, all that is not to get ahead of others, nor to behave like a gentleman should, it is...

Stam: I'm just skilling up for the future I want. Making a name while I'm still single. But when I've found my love, and my home becomes a reality, and I hold my first baby in my arms, all falls second to that. And then I will be prepared. I will be so prepared. It will be nothing but happiness.

Manon: Oh, all the heavens above me. An airmonger.

Klaus-Ove and Orbin: Wow, man.

Stam: I thought you'd seen all that in me, Miss, when you said I was the total package for Rachel.

Manon: Oh, sweetheart... And you cared for your mother, when she had what you call a "burn out", when you were young? Twice?

Stam: I did. Why?

Manon: No... nothing. Just another thing Rachel needs to know. Something about an apple and a tree. Never mind. Let's... let's proceed and present the last of you. Mister Klaus-Ove Larsen, please come up here, you carefree looking pup.

Stam: I won't get to address Rachel myself, like Orbin did?

Manon: Well..., you can still try. We surely have another minute, haven't we, gentlemen? There, go ahead, Mr. Hardenes.

Stam: Okay. So here it is, dear Rachel. My dear Rachel. I've only seen you once or twice, yet you are already on my mind, like constantly. You intrigue me, you calm me down, I feel things. Possibilities of a future together. I could be that guy you describe. I could stay in with you, for a lifetime I guess. But I'd also like to take you out, to see people, to go for a delicious dinner, or to soak up art at a gallery. And maybe, someday to take you to the country half of me comes from. All preferably with our little one in a carrier on my back... Am I going too fast? I probably am. I don't want to scare you. I'll probably be quiet and in awe when we finally meet. And I can be funny too. Just contact me. I'll make sure it'll be worth your time.

Manon: Thank you, Mr. Hardenes. And now, sweet, dear Rachel, you know what they say: last may be best! Here is Mr. Klaus-Ove Larsen, the youngest of these gentlemen, someone who might sweep you off your feet in a swirl of magnificent creativity.

(prev)

[boxleitners-return-au]

Becky woke up the next morning leaning against the window with her cape wrapped around her like a blanket. She noticed that while she still felt like she was drowning in oil, it wasn’t as bad as yesterday.

She looked behind her at the doctor, who had seemingly taken her spot on the couch, still fast asleep and snoring in an incredibly undignified manner. She wondered for a second if he was doing it to annoy her, but she quickly put out that thought.

He was her best bet at getting back home and getting back her powers, she had to play nice. Besides he was probably really stressed out too, if that mouse brain was even capable of any emotion besides hunger. 

Home, back to her family, back to her sidekick. She’d been worried sick about him ever since she woke up. When they were knocked out midair Huggy had been thrown in the opposite direction that she had, there was no telling what happened to him. 

She comforted herself by imagining that he got all their family and friends and hid away, perhaps a secret bunker or something. She giggled to herself as the image of her family blissfully misunderstanding a frantic Bob trying to tell them to run with some sort of monkey charades.

Her fantasy was short lived however, because when she looked back out the big window she saw two familiar shapes, creeping hauntingly behind one of the dead trees that littered the warehouse’s lawn. Joy overtook her, her friends had come to save her! Now they could- oh, oh no. She recognized those swirling red eyes. 

Mind control.

(Continues below)

It wasn't because Mr. Big, his whole schtick generally had a green hue. This was something brand new.

That new alien super villain got to them. 

Letting her instincts take over, Becky dove down out of sight from the window. She whisper-yelled at Twobrains to wake up.

“Hey!”

“...”

“HEY”

“Agh! What- what is your problem! Will you stop waking me u-”

She pointed aggressively outside

He followed her finger and froze. She grabbed him by the collar and with some effort managed to pull him to the ground below the window sill with her. She had to take a moment to catch her breath, frustration overtook her as she realized that an action as simple as that was now enough to wind her a bit.

Twobrains’ eyes flickered with anxiety as she tried to even out her breathing, but he shook his head and looked out the window.

“They’re looking for me. They have to be.”

“Oh come on, give me a little credit. I’m sure Amazo is just dying to catch up with me”

“What could he possibly- wait. Amazo Guy? Like- Like in your book?”

“Yeah. Did you seriously not recognize him?”

“No! I mean- he looked familiar, but I thought he- the book guy- was fictional!”

“You think I just made up some dude to feature on the cover of my book? What kind of scientist do you take me for!” “So wait. This was an actual dude that you knew. And now you’re both evil?” 

“Well we don’t know if he’s evil evil-”

“I cannot believe you never mentioned him before!”

“I had! In my book! Which apparently you hadn’t read as thoroughly as you said you had!”

“Yes I did!”

 “Appaaarently not. I’m hurt, Wordgirl, I am.”

“I did so! I read your book so much, I can recite any passage from it, just try me.”

“You expect me to believe you’re that much of a fan?”

“Yes! I am a huge fan! The biggest fan in the world actually!”

Becky crossed her arms with a smug expression before her eyes shot open and she realized what she said. Twobrains was holding back a laugh behind his hand. “Yeah? Yeah really? Yeah tell me how much you love me. I’m your favorite author right?”

Becky’s face went red as she proceeded to sock him in the arm. He flinched in pain despite the lack of super strength.

“Shut up. So you got one hit, big whoop.”

Twobrains patted her shoulder with another laugh. Both of their faces fell and they instantly crowded back against the wall as they heard a twig snap outside.

“Now how are we gonna get out of this?” 

They sat there for a moment before Becky got a sheepish look on her face.

“Well… we could always try plan 208…”

Twobrains groaned. “Is that really the best we got?”

Becky sighed “I think it is doc. Now let's not dilly-dally, we have to get out of here as soon as possible.”

“You did not just say ‘dilly-dally’”

“Would you just get on with it!”

________

Hi! *Taps on mic* Anyone here? So! I disappeared for a little bit but I have an update here if anyone's interested

I want to update more but I have 0 motivation to draw i'll be completely honest, so if I do update it will probably come more in writing form like this, would that be okay?

Anyways here's the next part! The sillies are silly, and Huggy and Rex have been captured >:D

First Part

Previous Part

[moonferry]

new fsioy chapter? and its chapter 13?? i see what u mean..

first of all, thank you guys for being so understanding about me needing to break these up. you guys are literally amazing. i cant thank you enough for that. second of all, this is still not the "big one" ive been forewarning. yes, some things happen, but what im currently cooking is going to be worse than what you read here today.

warnings: rifle/gun use, self defense/killing in self defense, guilt, injury, knives, knife related injury, hospital mention, death/death due to self defense. scarring/scars

word count: 3876

summary: kent adjusts to the rigorous training of the new camp, briefly thinks about jodi, witnesses a demonstration of how to use rifles, and is thrust directly into the nearby territory to "look for resources". kent is attacked and injured, lee steps in to safe him but can't handle the cost.

ao3 link: here

other chapters: chapter master list

The day continued and Kent managed to make it through yet another round of training exercises. When he felt like his body was going to collapse from exhaustion, the general in charge blew a whistle and signaled they would have a short break. Kent was extremely grateful and sprawled out on the grass beneath him. 

He looked at the sky and felt a small wave of homesickness wash over him. He knew that, back in the city, Jodi was looking at the same sky he was. Kent missed Jodi and - because of all the commotion recently - hadn't been able to properly write her a letter. He didn't even know what he would say or what he could say. Talking about Danny made him upset but there wasn't anything else he could think about - other than his own selfishness and guilt, but that eventually tied back into the previous topic. Kent sighed, shaking the idea from his head entirely. 

He watched the clouds and tried to find any distinct shapes. Though, he couldn't help but remember how he had done something similar with Jodi before he left. That thought made his heart ache even more and Kent wondered how long it would be before he could see Jodi again. His Jodi. Well, while he called her that name, it wasn't entirely true. If anything, he was more “her Kent”.  After all, she was the one who had chosen to marry him. She could've had anyone in the entire world, yet she chose to be with him. He didn't quite understand why she chose him - all he knew was that he was grateful she did. He was happy to be her husband, to be “her Kent”. 

Kent looked at the sky once again, though it was soon clouded by a strange shadow blocking his vision. He glanced around confusedly before realizing someone had walked up to him and was now peering down at him from above. 

“What are ya doin’, lad?” Willy called out. He gently nudged Kent with his boot, raising an eyebrow. 

“Cloud gazing,” Kent replied. 

“Why, though?” Willy asked, his confusion growing. 

“I’m not quite sure, actually,” Kent started, furrowing his brows as he tried to think of the reason for his actions. It soon popped into his head and he added, “I think.. I think it's because I miss my wife. She loves the sky, you know? She once told me she wanted to become an astronomer so I guess.. I sort of associate the sky with her.” 

“Ah.. I see,” Willy spoke with a small nod. “I've never been married meself, so I can't relate to that.. But, when you get done fantasizin’ about that lass of yers, I have a job for you,” He explained carefully, giving Kent another encouraging nudge with the toe of his boot. 

Kent pushed himself into a standing position, dusted off the hem of his uniform and followed Willy to a nearby shack. As Willy opened the door, Kent’s eyes widened at the contents. It appeared to be a weapons storeroom, filled to the brim with different rifles and ammunition. Kent gulped. He knew that was obviously a part of his training, but he hadn't imagined he would actually hold one in his hands - or even see one, for that matter. Willy grabbed the nearest one before carefully placing it into Kent’s arms. 

“Follow me. I'll show ya how to use one o’ these, buggers,” Willy instructed. Though he didn't wait on any protest or further comments from Kent before walking away - causing Kent to yelp and speed walk to catch up. When he finally caught up to Willy, he noticed several other cadets - one being Lee. He waved at his friend, though he noticed Lee seemed slightly queasy. 

The demonstration was very quick, yet somehow informative. By watching Willy, Kent was able to glean what was happening. Target practice, he concluded, and some people seemed to be having a tougher time than others. 

“Willy, do I really have to do this?” Lee asked, his voice filling with concern. His face turned slightly green with nausea. Kent knew Lee hated weapons of any kind. He felt sorry for his friend. 

“Aye, lad,” Willy confirmed, giving a small nod. “It's important you learn how to defend yourself.” 

“Besides, you will only use this for self defense, do you understand, son?” 

Lee gave a meek nod in Willy’s direction. He held the rifle securely in his arms, resting the butt against his shoulder before squaring his hips - aligning his feet toward the target. He took a deep breath, felt his finger tightening against the trigger. Kent said a silent prayer to Yoba - hoping Lee didn't accidentally miss and maim himself or Willy - before watching him aim directly at the distant target and release his finger. The gun resounded with a sharp bang and recoiled harshly against his shoulder. Kent gritted his teeth, trying not to wince on Lee’s behalf. He knew that must've hurt. 

Once everyone was properly trained, they were given assignments in what remained of the nearby town. Ideally, they would survey the town, scrounge up anything useful, and then report back to Willy with their findings. But nothing ever went accordingly, did it? No, Kent knew something would go wrong the second he stepped into the outskirts of the dilapidated town. 

He glanced around and tried to note anything that seemed interesting - which was a particularly hard task, since everything was ruined and appeared to be covered in a thick layer of ash. It made him wonder what exactly transpired. He also wondered what happened to all the people. As he kept walking further into the town, he had yet to see a single person (other than his squad mates, that is). It worried him. He knew there were rumors of the Gatoro Empire’s cruelty - how they wiped out entire towns or took civilians hostage. He shuddered just thinking about it. Maybe everyone was successfully evacuated and nothing bad happened? He hoped so, anyway. 

Kent continued his search - yet he still came up empty handed. Nothing seemed useful in this place, so why was Willy making them investigate? More importantly, what would happen if he didn't find anything of value? Kent shuddered once again. He really didn't want to find out, so he kept looking. Kent approached another building and carefully pushed the door open with the edge of his rifle. It edged open slowly and revealed a messy room: tables overturned, dishes broken and the shards of porcelain scattered across the floor, and a small, bare mattress in the corner. 

Kent sighed, assuming he had come upon yet another house that yielded nothing of value. He gave a quick look around anyway and, when he was met with nothing, he turned to exit. However, a small flash of movement appeared in his peripheral vision. Kent stopped in his tracks. The sound of shuffling and clamoring drew him closer to the overturned table. He carefully approached before peering over the edge of the table. 

To Kent’s surprise, he saw a woman - who looked no older than her mid twenties. Her eyes were red and puffy, as if she hadn't slept in several days. Her hair was jet black - long and tangled into knots around the edges. Her clothing was tattered.  Her eyes widened as she looked at Kent, noticing the rifle in his hands. She backed against the wall, afraid. Kent noticed her fear and frowned. 

“I'm not going to hurt you, okay?” Kent spoke calmly. He placed his rifle down, gently kicking it away before raising his hands to show her he was now unarmed. He waited, watching her scrutinize him before attempting to speak again, “I'm here to help you, I promise.”

Kent reached his hand out in an attempt to help the woman up. She grabbed it and moved into a standing position. Unfortunately her eyes flashed crazily and she leapt over the side of the table, tackling Kent in the process. He fell backwards, hitting the ground with a faint “oomph”. The woman hovered over him and unsheathed a small blade. Kent’s eyes widened. 

“Wait- I’m not gonna hurt you!” Kent protested, his voice cracking with fear. But it didn't seem like the woman heard him. The woman lunged and Kent held up his arm to block the blow. The knife slashed through his uniform, cutting into the skin beneath. He let out a groan of pain, gritting his teeth. 

He glanced to his left and looked at his discarded firearm. If only he could reach it. He stuck his uninjured arm out and attempted to grasp the barrel of the rifle. Unfortunately, it was much farther away than he anticipated. He tried to scoot himself closer, wincing as he used his injured arm to propel himself. Kent had almost managed to grab it when the woman struck again. He barely reacted fast enough to shove her weapon away, though it earned him another nasty gash on his forearm. 

Kent attempted to push the woman off of him but her knees dug into his chest. While he was attempting to free himself, the woman lunged once more - landing a nasty blow on the side of his face and sinking the weapon into the tender flesh of the corner of his mouth. He let out a scream of agony as the metallic taste of blood seeped onto his tongue. 

Kent’s scream was quiet, but loud enough to be heard by anyone in the general vicinity. Lee’s ears perked up at the sound and he rushed into the building, nearly knocking the door off its hinges as he forced it open. His eyes widened at the scene. Lee froze as the woman raised her knife once again. Kent attempted to roll out of the way and received another wound - a deep cut across the bridge of his nose. He let out another cry before glancing up and noticing Lee. 

“Lee!” He called out, pleading with his friend to do something. 

Lee’s hands were shaking. He held the rifle in his hands, the tremors nearly causing him to drop it. He looked between the two - his friend, being violently attacked, and a woman whom he didn't know. His mind raced. It was possible Kent had just startled her, she couldn't actually want to harm him, right? His ears rung with the sound of Kent’s pleas for help. Lee thought back on Willy’s words earlier that day. This certainly constitutes “self defense” he reasoned with himself. 

Kent called once again, groaning as the knife struck him once more. Lee hesitated, overtaken by indecision. He couldn't hurt anyone - no, he wouldn't hurt anyone, but if he didn't, he might lose another friend. He also knew that the longer he stood without acting, the worse the situation would become. 

Lee gulped. He felt something overtake him: a battle between two sides of himself, the pacifist and the friend. One half argued he could run away, to leave this situation to someone else, the other half knew that no one else was coming - if anyone was going to fix this, it had to be him. Eventually, one won over the other. He was tired of running away from things. Lee steadied his grip and silently hoped his aim was true. He closed his eyes and fired. 

A figure slumped and the faint clatter of metal was heard as the knife hit the floor. Kent scrambled backwards, pushing the woman off of him as a large red splatter seeped through the fabric of her torn shirt. He winced as he inspected his wounds - all of which were deep gashes that would take a while to heal, if they healed at all. 

Lee glanced at Kent and his breath hitched in his throat. He approached his friend and inspected him. 

“Oh, Yoba... Kent, you're bleeding,” Lee spoke, panic rising in his voice. His eyes widened and he looked around the room nervously. “Um.. I need to get you back. Let the medics look at you. Those look bad.” 

“I'll be fine, Lee,” Kent tried to convince his friend. Though, he winced as he tried to push himself up. His arms were shaking and the sleeves of his uniform were covered in rips. 

Lee frowned and motioned for Kent to stay still. He looked around the room and tried to find any sort of bandages. Lee gasped as his eyes landed on the woman laying on the ground, the pool of red spreading beneath her. 

“Oh.. my Yoba..” Lee exclaimed, his face paling. He suddenly looked as if he was going to vomit. A look of pure distress covered his face. He gripped his chest, hyperventilating as he back up against the wall. He slumped against the wall, sliding down to the floor and tightening his fist against the fabric of his shirt. 

“Did-. did I..? Is she..?” Lee stammered. His breathing sped up and Lee moved his hands to grip the sides of his head. He was rocking back and forth now, his eyes wide in a guilty panic. 

“It's not your fault, Lee,” Kent reassured, reaching a hand out and placing it on Lee’s shoulder. He winced at the movement. Kent was in unimaginable pain, but at least he was alive. All thanks to Lee. “You saved me, man. You did what you had to,” He added. 

Kent attempted to push himself into a standing position to comfort Lee further, though his arms were raw and achy. He didn’t manage to get very far before stumbling and landing back on the ground with a faint thump. Lee noticed the sound and shook himself out of his stupor. He couldn’t waste time feeling guilty, not when Kent was this badly injured. Lee looked at his friend and frowned - Kent was pale and had gashes lining both forearms and two deep cuts across his face. Kent also looked as if he was going to pass out any moment. 

“C’mon, man,” Lee spoke, momentarily pushing his own panic aside. He had more important things to worry about right now. Lee shakily stood up and approached Kent before reaching his hand out and attempting to help him stand. He hesitated, unsure of where to touch that would cause Kent the least amount of pain. Lee carefully wrapped his arms around Kent’s midsection and hoisted him upwards. Kent let out another groan of pain, though he let Lee help him into a standing position. 

“Can you walk by yourself?” Lee asked - his voice ripe with concern. Kent gave a small nod and attempted to take a shaky step forward. Unfortunately, he was still rather dizzy from blood loss and stumbled. Kent slumped against Lee’s side. “Okay.. I’ll take that as a no,” Lee added, a frown once again spreading across his lips. 

Lee exhaled a small breath as he thought about the best course of action. Obviously, he would have to provide some sort of support for Kent, but he couldn’t do that and carry both of their rifles at the same time. Asking Kent to carry something was out of the question, so Lee was limited on options. Eventually, he decided to simply make two trips. That seemed to be the easiest thing to do. With his plan in mind, he rested his hand on the small of Kent’s back - carefully draping Kent’s arm over his shoulder - and carefully guided him back to their camp. Lee glanced around, looking for the medical tent. He and Kent slowly crept towards the entrance of the tent. When they finally reached it, Lee flung open the fabric - accidentally startling one of the poor nurses inside. 

“Oh Yoba,” One the nurses exclaimed as she looked at the state Kent was in. She quickly approached the two boys and motioned for another nurse to clear a nearby cot. “What happened to him?” She asked frantically, his eyes widening with concern. 

“I’m not sure..,” Lee admitted, his brows knitting together. “We were on a mission - scouting for resources - and… and then I heard screaming from a nearby building. I ran in and saw he was getting attacked,” Lee explained carefully. 

The nurse nodded and motioned for Lee to follow her, Kent in tow. Kent was placed onto the edge of the cot. Kent glanced up at the worried faces above him and frowned. It couldn’t be that bad, could it? He felt fine, for the most part, just woozy and every part of him ached. He felt the softness of the padded cot beneath him and sunk into it, letting it cradle his aching body. 

The comfort of sleep compelled him and he began to slowly drift off. The two people above him spoke but it was distant and unintelligible. Kent didn’t feel like listening to them. He just wanted to sleep. To dream. He glanced up once again. This time, instead of the nurse and Lee above him, he saw the smiling face of his wife. Jodi giggled, clamping her hand over her mouth. Kent smiled up at her. Then everything went dark. Kent closed his eyes and finally allowed himself to succumb to the sweet siren call of sleep.

When Kent opened his eyes, he was incredibly confused - and sore. He wasn't aware of how long he'd been out. He could barely remember what happened. All he knew was that he was now covered in bandages and that everything hurt. Kent glanced around the dimly lit tent and tried to remember where he was. As he was doing this, Kent wondered where he friend had gone. He distinctly remembered entering - wherever he was - with Lee, but now the boy was nowhere to be seen. Kent thought it was quite odd. 

He continued to look around. His eyes landed on the slightly open flap at the front of the tent. He notices the silhouette of two people, one flailing their arms angrily. It sounded like some form of argument was going on outside. Kent strained his ears and tried to decipher what was being said. All he managed to catch was bits and pieces. 

“--Ever, and I mean ever, going to touch one of these things again.” 

“Aw, come on, lad, it’s not that bad.” 

“You weren't there. You don't know-” 

“I assure ya, I do.”

“I'm not ever going to touch one of these stupid things again. I don't want to hurt people, self defense or not.” 

With the last sentence, the figure on the left roughly shoved a long, awkwardly shaped object into the hands of the person they were talking to. Afterwards, the left figure stormed off, leaving the figure on the right shaking their head in disbelief. 

“Poor lad.. He's goin’ to get himself killed with that attitude..” The voice grumbled with a small sigh. They began to move, though not in the way Kent assumed. The figure approached the tent and Kent gave a small yelp. He laid back against the pillow and squeezed his eyes shut, pretending to be asleep. Maybe they wouldn't accuse him of eavesdropping? This could actually work! Kent thought silently as the man walked closer. He carefully peaked out of the corner of one of his eyes and noticed Willy pushing the flap of the tent open. 

“Kent, ya can open your eyes,” Willy spoke as he entered the tent. He continued, slight confrontation in his voice, “I know yer awake, son.” Guess not, he thought to himself. 

Kent opened his eyes and looked at Willy. The older man propped himself against the edge of Kent’s cot and leaned over, resting his elbows on his knees and hanging his head. 

“Ye know that friend o’ yers?” Willy spoke. His voice was rather calm, but Kent could tell he was exasperated.

“Lee? What about him?” Kent asked, tilting his head to the side in confusion. 

“You need ta look out fer him,” Willy explained, letting out a long sigh before adding, “do you understand me, lad?” 

“What? Why?” Kent replied. He knew Lee was particular about certain things, but that didn't mean he needed a babysitter. If anything, Lee proved himself far more capable than Kent. Kent couldn't save his friend, but Lee managed to do that. 

“He…” Willy started, pursing his lips as he debated how to say it nicely. 

“He..?” 

Willy took a deep breath and rubbed his sweaty palms against his thighs. He smacked his lips thoughtfully before speaking,  “Look lad, when I say this, I mean it nicely..” 

“Willy, please,” Kent pleaded and attempted to frown, though he winced as the skin around his lips moved. “Just spit it out. I'm sure I'll understand.” 

Willy closed his eyes, hesitating. Kent narrows his eyes in annoyance. Willy exhaled and finally blurted out his point, “I'm worried, about yer friend I mean. He refuses to use the rifles. With behavior like that.. well, I'm not t’ sure he’ll last long.”

“Willy, what exactly are you saying?” Kent asked, furrowing his brows. By the sound of it, Kent almost assumed he was insinuating something awful about Lee. Kent knew he was very sensitive to violence and that he absolutely despised weapons, but Kent didn't see how it could be a problem- it was just a personal preference, after all. 

Willy turned and looked at Kent, his expression turning serious. “I’m sayin’ he's going to get us all killed, Kent.” 

“What?” Kent asked, his voice coating with a mixture of shock and anger. He couldn't believe Willy had just said something like that - about Kent’s friend, nonetheless. His brows furrowed together and his lip quirked slightly to the side - not far, as Kent didn't want to harm himself further.

“Ah..” Willy spoke, realization washing over his features. He grimaced and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Look, son, I didn’t.. mean it like that, y’see? I'm just worried about the poor bugger. I don't want him to get stuck in a situation where he needs to defend himself and he can't.” 

Willy pursed his lips together, thinking. He thought some more before adding, “And - knowing you - you'd risk yer neck to save him. I don't want that to happen. So, please - for the sake of me poor ol’ heart - watch out for your friend. Try to convince him that it's a  necessary precaution.”

Kent raised his eyebrow skeptically. What Willy said did make sense, but Kent wasn't sure it would work. He knew Lee, which meant he also knew just how much something like this meant to him. There were very few things that Lee absolutely refused to do, so Kent knew this one must be of high importance to him. He didn't want to overstep or tell Lee that his preferences were invalid. On the other hand, he had already lost one friend. Kent wasn't sure he could handle losing another. 

He looked back at Willy and nodded. Willy reached over and gave a fatherly pat on Kent’s knee before standing. 

“Now, get yerself some rest. Ya need to take it easy. The nurse said ye lost alotta blood..” Willy spoke as he moved away from Kent's cot. He looked at him and gave a faint smile before adding, “You're going to have some pretty good scars there, lad.”

[darcyfangirlsfrequently]

Oh Baby, Oh Baby - chapter 6: Oh Baby, Oh Baby

Work summary: Penelope discovers she's pregnant with Luke's baby, what will she do?

Chapter summary: You guys figure out why I named this fic what i did

Total word count: 9732

Chapter word count: 1520

Can also be read here on Ao3

Penelope was nervous for the ultrasound that day. They were going to find out the biological sex of their baby. 

“I don’t know why I’m so nervous,” Penelope confessed. “It’s not like I care if they’re a boy or a girl, just as long as they’re healthy.”

“Maybe because the more we learn about them, the more real it all becomes?” Luke suggested.

Penelope smiled. Luke had always been able to do that. See right through all her anxieties to the root of the problem. “Do you always have to make so much sense?”

“One of us has to keep a cool head here.”

Before she had time to come up with a comeback, their names were called. 

“How are you feeling today?” Penelope’s doctor, a kind younger woman called Dr. Layton, asked her as she started prepping for the ultrasound. She had an Aussie accent, and Penelope thought she was the cutest thing ever.

“Nervous,” Penelope confessed.

“I can assure you that is completely normal.”

Luke gently squeezed Penelope’s hand three times, a gentle reassurance.

Once the gel had been applied to Penelope’s slightly protruding belly, Dr. Layton started the ultrasound. Penelope gasped at first, she still wasn’t used to the feeling, but then she sighed when she heard the rhythmic thumping of her baby’s heart. It was her favorite sound in the world.

“Is everything all right?” Luke asked. He’d noticed Dr. Layton’s eyes go wide.

“Yes, yes, everything is completely fine, I’m just double-checking something…” she turned the ultrasound screen to face Luke and Penelope, a wide smile on her face. “Sometimes when they’re smaller it can be hard to see, but it’s loud and clear now. Right there,” she pointed to a vaguely baby-shaped blob on the screen, “is Baby A. Right there,” she gestured to another blob, “is Baby B.”

Penelope’s eyes nearly bulged out of her head. “Baby B? As in, there’s two?”

“Congratulations, Mom and Dad, you’re having twins. And you’re sure you still want to know the genders of the babies?”

Penelope nodded rapidly. “We’re hosting a baby-shower-slash-gender-reveal for our friends and family, so we need to know.”

“All right, sounds good to me. Now let’s see… Baby A is a little girl, and Baby B is, aw, look at that, a baby boy!”

Luke grasped onto Penelope’s hand, positively beaming. “Oh my god, we get one of each! The whole set!”

She beamed right back at him. “I know! We’ll be perfectly balanced! Our perfect little family.”

***

“I still can’t believe it,” Luke said once they were back home. “Twins, a boy and a girl. This is so insane.”

“I know,” Penelope agreed as she continued to mix the cake batter. “It’s a good thing I had already planned on making the gender reveal cake two layers. Imagine the looks on their faces when we cut into it and they see blue and pink.”

“What would we have done if it was two girls or two boys?”

She thought for a second. “I don’t know. Two cakes, maybe? Or a pink and purple layer if it was two girls, or a blue and green layer if it was a boy. But lucky us, we don’t need to worry about that. But we do have to worry about twice the dirty diapers, twice the amount of tears, twice the teething pains…”

“Twice the amount of love,” Luke pointed out.

She smiled at him, grateful. He knew her so well. He knew her tendency to immediately jump to the downsides of a certain situation, and he always knew how to bring her right back around to focusing on the upsides. “Right. Twice the cute little babies to cuddle. Twice the laughs. Ooh, we each might get to be a first word!”

“Imagine if their names were each other’s first words,” Luke mused. “Oh my god, now we have to argue over two names.”

Penelope scoffed. “We don’t argue!”

He looked at her with a raised brow. “Baby. Did you forget the first four years of us knowing each other?”

“Those weren’t real arguments,” she defended. “It was me trying my best not to like you.”

He smirked at her. “How well did that work for you?”

“It’s not my fault you have a pretty face and a heart of gold.”

“You think I’m pretty?”

“We both know I did a very bad job of hiding that towards the end.”

“Mhmm.” He came over and kissed her cheek. “You love my face.”

She smiled softly at him. “I love all of you. Your face is just the prettiest part.”

He kissed her again. “Well, I happen to think you have quite a pretty face too. But seriously, we should probably start thinking about baby names. Do you have any ideas?”

She thought for a moment. “Well, I want to honor my parents if we can.”

“Their names were Barbara and Emilio, right?”

Penelope nodded. “Mhm. Although maybe we should make Barbara the girl’s middle name. I feel like that name’s too old-fashioned now.”

“Sure, that sounds good to me,” Luke agreed. “But I think Emilio works as a first name.”

“Yeah?” 

“Yeah.”

She grinned at him. “See, I told you we don’t argue. We just did half the naming in a minute!”

“But we still need to pick her first name and his middle name,” he pointed out.

“Do you have anyone you want to honor in their names?”

He considered that for a moment. “I don’t know, actually. I mean, my parents are still both alive, and I’m still not very happy with them. But, I mean, Phil, maybe? I don’t know.”

“Maybe as Emilio’s middle name?” Penelope suggested.

Luke tilted his head to the side. “Eh, I don’t know. Emilio Phil Garcia-Alvez doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue very well.” They had already decided to hyphenate their last names for their kids to simplify things, like if one of them had to pick them up from school one day, neither one of them would have to worry about not having a matching last name. 

“Hmm, you’re right. What about Philip? Emilio Philip Garcia-Alvez sounds a lot better.”

Luke’s whole face lit up. “Yes. I like that one. So, what about her first name?”

Penelope faltered. “I literally have no ideas.”

“Me neither.”

“Okay then, here’s what we’re gonna do: I’m gonna finish making the cake for the party tonight, we’re going to get ourselves ready, and then we’re going to look at all the name ‘prediction’ sheets that people fill out, and decide if we like any of them. Deal?”

“Deal.”

***

The baby-shower-slash-gender-reveal party was a smashing success, as any party hosted by Penelope Garcia was. Plus, she and Luke already had experience hosting baby showers, since they’d done it for Matt and Kristy. 

Gifts had been opened, snacks had been eaten, and it was at last time for the cutting of the cake. Penelope had iced it in a pristine white frosting, and it looked beautiful. She couldn’t wait to cut into it.

Luke was standing right behind Penelope, his hands on her waist and stomach as she held the knife.

“You ready?” Luke whispered in her ear. 

“Mhm.” Slowly, carefully, Penelope cut a slice of the cake and lifted it up, revealing one blue layer and one pink layer.

JJ was the one to break the silence. “Wait… what?”

Penelope beamed at her friends. “It’s twins.”

And the crowd went wild.

Everyone was hugging everyone, and people were all talking over each other so no one could really understand what everyone was saying. Eventually, one question rang clear through the chaos. “So, what are their names going to be?”

“Oh no,” Penelope laughed. “You guys find that out when they’re born.”

*** 

That night, they were going through all the name predictions and suggestions people had given them, but they couldn’t find anything they were really attached to.

“What about Morgan?” Luke suggested.

Penelope looked at him over the rim of her glasses. “Excuse me?”

He showed her the paper he was holding. “I’m positive that Derek put this in here as a joke, but I actually really like it. Plus then, their names would have a theme. We have Emilio Philip, so, your parent and my best friend, and then we’d have Morgan Barbara, your parent and your best friend.”

“But then I’d get three names and you’d only get one,” she pointed out.

“And? You’re the one doing all the hard work. You get more naming privileges than I do.”

“Okay, but we’re a partnership, we make these decisions together.”

“Do you not like the name?”

“No, I do, I just don’t want to agree on something and have you end up regretting it and not liking our daughter’s name.”

He reached over and held one of her hands. “I’d love whatever her name was because she’s our daughter.”

Penelope considered it for a moment. “It is a really cute name.”

Luke smiled. “It is.”

“Okay. I like it. Let’s do it.”

“Yeah?”

She nodded. “Yeah. Morgan and Emilio. I love it. I love them.”

“I love them too.”