#this just randomly appeared in my mind and is now haunting me
Explore tagged Tumblr posts
Text
Daisy Duck and Minnie Mouse set to Good Luck, Babe! by Chappell Roan. Is this anything
#this just randomly appeared in my mind and is now haunting me#iâm picturing it as daisy singing about minnie#mainly the chorus and the bridge
2 notes
·
View notes
Text
The monster's gone, he's on the run and your daddy's here.
Ethan Hunt x daughter!Reader
After secretly following him on a Mission, Ethan's daughter has been dealing with nightmares and he comforts her.
Warnings: violence, gunshot wounds, bleeding, angst & fluff
Notes: first Mission Impossible fanfic from me!! Got his idea randomly and immediately got to writing lol also sorry I haven't written my Requests yet!! Will try to do it soon!! Like always: English isn't my first language so I'm sorry about any grammar or writing mistakes. Enjoy!
Story below the cut âïž
Being the daughter of an IMF agent surely wasn't the easiest thing in the world. Not only would he often have to leave for missions, but Ethan was also so overprotective. He would rather die himself than let you get hurt.
That being said, you might have followed him in secret on his new mission. He said it would just be a quick and easy mission, but you didn't believe him. Ethan's idea of an easy mission was... interesting to say the least.
You quietly followed him, hiding somewhere outside an empty warehouse. The waiting felt like forever, your heart pounding. Was everything going right? Would he be fine?
Your thoughts were interrupted by gunshots. Shit.
After what felt like an eternity, you saw him walking, noâ limping out of the building and holding his arm, blood dripping down.
"Dad!" You screamed and rushed towards him. Ethan was obviously startled and shocked by your sudden appearance. He whispered your name, before collapsing onto the floor.
"No no no no.. please, no!" You mumbled in panic and pressed your hands on the gunshot wound, trying to stop the bleeding somehow. It was so much blood.
By now Ethan was knocked out cold, which was a very bad sign for him. In a panic you ripped off your Belt, putting it around his arm right above the wound and making it as tight as possible, trying to surpress the blood flow.
"Dad.. Dad please, wake up, please!" You panicked and checked his breathing. It was shallow, but there.
You were so focused on Ethan that you barely noticed the sound of car wheels squealing behind you.
"Y/N!"
Benji. Oh god, thank you lord.
"H-he, he got shot, I- I tried to stop the bleeding and- and he's unconcious, I-I-" The shock made you unable to even form a sentence.
Luther and Benji rushed to you both, immediately taking care of Ethan's wound. While Benji was busy wrapping a bandage around your father's arm, Luther was by your side.
"I would be really mad you're here right now but you may have just saved your dad's life, kid." He put his arm around you in a comforting way, your dad's colleagues always had a soft spot for you.
The next moments went by in what felt like a blur. Everything was happening so fast, but at the same time in slow motion.
Ethan was brought into a nearby hospital and was treated there, resting for a few days before finally being released home.
"DAD!" You yelped as you woke up abruptly, drenched in sweat. Ever since that mission nightmares have been haunting you.
You keep seeing the images of your father bleeding out right in front of you and your mind wandered to possibilties of what could have happened. Every thought ending with him dead.
"Sweetheart?"
You flinched as you suddenly heard your father's voice and quickly turned to him. He was standing in the doorway, hair messed up from sleeping and his arm still covered with a bandage.
"Is everything okay?"
He carefully sat down on the edge of your bed and pulled you into his arms.
"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you-" You sniffled, you hadn't even noticed the tears running down your cheeks.
"Hey, hey, shhh, it's okay.. it's okay.." He whispered, his hand going through your hair in a comforting way.
"I'm alive and I'm alright, okay? Thanks to you. You saved me, sweetheart." Ethan said softly. As he noticed that didn't fully calm you, he carefully took your hand and placed it on his left chest.
"Feel it. My heart is still beating, thanks to you. I'm still here because of you, you hear me? Nothing could ever separate me from you. You wont get rid of your old man so easily, sweetie."
You couldn't help but crack a smile at that. Feeling his heartbeat, having his arms around you and hearing his voice was so comforting. Knowing he was still here was comforting.
"I love you, Dad"
"I love you too, sweetheart. Now, try to go back to sleep, okay? You need some rest. We both do." Ethan pressed a kiss on your forehead after he spoke.
The imagines would surely haunt you for a little more, but having your father right by your side made it all a whole lot easier.
#ethan hunt x reader#ethan hunt#mission impossible#tom cruise#benji dunn#luther stickell#fanfic#oneshot#tom cruise x reader
91 notes
·
View notes
Text
Ray of sunshine,the clouds are vanishing | ZHY
Zhang Yixing x fem!reader
Best friends to lovers!AU
Slow burn!AU
Plot:love can disappoint sometimes,but what if you find someone who shares the same wounds as yours? And what if that person is Zhang Yixing,the friend of a friend who randomly started hanging out with your group?
Warnings:cursing
This story is a request
Masterlist
Authorâs notes:I was in the mood for a slow burn so here we are!! It took me a while to write and itâs pretty long,also a little bit clichĂ© maybe,but I hope you enjoy itâĄ
Tumblr works with reposts:if you enjoyed my story please repost and leave a feedback! Help me growing!âĄ
âYou light up the rooms you step inâ
You were sitting on the sidewalk in front of the club you had just left. An half empty bottle of Soju standing a few inches away from your left leg as you were staring at an undefined point in front of you. You shivered:the short skirt and the fishnet thighs werenât enough to protect you from the cold of the night,but you had no strength to get back inside the club. You didnât want to see him again.
Your night was amazing until he appeared.
You were drinking,dancing and singing with your friends,having fun in trying to convince Lisa to hit on the cute guy she had put her eyes on at the beginning of the party. Everything was great,you didnât have such an amazing time in a while until him,your ex-boyfriend,was so bold to talk to you as soon as he noticed you.
He appeared and grabbed you from behind,hitting on you like he had never cheated with a chick with fake lips and fake boobs. You felt like throwing up and,then,your night was ruined with a snap of fingers.
Mad,you slapped him and ran outside,without even seeing Sehun and Jongdae scolding him. You didnât know what to do,you felt lost.
Suddenly,all that pain you had felt while breaking up rose inside you once again,with no mercy,ready to make your heart bleed for love.
Fuck him,fuck her and,most of all,fuck yourself for being so dumb to date a walking red flag when everyone had warned you.
You sighed,stroking your legs with your hands in hope to warm your skin;when,suddenly,someone covered you with their black jacket.
You turned around sure to see that asshole,but the only person that was there was Yixing,Baekhyunâs friend,who had started hanging out with your group a few months earlier.
âTake itâ he said kindly,sitting next to you
âThank you-you grabbed the bottle of Soju-you want some?â you asked
Yixing sipped from the object and then gave it back to you,watching as you threw the burning liquid down to your throat
âSlow downâ he laughed,trying to stop you,but you pushed his hand away
âI need this. My night has been ruinedâ you mumbled
âI didnât really understand why,to be honestâ
âYou saw the guy that approached me? That was my exâ
âNow I get it. Thatâs why Sehun and Jongdae snapped at himâ
âDid they?â
âYes. They were mad. Junmyeon and Minseok had to hold them back-Yixing giggled-youâre so lucky to have them. Theyâre great friendsâ
âI know. I wouldnât be here if it wasnât for them. When I broke up with Sunghoon everything was pitch black. They were my lightâ
âDid he hurt you that much?â Yixingâs soft smile disappeared as soon as you talked
âHe cheated on me for six months. In a relationship of one year, half of it was a lie. I think heâs the person who hurt me the most.I pushed all my fears aside for him and gave him my heart only to find out that he stopped caring about me before I could even noticeâ you sighed,drinking more Soju. You were having an hard time holding back your tears.
Yixing noticed and slid closer to comfort you, caressing your back
âI hope you know that wasnât your faultâ he then said,softly
âI know now,but back then I didnât. I felt like I deserved nothing. If Iâve changed my mind is thanks to my friends:they sticked with me,supported me and helped me seeing myself in the way I had to. However,Sunghun still haunts me sometimes. I was so happy with him,I thought he was the oneâ
âThere are many potential ones out there,donât focus on an idiot. Iâm saying that because I got cheated on as well,so I know how it feelsâ
âReally?! What a bitch. Youâre such a nice guy,you donât deserve a similar a treatment!â
âNeither you do,but it happened. The most important thing is that we both know that itâs none of our fault,but theirsâ
âYouâre absolutely right Yixingâ you smiled.
You didnât expect that such a short chat could lead the two of you to a beautiful friendship:you slowly started opening up with Yixing,exchanging messages all day and talking about everything;even Sunghoon who,suddenly,started looking for you again.
It disturbed you a lot. You had healed in the past months,but not enough to face him again. The truth was that you had been hoping to never see him after breaking up. You wanted to re-start building your life;so,seeing his lost calls and texts unsettled you a lot,pushing you closer and closer to Yixing as he seemed the one who could fully understand the situation.
âWhy donât you block him?â the boy asked,sitting in front of you as he sipped his coffee
âI canâtâ you mumbled,resting your chin on the palm of your hand
âWhy? You said you donât wanna have anything to do with himâ
âWhich is trueâŠâ
âBut?â
âNo butsâ you sighed,Yixing giggled
âMay I tell you what I think,y/n?â
At those words you nodded
âI think that youâre still in love with that assholeâ
âIâm not!â
âThen block himâ your friend rested his back against the chair
âNoâŠâ
âSeen it? Thatâs my pointâ
You rolled your eyes and scratched the back of your head:maybe Yixing was right;maybe,deep down,you were still a little bit in love with Sunghoon,but it didnât imply giving him a second chance,that was another reason why you ran away when you saw him at the club.
âWhat am I supposed to do Yixing? Please help me,Iâm so tired. I was feeling better,so why did he have to come back?â you hid your face with your hands,holding back your tears.
Why was your life so hard? Why couldnât you be living happily for once? You constantly had to face troubles and problems without even looking for them. You had enough.
âYou already know what to do,y/n:stay with your friends,enjoy the good things of your day and focus on yourself until youâll meet someone who values you for the amazing person that you areâ the boy smiled and hugged you. Your face sank in the crook of his neck,your nostrils got filled with his sweet cologne. Your stomach tingled for a second at that nice sensation,but you were so lost in your thoughts that you didnât even notice it.
âDonât tell our friends heâs texting me again. You saw how they got mad,I donât want any drama to happenâ
âMy mouth is shut,key thrown to the sharks-he giggled-but you gotta block him. Promise me youâll do itâ
âI willâ
âThen letâs have fun together so you can forget Sunghoonâ
Said so,Yixing started organising regular evenings out with the whole group:you would eat together,go clubbing,try fun activities like climbing and even organise movie nights.
Besides that,when your friends were busy with their jobs and couldnât join you,Yixing would always find some free time to spend with you,even if it meant only having a coffee together.
That was why you grew fond of him,developing a soft spot in your heart that made you consider Yixing your best friend. The same happened to him. He had to admit that,even tho he had a lot of friends,no one made him feel as good as you did:you were his ray of sunshine,the person he would look for when he needed positive vibes,that someone who would listen to him and support him through the hardest moments,making the clouds vanish.
The more time flew,the more you two became close. You met everyday,letting your inner children come out and fully heal in each other presence.
âLetâs do this!â you grabbed Yixing,dragging him towards the shooting game of the arcade you had decided to visit that night.
âKilling zombies sounds fun!-he laughed,grabbing the VR headset-let me help you with thisâ he then smiled,tucking the lace at the back of your head.
His fingers accidentally stroked against your cheeks while he was placing the object on your eyes:it sent shivers along your spine. Yixingâs touch was always so gentle and delicate,it made you feel safe and well treated. A little smile unconsciously appeared on your lips.
âWhy are you smiling now?â your friend asked
âWhat? Oh,nothing,Iâm just having funâ
âThe game hasnât started yetâ Yixing laughed,grabbing his VR
âI know but Iâm having a great time tonight. Itâs been a while since I came here at the arcade. I missed it,this was my favourite place when I was youngerâ
âThen weâll come back soonâ
Those words widened your smile even more;then,once the zombie game had finished,you moved to the next one:the Pump it up game. You were surprised it was still there.
âThis one! I wanna dance,itâs always been my favouriteâ
âLetâs go then,Iâll beat your ass!â Yixing exclaimed,placing himself on the platform.
The two of you chose the song,a Michael Jackson one to make things harder but funnier,and started dancingâŠif that was how you could call what you two were up to.
To be honest,all you did was pushing each other to make the other hit a lower score:
âAre you that scared to lose?! Really?!â Yixing taunted you,blocking your hands with his:you melted noticing how his touch was,once again,extremely careful with you. He treated you like you were a precious jewel,which warmed your heart.
âYou are scared to lose!â you bit back,laughing,and trying to push him away
âIâm a dancer,thereâs no way Iâll lose!â
âIâm better than you in this game,Iâm sure!â
âOh,yeah,I see! Thatâs why youâre sabotaging me right nowâ
âThatâs not true!â you kept on laughing and pushing,until,by accident,you slipped and lost your balance.
âOuch!â you exclaimed,falling,but,luckily,your body never touched the ground as Yixing laid in and held you tight.
âYou okay?â he demanded,concerned
âIâm-Iâm fineâ you blushed:his arms were wrapped around your waist while your chest was against his. You could feel both his heartbeat and his warm breath on your skin.
You bit your lips:what was happening? Why,all of a sudden,you were feeling so odd? Something that you couldnât tell was going on inside you while being so close to him. Your stomach twitched and sparkled while your legs were shaking. You didnât want to lean back and stand on your own feet,you wanted Yixing to be that close forever.
âSoâŠthatâs the reason why you stopped answering to my texts,isnât it?â A familiar voice made you startle and push the brunette away.
âWhat are you doing here?!â You asked,shocked as Sunghoon was standing right in front of you. Right hand in his pocket,soft black hair framing his beautiful features. You felt like the ground beneath your feet was missing.
âTexts? What is he talking about?â Yixing furrowed his eyebrows
âI can explain!â you exclaimed,grabbing his arm. Sunghoon laughed:
âYeah,explain everything to your boyfriend. Come on,I wanna listenâ
âHeâs not my boyfriend,asshole! And tell me why youâre here! Are you stalking me now? Wasnât text bombing and calling me everyday enough?!â you growled
âYou answered so I just texted. I donât seen anything wrong with itâ Sunghoon shrugged his shoulder. His cocky attitude was getting on your nerves.
âWhy did you answer him? You said you wouldâve blocked himâ Yixingâs face was marked by an expression of disappointment
âI should have,I know,but I didnât;however I told him to stop texting and calling,I did it multiple times. I swear Yixingâ
âIf you didnât want to text me you wouldâve blocked me like the dude saidâ
âShut the fuck up Sunghoon!â
âYeah,you heard her:shut the fuck upâ Yixing stepped closer to the boy,who obviously didnât back up
âWho are you to tell me what to do?â
âYixing,please,no dramaâ you ran towards him,holding him back. The boyâs attitude softened as soon as you touched him;so he breathed in and recomposed himself.
âHow did you find me?â you asked again to your ex
âI saw the story you posted. I was around so I thought I could come say hiâ he smirked
âYouâre fucked upâ you mumbled,shocked
âYou said hi,now go homeâ Yixing butted in the conversation, wrapping one of his arms around your shoulder. You scanned his movements,realising that there was a new shift in his attitude:he clearly had something in his mind so you just let him talk.
âOr what?â Sunghoon threatened the guy
âOr youâll get kicked out. Let my girlfriend alone as she told you to do. I donât repeat myself.â
âGirlfriend? For fuck sake is he your boyfriend or not?â
You were about to talk but Yixing gently hit your shoulder,meaning to let him handle the situation,so you did.
âI am,and youâre ruining our nice dateâ he spat out.
Sunghoon glared at him,then his eyes met yours:
âIs he lying?â he demanded,leaning in
You were sweating:you knew that the best thing to do to get our from that awful situation was following Yixingâs lead,but you were so scared of Sunghoon that words wouldnât come out from your mouth.
âStep backâ your friend put his arm between you and the guy whose eyes shifted again,leaning on Yixing
âYou arenât his boyfriend,are you? Youâre just trying to get rid of meâ
Yixingâs jaw clenched:he was getting extremely mad,you could tell from the veins of his neck popping out. It was sexy for sure,but it was also scary.
âIâll show you thenâ the brunette spat out,turning to you.
Suddenly,you found your face a few inches away from you friendâs. His eyes chained to yours as his fingers stroked your cheek,resting on your chin. Your heart started beating fast,shivers crossed your spine,then the space between you and Yixing was set to zero.
When you lips met, the world stopped spinning. Everything froze,the only thing you could feel was Yixingâs sweet taste of mint bubblegum. He kissed you slowly,delicately. The arm wrapped around your shoulder tightened his grip a little bit as he used it to push you closer,while, with one of his hands,he tilted your head on the side. His lips moved back and forward,sweetly biting yours,mixing your salivas.
Your hands rested on his chest,gripping the cloth of his jacket,while your lower abdomen started tingling as you pushed it against the boyâs. You had completely lost control of your body,but you liked it:it had been a while since you felt like that.
You were completely lost in the moment,same was Yixing who wouldâve never let you go if Sunghoon didnât remind him of his presence with a loud cough.
âIâm his boyfriend and you gotta get out of hereâŠnow!â the brunette exclaimed,hiding his short breath.
Sunghoon glared at him,fire burning in his eyes:
âYouâll see me around,assholeâ he growled
âI hope not for your safety. Iâm not always this gentle with dickheads like youâ
You watched as your ex left from the entrance door,feeling relieved.
âGodâ you mumbled while hiding your face in your hands
âHeâs goneâ Yixing dragged you into a new hug that you couldnât reject,in fact you let yourself sink into it.
âThankfully. I-I thought we needed to call the cops for a secondâ your voice was breaking as holding back your tears was hard
âItâs okay y/n,Iâve got you-Yixing said stroking your back-shall we go home?â he then asked,you nodded.
The next day you blocked Sunghoon everywhere,hoping that finally you wouldâve lived a quite lifeâŠbut nothing like that was about to happen.
There was one more thing that couldnât let you sleep at night:Yixingâs kiss. It had been magical,you couldnât deny itâŠand you couldnât deny that the boy was as lost into it as you were.
âFuckâ you blushed,covering your face with the sheets of your bed. Why were you feeling like that? Like a little,vulnerable kid? You were so confused and,at the same time,so eager to meet Yixing again.
You wanted to see his smile,feel his fingers linger on your skin,giving you those little pleasing shivers and lighting up the sparkles in your stomach.
WaitâŠwere you in love with Yixing? That Yixing,your best friend?!
âIt canât be possible!-you exclaimed,sitting-it canât be!â you sighed.
Right in that moment, your phone rang and,as if it wasnât enough,the one calling was the person you had been thinking about.
âHiâ you spoke calmly. You couldnât let him know what was going in on in your mind.
âWanna have breakfast together?â Yixing asked
âIâd love that,Iâll get ready. Where are we meeting?â
âAt your place. Iâll pick you up. See you in a bitâ the brunette didnât even give you the chance to talk as he turned the call off.
Fastly,you got ready and then jumped in your friendâs car once he had arrived. You had breakfast in a nice cafĂ© in Hongdae;the streets were already flowing with people even tho it was only 8:00am.
âHow are you doing today?â Yixing asked while biting his croissant
âIâm doing better,thank your for askingâ you smiled
âIâm great to hear that. Iâve been pretty worried. I donât want you to suffer again for that idiotâ
âIâm doing fine,really. I just got scared yesterday,I told you,but luckily you were thereâ without even thinking about it,you were looking for his hand to hold.
Yixing blushed as soon as your hands touched,but he didnât try to shrug yours off,otherwise he held it back
âYou mean the world to me. No one will make you suffer,not as long as I am aroundâ
His eyes were chained to yours,a sweet light shining in their pupils:you didnât know in which way he meant those words,but they made you skip a beat.
âT-Thank youâŠâ you murmured,lowering your gaze. You wanted to giggle and kick your feet like a teenager girl,but you couldnât.
Yixing smiled and tucked a strand of your hair behind your ear:he was looking at you with those puppy eyes that made you melt.
âAnyway-he coughed,recomposing himself-do you wanna go to the cinema tonight?â
âTonight?â you blinked
âYeah. I meanâŠhumâŠthereâs a nice movieâ
âWhat is it?â
âI-I donât remember the title right now,but you can find it out by coming alongâ
You laughed:was there a real movie to watch or he just wanted to see you again? You didnât care. You nodded and accepted the invitation,spending the whole day thinking about it.
As soon as you got back from work you ran to your bedroom,picking out the nicest dress you had in your wardrobe;then you moved on to your makeup,putting mascara and eye-liner on. The last time you worried so much about your appearance it was during one of the first dates with Sunghoon. That fact made you think even more:were you actually in love with Zhang Yixing? Damn if you were. You had lost it for that guy,for his eyes,his smile and,most of all,the way he treated you. You felt like a princess anytime he was around:he cared about you,paid attention to your well being and did everything he could for you to have a good time.
âYixing,what did you do to me!â you sighed,hearing your door bell ringing:it was him for sure.
You ran downstairs and met the boy,who drove you to the cinema. You werenât sure if Yixing actually chose the movie you saw or if he randomly picked one up just to cover his nice little lie,but you didnât care anyway as you were too busy laughing with him and leaning onto him anytime he whispered something to your hear. You didnât do it on purpose,your body was naturally attracted to the boyâŠand so was your mind.
Once the movie had finished the two of you went for a night walk,no one wanted to go home.
It was past midnight of a cold Saturday night. You were wrapped up in your coat,but apparently it wasnât enough for you to stay warm
âI hate winterâ you mumbled,sliding your hand in the pockets
âYouâre always so cold-Yixing giggled,wrapping an arm around your shoulder to hold you close-better?â he demanded
âBetterâ you laughed.
The silence fell for a few seconds:you could see the boy staring at you under the dim light of the moon,a little smile on his lips
âWhy are you smiling?â you demanded
âAm I?â
âYeahâ you nodded
âI think itâs your presence. You light up the rooms you step inâ
âOh come on,thatâs too muchâ you laughed
âThatâs not. I really believe it. No one is like you,and I must be favoured to know youâ
At those words your cheeks heated up:thank God it was dark so he couldnât see how you turned into a fresh tomato
âI could say the same of you. Iâve never been so happy before meeting youâ
Without even noticing,the two of you had stopped walking and were standing face to face
âI can make you happy everyday if you let meâ
âW-what?â those words caught you off guard
âYou heard. Why would I keep on staying silent? I think itâs clear,isnât it?â
âW-what do you mean?â
Was he getting there? Was he about to say what you had in mind? Oh God,make it happenïżœïżœyou thought
âDonât pretend you havenât noticed it,I know you did. I never really tried to hide it,maybe at the beginning,but not in the past weeks-Yixing paused for a moment-I love you y/n. I donât know how it happened:maybe it was because we shared the same experiences,or maybe because I found someone that listened to me and understood me,or maybe itâs just you and the way you areâŠcuz youâre beautiful y/n,both inside and out. Youâre the ray of sunshine Iâve been looking for during the past years and I wanna keep it with me for as long as it wants to stayâŠso,y/n,would you like to warm me for a while? Maybe forever if weâre meant to be?â Yixing grabbed your cold hands,holding them and dragging you closer. Your noses were a few inches away from each other. Once again,you could feel his warm breath against your skin
âI do,Yixing:I would love to be your ray of sunshineâ you smiled
At those words Yixingâs hands cupped your cheeks and his lips met yours:once again sparkles lit up in your stomach and you lower back tingled.
Maybe it was finally time:maybe you had found the person that wouldâve given you the unconditional love you deserved.
#exo lay#lay x reader#lay x y/n#lay x you#zhang yixing#yixing x reader#yixing x you#yixing x y/n#exo x reader#exo x y/n#exo x you#exo fanfic#kpop imagines#lay scenarios#yixing scenario#exo scenarios#exo fluff#exo#kpop fanfic#kpop x y/n#exo imagines#kpop x you#kpop x reader#exo kpop#best friends to lovers
34 notes
·
View notes
Note
omg i just sent an ask about norstappen sorry to be back so soon but i was scrolling through the tag on your blog and for those word prompts you were doing you posted a snippet of the blind au w charles/lando and i just what to tell you that that fic haunted me!!!!! i read it on ao3, enjoyed it, and continued to browse ao3 and then like a week or two later it appeared in my mind again and i could not stop thinking about it!!! it was haunting me all i wanted to do was reread it and i tried so many different tags and i remembered arthur was in it so i tried look through his tag too but i could not find it!!!!! and then randomly i was rereading your little book of us or the whumptumber collection and there it was!!! such a happy moment i had given up at that point and was just reading normally, but it was just as good as i remembered!!!! just wanted to pass along my praise and tell you that it managed to permenantely implant itself in my brain (and i always remember where it is when i want to reread now haha), thank you itâs so good!!!
Oh, I love that you love that little drabble I wrote đ„șđ„ș
For you - this is the little drabble I wrote for it!
However I did start an actual WIP for this au! If I ever get around to finishing it (which I hope I do), it's set directly after the accident with Lando waking up and being unable to see, and how he navigates recovering from it and the strain it has on him and Charles. How he adjusts to coming home, how they both adjust to it, all the the bruises Lando gets during those first few weeks and how Charles kisses them away. How he gets Daisy, and just yeah.
I really want to expand this au and write more of it đ„ș
8 notes
·
View notes
Note
JADE! do you have any wedding dress visions for you and your faves?? à«źê°âžâž> ̫ <âžâžê±áđ
OF COURSEEEE I DO !!!!! omg tysm gray for asking cus this was in my head for the longest time ân i didnât know how to share HAHAH anyways wheeeee jadetham wedding à«źê°àŸàœČ âąÌâ©âąÌ ê±àŸàœČá !
to preface: we do have a wedding planned but i get stressed out wanting it to be perfect, so we randomly decide to elope and take the pressure off before going thru with the actual wedding a couple months later ! tâwas a very âi wish i didnât have to deal with thisâ followed by a âso donât. marry me right now.â vry rushed n spontaneous (and i am the least spontaneous person i know mind you so ! i must ! luv him vry much !) so only our closest friends help set things up n since my real dress has yet to arrive from fontaine, nilou and dehya help me get ready ^^ and the dress is probably just a costume borrowed from zubayr theatre troupe, but the final look is very secret garden wedding, such is that i really wanted it to have the vibes of romeo/juliet , rhaegar/lyanna elopement weddings âĄ
&& the âactualâ wedding takes place in the sanctuary of surasthana, and the atmosphere is meant to be crystalline n misty like morning dewdrops â so ethereal, that it is a bit haunting ! so the dress must be flow-y + ghostly n i luv the sharp corset top it reminds me of some of the sumeru designs hehe aaaa like just thinking about appearing around the corner n walking down the aisle to the sanctuaryâs ost makes me so (đŠčïčđŠč;) ⥠⥠⥠⥠⥠⥠⥠⥠⥠⥠⥠⥠⥠⥠⥠⥠⥠⥠⥠âĄ
(dresses are from kim kassas s2023 & galia lahav s2020)
#â.àŒŠàżàœŒâș đ đłđȘđđźđœđ±đȘđ¶#um.. clearly i got carried away âŠ.. whops :âD#⧠mutuals â ê° gray ê±#â đȘđŒđŽđŒ
13 notes
·
View notes
Note
Hello! What are your favorite getting-together/first kiss fics?
Honestly, this could go on for a while. So Iâm going with first thing that comes to mind. Thereâs a lot of chaptered fics that include getting together/first kiss, but Iâm just putting purely getting together/first kiss for brevityâs sakes. Other admins feel free to add!
A Dance With Death (ao3) - worriedpeach (skeletonflowers)
Summary: Dan is the God of Death, who helps people to the Underworld when they pass. One day, he randomly pops up at a masquerade ball for Prince Philip's coming of age ceremony. He doesn't know why he is there, but it's hard to focus on his job when the prince asks him to dance.
All Signs Point to Us (ao3) - RyRyCaptain
Summary: When the queen and king gives birth to Daniel, they soon learn that their son is deaf. In order to let Dan express his opinions to those who haven't learned sign language, they find him a translator who happens to be the son of the Kingâs advisor, Phil. Soon enough, Phil starts to realize thAt he fallen in love with the younger boy.
blanket of stars (ao3) - silentdescant
Summary: âThatâs all for now, thank you.â
âIâll be back to check on you in a bit.â
The whole script is so routine, Phil thinks his brain would short-circuit if either of them deviated from it. Dan walks away and Phil sinks lower in his seat, sighing into his blue drink.
âWhen are you gonna ask him out, man?â Martyn asks.
can't help the itch to touch- to kiss. (ao3) - thescienceofphan
Summary: Phil is Deaf and Dan sleeps around a lot. So when people see them together, they worry about Philâs emotional well being and shame on Dan for preying on a deaf boy, but itâs not like that. Not at all.
(or an AU where deaf!phil and playboy!dan are best friends and people think theyâre dating)
Graveyard (ao3) - Tidbitswithtoby
Summary: "You're bringing me lunch in a graveyard?"
"Sounded more romantic in my head."
Love Scenario (ao3) - worriedpeach (skeletonflowers)
Summary: When Phil first saw him in the spring, he thought he looked like bubblegum.
Neighbourly Nook (ao3) - wednesday_ukiru
Summary: The stranger had a dimple on his cheek that appeared when he laughed.
âIâm Dan,â he said, extending his hand. Phil reached for it with extreme eagerness, their knuckles knocking together in a particularly painful way, and they both winced, but Dan immediately broke into a smile. âI donât know why I offered you a handshake, I never know how to do them.â
Soft and Scared (ao3) - Phandiction
Summary: Scared!Dan is guilted by a friend to enter a haunted house
Phil doesn't want to hurt anyone but is guilted by a friend to terrify people in a haunted house. He feels horrible when Dan's friends leave him there to cry on the floor after the scare and comfort ensues.
The World Going By My Window (ao3) - CaibrynM
Summary: Dan is a reluctant Crown Prince, always watching the world outside his window and wondering what else is out there. As he walks through the village outside the Castle walls one day, he meets a quirky villager with a passion for nature, an oddly constructed house, and a secretive past.
Things That No Longer Need Mention (ao3) - abriata
Summary: The kissing doesnât stop.
Two weeks later, Dan has a hand in Philâs hair and Philâs hand on his spine and he basically canât feel his mouth anymore, and they were supposed to have left for the BBC ten minutes ago.
Dan still has no idea why Phil is doing the kissing thing, but itâs definitely too late to ask now.
too loud in public (ao3) - dizzy, waveydnp
Summary: dan is too busy snogging a cute stranger named phil in a closet at a university party to realize the cops are about to break it up
VETSCO Ă gogo (ao3) - sierraadeux
Summary: The guy is just really hot, and maybe Danâs also a bit concerned heâs going to fall with all the times heâs watched him wiggle and wobble on seemingly unsteady limbs. He never does, or at least he hasnât yet, but Dan would like to think heâs got his back if he ever does.
or
the twitch streamer who just can't seem to get his roller skating neighbor out of his mind
we have more in common than i thought (ao3) - manicpixieidiot
Summary: bad boy!dan has a bit of a secret crush on nerd!phil, and when grouped with him in class he uses the opportunity to convince him to come to a party. (what happens next will shock you!!) (not really, no shocks don't worry)
featuring a latin class, a party, becky&jessica, flustered drunk boys. and more softness than intended.
Lmao this is the quick list
-Rae
7 notes
·
View notes
Text
Good Bones
A few years ago, we had our house remodeled.
Shortly after, the dog started to scratch and bark at the wall randomly.
youtube
At first, I thought maybe the new A/C was leaking down into the wall since the unit was pretty much directly above where he barked.
So I went up to the EXTREMELY hot attic...in summer time...in Central Texas. I was up there for at least 20 minutes, soaked from sweat, and so thirsty.
I looked for evidence of a leak, animals, structural issues.
But there was nothing at all.
A few days went by and he started scratching and barking at the same place again. So I went up into the atticâŠagain.
And there was still nothing. Not even a smell to indicate mildew or animals.
A few weeks went by and he kept it up. didnât matter if it was day or night, if the A/C was on or not.
Now, a couple months before, I kept finding dead bees in my office. Like a lot. Every single day, there would be at least 3 or 4âŠ
âŠbut only in my office. which was on the opposite side of the house from the A/C.
Like any good horror writer, I began to cook up stories about the bees before the thing-in-the-wall incident...
until I watched a show where some people had a whole ass bee hive in their walls.
So I grabbed my stethoscope and sat it next to the couch, waiting for the dog to go over and scratch again.
A couple of days went by, and he finally did.
So I put the scope up next to the wall, shushed the dog, held my breath, and listened...
Now, if youâve followed me for a few years, you might remember how I used to talk about something very big walking on my roof.
I even got up there at one point to look for evidence of what it could have been.
I never did find out what liked to walk across my roof. It was way too big to be a squirrel and the footfalls were too heavy to be a bird or cat.
But I know what a person walking on a roof sounds like, and that was it.
I just didnât know WHO or HOW they got up there. So anyway, I'm listening with my stethoscope.
And I heard those same footsteps on the roof.
But I also heard something else. Talking.
Not whispering.
Talking.
So I pulled the stethoscope from the wall and listened.
I couldn't hear it anymore, so I took the stethoscope out of my ears...
âŠand still couldnât hear it.
The dog started going crazy at this point, so I gave up. Eventually, I went to bed, trying to make sense of what I heard.
The chimney was about 12 feet away, so maybe people were outside and the sound was coming from the chimney.
But that didnât explain why the dog was scratching at that spot and not closer to the chimney. Again, if youâve been following me for a while you know I used to be a data scientist.
So naturally, I collected data. Times, weather, temperature, whether the A/C was on, how many dead bees were in my office.
I didn't find any time correlation, but I also didnât know if whatever it was haunted my walls while I slept since the dog stayed locked in the bedroom.
I did find a correlation with bees though. On the days there was sound in the walls, more dead bees appeared the next day.
So I researched. Bears, birds, and raccoons are all bee predators.
We don't have bears around here, but I did have plenty of birds and raccoons sniffing around outside the house.
So, I decided it must be that. Birds are noisy in walls, so I made up my mind that it must be a raccoon.
I explained away the talking I heard.Â
Until the dog got mean.
He wasnât scratching and barking at the walls any more. The hair on his back stood up, he perked up his ears, and let go a growl I'll never forget.
He didnât even growl like that when he found snakes in the backyard, or when one contractor that he absolutely hated came to work.
Whatever was on the other side of that wall, he wanted to rip it to shreds. He was salivating so much, I worried heâd become rabid, despite having all his vaccinations.
I finally pulled him away from the wall because he was carving marks in it, and dragged him to the bedroom and closed him in.
He fought like hell the whole way.
I got my stethoscope again and listened.
The dog was barking his head off the entire time, but luckily the bedroom was far enough away I could still make out what I was hearing.
Words again. An argument. âDonât listenâ. âLiedâ. âCheatedâ.
âI smelled itâ.
MY words. In MY voice.
The other voice? My now ex-husband.
We were arguing in the walls.
He wasnât even home. He wasnât outside.
There was no denying that the voices werenât other people outside. The words didnât even sound familiarâŠ.
Not until a few weeks later, when we were arguing.
I realized I was repeating the same words. I tried to change the argument up, use different words, but we both stuck to what I'd heard in the walls, no matter how hard I tried.
That's when I knew I was hearing the future in that wall. Or maybe the wall was dictating the future.
I don't know.
All I know is we sold the house in the divorce. Itâs been sold at least 2 times in just over 2 years.
No one stays for long. Even our old neighbors have all moved.
We both knew something was weird about that house when we started fixing it up to move in.
The previous couple sold because of a divorce, so we just chalked it up to bad energy and saged the space.
But I know now that it wasnât just bad energy. Something lived and fed in that house.
Something that drained me of energy so badly I became severely depressed to the point I sought help.
Something that fed on bees. Something that instigated arguments. Something that manipulated us.
0 notes
Text
rating svt on how haunted they'd be
A/N: this was originally "how I would haunt svt" BUT I wanted to rate them, so keep the original idea in mind while you read it I guess.
Series Masterlist
âS COUPS 3/10 his ghost can only do mundane shit like turn the lights on and off. Even tho it's such a lil thing, he checks behind himself every time he enters a room.
âJEONGHAN 10/10 You think Jeonghan comes up with all that devious shit on his own??? His ghost is whispering in his ears and telling him what to do
âJOSHUA 1.5/10 could be like âI forgot my bag upstairsâ and his ghost would float his things down to him. Domestic vibes <3
âJUN 5/10 summoned the ghost himself bro. He was feeling a little bit lonely so he brought out the Ouija board for fun. âGhostie, if youâre really here, drop somethingâ and when his bottle of lotion hits the ground, heâs at peace, smiling to himself.
âHOSHI 4/10 his ghost stands in the corner of the room and does not do anything unless provoked. Any time he refers to himself as tiger? His mouth gets covered. Horanghae anti.
âWONWOO ??8 maybe?/10 the trajectory of his life completely changed bc he saw ONE pillow randomly floating in the air. Now he's a paranormal investigator on youtube. Offers all the ghosts he meets crackers and then LAUGHS and calls them foolish when they take the bait.
âWOOZI 10/10 his evil ghost possesses him every so often to try and make him produce a terrible song AND THEN unposesses him in the middle of presenting it to people. Also makes him play chopsticks on the piano for 7 hours straight.
âDK 6/10 his ghost lifts him by the armpits and flies him around town weeeeee. DK is now Seventeen's resident grocery fetcher.
âMINGYU 10/10 the only explanation for this man's clumsiness is that he is perpetually getting dunked on by a ghost. There can be no other reason.
âTHE8 7/10 walks into a room, feels bad vibes and immediately burns sage. The ghost returns to see if he's serious about hating it đȘ and if he banished it again???? It would leave him for good đ„ș
âSEUNGKWAN 2/10 is afraid of it at first, but learns to love it. His ghost folds clothes, sets up his tooth brush, makes sure his slippers are always by his bed. Seungkwan fogs up his mirror with his breath and writes "ily" to show appreciation. The ghost writes "ILY2". Lowkey his guardian.
âVERNON 47/10 haunts his dreams. It continuously shows up and makes him relive their childhood memories with them. When it physically appears in a crowd, it creates a breaking feeling in his chest bc are they real? Or are they just a figment of his imagination?
âDINO 12/10 gets haunted with a Chucky doll. He thinks one of the members set it up in his room so he laughs it off BUT it keeps showing up in random places. "Guys stop messing with me" and yet no one will fess up to it. Dinoâs breaking point is when the Chucky doll is sitting in his shower and it laughs exactly like him
#seventeen#svt#s scoups#jeonghan#joshua hong#hoshi#woozi#wonwoo#jun#the8#mingyu#dokyeom#vernon#seungkwan#dino#seventeen headcanons#seventeen fluff#seventeen imagines#seventeen drabbles#kpop writing#the woozi one makes me laugh#how did i come up with that#now imagine every time mingyu falls he's getting dunked on#do it
340 notes
·
View notes
Text
Haunted
James Bond x (F) Reader
Word Count:Â 6901 words
Summary:Â Youâve been seeing this guy, on and off semi-casually for some time now. Heâs the first person youâve ever felt like had good intentions. Until he ghosts you out of the blue. So, when the breadcrumbs appear, leading to dark discoveries and wild endeavors, you canât help but think of how the experience will leave you haunted.
Triggers: Skyfall spoiler (idk if itâs considered a spoiler the movieâs been out for for like 7 years), cursing, smoking (cigars), death mention, canon typical violence, canon typical injuries, kidnapping, violence, mention of abuse to reader, adult content (oral female receiving)Â
Author Note: this was by no means supposed to be as long as it is but - hell youâre welcome. shoutout to @mrskenobi19â and @flowernicheâ for all the beta-reading and feedback!
Itâs nearly 2 AM when you get home from your shift at the bar. You always told your boss you wanted nothing to do with the last call crowd. So, youâre home and surprisingly find your roommate awake. âWhat in the - do you ever fucking sleep?â You scold, seeing her at the kitchen counter, phone pressed against her ear. She holds a finger to her lips, tapping away at her laptop.Â
âYes. I know. Thanks.â Eve then hangs up the phone looking at you. âI do, thanks. My boss had something come up that she needed me to handle.â She shrugs.Â
âAt 2 in the morning?â You give her a quizzical look, searching for anything that might suggest sheâs hiding something.Â
âI- Yeah.â The brunette turns to her coffee cup before looking at you, seeing something weighing on your mind. âAlright, pop a squat. Whatâs going on in that brain of yours?â She asks, pouring you a cup of coffee. You slink into the barstool, dropping your phone to the counter and taking the mug when Eve sends it over.Â
âI just saw way too many happy couples at the bar tonight. Iâm thinking Iâm going to be single for the rest of my life.â You shrug, messing with the mug and she frowns.Â
âWhat? What happened to the last guy?â She wouldnât tell you, but she was wondering what happened to the guy sheâd heard such great things about every time you came from his place.Â
âEve, that was like 6 months ago. He was a psycho.â You retort, finally taking a sip of your coffee. Once your throat is clear you look at her. âBesides, heâs not the one Iâm hung up on.â You offer and her face rises in surprise.Â
âThere was another one? Why didnât you tell me?â Thereâs a bit of amusement in her features but it shuts down when she sees your reaction.Â
âIt... didnât last long? I met him randomly one night. We hung out maybe four times-âÂ
âHung out or fucked?â She asks for clarification as she sips at her cup. You squint your eyes at her. âAnswer the question.âÂ
âWe fucked like.. two out of four times.â It feels like you shrink at the admission. âBut thatâs not why! God Eve, he was so kind. He was a gentleman, he took me to some crazy good restaurants, had such great taste in alcohol, not to mention the sex. Our conversations... We talked about everything. There wasnât anything I couldnât tell him.â When you look at her, Eve looks distracted. âWhat now?âÂ
âWhere did you say you met this guy?â She asks curiously.Â
â....A bar.â You confess.Â
âWhat type of bar?â
âA cigar bar...â You retreat when you speak and Eve starts to laugh, scolding you with your name. âWhat!âÂ
âAre you sure this guy wasnât married? No man exists like this unless theyâre already taken.â She jokes, looking at you. âAnyways. What happened? Whereâs he now?âÂ
You give an angry huff. âFuck if I know. We talked nearly every day until one day he just - disappeared. His apartment was empty, his neighbors hadnât heard from him, his phone always went to voicemail.â Slinking back in your chair, your roommate looks at you.Â
âWhen was this?âÂ
âLike... three months ago.â Youâve gotten up by now, moving to your room to get out of your bar clothes. Once youâve changed and come back to your seat, Eve seems to be doing math in her head. âWhat are you doing?â You question.Â
âTell me more about this guy. Was he older?âÂ
âYes...âÂ
âHow old?âÂ
âI donât know Eve, I never asked.â
âWhat did he do for work?âÂ
âHe said he was in life insurance?â
âWhat did he look like? What was his name?âÂ
Youâre getting frustrated at this interrogation. âI donât know, broad? Muscular for a man his age? Blonde hair, blue eyes, stoic. Well dressed? I- what the hell Eve?âÂ
âWhat was his name?â She repeats the question. You cross your arms, shaking your head.Â
âWhy does it matter? What are you going to do? Stalk him and make him apolog-âÂ
âWas it James?â You freeze, your accusatory attitude falling. Thereâs a part of you wanting to take a step back.Â
âHow did you know that?â Eve sighs and closes her eyes, a hand running over her features. The room grows quiet. âEâŠâ You warn, before sheâs looking at you with apathetic features.Â
âI worked with him.â
âWorked? You donât work in life insuranceâŠâ Eveâs typing on her computer, pulling up a photo and turning the laptop to face you. There sits a photo of the very man youâd been talking to.Â
âHe um⊠he passed away three months ago, hon.â She begins. âIt was⊠unexpected.â Suddenly the woman in front of you seemed to disappear, in her place: a stranger.Â
âHeâs not dead. How did he die.â Itâs meant to be a question but it feels like youâre demanding an answer standing there.Â
âI⊠I donât know. He didnât have any family. All I know was that my boss sent us all an email. He stopped coming into work. It was weird. Everyone liked him, he was a very personable guy.â She drifts off and you look at her.Â
âWhat the hell arenât you telling me?â You take a step to her and she looks at you with soft eyes. Youâre nearly chest to chest with her now. âEve. How did he die.â
âI⊠I canât tell you.â The floor creaks under you when you step back looking at her. It feels like thereâs a fire burning through you. Maybe itâs the fuel thatâs pushing through you as you grab your coat and head out the door.Â
Itâs not âtil you hit the street that you realize this jacket isnât yours. Itâs Jamesâ. Heâd let you borrow it when he took you home the last time you were together. Brown leather that seems to cloak you. His cologne still lingers on it and it just adds to the tears in your vision as you instinctively walk the five blocks it takes to get to the bus stop. You can remember the smile on his face each time he picked you up. The way he felt wrapped up around you while you stood at a local bar, live music playing and swaying, dancing to it for the rest of the night. His breath on your neck, the smell of sweat, vodka and vermouth. Telling you the best cigar heâd ever had, sat on the coast of Cuba itself at an international insurance convention. A Cuban, in Cuba with his signature martini in hand. How was it that the one man youâd ever connected with⊠ever fallen so fast for, was dead?
The bus nears the cigar bar closer and closer with each stop. Each stop you can nearly feel the smoke fill your lungs, the taste lingering and distracting you from the maddening thoughts of work, of life. The feeling of Jamesâ chest breathing out as you sit back in his lap, listening to stories that heâd heard from work. The crazy shit people did. Your favorite was the poker player whoâd been poisoned. Nearly died at the casino but was revived just in time.Â
âThe medics said he was so incomprehensibly sweaty, the charge pads nearly didnât stick to him.âÂ
His voice is so clear in your head. His touch. His smell.Â
Youâre crying over a man you knew all of three months. Tears linger as you get off the bus, the driver asking if youâre alright. Thereâd been no response. Just the gasp of air that shakes through you as you sit on the sidewalk, trying to pull yourself together. You feel like you canât breathe, that this was some cruel joke. It wasnât fair. To James. To you. To the universe who had to go on without the man.Â
It takes you about five minutes to peel yourself from the cement and calm yourself enough to get to the cigar bar. When you do, the owner, Geoff, nearly runs to your side with a bottle of water, sitting down with you and getting you situated. When youâre finally calm, he cuts a cigar and brings it over to you, saying itâs âon himâ.Â
The craving is put to rest when the cigar is on your lips. A deep breath in, held for a moment, letting the nicotine fill your bloodstream. Music fills the bar, a piano ballad about some sort of broken hearted sap. It seems fitting to your mood. You linger in it until the song abruptly ends. Instead, the introduction to The Show Must Go On by Queen is replaced instead. Annoyance fills you as you rise from your seat, moving to the pay to play jukebox in the corner of the room. As you approach, youâre already ready to curse this bastard out of the bar. Until you see the martini glass in his hand. Your heart falls from itâs broken mess, into your stomach. Oh does Eve have some explaining to do.Â
Your feet nearly run you to his side, uncapping the bottle of water in your hand and flinging it at the maleâs face as he turns to face you. A grumble of a curse, peeling his jacket off and using it to wipe at his face. When he retreats, blue eyes meet yours. âThree months. You donât bother to talk to me for three fucking months, and then have the audacity to show your face here? Having your coworkers believe youâre bloody dead??â James looks at you, a hand grabbing your shoulder.Â
âSweet-â Before he can even say anything, your hand is striking across his face.Â
âWhat the actual fuck James? If you didnât want to talk to me, fine. But faking your death? Oh thatâs a grade A dick move.â His own hand retreats to caress the red cheek that is stinging thanks to you.Â
âWould you stop - and fucking listen for a moment?â He tosses back his drink and sets a bill on the table for the drink and cigar. Jamesâ hand is pulling yours to the door. When you get to the street, heâs walking you down a few shops before stopping in front of a black Audi sedan. He opens the door and you reluctantly get into the car. Soon enough heâs in the car himself, driving way too fast down London streets. âWho told you I was dead?â He questions.Â
âWhy does it matter, all I know is that youâre not dead. And that youâve been ignoring me for three months.â
âWas it M? Q? No⊠they wouldnât.â Heâs mumbling to himself as he finally slows to a stop, moving to a spot in the road and parking. Heâs rapidly leading you to an apartment. When you step inside you see itâs relatively empty. A few things are set up, a TV in the corner and a few paintings that need to be hung⊠âWho was it?â Heâs questioning again.Â
âMy roommate EveâŠâ When you answer, he groans.
âWhat did she tell you?âÂ
âThat you worked together and that you died three months ago. Wouldnât tell me how - said she couldnât. James, what is going on?â He sits on the couch in the empty room, glancing at you.Â
âI was assumed dead. Not actually dead but no proof of life.â He confirms, pouring scotch into a glass.Â
âPardon me?â You look at him bewildered.Â
âMoneypenny and I were chasing down a man named Patrice in Istanbul to recover a hard drive of names of our undercover agents.â You blink, multiple times.Â
âSorry. Eve? You and Eve were in Istanbul?â He doesnât answer the question.Â
âI was this fuckinâ close to getting the damn thing and the bugger had me in a chokehold. Eve was told to take the shot she had - clear or not. She did, and it hit me.â He pauses to take a sip of his drink before looking at you with seriousness. âFell from the tracks to the river below. Was not to be heard from or seen for months.â You shake your head, not being able to comprehend this wild story heâs fabricating.Â
âLet me get this straight, you and Eve were chasing down a bad guy, she shot you and everyone thought you were dead? What are you? Police? British Intelligence?â
âBritish Secret Intelligence Service actually.â He corrects, standing and straightening his back. When he approaches again you look at him, cross in the face.Â
âYou and Eve are secret service? And Iâm supposed to believe that how?â James looks at you with blue hues, as firm as ever.
âAsk her.â He shrugs before polishing the glass with ease. So you do, youâre calling Eve.Â
âListen, dude, Iâm really sorry-âÂ
âDid you kill him?â
âWhat?â
âDid you kill James?â The line is quiet.Â
âBefore you freak out-âÂ
âEve, I donât have fucking time for this. Yes or no.âÂ
âYes. Plea-â Youâre clicking the end button and looking at the older man from across the room.Â
âSo⊠youâre dead for three months - donât bother to call, text, write, no real reassurance you were still interested.. We had a date and you never showed up.â You confessed, still upset - despite clearing up one dilemma. The male has set his glass down, looking over his phone and seemingly debating on contacting someone. He doesnât reply for at least two minutes. âJames. An answer would be nice? Considering you dragged me here against my will.â A glance to the window shows that Londonâs back to the constant rain for the rest of the night - er, morning. When he looks at you, you make an expression, waiting for an answer.Â
âI didnât think I was ever going to come back to London. I sold a few things and made it to the Caribbean. Had to stay off record. Was strictly cash and nights spent stupidly drunk. Spent way too much time trying to zone out - forget that there was no one. Even when I was with someone. There was no one. No one had bothered to find my body - who cared?â The entire time he speaks your expression softens. You didnât think about it like that. No one looked for him. Eve shot him and ran home. You assumed he ghosted you.Â
No one cared when he fell off the face of the Earth.Â
Your arms wrap around yourself, now feeling a bit of an asshole. Thereâs still a host of pent up frustration, but itâs covered by the current blanket of grief for the male.Â
âI didâŠâ You suggest, taking a few steps to his couch, crouching down at his side, a hand on his thigh. âGranted, I was - still am - pissed at you, but I missed talking to you. I went everywhere we did, hoping I would run into you so I could scream at you and beg you to try again.â A large hand slinks over yours, gripping it softly before nodding.Â
âThanks, angel.â He mumbles, looking at you briefly. The way your eyes meet makes you soften even further. His touch isnât helping, so you have to stand up and pull your hand from his, turning your back to him.Â
âNot that youâre forgiven.â You start. âI⊠I told you a lot, James. I trusted you and you just⊠disappeared.â A sharp turn around to look at him. âYou didnât even have the guts to tell me what your real job was. Life insurance?â A shake of your head as you catch a passing carâs headlights in the window. You think for a moment to get your thoughts before scoffing and laughing in disbelief. âI bet you knew that Eve and I lived together. Thatâs why you never wanted to come to my place. Too awkward to face your co-worker.â You look to the old and damaged hardwood floors below you before looking at him. âWhat did you do while you were gone?â Heâd mentioned being with someone. Knowing James⊠you had a feeling what the answer was.Â
âYou donât want to know.â He suggests and a cross expression comes to your features looking at him. He gets the message, âI found a woman the second I stepped on shore.â Itâs like heâs almost mumbling it out of shame. Not that it mattered. Three months of radio static had pretty much killed your libiedo anyway. At his answer, youâre grabbing your coat - well, his coat, technically - and starting to the door. You can hear him calling your name. Louder and louder as you get closer to the door.Â
He probably woke the neighbors as heâd followed you out the door - stopping at the stairwell to apologize to angry neighbors for the disturbance. When you hit the stairwell, youâd nearly jumped down each flight, feet flying down the steps. The last thing you wanted to see was him right now. Yet simultaneously, he was all you wanted to see.Â
You disappear into sleeting rain through the streets, a leather coat over your head as you walk. Itâs early now, the bus loops changing bus drivers, causing a lapse in schedule. So here you were, cowering in the rain as you make your way to your apartment. Youâre at least six blocks from the building Jamesâ resides in, so when a tap hits your shoulder youâre turning around, well intending to shout at him to leave you alone.Â
Itâs not James.Â
Heâs gotten into the same Audi that heâd driven you to his place in, headed to your shared unit with Moneypenny. When he arrives, he can see the sun rising, grunting as he presses the call button. Once. Twice. Itâs the third ring heâs finally speaking. âFor fucksâ sake would you let me in at least? Itâs frigid and miserable out here.â When the door clicks open, he ducks into cover. The door opens but itâs not you. Instead, Eve stands there as if sheâs seen a ghost. Which in a way: she has. Last sheâd checked Bond was dead.Â
âI honestly thought someone was playing a cruel joke when I heard your voice over the two-way.â Her arms are crossed looking at him. A brief thin lipped grin is presented to her.Â
âWonderful to see you too, Moneypenny. Where is she?â Heâs looking at her, wanting to cut the chit-chat. Eveâs demeanor changes.Â
âI havenât seen her since she left like three hours ago.â She offers with concern over her features. âWas she with you?â It clicks then. âYou were with her. Thatâs how she knew I shot you-â Eveâs face fills with frustration, smacking his arm. James whines, putting a hand to his bicep, rubbing it. âYou told her, didn't you? All of it.â
âOf course I did. She didnât believe me so she called you.â He pushes past her into the far warmer space, looking around. Heâs pleasantly surprised at the accommodations but focuses his attention again. âShe stormed off after we talked. Well⊠it- not important. I need to get her safe before I go to MI6. I am rather sure this business with M is going to get frayed rather quickly.â James begins looking around the flat, looking for you as if Eve was hiding her.Â
âBond. Iâm not kidding, Iâve not seen her. I havenât talked with her since she called me. Which apparently she was with you when she did....â His head spins on a dime at her words. Eveâs not seen you. Youâve not been here. Heâs the last one to have seen you. Jamesâ hand scrambles to his pocket, dialing Q rapidly.Â
âThis number has been inactive for months - who are you and what kind of game are you playing?â He says sharply, cats mewing in the background. Qâs clearly home, possibly just starting his day.Â
âYou need to be calm about this, as I have reason to believe thereâs⊠an issue.â James speaks, nodding to Eve as he heads out in a slight dash/jog as he does.Â
âBond? For the love of the Queen - youâre alive?âÂ
âQ. I said to be calm. Focus here, time sensitive. Are you at HQ yet?â He questions, almost floating down the steps effortlessly. Heâs chucking himself over the railing on the last set of steps, skipping the process all together to get to his car. Having not done much in the way of training the past 3 months heâs⊠rusty to say the least.Â
At least thatâs what his body says when he lands, a curse leaving him before heâs running to the car.Â
âRight, right. Um, whatâs going on, what do you need?â Q is eager to help as Bond slides into the driverâs seat of his car, dropping his phone to the cupholder and starting the engine, peeling out of his parking spot with haste. The call transfers over to the carâs bluetooth compatibility, shifting the conversation while wheels squeal on pavement.Â
âI need your ass at headquarters. Or your computer or whatever it is you need to get this task done: I need a phone traced.â Heâs speaking, navigating through tight traffic, probably running lights. Does he care? Fuck no.Â
âUm⊠okay. Okay yeah. Can you get an active phone call?âÂ
âHavenât tried, wonât bother. Waste of time.âÂ
âYou have a name I could try to find?â
With that, Q and Bond launch into the beginnings of a long manhunt - for you.Â
Meanwhile, you find yourself in the presence of a⊠strange kind of man. Heâs not all that intimidating actually. In fact the man who you had come across in the street made you more nervous than this one did. He greets you with mischievous smiles. âAh, finally. You know itâs rude for guests to sleep in when there is an itinerary to follow?â He comments, greeting you with a smile that makes your throat tighten in fear. Okay, so maybe heâs intimidating. Or maybe itâs the fact that youâre currently tied to a chair, unable to move.Â
âI wasnât aware I was a guest. That would insinuate that I came here by my free will. Which I think we can all deduce that I didnât.â You retort.Â
âYouâre not wrong there, my sweets. Though, I really needed something to entice that friend of yours to move along a bit faster. My patience is wearing thin and frankly, I donât like games.â He speaks, moving in front of a computer, which allows him to rattle on and on about shit youâre not listening to. All you can think of is that James wasnât lying.Â
He did work for British Intel. And youâd dug your face right into it. Was that why he was back in London? Something about this man? You knew absolutely nothing. âWhat does this have to do with me? James and I are⊠nothing, honestly. The man didnât have the balls to call me for three months.â You groan, rolling your eyes as you look around.Â
âOh itâs got nothing to do with you.â He admits, blonde platinum hair moving as he stands up and struts to you. âAnd has everything to do with Bond and his boss. So, you donât need to worry your pretty little head.â That doesnât sound promising.Â
He would then go on to explain that his name was Silva and that Bondâs boss was the reason he failed in life. Something along those lines - again youâre not too sure why or whatâs going on. Just that there were plenty of men with guns, you were tied up and this man was counting down the hours to kill you.Â
When the night falls, Silva lets you into a quartered room for the night. Your hands are still bound, simply in front of you now, as a deterrent to your attempts to escape. The room is in shambles. Walls stand, just barely, a prison style bathroom you canât even use (see: urinal) and disgusting mattress on rusting bed frame. Youâre kicking yourself for not getting a tetanus shot. Had been since you laid eyes on the small city. Silva said you were on an island. Well it sure as shit didnât feel like it when youâre shaking like this. Despite everything in you, youâre laying on the mattress, curled into a ball. Thereâs got to be a better moment you can think of. Just enough to get you out of this one, even if itâs brief.Â
You settle on one.
Itâs your third date with James. Heâd suggested it super last minute, which makes sense now that you know his real occupation, heâd probably just gotten back to London. Which, in a way, was sweet. The agent spends so much time and energy on a case - probably exhausted and the first thing he wants to do is see you.Â
It had been really late. Like really late. Which was fine, since you worked night shifts and werenât off of work âtill 2 at the earliest. Heâd suggested take out at his place with drinks and card games. Later he would admit that heâd had to run to a local 24/7 shop to pick up something. Which was how you ended up getting drunk on whiskey sours and playing UNO. The game was stupid, no real tactic as he had mentioned.Â
Itâs all luck. A roll of the dice really.Â
And thatâs an issue why? You gamble on peopleâs lives for work, this shouldnât bother you.Â
Heâd not fought you on that. Now you realize the severity of your words. How many people had he chosen their last moments for? In the name of Queen and country.Â
You force yourself to go back. Thereâs no need to think like that. At least not right now. Not when youâre relying on him to gamble - to get you out of here.Â
His apartment is warm, thanks to the incredulous heat. Windows are open, fans running full blast. It mightâve been the wee early hours of the morning in England, but it was still humid as hell. Which had led to both of you stripping down to the littlest amount of clothing without being fully naked. Him in his boxers, you in panties and his t-shirt. Every now and then one of the passing fans would push your stacking pile of cards to the floor and you would both stupidly laugh. Drunk and enjoying each otherâs time. It mightâve been four in the morning, but neither of you gave a shit. When James lost the third time, heâd tossed the cards to the floor and you to his bed.Â
That was the memory youâd used to help subdue the fear, anxieties and complex emotions that lingered.Â
It was early the next morning that youâre pulled back to the same room that youâd been in. Silvaâs not there though. Itâs just you and some guards. They stay quiet, seemingly waiting on a word to move. With a guard on each side holding your bicep, thereâs no way youâre getting out of this on your own. They start conversing with one another until Silva steps in with a grin. âGood morning, gorgeous. Sleep well?â
âThis hotel of yours is no Langham. I think my towels were missing. So was the continental breakfast.â You grunt at him. The man looks at you rather blithely, snickering all the while.Â
âThis is why Bond likes you so, isnât it? Sharp tongue, beauty and arrogance to match, huh?â Each step he takes closer and closer makes you shift a little further and further, as much as the guards would allow.Â
âAt least he likes one of us. Hate to see what heâs got in store for you. OOOO itâll be like a movie!â You taunt him a bit further with a coy smile on your face. âYou know, like all those secret agent movies? You got popcorn? Iâm gonna need it for when James kicks your ass.âÂ
Youâve pissed him off now. Evident by the stinging along your cheek and the ache in your gut. Silva stares you down, eyes firm in a predatory glare. âKeep it up, princess and there wonât be much left of you for him to find.â He hisses, nodding to the chair youâd been in the previous day. When theyâve got you strapped in, theyâre using the same method from earlier to put you out.Â
At least itâs killing time.Â
James is about to shoot M himself. Sheâs refused to let him do any qualified work until heâs taken all his readmittance trials. Qâs debriefing him all the while and heâs about to punch the poor kid too. The brunet realizes this and pauses looking at the older agent. âShould we do this later?â He questions.Â
âYeah, just maybe.â He huffs, a breath leaving him. With that the taskmaster is on his way out the door. Bond finishes his trials within an hour. When theyâre done and heâs cleaned up, heâs reporting to Mum, who sends him on his way.Â
The amount of bouncing around heâs had to do just to get word of where Silva might even be has been painstaking. Add to it that each hour that passes means worse things for you? Heâs far past irritated. Livid is the more suitable adjective.Â
Probably why he finds himself headed to an island with the full intention of letting himself get caught. Who knows what kind of danger heâd put you in going in without a grasp on the situation.Â
Though he regrets that a little when he arrives and sees you in the state youâre in. Clothes are bloodied, torn, you look positively exhausted. Even worse is that theyâve got you in the same manner as him. Tied to a chair, unable to move. Well, for you at least. It takes Silvaâs voice greeting him for you to recognize that theyâve got James. Hour 6 theyâd blindfolded you when youâd sent another taunt at the pointy shoes on the mastermindâs feet. Something tells you that Bond would be more than proud if heâd been able to hear your refutes.Â
âWell, itâs certainly taken you long enough. I worried you might not ever come to join us.â He slithers, tongue moving in a tantalizing manner.Â
âYouâve been a patient little chap now havenât you?â James coos, looking over at you, seeing the smirk on your face, showing that theyâve not battered you completely.
âOh is that where your little toy gets all the witty remarks?â Silva inquires. âSheâs had rather the stroke of genius here and there. Shame you missed the show. My favorite part was the coughing fit accompanied by the show of red.â This wipes the smirk from Bondâs face. That meant not so great things typically. Heâs been in that spot plenty of times to know. A mournful expression reaches that face of his. James is half relieved that you canât see it.Â
âYou and I both know she has nothing to do with this.â He speaks, hands already working in an effort to slip from the restraints.
âAbsolutely, dear. I told her that when she arrived.â Silva shrugs. âPerhaps we can get rid of her now that youâve reached your destination?â A hand raises up towards you, pistol aimed in the clearest shot.Â
âThat would truly be the stupidest idea youâve ever had Rodriguez.â This enters into a discourse that frankly you donât give two shits about. Your head is thrumming your heartbeat rather loudly. Every bit of your body is grotesquely sore, each breath creating a new layer of pain. Get on with it, Bond. You nearly want to shout it but obviously donât. Heâs got a plan. You hope.Â
And he does. He single handedly manages to defeat the horde of guards that surrounded the two men outside while the British Navy tackles the rest of the rescue. Youâd heard it all from the confines of the building, thanks to security cameras that Silva had pulled up - just for your listening pleasure. It had gone on for nearly an hour. So when James finally does come to your side, releasing restraints, you nearly fall straight on your face. The restraints had been the only thing keeping you upright. Luckily, heâs there, arms open and catching you. Itâs not until rough hands slide off the blindfold from your forehead that you break out into sobs. Brave face is gone, all adrenaline and fight or flight has cleared from your body and mind.Â
The only thing that rests there is the mix of Jamesâ cologne and sweat. Itâs a smell youâre relishing. One that used to bring memories of too many drinks, passion and hunger - now brought comfort, reassurance and protection. You can barely comprehend the hushed sounds that leave Jamesâ mouth over roaring helicopter engines outside. âIâm so sorry. Iâm so, so sorry, princess.â
The next 24 hours are a blur. Between pain meds, in and out of consciousness in the MI6âs med bay (a request of Bond himself) you werenât sure which way was up and which way was down. Q had been introduced to you and had been your constant guest while James went galavanting. After all heâd worked to get Silva in MI6 hands, heâd escaped, wreaking havoc in the wake of his escape.Â
Itâs 2 days later that you finally get to see him again. Two days after not saying a word and falling apart in front of a man youâd seen maybe eight times total but spent hours speaking to. Texts, calls, video chats⊠theyâd been the sole connection youâd had to James before his âdeathâ. So when a light rapping of knuckles comes at your door, youâre nearly whipping your head to look at it. Heâs a little rough, a few scrapes and bruises, a butterfly stitch on his forehead⊠but in one piece. That is all that you cared about. Youâre sitting up, causing him to move to you, reaching out a hand and taking your own, scolding you. âFuck off, Iâm fine.â You croak, pulling your arm closer and subsequently him. One arm lazily drapes over his shoulders, yanking him to you. The way his arms seem to lock around you is enough to finally let you feel like you can breathe. A cloak of discomfort that had lingered over you the past three days fades in his presence. You both sit there, your face nuzzled into his neck, his hands soothingly smoothing over bare skin thanks to the hospital gown over your torso.Â
Finally being released from MI6 care and into Jamesâ was a fair trade. He was no doctor, no nurse, but youâre sure that there was nothing that could tear you from his side. So long as he was in London.Â
You knew you werenât going to get him all to yourself. Not after everything thatâs gone down. He has to watch over MI6. To make sure the transition of power doesn't fall into corrupt hands. For now, he pulls you to his side in the king bed of his recently polished apartment. Theyâd restored everything to its previous state - maybe even better since it was clean. Not the dusty mess it had been the prior visits youâd had to his apartment. Lips trail over the nape of your neck, humming words against your skin.Â
âSorry, what was that?â You tease, carefully rolling over to face him.Â
âAdmirations. Thatâs all.â He offers a finger trailing along your cheek now that he can see the features on your face. Thereâs a grin that flits over them, something that he can see, happily pressing a kiss to your temple. âWeâve got three months to make up, darling.â James pulls away as his hand hikes over lightly padded trails from your chin, down your neck and over your side, finally resting on your hip, slightly under the shirt on your torso. His shirt.
âOh yeah? Arenât we both sore enough as it is?â You question as his lips start to make small cool spots along your skin.Â
âItâs a massage.â He chuckles, clearly finding himself rather amusing. Teeth along your neck make you giggle yourself, hands moving to his sides as he moves.Â
âMmm, okay, sure, Bond.â When he pulls away, your eyes instantaneously lock onto his. Both of you rest there contently for a second. He pushes some of the sheets away to let the sunlight fill your face.Â
âBesides. I was way worse the first four times.â The smirk thatâs on his lips is what drives the astonished laugh from you before his lips catch yours. With ease heâs carefully guiding you fully onto your back, hovering above you, lips holding your attention with your own. Your eyes are shut, but every bit of you wishes they werenât. Let yourself be able to watch him. This incredible definition of a man. He worked his ass off⊠and never let anyone know. Did the utmost amount of work possible on behalf of others. Most who never knew of his existence. For those he cared about. And thatâs the greatest thing you think he could ever do.Â
You wanted to make sure he knew that. That you appreciate him in ways you could never express. Not just for saving your life, but for showing the character of a good man. Whether he recognized it or not.Â
Youâd learned a lot in the last 7 days about James. His personal life, his aspirations, his ambitions, his true colors so to speak.
Though there was one thing you already knew. You knew his weak spots. So when his hands have started to drift to undo the buttons of his violet shirt on your shoulders, and heâs so intimately close, your lips attach to the skin behind his ear. Kisses, grazing teeth, hot breaths. You can hear the pants that rise out of him and smirk, giving a light whisper. âDonât think Iâm gonna go easy on you, Bond. You still owe me for going and dying on me.â Within an instant his lips are on your bare chest, sloppy open mouthed kisses over any skin he can reach. Hungry hands roam over your sides, your hips, your ass and to your ribs, thumbs carefully caressing the skin to tease you in any way he could. Hands move from his biceps to the sides of his head as his head dips lower, lower along your bruised skin. Heâs careful to travel around the sore spots, gentle where need be.Â
âYou have no idea. How badly. I wished you were with me.â He mumbles over you, taking a few breathers before hands slide to your hips, playing with the hem of your underwear. âCountless sunsets. Incredible views. So. Many. Places⊠no one could hear you. See you. We couldâve spent hours. Doing just. This.â The thought of it sends a thrill through you. Somewhere in the Caribbean, Jamesâ lips coasting over your sun-kissed skin, hiding away from the world on a white sand beach. Fuck.
The word escapes your thoughts and into the room as the experienced maleâs fingers slide between dripping lips. âHow Iâve fucking missed, this.â He hums, hand retreating to pull the underwear completely off your body and onto the hardwood below. With no lapse in time, his mouth is on you, a solid stripe upwards, landing on your clit ever so briefly. Your hands find a home in the tresses of his hair, almost massaging in movements as he does the same. His tongue darts into your slit for a split-second, only before focusing more directly on your clit. Slow, thoughtful circles are drawn with his tongue, a quick vibration from a butchered word you donât care to understand.Â
His pace quickens with each completed lap, one hand making its way to insert a finger into you, easing the tightness thatâs riddled through you. The other hand is pulling your wrist from his head, to the sheets below you, happily and easily intertwining his fingers with yours. It makes your stomach lurch, this soft, affectionate side of him. With no doubt in your mind, this is your James Bond. No one else gets this James. Another finger and much faster pace leads to the inevitable breaking of the formed pit in your stomach, body rattled with a surge of energy. The pant that leaves you causes him to return to his hovering stance above you, looking at you with the softest rendition of oceanic blues. âHas someone grown tired?â He hums, wiping mouth and hands on his discarded shirt from the other side of the bed before lips kiss over your collarbones, looking up at you oh so innocently.Â
âYouâre damn right I am.â Your head falls back as your chest rises and falls, James pulling you to his own chest, comfortably resting in his mattress.Â
âWell, youâve had a tough week.â He teases, fingertips lingering over hyperactive skin. Your head drifts to the side, cheek to his own shoulder as he draws patterns on yours. âFinish this conversation later?â He suggests a kiss to the top of your head.Â
âYeah. Later.â You hum, an arm slinging around his torso. The two of you couldâve laid there for the rest of the day despite the early hours, the wasted potential of the day melting with waning sun.Â
So long as James Bond knew that there was someone. Someone who cared.
#James Bond x Reader#James Bond/Reader#James Bond Fanfiction#Bond Fanfic#James Bond Fanfic#Bond Fanfiction#Bond x Reader#Reader x James Bond#Bond/Reader#haunted
151 notes
·
View notes
Text
when the snow falls | j.jh
jung jaehyun x reader genre - angst first, fluff later details - childhood best friends!au, ghost!au, platonic relationship, genderneutral!reader, ft. boyfriend johnny warnings - grieving/mourning, mentions of death, lots of crying, explicit language (swearing) word count - 8.3k inspiration - A Christmas Carol synopsis - Jaehyun visits you every holiday season since his death to bring you out of your self isolation and hatred for the one season you both once loved.
a/n - this is for my first collab ever: a taste of winter collab hosted by @dearyongsâââ & @pastelsichengâââ ! again, thank you for letting me participate and i hope this fic brings more warmth for everyone during the winter!! happy holidays everyone & i hope you can check out the rest of the fics in the collab as i will be, theyâre written by such amazing writers! :)))
An iridescent frost covers the tall windows of the apartment and a bright white sky greets you this morning. The fallen sheets expose your bare shoulders to the bitter crisp cold air and goosebumps rise to remind you to wear a fucking sweater for once. However, the cold isnât what bothers you this horrid day as youâre leaping out of bed to glance out at the world. Itâs the first thing that you lay eyes on: it covers the streets, itâs falling from the blanket of grey sky, itâs othersâ joy when itâs your trauma. What Mother Nature has brought upon this winter season, as she always does this time of the year, is snow.Â
The first sign of snowfall marks the first day of your self isolation period until the holidays pass. It marks the anniversary of your best friendâs death and an agonizingly long winter, but in spite of that, it also means the appearance of a rather special guest. A guest that is only visible to you and though resembles much of your passed friend, does not share the same memories as you do.Â
âThe snow is just so comforting, isnât it?â Though you live alone, a sudden voice erupts from behind you and has you turning rather quickly to face the truth of this season. Your greatest treasure, yet haunting demise. âHello, y/n. How has your year been?â Jaehyun stands with a lean at your door frame, his arms crossed at his chest and hair full of fluff.Â
âHello, Jaehyunâs spirit. I happen to hate the snow, if you have forgotten.â Your hip presses against the cold glass and youâre no longer afraid of being half naked in front of what this form of imagination possesses itself to be.Â
âRemind me why again.â Jaehyun casually sits on your unmade bed, looking as about your age now. There is a brief silence as you examine how heâs grown with you, youâd imagine this is how heâd look if he was still alive and well.
It would be his third year in college, same as you, possibly studying engineering due to his past fascination with the mechanics of roller coasters. With such a strong jawline and a definite lean built, girls would be running all over him. Not to mention, his dimples remain one of his charms.
Kicking off the icy window, you walk carefully and slowly up to Jaehyun. A hand reaches to caress his cheek, but it goes right through him and leaves your hand to hang in mid-air. This happens every time you see him again, wondering if you can get one last touch of his dewy complexion, and you simply canât. Despite his ability to touch you, there is no possibility for your senses to travel through to the other side of the supernatural dimension.Â
Jaehyun gently rests your hand back to your side and repeats his request, âremind me again why you hate the snow.â
âItâs how you died.â A small croak gets caught in the back of your throat and tears well up to blur your vision. âSo when the snow falls, it brings me back to the dreadful memory of me losing you, of you leaving me.âÂ
âI died from snow? That is so lame.â Jaehyun grumbles and rolls his eyes.Â
You chuckle, but the tears roll down your cheeks as if they know no happiness. âYou died from a car accident in the snow. Your tires slid, you couldnât brake ⊠and so, you crashed. Full trauma to the head, an instant death.âÂ
âWhere was I going?â He wasnât this curious last winter, and so youâre unaware if itâs your mind playing sick tricks on you or if his unrest spirit is this forgetful. You wish it was the latter.Â
Choking on your tears, the droplets hit the hardwood floors below you. An overwhelming feeling of melancholy overtakes your chest and youâre suffocating underneath an unknown pressure. Your throat is drier than your motherâs gingerbread cookies, but you swallow the frigid air around you.Â
Youâre so choked up by your sobbing that itâs too difficult to speak. Any words you say feel like thin ice, ready to crack at the lightest touch. âO-On the way to ⊠my house. You were coming over to tell me a secret.â
âAnd I never got to tell you.âÂ
âNo, Jaehyun. Iâll never know what you wanted to tell me that day.âÂ
when the snow falls.Â
There has never been a time before Jaehyun and all that you knew, all the memories that fill your brain, every growing pain you could possibly share, was with him and all until it wasnât. Had there been a time after Jaehyun, you would not have expected it to come as soon as it did.
For the months following his death, you were in denial of his missing presence because every. single. thing. reminded you of him. Jaehyun remained in his assigned seat in school, although it was clearly empty. He lived through othersâ mourning stories, where they spoke of fond memories that they shared and things he liked. The worst of them all, you still texted him every day in hopes to see the tiny three dots pop up that he was typing. And the warped reality in your head, the first stage of grief flooding every possible corner, was that he has always just been slow at replying back.
Then, his funeral rolled around and his parents asked you to share one happy memory of him. There were so many, how could you possibly have chosen just one? And so you didnât. The moment the frame of the church entered your view, your legs stuck to the ground and refused to enter. There was going to be a point when you entered the building filled with crying people and a gripping, horrid smell of death and you wouldnât be able to forget it. That scary thought, not only frightened you, but angered you.Â
The large attendance of people walked past you as teary eyes blinked up at the dark wooden frame of the door, but every one of them had never visited him for more than once when he was alive. His older cousins that had forgotten about him when they flew away for college, his acquaintances from piano lessons who never bothered to remember his full name, his old friends from primary school that he had lost connection with after graduation, they were all here.
And you canât help, but fester a fueling frustration in the pit of your stomach and as it grew into your chest in the matter of seconds, you wondered the single thought that picked up your feet to run home: where were they when he was alive?Â
After a year and the appearance of Jaehyunâs ghost became less of a shock during winter, you were stuck in an odd and uneasy place of what ifâs. Talking to him once a year was never enough, texting his old number was never enough. It was just never enough.
Missing him grew into a dark sense of yearning, longing, bargaining. Long nights of twisting and tossing in your bed, many thoughts and endless possibilities ran through your unhealthy thoughts. The description and police report of his accident played like a reel in darkest contemplations.Â
The first year of college had to be the hardest to go through without him and thus, aiding in your regrets of not cherishing him enough when he was around. A rabbit hole of universe paths drove you wild, wishing and hoping that you could turn back time and stop him from coming over in the middle of a blizzard. And the one lasting thought still haunts you to your present: if only you hadnât encouraged him that night, he wouldnât have died.Â
The saddest part has barely been acknowledged, even by yourself. That this one tragedy tainted the one holiday you two loved the most --- Christmas. Every year since his passing, you locked yourself in your room for two weeks before the holiday and waited through it all. Truthfully, there was nothing in the universe that was going to allow you to enjoy the holiday when it wasnât with him. Even his ghost, who very randomly popped up on a December day and cluelessly never brings much comfort as the live him did during this season.
Jolly holiday music lost their joyous sound and became awfully low tempo. The bright red and green signature colors of Christmas became dull and rather grey; the long strings of colorful lights that hang from houses and around large trees were absolutely drained of their color. The warmth of the fireplace went cold. The cheesy Hallmark Christmas movies no longer entertained and lost their spark.
The Christmas themed decorations that covered the windows of shops, the city, your own house, became an overwhelming sore sight to look at. The love from your loved ones⊠you couldnât feel anything remotely close to love anymore, just meaningless affection. The one gift that the Earth blessed your region with, snow, became the one petrifying thing that it had to offer. And your favoritism for the holiday, the so-called âChristmas Spiritâ, slowly died out, along with Jaehyun.Â
Now that itâs been three years since his passing, youâre here spending your third lonely holiday season inside your apartment discussing your yearly recap with your ghostly best friend.Â
âThat ridiculous final exam lowered my grade and I walked out of that class retaining none of the information. When will I ever need to know about pirates in the 1800âs?â The chocolate wrapper crinkles in your fist as you finish your overly passionate recollection of the most useless class you could have taken this whole year.
Jaehyun sits by your side, facing you as he hugs his knees close to his chest. A small grin dots the dimple on his left cheek when you peer over at the huddled boy and the sad reminiscent glisten in your eye does not go unnoticed. âYou used to love pirates. Dressed up like one for Halloween and went up to every house yelling,â Jaehyun clears his throat and perks up, ready to perform.
A balled fist in the air, paired with a look of utter gusto and passion, Jaehyun speaks in an attempt to horribly reenact your once embarrassing pirate impression. âArgh! You scoundrel, give me all the treasures in your possession⊠preferably chocolate sweets.â He holds his stomach as he bursts into a fit of his baritone laughter. His wide mouth grows into such a big, open smile that his eyelashes dance on his glowing cheeks.Â
âFor a ghost, you sure look like someone whoâs very much alive.â Naturally, youâd swat lightly at his knee or arm whenever he would joke around. However, the pain of your hand passing right through him breaks this habit and youâre left scoffing at the way Jaehyun is consumed with laughter.
âYou know, for someone who is alive⊠you sure look a bit ⊠lifeless. When was the last time you were happy, y/n?â Jaehyun finally settles down and gently nudges at your elbow.Â
His question hits you like a wall of bricks. Unexpected and completely straightforward, but thatâs just always been the way he is. âThis past weekend when I turned in my last assignment for the semester.âÂ
âNo. The last time you were genuinely happy, not relieved. You mentioned a boyfriend, right?âÂ
Rolling your eyes, you grow a bit silent and annoyed at his comment. âListen, hopeless romantic. Not every relationship is perfect sunrays and gushy unconditional love.â Perhaps, your gaze drops down to your hands and the wrinkled wrapper between your fingers has worn out from your fidgeting.Â
Johnny Suh. If you could move mountains for this man, you would. It all started due to an accidental happenstance of you abruptly walking into your campusâ coffee shop to seek shelter from the rain and him, the attractive barista behind the counter, chasing after you in a stained apron and an immensely strong aroma of coffee beans. Jaehyun practically swooned over hearing how you two met, hearts in his pupils and a dreamy grin resting fondly as he attentively listened.Â
Jaehyun has always wanted a relationship, though he did have many admirers in high school, he never had the opportunity to experience one true love and to play out every sappy romantic thing rom-coms taught him. Hearing about your love life is the closest thing he can get to it, unfortunate for him, but fortunate that his best friend still has some romance in them.
Nevertheless, itâs only been a few months together. Though Johnny has seen intimate parts of you, heâs never experienced a winter with you and frankly, he wonât ever experience one with you if you keep this up.Â
âJohnny doesnât make you happy, then why are you with him?â Jaehyun knows Johnny makes you feel something that is hard for you to put into words. He also knows the type of person you are, pushing your buttons to get you to defend something you love. Boldly. Loudly. Strongly. He knows how to get you to spit out words of truth, even when theyâre difficult.
âMy partner is the literal definition of happiness, okay?â The defensiveness drives your assertiveness further. âThe last time I was happy was whenâŠâ your eyes are frantically examining the floor for any source of focus as a highlight reel of this whole year flashes through your mind.
â... On my birthday, he planned me a picnic. Bought me roses, the whole grand scheme of romance. I started to cry, out of happiness⊠it was the first time in a while that the reason behind my tears was something good.â Thereâs somewhat of an epiphany when you finish your sentence. Your voice gets lost in your train of thought as the blissful scene plays out.Â
âWhy were you crying?â Jaehyun snatches the distracting wrapper from your fingers, it being unrecognizable from the wear and tear. It causes you to meet Jaehyunâs round eyes: empty, but not sad. Theyâre lost, yet filled with purpose.
Jaehyun has always been able to open up the darkest parts of your heart. âBecause it reminded me of the time when you and I walked up that steep hill over on Fifth Street⊠and we forgot the picnic blanket. But it didnât matter because after the strenuous journey, all we wanted was to sit down and enjoy some fucking sandwiches, along with some hot chocolate your mom packed us.âÂ
ây/n, you cried over the memory of sandwiches and exercise? Thatâs so---â
âBefore you insult me by calling me lame,â you bring your finger to stop him mid-way and narrow your eyes, âI was so happy to be able to share our same experience with someone else. Even though youâre gone, I can still have these happy moments with other people.âÂ
Then, Jaehyun gathers both of your hands to hold and brings them to his soft lips. Everything about him feels cold, like a harsh chill that bites at your skin. In spite of it all, his delicate kiss on your knuckles somehow feel warm and slightly comforting. Jaehyun peers up with kind eyes, âyouâre almost there. I will do everything I can to get you there.âÂ
Blinking at him with confusion, your expression asks the questions for you. When he sets your hands in his lap, a soft pat on the back of your hand reassures you. âCan we bake Christmas cookies?âÂ
Rolling your eyes, you tear your hands away from him. He leaves you with unspoken words and an oddly comforting feeling, but itâs not enough to dissipate your deeply rooted dislike for this particular holiday. âYou ask this every year.â Getting up, you walk towards your bedroom to get away from feeling too vulnerable.
Jaehyun watches your back intently as youâre stumbling over your feet. He whispers to himself, âand I think this year is going to be the last year Iâll ask for it.â And a hopeful smile appears joyously as he anticipates the storm before reaching still waters.Â
The sound of the doorbell awakens you and Jaehyun is nowhere to be seen. He comes and goes as he wishes, however, heâd usually accompany you during the mornings. Youâre particularly sluggish, finding it difficult to adjust to the blinding white sky outside as snow continues to drift upon the city.Â
âGood morning, gumdrop.â Your boyfriend is rather chirpy today. Johnny engulfs your fragile body in his long arms and youâre lost in his scent of peppermint bark.Â
âThis was unexpected.â His shirt muffles your tiny voice and Johnny is setting down bags of groceries on your kitchen countertop.Â
âI texted you last night that I was coming over to do some grocery shopping for you. Did you sleep early?â Your very helpful boyfriend starts unloading all the parcels of fresh produce and your favorite snacks. However, there is a slight tinge of annoyance and possibly itâs due to the fact you werenât expecting to see anyone during your isolation. Johnny couldnât have known though.
A deep sigh escapes your lips and you walk over to stop his movements. A hand holds his arm and the other intertwines with his own, but you stand under him with the sweetest smile you could wear during the holiday season. âHow is it that your mom invited me to your family holiday party, but tells me that youâre not going to be there?âÂ
Your smile automatically falls from your lips and a hand retracts from his warmth. Itâs the sudden truth that you must face, the confession of your sadness that youâll eventually need to tell your partner. Wondering how heâs going to take the news, your mom probably gave him a brief breakdown about how youâve been this way for the past few years now.Â
Nonetheless, Johnny has always been bold with his statements and though youâve adjusted to his abruptness, this one is hard to give a quick answer back to. So as youâre racking how to present your dark narrative, Johnny sets you down on the couch with the utmost gentleness. You donât even feel the cushion underneath you when the million different answers streamline their way into your brain.
Johnny notices your frantic eyes and unfocused gaze, growing a bit concerned at how cold your skin feels at his touch. Taking off his sweatshirt, he carefully slips it over your shaking figure. When the softness of the polyester cotton blend brushes upon your bare arms, youâre snapped back facing a worried expression.
And you say the one thing on your mind, the only thing you can think of in your scattered brain. âJaehyun died during this time of year, so it just makes me very emotionally unstable to⊠participate in any festive events. Iâd rather be alone, the whole holiday season.âÂ
Johnny nods, but his face remains with his eyebrows together and lips pressed into a tight line. Heâs well aware of who Jaehyun was and means to you. Though you donât talk much about him, your eyes light up with a bright twinkle whenever you do. Itâs like the world spins âround and everything feels restored. Johnny knows enough about your good friend to deduct how hard it must be for you during the winters.Â
âCan I help you in any way?â Johnny peers over at you with a small smile, and you wish there is something in your decaying heart to keep it up forever.Â
âI hate to say it, but please just leave me alone for the winter.â Flopping on his lap, youâre burying your face in your hands to cower away from seeing your sunshine hurt. There are no more sugar coated kind words for you to pick and choose from.
While Johnny can understand how difficult it must be for you, he still holds onto a sliver of hope that youâll come around. âCome on, donât be such a Grinch. No one should be alone for Christmas.âÂ
Groaning, you sit up and roll your eyes at the familiar references. âListen, Cindy Lou Who. Donât call me that.â
âItâs still a cute nickname, you donât think?â Johnny snickers lightly, but your expression turns rather grim and serious. A faint overcast of melancholy washes over your expression as youâre staring off into your memories again.
In a faint voice, your voice is barely above a whisper, âthat used to be one of Jaehyunâs favorite movies.â Your arms drop from your puffed up chest, but Johnny catches your hand and kisses your fingertips.
âWhat was yours?â Johnny keeps the atmosphere as light and playful while he still can.Â
âThe Nightmare Before Christmas.â Ironically fitting and thatâs one of the sole reasons you donât watch holiday movies anymore. There have been too many parallels with your life and the wrenched holiday. As twisted as the joke may seem, youâve lived your own nightmare before Christmas, except you never got the happy ending to it all. Itâs like a nightmare that continues and you canât escape it.Â
Having said, Johnny pulls you up to stand and draws you into the biggest hug. âI canât leave you alone, even if I tried my very best. I still get butterflies every time you smile at me, so you think I wouldnât be addicted to that feeling?âÂ
âJohnnyâŠâ This man is in love with you until the ends of this Earth, until the horizon stretches so far that itâs unimaginable to see where it stops.Â
âIâll respect your wishes as much as I can, but know that itâs not the best form of healing.â The final word causes a chill to run down your spine. It implies that youâre still hurting, although heâs not wrong, itâs rather disheartening to hear someone else speak it aloud. âIâll come around less.âÂ
âIf Iâm grumpy, then youâll know why. And donât try to shove the whole Christmas spirit act on me, I donât want to hear a single thing about it! I canât spend a Christmas without Jaehyun.â Johnny squeezes your shoulders at your bold declaration.
âYou canât or you wonât?â A painful tick at your heart leaves you speechless at his question.Â
For as long as you could remember, every Christmas was spent with Jaehyun. Picking out a tree for both of your families and getting lost together between the evergreens brought laughter and excitement. Baking cookies and drawing the ugliest faces in tacky colorful frosting always happened a few days before the holiday. Drinking hot chocolate by his familyâs fireplace and watching Christmas movies were one of your favorite activities. Christmas Eve was always so special, where you and Jaehyun made it tradition to open your gifts from each other right when the clock struck midnight.Â
Then everything simply stopped. And when you tried to participate in those same activities, selfishness and guilt preoccupied your heart. What do any of those things mean without Jaehyun? Jaehyun was the reason you loved Christmas as much as you did. Then, his death became the reason you hated it as much as you do.
âI think thatâs enough for today.â Johnny knows heâs hit a nerve, he can see it in your glossy eyes and subtle drop in the corners of your mouth. There is no protest from the taller man when he accepts his sweatshirt without a complaint. The bitter cold air bites at your bare shoulders again and youâre practically existing in its lack of warmth. Gathering the rest of his belongings, you two bid a kiss goodbye and shut the door.
Itâs almost a relief that heâs gone and the tear runs down your cheek when your back hits the door. Suddenly, Jaehyun appears across the living room leaning on the door frame to your bedroom. âHe seems like a nice guy.âÂ
âHe is.â There is a hang at the end of your sentence and Jaehyun walks toward you. A few sniffs fill the empty apartment, but youâre rubbing away any sign of sadness from your face.
âBut?âÂ
âBut, heâs so optimistic about⊠everything. He lives by the sun and every waking day, he just lives it to the fullest. Thereâs nothing in the world for this man to possibly understand how sad I feel.â Itâs the heaviness in your voice that has your heart sinking to the pit of your stomach.Â
Jaehyunâs freezing hands graze your chin and as he lets go, his stare doesnât leave yours. âLearn from him.â Your best friendâs ghastly voice reminds you that heâs not real. Heâs a ghost. Heâs very much gone and not for a split second, should you be wanting to cave into his embrace or else, youâll hit the floor hard. Nevertheless, youâre entirely vulnerable and the next few words that leave Jaehyunâs mouth causes your throat to close up.
âKeep him close. y/n, he is the sun.â Itâs a moment you thought youâd never witness, your best friend complimenting your significant partner. Moreover, it hurts to think about how great of friends Jaehyun and Johnny could have been. âTo be very honest, you need some heat this winter.â
âThen, what were you?â Itâs the curiosity that nips at your tongue as it leaves no space for a pause. The thumping of your heart being so loud in the dead silence, but you know Jaehyun doesnât have a heart to beat recklessly as yours.Â
Jaehyun smirks and chuckles fondly, despite how desperate and serious you may have sounded. âI was a pain in the ass.â
Scoffing, you break the immensely intense eye contact. âYou still are. This whole haunting thing is very creepy.â Gesturing his entire being in front of you, he just looks so alive and breathing. Before Jaehyun, you always thought ghosts were floating entities with a white transparency. But your best friend stands before you, well aged and all together.Â
It still tosses you into shambles as to why Jaehyun exists, but youâve given up on figuring out his purpose. He could be a form of your own imagination for all you care, perhaps youâve grown so sad that you started to seek things.Â
Companionship from the one person you wish was still alive?
Like before, youâve always spent Christmas with Jaehyun⊠alive or in ghost form.
Itâs another one of those long days that seem to never end. The bright white sky seems unchanging, stark with a dusty and imminent endless overcast of snow. Itâs blinding and youâre regretting the moment you overlooked the curtain blinds at the department store. Â
Your phone has already been lost somewhere underneath your bed and there isnât a single desire to reach for it. Missed calls pile up, voicemails clutter your inbox, texts flood your messages, and your social media notifications fill your screen. Despite everyoneâs effort to contact you, there is no sense of joyous cordial nature to even glance at them.
Jaehyun has been appearing more frequently and staying for longer periods of time. The conversations bring an empty comfort, most of the times you feel the need to remind yourself that youâre not actually talking to someone, are you?
âWhatâs that sad look in your eyes?â He startles you when youâre off looking vacantly out the window. Your mind has been completely distracted lately by meaningless thoughts and the sweetest reels of Jaehyun that have turned blue.
The more you wrap yourself in your white sheets, the less you can feel any source of warmth. And perhaps you havenât realized that you no longer felt any heat the past few days, that youâre at a freezing point and itâs made you numb.
âNot sure what you mean.â Your voice remains dull and monotone, lifeless almost. Jaehyun takes a seat against the window and for the first time, you can see right through him.
âItâs not your fault, y/n.â Is he a mind reader too? The thought that always circles your mind when Christmas draws near is not only that Jaehyun is gone forever, but how you could have prevented it all. The guilt eats you up and no matter how hard youâre searching for acceptance, it slips away from you before you have a chance.
When you donât answer, Jaehyun heads over to your bed and heâs alarmed at how cold your hands are. âIt was never your fault.â Your best friend pulls you into a hug, but it can barely be felt. What kind of hug canât be felt?
âI never said it was.â
âNo, but you thought about it.â The chilly draft causes you to shiver and itâs hard for you to concentrate on anything else besides the night of his death.
âI should have stopped you from coming over.â Although youâve confessed this many times to him before, it never gets easier to say. Jaehyun sighs and ultimately frowns at your tears slipping from your eyes again. Like the snow that drifts from the heavens, your tears know no end to their downfall. Itâs become too natural for them to appear. The closer it gets to Christmas, the harder it is to stop from crying.
âItâs hard for me to speak about it since we donât remember much of the same moments---â
âJaehyun! I remember that night as clear as it was just yesterday that it happened.â Thereâs no reason to yell, but a strong sense of pain erupts from your chest.
Heâs so calm at your sudden outburst, turning his head to face you with a deadpan expression. âYou werenât there, y/n. You were home, safe and sound as you should have been. Iâm more than grateful that youâre the one alive.â
âIâm not!â But when the confession leaves your lips, youâre shaking and fearful. The entire room is stiff and silent. You couldnât even believe what you had just said, wondering if that is anything close to truth. You look up at Jaehyun, who blinks at you with furrowed eyebrows and wide eyes. âI mean,â you clear your throat in the midst of the tense atmosphere. âI could have saved you.â
âYouâre not a hero and I didnât need saving when I was already gone.â He taps his temples lightly, âfull trauma to the head. It was just my time to go.â
âThe secret. I wanted to know so bad that I didnât stop you from coming in a snowstorm!â Jaehyun pats your head in an attempt to soothe your aching heart.
âAnd I wanted to tell you just as bad that I didnât care about the snowstorm. y/n, stop blaming yourself for something that happened to me. The universe is much more complex than that, give it some credit.â
âYouâre even philosophical as a ghost? Give me a fucking break.â Groaning, you pull the sheets over your head to somehow run away from the conversation.
Jaehyun lies down next to you, smiling cheekily to himself and glancing over at the lump that you had become underneath the blankets. âDo you remember the time I taught you how to ride a bike?â
âI thought it was your dad who taught me.â You grumble, tossing away the sheets to glance over at him. It always puzzled you how Jaehyun never remembered the same memories as you do, and even if you did, one of you remembered it differently.
âHe was probably there as supervision. I was the one who helped you take off your training wheels and strap on your impressively thick knee pads.â Youâre lying on your elbows now, fists pressing into your cheeks and a fond attentive gaze upon Jaehyunâs resting figure. Heâs staring up at the ceiling that protects you two above, yet can cave in at any moment.
Dimples dip into his round supple cheeks as his toothy smile comes into view, reliving the happy memory. âYou rang your little bell so many times that day.â
âBecause I was scared!â You protest, muttering something incoherent. âDidnât we go downhill when I said I wasnât ready?â
âWe went downhill because you said you were ready.â His hair ruffles in your sheets when he turns to face you, and he just takes your breath away. Itâs the stars in his dark eyes that sweep you off your feet, like the gleaming star on top of a tree. The color that oozes from his smile, like Christmas lights that line a rooftop, make it hard not to stare. Jaehyun looks just like Christmas, the most wonderful thing of the year. In someway, he resembled an angel or the soft sheet of snow ready to fall right through.
Youâre encompassed by overwhelming effervescent emotions from listening and watching Jaehyun glow and gleam. âThen, what?â
Jaehyunâs low chuckle illuminates the room, dazzling the boring grey interior. âLittle olâ you, hurt yourself real bad that day, scrapes and wounds you thought youâd never heal from. You didnât talk to me for a week, but you ended up learning how to ride a bike.â
âIs that right?â
Jaehyun rests on his side now, only an elbow supporting his body and heâs leaning in close to your face, youâre almost too sure you could feel a breath on your lips. âNo matter how painful it gets, Iâm always here to push you through it all.â
When your heart beats sporadically at his proximity, you didnât realize that you are holding in a breath, being quite afraid that if you let it out, it would simply blow him away for the night. And youâre not ready for him to leave you again.
Christmas Eve;
It had to be a miracle that anyone got a hold of you this week when Johnny comes practically banging at your door. Though you are so close to ignoring his loud thumping, the sound of your boyfriendâs soft sniffles alarms you greatly.
ây/n, holy shit!â Itâs deja vu when youâre in his arms again, a horribly warped version of it when the smell of peppermint bark tickles your nostrils disgustingly. âI thought something happened to you. You werenât answering my calls or texts.â
âMy one wish for Christmas was to be left alone and I meant it.â The attitude in your voice becomes jarringly evident and Johnny blinks back at you with a new found annoyance as well.
âCan you at least think of the other people around you?â He holds your shoulders lightly, but staring into his eyes seems to be harder to do lately. Jaehyun appears on the couch, lying flat on his stomach and a hand resting underneath his chin. This is no longer a private conversation, but you learned long ago that no one else can see him.
âWho are you talking about? My family? Because theyâve all given up on me.â This is the first time Johnny has seen you act so cold and distant, yet entirely vulnerable. Youâre stripped of everything that you usually hide in --- oversized clothes, happy smiles, and a beaming warmth.
All Johnny ever wants is for you to be loved, not only by him, but by the world. And interestingly enough, he loved you for your vulnerability and your rawness. This is until he realizes, in this moment, that it stems from your trauma of losing Jaehyun.
âWhat about me, y/n? Iâm still here.â Johnny is frantic, and by all means, hurt by your aloofness. Brushing off his hands from your body, youâre taking several steps away from him.
âAnd why are you still here when I kept telling you to leave me alone? Whenever I was upset, Jaehyun always gave me space! Havenât ever thought about how that is something I need?â Youâre saying nonsensical statements that are fueled by anger and annoyance.
Heâs pushing your limits and for once, youâre pushing him away. But this isnât new to you, in fact, youâve pushed so many people away just like this and thatâs why theyâve decided to just let you be.
Johnny is taken aback, âyou know, I feel like Iâm competing with Jaehyun and Iâve never even met him.â
You scoff and throw your arms in the air, visibly in disbelief at what your boyfriend is saying to you. May you lose your temper, youâre unsure about the future of this relationship. Yet, something in your cruel and painful heart no longer cared, snapping your wits and patience at your beloved.
âWhat are you saying?â Youâre pacing back and forth, fuming with an inexplicable infuriation. Jaehyun catches your eye, and for a brief moment, youâre holding eye contact with him instead. âJaehyun is dead,â facing Johnny now, you say words that jumble in your chest, regardless of their true meanings, âand even if he was alive, there would be no competition.â
âBecause you were always going to choose him over everyone else in your life, is that right? Exactly like how you do now.â Johnnyâs words sting like daggers at your skin, worse than the layer of frost that bites at you for the past two weeks.
âPlease, donât attack me for hurting.â With that, your voice breaks and cracks all over. Your tears hit the ground without you feeling them run down your cheeks.
Johnny is quick to wipe them away, not minding that his hands will now be wet from your salty droplets. He instantly regrets it all, the unwarranted questions, the fighting, the barging in unexpectedly. It pains him more to see you like this.
âI apologize. Iâm sorry that Iâm not saying the kindest words to you when you need to hear them the most.â Your partner is frowning, a true rare sight to see. âBut, youâre still grieving and there is going to have to be a time that you move on.â
Itâs one of those tip of the iceberg moments or when the ball finally hits the ground and a rush of cathartic enthusiasm washes over you. However, youâre not happy. Youâre not even remotely close to happiness. Youâre fucking sad, youâre aching with a pain so deeply rooted that it isolates you, that it rips apart anything that used to bring you joy.
And this causes you to scream your lungs out, sobs that choke you up. âI canât! You donât understand, no one understands! I just fucking canât. He was my best friend and that night⊠he was going to tell me something.â Jaehyun canât bear to hear your piercing wails, as heâs disappeared completely from the setting. When youâre panicked and searching for him, you only see Johnny staring back at you with a very concerned expression.
âAnd I will never know what he wanted to tell me.â Your tone grows soft and rather delicate, like a sad realization at the possibility that the secret died with Jaehyun that night.
âSome things are better left unknown. Do you really think youâll feel better knowing?â
âListen to him, y/n.â Jaehyun randomly appears next to Johnnyâs stature. He stands a few inches shorter than him, but the sight of them together has you blinking in awe.
Youâre darting between the two of them, âI donât know what will make me feel better.â
âCome, tonight. Your whole family wants to see you for the one holiday that brings people together.â But when Johnny steps forward, youâre taking a step back.
âPlease, just go.â With an assertive point to the door, your head does not lift up to watch your boyfriend leave. Despite every person youâve done this to, Johnnyâs hurts the most. His flame dies out tonight, providing no sense of security or heat. And with a toss of his arms of exasperation, he shuts your front door and leaves without a goodbye, without wishing you a merry Christmas.
Jaehyun calls your name, but youâre rushing to your bedroom and slamming the door shut. âDonât you dare travel through the wall.â
Your apartment has grown so dark due to the shorten winter days. Itâs pitch black all around you and the sky is no longer a deafening white. Itâs the first time you notice the dark blue scattered clouds and the intricate snowflakes that drift carefully down to the streets. And, youâre all alone in the quietness. You truly are isolated every Christmas.
ây/n, letâs talk.â Jaehyun is beyond fed up with your behavior, that has to be the last straw. This is the first year since his death that heâs seen the evident spark in your eye, the hope that is hiding behind your depression. He sees it in the way Johnny looks at you, like youâre the greatest present he could receive in life. In your proclamation, as hard as it was to witness, is a spirit that wishes to be freed. There was a chance this year. There still is one.
âJaehyun, you left me! You left all alone, and no matter how hard I try to stop thinking about you, it never works. In the end, no one is here for me like how you were.â Hands in your hair, youâre losing yourself at a rapid rate. It hurts to keep your eyes open, tears sting as they well up around the rims.
âFind a part of me in the people around you.â The door to your bedroom swings open and Jaehyun takes note of you by the window again. You want to leave, you want to be out there and he knows, before you can actually realize it yourself. Youâre turning to face him and in the dark, he looks solid. He looks so real and whole.
âHow do I do that?â Itâs a genuine question that youâve pondered before, but never feeling like you had the strength to do so. Youâre always dwelling on your past with Jaehyun, indulging in the sacred memories only you two shared.
âWhat are things that you associate me with?â He is found leaning against your door frame again, hands are shoved into the pockets of his faded jeans.
You say the first thing on your mind, âsnow.â When the words hit the air, your ceiling light flickers briefly. Jaehyun doesnât flinch, however, still focused on your crying figure. Snow, the first sign of snowfall is when he appears for the winter.
âWhat else?â He encourages.
âFamiliarity.â The light flashes again, for a mere second longer this time before it resumes darkness. Familiarity, for he grew up by your side for as long as you could remember.
There is an odd feeling that enters the room and youâre fearful of the unknown. But, Jaehyunâs cadence doesnât falter, heâs not distracted by the random spurts of light. And if anything, it all could be his doing. âKeep going.â
âComfort.â Flicker. âWarmth. Love. Excitement.â With each word, the light builds stronger and stronger. Youâre speaking memories into existence now, âmaking snow angels until it got dark, laughing until our stomachs hurt, watching movies until the clock struck midnight, dancing until our legs gave out!â
Streams run down your face and youâre yelling until your throat feels raw, but you donât wish to stop as the light glows brighter and brighter with each spoken word.
As you listen to every listed attribute and memory, you recognize a central theme in all of them and one thing that Jaehyun embodies, the one thing heâs always been associated with.
âChristmas.â A shaky breath exhales and a loud spark pierces your ears. The light illuminates intensely all around you, lighting up the darkest corners of your room and blinding you more than the sky has been lately.
âJaehyun?â Closing your eyes, you can see the brightness through your eyelids and youâre beyond confused as to what is happening. When you mindlessly reach for his hand, you actually feel it and your heart is soaring due to strange unquestionable physics.
Jaehyun intertwines your hand in his own and caresses your face gently. For once, he doesnât feel cold. Heâs blazing hot, melting away the long days of isolation. âOpen your eyes, y/n.â
What lies before you is an incredible, marvelous sight. Snow dusts the roof of your familyâs house as green, red, yellow bulbs light the frame of it. Your parents really went all out; round snowmen sit perfectly together on your lawn. A decorative wreath hangs at the front door and a distinct chuckle catches your attention.
From the window that looks into your kitchen, your mother rolls a sheet of dough on the counter as clouds of flour erupt around her. Your father is preoccupied at the stove, with the silliest gimmicks for decorating the feast theyâre about to hold. Silver tinsel line the dinner table with a festive table cloth draped upon it. The remarkable tree shines in the center of the living room, a glimmering star on top.Â
âI know we probably wonât see y/n again this ChristmasâŠâ The sound of your motherâs voice rings a bell in your yearning heart and Jaehyun is gazing at you with a wondrous look in his eyes. The grip on his hand is tight, your breath enters the night in puffs of smoke, and regardless of this all being real or imaginary, youâre so immersed in this reality that he knows youâre anticipating what your family has to say.
â... but something about this year really makes me miss them.â Your mother puts the rolling pin off to the side and rests her hand on the kitchen counter, trying to hold back any form of her own tears from falling.
âMay Jaehyun watch over them tonight, our little angel doesnât deserve to be alone.â
Your dad walks over to embrace your mother in a long hug, kissing the top of her head gently. âMerry Christmas, y/n.â Your father speaks into the air, without the knowledge of you outside, heâs thinking of you.
Something in your heart shatters, but itâs entirely different from the pain youâve felt over the years following Jaehyunâs death. Itâs a warm, bubbly feeling that spreads across your chest and youâre covering your mouth out of pure shock at the sight of your parents.
Your parents, who youâve neglected every holiday season, still think of you. You recognize the ingredients that scatter the table, they make your favorite dish every year in hopes youâll come join them.Â
Jaehyun whispers, ây/n, know that Iâm always going to be here. I may physically be gone, but I live in your heart and the joyous memories weâve shared together. I live through the many people who love you now, through Christmas. This spirit is also very much alive in the other people around you.â
When you peel your eyes from the scene of your parents, the vision suddenly disappears and youâre facing Jaehyun right back in your cold, empty, dark apartment. But you wish the moment lasted a little longer. For the first time in a long time, you wish to be with your loved ones. You wish to celebrate Christmas with the people who still care about you, the ones that are still alive and well.
âWhat if Iâm not ready?â
âThis signifies my final push down the hill. Youâre all strapped up in your knee pads, y/n. Youâre never truly going to be ready, but that shouldnât stop you from trying.â Jaehyun pats your head lovingly and mimics the motions of securing a helmet on your head.
Youâre letting go of his hand, running around quickly in search for the appropriate outerwear for the snow. Itâs like a switch went off in your heart and a cathartic feeling settles in the pit of your stomach.
Every Christmas since his passing, you thought it was best to be alone. You thought it was selfish to live your favorite holiday season without your best friend, that you lost the spirit of Christmas.
However, this entire time⊠Jaehyunâs ghost has been a reminder that the Christmas spirit has always been alive. Itâs not about the enthusiastic festive events or the cheerful themed activities or the distinct colorful decorations, itâs about the appreciation and love you have for the people who have made your year so special. Youâve associated the holiday so much with your best friend, that youâve lost sight of it in your family, your current friends, your own boyfriend.
When youâre rushing out the door, you stop in your tracks and peer back at Jaehyun leaning against your door frame, just as he appeared a few weeks ago. He has the warmest, brightest smile on his face, ây/n, I think I finally remember the secret I wanted to tell you.â Youâre afraid of the answer and the outside world, but your hand doesnât slip from the door handle. Could it really be? The long anticipated secret that has been gnawing at your conscience since his death?
Nevertheless, heâs giggling and holding his stomach slightly from the immense amount of joyous laughter. âI wanted to tell you that I... finally learned how to shave.â Â
At first, youâre stunned at the simplicity of the beheld secret. All this time, you thought it had been something so meaningful, something so mind blowing, that needing to know practically destroyed your mental state. Then, a wholehearted and genuine laugh erupts from inside of you and youâre lighting up the darkest parts of yourself. Jaehyun looks at you fondly, like a beauty that he hasnât seen in awhile.Â
âThatâs fucking it? You came out in the middle of a blizzard to tell me you learned how to shave? How lame.â
Jaehyun chuckles, âwhen did I ever need an extremely valid reason to see you?â The laughter falls short at his confession and in the midst of all this enthusiasm, you bid him the softest smile. His purpose has been fulfilled, as the best version of you heâs always known and loved stands before him at last.Â
âI guess... youâre right. Whatâs going to happen to you now?â
âIâll always be here for Christmas, even when youâre old and grey surrounded by the warmth of your loved ones in front of a large, extravagant Christmas tree. When the snow falls, Iâll be here.â Jaehyunâs dimple smile is the lasting image you see, the one youâve always hoped to remember him by. Â
âMerry Christmas, Jung Jaehyun⊠I--â
âLove you too, y/n. Merry Christmas.â He ushers you out the door with a small kiss on your knuckles.
That is the last time you ever see him again. Now, when the snow falls, it marks the anniversary of your long awaited healing, the journey to acceptance, and the beloved memory of your best friend. May you never lose the spirit of Christmas and the warmth from your loved ones.
#nct scenarios#neowritingsnet#nct-writers#neothestars#kpopscape#nct scenario#nct#jaehyun scenarios#jaehyun#jung jaehyun#nct fluff#nct angst#nct imagines#jung jaehyun scenarios#jaehyun scenario
416 notes
·
View notes
Text
Venti and Diluc: Friendship HCs
Hi elliechan! Iâve already written friendship hcs for Venti but I never want to leave anyone hanging (unless the dupe request is incredible specific and I canât add onto it anymore) so think of it as a part 2. But if you havenât seen Part 1 yet, I added a link.
Also, I would like to credit fulltimeventisimpâ for helping me out with this fic. My monkey brain couldnât think of anything for Venti but they gave me literally a fics worth of content. PLEASE IF YOU HAVENâT ALREADY, MAKE IT AN ACTUAL FIC! I LOVED IT! I tried my best to not piggy back too hard off it but if it does seem that way, let me know and Iâll definitely change it.Â
But thank you đđđ
---
Part 1:Â Venti Frienship HCs
Xiao: Frienship HCs
[Masterlist]
---
[taglist] Â <- if you want to be added, please read this first.
@hanniejjiââ  @mikeysbike @unionwitch @musekala @sunnshiii @stanzasticâ @akaaseaâ @xoneaboveallxâ @adoring-ghostâ @asheseilerâ @childeloverâ @dilucszâ @dai-tsukki-desuâ @thicmittenâ
Venti and Diluc: Friendship HCs
Venti
The first time you met the bard, it was when you were visiting Mondstadt as a small pit stop. He was sat on top of some wooden boxes, next to an apple vendor, singing a short ballad. Youâve never encountered bards throughout your journey and he did have a lovely singing voice so you decided to stay a bit and listen in. It felt like the wind itself was carrying his voice throughout the streets but you couldnât help but feel a bit...melancholy from his tune. Was it homesickness? You clapped with the crowd when the bard finished and on a whim, you decided to buy him a small bag of apples. He seemed to like them as he only asked the apple vendor to gift him two for his efforts. When you paid your purchase the bard seemed to be in a deep conversation with the same vendor that you didnât want to disturb them, after all you werenât going to be in Mondstadt for long. So you placed the small bag of apples beside the bardâs lyre with a quick thank you note, a couple extra coins, and continued on your journey.Â
You didnât expect that small act of kindness would lead to anything but when you were preparing for bed, the same bard popped his head outside your window and almost gave you a heart attack. This bard was lucky he didnât catch you while you were changing your clothes or else things might have turned ugly. He wanted to thank you for your generous donation which you simply waved off explaining that throughout your journey, you never met anyone that could sing quite like him. A small token of appreciation. Perhaps it was because you fed his ego too much or other reasons but that seemed to peak the bards interest and ask about what other fascinating places youâve been too. You talked about the horrible mountain you needed to climb through to reach Mondstadt, the shining electro lamps of Inazuma that would spark if you got too close, to the clear pools and lotus heads in Liyue.Â
âYouâve been around all over the place! Perhaps you would allow me to write a ballad of your conquests?â
âHm? Is that so? Why donât you come with me? Go outside the walls of Mondstadt and explore. So you can write your own ballad instead of others.â
âIs this another acting whim of yours?â
âHaha, perhaps.â
Unsurprisingly, you donât see the bard the next day. It was probably a lot to suddenly ask a stranger to drop everything and come with you to unknown places. But you decided to stay in Mondstadt for a short while and see what the City of Freedom had to offer. From meeting the supposed gliding champion and learning a few pointers, to the mysterious Calvary Captain who you were sure was probably the shadiest person youâve ever met, to the aloof red headed tavern owner. You werenât much of a drinker but everyone in Mondstadt, especially the knights, seemed to really enjoy their wine and were incredibly friendly to strangers. On the night you were planning to leave Mondstadt, the rowdy knights youâve became friends with decided to celebrate and urge you to drink to your hearts content (please drink responsibly haha). You must have been a bit tipsy when you met the bard for a second time, introducing himself properly as Venti. You could blame it on the alcohol when you suddenly challenged him to a drinking contest but it was the most fun you had in a while. You were pretty sure everyone got kicked out but as you leaned against Venti absolutely hammered, laughing about the silliest things, it was the most freeing feeling youâve ever felt.Â
From then on, even after you had left the City of Freedom, you could would randomly see Venti pop up sometimes. Should it be at Starsnatch Cliff or all the way in Wolvendom, you would see a few fluffy feathers appear as the bar- Venti announced his arrival. You were pretty sure Venti was bored whenever he visited you to see what you were up to but you didnât mind. His liveliness nature was addicting and you were an easy going person. Though, some of the jokes he made, made you a bit suspicious of him. Whenever he would say that Andrius was secretly a grumpy mother hen or that Dvalin was actually a shy sweetheart.
âYou sure do know a lot about Mondstadt. You sure youâre just a bard Venti?â
âHmm, well it shouldnât hurt to tell you. I am Barbatos. The Anemo Archon of Mondstadt. Pleasure to make your acquaintance..-again.â
âI see...and yet you still get ID checked?âÂ
âRude!âÂ
Outside of Mondstadt, Venti is a whirlwind of emotions. Always wanting to see whatâs changed or linking your hands and dragging you off to some far off chest he found. How did his small body have so much strength to nearly pop your arm out? He did come in handy during your Liyue expeditions since he can give you a small boost to just reach the top of that cliff. You thought violet grass was bad, it should be illegal for Qingxin flowers to grow on the very top of mountains. Venti thinks itâs really sweet that you put so much faith in his winds to let yourself fly when he uses his elemental skill. Though, itâs a bit of a double edged sword. When you finally reach the very top and youâre waiting for Venti to join you, he might pretend to loose control and throw himself off the cliff. You sometimes forget heâs literally the anemo archon and youâre ready to go gliding after him before he pops up in front of you to give you another scare. While heâs laughing, youâre already planning how to sneak slime condensate into his hat.Â
âYou should have seen your face! I didnât know you could scream like that! Liyue must think a banshee is haunting their mountains again!â
âWatch yourself gremlin, you might wake up without hands tomorrow.â
âHaha, you wouldnât do that...right? How would you even do that? Why arenât you saying anything?!â
âIsnât there a saying in Liyue Venti? You canât run from your debts? Prepare yourself.â
For as child-like Venti appears, you both end up getting into a bit of trouble when Venti getâs a bit too bold. While itâs incredibly refreshing to see someone speak their mind regardless of the consequences, you actually kind of admire him for that, usually the boldness comes from trying to bribe the bartender for free drinks. Your poor wallet is crying out every time Venti spots a new tavern. While he sayâs he will pay you back or heâll pay you back in a song, you canât actually eat his words. But on other occasions you canât help but join in when it happens to be one of the Fatui guards giving you both a hard time. You feel like youâre acting out a Shakespearian play with all the flowery nonsense and metaphors youâre both spitting out.Â
When youâre both in the thick of a forest or even on top of Liyueâs mountain, Venti will bring his lyre out and strum his strings softly as you both fall into a comfortable silence. Looking at the sunset or relaxing under the trees as the sun peaks through as you both live in the moment. Itâs these times that youâre harshly reminded that Venti is an archon as he slips out of his persona and speaks as Barbatos. He tells you how fun your adventures have been, that he was glad to have made friends with you, speaking as if youâre about to die tomorrow. Youâre not sure how to handle it, what kind of burden Venti is carrying, but you immediately drop everything and comfort him. Giving him a strong but warm hug that youâre still here and heâs not alone right now.Â
âCome on, Iâm still waiting for the Ballad of Venti. You havenât given up on that right?âÂ
âHmph, of course not. Every being deserves a name to be called upon, and woven into a song.â
Diluc
It was a peaceful day, one Diluc hadnât felt in a long time in his hectic life. Though it was a bit too early to determine how the day would go since it was still noon. The tavern would soon get loud as it approached night but for now. Everything was peaceful. The sounds of Monstadt streets bustling. The peaceful atmosphere as the sun shone through the windows. Working on mundane tasks of wiping the counter down. No Kaeya in sight. A small moment of peace. All broken when his door was kicked nearly off its hinges as you announced your return from your shopping trip as if you had returned after a 3 year long journey. Diluc sighs under his breath, takes a moment to pray he doesnât need to repair his door again, and helps you with your bags as you ramble about your day.Â
To others, itâs always seems a bit weird when they catch Diluc and you chatting since Diluc always gives off the lone wolf persona and yet youâre this ball of sunshine. Maybe itâs because you knew Diluc when he was a child, back when he was still bright-eyed, that you never treated him any differently when he came back. Diluc never really talks about it but heâs happy that youâre still the same and he can let himself relax with you. He still keeps his silent demeanor as he listens to you talk about anything and everything, it helps keeps his mind occupied, but he might add a few comments here and there. Just to let you know heâs still listening.Â
You know what sounds really hot? Sitting in the same room with someone while you both do your own respective thing. You both donât feel forced to talk to each other just because youâre in the same room or you have to do everything together just because youâre together. Itâs an easy atmosphere that settles as Diluc works on business papers and youâre planning your next expeditions. Until you end collapsing on his couch because your brain processing has suffered enough and itâs time to take a nap. You always end up dragging him out of his work to go outside and take a nice doze in the sun.Â
If you ever have a problem, he wonât necessarily coddle you unless it really bothers you or youâre in a situation where it could hurt you, but heâll do everything to help you work through it. Youâre his friend and if someone is giving you a hard time then he has no problem chasing them away, especially if its a Fatui member. If it happens to be Kaeya, well thatâs an entirely different story. Likewise, if it appears to you that Diluc is going through a rough time youâll try and comfort him. Do small little things to let him know that you care and while he doesnât need to tell you whatâs wrong, youâre here to support him.Â
Diluc enjoys playing chess against you, even if he wins most of the time, youâre always so determined that he canât help but laugh along with your over reactions. Presenting him an entire 20 page paper on chess and yet getting checkmated in 10 turns. Youâre 95% sure all the chess strategies he offered were all fake, if his smug grin is anything to go by. You both have agreed to never play darts together, well more specifically, youâre pretty sure youâre banned from playing darts when you almost hit Adelinde. That was the first time you ever genuinely feared for your life.Â
Whenever Diluc has to attend a gala or has to host a party to further his business, heâs always appreciative when you show up. Youâre not exactly apart of royalty or even a business owner but itâs so refreshing to Diluc, after spending so much time keeping a polite attitude and trying to talk business, when he can come to you as you laugh about how one lady almost tripped because her dress was too long. Sometimes heâll lean a bit on you or pretend to be in a conversation just so he can recharge.Â
More often then not, youâre mistaken to be Diluc partner even though the idea of holding Dilucâs hand makes you want to throw up. But when Diluc getâs random fatherâs trying to offer their daughterâs hands in marriage, heâll pull the excuse heâs already with someone if they canât no for an answer. Itâs always funny to you, linking arms with Diluc and re-telling the grandiose story about how Diluc saved you from falling off a cliff when you were both younger and you were both star-crossed lovers that were destined to be together. Or something like that, youâre pretty sure youâve changed the story enough times that you canât keep track. But it seems to work and as soon as they are out of earâs reach you make a quick gagging motion. He shoves you a bit to which you elbow him in the side. Old habits die hard.Â
---
I swear, I could probably recite character stories word for word at this point. Gripping my writing hand donât make it angsty, donât make it angsty, donât fucking do it. But I still did, whoops.Â
I feel like my fics are really long so Iâll add a read more tag. Mmm writing styles are hard. I donât know if I like this;; I ended up writing so much to try and combine my âhcs are just another word for fics just without the dialogueâ and âactual headcanonsâ styles. Ahh, well whatever. I have to go speedrun my assignments since genshin is going to eat all my time this week.Â
#genshin#genshin impact#genshin x reader#genshin impact x reader#genshin imagines#genshin impact imagines#genshin headcanons#genshin impact headcanons#genshin fanfic#genshin impact fanfiction#genshin fluff#genshin impact fluff#genshin venti#genshin impact venti#genshin venti x reader#venti x reader#venti#venti x lumine#venti x aether#venti headcanons#venti imagines#genshin diluc#genshin impact diluc#genshin diluc x reader#diluc x reader#diluc#diluc x aether#diluc x lumine#diluc headcanons#diluc imagines
390 notes
·
View notes
Text
Nancy Drew 3x09 "The Voices in the Frost"
This run of episodes are my favorite! Things with #Nace are simmering.
George, Bess, Nick and Eve
Bess is avoiding Temperanceâs calls. She has done a 180 with Temperance and now suspects her of being a âsociopathâ. While Nancy seems to have become more trusting.Â
George tells Nick that she has freed Odette (didnât that happen like 3 episodes ago?). This somehow turns into a fight between them. These two do NOT portray healthy vibes to me.Â
Eve tells her story and why she is suspected of murder. Perhaps coming off her skeptism of Temperance, Bess spends most of the episode CONVINCED that Eve is actually guilty. (Once Ace is looped in) they ultimately figure out it WAS just an accident. All of this ALSO leads to Nick telling George âWhat are we waiting forâŠletâs get married!â - These two đ€Šââïž
They run to City Hall. George is determined and excited. Relentless in ensuring this marriage will happen despite any barrier. But thenâŠafter commercial break she seems to have done a full 180.
She tells Nick she is still figuring out who she is..but that she wants to do it with him by her side. They have all the time in the world now to get married so what is the rush? Â
THESE TWO GIVE ME WHIPLASH
Nancy, Ace, and Park
Nancy appeals to Park to try and profile the victims of the Frozen Heart Killer to see if they can try and find the other two pieces of Charityâs soul.
Ace thinks he has made a breakthrough and that Charity is the one who has been haunting the Historical Society. Park and Ace have a little banter.Â
âAce thatâs incredibleâ- I love how proud she is. If you watch this scene and focus on just Nancy. She appears to spend the whole time amused and enamored of Ace.Â
Ace has a conversation with his platanchor Bess who clues him in on why Park is rubbing him the wrong way. âYou know that hot stuffy feeling you have right now? That might be because the window between you and Nancy is closing and youâre finally realizing it.Â
Because Ace is always the gentleman and thinking of others, he gets separated from Park and Nancy when he goes to get their coats.Â
While stuck in the tunnel, Park surmises that the Copperhead had actually imprisoned HIMSELF in the cell. He asks Nancy to try and get in the Copperheadâs head by asking âHave you ever been in love?â Their musings lead them to surmise that perhaps it was Beckett and Charityâs love for each other that had cast the spell, as a way for their love to survive and persist. A sort of loverâs pact.Â
âSo you have been in loveâ- Park says as Nancy presents her explanation of âThey just want to be together foreverâ.
We immediately go to Ace.Â
At the end of the ep, Nancy has a revelation that maybe Charityâs soul is passed, not randomly, but through generations. Meaning they can narrow down their search for Charityâs soul by looking at Gettysburg descendants.Â
ANDâŠAce sends the text. (MY ship is rising). Aceâs awkwardness after sending the text but before Nancy sees it is adorableâŠ
And Nancy's hopeful expression when she sees the text is equally adorable đ„°
Episode cliffhangers:
Bess finds Temperanceâs journals and learns her true plans (WHY WAS TEMPERANCE RECORDING THIS ANYWAY?)
While investigating the key, Ace gets sucked into the liminal spaceâŠwhere he finds Hannah.Â
Aceisms
âBecause the FBI is notoriously open-minded about ghostsâÂ
#ace nancy drew#nancy drew reviews#nancydrew#nancy drew#nancy x ace#nace#ace nd#nancy drew season 3#nancy drew meta
9 notes
·
View notes
Text
Chapter 1 - Heart of Silver
Evelyn turns to the infamous curse-broker Ariel for help, after she got cursed by a dead grannyâs fork.
words: 3763 || masterlist
Despite the late summer, the air had grown cold with the nightâs storm. The wind was blowing the rain drops harshly against Evelynâs coat and the persistent noise of its dripping onto her hood mixed with the ringing sound in her ears. With the anxiety that threatened to overflow, she shivered. Even if her hood saved her from the worst, she had to hold it in place with one hand so the wind wouldnât blow it off. Now, that hand was wet, cold and shook even more than the rest of her body. Tripping from one foot to the other did nothing to bring her warmth or to disperse the gnawing threat of doom inside her chest.
   Once again, she pulled out her phone. The fourth of September, 22:34, a Thursday, no new notifications, battery at eleven percent. Raindrops landed on the bright screen and distorted the picture of a flower field in irregular splashes. From the upper right corner, lines like spider legs drew through them.Â
   Frustration settled in her, taking coin-sized bites. Her eyes flicked over to the doorbell again -- she had rung two times already -- maybe a third time would be all right? She knew that Ariel was home, so if they hadnât opened the door after two times, a third ring wouldn't make them either.Â
   Still.
   Just as Evelyn was about to press the bell again, the door opened slightly, barely enough for her to make contact with one eye.Â
   âWhy didnât you text me that youâd come?âÂ
   âI did. You havenât read it yet.â
   Ariel pulled out their old flip phone, dipping their glasses into bright white reflections, and skimmed through what had to be a real handful of messages.Â
   âAh. Oh. Hm.â They stared at a message for a while before they looked up to Evelyn again, opened the door a bit wider. âThere will be a sale for winter tyres down in the old factory on the main road next week.â
   Evelyn was too stunned to answer anything but, âAriel, you donât drive. You donât have a car.â
   âThatâs true.â
   âItâs summer.â
   âAre you sure?â Ariel looked at the rainy night sky, and squinted their eyes.Â
   âListen, Ariel. I wrote in my message-â
   âYeah, I read your message. So what?â They looked up at Evelyn again, closed the door a bit more to shelter from the rain.Â
   âI didnât know who else to ask.â Her voice sounded a bit thin to her own ears then, the uncertainty growing with each passing minute. But she had held on for hours now, and it didnât feel like she had it in herself to hold on for much longer.Â
   Ariel scoffed. âYeah. Obviously, asking anyone but me would be foolish, but I am really busy, you know? A curse is a curse, you should just let it run its course. I am not some sort of all-purpose antidote.â
   Evelyn managed to put her foot in the door before Ariel shut it.Â
   âPlease? Listen, no one knows curses as well as you do. I am afraid I donât have that long and I absolutely canât do this by myself.â
   With both hands against the door, the wind had enough freedom to rob her of her hood, so it drenched her within seconds, stung on her skin like a hundred little needle pricks.Â
   âThereâs just a handful of curses that more or less kill. You want me to believe that you got one of those? Do you know how hard that is? What would be in it for me?â Ariel eyed her suspiciously. All Evelyn did was to pull up her sleeves as far as possible. Where the skin was thinner and fairer, the black veins stood in sharp contrast to her body, shimmering in a dark grey. Arielâs eyes widened in surprise and excitement.
   âA Heart of Silver? How far has it spread?â They grabbed her wrist.Â
   âItâs in my whole blood-stream,â Evelyn replied and pushed her hair from her temples where her veins were just as black. Ariel looked up with an âahâ on their lips and then let go of her wrist again.Â
   âSo, Iâd get the reaping?â
   âItâs all I could offer.â
   âSay, if we fail and youâll be a silver statue, can I keep you then? Put you in the corner of my kitchen?â
   âThis is not funny, Ariel.âÂ
   âThatâs a yes then. Fine. Come in.â They opened the door enough for Evelyn to step through. Instantly, they were caught in this different world of theirs. She was quite certain that Ariel had put a curse on their own apartment somehow that captured the people who walked in, but so far she did not have evidence to support that theory.
   Books towered against the walls everywhere. There was a pot with an enormous fern right in the middle of the hallway. Not a single lamp was lit, and Evelyn could not shake the feeling that it was to hide the shadows of some ghosts living there as well. Perhaps it was the people the not-yet-proven-curse trapped inside of it.
   âYou must tell me everything,â Ariel mumbled while pulling out a few books out of their stacks, seemingly randomly.
   âSo, I got an unexpected call from a granny in the morning. She asked me to help with a haunting. I thought I could just handle a simple ghost. You know that I am good with ghosts.â Evelyn tried to follow them, focusing more on not tripping over most likely enchanted vases, gemstones, and one array that hopefully was not used to curse the apartment.
   âI am quite aware, thatâs why I donât like you coming over.â
   Or maybe the array was drawn to specifically keep her out, who knew.
   âSo, I drove over in the afternoon. Just one old granny and a ghost. There is a nice magnolia tree in the garden. Itâs next to the old school thatâs half covered in ivy and the neighbours complain about it all the time because they think itâs weed, although ivy is very useful with old houses for climatic purposes-â Distinctly, she noticed how she started to ramble, her tongue too fast for her mind to catch up on.Â
   âPlease, for the love of the currently absent blood in your veins, cut yourself short,â Ariel thankfully interrupted and pushed the door to the kitchen open. Evelyn tried very hard to calm herself down with a few measured and calculated breaths, focused on the red lava lamp on the windowsill instead. Multiple candles were lit on the table and next to them slept her black cat whose name Evelyn had never learnt. She only knew her as a beast, my evil gremlin, an annoying menace, YOU!, and the apple of my eye. Currently, the proximity to the candles was once again anxiety inducing.
   Ariel pointed at one of the chairs, so Evelyn sat down and forced herself to keep talking, wiped some of the rain out of her face, along with her sticky bangs that hung in her eyes.Â
âThe granny didnât have money to pay, which is fine, you know I like to help where I can, right? And she had this very evil looking set of silverware in her kitchen drawer, so I started to work on it and she kept rambling about how I had a heart of silver -- which was already a bit weird, I guess, since usually itâs a heart of gold, right? -- but at that moment, I thought she was just old and confused because I was working for free, right? Well, until I poked my finger on a fork and thatâs when it happened.â
   âWas that the short version?â
   âI left out a lot of detail.â
   The coffee machine beeped and Ariel filled the matching cups. They slid one with big bold yellow letters over to Evelyn that read Best Curse Victim, and kept the one with Best Curse Broker In The Whole Wide World.Â
   âDid you custom-make these?â Evelyn asked and Ariel set down the two cups with a grin. They knew that Evelyn preferred tea, but, Tea is for curses and rituals, you canât make me drink hot water with leaves, they liked to argue.Â
   Ariel raised an eyebrow at her quizzically. âI assume the granny then turned out to be a ghost?â
   âShe apparently had died over three months ago, yes.â
There was a deep sigh coming from Ariel as they put up their feet onto the table, dangerously close to the candles.
   âAnd never once while working on silverware and getting praised for your silver heart did you consider the option that perhaps you were getting cursed?â
   âGhosts get better at hiding themselves each day, Ariel,â Evelyn replied with multiple glances to the shadows. Ariel only offered a weak smile and nodded while they pushed the books into the middle of the table, tapped on it with their sparkly painted fingernails.Â
   âI have fourteen books on the Heart of Silver, all very rare collections from back when curse-brokers still thought that this classy beast was curable. I also have read all of these fourteen books.â Ariel took a sip from their coffee and grabbed another pair of glasses that were tucked into a pot of parsley on the windowsill next to the lava lamp. They pushed their former golden glasses up into their soft pink dyed hair.Â
Last time they had met, it had been deep purple. They had tried to make her believe once that it was tied to their moods, like those 90s mood rings of which they wore three. âObviously, I read all the books you can find in this apartment, I wouldnât keep anything that just took up space.â They opened the right page on the first try and slid the book over to Evelyn. The pages were blank.
   âThe pages are blank.â
   âAh, right. I put a curse on them. No one steals books you canât read, am I right? Here,â they slid over the glasses to Evelyn, and once she put them on, black letters appeared on the blank pages. Just none she could read.
   âI donât speak that language, Ariel.â
   âAh, itâs just encrypted.â
Evelyn sighed deeply and put the glasses down again. She warmed her icy fingers on the coffee cup in front of her, the bitter smell of it made her jittery enough.
   âPlease, can you just tell me what you know about it? I am certain that you know your curses, you donât have to prove anything by showing me book excerpts I canât read anyway.â
   Ariel smirked openly then, their eyes clearly tracing the black lines on her skin where the liquid silver was running through her veins.
   âThe Heart of Silver is a curse that dates back all the way to the sixteenth century. That ultimately makes it a curse of the black night level, because we donât know its origin anymore, so understanding it has become as good as impossible. Legends say that it was just another love story, though. Why it is a heart of silver and not of gold is equally unclear. Perhaps they didnât know any better. Then again, a Heart of Gold curse already exists, so. Anyway, the story says that one woman, got jealous of her maid. The maid, being kind-hearted, was just too lovely to her husband, you see. So when that woman died she cursed her maid on her deathbed and said something along the lines of With your heart made of silver, you still wonât be worth enough to appeal to him. Maybe you could feed his greed by turning into actual silver instead.â They took another sip of coffee, taking out another book from the stack on the table and flipping a page open. âHow the curse is passed on is totally unclear as well, although, as you might have noticed, contact with silver seems to be one determinant, as well as someone actually cursing you, also known as a ghost. But why and how? No one knows.â
   âNot even you?â Evelyn asked, feeling punched out. She pulled the new book closer, putting on the glasses again, and there they were. The photos with the evidence that this curse existed. That it was more than just a rumour, a scary story told to teach children not to steal. Proof that her mind wasnât playing tricks on her; that she had understood the situation of her own doom correctly.Â
   A silver statue of a man, the face too realistic to be art, distorted in a scream. His arms were outstretched, all around him scrolls of parchment. 1982, Vienna.
   A silver statue of an old woman, sleeping in her bed. She looked much more peaceful, but her brows were drawn together, giving her discomfort away. 1864, Kuressaare.
   A teenage boy, locked inside a dark room with handcuffs tied to the walls, screams on his silver lips. 2003, Hildesheim.
   Evelyn didnât need to look at more of them. It just made her picture herself as one more of these photos. A corpulent young woman, the face silver but clearly pleading for her life-
   âDoes it hurt? Do you know?â
   âNot sure, sorry. Would it help if you knew?â Ariel looked directly at her then, the soft pink hair glimmering red from the lamp, the candlesâ lights dancing on her glasses.
   âProbably not.â
   âThen letâs try to make it so that you donât have to find out. But just to be clear, I will take notes on the curseâs progress, for scientific purposes.â They pulled a notebook out from under their coffee cup.
   âSure.â
   Ariel grinned and drummed with their golden painted nails onto the table.
   âSoon I will be the first curse-broker to have dealt with the Heart of Silver. Everyone will know my name. Maybe someone will finally publish my book. My google reviews will skyrocket!â
   âYou always say a truly good curse-broker gets only bad reviews. And that book doesnât get published because you describe for three hundred pages how to create various curses. â
   âThatâs because if you want to deal with curses, you need to understand them from the inside out first. Also, creating curses can be fun, I promise.â
   With a glimpse to the shadows, Evelyn nodded in slight agreement. Unease found its way back to her, like an intrusive thought stuck to her skin. The more she listened to her body, the more she felt like it had changed. She was sure to feel the silver in her veins, believed that her body had gotten heavier â was silver heavier than blood? She was sure that her skin had gotten harder where it ran through her.
   âYou still there?â Ariel waved before her eyes, nearly poked her, but Evelyn flinched back before they got to. She finally took a sip of her own coffee. The bitterness made her squirm but at least she was able to still taste it.
âSo, if the books are all useless, as you say, then where do we start?â
   âWell, as I said, if you want to deal with curses, you have to know them from the inside out. Only if I know how you got it in the first place, I will have a chance at extracting it and exchanging it for a different one. A curse is a near-living thing, after all. If I just rip it out, it might do more damage than aid. I need to know why you fit in its scheme, how it develops inside of you. So I would say we should start with the ghost who put that curse on you, since that granny might be able to answer those questions, but I assume you hunted the shit out of that ghost, didnât you?â
   Evelyn froze as she remembered the exchange, the prospect of a new curse. She gave her best not to tremble too much as she asked, âThe new curse-â
âI canât tell you what it will be yet.â
âBut how-â
âOkay, Iâll give you the short explanation. Any curse corrupts its host. Your body lets it nest inside of it, and usually you will let the curse run its course until itâs fulfilled or withered and the space will grow back. More or less. If I have to extract the curse, the space will be hollow and harm your body and mind. It leaves room for possessions, diseases and much more. So instead I extract the awful curse and give you a new one that is slightly less awful. But in order to do that, the new curse needs to fill out the same space. I need to understand both curses to the T, so that this procedure works. Thatâs also why I canât tell you anything about the new curse yet, because I need to understand the Heart of Silver first. Got it?âÂ
Evelyn nodded, a little as if in a daze.Â
âSo, the granny?â
âGone, yes.â Evelyn sighed deeply. âI didnât think that she would be of help. I just saw her as a ghost and sent her off.â
   âThe mark?â
   âJust the silver veins, they started in the hand with which I touched the fork.â
   âMn. It looks like it has spread completely since then. That doesnât need to mean anything, though.â Ariel wrote down notes in a book, the penâs ink invisible to Evelynâs eyes.
   âWhen exactly was this?â
   âSomewhen between five and six, this evening.â
   Ariel wrote down more notes, far more than Evelyn had said, so she could only assume that those were some curse related conclusions. After a few minutes, Ariel had emptied their second cup of coffee. At this point, they looked up again and pressed their lips together.
   âI would like to see the curse medium then. You donât happen to still have that fork?â
   Evelyn shook her head, âI assume itâs still in the house, though. I saw the police wrapping everything up as well, so we should be alone there.â She forced the rest of her coffee down her throat, ignoring how it upset her stomach just a moment later. Ariel nodded and got up, carrying the two cups over to the sink.
   âWell, then. Letâs get going, shall we?â They nodded towards the door and Evelyn went to follow them. Before Ariel closed the kitchen door, she looked back. âShouldnât you blow out your candles? Your cat is so close and-â
   âOh, I cursed the candles, donât worry. They donât burn anything. I feel a little bad for doing it, though. Imagine being a fire and then the only thing you can burn is candle wax. So sad.â
   They reached the door and Evelyn stopped once more in her tracks.
   âDo you really want to leave like that?â she asked and looked down Arielâs onesie with ghost-print.
   âOh, right, shoes,â they answered, fetching a pair of run down converse, not bothering to tie the laces. They tucked them in and pointed to the door. âNow?â
   But Evelyn still felt like they had forgotten something important. Something they needed to consider before they left. Maybe it was just her fear of entering that house again where she had gotten cursed in the first place, the fear of not finding what they needed to. The fear that she would so utterly fail in the quest of saving her life, of destroying the curse. It was too close to past memories, perhaps. The image of the old lady dissipating into thin air as she sent her off still lingered in her mind, and she couldnât help but see herself in that place.
   âAh, of course,â Ariel mumbled, pulled out a single hair from Evelyn and burnt it in the candle standing next to the door. âMy mistake.â They waved to the outside, and finally Evelyn found the strength to walk again.
   âSo you did curse your own apartment!â
   âNonsense, I never said that,â Ariel replied with a grin and the rain poured down on them once more. Like needles, it pricked on her skin. If she turned into a silver statue, she would never feel it again. They ran to her old Corolla, parked so very badly in line.
   âYou know, those winter tires are really cheap now. You should get them as long as they are affordable. I bet they will be much pricier once itâs winter.â
   âGotta make it to winter first,â Evelyn muttered and turned on the motor. The radio gave white noise â a side effect of getting cursed, or maybe just a coincidental break-down.
   âSo pessimistic. Really, youâre insufferable.â Ariel started to play snake on their phone.Â
The way to the old house was quiet except for the occasional white noise when the radio came to life unasked. The road was mostly deserted at the late hour, some street lights only blinked yellow already. It was not until she turned on the road to leave the small city that Ariel shifted in the front seat.
   âWhere were you the whole last year, Evelyn?â Their voice was softer now. The phone tucked inside their pocket. With a quick glance, she could see that they looked outside. Of course, they would ask. Evelyn had known that. Despite this, she still didnât know what to answer. How to say the words to Ariel that she could hardly think to herself.
   âI just⊠I was not so well.â A kind euphemism for lying in bed all day, ignoring her calls and living off of pizza and instant noodles.
   âWe could have really used you then. There was that Undine in the sink of that favourite restaurant of yours. Took three of us to get her out of there. You could have probably managed her yourself.â A harsh way to say that she had been missed. A nice way to say that Ariel was hurt.
   âIâm sorry.â Lousy words. They would not make up for letting her friends down. Not really.
   âItâs fine, you donât have to apologize.â She had to, though. She really had to.
   Evelyn pulled into the street, the utmost street of the small-town. One could see the forest behind it from here. At the end of the street stood an old house, next to the old school that was covered in ivy.
   âI just wanted you to know that youâre needed, even if you think you arenât. Or I donât know⊠Ah, you know.â Words were hard for Ariel, too. But Evelyn thought she understood them, and nodded with a slight smile. It had been like that between them from the beginning, somehow.
----
WIP intro || masterlist || next chapter
#writeblr#novella#my writing#original fiction#fantasy#urban fantasy#ghosts#curses#wip; heart of silver#heart of silver chapter 1#tw body horror#tw depression#tw death mention#not really body horror but also not not body horror but no spooky if that clears it up x)
29 notes
·
View notes
Note
HELLO COULD U DO SOEMTHING FOR UHHHHHHHHH SAD READER WITH REX I LOVE YOY
**so this fic literally disappeared for a week and then randomly appeared in my drafts??? Merry Christmas miracle I guess???**
So I havenât written anything in over a month so this is going to be really rusty and probably really short Iâm so sorry. But I love you too <3
This got super deep so Iâm actually putting a warning on this
CONTENT TRIGGER WARNING: Deep/confusing/poetic descriptions of depression and anxiety. I kinda dug into my own brain for these descriptions, so I apologize if they donât make sense.
--
You both would never get used to it, but it has always been expected. With each passing month the war raged on with no end in sight. More shinies arrived, and less of the experienced returned home. No matter the length of Rexâs missions, they were always grueling and draining for both of you - Rex because of what he experienced on the field, and for you, it was the anxiety of wondering if this was the mission he never returned from.
Rex and yourself did your absolute best to stay in contact while he was away, but due to the nature of war, it was often difficult. You never blamed him or felt mistreated when there were unread messages and missed coms, but it always felt like a stab in the gut. Was he busy or dead? Much of your relationship during these times was a waiting game.
This time, however, Rex had been very quick and frequent with his replies and calls back to you. Your conversations were lighthearted and it was a good distraction for both of you while chaos ruled the galaxy in the distance between each of you. I can promise I will be home this time, and soon, Rex stated before he wished you goodnight. He would message you first thing in a morning, though it was an unspoken promise that he always would.
--
Rex was aware, when you had some time off from your own work, you stole the opportunity to sleep in late. But many hours had passed since his morning greeting, and you hadnât even read it. Again and again he peeked at his com, hoping you simply had a late start to the day or got busy. Before he knew it, evening arrived for him and there was still nothing from you. He shut himself away in his tent, meditating in silence over a screen that would not glow with your name for many more days.
--
He had been correct about having a slow morning, though you didnât experience much of it. Not even bothering to check the time or your com, you remained in bed for what seemed like an eternity. There was a stillness about your apartment that brought with it an ringing that haunted your conscious. The walls and the ceilings were all that seemed to keep your body from severing its ties with your mind. Bu the numbness in your limbs and chest made you believe otherwise.
Your process of waking played out like stop motion animation. Every breath, every flex of your muscles, felt like it cost another cell of your sanity. Even your muscle memory was shot; as you stood below the steady stream of water from your shower head, you had no idea how or when you got there, or if you had even grabbed the soap. When you stepped out, you did not dare look at yourself in the mirror.... you werenât even sure of there would be anyone there to look back.
You knew what this was by the only thing that reminded you -the only evidence of your being alive - the ache in your chest. It ruled over you, directed you, silenced your thoughts and your needs, became the lord of your kingdom of pain so cold it burned. The throne of which your heart rested was now nothing more than a pile of splinters, piercing itâs walls with every beat.
You hated this place, what it did to you, but when one left the windows open at night, trouble would eventually make its way in. Behind the back of trouble, you did your best to search for the window, to grasp its locks and pull it tightly shut. If only you could wipe these blinding dreams from your eyes, you could find it better.
--
Rex knew what this was by the sheer ringing silence that echoed from his empty messages. He knew you could hear it too, but that it would be much louder, more persistent, on your end. It wasnât his absence that caused this in you, he was well aware, but it roused a panic in him when it happened while he was thousands and thousands of miles away.
Just a moment, Commander.
He led himself away from the group and opened up his comm to send a voice message.
He hoped a moment would be enough.
--
The blip, the ringing, went right over your head. They werenât important, they could mean anything.
But his voice? It was enough to wake the part of you that had the power to break the spell. You listened.
âY/n, I hope you can hear me. Itâs Rex... I- uh, I only have a few minutes, so pay attention.
Cyarâika, Iâm guessing youâre having another episode. Itâs been a few days since I heard from you, and I recognize the pattern. Iâm not sending this because Iâm angry, Iâm sending this because I just want you to know that I love you.
We are about to board ship, and Iâll be halfway home before a day passes. I repeat- I will be home soon.
Donât worry about sending me any messages, or about cleaning the apartment, or making dinner. I know itâs hard right now and I donât expect anything from you. Iâll take care of everything when I get back.
My only request is that you stay alive, and I will see you when I get home. We can work it out from there.
Again... I love you. Even when youâre hurting. Please take care, cyarâika.â
You sat down. You were at the kitchen table.
Stay alive? You could manage that.
Taglist: @the-mandalorian-clone-lover @bad-batch-of-fics @simping-for-fives @nelba @captainrexstan @ahsokatano-thetogruta @sunburstcody @leias-left-hair-bun @fractiouskat @majorshiraharu @arc-troops @artemis61003 @mackstrut @captainrexwouldnever @captainrexisboo @your-clone-boyfriend
#captain rex x reader#captain rex#captain rex x oc#captain rex x you#captain rex x y/n#rex x reader#rex#swtcw#depression#anxiety#mental health
125 notes
·
View notes
Text
You Too (Jotaro Kujo x Fem!Reader)
Inspired from my in-character interaction with @mistaeq! Dedicated to them for motivating me to write! đ
A Post!SDC Jotaro x Reader one shot where you bond with Holly, who you call Seiko, and pamper your man Jotaro.
Trigger Warning: Mentions of Trauma
Word Count: 3k
Two years have passed since the events of the Crusaders' trip to Egypt to save the life of Holly Kujo from being taken by her own Stand. To say that the trip was memorable is an understatement. It was too memorable. The memories of built friendships and increased attachments in just a span of fifty days were unbearable, for fate made the surviving comrades of the group pay for all the joyous moments with the pain of death and eternal separation.
It was hard. Painful. Frightening. Heartbreaking.
It was excruciatingly traumatizing, that even the boy who appeared to be unbothered and distant, the boy who put an end to the cold-blooded century old vampire's curse, couldn't deny it.
Jotaro Kujo couldn't get away from the memories of his dying friends, and so, the supposed flashbacks became inescapable nightmares.
But fortunately, that was until you came.
You met Jotaro a month after he came back from his trip. The meeting was a mere coincidence as you were a year lower than him, you personally did not and had no intentions of getting to know him. It just so happened that Holly or Seiko, his mother, came across your small shop that sold self-designed accessories made from recycled materials. You had told her you search and pick the materials âmostly trashâ yourself, which certainly piqued the woman's interest and told you, âIs that right? I have a son, and don't tell him I told you this, but he loves marine animals! It seems you are both fond of nature so I'm sure you'll get alongâ Oh! I'm sorry dear, we haven't introduced ourselves! I'm Holly Kujo, but you can call me Seiko~â. She was a sweetheart, so you saw no harm in accepting her offer that led you to become a close acquaintance of the Kujo Family.
Much to the matchmaker's Seiko's dismay, it took a year for you and Jotaro to confess that your platonic feelings are in need of a level up. She is Jotaro's mother and your first Kujo friend, of course she'd notice if something was up between you and Jotaro that you both refused to talk about! When you finally re-introduced yourself as Jotaro's.. cough.. girlfriend, Seiko was delighted and decided to treat her second favorite couple (next to her parents Joseph and Suzie) to a nice romantic dinner! The unplanned date embarrassed Jotaro, but he endured it as it gave a good start for the new level of your relationship with him.
Until then, Jotaro became more and more protective. You found it sweet knowing that your boyfriend, former acquaintance, cares about you and shows affection in ways you quite expected for a forbearing man like him. He's not a man of words nor materialistic gifts but a man of straightforward actionsâ yet he remained mysterious.
Jotaro has been avoiding you since the week has started. He distanced himself yet guarded you as you walked home after class everyday. Everytime you tried to catch him, he's nowhere to be seen. You started to get frustrated, and you know you wouldn't get any explanation even if you corner him and face him alone.
Seiko called you today and asked if you could have dinner wih them, which you excitedly agreed to because you were actually on the way to the Kujo household, a paper bag âwhich contained your newly designed rings and necklaceâ in hand.
With Seiko greeting you outside their gates, you entered their traditional mansion and told her about the happenings from the previous days. Even with the mention of Jotaro's sudden actions, Seiko chatted with you nonchalantly.
âDear, you know my boy would do things that can be a little too unexpected even for me,â Seiko stated, âBut if there's one thing or two that I can assure of, is that he means no harm..â You stopped in your tracks as she faced you and tucked your hair behind your ear, smiling, âAnd he cares for you, [Y/N]. I think, that may be his way of showing it!â Seiko spoke with softness, hopeful that her words would reach you and get rid of any confusion that would spark a misunderstanding on her stoic son's intentions.
You smiled back at Seiko with teary eyes, touched by her comfort. You pulled out the necklace from your paper bag and showed it to her, quietly telling her that it's your gift, only to receive an enthusiastic squeal and hug before you locked the accessory around her neck.
âIt looks perfect on you Seiko! I wonder if I'd be as beautiful as you when I reach your age..â You sighed and pouted at Seiko, holding the paper bag on your middle.
âOh, you!â Seiko playfully hit you as you both giggled, âYou shouldn't say such things to a middle aged woman, [Y/N]! I might believe you!â Seiko joked while you insisted that you're sincere about your compliment.
Your chat continued on until she told you to run along and check on her boy, not forgetting to tease that Jotaro misses you. You face warmed in pink, which Seiko found so cute that she had to pinch your cheeks. With her positive and welcoming presence, your determination to face Jotaro fueled.
Seiko informed you that she'll be preparing dinner. You replied, âMhm! I'll drag Jotaro and we'll meet you here at the dining room! Is that okay?â
âOkay~!â
â
Meanwhile Jotaro, who hasn't come out of his room the whole day, heard you and Seiko pass by. He was sitting in the far corner of his room but the combined voices of yours and his mother's particularly blasted through his ears. He's.. happy.. that you're both safe and sound.. butâ why are you here? You should be at home! Did something happen? Did someone bother you? Wait.. did you come here alone? Didn't he tell you even before that you shouldn't go out at night? What if.. what if something happened to you? What if someone showed up and.. and took you away? Took you somewhere.. he can't reach.. What if his dreams were to happen? What ifâ
Knock! Knock!
Jotaro's sweating face turned to look at his door as his breathing became more unsteady. His eyes widened, brows clashed, and his mouth was agape, gasping for more air. His fists were clenched and he was trembling, who's knocking? Who's trying to get him again?
âKujo?â
Jotaro stopped breathing for a second while his body still trembled. The voice that called him held sweetness and concern in it but he was still in a dark trance. What if someone's trying to deceive him?
âSeiko called me, may I come in?â
His widened eyes calmed, turning his tormented expression into one of those longingness. His shuddering arm reached out as he subconsciously stood and walked towards his shut door. His cold hand gripped the handle.. but he didn't have the slightest strength to pull it himself. What is he doing? He can't face anyone like this, especially..
On the other side of Jotaro's door was you, with a hand that also gripped the cold handle, waiting for the right timing to enter. Your heartbeat has increased its pace, indicating your uptight feeling of facing him after not seeing him for over a week. You were nervous and a short flashback of your first meeting with Jotaro popped up in your mind. Has it really been two years?
Jotaro never directly told you of his.. episodes. But, there were times where you just happened to observe that whenever you were late on your meeting, he immediately scoops you in a hug while he trembles; or whenever you randomly visit him on weekends and you enter his room only with a knock, he abruptly charges at you with his folded fist stopping inches from your worried face. He didn't tell you about what's haunting him, not even once. Yes, you were undeniably frustrated by him avoiding you, but you love him well enough to have the willingness to act up whilst having patience.
You waited for more minutes before speaking again, âI'm gonna enter now, alright?â You assured, carefully sliding the door behind you and turning on the light switch after you entered.
Your eyes wandered after it adjusted to the lit room, locking on the form of a slouched man in the corner, sitting with a knee up that had his arm and head resting on it while his other knee was folded. You quietly sighed and walked close to him, hiding the impatience to throw yourself at him and pepper him with kisses, mumbling i missed yous. You would have done it, but that kind of affection.. goes for later.
You sat beside Jotaro and placed the paper bag on your side. You weren't too close nor too far from him, just enough to have your hand caress his messy dark hair. You loved seeing him without his hat, seeing his flawless face be shadowless. But if he took it off, the reason is either he's agitated or.. sleep. There was a time when you told him that he should take off his hat indoors and a time you tried to take it off yourself, but he completely ignored you at both and kept the hat on.
âHow are you?â You asked without expecting a reply. It was to make him acknowledge your presence, and that is because you didn't know that he's been waiting for you to come in since the moment he heard your voice.
Jotaro wanted to answer. He wanted to lock you in his arms and.. say sorry. He wanted to apologize for neglecting you butâ how is he going to do that without telling you too much?
âWhy the f*ck did my mother call you? I don't need any help. That b*tch.â
There it is, his method of putting up a tough facade, the swearing that would prompt anybody to think that he needs no help. It worked on you once, but you're not just anybody to him now.
âMhm. Seiko checked up on me while I was heading home from.. somewhere. She invited me for dinner,â You informed. You didn't want to tell him that you were on your way here even before Seiko called you, knowing full well that he's against you âroamingâ at night alone.
You continued to comb through his hair as he answered, âFor real [Y/N], I'm fine. Leave. I don't need you to stay hereâ or.. or something.â
Your hand lowered to his upper back and started to rub circles, âWould you look at me and say that again, Kujo?â you asked in a slightly teasing tone, trying to light up the mood.
You started humming a soft melody, a melody that somehow always soothed Jotaro. The first time you hummed it was when you were cooking dinner for him and Seiko wasn't home. He got into a fight that day and he was abnormally quiet, not the usual, resulting to a tension between the two of you. You hummed the melody to ease the atmosphere, and when you were placing his plate on the table, he suddenly grabbed your wrist and muttered an apology before he told you to âkeep doingâ what you were doing. The melody was just random, so you did your best to remember its tone and hum it whenever you both need comfort.
And this time, he was soothed again, but he isn't going to be swayed so easily even if he wants to.
âF*cking go away.â He huffs, âYou're just like the annoying b*tch. Leave me alone.â
No, stay. He stated in his mind the complete opposite of what came out of his mouth. Of course you didn't leave and continued to hum and rub circles on his back. He may be one of the harshest men you've met, but you have a counter for that. Well.. you're stubborn.
He remembered what you said about heading home from.. somewhere. Where was that? âWhere were you coming from?â He asked in a demanding tone.
âDoesn't matter where I was, Kujo. You're still not looking at me.â You retreated your hand from his back and crawled to sit in front of him in crossed legs before placing your hands on his large ones, âI wouldn't mind being like Seiko, although..â You squeezed the top of his hands, bowed your body and peeked at his face where your warm [E/C] eyes met his tired yet enchanting aquamarines. Your lips quirked into a small smile, âYou wouldn't want your partner to be your second mother, would you?â
Partner?
Jotaro looked at you blankly, not realizing how close your faces were, âYou're still worrying about me too much, I'm fine. I'm.. I'm just remembering..â You straightened and held his cheeks, gently pulling up his face before standing on your knees. You shifted your hand and cupped his face, delicately looking at him to encourage him to speak.
In that moment where he's putting his toughness down, you've completely set aside the issue from the past week. The thoughts that Jotaro might've had enough of you because he thinks you're oblivious to his personal issuesâ all gone. Holly's words echoed through your mind. Mother truly knows best.
âEgypt.. friends dyiââ Jotaro cut his words and sighed deeply, â..all of it is hitting hard. You won't understand.â
You bit your bottom lip and nodded. He's right, you would not be able to understand, but that's temporary. It'll take more time for him but you're willing to wait, âI.. dream of you..â He swallows the lump in his throat while you wipe the sweat forming on his temple, âI dream of you dying too.â
With that, you were able to catch on more of what happened before you came in his life. People close to him died. People who he probably traveled with.. might have died right before him.. or not. And now he's being haunted, probably by the guilt or by the experience itself. You're still skeptical, but it's considerably clear now.
Your eyes that looked at your hand which wiped his bead of sweat shifted to his eyes, and you saw fear. He was frightened, not only by the past, but also by the possibility that he might lose you too.
You retreated your hands and sat on your legs as you and Jotaro continued to communicate through your eyes. Your heart was thumping fast against your chest, now of sympathy.
âJotaro, I..â
This time, you threw yourself at him. Arms snaking around his neck, your face buried on his shoulder. You wrapped him in a tight hug as it took him time to return the affection, wrapping his arms around your back and pulling you even closer as he closed his eyes and basked his head on yours. You and Jotaro savored the hug for a while, not thinking about anything else aside being in each other's arms.
âI'm here.. and I'm telling you that I'll be here to love you longer than that delinquent head of yours expected.â
You broke the hug gently, a hand shifting to cup his cheek while you also reached for the paper bag. Jotaro opened his eyes as he felt you fix his sitting position so you could sit âwith crossed legsâ on his thighs, laying your back on his chest.
âSee this?â You lifted the paper bag with both hands, giving Jotaro the chance to once again wrap his arms around your waist. He doesn't mind giving in to your touch as of now.
Jotaro grunted, âInside this lovely recycled and eco-friendly paper bag are things that.. uhm.. how do I introduce it..â You slowly placed your head on his shoulder, putting the bag down between your legs. You contemplated as you stared on the wooden ceiling, âI know! The things.. consider it as our promise to each other, Kujo. Am I clear? Yep, I'm clear!â
Jotaro clicked his tounge in annoyance as you lifted your head from his shoulder when he was about to rest his head against yours. Why can't he just cuddle you without you moving too much? Can't you and him just cuddle in peace?
You shifted again, now face to face with him. You acted surprise when you saw his furrowed brow, âOh? Kujo is annoyed with the mighty [L/N]?â
âJust get it over with, woman.â Jotaro supported your back with an arm, watching you as you struggled to hold his free hand with one of yours. You had set aside the paper bag, the things in it now hidden in your other hand.
When you finally settled with wrapping your small hand around his palm so his fingers were loose, you smiled up at him and swiftly leaned in to kiss the tip of his nose. Jotaro turned away, snorting to at least lessen his flustered state. Where is his hat now that he practically needs it?
Jotaro felt a cold thing graze his skin, along with what seems to be two fingers pushing the thing on his. He glanced and saw you inserting a ring on his pinky with a serious face. You were glaring at his hand, your smile only returning when you successfully inserted the ring.
You let go of his hand and was about to wear the other ring yourself when he grabbed your wrist, snatched the ring and easily inserted the accessory on your pinky, all of it with only one hand as his other arm was still supporting you.
You were taken aback, ready to question him when he pulled you into a bridal position and locked your upper body with his arms within a second. You chuckled instead of saying a thing, wrapping your arms around his torso.
âKeen for a cuddle, huh, Kujo?â
âGood grief. You're one brave woman to challenge me.â
As you and Jotaro became ignorant to your surroundings, a flash of a camera resided from the slightly opened door, the sound being followed by a muffled kyaaah! which, with no doubt, came from the adorably giddy mother of the impatient man in your arms.
[End!]
#jotaro kujo#holly kujo#seiko kujo#jotaro x reader#post sdc#holly x reader#platonic holly#jjba part 3#stardust crusaders#sdc#jotaro has ptsd#holly is best mom â€ïž#u call holly seiko bc y not#jojo's bizarre adventure#jojo#jotaro one shot#reader loves nature#one shot with plot#well not rlly#written by a noob#open for criticisms#I LOVE JOOT#mirawrites
271 notes
·
View notes
Text
Face to Face- Chapter 31
Summary: When Danny went through the ghost catcher, he expected to be cured of the ghostliness that had haunted him since the accident, not to wake up on the lab floor with his parents saying heâd been overshadowed but everythingâs back to normal now. But why does Danny Fenton cry himself to sleep to then dream of flying? Why does Phantom, the ghost who was supposedly possessing Danny remember a life that wasnât his? Most of all, why do both the human and the ghost feel that something vital is missing, in their very soul? Or: Trying to cure himself of his powers one month after the accident, Danny accidentally splits himself but neither his ghost nor his human half know that that is what they did
First -> Last -> Next
Word Count: 3,730
Also on AO3 and Fanfiction.net
Fenton and Phantom couldnât see through their tears, the water streaming down their faces obscuring their vision of the world around them. All shades of green, splashes of purple and drab brown rushed past as they flew. Their thoughts screamed with a haunting echo, coming back twice.Â
MomâŠ.she wasnât...sheâs not sorry. She canât...canât accept Phantom. She doesnât love me. ButâŠ. A sniffle broke through two throats, separated by dimensions yet somehow closer that ever. I canât just pretend to be human for her. I canât just be Fenton! Like the portal didn't... Like nothing happened...I canât...Iâm not the same!
Their bodies moved without conscious effort, the need to escape so large. Why did he do this? Why did he always run away?
Two voices that were one muttered. âThis wasâŠ.this was supposed to fix things. But...I messed it up!â
He kept running, kept flying. They didnât know where they were going, just away. Away from all the things that kept hurting him.Â
Somewhere, far away voices were calling his name. âDanny!â
 âEverythingâs messed up! Why canât anything ever go right for me?!â Hands gripped hair that was black. Or was is white? No, it was both but-
âDanny! Whatâs happening?â Someone called.
âTalking to Mom was supposed to fix things!â He cried.Â
âDanny! Youâve gotta look at us, man!â
A whine exited two throats. âBut sheâs never gonna accept me.â
âDanny! Fenton! Listen to us.â Fenton? Who was-
Hands appeared on their shoulders. No, on just one set of their shoulders but which-
âFenton, you need to come back to us.â
Come back to⊠âSam? Tucker?â He recognized the voices.
âYeah. Itâs us, dude.â âCome back to us.â
Come back? He needed to come back to- He blinked. And something snapped. Like a rubber band stretched too far, two components snapped back into place.
âSam. Tucker.â Fenton frowned, clarity entering his vision. Or more likeâŠ.his vision shifted away from what heâd been seeing before, from the swirling green clouds, floating purple doors, and hunks of rock in the Ghost Zone. His eyes widened. The Ghost Zone?! He was-
âYeah man.â Tucker squeezed his shoulder. âAre you with us now?â
Numbly, Fenton nodded. âYeah. Iâm here.â His mouth felt dry.
âWhat happened?â Sam asked softly.
The boy swallowed. âI-âÂ
Fenton! Something in him cried. Fear lashed out, threatening to pull him back inside himself. Where...where are you? Where am I? Whatâs happening?
âPhantom!â The human called, vision again starting to blur.
Hands gripped him more tightly. âDonât you dare leave us again.â
âSam. Tucker. No IâmâŠâ He sucked in a breath. âPhantom. Iâm still here. Itâs-â Fenton felt pulled in two directions. He needed to be here, with his friends. He needed to tell them what was happening. But.... No, he needed to be with Phantom. He-
Cold crashed into him, stealing his breath. âSam? Tucker?â Why did he sound surprised, like he was just now recognizing? Again, his...their lines blurred but in the wrong way.
âFocus!â Sam shook him. âFenton! We need you to-â
âWhy are you calling me Fenton?â Phantom asked through him...No Fenton asked...NoâŠ
Gasping, the human body pulling out of Samâs grip. He leaned over, suddenly nauseous. âWhy canât I just be one person?!â
âDanny!â His friend grabbed his jumpsuit free arms again. âWhichever Danny you are, you need to tell us whatâs happening.â
Another deep breath. Human eyes closed and the ghostly vision of the Zone opened up. Both heads shook. They needed to focus on Sam and Tucker but...being exposed in the Zone with their eyes closed would be bad. No, push the vision away, like itâs just an imagined day dream.
âMy human bodyâs here in the real world with you and Tucker.â
Tucker and Sam frowned, but neither commented on the oddity at the beginning of the statement. Instead, the technogeek asked. âAnd the other you?â
âIâmâŠ.HeâsâŠ.WeâreâŠ.weâre in the ghost zone.âÂ
âThe ghost zone!â Sam exclaimed.
A nod. âPhantom tried to talk to Mom. It...uhh...it didnât go well. So we ran off.â
Tucker blinked. âYou ran off...to another dimension?â
âWe panicked, okay! The portal...it was right there. And there was yelling and...I wasnât thinking! Talking to Mom was supposed to help but... but now weâre lost somewhere in the freaking land of the dead!â The panic that their friends had managed to briefly calm flared, their breathing increasing into a pant. âI meanâŠ.weâd wanted to see the Ghost Zone, but not like this! And now Momâs probably mad at us and I donât know where I am!â Again, hands gripped black and white hair.
âHey, itâs okay. Calm down.â Sam pleaded.
âOkay! Okay! Iâm lost. Iâm-â
âDanny.â Tucker interrupted. âJust take a breath, okay? See if you can figure out which direction you came from.â
âYeah.â Sam agreed. âTry to go back the way you came. You couldnât have flown that far.â
Another breath. âYeah. Okay.â Both heads turned side to side, looking around. The human body stepped away from their friends, turning in a circle like someone looking for a recognizable landmark. âThere? NoâŠâ He growled in annoyance. âEverythingâs moving too fast.â They turned back towards Sam and Tucker, in the real world. Their breath puffed in front of them. Then blue and green eyes suddenly widened in panic as they flinched back. âShit!â
Several things happened in quick succession. Their human vision blacked out as a rock the size of a minivan hurdled towards their ghost form. The ghost dodged, rapidly ascending. The human tried to copy the action, but being unable to fly, jumped up and then fell to the ground.
âDanny!â Sam and Tuckerâs voices again came from far away, the sound traveling through their perception, along with the shock from hitting the ground.
But the feeling passed in a moment as more rocks flew towards them. They dodged and weaved, yelping as a small boulder clipped the edge of their tail. Where were these rocks coming from?!
Below, something growled. They looked down, eyes falling on a large, muscular figure with one eye in the center of its face. Another ghost! That must have been what set off their ghost sense. It roared, yelling something about staying away from its island. They didnât need to be told twice.
Their ghostly form darted away in a blur, just thinking of escaping the attack. After no more than a minute, they slowed, eyes searching for a place to stop. There! A small, bare island, no more than a quarter of a football field. Near the center was a large boulder, leaning towards the side and forming a small sheltered space. They landed, praying it was empty. Whole body shaking with fear, they sunk to the ground, curling up inside the cave and pulling their lower half, which was still in the serpentine form of a ghostly tail to their chest. Their chest heaved with shaking breath as the tears renewed.Â
It wasnât fair. They were lost and scared and tired. Some ghost just attacked them again and they were stranded on some random rock in the Ghost Zone. They shivered; everything around them was so cold but they were somehow too hot. Everything ached and they were starving because they were missing lunch and their knees hurt from when they fell. And...Wait-
A white haired head whipped up, nose wrinkling in confusion as the slight of their tail. They didnât have knees right now, did they? ButâŠ..
Their stomach flopped with sudden nausea. This wasnât right. This wasnât right. Newly recognized sensations spark in their perception: the distant sound of Sam and Tuckerâs voices, grass under a head, the throb of sore knees.
In the Zone, the ghost leaned forward, feeling sick. Something was wrong. It hurt. Everything hurt so much. Their skin was too tight; the core pulsed too slow and the heart beat too fast.Â
âFenton? Phantom? Danny?â They asked, out into the now silent alien environment. Which one...which ones were they? Who wereâŠ.who was he? He was...they were both orâŠ. all three? Or something in the middle? Ghost or human? One person or two fragments? To his supreme distress, they couldnât tell, mind overcome with confusion.Â
Danny, or someone who was almost Danny, pinched his eyes closed. This was...this wasnât right. He wasnât supposed to be like this. It wasnât supposed to be like this. He felt...he felt like a half reassembled puzzle, one that had been rapidly put together by randomly pushing the pieces together. Instead of the pieces interlocking and forming a complete picture, they were mismatched, the picture fuzzy, off, and disjointed. He...they hadnât put themselves...himself back together correctly.
He sucked in a breath. He...they couldnât do this, couldnât be this right now. They...he needed Fenton and Phantom, needed to be Phantom and Fenton, but not at the same time. Not yet. They would...he would be back to himself soon but firstâŠ.before the complete picture could be reformed, they needed to pull apart the mismatched puzzle pieces.
His humanity, the part of himself, themselves, that called himself Fenton pulled away. Tangled threads unraveled, the pain easing. Ghost and human separated, divided but still tethered together, even across dimensions.Â
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fenton slowly came back to awareness, his consciousness returning to his body. Voices buzzed above him.
âShould we get Jazz? Or call his parents?â
âWe canât do that, Tucker! Didnât you hear? He had a fight with his Mom.â
âWell, we canât just take him to the nurse, Sam!â
Sam? Tucker? They were fighting, but what about?
âI know that but-â
âYou saw what happened! His eyes started glowing and he started muttering to himself and running away from us. We almost got him calm! Then he freaked out and passed out!â
Oh yeah, that. His eyes blinked open, squinting in the sunlight. He groaned.
That got Sam and Tuckerâs attention. âDanny!â Both cried as they knelt down beside him.
âAre you back with us?â Sam asked, brow furrowed with concern.
Fenton nodded, sluggishly. âYeah, Iâm back.â His hands clenched and unclenched, grabbing fists full of grass. So he was on the ground. He glanced towards his feet, eyeing the grass stains on his jeans and his aching knees.
Tucker offered his hand. âHere, let me help you up.â The other boy accepted, half pulling, half pushing himself back into a sitting position. âSo...which one are you?â
Blinking in confusion, Fenton turned his head to find his friends looking at him warily. After a moment, his mind caught up with the question. âIâm FentonâŠ.just Fenton.â He frowned, rubbing his eyes. He pulled his hands away, eyeing the moisture on his fingers. Huh...so he had been crying.
âWhat was that?â Samâs quiet question drew him out of his thoughts.
The human frowned, biting his lip. âIâm not⊠Iâm not really sure.â He looked down at his hands. âIt kinda felt like...we almost fused. But...it wasnât right. We were confused andâŠâ His voice quieted. âIt hurt.âÂ
The boy then glanced up, taking in his friendsâ stricken looks. âDude...are you okay?â Tucker asked, with wide, compassionate eyes.
Fenton shrugged. âYeah...I think it was the whole two body thing but weâre sorted now.â
His friends traded concerned, skeptical looks and Samâs eyebrow rose. The human Danny had no doubt; she wanted to press him right now for more explanation, to make sure he actually was okay. And the boy was grateful for her concern. In all honesty, he wasnât okay. Between the horrible conversation with Mom, being lost in another dimension, and the confusing partial fusion, he was stressed and tired, to say the least. But they had bigger things to solve than his current emotional state.
Sam clearly recognized the same. âOkay.â She sighed, continuing with the conversation. âWhat was with you eating the dirt?â
The human boy looked down, cheeks reddening in embarrassment. âI..uh...forgot that I canât fly as a human.â His friends both blinked bewilderedly. Then Tucker laughed and Sam snorted. Fentonâs blush intensified. âWe were trying to dodge. Some ghost threw this huge rock at us so ghost me flew up to miss it. This me tried to copy but...â He motioned down his body. âThis body canât fly.â
With that, his friendsâ more jovial expressions turned more serious. âI guess that makes sense.â Tucker finally said.
Then Sam nodded. âAnd Phantom, your ghost half? Where is he?â
Fentonâs frown deepened, his shoulders hanching as he pulled his knees to his chest. âStill in the Zone. We found an island to hang tight on. He should be safe... for now.â
There was a long pause as his friends looked at each other, a silent, worried conversation passing between them. Then Samâs eyes focused back on Fentonâs face. âCan we talk to Phantom?â
The human blinked. âWhy?â
Tuckerâs lip turned down in a deepening frown. âWe need to figure out how to get the other you home. So...can you let us talk to him?â
âOh.â Fenton looked down, biting his lip. âIâm not sure thatâs a good idea.â His voice quieted. âI donât wanna get lost again.â
Samâs expressions softened. âOkay.â To the human boyâs surprise and relief, she conceded, like she just might understand.
âCan he hear us, at least?â Tucker offered tentatively. âYou donât have to respond, just listen.â
âI donât know-â Fenton started, equally tentatively, before his reply was interrupted by words in his head.
Fenton? Phantom asked softly.
The human furrowed his brow, eyes losing focus. Yeah? Iâm here.
I can hear Sam and Tucker. He said, slightly nervously. Iâve been watching this whole time.
Fenton blinked in confusion. âYou have?â
âDanny!â âNot again!â Again, Sam and Tuckerâs hands were on his shoulders, eyes wide with concern.Â
The human boy shook his head. âSorry. Iâm fine. I was just talking to Phantom. Apparently he can hear you. So just...talk to me.â
His friends traded somewhat confused, somewhat exacerbated looks before pressing on. âOkay.â Tucker took a breath. âYou need to try and find the portal.â
Fenton started shaking his head but Sam continued. âJust to retrace your steps, okay? Go back the way you came.â She squeezed his arms. âYou can do this. You can. I believe in you, Danny Phantom.â
In the back of his mind, Fenton could feel his ghost selfâs appreciation of the statement. The corner of his lips turned up in a slight smile. Then his mouth moved of its own volition, his voice echoing. âItâs really nice to hear that Sam but-â
âDude, your eyes are glowing again.â Tucker cut in, brow furrowing with worry.
They were? His brow furrowed in thought, focusing on the cool burning feeling in his eyes. âAh that makes sense.â Again, the words came out without his input or rather⊠âItâs me, Phantom.â With a slight push from his ghost, Fenton held up his hands. âItâs okay, guys. Fentonâs just letting me use his mouth.â
Sam raised a brow. âBecause apparently you can do that?â
âYeah.â He shrugged. âBut anyway...Iâm really happy you believe in me guys but...I have no idea where I am. We werenât really paying attention after we...uhâŠ.ran off. And then that ghost was chucking rocks at us and we got turned around flying away.â
âThereâs gotta be landmarks or something. Can you just figure out the direction you came from at least?â Tucker asked.
Under Phantomâs direction, Fenton shook his head. âMaybe?â He pursed his lips. âI really donât want to just go flying off in one direction and just end up farther from the portal.â
The technogeek sighed. âMaybe we should get your parents? They might have some way to help you.â
In the Ghost Zone, Phantom sat, considering the idea. Fenton could distantly feel the ghost thinking, his own thoughts likely following the same pattern. As much as he didnât want to get his parentsâ help, that might be the best option. They could have Phantom sit tight where he was and get Mom and Dadâs assistance to find him. The human Danny then flinched, feeling his ghost selfâs anxiety at the thought. WaitâŠ.feeling?
The idea hit him like a brick wall. âYou donât have to find the portal. You can find me.â The human Danny said, feeling the glow of his eyes dim. Across their connection, Fenton felt Phantomâs confusion. âPhantom, weâre still connected. Thereâs like...a line. A tether between us.â He motioned vaguely with his hands.
Understanding dawned as blue eyes again flashed green. âI can follow it back to you!â In the human world, Fentonâs voice echoed, his mouth stretching up into a smile. âThat just might work.â
âIt will.â The human reassured, mentally poking at the link. He could almost see it in his mindâs eyes, a metaphysical cord connecting the two parts of his mind. A cord heâd felt drawing him and his ghost self together, somehow pulling taut as the two moved closer, more in sync.
âYeah. Iâll see you really soon.â Phantom replied.
Fenton grinned, his arms wrapping themselves around his chest. He looked down at himself. âPhantom? Are you trying to hug me?â
A blush rose on his face. âYes.â His arms fell to his sides. âItâs weird talking to you like this.â
âYouâre telling me.â The human said, slightly teasingly. âBut seriously...youâve got this.âÂ
âTucker and I agree.â Sam cut in. Her gaze, level with Fentonâs eyes, drew the boysâ attention. âYouâve got this.â She playfully punched Fentonâs arm. âHurry up and get back to the land of the living.â
âYeah man. I wanna see your ghostly self, in person.â The technogeek leaned forward to hug the boy in front of him. âBe careful, Danny.â
Fenton and Phantom both agreed to return the hug. âI will.â The ghost replied. âThanks for calming me down guys...and just being here. I donât know where weâd be if you guys hadnât been with Fenton.â
âOf course.â Sam reassured. âWeâre your friends, no matter what weird stuff youâre doing.â
For once, Fenton, nor his ghost half, shied away from word. They were weird. This situation was weird but they had friends who could roll with the punches.Â
âIâll see you guys soon.â Phantom finally said, as Fenton pulled out of the hug. âIâll let you guys go back to your lunch; I know Fentonâs hungry.â
As soon as he said that, the humanâs stomach growled. An echoing laugh exited Fentonâs mouth, followed by chuckles from Sam and Tucker. The human shook his head, at his friendsâ and his other selfâs reactions.
His laughter stopped after a moment as Phantomâs directed his arm to wave. âBye guys.â
With that, the ghostly light blinked out of his eyes, signaling Phantomâs retreat. Fenton also felt it, the ghost gently closing a mental door and leaving the human solidly alone in his body.
âFenton?â Sam asked.
âYeah. Phantom went off to try and find his way back.â
âMan.â Tucker shook his head. âSo thatâs what your internal dialogue sounds like.â
âKinda.â The human boy shrugged. âSorry, that wasâŠ.itâs never been that...involved, me and Phantom interacting when weâre physically apartâŠ. Being splitâs done weird things to my mind.â
His friends of course looked at him with concern at the statement, but there was understanding and acceptance too. âI guess that would make sense.â Sam said.
âLike Sam and I said before, weâre here if you ever want to talk about any of that.â Tucker offered.
Fentonâs lip turned slightly up at the statement, bolstered by the promise of his friendsâ support. âMaybe later. Right now I want some food.â
The technogeek laughed. âAll right man.â He standed from his kneeling position before offering Fenton a hand up. âLetâs eat.â
The human boy accepted the help, wincing slightly at his bruised knees; heâd need to look at them later but it didnât feel like they were hurt badly. Sam also stood and the three walked back to the secluded picnic table where theyâd been eating lunch before Phantomâs argument with their mother drew him away. So it had turned out that eating outside, away from their classmates and teachers had been beneficial. And speaking of his momâŠ.
His heart did clinch painfully at the memory of her words. He passively wondered; what was she doing right now? What was her reaction to what he said, to him running off? Everything had happened so fast and...briefly, a look of shock had flashed on her face, something that might even have been guilt. He hoped it was but...he couldât worry about that right now. His most important concern was getting his other half back from the ghost zone. After, they could deal with the situation together, like they should have from the beginning.Â
âDanny.â Sam said his name, capturing the boysâ attention. âArenât you going to eat? Weâve only got five minutes left.â
Fenton frowned. âYeah. Right.â He stuffed a bit of his sandwich in his mouth. Heâd worry about that later. For now, heâd eat his lunch, go to study hall, and hope- no trust- heâd trust that Phantom would get back safely.
Note: So this chapter was a little shorter what's typical for me. I ended up splitting it off from the next scene because that was over 6000 words alone and I thought the whole thing would be too long. But the good news is, that means the next chapter is done. I just have to find time to edit it with my beta. And I'm working on what will be chapter 33 now.
This also means this story won't be on hiatus as long. I'm planning on writing at least one story for the Phic Phight and a longer story Inviobang. I may do something for DannyMay was well? I really want to write another part for "It was an Accident, I swear" and the last story in my "Life and Death is all Perspective" series. But IDK. That depends on how fast I finish the other stuff and/or how much self control I have. Well al have to see what happens. Anyway, feel free to leave a comment as always and thank you so much for reading!
32 notes
·
View notes