#this damn decor took me a few days of cursing

[nightcityvngel]

"The info you requested is on the shard. Pleasure doing business with you." The awesome Blue belongs to @lokismindtricks

[wintersera]

special gift || g!p karina x f!reader

notes: merry christmas!! hope y’all enjoy this smutfic… also “short fic” my ass i got carried away again 😭

cw: g!p karina, top!karina, bottom!reader, somnophilia, established relationship

wc: 1.7k

having a girlfriend who was one of the top idols in the industry was seriously a pain in the ass. sure you were lucky with dating THE karina from hit south korean girl group aespa, but fuck, you hated whenever jimin was basically never at home. during comebacks she was always booked and busy, and unfortunately this year, her schedules were packed tightly; solo gigs, advertisements, photoshoots on top of show after show, variety show shoots, etc.

you had cursed lee-fuckass-sooman for being such a shitty ceo and never letting his idols take a short break, even for christmas. all that cursing and manifesting towards that man in hopes that he would do something pulled through, because guess what, you woke up to the sound of your phone going off, a text message from your beloved girlfriend.

you honestly were tired as fuck, you knocked out as soon as she said ‘wait for me’, but with all the anticipation and adrenaline of seeing your girlfriend for the first time, in what? a few months, you were too excited to sleep any longer than an hour.

up at the ass crack of dawn cleaning your entire apartment, every single room had to be spotless, cleaned to perfection, shiny to the point of where you can see your face. not only that, but with christmas being literally today, you had to put up last minute decorations since you were too lazy to set up everything during your finals week, although you were busy as hell, so you couldn’t really decorate regardless, anything for your girlfriend i guess.

cleaning the entire apartment took hours, you were at it for so long that you didn’t even realise it was noon, and then decorating took way too long that in a flash it was already the evening and the sun was setting. oh shit, you realised jimin would be coming home soon, and you had no present to give her.

unless….

anyways, as a little treat, since jimin hadn’t seen you in so damn long, you thought it would be nice to dress up for her. even though you will be staying inside with her all day, dressing as santa would be on theme. rummaging through your closet, you find an off shoulder santa dress you bought last year for a party, pairing that with a set of lingerie, yeah you could be jimin’s ‘present’.

it was getting late, really really late, and even though you knew jimin said she was gonna come home at god knows what time, you couldn’t help but feel a little disheartened. you checked your phone, 11:07pm, no messages, no calls from her. you wondered if she stayed behind, knowing her, she would’ve stayed helping someone out if they really needed her, she was kind like that.

you laid on the couch feeling sleepy, all the effort put into making your apartment look presentable and christmas-y took a large toll on your body. seconds go by and you feel your eyes shutting, and your body relaxing.

thirty minutes.

the jingling of jimin’s keys could be heard from a few metres away. she knocked excitedly at the door expecting you to open up and jump into her arms, but nothing. she thought it was a little strange, you’d always opened the door and greeted her with a grin whenever she was able to visit, however you didn’t answer, not even your phone.

jimin thanked you for giving her spare keys just in case a situation like this happened, or a situation where she wanted to surprise you after your uni classes. has it happened? a few of times, yes. she came to your apartment and diligently waited for you with a cake on the table. but besides that, jimin waltzed into the apartment sighing and unzipping her massive puffer jacket “baby i’m home” her voice trailing off as she notices you sleeping on the couch “aww, did you doze off waiting for me? you’re so cute y/n” she was kind enough to lift you up and carry you to the bed, but only a few seconds later she realises what you were wearing.

jimin gently places you on top of your blanket, her face tinted a slight shade of red, your skirt hiked up a little for her to see. she pressed a shaky hand on her lips, wondering if she should really do what she was thinking, knowing you, she thought it would be okay. you’ve established this before, if it comes to jimin coming back to yours and you’re fast asleep, you told her it would be one hundred percent okay for her to wake you up by fucking you.

she sighs heavily and coughs, her hand shakily steadying herself on the bed, hovering right above you. with ease, she took off your dress leaving you with your lingerie on “why’d you have to be asleep. i’m so hard right now you don’t understand” her pants becoming increasingly uncomfortable with every passing second. caressing your skin gently before she unhooked the bra hook at the front, she begins to tease around your already hard nipples, building up her own arousal. a soft mewl escapes your lips, jimin’s teasing gradually turning into heated touches. each touch amplified your moaning, which in favour made jimin reach her breaking point, sliding her cargos off easily, she frantically tugs at the waistband of her boxers before tending to your panties.

spreading your legs apart so she can slot herself in between your thighs, you gradually come into consciousness, blinking your eyes a few times before your vision clears up “mmm… jimin?” you whispered, voice a little husky.

“finally, you’re awake. can we, you know… have sex?” she asks seriously. you giggle at the older girl, you look at her dearly.

“of course we can” noted, she draws herself closer, so close that her lips tickle your own. your arms wrap around jimin’s neck pulling her down, kissing her sweetly and softly. as she gives into the slow kiss, jimin adjusts herself comfortably between your legs, her hard cock against your bare pussy “you’re already hard” you say as you break the kiss.

“you look too cute, i couldn't help it” giggling as she pecks your lips twice before she turns your face to the side slowly kissing your jaw all the way down to your neck “were you dressed as my christmas gift?” huffing each time she stops kissing your neck.

“y-yeah” voice wavering “sorry i wanted to greet you, but i got too sleepy” you whimper softly as she pushes the tip of her cock slowly inside of your pussy.

“that’s okay, i know you did this all for me” you hum happily as she kisses your cheek, “you’ve made christmas so special, and i didn’t get you anything either, so let me treat you tonight” jimin licks her lips in arousal, attentively watching you wince as she pushes the rest of her length inside. one thing jimin loved about being intimate with you is the way you were so reactive to her touches, she always loved how easy it was to make you call out her name while your hands gripped her arm. the way you got so lost in pleasure, the way you sweetly moaned with each thrust, how you had to have your hands somewhere on jimin’s body just to feel even closer, jimin loved it all.

jimin began rolling her hips, her cock being long enough to hit almost every spot that made you squirm beneath her “how are you feeling, does my cock make you feel good?” you couldn’t answer simply with words, rather you responded with rapid ‘hm’s’ and ‘mhm’s’ all while she drove herself deeper. she leaned down and pressed her lips against yours once again, this time sliding in her tongue. you moaned into her mouth, her passion and skill making you feel dizzy and weak from the overwhelming pleasure you were receiving. jimin grinned into the kiss, knowing that she was the only one who could make you feel this way made her heart flutter.

she kept pumping in and out, quickening up the pace in one second, and then stopping abruptly the other second, just to see you hit her shoulder lightly and tell her to speed up while you moved your hips around her shaft, then suddenly speeding up again, catching you off guard and making you yelp.

she continues to rock hard and fast, giving you no time to think for yourself. your stomach plummets feeling like you were about to explode “fu.. fuck. jimin, i- i feel like i’m gonna cum” any other words after sounded like a bunch of garbled nonsense, the words ‘close’ being repeated a few times. to bring you closer to the edge, jimin took her fingers, put them softly into your mouth for you to suck them obediently, took them out and rubbed your clit slow circles. you moaned loud in response, her fingers skilfully playing with your clit as her thrusts grew harsher and consistent.

“ah… me too, god i’m so close-“ jimin kept going, her harsh thrust weakened her arms, forcing her to press her body against yours. she couldn’t take it much longer, her cock twitching and her tip overly sensitive “gonna.. i’m gonna cum, fuck” her hips jolted, her face nuzzling in between your neck as she attempts to hide a long moan. not so long after, you followed in suit, feeling her warm semen filling the insides of your pussy made you lose it. you gripped jimin’s bicep as you threw your head onto the soft pillow, legs twitching in response to jimin’s fingers still rubbing your clit.

a few seconds of relishing in ecstasy go by, you and your lover breathing heavily, catching your breath while you caress jimin’s hair lovingly. you tapped her shoulder “you okay baby?” she got up from between your neck, her baby hairs sticking to her forehead,

“merry christmas babe” smiling sweetly as she kisses your forehead, “i’m okay, it felt too good i almost blacked out” she pulled out, watching you again as you frowned subtly. jimin held back a giggle, you were just too cute “come on babe, let's get up. i’ll run a bath for the both of us”

“you’re so sweet jimin, i love you so much”

“i love you too y/n, merry christmas you cutie”

[meiliarotten]

Team Fortress 2 Kinktober Time

Day 4: Vocal (Voice Kink)

🔞MINORS DNI🔞

Pairings: Sniper x Fem!Reader

Summary: Yet another one with no summary. This was the first Sniper fic I ever wrote

Tags: Voice kink, begging

Word Count: 1.6k

The Masterlist

There were many things that you loved about Sniper. There was the professionalism with which he handled his job, and his drop dead accuracy on the battlefield, both of which had initially attracted you to him. Eventually you learned to love more intimate aspects of him, the scars that decorated his body, the way he growled low in his throat when he was on top of you, the gentle touch of calloused hands as the two of you basked in the afterglow while he soothed you with soft spoken praise in that deep, whispery tone.

If you had to pick a favorite thing about Sniper, it would probably be that; his voice. There was no denying that Sniper’s voice was, to put it bluntly, very attractive. God knows how many difficult situations he had managed to charm his way out of with words alone. You imagined the number was pretty high. It wasn’t even just the accent. It was the confidence, the volume, the words he chose- it all came together to create something incredibly erotic.

But there was one other aspect of that voice. One that only you were privy to, and as such, it was the one you valued most of all.

That was what you were after tonight, with the two of you safe in the privacy of Sniper’s van. You stroked his cock nice and slow, teasing him by refusing to pick up the pace. He whined before catching himself, clenching his jaw tightly to keep his noises at bay, but you still noticed.

“Does it feel good?” You asked with a chuckle, hoping to hear more lewd sounds from that alluring voice.

“Damn, love. I know what you’re trying to do to me,” he said through clenched teeth, determined not to give you the satisfaction of hearing him moan.

“Can you blame me? I love hearing those noises you make. After all, I’m the only one who gets to hear them,” you whispered as you leaned in to press a kiss to his cheek, letting out a small laugh as his stubble tickled your face.

Sniper looked as if he was about to retort, but cut himself off with a sudden moan as you ran your thumb over the head of his cock. Before he could clamp his mouth shut again, you sped up your strokes. The torrent of groans and soft curses was music to your ears.

“Yeah, just like that,” you sighed, admiring the sight. You stopped, receiving a frustrated groan and a sour expression in response. That look didn’t last long, quickly shifting to one of eagerness as you moved downward, licking your lips as you took in the sight of Sniper’s cock, precum beading at the tip and threatening to spill down his length.

You grinned, knowing that this was bound to draw some good sounds from him. You began by running your tongue along the underside before taking him fully into your warm mouth. Your hands rested on his thighs, and you felt him tremble with the effort it took not to thrust into your throat.

That pattern of trembling and moaning continued, increasing in intensity until you felt Sniper’s hand weave through your hair, tugging it softly. You got the message, immediately pulling back and looking up at him in confusion.

“Darling, stop. I don’t want to come yet,” he said, breathing hard as he tried to regain his composure. You pouted at him in mock disappointment.

“But you sound so damn good when you do,” you groaned, moving up to press a quick kiss to his lips. You saw the flush in his cheeks as you did so and grinned, knowing that it was in response to what you had just said.

You continued to press your lips against his, and it wasn’t long before the kisses turned rough. For a few moments, everything was a blur. The passage of time had escaped you, and at some point Sniper had managed to pin you beneath him, taking advantage of your gasps to slip his tongue into your mouth. You finally pulled away with a moan when you felt him slip a hand into your pants, the tips of his fingers teasing you below.

“See that, doll? You make some wonderful sounds yourself,” he said, the smirk he displayed making you feel weak, but not in a bad way. With a blush, you pushed your pants and undergarments down, getting them out of the way and allowing him full access to you.

Sniper hummed in appreciation and began to tease your entrance, rubbing circles around it and getting you nice and wet before finally pushing a finger in. You moaned as he thrust the single digit into you, and it wasn’t long before you were ready for a second. His fingers were long and he reached your g-spot with relative ease. You nearly screamed as he pressed more firmly, pulsing his fingers against the sensitive area repeatedly.

“You’re so bloody gorgeous, riding on my fingers like that,” Sniper growled, making a point to move close to your ear before speaking. You moaned at the dominant tone and the way he began to nip at your neck, decorating the skin with small bruises as he laid claim to you.

“You don’t just love hearing me moan and whine, do you love? You like hearing my praise too. I see the way you shudder and whimper when you hear it,” he said, continuing to read you like an open book and making you feel deliciously vulnerable as he did so.

You didn’t even get a chance to respond. Your attention was brought elsewhere when Sniper suddenly removed his fingers, earning a whine which quickly turned into a startled gasp when he flipped you over onto your stomach. You practically felt him looming over you, leaning in close to your ear.

“And I know you love it when I whisper in your ear like this, feeling my breath against your neck,” he said, running his fingers down your back. You felt a shiver run through your whole body.

You brought yourself up onto your hands and knees, feeling Sniper’s cock press up against your ass, still just as hard as before. Arousal continued to build between your legs as you thought about how needy he must still be.

“Please,” you whispered, moving your ass against his crotch to entice him further. “Fuck me!”

“Ah, there’s another sound I love to hear from you,” Sniper said. You could practically hear the self-confident smirk in his voice. “The sound of you begging for me .”

He entered you quickly. You were aroused enough that there was no discomfort. He wasted no time, immediately pounding into you at a rapid speed. He leaned over you, fucking you like an animal while he whispered sweet nothings into your ear. The experience sent your head spinning.

“God, you feel so bloody good,” Sniper groaned, practically leaning on you as he tried to maintain his breakneck pace. “You’re so gorgeous under me like this, taking my cock so well.”

You bucked back to meet his thrusts, feeling your orgasm approaching surprisingly quick as you listened to him heap praise onto you. His moans began to dip into that familiar half growl that you loved. It made the whole ordeal seem more feral and much more intense.

“Sniper, I’m close,” you said, your hands balling into fists as you felt yourself losing control. That was until Sniper’s pace slowed.

“Beg.”

“What?” You asked with a whine, trying to crane your neck to look back at Sniper, but it was no use when he was topping you from behind like this. You couldn’t see his expression, and it made his commands all the more intimidating.

“You heard me, doll. Beg,” he growled, sounding somewhat annoyed at having to repeat himself. “ I want to hear that pretty voice of yours plead for release.”

You shivered. To think, at the beginning of this whole ordeal, it was Sniper who was being teased, whining and moaning at your hands and tongue. You couldn’t help but admire the versatility it must take to go from that to this perfect picture of a rough, demanding lover.

“Fuck, Sniper-” A hard thrust to your g-spot made you stammer incoherently for a moment until you finally got your bearings again. “Mundy, please! Please let me come!”

“God, you’re irresistible. Such a good girl, fuck yes-” Sniper’s words trailed off into unintelligible curses and moans, his hips moving unevenly as he felt his own climax threatening to overtake him. “I’m close too, love. Go on and come. I want to hear you scream for me.”

You did just that, moaning shakily as you let your orgasm finally overwhelm you, riding it out to the sound of Sniper growling in your ear. He continued to moan in an almost feral manner as he finished as well. You listened intently, taking in every sound he made as he came.

It wasn’t long before the adrenaline began to wear off, and you found yourself trembling beneath Sniper as you began to lose strength. The two of you were left exhausted, and you collapsed atop of each other. The two of you laid there, entwined with each other, a tangle of limbs, chests rising and falling with labored breaths. Sniper had practically fallen on top of you but you were too spent to care. The weight was actually comforting in a way. It made you feel safe. Your eyes were just beginning to drift shut when you heard Sniper speak.

“Don’t go falling asleep on me, sheila. In a few minutes I’ll be up and ready to go again.”

“Oh really?” You said, tired, but also interested. You forced yourself to open your eyes, seeing his sly, grinning face looking down at you.

“I ain’t done yet, not by a long shot” he whispered, leaning down to press his lips against your ear, taking full advantage of how much you loved that voice of his.

[brights-place]

Hi!

I saw your Barb x wife post (very cute), could you do a Riff x husband reader?

(I promise this will be the last time I ask for Riff stuff, probably)

Riff X Husband! S/O

Pairings: Riff X Reader

Warnings: Fluff, mild cursing, THE GAYS ARE GAYING YAYYY!

A/N: I got so happy with this request and wrote this down so fast since I was checking my inbox!

Barb introduced you two to each other 7 in an half years and you and riff had been together for longer about 9 years running he proposed to you 3 years ago. You knew how Riff wad awkward sometimes and how he does little drum stick tricks to impress you or would play drum versions of your favorite songs and ask you to guess the beat. When he was gonna propose to you he played the 'here comes the bride' but in drums and you didn't guess what it was but said it was cool yet you didn't know what it was at all. You two were at the rooftop staring out at the night sky as the candle is warm light shined where you both laid as Riff got up and stold you t turn around which he did and you gasped seeing him on an knee with an Silver engagement ring with your birth gemstone on it which made you smiled as Riff spoke in an shaky voice "Okay I know we have been dating for so long but... I've been planning on how to do this and it's very hard!" riff said chuckling hiding deeper into his beanie "(name) You have been by my side through the toughest of storms, shining like a beacon in the darkest night. You have shown me that true beauty lies beyond the stars, and I want to share that with you for all eternity. Will you spend every night gazing into my eyes for as long as we shall live? Will you stay with me as we journey through the unknown with a never ending spark of love? (Name)" Riff took an sharp inhale as you teared up slightly "Will you marry me and be my husband (name)?" Riff said looking away as you smiled nodding quickly tackling him to the floor and kissing him deeply

You pulled away as he held you close tearing up “Knarly dude…” You giggled “damn right” You said kissing riffs face as he blushed. Once you two came back inside you were met by King Thrash and barb ho were smirking and congratulating you two for getting engaged and soon planned together an wedding sitting side by side as you two talked about different things for the weddings.

Currently you two where wondering where exactly it would be hosted “It could be hosted on where we first met?” Riff suggested as you hummed thinking to yourself “We met at an pub plus I wanted to invite our friends from outside of volcano rock city our temperature here is much different were use to it but they might not be” “Oh good idea!” you giggled cupping riffs face taking off his beanie which made his hetochromia eyes stare at you lovingly as kiss you back as he pulled away "I Love you" "Love you too"

The day of your wedding you were freaking out fanning your face as you were in the dressing room wearing your suit. It was a black leather jacket with a white shirt and black tie featuring silver embroidered roses, lightning bolts, and music notes. The jacket has a few rips and tears, revealing a layer of white lining beneat it. The shoulders were padded with cotton foam, filling it out slightly. The suit itself is somewhat worn, the edges darkened with shadows and dirt. The pants are made of black leather, with a few creases lining the seams. The shoes are black leather, but scuffed around the heels. You were panicking as Barb slapped your back making you yelp as she laughs "Don't worry Riff is also scared since its the first time he will be showing his eyes infront of an crowd and well He's marrying you" Barb laughed when you blushed "Your right!" After barb eft you checked yourself in the mirror before heading to the Altar. The wedding ceremony was a perfect mesh of elegance and rock 'n roll theme. The rock 'n roll themed wedding was a perfect mix of elegance and rock 'n roll vibes.

It decorated with edgy yet classy rock 'n roll accents. The venue was decorated with dramatic black walls, featuring white accents and gold details. The venue was completely transformed into a vibrant and fun rock 'n roll theme, featuring colorful stage lighting, edgy punk rock decorations, and musical elements such as vintage rock instruments and neon lights. The tables were adorned with dramatic black table cloths and edgy black tablescape decorations, making for a perfect venue for rock 'n roll lovers.

An altar had an mix of your favourite flowers and riffs favourite wilted flowers together as you stood at the altar while Riff stood at the other end staring down the aisle with a nervous look. You saw riffs suit The suit was a dark and faded black in coloring, as the fabric had been dyed to achieve that specific faded look. It was fitted snugly to the man's body, revealing his fit and toned physique that looked as if it had been sculpted by the gods themselves. The collars was high and round, reminiscent of an old, punk-rock style that had been done before. A few buttons were left undone, revealing his slightly ripped shirt. While his beanie had an black ripped veil in front of it as he walked to the Alter “Your beautiful” you two say in sync before giggling at each other as the pastor spoke telling the basics as as always before motioning for You to start with Your vows as you gulped and spoke nervously "Riff, as I stand here, with my heart overflowing with love, I am reminded of the beauty and uniqueness of our journey together. From this moment forward I promise you this..." You took an sharp inhale before staring at Riff You couldn't help but smile and look to teh crowd and back to Riff "I promise to love you in a way that is as unique and beautiful as the love we've built together. Our love is a master piece in my eyes unlike your drums." Riff gasped dramatically jokingly as you two laughed "but yes our love is a master piece in my eyes painted with the brushstrokes of our laughter. our shared dreams and the countless moments that have brought us here. I vow to be your wavering support and your safe harbor. In your presence I've found the courage to be the best version of myself and I will forever be the wind beneath your wings propelling you to reach new heights. With you, I've found a love that is both unique and beautiful, a love that is intricately woven into the fabric of my soul. I choose you, not just as my partner, but as my muse, my best friend, and the one who makes my world rocking! I Today and forever I give you my heart and my soul, and the promise of a unique and beautiful love story that will continue to unfold chapter by chapter I love you, in ways that word can only begin to describe is amazing" Riff smiled at you as you smiled back as Riff spoke up “Well damn it’s just like when I propose to you I’m so nervous… I can’t even believe I’m saying it out loud cause I know I’m gonna be made fun of by Barb” Barb shouted from the front row seat "FUCK YEAH I AM! GET SOME RIFF!" Riff sighed softly "(name) I promise to always be there for you, to listen and understand you, and to love and accept you as you are. I commit myself to our relationship and to growing and building a strong foundation together, with trust, respect and communication. I vow to honor your wishes and strive to meet your needs, and to always support and respect you. We will face challenges together as a team, and work to always overcome them, hand in hand... even though you annoy the shit out of me aswell I love you" You both soon started to tear up “How do straight people do this without crying?!” You complained as Riff laughed in agreement. The pastor smiled handing you two your drumsticks and your rings which you traded and gave eachother

You both were wearing a skeleton ring with you having a Obsidian that was cracked and contained inside your birth stone and and Riff having an obsidian that was cracked and inside held ruby as the pastor soon spoke “You may now kiss the groom!” You may or may not have grabbed riff by the waist dipping him to the floor and kissing him happily with an large smirk as others cheered while rock n roll trolls screamed doing the rock symbol with you and riff doing the same while kissing each other happily as riff eyes opened showing his hetochromica eyes that stared at you lovingly "I Love you" "Love you too" you both say smiling

reblogs + comments are appreciated ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡

©brights-place 2023 — do not repost on another platform, copy, translate or edit my works! if you fit my DNI list please don't interact

[ennawrite]

wrote a *small* snippet for my future Elain x Emerie fic :)

(includes a sapphic relationship, obviously)

tags: @illbdamned 🤎

Premise for A Court of Cinnamon and Violets:

Elain and Emerie quickly find themselves to be good friends when they both have a difficult time falling asleep at the House of Wind. They confide in the other about what keeps them awake at night, and Emerie introduces Elain to the beautiful world of romance novels.

A few days later, Elain pays a visit to Emerie in Illyria to return her book, and finds the lack of color (and flowers) in the camp to be appalling. Emerie and Elain strike up a deal, and Elain finds herself in charge of decorating Emerie’s store.

As the weeks go by, Elain realizes that flowers aren’t the only thing blossoming in the shop and that maybe, there’s a bit more to her friendship with the Valkyrie. Elain finds herself grappling with her (still unaccepted) mating bond, her feelings for Emerie and the heaviness that comes with choosing in a world designed to pick for you.

🪶Continue reading to read the snippet!🪶

“Do you…” Elain’s voice trailed off, and she diverted her gaze from the female’s eyes, shaking her head quickly. “It’s stupid, never mind.” 

“Do I what, Elain?” She asked earnestly, placing a warm hand on Elain’s bare forearm. Goosebumps trailed across Elain’s entire body at the simple, friendly touch. 

Elain shakily brought the cup of tea to her lips and took a small sip of the warm, spiced tea before placing it back on the table. She cleared her throat, staring at the swirls of cinnamon and milk in the dark brown liquid. The color so similar to the eyes she could not bear looking into as she continued, “Do you think these romance stories only work with me—males,” She quickly corrected herself. Men no longer existed in this world, only males. Always a damn male. “As the love interest? Or could there be…something else?” 

“Elain…,” Emerie said softly. Elain could practically hear the pity in her voice and she sunk deeper into her chair when Emerie removed her hand. Emerie stood and walked away. Elain silently cursed herself for being so openly stupid with her thoughts. 

She listened as Emerie rummaged around with something. Elain did not have the courage to look up and see what she was doing. Instead, she stared at her tightly gripped hands in her lap. Perhaps a better female would have bolted out of the door by now, or laugh her question off as some joke. But Elain stayed frozen, as she often did when it felt like the world was crashing down on her. Her heart was beating rapidly, her vision turning blurry. Oh, gods, she could not cry now. That would be—

“The beautiful thing about romance,” Emerie spoke into the heavy silence, interrupting Elain’s thoughts. Elain sucked in a breath as the female set a stack of books on the table. “Is that anyone can be the love interest. Male or no.” 

Elain drew her eyes up to the Valkyrie’s face, mouth agape. She knew she probably looked stupid, with the confusion so plainly written across her face. But Emerie just grinned widely at her, her dark brown eyes twinkling in the dying sunlight. Elain’s heart skipped a beat at the sight. 

“I do not often share these books with other people, not even Gwyn and Nesta. There are…things that not everyone will understand. Especially not in Illyria,” Emerie said, smiling sadly. “But I trust you, Elain. And I think you will find what you’re searching for in these books.” 

[jooillusion]

I was watching a drunk scene in a movie, and my brain went to you being at a friend's apartment party with Seungmin.

Both of you are way too drunk and decide it would be a good idea to try to soober up in the bathroom. After almost flooding the place, you both end up sitting on the ground with your faces way too close to each other and many hands.

Everything that might happen next will be blamed on the alcohol when the topic of why the bathroom was locked comes up the following morning ✋️

( I'm sorry if this is too specific, I've been thinking about this since I saw the movie, and tipsy seungmin seems to be funny )

drunkfessions with seungmin <3

warnings: alcohol consumption, an unholy amount of cursing, making out, suggestive(?) kinda

pairings: o.de x reader ft. jungsu

don’t be sorry if it was too specific, it helps me think better love :) also what movie was it because now I’m curious!

“dude, trust me I saw it on the internet.” seungmin slurs over his words, the seriousness in his eyes comical. he holds up a shot of sink water way too close to your mouth. your face scrunches up in disgust, pushing away the tiny cup. “cmon, I already took my shot.” he’s pouting now. his voice is loud, booming over the music that plays outside of the door. you don’t even know why you let him drag you to the bathroom, ignoring your instinct to run after he closed the door behind you. he saw you sitting on the couch, head in hands as the headache started to develop in your head. he told you to follow him out of the kindness of his drunk heart.

when your neighbor jungsu invited you to his party, you thought it would only have a few people due to the size of his apartment. oh boy were you wrong. the apartment was crowded with people. you knew he would’ve invited seungmin, which is one of the reasons why you came.

however you were familiar with seungmin but not drunk seungmin. he was sweet, honest, and overall chill. but you should’ve known not to follow him inside of the bathroom judging by the way he downed almost half a bottle of alcohol by himself, his sloppy dance moves that you had to witness due to a sudden dance circle surrounding him, and the way his voice shouted damn near every three minutes to get the party hype. but you can’t turn back the times now that you’re here.

“okay well there’s another method I read.” he says, pushing the pop up drain down to stop further water from entering the drainage underneath. he watches as the water slowly fills up the sink.

“where are you even getting this information from?” you cross your arms and raise an eyebrow.

“you ever heard of reddit?” his attention leaves the running water to turn towards you laughing your ass off. he doesn’t care though, only trying to defend his case. “if you put your head under cold water it help! seriously!”

“you actually believe that shit?” tears of laughter start to prickle at the corners of your eyes. he shoots an offended glare towards you, watching you wipe your tears.

“you’re fucking telling me slenderman didn’t have you shitting your pants when you were at least ten?” though he’s drunk, he’s terrifyingly serious, only making the situation more amusing.

“and who the fuck is that?”

seungmin sighs, his hand pinching the bridge of his nose as he sighs. he explains the ridiculous character that sounds made up from his first sentence. you’re biting your lip to keep yourself from laughing, especially when he says that he had to sleep with his mom for days after he found out.

“dude I’m serious! he could still be out here creeping outside this house and we’ll never know…” he puts his arms around his biceps, shivering dramatically. you roll your eyes at his shenanigans, finding him obnoxious but cute at the same time. he’s about to explain another story, but the sound of water dripping onto the floor catches both of yours attention—well yours as seungmin pays it no mind, still trying to get his point across. you’re reacting fast out of panic, grabbing the decorative towels that sit on the counter, pushing seungmin out of the way.

“what the fuck- oh…” his eyes widen at the filled sink and he’s following right behind you quickly. you turn the sink off, trying to clean up the water from the counters so you wouldn’t have to face the guilt destroying somebody else’s belongings. seungmin is trying to be kind enough to help, but the alcohol in his system doesn’t help his situation at all, only making him slip and fall on the small pool of water on the floor. the panic hits harder watching him land on the floor.

“holy shit! are you alright-” and you’re slipping right after him. you try to catch yourself, flailing your arms but it’s no use, bracing yourself for the impact of the hard floor and the embarrassment that’ll definitely creep up when you leave the bathroom.

the floor isn’t what you land on though. a groan is forced out of sengmin’s mouth as your body lands on top of his. and he saw it coming, his arms wrapping around your body in an attempt to catch you, the impact of it all coming down harder than he expected. you’re laying onto his chest, your cheeks burning in embarrassment especially since his arms aren’t unwrapping you. you hear his heartbeat speed up, your head lifting up to meet his eyes. he’s just as affected.

his eyes are too busy admiring you up close, his eyes trailing down to your lips, parted trying to steady your breath. reality hits him when he realizes he’s been staring for too long, almost pushing you off of him when he sits up. you catch your body from being rolled over, sitting up looking at seungmin. you’re unable to tell if the blush on his cheeks are from the alcohol or the moment you two just accidentally shared. the silence in the air is as thick as the tension, seungmin clearing his throat to kill it.

“hey um…I’m sorry if I made y-you uncomfortable,” he awkwardly scratches the back of his head, his eyes meeting yours. “I didn’t want you to hurt yourself y’know?” you’re just watching him speak and he’s waiting from a response from you.

“I was just trying to help you out. If you don’t want to be around me I understan-” you’re cutting him off, finally listening to your instincts to shut him up with a kiss. he’s almost immediately reacting, as if he was waiting for you to shut him up, his hand coming up to your cheek to stroke the soft flesh. the alcohol in your system only encourages you to be bolder, straddling his hips.

“you talk too damn much.” you say between kisses. his lips curve into a smile, his hands pulling the jacket off of his shoulders and tossing it next to him. he pulls away once the air starts to give out. you reach up behind him to twist the lock on the door, placing your index fingers between your lips and signaling him to be quiet.

he nods and immediately dives back into your lips. you’re getting bolder by the second, tongue sliding between his lips and licking inside of his mouth. seungmin is not complaining at all though, being just as hungry as you as the kiss turns sloppy, his warm hands running underneath your shirt to massage your hips. you’re both too far gone and too busy with each others lips, the party long forgotten.

the sound of knocks on your door pull you away from your sleep. you figured that you’d ignore it, but it becomes too annoying when the person seems to not give up until you answered. you sigh out of frustration, walking to the door and being greeted by jungsu with an equally sleepy seungmin next to him.

“the fuck do you want?”

“well good morning to you too, sleeping beauty.” jungsu laughs, his grip on seungmin’s arm signals that he dragged him here out of his sleep. “care to explain why you two disappeared for a while,”

your eyes suddenly widen. seungmin looks at you with the same look. the thoughts of yesterday slowly started to make their way back into your mind. you both look like your hands were caught in the cookie jar and you’re eyeing jungsu, your mouth ready to come up with an excuse but his mouth speaks faster than yours.

“and why my bathroom door was fucking locked for almost an hour? and I know it wasn’t because of reddit.”

I’m not sure if I did this correctly but I wrote this within two hours before work so sorry if this feels rushed </3

please remember that this is a pure work of fiction.

[questionableratatouille00]

𝙳𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚖 𝚘𝚏 𝙼𝚎

Pairing: Tony Stark x Fem!Reader

Summary: Your husband's lack of sleep finally seems to be getting to him, and it's up to you to save him from his stress.

Note: This is my submission for day two of @ailesswhumptober! (overworked/insomnia/exhaustion).

Warnings: Nightmares, talk of death, mentions of insomnia and anxiety, cursing.

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

You grumbled bitterly as you stalked down the hallways of the Compound, trying to find where the damn lab was. The only light in the hallways was the light blue line that guided you, as directed by F.R.I.D.A.Y. 

It went at your pace, lighting up where you were and only where you were. Your husband of four years was off messing with some machine in the middle of the night, and it was up to you to get him to actually sleep for once. 

Often, Tony Stark could run solely on four cups of coffee and a cheeseburger, and you had even resorted to hiding the coffee pot a few times, just to keep him from getting another cup.

“Anthony Edward Stark.” You called into the large lab, storming past machines and tools as you searched for your husband.

“Y/n Stark.” Tony gulped, knowing that he was caught. 

“Do you know what time it is?” 

“Show time?” You fumed as he quoted a fucking musical.

“It is one-fucking-thirty in the morning.”

“One thirty in the morning.” He said, nodding over-enthusiastically. 

“Why the fuck are you not in bed?” 

“I have..work. I have work to do.” He settled on his answer, and you stared at him blankly, unfooled by his nonsense. “You’re holding the wrench upside-down.” You pointed out. His gaze flicked to his hand, where he was, in fact, holding the wrench upside-down.

“That was intentional.” 

You began to circle his ‘project’ which, to you, looked like a…car? Half of a washing machine? You couldn’t exactly tell. “Right. And what the hell is this, anyway?”

“It’s the start of a..something.” 

You glanced at him, finally taking in his appearance. His eye bags were dark, his hair a mess and his shirt stained with sweat and other liquids that belonged in a lab. 

“Tony. Your eye bags are darker than Bucky’s jokes.”

“They’re Gucci.” He commented.

“And your hair’s a mess. You need sleep, love. You’re exhausted.” You took a step closer to him, cupping his cheek with your hand. “What’s keeping you awake?” 

“I don’t know.” He sighed, his hands resting on your hips. “I just..can’t. It’s either nightmares or anxiety. I try, but it just doesn’t..stick. So I come down here.”

“Tony.” You breathed out, frowning. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

"What am I supposed to say? 'Hey, I'm a grown man and I can't sleep because of a couple of bad dreams'?"

“Tony—being grown or a man has nothing to do with that, and you know it. If they get bad, you can tell me. If the insomnia gets bad, you can tell me. I want to help you, because I love you.”

He says nothing, letting his arm drop to his side. He stares down at his hand, still fiddling with the wrench. “What am I gonna do if I can’t protect you?” He whispered, never looking up at you.

“Is that what’s going on? Babe, I’m safe. You’re safe. We’re all perfectly safe, living in literally the safest place in America. You can rest. Nothing dramatic or drastic is going to happen for the next few hours.” You assured him, rubbing his bicep a few times to comfort him. “I swear.”

“That’s what we thought last time. Then they sent a missile to New York.”

“There will be no missiles. None. You..you don’t even have to sleep all night. It’s already almost 2:00 AM. If you really can’t sleep, you can come right back down. But you need to at least try. Please.”

He took a deep breath, before nodding. “Fine.”

——————————

Tony let himself crawl into your arms, laying his head on your chest as you wrapped your arm around him.

The faint glow of the arc reactor through his shirt was the only light in your spacious bedroom, decorated with picture frames on the walls and bookshelves filled with books and other trinkets.

“Good night, Tony.” You murmured into his hair, and he made a small noise in response.

He let his eyes close, and he didn’t fight the warm embrace of sleep.

In his sleep, the same familiar nightmare played out. The streets of New York were filled with screaming people. Tony always stood in the middle of the street. He'd look up to find a portal in the sky. More and more of the Chitauri forces flew out of it, crashing into buildings.

Up on the balcony of Stark Tower was you and Loki. You cried out and pleaded for help, for rescue. Loki had his scepter's sharp edge pressed to the back of your head.

In front of Tony was all of the Avengers. His friends, his family. They all laid in a large pile, broken and battered and undeniably dead. Steve's shield lay next to his mangled corpse, broken in two. Natasha was next to him, her body bent at an odd angle. Bruce, or rather, the Hulk, was at the bottom of the pile, a large sword thing planted in his chest, pinning him to the ground below like a dart to a dartboard.

Tony had no armor. No armor, no friends, and no way to solve this. He knew that this was his fault. He had his chance to protect everything and everyone he loved--to put a suit of armor around the world. And he didn't take it.

And now the whole world was paying for his mistake. You, his whole world, were paying for his mistake.

——————————

"Tony. Tony!" You called his name, and he woke up from his nightmare.

"Jesus fuck." He gasped. He clutched at his arc reactor, tapping it a few times.

"Hey. Just a dream. Just a dream." You soothed. "Just a dream, sweetheart. Promise."

He nodded, exhaling loudly. "Fuck this."

"Yeah." You nodded, tipping your head slightly. "I know. C'mere. It's four in the morning. You should try and fall back asleep." You scooted closer to him, and you could see him get ready to protest. "None of that. You need rest."

"Fine. Fine." He caved, taking you in his arms. You didn't protest. In your mind, if he felt better holding you like this, than that's what you'd let him do.

"Goodnight, Tony."

You were answered with soft, gentle snoring.

[victoria-vd]

OFFSCREEN POST

Bittersweet Sobriquet

There was nothing Victoria enjoyed more than a quiet Saturday evening in her dorm. The sparsely-decorated room was dim, only illuminated by the faint glow of the extravagant lanterns that decorated her dorm. Atop one of the shelves, an ornate cluster of amethyst crystals glistened in the gentle light of the flickering lamps. Luxury Balls and battle trophies rested neatly atop red velvet cushions inside a display case. And with her canopy bed pushed into a dark corner of the room, Victoria had crafted the perfect living space for herself: a space of dim, quiet isolation from the overwhelming everything that was the rest of this wretched academy.

“– and another thing!” Esper threw her arms up into the air and leaned back in her chair. “I hate how she keeps assuming that I’m not paying attention!”

And yet Victoria had allowed Esper to enter it nonetheless.

The girl continued her rant with a wave of her pencil, “Like, sure, yeah it’s pretty damn early in the morning and I may not seem the most awake but I am! I am paying very close attention! I wouldn’t be in the bloomin’ class if I wasn’t!”

Victoria let out a small huff of amusement at Esper’s complaints. Make no mistake, the incessant mindless chatter cutting through her peaceful silence made her want to claw her own ears out—

(Despite the distance between her and the Hatterene standing across the room, she could practically feel the shadow of Barcelona looming over her. Watching her intently.)

—but at the very least, the girl was funny enough to make it bearable.

Without looking up from her laptop, she addressed the girl in a haughty tone reminiscent of the teacher of their ire. “Ah, Esper, glad to see you’ve joined the rest of the class now. Let’s see if you’ve been paying attention: approximately how many years ago was it that the Paldean Empire began to rule this region?”

The other girl let out a dramatic groan as she slumped in her chair, “Roughly two thousand years ago.”

With a raise of her chin, Victoria clicked her tongue in mock-disapproval and shook her head. “Wrong. Had you been listening, you would have heard me say that the Paldean Empire began two-thousand one-hundred thirty-seven years ago, on the first Sunday of August at exactly the 14th hour and 28th minute of the day. Do better next time, Esper.”

“Arrrccccc…” Esper whined before soon pushing herself back up into a proper sitting position. “She would. She fucking would. She’s– She’s like the most annoying teacher I’ve ever actually had.”

“There are few things that Señora Raifort enjoys more than ancient history,” Victoria hummed and turned her head to look at Esper, “But being needlessly difficult is one of those things.”

“Mhmhmhmhmhmhm,” she nodded, rocking back and forth in her seat as she looked at Victoria, “Y’know what I think–?”

“I tend to know, yes,” Victoria interjected with a quirk of her lips.

“Okay–” Esper rolled her eyes with a snort, “As I was saying. I think she’s haunted. There’s no way she isn’t cursed by some sort of spirits, her vibes say it all.”

“I see. As someone as experienced with hauntings as yourself, I suppose I cannot argue with your claim.”

Victoria’s pupil let out an indignant squawk before wildly gesturing with her hand, “My dorm may have not been actually haunted but I swear my old flat building was! There is no other way to explain–” Esper was interrupted as her cardigan sleeve caught on a lone water bottle sitting on the desk. The bottle rocked for a moment before teetering over the edge and falling off of the desk.

But (un)surprisingly, it never hit the ground. It simply hovered in place halfway between the table’s edge and the hardwood floor. The bottle slowly rose back to its proper place atop the desk beside Esper’s arm.

“Oh!” Esper took a moment before beaming at the other girl with a friendly smile, “Thank you, Tori!”

Victoria froze.

(Barcelona’s head snapped to attention, her eyes locked onto her trainer.)

…Tori?

The mere utterance of the name evoked something nostalgic and bittersweet, like a box of memories collecting dust on a shelf. Left aside and long forgotten. Cobwebs hung between each letter and the ink faded from every stroke. The name was crude and juvenile like a child’s finger painting. But what would one expect when the artist was but a child herself?

(The Hatterene snaked a tendril of hair to her side as she stalked her way towards the girls at the desk.)

A single syllable had pried open a myriad of memories best left forgotten for Victoria’s sake.

(Locks of hair in the shape of a hand reached up to Victoria’s shoulder.)

It’s funny, really.

In some ways, she was a lot like Esper, wasn’t she?

(Her hat cast a deep shadow over the girl as she loomed over her.)

Victoria closed her eyes and drew in a long breath.

(Suppress yourself.)

Breathe in.

(Breathe out.)

…

Twirling her pen in her fingers, Victoria simply hummed in response to her friend. “Think nothing of it, Esp.”

Esper let out the breath she had been holding. She let herself relax a bit in her chair before blinking in surprise, Victoria's words having registered in her mind, “Pardon?”

“Think nothing of it,” she repeated, leaning back in her chair as well. “But next time—“ she huffed in amusement, flicking her friend lightly in the forehead, “—you’ll be picking it up, Esp. You need the practice anyways.”

The other girl brought her hand up and gently rubbed the spot Victoria had flicked, letting out a quiet giggle, “Alright, Tori.”

There was nothing Victoria enjoyed more than a quiet Saturday evening in her dorm.

That is, except for sharing it with a friend.

Scene End.

[Esper belongs to @espers-n-espurrs]

[deceptive-daydreams]

Thinking about smoke signals Eddie and how maybe he’s finally getting a Christmas where that flicker of holiday magic blooms in him chest. He’s got something -someone- that makes him feel hopeful and worth it. Every night he looks forward to the next day with anticipation instead of dread - the way a kid counts down the days to Christmas morning. He knows he’s nearing something special and magical even if he can’t fully put that into words yet.

I’m thinking too much

i woke up to this with the biggest smile on my face cause my mindset has been "no one cares about smoke signals anymore cause you take too long to update" so just know that you have me kicking my feet and giggling over here rn

OKAY BUT THIS IS THE VIBE... Eddie's always "hated" the holidays or maybe the holidays just don't agree with him and never offer him mercy. Something always happens around that time of year without fail. Since moving to Knife's Edge he's only spent them with Wayne when he visits but it's usually very simple and they don't really decorate or anything, just hang out and have dinner and some beers every night until Wayne has to go back to Indiana. So it's not like anything bad has happened over the holidays for a few years but in typical Eddie fashion, he's always waiting for the other shoe to drop.

To be fair he's had enough trauma to last him lifetimes and one Christmas that really ruined it for him was when he was little and his dad came home drunk and Eddie thought he was Santa. Instead of Santa he's met with his dad stumbling around their tiny living room, knocking over their small tree with a majority of homemade ornamets he and his mom crafted together. At first it was an accident but as his dad got tangled up in some of the lights he started to get annoyed, slurring curses at the tree before finally shoving it over declaring it a "usless fuckin' thing". Shortly after, Eddie's mom had rushed out, tucking little Eddie behind her as she addressed her drunken husband. They started to argue, dad always starting it without fail. His mom tried so hard to keep the peace but when he started to raise his voice she had no choice but to try and appear bigger. She was never scared of him, or so she lead on. His dad would start knocking furniture over and rampage until he passed out on the kitchen floor after accidentally hitting his face against the counter, blood spilling from his nose.

There were several Christmases Eddie and his mom would go over to Wayne's because of his dad. Eddie would still protest, stating that he hates the trailer park, that he wanted to stay home and that maybe dad will be better this morning. That was never the case but little Eddie didn't really know any better, his dad always charming his way out of situations, always convincing Eddie that he was some kind of hero at the end of the day, even after being such a deadbeat. It got worse as he got older, his mom passed when he was six and from there Christmas never felt quite the same. Wayne would insist that Eddie come over and spend the holiday with him, he knew his dad would either not come home at all or would turn up too late, Eddie sulking in that damn house all alone while he waited for his dad to show up. Needless to say, it took a while for Eddie to realize just how fucked up it was that his dad would have him wrapped around his finger for his own convenience. Christmas had never been a happy time. He was always thankful for all that his mom and Wayne would do for him, to keep him distracted from his dad's shenanigans. But it never erased that void in his heart and it never kept him from chasing after something he could never have.

His first holiday season around reader...completely shifts everything and it scares the shit out of him at first. He starts feeling that so called "joy" that everyone swears they feel around this time of year. He feels like the fucking grinch when his heart grows three sizes every time she's around. He doesn't mind the little decorations she scatters around the bar, the image of snowflakes and Christmas ornaments only start reminding him of her and not his past. Let's just say that his inner child starts to heal...

I HAVE SOME CHRISTMASY STUFF PLANNED FOR THEM AND I CAN'T WAIT TO WRITE IT WHEN IM ABLE TO. THERE WILL BE A LIL ANGST BUT I PROMISE IT'S NOTHING SCARY

[whump-me-all-night-long]

Bleeding Leads

AI-less Whumptober Day 5: Kidnapped

Masterlist

TW: minor character death, threatening of minors (brief and not detailed at all), implied/descriptions of torture, damn this makes it sound way worse than it is, I promise this is just more of Devin making Poor Life Choices(TM)

---

Friday rolled around faster than Devin had expected. All day, they had sat at their desk, tapping their foot nervously or twirling a pencil between their fingers or typing, deleting, and retyping the same sentence over and over. 

As soon as the clock hit 5pm, Devin was out of the door, a surge of anticipation following them like a cloud. 

Getting ready was a blurry haze. One moment, Devin was walking into their cramped apartment, and the next, they were in a cab that idled in front of enormous wrought iron gates with decorative Ws interlocking.

Trembling slightly, Devin paid the driver and got out, waiting until it drove off before heading over to the little intercom box. A buzz sounded as they pressed the button. Fiddling nervously with the straps of their shoulder bag, Devin tried to take some calming breaths and-

“Yes?” A gruff male voice.

“Oh, um, hi. I was invited here. I have an invitation.” Devin waved the card in front of the intercom, unable to tell if it had a camera or not.

There was no reply, just another buzz, but slowly the gates creaked open and Devin, with one look back over their shoulder, headed towards the giant mansion in front of them. Despite the extravagance of the property around them, the driveway, thankfully, was not too long, but still, by the time Devin reached the front door, they were cursing themself for wearing the heeled shoes they had chosen instead of their roughed up Converse. 

Devin reached out and knocked on the door with a surprisingly heavy iron knocker shaped like a bear’s head. Waiting anxiously, they tugged at the bottom of their blazer, hoping it was appropriate attire for the evening. They had worn a dove gray pantsuit with a black top underneath (really, it was just a clean tank top, but looked professional enough with the blazer atop) that still fit them relatively well, considering the outfit was from high school.

Jumping slightly at the sound of the door opening, Devin straightened themself, with a neutral smile. The man answering the door was tall, very tall, with tanned skin, dark brown hair, and scary, narrowed eyes. “Can I help you?”

Swallowing, Devin held out the invitation, silently cursing at the way the card revealed the tremors running through their body. “I, um, I have an invitation.”

The man took the invitation wordlessly, studying it intently for several long moments, before stepping aside and opening the door further. 

Devin took a cautious step inside, their heel tapping against the shining wooden floor, unable to stop themself from gawking just a little. Directly in front of them were a pair of double doors that seemed to lead into a formal lounge area. Outside of the doors was a sweeping marble staircase that met at the top. Devin couldn’t help but be astonished at the nonchalant display of wealth. Noticing what appeared to be solid gold door handles, Devin’s eyes grew impossibly wider. A single one of those could pay my rent for months!

The man closed the door behind them, the handle clicking shut ominously. Turning away from them, he began down a side hallway.

“Follow me,” the man rasped. “Please.” He seemed almost pained after noticing Devin’s inattention. 

Snapping to, Devin followed carefully behind, cheeks burning slightly in embarrassment. They were led down a series of seemingly identical hallways, up a couple flights of stairs and then down a couple flights, until Devin couldn’t possibly have said where they were. 

Finally, after a few more minutes of walking in awkward silence, they stopped in front of  a thick wooden door, made of shining mahogany. The man rapped out a series of knocks that seemed to be a specific pattern.

Moments later, Devin heard the sound of a lock turning, before a face appeared in the crack of the doorway.

Glancing at Devin for half a second, the man they recognized as Erik Wildre looked to the man that had led them here. 

“This is them?” he confirmed quietly, and, at the man’s dip of his chin, a smile broke out on his face, revealing straight white teeth. “Fantastic.”

Turning to Devin, he stuck a hand out, making sure to keep the door fairly closed around him. Devin just caught a glimpse of darkness with flickering shadows as they cautiously accepted the handshake.

Glancing at his watch, Mr. Wildre said, “Well, you appear to be a few minutes early but that’s no problem at all! In fact, why don’t you come on in? I’m just finishing one last thing and then I’m all yours. In fact, I believe what I’m working on may interest your employer.” Turning around, he opened the door wider behind him.

Feeling the heavy gaze of the muscled man behind them, Devin ignored every single instinct in their body and followed inside, barely biting back their gasp as they took in the scene before them.

A man, probably in his late forties or early fifties, hung from his wrists, a pair of manacles hung from a hook in the ceiling. His feet barely brushed against the floor, and one of his shoulders was oddly stretched out, Devin could only assume it was dislocated. Aside from a ripped pair of pants that must have cost a pretty penny originally, the man was naked and nearly every single inch of his skin was covered in markings of some kind. Cuts, burns, bruises. Devin thought they even caught a glimpse of what looked like a brand on the man’s back. 

The room around them was dimly lit, with a raging fireplace along the middle of the back wall. Aside from that, there was the concrete flooring that Devin tried to not look too hard at. The walls were covered in instruments of all sorts, some of which Devin couldn’t even begin to guess the purpose of. 

Swallowing, Devin glanced behind themself, only to see their guide stepping in behind them and closing the door, cutting off the bright hallway lights. Devin’s heart pounded faster as they heard the sound of a lock clicking closed before the man slipped a small iron key into some interior pocket of his.

Devin jumped slightly as Mr. Wildre addressed them, already staring at the bloodied man with cold eyes. “Mx. Corvin, if you wouldn’t mind stepping aside. I shouldn’t be more than a few more minutes.”

Not needing to be told twice, Devin shuffled backwards until they hit the brick wall behind them, the only one without the terrifying devices hanging along it. They definitely didn’t need to be told to not object to being called the wrong name. Maybe it was a simple lapse in memory?

Devin could only watch, speechless, as Mr. Wildre picked up a bloodied knife, pressing it to the side of the man’s beer belly. Smiling slightly at the man’s resulting flinch and soft whimpering, he spoke, emotionless. “I can do this all evening, Edmund. You know this. But-” he pressed in until a single bead of blood rolled down the man- Edmund’s skin- “you know I can be merciful and end this right now.”

The man, openly sobbing, shook his head weakly. “Wildre!” he gasped, breathless. “You know me! I didn’t do it! I don’t know what happened! It was an ambush, it wasn’t-”

“Shhh,” Mr. Wildre cooed softly, moving the knife up to the man’s chest, digging the tip in right over where Devin was pretty sure the heart was located. “You know how much I hate excuses, Edmund. You were the last one with the drugs and the money. Now, thanks to you, whether through betrayal or stupidity, both are gone and I’ve got the Mordens calling for my blood, crying double-cross.”

The man continued blubbering. “I- I swear, it wasn’t me! It was a trap, I tried to stop, please-”

Mr. Wildre hummed softly under his breath, considering the man before him. “Swear it,” he said finally. “Swear it on your daughters’ lives. On Evelyn and Sophia’s lives.”

The man paused, eyes flashing with fear, and that hesitation was seemingly enough to confirm whatever Mr. Wildre’s beliefs were.

He pressed on, unwavering. “How old are they now? Ten? Eleven?”

“They- they turn thirteen in a few days,” Edmund said hoarsely. “Please, they’re innocent! They have nothing- nothing to, to do with any of this!”

Mr. Wildre blinked, face unchanging. “But, you claim to be innocent, too, don't you, Edmund? So why are you so terrified of swearing it on your daughters’ lives? You said it yourself-” he leaned closer to the terrified man- “you know me, and you know that I always find out the truth in the end.” He tilted his head slightly, going for the killing blow. “So why do you not want me to find out the truth? Is it because you actually did fuck up this badly on accident, or did you accept that bribe that one Leo Pendelton offered you?”

Devin could actually see the blood draining from Edmund’s face as he opened and closed his mouth, gaping like a fish. Finally, letting out a soft sob, he hung his head in defeat. “Please,” he begged. “My girls, they’re innocent, they don’t know anything, please, just don’t hurt them-”

Mr. Wildre scoffed, cutting him off. “What do you think I am? A monster? I don’t kill children.” Disgust dripped from his words as his lip curled condescendingly. Then, before Devin truly had time to register the movement, the knife was flashing upward, slicing deep into Edmund’s neck.

Unable to help themself, Devin leapt backwards, a small scream slipping out of their mouth as they stared in horror at the man hanging before them who was slowly choking to death on his own blood. His body shuddered and red droplets sprayed from his cracked lips. Unable to tear their eyes away from the morbid sight, Devin could only watch as the jerky movements slowly weakened before finally stilling and, with a single glance at his eyes, Devin knew he was dead.

Blinking hard to keep back tears, Devin turned to face Mr. Wildre, who was watching their reaction with a critical eye. Carelessly wiping the bloodied blade on his pants leg, he offered Devin a smile. “Sorry that it got so nasty, Mx. Corvin. Now, you’re here on official business, are you not?”

Devin had to open their mouth several times before they were able to form words. “Yes, apologies. I, um, wasn’t expecting to interrupt… other business tonight. We, ah, we can always reschedule if you would prefer that.” Devin slowly backed up, inching towards the door as inconspicuous as possible, their mind racing too fast for them to process and the only thought they could truly form was getting the hell out of there as fast as possible. Then, Devin bumped into the door sooner than they expected, and the door was oddly warm, and not smooth, and-

Fuck my life.

Slowly turning their head, Devin saw the muscled man standing in front of the door, blocking it easily with his large frame. 

“Going somewhere?” Mr. Wildre’s dry voice asked.

Trying to remain breathing, Devin slowly turned to look back at him. “Apologies. I, um, my employer didn’t necessarily pre-prepare me for this.” They waved a shaking hand at the corpse, still hanging just feet away.

“Hmm,” Mr. Wildre said noncommittally. “And your employer is…?”

Shit. Shit, shit, shit.

Giving a weak smile, Devin held their hands up in a non threatening gesture. “Listen, I think there might have been an accidental miscommunication here. I think I might have gotten the, the time or, um, the address wrong. So I think, I’m just going to head out, and call it a night. My, um, my lips are sealed.” Devin gulped, glancing between the two men bracketing them in.

“I’m only going to ask this one time, love,” Mr. Wildre said softly, almost tenderly, if Devin didn’t know any better. “Who the fuck are you?”

---

Taglist: @ailesswhumptober @panic-whump @cupcakes-and-pain @lonesome--hunter @latenightcupsofcoffee @badluck990

[george-weasleys-girl]

Chapter 27 - So Far Away

Warnings: one curse word

Summary: George and Y/N struggle through Valentines Day

*Author's Ramblings - Not sure how I feel about this one. I don't think it's bad or anything, just extraneous. I wanted to show how George and Y/N were handling being apart on Valentines Day, but after writing it, it feels unnecessary as a stand-alone chapter. Like, maybe I could've shortened it and blended it in with another chapter. 🤷‍♀️🤔

Anyway, here it is. I hope you enjoy it!🙂

Start Here:

It sucked missing each other, George and Y/N had decided. Especially on Valentines Day. Even the photo of they'd taken of themselves last Valentines, usually a source of comfort, only served to remind them how lonely they were for one another. All either one wanted to do was just crawl into bed and sleep until this stupid day was over.

Which is why George found himself packed in like a sardine at Madam Pudifoot's Tea Room, as he, Fred and Lee pointed and snickered at the tacky decor and tried to dodge the absurd flying cupids.

And it was also why Y/N found herself walking across the school grounds with her best friend Callie to play lacrosse. It was a game she loved to watch but could barely play.

George's POV

"Geez," Fred commented. "Glad I'm not here with a date. If you're not careful, you could lean over and kiss the wrong person."

"I thought you and Angie came here last year?" Lee asked.

Fred bristled at the mention of his ex's name. "We were, but she took one look at the crowds and refused to--"

"Hey, look who's here," George interrupted, hoping to steer the conversation away from his twin's former girlfriend. Harry and Cho Chang were standing near the door waiting to be seated. Cho looked radiant, but Harry, on the other hand, looked like a frightened deer, ready to bolt at the least little thing.

Yikes.

George had a sneaking suspicion that their date might not end well.

And, Merlin, was he right. The couple was seated at the table beside them, and the trio had no choice but to overhear every word that passed between Harry and Cho. Cringing as he listened to the embattled couple, George thanked his lucky stars that he and Y/N had a secure, stable relationship. A sudden warmth radiated out from his locket. The smile that began to form on his face faltered when he realized the locket continued to grow hotter by the second.

George knew exactly what that meant. Excusing himself, he raced back to the castle to do to the only thing he could do. Write a letter.

Y/N's POV

The wound was pretty gnarly, but no blood, so that was good. Y/N's left eye was swollen shut, while a mottled mess of blue and purple bruises radiated outward across the left side of her face. Wincing, she gave it a tentative prod. "Ow! Damn, that hurts. Remind me not to get hit in the face with a crosse stick again." Y/N said, trying to make light of the situation.

"I'm really sorry, Y/N," Callie apologized. "I shouldn't have talked you into playing."

Y/N waved her off. "Nature of the beast. Besides, the Bruise-Away Salve will have this cleared up by tomorrow."

Turning back to the mirror, she debated if she should take a picture and send it to George. Y/N had almost decided against it when her locket vibrated against her chest.

George's had done the same the morning she woke up with her's burning hot.

Oh dear.

Sitting down at her writing desk and grabbing some parchment, Y/N squinted down at it with her good eye, and began to write.

Dear George,

First off, let me assure you, I am okay...

~•~

Next Chapter:

@milivanili99 @slytherclaw1978 @quackitysdrugdealer @pansexualwitchwhoneedstherapy @ladylizzieofdarbyshire

[euryalex]

The tale of Wyll Ravengard, the Blade of Frontiers, and Tara Lunarsong, the Lily of the Valley. From the moment their stories started, to when their stories intertwined, to when the stories came to an end, and a new story began.

» Wyll reunites with an old friend, and old memories are brought up.

A/N: I write in Dutch, first, before translating to English, so sorry for any mistakes!

1 / 2 (You're here!) / 3

His horns itched, but he couldn't scratch. His claws would cut through his skin, and the horns themselves hurt enough already. He had the body of a half-human, half-tiefling, even though he was a devilspawn. The lack of a tail made it clear what he really was: a half-devil.

Behind him, behind the bushes, there was a feast going on — the tieflings celebrating that they were still alive, that they were safe. A few days ago, Wyll might have joined them, but Zevlor's reaction told him enough. The tieflings were afraid of him. They knew him as the Blade of Frontiers and now he was their greatest fear.

He heard them laughing profusely. Alfira loudly sang a song to get everyone in the mood, and he stood on the riverbank, lost in thought. Then he heard footsteps in the sand. They came closer and closer. When Wyll looked at who joined him, he was speechless.

When he first met Tara, she was wearing a bloodied blue dress that showed a lot of skin. Her hair was messed up and caked in blood. But after they defeated the goblins, Tara had clearly found a new dress.

Now she was wearing a dark purple dress, the skirt of which was torn above her knees. Her legs were covered by black thigh high leather boots with high heels. A black leather corset hugged her waist, and it looked damn good on her.

When he finished admiring her clothes, he looked into her eyes and saw a tattoo decorating her cheekbone: three bird silhouettes. The moonlight made her look even paler, but she was still the most beautiful woman he had ever seen.

"Hells, I was hoping you wouldn't notice I was gone," Wyll admitted half-softly, and she threw him a nervous smile, "Of course I noticed. It's not a party without you."

"Really? I'm honoured," Wyll said, first with a small smile before getting serious: "Honestly, I don't feel like I'm in a party mood, and I don't want to cast a grey cloud over the night."

Tara frowned questioningly.

"I'm a devil," he explained, "I love the people of the grove, but I upset them, deep down. You don't want a devil at your party. Claws will pop the balloons, you see. And the sweet pies don't taste half as good as raw eggs with this cursed forked tongue."

His words were laced with venom. He hated what he had become.

Tara took a step closer. "For what it's worth, you don't upset me," she whispered. There was pity in her eyes — no, not pity. Grief.

Wyll shook his head and chuckled. "If only half the world had half of your heart," he sighed, "But away with you! This is your day. Dance, enjoy the music."

"Can't you tell why I wanted to find you?" she smiled shyly.

Wyll felt his cheeks grow warm, but he didn't want to cherish his hopes.

"You must have ended up here by accident," he joked, "Too much honeywine can do that. You have to watch yourself."

She laughed nervously, "No. Guess what."

"Let me think for a moment," he mused, "Why are you really here?"

She wasn't here for him. Why would she be, if she could seduce someone like Karlach or Gale?

"You must be Volo in disguise," he jokingly claimed, "Who is here to address me for stories about the Blade of Frontiers. What a cruel disguise! My nerves started hammering as soon as I thought she was the one looking for me."

Please let me down slowly if you don't feel the same. Please forget everything I said if your heart belongs to someone else.

"Surprisingly, you're getting closer," Tara said, before biting her lip nervously.

"It's a long shot," Wyll muttered, "But maybe you've... grown fond of me? Gods know I've grown fond of you."

Her eyes grew large with joy as her pale cheeks turned red. "Was I that obvous?" she blushed, causing him to laugh, "You have a lot of talents, but subtlety is not one of them."

Then he looked away and avoided her gaze, "I can't say I deserve the honour. I haven’t even manage to kill one measly devil. I'm hardly a prime catch."

He watched her swallow. She looked nervous, but that didn't stop her from taking another step closer.

"Perhaps I can prove my affection, if you'll let me?" she said softly.

He looked at her again. Her purple eyes twinkled.

"How do you want to prove that?" he asked, his voice barely louder than a whisper.

Slowly she stretched out her hand and cupped his cheek. Her skin was freezing cold, but he didn't flinch. If anything, he leaned into her touch. She looked into his eyes and then glanced at his lips.

The sounds of the party began to fade and the only thing he could focus on was Tara. He felt himself lean forward until their lips barely touched. She looked into his eyes for one last time, before their lips finally met.

He felt his heart start beating faster. As she kept one hand on his cheek, he felt her press the other against his waist. He put his hands on her waist and pulled her closer to him as he deepened the kiss.

Wyll had had a lot of kisses, but Tara's lips felt like pure magic.

Despite feeling like the moment lasted an eternity, Wyll still felt it was over too soon, but eventually he had to pull away to take a breath.

"Well, you have a party to return to," he swallowed. He looked at her, his eyes full of promises, "There will be another time for us. I promise you."

Next part »

[rhapsodyred-writes]

How about Nightmare, Nyx, Ash, and Violet decorating a christmas tree with their S/o? That sounds cute.

We're a little late for Christmas but that's fine.

You had to talk Nightmare into it. He'd never been big on the holidays, for a variety of reasons, and you didn't hold that against him. You did, however, expect him to help, even a little. He had three times the grabby limbs as you after all, and what was that saying? Many hands make light work? Once you convinced him that the decorating process would take at least twice as long without him, he agreed, albeit reluctantly.

It was the promise of Christmas baked good that sealed the deal. Nightmare was especially fond of your "special occasion" baking - things you only made a couple times a year, that were considered a rarity. And if you got the tree up fast enough, you could start baking today. He was usually patient, but the falling snow had sparked a desire for his new favourite winter routine - a plate of your cookies, a mug of tea and a book, with him curled up in his armchair in the corner under a soft throw blanket. As it turned out, he wasn't willing to wait much longer.

As you'd predicted, decorating the tree took far less time with your boyfriend and his tentacles - even if he did use at least two of those tentacles exclusively to mess with you. By the time the tree was finished, you had tinsel in your hair, popcorn that had mysteriously detached from the strand down your shirt, and a boyfriend who was coyly denying any wrongdoing whatsoever. Nightmare was dignified, yes - but he still had a mischievous side.

-

Nyx damn near started without you. As soon as it was socially acceptable to start putting up Christmas decorations, you noticed the boxes of your decorations out when you got home. Every year. "Socially acceptable" in Nyx's mind seemed to mean as soon as stores started playing Christmas music - but he didn't wait until most stores were playing it. Oh no, Nyx picked the earliest offender, every year, as his benchmark for when to start decorating. And you knew he was smart enough to know exactly what he was doing.

This year it was around mid November.

Part of you wanted to scold him and put the decorations away until at least December but...you knew he got a certain kind of joy from annoying the neighbours with his premature decorations. And you'd heard him singing Christmas songs at the top of his voice months ago. So maybe it was okay to just let him have this.

For a while it almost seemed like he didn't notice your contributions; he danced and sang around you, never pausing for conversation as he hung the ornaments in clusters that he knew annoyed some people. But when you stepped away, or paused for even a moment, he'd turn, his one eyelight trained on you.

"not havin' fun?" He'd ask, and you'd have to respond that it sure seemed like he was having all the fun.

If you were honest it was a little tiring, but you were glad he was enjoying himself. Even if you knew he was going to make a joke the day after Christmas about all your neighbours having their decorations up a whole year early.

-

"Are you gonna help me decorate?" You asked.

Ash looked up at you from his reclined position on the couch. "for what?" He asked. "we gettin' company?"

You had to pause for a few moments. You knew all the resets had messed with his memory and his sense of how time passed. You really couldn't hold it against him.

"I mean for Christmas."

For a few seconds, he stared at you blankly, and then you heard him mutter a curse before getting up off the couch.

He helped you carry up boxes of decorations and ornaments, and insisted on doing most, if not all, of the grunt work. It was almost like he was pushing himself to prove that being with him wasn't a mistake on your part. Some days it was hard to know how to combat that, but today you let him work; the determined light in his eyes told you it was working - even if you didn't need him to prove anything.

He was just as diligent at helping you decorate the tree as he was at setting it up. He made sure the decorations were spaced out the way you liked them, and only messed around far enough to get a laugh out of you; he was on his best behaviour today.

-

Violet needed a little persuasion to help you. Not much, just a little. All he really needed was a little motivation to leave the couch; he'd been so warm and comfy after all, just teetering on the edge of sleep. You knew better by now than to try and pull him off the couch yourself though. Experience had taught you that while Violet was a skeleton and thus weighed very little, somehow he only moved when he wanted to. If Violet didn't want to get up, no force on Earth could make him. You'd learned your lesson when you'd gone to try and pull him off the couch one day and he'd ended up pulling you down to join him for naptime.

So you gently shook the bowl of popcorn at him.

You'd tried to do popcorn strings once with Violet. When you realized any popcorn you strung up wouldn't survive the night, you'd given up. You still made popcorn for snacking on though.

You barely noticed that he was up before he had his hand in the bowl.

Violet enjoyed decorating for Christmas, even if it was a little bittersweet sometimes. He always went out of his way to make sure you and everyone around you had a good time, though.

You dealt with the fragile ornaments, as always. The first year you were together, his shakes had caused him to drop one. It shattered. Thankfully it wasn't particularly important to you, but from that point on, he made a point to only handle the non-breakable ornaments.

Decorating the tree was always a leisurely affair with Violet. There were always snack breaks and cuddle breaks, so it took the two of you the better part of a day to finish the task.

Last up was the angel topper. Every year you stared up at the top of the tree like it offended you, and that was mostly because you were too short to reach it yourself. But the fact was the angel was always your favourite part of the decorating process; even though Violet was easily tall enough to put it on there himself, he always lifted you up on his shoulders. It was your tree. You'd been doing this tradition longer than he had. He was just helping you uphold it.

[jodilin65]

When I read a post by someone in the park warning about out-of-control coyotes being in heat, I thought to myself that I’ve never heard any coyotes in the 2.5 years we’ve been here. I’d only heard them when I lived in California and Arizona. Then at 2:00 in the morning, I heard what sounded like more than one coyote. The dogs in the subdivision were going off like they often do at night. Then I heard the yipping of the coyotes, and then silence. I hope the owner was smart enough to take their damn dogs indoors and that they weren’t harmed. If not, then shame on them for making the dogs outdoor live decor instead of the household pets they should be.

Never will I go out walking at night! Not even with Tom. Rural areas aren’t the place to go out walking at night anyway. Even walking at night in a gated community in the city as we did was risky. Just because there may not be as many wild animals there didn’t mean there weren’t wild people. After all, homeless people were worming their way into the area when we left.

Anyway, I slept shitty…again. Removing the pillow didn’t help and I snored myself awake again, though I’m not sure it’s actually snoring but this weird sound I seem to be making. It’s not consistent but still.

The thing is that people don’t usually get sleep apnea this late in life which makes me think it really is connected to my weight or something else is going on. Something like a sleep curse because I’ve had problems with sleep in one form or another all my life. Tom may scoff at the idea of anything cursing my sleep but while we haven’t proven there is we haven’t exactly disproven this possibility either. If something happens every now and then, good or bad, I wouldn’t necessarily call it lucky or unlucky. Well, unless the good thing is winning a million dollars and the bad thing is dying. But when something unpleasant keeps happening and I see a pattern, that’s when I begin to wonder how it could be one big coincidence. I’m not saying anything either way but I definitely wonder at times.

I looked in my 2021 journal and it seems like I may have been about 5 pounds lighter than I am now when we came here. I didn’t start doing this shit till after we moved in here but can 5 lbs really make a difference? Well, I’m going to try my hardest to find out and limit myself to about 1000 calories a day. ChatGPT makes a great place to keep a running total of my daily calories as opposed to Fitbit where I had to look things up that I couldn’t always find. You had to be really precise there.

So I got up to pee when I woke up three and a half hours into my sleep and couldn’t fall back asleep for an hour. This left me exhausted when I got up. I had Ezekiel toast with salmon and a few eggs along with a small candy bar I sometimes treat myself to when we get groceries delivered. I’m out of coffee so now I’m having calorie-free tea when I get up. Green tea was recommended when I asked Alexa because it’s supposed to rev the metabolism. By then I’d had about 580 calories, did a little online work after I ate, and laid in bed for about 90 minutes. I didn’t sleep but it felt good to lie there.

Then I got up again for a while, got hit with a wave of tiredness, and took a real nap for an hour. I fell asleep to the splish splash of the dishwasher running and dreamed I was in a large waiting room full of people. I was with Tom and perhaps someone else I knew. We were sitting against the wall in what looked like picnic tables.

My name was eventually called by a young petite blonde woman. I got up and stepped out of the room and into a brightly lit corridor. Realizing everything was very blurry, I told her I wanted to run back and look for my glasses.

They were very hard to find because the room was so dark all of a sudden. This was an important appointment to get fitted for some clothes for some reason because I was literally thanking God when I found them.

When I stepped back into the hall, the woman was still young but now she was a tall stout brunette. She smiled at me and led me to see my new clothes. I remembered filling out a form saying that my style was trendy even though I would likely choose something along the lines of colorful in real life not that trendy clothes can’t be colorful.

We got some heavy rain yesterday which kept the place quiet. Could get some rain this morning as well.

No reply from Christiane. Figures.

The honker still has overnight visitors.

Not sure I’ll have the energy to hit the road. I’ve got about 100 miles to get through Missouri. My rank is now 126 and I have about 1530 miles left in the entire trip. I’m almost halfway through!

Soon I will be having tilapia with a sweet potato and veggies. This will put me at around 840 calories. Then it’s nothing but snacking on almonds for the rest of the day and toughing out the hunger. This kind of sucks too, because I’m only in the middle of my day. :-( Yet the only way I’ve ever been able to lose weight, even when I was young and had a healthy thyroid, was to severely restrict calories.

[the-dragon-chronicler]

Response 03

Prompt: An archeologist accidentally unleashes an ancient curse during an excavation.

Response: Ya know, we always joked that this is how humanity would end. With deadly viruses, the deaths of beloved celebrities, and fire sprouting like weeds, I, at the very least, assumed we'd all be cleansed by a god or something by now. But no! We're all being damned by some sort of demon or something.

I blame my boss. An "American man," ya know? He's definitely an "American man," all right. He is the stupidest smart man I know! Of course, we told him to leave the stuff alone, but no. He wanted to dig up that tomb. He wanted all the 'untold riches'. Never mind the fact that the interpreter read the words "black," "annihilation," and "death" a good twenty times.

And of course, boss man had to desecrate the fossil by picking up both the talisman and the medallion and wearing them both.

Honestly, he looked ugly as shit.

Anyway, this all started a few days ago. We were sent to this "abandoned mine" deep in the Rocky Mountains and when I say deep, I mean deep. We had started near Santa Fe on Tuesday. It's now Wednesday of the next week and our outside team told boss man that we're still near Santa Fe. We had been walking for the majority of these passing days. We even took pictures of a lot of things as we walked. There were some pretty good ones. There was one of Sammy, a junior archeologist, pretending to trace some symbols on the wall; and another one of Johnson laying in an empty grave and us pretending to dig him up. Those were fun.

But back to the point! We questioned boss man a few times as to how we were going to know when we reached the fossil. He said that we'd know when we heard somebody singing.

Now, before you all ask, we all took this creepy ass job because they promised us two-hundred dollars for every hour it took us to find the fossil. I accepted because I'm a broke college graduate who decided to work for their uncle's company. Sammy has to pay for his sister's school. Johnson, compared to us, was just a greedy bastard. I wasn't all that close to the other crew so I couldn't tell you why they took the job.

It took us another two days to reach what we now know as a tomb. It wasn't anything special at first. It was a large, closed-off, room. The walls extended so far above us that the light of our flashlights couldn't hit anything. There were letters and symbols decorating damn near every inch of those walls. After a few minutes of getting more familiar with our surroundings. We set up a few different dig sites. All of us first found pieces of a stone tablet. Sammy had the smart idea of having our interpreter piece it together and translate it. Such a smart kid. After that, we all kept finding rat skeletons.

We didn't even question it at the time.

We honestly should've.

We ended up with five pretty big piles of them. After around five or so hours of digging, boss man struck gold. All we were supposed to do was document the existence of the damn thing.

And now, we're in present day. Only Sammy and I are still alive. This...thing keeps asking us questions. Wants to know about our aspirations and families and shit. Sammy has it distracted while I type out this distress message.

Please.

If you're getting this, please send the bastards who sent us down here. It's already killed people it deemed "unsatisfactory and unworthy" both inside and outside this mine. It showed us what it did...

God...no. There is no God if this thing could do that.

Damned thing kept mumbling about "Untouchables" too. I'm gonna assume those bastards are still alive. They constantly had all this tech stuff on.

Fuck. It's coming towards me. Please someone find them.

[theficblog]

FORTUITOUS

JEONG JAEHYUN

Prologue: The plan was simple, all you had to do was to pretend to be on a date with this hot stranger, but your heart won’t always listen.

Genre: Fluff + Strangers to lovers + Fake date Jaehyun

Wordcount: 1,203

Warnings: None

The orange sun in the clear sky that the evening offered was about to set as you found yourself standing outside the fine dining of your five-star. Today was the day, it was a Friday night, and this was when the week's most anticipated dinner took place. Staying in a room all alone was barely something you looked forward to, and that's exactly how the last five days went by, alone. 

You stood patiently in line, humming along to random jazz tunes, right before your attention was caught up by something unexpected.

"ONLY COUPLES ALLOWED" The red cushioned board held in all capitalised fonts. 

"Damn it!" You cursed under your breath, the only good thing was slipping out of your fingers like the sand. This could not get any worse, you thought to yourself as you seriously pondered the decision to spend a fortune here if this was all that you were getting.

Just at that time, your eyes landed on one fine man, who also appeared to be sailing on the same boat as you, alone and disappointed. 

"Umm.. Hello there? The guy in the white shirt?" You hesitated at first, but on the inside, your gut told you to give it a go. However, it did not turn out well, for he did not even look behind. Maybe because there were too many men dressed in white this evening.

"Excuse me? Room number 509?" The man immediately turned back to face the source of the call, you.

For a second, you thought he confused you for hotel staff as you read his bland facial expression, but were soon relieved when that turned into a formal smile. 

He must have seen you, after all, he had been staying in the room adjacent to yours for the same amount of time. All you ever saw of him was alone. 

You stepped closer. "Hello" and gave him an awkward smile.

"Hey!" The same awkward smile was reciprocated from the man's side.

A moment or two passed by in silence, trying to comprehend the surrounding environment and focusing on the velvet overcoat of the woman standing in front of you.

"Do you mind pretending to be my fake date? ... They are only allowing couples inside." You blurted out abruptly, making direct eye contact with him.

"Ahhh.." He hummed, nodding his head a few times as if he tried to contemplate it.

"Listen, I know, you too, want to get in. I don't think that there is a better option." You reasoned, trying to somehow get him convinced.

"I mean, it's not a bad idea." He nodded in agreement. 

-

Minutes later, the two of you sat at the table next to the window, as you managed to get inside. The atmosphere of the place was just as you expected, the ambience, the decor, the lighting, and even the picturesque aesthetic of the stone blue river that flew through the city did not disappoint you. 

You diverted your focus to your date.

"Just to clarify, I am only here for the food." You explained yourself, placing your palms on the table. 

"That's totally fine-" His lips stopped mid-sentence, just like his eyes did, to your left. That look of concern on his face automatically made you turn your head in the same direction.

The waiter saw you and put up a questionable face.

"Do you think he heard us?" You whispered, in the terror of being kicked out. All of those previous thoughts dominated your mind again.

"Babe~" Your date whined out of nowhere. "Are you still mad at me about last night? I'm sorry I couldn't make you dinner." He held your hands in his and lowered his eyes. "I know I promised."

"But you know what?" His voice got deeper, bringing your hands even closer. "I'll make up for everything once we get back home."

This was followed by a gentle smile, and his eyes turned into little crescent shapes, almost disappearing. 

You were sure you thought he was attractive in the first place, and this act only accelerated your emotions. You swear you could hear your heartbeats, which were higher than what they usually were.

Eventually, the waiter left, seeing couples involved in these lovey-dovey conversations must have been everyday entertainment to him.

"I'm sorry-" He was in the middle of apologising when you cut him off. "That was smooth!" The compliment turned his skin red, just like tomatoes. The blush on his face spread faster than the speed of light. 

-

The food, the day's main event, soon came to the table. The real couples around you held hands, made cheeky promises, and some of them even excused themselves to the bathrooms, for better privacy. Nobody in the room seemed to be caring for the food, except for the two of you. 

You both did not talk, the only thing you did was exchange glances at regular intervals. 

Never under the sun did you think that you could be so enamoured by some random man you would meet on a vacation.

And it must have been obvious by now, he caught you staring at him a couple of times already. 

-

At last, the fake date came to an end.

The two of you stepped out of the restaurant and into the lobby where you met not too long ago, ready to take your different paths. 

"Thank you for this, though!" You offered him the same awkward yet formal smile.

"Thanks to you!" He nodded, signalling his intention to leave after expressing his gratitude.

"Wait!" You grabbed by the arm, unconsciously. Letting go of it instantly upon realising what you just did.

"What's your name? By the way?" This was the point at which you considered getting his name after having a fruitful two-hour date with him.

He held his hands behind his back. Giving you that cheeky smile, those dimples that were beyond perfection, the ones that you mentally appreciated for the hundredth time now. 

"The guy in the white shirt."

He teased, making you look away, breaking eye contact as you finally let out a giggle out of embarrassment. 

"Jaehyun." His eyes met with yours again, they were deep, and you felt as if you could see way more than the surface.

"Y/N" You smiled.

"Would you like to go on a date with me? Y/N?" He chuckled. "A real one." His glossy eyes were sparkling. 

"Are you asking me out right now?" When things were too good to be true, it was only human nature not to believe them.

"I think I am." He paused and shook his head. "Actually you know what, I am confident. I am asking you out."

"To be honest.." You commenced. The sudden look of fear on Jaehyun's face was evident. Were you going to say no? Even after all of those giggles and stares?

"I was thinking of asking the same, just in case you didn't." You completed your sentence, washing away all the worries like the tides of the ocean.

"So is that a YES?" 

You nodded your head, smiling incessantly at him. "YES."

Now call it destiny or whatever. When love comes to you, it knows just how to make its way. 

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