#the year is 2023 now (happy New Year's everyone!) and I will continue to be as obnoxious a TPATH fan as I previously was. perhaps more so

[musicrunsthroughmysoul]

I love during that interview when Stan is talking about playing piano/keyboard on a song (or songs, plural? I forget now, sorry) and he's like "Whenever I can even get in the area code of Benmont Tench, I'm happy" like UDEFHUILSHFSHFHUSF the mutual respect of my favorite bands' band members is and will always be my favorite thing. :')

[motorsportbarbie13]

What's A Soulmate? Part 3

In which your best friend comes back to you. But is it too late?

Warnings: oof the angst. swearing. that's it. Pairing: Lando Norris X SainzSister!Reader Word Count: 2.5k words

(a/n: this is how i cope after that hot mess of a race today. i hate everything and everyone except for my pookie bear lando norris)

- What's A Soulmate? - Part 1 - What's A Soulmate? - Part 2 - What's A Soulmate? - Part 2.5 - Master List

2021 You keep your promises. 

2022  And then he started dating her. 

2023 Silence.

March, 2024Australia 

“We are so excited to have you join the team.” Your new boss beams back at you as you follow her through the corridor. “Thank you for making the flight at such short notice. Had we known Summer was going to quit so abruptly, we would have had you come out with the team earlier in the week.” 

You nod, adjusting the collar of your new papaya and black polo. “Of course, I’m just happy it all worked out.” 

The heat of the Australian sun beats down outside the McLaren hospitality building, but inside the air is cool and dry. You’d landed in the country last night after what felt like the longest flight you’ve ever taken from New York into Melbourne but were so happy to be back in the paddock after what felt like ages. 

“Like we discussed earlier in the month, you’ll be working with Oscar as his primary press officer. I’m sure you know what that entails and everything, not much has changed since Carlos was with the team, but if you have any questions you have my number.” Brenda smiles down at you as she hands you your new McLaren issued iPhone.  

Three weeks ago, you had graduated from NYU with a double degree in public relations and business management. One week later, you had accepted a job offer from McLaren to join the communications team working with Oscar. Between your dual degree and experience working in the paddock with your brother, the job had been a slam dunk for you.

“The boys are just finishing up some filming up stairs. Let’s go up and introduce you to Oscar. You already know Lando.” She says, with a bit of a smile. Your friendship with the Brit was well known back during the years you were still working with Carlos. No one knew how much it had changed since though. 

Nerves fluttered around in your stomach as you follow Brenda up to the second floor where you could hear Oscar and Lando loudly laughing at something. As far as you knew, Lando was unaware that you had taken a job with McLaren. You had asked Carlos and Charles to keep your new job quiet around the paddock, not wanting to create drama before it was necessary. This was certainly going to be a shock, you knew that. 

The last time you saw him flashes through your memory, quick and painful, as Brenda approaches where Oscar and Lando stand each holding dry erase boards. 

Early 2022

“What do you mean she doesn’t want me around?” You nearly laugh, the absurdity of what your best friend is telling you not fully computing. 

Lando grips the back of his neck, eyes looking everywhere but at you. “Our friendship makes her uncomfortable.” 

Now you really do laugh. “What friendship, Lan? I’ve barely seen you this year!” 

It was the truth. Ever since you had started classes in New York last year, your time to see your best friend had dwindled down into nearly nothing. You went to as many races as you could but going from spending nearly 24/7 with your brother and Lando to barely seeing them once every few months was more painful than you had anticipated. It hurt so much to watch him continue on, seemingly so unbothered by losing you, but this? This was the last straw. 

He had been dating the Portuguese model for a bit now and you had to admit, she was pretty and wonderfully nice. You truly had no issue with her, having met her once at a Grand Prix you had attended before classes had started this year. She was quiet, sweet, and obviously adored Lando so her being with him was fine with you. You wanted to see your best friend happy. But now? Now she was threatened by someone who wasn’t even a second thought in Lando’s head? 

You had spent the last few months desperately trying to believe that Lando wasn’t pulling away, that he wasn’t purposefully putting distance between you and him. Texts would go unanswered, calls went unreturned. You had chalked it up to him being busy and adjusting to having a new teammate but now you guess you had the truth: he was avoiding you. 

“If that’s what you want, I’ll respect your wishes.” You murmur, taking a step away, suddenly wanting nothing more than to retreat back into the Ferrari motorhome where you could nurse your embarrassment in peace. 

“It’s not…” Lando fumbles, but you know what he’s about to say isn’t true. This is exactly what he wants. 

“No, I get it Lan. She’s threatened by me. I respect that and I’ll make myself scarce this weekend. You and her won’t have to worry about me anymore.” 

The pain of your words slices through Lando. He hadn’t wanted to do this, far from it. But the fight that she had started last night when she had seen you in the pit lane laughing with Carlos and Charles had put him in a tight spot. You were his best friend, but she was his girlfriend. He owed her the respect, right? Even if he knew that nothing was going on, nothing could happen. It wasn’t in the cards for the two of you. 

“I’m sorry.” He says. 

“Me too, Lan.

You blink rapidly, erasing the painful memory from your brain as your boss steps towards Oscar and Lando, who are watching you approach. The look on Lando’s face sends your pulse skyrocketing. It’s a look that’s somewhere between surprise, confusion, and maybe even a bit of betrayal and you hate every bit of it. 

“Oscar, I wanted to introduce you to your new press officer. She just landed last night so I’m sure she’s a bit jet lagged but she insisted on getting to work straight away. She’ll be taking you around for media duties after FP2 today so be nice, okay?” 

“I’m always nice.” The Aussie says, soft smile on his lips. “It’s nice to meet you. Lando talks about you all the time.” 

Your eyes dart towards Lando, who is still somewhat glaring at you like he can’t believe you’re in front of him. He talks about you? Still? Your stomach does an involuntary somersault at this bit of information, blush creeping its way high up on your cheek bones. 

The phone in your hand chimes with a reminder. Oscar is due to an Australian media outlet in ten minutes for an interview. “Well, that’s my cue.” You turn to the girl that had been filming the segment with a friendly smile. “Is he good to go?” 

“He’s all yours!” 

With permission to leave, you turn on your heel and walk towards the staircase, Oscar in tow. Lando watches after you, still struggling to process what just happened. You worked for McLaren now? As Oscar’s press officer? He had just played padel with Carlos this fucking morning and he hadn’t said a single word about this. Surly Carlos had known about your taking the job so why hadn’t he told him? Did you not want him to know? Did you hate him so much that you didn’t even care if he knew or not? How had the most important person in his life become someone he just used to know once? 

That last fight before he…said some of the the most shameful thing he’s ever said flashes through his mind as he wanders down to his drivers room, suddenly needing a break. 

“You literally never shut up about her. ‘She does this.’ And ‘she does that’. Jesus Christ, Lando you could not be more obvious about it.” The anger in her voice had set his teeth on edge. “And now I have to sit and watch the, what did they call you guys? The Chaos Gremlins? Now I have to sit and watch The Chaos Gremlins be reunited for the entire fucking weekend and just sit back and take it?” 

“There is nothing going on between us.” Lando insists, running his hands through his curls. “I haven’t seen her in months. Months!” 

“But there would be if she was here, right?” 

He had no answer for her. Because she was probably right in her assumption. If you had stayed, Lando had no idea what would’ve happened. 

“It’s her or me, Lando.” 

The rest of the day passes in what feels like the blink of an eye. By the time Oscar is done with all of his interviews at the end of the evening, you feel dead on your feet. You’ve lost all sense of time, feeling like you’ve been hit with a truck and you want nothing more than to get back to your hotel room and sleep for the next 5 to 10 business days. Or the last free practice tomorrow afternoon. 

The Uber to the hotel takes far too long but just as your eyes are about to shutter closed in the back seat, you arrive and drag your near lifeless body up to your room. A quick shower is all you have the energy for, desperately needing to get the germs of the day off and then, you’re in bed, blissfully tucked between soft white cotton sheets watching some weird Australian soap opera. 

Your eyes are heavy when the alert dings and you nearly ignore it, assuming it’s Carlos checking in. He could wait until you saw him tomorrow. But a quick glance shows you it isn’t Carlos. 

You don’t fully understand why you gave him your room number. Not when the only thing on your mind is going to sleep. This is probably a really bad time to have such an important conversation too but a part of you, that part of you that never stopped hoping that maybe one day your best friend would come back to you, that part of you wanted to get this out of the way so you could move on, with or without him. 

Ten minutes later, there’s a soft knock on the door and you haul yourself out of bed, still bone numbingly tired but also strangely keyed up with nervous energy. This would be the first time you had really spoken to Lando since that night two years ago. Sure, you two had exchanged pleasantries when you found yourself in the paddock for a race weekend but most of the time you kept to yourself in the Ferrari garage and motorhome, making sure your presence wasn’t noticed by anyone outside of your brother and Charles. 

Tugging on your favorite NYU crewneck, you pad towards the door while willing your racing heart beat to slow. This is fine. This is going to be okay. You two needed to talk if you were going to be working closely this year so this had to happen sooner or later. 

The door swings open and Lando stands in front of you looking just as exhausted and devastated as you feel. 

“Hi.” He breathes, hands wringing together. 

“Hi Lan.” You sigh. 

His smile widens at the nickname and you open the door a bit wider to allow him in. You cross the room, settling on the king size bed before staring up at him. “You wanted to talk?” 

The pain in his eyes cuts such a deep slice through you, it’s a wonder you don’t start bleeding out on the bedspread. 

“Why didn’t you tell me you were coming back?” He crosses the room towards you, setting every nerve ending in your body firing. He’s too close and you can’t control yourself when he’s like this. 

You shrug, wondering how you’re still able to hold yourself together at this point. “I didn’t think you’d care.” 

Lando drops his gaze away from you then, shame and anger surging across his handsome features. “Of course I’d care.” 

“You didn’t when you chose her over me.” 

He drags a hand over his face, the look of misery that sits on his face is reminiscent of the night you told him you were moving to New York City all those years ago. The memory brings a surge of white hot pain that cuts you so deeply it steals the breath from your lungs. If you had known that this was where you’d end up, you didn’t know if you would have made the same decision. 

“And listen, that was fine, I guess. You had to respect your relationship with her but the most confusing thing was afterwards. Why the radio silence after?” You fold your hands into your lap, unable to meet the gaze that you feel so heavy on your skin. He’s practically begging you to look at him but you simply can’t. 

“I was ashamed.” He admits and you feel the tears prick at the back of your eyes, a hot and painful sting that reminds you of how much you’ve lost. “I was ashamed at how I treated you and couldn’t face it.” 

“Rightfully so.” You mutter, rolling your eyes.

“I’m sorry.” He murmurs while reaching for your hand. “I’m so sorry for how I treated you. I should have told her to fuck off for making me choose between her and you. I should have chosen my best friend and I’ve regretted that decision every day of my life since.” 

The fact that you’re finally hearing the words you’ve been dreaming of hearing for nearly two years hits you like a ton of bricks. Here he was, your best friend, finally apologizing and owning up to his mistakes and for some reason, it felt like it was all just too little too late. How many nights had you stayed up, sobbing on your living room couch with your roommates over the stupid boy who was mean to you? Wondering what you had done to make him treat you like this? Hadn’t your friendship meant more than what it had ended up being? 

And now, here you were, back in his orbit again and it just…didn’t matter. You had spent so many nights wishing this would come and now that he was finally taking responsibility and owning up to his actions, it just didn’t feel like it was enough. 

“I think you should go.” 

“What?” He stutters, fingers gripping yours almost desperately. 

“I am exhausted and need some time to process this Lando. And you have quali tomorrow, you need to be focusing on racing, not on our issues.” 

“I don’t give a fuck about racing.” He bites out, blue eyes turning stormy gray with anger. “I want to fix this.” 

“This isn’t something that can be fixed with a single conversation.” 

You didn’t even know if it could be fixed at all, if you were being honest with yourself. 

“Then I’ll keep going until it is fixed, I promise.” 

“Don’t make promises you don’t intend to keep, Lando.” You warn, rising from the bed. “I need to get some sleep, okay? I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

Lando feels like his heart is being ripped from his chest. He had never intended for your friendship to end up like this. It just…slipped away from him and he was so swept away by his lifestyle the last year that he convinced himself you were both better off where you were instead of together like the universe intended. He had been so scared to admit how wrong he had been, choosing her over you that night that he had allowed it to spiral so out of control it might never come back to him. You might never come back to him. 

Tag List: @anilovessadbooks, @shelbyteller, @formulaal, @martygraciesversion381, @longhairkoo, @samantha-chicago, @stelena-klayley @dark-night-sky-99 @luckylampzonkland, @chlmtfilms , @inarabee @aykxz98 @forensicheart @cheer-bear-go-vroom @charlesgirl16 @lieutenantchaos @willowsnook @sltwins @linnygirl09 @powerfulmess @technicallypleasanttree @meglouise00

[arabellaawrites]

infrunami | cl16

[ drabble ]

by which, she loved him too early, he loved her too late

pairing: charles leclerc x reader

warnings: none

a/n: hello everyone! this is my first fic ever and I'm so happy with how this turned out! I hope it was an enjoyable experience and I hope there wasn't any element that was unpleasant or unenjoyable for yall! I'm aware that it lacks dialogue and everything is past paced and doesn't have much room for detail! I swear I'm working on that and once I've perfected that art, I hope my writing will be more enchanted etc! alright enough yapping. enjoy the fic!

back then, you and arthur hated watching charles kart. the idea that you both needed to sit under the scorching monegasque sun for afew hours was never exciting but at least you get to watch arthur’s older brother, charles, kart. you’ve always fancied charles ever since arthur introduced you to him at the playground.

he was 3 years older then you and was the exact opposite of arthur, he was matured, well mannered and wasn't childish like you both were. that's what you love so much about him.

until he started going around europe to join racing series, when Arthur broke the news to you, you acted like it wasn't a big deal. you'll still get to see him on the television or during family holidays, right?. but that also means you'll be seeing him once a week or every few months, eventually a week turned into a month, a month turned into a year until suddenly you wont be seeing him at all which broke heart.

soon it was arthur who left you to follow in charles footsteps, racing across europe, joining f4 and achieving great things. unlike Charles, Arthur still kept in contact with you, constantly inviting you to his races and you both still enjoyed each others company, f4 soon turned into f3 and nothing has changed you still admired Charles from afar and Arthur would constantly ask "do you still have a crush on Charles?" or the occasional "y/n you have to let go" but you never did, Charles was your first love and you wanted him and only him.

every night you sleep in bed, tossing and turning, with arthurs voice continuously replaying in your head, but he was right you do have to let go.

when Charles first debuted for formula 1 for haas was when he first reached out to you in years with no contact. inviting you to join the paddock, to see him race in the pinnacle of motorsport, you were above and beyond the moon. strutting down the paddock next to Pascale and Arthur towards the hospitaly while also trying not to pay focus on the ever lasting sounds of camera shutters and kept your composure.

it has been years since then now Charles was in his 6 years in formula 1 and you have never been prouder, seeing him through his ups and down, supporting him through out all the hardships that this sport had caused him.

you often found yourself in and out of college trying to balance study with the constant travel to different races to support your best boys, Arthur and Charles. which alway lead you to end up in his, Charles, driver room before a race reassuring that he'll be fine and his team wont let him down again.

"your the best, y/n" he smiles before suiting up, making you stunned in place with a subtle blush spread across your face as you took his compliment.

barcelona 2023, and you just arrived at the Ferrari hospitality per usual, greeting the staff and Ferrari mechanics as your make your way inside until you bumped into someone making you tumble back as the mysterious man reaches for your waist, holding you steady, you smiled at him and apologized which made him smile back and that's where thing took off.

ever since that day you took has been seeing each other non stop and with that it ruined you and Charles relationship, plans were often cancelled, phone calls were usually ignored and text messages were left unopened. this took a toll on Charles, he's new profound feelings for you was too strong and by the time he realized that he has fallen, it was too late.

"mate please!"

Charles begged to Arthur over the phone, trying to figure out what his feelings were and was trying to piece in the clues in himself. he was frustrated, angry and confused he loved you but it was too late.

while you were living your best life, you had a partner in bed, your home always had that comfortable warm presence of your new boyfriend everything felt perfect, he was everything you ever wanted.

he was also everything Charles ever wanted to be, your man.

until one rainy Tuesday afternoon where everything went downhill, you just came home from them store and was welcome home by the repetitive sound of feminine moans that rang threw out the house. your groceries dropped to the floor followed by the sound of glass in your bag smashing which made the moans stop and your boyfriend ran out to where you were standing. "please I can explain this-" he frantically said while holding on to you as you tried to push him away, "I-ive heard enough! just leave and get your stuff while your at it!" tears swell your eyes as you tried to swallow the horrid sensation in your throat and pushed him away before running back into the rain and in your car. you broke down in heavy tears, your heart ache with hurt and sorrow as you try to make way to Charles place.

"y/n- who did this to you..?"

Charles said as he watches you stand in the rain, mascara running down your face and your clothes all soaking wet, without hesitation he pulled you inside and wrapped a towel around you,

" he cheated on me! how could he-"

you sobs onto him, "he was my-" hiccups "he was my everything and he just!"

you weeped into his chest as he held you tight and tried to calm you down. eventually you stopped crying and lifted your head from his chest

"cha.." you called out to him as he stroked your head and then looking down on you.

"know that I've-" you were cut off "yes I've known...I was an idiot, y/n...I realized too late. I really did love you...I was.." he sighed and looked down at her, "give me another chance, y/n.."

[goldsainz]

❝ ALL I NEED IS YOU ❞

MASTERLIST!

pairing . . . lewis hamilton x reader

◦∘｡ﾟ. request . . . “could you do slut! for Lewis? and maybe a combination of angst and fluff?”

◦∘｡ﾟ. summary . . . fans hate you for dating their favourite driver, but it all might just be worth it for once.

◦∘｡ﾟ. note . . . I’M BACK WITH THE FICS!! i’m not quite sure why i had a creative drought, but i’m glad i’m out of it🙏 alsooo, hope you guys liked the new theme bc i brainstormed for hours about it and i’m actually really liking it

liked by ynfan1, lewisfan1 and 85,326 others

f1gossip Once again, Y/N Y/L/N is back in the paddock! The unofficial but official girlfriend of Lewis Hamilton has now been present for all of the triple-header and fans have noticed! Now, many aren’t happy that their beloved F1 Superstar is entangled with the model because of her dating tendencies. Will she be at the Las Vegas Grand Prix? Let us know your thoughts! 👀

view all 1,279 comments

lewisfan2 need her far far away from my man

lewisfan3 sick and tired of seeing her appear on my screen🙄

ynfan2 don’t know who this lewis guy is but i’m loving all the y/n content we’re getting!!!

⤷ lewisfan4 and thank god you know nothing of the sport. we don’t want any of her fans ruining it.

lewisfan5 unpopular opinion: i actually like her and lewis together🤷‍♀️

ynfan3 i hope she continues dating lewis just to piss you guys off

ynfan4 SHE LOOKS SO GOOOOOOD

lewisfan6 🤮🤮🤮

lewisfan7 bye not her taking a photo in front of his car

⤷ ynfan5 she’s his gf? why wouldn’t she do that?

⤷ lewisfan7 it’s giving attention wh0re

⤷ ynfan5 or (and hear me out) she’s just a supportive gf!!

lewishamilton and yourusername posted an instagram story!

liked by lewishamilton, rosalia.vt and 2,018,376 others

yourusername brasil, eu te amo

view all 30,275 comments

ynfan21 mother is mothering

lewisfan21 STAY AWAY FROM HIM! GET A JOB!

ynfan22 they’re actually so cute

adrianalima Bonitos! 💜

liked by yourusername and 65,274others

lewisfan22 girl, that caption is not for brasil😭

lewisfan23 sick and tired of her appearing in my feed

lewisfan24 can’t wait until lewis leave you!!!!!!

user21 since when are they dating?

⤷ ynfan23 it’s really unclear, but everyone points to this year’s silverstone gp when she went as a mercedes guest!

⤷ user21 and people are still hating on her???

⤷ ynfan23 yeah lmao

lewisfan25 mama y papa

lewisfan26 crazy how just a couple mints ago she was supposedly dating tom brady and now she’s “in love” with lewis… such a slut

⤷ ynfan24 you literally don’t know her. stop insulting people you don’t know.

ynfan25 mourning the loss of my wife rn 💔

liked by lewishamilton, carmenmmundt and 2,537,104 others

yourusername it’s raw, it’s real and it’s here!

this interview is extensive, but interviewer was so polite and just the perfect person to be interviewed by, to have my voice told by.

my vogue article will be yours too on the 22nd of november.

comments are turned off

liked by yourusername, alex_albon and 2,075,138 others

lewishamilton FIA Gala, 2023

view all 31,127 comments

yourusername an honour to be by your side 💜

⤷ lewishamilton The honour is all mine 💜

lewisfan41 THIS SHIT IS SO CUTE OML

lewisfan42 did not expect the hard launch, sir hamilton

roscoelovescoco I love’s my mum’s

liked by yourusername, lewishamilton and 201,849 others

ynfan41 my heart literally flew out of my chest when i saw that they were together at the gala

mercedesamgf1 Our second Mercedes royal couple 👑

liked by lewishamilton, yourusername and 174,052 others

lewisfan43 bro you didn’t take the prize home😭

⤷ lewisfan44 he already has the biggest prize with him

⤷ ynfan42 lewis fans got poetic all of a sudden

⤷ ynfan43 lewis fans stopped hating on y/n all of a sudden*

lewifan45 if he’s happy, i’m happy

sebastianvettel Congratulations! Finally the secret is out 😁

⤷ lewishamilton Thank you 🙌

ynfan44 need them both desperately!!!!!

ynfan45 i just know wag pages are having a field day

translations:

— brasil, eu te amo — brazil, i love you — bonitos — beauties

-ˋˏ *.· taglist . . . @lorarri @lpab @noncannonships @lunnnix @elliegrey2803 @schumacheer @saintslewis @leoramage @toomuchdelusion @anthonykatebridgerton @enhacolor @gulabjamoon @toomuchdelusion @goldenalbon @ravisinghs-wife @racingtrail @hobiismyhopeu @celestialpato @lecsainz @kkeels

[cissyenthusiast010155]

hihi

could i request prompt 37 with Larissa x

We Want Who We Want ~Larissa Weems xFem CollegeAge!Reader ~Holiday Bingo

Hi hi anon! Happy Holidays!!! Thank you for the request. I always love getting and writing them! This is my second Holiday Bingo for the 2023 season. This one is with the regal and elegant Larissa Weems. Enjoy! ❄️💋

Previous Bingo <—found here!

Holiday Bingo <—Here!!

Mommy… Master List

Requests & Prompt-List

Prompt- Sky Resort/Winter Cabin

#37. Best Friend’s Mom troupe

Warnings: NSFW, 18+!!!, smut, age gap (all legal), mommy kink, kissing, grinding, fingering, thigh grinding, strap-on use, strap-fucking, multiple positions, teasing, semi-pda, flustering, light power play, light taunting, light overstimulation, implied future smut, implied eating out, etc.

Enjoy (;

“Thank you for having me, Mrs. Weems.”

You thanked the mom of your best friend as you got into the Weems’ car. They had invited you to their ski resort/winter cabin. You had been best friends with their daughter since grade school, and now you were both in college. You had been close to the whole family really, having been raised in the same neighborhood.

“Please Darling, call me Larissa.” Mrs. Weems insisted with her hypnotizing voice and her familiar smile.

Jesus… You had forgotten how much you enjoyed Mrs. Weems’ voice…

You blushed lightly and nodded.

“Of course, Larissa” you said, purposefully accentuating her name.

It was your first time seeing the Weems’ family since you went off to college last year. And so when they had found out that you were in town for winter break, the who family immediately invited you to come with to their winter resort.

And how could you refuse?

And so here you were, sitting in between your childhood bestie and her younger brother, in the back seat of Mrs. Weems’ white Volvo. The drive was a good ways away, as you were driving from Vermont to Whistler. But you didn’t mind.

The drive went by in a flash, and soon the car pulled up at the ski cabin. The time had flown by as you caught up with your bestie and her family. You talked about your college, she talked about hers, her brother talked sparsely about his school, Mr. Weems spoke a bit about his work, but by far the most capturing speaker was Mrs. Weems. Every time she spoke, the hours seemed to turn into minutes. You could listen to that woman talk for ages. And you happily egged her on to continue talking for majority of the drive. But like most things, they enjoyment seemed to fly by and come to an end.

“We are here…!!” Mrs. Weems exclaimed in an almost song-like expression, making you swoon lightly at her voice once more.

Everyone piled out of the car, and Mr. Weems immediately recruited your bestie’s brother to help him shovel the snow out of the driveway. Mrs. Weems Larissa delegated your best friend to grab the food stuffs and put it away in the kitchen.

“That leaves us, Darling. Would you mind helping me with the baggage…?” Larissa hummed in her low and musical tone.

These pet names tugged at your core far more than you remember them doing…

“I… of course, Mrs. Weems…!” You squeaked, a little intimidated by being alone with the tall blonde.

Larissa looked back at your and cocked her eyebrow at your expectantly.

“Oh Larissa-shit-Sorry right—!!” You exclaimed, your face getting red in embarrassment.

The woman’s eyes sparkled in a way that was new to you. She seemed amused… More than usual. She immediately smiled back at you when you corrected yourself.

“No worries, Dear.”

You blushed even more at the pet name, as you helped your best friend’s mom with the baggage. As you carried the luggage inside, your mouth dropped at the expansive and marvelous nature of the cabin.

This wasn’t a cabin… This was a fucking ski mansion.

Larissa chuckled lightly at your reaction.

“Let me show you around, Darling…” she hummed.

As you dropped off the baggage in each room, Larissa showed you the layout. The center of their ski resort was the common areas— kitchen, dining room, storage, living room, terrace, etc… Mr. Weems had the Northwest Wing, —This place had fucking wings—!!— The brother had the Southwest wing, and your bestie was in the Southeast wing. You dropped everyone’s bags off in each of their corresponding wings and rooms. Lastly, the Northeast wing was Larissa’s.

“The guest room that you will be staying in the Northeast wing right across from my private quarters.” Larissa informed you with a hum.

There was that sparkle in the woman’s eyes again…

“Thank you, Larissa…” you hummed right back.

Who were you to complain about being so close to such a goddess..??

You bit your lip lightly, as the woman smirked and opened your door, showing you into your room. Your eyes widened at the luxurious nature of the room, just as wealthy as the others… You placed your bags in the massive room.

And turned back to the woman. She seemed continually amused at your shock. Your gazes locked and your eyes gazed into Larissa’s for the moment. No words were spoken. You swore you caught the woman lick her lips, but part of you also swore that you imagined it. Neither of you backed down from the challenge of each other’s gaze.

Before you could think of it anymore, Suddenly you both heard Mr. Weems calling for everyone from the common space. The trance was broken and Larissa immediately swiveled towards the corridor and indicated for you to follow her back to the living room space.

You both met with the rest of the family in the living room, where Mr. Weems announced that he would be taking the children skying. He asked if you would be join them.

But before you could say anything, Larissa placed her hand on your waist and elegantly pulled you closer to her warm body. Your breathed hitched lightly at the physical closeness of the two of you. Your eyes widened and you looked to the side and up to the tall mother in anticipation.

“Actually, I will be needing her help in preparing for our holiday dinner. Plus, my Darling, I believe you don’t ski, isn’t that right…?” Larissa purred.

Her tone sounded… possessive…??

Now all eyes were on you. You gulped and locked eyes with Larissa, whose eye shored through your soul. All you could do was shake your head. She was still holding onto your waist. Your blush darkened.

“Excellent. Then it’s decided.” She exclaimed in her hypnotic tone, “You three go skying, while we prepare dinner.”

At the agreement of the rest of the family, Larissa let go of your waist. You could feel her hand burning into your clothes skin, and with that feeling suddenly gone, you instinctually let out a small whimper.

You desperately hoped that no one had caught it, and no one seemed to as no words about it were said. Mr. Weems and his children were busy running around to get their ski gear, as you just stood there frozen.

What has just happened…??

Suddenly you felt a hand against your back. You shivered through your entire body and looked up at Larissa as she guided you to the kitchen. She looks down at you with a knowing, darker smile. Before you knew it, the rest of the family had run out and left to hit the slopes before dark, leaving you alone with your mother’s best friend.

For the next few hours, Larissa had you complete menial tasks. Things such as dicing, mixing, chopping, and other cooking tasks. This wasn’t the problem.

The problem was the amount that this woman was affecting you… She was full on teasing and flirting with you. And it was fucking working.

All the pet names that she used… “Darling, would you be a doll and grab the tomato paste…?”, “That’s perfect, love. Just like that.”, “Oh Sweetheart, are you too short to reach that…?”

All the lingering touches on you… Her fingers lightly grazing across yours, Her hands squeezing your waist, her fingers tapping and running along your neck, her hands lightly massaging and lingering on your shoulders…

All the compliments she paid you unconditionally… “You look good in that, Darling…”, “You’re a natural, Love.”, “Such a good little sous-chef…”

It made you realize how much you like Larissa. And not just liked. But like like liked. The kind of like where by the time the family returned, you were day dreaming about the woman taking you against the counter… whispering filth in your ear… and making you forget everything but her.

But to be fair, you weren’t exactly being nice and fair to her either. You may have bent down a couple times in front of her after having “accidentally” dropped something… and you had no trouble purring out her name in every sentence you formed…

Then dinner came around, and you all sat down to eat. But Larissa didn’t relent. Sure, she was verbally less forward about her intentions, so that her family wouldn’t catch on. But her intentions were just as clear.

During dinner, Larissa had chosen to sit across from you. Throughout the meal, you felt her heeled foot graze up your leg, causing goosebumps to erupt all over your skin. You took deep breaths as your breathing threatened to become labored the higher up her heel dragged up your legs.

She gave your daggers stares every once in a while, and the woman wore a mischievous smirk the entire meal. You swore you’d get her back…

Finally, dinner ended and everyone began to retreat to their rooms. Larissa snagged you once more to help her clean up the dishes. As you were washing the dirty dishes, the woman came up behind you, placing her lips on the shell of your ear.

“Meet me in my room once you’ve changed and are ready for bed…” She huskily whispered.

Shivers went through your spine and directly to your core. You nodded and didn’t say another word. Once the dishes were done, you raced to your room. You quickly stripped your clothes and hoped in the shower, desperate to wash off all the embarrassment and blush from your frame. After your shower, you went to put on your pajamas. On your bed when you returned from the shower, you found a set of silk pjs, a button down shirt and a pair of shorts. Along with the set, there was a note.

Wear these. Only these. ~Larissa <3

You gulped and nodded instinctively. You put on the pj set, and left your room, quietly creeping across the hall to Larissa’s room.

You knocked lightly, and the tall woman answered the door. She smiled lightly and opened the door slightly for you to slip in. She closed the door behind you.

“Have a seat, Darling.” She purred with a warm smile, indicating to the edge of the bed, “That set looks marvelous on you.”

“Thank you, Larissa…” you purred right back.

You sat on the edge of the bed, finally getting the courage to look at the woman. Your eyes widened as you saw Larissa. Her pinned back hair was completely unpinned, her blonde curls bouncing freely. She was wrapped up in a thin silver, silk coverup, that accentuated her curves perfectly. She still had somw makeup on, just her lipstick as far as you could tell. Her red, luscious lips… Your mouth went dry and you couldn’t help but stare.

“Cat got your tongue…?” Larissa teased, as she continued to elegantly stand right in your line of sight.

You gulped and blushed even more.

“I—Larissa. You look… really good…” you breathed out, your face tomato red with blush.

Larissa smirked and began to stalk slowly toward you. She stopped right in front of the edge of the bed. Her fingers delicate yet firm moved to cup your face, caressing your cheek. You instinctually leaned into the woman’s touch, closing your eyes and humming lightly in delight.

“I like my name on your tongue…”

Your eyes shot open at Larissa’s words. You gulped and looked up at her gaze. Her eyes were dark and shimmering like they were all day.

“I like it too…” you whispered in confession.

Larissa then leaned into your personal space, bringing her hot breath against your neck.

“Tell me if you want to stop, and I’ll stop, no questions asked, alright Darling…?” She breathed out.

“Yes. Don’t stop—” you let out in a gasp.

As soon as those words left your lips, Larissa mouth was on your neck, licking, sucking, and tasting your skin. You were sure that she would leave marks by the way she sucked, but you couldn’t care less right now. Larissa quickly found your sensitive spot. You craned your neck back and your eyes rolled back as your mouth opened in a silent scream.

“Ohhhhhh Larissa—” you breathily groaned.

Larissa hummed in delight at your groan. But she quickly pulled you away afterwards, making you whine.

“Tsk tsk, Darling, no whining.” She sternly told you.

Your eyes widened and you gulped.

“Sorry, Larissa”

Larissa smiled and nodded in understanding. She then picked you up with ease, making you yell lightly. She carried you back to the middle of the bed. You played on your back, propped up by your elbows, as you watched the older woman at the edge of the bed.

She began to teasingly remove her robe. You bit your lip and groaned.

“Please don’t tease…!” You pleaded with the woman.

Larissa chuckled and quickly removed her robe, revealing a crimson lingerie set.

“Alright, Darling…”

Larissa then crawled up the bed and came up on top of you. Both of your breathing were already labored. Your eyes locked once more. Before Larissa could do anything, you reached up with one hand, grabbing the woman’s neck and smashing your lips together. You groaned into the kiss. Larissa growled playfully, making quick work of grabbing your hands and holding them above your head.

“I’m in charge…” she purred darkly against your lips.

The kiss was heated and passionate. You could feel the years of built up need against the woman’s lips. Eventually, you bit had to pull away for air.

“Fuck. I’ve wanted to do that ever since high school…” you panted with a big shit eating grin spread across your face.

Larissa chuckled at your confession.

“I hear you, Darling… It took all of my restraint not to just take you in the kitchen earlier…”

Your mouth went dry and you bucked your hips up and groaned in response to her words.

“Yessss please Larissa…!”

“The walls are soundproof so if you want anything, you are going to have to scream and cry for it, Darling…” Larissa purred lustfully.

As she said this, she straddled your frame and began grinding her body against yours.

“Ohhhhhh fuck fuck” you panted, getting louder and louder, “please clothes—off Larissa—!!”

The woman still had your hands pinned above your head with the ease of one of her beautiful and manicured hands.

“Using your words, good girl…”

Shivers ran through your body at the praise, especially as you felt Larissa’s free fingers unbuttoning your pj shirt. You eyes fluttered open at this act and your mouth dropped at her unbuttoning your shirt one handed with ease.

Larissa met your gaze shortly as she continued to expose your chest.

“Not my first time, Darling…” she chuckled tauntingly.

“What, have you fucked your daughter’s best friend before?” You shot back.

As soon as the words had left your mouth, you gasped and you knew it had been a mistake. Larissa gaze met yours, staring you down. She chuckled again, but this one was darker and more wicked…

In one swift move, Larissa shifted you on top of her own lap, as she rested against the headboard of her bed. She placed you to where you straddled her one creamy thigh, and her hands were on your waist.

Your shirt was unbuttoned three quarters of the way. You gulped and looked towards the woman. She met your gaze with a smirk. The hands on your hips ground you down of her thigh, making your squeal in pleasurable stimulus. Your hips instinctually bucked against her thigh, desperate for the stimulus. The combination of her creamy thigh and the thin silk against your exposed cunt made you dizzy. Larissa continued to grind you against her thigh, not relenting. You bumped the woman’s thigh in needy desperation as she watched amusingly.

As your moans and yelps turned more incoherent, as you got wetter and wetter to the point of where you could combust any second, Larissa brought her lips against the shell of your ear.

“No, you are the only friend of my daughters who undresses me with your eyes and who acts a like a slut needing to be put in line…” Larissa darkly cooed.

“Ahhhhh mMmm fuck Larissa please—!!” You cried out breathily.

“What do you need, Darling…?” She teased.

“N-need… need to cum GOD please Larissa—!!!” You cried out, your body starting to shake from the stimulation.

Just as those words left your mouth, Larissa yanked you off her thigh, and dropped you in the spot of the bed in between her legs. You squeaked in dismay and response, almost ready to cry at how close you had been.

“No n-no Larissa please…” you immediately began to beg the woman.

Larissa simply shushed you, effectively silencing you. Her hand ran up and down your sensitive frame. You immediately leaned into her touch and purred in pleasure.

“Let’s make you purr properly…” she cooed lustfully.

Larissa then continued to removed your shirt, throwing it aside, and moving to your shorts, which were thrown aside just as easily. Her hands then positioned you to straddle her entire frame, exposing your cunt to the cold air and making you yelp lightly.

You then felt Larissa’s cold fingers cup your sex.

“Ahh ahhhhmmmm Larissa yessss please…!!”

Larissa smirked and slid two fingers into your cunt with ease.

“Darling, you are drenched.”

The words left the woman’s mouth with pride. You blushed but didn’t have it in your mind to respond, no you were too occupied, grabbing onto Larissa’s shoulders for support and desperately grinding against her hand.

“Yes yes yessss Larissa—” you hissed.

Her fingers pumped and curled inside you with ease and to no surprise to either of you.

“I’ve been working you up all day, hmmm love…? Making you such a needy girl…”

You nodded your head vigorously and groaned once more.

It didn’t take long before you were on the edge once more, and begging Larissa to let you cum.

“No, not yet.” She firmly told you.

You whimpered but nodded in understanding.

“What do you think my daughter, your best friend would think if she walked in on us…?” Larissa lustfully cooed.

Your eyes rolled back and you cried out at her words.

“Oh God No no no soooo bad—!!” You cried out, “please Larissa please need it need it so bad…!!!”

With that, Larissa pulled out of you completely.

“No fuck n-no!” You exclaimed and groaned loudly.

Larissa chuckled and firmly grabbed your cheeks, holding them together.

“Darling, You have no idea what you were getting yourself involved in… Are you still sure about this…?”

Suddenly a wave of confidence crashed over you, you lined yourself up with the woman’s clothed sex and ground yourself against her, making Larissa hiss out in pleasure.

“Give it to me, mommy… I can’t take it…” you whispered in the woman’s ear.

Suddenly, Larissa lunged you forward, flipping you back and on your back, as she towered over you and held you hands above your head once more, spreading you out like a starfish. She growled in your face, making you busk your hips up in desperation.

“Careful what you ask mommy for…”

You gulped and whimpered, still bucking your hips up for any kind of friction. Larissa then released you, and got off the bed. You immediately sat up in confusion.

“Get on all fours.” Larissa ordered, as she opened the side drawer of her bedside drawer.

You immediately did as you were told, getting on all fours so that you were facing the door. You heard Larissa shuffle to put something on, before joining you back on the bed, this time behind you.

“You want mommy to give it to you, Sweetheart…?”

Her tone dripped with lust. You gulped and nodded eagerly, wiggling your ass in the air.

“Yes yes yes mommy please—!!” You cried out.

Larissa came flush up against your behind, her strap-on dick gliding against your folds.

“Mommy’s applied generous lube on her dick, Baby… all ready to make you mine…” she growled.

Before you could respond, the woman was pushing her dick into your core.

“Ohhhhh ahhhh fuck fuck— Larissa!!” You cried out.

“Shhh, good girl… taking me so well, breathe, Darling…”

You took a deep breath, and then you could feel her dick all the way inside you, all the way to the hilt.

“Shiiiiiit…” your eyes rolled back, “More GOD MORE please mommy!!”

“Good girl.”

Larissa began rocking her hips back and forth, pulling her plastic dick in and out of you at a decent pace.

“Yes god Harder F-faster—!!!” You screamed desperately.

Your hands gripped the sheets beneath you like a vice.

“S-so close—-!! Larissa Mommy please…!!!” You screamed.

Larissa chuckled, and with one more hard thrust, you were coming on her dick. Hard. Screaming and panting.

But Larissa didn’t stop after that. No, she sped up. Tears began to fall down your face.

“F-fffuck Larissa god—!!” You screamed.

Before your mind could register anything, Larissa had flipped you back onto your back, fucking you into the mattress. Your mount opened in overwhelming pleasure.

As Larissa pounded into you and you could contain your screams, you suddenly lunged forward and smashed your lips into hers.

God were you definitely addicted to these lips…

Larissa full on moaned into the kiss, and she never relented in continuing to fuck you into her mattress. Not once. Your eyes rolled back and you screamed as your next orgasm overtook you.

Your whole body went limp after you came down from your high, and Larissa was quick to kindly help you down and off your high. She slowly pulled out of you, still a panting, limp mess. You collapsed on the bed, and Larissa was quick to throw the strap to the side and go into the bathroom to grab a warm washcloth, then coming up next to you.

“May I…?” She gently asked for permission to take care of you.

You nodded with your flushed face. Larissa hummed in satisfaction as she cleaned you up caringly. When she was done, she joined you on the bed, pulling you into her embrace.

You were beat and ready to fall asleep. You’d face the consequences of your actions tomorrow, you decided.

“Tomorrow, I’m going to get a proper taste of you, Darling…” Larissa hummed in your ear as she lazily ran her fingers through your hair, while you dozed off to sleep.

~~~

Next Bingo Fic <—Here!!

Larissa Weems Masterlist

Holiday Bingo 2023 Masterlist

Let me know if you want to be on the Holiday Bingo Tag List!!

Tag List: @storiesofsvu

[hsficrecommendation]

Hello Everyone! This is masterlist #4 (June of 2023!) for the all fics I have reblogged on this side blog I hold super close to me. Remember to leave feedback and reblog all the writings below!

Also, a huge thank you to all the writers mentioned, I adore you so very much and I hope you keep writing for yourselves &lt;3

••• JUNE •••

Valentine's Day | Y/N receives a special candy gram on Valentine’s Day. - @nationalharryleague

French Fries | Harry kept glancing at her as he drove. “M’sorry about our date,” he whispered. “I don’t know what you’re apologizing for,” she shrugged and reached over to squeeze his arm while he held the steering wheel. “I had a lovely time.” - @1d1195

Shy | Close | Motherly Love | Don't Leave Me | Mother's Day | ♡ When Harry runs into a perfect stranger at a supermarket, he doesn’t know what to expect. After having been single for over a year and raising Amelia without a mother, dating somebody new feels impossible… that is, until she wins over the heart of his daughter. - @harry-writings

Vogue Beauty Secrets | Actress!Y/N does the Vogue Beauty Secrets video, and Harry decides to help. - @astranva

Gonna be Better in the Morning | Jeff and reader get into a fight and Harry takes Jeff's side. (As always, there is a happy ending with lots of comforts) - @harryhoney-bee

Work of Art | A cute little fluffy artist!Harry piece with a hint of angst! - @nationalharryleague

Update | The Best Present | Harry falls for a mysterious girl from YouTube. - @watchmegetobsessed

When The Levee Breaks | You're a waitress and Harry is being stood up. - @songbirdstyles

Playball | ♡ The reader owns a bakery and hates baseball, but what happens when her town’s bigshot MLB player walks into her bakery and she finds herself catching feelings unaware of his occupation? - @writingsbymarie

The Con Artist | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | ♡ You're a wanted criminal and when Harry Styles, the detective on the case, finally catches up to you- he finds it difficult to resist your charms. - @gurugirl

Baby Steps | You’re Harry’s son's therapist, and he isn’t the only one you end up helping. - @enthusiasticharry

Mute | ♡♡ Where Harry doesn’t talk and falls in love with Y/n. - @harry-writings

Score and Smash | In which their university holds an annual boy vs girl football match, the highly anticipated game of the year has arrived and Harry and Y/N hate each other just as equally until Y/N is under Harry.

Quid Pro Quo | Another lawyer!Harry. Technically six years before this piece. Enemies to lovers with plenty of angst! - @talesofstyles

Six Months (Part 23) | ♡ Layla desperately needs a vacation and her Aunt and Uncle come to her rescue. So, at twenty two, she packs her bag and jets off to America. Harry took a break from education and is now a full fledged content creator on OnlyFans. At twenty, he makes more money than almost all of his friends. What ensues when these two meet and realise the windows in their rooms face each other? How will paper airplanes bring them closer together? - @fishnets-fingers

2022 : Masterlist #1 , #2 , #3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. 2023 : Masterlist #1, 2, 3 (June masterlist would be continued in the next list!)

My official writing account in case you'd like to check out my fics too: @0oolookitsme :)

[two-white-butterflies]

no time to die | c16 | part two

Description: After a messy breakup with Charles Leclerc. You resort to feuding with him online. In where, he hates your guts.

Pairing: charles leclerc/actress!reader

part one | part three

(ONE YEAR LATER)

YNMakesItSparkle: New Years Day 🌙 announcing my first ever single. I know that it's been a while since ya'll heard my voice. I remember singing with Miley and Selena down in Disney. So glad to be back inside the studio! 💜

129 comments 1,292,180 likes

watchasay29: Is this about Charles?

taylorswift: I'm so excited for this 💙💙💙💙

selenagomez: Patiently seated.

charlesuniversewags: this is about charles 100% idk if she's gonna make him seem like the bad guy.

(IBIZA, SPAIN 2023)

"Charles, let's get married - let's settle down." you continued speaking, following him around the casita with a glass filled with Moscato. Ever since his incident in Formula One, you haven't stopped thinking about your future together. You couldn't sleep at night knowing that there was a possibility that everything you built would come crumbling down.

A small sigh escapes his mouth; marriage was the least of his concern. He still wanted to win a championship - he wanted to be something that you could boast around your upper-echelon friends. "I'm not ready, bebe." he sighed, taking another sip of his merlot.

You were stark contrasts of each other.

He liked everything that tasted bitter - and you adored sweet. He was darkness, rest in the middle of paradise and you were light. You complimented each other properly - but now you weren't sure.

"I-I know, but please - think about it." you stuttered. You always dreamed about marriage, not in a dreamy fairytale way but in a way that included living in happiness with the person that you adored. "I'm not sure if I want to get married, ever." he scoffed, placing his glass loudly on the countertop.

"Why?" your eyebrows merged into each other. "Why?" he repeated your statement - finding the question to be tone deaf.

"All everyone talks about is you and how wonderful your projects are. The articles, they don't even call me by name - I'm just 'your boyfriend' - and what will happen after we get married? Will I be Y/N L/N's husband? When I've got all of these accomplishments to myself." he responded in a bitter tone - telling you that there was something bothering him.

"What do you mean?" your frown deepened, seeing fire underneath his eyes. Did he hate you all these years?

"I'm tired of being your shadow, that's what I mean." his voice softened, seeing your eyes blurry with tears. "You aren't my shadow - when I came into this relationship with you, I wasn't even an actress." you said to yourself, the truth quickly settling into you.

"- and maybe that's the problem. I don't need another person who's competing with my success, I need someone to comfort me in my races." he expressed his opinion, unable to understand that he was stampeding upon your own.

"I've done all of that, Charles."

"It's not enough!" his voice raised again, a storm brewing in his mind. A small chuckle escaped your lips - and you tried to keep your composure. 'Grace under pressure' you thought.

"You know what the truth is, Charles?" you grinned, reaching for your handbag on the chair beside you. "You feel emasculated because I'm better than you." you gritted your teeth, straightening your dress until it didn't have any wrinkles.

"You know I feel really bad because I came to this conversation seeing a future with you. But now I'm glad that you had another thing in mind." your eyes narrowed, quickly walking away and slamming the door to his apartment loudly.

YNMakesItSparkle: me and my favorite driver 💜

312 comments 1,912,129 likes

maxverstappen1: 💪🏽

carlossainz55: Hungary GP? - YNMakesItSparkle: Totally 💜

reyna219: YOU ARE SO BEAUTIFUL

YNMakesItSparkle: Forever Ferrari 💜❤️

812 comments 1,231,100 likes

carlandouniverse2: this is enough confirmation 😭

wantingmeeee1: Are you back with Charles?

landonorris: Mclaren needs you here 😎 - YNMakesItSparkle: Really?

imsebastianstan: You didn't bring me? - YNMakesItSparkle: the airline had a no-hand-carry policy, really sorrrrryyy 😁

Charles could recognize you a mile away. His fingers could even feel the fabric that clung into your body - he missed you, and he knew that you deserved better. The pressure of not being a good enough driver was getting to him - forcing him to resort to look for something to blame. At first, it was his company - but when he saw your success - he chose to blame that.

But now after six-months of therapy, he could see properly. He could see that he was the problem. "I listened to your new song," he swiftly made his way towards you - a bottle of beer in his right hand. He missed you - but he couldn't entertain the thought of being with you again. He believed that he wasn't good enough for that.

"Did you like you like it?" you gazed up at him - staring deep into his eyes until he could feel himself leaning down to inhale more of your rosemary scent. "Amazing, and the chords were familiar." he raised an eyebrow - teasing you softly.

He'd be content with being friends.

"Sue me if you dare, Leclerc." you pouted, knowing that the chords to that song resembled something that he wrote for you a few years ago. "I won't - not when you made it sound better." he smiled, flicking a strand of your hair away from your face. "Really?" you began to ask.

Unable to deny the palpable chemistry between you.

"Why don't you play for us in the afterparty?" he offered, knowing that it would be held inside his home - and his piano needed a little dusting. "Sounds like a plan," you licked your lips, slowly moving away from him.

SELENA GOMEZ'S PRIVATE TWITTER

Don't get back with ur ex challenge, but you're fighting against @YNMakesItSparkle

YN'S PRIVATE TWITTER: STOPPPP

TAYLOR'S PRIVATE TWITTER: I'm going home because it's a losing game ;)

DANIEL RICCIARDO'S PRIVATE TWITTER: HELPP

@perihelioneclipse @hiraethrhapsody @omgsuperstarg @reidsworld @charles-eclair16 @ferraribabe @cl16gf @yourrrrrprefffffect @thatgirlthatreadswattpad @fdl305 @incoherenciass @sassyheroneckgiant @ietss @newlifeforus

[astrolynnworld]

blue confessions

pairing: matt x reader

summary: matt confesses his feelings to the reader at the countdown of midnight

warnings: fluff! new years, confessions, love, romance.

a/n- should of been posted yesterday but oh well 🫠

word count: 979

i do some last minute cleansing and preparations as i get ready to start my year anew and fresh.

nick had invited a few friends over so we can celebrate our last hours of 2023 together.

i finish getting ready and put on my coat so i can head over to the house.

everyone arrived at various times but i was one of the first people to get there.

i’ve been friends with the triplets for about 7 years now, at first i met nick but he soon after introduced me to his brothers who i’ve been close with every since.

especially matt, matt is really like my best friend. since day one, matt & i have have a different type of connection where we understand each other on a different level

he’s always been there for me, as i have with him.

“hey!! happy new year” nick says as he opens the door to let me in

“happy new year!” i say while going in for a hug

“wow it’s been in a long year.” i continue

“tell me about it.. a lot has happened this year, from hitting 5 million subs to going on tour again.. it’s been a crazy year”

“yup, sad to see it end but ready to watch it go” i laugh

from the corner of my eye i can see chris coming up the stairs

“oh hey chris! happy new year” i say as i walk in for a hug

“yup! new year.” he greets back, “where’s the food?” he proceeds to ask

“chris shut up. it’s on the way, you can wait.” nick answers annoyingly

i chuckle at their banter

“where’s matt?” i ask out loud

“he’s probably in still his room getting ready, you can go check on him if you want” nick responds

i nod and make my way down the hall to his room.

i do my little signature knock that i do so he knows it’s me

“come in!” he shouts from the door

i open the door and walk in to give him a hug

“heyyy matt!!” i gleefully say

“why are you so happy?” he asks with a confused face

“cause it’s new year’s eve!!” i respond with more enthusiasm

“big plans for 2024?” he asks

“no plans, just hopes and wants.” i respond

“yeah? what do you hope and want?” he asks again

“i kinda hope for a genuine connection and relationship..” i say shyly

“really?”

“yeah. i just feel like im tired of meaningless flings or situationships. we’re only getting older.. i want something real” i say

“i feel you 100%” he reassures

“yeah.” i look down, “but anyway! do you have anything you’re looking forward too?”

“not really. i just wanna let the year play out how it’s supposed too.” he replies

“yeah i see th-“ im interrupted as the door swings open

“our friends are here. stop hiding in the room” says nick

“we’re not hiding” matt says as he gets up to make his way to the living room

i follow shortly behind

after a few hours of party games and jokes, we just hang around to enjoy our last few minutes of 2023

i go in the kitchen to grab some water and shortly after, matt follows along

he nervously stands there in silence for a bit pretending to be occupied before striking up a conversation

“before the year end i kinda just wanted to let you know that i really do appreciate our friendship” he says sentimentally

“aww matt, that’s so sweet.”

“i know i don’t really say it often but i do love you. maybe in more ways than i should to be honest.” he looks down

“huh? what do you mean?” i ask

“well you’re the person i can count on the most, other than nick and chris. you’re always there for me when i need you to be and i feel like i relate you on a deeper level. you just understand me as a person and i love and appreciate you a lot for it.”

i go in for a hug, “matt i love you so much! you’re gonna make me cry”

he hugs back but doesn’t seem fulfilled

“matt what’s wrong? you seem unfinished?” i ask still embraced in his grasp

“cause that’s not all i want to say. i just don’t know how to say it” he says

suddenly we hear our friends in the other room start the new year countdown

“well you better hurry before the new year begins” i chuckle

“six.. five” we hear from the other room

i stare up as he looks down at me with his mouth agape as he prepares himself

“two.. one-“

“i’m in love with you” he spills

“HAPPY NEW YEAR” i hear from the other room as i stare at him in silence

“this is probably the worst timing but i really couldn’t keep it in anymore. i can’t go into another year feeling regret for every day that i don’t confess to you how i fee-“

i break his monologue with a kiss

“i love too matt” i look up at him with a smile

“are you being serious?” his confused look making me chuckle

“yess matt. of course i do! like you said, i understand you on a deeper level. and i know you understand me just as well. i enjoy every second i spend with you and i love being around you, you always make me feel special. i also kept my feelings tucked in but i love you just as much” i confess

he smiles and places a kiss on my lips while placing both hands on each of my cheeks

“can i be your boyfriend, y/n?” he whispers into my lips as he holds my cheeks with both hands

“i’d love nothing more” i smile up at him

———————————————————————

a/n- hope you guys enjoyed this cute little story

[arminsesposa]

Sick Day

Gojo Satoru x Female Sick reader!

You could never hide anything from your fiancé as he immediately noticed your sickness.

Fluff, somewhat short

Happy Holidays everyone! This may or may not be my last writing of 2023. I’m actually sick so I took some inspiration.

Don’t forget to Reblog! :-)

Satoru Gojo knew his fiancé by the back of his hand. The moment he met you, he fell hard. Never wanting to leave your side, always bothering you, and finally asking you out on a date. The chemistry and connection was ultimately there between you guys as you guys were inseparable. As he finally proposed to you after a couple of years of you two being together. Now living in a shared apartment, Satoru was beyond excited of his new life with you.

As you sniffled and coughed hard, you were dying. Satoru had left to get groceries as you woke up and began to clean. You tried your best to hide your sickness from him, leaving and excusing yourself whenever you needed to cough or sneeze or any sniffle you had hoping you fiancé didn’t catch on. As you made your way to the kitchen to wash the dishes from last night’s dinner you felt dizzy. Was it from the high fever that you’ve been ignoring? Or the chest pain from every cough you tried hiding. As you finished the dishes, you swayed too much almost collapsing as you dropped a glass. As Satoru entered the apartment the sound of glass shattering caught his attention as he made his way to the kitchen only to see you on the floor picking up the pieces of shattered glass. “(Y/N) what’s wrong?” He asked as he placed a hand on your back and realized something was wrong with you. “You’re definitely not feeling well huh” he noticed your body language and how flushed your face was as you faced him. “Im fine” you tried lying to his face as he immediately got up and carried you bridal style. “Honey, you can’t lie to me. I’ve known you since forever! Last time you lied to me was when you told me Megumi had a girlfriend!” He said with a cheerful grin. “Let me take care of you! You always take care of me, and now it’s my turn” he said as he laid you down the bed and covered you with a blanket.

As you groan and complain almost growing pale, Satoru makes you a tea, feeds you a chicken noodle soup (he secretly called Nanami over since he accidentally burned the first one he made) as he sat down at a nearby chair watching over you. “Toru?” You say in a weak and sick tone of voice as you look over at him. The moment you call his name he looks at you and he notices how weak your voice was. The concern on his face only grew as he listened to the tone of your voice as he was starting to get seriously worried about your health. "Yeah Baby? What is it?" He asked. “Why are you still near me? I’m gonna get you sick” you said as you coughed and sniffled trying to tell him to get out of the shared room. Satoru laughed and grinned like an idiot before continuing “I'm staying right here with you. I won't leave you as you recover from this. I'll be by your side every step of this recovery, I promise." He said cupping your face as he saw how sad you looked. As you held his hand cupping your face you immediately smiled feeling so thankful to have such an amazing fiancé. As you decided to scoot on one side of the bed and tapped on the empty side “satoru will you lay down next to me?” You asked with a gentle smile “I know I don’t want to get you sick so maybe it’s not a good idea” you said shaking your head as you sniffled.

The moment you made the request for him to lay down next to you he couldn't help but get a little bit flustered. He was instantly overwhelmed by the pure affection and cuteness that you were giving right now and he quickly snapped out of it the moment you brought up the fact that maybe it's not a good idea due to not wanting him to get sick. He then got his thoughts back in order and he spoke back to you while smiling softly. "Well do you really want me to lay down next to you?” He teased you as you groaned at his tactics. You immediately took back what you said “I wanted you too, but I don’t want you to get sick, so never mind” as he immediately protested and frowned. Those words instantly made him melt a little bit on the inside as he felt an instant wave of affection overwhelm him. The thought of you being so considerate of him and his health made him feel happy and it gave him an instant burst of confidence. "Well it's my job as a fiancé to take care of you so there's no way I'm staying far away from you. If I have to get sick by being by your side, so be it. I'm laying down." He said as he laid down next to you and he covered both himself and you with the warm blanket. As you cupped his face, now facing him you had to ask him to make sure “Satoru are you sure, I don’t want you getting sick” you said as you sniffled once again. The moment he felt your hand cup his cheek like that he felt your love and warmth as The touch of your hand against his cheek made him feel a surge of affection all over his body and he can feel his cheeks instantly turning red. "Well... You're recovering and I'm just gonna stay with you and not leave your side. So if I get sick by it then I'll just have to deal with it." He said wrapping his arms around you knowing that when he gets sick. That you’ll be there by his side no matter what. As you two slept comfortably together in each other’s arms.

[mementoboni]

The bond of DIR EN GREY - WOWOW Interview Special (2023)

"There are many things that only the five of us have been through together, and that is the connection between us." — Die

Notes before reading:

This is the last five minutes of the interview. ★BGM:カムイ

The five members were interviewed separately.

Repost and share are welcome.🙌 I translated it all by my ears, so please feel free to correct me if you spot any mistake or any confusing parts.☺️

--- --- ---

►The bond of DIR EN GREY (DIR EN GREYの絆)

【Kaoru】 Of course sometimes we talk about stupid things, that's nothing special. We must always maintain equal relationships so that all can communicate with each other. But everyone has that personality, so it'll be a little bit… it's gonna be hard (laugh). Well, we all had different periods. Even so, we're still five people, spending time together in each other's lives. I still think we have to be aware of each other and move forward. Well, all I can say is that it's a pleasure to be in a band with them. *(一緒にやってくれてよかったなと思って)

【Shinya】 A balance of not being too deep and not being too shallow relationships with the members would be great, wouldn't it? Maybe during the periods when we were together for a long time, it was a little bit awkward, like a decade or so ago. Now it's just right.

【Toshiya】 I think it is necessary to consciously maintain a certain distance.  Considering this, it should be the most natural feeling now. Although we have been together all along, we have not had unnecessary conversations.  Of course, human beings communicate with each other through conversations, but at the same time, they get unnecessary information. Personally, if my work and private life are mixed together, I gradually feel like I'm misunderstanding something, and I don't like that. As for the connection between us, when (everyone said)  "Okay, let's go!"  (before the live show), there’s a very strong cohesion.  I feel that way.

【Die】 I am often asked, "Do the members have a good relationship?" "After all this time, you've become like family members, right?" It’s *troublesome to answer. *(めんどくさい / mendokusai) The time we spend together may be longer than that of family members, so do we have a good relationship? Or a bad relationship? It has nothing to do with that. We're beyond that. There are many things that only the five of us have been through together, and that is the connection between us. We've been through all kinds of things in the band, happy things, going overseas for the first time, getting frustrated.  We've been through a lot together. We all hit the wall together, rushed forward together, and then hit the wall again. Precisely because the five of us have experienced many things together, this kind of relationship can only be understood by the five of us.  It has nothing to do with whether we have a good relationship with each other, nor are we family or friends. In DIR EN GREY, there are some things about our relationship that only the five of us can understand.

【Kyo】 I guess I like these guys. *(人間が好きなんじゃないですかね) There's something to honor in everyone, and I often think that they're amazing. Maybe even if we didn't form a band, but just meeting and getting to know each other on ordinary occasions, we'd still be friends.  At least I'd do that. It's just that we're connected through music now, even though we don't talk a lot... Yeah. I guess it's because they all deserve respect.

【Narration】 (cv: Morikawa Toshiyuki) Although always a *solitary existence, DIR EN GREY has been going on for a quarter of a century.  The trajectory of the past 25 years has never stopped and continues to move on to a new path. The five people connected by the bond of music will bring us deeper pain and hope of being alive. *(孤高 / ここう / kokō)

(END)

— — —

My Blogger → English Translation / 中文翻譯

[shitswiftiessay]

taylor swift and her parasocial relationship with joe alwyn

as we know, joe alwyn was spotted at an event recently, wearing an “artists for ceasefire” pin. i guess that really wounded taylor’s ego that he was getting positive reactions, it CERTAINLY wounded her fans, and so she decided to perform her song “you’re losing me” live for the first time ever to remind everyone that joe is bad and taylor is America’s #1 victim, ALWAYS.

and she not only performed “you’re losing me” live for the first time, she also announced a bonus track for her upcoming album which we ALL know is going to be a bunch of diss tracks against joe.

are we surprised by this? NO, of course not, people on twitter literally predicted this, because taylor always does something related to “you’re losing me” when joe is spotted at an event ANYWHERE.

CASE IN POINT:

on may 23, 2023, joe alwyn was spotted at the cannes film festival

and the VERY next day, taylor announced an exclusive new version of her midnights CD, with the new song “you’re losing me” on it.

the song remained CD exclusive for a few months, until november, when joe alwyn was spotted at the GQ men of the year event.

the very next day, taylor quickly got her team to work, putting out articles to shade him and remind everybody of how HAPPY she is with the football player.

and then exactly 13 days later, taylor announced that her song “you’re losing me” would be available on ALL streaming platforms, as a “thank you” to her fans. yeah, i’m SURE that was the reason. thank you for getting me to the top, now go harass my ex now, please.

and she also had her friend/LAPDOG keleigh teller liking anti-joe tik tok posts.

if it hasn’t been clear that taylor swift is OBSESSED with her ex, it is clear as fucking day now. and we already know she’s gonna release a diss track off her new album on his birthday. she is extremely predictable with her pettiness and is doing everything she can to try and hurt joe, and incite her fans against him.

unfortunately for her, joe will continue being unbothered, while taylor’s stuck with her current boyfriend who is an egotistical drunk piece of shit with a bad temper and SKIDMARKS, who can’t even remember the lyrics she changed for him.

[genshinluvr]

Actions Have Consequences

Pairings: Various Genshin Men x Isekai'd!Reader (slight Lumine x Isekai'd!Reader)

Summary: Lately, you have been pranking the men around the estate, and the men are getting tired of it. Yes, your pranks are harmless, but they're starting to get old. Instead of speaking to you about the pranks, like how Gorou suggested, Itto and Childe decide to prank you back with the cruelest joke that causes more harm than good. Who knew that actions have consequences?

Note: So, I couldn't come up with a prank that would make the reader cry and the men comforting the reader after the said prank. The only prank I came up with ends up hurting the reader, but it doesn't end up with the reader being given kisses by the men to comfort the reader 💀 This fic is NOT full angst. This is a hurt/comfort fic. There is a happy-ish ending in the end (I say that because idk how to feel about the ending). This is my first fanfic of 2023! Happy New Year, everyone! I hope you all have a fantastic 2023! Thank you for the support I've been receiving for almost a year now! I truly appreciate each and every single one of you ❤️ Please keep in mind that I don't post anywhere else but on Tumblr (Genshinluvr) and on AO3 (Aaliah_exo).

Warnings: Childe and Itto's prank goes way too far when your prank is harmless, blood, jealousy, heartbreak, allusions to attempt of suicide

Word Count: 15.7k

Lately, you have started pranking the men around the abode. The little pranks you pull are harmless, but the stunt can make the person feel a tad bit humiliated. A few days ago, while Diluc was in the shower, you snuck into his bathroom and took his clothes and towel before running out of the bathroom with an evil smile on your face. Diluc turns the shower off and reaches for the towel from behind the curtains, only to grab a handful of nothing. Diluc furrows his eyebrows and peeks his head from the shower curtains, only to find out that his clothes are missing and so are his towel. 

“Dammit, not again,” Diluc grumbles, running his fingers through his wet red hair and letting out a frustrated exhale.

Diluc stumbles out of his bathroom with an extra towel around his waist. He stomps down the stairs, leaving a trail of water behind. Diluc steps into the living room and glares at the inhabitants; everyone quiets down and stares at Diluc, eyes wide. 

“Diluc, my man! I know you’re fit and muscular, but did you really need to show off the muscles and package?” Itto jokes, earning chuckles from the men around him.

Diluc glares at each person, trying to spot the perpetrator that has stolen his clothes and towel while he is in the middle of his shower. He makes eye contact with you, who’s staring at him with an odd expression on your face. Diluc narrows his eyes and approaches you. Your eyes widen, and you look around, trying to find an escape plan to get away from Diluc as fast as possible.

Diluc stops in front of you and crosses his arms over his chest, gazing down at you with a blank stare. You swallow your saliva nervously and look around you. The men are all looking at you and Diluc quizzically, wondering what is happening.

You give him a fake smile. “Hi, Diluc! You’re looking good! Are you using the new body wash I got you?” You ask, leaning forward and sniffing his bare chest. 

Diluc doesn’t say a single word. Instead, he continues to stare down at you while poking the inside of his cheek with his tongue. He looks irritated and is not in the mood for your childish prank. You watch the water drip from his bangs and down his face, watching it slide down to his jaws and drop to the ground. 

Childe leans to you and whispers loudly, “The redhead looks pissed off. What did you do?”

You scoff and smack his chest lightly. “I didn’t do anything! I was down here the entire time while he was in the shower!” You lie.

Diluc tilts his head to the side, props both of his hands on his hips, and gives you a skeptical look after hearing your response. You puff your cheeks and hunch over, sighing in defeat. You can’t stand seeing Diluc this upset with you over a harmless little prank that you pulled moments ago. You hesitantly hand Diluc his clothes and towel without making eye contact with the redhead. 

Diluc takes the clothes and towel from your hands without saying a word before turning around and walking back upstairs to his bathroom. After that day, you decided not to prank Diluc. Well, you chose not to pull that kind of prank on Diluc again because the look he gave you and the silence from Diluc were unbearable. You felt bad that at the beginning of your pranks, you mainly targeted Diluc. 

So, you start to prank the others around the estate. Everyone is sitting around the dining table, getting ready to eat their lunch. You sit across from Thoma, sitting between Dainsleif and Al Haitham. You’re cutting into your steak when you notice Thoma reaching for the salt and pepper shakers. You bring the piece of steak up to your mouth and begin chewing on it, subtly watching Thoma sprinkle pepper on his food from the corner of your eyes. After sprinkling a decent amount of pepper on his food, Thoma puts the pepper shaker back in the center of the dining table. Thoma grabs the salt shaker, tilts it above his food, and the entire lid pops off, spilling salt all over his food. Thoma gasps, startled by what has happened.

“How did that happen?” Thoma mutters, looking at the empty salt shaker and his now oversalted food. 

Aether nudges Thoma and gestures in your direction. “I think I found the culprit,” Aether says, taking a bite of his crab roe tofu. 

Thoma looks over at you, only to see you hunch over in your seat, looking down at your steak while stifling your laughter. Thoma laughs and shakes his head. Everyone is surprised that Thoma didn’t get upset when you ruined his food by pulling that stunt on him. Since Thoma is an easygoing person, he doesn’t seem to care about his food being wasted and having to cook another food for himself.

“It’s a simple prank, but it’s a good one,” Heizou says, shrugging his shoulders, eating his onigiri while giving Thoma a look as Thoma gets up from his seat to go back into the kitchen to cook something else to eat.

Venti leans over and looks at the other men with wide eyes. “If [Y/N]’s moving onto other people, then who’s their next target!?” Venti asks, looking over at you from the corner of his eyes.

“[Y/N]’s pranks are harmless, Venti. There’s nothing to worry about,” Al Haitham says, scooping up his rice with his spoon.

Tighnari nods his head. “I agree with Al Haitham. Their pranks are harmless! What can go wrong?” Tighnari asks, taking a sip of his ice-cold water.

The next few days, your pranks consist of putting laundry detergent in Itto’s shampoo and conditioner bottle. Itto screamed about his hair feeling weird after putting laundry detergent in his hair, trying to wash it off with Diluc’s shampoo and conditioner frantically. Itto ends up giving you the silent treatment after that, and you have to beg him for forgiveness by going out into Inazuma to collect onikabutos for his next beetle battle.

As for the prank that you pulled on Zhongli, it was also another harmless prank. Even though it’s harmless, just like every other prank you have pulled in the past, this one was testing Zhongli’s patience. While Zhongli is steeping his tea early in the morning, the teabag breaks apart, and the tea leaves spill out from the bag. Zhongli sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose, shaking his head.

Zhongli does not have the time to deal with your childish prank. Zhongli promised Hu Tao that he would go into Wangsheng Funeral Parlor early in the morning to fill out the paperwork for a recent customer, but because of your childish prank, it has caused him to be a few minutes late for work. Zhongli ends up showing up at the funeral parlor without his morning tea and gets an earful from the funeral director herself.

Zhongli steps through the doors of the estate, sighing tiredly and rubbing his eyes. Ayato looks up from his book, spotting the tired Geo archon. Ayato gives Zhongli a sympathetic look and stands up, approaching the man with a cup of tea in his hands.

“Rough day?” Ayato asks, handing the warm ceramic cup to Zhongli.

Zhongli lets out a sigh and nods. Zhongli takes the cup from Ayato’s hands and gives the light blue-haired man a strained smile. “You have no idea,” Zhongli answers, blowing lightly on the teacup before taking a sip.

Kaeya leans against the door and smirks at the Geo archon and the head of the Kamisato Clan. “I’m assuming that this has everything to do with [Y/N] and their pranks?” Kaeya asks, pushing himself away from the door and approaching Zhongli and Ayato.

Zhongli nods, continuing to take small sips of the tea that Ayato has given him. “Unfortunately, it is. As much as I love them, their pranks are getting out of hand,” Zhongli mutters, staring down at the cup in his hands.

“How are they getting out of hand? Their pranks are harmless,” Dainsleif says from the corner of the room. Dainsleif continues to flip through the newspaper, not looking up from the paper in his hands.

“Judging by the look on the former Geo archon’s face and his posture, I’m assuming that [Y/N]’s prank caused him to be late for work,” Kaveh says, sprawling out on the couch and flinching when Al Haitham throws a cushion at him.

Baizhu raises his eyebrows at Kaveh’s speculation. “And how do you know that?” Baizhu asks, crossing his arms over his chest.

Cyno snorts. “Because he has made Al Haitham late to work before by locking him out of their shared apartment in Sumeru,” Cyno replies.

While your pranks are harmless, it was starting to annoy a few men around the estate. Yes, they love you to pieces, but the never-ending pranks are starting to become bothersome. They need to find a way to stop you from pranking them, but they don’t know how. You seem to be enjoying the pranks that you pulled on almost every person residing in the abode, and they didn’t want to put a damper on your mood.

Kazuha raises his hand to speak. “We can always talk to [Y/N] about the pranks. They can save it for a day that is made for pranks; I believe it’s called April Fool's day, according to [Y/N],” Kazuha says.

Xiao nods his head. “I agree. We should talk to [Y/N] about the pranks they’re pulling on us and how often they’ve been pulling these pranks on each of us,” Xiao says. 

“Have they pulled a prank on you?” Albedo asks, looking at Xiao curiously. Xiao presses his lips into a thin line and breathes through his nose, not saying a word. He looks over at Scaramouche, who nods his head.

Scaramouche takes his hat off and runs his fingers through his hair. “Xiao and I were in the middle of training, and [Y/N] thinks it's funny to appear out of nowhere to scare Xiao and me. Of course, it almost ended badly, but Xiao was able to stop himself before he could…. Stab [Y/N] in the face with his polearm,” Scaramouche explains.

Gorou sighs and hunches over on the couch, his ears flattening on his head. “Okay, so how are we going to approach this? We are going to talk to [Y/N] about this, right?” Gorou asks, looking up at everyone through his lashes.

The main goal is to get you to prank them less or to have you stop pranking them completely. You didn’t prank the other four Harbingers because you know not to mess with them and because the men have warned you not to do it for your safety. So, the other four Harbingers weren’t getting pranked. The men that are getting pranked are the ones that live under the same estate as you. At first, your pranks were tolerable, but then you started to prank each of them almost every day (you pull pranks on them every other day to throw them off) to the point where everyone is tired of the harmless little tricks you’ve been pulling on them.

“Talking?! That’s funny! I think we should play a prank on them back!” Itto says. Itto props his feet on the ottoman, resting his back up against the cushions of the couch and cushioning the back of his head with his hands.

Dainsleif shakes his head. “No way. If we do that, it’ll encourage them to continue to pull these pranks on everyone,” Dainsleif says. 

“That and it’ll cause a prank war, which is something we don’t want to happen,” Heizou interjects, giving Itto a look of disapproval. 

Childe’s eyes light up, and he steps forward, smirking. “That doesn’t sound like a bad idea. Pranking them back, I mean. If we pull a prank that is really good, it can get them to stop pranking us,” Childe explains.

Diluc shakes his head. “No. I have a bad feeling about your little plan,” Diluc says, narrowing his eyes at Childe. 

“Oh, come on, brother. Let’s hear him out now, shall we?” Kaeya chuckles. 

Diluc frowns and glares at Kaeya, shaking his head. Whatever Childe’s plan was, Diluc knows that it won’t end pretty. The next few days, you didn’t pull a prank on any of the men. At first, they were suspicious and weren’t sure whether something was going to happen or not. Since you decided to take a break from the pranks, this gave the men some time to plan out the tricks they were going to pull on you.

At the dinner table, you’re eating your spaghetti while the men are watching you closely while conversing with each other. You have yet to say anything to the men, and it gives them an unsettling feeling. What if you’re planning a prank while eating your spaghetti? You’re very deep in your thoughts, staring blankly at the table in front of you, slurping up the noodles. The men wish they knew what’s going on in that head of yours, but for now, they might as well play it safe before the revenge prank happens. 

Al Haitham clears his throat, grabbing your attention. “What have you been up to these last few days, sweetheart?” Al Haitham asks, propping his elbow on the dining table.

“Nothing much, really. The last few days have been boring for me. I have been trying to work on this project for the Akademiya, but I’m not sure how it’s going to turn out,” you reply. You reach for the cloth napkin beside the metal spoon and wipe your lips.

Tighnari’s ears perk up. “Oh? And what is this little project? This is the first time you have mentioned something about a project,” Tighnari says, his tail swishing in his seat with anticipation.

Aether leans toward Thoma, trying to be inconspicuous. “This could be a trap; I’m not sure if I can trust what they’re telling us,” Aether whispers.

You then go on to tell the men what you have been up to for the last few days (the days when the men didn’t have to deal with your endless pranks). You have been visiting the Akademiya to talk to publishers. Apparently, you and the research team you’re assigned to are currently in the process of publishing a scholarly journal about flora and fauna of Sumeru. 

Being a part of a research project is one of the requirements to graduate from the Akademiya. You and your research team, which consists of researchers and other Akademiya students, have decided to publish this scholarly journal, and it has been approved by the Sage. Al Haitham strokes his chin and nods his head. 

“So that’s what Al Haitham has been talking about. He mentioned something about the Sage approving of publishing some scholarly journal, but he was never informed about who was part of the research and the academic journal,” Kaveh murmurs.

Cyno smiles at you from across the table. “That’s a big achievement, [Y/N]. Congratulations, I’m really proud of you,” Cyno says softly.

You smile at Cyno shyly and rub the back of your neck, feeling heat rush to your cheeks and the tip of your ears. It truly is a big achievement for you; you’ve never been part of a significant research project before, and having the research project get published in an academic journal? You can put that on your job resume, and your and your research team members’ name will be published forever!

“That is a huge achievement! Congratulations, [Y/N]!” Thoma says, smiling at you. 

You smile at Thoma and continue to slurp up your noodles shyly. All of the attention you’re getting from the men, along with the praises, is making you feel bashful. At first, you didn’t know how the men were going to react when they heard about the secret project you’d been doing for the last few days, worried that they might not see it as a big deal as you did. But seeing their positive reaction made you feel relaxed and less worried. 

Venti lightly taps his glass cup with a fork to grab everyone’s attention. “I think we should all go out and celebrate [Y/N] and their research team’s accomplishment!” 

“Why not celebrate it at the estate? I’m sure we can find a way to celebrate [Y/N]’s accomplishment without having to leave the estate,” Baizhu suggests.

Albedo shrugs his shoulders. “I think celebrating [Y/N]’s accomplishments outside of the abode would be fun. After all, it has been a while since we all sat at a restaurant together,” Albedo says.

Kazuha turns to look at you. “What do you think [Y/N]?” Kazuha asks, leaning on the table while gazing at you curiously.

“Oh, uh….” You trailed off, unsure whether you wanted to celebrate your accomplishment outside of the abode or not. 

As much as you would love to sit in a restaurant and dine in with the loves of your life, you’re unsure about how it’ll turn out. Plus, you’re more of a homebody, and you like home-cooked meals. Maybe going out with them to celebrate your achievement isn’t going to be bad after all.

Scaramouche holds an index finger up. “Remember, it is your choice. If you want to celebrate at the abode, we can do that. If not, we can celebrate your achievement at a restaurant somewhere in Teyvat,” said Scaramouche.

“If we are celebrating in Inazuma, I know a place where we can celebrate,” Ayato says, shoving a piece of sushi into his mouth.

Gorou looks at you with anticipation. “So? What do you think? Dine in or dine out in Teyvat?” Gorou asks, waiting for your response.

“We can celebrate it at a restaurant! It has been a while since all of us have dined out in Teyvat,” you reply, smiling at everyone at the table.

Xiao clears his throat, grabbing everyone’s attention. “Speaking of everyone. Are we going to be inviting the other four?” Xiao asks, crossing his arms over his chest.

Everyone turns to look at you. You shrink in your seat and shrug your shoulders from the sudden attention from everyone in the room. It would be wrong for you not to invite the other four Harbingers to celebrate your big achievement. You don’t want anyone to be left out or feel left out. You will feel like a horrible person if you go out and celebrate your accomplishment with the men and leave the other four out of the celebration. You place your fork down and clear your throat.

“I will be inviting them, but I don’t really know if they’re going to show up or not,” you said, fiddling with the hem of your shirt.

“Well, they have to. We’re celebrating your achievement, and it would be a jerk move if they don’t show up to a celebration like this!” Aether huffs, leaning back in his seat.

You purse your lips before asking, “When is the celebration? I need time to get dressed and ready for it.” You’re hoping that it’s not tonight because there’s no way you’ll be prepared for the celebration in a short amount of time. 

You need to plan out how you’re going to dress for the celebration; just the thought of having to dress up for a celebration with your boyfriends makes you nervous. Everything has to be perfect, or else it’ll ruin your mood for the night. The men look over at each other and mentally communicate with each other; that’s what you’re assuming since they’re making faces at each other and moving their heads and eyebrows in strange ways you don’t understand.

Ayato turns to you with a smile on his face. “The celebration will be tomorrow night. It will be in Inazuma at a fancy restaurant. Please dress appropriately,” Ayato says. 

Ayato gets up from his seat, walks over to you, grabs your hand, and presses a kiss on your knuckles. You blush and nod in response. Perfect! It’s tomorrow night, and you have some time to plan out what you’ll wear according to what Ayato has informed you about. After you had finished your plate of spaghetti, Childe, Gorou, and Heizou were sent to go to the Harbingers’ estate to tell them about the celebration.

“You four don’t have to show up if you don’t want. But you four will look like jerks if you don’t show up to the celebration of [Y/N]’s accomplishment,” Heizou says nonchalantly, tapping his bicep with his index finger.

Dottore lets out an amused huff of breath through his nostrils. “Oh, you don’t have to worry about us not showing up. We will make an appearance,” Dottore says, smiling at Heizou and Childe.

“Did any of you think of a gift for [Y/N] for their achievement?” Pantalone asks, leaning against the doorway with a smile on his face.

Goro’s eyes widened for a brief moment when Pantalone brought up the topic of gifts. “Oh! A g-gift?” Gorou asks, looking over at Childe and Heizou anxiously.

Pantalone nods his head. “That’s correct, a gift. One does not celebrate an achievement without a gift of some sort,” Pantalone lets out a huff of laughter, crossing his arms over his chest and puffing it out.

“We will let you and the others decide on what gift to get [Y/N] for their achievement. The other Harbingers and I will be keeping our gift ideas to ourselves. We don’t want anyone to copy us,” Dottore says, flicking his icy-blue bangs over his shoulders.

Childe rolls his eyes and mumbles incoherent words under his breath before telling Heizou and Gorou to follow after him. After Gorou, Heizou, and Childe return to the abode, Dottore turns to look at Pantalone once they close the front door of the Harbingers' estate.

The two men turn to look at Pierro and Capitano; the two men have their arms propped up on the dining table, the sleeves of their button-up shirts rolled up to their elbows. Capitano and Pierro look at Dottore and Pantalone; Pierro raises his eyebrows at the two men at the entrance.

“What gift do you have in mind, Pantalone?” Pierro asks, clutching onto the mug in his hands and bringing it up to his lips to take a sip of his drink.

Capitano shakes his head. “I bet it's mora, as usual,” Capitano says. The three men can almost hear Capitano roll his eyes beneath his helmet. 

Pantalone, Dottore, and Pierro look at one another while chuckling and shaking their heads. After all, Capitano is always right. Don’t know what to get your significant other for their birthday? Give them mora! Did your significant other achieve something amazing, but you’re unsure of what to give them? Give them mora and take them out shopping with said mora! Overall, Mora is an excellent gift for many occasions! 

The next day, you didn’t see the men as much. You’re assuming they’re getting ready for the celebration and making sure things are going as planned. You spent the entire day planning your outfit for the evening and how you’re going to style your hair. During the day, Zhongli stops by your bedroom and gifts you a customized perfume that was made by Ying’er at Scent of Spring in Liyue. 

“I hope you like it,” Zhongli says shyly, presenting a small pink box to you. 

You grab the small box from Zhongli’s hands and untie the pretty pink bow that wraps around the box. You open the box and see a small glass fragrance bottle labeled ‘Under the Moonlight’ in cursive. You look at Zhongli and give him a smile, walking into his arms and giving him a hug.

“Thank you, Zhongli! I love it,” you said. 

You lean up and press a kiss on his jawline, squeezing his hand with your unoccupied hand. Zhongli brushes your hair from your face and presses a kiss on your forehead, muttering how proud he is of you. After that, Zhongli leaves you to prepare for the celebration. You wear the fanciest clothing you have in your closet, style your hair that fits the occasion, and spray on the perfume that Zhongli has gifted to you. You leave the abode on your own after remembering what Kaveh had told you while you’re getting ready for the celebration.

“We will be waiting at the restaurant. Ayato has given me the name of the restaurant, and I have slipped the paper under the door. We will meet you there,” Kaveh says from behind your closed bedroom door.

You look at the floor and notice the small slip of paper. “Alright, sounds good! I will meet you all there!” You said, walking over to the paper and grabbing it off the ground. You flip the paper over to read the name of the restaurant; you hear Kaveh’s footsteps fade away. 

You walk in the streets of Inazuma City, feeling self-conscious from the number of stares you’re getting from bystanders as you’re walking past them. Yes, you’re wearing fancy clothes and are dressed for a fancy occasion (to them), but that does not mean you’re comfortable with them staring at you as you’re walking by them. 

At the restaurant, the men are fixing their clothes and hair, making sure they look good. The only people missing are you, the four Harbingers, Childe, and Itto. Ayato has booked the entire restaurant, reserving the whole place for the twenty-six of you. The area is decorated with balloons and party streamers; on the ground of the restaurant, the flood is covered in confetti, and on the wall is a huge “Congratulations [Y/N]” sign. 

“Has anyone seen Childe and Itto?” Dainsleif asks, fixing the navy blue tie around his neck.

Kazuha shakes his head. “I haven’t seen them since this morning. Perhaps the two of them are getting a present for [Y/N]; after all, I did recall hearing Childe rant about Pantalone having to mention gifts,” Kazuha says, fixing the sleeve of his button-up shirt.

“Well, whatever those two are up to, they need to hurry up,” Xiao grumbles, rolling his sleeves up to his elbows.

The door to the restaurant opens, and Childe and Itto walk through the door with a person between them, their arms linked around Childe and Itto’s arms. The men look at Childe and Itto in disbelief; Itto and Childe give the men toothy grins and wave at them before looking down at the person.

“Who is that?” Kaeya asks, pointing at the person in the middle.

“How should we know? We’ve never met that person in our entire lives,” Scaramouche says, looking at Itto and Childe in horror.

Childe and Itto approach the men with the person linked around their arms. “Gentlemen, meet Li. Itto and I are paying them to play as our,” Childe quickly gestures to everyone in the room, “fake side piece,” Childe says, smiling at the men proudly.

“Wait, what?” Albedo raises his eyebrows at Childe.

Itto laughs and rubs his hands together. “Oh man, this prank is going to be the best prank ever! We paid Li to be all of our pretend ‘mistress’ to get back at [Y/N] for the pranks they’ve pulled on us!” Itto says.

Diluc shakes his head angrily. “No. Absolutely not. We are not going to pull this kind of ‘prank’ on [Y/N] on their special day and as a way to ‘get back at them’ for the tricks they’ve pulled,” Diluc states firmly, glaring at Childe and Itto.

“I agree. Childe, Itto, you need to call off this ‘prank’ of yours and tell Li to leave the premises before [Y/N] arrives and sees another person,” Al Haitham demands, pointing at the door.

“Yeah, Li! You need to Li-ve (leave)!” Cyno says, crossing his arms over his chest.

Tighnari feels his eyes twitch and pinches the bridge of his nose. “Did you really need to crack a pun joke at a time like this?” Tighnari asks through clenched teeth.

While the men are arguing with one another, you approach the restaurant and hand the paper to the host of the restaurant. The host gives you a smile and guides you inside the restaurant. He ends up having you follow the trail of confetti and rose petals on the ground that leads to the grand hall where you and your boyfriends will be dining in for the evening, celebrating your accomplishment. 

You grab the gold door handle and pull the door open. You walk into the grand hall and stop in your tracks when you see the decorations. You’re about to approach your boyfriends, but your feet freeze to the ground when you see an unfamiliar face. Baizhu is the first to notice you; he nudges everyone and gestures in your direction.

“[Y/N]’s here. Don’t do anything stupid,” Baizhu mutters, giving Itto and Childe a small glare.

You slowly approach the group and the strange person. You point at them with shaky hands, hoping that you’re wrong about your assumption. 

“Who’s this?” You ask in a small voice. Your hands are trembling by your side; your heart is racing against your chest. The more you look at this person, the more you realize that this person is beautiful, making you feel mediocre compared to them.

“Windblume! This person is no—” the strange person cuts Venti off.

The person turns to look at you and struts up to you confidently, crossing their arms over their chest, looking at you from head to toe as if they’re sizing you up. They hold their hand out in front of them. “My name’s Li. I am these handsome men’s mistress. And who are you? I don’t recall hearing about you,” they said, the corners of their lips quirking up.

You look at Li with disbelief and at the men behind them. You look back at Li and press your lips into a thin line, tears slowly flooding your vision. You look away and clear your throat. The room around you is suddenly spinning, and you hear ringing in your ears.

You let out a bitter laugh, tears cascading down your cheeks. “I’m no one. I apologize for interrupting your date with your…. Lovers. It seems like I got the wrong room,” you look up at Li and at the men. “Please, continue your date. I shall leave now,” you choke. You bow at Li and the men stiffly before turning around and running out of the room.

“I’m going to beat your ass, Tartaglia,” Thoma growls.

Gorou whimpers softly, his shoulders shaking as he cries silently. “This was supposed to be the day where we celebrate [Y/N]’s achievement. It’s all ruined because of you three idiots,” Gorou growls, glaring at Childe, Itto, and Li, bearing his fangs at the three. 

“You idiots!” Diluc roars, grabbing Childe by the collar and slamming him down on the table.

Zhongli glares at Itto, his amber eyes glowing ominously, his hands clenched at his side. “You dare to break [Y/N]’s heart?” Zhongli growls. The ground below starts to rumble.

“When we find [Y/N] and return to the abode, you two idiots will apologize to [Y/N]. As for you,” Ayato turns to look at Li, who looks at Ayato with an amused look on their face, “you will not be getting a single mora from the stunt you have pulled. You’re disgraceful, and you disgust us,” Ayato spats.

After you had stormed out and left the restaurant, the men tried to search for you, hoping you would still be in the city. Unfortunately for them, you were nowhere to be found. They return to the abode with heavy hearts and regret chewing them inside and out. When they approach the front door of the main estate, the door swings open, revealing the four Harbingers carrying your suitcases in their hands. The men freeze, and the four Harbingers stare at the men blankly while Pierro shoots them a glare. If looks can kill, they would all be dead right now. 

Capitano turns around. “Are you ready?” Capitano asks, holding his hand out for you to take.

You walk up to Capitano, grab his hands and nod your head. You cling to his side, refusing to look the others in the eyes. After what had happened at the restaurant, you don’t think you can look at them the same ever again. 

“What’s with the suitcases?” Aether asks, pointing at the black and white suitcase in the Harbingers’ hands.

“I’m moving out. For now,” you reply. You let out a shaky breath and swallowed the lump in your throat.

“What?!” Xiao’s eyes widen. 

“Why are you moving out?” Heizou asks sadly.

You shrug your shoulders, wiping away the stray tear that made its way down your cheeks. “After what happened today, I don’t think I can stay in the same house as any of you. You all cheated on me and have completely broken my trust. I need space,” you whisper, balling your hands into tight fists until your nails break into your skin.

Childe quickly approaches you and grabs you by your shoulders. “It was a prank, [Y/N]. We never cheated on you. Itto and I paid Li to pretend to be our mistress to get back at you for all of the pranks you’ve pulled on us,” Childe says.

Your bottom lip quivers, and you look away from Childe. “Instead of asking me to stop, you decide to play a cheating prank on me?” You stare up at Childe; tears pools in your eyes and cascade down your cheeks. “Do you think that loyalty is a joke?” You whisper.

“What?! No! I-I don’t!” Childe exclaims, shaking his head.

You shake your head and push him away from you. “All of my pranks are harmless. I didn’t hurt anyone or cause emotional distress to any of you. This is what I get? On the day that was supposed to celebrate my accomplishment? Am I a joke to all of you?” You demand, looking at each man in the eyes while tears continue to pour out of your eyes. 

“Technically, it was Childe and Itto’s idea. None of us knew this was going to happen,” Scaramouche interjects, zapping Itto in the back with electricity, making the oni grunt in pain. 

Pierro places a hand on your shoulder. “Let’s go home and get you settled in. It’s getting late out,” Pierro says gently. You nod your head and begin walking away with the four Harbingers.

“[Y/N], wait,” Itto says, grabbing hold of your wrist.

You quickly turn around and slap Itto across the face; the sound of your hand meeting his cheek echos the silent air in the abode. Itto lets go of your wrist, placing his hand on his stinging cheek, looking at you in disbelief and heartbreak. Everyone lets out a collective gasp and stares at you and Itto in shock.

You wipe your tear-stained cheeks with the sleeves of your sweater. “Don’t touch me. None of you have the right to touch me after the stunt you all pulled,” you spat.

Dottore lets out an amused chuckle. “Congratulations on fucking up your relationship and the trust between all of you and [Y/N]. Now they don’t trust any of you, especially you two,” Dottore says, looking over at Childe and Itto.

“Let’s go home, sweetheart,” Pantalone murmurs, pulling you by your arm. 

You nod and continue walking to the Harbingers’ estate with Pierro, Capitano, Pantalone, and Dottore, leaving the men behind. After you and the four Harbingers have entered the Harbingers’ estate, the men turn to look at Itto and Childe, their jaws clenching and hands balled up into fists.

“Look at what you two have done. You two idiots broke [Y/N]’s heart and trust to the point where they cannot live under the same roof as us because of the stunt you two have pulled to get back at them for their harmless pranks,” Al Haitham scowls.

Venti’s bottom lip quivers. “Do you two ever think about how actions have consequences? Look at the outcome of your actions; [Y/N] is living with the Harbingers now because you two broke [Y/N]’s heart,” Venti glowers.

Thoma throws his hands up in frustration. “They’re not going to trust us ever again because of that stupid prank you two pulled. We didn’t want the prank to happen, but you two insisted on continuing the prank anyway, and look where it landed us all,” Thoma lectures Childe and Itto. 

Thoma shakes his head and rubs his temples with his index finger. 

“I’m going to put a restraining order on that Li person, so they never approach any of us ever again,” Tighnari states.

Without another word, Tighnari turns around and walks into the estate. The others soon follow after Tighnari in silence, glaring at Itto and Childe while walking past the two men. The estate feels empty, despite twenty-one people—well, twenty people now because you moved out temporarily— living under the same roof. The estate is quiet; no one dares to speak to one another, fearing they would blow up in each other’s faces and scream at one another. 

Gorou peeks his head into your dark bedroom. He flips the switch on, and the light illuminates your room. All of your things are still in your room; the plushies each man has given you, the small pictures that you hung up on the wall of you and the men, the love letters you have received from each man, stacked on your desk with a cute pink bow tying them all together in one big stack. The ones that have written you the most love letters are Diluc, Zhongli, and Ayato, but the other men have written you almost as many as the two did. Gorou presses his lips together, his lips trembling as he walks over to your bed.

Gorou lays on your bed and hugs your pillow to his chest, breathing in your shampoo and conditioner. Tears begin to roll down Gorou’s cheeks as he buries his face into your pillow, silently crying into the now tear-soaked pillow. 

Over at the Harbingers’ estate, you lay in your new bedroom, staring at the ceiling blankly. Your hair is still damp from your shower, you’re wearing the comfiest pajamas you own, and you are emotionally exhausted. You have cried out all of your tears, and there’s no way to squeeze out a single tear even if you tried. Your eyes are swollen, your heart is hurting, and you’re exhausted and hungry. When you stormed out of the restaurant, you bumped into the four Harbingers outside of Inazuma City. When you told them what happened, they were all furious and gladly took you back to the abode and helped you pack your things while consoling you. Unfortunately for them, you’re inconsolable and can’t stop crying. 

A quiet knock interrupts you from your thoughts. You turn your head to look at the door before turning on your side. The door cracks open, and the four Harbingers peek their heads into your new bedroom. You slowly sit up on your bed and hug your blanket to your chest, looking at them sadly.

“May we enter? It’s okay if you want to be alone,” Pierro says softly.

You nod your head and gesture for them to enter. Capitano opens the door wider and enters the room with the other men following behind him. Capitano has a tray of food in his hands, while the other three men have small gift boxes.

Capitano places the tray of food on your bed beside you. “I assume you didn’t get to eat anything at the restaurant the Kamisato heir have rented out. So, I have decided to make something for you to eat,” Capitano says, standing at the edge of your bed. 

You give Capitano a weak smile. “Thank you, Capitano. I really appreciate it,” you whisper.

“Do you want us to keep you company while you eat, or do you want to eat by yourself?” Dottore asks.

“I want company,” you murmur, reaching for the sandwich Capitano has made you. Your eyes trail over to the small gift boxes placed on your bed. You tilt your head and point at the boxes. “What are those?” You ask.

Pantalone sits in front of you and hands you the gift box in his hand. You grab the box and untie the ribbon sitting pretty on the box. You open the box and pull out a necklace and bracelet set that looks like it costs more than the two estates in the abode. You look at Pantalone with disbelief, then look back down at the jewelry in the small box.

“I know you don’t expect gifts from either of us, but we want to get you something for your achievement. We’re really proud of you, and we look forward to seeing you achieve many amazing things,” Pantalone says, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear with a smile on his face.

You feel your eyes water at Pantalone’s comment. You blink your tears away and let your gaze fall to your lap. Pantalone caresses your face in his hand and wipes the stray tear from your cheek with his thumb.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Capitano asks.

You shake your head, bow your head and let the tears fall. “I don’t even know what else to say other than my heart hurts a lot. I understand that my tricks are bothersome, but they never physically or emotionally hurt someone. What bothers me the most is how Childe and Itto decide to come up with a prank where everyone cheats on me with someone that is better than me. I don’t like how Itto and Childe see loyalty as a joke because what sick person thinks cheating pranks are funny?” You rant, reaching for the second sandwich and taking a bite.

“They’re fools for pulling a stunt like that. Please do not compare yourself to that Li person. They’re just a pathetic mora-hungry idiot like Childe and that oni,” Pierro says gruffly.

You nod your head and continue to finish up your sandwich. While eating your sandwich, Dottore and Pierro place the gifts on the porcelain white bedside table. The four men refused to leave your side until you finished your food and drank every last drop of your water. You’re grateful they did that because if they were to leave you alone, you would’ve stopped eating and just gone straight to bed instead of finishing your dinner. 

Before leaving your room with the food tray, each man presses a goodnight kiss on your forehead. Once you’re alone in your new bedroom, you’re alone with your thoughts. You don’t like being left alone with your thoughts— especially when you’re going through a tough time. You swallow your pride, take your blanket off and walk out of your bedroom to the closest bedroom near yours.

You stop in front of the bedroom door and knock on it lightly. You hear a faint “come in” coming from the inside of the bedroom. You grab the door handle and open the door, peeking your head into the room. Capitano walks out of the bathroom, his shirt unbuttoned and his belt unbuckled. You gulp and look away shyly. “Now’s not the time to be horny, dammit,” you curse yourself internally.

“Is there something I can do for you?” Capitano asks, crossing his arms over his chest.

You clear your throat and scratch the back of your neck shyly. “Is it okay if I sleep in your room tonight? I don’t like being left alone with my thoughts,” you said softly.

Capitano nods his head. “Of course. You’re always welcome to sleep in my bedroom whenever you want,” Capitano says.

You give Capitano a grateful smile and close the door behind you. You walk over to Capitano’s king-size bed and get under the covers, snuggling up against the large, fluffy pillows. Capitano disappears into his bathroom for a brief moment before coming out of the bathroom wearing his pajamas, a plain white t-shirt, and silk navy blue pajama pants. Capitano gets under the covers beside you; there’s a slightly large distance between the two of you.

You’re not entirely sure whether Capitano is the type to show affection or any physical touch because he doesn’t really show his emotions as much. Not that it’s bad, but also because if any of the four Harbingers got near you, despite also dating you, the men would hiss at the four Harbingers like a cat and swat at their hands.

You turn to your side and stare at Capitano, and he stares back at you (at least, you assume that’s what he’s doing). You open your mouth to say something but close your mouth and go back to lying on your back. You yawn and snuggle in Capitano’s blankets, closing your eyes. Capitano turns the lights off and settles down in his bed, closing his eyes. Somehow, overnight, you and Capitano gravitated towards each other and woke up the next day with you in his arms and your head on his chest while his arms were wrapped around your waist.

A few days have gone by, and you’re still not over the heartbreak you have experienced. Instead of going out to interact with the four Harbingers, you’re holed up in your temporary bedroom, lying on your bed and staring into space. When you’re not staring into space and wishing that the prank had never happened, you will take naps. Lots and lots of naps. It has gotten to the point where Pierro would send Dottore up to your room to check on your health and ensure that you didn’t fall ill.

Dottore presses the back of his hand against your forehead while you have a thermometer sticking out from your mouth. You’re always tired now, and you didn’t have the energy to get up from your bed and leave to get some sun outside the Harbingers’ estate. You didn’t even have the energy or motivation to continue your studies like you usually would back at the estate you used to reside in. Heck, you didn’t even visit the Akademiya to check on the progress of the academic journal being published. 

“How are you feeling?” Dottore asks, taking the thermometer out from your mouth to look at the numbers that are flashing on the small screen.

You shrug your shoulders. “I’m feeling fine, but I’m tired,” you reply, rubbing your eyes with your fist.

“Your temperature is normal, and you’re not feeling sick,” Dottore trails off, propping his hands on his hips while analyzing you closely. “You need to go outside and get some fresh air. We do have a botanical garden out in the back if you would like to spend a few minutes there,” Dottore says.

“I don’t know if I want to go outside and look at the flowers in the backyard. As much as I would love to, I don’t have the energy to get up and leave my bed,” you said softly. You lay back down on your bed and snuggle into your comforter.

“Then why not take a trip down to Inazuma City with me while I buy some ingredients for dinner tonight?” A voice pipes up. 

You and Dottore turn to look at the entrance to your bedroom. Pantalone leans against the doorway with his arms over his chest, smiling at you. Dottore snorts and shakes his head, making Pantalone narrow his eyes in response. Pantalone walks into your room and stops beside Dottore.

Dottore shakes his head. “I believe that [Y/N] can go out to Inazuma City and shop for the ingredients for dinner alone,” Dottore says.

“Go out into Inazuma City alone? I don’t know if I want to do that,” you said.

“Do what? Go out to Inazuma City alone or go out?” Pantalone asks, sitting on the edge of your bed.

“Both,” You deadpan. 

Dottore and Pantalone snort, trading looks with each other before turning to look at you. You deflate and begrudgingly get up from your bed and walk over to your closet to find a change of clothes to go out to Inazuma City to shop for ingredients. After grabbing your change of clothes, you realize that you haven’t taken a shower today. Even though you holed yourself up in your bedroom and lay in bed all day, that didn’t stop you from taking a shower because you can’t stand skipping showers, and it’s also how you relieve your stress; by taking a shower and crying in the shower.

“I’m going to take a quick shower, change into clothes, then I’ll go out,” you said.

You go to your dresser with your change of clothes in your hands and pull out your undergarments from the dresser before walking to the bathroom. Your shower ended up being almost fifteen minutes long because you were busy shedding a few tears while the water rained down on you. Since you’re out and about in Inazuma with a large bag of mora (courtesy of Pantalone himself), you’re in Inazuma City, weaving through a crowd of people while trying to find specific ingredients needed for dinner tonight. 

“Where in the world do I buy unagi meat?” You mutter to yourself, looking down at the list of ingredients Pierro handed to you before you left the abode. You let out a huff of breath and shake your head. “They made a big mistake by letting me be the one to buy groceries,” you said.

While looking at your surroundings, searching for a nearby market that sells unagi meat, you hear someone calling you from a distance. You furrow your eyebrows with confusion and try to search for the voice that is calling out to you.

Lumine emerges from the crowd and approaches you with a big smile on her face. “There you are! I’ve been trying to get your attention the minute you step foot into Inazuma City!” Lumine breathes, placing her hand on your shoulders.

Your eyes widen. “Oh, you were?!” 

Lumine nods her head. 

You laugh sheepishly and rub the back of your neck. “Sorry, I was focused on getting ingredients for Pierro that I didn’t hear you call my name. I’ve been trying to search for unagi meat, but so far, I’ve been unsuccessful,” you said, shoulders slumping.

Lumine blinks at you, surprised. “Pierro? I thought you were getting unagi meat for Thoma,” Lumine says, propping her right hand on her hip and tilting her head to the side.

Your smile slips off your face at the mention of Thoma. You clear your throat and look away from Lumine awkwardly while trying your best not to cry in front of Lumine and the passerby in Inazuma City. 

“I… haven’t been in contact with Thoma or the others for about a few days now,” you said. “I’m currently living with Dottore, Pantalone, Capitano, and Pierro.”

Lumine’s eyes widened after hearing your response. “What?! What happened? What did those idiots do!?” Lumine demands. She grabs ahold of your biceps and shakes you lightly. 

You shake your head and pinch the bridge of your nose. “I’ve been pranking the men for a few days. Instead of telling me to stop, Childe and Itto decided to prank me back by hiring someone to play the mistress. Their way to getting back at me is by pretending that everyone has cheated on me with the person Childe and Itto hired,” you reply, chewing on the inside of your lip.

Lumine stares at you for a moment, poking the inside of her cheek with her tongue. “I’m going to beat their asses,” Lumine states.

You shake your head. “No, don’t do it. It’s not worth it,” You said. “And the worst part is that they pulled this prank on the day we were supposed to celebrate my achievement in the Akademiya.”

“I’m going to beat their ass,” Lumine deadpans, tightening her grip on your biceps. “All of them. I don’t care if they’re a Harbinger, oni, archon, my brother, dumb ass number one and two. I’m beating all of their asses, and that goes the same for the person Itto and Childe have paid,” Lumine states.

You can see steam coming from Lumine’s ears as she releases you and clenches her hands into tight fists. You give Lumine a small smile and give her arm a comforting squeeze.

“Thank you, Lumine. I appreciate it,” you said softly.

Lumine sighs and wraps her arms around your shoulders, rubbing her cheek against yours. “Anything for you,” Lumine pouts, reaching for your cheek and giving your cheek a squeeze. 

You look over at Lumine. “What are you doing in Inazuma City, by the way?” You ask.

Lumine releases you from the hug and sighs. “I just met up with Ayaka at Komore Teahouse! I did see Thoma there, and he looked really dejected and looked like he hadn’t slept in days,” Lumine says.

“Good,” you huff like a petulant child. “I hope they’re all that way too.” You glare at the ground.

“Hey,” Lumine coos, cupping your face in her hands and tilting your face up to look at her. “Cheer up, lovebug. I want them to suffer just as much as you do, but cheer up and don’t let the thought of them get to you.” Lumine gives your cheek an endearing squeeze.

You sigh and melt into her hands, resting your forehead against hers. “I can’t help but feel really sad. I understand it was all a prank, but it was about cheating. Who jokes about cheating?!” You rant, pulling away from her grasp.

Lumine rolls her eyes. “Only idiots make jokes about cheating, lovebug.”

You look down at the list of ingredients in your hands. “Do you want to help me search for unagi meat and keep me company while I shop for ingredients?” You ask.

“I would love—” Lumine gets cut off by someone calling her name in the distance.

You and Lumine turn to look in the direction where the voice is coming from and see Sango approaching the both of you. Lumine sighs and looks over at you with a sympathetic smile as the brunette detective gets closer and closer. Sango stops in front of you and Lumine, breathing heavily.

“Lumine, can you help Ryuuji and me with this case? Heizou has yet to show up on the job and called in sick the other day, and we need your help,” Sango says, clasping her hands together while giving Lumine a pleading look.

Heizou called in sick? It’s not like him to call in sick or miss a day of work. How strange. 

Lumine gives Sango a fake smile and nods her head. “Yeah, sure! I don’t mind helping you and Ryuuji out with a case. I’ll be there in a moment; I just need to talk to my brother’s lover really quick,” Lumine says.

Sango perks up and nod before running off to where Ryuuji is waiting. Lumine sighs and rests her head on your shoulders, closing her eyes. You pat Lumine’s head and stroke her back.

“Don’t feel guilty for having to leave me to help out Ryuuji and Sango with a case. I didn’t really expect any company, but it would be nice to have one,” you said.

Lumine slowly pulls from you and sighs sadly. “I know, but you’re currently hurting, and I want to be there to help you with something, you know?” Lumine frowns.

“Lumine, seeing your face today makes my day a little bit brighter. I’m happy to see you again, and I hope we can hang out again soon!” You said, squeezing her hands.

“Right after I beat your boyfriends’ asses because it's what they deserve,” Lumine scowls, stomping her feet on the ground. Lumine’s eyes suddenly light up. “I have an idea!” Lumine gasps, tapping on your arms with a big smile on her face.

“And what is your idea?” You ask.

Lumine smirks and crosses her arms over her chest. “You prank them back!” Lumine answers. 

You shake your head. “No, absolutely not,” You reply.

Lumine looks at you in disbelief. “And why not?! This is the perfect time for revenge!” Lumine exclaims.

“Me pranking them is what landed us in this situation, Lumine. I don’t want to make it worse than it already is.” You run your fingers through your hair.

“I know, but think about it,” Lumine pleads.

You chuckle and shake your head. “We’ll talk about it later, Lumine. I don’t think I can continue to make Pierro, Dottore, Capitano, and Pantalone wait any longer for the dinner ingredients,” you said.

Lumine visibly deflates and nods. “Alright, alright. I’ll leave you to it,” Lumine says, patting the top of your head. 

You and Lumine give each other a hug before parting ways. You continue to search for different ingredients on the list, skipping over unagi meat. While you’re waiting in line to enter a market, something catches your eyes in your peripheral vision. You turn your head and don’t see anything, but for some reason, you feel compelled to enter Chinju Forest. 

You walk towards the forest, away from the civilians and the market. The paper in your hand slips from your grasp, landing in the water of Chinju Forest. You can hear whispers around you, coming from every direction, drowning out the sound of rushing waters and birds and crickets chirping. You continue to walk further into the forest until you’re walking over to the edge of the cliff and look down at the cliff blankly as if you’re in a trance. 

“Jump,” a voice whispers.

You shake your head, staring down at the rocks below. “I don’t want to jump,” you whisper back.

“This is the perfect way to get back at the ones that hurt you. Don’t you want to hurt them back as revenge?” The voice asks.

The voice sounds so close. It was like they were standing behind you, leaning close to your ears, trying to coax you to jump off the edge of the cliff. The voice giggles almost mockingly. You continue to stare at the rocks below you. The cliff's height is high, but not high enough to kill you.

“What are you afraid of? It’s not like they’ll be worried. After all, they did pull that prank on you and knew that it would hurt you,” the voice snickers.

You blink slowly, trying to come to your senses. “Yeah, you’re right. They did hurt me,” you gulp, feeling tears pool in your eyes. “But that doesn’t mean I’m going to hurt myself over it to get back at them for the prank they pulled on me,” you stated.

You’re about to turn around, but your feet remain still. Your feet felt like it was glued to the ground, and you were unable to move from the spot. Everything happened so fast. The last things you remembered were hearing bloodcurdling screams in your ears, the wind whipping in your face, and the ground meeting your body. The last thing you felt was a sharp pain in your head, and you heard a sickening crack. When you wander off to Chinju Forest, you fail to notice Lumine following you to see where you’re going.

“[Y/N]!!!!!!!” You hear Lumine’s screech.

Lumine’s eyes are blurred with tears; she runs to the teapot with you in her arms. She runs past the people of Inazuma as they stare in horror. Her body is wracking with sobs as she holds you close to her chest, her white dress turning reddish-brown from the blood that oozes from the crack in your skull. You hit your head hard. No. You didn’t hit your head at all; you cracked your skull open from the great height.

Lumine doesn’t know what made you wander off to Chinju Forest and what led you to jump off the cliff. All Lumine know is that she needs to get you to the abode soon and get you treated, or else you will die. Lumine doesn’t want you to die, especially in her arms. If you do die, she won’t be able to handle your death, nor will she be able to cope with it. 

When Lumine successfully teleports the two of you to the abode, she collapses on the ground, and her cries echo the abode, alerting the inhabitants. Everyone rushes out from their respective homes and over to where Lumine is kneeling. Lumine’s right hand is clutching onto your head, covered in your blood as fresh blood continues to ooze out from your head.

“Please, please, please save them,” Lumine begs, her body wracking with sobs.

Dottore pushes through the crowd of men and takes you out of Lumine’s grasp. Dottore rushes you to the Harbingers’ Estate with Albedo, Baizhu, and Tighnari following behind. Everyone looked like they saw a ghost; the colors drained from their faces as they watched Dottore carry you away. They catch a glimpse of your face; your eyes are barely open, your body is limp, your blood covering your face, and you’re almost as white as a ghost.

“I couldn’t stop them. I couldn’t get them to snap out of it, and they just jumped,” Lumine cries, curling up into a ball, her hands covering her face.

Dainsleif takes a step forward. “What do you mean you couldn’t stop them?” Dainsleif demands. 

Lumine ignores Dainsleif and continues to let out anguish cries, pulling at her blonde hair, tainting them with your blood.

Aether walks to Lumine, pulls her up from the ground, and shakes Lumine by her shoulders. “Lumine! Get a hold of yourself!” Aether screams over Lumine’s cry. 

Angrily, Lumine shoves Aether away from her and wipes her tears with her sleeves. “[Y/N] wouldn’t be in this situation if none of you played that cruel prank on them!” Lumine screams, glaring at each person with fury in her eyes. Her bottom lips quiver and she shakes her head as fresh tears make their way down her cheeks. “How can you guys be so cruel to [Y/N]? What did they do to deserve this?” Lumine whispers.

“Let’s all take a deep breath and relax,” Gorou says nervously, his hands trembling as he tries to remain calm after seeing the current state you’re in.

Lumine shakes her head and points at the group of men in front of her, glaring at them through her tears. “I had to witness [Y/N] jumping off the cliff in Chinju Forest and hearing their skull crack open. How can I remain calm after I have witnessed [Y/N] trying to take their own life?!” Lumine screeches. 

“Why were they in Chinju Forest?” Kaeya demands.

Lumine wipes her tears and shrugs her shoulders. “[Y/N] was in Inazuma City shopping for ingredients for dinner. I don’t know what lured them into Chinju Forest, but I tried to get their attention, but I-I guess they didn’t hear me,” Lumine sniffles.

“What do we do now?” Kaveh asks, crossing his arms over his chest.

Cyno shrugs his shoulders. “All we can do is wait,” Cyno replies.

Everyone ends up waiting in the living room of the Harbingers’ estate. Lumine did not want to leave the abode to change into clean clothes; she was afraid to leave your side. If Lumine were to leave the abode, what would happen if something happened to you while she was gone? Just like how she left you to help out Sango, only for you to plummet to your death.

Tighnari stares down at Lumine with disapproval, his nose scrunching up with disgust when he gets a whiff of your dried blood on Lumine. “Please go take a shower. I’m sure [Y/N] wouldn’t mind lending you some clothes while you’re here,” Tighnari says, propping his hands on his hips.

Lumine shakes her head. “I don’t want to leave their side like how you all left their side,” Lumine spats, catching the others off guard. “I can’t lose them; I can’t.” Lumine whispers.

“[Y/N] is going to be okay. I’m sure that whenever [Y/N] is awake, they don’t want to see their blood on your clothes,” Kazuha says.

Lumine sighs in defeat and gets up from her spot. Tighnari hands Lumine a pair of your clothes for her to wear temporarily, and she goes to the guest bathroom to take a quick shower. While Lumine is in the shower, Pierro walks up to Albedo.

“How are they doing?” Pierro asks.

Albedo sighs and shrugs his shoulders. “They’re in critical condition. It will be a miracle if they’re able to survive this injury. The crack in their skull is bigger than we have anticipated. Dottore and Doctor Baizhu are working to make sure everything is fine and for [Y/N] to have a smooth recovery,” Albedo says.

When Lumine finished her shower and emerged from the bathroom in your clothes, Lumine was disappointed to see that you’re still getting operated on. Lumine tried to take a long shower, hoping that it would pass some time and that your surgery would be finished soon. Unfortunately, her fear of something happening to you while she’s away got to her, causing her to rush. 

“This is taking way too long for my liking,” Lumine mutters, shaking her head.

“They’re operating on [Y/N]’s skull, Lumine. Operations like this take time; we can’t rush things like this,” Al Haitham deadpans.

Lumine rolls her eyes. “I don’t understand how [Y/N] could be with any of you. You all lack emotions, and it’s like dating a brick wall,” Lumine huffs. She crosses her arms over her chest and mumbles, “They should’ve chosen me instead. I wouldn’t do this to them or put them in this situation.” 

Gorou looked up and nudged Aether, gesturing to Lumine, who ignored everyone’s gaze. “Can you repeat that for us?” Gorou asks, straightening up.

Lumine rolls her eyes. “No. None of you deserve to hear what I have to say. You all should’ve seen [Y/N] when I saw them in Inazuma City. They’re frustrated and heartbroken because of all of you,” Lumine says, glaring at the men. “When [Y/N] recovers from the injury, I’m taking [Y/N] away from all of you,” Lumine states.

Ayato exhales through his nose. “Do you think [Y/N] is willing to go with you?” Ayato asks.

“Yes. As long as they’re far away from the people that hurt them, I’m sure they’ll be fine with me,” Lumine smirks.

Itto makes a “hmph!” sound and crosses his arms over his chest. “If [Y/N] would choose you, they would’ve done it in the first place. But guess what? They chose us instead,” Itto says.

Lumine laughs sarcastically and shakes her head. “Oh, Itto. Do you really think that [Y/N] would want to see your and Childe’s face after the stunt you two have pulled? Do you not recall their heart being broken by your ‘harmless’ prank?” Lumine questions.

“Alright, that’s enough. Let’s stop bickering,” Cyno speaks up, giving Lumine a look.

Lumine rolls her eyes and leans against the wall, her arms over her chest, tapping on her biceps with her index finger. When Lumine first arrives at the abode with your lifeless body in her arms, she looks distraught and heartbroken, but now, she looks visibly pissed and is ready to attack the first thing her eyes land on. Everyone knew how close you and Lumine are with each other; you two are practically soul mates, but platonically. The men didn’t seem to care about your and Lumine’s close friendship, but after what has happened today, it’s starting to make the men have second thoughts. 

Kaveh raises his hand, grabbing Lumine’s attention. “We intend on speaking to [Y/N] about their excessive pranks, but the two idiots over there,” Kaveh points at Itto and Childe, “insisted on pranking [Y/N] back. We were completely unaware of what prank they had in mind. If you want to place the blame on someone, put it on those two idiots because none of us had agreed to a cheating prank on [Y/N]. Especially on the day when we celebrate their achievement,” Kaveh explains.

“Right, because who makes a joke about cheating? Only someone messed up would do that,” Scaramouche scowls, his head snapping in Itto and Childe’s direction. 

“We’ll apologize to [Y/N] when we see them, alright? Just cut us some slack,” Childe sighs, running his hands through his messy hair.

“That’s if [Y/N] even wants to see us. After all, the prank hurt them so much that they moved out of the estate and didn’t contact us for a few days,” Diluc sighs, shaking his head.

Xiao closes his head and rests his head against the wall behind him. “Once we have been informed that [Y/N] is in stable conditions, I’m going to beat Itto and Childe’s ass for the stunt they pulled,” Xiao mutters.

“Count me in,” said Kaeya, cracking his knuckles.

Dainsleif nods. “I’ll help,” Dainsleif interjects.

Another few hours went by, and it was excruciating. The only time each person would leave the hallway would be for bathroom breaks or to get something to eat. The silence is deafening, and the tensions are high. The sun is setting, and everyone is on the verge of falling asleep. Their heads lean up against the wall, and some are slumping down on the ground, trying not to fall asleep. Lumine closes her eyes and rests her head near the doorframe of the room you, Dottore, Albedo, Tighnari, and Baizhu are in.

The door flies open, grabbing everyone’s attention. Baizhu walks through the door and runs his fingers through his hair, sighing. Baizhu looks exhausted and tense. Baizhu looks up, and his eyes almost widen after seeing over twenty people crowding in the hallway.

“I see you’re all waiting for the news of [Y/N]’s condition,” Baizhu says.

Venti pushes himself off the wall and approaches Baizhu slowly. “How’s [Y/N] doing? Any updates?” Venti asks. 

“[Y/N] fractured their skull; it was severe. I’m not entirely sure how far they fell, but if Lumine didn’t bring them to the abode on time, we would’ve lost [Y/N],” Baizhu explains. 

Dottore walks out with a clipboard and looks at everyone blankly. “While [Y/N] is in stable conditions, they have a traumatic brain injury. We do not know how else this will affect [Y/N] because they’re currently unconscious. We will have to wait for them to wake up and see how detrimental this injury is,” Dottore says, flipping through the paper on the clipboard. 

“Can we go inside and visit them?” Thoma speaks up from the end of the hallway.

Albedo opens the door wide. “Please sanitize your hands at the door upon entering the room,” Albedo instructs.

One by one, each person sanitizes their hands before entering the room. The sound of a heart monitor beeping, tons of machines are taking up space. The room is dark yet illuminated with a lamp in the corner of the room. There you lay on the bed in the infirmary of the Harbingers’ estate. Your head is wrapped with bandages, lots and lots of bandages. Dottore, Albedo, Baizhu, and Tighnari cleaned the blood off your face, letting the others see the scrapes and cuts littering your skin. You’re attached to a bunch of wires, many of which are helping you stay alive until your body is able to function on its own without any assistance. 

Lumine steps forward and stands beside your bed, slowly reaching for your hand and placing her hand on top of yours. Your hands feel cold; she can barely see your chest rise and fall. Lumine bites down on her lips to hold back her tears. She swallows the lump in her throat and sits on the chair next to your bed. Lumine holds onto your hand as if they’re her lifeline.

“Do we know how long it’ll take for [Y/N] to regain their consciousness?” Heizou speaks up quietly.

Tighnari shakes his head. “We don’t know. [Y/N] will regain consciousness when their body says so. They’re not in a coma; their body is responding to their surroundings just fine. They need rest in order for their body to heal. The most important thing that needs to heal is their skull, more importantly, their brain,” Tighnari answers. 

“Great, more waiting games,” Kazuha mutters, standing at the foot of the bed.

“I’m sure we can all wait for [Y/N] to regain their consciousness. After all, it’s up to their body to decide when it’s a good time to wake up. They have no control over it, and we can’t nor should we force them to wake up,” Zhongli says.

Gorou sniffles and nods. “Right, we can wait a little longer,” Gorou says weakly, his bottom lip trembling.

And so, the waiting game begins again. From day one to the day you finally regained consciousness (which is a few days after your surgery), people would take turns visiting you. However, the visiting time is limited because of how small the room is and because there are a lot of people wanting to be able to see you before the day ends. While the men refuse to leave your side, they know they have priorities to tend to, and if they were to skip out on it like the past few days, you would be disappointed with them.

Each morning before the men leave for work or a meeting, the men will stop by to visit you and kiss the top of your head gently before leaving. The one that tries to stay by your side the most is Lumine, but Aether would drag her out of your room to help him with his commissions and the people of Teyvat. 

Gifts are dropped off in your room, almost taking up the majority of the remaining space in the room you’re residing in. So, Capitano and Pantalone move the gifts and “get well soon” cards to your temporary bedroom at the Harbingers’ estate. 

The sound of beeping brings you out of your unconscious state. Your eyelids felt like it was glued shut, making it complicated for you to open your eyes. You furrow your eyebrows and force your eyelids open. Your vision is blurry as you try to take in your surroundings. You lift your hand to rub the drowsiness from your eyes, but your arms feel heavy. 

“They’re awake; they’re awake!” You hear someone scream from a distance.

You groan and wince at the scream. Loud footsteps approach the room you’re in, and you look up to see a large group of people crowding into the room. You rub your eyes with your weak hands, and your visions clear up.

“How are you feeling?” The light blonde-haired man with teal eyes asks, standing next to your bed as he starts to analyze you.

You swallow your dry throat and gesture toward the glass cup behind him. He turns around and grabs the cup, handing it to you. You lift the cup to your face with shaky hands and take huge gulps of water, quenching your thirst. You hand the cup back to the man next to your bed and rub your throat subconsciously. 

“My head hurts, and my limbs feel really heavy,” You reply.

“We will be giving you medication and monitoring your skull as we keep you in the infirmary. We do not know how your body is going to react to the head injury after you have regained your consciousness, so it’s best we keep you here for the next two days,” the masked man says.

You look at everyone around the room quizzically. “How long have I been unconscious?” You ask.

“Almost a week, but it feels like a month to the rest of us,” The tall blond man says. 

You blink and realize that there’s more than one tall blond man. Your mind has yet to register the number of people in one room, and they’re all here to see you. The blonde girl pushes forward and looks at you in relief, her eyes brimming with tears as she stands next to you, grabbing your hand and squeezing them.

“[Y/N], you have no idea how worried I am about you! I’m so glad you’re okay,” she cries, pulling you into a hug.

You awkwardly pat the blonde girl’s back and look at everyone quizzically. The girl pulls away from your arms and wipes her tears away, giving you a tearful smile. You gingerly reach up and wipe the fresh tears from her face.

“How are you really feeling?” She whispers.

“I’m okay, but I do have a question,” You reply, lightly scratching your arm.

The redhead looks at you curiously. “And what’s your question? I’m sure we all have answers for you,” said the redhead.

You nod and open your mouth hesitantly. “Who are you guys?” You ask.

Scaramouche looks at everyone with wide eyes, his eyebrows shooting to his hairline. Suddenly it got worse than everyone had anticipated, but you losing your memory isn’t something Baizhu, Dottore, Tighnari, and Albedo aren’t shocked about. You did crack your skull open and had a traumatic brain injury. Something was bound to go wrong and you losing your memory is one of them.

“This is temporary, right?” Ayato asks, looking at Baizhu worriedly.

Baizhu sighs and shrugs his shoulders. “That, I do not know,” Baizhu answers.

“Amnesia can be permanent, but in [Y/N]’s case, we do not know. It can last a short amount of time, or it can be permanent,” Tighnari interjects, walking over to you and sitting in front of you. “We will be doing a simple check up on you to ensure you’re okay. While you did lose your memories, we are going to see how much you still remember,” Tighnari informs you.

You nod and hold up your index finger. “Before we do the check-up, can everyone please re-introduce yourselves? I don’t want to call any of you by your hair colors or by the facial expression you’re making,” you said.

Each person in the room starts to re-introduce themselves to you. It felt weird because when you first arrived at Teyvat, you already knew who they were and didn’t need to make introductions other than introducing yourself to them. Of course, with the people being newly added to the harem because you’re a magnet, they were the ones that needed to introduce themselves to you and the others of the harem.

“Now that we have gotten that out of the way, shall we start on the check-up now?” Albedo asks.

You nod and let Dottore, Baizhu, Albedo, and Tighnari perform basic checkups on you. They checked your pupil dilation, made sure you’re still able to walk without complications, etc. You passed the test with flying colors.

When it came to the test regarding your memory, you lost every memory you had made on Teyvat. You still have your memories, but only the memories of the events before you’re transported into Genshin Impact. Even though you played Genshin Impact in your world prior to you being sucked into the game you’re obsessed with, it was weird how you don’t know their names, and everyone started to question how it was even possible. 

“Do I really have to stay in here for the next two days? I feel fine,” you said.

Thoma places the tray of food on your lap and nods his head. “Doctors orders, [Y/N]. As much as I want you to return to the estate, it’s best for you to remain here until you’re discharged from the infirmary,” Thoma says. 

You take a bite out of the Inazuman dish and stare at the blanket on your lap. “How long have I been in Teyvat for?” You ask, looking up at the men in your room.

Lumine sits next to you as you’re eating the dish while waiting for someone to reply to you. “You had an amazing life in Teyvat. You’re an Akademiya student, and a few weeks ago, you had a big achievement! We all care about you, and you mean the world to us,” Lumine says, placing her hand over yours and interlocking her fingers with yours.

You blink at Lumine, look down at your interlocked hands, and at the men behind Thoma. The men’s eyes are zeroed in on your and Lumine’s hands as if they’re trying to burn holes into both of your hands. “Do I have a lover?” You ask.

“Lovers,” Kaveh says, giving you a fake smile.

You look at them with wide eyes. “LoverS? Like, more than one?!” You squeaked.

While your attention is away from Lumine, Lumine looks at the men and shoots them a glare, leaning onto you. The men are caught off guard by the look Lumine is giving them. Lumine gently cups your face in her hands and turns your head toward her direction. 

You notice the sad look on Lumine’s face. “What’s wrong, Lumine?” You ask, reaching for your napkin, but she takes it from your hands and lightly wipes your mouth with the napkin.

“I don’t like your lovers. They hurt you and seeing you heartbroken breaks my heart,” Lumine whispers, resting her head on your shoulder while snuggling up to you.

“Hey! Keep your hands off our significant other!” Itto hisses, glaring at Lumine.

Lumine glares at Itto and continues to press herself up against you, sticking her tongue out at the men in front of you and Lumine. You look at Lumine confused and decide not to question it and continue to eat your food. 

After that day, Lumine has made it her goal to spend more time with you and snatch you away from the men. Yes, it’s childish, but can you really blame Lumine for that? Because of them (specifically Childe and Itto), your heart was broken, and you were inconsolable, according to the four Harbingers. The four Harbingers watch the tug of war happen between the men and Lumine with amusement. 

This went on for the next two days. Lumine did not leave your side. Every time you eat or need something, Lumine will do it for you. If any man tries to offer to do something for you, Lumine is already out the door doing it for you. Of course, she allows the men to speak to you and look at you. What she doesn’t allow is them getting near you. Lumine isn’t too worried about the four Harbingers because she knows they’re getting entertainment out of the situation. They didn’t interfere with the little tug-of-war between Lumine and the men with you in the middle of it all. The only time when they have to intervene is if it inflicts harm on you. Like a headache because of the constant bickering between Lumine and the twenty-one men while you’re in the middle of the entire ordeal.

A few days after you have been discharged from the infirmary at the Harbingers’ estate, you and Lumine are outside enjoying the sunlight while conversing with each other. Then there are the men, who are spying on you and Lumine behind the thick flower bushes.

“Do you guys see how Lumine is trying to take [Y/N] away from us?! Lumine needs to stay in her lane and not be a homewrecker,” Aether huffs, crossing his arms over his chest and watching you and Lumine from behind the bush while you and Lumine are sitting in the botanical gardens.

“Well, yeah! It’s obvious that Lumine is trying to take [Y/N] from us,” Venti whispers loudly.

“Since when was Lumine interested in [Y/N]?” Dainsleif mutters.

“I have no idea, but we should move a little closer to them so we can hear what they’re saying,” Heizou whispers.

Each man gets up from their hiding spots and starts to tiptoe closer to where you and Lumine are sitting. You look at the flowers in the garden, taking a whiff of the floral scent that wafts around you and Lumine. While you’re admiring the flowers around you, Lumine props her arms on her thighs and admires you.

“If you don’t mind me asking,” Lumine speaks up, grabbing your attention. 

You turn to look at Lumine curiously.

“In your world, did you have any relationships?” Lumine asks.

You hum and nod your head. “I only dated one person in my entire life. The other people that I talked to in the past are all failed talking phases,” you reply.

“What are they like?”

You nibble on your bottom lip and scoff. “Awful. I wasted four years with them; they lied to me about everything and used me for their wants and needs. I poured my heart into the relationship, only to end up being hurt in the end,” You press your lips into a thin line and sigh. 

“Sounds like your present relationship if you ask me,” Lumine mutters under her breath.

Tighnari and Gorou are the ones that catch onto what Lumine said and shoot a glare in her direction behind the bushes. How dare she compare your past relationship with your current relationship! They treat you way better than your past significant other.

“How could Lumine say that? Our relationship with [Y/N] is completely different from their past relationship,” Gorou mumbles, his ears flattened on his head.

Scaramouche nudges Gorou with his elbows and gestures for Gorou to keep his voice down. “If you talk any louder, Lumine and [Y/N] will know that we’re here,” Scaramouche whispers. 

You sigh wistfully and hunch forward. “I thought I finally found the one. I was so happy when I first dated them, but as time went by, I slowly realized that they never cared about me,” you said softly.

“Why did you stay with them for that long?” Lumine whispers.

You laugh bitterly and roll your eyes. “Because I’m stupid and desperate for someone to love and care about me as much as I do for them,” you answer. “After all, it was my first relationship, so I don’t even know what I was getting myself into.”

Lumine loops her arms around yours and rests her head on your shoulders. “People don’t deserve you. You know that, right?” Lumine asks softly, her blonde hair tickling your cheeks. “You’re an amazing person; you light up the dark, gloomy world. When you step into a room, people are in awe of your presence,” Lumine murmurs, slotting her fingers in between yours.

You snort. “If I’m so amazing, then how come I end up wasting the four years of my life on this one person that didn’t care about me at all?” You ask.

Lumine chews on the inside of her cheek and sighs. “It’s not you that’s the issue, lovebug. It’s them,” Lumine states.

Xiao’s eyes widen, and he looks over at the other men. “Lovebug?!” Xiao whispers loudly. The men give Xiao a look, and they gesture for Xiao to be quiet.

“Huh. Interesting. Since when did Lumine give [Y/N] a nickname?” Diluc raises his eyebrows. He crosses his arms over his chest.

“You told me about what happened before I lost my memories. The pranks, my heartbreak, me plummeting to my death….” you trailed off. 

Lumine lets out a shaky breath and nods. “Seeing you jump to your death and you dying in my arms is hard on me. I thought I was going to lose you if I didn’t get help immediately,” Lumine whispers, her eyes blurring with tears.

“How many times have I almost died?” You ask.

Lumine snorts and shrugs her shoulders, rolling her eyes. “Too many times, that’s for sure. I think we might have to put you under house arrest to prevent you from experiencing multiple deaths and near-death experiences,” Lumine says, wiping her tears away.

“Yeah, good luck with that, princess,” you snort.

Lumine glares at you playfully and nudges you with her shoulders. You laugh and nudge her back. You lay your cheek on Lumine’s head, closing your eyes. Lumine clears her throat, the apples of her cheeks turning crimson red.

“I like it when you call me princess,” Lumine whispers.

Your eyes widen, and you look down at Lumine, who is staring up at you with stars in her eyes. You feel your cheeks heat up, and you scratch your neck shyly. You clear your throat and look away.

“You do?” You ask.

Lumine nods her head. “Yeah, I do.”

“I can’t watch this any longer,” Kazuha says, tossing the leaf away and getting up from his spot.

Kaeya jumps out from his hiding spot and walks over to you and Lumine. Kaeya pushes between you and Lumine, sitting between the two of you, and drapes his arms over your shoulders.

“How’s your head feeling, bunny?” Kaeya asks, twirling a piece of your hair around his index finger.

You touch the area of the stitch and give him a small smile. “My head’s feeling okay. There is a small throb here and there, but Dottore is making sure that I take pain medications if I feel any aches and pains,” you said. 

“Phew! That’s good to hear! I was worried that your head is still hurting from the fall and injury,” Venti says, sitting next to you, sandwiching you between him and Kaeya.

You shrug your shoulders. “It’s kind of hurting still, but not as often.” You let out a yawn and covered your mouth with your hand.

“Time for bed, I’m assuming?” Al Haitham says, walking up to you from the bushes.

You blink at Al Haitham and point at his head. “Is that a leaf in your hair?” You ask. You get up from your seat between Kaeya and Venti and pluck a leaf from Al Haitham’s hair, showing it to him before letting it fly away in the wind.

“It is getting late. I believe we should all head back inside and get some rest,” Cyno speaks up.

Kaveh walks up to you and stares down at you while you stare up at him owlishly. “Are you going to be sleeping at the Harbingers’ estate this time, or are you going to be sleeping at home with the rest of us?” Kaveh asks.

You shrug your shoulders. “I’m not sure. Where was I staying before I lost my memory?” You ask.

“You lived with us but decided to move out and reside at the Harbingers’ estate temporarily,” Zhongli speaks up, walking up to you with his arms over his chest. “Please, come home. We miss you, and we miss seeing you at the estate. I miss you,” Zhongli pleads softly. He grabs both of your hands and squeezes them gently.

You sigh and shrug your shoulders. “I miss living with you guys too, but after the prank that Childe and Itto pulled on me, I don’t know,” you whisper.

“You don’t know?” Dainsleif looks at you quizzically.

You take a deep breath and exhale through your nose. “Did Childe and Itto ever apologize for pulling that stunt on me? Especially on the day of my celebration? The day when we’re all supposed to celebrate my achievements in the Akademiya?” You ask. “I didn’t show up to the restaurant in Inazuma looking cute for all of you to get my heart ripped out of my chest,” you said.

“Wait a minute,” Diluc does a double take. “We never told you any of this. I don’t think Lumine mentioned anything about your achievement in the Akademiya,” Diluc says.

“Did you just get your memory back just now?!” Gorou squeaks, his eyes widening and ears perking up.

You blink at the men and over at Lumine, who shrugs her shoulders. “I guess? I never lost my memory before, so I think I did?” You ask, scratching your head. Your fingernail accidentally grazes the stitch, making you groan and wince in pain. “I shouldn’t have done that,” you mutter.

Childe and Itto walk up to you and get on both knees and bow, pressing their forehead on the grass. 

“I’m sorry for pulling that prank on you, [Y/N]. The others have tried to convince us not to do it, but I insisted on doing it anyway, not thinking about how my actions have consequences,” Childe says.

Itto nods his head. “We’re very sorry, [Y/N]. We broke your heart on your special day; we played a cruel prank on you, made you cry, and didn’t think about your feelings when Childe and I planned it out. All we wanted to do was to get back at you for the pranks you have pulled on us, and it led us to where we are now,” Itto says.

“My pranks were harmless,” you whisper, thinking back to a few weeks ago when it all had begun. “Please, just speak to me next time instead of doing something that’s even crueler,” you plead.

Itto and Childe get off the ground and nod their heads, giving you puppy dog eyes. You sigh and give both Itto and Childe a hug, squeezing them lightly while rubbing their backs. Itto and Childe rest their chin on your shoulders, look up at Lumine and stick their tongues out at the blonde girl. Lumine glares at Childe and Itto and crosses her arms over her chest. So much for trying to have you for herself, but at least Childe and Itto know that actions have consequences. Later that evening, after moving your things back to the main estate, you’re showered with love and affection from your beloved boyfriends. Even though you’re still a tiny bit upset with what happened prior, it’s best for you to forgive and forget. I mean, that pretty much did happen, didn’t it?

Note: Not the kind of ending I was hoping for, tbh 🤔 I honestly don't have a specific ending in mind. I had never lost my memory before, so I winged it and decided to make the reader gain their memory back randomly. This went on a different route than what the requester wanted, but I think it turned out pretty decent! For those who want to be on my new taglist, here is the link to the taglist [Genshinluvr Updated Taglist Form]! Please make sure that you allow people to mention you/tag you in posts, or else I won't be able to tag you in any future fanfics! Anyway, for those who are new here or are returning readers, I ONLY post on my Tumblr (Genshinluvr) and my AO3 (Aaliah_exo)! Nowhere else except Tumblr and AO3!

Taglist for my Isekai'd!Reader one-shot series and my overall taglist: @alhaitham-scribe, @kazuhasmuse, @chirikoheina, @yoru-trash, @kaoyamamegami, @kwelibeeery, @yumakj, @deartoru, @luminarymoonlight, @toobytub, @ins4nebish, @bokuto-kinnie, @honeybedo, @exhaustedcommunist, @jadedist, @mompt2, @living-my-best-life5 (If your name has been crossed out, it means that your account did not show up when I try to tag your account. Please make sure to allow people to mention you and tag you in posts)

Read more of my works on my Masterlist | Maybe support me by tipping me on Ko-Fi or by reblogging my fanfics! ^^ I will also be posting exclusive fanfics on Ko-Fi as well very soon! You can also tip me on Tumblr if you'd like as a way to show support! ^^

[shakooo]

well now i can say the news i had to share, i wanted to do it in the comic publication but uhhh i didn't want to expand on a topic that wasn't even about the comic xD

but weellll i am very happy that I PASSED MY EXAM at the university!!! it excites me because, a year ago i tried and didn't succeed, for a few points i was left out and yes, it was a bit of a hard blow but i got over it quickly JAKAJAJ i was busier attending to and completing all my drawings of the onceler that i had pending, i almost didn't think about that horrible news

what's why this last year i had SO much free time to draw everything i wanted HEHEHE this year i was so afraid of trying again and failing i couldn't afford it again, but after all i did it :") and well...what's all this about?!?!? okay, i wanted to say it first of all because it makes me happy and second, because maybe im more absent than before i will start school again on qugust 14, and it will consume a lot of my time, although I WILL do everything possible to continue here, after all i will study something about animation🤩....and you knoooow that every opportunity i have i will take it to make something about the lorax or something to share >:>

THAT'S ALL, i'm not much of a talker about my personal life and that, but i had been keeping this since July 2023 and i never mentioned it because i felt that there was no point in thinking and thinking about the fact that i had not entered university but well, everyone here has nice stories about how the Onceler and the Lorax fandom helped them and in my case it was the same jskdjsks i don't know what i would have done without the fandom, after all you were my support for not thinking about it too much, but now i can say happy that i achieved it 🥳

[shepherds-of-haven]

Happy New Year, everyone! I thought it would be fun to do a little retrospective on the game's progress over the last year... Shepherds of Haven has grown so much from the little demo I posted in January 2018, and it continues to steadily build and flourish in so many different and exciting ways! Here's a look at just some of the things we accomplished in 2023!

I added 143,151 words to the game (2.5 main chapters, 8 new character interludes) in 2023: the equivalent of writing the longest Lord of the Rings book in one year! We also broke our huge 1 million word milestone—without including code—meaning Shepherds of Haven is now officially twice as long as War and Peace, and almost as long as the entire 7-book Harry Potter series... and all in a single game!

A lot goes into game creation behind the scenes, including the coordination and creation of visual assets for the game—like character cards, codex entries, maps, portraits, and backgrounds—fun stuff for the fans (like the MC info template we created), and songs for the official soundtrack. As the game creeps slowly and determinedly towards its initial completion, that also means learning new things as a solo developer to prepare for the future, like learning to build an official website, researching business and tax practices, and beginning to think about how to conduct testing, publishing, and marketing down the road. Much of what I enumerate here hasn't been made public yet and will continue to cook in the background for a while, but I'm very proud of the work I've gotten done this year and will be excited to unveil more in the future!

And of course, for even more Shepherds of Haven content, I've added and completed even more stories for our little library on Patreon (which also has sizable word count at this point): The Bridge of Bones (a Trouble and Riel murder mystery), O Happy Dagger (a dark adventure featuring Briony, Chase, and Red), and The Hunt (a wild tale involving Tallys, Halek, Shery, and new kinds of spirits, fey magic, and Elves) were all serial stories completed in 2023, while Some Kind of Virus is a cyberpunk zombie apocalypse AU that will continue to be updated with new chapters monthly.

A full list of the Shepherd short stories and serial novellas (with links) can be viewed here!

I hope you enjoyed this session of Shepherds of Haven Wrapped! Honestly, this doesn't actually cover everything I've been working on, but some things can't be packaged and listed out neatly, or otherwise won't seem very interesting to anyone else but me! 😂 As we inch through Chapter 9 and get more interludes done (only a few more main chapters to go), I'm hopeful that I'll also be able to find time to work on my next novel, but we'll see if the Shepherds schedule ends up ramping up or settling down as we work steadily towards finishing the main story!

One important thing before wrapping up is to acknowledge your guys' role in this wonderful, wild journey. I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to each and every one of you for your invaluable contributions to the development of Shepherds of Haven. Whether you took the time to share links to the game, supported its growth on Discord or Patreon, left encouraging messages or asked interesting questions, reported bugs, or showcased your remarkable works of fanfiction or fanart, I am sincerely thankful for the unwavering support from this amazing community! Your collective efforts have played a pivotal role in shaping the world of the game into what it is today. Words cannot adequately convey my gratitude for your support, and I am truly blessed to have such a passionate community surrounding this project.

As we step into 2024, I am filled with anticipation for the developments awaiting Shepherds of Haven. Big things are on the horizon, and I am so excited to share these experiences with you! Thank you for being an integral part of this journey, and here's to the continued growth of our shared little world. Cheers to 2024—may it be a year filled with creativity, adventure, and joy! 🎊

[ionomycin]

Happy New Year everyone!

It's no secret 2023 was hard for a lot of us, so here's hoping for a better one. Thank you so much for the continued support here, it really means a lot. I have been posting on Tumblr for 10 years now, and it still continues to have the most wholesome, supportive people. I read your tags and they make my day every time. This is the place where I love to post my art the most, and it's all thanks to you.

Year changes, life continues as normal. Thank you for looking at my art and letting me know your thoughts. I'll keep doing my best this year as well.

[hbyrde36]

STWG Prompt 12/24/2023 Missed Mistletoe 🎄

Merry Christmas Eve! Please ignore any typos or grammar errors and whatever else, I would have reviewed and edited more but it's time to prepare for my own celebrations!!

Christmas Eve, 1989.

Today was the day. 

After nearly three years of pining after Eddie, Steve was finally going to do something about it. Though, to be fair there were a lot of reasons he had hesitated to take action before now. 

In the months after Vecna and the Upside Down, Steve and Eddie grew close. It was bound to happen, trauma bonding and all that, and it didn’t hurt that Eddie and his Uncle spent a few weeks staying in Steve’s guest room while Eddie recovered from his injuries and he and his uncle looked for a new place to live. 

When the two of them did finally move out, Steve found that his house felt even more empty than it had before. He spent a little time feeling depressed and a little lonely about it, and trying to hide it from everyone as best he could, but of course Eddie noticed anyway. He began to show up at Steve’s house unannounced, coming over any time he felt like it. Steve would often come home from work to find Eddie already there curled up on the couch waiting for him. It was nice. 

Nicer were the nights they spent at Eddie’s own home, a small two bedroom house not far from the Byers old place. He, Eddie, and Wayne would have dinner together and talk about their days, and Steve would find himself wishing he could have this all the time, especially when he and Eddie would crash together on the other boy’s full size bed. It was big enough to hold them both, but small enough that they had to cuddle a bit to make sure neither of them fell off as they slept, which quickly became Steve's favorite part of nights at Eddie’s.

-

1987 saw Steve privately coming to grips with the fact that he was not as straight as he had previously thought, and had developed a debilitating crush on Eddie, using the term private loosely of course, because Robin was with him, supporting him every step of the way. 

The following year he and Eddie continued to grow closer, to the detriment of Steve’s sanity.

Best friends for all intents and purposes, though they never used that phrase out loud to describe each other, lest Dustin catch wind of it. He was already appalled at the amount of time they spent together without him. Obviously the kid knew it was possible to have more than one best friend, himself having several, but it was still a fight Steve had no interest in listening to. 

‘88 was also the year that Eddie came out to him, as well as the rest of the party. Steve was elated to find out that he might actually have a chance with his crush, but nervous since just because Eddie liked boys didn’t mean he would be interested in Steve that way. 

But, Steve never got a chance to confess his feelings. 

It turned out that the reason Eddie had finally come out was because he wanted to introduce them all, and Steve in particular, to his new boyfriend. They were (best) friends after all, and he wanted Steve’s opinion. 

Mark.

There was nothing wrong with the guy, per se. He treated Eddie well and they had the same taste in movies and music. It was more than he and Steve had in common. Mark seemed to make Eddie happy, and that was all that really mattered. 

So, as heartbroken as he was about it, Steve gave his stamp of approval and spent the next 6 months in agony. Their sleepovers came to an end, and dinners with Eddie and Wayne became fewer and far between. It wasn’t Eddie’s doing, in fact he confronted Steve about it a few times, hurt that they were spending less and less time together. He couldn’t tell Eddie the truth, that he was pulling away to save his own heart, so he just said he was busy, and besides, he didn’t want to take away from Eddie’s time with his boyfriend. 

-

Then, Eddie and Mark broke up. Steve would have felt worse about how happy he was to hear that news, but Eddie didn’t seem overly broken up about it. He’d even told Steve that while he was a little sad that things didn’t work out, it was for the best, though he never really explained why, and the two of them fell back into old habits in no time. 

That had been a few months ago, and Steve finally felt like the time was right to tell Eddie how he felt, he just wasn’t sure exactly how to go about it. 

The idea came to him a few weeks before Christmas, when he and Robin were putting up decorations around Family Video, desperately trying to bring a little festive cheer to the place. He spotted a sprig of artificial mistletoe mixed in with tinsel and garland in a box and instantly came up with the perfect plan. 

He would hang it above the door to the break room, and the next time Eddie came in to bug him on his lunch break he would make sure they walked through that doorway together. It was a foolproof way to find out the truth. If Eddie kissed him, he’d know his feelings were returned, and if Eddie made a joke about it, then he’d know it wasn’t meant to be. 

Except when Eddie did finally come in, he didn’t even seem to notice the mistletoe hanging there. He completely missed it! Steve knew he could have pointed it out but he lost his nerve, and somehow it felt like cheating. They still had a nice time hanging out that day, his breaks were always more fun when Eddie stopped by, and he figured he’d get another chance. There was still a week and a half to go until Christmas. 

But, Eddie continued to be frustratingly oblivious every time he entered the video store. 

Steve tried everything, well, everything except using his words.

He moved the plastic mockery of mistletoe all around the store. Tried hanging it from the alcove that separated the kids section from the rest of the movies, and then the spot above the cash register where the little door opened to let them get behind the desk. He even hung it next to the bell above the front door a few times, which would admittedly be an ill-advised location for a same-sex kiss in a town like Hawkins, but Steve was beginning to get desperate. 

Each time Eddie visited Steve made sure they walked together under wherever he had placed the godforsaken plant that day, and each time Eddie refused to look up. At a certain point Steve began to think that maybe he was ignoring it on purpose, but in his defense Eddie had been acting a little distracted lately.

Before Steve knew it, Christmas eve had rolled around and his window for getting Eddie to kiss him under the mistletoe was rapidly closing. He was hosting the entire crew at his house for a little party and asked Eddie to come along early to help set up. 

He was taking no chances this time, forgoing the artificial Mistletoe for the real thing, he hung a fresh sprig of the plant from every single doorway and transitional space in the house. He was pretty sure there wasn’t a single piece of the stuff left in the entire county that he hadn’t bought, and if his plan worked, it would have been more than worth it. 

He jumped when the doorbell rang a half past 4. He wasn’t expecting anyone else to arrive this early, and Eddie hadn't used the doorbell at his house in years. He glanced through the peephole and sure enough it was Eddie, standing awkwardly on the front porch. He looked the same way Steve felt, nervous.  

Steve took a deep breath and opened the door slowly, palms immediately gone sweaty when he took in Eddie’s full appearance. He was wearing his nicest jeans, the only pair he owned without any rips in them and what had to be, hands down, the ugliest Christmas sweater Steve had ever seen. It was incredible, he loved it, even more for the fact that he knew Eddie had only worn it for him, to be festive for his party. 

He opened his mouth to tease the other boy for it but felt all the breath get sucked out of his lungs when Eddie stepped in close, bringing them nearly chest to chest and gave a shy tentative smile. 

He had one hand hidden behind his back, something Steve hadn’t noticed at first, but did now as Eddie raised his arm up high above their heads and dangling from his fingers was a small bundle of mistletoe tied together with a bright red ribbon. 

Steve froze, staring at Eddie in shock. 

He must have hesitated for a second too long. Eddie’s smile fell, face crumpling a bit as his arm began to drop. Steve snapped himself out of it and reached up to grasp Eddie’s wrist gently, holding the plant where it was as he finally closed the distance between them to crash their lips together. 

It was Eddie’s turn to freeze, but only for a second. He recovered quickly, melting into the kiss as he wound his free arm around Steve’s waist, tugging him in close. 

When they finally separated Eddie sighed happily, he let the mistletoe drop and as they lowered their hands Steve slid his palm into Eddie’s, fingers entwined. 

Eddie rested his forehead against Steves, a wide grin spreading over his face as he spoke. “Wow, that went about as well as I could have hoped for. I’ve wanted to do that for so long, Stevie, you have no idea. I just didn’t know if you could ever be interested in me like that.” 

And Steve couldn't help it, he burst out laughing.

He laughed so hard he doubled over, completely hysterical and out of breath, and only managed to stop when a look of hurt crossed over Eddie’s face. 

He leaned in and pressed another quick kiss to Eddie’s cheek and squeezed his hand. 

“I swear I'm not laughing at you, Eds. It’s just… “ He giggled again, unable to contain himself. “Come inside and I'll show you.” 

Eddie quirked his eyebrow curiously but let himself be led inside.

Steve walked them over hand and hand to the doorway between the living room and the kitchen looking up pointedly until Eddie followed his gaze, eyes growing wide as he spotted the mistletoe hanging there. 

“Steve, what…?”

He cut off Eddie’s question with a quick kiss before dragging him off to the entrance of the dining room where another bit of green hung above their heads. Another quick touch of lips and off they went to the next doorway, and then the next, and the next, and the next.

After a full tour the two boys collapsed on the couch in a fresh fit of giggles. “I can’t believe you did all this!” Eddie said.

“I’ll admit it might have been a little over the top, but this was my hail mary attempt. I’ve been trying to get you to kiss me under the mistletoe for weeks! I can’t believe you beat me to it, and on your first try!” 

Eddie blanched. “Wait, what?!!”