#their kind of one-sided rivalry is so funny

[thefallenangel2008]

I came up with new stuff about my take on the Relativity Falls AU! Ok, so, I talked about it here (and here are some design choices in case y'all are interested). Although these are with Bill like he is in cannon because I hadn't come up with that idea yet but these were mostly concept plans for this AU, SO IT'S OK.

ANYWAY, so, at first I thought about leaving Bill kinda the same, but at school I was blessed with enlightenment by the gods of hyperfixation and I realized. I COULD SWAP HIM WITH CANDY. AND HERE'S WHY.

Okay, so, I think you remember that in the show there was an episode in season 2 where Stan took the twins plus Candy and Grenda on a road trip and Candy had a crush on Dipper which was one-sided on her part. And it reminded me of how in Billford the feelings are one-sided on Bill's side after the betrayal (whether those feelings are romantic or pet-owner thing is unclear, but yeah). So I thought to myself "What if Candy saw Dipper, was fascinated by him and his nerdiness and also figured he could help her with her plans for Weirdmageddon (of whichever the motives I'm still trying to think)?" And then Candy would actually fall in love with Dipper while Dipper stayed the same. He would of course be fascinated by her but he wouldn't have developed any romantic feelings towards her. Just admiration.

I feel like she would also like pain like Bill but because humans feel pain differently than her kind does, it would be mostly because of interest and for experiments. She would be mad at Dipper after the portal incident and him giving up but would try not to show it (much), so when Dipper would fall asleep she would possess his body and work on repairing the portal (and maybe slap his face and stab a few objects on his arms for leaving her after he found out her plans) until Dipper got that metal plate inserted.

Also Candy would be a circle. I came up with that thing mostly so that Mabel can joke about knowing that her brother liked curves, lol. Btw Dipcifica is happening because I swapped Pacifica and Fiddleford together (and in this after the Northwest family kicked Pacifica out they left Gravity Falls out of shame that one of them lost her mind, and the mansion was empty until the Mcgucket family, a rich, country family moved in. I might change that bit, idk).

Also, since I swapped Candy and Bill, I thought about Bill and Stan being friends, but their canon rivalry is just too funny to pass up so maybe whoever swaps with Grenda (maybe Pyronica? I low-key like that. If I keep that idea her name will change to Veronica or Pyronica is gonna be a nickname cause she would like arson) will be trying to make them boys get along, and the only reason Bill wouldn't leave would be because that person is his only friend. One reason why Stan would hate Bill (other than him being a spoiled little brat) is because he likes his brother and Stan KNOWS he's gonna be a bad boyfriend for Ford. Also Bill and Fidds would have some beef (Robbie and Dipper kinda vibes) because they would be both crushing on Ford while Ford would remain completely oblivious and be head over heels for Manly Dan (who is swapped with Wendy).

But Ford would be fascinated by Bill because he would know how to do magic tricks. Bill in this is VERY Helga Pataki codded because his parents would be mostly focused on his successful, normal, with-no-eye-deformities older brother Steve (yes, I came up with it rn while writing it, and yes, I'm putting Pyramid Steve there CAUSE I CAN) and because he would hide his true feelings for Ford (everyone knows but Ford). Bill wouldn't outright bully Ford, but sometimes Ford would wonder if Bill likes him or pretends to because he's "friends" with Stan due to the jokes he makes.

Bill would come from a kinda wealthy family and his parents would give him everything he wanted (except their attention) which is why Stan calls him spoiled. Bill here also has a false schizophrenia diagnosis because when he was little he would say he saw some weird stuff (they're real cause, yk, it's Gravity Falls) and he takes a bunch of medicine, both for schizophrenia and anophthalmia (which is a rare condition where you're born with only one eye. Bill hides his missing eye behind his hair). The medicines make him feel drowsy, and like he's not really there, but he's good at masking it behind a wide smile and a cocky personality.

At some point Bill will come to the conclusion that he doesn't deserve Ford because he can be so kind, and sweet, and understanding (everything that he's not) so he would (begrudgingly) let Fidds have Ford and step out of the unofficial "contest".

One last thing, I'm swapping Soos with Durland and Melody with Blubs.

[kerizaret]

the thing I love about nenekasa is that nene is like "tsukasa is improving so noticeably and getting better and I feel like im falling behind. I cannot lose to him as an actress also aiming for the world's stage. I will catch up to him no matter what and won't let him outshine me and so I'll practice hard so that we'll be on the same level"

meanwhile nene can so much as breathe on the stage and tsukasa goes "beautiful. stunning. amazing. that's our diva with the most beautiful voice ever. she is our pride and I am so proud of her and how she's come so far. her performance is perfect i have nothing to add and will now proceed to throw a wave of compliments at her"

[thefloatingwriter]

wiress with cats.

[frankmillerturnonyourlocation]

Em Farrow (tentative last name for dhsab si…..) makes a point of attending a book club at a college they don’t attend, for at least the first part of the storyline. It’s how they established and maintain a small civ friendgroup while living in the city and working under the ELE.

It’s just generally assumed by the other members that Em is a student, but when asked directly (hey, what year are you, anyway? you’re not graduating, are you?) they’ll admit to being a dropout. (nah, I failed out, haha. But Samantha said it would be alright if I kept showing up to our meetings, everybody say thank you Sam) (pan, over a chorus of thaaank you Saaaams, to the quiet club treasurer everybody loves who is a little embarrassed by being singled out and certainly isn’t going to make a fuss and REVOKE an invitation even if she’s pretty sure she never offered one because that would be RUDE and make everything worse)

[rafecameronssl4t]

My girl, my business || Rafe Cameron x fem!reader

gif by @drewstarkeynation

Summary: You could never brush off what Sarah did to you during your last year at Kook academy, even when you started to date her older brother.

Warnings: suggestive, swearing, Sarah is a bitch in this one soz,

Word count: 508

A/n: once again, summary is shit. Whats new 😔

MASTERLIST

Divider by @yoonitos

“Is your sister home?” you question Rafe, slipping into one of his shirts as he watches you from his bed. “Which one? I have two,” he replies, his tone practically dripping with smugness.

“You know exactly which sister I’m referring to, Rafe,” you murmur, glancing at him over your shoulder as he chuckles, hands coming up behind his head as he leans against his bed frame. “What’s your problem with Sarah anyways?”

You throw Rafe a look, wondering if he was being serious. “Do you seriously not remember what happened when the cops got called at your sisters party that happened to be at my house?” Rafe pulls a face as he thinks for a second, “Oh, shit. Yeah. You got stripped of everything at school, didn’t you?” He snickers as you hurl a shirt in his direction, which he skillfully dodges.

“Not funny dickhead.” you huff, gathering your belongings from his side of the bedside table. “C’mon babe, you know I’m joking,” he says, taking your hands and drawing you close, planting a soft kiss on your lips, causing you to melt into him.

“And no, Sarah isn’t home. She hasn’t been since Tuesday. Probably off with those fucking pogues.” Rafe murmurs, his breath warm against your lips. You scoff, shaking your head incredulously, “Kook princess, my ass.” Rafe snorts at the rivalry between you and his sister.

~

“What do you think you’re doing?” Sarah’s voice slices through the air, grating on your nerves as you click the door shut behind you. You turn to face her, meeting her intense gaze head-on.

“Isn’t it kind of obvious?” you retort, your sarcasm dripping like honey from your lips, accompanied by a subtle frown as she watches you, arm tightly crossed.

“Oh, come on, Sarah,” you scoff, trying to downplay the obviousness of the situation, though her piercing gaze makes it clear that she’s not buying it for a second.

“I was fucking your brother.” You say casually, the words landing with a blunt force that leaves Sarah slightly taken aback. The raw truth hangs in the air, mingling with the tension between you both.

Sarah’s voice trembles with fury as she starts, “Get the fuck out of my house—” but Rafe’s voice cuts through the air, commanding and firm, “Watch your fucking tongue, Sarah.” His touch sends a shiver down your spine as his hands gently snake across your waist, his gaze piercing and cold as he fixates on her.

“This isn’t any of your business, Rafe,” Sarah snaps defiantly, her eyes flashing with anger. But Rafe only chuckles, his amusement tinged with something unsettling as he glowered at her.

“It kind of is. She’s my girl so she’s my business. So why don’t you run along with your little pogue friends and leave us alone, sound good? Good,” he says, his voice dripping with authority and finality. With a firm grip, he pulls you back into his room, leaving Sarah standing there, stunned and speechless

“I could’ve handled it, y’know,” you remark, tossing your keys and phone onto his bedside table. He turns you around to face him, a playful grin spreading across his lips. “Mhmm, I knew you could. Just wanted to yell at her for fun,” he says with a smirk, prompting a chuckle from you in response.

[mellowwillowy]

I love how you portray self aware twst!

Can i request a yan! Self aware twisted wonderland and player who just recently entered twst? Unaware that they're considered as a "god" (not cannibal pls)

Like, the player is shy and quiet at first but if they get comfortable enough with someone they'll be more talkative and a lil' extroverted?

The not cannibal pls had me laughing, I really turned the player into this man-eater huh lol. Can't really write that much about reader so I'll just feed you some irrelevant crumbs.

The whole campus is probably still in a mess despite your diet though. Students fight against each other out of jealousy to drag each other down so that you can focus more on them.

Riddle and Azul's rivalries are the funniest. Especially because Riddle finally notices how capable Azul is in doing better than him now (maybe not academically lol). Truly they both are almost like carbon copy in your eyes.

Leona and Vil walk side by side dissing each other while presenting themselves as a complete 180 to you.

Idia shaking in his boots trying to appear less giddy and anxious in your eyes while Kalim just sings songs as he hops his way to you with his gold jingling merrily.

Malleus is very straightforward about his wish to worshipping you, even going as far as to kneel down immediately upon you noticing him while Lilia just casually wraps his arm around you, acting all buddy-like while savoring the closeness between you two. Malleus is jealous, petty jealous of him.

In your eyes, you just feel like you are just some transmigrated protagonist in a romance game, unaware of how sinister their feelings are toward you, their player, their God.

But it turns out that their God is quite the humble one huh? They don't pride themselves on their holiness, they don't differentiate their treatment from one another (unless you are biased) and they are actually very quiet and collected!

It takes a lot of prying to finally see you pay attention to them and laugh at the jokes Ace and Deuce crack. It takes effort for the beastmen for you to finally feel how fluffy their ears are! Jack's tail is wagging so hard that Ruggie had to step on it.

It takes lots of convincing acts and guilt-tripping for Jade to make you visit Mostro Lounge and enjoy the drinks Floyd specifically makes for you, the prettiest and most delicious drinks you've ever had!

It takes a lot of effort for Cater to finally have you posing for the selfies he takes with you! It takes a lot of time for Trey to finally know which treats gain your attention and suits your liking after making shit tons of them.

It takes a lot of guilt-tripping from Jamil to make you finally attend one of the feasts Kalim throws for you and oh boy was it grand.

It's not hard for Epel to win your attention because of how cute he is lol. But it sure is hard for him to gain your trust that he's just a boy. Rook on the other hand creeps you out so much that you have to tell him to stop and that indirectly means you finally notice him!

It takes lots of convincing from Ortho to finally make you agree to play with him in the board game club that Idia and Azul are in. You finally know just how normal they are when they are playing, yes, normal (they are literally fighting teeth and nails to win it).

It takes a lot of effort for Sebek not to scream around you while Silver tries his best not to doze off on your shoulder. The first time being close to you instantly made him fall asleep soundly while Sebek had to sing praises for you in a voice that could shake the ground.

It was easy for Neige to warm into you because well, he's kind, sweet, and all but he has this protagonist aura to him unlike those NRC boys (except Silver and Kalim). He loves singing for you!

It was also easy for Chen'ya to get into your funny side by pulling countless harmless pranks on you (unlike Ace who has to try hard, again, RSA aura).

Rollo on the other hand worships you like there's no tomorrow. He's great at masking it as something far from obsession and not creeping you away unlike Malleus but he certainly has a shrine dedicated to you in his room too. A bit small if compared to the fae's.

Bonus: Fellow and Gideon scaring you because of how weird they are but Gideon manages to melt your heart so you decide to trust Fellow.

[nariism]

to the ends of our world — i. rin

academic rivals to lovers + "i could kiss you right now!" + "we fell asleep by accident and woke up as a mess of tangled limbs."

synopsis. all rin said was that he would help you with calculus. he didn't think he'd be waking up to your morning breath and wishing the moment would last forever.

wc. 1.6k

notes. kind of a highschool au where rin is out for the season because of an injury 🙏 also kind of a one-sided rivalry because rin is a loser :p

— for @itoshiexx <3 | event masterlist ✉️

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

I could kiss you right now.

Those were the last words you spoke to Rin almost an hour ago.

He's agonizing over it, really. He probably should have at least said something back to you instead of shutting you out like he does every time he feels himself getting too close.

Instead he's dutifully working through his calculus notebook.

If he focuses enough on perfecting derivatives, he can ignore the way your presence beside him has only gotten weightier. But it's hard to do that when the words are still echoing in his mind.

I could kiss you right now.

You're just as adamant on finishing your workbook, eyes glued to the page and attention completely devoted to making numbers dance.

When you asked him earlier in the day if he could help you with the new sets, he was confused. You'd always been the one to best him.

It irritated him. You reminded him too much of his big brother.

But then he saw your notebook. You'd hesitantly handed it over to him when you showed up at his doorstep with courtesy snacks and a bag of oranges for his mother.

(Which she gushed about, by the way. He felt like burying himself in a hole when she asked if you were dating.)

You'd been trying for so long to figure out the solutions that some areas of the page were torn where you had kept erasing and redoing the work. He even found things scribbled out in frustration.

He would have laughed if you didn't have such a grim look on your face. Rin was never one for humour, anyways.

He reluctantly agreed to help, though he was sure your other grades would make up for one botched math unit. It was the petty pride in him speaking—in reality, the way you looked like you were on the verge of tears was enough to send him into fight or flight mode.

He had never seen such a dazed, stressed expression on you before. You were the epitome of a model student—good grades, class representative, and friendly enough that no one ever wanted to step on your toes.

No one but Rin, that is.

He told himself he hated you. Goody-two shoes. Smiley. Obliviously and annoyingly cheerful. Successful enough to do anything you wanted to do, so long as you had the drive.

Everything Rin would have been if he hadn't injured his knee right before the football season started.

But what he thought he felt about you was a lie. He hadn't even realized it until you were sitting down on his bed, knee bumping into him as you lounged there criss-crossed.

He'd always just seen you as the person who sat in front of him in homeroom. Untouchable. He envied you, even though his grades were nearly as good now that he had all the time in the world to study.

Now, though, you're just as human as he is.

Rin can see your face instead of the back of your head. Your words are meant for him—thanking him, praising how easy his method for solving these equations is.

Then, you shattered his daydream.

I could kiss you right now.

You said it so unseriously, not even looking at him when you did. You had gotten to the end of your third page of work, conquering the math with ease now that you understood it.

It was your funny way of expressing gratitude. He knows you didn't mean anything by it, definitely. But it's been stuck in his mind.

And neither of you have uttered a word to each other since.

He nearly jumps out of his skin when you slam your pencil down in your notebook and shut it with an audible thud.

"Break time!" You sigh blissfully, though he isn't sure if you're talking to him or yourself.

You flop back into his mattress and he just stares in quiet disbelief while you scroll through your phone like you fucking pay rent here.

Rin debates whether or not to kick you off his bed so that he can finish his homework without distraction, or if he should just leave you be. Ultimately, he decides that it's too much of a hassle to deal with confrontation and silently goes back to doing derivatives.

He would feel bad shoving you away when you finally started talking to him, after all. And you look so at ease now, with your work almost done.

(Yeah, you started working at a faster pace than him with his method. You seriously piss him off.)

He comes to the conclusion that this is going to be a one-time thing. Rin hates the twist of despair in his stomach seeing you about to burst into tears.

He hates the peace that fills him when you're back to your smiling self even more.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Rin wakes up to warmth.

Groggily, he blinks the sleep out of his eyes until they adjust to the light of sunrise pouring into his room.

It's strange. He doesn't remember falling asleep at all.

What was he doing last night? He shifts a little bit and freezes when he hears the crinkle of paper beneath him.

Oh, his calculus homework. Did he finish it? It's due today.

He's just about to sit himself up to check the time and hope he has at least another hour to sleep before school, when he realizes much too late that there's a weight on his arm.

Rin gets yanked back by the arm that's pinned down, yelping quietly in surprise.

And then everything hits him like a goddamn truck.

Maybe more like a freight train, really, because he feels like he's about to have a fucking heart attack. Rin dares to turn his head, so comically slow that it's like life itself moves in slow motion.

Somehow in your sleep, you've become a tangled mess of limbs.

His arm is tucked under your neck—the culprit for making him whelp like a child when he tried to sit up. Your legs are twisted together and... Oh god. His free hand is resting where your hip melts into your thigh.

Panic rises in his chest because one, he's never had another person in his bed before. Period. And two, because there's heat boiling in the pit of his stomach and he's pretty sure he's about to keel over and pass away.

Just as he's about to shove you off the bed, realization dawns on him.

You look so peaceful when you sleep.

Your breath smells, and your hair has gotten tangled under the weight of his arm. You're muttering to yourself quietly in your sleep, and he's pretty sure he can see a bit of drool in the corner of your lip.

He so desperately wishes that his first thought would be to tease you about this until the end of time. Or maybe use it as blackmail against you, if you were to get a higher grade on the upcoming calculus exam because of his methods.

But instead, his first thought is that he never wants to move from this position. That he needs to savour this moment.

It's horrifying.

18 hours ago, you pranced up to the side of Rin's desk and asked if he could help you with the problem set.

All he said was that he would help you with calculus.

He didn't expect you to show up at his door right after dinner. And he didn't expect you to seat yourself on his bed before he could offer you the chair at his desk.

He certainly didn't think he'd be waking up to your morning breath and wishing the moment would last forever.

You've just been a bag full of mysteries. Rin hates mysteries. It's part of the reason why math works for him—no surprises, no ambiguity. There's always an answer.

Rin can't formulate an answer on why his heart feels like it's about to burst out of his ribcage.

You shuffle in his arms and suddenly the pounding in his chest ceases.

Is this what death feels like?

"Rin?" You murmur sleepily, shifting into his warmth as if this is something regular classmates should be doing. "What time is it?"

"I can't see the clock," he deadpans, though it's just a facade to hide how utterly enamoured he is right now. "It's behind you."

You groan, rolling over to check the time. He breathes a sigh of relief as you pull away but it gets stuck in his throat when you collapse back into him, your back against his chest.

"6:07," you tell him nonchalantly. And then you cozy yourself up in the blankets again, nice and warm, and go back to sleep.

"Hey," he shakes you lightly. "Don't just go back to bed, moron."

"We can talk about the homework later," you mumble as if that's what he fucking meant.

A million words run through his mind, parading to the tip of his tongue where they all fall off and die. He can't find them when you're slotting yourself closer and closer in your sleep, squeezing his arm against your cheek.

Eventually, he decides that it's not worth the hassle of getting up and having you see his flustered face right now. You'd never let him live it down.

So he closes his eyes and pretends that you're not just the person who sits in front of him in homeroom. Goody-two shoes. Smiley. Obliviously and annoyingly cheerful.

"I could..."

He swallows loudly, the words like molasses in his throat.

I could kiss you right now.

You're dead to the world, but he doesn't dare speak the thought into existence, anyway.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

("Rin! 95%!"

You shove your paper into his face and he opens his mouth to snark back about it.

But then you leap forward and press a kiss to his cheek. Everything in his head instantly melts into mush.

"You're the best," you gush.

He just glowers at you with burning red cheeks.)

[autisticlancemcclain]

Lance never shuts the fuck up.

Keith can’t get enough of it.

It’s been like that for as long as Keith can remember. Lance was the motormouth in, like, 6 of his classes; always had his hand up with a question or answer, and comments in between. Keith had been annoyed with it, that first year.

But then he’d shared classes with Lance again.

And again.

And again.

By then, they’d had their fair share of group projects together. Keith came to know that for all he was a rambling mess, Lance was really fucking smart, and funny besides. He was also endlessly kind and supportive, at least when he wasn’t egging on their rivalry that he’d invented (and that Keith hadn’t known they’d had — not that he wasn’t an active participant, once he knew. Riling Lance up was the most fun he’d had in ages).

Keith doesn’t remember exactly when he’d started smiling whenever Lance looked at him, feeling proud whenever Lance got a question right in class. Doesn’t remember when the mild annoyance turned to genuine appreciation. He does remember looking down at his notes one day, in Algebra II, only to discover a blank page, and realising that he’d spent the whole class just watching Lance talk. (He also remembers feeling pleased instead of the disappointment he should have felt, because he figured he’d have an excuse to hear Lance talk more if he asked him to help Keith catch up. He knew he was in quite the mess, then.)

Keith knew he had a crush on Lance, after that. And Keith was never one to sit idly — he’d asked Lance on a date right then and there. Lance had, for the first time in Keith’s working memory, gone speechless. (And quite the pretty shade of red.)

The speechlessness didn’t last long, that’s for damn certain. Keith took Lance to the Applebee’s at the plaza near his house that very night, because Shiro worked there and would give him a discount. Also, Lance had once mentioned he liked the lemonade there.

Keith met Lance there because neither of them had their full license yet. He doesn’t remember what exact table they sat at, only that they must have been near a window, because Keith remembers swooning over the sunlight warming Lance’s beautiful brown eyes no less than six times. They’d ordered, Keith some sort of fried dish and Lance — Lance had ordered a four-cheese fettuccine with a garden salad and, of course, a lemonade. Keith remembers so specifically because Lance spent the next thirty minutes excitedly telling him every piece of history surrounding the dish, down to the prehistoric origins of wheat-made pasta and the disturbing account of the first pink lemonade. He’d looked sheepish after looking at his watch and realising how long he’d been talking, and Keith hadn’t known how to assure him that Lance could narrate every detail of paint drying in a wall and Keith would swallow up every word.

(Later that night, Shiro sent him a picture he took while the both of them were distracted — Lance, animatedly waving a fork in the air as he lectured, and Keith, chin in his hands, meal forgotten, looking at Lance with a face more besotted than he knew he was even capable of making.

Keith sent the photo to Lance, asking him if he’d like to go out again, confessing that he enjoyed every second of Lance’s rambling.

Lance said yes. Very quickly.)

The rest, to a degree, had been history. They’d dated for the rest of high school, staying together even as they attended university and trade school on either side of the country. It was easy, really. Lance made sure they always had something to talk about. (Lance loved university. He was enamoured with every second of it, every niche interest of his getting its fill. He switched his major fourteen separate times, chasing every one of his ambitions, and Keith loved every story he heard. He also liked becoming an expert by proxy, because that was inevitable — you could only hear about the important of spiders in the ecosystem so many dozen times before the information was reflective whenever someone brought up the subject.)

As soon as Keith got his mechanic’s certificate — and he passed his exam in the highest percentile, meaning he could practice anywhere in the country, much to his pleasure and Lance’s overwhelming pride — he took off to California, his one and only thought being that he had to get to Lance. (Not that it had been impulsive — this was planned, something they’d been waiting for. Did Keith run over as soon as he could? Yeah, kinda. So maybe it was a little impulsive. But mostly it was planned.)

Not to sound like a Disney princess, but Keith really felt like their life began once they moved in together. Keith was able to find a job at a pretty decent garage, bring in money for them immediately. Lance had his library job until he graduated, and of course then he was snatched up by the nearest ecological restoration effort — he got to spend his days crawling through the forest, fawning over every tiny bug and critter. He is so fucking cute. Keith loves him more than anything in the world.

Lance’s constant lectures never stopped, either — any interest he picked up, he told Keith about it. From his knitting club to the new beetle species he’d found at work, Keith got the pleasure of hearing about it. And it truly was a pleasure. Keith had his fair share of time being a motormouth, too — he’d bought a project bike as soon as they’d saved enough, and spent a fair chunk of free time building it back up. (Lance helped, or at least as much as he could. Mostly he sat in their garage, handing Keith tools, and talking about anything he could think of. If Keith could go back and tell his ten year old self what his future would look like… God. Sometimes he can’t even believe how lucky he got.)

Keith has it made. He comes home from work every day to Lance’s beaming smile and gentle teasing about the grease on his clothes. He’s got everything he’s ever wanted. He’s happy. So fucking happy.

Except that things have been a little different, recently. For the past few weeks, he’s been coming home to his usual smile and kiss, but the idle chattering or excited rambles — Keith feels as if they’ve become a rarity. Their home used to be filled with the sound of Lance’s voice, silent only when he’s reading or focused intently on something, eyes narrowed and tongue peeking out of his mouth.

Lance still looks happy. He still curls up with Keith on the couch after dinner, socked feet in Keith’s lap and three million blankets over his shoulders. He still sends Keith a myriad of heart emojis on his lunch break. Their sex life has not suffered.

But the lectures. The constant infodumps of whatever passing thing has grabbed Lance’s attention. They’re gone. And Keith’s devastated about it.

He misses Lance’s voice.

———

Shiro is not getting it.

“It doesn’t sound like a big deal,” he says, voice staticky because signal at the shop is ass. “I mean, maybe you two are just growing up and settling down. How long have you guys been together, now? Seven years? Eight?”

“Almost ten,” Keith says quietly.

Ten years of the same thing. This change is new. It’s strange, and Shiro isn’t getting it at all.

“Exactly! Ten years! You guys were so young when you started dating, kiddo. Hell, Lance was still wearing braces, wasn’t he? I’m not shocked that he’s mellowed out a little.” He chuckles to himself. “Hell, maybe he’s finally just learnt every bit of knowledge he finally can.”

Keith frowns. “I dunno, Shiro. Sometimes I feel like he wants to say something, but he’s holding himself back. Why would he ever hold himself back from me? I don’t — I don’t want him to hold back from me. I like it when he talks.”

“Tell him that, then. The only way you’re going to get answers is if you ask him, you dork.”

“Some brother you are,” Keith mutters, pouting. “You’re supposed to solve things for me.”

“Hm. Pretty sure you’re a grown-ass man who’s capable of solving his own problems, bud.”

“Ugh. You’re horrible. I’m changing the Netflix password to kick you off.”

Shiro laughs. “Sure! No more Costco membership for you. Password sharing goes both ways, you little snot. Now hang up and call your man. I have to leave for work soon.”

Despite his ongoing frustration, Keith can’t help a smile at the familiar banter. “Yeah, yeah. Enjoy your upcoming fourteen hour shift of hell.”

“Go fuck yourself! Love you!”

“Love you too. Bye.”

It shouldn’t really surprise him that Shiro’s no help. As much as he pesters his brother as often as possible and generally finds joy in making himself into a nuisance, they haven’t seen each other face-to-face since Christmas. They’ve lived in different states for years.

But, still. There’s some part of Keith that will always think of his big brother first when he has a problem. And that part of him had the right ideas, because Shiro is unfortunately right — he really does just need to talk to Lance. There’s not much else he can do.

He spends the rest of his shift wondering how he’s going to bring it up. He has his own motormouth moments, sure, but realistically? Keith doesn’t talk all the much. He’s more of an action person. How the hell is he supposed to breach the subject? ‘Hey, Lance. I’ve noticed that you are talking less. This change has consumed my every thought. I miss the sound of your voice. How come you don’t talk to me about your life anymore?’

Yeah, no. It sounds ridiculous even in his own head. He’ll have to — plan it out, maybe. He’s not sure. He’s never had to worry about making Lance talk more before.

He’s so distracted that he nearly burns off his eyeballs, forgetting to put on his welding mask before trying to make a part he couldn’t source for an older car. His boss sends him home early, worried he might accidentally leave a blowtorch by an air compressor or something and send the whole place up in smoke. Keith tries to take it as a blessing — maybe he’ll ride around on his bike for a while and clear his head. A way to bring it up might come to him naturally.

It doesn’t. He spends the whole ride just stressing himself out. He does drive by a flower stand, and turns around to pick up some poppies and peonies — Lance’s favourite. It won’t breach the subject, or anything, but it’ll make Lance smile. Hell, maybe he’ll start talking to Keith about all the different pollinators that made this bouquet possible. That would be a dream come true.

He hasn’t come up with any new ideas by the time he makes his way home, but he’s less stressed. He sets the flowers on the counter and takes a quick shower. Maybe he’ll start some dinner? Surprise Lance, for a change. Yeah. That won’t solve the problem, but it’ll be nice anyway.

He starts making four-cheese fettuccine and pink lemonade, because he is a sappy loser.

By the time he hears Lance’s key in the lock, he’s got the table set and the food is done. He keeps it heated on the stove, ducking into the bathroom to check his reflection as Lance steps into the apartment.

No grease smudges on his face. His hair is braided, the way that always makes Lance all blushy. He’s wearing the v-neck, too-tight black sweater that Lance likes, too. He’s got this. He doesn’t have a solid plan, or anything, but he thinks maybe if he turns up the romance then Lance will just spill whatever’s wrong. That works in the movies.

“Keith, baby? You home?”

“You have leaves in your hair,” Keith says, stepping out to meet Lance by the door. Lance smiles immediately, laughing to himself as he cards his fingers through his hair in an attempt to find them. Keith takes pity on him after a few seconds of fruitless searching, reaching forward and running gentle hands through the curly mess of his boyfriend’s hair, half to get out the leaves and half just to touch.

“Yeah — climbed a tree to check out a new weaver ant colony. Watched ‘em for hours — pretty boring, I’m sure you don’t want to hear it.”

I want to hear about it, Keith thinks mournfully. Please, please tell me about it.

“I made pasta,” Keith says quietly, when it’s clear that no more details are forthcoming. “And, uh, got you some flowers.” He tugs Lance gently towards the kitchen, placing the flowers in his hands.

“Oh, Keith, they’re gorgeous! Man, I love peonies. They looks like pink cabbages, it’s the best. And poppies —”

Yes, Keith thinks. Tell me about how California poppies were traditionally used as stress-relief medicine, but not like opioid red poppies. Tell me —

“I should put these in a vase,” Lance says instead of any of that. Keith feels like he could cry, honestly. Lance leans up and presses a kiss to his cheek, patting him on the chest. “You want to set the table while I do that? Or do you want to eat on the couch and watch a movie?”

“Table sounds good,” Keith says, because if they watch a movie then there’s no chance of Keith finding out what’s wrong.

“Okay! I’m going to get changed, too, I’ll meet you in ten.” Lance kisses him again and then rushes off. Keith waits until he’s disappeared into their bedroom to cover his face in his hands and scream silently.

Fuck! He just wants his Lance back. So badly. He wants to be woken up at strange hours of the night to hear about how trees communicate. He wants to get spam-texted as he’s trying to work, phone practically buzzing out of his pocket. He wants to hear about marketing strategies when they’re grocery shopping. He wants Lance to get distracted mid-sex by reading the back of the condom box, and then remarking with vague interest that they use the same dye in some cereals.

At the very least, he wants to know why Lance is acting so strange.

“So,” Lance says, once they’ve both settled down at the table and started to eat. “How come you’re home early?”

“Boss sent me home, I was distracted. I’m not mad, honestly. It’s been a while since I’ve done something special for you, which is a travesty.”

Lance smiles. “Dork. I appreciate it, though. Very sweet of you.” He shifts in his seat, tucking his legs up under him and leaning his head on his chin to look at Keith properly. “How come you were distracted?” He wiggles his eyebrows. “Thinkin’ about this hot bod all day?”

Keith huffs a laugh. “Somethin’ like that.”

“Tell me! I’m curious now. I have to know or I’ll die.”

“You’re so dramatic.”

“Mhm. That’s not even the half of it, and you know it. If you don’t tell me right now I’ll just start listing the names of royals throughout European history and how freaky it is that most of them are directly related.”

Lance is teasing. His tone is light and playful; he’s obviously trying to goad Keith into playing along and groaning theatrically. A few weeks ago, Keith might have given in easily, and started ribbing him about why on Earth he has the names memorized in the first place.

But all Keith can think about is just how badly he would love to hear that.

“Promise?”

Keith’s voice comes out embarrassingly sincere. Soft and hopeful and dead-serious.

Lance’s hand stills, mid pasta-swirl.

“You…want me to? List names of inbred royals?”

Keith swallows. It’s as good of a segue as any, he supposes.

“Yeah.”

“…Why?”

“Because I — I miss your voice, I guess.”

“Keith, I talk all the time,” Lance says, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He snorts to himself. “One might even say it’s my defining quality.”

“You haven’t been. Not recently. You used to talk all the time, but now — I dunno. The house is quiet. I miss you talking about random things. I miss hearing about your day and the million creatures you met and the people you saw on the bus home and the weirdly-shaped stone you tripped over on the sidewalk. I miss you bazillion lunch-break texts. I miss your running commentary when we watch a movie, even though you miss important dialogue and have to rewind to hear it again. I dunno. I just miss you.”

Keith keeps his eyes downcast on his plate as he speaks, and keeps it there after he finishes. He’s finished his food, already, but he can’t bring himself to look at Lance’s face.

“Keith?”

There’s a strange quality to Lance’s voice, a sort of — bewildered breathlessness. Keith risks a glance, finding his boyfriend staring at him with a dropped jaw and wide brown eyes.

“You really — you miss my motormouth?”

Keith shrugs. “I fell in love with your motormouth. Of course I miss it.”

That makes Lance’s cheeks heat, and he glances down at his plate like they’re teenagers again and Keith told him he was cute for the first time.

“Oh.”

“Yeah.”

Keith’s not sure what else to say. He doesn’t know how to express that there’s nothing that Lance does that he dislikes, not truly. Sure, it’s annoying when Lance leaves a million half-full cups of water around the apartment, and Keith is regularly tripping over the shoes that he never puts away for some reason, but there’s nothing — every part of him is precious to Keith. Everything he does and everything he is, Keith knows he can’t live without.

“I know you love me,” Lance whispers. He looks pointedly away from Keith, pushing a couple wayward noodles around on his plate. “I’ve never — I’ve never needed to doubt that.”

Keith swallows. “Good.”

“I — yeah. You show me all the time. And, I mean, look at today! You brought me flowers home just because. You do things like that for me regularly; I never forget that you care about me. But —”

One word. Three measly letters. But it’s enough to feel like a stone is dropping on Keith’s chest.

“— sometimes I feel like I’m too much? Like, I’m kind of intense. I know that. And I can’t always tell when I’m being weird or annoying. And you’d never — you’d never string me along, I know that. If you stopped loving me you’d tell me.”

“I would never stop loving you.” Keith can’t say the words fast enough. He wants to print them out and — tattoo them on his forehead. Melt them into gold and press them into Lance’s hands. Smash them to dust and sprinkle them in the air. Whatever — whatever it takes to prove to Lance that they’re true.

Lance bites his lip. His eyes are wet. “I — I don’t want us to —”

Keith doesn’t wait for the tears to fall. He stands and hurries the two feet over to Lance’s chair, carefully pulling him up and wrapping tight arms around his waist. Lance falls into him willingly, resting his forehead on Keith’s shoulder and leaning into him.

“Three of my coworkers think I’m annoying,” he whispers, long after the food’s gone cold and the light from the window has begun to dim. After Keith’s arms have gone a little numb and a wet spot has grown where Lance’s face is pressed into his shirt. “I just thought — I thought we were friends, but I heard them talking about how exhausting I am to be around. I don’t want — I don’t want you to get tired of me, too.”

Keith closes his eyes as he exhales in a shudder, firmly reminding himself that unfortunately, being a two-faced asshole is not illegal, and Keith has no defense for hunting those shitheads down and murdering them a little.

“They are not worth the ground you walk on,” Keith whispers, pressing a firm kiss to Lance’s hair. “You have more value in your toenail clippings than they do in their entire bodies.”

Lance giggles wetly. “Gross.”

”I mean it,” Keith says, smiling. “I love you, Lance. All of you. I never get tired of listening to you talk. Okay?”

“Okay.”

“Good.”

“I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

———

It takes a while. Those asshole coworkers did a number on Lance’s self-esteem, because they’re horrible, and they deserve every horrible thing that happens to them. Honestly, Keith kind of hopes their cars break down and they have to spend ridiculous amounts of money getting them fixed by idiots, because Keith has quietly blacklisted them to every good mechanic in town. (Not that Lance knows. Lance is too nice to ask for something like that. Keith, however, is a bitch, and has no problem doing shady things to appease his own sense of justice.)

Eventually, though, the apartment stops being so silent. It starts with a shark documentary that takes them three hours to watch because Lance keeps pausing it to point out specific behaviours to Keith. And then they get kicked out of a casino they go to for shits and giggles, because Lance can’t contain himself and points out how the house is strategically winning all the card games they’re calling ‘luck-based’. And then grocery store trips start taking too long again, and Lance gets distracted mid-shower comparing the ingredients of shampoo and conditioner, and then they start a small fire in the apartment because he was explaining how broccoli evolved from mustard seed and burnt a whole pan of stir-fry to a crisp.

One day, seemingly out of the blue, Shiro sends him a picture of him and Lance, fifteen years old, at the shitty town Applebee’s.

I was looking at old pictures, the text reads. And you were right. It is strange that Lance was so quiet. I can’t imagine how that would feel. I’m glad you two worked things out.

Keith looks over at Lance, who’s singing a the periodic table song to himself as he washes the dishes for Keith to dry, and smiles.

He’s glad they worked it out, too.

[anoant-haikyuu-dump]

The hyperfixation demons are screeching at me to write a comprehensive list of all the reasons I like Fukutora, so today I present to you "Ant ignores their responsibilites and spends several paragraphs explaining why Fukutora is peak despite them having roughly 10 seconds of shared screen time"

1. Contrasting Personalities In general their personalities fit together really well— Fukunaga barely speaks while Tora exclusively shouts at max volume and can't stfu to save his life, Tora's overly-intense and takes everything way too seriously while Fukunaga's cracking jokes in the middle of important games, they're even literal opposites on the court as the two wing spikers. Their differences compliment each other perfectly and because of that I think they'd grow a lot being together, Fukunaga would learn to open up and Tora would mellow out. Another good contrast is how Tora's all about looking cool and standing out while Fukunaga tends to blend into the background, which leads into my next point...

2. MY ROMAN EMPIRE (aka chapter 309) I know it's only two pages out of a 33 chapter match but i dont care, this scene makes me feral. I read the manga after watching Dumpster Battle, so imagine my suprise when my two favorite losers had a moment THAT GOT CUT FROM THE FUCJIGN MOVIE (I'm still salty, it should've been a full season).

Anyways these pages rooted their way into my brain because they show that even though Fukunaga goes unnoticed by most people (both in-universe and by readers) Tora realizes how great he is, and not only respects his play style but views him as a rival on the same level as himself. One thing I appreciate about Tora is that despite him being the stereotypical "strong manly athlete" type he doesn't think his methods are the best or only way of doing things; Fukunaga scoring points without "big fanfare" is just as cool as the shit he and Tanaka pull off. The phrasing "that I hafta surpass" could even imply that Tora sees Fukunaga as more than an equal, as someone who's ahead of him since he doesn't need to be flashy or loud to do amazing stuff.

Look at his smile on page two, bro's just excited to have someone who motivates him to keep pushing himself. And as we've learned from Kagehina: what's gayer than a rivalry?? All in all I think it's sweet that Tora notcies his efforts and admires him when few others do. Side Note, I've seen a translation of these that call them "Nekoma's Wings" and I think that's a sick nickname.

3. Bi Tora and Internalized Homophobia I love a good internalized homophobia arc, and characters like Tora that center so much around girls and manliness are some of the most fun to explore them with imo. You could say he's one of the least likely characters in hq to be queer since he's THE woman-lover next to Tanaka and Noya (and Yachi) but that's what makes it interesting—his gay awakening would hit like a tsunami and send him into life-ruining bi panic for months, especially since he's already such a mess when it comes to romance. He gives me the vibes of someone who has no problem with other people being gay but struggles when it comes to himself since it clashes with his conception of what it means to "be a man" or whatever. My point is he'd have the most intense no homo phase to grace this earth and I think that's both super funny and compelling for his character.

Also as a bi person myself it's kind of frustrating how bisexuality is treated online sometimes. It's annoying when a person's queerness is negated the moment they show attraction for the opposite gender, so headcanoning a character like Tora as a bi while still being openly into women makes me happy.

4. The Stage Play They're so silly in the stageplay. Why is he dragging him around by the feet? Why are they screaming at Kenma? Why is he constantly bopping him on the head in the background? WHY IS HE SERVING FACE IN THE PROMO PICTURES? So silly.

(Ignore how blurry these are lol) 5. Ant's Little Sister Bias This is a me thing, I like ships where one party has an annoying little sister who bothers them, sue me. Its cute. Akane and Fukunaga could have the most adorable friendship if you believe.

6. They Match Each Others Energy My first post about them was me rambling about this so just read that, TDLR they're both energetic menaces who match each other's freak.

7. Kenma's Forced Third-Wheel Purgatory Putting Kenma in a situation where Kuroo's graduated and his closest remaining friends are dating and constantly forcing him to third-wheel is just about the evilest thing you could do to the guy. He may be one of my favorites but this is well-deserved punishment for his crimes.

8. Baffled x Baffling Another ship dynamic I like a lot is when one person is unabashedly weird and the other thinks they're a total freak... but likes them anyways. They don't know why they like them. They can't explain it to anyone. Whenever the person does more weird shit they're like "why tf do I like you." But even so they're whipped as hell. Anyways Tora barely understands a single thing Fukunaga does and I think that makes for a funny crush to have.

9. Fukunaga's "Current Concern" Don't have much to add here, it's just proof to me that they hang out idc. Like why are you concerned about what he wants?? Kinda gay dude. Big fan of Fukunaga whispering to him and Tora answering at full volume so other people hear a one-sided conversation.

10. These Fics Before I knew this ship was even a thing I stumbled on these fics while browsing the Fukunaga tag, that's what got the gears turning:

• My favorite one, third-year shenanigans • Peak, need to be signed in tho • College AU • This one is mostly gen Fukunaga but the few moments they have are perfect (also really fun Nekoma interactions overall)

11. Other Miscellaneous Thoughts • Both of them being public figures/lowkey famous in timeskip is cute, like imagine them being each others' biggest fan before they make it big.

• Chef x guy who eats a lot is peak fiction. In this case they both eat a lot. Their grocery bill is a horror story.

• I know it's because characters are usually grouped by year and Kenma ditches them to sit with Kuroo but they're always together in the stands, pretty gay if you ask me

• I hc Fukunaga as genderfluid so Tora still gets his chance to be a wife guy. Him and Tanaka ranting to each other while Kiyoko and Fukunaga drink tea in peaceful silence.

• I think Fukunaga's the type to enjoy people watching and Tora's always doing something dumb. Observing him like a little bug under a microscope

• They're both so silly looking, cartoony ahh designs. I just think they'd make a funny couple visually, they're so square and stick to me if that makes any sense lmaoo

If you got through this whole post you're a real one, thanks for reading to my brain dump. I think about them every day and need more people to understand the vision

[whisperofwonder]

Yes, it's another one bed fic for Kuroo ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

timeskip!Kuroo Tetsurou x coworker!reader

for @dira333, because apparently the one bed prompts were so good I had to write it twice

You drowse in the soft morning light, warm and perfectly content, a comfortable weight pressing you into the plush of the bed. Still only half awake, you curl closer to the source of that warmth, an arm holding you flush against another body.

Another body. Your eyes fly open, and you suddenly wriggle backwards, trying to untangle yourself. Kuroo Tetsurou only lets out a soft, disgruntled snore, not budging. A wave of irrational irritation washes over you as he tries to pull you closer in his sleep. You grip the edge of the bed, determined to hold your ground. Oh, someone at the JVA is going to hear about this.

"No," You said in dismay, staring at the single bed in the middle of the room. "No, no, no, no, no. No."

"Wow. Seven no's," Kuroo said with a whistle.

Are you not seeing this?" You gestured widely at the room, his unphased response only serving to irritate you further. "This can't be right. Maybe the front desk screwed up. I'm going back down. There has to be an available room with two beds."

"Any luck?" He asked when you returned, as if your stormy expression wasn't answer enough.

"The whole hotel is booked," You growled, "So we're stuck with this room, and I don't understand why you're enjoying this so much!" You were tempted to smack the amused expression right off of his face.

He shrugged, "I just don't think it's as big of a deal as you do, I guess," He said nonchalantly. "Look," He drew an invisible line down the middle of the bed, "I'll stay on my side, you stay on yours. It'll be fine."

Right. Because that worked out so well. You shift beneath the weight of his arm, frowning at the ceiling. He's just so infuriating. It had started as a rivalry, soon after you both started at the JVA, and now you're not quite sure what it is. All you know is that he never misses an opportunity to get under your skin, and this is no exception. Even asleep, he's managing. You shouldn't be surprised.

You turn your head to look at him, taking in the smooth, peaceful expression on his face. There's no no trace of his obnoxious smirk now. No quick remark poised on his lips. It's just Kuroo, completely open and vulnerable before you. You swallow, softening despite yourself.

Loath as you are to admit it, the most irritating thing about him is that he's actually incredibly good at his job. This whole trip, you've been reminded of that over and over again. It's enough to make you sick.

As though he's sensing your thoughts, he lets out another soft snore, the word cute flitting briefly through your mind. You can't take it any longer. "Get off of me," You suddenly jab your elbow into his side. The sound he makes is almost gratifying, and then he's blinking blearily at you.

"Oh," He quickly jerks his arm away, and you try not to think about how disappointed you are by the sudden lack of warmth. He clears his throat. "Sorry about that." He folds into himself, purposefully not looking at you. "I know this wasn't ideal."

"It's fine," You say gruffly, "We don't have to talk about it."

"Okay then," He says, gaze finally sliding to you as he throws the blanket aside. "Now proceeding to not talk about it," He flicks his fingers against his forehead in a mock salute, and there it is - the smirk is back. All you can do is roll your eyes.

-

"One bed, Yume. How could you miss that?" No sooner are you back in the office than you confront her.

"What?" Her innocence is a little too wide-eyed for your liking. "Sorry, I guess I screwed that one up!" She shrugs. "You've gotta admit, it's kind of funny. So, how was it?" She quirks an eyebrow.

"No comment."

[diorkyeom]

THE @diorkyeom / @fairyhaos AO3 FIC REC LIST

last updated: 16/09/2023

masterlist. part two. part three.

a compiled list of all the ao3 fics that i've read for seventeen which i've loved, kudosed, and proceeded to download so i'll always have with me. to be updated whenever i have new recs!

are you soaked in dreams? - poppyseedheart

verkwan, non-idols, f2l, oneshot

hnggghhhhhh the softest, most caring fic ever. literally i adore when fics have hansol as this calm and loving force for seungkwan and seungkwan doesn't even REALISE that hansol is always by his side until something happens and he's hit with the full force of how much he adores him

stumble and fall (stage left) - pocketpastel

verkwan, uni au, romeo and juliet production, chaptered

the seungkwan characterisation is off the charts level of accuracy. i loveeee when people have kwan being as obsessed with hansol as hansol is with him pls it makes my heart so happy :< also theatre kid seungkwan and awkward skater boy hansol is just so sweet

Adventures In Fiction - thanku4urlove

verkwan, canon au, crack, fluff, oneshot

the hilarity and the feels are just sooo prominent. also reading fanfiction out loud to one another as part of bonding activities feels like a very very seventeen thing. i can imagine them doing it together and also seungkwan getting so emotionally attached to a fic??? the funniest and realest thing ever actually

i like you a latte - mysterywoozi(writers_haven)

soonhoon, coffee shops, uni au, fluff, oneshot

fluffy. so so fluffy, the kind of strangers/friends to lovers that really fits soonhoon so well. ngl i'm not too keen on reading loads and loads of enemies to lovers fics for soonhoon bc people don't understand that that's their banter, that's how they are as friends, and so i love when fics appear where they are these friends who have fun ribbing off each other. also it's the best when woozi is Whipped and he doesn't even realise it.

Skin;Heat - kwanies

soonhoon, synaesthesia, fluff, oneshot

it is INSANE how much i adore this oml. the idea of jihoon with this type of synaesthesia where he hears sounds and music for people? gorgeous. utterly incredible and so so him. and then soonyoung acting as jihoon's opposite and also his equal.... it's beautiful

Fast Pace - Mistehri

soonhoon, choreographer!hoshi, producer!woozi, crack, oneshot

funny!! so so funny and the rivalry of soonhoon despite being strangers is utterly hilarious. i just. love the soonhoon dynamic so much and this one feels like it encapsulates it so well and makes it lighter and cooler and sweeter and yes i adore it too

I'll Be Your Man - jeosheo

meanie, office au, rivals to lovers, fake dating, crack, chaptered

this author literally writes such gold in terms of humor oml. this is one of my favourite meanie fics bc it feels so so them and also?? mingyu and his family as these people with weird entrancing abilities is so so funny. also the FEELS wtf it's so good

spooked - lunahui

meanie, uni au, strangers to lovers, crack, oneshot

TOP TIER MEANIE FIC. the characterisation is so so them and i love the idea of mingyu hot guy who's actually lowkey just a soft loser. they're so sweet and so lovely and it's such a fun fic

Habit - alswiffy(lunahui)

meanie, canon au, falling in love, soft, oneshot

CRYING. I ONLY JUST REALIZED THIS IS BY THE SAME AUTHOR AS THE OTHER MEANIE FIC I ADORED. i love the domesticism of this, of loving someone like breathing, of working through feelings together and realising that you've been in love with each other all along

How Sweet It Is - orphan_account

gyuhao, baker!gyu, costume designer!hao, idiots to lovers, oneshot

SO FUNNY. SO THEM. i adore when people manage to get minghao's internal monologue right, (along w wonwoo's) and the way minghao also just becomes so stupid when he's found this hot guy to have a crush on??? gold. i love it sm.

press restart - Acavall

seoksoo, clap era, feelings realisation, oneshot

so so so soft oml. i don't actually read seoksoo a lot bc imo people don't really get their characterisation right, but this is just gold. it's the standard. i love it so much

The Light of Ulleungdo - Mistyreflections

seoksoo, village au, feels, chaptered

(check warnings for this fic)

i could talk for years about this fic and never be able to fully articulate how much it means to me. the imagery and the descriptions and the way it just instantly had me hooked?? i was originally sceptical about reading it but then i opened it, read the beginning in hao's pov, and the next thing i new it was 5 hours later and i had tears streaming down my cheeks and my heart thumping so hard in my chest

[lemon-boy-stan]

THE BATTLE OF LIONS AND SNAKES - R.A.B

As the first wizarding war draws near, the rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin becomes even more visible. You'd thought that being James's sister and a Slytherin would change things, but it only made things worse. Pairing: Regulus Black x fem!Potter!reader. Genre: fluff, some angst. Warnings: pureblood supremacy, war talk, slightly dark themes? Swearing, Sirius being a dick. YN calls Sirius a cunt.

The Potters and Blacks were, perhaps, two of the most popular wizarding families at Hogwarts; along with the Malfoys, Prewetts and the Notts. Yes, being pureblood had it's privileges, but it was popularity that put James Potter and Sirius Black on the map.

James and Sirius were the kinds of people that no-one disliked. They were good at sports, funny, daring, and over-all good natured people. They might not have the best grades like Remus Lupin or Lily Evans, but they were damn good at making people laugh, and no-one seemed to mind if they lost any house points.

When the Sorting Hat was sorting you into your house, it had mentioned Gryffindor. Out of all the houses, Gryffindor was the house to be in. Gryffindor made stars, and was home to many famous witches and wizards.

James was a leader. He became Prefect in his fifth year and Head Boy in his sixth year, and was the youngest Quidditch player in a hundred years to be made Captain of the Gryffindor team. He was a good friend - always loyal, always listening to the side of everyone's conversations, always making sure everyone was involved. He was a gentleman - when he had his heart set on someone, he knew exactly what to do and how to treat her right (in the later years, of course). Your mother and father were extremely proud of him.

You yourself were somewhat similar, as his younger sister, but you always envied him for finding most things in life easy. James had every opportunity laid out for him. You, however, had to work hard if you wanted something, sometimes twice as hard as the average student; hence why the hat placed you in Slytherin.

Being in Slytherin and being a Potter caused quite an uproar your first year at Hogwarts. Everyone in Slytherin had a bone to pick with James, based on whatever prank he and his friends had done on the house. Because of this, everyone had some kind of opinion on you, except for the first years, who knew nothing better but to be your friend.

You had met your first ever friend on the Hogwarts Express. James had brought you to sit with his friends, the "Marauders", as they liked to call themselves. You'd spent two Christmases with them before coming to Hogwarts, and honestly, they were pretty stuck-up, especially Remus, who was some sort of care-home yob, and glared at you every time you spoke.

Eventually, you left the carriage, telling James you wanted to make some new friends. He didn't mind, and jokingly told you not to make friends with the "wrong sort", although you didn't really know what that meant.

All of the carriages were full of people who looked older than you and scarier. You walked further down the train, wondering why some students were staring at you. You ignored them, looking through all of the carriages. Finally, after quite some time, you came across a carriage that was almost empty.

A small boy was sitting on the left side of the carriage, reading a book about Ancient Runes. You smiled, he looked so peaceful compared to everyone else; and he was your age. You put your hand to the door and knocked. He looked up, frowning.

The small boy put his book down and got up. He opened the door, "what do you want?" His dark eyebrows furrowing in confusion. You smiled apologetically, "I was just looking for a place to sit. My brother and his friends are a bit annoying." The small boy looked you up and down and stepped aside. "You can sit with me."

"My brother and his friends are a bit stuck up, too. I met them on the platform. My name's Regulus, by the way. Regulus Black."

Your eyes widened. This was Regulus Black? The brother that Sirius Black despised so much? Well, he didn't seem quite so decietful and troll-like after all, but perhaps siblings just disagreed with each other. You wondered why he was all by himself.

"I enjoy my own company, normally, but mother said to make friends. You seem like a respectable enough witch... Would you mind telling me your name?" You tried not to giggle at how Regulus spoke. You'd never heard a ten-year-old speak so posh before. You smiled, "YN Potter, nice to meet you."

Regulus's eyes darkened but he shook his head. "You're not bad for a Potter. Let's be friends." Regulus Black held out his hand, and you shook it, sitting down next to him.

The train continued to move through Scotland. "I'm afraid I'll be put in Slytherin," you said after awhile, putting your head in your hands, "all of my family's been in Gryffindor for thousands of years, but the other day dad joked that I was more cunning than bold."

Regulus looked at you, "I think what you did earlier was pretty bold." You scoffed, "what, asking you if I could sit with you?" He grinned and nodded, "yeah. Do you know how many people avoided me just then before you got here? Even in the Slytherin carriage they think I'm some sort of a freak." You frowned, "I don't think you're a freak. You're just a regular kid to me."

Regulus pulled a face, "I'll have you know I'm the second heir to the Most Noble and Ancient House of Black, an extremely respectable and non-regular young wizard." You let out a snort of a laugh, "what kind of kid has to be respectable?!" Before covering your mouth. Regulus smiled at you, "the ones who don't snort like that." You giggled.

Regulus started to get more comfortable. "All of my family's been in Slytherin for thousands of years, just like how yours is with Gryffindor. When Sirius was put in Gryffindor two years ago mum went absolutely ballistic. Maybe I might be put in Gryffindor too, but I think I'll probably be in Slytherin... I wish I was brave enough to run away."

You snorted again, "I wish I was brave enough to be in Gryffindor." Regulus laughed loudly. You turned to him, "if I am put in Slytherin, it won't be so bad if I'm with you." And he smiled.

And you were right. With Regulus by your side, you found it easy making friends in first year. Everyone in Slytherin was a pureblood, and was either scared of him (which you thought was truly ridiculous) or they respected him.

As the years went by, it was clear to most people that the two of you were as close as two peas in a pod. You were often seen together so much that on the rare occasions where you weren't together, you were asked where the other one was.

It was in your third year where you realised your feelings for the youngest Black brother was not just those of friendship, but something much stronger. As your crush grew and your Slytherin friends teased you about it, you began to worry and think of what would happen if you were to date Regulus, and what would happen when your big brother and his best friend found out that you were dating the little brother that he despised so.

And in fourth year, as if nudging these events into reality even further, you and Regulus began to date. In fifth year, the two of you became prefects and Quidditch Captains, and it was clear that you were a powerful unstoppable couple. Despite this, however, some people still did not agree with the dynamic of your relationship.

It was during lunch in the middle of your fifth year did the rivalry between Slytherin and Gryffindor really take its poll.

The war was almost in full motion, and it was obvious to anyone with brains that Voldemort did not have good intentions. There had been whispers in the Slytherin Common Room of some older students who had joined Voldemort's side through some kind of ritual.

James and Sirius were convinced that Regulus was one of these people, and as usual, had convinced themselves that they were right.

"What exactly are you trying to say, James?" You snapped. Your older brother put his hands up in surrender. "Don't get mad at me, I'm just the messenger. Padfoot thinks you should reconsider your relationship with Regulus, that's all." Merlin, were you glad that Reg was out in the pitch training. Sometimes his mad Quidditch obsession was a good thing.

You turned to Sirius now, "you think that, do you?" And Sirius shrugged. James jumped in quickly, keen to stop an argument from happening.

"Well you know how Padfoot's family are all very... Traditional," James was picking his words carefully, watching your facial expressions, "and he told me the other day that his folks had been talking about some dark lord for a long time, like, ever since second year, and how they were all going to join him and support him, and Padfoot was just saying-"

"Regulus is bound to join up!" Sirius butted in. James turned to him and sighed. You looked at him. "He means well, but he's easily coeerced into things, and he's always trying to impress mother, and they always brainwash him, I mean, just look at Bella."

You scowled. Sirius's parents may have been horrible people, but that didn't mean everyone else in his family was. Okay, perhaps one or two of his cousins had done some nasty things in the past, and Bellatrix was one of them, but you would always remember her as the girl who cursed some older students for boxing your ears. She'd said any friend of Regulus was a friend of hers and that you could count on her.

"Bella is a perfectly kind and respectable witch. She's really nice, actually." Sirius rolled his eyes at this. "Well, whatever, but don't come crying to me when your boyfriend has suddenly run off to join Voldemort. I'm telling you, all of them are like that. You know, at least ninety percent of Slytherin house are evil!" Sirius threw his arms up and you began to fume.

"But you always forget the main thing, don't you, Black?!" Typical Sirius Black to hate something but to leave an exception. "I'm a Slytherin too! You think we're all just so evil, do you? You think all of us want to join Voldemort? Since Regulus apparently will, maybe I will to PROVE YOU WRONG, you righteous, narcissistic cunt!"

Lily and Marlene gasped but you didn't care. Sirius scoffed even louder. "Oh, that's rich, coming from YN "I don't want to be a Slytherin" Potter! But I suppose after snogging my dear brother everything's fine, is it? Suppose the death eaters will just have to snog you to convince you to join up-"

"CONFRINGO!" The Gryffindors shrieked loudly at the sudden spell. Sirius flew backwards, knocking down the students who were sitting next to him and you knew who it was immeadietly. Regulus was always rather powerful with his magic.

Sirius got up and glared at his younger brother, taking out his wand. Regulus held his chin high, "don't you say a word against my girlfriend." And Sirius scoffed. "Is she really your girlfriend, or is she just someone who you lock lips with in your bed? LEVICORPUS!"

You dove infront of Regulus just before you saw Sirius wave his wand, but forgot to take out your own, and now you were hovering in the air. James let out an enraged roar, getting up. "WHAT THE FUCK, PADFOOT! DID YOU JUST CURSE MY FUCKING SISTER?!" You didn't think you'd ever heard him be so mad before.

Sirius glared at him, "I was trying to get Regulus, but the little weasel doged it just like everything else in his life!" You tried to fight the enchantment, "GO FUCK YOURSELF, BLACK!" kicking at the air. The other students laughed.

"Expelliarmus!" Regulus flicked his wand and Sirius's wand flew out of his hand. "You're just as bad as mother," Regulus hissed, "cursing an innocent person." Sirius rolled his eyes, "oh, I'm as bad as mother? Who's the one still grovelling about her knees and begging for her admiration?! Who's the one who-"

"CAN THE TWO OF YOU JUST SHUT UP AND PUT MY SISTER BACK? FINITE INCANTATUM!" James wove his wand angrily, and you fell back down to the ground. The school had stopped laughing now, and were all just watching intently.

Regulus turned to you, "are you okay?" You dusted yourself off and nodded, "I'm good." You turned to Sirius. "Not that it's any of your business, but Regulus is my boyfriend and I love him. So if you can't deal with that you can just get lost."

James looked the two of you up and down before nodding solemnly. He turned to you, "YN, Regulus, I'm sorry. I didn't see it before, but I do now, and I can tell that you're in love. So, what I'm trying to say is, if you want to be together, I don't have a problem with it anymore." James nodded at Regulus, who still looked a bit taken aback that he was being addressed.

Sirius scowled, "I still do."

This time it was Regulus who rolled his eyes. He then turned to you and grinned, "since you've got such a problem with it, Sirius, watch this." You looked at Regulus in confusion before getting the memo and grinning. Regulus smiled too, grabbing your waist and leaning in, kissing you on the lips. Slytherin house cheered as the others stared in shock.

Sirius scoffed in disbelief, "whatever." And you smiled, kissing Regulus again. James made a sound, "you better remove Regulus from my sister, Padfoot, or you won't have a brother anymore." You giggled softly, threading your fingers through Regulus's dark curls before looking up into his green eyes and pulling away.

HARRY POTTER MASTERLIST

NAVIGATION

[thatscarletflycatcher]

Okay you got me. Tell me about PP 1980

Okay, so XD

Imagine you had a BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice that was 5 hours long, faithful to the book, and yet having a different perspective/understanding/interpretation of the characters and the story? That's P&P 1980 in a nutshell, and I think it is worth watching just for that. But here are some other concrete things it has going for it, specially in relation to other adaptations:

The casting is closer in age than 95, and on one specific important case, closer than 05 too: Lady Catherine de Bourgh is played by an actress in her mid 40s, and she nails the absolute Opinionated Facebook AuntTM thing that the character has going in the novel.

It's not the only case of closer accuracy to the book in characters: Mr Collins is a young, tall, big guy, whose main issue is being very small minded, petty, and obsequent, instead of recurring to "he's greasy or slimy" as other adaptations do.

If you agree/like the "Darcy has autism" headcanon, this is the adaptation that leans the most heavily into it (it does overdo it, in my opinion, but there's a very interesting contrast between the flat affect of his facial expression, and the richness of inflexion in his voice)

Elizabeth Garvie's Lizzy is just... extraordinary. This adaptation circumvents the Jane-as-prettier-than-Lizzy issue by casting as Lizzy an actress with big, dark, very expressive eyes, small features and a very lively, sharp countenance and manners, whereas Jane's actress is tall and graceful and has a general air of kindness and sweetness, but in a very youthful way.

Speaking of Jane, this adaptation focuses much more on the sisters as sisters, and gives special emphasis to Lizzy's love for Jane, which I appreciate a lot.

Also speaking of Jane, Jane and Bingley are the cutest in this. They are given time, and he's kind and sociable and sweet without being an idiot. This adaptation includes that great line of his about how he wouldn't mind Darcy so much if he wasn't so tall, and the following comment about how Darcy can be fastidious of a Sunday evening.

That way, this adaptation includes several fan favorite scenes/lines that don't usually make it to adaptation, such as Darcy asking Lizzy to dance a reel, Lizzy playing and singing at a party in Meryton, Caroline teasing Darcy about putting uncle and aunt Phillips on the Pemberley portrait gallery, and the "I cannot fix the hour or the spot..." line. EDIT: also, the coffee pot scene!! and the rivalry between Mrs Bennet and Lady Lucas!

I also think it balances well how awful, in different ways, both Mr and Mrs Bennet (EDIT: and she's not insufferably shrill!!!!) are as parents (unlike how 95 and 05 "pick sides"); it emphasizes how self centered her efforts are, and how lazy and callous he can be in his mockery and indolence.

The opening sequence of each episode is a roll of a hand-drawn summary of the events of the episode and that's such a lovely detail.

Mind you, the adaptation is not without its faults. The production values are not what we are accustomed to nowadays. Some acting and lines are stilted and/or awkward. It has the odd choice here and there that is involuntarily funny. But I don't think people need discouragement from seeing it. I don't even think most of the general Austen fandom is aware of its existence. For my part, it has become my favorite adaptation of P&P (that I have watched so far; I haven't gotten yet to either 1967 or the Italian one).

[shiny-kaibernyte]

begging for more drayton romance hcs pls! 💜

Ask and you shall receive💜

Pokémon Headcanons | Drayton (Romance) Part 2

Pokémon Scarlett and Violet Indigo Disk DLC Spoilers ahead!

Been storing up more romance headcanons for our toothpaste man since the first one of these I wrote. hope I have met your expectations 💜💜

SPOILER WARNING AHEAD (Indigo Disk Main Story)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

He loves to hold your hand when walking around the school together. He has no shame in showing everyone you are the one he loves and the one who has a lock on his heart. If you are more shy, he will only do what is comfortable for you, so if that's no hand holding, he will simply give you a special smile only you get to see.

If you’re a Pokémon battler, expect to battle him on the regular. Not just double battles either, every kind of battle.

Forehead kisses. Drayton loves giving them to you, just holding your face in his hands whilst he kisses your forehead. It's very comforting to him. As an added bonus, whenever you two are walking together, if you feel nervous he will kiss your hand and squeeze it lightly, in a hope to comfort you even the slightest.

Sleeps like a log. He can be quite laid back by nature and can fall asleep on a dime. But once he is asleep, good luck getting him back up again! Throw water on him, asleep. Shake him, asleep. Scream in his ear, asleep. But if your poor soul is stuck under him when asleep, get comfy because you are not moving for a while. Try and roll him, and you will fail; he’s got you trapped in a cuddle lock.

Drayton can be quite lazy, he doesn’t like going on long trips. But with the right motivation, he would go anywhere and everywhere with you, so long as there is a bedroll and cover from the rain. Oh, and food! 

He once tried to cook dinner for you as a surprise, he may or may not have started a fire… Crispin was his favourite person that day

Rarely ever calls you by name. Drayton’s favourite names for you are: love, sweetheart, treasure, starlight, songbird and darling. Though, he can get creative and surprise you with others on the rare occasion, just to fluster you.

If you are sick, he will react in one of two ways, depending on how sick. If it’s something small, like a minor cold, he will just make sure you get plenty of rest and stay hydrated; he knows it will pass and that if you are walking around just fine, he won’t fuss. OOOOO but if you are really sick, to the point all you want to do is lay in bed and need a bin by your side, the world better step aside because he is coming through and is bringing every possible thing you could need and more.

His love language is physical touch, he loves to just hold you close and show you that you are safe with him. 

Your Agias and him have a rivalry with one another. Food is their best friend, so any time you make a sandwich, expect them to fight over them. Even if you make enough for everyone - they will try to steal the sandwich from the other. Agias has been known to just yoink it right out of his hands, whilst Drayton will throw a ball to distract Agias then chomp it like a Greedant.

If you are a gamer, he is your new player 2. If he has no idea what he is doing, expect to have the time of your life and no lung capacity. Because the things he will do will be way too funny.

Has zero sense of direction, he just wanders around and hopes for the best. And somehow, unlike Leon, actually ends up where he's supposed to be 9/10 times on time! Granted, he will not go the way he’s meant to, but will get there! You may have to go retrieve him from a cliffside at some point, though.

[princessisfinethx]

Monster!König x Vet!Reader pt. 3

Did I hit 100 followers? I'm actually literally buzzing I'm so excited lol

A/n: I made a familiar character the bad guy, and I started color coding people except König. If I colored König he'll be green but for now he'll stay colorless.

Warnings!: Dog attack, rivalry, dog bite, violence(towards animal)

M!König: Who made another bundle of fish just for you. He made sure to catch more of the ones you stated you had liked. The lake he lives in was huge, and a river connected it to various other lakes so it was always stocked up. He knew he needed to stop this, so he promised himself that this would be the last gift. Then he'll have to leave, move to a different lake. Even though he didn't want to.

M!König: Who, when he arrives at your vet clinic, sees you speaking to an older gentleman who has a leashed dog at his side and a bundle of flowers in his other hand. You seemed frustrated and shook your head up at the man, who in response had shifted impatiently. Enter, Hunter!Simon, who was trying to convince you that one drink with him will be good for you.

M!König: Who walked up to the both of you, holding the bundle of fish and glaring down at the man. He has blonde hair, scars across his pale skin and grey cold eyes. But König's eyes could be colder. You looked between the two men, sensing some kind of conflict arising internally. Clearing your throat, you told Simon he should leave, and that you declined his offer.

Hunter!Simon: Who was staring up at König with a menacing look. Something was off about this guy. Was this the bloke that you were seeing? And why did he wear a hood over his face. He noticed the bundle of fish and snorted a little. "Tha' all you can catch? If you're tryin t' impress her, that ain't gonna do it." He stared up at König but the mans face never changed. Riley, his dog, growled lowly as König stood there and looked down at them.

M!König: Who glared down at the dog next. Then answered coldly, "What use would she have for flowers? At least I catch her food, while you lazily pluck her weeds." He nearly snarled. Simon threw the flowers down while his dog growled louder, crouching in an attack position. Simon was close to raising his voice, both in heated anger and because Riley was barking louder. You stepped in, pushing the both of them back which caused Riley to jump up to attack, but König was pulling you out of the way before it registered to either one of them.

M!König: Who took the full on harsh bite of the K-9, kicking the dog away while Simon angrily yelled at him. But you were telling at Simon to leave or else you'd call the police. König watched as you threatened the blonde man while using your body to shield the much larger man. It made his heart swell despite the bleeding bite wound.

Vet!Reader: Who watched Simon and Riley walk back to his truck and drive away. You were quick to help König inside and treat his wounds. You had some healing ointment and rabies shots lined up but König was quick to stop you, explaining this was nothing. You knew König was different, so... You trusted him on this. Then when König was standing up, you wrapped your arms around him in a hug. "You didn't have to do that...but thank you."

M!König: Who was blushing like crazy. His tentacles were more actively shifting beneath his hood but he hugged back stiffly. He cleared his throat. "I'm used to dog bites... And hunters." he shrugged. He watched you pull away and then your hand reached up to his tentacles, and some eagerly wrapped around your finger to which you smiled happily. He was a big blushing mess now but he wouldn't pull away.

M!König: Who was surprised when you offered to cook food for him. It's been a very long time since he ate cooked(human) food. But with you? He eagerly agreed. When you asked what he could eat, König proudly announced anything, except the funny tasting bottle drinks. You held back your giggles and he noticed.

A/n: Damn, this is sounding like a retelling of Beauty and the Beast🤦 Also ! If y'all don't want me to use Simon as bad guy I can change that. But I had a little background on Hunter!Simon.

Basically, after the war and he retired, he moved to this unnamed small town and took up hunting. Kind of a bad ending Simon cause it more or less makes him feel alive when he hunts. So instead of hunting for food, he hunts for fun. (Which, veterinarian you hates.) Hunting for fun and not food is a big no no where I live so I thought why not sprinkle conflict-

Like I said before, I can change his character so that it's not Simon but instead it's some random NPC with a shit name. Y'alls call.

[crackedpumpkin]

Okay how about Cole dating f!reader and one of her ways of showing affection is by making flower crowns for him

Flowers and nature in general being one of her favorite things in life

Hello lovely!! I'll be real, this is the fastest ask I've ever written, with a record-breaking one and a half hours lmao

I hope you enjoy this!!! And thank you for letting me know because I didn't receive the ask the first time (Thanks tumblr.)

|| ꜰʟᴏᴡᴇʀ ᴄʀᴏᴡɴꜱ || ᴄᴏʟᴇ ʙʀᴏᴏᴋᴇꜱᴛᴏɴᴇ x ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ ||

“Another?” 

Cole wakes up to flower petals tickling his nose. He lets out a loud sneeze, startling Kai awake. The fire ninja groans, covering his head with his pillow in an attempt to escape the rising sun. 

The earth ninja takes the flower crown you had snuck onto his chest in his sleep, a soft smile gracing his lips when he realizes you had probably put it there before you left for work. 

His fingers gently brush against the soft pink freesia, now wide awake as he sits up.

You usually went to work at five a.m. on the weekdays, but you only needed to stay there till three p.m. since your job was mainly remote. However, your supervisor was in a different country at another timezone, and you needed to be at the office to look professional.

You despised it, and so did Cole. 

He’d notice when you slipped out from under the covers, your side of the bed gradually turning cold. His arms felt empty without you, with your head snug under his and tucked into the crook of his neck.

You hated it too, leaving the comfort of his arms and bed the last thing you wanted before he woke up. So you resorted to leaving little gifts for him before heading off for work. Flower crowns, to be exact.

The habit had started before you, and Cole even started dating. You used to come over to hang out with Jay, the bubbly ninja eager to beat you in every video game he possessed. You had met him in a games store, ready to purchase the latest fighting game. 

You noticed a crowd around a gaming machine set up for demos and went over to look. That’s when you spotted the ninja in his blue gi practically smashing the buttons on his controller, earning himself a new high score. 

You couldn’t let him take your place as the reigning champion of the game, so you stepped up, challenging him to a match where you utterly destroyed him.

That’s when he invited you for a rematch, a friendly rivalry that sparked your friendship. 

When you arrived at the monastery for the first time, you were intimidated by all the ninjas, including their sensei. Though he was kind, it was slightly unnerving how he looked at you with a sense of foreboding.

And then you met Cole.

— — — — — — — — 

“Jay, what’re you having for dinner?” 

A deep voice startles you out of your concentration, but you don’t dare look up, too engrossed in beating Jay. 

“Uh, I dunno, anything, I guess. What’re you getting?” Jay says, eyes trained on the screen. You gnaw on your bottom lip in thought, mentally narrowing down who you had already met and whose attractive voice it could be. 

You had already met Zane, Lloyd, and Nya. So that only left either Kai or Cole. It couldn’t be the fire ninja, though, you had seen him being interviewed a while back, and his voice had a slightly higher pitch. This one had more of a baritone quality, a slight rasp at the end that made your stomach do funny little flips. 

So this had to be Cole.

You risk a quick glance, doing a double take. Your eyes unashamedly rake over the stranger’s muscular build, catching yourself ogling his biceps. You shake your head, cheeks flushing and praying that neither has caught you staring.  

Jay was still focused on the game, and Cole (you assume) was chugging down a glass of water. You find it hard to swallow, noticing how his skin has a glowing sheen from all the sweat. He had probably come back from a workout.

You tear your gaze away before he notices, still feeling the heat in your cheeks. You hear him set down the glass with a soft sigh, your body tense. 

Is your hair okay? Did you look homeless? Did he notice you staring?

Your mind races with thoughts until the words ‘Game Over’ flashes on the screen, a victorious shout from Jay snapping you out of your thoughts. You groan, tossing the controller to your side.

“Who’s this?” You turn, willing the flush in your cheeks and neck to subside. 

“Oh, I forgot to introduce you guys. Y/n, this is Cole. Cole, this is Y/n, my newest rival!” 

“Is that really what I’m being introduced as?” You grin in a joking manner, eliciting a shrug from your friend. 

“Cool. Are you sticking around for dinner? Zane might be cooking tonight.” Cole looks straight at you, waiting for an answer. 

You’re speechless, managing a nod. 

Were you just invited to dinner? With the ninja, no less??

— — — — — — — — 

“Here.” You place a flower onto Jay’s head, and he blinks several times before pulling it out of his hair.

“Is this mine?” He asks innocently, and you nod in response. 

“HA! Suck it, Kai! You’re gonna be the last to get one!” He shouts across the ship, holding it up triumphantly as you roll your eyes with an amused smile.

You had started the habit of giving flowers and little trinkets you found in nature to the ninjas. Zane was the first to receive one, a tiny acorn you had picked up during your walks in the park to recharge your social battery.

He had cooked a marvelous dinner, and you had randomly given it to him to express your appreciation. He had taken it with a confused yet thankful smile and proudly showed it to the rest during dessert. 

The rest of the ninjas became more invested in seeing who was the next one to receive anything. You had triggered their curiosity and anticipation once you had given Nya a beautiful piece of sea glass you had picked up at the beach. She treasured it like it was a diamond, keeping it on her dresser along with her jewelry.

Now, Jay had his small trinket.

Kai was next. He had made the time to help you go grocery shopping when your other friends were busy, driving you there and back in his car. He helped you unload the groceries, thinking nothing of it until you returned to your room for a brief moment, returning with a preserved amber leaf paperweight. 

“This is mine?” He asks, wide-eyed. He takes it from your hands when you grin, admiring the flickers of orange in the paperweight, the colours resembling the sparks of a fire. He wraps you up in a brief hug, excited to go home and show it off to the rest.

“Looks like Lloyd and Cole are the last to receive anything.” Kai chuckles, reveling in the fact that he had received it before they did. 

Your sheepish grin gives it away. His eyes widened. “Just Lloyd?” 

You shake your head with an embarrassed flush.

“Just Cole??” 

— — — — — — — — 

Truth be told, it was challenging to decide what to give the earth ninja. He was the most put together, the most vigilant of them all. 

And the most attractive. 

You had briefly considered a smooth pebble, its midnight shade reminding you of his gi. But that wasn’t good enough. You could imagine the disappointment in his eyes, comparing his stone with the other gifts you had gotten the rest of them.

Besides, it was too cliche. A rock? For the Earth ninja? 

You’d rather bury yourself six feet under.

You were sitting on a mat near the pond in the monastery, having been invited on a small picnic in the sunny weather. You had gathered an assortment of flowers in front of you, starting to absentmindedly weave together the stems into a flower crown. 

The ninjas were chatting away, and their senseis were sitting on the wooden floor of the small pavilion nearby, sipping on tea and watching their students fondly. You were almost done, looping the last flower through the stems.

“Is that mine?” 

Your breath hitches when you glance up, the shy yet boyish smile on Cole’s lips making your heart flutter. He sits down beside you, peering over your shoulder to get a better look at the flower crown you hold loosely in your hands. 

“Y-yeah.” You hope he doesn’t catch the stutter, though a slight upwards quirk of his lips suggests otherwise. 

“That’s a relief,” he laughs, leaning back with his face tilted towards the sun, “I was starting to think you had forgotten about me.” 

Your cheeks fill with a familiar heat, shaking your head with wide eyes. “No! I’d never forget.” You suppress an embarrassed groan at how your words came out, but you’re left breathless when you notice the soft dusting of pink on his cheeks.

“That’s good then,” He murmurs, peeking an eye open with a small smile. 

You bite down on your bottom lip in thought, summoning up all your courage to reach upwards and place the completed flower crown on the top of his raven-black hair, fingers brushing against his bicep. (Definitely not on purpose, of course. A total accident.)

He grins, sitting upright. 

“Nice crown, Cole!” Jay giggles, drawing the attention of the other ninja. 

“Why thank you, it was a gift.” He pauses to send a wink your way, but you look down quickly, flustered by the sudden action though you can’t help the shy smile that spreads across your lips.

You look back up as he saunters to the rest of the group, showing off his present. You watch how he laughs at something Kai says, your gaze soft as he glances back at you. You start like a deer caught in headlights. However, he doesn’t look away, nodding absentmindedly at Jay’s remark that goes unheard. 

Your mind is blank, a single thought floating around inside.

Flower crowns look good on him.