#this is my fourth chapter posted today

[kristinamae093]

A Game of Love

Chapter Two — Sisters

Series Summary — A fated encounter turns into a series of secret rendezvous, despite knowing their tyrsts are forbidden. Walls stay intact and hearts remain hard, but then emotions get raw, the tangled web of royal expectations comes into play, and everything goes astray. They must confront their feelings and learn to trust again, or walk away from the second chance at everything they’d ever wanted that neither saw coming.

Pairing — Liam x F!OC (main)

A/N 1 — Set after the end of book 2 (with some minor changes). Please excuse any errors.

A/N 2 — This chapter is longer but there's a lot of backstory here. 😬 Sorry. And there's no spice but the next chapter makes up for it. Sorry again.

Most characters belong to Pixelberry.

Tags — @choicesficwriterscreations

Nicole Cordelia Brooks entered the world on August 23 to John and Crystal Brooks. Weighing only four pounds three ounces, she was the premature bundle of joy that brought their family to completion. Her parents and older siblings welcomed her with open arms; Jared was the oldest at twelve, followed closely behind by Riley at eight. John and Crystal longed for their last baby and after years of conception problems and miscarriages, the heavens finally granted their wish. 

Nicole was always a happy child. She ranked in the highest percentiles as a toddler and spoke full sentences well before other children her age. She was ahead of her peers in school and never acted out. Even in her earliest days, she was a social butterfly, always respectful, and her presence brightened any room with her lively spirit. 

Nicole held strong a relationship with both of her siblings, but she and Riley had an unbreakable bond. They were best friends and did everything together, despite Riley being significantly older. She and Jared were close, but nothing compared to the sisterhood she and Riley formed. Riley spent most of her teenage years playing with dolls and dressing up with Nicole; she didn’t feel the need to go out and party but was perfectly content with watching her baby sister grow up. When their mother announced her pregnancy, she prayed her little eight-year-old heart out for it to be a girl, and somebody, somewhere, listened. 

However, everything drastically changed for their family in the blink of an eye. 

Life treated Nicole and her siblings well — until it didn’t. A drunk driver wrongfully took their parents from the world on an early, rainy August morning — to be exact, on August 23rd. They were returning home from a class reunion and the driver of the opposing vehicle crossed the median. The collision was head-on, causing Crystal and John to be pronounced dead on the scene from the force of impact; the other driver walked away with only minor cuts and scrapes. 

Nicole was only ten. She woke up that morning and rushed downstairs, but didn’t find her parents with her usual birthday breakfast; waffles with strawberries and powdered sugar on top, scrambled eggs, sausage links, and orange juice with no pulp — just how she liked it. 

Instead, she found Riley at the table, but no mom and dad. 

“Riley!” Nicole exclaimed, running to jump into her sister’s lap. “You came for my birthday!” 

Riley stared into her sister’s bright olive eyes, willing her overwhelming emotions to stay at bay. “Happy birthday, Nikki…” she trailed off, dreading the impending conversion. 

Nicole might’ve been young, but she sensed her sister’s sadness. “Sissy… What’s wrong?” She touched Riley’s cheek with her tiny palms and noticed the fresh tears that slipped out. “Should I get mommy? She always makes me feel better when I’m sad.” 

The dagger sheathing itself into Riley’s chest suddenly twisted. “Nikki… We need to talk, okay? Sit down with me, and—” She started, but the sound of the patio door closing drew their attention there. 

Jared appeared, and Nicole lunged at him with a delighted gasp. Her excitement overpowered anything else, making her unaware of his tear-stained face. “Jerry!” 

Jared laughed and scooped Nicole into his arms. “Hey, squirt.” 

“Where’s M–Mary?”

Jared snorted at her pronunciation of his wife’s name. “It’s Mau-ri, and she’s at home with the baby.” Nicole opened her mouth, a wail right there on the tip of her tongue, but he halted it promptly. “They wanted to come, but we have some important things to take care of today.” He exchanged a somber glance with Riley, the tension of the unaddressed weight hanging heavily between them. “Next time I’ll bring him to play — promise.”

Nicole eagerly nodded, then squeezed her arms as tightly as she could around his neck before pulling away. “Guess what today is?!” 

Jared feigned confusion. “Hmmm… Is it — Christmas?” 

“No!” 

He tapped his finger against his chin, deep in thought. “Let me think…” He only got away with it for two seconds before Nicole tickled his armpits. “Wait! I know what it is! I surrender — I surrender!” 

Jared made a show of letting Nicole take him to the floor, the sound of her infectious giggles filling the air. He rolled around and hollered, but when he stopped, he pulled his smallest sister into his lap and hugged her close. “Happy birthday, Nic.” 

“Thank you!” She squealed. 

“Double digits, eh?” Jared smirked. 

“She’s getting old, Jer,” Riley interjected. 

“Nuh-uh!” Nicole stuck out her tongue and scrunched her face. 

“Whatever you say…” 

Nicole bolted up from Jared’s lap and out of the room before anyone could stop her. “Mommy! Daddy!” She called. The pace of her small footsteps echoed through the house until she reappeared and came to a halt, helpless confusion painted on her innocent features. 

“Where are they?” She gasped, her face morphing into the definition of excitement. “Did they leave to get cake?! I hope it’s chocolate! And ice cream! We need ice cream, too!” She shrieked. “Today is going to be the best birthday ever!”

Jared and Riley exchanged another somber look, each dreading what lay ahead. They’d spoken of how to tell Nicole, but now that they were in the moment, neither could determine how to deliver this detrimental news. Given how excited she was to celebrate her birthday, they didn’t want to shatter her world, but they couldn’t hide this from her. It would affect her the most, so she needed to know how her life was about to change. 

Finally, it was Riley who broke the tense silence. She opened her arms to Nicole with misty eyes and when she ran to her, Riley cradled her close. “We need to tell you something, Nikki…” She closed her eyes and took a deep, shuddered breath, wishing she would wake from this nightmare. “There’s been an accident…”

Nicole understood what happened in vague terms, but it took years for her to comprehend the entirety of the situation. All she knew was Mommy and Daddy were not coming home, and she would live with her big sister from here on out. 

Riley was great to Nicole. She worked multiple jobs to make ends meet and often ignored her dreams to provide a sustainable life. Fresh out of high school, she accepted the great responsibility that was Nicole without hesitation and never complained, nor grumbled about it. Even though losing their parents devastated her, she knew she had to push forward for Nicole’s sake. Jared assisted with whatever she needed, but he had a family of his own to care for and was knuckle-deep in law school. Nicole would go for visits, but her home base was always with Riley. 

She and Jared tried to make Nicole’s birthday a day of celebration, but their attempts were futile. The damage was done, specifically within Nicole, who saw no reason to smile or laugh on that day. Riley tried to recreate her special breakfast, but it wasn’t Mom’s waffles, and Dad wasn’t there to sing; the reminder would always be there of the missing pieces taken too soon. All three children felt the loss heavily, but with time, Nicole’s sorrow only grew larger and stronger. 

Riley was incredibly protective of Nicole even before their parents passed, but her paranoia increased tenfold after their deaths. She had strict rules and stuck to them, even more than their parents. Riley expected her to keep her grades up and set a curfew that she adhered to. She had chores and was held responsible for ensuring their completion, and was punished when they weren’t. Nicole couldn’t go to a friend’s house unless Riley met them first and even then, she still went with her; she wanted to ensure her sister arrived and returned in one piece. 

As Nicole got older, she tested Riley’s authority. She snuck out, skipped school a handful of times, and was even picked up by the police for vandalizing an abandoned warehouse. Riley was called to the principal’s office a few times because Nicole copped an attitude with her teachers and when they asked her to stop, she took that as an invitation to make an ass out of herself. Thankfully, nothing was detrimental enough to sour her college opportunities, but Nicole undoubtedly taught Riley the definition of patience during those rebellious years. 

They had multiple screaming matches over Riley’s protectiveness. Nicole ran away a handful of times but was never gone for more than a few hours. Riley never got angry enough to throw her out, despite her sister’s defiance; she realized it was a cry for help without words. She heard her out and tried to relax, but found it difficult to let her grow up outside her safe grasp.

When she became a legal adult, Nicole tried to stay with Riley but found even then — she was still overbearing. She loved her sister more than anything but needed to breathe and live a little. Nicole enrolled in college and moved into the dorms on campus, much to Riley’s displeasure, but she bit her tongue and showed nothing but support. 

Nicole, on the other hand, couldn’t have been happier. College was the time of her life. The parties were unreal, and she finally got to let loose without a parental figure around. She was free to do as she pleased without a voice of reason to nag her, speak for her, or tell her what was best. Her studies always came first and her grades never suffered, but she strolled into class drunk from the night before more than she showed up sober. 

During her college days, she met plenty of guys, but in her senior year, a man named Colton joined her business finance class. He was tall, dark, incredibly handsome, and showed interest in Nicole immediately. They started dating and things grew serious rather quickly. Their chemistry was off the charts and Nicole fell head first. He was her first proper relationship and the first where she didn’t have Riley breathing down her neck, and she threw herself into him. 

They spent every spare moment together, including holiday breaks. She met his family and even brought him along with her to Riley’s, and she sang only praises. He was respectful, kind, and courteous to her sister; she undoubtedly approved of their relationship and had no complaints, even though Nicole was sure she would find something wrong with him, but to her surprise, her sister welcomed him with open arms. She hoped Colton could provide Nicole with the stability she needed, and perhaps finally tie her down. 

They graduated together, Nicole at the top of the class. She used her degree to secure a job with one of the leading financial institutions in the country, and Colton joined a small architectural business, crafting homes and other structures statewide. Things were going great — the next year they spent together, strengthening themselves and their relationship alike. Nicole believed their future was secure, but the rug of happiness she had cozied up on was yanked out from underneath her without warning.

Nicole and Colton moved in together after graduation in an apartment overlooking the busy New York streets. It was a regular Friday — except — she got off work early and stopped by their favorite cafe to grab dinner on her way home as a surprise. But when she walked inside the door to their apartment, she realized she hadn’t beaten him home as she’d hoped. She registered voices not far away and the sound drew her closer, but an anvil dropped into the pit of her stomach when she heard two people. 

Colton spoke to someone she instantly realized was a woman. 

“I love you, baby.” Colton crooned. 

“I want to believe you, but you still have that — attachment.”

Colton sighed. “I know, but I promise I’m dumping her — tonight.” 

“And then?”

“It’s just us. Once her shit is gone, that closet you’ve been eyeballing is all yours. And we’ll get that second room set up ASAP.” 

The woman laughed, and Nicole heard what she assumed was their lips smacking together. As she slowly crossed the threshold, she realized she was correct. Her heart shattered right there on the spot, but fury as she’d never felt ignited and coursed through her body. 

Nicole cleared her throat, drawing their attention to the doorway. The woman straddled Colton’s lap stark naked, right there on the couch they selected for their home together. The harlot’s eyes widened, and she sprung away from him while covering herself, but all she did was show Nicole how incredibly foolish she was, as she zeroed in on the bump protruding from the woman’s abdomen. 

She was fucking pregnant. 

Colton stood with one hand raised in surrender, the other covering his exposed genitals. “Nic, I — I can explain.” 

Nicole chortled, stalking toward him with a scowl. “Is it yours?” 

Colton swallowed thickly, the gulp echoing in the silence. “Yes…”

What little remnants of her resolve burst into flames and she blinked back tears of equal parts fury and devastation. Even though he essentially just reached into her body, yanked her heart out, and tore it to shreds, she would not give him the satisfaction of seeing her cry.  

“How long?” 

“What?”

“HOW LONG have you been fucking this WHORE?!” 

Colton winced at her volume. “I know you’re upset, but—” 

Nicole suddenly grabbed a vase perched on the mantle and launched it toward the woman, narrowly missing her. “HOW FUCKING LONG, COLTON?!” 

“Since last year…” He quietly answered. 

“Last year?” Nicole mimicked in disbelief. “So you’re what — getting your dick wet while planning a future with me?! Or is it the other way around? Am I the other woman in this situation?!” 

“No, that’s not it.” He reasoned. “I promise I can explain—” 

“FUCK. YOU!”

And that was all Nicole remembered. She woke up later in a jail cell to see Jared and Riley, both waiting with disappointed faces. Jared was a lawyer — a damn good one — and got her off the charges Colton tried to press after she destroyed everything. She never went back for her belongings but saw pictures of the damages. She left nothing in one piece — she even launched his grandmother’s urn out the window. Her rage and hurt took over and caused her to black out — she had no recollection of it happening. 

Nicole went back to Riley’s after that, begrudgingly. She didn’t particularly want to but decided perhaps her sister’s company would be better than wallowing alone in her pity. Her presence helped, but in the stillness of her solitude, her self-loathing took over. 

Alcohol became her friend, her closest confidant. She spiraled into a deep pit of depression because she felt completely blindsided. She and Colton were great together, and she couldn’t understand why she wasn’t enough or where it went wrong. Nicole treated him well and always tried to be the best girlfriend she could be. Their apartment was spotless; she cooked him dinner every night, let him have his time with his friends, sucked him off regularly and their sex life wasn’t lacking whatsoever — she did everything right, and yet, she was left broken in the end. 

She drowned her sorrows in the brown bottle, some days from sun up to sun down. Riley tried to intervene, but Nicole refused to talk about it. Multiple fights broke out from her persistent pushing until Riley finally got the message and stopped. She realized although her sister was hurting, she couldn’t force her to express her pain. It was hard to witness, but she couldn’t control her anymore, especially when, by all technicalities, Nicole was following her new stipulations. 

The rules were simple — keep the bullshit outside. Nicole couldn’t bring people over without proper notice, and it had to be someone Riley knew beforehand. She had the freedom to drink, but Riley forbade her from getting belligerent, and she had to have a job to contribute towards food and bills. They had a strict one a.m. lock time; if Nicole wasn’t home, she found somewhere else to stay for the night. Riley often worked doubles at the bar and was not a happy camper when her sleep got disrupted. 

Nicole adhered to every request and never tested her authority. 

Nicole would bounce around from bar to bar but avoided the one Riley worked at. Most of her friends were mutual with Colton because she threw herself into him and lost all contact with her friends, which meant most of her ventures were lone ones. If Daniel wasn’t working he went with her, but Nicole always had a guard up around him. He was incredibly close to Riley and worked alongside her; she considered him her friend, but her trust in his discretion was minimal and she never fully let him in.  

She mostly drank during her outings but picked up a fun game she started playing with herself. Men flocked to her and her assets — they wanted her. On rare occasions, she went home with them, but her enjoyment came from the cat-and-mouse game — the chase. She’d sashay around in her tight, low-cut dresses all night with a line of suitors behind, begging and pleading to take her home. They paid for her drinks and in return, she gave them an hour or two of her undivided attention. Nicole wouldn’t even let them kiss her; she’d let them get handsy for a bit during dances — sometimes under the table — but only a select few were gifted a night with her. 

It was nothing but a tease — watching the spirit leave their eyes when she let them down filled a gaping hole inside her chest, even if only for the moment. 

It was not always a safe game to play — sometimes Nicole ended up in dangerous situations because of her antics. Rowdy, drunken men twice her size pushed her luck a few times, but thankfully, bystanders always intervened before anything serious could happen.

With time, she slowed down a bit, but never fully stopped. Riley knew these things happened at night but during the day, she was Nikki again; smiling, laughing, and joking like she used to. But once the sun sat, the gloves came off and Nicole left to play. 

When Riley’s life changed, Nicole was undoubtedly happy for her. The day Maxwell extended his offer, Riley burst through the door, more excited than Nicole had ever seen her, but her elation faded as she realized what she would leave behind. 

“Nikki… I don’t have to go…” Riley softly spoke.  

Despite her words, Nicole knew how eager she was. “What? Why wouldn’t you?!”

“I don’t wanna leave you here all alone…”

“Riley — I’m not alone. Jared is around and Daniel lives right down the hall.” 

“You could come with me…” Riley hopefully suggested. 

Nicole gave her a sad smile. “I love you, but — no. This isn’t a journey meant for me and I have a career here — I’m up for a promotion soon and I’ve worked too hard to give that up.”

“I — I know…” Riley dejectedly sighed. “But—”

“No,” Nicole stopped her. “You’ve spent all this time worrying about me and ensuring I had everything I needed. You deserve this, Riley. I want you to be happy — if this is what you want to do, then do it.” She picked up her cell phone and held it up. “Plus, these things exist now.”

Riley tearfully chuckled. She tried to contain her growing excitement, but it was to no avail. “Are you sure? I’ll stay. This is probably crazy, anyway… To run off with some guy I don’t even know…”

Nicole laughed. “You gotta live a little at some point, Riley. Otherwise, your tombstone is going to say, ‘Here lies Riley, the woman whose crotch sewed itself back up’.”

“Hey!” Riley swatted at her sister but soon fiddled with the zipper of her hoodie. “... You really think I should go?”

“Yes! And I swear — if I go over twelve hours without hearing from you, I will be on the next flight to Cornucopia with the fucking FBI and CIA and whoever else I can wrangle.”

Riley howled with laughter. “It’s Cordonia.”

“Tomato, tomato.” Nicole snickered. “Enough logistics! Let's get you packed!” 

During the social season, they spoke all the time on the phone; daily, unless their schedules conflicted. However, Nicole knew from the conversing topics early on, that her sister seemed to have her eyes set on a different prize, but Riley wouldn’t admit it. The scandal reached the States and circulated for a bit, but Nicole’s preoccupation with her own games prevented her from paying much attention. She saw a few articles regarding the matter, but it drifted to the back of her mind. Riley cried to her on the phone for days on end, practically begging to come home, but Nicole convinced her to stay on more than one occasion. 

The engagement tour was when Nicole really noticed Riley’s attention shift. She mentioned the king rarely; instead, her focus was on a woman named Hana. How beautiful and smart she was, her vibrant smile, even down to the way her dress flowed in her wake when she walked. Her sister was falling in love, and it elated Nicole that Riley was finding her slice of happiness. She didn’t admit her feelings until Nicole bluntly asked about it; they talked it out, and she helped Riley slowly embrace her true identity. 

The court came to New York and as much as it killed them, Nicole was out of town for that visit. She was in Fort Lauderdale at a mandatory seminar and, because of the court’s tight schedule, they did not get to see each other. Riley called her the night the king proposed and Nicole talked her through her guilt over breaking his heart. Nicole reminded her that although she initially went for him, she was very much single this entire time; she encouraged her to do what felt right. 

Riley became a duchess and Nicole got promoted within her company. Their schedules were busier than ever and they rarely had the chance to connect in person. Riley made a few more trips home, where Nicole got to see her and meet Hana, but she had yet to make the trip to Cordonia to witness her sister in her new element. 

That changed when Riley called to tell her she was engaged. The sisters screeched into the phone together for a long while, Hana even joining in as well. Nicole patiently counted down the days, took leave, and set out on her international adventure. Jared would come right before the wedding, but Nicole wanted to be there for all the events that would happen beforehand. 

Riley described the perfect playground, only with a whole new set of players. 

After the excitement faded, Riley was quick to set some ground rules. Nicole had to behave while she was there, to not cause some kind of scandal. The joining of two noble women was unprecedented in itself, and Riley didn’t want anything going wrong; Nicole had to watch her step. Riley knew she could achieve the task, but it was up to Nicole to decide she wanted to. 

Nicole didn’t intend on immediately messing up, but then a tall, intoxicating man walked up and said all the right words. Her body lit like a Christmas tree, an immediate reaction to his advances. The game was still afoot, but this was one occurrence where she gave in to temptation. 

How was she supposed to know the king, her sister’s close, personal friend, hit the streets? When he told her he was the monarch, she almost died laughing, but at that point, he could’ve been Barney — either way, the results would’ve been the same. It wasn’t until she Googled his name that she recalled his face in those articles, and Riley mentioning his name.  

She knew — she fucked up. 

Riley still spoke of Liam, but mostly just a few words here and there. She didn’t mention the king was a certified freak, or that he dressed in the opposite of his social position. Nicole didn’t know how Riley would react if she found out, but she wasn’t willing to take that chance. She knew how her big sister used to be, but hoped perhaps her new home and love would calm her a bit. 

Deep down, she realized that would never happen. 

It was inevitable that she would come face-to-face with Liam at some point, and Nicole wasn’t sure what would happen at that moment, either. Would he play it off as if nothing happened? Pretend he’d never seen her? She didn’t know him, so she couldn’t determine how he would handle the situation. 

Regardless, it would be their secret — Riley could never know. 

That morning, Nicole was to set off for Valtoria. Riley and Hana were called to a last-minute meeting and were out of the country for a few days. They offered Nicole the duchy until they returned, but she turned them down, as she wanted to explore the country her sister hyped up independently. She got herself a hotel in the capital for the time they would be gone, but now wished she would’ve just gone straight to Valtoria instead. 

None of this would’ve happened, and she wouldn’t be nearly bursting with anxiety; not knowing when she would have to face her extraordinarily talented lover and the secret that would then dangle over both of their heads. 

Riley, Hana and their small group of peers anxiously awaited the honored guest’s arrival. As soon as they decided to get married, Riley knew there was no way she would even entertain the idea without her sister. She looked forward to the next couple of weeks and secretly hoped Nicole would fall in love with the country and want to stay. 

Riley enjoyed her life in Cordonia but longed to have Nicole near. Perhaps it was her protective nature, but she felt incomplete without her and often lay awake at night worrying about her. Of course, she missed Jared as well, but she and Nicole had a much stronger bond. She wanted nothing more than to have her sister around all the time, to bring her life in Cordonia to completion. 

However, that also brought great anxiety. Nicole was a sweet, genuine person, but Riley knew she made some poor decisions after Colton decimated her heart. It wasn’t so much her image she stressed about — although it was a contributing factor — but she worried about all these men being around her baby sister. She could take care of herself, but the nobility was a different ballpark; she didn’t want Nicole to get into a bad situation that could get plastered for the world to see, just as she had.  

Riley gave warnings to the men in her immediate circle — Nikki was off limits. It wasn’t Maxwell she was worried about, nor Drake, but Liam specifically. He bedded anything with a pulse; Nicole would not appear on that lengthy list. She wouldn’t allow him to use her in that way, monarch or not. Drake or Maxwell could receive the chance at some point, but Liam would not. She loved him like a brother, but Nicole was blood; she would not be another notch on his bedpost. 

Riley felt guilty about what happened between her and Liam for a long time, and sometimes still does. Eventually, she realized she really hadn’t led him on, but that only eased her aching conscience so much. They were never intimate, only kissed one or two times toward the beginning of the social season, and Riley never reciprocated when he said I love you; she would tell him she wasn’t ready for that. 

Yet, he still proposed. 

She was stunned and genuinely didn’t understand why he asked. Yes, he needed a wife to make his queen, but Riley made it clear to him early on — that wasn’t what she was interested in. The crown meant nothing, and she wasn’t willing to compromise her happiness for a job she didn’t want. She tried — time and time again — to make herself love him but at the end of the day, he wasn’t her. 

She and Hana hid their relationship for quite a while; not from everyone, just Liam. In the aftermath of his heartbreak, they didn’t want to throw salt into the still-open wound. When they announced their engagement, Liam told them he supported their union and would happily be the one to marry them, but they knew he still held some kind of resentment. Everyone got along and was good friends, but sometimes the tension thickened — a constant reminder that the past would always be there. 

“Is she here yet?!” Maxwell exclaimed, dragging Riley out of her daze. 

Riley chuckled. “Not yet.” Maxwell bounced in place, thrumming from his enormous amount of energy. “Calm down, Max. I think you’re more excited than I am.” 

“Of course! Why wouldn’t I be?! It’s another freakin’ blossom!” 

Drake sighed and ran a hand down his face. “Why did you want him here for this?” He addressed Riley. 

“Because I want to give her a warm welcome with all of my favorite people.” 

Drake snickered. “Guess that explains why Liam isn’t here.” 

“That’s not it. I invited him, but he had a meeting…” Drake stared at Riley with a knowing expression for only a moment before she pleaded, “It’s not!” 

Drake snickered. “Calm down, Brooks. I get it…” 

“You do?” 

“Yeah.” Drake nodded. “Trust me, if Savannah wasn’t with good ol’ Bertie, I would’da put a chastity belt on her long ago — no fucking way would I let him anywhere near her.” 

Riley laughed. “I’m glad someone understands, but that doesn’t mean you have permission, either — just so we’re clear.” 

Drake raised his hands in surrender. “It’s not me you gotta worry about… Or twinkle toes over there.” 

“Hey!” Maxwell yelled. 

“I’m just sayin’. She’s safe around us, but King Condom is a different story.” 

Riley sighed. Her face fell and guilt took over as she thought about Liam’s changes. She knew she was the one who did that and regardless of what everyone tried to reassure her with, she still felt responsible. 

Hana approached and lightly stroked her shoulders. “Don’t do that… We’ve been down this road a million times… You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Yeah, Brooks… You didn’t do that.” Drake agreed. 

“He’s just so — different now… Like, the Liam who wanted me to love him left when he found out I didn’t love him…” Riley trailed off, staring down at her shoes. 

“No, he chose to react how he did. That’s a grown-ass man who made his own decisions.” 

“I know… I just—” 

Maxwell cut Riley off. “My beautiful, beautiful blossom…” He grasped her shoulders as Hana’s hands fell away. “You’re such a genuine person, but I promise you, whatever is going on with Liam is not your fault. You have to stop blaming yourself!” 

Riley let out a heavy breath. “I’m just hoping I can keep him and Nikki apart while she’s here. That would be toxic in every way… Two players trying to play each other.” 

“I’m sure he’ll behave. He’s got plenty of — entertainment elsewhere, so I think she’s safe.” Hana agreed with a warm smile. 

“A female version of this toxic masculine Liam, huh?” Drake asked, amusement written on his features. “Maybe it wouldn’t be the worst idea to let them—” 

Maxwell suddenly rushed to the window, his eyes glued to the vehicle approaching. “She’s here! She’s here!” 

“Goddamnit, Beaumont,” Drake grumbled. “Do you gotta be so loud?” 

“Yes, I do. Otherwise, you might think something was wrong with me!” 

“Wouldn’t want that, of course.” Drake rolled his eyes. “Just try to be fucking normal for two seconds, would ya?”

Maxwell put his hands on his hips and faced Drake with utter seriousness. “What’s the baseline for normal, Drake? Who are you to tell me what’s ‘not normal’?” He air quoted. “Just because I don’t walk around flipping my hair, talking about bar-b-que—” 

“GUYS,” Hana interjected. She cleared her throat and smoothed out her dress with a polite smile. “Please refrain from — that.” 

Before Maxwell or Drake could respond, the sounds of loud, ear-piercing screeches filled the air. At the door, Riley jumped and hugged a redhead, spinning her around in circles. They could tell she was smaller than Riley and had a lighter, more intense shade of copper hair, but couldn’t get a good look at her face. 

“I’m so glad you’re here!” Riley exclaimed with tears of joy. 

“Are you kidding?! Like I would miss this!” Nicole responded with glistening eyes to match. 

“I can’t wait to show you everything. All my favorite places — oh!” Riley suddenly stepped away. “I found this food truck that makes the best nachos around… Very close to Ernesto’s.” 

“Nobody does it like he can, but you had me at nacho.” The sisters giggled before embracing each other once again.

“Seriously, Nikki… I’m so glad you’re here.” 

“I’m so happy to see you that for just this once, I’ll allow you to call me Nikki.” Nicole stepped away with a shudder. 

“Oh, I’m calling you Nikki the entire time.” 

Nicole rolled her eyes. “Riley, I’m not seven anymore — stop.” She glanced around at the massive estate. “You failed to mention that your house is actually a fucking castle. Does your mote have alligators in it?”

Riley snorted. “Not yet, but it’s fairly high on my to-do list.”

“A-hem.” A throat exaggeratedly cleared behind them, as Maxwell could no longer wait for his presence to be known. “Are you going to introduce us to the infamous Nikki?”

Nicole centered a death glare on her elder sister. “I’m just going to assume that everyone thinks my name is Nikki, thanks to you.” 

“How about those introductions?” Riley deflected with an innocent smile, as she led Nicole to the foyer where everyone waited. “You remember Hana?” 

“Of course!” Nicole exclaimed as she pulled Hana into a tight hug. “It’s good to see you again soon-to-be sister!” 

“You as well! We’re elated that you’re able to be here with us. We wouldn’t dream of having it any other way.” 

Nicole stepped away with an excited grin, and Riley continued down the line. “This is Maxwell. He’s—” 

“The absolute best.” He finished for her. “Master dancer, Lord DJ, the Squid King, tour guide extraordinaire—” 

“Dear God, if you’re listening, please take me from this madness…” Drake huffed, his head turned to the ceiling. 

Before Maxwell could retort, Riley quickly finished. “And that’s Drake.” 

Nicole snorted. “Makes sense.” 

“Whaddya mean?” Drake inquired with an arched brow. 

“Just seems like something you’d say, judging from what Riley told me.” 

“Oh, yeah?” When Nicole nodded, Drake continued. “What’d she tell you?” 

“Snarky, loyal to a fault.” 

Drake smirked. “Damn straight.” 

“She mentioned something about a marshmallow, though…” 

Drake sighed. “Seriously, Brooks? People I don’t even know think I’m some — soft glob of—” 

“I consider you to be a s’more.” Maxwell interrupted. 

“And what does that mean?” 

“What everyone else thinks, but with an added stick up your butt,” He stated, very matter-of-factly.

Nicole busted out with belly giggles. “That’s great. Do they do this all the time?” She asked Riley and Hana, as Drake and Maxwell went off into a fit of bickers. 

“Yep,” Hana answered. 

“Brotherly love,” Riley added with a smile. 

“I can see why you keep them around… They’re certainly — entertaining…” Nicole trailed off. 

Nicole took the distraction as an opportunity to check the men out with a hungry gaze. Drake immediately caught her eye, as he was more her typical ‘type’; tall, dark, and broad, with an air of mystery. She could tell underneath all that denim, he was packing. Not just in the nether regions, but she didn’t need to see him shirtless to know he was in immaculate shape — although, she wouldn’t complain about the view if the situation arose. 

She zeroed in on Maxwell and, although he was a tad shorter, he was just as chiseled. He spoke with his entire body, leaving very little to the imagination. Easy on the eyes and obviously a dork; she wondered if that facade would slip away when things got heated, or if he was that much of a goof in the bedroom as well. She imagined putting that question to the test and her little five-second fantasy nearly made her thighs quiver.

Riley noticed Nicole’s lustrous gaze fixated on her friends and swiftly threaded her arm through hers. “Let’s go have a drink, shall we?” 

Nicole nodded and the trio of women left Drake and Maxwell, arguing amongst themselves. Neither was aware they were now alone until Drake’s phone vibrated, momentarily halting their altercation.

Drake pulled out his device, but Maxwell immediately grew worried as he took in his surroundings. “Where is everyone? Did they leave?” He gasped and held a hand over his heart. “Was there a welcome party, and they didn’t tell me?!” 

“Max, SHUSH,” Drake grumbled as he typed out a text. 

“What’s wrong?” 

“Nothing’s wrong, but…” 

“Drake, you know how I am with suspense. Tell me now, or — well, there is no or, just — tell me now.”

“Calm the fuck down… It’s Liam…” 

“What about him?” 

“He said he’s going to make it after all… He’s almost here.” 

In one of the sitting rooms not far away, Riley, Hana, and Nicole enjoyed their drinks. The conversation easily flowed between them as they caught up on the time they’d spent apart. Nicole spoke of her job, Jared, Daniel, and anything else she could think of. Riley and Hana excitedly told her about their life in Valtoria, the wedding arrangements, and the governance changes they intended to make. However, Riley knew she needed to address the gigantic elephant in the room. 

“Nikki…”

Nicole sighed. “That name, again.” 

Riley smiled at her sister’s annoyance. “Listen, I don’t want to be overbearing, but we need to revisit the rules.” 

Nicole visibly tensed, her anxiety skyrocketing. “What do you mean? I just got here. I haven’t even had the chance to do anything bad yet…” She nervously chuckled, uncomfortably shifting in her seat. 

Riley gave her an unsure glance. “I know that… But seriously, Nicole, please behave. No trysts, no games, none of that. You don’t know these people like I do — this is not New York anymore.” 

“I’m aware, Riley. I’m not an animal — I can control myself.” Nicole quickly retorted while ignoring her conscience, knowing what she’d already done. 

“I know you aren’t, Nikki, that’s not what I’m saying, but some people here are — undeniably charming, okay? Don’t fall for it.” 

Nicole swore she could feel every drop of sweat as it profusely poured down her forehead. “Is there someone in particular you’re speaking of?” She nonchalantly asked, but something told her she already knew the answer. 

“No.” Riley swiftly returned. “It’s a general rule that applies to anyone you meet here — understood?” 

“Yes, mother.” Nicole playfully retorted, hoping to ease some of Riley’s obvious worries. “I promise I will behave — cross my heart.” 

“Good…” Riley’s eyes softened. “How are you doing?” 

“I told you — I just got another promotion, Daniel is fine, Jared is—” 

“No, that’s not what I’m asking. How are you, Nikki?” 

“I’m fine, Riley. Things are… Okay, I guess.” She shrugged. “I just go to work and go home…” 

“And…” 

Nicole rolled her eyes and let out a small huff. “Don’t do this. I’m an adult and I can spend my time how I wish. I’m safe, nothing has happened—” 

“Yet.”

“Do you want to have this argument now? Right when I walk in the door?” 

Riley sighed. “No, I don’t… I’m sorry, I just — I worry about you.” 

“I know, but don’t. I am fine.” 

“Whatever you say…” 

“How are you two lovebirds doing?” Nicole deflected, hoping to shift the attention off of herself. 

Riley and Hana shared a flushed grin as they reached for the other’s hand. Nicole smiled to herself, undeniably happy her sister found her soulmate. 

“Great,” Riley answered. “I’m so excited to get married already. Planning this wedding has been a task in itself, but it’ll be worth it in the end…” she trailed off, gazing deeply into Hana’s eyes as if she saw the entire world mirrored back. 

“Awww… I would gag, but I’m just so fucking happy for you.” Nicole interrupted their moment with a laugh. 

“Thank you, Nicole. Again, we’re so happy you could be here with us.” Hana spoke with a warm grin. “I consider myself blessed every day that I'll get to call your sister my wife, but my heart is overjoyed from the family I'll gain too.”

“There is something I wanted to ask you…” Riley trailed off with radiating excitement, as she practically bounced in place. 

“Okay…” Nicole unsurely answered. 

“I wanted to know if you would be my maid of honor… I know it’s last minute but it’s the only role left to be filled and there is no one else I want in that spot, but I wanted to ask in person—” 

“Yes, yes, YES!” Nicole screeched. 

Riley rose from her seat with a squeal and engulfed Nicole in a tight hug. She briefly lifted her feet off the floor as she spun her around, but dropped her and extended a hand to Hana. “Get in here!” 

Hana did as told and their revelry turned into a circle, as they held hands and joyfully jumped around. After a long moment and a lot of hugs, they stepped away and sat back down, each taking a breath to calm their excitement. 

Nicole finally spoke after a few minutes of content silence. “So, tell me more about the wedding. Who is coming from back home? When will Jared be here? Is Daniel—” 

Maxwell suddenly burst through the door and somersaulted, landing with his hands on his hips. 

“Wow.” Nicole clapped with wide eyes. “Impressive.” 

“Don’t encourage it,” Drake pleaded as he entered behind Maxwell. “Uh, Brooks… Can I talk to you for a sec?” He asked while rubbing the back of his neck. 

Riley shot up from her seat as she took in his nervous demeanor. They made it out of the room, and Drake closed the doors before turning around to face her. “... Have you checked your phone lately?” 

“No…” Riley unsurely returned as she retrieved her device from her pocket. She unlocked the screen and saw multiple missed calls from Liam and a few texts, and her face drained of color. “Oh, no…” 

“Yeah…” 

“I thought he had a meeting! I extended the invitation after he told me he was busy!” 

“He said it got canceled…” Riley instantly started to pace in front of Drake, her anxiety clear as day. “Brooks, calm down… I’m sure everything is going to be fine. Ya can’t keep ‘em apart forever, you know…” 

“I know that,” Riley bit out. “But I don’t want them to end up hurting each other, Drake. I can barely live with myself because of what I did to Liam. If he ends up hurting Nicole because of what I did to him, then—” 

“Woah woah woah — back that shit up. You already know my opinion on the Liam ordeal, but you're making a lot of conclusions here…” He trailed off with a knowing look. “Listen… Has he made some questionable decisions? Sure. But — he’s still Liam.”

“I know… I know… I’m just… Being overprotective, I guess…” She responded as she bit her nails. 

“Stop doing that.” Drake gently pulled her hand away from her mouth. “Everything is going to be fine. You’re going to get married and it’ll be peaceful and beautiful and all that other frilly bullshit.” 

Despite her unease, Riley chuckled. “Thank you, Drake. You’re a great friend.” 

“Yeah, well, I shouldn’t be, considering even your sister thinks I’m a fucking marshmallow already. You know this means I’ll have to step up my asshole game, right? Thatta’ way she doesn’t think I’m warm and inviting.” He shuddered. 

“Just don’t take it too far otherwise I’ll have to intervene, and trust me — you won’t like me when I have to go into momma-bear mode.” She innocently smiled and batted her lashes, but her expression sent a shiver down Drake’s spine. She looked sweet but those eyes told a completely different story, causing him to swallow thickly and reassess the usually gentle being before him.

Before Drake could respond, Gladys appeared in the hallway with a bow. “Your Grace, His Majesty just arrived and is being settled.” 

“Thank you, Gladys…” Riley quietly answered with an audible gulp. 

Drake patted her on the shoulder. “Don’t worry, Brooks. I’m sure he’s going to be on his best behavior.” 

[violentdelightshavevioletends]

Tairn taking care of Violet appreciation post:

Because "No rider has ever survived the loss of their dragon. I can’t imagine wanting to." & also "A dragon without its rider is a tragedy"… and Tairn knows; he is the only living being to come close to understanding what Violet is going through… because he lost his rider and that loss nearly killed him.

— It’s why he told her she must survive after her mother died. "You are alive. You will live today. You will wake tomorrow."

— It’s why he reminds her over and over; she is his last rider, this is their life, he won’t lose her to it, he will not live with that. "I chose you not as my next, but as my last, and should you fall, then I will follow."

— It’s why he forces her to breathe. "You will breathe." … He’s the only one that can… Tairn knows. Tairn exists. Tairn makes sure she is not alone, and you hear it in the following quotes… almost like a debate to her inner monologue… actually quite literally that; he is cancelling it out.

Violet is losing her vision: "The sky darkens, and the ground trembles. I look up into the black void, and my vision narrows in an ever-shrinking circle." — Violet sees him instead. "Not the sky. A wing." — Piercing through to her. "Stern, demanding golden eyes appear." — Demanding to be seen.

Violet cannot breathe without her: "It’s gone. A breath later, so is she. A roar vibrates my very bones, and my ears ring as the edges of my vision darken. My heart stutters, and my lungs cease their struggle. There's no air and no reason to seek it. I was infinite yet moored, and now I'm hollow and adrift in waters too vast to comprehend." Tairn uses his power, demands, controls her to breathe and live so this does not kill her: "You will breathe!" His deep, gravelly voice fills my head, and unyielding strength barrels down the pathway that connects us."

Violet is nothing: "I’m nothing." Tairn exists, so she exists, so she cannot be nothing: "He exists, therefore I must, because we are bound. Never alone. Always connected."

Violet says: "She left us. She left us. She left us. It's all I can think." — Tairn interjects, reminds, demands her to stay and remember that & that not everyone left: "We remain," Tairn orders, as if I have a choice not to."

"Andarna is gone. But I’m never alone." — he never lets her be alone. Not for one moment… It’s why it changes from “left” from that abandonment, and a vague “she” summary, to “Andarna” and “gone”, it now sounds less like everyone and a summary of every loss (even if this one hurts more than any).

"Tairn leaves our bond wide open, giving me unfettered access to him in a way l've never had. He's always been with me, but now I'm with him, too. I hear his side of the conversation when he tells the elders about Andarna's departure. I hear him bickering with Sgaeyl over what he calls her excessive hovering, and I'm privy to the lecture he gives Xaden about making sure I eat." — he lets her in like no one else or any dragon rule (I imagine at least) would allow. Even letting her see him coddling, scolding, caring, protecting; making sure she eats. Being whatever she needs to keep breathing… and she is breathing.

"I exist for Tairn, but I live for Xaden." — and he doesn’t care what it takes, even with his current disdain for Xaden; if it keeps her alive he doesn’t care. "The emptiness threatens to overwhelm me again, — he doesn’t let it overwhelm her, he lends her strength (and presumably enough power to also survive it) — but Tairn inundates the bond with a deluge of defiance and indignation. "Focus on now, on him if you have to." — and she does have them to focus on — I still have both of them: Tairn and Xaden."

[the-hilda-librarians-wife]

On one hand, the break I've been taking from fic writing has been really useful so I can focus on stuff like "sleeping early" and "taking care of myself instead of opening google docs after arriving from college and regretting it every morning". On the other. I had not forseen how sad I would be when Advent came and I was not able to post my stupid religious trauma half angel sketchbook fanfic like I'd planned. How am I supposed to celebrate Christmas under these conditions (unfinished fanfic in my docs staring at me judgementally)

[limarkova]

Yandere Batfam x Neglected Reader x Yandere Al Ghuls

Pt 2.

Prev Next

*Author's note: OMG. Thank you guys so much for all the engagement on the first part. I didn’t think my first post would get that much reaction. Also yes I am spree writing this is! If you notice a mistake let me know. PS, the school named in this chapter is fictional and does not exist in the real world.

Alfred listened to the ringing phone line waiting for Bruce to answer. Seeing Miss (Name) in the hallway had been a surprise. He was fairly certain she was supposed to be away at Miss Rose's Boarding School for Young Woman in STEM. After two years of studying in the UK it was strange to have her appear without any notice. Especially since she hadn't visited or sent word in the past.

"Hello Alfred." The line stopped ringing and Alfred was greeted by Bruce.

"Master Bruce. Have you gotten any word from (Name)'s School about a sudden break in the school year?"

"No, why?" Alfred narrowed his eyes at the phone. Well that didn't make sense. Surely her school would notify them if she left.

Alfred began going through his memories. When was the last time Miss Rose's had called the manor? He couldn't seem to recall, they did have the manor's house number on file. "Well she just arrived at the manor and get into a bit of a scuffle with Master Damian. He thought she was an intruder and because I didn't know about her return I couldn't inform him about her in advance. Thankfully she seems unharmed but that was not a good foot to start their sibling relationship on."

There was a pause on the other end of the line. "That’s odd, we should have received some kind of notice. Alfred can you call Miss Rose's to see what's going on. I'll wrap up business here quickly and be on the next flight home."

"I will see to it sir." The phone call ended. As Alfred began looking for the correct number to call next, Dick came into the room.

"Hey Alfred, why didn't you tell me baby bird was coming back?" Dick gestured behind him towards the kitchen.

Alfred shook his head slightly, typing in the school's name on Google. "I was not aware she was returning today."

Dick blinked twice, "Wait, what? Her school is in Australia, how did she get on an international flight with no one being aware of it?"

"Her school isn't in Australia." Alfred's eyebrows scrunched together. Dick's mouth made an 'o' shape before clamping into a thin line. Alfred narrowed his eyes at the look before correcting Dick, "Her school is in Birmingham, UK."

"Right, right. Umm, still though how did she get back here without anyone being notified. Even than it's the middle of October, shouldn't classes still be in session." Dick placed his hand to his chin. His eyes took on the focus look he got when he was working on a case or solving a puzzle. Alfred finally got the number written down. Dick looked up at Alfred. There was this dawning look on his face, "Hey Alfred."

"Yes Master Dick."

"Something is really wrong here, we need to keep an eye on her."

Alfred nodded listening to another phone line ringing in his ear, "I agree."

You had to come up with a plan. Escaping the facilities hadn't happened because of rash promises of passion. No it took a year of observation, planning, and waiting. It took you learning every detail that had been place in front of you. Yes you had emotions and gave yourself little dramatic moments but you can't live there.

You grabbed an abandoned notebook on your desk. It was covered in stickers with the first three pages being scribbled on. You ripped them out before beginning to write out everything you knew about the facilities. One they had access to all kinds of medical equipment but it was older equipment that struggled to work sometimes. Two the gaurds were heavily arm with scratched up weapons. The scratching was probably where the serial numbers would've been. Third they had issues getting supplies from a Sionis. Fourth it was based in Gotham evidenced by you being able to find the manor days after escape.

On the next page you wrote out your family member's names. You also add in the new people, Duke Thomas and Damian Wayne. You had written down Talia but stopped to think for a minute.

Yes, your father had likely cheated on your mom with her. But did that make her guilty of destroying your mom's romance? Did she even know about your mother? Maybe your mom was the reason she left causing that line in your mother's diary. Even than you need to focus on the experiments. You could worry about your mother's betrayal later. You scratched Talia off the list.

When you flipped to the next page, there was a soft knock on your door. It creaked open revealing Duke. He offered you a soft smile as he poked his head into your room. "Hey, are you doing okay?"

You looked him up and down. Duke was new to manor and you still couldn't tell if he was visiting or lived here now. A small part of you questioned if he knew about your kidnapping. Did any of your siblings actually know what happeneded or had Bruce just told them the boarding school lie? Did he plan to do it to them too once you proved a success?

You turned back to your notebook scribbling the questions. You'd need to look into during your investigation, "I'm fine."

"I heard about Damian attacking you in the hallway." Duke inched into your room. You turned back a page and underlined Damian's name. Even if he had nothing to do with your suspicions about your father, you were not going let him act like him towards you. Duke chuckled nervously behind you, prompt you to close the book. Can't have them finding out... yet. "Is there someway I can maybe cheer you up? I mean you're clearly upset about something and I want to help if I possibly can?"

He continued to ramble on. You looked around your room as he talked. Eyes landing on your closet you had a slight realization. In your time at the experiments, you had grown. They may have torture you but they hadn't starved you. After all they need you healthy to ensure 'proper' results. The only clothes you had that fit you were probably the ones you were wearing. "Actually there is something."

"Oh! Yeah, what do you need?" Duke smiled brightly. It was as if his teeth were glowing with inner light. If your siblings and by proxy Duke had been told a lie, playing along with it would be smart. After all planning and observing meant staying unnoticed. You offer an unsure smile hoping it would play into what you were saying, "It's a long story but I left the boarding school in a hurry so I completely forgot to pack clothes."

"Okay." Duke made a weird face. Crap, that's not good.

"Yeah and I had a grow spurt so, most of my clothes here don't fit me anymore." You rubbed the back of your neck. Duke's face shifted into realization at your words. Crisis averted for now. You plowed ahead to keep him from asking about the school, making up a lie was not a good idea right now when you knew nothing about theirs. "I need to go clothes shopping. Can you take me to the mall?"

"Of course. What time did you want to go?" Duke made an awkward finger gun gesture towards. He looked tense. Not the tense you saw from the gaurds when you started pressing the line. It was more like the intern in the experiments who never looked at you directly.

You grabbed your notebook and stood. There's was a small backpack by your desk. You slid the book in before sling the bag over your shoulder, "Can we go now?"

"Yeah, let me just stop by my room to grab my keys and wallet." Duke held the door open for you. The walk to his room was quiet and slightly tense.

When he stopped at a door on the second floor you couldn't stop yourself from blurting, "So, you live here?"

"Oh yeah." He walked into the- his room. There were a few posters and some knick knacks on the few bookcases. More importantly there were moving boxes in the corner. Some of them were disassembled but a few were still intact with clothes scattered around them. In fact most of the room was covered in stary papers, clothes, etc. Duke grimaced, "Haha, I just moved in two months ago. Let's agree to not tell Alfred about the mess."

"He probably already knows and is silently judging you." A nervous laugh bubbled out of your stomach. The information swirled inside of you uneasily. Two months was awhile but not long in the grand scheme of things. Plus if Alfred didn't mention you than Duke probably didn't know anything. That would make him innocent in your kidnapping.

"Ahh here they are!" Duke's voice broke you out of the mixed up thoughts in your head. He was holding a silver chain with a dark brown wallet and several keys hanging from it. In his search he had basically ripped apart his laundry basket. He kicked the mess back towards the now mostly empty basket, "You ready?"

"Yeah. Can we get something to eat well we're out?" You felt ridiculous asking. It was another stark reminder of how normal everything but you felt.

Yet Duke didn't hesitate to smile at you and offer his hand, "Heck yeah. There's this awesome pizza place in the mall the serves the biggest slices I've ever seen."

"I don't remember the last time I had pizza."

"No way! Let's go, we need to get you a slice ASAP. This is a pizza emergency." Maybe you could make a new normal with him. Once you destroyed the experiments. Duke Thomas was officially off your list for now.

Something had shifted in Duke. He remembered asking his parents for a little sibling when he was four maybe five. They had kissed him on the forehead and told him that they didn't need another kid when they had a perfect one in front them. It had made him feel happy for a little bit but he always held that small hope.

He thought he would get that with Damian. To a degree he did but it didn’t feel right. Damian was too competitive and strong willed. Duke didn't feel like a big brother, he felt like a contestant at worst, a good friend at best.

Taking (Name) to the mall today had made him feel like a big brother. Seeing her slowly relax around him and get excited over tiny things. Like the cute dress at Justice, the pizza slice that was as big as her head, and the look on her face when she saw Barnes & Noble. He probably spent his whole allowance for the week but he didn't care. He had made his little sister happy.

They had one last stop to make before going home, Claire's. Duke insisted that she look around well he grabbed something. He went straight to friendship necklaces. There were quite a few to choose from. Crystals, Cats, The Wicked Musical. Than he saw it. Two pastel tie-dye koalas hugging each, it was perfect. Duke immediately grabbed it before going to find her.

That's when he noticed something was wrong. She was staring at something and shaking violently. The look in her eyes told him that she had gone off somewhere else mentally. He looked towards what she was looking at to see the piercing station.

There was an attendant cleaning off a newly open needle. The smell of alcohol wipes and disinfectant clear in air. He placed himself in between her and sight. "What’s wrong, kiddo?"

"I wanna go home." (Name) didn't speak above a tight whisper. Something in Duke began howling. This was wrong, she shouldn't be scared. He was there to protect her.

"Okay, but first I need you to tell me something. Where are you?" Duke tried to remember what they do for Jason when he gets like this. Fuck why was it so hard to remember grounding right now.

"I don't like needles." Her eyes flicked to his. They were wide and blaring with barely contained rage.

"That’s okay, but I need you to tell me where we are." Her eyes narrowed and her mouth tighten. He continued on, "I need to know you're here with me. Mentally."

"The Mall."

"We can go." Duke grabbed her hand gently. They paid and left. Once they were in the car, she relaxed again. Duke palmed the necklace in his hand. He had taken it out of the package. His own necklace was already around his neck.

She was staring out the window. The look in her eyes made Duke pause. She was watching the setting sun like it was first time she was seeing it. Mute awe painted her face like a classical painting. Duke pulled the little koala out of his pocket, "Hey, I got you something."

"Is it half the back seat?" She looked behind her to the bags. Barnes & Noble, The Childern's Place, Justice, and Build-a-Bear. Four places that equated to Five separate bags. Duke snorted before bursting out laughing.

"No. Jeez no, it's this." He held out the little koala necklace to her. Her eyes looked towards his own chest, where the other koala already hung. A friendship necklace. She took it into her hands gently. That classical painting look returning, mixes of sentimental joy and some unnamed human emotion that was baffling.

"Thank you, Duke."

"It's no problem." Duke wrapped his arm around her in an weird side hug over the center console. He had always wanted a little sibling and now that he had one he was never to going let her go.

"We might want to get back to manor before curfew." (Name) pointed to the digital display announcing 6:15pm. Duke cursed, shoving his keys into the ignition. She began to laugh hysterical. The manor was two hours away and 'curfew' aka patrol debrief was at 7pm. Duke flew out of the parking lot with manically laughing ten-year-old.

Prev Next

Tag list:

@stove-top96 @00hellohello00 @mysticalhills

[celestial-sphere-press]

Fanbinding: The Desert Storm (series) by @blue-sunshine-mauve-morning

MAY THE FOURTH BE WITH YOU!

This is 1 of 2 posts for today, a massive project that I have hit a significant milestone for: completion of both my & the author's 15-volume set of the 1.1 million word The Desert Storm. This is the fic series that got me into Star Wars as an actual fan.

Four years after Order 66 and the fall of the Jedi Order, a grieving, struggling Ben Kenobi finds himself inexplicably taken back in time, crashing headlong into the foundations of fate. Grasping hope and vengeance with both hands, Ben rebuilds his identity and seeks to change the course of history: by saving Anakin Skywalker, the Jedi Order, the galaxy - and just maybe saving Obi-Wan Kenobi along the way.

My design for this typeset was significantly influenced by mem, who had begun a typeset before me and selected black & white images for the title pages, a trend I continued.

As this fic series has meteliculous attention to both canon & EU lore, I stuck with aurebesh characters for titles wherever appropriate, which occasionally gave me some fun opportunities for chapters & tables of contents like this:

For scene dividers, I used a image you can interpret either as twin suns, or as an eclipse.

While I committed to a more classic and less elaborate design for this series, I still rounded & backed every volume in the set. "Editioning" high numbers of similar books like this is often considered in bookbinding circles as necessary to practice skills (I am at 37/45 volumes), and I can certainly say that I have gotten much better at a number of things along the way. The largest book in this series is 616 pages; the smallest, 160 - and I needed to round & back both.

Further thoughts...

Blue_Sunshine (the author) has a fantastic skill for foreshadowing; reread of this series are a must. On top of that, character relationships are consistently and realistically fleshed out and developed. And critically for a "go back in time" story, Blue has a wonderful grasp of the dominoes - what changes trickle down and ripple out; and how that could come back to bite some people. Finally - if you live a badass Obi-Wan Kenobi, this is definitely a fic series for you. Also Blue is a lovely person & our little bits of correspondence has been such a bright spot for me.

Material notes: Duo oatmeal bookcloth, orange marbled jute from Sustain and Heal, hammermill cream paper, gold foil + paint for titles.

[hcneymooners]

౨ৎ stargirl interlude: chapter v.

wnba!paige x pop star!azzi. men & minors dni.

⋆ 🪩 masterlist.

cw: fluff, suggestive content, paige vs her self control, love declarations.

notes: hello, hello. had to update before i got jumped. wanted to post before i was consumed by the met gala. the song lyrics used belong to "scar for love" by niki & the dove. i hope you enjoy yourselves. love you. can't wait to see what you think.

V: COHERENCE.

“wait, we have three golden retrievers? baby, how big is our house?”

azzi smiled radiantly from the smooth face of paige’s phone screen. she shrugged, her hair sliding down her neck and across her shoulder. it was practically buoyant, highly teased for the upcoming single that azzi planned to release. she kept everyone, including paige, in the dark, telling her that it would matter more if she didn’t know a single thing about it.

paige wondered if that was the ethos of her brand as a star. 

“i don’t know,” azzi teased. “how many acres could that wnba money get us?” 

paige laughed, her face twisting into mock-outrage. “damn, ma. and here i thought you really loved me.”

azzi’s face softened, and she rolled onto her stomach, settling deeper into the body of her bed. the motion made her chest push up slightly, her tits high and glossy with glitter-infused body oil. paige’s eyes glazed over slightly at the sight. 

“i do love you, baby. besides, i think i got more money in the bank anyway.”

paige tore her eyes away from azzi’s chest, and met her mischievous gaze blushing fervently when her girlfriend cocked an eyebrow as if to let her know she’d caught her. 

“i know, mama. ‘m just playing.”

azzi pursed her lips and then pulled herself backward into an arch, the small of her back flashing a momentary, perfect peek of brown skin before she sat back with her thighs spread. paige muttered a prayer under her breath, pressing her eyes closed with a slow blink. azzi tilted her head, her cheeks flushing a little bit at the small groan that severed itself from paige’s chest.

“you know what i saw the other day?”

“a vision of me flying you out?” paige asked, eyes still closed. azzi laughed, and she opened them in satisfaction. 

“no,” azzi answered, drawing the ‘o’ in the word out. “i saw on tiktok that they keep calling me mrs. bueckers. isn’t that so cute?”

paige wanted to die. no, it wasn’t fucking cute. 

“yeah?” she murmured. “they calling you by my last name?”

something in her tone was predatory enough to hook azzi, making the other girl look at her with wide eyes. paige’s blue gaze was low-lidded and dark, her bottom lip almost bloodless underneath the press of her teeth. azzi felt her throat squeeze, and her thighs followed.

“um, yeah,” she said with a slight nod of her head.

paige let her lip fall free, her teeth chewing on the inside of her cheek instead. she studied azzi, azzi only barely changed from being on set today. azzi with her baby pink tube top and thrifted lululemon v-waisted yoga pants (she’d made that clear.) she thought of the text she’d gotten last week when azzi said she was thinking of getting lip fillers, which paige responded to in the following manner: 

sending a selfie of her side-eyeing azzi heavily in response.

a second text in which she said: » 1 ml at most, otherwise i ain’t allowing it 

a third and fourth text to follow up, in which she said:  » just thought of how good its gonna feel to kiss you fuck

then: » i mean it's good already but imma bout to be insatiable lol

azzi had responded with a kissy emoji and then promptly shattered paige’s player dreams by saying:

» i’m afraid of needles :( 

paige had laughed at that. but now, paige wasn’t playing. she’d been on one for several days, made worse by the memory of what it was like to have azzi live with her in dallas. and now, azzi was telling her about how the world saw azzi as paige’s wife. 

“p?” azzi asked hesitantly, and paige refocused on her.

“i’m with you, baby. went somewhere for a minute.”

“where did you go?” and the way she asked was so sweet, so eager to follow paige across every mode of time and space. she’d probably even take the pain of it, punish herself, though paige found her highly unpunishable. 

“just thinking about you, mama,” paige told her, voice throaty and low.

azzi smiled, pleased. outside, new york sang its song of life. cars droned on in the late-night traffic, and azzi’s eyes looked out of her window for a moment. paige studied the soft shape of her face and tried to remember what azzi smelled like when she came out of her shower for the first time in texas.

“you’re so sweet f’me, princess,” paige said, and azzi slid back onto her side, shifting her phone so that it all traveled with her. 

“what do you mean?” azzi asked, huffing out a laugh. “i’m not even with you right now.”

“you’re always with me, azzi,” paige said, her tone firming into something serious. “i never let you go, physically here or not.”

it was true. azzi’s name was written on paige’s wrist tape before every game. she’d even tailored her brand-deal-gifted aromatherapy set to smell exactly how it did whenever azzi tucked her into her arms. paige ached for her at every moment. her biggest indulgence was being azzi’s favorite baby. 

she thought of when azzi was last here, how paige had draped herself across azzi’s lap like she belonged there, face pressed to the soft plane of her stomach. her hand had traced idle shapes along azzi’s side, fingertips dragging light over warm skin, brushing just under the hem of her tank top. fresh from the shower, azzi’s curls had spilled damp and wild down her back, and she’d smelled saccharine—like something honeyed. familiar. paige had nosed at her ribcage lazily, kissed the skin there without really thinking about it. 

her brain buzzed now with the ghost of azzi’s hum, with the phantom movement of the one hand carding through paige’s hair, slow and soothing. they’d stayed like that for hours, half-watching a movie neither of them would be able to recall. 

azzi was paige’s permanent aftershock, a nuclear vibration that mutated her into something different. someone she liked a lot more than the version of herself, to whom azzi remained unknowable. she wanted azzi under her, inside of her, on top of her.  

“everything makes sense when i’m looking at you,” she continued, blue eyes unyielding as she gazed into the screen.

she watched azzi shiver, a flash of perfect teeth biting into her lip.

it made something lurch in paige, some organic thing inside her chest pulling tight. she shifted, suddenly full of everything she couldn’t say quickly enough.

“i like bueckers-fudd better,” she said abruptly, and azzi blinked. “like the sound of it. looks real good on paper, too. or on the inside of a ring. on a deed.”

azzi’s smile flickered wider, not fully following.

“i want your name next to mine,” paige continued, voice picking up steam. “not just romantically, i mean. like legacy shit. your art, your writing, your music. i want us to build a whole empire off our last names touching. i mean, i’m already planning to buy your masters over time. i’m tryna make sure you own every piece of you. you know? you worked hard for it.”

azzi didn’t speak.

“baby?”

her screen was quiet, the faint city hum behind azzi like a mechanical tide. paige leaned forward. “ma?”

azzi shook her head slightly, her lips parted. her cheeks shone.

“oh. shit, wait, are you—baby. what’s wrong?”

“i love you so much,” azzi said, so quietly that paige almost missed it, “and i don’t even know what to do with any of it.”

paige went still, breath caught in her throat, heart wrung out like a rag. she didn't know how to say me too in a way that could entail the way that the love she carried was the only thing holding her down. so she just said:

“can you come home? to me?  like, now. please.”

azzi sniffled and shook her head. “i’m sorry, p. i have rehearsals tomorrow and the final filming day for my new music video.”

paige groaned, her head falling back to reveal the white belly of her throat.

“if you can’t come to me,” she said, voice gone light and teasing, “can you pull your top down a little instead?”

“paige madison,” azzi gasped, scandalized, but already smiling, cheeks warm and eyes brimming with new joy.

paige laughed, the sound crooked and golden.

and azzi just looked at her. she often felt that paige wasn’t real, that she couldn’t be real, that it was impossible to hold all of this adoration without being prostituted by it, and yet there she was, laughing, like the sun had no other job but to kiss her teeth when she smiled.

paige blinked, and for a moment, it felt like she left her own body. like she was floating, carried by azzi’s gaze alone. she dreaded when they would have to hang up. 

she always hated the come down.

⟡

pbueckersofficial: my girl is such a fucking crybaby, and she looks so pretty with it too. it be making me wanna fuck her up till her legs shake. 7:03 pm • likes: 1.2m | retweets: 243k | replies: 301k  ⤷ username: did we forget the password to the priv AGAIN or...😭😭😭 ⤷ username: be fr we are ONE more tweet away from another WNBA-wide media training day. ⤷ username: paige bueckers saying “fuck her up” with no warning is why the government wants to ban twitter ⤷ username: just 0 decorum on my wifi. ⤷. karnold: girl, boo. she ain’t live with you  ⤷ username: she's so real for this bc i too would want to make azzi fudd see white repeatedly ⤷ pbueckersofficial: trust, you won’t be seeing the morning. #stayblessed 😇 ⤷ username: IS THIS A THREAT OR???

pbueckersofficial: hoes mad bc they didn’t lock in like me 🤷🏼‍♀️💍 8:10 pm • likes: 1.1m | retweets: 500k | replies: 432k ⤷ username: HOES MAD BC YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA ACCESS IS GONNA BE TAKEN AWAY 😭😭😭  ⤷ username: this that libra bullshit. fall in love and immediately start tweeting like future ⤷ username: don’t invoke that demon’s name in this loving home ⤷ username: isn’t that hoe a scorpio?

pbueckersofficial: y’all be tweeting “you my peace” to someone who gave you a UTI. i’m not the same. 8:15 pm • likes: 944k | retweets: 132k | replies: 346k ⤷ dallaswingspr: your account could be at risk for temporary suspension for violating community guidelines.  ⤷ pbueckersofficial: my b ⤷ azzi35: paige 😭😭😭😭😭😭 ⤷ pbueckersofficial: baby imy, call me back 💔💔

⟡

count on azzi to drop her most public declaration of love while sleeping right next to paige.

the day broke, pink and orange like a heart on fire, and paige blinked awake far earlier than she usually did. something hummed inside of her bones, her marrow thick and something sweet tugging at her mouth. she stayed still, lying on her back like a felled animal, with azzi’s head pillowed on her chest. she hadn’t yet put her finger on the pulse of what had dragged back into the land of the living.

beneath her, azzi murmured something incoherent. they hadn't even lasted a week before paige flew her out again. 

the bonnet they’d grabbed at a beauty supply store had slipped off, but her scarf held strong against her bush of curls. her face was marked by pillow lines despite her gravitating away from them onto paige’s body. paige absentmindedly stroked a finger along her cheek, her nail catching along the delicate bones of her nose and cheeks. azzi pressed into it, as if she was trying to find her even in her deepest dreams, and the thought of that made paige run warm. 

after a few more moments, paige carefully slid the other girl to the side and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. her feet touched plush carpet, and she grabbed the thin body of her phone, making sure to tuck the covers around azzi before padding into the bathroom. she turned it on, letting it vibrate on the countertop as notifications flooded in, and reached for her toothbrush. it was only after a steady five minutes of vibrations that she figured something might be wrong. 

​​tucking a strand of soft blonde hair behind an ear, paige tapped the sleek face of the device, the screen blurring for a moment before it stabilized. she was already distracted, fingers restless against the sleek glass, as notifications flooded in. but one, sitting there with a quiet power above the rest, caught her attention.

youtube: new upload from azzi fudd. 

her heart stopped for just a beat, a strange knot tightening in her chest. paige didn’t even think to hesitate. she clicked.

it was the silence at first that caught her. she didn’t recognize the setting when the video loaded, the screen dimmed at first, only to be pierced by the sharp gleam of neon pink sharp enough to make her flinch. azzi’s face filled the frame, framed against that pop of color like a strange, beautiful ghost. her curls were soft, pinned upward, and despite their careful arrangement, they still seemed to carry a slight wildness to them, as if this updo was nothing more than an act. 

every movement was cold and precise, her hands pulling the air into sharp, geometric arcs. it was stunning in its simplicity. azzi was everywhere, but nowhere all at once, moving like she knew every inch of herself. like she had to.

paige’s chest tightened as she watched azzi, this girl who liked to seem so small when they were together, this woman who was now reminding the world that she was a fucking popstar. the popstar.

she watched azzi’s body twist and propel itself across the stage, dipping and bending while azzi kept intense eye contact with the camera as it dared to follow her. paige licked her lower lip as she followed the soft sweep of the body suit, its thin cover as it dipped between azzi’s thighs. 

there was an aching vulnerability in azzi’s movements, the way her body tensed and then unraveled, like a machine coming apart under its own weight. paige could see it in the way azzi moved. her eyes slipped closed for a moment, head tilted back just enough to expose the delicate line of her throat, vulnerable, but also so very controlled. she balked, stumbling forward on the balls of her feet like she was on the edge of a large cliff. her body strained over and over, always so close to breaking, but instead, managing to weave itself into a new shape.

azzi sang to herself. it was clear that she was alone in this, spinning like a solo planet even as she bled her heart out for the world to see. 

it's either with or against you and nothing left to say / 'cause all you ever got was hurt.

there was a madness to it, a quiet destruction that paige couldn’t shake. she had never seen azzi like this, and maybe that’s what unnerved her most: how easily the world consumed her. how easy it was for azzi to give it all up, even when every part of her seemed to be begging to hold it together.

we mark each other’s hearts / with a scar for love. 

it wasn’t just the vulnerability that caught paige off guard; it was how effortlessly azzi embodied it. how easily she could twist herself into something so raw and exposed, and make it seem like the most natural thing in the world. and maybe it was. 

azzi had once told her that she despised her inability to be indifferent to anything: the critics, the fans, her mother, her management. azzi was a masterclass in caring above the norm. everything kicked her while she was still down, and sometimes she rolled over to let the world get a clean hit in.

as if to drive the point home, azzi fell off-screen. she hit the floorboards with a tough thud before the camera spun to display her face twisted in electric pain as she crawled across the space. her voice never faltered, its pilgrimage from her throat to the outside world uninterrupted. 

paige watched as azzi swung herself up into a crouch just before she hit a wall, stumbling dramatically back before gliding into a gorgeous moonwalk-esque promenade. she faced the camera, jaw strong and proud as she pointed mockingly with a bejeweled acrylic tip and then turned it back to herself, mimicking the action of slitting her throat.

draw a line, sister / draw it deep / do not stop until we bleed.

but there was more. a shift. the camera pulled back, the screen flickering, and for a moment, something different filled the space.

a video. a video of someone blonde. it took a few moments for paige to recognize that it was herself, but from behind. this was clearly a moment that azzi had captured when they were together because paige was laughing, unguarded and helpless in her adoration. it was clear that both women were slaves to love. 

as it continued, paige glanced back in slow motion, her eyes crinkling with the softest smile, the kind of smile that made a heart stop in its tracks. paige watched herself stand there as the camera zoomed out, her face falling slightly with the smallest of smiles, the kind that only azzi could pull out of her.

and then, in a fluid motion, azzi stepped closer to the projected image of paige, the video shimmering against the dark backdrop. there was something tenderly desperate in the way azzi approached the screen, like she was walking into a game she knew she’d most likely lose. she sped up, tripping into an unbalanced run. just as she grew close enough to touch, she tilted forward and slammed into the wall with both hands, palming the projection of paige.

she slid down the wall, her body sinking to the floor with a tragic grace that made paige let out a small, wretched gasp. azzi turned and slowly began to curl into herself, leaving just enough time for her audience to see the blood snaking languidly down her cupid’s bow. it fell into her mouth with a sick drip, and continued as she ended it all with a head buried in her knees, as if she couldn’t bear to look at the memory she had just tried so futilely to keep for herself.

the screen went dark. and then there it was: nothing but the numbers 10.20 flickering softly on the black screen in baby pink, italicized serif. the numbers lingered like a kiss print.

the date. it took paige a moment to process. 

10.20. 

she blinked, disoriented, the weight of it sinking in.

the new album. azzi was releasing it on her birthday. the significance of it hit her all at once, staggering like an unexpected blow. she had watched azzi bare her soul, shed her skin, and now she understood why. this wasn’t just a love song. this wasn’t just azzi doing what she did best. 

paige thought of the blood dripping down azzi’s full-glam face, the way she hadn’t wiped it but had hidden it so that the hot, crimson line could continue staining her. she thought of what azzi had texted her just a few weeks ago:

» i can’t be normal about you » i want to hollow myself out, so i can keep you inside of me forever  » i don’t care if it sounds crazy, but i don’t want to be anything other than yours. every time i’m alone, every time i’m without you i feel like i’ve made a wrong turn somewhere. » it's like i'm supposed to be going home, but i missed my turn. 

paige stared at the screen, the room feeling suddenly too small around her. her chest felt tight, too tight, and her fingers trembled as she wiped away the sudden tears that slipped down her cheeks.

fuck, she loved that girl.

just in the other room, azzi was sleeping deeply. the sunrise stretched like a fresh wound on the wall.

⟡

azzi35: for p. ❤️‍🔥 new album out 10.20 4:44 am • likes: 4.7m | retweets: 1.3m | replies: 828k

popcrushdaily: azzi fudd just released the most daring visual of her career. vulnerable, unrelenting, and devastatingly beautiful. this is a popstar who isn’t afraid to show her scars, both literal and metaphorical. “scar for love” feels like it’s pulling at the heartstrings of every single person who’s ever loved and lost. 10.20 can’t come fast enough. #azzifudd #scarforlove • likes: 6.8m | retweets: 2.2m | replies: 1.4m ⤷ username: oh so grammy secured iktr!

arvind__music (music critic): the perfect example of how a popstar can make you feel uncomfortable, moved, and seen all at once. azzi fudd is making history with this drop. her vulnerability is unmatched, her vision untouchable. we are witnessing the birth of something transcendent. #scarforlove  • likes: 33k | retweets: 15k | replies: 8.6k

carmenintheclouds (celebrity choreographer): azzi fudd never fails to have a visual hand that is so on point. from the neon pink to the choreography, everything is tight. and that final scene? don't even get me started on the symbolism. scar for love is art, people. #azzifudd #scarforlove • likes: 12k | retweets: 4.6k | replies: 2.2k

pbueckersofficial (quote replying to azzi35): fuckkkkkkk i love her.  6:20 am • likes: 3.2m | retweets: 326k | replies: 999k ⤷ pbueckersofficial: she put my whole heart in 3 minutes and 47 seconds. what do i even do with myself now? ⤷ pbueckersofficial: i’m supposed to go to practice after hearing that? be fr ⤷ pbueckersofficial: i need to propose. like now. i need to propose TODAY. FAWK ⤷ pbueckersofficial: mind you she’s stil sleeping imma bout to [redacted] ⤷ pbueckersofficial: if this was the bachelor i would’ve given her the final rose S2E1, timestamp 0:30. ⤷ karnold: so you really said fuck that priv huh

wnbagossip: lmao paige bueckers never fails to be the realest out there ⤷ username: when she said “fuck i love her”... we all felt that. ⤷ pbueckersofficial: ain’t nobody got her like i got her, trust

bueckersfuddsourcebrasil: bueckers-fudd nation, how are we feeling now that miss “i’m private” just went PUBLIC?? • likes: 6.5k | retweets: 536 | replies: 1.3k ⤷ username: azzi said here damn! ⤷ username: first strap pregnancy is coming in october  ‎‎⤷ ‎ pbueckersofficial: #realshit ⤷ azzi35: paige, please put the phone down and come out of the bathroom, i wanna give u a kiss  ⤷ pbueckersofficial light ain’t got nothing on how fast im about to move 

© hcneymooners.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Aaaaa Yuuna is so cuuutee 💗😆 Her hair is so prettyyy. But with the addition of the new Yuu I’ve come up with a theory that with the pattern the mangas have taken so far, they’ll start switching back and fourth between male and female yuus for the rest of the dorms:

Heartslabyul - Yuuken (Male)

Savanaclaw - Yuuka (Female)

Octavinelle - Yuuta (Male)

Scarabia - Yuuna (Female)

Pomefiore - Male

Ignihyde - Female

Diasomnia - Male

Just something I came up with that i wanted to share with you ^^ Also who is the manga artist for Scarabia 🤔

[Referencing the Episode of Scarabia!]

Lots of Yuuna-related asks recently (and for good reason!) so I decided to lump them all into one post :DD

Yes, Yuuna is very cute~ The alternating genders of the manga!Yuus has actually been a pretty popular theory for a while now, actually! Some believe this is meant to be the Yuus having the opposite genders as the Great Seven member of their respective books/dorms. But yeah, the pattern seems likely at this point.

The mangaka for the Episode of Scarabia is Majiko-sensei! They have previously contributed a chapter to the manga anthology. You can read more about their past works here.

I'm not sure if "[taking] care of [one's] appearance" is the right phrase to use (as it unintentionally implies other Yuus are slobs/don't care about how they present themselves, when that's definitely not the case)? Maybe it would be more accurate to say, "Yuuna has stereotypically feminine aesthetic tastes", though it's more immature and preppy than Vil's is. I think Yuuna has a cuteness that's more characteristic of Cater than Vil--but all three of them definitely have overlap in their interests in makeup, fashion, social media, etc. I feel like Yuuna would get along with them both!! We do technically see her interacting with Cater (they take a selfie before he departs for winter break) and are assumed to have already known each other due to the events of books 1 and 2. Too bad we don't really get to see them interact in those books... and that we won't see Yuuna interact with Vil for the Episode of Pomefiore. We'll have a new Yuu by then (which gets into my disappointment with never being able to fully follow a single manga!Yuu and their character arc through to the end of the main story...)💦

Yeah, it's nice to have variety in the manga!Yuus' personalities, skillsets, and interests! ^^ It makes them a lot of fun to follow, even if we know they'll only be with us for the length of one book/dorm.

I've personally really been loving Yuuta and Yuuna a lot. Yuuken and Yuuka are also nice, but I find that their general characters are kind of similar (athletic and level-headed) and don't differ enough to result in interactions unique from game!Yuu (with perhaps the exception of them being able to physically contribute to battles). This is not true of Yuuta and Yuuna, whose abilities extend to other areas and therefore have a larger impact on the world and its characters. For example, Yuuta's love of food + cooking skill has him shouting at Grim sometimes for not appreciating food, but it also becomes excellent leverage for sleeping over at Savanaclaw later in book 3. You can also see how Yuuna's outgoing personality would draw people to her and allow her to make connections.

The manga!Yuus also speak to the diversity of Yuus we see in the fandom. I know a lot of us were waiting for a girl Yuu (which we got with Yuuka), a Yuu of different body type (which we got with Yuuta), and a very femme presenting Yuu (which we got with Yuuna). Yuuken is also great because he was the first Yuu we got that actually had the ability and the confidence in his fighting capabilities to charge head-on into an OB fight.

As I state in my pinned post, manga raws generally come from Monthy GFantasy, which publishes new chapters of the Twst manga online each month. You must PAY to access those raws.

In the case of the Episode of Scarabia, the full first volume was released in today. It is avaliable on Kindle through the Amazon JP store. This is still something you would need to PAY for if you're interested in seeing the full thing right away.

I cannot provide full chapters to the public, as this is paid content that I receive from my own friends who subscribe to GFantasy and/or who bought the first volume of Scarabia on Kindle. You can make your own decision whether or not you wish to purchase for yourself; however, there is most likely a scanlation team that will put out an English version sooner or later. Again though, this would surely take some time to get done, especially when there's 4 chapters of Scarabia to translate.

[lavandulawrites]

Autonomy Of a Free Soul ch: 2

Chapter 2: An Eyepatch Wearing Gentleman

You find yourself in the meadow by the giant oak tree at Windrise. You have faint memories of falling into a well which is deeply hidden inside a cave by your home. You get captivated by the tune of the green clad man as he strung lyre high up in the tree.

Alone in a foreign world with hazy memorises, you are sure to encounter various obstacles you would never dreamt of facing. With some admirers with emotions and devotion deeper than what would seem possible, can your journey turn out peaceful?

Chapter 1

Synopsis: It’s your second day in Teyvat and you go out and try to find some work to do. After running a few errands, you met a tall man with an eyepatch covering his eye. His character gives you some indescribable chills…

Masterlist

(This is an yandere genshin men x reader fanfic that will have multiple chapters. This will be cross posted on ao3. It will partially follow the plot of genshin impact.)

Warnings: female reader, Kaeya is oddly eerie

Word count: 1112

The bustling streets of the city of freedom was a welcoming sight as you exited the apartment complex where Venti resided. You were headed towards the Adventures Guild in hope of getting some work to do. You were lacking in mora and what Venti had so kindly given you could only cover your lunch for today.

The Adventures Guild booth was cowered in various posters and maps. Behind the counter hung different trinkets and artifacts you had never seen before. The woman behind the counter was dressed in a green uniform with white frills.

She looked at you with a friendly smile. “Hello, welcome to the Adventures Guild. I’m Katheryne, how may I help you?” her hands were folded in front of her as she bowed.

“Hello, I’m [Name]. I’m new to town and I was wondering if you have some work available for me? It doesn’t need to be much, just so that I can earn some mora” you returned her friendly smile.

You crossed your fingers against your side in hope of her giving you some work. If nothing were available, you didn’t know what you would do. You couldn’t live off of Venti’s earnings. He had already done so much for you and you would hate to be even more indebted to him.

The black haired woman nodded. “We do. Though you would have to register yourself in the Adventures Guild. May I have your full name?” a block of paper was in her pale hands accompanied by a simple green pen. She waited for you to nod affirming before she explained to you what the Guild entailed and all the rules you would have to follow.

You nodded. You sighed your name onto the contract. [Name] [Last Name]. You handed her back the thick cream coloured paper that was off the highest quality.

“Running errands is something that you could as your first you within the guild. Are you in possession of a horse?” Katheryne asked you with a professional smile.

When you answered with a “no”, she nodded. “Alright. Leasing a horse could be rather expensive, so your tasks would have to be within the city. Is that alright with you?”

“Yes, that is alright.”

“Good. Then it’s settled” she handed you an envelope. “This is the list of errands. They’re mostly delivery. When you’re finished, come back here and you will get your payment.”

“Got it” you smiled. It seemed easy enough.

“Oh my, I almost forgot. Here” she handed you a thick little book “This is the handbook. I advise you to read it. There is also tales of previous adventures and tips and tricks that might help you along the way. Should it be necessary, of course”.

Katheryne bid you farewell and you ventured deeper within the city.

The tasks turned out to be rather simple and uneventful. After delivering the fourth package of wine, you begun wondering if they even had a mailman in Mondstadt. You would be sure to ask Venti later.

Your stretched your legs as you leaned your back against the backrest of the wooden bench you had decided to rest on. Your legs were sore from all the walking and your fingers were aching from all the carrying.

You scanned your fingers for any blisters, but to your luck there were none. Yet.

The sound of footsteps broke your new found tranquility. The faint sound of clinking followed. You raised your head at the sound, curious.

Your eyes met the lone eye of a blue haired man. His icy blue eye were bottomless and something deep inside you told you that if you weren’t careful, it would swallow you whole. In the middle of his eye were a star-like pupil. His other eye was covered by a gold trimmed black eyepatch that added to his enigmatic aura. His lips pulled up into a smirk as his eye took in your expression. The smirk turned into a grin when he saw the pale blush that dusted your cheeks. A playful chuckle escaped his lips. It was melodic and you could feel it play your delicate heartstrings.

The clinking came to an halt and you could then see the gold coin he had in his hand. He rolled it over his knuckles as he tilted his head. “I haven’t seen you around here before” his eye scanned your face in the search of something. What, you didn’t know.

“I just arrived” your voice was more silent than what you were aiming for and an unfamiliar icy feeling crept up your spine.

He nodded. “I see. I hope you are enjoying the city, darling” his voice had a distinct purr to it as his lips pulled back, revealing pearly teeth.

You forced a smile back as you swallowed. The rushing sound of your cold rushing files your ears and drowned out the blue haired man’s gentle humming. You couldn’t make sense of it, but there were something about him that had you on edge. It and your throat tighten ever so slightly and it formed a lump in your stomach.

He reached out his tan hand. His fingerless gloves of leather and were clearly high quality. “I am Kaeya. It’s nice to meet you” his purring voice almost hypnotic.

You reached out and took his hand. His grip was firm, firmer than necessary as it swallowed your hand. His skin was cold, but not uncomfortably cold. In the corner of your eye, you could see his light blue vision resting on his hip.

“My name is [Name]. It’s nice to meet you, Kaeya” your smile thin as you shook his hand.

He stared at you for while. Not letting go of your hand. When you tried to pull yours back, his grip only tightened like a boa snake. His smile only widened into a grin.

Fast footsteps got more and more audible as a knight weaved his hands over his head. “Captain! Captain! We got a situation in the eastern woods!” his yell breathless as if he had been running for a while.

Kaeya’s grin fell and he turned his head. His eye never leaving you. “I am coming” his flirtatious tone gone and replaced by a coldness that chilled you to the bone.

His hand released you.

“It seems that I must take my leave” he sighed “It was a pleasure meeting you. May we meet again soon” he smiled. He turned on his heel as he followed the knight. Kaeya waved over his shoulder in a nonchalant way.

You watched as his silhouette faded. Your goosebumps left with him, but the coldness of your veins stayed for a good while.

[taylorman2274]

Today Is Where Your Book Begins (Chapter II)

Determined to meet with the Reader from Beyond the Stars, Aether discusses with Alice the idea of connecting with them. Meanwhile, you realize something about your game that differs greatly from others.

Content Warning(s): Slight Alice Misportrayal

Notes: SAGAU, GN!Reader, Aether!Traveler, Lumine!Sibling

Word Count: 800+

Previous || Next

Taglist: @bunniotomia; @sarraisme;

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

There is something that is troubling you a lot.

There's this game called Genshin Impact, right? It's a gacha game where you can spend money on characters that you wish to play. Its first story arc just finished in a climactic finale full of tension and drama.

Afterward, the protagonist of said story (Aether in your case) gives a speech where they thank all of their friends for helping him reunite with his sibling.

Currently, you are rewatching the speech on social media to watch and read other people's reactions to it.

...

...There's just one issue.

You initially wanted to rewatch the speech because you thought that people would react wildly to the fourth wall break at the end of the speech. The one where Aether thanks you as the 'Reader from Beyond the Stars.'

...The only problem is that nobody is talking about it. Not because they aren't interested in such a revelation.

...

Because according to the internet, that fourth wall break never happened.

You want to call bullshit, obviously. You swear to God the Aether from your game mentioned your existence as part of a fourth-wall break. You're not insane! It's just FACTS!!

...

But if you were to bring it up, who would believe you?

You weren't recording your game at the time, and looking at the Archon Quest historical archives within the game never showed that it was said. According to the game, the last person that Aether thanked was his sister, Lumine.

This is like the equivalent of the quiet kid who never talks, saying, "Nobody will ever believe you" to your face.

You try and convince everyone else that they said it, but they'll always believe the quiet kid. And in the end, you end up looking insane.

If you were to post on social media that Aether broke the fourth wall without any evidence, you'd be labeled as an attention-seeker. Wrong. Never happened. Stop lying.

"So what am I supposed to do? Ignore it?" you asked yourself.

...

...

...

"Ehh. One missing dialogue isn't going to kill me. Stop worrying about it. You've got other things to be more concerned with."

You continued your day as if nothing had ever happened.

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

"You understand that what you're asking of me is pretty big, right, Aether?"

"I do understand, Alice. But surely you can understand my reasonings."

Alice hummed in affirmation from her seat at the head of the Imaginarium Theater's table. Aether watched from his seat beside her as she closed her eyes, seemingly thinking to herself.

"Although I know you harbor good intentions, I'm afraid this is a request I cannot easily grant."

"...Why is that?" Aether asked, frowning slightly.

"I've told you before that who you're asking me to bring is simply a Reader of this story we're in," Alice explained. "Readers and storybook characters aren't meant to interact with each other. If they did, the relationship between the two becomes chaotic."

"But are we not storybook characters anymore?" Aether asked. "We've changed our fate created by the Heavenly Principles so that we may forge it for ourselves. If we are no longer part of their story, why do we need to continue to distance ourselves from the Reader?"

"Because that is all the Reader has known us as," answered Alice. "Informing the Reader that the characters within the story are aware of their existence is a hard message to get across. Usually, it ends with the Reader scared out of their wits and separating themselves from that story forever."

"But it's not impossible."

Alice's eyes widened in surprise before she drew a sigh. "You're right. It's not impossible. Just incredibly difficult with a low chance of success."

She leaned forward in her chair. "But this isn't something that can be done with just one person's request. You're talking about bringing an outworlder - not even a descender, an outworlder - to Teyvat. To an entire new world. A world inhabited by hundreds of thousands of people. You don’t get to choose for the entire world whether or not you can bring any outworlders. This world has already had enough problems with them already.

She pauses for a brief second. "...No offense."

"None taken."

Alice nodded. "Do you see what I mean, though? This isn't something that you should be taking lightly."

"...I know," Aether sighed. "I just wish I could properly thank them for all they've done for me."

He got up from his seat, turned away from Alice, and looked to the ceiling. "But just saying it isn't enough. I want to be able to look them in the eyes as I give them my thanks. That's the only way I'll know that my message got across."

Alice hummed. "Well then..."

...

"I'll see what I can do about that."

...

Aether turned back around toward Alice, a surprised expression etched on his face. "...Huh? You mean you're gonna follow through with this?"

"I know I said before that the odds of success are low, but what can I say?" Alice said, hands raised in question. "Not only do I like myself a good challenge, I like our odds as well."

Aether crossed his arms. "And why is that?"

"Oh, I don't know," answered Alice, smugly.

"...I just have a feeling that the Reader may be thinking the same thing as well."

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

Author's Notes: "Oh, this is gonna be a piece of cake! I already have my beginning and my ending. Writing this is gonna be a breeze!"

Narrator: "It wasn't."

Yeah... I probably should have thought this through more. That's why it's been a month since the previous chapter. I thought I had something going, but I couldn't write the original scene fluidly enough to fit with the direction the story was going. But the problem's fixed now! Just ended up shuffling some other scenes around. We gucci.

Another thing to mention is that I'm not confident in the way I've written Alice. That's why I put that content warning up there. I'm not that familiar with her character, given I've only interacted with her once in Simulank, and I'm too lazy to look up the other interactions. Sorry if that bothers you.

Here's to NOT waiting a long time for the next chapter to come out.

...Don't quote me on that, though.

[itwasntimethatdidit40]

So wooo it's been a while since I stepped foot in here, started posting around May (and then took down the first fic because I didn't like it) and I'm really glad I did because writing is the one thing that has really resonated with me my whole life. 

I reached 200 followers at the beginning of November and now I'm 6 from 300, which, again, is crazy! And I have a tag list now, it's unbelievable. Thank you so much to each one of you, I love you.

So I definitely want to give something back to this amazing community.

Starting today I'm going to try to do a monthly post dedicated to all the amazing stories I've read. 

This month will be a list of all the works that have stuck with me since I have been here, unfortunately I will never remember them all because my memory sucks, but I hope I have included most of them.

I am so looking forward to discovering many more authors (my tbr list is so long, so many fics so little time, I really hope to read more over the Christmas holidays) in the coming months and I hope to grow this little space more and more into something safe, friendly and nice for everyone.

(Feel free to add me on discord if you like and you haven't already, I'm always happy to chat and make friends, you can find it in my bio).

Anyway, let's cut to the chase, it's a long list of outstanding work below the cut: 

• The Wolf You Feed - @arcanefox207 Joel Miller x f!reader

Look, I'm so in love with her Joel. He’s hot, he's grumpy but also comforting, he plays guitar, he feels true to character. So precious.

• BDSMaid - @mountainsandmayhem

Basically, my Roman Empire. Everything about this is so damn good and this Joel? Hello? Please marry me? I will never stop screaming about him. Also, yes, it’s an AU but he feels so Joel, you know.

• Do your worst, Little Dove from Little Dove series - @mountainsandmayhem Joel Miller x f!reader

This changed my entire brain, okay. Probably the hottest thing I've ever read and if you're into sub!Joel this is something you should read immediately.

• Never made it as a wise man and following chapters - @almostempty Joel Miller x f!reader

Never laughed so hard for a fic and honestly, after this I learned that Wed could write whatever and I'll worship that.

• He knows - @almostempty

Lucien x f!reader

The way it’s written it’s out of this world, I loved it so much♥️

• Self esteem series - @almostempty

She managed to make me fall in love with fuckboy!Joel, which is remarkable because there’s nothing I hate more in this world than fuckboys, like I despise them with all my heart but I’m still here wanting to kneel in front of him. Damn, Wed, stop doing this to me. (Jk)

• Paris, Texas - @almostempty

Joel Miller x f!reader x Javier Peña

*laugh hysterically* I want to live in this fic. I want to be reader. No, actually I want to be the fourth.

• Unscripted desires - @gothcsz Javier Peña x f!reader

The way Kat writes Javi is something unique, I don't even know how she managed to write so much about him doing a fucking banger every single time. This one was probably the first thing I read written by Kat and I'm not going to forget my first love anytime soon.

• Blackmail - @milla-frenchy Joel Miller x f!reader x Javier Peña

I read this series in one day and I was so needy when I finished, jeez! Milla is so damn good and she’s an absolute queen at writing dirty talk, it's honestly unbelievable the way she delivers every single time and leave me speechless.

• Her - from 5 days collection - @milla-frenchy Joel Miller x f!reader

It’s so dear to my heart (odd to say this about a pegging fic? Probably, but I still stand by what I just said). It was so good that inspired me to write a pegging fic myself and she was so kind about it 🥹 And she was probably the first person engaging with me here and I’m so fucking grateful that she did. Milla, if I have people reading me it’s because you reblogged me and gave me a chance in the first place, I will never forget this.

• Table for Three - Who's your daddy - @aurorawritestoescape Joel Miller x f!reader x Dave York

I read those in my early days here and wow Kate definitely sets a bar in terms of hotness for me. So good. And she’s another person that I cherish so much, thanks for being so supportive and encouraging.

• Keep on your mean side - @aurorawritestoescape and @milla-frenchy Joel Miller x f!reader

These two are dead dove queens and this one is simply amazing 10/10 no notes.

• Cherry, Cherry - @baronessvonglitter Joel Miller x f!reader

You have to know something about Adriana, she’s one of the nicest people I’ve ever met, just a beautiful soul. I’m still in awe of how she managed to write this series with so many characters and such a rich plot, it’s so sweet and comforting but also angsty and so good, I teared up a little bit at the end 🥲

• Daddy can fix it - @baronessvonglitter Joel Miller x f!reader

Handyman Joel lives in my mind rent free and the fact that this one feature a plus size!reader is the cherry on top ♥️ All bodies are beautiful and should be considered worthy of Joel’s love.

• Like a good girl should - @baronessvonglitter Joel Miller x f!reader

WELL. I mean. This one gave me an inexhaustible desire to be spanked sooo yeah. So hot.

• Flesh for fantasy - @syd-djarin Joel Miller x f!reader

I thought about that for days after reading it and it’s still one of my fav things ever, like my brain just exploded, I remember having a conversation with @almostempty about this. The fuck Syd, you just broke my mind.

• Pink - @netherfeildren

Joel Miller x f!reader

One of the first thing ever that I read in this fandom and honestly sets a bar so high I was afraid to start writing anything. The urge, the need that drips from every word, the way the shaving scene is still stuck in my brain. Wow. Just wow.

• Touch Tank - @thundermartini

Javier Peña x f!reader

So beautifully written and soft!Javi made my heart melt ♥️

• Spiaggia, amore e limone - @thundermartini

Javier Peña x f!reader

It sets in Italy, of course I am the biggest fan of this. And not only that, Javi is so cute, smut is so hot, everything in this fic feels like a warm hug.

• Trēs series - @whocaresstillthelouvre

Marcus Acacius x f!reader x Lucius Verus

This is the first time I've ever popped into an author's notes and I'm so fucking proud 🤣 Thank you Mallory, you made my day, my week and my whole month 🥹

Plus, this is so good, think about your fav indulging dessert… it’s this series.

• Fifteen - @whocaresstillthelouvre

Din Djarin x f!reader

So comforting and endearing, I love it so much. Like, she made me read Din. I rarely read Din, enough said.

• Do I move you? - @lemon-nomel

Joel Miller x f!reader

I’m so damn proud of her for finding the courage to finally publish this and I’m also honored that she sent me her draft to read 🥹 She’s the sweetest person ever and stood by my side all these months through hard and happy times. Thank you love, for everything and your writing is amazing♥️

• ma’am - @mssalo

Joel Miller x f!reader

Another sub!Joel I won’t forget anytime soon, wow, so damn beautiful, so hot, perfectly executed. I’m so weak for sub!Joel it’s honestly ridiculous.

• So Cal to North Cal - @lotusbxtch

Frankie Morales x f!reader x Joel Miller

It features two of my fav Pedro boys and it’s honestly so good. Would love to take a trip with them and not only that.

• Guilty pleasure - @for-a-longlongtime

Joel Miller x f!reader

Typical DBF!Joel? No, it’s not! And I loved that, no spoiler but my jaw literally dropped to the floor lol

• To Dig a Grave - @softpascalito

Joel Miller x f!reader

I love this series so much, angsty and sad but also comforting in so many ways.

• Wherever you stray, I’ll follow - @cavillscurls

Joel Miller x f!reader

I think this was my first omegaverse fic and it was incredible, so beautifully written.

• Big fat tally - @toxicanonymity

Joel Miller x f!reader

I will probably never forget Joel in a harness, it’s carved in my brain, thanks Toxi for providing this delicious image to me.

• In the woods - @tonysopranosrobe

Frankie Morales x f!reader x Santiago Garcia x Benny Miller

First sex pollen fic I read and I loved it so much. So desperate, so good.

• How do you sleep? - @thriftedtchotchkes

Joel Miller x f!reader

Honestly so good. Wow.

• each man mad’s desire - @pascalispretty

Marcus Acacius x f!reader

This is so beautiful, it’s like a poem, I still have no words.

• The Real Deal - @strang3lov3

Frankie Morales x f!reader

Oh this one was so damn good, please, this Frankie is perfect. I still yearn to have him.

• Bedridden - @strang3lov3

Joel Miller x f!reader

I’m still laughing, it’s so damn good, well written, funny, sick Joel is unbearable but still the hottest ever.

• Doctor’s pet - @evolnoomym

Dave York x f!reader

Oh this one. I mean I’m a secretary in a clinic, it’s clear I need to work for Doctor Dave.

• Ptolemaea - @lovely-vamp-princess

Joel Miller x f!reader

She just started this and it already feels so original to me, like something I never read before and I’m so curious to see how it unfolds.

• Smooth operator - @penascigarette

Joel Miller x f!reader

Joel calls a sex line and OMG. They’re softer than I thought, so good and funny. Lovely, just lovely.

Happy reading ♥️

[cinnamoonblue]

Chapter IX | W.D.Y.W.F.M?

Summary: You moved to one of the biggest cities in the world - Grand Line to pursue filmmaking career. Soon enough your path will cross with the vocalist of upcoming band called “The Neighbourhood”. At first you decided to be just friends - because it would be easier, but sadly as everything in life sometimes by taking the easy path we regret a lot of things.

Main characters: Portgas D Ace x Reader (female)

Supporting characters: Nami, Usopp, Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, Law, Deuce, Shanks, Buggy, Sabo, Eustass Kid, Koala, Robin, Dave (OC)

Description: Modern AU | Musician Ace

WARNINGS: explicit language, mentions of alcohol, mentions of cigarettes/nicotine, mentions of loneliness, angst, mentions of of depression

Word Count: 12,3K

<- previous chapter | story masterlist | main masterlist | next chapter ->

NOTE: Words are not enough to say how much I appologies for taking two months to upload this mid chapter.... I AM EXTREAMLY SORRY, but now that I will be only focused on THE NBHD, I will be able to post every one to two weeks and you guys will have constant updates like in the beginning when I started the story. I hope that there are still some of you left to follow it. I hope you like this short chapter, next one will be quite long. ENJOY ♡

Wiping the last table of the night a tired sigh left my lips. My whole body ached from the long day in university and then the long shift at work. For the past two months now, I have been taking frequently shift’s at ‘The Red Pirates’, as it kept me and my mind busy from everything that had happened.

“Wanna ride home?” Kid approached me as I went to throw away the rag I have been using to clean the tables.

“Sure.” I replied without looking at him. Washing my hands I looked over my shoulder at him. “Are you done?”

Nodding with his head he grunted. “Just have to change and lock.”

“I’ll wait for you outside.” Grabbing my bag from under the bar I made my way outside.

If I have to describe the last two months with one word it would be – odd. I felt like I was being trapped in a never-ending cycle. There were days where everything was fine, and my mind didn’t think of what had happened between me and a certain someone. But on the days like today, I couldn’t stop the memories of that night coming back to me.

I thought that by now I should have been over it, over him. And partly I was or I wanted to believe so. Maybe it was the fact that he rejected me so cruelly that still brings me back to those memories. Or the fact that I still doubt if he was honest with his words, as his actions didn’t match with them… to some extent.

I have been doing everything in my power to avoid knowing or hearing anything about him. Every time Nami or Usopp would mention something about him or the band I had to become more and more creative with excuses to leave the table and go away or change the subject fast. Nami had asked me multiple times what has happened, but never got an answer from me, because it was pointless. I didn’t want to hear ‘I told you so.’ Nor having to recall aloud the memory of him.

If I didn’t occupy my mind all the time with something I was always going back to him and as funny as it may sound, I still find myself crying to sleep some nights. There were many times where I want to pick up the phone and call him and just ask ‘Why?’. Why it had to be this way? Why a part of me had to still be stuck with him while he was out there acting like a big rock star.

The first two weeks, after the whole fight between us had happened, were hard to remember. The first three days, till this day I couldn’t recall as I spent them in some lucid dream stage. Everything was so clouded in my mind that until the fourth day the rumbling in my stomach was so bad that I had to push myself to get up and eat something, which after three bites I couldn’t no longer eat and less than an hour I threw up. I have never had my heart broken before. My mind, my body and my heart were hurting at the same time, and no medicine had the cure for it as cliché as it might sound. The pain was so hard to handle that most of the days I spent on sleeping pills which weren’t helping much as I was barely being able to sleep as he was haunting me in my dreams as well. It was like no matter what I was taking or trying to do to distract myself I couldn’t escape him.

To my own surprise the person who was slowly but steady pulling me of this hole I have fallen into was Kid. This grumpy punk head man was my only source of light in these dark for me days.

It all happened when one night after we had closed, I told him to go and that I would lock the bar to which he, of course, agreed to. Before I left, I went downstairs and changed to my own clothes instead of the ones I was working with and sat for a second on the couch Shanks had put downstairs in the changing room/storage and pulled out my phone, scrolling on it for a bit.

I had avoided using social media as much as possible and just when I was about to close Instagram, a post from some music updates account appeared on my feed and of course the post was about his band. It was all four of them on the picture, but my eyes focused on him only, as always, as a habit, an awful habit.

My hand which was holding the phone had started to shake as I pressed my other hand to my mouth as a loud sob escaped my lips. Dropping my phone on the couch next to me I bent my legs and pull them closer to me, wrapping my arms around them as I curled into a ball on the couch and cried.

I haven’t seen his face for almost a month, I didn’t even open my camera roll just so I didn’t have to look at the last thing saved in it, and it was the video I had taken of him and the stary kitten when we were out, because I couldn’t bear to look at him. I couldn’t bear to look at him and being reminded of all the things we would never be.

I didn’t know how long it was nor when Kid had come back until I heard his grumpy loud voice.

“What are you doing still doing here? What if someone has come in and steal something.” His presence startled me, and I tried to quickly erase the tears from my face. Kid noticed it and his annoyed and angry look on his face softened a bit. “Hey, brat. You alright?”

“I’m fine.” My voice was low and cold. I didn’t want to speak to anyone, let alone him out of all people. I quickly got up from the sofa and sniffed as I looked away. “What are you doing back here?”

“I forgot something.” Opening his locker, he took whatever he had forgotten and closed it. Embarrassed that he had seen me like this, I didn’t dare to look at him as silence took over the room. What broke the silence was his deep sigh mixed with the grunt of his voice. “Come on, brat. Get your stuffs, I’ll drive you home.”

“Thanks, but no.” Grabbing my back from the locker I closed it and quickly made my way to leave the place.

Going outside, Kid was quick to follow me. “I wasn’t suggesting. I’m driving you whenever you like it or not.” He said as he stood in front of me.

“I said no, Kid.” I grit my teeth as I put the alarm and locked the bar. Turning around I walked away which irritated him.

“Stop actin’ like a spoiled child and just come with me.” Coming after me he grabbed my hand and pulled me back to look at him.

“Kid let me go.” I could feel the tears starting to build in my eyes again, not because he was hurting me or anything like this, but because I just wanted to be left alone.

“You don’t need to tell me shit, just let me drive you home.” I didn’t expect such response from him. His voice was still irritated and his whole face was grumpy as always, but not his eyes.

“Why?” Sniffing one more time I pulled my hand away from his grip and this time he let go of me.

“Because it’s too late and if something happens to you, I don’t want to listen to Shanks nagging.” Pulling his car’s key he nodded to follow him.

I knew that I have a choice and if I continued to insist, he would just give up at some point and leave me alone, but I didn’t have the energy for this.

Getting into the car none of us said anything. This felt like a déjà vu. Last time Kid offered me a ride home was on Halloween after I had left the part where I had my first ever confusing situation with the same man I was currently crying over for. And here was I again. Three months later, same car, same seat, same person causing me distress by their actions of rejection.

Glancing at me, Kid exhaled as he returns his gaze back to the road. “Why are you sad?” I was more than surprised that he was first to break the silence, let alone with a question leading straight to the point.

“What happened with ‘I won’t ask questions’ ?” I mocked his voice. Kid only side-glanced me which made me feel intimidated a bit. “I’m not.” I didn’t want to speak mostly because if I did the tears and the sobs, I was fighting so hard, would win over.

“Bullshit.” He chuckled ironically. I just glanced at him without saying anything and turning my eyes back to the window as I observed the streets outside.

“Wait, where we are going?” I looked back at him as none of these streets lead to mine.

“For a drink. You need one.” He mocked me as he side-eyed me once again.

“What?” I turned my body in a way to face his. “I’m not going out for any drink. Drive me home.” Raising my voice at him, thinking that he would listen was quite fullish of me.

“I will. After we grab a drink.” Parking the car in front of one of the many bars in this town which were open until five in the morning he turned to me as he took off his seatbelt. “Come on, brat. Just one drink. You need it.” Winking at me he got out of the car and waited for me to do the same.

Two beers later I was an open book. Telling him everything from A to Z. The fact that I was barely eating these past three weeks and even drinking water to begin with, I was surprised that I didn’t get drunk by the first beer alone.

“And he kissed me.” Slamming the glass a little bit too hard on the table, some of the beer got splashed around. “Like… he ran all the way down to the first floor, k-kissed me like… like I’ve never been kissed bef-” A hiccup interrupted me mid-way. “Ops, sorry. Anyway, kissed me like I’ve never been before and guess what…” I waited for Kid to say something as my pupils had widen from the alcohol and all the emotions I have had been holding onto. He didn’t say anything as he looked at me with an unreadable face.  “He fucking rejected me. The fucking asshole just looked me in the eyes and told me he felt nothing. He felt nothing.” My voice had raised a bit too much and we got a few looks being shot towards us.

“Maybe lower the voice a bit.” Kid mumbled as he didn’t enjoy the praying eyes on us.

Not paying him any attention I continued with my drunken ramble. “He felt nothing Kid… nothing.” I could feel my eyes watering again. “I went there and pour my heart to him like some fool and what did I get back? Nothing. He didn’t even bother to reject me nicely, no.” Wiping the tear that had fallen from the corner of my eye with the back of my hand my gaze locked with Kid and his very judgemental one. “What?”

“Nothing.” He replied before taking sip of his own beer.

“If I hear one more man answer me with nothing I-… I swear to God I will-” Adding aggravation to my sadness wasn’t want I wanted, but this pissed me off.

“Chill, brat.” Kid rolled his dark maroon eyes at me. “I’m just surprise that you were so… pathetic.”

“Pathetic?” Frowning my brows I looked at him questioningly. What did he mean by this?

“It’s the same guy from Halloween, right?” I never mentioned who the guy was. Looking down at the floor to avoid Kid’s eyes, I nodded. “You said that he is acting like an asshole, if that is the case then you should have just done nothing and wait for him to reach out for you again.” Crossing his muscular arms in front of his chest he smirked at me. “If you’ve given him at least a week now you wouldn’t be here.”

“So, I should’ve let him play me instead?” I didn’t really understand the logic behind Kid’s words of advice if I could call it such. “I did this because I got tired of these games.”

“Games or not you want to tell me that if he comes back now you wouldn’t craw back?”

The question made me freeze for a second. He would never do this. He made it clear; I was nothing to him. I was just some ‘doll’ he liked to play with from time to time when he felt bord.

“He would never.” I whispered.

“Yea, sure.” Kid laughed mockingly, grabbing his beer again and taking a big sip of it.

I wouldn’t craw back to him, no matter what. He had hurt me so much and if I was to forgive him, I wouldn’t be able to handle the pain he had caused me one more time. I was barely handling it now. Adding to the pain and the disrespect was also my self-respect which I was willing to protect or at least whatever was left from it. I have forgiven enough.

“I wouldn’t go back to him Kid. Not this time.”

After this night something between me and Kid changed and it turned out that he was in fact an asshole, but whenever he wanted to, he could also be a nice one. We hang out after work from time to time after that night and surprisingly I have found myself being able to share my pain about certain black haired man with only him, because even if he did judge me, he also listened to me.

It also turned out that when he wanted to, Kid could talk a lot. After he had locked the bar, and he drove me home he was telling me about some girl he had met on Saturday while he was out with his friends.

“Someone has a crush.” I teased him and he just side-eyed me with an irritated frown on his face.

“I do not.” He grunted.

“Oh, come on, Kid.” I chuckled. “When you want to you can be a charm you know.”

Glancing at me he raised one brow. “Oh, is that so?”

“Yeah.” I nodded. “You know I had a little crush on you when I first started working at the bar.” I couldn’t help but laugh as I just confessed that I used to have a thing for him.

“You did?” He turned his head towards me, and I pushed it back as he was driving.

“Eyes on the road.” I said to him. “And yes, I did. But this was like what, three years ago now? Anyway, it was a very short crush, mostly because you acted like an ass to me.”

“Can a person help it? You’re such a brat.” He grunted, but not with his usual bitterness, but very lightly and jokingly.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” I rolled my eyes playfully. The car stopped and we have finally arrived on my street. “Are you free this Saturday?”

“Think so. Why?” Turning his head to face me he gave me a questioning look.

“My friend Sanji is having a birthday party, a very big birthday party, and I was wondering if you want to tag along?”

Nami has bothered me for weeks to go to Sanji’s birthday party. I have been wanting to go but knowing who would be there was stopping me. The whole friend group would be there and as much as I loved them, I also have been avoiding Luffy, and his hundredths attempts, to reach out to me after what had happened two months ago.

“Hell no, brat.”

“Come on, Kid. I need someone to back me up.” I whined as I grabbed his shoulder and shook him.

“The fuck?” He looked at me in disbelief as he pushed my hands away. “I don’t want to hang out with your and the Monkey brat’s friends.” I have always forgotten that he knew Luffy. “And back you up from what?”

“Well, I haven’t really hung out with them recently as I kind of avoid them.” I murmured.

I have stopped going to parties or just causal hang outs with everyone, expect Nami and Usopp from time to time after school. Nami was the only one who has suspected that something had happened, but I have avoided to hang out with only her, afraid that if I do then she would make me speak about it no matter what.

“Why you avoid them?” Kid asked curiously.

I never told him who had broken my heart. He didn’t know that it was Luffy’s older brother who did so. “I’ve avoided them for the past few weeks and in case it is awkward I need some backbone with me there.”

“And you ask me?” The look of his face was priceless. He looked confused, surprised and uncomfortable at the same time.

“Yes, why not?” I was starting to get confused myself, why it was so strange to invite him.

“Why yes?”

“Ha-ha, very funny Kid. You’re so fun and quirky.” Rolling my eyes at him I sighed. “Come on, it will be fun, plus there would be so many people if you don’t want to hang out with me, you can always find somebody else.” I wasn’t sure myself why I insisted on him being there, but I wanted him to come. We have become very close, so it will be nice to go and party.

“Again, if there will be so many people there, why should I be the backbone?” His annoyed grunts made me roll my eyes once more.

“Okay you know what – sorry that I’ve asked in a first place.” Taking off my seatbelt I reached out to open the door, but Kid stopped me as he grabbed me by the arm.

“I’ll think about it, brat.” He let go of my hand and I smiled at him. “Also, is your Romeo going to be there?” My smile immediately disappeared as he mentioned him.

“No.” I swallowed hard. “He shouldn’t he is not close with Sanji.” I opened the door and got out of it, but before I closed it, I turned to Kid and gave him a mischievous smile. “Did you get that girl’s number?” Kid nodded slowly as he knew that I have something in mind. “Tell her to come as well.” I winked at him and shut the door behind me before he could cuss me out.

Last night was the last show of the tenth the band had around the country. At first it was only five shows scheduled, but they sold out so fast that their manager – Marco, had to double book the venues as the demand for the guys was over the roof. When they added the extra night to each city the tickets again got sold out immediately. The guys themselves couldn’t believe how fast their popularity had grown and continued to do so.

On top of it they had released their first single of their upcoming album – Daddy Issues, which was playing everywhere -radio stations, MTV, YouTube, Spotify, TikTok etc. you just named the platform the song was already there, used for an edit or something else. It has even started a trend around social media. It turned into a big hit, maybe even bigger than ‘Sweater Weather’. In between the shows the guys even filmed a music video for it and it has already come out.

But while Deuce, Law and Sabo were enjoying the success of the band, Ace couldn’t say the same. Those two months, since the last time he had seen you have been like a hell for him. Ace never believed in heaven or hell, but he was sure that he has already been living in hell. The only time his mind calms a bit was when he was on stage, but even then, it felt like all the songs he sang were connected to you one way or another.

Everyone around him noticed that he has been carrying some emotional pain for some time now, but he didn’t let anyone close enough to speak with him about it. They all had tried, but they were all met with the same response – “Leave me alone.”

Ace didn’t even bother to spend any time with his friends. If it wasn’t for something related to work the guys didn’t see him at all. Everyone was worried about him.

He was so down since the last time he had seen her, because that night he didn’t only broke her heart, something he would never forgive himself for doing, but he also broke his own. He broke his own heart to a point that nothing really brings him joy. Yes, the shows did, but it was for only what – an hour and a half?

Ace have been regretting what he did since she ran away from him crying that night. He wished he could turn back time and slap himself across the face. To add to his pain, recently he has been living with the thought of – what if…

What if he had told her that the feelings were mutual? What if instead of saying all the hurtful, nasty things that he didn’t mean at all, he had told her exactly what she actually meant to him? What if instead of running after her in the elevator, he had kissed her instead in the middle of his living room? What if instead of causing her all this distress and heartbreak, he had wiped her tears away and just embrace her?  “What if?” This question didn’t leave his mind even for a second.

Laying in the middle of the bed in his hotel room, he just sighed. Ace found himself once again lost in his thoughts for (Y/N). He never stopped thinking about her, and he doubts he ever will. Because of this, he has found himself in a crossroad of a decision – when he got back in Grand Line City to go and beg (Y/N) for forgiveness or continue to live the way he does now. The second one had way more logic and it made much more sense to him than the first one.

She would never forgive him and why would she in the first place? He had literally made a fool out of her and her feelings. He didn’t deserve her forgiveness; he deserved her resentment. But even though he knew what he deserved he couldn’t help but wonder if she could find it within herself to forgive him and maybe with time to give him a second chance so he could make it up to her and her kind heart which he didn’t appreciated enough.

His phone vibrates and he reached with his hand to grab it from the nightstand to see who had texted him.

‘Are you coming? We’re already in.’

It was a text message from Sabo. Yesterday was their last show and after they had finished it, they all have agreed on going out for a drink to celebrate their first successful around the country tour. Even though Ace wasn’t in the mood to go out at all, he didn’t want to argue with the guys, after all none of them put him in the situation he was in and taking his anger on them would be quite unfair.

Sending a quick message back to his brother, Ace let out a deep sigh. It was already ten pm. They had the whole day off as they were to leave tomorrow morning. All he wanted to do was to just sleep like he had been doing it the whole day today. Not like he found any comfort in his sleep nor that he was tired but because even in his dreams she managed to hunt his thoughts.

Getting up from the bed, Ace went to his suitcase and grabbed the first pieces of clothing his eyes landed on.  Unwrapping the towel wrapped around his waist he quickly put the clothes on. Taking glance of himself in the mirror, his hair has grown quite a lot, this was the longest it has ever been, but he didn’t really have the time nor the energy to cut it. Grabbing a pair of sunglasses and putting them on he left the hotel room.

Stepping outside the hotel and on his way to the bar where his friends and their girlfriends were, Ace had to stop a few times as some girls have recognised him when he was passing by them, and they asked him for a quick picture. The idea that he was becoming a recognisable public figure was still something quite new to him and it did sometimes make him uncomfortable, but he couldn’t say “no” to the people who have been supporting him and the band on their way to success.  

Finally, reaching the place where the bar was located, he entered and started looking for his bandmates. The concept of the place was a mixture of piano and cocktail bar, making it quite luxurious. The dim lighting added a touch of warmth and coziness, making the atmosphere quite inviting. Soft music played in the background, creating a relaxing yet vibrant atmosphere.

Greeting all of them once he reached their table, Ace sat down between Deuce and Law on the big round table they had been sitting on. “I’m surprised you choose such calm place.” Taking his glasses off, Ace put them in the middle of his slightly unbuttoned on the chest shirt.

“Don’t you like it?” Koala looked at him with her big light brown eyes pouting a bit. She was the one who had chosen the place and hearing that someone was not pleased by it made her a bit disappointed.

“No, I was joking, Koala.” Ace quickly reassured her as Sabo gave him a warning look. He was in fact messing with them as they usually always go for nightclubs, not calm fancy places, but his brother was sometimes annoyingly protective of his girlfriend and even jokes at times might be taken badly if they happened to make her feel even the slightest bit offended.

A moment later the waitress came to take his order, and Ace just told her to give him something strong and the girl just nodded as she went away. Everyone has gone back to their conversations – Sabo and Law were talking something about the producing of the upcoming album for when they get back to the Grand Line City, Koala and Robin were talking about politics which didn’t surprise anyone as both of them were big human rights activists, and Deuce was speaking with Ace or better said tried to speak with Ace.

“Hey, Ace.” Nudging Ace on the side with his elbow Deuce gave him a questioning look. “Do you even listen to me man?”

Shaking his head and clearing his throat Ace nodded. “Yea, sorry. What were you saying?”

“I was asking how are you?” Ace opened his mouth to answer but Deuce shut him up immediately. “And don’t give me the I’m fine crap. I mean seriously.”

Rolling his eyes at Deuce, Ace ironically chuckled. “I’m fine.”

The waitress came and served Ace the drink he had ordered and thanked her before she went away. Taking a big sip of it he looked back at Deuce, but Koala’s voice made everyone turn to her as she whined. “No Ace, we are supposed to cheer first. Together.” Biting the inside of his cheeks Ace blankly stared at her. Recently she has started to annoy him a bit… a lot.

“Yes, Ace.” Sabo added giving his brother an unpleasant look. “Where are your manners?”

Taking a deep breath in, Ace raised his glass high, looking at Sabo and then the rest of the table, he gave probably the most fake smile he has ever given before as he cheered. “To us guys and many more albums and sold-out avenues.” The sound of the glasses clinking and the cheers from the rest of the table filled the air around the table. Drinking the rest of the drink in one go Ace put the glass down and excused himself and left the table, making everyone wonder if they did something wrong and mostly when his attitude would go back to normal.

“I’ll go after him.” Deuce said as he saw Sabo getting up from his chair to catch up with his brother, which wasn’t the best idea given how much they have been arguing recently. Walking out of the piano bar, Deuce looked around until he spotted Ace walking down the street. He caught up with him fast and grabbed him by his shoulder. “Hey man, wait.”

“Not in the mood Deuce. Go back to the others.” Ace grunted not even bothering to look at his light blue haired friend.

“I’m very aware of that.” Deuce chuckled ironically. “Everyone is.” He murmured to himself, but Ace heard him.

“Then you know I want to be left alone.” Ace continued to walk without glancing at his friend.

“Ace stop this man.” Deuce had enough of this, and he yelled at Ace, making him glance over his shoulder at his friend. “You have been like this for what now? Two months?” He had never seen Ace like this before. Yes, he knew him for a long time, very, very long time, and he was aware of his self-destroying tendencies, but it has never been this bad before. He has been lashing out on people for no reason, barely talking with any member of the band and if he did most of the conversations end up in a fight. He has been acting like a complete asshole, and no one knew the reason why he acted like such. “What has gotten into you? Do you realize how much of an ass you’ve become? And I swear it better not be because of the recent fame we’ve gained because none of us will tolerate your bullshits.”

Ace was too stunned to speak. Deuce was never the type to blow up like this let alone being so frustrated. He was the most collected one of the four, so this behavior that Ace has recently displayed has struck some nerve in the blue haired guy.

“You really think I’m the type to let fame get into my head?” Ace couldn’t believe that Deuce could think of such a thing. “Fame? Really? Off all the things you can possibly think of fame is the one on top of the list?” Ace mockingly laughed in his friend’s face.

“This is our best guess... second best.” Deuce responded and Ace raised his brow at him. What did he mean by ‘second best’? “Look, let’s find some cheap bar, grab a beer and talk? Just us two. Whenever it’s the fame or something else I’ll just listen, man.” Taking a step closer to his friend, Deuce placed his hand on Ace’s shoulder. “You’re clearly not okay. I see it, your brother sees it, Law sees it, we all see it. Just... let me help you at least by listening to whatever bothers your mind so much.”

Deuce expected that Ace would just laugh at his face and tell him to fuck off, but to his surprise Ace agreed. He didn’t have much to lose and the fact that tomorrow they were flying back to Grand Line City was only adding to his stress.  

They walked a bit until they found something quiet and more secretive. Walking in and ordering two beers they sat at the back of the very dark-dimmed old rock bar. Making a silent cheer both took a sip of the beers, but none of them said a word after.

“I fucked up bad.” Ace was the one who broke the silence. Deuce didn’t say a word and he just waited for Ace to continue. “I fucked it up very bad... with (Y/N).” This didn’t surprise his friend at all as this was everyone’s first and best guess which turned out to be the right one. “I don’t think she would ever forgive me nor want to see me.”

Six beers later Ace had poured his heart and soul to Deuce. He had told him everything. From the unofficial ‘date’ to the elevator with the kiss, he had told him about everything with every single detail out there for the story. “And now I don’t know what to do. I don’t deserve her forgiveness, Deuce. I don’t even deserve to share the same air with her to begin with, let alone trying to get her to forgive me.”

Deuce hasn’t said a single word since his friend began telling him what had happened between him and the girl he has fallen hard for, all he did was to listen.

“Is there more to add to the story?” Deuce finally spoke and Ace slightly shook his head. Nodding, Deuce took a sip of his beer before fixing his gaze on his friend, whose head was hanging low, and deeply sighed. “You’re right Ace.”

Ace glanced at his blue-haired friend with a slight arched brow. What was he right about? He didn’t expect Deuce to agree with him, to be honest he thought the quite opposite that his friend would instead encourage him to go after the girl he was desperately in love with and that he hadn’t made such a mess out of himself.

“You don’t deserve forgiveness for what have you done.” Deuce articulated his words deliberately to ensure that his friend would understand and get what he was telling him. “That is why instead of forgiveness maybe you should aim for a new start, a second chance.”

Confusion was written all over Ace’s face. What was his friend telling him by aim for second chance? How could he get one even if she doesn’t forgive him first? Maybe Deuce was more drunk than he looked like.

“Second chance? Do you hear yourself?” Ace was looking at his friend like he had grown a second head.

“What you did Ace is unfixable.” Deuce’s words made Ace’s whole-body ached. He was aware of this and that was why he was in such distress in the first place. “That is why I’m telling you to try start things from the beginning again.”

Running a hand over his face, Ace chuckled ironically. “And how do I do this?”

“Easy.” Deuce mocked his friend. “You find her, you speak to her and instead of begging her like a pussy for forgiveness you tell her to never forgive you nor forget this, but instead to give you the chance start all over again.”

Staring at his friend Ace let a small makeshift laughter escape his lips. “Yea, Deuce. This will definitely be so easy. Cheers.” Rasing their beer bottles the two men shared a toast.

Deuce was hoping that his friend would listen to him and do something to fix the things between him and the girl. He did know (Y/N) but not very well. She was indeed a very kind girl and maybe that was the problem. Deuce knew Ace for years and he wished his friend happiness more than anything but knowing his tendencies he was not surprised how things had turned out. After what he did, (Y/N) would be a fool if she forgave him, but deep-down Deuce has the feeling that if Ace really goes and speaks with her and tells her the same things he has just told him, she would be willing to give him a second chance. Or at least consider to give him a second chance.

“Wouldn’t it hurt more if you never try?” Deuce added and these words slowly nestled in Ace’s mind.

The week rolled fast, and it was already Saturday. I was both relieved and a bit tensed about tonight. Relieved because our debut movies for the year were to start next week and the preproduction and all the preparation for it has taken so much of my energy. The good thing was that after a very long time Nami, Usopp and I were working together in the same team. On top of it we had two weeks to prepare for it and only five days to shoot it, starting from next Monday. It would be quite stressful, but I can’t wait to start as I was asked by the girl who wrote the script to direct it, which surprised me as we weren’t big fans of each other, but I didn’t turn the offer down.

Strangely I wasn’t so tensed nor worried about the debut movie, actually not at all, we had it all under control, but I couldn’t say the same about tonight’s party.

I haven't seen the whole group in a long time, and while I missed them, I also felt anxious. Ignoring Luffy led to ignoring the rest, and I hope they weren't offended. I believe they would understand if they knew the reason behind why I was so reserved in the past two months. Not like they would ever find out why or what happened, but still, the hope mixed with guilt was settled within my gut.

Today I had to wake up extremely early as Usopp and I had to take care of some last-minute things for the film. Thankfully everything went smoothly so it didn’t take much of our time.

On the way back he dropped me to the supermarket close to my place as I had to buy some groceries, but the whole time I felt like someone was watching me. For the past week I have had this weird feeling of being stalked, but every time I turned around there would be no one behind me which gave me the chills to a point where I started to feel a bit paranoid.

Even on the way back home I felt followed, but still every time I turned around there was no one around me. I made sure to get home fast as I wanted to take a quick nap before I got ready for the night.

I haven’t had a party in months. Not like I was very excited about it, but I felt like I needed this. I needed to relax a bit and forget about everything that has happened so far.

I didn’t waste any time when I got home and quickly hopped in the shower and then in bed as I put on an alarm for when I should get up to get ready. Kid had agreed to come to the party with me, but sadly the girl his mind was currently occupied with couldn’t make it as she had to work tonight, but at least he didn’t turn me down.

My alarm rang exactly two hours later, and I got up and slowly started to get ready. I knew that it was a fancy party and on top of it there was a dress code, but I didn’t feel like going over the top tonight, so I just put on a simple little black dress on. My hair and makeup I did as usual again not going over the top as I wasn’t even planning to stay the whole night, at least for now, if the party turned out to be fun, I might stay longer.

By the time I was ready Kid had already come and waited outside for me. Leaving and locking the apartment after me I quickly ran down the stairs.

Getting into the car I greeted Kid with a smile as I put the seat belt on. “You know there is a dress code, right?” I said a bit mockingly as I eyed him and his jeans and T-shirt outfit. His bright red hair was done with gel, and it was facing all directions as aways. His piercings and tattoos all visible and if I didn’t know Kid as much as I have grown to in the past month and so, I would have said that he had put the effort tonight, but I did know him now and that was his everyday outside work aesthetic.

“You’re not as dolled up as usual.” He mocked me.

“Didn’t feel like it to be honest.” I shrugged. “Anyway, we don’t need to stay the whole night if we don’t like the party.”

“Finally, we speak the same language.” Kid exclaimed. I just rolled my eyes and used my secret weapon to make him ease up a bit as I asked about Victoria, the girl he was seeing, and how things were going between them.

Soon we arrived where the party was being held, a big modern-day skyscraper building in the richest part of the city. Its sleek glass façade shimmered under the city lights, reflecting the bustling energy of the metropolis. The entrance was grand, with an expansive lobby adorned in marble and gold accents.

“How rich is your friend again?” Kid bent a bit and whispered in my ear as we stepped into the elevator.

“At this point I’m asking myself the same.” I murmured in awe as we were making our way to the last floor where Sanji’s parents’ penthouse was.

The penthouse apartment itself looked like something from the newest James Bond movie—ultra-modern design with expansive floor-to-ceiling windows that offered a breathtaking panoramic view of the city skyline. The interior featured sleek, minimalist furnishings with a mix of high-end materials such as marble, glass, and polished metal. The open concept living area was filled with guests, their laughter and chatter echoing off the walls.

Kid and I exchanged looks at each other as we stepped out the elevator. “It’s full of people.” I yelled at him over the mixture of loud voices and music.

“I already don’t like it.” He grunted.

Rolling my eyes, I pulled him by the hand to follow me and find Nami and the rest of the group. It didn’t take me long to spot them sitting on a very long white couch by the piano next to the floor-to-celling windows which lead to enormous terrace from which you could see the whole city. Kaya was the first one to spot me and she waved at me.

“Hello, everyone long time no see.” I said once we were standing next to them. They all greeted Kid and me and of course we got some questionable looks which I caught up immediately and I was sure he did as well.

“What are you doing here Jaggy?” Luffy as always went straight to point as he shoot a mixture of questionable and surprised look at Kid.

“Jaggy?” I turned to look at the red-haired man standing next to me confused and ready to make fun of him of the nickname he was given by Luffy.

Grunting at me, Kid rolled his eyes and turned to Luffy. “Don’t call me Jaggy, you monkey head.”

“This doesn’t answer my question... Jaggy.”

Before they had the chance to get each other’s throats I stepped in. “He is my plus one.” I smiled awkwardly as I could see the surprise in everyone’s eyes, even Zoro’s a bit. Realizing that they might have taken it wrong I tried to correct myself, but I was interrupted by Sanji, who showed up behind me and wrapped his arms around my shoulders.

“I can’t believe my eyes.” He pulled away and a big smile was spread across his handsome face.

“Happy Birthday Sanji.” I hugged him properly and he returned the hug.

“Thank you, beautiful.” He replied as we pulled away from each other. He turned to Kid and reached with his hand for a handshake as they had never met before, at least officially. “I hope you enjoy the party and if my brothers bother you, please don’t pay them any attention.” He said to all of us. “They are just... well... if someone asks, I usually don’t say that we are related.”

We all were aware of the relation Sanji has with his family, but at the end of the day he was a very good person and the only reason why he kept on having any kind of relationship with his father and brothers was because of his mother and sister, otherwise Sanji wouldn’t even go by his father’s last name.

“My sister is somewhere here I need to look for her and I’ll be back with you guys.” Sanji said to us before he disappeared into the crowd of people in his living room space.

“What are you two going to drink?” Nami looked at me and Kid.

“What do we have?” I wasn’t sure if I really wanted to drink tonight or not, but one drink wouldn’t hurt.

“Everything.” Zoro replied as he took a sip of his glass and whatever he was drinking.

“Just go to the kitchen, there you’ll find everything.” Usopp pointed me to the left side of the room where I guessed it would be the way to the kitchen.

I nodded and thanked him before turning to Kid. “The usual right?” He nodded in agreement, and I made my way to the kitchen.

This place was enormous and there were so many people around, but from what I knew Sanji and his brothers were quadruplets so I shouldn’t be surprised that we were so many people here tonight.

As I approached the kitchen it was easy to spot the drinks as everything was placed in the middle of the kitchen bar. I didn’t see any beer, so I had to ask if they had any and one girl pointed at the big two door fridge. I thanked her and went to the fridge which when I opened was full from the bottom to the top with all kinds of different drinks. Grabbing two cans of beer, I closed it and made my way back to the group.

Approaching the group, I noticed that three more people had joined us, and my heart fell to my feet. Freezing on the spot my body couldn’t movie and my mind went on fight or flight mode. What was he doing here? Was he even such a close friend with Sanji? Wasn’t he on a tour or whatever?

The enormous penthouse and the space around me started to feel tight. My heart was beathing so fast, but at the same time my whole body felt numb, while my breath was caught in my lungs.

Two months. I haven’t seen him for two months, almost three at this point, why did I have to see him tonight?

Someone bumped into me, and this made me snap out of it. The person turned to apologize, but all I did was hand them the two cans of beer as I ran in search of the bathroom before anyone could see me.

After many wrong opened doors, I finally found it and got inside, closing the door behind me and locking it, I leaned on the door. My heart was beating fast as I was trying to catch my breath.

Trying to calm myself down, I looked at the mirror in front of me in the bathroom. I saw and felt the first tear rolling from the side of my eye. Biting hard on my bottom lip to suppress the sob ready to escape my lips I also wiped the tear away. I couldn’t afford to cry now. I couldn’t let him see me like this and give him the satisfaction of knowing that I haven’t been entirely over him, yet. I couldn’t let him know how much power he holds over me and the way I feel.

I needed to think clearly. I had two options: First one – I text Kid to get out of here and that way I could just go home and forget about tonight or second one – I try to collect myself, I get out of this bathroom and go there and act like I have never ever in my life met this person and that he was a complete stranger.

I couldn’t let myself being so vulnerable and weak in front of him once again. I needed to stand up for myself and show him that life continued without him, and I was doing fine. I needed to show him that he was nothing more than a stranger.

Going to the sink I washed my hands and fixed my makeup a bit. Taking a few deep breaths in I nodded to myself. “You can do this. Just go there, don’t look at him and… just pretend that he doesn’t exist.” I told my reflection in the mirror. “Don’t forget – you two are strangers now.”

The last thing Ace wanted was to go to a party tonight the same night he had been back in town after a month of being away. But with a lot of convincing from Sabo and Koala he agreed to go, but only to wish Sanji a happy birthday and catch up with his little brother and then he was out.

He knew that (Y/N) would be there or at least he was guessing that she would be, after all she was a good friend of Sanji. The fact that there was a big chance that she might be there terrified him. Ace hasn’t gained the courage to face her, at least not now. He wasn’t even sure what he would do or say once they faced each other again.

He had some time to sit and think about his conversation with Deuce and he came to the realization that his friend was right. Asking her for forgiveness would be foolish but asking her for a new clean start might be worth trying, but at the same time it was also ridiculous. How did someone go and ask for a second chance when they have messed up as badly as he did?

The biggest problem was that Ace wasn’t sure how he should approach her. Was he supposed to just text or call her and be like “You want to speak about what happened two months ago?” or he just wait for her somewhere and try to speak with her? What was the best way to approach someone whose heart you have broken? There was no YouTube tutorial, or book, or a movie to watch which would give him the answer to this question.

Maybe he should try gaining some courage and think through what he would say to her first before approaching her? Or should he say whatever he feels like in the moment when they cross paths again?

He didn’t have much time to answer himself any of the thousand questions he had in mind regardless (Y/N), as he was already at the party. Looking around from the moment he had arrived with his brother and his girlfriend, Ace couldn’t spot (Y/N) anywhere, and this brought him both disappointment and relief.

Disappointed because he wanted to see her. He couldn’t deny that he has been missing (Y/N). It was a very strange feeling. He had never missed someone or something before, so it was still hard for his brain to process this feeling of missing, longing for someone.

And he was also feeling relieved as he wasn’t ready to face her. Because what could he do here in front of so many people who had no idea what had happened between them. He knew her quite well at this point to know that she wouldn’t have told anyone anything. Not like he cared if she did, but it was a bit less awkward to know that this was something no one was aware of. One set of eyes less to judge him and his mistakes.

When they joined Luffy and his friends, Ace was surprised to see Kid – the bartender from Shank’s bar tagged along with them. Ace didn’t know him personally, only had seen him in the bar when he had gone with Luffy there, and on top of it the bartender and his little brother had some not so friendly banter going on, so what was he doing here? Could he have come with (Y/N)?

Usopp and Nami were shooting question after the question at Sabo and Ace about how the tour went to which it was mostly Sabo answering and even Koala from time to time, while Ace remained silent.

With his back turned to the group, he meticulously scanned the room in search of (Y/N). However, she was not immediately visible. It was only upon hearing her familiar voice that he realized how much he had missed her, causing his heart to sink.

Your back was facing him as you were handing Kid a new can of beer as you had gone back to the kitchen to grab new beers as the last ones you had given to some complete stranger. A chill ran down your spine. You could feel the set of deep brown eyes on you, and you had to take a quick moment before turning around again and looking at your friends.

Knowing where he was standing you just turned around and looked at everyone but him. You could feel your pulse increasing and your blood rushing like you were about to faint out, but you tried to collect yourself as much as possible.

Faking a smile, you pointed your greeting only at Koala and Sabo, and this didn’t go unnoticed by some of the people around you. It didn’t go unnoticed by Ace as well. This was childish behavior, according to his opinion, but at the same time he deserved it and couldn’t blame you for it, but he was surprised to see how bold your move was. Addressing only his brother and girlfriend, well played.  

It was harder than you expected. You joined the group only two minutes ago, and it was already hard to resist looking at his direction, especially as you could feel him looking at you. Why, why did he have to be here tonight? Why did you have to cross paths again?

Taking a seat between Kid and Kaya on the couch you take a sip of the beer, focusing your eyes on the beer can in your hands. Your body was so tense, your whole mood, the energy around you changed so fast, and Kid noticed it and it didn’t take him long to figure out why that was. Leaning closer to you he whispered in your year. “You must be kidding me?”

Startled by the unexpected closeness of Kid you turned and gave him a weird look.

“What?” You whispered back confused.

“Monkey head’s brother? Really?” Kid’s voice was loud enough to be heard only by you. You didn’t say anything, but the way you slightly lowered your head, and your eyes shifted to the ground was all Kid needed to know that he was a hundred percent right.

Kid could see the distress in your whole body. Sighing he wrapped his hand around your shoulder and pulled you closer to him.

“The fuck you’re doing?” Putting your best fake smile on your face you hissed at him.

“Shut up and listen brat.” He returned the fake smile and winked at you. “You gonna play him as he played you, if you want some kind of revenge.” Kid pulled you even closer to him so he could whisper in your ear. “It’s enough to make him believe that you’ve moved on to make him go crazy.”

“I don’t want to make him go crazy.” I whispered back. “He doesn’t care Kid. We don’t need to do all this, and I don’t want to.”

This was ridiculous in your mind. Ace didn’t care about you at all, and acting like you were ‘taken’ wouldn’t change that fact nor make him jealous. Plus, Ace knew you well enough more or less, he wouldn’t fall for such a cheap trick. You didn’t want this. You were so tired of all the games, especially the one with Ace in it.

“Trust me, brat. He already is.” Kid pulled away from you and smirked. “Just listen to me.” He continued to whisper something in your ear, and you just sighed. You had nothing to lose so at the end you just agreed to play Kid’s little game of ‘are they a thing or not’ for tonight.

Ace’s blood was boiling. He wasn’t sure if this was some game or if it was for real. The moment Kid had placed his hand on your shoulder and pulled you closer, Ace saw the way your body had relaxed under his touch. The way you two got close to each other and whatever disagreement you had for a second it quickly faded away as you leaned your body on the man next to you.

Was it really that easy for you to move on so quickly? Two months? Or even less? No, it couldn’t be. He knew you. Ace knew you well enough to know that you were not going to jump so fast on someone else. Even if it was just for some kind of rebound, you would not display it so freely especially in front of people so close to you.

But what if he was wrong? He had heard many times that heartbreaks change people. What if this wasn’t an act? What if you had moved on and your heart now belongs to someone else? What if it was too late for a second chance?

All he needed as an answer was just one glance from you at him. The moment he got the chance to lock eyes with yours, he would be able to tell if you had moved on or not, but you haven’t glanced at him even once.

Two hours have passed by, if not more, and you haven’t dared to look at Ace’s direction, afraid that if you did so, you would break and look into his eyes and all the confidence you had slowly built in the bathroom and then thanks to Kid and the little act you decided to participated in, would go out the window the moment you lock your eyes with Ace.

The act between you two so far has been going pretty well. It wasn’t uncomfortable, but you and Kid didn’t do much, you just stayed very close to each other as he had one hand either on your shoulder or your thigh, which alone had won you a lot of questioning looks from everyone, but no one dared to ask anything out loud. Even Nami.

“Are you guys excited for next week?” Kaya question was for Nami, Usopp and you about your debut movie.

“Very.” You responded.

“And we need seven hundred dollars more to reach our go fund me goal.” Nami announced loudly. Usopp and you laughed at her as no one paid attention.

“It’s pointless, they all have already donated.” Usopp patted her shoulder.

You continued to laugh as they started to argue for the budget of the movie once again as Usopp was trying to explain to Nami that the money would be enough, while she was telling him how “Money are never enough.”, and that was when for a first time tonight you slipped. Lost in their ‘money’ banter your eyes shift and locked with the eyes you had been successfully ignoring for the past forty or more minutes.

Your laughter died instantly. He was looking at you and you were looking at him. Your eyes conveyed profound feelings, yet they couldn't grasp the other's intentions.

The one who broke the eye contact first was you. Tonight was the first time ever when Ace couldn’t read your eyes, and this struck a nerve in him. Your eyes were usually giving him all the answers, but not this time. He couldn’t catch what was behind them, nor did he have enough time to do so. He must either wait for a second chance to lock eyes with you again or get somewhere private with you and talk. You two must talk. Tonight.

Getting up from his seat Ace went out onto the big balcony where surprisingly it was empty of guests, and he had the time to collect his mind for a second. Taking his cigarettes from his pocket he lit up one and took a long drag out of it.

He must speak with you tonight or at least try to, but he needed to be only the two of you. No other people around. But how? How could he make this possible? And what does he tell you once he gets the chance to speak with you?

The glass door slid open, and Ace was no longer alone with his thought on the balcony. He didn’t bother to turn around to see who it was as he didn’t really care. He knew that it wouldn’t be you, that was for sure.

“Shit, you’ve got a lighter, man?” Kid asked Ace as his lighter just died and he wasn’t able to light his cigarette.

Glancing at him Ace nodded and handed him the lighter. Perfect, not only he had to deal with watching the man next to him having his hands all over the girl he wanted, but now he had to share his lighter with him, how ironically.

“Thanks.” Kid said as he handed back Ace the lighter.

Both men kept a distance between themselves. Kid could see that Ace wasn’t very happy to have him around and this was making things even more fun for him. “Fancy party, huh?” The bright red-haired man chuckled.

Side-eyeing him Ace hummed with agreement. He wasn’t planning on having small talk with him.

“I wasn’t much into it, when (Y/N) told me ‘bout it.” Kid continued. He knew what he was doing by mentioning your name.

“Didn’t know you two are friends.” Ace said, exhaling the smoke of the cigarette, which filled up his lungs.

“We are not.” The guy next to him smirked, knowing what he was doing.

Glancing at him, Ace couldn’t help but feel his jaw tightening. He knew what the person standing next to him means with this, but he didn’t want to believe it. This couldn’t be it.

Swallowing his pain, his pride and ego came to help. “Then I guess you’re welcome.”

“Oh, I am.” Still with a smirk on him face Kid replied.

Both men looked at each other not saying a single word as they finished their cigarettes at the same time and threw them away from the balcony. Before any of them say anything a group of drunk girls and guys walked onto the balcony. Glancing at them Kid laughed and walked off. He did get what he wanted as a reaction from Ace, which feed up his ego.

Ace on the other hand was mad. He knew this was an act, he wasn’t that stupid, but still, he couldn’t believe that you could be hanging out with such jerk as Kid. Not like he was better than him, but at least he wasn’t that cocky.

Walking in determined to find and speak with you, Ace noticed that you weren’t sitting on the couch, and you have gone somewhere. Luffy wouldn’t know where you have gone, but Nami should, so he made her way to her and lean closer whispering in her ear, asking her for you.

“I think she went to the kitchen.” She told, Ace and he tanked her as he made his way there, before Nami gets the chance to ask any questions.

You have gone to the kitchen looking for something refreshing to drink, but not alcohol. You have had two beers already and you didn’t want to drink any more for tonight. Looking around for a drink, you were also congratulating yourself in your mind as you have managed to ignore Ace successfully the whole time you have been here and when you two finally locked eyes, accidently, you didn’t break your little act. This for you was an achievement on its own. If someone earlier today has told you that this would have happened and you would keep your cool, you wouldn’t have believed them.

Reaching to grab some kind of fruit flavoured soda from the slowly emptying fridge, you freeze for a moment when you heard a painfully recognisable voice behind you.

“We need to talk.” Standing behind you, Ace wasted no time getting to his point.

Taking a deep breath in you straightened your posture and grabbed the drink you wanted before closing the fridge door and walk away as you ignored the presence of the man behind you. If trying to avoid his eyes tonight was hard, this by itself was ten times harder, as your heart was about to explode in your chest.

Ace was left unhappy by your act of ignorance. He understood that you were mad at him and didn’t want to do or have anything with him anymore, but this was slowly breaking his patience, which was never something to exists in the first place.

Making a few steps towards you he caught you before you leave the enormous kitchen and turned you around. “Just two minutes.”

The feeling of his hand wrapped around your wrist so gently, yet in a strong hold, caught the air in your lungs. Not daring to look at him, you tried to pull your hand away, but this made his hold on it stronger.

“I’m not letting you until you give me two minutes to speak with you.” Taking a step closer to you he said quietly as there were quite lot of people in the kitchen, but thankfully most were already drunk and didn’t care what was happening around them.

Two minutes? He wanted two minutes to talk to you? For what? Everything you two had to say was already said two months ago, and there was nothing left to be said. But yet again, this man had the audacity to stand in front of you without any remorse and ask for ‘two minutes’ like you own him something.

Taking all the confidence and power you had in yourself you finally looked at him. You two were close but not that close, and as much as a big part of you missed these deep brown eyes, you have had enough of this man. Pointing with your eyes at your wrist he got the hint and let go of it. Now both of you stood up in front of the other without saying a word in the middle of the kitchen.

Ace couldn’t read you. Your eyes had so many hidden emotions behind them, mostly pain, but apart from that he couldn’t tell what you were currently thinking of. Did you hate him? Probably, he deserved it. Did it hurt you to see him again? The answer to this was probably, yes as well. Was he overstepping your boundaries once again? For sure. But he couldn’t help it. He needed to make things right with you.

He must speak with you and apologies. You must give him this chance and after it, you could tell him to fuck off and he would, but he needed to speak with you at least.

“Please.” His pleading was full of desperation and pain. “Give me two minutes and I swear I will-”

“I’m sorry, do we know each other?” You didn’t let him finish his sentence as you interrupted.

This got Ace taken aback. Were you really going to act like you two didn’t know each other? He thought that you were more mature than this.

“Come on, doll. You’re better than this.” He breathed out annoyed.

Narrowing your eyes with a bit of disgust and annoyance with him, you just hummed and turned around leaving him behind, but Ace was not having it. Forcefully he grabbed you by the arm and lead you in the corridor leading to one of the many bedrooms this enormous penthouse had.

As much as you tried to fight him it was pointless as he was overpowering you no matter how hard you tried.

“The fuck is wrong with you?” You screamed at him once he closed the door behind you.

“A lot of things.” He turned and yelled back at you.

Silenced took over the room. You didn’t know what to do or what was right to do. You didn’t want to listen to him nor to be in the same room with him. You wanted nothing to do with him. You two were strangers now, nothing more nothing less, but he, of course, had to make things complicated as always.

“What do you want from me?” You asked, turning your back to him as you walked to the big windows in the room, overlooking at the big city beneath you. Wrapping your arms around yourself, as a form of protection, you leaned your head on the window.

What did he want from you, really? Could he want something from you? Ace wasn’t sure how to answer this as he didn’t have the answer himself. He just knew that he wanted to speak with you, but he didn’t know what exactly to say.

“I told you.” Ace said in now more calmed tone. “I want to speak with you.”

“And I don’t.” You replied.

“You don’t have to.” He quickly replied. “All you need to do is... listen... I guess.” He wasn’t sure what you need to do in this situation. The only thing that was giving him confidence was that you haven’t run out of the room, yet.

You couldn’t help but laughed. He really did have the audacity. Turning your body slightly towards him but still looking out at the city lights you said, “That’s the thing. I don’t want to speak, listen, see or do anything with you. And why should I? You made it clear last time and now we are strangers. Nothing more nor less.” You were surprised of yourself. You weren’t sure where you found this confidence and cool within yourself, but you were proud of what you just said to him.

The way you said it, so calm and collected, made Ace realised how much he has lost you. You didn’t want to do anything with him, and it was all because of his words and actions.

Walking further into the room, but still keeping his distance from you, Ace slowly nodded. “I don’t want you to forgive me.” Taking a deep breath in he took a few more steps and came closer to you. He tried to collect his thought, but he couldn’t so he went straight to the point. “I just want us to... try again, but from the start?” Hearing himself he couldn’t believe how stupid he sounded.

Hearing him, you were left speechless. There was nothing worth it left between you two to start it all over again.

“You’re pathetic.” You shook your head and start to walk out. “Your two minutes are done.” Walking to the door before he had the chance to say anything more you turned your head to look at him from over your shoulder. “Never bother me again. You are a stranger for me and so am I to you.” With this you left the room and Ace.

Making your way to where your friends were, you went straight to Kid and whispered in his ear that you wanted to go. By the look of your face he knew that something had happened, so he only nodded. Saying a quick goodbye to the rest of your friend group you two left the party.

“He came to speak with you, didn’t he?” Kid asked when it was only you two in the elevator. You only hummed in response. “And?”

“I told you.” You quietly responded. “I want nothing to do with him.”

Or this was what I wanted to believe. That I was done with him. That him mentioning a new start didn’t sound appealing for a moment. But I couldn’t let him in again. He showed me once how cruel and unapologetic he could be towards my feelings, he would and could do it again and I couldn’t overlook this. Despite my stupid heart still longing for him after all he has done, I must listen to my brain and protect it. The fact that I even gave him the two minutes he wanted so bad was enough of a weakness I showed him tonight. I still did what he wanted, he still got what he wanted, but this time I was able to leave with a bit more self-respect than the last time.

“Thank you, Kid. Victoria will be one lucky girl.” I turned and said to the bright red-haired man on the driver’s seat.

“Don’t forget that I’m an asshole, too.” He winked at me with a smirk.

END NOTE: I hope that Reader doesn't come out as some constantly crying girl. She is quite emotional and I also try to show you how much Ace has fucked her mental health up, that just by looking at him all the pain comes back and it is very hard for her to control her emotions. I also know that this chapter might feel rushed, but I promise something big is coming in the next one. Please leave your opinion about how you feel or thing about the chapter, you know I appreciate every like, comment, reblog and message ♡ I want to thank you all for your patience and that you are all amazing lysm ♡♡♡

✰ taglist ✰ @orange-milky @neospade @bluetokie @glaciuswduo @izoswifey @l-l-light @kanekisheart @gojossixtheyes @lilink @kitsunechan707

♡ comment or message me if you want to be included in the taglist ♡

writing, format & dividers © cinnamoonblue fanart @a_phu14 on IG ©cinnamoonblue, do not copy or plagiarise my work.

[cryptidghostgirl]

Make You Wish Chapter Four -- Vox

Pairing: Alastor x Reader

Warnings: I don't think there are any for this chapter? Correct me if I am wrong.

Word Count: 1,225

Previous Part: Chapter Three -- A Reunion

Master Lists 

Hazbin Hotel Master List 

Make You Wish Master List

A/N I wasn't planning on posting this until tomorrow, but it seems to have some rather excited fans so here is chapter four (and the fourth thing I'm publishing today. We're very done for the day. I am tried and have actual work to do.) Also guys, I'm screaming. I accidentally deleted the whole things right before I was gonna post it. Thankfully I had a draft from when it was almost done save but like, god that sucked.

On the screen was Vox, seated behind a desk.

"Top of the hour and we're discussing a certain has-been how has been spotted cavorting around town after a seven year absence." Vox was saying, a poorly drawn image of Alastor displayed on the screen to his left.

Y/n saw Alastor's ear twitch with irritation.

"Yeah." she sighed, folding her arms across her chest, "Vox has gone kinda crazy since you left. I told you, things got tough."

"Did anybody miss him? Did anybody notice? More on tonight's program." Vox said through the TV, shuffling a stack of papers.

Alastor changed the channel with another flick of his finger.

"Hun, don't worry yourself with it." Y/n advised, "He's still gonna be there tomorrow."

The new channel showed a talk-show set up, Vox-2-Nite, where Vox was both host and guest.

"So, the old Radio Demon is back in town." host Vox was saying to himself as guest.

"Why is he hanging around?" guest Vox asked, taking a sip from a mug that had 'fuck Alastor' written on the side.

"Al." Y/n warned, sensing her friends irritation growing.

"What does that mean for your family?" Host Vox asked before Alastor changed the channel again.

Vox was on the screen again, before a bright red curtain.

"Well, handily, I've got good news." he was saying theatrically, "He's a loser, a fossil, and I don't mean to sound hostel-"

Alastor changed the channel again. This time to one of Vox's mega church broadcasts. Vox stood in the center of the screen wearing a pope's hat with an inverted cross on it.

"But the demon is a coward!" he announced, his words matching the previous channels sentiments perfectly.

"Jesus, V." Y/n asked, eyes wide, "How many channels are you running this on?"

"You can take that as gospel. Pulling my viewers? Impossible. I'm visual, he's barely audible."

"Y/n." Alastor hummed, his eyes still fixed on the screen.

"Yeah?"

"You wont mind if I handle this quickly. We can have our little chat after, I promise. It wont take more than a moment."

"I don't know, Al..." Y/n sighed, crossing her arms and tapping her foot slightly, "This isn't good for you, letting him get under your skin like this."

Alastor changed the channel again. A cooking show appeared and Vox was standing before the oven, singing along to the music playing in the background.

"But he should've stayed away! While he hid in radio, we pivoted to video!"

Vox on screen turned to the oven as he sang, opening it and pulling out a deer's head on a plate. Y/n bristled at the site, her horns growing just the tiniest bit longer, her teeth just the smallest bit sharper.

"And now his medium is getting bloody rare!"

"Al?" Y/n asked sharply.

"Yes, darling?"

"I lied." Y/n turned to face him, "He took this shit musical. Rip him a new one."

"Oh!" Millie exclaimed, excitedly grabbing onto Moxxie's arm, "We're gonna get a show!"

Alastor's grin widened at Y/n's words, if that was even possible. He stuck his hand out to the side, his microphone materializing in his grasp.

"Lucky for me, I've got the best voice this side of the divide on my side." he noted, shooting Y/n a look.

Her eyes flashed red.

"You flatter me."

Alastor brought his microphone to his mouth, suddenly exceedingly calm. The imps present in the room watched in shock as his ears flattened along his head.

"Salutations, good to be back on the air!" he announced into the device, "Yes I know it's been a while since someone with style treated hell to a broadcast. Sinners rejoice!"

Vox's brow furrowed on the TV screen as he inched up close to the camera.

"What a dated voice." Vox shot back, clearly listening to Alastor's broadcast on the set of his cooking show.

"Instead of a clout chasing, mediocre, video podcast." Alastor continued, not showing any sign he had noticed the TV demon's insult, "Is Vox insecure, pursuing allure? Flitting between this fad and that, is nothing working?"

"Ignore his chirping!" Vox commanded from the TV.

Y/n laughed and, turning to face Alastor, realized the man held a hand out to her. With a smile, she took it and he spun her into his arms as he spoke. The music echoed through the office as Alastor raised the volume on the TV once again.

"Every day he's got a new format."

Alastor spun Y/n back out again as the pair began dancing.

"You're looking at the future!" Vox yelled back, "He's the shit that comes before that!"

As Alastor spun Y/n back into his arms, she laid one of her hands on top of his holding the microphone and pulled it closer to her face.

"Is Vox as strong as he purports, or is it based on his support?" she sang in a clear voice, Blitzo, Millie, and Moxxie's eyes widening with recognition at the sound, "He'd be powerless without the other Vees."

"That's true!" Alastor noted, pulling the microphone back to himself as Y/n let go of his hand and he spun her back out again.

"It can't be..." Moxxie muttered under his breath.

"Holy shit!" Millie cut him off, excitement creeping into her voice, "There's no way, Y/n is the guest star?"

"The fuck are you two talking about?" Blitzo asked, turning to Millie and Moxxie as they watched the couple continue to dance.

"Well, Sir," Moxxie began, fiddling with the cuffs of his jacket, "back before the Radio Demon went missing, he used to bring guests onto the show on occasion. There was one guest he never named during his broadcasts however. She mostly just sang songs and chatted with him but, she sounded an awful lot like Y/n did just now."

"You don't say." Blitzo hummed, his arms crossed as he turned back to Y/n and Alastor, "So much for little miss 'oh, my life has been so boring. You'd probably just fall asleep if I started talking about it!' She is so gonna get it later."

Alastor let go of Y/n's hand and leaned into the microphone, beginning to sing as well, using the music emanating from the TV as a base.

"And here's the sugar on the cream: he asked me to join his team!"

"Hold on!" Vox yelled.

"I said no and now he's pissy, that's the tea!" Alastor finished, ignoring the demon once again.

"You old timey prick!" Vox exclaimed, his face glitching slightly as Y/n wandered back over to Alastor.

She leaned an elbow on his shoulder, tilting her head to the side in amusement as they watched Vox struggle.

"I'll show you suffering!"

"Aww, the TV is buffering." Y/n said, leaning into the microphone, her voice dripping with sickly sweet pity.

"I'll destroy yoo-o-u-u" Vox exclaimed as his technical difficulties seemed to grow worse.

Alastor and Y/n exchanged a wicked pair of smiles as the TV flickered out. Shadows crept from the edges of the room, encircling their feet. Alastor held an arm out to Y/n once again which she took with a smile. In a flash of darkness, they were gone.

"What the fuck was that?" Loona asked, stalking into the room.

----

Next Part -> Chapter Five -- The Conversation

[bvidzsoo]

Every time I see you...chapter 3 ↰

...my throbbing heart rate spikes up

Author: bvidzsoo

Pairing: Song Mingi x female reader

☆ Warning: none ☆ Word count: 5.3k ☆ Rating: sfw ☆ Genre: slice of life, established relationship, post university setting, fluff ☆ Summary: On your day off, you find yourself bringing coffee for Mingi...it's certainly not because you've missed him, no, that can't be, you've been together almost every day this week. So, if that's the case...why do you find yourself thinking about him so much, falling straight into his arms when he show up at your doorstep?

☆ Visuals ☆

M.list ~ Previous Chapter

A/N: Hello, my loves! The third and new chapter is here, sorry for making you wait longer for it but as you know, I wasn't home last week and I postponed yesterday's update in favour of the drabble I wrote with Yunho. To be honest with you all, my motivation for this mini-series also died down quite a bit, and despite having the fourth chapter already written, I don't know when I'll get to write the rest since I'm also preparing for the March Event with Mina...I do have some good news, though, and it's the following: thanks to Mingi's live from last night (and some extra super fluffy pictures that originate from it) my motivation sparked back, but I cannot promise you anything as of now! I mostly write whatever my mood dictates...This is another domestic chapter and I hope you enjoy it, your thoughts and feedback is greatly appreciated. divider

Taglist: @spicxbnny @hongjoongspoetry

🎧𝐾𝑒𝑒𝑝 𝑖𝑡 ℎ𝑢𝑠ℎ ℎ𝑢𝑠ℎ, 𝑏𝑢𝑡 𝘭 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑘 𝘭’𝓂 𝑖𝑛 ℓ𝜎𝘷𝑒 / ℬ𝑢𝑡 𝘭 𝑤𝜎𝑛’𝑡 𝑠𝛼𝑦 𝑖𝑡, 𝘭’𝓂 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑡ℎ𝛼𝑡 𝑦𝜎𝑢 𝑘𝑛𝜎𝑤 / 𝘭 𝑤𝑖ℓℓ 𝑛𝑒𝘷𝑒𝑟 ℓ𝑒𝑡 𝑦𝜎𝑢 𝑖𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝜎𝑢𝑔ℎ /… / ℳ𝑦 𝑝𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑠 𝑝𝑟𝜎𝑏ℓ𝑒𝓂, 𝑦𝜎𝑢 ℓ𝜎𝜎𝑘𝑖𝑛’ ℓ𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝘭 𝒹𝜎𝑛’𝑡 𝑤𝛼𝑛𝑛𝛼 𝑠𝜎ℓ𝘷𝑒 ‘𝑒𝓂 / 𝘭’ℓℓ 𝑠𝑡𝛼𝑦 ℓ𝑖𝑘𝑒 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑠, 𝘭 𝑐𝛼𝑛 𝑠ℓ𝑒𝑒𝑝 ℓ𝛼𝑡𝑒𝑟🎧

            My attention switched from my phone to the barista as it was my turn in line to order. I smiled at her and glanced at the menu behind her to ensure they had what I needed.

“An Iced Americano and a Vanilla Frappuccino, please.” The barista typed in my order and then asked whether I’d like a cookie with my beverages, but I declined her offer as she went to prepare the drinks once I paid for my order. I hummed and unlocked my phone while waiting, opening my chat with Mingi. He had the evening shift today, so he had decided to hit up the library on campus with a few of his friends, saying how studying together lately helped with his progress on his research. I had wished him a good day, and Mingi hadn’t texted me since. It didn’t bother me since we didn’t talk that much throughout the day, but he had a habit of checking in every few hours, sending memes or random facts he’d learned through the wonderful place called the internet. They weren’t always accurate and we’ve had our fair share of fights about whether a fact check was needed, but in the end, it was good entertainment that took our busy brains off our issues.

“Here, enjoy it.” I looked up and took the two cups from the barista, thanking her before I headed for the exit, pocketing my phone. It was rather windy today, so I had opted to wear a flannel jacket, my tote bag threatening to slip off my shoulder anytime now. The traffic light was green, so I quickened my pace to reach it before it turned red, hurrying over the crossing as it had started blinking warningly. I was already on campus, the university Mingi had gone to was massive and thus housed multiple stores and even dorms on the far east of the complex. The coffee shops and cheap restaurants were located somewhere in the middle section of the place, making it more accessible for both students and professors if they were in a hurry. The library Mingi was at was located inside the E building, on the opposite end of the dorms, and on the far west. I knew this place well enough because I had gone to university here as well, except that the buildings I frequented most were A and G. The walk between the two was never brisk, but it was filled with silly conversations and lots of laughter with my friends and other classmates as we walked to our next class.

I recognised a few faces here, despite the flux of students, it wasn’t as packed as it would have been in the early morning or at lunch. I knew to avoid those hours, and since it was my day off today, I had decided to be productive and utilise it well. I had to clear my mind, it’s been filled with Mingi too often lately. I’ve always had periods when I yearned to be in his presence more and more, but it’s never gotten this insistent and pressing. I did enjoy being with Mingi, but we needed to have our personal lives as well, which was a line that’s started blurring lately. I couldn’t remember the last time I slept in my apartment, in my bed, all alone. If it wasn’t Mingi coming over, then I would be going over to his place. It was usually just to watch a movie or cook dinner together, perhaps hang out without doing anything, and somehow, it would always end with the other one staying over. It didn’t bother me, on the contrary, I quite enjoyed the closeness between the two of us, but it’s been getting too much. My heart raced in the mere presence of Mingi and I didn’t like the traitorous thoughts that tried to keep me up at night unless I forcibly silenced them. Mingi was a good man, well-behaved and extremely kind, and my mind was trying to trick me into believing that having him with me had turned into a need and that it wasn’t just a want anymore.

I sighed and shook my head, a bit irritated that I was caught up in thought about Mingi again. It’s what I’ve been trying to avoid doing today, and so far, I was majorly failing at it. Building E was right in front of me, so I hurried over to be out of the windy weather, my feet taking me up the marble stairs two at a time until I reached the front entrance. I had to put all my weight into pushing the heavy double door open, and I slightly shivered when warmth engulfed my body. The door of the security guard’s cubicle was open, the middle-aged man was scrolling through his phone as he swiftly looked up, eyes landing on me. I nodded at him in a wordless greeting and he hummed, going back to his phone. I knew my way around here so I had no difficulties navigating around the vast building. There were multiple classrooms in here, the Biology department being located inside this building. I took the stairs to the third floor and passed by the secretary's offices, almost running into a student as they had their nose buried deep in a book, eyebrows furrowed and a scowl on their lips.

“Sorry.” The guy muttered before walking around me, making me shake my head at him. He had come from the library, the tall doors closed and cocooning the room in silence. Usually, drinks weren’t allowed inside, but if you remained in the study hall and didn’t bring it anywhere near the books, the librarian didn’t kick you out for it. I entered the library and cringed when the door screeched…so they still haven’t fixed it, huh? And I graduated three years ago, thought someone would’ve taken care of it by now. I turned left to head for the study hall, listening to the clicking of keyboards and the flipping of pages as students crowded the place. Mingi wasn’t a necessarily loud person, but he didn’t like being restricted, so I knew he wouldn’t wander too far inside the library and stay instead in the study hall, where conversation kept minimal was also allowed.

Rows of long tables and many chairs occupied by numerous students never failed to amaze me, realising just how many people attended the different departments of this university. I couldn’t find Mingi and his friends in the front, so I wandered further inside, searching the room for a guy with black hair and black-rimmed glasses, a crooked smile, and sharp eyes unless they creased at the corner from Mingi’s bright smile. I found myself smiling at the thought of Mingi and tried to control it before anyone would think I was stupid for smiling at literally nothing. And before I could berate myself more, I finally spotted Mingi towards the last three rows, shaking my head because, of course, they would sit there. It was far from the librarian, so it allowed the friend group to converse with each other freely, sometimes even laugh unless they were hushed by those sitting around them. My smile only widened as my eyes fell on Mingi, taking in his colourful attire. He wore a thin striped sweater, the colours being beige, green and navy blue. His hair was brushed out of his eyes and his glasses perched on the top of his head. The dainty choker with a crystal was a gift from me, and I couldn’t help but feel a bit proud that he was wearing it.

Mingi didn’t notice my approach, too focused on his laptop until I was standing by his side, looming over him. The two friends he was here with sat across from him, and they looked amused when Mingi still didn’t feel my presence next to him. I glanced at his laptop’s screen and wasn’t surprised to see him with two different opened tabs, reading while taking notes in a different app. I cleared my throat and placed a hand on his nape, making Mingi jump. He whipped his head back, eyes wide as he stared up at me, then released a sigh and chuckled, leaning back in his chair.

“Hi,” His tone was low, trying not to bother anyone, “You scared me.”

“Sorry,” I hummed, my fingers flexing against his warm skin as I gently massaged his neck. Mingi hummed as he leaned more into the touch, his eyes fluttering slightly closed, “When was the last time you took a break?”

Mingi’s eyes opened as he looked towards his friends, who continued to work on their laptops but offered us friendly smiles to let us know they weren’t ignoring us. The one sitting on the left, Yugyeom, frowned as he seemed to be thinking, “Two hours ago? I think.”

I clicked my tongue and grabbed Mingi’s Iced Americano out of the cup holder, nudging his shoulder. He looked back up at me, eyes falling on the coffee before a wide smile adorned his face. I stared at it, feeling my heart race all of a sudden as Mingi took his coffee from my hand, pressing a swift kiss against my wrist in thanks just as I was pulling my hand back. I gulped hard and averted my eyes, making sure Yugyeom and Jongho hadn’t seen the small action, but they weren’t paying attention to us. Mingi took a sip of his coffee and groaned, slumping back in his chair as my hand was instantly drawn back to his neck, gently massaging his tense muscles. He sighed and let his head fall back, wide eyes staring up at me.

“Thank you, I really needed this.” He wiggled his cup of coffee before taking another sip. I hummed as I trailed my fingers higher, tangling in his black hair as I massaged his scalp, making Mingi’s eyes flutter shut again, “How come you stopped by?”

“I need to do some grocery shopping so I thought I could come by,” I answered, leaning my hip against Mingi and his chair, “Any progress with your research?”

“Yup,” Mingi nodded, sitting up straighter as he scrolled through the document he had been taking notes in, “I have a subject and the first chapter done, I think. I’ll see what my professor says, but it’s looking better than it did two days ago.”

“See?” I smiled, scratching his scalp with my nails like I knew he liked it, “I told you it would be okay, you don’t have to stress so much, Mingi…”

“She’s right,” Yugyeom agreed, flexing his fingers as he scooted his chair back, “You’ll get grey hair strands if you continue like this, man.”

The four of us chuckled as Jongho suddenly groaned, loudly, then shut his laptop, “I’m done for today, my brain is fried. Hi, Y/N, I haven’t even noticed you.”

I chuckled, well accustomed to Jongho since he’d been by Mingi’s side since their first year of university. Yugyeom was a new addition to their friend group, but he seemed like a genuine guy so far. I haven’t had the chance to hang out with him much, but based on Mingi’s stories, he had a good character.

“I think it’s time all three of you take a break,” I noted, their expressions clearly tired as Mingi pouted, shaking his head. Before he could speak up, however, Yugyeom nodded in agreement.

“She’s right, I need to stretch my legs out before I lose them.” He stood, shaking out his limbs, “Anyone wants something from the vending machine?”

“Grab me some sugary stuff, I need some stimulant right now,” Jongho said, rubbing his eyes roughly as Mingi and I chuckled. I hadn’t stopped playing with his hair, and it didn’t seem like he was bothered by it. I found myself smiling once again as I looked down at Mingi, and he must’ve felt my gaze because he tilted his head back, our gazes connecting. He smiled softly, winking before he took a sip of his coffee, and my heart was racing again. It was jarring how quickly my mood changed, I felt lighter in his presence, a little happier and more eager to do things. It was Jongho clearing his throat that snapped me out of my thoughts, eyebrows raised as I turned my head to look at him.

“Seonghwa is planning a get-together for tomorrow evening,” Jongho spoke up, rubbing his bottom lip as he seemed to be thinking, “He’s inviting a bunch of people so it won’t be small, but I know he’s mostly trying to get our friend group together. Wanna come?”

Mingi and I shared a look, understanding passing between us without needing to exchange a word. Mingi nodded as I hummed, offering Jongho a smile, “Are Giselle and Wendy coming?”

“I know he talked to them, so maybe,” Jongho answered and I hummed, feeling excited about the get-together now. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen those two, adult life sometimes gets in the way and restricts you from how often you can see your friends. It wasn’t that the three of us weren’t as close anymore, but we didn’t have to speak daily to remain good friends. Wendy and I still texted every week, she was the closest person I had to a best friend. Giselle, on the other hand, landed a really good job after we graduated and she was travelling often overseas, so I didn’t want to bother her unless she reached out first. She’s always been a dynamic person, I knew she was thriving and would stumble back to Wendy and me when life allowed her to.

“We’ll be coming, I think we both need to unwind a little,” I said and Jongho seemed to agree as he gave Mingi a pointed stare.

“Especially him,” He pointed at Mingi and I had to agree with Jongho, “He told me you two are gonna take off a few days and dip.”

“Really?” The surprise was evident in my tone as I glanced back down at Mingi, adjusting the few strands on top of his head that I had messed up. Mingi nodded, avoiding my eyes for some reason as he took another sip of his coffee.

“Yup, it’s good you two spend some time away from the city. I think I need it too.” Jongho groaned just as Yugyeom returned, a chocolate granola bar in his hand he reached out for Jongho to take. He had grabbed a coke for himself, gulping it down greedily.

“What do you need?” Yugyeom asked as he reclaimed his seat, scooting close to the table.

“A vacation,” Jongho muttered as Mingi chuckled, straw between his teeth as he chewed on it while scrolling through the document he had been reading. I didn’t want to overstay my welcome or keep them from working on their thesis, so I decided it was time for me to go. I only came to give Mingi his coffee, after all.

“I’ll leave you three to continue your studies,” I announced with a friendly smile as I squeezed Mingi’s nape one last time before stepping back, his head turning to look at me, “Have a nice day you three.”

“You too, Y/N!” Jongho and Yugyeom echoed each other cutely and I grinned, waving at Mingi as he nodded, shaking his cup of coffee to make the ice rattle.

“Thanks again, I’ll talk to you later.” I nodded and lingered there for a second, not exactly knowing why, but I wanted one last glance at Mingi. He didn’t look away either, his eyes sparkling in happiness, his shoulders now relaxed compared to how tense they were when I arrived. But I couldn’t stand here all day long and stare at Mingi like a creep, so, I turned on my heels and left, feeling Mingi’s eyes follow me. He always did that, watched me until I was out of his line of sight. It warmed my cheeks and made my heart race once again, feeling secure and safe for some unknown reason. I suppose it was the fact that someone was looking out for me that made me think all that, and yet, I didn’t want to depend on someone else. I wanted to feel secure because of myself and not because I knew someone had my back. Being independent was handy since you didn’t always have someone by your side. I have always hated finding stability in others and asking for validation, and I have always believed that as long as I knew who I was and what I stood for, I didn’t need anyone to encourage me or tell me they were proud of me. I wasn’t doing anything for anyone else in this life, everything that I did was for myself.

After leaving building E and then campus, I was headed towards the shopping centre, rows of different stores lining up and trying to lure you in with sparkly clothes but expensive price tags. I was here for a few groceries and some other things that I needed to pick up, my fridge was close to being empty since I hadn’t bothered to restock it at the beginning of the week. I knew that if Mingi and I were going to the party tomorrow, I wouldn’t have to cook dinner for Friday night, so having ramen tonight was more than satiating. I would figure something out for the weekend, perhaps I would manage to trick Mingi into coming over just to cook something for us. He was a much more talented chef than I was, after all. And just because I felt like treating myself a little today, I would grab some purple lilies on the way home and a slice of red velvet cake from my favourite patisserie.

            The rest of my morning went just like I had planned it last evening. I got up early and made breakfast from whatever I still had in my fridge, I went and grabbed some coffee for Mingi before stopping by the library, and then I went grocery shopping. I even got myself some pretty flowers and the incense my boss had recommended for a lighter space, and then…came the grand deep cleaning of my apartment. It’s not like it needed that much scrubbing, but when I had a spur of energy, I would always channel it into cleaning the apartment until it was spotless again. Besides, when my emotions got too heavy and my thoughts too loud, distracting myself by tidying up my space has always helped greatly. At first, for white noise, I had put on a podcast about whatever life-changing events celebrities were up to today, but soon got bored of that and switched to music. That seemed to help a lot more as I was done with my living room in no time, glancing around and wondering how to make it homier.

I liked it as it was already, coated with beige and maroon ornaments, a dark green sofa, plants that I should definitely take more care of, books stacked upon each other in a corner, and the vinyl player I had gotten from Mingi a few years ago as a present. I had a small coffee table in front of my sofa and then a smaller wooden holder for my laptop or whatever else I wanted to store on it. The entryway was connected to the living room, thus I thought of filling up the dark space of the main corridor, wanting to see the paintings that I had hung up without having to walk close to them, or without having to switch on the big lights. The bathroom was next, which was easy to clean as the space wasn’t too big, then came my bedroom which was the most challenging one. Changing the sheets always took away my willpower to live, and I couldn’t explain why. It just sucked the joy out of my body and I found myself faceplanting on the bare mattress, groaning into it. My phone was by my side somewhere, perhaps tangled up in the sheets or hidden under another bare pillow, but I could still clearly hear my music.

I felt around for it until my fingers finally touched the cold gadget, and then I grabbed it and flipped onto my back, unlocking it. My mother had sent me a picture of a beanie she had crocheted, asking whether I wanted it. I quickly let her know that it was pretty but she’s already given me like five of those, so she should probably just give it to my little cousin. Then, scrolling through the messaging app, I found myself stopping when I came across Mingi’s name. He was right underneath my mother’s chat since he was the person I texted most. The picture he had sent of the kitty from the café was the last message he had sent today, and I sighed, chewing on my bottom lip. I knew he was busy, the café was crowded from around noon until late afternoon, but Mingi always found time to somehow text me. I knew him not talking to me for a few hours meant nothing major, sometimes we wouldn’t speak for half a day, but I felt the sudden urge to speak to him. Dialling him up wasn’t an option since he most likely couldn’t take my call, and I could’ve texted him but I had already reacted to the kitty picture with a small heart. Genie was cute, but Mingi was cuter as he held her to his chest, visibly cooing down at her.

I groaned and locked my phone, letting my head fall back against the mattress, the wheels turning in my head. I was borderline getting desperate and it was worrisome, this hasn’t happened before. I couldn’t even blame it on having sex with Mingi because this wasn’t the first time and wouldn’t be the last time either. This is who we were, friends who shared something deeper and more intimate. Nobody asked weird questions, and neither one of us tried to make it awkward, we just went with the flow. It was easy and very practical, I wouldn’t have stayed with Mingi if he had demanded a relationship, or had tried to make it seem like this thing between us was something more…because it wasn’t. Never had been and never would be, there was no reason for it. Relationships rarely worked out in the long run these days, and I wasn’t up for an unnecessary heartbreak when things were good like this. I knew Mingi felt the same way, our mindset was so similar that I was frightened by it at times, but maybe that’s why we worked so well together in this friendship…or situationship—whatever it was—we have never labelled it. I do view Mingi as my friend, though. I released a long sigh before bouncing off the mattress and springing back into action. I still had a lot to clean and it wouldn’t be done by itself. My bedroom was still a mess, my closet begging me to finally fold my clothes and put them back on their hangers.

So, once I was done with my bedroom too, I forced myself to be done with the kitchen as well, knowing that if I didn’t do it now, I wouldn’t do it anytime soon. To my luck, the kitchen didn’t need a lot of work. I rewarded myself with fresh and cold orange juice once I was done with everything, opening my window and leaning against the wall as I gazed out at the sky. The evening had arrived, the sky swirled with orange and pink hues, and birds flew overhead to somewhere warmer now that the summer was over. I loved looking at the sky, its colours were always pretty and gentle. It reminded me to take a deep breath, stilling my nerves and staying level-headed when I felt lost. Like right now with my phone in my hands for the nth time today, checking whether I had any new messages. I didn’t because Mingi still had an hour until his shift was over and he hadn’t used his phone this whole day after our chat in the morning. I sighed and pushed off the wall, placing my cup of orange juice on the counter as I headed for a much-needed shower.

Once done with my shower and skincare routine, I went to my bedroom and picked out clean pyjama pants, the white tee sitting neatly on top of my other tees catching my eyes. I grabbed it and pulled it out, bringing it up to my nose without hesitation to take a deep whiff of it. It smelled like Mingi, his strong and musky cologne, a bit faded since it’s been in my closet since his last visit, but it was still so him. Without giving myself time to reconsider my actions, I quickly pulled it over my head and shivered when the cold material touched my heated skin. It was a bit too loose for me, but it didn’t bother me as I closed my closet, grabbing my hairbrush to brush the knots out of my hair. It’s been in a bun all day long and I groaned as I gave my scalp a massage, the relief instant. I was bound to become hungry anytime now, so, without waiting for my stomach to rumble in hunger, I headed back to the kitchen to grab the Jin Ramen and prepare it for dinner. My phone was in the pocket of my sweatpants, and I found myself looking out for any vibrations as I poured water into the small pot. I took it to the stove and lit it, placing the pot over the stove head. Now I had to wait until the water started boiling, so I pulled a chair out and grabbed my phone again.

My battery would die soon, so I debated whether to put it to charge now or later on when I’d sit down to watch a new episode of the series I started watching this week. Something didn’t let me part from my phone, however, a gnawing feeling overtaking my stomach as I sighed, burying my head in my hands. What was happening to me? Why did I want to talk to Mingi so badly all of a sudden? I usually loved it when he gave me space, it felt refreshing to be with myself for the time being, but it seemed as if today all of those emotions had never existed. To distract myself, I settled on playing a puzzle game which only angered me, but at least it took my mind off Mingi for the time being. Just as I ran out of time and was ready to chuck my phone at the wall, there was a knock at my front door. I froze for a second, wondering whether I had imagined it at first or not, but there came a second knock. My eyebrows furrowed as I got up from the table, phone in my pocket now, headed for the front door. I wondered who it was at this hour. I hadn’t ordered delivery and Mingi hadn’t texted me about coming over, so I was left wondering. My mother certainly wouldn’t take a bus out of the blue to come to the city, it was usually me going home to her.

Looking through the peephole, my stomach lurched at the man standing outside my door, and I was unlocking the door before I could compose myself. I swung it open with big eyes, staring at Mingi a little starstruck as he stood with a smile, his eyebrows raised when he noticed my expression.

“Hi, am I bothering you?” He asked, glancing past me inside the apartment. I shook my head and took a step back, leaving space for him to come inside.

“Not at all,” I answered as I closed the door behind him, locking it again, “What are you doing here?”

Mingi shrugged, stepping out of his shoes as he let his backpack rest against the wall in the entrance hall, “I was thinking that maybe…I can sleep over? I know I didn’t text you beforehand, I’m sorry, but I’m so tired I forgot to do so.”

“Busy day at the café?” I asked as Mingi placed his jacket on the hanger, nodding with a long sigh, “You can stay, I was just making ramen for myself. Want some?”

“Yeah, I’m kind of starving.” Mingi rubbed his belly with a wince, “The last blueberry muffin I ate was at around…five o’clock.”

And now it was close to nine o’clock, I shook my head at Mingi. He looked sheepish as he shuffled on his feet, probably preparing himself for an earful, but suddenly the words were stuck in my throat. Looking at him felt…it made my heart race once again now that he was finally in my apartment, by my side. I had wondered all day long what he was up to, whether he was tired or not, if he’d want to hang out after his shift, and now that he was here, I felt like I could finally settle down, hoping that my thoughts would finally just stop. I don’t know what took over me, but I had the sudden urge to wrap my arms around him and squeeze him to myself, so I stepped forward and hugged him, closing my eyes as I buried my face in Mingi’s neck. He froze, a small gasp leaving his mouth as I gripped his light sweater tightly, just inhaling his familiar cologne. I could feel my tension melt away now that I felt his warm body pressed against mine so securely and firmly, and I gulped when he finally wrapped his arms around me too. Mingi’s hug was just as soulful as mine, and I had to chew my bottom lip as I had the sudden urge to cry…I had no idea why, though.

“What’s the hug for?” Mingi’s voice was quiet and warm as one hand raised to pat my head, I felt his chin pressed against the top of my head.

“I don’t know,” I muttered, a bit embarrassed to admit the real reason, but I also didn’t want to hide it from him, “I’ve missed you, I guess.”

Mingi laughed, quietly but joyfully, and I pouted…at least he hadn’t made fun of me. He then squeezed me into himself more and rubbed his chin against my head playfully, “It’s okay, I’ve missed you too.”

“Really?” My heart skipped a beat as Mingi hummed, low in his chest.

“Really.” He confirmed and I smiled, wondering why my body was suddenly flooded with so much warmth. We stayed in the hug for another second or two, until Mingi’s stomach rumbled loudly and it made both of us laugh before we broke the hug. He rubbed his belly as his cheeks flushed, pouting his lips as I shook my head at him.

“You can’t starve yourself, it’s not healthy.”

“I know, but I lost track of time.” Mingi sighed, then batted his lashes at me almost cutely, “Can I shower while you make us ramen?”

“Of course,” I chuckled, headed for the kitchen as Mingi grabbed his backpack, “But I’m watching my series after dinner, so I’m not going to bed early today.”

“Okay, I want to watch whatever you’re watching, then.” I scoffed and threw Mingi a look, but he was already headed for my bathroom, his favourite blue pyjamas with silver stars on them in his hands. Had he stopped by his apartment before coming over? Peculiar.

 >> next chapter

↳Perm. taglist: @orshii @jjoongstar @tinyelfperson @thestarskiller @zuuhaa

@aaa-sia @gong-fourz @a-tinycarat @sooberryworld @hopefulrascalstatesmantoad

@anastasiamin860 @yunhogrippers @vcutparis @tunaasan @blvckarabixnvoid

@yusalterego @arigakittyo @slowee00 @jaerisdiction @hey-syia

@vnessalau @oddracha @chatsgotmytongue @potatos-on-clouds @yunhowooyo

@watermelon2319 @yoongzsmile28 @klllerwaifu @apriecotte @hwasbbyg

@kyeos4ng @samiiy20 @woosanhobros @aswho1estuff @khjoongie98

@ateez-main-yapper @kang-ulzzang @felixs-voice-makes-me-wanna @ginger-mingi @redzie02

@unholywriters @autieofthevalley @roomsofangel @peachyy-joonie @baeksofty

@tunafishyfishylike @syubseokie @jycas @fandom-freak-geek @intaksfav

[mama2bears]

Starting Over Again - Chapter 3

Warnings: Bed Sharing, nightmares, talk of abuse

Parings: Tyler/Female Reader

Chapter One Chapter Two

Chapter 3

The sun was just beginning to set when Tyler pulled into the hotel parking lot. You were dozing off when he excitedly announced, “We're here!” he was grinning over at you as he parked next to an older model RV, “here's the team.”

You yawn and stretch before stepping out of the truck and giving the group a small smile.

“Everyone, meet our newest member, Y/N!” Tyler announced.

Everyone cheered and was saying hi, when all of a sudden Boone came around the RV with his phone in his hand.

“BOONE! NO!” Tyler yelled sternly at him, stepping in front of you.

“What did I do?” Boone lowered the phone in his hand.

“Y/N doesn't wish to be on video. There will be no introducing her to our followers and no posting any content with her in it, understood?” Tyler said.

“Um, yeah. Sorry.” Boone apologized and offered you his hand to shake. You shake his hand and give him a smile, “It's okay. I just wish to remain anonymous out here.”

“Anonymous it is then,” Boone smiled at you and instantly deleted the video he had taken.

“Hi! I am Lily. I operate the drone.” she smiles shaking your hand.

“I am Dani, the hustler, or, merchandise seller.” she smiles, “Dexter here is my partner in crime.”

“Hey!” Dexter gives a wave from the laptop he was studying.

“Well, that's about it.” Tyler stated, taking a key from Lily, “Let's get you settled in the room.” he grabbed your Walmart bags and headed towards the room.

“Hey, Tyler, you wanna use my shower later?” Boone asked.

“Yeah, that would be great. Thanks.”

“Why do you need to use Boone's shower? Something wrong with the one in your room?” You question.

“Nah, I am just going to sleep in the truck tonight.” Tyler shrugged.

“What? Why?”

Stopping at the door before opening it, he answered, “Because we couldn't get a fourth room. The hotel is booked.”

“So you going to sleep in the truck?” you asked.

He nodded, “After what you've been though, I don't want to make you feel uneasy or anything. I would never want to make you uncomfortable or fearful.” he said softly.

“Tyler, it's okay. There's two beds, right?” you sigh. You weren't sure you really wanted to share a room with anyone, let alone a man you just met, but you also didn't want him sleeping in the truck because of you.

Tyler opened the door, “Well, so much for two beds.” he quipped.

“Oh.” You stare at the one king sized bed in the room.

“Well, you will have plenty of room to stretch out tonight.” he said, putting the bags on the bed for you and giving you a smile. “You have your phone. Make yourself comfortable and call me if you need anything.”

“Tyler..maybe. I don't know, maybe I can just sleep on the floor or something. It doesn't feel right, you having to sleep in the truck because of me.”

He offers you a big smile, “I've slept in the truck before. I have a sleeping bag and pillow. It's okay, just get some rest tonight and we'll see if we can get another room or something tomorrow.”

You nod as he steps out the door and makes sure it closes, “make sure you put the dead bolt on.” he called, waiting at the door to hear the click.

He waves at you and heads back towards the truck as you close the curtain.

You pull out the cozy pajamas, bubble bath, and other things you needed for the night. Stepping into the bathroom you close -and lock- the door behind you.

Starting the hot water, you stepped into the shower first, letting the water run over your body, hoping it would help clear your head.

You still felt guilty about Tyler sleeping in the truck, all because of you. He was willing to give up his room for your comfort. He was doing all he could to make you feel safe and comfortable.

Washing your hair you sigh to yourself. You didn't know if you could trust these people you only met today. They seemed friendly, Tyler made you feel safe, but...at one time you thought the same thing about Lee.

Turning off the water you dried your hair and started to fill the tub up. Your sore muscles needed a good soak. As you slide down into the hot bubbly water you came to one conclusion...the Tornado Wranglers couldn't do anything worse to you then what you experienced the last few years.

* * * * *

Lily and the rest of the team were still hanging out at the RV when Tyler got to his truck. “Lily!” he called...”Are you sure you asked for all double rooms?”

“Yeah, of course. We always do. What's up?” she asked.

“There's only one bed in my room.” he stated, “It's not a big deal. I was going to sleep in the truck anyway.”

“I am sorry, Ty.” she said, “I'll go talk to the office and see what went wrong.”

“Don't worry about it. Y/N is comfortable and hopefully getting settled. There's no need to worry about it tonight. Tomorrow maybe some of the storm chasers will check out and we can get an extra room for tomorrow night.”

* * * * *

You finish your bath and peek out the window of your hotel room. You see the Wranglers splitting up and heading to their rooms for the night. Tyler was pulling what you guessed was a sleeping bag from the back of his truck and getting it fixed in the backseat.

You watched for a moment, your mind racing. Your heart wanted to invite him to share the room with you tonight. Your mind was screaming that this was a very dangerous situation.

You watched as Tyler crawled into the backseat of the truck and closed the door, a few seconds later the light in the truck went dark.

Walking over to the nightstand you picked up the phone he had brought for you and scrolled though the contacts, taping his name.

“Hey Tyler? This is Y/N. Did you get your shower?” you sent the message.

A few moments later came a replay,

“Yeah, I know who you are. I brought the phone, remember?” he sent a laughing emoji, “Yeah, I showered in Boone's room. We're settling down for the night. You need anything?”

You smile, staring at the phone for a moment and then you begin typing.

“Come up to the room. I don't like the idea of you sleeping in the truck. If nothing else, you can sleep on the chair or the floor. We will make it work. It'll be okay tonight.”

You wait before sending it, taking a deep breath. Your mind was screaming not to invite a stranger into your room. Your heart was screaming not to let him sleep in the truck. He had been nothing but kind to you. He had went the extra mile to make you feel safe and comfortable. He was worth the risk. You hit the send button and wait.

“You sure? I don't mind sleeping in the truck.” came the replay.

“I am sure.” you replied. “I won't be able to sleep tonight thinking about you in the truck.”

A moment of silence.

“Alright, I'll be there in a minute.”

You smile as your heart skips a beat. Maybe this was a dangerous mistake or maybe, it was the best decision you ever made.

Rain starting pouring down about the moment Tyler exited the truck. “Well, I guess I didn't need that shower after all.” he muttered. Grabbing his duffle bag, sleeping bag, and pillow and making a run for the hotel room.

A moment later, Tyler was knocking at you door, which you quickly open. Rain had soaked though his white T-shirt, the black sweat pants were clinging to his waist and his hair was hanging down in his face dripping wet. “Hi,” he grinned at you, “you sure you still want me sharing a room?”

You laugh softly, “Yes, get in here before you let the flood in.”

Tyler quickly entered the room and you closed the door behind him. “I'll go get dried off and will set up the sleeping bag on floor” he offered.

“Nonsense. Your sleeping bag is dripping wet. You can't very well sleep in that. You can share the bed. It's plenty big enough we can have our space.”

“Y/N, are you sure?” he asked softly.

You give him a smile, “You said we are a family, right? Well, family doesn't let family sleep in trucks or wet sleeping bags.”

Tyler gives you a big smile, “I promise to keep to my own side of the bed.”

“You better,” you smirked at him, crawling under the covers and settling down.

Tyler stepped into the bathroom, unaware that you could see him in the mirror out of the corner of your eye. Your breath catches as you watch him slip off the wet T shirt, the water dripping down his tanned muscular body, almost appearing to shimmer.. You watched with bated breath as he stripped down to a pair of black boxer shorts before drying off and changing into a pair of shorts.

You close your eyes, pretending to be asleep as he exits the bathroom, turns off the lights and slides under the covers next to you.

You were fearful of what the outcome of tonight would be. Was Tyler an abuser like Lee? Would he wake up tomorrow and see this as an employee trying to sleep her way in with the boss? Or, would you give in to your heart and start to fall in love again, possibly with a man who didn't return your feelings.

* * * * *

Tyler laid as still as he could in the bed, turned slightly to watch you sleeping in the darken room. You were so beautiful and he could tell you had a tender heart. He wanted nothing more then to wrap you in his arms and promise to protect you for the rest of his life.

It was only a few years ago he swore he wasn't going to fall in love again, at least, not until his days of storm chasing were over. He would have a few good friends and maybe a few hook ups here and there, but nothing serious. Not strings attached. No falling in love. Here he was though, laying in bed only inches from you, and falling in love.

“I'll protect you with my life, darling.” he whispered into the dark, “I'll always be here for you.”

Within moments, Tyler allowed his eyes to drift closed into a peaceful sleep with thoughts of you still running though his mind.

* * * * *

“I told you, Bitch! I would kill you!” Lee was yelling as he beat you non stop.

“Tyler!” you screamed.

“Tyler's not here to protect you!” Lee snarled picking you up and throwing you against the wall, “I killed him, just like I am gonna kill you now.”

“NO!!!” You scream, tears streaming down your face.

From somewhere, you feel arms wrapping around you, “It's okay. You're safe. You're safe. It's okay. Y/N, wake up, it's okay.” Tyler's voice whispered in your ear.

Your eyes fly open and you look around the dark room in a panic, you're eyes landing on Tyler's concerned face, his strong arms wrapped around you, holding you close to his side, “It's okay.” he whispered again.

“I'm...I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you up.” you whisper, a little embarrassed.

“It's okay.” he whispered, still holding you close to him. You relax a bit, resting your head on his shoulder, your heart pounding in your chest.

“Nightmare?” he asked softly, his figures carefully stroking your hair.

You nod, tears still running down your face.

“It's okay. He won't hurt you as long as I am here.” Tyler whispers into your ear and you snuggle into his chest. “Want to talk about it?” he asks softly.

You're silent for a moment, listening to the thunder outside and the rain pouring down. It was so similar to the night you made a run for it.

“My mother had just passed away from cancer,” you whisper, fresh tears falling down your face. “I was alone for the first time in my life. There was no other family I had or anything. I had just finished up my collage degree and was looking to start work, in the main time, I worked as a server to pay the bills. On the way home one night I had a flat tire. Lee stopped to help. Instead of payment, he asked for a date.”

You are silent and Tyler moves his hand to your back and gentle rubs it. He feels you tense and suck in a breath and quickly he removes his hand, “I am sorry.” he whispered.

“No, it's okay. I am just still a little tender from the last beating.”

Anger boiled within him and his muscles tensed, “The LAST beating?” he said between clenched teeth, “How long did this go on?”

“Years.” you whispered with a shudder.

“Did you marry him?”

You nodded, “Yes, a few months after we met. Lee said that it was love and I agreed. He said why wait to be married if we already know we loved each other. Truth be told, I was lonely and I didn't want to be alone anymore. It was never love for me. It was loneliness.”

Tyler was silent, his arm still holding you close to him and stroking your hair. He waited to see if you wanted to continue.

“Before we got married, Lee was sweet. He never hit me or yelled or anything. I had no idea. If I did, I never would have married him.”

“I know, sweetie.” Tyler whispered, leaning his head against yours.

After a moment of silence, you continued. “The first time he hit me, it was because I looked the wrong way at another man. He was jealous. The first few years I got slapped around, but nothing really bad. I wanted to leave, but I was afraid. I didn't have anyone to turn to and I thought it would get better. We were young and new to this marriage thing. We all make mistakes. I thought he would stop, but it only got worse. He had my car towed, forced me to quite my job, and when I tried to leave the first time, he beat me bad enough that I spent a few days in the hospital.”

You feel Tyler tense next to you. “I am sorry, Y/N. I am really sorry.” he whispered. “I promise, I won't allow anyone to hurt you again. I will give all I got to keep you safe. You're beautiful, smart, and kind. I can tell all of this just by knowing you for a day.”

You snuggle closer to him and he shifts, pulling you up to his chest and wrapping both arms around you. And it was there, resting your head on his chest, safely wrapped in his arms, that you fall into a peaceful sleep to the steady sound of his heartbeat.

* * * * *

Chapter 4

******

Tag List

@itsdesiree86

@sarah-bear706318

@darksparklesficrecs

@forpunishers

@notanordinaryprincess95

@luvivey

@zedis2007

@maverickdesperado

@love2write2626

[billionstarsandhereweare]

a/n: hi fellow DD friends, I may or not may not have posted the first chapter of my jump into the DD fanfic world. hope you enjoy!!! also on ao3

summary: Struggling musician meets struggling-slightly-less lawyer. Inspiration is sparked. Chp 1/?

word count: 7k

pairings/notes: Matt Murdock x fem!Reader, no use of y/n though reader has a nickname, post netflix DD s3 but pre-DD:BA

“Oi! Barkeep! You in there?”

   Startled by the noise, you jolted awake. As you rubbed the sleepy haze from your eyes, the front door of the bar slowly came into focus, along with the digital clock above it. 4:10PM. Shit. How long had you dozed off?

   “Seriously girl, let me in! It’s frickin’ freezing out here!”

   You rose from the metal stool you had been resting on and made your way towards the tiny foyer. Still drowsy, you fumbled with the old brass deadlock before managing to slide it open. As you swung the door open, you were greeted by a bearded grin and wet work boots.

   “Dang Josie Jr., you’re not used to these late nights are you?”

   “Shut it, Jackson. And I told you not to call me that.”

   Jackson gave you a smirk. “Pardon me, ma’am.”

   Rolling your eyes, you shuffled your way back to your regular position behind the bar. You’d be worried that Josie would be disappointed for opening 10 minutes late, but none of the regulars were waiting, and Jackson wasn’t the type to complain. Especially since Tuesdays were usually the slowest afternoons of the week.

   Josie had been running this bar since you were a kid, and every Tuesday was the same. For most of your school years, you could be found doing homework in the back, stealing peanuts from the bar and stashing leftovers in the walk-in while your mom finished up her shift at the hospital in Uptown. Your apartment up on the fourth floor always felt too quiet, and as long as you stayed out the way, Josie didn’t mind you hanging around. The sound of beer bottles clinking, electronic dings from the dart boards, and clacking of billiard balls was better for your concentration than any white noise machine anyway. Mom had moved to Florida about ten years ago, but you stayed behind in the apartment while in college. You still studied in the back corner of Josie’s, the only change being that you added rum to your sodas. After graduation, she offered you a job to help stay afloat while you job-hunted. She was practically family and was much happier to bring on someone she already knew and trusted. You’d always had it as a fallback plan between jobs at music shops, private lessons, and your never-ending auditions for a consistent spot in an orchestra. Years had gone by since your first night there, and though your frustration grew more and more each day without a performance gig, you appreciated the steady income nonetheless.

   “How long did Josie say she’d be out?” Jackson’s voice floated out from the back room, thuds following as he grabbed cases of beer and rearranged kegs.

   “Couple of weeks, most likely. I told her to take whatever time she needed, it’s not like she’s had a vacation in the last however many years. I was starting to think she was literally chained to this place.” You really wouldn’t have been surprised if you found an actual shackle underneath the counter, with how much Josie worked.

   He chuckled as he headed your way to check the canned beer fridge under the counter. An impressed smile crossed his face once he realized that not only was that full, but so was everything on the rail and the shelves.

   “You’re making my job too easy, friend. Paula and I left everything a mess last night. What time did you even come in today to get this all taken care of?” Jackson asked.

   “Around one or so. Eastern was here for a liquor delivery, so I popped down after my lessons.” Grabbing a rag from the ‘clean’ bucket under the sink, you squeezed behind him to start wiping up the rain he tracked in. 

   “For real though, if you needed help getting things set up, you could’ve called. I’m less than half a mile from here.”

   You didn’t look up from the water on the floor you were trying to sop up. 

   “Does it look like I needed any help?”

   Jackson faltered, voice falling. “I mean, no, I just…”

   Now you glanced up at his six-foot-something frame. He seemed so much taller at this angle, yet he was almost shrinking back. It would have been almost amusing, him being afraid of you, but guilt immediately crept up in your chest instead.

   “I’m sorry, Jackson. I’m just stressed out,” you admitted, “and I do appreciate the offer. Rough auditions this week, and I’m not used to working every night at the bar. Josie might never take another vacation if she finds out I asked you to help open, though.”

   “Hah! Ain’t that the truth. Well, lemme know if anyone gives you trouble tonight, and I’m there,” clapping you on the back before he took his seat at the stool by the bar’s entrance. 

   You pulled yourself up off the floor, stretching and rolling your shoulders before tossing the wet rags into the ‘dirty’ bin. The bell on the front door jingled as the tension in your back released a little, settling into the normal weeknight routine as patrons filtered in for their usual drinks and games of pool.         

   Before you could even register time moving, nine-thirty rolled around and the bar was bustling. A couple of bikers by the pool tables loudly challenged their buddies to another round while a few others took turns at the dart boards, chatter and conversation filling the air. You were in your normal flow of handing out drinks, refilling the ice bin, and hollering at Jackson to grab yet another case of beer from the back when you heard a cheerful voice say,

   “Well, it’s certainly nice to see you back instead of our usual wicked witch of a bartender!”

   You turned around to be greeted by two men around your age, leaning on the bar. They stuck out in your memories of the usual Tuesday regulars, mainly because they were both in suits, a stark contrast to the usual biker vests and dirty canvas construction jackets usually seen. The blond one grinned at you, while his dark-haired friend had turned his head off to his left, eyes hidden behind maroon-colored lenses.

   You gave the stocky blond a bit of a glare, crossing your arms across your chest. 

   “Ah, Foggy Nelson.”

   “The one and only!”

   “Don’t think I’ve forgotten your incident with the popcorn machine last fall.”

   He threw his arms out in exasperation and sighed, “Aw come on! It was a one-time occurrence, and I promise I made it up to Josie.”

   “I don’t think calling her a wicked witch is a great way of making it up to her. Besides, I was the one sweeping up popcorn for hours, not her.”

   “Alright fine, I guess I owe you for that. Why don’t you throw a drink for you on the firm’s tab with ours, I’ll take-“

   You were already pouring a tall draft and a whiskey before he finished the sentence. 

   “Whatever beer is on special. Whiskey on the rocks for Matt,” nodding in his friend’s direction. “And no, Foggy Nelson, this is not going on your firm’s supposed tab. It’ll be $6 each.”

   “What if I wanted something different?” frowned Foggy, picking up the frosty mug you slid in front of him.

   “It may have been three months since I worked a Tuesday, but you’re pretty predictable. You only order something different if you’re trying to impress a woman and I’m pretty sure Matt’s not one,” you replied, barely managing to keep a straight face as Matt held back a chuckle.

   “That’s… creepy, but impressive. I’ll give you that one, Z.”

   Their nickname, well Foggy’s really, finally made you crack a smile. He had drunkenly bestowed it on you last summer when you and Josie were both behind the bar, as apparently “Jo and Z” was the funniest thing to him at the time.

   “Hah! I knew I could break that scowl!” he said before turning around to head to him and Matt’s usual booth in the corner, stopping between to strike up conversation with one of the bikers.

   “Truly is a golden retriever type, isn’t he?” you said, chuckling as you exchange a glass for Matt’s card.

   “The enthusiasm never ends. Been like that since I met him.” Matt replied warmly, taking a sip of his drink. “I think he’s just excited to see you’re back, you’ve always been a little easier than him on Josie.”

   “Eh, to be fair, Josie’s had to put up with him for longer.”

   “That’s true. Speaking of, I’m assuming you’re here on a Tuesday because she’s out? Everything okay?”

   You nodded and said, “Very astute of you. She’s out in Michigan for a couple of weeks, so it’s just me and Jackson running the place tonight. Finally convinced her to take a vacation.”

   Matt raised an eyebrow. “Josie? Vacation? Never thought I’d hear those words together.”

   “Trust me, it was no small feat.”

   “Well, I’m glad she’s taking the time off. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her leave the bar. Go ahead and leave the card open, we’ll be here awhile. It’s good to see you again, Z.” Matt said, emphasizing your nickname with a small, amused smile.

   “Good to see you guys too. I’ll come and check on your drinks in a bit.” He gave you a quick nod and flashed you a bigger grin, one that stopped you for just a couple seconds longer than it should. 

It took you just a beat, but you managed to snap out of it, tossed your towel over your shoulder, and got back to work. You really need to get some proper rest girlfriend, thinking to yourself while shaking your head. Banter is half of what a bartender’s job is. Can’t be letting some dark-haired regular throw you out of your groove.

   The night continued to rush by, a few rounds of draft specials for the mechanics up front, fives in exchange for quarters for the bikers at the pool table, vodka crans for the out-of-place college girls trying and failing to flirt with Jackson up front. He was effective as a bouncer, but there was something about the long, dirty blond hair tied back in a man-bun that college girls were drawn right to. They never made it far enough to realize Jackson’s type was guitar-playing hipster guys. As you started to head to Foggy and Matt’s table a little before midnight to grab their empties and hand out another round, you were still on autopilot. 

   “I’m just saying, this could bring in a lot of money. You remember what that is right? That green stuff that lets us pay rent and buy food?”

   You probably shouldn’t have listened in, but you couldn’t help but eavesdrop. Comes with the territory, you thought to yourself.

   “Foggy, I get that, but we started our firm to help people who need it. Not some sketchy guy working for a construction company that we can’t find any sort of information on.”

   “How do you know he’s sketchy? What, did you use your ESP or something?”

   “Knock it off. You know what I-” 

   Distracted, you stumbled over the uneven floor and the empty bottles in your left hand clattered to the ground in front of their booth. At least you managed to keep the tray in your right hand somewhat balanced. So much for staying in a groove.

   “Look, it’s the wicked witch’s assistant!” an inebriated Foggy exclaimed, grinning and throwing his hands out in your direction. 

   After setting their drinks down on the table behind you, you crouched down to grab the empties rolling away. “Not doing super great at that, seeing as I’m throwing empty bottles at my regulars.”

   “I think Josie would approve,” Matt said with amusement in his voice.

   “Speak for yourself Matt, but I don’t much appreciate having things thrown at me,” Foggy shot in mock offense, his nose in the air. 

   “My sincerest apologies, Mr. Nelson. I’ll make sure I only throw things at the blind man,” you fired back without thinking. Right after the words left your mouth, Foggy choked on his beer, sputtering and shaking with laughter. As you realized what you said, your cheeks immediately flushed red and you stuttered out, “God, sorry Matt, I swear it was a joke – I didn’t-“

   Matt let out a sympathetic laugh as he elbowed Foggy in the ribs, saying, “You only need to be sorry if Foggy drowns in his beer.”

   You winced. “God no, seriously, I’m so sorry, I didn’t even think about-“

   “Really, it’s fine. He makes worse jokes on an hourly basis at this point,” Matt said waving his hand, giving you a reassuring look that made the heat in your face fade just a little.

   “Well, either way, I feel bad. Either for the joke or for making Foggy inhale his beer. Next round’s on me, just don’t tell Josie,” you offered, smiling at them both before sliding their drinks over.

   Foggy flashed a smile back about as bright as a spotlight while Matt gave a thumbs-up before you walked back to the bar.

   Twelve forty-five came around as you flipped on the overhead lights.

   “Last call! Wrap it up everyone!”

   You started pulling out receipts and ringing out orders. The biker guys were finishing up their last round of pool, and Foggy and Matt still sat at their booth at the opposite end, half arguing, half laughing about something you couldn’t quite hear. As Jackson started refilling the beer fridge for the final time, you realized you forgot the key to the safe at Josie’s place after dropping off the monthly invoices earlier in the morning.

   “Hey, Jackson, can you mind the bar for five minutes? I need to run upstairs and grab the safe key.”

   “Aye aye, cap’n.”

   “Don’t be a smartass, Jacks.”

   As you walked past the walk-in fridge towards the back staircase, you heard him retort, “But that’s what I’m good at, boss!”

   “Five minutes! Don’t burn the place down!”

-

   You trotted up the four flights of stairs to the hallway connecting your side of the floor to Josie’s. After punching in the code to her apartment, you entered the dark living room, immediately seeing the safe key on the end table where you left it. Stuffing it in the pocket of your sweatshirt, you decided to pop over to your place to grab your headphones, knowing it would be a welcome distraction as you needed to deep clean the back bar later on. Just as you crossed into your bedroom to grab them off the desk, a strange sound from the bathroom reached your ears. As you padded closer to the door, you felt your stomach drop as you recognized what it was.

   Water fell in a steady stream down from a hole in the ceiling right above the showerhead, and out into the room. Your eyes darted over to the built-in armoire that held all your clothes to see that it was soaked, too. There was a single step down between the bedroom and bathroom, and as you looked down, you saw water covering every inch of the floor.

  “Fuck!”

   Racing back through the bedroom, through the living room, and into the kitchen, you reached the main water shutoff for the fourth floor in the utility closet. After grabbing and cranking it shut, you ran back to the bathroom to make sure that the water stopped, and breathed a sigh of relief when you saw it did. You fumbled for your phone, managing to dial the bar’s number with shaky hands. Pick up, pick up, pick up.

   “Hey girl, what’s the hold up?”

   Phew. “Oh thank god.”

   Jackson picked up the concern in your voice near immediately. “What’s the matter?”

   “Water line in my shower bust open. Not sure how. Gonna be cleaning this up for hours. Can you finish closing the bar down?”

   “Shit. Uh, I can, but I need your register card first. Your lawyer friends are here trying to close out, looks like you comped some of their drinks. Need your card for that. Did you leave it by the bar?”

   You frantically patted down the pockets in your jeans, felt the plastic card in your back pocket, and sighed. “No, I have it. I guess the water’s not going anywhere for right now. I’ll be down in a sec.”

   You looked around at your bathroom and took in the damage. With this amount of water, you’d be cleaning it up until the morning. It’d be a small miracle if the whole room wouldn’t need to be gutted. A sinking feeling started to fill your stomach, but before you could let it settle too far, you shook it off, heading out the door and locking it before jogging back downstairs. 

   Once behind the bar again, you let out a sigh, realizing it had been only ten minutes, though it felt like much longer than that. All of the bikers were tugging on their jackets, and a very drunk Foggy was teasing Jackson about something.

   “Sorry about the wait, guys. Apartment trouble.” 

   “It’s about time, Glinda!” Foggy slurred.

   That got a chuckle out of you. “Foggy, I’m pretty sure Glinda was the Wicked Witch’s sister, not her assistant.” You swiped your card at the register and got their final bills printed out. As you handed them the checks and a couple of pens, you hurriedly said “I have to head back upstairs, but I’m sure I’ll see you two next week.”

   “Is everything alright?” Matt inquired with furrowed brows while handing back his signed receipt and pen. 

   You ran your hands over your face, groaning. “Water line burst in my bathroom. Entire room is flooded. Gonna be in there with a shop-vac all night getting the water out.”

   He paused. “Well, if you want some help...” Matt trailed off, though the look of concern on his face held fast.

   You stopped for a second, considering. Nice of him to offer, I guess even a blind second set of hands is better than one. You scowled at yourself for that thought. Don’t be rude, you jerk. Not really in the habit of inviting men I hardly know into my apartment, but Josie has said they’re good guys, so…

   “You know what, yeah, I could use it,” you admitted to Matt with a sigh. “You sure the one-and-only Foggy Nelson is going to be much assistance, though?” you asked, thumbing over at his drunken counterpart, using Jackson as support as he tried to put on his coat.

   Matt tilted his head towards Foggy, pausing before he replied. “Hah, yeah, he definitely drank more than his fair share tonight. I’ll call him a cab and get him on his way home, and then I can help out.”

   “Thanks, I owe you one.”

   “Just helping a friend. Don’t worry about it.” He gave you that wide smile again, and you briefly forget about the mess waiting upstairs. “Do you want me to wait here in the bar until you’re finished up?”

   You nodded, and then felt heat rise to your cheeks, slightly embarrassed once you realized that wasn’t something he could notice. “Um, yes – well, Jackson’s gonna take care of closing the bar, so he can show you upstairs and through my place once you get Foggy situated. I want to get a jump on it. Just uh, knock or something when you get to my bathroom so I don’t jump out of my skin when I see you standing there.”

   Matt nodded. “Sure thing. I’ll be up soon,” he said before turning to assist a stumbling Foggy. You turned to make your way to the back stairs to start cleaning up the small pond waiting for you. Just as you passed Jackson, he grabbed your arm and in a hushed voice singsonged “Matt and Josie Jr., sittin’ in tree…”

   You punched him in the stomach with your free hand before he got much farther. “Seriously, man?”

   He let go and rubbed where you hit him, chuckling. “I’m just saying, I’ve never seen you invite a guy upstairs to your place.”

   “Ah yes, because mopping up gallons and gallons of water in a cold bathroom just screams ‘romantic.’ Don’t know why I didn’t think of this pick-up before.” 

   “Every time he smiles at you, you stop for a second. I’ve never seen someone snap you out of your rhythm like that.”

   You hated it, but he was right. Too observant for his own good sometimes. Crossing your arms, you glared at him and replied “Can you just let him in when he’s done and bring him upstairs? I’ve got a mini Hudson in my apartment and I’d really like to get started on cleaning it up.”

   “Yeah yeah yeah, I’ll escort him,” Jackson said while rolling his eyes at you. 

   “Thank you,” you replied, then softened as you continued, “And thank you for helping to close things down tonight. You can go once you get Matt upstairs, I’m sure Carter’s waiting for you. We’ll worry about deep cleaning the back bar later this week.”

   “Anytime. You know I’ve got your back.”

   You gave him a tired but thankful smile and headed upstairs.

-

   Even after cuffing your jeans to almost the knee, your legs were still soaked by the time Matt got up to your apartment. You’d managed to get the wet clothes out of the built in, wrung out, and tossed in a bag to take to the laundromat. You were just dumping the latest pass with the shop-vac down the drain of the tub when you heard a clicking in your bedroom. Wiping the sweaty strands of hair that had fallen from your braid out of your eyes, you looked up to see Matt knocking one hand against the frame of the door, cane resting in the other. 

   “Hey again. Jackson let me in. I told him I could find my way back to you,” Matt said before setting his coat and cane down to join you in the bathroom.

   You felt a pang of embarrassment in your chest. “Oh, I told him to walk you back here. Didn’t want you to have to find your way around this maze of doors alone.”

   He smiled gently at you. “It’s not a big deal, it’s pretty easy to hear where you are, what with the vacuum running and all.”

   Another pang, then you started to stutter. “Oh, I didn’t mean it like- I mean, I meant-” 

   “Hey, it’s okay, really. Don’t worry about me, I get around fine,” Matt said through a quiet laugh. “Happens all the time.”

   “What, the walking on eggshells-like attitude, or making women stutter in your presence?” Oh my god, shut up.

    “Well, the first one more than the second, usually.” Matt grinned, shrugging his shoulders. As he started rolling up his sleeves he continued, “but enough about my problems, what do you need help with?”

   Your eyes had drifted towards the now-bare skin of his forearms. He looked stronger than you expected for a lawyer, muscles flexing as the long fingers of his hand deftly cuffed his shirt at the elbow. You involuntarily licked your lips, admiring how the tendons in his broad hands rolled as he loosened the button on his other sleeve. Shaking it off, you tapped the corner of the bathroom and showed Matt where to start vacuuming up water. 

   “We can just dump the water in the tub, it’s a little over two feet to your left. Luckily none of the drains have an issue, it’s just the water line. I’m gonna go move this bag of clothes out of the way, I need to take them to the laundromat in the morning.”

   “You’re welcome to use my washer & dryer, if you want. Probably about the same distance, but I won’t charge you a week’s worth of pay.”

   Josie was right, these were good guys. “I may have to take you up on that. Don’t get too much in cash tips, mainly cards now. Even with the older biker guys, you’d be surprised at how many of them have points cards.”

   You could hear Matt laugh as you dragged your laundry bag to the front door. Cleaning this unexpected mess up was certainly a little easier with good company. You made quick work of the remaining water as you swept the water towards Matt while he held the vacuum, and once the pond was reduced to small puddles, you tasked Matt with wiping out the built-in so the water didn’t seep into the wood more than it already had. You were moving out to the hallway to grab the mop out of the utility closet when you heard Matt speak.

   “So, how do you know Josie? Other than working at the bar? I can’t imagine her hiring someone she didn’t already know.”

   You couldn’t imagine it either. “I’ve actually known her for most of my life. My mom and I moved into this apartment when I was ten. Josie actually owns the first five floors of this building.”

   Matt paused in disbelief for a moment and said, “No way, Josie, a landlord?”

   “Seriously. Apparently her family’s owned the building, including the bar, for over a century. The bar was actually a speakeasy back in the 20s.”

   A chuckle. “Just when you think you know your barkeep…”

   “Don’t tell her I said anything, we don’t want to ruin her mystique, after all.”

   “Not a word I ever would have used to describe Josie, but yes, secret is safe with me.”

   “Thanks. Anyway, yeah, she’s been my landlord for 20-something years now. My mom moved to Florida years ago, but I was still in college so I stuck around. Josie covered the rent until I graduated and got a ‘real’ job,” you continued.

   “What did you go to school for?”

   You scoffed a little, and replied, “Music performance. Piano, specifically.” Not wanting to elaborate on your distinct lack of a full-time gig, you turned the question around. “Obviously you have a degree, considering your lawyer-ing. Where’d you go?”

   “Columbia. Foggy and I both. We decided to start our own firm after working for corporations at our internship. Got sick of defending faceless businesses,” Matt frowned a little.

   “Oh so you’re standing up for the little guy? We need more of that.” 

   “I’d like to think so. Eating rice for every meal is getting a little old, though. Law isn’t all glitz.”

   You chuckled as you replied, “I feel that. The supply shop I worked for closed three months ago. Until I managed to start doing private lessons, I was pretty much eating bar peanuts and $2 frozen pizzas. Now I’ve upgraded to cheap Chinese.”

   “That’s glamorous,” Matt laughed. 

   “Very,” you confirmed as you turned back to the task at hand. “So, now that we’ve got the water mostly cleaned up, I think I’m going to cut into this drywall. Gotta see what the damage is. If you need to take off I understand,” glancing at your phone, “I imagine law starts early and it’s past two AM.”

   “I don’t mind staying and helping. I don’t sleep much anyway,” he quietly admitted as he leaned against the wall behind you.

   You pulled your utility knife from your back pocket and started cutting into the drywall two feet off the floor. Once you got to the wall shared with the bedroom, your stomach sank.

   “Shit,” you muttered. “Not what I wanted to find.”

   “Seeped through to the other walls?” 

   “Yeah. Which means the restoration process is going to be more intense than I was hoping.”

   Behind you, Matt paused, and then you heard him sniff. “Might be worse than that.” He walked up, close enough you could feel the heat of his body against your back. He gently set his hands on your shoulders, thumbs grazing the back of your neck, making you shiver just the slightest amount at the unexpected, but not unwelcome touch. He leaned over you and sniffed again. “Smells like mildew… maybe mold.”

   He must have sensed the pause before you started to speak and answered your question before it could leave your mouth. “When you can’t see, you tend to be able to hear and smell things before others. Lack of one sense heightens the others.”

   “Gotcha. Well, if it’s mold, I might be able to see it, now that the wall is open.” Grabbing your phone, you turned on the flashlight and directed it at the wall you cut open. After your eyes adjusted to the light, you could see some kind of discoloration on the inside of your bedroom wall. As you squatted down and leaned in closer to inspect it, you were suddenly hit with the musty odor that confirmed it. Definitely mold or mildew. You looked over your shoulder to see Matt’s figure back in the doorway.

   “Yeah, there’s definitely something in there. Gonna have to have the entire floor looked at, probably. So much for my plan of sleeping on Josie’s couch.”

   “I take it this isn’t your first water leak.”

   “I’ve seen enough to know how this goes. The water damage was going to put me out of a bathroom for at least a month, but mold...” You pulled your braid loose and ran your hands through your hair, unease settling in your chest like a boulder.

   Matt cleared his throat. “Do you need a place to stay?”

   Your brain short-circuited. “Wh-What?”

   He paused before he repeated the question, though out of apprehension or concern, you weren’t sure. “Do you need a place to stay? I’ve got a spare room. If that is actually mold, you probably shouldn’t be around it any more than you have to be.” You were pretty sure he could tell you were staring at him, mouth agape, as he continued, voice quieting as he softly said, “Josie acts like a real hardass, but she’s always been kind to me. I’ve known her for a long time, too. Helping you out would be helping her so…” He rubbed the back of his neck, unease in his voice as he trailed off.

   You were still staring. You swore he could hear your heart, it was beating so loud, banging against your ribcage as you tried to process what exactly he had offered. Finally managing to break your mental block and work through the situation, you stuttered out, “I uh-, I-I could use a place for tonight. I think I’ll probably end up with a hotel or rental through my insurance, but I won’t know until tomorrow.”

   He relaxed a bit, shoulders dropping. “Well, pack up what you need.” He took a few steps, closing the distance between you before reaching a hand down to help you up. Taking it, you stood and replied, “Thanks. Shouldn’t take me too long to throw together a bag.”

   “Can’t resist helping a damsel in distress,” Matt replied with a playful grin. “I have a moral code to uphold.” 

   You rolled your eyes but replied gratefully, “You’re gonna end up drinking for free with how much you’re helping me out, Mr. Murdock.”

   He just smirked and repeated your remark from the bar earlier. “Don’t tell Josie.”

   “Wouldn’t dream of it. If you wanna wait out in the living room, I shouldn’t be more than a couple of minutes.”

   Matt nodded before turning and leaving you alone in the bathroom. After taking a few deep breaths, you quickly ran through a mental checklist of what you needed to grab. Shower stuff, meds, charger, backpack... As you started opening the drawers in your vanity, you caught your reflection in the mirror above the sink. The circles under your eyes, ones that had seemingly been getting darker over the last few weeks, were accompanied by mascara smudged from sweat, your irises rimmed with red from tiredness. You hastily pulled your hair up into a bun and tried to wipe the marks under your eyes with the sleeve of your sweatshirt. A few strands of hair made their way loose, and if you weren’t so exhausted, you knew you’d be feeling self conscious about what a mess you were. 

   You made your way into the living room once you had everything packed up to see Matt waiting calmly by the front door. He lifted his head as he heard you enter the room. 

   “Have everything you need?”

   “I think so. You really okay with me using your washer? I’ve got probably half my closet stuffed into this laundry bag. May double your water bill for the month.”

   Chuckling, Matt replied, “I’m sure you’ll find a way to pay me back.”

   “You’re quickly approaching ‘free whiskey for life’ status here.”

   “Maybe that was my plan all along.”

   “Can’t believe I fell for the good Samaritan act!” you laughed as you laced up your boots. You moved past him, reaching for the front door. “Go ahead in front of me so I can lock up.”

   He stepped out into the hallway as you slipped into your jacket and tossed your backpack over your shoulder, quickly following him out the door. 

   “We’ll take the stairs over to the right, it’ll let us out the back of the building,” you said as you gathered up your laundry bag. A hand brushed against your elbow, causing you to jump a little, not expecting the gentle grip of his fingers. 

   “Sorry,” Matt said softly. “Do you mind guiding? It’s a little easier than using the cane inside.”

   “Oh, yeah - sorry, it’s not you, I just get kinda jumpy when I’m tired,” you said as you let Matt move his hand into the crook of your arm. Truthfully, you were thankful for the warm weight of his fingers as they landed on your bicep, as it helped balance out the load of laundry you carried in your other hand. As you exited the building into chilled, damp February air, you found yourself drawing closer to Matt’s side, involuntarily seeking the warmth that seemed to radiate from him. A cold breeze blew across you, carrying the faint scent of leather and wood from him to you. You turned the corner, following his directions as you made your way to his apartment, and an impulsive question tumbled from you.

   “Have you always been blind?”

   You felt Matt stiffen next to you, tension running up his broad frame. 

   “I guess you get asked that a lot. Stupid unfiltered thought, sorry.”

   “It’s a pretty common question, yeah. Not stupid though. And your answer is no, I haven’t. Happened when I was a kid,” Matt responded, though you could still feel what felt like discomfort at your questions. 

   You walked a few steps without speaking, unsure of how to continue the conversation. You finally managed to answer with, “I can’t imagine how hard it would be to adapt to that.”

   “I still struggle with it sometimes,” he admitted softly, “but there’s beauty in how I see the world now.”

   “That seems like a very healthy way to look at it. No pun intended.”

   You got a quiet chuckle from that. “Took me awhile to get there. Might be resilience, or maybe I’m just stubborn.”

   “We’ll call it resilience. Sounds better,” you smiled, nudging him. 

   “Fair enough. My turn for an invasive question,” he countered, nudging you back. “What’s a classically trained musician doing at a dive bar?”

   You groaned in response. “Guess you deserve a question since you answered mine. Currently ah, between gigs. And by between gigs I mean I haven’t gotten a call back from an audition in over four months.”

   “Wow. Competitive field?”

   “It is, but I’m not sure if I’ve hit a bad string of luck or if I’m just terrible at this point.”

   “I haven’t heard you play, but I highly doubt it’s the last one.”

   “Ever a gentleman. I’ve got a couple more lined up in the next few weeks, and at least I’ve been able to use my degree in the meantime. Got a handful of kids I teach during the day.”

   “Sounds like you might be as resilient as me,” Matt replied pointedly with a smirk on his face. 

   “Touché.”      

   The two of you walked in a comfortable silence for the remainder of the way. Once you reached his building, he unlocked the front door and held it open for you, and you entered a generic-looking lobby with beige tile floors and off-white paneled walls. Gesturing to the stairs on the left, he explained, “I’m on the sixth floor, but we can take the service elevator.”

   Just looking at the metal stairs had your legs feeling weak, the weight of your laundry bag seemingly growing heavier. “Thanks,” you replied tiredly, “not sure I’d be able to haul all this up tonight.”

   You followed Matt past the stairs down a short hallway that led to the service elevator. He entered first, hitting the ‘6’ button while you followed behind. Once inside, you leaned against the cool metal of the walls, eyes closing as your exhaustion began to settle in. You didn’t notice the elevator car opening on the sixth floor, though you did feel Matt’s hand gently press on your lower back. 

   “C’mon, let’s get you inside so you can get some actual rest,” he said. You stepped out of the elevator into a brightly lit landing, letting Matt move in front of you to unlock his front door. 

    It took a second for your eyes to adjust to the dark entryway. Compared to your apartment, which you’d always described as “cozy,” Matt’s seemed almost cavernous. It appeared to be an old warehouse that was turned into a living space, with exposed brick all the way up to the top of the easily 20 foot ceiling. Across from the entry where you were standing, there were twelve-foot tall windows that filtered the light from the street lamps outside, giving the room an eerie yellow glow. On the left, a large, frosted glass door separated what you assumed was a bedroom area from the living room. Your eyes swept over the oversized leather sofa & chairs to the right side of the space that held a simple galley-style kitchen. Dark, espresso-stained cabinetry spanned most of the length of the back wall, flanked on one side by a stainless steel fridge, and a pocket door on the other.

   You managed to pull your dropped jaw shut after muttering, “Jesus. This is your idea of law not being glitzy?”

   Matt didn’t move from the entry where he was hanging his coat. “Wait for it.”

   A flash of light lit the apartment up, startling you. You walked over towards the bank of windows, searching for the source. Peering through the fogged panes, you could make out a billboard with what looked like spotlights dancing behind it.  

   You let out a low whistle. “Good lord.”

   “Been there for years. It’s a little distracting, apparently. Got a good deal on the place though.”

   “Why on earth is that across from an apartment? That’s gotta be against… some sort of building code.”

   “This floor is all apartments now, but it was warehouse space up until five or six years ago. This is the only one that faces it, so it isn’t really an issue for anyone else. They don’t get the cheap rent, though.” Matt shrugged before walking over and to the kitchen island where he dropped his keys. He waited, tracking your footsteps as you slowly walked through the living room, taking in the space before you made your way to lean against the island. 

   “Bathroom and laundry are behind you to the left,” he said once you had settled at the island in front of him.  He motioned behind him, “Spare room is through that pocket door. There’s a murphy bed in there, just pull down on the handle on the wall and it’ll come down. Should already be made, except for the pillows. Those are in the dresser. I’ll go put your laundry in the bathroom.”

   You walked past him, inspecting your new room for the night. The ceiling was a lot lower here, and it couldn’t have been more than seven feet deep total. The wall across from the doorway you stood in housed the murphy bed Matt had mentioned, flanked on either side by tall shelves filled with books. A red metal dresser sat in the corner of the small room. 

   “All good?” Matt asked from the kitchen. 

   “Yeah. I hate to ask, but you wouldn’t happen to have a pair of sweatpants or something I could borrow would you?” you asked, picking at the damp denim against your thighs. “I think all of mine ended up getting wet.”

   “Sure, I’ll be right back.”

   As Matt left the room, you reached up for the metal handle of the bed, pulling it down smoothly away from the wall. You were fluffing the pillows from the dresser as he returned, sweatpants in hand. 

   “Here you go. Brought a shirt too, just in case. You get the bed set up alright?”

   “I did. Gotta say, it looks way more comfortable than Josie’s couch.”

   “Good. I’ll let you get some sleep then. I have to be at the office in the morning, but you can stay as long as you need to. I’ll leave a spare key on the counter.”

   “Okay. Thanks for the sweatpants. And the bed. And the help. And everything else.”

   Matt gave you a soft smile. “You can thank me by getting some rest, you need it.”

   No way you were arguing with that. “Good night, Matt.”

   “Good night,” he replied, sliding the door shut. 

   You peeled off your damp jeans and slipped into the borrowed sweats before crawling into bed. Exhaustion quickly washed over you as you pulled the sheets up and around your shoulders, inhaling the faint scent of detergent, cotton, and oak before sighing and shutting your eyes. Sleep claimed you almost immediately, your worn-out body finally at rest. 

   Somewhere above you, a door creaked open.

[arcadia-of-pluto]

Twist of Fate; Chapter One

Pairings; Rafayel x reader, Xavier x reader, Zayne x reader, Sylus x reader (Love and Deepspace)

Word count; 4,495 (sorry it's so short, I'll try to post three chapters today)

Themes; isekai, eventual smut

Rated; 18+ for swearing and some mature themes

Notes; To make things easier to read, I'm going to use emojis for who is texting.

Y/n 🩷

Rafayel 💜

Zayne 💙

Xavier 💛

Sylus ❤️

Hi everyone! This is my first time posting to tumblr so please be gentle with me! If you like this, then let me know! It would be greatly appreciated. My upload schedule will be every weekend (so either fri, sat, or sun!) Also, if the story seems similar, it's going to be verbatim with the story, just with my own embellishments to it. Without further adieu, I hope you enjoy this first chapter.

Prev || Next

Masterlist

A bright light shines within the dark room. There you lay in bed, playing a game on your phone late at night before bed. The soft background music coming from your speaker as the game loads up. You press ‘enter game’ as images of three men make their way across your screen, each one holding a special place in your heart.

Who says you need a real man? Fictional men are where it's at. They can't cheat on you, can't leave you, can't lie to you. It's a lot better than having to stress over a real person and worry if they'll leave you the next day or not. You know from experience, having two boyfriends in the past and neither lasting longer than six months- both breaking off the relationship before an anniversary. Screw men– well, besides the three on your screen right now. They were fine. Oh, and the fourth one being added a month from now.

The game loads in and you get a greeting from one of the men on screen. They take turns showing up in the Destiny Café, each able to say hello every time you log in. It was always sweet to see what they'd say, how they'd react, or any new text messages you'd get from them. You could even change their phone nicknames! You had Xavier, the sweet tired and aloof silvery blonde haired man, saved as Princess since you thought it would be cute. He'd definitely be embarrassed if you called him that. Zayne, the seemingly cold childhood friend and doctor, was saved under Snow Angel; you honestly didn't know what to have his name as that but it would just be amusing to see his reaction to it. Then there's Rafayel, the purple haired sassy and charming painter, who was saved as Nemo- again, very original. But Nemo works nonetheless. As you smile and send your daily stickers to each man to see their reaction, you get a new notification at the top of your screen.

“A new message?” You murmur, noticing that it's contact is unknown. The message was coming from the game. “It must be some new event. Weird…I wonder why there wasn't an update for it?” You back out of your message with Rafayel and click on the new message from the unknown sender.

:’Will you enter the game?’

“That's it?” Your brows furrow and you sit up in your bed, your phone lying in your lap as you scratch your head. “Wait..” You click on the message to reply and your keyboard pops up. “That's…” Usually, to reply in game, you get a choice between a few predetermined answers but for this…You just get to answer how you want to?

’What do you mean?’ You text back before reaching over to put your glasses on. Maybe you should've gone to bed earlier, it kind of feels like you're hallucinating.

You hear the chime of another message rolling in, and you look back down at your phone.

:’Yes or no? Hurry and pick one.’

This time the keyboard doesn't pop up, you only get three options.

ロ Yes

ロ No

And…

ロ Why?

You don't even think twice before pressing why, and the answer comes back quicker than you expect.

:’Please take care of them for me.’

You let out a scoff before running a hand through your hair. This must be some sort of elaborate prank. There's no way this is a part of the game, and even if it were there'd be no explanation for it. Is this the dev's way of getting back at you for sending so many support requests? Before you can think much about it, suddenly you feel more sleepy than before. Your eyes tiredly blink as you try to grab your phone to at least plug it up and get off of the game before you fall asleep, but instead you're lulled to sleep by the soft, melodic tune of Love and Deepspace.

Then a light so bright that it burns your eyes even though they're closed appears. It's hard to even force your eyes open, but when you do, you notice it's a big, deep crimson eye. Similar to the one you'd see in game. Your blood runs cold as you try to look around this unfamiliar area, but all you see is darkness. A dream? Yeah..this must be a dream. Although you've never been able to actively move in a dream before, there's a first for everything!

Right when you finally calm yourself down, you hear it. A loud explosion, the feeling of embers licking at your skin. Your ears are ringing, and you feel a sharp pain on the right side of your face. The darkness fades, and you're left with the blinding light of the sun against your back and your body lying on a pavement. Just lifting your head up to look at your surroundings feels like an extreme workout, everything about your body feels heavy. Sluggish. Though your left eye widens as you realize you're laying in front of a burning building. Something shining in the sunlight catches your eye, and once you grab the object, you find it harder to breathe. It was a dog tag with a charm on it. An apple charm with a star design in the center, and in the center of that was a ruby gemstone. The words ‘When U come back’ were written in cursive on the dog tag.

“No way..” you manage to croak out, the necklace clutched in your hand as you try to push yourself up, but the pounding in your head and the pain coming from your eye are no match, and you end up laying face down on the pavement in front of the burning home until you pass out from the pain.

Being passed out had its perks. You finally had a chance to think and put together a few puzzle pieces before you woke up. So if memory serves, what just happened was your- no, the main character's childhood home just blew up right after her best friend and basically brother Caleb stepped inside and her grandma, who adopted them both, was inside as well. They both died, and supposedly a mafia-like group called Onychinus was behind it because they were tying up loose ends as Grandma was a former researcher and scientist, experimenting on children and modifying them with aether cores. But the main character wasn't badly injured after the explosion, which never made sense honestly. You're that close to a building exploding, and you only get off with trauma and minor scrapes? That doesn't seem right…and honestly, the pain made it feel all the more real. If you were in a dream, that pain most likely would've woken you up.

So coming to terms that you're inside of the game was a bit easier that way. Though the bigger problem lies with your evol. You wouldn't even know the first step to using it, let alone resonating with another person. And firearm training. You've never shot a gun before, but you did take self defense and fighting lessons a few years back, but you can't exactly punch a wanderer. They're durable monsters that can shoot ice or anything at you and, some even have blades for arms…

“Great, it seems like she's waking up now.” You hear the deep, yet cold voice of a man. Then, you hear the higher pitched voice of a woman, “Finally! It's been three days, I just hope she doesn't insist on going back to work..” “She won't, doctor's orders.” The male voice says before you hear a door close.

Your eye slowly opens before you have to squint to adjust it to the bright white lights. A hospital? You try to sit up and the woman next to you rushes to help you. You have to turn your head to look at her since she's on your right side. Your right eye was also bandaged since all you can see is darkness out of it. The first thing you notice is her short bob cut. “Tara?” You say, your voice sounding a bit raspy and you tilt your head to the side. “Thank goodness, Y/n! We thought you'd never wake up.” She seems excited, bubbly and sweet…just like her character in game.

“That's..” Before you can finish your sentence, you start coughing. “Here, let me get you some water!” She hands you a plastic cup and you take a sip before continuing, “I…can't remember much.” You squeeze your hand in a fist, the sound of metal clinking together has you looking down at your hand. “You never let go of that. You've been holding it since..” Tara trails off and you're caught off guard by a sudden surge of emotions. You take a shaky breath as to not start crying, since that would definitely hurt your right eye before you look up at the ceiling. “I don't recall how to use my evol, how to shoot a gun…Can I still even call myself a hunter?”

“Y/n…” Tara sighs before taking your free hand, “Things can always be retaught, we're all just glad you survived. You should be glad to still have both eyes being that close to the explosion!” She smiled at you before handing you your phone. “I can't stay here long, but your phone has been blowing up for the past three days so make sure you check it out.” She pats your hand and stands up. “I'll visit later with a coffee or something for you.”

“The patient is advised to not have anything caffeinated until after being discharged.” A voice comes from the door before he steps inside.

Black hair, glasses, hazel green eyes, tall…

“Doctor Zayne,” I greet him with a small smile, suddenly more nervous and I turn to look at Tara. “I'll see you tomorrow, Tara?”

“Sure! That is, if I don't get a call about a wanderer..Metaflux readings have been crazy as of late, so we've all been pretty busy- but that's not to push you into coming in or anything! Your health matters more to us at UNICORNS so only come back when you're ready.” She says before leaving the room.

“How are you feeling?” Zayne asks as he comes closer, taking a seat where Tara once was. His eyes scan your whole body to make sure you're okay before landing on your face. He leans forward to take the bandage off of your right eye and you wince at how bright the light is for your non-adjusted eye. “It'll probably scar..” he murmurs, presumably to himself.

“I'm..” You trail off, sighing before you decide it's best to tell the doctor the truth. “I'm fine, but I can't remember-”

“Can't remember what?” He cuts you off, almost seeming more worried about just what you can't remember, which makes you laugh a bit. “Calm down, I was getting to that. I can't remember how to use my evol, use my gun, or anything to do with wanderers.” ��Hmm..are you sure it won't come back with time?” Zayne seems to have calmed back down as he's now writing everything down on a clipboard. “I'm sure of that.” You clear your throat, looking back down at the necklace in your hand before running your thumb across it.

“I don't mind relearning everything but I won't be as good as I was before, that's for sure.” You lean your head back and Zayne quickly corrects you, gently tilting your chin back down. “If your wound reopens, we'll have to use stitches so be careful.”

“You'll get better at it in no time. Don't forget that I'll help you out.” Zayne says before standing up. You take a glance at the clipboard and it seems like he added ‘post traumatic stress disorder?’ as a note. You guess he assumes your forgetfulness might be caused by that, but you knew otherwise. “I'll leave you so you can check up on your phone.”

With that, the doctor leaves the room and you can finally let out a sigh of relief. It seems he didn't notice anything was off with you. He was honestly the hardest hurdle since he's known the main character for a long time, but you've noticed you tend to act like her to begin with so maybe it wouldn't be as hard as you thought.

You finally decide to put the necklace down on the table next to you, your hand aching from having held it so tightly and grab your phone. There was no code on it so you easy got into it, might as well put a code on it now..and now you go to check your messages. 45 missed calls from Nemo…Nemo? Your brows furrow and you flinch because, of course, that hurts the wound on your face so you quickly straighten your face out. The nicknames are the same as they were in your game. 11 missed calls from Princess, 55 missed messages from Nemo, and 5 missed messages from Princess. Zayne didn't leave any since he works at the hospital… though on the day of the incident, he did leave two missed calls and a reminder of a doctor's appointment.

You decide to check up with Rafayel first since he's a certified drama queen. You don't scroll too far up but the most recent text messages are just him being pouty that his ‘miss bodyguard’ is ignoring him.

🩷 :’Been in the hospital for three days, sorry!’

You decide that's sufficient of an answer before nearly jumping out of your skin as he immediately calls. You laugh before answering the call, being bombarded with questions the moment you press the green button.

“Which hospital, Miss bodyguard? What happened? Are you okay?”

“One question at a time.” You laugh before you start coughing and have to take another sip of water from the plastic cup. Your throat was a bit achy from not being used for three days.

“Which hospital?” Rafayel sticks with his first question, his voice void of his usual playful banter. “Uhm..” you look around for a moment, not exactly remembering the name of the hospital in game before spotting its name on the whiteboard in front of you. “Akso Hospital, room 205.”

“Got it.” Then silence. “Uh…Rafayel?” You say, taking the phone away from your face to notice he had already hung up. You shrug it off before going to your messages with Xavier. Most of the messages were just asking if you wanted to go hunting with him, sending locations, and the most recent one was from a few hours ago with him asking if you were okay.

🩷 :’At the hospital right now, been out for three days! Sorry about that. I might need some help soon though.’

Xavier doesn't immediately call like Rafayel did, instead just exchanges a few texts with you.

💛 :’what happened? are U alright? is it’

🩷 :’Is it what? I'm fine, a bit sore though. I got caught up in an explosion three days ago and have been out since then.’

💛 :’..nevermind that how can U be okay if u were passed out for 3 days? what's the extent of your injuries?’

🩷 :’Just a few bruises, scrapes, a sprained ankle, and…’

💛 :’and what?’

🩷 :’I might have a cool new scar over my eye!’

💛 :’thats not funny..what hospital, i'm coming now.’

You pause your messages, knowing he definitely can't come now if Rafayel is. None of the love interests have ever interacted in the game before, so you're not sure of the consequences just yet.

🩷 :’I'm probably about to sleep again! You can visit tomorrow, the doc gave me some pain medicine that's making me a bit tired and I wanted to talk to you.’

💛 :’alright as long as ur okay. i can wait as long as you need.’

You pout, trying your best not to gush over how sweet Xavier is, and drop your phone as your room door suddenly opens to reveal an exhausted looking, purple haired man. His shirt was haphazardly buttoned, his hair tousled as if he just got out of bed, and panic written all over his face.

“You didn't think to describe the details of your injuries to me?” Are the first words out of his mouth before he shuts the door behind him, walking deeper in the room to grab your plastic cup to drink some water. “You've been out for three days, you shouldn't even be sitting up right now!” He sits down on the chair next to the bed and you reach toward him to try and fix his shirt buttons. The tips of his ears turn red and he pushes backward on the rolling chair. “What're you doing- you're a patient.”

“Your shirt..” You drop your hands into your lap with a small smile.

“Oh-” Rafayel clears his throat, turning the chair to fix his shirt before he rolls the chair back up next to you. With his hand gently cupping the right side of your face, he murmurs, “How did this happen?”

You assume he's probably in shock since you were never scarred like this in any of the past lives you shared with him.

“An explosion from my..” You trail off, lips pressing together in a thin line as you find it hard to say what happened, even though you know they're not your actual family. “..my childhood home. Two casualties.” You finally finish your sentence, not meeting Rafayel's bluish pink eyes as he still cups your cheek.

The silence is almost deafening before Rafayel sighs and drops his hand. “I'm sorry for your loss.” He finally says. “Do you need a hug?”

You quickly shake your head. “If I hug you, I'll cry and I really don't need to..irritate my…” You can't seem to get your words out as your eyes water and no matter how hard you try to stop it, your cheek stings as salty tears run down your still healing wound. Rafayel moves to sit on the side of the bed, guiding your forehead to rest against his shoulder as his arms wrap around you. “We can always get your doctor to fix it, huh? It won't do you any good if you keep your feelings all bottled up now, will it?”

You can't seem to stop crying, even as your breath stutters in your chest and you find it harder to breathe. Sure, you cried when they died while playing but for it to affect you like this? Maybe it's because someone offered to be a shoulder you could lean on.

“Focus on my breathing. Don't hyperventilate on me now, miss bodyguard.” Rafayel murmurs, hand still patting your back as your tears eventually fade and you fall asleep.

Rafayel pulls you back from his shoulder, moving you so you're laid flat on the bed before he grabs a soft tissue to wipe your face, wiping the trail of blood coming from your wound since the salt from your tears irritated it. He then leans forward to kiss your forehead. “I'll see you soon.”

The next time you wake up, your eyes are puffy and your nose is stopped up.

“I see you cried yourself to sleep.” Zayne comments, tilting your head by your chin so he can examine your wound. “You irritated it.” He sighs. “If you don't cry anymore, it'll probably be healed up in two weeks..then you can cry all you want.”

“Well, I'm sorry, I had to cry.” You say with a pout, knowing it's not his fault. “When can I be discharged?”

“After today, your ankle should be better to walk on so tomorrow? But if you want to start work again, I'd say another few weeks.” Zayne finishes writing something down before standing up. “I also did a routine checkup on your heart in case that was the reason you can't use your evol and I don't think that's the case. I believe your evol revolves around your emotions so if you're not confident in it, it won't work.”

“Thank you, Zayne.” You say before taking a sip of the iced coffee that Tara left for you thirty minutes ago. Then you finally shoot Xavier a text to say he's free to come to the hospital whenever he wants, that you'll be discharged tomorrow.

Not even a minute after you sent your message, there was a knock on your door. You look toward the noise before smiling behind your hand. “Come in.”

A silvery blond head pops in from the now opened door before he comes in and shuts the door behind him. “How are you feeling today?” He asks, his soft tired voice sounding a bit more emotional than usual. “Mmh, pretty good. I'd probably feel better if you came a bit closer.” You say, leaning over to pat the chair next to your bed. He quickly comes to sit down, almost as if waiting for the invitation.

“Your eyes are swollen. Did you have a rough sleep last night?”

“No, I..” it's probably best to keep telling the truth for now. “I just cried myself to sleep.” You shrug, trying to play it off as nothing but Xavier isn't falling for it. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“If I cry myself to sleep again, will you hold me?” You ask, raising your left brow before laughing to yourself. “Just thinking about what happened, not being able to save anyone, getting hurt like this…” You feel a hand on top of your own and turn to look at Xavier. “It's not your fault.” He finally says after a moment of silence. A small smile tugging at his lips before he changes the subject, “What is it you wanted to ask me?”

“Oh right!” You sit up before turning your body to face him. “I need you to teach me how to use my gun…and how to fight….aannnd how to use my evol.” You name off each one and tap on your fingers to count them off.

“You..forgot all of that?” His head tilts to the side before he nods his head. “Alright, I can do that. Is there anything else you need?”

“Uh…can you pick me up tomorrow? I don't know where our apartments are…or how to drive my bike either.” You rub the back of your neck and smile sheepishly.

“What else did you forget?” He lets out a small laugh.

“All of Linkon?” You say before adding, “I mean, I remember names but I don't remember where anything is..like Azure Square, UNICORNS HQ, Twinkle Toys, Meow's Café..”

“Don't worry, I'll help with anything I can.” Xavier smiles, his thumb rubbing across the back of your hand.

“Thank you, that means a lot to me.” You smile before looking down at your phone as it buzzes. Rafayel. He's- on his way?

“Actually, could you get me a friend for tomorrow?” You ask, a smile tugging at your lips. “A..friend?” His head tilts to the side until you say, “Can you get me a fox plushie and bring it to me when I'm discharged tomorrow?”

“I-” Xavier laughs before nodding, “Of course I will.” He stands up, looking toward the door. “I'll leave now though, since you seem a bit restless, but I'll make sure you get all the plushies you want.”

Not even five minutes after Xavier leaves, Rafayel is in the room. Almost as if he felt a disturbance in the force that someone was with his lady right now. “Was someone just here?” He asks, trying to act nonchalant as he sits down in the chair.

“No?” You phrase it as a question before you nod your head. “Yeah, the doctor just left. He was upset that I irritated my wound but, at least, I'll be discharged tomorrow! I can't go back to work for another two weeks though.”

“So does that mean my bodyguard is still out of commission?” Rafayel pouts, a hand on his hip. “Well, that's a shame. I had an art expo to go to in a few days and I was wondering if you'd join me.” “Ah…about that,” you clear your throat before telling him all about the troubles with your evol and even not recalling how to use a gun. “Why don't you try resonating now?” He asks, placing his hand on top of yours. “But what do I even do?” You murmur, closing your eyes.

“Do you feel all of that energy coursing through your chest? Try to direct that through your body to your fingers.” Rafayel whispers. “Think of it like paint. If you pour paint on a flat canvas, it spreads all out like crazy. You have to take a paintbrush and direct the paint to where you want it to go. So your evol is the paint and you are the paintbrush.”

That…helps but doesn't help at the same time.

You take a deep breath, trying to silence your mind to be able to focus but it's difficult to have dead silent thoughts. Instead you try to imagine the energy moving from your chest all the way to your hands, which were clasped between Rafayel's much bigger ones. Then, you finally felt it. You were resonati-

You flinch as you’re bombarded with a few blurry memories of your past life with Rafayel; Well, if you didn't know, you would've just been confused but since you played the game, you knew they were of your past lives with him. Though they were blurry, so you didn't catch anything besides a soft ‘my bride’ at the end.

My eyes blink open and you take one hand away from Rafayel to rub your temples. “I think it worked but..” you look at Rafayel, who was uncharacteristically silent. Maybe he saw the same images too?

“Hey, did you see it too?” You ask, which finally gets his attention. “Huh, see what?” He tries to brush it off but you don't let him. “It was kind of blurry but I remember seeing you…in a purple outfit? Oh and you said something at the end.” You tap your bottom lip with your index finger, pretending to try and recall what you saw when, in reality, you only saw a blurry Rafayel. You never saw specific details like that. “You said my bri-”

Rafayel covers your mouth with a hand. “That's enough of that.” His ears were red and he wasn't looking you in the eyes. Then he clears his throat. “Anyway, I'll contact you soon about the expo since you seem to resonate just fine and then maybe I can show you around Linkon City to try and jog your memory.”

He leaves as quickly as he showed up, clearly embarrassed by what you were going to say.

“Cute..” you say to yourself, laughing into your hand before wincing and touching the right side of your face.

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

That's it for the first chapter! Since I wrote this on goggle docs, I wasn't sure just how short the chapters were but they'll get longer as we go on! I have a few chapters piled up so even if I don't write for a few weeks, I'll still be able to post. I'd love any feedback or even any explanations of the features on here to make the reading experience a bit better. I've never posted to Tumblr before so I've been just copying what I see from the tags and word count so I think I've done pretty well for my first time. I would love to learn how to do a masterlist though and also a next button, I guess I just have to link the next chapter on it? I'll have to test it out so please bear with me and I hope you enjoyed- and stick around for the chapters to come! 🩷