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italoniponic · 2 years

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May i request for trey, jack and leona the letters B, J, K, L, O from the fluff alphabet in headcanon format pls :)

𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐲'𝐬 𝐇𝐚𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 - 𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭

Notes: Hi, anon! Gonna call this “Smoothie of Letters” like fruit smoothies… bc I can. I thought it was funny.

This one was interesting to make. Think about a special thing about each of them was quite something. I don’t need to say that I loved doing this for Trey and Jack. And I think for Leona too. I relate to his laziness most of the time, you go lazy-ass. Such a mood king. Talking about Leona, some of his parts I got inspired by my own cat, that little shit (affectionate)

Thanks for the request <3

Trey Clover, Jack Howl, Leona Kingscholar x g!n reader / fluff alphabet / use of "you" pronouns

Smoothie of Letters #1

B eauty - What do they admire about their s/o? What do they think is beautiful about them?

Trey greatly admires your skills with manual labor. Or if you're not very good at it, it's more about your effort to always try to improve. Having ambition measured right like a cup of sugar is a good thing. Especially when doing things you like and appreciate, just how he does with cooking;

Trey also loves your smile. He jokes that it is because he likes to see your teeth — and that you are following his recommendations — but in fact, he likes your expression when smiling. Trey is in favor of the thought that a person becomes much more beautiful when they smiles and you are proof of this;

And when do you smile when you do something you like? Wow, it's a very effective way to make his heart beat faster. Trey likes those little, subtle details about you. It's what makes you be you.

J ealousy - Do they get jealous easily? How do they deal with it?

Trey never thought of himself as a jealous person until he met you. Yes, he lets you hang out with your friends and be close to whoever you want without any problem. Even he needs breathing space sometimes. But when you spend too much time away from him and it's because you're with a certain person all the time, there's something sour in his mouth;

He needs to put up with Rook saying things like “jealousy is the saffron of love” and not let the potion he's preparing explode in his friend's face. Heck! Trey is mature, a simple normal guy. He shouldn't be feeling that kind of thing... but he is. What he needs to do to deal with this?;

To get around the situation, Trey takes recipe books to decorate. There is something in numbers and ingredients that simply takes his mind away from problems and bad thoughts. Trey hates this jealous part that just popped up in him, but over time, he'll be able to control it. He doesn't want to cause you any trouble.

K iss - Are they a good kisser? What was the first kiss like?

Believe it or not, Trey is good at many things, but kissing isn't necessarily one of them. It's nothing fantastic, out of this world. It's simple, ordinary. But for you, that's exactly what makes his kisses special and precious;

Following his personality, sometimes there's something different about Trey's kiss. Not that you can explain well what it is. Trey also doesn't care about your ability to kiss. It is you who he is in love with, your lips are just the cherry on the Black Forest cake. Cherries are good but, the sweetness of the cake is in the chocolate and cream that compound it;

Your first kiss took place in Heartslabyul's Garden during a Unbirthday party. You two sneaked through the maze of roses and exchanged confessions and foods you liked. Sitting and leaving the food aside, you both kissed for the first time. Some students might be looking for both of you, but the garden has saved your important moment.

L ove Confession - How would they confess to their s/o?

Hidden away in the labyrinth of roses, far away from the party that was taking place in the dorm, you showed him that you had made a Mont Blanc tart especially for him, even though you knew it was against the rules of the Unbirthday party. Your confession took place there;

Trey was so touched by your courage and equally surprised by your suicidal tactics that he first wondered if he should hug you or eat thetart as soon as possible before Riddle saw it. But in the end, he had a much better idea: to answer your confession;

You hadn't noticed, but Trey also brought something with him. It was your favorite food, very well packaged and lovingly made. “Normally, I say I use only normal ingredients and nothing else, but... this time, it was really made with love.” Trey is really sweet.

O n Cloud Nine - What are they like when they are in love? Is it obvious for others? How do they express their feelings?

Trey realizes right off the bat when he's in love with you. He's not so naive as to take decades to understand what’s the matter with him. The problem is another: what to do with this conclusion? Slowly express his feelings and hope you realize it too? Spend more time with you or act normally? Was there a way to act normally in these cases?

Preparing recipes is something so much easier. The instructions are right there, there was no way to mess it up. However, Trey had no one to instruct him in this. He was the oldest of his siblings and one of the oldest in the dorm. And other classmates either had no experience as well or were crazy. Just in case, Trey sought to be himself and act naturally. But his gaze always delivered his true feelings when you were close or he watched you from afar;

Cater and Rook noticed from day one. Trey went on to experience daily stress every time Cater exaggerated your compliments to him and Rook would start talking about romance when you were together. That’s because sometimes Trey prepared pastries and foods especially for you when he noticed that you were not eating well. He kept the best pieces of cake from the parties for you. He always encouraged you to do your best in your studies, believing in your potential. It was more than obvious, wasn't it?

B eauty - What do they admire about their s/o? What do they think is beautiful about them?

Jack was never one to place too much value on aesthetics. Not that he despises external beauty, none of it. It's just that there are more important things than the appearance of a person, that's what he thinks. But when Jack watches you, he always pays a lot of attention to your eyes. This is already his normal behavior because “eyes are the window of the soul” and it is easy to determine someone's genuineness by their gaze;

He loves the color of your eyes, whatever it is. The way it shines when you talk about your favorite hobbies and things, the way the sun and moon give their special effects on it, how it enchants and inspires;

It is also a part of you that will never change with the years. And Jack hoped that you would always retain that glow in your gaze. The joy in your eyes when you looked at everything you liked and loved. He hoped that one day you could look at him that way... until one day he realized that it was just like that from the beginning.

J ealousy - Do they get jealous easily? How do they deal with it?

In Jack's mind, he's not jealous but his gaze always says the opposite. If you are talking to someone who apparently has bad intentions, Jack is around and quiet, letting you lead the conversation but, his gaze is direct and accurate. The moment they talk anything slightly indecent to you, he would show his claws;

Jack doesn't follow you everywhere, excessively worried about the people who cross your path. He lets you have your space to do things and have fun whenever you want. It helps that he is a close friend and, one way or another, he’ll always be included in things. But sometimes, he looks for you with his gaze over the horizon. If you are around someone reliable, he is more relieved;

“Keep calm, keep calm,” Jack says to himself when he feels jealousy erode him more violently than usual. Part of it is the wolf instinct in his veins, this solemn loyalty to his only match. Another part is concern. You are important to him, so he turns out to be protective anyway. Jack knows how to control himself. Above all, he does not want to be a burden to you. But have patience and compassion with him sometimes in these moments. He's still young, after all.

K iss - Are they a good kisser? What was the first kiss like?

Jack has zero experience in relationships. To make matters worse, the books Vil offered “casually” as a reference to help him about his first love do nothing but roll his stomach. For sixteen years, he has accompanied his parents being the cutest couple in the world and romance books — at least most of them — don’t seem to quite understand this concept. Some almost throw it out the window;

So he gave up and swallowed the insecurity. Either way, better or worse, that would not be your relationship’s weakness. Jack knew you better than that. You would receive the true feelings that he didn’t know how to verbalize, even if they were shown in the most clumsy way possible. You would know;

And that's how the first kiss happened. Awkward, inexperienced, careful. But you were so happy that he finally told you that he loved you that something like that didn't even cross your mind. You only knew how to hug and kiss him until he started laughing instead of frowning, worried about the kiss. Even if he picked up the practice someday, it didn't matter. You love him the same way.

L ove Confession - How would they confess to their s/o?

It was a moment so millimetrically calculated — and effective — that Jack could offer his services to Leona and be the new strategist for the magift team. If he could thank one simply perfect aspect of the occasion it would be... the dawn. Strange as that sounded, asking you to meet him on the roof of the Ramshackle Dorm at five in the morning was one of the best decisions he made in his life;

Even though you found the time of the meeting strange, you accepted. In fact, the reason for this was very simple: everyone would be asleep and no one would come to disturb you two, and Night Raven College was very beautiful in the early morning. You noticed it right away. The sun gradually rose on the horizon, bringing light to that great college and its gothic and gloomy architecture. Jack always loved this sight when he went out for a run;

And to your surprise, Jack extended you a letter. Well, it was a paper with a long text written with a pen that Jack trained yesterday’s whole afternoon to do. Just choosing the words, correcting, reviewing, conveying everything he wanted to say to you. Ruggie was his beta reader — and when he looked at the paper without laughing and really touched, Jack knew it was perfect. You finished reading it all while he was busy looking at the landscape to distract himself from the nervousness and you simply said, “Jack, I love you too.” He almost fell off the roof. It wasn't going to be much harm to him, but it was a tremendous scare all the same. Not knowing what else to say, Jack hugged you tightly. Never before has someone received a direct and blunt answer so well, but you knew it would be the best for him. A gesture much appreciated.

O n Cloud Nine - What are they like when they are in love? Is it obvious for others? How do they express their feelings?

Apart from you, maybe Jack was the last to notice that he was in love. Epel always gave small hints about how Jack used to sit next to you, cared about you or in the middle of some conversation sometimes he would comment about you, but — although naturally defensive — he never connected these actions, the meaning of them and the motive behind them as love. Damn, even Deuce knew before him!

Once he understanded his true feelings, Jack spended several moments torturing himself about what to do and how to act. He is not good with words, but being defensive all the time whenever he does something kind to you could end up giving the opposite impression of what he feels — Epel rightly considered this possibility. Jack didn't know what to do. You were so nice and good to him that perhaps the best solution was to act as normal as possible. And if you praise him... he shouldn’t answer. Opening his mouth to say something was very dangerous;

Courage is a very admirable quality in Leona's opinion — even if he himself doesn’t attribute it to himself. But he can clearly see in you. In the small and big things, you get up and go to help others. To defend your friends, to say what you think, to do what is right and sometimes, even to do the wrong;

However, there was something Jack was good at: actions and gestures. When you needed help, he was ready. Studies, sports, shopping, banal things, anything. He was your guy, no matter how embarrassing it was to say it out loud. Jack would help you carry things that are heavy or that you were carrying in excess. He guided you to get the best food from the cafeteria and was willing to help you train anything you weren't doing well in PE. Simple but full of meaning. Always loyal and reliable, that was Jack.

B eauty - What do they admire about their s/o? What do they think is beautiful about them?

Kindness is also another thing that Leona admires a lot about you. The patience to be close to him and make him think about things. The banter between you becomes more jokes than actual offenses. The way you always showed that you care about him and in a very genuine way;

Technically it's a physical feature, but it's kind of weird to describe. Leona finds beautiful the way you breathe and how your heart beats. Perhaps because it is a rhythmic and constant sound, as proof that there is someone next to it. He clings very much to this detail. Oh, and legs! Your legs are a great pillow for the head that carries the crown. Leona spends a good five minutes fixing his own position on top of your legs, until, having found the perfect spot, he stops and sleeps for hours to no end. Your legs end up getting pretty strong because of this.

J ealousy - Do they get jealous easily? How do they deal with it?

“Jealous? Leona? Pff, no. He's too lazy for that,” you joke sometimes. It's not like Leona simply doesn't care about your life. Sometimes he tells you not to mix too much with the Diasomnia crew, especially Malleus. Other times he tells you to watch out for Rook. In others, he tells you not to walk too much with the Adeuce duo so that your neurons don’t atrophy. That's all…;

Then you spend a whole week just seeing your friends and at the first opportunity you pass in Savannaclaw, Leona is sleeping in his room and pretends not to notice your presence. It's... like a big cat very angry that you came home after cuddling other street cats. He ignores you, turns sideways every time you approach one side of the bed;

Because of the difficult childhood and with servants who had little to no patience with him, Leona was always the kind of child who accepted things that had not gone his way with a frown. No tantrum, no screaming, No expressed complaints. Just bad mood and sleep. It usually works, time passes faster and he only pays attention to the really important parts of the stories about your day with your friends;

[An addendum because I found this hilarious] It rarely happens but that’s exactly why you never forget it. Leona sometimes allows himself to be dramatic and say “It's unforgivable you leave me for so long to be surrounded by idiots.” It always makes you laugh and your laughter ends up improving his mood a little. Just a little bit.

K iss - Are they a good kisser? What was the first kiss like?

It is difficult to classify Leona in this part. There are days when he is magnificent, living up to the name and weight the prince title has. On such days, he is simply charming. On other days, his kisses come out lazy and fast. Little pecks always deposited on your forehead only to later he stay still for a moment, lips against your head, just enjoying your company — it actually mean more than you can imagine;

On the moment of your first kiss, he was playing with your hair when you teased him. “It is at these hours that Prince Charming kisses his beloved after declaring himself,” were your words. After dealing with him for so long, you ended up creating the finesse of saying things like that. Leona responded with a smug smile. It’s necessary to appreciate a good roar when he listen one;

And unexpectedly, with all the pomp, Leona kisses your hand. “Whatever you want, my love,” he speaks softly, feeling you shiver. And then, you two kissed. It's not a fairy tale kiss. It's raw, intense and realistic. But you can feel all the love that Leona can't put into words there. Even in the most arid of hearts, love always finds a way to express itself.

L ove Confession - How would they confess to their s/o?

Direct and objective, but the atmosphere turned out to be unexpectedly romantic. Leona and you were in the Botanical Garden at night. You heard that Leona hadn’t returned to the dorm and the first place you passed was there, knowing that he would have overdid his nap session. Leona awoke to your footsteps, kinds of in awe at the way the moon shone upon you as you approached him;

Before you could say anything, fireflies and little flora fairies appeared. It was a beautiful sight. Leona offered you a place next to him to contemplate the view of the Botanical Garden in the nortune ambience and you accepted, happy to share this moment with him. You really could feel the love that night. “I love you...”;

Following these words, Leona said your name for the first time ever. Your heart almost jumped. His eyes were serious, but there was a little smile on his lips. It was said finally. Leona thought how the brightness of the first rays of the sun in the Savannah didn’t compare with the brightness of your eyes that moment.

O n Cloud Nine - What are they like when they are in love? Is it obvious for others? How do they express their feelings?

Age aside, love is something kind of new and strange for Leona. Almost incomprehensible. It takes a while for Leona to properly notice that he was treating you slightly differently from others. Because your presence turned out to be important, because he slowly began to care about you. Ruggie realizes this much better than he does. And it is precisely when he is chuckling all the times that Leona mentions “that little herbivore” that the pieces began to come together;

If it gets to Leona's ears that you need help, he does something to make things work out. Sometimes you don’t even understand that he is the one who leaves the books of that difficult subject on your doorstep, you don’t know that Savannaclaw has express orders not to bother you just because you are “the magicless human” there. Leona makes good excuses for his behavior and the others end up heeding it, too afraid of his defensiveness to overthink about it. But Ruggie and others closest to Leona know the reason;

Let's say that Leona starting to sleep in places where you usually pass ends up testifying against him… a lot. All just for you to wake him up and drive him to a more comfortable place to rest or ask him for help in your studies. Sometimes it's just for you two to talk more. He appreciates those moments in his own way.

#twisted wonderland #trey clover #trey clover x reader #jack howl #jack howl x reader #leona kingscholar #leona kingscholar x reader #twst imagines #twst fluff headcanons #twst scenarios #twst headcanons #cherry's writing #cherry's harvesting

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jimilter · 3 years

Text

riptide (m) | k.sj. | (1/2)

one | two

pairing: kim seokjin x reader

rating: m (18+)

genre: angst | smut | established relationship!au

summary: It takes a foolishly trivial incident to unravel how astonishingly little you and Seokjin actually understand each other. It has you questioning your relationship, and him? Well, he’s questioning his whole life.

warnings: swearing + implied alcohol consumption + realistic relationship problems + mentions of insecurities, jealousy, complicated mental dispositions + emotional distress + sexual situations (unprotected penetrative sex, dirty talking, a bit of manhandling, fingering) + mentions of masturbation + a ton of miscommunication (refer to the summary smh)

word count: 12.3 k

note: it’s FINALLY done, y’all! came up to be a monster of 25k words, so i decided to split it into two. i’ll drop the other part next week. this took a lot more time, energy and re-writing than i’d thought it would. i began writing this in january - it’s been five excruciating months! 😩 i really hope y'all will like this one~ 🥺💜

💟 YOUTH – 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

— masterlist

— feedback is always appreciated!

riptide (n) – a dangerous area of strongly moving water in the sea, where two or more currents meet.

Lady, running down to the riptide - Taken away to the dark side - I wanna be your left hand man.

The turn of events has been so fucking hilariously impossible that Seokjin has literally been rendered speechless. Which doesn't happen often, mind you. What can he do, he is just extremely witty—he always has something to say about everything, usually and preferably with impeccable comic timing. Especially when it comes to you.

This, though. This completely baffling scenario, right in front of him, has him gaping like a goldfish with no words to say.

"Final call, Jin. Gawk at me for five more seconds and I walk out of here," you threaten, an elegant arm poised at your waist and gorgeously plump lips pressed into a thin line. "Say something?"

And Seokjin still cannot formulate a single word, because what the actual fuck? How can you even think that he could ever—

"Alright." You catwalk out of his bedroom, leaving him blinking into space.

He jumps the next second, leaping after you. "Honey! How would—what—I can never—why do I even have to say—will you wait? You’re being so ridiculous, right now, I hope you know that!"

If he wasn't in such a fix, Seokjin would physically cringe at his speech. It was better when he was just gaping.

“Honey! Stop being so overdramatic, you’ve known me and you’ve known Jimin! For years! Stop acting like you seriously don’t know what happened, here!”

You don't stop, though, gliding down the stairs and hopping over the haphazardly tossed items in the living room as you exit out of the house.

And then you're gone. You're really gone, over something so fucking ridiculous, that Seokjin still has no words to say.

All he knows is that his girlfriend of five years has finally gone crazy enough to jump to conclusions of such high magnitude of stupidity.

And, that Park Jimin is a dead man.

It all begins on an unsuspecting Sunday morning, when the entire house is smelling of weed, stale booze and some worse fluids.

Last night, Seokjin vacated his own bedroom for the boys to smoke up in at Jimin's request, because that is the only well ventilated room of the house. He spent the night in Yoongi's room with earplugs in, dead to all the chaos in the house—as he often does on party nights—to catch up on his beauty sleep. He cannot afford any unbecoming dark circles or, God forbid, breakouts.

And no, that's not a comedic moment, he really does need his face looking perfect this week for reasons outside of personal gratification too, because he has a shoot on Tuesday. He especially took a leave from his part-time job at the Mexican restaurant downtown where his girlfriend, you, work full-time, on a Tuesday—saying goodbye to all the amazing tips always forwarded to the cooks on Taco Tuesday—for this. Nothing would mess up his face.

Not to mention that one very important audition for a very gigantic project he's been looking forward to. They're yet to announce the date, but it would be this very month. He hasn't really told you much about it, planning a huge surprise for later when—if, actually, but he prefers to be unrealistically optimistic in every situation possible—he bags the coveted position, at the end. He hasn't really decided upon much, other than a long drive and a picnic date to one of those grasslands on the city's outskirts that you love so much. Oh, and bringing up the prospect of moving in together in an apartment with just the two of you.

He's pretty certain you must not remember him raving about the opportunity, because it has been months since he did that. He then proceeded to be covert about all the mini auditions and trainings he underwent to prepare for the final audition, and he is confident you have not connected the dots.

But that is all a discussion for later — he doesn't even know when he would be auditioning.

The crux of the whole matter is that he needs to keep looking as flawless as he can until that audition happens.

So he has slept like a baby, last night, while the rest of his friends have partied, including two out of three of his housemates—Hoseok and Jimin—along with Taehyung and Taehyung's girl. Namjoon had foregone attendance in lieu of the Halloween party, next weekend, that he knows he would definitely be forced to attend because Hoseok is hosting. Yoongi, his third and final housemate, escaped the house altogether to spend a night of music-making with Jungkook in his dorm.

So, in the morning, when Seokjin is moving around his kitchen that seems to have been hit by a tornado, checking the fridge and mentally praying that his baggie of smoothie ingredients is still in good shape—a scream echoes around the house.

Seokjin freezes. That sounded a lot like…you.

Immediately alert, he runs out of the kitchen and into the drawing room. Hoseok is hanging upside down on one of the couches, something that looks a lot like undigested white sauce pasta puddles on the ground, inches from his new, fiery red hair. Seokjin grimaces.

"Kim Seokjin!" your screech tears the silence.

Seokjin twists on his heels, looking up in the direction of his bedroom. It really is you. And you're in his bedroom—the room he did not occupy last night.

God only knows what kind of a scene you have walked in on. He hopes these idiots didn’t have an orgy up there, although he really can’t put it past them.

Not waiting another second, Seokjin rushes up the stairs and pushes through the doors to his bedroom. His mouth falls open on an audible gasp.

You stand next to his bed, dressed up elegantly in a navy dress that ends above your knees—which makes him wonder if you are here for an impromptu breakfast date—with one hand clutching his duvet that has uncovered what looks like…

…a head of long, dirty blonde hair.

Who the fuck?

In his bed?

"Hey, Honey!" Seokjin's voice is a squeak. "You… you here for a date?" he manages out of a suddenly parched throat.

You roll your eyes. "Uh huh. A fact you would've known if you looked at the texts I sent you last night." Your eyes are narrow at him. "This explains why you didn't, though. Busy night, Jin?"

He balks at your words, at a loss. How could you even think it was him, when you know all about Park Jimin and his escapades?!

Seokjin's blood boils. Fucking Jimin. There is going to be blood on Seokjin’s hands.

In the midst of it, the blonde head shifts.

Soon after, as you two watch, a pair of brown eyes with smudged makeup emerge from inside Seokjin's bed—and the audacity?! There’s makeup all over his covers! Jimin will pay for the dry cleaning. The face is followed by a whole, tiny woman of five-something feet who is, thankfully, covered in a shirt.

Seokjin is almost not breathing when the blonde starts to give him a dreamy smile, his gaze switching between her and you. And it’s extremely stupid, because he hasn’t seen this woman before, ever, in his entire life. But he catches the way your arms fall to your sides and those elegant, dainty fingers of yours ball up into fists as you look at the blondie’s face.

Fortunately, the girl recognises him at last before her grin could turn fully dopey, and with a squeak, jumps out of the bed. “You’re not—um. Hi. Sorry, I, uh. I’ll get going.”

And surprisingly, she does exactly that in less than a minute, leaving you to stare down at Seokjin.

“You know, it’s really unbecoming for a girlfriend to keep finding girls in her boyfriend’s bed every other week and not be given an explanation, ever.” Your tone is teasing, but your eyes are taunting. “You shouldn’t always be so dismissive, you know? What if I start getting ideas? I don’t think you even remember how to make up with your girlfriend, at this point, because I never fight.”

That is when Seokjin starts gawking. And literally doesn’t stop until you’ve left the house.

“I don’t get it,” Jackson says, stuffing cold noodles into his mouth and chewing on them without closing it. “Do you think he cheated on you, or do you not think he cheated on you?”

You look at your best friend with your face twisted up in disgust. You swear to God you would never have agreed to make friends with this guy on your mother’s insistence when the Wang family moved in next doors to you, had you known he’d turn out to be such a barbarian a decade later. Twelve-year-old Jackson had been such a decent kid—studious, elegant, well-mannered. What went wrong, along the way?

You exhale, shifting on your chair, very wary of any dried up fluids that you might come in contact with. “I know he did not cheat on me, Jax, the very notion is completely ridiculous.”

Jackson stops chewing and looks away from the WWE match playing on the TV to squint at you. “I’m…confused? Wait. What is the problem, then? What are you mad at him for?”

To be completely honest, you aren’t quite certain yourself.

But you do know that you don’t feel good. And that this feeling has been building up over a couple months, but you have only really acknowledged it head-on, today, in all five-something years of your relationship. Five years, seven months and eight days, to be exact, but that’s kinda besides the point.

You’ve had at least a few months’ worth of buildup that has gotten you to this point, you would admit. Especially after Seokjin had to cancel that visit to your hometown at the end of June, for your parents’ thirty-fifth wedding anniversary celebration because he had an important audition for a big-brand ad film. The cancellation was acceptable, but his offhand comment that, “thirty-five isn’t even that special, we’ll get them a huge gift for their fiftieth,” stayed with you longer than it should’ve. Things got okay-ish when you reminded yourself how Seokjin never really thought too hard about things he said, always being a humorous, unattached clown in every situation. But this morning's dismissal has pushed you over that edge. You straightaway goaded him, claiming he doesn’t remember how to make it up to you, and all you got in response was his shock and being called “ridiculous” and “overdramatic.” Fun.

You were most certainly joking, if a bit caustically, when you said what you did. He could have taken it as a joke and laughed it off. He could have taken it as a threat and comforted you, said it was Jimin that used his room, and maybe kissed you. You already knew what had happened when you saw the girl, anyway. But this was probably the third time this situation had happened, this month.

Sure, you are understanding and really do know Jimin and what all he gets up to, but is that really supposed to be such a given? Asking your boyfriend to hug you close and kiss your forehead when you discover a girl in his bed just as you were about to cuddle the lump of sheets thinking it was him, is not too much to expect, is it?

Granted, Seokjin has never been extremely expressive, but still. It feels like he’s consciously trying to keep you at a distance, these past few months.

You don’t have the complete grasp of the storm of thoughts in your head yet, but you want to try and explain it to Jackson the best you can.

“It was about respect, in a way, I guess,” you quietly mumble, and Jackson turns the TV off, now sitting cross legged on the couch to face your chair. He puts away his takeout container to frown at you, probably gleaning how serious this is for you. “He stood there, without saying a single word, expecting me to stop being mad. Almost willing me to stop being mad by making these big, incredulous eyes at me. Like it was that horrible of his girlfriend to demand for an explanation when she found a girl in his bedroom. It was just the two of us, I wasn’t making a scene in front of anybody. He just—ugh! He could’ve simply asked me to not be mad, said it was Jimin who spent the night in the room and maybe even laughed about it, or plotted Jimin’s murder—I would’ve joined in—but no. He acted like I was being stupid, told me not be ridiculous and dramatic. And that made me feel really stupid.”

Jackson winces. “And why do you think you were not being stupid?”

You exhale. “I wasn’t. Because I wasn’t actually accusing him of anything, and five years down the lane, he should know that now. I just wanted him to say it and not scold me when I tease-taunted him. He always expects me to know everything. And even though I always do, it gets tiring sometimes. These weird thoughts get to you — that maybe you’re being too understanding and he’s using that to his advantage, you know?” You look down at your lap, playing with your nails. “It’s just…um. I wanted him to coddle me, I guess. To treat this as something big because I was throwing a tantrum about it and, just, I don’t know—try to cajole me? Assuage me with his words, maybe? But he didn’t. Because he hasn’t done that in forever. Because I never need him to, because I always freaking understand everything!” A sob leaves you.

Jackson pats the place next to him. “C’mere, you dumdum, and stop hyperventilating,” he mumbles, hugging you to his side when you move to sit on the couch. “I don’t exactly understand how the relationship dynamics work, but from what you told me, I get that you wanted attention? Some loving? And instead you got disappointed looks because Jin expected you to be mature and rational about it — the way you always are — and that too with his fucking eyes and some low-key insult words? Is it something like that?”

Wow, Jackson really paraphrased all that amazingly. “Yes, actually. It’s exactly that.”

Jackson sighs. “Y’all have been together a long time, babe, so I guess it’s kind of a given that you’d get to a no-bullshit point. Which is why he hasn’t done that in forever, because y’all probably don’t need that kinda stuff between you anymore.”

“I get that, it’s how a relationship matures. But I’m pretty certain that it’s not supposed to make me feel like this,” you sound slightly muffled, having stuffed your face into Jackson’s hoodie-covered chest. “I feel—I feel like we got too comfortable and now he’s just started to take me for granted. And I also feel like I’m being too needy. Am I being needy and annoying? He’d hate me if I told him all this, won’t he? Half of the reason we’ve worked out so well is because we’re both career oriented and don’t waste time overthinking stupid shit.” You gasp. “Oh, no—would he leave me? He’s used to his girlfriend being mature, not needy—”

You are cut off when Jackson pulls you away by your shoulders, giving you a serious look. “Wait, wait, stop. What did you say? Not the needy part, you’re allowed to be needy once in all the damn three-sixty-five days y’all stay busy for. The…taking you for granted part. Pretty big of a thing to say, babe.”

You sigh. “We haven’t been on an actual date in months. Seokjin thinks there’s no need for that extra effort when we spend lunch breaks at work together, everyday. Outside of the restaurant, our meetings involve our entire flock of friends by default. It’s been three months since we slept together.” You sniff, hating having to impart such a private detail of your life. “So no, I don’t think it’s that big of a thing to say, at all.”

“Wow.” Jackson gives a slow whistle. “You’ve really been bottling up a lot in there, huh?”

You shrug. “I guess. It never made me feel underappreciated, though. Sure, I was irritated at some occasions and disappointed at others, but… Today I feel horrible, Jax.”

“Did you share anything with Byulyi?” he asks, referring to your flatmate and good friend since college.

You shake your head. “She already has a lot on her plate, right now. She got rejected by the photographer she wanted to intern with, so it’s back to freelancing for her.”

“Yeah, that must suck.” Jackson grimaces. Then he looks at you. “You need to take a break, hun. Sit back, today, and have tacos and beer with me. Reset your inner thoughts. Talk to Jin tomorrow. Although, I must say, it’s kinda depressing that you have to actually tell your boyfriend that he’s being a bad boyfriend. Isn’t that kind of shit supposed to be realized on your own?”

You purse your lips. “I guess, yeah. But…don’t say that he’s being a bad boyfriend, Jax. I don’t think he even realizes something is wrong.”

“And that…doesn’t make it worse?” At your raised eyebrows, he concedes with a roll of his eyes. “Fine, fine, in any case — maybe try to hint at it before you dive straight in with the kill? See if he reacts?”

“I don’t know, Jax. What if he doesn’t? He’s really not the best at taking hints and reading signs, or that kind of subtle stuff.”

“Then you can just say your shit. All I’m saying is, give him a chance to figure it out on his own. He’s probably really clueless why you reacted so big on something so small, this morning. If you drop hints, maybe he’ll feel it out.”

You nod, somewhat amazed at how sound Jackson’s advice seems. “How are you doing this, Jax? Being a love guru all of a sudden?”

Jackson scoffs. “I’m just tryna put myself in Seokjin’s shoes. If I was in the situation he’s in, this is what I’d like to happen — be given a window to figure out what’s wrong. You’ve been together a long time, hun. It really shouldn’t be that difficult for him.”

You shrug a shoulder. “I won’t be too sure about that. Why does it even matter if he can or cannot, though?”

Jackson seems to be mulling over something before he drops his chin to his chest. “Because you’re supposed to be partners, hun. If you can tell what’s up with him with a single glance, why can't he? Not being good at taking signs is not a good enough excuse. My gut says that he’d be able to, though. And that knowledge will make you feel infinitely better, trust me. It’ll be reassuring to learn that he really knows and understands you well, won’t it?”

You nod, slowly, but you still have your suspicions. Seokjin has just been the kind of guy whose emotional depth goes to a certain extent and then just — well, stops. There are things that he feels and realizes and sees, and there are things that he doesn’t. It isn’t even something he does, you believe. It’s just how he is. Certain feelings just don’t fall in his orbit. And you’ve never found there to be anything wrong with it when he’s been an immaculately amazing boyfriend and tended to every single one of your needs, always. Well, you have never actually needed emotional consoling, too, so you haven’t had the chance to audition him for that. You keep yourself too busy for all that unnecessary mental pressure. It comes as a surprise, but you have never cried on Seokjin’s shoulder in all these years of your togetherness. You’ve kept your head straight and chin up, even during your college exams. And so has Seokjin, because you’ve never seen him cry, either.

Lately, though, things have been kind of weird. The gradual transformation into your professional lives that began after college, has been drastic in the past few months. Seokjin has been constantly prioritizing his career over you, and you have been understanding about it because you agree with it — to an extent. Seokjin believes it all the way through, though, and you have known for a while that you would hit your limit at some point, and would try to bring him back to yourself. Today morning, it seems, you hit that limit.

You felt dispensable.

You hate this feeling.

To be very honest, you know you can get over this. You can give it some time, remind yourself of how much your Jin loves you, believe that he is eventually going to come back to you once he settles, and be understanding about the entire thing.

You can — but you really don’t want to.

Something tells you that this feeling of getting too comfortable will only fester and take a worse form as time goes by. You can wait it out, sure, and hope you aren’t being a pushover as he works on building his career. You are building your career, too, after all, and at least some of it has been for each other.

The thing is, your plans with Seokjin are long-term—marriage, kids, white-picket fence, and all that. And you believe that if you are sensing a problem now, you better deal with it now before it has the chance to change its form and affect you both when you are at a more responsible point in your life.

Mind made up, you look up at Jackson, immediately grimacing when he forwards a greasy hand to pick up a taco for you. “I don’t…I don’t like tacos. And may I exchange the beer for scotch?”

“You work at a Mexican restaurant, and you don’t like tacos,” Jackson deadpans.

“They mess up my skincare.”

“Oh, fuck off! Have a spinach smoothie with a drink, why don’t you?”

You purse your lips to hold back your laughter at his ire, your own worries forgotten in the moment as Jackson gets up to get you a glass of scotch and some healthier snacking alternative.

“You're a dead man.”

Jimin stops dead in his tracks, arms frozen in the act of putting a t-shirt on. He blinks at Seokjin with big round eyes. “Hyung?” he mumbles, a picture of unblemished innocence, especially when he covers his toned torso with the oversized t-shirt he was in the process of getting into. “What—what’d I do?”

Someone who doesn’t know better would never believe that this young, innocent, frazzled haired fairy-boy could ever do any wrong. But Seokjin knows better. “You chaotic womanizer,” Seokjin nearly hisses, "you've gotta learn to clean after yourself. Honey found a girl in my bed. A girl—in my bed.”

Jimin had the decency to drop the innocent act. “Oh. Oh.”

Seokjin raises a brow. “Oh? That’s it?”

"Yeah, well, I clarified to her that it was a one time thing when we got to it. She was obviously expecting something more if she didn't leave when I told her to. Disappointed but not surprised." Jimin is frowning when he comes to sit down on the couch next to Seokjin. “Sorry you two had to see that. You clarified to Honey noona that I’d been the occupant of the room, though, right?”

“I—what?” Seokjin scoffs. “Why would I even need to do that? She knows that already, obviously. She’s been seeing you for over five years, or have you forgotten?”

Jimin squints. “I mean…okay, fair point, I guess. Why’re you so worked up, then? Did something else happen, too? Where’s she, now?” Jimin looks around the living room as if looking for you.

Seokjin sighs. “Well, I couldn't really get much out before she was storming out of the damn house, altogether.”

Jimin blinks. “Storming out? Why? She… um, was she mad?"

Seokjin opens his mouth – and then shuts it. Was she mad, indeed. "I don't know. She looked kinda mad, yes. But maybe she was in a hurry?"

"Why would she be mad? Did you try to call her? Text her? It's unlike her to react so big on something so small." Jimin bites down on his lip, looking lost in thought.

Seokjin shakes his head. "She didn't pick up or text back."

“There’s definitely got to be an underlying reason for her being like this. Are you sure you guys haven’t been fighting, hyung?”

Seokjin sighs. “Yes, Jimin, I’m absolutely certain that there hasn’t been any fighting of any sorts between the two of us before today.” He pauses. “Well, she was slightly irritated that I didn’t check her texts last night, but she knows I go to bed at eleven on days leading up to a shoot, so that one’s on her.”

Jimin looks genuinely concerned, which, in turn, makes Seokjin concerned. Jimin isn't the type to stress over stuff if he can help it. Sure, he cares about the boys and would always be down to do whatever he can for them, but his throwing-caution-to-the-wind way of life causes him to not take most of the things in life seriously.

You’ve been like an older sister to the boys ever since Seokjin started dating you and introduced you to them. They all have their ways of showing their respect and affection to you. Well, maybe not Jungkook because he can’t get over getting unnecessarily intimidated by Seokjin enough to relax around you.

Jimin, especially, always seems to be affected by any tension in Seokjin’s relationship. Everyone can see how it upsets his entire life when you two are fighting, although he’d never admit to it. He doesn’t need to, because it’s pretty obvious when he becomes a cranky six-year-old who hates the world.

Right now, he has a guilty frown on his face. "I should've seen to it that Suzette left before I went to shower," he mumbles as if talking to himself. “Shouldn’t have trusted her to leave just because I told her to.” He looks up at Seokjin with troubled eyes. "I'm sorry, hyung."

Seokjin can not believe himself when he shakes his head at Jimin's apology—this little demon causes so much chaos in all their lives that any apology coming from him should be justified and welcome. But this one isn't really on him. "It's not entirely your fault."

Jimin's demeanor changes a bit and the attitude Seokjin is used to witnessing makes an appearance. "Right? That's what I was thinking, too!" Jimin exclaims, some of the concern on his face lifting. "You have to talk to Honey noona and make things right, though, hyung. She’s the only womanly touch in our man cave. We’d all be barbarians without her.” Jimin looks very wary and kind of nervous.

“It’s funny you would crave her ‘womanly’ presence when she’s rushed off because of a woman that you brought home.” Seokjin scrunches his nose. "And I said it isn't entirely on you, because it is partially on you, Park Jimin. You borrowed my room to smoke up in. Why couldn't you take your Suzy back to your own room?"

"Suzette," Jimin corrects under his breath while shaking his head. "Yeah, I should've, but… your room just felt like a better choice during the high," he finishes in a mumble, dragging a hand down his face. “Hyung,” Jimin says with a pout on his lips, “the last time you two fought was two years ago, remember? On your birthday? When Hobi hyung dumped cake in noona’s hair and she had her first shoot for that bigshot magazine, the next day?”

Seokjin nods with a sigh. “She yelled at me for having stupid friends, and I yelled at her for caring more about the shoot that having a good time on my birthday. Yes, I remember.”

“And then she didn’t visit us for a whole week. Please don’t let that happen, again.” Jimin looks up at Seokjin with big, round eyes. “I can’t take that kind of unrest in my life."

Seokjin briefly wonders, if Jimin’s nightly conquests were to see this side of him, would they run in the opposite direction or be more attracted to him? Jimin definitely needs someone in his life that would bring out this side in him and stay to provide him the emotional comfort he requires when he gets like this.

“I will try not to, Jiminie, but…” Seokjin shuts his eyes. “I seriously do not understand her actions from the morning,” he finishes in a mumble.

“Maybe she’s—maybe she’s worried about something else? Some other aspect of her life?” Jimin suggests with wide eyes. “And she’s just projecting onto you.”

“As sound as the explanation is, I am literally involved in ninety percent of the aspects in her life,” Seokjin says with a twist to his lips. “I would know if something was wrong anywhere.”

“That’s cocky of you to say,” Jimin snarkily comments with narrowed eyes. At Seokjin’s raised eyebrows, he amends, “That’s cocky of you to say, hyung-nim.”

Seokjin scoffs, but then he shrugs his shoulders. “It’s true. We work at the same restaurant, we’re scouted by the same agency. Even her agent is best friends with mine—she gossips a ton about how Honey passes up so many opportunities and pisses her agent off. Her friends are, well—” Seokjin stops short when it hits him. “Wang. Wang could know something!”

Jimin is looking at him skeptically when Seokjin meets the younger’s eyes. “I just think you should have a simple talk with noona first before digging around.”

That is sensible advice. Seokjin nods as he pulls his phone out.

“Just find out what’s been troubling her, hyung. You two are rational people, I’m sure you’ll work it out.” Jimin pauses to scratch the back of his head. “Just please don’t let this be another fight like that one?”

“Don’t worry,” Seokjin finally says with a pat on Jimin’s shoulder as he finishes sending off another text to you, “this one is nothing like that fight.”

Turns out, this fight really is not like that one. Or any other fights Seokjin has ever had with you, in fact, because you’re giving him the silent treatment.

You’ve never given him the silent treatment.

Not even when you were students and didn’t have a load of time on your hands and used to waste precious sleep hours arguing over stupid shit that would probably resolve itself if you just slept on it and looked back at it with a fresh state of mind. Not even then did you forego talking.

Needless to say, Seokjin is distressed.

You drive to the house to pick him up at your usual time, the next morning, after not having responded to any of his calls or texts for the entire day. Seokjin is aghast as he gets into the car.

“Honey! What is going on? Why didn’t you—where have you been?”

You simply start the engine and take off. “Busy,” you murmur after a while.

Soekjin’s head is close to exploding. “Busy? Doing what?”

Your face remains stoic as you weave through the morning traffic. Seokjin looks at you. You’re dressed up in your waitressing outfit that consists of a shirt, skirt and tights, and being who you are, Seokjin can proudly say that you would stand out to be the most well dressed server in the field. You’re always pristine and tidy — no accidents happen to you at the job ever. No spillage of drinks or ketchups, no soiled hands being wiped down on your skirt. Nothing even ruins your manicure.

It is something that Seokjin has always tried to keep up with, this cleanliness streak of yours. Because he has always assumed you would expect it out of him, too. You were attracted to the cover model version of him, after all. It is quite natural that you would have those kinds of expectations. And Seokjin has always been more than happy to deliver. It has become a part of him, in fact. He doesn't even chew with his mouth open even when he's among the boys, anymore.

It has, somewhat, made him practical and less emotional in life, too, but he doesn't really think of it as a bad thing. You have always been practical in life – the most ambitious girl he has ever met, someone that has always prioritized her career and goals over everything else. Seokjin has admired that since college, and has tried to show you that he has similar priorities even if he has had to work on thinking from his mind more than his heart.

But when you are already by his side, what does he even need his heart for, anymore, when it's already yours?

Now, looking at you sitting with a morose expression on your face as you give him the cold shoulder, Seokjin is just as much in love with you as he was when he first met you.

“Stuff,” you say with a shrug, after some extended silence. “You should know about that, right? Your schedule’s always busier than mine and I never complain.”

Your sharp words have him reeling. Whatever do you even mean by that? “Uhm, okay. Fair enough. But… did you really not have the time to respond to a single text?”

“It gets impossible sometimes, Jin, you know how it is.”

Seokjin frowns. He does know that, but he doesn’t feel okay. Something is very off with you. It is as if you’re saying something else and expecting him to discern a different meaning out of it.

He doesn’t understand why, though. You, of all people, should know how terrible he is at decoding signs.

He sighs.

Seokjin, after his conversation with Jimin yesterday, had decided to ask you about the morning’s incident, head on, whenever you called him back. But you didn’t, and this is the first opportunity he’s had to talk to you, so he decides to bring it up, now. “What—what happened yesterday morning, babe? You got really mad and stormed off, and… I mean, you’ve got to know the girl had been Jimin’s companion for the night, right? You know him, how he is!”

You say nothing, hands tightening a bit on the steering wheel. Seokjin looks down at his own hands.

“You know I was only surprised at your words because we really do not have the time to be discussing silly things." He shuts his heart down when it tries to tell him to go soft. He knows it isn't something you would appreciate. "After five years, you know what I’m capable of right? You can never start getting ideas, because that would be insane and stupid. I’m already so supremely occupied as it is between two jobs, when would I even have the time to cheat, right?” he jokes, snorting to himself.

You’re still quiet, but your tongue comes out to moisten your lips. It is a nervous tick of yours which Seokjin recognizes very well, because with your skincare and scheduled regular application of lip balms, your lips never need the extra moisture.

He frowns. Was he too straightforward? But this is exactly how you communicate with him! “Hey, is everything okay, babe?”

You exhale, noisily. “Everything’s fine, Jin,” you finally say with a roll of your eyes. “And you’re right. I know you wouldn’t cheat. You don’t have the time to chat me up, how are you gonna pick someone new to impress, huh?”

Your snort sounds lacking in humor, but Seokjin still gives a couple of stilted chuckles. Even so, he's still somewhat relieved. “Right. Just so we’re certain, that was a joke, right? I mean, it would be really ridiculous of you to think that I would—”

“Yes, Jin!” you cut him off with a deep frown. “If I wanted to talk to you about something, or accuse you, or confront you — I’d do that without you having to prompt me. Stop obsessing over yesterday and stop trying to explain yourself. I know it was Jimin’s doing.”

Seokjin feels immensely relaxed at the conviction with which you say the last sentence, certainly, but something is still off. “Why were you ignoring me, then?”

“I just didn’t have anything to say to you.” You stop at a red light, the last one before you reach the restaurant, and turn to look at Seokjin with really vacant eyes. He doesn’t like your stare one bit. “We’ve been together five years, babe. If neither of us have got anything of significance to say, I’d rather not text too much, if that’s okay with you? I’ve got a busy schedule to work around, too, you know?”

Seokjin wants to remind you that both of you had something of significance to say after you left his place in anger, but chooses to just roll with whatever you’re playing at. Maybe he's thinking too much. He nods. “Sounds alright to me.”

“Great,” you breathe out, somehow looking disappointed along with the preexisting sorrowful expression you had on your face.

You really do not have a concrete explanation for why you acted the way you did with Seokjin, this morning.

You were supposed to hint at being mad, not blatantly try to give him a taste of his own medicine. It could turn out to be a good thing if he eventually starts to miss you and reaches out, sure, but playing mind games never feels right to you. But when he started to joke about not having time to cheat, and something just turned off in you. He really could’ve seriously reassured you of his love. That would’ve been actually comforting. But no. He chose to joke about that, too. You didn’t feel like putting in all that energy anymore, after that.

Now, you sit down in the break room to check your phone during your ten minutes’ rest break. A text message floats at the top of your notifications.

Jax 🚽 Hey How’d it go?

With an exhale, you decide to call him back. Your fingers are too tired to type, and Jackson is sure to launch off into a rampage of texts the moment you tell him you’ve tried to turn the tables on Seokjin.

Seokjin is in the kitchen, his usual rest break not being for another hour, so you don’t have to worry about him walking in.

“Hey!” Jackson jovially greets you as soon as he picks the phone. “Did you get my text?”

“I did, yes,” you respond in a calm voice. “I’ve been looping milkshake mugs through my fingers since eight am, they needed some rest, so I decided to call.”

“Yeah, no, it’s cool. I was in a really boring class, anyway. So. How'd it go?"

You pull in your lip between your teeth. "I… I kinda ended up telling him I am a busy person too and that we shouldn’t text that much."

You hear silence instead of the outburst you'd expected.

"Jax?"

"Are you actually gonna try to play a mind game with the dumbest human being you know on earth?" Jackson so very eloquently asks, his interpretation making you pinch the bridge of your nose. “He’s never even gonna figure it out!”

“I know how it sounds, okay?” You exhale. “I honestly don’t know what came over me.”

“Okay, alright, one thing at a time. So, no coddling?"

"Not a single soft word. Just more expectations of me understanding, and claiming that anything but that would be stupid of me. He acts like I'm supposed to know everything about him and everyone in his group of friends," you mutter in irritation. “As if those dumbasses know the first thing about themselves.”

You realize you're being a bit harsh, because his friends – basically your younger brothers, at this point – are a bunch of clueless idiots that love, adore and respect you. You shouldn't be badmouthing them, Seokjin’s growing callousness towards you isn't their doing. It's his own.

You sigh. You really miss how things used to be when you were in college.

“Uh, I think we need to rewind a bit. What happened? What triggered this?”

It makes you smile a little when Jackson asks that. At least your best knows you’re not wholly clinically insane. “Well… I drove him to work. He…" your brows lower at the recollection, "he was the first to bring up yesterday morning. And yet again, he gave me the same you've got to know this and that crap, and then he tried to assure me in the dumbest possible way. Do you know what he said, Jax, do you?”

“Um, do I wanna know?”

“He said, and I quote, he doesn’t have the time to cheat. Jackson Wang, are you hearing this? He really straight up said he was too busy to cheat on me and so I should rest assured! Who says that?!”

“He must’ve meant it as a joke—”

“Yeah, he said that, too, and then very immaculately added that it’d be ridiculous of me to think otherwise. I have lost count of how many times the words ridiculous and stupid came up.”

“Goddammit.”

“Goddammit is right,” you mumble, morosely resting your head on your palm.

“What did he say, by the way? When you told him to text less?”

You give a wry chuckle. "Well, he said it sounded alright to him."

"Son of a bitch. You – you two are messed up, man. Messed up bad. Why the hell can you not just say shit you really mean and actually want to instead of saying shit you don't? You don't wanna text less because you're busy, you want him to dote on you because you miss him!" Jackson sounds beyond frustrated. "And it doesn't fucking sound alright to him! It sounds scary, it sounds confusing, it sounds like something you would never say to him!" He groans. "But none of you would say that shit to each other! You’re choosing to be evasive and fucking plastic instead of honest, and falling deeper into your mess."

You reel from the onslaught of his harsh words, eyes widened and breath stuttering. Jackson isn't usually the type to pay so much attention to your relationship problems. But this time, you guess, he has garnered the depth of your unhappiness and thus has gotten so involved.

You realize he is right. Nothing good can come out of any turned tables, because Seokjin is, anyways, not even going to be able to work out the problem by himself. He may even go around talking to his friends about how you were being cold with him and not giving him any time, and still not realize he has been doing the same to you. He is thick like that.

When his friends tell you tales of his compassion, you're unable to relate. You've never seen that side of him. He has probably grown up from that emotionally overwhelmed high school graduate who had made friends on a whim, the night of his graduation.

You certainly don't appreciate the emotional abstinence, though, and would very much rather prefer if he would open up a bit more. It would help you be more open with him, without fearing him calling you "stupid" in response.

But it’s still alright, you accept him with that thick brain of his, because he’s still only ever going to be the only one for you.

"How are you two gonna get around to having a proper chat if you just keep building more walls between you both?" Jackson asks after the long pause from your end, this time softer. “I’m sorry, babe, I was wrong. Giving him signs and making him realize shit won’t work. It was stupid of me to suggest that. It’s probably why you ended up being so caustic with him.

“No, no, it was all me, Jax. I could’ve chosen to not listen to you, but my ego got in the way, I guess. It’s not exactly easy, telling your boyfriend you’re feeling neglected. I mean, what if he laughs in my face and tells me I’m being paranoid? What if he thinks I have no regard for his career — or mine — because my priorities don’t align with his?” You bite your lip, shutting your eyes as your insecurities attack you.

“Hey, no. None of that is gonna happen if you really share with him what you’ve been feeling. No hints, no sarcasm, you’re gonna have to tell him point blank. Allow yourself to be raw. He’s the love of your life. You don’t have to protect yourself from him, right?”

You sigh. “Yeah, I know. You’re absolutely right, Jax. But I really have no idea how to even approach him, at this point. He’s either too busy with shoots, or with the guys, or some meeting. I cannot do this on call, because that always leads to misunderstandings.” You bite down on your lower lip, contemplating. “But I’ll figure something out.”

"Yes, you will. You always do. So, that’s good then. In the meanwhile, can you at least clean up this latest pile of poop? The talking less thingy is gonna make you two more distant, hun."

You scrunch your nose at his metaphor, but then your shoulders slump. "I don't know, Jackson. The way he so impassively agreed to it would make me sound really stupid if I take it back. And given what he keeps saying, he really doesn’t want me to sound stupid."

Jackson gives a snort at that. “Hah, funny. But listen. At the end of the day, he’s your boyfriend. You're gonna have to really decide if you're trying to get your boyfriend to give you more love, or if you're fighting a battle of egos and would like to bend him to you."

You bite your lip. “You make me sound manipulative.”

“You yourself confessed you let your ego come into this, one time. Don’t let that happen again. I’m trying to make you realize that complicated problems can have simple solutions, too. If only you’d communicate. Just talk to him soon, please, and make him understand why you’re hurt. Don’t carry on with this stupid cold war, okay? You gotta figure out exactly what you want, first.”

“You know what I want, Jax. You’re literally the only person that does, actually,” you remind him with a sigh.

“Oh, he is, isn’t he?”

You freeze, eyes bulging at the familiar voice. “I’ll… I’ll call you back,” you mumble before you disconnect the call and turn to look over your shoulder at Seokjin’s unreadable face. He stands with his arms crossed, still in his uniform but without the apron. “Jin… what—uh…”

“What am I doing here?” he scoffs, lips curling in distaste as he stares you down. “Well, I was going to the loo when I saw you sitting here. You looked upset, so I thought I’d check in on you on my way back.” He clicks his tongue, a dry chuckle tumbling out. “But apparently, you’ve got other people doing it for you, already.”

You wince, shutting your eyes. The one time he was finally going to give you some much needed attention — you sent a bad message his way.

“So. Good to know there actually is someone who knows what you want. Would’ve been easier if it were me, though, given how I stand to be the one that is to deliver.” Seokjin sounds pissed off, and despite your irritation, you really want to make him understand.

You rub at your forehead. “Stop talking like that, Jin, it was just Jackson.”

“Wang?” He seems to seethe more, for some reason. “Of course, it’s fucking Wang!”

You frown, standing up. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

Seokjin looks at you incredulously. “You—do you not see how this looks? You have problems with me, Honey, but you choose to discuss them with him? Who’s he, your therapist?”

“He’s my best friend, Jin, someone I trust,” you grit out.

Seokjin seems to take it the wrong way, his agitated expressions slowly fading into a blank stare. “Oh. You trust him, as opposed to…” He trails off with a shrug, but the implication is as obvious as it can be.

“Jin—”

He raises a hand up, palm facing you as he looks away. “If you need some time apart, you should tell me in plain words. You know I’m not good at reading signs.”

Seokjin gives you a blank stare before turning around to leave the area. You stand rooted to your place, jaw dropped and eyes wide.

Some time apart? Has he lost his mind?

He really is a huge freaking idiot who cannot pause to think what implications his words have. He seriously doesn’t recognize what all his “don’t be ridiculous/overdramatic/stupid” speeches do to you. You realize you should really make him understand. This has gone on for way too long.

But maybe you should take some time to yourself to cool off before that. You don’t want to say the wrong thing in your rage and complicate things further.

You sigh to yourself as you slump back into the bench you were sat on before.

You’d set out to tell your boyfriend you were feeling neglected, but you ended up making him think you want to be apart. How the heck did you get here?

You belatedly recall Jackson's words.

Why the hell can you not just say shit you really mean and actually want to instead of saying shit you don't?

You’re choosing to be evasive and fucking plastic instead of honest, and falling deeper into your mess.

Your usually dumbheaded best friend was right on this one, you realize. You should’ve just talked like a normal human being instead of letting Seokjin’s words get to you and get pissy in retaliation.

You give a weary sigh.

Seokjin is grateful for the sudden busyness he’s got on his schedule, or he would explode from all the pent up frustration you have been causing him.

He realized he wasn’t as upset with you as he was irritated, right after he walked away from you on Monday. He dropped you a text with some excuse of needing to stay back so that he wasn’t forced to ride with you in the car again, and later took the bus home.

You had told Jackson Wang about what was troubling you, but not him. It made Seokjin feel upset, incompetent and more than a little insecure. Seokjin absolutely hates feeling insecure. Especially about you. You’re the singular most precious entity in his life — not that you are an entity, per se — and anything that seeks to threaten your position in his life or his position in yours, makes him lose his shit.

So it was understandable that he jumped to unfairly disproportionate magnitudes of conclusions that day. When he thought about it, later, he could easily tell that you are just mad at him and not actually contemplating leaving him, not even for a little while. Not that he’d just sit back and have you do that so easily.

Seokjin also hates overthinking, but that is all he did for the entirety of his Monday.

Monday, though, was the last time he had time to overthink. Life got exponentially busier after that.

Immediately after his shoot on Tuesday, he received his agent’s call and was informed of his jam packed schedule for the remainder of the week. He was pulled into two separate magazine ad shoots on Wednesday, a perfume ad film drank up all of his Thursday, and today, a hair product ad film needed him to report to a sunrise point in the city at the ass-crack of dawn. The sky was still dark when he rode across the city with his agent at nearly four in the morning.

And now, the afternoon sun beats down on his car as he drives back alone, his agent staying back to tend to some business. Stopping at a red light, he reaches for his spinach smoothie with one hand and his phone with the other. Ugh, he feels beyond tired.

Blearily, he looks down at the device around a yawn, fingers habitually reaching for your chat.

He took a week off from the restaurant and dropped you a text, late Tuesday evening, informing you of the same.

Honey✨❤👸 Hm, kay. Good luck x

Unsurprisingly, that stands to be your last message in his inbox. It’s been four days.

Sighing, he swipes a hand down his tired face and exits out of the message app. He went to bed at nine o’clock, last night, and owing to the way he has trained his body to sleep on command, he did manage to get a sleep of nearly six hours, too. But it was fitful and plagued with nightmares featuring you.

Knowing he doesn't have to be at the restaurant until Monday and that his next gig isn’t until Wednesday, he cannot wait to get back home and drink his weight in alcohol before he sleeps his way through the weekend.

Just as he has moved past the intersection, his phone rings.

Honey✨❤👸 calling...

He nearly spits the smoothie he just sipped at.

Coughing, he roughly jostles the plastic cup back in the holder and pulls up to a side of the road to pick up the call. “Hey,” he breathes into the phone, embarrassed at his desperation.

“Jin. Um, hi.” You sound awkward, as if you…have been compelled to call him due to some reason.

He is immediately worried. “Honey? Is everything okay, do you need something?”

He hates himself for being so concerned when you have been neglecting him for so many days – yet again, despite your spat at the restaurant – instead of finally talking to him about what’s bothering you, but he can’t help it. At the end of the day, you are the love of his life.

“Yes, yes, I’m okay. It’s just, um. Can you pick me up from the restaurant?” you sound nervous.

But, Seokjin realizes, I was right. You do need something. He clears his throat. “Uh, okay, I guess,” he agrees before stopping short when he realizes the time. “Wait, it’s barely even two. Why are you leaving?” he asks, confused and a little concerned. You work your shift till five every day and till eight on weekends.

“Tomorrow is Halloween, Jin. We’re closing for the weekend, remember?”

Seokjin’s mouth falls open on a gasp. He really had forgotten. “Oh. Oh, okay. Yeah, I’ll be there in five, wait up.”

He swerves the car into the lane and takes off in the direction of the restaurant.

He laughs at himself. He has been so caught up in work that he literally forgot Halloween. He wonders if this is what actual adulting is.

He is stopping before the restaurant within three minutes of your phone call, eyes immediately spotting your delicate figure standing on the sidewalk with your hands crossed against your chest.

You step down from the curb when you spot his car, and walk towards him. He watches your elegant legs as they beautifully fall in a straight line. Even when exiting your job as a waitress, you’re every bit the elegant model he met in college. Your hips sway tantalizingly, and something akin to longing swirls in his chest.

He composes himself quickly when you cross the car to get into the passenger’s seat. You awkwardly clear your throat as Seokjin busies himself with starting the vehicle, unsure if he should initiate conversation.

“Um, sorry about this. You were probably getting ready for shoot,” you finally say. “Byulyi dropped me off today. She wasn’t picking her phone up. I was trying to get a cab for half an hour. And the bus stop’s really far—”

“Hey, stop. It’s okay. You should’ve called me sooner.” Seokjin catches your apprehensive gaze on his oversized hoodie when he chances a glance at you. He sighs. “I was returning home from shoot, actually.”

He feels you stiffen, and he feels even more mentally drained at this. You used to be updated with his schedule to the tee — just short of having an actual copy of the calendar his agent carries on him. And the same goes for him with your schedule. This feels so wrong.

You are quiet for a while, your hands fidgeting in his peripheral vision.

“How—how was it?” you finally say, voice coming out like a croak.

Seokjin shrugs his shoulders. “The usual. Blinding, tiring, exhaustive. I did okay, I guess.”

He feels your gaze snap up to drill holes into his skull. Your eyes are wide when he checks. “Okay? Since when do you do anything less than amazing at shoots, babe?”

He feels endeared at your casual use of a pet name. “I had to get up at three in the morning and go through a skincare routine. Then drive across the entire city to get to the location, because they wanted to capture actual sunrise. I was more tired than excited by the time they rolled cameras, so.” He shrugs. “Can’t really say I gave my best today.”

You nod at his admission.

Seokjin almost jumps when his phone rings, again.

Jiminie calling...

He feels you shift in your seat. His mouth sours at the reminder of that Sue girl that started off this entire tussle between you and him. Fucking Jimin and his conquests. What happened to the shy and more than a little glum looking freshman he let into his living space, three years ago?

Your hand suddenly reaches forth to accept the call, putting it on loudspeaker, immediately. Seokjin gapes at you, momentarily looking away from the road.

“Uh…hyung?” Jimin’s confused voice echoes in the car.

Seokjin snaps out of his daze when you gesture towards the device. “Wh—Jimin, hi, what’s — what’s up?” he stumbles his way through a haphazard greeting.

“Hyung, I needed a favor. Are you on your way back from the shoot, right now?” Jimin asks, and Seokjin sees you freeze in your seat.

He feels a perverse sense of satisfaction. Yes, take that! Park Jmin knows of my schedule better than you do! This is what you get for ghosting me! “I was, yeah. What is it?”

“Oh, great! I kinda need your help, hyung. My tire gave out. Could you pick me up from the Kappa hall?”

Seokjin scowls. “Yah! Who am I, your butler? Hop on a damn bus!”

He notices you pursing your lips, no doubt finding his agitation humorous — you always do.

“Hyu~ng,” Jimin whines. “I would take the bus, but the next one leaves in forty-five minutes and I need to be back within an hour!”

“What? Why?”

“I started on my sem project really late, hyung, and now I gotta spend any time I can spare at the rehearsal hall. I’m meeting a choreographer here in an hour. Please help me out!” Jimin is still whining, and maybe his reasoning is kind of alright, but—

Seokjin is tired to his bones. He literally cannot drive all the way down to your apartment and then drive back to the university campus to pick Jimin up.

He sighs, wearily. “Jimin… I’m really tired.”

“And I’m really desperate, hyung! Dancing is tough! And the subject I've chosen, tougher. I haven't done ballet since first semester, Freshman year! I have to work my butt off and be done in under two months."

Seokjin exhales, feeling beyond exhausted. But then your finger is tapping on the screen and the call has been muted. Seokjin’s surprised eyes fly up to meet yours. You look conflicted, biting down on your lower lip as you shake your head with a frown.

“You should go home and rest, Jin. Leave the car with me, I’ll pick him up.”

“Hyung? Say something?”

Seokjin blinks. “You…”

You roll your eyes. “I’ll pick him up, yeah. He’ll drop me off and drive back to your place.”

“Hyung?! Did you put me on mute, or what? I can't hear a thing!”

“Tell him you’ll be there in ten!” you say, unmuting the call.

“I’m in the car, the network must have glitched. I’ll, uh… be there in ten?” Seokjin nervously finishes off, looking at you in question. You give him a nod, blinking slowly. “Wait up, okay?”

“Oh my God, thank you so much, hyung!” Jimin practically squeals through the phone. “I’ll be in the ice cream shop across the building. I love you, hyung-nim!”

Seokjin rolls his eyes and disconnects the call. He looks at you from the corner of his eyes as he takes a right, now moving in the direction of his apartment instead of yours. “You sure about this? Jimin, um, knows. About our…” Seokjin doesn’t want to call it the f-word, because he would like to believe that you two aren’t actually fighting. “You being upset, I mean,” he settles for the easier alternative. “He might ask questions.”

You give a small huff of wry laugh. “I can handle it, Seokjin. I’ve known Jimin for almost three years now.”

Seokjin doesn’t like it when you address him by his full name. And so, his lips remain pursed for the remainder of the ride, only parting to tell you to “drive safe and text me when you finally get home,” and then he walks inside his apartment without looking back.

He hears his car come to life and then speed away. He shuts his eyes, leaning against the kitchen counter. Gathering his emotional as well as physical bearings, he opens the refrigerator to rummage through some leftovers to munch on while he breaks out a six pack of Budweiser.

Before his fried rice has even reheated, Seokjin groans at the sight of an all too jovial Hoseok entering the kitchen with a glint in his eyes. “No, Hobi. Not now.”

“What? I didn’t say a word, hyung!”

Seokjin winces, shutting his eyes just as the microwave beeps. “I don’t have enough energy to deal with your general aura, right now,” he mumbles, extracting the piping hot glass bowl. He leans down to open one of the compartments beneath the kitchen table to get to the beer that he’s been dreaming of for nearly an hour, now. “I’m dead on my feet and—woah!” Seokjin gasps, cutting himself off.

Hoseok hops into the kitchen, coming around to stand behind Seokjin. “So you found ’em,” he says around a chuckle.

“Found ’em? This is you?” Seokjin whips his head around to glare at Hoseok up from his crouch. “Why is my liquor closet resembling a liquor shop, Hobi? Why do we have all this—” he turns around to read the labels, cursing under his breath. “Why do we have,” he pauses to count, “five bottles of Tequila and eight bottles of Vodka?”

Hoseok frowns in concern. “Eight? There should be ten, hyung, check again.”

Seokjin actually gasps, this time. “What the hell, Jung Hoseok? Explain yourself before I start throwing hands!”

Hoseok smacks a palm against his forehead, taking Seokjin by surprise, yet again. “Tonight’s the Halloween party, hyung! Did you actually forget?”

Seokjin screws his eyes shut, letting his head roll back with a frustrated whine. “No~o, don’t tell me it's tonight. Halloween’s tomorrow, right? Why is the party tonight?”

“Yes, hyung, Halloween in tomorrow, which is why it would be stupid to hold the party when Halloween is ending.”

Seokjin finds the logic to be very severely flawed, but his energy is draining out fast and he cannot keep up with this quarrel. There’s no point, anyway. He’s known about this party for nearly a month. And Hoseok isn’t going to postpone a whole party just because Seokjin is tired.

“You look tired, hyung. You should rest. Recharge yourself before the party, okay? There’s plenty of time.” Hoseok pats Seokjin on the shoulder with a kind smile.

“I’m not even in the mood to party, Hobi,” Seokjin mutters, reaching behind all the glass bottles to extract his pack of cans.

Hoseok scowls at Seokjin. “Because you’re upset about your fight, I realize that. All the more reason to party, hyung! Take your mind off it for some time, why don’t you? You don’t even have to dress up, come as yourself.”

“I’d rather just drink myself to sleep and not wake up for the next twenty four hours.”

Hoseok blocks his path as Seokjin moves to exit the kitchen. “Is Honey coming?”

Seokjin sighs, shrugging his shoulders. “I don’t know, Hobi. Did you invite her?”

“No, hyung, because you said you would.”

Seokjin clicks his tongue. He completely forgot. “Then she isn’t coming.”

Without listening to his protests, Seokjin trudges upstairs with his food and beer. He will be forced to come down for at least a couple shots, he is certain, so he better make as much of the time he has on his hands as he can.

These days, it seems to be becoming a pattern for you to do things without really understanding why you do them.

You nibble at your bottom lip as you recall how gaunt and pale Seokjin had looked when you sat in the car. You had been really self-centered as it is, not really keeping in touch with him for four days, and then reaching out when you needed help. You couldn’t bear to think, on top of everything, that he had driven you home despite his extreme exhaustion while you sat back selfishly and let him drive around the city to pick Jimin up when he looked like a ghost.

You shake your head at yourself as Jimin jogs down the road to enter the car, ten seconds after you texted him.

His gaze is slightly hesitant when he meets your eyes, even though his smile is nothing but genuine. “Hello, noona. How come you are…” he trails off, gesturing around the two of you.

You start the car, shrugging one shoulder. “Seokjin came to pick me up. Now you’re gonna drop me off.”

Jimin gives you a huge smile, before his eyebrows suddenly lower. You look away, veering onto the road. “Wait. Were you in the car with him when I called?”

You chuckle. “Yes.”

“Oh,” Jimin mumbles around a small laugh.

You hum to yourself as you drive, distracting yourself from the thoughts that keep encircling your head. Seokjin is your boyfriend, no matter how mad you might be at him — you love him and care about him. Which is why you have tried to help him out. Not to mention, you felt slightly guilty, as it is, about calling him to pick you up. Why is your gesture of goodwill bothering you, then?

This is what you do for people you care about. Seokjin would do the same.

Your train of thoughts suddenly comes to a screeching halt.

Would he? Would he, really?

“You okay, noona?”

You jolt back from your thoughts, wide eyes turning to look at Jimin. “Wha—yes, yeah, I'm fine.”

He cocks an eyebrow at you. “You’re gripping the wheel really hard.”

You look at your tightly clenched fists, and immediately ease them. “Oh, uh. Sorry. A lot on my mind, I guess.”

“Understandably,” Jimin mutters, looking out of the side window when you turn to look at him.

You purse your lips and press down on the accelerator.

A few beats of silence pass between you two before Jimin clears his throat. “Can I say something?” he asks you in a soft voice, looking nothing like the seductive persona he puts forth to get ladies falling in his bed.

You exhale. “Sure.”

“You, um. You are not just hyung’s girlfriend, you know?” he says slowly.

You scoff. “Of course, I do. I am also the very best server my restaurant has ever seen and the best struggling model you’ll ever meet, on the side.”

Jimin snorts, before giggling with his eyes closed. “You know that’s not what I meant.”

You do. But you do not want to face it. You want to be selfish, for once. You do absolutely know that you have been ignoring all the boys in your anger at Seokjin, but you absolutely do not wish to do anything about it. Not until you’ve resolved this tense air between you and Seokjin.

“You are also a part of our little family,” Jimin quietly finishes.

You suck your lips in at that. The word “family'' really gets to you.

He’s right, isn’t he?

All eight of you — well, nine, now, with the addition of Taehyung’s girlfriend — have been a family since the day you met these guys.

You smile as the memories start to filter in.

You had had a giant crush on Seokjin since the very first time you saw him in your Freshman year. Well, having a crush on the guy wasn’t that unheard of given how handsome he was. It also helped matters that he modelled for the cover page of your university’s journal within his first month in college. What surprised you was his reciprocated interest when you both finally got to know each other, thanks to Byulyi. Your current roommate was majoring in photography back then, and somehow roped the two of you into modelling for her portfolio. Seokjin asked you out during the sixth month of your Freshman year.

You recall being introduced to Yoongi in your Sophomore year, when he entered your college as a Music major. You found him laid back, calm but really sassy, and fun to be around. The three of you often hung out together, and you took immense pleasure in singling Seokjin out with the two of your sarcastic back and forths.

In your senior year, Hoseok transferred to your college as a Sophomore, and Taehyung and Jimin entered as Freshmen.

Hoseok was literally the most lively person you’d ever met in your life. There wasn’t a single moment of boredom next to him. He was easily given the responsibility of planning all your outings and parties, henceforth — a position he still holds with full competence.

Taehyung was usually found to be lost in his head more often than not in his initial college days. He was confused about his major for two entire semesters. With inputs from the group, when he eventually picked Art, he eased into college life. After that, he came out to be one of the weirdest and unwittingly funny guys in the group. You still don’t get how he was the first amongst all the boys to find him a girl.

Jimin was a really quiet and reserved individual, at first. He very rarely interacted with you all, choosing to stay holed up in his dorm room, instead, that Taehyung had forced him to share with him. You suspected he was recovering from a recent heartbreak. It became evident when he started dating someone within a week of getting into college, only to confess it was a rebound when he got dumped. The whoring around that began after the whole debacle is yet to cease, though. Obviously.

Hoseok comes from a really well-off family, and had brought along with him the four-bedroom apartment he currently resides in with Yoongi, Jimin and your boyfriend. His uncle gave it away to him, rent-free of course, and he proposed to share it with the rest of the guys. Seokjin and Yoongi were immediately on board, more than eager to leave the chaotic dorm life behind. Taehyung, contrarily, decided he wanted to get the whole college experience and refused to quit the dorms. Jimin, then, left the dorm he shared with Taehyung to move in with the elders.

You met Jungkook immediately after your graduation on the boy’s eighteenth birthday. He instantly struck you as a smart kid, really good at singing as well as art. Yoongi disclosed he wanted to be a music major in your college, and you tried to encourage Jungkook about it, but the guy could hardly even look at you. It was cute but also hilarious how much he was scared of Seokjin, and by principle, you.

You believe that is still true. Now that you think about it, you're pretty sure you haven’t seen Jungkook ever actually relax around the two of you.

“Noona?”

You blink, coming back to the present as Jimin calls out to you. You take a deep breath, the memories hitting you with tender emotions. All these people are really precious to you, aren’t they? The bunch of you really are a family, aren’t you?

A sad smile swims up to your face. You miss the boys.

When he calls again, you turn to look at Jimin, questioningly.

“Please don’t be mad at hyung,” he slowly says, looking down at his lap. In this moment, he looks quite unlike the Jimin you are used to and reminds you of, instead, the one you’d first met. “He might lack tact, sometimes, but he really loves you a lot. You’re his whole world. Whatever it is that you are angry about, you should tell him about it. I don’t think he would be able to figure it out by himself.”

This, you agree with. “I’ll try, Jiminie.”

“We all miss you. Especially Hobi hyung and I,” he says with a lopsided excuse of a smile.

You resist the urge to fluff his hair. Jimin and Hoseok have been like the younger brothers you never had. You miss them, too.

He suddenly chuckles. "And Yoongi hyung hides it well, but I think he's the one that misses you the most. No one helps him roast Jin hyung quite like you do."

You roll your eyes. "Of course not. It's a waste for Yoongi to even try to find a better partner at roasting Jin."

You spot your apartment building and pull up to it.

“I’ll try to talk to Jin as soon as I can, Jimin, I promise. Don't worry so much about it,” you say as you step out, patting the boy once on his head. "I miss you all, too."

You give a small wave and faint smile to him as he drives away.

tagging: @shrimpmsg

note: so! a lil bit of backstory and the infamous halloween party - how we feelin’ so far? the next part is ~12k words, too, and i’ll post it next wednesday, wait around~ 😘💕

SECOND PART OUT NOW: read here!

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lovelyirony · 4 years

Note

that rhodeytony piece with the bots........... iconic. do you think we could have more of that sweet sweet mit era?? I just think they’re neat

Look. Rhodey hadn’t meant to build another robot. But Tony was at some business conference for the weekend, and Dum-E was just pitifully sad. If Tony had been there, he would’ve convinced Rhodey that Dum-E is a drama queen and acts like the end of the world is happening at any minor inconvenience.

But why not give Dum-E a little sibling? This is how U comes to be, and he’s quite the gentleman, far more gentle than his big brother.

Rhodey enjoys teaching him how to pick up socks and shoes, and how to put the coffee mugs on the counter gently, something that Dum-E is not good at yet, but they’re trying their best. (He has a stuffed coffee mug that they got from the pet store that he’s flung at every single surface so far.)

Tony comes back from his business conference (which ugh) looking for cuddles, dinner, and maybe a movie date night if they can get Dum-E to stop trying to escape the apartment.

What he isn’t expecting is for his boyfriend to be mediating a fight between two robots.

Two.

He stares at his boyfriend for a moment.

“Rhodey, darling, is Dum-E having a...play-date?”

Rhodey freezes.

“Oh!” He says, grinning. “I, um...made him a sibling?”

“And they’re...fighting?”

“Well, for now. Dum-E’s mad because he didn’t get to put actual coffee mugs on the counter, and U is mad because Dum-E stole the couch blanket. I think U is really into decoration!”

“Yeah, that explains everything,” Tony says faintly, sitting. “So...U? Like, the letter?”

“Yeah, you like it?”

“And you thought that it made a good name for what?”

“Well, it was more of a placeholder, honestly. But then he liked it!”

U looks over at Tony curiously.

“U, this is Tony. Your other dad. We used part of his code to make you!”

The arm bumps softly against Tony’s, which is an improvement from Dum-E, who tends to go full-force. (Although they’ve worked on it.)

“So...” Tony says. “You think with U, we won’t need to look for a babysitter for date night?”

“No, we will. We definitely will. Dum-E hasn’t adjusted to a sibling yet.”

“Poor baby,” Tony coos, patting Dum-E on the claw. “You thought you were going to be the only attention-seeker for a while, didn’t you?”

He glowers, wheeling back and acting very high-and-mighty for a robot who just threw the equivalent of a tantrum.

Rhodey looks at Tony, kissing him on the forehead as he leans over to lay on his legs.

“How was the business conference, honey?”

“Utter shit. I didn’t need to go, I was an ego boost for Obie to tote around.”

“Told you that you shouldn’t have gone.”

“If I said ‘no’ one more time, we would’ve had to have a phone call about my ‘five year plan’ and ‘legacy’ bullshit. You know that that gives me a migraine. Besides, he gave me a gift certificate to a fancy restaurant, so that means we get to have a good meal one of these weekends when you visit.”

“Who said I would visit with you?”

“Because Jarvis adores you and I think Ana wants to adopt you and force you to stay.”

“You make a compelling argument,” Rhodey says, pretending to think about it. “I’ll...consider it.”

Tony snorts.

“And they say I’m the asshole here.”

Two years later, Dum-E and U demand that they get a sibling. The dads are back home together (for now) and Jarvis has grown tired of reason.

“They want a sibling, Sir.”

“What, each other isn’t enough?”

“They have requested many movie nights where there are siblings or groups of friends, and I think they want to, in a sense, replicate the scenarios.”

“They’ve already done all of it? Wasn’t it them who got onto a plane for DC just because they wanted to see Pops?”

“Yes, yes it was.”

“You know, J, I still think that you helped them with that one.”

“I most certainly did not.”

(Jarvis totally did. He gets bored, you know? Besides, Colonel Rhodes hadn’t been home for three months, which should have counted for cruel and unusual punishment.)

“Well, regardless of your guilt in certain situations, we’ll have a family discussion about maybe a new sibling.”

Rhodey gets a text as he’s grocery shopping.

hey, need to talk about family stuff. can you also pick up some more colby jack cheese?

sure. what’s it about?

your son has decided he wants a sibling. he convinced dum-e....

got it.

Rhodey laughs to himself as he turns his cart around, going towards the dairy section. Of course U would decide something like that, it makes sense.

Tony is looking at Rhodey with a disappointed look on his face.

“This is all your fault.”

“How is this my fault?”

“You dote on the boys too much.”

“Oh, I do that? Who makes them Halloween costumes every year and hosts a party with all of the other appliances we’ve made over the years?”

“Oh like you hate those, Mr. ‘Here’s-the-hand-made-Halloween-playlist’.”

“True,” Rhodey says, setting down the bags. “Help me put away all of this stuff, half of it is yours anyway.”

“We have a shared fridge, Honeybear.”

“Tell that to your pomegranates taking up about two shelves!”

“Only for now, and half of those are Pepper’s! They’re not all mine.”

“Do you think she would want a say in the robot? After all, she does have to deal with U and Dum-E worshiping the ground she walks on.”

“And she is the reason that Dum-E usually succeeds in his smoothie-making,” Tony admits. “Yeah, sure, invite her over.”

Whenever Pepper is asked what it’s like having to be a personal assistant to Tony Stark, she always wants to answer with something like “oh, it’s really fulfilling to help a company reach its goal and learn so much from my boss to apply to what comes next” or even “oh, it’s nice.”

She got invited to dinner, and is now in a conversation about whether or not Dum-E and U, her boss’s children, should get a sibling.

And the fact that her boss’s children are robots, have two dads, and think that Pepper is the best thing since life itself.

“Why do they need a sibling?” Pepper asks, chewing on her pasta.

“Because they’re bored, and we think that maybe we’ll stop getting calls from the fire stations around town that they’re trying to wreak havoc again,” Rhodey says. “They’ll want to teach the new sibling how life works around the house, and we can start on security measures.”

“Can’t you just put a genetic lock on the door or something?” Pepper asks.

“They’re surpassed it,” Tony says grumpily.

“How?”

“Don’t look at me!” Tony defends. “Look at Jim-dear, who is obsessed with true crime documentaries! They picked up how to gain evidence and use it for proof from him and Forensic Files!”

Pepper puts her head in her hands.

“Just once, I wish that we had a dinner to discuss a business proposal or something normal instead of whether or not your two boys need a sibling.”

“Well, we are thinking about a daughter,” James admits. “And we wanted to talk to you about that.”

“Why, because I’m the only female either of you know?!”

“No,” Tony says quickly. “We know plenty of women!”

“Name seven.”

“Plead the fifth,” Rhodey jokes. “But you spend time here, and so we wanted to know what you’d want to see in a robot.”

“How the hell should I know?”

“You work for the best tech mogul in two hundred years,” Tony says.

“Tones, you’re entirely too cocky.”

“Oh shut up babe,” Tony says, no real heat to the sentiment. “Besides, I’ve treated you well, haven’t I?”

“Other than embarrassing me in front of every single government official every time you interact, sure.”

“You love it, they hate it, win-win,” Tony says, stirring around his mocktail. “But Pepper, seriously. What do you think about a third robot?”

“Well, can’t get anymore chaotic,” Pepper sighs. “And I think having a girl around would be...nice. Not as chaotic.”

“You saying girls don’t bring as much chaos?”

“No,” Pepper says. “I’m just saying that we know when to bring it.”

Butterfingers is born, and she is the most perfect definition of a “daddy’s girl” any robot has ever been. She wheels around with grace, although she can’t stop bumping into things and dropping things, being worse than Dum-E. (Which he actually adores.)

She follows Pepper along in awe, and can be seen usually in her office.

Curiously enough, the only time she doesn’t live up to her name is in Pepper’s office, where she handles things with grace and Pepper gives her little tasks to do, like delivering cups of pens to employees or papers.

Rhodey gets her (and the brothers) little souvenirs from his time away, and Tony has an absolute ball of a time making them all costumes and taking a million little pictures that are hung up everywhere in the building.

But perhaps the crowning achievement are the Christmas photos.

Usually, Stark Industries will take pictures of their employees, put a newsletter out, and wish everyone a happy holiday and all that.

But then the employees have an entirely different idea.

It comes from one of Pepper’s assistants after she’s made CEO, Julia.

“Why not have the bots be the Christmas picture?” she muses, restacking some of the papers Miss Potts had to sign. “They’re always around the office, and they’re the unofficial mascots of the business. I think it’d be fun to see their Christmas hijinks!”

Pepper smiles.

“Julia, remind me to add a little extra to the Christmas bonus.”

Rhodey finds the idea to be the best idea anyone has come up with in years. (Although it just gives him an excuse to take more pictures of the bots during the festivities.)

Dum-E is only too happy to finally be allowed within two feet of tinsel. (Unfortunate incident in 1998.) U is very excited to show off his understanding of symmetry and how to pick out the perfect tree, and Butterfingers just wants Pepper to tie ribbons around her wheels so that she looks “extra-pretty.”

Stark Industries’ holiday card involves Dum-E and U at either side of the tree, with U gently readjusting one of the many ornaments they’ve had the bots make over the years, and Dum-E is trying to pull off a ribbon from the top of the tree. Butterfingers is at the center, guarding any attempt to unwrap presents, and presenting her bow-filled-wheels.

Pepper has the picture framed in her office.

#rhodeytony #ironhusbands #rhodey #tony stark #pepper potts #u #butterfingers #dum-e #iron fam #anyways yes U is very good at decoration #dum-e is not but that's okay bc he's enthusiastic #pepper is done with her boss. so done. but she loves them all #rhodey loves his husband so much and so dearly #lovelyirony writes

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mycomfortblanket · 3 years

Text

About That Night

Chapter Two

“It’s Toph, right?” he asks, his eyes going back to their normal size and a small smile playing on his lips as if he can’t believe his good luck.

“Yeah, and you’re Aang.”

He smirks as he opens his notebook to a blank sheet, “Not surprised you remembered it. You said it plenty the other night.” The glare that Toph shoots him would normally disarm a normal person, but his grin only deepens.

The professor begins to pass out the syllabus to everyone while explaining what he expects from everyone for the semester, “And like I said, your deskmate is also going to be your project partner for the rest of the semester, so I do suggest you guys become buddies, or at least acquaintances.” He finishes passing out the packets and moves back to the front. Having the powerpoint finally pulled up, he begins to go through the schedule for the semester and makes sure they understand when certain tests are or when projects will begin.

Toph bites down on her lip to contain her groan at how she is stuck with this dude all semester. She really thought she had successfully snipped that relationship clean when she closed the door to his apartment undetected. What happened between them was amazing, but it had to end right there in his apartment and not go any further. Period.

Thankfully, Aang is quiet the rest of the time the professor goes over the syllabus, but sadly, that is short lived. “Okay class. So, to start off right, I would like you all to spend the next 15 minutes talking with your deskmate and getting to know each other a little bit.” Toph closes her eyes and takes a deep breath; this day is seriously going downhill fast.

“So, do you come here often?” Aang asks with a sly grin on his face.

“You can’t be fucking serious. A pickup line? Really?” Toph says. She turns to face him and rests her cheek on her fist. The way she stares at him normally makes people uncomfortable, but he seems to be taking it in stride.

“Well, I’ve already gotten you into my bed so not much else to say,” he smirks at the eyeroll he gets out of her. Her cheeks are barely tinted pink with a blush, but the sight of it eggs him on.

“Right. Well, let’s get one thing straight before we continue this ‘partner’ thing. Me being in your bed, that was a one time thing. This,” she gestures in between the two of them, “is strictly school related.”

She jots down her number on the corner of his binder, “And I swear, if you text me ‘What’s up’, I will kill you- I know where you live. You’re not to text me unless it’s school related, got it?” She was really hoping her rude tone would wipe the smile off of his face, but he seriously doesn’t seem to be taking the hint, even though she said it very clearly.

“Right, well, here,” he grabs her arm and writes his number on her wrist, “is my number. Feel free to call me anytime,” he wiggles his eyebrows at her.

“Oh my god,” Toph groans and turns back to the front of the room, hoping for this class to end.

Surprisingly, he doesn’t text her until two weeks before their first project is due. Asking her if she is wanting to meet up to go over notes and work on the presentation together. The lack of flirting seemed a little suspicious to her, but nevertheless, she agreed and texted him her address.

Toph doesn’t know what she was expecting when he showed up, but him leaning against the door frame with a sultry smirk on his face wasn’t it. Rolling her eyes, she turns away from the door and walks back into the living room. She hears the door close behind her and footsteps that follow her.

Sitting down on the couch and pulling the laptop into her lap, she begins to pull up the rubric for the project and pulls out certain materials they may need. Aang sits on the floor directly next to her legs and his shoulder brushes against her knee everytime he moves.

“What do you think you’re doing?” she asks.

“Getting my stuff out. What are you doing?” he replies innocently.

Toph rolls her eyes hard and pushes him away with her knee which just makes him laugh and move even closer to her. After a moment of getting stuff organized and setting up her computer, they begin on the project, neither of them talking much. The feeling of him against her leg distracts her more than she would like to admit.

They work nonstop for a few hours, only stopping to ask the other questions and once for Aang to go to the restroom. Around 6 pm, Aang stretches his arms up and groans a little as his back pops. Toph’s mouth goes dry at his groan; it was incredibly close to some of the noises she managed to ring out of him with the twist of her wrist the other night.

He stands up and walks around the coffee table and stands in the middle of the living room staring at her expectantly.

“What?” she asks, quickly averting her gaze hoping he didn’t notice her staring.

“You wanna take a break?” When she doesn’t reply, he groans and goes back around the coffee table and drops down onto the couch, resting his head against her shoulder. Having him this close, being able to smell him, is bringing back memories and she is finding her resolve slipping just slightly. She closes her eyes for a moment and steadies herself.

They sit there for a while longer, Aang’s head on her shoulder while he watches her type up her portion of the project. When she feels like she’s reached a stopping point, she rolls her shoulder trying to dislodge him, “Can you get off of me?”

“Oh, that’s the first time I’ve heard that. You were definitely saying something different the other night,” he recalls, laughing. He jumps away before her fist is able to make contact with his shoulder. “Come on, let’s go get some food. We need fuel to keep this up,” he offers her his hand.

Toph hesitates for a moment, staring at his outstretched hand. She wonders if by accepting his proposal to go get food will give him the notion that his wooing is working. Deciding it would make a grand appearance, her stomach growl loudly and his smile only grows wider.

She sighs loudly and accepts his hand, standing up from the couch and together, they walk out of the apartment to go get some food.

They’re sitting across from each other at the nearest Panera waiting on their order to be called and Toph feels like it is super awkward. Aang on the other hand has kept up a steady one sided conversation. She looks at him with utter disbelief that he isn’t picking up the fact that she really doesn’t want to talk to him or get close to him in any way.

“Not to be rude or anything, but have you not picked up on the fact that I don’t want to be friends?” she asks, leaning onto her elbows that are resting on the table.

“Oh, yeah. I totally picked that up when we became project partners. But, one would say that I am pretty persistent at things I want.”

An employee comes and brings their food, effectively cutting off that conversation with a deep sigh from Toph. For the first time since they sat down, it’s quiet between them as they start to eat. “So, do you have a particular reason why you don’t want to be friends? Because, if I recall, you weren’t rushing to get out of my bed.”

She chokes on her food at that. Who the fuck- god, he is bold, “Jesus, what is wrong with you? People don’t just go around saying shit like that, you know? And why do I have to have a reason? I'm allowed to say I don’t want to be friends with someone,” she looks down at her sandwich when she says this. She doesn’t really have a reason, but the stress of more relationships- romantic or otherwise- sounds like stress that she doesn’t need at the moment. Looking back at him, she sees that he is staring at her with the utmost attention.

“I mean, I guess you don’t have to have a reason. But, there has to be one for us. We connected, in the physical, sexual, and educational sense. So, what would be the reason that you don’t want to be friends?”

“Besides the fact that it would be super awkward since we both saw each other naked and orgasm faces?”

“Yeah, besides that reason.”

Toph sips her drink and looks away from him and thinks for a better reason, but honestly coming up with anything other than ‘she doesn’t have time for a relationship’ which sounds incredibly stupid and cliche, “Because, I don’t want one.”

“It doesn’t have to be romantic,” he chirps.

“What makes you think that if I wanted a relationship with you, that it would be romantic? You’re awfully bold for someone who has no chance.”

“That’s the only reason I am so bold.”

Back at her place, they continue to work on the presentation, and again, there isn’t much conversation passed between them other than the project. It finally hits midnight, and Toph calls a quits, saying she can’t stand to look at another variable or table of covalent bonds.

She leans back into the couch and Aang climbs from his spot on the floor, cracking his back in the process and sits beside her, “So, buddy. When would you like to have this homework party again?”

She folds her arms across her chest and looks at him from the corner of her eyes, “Why are you so persistent?”

Aang laughs a little, “Maybe I just deeply want our friendship?”

Snorting at his response, she says, “Bullshit.”

Laughing again, he replies, “Maybe I want to get you into my bed again? Or maybe, just maybe , I think we’re soulmates and are destined to spend eternity together.”

“Yeah, that’s a load of crud,” she pushes off that couch and goes into the kitchen and grabs one of the Naked Smoothies from her fridge and grabs one for him as well. “You got me into bed once, why do you think you could do it again?”

“Because, I am irresistibly smooth,” he says with a large grin.

Leaning against the counter, she crosses her arms, still holding onto both drinks, “There is no way in hell you would be able to get me into bed again.”

“You want to make a bet on that?”

“Stakes?”

“I get you into bed again by the time this project is due, and you have to go on a date with me. If I don’t, I’ll leave you alone for the rest of the semester except to talk about the projects or something to do with class.”

Still leaning against the counter, Toph cocks her head to the side and studies him. She is sure she could win this bet; she’s so adamant about not getting into any new relationships in her life at the moment. But, she has been know to crumble when there is sex involved.

Against her better judgement, she sticks out her hand and confidently says, “Deal.”

Read the full story on Archive of Our Own

#taang #taang fluff #taang smut #bets #taang bet #one night stands #toph bei fong #aang #toph x aang #avatar the last airbender #atla

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hmsjiara · 4 years

Text

‘cause you’re amazing (just the way you are) jj + kie

request by @love-life-always: We never really hear anything about Kiara's kook year, so I was wondering if you could write a story where Kiara had an eating disorder during her kook year, while trying to fit in and stuff but she managed to recover when she became friends with the pogues again, but then for whatever reason it starts to affect her again and jj/the other pogues notice.

this turned into one big angsty mess real quick lol. but protective!jj is my kink, so... here you go lmao. thank you so much for the request, i hope you like it :)

read it here on ao3.

disclaimer: i understand that eating disorders are a serious/complex issue and am NOT trying to romanticize them in any way. and while i did some research before writing this, i am in no way an expert nor have i ever experienced something like this. so, if any part of this is inaccurate or ignorant i apologize. if this triggers you in anyway, please do what’s best for your mental/emotional health.

trigger warnings: eating disorders, panic attacks, brief mentions of abuse.

•••

It was an unspoken rule among the Pogues that they didn’t talk about Kiara’s Kook Year.

It hadn’t always been that way. When Kiara had returned to the Chateau with a years worth of apologies and a case of Miller Lite, John B and Pope had forgiven her almost instantly, but not JJ. Weeks of veiled insults and sharp glares had followed, and despite John B and Pope’s efforts to sway him, JJ seemed determined to hate her forever.

But eventually, even he managed to forgive her for abandoning them. Kiara assumed that it was a combination of her constant presence, and the boobs and curves she’d developed during her Kook Year. She couldn’t really blame them for noticing, since they were horny teenage boys and she spent the majority of her time in a bikini.

So, things went back to normal, and the Pogues caught on to the fact that Kiara didn’t want to discuss her absence, or her exile from the Kook Academy. It was easier this way, she told herself. Talking about Sarah still hurt too much, and as for everything else... well, it wasn’t important.

So, she doesn’t talk about Sarah, about how they got drunk and watched movies and saved baby sea turtles together, how her heart aches when she thinks about her. She doesn’t talk about the girls at the Kook Academy who spread rumors behind her back, who shove her in the hallways and on one occasion dump a smoothie on her head in the cafeteria. She deletes the mean comments under her Instagram posts before the Pogues can see, because she doesn’t need them to defend her, and the last thing she wants is to explain why everyone hates her so much.

Because she just got her friends back, and Kiara isn’t going to burden them with her problems, not when they have it so much worse.

•••

The words eating disorder cause a certain kind of alarm to go off in Kiara’s brain.

Because yes, there’d been those months at the Kook Academy where she’d gone from diet to diet, weighed herself after every meal, looked at the girls in her grade with their flat stomachs and thin, long legs and hated her curves and muscle-toned limbs. She’d followed all the trends— juice cleanses and swearing off anything over a hundred calories. She even stopped surfing, switched to running, wondering if it would make a difference.

Her mother’s comments hadn’t helped. Once Kiara was going to parties and sleepovers with Sarah, her mom started buying her clothes that were two sizes too small, handing her grapefruit halves in the morning when Kiara asked for eggs and bacon, shot pointed glares at the half-eaten box of cookies on her dresser.

So, she started just... not eating. It was almost too easy to do. All she had to do was say that she was running late for school and skipping breakfast, snack on celery sticks for lunch, tell her parents she had homework to avoid coming to dinner. And it had worked: she’d gotten thinner, and her mother smiled when she started wearing the clothes she’d bought her, so Kiara assumed it was fine.

It was a visit to her doctor that made Kiara realize that what she was doing to herself was wrong. There’d been no official diagnosis, just a few pointed questions about her daily food intake, a suggestion to incorporate more protein into her diet. But Kiara had read between the lines, and she’d gotten over it, moved on, recognized that what she was doing wasn’t how she wanted to live her life. And she hadn’t told anyone, especially not the Pogues, because it was her business and they didn’t need to know.

The problem is that sometimes Kiara forgets to catch herself.

Like when she spends a little too long looking at her stomach in the mirror, or when JJ offers her the rest of his fries at the Wreck and she wrinkles her nose and says too many carbs.

He frowns, presses a hand to her forehead, as if checking for a temperature. “Too many carbs? Who are you, and what have you done with Kiara Carrera?”

She laughs, shoves him away from her, goes to get another beer from the fridge, but JJ is still watching her when she gets back. “I didn’t know you cared about that sort of stuff.”

“What do you mean?” She asks, avoiding his gaze as she knocked John B’s feet off of the counter.

“Calories and shit,” he said with a shrug, and it was a perfectly reasonable remark, but Kiara didn’t like the direction their conversation was going in. “Is this something you picked up from the Kooks? You turning into one of those soccer moms who meal plan and don’t let her kids eat sugar?”

It hits a little too close to home, so Kiara snatches a fry from his basket and makes sure that he sees her eat it.

“There,” she said, chewing somewhat obnoxiously. “Happy now?”

JJ rolled his eyes, turned to listen to whatever Pope was saying about his internship, but Kiara couldn’t help but feel like she’d dodged a bullet.

JJ couldn’t find out. Not now, not ever.

•••

Being forced to attend Midsummers is the last thing Kiara needs or wants, but her mother doesn’t care.

She thinks it’s how she copes. Kiara can hang with whoever she likes, as long as her mother can put her in a pretty dress and show her off to the Kooks.

The subtle, pointed comments start again.

Take it in a bit on the hem, Silvia. I’m not used to this, you know. I never had Kiara’s curves when I was younger.

I know that your friends don’t have to worry about this, Kiara, but you have a figure to maintain. Eating at the Wreck every night just isn’t going to fly.

Maybe a side salad instead, sweetheart. I’m paying the seamstress by the hour.

Kiara’s not proud of it, but she does go along with her mother, because she’s tired of fighting with her, and the idea of her daughter going to Midsummers with all the Sarah Cameron’s of the world has made her happier than Kiara has ever seen her.

She tells herself it’s only for a couple of weeks, that she can get through it, but it’s getting harder to ignore the comments, to resist the urge to weigh herself after a bag of popcorn or a sandwich from the Wreck.

Before, when she was friends with Sarah, it was easier to hide. Sarah didn’t really notice other people— it wasn’t her fault, just how she’d been raised.

The Pogues are different.

At first, they buy all the usual excuses. She’s not hungry, she already ate. But then John B asks her to split a burger with him at the Wreck, or Pope roasts her a s’more and she refuses, and they start to notice.

One time, Kiara buys a new kind of green tea ice cream from the grocery store, and she eats it all in one sitting, calories be damned.

JJ laughs, nudges John B. “Now that’s what I’m talking about. Damn, Kie.”

It’s a joke, a passing comment, but Kiara flinches, feels a sudden surge of regret. Shit. Her mother was going to kill her.

JJ sees it, because of course he does, and then his teasing grin disappears and he gives Pope and John B a knowing look.

Pope looks instantly uncomfortable as John B clears his throat, and Kiara doesn’t like it one bit. She feels cornered, suddenly on edge, as John B opens his mouth and says, “Kie, is everything okay? With you, I mean?”

“Of course,” she says, shrugging, the deflection easy. “Why wouldn’t it be?”

“Well, it’s just—“

“You’re not fucking eating.”

Kiara flinches for real this time at JJ’s harsh, blatant tone, her stomach hollowing out as John B hisses JJ’s name and says this isn’t what we talked about.

Oh, so they’re talking about her now. Wonderful.

“Fuck this,” she says, springing to her feet, the empty ice cream cartoon and metal spoon clattering to the floor. She feels sick just looking at it. “Y’all are— y’all are delusional, okay? I’m out.”

“Kie, it’s okay,” Pope says, his eyes on the floor. “Millions of people have, uh, stuff like this, you know, it’s not—“

“I do not have a eating disorder,” Kiara growls at him, ignoring Pope’s own flinch, how he curls in on himself at her words. “Your statistics don’t apply to me, okay, Pope? You have no idea what’s going on.”

“Kie, we’re just trying to help—“

“Fuck you, John B,” she says, turning to leave, not able to stand the pity on his face.

“No,” JJ snarls, rising from his chair, clutching the neck of his beer bottle so hard she thinks it might shatter. “I’ve had enough. Do you know that’s the most I’ve seen you eat in weeks? Something’s wrong, Kie, we’re not idiots, okay? So just tell us—“

“I don’t have to tell you shit, Maybank,” she snaps, the pit in her stomach filling itself with something cold and bitter. “This is my business, just like whatever the fuck is happening with your dad is yours. So leave me alone.”

She regrets the words as soon as she says them, but it’s too late, because JJ’s beer bottle shatters and John B yells as alcohol and shards of glass scatter across the floor, and Kiara is out the door before any of them can make her stay.

They’re just worried, she knows that, but it’s fine. She has it handled.

•••

In reality, it’s the opposite of fine.

Kiara avoids the Pogues in the week leading up to Midsummers, ignores the texts they send her asking her to meet, actually hides when John B comes to find her at the Wreck.

She tells herself she just has to get through Midsummers, and then it’ll all work itself out.

The stress makes it worse, she thinks, and in between her anxiety over the Pogues and her mother’s pre-Midsummers prep, Kiara doesn’t realize that she can’t remember the last time she ate until she’s pulling up to the club with her parents.

It’s kind of like a wake up call, the shakiness in her limbs and the empty feeling in her stomach, and the next thing she knows, she’s hyperventilating over the sink in the girls bathroom.

It’s hard to breathe, and the heavily perfumed air definitely isn’t helping, and her mother is going to kill her, and Kiara doesn’t even know how it got this bad again. She doesn’t look too thin in the mirror, at least not to her, but what do other people see?

She’s not quite sure how, but she manages to find her phone in her clutch, to fumble through typing in her password and locating Pope’s contact.

He answers on the first ring.

“Kie? Is everything okay? Where are you?”

He’s obviously concerned, and she feels like such an idiot, because she spent the past week pushing him and everyone else away when all they wanted to do was help her.

“Bathroom,” she manages to say, fighting to speak past the tightness in her throat. “In— Inside. Pope, I can’t breathe, I can’t—“

“Okay, Kie, it’s okay,” he murmured, sounding surprisingly calm. “Fuck, I’m working, I can’t leave. But I’m gonna help you, okay? Just breathe. Give me one second—”

The call ended, and Kiara tried not to panic anymore than she already was, but it was a relief when Pope’s name appeared on her phone screen again.

“Pope?” She asks, his name more of a sob than anything.

“Yeah, it’s me. Listen, Kie, you’re gonna be fine. You’re not hurt, right?”

She shakes her head, then remembers that he can’t see her, and confirms that she’s fine (physically, at least) through the phone. Pope keeps doing that, asking her questions in a low, level voice, until she hears a knock on the bathroom door.

“Pope, is that you at the door?” She asks, clutching her phone tighter in her hand, any sense of control she’d managed to regain vanishing.

“No, it’s—“

“Kie? Kie, are you in there?“

She doesn’t know why, but the sound of JJ’s voice makes her crumble. She can still hear Pope talking to her through the phone, hear JJ on the other side of the door, but it’s like it’s all coming from very far away. Her breathing picks up again, and she barely registers JJ’s fuck it, I’m coming in.

His knock on the stall door jerks her back into reality. “Kie? It’s JJ, can you open the door?”

With shaking hands, she grapples with the lock, automatically shrinking away when light floods the stall and she sees JJ staring down at her.

She must look like a mess— sitting on the floor of the bathroom in her dress, mascara running, like some girl who just got dumped by her boyfriend at a party. But she can’t really bring herself to care about that, because she still can’t seem to get enough air into her lungs.

“JJ,” she whimpers, because he’s just standing there like he doesn’t know what to do, some raw emotion in his eyes she can’t bring herself to decipher right now.

“Hey, hey it’s okay,” JJ says, snapping out of whatever trance he’d fallen into at the sight of her, his movements slow as he crouches down beside her, his hands raised in mock surrender. “Take it easy, okay, Kie? Just breathe.”

He takes the phone from her, has a brief conversation with Pope, then hangs up and pockets it. Kiara doesn’t object, staring at her hands and trying to stop herself from shaking.

“Can I?” JJ asks, and she realizes he’s asking to hold her hands.

She nods, and then his warm, calloused fingers are brushing against her skin as he rubs soothing circles into the back of her palms. Her heart rate isn’t slowing, though, her breaths coming quick and fast again, but then JJ’s arms are around her and he’s pulling her back against his chest and murmuring reassurances into the top of her head.

He tells her to copy his breathing, and she does, focusing on the steady beat of his heart against her shoulder, the fact that his hands are still holding hers.

Eventually, her breathing returns to normal, and her anxiety is replaced by exhaustion. She sags against JJ, closes her eyes, relaxes into his warmth.

The next thing she remembers is JJ guiding her into the passenger seat of the van and bucking her seatbelt. It’s easy to trust him, to let her eyes slip closed and listen to the steady, familiar hum of the engine.

Kiara doesn’t ask where they’re going, and she must fall asleep at some point, because then she’s waking up in the driveway at the Chateau. She ignores JJ’s offered hand and stumbles out of the van, tugging off her heels the moment she gets inside and collapsing onto the pullout couch.

She doesn’t want to move ever again, content to fall asleep right there, exhaustion heavy in her bones, but JJ takes one look at her and pulls her to her feet. He takes her to the bathroom, turns the shower on and places a hand on her back to guide her inside. He asks if she wants him to stay. She says no, because JJ’s already looking at her like she’s a wounded animal, and she doesn’t want him to think that she can’t do anything by herself.

Even if she almost has another panic attack once he leaves, has to remind herself to breathe as she undresses and steps into the shower. The hot water helps, and she loses track of time standing in the spray. She never hears the door open, but when she gets out there’s a pair of sweatpants and a sweatshirt on the counter.

She puts them on, drys her hair with a towel but leaves it down, too exhausted to do anything else. The sweatshirt smells like JJ, and she breathes it in. She doesn’t want to think about what it means. She can have a pass tonight, she figures.

When she opens the door, the hallway smells like cooking oil and burnt toast. She wrinkles her nose, pads into the living room on silent feet, and she thinks JJ might be right to treat her like a skittish animal, because when she walks into the kitchen and sees the plate of eggs and toast on the table, she wants to run back inside the bathroom.

JJ seems to recognize her urge to flee, because he pats the seat across from him and gives her a pointed look. “Sit down, Kie.”

She complies, because she kind of owes him, and JJ actually managed to cook something without burning the house down, so that’s a miracle in it itself.

“It’s no five-star Kiara Carrera creation, but it’ll have to do,” he tells her, smiling at her as she sits down. “I only know how to cook breakfast— sorry.”

He seems almost embarrassed, but Kiara doesn’t see why. “No, I love it,” she tells him, and he just stares at her, as if he thinks she’s lying. “Really, I do.”

He grins at her then, his blue eyes sparkling in the dim lights of the Chateau, and then JJ’s digging into his own food like a starving stray dog who hasn’t had a real meal in weeks.

It smells great, even though the toast is a little burnt, and Kiara is starving, but she still hesitates before picking up her knife.

JJ notices it, because of course he does. “Eat, Kiara,” he says, his tone soft but firm. “You need it. Please.”

It’s the please that gets her. She takes a cautious bite of toast, which is burnt on one side by covered in butter. It settles in her stomach, warm and filling, and before she realizes it, she’s scraping her plate clean.

JJ doesn’t say anything, but there’s a gleam or triumph in his eyes when he takes her empty plate from her and places it in the sink.

She was exhausted before, but the food’s made her drowsy, and Kiara stumbles into John B’s room while JJ is washing the dishes. He’s not home, but she decides to wait until tomorrow to worry about it, if she has to. As well as a bunch of other things— like what the hell her mother is going to do with her.

Kiara’s muscles feel like they’re made out of lead as she collapses onto the bed. She’s exhausted, but her thoughts aren’t stopping, and it’s a relief when JJ appears in the doorway.

“You good?” He asks, and she hums into her pillow, not opening her eyes.

But then the floorboards creak as he turns to leave, and she doesn’t know what makes her do it, but she calls his name.

“Yeah?” JJ says, and she opens her eyes this time, studying his silhouette in the doorway, all soft lines and tousled blond curls.

“Will you stay?” She asks, before she can consider what it means, how he’ll interpret it. “I just... I don’t want to be alone right now.”

But JJ just nods, moving to the other side of the bed and lying a respectable distance away from her. He closes his eyes immediately, but Kiara can’t seem to relax. They’ve slept in the same bed before, but this feels different. Heavier.

“JJ?” She murmurs into the silence, and he hums to show that he’s listening. “Thank you. For tonight, I mean.”

“S’ no problem, Kie,” he says, his words slurred by exhaustion, eyelids drooping as he turned to look at her. “You know you can talk to me, right? About anything.”

“Yeah,” she whispered, picking at her nail polish to avoid meeting his gaze. “I know. It’s just... it’s hard, ya know? I didn’t want to bother any of you, God knows you have enough shit to deal with without me piling my own on top of it, and it wasn’t that big of a deal, I swear—”

“Kie, your shit is my shit,” JJ said, his voice firm as he reached out to take her hand. She brushed her fingers over his knuckles, comforted by the familiar pattern of the cracks and scars that had stayed there even after his cuts had healed. “I’m not going anywhere. And this... whatever it is, we’ll get through it together. All of us— John B and Pope too.”

Kiara nodded, and it was silent for a while, but then she said, “I’m sorry. About what I said, about your dad. I was out of line, and I—”

“Don’t worry about it,” JJ said, shrugging, his fingers squeezing hers in reassurance. “I shouldn’t have reacted the way I did, but... it’s just scary, Kie. It was like I was watching you slip away right in front of me, and I didn’t know how to stop it.”

Kiara didn’t know what to say to that, so she just tucked herself into his side, pressing her face into his shoulder as JJ wrapped an arm around her. Their fingers were still intertwined, resting on his chest.

“Kie,” he said after a while, when she was on the brink of sleep. “I shouldn’t have to say it, but... you know you’re fucking beautiful, right? Just the way you are. You don’t have to—

“Thanks, JJ,” Kiara whispered before he could finish, her voice catching. She told herself not to cry, but a few tears escaped anyway. JJ wiped them from her cheeks, wove his fingers into her hair, running them through her wet curls.

“No, I’m serious, you’re like really hot, I—“

Kiara laughed, swatting at his arm, even though there was no real force behind it. There was a certain warmth rising in her chest, as she breathed in JJ’s scent and fell asleep in his arms. She didn’t quite know what it was, but it was new, and she liked it.

Far more than she should have.

•••

It’s better after that. Not perfect, not right away, but better.

She explains everything to the Pogues eventually, and they take it all in stride, as if she’d just told them that she had decided to take up knitting as a pastime.

John B is always there, offering to drive her to get dinner, insisting he hasn’t eaten in days. He insists that Kie teach him how to cook fish the way they do at the Wreck, makes her taste-test each batch and critique them.

Pope does research, because that’s how he copes with this sort of thing, and after a while he starts bringing it up with her. JJ glares at him at first, asks Kiara if she wants him to stop, but she likes it. She likes knowing she’s not alone, that this is normal.

JJ’s approach is more subtle. He’s always making her food (he still can’t make toast without burning it, but she eats it anyway). Honestly, when JJ pouts and bats his eyelashes and flashes that devilish smirk of his, it’s hard to say no to anything he offers her. He makes it easy though, and that’s what she loves. It’s not awkward or forced, just them sharing a basket of fries at the Wreck, or visiting a local food truck festival in town.

She doesn’t know why she thought telling the Pogues would be a bad thing, because it’s nice not having to hide this from them, to know they’ll be there if she needs them.

Kiara doesn’t need perfect, she decides. She just needs her boys— if she has them, she’ll be fine.

No matter what happens.

#outer banks #obx #jiara #jj x kiara #jiara fanfiction #jiara fic #obx fanfiction #outer banks fanfiction #jj maybank #kiara carrera #pope heyward #john b #my writing

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imagineredwood · 4 years

Photo

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16 Part 17 Part 18 Part 19 Part 20 Part 21 Part 22 Part 23 Part 24 Part 25 Part 26 Part 27 Part 28 Part 29 Part 30 Part 31 Part 32

Pairing: EZ Reyes x Camila (OC)

Warnings: Letty being Letty and wanting to punch disrespectful men. That’s it really lol

Word count: 2.8k

***It’s what y’all wanted. Ask and you shall receive.***

“Thanks for this.”

Cam shook her head at Coco.

“Don’t worry about it. She’s a cool kid. We’ll hang out, go around town and then I’ll bring her back. If she likes me then we’ll do it more often.”

Coco smiled and laughed lightly.

“She already kinda likes you. We talked about you last night. She’s just trying to get a feel. She hasn’t really had a positive female figure in her life so she’s keeping her guard up. Just give her time.”

Camila could understand. While her mom was never exactly motherly, Abuelita was and at least Camila had known a soft, warm woman in her life. Letty had yet to experience that and Camila knew it would take time. Letty came out of the bathroom then, ripped up jeans and a tank top on. She and Cam looked each other up and down and then gave a chuckle at how similar their outfits were, though Letty’s top was pink, and Camila’s was of course yellow.

“You ready?”

Letty smiled and nodded at Camila, looking over at Coco who was smiling too.

“You two have fun, be careful.”

Both Camila and Letty nodded, though Letty threw in a quick roll of her eyes which had Coco clarifying.

“Don’t get into any fights.”

Camila laughed at his warning.

“I won’t.”

Letty leaned into Cam’s shoulder though, whispering loudly to her so Coco could hear.

“He was talking about me.”

The three shared a laugh and let it settle, Letty taking on a more serious tone.

“We’ll be fine Coco.”

Camila nodded in agreement and Coco leaned forward, pressing kisses to both of their foreheads.

“Call me or one of the boys if you need anything.”

Both girls nodded and said their goodbyes, walking out of the house and to Camila’s car. Hopping in, Letty settled in the front seat while Cam started up the vehicle, turning on the air and the radio. She handed Letty her phone.

“You can play whatever music you want. Just pick something.”

The teen’s smile was soft as she took the phone from Cam’s hand. She scrolled through her music as Cam started pulling out of the driveway, driving down the road to head into town.

“You like Lana Del Rey.”

It wasn’t a question, more of an observation, and Camila nodded.

“Yeah. I like more laid-back music most of the time. You’ll find some other stuff in there too though.”

Letty nodded and kept scrolling when she stumbled upon CREAM.

“You like Wu-Tang?”

Giving a shrug, Cam nodded.

“Like I said, you’ll find some other stuff too.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`

“What do you want?”

Letty looked up at the menu board, finger to her lips. Camila saw her eyes widen and light up at something the café had, and she looked over excitedly.

“They have strawberry smoothies.”

Camila grinned, thinking back to how Coco had said she loved the strawberries from her garden.

“Is that what you want?”

Both Letty’s nod and smile were big, and Cam walked up closer to the counter saying hi to the barista that she had come to know in her time working at the bookstore.

“Hey, Jan.”

“What’s up, Cam? Day off?”

“Yep, just hanging out.”

She motioned to Letty and Jan gave a small wave.

“What can I get you?”

“Two medium strawberry smoothies.”

Marking the order, Jan grinned.

“It’ll be a few minutes.”

She rang up the total and Letty reached for her wallet, Cam placing her hand on hers and shaking her head.

“Nope. My treat.”

“I can pay.”

Nodding, Camila looked at Letty.

“I know.”

Letty hesitated for a moment before putting her pink wallet away.

“Thanks.”

Camila simply squeezed her shoulder and handed Jan the cash for the smoothies. Looking back at Letty, she found her looking around the bookstore.

“Nice place.”

Camila looked around proudly, having made a few changes around the place since she had become manager. She’d had the walls painted, brightening up the place a bit and replaced the tattered and worn wooden front desk into a decent counter with granite and shiplap. They were subtle changes, but it had already made a difference to the look and suddenly Camila had an idea.

“Thank you. I’m still planning on changing a few things here and there, maybe you can help me plan and decorate when I do. Help me with some of the décor and all that.”

Letty’s already large eyes glittered, and she nodded with a true smile on her face.

“That’d be cool.”

Jan called Cam for the smoothies and she went up, grabbing them with a handful of napkins and went to sit down at one of the tables with Letty. She handed her the smoothie and Letty tried it, her dimples on display.

“It’s good. I bet it’d be better with your strawberries though.”

“Next time we can make some at my place.”

Letty nodded and took another sip, looking at Cam.

“So, you and EZ live together or what?” Letty inquired with an arched brow.

“I see his trailer is still in the yard but he’s barely ever there.”

Camila took a sip from her own straw and explained.

“We kinda live together but not actually. He spends most of the time at my place, but he does stay in the trailer every now and then. He’s usually home with me though.”

Letty nodded, looking down at her smoothie as she absentmindedly swirled the straw around in it.

“He calls it home. So do the guys.”

Camila couldn’t help but smile softly and rested her arms on the table, leaning closer to the teen.

“What do you mean?”

Letty’s eyes were back up in Cam’s now and she mirrored her smile, easily reading the love on her face.

“Whenever EZ leaves, he’s like ‘ok, I’m going home.’. But he’s actually going to your place. He never says he’s going home if he goes to the trailer. He only says home when he’s going back to you.”

Camila’s face felt a little warm and so did her chest, Letty chuckling and shaking her head.

“You two are like little kids.”

She teased Camila playfully, both taking sips.

“What do you mean you two?”

“He does that same thing. Any time anyone mentions you, your name, or anything you did, he gets that goofy smile, just like you did.”

The jovial atmosphere simmered, and Letty went back to looking around the bookstore.

“So like, other than working here and gardening, do you do anything for fun?”

Camila thought to herself for a moment, looking for an answer.

“I babysit my neighbor’s kids sometimes.”

Letty snorted out a laugh before looking at Cam’s face and realizing that she wasn’t being sarcastic.

“Wait, you’re joking. Are you serious?”

Camila shrugged, feeling boring suddenly.

“Well, yeah. EZ and I go on dates or we hang out at the clubhouse but that’s kinda it.”

Letty shook her head quickly, waving her hands in front of her.

“Nah. You gotta get out more. When’s your birthday? Soon right?”

“Yeah, it’s about two weeks away.”

Letty already knew, she had heard the guys talking about doing a surprise party for her. She was playing dumb though, not wanting to give anything away.

“Any plans?”

Camila shook her head.

“No. I mean EZ will probably take me out for dinner, but I don’t have anything set up.”

The boys were wondering how they’d be able to ensure they could keep her away from the clubhouse so they could get everything ready and now Letty had the perfect way to help them out. Letty grinned and leaned back in her chair, tossing her arm around the chair next to her as she picked up her cup and took another sip.

“Let’s go shopping after here. We can look for an outfit for you to wear on your birthday for dinner.”

Camila smiled and nodded, content with the idea. Not only would she be able to hang out with Letty more throughout the day, but she could get an outfit and buy the girl something too. She was already feeling comfortable with Letty and though she couldn’t be certain, Cam felt safe to say Letty was getting comfortable with her too.

“Let’s go.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~`

“What about this one?”

Camila turned to Letty and held up a dress, Letty quickly shaking her head.

“Uh uh. I was thinking something like this.”

Letty held up a dress she had picked out herself and Cam beamed. It really was a nice dress, floral, pretty and sexy but not revealing enough to make the normally jean wearing woman uncomfortable. Camila nodded and grabbed the hanger from Letty, looking it over as the girl pointed over to the changing rooms.

“Go try it on.”

Camila listened and went to the changing room, putting on the dress and looking over herself in the mirror. She liked how it looked, nice enough for a birthday but not over the top. She smiled at her reflection and unlocked the door to the changing room, stepping out to show it to Letty. The younger girl grinned and gave two thumbs up.

“You look really good.”

Cam ran her hands over the fabric, turning side to side.

“You sure? You think EZ will like it?”

Letty scoffed at the suggestion that EZ would ever possibly not think she looked good.

“You could go out in a Glad trash bag and EZ would like it.”

The girls laughed, Camila knowing that even though Letty was teasing, it was true. Letty stood from the bench she was waiting on and looked Camila over.

“EZ will love it.”

Letty looked up at Camila, but her attention suddenly shifted over her shoulder and looked behind her. Some guy was standing there, leaning against the wall on the other side of the changing room waiting area. No doubt he was waiting for someone to get out of the changing room, probably his girlfriend but that didn’t stop him from leering at Cam, his eyes trained on her ass while she had her back to him. Letty’s smile melted away and she cleared her throat harshly, the sound catching the man’s attention. He looked up then and Camila turned around, seeing the irritated look on Letty’s face. Under the scrutiny of both girls, the man looked away and stared off in the other direction. Cam turned back to Letty who now had a protective aura about her, despite the new friendship and younger age. Looking back to Camila, she pointed back to the changing room with a smile.

“The dress looks awesome. That’s the one.”

Camila’s smile was bright, and she gave a strong nod.

“Then this is the one I’m getting.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~``

“Here come the girls.”

Both EZ and Coco looked up at Tranq’s words, the two walking into the clubhouse all smiles and laughs. EZ looked over at Coco and found him wearing a small, lopsided smile as he watched his daughter laugh and joke with a new friend. He knew she would be safe with Cam, but he had worried that maybe she wouldn’t feel entertained enough to want to hang out with her and he was beyond thankful that he was wrong. The girls looked away from each other and toward the guys as they got closer to the bar. Coco spoke first.

“Have fun?”

They both nodded, Letty coming to stand beside Coco while Cam came to stand beside EZ. Letty leaned against the bar, arms crossed over her chest loosely while Cam tossed an arm around EZ’s shoulders. He looked up at her and grinned, Letty pointing at him.

“That’s the smile I was talking about.”

Camila couldn’t help but laugh and EZ looked between the two. Letty clarified.

“I was telling her how whenever you see her, hear her, or someone mentions her you start smiling like…that.”

All of the boys laughed, knowing exactly what she was talking about and EZ laughed himself, not even bothering to try and deny it, knowing himself that it was true. The laughter settle and Coco spoke to Letty.

“You didn’t cause her any trouble, did you?”

Letty feigned hurt and placed her hand on her chest.

“Who? Me?”

Coco smiled but pressed.

“I’m serious.”

Shrugging, Letty shook her head.

“I was a perfect angel. No running away or getting into trouble. Even though I wanted to punch that guy in the face.”

Camila snorted, hiding a laugh but none of the boys laughed, their protective nature front and center.

“What guy?”

The question sounded like it had an echo as he was asked by Coco, EZ, Tranq and Angel all at once.

“Some dude at the store. Kept looking at her like she was a steak while she was trying a dress on.”

The rest of the group settled, satisfied that it was just an isolated thing and nothing to do with the girls being targeted. EZ was neither settled nor satisfied though and he was looking back at Camila now, his lips tight.

“Some guy was bothering you?”

Camila quickly shook her head and tried to soothe him.

“No, no. I was trying on a dress before I bought it and Letty caught him staring at me.”

“Hmm.”

That was all he said but his jaw was still clenched, and Cam stroked his cheeks, leaning down to press a kiss to his forehead.

“It’s fine.”

She could see he was annoyed but he unclenched his teeth some, rolling his shoulders. Camila quickly tried to change the subject.

“How’s your dad? I haven’t had him over for dinner in a while.”

If EZ knew what she was doing, he didn’t mention it.

“He’s good. Just hanging out at the shop. I can let him know if you want.”

“That’d be good. Just find out when is best for him.”

The sound of her phone ringing stopped the conversation and she pulled it out of her pocket, looking at the screen. She didn’t recognize the number and declined the call, placing it back into her pocket.

“Who was that?”

Camila shrugged and returned her attention to her Old Man.

“Did you buy it?”

EZ could see the confusion on Cam’s face and pointed at Letty.

“The dress she was talking about.”

“Oh yeah! It’s in the car.”

EZ smiled, knowing that Letty had used the opportunity go push Cam into getting an outfit. He tossed Letty a wink and she threw him a wink back, the silent conversation happening as Cam’s phone rang once again. She thought about declining it again but wondered if maybe it was important. She still had yet to personalize her voicemail greeting so people would know it was her. Maybe it was a wrong number or maybe it was someone who had changed their number and was trying to get in contact with her. Accepting the call, she tucked her hair behind her ear and brought the phone up.

“Hello?”

No one answered but she could tell someone was on the line.

“Helloooo.”

She dragged out the greeting to see if anyone responded. When they didn’t, she pulled the phone away and ended the call. EZ was looking at her again and she shrugged.

“Probably a scam.”

On the other end though, Rio slowly pulled the burner away from his own ear, a wave of nostalgia flooding over him at the sound of her voice. It was a little lower, Camila being a grown woman now, but it was undoubtedly her. That soft tone, a soothing timbre smooth as honey. He had utilized resources to find her number, but he had still wanted to verify. He had prepared to hear her voice, but he hadn’t realized just how deep it was going to hit him when he did and he tossed the burner onto his coffee table, leaning back. He could envision her perfectly now, laughing with flour on her cheek while she stood next to him in Abuela Magdalena’s kitchen all those years ago, the three of them making tortillas from scratch. Hearing Camila’s voice triggered more memories and he could hear Abuelita’s voice now too as she leaned over his shoulder watching him that day, her plump wrinkled cheeks as she smiled.

‘Very good, mijo. Perfecto.’

She had patted him on the back right after and Rio could remember vividly the sense of pride he’d felt at receiving her approval. Camila was his girl and getting approved by Abuela Magdalena was the final stamp. He had always thought Camila would be the girl he was going to marry. The woman that was going to be his Queen when he finally made it big and all the sacrifices paid off. The girl he was going to treat like royalty when he’d finally built his empire. And hearing her voice again after so long, he wondered if it would still be possible.

#EZ x Camila #el destino #mayans imagine #leticia cruz #coco cruz #ez reyes #Mayans MC #imagines

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macybeckham7 · 4 years

Text

Tattooed Heart - Jack Grealish

tagged: @luc-57x @cinnnabaee

Part Two

Jack was sat watching as Yn dancing on the table with Tyrone, the two had the biggest smiles on their faces as they danced, they were holding hands as the footballer spun her around before they swayed from side to side. Jack smiled as he saw how big their smiles they had one their faces. It was one of their teammates birthday party which was 90′s themed. He raised his glass up to her as she spotted him and instantly said something to Tyrone before making her way over to him.

‘There’s my favourite’ she giggles as she sits beside him, instantly stealing his drink and taking a sip and instantly grimacing in somewhat pain as she didn't like how strong, and the burning sensation running down her throat.

‘That’s what you get for stealing my drink asshole’ he mutters making them chuckle with each other.

It had been a few months since Jack did the tattoo on her, and they had been nonstop talking, he would text her ever morning hoping she had a good day, and every night asking her how her day was and to sleep tight. They would have hours long facetime calls, where Jack was working out while Yn was drawing some tattoo details, while the other weren’t looking the other found themselves just in complete awe of the other. Yn always texting Jack wishing him well for the game ahead, and often finding a photo of her IG story of her either at home or in the shop and showing that she was in fact watching. Jack had invited her to a few games, especially the game against Chelsea which she brought her dad along. After the game he took her onto the Villa Park pitch, the two playing under the flood lights as they both had massive smiles on their faces as Jack was somewhat surprised at her skill. She scores and instantly jumps into his arms as they celebrate as if it was a goal in an important match. Yn had often been midway through a design when a delivery guy had popped in and brought either her favourite smoothie or a doughnut from her favourite place or a bunch of flowers with them all having a little slip with a small J writing on it in mark, making her feel butterflies in her stomach.

They had countless sleepovers together, but nothing really happened between them, a few kisses here and there but then they finish the night just snuggled up with each other, just enjoying being close to each other.

As the two sat watching Tyrone now dancing on the table with one of his teammates girlfriends, Yn rested her head on his shoulder as they both laughed and tried to get the other to hear what they were trying to say. Jack followed her outside as she looked through her little clutch bag and pulled out a cigarette, he watched as she placed it in between her lips and flicked the blue lighter and burnt the end and took a long drag, he watched her as she exhaled.

‘So are you coming home to me tonight?’ he asked with a small smirk.

She walks towards him and gently places the cigarette in his mouth as they looked deeply in each others eyes. She gently caressed her cheek before kissing him softly.

It was currently 2am in the morning, YN had her heels in her hands as she walked carefully along the road. They both had McDonald’s milkshakes as the two laughed and joked with each other. The two getting a few weird glances from people, as they probably looked like they had just walked out of a time machine and was lost in the present day Birmingham. They both were being pretty rowdy and every so often they brought out a rather questionable dance move, or started playfighting, which ended up with YN dropping her milkshake which she wasn't too happy about. The two of them felt like they were best friends, but also could be something more. With Jack he had never had a feeling for something like this before and it kind of scared him. Previously his other relationships had finished because he had always put his career ‘first’ and he didn't want to fuck anything up with YN, because how cheesy it sounds he doesn't want to think about his life without her in.

The two stumbled into his house, as they were in a heavy make out session, he pins her to the wall as his mouth moves along her jaw, he picks her up and takes her to the bedroom. He lays her down on the bed and undressed her, his eyes took in her beautiful body before her starts leaving a trail along her skin, making a gentle moan escape before she bites down on her bottom lip. He leaves a small kiss on the tattoo on her hip bone before he looks up at her and sees her smiling at him. He pulls off her panties and pushes her legs apart, he leaves a kiss along her inner thigh making her whimper. He moves closer to her as he watches her reaction to his touch, her back arches as he slots to fingers inside her, before he starts to eat her out, she enjoying how good he was making her feel and the how good his stubbles feels against her skin.

…..

YN was feeling somewhat fragile as she entered the tattoo complex, she waving to her dad who laughed at how she was feeling as he saw the Mr Bump plaster on her knee. Which she got last night from tripping over a few times. Her first client was already sat on the sofa filling out a form, so she luckily didn't have time for a grilling from her family. She quickly set up and called her over, the two girls with her came along and sat next their friends. YN wasn't as chatty as she usually was but tried to make the best experience for them, her mum appearing and offering drinks and snacks which she usually does.

‘Are you the girl who is dating Jack?’ the girl asked as YN was getting the area ready.

She looked up shocked about the question. ‘Grealish’ she mutters, as if she had to be certain she knew which Jack they were on about.

The other piped up, mentioning that they had been seeing you on Jack’s and Tyrone’s IG accounts, with even the #40 mentioning in a recent video ‘imagining being with a tattooist and not getting freebies’. YN couldn't help but giggle as she knew that was such a Tyrone thing to say. She decided to keep quiet as she focused on getting the tattoo stencil on.

‘You’re really pretty’ she smiled.

YN only had a half a day and she felt like she had spent the whole day talking about Jack, either clients mentioning him and gushing how cute they were or how they met, or talking about the Villa captain might be moving away to Manchester United, YN just keeping quiet as she listened to everyone’s comment.

They didn't see each other till the weekend, when Villa had a game, YN wore his jersey and went to Villa Park to support the boys. She felt her heart in her throat as she saw him get clattered into and was left on the deck on the floor, she could tell he was hurt, luckily the ref stopped the game. She felt like she didn't breath until she saw him get up, he winced but managed to carry on in the game. After the game they both were at his house, YN showing some attention to his ankle, his eyes trained on her as she gave soft delicate touches.

‘Can you tattoo me..’ he mutters.

Her eyes meeting his as she looks at him questioningly, the two jumped in the car and drove down to the shop. He wanting her to free hand draw a heart on his ankle. She asked a few times if he was sure with him nodding and telling him to colour it in too. He noticed her hand shake slightly before she took a deep breath and started the tattoo gun, she looked at him again before leaning in and concentrated as he was going to have a piece of her art on him forever.

She looked at him and saw him wincing in pain, his thigh tight as she could see his muscles contracting. She decided she needed to get his mind off the pain

‘Do you feel the pressure to be the captain to your childhood club?’ YN asked.

He shook his head. ‘No I think I thrive with it’ he mentions.

She smiles as she wipes the tattoo. ‘How did you get into football?’

‘I think any boy gets thrown into football’ he smiles. ‘But I just wanted to be Gazza’ he explains. There was something about YN for Jack, where he thought he could just talk to her about anything and she wouldn't judge him like someone else would because they didn’t understand him. He felt safe with her and that kind of scared him.

A few weeks had past and just like YN said the tattoo was coming alone nicely, YN and Jack are still at the awkward ‘what are we’ point, both set of friends kept trying to get them to ask the other one out and questioning ‘what is the worst that could happen?’ and for them both they both couldn't help but think what if they had read signs wrong. It was only really behind closed doors and when they were alone when they would show any affection to each other, when they were around anyone else they just casually flirted with each other.

It was a nice summers day when YN suggested they should go on a bike ride and have a little picnic together. Jack invited his sisters as they enjoyed the day together.

YN was laying on the blanket as Jack was watching his sisters mess about, Jack gently leaned down and kissed her.

‘I like the new hair colour’ he smiled as he gently played with her hair, as he noticed his two sisters watching them.

He had already got a grilling from the two of them, they were getting attention from his fans, a few of them turning up at her store, having to stop with her clients with a few people wanting to know if she was dating Jack. She didn't understand how people even knew where she worked, because she kept her IG separated from the business IG. A few just choosing her just to spent a few minutes with her. He knowing this was all new to her and was probably scary, he kissed her again with their lips moving perfectly insync with eachother, the two not caring about the pressure or anything else in the world when they were with eachother.

#tattooed heart #jack grealish imagines #jack grealish blurbs #jack grealish

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beyoncesdragon · 4 years

Text

Sokovian Bastard Pt.2 (Pietro Maximoff)

Requested: No

Warnings: swearing, cocky Pietro and jealous reader, swearing and uhm..yeah, swearing.

Summary: Being an avenger has never been easy, and after a certain Sokovian joins the team, it really just does not help your concentration. At all. Especially because the two of you just wouldn’t get along.

a/n: SORRY I had to make 2 Parts, Tumblr was bitching around somehow not working, I hope its not a bother, sorry sorry sorry...

My Masterlist

Part I

He just laughed and gave a side eye. “And you could’ve also finished that soldier on your own, I bet?” I huffed again. “I had it under control.” That made him laugh even louder. “Just shut up.” And I did, trying to ignore how good it actually felt to have his arm wrapped around me.

“Still in bed, princess?” I looked up from my book as the familiar accent ripped me out my imagination. “What does that mean, speedster. I had a five centimeter deep, burned-in bit to cure, I don’t know how fast you expect me to get up and fight again.” He said nothing, just leaned against the doorframe of the medical complex. “Besides, it’s been a day.” I continued, eyes wandering over his face. “And I heard that they had wonderful doctors here…you’re just being lazy.” I closed my book and pushed myself up. “That too, but that is not your business to mingle in. Sod off Mr. Speedy Gonzales.” He snorted and shook his head. “I came because Stark was asking if you would still attend to the party tonight?” I shrugged. “Probably yes. Why wouldn’t he just send FRIDAY?” he now shrugged, clicking with his tongue impatiently. “How would I know. See you tonight then.” And with that he was gone. I frowned confusedly. “Whatever that has been again…” I mumbled under my breath, pushing the covers back. Pietro was right…I was just being lazy.

Miss Cho was alright with me leaving, she knew that I was healed again. On my question if she would come too tonight, she shrugged reluctantly, before slyly asking if not Thor would attend too. That made me giggle as I promised her that I would ask for her before I left. After I took a shower, I inspected my hip. The injury was almost completely gone already, the special cell-manipulating technique they had seemed to work fantastically. I was positive that I could attend the party tonight. But first, I had to ask Tony about Thor. “FRIDAY, where can I find Tony?” I asked loudly, pulling a pair of jeans and a white sweater over my shivering body before heading out again. “In the kitchen track, accompanied by Miss Romanoff, Mr. Barton and the Maximoff twins.” Was the immediate answer and I nodded. “Thank you FRIDAY.” “Nothing to thank for Miss.”

“Look who came back from the dead!” Clint cheered as I entered the wide kitchen. Wanda hugged me immediately, a hug I returned with pleasure. “Yeah, death might be a bit exaggerated but…I’m back.” I grinned over Wanda’s shoulder and Nat laughed. “Hungry?” I nodded quickly. “A little bit…ah Tony.” I called out, and he lifted his head.

“Yes darling? I too am obviously ecstatic that you’re back, I was just a little occupied with Pepper…how can I help.” I grinned at him before taking a seat at the bar. “I just wanted to ask if a certain god of thunder would attend too tonight?” Tony (as well as the others) shot me a surprised glance. “Asking for a friend, obviously.” I added with a chuckle, taking a sip of a smoothie Nat had handed me.

“You do know that he has a girlfriend right?” I rose my eyebrow. “Lovely Pietro, I do. However, that doesn’t change the fact that he is nice to look at, right? And also, as I already mentioned, I am not asking for myself. Maybe you should get your “wandering mind” under control.” I gave him a taste of his own medicine now and he clearly remembered. “Sure I do. I can also get you one or two magnifying glasses so you and your “friend” can intensify your ogling.” He snapped, getting up from the chair he’d sat on. My eyebrow wandered up even higher. “Look at you Maximoff, are you jealous you don’t get my unshared attention?” I slid off my chair and crossed my arms over my chest, just like he tended to do it. With a few steps he had planted himself in front of me, staring down with an irritated glare. “Are we a bit needy today, speedster?” I taunted softly, my lips curling up amused. His eyes burned like two blue suns, irritated but then again, I meant to catch a hint of amusement in between the whirl of upset. “Look who’s cocky now…” he pushed out before speeding out of the door in a second. “Coward!” I mocked laughing, turning back to Nat, Clint, Tony and Wanda.

“Sorry…now, is Thor coming?” Tony just nodded. “I uhm, think so.” He said slowly, clearing his voice. “The two of you should really just…make out or something. The tension…” he exclaimed dramatically, setting my cheeks on fire. “Not gonna happen Tony.” I mumbled embarrassed, leaving the kitchen now as well, Nat’s drink in my hand.

Just hours later, the healthy smoothie had been replaced with a pink cocktail, again, by Natasha. She had her arm linked with mine, a similar drink in her hand as well and we walked towards the couch. “Look at the ladies tonight!” Someone suddenly roared and we snapped around, finding Thor himself standing behind us with opened arms. “Well, look at you Odinson. In a suit and all!” I laughed, pressing a kiss on his cheek. Natasha simply nodded politely, a warm smile on her face. “Yeah, that cape is sometimes a’lil in the way.” He mumbled, brushing over the jacket. In this moment, Wanda joined us. “How’s Jane doing?” I asked, giving Wanda a smile and immediately after whistled quietly. She looked amazing. “Lass’s doing well. Travelin’ around in those planes and what not. But she’s doing great, I suppose!” Thor smiled happily, giving my back a friends tap. Though it was so powerful, that I almost tripped over. “Sorry lass.” He mumbled immediately, grabbing my arm to stabilize me again.

In the corner of my eyes I saw Pietro looking over to us, giving me a harsh glare before downing his drink. I rose my eyebrows at him before I waving it off. “That’s alright Thor, don’t worry.” He let go of my arm. “I’ll go over to Banner…see ya in a bit!” he excused himself with a smile. “I’ll join! If you don’t mind?” Nat piped in, squeezing my arm softly before making her way with Thor over to the balcony. I relinked my arm with Wanda’s turning her around towards the bar.

“You don’t even have a drink…what can I get you?” She grinned surprised. “Whatever there is…but make it strong. I don’t think I can survive your and my brothers bickering else any longer.” I giggled softly, preparing her glass. “Sorry we don’t get along. Him and I…that’s just not working out.” I explained, searching for a bottle of vodka. “Or you should just make out already.” Wanda repeated Tony’s words and I snorted. “I bet he’d rather jump out of the window than that.” “And you? You wouldn’t?” I stopped preparing her drink for a second. Would I really mind? How fucked up that actually was…I wouldn’t. “Of course I would.” I stuttered a bit too late, feeling my face grow warm. Wanda just hummed. “You know…he came and checked up on you when you were in medical treatment.” She then said and I snapped up. “What?” my eyes darted over to him, confused about what I was supposed to say now. “Yeah he was quite worried.” My eyes trailed over his face and upper body as I watched him chat with Maria. She tilted her head back as she laughed at something he said and a smug smirk formed on his face. “Well however, I’m clearly not his type though.” I said with wink, handed her the drink and walked over to the couch where Tony, Steve, Rhodey and Clint sat around, along with a few other people.

“…and then suddenly this big dude jumped out of nowhere…a mutant probably.” Rhodey just said, taking a sip from his beer. “What is he talking about?” I whispered into Clint’s ear as I sat down. “About our mission, two days ago. Looks like you weren’t the only one who crossed path with a mutant.“ he whispered back before listening to Rhodey again. He had a funny way of telling stories and it was great listening to something you experienced told by someone else.

“And let’s not forget our two lovebirds teaming up!” Steve suddenly mentioned and I snapped up. “Excuse me Captain, I was in a quite tricky situation there and had literally no other choice than let him help me.” I defended myself and Tony grinned. “Well, Pietro over there had an eye on you the whole time, so I knew I wouldn’t have to help.” My eyebrows shot up at that. “He had?” Tony nodded smugly. “Maybe. But you should go and ask him yourself.” Steve nodded quickly. “You really should, because it also looks like agent Hill is stealing your man.” I emptied my drink with a huff and got up. “Hill’s not doing anything.” I mumbled, and those idiots cheered immediately. “So he is your man though?” Tony yelled and I flinched, scoffing at him as I walked towards Pietro and Hill. Pietro’s eyes immediately fell on me as I approached and just seconds after he leaned just a bit closer to Hill than it would’ve been necessary.

I slowed down and bit my lip…why should I even bother them.

It was clear that he had an interest in her, and also he wanted to annoy me, but if it worked that well…probably I should approach him. His satisfied grin however made me rethink and I continued to walk towards him.

“Maximoff.”

“Princess.”

“I heard you had had an eye on me back in the field…wanted to thank for that.” His eyebrows shot up slightly. “Also, cute of you that you checked up on me while I was in treatment.” I added, seeing him grow slightly nervous. “And the one who told you that was…?” “Wanda, Steve, Tony…” I started, feeling my lips twitch slightly. He was embarrassed and that was wonderful. “Well, you’re welcome I guess.” He said, clearing his throat. “Maria and I were about to grab some drinks and then excuse ourselves. She wanted to show me something in the lab…you would be so kind and tell the others, right princess?” he suddenly asked sweetly, a coy look in his eyes. Well, well, well…how the tables have turned.

“Why don’t you tell them yourself?” I replied, honeyed voice layered with venom. Show him something in the lab my ass. His eyes light up as he probably caught on to my sudden and uncomfortable jealousy and his lips turned up. “How mean.” I shrugged before turning around, not looking at Maria once and walking towards the balcony. I wanted to find Banner and Thor and Nat, maybe down some shots with her. “Just a second Maria…” I heard the Sokovian mumble before he suddenly appeared next to me. “Now…who was green-eyed now, princess?” I snorted, keeping my steady walk towards the balcony. “If this is what this was about, then that was very unfair towards Maria. Go and apologize, then go and fuck yourself.” He just chuckled. “Cute. So you were jealous.” The cold air hit me as I stepped outside, no sign of Thor, Banner or Nat to be seen. Shit.

“I don’t know if you can remember but haven’t I said something about your ego before…” I snapped, turning around to him. “You always get snappy when I’m right, have you noticed? And also, I heard them calling me your man….is that how you refer to me now?” I could feel my blood shooting to my face. “I wasn’t calling you that. They did.” He hummed amused, suddenly leaning forwards to trap me between his arms and the glass balustrade. “And you said…?” I gulped. I said nothing because…why haven’t I?

“I said nothing.” I just replied, feeling intimidated by his sudden closeness. “What is this Pietro? I though we don’t like each other?” he tilted his head. “I don’t like you.” ouch, a bit rough now, huh. “You’re annoying, loud, snappy, sassy, cocky and a know it all. You are an insufferable tease and hold grudges forever because if you wouldn’t, you would’ve forgiven me for pushing you off that balcony because I apologized…” I wanted to reply something but he pressed his finger against my lip, “then again you wish me luck, blush easily when others comment about us, are annoyingly funny and witty and apparently a good friend to everyone but to me and, to make matters worse, despite your dislike you seem to have against me, you get jealous so ridiculously easy. I don’t even know what I should think about you.” he rambled and I could only stare.

Everything he said was how I felt about him, his idiotic jokes, his smile, his teasing, his witty and sassy comebacks, his know it all attitude I hated so much, his mean comments and self-esteem shattering remarks, his nicknames he had for me and how beautiful he looked right in that moment as he had me trapped now not only mentally but physically. And I was whipped as well as angry, because…because I held a grudge? Because we took such a long time to talk? Because I still couldn’t help but wish I wouldn’t have to hide that I’d found him attractive and intriguing and all of that? I didn’t even know. But what I did know was, that him making me jealous on purpose was cocky. So cocky that it seemed to be the only thing my overwhelmed brain could muster to mumble.

“Well then don’t flirt with Hill, you sokovian bastard.” He stopped for a second, eyes flickering over my face. “Well then don’t look.” I frowned.

“Cool speedster, then stop smirking the way you do, looking the way you do, cut your hair and dye it yellow and purple and look ugly, stop wearing those skin-tight shirts and tops around the building, stop working out and stop getting buff, stop making doe eyes whenever you want something, stop chewing on your lips when you think, stop annoying me twenty-four seven, stop calling me princess, go get a face lift and grow old and fat and stop making me look!” I bubbled out, outraged about his arrogant comment. Ignorant bastard. “Look at you princess.” He coed suddenly, his voice dripping of self-satisfaction. “You pay attention to details hm?” I gulped angrily, not saying anything. “’Suppose you spent enough time staring then.”

He pushed himself off the balustrade, crossing his hands behind his back. “Now, I am pretty sure I left Hill waiting for too long already and the others are missing you…see you tomorrow I suppose?” and with that he turned and walked away.

That was the last straw. I basically exploded, I was so angry. “Oh you are not doing that.” I hissed, walking up on him angrily. “You are not walking off like that, after everything you just heard!” he stopped, turning around to me. Again, this cocky twinkle in his eyes.

“Then what would you have me do instead, princess?” he asked soft, mockingly, knowing. I was aware that practically every avenger including Maria who had her focus on him anyways, was watching right now. But I count quite get myself to care. “I don’t know Maximoff, but walking off like a goddamn…chaperone is not what I let you get away with, believe me!” I spat out, feeling how hurt now bubbled up in between the anger. “That was what I meant…so ridiculously easy jealous.” He whispered amused before suddenly dipping down and pressing a feathery kiss to my lips. I froze, my brain simply gave up and wasn't even trying to grasp what just happened.

“I will be right back princess, she is just transmitting my data onto FRIDAY’s database so I too, can access the liquor cabinet with the beloved booze.” He grinned softly, dipping down for another kiss and I made wide eyes. “You are kidding me right?” he shook his head slowly. “Not at all. But taking that you kissed me back and all…you are now free to call me your man, if that is what you’re into, alright?” he winked, cocky as ever but with a soft blush on his cheek.

“You are the worst. Literally, the worst Pietro. And I will never stop calling you names, just because you did that.” He laughed softly before carefully wrapping his arm around my waist. “I can live with that…now let me just go and get some booze yeah? We luckily live here, so we don’t have to take a taxi back to my place…” I blinked surprised. “So confident already.” He just laughed.

“As if you would say no...princess.”

#marvel #pietro maximoff #pietro maximoff x reader #quicksilver #imagines #reader insert #marvel imagine #aaron tyler johnson #thanks for reading #bucky barnes imagine #tony stark x reader #steve rodgers x reader #marvel bunch

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poppibranchlover · 4 years

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Nine Lives, One Fight - The Final Chapter: Part 34

The story: Deep in the forest of Troll Town, there lies a mysterious tiny purple mushroom that has a secret magical ability. King Peppy calls this mushroom forbidden for all Trolls to go near it. One day, while Branch is out in the woods doing his survival research studying, he encounters it and, not knowing it is a regular mushroom, decides to harvest it and bring it home. But in the next morning, its magic effects transform him into a small blue cat! After being sent to the animal pound, his girlfriend, Poppy, finds him and decides to adopt him, although not recognizing it is Branch. Desperate to finish his research project due for a special event invented by Poppy, Branch is forced to learn how to behave like a pet cat and must figure out what caused him to become one.

You already seen what had happened in Part 33. Now get ready for the grand finale of the story - Part 34!:

A day has passed since Branch had transformed back into a Troll, and life begins to resume normally for him. For now, he was busy doing his usual job; collecting sticks around the village to bring back to his bunker. As he walked past the crowd of Trolls, he greeted them, and they all greeted back, happy to see their beloved village grump doing his business once again.

Branch took a deep breath to admire the fresh air. “Ahhh…what a good day to walk around the village again,” he said, smiling happily.

As he walked, a familiar building with a smiling carrot caught his eye. He took a few moments to recognize it. One glance confirmed that it was Tommy’s carrot restaurant!

Branch gazed down at the restaurant door and saw his best friend cradling a bunch of carrots and surrounded by three baby rabbits. “Wiggles!” he called out to him by his bunny nickname.

Tommy saw him approaching the restaurant and waved back at him “Hi, Branch!” he said.

Branch ran and gave him a big hug. “Hey, man!” he said, shaking hands with him. “I came to see what you’re doing! So your restaurant’s back in business, huh?” He looked up at his newly-reopened carrot restaurant. It was even better than before!

“Yes, of course!” Tommy said, nodding. “I got my job back after the spell reverted, and since I want a place for my kids to stay, I let them in here, all warm and cozy.”

He started petting the little bunnies near his feet. Branch knelt down and patted their tiny heads as well. “It’s so good to see you guys again!” he said. “Now they can live with you forever since you raised them!”

“Yeah, you’re darn truly right!” Tommy agreed in his new accent. He bumped fists with Branch, like they did before when they were animals.

It was a warm and fuzzy moment to be with his best friend he had ever known, until Branch began to think what he wanted to say to him. He sighed as his hands clutched tightly to his bundle of sticks. “You know, after all we’ve been through, I just want to ask you regarding our friendship,” he told Tommy. “Is this okay for you that I’ll be your best friend?”

Tommy laughed. “Oh, you stop being so hard on yourself, kid. You’re being naïve! Times have changed, and we go to our usual business! But of course, we’re friends to the end!”

He put his hand to Branch’s shoulder, smiling. Touched, he smiled back as well, glad to accept this Troll as one of his friends.

A baby rabbit tried reaching for a carrot in Tommy’s arms. “Uh, I could use some help here, kid!” he said.

Branch took a carrot from Tommy’s hand and offered it to the little rabbit, and the critter began chewing on it.

“So, how long you’ve started a business of your own?” Branch asked as he fed the baby rabbit.

“I don’t know...a couple years,” Tommy replied, matching his tone. “I didn’t want to hide in a burrow waiting for my life to change. After you found that magical mushroom, you did helped me along the way.”

“Hmmm, yeah,” Branch said, looking over at Tommy. “For your information, you’ve handled this farming business better than I can with my survival skills.”

“Well, you’d be surprised,” Tommy said with a smile. “I guess we know that we’re different yet we can change our own perspectives. It’s nature.”

“Really, huh?” Branch asked, raising his eyebrow. “I never thought of that.” After the baby rabbit finished eating up her carrot, she jumped into his arms.

“Ah, kid. You’re selling yourself short.” Tommy patted his tiny rabbits and offers them more carrots to eat. Then he turned to Branch and began to say what came out in his mind. “I think that you’d make a perfect invention for Poppy’s next Show-and-Tell party tomorrow.”

“What?” Branch asked, shocked. His jaw dropped when he heard these words. “But I thought it’s just one party few days ago! She’s making another one…for me?”

“According to her, it’s dedicated to you!” Tommy said, patting him on the back. “After the incident where we became cat and bunny, I was hoping the Queen would give you another chance to get on stage!”

Branch just stood there, still shocked at these exciting news. He couldn’t believe Poppy is setting up another Show-and-Tell festival, and it would be made specially for him! When he was a cat at the time the festival began, it was a complete disaster. Now that Branch is a Troll again, the party will be a success once more if he had come up there.

“Besides, she did put you back in the list,” Tommy added. “So what do you say, kid? Ready to go up on stage for one last time?”

Branch quickly began to think for a moment, rubbing his chin with his finger. “Hmmmm…so Poppy is making another Show-and-Tell festival and it will be specially made for me,” he said with resolve. “What should I be inventing?”

As a survivalist, Branch is a great expert on inventions. Soon, another brilliant idea had struck him, and his eyes widened with determination.

“Oooh! I know what I can make!” he said proudly. “This time, my effort will be perfect!”

Then he leaned in closer to Tommy and whispered his idea incoherently into his ear. All he was whispering was, “I will make a…and it will be different than before…”

Tommy leaned forward, attempting to listen to every word he was saying. “Huh? What you saying, kid? What is your idea?”

He didn’t understand what this idea had meant, but Branch will be sure that this will settle the entire festival quite well.

Moments later, Branch went back home, with the idea still in his head. With sheer confidence, he whipped out his tools and began to build his newest invention.

Hammering, painting and using as many tools as he can, Branch worked so hard this evening to come up with an invention that will truly surprise the Trolls in the festival. For the finishing touches, he covered his face with a welding mask and used a blowtorch to weld some pieces of metal together.

After he was done, Branch took a few moments to admire his work. He stretched his measuring tape to ensure the perfect size of his invention. He was certain that he will be declared first place as soon as he finished some preparations.

“I won’t let you down this time, Poppy,” he said under his breath, ready for the main event tomorrow.

The next day, the second Show-and-Tell festival had finally begun. After the rest of the Trolls signed up to go on stage already presented their projects, it was now Branch’s turn. Poppy skipped her way to the stage and held up her microphone to address the crowd.

“Drumroll please…” she announced as drums played in the corner. “Here comes the final contestant! Our beloved village grump…Branch!”

As the Trolls cheered, Branch pushed a giant object that is covered with a big red cloth on the stage.

Poppy is surprised at this enormous material he brought out. “Whoa! And it looks like Branch’s project is something HUGE!!!” she gushed. “Something very different entirely!”

Branch took out the red cover, revealing a giant metallic machine! “Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you…my homemade Fruit-Presser 2.0!” he announced confidently.

The Trolls cheered excitedly as Branch proceeded to explain about his invention. “As you all know, I made this invention as a test to ensure proper nutrition, so any of you can use it whatever you want!”

He pointed out to every part of the Fruit-Presser, explaining how it works. Then he pulled out a cup from his hair. “With this, you can make delicious fruit punches, juices, smoothies and milkshakes out of this machine! Let’s test this baby out!”

Branch started pouring some berries into a funnel and pushed a button on the machine. It began to churn as the berries got sucked into the hole of the funnel. As the fruits were compressed by the mechanical supports of the Fruit-Presser, liquid began to spin around in the tank. Poppy and the audience watched as fruity liquid dispensed out of the machine and poured into Branch’s cup. He pushed a button to turn it off, and started drinking the fruit juice.

After he finished testing his project out, Branch turned to the crowd. “Don’t just sit there and eat lots of sugar,” he said. “Just try it in my heavily-fortified bunker for free!”

Poppy took a moment to admire his project. Then, with an excited squeal, she stepped forward. “Would you look at that? Branch’s speech and project is 10 out of 10 excellent! He is declared a winner!”

Branch was astonished. “What?! Really?!” he asked. “I AM A WINNER?!” He couldn’t believe what he was seeing and hearing.

Poppy smiled at him and held up a shiny gold medal. “Congratulations, Branch!” she announced. “You deserve a 1st place medal and you get to be the co-leader of Troll Village from now on!”

Branch gasped, overwhelmed with intense excitement. He took the medal from Poppy’s hands and placed it around his neck. “YEAH!!! WOOO-HOOOOO!!!” he cheered happily, accepting the reward while jumping up and pumping the air with a victory fist.

Poppy held his hands, grinning. “We are all so proud of you, Branch!” she told him.

Just then, everyone starts to cheer very loud that Branch is now a first place winner in the Show-and-Tell festival. “YAAAAAAY!!! HOORAY FOR BRANCH AND HIS AMAZING FRUIT-PRESSER PROJECT!!!”

Behind the rest of the crowd, Poppy’s friends are also cheering for him. Even King Peppy and Tommy are joining the fun as well.

“WOO-HOO!!! Way to go, kid!” Tommy whooped from the audience as he congratulated his best friend’s greatest effort.

Branch looked around at the crowd, beaming proudly at them as his medal in his neck shone bright. He had never been this proud before, and now all of the Trolls are cheering for him, recognizing him as their newest hero.

They begin to chant out his name over and over. “BRANCH!!! BRANCH!!! BRANCH!!! BRANCH!!! BRANCH!!!”

Looking over at the happy crowd of chanting Trolls, Branch is even more happier than ever. He was glad that, despite of the magical trouble that had happened, everyone is safely happy and are glad to see that his invention is a complete success.

“It’s good to be me again!” Branch whispered happily to himself.

Later that day, Poppy and Branch went out to their favorite meadow to have a picnic again. This time, they gathered here in celebration of Branch’s Fruit-Presser project becoming a huge success during the Show-and-Tell festival’s next attempt.

Poppy gazed up at the beautiful white clouds in the blue sky, while Branch sat on a beach chair, wearing sunglasses and reading his favorite SuperTroll comic book. They were having a great time together as they ate their snacks, drinking up their favorite drinks and sharing moments with each other.

Poppy sighed happily as she looked up at the fluffy clouds. “I really like open skies!” she said, grinning.

Branch raised his sunglasses up to his hair to look clearly at her. “Yeah, me too,” he replied. “Never would’ve really thought it was fun to set up our picnic here once again.” Then he went back to reading his comic book, posing it like a tanning mirror.

Poppy smiled at him. Then she picked up a scrapbook that laid beside the picnic basket and approached him. “I have something for you,” she told him, nudging his arm. “I should have given it to you before, but I thought you might like this!”

Branch took out his sunglasses and placed his book down on the ground. He got up from the chair and stood up with his arms crossed. “Hah! Okay, my Queen,” he said smugly, displaying a sarcastic look on his face. “What is it you want to show me?”

Poppy held the book up for him to see, opening it to reveal the first page. It depicted miniature felt cutouts of herself and Branch as a cat on a field landscape. The title on top of the picture read:

The Adventures of MR. TICKLE

“TA-DAH!!!” Poppy cried, smiling widely. “A book dedicated to taking care of you as a cat! What do you think?” She stared at Branch, waiting for his reaction.

He looked embarrassed, grabbing his chest and groaning. His cheeks instantly blushed purple. “Ugh. Why did you make this?” he asked feebly.

Poppy grinned as she turned the pages of her new scrapbook. All of the pages she made were about Branch’s adventures that happened a few days ago. “Isn’t this so adorable?” she squealed, admiring every single one of them. “I made this scrapbook to recount my experience on adopting you!” She pointed out to some of them. “Look, see how I fed you milk and cat food, throwing a ball of yarn for you to catch, tickling your furry tummy and tugging at my dress! Look how cute you are!”

Branch interrupted her reading, looking more embarrassed at every second of it. “Uh…that sounds cute, Poppy,” he said nervously. “But I felt like these were all about my adventures.”

“Really?”

“Yeah...” Branch rolled his eyes, trying to forget what he saw, but he couldn’t resist admiring his girlfriend’s creativity. “On second thought, I…probably wanted to save it as a souvenir just in case.”

“That’s great, Branch!” Poppy said. “At least you will remember everything we did together!”

“Uh-huh.” Branch nodded, agreeing with her. “After all, it is one of your hardcore-mastered scrapbooks!” He couldn’t help but smile.

Poppy placed her scrapbook inside her hair as an idea struck in her mind. “Maybe someday, I’ll adopt a real pet of my own when I visit the animal shelter again!” she told him. “I was hoping it was another cat as cute as you!”

Branch looked doubtful. “You sure?” he said to her. “If you’re gonna keep a pet, you will need to take care of it responsibly. Give it a good hygiene, play with it inside and out, cuddle it and don’t let it run away to the dangerous outdoors…like I once did before.” He looked away, remembering his days when he was a little cat.

Poppy patted him on his back to comfort him. “Don’t worry, Branch!” she said. “Unlike you, it will always stay with me forever!”

“I hope so,” Branch whispered, looking away from her with shame. “And I hope you will do a great job as the queen throughout these years.”

Poppy listened carefully to his sentence. But it suddenly hit her and she gasped, realizing what the problem could be. “Are you okay? I never realized that you feel embarrassed about my new scrapbook.”

Branch shook his head, looking upset. “Uh, no. It’s not about your scrapbook,” he insisted. He hesitated a moment longer before blurting “It’s just I’m feeling tired.”

Poppy grabbed his hands and settled him down onto the picnic blanket. “Oh, come on. You’re doing great!” She quickly thought of a solution that would cheer him up and pulled out their love blanket she used to transform him back into a Troll. “I know what you need.”

Branch moved next to her and let Poppy wrap the blanket tightly around his shoulders.

“I know what you’re doing, Poppy!” he said teasingly.

“Just hold still,” Poppy said with a giggle as she finished wrapping the blanket around him. It wasn’t long before he yawned and laid down on her lap, falling asleep.

Poppy smiled; this comfy blanket had always known best. Without another thought, she placed her hand on Branch’s side and caressed him, just like when she used to pet him in cat form. As she stroked him, he began to purr softly. “Puuuurrrrrr…”

When Poppy heard the sound, she stopped caressing the blanket and stared at him. “Uh, Branch. Are you purring?” she asked, confused as if maybe the spell that turned him into a cat is half-broken.

Branch sat up and opened one eye. “What? No,” he replied. “What does it look like I’m purring? I’m just snoring.” He shrugged to show no problem in him at all. He was still the same old Branch as always.

Poppy ruffled his hair and kissed his cheek. She didn’t know what to make of his silly sleeping noises anyway, so she just went with a general compliment. “That’s okay! I prefer you snoring anyway!”

“Well, that’s just very simple in my opinion.” Branch stood up and playfully swished his blanket like a superhero cape. “I always made the best impressions!”

He giggled, and Poppy did the same. Then he drew closer to her and said in a sweet voice, “Meow!”

Poppy gasped at the sound of his voice, suddenly worried.

But then, Branch spoke to her in a normal voice, “Just kidding!”

He and Poppy both laugh out with joy, relieved that it was only one of the blue Troll’s mischievous pranks. She reached out her arms and hugged him. “Not bad for an adorable sarcastic mopi!” she cried out with a laugh. Then she kissed him on his cheek again. That is what Branch usually loved best about his experiences with her. He always loved to be there for her all the time.

“I love you, my sweet kitty!” Poppy said, smiling as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders.

Grinning, Branch wrapped his arms around her, returning her embrace. He was so proud that he is able to spend a lot of time with her every day. If it weren’t for him sticking along with Poppy and listening to her warnings, he would still be a cat, but he was glad to be his regular self again. The two Trolls both looked lovingly at each other as the sun began to set, making the meadow around them even more beautiful than ever. Poppy couldn’t resist her smile as she brought her lips closer to Branch’s to kiss him under the sunlight.

Deep in his heart, Branch knew this is exactly where he was meant to be...totally free from his nine lives.

Yep, I’m actually crying. I can’t believe it’s the end! 😭😭😭

I passed a few months on that fanfiction, and I wanted to say thank you to everyone for reading this story. I remember the day I saw Eva’s drawing of Branch as a cat in a posting thread about Trolls as animals, and taking inspiration from that drawing, I never thought I can try making a story about it. And if I did work on this fanfic, it’s not only because I made up this idea for myself, it’s my self-motivation that made me do it because I would like to make the result of this story to look cute and amazing for everyone to see.

So thank you, and enjoy the end of Nine Lives, One Fight. It’s been a long and fantastic journey to make this story with any of you reblogging and liking all the parts. You are all great people! 🥰😊

#dreamworks trolls #poppy and branch #broppy #poppy #branch #cat branch story #nine lives one fight #fanfiction #the final chapter #happy ending #tommy #tommy the troll

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the--blackdahlia · 5 years

Text

Too Young to Fall in Love Chapter 35 (Dirt!Nikki x Reader)

Title: Too Young to Fall in Love 35

Summary: Nikki Sixx was a hard partying musician on the strip. He never expected to fall in love with anyone, until a girl knocked on his dressing room door looking for a ride home and took his breath away. Just like everything else Nikki did; the drugs, the money, the music; Nikki went hard with love. (Y/n) Bass never expected the bassist of Motley Crue to be the one to shake her calm and calculated life up. She had a plan. Graduate school, become an epic producer, and watch from behind the scenes as her brother’s band rose to fame. Nikki and (Y/n) were perfect for each other, too bad her brother, Tommy, didn’t think so.

Series warnings: Smut (18+ Please), drug use, language, referenced miscarriage, drug overdose, mentioned attempted suicide, out of character moments for everyone in the band, the timeline might be a little screwy but it’s fanfiction! I know nothing of music production and my medical knowledge is really screwy, so it won’t be accurate.

“What the hell was that!?” Mick came into Nikki’s house the next morning. “Bassist you had her! She was right there and you just kiss her cheek? What are you, Tommy?”

“I’m taking things slow man.” Nikki said, strumming his bass.

“Look at me. I know slow. You were a fucking sloth!” Mick yelled at him.

“If I move too fast it’s just going to crumble again,” Nikki closed his eyes and sighed.

“Well, too bad she’s leaving for the airport now.” Mick shrugged. Nikki looked at the clock.

“Fuck!” Nikki put his bass down and grabbed his jacket and keys. “I wanted to see her off! Tommy never got back to me with the time… Asshole!”

“Did you expect anything different from the man who smokes cigarettes through his nose?” Mick shrugged. “Good thing is, you’ve now been upgraded to turtle.”

NIkki flipped him off before heading for the door, “Just lock up when you leave will ya!” Nikki raced for his car and drove to the airport as quickly as he could.

When he got to the airport, he could see (Y/n) and Vanessa standing at one of the restaurants, getting a smoothie. He made his way in.

“(Y/n)!” he called as he jogged towards her.

“Nikki? What are you doing here?” (Y/n) asked.

“Wanted to see you get on the plane… and I um… I…” he looked at Vanessa and nodded his head as a signal for her to give them space.

“Huh?” Vanessa looked between Nikki and (Y/n), “Oh right… I’m going to see what they have at the gift shop… oh look neck pillows!” Vanessa rushed off.

“That girl.” (Y/n) laughed. She looked up into Nikki’s green eyes.

“I um… something I wanted to do, but was way too chicken shit to do last night… Mick said I’m moving like a sloth at this point.” NIkki rambled.

“Mr. Sixx, what on earth are you talking about?” (Y/n) asked.

“Would I be slapped if I kissed you?” he looked into her eye’s echoing the words he asked the first night they kissed.

“Not by me you won’t.” She smiled at him.

Placing his hands on either side of her face Nikki leaned in and kissed her. It was soft and sweet just like that first time. (Y/n) melted into it. It was going to make it so much harder to leave now. She already didn’t want to. She had seen the weather and she’d be leaving the sun for a storm. And she’d be leaving Nikki behind.

“Come back to me?” he asked softly when they broke apart. “I know it’s selfish of me to ask but… please come back to me sweet girl?”

“I will always comes back to you, as long as you want me silly boy.” (Y/n) whispered.

Nikki pulled her in and kissed her again, this time deepening the kiss as his arms snaked around her waist pulling her close to the point where he lifted her up in his arms.

“I don’t want to go.” She whispered when they broke apart.

“I know,” he leaned his forehead against hers. “But you need to work and I have songs to write… plus your brother to annoy.”

“Make sure to annoy him extra hard for me.” (Y/n) smiled.

“Always sweet girl,” he caressed her face and kissed her again.

“Come see me. I’ll be waiting.” She smiled and moved away, heading to her gate. “Until then Nikki Sixx.” She blew him a kiss.

“Until then (Y/n) Bass,” he said as he placed his hand on his heart and winked at her. She boarded the plane. Just as she got on her plane, Nikki heard the most annoying noise.

“(Y/n)! Wait!” Tommy called out. “Where is she?! I overslept!”

“You just missed her she got on the plane,” Nikki smiled as he patted Tommy on the shoulder and walked back towards the entrance to the airport.

*****

One Month Later

(Y/n) stood in the airport, looking at her watch. She was sure she had the right time for the flight, but every crowd that came into the terminal was lacking a certain black haired bassist. Nikki tried to gently push his way out of the gate as he tried to get to (Y/n). Or at least he hoped that she was there waiting for him.

(Y/n) looked up after a few moments of looking out the window. Her eyes lit up as she saw him looking around.

“Nikki!” She called out to him.

NIkki smiled when he heard her voice and gently pushed his way towards her dropping his bag and lifting her up in the air. “Hey sweet girl!” he put her down and kissed her.

"How was your flight?" She kissed him. "I missed you."

“It was good,” he placed his forehead against hers, “I missed you too.” he cleared his throat and smiled. “So I um… I got a room at the Hilton…”

"Oh. I have a guest room. I could've saved you some money." She shrugged.

“I…” he gave her a sad smile. “I’m sorry I just… I want to be with you I do but I also don’t want to move to fast to where I can trip up and hurt you again… I… I don’t want to fuck this up (Y/n/n).” he caressed her cheek and gave her a sad smile.

"You're such a gentleman." She smiled at him. "Well unfortunately I don't have a car. Parking is awful. So it’ll be all cabs or rentals. Are you hungry?"

“Starving,” he smiled at her. “You can come check out my hotel room first before we head out to eat?” he smiled. “Tommy says hi,and not to do anything stupid and then I reminded him that you weren’t him… and that I’m one half of the terror twins so…” NIkki shrugged and chuckled. (Y/n) smiled and laughed as they headed out to get a cab.

"The Hilton please." She told the driver. "Thanks Casey."

"No problem Ms. Bass." He chuckled.

“You got your own personal cab driver?” Nikki smiled at her. “Hey man, I’m Nikki.”

"Holy shit is that Nikki Sixx?" Casey asked. (Y/n) laughed. "I have a tattoo of one of your albums!"

"Casey seems to be the cab I end up in the most. A lot of drivers know me by name since I use them so much." She explained.

“I can imagine,” Nikki smiled. “I bet you miss driving your car though.” he held her hand as the cab made its way to the Hilton. “So what are your plans for today besides babysitting me?” he teased.

"I don't have any meetings for once. I thought you'd wanna take the jet lag nap while I'm at my appointment, then we could go do something fun."

“Oh, well. I am up for whatever you want sweet girl, I mean a lunch date and a nap sounds good.” he gave her a smile, “I was hoping to take you to dinner either tonight or tomorrow… up to you…”

"I'm fine with either. but you're my guest, so I pay. I wish my appointment wasn't necessary this time though."

Reaching the Hilton, Nikki paid for the cab before (Y/n) had a chance too, “Sorry sweet girl. I’m just that quick.” he teased and helped her out before getting his bags. “I’m going to go check in and then we can talk and go get some grub.”

"Ok. I'll be waiting." She smiled at him.

Nikki walked up to the concierge to check in. He was taken care of right away and given the keys to his room. With a smile he walked up to (Y/n). “Got my key. Let’s see the great view I got.” he led her to the elevator and up to his room. (Y/n) was quiet on the ride up, fidgeting with a string on her shirt.

"Did you get a suite?" She asked finally as they go off the elevator.

“I might have,” he smiled. “I figured maybe we could pretend it’s a magical getaway at some point,” he laughed.

The way she fidgeted didn’t go unnoticed but he wanted to wait until they reached his room before he tried to ask if she was ok. Reaching the door to his suite, NIkki used the key to unlock it and smiled as he let (Y/n) go in first. Following after her, Nikki placed his things on the couch of the small living space and cleared his throat.

“So… you doing ok? Because if I did something to make you uncomfortable… I’m sorry… I…” he wasn’t sure what to say.

"What makes you think you did something?" She smiled. "I've just been awake since like 4. It's not you."

“What time is your appointment?” he breathed as he walked towards her and held her hand. “You might need a nap.”

"I've got about three hours. I wanted to cancel it and move it to next week but I can't."

“How about I set an alarm for 30 minutes, we both rest relax, then get something to eat?” He whispered. “But only if you want to…” he looked into her eyes. He knew she was holding back something. He didn’t want to pry but he also couldn’t help but be worried about her.

"That sounds amazing." She smiled. "I'll have to run some errands after my appointment but it won’t take long."

Nikki smiled as he led her to the bed and helped her under the covers. Grabbing the alarm clock he set a timer for thirty minutes as he climbed in on the other side. He took a deep breath, as he kept his distance a bit. He was lucky just to have her back in his life again, he couldn’t scare her away with a wrong move.

As she drifted off, she found herself moving closer to him, pressing up against him, feeling relaxed for the first time in a long time. It didn’t take long before the alarm blared in the room. Nikki grumbled and snuggled up close to (Y/n). He hadn’t had a peaceful sleep in a long time. It felt good to be with her again, and he felt it, the sense of feeling whole. He found his rock, his partner. He had lost her and felt lost without her, but he was going to make sure he never lost her again.

“Five more minutes.” (Y/n) groaned, moving closer to him, burying her face in his chest. “Don’t wanna adult.”

Nikki groaned and laughed as he kissed the top of her head, “Yeah, but then we’d be poor and out in the streets. I have some things I gotta do, meet with some recording studios see if we can get a better deal here. Besides I’m meeting with some of the Elektra reps… it’s been a shitty ride with them.” Nikki sighed. “Plus we should eat and I don’t want you to be late for your appointment.”

“Okay, okay.” She groaned and got up, stretching. “That was the best sleep I’ve had in a long time.”

“For you and me both,” Nikki muttered as he cracked his neck. “So, room service or hotel restaurant?”

“If we do room service, we might not want to leave. So better actually make ourselves go downstairs.” She laughed.

“Lead the way sweet girl,” he smiled as he put on his shoes and grabbed his room key. They got tables at the restaurant. When the waitress came by, (Y/n) ordered her drink and added a special instruction.

“No matter what my friend here says, I’m paying, not him.” She smiled at the girl. She looked over at Nikki. “I guess I’m quicker.” She laughed.

“Minx,” he teased and stuck out his tongue at her.

“You like it and you know it.” She teased.

Conversation flowed smoothly, and their food came pretty quickly. (Y/n) was so happy as they ate, she didn’t want it to be over. She sighed when she looked at the time.

“I gotta head out. Wanna meet up with me later?” She asked.

“You know I do, you don’t even have to ask.” he smiled. “You just gotta tell me the time and the place.”

“I will.” She smiled. “If you wanna stop by my place, we can go to dinner from there.” She wrote down the address for him. “I’ll tell the doorman to let you in.”

“Ok,” he nodded. “I’ll catch you later sweet girl.” She kissed his cheek and headed towards the door after paying for their meals. She caught a cab and drove a few streets over, where taking a deep breath, she made her way into her therapist's office. It was her appointment to refill her prescription, one that couldn’t be canceled.

****

“Hey Nikki, I’m done with my appointment,” (Y/n) said to his voicemail. She hoped he couldn’t hear that she had been crying. “I need to run an errand and I’m heading to my apartment. You can call me back if you want.” She hung up and made her way into the pharmacy, handing the prescription over and waiting the fifteen minutes it took to fill it.

Having heard her voicemail, Nikki left the Elektra New York offices, sighing. It was a constant battle with the executives to get them to give him back creative license to their songs. He hated it. Grabbing the paper with her address, he hailed a cab and made his way over.

(Y/n) was standing at her bathroom counter when she heard a knock on her door. She made her way to it and opened it, letting Nikki in. She put a smile on her face.

“Welcome to my crib!” She laughed. “It’s...it’s not much…” It was actually pretty empty, just a couple pieces of furniture in the living room with a TV. Whereas Nikki’s house was filled with things that he just had to buy with his newfound money, (Y/n) didn’t want to call this place home.

“It’s um…” Nikki wasn’t sure what to say. “It’s pretty empty, to be honest… you ok?”

“Oh yeah, I’m great!” She told him. “Just make yourself at home. I have a couple things to do then we can go.” She led him to the couch and handed him the remote. “Place came with cable.”

“Well that is a deal breaker,” he kissed her cheek and smiled. “So, what do we do now? God I’m lame I… you are the only girl I’m ever this mushy for.” Nikki licked his lips and closed his eyes. “It is taking me all of my will power from just sitting you on the couch and making out with you.” he breathed.

“Maybe that could be an after dinner activity.” She teased. “Let me do a couple things and I’ll be right back.”

“Yeah sounds good,” he smiled and rocked on his heels.” She went into the kitchen, thinking Nikki couldn’t see, but he could. He watched as she opened an orange bottle, threw a pill in her mouth, and drank some water before heading back to her room to change.

Nikki walked over to the cabinet and opened it reaching for the bottle. He wasn’t sure why he did it, but he was worried about her. He tilted his head as he saw the name on the bottle.

“It’s not speed.” (Y/n) told him, making him jump. “You don’t have to worry about that…”

“Shit,” he jumped and looked at her. “Sorry… I just… what is it exactly? I mean if it’s not speed… it’s not anything dangerous is it?” he put the bottle back and looked at her. His face full of worry. Maybe he came on too strong and was moving too fast.

“Read the bottle.” She told him. “I know you’ve seen the ads. I’m sure you know what Prozac is Nikki…”

“You’re on antidepressants…” Nikki muttered as he looked down at his shoes. He took a soft swallow closing his eyes. This was his fault, he cause this for her. Clearing his throat he nodded. “I um… I get it…”

“It’s not you Nikki.” She told him. “I’ve been alone here for awhile now. And I just...some things happened…” She wiped at her eyes. “I thought New York would be a fresh start. But I feel worse here than I ever did in LA…”

“It’s hard not to blame myself when I can see that I caused a lot of your pain, (Y/n/n).” he shook his head. “I am partially to blame for this you know and I accept that. Because if I don’t… I know I’ll spiral again.”

“You didn’t give me the whiskey and sleeping pills!” (Y/n) yelled. “I…” She turned and walked out of the kitchen, fully expecting Nikki to leave. She made her way to her room, so she didn’t have to watch him walk out of her life.

NIkki followed her and pulled her into his arms, “Hey… hey… just let it out…” he gently ran his fingers through her hair rocking her back and forth.

“Everyone I love is three hours behind me.” (Y/n) cried. “When it’s 8 here and getting dark, Tommy’s just waking up.” she clung to him, not wanting him to go. “I...you probably want to be with someone more stable than me, don’t you?”

“What gave you that idea?” Nikki held her face in his hands staring into her eyes. “(Y/n)... I missed you and trust me I am the poster boy for instability, so we just have to learn to help each other out.” he smiled. “But I’m not going anywhere now that I found you. Mick might say I’m moving like a sloth, but it’s hell of a lot better that moving like a rocket if it means I get to keep you forever.” She looked up into her eyes, offering a small smile.

“I’m so glad you came back into my life.” (Y/n) whispered.

“I’m just glad you let me back in,” Nikki offered her a teary smile. “I was prepared to just be your friend if that’s what you wanted, but I am happy that I can hold you and kiss you and….” he wanted to say love her but he knew that was to fast. He moved in and kissed her forehead, hoping that was enough.

“I’m sure you’re hungry.” (Y/n) murmured against his chest. “I don’t cook as much as I used to.”

“I actually started to learn how to,” Nikki breathed. “How about we buy some groceries and I make you a nice lasagna?”

“There’s a good Italian place down the street.” (Y/n) said. “I...uh...don’t have anything to cook in honestly.” Nikki looked down at her, realizing then just how rough things had been for her since she left for New York.

“Ok, we get to do some shopping for essentials,” he smiled. “It’ll be an adventure in domestication.”

“Nikki Sixx domesticated? Next thing you know, you’ll have a show on TV.” She laughed a little. She wanted to tell him so bad that she loved him, but he hadn’t said it yet and she didn’t want to cause anything that might ruin all the work he had done with his rehab.

“OK, well let’s go shall we?” he smiled at her as he grabbed his jacket. He held the door open for (Y/n) as she grabbed her purse. He smiled once she locked her door as they walked off to buy the things they needed.

Forever Tags: @anathewierdo @dekahg @marvel-af-imagines @feelmyroarrrr @nanie5 @imboredsueme @gemini0410 @aiaranradnay @babypink224221 @mogarukes @xxwarhawk @sandlee44 @shatteredabby @caswinchester2000 @supernaturalwincestsblog @lauravic @mrsambroserollinsacklesmgk @teller258316 @horrorpxnk @tommyleeownsme

Motley Crue Tags: @primal-screamer @waywardprincess666 @twistnet @saint-of-los-angeles @vader-kai @motleyfuckingcruee @sharon6713 @kawennote09 @2dead2function @nikkisixxwiththebass @iamtiber-andtiberismusic @jayprettymuchomw @charlyallise @you-know-im-a-dreamer @sweet-dreams-on-butterfly-wings @estxxmotley @arianareirg @the-normal-potato @nikki-sixxtynine @jjjjjjjoshdun @just-a-normal-fangirl18 @stella20131991 @tarahell @wowilovenikkisixx @i-want-to-shoot-myself @motleycrueee @sams-serialkiller-fetish @getbackhonkycatt @are-you-reddie54321 @flamencodiva @lesliethegroupie @deacyduck @scarecrowmax

Nikki Sixx Tags: @daisystuffsstuff @unknownoblivion @deakysblueoutfit

Too Young to Fall in Love Tags: @kingbouji3 @leximus98 @thekidbakerinthetardis @crystalbaby12 @shawnsstxtches @knockemdeadgirl @deansgirl1993

#too young to fall in love #Motley Crue #nikki sixx #nikki sixx x reader #nikki x reader #the dirt #dirt!nikki sixx #dirt!nikki sixx x reader #dirt!nikki x reader #dirt!nikki #fanfiction

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bytheangell · 5 years

Note

hi elle! idk how you feel about max, but what about follow up moments of max calling magnus his brother and seeing magnus reactions?

Family is Where You Find Love(Read on AO3)

Maryse knows that she hasn’t always been the best example for her children. The lengths she went to in order to secure what she thought would be a place of power for them in the world only served to backfire and bring shame on their entire family name, and the prejudices she carried with her until embarrassingly recently were instilled in them as well, she’s certain.

Especially in young Max, who is still impressionable, who still watches her and Robert like a hawk to absorb and imitate. She knows that it’s her own fault her youngest harbors a distrust of Downworlders, and of Magnus Bane specifically - after all, she did nothing but speak poorly of him after Alec’s almost-marriage to Lydia, and the party he hosted for Max’s rune ceremony, and a number of other occasions she often tries to block from her mind.

And though she’s done her best to explain to him how wrong she was all those times she knows that it’s not nearly enough. Alec and Jace and Isabelle, they’re all old enough to see the change of heart she takes, to understand the sudden shift in her attitude and to embrace it rather than question it. But Max? Well, if she managed to not mess up the eldest three despite two full decades of perpetuating harmful rhetoric, she can only hope that the same holds true for her youngest.

She’s trying. When Max doesn’t quite understand why they were so happy for Alec now when they were so upset with him not too long ago for dating this same man, this warlock, Maryse does her best to make it very clear that it was her and Robert who were wrong, not Alec. Never Alec, and certainly not Magnus, who only ever had Alec’s best interests at heart. Max listens, and nods, and remains mostly silent throughout the ceremony.

Until the reception, when Max approaches Magnus and asks what he should call him now. Magnus doesn’t show the tension that the rest of them clearly feel - Maryse’s own muscles tense and her lips press together into a thin line of worry as Magnus looks down at Max and asks what he wants to call him. Alec rolls his eyes across from her and Maryse holds her breath as the response comes, already mentally preparing a million ways to respond to whatever Max is about to say.

What she isn’t prepared for is the answer Max gives.

“How about… brother?”

It’s all Maryse can do to stop herself from crying on the spot, nearly beaming with pride before turning her gaze to meet Magnus’ and catch his reaction.

It’s priceless. Magnus nods at Alec, and while he’s clearly surprised it’s the most pleasant daze of amazement, his features softening and a smile spreading immediately, voice heavy with emotion when he replies, “Sounds like a plan,” with a barely noticeable hitch to his words. But Maryse can see it - the relief at the love and acceptance they’re all here to give him, unwavering and unquestioning.

In that one word Max conveyed something the rest of them echo, and watching Magnus avert his gaze to recollect himself for a moment Maryse can see how much this family means to him. And Max is right - that’s what Magnus is now, and always will be.

Husband. Son. Brother.

Family.

—

There will always be talk, Izzy learned at an early age. In fact, she’s long since come into the opinion that if people aren’t talking about you in some capacity then you’re probably doing something wrong, because anything worth doing is going to be controversial to someone. Or maybe that’s just how she justifies her own habitually scandalous decisions time and time again. She’s used to it. In fact, though she’ll never admit it, sometimes she intentionally seeks out the thrill factor of knowing she’s going to get a rise out of people for simply speaking her mind.

But that’s her. When it comes to her family, however, it’s a different story altogether.

After picking more than a couple of fights with other Shadowhunters - peers and elders alike - over their opinions on her brother’s then-boyfriend, Alec pulled her aside one day and made her promise to just let them go. Which she did, reluctantly, and was about to do again while walking down to the cafeteria with Max, Alec, and Magnus.

“Can you believe we can’t even go a day at our own Institute without seeing more of them walking the halls like they own the place?”

She doesn’t have to look over to know the ‘them’ in question is, quite pointedly, the warlock linking hands with Alec. She’s also quite certain the jab at Downworlders in general is meant to reference Simon as well, who is around more and more often spending time with her. Izzy opens her mouth to say something but, remembering her promise to Alec, simply rolls her eyes and continues walking instead. Out of the corner of her eye she watches the muscles in Alec and Magnus’ arms and shoulders tense between them, their grip on one another a little tighter while refusing to justify the provocative insult with a response. And then–

“Excuse me,” comes the sound of Max’s voice. Max, who stopped short a second or two ago without them noticing, and was now turning to face the two Shadowhunters passing by in the opposite direction. “That was very rude, and that’s my brother you’re talking about. You should apologize.”

One of the men, surprised to be called out by a child, turns to face Max with a condescending grin. “C’mon, kid. We weren’t talking about Alec.”

“Neither was I,” comes Max’s simple reply. Isabelle watches as he shifts slightly to turn around and give Magnus a small, determined nod, as if to say ‘Don’t worry, I got you’. And though Max turns right back around to face the older Shadowhunters Isabelle’s eyes linger on Magus instead.

She watches the way Magnus holds himself a little straighter, shoulders back, chest out. She watches Magnus try to mask the shock of Max’s actions, and then the pride over them, before finally managing something relatively neutral.

The two men exchange a questioning glance and Izzy realizes they’re actually considering picking some bigoted fight against a child until they see the same thing she sees: Magnus, hand no longer in Alec’s but lightly clenched at his side, ready to fight anyone who would dare pick on a child for exhibiting something as simple as manners. Of course, Magnus is careful to remain directly behind Max, so when the two men decide to leave without another word Max turns around with a victorious grin, none-the-wiser that it wasn’t entirely him who scared them off.

Izzy watches carefully as Magnus kneels down to Max’s level. “Thank you for that, Max. But I don’t want you to get yourself into trouble for me, okay? If something like that happens again just ignore them.”

Max frowns. “You’d do the same if someone was making fun of me, wouldn’t you?”

And damn, when did her little brother get so clever? Izzy smirks, bringing her hand up to cover her mouth in an attempt to hide it. She knows she shouldn’t be encouraging this but she can’t help it - watching Magnus’ face contort in an attempt to come up with some answer that wins for everyone. In the end he can only nod.

“Of course I would, Max.” Magnus finally admits, knowing there’s no other answer he can give.

“Alright then.” Is all Max replies, already starting to walk ahead of them down the hall.

“He gets that from the two of you, you know,” Magnus says to Alec and Izzy. And with Max safely in front of them Izzy allows her smirk to show through in full, positively beaming.

“He certainly does.” And she couldn’t be prouder.

—-

Jace was put in charge of Max’s training a few months ago and the improvement he’s made in that short amount of time shouldn’t be surprising to anyone. He is a Lightwood, after all, though his tendency to favor rune work and tactical studies over actual physical battle left everyone a little concerned during the first few years of his proper training.

Turns out he just needed someone who knew him better, and could properly play to his strengths while improving his weaknesses. Max is quickly becoming a natural, picking up on new weapons much faster than most of the other Shadowhunters his age due to his extensive studies in the how and the why of them rather than just hitting and jabbing at will. That, Jace supposes, comes from having a former Weapons Master for a sister.

“You’re not this mean when you’re training Simon,” Max whines, retrieving the staff Jace just hit out of his hand for the dozenth time that afternoon.

“You’re right,” Jace returns. “I’m meaner to Simon, so consider yourself lucky. Now get back into position.”

“Or…” comes a voice from the doorway, where Jace and Max both turn to see Magnus with a travel carrier full of smoothies. “You could take a well-earned nutrient break. Fresh fruit smoothies to fuel what have got to be two very exhausted Shadowhunters by now.” Magnus pauses, eyes darting specifically do Jace. “That is, if it’s alright with your instructor.”

Jace looks like he’s about to protest when Max runs to his side, already repeating, “Please, please, please?” and Jace can only sigh in defeat.

“Fine. But only for 10 minutes. No, 5 minutes!” Jace says, raising his voice as Max is already halfway across the room to where Magnus waits, a plastic cup already held out.

“Thank you, Magnus!” Max says, eagerly taking the cup. “This is why you’re my favorite brother.”

Max says it loud enough for Jace to hear, and Jace is positive that’s on purpose, because Max gives a side-eyed glance in his direction to see his reaction. Jace is about to protest when he catches the way Magnus’ expression lights up, lips curling up in a wide grin he couldn’t stop if he tried. Jace always saw how important Alec was to Magnus; anyone would have to be blind not to. But he’s only just now starting to realize how much their entire family means to Magnus, not just Alec.

So instead of insisting that Magnus is only the favorite because he hasn’t been around long enough to be annoying - a comment he’d only be making in jest, of course - Jace remains uncharacteristically silent as he follows behind to grab the other smoothie.

“Yeah, well Magnus is my favorite brother, too. So I guess we’re even.” Jace finally says, just loud enough for Max to hear. “Thanks for these,” he adds, no longer surprised at the little extra thoughts Magnus puts towards the rest of them these days and how seamlessly Magnus blends into their lives now. “Want to join us?” Jace asks, motioning to the mats. “Maybe you wouldn’t be the favorite if you’re the one knocking him over once and a while.”

Magnus looks down at his outfit with an exaggeratedly helpless shrug, as if it’s an excuse and he couldn’t just use his magic to change. “Not today. I wouldn’t want to ruin my date night makeup, after all. Guess I’ll just have to stay the favorite a little while longer.”

Watching Max run up to give Magnus a hug goodbye, Jace knows he doesn’t mind that one bit.

—

The party to celebrate Alec and Magnus’ new positions in Alicante is a similar mix of attendees as the wedding, full of Shadowhunters and Downworlders alike, this time at the much more neutral ground of the Loft.

Magnus is surprised at how many of the faces that were unfamiliar to him at the wedding are, at the very least, acquaintances now. A few of the Shadowhunters come over to congratulate him while he hangs off to the side with Raphael and he knows almost all of them by name now.

Alec, at the moment, is tied up in the corner with his parents and siblings who are fussing over trying to get one nice photo of the lot of them. Simon, the unfortunate soul behind the camera, looks like he’s starting to realize this could easily take the rest of the night at this rate.

Raphael snickers as Maryse licks her thumb and uses it to get a bit of something off of Jace’s face while Jace squirms away in protest.

“Do you ever feel like you missed out, not having that experience? Doting parents, siblings to taunt you… just a normal family life?” Raphael asks. Magnus knows the lengths Raphael went to keep his time with his family as close to normal as possible (given his circumstances) while Magnus’ own experience with family from a young age was… well, traumatic, to say the least.

Magnus is about to answer when he hears his name from across the room.

“Wait, Magnus! You need to be in the family picture, too!” It’s Max, eagerly breaking free of his dad’s grip around his shoulders to motion for him to come join them.

Magnus turns to Raphael with a smile. “I used to. But it seems like that life didn’t pass me by forever… It just took a little longer to get to me.”

Magnus looks at the Lightwoods and sees the live he often wished for - the life he never dared to dream he might have one day.

It’s a gift he’s never going to take for granted for as long as he gets to call it his.

#magnus bane #malec #shadowhunters #maryse lightwood #shfanficnexus #alec lightwood #jace herondale #izzy lightwood #okay so this got a little more family feels than specifically brother feels #but I HOPE YOU LIKE IT <3 #and HAPPY BIRTHDAY CARLA!#elle writes a few deadbeat lines #kindaresilient #ask rune

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golden-deer-dear · 5 years

Text

History on Repeat, Chapter 2: Lost, Claude x Byleth Modern Fic

Summary: Byleth slept after she lost him, awakening ages later to Garreg Mach University. She is drawn into the friendly competition between dorm floors, an argument as to which D&D group is better, trips to coffee shops, and the questions into her own lost memories.

Claude could not help but be suspicious of Seteth’s niece who appeared out of nowhere, but there was something so familiar about her, something that made his heart ache. How had she appeared in his dreams years before either of them even came to the University?

Read on AO3.

Prologue Chapter 1

The stone was warm against his back as he laid down, folding his arms behind his head to serve as a cushion. Starlight winked down at him, making him feel more relaxed than he had felt in years. He picked out familiar constellations, the myths behind them floating through his mind.

“I knew you’d be up here.”

He couldn’t help but smile. He would recognize that melodious voice anywhere. “And I knew you’d find me eventually.”

She let out a soft hum, amusement lining her voice. “What would Seteth say if he caught us sneaking out on our own engagement party?”

She sat down next to him, and without even thinking about it his arms wrapped around her, pulling her flush against his body. “He’ll get over it.” He kissed her, brushing back mint green strands of hair to tuck behind her ear. “Tomorrow I get to marry the most amazing woman in the world. No one could ruin this for me.”

Her laughter rang clear through the night air. She said something, and he responded with something equally amusing. But the dream was fading, and he could no longer make out the words.

He could feel her straddle him, kissed her back when she leaned down to kiss him, hot and desperate. He felt his body respond to her, eager for her touch. But her smile and laughter, the beauty of her above him, slipped through his fingers.

Claude woke with a deep groan and slammed a pillow over his face. For a week now he had dreamed of the green haired woman. Sometimes he fought at her side. Sometimes they were matching wits in political battles. The last two nights, however, Claude found himself whispering words of love to her, kissing and touching her in only the way two people deeply in love would.

“Great,” he said into his pillow, voice muffled by the fabric and stuffing. “I’m having fucking wet dreams about some fantasy woman my mind cooked up. Just wonderful.”

Byleth was bored.

There were only so many times she could walk the estate before the repetitiveness of the action was no longer interesting or distracting. Flayn had shown her how to work the device known as a TV, but she was so far removed from knowing any cultural context that it all flew over her head. (She had found a few romance movies she enjoyed, but the majority made her sigh with disappointment. The overuse of small moments of miscommunication as a plot line was baffling to her.) Even the phone Seteth had given her had stopped working.

She needed to get out of the house. Her boredom was going to turn her to insanity at this rate. Which was why she was finding her way to the garage. Indech was there, as he always was, polishing a black car that was already spotless. He glanced up at her when she entered, but did not stop his task.

Indech was a broad shouldered man. When he stood still he looked more like a bulwark than a human. Byleth was certain she had never heard him speak, but like Flayn and Seteth, there was something about him that felt familiar. It was nowhere near as strong, more like a nagging at the very back of her mind than the comfort she felt with the other two.

She watched him for a few minutes, comfortable with the silence. Indech did not try to draw her into conversation, nor did he really expect anything from her. Byleth figured that was why she came to the garage so often the past few days and watched him work on Seteth’s collection of classic cars.

When Indech straightened and turned to her, Byleth finally asked, “Can you take me to where Flayn and Seteth are?”

Indech gave her a shrewd look, but eventually nodded. He led her over to another car, this one more convintinal than the previous one he had worked on. He held the passenger door open for her, and helped her with the seatbelt. Byleth had seen him take Flayn and Seteth into town, but never actually been in a car herself.

Indech got in on the driver’s side and they were off. The change in scenery did wonders for Byleth’s mood immediately. She leaned back in the plush seat, watching as the green acreage of the estate gave way to the roads and buildings of a small town. Buildings grew taller and closer together, more people were about to wander the streets.

Indech eventually pulled the car up alongside a group of buildings, many people coming and going from each of them. Some of them did not seem to care about the multiple cars they were having to dodge as they ran to their next destination.

Cars honked at Indech as he parked the car, seemingly somewhere he was not supposed to, but that soon stopped as soon as the large man stepped out of the car. He came around to the other side and opened the door for Byleth, offering her his hand to help her out. Once she was on her feet, he pointed to a building at the center of campus. “There,” he said in a deep and rumbling voice, somehow reminding Byleth of the sea. “Can you find your way?”

Byleth nodded. Sure the paths were packed, but it should not be too hard to find her way to the large central building.

Indech made a soft noise of acknowledgement, the rumble of waves against the shore. He then pointed again, this time across the street from the campus building. There was a shopping center, but Indech seemed to specifically be indicating a...well, Byleth was not sure what a Bergliez Smoothie was. “I will be there if you need me.”

When she nodded again, Indech ducked back into the car. Byleth watched him pull back into the traffic flow of the parking lot before turning back to the central building. Right. This would not be hard at all. She just had to get there, and then ask someone where Flayn was.

Of course, as disinterested as she had been in TV programming, once she was actually out and about in society, everything was fascinating. Byleth found herself wandering, letting the conversations about topics she could not even begin to understand wash over her. There was something about it all that made her feel at ease. Being here felt right.

It was only much later that she realized she had lost sight of the building Indech had pointed out. She couldn’t even retrace her steps, as she had not been paying attention to where she’d come from in the first place.

“But it’s ridiculous! How hard is it really to find chantilly lace!”

“But isn’t that stuff really expensive?” Annette interjected when Hilda paused to breathe. “It’s made by hand, right?”

But Hilda had stopped midstep. Marianne nearly ran into her back, scrambling at the last minute to rebalance her book on the integration of Fódlan and Almyran culture before it could hit the ground. “Hilda?”

Hilda jerked her head toward whatever had caught her attention. Marianne followed her gaze, and felt a similar jolt of shock. “Oh my!”

“Poor thing, she looks lost.” Marianne was glad Mercedes had interpreted their shock as something else entirely. “We should help her.”

Mercedes’ words seemed to spark something inside Hilda, and she quickly outpaced the other three women. “Hey!” Hilda shouted, gaining the woman’s attention. “You lost?”

Marianne hurried up to met Hilda, coming up alongside the woman. Her mint green hair was long and braided. Her eyes did not hold the fierce determination that came with battle. No, now they were confused, and slightly grateful as the group came to her aid.

But there was no denying it. Before them stood Claude’s goddess.

The goddess nodded. “I was trying to find my uncle and cousin, but I got distracted and lost my way,” she admitted.

“What are their names? Perhaps we know them,” Mercedes said, her pleasant voice causing the woman to relax somewhat.

“Seteth and Flayn.”

Marianne saw her own shock mirrored on the faces of her friends. “Well, Seteth’s office is in the Cathedral Tower, but he usually doesn’t spend much time there,” Marianne said after a second.

“Flayn is usually running around all over campus as well,” Annette added. “But she does eventually always seem to end up at Gateway.”

“I mean, the easiest thing to do would be to text one of them and see where they are,” Hilda said. “You didn’t lose your phone too, did you?”

The goddess shook her head, pulling the device from her pocket. “No, but it’s not working anymore.”

She did not protest when Hilda took the phone from her hand, giving it a quick study. “I just think it’s dead. Don’t you have a charger?”

Marianne could tell Hilda was trying her best to maintain a pleasant demeanour, but the woman’s appearance had thrown her, and their conversation was only raising her suspicions.

“I-um...no,” the woman admitted. “They didn’t explain that part to me.” She looked between all of them, worry in her eyes at their own shock. “I...I’ve been in a hospital for a very long time,” she said slowly. If Marianne had a less trusting nature, she would say the woman was repeating a line someone had told her. “I was in an accident as a child.”

“Oh, you poor thing.” Mercedes clasped her hands in front of herself, pity replacing her earlier shock. “Well, we’ll be certain to show you around. Annie is right, Flayn usually does show up at Gateway, so if we take you there we’ll be sure to find her eventually!”

“Yeah!” Annette agreed, offering the woman a warm smile. “I’m Annette, by the way.”

“Mercedes.” Mercedes offered her hand, and after a moment of hesitation the woman mimicked her gesture. “But you can call me Mercie if you want.”

“I’m Hilda. And that’s Marianne.” Marianne was grateful when Hilda introduced her. She always found introductions a bit difficult and awkward. “And,” Hilda continued, “while I don’t have a charger that’ll fit this phone, I know Claude is at Gateway right now and he always carries his. I’m pretty sure it’s the one we need for yours.”

“Thank you.” The woman nodded, a soft smile on her face. “Oh, and I’m Byleth.”

Marianne felt a sudden sense of deja vu. She could not remember where she had heard the name before, but it sounded so familiar. Which was odd, as it was such a strange name to begin with. Perhaps in one of her history books. There were so many legends in Fódlan’s past it would not surprise her if Byleth was named after one of them.

“All right, Byleth!” Hilda hooked one arm around Byleth’s and began to drag her toward the campus cafe. “Let’s go find Claude!”

“Monica, are you listening?”

“Hmm? Oh no. Sorry, I must have spaced out there for a moment.” Kronya only took her eyes away from the group of young women to look at her phone, swiping through the pictures she had just taken to make sure she had at least one good one of that dreadful woman’s face. “Actually, I just remembered an appointment I’m supposed to be at soon. I’ll see you all later.”

She ignored the protests as she stood to leave, pushing past students without giving a second thought to the curses they threw at her back. No, none of that mattered, not anymore.

The goddess’ little vessel, that terrible Fell Star, was awake once more. After so many years they could finally get their revenge on her.

“Thales is going to be so pleased with me!” she practically sang to herself.

One touch to the screen and the message was sent.

#fire emblem #claude x byleth #claudeth #claudeleth #claude von riegan #byleth #my fic #history on repeat #fanfic

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onwardintolight · 5 years

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Han x Leia, ESB, Trip to Bespin, angst, hurt/comfort, fluff

Summary: ESB from Leia's POV. A journey from despair to hope, a blossoming, an opening to vulnerability and love.

Warnings: Deals with some heavy themes, incl. working through trauma, depression, self-harm, attempted sexual assault. Each chapter will be individually warned.

Note: I’m currently in the process of reposting the first nine chapters here in full, since when I first wrote this fic, I only shared links to the chapters on AO3 and FFN. I will try to post at least weekly. In the meantime, if you’d prefer to binge-read it, the entire fic is posted in full on AO3 and FFN.

Part: Masterlist | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | Epilogue

~~~

Puffy clouds of rose gold melted into orange, and violet striations marked the sky as if placed there by brushstroke. It was dawn, and the city in the clouds shone with reflected colors as the Falcon finally made its approach.

Leia’s breath would have caught at Bespin’s extraordinary beauty if it hadn’t already been shallow with worry.

Two small ships with twin pods, presumably from the Cloud City security force, flanked their side threateningly. A curt voice came over the comm.

“No, I don’t have a landing permit,” Han repeated. Annoyance filled his voice as he slowed down his enunciation in an effort to get the message across. “I’m trying to reach Lando Calrissian!”

Without warning, the Falcon jolted as the cloud cars fired on them. Leia sucked in a breath, alarmed at the unexpected escalation. Great, she thought.

“Wait a minute!” yelled Han into the comm. “Let me explain!”

“You will not deviate from your present course,” said the voice.

“Rather touchy, aren’t they?” remarked Threepio as he stood behind Chewie.

Leia glanced at Han. “I thought you knew this person.”

«You think he’s still angry at us for leaving him during that job on Socorro?» Chewie asked.

“Well, that was a long time ago; I’m sure he’s forgotten about that,” Han muttered.

Leia was not comforted. She glared at Han, biting her tongue to avoid saying something she would regret.

“Permission granted to land on Platform Three-Two-Seven,” one of their escorts said.

“Thank you!” Han growled. He paused, sensing Leia’s spiraling unease. “There’s nothing to worry about,” he insisted. “We go way back, Lando and me.”

“Who’s worried?” Leia replied dryly.

Following the cloud cars, they wove through the orange twilight into the still-shadowed city. Lights gleamed out of a hundred towers. Cloud City’s people were awakening and beginning their day; she could see their silhouettes in the windows as they passed, moving here and there. Homing in on the landing platform they were being directed towards, Han and Chewie began the landing cycle, and soon, for the first time in three weeks, they were on the ground. The sigh of the ship as it came to rest had a certain air of finality to it.

Wordlessly, the four of them rose and headed towards the boarding ramp, strapping on their weapons as they went. Han stopped her on the way, taking hold of her shoulders. “It’ll be all right,” he murmured. “I promise.” He gave her a quick kiss; she suspected it was as much to reassure himself as it was her. She wanted to believe his words, but every sense was on edge, the warning klaxons in her head growing steadily louder. This was not helped by the fact that when they descended the boarding ramp, they found only shut doors and an eerie silence.

“Oh! No one to meet us,” Threepio exclaimed.

Leia shook her head, stopping at the bottom of the ramp. “I don’t like this.”

“Well, what would you like?” Han turned around to face her, exasperation finally getting the better of him.

“They did let us land,” the droid commented.

“Look, don’t worry,” Han said, reaching out a hand to pacify her. “Everything’s going to be fine; trust me.”

Leia set her lips in a straight line. Before she could reply, however, they heard the unmistakable sound of a door sliding open. Turning to look down the length of the platform, they saw two people—one of whom wore a cape—consulting with each other in the doorway before walking out onto the platform, followed by a cadre of guards.

“See? My friend,” Han said. Taking two steps forward, he paused by Chewie. “Keep your eyes open, huh?” he muttered to the Wookiee before striding out to meet the approaching party. “Hey!” he called, spreading out his arms in welcome.

The caped man, leading the group, did not do the same. “Why, you slimy, double-crossing, no-good swindler!” he said coldly. “You’ve got a lot of guts coming here, after what you pulled.”

«Uh-oh,» growled Chewie.

The man approached Han. Without warning, he lunged—except it turned into a hug instead. He started laughing. “How’re you doing, you old pirate? So good to see you!” His tone had completely changed. “I never thought I’d get to see you again! Where’ve you been?” At a signal from his aide, who appeared to be a cyborg, the guards left.

«Just like old times!» Chewie remarked cheerfully.

“He seems very friendly!” said Threepio.

“Yes,” grumbled Leia. “Very friendly.” She followed the other two as they went to to join Han in the middle of the platform.

“What are you doing here?” Lando was still quizzing Han.

“Repairs. I thought you could help me out.”

Lando frowned. “What have you done to my ship?”  

“Your ship? Hey, remember you lost her to me fair and square.”

“And how are you doing, Chewbacca?” Lando turned to greet the Wookiee. “You still hangin’ around with this loser?”

«Better than hanging around with you!» Chewie teased, though Leia didn’t think Lando could understand him.

All of a sudden, Lando’s attention was entirely on her. “Hello, what have we here?” he crooned.

Leia bit back her anger at being called a “what.” Just… give him a chance, she told herself. Maybe he’s not so different from Han.

“Welcome! I’m Lando Calrissian, the administrator of this facility. And who might you be?”

“Leia.” She forced a smile, and the once-scoundrel bent down to kiss her hand. Her eyes met Han’s; she saw a flash of jealousy there, which made her feel rather gratified.

“All right, all right,” Han said good-naturedly, grabbing Leia’s hand as he moved between them and escorted her towards the door. “You old smoothie!” She smiled, the tension that had been building for days finally beginning to melt into the background. Whatever lay ahead, they would at least have a day or two together in this beautiful city. She intended to enjoy it to the fullest of her ability.

____

Lando led them through the elegant, curved white halls of Cloud City. There were picturesque plazas and beautiful works of art seemingly around every bend, and with a pang, Leia realized it reminded her of home.

There were no dark, foggy rooms in sight.

“How’s the gas mine?” Han was asking Lando. “Is it paying off for you?”

“Oh, not as well as I’d like,” he answered. “We’re a small outpost and not very self-sufficient. And I’ve had supply problems of every kind. I’ve had labor difficulties—what’s so funny?”

Han was laughing. “You! Listen to you. You sound like a businessman, a responsible leader. Who would have thought that, huh?”

Lando seemed pleased at the backhanded compliment. He stopped, turning to face his old friend. “You know, seeing you sure brings back a few things.”

“Yeah.” Han put a hand on his shoulder.

They shared a meaningful look, then Lando led them on. “Yeah, I’m responsible these days.”

Han glanced back, catching Leia’s eyes. She smiled at him and nodded her approval. There was something about Lando’s charm that made her uncomfortable, but setting that aside, he really did seem decent and respectable. See? she told herself. Han’s right. You need to stop worrying.

“…it’s the price you pay for being successful,” Lando continued, and he and Han shared a laugh.

Lando pointed out potential places of interest as they passed: restaurants, shops, entertainment. Han and Leia’s eyes slid towards each other again. Her mind wandered, imagining her hand in his as they enjoyed a dinner under the light of candledroids or attended a play in the Nabooian theater.

Their guest suite was at the top of a central tower, not far from the landing platform. It consisted of a circular lounging chamber from which other rooms branched off. On one side of the chamber was a great, long window with a spectacular view over the city; on the other side were several doors leading to a breakfast room, a refresher, a smaller second lounge, and a bedroom with its own private refresher.

Lando had taken his leave after showing them to their suite, but not before offering to provide them with anything that would make their stay more comfortable. Leia requested some fresh clothes, and soon several elegant and perfectly fitted gowns were brought up along with a hammock for Chewie, which he hung up in the second lounge.

After hanging up her clothes, Leia took a closer look at the bedroom. In the middle of the chamber was a very large bed with impossibly soft-looking pillows and silky sheets. When was the last time she had slept in a proper bed? She imagined curling up next to Han on it, drifting off to sleep.

Of course, there were… other possibilities such a bed could offer. Possibilities that were highly tempting. She swallowed hard. Suddenly, she felt much more uncertain about her decisions.

Hearing a sound behind her, she turned to find Han, staring at the bed with a similar expression. His eyes flickered up and found hers. For one long moment they gazed at each other in silence.

Leia bit her lip. “Han….” she trailed off.

He swallowed. Then blinking, he squared his shoulders. “Uh, Chewie ’n me are gonna go back and get our travel bags from the Falcon.”

  Leia nodded, shaking off her thoughts. She followed him back out into the main lounge and quickly began making a checklist of things for them to bring back from the ship.

After a moment, she stopped short, frowning. Something didn’t feel right. Her eyes darted around the room, a sinking feeling in her heart. “Where’s Threepio?”

#Han x Leia #HanLeia #Han x Leia fic #HanLeia fic #Star Wars fic #SW fic #Leia Organa #Han Solo #Threepio #Chewbacca #Star Wars #The Opening #my fic #thoughts #my writing

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platonicone · 5 years

Text

Devotion - Story of the Oracle and her Shield

Chapter 19 - Faith

Without faith, what do you believe in? I wonder…

Their last car ride together was peaceful and enjoyable. They made small talks and recollected some of their fond memories in this car. Before they realized they were already by the Wiz Chocobo outpost.

“This is it,” he announced, turning off the ignition.

“For better or worse, this is it,” she affirmed, unbuckling her seatbelt.

“Let’s go meet Mr. Wiz Chocobo,” he stated, getting out of the car.

“Why don’t you go ahead? There is something I need to do,” she requested, looking slightly distracted.

Leon wondered what it was but decided not to ask. ‘She needs to have her space too,’ his mind rationalized.

“Okay, fine. Join me at that table when you are done. We will grab something to eat before we venture out for Ramuh,” he proposed. She nodded in response.

They had consolidated all their stuff in two bags, which Leon carried with him as he headed for the Chocobo ranch.

Leon handed over the car keys to Wiz and rented two Chocobos.

After taking care of all his chores, he sat at the dining table to look at the menu. “Hmm, this Green Smoothie looks nice. Lightning Resistance +90%, this is perfect for the upcoming battle.”

He waited for Luna for 10 minutes or so, but she did not come. Fearing for her safety, he decided to go look for her.

Just a little distance further from the car, he saw Luna sitting on the ground with some sort of book in her hand. He noticed that dogs were back by her side.

‘Seriously? Reading a book? Now?’ he couldn’t help but give a facepalm.

As he approached her, Umbra saw him and pounced on him. “Hey there, I’ve missed you too buddy,” he said, playing with Umbra.

Luna suddenly looked up when she heard his voice. She quickly wiped off her tears with the back of her hand, hoping he won’t see it. Unfortunately for her, Leon saw it. He sat in front of her. “Is everything okay?”

“Yes, everything is fine,” she replied with a forced smile. However, Leon saw right through her fake smile.

“So why were you crying?” he cut to the chase.

“No, I wasn’t,” she denied it.

Leon just rolled his eyes, and she knew that he was on to her. Leon saw the book in her hand and it was unlike anything he had seen before, so his curiosity got the best of him. “What is this book?”

Luna closed the book quickly and brought it close to her chest defensively. “It’s mine.”

Leon was taken aback by her reaction.

“I am sorry,” she apologized, realizing her mistake.

“It’s okay. You don’t have to tell if you don’t want,” he suggested.

“It’s fine. This is the diary I share with Prince Noctis,” she spoke softly, slowly extending her hands towards Leon offering him the diary.

‘Hell no. I don’t want to read a diary between the girl I love and her lover.’ A voice yelled in his mind.

Leon gently pushed back to the diary. “No, it is your private diary. I don’t want to see it.”

Luna nodded and appreciated his sincerity. “I usually send him some pictures and flowers and he sends me stickers. It is silly, I know.”

“Everything we do looks silly to someone else,” he commented while standing up, and she followed the suit. She tucked the notebook around Umbra’s collar and instructed him, “Wait for him here. When he comes here, give it to him.” Umbra seemed to understand what she said and ran away in the woods. Pryna too followed Umbra and disappeared behind him.

“I had sent Prince Noctis a message when I left Tenebrae. He had replied saying he couldn’t wait to see me,” she revealed, as they made their way to their table. Leon looked at her from the corner of her eye and saw how happy she was talking about it.

“Since we are at the cusp of awakening Ramuh, I thought I should leave him another message here,” she added.

‘Ask her what she wrote,’ urged his mind. ‘No, that is a stupid idea, DO NOT ask her,’ warned his heart.

‘Dude, you gotta know everything about your competitor. What’s wrong in that?’ Argued his mind. ‘Stop it. I don’t want to know. The more I know the more it hurts,’ countered his heart.

Luna noticed that Leon was distracted and was back to his emotionless face. Just to keep the conversation alive, she added, “I wrote to him that my prayers are with him.”

‘She didn’t write that she loves him! That’s a win for us. Woo-hoo. Party time!’ Screamed his mind. ‘Shut up.’

“I left a little leaf symbol too,” she mentioned, hoping for some sort of response from Leon.

“Why?”

“It is like a nature stamp. It’s our code to let him know that I am okay,” she conveyed, taking her seat at the dining table.

“Still doesn't explain why you were crying?” he stated, matter-of-factly with no emotions in his voice, as he took the opposite seat to her.

“It’s just that,” she paused slightly before continuing. “Some old memories resurfaced, that’s all,” she whispered, hoping that would be the end of this topic.

Luckily for her, the waiter came just as Leon had opened his mouth to say something. “What can I get ya?” asked the waiter.

“Gysahl Chips and two Green Smoothie please,” Leon ordered.

“Good choice, Sir. I’ll be right back with your order,” said the waiter courteously and left.

Luna gave him a quizzical look for not even asking her what she wanted. Leon understood that look and responded, “I had already checked the menu. Those are only two things we can eat here.”

They finished their meal in awkward silence. They seem to have a pattern of swinging between intense closeness and extreme avoidance.

“How do we get to Ramuh from here?” Leon asked, getting up from their table.

“To awaken the Stormsender, we must locate and gather three runestones scattered across Duscae. The first runestone is up north from here across the forest in a canyon.”

“All right, let’s do this,” Leon said, as he pulled out Chocobo whistle from his pocket. Two Chocobos came running to where they were. One Chocobo was white and another was of sky-blue color.

“Oh. My. God. They are so cute,” Luna spoke with palpable excitement. Leon couldn’t help but smile seeing her child-like enthusiasm.

“Which one is mine?” she asked eagerly.

“Whichever one you like,” he replied with a shrug.

“I want the white one. No, wait, I want sky-blue one. Oh, this is so exciting. I get to ride a Chocobo,” she gabbed, tightly grabbing Leon’s hand.

“Okay, I’ll take the white one then,” he affirmed. Luna nodded in approval. “Shall we go now?”

“Wait! We haven’t named them yet,” she said enthusiastically.

“Luna, they are rental Chocobos. Why would we name them?” he argued.

“Why wouldn’t we?” she countered as if it was the most obvious thing to do.

“They are rental Chocobos and they probably already have names. We can just ask Wiz,” he proposed.

“Leon, they are not just some rental property. They are like our pets. We share a bond with them,” she pleaded her case.

“But--” he tried to say something, but she cut him off. “No,” she declared without giving any further explanation or rationale. “We are naming them and that’s final.”

“Fine. Go ahead,” he surrendered.

“No, I am going to name my Chocobo and you name yours,” she proposed, petting her Chocobo. “Let me think, what should I call her?”

After a few moments her face and her eyes lit up, “I got it. I am going to call her Sant' Angelo di Roma.”

“That’s a long name,” he noted.

“What are you going to name yours?” she asked eagerly.

“I am going to call him Boko.”

It was her turn to facepalm now. “That’s it? Just Boko?”

“Yeah, back in my world, I had a Chocobo named Boko,” he revealed.

“You never said that you owned a Chocobo in your world. All you said that they were rare. There is a lot you need to tell me about your world, mister,” she said in a mockingly threatening way, wagging her finger.

“Yes, I will tell you all about it on our way to Ramuh. Now, can we go?” he asked.

“Mhm,” she nods.

“Good, I’ll go grab our bags.”

“I’ll feed the Chocobos meanwhile.”

Once everything was in place, they were ready to being their journey.

“Here we go,” he said, mounting on Boko. “Do you need some help?” he asked, looking back at her.

“No, I got this,” she said while mounting on her Sant' Angelo di Roma.

“Let’s ride,” he declared, adjusting the bridle of his Chocobo. “North from here, through the forest and into the canyon, correct?”

“100%” she affirmed. “Keep up with me rookie,” she taunted as she rode ahead of him.

“Trash talking from Luna. Did not see that one coming,” he admitted, and followed her.

He quickly caught up with her as they entered the forest.

“You are good at this. Where did you learn how to ride Chocobos?” he asked.

“Ravus and I used to ride Chocobos every day in Tenebrae when we were little,” she revealed, recollecting fond memories.

“You talk a lot about Tenebrae. How come you have never taken me there?” he asked.

“Because it is so far away from here. You can only get there by train or an airship. I would love to take you there,” she said, looking at him with a smile.

“I would love to see the place where you grew up. Meet all the people there and find out all embracing stories about you,” he said with a straight face.

“Hey, not cool,” she gave him the look. He just laughed in response. “Now tell me about Chocobos in your world.”

“What do you want to know?”

“Everything.”

Leon was still giving her history lesson when they had passed through the forest. As they rode along, they noticed the Digythe Haven campground on the other side of the road. After crossing the road, they continued through the woods.

They continued making small talks as they rode towards their destination. Leon couldn’t help but wonder how Luna can find so many things to talk about. He was certain that he had spoken more in the past few days with Luna than he had spoken in last one entire year.

As the woods cleared, they could see the canyon now.

“Where do we go now?” he asked, looking around.

“Gentiana said that there should be a large boulder with a path next to it,” she stated.

After exploring the area for a few minutes, Leon found the said landmark. They continued down the path through the small canyon until they spotted a large tree-like object being electrified.

“What is that?” he asked, pointing at the tree which seemed to burst with electricity.

“That’s our first runestone,” she replied with a smile.

They both go off from their Chocobos and carefully approached the lightning tree. “Do you think it is safe to touch it?” he asked, eyeing it carefully runestone.

“For Oracle, it should be,” Luna said confidently.

“But what if it’s not safe?” he asked concerned.

She grabbed Leon’s hand reassuringly, “Leon, I cannot let the fear of ‘what if’ hold me back. The only thing I am truly afraid of is doing nothing and losing everything.”

“The only thing I am afraid of is losing you. Let me try first,” he insisted.

“No, this is my calling and I must do it,” she replied calmly.

“Fine. I’ll be right next to you.” He was still reluctant to let go of her hand.

“You always are,” she replied with a reassuring smile and then tugged him along, still holding his hand.

With the trident in one hand, she offered a silent prayer to Ramuh and dared to touch the runestone. The electricity started flying all around her, but it faded just before it would touch her. The runestone seems to concentrate all the energy into itself as lightning danced around it and eventually exploded in a brilliant flash. The release of energy caused a thundering roar that could be heard for miles.

“Luna!” screamed Leon.

“I am okay. Just blinded by this lightning,” she reported, still covering her eyes.

“Thank God you are okay. I was worried for a second,” he stated, placing his hand around her shoulders.

“You worry too much, Leon. No wonder that frown never leaves your face,” she said with a smile.

‘Silly girl, you are all I have in this world,’ his heart confessed. ‘Eww, that sounds so cheesy,’ retorted his mind.

“Whatever,” he said, folding his hand and looking away, which always made her laugh.

They both made their way back to their Chocobos to continue their journey. “Where do we go now?” he inquired.

“The second runestone should be north of Alstor Slough and the nearby Coernix Station,” she recollected instructions from Gentiana.

They ventured out of the canyon and followed the dirt road. They could see the lights from Coernix Station from a distance.

“What was that thundering sound at the runestone?” Leon asked riding his Chocobo.

“It must be a sign from Ramuh. He is God of thunder and rain after all,” she noted, riding next to him.

“Speaking of that, look there,” he pointed at the sky.

“Cumulonimbus clouds,” she remarked, looking at the sky.

“Just a few minutes ago, there was not a cloud in the sky, but now there are cumulonimbus clouds everywhere,” he observed.

“Yes, this type of cloud is thunderstorm clouds. This must be Ramuh’s doing. Interacting with runestone must have caused this reaction.”

“The Astrals in your world are a lot more powerful than mine,” he admitted, still trying to comprehend how one Astral can change the entire weather with its power.

“How so?” she asked with curiosity.

“Maybe we should discuss this at some other time. Looking at the clouds, it's only a matter of time before thunder starts. Also, the wind has picked up too.”

“Yes, let's keep moving,” she affirmed.

Once closer to Coernix Station they crossed the road and continued to ride along the northern wall until they came across a chain-link fence.

“Where do we go now?” he asked.

“I think we need to go further west from here,” she suggested, navigating her Chocobo in that direction.

Eventually they came across a small opening in another canyon.

They dismounted and made their way inside the opening on foot. Based on their previous experience, they were at ease approaching the tree. Luna touched the second runestone and electricity started emanating from it. Sparks of electricity engulfed Luna, but it did not touch her. It looked as if there was some invisible barrier that kept it from touching her. The intensity of the sparks picked up and reached its crescendo before exploding in a blinding light. The resulting thunder echoed all around.

Once everything was settled, he asked, “You okay?”

She nodded and said, “One finally runestone before the Fulgurian reveals himself. Deep within the heart of rock lies the runestone, the portal to power.”

“Location?”

“The third runestone is located in a dungeon called Fociaugh Hollow above the Malacchi hills back to the east of Wiz Chocobo Post.”

As they were making their way to their Chocobos, Leon’s ears picked up on a familiar sound. His eyes shot up towards the sky and it was as he feared, “Damn, it’s the Empire.” Empire’s airship was coming towards the runestone. Leon noticed that it was hovering at a low altitude, which meant they were ready to deploy soldiers.

Leon grabbed Luna’s hand and said just one word, “Run.”

Hand in hand, they ran away from the Empire and towards their Chocobos. “What are they doing here?” she complained.

“Probably investigating. Two thundering noises and a sudden shift in temperature would certainly raise some flags,” he presumed, while running.

They were barely a few feet away from Chocobos when Leon suddenly stopped in his track, causing Luna, who was running behind him, to bump into him. “What happened?” she asked.

“Do you hear that?” he asked her.

“Damn. Another airship!” she noticed an airship coming towards them from the direction they were running towards.

“Come on, we need to move quickly,” he urged, getting on his Chocobo.

Leon quickly assessed their situation. There were airships on either side of them so he had to come up with a new way. “That way,” he pointed towards the dense forest. “We will go through the forest; trees should reduce our visibility.”

Once Luna was properly seated on her Chocobo he asked, “Ready to ride?” he asked.

“Always,” she promptly replied.

They dashed through the forest all the way back to Wiz Chocobo Post. The street lights whizzed past them as they made their way past Killiam Haven towards the mountain slopes. They dismounted from their Chocobos and tried to figure out where to go next.

“Where do we go now?” he asked.

“There should be a cave here somewhere,” she said, looking around.

Everything looked ordinary with no cave or any sign of Ramuh in sight.

“Hey, look at the sky,” Leon pointed out.

“Nimbostratus clouds,” she observed the clouds above. Nimbostratus clouds cover the sky in a dark gray layer. The layer of clouds was thick enough to block out the sun.

“Ramuh is certainly reacting to the runestone,” he commented, walking away from her, looking for this mythical cave.

“It looks like the sky is about to tear open and engulf all in a torrent,” she predicted, still fixated on the sky.

“Then we’d better find this cave soon. I don’t see any entrance around here,” he stated, inspecting the area.

“I guess prayer is the only remedy now,” having said that, she closed her eyes and communicated to the Astral being.

‘Oh, the wise Fulgurian, I entreat you to grant me an audience with thee. I, Lunafreya Nox Fleuret, the blood of the Oracle, aspire to assist the chosen King to restore light to this world. Without your blessings, such aspirations are but a fickle dream. Aid me, oh the merciful one.’

Her prayers were immediately answered with a crackling lightning bolt splitting the earth.

“And thus, Ramuh revealed the Fociaugh Hollow to have an audience with him,” she said with a smile looking at bewildered Leon, who was only a few feet away from where the lightning struck.

“So, Gods do hear your prayers.”

“Not just mine, everyone’s prayers heard equally,” she assured, making her way towards Leon.

“Then how come some prayers are answered and some don’t?” Leon asked the Oracle, giving her hand so she could climb on the ledge he was standing at.

She grabbed Leon’s hand and pulled herself forward. “All the prayers are heard, but only prayers meant for uplifting our souls are answered. Let me ask you this, if a small child wants to touch the fire, do you think parents would allow that?”

“No, the fire will burn the child.”

“What if the child cries and throws a tantrum to touch the fire?”

“Parents still won’t allow it. A small child might not know the dangers of the fire, but parents do.”

“Similarly, our desires are like that fire. If our desires can be detrimental to our soul in a long run, then the gods would not answer those prayers. Like a good parent, they will protect us from that fire, even if we cry or throw a tantrum.” She narrated as they made their way towards the entrance.

“Why do gods get to decide what’s good for me and what’s not?” Leon suddenly realized that their backpacks were still on their Chocobos. He jumped off the ledge and made his way to Chocobos.

“We humans can be very short-sighted. We can only see what’s in front of us. We can’t see the butterfly effect of our actions in the future. Gods can see past, present and future. Hence, they are best equipped to judge which wish to fulfill and which to avoid. We can pray and let our desires be known, and then trust God to fulfill it or not as they please. To trust that every situation God puts me through is for my own benefit; that is all faith is about.” She explained while Leon retrieved their backpacks from Chocobos.

Leon often forgets that the girl he is speaking to is the spiritual leader of the whole Eos. “It’s hard to keep faith when your prayers don’t get answered.”

“Any prayer done with pure hearts or intent is always answered. In my travels, I have learned that often our prayers are selfish, materialistic, or for a quick fix solution to our struggles. But it is in our struggles that we grow the most, but ironically, it is that struggle which we want to avoid the most.”

“What’s the point of praying if we are going to struggle anyway?” It just dawned to Leon that this is perhaps the first time she has spoken to him like an Oracle rather than Luna.

“Gods have mysterious ways of working. Our prayers are often answered, just not in the way we desire. A wise man one said that if you pray for patience, then God does not zap them with patience, but instead put them in a situation which requires them cultivate patience. If one prays for courage, then they are presented with an opportunity to be courageous. If one prays for closeness with the family, then God does not zap them with warm fuzzy feelings; Instead, the God give them opportunities to cultivate that bond. In looking for instant miracles, we often miss these opportunities presented to us. Unfortunately, it’s the lack of this understanding which turns people away from the God.” They were already by the entrance while chatting.

“Ready?” he asked, looking at her. She nodded in response.

They ventured into the pitch-dark cave, thankfully their flashlights lit up illuminating the way further. It took a few seconds for their eyes to adjust in this ambience.

“Let’s walk slowly. We don’t know what danger lurks here,” he offered, leading the way.

Leon was careful with every step he took. His eyes constantly scanning the surroundings for any threat. They walked through a long straight corridor before coming to a more open area.

“It feels odd that we haven’t encountered any enemies so far. Perhaps it’s Ramuh’s doing?” he asked, but got no response from Luna. He quickly glanced at her, but she did not make an eye contact. He decided not to probe it further and rather focus on the task at hand, so he continued further.

As they went deeper into the first chamber of the cave, suddenly they were greeted by a colony of bats. The horde of bats flew over them as they instinctively ducked.

“First rule of exploring caves, stay in the center and avoid corners,” he said.

Walking further eventually, they came to a dead end. “Dead end so soon? I thought this cave went deep. There has to be a way around.” Yet again, he elicited no response from Luna.

He touched the wall of the cave and the stone was solid and cold. Looking at the condition of the cave, he figured it must have been years since humans set foot in here. Even in his time at Hunter’s there was no knowledge of this cave’s existence. He looked around for an alternative path and eventually saw a narrow passage in the rock wall.

“I think we should be able to slip through this gap,” he suggested, looking at Luna who did not respond.

“Are you okay?”

“Mhm”

“Okay then, follow me,” he offered, and made his way through the narrow gap. The opening was so small that they had to go in sideways and move like that until they came out on the other side.

“Wait. Do you hear that?” Leon asked. Before Luna could reply, several Imps ambushed them. As Leon fought with the Imps, more joined the party. One of the Imps managed to attack Leon from the back and poison him.

Leon quickly glanced at Luna, who was supposed to be watching his back. She stood there motionless. “Luna, heal me,” he yelled, but she seemed frozen.

Creating some distance from the Imps, he quickly used the antidote and continued the fight. An Imp was about to attack Luna but was slashed in half by a mighty strike form Leon. He cleared out all Imps and checked on Luna. “Luna, are you okay?”

“Mhm”

“You sure?”

“Mhm”

Leon facepalmed before speaking again, “What is going on? Ever since we entered the cave, you haven’t spoken a word.”

“I-I am-m scared of d-dark and c-close spaces,” she confessed. “I am sorry I wasn’t able to help in the battle.”

“It’s all right. You should have said something sooner.”

“I didn’t want to be a burden on you. I thought I would be able to brave it, but I was wrong.”

“Didn’t you tell me once that relying on others is not a sign of weakness, but it’s a sign of trust?”

“I am sorry.”

“It’s all right. Just stay close to me.” Without waiting another second, she grabbed onto Leon’s hand as they moved forward.

‘I think it might be a good idea to have a conversation with her. It would help take her mind off from her fears. But what can I talk about?’

“I wonder how come we have more Astrals in my realm than here,” he asked as they walked further into the cave.

“What do you mean?”

“We have 24 Astrals in our realm. 16 of them, we can summon directly. Six of them appear randomly during battles or are summoned with items. Two of them I have only encountered in possession of sorceresses.”

“24 Astrals!” The tone in her voice indicated that this was a subject she enjoyed discussing very much.

“But I think Astrals here are a lot more powerful. They can cause quakes or cause thunder and rain. Hell, they can even wipe out the whole town from the face of the map if they choose. At least the Astrals in my realm had no such power.”

“Then what kind of power do they wield there?”

“We mainly summon them in battle, but the execution of their power is limited to the foe.”

“Astrals with such limited power. There has to be more than that.”

“Perhaps. Astrals here are part of people’s lives and cultural lore. Their actions can affect people’s lives directly, which I find fascinating.”

“So, in your realm, Astrals are nothing more than tools of war?”

“Yes.”

“That is sad. Astrals are beings with will and intelligence beyond human wisdom. I wonder how they must feel to be just a tool for war.”

“I don’t know.”

“What about messengers? Do they not convey the will of gods to you?”

“As far as I can tell there are no messengers in our realm. At least not in the sense you guys have it here.”

“Then who conveys Gods will to the people?”

“No one. Now that I think about it, we don’t even worship any gods.”

“I find that very disheartening. I take it that you don’t have any Oracles either?”

“Yes, we don’t have any Oracles in our world. We have sorceresses, though. They are the only ones who can wield magic naturally.”

“So, in your world, I would be a sorceress?”

“Yes. However, a sorceress in our world is often frowned upon and people are scared of them.”

“So, if where to come to your world, I’ll be a sorceress. An enemy of the world.”

“Even if you end up as the world's enemy, I'll... I'll be your knight,” Leon said.

“That is very sweet of you,” she said. Thankfully, it was dark, so no one could she her blush.

“Strange,” he said, seeming lost in thought. “I feel like I have said these exact words before.”

Author's notes:

This was one of the harder chapters to write as Luna is a spiritual leader of Eos, so I wanted to highlight that side of her in this chapter. I had to read up a lot of theology for this chapter.

I am posting this chapter on 12/22/2019 - so Happy Holidays everyone :)

Please leave a comment if you have enjoyed the story so far. Would love to chat with some of my readers. Or at least say 'Hi' so I know someone is readying this. Thanks :)

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