#this was supposed to be a small amount of angst to set the scene then mostly fluff

[parcfermekisses]

Sneak peek of some end-of-season Dando I'm mired in...

Lando messages daily – sometimes hourly – and almost always selfies. Flipping the bird with a grin, pouting on a golf course, standing in front of a mirror with his thumb hooked in the waistband of his joggers and briefs to pull them down over his hip bone. Daniel thinks incessantly about replying but doesn't.

'Busy time with family' he eventually sends back, four days late, along with a blurry phone photo of small hands on a game controller. 'This isn't my area of expertise'

‘facetime? watcha playing? i know a game or two. could help'

‘they don’t need any pointers on how to hand me my arse, but thanks’ It’s crueller than he means it to be, but he sends it all the same. He doesn’t have the energy to finesse it into something palatable. Three little dots bounce at the bottom of the screen for a while then disappear. There’s no message.

The next day he sits on the ground outside and puts the camera between his feet, tips it slightly forward and presses the shutter release to take a photo of the earth, sun baked and red and falling out of focus. It’s a quick and dirty trick that makes him feel like he knows what he’s doing. He sends it to Lando. The dots bounce almost immediately and the anticipation in his gut makes him slightly nauseous.

‘nice one’

Two words. They don't make him feel any less sick, and he fights the urge to send message after message begging Lando to come and visit, to call, to send more photos, anything, please, anything, anything, anything to make him feel less alone. He watches the bottom of the chat relentlessly, willing the dots to reappear. They don’t.

[pygmi-cygni]

Playing Favorites

poe dameron x reader

summary: your position as resource agent isn't high on the christmas card list for most, but you take it seriously. As seriously as you can, while still having to scold grown men for their....antics.

@brighterthanlonelywords REMEMBER THIS THING WE TALKED ABOUT IDK IF YOU DO BUT I SWEAR I DIDN'T FORGET!! in my poe dameron post like three weeks ago lmao you gave me this idea

content: sexual innuendos, pining, flirting, banter, angst...it's a poe fic like you know why ur here

there is a brief scene where reader is harrassed, it isn't sexual or anything dw

reader is afab, described w braidable hair, texture not described/racially ambiguous

You'd taken the job for the scenery. Being from Kamino, you hadn't seen much farther than your window, let alone anything other than rain. Your parents had told you stories of the skies, promising to leave the soggy planet. In the end, you escaped on a ragtag Rebel ship recruiting pilots. Immediately upon landing at the lush landscape of D'Qar, you'd known it was the right choice. The view floored you every time.

But nothing could compensate for the amount of utter bullshit you experienced as a resource agent.

So...you decided to do barrel rolls in an unregistered X-Wing?

Uh, yeah.

Without a helmet or a pilot's license?

uhhh....

You were the epitome of a short fuse. Resource agents were essentially the Resistance's HR team. Strange, because absolutely nothing about the Resistance followed 'protocol', but you supposed there needed to be some kind of discipline in place.

No, your crew wasn't making many friends in the Res, nor were you the most celebrated, but somebody had to do it.

Though, you wished it was somebody else.

Mind melting to a thoughtless mush as you listened to a cadet stumble over excuses, you flicked through the remaining meetings scheduled.

Team training, team training, briefing with Organa....fuckkkk.

Your favorite piece of shit, Poe Dameron, had another protocol screening set for his next mission. You gotta be kidding me.

Normally, pilots had a protocol training at the beginning of their enlistment and then once every six months. It was long and tedious; going through safety maneuvers and briefing procedure to make sure everything was up to date. But, because Dameron was special and liked to play by his own rules, General Organa had started mandating his for every mission.

Which meant three hours out of your day because somebody didn't read the Terms and Conditions.

This is such bullshit.

Schooling your expression into neutrality as the bumbling cadet finished his story, you tried to stop your fingers from crushing the tablet in your hands.

Being the equivalent of a galactic HR meant that you weren't gonna be on anybody's Christmas list. Yeah, the job was tedious, but you weren't good enough at plying to be a pilot and couldn't fix a droid to save your life, so you used your skills to help in the way you could.

You were here to stop a war, not make friends.

You could feel Dameron before you saw him. The ego that shone like a halo around him was sparkling like a disco ball as he loudly bantered with his crewmates. General Organa had already arrived, and shot you an amused glance as you rubbed your temples.

Inside voice, Dameron, for the love of Hoth.

"Evening, Commander," you said briskly, gesturing towards the prep room doors, "you know where to start."

He made eye contact and grinned. "Right to business, I like it. Cute hair, sweetheart," he added smoothly. You bit back a frown and followed Organa into the small briefing station. Initially you'd been excited to wear your new braids, but his incessant flirting dampened your pride.

"Flirting with an HR officer is awfully brave of you," you fired back.

"I like a challenge." His smirk sparkled in the low light.

General Organa, used to your bickering, waved at the holo above the console.

"This mission is simple, Dameron, a recon on the Mid Rim. You'll be out there for around two standard days. You are required to check in every twelve hours, and return with the information here," she explained, highlighting a small map underneath the mission summary. Dameron leaned forward, brow set.

"A map....of Abelor? That's a spice trade port, General, why does the Resistance need to be involved?" His confusion mirrored your own. Organa held up a hand, continuing.

"There have been rumors that First Order informants are using the spice port to smuggle information planet-to-planet without needing to go through protocol checks. This is merely a recon to stake out the area. You'll be meeting with an ally, Rhett Mosley." A lanky man popped up next to the summary. He was mostly covered in tribal tattoos, and a pair of thick goggles hid most of his face.

Poe nodded, copying the info on his personal tablet.

"Any questions?"

At his subtle shake of the head, she gestured to you and bowed. "Continue with the protocol, ten hours until takeoff."

You both murmured a farewell and she left with a swish of her cloak. For a moment, Poe was suspended in his own head, gaze distant and stricken. Awkwardly, you shuffled around, hoping to rouse him.

He snapped out of it, and his trademark grin spread across his face. "Just you and me now, sweetheart," he said, bumping your shoulder.

"Just get in the fucking X-Wing."

You sat by, bored as Poe droned about the processes in his ship. He knew the steps, you knew he knew the steps, but because of this stupid loophole in the system, you both had to sit here for another hour.

"Maker- look, Dameron," you sighed, scrubbing your hand over your face, "I know that you're more than capable of doing this mission. I'll sign all your papers, I just want this to be over."

He paused in the middle of showing you the intricate seamwork on the inside of his security belt. A mock look of abhorrence crossed his face.

"What! You wound me, baby. I thought you loved our time together," he bemoaned, batting his dark lashes.

Your filter was slowly coming loose. "Yes, how could I forget, Dameron, how enjoyable it is to listen to your terrible pick-up lines while you bullshit your way through a protocol exam?"

This earned a small chuckle. To your dismay, a small part of your ego preened at the sound. You liked making people laugh. And if Commander Dameron happened to be the one laughing....well, that was okay too.

"No it's not," you snapped. You hated him. This was-

"What? Yes it is, I just showed you." Poe was looking at you, head tilted in confusion. You blushed, realizing you'd said that out loud.

"Right. Er...sorry, Commander, continue. I didn't...nevermind," you muttered, willing your cheeks to stop flaming. He wiggled his brows at you again.

"Feeling a little hot and bothered, Lieutenant?" Poe grinned, the pink tip of his tongue poking out. You scowled at your feet. Since childhood, your cheeks flamed like hell at the slightest embarrassment.

"That's alright," he continued his conversation, "I know I have that effect on people. Sorry to inconvenience you, honey, I know you still think you hate me."

You aggressively signed off on his report, shoving him the document and wiping the growing smile off your face.

"Good luck, Commander, you're cleared for takeoff."

"Can I get a goodbye kiss?" he called after you.

The mission, by all accounts, was a resounding success. You didn't care; still riding the high of being Dameron-free for at least a few days. The base had been, to nobody's surprise, remarkably calm and quiet for the weekend.

But, like clockwork, our favorite flyboy was marched into your office at 7 sharp, sporting a black eye and a toothy grin. His droid, a cute BB unit, was beeping frantically, occasionally rolling into his feet.

You looked up from your caf, unamused.

"Early bird gets the right hook, I see," you sighed, rubbing a hand over your face.

"Left, actually," he said sheepishly, rocking on his heels. The corrections officer that led him in rolled her eyes, snapping a salute and walking off.

"Dameron, we've had this conversation too many times for me to pretend like you didn't deserve it."

As if on cue, he threw himself across from your desk, hands folded. "No, no, listen," he wheedled, "look, it's a long story, and I wasn't trying to start anything, swear-"

"BB-8, recent log information, please," you asked crisply. Poe shot his friend a desperate look.

"Beebs," he hissed, "come on, stick with me on this one, dude!" BB-8 blinked, then rolled over to you and stuck out his little thumb drive.

You thanked him, kindly patting his tummy. Preening, the little droid circled his pilot friend tauntingly. Poe glared balefully. "I give you tummy rubs too," he grumbled.

A grainy camera feed pulled up. Dameron and another pilot, clearly drunk, were getting heated over something you couldn't make out. Truthfully, the other guy swung first, but Poe was not clear of fault.

"You slapped him with a plate," you deadpanned, rewinding to watch it again. Poe rubbed his neck.

"Well, yeah, but..." he trailed off, searching for a good excuse.

"I do recognize that he punched first, but you still antagonized him. I'll send you to my advisor and they'll do a case review for you." Eager to get on with your morning and shove Poe off your desk, you waved at him to leave.

His lower lip pushed out. Goddamn the puppy eyes, I swear to Maker.

"But why won't you clear it for me?" His voice was small, pleading. Beebs, clearly unamused, thumped against Poe's knee.

"I don't have the authority."

"But...wait, wait. I could take you by the cantina and you could ask the people that were there, and maybe...I'll buy you a drink, and we can chat for-"

"Dameron," you said again, tone gentler. "I'm sorry. But I'd lose my job."

"I've heard my company is worth it," he winked, then winced, for he'd winked with his bruised eye. BB-8 booped wearily. You felt for the little guy. Opening a desk drawer, you pulled out a small tube of varnish and gave the droid a shine for his efforts.

"Stop pampering my droid and pay attention to me," Poe complained, "he'll start picking favorites."

You sighed, looking at the pilot with a tired expression. Even though he gave you trouble, Poe was a good pilot and a good friend. He teased and flirted and drove you up the wall, but he was a good guy. You didn't want his record to be tainted, he wouldn't come around anymore.

Woah, where did that come from?

"Poe," you said slowly. He noticeably brightened at his name, putting as much into his smile as you'd ever seen. "I cannot clear you from this...event. However, if you write a written apology and an explanation I can...forget it."

He threw his arms around your shoulders and crowed in success. BB-8 whirred in surprise. You didn't lean into the embrace, too shocked to do anything. He smelled...nice. Like metal and cinnamon.

"Thanks, honey," he whispered, "I owe you one." Pulling away, he poked BB-8 in in the tummy and smirked.

"Told you she'd listen," he whispered smugly. As he whistled and strolled off, a faint blush dotted your cheeks.

He really was a sweetheart.

Night time was your favorite on base. It was quiet, solitary. Walking past the housing on your nightly check, you smiled at the sounds of muffled laughter coming from the bunks. It was like a family. Dysfunctional, yeah, but it was home.

It had been a long day. You had two hallways to go before you could collapse in your own bed. Tomorrow was your day off - you could finally sleep in.

You were playing with the zipper on your jacket as you rounded the corner.

A solid block of person collided with your cheek. Stumbling, you caught yourself on the wall.

"S-sorry, I didn't mean to-"

An unfamiliar scowl glowered down at you. Your apology trailed off. This guy was huge, probably six feet tall and heavyset. His face looked familiar, what with the sharp cut across the bridge of his nose.

Oh. This was the guy Poe had been tussling with.

"Sorry, sir, I need to get by," you said, shaken from the impact. He didn't move. Thompson was printed on his breast pocket, with a green insignia. Green Squadron.

"Heard you had something to do with this," he snarled, jabbing a thumb at his rank. Suspended.

"I..." a rush of panic swelled inside you. This is why you didn't play favorites. You buckled one time and now this guy was gonna wreck your shit. Fucking Dameron, shit shit shit-

"I..I didn't do your intake," you stammered, balking at his imposing figure. "It wasn't my case-"

"No, but pretty boy gets to fly tomorrow, and guess who took his?" Thompson was seething, eyes narrowed to slits. You were amazed that Poe had the balls to smash a plate on this guy. You wanted to curl up and cry.

Help. Help. Somebody help me oh my god I'm going to die.

There were rows of doors on either side of you. You could knock on any of them, but he'd surely grab you before you made it. If you screamed, maybe somebody would-

Stars and pain exploded and you were catapulted backwards, crumpling against the doorhandle. The wind had been knocked out of you so sharply not even a gasp had escaped your lips. Choking and heaving, you scrambled backwards. Pain was everywhere. You weren't sure where he'd hit you.

I'm going to die.

Thompson sneered down at you, making a grab for your collar. Desperately, you scratched at his face, tearing open his smashed nose. The reopened wound gushed, sticky red trickling down your fingers and into his raging mouth. You gagged, but quickly cowered as he swung again at your face.

His fist smashed against the door, and you mentally apologized to whoever was trying to sleep. Air was becoming harder to swallow, and you realized his hand was twisting your shirt too tight around your throat.

uh oh uh oh fuck you sputtered and gasped and tried to smack him off, but he grabbed your wrists

fuck-

You fell backwards; rolling out of his grasp and into a dark room. Something yanked your shoulders backwards and you were shoved into darkness. Finally able to suck in a breath, a bloodcurdling shriek ripped from your bruised throat.

A large hand clapped over your lips. You wailed louder, trying to escape the sweaty palm.

stop it stop it HELP stop stop SOMEBODY FUCKING HELP

A ringing in your ear, punctuated by a loud male voice.

"Stop it," he hissed, removing his hand from your mouth. You panted and struggled against the forearms bracing your stomach. The first punch had landed on your sternum, and the entirety of your torso was screaming in pain.

"Hurts," you whimpered, trying to shove away. The man let go and you collapsed forward, gagging from the pain. A small night light glowed in the corner of the room, highlighting a familiar mop of curls.

"Poe," you wheezed, sitting up against the door. A muffled commotion could be heard outside - likely your fellow officers finally detaining the rogue Green pilot.

He nodded, wiping his brow. Grabbing the light from his desk, he brought it over to look at you. The warm light added a softer glaze to his eyes. He looked bleary. You'd probably woken him up.

"Hey, sweetheart," he said, gently coming to sit next to you. You sniffled, still shaking.

"Don't move," he whispered, free hand coming up to carefully inspect your face. You didn't look at him, ashamed to be in this state. The light he was holding was for a child - shaped like a small cartoon Bantha. Cute, you thought listlessly.

Trembling, you could still feel Thompson's hands around your throat. You choked again, throat constricting around nothing. Fear still pierced your bones, and you folded forwards, sobbing into your knees.

Poe, surprised, swore and set the light down. His hands fluttered over your back, unsure of where it was okay to touch. He settled for your hair, petting the plaits gently as you cried.

The sounds outside had long quieted before you ran out of tears. A cold bottle was pressed into your hands. Cool water trickled down your throat. You swallowed gratefully. The room, still dark, brightened again as Poe flicked on another night-light.

Your lower lip was trembling, this time with embarrassment. You could feel Poe's concerned gaze tracing your face.

"You need to go to the medbay?" His gravelly, sleep-warm voice was quiet, hand still running over your hair.

You shook your head.

"Anything broken?"

Feeling around your ribs, you winced. Bruised, nothing broken. Again, you shook your head, clutching your water.

Poe nodded, scooting to sit next to you. You sat together, slowly coming down from the cortisol spike. Your limbs still shook, heartrate erratic against your aching chest.

"You're okay in here," Poe murmured, "Thompson may be strong, but he can't break through doors." You shivered, ducking your head into his shoulder. He understood, falling quiet again

Your throat was raw, and bruises pulsed under your skin. Eye contact was impossible, the embarrassment forcing your eyes down. You looked like a wreck - hair falling loose and bruises littering your body. The spot on the back of your head throbbed from the impact with the door.

Poe's fingers traced lightly, and you whimpered when they hit the sore spot. He retracted his hand quickly, apologizing rapidly.

"Hang on, hang on." His warm shoulder disappeared, and you sniffled at the loss. He returned a moment later with an ice pack, which he gently settled on the back of your head. The cold was soothing.

"I'm sorry," he said, gaze mournful. "This is kinda my fault, isn't it."

You squinted at him in the low light. "What?" Your voice was raspy.

"I made you get him in trouble, right? If I hadn't..." he gestured off towards your office, "y'know, then...well, you'd probably be on Thomspon's nice list."

You huffed a dejected laugh. "No, it's-" you cleared your throat, taking another sip of water. "it's okay." It wasn't, not really, but you didn't have the energy to be mad.

"I see why you don't play favorites," Poe said, smiling sadly. You gave him a half smile.

A soft beep came from your left and you turned. BB was tilted questioningly, large eye blinking.

"Hey, beebs," you whispered, reaching out to poke his antennae. He whirred and nudged your hand. "I'll be okay, it's just a couple bruises."

Your mind was still reeling. Poe scratched his friend's tummy then turned back to you.

"Why don't you stay here for tonight?" His eyes were genuine and concerned. You looked at him wearily. His hair was ruffled and cheeks flushed from sleep. Cute.

What?

"I won't try anything, promise," he reassured, hands raised placatingly. "I just don't want you walking around like this."

You swallowed and nodded. Poe took the water and the ice pack, setting them nearby. He hooked his arms under your shoulders and lifted you gently, stabilizing you when you swayed.

"You should really get checked out," he said, frowning."

"It's okay," you rushed, stumbling back. Poe grabbed your elbow to keep you from falling.

"It's okay to need help, you know. Nobody's gonna get mad." His eyes were gentle. Your lip trembled again, and you tried to pull away. Instead, Poe pulled you into a hug.

Your sob was muffled against his sleep shirt. He shushed you, hands tracing warm circles over your back. It's okay. It's okay. You'll be okay. Don't worry.

He really did smell good, you thought groggily. Cinnamon was comforting, and you started to sag in his arms. Poe carefully laid you on the lower bunk, pulling the blanket up to your chin.

"Which do you want?" He asked, pointing to the wall. Fighting to keep your eyes open, you blinked.

"Huh?"

"Which night light? I have a bantha and R2-D2."

At your blank stare, he blushed sheepishly. "I'm scared of the dark."

You snorted and pointed to the Bantha. Poe nodded, "a respectable choice," and placed the little light next to your pillow.

He sat at the foot of your bed, pulling out a tablet. You watched him, eyes growing heavy, as he pulled up a muted holovid, his hand stroking gently on your calf. Sleep came swiftly, and you drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

You woke at noon, shuffling under a thick warmth. A familiar warm smell curled around you like a blanket. Blinking blearily, a black mass of curly hair was crammed into your shoulder. Poe's head was three inches from your chin, and he was snoring like a bear. He was laying on top of the blanets, hand fisted over your chest. He reminded you of an infant, snuggled against any source of warmth.

Ignoring the ache in your chest, you petted his head and drifted back off.

join my taglist if you want, just comment or message me! it didn't mean to become so angsty lol idk what happened

xox bye bye

[beingsuneone]

Sunset & Vine

PART ONE | PART TWO

SYNOPSIS: one year was all you had, and the winners of the previous hunger games. You didn’t know them that well, but they were still youre only friends. Now you’re thrown back into the Games with some new confusing feelings.

FANDOM: The Hunger Games

PAIRING(S): Peeta Mallark x Victor!Reader

RATING: G

CHARACTERS MENTIONED: Peeta Mellark, Katniss Everdeen, Haymitch Abernathy, Coriolanus Snow, Johanna Mason, Finnick Odair, Effie Trinket, President Coin, Gale Hawthorne

GENRE/AU: Dystopia, Angst, a very small amount of comfort,

WORD COUNT: 5.2k

WARNINGS: Katniss is slightly OOC, Canon divergent in some ways but not others, CATCHING FIRE AND MOCKINGJAY SPOILERS, Reader won the 74th hunger games and Peeta and Katniss won the 73rd.

A/N: Jjj, I’ve really got to stop writing stories with ending like this. Lemme know if you want part two. FYI!!! Changed a few words that completely changed the context and set up for the next part.

DEDICATIONS: Peeta my beloved

CREDITS: Taylor Swift for the name (Gorgeous - Taylor Swift)

It’s a woman, standing with her back to you— she has similar hair to yours and an almost protective stance to her. A haze of colour surrounds her… oranges, purples and yellows swirled into an indescribable but beautiful mess.

Peeta Mellark may be a fellow victor, and he may be one of your neighbours, but you know nothing about him. Except for this beautiful painting that he gifted you.

She wears a dress that flows in some sort of assumed breeze, and has a hand tentatively braced in her hair; there’s something so familiar about this scene that you can’t place— something familiar about the woman in particular.

You can’t place it.

You run your fingers along the small note that Peeta had left with the painting, hovering over the loopy cursive of his signature; it’s the same on the painting but it’s too beautiful to touch like that.

Last year, you won the seventy-fourth annual hunger games, and became a legend for getting district twelve two wins in a row— right alongside Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark, Who won the seventy-third hunger games.

Thank god the months of parading you around were over and you could settle happily into your gigantic house by yourself.

Well, happily might be an over statement— you had no family, and certainly no friends… unless Haymitch counts but you don’t think he does.

So this painting feels extra special— a warmth in an otherwise cold and unfamiliar home.

“Where should I put it?” Muttering to yourself, you mentally scan the layout of your house; you’d want it to be in a place where you could see it often, but also somewhere where any house guest would be able to see it… yeah. House guests.

After shaking your head uselessly, you settle on hanging it in the entryway. For sure people would see it there.

You’d been putting off doing this for a couple of days, just because you hadn’t had a whole lot of energy to do anything but sit in a chair and half-read a novel.

So, after a few minutes of fiddling and messy calculations, the painting is hung in the entryway.

You take one last glance at the swirling coloured background once more, and then turn away, leaving the comfort and fantasy behind.

……

Victors are supposed to have immunity, they’re supposed to be done with the games for the rest of their miserable, trauma ridden lives.

But the seventy-fifth hunger games brings back all of the worst parts of last year— you know that out of the three other victors, you’re the female they want to get picked. You’re the easy decision, the loner that nobody cares about.

You know the Capitol loves Peeta and Katniss far too much, and you, not enough.

This, stacked on top of everything else the Capitol has put you through… it’s too much.

You’re pulled from your thoughts when there’s a knock at your door.

“Hello?” You say as you open it; Peeta Mellark is standing there with his lip turned down just slightly, his eyes center behind you for a moment before his face softens and lightens.

“Hey. You got the painting.” A smile melts onto his face, and you swear he looks… beyond words when he smiles.

After a long moment of silence, you clear your throat. “What brings you here…?” You stammer awkwardly, cringing at your choice of words.

He sort of— laughs? Chuckles? at you. “We’re talking strategy for the Quarter Quell and we figured we should include you.” His face falls again, and he looks like he’s holding something back.

Your back straightens. “The Quarter Quell isn’t for another few months—”

He nods slowly. “But we’re going to have to do the pre-tour… and they’re pulling names in just a couple weeks.”

The band around his ring finger gleams brightly in the sun, which sends some sort of jealous feeling rolling through you.

You shake your head because you don’t know Peeta Mellark, and, even if he is gorgeous, you don’t get crushes on people you don’t know.

Plus he’s in love and engaged to Katniss Everdeen, even if you did know him well enough to develop a crush.

He glances down, and then quickly yanks the ring off. “It’s, uh— just for the camera’s.” Then he gestures to the painting behind you. “That’s you, you know. I know you’ve never worn a dress like that, but I saw a screencap of you in The Games and inspiration just kind of… hit me.” he trails off at the end and fiddles with the ring in his hand.

“It’s… me?” You say slowly. “We barely know each other, why would you paint me?”

He takes a small breath. “You’re really beautiful, Y/n, I’ve always thought so.”

A breath hitches but you genuinely can’t discern if it’s him or you over the roaring of blood in your ears.

“So…” he starts again. “If you want to join us, we’re heading over to Haymitch’s now.”

“Okay.” You say, sounding more winded than you did before; you stare at him for a few more moments before you step out of the front door and shut it.

You walk silently beside him, trying not to take in his messy blonde hair or pretty blue eyes—and also, failing miserably—

Just as you reach Haymitch’s doorstep, you stop and tug on Peeta’s sleeve to get his attention. “It’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen, Peeta.”

He looks down at you, the air around you charged with some kind of something that you can’t name, and just as he’s about to reach over to you, the door swings open.

“Why are you guys just standing out here?” Katniss says with her nose scrunched, she eyes you up and then eyes Peeta up in a similar fashion.

At least it wasn’t exclusively you.

Both your heads snap toward her, while Peeta smoothly comes up with a reason. “Y/n was feeling nervous, I was just trying to help calm her nerves.”

Haymitch raises an eyebrow from behind Katniss, and gives Peeta a look.

“Hey, Sweetheart.” He says, as Katniss steps aside and lets the two of you in. There’s a tenderness to his voice that you hadn’t realized you missed so much.

“Hi.” The three of you shuffle into what you think was once a living room but it’s chillingly messy in Haymitch’s house.

“Couldn’t we have done this at someone else’s house?” Peeta says, eying the empty bottles on the floor.

“No.” Katniss shakes her head, shooting Haymitch a glare. “Because everytime we have to talk to him, we have to wake him up with a bucket of water.”

You snort. “I’m sorry— a bucket of water?”

Haymitch cuts in. “Why do you think my hair’s wet? I definitely didn’t take a shower.” There's a water stain that makes his shirt sag, and you wonder how you didn’t notice before. Haymitch clears his throat. “Moving on; if it’s Katniss and Peeta then we can still milk the whole star-crossed lover thing— if it’s me or Y/n… that won’t work.”

“Y/n shouldn’t go.” Peeta interjects; you’re taken aback by it.

You fidget with the hem of your shirt. “I really thought I was the best person to go.” You pause, looking up at the three of them. “It’s not like there’s anyone here that will care if I don’t come home.”

Haymitch gives Peeta a scrutinizing look. “Look, Lover-boy, we know you have a crush but that isn’t enough for Katniss to volunteer herself if Y/n gets picked.”

Peeta looks to you and then back to Haymitch. “Katniss and I are the Capitol’s favourite couple right now, if we went we’d probably be much better off in terms of sponsors and parachutes.”

“And you don’t want her to go.” Haymitch gestures in yours and Katniss’s direction.

Peeta sighs but doesn’t deny it. It makes sense that he wouldn’t want his fiancé to go back to the Games.

“Peeta is right,” Katniss starts, “but, Haymitch, if you get picked… Peeta should stay. Either way.”

Peeta shakes his head. “No. I’m not staying.”

You cut in. “There’s no good reason why I should stay.” You’re basically the only clear answer; if you get picked you’ll go, and, if Katniss is picked, you’ll go. “I won’t.”

Now all three of them are staring at you. “If I get picked, Katniss can’t volunteer and if she gets picked, you can’t stop me from volunteering.”

Katniss huffs. “You can’t stop me from volunteering either.”

Really, you could all argue this for hours.

…..

The four of you had never come to a conclusion, and now it’s the day of the Reaping.

Effie stands uncomfortably at the bowl; she doesn’t seem happy about having to pull your names, despite her chipper facade.

“The female tribute for District Twelve is…” she says, digging around in the two slips of paper in the bowl. She finally pulls one out and reluctantly reads it out. “Y/n L/n.” She almost sighs your name.

Katniss’s fingers twitch nervously, like she wants to say something but you shoot her the strongest glare you can muster.

She doesn’t volunteer, and you’re glad for it.

You walk up to the stage, head held high; you know this is the start of the end of your life, so you might as well act more confident than you truly are.

Effie looks at you sadly once you’re settled behind her, and then turns back to the audience. “And… the male tribute for District Twelve is,” she spends another five minutes routing through the two names. “Haymitch Abernathy.” This time her sigh is one of relief.

But the relief does not last long.

“I volunteer!” Peeta says, stepping forward; Haymitch grabs his arm and says something too quiet to hear, and Peeta says something back. His face is full of determination as everyone watches him walk up the stage and stand next to you.

Everyone in your little group wears a look of defeat. Even you.

Only one of you can go home, and you’re going to do your damn best to make sure it’s Peeta Mellark.

…..

“I’m not ready for this.” You say quietly, as you walk down the corridor to your bedrooms on the train. “It’s hardly been a year, Peeta.”

He nods solemnly, not looking at you as you arrive at your door. His is just across the hall.

Peeta gently takes your hand in his and squeezes. “I know. It’s too soon.” He looks angry. “We were never supposed to have to do this again.” He drops your hand before you can reciprocate in any sort of way.

You do feel a little less nauseous though.

“It‘s okay.” You whisper, twitching your fingers and slapping it onto the doorknob. “It’ll be okay.”

Peeta’s eyes rove over you in a scrutinizing manner as though he’s trying to figure some meaning behind your words, but there isn’t one to figure.

Just that it will be okay. Peeta will, if you really just be specific. Peeta will return home, happy and safe.

Ready to live his life with the woman he loves… Katniss.

And you will fade into false glory and distant memory.

…..

“Finnick, Right?” You fidget with your fingers in front of you; Finnick Odair was an attractive man who oozed with confidence and smooth words.

“Want a sugar cube?” He asks slyly, holding one out to you. “They're supposed to be for the horses but— we’re going to die anyway, it won’t matter after that.”

You nod carefully. “Of course, because that would obviously matter if we weren’t already set for death.” You still take the sugar cube from his hand and pop it in your mouth.

You almost gag from it. Pure sugar was… a lot. “Ugh. That’s disgusting.”

Finnick chuckles. “But liberating.”

You shake your head but a smile still spreads across your face. “Liberating indeed, Finnick Odair. My last act of rebellion is eating a sugar cube.”

“Devastating, really. To the Capitol, I mean.” He smiles easily at you, before someone catches his attention and he saunters off.

Claudius Templesmith stood not far from you, crooning about something with one of the older tributes.

The older man— Betee, you think— stood, looking indifferent but also invested in Claudius’s ramblings and unnecessary questions.

You were dreading the questions he’d ask you during your second round of interviews.

The last time was time enough for you.

“What’d he want?” Peeta asks, walking up behind you and pulling your attention away from the other party-goers.

“Oh, you know,” you say flippantly, “sugarcubes, secrets, and sarcasm.”

Peeta’s eyebrows furrow in confusion but the smile remains on his face. “Sounds like an interesting conversation.” He extends his arm to you. “Shall we?”

You sigh. “Not like we have much choice.”

….

“I’d give anything to know what’s going on inside your head.” Peeta says softly, fidgeting with the rope in his hands. You’d both decided that learning how to tie some knots would be beneficial.

You chuff, an awkward laugh. “What do you mean?”

His fingers work steadily, and somewhat clumsily, with the rope; there’s something alluring about how sure he can be with his hands.

It makes you think of the painting in your house— the one that you’ll never see again— how patient he must’ve been to complete such a beautiful piece, how still and sure of himself.

“What are you thinking right now, Y/n?” He looks up at you, with those beautiful blue eyes of his.

You shrug. “I was thinking about…” you trail off, because you absolutely cannot say that you were thinking about his hands. A half-truth will have to do. “Your painting. How I’ll never see it again.”

Hip lips pull into a frown. “You’ll see it again, I’m going to make sure of it.”

Sighing deeply, you stand. “You’re the one who has to go home, Peeta, not me.” He opens his mouth to speak but you cut him off. “It has to be you.”

….

You don’t have the time to argue about it for the next couple of days, you hardly even see each other.

Now, Cinna is preparing you for the arena. You know that everything he gave was meant for Katniss, he had obviously expected it to be her, or that he wouldn’t style you.

He hadn’t been your stylist, but yours had opted out of this year’s games, claiming it was too painful to watch you go back in.

You hadn’t liked her much the first time around, wanted to change you too much in ways that you most definitely did not like.

Cinna, though, you liked him. Though this would be the last time you saw him.

You were dressed in whatever mandatory suit that they designed for this game, a skin tight suit that looked like you were about to go scuba diving.

“It’s time.” Cinna says, glancing back to the tube at the back of the room. You turn back to it.

“Thank you, Cinna.” You say, bowing your head for him. “It was nice getting to know you.”

He smiles half-heartedly. “It was a pleasure, Y/n.”

You exchange a final goodbye and step into the tube. The sixth second countdown begins as the tube starts to ascend.

It's all water, just water and water and water in a large circle around them. There was also thin sand bars that connected the tubes and the Cornucopia, but you knew you wouldn’t be braving that.

Peeta stands three tubes down, with a morphling, a Career and Johanna between you two.

Twenty seconds.

You stare at him desperately, hoping he’ll stick to the plan and swim towards you; you catch his eyes and he smiles reassuringly. It’s not a genuine smile but it still calms you all the same.

Ten seconds.

You ball your fists, clenching hard.

Nine.

Eight.

God, it’s going to be difficult to get out of the water.

Seven.

Six.

You’re not the strongest swimmer, maybe you should go to the Cornucopia.

Five.

Four.

And it’s a long way to swim, even for someone who does know how. Only experienced swimmers, like Finnick, would have an easy time of it.

Three.

Two.

Then, it occurs to you, maybe those sandbars go all the way to the shore; if you get to the Cornucopia, Grab, well, anything, and then flee via the sandbars, you just might be okay.

One.

The pads everyone stands on recede into the water and dumps everyone straight in.

It makes you realize that most of your competitors do not know how to swim.

Peeta is just barely floating thanks to the bright purple belt that had been strapped around all your waists.

You know how to swim at least a little bit , so you unbuckle yours and swim over to him; once it inflates fully, you give it to him and try to drag him towards the sandbars.

It dawns on you all over again that Peeta is a tall guy, and he’s not exactly small either.

He’s strong and his weight definitely shows that; he tries to keep himself afloat but ends up making it worse.

Eventually, you make it over there, and he pulls himself up onto the loose sand; it takes a bit of effort because it’s slippery and keeps moving under your weight.

It’s barely stable enough to be a viable option. Just barely.

You leave him there for a minute and swim to the cornucopia. There's fighting going on on its small platform, but you just snag a small waterproof bag that sits a few yards away; a knife comes flying in your direction, and knicks your face.

The salt of the water stings as it mingles with blood.

When you spin back towards Peeta, he’s struggling and Finnick is approaching him.

You race back as fast as you can.

Finnick already has some pretty gnarly weapons strapped to him.

You’re about to draw the knife on him when shakes his head. “Relax, Y/n, I’m saving his ass.” Then he lifts a hand out of the water and flashes some sort of bracelet at you.

It’s the alliance bracelets that Haymitch had mentioned.

Oh.

“I-”you start, but you never really had a sentence to begin with.

You just lag silently behind as Finnick helps Peeta to the shore. The closer you get to the shore, the wider the sandbars get, and the sturdier they are as well.

Until they're eventually higher than the water, and wide enough for both Peeta and yourself to walk side by side.

You collapse onto the sand when you finally reach the shore and stay there for only a second.

That’s all you have before the three of you are up and running into the forest in front of you.

….

When Peeta’s heart stops, you're sure that yours does too— you’re sure that, as you stand there in a state while Finnick tries to resuscitate Peeta, you’re also unresponsive and silent. Dead.

True enough, in a way.

The longer you stare at Peeta’s face, still twisted in pain from the shock, the more you feel like dropping to the ground and sobbing.

You tried to imagine the way he painted with camouflage training stuff, drawing intricate designs onto both his and one of the morhpling’s arms.

It had washed off by the next morning but you had spent the whole night longing to touch it, run your fingers along his arm, trace the shapes and swirls.

Beyond the paintings, you recalled his magnetic smile and the way he always made you feel safe and calm, the steady air that he radiated.

You weren’t ready for him to die, he was the one who was supposed to win this, after all. You had resolved that Peeta Mellark was going to be the winner of the 75th Hunger Games and you were going to do whatever you needed to to make that happen. You were even prepared to turn into somebody you weren’t, just to make sure Peeta went home. Or at least, you thought you could if you had to come to it.

But now, you’re ready to give up. Finnick or Johanna could win— and they should. Literally anyone else but you. Everyone who had a life now that Peeta is gone.

You’re just about to collapse to the ground when Peeta starts to cough erratically, and he manages to sit straight up.

“Peeta!” You cry as you fall to the ground next to him, and wrap your arms around his neck. He seems disoriented for a moment before he hugs you back, right. “I really thought you were gone.”

He gently strokes your back, as you fuss over him, double checking that he’s okay and checking his burn.

…..

You hear a loud sickening crack from somewhere else in the arena that makes everyone but Johanna and Finnick jump. You feel Peeta’s hand wrap around you protectively and pull you closer to him in the single instant that you’re all reacting to the noise.

It takes a few delayed seconds before each one of you realizes that it’s just the lightning in 12, before you realize just how having Peeta’s hands on you makes you feel.

His fingers slip from your waist, brushing softly as they fall away and leaving you feeling just slightly feral.

You pull yourself away, and dig your nails into your thigh to ground yourself. Getting used to this clock thing was going to be agonizing.

You’re waiting patiently as the lot of you— You, Peeta, Finnick, Johanna and Beetee— come up with a plan to take down the force field and take out the Careers at the same time.

You can barely focus on the conversation because you itch to have Peeta’s hands on you again, to feel his fingers against your skin again.

In fact there’s so many things you’d like to say and do with Peeta that you know you will never have the chance to; not to mention that he is in love with someone else and would never be interested in any of those things with you anyways.

You’re pretty sure you’d been staring at Peeta but you only notice because Finnick shoots a look at you— you can’t tell exactly what he’s thinking but it must be something about that.

You try to zone back into the plan.

….

Trying to trap the careers failed miserably, and the person most experienced with a bow was you, but only thanks to Katniss’s training.

Everything was a blur as the force field came down; chaos, fire everywhere— you couldn’t see or hear Peeta.

You worried about him and you laid pathetically on the ground, half out of your mind. You wondered if he was having trouble with his prosthetic leg, or having run from Enobaria or one of the other careers. You wondered if he’d make it out okay, even though it was obvious you wouldn’t.

You wondered and worried for what felt like forever until an airship appeared above you.

Great. You thought, the Capitol has come to torture you and everyone you’ve ever loved until the couldnt anymore and all of you was nothing more than a shell of a person. Until the only option was avox or death.

You can’t move, or fight it as the giant claw, scoops you up.

All that effort and you still managed to condem each and everyone of you to torture.

…..

“Relax, Y/n!” Haymitch snaps, as Finnick restrains you.

Katniss sits on the other side of the table, looking just as devastated as you.

“What do you mean, you didn’t get Peeta? You can’t just leave him there, they’ll hurt him worse than any of us could ever imagine!” You say, still struggling to get away from Finnick.

Katniss actually argues in your favour. “I did say I would only do this thing if you got both her and Peeta.”

Plutarch, the game maker shakes his head redundantly. “Peeta and Johanna were just to far away for us to locate before the Capitols airships came; I’m sorry, we’ll get them back eventually.”

Finnick finally lets you go once you’ve calmed down. He has a solemn look on his face. “I’m sure they’ve got Annie too. We need to save them as soon as possible.”

….

As soon as possible turns into several weeks, several heartbreakingly, agonizingly long weeks.

You can’t help but think about Peeta every moment of every day . You imagine all the terrible things Snow is doing to him, you wish it was you in his place.

Peeta was the one person who never deserved any of this, over anyone else. You and Katniss had been willing to do whatever you needed to to survive, you’d done things maybe you weren’t particularly proud of. But Peeta? He had never let the Games change him.

He had always been the same.

Safe, steady, comfortable, strong.

You don’t even have any hope that they’re showing him any mercy.

They aren’t.

You know now, you know by the way that last interview they aired went— how he was struck just as the cameras shut off, how your heart broke when you looked into his eyes, when you saw just how much they’d hurt him already.

You were just about ready to burst into Coin’s office and tell her that you were getting Peeta now, regardless of the consequences to Thirteen.

Gale and Katniss were fighting a lot lately, tension was heavy between them; and not in a good way. You didn’t know Gale well, but the comments he made about Peeta made your skin crawl and your hands itch to throw a few punches.

Actually they were arguing now, about Peeta, and you were listening.

Gale’s head snaps to you randomly and he barks at you; “and you! Why the hell are you so invested in Bread Boy?”

You startle for a moment, but then narrow your eyes. “What do you mean why am I invested? He’s my— friend.” You say, sounding unsure even to yourself.

Katniss huffs. “I mean, come on, Gale, you know that our relationship has been fake from the start and we—” she gestures between the two of them. “—we’re friends, Gale, we always have been.”

He scoffs, and says something else in a bitter tone but all you can hear is Katniss’s words replaying over and over in your brain.

Our relationship has been fake from the start.

“Shut up for a second!” You snap at Gale, and turn back to Katniss. “Your relationship was fake the whole time? Yours and Peeta’?” You almost feel like an asshole for asking, just in case it is real; but so many things Peeta has done and said make so much more sense recontextualized like this.

Like when he said their rings were ‘just for ten cameras.’ Or when he told you he always thought you were beautiful. Or even the way he tried so hard to convince not to go back into the games.

Both of their faces fall flat, Katniss’s in disbelief. “You didn’t know?” She says.

You shake your head slowly. “No, I-” you stop yourself because you're at a loss for words.

“Y/n, we didn’t try to hide it from you, how did you not know? Even Haymitch said right in front of you that Peeta had a crush on you!”

You deadpan once again. You had blatantly misread everybody’s words in that conversation. “I just assumed that was about you!” You stare at each other for a second longer before you stand up abruptly. “I have to go.”

There was a lot of thinking you had to do and then a lot of planning— and a bit of yelling too.

…..

You were deemed too invested in the mission to actually go on it, and Finnick was too distressed over Annie to be allowed.

So you had been sitting together in silence; the silence was comfortable but the insane amounts of stress running through your veins was enough to make the tension in the air as sharp as a knife. Not between each other but to any other person.

Especially since Gale was allowed to go on the mission, and you felt that was entirely unfair— Gale doesn’t even like Peeta.

It had turned into a whole day of waiting, and only twenty minutes ago, they had returned with Johanna, Peeta and Annie.

The anxiety had grown tenfold when you were both informed you weren’t allowed to see them yet.

Now, you’re standing outside the door where Annie was resting, watching her through the one way window.

Finnick’s eyes are filled with so many you can only pick out one or two; you wonder if your eyes will look similar when you enter Peeta’s room.

You wish him luck and watch as he enters the room; Annie looks like she screams his name and then jumps him. He holds her up, looking like it’s the happiest moment of his life.

Watching them makes you much more excited to see Peeta, although you're not sure it will be quite that exuberant of a reunion.

You walk a couple doors down, glancing in the windows as you do; but you stop when you see Katniss and Johanna in one of the rooms before Peeta’s.

Why in the world is Katniss in the Hospital? What happened?

You push open the door gently, and Katniss doesn’t stir— you take note of the morphling drip in her arm, that must be keeping her knocked out.

You see Johanna is also asleep, her head is shaved and she has the worst tortured expression on, even though she looks to be sleeping soundfully— physically, anyways.

If she’s looking that bad, you can’t help but wonder about Peeta. You’re always wondering about him.

You don’t want to disturb either of their healing so you quickly leave the room, shutting the door as quietly and calmly as you can.

Finally, as you walk out, you spot the guards in front of Peeta’s door; you think it’s a little strange, considering neither Johanna nor Annie had security at the door but you walk towards the door anyways.

The guards hold out a hand as you approach.

“Restricted access, you can’t go in there.” The guard says, almost heartlessly.

Just as he finishes speaking, the door opens and Haymitch steps out and away. You would look through the window but the blinds are down.

“I’m sorry, Sweetheart, you can’t see him.” Haymitch takes your arm and leads you back down the hallway. “The Capitol… they tortured him so bad he—” Haymitch stops, and looks away for a second before looking back. “He tried to strangle Katniss, and kept yelling about how Katniss was a liar. He’s not himself right now.”

So much for your heartfelt reunion.

All content belongs to @beingsuneone , do not repost, copy or post on other platforms without my permission.

[savnofilter]

Talk to Me | k. bakugo

           Fantasy AU!Katsuki Bakugo x [GN]Reader

WARNING(S): suggestive content, angst, lack of communication, abandonment issues if you squint, name calling, toxic dynamic (they're actually a fucking hot mess), making out, shifty hands, sex innuendos, established relationship.

COUNT: 3.4K words [10 mins.]

READ MORE: masterpost [students + bakugo masterlists]

A/N: bro a good bit of this was written in like 2019 n i had to come up with something. originally, this was requested by someone ion fw no mo but i wanted to finish it lol. 😭 i didnt want it to end up in smut (like it was requested) so now you have this like… angsty-vague thing! idk lol. this will be followed by a hc part two that is more ehhhhh mature. ALSO if youre relationship is like this, do not let it be, amen. 🙏🏽🙏🏽 thank for reading. 👵🏽

“Where the fuck is she, dunce face?!” Bakugo demanded, shaking the frightened dark-haired blonde who had his signature lighten bolt streak in it. The startled warlock tries to pry himself out of the explosive man's strong grip in irritation.

“I-I don’t know! She came around here like a week ago! How am I supposed to know?!” Kaminari exclaims, tears now beading in his eyes, whining desperately wanting to get away from his angry friend. Bakugo glares deeply into Kaminari’s eyes before letting him go, not passing up the opportunity to judge the space and ignores Kaminari rambling about his potions.

“There goes this week's rent portion…” He pouts cleaning up the bottles and trying to seperate them to put off to the side as he tries to fix the mess Bakugo made.

‘If you aren’t here now, then where the hell would you be?’ Bakugo huffs in thought as he leaves the small shop and looks around the area. The man’s anger quickly continued to scale up as he tried to think of something quick. As of now, he had recently been to every place you frequented, this shop being the last resort on his hunt for you. Suddenly he has an ingenious idea, the burst of thought sending him storming back into his friend’s store once again. Kaminari jumps as the door slams open and whimpers in protest pointing an angry finger at Bakugo.

“No get out! You already cause enough damage-”

“Does it look like I give a damn?! Use your stupid orb!” Bakugo growls, marching up to the frightened warlock with his fists balled.

“It’s not an orb, I've told you that!” A pout is seen on his lips, the warlock holding a stern look as a warning. He carefully scoops up the aforementioned tool and glares at Bakugo to protect it from his wrath. Kaminari scrambles in fear when Bakugo bucks at him, not wanting to provoke the haughty man any further. “Fine, fine! But it's not going to be free, nor will I let you smash my crystal ball.”

Bakugo mutters a few curses under his breath before digging into one of his pouches. It takes a few moments before he grabs a considerable amount and slams down a shit ton of money onto the merchant's counter. Kaminari purses his lips and hesitantly leans in to look at the lump sum, raising his brow a bit at how “little” the amount is. A few more curse words and snide remarks are set against him before he happily smiles at the new total.

“Who would you like to see, kind sir?” Kaminari beams.

“Whatever, that bitch who thought she could best me.”

He takes a deep breath and closes his eyes and tries to visualize what's happening in the distant moment. His brows raise a bit as he sees the familiar scenery, opening his eyes and a few sparks run through him as he looks around almost as if he was in the moment himself.

“I wh… Um it looks like they’re-”

““They’re?” Who are they with-”

“Yeah! This is the place I found them, he could hook you up with--Bakugo?” Kirishima asks, pausing as he stares at the disastrous scene before him. His left brow quirks as he could already tell Kaminari was using his orb. He grins with a chuckle, crossing his arms. “Who are you stalking now-”

“That bitch!” Bakugo fumes, pupils turning into slits as they land upon you. You cross your arms and step back each time he stomps towards you until he has you cornered up against a wall. Kirishima is quick to pull him off, Bakugo shoving him off as he glares sharply at you. “I thought thieves aren't allowed in this part of town.” Bakugo growls without paying any attention to his friends, his boiling rage making you scoff out a laugh.

“Is that how you talk to people, fuck face?” You cross your arms and tilt your chin up at him.

Bakugo immediately goes in to lunge at you, the other men in the room moving to get between you two. “You know you took my fucking money, bitch!”

His exclamation seemingly offends the other two although it wasn't directed at them, a round of dramatic gasps sounding from them. The red haired dragon who brought you in presses his hand against Bakugo's chest to hold him back, while the warlock behind the raging barbarian takes his place in holding his arms back.

“Bakugo! What's gotten into you?!” Kirishima asks before giving you a questionable look that undeniably had a look of sympathy behind it as well.

“They took my money at the bar and never paid me back,” Bakugo bucks at you with each word, a smug grin breaking out into your lips as you suddenly remember what had happened prior to his drastic outburst. “30,000¥!”

“You make a ton of money, you've probably made it back already.” You roll your eyes in correspondence.

Recently, Bakugo has once again felt trifled by you. You and Katsuki had known each other for quite some time now, and have a long wrap sheet with each other. Truth be told, Katsuki sure as hell made up the money you had taken in no time—but that isn't the principle of what you had done. Most importantly that he let himself get played so easily, especially from you.

About two weeks ago, on the night the notorious barbarian had come back from one of his tours, he had only one thing on his mind: unwind. Of course doing that was hard with his status and all, especially from all the promoting he had been doing for months. If there was one thing he could complain about, it would be about how tedious touring is, but that's not what we're focusing on here.

We're focusing on the fact you swindled him out of his fucking money.

That night at the bar was a bittersweet one—Katsuki’s only plan was to get in and get out.

He didn't want to talk to anyone (ever) or fake entertaining conversations and all that bullshit. Hell, if it was possible he'd have to commission Kaminari to make a device of some sort to handle that shit for him in his non-communicative moods. Thankfully, when he was like this , the stingy aura that came from him usually shooed people away from him. Everyone but you.

One moment Katsuki was inhaling the sharp and tangy scent of whisky in his glass as he downed that bad boy in one gulp. When he placed his glass down and motioned for the bartender to fill another, a familiar scent that wasnt the alcoholic beverage overtook his senses. Soon enough, the pressure of someone's body was against his muscled arm and similar limbs wrapped around his forearm.

“Katsu,” You whispered in his ear, smiling deviously as he didn't even try to hide the shiver that you elicited from him. “I missed you, why didn't you tell me you were in town?” You pouted and took a seat next to him.

“I just got back, how the fuck am I supposed to tell you that, exactly?” He grumbled, taking another sip from his glass to ease his stress.

“You could've lettered me.” You take his glass and have a helping for yourself, a hiss following after as you finish your serving. “I don't know how you drink these things -”

“What do you want, Y/N?” He finally faces you and snatches the glass out your hand and slams it down on the surface for another helping. A sharp look pointed at the attendant makes them quickly go to make another glass for him.

“Come with me tonight, haven't seen you in forever.”

The suggestion easily made his cock stir. It didn't help that your newly placed hand now sat at the top of his thigh, mischievous hands softly squeezing around the area but not reaching the place he needed you most.

You always had such an easy effect on him, something he hated. Which is why you two were on some fucked up on and off relationship that had no real direction.

You two would care for each other like devoted lovers, but then the next moment you two were arguing like there was no tomorrow. You would have amazing sex, and then jealousy would ensue. Various moments on where you two would find solace in one other was always drowned out by the toxic compatibility you two had going on. Just two individuals who had a lot to give but no clue how to healthily do so.

Irredeemably so, he liked what he had with you. It was toxic for sure and everyone was sick of it except for the two of you. He wasn't even sure how it even developed into this. Unorthodoxly Katsuki was always willing to do anything for you, as you would for him. Except he has resources you didn't, especially money.

That night when he let you come over to his place without second thought is the night where the longest beef you guys had in your “relationship” started. Your original idea was to bring him back to your place but seeing how fucked up he was before you had even got to the bar made you almost feel sorry for him. You begrudgingly dealt with his slobbering and drunk self as you tended to him, periodically swatting away his shifty hands and sloppy kisses.

“Mmnnn thought you’re gonna suck it..?” Katsuki tugged at your waist and pulled you into his lap, his boner proudly pressing into your hip.

“I'm not fucking you in this condition, Katsuki.” You roll your eyes and lay him back down on his bed and somehow manage to untangle yourself from his grasp. When you stand up again you press his shoulders back and point your finger at him as if he were a disobedient child. “I'm being fucking serious! Go to bed or I'll tie you up.”

“You're not my fucking mom!” Katsuki looked you up and down with angered sass, crossing his arms and defiantly looking away with a huff.

“Good, cuz you certainly wouldn't be acting like this!”

“Don't talk shit about my mom!”

“You brought her up first you dumbass!”

With Bakugo’s stubborn nature, he ended up arguing with you until he passed out. All your other attempts beforehand were as domestic as they could be, but of course this is the way you could get him to fall asleep.

You took a few moments to watch him sleep peacefully, his face as beautiful as an angel. His eyebrows that always furrowed in tension were eased and relaxed, the small wrinkles in his forehead smoothing as he fell into slumber. His eyelashes were a luscious and gorgeous batch although being short. His mouth was slightly agape as he started to snore, his body now completely in slumber from his extenuating busy job. You carefully leaned over to close his mouth to avoid the snoring and place a chaste kiss to his forehead before pulling back. It really was lost on you why you two couldn't just function normally but that was something to figure out on another time.

You quietly but hastily put together the things that could help him for when he wakes up in the morning, even cooking him up something that could be reheated without losing its quality. You carefully set everything up on his nightstand and left a little note for him to read when he wakes up. Getting ready to leave, you realize something sticking out of the pocket he was once wearing that night. You glance at him one last time before tip toeing your way to his pants pocket and light upon your discovery.

30,000¥

The way your pupils dilated in circumference gave you expert vision in being able to examine the money, and wasted no time whatsoever counting the dollars over. Shamelessly, you made your decision fast. In record timing you were stuffing the wad of cash into your shirt and happily trotting out of his place into the young night.

The two males who devotedly choose to stay neutral in the matter moved a little, their wary expression now falling on you for your rebuttal.

You look away with a bit of shame, pouting as you do so. “I needed it for something.”

“So you wait till I'm sleeping?! What'd you even use it for!”

“That's none of your business!”

“Hell yes it is, it's my fucking money!”

Kaminari swears under his breath and pinches the bridge of his nose as you two start your yelling match, looking over at the other unlucky bystander that so happened to be there. Kirishima deeply sighs and nods as he steps back from them, his friend doing the same.

“You know what? Why don't you two go settle this in the backroom,” Kaminari yells over you both and waves an arm between you two to gather your attention. He gives a forced smile and dramatically swings his arms to motion your attention towards the hall of the shop. “I'd rather you two be a nuisance where my products and eardrums aren't in jeopardy.” Although his words are framed as a suggestion, it's imposed as a command; he respectively grabs both of you and tugs you to his ‘meditation room' (he uses it for when he sleeps on the clock) and shoves you two in there.

A pregnant silence follows you two when your fate in the enclosed place is sealed by the sound of his friend’s footsteps walking away. There's no doubt you two are locked in here, Kaminari has done that several times as you guys more than often ended up having bickering sessions in his shop. You hesitantly look up at him as you two are a few meters away from each other. You, closer to the bed as he was close to the door. When your eyes meet with his, Bakugo charges at you with conviction.

With quick steps he's right in front of you and gripping your jaw in one hand, red eyes burning into yours. Without any prior notice he leans in to press a kiss to your lips with force, his plump lips softening the blow. You groan against his mouth and immediately wrap your arms around his neck, both of you in a fight for a dominance that neither of you want to give up. Angrily fighting against each other for different reasons.

His hands greedily grip at your hips and forces you to sit down on the bed, his handling breaking the rough kiss. Heated contact between you two doesn't halt yet, but neither of you move to remove any clothes, just simply trying to get close to one another. You chase his lips as he takes pride in starving you of the pressure of his lips, his actions prompting you to grab the back of his neck and cement him on you again.

As of now his body is completely pressed against yours as you two occupy the bed, tensions rising in the warm room. This time when pulls away for air you don't protest, allowing yourself to catch up with him.

“Tell me why you're angry, hm?” Bakugo asks in a low voice, lips brushing against yours tauntingly. His hands although so used to gripping your hips so roughly held your body so tenderly, his gaze stuck on your lips and his body pressed against yours. Your silence does bring a concern to his thoughts, eye flickering up to meet yours.

Your bottom lip quivers as you can’t find yourself to speak like how you usually do, not even a toxic or sassy remark to mask how overwhelmed you felt. There's only a short moment where you wordlessly try to come up with something, maybe some pathetic excuse to mask your worries but nothing comes up. Instead, you breakdown in a sob, heart clenching in humiliation as you ca longer hide your anxiety behind toxicity and anger. Bakugo coos at your burst in emotions, enveloping you in a hug as he knew better than to press for more information. Against your will, your body succumbs to his familiar heat, face nuzzled into the comfort of his neck.

“I really would've appreciated it if you were here with me when I had my diagnosis, Katsuki.” You start off not wanting to continue, already knowing that he wouldn't like what you wanted to tell him. “I know you told me not to go alone, but… months? You didn't even tell me when you were going to be back.”

You feel your lover’s body tense up as he pulls away, his face stern as he tilts his head to meet your eyes. “You know I told you not to go alone—”

“I know but I couldn't wait anymore. It was killing me,” You solemnly look up at him for comfort.

His eyes soften immediately as you look at him and he pulls you in for a chaste kiss on your forehead, letting you rest against him as he settles for holding you tight. Bakugo wasn't good at these things, saying stuff that could make you feel better. But one thing was for sure, he liked holding you and he knew that's something you needed right now. After a few moments of collecting his thoughts he speaks to you.

“I just don't want you going through this by yourself. I'm not mad at you, okay?” Bakugo reassured you softly, large and warm hand rubbing your back as you completely leaned on him. “I know we go through some shit but I know it was selfish of me to leave so soon.” You merely nod, giving him a squeeze as you can't find any words to formulate. “I guess I was also scared to find out, but I should've been here with you instead…” Katsuki takes a few moments to gather himself, nervously biting his lip as he mutters against your hair, “I’m sorry.”

A silence falls between you two, a comfortable one albeit the circumstances and atmosphere. There were many things that needed to be talked about but a silent mutual agreement settled between you two as you calmed your chaotic energies. You couldn't even remember the last time you and Bakugo did this—just basking in each other without the verbal fights between you two. You both had to admit that it was a weird but welcoming experience. Bakugo shifts as he attempts to readjust himself, clearing his throat as he does so.

“When's the next appointment?” Bakugo breaks the silence.

“Um,” You pull yourself up from his embrace, rubbing your eyes as you gather yourself up. “Tomorrow at three o’clock.”

Bakugo seems to think for a moment as he glances at the clock on the wall, eyes later searching for a calendar. He definitely had some stuff to do tomorrow but he was willing to clear some space for you.

“... Do you want me to come?” Your boyfriend looks down at you, features softer than ever. His expression was similar to his sleeping one, his calm and delicate features being highlighted. Your pupils dilate upon being asked and you quickly nod your head, not being able to hide the flustered smile sprouting into your lips.

“O-Of course!” You hold his hand. The blonde haired male looks away flustered at how endearing you look, rolling his eyes as he hesitantly lets you hold his hand affectionately.

“Oi, quit acting like that.”

“Like what?! Don't ruin the moment!”

“Acting all soft n’ shit, it's weird!”

“Don't fricken start with me, Mr. “I Don't Want You to Go Through This Alone!””

On the other side of the door, two nosy friends have their ears pressed against the door, a questionable glance being met as they slowly retreat from the door. Kaminari does a motion with his hand to silently unlock the door, a small sigh coming from Kirishima as he crosses his arms.

“You think they're good?” He whispers, not risking being heard from the couple in the room.

Kaminari snorts and leads the way back to his shop with a shrug, “They'll be just fine.”

    all rights reserved © do NOT steal, alter or copy this work.

[lomlkenji]

༊*·˚ home | luke patterson

★ summary : after the fight luke and his mother had, he came to you. his home. 

★ warnings: angst, fluff & mentions of fighting. 

★ word count: 1.2k

── ⋆⋅☆

YOU WERE FLOODED WITH BLANKETS AS YOUR WHOLE FOCUS WAS ON THE LAPTOP PLACED ON YOUR LAP. you were watching your favourite Tangled with a pint of chocolate ice cream in your hand. 

your family were passed out, tired from all the barbecue you guys had earlier. with game night accompanying it, everyone went to bed in defeat — all except your father.

while they were sound asleep, you were watching your favourite disney movie. the concept of Tangled marveled you. 

you were one of those people who's into rom-coms or just plain romantic movies, but also refuse to actually be in a romantic action in real life. 

it's just that every time someone has tried to set you up with a guy, you never feel comfortable enough. 

also because you picked on every single flaw that they have and make it as an excuse that they're 'not the one'. 

there's this one guy, who is almost perfect. so, it's hard to find his flaw, but when you see it. you immediately think that it's a huge deal. 

basically he has two separate wallets, one for his large amount of credit cards, and one is for his wad of cash. 

but honestly, it was just to cover your feelings for the boy that has been with you since kindergarten. 

at first you didn't realise it, but you always feel all happy and giddy when he's around or when he makes eye contact with you. 

at first you thought it was just a phase that maybe you will get over. 

oh how wrong you were. 

those feelings just grew stronger by the minute. you become more aware of your appearance when he's around and always making sure that he's okay, etc. 

when you ranted to your best friend, she immediately told you that you were totally in love with him. 

but with him being in a band and having a huge gig at the orpheum — his dream place to perform — you couldn't tell him everything going on. 

he probably doesn't like you back and you will just bring more stress to him than what's already there.

you didn't even realise you were aggressively shoving ice cream in your mouth in a depressing manner. 

it's not that you were sad, actually you were, but you brushed the feeling off telling yourself that you're just being childish. 

but you were supposed to feel like this right? 

an idiot in love? 

or was that just propaganda? 

will you ever be so called 'in love'? 

the sounds of the voices in your head couldn't be tamed but that proves wrong when the song, I See The Light filled your ears. 

the sound immediately brought a smile to your face as the scene where eugene and rapunzel were on the yacht. 

but it was interrupted by a knock on your window. 

you jumped slightly and furrowed your eyebrows, confused but alert. the only person that would be coming through your window is luke. 

the boy we are crushing on? come one keep up! 

but it doesn't make sense, with christmas being around the corner, shouldn't he be spending time with his family? 

you put down your pint of ice cream nightstand beside your bed as you walk towards the window, opening it. 

and there stood luke patterson with a bag and guitar over his shoulder. 

his eyes were bloodshot red, his figure trembling as sniffles came out of his nose. 

you wasted no time taking his hand pulling him in. he dropped his things and instantly wrapped his arms around you. 

his face buried in the crook of your neck as sobs wracked his body. 

"shh shh i'm here. it's okay, you're okay, we're okay" you softly said as you rubbed his back making him relax. 

"i- i- they- we-" luke tried saying but getting his voice getting caught in his throat. 

"hey, hey it's okay" you softly pulled away and put your hands on his cheeks, wiping away some of his tears. 

you gave him a small smile "we have all the time in the world" you assured him. 

he nodded and brought you back in a hug, but this time his arms were around your neck, and your arms were around his torso. 

suddenly luke slowly moved forward which made you move backwards. 

your legs hit the bed as you fall down with a yelp bringing a chuckling luke down with you. 

you moved a bit, so your head met the pillows as his head rested on your stomach. 

this wasn't unusual for you guys, with knowing each other since kids, you guys often cuddle and sometimes even sleep on the same bed. 

your fingers continue to massage his scalp as his breathing slowed down and his body stopped shaking. his grip on your waist tightens every so often. 

"you're watching Tangled again?" he softly asked as he looked at the laptop beside you, trying to distract himself. 

"yep" you chuckled before continuing, "you wanna talk about it?" you softly asked the vulnerable boy. 

he nodded and took a moment before opening his mouth. "me and my mom got into a fight, " he started, his voice hoarse and you can practically hear him shaking. 

you rubbed your hand up and down his back, encouraging him to continue. 

"she was mad, saying that i'm wasting my time on the band, and she said that it's not important and i- i-" he stuttered with sobs. 

"shh shh it's okay, take your time" you encouraged him. 

he took a deep breath before continuing, "i didn't know what i was thinking but i packed up my clothes and just bolted away on my bicycle. and i have nowhere to go" he sobbed, pulling you closer as if you were an anchor and the only thing that will keep him grounded. 

your heart broke hearing him. "hey hey, it's okay you can stay here as long as you like" you said to him, a small smile on your lips. 

"really?" he looked up to you, sad eyes making you melt and devastated at the same time. 

you nodded, "of course. but promise me you'll talk to her after your performance at the orpheum" you told him. there is no way in a million years that you would let luke and his mom get into a fight and just break like that. 

you know how deeply luke loves music, but he loves his mom too. emily is an amazing human being, always being so sweet and kind. their bond is not just something to be broken. 

"i promise" he nodded and started to draw shapes on your side.

the action brought butterflies to your stomach, but you tried to cover your flustered state as you said to him, "it may not feel like home, but we can make it work" 

"i'm always at home when i'm with you" he mumbled quietly. 

your eyes widened as you stiffened. but it went unnoticed by luke as he pulled you tighter to him. 

he lazily lifted his head up and kissed the corner of your lips. he didn't say anything more after that. your heart flutters with thousands of thoughts invading your head. 

you feel like you can run five laps without stopping. 

you feel like screaming from the top of your lungs. 

but luke's snores alerted you that he's asleep and of course tired.

you beamed at the boy. "you're my home too luke" you whispered and kissed his head as you let sleep consume you with a smile on your lips. 

reblog for a kiss <3

[librathefangirl]

actually scratch the list i need to know EVERYTHING

Well, let me tell you about a few more then. Let's talk about these:

The Loss in Victory (Emptiness)

Losing a Part of Me (Is Like Losing a Part of You)

Mel with tiny horns and wings

As the Night Falls

Pirate Melban AU

The Loss in Victory (Emptiness)

This is the Zeldris angst fic I was talking about back in... September, I think it was? It's supposed to be for Day 31 of Whumptober, and the prompt "Emptiness". (So the actual fic title is just "The Loss in Victory"). It's a hurt/no comfort fic taking place during the First Holy War. Basically, Zeldris struggles with the news that Meliodas is dead, and also struggles with the fact that it is actually hitting him that hard because:

He should be happy about this, yet all he felt was like someone had taken a big chunk of him out, leaving an empty nothingness where his hearts were supposed to be.

And here is a longer sneak peek:

As Zeldris made his way down the hallways, they parted before him. Anyone standing in his way quickly moved out of the way, letting him pass without any hesitation. If anything, it seemed people kept their distance from him more now than ever. Perhaps it was due to the urgency of his walk, or the tension in his posture, or maybe it was whatever showed across his face. Zeldris couldn’t tell. It was all a blur to him, nothing but the insistent need to get away, get away, get away! He was desperately holding onto the last shred of his composure like a lifeline. He was exposed out here, feeling the gazes of everybody he passed. He had to get away, to his own room. There, at least, nobody was watching, granting him the small piece of privacy he needed right now.

Losing a Part of Me (Is Like Losing a Part of You)

And here we have another demon bros angst fic. Also focused on the effect of the war/them being on different sides/Meliodas' curse. This time with focus on Meliodas. You can actually thank @hihopelessromantics for binging my attention to a post about Meliodas and Ludociel having scars from training their brothers, which is what inspired this fic. I saw that post and mind immediately went "oh I can make angst out of this".

So, as for the fic, it focuses on this idea of Meliodas having these scars that Zeldris gave him. Scars that he treasure a lot. They remind him of moments he got to have with Zel as kids, of training together or sneaking off from the castle together or even just finding a chance to goof of together. Big or small, they are moments he got to have with his little brother, where he got to be a brother to Zeldris. They mean a lot to him but - uh oh! - the DK and his assholery enters the scene. With the curse, Meliodas body is healed every time he is resurrected, including the scars from Zeldris. Meliodas struggles with losing the scars Zeldris gave him, feeling like he is losing those good memories of them together, and losing Zeldris in a way.

(Unfortunately, no sneak peek available for this one).

Mel with tiny horns and wings

Now onto happier - oh wait, this one is actually angstier than I originally planned... Anyway! This one is inspired by a conversation I had with @zorria about Meliodas with horns and wings. I wanted to write about that, but also make it really tiny and adorable.

Meliodas has an impressive set of wings and horns, but, given the whole hiding he is a demon thing, he needs to hide them. Problem is, he can't actually make them go away. All he can do is shrink them (think the sizes of a baby goat or tiny fairies). Normally, his hair and clothes are enough to hide them, but the Sins discover them anyway. And here the angst comes!

Actually, this was supposed to be a silly little fic about Mel having some adorable demon features with a side of angst in the form of his fear of them rejecting him. But then Meliodas fell in a lake! Okay, the falling in the lake was always going to be a part of the fic because I needed to get him wet, but the amount of angst that came with it was unplanned. As was my mind deciding that what if in this au Meliodas can't swim...

Sneak peek time! I've actually already shared a snippet from this one (here), so here's another one:

Which was the real problem that sunny late afternoon, wasn’t it? Meliodas couldn’t swim. If you have ever been in a situation where you are faced with the possibility that you could die right then and there, you know the feeling. The pure panic that overtakes your body. The way you fight with everything you have; frantically, desperately, without control. Meliodas had been there too many times. He’d also gone one step further, been faced with the inevitable realization that he was going to die. The moment where there was no fight left, the resigned acceptance. Maybe that had gotten worse with the years. If Meliodas died, he wouldn’t really die. Even if he accepted it, even if he actually welcomed it. There was no end to this life.

As the Night Falls

This is another fic inspired by Zorria. It's about Meliodas struggling with his nightmares (because we all know that man's gotta have nightmares after his 3,000+ years of hell), featuring a worried Elizabeth and a sleeping Tristan.

Not sure I have much more to say about this one, so here's a sneak peek:

“Hey, hey, you’re okay, we’re okay. I promise, we’re okay.” Elizabeth’s voice was a light to a dark cave, wrapping around him like a blanket and zapping away all the tension. Meliodas slumped back against the leg of the bed, head thumping lightly against the wall. Gods, it felt like he hadn’t slept all night – but clearly he had. His eyes finally decided to focus, giving him a close-up of Elizabeth’s worried frown as she crouched before him.

Actually I couldn't decide on which sneak peek to share, so here's another:

Meliodas tried to not react to the mild accusation, but she saw right through him anyway. Elizabeth always seemed to know what was going through his head. After all this time, he couldn’t hide. She sighed softly, sitting down on the floor beside him. “I worry about you, you know,” she mumbled, leaning her head against his shoulder. “We all do.” Meliodas grimaced at that; he had thought he’d hidden it better than that. Clearly he’d lost his touch. He supposed sleep deprivation did that to you.

Pirate Melban AU

Now I know you know a bit what this one's about. But I don't think I've actually talked about specific plot, just the general concept of Pirate!Ban and Merman!Meliodas. So, let me tell you a little about the start of our story. We meet Ban, a young pirate with a foul mouth and a bad habit of getting himself into trouble, who is (once again) finding himself without a ship to call home. While running from the consequences of his actions (literally), Ban ends up taking shelter in a cave. He's not the only one though, because further into the cave he comes across a wounded merman. Ban has grown up hearing (horror) stories of the merfolk living deep in the sea, so what if he ends up a little too curious about the stranger - he can't help it, especially after discovering the he has an attitude to match Ban's own.

A new little sneak peek (previous one can be found here):

How the fuck did he keep getting himself into these situations? Not that his one was his fault. Nope. The captain was the one who'd decided to cut his losses - meaning Ban - once they got into port. Ungrateful son of a bitch! Ban had given years to the Raven and now he was going to be left with nothing – just like that? Fuck no! So, Ban had helped himself to a little – okay maybe not so little – of their loot. So what? He'd helped get that, he deserved his cut.

Actually, since it's probably gonna be a long while until this fic is finished (I'm not the best at focusing on long multichapter fics lol), here's another sneak peek too:

With the first roar of thunder sounding, Ban surveyed his safe haven for the night. It really was an ugly cave. Cracks ran over the walls, splitting the brownish-gray color. From the outside, the cave had looked unstable, but inside it seemed sturdy and strong. Well, at least he wouldn't get crushed to death. Ban pushed off from the wall, walking further into the cave. It wasn't that big, narrowing off into a smaller tunnel the further he walked. A section of the ceiling suddenly dipped down, causing Ban to smack his head right into it. "AH fuck! Shit, that hurt."

WIP Tag/Ask Game!

[hyperfixation-or-death]

I’m heading to bed now, but please talk about parallels. We’re going to be besties bro

>:) yes, absolutely, thank you-

Here is a list of the most recent parallels thoughts I have had yesterday alone:

I want to put Romane Berthauds in a time loop. That's the entire thought. (I mean, I've drafted a post about this, but it. Does not sound normal. So.)

I could make a fic with four chapters, each of which features the small child version of a main character somehow ending up time traveling to interact with the present versions of the other three. It would not explain how that happened whatsoever, except that each chapter takes place in a different timeline. I almost certainly will not actually write this, but it's a fun idea.

Stupid AU where it’s the parallels characters but the plot and setting are. uh. Vaguely based on Greek mythology. (I have a bad habit of combining my interests into weird ideas, and I've been listening to Epic the musical, so now the parallels kids get swords. And angst, I guess.)

On that note, my Percy Jackson-inspired AU (which is separate from the aforementioned AU and also less nonsensical) has recently been haunting me to the point of me turning in a scene from it for a creative writing assignment a few weeks ago. I ended up writing double the amount I was supposed to, but I also got a hundred on the assignment, so. Who's the real winner here.

The direct contrast between Romane and Victor's first interactions with their respective parents after traveling back. "Mom. It's me. […] Mom, look at me. It's me. I'm your daughter. I can tell you recognize me." Romane being so confident that her mom will recognize her. She knows her mom will see her. She knows her mom will see her and know it's her. Whereas, Victor is fully confident that his dad won't recognize him. He's taking his opportunity to take out his frustrations with his father under the cover of anonymity. And he's halfway right, because Arnaud doesn't recognize him until Victor's up in his face, yelling about how Arnaud has always wanted to hit him. (Not even going to get into that; that's a whole separate post.) But when his dad recognizes him, Victor isn't expecting it. Idk where I was going with this.

Several years post-canon fic idea where the main four move in together after high school. I don't have any reasoning other than I think it would be neat. I have half of one scene and half of another scene written for this. (We could add them and pretend I've written an entire scene, but…there wouldn't be much point to doing that.)

I think the "I remember everything" line in the finale was…not true. I think the kids thought they did, for a few minutes. Then they realized there were some gaps in their memories, and some things were less sharp than others. And Romane, Victor, and Bilal all get flashbacks, but Bilal's are definitely the hardest to deal with, since his memories are the most complex due to the timeline stuff.

I think that, while post-canon Bilal does have a genuine interest in physics, he also knows that a huge reason he went into physics in the other timeline was to try and save Sam and Victor. And now that he doesn't need to do that anymore, he's left unsure of whether he should still go in that direction. It's a different timeline; he's supposed to do things differently, right? But then again, he doesn't want to make decisions based just on that, and he does like the idea of studying physics. But there's also the irrational worry that something like the night in the bunker could happen again, which he knows doesn't make a lot of sense, but the thought is still there. So his thoughts kind of spiral for a little while on the topic of career. He eventually decides to stick with the physics route, though, after giving it a lot of thought.

Something about Victor and Sam being only a year apart, while Romane and Camille are farther apart in age? Yeah, I had no further thoughts on that, I just think about sibling dynamics a lot.

I think Sam has a lot of issues as a result of his parents and their whole family dynamic, they just show up a lot more subtly than Victor's parental issues do.

I wish Sofia and Victor interacted more in the show.

I think Victor Deslandes has ADHD. (I say this as if I haven't said it a thousand times already) also I think he's aromantic. I already made posts about both headcanons but I like talking, so I'm mentioning them again!

and while we're restating headcanons: the same way victor's powers kind of serve as a tangible outlet for his emotions, with anger usually being the catalyst - i think romane's powers do the same thing, but the catalyst with her powers is more of a freeze response to panic. i think i have a post where i word this better, somewhere? idk.

also i think it's interesting how a version of alice and arnaud realized the true extent of the emotional damage they had caused, but it's just before the kids travel back. so sam and victor never get the full resolution there, because their parents will never know what the tension in their family actually led to. and i have specific thoughts on how this lack of satisfying closure is kind of a theme with victor's relationship with his parents, but i unfortunately don't have time to expand on that right now. but. the thoughts are somewhere in my drafts, so maybe i'll expand on that concept later.

And then there's the thoughts that are always in the back of my mind, which are: I would die for the parallels kids. I need to rewatch parallels. hey I think maybe I'll cry over Romane and Victor's friendship in particular today.

anyways, those are just a few of yesterday's thoughts off the top of my head. i'm sure i have better thoughts that i can't remember, but i wrote most of this at like three AM, so my thoughts are. scattered.

thanks for the ask!!! :)

[blondiest]

🛒 ❌ and 💋

🛒 What are some common things you incorporate in your fics? Themes, feels, scenes, imagery, etc.

i love this question SO MUCH lol.

i think i write about falling asleep / waking up with another person a lot. also, travel (especially driving / road trips), cooking / eating... essentially situations in which characters are close together physically for some reason, especially in a domestic setting. making out in cars seems to come up a decent amount for me too.

i really love exploring the concept of chance occurrences as well. thinking about small things that could be different and, if they were, would end up changing everything is a very interesting theme to me. i've had a lot of small, tiny decisions and moments have enormous impacts on my life.

for example — at what was supposed to be the end of my (awkward) first date with my now-husband, i could pretty much tell that we weren't going to meet up again if we ended the date there, so on impulse i basically invited myself back to his apartment under the thin guise of watching game of thrones because i hadn't seen it. i still haven't seen it actually but i don't think i would be married to him if i hadn't decided to be insane that day!! so i love thinking about happenstance situations that could impact character's relationships with each other, and explicitly exploring the massive changes that can happen in someone's life through a series of small decisions.

more broadly i really love writing impulsivity. those moments where you just push through the anxiety or hesitation and say what you want to are kind of heady and powerful feeling. tangentially tied to this — i like writing characters tipsy or stoned, because it's a good excuse for openness AND i find it really fun to describe 🩷

i really like writing strong feelings in general, and particularly i like exploring the physicality of emotions (like where in the body a character feels anxiety, affection, hope, repair, shame, grief, etc)

❌ What’s a trope you will never write?

idk if this really counts as a trope but i don't ever see myself writing an angst fic. like— i'll write some angst, but it's probably gonna be alleviated fairly quickly, and i don't see myself writing an unhappy ending. nothing against fics like that, it just plays to like none of my strong suits as a writer at all 🫣 i actually am not sure how easy it would be for me to even just write a very seriously-toned fic 😔

💋 First kiss fics. Love em or hate em?

getting together fics are among my favorite to write and read. love them!!!!!!

thank you for the ask!! 🥰

[j4y-lvr]

❝the demon's bet❞— lee heeseung.

SYNOPSIS. Since you'd found the demon in your room the unfaithful night of your catastrophe of a birthday, consisting that you discovered you were half-demon, to getting rejected. You had spent a substantial amount of time with him, gradually growing fond of the boy as he escorted you to parties as your date. While you denied your affection for him and remained oblivious that he'd taken a distinct liking to you, he'd caught himself in a predicament. He required you in order to win his bet. You were his gamble.

GENRE. demon!au, halfblood!au, friends to lovers!au fluff, angst, suggestive

PAIRING. demon!heeseung x fem!reader ft. jaemin of nct dream, yoon and sieun of stayc, yeonjun, soobin and beomgyu of txt, yeji and ryujin of itzy, karina of aespa, minghao of seventeen.

WARNING. cursing, cliché at times, heeseung is flirty, sunghoon is kinda rude, jaemins an asshole, nicknames like "princess" or "love", kissing, heated makeout scene, sexual tension, sexual jokes, alcohol consumption, smoking, mentions of food.

WORD COUNT. 16.8k

TAGLIST. @jayswannabebae @cyuuupid @aizzon @only2jake @chilledbit @jwisungzen

NOTE. this took more time than expected, it was supposed to be 10k— this is somewhat a gift for my sister though I'm a few days late. I'm wondering if I should turn this into a series since I'm on break. hint: vampire!jungwon

Reblogs and feedback are highly appreciated!

Today was like any day in summer. You got off the bed groggily, striding past the stand-alone mirror you owned, catching a glimpse of your tired self, perceiving something black attached at the back. You brushed it off, assuming your eyes were playing tricks on you from not getting adequate rest. 

Disregarding it, you shuffled down the stairs, "good morning mum," you muttered a greeting, a loud yawn escaping your mouth. You brought a hand to your mouth, continuously yawning from exhaustion as your mother wished you back with a happy birthday y/n.

Right, it's your birthday, your long-awaited 19th birthday. You didn't think much of it, shrugging it off like another day over the years, except stuffing your face with a bunch of cake.

"good morning dad," you pause to look at similar raven wings peeking from your father's back. "what's that?" you examined bluntly. "oh, good morning and happy birthday, y/n," he responded as you quipped a brief thank you and lingered remaining for his answer, your foot thumping on the carpeted floor impatiently.

"dad," You called out again, watching him bake your cake, professionally slicing a thin layer from the freshly baked pastry. "hmm?" He hummed back in outmost concentration towards the cake, your cake.

"what's with the wings? It's my birthday and April fools day, not Halloween," You said, rolling your eyes, a scoff emitting from the part of your lips. Your birthday occurred on the agonizing day of perpetual stunts and antics from those around.

Another reason you took no one seriously during your birthday is being pranked every year by friends or family. Yes, it was fun for them but was it always fun for you? Not really, but you kept those thoughts to yourself, not wanting to burden others.

You thought you did a reasonably good job of keeping thoughts to yourself. You lived life regularly as the typical routine of being l,n y/n that rolled in a loop like a busted cassette tape. 

You got satisfactory grades, have a good family, live in an ornate house, have good friends, and whatnot. Though you yearned for something, for anything out of the mundane but never performed upon them, enabling them to simmer down and constantly build in your heart.

Assuming you received what you desired as your father answers your query with a laugh, "right, you can see them now..." he says, the laughter dying down as you gape at him, looking blank.

"what,"

Your mom stepped in, setting her hand on your shoulder." you see, y/n, you're extraordinary," she expressed, a small smile grazing her lips as thousands of questions spewed through your head. 

What do they suggest by that? You went about your whole life believing you were the most normal individual in existence, having engrained it in your subconscious for years together, yet your mom spoke the contradictory?

"yeah, sure," You sneered sarcastically. Dad had altered his focus from the cake to you before he voiced the unpredictable, "you're half-demon, y/n."

Silence followed as your jaw fell open. Whether this was some sick April fools joke or not, you didn't like it.

"say psych," you say, a wry chuckle leaving your now dry mouth, a tight-lipped smile trickling past your front, expression screaming for help. Your mom darted to her husband, communicating a knowing gaze of sympathy, speechlessness sustaining the atmosphere.

What the fuck.

Acknowledging that your dad's how you're half demon-ness, your mom is the mortal part of the sum. Not sparing them another glance, you dash up to your room. You stood tall in front of the mirror, taking in the picture of yourself with ebony wings. 

Straining your back to the mirror, you twist your head back to get a better view. You possessed black wings, along the ends dipped in red. You adjusted your long black, luscious hair that you'd grown in years together, feeling that it looked plain.

You had to admit it looked cool, but that doesn't dismiss the fact that you were lied to, not by just your family, but it turns out it included your dearest friends, whom you thought you knew everything about until you didn't.

Jayoon, your best friend, appeared by your side. She took a seat on your bed, a genuine smile painted across her lips. "hi y/n, happy birthday," She spoke, handing you her gift. You smiled at her but then stared at the same raven wings you and your dad had, your smile dropping. "so you knew too," You sigh, disappointment building inside you.

The now identified demon realized you were referring to her wings, the girl slumping her head low, "please tell me this is some sick prank everyone's in on," you say, hoping it was a twisted prank. 

The girl gapes, thinking of what to convey to make you feel better by even the slightest, "i would've told you, but there are reasons no one could tell you," she pauses, pitying your disheveled form.

"but hey, you have cool wings with red ends!" she expressed cheerfully, concluding the sentence that admired your jet black wings.

"thanks, but that's the merely good thing," you convey, gaze turning frigid, "imagine being lied to by your friends and family for 19 years straight," you retort, annoyed. You head out of your room with a hoodie thrown over you, leaving yoon to herself in the confines of the four walls.

Your parents turn to you as you head down the stairs, noting the sullen expression written all over your face, deciding not to mention anything, allowing you to be. You were relieved for that, stepping out the front door.

Where were you going? To do something you never thought you'd be doing.

You checked yourself out in the mirror, a smirk spreading past the expanse of your lips, a hand ruffling through your newly styled hair. You appear satisfied with getting rid of the old, long dusky hair you had, instead opting for shoulder-length hair with freshly dyed ruby tips.

It complemented your raven wings though no one except you or your kind could identify it. You loved how it looked, promptly paying for the cut, stuffing your hands in the pockets of the navy blue hoodie you threw over yourself earlier.

A sigh left your lips as you rang the doorbell to your house's front door. You sucked in an amount of breath through your teeth, marveling how everyone would react to your hair. Especially your mother, you knew she adored your long silky hair, unable to envision her reaction to the short bob you decked with crimson flares.

The door opened, revealing the friend you walked out on previously, "where were you— your hair..." she drawled out, staring at you. You tried your best to act nonchalant as yoon stood there with her jaws wide open. You strode past her and inside the door. "i love your new haircut so much!" she exclaimed, following you inside. 

"i was out acting on impulse, and I know it looks good," you express, trying hard to suppress the smile threatening to bloom on your lips at the favorable reaction.

Whipping yourself around, you watch your mother, with no particular expression painted on her face as she walks up to you. Her eyes saddened, though she considered her best to muster a smile, "it looks good," she forced out. 

Your father partially denounces himself for informing you so late, observing the scene unfold. He puffs out a sough, continuing to ice your cake, giving it that finishing touch.

Hours after celebrating your birthday with your family and Yoon's family, the two being close since you both were in diapers. It struck 11 pm as you think back to today morning, ruffling the feathers on your wings, wondering how you even came into existence.

Mesmerized by your wings, you wondered if you had demon powers, subsequently extending your arm and aiming at the vase on your table, trying to activate your so-called power, laughing at yourself for attempting.

Your phone chimed, lighting up the screen. You picked it up to see it was a text from 'jaem<3,' you smiled at the contact name, clicking on the drop-down to reveal his message. It read, "meet me in 10?" 

You pondered whether you should sneak out, texting him back with a "sure." 

jaem<3 meet me in 10?

you sure.

You threw on the hoodie he had left behind, hoping he would recognize it and possibly realize your feelings for him.

You quietly hopped out the window, climbing down the house, trying not to make noise to go undetected. Successfully doing so, landing to the ground, sprinting off to the accustomed place you'd meet up with him.

You took notice of all the grotesque creatures around you, some of them staring at you intently, watching the gooey and disgusting things eat on the dead remains. It must come with being half-demon, I guess.

Shrugging them off, hurrying off quickly, and were thankful when you spotted him and his friends.

Just great. 

Internally groaning, knowing he was chaotic with his friends, the Dreamies, as they proclaimed themselves. Approaching them rather slowly, you wave at jaemin, who reciprocates your movements, his smile gradually dropping. 

You greet the others before turning to the one who beckoned you here. You found the boy staring at your back intensely, his face contorting in horror, the others remaining deadly silent.

"you're a demon." jaemin voices out his thoughts, looking at you coldly. "what," you ask, confused, thinking humans couldn't see the wings? 

He facepalms, "i can see your wings y/n, at least conceal them from other supernaturals," he expresses, distressed.

"but why can you see them-" you inquire, undoubtedly lost. Jaemin sighs in distaste, "i despise your kind. I'm an angel," he says, displaying his wings at the snap of his fingers, his white feathers contrasting your raven ones.

"how did you..." you ask, your doe eyes widening. The boy flings his head back in irritation, then craning it to the side, "you must be the infamous half-human, half-demon," he speaks with venom dripping off his tongue, no longer the sweet boy you used to know.

"welcome to the supernatural side of things, y/n," he declares, spreading his arms wide open to refer to the surroundings, his face lit in a grim smile, which soon contorted into nothing as he continued, "and goodbye." 

He walked away with his pale wings following as he dispersed them in a second. Alongside his friend's whom you also supposed were angels, followed him. He then turned back, "oh right, happy birthday, I guess," he uttered with a sarcastic laugh leaving his mouth.

You watched as his figure slowly disappeared, tears pricking your glassy orbs, "what a bastard," you spoke bitterly, ripping the hoodie off of you, hurling it to the ground, the tears streaming down.

You dropped to your knees, sobbing to yourself sadly. What a way to end your birthday, seeing as the time ticked to 11:20 pm, wishing you had never snuck out, hoping you were never half-demon.

Was it an impractical idea? Probably, but you didn't give two shits about it. You needed a distraction, seizing the bottle by its neck, attaching it to your mouth, and downing the alcoholic liquid whole to the ultimate drop.

"cheers to me," you said to no one, your head drooping to the table where you positioned your sullen self. You were legal by this day, so you thought it would only be fitting to consume away what happened before, from today morning till now, hoping it was an eluded dream.

"happy birthday to me," you drank the remaining liquid, feeling the burn spread through your chest. It tasted bitter, but you enjoyed it, fancied the burn, comprehending why people would declare it a pleasantest distraction.

You dragged yourself off the chair, out of place, and stepped in the direction of your house in the harsh weather because you abandoned the hoodie as Na fucking Jaemin abandoned you for your difference. No, you weren't going to think of him, don't.

You smacked yourself for being scarcely reminded of him, right after he's the one that drove you to this condition, yet you dared to think of him?! Never again.

The night was frigid, causing you to shiver, bearing the eyes of the supernaturals around you, scrutinizing your every step. You were frightened, walking more briskly, hoping you'd be back quicker. The likes of you secluded at midnight didn't sound secure.

Soon your steps turned into running, almost tripping and falling face-first to the ground a handful of times because you were tipsy, though you managed not to.

Minutes after your desperate attempt to get home, you arrive in front of the house. You panted heavily, feeling dizzy and sweaty. You climb back up your home despite being more difficult this time around, as you weren't sober.

You somehow managed to get yourself up to your room's window, holding onto dear life at the sill. You hauled yourself up while intoxicated was something, feeling like a workout.

Setting one foot to get the entirety of you up and at the window, you heaved tirelessly, handling your body onto the sill. You tried pushing the window open to enter inside, but it wouldn't budge.

Now, was your window stuck because of the harsh wind blowing? Maybe. Were you stuck outside your room in the cold by your window? Absolutely.

The day just got worse again. You're outside your window at 11:50 pm because the window won't open up. You scarcely hoped someone would magically unlock the window, though that involved you getting caught for sneaking out. And someone did.

A bright crimson-colored portal materialized in the middle of your room, firey flames surrounding the oval-shaped contraption, a towering, slender man with his black wings spread, walking through and into your room.

In the present circumstances, you didn't know if you were intoxicated, to the point you hallucinated this handsome boy inside your room while you stood out in the cold, drooling over this unknown person who broke into your room.

The unknown boy looked around your disordered room, searching for its owner, who was woefully past the window, crouching amidst the chilly night. You knocked on the window in an attempt to gain his attention.

It worked as he turned towards the source of noise, apprehending your stuck figure beyond the confines of the room. He questioned whether you were a burglar, but he quickly dismissed those thoughts, examining your drowsy expression.

You lightly smacked the window, though your light smack caused you to fly into your room, landing face-first onto the carpet floors, right in front of the unknown man's feet. You groaned in pain, mentally feeling embarrassed.

You got yourself up, massaging your nose from the pain. The lengthy ordeal emitted a hearty laugh falling from the part of his lips, "you humans are quite entertaining," he lets out in between his fits of laughter.

His laughter was then cut short by the footsteps of someone approaching your room, sending you into a frenzy. You shoved the taller man, whom you still had no idea about, into your wardrobe, a finger reaching up to your lips, signaling him to keep quiet.

You turned to the door, which cracked open to reveal your mother, looking sleepy, "what happened? I heard a loud thud from below," she questioned, as you mustered your best to act normal, "oh, I just misstepped, mom," you lied through your teeth, putting on a commercial smile.

Your mother didn't inquire further, muttering something to be more careful and a goodnight, which you returned. You ushered her out hurriedly, shutting the door instantly. You then rushed over to the wardrobe, where you had shoved the poor unsuspecting man in.

You saw him skimming through your entire wardrobe, holding those funny big nose beard glasses you were gifted last year. "now, what do we have here," he said, slipping the glasses on himself, causing you to snicker, though you were quiet.

He sat in your wardrobe, snuggled in your pair of clothes, feeling at home from the warmness. Though, the boy emitted more warmth himself. "are you going to stay there forever?" you deadpanned.

"oh right," he murmurs as he gets out of the wardrobe as you make your way to your bed, legs aching from all the excessive exercise you went through today, sitting down.

You pat beside you, asking him to sit next to you. If you were completely sober, you would've never asked him to sit next to you, let alone let him be in the same room as you.

"why are you here," you ask, thinking straight for once, turning to him, your eyelids growing heavier by the second. "oh, I just wanted to see the scandalous half-blood myself," he replies. "i have quite the reputation without myself knowing for 19 years," you state, laughing sorrowly.

Your head falls on his arm, compelling him to flinch as he realizes you're drunk, "you decide to get drunk on the day you finally can," he mutters, enough for you to hear. 

"would you mind giving me the map," you start knowingly. A smirk treaded past your soft lips that the demon opposite you couldn't help but unknowingly stare. "what map?" the boy quires, disoriented.

"oh, the map to your heart, demon boy," you state, laughing a bit too hard as you fell onto him, being drunk and unable to steady yourself, "oh wow, you smell nice too—" you utter, taking in his scent. He was glad you couldn't catch the flush on his cheeks as you tripped into his chest.

"you know I'm a demon?" he inquires, noticing you could comprehend your surroundings, despite being inebriated, "yes, I can see you pretty raven wings with golden tips, mystery boy," you speak. Your honesty voicing your thoughts, still in his embrace, feeling the warmth cast off him.

"they're pretty?" he questions, this being the first someone ever complimented his wings, considering he never paid attention to them. "very pretty," you communicate, as your eyes closed in comfort. He looks down at you, "yeah, pretty," he mutters, admiring your looks as you lean against his chest.

He checks his wristwatch, seeing the time tick 11:59 pm. He tightens you in his hold impulsively, giving you a proper hug, his hot breath fanning against your ear while he whispers a "happy birthday, y/n"

"y/n, wake up!"

You groan. Why did you have to wake up from the best slumber you've ever heard, snuggling into the soft and warm pillow harder, trying to go back to sleep. 

Until you hear a, "you're comfortable, huh" he spoke, a smirk lifting on his lips. You jump at his voice, coming face to face with the unknown boy from last night on your bed as you use his shirtless chest as a pillow.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE—" his large hand covers your mouth, "do you want them to find out? You snuck out, got drunk, had a boy in your room at midnight, and that you slept next to him?" 

You go numb at his point, "that's a good girl," he says as he removes his hand from over your mouth, coming to cup your right cheek instead, "now be a darling, and please get up and off of me," he forces while you practically throw yourself to your feet, your cheeks reddening.

"why didn't you leave last night, and why were you here in the first place, and I don't even know your name-" you say frantically, losing your mind, but then he gets up and stops you. His hands gripped your shoulders firmly, with his eyes glowing red with gold lining as he soothed, "calm down, princess,"

You obeyed, staring right into his eyes, watching the red and gold fade from his pupil's return to their original brown color. You slightly back down from the glower which was previously present on his face. 

Noticing the sudden fear written over your face, he sighs, releasing his grip from your shoulders, "i'll answer your questions, don't worry." he states, thinking where to start from, "you asked me to stay, that's why I didn't leave."

He set you down on your bed, tucking you in the covers, a hand smoothing over your forehead and hair as he watched you breathe, sleeping peacefully, smiling at the sight.

He can't help but care for you, but you were his gamble. He knows he shouldn't get attached. You were in the equation because of the stupid bet. A bet he made with the boys, he didn't want to hurt you either.

As if you read his mind, you tugged on the hand he had placed on your forehead, grasping onto it, "don't go," you mumbled, half-asleep, "don't lie to me like the others," you say with a hardening look. He blanks at what to do before succumbing to your wishes, laying beside and taking you in his embrace.

He really shouldn't be doing this.

He explained in one breath while you stared at him, wondering why he cares for you, deciding not to question it. "plus, you looked fast asleep on my chest," he jokes, snickering.

"i was here because I did want to see the infamous, l/n y/n, being the daughter of a mortal and demon, that was the right hand to lucifer," he said, telling you things you didn't know as your jaw fell. "right hand to lucifer?!" you exclaimed in shock, the boy realizing he said something you didn't know.

"also, put on your shirt, stop flexing," you voice, turning to the side to look away from his toned abdomen belonging to the man who stood opposite off. "aww, is princess shy," he teasingly says. 

"it's fine, darling. Take a good look," he declares while standing still, shirtless. You conjure your courage, taking a step to him, hand now pressed on his chest, as your arm nestled behind his neck.

"you were saying?" you speak as your eyes never leave him, "two can play that game, princess," he retorts as he pulls you closer by your waist, your entire body against him.

"quite the daring one, you are," he conveys as a smirk finds its way to his lips. "now what if I," you drag, inching closer, painfully slow, towards his lips, stopping when you were centimeters apart.

"y/n!" your mother shouts from outside your door, eyes widening, shoving him into the tiny space between your bed and the wall, eliciting a groan from the boy.

Your mother barges through your door, "what are you doing?! Come eat breakfast." You ease your mom out the door that you'd be down as soon as you freshen up.

Shutting the door behind you, you grab the shirt the boy wore earlier that night, extending an arm to help him up, merely for him to reject the offer. "at least let me know when you're going to shove me in tiny places," he sneers.

He hastily snatched the shirt from you, slipping it on, flexing abdominal muscles. You were staring, you admit, quickly looking away before he could catch you in the act.

He summons the portal once more, giving you one last look, then walking through it. "the name's, heeseung," he adds boastfully, disappearing into the doorway.

->⌚<-

You wince at the recollection of your previous actions, whacking yourself for even asking such a question. It wasn't your business, and why did you care? you don't know much yourself—

You couldn't help but stop the boy, grabbing him by the arm and halting him from going further into the portal. He whipped his head to you, looking questioningly at you.

"yes, princess?" he queries, your hand still clasped 'round his arm, "when," you pause, debating whether you should be asking him this. He hums, letting you know he's listening, "when can I see again," you squeak as fast as possible, eyes meeting the floor, getting embarrassed at the 'question,'

You peek at him, only to see a beautiful smile adorning his lips, the corners of his eyes wrinkling from the smile, nose scrunching up. He was laughing, what, a sight, despite being a demon, he smiled like an angel.

"you can see me when you think of me again, princess," he says, stifling his laughter, then smiling sweetly, "i should get going," he curtly speaks, your grip on his arm releasing naturally.

You shy a smile on your face, his hand patting your head and officially stepping into the unknown side. Your smile dropped as he disappeared. You don't know him, nor should you care.

That was what you told yourself, but the more you seemed to think of him, going as far as venting about the formerly mentioned to your best friends and yoon(after she apologized for lying, that is.)

"so you slept with him?" yoon points out bluntly. Yeonjun, another demon, sat beside you in a mass group of friends who snickered at Yoon's comment. 

"i didn't sleep with him— i slept beside him!" you exclaimed, defending yourself, everyone laughing their hearts out, "you still used his bare chest as your pillow, y/n," sieun sounds from the other corner of the room. 

You look at her with a defeated expression, unable to evade the situation, "so, what now, you romance the hell out of a demon?" beomgyu comments playfully, the others bursting into yet another fit of laughter, this being the nth time since you gave them a rundown of events.

You hadn't told them the demon's name because maybe one of them knew him and could tell him everything you were saying and feeling. You trusted your friends, but sometimes, they were a bit too impatient with the whole waiting process.

"you could ask him to be your date to the supernaturals party," yeji suggests, being one of the helpful ones. Your entire group of friends was demons or mere mortals, making you feel at ease not having to lie to them about being a half-blood.

"but I can't contact him," you retort with a sad sigh before yoon reminds you how you could summon him, though you couldn't fathom the idea.

The others practically forced you to beckon his presence right now, though it'd just been a day since you last saw him. You tried to gather your thoughts amidst the forced silence, everyone watching you summon the demon.

You tried your best to fail at calling his presence as the group decided they would leave after you summoned the boy, whom you wished didn't show up. 

You sat still, with your eyes closed, conjuring his company. You peeled your pupils open after a minute, sighing fakely, "see, it didn't work," you stop while faking your sadness.

"now leave," you finish, ushering each of your friends out the front door and making your way back to your room. You stand in the middle of the mess they had created, overstaying their welcome.

"so much for, 'you can see me when you think of me again, princess," you mock, ending with a scoff. "oh princess, I'm right here," you feel a whisper next to you while you yelp and spin around in defense with your arms in an X and one leg raised to kick.

"what are you—" you get cut off, realizing he hopped out of your wardrobe, "what were you doing in my wardrobe," you ponder, staring blankly at him.

"you summoned me," he starts, causing a smile to lift on your lips at the success, "in your wardrobe." Just like that, your smile dropped, "i did?"

"yeah, you should be more specific as to where, darling,"

You shove the butterflies erupting in your stomach to your side, "you called?" he utters in the stillness as you open your mouth to reply, "oh, are you free this Saturday?" you inquire, not wanting to bother him if he were busy.

"yeah, I am," he replies to your avail, you proceeding to ask him to the event, "would you like to accompany me to an event?" you say, hoping he'd agree, though you didn't know why you wanted him to agree so bad. 

"under one condition," he begins, fulfilling the bet between him and the boys, determined to win. Your ears perk up, eager to hear his condition, "which is," you ask expectantly.

He leans closer to you, the wall almost at your back, allowing you to examine his attractive facial features. "strike a deal with me, sweetheart," he says slyly, a smug smile carrying forth as he officially pins you up against the wall, his breath tickling the nape of your neck.

The demon boy towered over you, watching as your cheeks flushed bright red, the way you failed to maintain eye contact with him, almost snickering at how easy it was to get your flustered, cute. 

He stared down at you, appreciating how stunning you looked at that moment, feeling tranced by you. You liquefied underneath his gaze, his orbs flashing an intense, deep red, which you admired in pure fascination.

Your heart pounded precipitously in your ribcage, especially the mortal part of your soul, whether it was a thing. "sure," you spew hurriedly, peeling the boy away from you.

You stood to the side breathing harshly, feeling breathless because of heeseung. "then yes, I'll join you at your party and think of what you want as part of your deal," he quips, smiling sheepishly.

"my part of the deal? How does that benefit you, heeseung?" you doubt, eyeing him suspiciously, unable to blindly trust him, could you? He was someone you met once.

"a smart one, you are," he says, smiling down at his palms, the same sweeping his hair slickly, looking effortlessly stunning, "most don't care how it benefits me. They accept my deal mindlessly, y/n," 

"but this benefits me because I make deals as a demon," he lets out, and immediately his soft expression drops, hardening into a sober one.

"now, if you excuse me, I have some business to tend to," he curtly speaks, stepping to you and patting your head for no particular reason, "bye y/n, see you later if you wish to summon me," he adds, chortling, walking through his demon portal.

->⌚<-

You lay on your mattress, bored out of your mind. It was a Thursday, and you required something to do or an individual to pester since either of two would cure your short-term boredom.

And you have just the person in your mind, heeseung. So you summon him yet again, this time in the middle of your room. He appears wordless with a controller in hand, moving the joysticks feverishly.

"i was in the middle of something—" he conveys, placing the controller on your table, a sigh escaping his lips, "you called?" he says, arching an eyebrow.

"heeseung," you begin seriously, catching him by surprise, "i'm bored." He deadpans at your words, sighing, a hand swiping over his face from disbelief. "ok, let's see," he starts, then thinking of the things the two of you could do.

He asks you if you've tried using your demon powers before, which you shake your head, indicating you haven't. He chuckles and tells you to stand up.

"do you know how to extend your wings?" He asks, glancing over to your bewildered state, "nope, never," he snorts in response. 

"concentrate on your back where your wings branch from, think of squeezing them tight together, and they'll do the same and think if letting them extremely free and they'll expand," he communicates, depicting each word, making sure you comprehended it.

"want to try and fly?" He inquires, pushing you to nod your head impatiently, like a lost puppy. He guides you on what to do, making you understand him.

You soon rose in the air with the help of your wings, flapping them to keep yourself up in the air, enjoying the feeling. The demon stood beside you with arms extended to you in caution.

"ok, now how do I stop," you ask, pupils darting to the boy on the ground, who questioningly stares at you, "when you want to stop, just stop," he voices, pointing out the obvious.

"no, I can't stop. I think I'll tumble to the floor instead," you retort, though you were about 20 centimeters away from your carpeted grounds in the room.

"fine, I'll let you down," he says with a big smile playing on his lips, his arms wrapping around your sides, gripping onto you firmly, "you can stop now," heeseung states as you follow along. 

He places you on the floor, his arms remaining at your midriff, "you didn't go tumbling to the floor, " he teases, your arms locating their way to encase around him. Comfortable silence followed, both in each other's hold.

"you have beautiful wings, especially the red tips," the demon mumbles in the silence as you mutter a thank you. Then your curiosity peaks, causing you to ask, "why are the tips all in different hues? Do they represent something?" 

You were the inquisitive kitten he thought you ought to be. "yeah, they represent status," he voices, thinking of something, staring into the air, "so humanity isn't the only ones crazy about putting each other on a pedestal, huh," you think out loud, making the demon chuckle.

"the hues represent status, gold being the highest, red following as second, with purple at the third rank and green at the last rank," he speaks, perceiving his wings while touching the golden tips.

"wait, so you're the highest rank?" you ask, wondering if you were being nosy by asking this. You glance over while the demon's pupils dive into a darker shade, "hm, yes, but I had to work for it. Nothing is free," he answers, a wry look casting over.

Maybe you shouldn't have asked.

"have you thought of a deal yet?" heeseung queries you, changing the topic. "no, I don't have anything in mind," you halt. Perhaps you did have something in your mind, though you brush it off. It's a once-in-a-lifetime chance, and not to waste it on an individual so lousy.

"so you do have something in mind," he says sneakily, his eyes fading from red, returning to the original hazel-like color, a small smile playing on his soft lips. "did you just invade my head—" You question, offended at the invasion in your thoughts.

Your mind was a dangerous domain, where he could encounter lots of things you wouldn't want him to, opinions like, 'oh heeseung looks fine today—' There, you merely did it again. 

"thanks for the compliment, mortal," he retorts with a smirk creeping on his face sheepishly.

"you did not," you clamor, riled up by the boy, springing to your feet, reaching for him as he ran around your room. You chased him around with no signs of stopping or losing. The two weren't an option.

That was until he halted as you ran right into him, smacking your head on his shoulder. You stood clasping your head in momentary pain, completely forgetting that you leaned against the very demon you chased around seconds ago.

Seeking his chance at some playful revenge, he picked you by the waist, tickling you endlessly. You, suspended in the air with the boy's hands tickling your sides, causing you to burst into a fit of forced laughter at the fondling.

The tickling stops when another portal heeseung usual enters and exits through shows up, revealing another boy who was equally good looking.

"so this is what you're doing," the unknown boy says, voicing his dissatisfaction while heeseung lets you down, turning towards the boy, expression blank.

"if you had something to tell me, you could've called me, you know," heeseung deadpans, "I wanted to know where you've been disappearing," the mysterious boy halts, sparing one glance over to you.

"only to find you, messing around with the mere half-demon, whom we asked you to make a—" the unknown was interrupted by the raven-haired boy, "sunghoon," he warned, a slight growl escaping his mouth, eyes shining crimson.

Heeseung glances over at you, seeing you remained unfazed by the other boy named sunghoon, "i'll see you later," he says, bidding you goodbye, then wordlessly walking over to sunghoon.

The two then depart through another portal, leaving you feeling perplexed. What was sunghoon talking about? you ponder, flopping onto your mattress, feeling down.

He sighed, sitting on the chair in his room, thoughts of earlier popping in his head. After he left your room with sunghoon, making it to their dorm assigned to them in hell, he lashed out at the boy.

Hand gripping his shoulder aggressively as he harshly pushed the boy backward, plunging him to the floor. Yet through all this, sunghoon wore a lopsided smirk, "doesn't she have you wrapped around her finger. You're fighting me, your brother,"

That provoked him to lose his temper, smashing his balled fist into his jaw, eliciting a groan from the blond boy. "do you even know what you're doing right now, fighting me for sole half-blood? pathetic." 

"don't call her that. she has a name," heeseung seethes through his clenched teeth, slightly lisping his pronunciation. The fistfight ended when jay found the two tacklings each other on the floor of their living room.

Jay pushed two off of one another, sighing. He scolded them for fighting. When he asked why the two fought, sunghoon ran his mouth about his beliefs that heeseung was fooling around with the very half-blood they dared him to make a deal.

"he's been fooling around with that half-blood," sunghoon said nonchalantly, glaring at heeseung, "she has a name," he retorts, trying to keep his composure. 

"fine, he's jesting around with y/n," he repeats, making the black-haired stare in utter disbelief, holding the urge to plunge at him. "is it true that you've been hanging out with the half-blood?" Jay asks, directing it to heeseung.

"yes, to gain her trust, then appeal a deal with her," he calmly replies to jay, shutting his eyes after finishing his sentence. 

"if that's all, can I leave?" heeseung asks impatiently, irritation adorning his face. Jay nodded, driving him to turn in his heels, striding towards his given room in the dorm he shared with the others.

Sunghoon clasped onto his hand, preventing him from doing so, "what now," heeseung questions, his tone turning intenser than anticipated. "it's not that I want to fight you. I'm just telling you that you're falling for her without knowing," the blond says, eyes darting about, brooding on how to continue.

"you know the punishment that comes with falling for a mortal," he finishes, letting go of his hand, walking away without another word before a voice emits, "who's falling for a mortal?"

Everyone halts at their motions, panning around to the origin of said voice while their eyes wide, jaws hung open. "lucifer?" jay queries, bewildered as to what he was doing here, at their dorm.

"yes, 'tis I, lucifer," the mighty devil expresses as if he jumped out of ancient times. "no need to be extra," sunghoon mutters, the others left to think that he fears nothing.

"let me have my moment, you party-pooper," lucifer spoke, feigning hurt in his tone while the demons in the hall cringed at his words, "father, it's not 2015 anymore. Get with the recent trends," they all utter in unison.

He was their father, having created them and bringing them to life to serve him and his rule. "whatever," mutters lucifer, eyes lighting in the realization that he hadn't found out who was falling for a mere mortal.

"right, now who here is in love with a human?" the almightly devil inquires, staring at the three present. "no one, I was just entertaining a client, yet someone found it far too much," heeseung sassily quips, glowering sunghoon's way.

Lucifer analyzed the scene of the raven-haired boy scowling at the other, "oh, you have a new client? who?" the ruler asks, perking up his ears in curiosity.

The boy in question could only sough before answering, "my new client is y/n," he finishes saying, knowing the inevitable was coming next.

"the l/n y/n, Jiheon's daughter?" the demon clarifies, earning a yes from the three. "So he's off probation," he says, face then contorting in glee, "i can call him over then," he declares, then strolling off, bidding goodbye, overjoyed to beckon his dear demon friend.

Now that the boy thought about it, the whole ordeal was way too funny for him, laughing at the recollection, curing his brief sorrow. Though, you remained riddled with the burdening sentiment, much unlike him.

Before you knew it, it was Saturday. The day you'd meet heeseung and go to the party as your date. You squealed at the thought. Maybe, you had taken a particular liking to the demon boy because, look at him, who wouldn't? The demon boy acts and looks like a literal angel. 

Speak of the devil, word-for-word, as the said boy strode through his open portal while you smoothed out the dress you chose to wear.

The dress held a red pigment, covered with a thin black mesh-like material lined over, ending at your knees. You paired it with a black cropped graphic t-shirt over it, completing the outfit with black boots, hanging red earrings, and not much makeup. Your theme was red and black. (Outfit can be of your choice, as well.)

It was austere, but you looked gorgeous to yourself and the boy that stood behind you, lips parted as he examined you. Then pulled a smile, "someone dressed up," he paused to glance at you again mid-sentence, "but you look lovely y/n, from the red tips in your hair and wings to your outfit, everything."

You flushed at his words, feeling things you presumable shouldn't. Your eyes rake over his outfit, noting that the two of you were unintentionally color-coordinated, provoking a chuckle from you.

He styled a silk red button-up shirt that hugged him in all the right places, black jeans, a gold plated wristwatch, and dress shoes. Nothing extensive, yet the demon looked too captivating, to the point you ogled at him before snapping to your sense.

"ok, so, do I put it simply or try to be well with words?" you inquire, orbs darting to his face, glad he hadn't read your mind this time. He giggles, pushing his lips to form words, "put it simply, princess, we don't have all day, do we?"

You compose yourself, relaxing to an extent, "to put it simply, you look hot," you mused, immediately shying away, unable to maintain the composure you held moments ago, making the boy burst out laughing.

You join him, soon clutching onto your stomach as you two chortled in the evening of 6 pm, the time inching closer towards when you had to present at the invite.

Small talk carried the air till the time ticked 7 pm, when your friend yoon ringed you up, implying you to hurry because she couldn't wait to witness you and your handsome demon friend, or like she stated, boyfriend.

"shall we go, heeseung?" you ask, glimpsing at the boy you fiddled with his ring his finger wore, "oh? yeah, sure," he stated with his eyes doe and round, just like Bambi, adorable.

The boy was round-eyed because of you. The way his name rolled off your tongue like it was meant to, his stomach backflipping in response, he knew something was up with him, internally facepalming at his condition.

He whips open a portal, jesting you to go inside, but you take his hand in yours, "no, let's go together," you convey, gripping onto his hand. "if you insist," heeseung replies, stepping into the portal, hand-in-hand with you.

You arrived at the venue another step away, surprised at how fast the commute was. "that was fast," you express your thoughts, making the boy chuckle.

The walk inside the venue was quiet as you looked at the place, spotting your friends. You stride to your group of friends, tugging heeseung with you.

Your friends are more than surprised to see the raven-haired boy, "would you look at that, y/n has a date," sieun comments, while beomgyu wipes his invisible tears, "she grew up so fast," he spoke, feigning sadness.

Yeonjun approaches you, asking if you could speak to him for a second, and he means you alone. You agree, letting your demon date know that you'd be back.

He pulls you to the corner of the already bustling hall, filled with supernaturals, though a few humans showed up. "what's up," you query nonchalantly.

"what's up? y/n you can't be serious, you just strode in with the lee heeseung, yet you ask me that?" yeonjun spoke, face consorting in incredulity, handing you a cigar that you mindlessly accepted, paying more attention to what he said next.

"are you sure he isn't messing around with you or anything,"

"no, of course not. why do you say," you answer, sounding ruder than you expected, "do you even know who that man is?" he says, while you pull a blank.

He scoffs, "he's not someone you should be with, y/n. he's lucifer's number one cr—" Yeonjun was interrupted by heeseung, a hand pushing him back slightly, making him lose his balance.

"next time you talk shit about me, you might lose a few teeth," he warns, clasping your wrist in his and pulling you away from yeonjun.

Moments earlier, heeseung couldn't stand seeing you talking to yeonjun, knowing the demon you stood talking to, getting him riled up with rage. He wondered if it were the fact he could hear yeonjun speak about him to you or if he were plain jealous. 

He hauled you to the table assorted with drinks and other refreshments and handed you one as he took one himself, sipping on it, the annoyance clear as daylight in his actions.

"what was that," you state, absolutely bewildered by his measures, your hand pocketing the roll your friend, the same boy heeseung shoved away and tugged you with him.

"don't mind anything your friend said earlier, princess," he says, clearly not wanting to speak of the subject further. You don't linger on the question any longer, taking a sip of the drink, noticing it contains alcohol.

You wince in remembrance of the previous night you got drunk. You felt the need to mention that you were a lightweight to heeseung, "i can't get drunk," the silk-shirted boy spoke.

"oh, I didn't know that," you respond, falling into a typical conversation with the boy, sometimes giggling. The others joined in, yeonjun presumably keeping his distance from you for the night. 

The doors creaking open, earning your attention, stepped in the one that rejected you for your demon side, na jaemin. By his side was karina, someone you had grown to hate because of her two-sided nature. She had had numerous flings with multiple guys, jaemin falling for the sweet exterior like many others.

You told yourself that you wouldn't bother, moreover didn't care that he fell for her or anything about him. That's what you assumed, yet why were you burning inside. Were you jealous? Were you enraged because he chose her over you? You couldn't answer your question, head dropping to glance at your feet.

"i have a deal in mind," you blurt out, grasping heeseung's attention, which was on the two formerly mentioned, connecting the dots that the boy who just walked in had something to do with you. Namely, being the one that rejected you on your birthday.

"you do?" he asked in confirmation, clearing off that it wasn't an intoxicating thought. You nodded in response, much to his dismay. The demon couldn't help but wonder why he felt down at the thought you had an idea in mind.

Nonetheless, he pulled your drowsy state out of the massive building, walking to the behind as you leaned against the wall for support. "what do you have in mind," he asks, waiting for a reply, seeing the cigar peek out of your pocket.

He held the stick in his hand, examing it. He wasn't one to smoke, not that it'd affect him anyway; he was a demon. You drape your arm on one of his shoulders, making him peer up at you from the cigarette.

"i do have something in mind. It might be lousy to say this," you start, your intense gaze rendering the silk adorned to get slightly nervous, a first. 

You weren't sure if it was because you were intoxicated or not, but the demon boy appeared attractive under the dims of the street lamp, face stout. "you look pretty," you manage to voice, though you barely wavered along the lines.

"so do you, y/n," he says, accepting the compliment, pointer finger summons a small amount of fire above it, holding it to the cigarette. A makeshift lighter, how convenient. "get to the point," he cuts short, retaining the roll between his parted, soft lips.

You bore your eyes at the scene, eyeing him clutch a drag of it. He scrunched his nose at the smoke entering his system, pulling it away from his ever so, plump lips. 

You reached for it yourself, solely for him to place it between his mouth again, taking another whiff before coughing and flinging it down, his foot burying the bud to the ground. The cigar was much to his distaste. That moment is when you think you'd lost it, he was pushing your buttons.

A scoff eliciting from you, you balled his shirt in your fist, yanking him closer, your orbs growing scarlet. He watched the little act in astonishment. Oh, weren't you the brazen one?

You release the grip on his shirt. You, instead, snaking your arms 'round his neck, choosing to shift your weight on your tiptoes. You elevated yourself to his eye level, the left side of your red wore lips stretching up, exposing a canine glistening in the low lights.

Now was his chance to get flustered, spotting the red tint bloom on his front to the tip of his ears. No one could anticipate your upcoming actions, splitting the tight smirk that carried. The weighty atmosphere tensed,

"can I kiss you?"

The night was dead quiet, enough to hear the devil in question gulp harshly. To say he was flustered was an understatement. He wanted to consent to it. Was it wrong? Possibly, recalling Sunghoon's words, he could confirm the blond was right.

Yet it didn't matter right now because what was wrong felt right. 

You pressed a swift chaste kiss to his lips, setting the two on fire, molding them into one figure. You move, breathily whispering in his ear, sending chills down his spine. You whispered the contents of your deal to him.

You allow yourself down, toes aching from upholding your body. Standing on the palm of your feet, you bear-hugged the demon, yawning sleepily, the situation seeming all too familiar.

The demon wished he hadn't heard the contents of your deal, hoping the time between the two could last longer. Your words and actions differed. Holding onto the false hope that'd it change, that maybe you realize what he felt when he hadn't himself till now.

He carried you on his back, walking back into the venue as you slept soundly, unaware of your prior motions. The demon boy let her friends know of your departure and began to leave.

He would've strode out the door without batting an eye anywhere else. However, why did he stand before the one who shattered your heart? Why did he plummet a punch to his jaw while the other didn't counter?

He watched as the boy spoke ill mannerly of y/n, making his blood boil, so he trod to him and loaded a punch, "keep her name out of your mouth," he clamored as the audience collectively gasped.

Will Smith— 

Heeseung slammed the main door shut, opting to walk you home because he required time to sort out his thoughts. A sigh fled his lips. The demon had quite a lot on his plate at the very moment.

Advancing to the front door, he rang the bell though time clocked to midnight. The door panned, revealing one of lucifer's best men. The boy hadn't realized that y/n's father, Jiheon, was one of the best.

"come in, heeseung," Jiheon said, pivoting to the side and allowing the demon to enter inside. "how've you been, sir?" heeseung anxiously initiated. He hadn't seen the reputed devil in years since his abeyance.

"fine, it felt like a nice break," he spoke, staring at his daughter, who, heeseung had placed onto the couch, fast asleep. "what about you," he inquired, returning the query to him.

"i'm okay, i've made steady progress," the silk-shirted voiced, eyes darting around, apprehensive at the sudden occurrence. Jiheon hummed, "I can see that you've made it to the highest," heeseung responded while curtly nodding along.

"my daughter's quite a handful, isn't she? maybe I should've told her earlier," he spoke, mumbling the last part, "no, she has a lot on her mind, sir," heeseung answered, his gaze fleeting to your slumber state.

"a lot on her mind? can I suppose you might be contributing to those thoughts," Jiheon conveyed, quirking his eyebrow and chuckling. He sighed, continuing to the matter at hand. 

"she's been avoiding me these days, though I know it is my fault," he paused, spilling his worries to the much younger, "just don't break hurt her, heeseung," he finished, patting the boy on the shoulder, strolling away.

"sir, how—" the inexperienced demon trailed off, wide-eyed, stirring a laugh from Jiheon. "it's written all over your face. i was once just like you," he said, a small smile prevalent on his lips.

The raven-haired watched as the older strode into his room, "goodnight, sir," he said, picking up the asleep girl in his arms, up to her room, and onto her mattress. He placed her in the comfort of her covers, pressing a kiss to her forehead, "goodnight, princess."

It had been days since the party, and the whole commotion of heeseung punching jaemin spread like wildfire. You'd confronted the demon for doing so yet, and heeseung ignored your question, changing the topic.

He had taken out a day before, strolling through the city with each other. You enjoyed your time with him growing fond of his company, though you weren't to get too attached as this was merely contractual.

You laid on the mattress, napping at 4 pm, tucked in your warm and comfortable bed, with no worries as you dream, light breaths leaving you softly.

Opposing your dozed off state, entered the raven-haired boy through his portal, observing the girl's sleeping state, and then pouted. The latter had got bored, coming to spend his time with you.

Though he couldn't change your feelings towards the one he now despised, he hoped that maybe, spending his time with you would, hopefully, make you return his feelings.

He steps over to her bed, watching you in your slumber with your lips jutted out naturally, witnessing your adorable state. The raven-haired whips out his phone, capturing as your eyelids fell over your orbs, the sunlight illuminating your rested face, setting the picture as his lock screen, beaming at it.

The boy leans down to you, moving the stray strands of her hair out of your face and tucks them behind your ears, pushing his lips together and leaving a feather-like kiss on your forehead.

It was now a habit when it came to you, becoming a rather genuine reaction whenever he saw you napping, unable to stop himself from kissing your forehead, not that you'd know of it.

The train of thoughts was interrupted by your sudden action of seizing his arm and jolting him towards you with great strength of someone asleep.

Due to her rash motions, heeseung toppled over onto you, arms supporting himself up on either side of you, trapping you in his frame while you were unaware and visited dreamland. 

Heeseung couldn't help but stare at your face, gazes running over your captivating features. Though their current position seemed all too scandalous, he wore a smile, sighing in relief as you didn't wake from your restful state.

But of course, someone just had to open her door at that instant, the one in question being her dad, Jiheon. He stood at the door frame, witnessing the scene before him, lips part with a shocked expression. 

His eyebrows then furrowed while his surprise turned into bitterness, "sir, I can explain this is not what it looks like—" the boy blabbered hurriedly to save himself.

Shaking his head in disapproval, "speak later, boy, get off my daughter right now," Jiheon ordered, the older demon's eyes flashing gold, warning the boy to do as said or face the consequences.

He pushed himself off, falling onto her bed, forearms supporting his upper body as he got off. But no, your arms wrapped around him again, drawing him into your embrace.

He deadpanned, out of all times, now? heeseung looked up at your father, eyes pleading for help, "sir, do I wake her up?" he voices, whispering. The latter nods, finding himself fighting a smile because his daughter was just like her mother, he thought while internally chuckling.

The demon boy taps on her shoulder, earning no response, a sigh escaping his lips. Your father walked over, holding onto your shoulder, slightly pushing on it merely to receive a whine.

"qhy does everyone wish to wake me when I'm asleep on this comfortable pillow," you drawl, heeseung refraining from the laugh bubbling in his chest.

"and last time the pillow turned out to be the demon boy, heeseung," you convey to your father, whom you assume is listening, but then it dawns on you, what if it's him?

To your horror, it was indeed heeseung who wore a pained expression, it pointing over to your dad, who stood right behind you. You shouted once again, arms and legs acting on their own as they shoved the demon boy off and into the tiny expanse between your bed and the wall, eliciting a groan from him. 

"could you please stop pushing me here, it's the second time, and other times you pushed me in your wardrobe, and continue to summon me in your wardrobe and push me there for what joy, y/n?" He enunciates exasperated, your father looking at you with eyebrow arched, "poor boy," he expressed.

"y/n get dressed; we're paying a visit to an old friend of mine," your dad states, looking at you, expectant for an answer. "do I have to come?" you grumble, drawing a stern yes from your dad.

A buzzing comes from heeseung, causing the boy to delve his hand into his pocket. He retrieved the device that rang profusely, piercing through the calm air, startling you, making a mental note to get his number later.

"hello," he began to the receiving end of the line earning a soft reply from the gadget as he stood in the room, "what do you mean you almost burnt the place down trying to make bungeoppang?!" heeseung exclaimed into the phone, jaw craned open.

Silence followed from the raven-haired present in your room, your father's expression shifting to amusement, "who's lucy?" the curious boy questioned, gaining a chuckle from your dad. "lucy is lucifer? why would you call father that, niki," he spoke in confirmation, head tilting to the side.

"he wanted to see me?" he replied, hearing what 'niki' had to say, their conversation blurring to you, paying no mind to it, staring into the distance, lost.

You gain your composure when he bids you and your dad a curt goodbye in a hurried matter, leaving you to wonder if this has anything to do with 'lucy' as you previously collected.

You smoothed down your pearly white dress, glancing at yourself in the mirror, fixing your hair, thinking which side to tuck your hair behind your ear.

You pondered over it, deciding that not pleating your hair would be the best, how he'd— No, you'd like it. To make it clear, you're making yourself look presentable for your dad's companion, not the demon boy, whom you have a slim chance of running into because daddy's dear friend resides in hell.

The chances of running into the tall man were probable, but you weren't doing this for him, you told yourself, taking in your austere yet stunning reflection, smiling in satisfaction.

You wore a simple, white, frilled dress, wearing a simple gold heart necklace yoon had given you. Earrings hung near aside your vibrant dyed red hair. You did look alluring.

"shall we leave, y/n?" Your mother calls from below the stairs, peering through the open crack as you nod, clutching onto your white purse, concluding your outfit from head to toe.

You made your way down, greeting your parents with a grin, "someone dressed up," jests your mom, a giggle accompanying her sentence, making the corners of your eyes crinkle up while you show a cheeky gummy smile.

->⌚<-

Moments later, you find yourself situated in the confines of hell itself, in a lavish-looking building, the interior decorated elegantly contrasting the image of hell.

Admiring the insides, you then settle down on the couch in what you presumed was the living room. A man stepped out of the hall opposite the one you walked through, seemingly talking to someone behind him, striding to where you and your parents sat.

"i wasn't expecting guests today, jiheon," said the older yet fine-looking figure, smiling lightly, acknowledging glancing at you and your mother, which you returned.

"would you all like some ramen?" asked the unknown demon man, whom you suppose was your dad's friend. A questioning look drew upon your father's face, provoking the demon to ramble about how he wasn't expecting guests. 

Jiheon laughed in amazement at the little rant, "you're still the same as before." The man turned back to face someone you still couldn't see, "make a lot," He said sternly, "and good," he added, then attending to his so unexpected guests. "yeah, yeah, you brought me here from my client for that after all, " the person responds.

Yet your orbs stay glued to the boy that exited the hall, presuming he walked to the kitchen in a black button-up paired with Persian blue slacks and tousled wet raven hair, was indeed heeseung.

That was hot.

You gasped mentally while your gaze shifted to the floor. "y/n?" you hear your mother speak, gaining your attention from the ebony-haired, rendering your head jerking up and greet the demon, "l/n y/n." You perceive the demon smirk from your peripheral vision.

You excuse yourself minutes after, attempting to locate where the kitchen could be, earning a chuckle from the devil, whom you learned was lucifer, himself, which made you gasp. But, heeseung was the matter at hand.

"he's over there," He spoke, pointing across from the couch. The living room and kitchen had quite a stretch though the area was exposed, making it visible to the ones in the living room.

You find yourself in the kitchen after following the direction. You watch the demon boy aimlessly scroll on his phone, hair suspending over his orbs while the water boiled.

"what are you doing here?" You inquire, heeseung not sparing you a glance, making your heart drop, requiring the other's attention, "you heard earlier, lucy called," He spoke, mocking niki.

You hum in response, thinking as you initiate a conversation with him, your mother glimpsing at the two every once in a while and cooing silently to herself. How cute, she must've thought, hearing the bickering from the counter.

Your hand advances towards the boiling pot of water, taking the uncooked ramen cakes and placing them in the water. heeseung stares at your wordlessly, pupils questioning everything you did, "what are you doing,"

"what does it look like, huh? I'm assisting you, duh," you state, turning away from him and to the stove. Yet no, you can't have it go your way when he's present. He spurs you around, his large hands clasping over both your wrists, compelling your back to the plane of the stove.

"don't do anything," he warns, his grip tightening as you try to wiggle your way to freedom. You whine a 'why' annoyed that he restricted all movement with one hand.

"because you're clumsy, and you'll make a mess," he spoke, his dominant hand that went on cooking for you, lucy, and his guests. You struggle to free yourself from his grasp, granted he felt aggravated.

"stop it," he commanded, his eyes glowering down at you, the tip of your nose brushing against his chin as your orbs nervously darted to his, but you mask it beneath. A smile creeps to your face, breathing out a "no."

You irk him yet again, a tired sigh leaving from heeseung as he stares into your eyes void of any emotion, "attempt anything one more time, and I will tie your hands together,"

"kinky,"

He accepts defeat, a sough leaving from the part of his mouth, inclining his head onto your shoulder, hands still grasped tightly by the demon. "do not," he said with a flat tone, on the verge of ripping his hair out, most definitely wasn't concerned about balding.

The bickering continues while you enjoy noting his troubled face. Unable to halt your antics on the raven-haired demon, he soon gave up, serving the ramen into bowls of 5. Though his much larger hand still enclosed your hands between his, "let go,"

"no," he voiced, a smirk lifting on his countenance.

You did what you could to free yourself from the grip, and you succeeded, at the cost of the ramen's broth splashing all over you and heeseung. Pupils wide, you stood while your pearly white dress was now stained.

He rolled his eyes, "this is why I advised you to stop," he tsks. Your mother stifled a laugh from the other side, muttering, "this is why I never allow her in my kitchen." He placed the bowls full of ramen for his father, lucy, and your parents, then turned to you with an audible sigh, eyes raking over your now dirtied dress.

"come with me," he spoke, excusing himself and then walking off into one of the various halls, expecting you to trail behind him, which you did, in silence. You gawked at the countless pieces of expensive decor set about the walls.

The austere dressed stated the obvious, "hell is loaded with cash while others are stolen—" he paused, "from the sinners that nabbed them in the first place." he ended, a laugh trickling from his chest, making you beam. Eyes still glued to the multiple decorations which either purchased or looted, you dashed straight into a broad back, the owner sparing you a glance.

His hand clutched 'round your forearm, tugging you beside him, "that's my room," he pointed forward to the door blocking your entry. "your point is?" you voiced, finding the situation normal by the number of times you had summoned him to your room.

"you realize that you'd be alone, in my room with a guy, and it'd be the two of us," he deadpans, burning holes onto the side of your head, "isn't that usually how? I always summon you in my room, alone too," you retort, peering up at the boy in puzzlement.

"this is different, y/n," he conveyed, accompanied by the shaking his head, "how is this any different, heeseung?" you genuinely queried, the clueless look plastered all over your expression. He gazed longingly at you, "should I show you how," he breathed out near your ear, a glint of mischievousness visible in his pupils.

"why not," 

Daring.

The doors of his room open with a push, smug front playing on his face as you willing step inside, hearing the door shut behind you, standing before the demon boy. You gape into his eyes, wanting to witness what he'd do, "isn't this suggesting,"

He hummed, urging you to the wall beside the door was sealed, "be a princess and let me kiss you," he mused, smirking.

"not if I go first," you retorted. A cheeky smile drew upon your lips as you slanted forward, solely for an arm to push you back, tipping himself and compelling soft lips on yours. 

You succumbed to the sensation of his lips against yours almost immediately, and it didn't go unnoticed by the boy, whom you felt grin widely into the kiss.

After you passed the awkward stage of how exactly to kiss, you deepened your movements, cocking your head to the side, arms progressing to his neck, enveloping it. He kissed you fervently, eyes closed, following the established rhythm which got needier, your fingers lacing into his raven locks, yanking him towards you.

He broke the connection of lips, albeit of air, chests heaving heavily. You stared at the floor while your fingers let go of his hair and raked through yours, forcing the hair out of your front, processing that you merely kissed the lee heeseung, and as annoying as it was, he's a good kisser. 

He chuckled at your thought while you realized that he was reading your mind the entire time, heat searing over your cheeks at the sight of his scarlet and gold flaring eyes.

You scoffed, trying to play it cool, "not my fault you just happen to be good at everything," you drawl sheepishly, "like how you skillfully made ramen which smelled and looked good while you dealt with me bothersome self the entire while," you concluded, grumbling jokingly at the demon.

You waited for his reaction, gaining nothing but silence, causing you to wonder whether it was a wrong move that you kissed him. Sensing your doubt, he spoke, "right, your fresh change of clothes," treading to his closet, but you held him back.

Your eyes were lidded as you drew the boy back to you like a magnet, observing as he complied. You cupped his face, pressing your lips against his plump ones, the pace slower than prior, savoring the taste of his lips and the feeling.

Your heartbeat was ecstatic while heeseung returned the heated sentiment, his hands traveling to rest on your hips, fingers drumming along the expanse.

It continued the sweet, soft rhythm, your hands placed on his chest. He pulled away this time, sighing in delight and contentment. You melted along with his lean yet muscular figure, your head relaxing on his shoulder while your breath softened. He reciprocated the action, pulling you into his warm embrace.

It was evident in the air, the position, everything, except you. You stood oblivious, lost in bliss while hugging the raven-haired demon tightly, your senses in a mess. "should I get you a change of clothes now," he inquired, chuckling, his chest vibrating. You nodded curtly, replying.

He pulled away, driving you to frown, the warmth radiating off him now lost from your touch. You thought back to the contents of your part of the deal you cited to him, desiring to go back in time and change what occurred. The mentioned deal was a waste, a decision made in haste with no consideration or thought.

"turn me into a mortal again," you ushered out the deal, observing as his expression dropped, looking like his heart shattered. He wordlessly gapped at you, wavering if it were a joke, but you said nothing. Your head felt heavy, and so did your heart. Heeseung remained frozen as you closed your eyes, blacking out.

You were forced out of thoughts as he handed you a pair of his clothes, "i don't stay here much, but I tried to find the smallest pieces I have," he voiced out, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck while you beamed the borrowed clothes, just knowing you'd drown in them.

You shoved him out the room, changing into your new pair of clothes that he possessed, which made your gut somersault in glee. You didn't know what you had harbored for the demon over time though you doubt it'd do any good.

Fallin for the angel-like demon wouldn't do you good nor get vengeance on the demon-like angel. 

You had sat quietly, eating what heeseung made before the little scene you caused. Your thoughts picked away at your peace of mind, and evidently, it was very apparent to those around. "are you okay?" heeseung whispered to you, worry washed over his face, lips jutting out naturally, forming a pout. To think you kissed his lips minutes ago.

You dismissed those sentiments quickly, brushing off the question while the demon casually munched on his bowl of ramen. He didn't look unpersuaded at your reply, eyeing you narrowly, "do you like the ramen?" he questioned, switching the topic. 

"yeah, it's good. it reminds me of when I tried to make pancakes and failed, so I summoned you for help but made them way better," you completed with a smile, thinking back to the many memories you created the day you were home with him. 

"don't banish heeseung as you did with me. Y/n is my daughter after all," jiheon jested jokingly, but the stillness dragged, gazes set on the two of you. Lucifer spared the two a glance, noting how you were seated attired in his clothes.

"that is if they wish to do so," he said, an unreadable front dawning upon the devil himself, "rules are rules." That only further soured the atmosphere as you stood up with your empty bowl in hand, excusing yourself.

You anticipated someone to call out to you, to stem you by the arm, but no one did. It added to your doubt that nothing good was to come with falling for the demon. You set the bowl in the sink, not darting at the others who remained muted, supervising your every move.

You traced the way back to heeseung's temporary room, strolling inside, plunging onto his bed while the tears brimming in your eyes fell, not a sob fleeing your mouth. You weren't sure when you fell asleep, discerning the built-up exhaustion and constant pondering whether to stick to your mind or heart.

You listened to the door click open, hearing voices whisper something along the lines, "bring her back tomorrow," who you acknowledged was your dad. "yes, have a goodnight, sir." The doorway shut, and the demon soughed, bringing his raven hair together.

You felt a warm hand atop your cheek, your eyes forcing themselves open, moving over to invite him beside you. He tried to refuse your offer and sat down instead. "i'll sleep elsewhere," he murmured, lulling you to sleep again. 

You shook your head his words, hands flying to the sides of his face, delivering a quick kiss. Your sleepy eyes gave away their urge to close as they did, your arms hooking around his waist, not wanting him to leave. So he stayed.

->⌚<-

The two asleep figures were entangled together. Soft breaths left them as their chest rose and fell. A phone rang violently, coercing the boy to jolt awake, eyes ripping open, gaining composure. He squints his eyes, advancing for the phone. 

He was cautious not to wake you while you cuddled him. The demon sat up, slanting against the headboard, an arm wrapping about you while he communicated quietly into the gadget.

"alright," he replied, cutting the call, inching back down to lay on his back, his free arm placing the phone on the side table. He progressed to envelop you in an embrace while you snuggled closer, your sleep-filled voice speaking, "are you awake?" sounding drowsy.

You wiggled yourself up, dropping onto his arm that held you in his embrace, "yeah, I got a call," he conveyed, eyes shutting as he buried his head in the crook of your neck, sighing in the tender moment, spiking chills down your spine. The coziness almost lulls you back to sleep.

"heeseung!" A shout resonated from outside his room, the door bursting open, eyes perceiving the scene before him, jaw craned open in surprise. You were the last person he expected to nestle against his technical brother.

The demon beside you grumbled, "what," he huffed, moving out of his comfortable position. Sunghoon appearing behind the baffled boy that initially called for heeseung was none other than jay. Sunghoon analyzed the situation as you sat up, sighing, eliciting a scoff from sunghoon.

"he's toying with you," sunghoon spoke, directing the statement towards you, side-eyeing the boy that sat about you. You stared disoriented while heeseung shot to his feet, depicting his outrage at what sunghoon said moments before. Yet he dared to continue with a sour face, "the bet was to avail a deal with you, not fool around with her," he completed, scoffing.

Heeseung's infuriated stature shoved sunghoon to the wall, turning back to your hurt and perplexed front and back to the blond boy, "stop spewing bullshit," he warned, balling the other boy's shirt. You and jay stood, witnessing it all, mouth agape.

You processed sunghoons remarks, looking down to the mattress, clenching your hand into a fist. You were confused, angry, sad, though one thing was clear, you were lied to,

"you lied too," you sneered through your words, tears bitterly pricking your eyes. Heeseung halted when you spoke, knowing he'd hurt you, lowering his glare with sunghoon, fronting you instead, "no, let me explain-" you launched a pillow at him, the power hurling him to the wall. 

You faltered at his pained groan, shocked at your strength, glimpsing at your hands, realizing it was your demon side, your anger fueling it further. Everyone watched as you struggled to repress your scarlet-colored devil counterpart.

"y/n," the crouched demon voiced, a hand placed at his abdomen, coughing slightly from the hit earlier. He got on his feet, then reached for you, though you flinched at the sudden contact, lashing out at him again. "stay away!" you exclaimed, backing away. 

You blinked rapidly, attempting to dismiss the demonic spirit that took over. Heeseung softened at your form, "stop trying to fight it," he spoke softly, shaking his head and soughing at the mess he'd created. He should've told you from the start.

You quieted down, breathing in and out, regaining the calmness you held, tears threatening to escape. You stilled your shaky voice, wanting nothing but to go home and be in the confines of your room and cry a river. "just take me home, please," 

The raven-haired demon gazed at your disheartening shape, considering you'd want space, away from him though he desired to explain. You had a valid reason to resent him. He had officially fucked up.

He opened his portal without a peep, gesturing you to go inside, following you inside your room. "i owe you an explanation—" he started, and you'd already had enough, your stout expression shutting him up as you motioned him to leave. "heeseung, kindly," you paused, sighing, "fuck off."

->⌚<-

Sunghoon paced everywhere in his room after heeseung returned distraught, telling the boy to leave him alone, slamming the door on him. He indeed felt despair for the two, but it was for the best. He had his reasons. He'd been in his position; he'd been in love.

He didn't want to lose his brother, have him expelled from hell for who knows how long, all over a half-blood. It had to stop before anything commenced, mentally facepalming for even proposing the bet. 

Maybe there were other ways than the one resorted to, but heeseung's stubborn. Stubborn in love. He wondered if you both were alright, hoping so. Sunghoon knew it wasn't right, but someone had to play the villain.

You laid motionless on your bed as water streamed down your eyes as you had for the past 2 hours. Your phone buzzed dozens of times, yet you couldn't bother to pick it up nor silence it.

You just laid there, aimlessly, wondering why you cared whether he lied or not, whether he meant his actions or words. You knew one thing, though. That you didn't want anything to do with na jaemin but everything to do with lee heeseung.

In all honesty, he was never the matter at hand. Heeseung, the demon boy who lied to you, was. Maybe you grew attached. Perhaps, you felt something more than friendship. Were you even friends? It ached.

It wasn't any different for him. He hadn't stepped out of his room in hours nor made a noise from inside. His brothers knocked on his door, trying to check up on him, yet no one responded. They wondered if he even were in the room, too scared to open it for themselves to see.

Until Sunghoon finally came outside to see the dilemma jake and jay were stuck in. Upon hearing their reasoning, he took matters into his own hands, kicking the door open and witnessing an almost lifeless figure laid on the mattress. It was heeseung.

"get out," 

"you haven't been out of your room in hours. what are you doing,"

"that doesn't concern you, get the fuck out of my room," he fumed.

It had been days since you last saw the demon boy. It stung, knowing you'd become a subject for his toying, pushing any signs of liking him to the side, trying to grow resentment for him. 

You wished that he meant everything he said and did, though it was nearly impossible seeing he didn't try to make amends with you, practically disappearing as you ordered him. Or he was respecting your desire for him to "kindly, fuck off." and so, he did.

Then why do you miss him? You summoned him almost every day, spending most of your time with him, naturally growing closer, getting attached. You thought back to when he'd taken you out for the day, making you laugh as you both walked along the sidewalk.

The wall beside you was cracked open, flowers blooming through them. You stared at the sight in awe, heeseung having caught you admiring it. "look," he said, gaining your attention, swirling his hand as a bright flame in the shape of a flower materialized in his hand.

You gasped at it, gapping in astonishment, advancing to touch it, but he clasped his hand shut, the flames vanishing. You frowned, a frustrated whine leaving you, causing the boy to snicker while patting you.

Your frown turned to a smile as you ran further to seemingly nowhere, driving him to follow forth not to lose view of you. You remember having so much fun that day, laughing like little kids, loving the adrenaline you felt when you were with him.

Maybe you should've let him explain.

You sigh as yoon drags you into the party, introducing you to some of her friends while you return the favor by introducing yourself. You did not want to be here. 

Ryujin, the one hosting the party, approached you. "happy birthday!" you exclaim over the booming music. She smiled, replying, "yoon did mention you sulking over some boy, forget about him for the night, and join me for a dance,"

And so you found your way to the dance floor along with ryujin, who was surprisingly fun to be around, dancing to the music, driving you to do the same. It was probably the most fun you'd had since you told the demon to fuck off.

Ryujin beamed at your now uplifted shape, telling you she'd be back in after greeting some more guests, which you agreed to, stepping off the dance floor in need of refreshment.

You reach for the water bottle, breaking the seal on the cap, gulping down some water. You wipe off any excess that could remain around your mouth, setting the bottle down and heaving a few breaths. 

From the corner of your eye, you see a tall man with his long black hair hanging over his orbs messily, flashing a charming smile that his eye smile completed, laughing at something his friend said. You continue to check him out, eyes scrutinizing his every move.

He styled a gold flower patterned black shirt, the top two buttons left unattended, exposing his collarbones. The leather jacket he adorned shined under the gleaming lights, casually paired with black ripped jeans. You were practically goggling, yet you couldn't help yourself. 

He felt a pair of eyes on him, turning his head to you across the room, meeting your gaze. He sent you a lopsided grin which you most definitely returned, conveying something to his group of friends, leaving them and walking over to you.

You'd be lying if you said that gaze didn't make you nervous. "hey, sorry to bother," the man starts, leaning onto the table, glancing up at you with a glint of mischievousness.

You stretch an amusing smile waiting for him to continue. "i lost my number. could I have yours?" he concludes, fighting the urge to laugh at his line, failing and bursts out chortling. 

You snicker at the failed attempt of a pickup line, "sorry, I have a strict to-do list, and you're not on it," you reply, faking a sad expression, jutting your bottom lip out, feigning sadness.

"i could make my way on it after a dance, love," he states slyly, offering his hand for a dance. You gladly accept his invitation, having no reason to turn down the opportunity from the handsome man. 

He treads to the dance floor once more. Random club noise blaring from the speakers while you catch ryujin grin and wink your way, seeming excited that you were dancing with someone. "Your name?" you inquire, peering at him.

"minghao," he voices, dancing with you, surprisingly, very good at it, "but you can call me yours." You'd heard of the boy, being popular among many for his good looks and talent in singing, dancing, and flirting.

"i assume your name is gorgeous," he expresses as you mentally cringe, but you guess his face made up for it. "flattered, but I'm y/n," you speak, clearing your throat. He nods at you, twirling you around, seizing you far by shock.

The music turns up while you try to give your best on the dance floor, assuming it worked as the crowd focused on you two. This day was turning out to be more fun than anticipated. 

You notice that he was stealing glances at your lips, but it reminded you of heeseung. The one boy you wanted to forget reclaimed his position in your heart instantly, all because the man that footed with you glimpsed at your lips.

You shake your head in disapproval at remembering the demon. Minghao gradually leaned in towards you, his hot breath fanning you. Maybe, you needed new memories to get rid of the old ones, you thought, shutting your eyes. 

You felt his lips on yours, "minghao," but he pulled away immediately, provoking you to fling your pupils open, "oh hey," minghao pauses nervously, putting distance between you, "heeseung."

Your mood takes a 180, irritation displayed on your front, you tch, pacing away from the two. Heeseung cuts minghao short, simply ignoring the boy, running after you. You frantically search for yoon, unable to find her.

You scan the entire hall desperately, attempting to spot shim jayoon, and you do in the corner of the hall, making out with soobin. You falter upon sight, endeavoring to recall if she ever mentioned him, having forgotten about heeseung completely as he clasps your arm, gaining your attention.

You glower at the raven-haired, "let go," you order, forcing your eyes to glow ruby-colored. Letting your hand free, "don't," heeseung voiced, scoffing and grasping your arm again. This time you got dragged upstairs, where it was much quieter.  

"what the fuck were you doing grinding against xu minghao," he asked, jaw clenched in what you assumed was jealousy.

"none of your business, now tell me what you had to say, or I'll leave," you threaten, annoyed by the demon.

He sighed, collecting himself, "i know you don't want to talk to me, let alone see me, but we've still got a contract bounding us," he spoke, sympathizing with you. "what contract?" you ask, cluelessly.

"the deal, the moment you agreed, the contract was bound," heeseung conveyed, ruffling the jet hair out of his face, "oh," you let out in realization, now in a dilemma of what you wanted your deal to be.

Detecting the uncertainty in your expression, "i'll give you time to think about it, princess" he spoke. He gazed at you and your red lips longer than he should've, compelling himself to speak his mind, "i meant everything I did and said," he articulated in a whisper.

He didn't know what unknown force was driving him closer and closer to you, a mere distance away from meeting your lips. You interrupt the chain of movements, "i'll do it, i'll fulfill the contract, but under one condition," you state, your hand cupping his cheek, making you look him straight in your eyes.

"that is?"

"don't lie again," you utter in a hush manner, standing on your tippy-toes, attempting to press a quick peck to his cheek, only to lose balance and peck his jaw. You feel your cheeks heat by your misstep, leaving the boy to himself in the hall upstairs.

You left the party with a lot on your mind, from nearly kissing minghao then accidentally pecking heeseung on the jaw. But you had one thing clear; you indeed have feelings for the demon.

So that's where you began while ranting to yoon about your love life as she listened to your concerns, her only reply to your whole ordeal being, "oh, yeah, I knew," she stated casually.

"what, how—"

"we've known each other since birth. How would I not know?"

You open your mouth to protest, closing it back as fast as you opened it. "that's what I thought," she quipped, lips tugging in a victorious smile, "now what's up with you and soobin," you inquire, smirking at the girl opposite of you.

She shares her apprehensions with you, much like you did to her, soon concluding that she should ask the boy out if he doesn't in a few days. Your friend didn't fail to detect the murmur that left your mouth in a breath, "as I will to heeseung, today,"

She teases you playfully for the romantic sentiment though realizing the weight of the situation, "but won't he get banished from hell if he wishes to see a mortal?" That's when you spill the contents of your master plan you thought over through your sleepless night.

->⌚<-

You paced around the room, repeatedly glancing at the rustic paintings you'd hung on the walls. Fog roamed the stretch outside your window, cold chills arising goosebumps on your skin. 

The clock struck 7 pm, the sky dimming in accordance, the faint moonlight peeking through the bundle of pearly white clouds. You were home alone hence the eery silence suspended in the air, the perfect opportunity to summon heeseung.

You calmed your erratic heartbeats, settling on your mattress, closing your eyes, and sucking in a breath. You then thought of the raven-haired demon seated beside you. 

Unbeknownst to you, heeseung sat next to you as you thought, yet you didn't realize. You furrowed your eyebrows, confused as to why the boy wasn't present.

He grinned at the sight of you in bewilderment, setting his palm on the blade of your shoulder, earning a jolt from you, scrambling away from him, eyes cast open with fright, placing a hand to your chest above your heart.

You blink rapidly, gapping blankly at the boy who sported a smile, waving a hi, "what— when did you get here," you ask, staring at the boy with rounded orbs gazing right into his, "i was here the moment you thought I was, you just didn't realize," he spoke, shrugging his shoulders.

"oh," you spoke, learning that you were too lost to recognize the boy's distinct scent. "before you began about the deal," he paused, fiddling with his fingers, soon meeting your gaze, "can I explain myself?" he put forward as you nodded, allowing him.

If it were anyone but the demon you'd become fond of and even grew feelings for, you wouldn't have let them explain, wanting nothing to do with them, but your bias was evident when it came to him.

"now, where do I start,"

"from the beginning," you confirm, crossing your legs, sitting in a crisscrossed position, heeding all your concentration onto him.

"the day of your birthday, I was with the boys; I'm sure you know most of them by now, having seen them on many occasions," He directs, waiting for your answer, to which you quip, "yeah, I've seen most, and especially sunghoon," you mention the boy's name in distaste.

Picking up on the distaste, he chuckles, "sunghoon then brought up how I've not taken up a client in quite some time, then one leads to another, and he proposed that I should have you as my client. I agreed and showed up in your room while you were stuck out your window," he recollected, laughing at the memory.

You were embarrassed upon recalling, hurrying him to move on from his remembrance and continue. He soon stopped giggling, shifting closer to you, bending to your eye level as his arms supported him from the mattress.

"the more I hung out with you, the more I thought of you, wanting to spend my time with you," he confessed, reaching for your hand, intertwining it with his.

"but when you first proposed your idea of what you wanted as the deal, I realized that you were out of my reach. sunghoon caught on, and he told me to cut my ties with you which led us to fight," he paused to observe your expression, and upon seeing it was of curiosity, he continued.

"so on the day you stayed over, he saw this as a way to end things himself," he voiced, sighing at the thought, and you grimaced, "he had his reasons, not wanting to lose his brother. sunghoon did what he thought was right, so don't hate him too much," he conveyed, a subtle chuckle spilling past his lips.

"sunghoon did apologize to me and wanted me to relay it to you too," 

"i don't hate him as before since his reason was justifiable. I wouldn't want to lose you either," you concluded, beaming at him, that he returned. 

"y/n, I do like you, though I can't be with you because of the rules of hell," he said, his front faltering, drawing you into an embrace, running a hand down your back soothingly. You pulled out of the embrace instead, placing a hand on his cheek, smiling, "but what if I told you I found a way around it,"

He smiled at your attempt, "there's no way around it y/n—"

"my deal is that you don't get expelled from hell," you completed, pausing for him to process your words. He met your pupils, holding your hand as he rejoiced, "that isn't stated in the rule book— you're a genius!"

His smile shifts to a pout, "but why would you use this once-in-a-lifetime deal on me," he said, his hand coming to pat your head, "most people wish for money or other materialist items, so why choose me,"

"because I like you too," you state, watching as visible panic and shock washes over him. You smile and hold his shoulder, pulling him in for a kiss. He softened into you immediately, feeling him smile against your lips. 

He placed a hand on the back of your neck, pressing your lips harder against his. You ran your hands through his soft hair, tilting your neck to deepen the kiss. You pulled away, laughing from the sudden rush of happiness and butterflies invading your stomach, laying back on the bed.

He joined you, replicating your movements, moving to lay on his back as well. He draped his arm on your torso, snuggling closer, pressing a kiss to the side of your head, making you giggle at the ticklish action.

You whipped your head to him, "since you're my boyfriend, can I see your demon horns," you asked as your eyes lit up, wanting to see his horns. He covered his face with his hand, "do you really want to see them?" he inquired, dreading the moment you nodded eagerly.

"I usually hide them, but I'll allow you to see them once," he sighed, unveiling the horns on top of his head. You looked in fascination at the red horns that weren't large as most depicted, "they're cute, surprisingly," you stated, continuing to play with them.

You set your head atop his chest as it rose and fell, now accommodating your head above it. The silence was comfortable, "lucy will be infuriated, won't he," you say, snickering, "i think he'll be more infuriated when he finds out that everyone has been calling him lucy,"

Maybe, the large hand pressed to your back, your lips hard at work, teeth clashing against the others, every frivolous motion that made the moment seem just right with all details in place. Your knees weakened as your bottom lip was clawed at, eliciting a quiet whine.

His haste motions paused as he pulled away, hand shifting its warmth from back to your waist, another resting on the nape of your neck, drawing you back to his mouth. You locked your fingers around his hair, tugging his head down to connect his lips with yours. 

It wasn't what you'd expected when you summoned the raven-haired you so harshly yanked at, provoking him to groan in between your heated kiss. Not that you opposed the situation, more so finding yourself enjoying it.

His grip tightened around your waist, making you part the lips he worked at without catching a breath. He seized the opportunity, sticking his tongue inside, fighting his way to dominating your tongue. You grew tired of constant nudging, giving up, and letting him win willingly.

He smirked in victory, swirling around the tip of your tongue with experience. Your heart thumped in affection as you panted, clutching onto his shoulders. 

He dragged his mouth over to your jaw, marking it up. You held your bottom lip hostage, clenching it, not wanting to cause any loud noise. 

He wordlessly embraced you, lifting you off your feet and onto your head, sliding in beside you, bear-hugging you. "that was great," you mutter, shying over, avoiding his teasing expression. 

You turned the other way, showing him your back, making him chuckle merely to snuggle onto you, his nose brushing at your earlobe. 

He pressed feather-light kisses around your ear and neck, causing you to shudder at the affectionate motion. "i would know you liked it if you didn't say so since your whine said it all," He retorted, chuckling as you hid your beat red front in your palms and supposedly away from his teasing. 

"yn," he drawled from your chair on the other side of the room, his eyes boring into yours. "what?" you questioned, your orbs still glued to the book you read while heeseung shifted in his seat, "how do I look" he inquired, striking a random pose.

Nonetheless, he looked breathtaking, "i need an honest opinion. Let me read your mind," he spoke, a sheepish smirk quirking on his front. "no, wait—" you hurried out while you came up with a master plan.

"i'm going to read now,"

You sighed in reply, knowing what to do. Heeseung's eyes gleamed ruby, gazing intensely at you. You thought of the familiar tune in your head, playing it from memory, and much to your liking, the demon was speechless.

His jaw hung open, "did you just," he paused, trying to make sense of what you'd done telepathically, "rickroll me—" he concluded, shutting his open mouth, stepping over to where you sat, playfully tackling you.

"and what if I did," you teased, returning his energy, "you're unbelievable," he said exasperated.

"i know, but you love it," "i do, indeed princess."

thank you for reading♡

[secretswiftymarvelfan]

The Demigod From Asgard - Steve Rogers x Reader (Part 44)

Summary: Back at the compound and you and Steve make progress on your future together

Word Count: 4.5k

Warnings: FLUFF! light angst! SMUT! 18+ ONLY! MINORS DNI!

Dividers by @firefly-graphics​

Series Masterlist / Masterlist

Chapter 44: The Princess Of Asgard *

The Avengers left Sokovia after a couple day. Despite you best work to make everything okay tension began to rise. So SHIELD and the UN suggested it was best you all left to help diffuse the tension.

As much as he wanted to help out more Steve was glad to head back to New York. Since a large amount of the tower was damaged the team decided to bring forward the move to the compound.

Not everyone was sticking around though. Clint said he was retiring or permanent paternity leave as he called it. Tony had decided to take a step back too, work behind the scenes instead. Thor was leaving too, back on his adventures and nobody knew where Bruce was still. So that only left Steve, Nat and you to run the Avengers, Steve being the official leader even if he did rely on you.

Steve had seen the new compound a couple times before but now that it was completed it was honestly really impressive. His favourite place was already the lake, and he could see it was your favourite place too.

The two of you had moved all of your stuff into your new room. Which was actually more like a small apartment. It had a nice living area with a couch and couple chairs in front of a TV and built-in fireplace. The living area then went onto the bedroom which was bigger than the one at the tower and had view of the lake.

Once you were done you spent the evening by the lake just talking. Steve quite often finding himself just looking over at watching you. It was quiet moments like this that Steve was able to appreciate how much he loved you. He knew he wanted to spend the rest of his life with you, he’d know that for a while now. He couldn’t wait until he could take the next step with you. He had to talk to someone else first though.

He had to be quick too as the person he needed to talk to was leaving soon. He found Thor outside looking over all the different agents training.

“It’s an impressive set up, you’ll have your hands busy” Thor says as Steve moves to stand next to him.

“Looks like it, hopefully I’ll find some time off too though” Steve agrees watching a group of agents jog past.

“I have a feeling you’re here to talk about more than just the agents” Thor says turning to Steve with a knowing look.

Steve chuckles looking down at the floor “no, and please don’t strike me down with lightning but I want to ask Y/N to marry me” Steve admits looking back up.

Thor remained silent, his arms crossed over his chest as he looked back at Steve.

“And I know you’re supposed to ask the for the father’s blessing but considering he’s on Asgard and all that” Steve says beginning to ramble when Thor didn’t say anything.

“Captain, of course I give you my blessing, and I’m sure Odin does too” Thor smiles stopping him.

“Really?” Steve asks not believing it.

“Yes, I couldn’t ask for a better man to marry my sister, I can see how much you love each other” Thor smiles.

“Thank you Thor, that means a lot, I’m assuming you’ll be back for the wedding, if she says yes that is” Steve chuckles.

“Yes of course, have no worries Captain she’ll say yes” Thor tells him slapping him on the shoulder.

“You know you can call me Steve right? Especially since we’ll hopefully be becoming family” Steve tells him.

“Will do” Thor says walking away before turning back to Steve “oh and Steve when you ask her make sure it’s something romantic she is the princess of Asgard after all” he adds making Steve laugh.

“No pressure” he sighs shaking his head with a small chuckle.

As he turns he sees you stepping outside and walking over to him. He instantly smiles when he sees you. He watches as you exchange a couple words with Thor before continuing over to him.

“Hey” he greets wrapping his arm around your waist.

“Hey what you doing out here” you ask him.

“Just observing the agents, getting some fresh air” Steve says shrugging his shoulders.

“Sounds fun” you say sarcastically making him roll his eyes at you.

“I’m gonna miss Thor” you sigh as you rest your head against him.

“I know it’s gonna be quiet with just the three of us” Steve admits.

“We do have the new recruits” you point out.

“Very true, they seem eager to start training tomorrow” Steve says recalling Sam’s excitement when he asked him to be an Avenger.

“Back to the grind” you sigh.

“Hey why don’t we do something next weekend? Just us two?” Steve suggests trying to sound as casual as possible.

“Like a date night?” You ask with a smirk.

“I was thinking something along the likes of the whole day?” He suggests with a smile.

“The whole day! What you got planned Rogers?” You smirk.

“Dunno yet think I might just wing it” Steve says making you laugh and slap him across the chest.

The next day you were walking the halls of the compound with Steve, Tony and Thor. You were having to try and not laugh out loud at their conversation, which was kinda ridiculous.

“The rules have changed” Steve sighs holding your hand as you walk down the corridor.

“We’re dealing with something new” Tony agrees.

“Oh the Vision is artificial intelligence” Steve says.

“A machine” Tony confirms.

“So it doesn’t count?” Steve asks glancing over at Tony.

“No, it’s not like a person lifting the hammer” Tony answers.

“Right different rules for us” Steve agrees.

You glance up at Thor who was smirking down at you. Also clearly enjoying the conversation between the two men.

“Nice guy, artificial” Tony says with a shrug of his shoulders.

“Thank you” Steve smiles.

“He can wield the hammer he can keep the mind stone, its safe with the Vision and these days safe is in short supply” Thor sighs.

“But if you put the hammer in an elevator?” Steve says after a moment of silence.

“It would still go up!” Tony exclaims.

“Elevator’s not worthy” Steve says shaking his head.

You snort with laughter making him look down at you “what?” He laughs.

“I’m gonna miss these little talks of ours” Thor smiles patting Tony on the shoulder.

“Not if you don’t leave” you say, hoping your brother would stick around a bit longer.

“I have no choice sister” Thor sighs look down at you.

“The mind stone is the 4th of the infinity stones to show up in the last few years, it’s not a coincidence, someone has been playing an intricate game and has made pawns of us once all these pieces are in position” Thor explains as you all step outside onto the lawn.

“Triple Yahtzee?” Tony offers.

“You think you can find out what’s coming?” You ask Thor.

“I do, besides this one there’s nothing that can’t be explained” Thor says patting Tony.

“Let us know when you hear anything, stay safe out there and don’t forget to visit your little sister” you tell him making him smile.

“I will, I’m sure they’ll be a reason for me to visit soon enough” Thor smiles before glancing over at Steve.

“You keep her out of trouble for me” Thor tells Steve making you roll your eyes.

“I’ll try my best” Steve chuckles as you jab him in the ribs with your elbow.

Thor smiles before taking a few steps away and summoning the Bifrost. You watch as he transports away to gods knows where leaving an Asgardian pattern scorched into the grass.

“That man has no regard for law maintenance” Tony sighs in annoyance.

“Should build him his own launch pad” you suggest with a smirk.

“Maybe, I’ll miss him though and you guys are gonna miss me, gonna be lots of tears” Tony says as you all turn and start walking towards his car.

“We will miss you Tony” Steve says.

“Yeah who else am I gonna get my movie references from” you smile.

“Yeah? Well it’s time for me to tap out, maybe I should take a page out of Barton’s book. Build Pepper a farm hope nobody blows it up” Tony says with a small shrug of his shoulders.

“The simple life” Steve says.

“You two will get there one day, you’re still young, technically” Tony says making you chuckle.

“I don’t know, I’m a different person to the guy that went into the ice, I don’t think the guy that wanted the simple life saw all this happening” Steve sighs nodding over to the compound.

“But at least I found my home” he adds wrapping his arm around you smiling down at you.

You smile back up at him before he leans down pressing his lips to yours for a sweet kiss.

“Think I’m gonna be sick” Tony grumbles as he gets in the car.

You roll your eyes waving goodbye to Tony as he sped down the drive back towards the city. Once he was gone Steve turned to face you wrapping his arms around you.

“You okay?” You ask him resting your hands on his chest.

“You know on Clint’s farm me and him had a little chat about how he managed to have all that and still do what he did” Steve tells you, making you arch your brow.

“How did he do it?” You ask.

“Trial and error, found what worked and made it their version of normal” Steve explains.

“Sounds easy enough, I’m sure we can work it out” you say moving your hands up to rest on his shoulders.

“Really?” He asks a hint of uncertainty.

“Really, it’ll be just like planning a mission” you smirk making him laugh.

“The best mission of my life” he smiles before cupping your cheek and kissing you deeply.

“As much as I’d love to carry this on, we have new recruits to train” you say patting him on the chest.

“Yeah you’re right” he sighs stepping away but keeping hold of you hand “lets go”

As the two of you make your way to the training rooms you spot Nat stood waiting for you, staring at the wall deep in thought.

“You wanna keep staring at the wall or do you wanna go to work?” Steve asks grabbing her attention.

“I mean it’s a pretty interesting wall” you smirk.

“I thought you two were still gazing into each other’s eyes” Nat smirks walking over.

“How do we look?” She asks as Steve passes her a tablet.

“Well we’re not the ‘27 Yankees” Steve tells her.

“We got some hitters” Nat says looking over the tablet.

“They’re good. They’re not a team” Steve sighs.

“Neither were we to begin with” you point out.

“Let’s beat ‘em into shape” Nat smirks.

The three of you step into the training gym to see Rhodey, Sam, Wanda and Vision waiting.

“Avengers” Steve calls out making them stand to attention.

“As you were” he says as you all walk down the stairs to them.

“Now we know what you guys can do individually, now we want you to work as a team” Steve tells them all.

“We’re gonna be a little nicer than SHIELD too, no bulldozer test” you say.

“Aw I miss that” Nat smirks.

“Instead you have an obstacle course, which will test your abilities and how well you work together and you’re not allowed to use your powers” Steve explains.

“Or suits” you add when you see Sam and Rhodey hold up their hands.

“You have five minutes to prepare” Steve tells them.

“Placing bets on time?” Nat asks quietly earning a look from Steve.

“Half an hour” you offer, making Steve raise a brow at you.

“That’s generous” he says glancing over at the team.

“What you thinking?” Nat asks him.

“An hour maybe” he says shrugging his shoulders.

“Alright I’ll go in the middle the 45 minutes, 10 bucks?” Natasha offers.

“Deal” you and Steve agree.

You woke up on Saturday to the feeling of someone’s lips pressing repeatedly against your shoulder. You knew exactly who that someone was too. You let out a small hum of content as you roll over to face your super solider.

“Mornin’” you mumble nuzzling your head into Steve’s chest.

“Morning doll” he chuckles as he tucks some hair behind your ear.

You just hum again in response not awake enough to form a coherent sentence. You hear Steve chuckle again, his laughter reverberating against your forehead. His hand running up and down your back gently.

“So I was thinking maybe we could go out for breakfast, there’s a nice cafe not too far from here” Steve suggests making you look up at him.

“Do they do pancakes?” You ask him raising a brow.

“Some of the best in the state apparently” he tells you making you smile.

“Can we take the bike?” You smirk.

“Of course, shall we go?” Steve asks smiling down at you.

“In just a moment” you smirk before reaching up to cup his cheek guiding his lips down to yours.

Steve instantly smiles into the kiss, his arm around you tightening pulling you closer. You wrap your arms around his shoulders as he moves to hover over you. His knee moves between yours parting your legs, his hand starting to roam over your body.

You moan into the kiss as his hand cups your breast. Massaging it in his large hands. His lips then moved to you jawline and neck. Sucking and nibbling at your skin, finding your pulse point with ease. You feel heat pooling at your core, your hips starting to rock against his thigh desperate for friction. You feel Steve smirk against your skin, shifting his leg away making you whine.

“Somebody’s eager” he smirks nudging his nose against yours.

“Can you blame me?” You smirk running your fingers up into his hair, tugging gently.

“Not at all doll, been wanting this since I woke up” he smirks kissing you.

“Only then?” You smirk making him laugh.

“No, for much, much longer, but you already know that” he smiles kissing you again deeply.

You sigh into the kiss running your hands down his chest. You can feel his muscles tensing as your fingers traces over his muscles. Your hands reach his boxers and you can feel his erection through the thin fabric. He groans dropping his head to your shoulders as you slip you hand under the waist band, stroking him.

His hands quickly find your sleep shorts discarding them before his hands join yours in pushing his boxers down and off.  He settles between your legs and slowly presses into you. The both of you sighing in content. Your moans pick up in tempo and volume as he trusts into you. You hook your legs around his hips allowing him thrust deeper into you hitting that sweet spot.

You feel the coil inside you tightening with every thrust, leaving you clinging onto Steve desperately.

“Stevie I’m close” you gasp dropping your head back.

“Me too, let go, I’ve got you” he pants pressing his lips down to your neck.

The coil withing you soon snaps as you come with a loud gasp, your orgasm crashing over you in waves. As you come undone underneath him, Steve chases his own orgasm. He moans dropping his forehead against yours as he reaches his own high.

As you both come down from your highs he presses gentle kisses to you lips. Mumbling sweet nothings in between each kiss making you chuckle wrapping your arms around his neck.

“I love you too” you chuckle when you were able to catch your breath enough to talk.

“I love you more” he sighs looking down at you with a warm smile.

“Impossible” you laugh cupping his cheek and pulling his lips down to yours.

Eventually you and Steve got up and dressed making your way out of the compound.

“Have fun you two” Nat calls out as Steve leads you out.

You laugh giving her a quick wave before Steve pulls you out the door to his bike. Where you waste no time wrapping your arms around him tightly resting your chin on his shoulder. Kissing his neck before he pulls out and away from the compound.

It was lunchtime when you and Steve got back to the compound. You were expecting to head back inside to make lunch for the two of you. However, Steve took your hand and started leading you towards the lake.

“Where you taking me?” You laugh as leads closer and closer to the lake.

“Just on a little walk” he says smirking over at you making you laugh.

As you approach the small jetty you spot a blanket and basket waiting for you. You glance up at Steve to see him smiling down at you already.

“How’d you pull this off?” You laugh as you step onto the jetty.

“Mutual redheaded friend” he smiles making you hum in understanding as you sit down.

Steve grabs the basket before sitting down next to you. He begins unpacking everything and you see he’s packed all your favourite snacks.

“I made sandwiches too, nothing fancy you know my cooking ability isn’t great” he laughs pulling out some sandwiches.

“It’s getting better, soon you’ll be a Michelin star chef” you say making him laugh.

“Unlikely doll” he says grabbing a sandwich and taking a large bite.

“Stranger things have happened, aliens, killer robots” you point out grabbing your own sandwich.

“That is true” he hums in agreement.

The two of you chatted as you ate and snacked on the picnic food. Eventually you moved to sit on the edge of the jetty, feet hanging off the edge into the water.

“The lakes were always my favourite place on Asgard, I’d form a bubble and let myself sink down to the bottom, watch all the different creatures” you tell him as you rest your head on his shoulder.

“Wouldn’t you run out of air?” He asks.

“No, I don’t know how it worked but I could stay there for hours” you explain shrugging your shoulders.

“Interesting, doesn’t quite obey the laws of biology” Steve hums.

“And your shield doesn’t obey the law of physics, we live in a weird world” you point out making him laugh.

“That is true, thank god I have you to help understand it all” he smiles wrapping his arm around you kissing the top of your head.

You and Steve ended up staying out by the lake until the sun started to set. The orange rays of sunlight bouncing of the surface of the lake. It made the water look golden as it sparkled.

“I should really take you to Asgard some day, I think you’ll really like it there” you say looking out over the lake as Steve packed up behind you.

When Steve doesn’t say anything you glance over your shoulder. At first when you see him on one knee you assumed he was still packing up the picnic but then you saw his nervous smile.

“Steve?” You ask standing up and turning to face him.

“Doll, I did have this whole speech planned out but right now my nerves are getting the best of me and I’ve forgotten it all” he says with a small chuckle reaching out to take your hand.

“When I woke up in this new world the first couple months were some of the worst in my entire life, but then your brother arrived on earth which led me to meeting one of the most amazing people I’ve ever known” he says making you chuckle.

“From that moment on you’ve changed my life in more ways than I can ever describe. But the most important change is that you’ve given me a home, helped me find a life outside of serving and being Captain America” he continues.

“When we were in Sokovia up on that floating rock for the first time in my life I wasn’t okay laying down my life for the greater good. I was devastated, thinking I’d lost my chance to make a life with you. Grow old with you, watch little version of me and you run amok, maybe with a dog” he says tears starting to form in the corners of your eyes, a watery laugh escaping your lips.

“But then we did it, saved the day once more and I knew I couldn’t wait any longer to start my future with you. I’ve been lucky enough to be your firsts, but I also want to be your lasts. So, Y/N, would you do me the absolute honour by becoming my wife?” He asks pulling a small box from his pocket.

Your hands shakily fly to your mouth as he opens the box revealing the most beautiful ring you’d ever seen. It was simplistic yet elegant. It was a silver band with a circular diamond in the centre, two smaller ones on each side.

“Yes, yes of course yes” you manage to say through the tears nodding your head vigorously.

Steve beams back at you tears in his eyes as he slides the ring onto your finger. You instantly cup his cheeks crashing your lips onto his as he stood up. He smiled into the kiss wrapping his arms around you tightly lifting you off your feet.

“I love you so, so, so much” you say shaking your head tears still falling.

“I love you too, more than you could believe” he smiles kissing you again deeply.

When you parted for air, you wiped away the stray tears on his cheeks, him doing the same for you.

“It’s so beautiful” you say shaking your head not quite believing it.

“A beautiful ring for a beautiful woman” he smiles wrapping his hand around yours.

“And I thought it was the perfect ring considering it’s gone from one important woman in my life to another” he continues making you tilt your head in confusion.

“It was my ma’s ring, when she passed, she told me to give it to give it to whoever I was lucky enough to fall in love with” he explains making a fresh set of tears to fall.

“Oh Stevie, that’s so sweet, I’m so lucky to have you too” you smile jumping up to kiss him again.

“God I can’t wait to tell Thor, he’s gonna be so happy” you say with a chuckle.

“He actually already knows” Steve tells you making you tilt your head in confusion again.

“I asked for his blessing, on the count that I couldn’t just pop to Asgard to ask your father” Steve explains making you laugh.

“Did he give you the if you hurt her I’ll kill her talk?” You chuckle.

“No, just reminded me to treat your right, princess” he says with a smirk.

You instantly groan dropping your head against his chest making him laugh.

“He knows I find that annoying” you grumble.

“I think it’s cute, it’s very fitting whether your father is a king or not, you’re still a princess to me” he smiles stroking the back of your head.

“Guess that makes it better” you sigh looking up at him.

“Does this help?” He asks cupping your cheek and kissing you once more.

“Definitely Captain” you smile making him chuckle.

“Guess I deserve that” he grins “now do you wanna head back inside and tell everyone?”

“No, I have something else in mind” you smirk taking his hand, grins down at you and lets you lead him back inside.

You lead him back to your room and into the bedroom. Once inside you turn cupping his cheek and bringing his lips down to yours. He instantly hums in content gripping your hips and pulling them against his. You smirk into the kiss when you feel his erection pressing against you.

Your hands move down his chest unbuttoning his shirt before pushing it off his shoulders and two the floor. He quickly evens it up by pulling the top you wore up and off. You then grab at his belt buckle pulling it loose, his hands meet yours and he pushes his jeans and boxers down.

As he steps back out of them you continue to push him back until he was sat down on edge of the bed. You stood between his legs wrapping your arms around his shoulders as you deepened the kiss. His hands were splayed against your back, one quickly removing your bra which you promptly threw away. His hands then find the shorts you were wearing and easily pushes both them and your underwear down and off.

When you kick them off you move climbing on top of him so you were straddling his hips. He wrapped his arms around you tightly until your chest was pressed up against his. You hand found the nape of his neck your finger moving up into his hair. When he shifted slightly underneath you his erection pressed against your core making you gasp. Without even thinking you started to rock your hips earning a low moan from him.

“God Princess” he moans his lips moving from yours to your neck.

When you hear that pet name arousal floods down to your core. Not wanting to wait a second more you move and line yourself up before slowly sinking down onto him. You head dropping down to his shoulder as you feel that familiar stretch.

After a moment you begin to move leaving the both of you groaning. His hands find your hips guiding you as you continued to ride him. When you throw your head back his lips find you breasts, finding the sensitive peaks.

“Say it again” you gasp putting your hands on his shoulders for more leverage.

You catch Steve smirk as he cups your cheek resting his forehead against yours.

“As you wish princess” he smirks before flipping you over onto your back.

He then kisses you deeply as he thrusts into you at an escalated pace. Leaving you grasping at his back as you feel your limbs turn to jelly. You feel the coil within tightening.

“Stevie I’m-“ you don’t even get to finish your sentence as your orgasm crashes over you.

You hear Steve groan dropping his head into the crook of your neck, pressing kisses to your neck. His hips continue to snap towards yours before faltering as he rides out his own orgasm.

Your chest heaves as you try and catch your breath. As he comes down Steve lies on top of you, supporting the majority of his own weight still. He presses kisses to your jawline making you chase his lips until finally they meet for a slow drawn-out kiss.

When you part, he brushed some hair out of your face before taking your left hand and kissing your hand right by your ring. You couldn’t help but smile as you watched him, looking forward to spending the rest of your life with him.

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Dorm Life - Shoto Todoroki

Thanks to @missuga for this collab! Sorry I gave to you late TwT Do check out their collab over here!

Tags: Shoto Todoroki x Reader, Binaural, Fluff, Cursing, Minor Angst, Kissing (escandalo)

Synopsis: A compilation of drabbles of your life during the pandemic, quarantined in the UA dorms.

Word Count: 2734

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CLASSES

The Sun let its light brush against your skin, giving you a warm hug in the morning. You awoke to the pale blue skies that were painted so elegantly it made you stare. The cumulus clouds softly danced on its stage, etching a smile on your face. You looked around the room, checking for the clock to see what time it was currently.

10:00 a.m. - You were supposed to wake up at 8:00.

Worry rushed through you. The fear of you being late for class thrummed as you tried to get out of your bed.

Hint: tried.

You turned to your side and looked at the male beside you. His hands had found their way around your waist, pulling you in. His head was pressed against your shoulder. His twin-colored hair was disheveled thanks to him turning himself all through the night, His long eyelashes framed his closed lids, his lips slightly parted. Small snores came out in intervals as he snuggled into you, his vice grip around your body tightening even more.

You could help but trace his lips with your finger - it was so soft, you had to.

You pressed a kiss to his forehead, then laid your forehead against his.

“Get up, Sho - class starts in 10 minutes,” you said, rubbing his shoulder.

“I don’t want to, this is too comfortable,” he mumbled, rubbing his head on your shoulder.

“What are you, a cat?” You joked, placing your hands on his cheek, “Let me at least get my laptop on - I can tell Aizawa we’re sharing my laptop and we can just join the class here.”

“Getting the laptop means that you move - and you are not moving,” he said, tightening his grip on you.

“You know we’re going to be in trouble if we don’t join the class, right? Oh yeah, it starts in 5 minutes,” you said, slightly annoyed at him.

Shoto sighs in defeat, “Fine - but, hurry up,”

You pry his arms off of you and rush to your table to get the laptop on. Thankfully, you managed to join the class 3 minutes before it began.

“Aren’t you coming back in here?” Todoroki whined, patting the space beside him.

“Are you finally awake?” You question him.

“Kind of?”

“ ‘Kind of?’ “

“Yes, I am awake - I no longer need to sleep,” he groans.

You take your laptop and place it in the space between the two of you as you sit back on the bed. You pressed another kiss on his forehead, making him smile.

“Good morning, snowflake,” he says as he returns your kiss with one on your forehead.

“Good morning, Sho.”

“Now that you both have shown a great deal of affection, Y/N and Shoto,” Eraserhead says from your Zoom call, “Can my class finally begin?”

⁜

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LUNCH BREAK

“I got the money from Aizawa for our meals! Can you all go through the menu and tell me what you want on the class group chat?” Momo shouted from the living room.

“Imagine eating great food for free?” Uraraka smiled, enjoying how our meals were paid for by the school itself, “The pandemic is amazing yet so annoying at the same time.”

You chuckle at the brown-haired girl, seeing her awe-filled expression.

“What are you getting?” You ask her.

“Hmm… maybe Udon? It’s been a long time since I ate it, and since it’s not coming from my pocket…” she eyed the menu, “I’m getting the most expensive one.”

“You know he gave a set amount for the whole class right?” You look at her mischievous expression.

“I’m pretty sure we can stay within the budget. Our class generally doesn’t spend much money on food, right?”

You looked across the room to see Kaminari and Kirishima going through the menu.

“You think those two will be reasonable with their spending? Knowing them, they’re most probably buying the whole menu plus snacks,” you say, looking at their joy-filled grins.

You saw Shoto walk beside Iida, heading towards the two males. Intrigued, you and Uraraka walked towards the group of four.

“Hey,” you say as you hug Shoto from the back, “Everything okay?”

“These two,” Iida said, anger laced in his words, “Ordered everything on the menu.”

You held back your laughter, unlike Uraraka.

“Your skills in predicting the future astound me, Y/N L/N,” she says, covering her mouth.

“Hush,” you say, smiling.

“The two of you…” Iida began, looking at the two wrongdoers, “I don’t know how your closer friends handle you two.”

You look at the scene unfolding in front of you, smiling.

Iida was full-on lecturing the two males, his hands moving in all ten directions. Kaminari and Kirishima just stood there, dumbfounded. You could see the two of them slowly spacing out from the ‘conversation’, but Iida kept going on.

“Hey,” Shoto whispered, “Wanna have a mini-date tonight? I’ll order a few things and get them sent here, and we can watch a movie together?”

“Don’t use the money Aizawa gave though - we don’t need a third victim of Iida’s lectures,” you whisper, earning a smile from the stoic male.

⁜

⁜

⁜

MINI-DATES

You opened the door to Shoto’s room, comfortably dressed in your Axolotl onesie. In your hands, you brought a hard drive filled with movies that you felt that you both would enjoy. Seeing that Shoto wasn’t in the room, you laid on his bed, waiting for the arrival of the owner of the room. Your eyes went straight to his mirror. He had slid multiple polaroid pictures of you and your friends in the corners of the mirror. Each one of the photos had a small remark, reminding you of all the memories you’ve made throughout your years in UA.

Your hands grazed on the photo he kept on the bedside table.

It was a picture of him and his mother smiling.

Your chest panged when you saw it. He had told you the story behind his scar and his life within the Todoroki household. His hatred for his father grew every day, yet he could never hate his mother - the very person who gave him the scar on his face.

“I love that picture, but not as much as I love this one,” Shoto said, pointing at a photo in the top-left corner of his mirror.

It was a picture of both of you visiting his mother with Fuyumi and Natsuo.

“I’ll admit Natsuo was not the most welcoming to the idea of me dating you, but he slowly loved you as a sibling. I did talk about you to Fuyumi a bunch of times, but she had her suspicions - that all changed when she met you, though. Mom…”

He hesitated, “...she didn’t like the idea of me dating anyone. Yet, you managed to make her like you so much, now she only asks about you whenever I call her,” he chuckled.

“My family loves you - except Endeavor, of course,” he groaned.

“He’ll come around, eventually. You, however,” you walk up to him and cup his face, “Need to talk to him properly - no filter, just say everything.”

You lie back down on the bed, patting the space beside you, “Hurry up - the snacks you bought are calling me.”

After multiple small banters, you both finally decided on Shrek and began to watch the movie.

After a while, you found yourself lying on Shoto’s chest, playing with his fingers as you focused on the movie. Shoto, however, stared at your cute expressions, taking mental notes of all the small things you did when a scene disgusted you, made you laugh or made you feel sad.

“Y/N,” he whispered in your ear once the movie ended, “Thanks for loving me.”

You turned to face the fire user, cupping his face in your hands. His fingers found their way in your hair, enjoying the feeling of your soft locks against his calloused skin. Your thumb began to move in circular motions, eager to feel his soft skin against yours. You stared into his dual-coloured eyes, enjoying the brown and icy blue flecks within each eye. He relaxed against your touch, warmth radiating from him to you.

“I love you so much, Sho - and I will no matter what happens later on.”

You shared a kiss under the glow of the pale moonlight, but all you cared about was how perfect the man you were kissing was.

⁜

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TRAINING

“Hey Sho,” you say, nudging the male beside you, “You wanna train after this?”

“I can’t,” he said, looking down, “I asked Midoriya to help me with some things. The only time he’s free is after this, so…”

“Don’t worry, I’ll ask Uraraka!” you say, kissing him on the cheek, “Good luck with whatever you’re doing with Mido.”

Soon, both you and Uraraka headed to Ground Beta to train your hand-to-hand combat.

“Luckily all of us are vaccinated, or the training grounds wouldn’t be open,” you say, thinking.

“Okay, okay - you wanted to work on hand-to-hand combat, right?” You nodded.

Both you and Uraraka got into your positions, mentally preparing yourselves. You were ready to move towards her until you heard sounds coming from the entrance.

“Well, well, well - isn’t that two students from Class 3-A?” Monoma snickered.

You groaned before turning to face him.

“Hello, Monoma? Where’s Kendo?” you ask, hoping that the ginger would come and stop him.

“Kendo’s eating right now - don’t want to disturb her. I don’t mind messing with the two of you, though.”

“What’s the difference, Monoma?” Uraraka added, “We usually keep quiet, but Y/N and I would like to train, so it would be greatly appreciated if you either kept quiet or left.”

“Why would you want to train with them, though?” He said, looking at Uraraka, “They’re the weakest bitch in your whole class, aren’t they?”

“The fuck, Monoma?!” you shouted, “That’s going a bit too far, don’t you think?”

“What? I’m just stating facts; you entered the class later than everyone else, you’re quirkless since you depend on your weapons, you need to train with others so that you can win 10% of the time - don’t the facts say it all?”

“Monoma, you might want to - ”

“Stop? Why should I?” he laughed, “It’s about time someone told you the truth; you’re useless, unneeded, a waste of space, and never going to be a hero - not even a sidekick.”

“So, the student who single-handedly served you your own ass in a fight doesn’t deserve to stay, but your weak fucking self can stay?” Shoto chuckled darkly, his hand slowly freezing Monoma’s shoulder, “That’s a lot of self-confidence for someone who hasn’t fought well for 3 years straight.”

“Next time you talk shit about Y/N, don’t expect to leave without losing any limbs,” he shouted, scaring Monoma.

“Shoto,” you begin, “Let me fight my own battles.”

He stares at you and sighs. His vice grip on Monoma loosens as you walk towards him.

You run your sword against his hands, small cuts forming.

“Talk shit about me again and you won’t be standing. Get the fuck out, dumbass.”

Monoma runs out of Ground Beta, making you chuckle.

“Damn, Y/N,” Uraraka says from afar.

“That’s my lover,” Shoto says, smiling.

⁜

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NIGHTMARES

You woke up to the sounds of Shoto whimpering in his sleep.

His clothes were soaked by his sweat, trails of tears strung down his face.

He was shaking - shivering.

Small screams of Natsuo, Fuyumi and Rei’s names escaped his lips along with soft sobs.

“Shoto!” You shouted, shaking him, “Wake up, it’s only a dream - they’re okay, they’re alive.”

You heard your name.

You heard his voice become louder, screaming your name in pain.

“I’m here, I’m fine,” you whisper in his ear.

“I’m right here, Shoto - I haven’t left you. I am here, hugging you. Wake up, okay?’

You heard his whimpers stop as he wrapped his arms around you. He nuzzled his face into your chest as you patted his head.

“Y/N…” you heard him mumble, “Y/N… you’re fine, right?”

“I’m fine, Sho. I’m here hugging you, aren’t I?”

He nodded, pressing his head against your chest.

“You want to talk about it?”

“No…” he trailed off.

“Okay, don’t worry,” you say, kissing him on his head.

“You want me to get you something? Milk, water…?” you ask him, slowly prying yourself off of him.

“Don’t go anywhere.”

“Ok then, koala - I’m not going anywhere,” you say, chuckling.

You hummed a song as you rubbed Shoto’s back, giving him warmth. You wiped the trail of tears and pressed kisses on his cheek.

If he needs you to be his haven, you’ll be an oasis from all the bad.

⁜

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CLASS FUN

“Ok, so - everyone is here, right?” Mina said as she stood in the middle of the living room.

You looked at everyone in the living room. Everyone was excited - after all, it’s been a long time since you all did something together as a class.

“I think everyone’s here, Mina,” Shouji said, passing you your drink.

Shoto placed his head on your shoulder, groaning.

“What’s wrong with you?” you ask, worried.

“I wanted to just sleep in today…” he said, sulking.

“Come on, it’s been a long time since we did something as a class - who knows? This might be our last little thing as a class,” you retort.

He hummed in agreement, “Fine.”

“Great! Let’s bring back an old classic, shall we? The game that made all the couples in this classroom, the game that made the impossible possible,” she looked at Bakugou and Izuku, “Spin the Bottle Truth or Dare!”

“This fucking game?” Bakugo cussed.

“Relax, Kacchan~,” Kaminari said, teasing the other blonde.

“Shut up, dunce face,” Bakugo said with anger.

“Keep quiet, you two. Mina’s getting angry,” Kirishima said, eyeing the pink-haired female.

“So what if-”

“Kacchan, shush,” Izuku said, glaring at his partner.

“Thank you, my green-haired savior,” Mina said, smiling at Izuku.

“Let me re-explain how the game works; Person A will spin the bottle in the middle of the circle until it stops on Person B. Person A will play truth or dare with Person B. Clear?” Mina said, smiling.

The game soon spiraled out of control, just like everyone expected.

Kaminari danced in a maid dress, Shinsou was forced to call Aizawa and Present Mic ‘dads’ in a call on speaker, Kirishima was forced to scream “I’m hard!” out loud, and Mina sang Baby Shark to her lover - something we never thought Kirishima would enjoy.

In the last round, the bottle landed on Shoto.

The person who spun the bottle was Sero.

You knew he had something planned - you could see it in his eyes.

“Shoto Todoroki, truth or dare?” He said, smirking.

You looked at him, begging him to not choose dare.

“Truth, I guess?” he said, looking at you.

Phew.

“What do you and Y/N do when you’re alone?”

Shit.

“Take dare, take the dare, take the dare…” you mumbled under your breath, hoping he’d listen.

“Can I take the dare?” Shoto said, questioning your actions.

Phew.

“Make out with Y/N right here.”

Shit.

“Give them some privacy, Sero!” Uraraka shouted on your behalf.

“He already evaded the truth question, I’m not modifying the dare,” Sero said, huffing.

“Y/N,” Shoto said, looking at you, “Is it okay?”

You sigh in frustration, “I put us in this situation, Sho. Let’s just get it over with.”

Shoto smiled, looking at your pissed expression.

“Look at me,” he whispered in your ear, raising small goosebumps on your skin.

His hands slowly went to your cheeks, eyeing the flecks in your eyes - how they sparkled just for him and him alone. His thumb reached your lips and parted it - enjoying how you were putty in his hands. His hand slowly went from your cheek to your chin, raising it to make your forehead meet his.

“Geez, Y/N,” he said, lust filling his eyes, “You’re so perfect.”

He softly pressed his lips against yours. He sucked on your lips, enjoying the strawberry lip balm you put just before you entered the living room. Your hands gripped on his dual-colored hair, fingers entangled.

The soft kiss soon turned desperate, needy.

In, out, in, out - the synchronization of your lips.

The need for breath soon came and your lips parted from his.

“Well, that was something,” you said, laughing.

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[lilacsandwhiskey]

Angst prompts 12 - Tom 💛

Choices

Pairing: Tom Holland x reader

Warnings: language, angst, not necessarily a happy ending but maybe a part 2 in the works, perhaps?

angst prompt from @your-fluffy-murder-writer

Tom hated the way he couldn’t lay down and feel comfort in what he was sure was the most comfortable bed in the entire city. The hotel room was seemingly too large anymore, knowing there was one less body occupying the room.

He swung his legs over the left side of the bed, his feet hitting the cool carpet. He glanced at the clock. It was only 11:02pm, but everyone else had already fallen asleep in the suite. He tiptoed into the small kitchenette, grabbing a beer out of the fridge, thankfully stocked by Harrison earlier that evening. He took himself out to the balcony, sitting back on the cold metal chair that decorated the outlook.

Tom sighs as he pressed the bottle to his lips, sweat from the bottle falling onto his chest. He’s quick to rub them away before setting the bottle on the tiny garden table in between the two chairs. His fingers fumble with the other side of the chair as he stares at it, as if the one face he wants to see will appear. But he knows it won’t.

His mind takes in the still bustling city below him. He knows if you were here, you’d be whispering softly stories you’d made up about each person that walks around on the street. “They definitely are on their first date.” You’d say at the awkward hand holding couple crosses the street. “She looks like she’d drive a Benz. I’d like to drive a Benz.” Tom found himself letting out a laugh through his nostrils, immediately feeling tears sting the back of his eyes. If only you were here to make those comments.

Tom wondered what you were doing right now. It took everything in him not to call you, for the first time sober. There was no doubt drunken calls had surfaced on the nights he’d gotten absolutely hammered. Harry would try to stop him, but Tom never listened. He’d shove his brother away from him, closing the door and locking himself in there. He wasn’t proud of it. It didn’t exactly help his pride that you never once called back.

“You’ll always choose it over me.” You cried. “Every. Single. Time. You’ll choose anything it all over me.” This wasn’t the first time this had been a fight. Tom groaned, pushing his hand through his brown hair. “It’s my fucking job.” “When will you realize that I know that? But you’ve changed. I haven’t even gotten a text from you in over two weeks. I’m not going to be in a relationship with a radio silent telephone. I deserve more.”

And that’s when you left. You had enough and you finallt chose your feelings over your own. You were supportive of Tom and his endeavors, everything about his job, you supported. It wasn’t until the partying and clubbing commenced more than usual, earning you not even a check in text. You felt selfish for getting upset but you also recognize that what the two of you had going on wasn’t healthy either. If he wanted it to work, he would make it work, you told yourself.

Tom was awoken by clanking in the kitchenette. The place would be home to him for the next two weeks, so there was no question that Harry had ran out to get groceries for the three of you. Tom rolled out of bed, not before grabbing his phone. Did he ever call you last night? He checked. Nope. Thank God.

Tom made the decision then to try to get over you. No response to any of his calls or messages was a response to him. With a shaky sigh, his feet carry him to the kitchen, only to hear the tail-end of a conversation. “I miss when y/n would make us those cheesy eggs in the morning.” Harry said, cracking an egg over the pan. “She’d always put the right amount of cheese.”

With a groan, Tom looks to his brother and best friend. “Don't ever say her name again.” Tom pleads, sitting down at the stool. Tom knew his whim of a decision to forget you would be more difficult than not. Harry and Harrison share a look that goes unnoticed by Tom. “Sorry mate.” Harrison responds, giving Harry one more look.

The rest of breakfast goes as normal as it usually could. Tom craved more than his breakfast though, and the craving was almost overbearing to the real food in front of him. He looked over at the stool next to him, where you would be if you were still with him. He imagined what this morning would look like - the type of morning you’d shared several times before. Your knees pressed into his thigh, feet perched on his own stool instead of yours to get closer. Your body would be turned towards his as you scraped your food off your plate, laughing among the people he loved so much.

One thing Tom struggled the most with, was when you decided to leave, you left the family too. Tom wasn’t sure if you still communicated with him, but there was no doubt some hurt when Tom had announced your break-up. You’d become so close to all of them, that you sitting here next to him in the morning eating breakfast would have been domestic. Your laughter would have lightened the thickened air between all of you. You’d crack a joke or two, pushing Harry’s buttons like you always did.

The first time Tom ever saw Harry genuinely get upset at him was when he told him. Harry took it the hardest - he had grown close to you. Of course, Tom had other girlfriends in the past that Harry had met, but he had never gotten so protective over someone like he had you. He was sure you were it for Tom. So when Tom announced it at a family dinner when his mom was poking about your whereabouts, Harry’s chair screeched loudly, a napkin was thrown on his plate, and out the back door he was to the garden.

“You really fucked up, didn’t you?” Harry hadn’t even turned around to notice Tom’s presence. He knew already. “Why do you assume it was me?” “It’s not an assumption, Tom.” Harry is quick to turn on his feet to meet his older brother. “You pushed and pushed her away. We warned you. She begged for you to give her a sliver of that reassurance you gave her in the beginning but you couldn’t get it through that thick skull of yours.” Harry’s words cut like a knife but Tom knew he was right. “I’m sorry.” Tom whispered. “I’m not the one you should be apologizing to.” Harry pushed by his brother, inside to help clean up before he was gone to their own home.

Harry apologized soon after but didn’t fail to mention that he was still pretty upset. To Tom’s knowledge, no one had spoken to you. But that wasn’t true. Harry was the first to reach out, someone you confided in. He was like your little brother after all, you’d spent a few years by their sides. Then everyone found it in them to call or message you. You had ran into Nikki at the grocery store. She spotted you down the aisle looking at pasta. You turned to see that familiar face, that familiar smile. “Y/n.” She said, before you opened her arms and allowed her embrace. She didn’t fail to express how much she missed you, which only made getting over Tom harder.

Leaving Tom was one of the hardest things you’d ever done. When you made the decision, it wasn’t quick. You lingered for months. You thought there would be a change that would snap you back into the relationship you held so dear to your heart.

The phone calls were fairly continuous for a while, a drunken Tom confessing he was wrong. You’d squeeze your eyes shut listening to the messages, telling yourself not to cry. Your finger hovered over his contact several times. But there was one thing you knew - you couldn’t say hello to him and risk another goodbye.

——————

Tom was onset for his newest movie - one about a girl and a boy finding theirselves back to each other after a rough breakup. It was a rom-com, something Tom had always been up for, but it felt different not having you by his side during filming. Though he’d had a rather great break, he spent the majority of it sulking and attempting to prepare.

Tom saw several familiar faces walking onto set, familiar with the director as someone he’d worked with times before. “Where’s the lady?” He asked, shaking Tom’s hand. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Harry’s face drop into a frown, attempting to insinuate that it wasn’t a good subject for now. “Uh, we ended things.” “Oh man, I’m sorry to here that.” The director gave a sympathetic smile before calling for the objective of the scenes today.

Tom felt jittery as it was determined that they would be working on the break-up scene. He stood in front of his co-star, preparing body language to show they were angry. His co-star looks to him, feeding her selves thoughts to bring tears to her eyes.

“You never cared, did you?” She spits. “You know I did.” Tom remembers how small he’s supposed to feel in this moment before the anguish begins. “You are better off without me. Just say it.” “I can’t.” “Why can’t you?” The woman is hiccuping through tears. “Because… I love you.” “You’re pathetic. You’re a liar. You’re lying to me.”

Tom recalls his actions are to become angrier with each degrading comment. But in that moment - he’s sparked. “You really think I don’t love you?” “How could I when you treat me like this?” Tom feels the tears rushing to his eyes, face turning red. “I would do anything for you.” “Then do it! Stop treating me like this!”

This felt all too familiar. A fight way too familiar. The actress is doubled over in tears, and Tom’s character is to feel urged to hold her and apologize. He does, tears streaming down his own face. If only he’d handle your arguments differently. If only his fuse didn’t get the best of him.

“God, I’m so sorry.” Tom mumbles, holding the actress close. He becomes aware of how it’s not you he’s holding. He becomes aware of how this could have been different if he would just listen. The scene continues with mumbles I love yous and a tired girl packing up her clothes.

Tom watches in the corner, real tears falling down his face as he remembers watching you sling things into bags. You had slammed pictures down on the way out. And he knew it was goodbye.

“And… cut! Absolutely beautiful acting, you two! Don’t think we could’ve had you do that better.” The director gushed. Tom was still fed with a lump in his throat. The director reports they can take five, bringing Harrison and Harry walk to the curly-haired boy. “You okay?” Harry asks, squeezing his shoulder.

Tom hesitates, eyes staring forward. “No.” He lets out. “I fucked up. I should’ve handed it all better. Why did I hurt her?” Tom knew people were probably wondering why he was unable to snap back to reality. But that was thing - that conversation had been a reality and it cut too deep.

“I’m in love with her. I am. I know she won’t give me the time of day anymore. But God, I’d do anything for a second chance.” This was the first time Tom had let himself really feel his heartbreak, and he knew it wasn’t the time. So like the great actor he is, he snapped out of his trance and prepared to listen for directions as they called for everyone back.

Tom made his way to the crew, Harrison following close behind. “Keep an eye on him. I’ve gotta call to make.”

Harry walks out into the warm summer sun. He’s quick to pull his phone out and go to the number he needs. With a couple of taps, the phone is ringing. The ring is broken by a simple hello. “Y/n? Hey! Got a minute to talk?”

[dongofthewolf]

Omg I’m sorry for not realizing u had a list 😅 but I wasn’t wondering if u could do 41 with Abby and could u make it like rlly angsty but with some fluff or smut at the end

Everything Good in Life Seems to Lead Back to You

Abby Anderson X Reader

Prompt: 41. Overhearing they have feelings for you

Warnings: blood and injury, canon typical violence, swearing, fluff, angst (I tried anon I tried), Owen slander once again (sorry not sorry)

Gender neutral pronoun for the reader (if you’d like your request to use specific pronouns please add to the ask)

Link to the prompt list here

A/N: it’s safe to say that I wrote this with the speed of a thousand blazing horses if that even makes any sense. I hope that you all enjoy this lovely word vomit (esp if you requested) it was a blast to write !!

btw the Virginia Woolf reference is from her letters to Vita Sackville and the Jane Austen one is from Pride and Prejudice. What can I say? I guess I’m just a hoe for old love, baby.

Abby spent a lot of time reading; so much so that she had created this false expectation of what love was supposed to feel like. Abby believed that love was supposed to be strong, and passionate, and bright—an everlasting devotion. Of course she shrugged it off at first, they were just books after all—pieces of fiction to fantasize and dream about. Love wasn’t something you could define in a book nor could it ever live up to the likes of Shakespeare or Virginia Woolf.

Abby had never been in love; she sometimes believes she came close to some iteration of it when she was with Owen, but looking back now she realized that what she felt wasn’t love. It was a desperate attempt to be wanted—to be needed, a manifestation of her desire for approval. And after her falling out with him, Abby had come to accept that she simply wasn’t made for love, and that if by some miracle she ever did fall, it definitely wouldn’t be like the books.

That was Abby’s initial perspective on love, but oh how times have changed. The moment you waltzed into her life, every sad, pathetic notion she had about love was thrown out the window in a matter of seconds. Never in her most outrageous dreams did Abby expect to fall this hard, especially since the two of you were practically best friends.

In fact, it had been very platonic at first; Abby was your superior and you often worked together on missions. She didn’t know what compelled her to talk to you but when she did, the two of you hit it off immediately. You started training together, then working out together, and eventually you were spending almost every minute together. The two of you could literally correctly predict every thought that went through each other's head, all except of course (in Abby’s case) for one. It even got to the point where you both somehow knew when the other couldn’t sleep, so much so that Abby had grown accustomed to opening her door to see you holding a glass of milk and a plate of cookies like a little kid on Christmas. She had spent so many sleepless nights alone only to realize that the one thing she was missing, was you and your adorable midnight snacks.

Abby never entertained the thought of professing her slightly less than platonic feelings for you, because she had become content with the idea that you’d simply never feel the same. However, while she had come to accept her unfortunate situation to be a permanent one, it still hurt her when she saw you flirt with other people. And she’d be lying if she said your absentminded touches didn’t still send her soaring. Sometimes she hated how naturally affectionate you were, it made it so hard for her to not love you.

The box that Abby had continually shoved herself into so she wouldn’t fuck up your friendship was almost starting to feel like home, and as uncomfortable as it was, she knew it was for the best. Almost nothing could compel Abby to leave this torturous, self-inflicted prison she was trapped in. Almost nothing.

—

The mission was supposed to be a simple one: get in, get the weapons, get out. A mission so simple, the both of you could’ve done it in your sleep. In fact, on a few occasions after a long night of drinking, you had practically done just that. You met up with the group of traders who you were well acquainted with, and the deal went down smoothly. Everything was going according to plan, which is why you and Abby were completely caught off guard when a group of rogue hunters suddenly began firing shots like it was a fucking carnival.

Turns out there was a new rival group in town, and someone had tipped them off. You and Abby luckily were able to find cover from their relentless fire, but not before you got a bullet straight through your left thigh. You didn’t even realize it at first, the adrenaline coursing through your veins still working to protect you from the devastating pain that was to come. When you did notice it, you had already lost copious amounts of blood. Then the dizziness began to set in, and soon after the pain. Abby hadn’t even realized you were injured till you slumped over on the ground next to her.

Looking down in horror, Abby lifted you into her arms. “Y/N? What’s wrong? Why are y-” Then Abby noticed the blood, and suddenly she was panicking. “Oh shit. Oh fuck, Y/N we have to get you out of here.”

“T-the package, we need the package. Can’t leave without it.” Your response was weak, desperate. You had to finish the mission, the WLF was in dire need of these supplies and you were not going to be the one to tell Isaac you failed.

“Fuck the package, we need to get you back to base.” Abby removed her belt, turnoqueting your leg with such surprising ease that you nearly didn’t notice the agonizing pain in your leg. Nearly.

You groaned when Abby hoisted you into her arms bridal style, careful not to move your leg too much before she booked it to the truck. When she plopped you down into the passenger's seat and began to speed away from the scene, you suddenly felt your eyes becoming heavier. You were so tired. You had lost so much blood already and your body felt like it was shutting down.

Abby was frantically racing towards the base, eyes fixed to the road until she heard you let out a small whine. “Abby, I‘m so tired. Need to sleep.”

Abby noticed you drifting off and she reached her arm out to shake your shoulder violently. “No. No sleeping, you gotta stay awake Y/N.”

Though Abby didn’t mention it, she was terrified. When she looked over at you, you were pale and cold to the touch, drifting off while your leg continued to bleed profusely despite her tourniquet. This could be it; you could die right now, and Abby would have lost the one person in this world she cared about most. She couldn’t let that happen, she wouldn’t.

You were equally as terrified as Abby; every natural instinct in your body was begging for you to sleep and you were becoming tired of trying to ignore it. The last thing you remembered was the look on the face of the girl you had fallen for, her eyes brimming with tears while she wore a desperate, horrified expression.

—

You laid unconscious for what felt like an eternity and Abby never left your side. She had abandoned her duties (with Isaac’s permission) and spent every second next to you, her head resting on the edge of your bed while she waited for you to wake up. The only thing that prompted Abby to step away was Manny, who had heard what happened and went to check on her.

Manny knew full and well that Abby was in love with you; in fact, almost all of Abby’s friends knew. Abby had confided in him during many torturous nights and he was a surprisingly good listener. He understood her circumstances and never pushed her to confess her feelings for you, even if it did annoy him how oblivious Abby was to the fact that you obviously felt the same way. “Abby, I heard what happened. Is everything okay?”

Abby was exhausted, she hadn’t slept at all since you made it back to the base and she couldn’t get the memory of your cold, pale body out of her head. “I almost lost them, Manny. Y/N could’ve died out there without ever knowing how I feel about them.” Tears threatened to fall but Abby did her best to keep her composure.

“It’s going to be okay, Abby. Y/N’s here and they’re alive, and that’s all that matters.” Manny’s hand was on Abby’s shoulder, trying his best to comfort her. “You should tell them how you feel though.”

“Huh?” Abby hadn’t expected that. Manny knew her situation well enough to know that telling you how she felt was a bad idea… It was a bad idea, right?

“It’s like you said, Y/N could’ve died without ever knowing how you feel about them. Wouldn’t it be better to have no regrets at all?” The words stopped Abby in her tracks. She never thought she’d actually agree with Manny.

“It’s just- I love Y/N so much, and I don’t want to lose them this way.” Abby was on the brink of tears, her voice turning into a desperate plea.

“I’m not going anywhere Abs.”

Abby froze, turning around slowly. You were gripping to the doorway for support, limping on one leg and looking extremely weathered.

“Y/N!” Abby immediately ran to put your arm around her shoulder while she carried you back to your bed, setting you down carefully. “You shouldn't be on your leg, you could make it worse.”

There was genuine concern on Abby’s face and in that moment you weren’t sure you could love her any more than you already did. She was so incredibly sweet and caring and no one had ever shown this much concern for your safety and well-being. You had heard her through the door and you couldn’t stop yourself from interrupting her. There was so much about Abby you absolutely adored and she had no idea. How could she not have known you were hopelessly in love with her? Was she truly that oblivious to your obvious flirting? All the subtle touches, the pathetic excuses to sleep in her bed, the fact you literally went out of your way to find rare coins so you could bring them back to her, it all just flew over her head. You couldn’t believe it.

Abby was still rambling about your leg, clearly trying to pretend like she didn’t just profess her love for you while you were standing right behind her. Instead of speaking, you wrapped your hands around her neck before leaning in, silencing her with a kiss so perfect you could’ve passed out right there. You could tell she was stunned at first, but soon enough she was kissing you back. Her fingers were running through your hair and when you pulled away she leaned her forehead against yours, not wanting to part from you.

“Did you mean it?” You pulled away to look Abby in the eyes, your hands still wrapped around her shoulders.

Abby had a dumbstruck look on her face. “Mean what?”

“When you said you loved me, did you mean it?” Your eyes searched her face for an answer while your heart was beating a million miles a minute.

Abby smiled, her eyebrows furrowed as she spoke. “Y/N, I have loved you for as long as I can remember. I’m so hopelessly in love with you that it’s almost pathetic. You have no idea how essential to me you have become—how many nights I’ve stayed awake because you weren’t there to hog all the blankets. Y/N, you have no idea how ardently I love you.”

You smirked “Abigail Anderson did you just quote Virginia Woolf and Jane Austen?” You couldn’t help but let out a small laugh, Abby could be such a nerd sometimes.

“I just confessed my ever-lasting love for you and that’s the first thing you say?” Abby was smiling widely now, relief flowing through her now that she no longer had to conceal her feelings for you.

“I love you too Abs, so fucking much. Also I do not hog the blankets, your comforter is simply too small.” Abby chuckled before she leaned in for another kiss, the worry suddenly disappearing the moment her lips touched yours.

Although Abby had never really known what she expected love to be, this is what she imagines it’d feel like, and you bet your ass it was better than the books. To tell the truth, it was better than any other conceivable thing on this entire planet. Nothing could beat the way Abby felt now that she had finally broken free from her excruciating self-inflicted prison.

Abby pulled away from the kiss, gazing at you lovingly. “Are you hungry?”

God damn Abby, it was like she knew exactly what you were thinking. You didn’t know how long you had been unconscious for, but you were ravenous. “Starving.”

And almost as if you were telepathically communicating, the both of you spoke at the exact same time.

“Cookies?”

“Cookies.”

[awritingtree]

The Glistening Sun and The Glowing Moon

Remus Lupin x Hufflepuff!reader

Summary: Remus Lupin has finally gotten a chance to spend time with his long-term crush but he messes up. Will she forgive him? Will he ever build up the courage to tell her how he feels?

@slytherinquill’s writing challenge: Prompt 16. ***A: *In a conversation with B* So… What do we do now?C: “In the other room* What did they say?!A: Stop eavesdropping if you’re not even going to be good at it!*** The prompts have been bolded :)

Someone please tell me if they know the new url because I never know when people change it

Words: ~3.3k

Warnings: scars, self-deprecation/hate, body issues, slight bullying about appearance, pining, fluff, tiny bit of angst, 

A/N: so I tried my best with how having scars and everything feels. I’m posting after ages because I'm really busy studying for my med school exam and tbh I was lazy. But I finally posted!! I hope you enjoy this xx

⭑*•̩̩͙⊱••••✩••••̩̩͙⊰•*⭑

Remus Lupin often found himself pondering what he had done to receive a cruel fate. What had he been thinking when he fell for Y/N Y/L/N, the girl that brightly lit up every room she entered. The girl who was not only smart but kind and modest too, the girl who excelled in her lessons with hard work and perseverance. The girl that was so beautiful, she was a walking masterpiece.

They could not be more different. While Y/N spoke to almost everyone, had friends in every house, Remus could only call seven Gryffindors his friends.

Remus cowered in fear; made himself look much smaller than he is to hide away from the rest of the world. But Y/N Y/L/N; Y/N would walk around with her head held up high, wearing the scar that stretched from the beginning of her right eyebrow, down across her nose and cheek and to her left jaw proudly. Remus had always noticed her around, she was good friends with Lily but she had never interacted with any of the Marauders. Well not unless you count the times she'd tell them to be quiet when they were causing a ruckus during class.

Remus had spoken to Y/N once, on a complete accidental note. He’d heard her complaining to her friends about how she was nervous about the upcoming Potions assignment as they waited for Professor McGonagall to allow them into her classroom. He had blurted it out thoughtlessly like a complete and utter fool.

“I could tutor you!”

His eyes had widened, his face flushing as she turned around with a confused look on her face, wondering who’d spoken. When her Y/E/C eyes fell on his blushing face she’d smiled softly.

“Really?” she had asked with a hopeful glint in her eyes.

Remus’ hair had flopped everywhere as he had nodded vigorously, stuttering out a quiet yes. Her friends had giggled at his flustered behaviour causing his scarlet face to redden further. But Y/N, Y/N had taken no note of his embarrassing behaviour and thanked him for his offer saying she would talk to him soon. The hope in his chest had blossomed like a sunflower under the spring sun.

But that had been a week ago and Remus had not yet held one conversation with her. He’d often witnessed her walking around the corridors with her friends who seemed to always start giggling when he passed by them, probably laughing about their previous encounter, one he believed he had completely humiliated himself in. The only interaction Remus had with Y/N in the past week was the smiles they shared whenever they saw each other and so, his hope dwindled.

“Why don’t you just ask her out, Moony?”

Remus snapped out of his daydream at the sound of James’s voice. He blushed as Y/N sent him a smile, realizing he’d been caught staring. Sending a shy smile back he looked away.

He slammed his head against the wooden table groaning, “Kill me. Just kill me, Prongs.”

“I thought Padfoot was supposed to be the dramatic one,” Peter commented.

Remus lifted his head to send his friend a glare as Sirius exclaimed in protest.

“Why don’t you just ask her out?” Lily asked kindly.

Remus leaned against his arm, the heel of his palm tucked under his chin as his hazel eyes drifted back to the girl sitting on the Hufflepuff table.

“She’s just so beautiful, intelligent, kind and I’m just… me.”

He sighed, placing his hands on his laps and playing with them, his blond hair falling onto his forehead brushing against his eyelashes whenever he blinked. All his friends frowned at his insecure thoughts, they hated the way he saw himself. They desperately wished that their friend could see the way they saw him, the way everyone saw him, but himself.

“That’s not true-”

“Hello, Remus.”

Remus' head snapped up at the sound of the sweet voice, the voice that sounded like tiny bells chiming in the wind to his ears.

“Hi- hi. Hello Y/N.”

Y/N giggled slightly at his stuttering but in a manner that didn’t make him feel like she was laughing at him.

“I was wondering if it would be alright if we met up at the library today?”

Remus let out a sound, flabbergasted. Y/N’s eyes widened, quickly proceeding to justify her request.

“I mean you said you’d help me with the upcoming Potions assignment! I thought I would take you up on the offer,” she said in a hurry.

Remus stared at her in disbelief. Only when a sharp pain shot through his shin did he open his mouth.

“Oh um. Yes. Alright. Of course. Today. Library. Potions. No problem. Okay. Yes.”

Y/N relaxed, smiling at him gratefully.

“Thank you!” she said, bouncing slightly in place, “Is after classes alright?”

Remus mutely nodded, dumbfounded, his mind still processing what was happening.

“Great. See you then!” Y/N said before heading back to her group of friends who were watching the entire scene play out at the Hufflepuff table, walking with a newfound skip in her steps.

“You are pathetic,” said Sirius as he watched his friend slam his head back onto the table.

It would surely leave a mark based on how loud the smack sound was.

He had once again humiliated himself in front of Y/N and this time he believed there was no way to redeem himself. There was no chance in hell that she didn’t believe he was a complete moron.

⭑*•̩̩͙⊱••••✩••••̩̩͙⊰•*⭑

Remus had been hyping himself up the entire day, barely concentrating on any word that left his professors’ mouths. He spent the full day preparing himself to not make a fool out of himself again.

He took a deep breath and shook out the nerves from his body before walking into the library at the end of the day towards the table where Y/N was already sitting.

Her Y/H/C was pulled back into a low ponytail, a few stray strands framing her gorgeous face. Her eyebrows were furrowed as she scanned the book open in front of her. The scar on her face was light, standing out prominently under the bright sunlight streaming in through the window she was sitting next to. In her hands was a quill which she was twirling around absentmindedly as she looked for information in the pages before her.

Remus stood afar for a while, admiring her simplistic beauty, one that never once managed not to take his breath away.

He slowly strode up to the table once he realized he had been staring at her for an amount of time that was borderline creepy. He quietly placed his bag near the foot of his chair as he sat down on it, slouching.

Y/N jumped in her seat at the quiet greeting he whispered. Her startled Y/E/C eyes relaxed as they landed on his figure. She pushed a strand of hair out of her face.

“Sorry,” she muttered, “I was a bit startled.”

Remus smiled endearingly at the sight of her crimson cheeks, “It’s all right. I should’ve used a better method to make you aware of my presence rather than scaring you.”

Y/N quickly pulled out her Potions textbook from her bag, removing another spare piece of parchment along with it.

“So where shall we begin?” she asked with a small grin.

The two got to work; Remus explaining the assignment and what was required while Y/N sat and listened. The sky outside began to change colours, the blue fading into an ocean of orange, pink, purple and red. The sunlight switched from a bright to a deep shade of orange.

Y/N admired Remus’ face as the setting sun cast shadows on his features. His light brown hair resembled a golden halo at the top of his head in the sunshine. His green-coloured eyes mesmerized her; she had always loved the colour of his eyes. They reminded her of the vast forest standing out at the edge of Hogwarts, the luscious grass, the mint that gave her the morning mint tea. Remus held the colours of budding spring in his eyes; ever-young, bold and beautiful. Y/N’s eyes trailed the shape of Remus’ eyebrows, the sharpness of his rosy cheeks, the prominence of his jaw. She outlined the curves of his mouth, his tongue poking out every few minutes to wet his pink chapped lips.

“Hello? Y/N?” Y/N blinked, almost comically, as Remus’ deep voice brought her out of her daydream.

Her cheeks unwillingly burned under his stare, ashamed that she had been caught daydreaming about him, not that he knew that in particular.

“Yes, yes. Sorry,” she said.

Remus peered at her through his eyelashes, “It’s okay. I know it can get a bit boring.”

Y/N paid no mind to his words, frowning as she noticed his slouching body, trying to make himself appear shorter than he was. His head was hunched over, his neck never fully straight, concealing his face from the world.

Y/N ignored the worried look on Remus’ face and reached forward to brush the hair covering his dreamy eyes out of his forehead. His hair was soft just like she’d had dreamt it would be.

Remus stared at her, his lips slightly parted in shock. The feeling of her smooth hand running through his hair putting him in a daze. Her hand trailed the side of his face, stopping under his chin lifting his head to stand straight up. Remus’ eyes dropped to the chipped wood on the tabletop as she whispered a question.

“Why do you hide yourself?”

Before Remus could respond, a band of Slytherins passed by their table snickering.

One of the members spoke, “Look what we have here. The scarfaces are friends.”

The group burst out laughing. Y/N went to stand up, enraged and ready to give them a piece of his mind but a hand pulling her back down stopped her. She turned to look at Remus confused as to why he was stopping her.

“Leave it,” he whispered, “Reacting will only make it worse.”

The pit of snakes walked out of the library yelling out other taunts and not quietening down even as Madame Pince shushed them.

Y/N gazed at Remus who could not seem to meet her eyes. Upon hearing the rustling of papers, Remus looked up to see Y/N packing her bag, upset.

“Y/N, wait!”

“I’m sorry Remus. Thank you for your help but I need to go,” she said before hastily making her way out of the library without giving him a chance to reply. Remus watched Y/N’s retreating figure defeatedly until she disappeared. Remus sighed, burying his face into his hands.

‘Why can’t you do anything right?’ he scolded himself.

⭑*•̩̩͙⊱••••✩••••̩̩͙⊰•*⭑

Another week passed by. During this week, Remus did all he could to apologize to Y/N but she would not give him the time of the day. She avoided him like the plague; leaving the Great Hall when he entered, sitting as far away as possible in the lessons they shared, took different longer routes to her lessons through which she knew there would be no chance of bumping into him. She even went as far as spending all of her free time in the Hufflepuff common room, never once stepping foot into the library.

Others didn’t know why she was so upset. No one knew what it was like to live with such imperfections displayed on their face for all to see.

Y/N understood that Remus didn’t like others to see his scars but that did not mean she didn’t. She had worked so hard to build her confidence up to what it was. She had put a lot of effort into priding herself on how she looked, not to be ashamed. She had taught herself not to cower away from her reflection or due to the weight of others’ whispers and stares. So when Remus, the one person she had expected to understand, had stopped her from standing up for herself, for them, she felt hurt.

It may be an overreaction and Y/N should’ve forgiven Remus by now but when he had told her to sit back and quietly listen to the horrendous opinions others had about them, she felt annoyed, offended, hurt. But most importantly she felt disfigured.

Remus knew he had messed up. He had messed up big time. He had never been satisfied with how he looked, the scars marking his face making him feel ugly. But that was until he had seen Y/N in their second year. The Hufflepuff girl with a scar similar to his, who wore the scar like a brave warrior.

Remus had believed he was helping her when he’d stopped her from fighting with the Slytherins but it seemed he had made things much worse because by not speaking up against their vile words. He had in a way confirmed their words, confirmed that the scars were ugly, a thing to be ashamed of and disgusted by. He had unintentionally said that he believed their words to be true, that he thought he was hideous, that Y/N’s face was repulsive.

“Talk to her.”

“What the bloody hell do you think I’ve been trying to do this past week?” Remus asked, annoyed as he shoved another piece of chocolate into his mouth.

It was his third chocolate bar of the day and it was only noon.

“I mean corner her. Give her no means to escape then she’ll have to listen,” Sirius shrugged, moving about their shared room to fall face-first onto his bed.

“Bad move. She’ll hate you even more,” James said, his voice muffled by his pillow.

“What other option does he have left?” Peter spoke up as he ate yet another piece of cauldron cake.

“I should just leave her alone,” said Remus quietly, playing with a loose thread on his sweater, “It’s clear she wants nothing to do with me.”

He gazed at the thread for a bit, his mouth turned down.

“I think I’m going to go for a walk. Clear my head,” he said, getting up and leaving.

Sirius lifted his head from his head to look at his two best friends, “I think we know what to do boys.”

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After a long walk through the grounds of Hogwarts, Remus was making his way back to the Gryffindor common room, his head in a much better mindset than before. The corridor was surprisingly empty but he guessed everyone must be in their rooms, catching up on some much-needed sleep or doing the humongous pile of work they’d been assigned.

Remus paused and looked around the corridor thinking he had heard some footsteps. He shrugged and continued on his way when his eyes saw nothing but armours and portraits. Suddenly a push forced him into a classroom, the door locking behind him.

Remus stumbled before starting to bang on the door in a panic. “Hey! This is not funny! Open up!”

“Don’t bother,” a silky voice cut his shouting short, “I’ve been trying that for the past few minutes and no one is opening the door.”

Realization dawned on Remus. He turned around to face Y/N, a guilty look on his face, “I think I might know who is responsible.”

“Your friends. I know, it became obvious when you were shoved into the door.”

Remus smiled apologetically, “I’m sorry. I don't know what they were thinking. They shouldn’t have-”

“Remus,” she stopped his ramble, “It’s okay. I know you weren’t involved in whatever they planned.

“You never seem to be,” she shrugged.

Remus looked at her curiously, “What do you mean?”

Y/N looked down at the feet, trying to hide the blush on her cheeks as she realized what she seemed to have admitted.

“Your pranks. I’ve noticed you usually don’t participate in many of them.”

Remus raised his eyebrows at her confession, “Yo- you’ve noticed me?”

Y/N looked up and gazed into his eyes, “I’ve always noticed you.”

Remus gulped, lost on what to do next, “Why?”

Y/N smiled at Remus walking up to him.

To Remus, Y/N may glisten like the sun but to Y/N, Remus glowed. He glowed like the moon hanging in the night sky taking attention away from the billions of twinkling stars. He glowed to bring light on the darkest of nights.

Remus’s eyes closed in pleasure, suppressing a shiver as she traced his scars endearingly.

“Why?” she whispered.

Remus let out a shaky breath at her proximity, her breath fanning his lips.

“Because I find you to be exquisite, Remus Lupin.”

Remus gasped as Y/N’s lips touched his. His eyes fluttered shut as their lips moved against each other slowly and clumsily, testing the new waters they found themselves in.

Y/N pulled away and began to press soft kisses against his scars. In between each sentence she spoke, “You are intelligent. You are kind. You are caring. You are beautiful.”

She cupped his face in her hands looking directly into his teary eyes, trying to make him believe that she meant every single word that fell from her lips from the bottom of her heart, “You are perfect Remus.”

Remus pressed his lips firmly against Y/N’s, encircling an arm around her waist bringing her closer as his other hand cupped her face and tilted it allowing him to deepen the kiss. Y/N’s hands left Remus’ face and buried themselves in his hair, tugging at it. Their lips moved passionately against each other, their senses overwhelmed with the amount of serotonin coursing through their veins.

They pulled away from each other with giddy smiles on their faces. Remus tucked her hair behind her ear before trailing down to admire the crescent moon necklace that hung around her neck, the metal cold against his warm fingertips.

“So... what do we do now?” Remus asked insecurely.

Y/N was stopped from answering at the sounds of rustling and whispering, “What did they say!?”

Remus sighed in exasperation before shouting, “Stop eavesdropping if you’re not even going to be good at it!”

A thump of a body falling against the floor and a few curses later, the sound of receding footsteps echoed through the otherwise empty corridor and classroom.

Remus smiled lovingly at the sight of Y/N trying to hush her giggles by covering her mouth.

“I’m sorry about them,” said Remus after her giggling died out.

“They are not much different from my friends,” Y/N reassured him, “They were chaperoning our study date last week. I’m surprised you didn’t notice them.”

“Study date, huh?” Remus questioned with a smirk.

“Well yeah,” Y/N shrugged, looking at her hands nervously fidgeting with the hem of Remus’ sweater, “At least I hoped it was.”

Remus chuckled, glad to not be the one who was flustered for once. He placed two fingers below Y/N’s chin to lift her gaze to his.

“Actually, I was hoping I could take you out on a proper first date tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow? But it’s a-”

“Sunday, yes. But my plans don’t involve Hogsmeade.”

“That’s only if you have the time. If you want to,” Remus quickly added, hoping it didn’t look like he was forcing her into anything.

Y/N smiled lovingly, “I would love to.”

In Y/N’s opinion, the consequent radiant smile that overtook Remus’ face outshone the sun, moon and stars combined.

⭑*•̩̩͙⊱••••✩••••̩̩͙⊰•*⭑

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[chaoticminhos]

maybe i do

--”even at a young age, he knew he wouldn’t be able to choose who he married, but that didn’t stop him from hoping that one day, maybe, you would at least be an option.so imagine his excitement when you were. and then imagine his pain when you told him you wished you were anything but.”

pairing: lee know x reader

genre: angst, fluff, a smut scene 

warnings: none

word count: 16.3k

a/n: arraigned marriage with minho was requested, as was breeding/pregnancy kink with him :) I didn’t make the pregnancy kink a big part bc the smut scene is small but i hope you like it anyway, anon!! I can always write a separate fic, too. there’s never too many minho fics <3

eighteen. that’s when you were expected to choose a partner. you’d just turned of age, and as an adult, you were now supposed to be getting ready to take the throne. with a partner, of course.

a very specific partner, specific to the point that all choice given to you to make you feel like you were in control meant absolutely nothing. 

you needed to find a man, first of all. a single man, one that wasn’t already set to be married. he had to have power, at least as much or more power than you had. he needed to have wealth. you needed to find yourself a handsome, wealthy prince from one of your neighboring kingdoms, and your parents had to like him. as much as your parents said you were in full control of choosing your suitor, you knew you were not the one making the calls. not a single one of them.

there was only one person who matched all of these criteria. there was only one boy you whose name would be on your list of potential suitors and your parents knew it just as well as you did.

you could try just simply not writing lee minhos name down, not selecting a husband at all, but it would be futile. eventually, if you hadn’t selected a worthy candidate to marry, one would be decided for you.

without a doubt, minho would be the one selected, whether you wrote it down or your parents signed his name for you.

you didn’t have anything against minho specifically. he was no more intolerable than any of the other royal children you’d met. if anything, he was actually easier to be around. it’s just that you were expected to be fond of him.

you were ordered by your parents to love him, and that in itself made you want to despise him.

along with your side of the selection, minho also had to choose you. if he didn’t, you would just have to wait until someone else came along. it wasn’t just you looking for a partner, he was in search as well. the difference was that he had been in search for nearly a year and he had willingly selected you.

minho wasn’t the first in line to be king of his home kingdom, his oldest brother was. he was already married and set to be crowned in the coming months. instead, if minho ever wanted to be a king, he needed to find a woman to marry who was set to become queen.

luckily for him, you were the oldest daughter in a family that had no sons.

as the eldest sibling in a family of no boys, you were in line to lead. but according to the rules, you couldn’t lead without a man to stand beside.

in all logic, minho had to choose you just as much as you needed to choose him. of course, if both of you resented each other, the wedding could be held off until you resolved the conflict. or even cancelled. you might be given a few more years of freedom before another man who fits your parents wants walks into their life or ages old enough to marry.

much to your dismay, however, minho did choose you. even before it was brought to his attention that he was your only option, that you would remain single for an unknown amount of time unless he married you, minho chose you. the second he noticed your name on the list of possible brides, which was much longer than your list of possible husbands, he had his mind set on you.

and after finding out that you had no one to choose but him, minho was sure he was going to get what he wanted.

you clenched your jaw and took your place at the table, glancing at the seat beside you that had been saved for minho.

“we want you two to get to know each other more before the wedding,” your mother said, “and he’s such a sweet boy.”

“i haven’t even chosen him as my fiancé yet, mom.”

she sent you an apologetic smile, both of you knew it didn’t matter what you chose.

you sat biting your lip and playing with the frills on your dress for quite some time before minho and his parents entered the room, escorted by four of the palace guards. 

he looked different than when you had last seen him. taller. it had only been a year or so, but you could clearly see changes. his jaw line was more defined and he had finally learned how to tie a tie so it wasn’t crooked. his eyes, though. even from across the room, you could see that his eyes were the same.

you smiled and sent a small wave towards one of the guards as they turned to leave. minho must have thought you were waving at him, and he waved back, a huge smile plastered on his pretty lips.

you were aware that he had already put your name down as his official choice of brides, practically robbing you of any chance you had of not being forced into marriage, and you knew he was probably equally aware that you had yet to write down his name, even though it was the only one you had. 

you held back a laugh at minho waving at you, not having the heart to tell him you were waving to felix and not him as he made his way around the table and to you. you let yourself smile though. no matter how much you wanted him to hate you as much as you hated the idea of marrying him, you couldn’t be downright rude. not when the parents were watching, at least.

you stood to greet him, sending your now-forced smile in his direction. you went to shake his hand, but instead, he pulled you into a tight hug. it was short, so short that you didn’t have the time to return the hug, not that you would have wanted to. 

you sat back down and looked up to greet his parents sitting across from the two of you on your big table. your own parents were sat on the ends of the table, your father to your left and mother to your right. neither your nor minhos siblings were present.

there was no time for conversation before the cook was bringing out the food. it was nothing fancy, per your request. he brought all of the food out at once, minus the desert, instead of in different courses. 

you half expected minho to say something about the way the meal was brought out in a way that wasn’t considered the most elegant, but he didn’t. instead, his eyes went wide as he spotted the roasted chicken set down in the middle of the table.

his mother observed his behavior and laughed, “y/n, how did you know minho’s favorite food? i don’t remember sending a letter containing his favorites.”

you frowned slightly, “i didn’t, i just chose my favorite.”

at your words, your mothers shared a glance, one that said, “they’re perfect for each other.”

your father was the next to speak, “minho, why don’t you cut the chicken for us.”

once again you anticipated some sort of reaction out of the boy. he had been asked to cut the chicken when there were waiters standing all around that could most likely do it much neater than he could. it was another thing you had specifically requested to happen in order to judge his reaction. but again, to your surprise, he smiled, stood up, and began to cut even strips off of it, passing them out around the table.

he turned to you, “how much do you want?”

you ignored the softness in his voice, one that you could see yourself growing fond of if you didn’t resent the idea of loving him so much already.

“i can get my own.”

he didn’t even flinch at your response, chuckling as he cut a piece off of the bird and guided it to your plate. you had to keep yourself from pouting as you looked down at it. he’d given you just as much as you wanted.

he was making it very difficult to keep a bitter attitude towards him when he was doing everything right. how were you supposed to convince your parents he would be a terrible husband when acted like the perfect one?

after serving himself, minho reclaimed his seat beside you. you served yourself to the rest of the food as it was passed around, handing the bowls to minho when you were finished. you took notice of the way he chose food. he took a little of everything, as if he wanted to taste all of the foods you had requested to be made for his visit. you asked him about it.

“trying everything, minho?”

you dropped his formality. you should have predicted that he would take it as a sign that you were comfortable with him rather than a petty disrespect in the way you’d meant.

he nodded, sending a soft smile towards you, “i assume your chose all your favorites, princess, so i want to try them all.”

you would have blushed if someone you were fond of said it, but you weren’t blushing. no, the heat in your face was just there because the room was warm from all of the bodies and hot food.

one of the waiters came around with a bottle of wine and some glasses, offering one to everyone at the table. of course, everyone accepted, it was impolite not to, but you couldn’t help but notice that minho didn’t touch his glass as often as the rest of you.

by the time you were smiling up at the waiter as he poured you a second glass, minho still had yet to finish even half of his first. 

you ate in casual conversation until all of you had your fill. the table was slowly cleared and the meals were replaced with a small array of sweets. 

minho nudged you, pointing at one of the trays.

“what’s this?”

you were caught off guard by his voice. it was soft, timid, almost like he was embarrassed that he didn’t know what the dessert was.

“pumpkin bars.”

he nodded, “are they your favorite?”

you shrugged, shaking your head, “kinda. they’re not my favorite to eat, but i love baking them.”

his eyes widened, “you made these?”

you shook your head again, a small laugh leaving your lips. as much as you tried to stay short and serious with him, you couldn’t.

“no, but i know how.”

he paused for a moment as his eyes scanned the table before he turned to you once more, “can you teach me?”

your brows furrowed, “to make pumpkin bars?”

he nodded.

never mind. you definitely could be short with him. 

what was he playing at? why was he behaving exactly in the way you’d want him to in every obstacle you threw at him? he couldn’t actually be that good. first, he wasn’t offset by the untraditionally casual meal or being asked to serve the main dish himself, and now he was showing interest in something you liked to do. something that was considered low level, something that a princess should never have to do. and now he was asking if you would show him how?

no, he had to be faking. any walls that had been broken down by his timid voice and him making you laugh were thrown back up.

“you don’t want to bake.”

it was his turn to frown.

he reached out to stop your arm as you went to grab a slice of pie.

“what do you mean? yes i do.”

you pulled your wrist from his grip, speaking lowly so only he would hear. 

“well i don’t want to teach you.”

you missed the expression that crossed his face as you reached across the table to grab the dessert you wanted.

he didn’t say anything more. he just reached for the pie spatula as you went to set it down. his fingers grazed yours as he took the tool from your hand and you were violently aware of it, of how his fingers against your skin seemed to send a shock through your body.

he set a piece on his plate and took a bite, glancing at you. you hadn’t even registered that you had been watching him until he did. 

“how is it?”

he nodded in approval, “it’s good. do you know how to make pies, too?”

“yes. i can make most every dessert our cooks can.”

he held your gaze as he smiled at you.

you frowned, averting your eyes from his and back to your plate, “what?”

“nothing.” he began, “i just think it’s interesting that you’re so into baking now. last time we spoke you were crazy about the gardens.”

you shrugged, “who says i can’t love both?”

there was a pause before, to your surprise, you kept the conversation going.

“do you still practice archery?”

he nodded, swallowing a bite of his pie before responding.

“i can out shoot almost all of our archers.”

you raised an eyebrow, a smirk playing at your lips, “who says they’re not letting you win?”

he playfully shoved you and you laughed.

“fine, then you go against me.”

you shook your head, “anyone could beat me in archery.”

he seemed to think for a moment before softly nudging you, “i could give you some tips?”

you almost found yourself accepting his offer before you caught yourself. you were not supposed to be enjoying his company.

“i don’t need your help. if i wanted to learn i would have one of my guards teach me.”

the way his expression fell made something in your chest ache and you hoped his parents hadn’t heard the remark. you felt bad for a moment, it wasn’t his fault that you were being forced to marry him.

then a thought crossed your mind- it kind of was.

he played by their rules and pretended to be excited to marry you, but that’s not what he wanted. he knew the perks that came along with marrying you. it wasn’t you he was excited for, it was the power and status that came along with marrying you. how could he be excited to marry you when he barely knew you? he couldn’t. all he wanted was to be king, and you gave him that option. he didn’t try to fight it. maybe if he fought it like you did, you wouldn’t be forced into it. or at least not so soon.

the fact that his cooperation was only securing your unwanted future was enough to wipe that sting from your chest.

you finished the rest of your dessert in silence, listening in on your parents conversations and trying not to scream at every mention of the upcoming wedding you didn’t want to have.

“has he picked out a ring yet?” 

“no,” his mother responded, “he wanted to get to know her better first. he wants it to be perfect.”

you finished your food and pushed the plate away from you, letting the waiters know they could collect it. all of the adults were already done eating. minho finished soon after, having taken longer as he savored every bite. this left the table without food and full of conversation. 

minho only spoke again when your mother addressed him.

“is there a specific type of flower you want at the ceremony?”

he spoke softly, kindly. you could see exactly why your mother loved him so much. even without him being the only choice, he probably would have been her first choice for you.

“yes. i love lilies.”

you took a deep breath to keep yourself from blowing up, it couldn’t be a coincidence that he kept having the same favorites as you. someone told him so he could better bond with you. 

your mom knew how badly you didn’t want this wedding to happen, she probably send his family a letter of ways to win your favor.

“it would be the perfect time to have the ceremony outside,” minho’s mother gushed, “the green suits them both.”

your dad laughed, “every color suits our y/n.”

“what color were you thinking, dear?” your mother turned to you.

your eyes shot to her. you were about to snap that you didn’t care about colors because you hoped there would be no wedding to coordinate colors to, but minhos parents were in the room. you couldn’t risk upsetting them and throwing off the good relationship your kingdoms had simply because you didn’t want to marry their son.

cutting off the marriage would be one thing. if it was mutual, it wouldn’t harm any relationships between the kingdoms. it would just stall your transition to power until you were forced against another possible husband. insulting him in front of his parents, however, might.

instead, you opted to look over at minho and pull a false smile onto your features.

“i think purple would suit him well.”

his parents didn’t catch the falseness of your cheerful tone or the way the smile on your lips was obviously forced, but minho did.

“oh, you’re so right!”

you asked one of the servants for the time and stood up.

“mom, i need to water my plants. may i?”

she nodded gesturing to the boy beside you, “take minho with you.”

you nodded, turning to leave the room without waiting for him. you heard your mother mutter something about your own little garden that you refused to let the staff tend for instead of  doing it yourself.

minho caught up as you were partly down the hallway. 

“y/n, is something wrong?”

you stopped, nearly causing him to crash into you.

“is something wrong? minho, this whole thing is wrong.”

he frowned, following again as you made your way to the garden entrance, “what do you mean?”

you opened the door to the garden a little harsher than you probably needed to and began filling a watering jug, “people should be able to fall in love before marriage.”

he shrugged, “there’s plenty of time for you to fall in love with me before the ceremony.”

you sent a glare towards him, “i want to choose who i love, minho.”

“then choose me.”

you shook your head, choosing not to respond. he followed you across the garden and to a small, fenced off patch that he assumed to be your personal garden.

you could feel his eyes on you as you went around and checked the soil around each plant before watering the ones that needed it. he wasn’t saying anything, he was just watching you. you let him stand in silence.

he followed you back to the entrance where you sat your watering can down and to a small bench where he took his seat beside you.

you put some distance between the two of you when he sat down right next to you and he noticed, just as he had noticed every other less than loving way you’d reacted to each of his attempts to show affection.

his chest tightened, why did you hate him so much? he thought you two were on good terms. the last time you saw each other, you laughed and joked with him. what was different now? was the idea of marrying him really that bad? 

maybe you were just nervous. 

people handle nerves differently, he reminded himself, maybe yours just made you snappy. it wasn’t anything to worry about. plenty of people had second thoughts before their weddings. you just had to get used to him was all, since you hadn’t seen each other in so long. then you would go back to joking with him and your he happy to have him as your husband.

he was shaken out of his thoughts by your voice.

“you don’t drink much?” you were referring to the glass of wine he had barely finished during dinner.

he shook his head, “it makes my mind foggy.”

you chuckled. he liked the sound. somehow, it was sweeter knowing that it was because of him.

“isn’t that what alcohol is supposed to do?”

he smiled, “i guess. but i wanted to be able to see you clearly.”

something akin to butterflies woke up inside your stomach. you ignored them as you stood abruptly, heading immediately for the door. he followed you out of the garden and back to the dining room where your families were seated. they turned as you stepped through the door.

“mother, it’s getting late and they have a long ride home.”

minho said nothing, standing at your side like it’s where he belonged, once again too close for comfort.

his parents agreed, standing along with your parents and thanking them for having them over. his mother hugged you goodbye at the front door before stepping into a carriage with her husband and son.

you were thankful that minho hadn’t tried to hug you goodbye. or much worse, kiss you.

he spent the carriage ride home wishing he had.

it was only a matter of days before his family was visiting again. since minho would be living in your castle with you, your parents decided it was best to have him visit you again rather than you go to his kingdom.

“y/n, the lees will be here soon, get dressed!” 

“i am dressed.”

“then get out here!”

you groaned and chan laughed beside you.

“stop laughing at my pain.” you scolded him, “i’ll have you fired from the guard.”

he laughed again, “you would never. who would protect you then?”

you grumbled as you straightened your dress and opened the door, “felix. woojin. seungmin. literally any of the other guards.”

he pouted, coming to stand next to you as you walked down the hallway and to the front where you would be greeting minho.

he was going to complain, but you cut him off when you saw minho and his family standing near the doorway.

“go join the others.” you told chan, “but be on watch. you might need to save minho from me if he acts like he was last time.”

chan laughed, heading to stand with the rest of the guards.

minho noticed the friendly interaction and smiled. he liked how you were always so nice to the servants. he noticed it during the meal too, when you smiled and joked with the waiter.

“sorry to keep you waiting.” you bowed politely to his parents.

you turned to minho, “hello.”

a big smile spread across his features, “hi again, my love.”

he had taken a risk with those being the first words out of his mouth. he thought that maybe seeing him again and time to adjust had gotten you used to the idea of him. he thought maybe your attitude would have changed towards him.

he was wrong. although you couldn’t make a point of showing it in front of his parents, he could see by the slight change in your eyes at the choice of the name that he was definitely wrong.

“would you kids leave the adults to talk for a while?” your mother spoke.

she placed one hand on your shoulder and the other on minho’s, “you can go wherever you’d like, just stay clear of your bedroom.”

your face flushed red and glared at your mom as minhos parents laughed. was she trying to embarrass you? did she think you’d laugh at the joke? it wasn’t funny.

knowing you wouldn’t last long without blowing up with teasing like that, you took a hold of minho’s hand and drug him away from your parents. you allowed him to walk beside you this time instead of rushing to be in front of him, but you dropped his hand practically as soon as you’d taken it.

he’d assumed the garden was your destination, so when you walked past the doorway to the giant greenhouse, he spoke up.

“where are we going?”

“i don’t know yet.”

you ended up at the base of a staircase that lead to the roof of the castle. without questioning you, he followed you up the stairs and to the open roof. you were immediately met with a burst of cold air, but the longer you stood in the wind, the easier it became to handle. 

you followed minho as he made his way across the roof and towards the edge, throwing his legs over and sitting with them dangling down as he took in the view.

he probably expected to go sit with him, so you did. that in no way meant you were going to begin complying with everything, it just meant that you were choosing to be civil in that moment.

he noticed as you glanced back at the door you’d entered the roof from.

“what is it?”

“my mother must have told my guards not to follow us.”

he shrugged, “why would you need guards when you’re with me?”

you huffed, “in case i decide to bite your head off.”

he laughed at the remark, and even though you hadn’t intended it as a joke, you laughed along with him. something about his laugh made it impossible to sit there with a scowl on your face.

“tell me what’s so bad about me, then.”

a teasing grin spread across your face as you looked at him, “god, where do i start...”

he gestured for you to continue, but your mind ran blank. what exactly was so bad about him? the majority of your issues weren’t with him in specific.

then one thing popped into your mind like a big red flag.

“you’re forcing me into marriage.”

he frowned, “i don’t think so, not really. if i refused to marry you, you would simply wait another year or two as a princess until your parents were able to find another prince for you.” he paused, “in some ways, i actually think i’m saving you.”

“saving me?” you scoffed out.

“yes. from some creep you might be forced to marry instead of me if i decline as harshly as you are.”

“who says you’re not a creep, lee minho?”

his face morphed into faux offense, “my mother says i’m quite the gentleman, thank you very much.”

you let out a small chuckle before responding. he did have a point, you were going to be forced into a marriage eventually, whether it be this one or not. at least you knew him. was a couple extra years of freedom worth marrying someone you didn’t know at all? or would it be wisest to settle for minho? 

either way, you still didn’t understand why you needed a man at all to lead.

“why can’t i just lead alone? i don’t need a king.”

“there’s two thrones for a reason.”

he saw the confusion across your face and continued.

“two leaders is safer than one. it requires compromise and thought, not just one person making the choices according to their opinion only.”

you nodded, and you hated how much his explanation of everything was making sense. 

“it’s the same reason they make a king marry before taking the throne if they can help it.”

there was a short pause before he spoke again, “i mean, technically, if both of your parents died right now, there would be no option other than to send you to the throne alone. and as the queen, no one could tell you to get married. but unless you want to assassinate your parents,” he brought his hand to rest on top of yours, “you’re stuck with me.”

ignoring the searing heat of his skin touching yours, you narrowed your eyes up at him as you spoke.

“you make it tempting.”

he laughed again, and this time you had intended for it to be humorous. 

it was cleared now why things were the way they were. it would have been so much easier if your parents took a second to explain it in the way minho had. he was very good with explaining things, a talent a good king needs to have.

maybe he wouldn’t be so bad to lead with.

still, you didn’t resent the situation any less than you had before understanding it.

you turned from the view of the mountains to find minho already staring back at you. it wasn’t until you noticed the way the sun framed his face that you noticed how quickly the sun had been setting, had you really been outside with him that long?

you traced the lines of his face with your eyes, admiring the way the sun sat on his skin as if it was made for the purpose. 

you frowned in confusion as the shapes across his face began to grow, and before you could register it, his lips were only moments away from yours. you reacted quickly, thankful that he had paused to give you the option to do so.

he didn’t seem surprised as the palms of your hands connected to his chest, pushing him away from you. 

you stood from the edge, dusting off your dress and motioning to the door.

“i’m not supposed to be outside at dark without my guards.”

you knew that that didn’t matter, your parents trusted minho to keep you safe, that’s the whole reason they didn’t feel the need to send guards with you in the first place. you figured he probably knew that too, but he didn’t comment on it. instead, he nodded, following you to the staircase and opening the door for you, walking with you around the castle as you looked for your parents.

you found them in the first place you looked, the lounge. you waited for a pause in their conversation before making yourself known.

“it’s getting dark, shall i ask for the carriage?”

your mother sent you a worried smile as your dad spoke.

“sweetheart, they’re staying the night. we’ll have a carriage sent to take king and queen lee home in the morning.

you frowned, glancing at minho. he shrugged.

“the king and queen? what about minho?”

“he’ll be living here from now on. he might as well get used to his new home.”

your face fell.

“what about my things?” minho questioned. he seemed much more calm about the news than you, but he didn’t seem to know any more about the situation.

his mother waved the question off, “i sent for some carriages with your things as soon as we made the decision for you to remain here. they’ve already arrived and are waiting to be unpacked.”

“where are they?” he questioned.

his mother laughed like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

“your bedroom.”

“where is that?”

your dad cut in, “y/n can show you.”

that’s when it hit you- his bedroom was your bedroom. that’s why your mother had told you to stay clear of it. she had anticipated the conversation about minho staying and wanted the area to be clear if they chose to move his things in. your mother hadn’t meant it as a joke at all, she said it as an order.

trying to hide your frustration, you grabbed minho’s hand and turned to leave.

“we’ll start to unpack now!”

you ignored both your and his parents calls as you dragged him down the hallways and to your bedroom. 

the first thing you noticed was that some of your personal items were being carried out of the door as you watched. things that made your bedroom yours. stacks of books you loved to read and even piles of papers containing words of your own were being handled by random personnel. not even your own guards, staff you had never met was handling your personal things. it would be one thing if it was chan or one of your friends moving things out, but it wasn’t. you hadn’t even seen chan or the rest of your guard since you greeted minho when he arrived.

their soul job was to protect you, and they had been relieved of duty while you were with minho, so why couldn’t they have been the ones to handle your things? it would still have upset you, obviously, but it would have been far less intrusive to have people you know and trust doing it.

you felt tears brimming in your eyes. your parents knew how much you valued privacy, and yet they let people you’d never even seen on the property handle everything you valued. 

minho’s eyes were just as attached to the scene ahead of you until he heard a soft whimper leave your lips. immediately, he had his arms around you and your face buried in his chest.

you wanted to pull away, to shove him and curse at him for coming into your life like this, but instead, you gripped the fabric of his button up shirt and let him hold you close.

“i’m so sorry,” he whispered into your hair, “i didn’t know.”

and then he did something you would never have expected.

“excuse me!” he called, his authoritative voice echoing down the hallway, “you can stop now. put whatever is in your hands down and leave.”

the movers hesitated, not knowing whether or not to follow his commands yet, but they ended up obeying. he stopped one of the men as he moved to walk past the two of you, you still secure and crying into his chest.

“where did you put the things you moved?”

the worker gestured to the things in the hall outside your bedroom, “everything we moved is in this hallway, your royal highness.”

“and my things?”

“waiting for you further down the hall.”

he nodded and let the man leave before slowly pulling you off of him. he felt a squeeze in his heart as you looked up at him with red, tear filled eyes. 

he led you into your room, “let’s get you to your bed.”

you let out a small sob at his words, “that’s not my bed.”

he was confused for a moment before it registered in his mind. they must have switched out your old bed in favor of a larger one to suit the both of you, even though the one you had before would have no doubt done the job fine. you’d probably had a queen at the smallest.

the longer minho held you, the less you wanted to push him away and blame him for everything that was happening.

he walked you over to the bed and sat you down, taking a seat beside you so you could remain attached to him.

he knew that it wasn’t him you found comfort in, but rather just a warm body to hug. still, having you so close to him felt so right, he couldn’t bring himself to care. it felt like you were finally responding to him like a woman should to her fiancé. you were letting him take care of you.

truth be told, if he could have scooped you up in his arms the day he first saw you after learning you were to be his wife a few days prior, he would have, and he never would have let go. 

when he saw your name on the piece of paper handed to him, he didn’t even read the rest. even before opening the letter, your name had popped into his mind. he’d always had a childish crush on you. even at a young age, he knew he wouldn’t be able to choose who he married, but that didn’t stop him from hoping that one day, maybe, you would at least be an option.

so imagine his excitement when you were. and then imagine his pain when you told him you wished you were anything but.

as he moved you up the bed and snuggled himself in beside you before pulling the covers up to keep you warm, he wondered if maybe tonight would change that.

maybe you would realize that you liked the feeling of being in his arms, of having him hold you close. as your sniffles became softer and eventually stopped, he wondered if you’d realize that falling asleep next to him was something you could get used to.

because oh goodness, after falling asleep with you in his arms, even though the both of you were still in uncomfortable cloths and had fallen asleep upset, he didn’t ever want to go to bed without you again.

you were woken up only a little while after falling asleep to the sound of soft knocking on your door. minho stirred beside you and you both sat up to see who it was.

both of your mothers were standing in the doorway with adoration in their eyes at the sight in front of them. 

“and here i thought you’d be upset over the room.” your mother cooed as she made her way into the room.

you shifted yourself away from minho and you could have sworn you heard a whine of complaint come from him as your body lost contact to his. or maybe it was you.

his mother approached the bed as well, taking hold of his collar and straightening it out.

“goodness, you two didn’t even bother to change into sleep clothes.”

minho responded before you could, “we hadn’t meant to fall asleep.”

“what time is it?” you added.

“not late,” your mother responded, “it was still only 10:30 when we headed up to check on you.”

you nodded, and as the sleep wore off, the anger kicked in. before you burst, you stood and ushered them out of the room.

“i’ll get changed now, then, and then we can organize and unpack a little tonight.”

“we can help!” his mother chimed.

before you could deny the offer, minho did.

“no mother, we want to set up our bedroom ourselves, please.”

happy with the response, she nodded and followed your mother out of the room and back to wherever your fathers were waiting.

minho stood from the bed and looked into your closet.

“it doesn’t look like any of my clothes are here yet, so i’ll leave you to change. i can find something in a box and i’ll find a place to change.”

you nodded as he walked out of the room, closing the door behind him.

you sat on the edge of your bed for a moment before standing up and grabbing the same sleep clothes you wore every night. they had already been washed in the morning and pressed dry, ready for you to use again.

you tried to undo the buttons on the back of your dress, but you couldn’t reach. chan had helped you do them earlier in the day. you reached your arm over the opposite shoulder in an attempt to reach the buttons, straining the fabric of the dress in a weird way. you heard the sound of stitches coming undone and pulled your arm back into a normal position, inspecting the place the noise had come from. sure enough, there were little pieces of thread hanging around a small tear in the arm of your dress.

defeated, you sat down on your bed and waited for minho to return. it wasn’t long before he did, signaling his presence with a couple soft knocks to the door. you called for him to come in and he did, pausing in surprise when he saw you still in the dress, your night clothes bundled in your hands.

“i can’t reach the buttons.”

he threw his head back in understanding, taking a few steps towards you as you turned your back to him, moving your hair out of the way of the buttons. 

you didn’t know what you’d expected, but the gentle touch of his fingers against your neck as he undid the top button sent a shiver through you. you hoped he didn’t notice, but by the way his movements stopped for a split second before continuing, you knew he had.

he undid the buttons until there were none left, leaving the top half of your back exposed to him where your dress fell open. his eyes ghosted over your shoulder blades and the smooth skin of your back. he wanted to place his palm there, to feel the warmth of your skin in more than just the tips of his fingers. he actually might have, despite his best judgement, if you hadn’t spoke up.

“are you done?”

he muttered a soft word of confirmation as you turned to face him again, hands holding the fabric to your chest to pretend it from falling off. 

he stared at you for a moment before reality seemed to flow back into his head.

“let me know when you’re done.”

you nodded, waiting until he pulled the door closed behind him to let the dress fall to the floor. you took your time changing. it felt nice to be alone. after a few minutes, though, an unexpected feeling built up in your chest. it was nice to be alone, but you missed minhos company. or maybe you just missed company.

that was it, you told yourself, you just missed having someone around. your resolve was not breaking this quickly. you were upset and frustrated with how things were going and he was just as good as anyone, except maybe chan, to keep you company.

you called out for him to come back in and he did, immediately taking the clothes you’d just changed out of and setting them in a bin outside your door where they would wait until someone came and took them for cleaning. 

you followed him to the door, heading right for a pile of books that had been taken off of your personal bookshelf. luckily, they hadn’t moved the shelf out of your bedroom yet, so you only had the books to carry back in.

you did the same for a few other things, things that you couldn’t imagine not having in your room, before turning to minho.

“what do you want moved in next?” he asked.

“something of yours.”

he was shocked by your reply, almost as if he had expected you to return your bedroom to the way it was before he arrived and pretend his things didn’t exist.

sure, you didn’t like that you had to remove your things from your room to make room for his stuff, but there wasn’t anything you could do about it right then. it wasn’t your room anymore. it belonged to the both of you.

at least until you could convince your parents to cancel the wedding, that is. that was still the plan.

“uh, okay,” minho began down the hallway, scanning his things as he did. he finally settled on a pretty, dark wooded desk. it had drawers along the side and it looked very used. you were surprised his parents let him keep it with how old it looked. it must have been important to him.

he insisted that he could carry it alone, but eventually he let you help. it fit perfectly in the room, almost like it was meant to be there. you placed it a couple feet away from your own desk, which was a similar color. it was a similar build too, with drawers on the sides.

back in the hallway, minho sighed as he attempted to move a large bookcase of his.

“we can’t move this alone. it can wait until morning.”

you nodded, thought for a moment, and then spoke.

“there’s room on mine, if you want. we can put this in storage and you can put your books with mine. there’s no need for two bookcases in one room.”

he was slightly taken aback by your offer, but nodded. he liked that you were getting used to sharing. getting used to it being not just your room, but his too. maybe you had changed your mind about him already.

“okay,” he agreed, “then we can take some books in.”

you grumbled, “but only one load. then we’re done for tonight.”

he laughed, assuring you that it was the last load of the night and walking back to the bedroom beside you, books in hand.

you helped him organize the books on the shelf, interlocking them with yours when it looked best to do so. the bookshelf was still quite empty, but that was fine. you had more books somewhere in the hall that you hadn’t bothered to search for and he had more, too.

you sat down on the bed, still messed up from your little nap, and sighed, but you didn’t say anything.

instead, minho did. after a few minutes of surprisingly comfortable silence, he sat down beside you and spoke.

“why won’t you let me kiss you?”

you were surprised by the sudden question, “you only tried once.”

“you’d only push me away again if i tried another time.”

“you gave me the chance to push you away.”

“because i knew you would.”

“then why try?”

“because i want to kiss you. why don’t you want to kiss me?”

you faltered at the confidence in his words. sure, his earlier actions had made it clear he wanted to kiss you, he wouldn’t have tried to otherwise, but hearing him say it out loud felt different. it made it click in your mind that he meant it, that it was real.

“i don’t- i already told you.”

“no you didn’t.”

“yes, i did.” you insisted, “i told you. i don’t want to be in a relationship that’s forced.”

and there it was. despite the progress he thought he’d made with you, there it was. that same angry, bitter attitude towards whatever relationship you two had. 

he shoved the disappointment down his throat and replied, “then don’t force it. i’m not.”

he said it casually, just like he said and did everything else he did around you. his laid back demeanor gave the illusion that maybe his words were honest. maybe he wasn’t forcing anything he felt for you, maybe he genuinely did look forward to the wedding, and not only for the power. you shoved the thought from your mind, looking forward to marrying you and looking forward to taking control of your kingdom were not the same thing.

as had become common for you, you chose not to respond, instead scooting yourself along the bed until you had your head on a pillow, pulling the blankets over yourself. you felt the bed shift as he did the same, reaching out to shut off any lights in the room before crawling under the same blankets as you. 

as badly as he wanted to pull you close to his chest and hold you while he fell asleep like he had hours before, he knew he couldn’t. everything in the way you were responding to him now told him that you would just push him away, maybe even change your mind about sleeping in the same bed as him and make him move to the floor. or worse, move there yourself.

no, minho didn’t want you to sleep on the floor and he didn’t want to upset you further than he knew he already had, so he stayed to himself. with your back to him, he listened to the even sounds of your breathing as you fell asleep. that would have to be enough for him for now.

the next morning was a repeat of the night before, minus minhos thoughts that you could be finally accepting him, maybe even growing feelings that didn’t involve resentment and anger.

after sending his parents off with a promise of them returning soon, just like the night before, you spent the day rearranging the room with him. you refused any help from your parents or anyone else, partially because you didn’t want anyone to touch your things again and partially because you couldn’t stand to be around them at the moment.

unlike before, though, your comfort and coziness to minho had worn off. you were no longer showing him any form of physical affection. 

you still kept the room fair, although it didn’t feel like it was half you and half him. it felt like its own place. it wasn’t partially him, the other half you- it was 100% the two of you, together.

you actually quite liked the way the room turned out. you weren’t being as snappy to him as you originally had been, but the atmosphere wasn’t anything close to before, when you’d looked to him for comfort from the pain rather than looking at him like he was the source of it all.

minho hated seeing you cry. when he noticed your state the night before and pulled you into his chest, he could have sworn his heart broke, like it would have fallen right out of his chest if you hadn’t been there holding it in. that reason exactly is why he felt so bad now.

he didn’t want you to cry, he didn’t want you to be sad, but he almost wished you would again, if it meant you would let your walls down for him again. anything to put you back in his arms.

you were walking back to your bedroom after dinner and tending to your garden, exhausted from life and redecorating your room. you were growing used to spending nearly every waking, and sleeping, moment with minho, even beginning to enjoy his company, but that didn’t mean small moments alone weren’t appreciated.

you knew it would only be a few minutes, but walking alone to your shared bedroom while minho was speaking to your parents felt like heaven. 

you didn’t remain alone for long, but it didn’t bother you. not when the person breaking the isolation was your best friend.

you jogged down the hallway and to your bedroom door where chan was standing, waiting for you. you hadn’t seen him since minho had arrived days prior.

you threw your arms around him the moment you reached him, happy to finally see him again. it hadn’t been that long, but considering he was usually with you constantly, a few days felt like forever. he pulled you into his chest, placing a kiss to your forehead as you smiled up at him.

you were about to ask him why he hadn’t been around when someone interrupted you.

“i thought you didn’t have brothers.” minho’s voice.

“i don’t.” you payed no attention to chan’s arm around your waist.

he nodded, “then this is?”

chan stepped away from you and reached his hand out to minho, “ah, i’m sorry! i’m chan, head of y/n’s personal guard.”

minho nodded again, taking chan’s hand and gripping it firmly.

“minho. y/n’s fiancé.”

releasing minhos hand and stepping back to you, chan laughed, “i know that, you’re all anyone is talking about recently.”

minho raised an eyebrow, locking his eyes to yours.

“am i?”

“of course!” chan babbled, “everyone’s excited for the wedding.”

minho scoffed, eyes still glued to yours.

“not everyone.” 

he didn’t bother to excuse himself before he shoved past you and chan, an action that could have easily been avoided with all the space the hallway held, and into your bedroom. 

a confused expression plastered on your face as you turned to chan.

“i know i complain a lot, but he’s usually not that bad. not even near it.”

chan frowned, lowering his voice. minho was right inside the door, after all.

“did you get into a fight or something?”

you shook your head, why did it actually bother you that he seemed upset with you?

“maybe you should go talk to him?”

you debated it in your mind. you probably should go check out what was bothering him, he was fine not even twenty minutes ago at dinner, but you also wanted to stay and talk to chan. you wanted to catch up, to vent.

as if reading your mind, chan turned you to face him.

“hey, go. we’ll see each other plenty now. your mom wanted us to give you space for a while, but the guard is back on full duty.”

you nodded, eyes trained on your bedroom door. you walked away from chan practically the moment he gave you the good to go, stepping into your bedroom and shutting the door behind you. 

it didn’t take you long to find minho. he was sat in his desk chair, fiddling with the cuffs of his shirt. he didn’t look up until you addressed him.

your voice was soft, “minho?”

if he hadn’t been so frustrated, he would have celebrated at your caring tone.

instead, he leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms.

“what?”

your frown grew, “what happened? are you okay?”

“yeah,” he stood from his seat, mumbling as he crossed the room to the closet, where he pulled out his sleeping clothes and began to unbutton his day shirt, “i’m fine.”

maybe he expected you to leave it at that. it seemed that’s what he wanted, considering his choice to suddenly switch to his night clothes. whenever he started to undress, you hurried out of the room. this time, though, you were worried about him. actually worried about him.

so you stayed put.

“minho, i can tell that’s not true. you’re upset.”

he scoffed. as if your words had broken some dam inside of him, he let his frustrations free. his hands flew into the air, completely abandoning his shirt, which he had barely begun to unbutton.

“pardon me for not cheering when i see another man kissing my fiancé!”

“you- chan? you’re upset because i was speaking to my best friend.”

you said it more as a statement than a question.

“no,” he took a couple steps towards you, abandoning his sleep it’s clothes over the foot of the bed, “i’m upset because he kissed you.”

“on the forehead.”

“you wouldn’t let me do that though, would you?”

he was right in front of you now. you stuttered before replying, and it clicked in your mind: he was jealous. your demeanor softened.

“you’re mad that i let him kiss me and not you?”

he took a step back, running a hand through his hair as he nodded, a small pout on his lips.

the sight triggered something inside of you. he looked so real, so sad. he looked, for a lack of better words, genuinely hurt. it put the notion in your head that maybe he did care more about marrying you than just taking control of your kingdom.

you sighed, walking past him and to the closet, grabbing your change of clothes before stepping off into the bathroom to change. you heard him let out a soft sigh as you shut the door behind you, he must have assumed you dropped the topic. you didn’t know if he was glad that a fight hadn’t escalated or if he was upset that the conversation didn’t get to the point where he could kiss you and blame it on a flurry of emotions and jealousy.

you got into your sleeping clothes and, trusting that he had changed as well, you stepped back into the bedroom without asking if it was okay. you went straight for the bed, wordlessly finding a comfortable position as he slid in beside you. he reached out to shut off the lights and lay flat on his back, taking deep breaths and trying to get himself to calm down enough to sleep when he felt a weight on his waist followed by a warm presence pressing up against his side. he made a small sound of surprise as he looked down.

there you were, arm draped over his torso, cuddled into his side. your eyes were shut and your head rested against his chest.

any frustration he’d felt towards you far gone, he took the chance to wrap his arms around you, securing you to his body as if you were going to run away at any moment. he leaned down, pressing a soft kiss to the top of your head. it was so light you wondered if he’d meant for you to feel it at all.

you shifted slightly, keeping your arm around his waist as you offered a small smile against his chest.

“there. even.”

things got easier from then on, although you wouldn’t admit it. you’d dropped your attempts  at hating your new fiancé, how were you supposed to dislike him? you hadn’t dropped your hard feelings towards the situation and you definitely hadn’t agreed or started complying to the wedding, but you could bring it upon yourself to keep trying to be cold to minho. not even when the day was filled with wedding planning and dress fitting.

you’d woken up still in minho’s arms, even more so than you’d been when you had fallen asleep. your back was flat against his chest and one of his legs was sprawled over yours, practically trapping you as his arms held you around the waist. 

maybe you should have been surprised to wake up that close to him or tried to pry his hands off of you, but you didn’t, and you didn’t want to. you hated yourself for it, but you were beginning to really consider the idea that he was your best bet. maybe complying and marrying him would be safer and more pleasant than anyone else your parents might throw your direction in the future if this wedding got called off. 

minho shifted beside you, groaning at the light and removing an arm from your body to rub his eyes. the instant he did it, he dropped his arm back around you and held you close, as if he’d made a mistake by letting you go in the first place.

you laughed, and that’s always a good way to start a day.

it amazed minho how much your attitude towards him could change overnight. granted, you weren’t holding his hand and offering him kisses everywhere you went, but you had started actually initiating conversations with him. you joked with him and allowed yourself to laugh at his jokes, you didn’t even ignore him that much anymore. you weren’t treating him like your soon to be husband yet, but still. you treating him like a friend was better than you treating him like an enemy, even if it’s not what he really wanted.

“oh my god.” you groaned, “if i have to look at one more fucking shade of purple that looks exactly like the last and say which looks better i will absolutely lose my shit.”

he laughed, “you’re the one who said i would look hot in purple.”

you sent a glare his way, but it wasn’t like the ones you used to show him. it was joking, friendly.

“i did not say you’d look hot.”

“i think you did.”

“i can promise you i didn’t.”

“no, i’m pretty sure i remember you saying it. i think your exact words were, ‘oh, how lucky am i to have this treasure of a man as my future husband, i think purple-‘“

he was cut off by a call from the doorway of the room the two of you had been in practically all day, helping choose colors and getting fit for your wedding apparel. 

“y/n, prince minho, dinner’s done.”

you knew immediately by the choice of laid back words that it was chan. no one else, not even your other friends, spoke to you like that outside of private.

you turned to the door, “one of these days i’m going to have you tarred and feathered for disrespecting me, bang chan.”

he laughed, “i’m sure you are.”

you met him at the door before minho even had the chance to stand, shoving him lightly.

“i am! watch, i’ll bring it up at dinner.”

he laughed, walking beside you as the three of you made your way to the dining room.

“isn’t it impolite to discuss executions during meal time?”

minho walked silently beside you, it was like you’d completely forgotten his existence once chan showed up.

“i might just break etiquette to speed up your punishment.”

another small laugh from him and then you were walking through the doors and into the dining room. you and minho took your seats at the table and chan took his standing along the wall with the rest of the guard and staff.

you turned to minho, “do you think we’re done for the day, then? or do we have more purple to look forward too?”

he shrugged your attempt at a joke off, trying not to show how bothered he was. so that’s how it was going to be? the second chan leaves, then he’s interesting enough to talk to again?

“maybe they’ll finally start making decorations and the suit and dress.”

either you hadn’t noticed his attitude change or didn’t care enough to react.

“i wonder how quickly they’ll pull things together.”

you really didn’t know. they could rush and work their butts off and you could be getting married within the next week, or they could take as much time as needed for preparations. you didn’t know. and if your parents had any clue, they didn’t bring it up.

their chosen dinner conversations were the same as they had been for the past many nights. talk about the wedding, who was going to be invited. was it bad manners to invite the brides minho had rejected? or was it polite? a good portion of the time not eating was spent with your mother trying to convince you to care more about the wedding. she was wholeheartedly convinced that you’d changed your mind and fallen in love with minho because you were being friendly now. she expected you to care more about the planning now that you didn’t seem so against it.

hurrying away from the dining room as soon as possible by claiming you’d had enough wedding talk for the day, which wasn’t a lie, you and minho made your way back to your bedroom. his earlier frustrations were forgotten as the two of you sat on the bed and talked about various books across the bookshelf. 

as it turned out, some of the books ended up having to be put in storage. not for a lack of room, but simply because two copies were not needed. you shared a lot of the same interests.

“i told you,” he said, only half joking, “we’re meant for each other.”

you shoved him, pulling the book from his hands. before you could reply, he was speaking again.

“be careful! that’s my copy!”

you laughed, clutching the book to your chest and turning away as he reached for it.

“not anymore! it’s ours.”

“it is not. that is very much so mine.”

“no,” you insisted, moving again to keep him from grabbing it, “nothing in this room is yours. it’s all ours. or mine.”

he laughed, stopping his useless attempts at grabbing the book. 

“yours?”

you nodded, “my stuff is still mine. but yours is ours now.”

with that, he jumped on you, tackling you onto your back. you dropped the book somewhere during the attack and it made a loud noise as it fell to the floor.

“what about you?” he asked, easily keeping you from struggling, “you’re mine, aren’t you?”

you stopped struggling, showing him the game was over.

“i don’t belong to anyone.”

you easily shoved him off of you in his stunned state. he hadn’t meant to offend you.

“y/n, that’s not what i meant.”

you cut him off as you shut the bathroom door behind you, night clothes in hand. you took significantly longer to change than you needed, both you and him knew that. he would have had time to crawl into bed and fall asleep three times over as he as waiting for you, but he didn’t. truth be told, he wasn’t sure if he was capable of falling asleep without you beside him anymore. he might have to test that theory, he didn’t know if you would let him hold you that night after he unintentionally upset you.

just as things were beginning to work, he messed it up. he really hadn’t meant to imply he owned you in any way, he was only trying to be cute, maybe get you to say yourself that you were going to marry him, maybe even that you wanted to.

he didn’t know the exact rules of falling in love, but if he could say anything for certain it would be that he was in love with you. maybe it was when he saw your name on that paper and his fantasy became a possible reality that he really fell, or maybe it was when he saw you face to face for the first time after learning you’d be the one he’d marry, he really didn’t know. he had no clue when it changed from some childish crush into fill blown love, but it did.

was it even possible to be in love with someone you’d only met a handful of times and were only paired to marry a few weeks prior? it must have been. otherwise, how would he explain the feeling in his chest whenever he saw you?

when you finally came out of the bathroom, you silently put your clothes in the basket and crawled into bed. like always, minho switched off the lights and secured the covers over himself, shifting until he found a comfortable position. he was debating in his mind if he should reach out and try to hold you or if that would just make everything worse when you scooted so your back was to his chest, not outright cuddling him but giving the invitation.

he obliged immediately, wrapping his arm around you while the other went to play with your hair. he placed another one of his gentle, barely-there kisses to the side of your head as he muttered a soft, “i’m sorry.”

he didn’t know whether you replied or not, he fell asleep as the last syllable fell from his lips.

you didn’t go as easily. if your internal clock was at all accurate, you’d been laying there for  at least two hours, wide awake. you couldn’t pinpoint exactly what was keeping you up, probably the wedding, maybe the small fight with minho. either way, you could think of a better way to spend the time as long as you weren’t going to fall asleep.

carefully, you pulled minho’s arms off of you and slowly crawled out of bed, trying your hardest not to wake him up. you stood at the side of the bed for a moment, watching minho to make sure you hadn’t disturbed him, before creeping over to the door. you opened it as quietly as possible and peaked out. neither of the guards stationed outside your room were chan.

felix was on duty though, and he sent you a confused look as you stepped into the hallway and pulled the door shut behind you. 

“where are you going? if you need something i’ll get it for you.”

you shook your head, “just can’t sleep. is chan in the bunks?”

felix nodded and you started off down the hallway towards the rooms the guards slept in when they didn’t have night duty. 

“hey, wait,” felix called after you, moving slightly as if he were going to follow, “i’m not technically supposed to let you go alone.”

you frowned at him, “it’s literally two minutes away and i’m headed to a room full of guards. i’ll be fine.”

he thought for a moment before moving back to stand in his original position, “fine. but if some hallway demon kills you on the way there that’s on you.”

you chuckled at his joke and made your way through the halls and to the wing that houses all of the staff that lived there. you weren’t technically supposed to go there at night, you weren’t really supposed to even leave your room at night, but none of the guards in the halls tried to stop you on your journey. it wasn’t uncommon for you to visit chan at night, especially not when you were younger. the both of you used to have trouble sleeping and it was much easier for you to sneak out and into his room than the other way around.

you gently opened the door and stepped into the room, heading right for chans bed. there were a dozen other sleeping guards, not all of them from your personal guard, also asleep on their own beds. you tapped chan awake, stifling your laugh when he flinched awake.

you used to wake him at least half of the nights he didn’t have duty, yet he still flinched every time you woke him up.

he looked confused to see you there but he didn’t hesitate to stand and follow you into the hallway.

when there, you went down away from the doors so you could talk freely without disturbing anyone and slid down the wall. chan did the same, seating himself right next to you.

“what’s up? you haven’t woken me up in the middle of the night for a while.”

you laughed, “yeah, i don’t know. i couldn’t sleep. plus, i’ve missed you. even with the guard back, i haven’t been able to spend time with you recently.”

he nodded, leaning to rest his head on your shoulder, “i know. i’ve missed you too.”

there was a brief pause before he spoke again.

“what’s on your mind?”

you scoffed lightly, “i don’t think there’s room for anything other than thoughts about the wedding right now. i can’t even breathe without someone mentioning it.”

chan chuckled, “it is kind of a big deal.”

you ignored him, “i don’t want to marry minho, chan.”

he took a deep breath, “why?”

“why?”

“why? tell me exactly what’s so bad about him.”

you didn’t hesitate before answering, “i’m being forced into it! i didn’t even get a choice, chan!”

he ignored your words, “no, what’s bad about him? not the situation, not the wedding, minho.”

you thought for a moment, wracked your brain for answers, but you couldn’t think of one genuine issue you had against him specifically.  you’d actually began to enjoy being around him.

chan waited for a while before he decided you weren’t going to answer.

“it seems to me like you two click really well.”

you shrugged.

“i think you should give him a chance, y/n.”

your brows furrowed in confusion, “what do you mean?”

“i mean i think you’re upset because you don’t want to get married, not because you don’t want to get married to him. and i think he might be changing your mind whether you know it or not.”

your frown didn’t lift.

“have you ever thought that maybe it’s fate that he ended up being your only option?”

not only did your frown once again not lift, it got deeper.

“i’m telling you y/n, a best friend knows. no matter how much you say you hate him, you’re falling for that boy.”

you cut in without hesitation, “no, i am not.”

his eyes widened and a grin spread across his face, “you are! no one is that defensive when they’re not lying.”

you hit him lightly and he continued, “for real, y/n. i think you like him more than you realize. just play nice for a while.”

“i am playing nice.”

“no,” he said, “you’re acting nice. actually let your guard down around him. let him in. let yourself feel the things you’re feeling for him.”

you grumbled. if anyone was going to be able to talk you into this marriage, it would be chan.

“okay.”

he followed your actions as you stood up.

“do you want me to walk you back?”

you shook your head, “i’ll be fine. go back to bed.”

he chuckled at your grumpy attitude, pulling you into a tight hug before letting you go. he watched until you turned a corner and he could no longer see you before stepping back into his room.

felix greeted you at your bedroom door.

“no hallway demons?”

“no hallway demons.”

“you’re lucky.”

you laughed at the boy and sent him a weird look to which he smiled in return. just as you had earlier, you carefully retraced your steps until you were back in bed with minho. taking chan’s request for you to try to warm up more to the idea of marrying minho, you secured yourself next to him, wrapping an arm around his torso. although, you probably would have done that even if minho’s name hadn’t even come up in your and chan’s conversation. you were finding that being in minho’s arms while you slept felt good. the thought that being held by anyone while sleeping would be comforting, it wasn’t just minho, crossed your mind before chan’s words echoed in your head.

“let yourself feel the things you’re feeling for him.”

maybe it was that it was minhos arms that made it so gentle and caring. if you thought about it, you couldn’t make a list longer than what you could count on one hand of who you would let sleep in the same bed as you, let alone cuddle you while sleeping. you’d only ever fallen asleep in minho of chans arms. and your parents, of course.

maybe you did feel deeper for the boy than you let yourself realize. maybe, despite every word coming out of your mouth insisting that you didn’t, you wanted to marry him.

several days went by, several wedding preparations were made. it turned out that they’d decided to go the rushed route, planning to hold the wedding ceremony as soon as possible. it was only two day’s out now. even though you still hadn’t even officially stated your acceptance of the wedding, preparations were in full force.

as you studied your reflection and took in the details of the gown you’d be wearing as you walked down the isle, you wondered how hard the seamstress’ must have worked to produce such a gorgeous piece of art in only a few days.

it was the traditional white color and it wasn’t anything overly fancy, you’d made it clear you wouldn’t wear it if it was. despite how quickly it had been made, it was clear it wasn’t rushed. every stitch looked perfect.

there were small embroidered designs along the fabric, popping out against the white of the base. the designs were a beautiful lilac purple, and although you knew that you and minho had chosen the exact shade, you wouldn’t have been able to decipher the shade from any of the other light purples that the seamstresses had in stock.

you assumed that minho had the same purple accenting his suit, but you had no clue what it looked like. your mothers were very adamant about neither of you seeing each other in the wedding apparel before the big event.

you bet he looked amazing.

you continued to admire yourself and the dress as several people checked the fitting, making sure the sizing was perfect and didn’t need any more alterations. when they decided it was, you found yourself not wanting to take the dress off quite yet. you couldn’t help but be excited for the next time you’d get to wear it.

minho was waiting for you when you stepped out of the room and into the hallway. apparently his fitting had taken less time than yours. suits did tend to be easier to size.

you let him take your hand as the two of you made your way to your bedroom. you’d taken chan’s advice and stopped shoving down emotions, and it made you realize how much you genuinely enjoyed minho. as much as you hated the way things worked and the way you got put together, you were beginning to think that maybe it had some sense to it. chan might have been right when he said that minho being your only choice was fate.

you dropped his hand to pick up the watering jug and fill it. he insisted on carrying it to your garden. you made no attempt to take it back when he held it out for you.

“no,” you laughed, “i showed you how to tell if they need watered yesterday. you do it.”

his eyes widened, “y/n, i seriously don’t think you want me to do that, i’ll kill them.”

“you will not,” you giggled, “but fine. i’ll help you.”

you approached the first plant along with him. it was a large basil plant. you didn’t use it for cooking or baking, the garden had plenty of basil that was used to harvest, but this one was just for show.

“check the soil.”

he did as you instructed, pressing his fingers into the dirt to check for moisture.

“i think it’s okay?”

his words came out as more of a question than a statement.

you reached forward and double checked, smiling and clapping your hands together when you realized he’d gotten it correct.

he did the same for the next plant, a lavender bush, claiming more confidently now that it didn’t need watered yet either. you checked, letting out an exaggerated gasp.

“i can’t believe you’re trying to kill my lavender plant. how could you?”

he sputtered, “i’m not! i really thought that it was fine!”

you huffed, taking the water from his hand and watering the plant.

“i can never trust you again.”

you started to check the other plants, watering a few of them. he complained and promised he’d learn better, but you continued to ignore him.

“my own fiancé... trying to kill my babies.”

you only stopped teasing him when he wrapped his arms around you from behind, holding you tight and promising into your shoulder that he didn’t want to hurt your plants.

you turned to face him, his hands still resting on your hips.

“okay, i’ll give you one more chance.”

you gestured towards the last few plants you had yet to check, a couple flowers that minho couldn’t what you said were named.

he walked up to them, taking his time to check them before turning to you.

“the yellow ones are okay, the purple and blue ones need watered.”

you eyes him suspiciously as you went to check his claim, breaking out in a smile when you found that he was correct.

“technically, the yellow ones could use a little water, but i’ll say you passed.”

he laughed and watched you water the last plants before reaching out your free hand and taking hold of his. you set the watering can by the door and made your way back to your bedroom where minho dropped your hand and headed to his desk.

he’d grown confident enough in your comfort towards him that he wasn’t afraid to do things like that anymore, drop your hand or break away from a hug. he knew you’d let him hold you again. it wasn’t like less than a week earlier where he felt like you might run away if he didn’t hold you tight enough.

he leaned down and shuffled through some papers on his desk. you recognized them as archery point sheets. he hadn’t been lying when he said he was good, he scored nines and tens easily from distances you wouldn’t have even been able to get close to hitting the target at, even after letting him give you some tips on aiming.

you snickered as you pulled out one specific scoring sheet that caught your eye. it was an insanely long distance round, the longest he’d ever tried yet, and he’d managed to score two nines and an eight.

you laughed as you help the paper up, “an eight? you suck.”

he tried to glare at you, but a smile poked through. you saw him made a move and dropped the paper, darting to get away from him.

he caught you quite easily, tackling you onto the bed. he held you loosely as he straddled you.

“take it back. say i’m the best archer you’ve ever seen.”

you shook your head, smile plastered on your lips.

“take it back!” he whined.

you shook your head again, trying not to laugh.

“whatever.” he released you from his grip, crawling off of you, “this is why i tried to kill your plants.”

you gasped, “i knew it!”

he laughed as he reached for his pajamas, stepping into the bathroom and pulling the door lightly shut. it didn’t close all the way, there was still a small crack. he wasn’t as shy as you were, you’d learned that all too well. you were surprised he even went into the bathroom at all.

he waited until he heard you drop your day clothes into the bin before coming back into the bedroom. he put his dirty clothes next to yours and crawled into bed beside you, following his same routine of shutting off the lights before pulling you into his arms.

as he always did with you there beside him, he fell asleep easily.

you had fallen into a deep sleep as well before something woke you up a couple hours later. you couldn’t say what it was that had woken you, maybe it was nothing at all. regardless, you sat there for a few minutes before realizing you weren’t going back to sleep any time soon. you looked at the boy beside you.

you considered waking him up to keep you company until you could fall asleep again, but decided against it. he looked too peaceful. chan, however, you had no issue waking from a peaceful sleep.

sitting a few yards from any doors leading to people sleeping, you spoke to your best friend.

“am i going crazy, channie?”

he hummed, “probably, but why?”

you sent a light glare towards him before answering, “being kind of excited for the wedding.”

he broke out into a huge grin, “i so called it.”

you frowned in confusion and he continued.

“i said you were in love with him and you so are.”

you shook your head, “i’m not... in love with him,” 

why did the words seem foreign? 

“i just think i might, i don’t know, actually see us working out, and not just as a royal couple, together to rule. like as a genuine pair.”

he made a sound of understanding, “you’re totally in love with him.”

you didn’t deny it a second time.

you frowned as you approached your bedroom door. there was a faint light peaking out from under the crack in the door. you inched it open to find minho awake, sat up on the bed reading with a single lamp on. he looked up when he heard you enter.

“hey,” you greeted him, “why are you awake?”

he shrugged, “guess i got cold without you next to me.”

you got back into bed with him, pulling the blankets over your legs and leaning over to see what he was reading.

“what are you reading?”

he shut the book momentarily, marking his page with his finger and showing you the cover before flipping it back open and resuming where he left off.

you frowned. it wasn’t like him to ignore you like this.

“is something wrong? did you have a nightmare?”

he shut his book, tossing it to the ground beside his side of the bed. he pressed his lips together.

“yeah, i keep having these dreams that my fiancé is leaving in the middle of the night to secretly meet up with some guy. it’s weird.”

you raised your eyebrows, “who told you that?”

he shrugged, “asked the guard outside the door one night after you left what you were doing, he said you were visiting chan.”

you nodded, “yeah, i do that sometimes, is that an issue?”

he scoffed, “no, i just brought it up for fun.”

you pursed your lips, “really, minho? why does it bother you so much?”

there was no hesitation in his next words, almost as if he’d been itching to say them for a while now.

“is there something going on between you two?”

you scoffed, “seriously? you really think that?”

by now he had stood from the bed, “it doesn’t seem so crazy.”

you stood as well, challenging him as you stepped around the bed and in front of him.

“yeah, it does. it sounds insane.”

he looked you straight in the eyes, “does it? because it makes perfect sense to me. you won’t let me kiss you, you won’t sign the marriage contact even though you know you’re stuck with me, you’re so comfortable around him and you keep leaving in the middle of the night to meet with him in secret. it literally screams affair, y/n!”

“you seriously believe that i would cheat on you?”

“i don’t even think you see it as cheating since you don’t take a single fucking part of our relationship seriously.”

he took a step forward and you instinctively stepped back.

“i do take it seriously.”

he continued to close in on you until your back was pressed to the wall.

“then act like it.”

without thinking, you did just that. you acted.

you wrapped your arms around his neck and pulled him down, crashing his lips to yours. it wasn’t what you’d expected your first kiss to be like, you’d actually imagined it would be at the altar, but you weren’t complaining.

he reacted immediately, hands finding their way across your body. he slid one down your leg, stopping at your thigh and tapping it. you got the message, jumping up and wrapping your legs around his waist. your back collided with the wall and the paintings hung there shook a little, but  you couldn’t be bothered to care. not when he tasted as good as he did.

one hand secure on your thigh to hold you up, the other found its way under your night gown and up your bare leg to the bare skin of your torso. he broke away for a moment as his fingers inched higher up.

“is this okay?”

you barely had time to mumbled a yes before your lips were back on his. you hadn’t realized you wanted to kiss him so bad until you finally did.

he let you breathe for a second as he peppered kisses along your neck, his hand exploring your body under your gown. his fingers found their way to your breasts and he squeezed one, causing a soft moan to fall from your lips.

he cursed at the sound, attaching his lips back to yours and turning to walk you to the bed. he easily sat you down, back to the mattress, and hiked up your night dress. you let out another soft moan when his hands finally made their way to your core. he ran his fingers over your clothed folds.

“you swear this is only mine?”

you nodded, “yes.”

“you promise?” he spoke between kisses, “tell me you promise.”

“i promise.”

that seemed to be enough for him as he growled against your lips, slipping his hand down the waistband of your panties.

you struggled to keep quiet as he finally made direct contact to your dripping core.

he cooed, “what, baby? no need to be quiet. who’s gonna hear? the guards?” you could feel his breath against your neck, “is chan on duty? is he right outside the door? let him hear you.”

you could only whine in response as he toyed with your clit.

you made a sound of annoyance when he pulled his hand from your panties, but your disappointment didn’t last for long. he pulled you to sit up so he could remove your night clothes, tossing them god knows where on the ground. he let out a deep groan as his eyes came on contact with your bare chest.

he brought his hands up to cup them, one in each hand.

“you’re gorgeous.”

he let one of his hands fall back to caressing the rest of your body and replaced it with his lips, taking your nipple into his mouth. despite his earlier demands not to try to silence yourself, a hand flew to your mouth as you let out an embarrassingly loud moan for how little stimulation you were getting.

he popped off your breast and licked a long stripe down your stomach until he reached the waistband of your underwear. he glanced up at you to make sure you were still on board before looking his fingers on them and pulling them down your legs. immediately, you tried to close your legs in embarrassment, but he easily held them open. 

he placed sloppy kisses to your neck as his fingers teased your entrance.

“has he ever seen you like this?”

“no.”

“you really expect me to believe that?”

“it’s true.” your words came out strangled as he slowly began to slide a finger into your heat. it was unusual and uncomfortable at first, but you got used to it, nearly screaming when he curled his finger and a line of pleasure shot through you.

he hummed, “i can tell you’re not lying, baby. no one is this sensitive if they’ve been fucking their royal guardsman behind their fiancé’s back.”

you whined as he added another finger, “haven’t- haven’t done this before.”

he hushed you, “i know, angel. you’re doing so well, just relax.”

you gripped tightly onto his shirt as he continued to work his fingers inside of you. with a particularly rough curl of his fingers, you felt something inside of you let go and a wave of pleasure flowed over your body. you let out the most heavenly sounds as minho worked your through your orgasm and he felt a swell of pride knowing that he was the only one who had ever made you feel so good. he was the only one who would ever make you feel this way.

he rode you through your orgasm before placing a gentle kiss to your lips. you tugged are the bottom of his shirt.

“are you sure, baby?”

you nodded, far too worked up to let out coherent words. he complied, slipping his shirt over his shoulders and ridding himself of his pants. you stared at his chest, reaching out to touch his skin before you even realized you were doing it. you slid your hand down his body until you came in contact with his hard length. he hissed as your hand wrapped around him, slowly stroking him. you couldn’t keep your eyes off of his cock as you basked in the sounds he made. the sounds you made him make.

he reached down and grabbed your wrist, “baby, i won’t last much longer if you keep this up.”

you nodded, reluctantly letting him guide your hand away from his length. you wrapped your arms around his neck and buried your fingers in his hair as you felt him like himself up with your entrance.

the noise you let out when he began to sink into you could only be described as divine. minho had to stop for a moment and recollect himself, he really wouldn’t last long if you sounded like that at every move he made.

after a few moments, he was fully buried inside of you. he waited for you to adjust to his size before slowly pulling out, only to roughly slam back into you.

he had every intention of going slow and being gentle for your first time, but everything, from the way your pussy felt wrapped around him to the way you moaned out his name was too much for him.

despite his previous remark for you to let yourself be loud, he guided your face to his shoulder when he became genuinely concerned you may wake the entire castle.

“bite down.”

you did as he said, sinking your teeth into the flesh of the junction between his shoulder and neck. he let out a sound that made you think for a moment that you’d bitten too hard, but when you released your grip he groaned out, asking you to do it again.

he brought his hand between your bodies and began running slow circles onto your clit as his cock worked magic inside of you.

“im close. gonna fill you up, is that okay?”

you barely managed to get out a yes through the pleasure you were feeling. 

“fuck, gonna let me fuck my babies into you, huh?”

he adjusted your legs and the new angle plus his fingers working expertly on your clit threw you over the edge. 

“you’re going to be a great mother one day.”

you bit down hard on his shoulder as you came, only releasing the grip to tell him how good he was making you feel.

he came soon after, muttering praises and gushing about how good you did. he groaned as he gave a last few thrusts, watching as his and your cum leaked out with every thrust of his hips. the sight nearly made him hard again.

he pulled out, grabbing his discarded night shirt and wiping his length off before tossing it to the side again. he leaned back over you, connecting his lips to yours to swallow the whine you let out when his fingers connected back to your core.

he collected the cum that had dripped out and spread itself along your thighs and onto the sheets, pushing it back into you with his fingers.

he hushed you as you whined from overstimulation, “i know baby, i know, but we don’t wanna waste any, do we?”

you shook your head.

“no, we don’t. that’s my good girl.”

he connected his lips back to yours, “you’ll look gorgeous with my baby in your belly.”

you were honestly too fucked out to process anything that was happening, just laying there and letting him do what he wanted. despite the discomfort the overstimulation brought, you couldn’t help but complain when he pulled his fingers out of you, wiping them on his night shirt and slipping your panties back onto you.

needless to say, you slept easily after that.

you were beyond sore the next morning, but you couldn’t bring yourself to regret it. the achy legs and raw throat were worth it.

you hurried to get dressed and shower off the sweat and other substances on your body the next morning before hurrying down for breakfast. minho had showered with you, insisting that since he made the mess, he should clean it up.

although your parents had already been confident that you’d changed your mind about the wedding, if anyone had doubts, including yourself, they were long gone.

a drastic change from even just the day before, you and minho stole kisses nearly any time you could. leaning over to grab the salt? kiss. walking past him to grab a book? kiss. sitting down waiting for more orders on how to help prepare for the wedding that was only a day away? kiss, kiss, kiss.

you’d been so caught up in your newfound love for kissing your fiancé that you didn’t even notice as chan snuck up to talk to you.

instinctively, minho’s arm tightened around your waist. he believed you when you promised him that you and chan were just friends, but he was still protective.

“so... hyunjin tells me i was right.”

you frowned in confusion, “what?”

“hyunjin said i was right. he had guard duty outside of your room last night and he told me you really warmed up to minho overnight.”

you nearly choked on your own spit at the realization that not only had your guards, your friends, heard last nights events, by the sound of it, they’d told everyone else.

minho didn’t even try to his hide proud smile has you blushed, covering your face in his chest.

chan turned to minho, “i knew she’d fall for you eventually. she used to gush about how cute you were when we were kids.”

you opened your mouth to protest, “that is not true.”

it really wasn’t. maybe you’d mentioned that he was easier to be around than many of the other royal, stuck up kids, but you had never said anything close to what chan claimed.

chan turned to minho, nodding his head as he scratched his nose, “it’s totally true.”

“it’s literally just not.”

he made a sound of disagreement.

“that is a big fat lie and you know it!”

you reached out to hit him and he dodged it, making a scene out of saying felix called him before hurrying away. you turned to minho.

“it’s not true.”

he shrugged, “it’s probably true.”

“it’s not!”

when you walked down the isle, minho could have swore his heart stopped. you looked gorgeous. the dress framed you perfectly and the delicate flower crown placed on your head looked just on you. he made a mental note to compliment whoever had planned your full outfit.

the closer you got, the more minho worried that your vows would be droned out by the sound of his heart beating against his rib cage.

you finally stepped in front of him, letting him get a clear view of you in your dress for the first time. you weren’t much better, speechless as you took in how handsome he looked. your felt your eyes began to well up at the realization of what was happening. who would have known you’d be crying from happiness, not disappointment or fear?

your eyes met minho’s own glassy ones and you let out a small laugh, speaking so only he could hear.

“i was right when i said you’d look hot in purple.”

[marshmallow-phd]

Gravity

Genre: Angst, Unrequited Love

Pairing: Junmyeon x Reader

A/N: This was basically just a therapy write. 

**

What is worth? It is neither tangible nor seeable. It doesn’t have a body or a shell. Yet, the endless chase to catch it, to hold it captive, is a never ending disease that eats away at the brain and tears apart the heart. It’s only descriptor is feeling. A judgement. Something either is or isn’t. When it's an object in question, the call for worth is passive, innocent. It’s wanted or it's not. The deterioration comes into play when the worth is applied to a person. 

Kim Junmyeon was worth the world. 

With a smile that could chase away a storm and a heart too good and pure for the human populace, he was truly worth more than the world. He was worth more than you deserved. 

Not only was his face kind, but it was handsome. Beautiful, even. Candid photos were museum worthy masterpieces. There was a gentleness, a softness to his eyes and cheeks that contradicted the sharpness of his jaw and the strength of his body. His laugh was infectious and his mind as vast and deep as the ocean. The sum of his whole was worth so much. 

But you were not worthy of such a person. You weren’t as stunning as a sunset over the mountains or as extraordinary as a new discovery. You were simply… you. Staring from afar, admiring but never touching. 

You wished you could be worthy. You wished you could be special enough - good enough to be with him. Pretty enough would be something decent to settle for. But you were invisible. A person on the sidelines. Out of the spotlight. You were an admirer - not one to be admired. 

“You’re doing it again.”

You blinked, your attention torn away from the spot where Junmyeon was standing, laughing and chatting with a few of his seniors. Kyungsoo, who sat to your left at the small table in the entertainment building’s cafe, didn’t even look up from the script he was currently reviewing. He’d only been given it the day before and was still considering if he wanted the part that was being offered to him. 

Your gaze dropped to the opened yet untouched notebook lying in front of you on the somewhat sticky surface. Someone must have spilled their syprup-y coffee and didn’t do the best job at cleaning it up. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Without moving his head, Kyungsoo looked at you over the rim of his glasses. Even though you were sure you were nothing more than a blur to his eyes at the moment, he could always see right through you. “If you keep staring at him like that, you’re going to give yourself away.”

The ultimate nightmare. The humiliation of being found out. The sweet but awkward rejection that you knew would follow. With his laugh still ringing in your ears, you forced yourself to tune Junmyeon out. 

Pushing his glasses up his nose with his middle finger, Kyungsoo straightened and closed the script. “We can go somewhere else, if that would help.”

You wanted to argue no. That you weren’t a coward. That you weren’t going to run and hide simply because you looked at him like he was the night sky while you were stuck on the ground. You used to have better control of yourself. You used to be able to hide it better. But lately, it had only gotten worse. 

And you were a coward. 

“Yeah. Maybe one of the practice rooms is empty.”

“There’s usually one.”

After gathering up your things, you followed Kyungsoo out of the cafe, stealing a final glance. Junmyeon didn’t so much as twitch in your direction. It wouldn’t have been surprising if he hadn’t even realized that you were there in the cafe for the past half hour. 

Kyungsoo settled into one corner of the worn navy blue couch while you squeezed into the other. Not speaking a word, he went back to reading the script. That was a nicety of your friendship. Comfortable silence was more than readily available when needed. He didn’t push or give unasked for advice. He was an ear to listen and a presence to take in when you didn’t want to be alone. 

You stared down at the notebook in your lap where your next story ideas were supposed to be filling the pages. But nothing was coming out. Not even the vague pictures you’d had earlier this morning. The only things being called to the paper were the sentences held in the invisible tears you refused to shed. Words of wishes and frustrations swirled around inside the tiny droplets, every letter as heavy as lead. Your cruel mind kept echoing at you the conversation that had constricted the air in your lungs. 

Two days ago, you’d accidentally overheard a drama staff worker jokingly say that Junmyeon and his current co-star seemed awfully close, more than merely friends. Stomach lurching, you ran to the nearest bathroom. Nothing came out but almost fifteen minutes of deliberate breathing had gone by before you emerged again. Kyungsoo was quick to dismiss the comment after barely three words from you. The effect, however, still lingered. 

Despite the history of your intrusive thoughts, you wanted to believe that you could be good enough. That you were worthy of being beside someone like Junmyeon. His co-costar was stunning, even in real life. Someone who didn’t need photoshop to draw out gasps of awe and astonishment. Someone you most certainly couldn’t compete with in any race. 

You weren’t asking for much. Just to be able to hold his hand, your fingers interlaced between his own. The fantasy you allowed yourself to indulge in at times wasn’t a grand gesture or a modern fairytale. You wanted simplicity. The smaller moments that could mean so much. Mundane, to some eyes. 

Warm sun rays leaked through the closed blinds over the living room windows. A clock on the wall ticked away the meaningless minutes. Sometimes soft music hummed in the background, sometimes there was nothing but silence. Junmyeon would lay across the length of the couch with you wrapped around his side. His fingers would absentmindedly caress your shoulder or arm. In his other hand was a book, held open by his thumb and pinky. Your own hand drifted through his hair while he read aloud. 

The two of you had dozens of endless conversations about books. About the ones you loved and the ones you hated. About deeper meanings and the reflections of life. His love of literature - from the celebrated classics to the obscure unknown - had been what initially drew you in. Everything else was what made you stay.

A muscle in your hand cramped. The peaceful scene faded from your eyes. The page was now filled with barely legible, ink-smeared words. You’d written the entire scenario out, along with your heart, without even realizing it. 

In a panic, you ripped the paper from its spiral hold, crumpled it up, and tossed it to the trash can across the room. It missed. 

“I doubt whatever you wrote was that bad,” Kyungsoo murmured. He read the final few lines of the script and closed it. 

“It wasn’t,” you admitted bitterly. “But I shouldn’t have written it.” You described the scene to him while your eyes stayed trained on the loose thread twirling between your fingers. 

He sighed. “You’re never going to tell him, are you?”

“I can’t.”

“You can. You’re just stopping yourself.”

You scoffed. “Why would I deliberately set myself up like that? Break me the rest of the way?”

Kyungsoo stared at you, long and hard, his expression blank to those who couldn’t read the tell-tale signs that his thoughts were in overdrive. “You’re really hurting, aren’t you?”

You sniffed, though no tears were yet forcing their way to the surface. “Most days.”

“Then walk away.”

“I can’t.” Your voice broke - just like your heart. The world blurred when you shook your head. “I can’t… simplify it. But-- It’s like I was this stupid lump of rock drifting aimlessly through space, content with my life. Then suddenly, I came across this brilliant star that shined so brightly and… we collided. And now I’m stuck in his orbit. But he just keeps on spinning while my whole world had changed completely. He’s… my gravity. I don’t know anything else anymore.”

“Maybe it’s time to find your own orbit.”

Afraid it might crack again, your voice was barely a whisper. “I don’t know how.”

The door creaked open and your heart leapt. Junmyeon stuck his head inside. Had he overheard everything?

“There you are! I turned away for a second and suddenly you two weren’t in the cafe anymore.”

He’d… He’d seen you? In the cafe?

“It was too loud,” Kyungsoo lied, covering up for you like he always did. 

“It’s always too loud for you,” Junmyeon teased. Then his face morphed into that leader-esque expression. “We need to head to rehearsal. You’re welcome to join us,” he nodded to you.

“No, that’s okay,” you said quickly in response. “I have a writer’s meeting.” No, you didn’t, but space felt like the right choice at the moment. You tried not to focus on the lack of disappointment coming from the direction of the door. 

“Maybe next time.” Junmyeon slapped the side of the door. “Let’s go, Soo.”

You were actually the first one on your feet, muttering goodbyes to both of them and then walking down the hall perhaps a little too fast. 

You didn’t allow your mind to think the whole way home. Every action was done in automatic mode. Only the minimal amount of awareness was used. But when the apartment door clicked behind you, when the near darkness wrapped you up, when the silence crept in and the empty couch mocked you… you broke. 

Knees buckling from under you, the cold hard floor came closer and you didn’t leave that spot just inside the room as the tears and sobs crashed out in waves. 

This was what you hated the most. The breakdowns that came with no excuse. They were built up by your own mind, by your intrusive thoughts. You tortured yourself with what you could never have. The attacks were random and it was only recently that you had learned to hold them in long enough until you were safe within your own walls. One time, you hadn’t made it. Kyungsoo had been there to pat your shoulder. 

Kyungsoo. He was right. 

That clarity was coming through as the tears dried and your breathing evened out again. You needed space. You needed to separate yourself from what wasn’t good for you and not see him. Not even have the temptation to. 

This was going to hurt like hell. 

**

The office somehow looked smaller with the bare walls. Since the day you moved in, you tried to liven it up, give it character, make it reflect the interests you loved. How were you supposed to write if this place felt like a stifling corporate desert, dry of any creativity?

Not that you ever actually wrote in this twelve by eight space. This place had been reserved for meetings and other usually boring necessities. You didn’t know the next time a budget meeting or an email check would be conducted here. You could be back in a few months and move back in as if you never left. Or someone else could take over. Only time would tell. 

The box that currently had your attention was nearly full. You’d have to come back for the rest. There wasn’t much left, anyway. You took another look around to see if there was anything else you could do at the moment. The monitors were black, the tower underneath - so much smaller than the one you’d had as a kid - was powered off, and the chair that was aligned just so to your favored adjustments was pushed into the gray desk. Saying goodbye to this place really did hurt. 

But you needed to do this. 

And yet, you felt like you were drowning, being dragged deeper into the black water. Your lungs were screaming for relief. 

“You’re really leaving?”

Your shoulders stiffened. At first, you didn’t look up at him. You weren’t sure what to say to him. Being here… it was the last place you expected him to be today. Kyungsoo would have told him, but you wouldn’t have waited around for him to appear. 

“Hi, Junmyeon.” You folded up the top of the box, overlapping the pieces so it would stay shut in transport. 

“I thought you liked it here?”

“I love it,” you confessed. “But I- I need to go home for a little while.”

“Are you homesick?”

“Something like that.” Definitely some version of sick. 

He nodded. “Will you be gone long?” His eyes drifted over the holes in the walls leftover from the frames that used to hang in front of them. 

“I don’t know.” You shifted your weight from one foot to the other. This was…. You should go. Pushing your fingers under the box, you started to lift it to take it home. 

“Do you have to go?”

The question stalled you. Confused, the box went back down on the desk. “Why are you here, Junmyeon?”

He shrugged, though it didn’t shake off the stiffness in his shoulders. His hands were stuffed in his pockets, his arms all the way to his wrists covered up by the sleeves of his shirt. Lately he had been rolling them up. You wondered what had changed today. “You’re our friend.”

Friend. 

Friend. Friend. Friend. 

The word rang over and over like a declaration of war. Our friend. 

The smart thing to do would have been to nod, say goodbye, and leave. But - instead - you opened your mouth. 

“I will always be your friend.”

That didn't make him smile like you would have thought. “So, then why do you have to leave?”

You rubbed your eyebrow, fighting within yourself. You lost. 

“Have you ever had a friend so head over heels for someone that won’t even look at them twice? But they don’t care? Because as long as the person they’re looking at is happy, then they’re happy. Even if your friend is completely miserable in the process. Because they no longer care about their own self. They just keep looking at the other person, doing anything that entails that they’re still happy.” You swallowed thickly to try and keep your voice steady. By your sides, your hands were trembling at this roundabout confession. “And you want to shake them. You want to tell them to get out. Because as long as they stick around, they won’t look at one else. No one else exists. Well, this is me. Getting out.”

The frown on Junmyeon’s face deepened as he let your words sink in. “Who is it? Will you tell me?”

No. Because this was enough of an admittance. Because it was time to find your own sense of gravity. 

So, without a word, you picked up the box and left the office. 

Waiting for you when you came back was the scene you had written in the practice room that day, flattened out but still wrinkled as it laid on the desk.