#this was scary for a second I was like MY REARVIEW? forgot I am. car.

[carcharsaur]

(sticking to your rearview window) 3, 15, 34 for both caranar and kozu please...

3. Does their Echo function like it does in the MSQ? Or is there a twist to it? 

kozu doesn't have the echo at all! he's a RELATIVELY normal guy... not being able to help the 'real' wol fight did bother him more and more as time went on so endwalker finally letting him participate was gratifying for him (guy who has a guilt complex about inaction. smiles) for caranar, he gets flashes of the future similar to mikoto from ivalice/bozja quests and... it's a big thing for him, from the moment he got it he and the people around him labeled it as a curse and portent of doom. it was the start of a lot of bad shit happening to him genuinely. it haunted him for the longest time, and before meeting minfillia he refused to even speak about it or admit it was a thing anymore out of fear of it. after meeting her and other echo-bearers it was a huge weight lifted from him, but it took him a long time to begin to accept and come to terms with it. even when it was framed as a loving blessing from hydaelyn he still fell ill at ease about it. the things he sees always happen without fail, but they lack a lot of context that the canon in-game echo scenes have so the devil is in the details etc. but even still very rarely does it not fill him with dread to get one. meeting mikoto really helped him cope too though I imagine they are besties based on JUST that cause he is not scholarly but they can firmly shake hands about this.

ok good lordt I'm gonna readmore the rest

15. Is your WoL promiscuous? Celibate? Or just waiting for the right person? 

caranar hypothetically has no problem sleeping around, but in the context of like ARR-late HW he is way too insecure and scared (both of being hurt and hurting someone. bodily) to be vulnerable with people like that really. so he flirts then pulls back before he has to really show his underbelly etc you'd have to chase him and get his trust. hard sell. in my main canon for caranar by the time uuuh 4.1 rolls around he has a wife but in my multitudinous AUs SB would be the prime caranar slut era (especially when he's riding the high of the nadaam arc), shb too but in a more unhealthy "we might die tomorrow so fuck it" way. post endwalker though he'd be very well adjusted and free to indulge. the thing with him though is that if he catches real feelings for someone he'd pursue that singlemindedly and get overprotective of it. and fall deep fast. so partially waiting for right person but not going to hold himself back either I suppose? kozu... well he's a whore and I love him for that. (in my perfect world where transphobia isn't a thing to worry about on etheirys). as soon as he got remotely settled in dalmasca he just had a full hedonist era. caranar was his roommate and was sick of his shit but didn't care enough at the time to intervene. the events at the end of their time there though lead to kozu withdrawing a lot and focusing on himself rather than relationships, by the time we get to ARR though he'd just have regular flings. dropping anything as soon as he got scared of the expectation, inclination, echo, of any real emotional intimacy and commitment. genuinely kind of a big problem with him until fucking shadowbringers where in the face of "we might die here for real" and being away from the source he pulled some skeletons out of his closet and faced them for real. still a bit flighty but he's trying. also he's polyam and if a partner wanted exclusivity it'd be over right away, but he's very clear about that before getting real with anyone. oh btw caranar is bi/pan and kozu is very very gay

34. Would you say your WoL is fundamentally a good person? Or are they a bad person that's been persuaded to do the right things? 

well I think if you directly asked them, caranar would legitimately think he's a bad person despite his every effort to try and do good. and kozu would just say they're trying to be a good person out of their own selfish desire, undermining how good they could truly be. I think they're both fundamentally good people though, especially caranar... he's just been abused and used enough that he blames himself for it rather than those who inflicted it on him. (other than the empire. and ishgardian inquisitors. he wants to tear through them. his righteous rage is focused more of injust structures of power and ppl that willfully enforce them vs. individual people) he really just wants to do right by common people though. kozu is a bit more complicated, but not enough for me to say he was ever "bad" just he genuinely didn't understand the weight of his own actions when killing people as a warder in golmore and felt more and more personally sickened by himself the more of the world he saw, and thinks he can never make up for a hundred years of that no matter how many lives he saves now.

[just-dreaming-marvel]

Out Of Time ~ 139

MASTERLIST

< previous chapter

Word Count: 3,600ish

Summary: They get answers about the seizures and get to go home.

“So these seizures aren’t going to go away?” Steve asked.

The doctor had found Steve and Tony in with Morgan. Tony was silently rocking Morgan, listening intently to the conversation.

“They most likely will,” the doctor answered, “with time. There will always be a chance that she could have only, but they should never be as bad as that one today. For a while, she’ll be on medication that will help prevent seizures, though she can still be triggered.”

“Is it safe for her to hold Morgan?” Steve questioned, shooting a concerned look Tony’s way.

“Completely. For a while, someone will have to be with her. Until we see that the seizures are less frequent… Tony, this is still better than many other scenarios.”

“He’s right, it could have been worse.” Tony stayed silent, causing Steve to sigh. “How’s Y/N right now?”

“Asleep. She’ll be that way for a few hours. I’ll keep you guys updated.” The doctor left and Steve moved to lean against the wall opposite Tony, arms folding across his chest.

“At least she got to hold her, Tony.”

The man scoffed. “She almost dropped her,” Tony mumbled, eyes focused on the baby in his arms. 

“She didn’t mean to, you know that.”

“The doctor didn’t even talk about the long-term effects of seizures… more brain damage and the medications, they’re the worst part… I don’t want this for Y/N, or for Morgan.”

“You’ll have help Tony. We will help you—I… I will help you…”

Tony sighed. “Y/N would want that… but I’m no where close to forgiving you, for many different reasons.”

“I get it, neither am I.”

~~~

Y/N could feel how stiff her body was as she began to wake. Stretching out, she could hear someone stand from a chair and come closer. She opened her eyes and saw Tony hovering over her, worried.

“I… I had a seizure, didn’t I?” She quietly asked.

Tony nodded. “Yes.”

“Is—Is Morgan okay?”

“Steve grabbed her before anything could happen.” 

Y/N sucked in her lips and nodded, trying to keep her emotions at bay. “I—“ Her voice broke. “I understand if this is all too much and you want to take Morgan and leave.”

“What? How could you even think that?”

“Because I could be holding her and have a seizure. I could hurt her! And I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I did…”

“And I can’t live with out you… we’re going to get through this. Just like we get through everything else. I love you.” He gave her a soft kiss.

“I love you too… let’s get married.”

Tony chuckled. “We are.”

“No. Now. Or as soon as I get out of the hospital. I don’t want to waste another second.”

“Okay. I’ll have Happy and Pepper prep everything. Oh! We could even do it at the island, fly there and—“

“No. I want it at our home. Officially begin our life together where we will make it.”

He smiled down at Y/N. “I think that’s a great idea.”

~~~

The two weeks flew by faster than anyone thought they would, but they weren’t complaining. Y/N had two more seizures, though they weren’t as bad. Tony and the others were taught out to help her through the seizures. Y/N was able to bond with Morgan, which made Tony’s heart burst every time. Pepper and Happy had willingly planned out the wedding to happy 3 days after Y/N would be discharged. There was only on problem everyone forgot about, Y/N had been in a car accident.

“I…I-I… I don’t know…” She was nervously stuttering, trying to hold down the panic. “I c-can’t… the—the c-car…”

“Shit,” Tony muttered. He had just wheeled a wheelchair in to take Y/N down to the car. He hurried to her side. “I know that it’s scary, honey, but I’ll be right beside you the whole time. And Steve and Morgan will be in the car as well.”

“I-I… I don’t want h-her or me-e anywhere ne-near a car…”

“We need to get home though, honey. Once we’re there, you never have to get in a car again.”

“Are you guys— what’s going on here?” Steve asked, coming in with Morgan already bundled up in her car seat.

“G-get her out of there,” Y/N demanded. “Get her out of there!”

“Y/N—“

“Fine! I’ll do it.” Y/N threw off her blankets, trying to fight Tony to get to Morgan.

“No, no, no. I’ll bring her to you.” Steve quickly got Morgan out of her carseat and put her in Y/N’s arms.

“Honey,” Tony tried again, “we have to go home.”

“I-I know,” Y/N replied quietly. “I’m just terrified.”

“And you have every right to be. So, instead of sitting in the passenger seat next to me, how about you sit back with Morgan? Will that work?” Looking down as Morgan gripped her finger, Y/N nodded. “Okay.” Tony pressed a kiss to Y/N’s forehead. “You can hold her until we get to the car.”

Tony and Steve worked together to help Y/N up and into the wheelchair. Steve grabbed Morgan’s things as Tony wheeled Y/N out. Y/N kept her focus on the child in her arms, trying to remain calm. She hated how soon they were to the car.

“It’s time to put Morgan back in her carseat, honey,” Tony said. He stopped the wheelchair and came around to kneel in front of Y/N. “Can you give her to Steve and I’ll help you get her in the car?”

Y/N shook her head.

Steve quickly knelt beside Tony. “I’ll quickly put her in, Y/N/N, and then you can go back to watching her,” Steve said. He slowly reached his hands out for Morgan. “I promise it will be quick. I’ve been practicing.”

“He has. He’s the fastest at diaper changing too.”

“Can I take her from you Y/N?”

Y/N bit her lip, closed her eyes and nodded. Steve carefully, yet quickly took Morgan from Y/N’s arms. Tony picked Y/N up and slid her into the car. As he retracted his arms, Y/N’s breath hitched. Tony kissed her temple.

“You’re so brave, sweetheart,” he whispered. “So very brave.” As he pulled away again, she quickly grabbed his hand. “I’ve got to drive.”

“I can drive,” Steve quickly offered. “FRIDAY knows the route home and can show me. Just stay back there with Y/N.”

Tony nodded and slid him and Y/N further into the car. He reached over and tripled checked Morgan’s car seat before buckling in Y/N and checking hers over as well. After hearing Tony’s buckle and with her eyes still shut, Y/N curled into his side. He wrapped an arm around her, holding her there. 

Steve checked the rearview mirror before beginning the drive home. He met Tony’s gaze. Tony will never admit it, but that day he was extremely grateful for Steve. He mouthed a small thank you, before closing his eyes and resting his head against Y/N. Steve smiled softly before pulling away from the hospital.

~~~

Pepper, Natasha, Rhodey, and Happy had cleaned the house and put together the nursery. They were waiting on the porch when Steve pulled up. Steve parked the car and checked the back seat. Both Morgan and Y/N were sound asleep. 

“I’ve got Y/N,” Tony whispered. “Can you get Morgan?”

Steve nodded. The men opened their doors and Tony slid out with Y/N in his arms. He was thankful that she was still asleep and that her panic didn’t get any worse than what it was.

“Is she okay?” Pepper worried as Tony carried Y/N up the steps.

“She panicked a bit about her and Morgan getting into the car,” Tony explained. “But I sat back with her.”

“How’d Mo do?” Natasha asked.

“I think she could tell that she needed to sleep when her ma was sleeping,” Steve replied as he came up.

“I’m going to go tuck Y/N in and then we can eat and watch Morgan,” Tony said, going into the house. 

He carefully carried Y/N up the stairs to their bedroom. Laying her down on the bed, Tony pulled the blankets out from under her and set them on top of her. He ran the knuckle of his hand down her cheek as he studied her sleeping form. He knew that parenthood wasn’t going to be easy, he just had hoped that they were going to have an easier start than this. 

Tony sat on the edge of the bed, watching Y/N sleep until he heard Morgan cry from downstairs. He placed a kiss to her forehead before closing the bedroom door and going downstairs. As he finished the last few steps, he saw Happy quickly pass Morgan to Steve.

“She hates me,” Happy grumbled, pouting like a child.

Steve was gently rocking Morgan in his large arms, back and forth. 

“Seems like she’s found a favorite uncle,” Rhodey commented. 

“Don’t worry, Happy will end up being the favorite,” Tony said, walking into the room. “She’ll have him so tightly wrapped around her finger. He’ll do whatever she wants.” He walked up to Steve. “Can I have my daughter?” Steve nodded and slipped Morgan into Tony’s arms. “Thank you, all of you,” Tony met Steve’s gaze momentarily, “for being so willing to help us.”

“Of course,” Natasha responded. “This is our family.”

~~~

Y/N was instructed to take it easy as the days led up to the wedding. She basically had no say in anything. Thankfully, Pepper and Natasha had used Y/N’s Pinterest boards as inspiration. Steve, Rhodey, and Happy were in charge of set-up, under the women’s watchful eye of course. Tony was busy taking care of Morgan and Y/N to do anything with planning the wedding, but he trusted the women to make sure it was beautiful.

It was the night before the wedding and Tony had been successfully knocked out due to pure exhaustion. Y/N was sleeping off and on, a tiny bit both nervous and excited for the next day, when she heard Morgan began to fuss. Looking over at Tony, she knew she cold’t wake him. Slowly, Y/N pushed herself out of bed and made her way to Morgan’s bassinet across the room. Taking the baby into her arms, she bounced her slightly while quietly shushing her. Morgan continued to get louder so Y/N took her into the nursery and sat down in the rocker.

“What’s all the fuss, baby girl?” Y/N whispered. “Are you nervous too? Cause I am… this all… well, this is never how I imagined my wedding to go. But that’s okay, I guess things happen the way they’re suppose to.”

Tony had woken up after trying to pull Y/N into his arms. He tried not to be too alarmed, especially when he realized Morgan was gone too. He snuck out of the bedroom, to see a lamplight coming from underneath the nursery’s door. The door was cracked open slightly. Tony could see the chair rocking back and forth, Morgan in Y/N’s arms. He stayed outside as he heard Y/N speaking softly.

“I want to apologize to you, Mo. I’m sorry I wasn’t able to protect you, or be there for you when you entered into this world… It seems that I’m very good at that. I’ve failed both my kids in that way… you have a brother, Anthony James. He’s… he’s gone now and one day I’ll explain everything, but I saw him. He was probably about 5 years old. And he was the perfect mix of your father and I. I know he’s watching over you, just like he watches over your daddy.”

Tony had no idea that Y/N had seen AJ again, and he was confused as to when. Her powers disappeared once the Stones were destroyed. He shook his head slightly, trying to focus on what Y/N was saying.

“I promise that I’ll do better for you and your father… you both deserve more than I could ever offer.” Y/N looked down at her now asleep daughter and smiled softly. “I love you, Morgan Howard Stark.” She pressed a small kiss to the baby’s head. “And I love Anthony Edward Stark, your snoop of a father.”

With a slight huff, Tony pushed the door open. “How’d you know?”

“I’m a highly trained spy, remember? I knew you were there from the get go… so you heard everything?”

“I did.” Tony nodded. He leaned against the door frame, arms folded across his chest. “When did you see AJ?”

Y/N sighed. “I was trying to destroy the Soul Stone and it was trying to stop me. I saw Phil and AJ.”

“Phil?”

“He’s dead. He’s gone… but he promised to take care of AJ.”

“And AJ…?”

“Had grown. And was watching out for you. He saw Thanos hurt you and leave Titan. He warned me that you needed help. So I pushed harder… I did destroy the Soul Stone… it just wasn’t enough… At least I saw AJ and Coulson, one last time…”

“I’m sure they’re taking care of each other.” Tony pushed off the door frame and came towards his two girls. “Just like we’re taking care of each other.” He sat on the arm rest and kissed Y/N’s head. “We’re getting married in the morning.”

“We’re getting married in the morning,” Y/N repeated softly, looking up at Tony. 

“I love you.”

“I love you too.”

~~~

“You look gorgeous, Y/N,” Natasha said, looking at her friend in the mirror. “Tony’s going to freak.”

“Knowing Tony he might take you right then and there,” Pepper chuckled, bouncing Morgan in her arms slightly.

“Better not,” Y/N responded with a laugh. “Steve’s going to be there and my daughter.” Y/N studied herself in the mirror, letting out a long breath. She was all done up and ready to walk down the aisle. “I can’t believe this… I’m actually getting married.” Nat gave her shoulder a slight squeeze. “There was honestly a point that I never thought this day would come.”

“You deserve it, Y/N/N,” Natasha said softly. “More than anyone.”

A gentle knock sounded a the door. The women turned to see Steve’s head popped in, eyes screwed shut. 

“Is it safe?” He asked. “Can I come in?”

“Of course, Rogers,” Natasha laughed. “Pepper and I will finish getting Morgan ready and leave you to alone for a moment.”

Steve stepped in as the others stepped out, still not opening his eyes. Once the door was shut, he opened them, almost immediately becoming overwhelmed with emotions. Y/N stood up.

“You look,” he paused, swallowing as he nodded. “The parents would be proud.”

“You think so?” She questioned bashfully, looking down at her dress.

“I do.” He stepped forward and took her hands. “I know that me walking you down the aisle wouldn’t fix everything between you and I, and Tony and I, but thank you for letting me do this. And I’m sorry for everything.”

“I’m sorry, too. I guess we’re both a little too stubborn for our own good.” She leaned in and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “I know you always imagined walking me down the aisle to Bucky, but thank you for supporting me in this.”

“If this is what makes you happy, then I can be happy for you.”

There was a few raps on the door before Nat opened it and revealed herself.

“It’s time,” she stated. “You two ready.”

“Mmhmm,” Y/N nodded.

“Okay, I’ll see you two out there then.”

Natasha disappeared and Y/N grabbed her boutique. Turning around, she laced her arm in Steve’s and took a deep breath.

“You okay?” Steve wondered.

“I will be,” Y/N responded. “Let’s go.”

~~~

Tony was nervously standing near the edge of the lake. Happy, Rhodey, Natasha, Pepper, and Morgan (in Pepper’s arms) were all waiting for Steve and Y/N to exit the house.

“Stop fidgeting,” Rhodey ordered. He was standing slightly behind Tony, because he was going to preform the ceremony. “She’s coming.”

“She still has a chance to back out,” Tony responded. “And I honestly wouldn’t blame her.”

“Stop that. She’s seriously coming down the stairs.”

Tony turned and gasped slightly. It was absolutely amazing how Y/N could get more beautiful with each passing second. To the couple, in that moment, there was no one else there except the two of them. They were both smiling as the stared at each other. Steve walked Y/N to Tony. It was the only time the two broke eye contact. Tony and Steve nodded to each other as Steve handed Y/N over to Tony. He placed a kiss on his sister’s cheek before taking the boutique and moving to stand beside Nat.

“You look… you look like the most beautiful person in the world,” Tony whispered. 

“I’m not ashamed to admit that I’ve seen this coming since I saw these two first interact,” Rhodey began. “The universe has literally worked through time to get these two to this point, and it has finally arrived. Today, we make this small family official. Though there was really no need for it, since we already felt a part of it. The couple will first recite their own vows before we go into the exchanging of the rings. Tony.”

“Y/N,” Tony paused to swallow down the bubbling emotion. “I promise you that I will be your ever loving husband from this day forward. To be faithful and honest in every way, to honor the faith and trust you place in me. To love and respect you in your successes and in your failures, to make you laugh and to be there when you cry. To care for you in sickness and in health. To softly kiss you when you are hurting, and to be your companion and your friend, on this journey that we make together.”

“I also want to promise you that I will do the same for our daughter,” Tony continued. “I will love and respect her in her successes and her failures. I will make her laugh and hold her when she cries. I will care for her in sickness and in health. I will be her friend and companion, until the day comes where she’s standing before this family, doing what we are with the person she loves. I love you and Morgan so much.”

“Y/N,” Rhodey urged, “it’s now your turn.”

“I don’t know how to go after that,” Y/N chuckled lightly, trying to hold back the tears. “Anthony, I promise to be your loving wife. To be your partner in crime and your rock. I promise to honor you and respect you. I promise to be there with you in the ups and downs, to make you laugh and to comfort you when you’re upset. I promise to care for you at all times. Even when you’re in the lab in the middle of the night.” That earned a few laughs. “I promise to tell you I love you every day, starting now. I love you.”

“This is the point in the ceremony where we usually talk about the wedding bands being a perfect circle, with no beginning and no end,” Rhodey explained. “But we all know that these rings do have a beginning. Rock is dug up from the earth. Metal is liquefied in a furnace at a thousand degrees, then older, cooled, and painstakingly polished. Something beautiful is made from raw elements. Love is like that. It comes from humble beginnings, made by imperfect beings. It’s the process of making something beautiful where there was once nothing at all. Happy, the rights.” Happy stepped forward and opened his hand, revealing the two matching silver rings. 

“Tony, take Y/N’s ring and repeat after me,” Rhodey instructed. Tony took a ring and held it at the end of Y/N’s finger. “This ring is my promise to accept your imperfections and appreciate all that makes you unique and beautiful.”

“This ring,” Tony smiled, looking into Y/N’s eyes, “is my promise to accept your imperfections and appreciate all that makes you unique and beautiful.” Y/N gasped slightly as Tony pushed the ring onto her finger.

“Now, Y/N, take the ring and repeat after me.” Y/N nodded, shakily taking the ring and holding it in front of Tony’s hand. “This ring is my promise to accept your imperfections and appreciate all that makes you unique and beautiful.”

“This ring is my promise to accept your imperfections,” Y/N repeated, “and appreciate all that makes you unique and beautiful.” She slid the ring onto Tony’s finger.

“Wonderful. Now, by the power vested in me by the state of New York, I now pronounce you husband and wife.” Rhodey looked at Tony with a smirk. “You may now kiss the bride.”

Tony grinned and eagerly pulled Y/N into him. He lovingly kissed her as their small crowd cheered and clapped. Pulling back once they needed air, Tony rested his head on Y/N’s, looking into her eyes.

“I love you, Mrs. Stark.”

“I love you too, Mr. Stark.”

next chapter >

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[junionigiri]

and you say, stay Chapter 7 - I’ll Take Care Of You

Chapter Summary: Uraraka does her best during Company Day.

Rating: T

Shouto messed things up pretty badly, didn’t he.

It’s terribly quiet inside the car. Shoji drives them while avoiding everyone’s eyes. Midoriya’s in the passenger seat and overwhelmingly teary eyed from his unexpected reunion with that guy. These phenomena are not new and not alarming; Shoji is always quiet and Midoriya always cries. That’s just the natural order of things.

But as for Uraraka...

His secretary eventually pulls her wrist from his hand and sits all the way on the other side of the back seat far away from him. Head pressed against the window, eyes resolutely fixed on the passing city lights. She has not spoken a word since she asked Shoji to take her home and has not looked at anyone in the eye. Not even Midoriya, whom she usually got along with.

This is unnerving. Secretary Uraraka has never expressed her displeasure like this before. It was hard to understand why she was so irritated--as far as he knew, her blind date with Bakugou Katsuki was already over by the time Shouto intervened. He couldn’t have ruined it if it was already done. It shouldn’t matter if he almost incapacitated that man in front of everyone else and literally snatched her away from him.

… All right, that may be a valid reason why she’s displeased.

But, he did it for her. He knows that she’s afraid of fire. He had seen her reduced to a trembling leaf with just a flick of a lighter. She would have been worse if he let Bakugou light his cigarette.

He isn’t even sure how he went overboard. All he remembers is seeing red. He’s already strangling Bakugou and looking at a terrified Uraraka in the eyes before he realizes it. He doesn’t know how the feelings of irritation got out of control.

He doesn’t know what to say to Uraraka to make her understand.

Just say sorry, Midoriya whispered to him when they went in the car. But how does one say sorry? He wouldn’t know how to say something he never needed to say before.

“Secretary Uraraka.”

“Director.”

The air between them is roughly a few degrees lower than Antarctica in winter. Her face is still to the window.

He inhales quietly. “You must be wondering how I found you.”

“Not really,” she says airily. “Tsuyu-chan sent me a text about how the photo of me and Bakugou-kun got to Chief Midoriya. It bothered me a lot, because it was my privacy being messed with, but I’m okay now because they explained things to me and apologized. ”

Hearing her call that guy Bakugou-kun makes him want to break more teacups . He’s tempted to ask her politely to refrain from being overly familiar with that punk, but he stops himself. As much as he dislikes this, he is in a test of patience that he absolutely cannot fail.

“I see. That sounds… simple.”

“Mhm.”

He sees Midoriya cringing from the rearview mirror.

“I have things to say in that regard, as well.”

“I’m listening.”

Shouto clears his throat. Just say sorry, he repeats in his head. Unfortunately, his mouth stubbornly says something else. “I was merely trying to protect you. Bakugou was about to brandish fire in front of you. I knew enough not to let that happen.”

She crosses her arms over her chest. “You know, Bakugou-kun knows about my situation too. He just forgot for a second, but he--”

“Are you sure you want to spend your time with someone who just ‘forgets’ important things about you, Secretary Uraraka?”

“Sure beats being with… working for someone so possessive of his secretary that he’d commit assault! Against a reporter ! In public!!! ”

Shouto clamps his mouth shut and takes another steadying breath. “Is this coming from what he said about me treating people like property? You know he said it out of spite.”

“Director… it was never about what anybody said about you,” she replies quietly.

Shouto stares at the back of her head. “... I did it to protect you,” he repeats, because he has nothing else to say.

She’s his employee. His, and no-one else’s. No-one is allowed to hurt her.

No-one else is allowed to have her, he thinks before he can stop himself.

No… no, that’s not it. He does want to marry Uraraka, wants to keep her in his employ for as long as possible, but he isn’t what Bakugou thinks he is. He’s not some selfish rich boy who treats people like property. He isn’t possessive. He’s just… just…

His secretary sighs--a prolonged sound that sags her shoulders and lowers her head enough to tap it lightly against the window with a sound. “... maybe you did,” she relents, after a beat of silence, “but you don’t know what that means, do you?”

What am I doing?

He sighs. “I may have approached things wrongly. But I did those things because I feel responsible for what happens to you. I always have.”

A silence passes, tense and anxious. It makes him wonder whether Secretary Uraraka can spend the rest of her short time with him never looking and never speaking to him again. He needs to fix this as quickly as possible.

“It doesn’t matter that you won’t be my secretary for much longer. Let me feel this way for you while you’re still here with me.”

He sees her fingers twitch, sees her bite her lip by the reflection on the glass. He can hear the sound of her confusion. Logically, she would be confused, who wouldn’t? Since when has Shouto admitted to feeling things? Even if it’s a sense of responsibility (at least that’s the most logical name he can place to it), he has never used this sort of language with anyone before.

Well, he has experienced a lot of firsts with Uraraka lately. Maybe he should get used to this.

Finally she turns away from the window, and then slowly, slowly turns to face him. “Director, that wasn’t just the wrong approach. I mean, the breach of my privacy aside, he could have filed a case against you! Or worse, punched you in the face! I mean besides the PR nightmare that’s gonna happen, how can you open company day tomorrow if you have a black eye?”

Shouto blinks. Wasn’t she complaining about him being possessive of her? Why is she suddenly talking about company day?

She lowers her voice and her eyes. “And it’s not a bluff, okay… He can do that for real. People have filmed him punching rich people in the face. It’s why he has a lot of fans…”

Never mind the fact that Bakugou was a bigger punk than he thought. Shouto wants to tell her that he can take care of himself and her if the need arises--his fighting techniques might not be up to par with Bakugou’s apparent face-punching skills, but objectively speaking he’s just as strong as he is. He gets the feeling that that isn’t want Uraraka wants to hear, though.

“That said, I appreciate you telling me that you feel responsible for me,” his secretary relents with another thoughtful look. “I… I feel the same too. I mean, feeling responsible for you. I’ve felt that way for the past nine years, and it doesn’t matter that I’m quitting, I still feel like I gotta take care of you. That’s why I’m really upset about what you did. I hope you understand.”

“... is that so.”

She nods. The pink in her cheeks is back, warming the frigid air between them pleasantly. “Y… yeah. I mean, that’s what secretaries are for.”

She smiles at him, and he wonders why it felt so long since he’s seen that. “You’re right. Then, please continue taking care of me, Secretary Uraraka.”

“I will. And please continue taking care of me, Director Todoroki.”

In the mirror, Midoriya has the teary look he gets when he gets to the climax of a particularly cheesy movie scene.

Finally, she settles more comfortably in her seat. She can now look him in the eye and instantly the air becomes lighter around them. “Anyways, you want me to do well for company day tomorrow, right?”

He exhales quietly, keeping the sense of relief for himself. “Of course. You aren’t allowed to lose.”

*

The next day is the long awaited Company Day--a whole day for employees to build synergy and morale through games and competition. While it’s made for everyone to relax and have fun, Company Day in Endeavor Inc is notoriously not relaxing because of the incredible competition in between the offices.

The pressure is always a little extra for the Office of the Executive Director--every year they’re neck-in-neck against the Marketing guys and the scary loud guys from the Chairman’s Office, and Director Todoroki especially does not like losing against Chief Midoriya and his father.

Camie must have been briefed by everyone else, because she’s already doing extreme stretches in the office when Ochako walks in. “Mornin’ Ocha-babes. Rough night?”

Ochako laughs. “No, not really! Why’d you ask?”

While in a sideplank, Camie points to the space under her eyes. “Eyebags, babes. That can either mean a really good date , if you know what I mean,” she says with a suggestive wink, “Or a really bad one. So? Did you get lucky?”

Camie just gets right down to it, doesn’t she? Ochako harrumphs with a puff of her cheeks. “No. It wasn’t a bad date, but I went home early and alone, thank you very much.”

The taller girl chuckles. “Bo-o-o-ring. But I figured, ‘cause you’re still wearing ~the necklace~. I guess that means Directoroki’s still the number one man in your life, huh?”

“ Why would you mention him. He has nothing to do with this. Nothing at all. ”

“OMG Ocha-babes, your vibes are so deadly~ Chill, okay? I was just kidding,” Camie says, unapologetic even as Ochako’s dangerous black aura grows around her. “I just meant that work is still your number one priority, so he doesn’t have to worry about you splitting your time with him and an S.O., see-what-I’m-sayin’?”

Ochako puffs her cheeks. “Camie, I’m quitting remember? He doesn’t have to worry about me not having time for him, but--”

It doesn’t matter that you won’t be my secretary for much longer. Let me feel this way for you while you’re still here with me.

Stupid Director! He is unfair, isn’t he? Instead of thinking about Bakugou and how great they got along, all she can think of all night was him . And it’s not for a lack of trying in her part--she really did try to think of Bakugou and how awful his mouth his, how he made her laugh, how he had the audacity to pinch her cheeks, but then Director Todoroki’s imposing figure effortlessly takes up all of her attention again. He’s good at making things more confusing for her, doesn’t he?

She was absolutely furious at him for ruining her date--(even though she spent a lot of time trying to get him out of her head)--and she struggled to stay angry at him all the way home even though it was hard when he started talking about feelings . Apart from the concerning fact the apocalypse is nigh, it’s easy to get carried away when Todoroki Shouto starts using soft words in a soft voice. She even told him that she felt the same way, ugh. It’s good that he’s so dense that there’s no way he’d misinterpret anything, but really Ochako, don’t say misleading things!

Besides, even though he said those things… she shouldn’t let him act like a kid who’s throwing a tantrum over losing his toy to someone else. She shouldn’t let him keep on treating her like she’s his.

(Even though her heart skips a beat at that aberrant thought.)

“Gurl, I get it, okay? Can you not punch yourself?” Camie says in mild alarm as her fist hits her face. “I’m serious, we gotta bring our A-game today! At least, that’s what Tenya told the rest of the office this morning, yo~”

“That’s right, Secretary Uraraka. What are you doing, giving yourself a handicap before the games even begin?”

Ochako freezes mid-punch to face the reason why she’s even punching herself in the face to begin with.

Director Todoroki Shouto observes them with his usual aloof stare when both secretaries compose themselves and bow. Because he expected them to prepare for Company Day, he didn’t require her to assist him in his morning rituals, and nothing stopped him from materializing out of nowhere to give her grief. Ochako’s getting winded from constantly being caught off-guard.

“I gave you extra time so you can warm up and focus on winning,” he tells her sternly. “Am I wrong in expecting a victory, Secretary Uraraka?”

It’s impressive that he can consistently act like this in the morning like nothing happened the night before. Not that she should mind. She supposes it’s better that nobody else in the workplace finds out about the two of them and the constant way he makes her head spin.

Shoving off all urges to punch herself in the face again, Ochako smiles coolly. “Not at all, Director. Please expect the office to bring home the trophy this year.”

Not minding Camie’s impressed whistle, Todoroki smirks. “Good. Bring it home then.”

He expects nothing less as usual. That’s the way it’s been for the past nine years, and just the way Ochako likes it. Nobody better underestimate her.

*

Shouto doesn’t enjoy talking on stage very much. He generally hates attention, hates having to pretend to be personable, hates to be seen for far longer than necessary. It’s why he resents the old man for giving him lots of reasons to be seen in public--giving him exactly half of his features so he looks different, forcing him to show off in socialite galas, dragging him to stupid public events...

… and also for bailing on company events like this frequently, leaving Shouto no choice but to drag himself on stage on his behalf. Stupid old man.

Uraraka wrote a few polite words for him to say, something to boost morale and to encourage friendly competition, etc etc. She also reminded him to appear pleasant to put everyone at ease, so near the end, he makes an extra effort to smile. “I expect nothing less from any of you. Give it your all,” he says, to close his speech.

For some reason, everyone starts to shiver as if they’re in the middle of a blizzard. After a hushed whisper that sounded suspiciously like the Demon King is here!, everyone salutes and cries out in unison, “Yes Director! Plus Ultra!”

Ignoring the fact that they sounded less like a group about to play games and more like the military going to war, Shouto thinks that he’s got everyone fired up just fine.

Midoriya greets him at the judges’ table as soon as his opening speech is done. “That was better than last year, Director! No-one cried this time!”

“Good to know that everyone’s improving,” Shouto answers as he takes a seat. “You’re not playing this year.”

He shakes his head. “I’m Division Chief this year, so no. Besides, the other offices were telling me to give everyone else a chance for a change… I mean, I-I guess I went overboard last year during dodgeball, but I didn’t think it was that bad…”

Midoriya is deceptively strong and ridiculously competitive for someone so mild-mannered. Last year, he got so carried away during dodgeball that he sent an entire team to the infirmary from hurling the ball really hard while screaming “SMASH!” with all his might. After the game he felt so ashamed of what he did that he started crying and accidentally made everyone feel guilty about how weak they were. The injured team had to take turns comforting him all the way to the infirmary. It was a pretty big spectacle.

So, maybe it’s good that he has to sit this year out. Apart from saving Midoriya from the impending emotional turmoil, it’ll give his office a big advantage.

Midoriya laughs. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure that your office will get the most points this year! I mean, Iida-kun, Kirishima-kun and Ashido-san are wicked strong, while Monoma-kun is good at strategy! And Uraraka-san, well, she’s just going to win for you, no matter what.”

He doesn’t need to say anything more. From his vantage point, Shouto watches Uraraka with her game face on doing warm up exercises--stretching her toned arms and legs up high, down low, bending over, twisting her torso this way and that. She’s smaller than the rest of his team, but he knows how strong she is. He’s watched her fly across a number of obstacle courses over the years, and he knows she’s doing it to win.

Yes… this year will be no different. Uraraka’s going to win for him.

“Hey, Shouto. What’s with that intense stare? You trynna kill someone this early? The games haven’t even started yet,” someone asks, pulling the other chair next to him.

Midoriya’s face brightens in greeting. “Takami-san! Good morning!”

Takami Keigo, 35 years old, serves as the Chief of the Secretarial Office of Endeavor Inc. He is technically the secretary/personal assistant of Chairman Todoroki, but everyone knows that he’s more than that--most, if not all of the important decisions that the company makes goes through him. He has more power than most of the heads of the company combined, Shouto included.

He’s also lackadaisical to a fault. Shouto wonders how this man gets anything done with his lazy attitude, which makes all his feats that much impressive.

“Please! Takami-san is my father. Call me Hawks!” he tells Midoriya with a careless wave of one hand. “Not you, Shouto. You can call me Keigo- nii if you want. Or Kei-chan! Come on, call me Kei-chan~”

“Takami-san,” Shouto replies flatly.

“Geez, as stiff as ever,” the man called Hawks says with a laugh. “So, why the face? Did you get in a fight with Uraraka or something?”

At the periphery of his vision, he senses Midoriya giving the blonde man a number of complex hand signals including a line across the lips. Shouto ignores this and tells him, “Not at all. She and I are as cordial as ever.”

Takami cradles his chin against his hand in interest. “That’s great! And here I was worried that you aren’t getting along after what happened at lunch with the Chairman last week.”

“... why would you know that? Weren’t you late then?” Shouto asks with a frown.

“ Super late. But Fuu-chan told me everything that happened~ including the part where you and the Chairman needed synchronized Heimlichs~ well, I can’t blame the two of you for being so upset. If Uraraka stays a few more years, I’m sure your dad’ll pick her as Chief Secretary instead of me!”

Shouto does not like a single word in anything Takami said. Picking the worst of them is definitely a challenge. “Please don’t call my sister that,” is what he decides on ultimately.

“Oh Shouto. Why can’t you accept my brotherly love,” Takami sighs playfully. “Seriously, though, how does it feel losing your secretary of nine years? And the very first employee you personally scouted, at that~”

Midoriya blinks. “Oh, I didn’t know that! I thought Uraraka-san just applied like everyone else!”

“Nope! Shouto met Uraraka when he was a manager at the Chairman’s office and she was a temp at General Affairs. Neither of them were worth anything to the company at the time, but that didn’t stop Shouto from coming to me to give Uraraka a recommendation for a full-time job as his secretary! Uraraka went for it, Shouto hired her, and the rest was history~”

“Gosh, just like that? That’s amazing! And she ended up staying with you for the next nine years! How did you know that you guys are going to work well together, Director?”

Shouto gives them both a passive look. His reasons for choosing her are his reasons. He definitely isn’t going to explain himself to anyone, not even Midoriya. And especially not Takami Keigo.

When he remains in stoic silence, Takami fills the void with an amused hum. “I bet Shouto’s having a hard time putting it into words, so let me do it for him~”

He does not like that tone of voice, nor does he like the way he goads Midoriya to come closer, effectively barricading him on both sides. With a conspiratorial whisper, Takami says, “So, Deku-kun, you know about love at first sight from experience, right?”

“L-love at first sight?!” Midoriya whisper-screams. Shouto can practically feel how indiscriminately hot the surface of the guy’s cheeks become.

“Yep. Love at first sight. So do you know or do you not know?”

“U-um… s-sure, I know about love at first sight, Hawks, but--”

“Aw, really Deku-kun? You’re such a romantic guy. You’re definitely the relationship expert in this table.” Takami continues without missing a beat, uncaring of how he successfully turned Midoriya into a stammering cherry tomato. “So, the concept is the same with Shouto-kun and Uraraka-chan, right? Except, instead of thinking this is the girl I have to keep at my side at all times as my wife, what he thinks when he first sees her round, cherub face is, this is the girl I have to keep at my side at all times… as my secretary.”

Shouto suddenly has to fight to keep his face impassive. Midoriya chokes somewhere behind him. Takami’s lazy smile does not waver, but there is a new interested glint in his eye. Not that it stops him from talking, anyway.

“... But, Keigo-nii-chan, what’s the logic behind that kind of thinking?” Takami makes a show of shrugging. “Exactly like love at first sight: zero. There’s no rhyme or reason to it. Just pure instinct that they can survive anything together, even disasters of a grand scale. Really fascinating, since it’s the Chairman’s most logical son we’re talking about here. Well am I right or am I right, Shouto?”

“No.”

The interested glimmer in his eyes gives away what lies beneath his careless facade. Takami always looks like he knows something you don’t. It’s something that never put Shouto at ease. “Ouch! Well... maybe I’m wrong about the first sight part?”

Shouto stares at him dead in the eye. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Takami laughs. “Can’t blame ya. Even I don’t know what I’m talking about! Sometimes I just like talking because you’re so quiet, you know? But if you tell me, Keigo-nii, you talk too much shut yer trap already, I’ll happily keep my mouth zipped for the next century~”

As much as he would find the silence appealing, Shouto knows that Takami’s constant blabbermouth earns him a great share of the old man’s ire, so he can keep talking for all he cares.

Besides, he will never call him Keigo- nii , not even if someone points a knife at his throat.

Thankfully, someone announces the beginning of the games and Takami suddenly loses interest in what they’re talking about. Midoriya looks at Shouto with a lot of unspoken questions in his gaze too, but he understands quickly that being ignored really won’t get him any answers and turns his attention to the games instead.

It’s about time he pays attention to his team, too. Ignoring the cheers next to him, Shouto keeps his eye on the determined Secretary Uraraka.

*

So far they’re doing great in the games. Even though the competition was tough, everyone from the Office of the Executive Director makes it through the obstacle course. They cut it really close in the Cavalry Battle, but that was only because Monoma baited everyone else and the other offices targeted his headband specifically. Luckily, Iida, Kirishima, and Mina had no qualms about bulldozing anyone who got in their way, while Camie and Ochako had good eyes on the rest of the field.

In the end they get through the elimination round. It’s break time and they’re all frowning over the scoreboard, Monoma especially. “Tsk. We’re tied with the marketing guys and the Office of the Chairman is in the lead. You guys have to pick up the slack in the next games!”

“Us guys?!” Mina’s face screws up in annoyance. “If you weren’t such a trash-talking rat, we wouldn’t have been bullied in the Cavalry Battle in the first place! You’re lucky Iida, Kiri and I are big and hunky enough to stop them from beating your deserving ass!”

“Indeed, Monoma-kun! I would advise you to practice discretion in the next games! And for heavens’ sake, hydrate properly!” Iida reprimands as he sternly hands an electrolyte drink to the snarky blonde man.

“Ehh~ but it’s not Evian. This is icky sugary poison,” Monoma says with a sniff. “Uraraka, don’t you have the nice ones you give to the director?”

Ochako snorts. “They’re for him, not you. Do you want him to glare at you even more than he’s doing now?”

True enough, the Director looks downright displeased. It probably doesn’t help that Chief Midoriya is happily cheering Tsuyu and Tooru on, while Chief Secretary Takami is looking awfully smug about the scores.

A cold, cold chill comes over the team. “Shit, we have to win ,” Monoma mutters darkly, while the rest of the team nods in agreement.

Ever oblivious to any sense of foreboding, Kirishima laughs. “Nah, you guys, it’s totally fine! As long as we’re having fun, we’ll be okay! We can take it easy in the next one~”

“Kiri, get a clue! Do you even want to live after today?! And what are you talking about taking it easy in the next game?! This is the most important one!”

Camie tilts her head in curiosity. “Y’all mean the three-legged race, right?”

“Indeed it is the most important game for today!” Iida bellows, excited as always to elaborate. “Because of the rule that it must be a male and female pair who runs as a single unit, and due to the imbalance of the sexes in the offices, this is the one game that encourages camaraderie between and among the offices! It promotes unity! Synergy! Good cardiovascular health! And--”

“Blablabla who cares about that!” Mina interrupts, making Iida’s square jaw drop uselessly. “I mean he’s right about all that, but most importantly the three-legged race promotes ~love~, you know?”

“Love? For real?”

Ochako keeps herself from giggling as Mina and Camie begin to huddle withher, ignoring all the clueless/annoyed guys in the group. “Yeah, Camie-chan, ~love~! They say that when you win the three-legged race, you guys are gonna end up dating each other one way or another! It’s the rules! I mean that’s how Kiri and I started dating 3 years ago~”

Kirishima blinks. “Uh… we were already going out before we won the race, so--”

The girls ignore him completely. “Oh sis I am so in. Ain’t that hot on winning before, but now I am in it to win it. Feel me, sis?” Camie eyes the oblivious Iida, who’s still fuming over being ignored.

“I feel ya sis,” Mina replies sagely. “Just make sure that he doesn’t rip your leg off when you guys run, ‘kay?”

“I ‘unno, I’m kinda into a lil push, a lil pull, a lil rip and tear, see-what-I’m-sayin’?”

Ochako giggles. “Camie, you’re so bad! But I’m wishing you and Iida-kun the best of luck!”

As the girls wiggle their eyebrows suggestively to each other, Monoma scoffs irately. “This race is heteronormative BS. I’m gonna sit this one out in protest.”

Mina scoffs right back at him. “You’re just jealous ‘cause you can’t be partnered with your crush… hey, Camie-chan, Ochako-chan, wanna take a wild guess who Monoma has got his sights on this year? I’ll give you a clue--tall, droopy eyes, sleep-deprived--”

Out of nowhere, Monoma hisses like an anaconda and clamps Mina’s mouth shut with his hand. Just as Ochako begins to wonder what warranted the deadly glare the blonde gives to the pink girl, she feels someone tapping her on her shoulder.

Turning around, Ochako makes eye contact with a certain tall, droopy-eyed, sleep-deprived person. “Uh. You’re Secretary Uraraka, right?” he asks.

“Oh. That’s why,” she mutters under her breath, earning a confused look from the man and a scathing one from Monoma. “Yup, that’s me! And you must be Shinsou-kun.”

Shinsou Hitoshi, 29 years old, one of the more capable managers of the General Affairs Division. Well-known for his work ethic, and even more well-known for his good looks, gentlemanliness, and his deep, sexy voice. Being that he focuses on work and nothing else, he’s famously single, and a popular target of many a single employee.

(All this Ochako learned from hearing Mina and Monoma gossip about boys every single time they take a coffee break together.)

“Yep. That’s me,” Shinsou replies, shyly rubbing the back of his neck. “So, we’re partnered up for the race. Was wondering if you wanna warm up with me or something.”

There are suffocating auras coming all around her--something dark from Monoma, something devilish from Mina and Camie, and something else that feels absolutely fatal coming from a distance that she couldn’t quite pick up. Because of that, Ochako gladly takes him up on his offer. “Where do you want to go?”

As Shinsou leads them away to a different place, she manages to catch Monoma’s threatening whisper, “ don’t you dare win this one, Uraraka. ”

While she and Shinsou strategize, all she can think of is man they weren’t kidding about anything they said about him. Shinsou may look like he’s about to pay off a month’s worth of sleep debt the next second, but he’s seriously determined to win all the games. Even with the heavy eyebags and the serious facade, it’s easy to see how handsome he is, and how uniquely intelligent his purple eyes are. He’s probably past 6 feet tall if you count the wild purple hair. And he’s a nice guy too--the entire time he’s concerned about how he might give her a hard time during the race because of their ridiculous height difference.

“I’m gonna run as carefully as I can,” he tells her as he ties their legs together. “Let me know if it gets tough, though. I’ll adjust to you.”

And his voice is ridiculously deep. No wonder Monoma’s got it bad for this guy. Even she feels some type of way talking to him up close. “Um, sure, Shinsou-kun. Don’t worry, I can keep up!”

As they gather at the starting point, Ochako notices Camie, paired up with Iida, winking at her suggestively. Meanwhile Monoma, who’s tied up next to a reluctant-looking Tooru, looks absolutely murderous.

Well sorry Monoma-kun, she’s still going to try her best. The Director isn’t expecting any less of her. She braces herself as the starting gun is about to fire.

Go!

She and Shinsou get a rough start at first but he was true to his word about adjusting to her, and she did everything she could to keep up with him. When people started falling on their faces during the race (the first of them being Monoma and Tooru, who go down with the most violent noise), the path in front of them started clearing up.

Soon, she and Shinsou are in the lead, tied neatly against Iida and Camie. Iida is aggressively screaming “Left! Right! Left! Right!” as they are running and it’s very distracting. When she stumbles a little, Shinsou holds her up against him easily.

“Uraraka, hold on to me!” he barks as he puts an arm around her.

“Okay!” She clamps her hand around Shinsou’s waist without thinking about it. If she hesitated, she and Shinsou would fall flat on their faces before they reach the finish line. And they’re so close, too! The Director’s counting on her to win!

She doesn’t know how it happens exactly. One moment she and Shinsou are in second place, next Iida is screaming “Left! Utsushimi-kun, THE OTHER LEFT!” and then he and Camie are rolling off the course. Nobody is there to stop them from crossing the finish line, and as soon as they do people are cheering for them.

Takami Keigo floats to them as soon as Shinsou unbinds their legs. “Great job you two! You outran everyone, even Burnin’-chan from the Chairman’s Team! What a show! Ladies and gents, give it up for Secretary Uraraka from the Office of the Executive Director and Manager Shinsou from General Affairs! Don’t they make a cute couple?”

“Shinsouraka! Shinsouraka!!!” The crowd starts clapping and chanting. Great, a few seconds after winning and they already have a ship name? She forgot just how the Endeavor staff really liked this sort of thing, and she underestimated how good Secretary Takami is in riling them up.

“And since they’re so cute together, what do we say to this power couple, huh? C’mon, shout it out so they hear!”

“DATE HER! DATE HER!”

She sees Shinsou turn a shade of pink next to her as he struggles to keep himself from grimacing. She guesses he isn’t too good with crowds. Can’t blame him, seeing as a big chunk of the girls and guys in the crowd are watching his every move, anticipating him to turn to Ochako and really ask her out on a date.

While she had seen this happen before with other couples (Kirishima and Mina-chan come to mind), she hopes that Shinsou has enough common sense not to give in to social pressure. If he had asked her out, deep and sexy voice aside, she wouldn’t know what to say. Saying yes, no, or nothing in front of the expectant crowd would end up with the same result of utter chaos.

“Er, so...” The moment he speaks, everyone suddenly waits with baited breath, and all Shinsou can do is mumble, “Nice race, Uraraka. Hope to see you at work soon. I’m planning to ask Director Todoroki to transfer in--”

Hawks suddenly pops up in between them, one hand cupping his ear. “ Ehh? What was that, Shinsou-kun? You wanna start seeing Uraraka-chan? And you’re gonna ask for Director Todoroki’s permission?!?! Did I hear you correctly?!”

“Uh, no--” Shinsou begins, but he’s immediately overwhelmed by a mixture of excited and anguished screams from the audience, which looks like it’s on the verge of a riot. Meanwhile, the stunned Ochako realizes that she might have severely underestimated Shinsou-kun’s popularity. She’s definitely going to have to watch out for more than Monoma’s wrath in her remaining weeks in the Director’s office...

CLUNK.

An eerie silence fills the auditorium, followed by the just-as-eerie feeling of being engulfed in the icy waters of the Arctic. All eyes dart around to look for the source of the sound. When Ochako hears Chief Midoriya’s concerned cry, she feels a cold dread in the pit of her stomach.

She doesn’t know how something like this could have happened, but looking up at the judges’ table, she sees Director Todoroki flat on the floor, rubbing a sore spot on his forehead. Mildly disoriented, he brings his hand from his forehead, and stares at--

“Blood?!”

*

How does this keep happening to Todoroki-kun?!

Izuku knows that despite his fast reflexes, Todoroki has a tendency to be dangerously clumsy. But they were sitting down for Pete’s sake! Then again, anytime Uraraka-san is involved it was only a matter of time before Todoroki-kun tripped over himself. Why did it have to be so literal though!

In hindsight, making the Director watch Shinsou and Uraraka interact isn’t where things went wrong. Nope, Izuku’s sure that it’s when Takami-san stopped watching the race and started watching Todoroki’s face instead.

“Interesting,” is all the blonde man says before going up the stage and goading the crowd into yelling the date thing. Izuku almost had a heart attack watching things escalate, even more so when Todoroki remained disconcertingly quiet like a bomb.

“Director,” Izuku says in the most soothing voice he can muster at that precarious moment, “Takami-san--I mean Hawks is just kidding, you know? He isn’t really trying to set-up Uraraka-san with Shinsou-kun--”

“I don’t care.”

“Y… you don’t?”

He huffs. Izuku hopes he’s just imagining the frost on his breath. “I’m… not possessive. Uraraka may associate with whomever she likes. This farce does not bother me at all.”

Todoroki-kun it’s bothering you a LOT why must you lie to yourself, Izuku thinks stressfully. At least it’s clear that what Kacchan told him last night really got to him. He didn’t think that Todoroki would ever take the words of someone like Kacchan so seriously, even though Izuku can admit that the explosive blonde had a point.

(But Todoroki-kun is a work in progress. Give him time. Izuku knows growth when he sees it.)

In any case, it won’t do to leave the Director in this awful mood. Izuku has seen what he’s capable of when he’s “ irritated ”. It’s hard to describe, but if Todoroki were capable of creating ice with his body, he’d freeze everyone in an iceberg that can sink at least ten Titanics.

“... you’re right Director!” Izuku agrees desperately. “S… so, I think I’m going to get Hawks back to our table now--”

“I am going out for air. For an unrelated reason.”

With all the dignity of a top executive of Endeavor, Todoroki stands up, turns around, takes one huge step, misses that step, and falls flat on his face.

The crowd gets so quiet after his fall that Izuku thought he went deaf. Todoroki doesn’t move for a while--the shocked Izuku wonders if he somehow froze himself on the ground and if he should step in and pry him off of there. When the Director finally moves after an agonizing second, there’s blood on his hand from a small cut on his forehead.

It’s amazing that Todoroki can manage such an injury, but more amazing is how Uraraka-san runs faster than she’s ever run in the race to go to his side. “Director! What happened?!”

Todoroki does that thing with his eyes where it’s obvious to any outsider that he isn’t seeing or hearing anyone else but Uraraka anymore. “I… tripped.”

“I can see that! How did this even happen?! We’ll have to clean you up! I’ll bring you up to the penthouse, you need to lie down and recover!”

Before anyone can stop them, Uraraka gets Todoroki up on his feet. One arm goes around his waist, and one arm forcibly drapes his arm over her shoulders. It doesn’t look like she could completely support him at first, mainly due to the large height difference, but fueled by righteous fury over him tripping over himself, Uraraka hoists the Director up with little difficulty.

Endeavor secretaries are pretty scary when they’re fired up, Izuku thinks.

“Secretary Uraraka--”

“No buts,” Uraraka tells him sharply. “I’ll take care of you, Director, so don’t worry.”

The rest of the company watches in stunned silence as the Angel Secretary guides the Demon Director out of the auditorium. The only one who’s probably not surprised at the turn of events is Hawks, who floats right next to Izuku with an amused smirk.

“Hawks,” Izuku squeaks. He wants to say something with more details like why would you say all that do you want everyone to die but that’s all he’s able to manage after teetering from primal fear to sheer relief in a short span of time.

There isn’t a smidgen of remorse on Hawks’ face when he grins at Izuku. “Adorable, aren’t they, Deku-kun? Especially the part where Shouto had that obvious internal crisis over Uraraka-chan! He’s so cute when he’s upset, I can’t help but give him just a lil push~ Worked pretty well, even if I do say so myself.”

There was nothing li’l about that push!!!

The blonde man hums, obviously pleased with himself. “Now I’m sure Shouto’s gonna try his best not to let her go. I know you’re helping him, Deku-kun, so do your best to keep her right where she belongs , ‘mmkay?”

Izuku laughs uneasily. Was he that obvious? Todoroki-kun isn’t gonna be happy about this. “U-uhm--I don’t know what--”

Before he can stammer another excuse, Hawks clamps a strong hand over his shoulder, that pretend-lazy smile never leaving his mouth. “You’re going to do your best, right, Deku-kun?” he repeats, eyes disconcertingly focused like a hawk.

Izuku, feeling strangely cornered, can only stammer something that sounds like “Yes sir Hawks sir” and bow in apology many times, even though he’s done nothing wrong.

“Good! We’re counting on you~”

We? Izuku wants to ask who he’s talking about, but before he could, the older man leaves him be and floats towards the crowd to keep the rest of the games going as if nothing happened.

Takami Keigo really is a man to be feared, isn’t he?

[sanders-specs]

Christmas Roadtrip Chapter 2

Prompt:  Christmas Prompt time! Logince fic human au where Roman is a broadway star who lives in Florida with his husband Logan and their son Thomas. Roman is trapped in New York on the day before Christmas Eve because a snow storm has cancelled all flights for the next week. He crashes in his New York apt resigned to a lonely Christmas. Then Logan crams all the Christmas decorations into their car with thomas and drives to New York to surprise him. (Bonus points if you can squeeze in Patton and Virgil)

A/N: Well, I’d meant to have this chapter up earlier, but I’ve been on my own little christmas trip, haha. Anyway, here’s the second part! Sorry for the little vague ending of the last one, i forgot to put any kind of indication that there was another part. so...here it is! 

Parings: Logince, Moxiety 

Warning: Almost cursing (again, can’t think of anything else, but please let me know if i need to tag anything) 

Read on Ao3

Chapter 1 

tag list:  @fiive-second-cookies @tripleaaaqueer @lilbeanblr @helloisthisusernametaken @justanotherpurplebutterfly @alwaysmy-lilith @ilylogan @logically-trans @seas-space-and-stardust @generalfandomfabulousness @arentordinaryvillainsadorable @nico-holly@anxiouslyfred @cefinitely-rolo @princessbutterknife

“Arizona! How many points is that Dad?”

“I believe that would be twenty, which brings your total to eighty,” Logan says, smiling slightly.

“Yes!” Thomas exclaimed and high fived Patton as Virgil groaned.

“Stupid west coasters,” Virgil muttered, but he was smiling.

Logan only shook his head. They’d been on the road for a few hours, and it seemed that Patton had prepared a bunch of road trip games to play. Apparently, Logan and Virgil were on one team, and Patton and Thomas were on another. Logan didn’t particularly care for the games, but Thomas was having fun, so he went along with it.

It was a license plate game where they tried to find cars from all the different states. Cars from states on the East Coast were ten points, since they were bound to be the most common ones. Mid-west states were twenty, and west coast was thirty. Each time a team saw a license plate from one state, they crossed that state off the list and looked for a new one. The point was to see how many points they could earn, but also how many states they could find.

“Oh! Oh! New York! Dad, that’s where we’re going!”

“Yes, it is. Also, another ten points.”

“Great eye kiddo!” Patton exclaimed.

“Minnesota! Ha!” Virgil shouted, pointing to a car in front of them.

If he was being honest, Logan was surprised Virgil was as interested into the game as he was. Then again, it was a rather good way to kill time.

“Where’s that?” Thomas asked.

“North, we’ll count it as one of the East Coast states,” Logan said. “I’ll show you on a map the next time we stop.”

“Okay,” Thomas said, and fell quiet. For a while, everyone was silent, presumably looking for more states. At least Logan thought that until he heard his son’s voice again.

“Dad?”

“Yes Thomas?” Logan asked.

“Papa won’t be mad that we’re coming to him, is he?”

A little startled at the question, Logan glances first at Virgil, then Patton. “Uh, well, I would hope not. He seemed very upset that he couldn’t come home for Christmas. I imagine he’ll be very happy.”

“Okay,” he said, but Logan could still hear an edge in his voice. Sure enough, after another few moments, he spoke up again. “But what if he didn’t want to come home? What if he wanted to stay in New York?”

“Thomas,” Logan said gently, “I can understand where your fears are coming from, but I’m sure that Papa will be very happy to see us. He loves us.”

In the rearview mirror, Logan saw Patton reach over and squeeze Thomas’s hand.

“Look!” Thomas exclaimed after a moment. “Mississippi! Ten points!”

Logan pulled into the rest stop and parked the car before turning around to look at Thomas. “Stay with one of us okay? And you can have one thing from the vending machine.”

“Okay Dad!” Thomas said, getting out. Logan got out as well, stretching. They’d been driving six hours at that point, with only one other stop, so he was eager to walk around for a bit.

“I’m gonna head to the bathroom, want to come with me Thomas?” Virgil asked.

“Yeah!” Thomas said, taking Virgil’s out stretched hand and walking with him to the building. Logan watched them for a moment before turning to go towards the vending machines.

“How are you doing?” Patton asked, catching up with Logan easily.

“I’m very exhausted. I’m eager to take a nap,” Logan told him honestly. He and Virgil were switching spots for a few hours before they stopped at a hotel. Logan would keep going if he could, but even he had to admit that he really needed some sleep.

Patton chuckled. “You look it. I meant about what Thomas said earlier.”

“Oh. That.” Logan sighed. “I don’t know, honestly. The thought hadn’t even occurred to me. Roman seemed genuinely upset about being stuck up there, and I feel that I would know if he were lying.”

Patton nodded along and stared down at the ground. “I think he’s just worried. He hasn’t seen Roman in months, it’s probably just that. He’s a little nervous to see him again.”

“Why would he? Roman is his father.”

Patton gave him a small smile. “Yeah, but it’s always a little nerve wracking to see someone for the first time in a long time, you know? Exciting, but also a little scary.”

“I suppose. I’d never thought about that before. I’m simply excited to see him,” Logan said.

Patton rolled his eyes. “Of course you are, but isn’t there a part of you that’s just a little afraid?”

Logan thought for a moment. “Perhaps, but the excitement far outweighs it.”

“Yeah, that makes sense,” Patton said, a little absentmindedly. “Thomas just needs to see him to be reassured.”

“He will soon.”

Patton smiled. “And in the meantime, we’ll try to keep him distracted with games. Long car rides are always the best place to think, which isn’t always a good thing.”

“I suppose that’s why Virgil is very into these little games?” Logan asked.

“Yep,” Patton grinned. “He likes to distract himself. Driving is good for him too.”

“Dad!”

Logan and Patton turned to see Thomas running towards them, Virgil not far behind. Logan smiled at his son, holding out his hand for Thomas to hold onto.

“Hungry?” Logan asked.

“Starving!” Thomas said, even though he’d already eaten half the snacks they’d brought with them (with some help from Patton).

“Well come on, let’s see what kind of snacks they have here.”

Virgil pulled into the parking spot outside their motel room. “Alright, rise and shine everyone, let’s get inside.”

Logan groaned as he sat up, rubbing his neck. He’d been sleeping for the past couple of hours, and in that time, the sky had darkened and the only light came from the headlights from the cars around them.

Suddenly, Logan’s phone rang. The sudden noise made everyone in the car jump.

“Sh—I mean, oh no, it’s Roman!” Logan said, his husband’s smiling face looking up at him.

“Well answer it!” Patton said.

“He wants to video chat! I can’t let him see the stuff in the back,” Logan said.

“It’s dark Logan, just answer it! He’ll be suspicious—and sad—if you don’t.”

Logan sighed but hit the answer button. “Hey love,” Logan said.

“Hi…wha…Logan? Where are you? I can’t see you.” Roman said, his grin turning into a confused frown.

“Oh, uh, hold on, I’m in the car at the moment,” Logan said. He flipped on a light, turning slightly so that the only thing in the back ground was the seat and a reflection from the window.

“The car? This late? Where were you?” Roman asked.

“Oh, Patton and Virgil treated Thomas and I to a movie night at the theater. The film was longer than we anticipated.” Logan quickly glanced at the time to make sure his lie wasn’t entirely unbelievable. It was only ten, so he figured that he could pull it off.

“Hi Roman!” Patton said.

“Oh, hello!” Roman said. “Where’s Thomas?”

“He’s asleep in the back seat,” Logan explained, seeing that their son was, in fact, fast asleep and leaning against Patton.

“Aw,” Roman’s face fell a little. “I was hoping I’d catch him before he went to bed…I figured I could tell him some Christmas stories.”

Logan smiled softly. “I’m sorry. Perhaps tomorrow night? I will make sure that he gets at least one story from you before he falls asleep.”

Roman smiled back and chuckled. “Not if it makes him stay up too late…”

“He’d stay up all night for one of your stories,” Logan said, “you know that.”

“You flatter me,” Roman said, rolling his eyes. He had a pleased smile on his face, though, and Logan knew how much the compliment meant to him.

“Hey, as cute as this is, I’m tired as hell—”

“Virgil! Language!”

“—and I’d really like to get some sleep.”

“I guess I should let you go...” Roman said, looking rather sad.

“I am also quite exhausted. Though I would like to spend more time on the phone with you. Give me a few minuets to get Thomas inside and in bed, alright?”

Roman smiled. “Yeah, of course. Tell him I love him.”

“Of course.”

“Bye Roman! Stay warm up there,” Patton said.

Roman laughed and shook his head. “I will Pat, I promise. Goodnight. And goodnight purple nightmare.”

“Yeah yeah.”

Logan smiled as he ended the call, then he stretched. “I think that went well.”

“Yeah, whatever, let’s just get inside and go to sleep,” Virgil said, opening the door.

Exchanging exasperated looks, Logan and Patton followed.

“Dad! Dad! It’s snowing!”

Logan shut his eyes tighter before squinting over at Thomas, who was shaking him excitedly. “It’s snowing, it’s snowing, it’s snowing!”

Rubbing his eyes, Logan sat up and looked towards the window. There was, in fact, white flakes coming down from the sky. Thomas got down from the bed and ran over to the window to pull the curtains back more, making Virgil hiss.

“Hey, it’s too early for light.”

“Oh hush, he’s excited,” Patton said, already awake and ready to go.

Virgil just groaned and pulled the blanket over his head.

Logan sighed and sat up fully, pulling out his phone. Indeed, the snow storm seem to have hit earlier than expected. It still had a few hours before things got bad, though. He calculated in his head for a moment and figured that if they moved quickly, they’d be able to get to New York before the storm got too bad.

“Alright, Virgil get up, we’ve gotta go.”

“Duuude just let me sleep,” Virgil grumbles.

“If we want to make it to New York in a timely manner, we need to leave soon,” Logan said, already pulling out a new set of clothes from his backpack.

“Will we be able to get to Papa?” Thomas asked.

“Yes, Thomas, I will make sure of it,” Logan said, just as his phone dinged. He unlocked it to find a picture from Roman’s apartment window, showing a similar sight as what was outside the motel window.

Roman: Snow hit early :(  guess it’s for sure now

Logan: I’m sorry love. We will try to make the most of it

Roman: Have you been around Patton too much?

Logan: It’s possible.

Roman: Good. Can I call and talk to Thomas?

Logan: Yes, of course

Roman: <3

Logan: Dork

Roman: <3

Logan: <3

Five hours later, Thomas was asleep in the back seat, this time with Virgil keeping him company. Patton was driving and Logan was dozing, trying to keep himself awake by listening to his favorite podcast. He was just starting to doze off, though, when he heard Patton gasp.

“Hey guys, we made it!” he exclaimed.

Logan took the earbuds out of his ears and sat up. Sure enough, there were skyscrapers in the distance, a sign directing them to New York City moving above them as they passed under it.

“Hey, Thomas, wake up,” Virgil said from the back.

“Hmmmm?” Thomas mumbled.

“Look.”

Logan looked back at Thomas in time to see his eyes light up in understanding. “We’re here?” He asked, hope in his voice.

“Not quite,” Logan said, “but we’re almost there.”

Thomas grinned.

“Do you have Roman’s address?” Patton asked.

“Yes, of course. Though be careful, it looks like the snowfall is getting heavier,” Logan warned. “I’d rather be a little off schedule then get into a wreck.”

“Don’t worry, Lo, I’ve got it under control.”

Logan just nodded and took a deep breath.

Almost there. They were almost there.

Roman walked with his shoulders hunched and his head down. The wind was starting to pick up and the snowflakes hit hard against his skin, despite the fact that he tried to cover every inch he could. He was grateful that they’d cancelled rehearsal for the day, though he loathed the fact that he had to walk back to his apartment. The last thing he needed was to lose his voice in the cold.

Mostly, Roman was just trying not to think about his family. About the fact that he wouldn’t be able to be there for Christmas, to read to Thomas before bed, or to wake up at the crack of dawn to Thomas jumping on their bed and screaming for them to come down stairs immediately.

Roman shivered, and he tried to push the thoughts away. They wouldn’t do anything except make him feel even lonelier.

As he neared his apartment building, he heard a group of people arguing.

“Yes, I’m quite sure that this is the right place.”

“You didn’t say that you needed a key to get in! Now what are we supposed to do?”

“We wait in the car.”

“Because that doesn’t look creepy.”

Roman sighed. Even complete strangers sounded like his family. Maybe he just needed to go inside and have a long phone call with Logan. That always seemed to cheer him up, at least for a little while.

“Wait, ask that guy, maybe he knows.”

Oh no, tourist.

Roman quickened his pace, but there was suddenly a hand on his shoulder. “Excuse me do you think you can—”

The stranger cut himself off when Roman looked up, and for a moment, Roman was confused until his mind processed who was standing in front of him. Roman pulled down the scarf he’d been using to cover his face.

“Logan?”

He grinned, the stupid, careless grin that was only ever reserved for Roman and occasionally Thomas. Then he threw his arms around Roman, who was so surprised that he took a step back to brace himself, making him slip on a piece of ice. The two fell into a snowbank, laughing.

“What on earth are you doing here?” Roman asked, looking up at Logan with what he knew was a stupid grin that matched his husbands.

“We decided to surprise you,” Logan said. “So surprise.”

Roman laughed and kissed Logan like, well, like he hadn’t kissed him in five months.

“Ewwww.”

The two chuckled and pulled apart. “IS that my little prince I hear?” Roman asked, sitting up as much as he could with Logan on top of him.

“Papa!” Thomas yelled and ran to them. Roman held out his free hand and wrapped his boys into a tight hug.

“Ew it’s cold,” Thomas said after a moment.

“Yes it is,” Logan said, pushing himself off of Roman and standing up. He helped Thomas to his feet first, then he reached for Roman.

Once they were all on their feet again, Roman wrapped his arm around Logan’s waist. “You’re here. I can’t believe that you’re here! Wha-how….” Roman shook his head.

Logan chuckled. “It was your sons’ idea,” he said.

“And what a marvelous idea it was!” Roman exclaims, ruffling Thomas’s hair.

Thomas looks up at him with big, bright eyes. “It was?”

“Of course it was.”

Thomas smiled and hugged Roman’s waist tightly, maybe a little too tightly. Roman only hugged him back and kissed the top of his head.

“Okay, as sweet as this is, we’re freezing our backends off out here, can we please go inside?”

Roman looked up. “Ah Virgil, always nice to see you’re bright and happy smile.”

“Suck it Princey.”

“Virgil,” Patton said in a chiding tone before smiling at Roman. “Hi Ro.”

“Hey Pat. And Dr. Gloom is right, we should get inside,” Roman said, noting how Thomas was starting to shiver. “Come on.”

Chapter 3 

[donghans-moved]

yall i deadass thought i was gonna get kidnapped today i was shaking when i got home omg

there was a blackout (thats what its called when theres not electricity right?) and my school as a generator so i kinda forgot that happened. my class finished at 7:20 and i have to meet with my group to practice for my a presentation i had right and while im waiting im talking to one of the girls and she’s like “well one of the guys can maybe drop you home” and im like SKRRRTTT LMao no i dont like them i’ll just travel. we’re still waiting for these guys and they havent showed up and my sister messaged me and told me to get my ass home cause its late and theres no electricty and i was like “oh shit! i forgot about that” but we havent practiced for this group presentation at all and its due tuesday so i told her to chill and she told me that i need to get home cause im beppy lmao but i still told her to chill cause imma big girl!! if she can stay out til 2am why cant i stay in school a lil late??? anywho, 8pm rolls around and im getting paranoid because of who i am as a person and my sister messaging me didnt help so i told the other girl waiting that imma leave cause my sister acting up and shes like okay cool bye see ya next time. so im walking out the building and to the gate and its PITCH BLACK yall im so scared of the dark you dont understand how scary just looking ahead of me was omg so i get outside the school and its so dark because theres no streetlights i cant even see anything thats like 5 ft ahead of me and im terrified of darkness and im the only one outside there. i definitely cant walk home so i just stand there waitting for a taxi and usually, even doe its right there, i try to take taxis that already have people in it or that i know by face right but its dark i cant see anything but i also need to get home because im terrfied of darkness wsdeswsw so i stop the first taxi i see right. im a little *eye emoji* because theres no one else in the taxi but i done stopped the man i dont wanna be a bother so i hop in. as soon as i close the door, he locked all the doors. im like..... okay..... so while searhing for my money to pay i sneakily unlock my door while watching in the rearview mirror to see if hes noticing me. when i unlock my door, he locks it again in like 4 seconds..... my heart dropped and i started shakin i was so scared i wanted to ask him why he keeps locking the door after i done unlocked it but i was too scared to. when we were pulling up to where i live i handed him the money and told him to stop by the corner and at first i seriously didnt think he was gonna stop i thought he was gonna keep driving i dont think her even put on his indicator man. i hopped the fuck out i didnt even tell him thank you which i always do. i didnt even close the car door properly i just DASHED the fuck inside my gate and into my house. the ride from school to home is like a minute? its really short its like 15 mins lazy walking so it really wasnt that long but man i was scareddddd im even more paranoid about traveling home and i already hate walking to and frm school because men are gross and someone once told a taxi driver to hit me with their car cause i was ignoring their catcalls and numerous times men would slow down when passing me by swdewsedws i hate this world 

[sanguine-fairy]

Craigslist Creep

Pairing(s): NaLu

Characters: Lucy, Natsu, Levy

Word Count: 3157

 Description: Lucy’s first time buying anything off of Craigslist... what could go wrong?

A/N: FINALLY, I am posting the story I wrote in celebration of getting 100 followers. (I’m already almost at 200 omg!) You guys decided on NaLu so here it is :) I hope you enjoy it!

A phone buzzed loudly on Lucy’s bedside table, waking her from her half sleeping state. With a quick roll to her side, she lazily pulled her phone off of the table and read the incoming message. Yes, the car is still for sale. When can we meet so you can take a look? She propped herself on her elbows and glanced at the time. The clock read 9:43 AM. She typed back a quick message. Is noon okay? A reply came in seconds. Yes. My address is 363 Fairy Tail Ln. See you then. She sat her phone back down on the bedside table and stretched her arms over her head before getting out of bed.

As she passed by her body-length mirror, her reflection showed her in a wrinkled t-shirt and shorts with a wild bird’s nest atop her head. Oh god, she thought. She wouldn’t be able to get away with some dry shampoo and mascara this morning. After a quick shower, she felt much more awake and ready for the day. She walked back into her bedroom to see her blue haired friend relaxing on her bed.

“Levy, what the hell?” She questioned her friend. This wasn’t the first time Levy had showed up unannounced. Sometimes she forgot that she didn’t actually live here as well.

“You weren’t answering your phone. I brought bagels.” Levy held up a paper bag with a smile.

Bagels. One of Lucy’s (many) weaknesses than Levy loved to capitalize on. Lucy couldn’t stay mad at her friend when food was involved. She quickly got dressed in a plain white shirt and her most trusted faded jeans. Plopping herself next to Levy, she grabbed her bagel, a wheat everything bagel with onions and chives cream cheese, and happily munched away.

“So what are you doing today? Did you ever hear back from that guy about the car?” Levy asked her between bites.

“Mhmmm. I’m actually meeting him today at noon.”

“Do you want me to go with you? I don’t like the idea of you going to some stranger’s house to look at a car. Have you seen Craigslist Killer? It could happen to you.” Lucy smiled at her friend’s concern. She also had her own worries about buying a car from craigslist, but it was much more cost effective than going to a dealership.

“Don’t worry, Lev. I’ll bring my trusty pepper spray. Plus we are meeting in broad daylight. I’ll be fine.” She flashed a sincere smile at her.

Levy didn’t seem convinced but she dropped the subject anyways. Her small friend was fiercely protective of her like an agitated yorkie barking at the doorbell. Adorable and full of spunk, Lucy appreciated every ounce of her. She could count on her to call 911 if she didn’t come back in a decent amount of time.

After a good hour was spent practicing self-defense moves, Levy bid her farewell. She made it clear that if Lucy didn’t contact her in the next hour, she’d go down there with her scary looking boyfriend and beat up the craigslist creep herself. Lucy couldn’t help but laugh to herself. She truly had the greatest friends.

With a quick glance at the clock. Lucy grabbed her light, maroon windbreaker and headed out the door. Luckily, this guy didn’t live too far from her so she could walk over there. She didn’t think her bike would have fit in the small car he had for sale. The fact that she had found the car, which looked to be in excellent condition from the pictures, for such a steal of a price was amazing. When she had asked why he was selling it for so low he told her it was because he had no use for it anymore and wanted to sell it quickly. She had no complaints, that’s for sure.

She’d been on the hunt for a new car for months now since her old one had died and gone to car heaven. It was going to cost her the price of a newer car to fix the old one so she said her peace to the old car and started her search. Much to her surprise, trying to buy a car from craigslist wasn’t easy. Craigslist was a dog eat dog world that she wasn’t familiar with, so when she found this car it felt like a message from the celestial king himself.

It didn’t take long for Lucy to arrive at her destination. She didn’t realize how nice of a neighborhood this guy lived in until she turned down his street. She knew about this fancy neighborhood but she didn’t connect the dots when he texted her his address this morning. No wonder he was selling the car so cheaply, apparently money wasn’t an issue. Every single house on the block made her apartment building look small in comparison. Even the grass looked greener over here and the air seemed clearer.

As she approached the address, a guy with bright pink hair caught her attention. He was sitting on the hood of the same car she’d seen in pictures on craigslist. Was this the guy, she wondered to herself. The pink hair threw her off. She imagined him looking a bit more… professional. At the sound of her approaching, he looked up from his phone and flashed her a smile.

“Hi, I’m here to check out the car,” Lucy said unconfidently. His onyx eyes fixated on her face. He didn’t reply for a moment and just stared. It was starting to make her uncomfortable. Why was he staring like that?

“Oh, right. Yeah. Take a look.” He cleared his throat and hopped off the hood of the car onto the sidewalk.

Lucy walked around the car, looking for any cosmetic issues. She wasn’t quite sure what to look for but she figured if anything was wrong, she’d be able to tell. When she didn’t find anything wrong, she opened the driver’s side door and slid in. She could feel the guy’s watchful gaze on her through the window. She didn’t know what his problem was. It’s not the first time a guy has had a staring problem, but they usually don’t do it so obviously.

“I charged the battery so it should start right up if you wanna give it a try. Keys are in the ignition.” The guy told her.

She turned the keys, and like he said, it started right up. She waited for a moment, trying to listen to any strange noises to start. She half expected the low whine her previous car was known for. The engine purred like a content kitten. After a few minutes, she killed the engine and got out of the car. The car was perfect. It still seemed too good to be true, but she wasn’t going to let this opportunity slip through her fingers.

“I’ll take it.” She told the man. She dug around in her bag for the envelope of money she had withdrawn from the bank the day before. Saving up for the car had been easy with how long it took her to actually find it. He gratefully took the envelope and briefly leafed through the cash.

“It’s all there.” She assured him.

“I’m not worried. Glad to do business with you.” He shifted awkwardly like there was more he wanted to say.

Lucy hesitated a moment before getting in the car. She felt inclined to hear what he had to say, especially if it had something to do with the car. The vibe he was putting out there was tough to read, but she could tell he had something on his mind. Just as she was about to step in the car she heard him speak up.

“So, I was, uh, wondering if you wanted to go grab some food or something?” It looked like it pained him to even speak the words.

His sudden question caught her off guard and without thinking twice, she turned him down. She quickly got into the car and shut the door, starting the car desperate to flee the awkward situation. She took off down the road not daring to look in the rearview mirror.

The uneasy feeling that had settled in the bottom of her stomach didn’t dissipate until she’d driven a few blocks. It was then replaced with guilt. Maybe she had been too harsh to turn him down so bluntly. He was actually kind of cute, despite the staring problem. But it was too late now. Her pride wouldn’t allow her to go back there with her tail between her legs.

A honk coming from the car next to her startled her out of her thoughts. She turned to see a brunette girl motioning for her to roll down her window.

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but it looks like all of your tires are flat. It’s not good to drive around like that.” The stranger called to her once she rolled her window down. Lucy waved her thanks and pulled the car into the closest parking lot.

Tears pricked her eyes as she stepped out of the car to view the tires. All four of them were flat. She couldn’t believe it. She’d been right about it being too good to be true. Anger started to wash over her as she thought about the situation. How dare he sell her a car in this condition! With shaky hands, she pulled her phone out of her pocket and dialed his number. Her frustration grew with each unanswered ring, peaking when his voicemail picked up.

“I am calling the cops! You’re creepy and a thief!” She shouted into her phone before hanging up, wishing she still had a flip phone that she could close dramatically. She got back into the car and slammed the door shut. She let a long scream escape her lips and rested her head against the steering wheel. The tears that had been threatening to fall were no longer holding back. What had she done to deserve this?

Her phone started to vibrate on the seat next to her and she snatched it up and took a deep breath before hitting answer.

“Please don’t call the police!” The pink haired thief pleaded into the phone.

“Why shouldn’t I? All of the tires are flat. Flat! You sold me a car that is useless!” She yelled into the phone.

“Shit. Really? Where are you?” He replied.

“Like I”m going to tell a thief like you!” She retorted.

“Hey! Chill out. I want to help. Tell me where you are and I’ll call a tow truck. We’ll go down to the tire shop and I’ll pay for a new set of tires.”

Lucy bit her tongue. She didn’t expect him to actually offer to help. Apparently, most people on craigslist are crooks, according to Levy anyways, and she had expected the worst when he didn’t answer her call. She told him her location and waited for the tow truck to arrive.

By the time the pink haired punk showed up, Lucy had calmed down. Well, she was still frustrated at the situation but she was no longer directing it at him. He did just offer to pay for a full set of new tires. Maybe he wasn’t a thief… but the creepy comment still stood until proven otherwise.

His knock on her driver’s side window made her jump in surprise. He had wasted no time getting there. It looked like he ran the whole way by the way he was trying to catch his breath. When her own heart rate slowed back down from the shock, she stepped out of the car and took a seat on the hood.

“Why the hell are all of the tires flat? You said it was in excellent condition!” She snapped at him, letting her frustration seep through her words.

He shrugged his shoulders, “I mean it had been sitting there for months. I do apologize for this. I didn’t even think about the tires.” His eyes were sincere causing Lucy’s frustration to lose some steam.

“Well, as long as it gets fixed by the end of the day, it’s fine.” She replied while crossing her arms in front of her. An exasperated sigh left her lips. She should’ve been home by now, cozied up with the new book she just borrowed from Levy.

“Don’t worry, this creep will have it all taken care of.” Lucy scowled at his comment. He was smirking at her, proud of himself for calling her out. If she could just melt into the car right now, she would. Oh, how she despised how easily she found herself in awkward situations.

“I’m… sorry for calling you creepy.” She mumbled, not meeting his eyes.

He took a step closer to her and cupped a hand over his ear. “What was that?” He asked her with false sweetness.

“I’m sorry for calling you creepy!” She repeated herself loudly. She met his eyes this time and felt her face flush red at the eye contact. He was wearing a playful smile as he held her gaze, daring her to look away.

“I’m Natsu, by the way.” He said without breaking their eye contact. His eyes were so dark, Lucy could feel herself getting lost in them. She hadn’t noticed how much depth his eyes had before. It was like she was looking into two bottomless pools full of hidden emotion.

“Lucy…” She trailed off. She knew she’d been staring for too long, but she was too captivated to care. Who had the staring problem now?

A loud honk broke the two of them out of their trance and they turned to see the tow truck pulling up next to the car. Lucy’s heart was racing and she wasn’t sure if it was because of the honk or that onyx star. At this point, she wasn’t sure which she wanted it to be.

Luckily, Natsu did all of the talking with the towing company so Lucy didn’t have to do much explaining. She admired how professionally he handled it, knowing she would’ve been a mess if she had to do it on her own. Lucy and stressful situations were not a good mix and almost always ended in tears.

The ride to the tire shop was quiet. Natsu had been gentleman enough to offer her the window spot, sparing her the torture of riding between him and a complete stranger (not that Natsu was any better.) However, the truck’s cab was small with barely enough room for the three of them. Lucy was acutely aware of how close Natsu was sitting next to her. It felt like every inch of her skin was overly sensitive, over analyzing every movement he made. She wasn’t sure she breathed until they arrived at the tire shop.

The shop was busy when they arrived. Natsu went up to the front desk while Lucy searched for a place to sit. She found a tiny table tucked behind a stack of tired and claimed it. Just as she relaxed into the metal chair, her phone started vibrating in her pocket. A gasp escaped her lips when she realized who it was.

“Levy! I’m okay! I’m sorry I didn’t call. Some things happened but I’m okay.” She attempted to calm down her fireball of a friend.

“What do you mean something happened?!” Lucy had to hold her phone from her ear to avoid damage to her ear drum.

“Well, I bought the car, right? And when I was on my way home, someone stopped me and told me my tires were flat--”

“WHAT, WHY THAT LITTLE--”

“It’s okay! Natsu called a tow truck and we’re at the tire place getting new tires put on now. He’s even paying for them. You told me everyone from craigslist is a crook, but Natsu’s actually a good guy.” She smiled at Natsu who was still standing at the front desk messing with the popcorn machine.

“Natsu? Do you need me to come pick you up? I can bring Gajeel!” She laughed at her friend’s antics.

“No… I’ll be okay.” Lucy watched Natsu as he walked towards her with a content smile on her face. “I gotta go, Lev! I’ll call you when I get home.”

“Lucy, wait--” She hung up before Levy could finish. She’d understand.

Natsu slid into the chair across from her and placed a bag of popcorn on the table. He spun the opening in her direction.

“It’s complimentary. And also… a few hours old.” He crinkled his nose as he popped some stale popcorn in his mouth, eliciting a giggle from Lucy.  His eyes lit up at the sound.

“It’ll be at least thirty minutes before they get to the car.” Lucy nodded in reply and grabbed a handful of popcorn. She surveyed the area, taking in the sight of the other people also waiting for their cars.

Natsu leaned in towards her like he had a secret to tell. When he had her attention, he motioned to a couple across the shop with his eyes.

“Long time married couple. They’re in here before he promised he’d fix it and six months later, it breaks down on their way to the grocery store and here they are. Turns out he didn’t fix it at all.” He whispered across the table to her.

A sly smile crept onto her face when she realized what he was doing. She took another look at the crowd and her smile grew as she motioned towards a woman across the way.

“Mother of three, all under the age of 6. She uses this time to escape the kids and leave them with dad. She chooses this errand because of how long it takes. The dad is none the wiser.” She ended with a giggle.

They continued with that until everyone in the shop had their own backstory fabricated, even the shop employees. No one was safe when they walked through those doors. By the time the car was ready, the two of them were dying of laughter, earning looks from everyone in the room. Lucy was surprised by how quickly the time passed when they were interrupted by an employee with the keys. She was almost certain they had worked on her car quicker just to get them out of there. A permanent smile was plastered on her face as the two of them walked towards the car. She hadn’t laughed that hard in a while.

“Hey.” Natsu paused by the front of the car.

“Yeah?” She hesitated next to him.

“Wanna go grab some food or something? Not like a date or anything, I mean unless you want it to be.” He asked nervously, keeping his eyes on his shoes.

Lucy didn’t hesitate to answer this time.

“Sure. I’d love that.”