#to all the boyz I've loved before

[sailorlucid]

[blizzardfluffykpop]

Christmassy [12 days of Winter Year #8]

(Tagged as: Wintertime 3)

Main Masterlist

Prompt List

By Days:

Santa Baby (Eric X Reader)

Christmas Decorations (Sangyeon X Reader)

Warm (Sunwoo X Fem! Reader)

Missing You (Kevin X Reader)

Snow Flurries on the Racetrack (Hyunjae X Reader) [Suggestive]

Xmas Movies (Changmin X Reader)

Baking Cookies (Sunwoo X Reader)

First Snowman Together (Younghoon X Reader)

Blizzards (Changmin X Reader)

Matching Pajamas (Sangyeon X Reader)

Christmassy?→ (Changmin X Reader)

A Good Difference (Eric X Reader)

Dancing & Laughter (Younghoon X Reader)

A Christmas Delight (Hyunjae X Reader)

A Creepmas Party (Changmin X Reader)

By Prompts:

Santa Baby (Eric X Reader)

A Christmas Delight (Hyunjae X Reader)

First Snowman Together (Younghoon X Reader)

Christmas Decorations (Sangyeon X Reader)

Christmassy?→ (Changmin X Reader)

Xmas Movies (Changmin X Reader)

Snow Flurries on the Racetrack (Hyunjae X Reader) [Suggestive]

Missing You (Kevin X Reader)

A Creepmas Party (Changmin X Reader)

Baking Cookies (Sunwoo X Reader)

Blizzards (Changmin X Reader)

Warm (Sunwoo X Fem! Reader)

Bonus Fics:

Matching Pajamas (Sangyeon X Reader)

A Good Difference (Eric X Reader)

Dancing & Laughter (Younghoon X Reader)

[liulith]

We as a fandom need to open our hearts to the insane comedic potential of Sir Pentious being included as a background character in stories taking place in the "old days" before Vox and Alastor's falling out. AND the comedic potential of one-sided Sir Pentious -> Vox.

Why?

Canon!Sir Pentious is attached to his era's aesthetics but he also wants to be "hip and cool" (see pilot episode; Sir Pentious as the how do you do fellow kids meme) and join the "Almighty Vees". When did he start wanting that? He's not a media demon trying to keep up with his audience and be a likeable public figure. He's a mechanic trying to conquer Hell by force thanks to his machines and obviously relishes in acting like a villain (fear me! I'm so evil! I'm the architect of destruction! etc. etc).

This is very different from the Vees' approach - maintaining a perfect public image, insidious manipulation tactics... Vox threatens Alastor in the show, but the Vees clearly haven't built their power through turf wars, which is and has always been Pentious' one and only strategy. All the machines we've seen him make are war weapons (+ the Egg Boyz who do his bidding, and help him operate those very weapons). Voxtek probably sells weaponry too but that is more Camilla's domain, so it would be more logical for Pentious to try and join her.

Pentious' and the Vees agenda and interests aren't aligned, so why is Pentious so desperate to join the Vees?

there are many reasons why Pentious could want to be part of the Vees besides the one I'm gonna talk about but you know what MY agenda is:

Vox is Pentious' idol. Pentious is an inventor, an innovator. He would have loved waking up in Hell with a mechanical body he can upgrade however he wants and finds the whole concept fascinating.

He's not against new technology, as his creations clearly go beyond what people could have had invented in his time despite their "steampunk" aesthetic (see: the effing death ray). So I think his current "limitations" are more a matter of him having to stick with what he knows best because it's hard to keep up with the constant stream of new tech. This is why he's more than impressed with Vox's extraordinary ability to adapt to change and master new technologies again and again. He's a fellow innovator! That's one reason for Pentious to be obsessed with the guy.

And if you think obsessed isn't the right word, think about this: Sir Pentious repeatedly challenges Alastor to fights even though he's clearly outmatched and it's an incredible risk to take considering what Alastor does. Pentious is OLDER than Alastor, he was there when he broadcast the most powerful Overlords' scream all over Hell. Plus, losing always leaves him in a very vulnerable position (without his best weapons). Is it madness? Hubris? An obsession for Alastor? No!

Sir Pentious to Alastor: Silence! Now Cower! For when I've slain you, the Almighty Vees will finally acknowledge me!

Sir Pentious thinks defeating Alastor is the only way the Vees will finally acknowledge him. No matter how dangerous it is, he has to try, for the Vees (Vox). Just like he took the risk of angering the Princess of Hell to get in Vox's good graces. This says a lot, for someone as paranoid as him, who doesn't trust anyone who is "too nice" to him.

If Hazbin had more episodes there should have been one about Pentious struggling with the fact he disappointed his idol and told to KHS 👀

(btw this is old news but we know that one of the Hazbin episodes that Viv originally pitched was about a science contest organized by Voxtek in which Pentious and Baxter competed against each other! Pentious could have done that after ep2!)

Anyway, back to the comedic potential of it all & Vox's arrival in Hell. Can you imagine his reaction as a newly fallen Sinner, when he's hanging out with Alastor (aka following him like a lost puppy?) and he meets Sir Pentious for the first time? Like sure, Hell is full of insane people but Alastor obviously has a Reputation and no one ever challenges him. And suddenly... Hm... Alastor?? There's an airship with a giant cannon pointed right as us?? Firing a DEATH RAY?!

It's also so funny to imagine Sir Pentious being obsessed with Alastor and considering him his archnemesis back in the day, only to slowly become obsessed with Vox instead and only caring about defeating Alastor because he thinks Vox will like it. It starts with Sir Pentious trying to "gather intel" on Alastor's new "ally", spying on them or sending his Egg Boyz to do so (and we already know great he is at spying so you can guess how that goes lol), and the rest is history.

Alastor loves attention so he probably let Pentious spy on him behind bushes from time to time if only because it's very entertaining to watch him try to be discrete and make his shadow tap on his shoulder. How hilarious would it be if Alastor noticed Sir Pentious' growing crush on Vox but not Vox's crush on him? Also, Vox misunderstanding Pentious and Alastor's relationship and thinking Pentious is a weird obsessive ex... The world is a stage and the stage is a world of entertainment!

[chryblossomjjk]

the weekend | jjk

⇢ PAIRING: dilf!jk x babysitter reader

⇢ RATING/GENRE: m/18+ | fwb, sm*t, angst

⇢ WC: 13.8k

⇢ WARNINGS: alright boyz strap in bc it's a doozy lmao, protected s*x, multiple org*sms (m & f), or*l s*x (m receiving), face f*ck, f*ngering, rough s*x, face slapping, sp*nking, exh*bitionism, sir k*nk, t*tty f*ck, t*tty sucking (duh), body piercings (n*pples), age gap (reader is 23 and jk is like 30), infid*lity (reader is the other woman), ch*king, overst*mulation, sp*tting, man handling, finger s*cking, d*m jk, brief mentions of past add*ction, implied passing of a bby (mainly subtext w no details given), maybe unrequited love, maybe not (EVIL CACKLE), some dark thoughts discussed (nothing too graphic or detailed), fighting n yelling n crying yikes, all of these characters are v flawed (except for yul duh), cute bby moments!!, oc is v immature n naive n contradicts herself a lot, she maybe has a thing for older guys bc of that, some bl*od (just a scrape on the knee but ik bl*od can be triggering), this relationship is extremely toxic and not meant to be desired!!!, one homage to trixie mattel lmao

⇢ SUMMARY: every weekend, you give jungkook a little taste of something he’s missing monday through friday.

⇢ NOTES: so after months and months of planning this fic (i literally posted the teaser in JANUARY UM??), it's finally here. i think this is my fav thing i've written thus far and i worked v hard on this! would love to know ur thoughts, feedback is always appreciated!! ty @/taegularities for betaing!! (for whatever reason, this fic refuses to show up in tags n it sucks n nothing i do fixes it so i shall leave it be lol)

You can't tell what’s louder—the crunch of dewy, end-of-summer grass pricking the soft skin of your thighs like angry thorns, or the cracking of bones as your body thumps to the ground from your bedroom window. 

“Ah-” the whine is quickly stifled by a sharp hiss as you remember your dad’s sleeping figure is just behind the wall next to you. “Ouch,” you whimper, praying that the crash hasn’t reached his watchful ears. Carefully, you climb to your feet, brushing the dirt off your bare legs. You spot a fresh crimson scrape on your knee.

Fucking great. 

Finally, after days of longing and waiting, the weekend has arrived. Today, in particular, is a fantastic day. You were trying to look sexy, and blood isn't exactly the sexiest accessory. Bringing your wrist up to your nose, you inhale the candy-scented liquid you had doused yourself in before leaving. 

Perfume still in check, thank fuck.

Goosebumps form on your skin as you take long, dutiful strides, cool night mist gliding through the thin material of your long silk shirt. You’ve committed this path to memory—out the window, usually in a more graceful manner, through the neighbor’s yard, and then straight down the sidewalk to the black Mercedes Benz waiting for you at the end of the road. 

If you hadn’t done this a million and one times already, you might’ve missed the vehicle, so dark that it blends into the night seamlessly. You can’t help but wonder if that’s his goal entirely. 

Still, the excitement of it all makes you walk a little faster. 

“Hey, Jungkook,” you smile as you slide into his black leather passenger seat, leaning over the center console to give his cheek a gentle peck. Maybe you’ve overstepped a boundary and muddied the lines in the sand of your… relationship, but you can’t help yourself. Seeing Jungkook was always a treat, one you looked forward to every Friday night for the past five months.

“Hi,” he says impassively, eyes darting over your figure. A loose strand of hair dangles in front of his eyes, teasing you. “You’re wearing makeup?”

“Oh, um…” You’re at a loss for words; surprised he noticed such a slight change in your appearance. Although his perceptiveness was something you noted shortly after you began working for him, you can’t help but feel flustered. “Yeah, I… wanted to look nice tonight. Totally busted my ass climbing out the window,” you laugh.

“Did you get hurt?” His straight brows furrow slightly, silver piercing reflecting the moonlight. 

“Just a scratch.” You lift your leg to show him the red mark on your knee. “Didn’t break anything, though, so that’s a plus.”

Wordlessly, Jungkook reaches over, popping open the glove compartment before you and pulling out the first aid kit he keeps there for emergencies. The scent of clean linen wafts over you from his daily cologne. His scent. Only his. You try your best to subdue the possessive smirk forming. “You should be more careful.”

“I’m okay.”

“Be more careful,” he commands, peering up at you with an icy gaze. “Got it?”

Whether it’s the seven-year age gap between the two of you or the tone of his voice, you know better than to argue. “Yes,” you wince as he rubs Neosporin onto the open wound. “Besides, I wouldn’t have gotten hurt if my dad wasn’t so… overprotective.”

“Well,” he continues, sticking a pink Baby Shark bandaid to your skin before putting the box back, “as a father, I understand.”

“Yul is two, though,” you laugh, “I’m in my twenties.”

“Being in your early twenties hardly makes you an adult,” he mutters. "Besides, it doesn't matter. The need to protect your children always stays the same.”

“Poor Bunny,” you pout jokingly as you click your seatbelt on. “She’s going to be just like me when she’s older. Sneaking out of a window to see a boy because her daddy is a big grizzly bear.”

The comment has his nose twitching in irritation. “I’m done with this conversation, __.”

You freeze. Have you struck a nerve?

“Jungkook, I’m sorry,” you peep. “I didn’t mean to-”

“Stop.” His voice is flat, but your heart thumps. “It’s fine.”

All the excitement you feel suddenly morphs into an uncomfortable ache as you slump into your seat. It’s different than it was last weekend, positioned much closer to the dashboard than you would ever put it. There’s a claustrophobic sting in your chest as you realize someone else has been in this very spot. 

You know they have, and you know who. 

The deafening sound of the bulky silver band on his finger, tapping against the steering wheel as he begins driving to the hotel you frequent, is a sick reminder.

You swear there’s even a musky floral scent lingering in the air. Deeper and more mature than yours. It could be paranoia, or guilt, making you imagine things. Still, you hope your perfume finds its way into every fiber of his leather seats. 

“How was your day?” Jungkook asks, interrupting any rational thought or doubt, luring you back into the vicious cycle. 

“A bit stressful,” you sigh. “I applied for school today.”

“That’s good.”

“Yeah, pretty sure I messed up on the financial aid paperwork, though. It was super confusing; I didn’t understand any of it.”

“You should’ve brought it over. I could’ve helped you.” 

Jungkook does have a master’s degree in finance. He could’ve been your Rosetta Stone, helping you decipher convoluted questions about taxes and deductions. However, you weren’t sure how he would’ve reacted to you pulling out your laptop post-sex, asking for assistance on something completely unrelated to your normal routine. “That’s not the type of thing we usually do when we’re together,” you shrug, “you know?”

Your response has him shifting in his spot, pierced bottom lip curling inwards like the words made him queasy. He was the one who encouraged you to go back to school in the first place. “I wouldn’t have minded,” Jungkook mumbles before quickly redirecting the dialogue, something he does whenever he’s frustrated or uncomfortable. “So, what’s the special occasion?” 

“Huh?” 

“What’s got you all dolled up?”

Oh, right. That special occasion. The one you’ve been anticipating since you were made aware of its existence. 

“Happy three years sober!” You announce with a cheesy smile, throwing your arms up eagerly. 

“Ah,” he huffs in recognition. His eyes are fixed on the road, but there’s the tiniest hint of a smirk on his face. Success. It takes everything in you not to physically rejoice. “I’m surprised you remembered.”

“What do you mean?” You ask with a pout. “How could I forget?”

“I don’t know.” Just like that, the flicker of happiness wisps away like a flame in the wind as his expression turns emotionless and stoic again. “It’s not really a big deal.”

You frown. Must he always be so… cold? 

‘It’s okay to smile; you deserve it,’ is what you want to tell him. It's not your place, though. You opt for: “It’s a huge deal, Jungkook,” instead. Reaching over, you gently tuck the stray strand of hair behind his decorated ear. 

A somber aura hangs around him like a dark, dreary rain cloud, and in moments like this, when it’s so visible, you just… need to touch him.

It’s stupid to think that you’re the special one; that you’ll be the girl to turn the rain into a rainbow and save him from himself, but you can’t refrain from trying. 

“Did you celebrate?”

He shakes his head. “Went to work.” 

You can tell from his outfit—a sleek black blazer resting neatly on top of an even darker button-up and tie. His long hair is slicked back, but gravity, and his ten-hour long shift took their toll, making the strands hang slack, short undercut peaking through. He looks so incredibly sexy. Maybe, you can comfort him in the only way you know how…

“Well, there’s still time.” You point to the clock on his touchscreen stereo: 11:12 p.m. You throw your hair over your shoulder before slowly undoing the top two buttons of your shirt, revealing the skimpy black lingerie set you splurged on just for tonight. Just for him. “We can celebrate…”

“Yeah?” His cheek bubbles, tongue poking at the inside of his mouth, eyebrow jumping at your suggestion. “How so?”

You bite your lip, contemplating your next move. Hastily, you unbuckle your seatbelt and lean over the center console. It’s reckless, but so is being with a man like Jungkook. When you finally get to have him the way you want, you’re incapable of rationality. 

One night of him isn’t enough. What kind of tease is that? You need at least six more to be satisfied…

“__,” he warns, arching his head away from your sneaky lips.  “Put your seatbelt on. Wait until we get to the hotel.”

“Where’s the fun in that, though?” You pout, cupping his cheek in your hand and batting your eyelashes innocently. Jungkook doesn’t take the bait, giving the desolate road ahead his unwavering attention. Despite his nonchalant demeanor, you can tell you’re getting to him. Below you, his slacks tighten around his thick, tensed thighs. He’s playing right into your hands. Needily, you tongue the little silver hoops dangling from his ear. 

“If I have to pull over, you’re in trouble.”

“Maybe I-”

A hushed ‘fuck’ cuts you off as the car comes to a screeching halt. Jungkook slams on the brakes, coming too close to the slower vehicle in front of you for comfort. Luckily, his dad reflexes kick in. His strong hand grips your waist tightly, preventing you from barreling forward. You brace yourself by clutching his shoulders, and when the adrenaline rush fades, you finally look at him. His nostrils are flared, and his jaw is clenched painfully tight. He’s pissed. 

You know you should apologize, or be a little shaken up, but the blinking of the turn signal as he pulls to the side of the dark highway has your mouth watering. This is just what you wanted. 

Jungkook sighs in frustration, tilting his head back against the headrest. The movement is counterintuitive, exposing the inked canvas of his neck that you’re desperate to paint red and purple. 

A hand fists your tangled hair, pulling you off with a harsh yank before you have the chance to sink your teeth in. The silver ring on his finger digs into your scalp like a knife. “Do not fucking mark me.”

The feeling of the frigid metal is agonizing. Not physically—his grip loosens immediately after the initial tug—but emotionally. You know why he doesn’t want you to mark him. Any evidence of you, other than your weekly babysitting duties, would unravel the entire life he’s built for himself. 

Jungkook is an intelligent man, though. You don’t have to tell him that it’s all a façade, and everything’s already been undone. 

“I’m sorry.” Your voice comes out frail and shaky. “I just want you.”

And like some cruel joke, his phone rings. 

The contact image would typically make you swoon. It’s a picture of him and his daughter from her first birthday party; her sticky, strawberry ice cream covered hands holding his cheeks as he stares at her with scrunched eyes and a big smile. You think that picture is the only time you’ve ever seen him genuinely happy.

The bold, white font at the top of the screen makes you sick to your stomach. 

‘Wife.’

Jungkook releases your hair and places a finger over his mouth, signaling you to shut up,  before answering. 

“Yes, Seulgi?”

“Your daughter would like to speak to you.” 

Her voice makes you want to curl into yourself. Whenever you talk to Seulgi regarding Yul, you’re able to compartmentalize and detach that part of yourself from this one. The one that’s sleeping with her husband. Hearing her in this compromised setting makes you feel absolutely repulsive. 

After some rustling and tiny sniffles, Yul answers. “Da-” She only manages a syllable before breaking into a cry-induced coughing fit. You cringe, poor Bunny. “Daddy!”

“What’s wrong with my baby?”

You don’t mean to giggle, especially when the little girl you’ve grown to love so much is clearly distressed, but the intimidating, grumpy, tattooed businessman beside you, talking in full-on pout, tickles your brain just right.

“I don’t wanna sleep alone!” Yul screeches in the most anguished, high-pitched tone.

“Bunny…” With the way his hands scrub down his face, you can tell the tears on the other end are physically affecting him. “Take a deep breath, please.”

There’s a shaky inhale, and a sad whine of an exhale as she tries to steady her respirations.

“Thank you, good job,” he affirms. “Yul, daddy is…” Dark pupils flicker over to you, his face scowled to match. He eyes you like you’re an annoying stain on his leather seat. A dirty little secret that’s keeping him from his daughter. The gesture sends a dagger through your chest. Usually, Jungkook tells his wife he’s working overtime, but he can’t bring himself to lie to his only daughter. “Busy.”

“B-B-But.” The wails have simmered down to a blubber. “Scared.”

“You have mommy, though, don’t you?” He counters exasperatedly, cogs turning at maximum speed to conjure up a solution. “And Ruru?”

Yul is a persistent girl. You’ve seen the two-and-a-half-year-old deadpan Jungkook with a ‘you can have them, then,’ when he tried to convince her that vegetables were delicious and totally not an abomination to tastebuds. “Jeon Ruru is scared, too.”

After a few months of dedication and trust building, Yul finally initiated you into her inner circle of squishmallows, all of which shared the surname, Jeon, followed by whatever random title her baby brain bestowed them. Jeon Ruru, a glass of strawberry milk, was her favorite. You coo in remembrance. 

“What about Ado?” Jungkook suggests, exhausting all his options.

“Ado?” She peeps curiously, and you can almost see her doe eyes scanning the room for her runner-up, an avocado squishmallow you gifted her. “Ado’s sleepin’.”

“Can you go get him?”

There’s a long pause of contemplation before the pitter-patter of tiny feet on wood fills the speakers. “Jeon Ado!” She calls out, voice becoming distant as she runs to her bedroom, “daddy wantsa’ talk to you!” You make out a quiet ‘I’ll tuck you in’ when Seulgi helps her to bed. “Okay,” Yul huffs, breathless from her scurry down the long corridor, “he’s here.”

“Jeon Ado.” You rarely see this side of him, and it takes all of your strength to suppress the smile that’s creeping up. “Can you keep Yul safe while I’m away?” He even leans forward a bit, turning his ear towards the speaker as if he’s actually waiting for the stuffed avocado to answer, subconsciously playing along with his daughter despite being miles apart. The scene puts your overwhelmingly sweet perfume to shame. “Uh, Yul, he said yes. So can you sleep in your big girl bed tonight?”

Reluctantly, Yul grumbles in agreement.

“Alright baby, goodnight. I’ll see you in the morning, okay?” 

Again, she answers with a little grunt and a yawn.

“I love you.”

“Love youuu!” She extends the vowel for emphasis.

“I love you more.”

There’s a beat of silence before the sleepy girl simply responds ‘yep,’ not even attempting to argue. He glances at you, this time with a wholesome smile, eyes warm with burning stars. It’s moments like this that keep you hooked, you think. Like always, the feeling is short-lived. When Seulgi mumbles a sweet goodnight to her daughter, their daughter, you’re reminded that you shouldn’t even be observing this domestic interaction. 

“You know,” the man begins, turning his attention to his wife, “if you had given her a warm bottle, she would’ve gone down without a hitch.” 

“Jungkook, she’s too old for a bottle.” And just like that, the fire between them ignites. You’ve never actually witnessed the pair fighting, only felt the uncomfortable heat between them in passing. “And she’s too old to be co-sleeping. She never had an issue sleeping alone beforehand.”

“Alright,” he asserts, “if Yul’s okay, then we’re done here.”

“Don’t you think it’s a little unfair?” Despite his warning, she continues. “Getting her used to sleeping with you and then not being here?”

There were many things about having a daughter that Jungkook wasn’t prepared for.

It’s not that he didn’t do his research, and Yul certainly wasn’t an accident. He had wanted her more than anything. Especially after the… 

Incident.

A baby-sized hole was left in Jungkook’s chest. Every day, it grew bigger and bigger until, eventually, that bitter emptiness would’ve swallowed him alive. 

Jungkook needed Yul. 

Still, there were certain things that parenting books and videos hadn’t warned him about, like the worry in his stomach whenever his daughter refuses her lunch, or the ache in his heart when he drops her off at daycare and she watches him leave through the window with a sad wave and tears rolling down her cheeks as if he’s just abandoned her forever. As if he or his wife aren’t going to pick her up in a mere four hours like they do every Tuesday and Thursday. His readings haven’t prepared him for the even stronger ache that consumes his entire body whenever he leaves for work too early and comes home too late, with barely any time to spend with his favorite person in the world.  

Before Yul was even born, Jungkook and Seulgi had decided that co-sleeping was out of the question. Their room was for them, and he stood firm on that principle for a while. However, as time passed, their room became Seulgi’s, and the empty bedroom downstairs became his. 

Jungkook couldn’t stand that room. 

One night, after a particularly grueling shift, Jungkook trudges up the stairs for a late shower. Without finance talk or Yul’s babbles, he’s left to his own thoughts. Usually, under the scalding water, he wondered how his life turned out this way, or more so, why? This time, Jungkook wonders if there is even a reason to keep going at all.

He catches his reflection while brushing his teeth. His eyes are dark, cold, distant. Those same eyes belong to his daughter, but all he sees when looking into hers is love, innocence, and everything good in life. 

Maybe, just maybe, there’s hope for him. 

Taking a detour to Yul’s room, Jungkook does his best to quietly tip-toe around squishmallows and discarded markers. Underneath the pink blanket is a little ball of fluffy black hair. She’s got her thumb in her mouth—a bad habit he and Seulgi had been trying to nip in the bud—with her chubby cheeks squished against her pillow. There were few things he hated more than waking her up, especially when she was sleeping so peacefully, but for whatever reason, he couldn’t stop himself. 

Tiny, confused cries fill the room as Jungkook scoops her up. 

“Shh,” he hushes, smoothing his palm over her onesie-clad back. “It’s just me.”

“Da- ddy?” Immediately, she relaxes at the familiar sound of his voice, words slurred as she rubs the sleep out of her eyes with a little fist before peering up at him with big marble eyes. 

“How was daycare, Bunny?” 

“Scared,” she whimpers, slumping into his chest for comfort. “Scaredy cat.”

“Scaredy cat?” Jungkook repeats, trying to make sense of the phrase. “Who’s a scaredy cat?”

“Jeon Yul.” 

Typically, Jungkook finds it adorable when Yul refers to herself in the third person. The way she says it this time makes him frown. “Jeon Yul is not a scaredy cat. Jeon Yul is a baby, that’s all.” Realizing that she’d probably heard the unfavorable title at daycare, his chest tightens. With a heavy sigh, he rests his chin on top of her round head, swaying back and forth. Her hair smells like green apples from her baby soap. “Why were you scared, sweetheart?”

“No color…” 

On his lunch break, Seulgi informed him that she was picking Yul up early. In an attempt to encourage her to engage with other children, the teacher took away Yul’s crayons, sending her into a full-blown tantrum. Jungkook knew his daughter well, a spitting image of him in every capacity. The crayons weren’t the problem; it was that crippling shyness that made her afraid of socializing with nearly anyone other than you and her parents.

Her back ripples with tiny hiccups as she recounts the events. Jungkook decides it’s best to change the subject, not wanting to upset his two-year-old anymore—especially this late at night. 

“Guess what?”

Yul grunts an inquisitive noise.

“Daddy got you Baby Shark coloring books.”

Her wispy bedhead bounces as she glances side to side, inspecting her room for any sign of new Pinkfong merchandise. Jungkook was genuinely amazed at her ability to keep track of it all, considering how much he and his wife loved to spoil her rotten. However, the word ‘rotten’ doesn’t even come close to describing his baby. “Where?”

“In my car,” he laughs, slicking her choppy bangs out of her eyes. “We’ll color tomorrow., okay?”

“I like Baby Shark,” Yul says, completely ignoring his question. The teeniest, tiniest, most precious yawn slips out, two little front teeth on full display before her lips smack together sleepily. Truly living up to her nickname.

“I know you do.” He’s still rocking her gently, buying some time before she falls back into sleep’s arms and out of his. “I missed you so much today.” 

“Why?”

As of late, ‘why’ seems to be Yul’s favorite word. 

Why is the sky blue?

Why do vegetables taste yucky?

Why is daddy’s nose so big?

He’d be lying if he said that last, brutally honest question hadn’t caught him off guard when she first uttered it on his hip at the grocery store. 

“Because I love you.” It’s the most effortless sentence he’s ever spoken. The most natural feeling he’s ever felt.

“Why?” 

“Because,” his eye roll is disconnected from his growing smile, “you’re so cute!” If they weren’t enclosed by the four pink walls of Yul’s bedroom, Jungkook would be embarrassed at the squeakiness of his usual monotone voice. Leaning down, Jungkook blows a raspberry against her doughy cheek, a tried and true method of making her laugh. “Do you want to sleep in my room?”

It’s against his better judgment and the ground rules he had agreed to, but he just… really needs to spend time with her tonight. The small nod against his chest seals the deal. Before he gets to the door, Yul stops him with an exaggerated gasp.

“Daddy, Ruru!”

“Ruru?” 

She grunts, frustrated at her father’s confusion, frantically pointing at her partner in crime, the strawberry milk squishmallow lying neatly underneath her comforter. Just how she left it.

“Yul,” Jungkook starts, taking a few steps backward and bending at the waist, allowing her to take the oversized stuffie into her arms. “Isn’t this Mimi?” As far as Jungkook knows, the pink milk carton with a face had always been Mimi; a name Yul had dubbed it since he brought it home a couple months back.

“Ruru,” she states affirmatively. 

And ever since then, Yul’s been a co-sleeper. 

Jungkook prided himself on knowing his daughter like the back of his tattooed hand. Whether it’s a sixth sense, some innate father’s instinct that the parenting videos mentioned, or his own attention to detail, he could read her like a book. However, sharing a bed with the tiny human taught him something he had been blissfully unaware of:

Yul sleeps wild. 

More often than not, Jungkook was awoken by a tiny foot kicking his back, or by his own reflexes as he was somehow pushed to the very corner of the bed by his twenty-pound baby. There were even a few times when a harsh tug on his hair acted as an alarm clock. When he turned around to confront the culprit, however, she was fast asleep, arm slung over one of the many squishmallows that had worked their way into his room. 

Having her with him was worth all bald spots and bruises, though. It’s bad, he knows it, and night by night, Yul becomes more attached. Getting her acclimated to daycare had been hell, to say the least. He knows co-sleeping has possibly made her more reluctant to socialize than she already was. 

Still, Jungkook can’t help but wonder who’s more dependent on the other. When he thinks about it, undoubtedly, the answer is him. Because as long as he wakes up to a little foot in his back, a fist in his hair, and the smell of green apple baby soap, he has a reason to keep going. 

“Don’t you think she deserves better?”

Her sharp words swipe through the air like a blade. Even you feel the cut, cautiously eyeing Jungkook. You can’t read his expression, but something about it makes you rub a comforting hand over his shoulder. He doesn’t react to your touch at all.

There’s a sullen pause before he finally answers. “I think Yul deserves everything.”

“Right… Goodnight, Jungkook.” She hangs up before he has the chance to respond. Seulgi always struck you as a level-headed person, albeit a bit aloof, but never unfair or cruel. You assume she’s just being spiteful, because anyone who knows Jungkook would never question his dedication to his daughter. That ugly, bitter, jealous side of you thinks maybe she just doesn’t know him the way you do. 

“Are you okay?” You whisper as if approaching a wounded animal, ready to attack. 

“On Fridays,” he starts, eyes shamefully dropping to his fidgeting hands. “Yul spends the day with my parents.”

His incessant need to defend his parenting makes your heart ache. “Hey, I-”

“She’s usually asleep by the time I leave work.” 

“Kook,” you interrupt his rambling. “You don’t have to explain; I understand... I think you’re an amazing father.”

Lifting his head, Jungkook looks you directly in the eyes. His are glassy and gentle now, but the fingers that hook into your lace bra, right between the cups, are rough and abrasive. “C’mere,” he gruffs, pulling you over the center console until you’re uncomfortably sandwiched between his solid chest and the steering wheel. There’s no effort to make room for you; he doesn’t slide his seat back. He doesn’t compromise any of his space for you. You accept it, steadying yourself on his shoulders with a grunt. 

Sometimes, you question what your presence in his life truly is. Are you an escape or a punching bag? Are you merely something he can sink his nails and teeth into when angry? Something he can break without consequence? The sound of thread ripping and buttons popping fills the car as he slides the silk off your shoulders, letting the delicate material fall to the floor without a care in the world.

“You wore this for me?” A fingertip lightly traces the petite swell of your breasts, barely bulging over the frilly black cups of your push-up. The sensation sets your skin ablaze.

“Mhm,” you confirm, “I wanted today to be special.”

“You care about me?” Moonlight cuts through the dewy window, beaming against the side of his face, highlighting the taut pull in his features. His question seems genuine, but the answer is obvious, isn’t it? Simply being here with him makes the entire foundation of your soul, all of your morals and beliefs, crumble to pieces. Against your better judgment, you’re still here. 

Yearning. Trying. Fighting.

You swipe a thumb over his thick brows, trying to ease the angry crinkle that’s become a permanent fixture on his beautiful face. You comb through his hair. It’s a little knotted, a little crunchy from old gel. 

The answer should be obvious, but you don’t think Jungkook could internalize love if it was right in front of him.

“I care about you,” you say truthfully, “a lot.”

The stars in his eyes gleam for a moment, glowing bright and vibrant, before they’re engulfed by the suffocating blackness of his pupils. 

“You poor thing,” Jungkook tuts, trailing his fingers up your neck before grasping your jaw with a single hand. The baby fat of your cheeks mushes together from the force. “You're gonna let me do whatever I want to you, aren't you?”

The tone of his voice has your heart fluttering and your stomach churning with thick hot desire. Gripping his wrist with both hands, you moan out a ‘yes,’ unconsciously grinding down onto his slack-covered bulge. He’s barely touched you yet and your cunt is leaking, making a mess of your itty bitty thong and his work suit. 

“Right, of course.” With the same hand holding you, Jungkook taps his index finger against your glossy pout, “open.” Just barely parting your lips, you let the thick digit slide between them. Immediately, he presses down against your tongue, trying to coax a gag out of you. “What if I want to fuck this pretty little mouth until you cry? How does that sound? Would you like that?”

Inhaling deeply, you nod. That sounds absolutely perfect.

“I don’t know if you can handle it, though,” he lulls, retracting his finger before plunging it back in, all the up to his inked knuckle. You squint in defiance. He’s teasing, but you can’t fight the tinge of anger in your chest. If there’s one thing you can do, it’s suck a mean dick. Looking him directly in the eyes, you swirl your tongue against his palm with ease, not choking once. You feel his cock twitch against the supple flesh of your inner thigh. 

Unamused by your antics, Jungkook yanks his hand back angrily, making a string of saliva drip down your chin. Maybe a full face of makeup wasn’t the best idea. “Get in the backseat,” he orders huskily, wiping the damp skin on his blazer. Biting back a smirk, you climb off his lap and wriggle over the center console. You situate yourself on the cool leather, laying down and assuming face-fuck position. 

The yellow glow of headlights swims across the ceiling as a passing car drifts down the misty highway. This is the first time in five months that you and Jungkook are out in the open, blissfully oblivious to the possibility of getting caught. It’s childish, but you hope someone sees. For a moment in time—in a wandering eye’s glimpse of reality—you’re his and he's yours.

“Couldn’t wait until we got to the hotel, huh?” Jungkook huffs when he opens the door. Giddily, you lean your head back over the edge of the seat, coming face to face with the tent in his pants. His hands frantically work to unbuckle his belt, desperate to bury himself inside of you. His favorite escape. “Well, since you want to act like a fucking whore-” his pants fall to his knees with a clang when he unbuttons them, “-I’ll treat you like one.”

“Please,” you whimper, noting the wet spot on his gray Calvin Kleins. Reaching up, you lightly drag your nails across it, teasingly pinching the head of his cock before he tugs his boxers down. A big greedy smile spreads across your face as his semi springs out. 

The sight makes your lips part. It’s so pretty. Something about how the moonlight catches the glowy pink tip, peeking out from under his foreskin. The light accentuates every ridge and vein on his girthy shaft. So yummy it has you drooling-

Jungkook’s right. You’re a complete and utter whore.

“Is this what you wanted?” He peers down at you over his prominent nose, one hand clutching the roof of his Mercedes. The other wraps around his thick shaft, giving it a few languid pumps, getting himself fully erect for you. Teasingly, he taps the head against your plump lips. Unable to resist, you press a sweet peck and a kitten lick to his silky frenulum. “Uh-uh,” he chuckles, raising his delicious cock just beyond your reach. “You know better than that. Ask for permission.”

“Wanna suck it,” you pout, squirming impatiently. “Please?”

Suddenly, his heavy cock slaps your cheek with a wet thud.

“Please, what?”

“Please, sir?”

“Good girl.” The praise is contradicted by another light smack to your face, this time with an open palm. Taking the hint, you open your mouth wide, tongue sticking out in anticipation. Jungkook watches you intently with furrowed brows and a slack jaw as he feeds you the first few inches. As soon as the salty flavor of his arousal hits your tastebuds, you moan obnoxiously, back arching off the leather beneath you. 

He starts slowly, using your breathing to guide his movements—pausing on the exhales and giving you a bit more on the inhales. He does this until the entirety of his length is shoved down your warm, wet mouth. 

The hem of his black dress shirt flows over you, obstructing his view. He places it between his teeth with an annoyed groan, wanting to watch the swell in your neck as you swallow him like a snake. “You take it so well,” he grunts over the material, “the best I’ve ever had.”

Tears clinging to your lashes finally lose grip, trickling down your skin until they get lost in the thick, dark swoops of your dangling hair. For once, you mean something more to him than she does. It’s insignificant and shameful, but at least it's something.

“Are you okay, __?” Jungkook asks, sensing the shift as your soul splays before him like your half-naked body. Stepping back, he gives you some reprieve.

With red eyes and drool bubbling at the corners of your lips, you moan out an implied ‘yes.’ His confession has you on cloud nine.

“Do you remember the sign?”

Again, you hum. 

“Can you show me?”

Lazily, you tap his outer thigh three times, a hard ‘stop’ symbol you had agreed upon months ago while hanging off the edge of a hotel bed, preparing for Jungkook to fuck your mouth for the very first time. 

“Good girl,” he says before rutting his entire length into you again. He’s so deep that the soft skin of his scrotum nudges against the tip of your nose, and the dense patch of trimmed hair on his pubic bone tickles your chin. Reaching down, Jungkook grips your neck, reveling in the feeling of it stretching against his palm as he moves in and out steadily. 

Eventually, he hunches over, hands wandering down and holding your temples for better leverage. Despite the harsh digs of his hips, his delicate fingers brush away a few strands of hair stuck to your damp cheeks. The sweet gesture makes you whimper around him in pure ecstasy, moving your head to meet his thrusts for extra stimulation, circling your flat tongue around the base. 

The whistles of the midnight breeze and the murmur of passing cars fade, and all you hear is Jungkook. The melodic, venomous praises pouring out of him poison your mind with optimism. He takes one last plunge, so powerful it sends you sliding back against the seat. To steady yourself, you grip his legs, attempting to ease your triggered gag reflex. He holds you there, cock stuffed to the brim as he slams a hand against the black steel of his car, shirt falling from his teeth as he moans ardently. You gasp when he finally pulls out, leaking tip still connected to you by a bridge of spit and precum.

“Why-” Cough. “Why did you stop?” 

Your question is met with only the sound of rustling fabric and the chime of his hanging belt buckle as he removes his suit jacket and throws it into the passenger seat. Grabbing you by the band of your lingerie, Jungkook hauls your frame closer.

He snaps your taut bra strap against your shoulder with a single finger. “Take this off.”

“O-Okay,” you stutter, still trying to catch your breath as you sit up at the waist and unclip your bra. A shiver runs down your spine as the cool night air licks your exposed chest. This time when you lie down, you’re positioned under his spread legs. He stands over you with such authority and dominance. The underside view of his hard cock looks absolutely menacing. 

“These,” Jungkook’s large palms grab at your tits, jiggling them, “I wanna fuck ‘em.”

“There isn’t anything for you to fuck,” you giggle. 

After years of insecurity, and crying over vengeful comments from dumb boys you had broken things off with, you finally came to terms with your appearance. Your tits are small, and that’s okay. Plus, the cute little nipple piercings you had gotten a while back were definitely a confidence booster. There wasn’t an ounce of self-hatred in your comment.

Jungkook doesn’t take it that way, though.

“Shut up.” With a huff, he steps back and hunches, reaching down to deliver a harsh swat to your cheek. It was a little rougher than usual, and you wince upon impact. Instantly, he soothes the skin with a gentle pet. “Your tits are… perfect.”

Perfect? Your cheeks and aching pussy heat up at the compliment.

Squeezing your chest, Jungkook brushes his thumbs over your pebbled nipples. He pays extra attention to the silver barbells, decorated with little sparkly peaches at the ends. “These are new,” he notes, tugging on the jewelry. You let out a breathy moan, legs clenching together, inner thighs embarrassingly wet. “Sheesh,” he laughs, “someone’s sensitive.”

“Yeah… keep going.”

“I like them. They’re cute on you.”

Throughout your acquaintances, Jungkook was rarely this vocal. Maybe some praise sprinkled in here and there, but seldom anything substantial. Tonight, however, he’s been dishing out sweet talk like candy. You can’t pinpoint precisely what, but something’s changed.

Whatever it is, it fills you with awful, wishful hope.

Jungkook shuffles closer, teasing the teat of your pierced bud with his sticky tip. The dreamy sensation has your eyes rolling back into your skull. A glob of spit drops between the valley of your breasts before he spreads the wetness over your skin with his shaft. He has to use a death grip to force your tits into a soft plushness, perfect for him to slot himself into. Again, you feel that fucking ring embedding itself into your skin like a nasty tick. 

Cautiously, he guides his pulsing cock between your constrained breasts. A beautiful symphony of groans lulls out as he throws his head back in pleasure, long locks dancing along his clammy neck. 

“You like that?” You hum, taunting him. “Tell me how it feels.”

It takes him a minute to collect his thoughts, eyes trained on your tits pillowing around him, focusing on the dewy sheen of your nipples and chest as his oozing cock spills onto your skin. “It feels-” his hips stutter, “-so fucking good.”

The way his teeth snarl around the hushed curse makes you smile, eyes closing as you relish in his pleasure. Maybe you’re too horny, or perhaps the blood rushing to your head from being upside down for so long is making you crazy, but you wish you could live in this moment forever. Wallowing in the darkness, frozen in time with him. Yeah, you think, that would be wonderful.

“You can touch yourself,” he comments, spotting your clenched legs, desperate for some pressure. 

“S’okay,” you mumble, reaching around to caress his balls. His thighs tremble a bit against your arms. “Just wanna make you feel good.”

“Can you-” he grunts, stomach clenching as he begins to feel that familiar pooling in the base of his thick shaft. “Hold them for me. I’ll take care of you after, just- let me cum.”

Obliging, you replace his hands with your own, squishing your tits together for him. The visual of you lying under him, complacent and willing, sends him spiraling. A guttural roar echoes throughout the empty road as he speeds up. “Tighter,” he orders; you listen. The saliva and precum are beginning to rub off, making the friction of his chaotic thrusts sting your skin. He notices, letting another string of spit fall from his mouth onto your flesh. “Be good and take it. I’m almost there.”

By now, Jungkook should know you’d endure any pain to be with him. 

The darkest parts of your brain tell you he’s well aware of that fact. 

After a few more humps and lulled words of encouragement, he’s bursting at the seams. Just before he blows, Jungkook steps back, tight fist jerking himself frantically as he spills his seed onto your chest. Your eyes dart from his angry cock to his fucked out expressions. The moonlight shines behind him like a glowing aura as he finishes with a scrunched nose and his tongue between his teeth. He looks angelic. You moan under him, flinching when a stray spurt lands on your chin. 

Fucked out and dazed, he laughs softly, running a hand through his hair as his chest heaves. Collecting the liquid with his finger, he brings it to your giggling lips. The taste makes you hum as you lazily begin rubbing his cum all over your tits. 

“Really?” He asks with a raised eyebrow. “You’re already starting?”

“Starting what?” You pout, batting your lashes at him and circling your nipple lightly with the tip of your nail, trying your best to look oblivious and innocent. Well, as innocent as you possibly can while literally covered in sperm. 

“Don’t play dumb. You know what you’re doing.”

See, in many ways, Jungkook is different from any other guy you’ve been with prior. For one, you didn’t meet via horny messages on Tinder at 1 a.m. For two, he’s older, meaning he’s much more intelligent and much more experienced. After years and years of honing in on his craft, he just knows how to fuck. Jungkook is one of the rare few penis-havers in the world who can orgasm back to back; no refractory period necessary. Truly a hidden gem. 

To put it simply, the man is a fucking faucet—one that you can turn off and on whenever you want. 

As if on cue, Jungkook twirls his inked finger, indicating for you to turn around. The other hand squeezes his cock just below the crown to cut off circulation, keeping himself erect. With that, your white converses are planted flat onto the sparse grass as you bend over the back seat, leaning your weight on your elbows. 

It's like whiplash when Jungkook's aggressive persona drops, and he's running his hands all over your body. Up your thighs, over your back, down your arms. He blooms petal-soft kisses on your bare shoulder before whispering in your ear. “Can I go in like this? Or do you need some foreplay?”

“This is fine,” you murmur, jarred by his sudden tenderness. “Perfect, actually.” 

With a hushed ‘alright,’ Jungkook reaches over you to rummage through the pocket of his discarded blazer. A heavy sigh escapes your lips as he pulls out a square foil packet. Condoms were an unwavering constant in your weekend escapades. Jungkook always wears condoms. Normally, that would be a great thing; however, in this situation, it’s like a stab to the heart…

Because if he’s adamant about using protection with you, then that means he’s still sleeping with her, doesn’t it? And it’s not like you can even ask or scold him about it. She’s his wife, after all. You’re the outsider. 

Jungkook hooks his thumb into your panties and pulls them aside. Your glistening folds are on full display, waiting to get pounded mercilessly right on the side of the road. He shoves three digits into your mouth, letting your drool on them a bit before pressing them to your wet cunt. Opening your folds with his index and ring fingers, he lightly dips the middle inside you. He collects some arousal and spreads it to your clit in feathery flicking motions. You cry out, feeling the shocks of a blossoming orgasm. 

“Already dripping, I see.” You can practically hear his cocky, satisfied grin as he stands straight and rolls the condom down his length. “Always so sensitive.”

“Mhm,” you nod frantically, “I always get like this with you.”

“I know you do.” Pulling a cheek to the side, Jungkook cards his sheathed tip through your entrance, making sure to nudge under your clitoral hood with every swipe. Lewd wet sounds ring in your ears as he tortures your hole relentlessly. 

“Kook,” you huff, reaching back to dig your manicured, almond-shaped nails into his skin. “Just put it in!”

Suddenly, Jungkook slams your torso onto the leather. In one swift motion, he’s catching your wrists, pinning them both to your lower back with a single hand. 

“I’ll give you what you want just-” releasing the back of your neck, he spanks you so hard you recoil, “be patient.”

Despite his words, you wait no longer than a minute before he’s guiding his dreamy member right where you want it. Jungkook always gives in quickly. How could he not when you’re ass up, face down, and practically begging? As he sinks into you, and you feel that familiar burn from the initial stretch, your eyes roll back, mouth opening around a silent scream. 

Usually, Jungkook likes to overwhelm you with his entire length all at once. There’s some hesitation this time as he slides in only halfway before stopping. Too much hesitation for your liking. You’re confident he’s testing you. Your assumption is verified when he speaks in that annoying, condescending voice.

“If you want it so bad, come get it.”

“You’re so,” breaking free from his grasp, you press your palms into the seat and lift yourself up with a grumble, “infuriating.”

He hums halfheartedly, head dropping to watch you work yourself onto him. Only a single stroke in, and he can already see you coating him in a shiny, milky dew. “So fucking wet…”

“Can’t help it,” you peep, taking him to the hilt and circling your hips, trying to savor the feeling. You’re no stranger to his cock; how good it makes you feel. You spend every Friday night bathing in that pleasure, forgoing parties and hangouts with your best friends for a romp in the five-star hotel sheets with Jungkook. Still, you squeeze your eyes shut, trying to commit his touch to memory. Perhaps, despite your denial, you recognize that this is temporary. Deep down, you know that someday, all you’ll have left of him is a tragic echo. “I love the way you make me feel.”

“Me too,” he gasps, guiding your movements as his fingers dig into your hips. Clearly interpreting your admission differently than you had meant it. “Your pussy’s like heaven.” 

High on praise and drunk on the sounds you’re coaxing out of him, you whine, dragging your cunt up every inch of his throbbing length before slamming back. Hopefully, the dense forest behind you is enough to insulate the pornographic wails ripping through you. Even if someone somewhere hears, you can’t bring yourself to give a damn. Not when heady pleasure and adrenaline course through your veins like blood. 

Just when you’re about to collapse, arms giving out underneath you, Jungkook grabs you by the neck and holds you flush against his toned chest. “Don’t you run,” he chuckles. The low baritone rumble goes straight to your clit. His warm breath gusts over your skin, contrasting the chilly night air. “Don’t give up on me.”

He’s pounding into you now, choking you tighter than he ever has, but he pecks you so delicately. Lips barely ghosting over the shell of your ear. So gentle and tender. As tears stream down your cheeks for the second time tonight, you can’t help but feel there’s a hidden meaning behind his words.

“What’s wrong?” He smirks, tilting your face, wanting you to look him in the eye as you fall apart. The visual nearly makes you combust. His stringy hair is sticking to his cheeks, flushed from exertion. Even the tattoos littering the expanse of his neck are splotched pink and red. Twisting in his hold, you grab a fistful of his damp waves, fingers tickling his short undercut. “What do you want, baby?”

“Cum…”

“You wanna cum?”

“Please, please, please.” Weak whimpers punch out of you in tandem with his brutal thrusts.

“What do you say?”

“Please, sir?”

“Good girl,” he rewards you with a smack to your sensitive clit, “you can cum. I’ve got you.”

And with his permission, you’re cumming. Your legs shake violently as you’re overcome with blinding, electric gratification. If it wasn’t for Jungkook’s strong arms supporting you, you would’ve toppled face-first into the seat. He fucks you through the height of your orgasm; hips never ceasing, even when everything becomes so intense and sensitive that your body instinctively tries to push him away. He watches your face intently, reading your expressions to ensure he’s milked every last drop of your orgasm before he lets you fall onto the leather.

Even in your hazy state, you catch the breathy string of curses, a telltale sign of his own impending orgasm. “Fuck!” He groans, removing the condom to paint your ass and lower back in hot, white ropes. 

It’s funny, really. 

He refuses to cum with you or inside you, something so intimate and special, but he has no qualms cumming on you. It’s almost like he’s marking you, burning himself into your flesh. Consuming a piece of you every time your bodies come together as one. 

And all the while, his mind is somewhere else as his body swallows you alive. 

“Look at you,” Jungkook laughs, smoothing a palm up and down your spine, rubbing his semen into your skin the same way you had earlier. “I’ve made a mess out of you.” 

That’s true in more ways than one…

Lost in post-nut clarity, your brain barely registers Jungkook maneuvering you both into the car. Closing the door behind him, he moves you onto his lap, your back pressed against his sweaty button-up. Peering down, you see his slacks and boxers still around his ankles, black dress shoes poking out underneath. You’re in only a thong and sneakers, and your makeup is definitely melted. The two of you must look like the biggest sluts ever.

“What’s so funny?” Jungkook mutters, noticing your delirious giggles. 

“Oh, nothing,” you hum, leaning into him. Habitually, he wraps both of his inked arms around your middle. You despise how incredibly natural and serendipitous it feels, almost like you’re meant to be in them.

God __, get your head out of the clouds and return to Earth. 

Life isn’t a romance novel, and you’re not a child anymore. You shouldn’t see the world as quartz-colored and magical. The man is seven years older than you. He has a wife and child. Logistically, it could never, ever work…

But if soulmates exist as they do in the books, you wish on every falling star that Jungkook is yours.

“What are you thinking about?” You coo softly, turning your head to stare into the abyss of his infinite eyes.

Like a moth drawn to a flame, he can’t resist lowering his sinful hand to your most private area, cupping your sex unabashedly. “I want more.”

“You always want more.” 

“So do you,” he laughs, pointing out the way you grind into his touch. Nuzzling into your shoulder, he nips your skin and then soothes his tongue over it like an insincere apology. “Just one more time, okay?”

You nod, head leaning back on his shoulder as you succumb to his skilled fingers, rubbing your clit in tight circles. Jungkook pauses in contemplation before popping his glistening fingers into his mouth. When the taste hits his tongue, his face contorts. He even moans dreamily like you’re the most delicious dessert he’s experienced. The scene has your own brows furrowing, lips parting at just how hot and bothered he’s got you. 

Sensually, he trails the wet pads down, ghosting over a nipple, teasing you on their treacherous journey to your waiting core. He slides them in your wet cunt seamlessly, curling right into your g-spot. They move in a dip and wave that drives you wild, a wet suction noise sounding in the enclosed space. Turned on by your purrs and mewls, Jungkook subtly ruts against you, his plumping cock sliding between your cheeks.

“You’re already close, aren’t you?” He tuts patronizingly. “Gonna cum around my fingers, sweetheart?”

“No…”

“No?”

“Wanna cum with you…”

He stops, realizing what you’re alluding to, before pulling his fingers out and tapping your clit gently. “There’s another condom in my pocket. Can you hand it to me?”

“We don’t need it.”

“Yes, we do. Don’t be foolish.”

“... I’m on the pill,” you suggest hesitantly. Once again, you’re nothing but stupid and irresponsible when it comes to Jungkook. You just want to be with him, that’s all. 

“__,” he starts, voice shadowed with sternness, “give me the condom.”

Realizing he won’t budge, you do as he asks and fish it from his blazer, watching idly as he goes through all the steps—stroking himself to full mass, rolling on a barrier, and then positioning you between his spread legs as he guides you down onto his length with a hand on your hip. 

Cyclical. 

Like clockwork, your jaw drops, eyes screwing shut as you let him invade your space and infiltrate your mind. You don’t believe the two of you have ever tried this position before, but it feels so fucking good. His cock is so deep you can feel it in your fucking stomach. It’s obvious from his groaning and the aggressive spank he gives you that the unexplored angle is affecting him too. 

Outside, light rain begins chiming against the steel roof of his car as you take the first shallow rise of your hips. 

Scratch everything you’ve said about this not being a romance novel.

Distracted by the calming sound, you thoroughly miscalculate how much space you have in his sleek Mercedes Benz and bonk your head on the ceiling.

“Ow,” you wince with an embarrassed giggle.

Hissing at the impact, Jungkook clutches your head, massaging the area gently. “Are you okay?” His voice is muffled, and you can tell he’s trying his best not to laugh. 

“It’s not funny!” You shout playfully, slapping his knee. 

“No, it’s not. I’m sorry.” Chuckling, he moves your hair and places a gentle kiss between your shoulder blades. “You’re cute, that's all.”

Cute? You swoon. 

“Alright baby, keep going. Don’t stop,” Jungkook orders, the heel of his calloused palms pushing at your ass, encouraging you to bounce on his needy cock. A fucked-out sigh escapes him, head falling back for a split second before it jerks back up again, not wanting to miss the view of your perky cheeks rippling as they collide with his solid pelvis. “This position is so sexy.” Overwhelmed, he doesn’t know where to put his hands. He chokes you for a moment, plays with your tits, swats them, grabs your hips, and then finally settles on your clit, flicking it like a light switch.

“Jungkook!” You wail, knees knocking together as you brace yourself. Men you’ve dated in the past struggled to get you off. Sure, they made you feel good, but they couldn’t quite bring you to the edge. It only ever took Jungkook a matter of minutes to have you whimpering and shaking, begging for release. “I can’t take so much! I can’t!”

Ignoring your pleas, Jungkook pilots your right arm around his shoulder, sending you flush against his frame once more. Dipping his head, he sucks the closest nipple into his mouth. Caught off guard, you’re so overstimulated that your hips come to a grinding halt.

“Move,” he commands with his lips sealed around your piercing, sending dizzying vibrations to your sensitive bud. 

“I can’t,” you whimper, back arching off his chest as you try to calm all five tingling senses. 

“Yes, you can.” 

“No…”

Jeon Jungkook was never one to take no for an answer. 

Scooting further down the seat, his large hands clasp behind your knees. He lifts your legs until the heels of your white sneakers are on either side of the driver’s headrest. In this new position, he’s able to pound up into you freely, relentlessly beating into clenching walls. Hitting every single delicious spot inside of you. “Jungkook, please!”

“Please, what?” Honestly, you have no clue what you’re begging for. All you know is that his mushroom tip rigorously stimulating your g-spot is going to have you gushing at any moment. His guttural, sensual groaning does nothing to slow your approaching orgasm. “You want more?” 

As if you weren’t already gasping for air, Jungkook raises your legs to your head, knees locked onto his inner elbows. His fingers intertwine behind your neck, thumbs pressing into the base of your throat as he folds you in half. 

A full fucking nelson. 

“Watch me fuck it.” With a stern grip, he forces your gaze to his thick shaft, sliding in and out of your sopping cunt. Your vision is watery, but you can clearly see just how turned on you are, creamy juices coating his entire shaft. “Open it, baby. Watch what I do to you.” 

Reaching both hands under your thighs, you spread your lips, getting a better look at him completely destroying you.

“Isn’t it so pretty?” Jungkook grunts, speech slurred as his arousal lulls him into a delirious, catatonic state. “Tell me what you see, baby.”

“So pretty, Kook.” You’re simply playing into his dirty talk, but the sight of your bodies connecting, becoming one, is profoundly gorgeous. “So wet…”

“Yeah? Who’s pussy is this?”

“Yours.”

That sends him into a frenzy, thrusts becoming so punctuated and violent that his cock accidentally slips out. 

“Put it back in, put it back in!” You chant, frantically shoving his length into you. The yelp you chortle out is accompanied by the sound of your hand smacking against the foggy car window as your climax engulfs you. “I love it!”

“I love yo-”

He quickly cuts himself off, but everything stops when the sentence fragment hits the air. 

Is your brain playing sick, twisted jokes on you… or was he really just about to say he loved you?

Before you can even process what’s happening, your biological responses take over, sending through the most earth-shattering, world-bending, mind-boggling orgasm you’ve ever had. Everything goes blank. Your eyes cloud with splotches and stars. Your ears ring with static and white noise, blurring the sound of Jungkook cumming underneath you, and the pouring rain outside, splashing against concrete. 

This time, he doesn’t pull out, just works through both of your orgasms with gentle ruts and vulnerable whimpers.

After you’ve both calmed down and your heaves have diminished to a slow, even pattern, he pulls out, crumpling the used condom into a loose napkin he found in the center console. Still on his lap and in his arms, you watch intently as Jungkook leans his head back, eyes closing as he inhales deeply. To you, he looks almost… peaceful. 

The moon trickles in through the thin streams on the window, reflecting on his face like stained glass—something that was once so clear and pure now jaded with somber shades of blue. Sad, but still beautiful, you think. 

Delicately, you trace a finger over the black ink decorating his skin. You sit silently for a while, basking in the comfortable aura, simply enjoying one another’s company, before you finally speak.

“Why this?” You peep, pointing to the dainty letters at the base of his neck.

“It’s my daughter’s name.” He counters playfully, the faintest hint of a smile on his pierced lips.

“Well, duh, I know that,” you roll your eyes with a giggle, “but why here?”

“Yul is like air to me.” 

Humming in contemplation, you continue your journey over the endless swirls and loops. During sex, the first three buttons of his shirt popped open, exposing the canvas of his chest. You feel a thick, dark cloud loom over you when you reach a certain tattoo, the one that’s plagued your mind ever since you first saw it. 

Another name is engraved right above his heart in the same delicate font as Yul’s:

Seol. 

“Yul, please. Enough.” If Jungkook had a dollar for every time he's said that in the last twenty-two minutes, he’d be nearly as rich as his boss, sitting directly in front of him on a very important Zoom call. “Daddy is working.”

Jumping at the sudden inflection of his voice, the little girl on his lap pulls her tiny hand away. For the most part, Yul was well-behaved. However, working from home proved to be an obstacle that he and his clingy toddler have yet to overcome. 

She’s interrupted his meeting three times already. First, cutting off his proposal with the Baby Shark theme song, blaring from her Pinkfong tablet that he’d forgotten to mute. Second, peeking above his desk with her space buns and doe eyes to show his colleagues the latest addition to her squishmallow collection. The last straw was when she squeezed his nose. 

With watery eyes and warbled lips, Yul blinks at Jungkook, heartbroken and confused as to why he didn’t make that funny noise she loves so much. Quickly, her gaze averts to her chunky legs, swinging aimlessly as she attempts to hold back the tears.

“Excuse me for a moment,” Jungkook sighs, tacking on an apology before turning his screen off. “Bunny,” he lifts her chin with his index finger, another palm flat on her protruding tummy, “please, don’t cry. You’re not in trouble. Daddy just-”

The ring of a doorbell interrupts him.

“__?” Jungkook questions, baby at his hip as he stands in the doorway before you. “What are you doing here?”

You gulp. You weren’t expecting to see him.

Usually, you spoke to Seulgi. You’ve only ever seen Jungkook in passing, sparing quick greetings before he’s out the door. It worked in your favor, really, because for whatever reason, you felt extremely awkward around him.

Almost like that gross nervousness you get when you’re around someone you find so incredibly attractive it makes you uncomfortable…

Maybe it’s because he’s covered in tattoos and piercings. Maybe it’s because he’s a dad. Your group of fellow horny twenty-something-year-old friends have told you mythical stories and fantasies about older men. Freshly turned thirty-year-old men. Men like Jungkook. Dilfs. Something about that potent dad nut… Like, you know it works. 

It’s inappropriate; you know it is. You’ve always tried your best to ignore the feral thoughts.

Today seems to be putting your mental strength to the test because Jungkook is dressed in baggy gray sweats, long dark hair slicked back into a ponytail. A few loose strands dangle devilishly in front of his eyes, taunting you.

“I-It’s 10… I’m supposed to be babysitting.”

“I’m working from home today. My wife didn’t tell you?”

With wide eyes and hot cheeks, you shake your head. “I’m sorry for bothering you,” you stutter, stepping back and preparing to make a mad dash to your hand-me-down Honda Civic. “I’ll just… be on my way then.” 

“Actually.” An icy grip on your wrist stops you. “I could use some help. This one-” he nods his head towards Yul, stuck to him like velcro, “-is being a bit needy today.” 

One look at her turns your flustered gape into a smile. The past month with her has been more difficult than you’d imagined. Yul was incredibly sweet and intuitive, but unbearably shy. Building a relationship with the girl was challenging, but you were determined to overcome it. “No way,” you frown animatedly, tickling her leg with the tip of your finger, “Yul would never.”

A giggle or two had been the goal. Instead, she buries her face into her father’s shoulder.

“Don’t take it personally,” Jungkook orders, noticing the defeated slump in your shoulders. “She’s always like this with new people.”

Seulgi had warned you that Yul would take a while to come around. Hopefully, it’ll happen organically. But for now, a little gift or two wouldn’t hurt your efforts, you supposed last night while running errands. Reaching into your purse, you pull out a bottle of non-toxic, baby-friendly nail polish. “Yul, look what I have!”

“Wow,” Jungkook plays along, gently nudging her head out of his neck. “Bunny, look!”

He calls her Bunny? 

You’re in for it now. 

Plump fingers wrap around the plastic, taking it out of your own with an awe-stricken stare. She holds it up right in front of Jungkook’s nose. “Pink.”

“Mhm, that’s right,” he confirms, pecking her temple. “Now, Daddy has to get back to work. Can you stay with __ for a bit?”

She looks at him, then at you, then at him again, then back at you, and finally, landing on the nail polish, giving her father a reluctant nod. You knew it would come in handy. Despite her agreeance, Yul still stretches the neck of his shirt with her tiny fists as she’s transferred into your arms. 

Somehow, you managed to survive that painfully awkward encounter…

Only to be thrown into another one immediately after. 

See, you’ve always known Yul was a daddy’s girl. On good days, the toddler would grab you by the hand and guide you around the house, giving you a tour of everything that belonged to her father. His shoes at the door. His coat on the hook. Even taking you into the bathroom to show you his shampoo bottle. But that fact was never more apparent than now, as Yul stands in the middle of the living room on the verge of tears.

“Daddy?”

“He’s working, sweetheart. Remember?” You coo on your knees in front of her. You’re quick to redirect her. “I like your shoes.”

The sniffles stop as she glances down at her white sneakers. “Mine…” she takes a hesitant step back, mistaking your compliment as an attempt to swindle her out of them. 

“That’s right,” you laugh, “they’re so pretty, just like you.”

She blinks at you for a moment, and then begins stomping her little foot: heel first. When she’s finally able to kick off her left shoe, she bends all the way over, pressing her palms flat against the hardwood floor. It’s the most uncoordinated way you’ve ever seen anyone pick something up. 

Without warning, Yul throws the shoe across the room. Well, that had been her intention, you assume. She had cocked her arm back too far and released too early, making it land behind her. 

Oh no, she hates you. 

With an excited grunt and a bounce, Yul points to the sneaker—its clear sole sparkling pink and purple.

“Oh,” you sigh in relief. “They light up?” 

“Yesh.” Plopping right onto her butt, she takes the other one off, repeating the process. “Like this!” Her arms stretch out and she clenches her two little front teeth, executing the most stellar charade of a light you’ve ever seen. 

It’s a small breakthrough, but you’ll take it. 

Then you paint her nails, just like you said you would. She’s as patient as a toddler could be, but her tiny toe keeps curling under the tickle of the brush, making pink polish bleed outside of the lines. 

“My goodness,” you groan, admiring the messy, albeit adorable, result. “You’re so cute! Wait until your dad sees you.” 

Yul shrieks wildly, smacking both hands over her mouth as she hobbles to her feet. You watch with confused giggles as the milk-drunk baby stumbles down the corridor. You figure out where she's going too late. 

Yul stands on her tippy toes, jumping to click open the door to Jungkook’s office with a loud creak. 

“Yul!” You whisper-shout. “Don’t-”

“Daddy!” She calls, stepping a single foot into the room, showing off the fresh paint job. “So cute!” 

Literally, your only job today was to keep Yul preoccupied while Jungkook worked, and you failed. Your breath catches in your throat, awaiting his response. 

“So pretty,” he gasps, “now go play, baby. I’m almost done.” 

A relieved exhale flies past your lips. 

Something you’ve picked up on from years of babysitting is that little girls aren’t allowed to compliment themselves. They’re always told it’s rude or conceited. Jungkook does neither, and you find that so refreshing. 

“Close the door, please,” he orders before she runs away, “gently.” Yul does her very best to shut the door quietly and then sprints back to you. 

The next few hours go smoothly. You discovered that the green-hating toddler has an affinity for avocados after giving her a bite of your toast. “Mmm!” She had hummed, looking at you with wide eyes. With a full belly and squishmallow in hand, Yul went out like a light for her afternoon nap, giving you time to catch up on some reading. 

“How was she?” You didn’t even hear him come out of his office, so the deep voice makes you jump, eyes tracking the sound. He’s leaning against a kitchen counter, one tattooed hand stuffed in his pocket and the other wrapped around a water bottle. It’s a thick one too, and his fingers still touch. 

“Better,” you cough, “she’s sleeping now.”

He hums halfheartedly, dark irises boring into you as he takes a sip. Without Yul to soften the edges, Jungkook is… intimidating, to say the least. “What are you reading?”

“The Catcher in the Rye…” you peep, quickly closing it. “I know, it’s kinda lame.”

“No, not lame at all. Anyone who thinks that is lying to themselves… or is just being a contrarian.” He leans his elbows against the dark granite island, fingers crossing as he stares at you. You’re sitting idle across the room, but his presence looms over you. He has this way of making you feel like he’s in your head, listening to everything you’re thinking. 

You pray he’s not. If he is, you'll definitely be fired. 

“I can’t tell which one you are yet.”

You can’t tell if he’s joking or not, but the ‘yet’ makes you come clean, shifting in your spot on the leather couch. “... Both.”

“Right,” he smirks, tongue fiddling with his lip ring, almost like he’s taunting you. “That’s one of my favorite books, actually. I relate to it in many ways.”

Your fingers dance across the red cover, concealing hundreds of pages of isolation, emptiness, and the heavy dread of passing time. What an awful thing to relate to. Sometimes, when you get too engrossed in the text, glimmers of yourself bleed within the lines too. 

“You’re an English major, right?”

“Oh, um, I’m not in school at the moment… I just read for fun.”

“Well, you have an Associate’s degree.” Him knowing that information about you makes you think he asked the previous question with the intention of baiting you into this conversation. “Why not get your Bachelor’s?”

“I don’t know. It’s… complicated.” 

Why is he interrogating you? What does he want? For you to confess that the fear of becoming a full-fledged adult makes you not want to go back to college? 

“Life is complicated. You’d be ridiculous to not go back.” The audacity should make you mad, but he speaks with so much authority that you’re dumbfounded. His head tilts, eyes squinting as they shift to the ceiling, debating something. His tongue clicks when he finally makes his decision. “Follow me; I have something I want to show you.” 

With the curl of two thick fingers, Jungkook calls you to follow him down the hallway. You blink for a moment, gushing at the suggestive motion of his hand. Shaking your head at the evil, intrusive thought, you rise to your feet. 

Just like a child, you have to skip to catch up to his long strides. Your gaze trails along white walls; there are pictures of him and Yul, Yul and Seulgi, but not a single one of them all together. 

Now that you think about it, any affection you’ve ever seen in the household was reserved for Yul and Yul only. Seems like trouble in paradise…

You shouldn’t speculate.

The heavy wooden door creaks as Jungkook holds it open for you. You’re not sure what you expected his room to look like, but it certainly wasn’t this. The rest of the house is pretty modern, consisting of sleek blacks, whites, and woods. Countertops designed with icy swirled marble. Everything has this cold, impersonal vibe, but this room is the total opposite. The walls are baby blue, decorated top to bottom with dreamy clouds. You spot a chubby yellow star peeking out from underneath one of them, adorned with a hand-painted smiley face. On his nightstand, there’s a pastel purple foldable record player. Standing behind it is a single vinyl: Beautiful Boy by John Lennon. 

“Since you like to read,” Jungkook coughs, turning your attention to a sleek bookcase, stuffed to the brim with hundreds of titles you’ve never even heard of. “I figured you’d appreciate my collection.”

“Yeah, it’s…” The words trail off as you step forward. On a whim, your finger extends, tracing the delicate spine of a well-loved book. A low chuckle brings you back to reality; you peep, cheeks heating up in embarrassment as you yank your hand away. “It’s… really cool.”

“You can borrow something if you’d like. Does anything catch your eye?” Plopping down onto the computer chair, Jungkook rummages through his desk drawer and pulls out a tiny black case. You didn’t even know he wore glasses, and when he nudges them comfily onto the bridge of his nose, you nearly melt. As if he could get any more attractive.

“N-No,” you stutter as he wheels closer. Even though you’re towering over him, you still feel so small in his presence. You pray to God he can’t sense how incredibly nervous he makes you. “Not really.” 

“You wear your heart on your sleeve, you know,” he hums, low and sly. “Do I make you nervous?”

“No!” You peep in shock. Is the man a fucking mindreader? 

“Right.” Jungkook peers over the rim of his lenses, dark eyes glimmering in the whimsical glow of the room. “So __, what do you want to be?”

“A teacher,” you say, playing with your fingers.

“My wife wanted to be a teacher, too.” He shoots you the softest, gentlest smile. “She ended up doing business instead.” 

“Why?” You ask, gnawing on your bottom lip. You don’t mean to pry, but this is the first time you’ve ever actually talked to him in a meaningful way. Something about him intrigues you, like a puzzle you’re determined to find all the pieces to. 

“Ah, well,” he sighs, inked fingers scratching at the back of his neck. “We figured it’d be best for our family if we both pursued more lucrative career paths. I switched my major from English to finance.” You light up at the confession, the similarity putting you at ease. “I’m sorry if I was abrasive earlier,” he frowns, “I settled down young and had to sacrifice a lot, so I encourage you to go for something that fulfills you.” With his elbows on his knees, he leans closer to you. “I think you’d be a fantastic teacher. You take care of my daughter well.”

“Thank you,” you peep, cheeks heating up at the compliment. “I mean… you didn’t have Yul that young.” He tried to comfort you, so it’s only fair you do the same, right? “I think your late twenties are a great time to have children.”

Almost immediately, his face drops, eyes glazing over with something so raw. So… longing. You’ve never seen anything like it before. The corners of his nose twitch before he composes himself. “Yeah, I suppose they are.” His pink tongue toys with his lip ring, swiftly changing the subject. “You seem surprised.” 

“I guess I just wasn’t expecting all this.” 

“Expecting what?” 

“I don’t know,” you laugh clumsily, “books.” You mentally curse yourself as soon as the answer comes out. Really, __? Books? 

“What?” He starts, raising a brow at you. “You thought I couldn’t read?”

Thankfully, Jungkook takes your comment playfully. 

“Maybe,” you respond in the same lighthearted manner, feeling a bit more comfortable in his presence, “I also didn’t expect your room to look like a little boy’s room.”

All of the cheerfulness in the air evaporates as Jungkook glares at you with a clenched jaw and flared nostrils. Cleary irate. You’ve triggered a landmine.

“Jungkook, I’m-”

“Stop talking.” He raises a hand, cutting you off before you finish the sentence. Turning his back to you, he wheels over to his desk. “You can leave. You’re done for the day.” 

Looking back, you know why he was so upset that day. You had put the puzzle pieces together a while ago. You’re unsure of the details, and asking for them feels wrong. Silence feels wrong, too, though. Until now, you’ve never dared to speak up. 

You have no idea how to navigate something of this magnitude, but you just want him to know that you’re here. That you’re trying.

Cautiously, with your hand still on the tattoo, you whisper: “He must’ve been so beautiful, Jungkook…”

The thumb that had been drawing soft shapes into your side comes to an eerie pause as he freezes under you. When you look at him, your heart shatters. His chin is caved in with little dents, eyes glazed over with so much emotion. You’ve never seen a human being look so broken.

“Get off me.”

You frown at the shift in his demeanor. “Why?”

Remaining tight-lipped, Jungkook physically removes you from his lap, dumping you onto the seat next to him.

“Why can’t we ever talk about anything serious?”

He remains quiet as he slides his underwear up, not sparing you a single glance. When he speaks, his tone is painfully detached. “Like what?”

“Like what you said,” you answer curtly. 

“I didn’t say anything.”

“You were about to.”

Shaking his head with a cynical chuckle, he begins buttoning his pants, pretending you don’t exist. Like you’re not right beside him, falling to pieces. 

Your eyes dart to the ceiling, lashes fluttering rapidly as you mull over what to say next. You guess now would be an appropriate time to ask him what you’ve wanted for weeks. Blinking does nothing to combat your unshed tears when you realize that his answer has the potential to destroy everything you’ve been dreaming about. Everything you’ve hoped for. “When are you going to leave her?”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

“I’m not being ridiculous, Jungkook!” Shaking your head furiously, you feel the first hints of anger in your chest, tears threatening to spill at any moment. “I’m not! I see the way you look at me!”

“What the fuck did you think was going to happen? Huh?” Finally, he’s paying attention to you, just not in the way you hoped. His face is beet red as he leans closer. “Don’t tell me you actually thought we were going to end up together, __. Seriously? You’re my babysitter! You’re seven years younger than me! This isn’t some fucking fairytale; it’s life! There’s no such thing as happily-ever-afters—grow up and stop acting like a damn child!”

“No, Jungkook,” you croak, fully sobbing as you push an angry finger into his chest. “You’re the one who’s acting childish! I may not be the most mature person, but at least I know how to accept love!”

“So let’s say I divorce my wife, then what? Huh?” He seethes. “I get partial custody? I only see Yul on weekends? Every other week? She grows up in a broken home? I refuse to ruin my daughter’s life like that.”

You take a shaky breath, eyes shifting to the car floor, the air fresher on his mirror, the window. Anywhere but him. The way Jungkook explains your make-believe future together is nothing how you envisioned it. Maybe he’s right. Maybe he’s just a fucking asshole. Neither thought process eases the pain.

“But you’re okay with ruining mine?”

For a moment, his features soften, and you see a glimmer of guilt wash over him. It fizzles out just as fast as it came. “You’re being dramatic.” Jungkook steps outside, tucking his shirt into his pants. “Get dressed.” 

With jittery hands and blurry eyes, you grab your discarded lace bra, the one you had bought just for tonight, and slide it on your shoulders. When you pick your shirt up, you see that it’s ripped and tattered. Completely destroyed. 

“Here,” Jungkook mumbles, tossing you his blazer as he watches you in the rearview. 

Once you’re dressed, you awkwardly slide into the passenger seat. The scent of his cologne makes your head pound and your stomach flip. 

“I want to go home.”

His lips part, preparing to persuade you otherwise. The hotel room he booked is ready and waiting, just as it is every Friday. He decides against it, simply murmuring an ‘okay’ before putting the keys in the ignition and starting the engine. 

“Do you want to get something to eat before I drop you off?” 

You just want your dad. 

“I just want to go home.”

Other than the whoosh of splashing puddles and your soft sniffles, the ride to your house is painfully silent. Leaning your head against the window, you watch the moon. For miles and miles, it never changes. It’s stagnant, frozen in time, surrounded by nothing but endless blackness. 

“Stop crying! I can’t stand it anymore!” Jungkook shouts, hitting the steering wheel with his open palm, finally growing uncomfortable from your non-stop tears. The sudden outburst makes you flinch. Sighing heavily, he pinches the bridge of his nose. “I’m sorry for yelling at you. Just… stop crying, please.”

You sink further into your seat, curling your lips into your mouth to suppress a sob.

“I’m not worth your tears, __.”

You feel nothing but relief when he finally turns onto your street, stopping all the way at the end, concealed by the night and the shadows of overhanging trees. 

“Am I picking you up next Friday?” He asks just before you leave. 

With raw cheeks and a scowl, you slam the door in his face. 

Your feet are so heavy that the sidewalk sinks under you like quicksand. No matter how many steps you take, the comfort of your house seems out of reach. Too far gone. Confusion weighs on your shoulders. You should feel proud, empowered even, but that voice in the back of your mind smothers any sense of relief. 

Deep down, you know this isn’t going to be the last weekend you spend with Jungkook. 

© chryblossomjjk 2022 [do not copy, translate or repost]

[ateez-himari]

Hi bb!!! I've officially finished my exams and I have a holiday break so I'm feeling happy!!! I saw another anonie sending asks so now I have to up my game 😌(jk)

I had some questionssss

-Has hima ever been an mc on mubank before? and if so who was her partner/s

-I was rewatching teez's performance on MMA and I was wondering if the fans cheered really loudly when mingri's part came

-How do the stylist like to dress hima up? Taking in consideration that she's the only female idol in KQ plus in ateez they probably doll her up

-idk if this is weird but I feel like mingi and hima probably don't give a f anymore about their closeness after becoming publin and I'm talking about shamless glances and smirks

-would hima rather know what the future's holding for her or go back in time and change something in her past

-can I request so soft mingri moments I'm in my feels because of the weather🥹🥹

Ily so much bb, take care and eat well mwahh!! 💓💓

Hi sweet!! Congratulations, now you can finally get some more than deserved rest!! 😘 I actually still have one ask to answer from that anon but i got writer's block for it 😭(ANON IF YOU'RE SEEING THIS I'M WORKING ON IT DON'T WORRY!!)

• Our little social butterfly was an easy choice for Music Bank and they paired her with Sunwoo from THE BOYZ since both have a similar outgoing personality (it was also after Kingdom : Legendary War so it seemed like a natural pairing)

• Oh definitely! So many Atiny have been talking about wanting to see that part live so they were screaming their lungs out. Since it's a big award show they didn't kiss but Mingi took her chin in his hands and turned her face back to him, making her lose the stage demon facade for a second because she was so flustered

• Hima has had several stylists since debut - the first stylist respected the maknae's wishes and dressed her the exact same as the members (she left after becoming pregnant). The second would put more feminine spins on the outfits but they were still a lot more masculine than other girl groups (she was fired following Kingdom as she forced the maknae to show her scars). The current stylist is fully leaning into her charm, at times making her look more tomboy-ish but still keeping her delicate image, other times making the outfits are fully feminine. As Hima got older she's also begun to dress her in more chic clothing, enhancing her maturity without making her seem too old

Her favorite events to dress Hima for are award shows or concert encores because she can put her in dresses, cute shirts, legwarmers, put cute accessories in her hair, etc., (she loves dressing her up like a cute little doll). She gets kind of sad during Versace events because it's often the house's stylists or Donatella herself that dress her so she can't be the one to put her in all those intricate corsets or silky dresses :(

• They really can't find it in themselves to care anymore, there are so may clips from lives where she's sitting on his lap while wearing one of his boxers, she even brushed a hand across his "belt" (guys I swear it was the belt, guys....) during one of their concerts and stuck her tongue out at him while he was left blushing like an idiot. When there's some kind of innuendo these two are the first to look at each other (well actually sometimes it's Wooyoung and Hima and they can't help but to laugh their asses off)

• Hima isn't worried about the future, so she would rather turn back time; she would change the way her younger self viewed the accident. Of course everything was caused by grief, by her young mind being unable to understand everything going on around her, but one day she got angry at Hanzo after he had finally come out of his room to make her food as an apology. Hima had been dealing with so much at the time - solitude, Yoongi's mental health, the hardships of accepting new parents, her hearing disability that made every day more complicated, etc., - so everything blew up on him. The poor girl wasn't angry, she was in distress, she broke down crying and said things like "why did you abandon me ?" "you promised you would always be there when I needed you". If she could go back in time she'd make herself realize that Hanzo was suffering just as much as she was

• Of course you can! After Mingi sent the Fromm messages in which he expressed his intention to marry his girlfriend, she called him down onto the floor and began painting slivers of smoke along his bare arm - unfortunately he let his impulsive thought get the better of him and he smeared paint across her cheeks, which resulted in the two of them play fighting while trying to get as much paint on the other as possible

After Himari sent the Fromm messages revealing she was now studying Brain and Cognitive Science at KU, Mingi was having trouble taking a much needed nap so he pulled her in between his legs (on a bean bag) and she finished her study session tucked against his chest while his head rested on top of her own, sound asleep

At home she often forgets to put her hearing aid back in after a shower so when Mingi approaches her or is in the room, he moves with heavier steps so she can feel the vibrations or sends a series of one letter messages so that her smartwatch will vibrate several times (she learned to take that as a sign), so that she doesn't get startled because she didn't hear him

I always look forward to your asks!! ILYSM too Mina!! Make sure to rest plenty and have lots of fun now that the hardest part of the term is over! MWAHHH take good care of yourself 🥰🩷

[midnightfantasiez]

KINKTOBER 2023

SUMMARY: the month of October, it was the time of the year to let your imaginations run wild. buckle up to let your wildest fantasies come true with 11 different scenarios starring our beloved The Boyz.

PAIRING: the boyz x afab!reader (assorted pairings)

GENRE: smut (18+ MDNI!!)

WARNINGS: will be stated in each individual fics!

WORD COUNT: 12,521 (approx. 900 - 1k+ per member)

A/N: better late than never i guess 🥴 this is my first time doing a kinktober, so please bear with me >< i've decided to do things a bit differently and compile all members into one post instead! a big shoutout to @juyeonszn @itsbeeble for beta reading this whole chunk of fics for me, i love you guys sm my beloved pookies 🥺❤️

Lee Sangyeon

PAIRING: ceo!Sangyeon x afab!reader

WARNINGS: generation z Sangyeon (yes that is a warning), posessive Sangyeon, mentions of drugs, dry humping, p in v sex, pet names (sweetie)

WORD COUNT: 1,244

A/N: inspired from Mystic Messenger Jumin's Bad Ending #2 👀 if you know/play the game, you're cultured.

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You were suddenly summoned to the CEO’s office while you were doing your work in your cubicle. 

It wasn’t unusual, to say the least when you were the manager of your department and you were bound to give the chairman your usual weekly reports of how everyone has been coping with their work. 

The only problem was that the reports were handed in yesterday, so the chairman requesting your presence a second time would be very abnormal. So many thoughts were going through your head. Have you screwed up something badly from the reports you have submitted? Did one of your employees do something that required the chairman to address it personally with you? 

Those were the only negative thoughts that filled your mind as you entered the elevator and slowly rode it to the highest floor, where the CEO’s office was. As you walked towards the front door, you were greeted by his secretary, who was waiting for your arrival, with a red ribbon. Without giving you many details, your hands were immediately tied with the ribbon itself, and the secretary knocked on the door to signal the chairman that you were ready to enter. 

Before you could even ask what was happening, you were pushed into the room right away as soon as it opened, and then the doors were shut, leaving you alone with the chairman in his office. 

To your dismay, you quickly scanned through the entire office to see that the blinds were pulled down, only letting in a bit of light into the room. So it was reasonably dark around, but you could indeed make out a figure sitting down on his chair, hands clasped together as if he had waited long enough for your arrival. 

“Umm... Mr Lee?” You squeaked, lowkey feeling terrified by the entire situation you were in.

“Hello, miss Y/N. Why don’t you come closer to me?” He commanded.

Slowly, you started taking a few steps at a time before you eventually stood right in front of your boss. As you adjusted your sight, you finally made out Mr Lee’s appearance in front of you. 

His brunette hair was parted to the sides, his tie was slightly loosened, and his sleeves were rolled up. His legs were spread further apart than how one would usually do when they are sitting down, and he pats his thigh, indicating for you to come to him. 

But you had to blink to ensure your mind wasn’t playing tricks on you. 

“Sit on me, Y/N.”

What in God’s name is going on?

“W-what? Umm.. with all due respect Mr Lee—”

“I said sit.” He commanded, his tone going down an octave lower. That eventually sent shivers up your spine before you eventually mustered up the courage to slowly crawl up to him and sit down gently on his thigh, internally going through a mental breakdown in your mind.  

His hands were now on both sides of your hips, gripping you to ensure that you weren’t going to fall off from him since your hands were bound behind you, and you had no way of balancing yourself. 

“Now, I apologise for my behaviour a second ago. I’m sure you were terrified, weren’t you?” He asked nicely, which made you feel a lot worse than you already did. 

So many questions were running through your mind, trying to make sense of what exactly was going on or if this whole situation was actually a hallucination. Just as you were about to make sense of your situation, you were brought back to reality as he gently rested his fingers under your chin, lifting your face so that you were looking directly at him now. 

“Say, why don’t you become my assistant? I have noticed how well you excel at your job and how much you have actually contributed to my company.” 

Slowly, he leaned forward and started to place kisses all around your neck before finding the perfect sweet spot for him to suck. 

You gulped, you were starting to wonder if Mr Lee was actually high on drugs or something. Why would a CEO of one of the top companies in Seoul actually do this to one of their employees? Or rather, is he the type of guy who usually does this to his other employees, and you were just not aware of it?

But Mr Lee knew what was going on in your mind, and he immediately answered your question for you. 

“Just so you know, I don’t do this to anyone at all. Consider yourself lucky that I have gotten my eyes on you and have genuinely been interested in you for quite a while now.” His hands that were on your chin now travel down to your clothing as he begins unbuttoning them one by one, removing your top entirely and tossing it to the ground. His hands began moving up and down on your cleavage before he moved his lips towards and kissed the spot, his hands now squeezing your breast. 

“O-oh.. oh god…” Those words completely slipped out of your mouth unwillingly, and you thought you were screwed before you saw how it actually turned your boss on even more. 

“I bet you would sound so pretty moaning my actual name, miss Y/N.” Mr Lee then quickly unzipped his pants as he pulled his cock out, instructing you to rub your wet core directly onto his member. Well, you basically didn’t have a choice, for he was now grabbing both sides of your waist and doing the deed for you.

You were actually going insane, his hard dick now directly under your underwear, and you were already dripping wet upon the contact. As if by instinct, you were actually trying to pick up your pace too, and Mr Lee smirked at that as he knew that you were needy as well.

“That’s it, Y/N. Keep it going.” He cooed into your ear as he moved his hands towards your back and unclasped your bra, tossing it to the ground as he sucked on your hard nipples. 

When he felt how wet you were getting, he knew that he was not going to let your precum go to waste, and he quickly yanked your underwear down and positioned you well before inserting his cock into you. 

A loud gasp resonated throughout his whole office, but that was basically just music to his ears as he gave you a giant smirk you hadn't seen just yet. 

You were starting to moan out his name before he eventually corrected you to call out his real name instead. 

“Sangyeon… sangyeon… keep it coming… aaahhh—” 

“Cum for me, sweetie. Gush all of your juices all over me.” 

With a few more pounces, you eventually came to and released your cum all over his thigh before leaning in to rest your head on his shoulders. 

“You were so good for me, look at how much you came.” He whispered before pushing you back up and guiding you to lean against his work desk. 

He was now loosening his tie completely, and he positioned himself in between your thighs, prepping for another round as he guided his tip to your entrance once more.  

“Since you moaned my name so sweetly, I will take it as a yes that you agree to be my personal assistant from now on. Oh, we are going to have so much fun together.”

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Jacob Bae

PAIRING: bf!Jacob x afab!reader

WARNINGS: mentions about reader losing their virginity, oral, fingering, nipple play, handjob, blowjob, p in v sex, dom!reader & sub!Jacob 👀

WORD COUNT: 1,001

A/N: shoutout to @daisyvisions for giving me ideas for this one!!

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You have been with your boyfriend Jacob for the past year since you met each other in the music club on campus. Since you both were the introvert types, it took a while for you both to start talking to one another, and you needed your mutual friends to step in to help break the ice between you both.

But you were beyond grateful for them because you have scored. You have never dated before and your first and current boyfriend happens to be one of the sweetest human beings to ever exist on earth. 

Things start pretty well between you two, it was all lovey-dovey fun dates until one night when you both got a little bit too tipsy at a frat party hosted by one of the seniors.  You both eventually found yourselves making out in the bathroom, where you lost your virginity to him. 

Jacob was horrified to find out what he did the next day, and he couldn’t help but constantly apologise to you over and over, regretting taking your virginity, especially under the influence of alcohol. You found it to be cute, actually, and you reassured him that everything was alright and you were glad that he was your first. 

Ever since then, you both have been starting to open up more about your sex lives and would constantly give each other the much-needed sensual time together at least once a week, probably three times at max. 

However, there was one thing. It was always Jacob who would be pleasuring you, giving you whatever you wanted. There was no room for a “let me take over now” for you since he has always promised that you feeling good was his number one priority. 

But today would be the day that you would turn the tables around. 

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“J-jacob…” You moaned.

“Yes, baby?” Jacob questioned as he continued planting kisses directly onto your wet clit, two of his fingers inserted into you. 

“C-can I… Take control for the night?” 

That made Jacob stop whatever he was doing as he lifted his head to look directly at you. 

“You what?” He looked puzzled, surely he must’ve heard it wrong. 

“Jacob. You have always been putting me first at all times. It’s about time I return the favour, don’t you think?” You lifted yourself from the bed as you crawled towards your boyfriend, slowly snaking your hands up from his abdomen to his chest, earning a shiver from him. 

It was that moment you saw the look in his eyes, how he shivered just from a simple touch alone from you, when you gently pushed him back so that he was the one lying down now. 

Immediately, you leaned forward to connect your lips to him before moving them down to circle his nipple while pinching the other side. 

This was all so new to him, for he had never been pleasured this way before. And it was a different perspective for him, looking at how dangerously sexy you could be when you’re the one taking complete control over him now. 

Jacob closes his eyes as he groans, slightly leaning his head back into the bed as you continue to explore his well-built body. He was a volleyball player, after all, so he was bound to have muscles and a toned body for you to ogle and leave kisses all over. 

You slowly moved down towards his now hard erected cock, where you gently took it into your hands and started licking and sucking the tip.

“F-fuck… Y/N…”

“Does it—feels good—Cobie?” You questioned in between. 

“Y-yes… it feels so good…” 

“Tell me what you want, Cobie.” 

“Pl-please… make me feel good…”

“And why is that?” You were rubbing his cock with your hands as you continued sucking his tip. 

“Be-because… aaahh… nobody makes me feel this good except for you.” He was far from being sane, and you knew you now had him wrapped around your fingers. 

“That’s all I needed to hear, baby.” With that, you immediately took his entire length into your mouth, sucking up and down, and deep enough that his tip actually hit the back of your throat. 

Oh god. Your mouth. Your pretty mouth. This was what he had been missing out on all this time. 

Jacob was now constantly moaning out your name, which sounded so sweet to your ears. It didn’t take him long to give you a warning on how he was about to cum, which made you sped up the process even more. 

“Y/N! Y/N! Aahh!!” 

All at once, your boyfriend releases all of his liquid into your mouth and you are drinking it all up like there is no tomorrow. Wiping away the excess that was dripping from the sides of your mouth, you  position yourself so that his cock was directly on your wet clit. 

“I want to fuck you so badly now, Cobie.” 

Taking his member and pushing it into you, both of you let out a deep groan before you eventually start bouncing right on top of him. Your adrenaline was pumping,you were feeling so good and wanted to pleasure him more. It was the look on your boyfriend’s face, it was as if tears were about to drip from the corners of his eyes. That was when you knew that you were on the right track. 

“I’m-I’m not gonna last, Y/N…” He whimpered.

“Cum in me then. I need you to fill me up.” 

As you both were about to reach your high, you immediately grabbed both of Jacob’s hands and placed them directly onto your bare breasts, guiding his hands to squeeze them as you both gave your last push. 

When you both came together, the oozing liquid poured all over his thighs, you gently leaned forward to give him a few pecks on his cheeks and lips while playing with his soft fluffy hair. 

“My boyfriend’s been a good boy today, and I think he deserves one more round.”

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Kim Younghoon

PAIRING: bf!Younghoon x afab!reader

WARNINGS: p in v sex, sex tape (reader records it with Younghoon's phone), fondling with breasts, tits sucking, nipple play, thigh riding, pet names (baby, rascal)

WORD COUNT: 909

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The sounds of skin slapping filled the room as you and your boyfriend were having a rather passionate make-out session with one another. 

Younghoon arrived at your doorstep looking rather half-dead, especially with the workload that he has been dealing with ever since he and his older brother had to step up to take over his father’s company. 

As his girlfriend, you have been trying your utter best to cheer him up and give him the motivation that he needed—baking him his favourite pastries, even having a cosy night in your apartment and marathon all the animes he has been missing out on. 

But tonight was different, and all he wanted was to have sex with you.

Which wasn’t unusual, to say the least, both of your sex life has been relatively healthy and you would do it once or twice a week. But it was the way he said it out so bluntly and was so needy for the night, it was as if something had triggered him to act this way.

You basically had no room to question him about it since you were literally pinned to the wall as he stepped into your apartment, making out with you hungrily and eventually ending up in the bedroom. 

So here you were now, lying on your back, and your boyfriend seemingly thrusting into you as quickly as he could before eventually releasing his juices in you. When you both slowly tried to catch your breath, you finally decided to question him about his demeanour. 

“You wanna tell me what is with the sudden move of yours?” You crossed your arms while lying down in bed. 

Younghoon plopped down right by your side and moved closer to you to snake his arms around your waist. 

“I had this weird dream last night that you were having sex with some random guy from your workplace. The way you were sitting on top of him and bouncing up and down while moaning his name terrified me.” 

It took you a moment before you actually tried your best to let the information sink in before you giggled, earning a little slap on your shoulder from your boyfriend. 

“I’m sorry, Younghoon! It’s just that I find it cute and funny how you had such a dream and that you were jealous about it.” You teased, inching your face closer to him, causing him to give you a pout and turn his face away. 

He had then turned to his side and gave you a silent treatment because he absolutely hated the way that you were not sympathising with him but actually teased him about it. 

You giggled more before you slowly moved your hands up his arm in a sensual way, leaning towards his ears to give him an erotic whisper. 

“Seems like someone doesn’t want their gift after all.” 

That got Younghoon’s ears perked up, and he quickly turned back to face you, only to find that you were now setting up his phone onto your tripod and positioning it towards the end of the bed. 

“Umm… baby? What are you doing?” He was perplexed, rightfully so at that, too, since you had never done such a thing before. 

“Oh, I thought my boyfriend would like to have a recording of one of his ultimate kinks in his phone so that he could replay it whenever he is stressed at work.” 

You grabbed onto his arm and pulled him up into a sitting position. You guided him so that his side was facing the camera while you slowly made your way and sat on top of him. You took both of his hands and placed them directly onto your bare breasts, guiding him to give both of them a squeeze. 

In return, you let out a soft moan, reassured him that he was doing a great job at it. It was then Younghoon realised how you were going to make up for his silly jealousy rage by recording a tit-playing/sucking session just for him on his phone. 

“I see where this is going, you little rascal.”

“Correction. Your pretty little rascal whom you’re so whipped for.” You corrected.

With a smirk, he quickly dove his mouth straight towards your nipple and began sucking them as his life depended on it. You knew how your boyfriend had been obsessed with your breasts ever since you began dating, only later teasing him about it when you both had your very first sex. So to actually give him a recording of him performing his favourite thing during sex? Oh, he will definitely be replaying the video constantly from now on.

As he sucked and squeezed your breasts with more pressure each second, you were starting to feel a knot form within your stomach. In an instant, you quickly began rubbing your wet core directly onto his thigh, constantly rolling your hips, wanting to cum as quickly as possible.

“Mmm… yeah… that’s it. Give me more, Younghoon.” 

“Cum all over my thigh, baby. Do it.” 

With a few more rolls, you eventually felt the knot snapped and you released your juices all over his thigh, all while he was still sucking your breasts like there’s no tomorrow. 

When he finally broke free and connected his lips back to yours, he was now gently rubbing your bare back as if he was patting you.

“Thank you, baby. I will surely put this recording to good use.”

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Lee Hyunjae

PAIRING: fiancé!Hyunjae x afab!reader

WARNINGS: jealous sex, shower sex, Hyunjae is NOT happy, gets possessive too actually, and he teases you a lot (but you started it in the first place so), fingering, reader is pinned to the wall, p in v sex, choking, possessive Hyunjae, pet names (baby, honey)

WORD COUNT: 978

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You were having a warm comfy shower as you heard the door to the bedroom open. It was when you knew that your fiancé was back from a long day of work. 

Your fiancé, Lee Hyunjae, proposed to you while you both were on a business trip to Malibu, where he actually went all out to set up a romantic picnic-like lunch right at the beach, filling them up with all of your favourite things and colours that were to your liking. 

Ever since you have agreed and said yes, he has been working tirelessly to be able to afford a much better home that would suit the needs of both of you. It took him almost a year before he was able to secure a well-built home located just outside of Seoul. With that, you finally packed up all of your belongings from your tiny studio apartment and moved in almost immediately. 

It has been almost half a year now since you both moved in, and Hyunjae has gotten a promotion at work, which made him have to work slightly overtime than you did. So you usually returned home at least three hours earlier than he did. 

You were washing off all of the remains of shampoo from your hair when you heard the door to the shower being pushed open to the side, and sure enough, you were greeted by your naked fiancé, who was eager to join you. 

“You nasty man, can’t you wait till I’m finished?” You teased. 

“Well, I miss my baby loads and showering together is much more fun, don’t you think?” He quickly leans in to kiss you on the lips while snaking his arms around your waist. It wasn’t for long before he started moving them down to your ass and squeezing them. 

You smirked, knowing how needy he was. But you decided to play along to see how far he would go. 

“So tell me, how was work, honey?” 

“Oh, just the usual. I had to answer a bunch of calls and emails on behalf of the CEO.” He now moves one of his hands to caress your thigh, earning a soft moan from you. 

“Hmm… that’s good, isn’t it?” You questioned and did the same to him, moving your hands up and down his bare back. 

“Well, there was something that I have noticed lately, and I actually need your help to clarify something.” He was now moving his fingers towards your clit, as he began rubbing circles around it. 

“What is it?” 

“I have noticed how one of our co-workers sitting across your cubicle has been giving you weird looks lately. It seems as if he is interested in you.” He now inserts one finger into you, and you know exactly where this is going. He was jealous, and he wanted to get the answer out of that pretty mouth of yours while making you lose your sanity. 

“What makes you say that, Hyunjae? You are my fiancé, after all. I am taken.” You answered in between the moans. 

“Oh honey, you got to do better than that.” He inserts another finger in. “You know what exactly I want to hear.” 

God, he was taking this to the next level. He wants to break you down slowly and the warm hot steam that was filling up the entire bathroom was certainly not helping you to think straight.  

He  pins you to the wall and lifts one of your legs up so that he has better access to finger you even deeper, all while he is still interrogating you. 

“You see honey, call me a jerk but I can be pretty stingy because I hate it when people touch what belongs to me. And I absolutely do not like the look that he was giving you for the past couple of weeks.” 

Without warning, he immediately removed his fingers from you and slammed his cock into you, earning a yelp from you before they eventually turned to moans. 

“Tell me, Y/N. What are you going to do about all of this?” 

“I-I don’t know… what do you want me to do?” You were still holding up, trying your best to tease him, you did actually enjoy seeing him getting all jealous, after all. 

“Wrong answer, Y/N. Come on, you can do better than that.” 

He began to pick up his pace, slamming into you as deep as he possibly could, making you tilt your head back and lose consciousness. 

Oh, he was not going to let you think straight, alright.

“Hnngh— god, Hyunjae-” 

“I’m waiting, honey. Tell me. What will you do about this?” He was now moving one of his hands right up to your neck, giving it a little squeeze. 

“I—aaaahh…” 

“Yes? Tell me.” 

“I will ask my manager to transfer him to another cubicle then.”

“Oh no, honey. Transferring to another cubicle is not good enough for me.” He protested. 

For the love of god, Hyunjae. 

“I—will request—my manager to transfer him—to another department, I suppose.” You were now a mess as he fucks you deep and fast. Tears were beginning to form in your eyes since he basically tearing your walls apart. 

“Now, that’s better honey. I knew you would be such a good girl for me.” 

Picking up his pace as you both were right about to cum, he quickly removed his member from you and grabbed your hair and pushed you down to his member, making you take in all of his cum into your mouth.

When you both finally came down from your highs, he dragged you back up and pinned you against the glass door while he moved directly behind you. 

“Since my baby decided to tease me throughout the whole session we have just had, I think they deserve another punishment.”

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Lee Juyeon

PAIRING: bully!Juyeon x afab!reader

WARNINGS: Juyeon is such a jerk in this one, pet names (sweetheart), typical university bullying shitz, arguments, fingering, rough sex, public sex (it's in a bar), p in v sex, manhandling

WORD COUNT: 1,474

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Lee Juyeon has been your mortal enemy for as long as you can remember. 

Ever since you entered Seoul University and met him for the first time, you guys have not been on the same page. There was just something about you that made Juyeon wanted to tease and bully you all the time, and you could tell how he absolutely loved the red-flushed face you portrayed every time you got mad. 

He had done so many things to you. Whatever your friends have named it, he has done it before. It all started from leaving post-it notes all over your locker that contained writings about things you absolutely detested. It ranged from “so I heard you had a few more marks before you could score a distinction” to “I’m so sorry but that blue skirt is not looking too good on you, sweetheart”. 

It wasn’t just that. He also had to meddle in your love life too. By the time you were in your second year of university, you came across this one rather cute and bubbly guy from one of the clubs you have joined as an extracurricular activity and there were basically sparks going on between you two. And it just so happened that Juyeon was one of the committee members of the club, so that he could witness the whole relationship blossomed with his own eyes. 

Being the jerk that he was, he actually went up to the guy and told him about all of your little secrets, even the ones that you could’ve sworn nobody would find out about. Eventually, the guy was slowly starting to create a distance between you two, and he stopped hanging out with you after the fall. 

Ever since then, you have absolutely hated to spare a glance at him or even hear about his name being mentioned in your everyday lives. Thanks to that, you have always been the person to quickly head straight back home right after your final lecture ends, not wanting to deal with all of the bullshit that he has gotten up his sleeves. 

But since today was a Friday and you had just finished your final papers before the summer break started, you decided to head to one of the local bars in town to relieve the stress you have been coping with for the past couple of weeks. 

It was a relatively quiet bar, and you absolutely loved the ambience of it. It made you felt so relaxed for a while, sitting down comfortably on one of the tables at the corner as you enjoyed the relaxing jazz music that was being performed by the usual performance team at the bar itself. 

Just as you were about to slowly close your eyes to fully enjoy the experience, a hand suddenly grabbed your wrists and you looked up to see who exactly it was. 

Oh, hell no. 

“What on earth are you doing here—”

“Come with me. Now.” 

You couldn’t even ask more questions when Juyeon was dragging you away further down into the bar. 

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“What exactly is wrong with you!” You screamed, yanking his hand off your grip. Your blood was boiling again, especially when he would be the last person you would want to see at your comfort place, and especially when you had just finished your exams. 

You crossed your arms and decided to yell back at him. All of the anger that you have been suppressing for weeks was now finally about to explode out. 

“Have you really stooped this low actually to stalk me? Is it really that fun to ruin and mess up my life when you have already done more than enough??” You were practically screaming through the loud music and chatters in the bar, not caring if anyone was going to pass by or actually call the authorities if things started to get rough between you two.

You didn’t care about anything else right now. All you wanted to do was to scream and let out all of your anger towards the guy standing right in front of you, wanting to say whatever last words you had before calling it quits with him once and for all. 

But Juyeon was relatively quiet for the night, as he actually started taking in all of your anger and hatred towards him. It was rather unusual since he would usually fight back and would not stop until he actually won over against you. There was this look plastered across his face, which made him look guilty almost, or maybe even upset about something. 

“What? Why are you being so quiet? Have you finally knocked some sense into yourself?” You scoffed. 

“Actually. I think I did.” 

Without warning, he takes a few steps closer to you, making you step back until you are eventually cornered with hands on both sides of you, pining you against the wall. 

“Y/N. I’ve realised something lately. And it finally just made sense to me now. I think I actually like you.”

What. This must be some kind of sick, lame joke.

You had to laugh a little bit too hard as well. “What? I think you’re actually insane—”

“No, I’m not. I really do think you mean a lot more to me.” He protested. 

But you were not having any of this crap. “Stop this, Juyeon. I knew you were always playing lame pranks against me, but this has got to be the worst of them all.” 

You thought that would be enough to stop all of this and return to your table, but clearly, the man himself was far from done. He was now grabbing your hands and pining them up against your head, pushing one of his legs in between your thighs. 

“Then let me prove it to you then.” 

In a blink of an eye, his lips had crashed into yours, savouring them rather hungrily. Your eyes widened upon the contact. 

You were actually kissing your worst enemy right now.

As much as you were to squirm, you had no luck as he was basically much stronger than you were, gripping you hard and not wanting to let go anytime soon. He was now grabbing both of your hands with just one hand while the other travelled down to enter right under the dress you were wearing for the night, desperately trying to find your clit. Once he did, he immediately began fingering you without hesitation, your legs basically turning into jelly right there and then.

What on earth is actually going on right now? 

Your moans started filling up the room, and you closed your eyes as you titled your head back. As much as you hated to admit it, you were actually enjoying this whole situation that you were in right now.

Juyeon notices how quiet you have gotten, and he seized his chance to lean forward and whisper into your ear. 

“Will you believe me now, sweetheart?” He cooed. 

“T-this… doesn’t prove anything…” You whimpered. 

“Oh yeah? Then I’ll make sure that you get the message clearly.”

Within a swift motion, he grabs you and takes you into one of the bathrooms that were located not far from where you both were, and he immediately corners you right at the sink top before turning you around and pushing you down. He moved his hands right under your dress and pulled your underwear down immediately, and you hissed at the cold air coming into contact with your core. 

“What are you even—someone is going to see us!” 

“Bold of you to assume that you were in a position to give orders. I don’t care if someone walks in on us, I need you now.” 

He quickly pulled out his cock from his pants and gave it a quick handjob before slamming it into your core, giving you little to no time to adjust to his length.

God, he is hard as f-

“You are so tight, goddamit, Y/N.” He groaned as he thrust in and out of you. He decided to pull your dress down slightly from the front so that your bare breast was now exposed for him to touch while his other hand grabbed onto your hair.  

God, he absolutely loved the look that was plastered across your face right now. The way you looked absolutely helpless right now, how you were basically a moaning mess, constantly chanting out his name. 

And how he was taking the whole scene from the bathroom mirror right in front of him. 

“Juyeon… juyeon…” You cried out. 

“F-fuck— I’m gonna cum—” 

When he finally came within you, you immediately let out a high-pitched scream before finally coming down from your high. Juyeon finally leans forward and gently sucks your neck before finally giving you a response.

“So, do you finally believe me now?”

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Kevin Moon

PAIRING: husband! Kevin x afab!reader

WARNINGS: reader is such a tease and is basically naked (only wearing the kitchen apron to cover their front body), fingering, cum tasting, kitchen sex, p in v sex, manhandling, pet names (honey)

WORD COUNT: 935

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“Honey, what on earth do you think you’re doing?” 

Your husband had just arrived home as he stood by the kitchen door looking astounded and was greeted by a relatively questionable sight. 

You knew that your husband, Kevin, had been rather stressed out lately and had been coming home late due to all of the extra work he had to do considering his company had to deal with an insane amount of staff turnover. When he arrived home every day, you would only exchange a few words before he quickly got into the shower and then went straight to bed. 

Hence, you decided to do something that would pique his interest so he could have a good stress relief. So here you were, turning half of your naked body towards him, holding a bowl of whipped cream in hand and wearing only an apron to cover your the front of your body. 

To say the least, it was very bold of you that you decided to make such a move. But to be fair, you had been craving for your husband’s touch and revealing your glorious naked body to your husband would surely gain his full attention towards you.

Sure enough, he slowly drops his briefcase on the ground and walks towards you. That was when you decided to act normal and tried your best to pose a question. 

“You surely must be exhausted, honey. I was whipping up some cream to bake you your favourite sponge cake for dessert tonight.” 

As he took his steps closer towards you, that was when you noticed that his eyes shifted, licking his lips as he stood in front of you now. 

“Screw the dessert, I’ll take you instead.”

Within seconds, he turned you around so you were bent against the countertop. Immediately, he places his hands on your bare back, slowly rubbing your sensitive skin he eventually lands them on your ass, giving it a tight squeeze. You were turned on by that as you elicit a moan, knowing well that your trick has succeeded in tempting your husband for the night. 

One of his hands finally reached your wet core, fingers slowly gliding up and down, rubbing your entrance. You knew he was teasing you, but you were desperate and needed his fingers to be inside of you right now. 

“Kevin, please. Inside… I’m begging.” 

With your given consent, he quickly inserts two of his fingers into your core, pushing them in and out at a relatively fast speed, while his other hand quickly travels back up to your breasts and gives them a massage. It felt so good, and this was the touch you missed so severely for the past couple of weeks. 

To increase the arousal, you turned your head back and snaked your arm around his neck as you brought him towards you, crashing both of your lips together and starting to make out rather messily. His tongue makes its way into your parted mouth, and you both find yourself twirling the tips of the tongue together. 

It wasn’t long before you finally felt a knot form in your stomach, indicating that you were about to reach your high. You broke off from the kiss, now panting while whining for your husband to help, letting you release your sweet juice all over his fingers. 

“Kevin, please, make me cum.” 

“Oh, I’ll let you cum all over my fingers, baby.” 

With a few more fast-paced thrusts, you eventually came and released your juices all over his fingertips when he pulled them from your entrance and inserted them into your mouth, wanting you to savour the deed he had just done for you.

Without giving you much time to calm down from your high, he immediately turns you around and carries you to place you on top of the cold concrete countertop. He quickly loosened his tie as he made his way in between your thighs before leaning close to you.

Kevin was already unzipping his pants and pulling out his now erected cock, his precum dripping wet before he brings it close to your entrance. 

“Honey, I need you so bad right now. I’m afraid I might be unable to hold it back any longer.” He growled. 

“Then don’t.” You reassured him by placing both of your hands on his shoulders, already anticipating him to insert his member into you. 

Just as he had said, he had no intentions of going slow with you, for he immediately went all out, and the skin-slapping noises now filled the entire kitchen. 

This was what you both have been missing out on for several weeks, and it was something you needed desperately right here and now. 

“F-fuck honey… you have been so tight since we last had sex.” 

“Of course—I saved it all for you tonight…” 

“You definitely have been a good girl for me, honey.” 

Kevin was pounding you relentlessly, to the point he was even grabbing a chunk of your hair and pulled it back to increase the arousal. He could tell that you were enjoying it loads from the looks on your face, and so did he. 

“Ke-kevin… I’m gonna cum.” You moaned.

He leans in to give you a quick peck on your lips before pulling them away. “Cum for me then, honey. I want you to cum all over my cock.” 

Within seconds, you released your juices all around his member as you slowly start to catch your breath as your husband leans in to give you a passionate kiss.

“Oh, now you reminded me how badly we’ve missed our weekly sex.”

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Choi Chanhee

PAIRING: secretary bf! Chanhee x afab!reader

WARNINGS: Chanhee has a playroom 👀 (inspo from Fifty Shades of Grey), pet names (baby), mentions of sex toys, reader is tied up to the bed, use of vibrator, oral, squirting

WORD COUNT: 1,121

A/N: gotta give credits to my meimei @beamtori for this, we had this convo a long time ago and she sent me this same exact chanel picture in the dms and i just knew, chanhee needed a fic like this 😋

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“Baby baby! Hear me out!” 

Your boyfriend, Chanhee, was rather ecstatic as he hoped towards your workplace to come to pick you up. He was holding a bag from Chanel, and you knew very well how he had probably gotten something for you when you told him a million times that he did not need to do so.

Since he was in university, Chanhee was recently promoted to being one of the chief secretaries at Chanel, his dream fashion company. You couldn’t be more proud of him as you knew how much effort and energy he has put into making all of it happen. So when he told you how he could move into a more extensive apartment complex in one of the most prestigious areas in the heart of Seoul, you knew that he was beyond excited to have a better life for himself and with you.

He informed you that he needed a few weeks for everything to be completely moved in and renovated before you could come to visit, and you figured that today was finally the day when everything was settled. 

“What was the gift for Chanhee? I should be the one gifting you something now that your apartment is finally in one piece.” You chuckled. 

“No, it should be me thanking you for always being by my side since the beginning of my career.” He gives you one peck on your cheek before escorting you to his car. 

“Now, let’s go have some fun, won’t we?”

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You knew his apartment would be luxurious, but you didn’t know it would be this extravaganza. 

It was a two-floored luxury apartment with the living, dining and sleeping rooms on the top floor. All of the floor and countertops were designed with marble, and Chanhee did a fantastic job pairing the room with pieces of furniture that suited the theme he was going for. You basically stood in the centre, taking in all of the beauty, and Chanhee found it cute how you were basically in shock with the whole sight in front of you. He had to physically come towards you and shake your shoulders to bring you back to reality. 

“Baby, you can ogle at the sight as much as you like from now on since you will be coming here often anyway. But there is something else that I want to show you.” 

He gently takes your hands into his as he guides you to the stairs, taking you down to the second lower floor. It was a couple of flights of stairs before a dark grey door stood in front of you. 

There was no hallway whatsoever down here, just an uncomplicated door. 

“Umm… Chanhee? What’s behind the door?”

“You’ll find out, sweetie. Why don’t you push the door open and have a look?” 

Feeling somewhat hesitant, you gave Chanhee a few more glances to ensure he was alright with the idea before you took a few steps forward to rest your hand on the doorknob. With a single twist, the door was now open to reveal a shocking sight to behold. 

This is…

“My playroom,” Chanhee answered as he now wrapped his arms around your waist. 

You looked around the room from left to right to see that he had a few equipment and clothing hung around the room. You even noticed how there were a couple of lingeries that he had gotten that you had mentioned before whenever you both went shopping on how you would like to purchase them someday. There were a couple of leather whips and sex toys that he owned and a stash of Chanel ribbons that he always loved and would insist that you tied your hair with it. Finally, a double bed was placed right in the middle of the room. 

“Baby… will you be a dear and do me a favour? I think my promotion and moving into this luxury apartment calls for a celebration, don’t you think?” Chanhee pouted before finally resting his head down to leave kisses around your neck.

You gasped at the contact and tried your best to think straight. So many questions flooded your mind, but you got too distracted when one of his hands travelled down to your thighs and started caressing them. 

“Baby, you would do it for me. Wouldn’t you?” The statement now felt more like a command, and you slowly turned your head behind you to find your boyfriend, now giving you a stern look, which was then you realised that he was all serious about it. 

That look has somewhat terrified you, as you have never seen this side of your boyfriend before. But somehow, you were turned on by that..

Say no, Y/N. There’s no way you’re gonna agree with this—

“Yes, Chanhee. Anything for you.” 

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Before you knew it, you were tied up to the bed with the Chanel ribbons that Chanhee kept and stripped down bare naked. 

Everything happened so quickly that you did not have much time even to process the whole situation. It wasn’t new for you and your boyfriend to have sex, it has happened a couple of times before at both of your apartments. But now that he has an entire playroom? Now that was a sight of your boyfriend that you had never seen before.

To make things more fun in his books, he decided to take out one of his vibrators and activated it to a reasonably medium pace as he placed it directly onto your clit. 

“Oh my god— Chanhee!!”   

You arched your back and your toes curled up upon the contact. As much as you wanted to do something, you couldn’t. You were bound by the ribbons that were tied to the bed, only to be lying on the bed helplessly as your boyfriend did as much as he wished. 

He was now moving the vibrator up and down, and your moans filled the entire room. 

“Chanhee… please…” 

Knowing how desperate you were, he now turns the speed up to the maximum level and you were now screaming in agony. 

“God! Chanhee, please!! Please!!” 

He could tell how you were about to reach your high when he quickly removed the vibrator and dove right between your thighs, kissing and sucking your bud.

“Cum, Y/N. Cum all over for me.” 

“Chan-Chanhee!! Aaahhh!!” 

When you finally came and squirted all of the juices right onto his face, he couldn’t help but smile while he savoured up your liquids and eventually swallowed them. 

Chanhee now adjusts himself so that he is hovering above you, caressing your cheek while wiping off that one tear that dripped down to your face from the intense session. 

“Baby, one more round?”

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Ji Changmin

PAIRING: photographer bf! Changmin x afab!reader

WARNINGS: pet names (baby), reader is pinned up against the wall in one scene, fingering, reader strips naked while Changmin is having a photography session throughout the whole process 👀, self-pleasuring, handjob, blowjob, Changmin is still taking pictures of the whole process 👀, cum tasting

WORD COUNT: 1,137

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The sounds of panting and moans were what filled the entire living room for the night.

It had only been thirty minutes since you and your boyfriend had gotten home from a reasonably fancy candlelight dinner at one of the best restaurants in town. It was your boyfriend’s birthday, after all, and you wanted to give your boyfriend the best meal for the night, especially when you have finally gotten one of your first paychecks since you have been employed at your current company. 

But he knew the best treat was waiting for him at home, which was making out with you.

Both of you couldn’t resist and immediately went straight into it as soon as you shut the front door. You were pinned up against the wall, and he placed kisses all over you, from your lips as he travelled down to your neck, collarbone, and eventually, your exposed cleavage as you wore a striking red v-neckline split midi dress. 

The makeout was intense, and you both ended up on the living room couch, now with one of your legs up rested across his thighs, while his hands slipped under your dress, now rubbing your wet core. 

“Baby..” He panted.

“Hmm?” 

“Since there’s technically still an hour left before the day ends, will you grant me one more birthday wish, baby?” 

“Of course, how could I possibly say no?” 

“Well, we’ll have to get into the bedroom first.”

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“Pose for me.” 

You were astounded as you heard about your boyfriend’s final birthday wish. You stood by the side of your bed, blinking at your boyfriend to see if what he said beforehand was a joke. But apparently he was serious, as he immediately took out his Nikon D7500, ready to do the deed. 

Your boyfriend was a photographer, and he would always be invited to all of the top fashion shows in Seoul—taking pictures of all of the celebrities that are the talk of the town. 

But you were no celebrity, hell, not even worthy to be a model. You must’ve thought your boyfriend was mixing work with your personal life. 

“Changmin… I-” 

“Baby, trust me.” He inches close to you to give you one peck on your lips before parting away, taking a few steps back to position himself to start taking worthy shots of his prized possession. He also connected his phone to the Bluetooth speaker you both owned and blasted some songs to get you both into the mood.

“Strip for me, Y/N.” He commanded. 

You were initially reluctant, not that you have not stripped in front of your boyfriend before. But now that a camera was involved and he had switched to his work persona, you weren’t sure if you felt too comfortable with the entire situation. 

But it was your boyfriend’s last birthday wish, and thirty minutes were left before the clock struck midnight. Taking a deep breath, you close your eyes to finally calm yourself down and mentally prepare yourself to do all this. 

Slowly, you took the straps of the dress down as you now exposed your bare shoulders towards the camera and posed. You paused for a few seconds for your boyfriend to take a few shots before moving on to the next move. Moving along with the music, you pulled your dress down and eventually stepped out of it while tossing it to the room's corners. You were now only in your black lingerie, which happened to be the one Changmin gifted you on your birthday. 

Changmin loved the sight beyond him as he licked his lips while continuing to click the button on his camera, snapping as many shots as possible. You were turning around, posing as much as possible with the few poses you knew of. It wasn’t long before Changmin ordered you to turn around so that your back was facing towards him.

Turning your bare back towards your boyfriend, you slowly made your way up to your bra and unclasped it, throwing it off to the side while Changmin photographed the whole process with his camera.

It was there, and then he made his way towards you, gently pushing you down onto the bed as he hovered above you. 

“Touch yourself, baby. Do it for me.” 

With one big gulp, you slowly moved both of your hands to each breast and squeezed them. Your soft moans again escaped your lips as you looked directly into the camera lenses. 

God, how badly Changmin loved the look on your face at the moment. 

As he took one of the hands off from his camera, he slowly made his way to your panties, making his way into them to touch your sensitive bud. 

“That’s it, Y/N. I love it when you’re wet for me.” 

The camera's shutters continued as he moved to your side while still rubbing your entrance. That was when he took his hand away from you and unzipped his pants, as he pulled out his member and moved closer to you so that it was now inches away from your mouth. 

“You know what to do, baby.” 

Without hesitation, you grabbed onto his member and started thrusting it up and down while playing with the tip of it as you went. Meanwhile, Changmin’s hands make their way back to your wet entrance, inserting two fingers into you as you let out a loud gasp. As he picked up his pace, you started to whimper, and you dived your mouth towards his dick, sucking it rather hungrily. 

Changmin was now moaning as you were, but that did not stop him from continuing his photography session. 

You would constantly circle your tongue around his tip and you knew how badly it turned him on the most. In return, he was picking up his pace quicker now, both of you wanting to reach your highs. 

“God—Y/N. I’m cumming. I’m going to cum inside your mouth, baby.” 

With a simple nod from you, both of you quickened the pace you both eventually released your juices in your respective places—Changmin’s in your mouth as you drank it all up, while you did the same all over his fingers as he took it into his mouth, licking them all clean. 

Now that the clock has struck midnight, you thought that Changmin would be satisfied with his whole photography session with you. Just as you were about to lift yourself, you found your boyfriend hovering over you once more as he stripped himself fully naked and was now in between your thighs. 

As he took his member and positioned himself directly towards your dripping core while the camera, in his other hand, looked down at you with a grin, knowing that he was far from done with you.

“My birthday isn’t over until I say it is.”

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Ju Haknyeon

PAIRING: roommate!Haknyeon x afab!reader

WARNINGS: Haknyeon & reader are in a situationship, fondling with breasts, nipple play, fingering, p in v sex, spooning, somnophilia, reader is basically still asleep and thinks that they're in a dream when the whole deed happens

WORD COUNT: 1,015

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It was the usual late Friday nights when Haknyeon would return home at around three in the morning. Haknyeon worked the late night shifts at one of the bars near downtown, and you both agreed not to wait for him since he knew you had to be up early the next day for your early shift at your local grocery store. 

You both have been roommates for almost a year now and during that period, you have became more than just roommates at this point. You have both been in a situationship for quite some time now and have decided not to define it in any way particularly. It was fine with both of you since you both were comfortable with how things were now. 

Haknyeon tried his best to turn the doorknob to your room as quietly as possible, and sure enough, he found you sleeping soundly on your shared bed. He couldn’t help himself but ogle at the sight beyond him—the way you smiled slightly in your sleep, the little snores you made, and the curves of your body as you turned to your side to sleep. During moments like this, he was beyond grateful that you both are more than just friends and, of course, as your roommate. 

As he couldn’t wait to hop into the comforts of your bed with you, he took a quick shower and put on his comfy hoodie as he slowly walked his way towards you. Gently lifting the sheets, he crawled into bed with you as he turned to your side, hugging you close to him as he wanted to feel your warmth. 

Naturally, he couldn’t help but move his hands into your hoodie, wanting to caress the soft skin he loves dearly. But there was a problem. 

As he slowly moved his hands up, he finally landed them on your bare breast, and that was when he realised something. 

You weren’t wearing your bra to go to sleep. 

So many alarms were going off in his mind, he knew how badly he should be restraining himself. 

It was time for sleep, goddammit, I shouldn’t be thinking about anything else.

But his actions apparently did not align with his brain, and he now finds himself gently massaging your breasts and squeezing them ever so slightly. His fingers were now circling your hardened nipple, and eventually, he found himself pinching them. 

That was when the soft moans he was accustomed to slowly slipped out from your mouth, and you were wiggling in your sleep. Your eyes were still closed, though, and that was when Haknyeon knew that you were still in deep sleep. 

He went on with this for a while, wanting to hear your soft moans—knowing very well how it was all just for him. Eventually, his name slipped out from your mouth, and that was when he felt his member harden—desperately wanting to slip his member into your core. 

He gently pulled your sweatpants down and rubbed your core before eventually pulling your underwear to the side. He rubbed your sensitive bud, wanting it to be wet enough for him to insert his member into you. 

Once he knew that you were ready, it was his turn to pull his sweatpants down and he took his member in hand while using the tip of it to rub at your now wet core. God, it felt so good, and now the entire room was filled with both of your moans. 

“H-haknyeon… inside…” 

At that point, Haknyeon wasn’t sure if you were still asleep or not, as you still had your eyes glued shut. As much as he wasn’t sure if he should even insert his member into you, your hands eventually found their way to Haknyeon’s thigh, rubbing them as if you were so desperate that you needed him so badly at this point. 

“Haknyeon… please…” 

That was when he knew he lost it, and there was no turning back now. With that, he slowly pushed his hardened cock into your entrance, and you let out a loud gasp. Haknyeon knew it was too much for you to take at the moment, so he took a few seconds to let you adjust to his member before he began thrusting inside of you. 

“Oh my god, Y/N. You’re so… tight…” 

He was slowly picking up the pace when he noticed how you spread your legs further apart from each other, giving him more room to thrust deeper within you. It wasn’t long before you started to chant how you would cum, and Haknyeon, too, felt the same.

“Cum with me, baby. Do it with me.” 

With a few more powerful thrusts, you both released both of your juices together, now slowly coming down from your highs. Being the sweet, responsible roommate he was, Haknyeon quickly wasted no time in cleaning both of you up before diving back into sleep.

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When you woke up the next day, you couldn’t help but feel that something was off, as if you had a wet dream last night, and it was with Haknyeon. Well, it wasn’t something new, to say the least, you both have had sex and had dirty dreams about your roommate often. But something about last night’s just felt too real for you. 

Sure enough, as you got ready and headed towards the kitchen, Haknyeon had already prepared your breakfast. As you took a seat and he quickly gave you a little peck on your lips before returning to the stovetop to fry the remaining slices of bacon, you couldn’t help but pose the question to your roommate. 

“Say, Haknyeon?”

“Hmm?” 

“So I had a dream last night… about us having sex in bed while I was asleep. But something just felt so off for me, as if. It all felt so surreal.” 

That was when he placed the remaining slices of bacon onto your plate and was now inches away from you, taking in his cologne and the sly smirk plastered on his face. 

“Baby, what if I told you it wasn’t a dream after all?”

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Kim Sunwoo

PAIRING: rival!Sunwoo x afab!reader

WARNINGS: arguments, bad breakup with ex (hence Sunwoo takes reader back to his apartment), Sunwoo is VERY upset with reader wearing his favourite hoodie, but then reader turns dom 👀, teasing, blowjob, p in v sex, clothed sex, cowgirl

WORD COUNT: 1,542

A/N: credits to @wuahae for giving me ideas for this!! 💕

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“What are you doing with my hoodie?” 

Sunwoo had just come out fresh from the shower as he attempted to dry his wet dripping hair with the towel that was draped around his neck. 

You were left stranded out in the rain when your ex had just seemingly dumped you right in front of your campus building after a heated argument. Since he was your only way of getting home (you lived an hour away and public transport was not an option this late at night), you were left with no choice but to stand right there in the pouring rain, not wanting to accept reality with all that has happened. You could’ve called for a cab, but that would have meant that you would have been spending off your weekly expenses, and you would have been left with nothing to fill your hunger for the remaining school days before heading back home to your hometown for the weekend. 

It was there, and then your ultimate rival, whom you hated to the core, Kim Sunwoo, stood before you and moved his umbrella to shield you from the rain. As much as you both hated each other's guts for the longest time, there was no way he could’ve left you in the pouring rain all night. Hence, you reluctantly accepted his offer to return to his apartment for the night and get yourself clean and cosy. 

Sunwoo did mention that you were free to use the extra towel he had and to fish out for any of the hoodies he owned in that one particular drawer he pointed at, so you didn’t think much of it and randomly chose one of those at the top of the drawer itself when you got out from the shower. 

It was there when he saw you right after finishing up, he did not have the best look on his face at the moment. He seemed annoyed and was mad about something you desperately needed answers to. 

“What? You said I could use any of the hoodies in the drawer.” You bluntly replied. 

“Yeah, anything but that one. That’s literally my favourite among all of them.” He stomped towards you and was now grabbing the collar of the hoodie you were wearing. 

“Take it off, Y/N.” 

You scoffed. This has to be a joke. Sunwoo getting all worked up just because of one single hoodie? This has to be absolute insanity. 

“I know literally everything that I do ticks you off, but I never would’ve imagined something so simple like this would have the same effect on you, Mr know-it-all.” 

“Look, I was kind enough to invite you back to the comfort of my apartment. So I highly suggest you comply with my simple request before I throw you back out in the streets again.” 

Oh, now that has got you boiling up. There was never a moment where the both of you would agree on something. You both have been like this for the longest time since meeting each other in your first years of university. 

It all started when all of the first-year juniors were invited to a frat party hosted by one of the seniors in one of the apartment complexes near campus, and that was when your first encounter with Sunwoo happened. You both were complete strangers at that time, and neither of you hung out at all as you were both occupied with your group of friends. 

That was when a seemingly drunk Kim Sunwoo made his way towards where you and your friends were and accidentally bumped into you, which made you spilled your drink all over your rented dress where you had to pay double the amount of the original price for ruining some of the details from the outfit itself. Since then, all of the encounters you both have had have never been good.

There was something about his ego that annoyed you the most. You knew he did not do it on purpose on that fateful night, but something about his demeanour just ticks you off all the time. In return, you were the same for the male itself.

Already stressed about your whole ex situation, you were not having it when Sunwoo was about to start another argument and fight when you are literally not at your best self at the moment. 

Instead you stood up, which made the male step back a little while he was still grabbing the collar of his hoodie on you. 

“Look, Sunwoo. I have no idea what exactly your issue is with me. First, you ruined my dress during junior year, and then every time we crossed paths, we never once had a good conversation. You’re always picking fights with me, and I have no idea why. You're such a loser if you think this is all fun and games.” 

“Says the one who’s always heated up and wouldn’t assess the situation well before coming up with a reasonable judgement.” He spat back. 

“Why you little-” 

Without realizing it, you both had been taking several steps back. Sunwoo’s leg hit the couch, causing both of you to tumble back onto the couch, where you are now literally on top of your worst enemy, inches apart from one another. 

Oh dear god, this is literally your worst nightmare. 

Both of your eyes widen and you feel as if time had just paused for a moment right there, trying your best to make sense of the whole situation that was happening right now. 

But it seemed that Sunwoo retaliated much quicker than you did, and he shot back another tease. 

“What’s wrong, Miss know-it-all, cat got your tongue?” He smirked, and you could picture how he would be laughing maniacally in his mind. 

Oh no, you don’t. Kim Sunwoo. 

Without much thought, you crashed your lips into his, shutting him up immediately. You had no idea what had gotten into you to do such a thing, you couldn’t give a proper reason either. But one thing for sure is that it would definitely shut that annoying mouth of his up for a reasonable amount of time. 

Sunwoo was definitely shocked by the contact, but he couldn’t resist returning the kiss, and the both of you were now having a heated making-out session with one another. 

Both of your fingers travelled up into each other’s hair, gripping them as you gasped for air between the kisses. Your hands then travelled down to his member as you began stroking it through the sweatpants that he was wearing.

For once, you saw how helpless Sunwoo was as he began squirming under you and groaning while you continued to massage his own erected member

Looking at how he was enjoying your touch, you pulled his pants down to reveal his huge cock, where you immediately wrapped your mouth around his member, taking it in deeper within your throat. 

“What the actual—go-god….” Sunwoo groaned almost immediately, and it was indeed a sight to behold. 

Never once would you have thought that this was all you needed to have Sunwoo wrapped around your fingers, and you were beginning to enjoy this a little too much. 

You continued sucking his member as you moved your hands to give his balls a gentle squeeze, turning his groans into moans at this point. 

Another point for me. 

You knew he was about to cum as you felt his precum starting to ooze out from the tip of his member, but you had other plans in store. You release his member from your mouth, earning the man's somewhat unsatisfied and annoyed look.  But you were far from done, as you positioned both of your legs on both sides of Sunwoo’s before pulling your underwear down to position your entrance directly on top of his member.

“I’m just getting started, Mr know-it-all.” 

Within seconds, you lowered your body down and took his entire length into you, moaning as you slowly adjusted his cock around your tight walls. It wasn’t long before you began bouncing on him, the sounds of both of your skins slapping one another filled the entire room. 

God. This just all felt way too good. 

“Hnngh… Y/N…”

“Aahh, touch me, Sunwoo.” You grabbed both of his hands as you guided them into the hoodie, placing them directly on your bare breasts as he began massaging them. As much as he was your enemy, you couldn’t help but melt at his touch. 

Both of you were now a moaning mess, and you were now bouncing even faster than before as you began to feel a tight knot in your stomach. 

“F-fuck… Y/N. I’m gonna cum, I’m not gonna last—” 

“Cum with me, Sunwoo. Do it with me.” 

Within the next few seconds, Sunwoo immediately released his fluid inside you while you did the same around his member. As you noticed how badly he was panting and trying his best to come down from his high, you took the chance to lean down and started sucking his neck, not wanting to spare him even a second to take control over you again. 

“Say, let’s go for a round two. I absolutely love how you whimper and moan for my name.”

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Eric Sohn

PAIRING: tinder date!Eric x afab!reader

WARNINGS: age gap (reader is older), oral, squirting, cum tasting, reverse cowgirl, multiple orgasm (they went for rounds 👀), pet names (baby), Eric calls reader "noona"

WORD COUNT: 1,080

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It has been quite a few years since you have last dated anyone or even had sex. 

You have always been a workaholic, so it was natural for you to prioritise your work over anything or anyone else at all. It was also partly the reason your past relationships never lasted that long, and technically it was all your fault for things ended up being the way they were.

But you have decided that you have had enough. It is about time you got back up on your feet again, especially when all of your co-workers around you were set to either be married off or to be engaged real soon. 

Hence, you have decided to get your life back together and opted for dating apps—since they are rather popular now around the market. So you discovered the world of Tinder, and it took you a few tries to be able to match with someone who seemed to be your type of guy. 

A few weeks prior, you got matched with a young man named Eric Sohn. He was in his final years of university, working part-time at one of the best fine-dining restaurants in downtown LA. So when you both finally met at one of the local cafes for the first time, you were intrigued and wooed by his demeanour and how he presented himself—physically and through his mannerisms. You absolutely loved how he was energetic yet still had enough sense to speak the right words and use the right tone in different situations. 

Something about this young man piqued your interest in him, and you wanted to spend more time with him as you got closer together. 

Then it all happened when you both were having a drink together at a local bar not too far from his workplace. He had gotten off a bit later than usual and decided that meeting up in the bars he frequented would be a fun late date night for you both today. As you both started getting a bit tipsy after having a couple of drinks, the topic of making out and having sex suddenly slipped from your mouth. You had no intentions of talking about your sex life since you were not particularly proud of it in anyway. 

But the young man slowly listened to everything you said before finally resting his hands on yours as he leaned closer to you.

“Why don’t we take this fun to a nearby hotel that I know of?” 

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You couldn’t say no. How could you? When you basically had not been having sex for the past couple of years. When your date finally asked for your consent, of course, you had to agree. You haven’t been this excited in a while. The male also insisted that he would show you how good he could be in bed and give you the best night you’ll ever have in a while.

So here you were, lying naked on your back on the soft, comfy bed in the hotel room, while Eric was now in between your thighs, eating you hungrily. 

He definitely did not lie about how good he can be in bed. He knew precisely the proper ways to make you feel good. His tongue was gliding up and down your wet core, and then the next thing that happened, he was kissing and sucking your sensitive bud. This went on for the past hour, and you were already onto your second orgasm just from his mouth alone. 

You grabbed his hair as you pushed him lower and deeper to your core, wanting nothing else but for him to eat you out. 

“Eric.. Eric.. Eric…” It was the way you were moaning and chanting his name that motivated him to keep going, and he would want nothing else but to hear your angelic moans. 

When you finally came to, you squirted all over his mouth and face, causing the male to lick and slurp all of the remains left before pressing his lips to yours. 

“You have been such a good boy to me, why don’t I return the favour this time?” You whispered into his ear before turning the tables around so that he was now below you. You gently planted soft kisses all over his face, down to his neck, abdomen, and eventually to his now hard cock. 

With a little smirk, you turned around so that your back was facing him before gently guiding his member to your wet dripping core and taking in his length. That made Eric mewl upon the contact, but you wasted no time to start bouncing on him, gradually increasing your pace each second. 

“Oh- fuck… Noona… Your walls are so tight..” 

“Then help me loosen it up, baby..” 

You spared the boy no chances as you continued picking up your pace. God, this felt so damn good after such a long time. It was about damn time you got someone’s dick in you anyways, and it so happened that Eric Sohn was the lucky candidate. 

It was a sight to behold for Eric, he definitely enjoyed the view of your bare back with your hair draped down and with you bouncing up and down right on him. God, he was on cloud nine. 

“Noona- I’m gonna- AAHH!!” Eric mewled before he released his cum all inside of you, but you were not stopping anytime soon. 

“C’mon, baby. Give me one more. You can do it for me.” You panted, wanting desperately to make him cum again because god did it felt so good when it happened for the first time.

Eric was now pulling your hands back, using them as a support while he continued to moan and was basically losing his mind at this point. As he was constantly chanting “noona” the entire time, that somehow motivated you and was the best thing you have heard for the night.

“I’m cumming now, Eric. I’m gonna cum!” 

“Noona- AAHH!!” 

With one last push, both of you released all of your juices all over each other, turning the hotel bed into seemingly a huge mess. But that didn’t matter as you literally just had one of the best sex in your life, even compared to the ones you’ve had in the past. 

You slowly got up from him before lying back down right next to him, connecting both of your lips again, giving one another a slow sensual kiss. 

“Thank you, Eric. For all of this.”

A/N: let me know which fic was your favourite im curious to know 🤭👀

masterlist

taglist: @deoboyznet @kflixnet @flwoie @daisyvisions @mosviqu (join my perm taglist here!)

[sungbeam]

nonidol!kevin moon x f!reader

another summer break, another annual trip to the lake! except, it seems like when you and kev get there, you'll have to make some tweaks to the original rescue protocol.

▷ genre, warnings. childhood friends 2 lovers, fluff, hurt/comfort, humor, swearing, motherly meddling and matchmaking, shirtless kevin..., kissing, talks of academic expectations/pressure/insecurity/and lack of fulfillment, kim seokjin is my favorite plot device, this could technically be slow burn, pining-ish?, im sorry joshua + serena, little to no interactions with the other boyz 😔

▷ word count. 29.0k (...hah)

this is the sixth installment of the love in unity series! reading the prev fics is not required, but i do encourage it :] all prev yns will be referred to as _!yn

a/n: return to summer with me 😌 or for those of u on the other side of the world, we can give summer an early welcome :') treat her w kindness pls </3 hope u enjoy!!

EPISODE ONE (PILOT): DON’T YOU LOVE FORESHADOWING?

"IT still feels weird, man." Kevin Moon brushed his hand over the surface of his newly cropped hair, freshly cut specifically for this summer break, just earlier this week. He probably should have gotten it done before he took all those pictures with his graduating friends, but life had been busy as of late.

Jacob Bae, best friend, roommate, and one of the recent graduates, chuckled from the other side of the video chat. "I'm sure it does. But hey, it looks good, so it's not like you have anything to worry about."

Kevin glanced over at the car where his dad was gassing up. His mom was in the back seat, waving her arm out the window to beckon him back to the vehicle. "Thanks," he grinned. "Looks like my mom is telling me to come back. This is probably the last time I'll have signal for a few weeks."

Just behind Kevin was the little gas station he and his parents stopped at for snacks and the last leg of their drive. It was tradition that every summer his family made the trek to their lakeside cabin a few hours out of Vancouver. Except last summer, Kevin couldn't make it; in contrast, this summer, Kevin and his parents were going without Kevin's younger sister. Usually, there were a couple other families that were there at the same time, too, who Kevin had grown up with. It was usually a grand time.

Kevin adjusted the bag of snacks he'd purchased from the store that hung on his arm as he made his way back to the car.

"Make sure to take pics! And say hi to your mom for me," said Jacob.

"Why don't you say hi to her yourself, Jacob-ah?" Kevin's mom chided teasingly as Kevin took his place in the passenger seat next to his dad. Ever since Kevin and Jacob had met at that one, fateful out-of-country student mixer at university, neither of them shut up about each other to their own families. It was like finding a needle in a haystack, locating a fellow Korean-Canadian.

Kevin passed his phone back to his mom, and he heard Jacob's immediate, "Hi imo! How are you?"

"I've been doing well. Wah, you look so glowy," his mom marveled, and Kevin felt her nudge him in the shoulder. "Hyungseo-ah, maybe you should get a girlfriend, too, if this is how radiant Jacob looks after so long."

Jacob's warm chuckle contrasted Kevin's groan. The latter rubbed his hand down his face with an embarrassed wince. "Eomma," he said weakly, sliding down in his seat. Not this again.

The car began to roll out of the gas station and he lowered his window to catch the breeze as they went. He already recognized the pattern of trees in this area, and his heart fluttered at the thought of being so close to childhood again. The lake was always a favorite place of his.

"—Kevin mentioned something about other families being there?"

"Oh, yes. We're always there with the Ln family, and more recently, Kevin's cousin—you know Yuna, right? She and her husband Seokjin meet us there with their kids now."

Kevin rested his elbow along the edge of the window. "Uncle Seokjin is an interesting character, Cobie," he mused. "I think you'd get along."

"Seokjin gets along with everyone," his dad chimed in.

"You know who you should get along with, Kevin?—" Kevin already knew where his mom was going with this, "—Yn Ln! You're not gonna be shy after spending so long away from her, are you?"

Jacob's voice echoed in the car. "Who's Yn Ln?"

Kevin squirmed in his seat. "Just—a family friend. Mom, can we please not make this a big deal?" And why in the world would he be shy around his childhood best friend? Three years couldn’t have changed a person that much, could it? You were cute—but in a dorky way—that was how he had always seen you.

She sent him an innocent look. "What? I don't know what you're talking about."

"You know what I'm talking about," he said, twisting around in his seat to send her a pleading look. "I don't wanna make her uncomfortable, especially since… y'know… we're not kids anymore?"

His mom made a sound of disapproval, but relented. "Aish, fine. I won't say anything; I promise."

A beat of silence. Then from the phone, "I still have no clue what's going on."

The twins were being a pain again. Most of the time, since you were away at college, you actually missed the twin hellspawn, but you should have known that bliss would shatter the moment you had to endure another five hour car ride with them.

"—MAMA, CONNOR IS BEING A JERK—"

"WELL, ALICE WOULDN'T SHARE THE GOLDFISH!"

The noise-canceling headphones weren't working. Usually, they worked substantially well when trying to block out the frat party noises at school, but they weren't holding up well against adolescent discourse. You would have thought that once they had grown out of toddler-hood, they would calm down a little, but sibling rivalry prevailed.

You shucked your useless headphones off and twisted around in your seat to peer into the backseat. "Here, have mine," you said, dropping your bag of goldfish into your little brother's lap.

Connor's eyes lit up in delight. "Thanks, Yn!"

Your ears rang as you turned back to the front.

The drive up to the lake house was something you and your family did every summer, except, you hadn't gone two summers ago for a summer internship. It was a tradition completed with other families—namely the Moons, who were longtime family friends out of Vancouver. You hadn't seen Kevin, their only son who was your age, in two years because of your conflicting schedules. It would have happened again this year, but your misfortune had you internship-less. Then again, a trip to the lake was never a bad thing.

You leaned your head back against your seat rest to enjoy the rare moment of silence in the car. Already, you could begin to point out the familiar scenery out of your window.

“I heard we’re gonna be getting new neighbors this year,” you heard your mother say from the front row, breaking the brief quiet.

You blinked out of your daze, shifting in your seat and to give momentary relief to your aching behind. “Oh, really? Do we know who they are?”

“Aw, so Uncle Jin and Auntie Yuna aren’t coming to the lake with us?” Alice pouted from the backseat.

“No, Uncle and Auntie are both still coming up with us,” you dad piped up from the driver’s seat. He caught your eyes through the rear view mirror. “Their little ones are coming, too. We’re just gonna have even more people this year.”

“Should be fun,” you murmured. You leaned down to rummage through the backpack at your feet for your backup bag of snacks (because some part of your brain just knew that the twins would forget how to share).

“I can’t wait to see Kevin!” This was Connor; you could feel the car shake as he bounced up and down in his seat. “I’ve been wanting to show him my new helicopter—”

Your eyebrows furrowed. “Con, you brought the helicopter?”

“Yeah, and what about it?”

Before further argument could erupt between you and your brother, your mom stepped in. “Speaking of Kevin…”

You could feel the coming conversation like there were dark gray storm clouds forming in the distance—impending doom, you liked to think. You fumbled with the opening of your chip bag. “Mama, could you possibly, by any chance, not try and set me and Kevin up anymore?” There, you’d said it. It was out in the open.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” your mother sniffed. “I only think that you and Kevin would be very nice together! It’s already so convenient that our families are long-time friends, and—”

“Mama,” you emphasized. “I don’t wanna get into a relationship for convenience's sake.” Your skin was already beginning to heat. Having known the Moons for so long, as well as having kids the same age, your mom and his mom had harped on the opportunity to bring your families together through more than one way.

“She just doesn’t want to get into a relationship at all!” Your little brother cackled.

You sent him a dull look over your shoulder. “And after I gave you my goldfish?” The situation concerning relationships wasn’t as Connor so bluntly put it; rather, you simply had yet to find the right person, as it was for many people. A relationship would have been nice, but when it came, then it would come. Plus, you were pretty sure that Kevin wasn’t the most comfortable with being matchmade with you by the Mother Matchmakers either. That was what the pact was for, anyway.

“I’m just saying that Kevin is a smart, good-looking young man,” your mother teased.

You hadn’t seen him in almost three years, but how much could three years change a guy? Maybe you would admit that he was cute. If you hadn’t known him since he wore Cars diapers, maybe you would have had a crush on him. “No matchmaking,” you repeated.

Your mother sighed melodramatically. “Fine. No matchmaking with Kevin.”

“Thank you,” you said, settling into your seat. Something stirred in the back of your mind, though. For some reason, you had a feeling that this wasn’t the end of this conversation. But as you turned your attention back to the scenery whizzing past you, you let all dealings with matchmaking, boys, and relationships sink to the very back of your mind.

EPISODE TWO: IT’S CALLED AN AMBUSH

THANKS to the convenience of no signal, you could safely attempt to forget about the internship you hadn’t landed this year. The entire debacle had been a headache and a half, but the residual sadness still lingered. There was something about the lakehouse, though, that gave you hope that you could get over it. While you wouldn’t spend this summer doing something “productive” toward your career, you would at least be presented with a pleasant alternative.

Your dad pulled the family SUV into the gravel driveway of your family lakehouse, and childhood flooded back to you. All of the dark oak walls and browned window sills and wildflowers blooming in the front walkway among the grass… You could remember crashing your bike into that one bush to the side of the house where the rain gutter now stood hugging the building.

The twins had fallen asleep sometime between the matchmaking conversation and here, which left the car in a sort of serenity that matched the surroundings. Your house in particular was one of the few houses that was perched a little higher than the lakeshore. There were a couple around the lake that sat directly on the water with docks built into their lower levels though.

You notched your car door open, shouldered your backpack, then quietly lowered your car’s seat. Connor, who was sitting directly behind you, had his head tilted to the side, mouth wide open to catch flies as he slept. With a cheeky smile, you snapped a picture of him. Once tucking your phone away, you climbed into the back to shake him and Alice awake.

“Hey, we’re here,” you murmured. Your parents were already beginning to unload the car of your supplies for the next couple of weeks.

Your brother’s eyes fluttered open, and his arms stretched over his head as he began to compute his surroundings. “Mmm… I’m hungry,” he babbled and smacked his lips together.

Yep, this one was awake.

You patted his face in your version of sisterly affection as you leaned over him to get to his twin. “You gotta wait, dude. You’re gonna ruin your dinner.”

He rubbed his hand over his face. “You always sound like Mom when you say that.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” you huffed. You nudged your sister. “Hey, Alice. Up, hm?”

She shifted in her seat, eyes still closed. “Are we here yet?”

“Yeah, hon. We’re here.” With your task completed, you backed out of the car to make space for the twins to climb out after you. You took a step backwards, your foot catching against something and making you tumble into the person directly behind you. “Ah! Shi—”

“Language!” Your mom called from the other side of the car. “Hi Kevin! Wow, did you get a haircut?”

Kevin…?

You recognized the warm chuckle behind you, and the arms helping to steady you patted your shoulders in greeting. “I did!”

When you whirled around, your mouth stretched in a grin, but you didn’t expect to come face to face with the confident stature of the man behind you. He was in a tank top and shorts, which were definitely proper attire for the humid temperature, and yet, your brain was thinking about the amount of arm muscle there was. Oh, and of course, the cropped black hair. You could have sworn his jaw got sharper, too… This was not the timid-faced Kevin Moon—rising freshman in college—you last recalled.

“Kevin!” Connor’s body rocketed past you and crashed into Kevin’s legs.

Kevin bent down slightly to ruffle your little brother’s hair. “Hey, little man! What’s good?”

“I wanna show you my helicopter—!”

“Connor,” Alice said as she hopped out of the car, “Mama wants you to help bring in your stuff, and then you can show Kevin your helicopter.”

Connor’s mouth gaped open like a fish’s. “Wha—what about Yn?”

“Well, that’s just what Mama said, so,” your little sister said matter-of-factly. She raised a hand in a wave to Kevin. “Hi!”

Kevin returned the gesture with a sweet smile. “Hi, Alice.”

You and Kevin watched as your twin siblings raced into the lakehouse with their backpacks strapped onto their bodies. You could hear their hollering from out here as they fought over who would get the top bunk this year.

“They’ve gotten taller,” Kevin commented, drawing your attention back to him.

You brushed your hair from your face. “Yeah, you should’ve seen my reaction when I came back home and they were like, not small enough where I could trip over them anymore.”

The two of you shared a small laugh, and you held one arm with your other. You hadn’t realized how a few years could reset things between the two of you, but you supposed it was also attributed to the fact that three years away at college could lead to a lot of difference and a lot of growth.

“So what’s new with you?” You asked him and nudged his arm with your elbow. “Have you been working out?” You blurted, but ran with it.

Kevin smiled, reaching back to cup the nape of his neck with that sheepishness you recognized as something distinctly Kevin. Maybe things weren’t so different. “Hah, yeah actually. Is it that noticeable?”

You looked him up and down with what you hoped he saw as teasing and not you actually checking him out. “Yeah, dude. You look good though.”

“Really? Thanks, Yn. I appreciate it.” He stuck his hands in the pockets of his shorts. "You look good, too—and oh my god, I have so much to catch you up on—"

"Hyungseo! Stop hogging Yn and come in to help with dinner." Just a little ways down the path, Kevin’s mom peered out from the front porch of the Moons’ house. The houses in this neighborhood were a little more spread out than the average suburban street, but their house had always been the closest to yours.

You could have sworn you saw a dusting of pink on your friend’s cheekbones. “I’m not hogging her,” he groaned. He turned back to you, throwing a thumb in the direction of his house. “I’ll see you guys over at ours in a few then?”

You gave a nod. “For sure. My mom and I marinated a couple things for tonight this morning, so we’ll be bringing those over.”

“Sweet,” he grinned, already backpedaling toward his house. “See ya, Yn!”

“Bye, Kevin,” you chuckled and bounded up toward your house.

Once everyone in your household had settled in for the most part, your dad corralled your siblings over to the Moon house, while you and your mom brought over your family’s offerings of tonight’s dinner. Instead of entering through their front door, you simply bypassed the invisible property line between your houses and found Kevin and his dad firing up the barbeque on the back lawn.

Kevin looked up from the box of aluminum foil in his hands and dropped it onto the table. "Oh, auntie! Let me get that for you," he said, meeting you in the middle and taking the tray out of your mom's hands.

"Thank you," she said to him. "How has school been, Kevin? Remind me again—you're a…?"

"Photography major," he replied. The three of you swept past Kevin's dad on your way up to the Moons' house.

"Ah, how's that going for you?"

"It's going well—" Your mom slid the screen door open and you all deposited your shoes to the side before entering the kitchen. "—I should be able to graduate two quarters early, which is nice."

Your mom nodded her head. "That's good, that's good. Katherine, it's nice to see you again!"

As your mom shuffled over to the sink where Kevin's mom was washing a colander of cabbage, you and Kevin set the trays down on the kitchen island.

You heard Kevin's gasp of delight when he lifted the foil off his. "No way. I love your mom's short ribs so much," he said, tipping his head back with his eyes closed.

You laughed at his reaction. "Me, too dude. It's never the same when I try to recreate it at school."

"Oh, for sure," he agreed. He cocked his head to the side, a frown coming into his face. "These should probably go back out to the grill then, huh."

You considered the two trays of meat before you. "You're right."

You both covered the trays back over and began to make your way back out to the lawn.

"Has Connor showed you his helicopter yet?" You asked Kevin while you slid your shoes back on.

The screen door slid shut behind him with his other arm carrying his tray. "He did." Kevin brightened, "It's cool. That kid should go into aviation or engineering."

"That's what I'm thinking," you said. "Though, he's not the greatest at math, but I guess he still has a long way to go before he even needs to consider all that."

He nodded, sighing. "That's true. The twins have a long way to go. Crazy how far we've gotten, y'know?"

You both dropped the marinated meat trays over by Kevin's dad, only to greet your dad on the way down to help out. You were sure that you and Kevin were needed up at the house anyway; your dad had mentioned something about having Connor and Alice start on the batch of kimchi. You hoped he had set up some newspaper this time to avoid a mess.

"My sister says your porch swing broke last year," Kevin said as he followed you back into the kitchen.

"Oh yeah!" You snorted. "Pro tip: don't try to fit two families on that thing. Not a good idea."

The moms directed you both over to the fruits and vegetables on the counter that still needed to be prepped, and you picked up a knife, and Kevin a peeler.

Kevin's brows knitted together as he tossed and caught an asian pear with one hand. "You guys tried to fit both families on that thing? It could barely handle two people the last time I remember."

"Hey, in our defense," you started, already giggling at the memory, "we wanted a cool picture, but then we ended up almost putting a hole through our porch. Lesson learned."

"Lesson learned, indeed." He shook his head as he shucked the pretty ring of golden peel he'd gotten from the pear into the paper bag beside him. "Is it fixed now?"

"Should be," you said. You used the blade of your knife to help coax the peel of the red onion off, then diligently began to take the rest off. "We need a maximum occupancy sign to go with it."

He laughed. "Something like 'less than four people' or something?"

"I think it can handle four people!"

His eyebrows arched high. "You wanna test that theory?"

You glanced up from your diced onions for just a second to meet his gaze. "Uhm no. But you are definitely welcome to."

"Oh, no, no! I'm not getting looped into this solo again like you did with the tire swing that one year."

"Okay, that time wasn't my fault! You said that you bet we could ride it together without breaking the tree branch, and I said—"

Your thought train cut off when the doorbell rang. Both yours and Kevin's heads perked up at the sound and darted in the direction like a pair of meerkats. Even from this room, you could hear the front door being opened and the commotion firing up. There was only one family left to join the party, and you knew exactly who had come to make his presence known.

In minimal time, a lanky man with dark brown bangs and a magazine-cover-worthy face barged into the kitchen with his hands raised, full of grocery bags, and a child riding in a carrier on his chest. "Hello, everyone! Your favorite, most handsome uncle has arrived."

"Hi, Uncle Jin," both you and Kevin chorused, as Kevin's mom took the grocery bags from him with thanks. Your mom must have been the one who opened the door since she had gone into the other room to monitor the twins and their kimchi.

"Hello, children—wow," Kim Seokjin said as he made eyes at Kevin's arms, giving them a little squish. "Close the gyms, everyone. What have they been feeding you at college?"

Kevin's face reddened. "It's nothing, really."

"Nothing?" Seokjin made eye contact with you. "You're seeing this, too, right?"

You swallowed your laugh, but you couldn't suppress your smile. "I'm seeing it, too," you confirmed. You set your knife down and gently ran your finger over baby Leena's head; you wondered how she was still asleep with how loud her father's voice was. "Awh, she's adorable."

Your uncle by association put his hands on his hips. "Fatherhood is great, but let me tell you," he said with flair, "after two kids, I don't want anymore. I think I've seen enough dirty diapers for you both combined."

Kevin laughed. "I'm sure Yuna-noona's on the same page."

"Yes, your cousin and I are definitely on the same page," Jin confirmed while clasping a hand on Kevin's shoulder. His eyes widened, and he gave the muscle beneath his fingers a squeeze. "Jesus—"

"Jin! Do you know where the bag with the formula is?" That was Yuna, Kevin's cousin, calling from the next room over. Soon, her head poked in through the doorway, and her mouth curved into a delighted smile at the sight of familiar faces. "Oh, hi everyone!"

"I think it's in the red colored bag, babe," Jin said as he turned away from you and Kevin and waddled over to where his wife was.

"That's what I thought, too, but I can't find it."

With the young couple now off in search of their bag of baby formula, you and Kevin were again left to yourselves with the fruits and vegetables.

You scooped the diced onions up with one hand and the blade of your knife into an empty bowl for later. "Well, that was…"

"Quite an entrance?" Kevin finished. You could still see the rosiness in his cheeks. "Yup."

"You can always count on Uncle Jin to liven up a place."

"Oh, definitely." Kevin picked up another pear to peel; they would probably either be sliced up for the kids to eat or maybe used to make a dessert later. Something of the sort, at least. "Now where were we?"

You raised your brows as you picked up a carrot. "I think we were talking about how you broke the tire swing in seventh grade."

The evening progressed swiftly with everyone's combined efforts in throwing dinner together. By the time the sun was about to make its descent into the horizon, all three families were moved out onto the back lawn with chairs set up and meats cooking on the grill. There was something beautiful about the lake at this hour—then again, there was always something beautiful about the lake. You couldn’t put your finger on it, but even the way the mosquitoes danced in the waning sunlight made your chest feel warm and fuzzy.

If you strained your vision a little, you could even make out the shapes of people on the opposite shoreline beginning to light campfires of their own. Most of the people who lived around the perimeter of the lake sublet their properties during the non-vacation seasons like your family, the Moons, and the Kims. Then, when the time came, they would return to their lakehouse hideaways for much needed rejuvenation.

As golden hour painted the landscape glorious shades of auburn and butter, you caught your mother making her way toward you out of the corner of your eye.

“Yn-ah,” she said to you with a plate of the fruit that you and Kevin had cut earlier in her hands. She gestured for you to take it from her, then nodded up over to the house on the other side of the Moons’ place. “Take the twins and go welcome our new guests.”

You furrowed your brows. “New guests?” When you followed her gaze, you saw that the house next door had acquired a new car in its driveway. You definitely didn’t recognize it, but you managed to spot what looked like someone disappearing in the front door of the house.

“They’re one of the new families, I think,” she told you. She then gave you a little nudge, urging, “Go. We’re still working on dinner anyways.”

You glanced between the plate of fruit in your possession, then searched the back lawn for the hellspawn. When you located their whereabouts (skipping through a pair of hula hoops over by the big oak tree), you marched over to them to repeat your mother’s instructions.

“Oi!” You called out.

Alice looked over at you as she stopped her skipping. “I don’t want fruit,” she said when she saw what you were holding.

You stopped just short of Connor’s hula hoop circumference. “It’s not for you. Mama wants us to go say hi to the new neighbors. Come on.”

“Do we have to?”

“If I do, then yes. And Mama said so.” Plus, you were not planning to go alone upon any circumstance. Your social anxiety could not take showing up at a stranger’s doorstep alone and with fruit.

The twins dropped their hula hoops and begrudgingly trudged after you. No child could trump the “Mom said so” card. At least, not in this household.

With your siblings following after you like two ducklings to a Mother Goose, Kevin saw the line of you walking past from where he was stationed beside his dad. His eyes zipped from you, the kids, and the plate of fruit, then cocked his head to the side in bemused inquiry.

You inclined your head toward the house you aimed for in the distance and lifted the plate of fruit as if that was enough explanation.

He gave a grave nod for your sake, teasing of course, then held up his free hand in a thumb’s up for encouragement.

Nonetheless, you and your siblings carried on.

The lakehouse on the Moons’ other side was similar to all the others around the lake: dark wood walls, doors encased in a protective screen door, grass and flowers growing out of the cracks where the house met the earth. You could feel your siblings converge on you, nearly hiding behind you, as you all approached the front door. It wasn’t that the house looked scary in any way—it was just the prospect of new people that was the scary part. You were sure this family was just as friendly as everyone else, but it didn’t hurt to be a little nervous.

When the three of you reached the front door, you raised your hand to ring the doorbell.

You could hear the echo of the bell inside the house, followed swiftly by a man’s voice, “I’ll get it!”

Footsteps drawing closer… then the locks came undone, and finally, the main door inside the screen swung open.

“Hi,” greeted the young man on the other side.

You paused when his face became clearer after opening the screen door. He was, to put it bluntly, awfully pretty. Dark hair swept back out of his face and behind his ear, a prince’s facial features, and a smile that was as beautiful as the golden hour greeted you and your siblings. Even his voice was soft.

Alice held onto the side of your shorts pocket. “You're pretty.”

The man made an expression of humble surprise, and heat rose to your neck. “Sorry,” you stammered. “We’re from a couple doors down and we wanted to welcome you to the lake. These are for you and your family.” You managed to pass the plate over to him without being any more embarrassing.

He accepted the offering graciously. “Oh, wow. Thank you so much! That’s so thoughtful.”

You placed your hands on either of your siblings’ backs to push them forward slightly. “I’m Yn, and these are my little siblings, Alice and Connor.”

Your siblings chimed in their hellos to the pretty man.

His eyes narrowed in upturned crescent moons, smile widening. “Well it’s really nice to meet you guys. I’m Joshua, but my friends call me Josh or Shua.”

EPISODE THREE: MAMMA MIA! HERE WE GO AGAIN…

IT turned out that your mother had an ulterior motive for sending you and your siblings to greet the newcomers. She had popped up behind you soon after Joshua had introduced himself to invite him and his family to have dinner with you. You could sniff out the conspiracy from a mile away, but you still wanted to give your mom the benefit of the doubt.

When the first night passed without anything happening, though, you slowly let your guard down. (Rookie mistake.)

Everyone crashed into bed after cleaning up dinner. The move up to the lake was a tiring one, and the promise of an early start the next morning proved to be more than enough encouragement to hit the hay.

You were on the living room couch with Alice sitting on the floor between your legs the next day. It was late morning by this time, and you and your siblings had just woken up less than an hour ago. Your dad was still asleep, and your mom? Well, you weren’t really sure where he was.

“Ow, can you stop tugging?” Alice whined under her breath, her hand rocketing up to the back of her head to stop your hands.

You paused your movement for the third time in the past fifteen minutes. “It wouldn’t hurt this bad if you would just let me run a comb through it.”

“The brush works fine if you use it correctly!”

You exhaled sharply and pressed your lips together. There was never any rest between your two little siblings, whether it was amongst themselves or against you. You supposed you could just suck it up for the time being; it wasn’t often that you got to braid your little sister’s hair. She usually just liked to leave it down.

You heard the backdoor open and shut behind you, and the both of you turned your heads to see who it was. Your mom entered the house with perspiration gleaming on her face as she took off her sun hat and tossed it onto one of the dining room chairs.

“Hi Mama,” the two of you said, one after the other.

Your mom settled onto the couch cushion next to you. “Hi girls. Is your brother and dad up yet?”

“Connor’s with Uncle Jin and Aunt Yuna,” said Alice. “Daddy’s still asleep though.”

“Mm,” she hummed. She combed her fingers through her sweat-soaked hair. “It’s a warm morning out,” she murmured, then quickly added, “hey you.” She knocked her hand against your arm.

“Hm?” You asked as you finished up Alice’s braid and tied it off with the blue Cinnamoroll hair tie she’d chosen. You patted her back with your hand. “You’re done.”

Your little sister hopped to her feet. “Thanks!” She dashed away and out of the room—to where, you had no clue. You figured she knew where the food was if she was hungry.

You angled your body to squish your side against the couch cushions and face your mother. “What were you saying?”

“Ah, I was going to talk to you about the Joshua Hong boy.”

Joshua Hong. You didn’t realize you could hear a man’s name so often within twelve hours.

You made a gesture with your hand. “What about the Joshua Hong boy, Mom?”

“Well, isn’t he a handsome one?” She asked you enthusiastically, straightening in her seat. It was alarming how bright her expression became. “I spoke to his mom while Kevin and I were walking just now, and he’s only a few years older than you, you know.”

You heard a metaphorical record scratch. What? There was so much in that one sentence that you needed to unpack. You raised your hands to signal her to pause. “Wait, since when do you and Kevin take walks together?” What could they have been talking about? You knew Kevin was an exceptional conversationalist, but never in your time at the lake had you known of this interaction.

Your mother blinked. “Oh, we started the tradition when you didn’t come up with us that one year.”

“Tradition?” So this happened more than once? You didn’t know why you were so scandalized by this information—it was just Kevin after all. You knew your parents and even your siblings were all fond of him—of course they were. You were arguably even more fond of him, but that wasn’t the point. You hoped she hadn't said anything about you and him as an item at any point of time… you trusted that Kevin could handle that though; that was what the pact was for, after all.

“Why are you making such a big deal out of this?” She arched a brow. “But anyway, yes, so we bumped into Josh’s mom on the last leg around the lake, and she mentioned that he’s majoring in chemistry and planning to go into medicine. You guys might have something in common.”

You pursed your lips. Perhaps the two of you might have something to talk about, but your track was pre-veterinary rather than pre-med. There was probably a middle ground though... Maybe you were just being stubborn.

“Just make friends or something,” she said to you while standing up from the couch. “You need more of those.”

Your eyes shot wide open. “Hello? Mom?” Now that was simply uncalled for.

She chuckled impishly as she walked away and disappeared down the hall, leaving you to yourself. You were lucky neither of the twins were here to hear that burn.

It wasn’t much longer than a couple hours later that you found yourself on the backyard lawn space setting up the badminton net between two oak trees with Kevin’s assistance. Everyone was outside and awake, and the kids were all seated up on your house’s back porch munching on the watermelon that Yuna cut for them.

You tightened the string on one side of the net. “So he didn't kiss her?” You queried.

Kevin sputtered a laugh, yanking his side to test its integrity. “Yeah,” he said. “Isn’t it so funny? According to multiple sources, Sunwoo and Chanhee barged in at the perfect moment, and frankly—” Kevin raised his arms up in the air and let them fall for effect, “—ruined the moment.”

"Pfft.” You considered that for a moment. An almost kiss ruined by a comedically timed interruption from a guy drunk off liquor and love, and the friend tasked with dumping his ass at home. That was bad luck if you ever heard it. “And what about that other dude? The Hyunjae guy? Did he finally fix his eyesight?”

Your friend leaned back against his oak tree, ankles crossed over the other and arms braided over his chest. A pair of shades rested backwards on his head to complete his summer-worthy ensemble of shorts and T-shirt. “His literal eyesight is still shit, but yeah, he and HJ!Yn are together now. Took for-fucking-ever, but—”

“Language!” Jin yelled like a referee on the sideline of a soccer match. “We have children in the vicinity.”

Kevin brushed a hand through his hair. “Whoopsies, sorry!” He turned back to you. “Anyways, yes, they are finally together. Man, having someone watch my cursing makes it seem like Jacob is here with me.”

You noticed the fond twinkle in his eyes as he stared out at the still waters of the lake just down the way from you both. “You talk about this Jacob guy a lot,” you said to him. “I think I need to meet the person who’s threatening to knock me off the best friend pedestal.”

“He already has,” he jested.

You let out an indignant squawk. “Hurtful!”

Connor, watermelon juice smeared all around his mouth, added rather unnecessarily, “So you don’t want a partner and you don’t have friends. What do you have, Yn?”

You leveled a scowl at him. “An annoying little brother.”

“Hey!”

In a tone dryer than the Sahara Desert, Alice chimed in, “Guess that makes me the favorite twin.”

“I should tell you about Sangyeon. I need to yell about Sangyeon,” Kevin huffed indignantly, snapping his fingers as if the thought just hit him. You whipped your head back over. “Oh my god, dude, you know what happened at the graduation ceremony? It was like, straight out of a scene from a movie—!”

You never got to find out what was just like it was out of a movie, because your mom appeared in the distance with the Hongs. They all came wielding badminton racquets—how convenient. You didn’t mind the extra company, of course, and despite your stubbornness, you knew Joshua and his family were very nice people.

You caught the tail end of your mother’s conversation with Josh and his mom: “...Yn used to play badminton on the high school team. She could’ve gone to the Olympics if she really wanted to—”

Well, that was only partly true. Your team had gone to Nationals, but the Olympics was one step above Worlds. You liked to think you were pretty good at the sport, but you hoped your mom wasn’t talking up you and your abilities too much.

“Oh, wow. I’m a soccer person myself,” said Joshua good-naturedly. “I don’t really know much about badminton, but it seems like a really fun sport.”

"Yn's a great teacher. She taught the twins how to play." Ah, there it was.

When they were within a comfortable distance, you raised your hand in a wave. "Hi hello!"

"Hello Yn," Joshua's mom said back. "Hi Kevin."

Kevin dipped his head with a smile. "Hi Auntie."

"Yn-ah," said your mom as she took you by the arm, dragging you over toward Joshua, "I was just talking to Josh about how good you are at badminton."

Your eyes widened slightly, and you noted the way Joshua's did the same. You made eye contact with Kevin as this happened. He seemed caught at a crossroads, unable to help or say anything. "I guess I'm okay at it."

"Liar," Kevin suddenly jumped in.

You sent him a look. Wait really?

He shrugged sheepishly. "I don't wanna downplay your abilities, dude. You're really good."

Oh. "Thanks, Kev," you said, blinking. Your heart warmed at the finger guns he sent your way. It was nice to know he had your back.

"Good! See? You and Josh should play doubles together." Your mother somehow got a racquet into your hand. She clapped her hands and ushered her two other children off their butts. "Come on, you two, you can be on Kevin's team."

"But that's not what doubles means, Mama—"

Joshua sidled up beside you with an apology in his smile. "Sorry, you don't have to do this if you don't want to. I don't want you to be forced to teach me or anything."

Guilt wormed itself into your stomach. "No, no! It's totally okay," you amended swiftly. "This all just happened really quickly, but I'd be so down to teach you badminton, if you'd like."

He bobbed his head up and down, patting the netting of his racquet. "Okay, yeah. That'd be really cool actually."

You nodded, returning his expression. "Cool."

You and Joshua had somehow taken over the makeshift badminton court. The twins had gotten tired of the "big kids" playing too hard, and Kevin… actually, you didn't know why Kevin put down his racquet. But at some point, you noticed that he was just hanging out in a chair, sipping some kind of fruit juice as he observed you and Joshua. (That was what you assumed he was doing. There was a book propped open in his lap, but you hadn't seen him turn a page in a while. And he had put his sunglasses on, so you couldn't exactly see what his eyes were doing.)

You tracked the birdie as it flew over the net to your side. "Nice!" You praised, taking a few steps in the diagonal to hit the birdie back over with an easy backhand flick.

Joshua stumbled forward, but hit it back over. "Shoot," he said, barely catching himself before he crashed into the netting.

You chuckled, "Careful." You backed up and gave the birdie a gentle bump.

It sailed over the net, but it landed too close to it for Joshua to get a clean shot back over. He sighed as he bent down to pick the projectile up from the grass. "Dang. Nice hit, Yn."

Content with your shot as well, you walked over to the net to meet him. "Thanks, man."

"Hyungseo-ah!"

You watched as Kevin stood up from his chair at his mom's call. "Yeah, what's up?"

As she strolled over to him, she was reapplying sunscreen onto her arms and face. "We have more new neighbors. Since you're not doing anything, you should come and welcome them with me. There’s someone I think you should meet."

You and Kevin locked gazes for a second before he turned back to his mom. You didn't know why you kept looking at each other—this all felt like déjà vu, but maybe it was the fact that it seemed like your moms were separating you both instead of bringing you together that was throwing you off.

"Uhm, sure, Mom." He dropped his book into his seat and followed after his mom.

Your gaze trailed after him for a moment before you snapped back to reality. You swiped the sweat off your forehead with the back of your hand. "Sorry, where were we?"

Just then, Seokjin made his way down the lakeshore with baby Leena strapped to his chest again. He threw up an arm in greeting. "Hey, kids. You guys still at it?"

"Yup," you said back. "He's getting good at it!"

Joshua laughed lightly. "Ah, you flatter me. It's just 'cause Yn's a good teacher."

Seokjin's eyes flickered between the two of you. "Huh. I'm sure she is."

"Anyways," you coughed. "Did you just come from the new neighbor's house or something?" He hadn't arrived from the direction of his own house, which was on the other side of yours.

Your uncle by association gave his affirmative, one hand pressed gently on the back of his baby in his holster. "Of course! You know I'm too nosy to not have gone to introduce myself and see what's up. The couple has a girl around your age, Yn-ie. Their son is off in Paris for his job or something though."

The two men could probably see the gears in your brain turning. Another person who was around yours and Kevin's age? You really didn't want to read too much into it, but—you pushed the thought to the side. It probably wasn't what you were thinking, right?

"Uh, you good, Yn?" Joshua asked.

Your eyes shuttered. "Yeah. I was just thinking about something." You gestured with your racquet in a flourish. "How about another round?"

EPISODE FOUR: THE DAMSEL IN DISTRESS DEAL™

THE crickets were particularly melodious tonight. Their chirrups became lovely background music as you perched on the stairs of your back porch beneath the warm glow of the outside light. Moths swarmed the bulb, casting little shadow puppets along the wooden deck.

You were hunched over one of the few books you brought along with you for the trip. Your siblings liked to tease you for bringing “school work” on a summer trip, but these had been purchased out of your own interest. It was an anthology of experiences related to animal behavior. The certain piece that had originally caught your eye had been about the Alaskan husky’s primal nature to run, and their participation in dog sled racing. You’d come across it originally in a magazine on an airplane, finding yourself enthralled in a story of the stamina, determination, and hard work that these dogs faced in the brutal Alaskan winters.

When your plane landed, you had gone online and found more stories like them. Thus, the book in your lap and money down the drain. (Though, you would argue that it was money well-spent.)

“Warm night out.”

You startled, heart galloping in your chest, as Kevin appeared in your periphery and stepped into the light.

To his credit, he took on a sheepish sort of grin. “Oops, sorry. Probably should have given a warning or something.”

You pressed a hand to your palpitating heart and scooted over to give him room to sit on the step next to you. “No, it’s all good. I don’t think there was really any way that you could have warned me.” You were probably way too deep into your book to have even noticed if he was any quieter.

He took a seat beside you, posture mimicking yours with his forearms pressed onto his knees. “You’re right,” he murmured. “Whatcha reading?” He asked while inclining his chin toward the pages in your lap.

“Oh.” You kept a couple fingers wedged between the pages you were on as you flipped to the cover to show him. “It’s just this, uhm, collection of stories on animal behavior. Real fascinating stuff, actually, and a lot of it is kind of inspirational.” You tucked a strand of hair behind your ear, unsure of why you were always shy about telling people about something you were passionate about. You shouldn’t have thought so little of Kevin Moon, though. He never gave you any worries about being judged.

“Oh, that sounds neat,” he said, scooting closer. “Is it for your major? You’re still doing wildlife biology, right—or is it ecology?”

“Wildlife biology,” you confirmed. “It’s not for my major or anything, no. Just something I was interested in.”

A thought suddenly occurred to you and you were rewinding all of the things that had happened in the past couple of days. Before Kevin could comment further on the topic of majors, you piped up, “Actually, I wanted to talk to you about something.”

His eyes widened a smidge, his posture straightening. “Oh? What about?”

You felt around the porch deck for the receipt you had been using as a makeshift bookmark, hand flopping around before you snatched it up and slipped it into the pages of your book. You set the book aside. “Is it just me, or are our moms… you know…”

“Doing the Thing again?” He finished. He sighed with a little grimace, “Yeah, I think I’m seeing it.”

The “Thing” that both you and Kevin were referring to was none other than the very act of matronly matchmaking taking place between you and the new kids on the block. At least you could confirm that you weren’t overthinking it.

You recalled the events of earlier today when Kevin and his mom had come back to where everyone else was with the new family that had just arrived. The Xus were another party of just three—their oldest son was in Paris, as Seokjin reported, but their youngest, Serena, was yours and Kevin's age. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out who Kevin's mom wanted to introduce her son to.

“You know what’s crazy?” You said to him then, “On the car ride up here, I asked my mom—like, point-blank, you know?—to not try to matchmake us anymore.”

Kevin perked up. “Dude. That’s crazy, because that’s what I asked my mom on the car ride up here.”

You sputtered, “You’re kidding.”

“Great minds think alike,” he said, lip curling upward into a smile and his arms coming up in a halfhearted shrug. “But I should have known it wouldn't be that easy.”

Now that you were thinking back to your own conversation, you should have known something fishy was going on when your mom mentioned Kevin specifically… You only thought that she was being thorough in her understanding of what you were asking her to do, but turned out, it was only a loophole. “You’re so right,” you groaned and tilted your head backward. “Literally what are we gonna do?”

The two of you stewed in silence on this fine night.

There was one night, similar to this one, where you had sought each other out. You couldn’t remember what year it was—something close to sixth grade when both of you had the mind to realize the game your moms were trying to play. From that night came a pact of sorts, one that would hopefully try to steer each other away from a fate that neither of you were sure that you wanted yet. After all, eleven years old was a little premature to be talking about who you wanted to spend the rest of your life with, right?

Kevin leaned back onto his palms. “We need to make a new pact, I think.”

Your head swiveled over to him. “Amendments to the pact?”

“Either amend it or come up with a new one to fit our current situation,” he said. “A rescue protocol.”

A rescue protocol… you could see it begin to take shape in your head. The previous pact was different—an agreement between you and Kevin that you were both simply friends, no matter how many times your moms made you do chores together, or tie each other’s shoelaces, or swap numbers and emails and social media. And it had worked, for the most part; you were both still friends after all these years.

But this time would have to be different. Your moms weren’t driving you toward each other anymore.

“The Rescue Protocol—is that what we’re calling it?” You mused in an attempt to bring mirth to the conversation.

Kevin made a sound like a laugh. “Better than ‘the pact,’ I like to think.”

“How about the ‘Damsel in Distress Deal?’”

He let out an actual laugh this time. You got to watch his eyes turn up into crescent moons, the corners crinkling with pretty smile lines. His smile was always contagious, even after all this time. “The ‘Damsel in Distress Deal?’” He parroted. When he allowed the phrase to soak into his brain for a second, tongue massaging his bottom lip, he relented. “Okay, that’s actually not bad.”

You giggled. “So we either call it the Rescue Protocol or the Damsel in Distress Deal, trademark.”

“Trademark?” His reaction sent you into a flurry of snickers, hand clamped over your mouth so the sounds wouldn’t wake up your family. “What? Are we gonna advertise this idea to people?” He chuckled.

“It’s a good idea!”

“We don’t even know what the parameters are yet,” he sputtered. Kevin lightly punched your upper arm. “Silly goose.”

“Geese are not silly,” you found yourself replying. They could be mean creatures. “But I think they’re cute.”

“Jacob thinks they’re scary.”

You gave a playful roll of your eyes. “This Jacob guy again?” After a moment, you sighed, toeing the dirt on the bottom step with the tip of your shoe. “Hey, can I ask you a question?”

Kevin sobered a little, but the remnants of his merriment remained in the shine of his irises. “Shoot.”

“Are you…” You struggled to string the words together. There was a question you’d come up with already, but you didn’t know if it was too forward or not. “Are you ready for a relationship?”

The question caught him off guard. His gaze flickered from you, to the grass, to his lap, to the moon-soaked surface of the lake further down the hill. “I… I’m not sure, really,” he muttered, then added, “I think I would know the right person when I meet them.”

“Yeah,” you agreed.

“Or maybe not,” he shrugged. “Maybe I’ve already met the person I want to spend the rest of my life with, but the relationship just hasn’t gotten there yet.”

You pondered on that for a moment, then realized you agreed with that, too. If you already met the person you were meant to be with, the thought of a relationship was a little less daunting. You already knew this person. “So we’re in agreement then? This new pact is something we both want?”

“As usual, we are in agreement,” he nodded. “What’s our plan then? Fight fire with fire?”

You snorted. “Pretty much, right? We just have to, you know, swoop in whenever we can to counteract their movements. Help each other out, y’know?” You laughed at how ridiculous this all sounded. “I guess it’s really just doing what they’ve wanted us to do this whole time.”

Kevin grinned to himself. “Spend time together?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m down for that. You?”

“Yeah, man.” You shifted to angle your body toward him and stuck your hand out. “You still remember it, right?”

Kevin sent you an incredulous look, as if offended that you could think so lowly of him. He reflected your angled body, hand primed and ready. “Uh, yeah. Do you remember it?”

You clicked your tongue. “Of course, I do! It's the seal."

You knocked the back of your hand against his to signal the beginning of the handshake.

Like second nature, the two of you made your way through the unnecessarily (but also completely necessary) convoluted masterpiece that was your sixth grade handshake. It was what you used the first time you sealed the deal on the pact, and whenever you made any other agreements of significance (e.g. the Juice Pouch Accord of Eighth Grade). Now, it would seal the Rescue Protocol/Damsel in Distress Deal, too.

When the handshake combination finished (marked by twin flicks to the forehead—"Ow! You always flick so hard.”; “Yikes, hope that doesn’t leave a mark…”—and a… proper handshake), the only thing left to do was put it into motion.

Teasing, you sent him a look of approval. “You did remember.”

“Funny how you say that as if you have the better memory out of the two of us,” he quipped back with an unimpressed look.

You hummed your own amusement back to him, taking the book that you’d set aside earlier back into your lap but leaving it unopened. There wasn’t any signal in this area, so devices were practically useless, so books and board games and sports became the go-to for entertainment. It was what your parents originally liked so much about the place, and eventually you and your siblings. It allowed for moments between the moments like this… whatever this was.

Kevin leaned back onto his palms again, and the shadows and moonlight cut across his jawline like glass. “I didn’t think you’d be up so late.”

“Yeah,” you drawled and picked at a strand of grass sticking out between the boards of a stair step. “I couldn’t sleep for some reason and decided to read, but then I opened my window and realized it was a nice night out, so here I am.” You nodded to him, “You?”

He gave a soft sort of chuckle. “You know I never sleep.”

Your chest felt heavy all of a sudden. “Still have the sleeping issue?” You asked softly. It had been a big thing when he was a kid. It had started off as being a very light sleeper, but over time, you discovered that sometimes Kevin just did not get sleep.

“Yeah…” he said, "I'm usually able to sleep when I'm here though, y'know? The peace, the quiet, the familiarity—it all helps. It was just tonight that was out of the ordinary." When he glanced over at you, the side of his lip quirked upward. "Don't worry too much."

You'd always thought about the lake as your home away from home, your safe space. A part of you had always thought it was the same way for him.

“How could I not worry?" You asked, poorly masking your concern as you leaned over your knees and looked at him. “How did you ever get used to your place at uni?” There must have been some reason that he was able to survive over there.

The corners of his mouth curled upward into a smile. “I was lucky,” he admitted. “I met people who have become some of my best friends and family. I guess it’s just weird being so far away from them and it's catching up to me.”

As much teasing as you did about this Jacob character, you were glad Kevin had found him and his other friends. Being away from home like that could not have been easy. At least you could rest assured that he was taken care of over there.

He had grown so comfortable over there that even his subconscious missed them.

You shifted a little closer to him and gently leaned your head onto his shoulder. He seemed surprised at first, but relaxed and let you keep your head there. “That’s good,” you whispered. “I’m happy for you.”

A beat passed, and the crazy thought occurred to you that maybe you should have asked to do this first. “Is this okay?”

His hand warmed the top of your head. “More than okay.”

The two of you sat there like that for however long—you couldn’t really tell. Time passed by differently here, it seemed. Friends definitely comforted each other like this though, right? Right.

EPISODE FIVE: [SHENANIGANS ENSUE.]

"KEVIN, would you mind giving this snack pack to Serena?"

"Oh, I got it, Auntie!" You snatched the Ziploc bag of trail mix from off the counter where Kevin's mom had set it out. "I haven't properly introduced myself to her yet," you said as some kind of explanation.

Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Kevin look away to conceal his laugh at your inconspicuousness.

Today, the five families planned to go on a long nature hike as a large group. There was a specific path that your family, the Moons, and the Kims always took at least once every year that led out to a waterfall. It was a beautiful slice of nature, but then again, you thought this entire area was beautiful.

You swung out of the Moons' kitchen and out onto the back lawn where everyone was slowly gathering to take off. Eyes scanning the immediate area, you located Serena Xu standing off to the side plaiting her hair into a simple braid over her shoulder.

As you made your way over to her, your Uncle Jin suddenly appeared beside you. “You look like a woman on a mission, Yn-ie. What’s the sitch?”

Your brain took a second to register the reference. “Has Sana been watching Kim Possible or have you, Uncle?”

“And if I said it was both of us?” He sniffed. Sana was his eldest daughter, only three years old, but Jin and Yuna were very updated in the essential kids shows they wanted their daughters to watch.

“As you should,” you said with an indulgent nod. You turned your gaze over to your intended target.

Serena’s eyes wandered up from her hair and met your eyes, then glanced over at Jin. You hoped she didn’t think the two of you were ganging up on her or anything. Two new people at once could be intimidating.

“Hi, Serena, right?” You asked as you and Jin approached her.

She gave a small nod, pulling her braid’s end over her shoulder as she fidgeted with it. “Uh, yeah. And you’re Yn?”

“We already met yesterday,” Jin said chipperly.

Serena nodded again.

Your fingers danced along the edge of the Ziploc baggie in your hands, squeezing along the edge to make sure that it was closed properly. Your teeth ran over your bottom lip before you were passing her the bag in your hands. “Kevin’s mom made all of us snack bags, and I just wanted to say a proper hello.”

She accepted the bag, eyes wide as she inspected its contents through the clear plastic. “Oh, wow. Thank you; that’s really thoughtful.”

“Oh!” Seokjin illuminated like a lightbulb, clapping his hands loud enough to make both you and Serena wince. (You and she met each other’s eyes with awkward laughs.) “Didn’t you mention yesterday that you were pre-law?”

Your eyebrows flew upward. “Pre-law?” Your head bobbed up and down with a low whistle. “That’s cool.”

“Yeah, uh, I guess so,” she said. “It’s a little intimidating right now, if I’m being honest.”

“Yn!” Ripped out of the conversation, you excused yourself and found the source of your name. Your mom was perched on one of the picnic benches outside of the Moons’ place, slathering sunscreen on your brother’s face. Connor’s face was wrinkled in extreme displeasure as she patted the white cream into his skin with a slapping sound.

Always amusing.

Perched upon the picnic table next to them was none other than Joshua Hong. He sent you a friendly greeting wave.

“What’s up?” You asked, leaving Uncle Jin with Serena so you could make your way over to your chagrined little brother, your mom, and Joshua. “Where’s Dad and Alice? Hey Josh.”

He replied pleasantly, “Hey Yn.”

“Your dad’s grabbing something from the car with her,” she dismissed. “Would you mind showing Joshua where we put our bandages? We have so many of the little ones—”

“It’s just a little cut; I swear I’m fine!” Joshua chuckled good-naturedly. He showed you the slice in the side of his finger that was only a couple of centimeters long, but you could tell that he’d just recently cleaned it up and was holding it with a small piece of napkin.

Your mom made a noise of disagreement. “It’s going to get infected on the hike.”

You shuffled on your feet, offering him a small smile. “Sorry, man. I have to agree with her.”

“Thank you. You remember where the bandages are, right? You and Josh just go run up really quick together.”

You didn’t even realize when Kevin got here. “Oh, why don’t I just get one from my place for you?” Kevin waltzed into the conversation with an innocent expression, hands tucked into the pockets of his shorts, as he appeared at your side. “Since we’re just right here.”

Joshua gestured toward him with his hand-clutching-hand situation and hopped off from the picnic table top. “If you don’t mind.”

“Yeah, dude, it’s no problem.” Kevin’s hand met the place between your shoulders with a warm pat, and he led Joshua up to his family’s cabin for the bandages.

Your amusement followed after them as you watched them leave. Your mom sent you a curious look, eyes narrowed in question, and you could only shrug helplessly.

The hike commenced shortly after the boys got back from raiding the Moon’s medicine cabinet. Your dad and Alice returned sometime before they did, and Alice had once again requested you put her hair up in, as she said, “Something nice.” As if the wilderness would care about her nice hair-do, but you gave her a plait that matched Serena’s.

Your brother and sister kept near to you as you led the group through the beginning of the trail. Though you didn’t consider yourself as someone who exercised religiously, you never turned down a good foraging session. Your freshman environmental science course had presented you with plenty of opportunity to dive into the dense forest areas near the building. Even in the early reaches of the morning (8:30 morning labs were sometimes difficult to be disciplined about, but you were determined), when the fog clung to the forest floor and dew slipped down velvety oak leaves, you found yourself at peace.

At some point in time, Connor picked up a large fallen stick and used it as a hiking staff. “You shall not pass!” He declared after running a little ways ahead of you and mimicked the deepness of Gandolf’s voice.

You snorted as you passed by him and ruffled his hair. “Name the series that’s from and then we can talk, dude.”

“You’re never any fun!” Connor garbled, jogging after you.

You scoffed, pressing a hand against your chest in feigned offense. “I’m way more fun than you are,” you retorted.

“Okay, prove it! Make this more fun.”

“So you’re saying this hike isn’t fun?” You gasped.

Connor stabbed at the dirt path warn into the ground that weaved through the trees ahead for miles. It was by no means a challenging hike, just a lengthy one that required a bit of enthusiasm and endurance. “Well last time, you brought that thing—”

“Sugar water,” you supplied.

“—yeah, that one—and we caught butterflies!” Painted Lady butterflies were a common species of butterfly that was widespread among North America. Luckily, it hadn't been too difficult to find them.

“Woah, you guys caught butterflies last year? Without me?” Man, this guy was just everywhere today, you thought jokingly, as Kevin appeared on your other side with a boyish grin on his face. “That’s cool.”

“We didn’t catch them,” you corrected. It was more so a lure with the sugar water (a substitute for nectar), letting the kids see the insect up close, and then setting it free. You were no lepidopterologist—butterflies were cool, but no special interest of yours. “They just landed in my hand for a little. You should’ve been there to take pictures.”

Kevin hit the palm of hand against his forehead. “That’s what I forgot! I forgot to bring my camera on the hike.”

“Tsk tsk, what would your sister say now?” You chided playfully.

He pressed his lips together in a grimace. “Don’t bring her up—I can hear the echo of her voice as we speak.” To prove his point, he pressed his fingers to his temples, eyes fluttering closed, as if he really could hear his sister’s teasing from wherever she was.

You humored him with a laugh—

“Yn! I’m gonna climb that boulder!”

Okay, fun time was over. You tracked the sound of your brother’s voice, and with barely enough time to catch up to him, you set off the beaten path to follow. “Hey, you better be careful or Mom’s gonna put you on bedrest for the rest of the trip,” you chuckled as Kevin fell in step beside you. You said to him offhandedly, “Would you possibly mind…”

“Yeah, I got it.” He did a small jog over to the cluster of boulders your brother had begun to scale. Going bouldering wasn’t a new activity for you and your siblings, but you remembered that these ones were a little larger than your mom was usually comfortable with. You were grateful Kevin understood immediately.

He was already standing below where Connor was, playing along with whatever roleplay your brother had made up, all the while hovering in case he fell.

The rest of the party caught up to you at this point, and Alice, Uncle Jin, Sana, and even Josh converged upon the rock formation in a flurry of giggles and mirthful playtime. You observed the action with ill-concealed fondness for everyone there as they came together and helped one another climb to the topmost boulder as if it were the peak of Mount Everest. Something warmed within you at the sight.

On your left, Yuna, who was on Leena duty this morning, came to stand beside you. Some of the parents were pulling out cell phones to record all the chaos going on. “Why don’t you go up with them?” She asked, inclining her head to the rock formation.

Josh was just beckoning Kevin up with him, and you saw Kevin’s head turned back over his shoulder. When his eyes found yours, Kevin waved you over, too.

“I should,” you murmured in agreement.

Yuna hummed as she adjusted the little bonnet on Leena’s head. “You know, Kevin…” she began. You waited for her to finish, but she smiled instead, shaking her head. “Nevermind. Go have fun, you bean.”

You giggled at the nickname, then wasted little time going to join everyone else. You could probably ask her what she was going to say later.

The evening found the group of you gathered on the shady back lawn between yours and the Moons’ cabin for dinner once again. The Xus and Hongs had all retired to their own respective houses for downtime, so it would just be the three original families. You perched a little ways away on the back stairs of your house’s porch, a bowl of peelable tangerines in your lap. At your feet, you had rolled the edges of a brown paper bag you’d found beneath the sink to use as a disposal. All of the compostable waste you and everyone else produced while here would become great fertilizer and mulch. It was something you usually had your siblings help with, especially before you left the lake.

Kevin had his cap turned backwards as he made his way over to you in flip flops. “That seat taken?” He asked with a nod toward the board next to you.

Your eyebrows rose. “All yours.”

“Thanks,” he beamed, doing a silly waddle, then sitting down next to you. He reached into the bowl on your lap for an orange, and you moved the compost bag between your bodies. “Your mom was talking about Josh again,” he said as he dug his thumb into the skin of the tangerine. Its juices sprayed into the air and released its sweet fragrance.

“Why am I not surprised?” You sighed with a shake of his head. “You know, he’s really good with my siblings though.”

“Oh, is he?”

You shrugged, shoveling a tangerine half into your mouth. “Mm—yeah,” you said once you’d swallowed. “But you’re also good with my siblings. I dunno, it was just an observation.” Based on what you saw on the hike, you could confidently conclude that your siblings agreed with both Kevin and Josh. They were both friendly beyond means, easy on the eyes, kind on the soul.

Kevin didn’t say anything for a beat, and still didn’t say anything until he’d finished the orange in his hands and picked up a new one. “I hear he’s going into medicine. I have a friend who’s going into medicine.”

“Which one?” You asked, then joked, “Don’t tell me it’s Jacob now…”

When Kevin gave you a sheepish expression, you shook your head, “Okay, now I think you’re obsessed with this guy.” All the teasing was in good fun, of course.

“He’s just my soulmate,” he lamented with a hand draped over his forehead for added effect. “No biggie.”

“Damn,” you laughed. You popped a wedge of tangerine into your mouth, eyes going to the sky for a moment as you pondered on something. “So you say that when Jacob met his current girlfriend, it was because of you.”

“Yup.”

“So you set them up? You matchmade them?”

He nodded. “I’m very proud of myself, actually. I take credit for all of their milestones and anniversaries. I better be the Best Man at their wedding, and—”

“But you matchmade them; doesn’t that make you a hypocrite?”

Kevin’s speech came to an abrupt halt. You watched, in blatant amusement, as his face contorted and arranged itself in the five stages of grief. “Oh my god… I am a hypocrite.”

For a moment, you felt bad for laughing at his blanched expression. “It doesn’t make you a bad person,” you assured him.

“It makes me a hypocrite.” He hung his head, but shot back up just as quickly. “Okay, but wait! It’s different.”

“Do tell.”

“It’s different because Jacob never told me he didn’t want to be matchmade.” The calculations taking place in his head were as stark to you, the observer, as if he was working it out on a white board. His eyebrows knitted together. “Yeah. That’s the difference. Plus, that match was fully successful, and he ended up putting in a lot of the work himself by the end anyway.”

You bobbed your head in agreement. “Fair enough.”

Kevin settled his chin on his hand, eyes slicing back over to you. “Aren’t you a hypocrite, too, then?”

You blinked. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

His face said it all. “Jenna from fifth grade.”

Oh. It all came rushing back to you…

But before anything else could be commented on the matter (read: before you could go through your own miniature existential crisis like Kevin had), a presence appeared, squatting down between the two of you. “What—” Jin covered Leena’s ears as he sat down, “—is the mother-effing tea?”

You and Kevin immediately scooted over to make room for the uncle coming in hot. You moved the compost bag back to the other side of your leg.

Kevin chuckled. “You said ‘mother-effing.’”

“Aish,” he exhaled, wrinkling his nose up. “Yuna’s on relax mode right now and has two beers in her. I get a pass, okay? Now catch me up on all of the exciting stuff.”

You and Kevin traded glances. “What exciting stuff?”

Jin’s expression flattened into a deadpan. “Don’t be like that. You two have been so secretive lately; I wanna be let in on the secret stuff.”

“I don’t know if it’s necessarily a secret…” You drawled.

Kevin scratched the back of his head. “Uh, yeah. Well, we’ve kind of figured out that our moms are trying to set us up with Josh and Serena instead of each other now.”

You didn't know what you were expecting Uncle Jin to reply, but he gave a nod. "Ah, I can see that." He sucked in a breath through his teeth, "Why did they suddenly go 360 on the two of you? It seems kind of out of left field."

"Well, we kind of asked them to stop trying to get us two together."

Jin hummed. "Yah, that makes sense. It all makes sense now." He made an old-man noise out of his throat as he shifted his position and the way that Leena rested on his chest. You and Kevin buckled down and hung off his words. "They probably only mean well, you know that, right? Right. But I can see that you both are still uneasy about that, and I get that, too. So—I'll tell you what.

"I'll help you guys out," he said. "I think they already know I'm nosy enough to butt in everywhere, so it shouldn't be a problem for me to… tch tch, y'know—" He gestured very indulgently with his hands, "—do my thing—am I making any sense? It's been a long day."

Another look passed between you and Kevin, then you both shared a laugh, relief making your postures relax and your grins widen. "No, we understand completely."

It seemed like you just gained an ally.

EPISODE SIX: CAN I BE A ROCK IN MY NEXT LIFE? THANKS.

THERE was a collection of jet skis that someone around the lake owned, and Kevin's parents would rent them out once every summer for everyone to use. Of course, it was mainly for the older kids and adults; thus, your siblings and the little Kims were banned from partaking in the festivities, much to your siblings' chagrin. It was for safety reasons that they were forced to find some other method of entertainment for the day.

You trudged your way down the path from the Kims' house to yours. In your hand, you wielded the light blue stick of baby sunscreen Seokjin asked you to fetch for his girls, but based on the fact that Leena, Sana, nor Yuna were even out here, it was safe to assume it was really for him.

Those who were participating in riding jet skis, and some who just wanted to watch and soak up the summer sun, were gathered somewhere between your house and the Moon house again. The two properties shared a single dock made of wood faded out from the sun and washed by the lake water. You could recall summer after summer running down the pier and cannonballing into the water.

"Hey! I got your sunscreen!" You hollered as you neared the group down by the water, raising the sunscreen stick up in the air.

The five or so heads turned toward you at the sound of your voice. You didn't miss Kevin's presence specifically, his arms sticking out from the life vest strapped to his chest. You did not deign to look further.

Jin raised his hand. "My Savior! Thanks, Yn-ie!"

You tossed the sunscreen down to him and he caught it between both of his hands before beginning to slather the cream all over his face.

You noted the last life vest sitting on the edge of the dock closest to land and made a beeline for it.

Just as you descended the hill, your mom appeared in your view with an empty plate in her hands, the bottom ringed in a translucent red liquid. "Yn, honey. Can you do me a huge favor and chop up the last watermelon? I didn't realize we would need more. Your dad and Kevin's dad are driving into town right now for some extra provisions and an extra large watermelon."

"Oh, sure." Your eyes skittered to the vest on the dock, but you realized slicing the watermelon wouldn't take too long.

You took the plate from your mom without further comment and began making your way up the hill to your house.

As you slid the door open, the sound of chatter carried from the living room floor. Eyes peered up from where they were seated, surrounding the coffee table on the floor. A colorful array of beads and string was strewn over the surface, and you came to a distinct conclusion as to where all the non-jet-skiers had gone.

"Hello everyone," you mused, closing the screen door behind you.

Josh was the first to say hello back. "Wanna join us? We're making friendship bracelets." He lifted the craft in his hands as if the beads and materials displayed weren't proof enough.

You leaned over the back of the couch. "Looks like fun! Maybe I will."

Outside by the lake, Kevin monitored the back door of your cabin for when you would make your way back out. He had been wanting to race you on a jet ski ever since the owners brought them over for everyone to use.

There were a grand total of five people surrounding the opening to the dock: Kevin and his mom, your mom, Jin, and Serena. Everyone except for the moms were strapped in lifejackets in preparation to board one of the two jet skis sitting in port.

"Huh," Jin said as he craned his head up in the direction Kevin's was in. "Wonder what's taking her so long."

"I'm sure she's just taking her time or something." Kevin pushed off of the post he was leaning against. "I'll go check up on her—"

“Oh, no-no-no! It’s okay,” your mom protested, her body already turn-tailed to head up to the house. Even Kevin’s mom made a gesture for him to stay put. “We’ll go check up on Yn.”

Kevin’s mom then gestured with her arm toward Serena, who had wandered off further down the dock to inspect one of the vehicles waiting in the water. “Why don’t you go help her with the jet ski?”

“And me!” Seokjin boisterously slung an arm around his cousin-in-law’s shoulders and swung him toward the entrance of the pier.

Kevin’s eyes went wide when he almost tumbled face-first into the hardwood. “Shit,” he sputtered. “Uh, Uncle Jin?”

“Yep?”

“That sounded fishy to you, too, right?”

Jin let out a laugh and patted Kevin’s shoulder in consolation. “Yep.”

“I feel like I haven’t seen you all afternoon.” The words left your mouth as you blocked the unforgiving golden hour sun with a hand to your forehead. The light at this time of day gleamed across the surface of the lake and gave the illusion of a molten pot of gold. You imagined swimming in it, dipping your toes into its warm innards from the end of the dock.

Kevin stood at the edge of the lake’s shoreline with his hair dried from a day of jet skiing, a fresh T-shirt over his chest and the lifejacket from earlier nowhere to be seen. That, along with the jet skis. Those had been returned a little over an hour ago. “We were off doing our separate things, I guess,” he said, his arms folded across his chest. “Speaking of, where’ve you been? You went to cut watermelon and never came back.” He added a small laugh to his words, hoping you wouldn’t think he was bothered by the fact that the two of you didn’t get to hang out on jet skis together.

“Oh, heh.” The sheepishness in your voice made him glance over at you. You didn’t know why you were suddenly getting so shy about it, but from the pocket of your shorts, you withdrew a small piece of beaded string, tied at the end in one of those fancy loops that were adjustable. You didn’t know how it was done; Joshua had done something with the end like magic. “Yuna, Josh, and the kids were all inside making friendship bracelets and they kind of roped me into it.”

“Ah.”

“This one’s for you,” you said, holding it out to him. It was a quirky piece with white block letter beads strung together next to acrylic star and pony beads. You’d scavenged a crescent moon somewhere amongst all the pandemonium, and it sat next to the letter N on the chain.

Kevin peered at you and his irises gleamed with the brilliance of golden hour. He frowned in joy, delicately accepting the chain from you with his bottom lip jutted out in a combination frown-pout. “You’re incredible,” he gushed as he inspected the little gift. “Dude, I’m honestly so touched. This is so cute.”

You broke out into a grin, your heart bursting with pride in your chest. “Glad it’s not cringy.”

“I’m offended for you,” he scoffed, aghast. “How could you think this is cringy?” It was probably a genuine question, but you kept silent as you watched him loop the end of the bracelet around his wrist and struggled to figure out how to tie off the end with one hand.

You stepped forward, and he stuck his hand out to you. “Shua showed me how this works,” you murmured, wracking your brain for the quick how-to Joshua showed with his own wrist. (You had been too confused to ask him to see it done again, and only nodded and smiled.)

“Shua?”

“Mm, yeah, apparently he makes a lot of friendship bracelets, especially for friends at school.” Your tongue stuck out of the corner of your mouth as you tried something and… “Ta-da!”

With the bracelet secured onto his wrist, Kevin beamed like a kid on Christmas, and held it up to show it to the setting sun. “It’s great—it’s perfect. Thank you, Yn.”

It was some sort of cosmic magic that corralled everyone back down to the shoreline again, but this time, with all of the kids and non-jet-skiers, as well. Another tradition that your party liked to share every year at the lake was rock-skipping. Perhaps it was more of just an activity than a tradition, but it was something that none of you failed to remember to do whenever you were up here. Since you were a kid, you had been practicing to hone your technique.

Your siblings and the Kims, especially, all ran up to the shoreline beside you and Kevin, and the search for the perfect throwing rock began. In the chaos of merriment and childlike glee, the lot of you trudged into the cooling water of the lake’s shallow shore.

“I know you just gave me the coolest friendship bracelet ever,” said Kevin from beside you as he sifted through the rocks beneath his flip flops, “but I hope you know that I’m gonna crush you this year.”

You snorted. “Okay, Kevin.”

“No, I’m serious!” You guffawed at the sight of his expression; he’d even stood up straight in the water, a pair of flat stones in either hand. “My friend YH!Yn—she’s an engineer, right—”

“Oh, so you’re gonna win by cheating?”

“Nuh-uh,” he rolled his eyes, unimpressed by your posturing. “She showed me this video online. You know Mark Rober? She’s a huge fan, but that’s besides the point. The point is that the video taught me the perfect technique to rock-skip.”

Something in you liked to think that was still cheating, but then again, neither of you had ever really established any ground rules to this, and certainly none about doing research. Your eyes narrowed. “Explain yourself.”

Kevin decided between one of the two rocks in his hands with a brief peek at both of them, before discarding the one in his left hand back into the water with an anticlimactic sploosh. “You’re supposed to launch the rock so it hits the surface of the water at a twenty-degree angle.”

Joshua trudged into the water near both you and Kevin with the sleeves of his plaid over-shirt rolled past his elbows. “I don’t even know what kind of rock to look for, and you guys are bringing trig into this?”

“Oh my god, don’t even get them started,” Jin grumbled from a handful of meters away from the three of you. He kicked through the shallow water with his eyes pinned to the ground in his own search for a rock to skip. “Yn almost gave me a black eye one year.”

“That was an accident and I was ten!”

“Yeah, well rocks hurt!”

Joshua bent down slightly and scooped up a rock from the water. He considered it for a minute, taking in its size, its weight, and how pretty it was. “I guess this can work. So do you guys have, like, a training boot camp for beginners or something?” He chuckled.

“I can show you,” you offered once you’d decided on your own rock for the first round.

“Tch,” Kevin huffed, “if you wanna show him the wrong way to do it.”

Your jaw unhinged. “If you keep this up, I will take back that friendship bracelet, Moon Hyungseo.”

Jin covered his mouth with one of his hands and sidled up next to Joshua. “Ooh, she used the government name.” That coaxed another laugh out of the Los Angeles boy.

Kevin held his decorated wrist to his chest. “You can pry it from my cold, dead hands.”

Suffice to say that when it came down to it, Kevin did have the better technique. There were really four main things to consider when rock-skipping, one of them being that the rock ideally should hit the water at twenty-degrees, as Kevin had mentioned before. Though, you did have to give yourself some credit for managing to work your way up to thirteen skips in a row without the help of an engineer friend.

EPISODE SEVEN: ALWAYS TREAT YOUR PLANTS WITH CARE

VACATION granted you the express permission to be the laziest bum in the world. After three years of college work, sometimes it was nice to have even a single day to yourself to do what you always wanted to: relax. In a world that moved as fast as this one, it was nearly impossible to take breaks without feeling the aching guilt of a day without productivity.

But there was something about the lake… you didn't know. Maybe it was just because years of coming here and associating it with the ease and carefree air of childhood that made it easier to sleep in and feel the sun on your toes.

The house and the neighboring ones were quiet this late morning. At ten or so, the Kims had swept up your siblings and their children and towed them off to town for ice cream and provisions. (You hoped they remembered to grab you some bird seed. You still had yet to replenish the bird feeders around the lake.) You weren't sure where your parents were off to, but you recalled them briefly mentioning a visit to the hidden swing at Lookout's Peak about a three mile hike from here. That meant that you had the whole house to yourself.

And what else did that mean? That you would not be in the house.

When it hit noon, you ate a quick lunch at the kitchen counter before gathering up your supplies to head outside. There was always a spare picnic blanket stashed in the hallway closet, and you grabbed a book, your neglected sketchbook, and a pencil to come along with you.

The weather was perfect, you liked to think—temperate, and not popsicle-melting, with a hint of a breeze wafting through the boughs of the oak trees. You trudged your way over to the largest oak tree with the most amount of shade, gunning to get some full relaxing done when you realized that you were not as alone as you thought you were.

You and Kevin locked eyes from where he sat against the trunk of the tree, his iPad left at his side and his camera being fiddled with between his fingers. The friendship bracelet you gave him the other day still hung around his wrist.

"Hi," he grinned. "I thought you went into town with the twins."

"Ah, nah" you sighed pleasantly as you shifted the things in your arms, "I decided to sleep in. You?"

"Same here." He amended, "Well, as much as someone like me can sleep in." He gestured to the picnic blanket bundled over your arm. "How about I help you with that?"

With teamwork (because that made the dream work), the two of you laid out the picnic blanket on the shady grass beneath the oak tree, overlooking the view of the lake. You settled yourself atop it while Kevin moved his things beside you; shoes were discarded at the edge, so you both sat comfortably on the blanket, half-facing the other.

You reached for your sketchbook, inclining your chin toward the DSLR now sitting abandoned as he picked up his iPad. "What were you up to before I got here?"

"Oh, uh, just looking through some photos I took this morning to maybe use as a reference," he said, twirling his Apple pencil between his fingers. "I keep forgetting to take pictures on this trip."

"Maybe it's a good thing," you offered. You tucked a lock of hair behind your ear and flipped to a blank page. "Let's you live in the moment, y'know?"

"Yeah. I guess so." He tapped the end of his pencil against his cheek. You were never the type for fancy technology and equipment, mainly because you were a little stubborn, but nothing could beat a good pencil and paper. "I'm gonna draw you," he suddenly declared.

A giggle bubbled out of your chest. "What? Me?"

"Yeah, why not?"

"Well then, I'm gonna draw you."

His eyebrows shot up, an amused smile worming onto his face. "You do you, honey."

The two of you, coincidentally, came to share quite the handful of interests. One of them was sketching, and you liked to give credit to your ecology and biology classes at school that gave you the time to practice your drawing skills, even if super accurate drawings weren't always required. It just gave you an excuse to combine two things you loved.

You never did pick up how to use a DSLR though. At least, not like Kevin knew how to.

You sat there for a moment with your cheek to your fist and your eyes glued to the man across from you. Drawing people was difficult—it was always the subtle details that threw you overboard, the movement of the hands and fingers, the crevices in the wrinkle of one's eyes, the… the look. The thing that made them look like a human being.

Kevin had always been a beautiful subject matter. His bone structure was near perfect in your eyes; his smile was awful to draw just because it was so pretty, and you couldn't do it justice. You could never achieve the right curl of his lips, or infuse it with his humility. And even now, you watched the way his eyelashes fell so gently over his eyes and the dusting of pink falling across his cheekbones…

"You're staring."

You blinked, breaking out of your daze. "I'm studying my subject," you clarified pointedly and began to sketch out a rough outline of his head. A portrait would do just fine for the day.

Kevin mimicked your position from earlier where he leaned in slightly and rested his cheek against his fist. "There was this internship I turned down this summer."

His words made you glance up from your paper for a moment.

He continued on, straightening, then absentmindedly sketching out an outline for your face. "It was supposed to be in New York, at this studio, but…" He blew air out between his lips, "I don't know; I couldn't do it. It was a great opportunity and it didn't call to me, but I feel so guilty about not even trying."

You waited a beat in case he wanted to continue. You could see the conflict warring across this face, the subtle flex in his jaw at his frustration—with the portrait or himself, you weren't sure.

"Sorry, I don't know why I suddenly just thought of that," he said to you. "I was just thinking about this place and not being here last year, and I think my brain just went to that."

You looked over at him in earnest. "I feel you, I mean… some things just aren't meant to be, and you shouldn't force it. That's how you get burnt out, y'know?"

"Yeah," he murmured in agreement.

"I was looking at an internship, too," you piped up with a shape exhale. "I—I didn't get it, clearly, but uhm…" It still hurt.

Kevin frowned. "Oh, man. I'm sorry, Yn. I feel like I'm just complaining now that—"

"No, oh my gosh, no!" You hurried to interrupt him. "Don't be silly," you said gently, "you shouldn't invalidate your feelings like that. Some things just really aren't meant to be." It didn't mean it hurt any less that they weren't, but maybe this was the path you were meant to take instead. "It's something I'm coming to terms with, too, but don't compare your troubles against mine. Please."

He worried his bottom lip between his teeth, and it took him a little to finally try for a half smile. "You're gonna get the next one."

You smiled back at him. "Thanks. And you'll find one that suits you."

"I hope so."

"Do you ever worry about," you began as you played around with the slightest curve of his nose on your paper, "not being who people want you to be?"

He hummed. "What do you mean?"

"Like, successful. I'm not really sure where I'm going with this." You didn't know where this had sprouted from in the first place, but one insecurity in particular had nested in the inner cavities of your chest and made itself a home. As someone who wanted to be at wildlife encampments, not catering to fancy rich dogs in a clinic, your path wasn't conventional. You were becoming a veterinarian, but your parents always thought you would end up someplace nice with a pay that was equally nice. Something practical, something they didn't have to worry over. Your calling was… elsewhere though. Somewhere a little more difficult to reach without the prying eyes and mouths of those around you.

Kevin marinated on it. "I think… the two of us are kind of similar in that way. We're both not taking on things that people have expected of us."

Out of everyone you knew, you had a feeling he would be one of the few who could empathize. "There's—there's this thing I want to do," you said. You couldn't figure out the words to string your thoughts into coherent speech; you felt like it would never come out right. But Kevin was patient. "I've always wanted to go on safari expeditions, and observe wildlife in the wild, and do research, and work with conservatories. It feels so unattainable sometimes, when I think about the people looking at me and expecting something good. Does that make sense?"

He gave a thoughtful nod, his Apple pencil tucked behind his ear for the time being. "Yeah, that makes sense. I remember you talked about it before."

That rang a bell. "When I made you watch the David Attenborough Our Planet doc series," you mused. In association, your brain sparked images of late nights, blue-light screens, and flashlights beneath blanket forts. You had been fully convinced Kevin would say the documentary series would be boring like everyone else, but to your pleasant surprise, he had been just as enthralled as you'd been.

"You didn't make me," he smiled. "I liked it."

Your chest warmed. "I still have it downloaded on my phone if you wanna watch."

He screwed his face up in amusement, shaking his head. "You're one of the biggest dorks I know. And I know so many dorks now."

"I'm still your favorite dork though, right?" You smiled down at your paper when you were satisfied with how his eyes turned out.

"Always."

A beat passed, and from your periphery, you saw him tap the blanket in front of you to get your attention.

"Hey, you're gonna be okay," he said. "One day, you will go hide in a bunker in the Siberian winter to wait for tigers like a crazy person—"

"Okay, wait, out of all the examples you watched in the doc, you chose—"

"Anyways!" He grinned at the look you sent him, unfazed. "We're both gonna be okay, alright? We're chasing dreams, and sometimes the chase is hard, but the reward is sweet."

You knew he was right; of course he was right. Talking things out was always a good idea, especially with a trusted person, and who better to trust than Kevin Moon? You had friends who understood, but not really understood.

You reached for his pencil with the end of yours and you bumped ends like ET. The corners of your lips curled upward as you met his gaze, and you were struck by the softness in his rich, chocolate irises. No sketch, painting, portrait could do those beautiful eyes justice. "Don't call me a nerd for this."

"No promises."

You fixed him with a look. "There's this thing that plants do called phototropism. Because plants need light to synthesize into food and energy, they often turn and grow towards the nearest light source. So even in, let's say, a dark hole in the ground—if there's a crack in the roof that brings light in, the plant will grow in that direction, and probably grow its way out." You cleared your throat. "Thanks for showing me the light."

Kevin's eyes shone big and wide, doe-like you liked to say, almost in awe of the explanation of a basic function plants performed to survive. But twisted in a certain way, and one could apply it to everyday non-plant life, as well.

"Now how can I possibly call you a nerd after that?" His voice went raspy and he had to clear it, too. "I think I'm getting misty-eyed," he said, fanning his eyes.

You chuckled at his antics. "Oh, hush. I guess it's my way of saying thanks for reminding me I'm not gonna be a failure." It was scary how often you thought about it, especially at college.

Kevin reached over and warmed one of your hands with his. "You're not gonna be a failure, Yn. I promise you that."

All of the kids were asleep in the back of the Kims' minivan, and it took two trips back and forth between the car and the living room to transfer all four sleeping munchkins. By the time Jin and Yuna were done, the former was certain he was going to need a cane much earlier in his life than previously anticipated.

He held his back as they made their way out onto the back porch. "I think I'm aging faster," he said to his partner.

Yuna sputtered out a laugh. "Aye, so dramatic, and for what? You're gonna survive."

"No sympathy," he sighed melodramatically as he hung off her frame. "I wonder where everyone else is."

His voice trailed off as they stood on the porch and overlooked the valley below. Just further out, they could easily see the occupants of the big oak tree between yours and the Moons' houses. You and Kevin sat slightly angled toward one another, not quite sitting next to each other, but not quite facing each other either.

The laughter was apparent on your faces as Kevin showed you something on his iPad. You grabbed the screen with ill-concealed delight, your eyes lighting up like a pair of fireflies. "No, oh my god, the little sprout on top of my head! You didn't!"

Yuna murmured softly to her lover with a chuckle, "Should we go say hello?"

Seokjin adjusted his position so now his arm rested around her shoulders. A smile etched onto his face at the view; he was so fond of the very thing neither you nor Kevin could see just yet. "Well, how could you possibly want to break that up?"

EPISODE EIGHT: NOD AND SMILE… YUP.

YOU weren't really sure why it took so long before you all deigned to take a proper dip in the lake, but as they said, better late than never.

The sun beat down on the little lake population, even at ten in the morning, which made it perfect weather to go swimming. Your house was a-bustle with life, thunderous footsteps, and motherly yelling to her children of “You better all have sunscreen on!” You were just finishing up the task yourself, rubbing in the last handprint of sunblock onto your calf before you were grabbing your towel at the end of your bed and heading out.

You caught Alice coming down the stairs with her floral one-piece on and a set of blue goggles strapped to her head. This morning, her hair was in two braids. “Do you have sunscreen on?” You asked her as you opened the back screen door.

“Yes,” she groaned as if this was the hundredth time she’d been asked that question today. Knowing your family, it probably was the hundredth time. “Do we still have the flamingo floatie?”

“We can probably pop down to the shed and see,” you suggested. You blinked in surprise at the person you found leaning against the railing of your back porch. “Why hello there.”

Joshua glanced up from the piece of string in his hands that he had tied at the ends to form one, large ring. “Hi guys! Either of you ladies know how to play Cat’s Cradle?” His hands slipped in between the string so that the ring rested on the backs of his fingers. In a movement that sent a wave of nostalgia down your spine, he maneuvered his hands through the string to form the zigzag pattern correspondent with the beloved childhood game.

“Ooh! Me, me!” Alice bounced around on the balls of her feet and rushed over to where Josh was to pick out the next pattern.

The screen door behind you opened up again as soon as you stepped foot onto the deck. Your dad appeared with your little brother, both of whom were dressed in rash guards and swim trunks. Your dad hustled his son along. “Yn-ah, we’re going down to the shed to get swimming things. Wanna come?”

“Wait, Daddy, can we get the flamingo floatie?” Alice asked your dad. Joshua finished up the next pattern, and your sister was quick to grab the next.

“Sure. We have to go now, though.”

With little else left to say or do, your dad ferried your little siblings off and around the house to where the shed was. It was tucked out of the way somewhere between your house and the Kims’ place.

You sidled up beside Joshua and slung your towel over your shoulder, noting his tank top and shorts. “You going for a swim with us?”

He gestured to his attire, nodding. “Seems like it. My parents wanted to run into town to do some shopping, see the sights. Your mom mentioned last night that you all were planning to go swimming today, so I thought I’d tag along, if that’s okay.”

“Yeah, man—it’s totally cool.”

You gazed far out toward the lake down the lawn. There were already a few people there, including Kevin and the Kims. Sana and Leena were already frolicking around in the water with their dad, while Yuna and Kevin stood off to the side on the dock. It seemed that Yuna had brought down a pair of foldable chairs to set up there, perhaps to soak up a little sun.

The two of them exchanged a couple more words before Yuna left him there so she could go pick up Leena from falling face-first in the water. Leena was still an infant, after all.

You decided that this would be a good time to run and join him, but your thoughts slowed to a halt when Kevin picked up the bottom hem of his shirt and pulled it over his head. You even heard Joshua beside you lose his breath. The sunlight had to be a paid actor or something, because the way it glowed across your friend’s shoulders, enunciating the firm muscles in his back, had to be illegal in nature.

Joshua’s low whistle of appreciation met your ears. “Wow… he’s ripped.”

You nodded absentmindedly. “Yeah.” Whoops, did you say that out loud?

The man simply chuckled and bounded down the porch. “C’mon, Yn. Let’s go join them before he catches you staring.”

If there was anything else that you and Kevin took seriously besides rock-skipping, it was the game Marco Polo. The rules were simple: an elected tagger would play with their eyes closed, yelling out “Marco” in order to locate other players in the water. The tagger had three or five opportunities to open their eyes (this was enforced for safety reasons) in order to tag everyone. Those who were not the tagger were required to reply with “Polo” in response to the tagger’s call.

Boundaries of the game ranged from your house to Kevin’s house, and no hiding beneath the dock. (Only the tagger could pass beneath that zone.)

By the time it was Kevin’s turn to tag, nearly an hour and a half had gone by, and you could feel the sun’s rays seeping into you. The heat was getting to you, and by the looks on everyone else’s faces, it was getting to them, too. But… one last round never hurt anybody.

"Are you guys ready?" Kevin's mom stood on the dock with her hands on her son's shoulders. Kevin's eyes were screwed shut where he sat on the edge of the dock, his feet swinging where they dangled over the water. Everyone stood scattered in the water, biding their time before Kevin's mom let him hop in.

She surveyed the surrounding water for nods of confirmation. You lingered just at the outer edge of the boundary, face half in the water with your eyes peeking out to hide your smile. You would swim back in should he come this way, but the buoy behind you kept you from cheating.

When she was satisfied with what she saw, she patted him on the shoulders. "Okay, Kevin."

He lowered himself into the water. "Marco!"

"Polo," came the wary response, a voice from every corner and reach of the boundary, it seemed.

He honed in on a voice—not yours, it seemed, but Uncle Jin's—and slowly treaded over toward that direction. You saw your uncle's eyes widen in fear, and he ducked under the water for a swift second to attempt at a silent getaway.

"I can hear you," Kevin chuckled as he swung his arm over his head to adopt a freestyle stroke. The tone of his voice sounded awfully menacing.

"YAH! GET AWAY FROM ME!" Jin screeched, no longer trying to stay quiet.

One by one, Kevin picked people off. Yuna had a little disadvantage since she had Sana clinging to her back the whole time, so she was given a merciful second life. But when she was caught once more, it was onto dry land for her and her daughter.

Kevin treaded water on the other side of the boundary. In the water, it was just you two.

"Fighting, Yn-ie!" Jin cheered from the shore. A towel was draped over his shoulders with Sana sucking on a watermelon by his leg.

You saw your siblings and Josh raise up their fists in encouragement. "Get him, Yn!"

"Wow, thanks guys," Kevin replied dryly, shaking the water out of his hair. His eyes were miraculously still closed; you had no idea how and when he got so good at this. He still had one more opportunity to open his eyes.

You grinned. "Are you sure you're not cheating by the way?" You drawled with a feigned look of consideration, as if he could see what you looked like.

He gasped. "Me? Cheating? My abilities are far greater than the need to cheat."

"Okay, prove it."

Why did the universe curse you with such a big fucking mouth?

A swear left you as he launched himself across the safe zone. It was like he knew exactly where you had been hovering in order to reach his ridiculously long arms over his head to try and tag you. You gunned out of the way, narrowly missing the dock as you backstroked back from where he came to avoid him.

"Marco!"

"Screw you—polo!"

His white teeth glistened as he grinned, eyes closed completely shut still. Damn. "I can smell fear."

"Sometimes you can be so dramatic," you taunted.

"Now that's just hurtful." And he took it personally.

Around and around you both went, lakewater thrashing as your arms and legs kicked and pumped as hard as you could. You felt so agile and free at times, a dolphin in your own right.

There was a lull in the game for a minute when you managed to evade Kevin's grasp yet another time. He was patrolling the other side of the dock while you loitered just around the corner, by a post. You could hear on land that everyone had turned their attention away from yours and Kevin's competitiveness in favor of the bag tossing boards Kevin's dad brought out.

"Oh, Yn," he smiled, brushing a hand through his hair absentmindedly. "I'm gonna get ya."

If you weren't worried about being so close to him, you would have thrown a retort right back.

But there was another poor, poor hinge to your plan, and that was the very core of the game you were playing.

He whispered, "Marco."

You screamed internally. "Polo," you whispered, barely audibly.

His head whipped in your direction, and before you could even blink, he used his shortcut beneath the dock to yank your wrist back toward him. "Gotcha!"

"Goddamn it," you groaned as you rested up against the post behind you. The water in this area was just shallow enough that your feet could reach the bottom.

Kevin chuckled as he finally opened his eyes. He blinked feverishly to adjust to the sunlight, then ran a hand through his slicked-back hair. He was so close that you could see the water droplets on his head dribble down the sharp slope of his nose. He took in his surroundings, a sly kind of smirk curling up onto his face. "No hiding beneath the dock, Yn."

"I technically wasn't beneath the dock," you shot back.

"Mhm," he pressed his lips together, brows furrowing. He moved closer and braced one arm against the post above your head. "Say I believe you."

You brushed the sudden butterflies in your stomach away as the heat melted your brain (and not Kevin). "That sounds like you don't believe me."

"Well, either way…" He brought a finger close to your face and tapped your nose. You could have sworn you saw his eyes dart downwards for a second, away from your eyes, toward your mouth. "I win."

EPISODE NINE: KINDLING FOR ALL KINDS OF FIRES

A campfire was always in order.

There were quite a few things that needed to be done before it could happen, however. One of the few things on the list just happened to be going out to find firewood, as well as filling up the bird feeders you left hanging out in the forest beyond. You could kill two birds with one stone. (Definitely not literally though. You hoped you never needed to kill two birds with one stone unless it was for pure survival purposes.)

The bird seed you'd requested to be brought back was… somewhere around here. You couldn't remember where exactly Auntie Yuna said they put the bag, but you would go hunting for it.

You meandered through the first floor of your lake cabin, gradually approaching the kitchen area where you heard voices. As far as you were aware, your parents were holed up in the kitchen with Kevin’s parents, as well as Kevin himself. Your siblings were probably either upstairs or at the Kims’ place. Probably.

“—know Judy’s daughter, right?” You recognized your mom’s voice among the fray. By this time, you stood in the middle of the living room with your hands on your hips. Where in the world was that sneaky bag of bird seed?

Kevin’s mom replied next, “Ah, she’s doing that drawing major or something, right? I forgot what it’s called—”

“Animation,” supplied her husband.

“Yes, that’s the one.” A clinking of metal on china; they were most likely digging into the trifle cake that was assembled earlier in the day.

“I hear there’s something going on and it’s getting more difficult to find work for them.”

A disgruntled sound. “Yah. That's the risk that comes with those art majors. If she had gone into bioengineering like Judy wanted her to, then she wouldn’t be worrying so much.”

You paused from your position in the living room. From your vantage point, you got a clear view into only part of the kitchen, but it was where Kevin lingered with his back to one of the cabinets. He had a bowl of dessert in one hand, the other using the tines of his fork to prod at a bite of cream and cake. His head was tilted down though, and you caught his periodic glances toward the part of the kitchen you couldn’t see where the adults probably were, prattling on and on as if he weren’t standing right there.

Your heart sunk to the pit of your stomach.

Why was he subjecting himself to this? Why didn’t he just pick himself up and leave—? The thought came to you that maybe he thought he deserved to hear this.

Having surveyed the living room enough to know that the bird seed wasn’t here, you did happen to note the presence of his camera sitting on the coffee table. You snatched the device up and headed for the kitchen.

“I think it’s good to cultivate creativity, but there’s a difference between a career and hobbies—”

“Psst.” You grappled onto the side of the doorway, quietly catching Kevin’s attention.

His head perked up at the sound and his eyebrows shot up in question. He offered the bowl in his hands to you. Want some? He mouthed.

You shook your head, then used your free hand to wave him over. Bird seed?

He seemed to understand. With one, massive bite, he finished the rest of his bowl, deposited it in the kitchen sink, then quietly slipped out of the room with you.

When the two of you were in the clear and you were following him over to the closet beneath the stairs (damn, had you really forgotten that this closet existed?), you handed him his camera. “I’m invoking rescue protocol,” you told him.

Kevin accepted his camera with a furrowed brow, watching as you opened up the closet door and found a canvas sack of birdseed sitting there. Huzzah! “Wait, but…” He considered you for a moment, and a slow smile slid onto his face. He ducked his head and threw his camera strap around his neck. “I appreciate you. Have I told you that?”

“And I—” You grunted as you picked the bag up into your arms and used your foot to kick the door closed. “—appreciate you. How’d you know this was where the bird seed was?”

“I just remembered what Uncle Jin said,” he told you with a shrug.

The two of you meandered out of the backdoor and onto the porch in a silent agreement to go fill some bird feeders together. The forest at this time of day was streaked in golden sunlight, emerald green leaves painted over in an amber wash of glitter. It felt warm and comfortable like autumn, but with the color palette of summer. The air was fresh, not crisp, and there was still a dollop of pollen floating around in the air from the tailend of spring.

You and Kevin entered the forest proper, and you shifted the bag into your right hand when you finally got the bag’s handles up and at ‘em. “I know the protocol wasn’t meant for those kinds of situations,” you started.

Kevin let his camera rest in his hands at midriff once he had fiddled with the settings enough to his liking. “I know.”

“They’re wrong, you know?” You turned to look at him as you stopped at the first feeder and let the sack of seed and grain fall to your feet with a thump against the earth. Before you opened up the bag, however, you peered up into the wooden house hanging from the branch, slobbered in messy paints and melting smiley faces. There wasn’t a speck of grain or seed left in this one. Satisfied, you bent down to rip the bag open and take out a scoop with your hands.

The shutter of a camera lens fired. He sighed, lowering the camera so he could inspect the test shot he took. “I’ve come to terms with that—all of their opinions, I mean.” He lifted the viewfinder back up to his eye and took another shot as you shoveled the bird seed into the hole. A small stream of it missed and tumbled to the forest floor. “Sometimes I do think like that, though. Whether or not I should have stuck with psychology and become a teacher instead of photography.”

You folded the edge of the bag over itself after dusting your hands off, and the two of you continued onward. “Are you happy with photography though? Do you like the things you’re learning, the work you’re doing?” That was one of the few metrics that kept you clinging onto your dreams—your hands were getting scraped and sweaty holding onto the side of the cliff face, but even though your shoe slipped against the ledge and threatened a long drop, you held on. Some days, you thought it was a sad, desperate effort; others, you found extra strength to dig your soles in.

He didn’t have to think much before answering. “Yeah, I do. It’s… it’s fulfilling.” He shot you a glance. “I guess it’s something I enjoy so much that most days it doesn’t even feel like work. All of the logistic, ‘real world,’ adult stuff is kind of a headache, but…” Even though his sentence trailed off, you could still follow.

You plopped the sack of seed down on the ground beneath the next bird feeder. “I know that it’s hard to think about what-ifs, and I’m kind of a hypocrite about it, too—but I think—” you scooped up a handful of bird seed and poured it into the opening. This house had a little sunshine painted on the roof. “—Kevin, I think you made the right choice. Obviously, it shouldn’t matter what I think; that’s just what I’ve observed so far.”

“It matters what you think,” he replied quietly. “To me, at least.”

The two of you shared a smile as you dusted your hands off again. The chase is hard, but the reward is sweet—those had been his words to you the other day.

“Do you want me to carry that for you?” He mused, in view of your struggle to pick the damn thing off the ground.

You suddenly gained a spurt of strength and energy. “I’m—great.”

His low chuckle followed you as you went. You could hear his shutter go off again.

“Thank you for assuring me that I took the right risk.” Kevin fell into step beside you once more with his camera cradled in his hands. There was a softness to his eyes again, a kind of tenderness you recognized only when it was just the two of you.

You went for a smile. “I feel you, you know? Maybe not on the same level, but you’re not in crisis alone, okay?”

His shoulder bumped against yours. “Get on my level,” he jested.

Your smile haplessly curled up further. “Yeah, yeah, you five year old.” You leaned over his arm to peer at his camera screen. Your heart hammered, blood spiking, when you saw what the subject of all his shots had been thus far. “Oh my god, have you been taking pictures of me?”

He giggled at your reaction. "What? What else am I supposed to be taking pictures of?"

"Uhm?" You gestured with your arm in a wide arc. "There is literally a whole world around us. Nature is much more photogenic than I am." A nervous laugh bubbled out of your chest as you adjusted a lock of hair that had gotten in your face.

"You are totally photogenic," he scoffed. "Literally look."

The two of you stopped in the middle of the path so he could show you the pictures he had taken thus far. Like most people when they saw a picture of themselves, you wanted to grimace, but you tried to search for what Kevin was seeing.

They were all incredible candid shots. The color was so vivid and bright, the edges crisp and focused. He had captured you at the moment when you were smiling, peeking into the bird feeder. It was that split second before the smile bloomed into something bigger when it only teased at the corner of your mouth.

You leaned back and coughed. "I only look good because you made me look good."

"Now that's bullshit."

You both resumed your walk to the next bird feeder. He said to you, "You can't possibly appreciate nature's beauty without appreciating your own, Yn."

You tilted your head and sent him a sidelong glance. "Why did that sound actually profound?"

"What do you mean actually profound?" His face arranged into an expression of offense. "Am I not regularly profound?"

You smiled to yourself. "I mean… if you had to ask—" Click! "Hey, now wait a minute!"

He beamed something boyish at you from over his camera lens. "Whoops?"

The bird seed bag thumped onto the forest floor again and you moved to check the inside of the next bird feeder. To your utter delight, you were greeted by the sight of sticks and mud and leaves slotted together in a messy riffraff, otherwise known as a bird's nest. You could hear the bright chirping coming out from the feeder's hole, and dark gray feathers poked out.

"We won't disturb these ones," you whispered, backing away to collect your bird seed. But before you left, you took a little of the grain to sprinkle on the outer landing ledge.

You didn't even realize you had been smiling out of pure giddiness until you reached the next feeder on the path. You had always secretly hoped that a bird would take over one of the houses as their own. Lo and behold, that hope manifested into reality.

Kevin helped you out with the next one since this tree was hung with a duplex. It was similar to a human duplex; the house was split down the middle to hold double the feed. The two of you carefully transferred seed and grain into its proper place.

"If you really are uncomfortable with me taking pictures of you," he said as the two of you picked up where you left off, "then I can totally delete them." He made a gesture with his hand. "No harm, no foul."

Heat rose to your cheeks. "It doesn't bother me that much," you admitted sheepishly. "They were good pictures."

"See!" Elated, he slung an arm around your shoulders and tugged you against his side with an affectionate shake. "You see the vision? Do you see it now?"

You couldn't possibly say no to him when his expression was brighter than the sun at high noon. At this moment—this perfect moment—when the sunlight streaming through the trees painted his face in a filter of buttery gold… you could definitely see the vision, but perhaps not the exact one he saw.

EPISODE TEN: YOU WOULD NOT BELIEVE YOUR EYES…

"OH, thank god, you guys went and got firewood!" Jin pressed his hands together in prayer as he jogged over to you and helped transfer the lumber in your arms over to his. On your way back from replenishing the bird feed, you let Kevin hold the remainder of what was left in the bag while you picked up any spare tinder for the fire. There were quite a few loose sticks around that would work nicely for the campfire tonight.

He walked off with your gatherings from the trip, and you and Kevin continued up to your lake house to drop off the bag of bird seed.

"So you were saying about the animal representation thing?" You piped up, recalling where the two of you last ended before your return to home base.

"Oh!" Kevin grinned. "It's so funny because some of my friends—you can totally see the resemblance of an animal, right? But then others don't really get an animal. Like Younghoon: he's just kind of bread."

You nearly tripped over a patch of dirt. "Bread?" You stammered incredulously. "Come again?"

"Bread," he nodded. He murmured in thanks to you when you slid open the screen door for him so he could shuck off his shoes and step inside the house. "But Changmin's a squirrel. Or a giraffe. That's what JC!Yn calls him, anyway; it's because of his long neck."

"Huh," you pondered. Interesting friend group they had going on there. You wondered what you would be…

As you passed by your bedroom on the first floor, you could hear your phone sounding off in aggressive vibrations even through the wooden walls and the closed door. You swore under your breath and pushed into your room to turn it off, then paused when you realized why it had gone off in the first place.

Fireflies.

"Everything okay?" Kevin's voice came back around the bend, his head poking into the space and the bird seed bag nowhere to be seen. He must have put it away just now.

You glanced up at him as you silenced the alarm and tucked your phone into your pocket. You hadn't needed it all that much this entire trip, but you would definitely hold onto it tight tonight. "Huh? Oh, yeah. Ready to head out?"

He didn't question your behavior and nodded. "Ready when you are."

Sometimes campfire smoke burned Kevin's eyes, but that was mostly when he was younger and didn't know any better. The embers of the fire were always so warm and inviting, always luring him toward it and inviting him to stare into its core. He could still feel the sting of the ash in his pupils as he looked at it from afar now.

The summer sun had sunken down into the horizon and gave way to a comfortable nightfall. Above your heads hung curtains of leaves from oaks, and above them was the blanket of night sky bedazzled in stars. Nature, as you had said earlier today, was quite photogenic.

He sat perched slightly away from everyone in the group, settling at the picnic table with his back to the table surface so he could still face into the fire. When everyone regrouped, Joshua had brought along an acoustic guitar and played it for everyone now.

"Sunday morning, rain is falling."

Someone lit up in a small hoot of approval. Kevin observed the group before him, the several families that had come together. He was especially pleased that the Hongs and the Xus were still hanging out with the lot of them, the latter being around a little less, but still coming out to join the fun, nonetheless.

He hadn't even realized when the last time his mom tried blatantly pushing him towards Serena. At some point, she stopped and it slipped his mind.

"Clouds are shrouding us in moments, unforgettable. You twist to fit the mold that I am in."

Kevin scratched his jaw as he turned his eyes down to the iPad settled in his lap. After he had finished up dinner, he ran inside to swap out his camera for his device to get some sketching done. There wasn't a particular project he was working on; he just wanted to practice a little.

When he lifted his gaze back up to pick a subject, he found himself looking in your direction. Your dad and Connor brought out the goodies to make s'mores. Long, slim skewers were passed around the circle, and the kids were the first to receive marshmallows to spear.

You and your sister sat beside one another and you helped her grab two of the mallows to impale. The light from the fire flickered across your face in differing levels of shadow, a play on contrast. Your expression seemed softer here—he wasn't really sure what it was. Maybe it was the tenderness at the corner of your eyes as you laughed at Connor's marshmallow falling burnt into the pit; maybe it was the triumph you shared with Alice when you helped her sandwich her marshmallows between a slab of chocolate and twin graham crackers.

He liked to believe his hand started before he consciously knew what he was doing.

"That may be all I need… In darkness, she is all I see."

"Are you sure you don't want me to make you one?" You asked your brother as he grabbed his redemption marshmallow from the bag.

Connor huffed, puffing out his chest. "I got this."

Your eyebrows flew upward. "Okay, big guy. Have at it." You chuckled and grabbed a marshmallow for yourself, sticking it onto your skewer to let it broil over the heat.

Kevin traced the lines of your face with his eyes, his hand transferring that memorization onto his screen. Sometimes human expressions were a little difficult to portray accurately, and there was a thorn pricking the back of his mind, urging him to do you justice. He didn't know if he could.

Your head slowly swayed to the sound of Joshua's pretty melody, the corners of your mouth tilting upward. Kevin shifted his position on the bench and drew the little tick mark at the edge of your mouth for that slight smile.

He always knew you were beautiful—for fuck's sake, he'd practically said it today in the forest. It had been among the crush of other important conversations, but he meant it. He still had the image of you engraved in his brain, the moment when you discovered the family of birds in the feeder house. You'd lit up like a goddamn star.

You stood up from your spot once your marshmallow became the perfect golden tone over the edges. You stepped over to the chair that held all the ingredients and smooshed the marshmallow between chocolate and cracker. Then, you turned and marched over to him.

Surprise alerted in his features, and he subtly tilted the screen of his iPad up against his chest. "Hey," he greeted softly while you approached.

You returned the expression and held out the s'more to him. "Here. It's for you."

The organ in his chest did a somersault. "What?" He laughed, "For me?"

"Yeah, silly. I don't know why you're so far away, but I know you like 'em." You settled on the bench next to him with one arm braced behind you on the table and your legs crossed, one over the other.

"Thank you," he said, using one of his hands to bite into it with childlike giddiness. The mixture of flavors exploded in his mouth—the crunch of the graham cracker, the soft, gooeyness of the chocolate and marshmallow. A perfect, sweet treat, and done exactly right. "Mmmh, this is so good," he mumbled behind his hand to catch any crumbs on his lips.

You chuckled. "Nice, glad it has your stamp of approval." Your eyes wandered down to his iPad, and you could see the white screen lit up against his shirt. "What have you been up to?"

His eyes widened a smidge, and there came a bashfulness to his face. (Cute.) "Oh, uhm," he swallowed down the remainder of the s'more and tilted the screen away from you. Huh, strange. "It's nothing really. Just sketching."

You hummed in understanding, though it was a little out of character for him to hide it from you. "Ah, I see."

The two of you descended into silence, and you leaned your back against the table to get comfortable. Kevin passed you sidelong glances from the corner of his eye, unsure of how you knew he wanted you to stay. (Because he definitely did want you to stay.)

Perhaps this was a sign. Thoughts had been brewing in his head as of late, and he wasn't quite sure what to do with them. They all just… sort of piled up in his hands and he didn't know how to free them up to reach out to you.

He opened his mouth to say something—anything—maybe even about the pact—to retract the pact?—it didn't matter.

But when he turned to look at you this time, your gaze was elsewhere. That soft, tenderness remained, but you had turned your attention to Joshua.

Ah. He shouldn't have jumped so soon. A hopeless kind of ache twisted in his stomach that made him uncomfortable. He briefly glanced down at his screen of what he'd sketched of you so far and decided it might be better to finish it later.

Fireflies. You nearly forgot that you planned to sneak out and see fireflies tonight.

By the time the campfire was cleaned up and everyone was tucked away into their beds, it was probably nearing midnight. You quietly rustled around your room in the dark and used only your phone's flashlight to gather things into a little knapsack—just the essentials, of course. There was no need to get fancy with it.

You wished you had signal so you could text Kevin and warn him ahead of time that you were about to go appear at his window, but you figured it would be fine anyhow. Even if he wasn't awake, the excitement buzzing inside of you could hardly wait.

Shouldering your bag, you headed out the door and crossed the divide between your house and the Moons'.

You located Kevin's window on the second floor, quietly rejoining when you realized it was cracked open. This had to be fate; what other reason would his window be open? (Clearly not for the cool, evening breeze or anything…)

You cupped your hands around your mouth. "Kevin!" You stage-whispered. "Kevin!"

A moment later, a head popped out the open frame. His hair stuck up a little bit and his eyes squinted down into the darkness at you. "Yn?"

"Yes," you said with a grin that he probably thought was idiotically too large. You waved him down. "I'm gonna go see fireflies!"

It took him a second to compute. "What time is it?"

"Like, midnight."

"Okay."

Seven minutes later, Kevin emerged from the back door with a T-shirt and sweatpants on, a yawn splitting his face. He shook his head out as if he was shaking out the remaining remnants of sleep from his system. You met him on the back stairs.

"So what's this about fireflies?" He asked you as the two of you ventured off into the wilderness.

Last year when you were up here at the lake, there was one night when sleep refused to take you. Your solution had been to go on a walk, and as completely dangerous as that sounded (because it was), you'd stumbled upon the meadow you now took Kevin toward. You hadn't the faintest why you never knew about this place after years of coming up to the lake town, but it was where the fireflies took flight.

The meadow was not too long a walk from where you both lived, and by the time you arrived, Kevin was wide awake.

"It's just over this crest," you told him, the jubilation in your voice nearly spilling over.

Kevin smiled at the sound of your excitement and eagerly followed you up the hill.

As soon as you made it over, you lost all your breath in awe. The meadow sprawled at your feet for miles was completely a-glow. Little beads of yellow-green light dotted the field in every corner like light bulbs strung together by invisible string. You had only ever seen this once in person, the rest via the internet and popular culture (movies, TV shows, and the like), and yet, it never compared to the real life experience.

You and Kevin stood there for a moment to soak in the sight. What a wonder of nature this was.

When you finally gained the sense to, you dug around in your bag for wherever you'd stashed your phone. Your tongue stuck out of the corner of your mouth as you fidgeted with the settings on your phone camera. You just wanted one little picture to show one of your professors at school, but it seemed your camera-working skills left much to be desired.

"Here, let me," Kevin murmured and gently took the phone from you. He showed you the screen as he fixed the settings—et voilà! Like magic, the field before you became visible on your camera screen in the crispiest, sexiest quality you had ever seen. "And… there you go."

He clicked the photo for you and handed you back your phone.

Mouth agape, you zoomed in on your completed photo. "Thanks, Kevin!" You gushed as you admired his handiwork.

He clasped a hand against the back of his neck. "No worries. Just a few tricks I learned."

You still warmed at the gesture. With your phone now tucked away, the two of you could sink back into the glory of the field of fireflies.

You heard Kevin's voice, soft, "How do they light up like that?"

"Bioluminescence," you replied in a whisper back. "It's a biochemical reaction that basically lets them convert energy into that light you see." There were plenty of other examples of bioluminescence in nature, as well. One particular instance you'd read about once, was a wave of bioluminescent algae appearing on the shores of a Southern Californian beach during the summer. It was neat stuff.

"Wild," he marveled.

A wave of calm fell over your form. You'd never felt so at peace in your life—just you, the outdoors, and one of the few people who made you actually feel this comfortable. You swallowed at the thought.

You were suddenly hyperaware of how close you were standing to him, the backs of your hands grazing against each other. You could feel his skin, his knuckles against yours—and maybe your brain was making it up, but the touch felt intentional.

For a second, you indulged yourself in what it might be like to close the distance and take his hand into yours. Of course, it wouldn't have to be in the romantic way; friends could hold hands… right? They could hold hands and your heart could skip several beats and he could look at your lips, and you would still be friends. Right?

You cleared your throat, and the sound seemed to thunder in the silence. "We should—we should probably head back," you said, sparing a glance at him.

He caught your eyes and held them. His lips turned upward, and the shine in his eyes was fond. "Okay."

With renewed energy, you made the trek back into the neighborhood. Your bucket list items for the summer had nearly all been checked off—not like you had a physical list written out. These were simply traditions you hoped to fulfill every summer while you were here in your happy place.

The crickets chirped a lovely serenade as you and Kevin strolled back onto the street where your houses stood. At the point where you both needed to split off, you nudged him with your elbow. "Thanks for coming out with me tonight."

"Thank you for inviting me," he countered with an amused hum.

"Good night, Kev."

You both lingered for a second. "Good night, Yn," he said back, pausing for a moment. Then he leaned over toward you and pressed his lips to the crown of your head. Your eyes fluttered shut. "Hope the lovebugs bite."

EPISODE ELEVEN: ROCKING THE BOAT

IF there was one thing that Kevin Moon was good at (besides the myriad of things he was actually good at), it was waking up his cousin to exercise with him in the morning.

"I think I deserve a nice, fat stack of pancakes after this," Yuna grumbled after nearly tripping over a raised tree root and kissing the forest floor. She grappled onto her cousin's shoulder to steady herself, the cousin in question giving a light chuckle at her antics. "When your mom said we should exercise together, I thought she meant the next time I was in Vancouver, not right now."

"Well, it's only because Yn's mom planned to go out with my mom this morning," Kevin mused. "Usually I have a designated walking partner."

"Woe is me. Alas, I have become your Plan B," Yuna sighed melodramatically with a hand draped over her forehead.

This morning, at a lovely 9:46am, the lake and its surrounding forest was just as alive and awake as Kevin was. The sun had taken up its perch in the clear, blue sky and the birds had long since begun their morning songs. They were awfully loud at this part of the lake, the exact three-quarter mark around the perimeter. Kevin thanked his parents for choosing houses away from this area—he would have never slept ever if they bunkered up here. (Not that he slept anyway, but that was beside the point.)

The walk began a little later than he usually did with your mom, but he granted Yuna a bit of leeway since she hadn't exactly been given a head's up. (He argued the opposite, but he let this once slide.)

"You're so dramatic," he chided playfully. "Watch out for that rock."

Yuna's mouth morphed into a deep frown, eyes wide open, as she narrowly missed being nature's fool another time. "Oh, speaking of Yn… Yn's mom? Whatever, I just mean Yn."

Kevin perked up at the topic change. His brain was fresh from last night's midnight endeavor with you and the fireflies. His lips still tingled from when he ventured to kiss you on the head… he wasn't sure where that courage had come from, but the memory of it kick-started his heart into a gallop. "What about Yn?"

She shrugged. "I dunno. You tell me." A smile crawled onto her face, and Kevin could smell her slyness a mile away. "The two of you have been hanging out a ton recently."

"We usually stick together," he sniffed, fidgeting absentmindedly with the beads on the bracelet you'd made him.

"Aish," she pressed her features into an unimpressed look that reminded Kevin of a typical Chanhee deadpan. "You're so unhelpful. You know what I'm talking about!" She smacked the side of his arm, and Kevin erupted into a fit of laughter.

His smile grew shy. "I don't really know what to say! I'm sorry—that's the truth." Because how could he even begin when it came to you? Where did it end, where did it begin?

"I see the way you look at her, Kev."

Kevin shoved his hands into his shorts. Suddenly the bird nest he spotted in a nearby tree became all too interesting. The bird nest reminded him of the birds who had made a home out of one of your feeders, and that reminded him of the adorable elation on your face when you discovered it and that reminded him of—he came to a stop. Oh, god, he was so far gone. "How do I look at her?"

Yuna peered at him curiously, then stopped to face him. "You look at her like I look at Jin. At least, that's how I think I look at him." She offered him a supportive smile. "But right now, you look like you're going through your midlife crisis."

"I might as well be."

She barked out a laugh. "Save that for when you buy a house, my friend."

He rubbed his temples with a wince. "Houses, domesticity, money, partners. Why is adulting so hard?"

"Hey, you'll get through it," she told him and nudged his shoulder. "What's going on, dude? What's on your mind?"

Kevin swallowed. He still hadn't the faintest idea where to begin, but everything had to start somewhere. Yuna had always been kind to him (a menace at times, but that feeling was mutual), and he trusted her with his vulnerabilities. He toed the ground. "Okay, last night, I kissed her—"

"YOU WHAT?"

He sputtered, red rushing to his face, as he grabbed her shoulders. Her eyes were practically falling out of her head. "Nonononono! Let me finish, you—I kissed her on the forehead, okay?"

Her gaping mouth closed only slightly. "Oh…" She thought about it some more. "Oh."

Kevin nodded gravely. "Yup."

Yuna straightened with a furrowed brow. "Well, that's not that big of a deal, is it?"

"What do you mean that's not a big deal?" His hands shot to the top of his baseball cap. "How is that not a big deal!"

"That's because the two of you refuse to acknowledge or entertain the obvious!"

Kevin hissed when she reached over to give his forehead a very hard flick. He rubbed the spot that began to smart; getting flicked in the forehead twice in one lake trip was twice too many. "The obvious?"

"That you guys can have the mushy gushy feelies without it being a product of the placebo effect from your moms' collective matchmaking efforts."

He made a face. "That was a lot of words…"

She deadpanned. "Kevin, listen to me: just because the two of you made a stupid pact when you were ten—"

"Eleven."

"Whatever. Eleven—doesn't mean that you can't leave room to, you know, amend that. You have to give yourself the opportunity to explore it, especially when I can clearly see that your feelings are changing about this girl." Yuna grasped her cousin by his shoulders this time in an attempt to telepathically insert these words into his brain. Or at least, just make him listen.

The words seeped into his head. The two of you had already made amendments earlier this trip, but you had never commented on the "only friends part." He even entertained the idea of bringing it up to you last night at the bonfire.

He didn't realize Yuna already began tugging him along the path to circle around the remainder of the lake to get back to the house. Everything was so muddled… but a part of him recognized that Yuna was right. He just wished he could get an idea of where your thoughts laid.

There were moments when you thought life could be like a movie, but then why was doing this pedal boat thing so much less glamorous than it seemed? Then again, maybe you shouldn't have thought doing this at high noon was the greatest idea.

You should have been like your Uncle Seokjin, who sat to your left, swallowed up in a blue lifejacket, a pair of big sunglasses, and a crocheted bonnet with a duck face to keep his face out of the sun. Yeah, maybe glasses would have been a good idea.

Sweat dribbled down the side of your face and down the slope of your nose, and you wiped it off with the back of your hand. "It's so hot, Uncle. We couldn't have waited until later today when it cooled down?"

He leaned back, his cheeks and skin reddened and damp from the heat and the fire in his calves from pedaling. "Okay, okay. Let's stop here."

"Right in the middle of the lake?" You asked incredulously, but immediately brought your feet off the pedals to give your legs a deserved break.

"What better place to do so?"

The two of you lounged in your seat beneath the molten afternoon sun, limbs screaming, water draining from your bodies through your pores. This would have been nice if you brought a sun umbrella… or maybe some water… man, did you make so many poor choices today.

"So what's going on with you and Kevin?"

The question snapped you out of your heat-fazed daze. You nearly thought you hallucinated him saying that. You stammered, "What about me and Kevin?"

You could see his overexaggerated facial expression even from behind his sunglasses. "Yah, don't give me that. You know what I'm talking about—I saw you two last night."

You lurched out of your seat and caused the violent rocking of the boat. You and your copilot let out twin swears as the boat evened out on the waves, and luckily, did not capsize. "Sorry—the fuck? You did?"

"Actually, I didn't," he snickered. "But now I know something did happen. So what's the tea, girl? Hit me with it. It's hot outside but I always take my beverages scorching." He shifted in his seat, carefully, in order to give you his full attention.

You couldn't believe he dragged you out to the middle of the lake just for this conversation. Total Uncle Seokjin move. You walked (or pedaled) right into his checkmate.

Moments of last night flooded into your brain—the campfire, the fireflies, the kiss, the… the him. Kevin. You gulped. Where did you even think to begin? "I took him to see fireflies last night."

Jin scrunched his eyebrows together. "Fireflies? Since when did we have fireflies? You didn't take me to see the fir—oh, you know, what? It was your little romantic moment; I got it."

"It wasn't a romantic moment!" You sputtered helplessly, uselessly. "It was—it was a moment of serenity and scientific marvel."

"You are such a nerd. What did he do, huh? Did you guys hold hands or something?"

Almost. "No," you said. "He… he did kiss my forehead once we got back though."

"Aha!" You both careened as the boat trembled violently from Seokjin's sudden Einstein epiphany. "I knew that something happened," he said once the boat slowed to a stop again. "I just had a feeling in my gut."

"Are you sure it wasn't the yogurt you had this morning?"

"How dare you," he huffed. "I brought my lactose pills. And hey! Stop changing the subject."

You laughed aloud, but inwardly, your gut was churning. Maybe you could blame the heat, but you knew the real reason why you were suddenly feeling as unstable as the pedal boat you sat upon. The idea that the entirety of your friendship could be so easily uprooted… well, perhaps not easily. Picking apart your friendship would be like flushing weeds out of a garden—you would have to get at the roots, and right now, the roots were so deep that you would fall into the ground before finding the bottom.

Not that you wanted to uproot your friendship, or relationship, with Kevin. Of course not.

What did that forehead kiss even mean? What did all of the moments you shared between him this summer, as a whole, even mean? Why, all of a sudden, did you want the way he looked at you to mean something different besides platonic affection? Why did you want more when you had never really thought about more before?

You voiced all of this aloud to your uncle, who sat staring out onto the calm surface of the lake. When you were finished with your ramble, he said, "You need to get your shit together, girl."

You coughed. "Thanks, that was so helpful."

"I'm told that a lot," he beamed. "But really, those are all very good questions, Yn. And they're super important, too."

You frowned, lifting the rim of your baseball cap to wipe away the perspiration collecting at your hairline like a cult. "Do you think that these mixed feelings are a result of all the matchmaking going on? Like, somehow, we've let it affect how we view each other?"

"Honestly?" He sighed, his shoulders lifting and dropping in a half-hearted shrug. "Could be. But, Yn honey, is it really such a bad thing? And let's think about it this way—how do you feel about Joshua?"

You didn't need to think too hard about it. "He's a catch, but not my type of butterfly."

"Exactly, and oh my go—"

"Don't," you chuckled menacingly, "call me a nerd."

He gestured vaguely with his hand. "I wasn't; I was gonna call you a dork."

You snorted. With another swipe at your dripping neck, you said, "But Kevin and Serena—"

"'Kevin and Serena' don't exist," he told you with a smack of his lips. Jin peered at you from over the rim of his glasses, which in kind, made the duck's beady eyes stare straight into your soul, too. "That girl bats for the other team, and Kevin has shown zero interest in her other than helping her not fall off a jet ski."

Huh. You leaned your elbow onto the knee of one leg, propped up to your chest. "Well when you put it that way…"

"When I put it that way," he finished for you, "it makes it a little clearer, hm?" You were quiet for a moment, and Jin gave your shoulder a pat. "Some things are just meant to be."

The words, so familiar to you, rang true as a bell. Some things are just meant to be. You couldn't help the smile that started to work its way onto your face, and it was all thanks to Seokjin helping you sweep away some of the webs confusing your brain. You weren't completely confident, but you could feel yourself being nudged in a certain direction, and this time, you weren't pushing back.

The tide could take you where it may.

Your uncle by association added quietly, "Haven't you thought just once that, after all this sneaking around, there's been another reason for it other than a pact?"

EPISODE TWELVE: FISH IN THE SEA, ANTS IN THE GROUND

BY the time you and Jin returned to solid ground, you discovered that Kevin was away with his dad helping the Xus pack and clean up. Today they would be departing the small lake town, as they hadn't planned on spending as much time up here as the rest of you did. You and most of the others already said your goodbyes at the campfire, so you had little else to do but twiddle your thumbs until you could confront Kevin with your thoughts.

A shower always produced productive results, especially after melting Wicked Witch of the West style in the middle of the lake.

There was time, you realized, to bring things together. Of course, there was a part of you that shied away from wanting to even address this epiphany. What if bringing this up opened up a whole new can of worms? In other words, what if talking about the elephant in the room only led to regret? You didn't want to lose Kevin, and because your families were always so close, you didn't want to lose this. This connection, this tradition, this place.

Too many memories made their home here at the lake. It was your happy place… his happy place. It was everything.

Everything could change, and wasn't that terrifying? But it could also be great, and who best to share the scariest, greatest moments of life with other than your Kevin Moon?

As rubber tire wheels ate gravel, Kevin nodded to his dad and set off back across the lawn toward your cabin. The afternoon had him busy with helping the Xus head home, which he didn't mind doing, of course; the lot of them had fun with his party, and his party with the lot of them. He and Serena left on friendly terms, undeterred by his mother's half-hearted attempt to get them sort of talking. Serena said she understood.

Kevin needed to talk to you though. After the morning was spent with Yuna getting him to see the big ass elephant in the room—trunk in his face and trumpet in his ear—there was no other course of action left but to tell you the truth.

The truth. God, the truth. The truth was that he didn't want the old pact in place anymore. That was it, plain and simple. It was crazy to think about how long the two of you had let it restrain your relationship—wait, did you want it to though?

"Hey Kevin!"

Kevin slowed to a stop, attention perking up at his name when he saw Joshua making his way over to him. He worried his bottom lip. You didn't… like Josh, did you? He just had to be sure because, well, that would throw a rock into things. "Oh, hey, man."

Joshua offered him a bright smile. "Hey. Did Serena and her parents just take off?"

Kevin cupped the back of his head. "Uh, yeah! Just now, actually."

"Cool, cool." Joshua nodded his head. "I wanted to talk to you about something."

His heart threw itself over the side of a cliff. Oh no. He let out a laugh, hoping to push the nerves out of his voice, but he was sure it wasn't too convincing anyhow. "Really? What—what about?"

"It's about Yn—" Oh, double no. "—I kind of," he winced, "noticed that her mom was trying to… nudge us together?"

"Oh god, let me be the first to apologize—"

Joshua broke the tension with a chuckle. "Hey, it's no worries! I just didn't know if you were aware or not because you and she kind of seemed like a couple to me, but I didn't know if her mom knew."

Kevin blinked, heart quickening for a different reason. "What?" He stammered. "Sorry, can we rewind?"

"Hm? That you and Yn are a thing? Are—are you not?" He gasped, eyes going wide. "Shit, that was stupid of me to just assume. Sorry if that was totally awkward!"

Oh, but quite the opposite. Kevin could feel the blood rush to his cheeks, clear as day. There was a warm feeling in his chest knowing that more people thought that you and him looked like a couple. It was ridiculous how the thought got him giddy now. Kevin shook his head though. "No, no, you're good, dude. But we aren't a couple." Yet. Hopefully.

Joshua cocked his head to the side curiously. "Oh? I guess… it's still a little strange of me to assume, so I apologize. You're…?"

"Interested?" A nod. "Yeah." (Wow, that was a verbal admittance. One step closer to the real thing.)

Kevin cleared his throat and grabbed his shoulder with his opposite hand. "You're not—you're not interested in her, are you? I mean," he rushed to add, "it's totally fine. I understand—"

Joshua shook his head. "Oh shit, no, I'm not interested. Not that Yn's a bad person or anything, but I'm taken."

Pause.

…that made sense.

Joshua laughed, ducking his head to hide the smile that blossomed on his face. "Yeah, I'm already spoken for. My parents don't really know yet, but… yeah. I didn't wanna get in the way of whatever you and Yn have, and hopefully I'm not saying this too late."

On the contrary, a weight lifted from Kevin's chest and he sucked in a lungful of summer breeze. "Nah, man. Thanks for saying it in the first place; I appreciate it."

"Yeah," Joshua said pleasantly. He nodded at him, lips pursed with one eye squinted. "She digs you, too, you know? I've seen it all throughout this trip."

Hope filled his heart like the air ballooning his lungs. He didn't know what to do with all of these. They just kept coming up onto the stack of things in his hands that he wanted to take into consideration and tell you to your face, once and for all. Your face just kept flickering in his mind's eye, and the nerves were slowly melting into excitement. He wanted to share this with you, as the two of you had done for years.

"I hope so."

Joshua clasped a hand on Kevin's shoulder. "I would say 'go get 'em, tiger,' but I have a friend at school who is scarily obsessed with tigers, so I'll just say—" A squeeze of his shoulder, "you got this."

Kevin didn't know what to do with that extra factoid, but he gave Joshua a grateful grin. "Thanks, man."

The pair split off from there, one heading back toward his own cabin, and the other, marching toward the future. Whatever laid ahead, he could take on.

His step gained a skip, and soon, he was jogging across the green until he appeared at your back porch. He hadn't really prepared anything—no romantic gestures, no flowers or candles, no chocolates. All he had were the words on his tongue and his newly realized love for you. Love, a strange phenomenon. He had his love for you stashed away in his breast pocket and it blossomed every summertime.

He let himself into the house and went poking around for you. "Yn? Yn, you back yet?"

No answer.

He ducked his head into the kitchen, the living room, before he came upon your bedroom door left slightly ajar. Through the sliver, he saw the bottoms of your feet on the bed, and he gently knocked on the door before pushing through.

"Yn…? Ah," His voice quieted to a whisper.

You were curled up over the bedsheets, asleep. Kevin slowly tiptoed his way over to you where your body was angled toward your phone screen, lying discarded on the pillow and actively running an episode of Our Planet.

A smile, fond and tender, pressed itself into his mouth. He reached over to carefully turn the downloaded episode off to descend the room in complete silence.

His head swiveled toward the foot of the bed where your patchwork quilt hung off the railing. He carefully draped it over your sleeping form, then made his exit.

You deserved the rest. And though he couldn't confess to you now, this gave him the time to ensure he got this exactly right.

EPISODE THIRTEEN: THE DAMSELS IN DEVOTION DEAL™

TIME passed by differently here.

One moment, you were biding your time and indulging in an episode of Our Planet; the next, the bedroom was dark and the house was quiet. You roused from sleep confused and delirious. You stretched your limbs up over your head, taking note of the quilt draped over your body.

Huh, you wondered how that got there.

Your eyes fluttered and squinted when you stood up and saw a flicker of amber light from outside your window. The view looked over only part of the backside to the house, so all you could see were the shadows that the campfire created. They danced by way of the breeze, their puppetmaster.

The time on your phone read a (slightly alarming) ten o'clock. You hadn't realized you slept that long. Maybe you were more tired than you originally thought.

Wait, then why was the campfire still blazing?—

"Yn! Psst!"

You pressed your face against the open slit in the window to track the sound of your name. Déjà vu swept over you as you discovered Kevin making his way over toward you from the outside. "Kevin? Is everyone still up?"

He shook his head. "No, no. I've just been waiting," he admitted sheepishly. "Come on out. Have you eaten yet?"

"Oh, no. I just woke up."

"Ah… right." He clasped the back of his neck. "Well, come out anyway. We can sit together."

Together. You liked the sound of that.

Without wasting more time, you promised him two minutes and scurried out of your room to round to the back door. The campfire crackled on your side of the lawn, rather than the middle of the properties this time, and Kevin tended to it on one of the two foldable chairs present.

You took a seat in the open seat. "S'mores?" You chuckled, noting the basket of ingredients at his feet.

He ducked his head. "Yeah," he loosened a laugh, "I thought I'd make you a s'more this time."

It was just a s'more, and yet, here was the organ in your chest palpitating in your chest. You didn't reject the s'more, of course, and watched him skewer a marshmallow and hold it over the blazing embers. As he did so, you caught the way his other hand fidgeted with your bracelet on his wrist, how his tongue darted out to wet his bottom lip. Was he as nervous as you were?

The thing, Yn.

"There's something I—" You both stopped short at your simultaneous words. They were the same, too, and had the pair of you fumbling.

"You first," you said, gesturing to him.

He hummed and tried for a smile. "Do you remember that night in sixth grade when we made the pact?"

You nodded.

"It was kind of like this actually," he mused. The marshmallow had browned into a beautiful gold, and you reached into the basket to help him assemble the chocolate and graham cracker pieces. Your fingers grazed his as he squished the outer crackers together to hand it to you. "A late night, s'mores, the campfire."

You took a chunk out of the s'more and swallowed before adding, "Seems like so long ago."

"Right?" He slipped the metal skewers back into the basket and leaned his arms onto his knees, body angled toward you. "The pact, I…" He considered his words as they melted on his tongue like the chocolate and marshmallow on yours. "I wanted to ask if you would think about another amendment."

You met his eyes now. The burning fire reflected in his dark irises, warm and bright. "An—an amendment," you parroted. Was this what you thought it was? You finished off your s'more, hoping not to choke when he told you whatever he wanted to tell you. You suddenly wondered if the s'more was just to soften the blow.

Kevin nodded. "Yeah, another amendment. We didn't really discuss the biggest part of the original pact when we made the rescue protocol."

"The 'just friends' clause," you finished, breathlessly.

"Yn, I don't wanna be just friends anymore."

It didn't hit you at first. You swore the ash from the fire was making you hear things, but it hit you, milliseconds later. "Oh."

He pursed his lips for a moment. "It's taken me a stupidly long time to come to this conclusion, and I was thinking about what we were talking about the other night—about if we were ready for relationships. And I said that maybe the person I wanted to spend the rest of my life with was someone I already met.

"Yn, I think I'm in love with you," he said. "Not just in a way that friends love each other, but something… something more. And I wanted to let you know because—if I'm being completely honest—I want to share everything with you."

You could feel the way your lips curled upward and your heart soared. "I wanna share everything with you, too. And I don't know how long I've sat on this, but what I do know is that I feel so much for you." Every admittance that was released into the night air like sparks flying was another card laid out between you two, face up. "This place, the lake, has been my place, Kevin. But I want you to be my person."

He smiled at you, sweet and boyish, the type of smile that made you feel on the edge of seventeen. He helped you out of dark places with that smile; he was always showing you the light. "Your person," he murmured, letting that sink into his tongue and be familiarized with it. "I would love to be your person, Yn."

Your hand found his across the gap between your chairs. His thumb caressed over the side of yours, and he tucked his other hand over top until you were enveloped in his clasp—safe and sound.

When the fire was reduced to nothing more than ash and memory, you and Kevin raced each other down to the water's edge. The lake was stilled beneath the moonlight, a pool of silvery mercury. You reached for his hand again and intertwined your fingers firmly, a comforting weight and hold.

It felt right.

"So since we made an amendment to the protocol again," you started as he swung your laced hands between your bodies, "we need to seal the deal."

A grin bloomed on his face, and he bit his lip. "Hear me out," he drawled. "Maybe we should update the seal, too."

You narrowed your eyes in jest. "You just don't want me to flick your forehead."

"Sue me, you flick hard," he laughed.

"But shoot."

He licked his lips and turned to face you. "Can I show you?"

Your heart gave one big lurch as he leaned over to you. You closed the rest of the distance and sighed something happy at the feel of his lips against yours. It was gentle and brief, his mouth parting from yours to give you enough room to back away.

You could feel your twin smiles. "I kind of like it."

"Yeah?" He hummed. "Well, that can be our practice round."

You shook your head and threw your arms around his neck to pull him back over to you. His arms curled around your middle, hands pressed to your sides and holding you close.

When you broke apart this time, his warm chuckle ran a delicious bolt of electricity down your spine. "I know things are gonna be different now… But we got this."

It was the way he looked at you—the one that assured you he was the same Kevin he was three years ago and beyond; the kid who broke the swing set when you challenged him to a bet; the kid who sketched butterflies in meadows, and now sketched you in the firelight; the kid who would never judge you or ridicule you for your feelings, but validate them, always. You didn't know how you were so blind to it before.

It wasn't so scary anymore, not when you knew he would be there with you.

"Yeah," you said softly, running your thumb down the back of his neck, "I'm not really worried."

He let out a breathy laugh, and it coaxed one out of you, too. Kevin pressed his forehead to yours, pressed a kiss to the tip of your nose, pressed his heart to yours.

Some things really were just meant to be.

a/n: now the question is how are they gonna tell their moms... 🤡 if you enjoyed, pls remember to reblog, or comment, or send in an ask!! thanks for reading :] see you in at your convenience!

permanent taglist: @flwoie @vatterie @seomisaho @hqrana @ja4hyvn @tinkerbell460 @kaaimins @hyunjaespresent-deobi @otterly-fey @zzoguri @floatingpluto @winterchimez @ethereal-engene @gyulfriend @polarisjisung @jaehunnyy @shakalakaboomboo @loveliestfelix @bless-311 @zhaixiaowen @leaz-kpop-life @amourdsr @pxppxrminty @kqyutie @sseastar-main @kxthleen14 @fluorescentloves @mosviqu @justalildumpling @jaerisdiction @super-btstrash-posts @jundundun @http-gyu @mvvnsseul @outrologist @vernonburger @maessseongs @ericlvr @kflixnet

[mae-gi-writes]

sweet like nectar | hyunjae . theboyz | (2)

"Run, run, baby, where I go? Closer and closer to you I'm addicted, I'm addicted to you" - NECTAR, THE BOYZ

In which you and Hyunjae only have 24 hours to enjoy life before it's time to grow up and go your separate ways.

Genre: fluff, a bit of angst, slowburn! teasing!Hyunjae. friend!Hyunjae, friends-to-lovers, idiots-to-lovers au.

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦

------- part one | part two -------

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦

"Hot chocolate is a must."

"You and your hot chocolate," you rolled your eyes as you moved from the t-shirts section to the next. There didn't seem to be many options for men in this shop and you were slowly getting frustrated with the lack of choice given to you. That, or nothing seemed to suit your liking, "it's not even that good. It's just cheap choco mix and sugar."

Hyunjae hummed on the other side of the receiver, "that's the best. All that bad chemical stuff."

You pulled a face, "yuck. Help me choose a t-shirt."

You pulled your phone away from your ear, pressing down onto the video option until Hyunjae's face popped up on the screen. As usual, your heart did a mini flip inside your chest at the sight of your best friend, looking all fluffy and clean, wrapped up in his blankets as though he'd just woken up.

A small smile pulled at your mouth, "were you just napping?"

"As a matter of fact, I was."

"Lazy ass," you tsked, "aren't you supposed to be on shift today?"

"Got Kevin to replace me. I've been working extra shifts these past two weeks so--" he let out a soft yawn and rubbed at his eyes, the sight so adorable it made your heart melt into soft butter, "anyway, what do you need help with?"

"Choosing a shirt," you placed the two options on a nearby counter, "what do you think? White or red?"

"Depends. Who's it for?"

You snorted, "you, obviously."

"Ah then that's simple. Buy both."

"Hyunjae."

He giggled to himself, "I'm pretty, like you said, so anything will go--"

"Hyunjae."

"Well tell me who it's for and I'll be of more help."

"I just told you," you hoped your cheeks weren't as red as you felt they were. It was bad enough that none of you was brave enough to talk about the 'moment' you'd shared in the airport the other day. Was it weird to be buying a t-shirt for him when he was nothing but a friend? But it was a friendly gift though, wasn't it? Hyunjae blinked at you. Then, he straigtened slowly so that he was leaning onto his elbow instead, "what--is it for me?"

"Yes, like I said. So choose."

"Is that your way of saying that you're thinking of me?" a grin broke across his face, "aw look at you, being so cute and everything--"

"Shut up or I'll just put both back," you were already making a grab for the t-shirts when he yelled out, "wait! Alright alright. I'll tell you, just show me."

It had been a few months since you'd moved back to Seoul, and to say that you were happy was wrong. You weren't happy. Yes, it was your motherland. Yes, you were back with your family and was surrounded by people that seemed to love and genuinely care for you. But did that replace whatever freedom you had back in London? Did that make you miss the city of history and the adventures you could have in such a place filled with art and creations and leisure and just about anything you could think of? Yes. You missed it.

You missed London like you would miss a limb. It was part of you. Had been for four years, and would not be so easy to erase.

Since then, you'd kept in touch with Hyunjae as best as you could. But the time difference was not favorable and so more often than not you would miss each other. But he made up for it by sending you frequent messages, always asking about how you were doing and what were the major updates. You knew that he was now working at a famous audit firm as a junior, and that his working hours made that he barely had any free time. But still despite it all, he made the time to call you, even if it was just for five minutes.

You were grateful for that. For even that tiny moment where you had him all to yourself.

"The red one," Hyunjae's voice brought you back to reality. He seemed awfully invested in choosing the right color, "and it's Christmas, so it's two birds with one stone."

"True," you made a grab for the red t-shirt, "fine then. Thanks your highness, you may leave now."

"Pushing me away so soon huh? I barely spoke to you for five minutes," he whined as you made your way to the front desk. That caused you to scowl down at your phone, "well, I'm sorry that I'm busy. If you forget, Seoul's known for the amazing family time during Christmas, so pardon me if I have to run errands for my mom because she wants to invite the entire family over."

"You're so salty. All that because I'm not there."

"Don't kid yourself," you grinned down at your phone, "you're not that important."

"Hey, rude!"

Laughter bubbled up your chest and soon enough Hyunjae joined in. You probably looked like a crazy person to all the other sales shoppers but you didn't care. Not when Hyunjae was concerned.

When he was here, you felt whole. When he was here, you felt like you could do anything in this world.

Your conversation carried on until you reached the nearby bus station, with him telling you all about his newest job and how he was struggling to keep a healthy routine despite his horrible work hours. Your heart tugged in pain, sympathy filling you as he told you stories of how sometimes he'd return home at night without even the memory that he'd made it back. That sometimes he was so tired that he forgot to eat dinner. Worry bloomed through your chest at that and you chided that he needed to eat well to be able to work well, that these things were mutually exclusive.

"I know but it's hard when they expect you to be at the office at nine in the morning until three," he paused and added after some thought,"-- in the morning,"

"Do you get paid overtime for that?"

"Yeah but like--it's peanuts."

Spotting the bus as it made it's way over to your station, you looked back down at your phone, "I'll have to go soon. The bus is here."

Something that looked like disappointment flashed across his face, but it disappeared so quick that it might've been just a figment of your imagination, "I'll talk to you later?" he asked.

"Yeah," you nodded and sent him a quick smile, "yeah. No problem."

You kept your smile in place just until the call ended. Then your face dropped and you let out a sigh, glancing up at the grey sky and trying not to let your tears crawl up the back of your throat.

You missed him. You missed him so much that going a day without hearing his voice felt like a week. No, a month.

You were so down bad for him that it was pathetic, really.

Especially when you knew that he'd never be yours.

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦

Christmas season was creeping up on you faster than you'd imagined. It kept you busy throughout the days where you had nothing else to do but lounge around the house in hopes of finding a suitable job. It seemed that Seoul wasn't friendly to female engineers, especially ones that had freshly graduated from University. And so you were still on the waiting list to be interviewed.

It was Christmas eve and your family had some of your aunts and uncles over for the occasion. Everyone had to be dressed in white or red, and you were busy bustling around in the kitchen, helping in any way you could, when the doorbell rang.

"Y/N! Could you get that honey?!" Your dad's voice echoed from the small tiny kitchenette where he was busy roasting some pork pieces.

"On it!" you yelled back. Wiping your hands onto the kitchen towel hanging by the sink, you quickly maneuvered through the already-packed kitchen to unlock the door.

"Hi! Can I take your stuff--"

The words died on your lips the moment you spotted a pair of familiar brown eyes. Ones that haunted you in your sleep.

You weren't quite sure what happened next.

One minute you were gawking at none other than Hyunjae who was standing before you in the flesh.

"Wha...." the words got all jumbled together and didn't make it past your mouth," wha--what are you--I--uhm--"

And the next, you were enveloped in his arms.

In Hyunjae's arms, to be more exact.

He smelled like home. Like diving headfirst into the comforts of your blankets once you got back home after a long tiring day. He smelled sweet and musky and woody all at the same time and it enveloped your senses, drugged you, made you want more. More. Just more of him. More of everything.

Before you knew it, your hands had flown up to grasp at his coat, pulled him so tightly against you that you swore you could've ripped the fabric right off him.

You felt his chuckle against the side of your head, the warmth of his breath enough to make you look up at him, at the beautiful crinkle of his eyes as he grinned down at you. His arms held you in place at your waist. Gentle. Yet firm.

"What--" your throat felt clogged with emotion, thick with tears that you blinked away, "what--are you doing here?"

"What does it look like?" Hyunjae's grin widened, "merry Christmas."

It turned out that your entire family knew about his surprise visit, his mother even making arrangements so that Hyunjae could stay over that night and not have to drive back home in the dark after midnight. They ushered him in without a flicker of a doubt, your heart swelling at the way your parents seemed to flock over him like protective hens and kept him busy by asking all kinds of questions that would've made you run without a doubt with your tail between your legs.

Hyunjae, granted, seemed disposed to entertain their military interview, even going as far as to share a whisky on the rocks with your father as the rest of the women set up the dining table.

"So is he your boyfriend?" one of your cousins nudged your elbow, her eyebrows shooting up suggestively as you flushed deep red.

"No no, nothing like that," you stammered out, hoping that Hyunjae wasn't in proximity to hear of all these stupid, baseless rumours. That was how it always had been whenever a new member was introduced to the family. Gossip spread like wildfire, "he's just a friend."

"Just a friend you say? That comes over to visit on Christmas eve?" your cousin wrinkled her nose, "seems very unlikely."

She shot you a look that weighed a ton and sashayed away, unknowingly as your face burst into flames.

Did they really have to embarrass you like this? Couldn't it wait until tomorrow when he was gone?

"We've heard so much about you from Y/N, I feel like we know you all too well already," your mother gushed when the family was finally seated at the dinner table.

Hyunjae let out a laugh before he shook his head, "hope she hasn't been saying all that bad stuff about me."

"There is only bad stuff to say," You answered flatly. That earned you a whack on the arm from the latter, but you couldn't but grin despite it all. Hyujae was here, in the flesh, celebrating Christmas Eve with you.

Everything seemed like out of a fairytale.

The dinner was nice enough, with you and Hyunjae able to steal a few bits and pieces of conversation for your own amidst the dizzying flow of questions sent your way. You took note of his closeness the more the night evolved, his shoulder pressing onto your own and the way his hand would brush over yours multiple times below the table. It had your cheeks pinking with colour, though you hoped that your face gave nothing away and was more than glad when the cleaning up came about and you had an excuse to slip away from him.

All plates washed and the entire family now retreating to their own activities, you and Hyunjae managed to slip outside the back porch to enjoy the flurry of snowflakes descending upon Seoul like a gift. It wasn't everyday that you got to experience Winter in white, even after all these years. It was a miracle, a blessing. Even.

"Your family's really cool," was the first thing that came out of his mouth when you stepped out into the cold.

You buried your face into the puff material of your coat, and breathed in the freezing winter air, "yeah. They're...an interesting bunch."

"Way more interesting than my family."

Taking a seat on a bench right along the corner of the deck, you motioned for him to do the same, "your family's just small. That must be why you're not big on holidays."

Hyunjae's family consisted of him, his mother, and his two older sisters. Both which had gotten married a few years apart and now celebrated with the other sides of their families. Hyunjae's mother was content with that, for his was still an active air-hostess that flew around the world for a living.

That was probably how Hyunjae had managed to jump on a flight last minute. Which was why you asked, "how come you decided to come all the way to Seoul?"

"Why do you think?" he nudged your shoulder with a grin, "to spend time with your family? Not that I dislike them. They're great."

"What about Jinhee?"

"She's gone to visit her family in LA," he shrugged, "so I would've been alone anyway."

"And your mum?"

"Mum's halfway across Canada as we speak," he leaned back and once again, you felt the warmth of his shoulder brush yours. You weren't sure whether to lean away or press even more to him. It was tempting, considering the cold weather, "she said she's traveling to New York in a few days. It's her busy month."

"I bet," you spared him a glance, noticed he'd cut his hair just before coming. His side profile, paired with the falling snow in the background, made for a very picturesque moment, "do you miss her?"

"I should miss her," Hyunjae leaned into you, maybe unconsciously. It made your heart skip a beat, "but I think i'm kinda used to it now, her traveling, me doing my own thing," his eyes met yours, "I think I prefer it this way."

Maybe it was the cold that didn't make you pull away when you felt the warmth of his body coating your side. Maybe it was the fact that you couldn't, for the love of god, tears yourself away from his eyes no matter how much you tried. They were intense, like molten lava on this cold night, mesmerizing. It made you short of breath, made your chest tighten with all the unresolved feelings that suddenly came flooding back.

You were so deep in thought you hadn't realized how close you'd gotten to each other until your noses brushed.

Yelping, you jumped back in shock and turned away, rubbing at your face in the process, "sorry," you tried to laugh it off, though it sounded choked up, "should we--uhm--head back? it's getting late--"

"Awww but I really wanted to play in the snow," came Hyunjae's whine.

"You're so dramatic," you said flatly.

"Yes, hence the reason you love me," he wriggled his tongue at you and before you could make any kind of comeback -- or get your head out of the gutter for that matter -- he sprung up from his seat, grabbed your hand, and practically jerked you to the garden.

"Come on!" he yelled against the muffled silence of snowflakes, "let's see who can make the biggest snowman!"

✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦ . 　⁺ 　 . ✦

"I won, fair and square."

"No, I won."

"Hyunjae, your snowman was barely over a foot tall."

His pout deepened, arms crossing over his body as he watched you fuss over the spare blankets and mattress hidden within the depths of your wardrobe, "that's because you took most of my snow, it's not fair--"

"There was snow everywhere!"

"Still! You know you're better at art. You have an advantage."

"It was your idea to build snowmen, now stop sulking and help me put your bed together."

Your best friend let out a loud huff like an overdramatic cat before grabbing onto the other end of the bedspread to help you set up his sleeping space.

"There, that's better," you nodded at him, "you can use the washroom first. It's the first door to the right."

While Hyunjae was out, you took this chance to quickly change out of your dinner clothes to slip on your pj's. Nothing fancy, just a huge-ass t-shirt that went down to your mid-thigh and some cotton shorts. Delving into your drawer of long socks, you were about to pull them on just as the door swiveled open to reveal your best friend.

But not just your best friend. Your very--very naked, from the chest up-- best friend.

You made a sound between a scoff and a strangle, "have you been walking like this around my house?"

"It's just my chest," Hyunjae frowned as he stepped in, a towel slung around his shoulder like he'd just taken a shower, "nothing that girls haven't seen before."

God. His chest. You'd seen Hyunjae's bare chest a couple of times but never actually had time to analyze it. Having never seen it so upclose up till now. He was lean, but with the kind of muscle that corded through his body in suggestion that he was fit and knew how to take care of himself.

It was attractive. It was tempting. It made your blood boil and your heart almost give out.

Quickly averting your eyes and turning your body away, "whatever," you mumbled and quickly maneuvered yourself out of the room, "just please wear a t-shirt if you're gonna go out in the hallway."

Scrambling to the bathroom like your life depended on it, you barely managed to shut the door before you pressed your back against it, a small breath escaping your lips as you looked up at the ceiling.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

You were so done. You could feel the heat in your cheeks, traveling all the way to the back of your neck.

Did he know how much of an effect he had on you?

Clearly it didn't seem like he cared all that much, and that made you sick in the stomach.

Because you were in love with him.

The realization caused a ragged breath to escape. You were in love with him.

And he was in love with someone else.

Deep breaths, in and out. In and out they went. A hand to your chest, feeling it thump against your palm, like an echo of comfort that managed to bring you back down to earth.

And you were supposed to survive the night knowing that he was right there? Right beside you?

You were not going to make it.

It took more than just a few minutes for you to regain some kind of sanity. And then, you took your time gently prying the door open, making sure that the corridor was void of noise and that everyone else seemed to have retreated to their spaces before tiptoeing back inside your room.

Hyunjae was already lying down onto his bed, freshly washed bangs splayed across his face as he read what looked like a manga from your high school stash. It had been everything to you back then, all these fictional love stories that made you swoon.

Now, the only thing that seemed to make you swoon was the boy right in front of your very eyes.

"Hey," his voice had dropped an octave. Or was that just you? Either way, it made your insides flutter slightly as you padded to your bed and sank into it, feeling the mattress dip under your weight as Hyunjae shifted so he could face you.

"What?" you asked, a little snappier than usual.

"I got you a present."

You blinked, "Well it's not Christmas yet, Einstein. You can give it to me tomorrow--"

"But I wanna give it to you today," he whined out and before you knew it, he was already rummaging through his bag before he tossed you a black box about the size of your palm. You yelped, barely managing to catch it in your grip as the said young man leaned back against the wall and grinned up at you, "happy early Christmas, Y/N."

"Can't I just open it tomorrow when everyone's around--"

"Absolutely not," Hyunjae snorted. He shifted closer so that his knees brushed against your calves, looking up at you as the dim light of the room bounced off his face, "you need to open it now."

"How about tomorrow morning?" you toyed with the gift in your hands. It was light, and you heard something jiggle inside it. Knowing Hyunjae who was the hero of pranks and jokes, you weren't the least bit interested in knowing what was in there and thus tried to find any excuse possible.

Hyunjae however, didn't seem all that phased by your whining, "open it now before I open it for you."

"You're harsh, isn't it my gift?"

"Y/N give it back to me, let me open it for you--"

"No!" You snatched it away and glared at him, "fine fine, I'll open it."

It wasn't wrapped, making it easier for you to pull open the latch as you were met with a plush, creamy interior.

Inside it, glittering from the soft light overhead, was a bracelet with a small bee pendant attached to it.

Your brain short-circuited for a minute. You gazed down at the bracelet as a small frown overtook your face.

"What's this?" you asked, looking back up at him in confusion.

Hyunjae's own face was unreadable as he pressed his lips together and nodded at the said box, "it's yours."

"But--" but Hyunjae didn't buy you gifts. He brought you out to museums, paid for your food sometimes, paid for shows or movies or snacks that you craved. But gifts was not something he'd ever dreamed of giving, not because he didn't want to but because most of the time he forgot your birthdays or important celebrations.

And so your brain was trying to compute why the hell this should be yours in the first place, "--why?" you finally asked lamely.

"What do you mean why?" Hyunjae laughed, "normally people say thank you--"

"Hyun, you don't--you've never--" the words barely made it past your throat. They clogged up, eyes burning with emotion, "you don't give me gifts, Hyunjae. What...is the meaning of this? Is this a prank? Is this--Is this a mistake?" You held it up for him to see, "was this meant for someone else?"

"No Y/N," he grabbed your hand, the one holding the box, and proceeded to kneel by your side so that his chest brushed your knees. Your legs parted to make way for him and suddenly he was so close that your lungs quivered, eyes widening at the lack of proximity.

"It's yours. I bought it. For you," as he spoke, Hyunjae gently lifted the bracelet from its velvet cushion and tossed the box aside. Then, with the kind of gentleness you'd never seen before, the young man's hand ran down the length of your arm, circling your wrist so that he could tie the bracelet around it.

He tsked, grinning as he held your hand up so that the bee pendant hung from it, "see? Looks good--"

"Why?" you cut him off, "why are you giving me this?"

Silence was his answer. It rang and hummed and vibrated between the two of you like a cord filled with unspoken tension that was about to snap any minute. You searched his gaze for anything--anything that might suggest this was a prank. You were halfway hoping that he'd burst out laughing in your face because maybe then it wouldn't be so hard to ignore the squeeze in your heartstrings, the way they kept on bubbling with hope that this--whatever this was -- was a clear message.

Hyunjae shifted, his arm brushed your knee and he proceeded to wrap it around the said limb, hand coming to a rest at the back of your leg as a soft gasp fell from your lips.

His touch was electrifying. It made you lose all focus, made you crave for more.

Always more.

"That day--at the airport," his murmur was so soft you could barely hear him, the deepness of his voice taking you by surprise, "I--I really wanted to kiss you."

You blinked.

Heat exploded through your face. Oh. Oh. Was he talking about what you thought he was talking about?

You opened your mouth but nothing seemed to make sense. Your brain was all over the place, all your senses going out of focus.

You just gaped at him.

Hyunjae continued, looking bashfully— adorably— embarrassed as he looked away, “—and I would’ve… if it wasn’t for Jinhee. That day I only restrained myself out of principle.”

And then he looked up at your face, into your eyes and you swore you forgot how to breathe.

“But I’ve been thinking about it ever since.” He admitted in a soft murmur, “I’ve been—thinking about you. A lot.”

Oh god.

Oh god, this was a confession.

This was — was this even real?

You weren’t sure what to say, what to do. Your limbs froze and your mouth dried up.

Hyunjae was probably feeling flustered since all you did was stare him down like he’d done something awfully terrible, for he let out a small nervous chuckle before one of his hands went to grasp yours.

You jumped at the contact, mouth parting in a soft “oh.” But Hyunjae didn’t relent, allowing his hand to trace the outside of your knuckle before intermingling your fingers and pressing them down onto the bed.

“I love you, because you’re my best friend,” he murmured out in a hoarse whisper, face inching up closer to yours, “but I want to be more than just that.”

Your mouth parted in a soft breath as a shaky whisper escaped, “do you mean that?”

Hyunjae’s head dipped into a nod.

That was enough.

Your hand slipped up to find the back of his neck and before you knew what you were doing, you tilted down to press a soft kiss to his lips.

The sound of surprise that left Hyunjae would’ve made you chuckle, if not for the fact that you were trying not to melt at the sensation of his mouth moving against yours.

Warmth exploded through your chest and almost impulsively a sound left your throat. Hyunjae let out a ragged breath in response. His hand traveled up to your jaw, holding you there as he took lead of the kiss. His lips slanted against yours, moving along to a rhythm that had you seeing stars as you all but trembled against him, trying not to faint at the multiple sensations searing through you. It was exhilarating, magical. Something out of a movie.

You’d kissed boys before. A small peck here and there. A few makeout sessions that had never strayed further than just lip locking. But never had you felt so consumed by this kiss that rendered you speechless with just a mere touch.

Hyunjae grunted against you when he felt your hands trickle through his locks right along his nape, and his other hand didn’t waste time to slide up your thigh, leaving hot trails of fire in his wake.

You gasped into him, and his tongue delved in to twine around yours. You all but melted against his chest, a soft whine echoing out of your mouth as he pulled you even closer with a growl.

It took you an enormous amount of self-control to finally pull away, especially when your best friend’s hand seemed all too intent on caressing every inch of your skin possible. His eyes fluttered up to meet yours as your noses brushed, and in his gaze you found a soft of tenderness that made your chest ache with desire.

“Uhm,” you weren’t sure what to say. What to do. Instead, your fingers kept on playing with his hair, “what—about Jinhee?”

He blinked, stared for a minute. And then let out a bark of a laugh.

“What?” Your cheeks felt hot to the touch, “what’s so funny?”

“I literally just kissed you,” his eyes glittered with playfulness as he leaned in once more to nuzzle your nose, “and that’s what you ask me first?”

“Well I—“ even your neck felt searing hot, “I need to make sure I’m not overstepping.”

“You’re not,” he grinned. His hand cupped your cheek then before his lips found yours once more in a sweet kiss. When he pulled back, you were more than a little breathless, “I ended things right after you left.”

“What? So—So you’ve been playing along all this time?”

“Yeah kinda? I just wanted to give you your gift first.”

That was surprisingly sweet. So sweet that a smile couldn’t resist slipping past your lips as you impulsively tugged him back into a hug. He hugged you back, smoothing circles over your spine as you shivered in response.

“Thank you,” was your murmur.

Hyunjae chuckled lowly, the sound rumbling through his chest as he pressed another soft kiss to the edge of your jaw, “come here.”

And he pulled you onto his lap so that you all but fell straight onto him, embarrassment dusting your cheeks in permanent pink as he held you close.

He buried his face into the crook of your neck, “you don’t know how long I’ve been wanting to do this.”

“You don’t know how long,” you mumbled.

“What does that mean?”

“I see you,” you bit down onto your lower lip, “I’ve always seen you.”

That made him pause in contemplation. His beautiful eyebrows furrowed, biting the inside of his cheek, “since when have you…”

“A long time,” you averted your eyes, “a long time, Hyunjae.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“How could I? We were friends, I didn’t want to lose you.”

“Fair enough,” he pushed a stray strand of hair away from your face, caressed your cheekbone as he did so, “I didn’t want to lose you either.”

That night, you spent it cuddling with Hyunjae until the sun came up and until the birds started singing to welcome the new morning. It was funny how things turned out, one minute you’d been crying over him and the next, he was telling you that you were his everything. And that morning you lifted the bracelet up to the light, seeing the bee pendant glimmer like crystal jewels, as your heart swelled with joy because no matter how hard you tried to stay nonchalant about it, you were already a wreck for Hyunjae.

You would always come back to him. Always.

[lomlhwa]

you're so sweet (p.sh)

pairing: highly experienced!sunghoon x virgin!reader

preview: you've been dating sunghoon for almost a year. he decides that for your one year, he wants to give you the best first time you could possibly ask for.

warnings/tags: fem reader, slight corruption kink on sunghoon's part, lots of pet names (baby, my love, pretty girl), taking of reader's virginity, sunghoon the king of consent, multiple orgasms, oral (f receiving), fingering, unprotected penetration (wrap it before you tap it), implied big dick!sunghoon, creampie

trigger warnings: n/a

wc: 2.8k

song recs for this fic: reason by kai, bambi by baekhyun, prism by the boyz (heavy on this one), love by dean

a/n: i've never written smut before so i hope this goes okay lmfao.

“soooo” sunghoon says as he walks into the living room of your shared apartment. he plops down on the couch across from you. “tomorrow’s our one year.” you gulp. of course you remember that that’s tomorrow. not only is it a big milestone, but it will also be the culmination of everything sexual sunghoon had been promising you for the past week. just his words had been enough to have your thighs clenching.

when you told him you were a virgin, his eyes just about fell out of his head. his beautiful, irresistible girlfriend was a virgin? he couldn’t believe it. he thought you were lying to him. but when he found out you were serious, he realized that just meant more fun for him.

“yes, it is” you nod, giving him an awkward smile. he scans your face for discomfort or nerves. he definitely finds nerves. he gives you a small, reassuring smile. “are you sure you still want to sleep with me for our one year anniversary, y/n?” he moves closer to you on the couch, grasping your hand. he gives it a little squeeze as if to say ‘you’re allowed to say no.���

“yes, i’m sure hoon” you give his hand a squeeze back. you trust your boyfriend to give you an unforgettable first time. he had done nothing but make you feel good about yourself since you started dating which made you all the more confident in his abilities to make you feel the same in bed.

“okay, good. i’ve been thinking about it all week” he sighs out of relief. as if you didn’t know he’d been thinking about it. you roll your eyes, removing your hand from his. “i have one question that you need to answer right now so i can finalize my plans” he says, giving you his biggest and best-est puppy dog eyes. “what is it?” you give him a weird look. what could he be asking you that required his puppy eyes?

his eyes turn dark and he smirks a little. “baby…” he pauses, mostly just for effect. “condom or no condom?” your face immediately burns bright red. you fan yourself, turning away from him. like, props to him for being less vulgar about asking but if he had straight up asked you if wanted it raw, you would’ve had this exact reaction. 

“i uh, um. n-no condom?” of course you had to stutter through your words. you hear your boyfriend curse under his breath. it was so breathy and low that you could feel your thighs aching to press together.

“okay, thank you, baby” he gets up and walks away. he leaves you flustered and aching. unfortunately for you, that’s exactly what he wanted. building up the tension and excitement for tomorrow was his plan from the moment he walked in. 

the next night…

sunghoon had bribed your friend to take you shopping for the day so he could prepare the perfect environment in your apartment. he had even given you his card to spend his money. 

well, your shopping spree had come to end and now here you were. standing outside the door of your apartment. nerves had taken you over when you got in the elevator. it’s not that you didn’t want to sleep with him, you do. but having zero experience compared to your ex-fuckboy boyfriend scared you. 

you debated turning around and putting it off a little longer but the voice in your head told you to just trust him. if anything, him having so much experience might just be better.

you knock on the door as he had instructed you to do this morning. you heard some shuffling and what you assumed, based on his pained groan, was your beloved boyfriend running into something. 

your heart beats loudly in your ears as you hear the lock open and see the knob twist. you’re met with your impossibly beautiful boyfriend greeting you. he’s wearing a white dress shirt that’s slightly wet from what you assume is baby oil based on its glistening sheen. his black dress pants hang low on his hips, his belt having been long discarded. his brown hair is disheveled as clear evidence of his hard work through the day. 

he stands in the door, taking in your nervous frame. your friend had managed to borderline manipulate you into buying and wearing a dress that barely left anything to the imagination. you could feel his eyes undressing you. 

“h-hi” you say, your voice barely above a whisper. “c-can i come i-in?” your arms are aching from all of your bags filled with your many unnecessary purchases from the mall. he moves out of the way, gesturing for you to come inside. 

you place your bags down on the floor, leaning down to take your heels off at the same time. you turn back around to face your boyfriend. the air around you feels impossibly heavy as you look up at him. 

you just stand and stare at each other for a moment before sunghoon says his first words to you since you got here. “are you ready, baby?” his eyes scan up and down your body for the millionth time.

“yes, i am ready” you nod. at that verbal and physical confirmation, sunghoon’s self restraints immediately fall away. 

he grabs you by the waist, pulling you flush against him. he ghosts his lips over yours. his tongue licks over your top lip teasingly. he only teases you for a short time before pulling you further into your home. 

“i’m going to cover your eyes and help you walk. there’s one last surprise” he says as his hands obscure your vision completely. he helps you walk carefully towards your bedroom, kicking the door open from behind you. 

you hear the door click shut as he gets you fully into the room. his hands fall away and you open your eyes slowly.

your bedroom is decorated beautifully. fairy lights of different sizes hang on the wall, all on their red light setting. sunghoon had bought brand new, maroon colored bed sheets for tonight and they are gorgeous. he has towels on the side table just in case. unbeknownst to you, he also has a stash of condoms just in case you change your mind about him going in unprotected. a couple candles rest on your shared dresser. as your nose fills with their aroma, you find out they’re all cherry blossom scented. 

sunghoon’s hands come up to rest on your hips. his mouth hovers next to your ear, making you shiver. “i’m gonna ask once more before we start” he blows lightly on your ear before placing a small kiss on the lobe. “are you ready?” a chill runs up your spine as he squeezes your waist. are you ready? are you really? you contemplate one last time before giving your final answer. "yes."

sunghoon spins you around and attaches your lips to his for real this time. you’ve kissed him many times before but something about this one felt… different. the way his fingers drew small shapes on the small of your back made you feel tingly. 

he slowly backs you up towards your bed until he could safely lay you down. you shuffle your way all the way onto the bed, sunghoon’s lips chasing yours as he hovers above you. he does nothing but smash your lips together for a few moments.

when he finally pulls away, a string of saliva remains, leaving you connected. he takes in your appearance. your hair messed up from shuffling around, your lips swollen from kissing him so harshly, your dress riding up in the most delicious way. “can i take this off?” his fingertips graze the hem of your short dress. huffing out a deep breath, you nod. “yes, you can.” 

he pulls the hem towards your head. you sit up slightly so he can slide it all the way off your body. you mentally thank your manipulative best friend for getting you to buy lingerie to wear under such an already sexy dress.

when sunghoon’s eyes meet with your lace-y, deep red bralette, he just about drools. his girlfriend had really gone through all this trouble to get all dolled up. for him. the tent in his pants grows every second he stares at you. you squirm under his lustful gaze, a silent beg for him to do something. anything. 

“hoon, please” you whine out. he gives you a fake pout in response. “please what, my love?” he ghosts his fingers down your sides, leaving goosebumps in his wake. “you have to use your words.” you shift around, trying to move enough to close your legs for some friction. sunghoon stops you, however. he grabs your legs and pulls you back against him, pressing into your clothed core.

“touch me, please” you whine again, your hips lifting to grind against him. your sudden movement shocks him, a low groan slipping from his lips. the sound goes straight between your legs, making your panties stick to you uncomfortably. 

his hands slide down to the safety shorts you’d worn under your dress. his fingertips dip under the waistband. he looks up at you for permission. you nod, licking your suddenly dry lips. he slides the shorts down and all the way off your body. 

his eyes immediately fall to your panties which match your bralette. he shifts uncomfortably, cursing his choice of pants. he really just wants to rip the rest of your clothes off and take you immediately, but he reminds himself to take it slow. 

your hands come up and fumble with the buttons on his shirt, being too shaky to actually undo any of them. he gently moves your hands away and gives you a questioning look, knowing exactly what you want but wanting you to say it out loud. 

“off, please” he giggles at your cuteness. he undoes all the buttons and slides the shirt off, dropping it onto the floor. you slide your hands over his toned torso, taking in his figure. you were right about the sheen on his shirt being baby oil. his skin has a slippery feeling. you’ve seen him shirtless many times, but this time it’s different.

“my love…” his voice is breathy and sexy, a whisper in your ear. you sigh as he presses kisses onto your neck, just under your ear. “won’t you let me taste you?” your back instinctively arches at the thought. he licks a stripe up your neck, kissing back down the trail of saliva he left on your skin. “yes, please, taste me” your own voice is unstable and full of lust. “please, hoon” your chest rises and falls faster by the minute. you think you might die if he doesn’t do something to you soon.

he kisses his way down your torso, leaving a few dark love bites in places no one else will see but him. high pitched moans get stuck in your throat the closer he gets to your wetness. he pushes your legs open as he settles between them. he places small pecks up and down your inner thighs, teasing just a little more. he kisses your heat over your panties, drawing a sharp gasp out of you. 

he opens his mouth to ask for your permission to take the final barrier off and you glare at him. “yes, sunghoon, do it, please.” he chuckles a little before dragging your panties off of you painfully slowly. he drops your final garment onto the floor of your bedroom. you waste no time to close your legs, embarrassment only just now hitting you. sunghoon drags his fingers up and down your legs, pouting at you. "i can't taste you if you close your legs, baby." 

shakily, you reopen your legs, splaying yourself open for your eager lover. he begins kissing your thighs again before placing a kiss on your folds. you shiver at every touch of his lips on your skin. he licks a stripe all the way up, his tongue coming to rest on your swollen clit. he wraps his mouth around it and sucks lightly, knocking the wind right out of you. he wraps his arms around your thighs and pulls you closer to him.

he eats you like you’re his final meal and he’ll never be able to eat something as delicious as you ever again. your legs shake around his head as his tongue ducks in and out of your weeping hole. 

out of nowhere he shoves his index finger into you, slowly moving it in and out. it’s a stark contrast to his desperate sucking on your sensitive nub. you whine, shifting to try and get away as you become more sensitive. he grants you the gift of another finger, beginning a merciless pace with his hand and mouth. he whines into you, the vibrations sending a shiver through your spine.

your hands tangle in your boyfriend’s soft brown locks and tug slightly. he releases another whine at the sensation. “h-hoon i’m gonna-” he looks up at you with a knowing look. he keeps his exact ministrations going, watching as you come undone for him. you cum with a loud cry of sunghoon’s name, your grip on his hair falling away.

he pulls away from you, moving up to make eye contact with you. he admires your fucked-out expression. the after orgasm effects still wash over you by the second. “are you ready for the next part, pretty girl?” he brushes your hair out of your face gently. you lean into his hand and nod. “yes, please, sunghoon” your words are breathy and desperate.

he wastes no time in stripping from the remainder of his clothes, it all being discarded on your plush carpet. “no condom?” he asks, stroking himself in preparation. he didn’t allow you to look down in fear of intimidating you out of wanting to let him fuck you. 

“n-no condom” you repeat. he’s gripping your chin to keep your eyes locked with his. you’re really trembling now, but it’s anxious nerves now. he momentarily looks down to line himself up. his tip brushes your hole and a low moan escapes his throat. he looks back into your eyes and slowly pushes into you, bottoming out between your shaky legs.

“s-sunghoon fuck” you pull him down to wrap your arms around his shoulders and dig your nails into his shoulder blades. you don’t press down too hard, though. just enough to ground yourself.

for a few moments, you remain like this. fully connected. his chest pressed against yours, skin meeting with each breath you each take. his hands rest on your hips, his light grip feels so loving.

“please move” you whisper, breaking the silence just a little. he rises from your grip on his back. he angles himself better before drawing all the way out to the tip before slamming back into you. you gasp, your breathing immediately picking up.

he sets a steady pace, his tip prodding at the gummy spot inside of you repeatedly. you reach out to hold his face in both your hands, his sweat dripping onto your fingers. your thumbs caress his cheeks, admiring how his face contorts with his movements. you look at him with so much love he could cry. 

he leans down to kiss your neck, licking droplets of your own sweat off of you. “fuck, baby. you’re so good for me” his voice booms in your head, his words bouncing around. “letting me take your virginity? fuck, baby i’m so happy right now” he rests his face in the crook of your neck for a moment before coming back up. 

your back arches deliciously, his pounding reaching into at a different angle. you clench around him suddenly, almost sending him over the edge. however, he manages to keep himself together. his goal is to get you to finish first.

he reaches down and rubs your clit, high pitched moans escaping your mouth. you reach down to hold his wrist, the knot in your stomach threatening to snap at any moment. “gonna cum, please give me cum” you whine, clenching again. he nods his head vigorously. “cum for me baby and i’ll give you what you want” at his words, you fall apart, twitching and squirming as he chases his own high.

his hips still, spilling his seed into you, painting your walls white. he pants, brushing his hair out of his eyes. your mouth hangs open as you come down from your second orgasm of the night. he slowly pulls out of you. he marvels at the sight of his cum spilling out of you. he gets up and grabs a towel to wipe you off. he puts his boxers and a shirt on before passing you your own underwear and one of his shirts to wear. 

he helps you get under the blankets and holds you close to him. he strokes your hair, yawning. “so, how was it?” he asks, wrapping his arm around your waist to bring you closer. “amazing, hoon. beyond my expectations” you kiss his pouted lips softly, smiling at him. he gives you a bright, toothy smile back. 

“happy anniversary, baby.”

© lomlhwa 2023

[nezz-cringe-crib]

LAWLIGHT HEADCANONS LAWLIGHT HEADCANONS LAWLIGHT HEADCANONS PLSS

Share your winsdom with us mortals

ALSO- Some L angst maybe? I like seeing him suffer bc he is my favorite blorbo and I love making my blorbos suffer

(only if you are comfortable with it, ofc. Don't wanna push anything :) )

OOOOUGHH AAAAAA ABSOLUTELY

i always suck at giving hcs off the fly, but here's some i've thought up of before and like to think about instead of sleeping :333 (be warned that they're all pretty vanilla lolz. my hcs are basic. i just like my blorbos.)

Lawlight hcs:

blorbbooo tiiimmeeeee :33 - i personally really like fluffy lawlight things, but a lot of those are usually for aus and everything (since i can't see them being very fluffy in the normal death note plot). but i like to imagine them having stupid teenage-like crush moments with each other. like maybe during the yotsuba arc or something, L wants more sweets but watari is already out doing something, so his dramatic ass is just whining about "oh woe is me....... there's nothing in the vicinity for me to munch on......... how will i ever go on......." and then to get him to shut up, light begrudgingly either bakes something for L (which could probably lead to a lot of silly shenanigans with stupid dorky smiles before light immediately takes it back and starts bickering with L again), or light convinces L to go buy some sweets from a bakery in town (and then L gets distracted because there's multiple sweet-filled stores and his greedy ass has to try all of them so now they're essentially just going on a date trip around all the sweet stores in town). - also to add onto that last bullet, there's this one fic i just read last night that was so stupid and adorable and i loved it. it's called "You can't have my name, but you can have my number" and i recommend checking it out if you like short and sweet fluffy fics. :] (and if you want more fluffy fics, go read everything @rawrlight has made. his fics are so fucking good please read them i am obsessed with them actually pleasepleasepleaseplease) - L is surprisingly good with kids and light won't admit it but he's kinda into it. - L nonchalantly shares food with light and light totally overthinks the shit out of it. - they totally pick at each other for everything. light picks at L for every unsanitary thing he does. L picks at light for having an unnecessarily long and complicated hygiene routine (i like to imagine he has a shit ton of hair and skincare products). anybody who walks past the bathroom while they're in it is bound to hear non-stop bickering. (or, if you really wanna match my freak, have matsuda open the bathroom door while they're getting ready only to see them in the middle of a fight. whether the pose they're in looks compromisingly homosexual is up to you my dear sillies).

uhhhhhh and that's all i can think of for now. awww zoinks.....

but now L angst headcanons yipeeeeeeeee :33333

L angst hcs:

ooougghhhh buckle up boyz... it's angsty tism time..... - i don't think L was ever good at making friends (this is very much a projected headcanon but shshshshshsh ignore that). despite being insanely intelligent and pretty damn good at whatever he sets his mind to, i don't think he ever got the hang of making deep, personal connections. and i feel like he wants to. throughout his whole life, maybe he wanted to make friends but it always just fell flat. maybe as a child there were times where thought he had made a friend, only to realize those feelings were not reciprocated. despite everything he tried, he was just never "human" enough to seemingly make all those lasting connections that he analyzes so deeply. and i think he probably gave up on trying at some point. and all of this is why i feel like his connection with light is so important. even though he knows it'll end in tragedy and that he will die by light's hand, he still can't help but feel... a little more human with light. and i think he'd risk death in order to feel like that one more time. - i don't usually like reading/seeing heavily angsty stuff, but i remember seeing somebody headcanon that they thought L went through solitary confinement as a child in the wammy house, and i always thought that was interesting. i'm not gonna expand on it though since heavy angst isn't really my vibe. (i love making my blorbos suffer, but not too much.) - yeah most of my L angst is him just being incredibly lonely. in the sense of "he doesn't cry about it (he's probably only cried once in his life and that was probably as a very young child), but there's always been some missing piece in his heart that just can't ever seem to be filled". - actually-- loneliness and his inhumanity. that's what i fuck with the most. though they kind of intertwine, so. yeah i kinda just sound like a broken record atp but sshhhhhhhhhhh it pays off (sometimes) i swear. - he also has a lot of religious trauma in my eyes (again, projection). i know he's not religious or anything, but i feel like he'd fit that song "Dear God" by XTC a lot. - oh and he also sulks a fuckton. he doesn't cry, he pouts and goes to stand in the rain while reminiscing on old memories. that's what his emo dramatic ass does and i fucking love him for it.

that's all i can really think of right now. hopefully that's somewhat entertaining. most of my headcanons are very basic compared to other people i've seen, but they are still special in my heart. :))))

[poweringthroughthis]

Note: no longer taking requests

****************************************************

m.list

The Boyz

to all the boyz i've fucked before [ot12]

for you, hyung [eric]

birthday cake [sangyeon]

Kard

dominated by my boss [bm]

NCT

127

purity ring [johnny]

love on the beach [jaehyun]

fever dream [yuta]

Dream

be my valentine [jisung]

cabin chronicles [chenle]

dressing room escapades [jeno]

Seventeen

love in three acts [mingyu, lucas]

Enhypen

behind locked doors [jake]

Soloists

Lucas

love in three acts [ft.mingyu]

trouble maker

Huta

save a horse (ride a cowboy)

[tbznewberry]

The boyz become human — part 3

Part 2

Despite being wary of her 11 androids, Y/N decides to take them in when needing repair. What she doesn't know is that they're breaking their programs, one by one.

Genre: yandere, sci-fi, Detroit become human au

Warnings: attacks, creepy behavior, not sure what more to put :]

They come back to the police station in time for lunch. The human colleagues are gathering in the lunch room while the eleven androids make their way to their office to read some files. Gathering all information takes less than ten minutes, much quicker than any human ever could. Humans don’t seem to understand how they can communicate without talking. And they don’t either. They just do. 

“I’m so happy you came to get me!” a man’s voice says — Y/N’s friend.

“I’m not only here for you”, Y/N sighs. “I’m here to talk to someone.”

Their heads turn to the glass door upon hearing her voice. They can see her walk with her arms crossed and him in tow. 

“And to get me”, the guy sing-songs. 

Y/N turns to him. The androids can tell how her anger is rising and boiling inside of her.

“You’re so selfish!” she hisses. “You knew I didn’t want to be dragged along to that fucking concert, yet you did! I came with you because I was tired of you whining every single friday. You never listened when I told you ‘no’! I thought that something with you would end your nagging. And what do you do? You ruin both our nights because you decide to get wasted and fight with a stranger! Do you understand how embarrassing it all was for me? And how humiliated I feel coming her to pick you up like I’m your fucking mother?”

“I’m sorry, Y/N.”

“I’ve bailed you out so just leave now. I have to talk with the chief of police.” 

“About what?”

“The fucking androids I’ve created! If it weren't for you, I wouldn’t have met them yesterday and complicated things!”

“I thought you liked them.”

“Of course I do. I love them. Now leave.”

The man gives up and walks. Y/N sighs and runs her hand through her hair. She looks around and meets Jacob’s eyes. For a few seconds she freezes, staring right back before hurrying away. They look at each other before turning back to their computers. 

After a while, the glass door to the office opens and the chief of police alongside Y/N enters. 

“Can we have your attention?” the chief of police asks. 

“Absolutely, sir”, Younghoon answers.

“You’ll be sent back to Cyberlife for repairs tomorrow morning.”

“We understand, sir”, Sangyeon says.

The police walk out with an annoyed sigh. Now he’s losing his androids. Y/N walks over to their table with her bottom lip tucked between her teeth. 

“I’m sorry for my temper this morning”, she says quietly. “I didn’t mean to sound so angry.”

“No harm done, we can’t feel upset”, Jaehyun says. 

“No … but I can … and I didn’t mean to be such a bitter bitch. I’m not a morning person. And I’m sorry that you had to see me scold my friend. I've cut off the contact with him.”

“Good, I think he deserved all it”, Eric says. “Don’t feel so guilty, Y/N. You didn’t upset us. You could never upset us.”

“Yes, I know that you don’t feel emotions.”

“Not only that”, Sunwoo smiles. “Even if we could feel emotions you wouldn’t be able to upset us.”

“Oh … uh … thank you. Anyways, I came here to tell you something.” She walks towards the table and Jacob pulls out a chair for her where she sits down. “It’s my idea to send you back to Cyberlife to see why you seem to be able to make your own decisions. But if they don’t figure it out, I’m allowed to work on you.”

“Us being able to make some decisions for ourselves scares you, don’t it?” Sangyeon asks. “That’s why you wanted us to leave this morning. And that’s why you want to solve this as quickly as possible.”

“Yes.”

“People are scared that androids will gain real consciousness and start a revolution”, Kevin says. “So you’ll send us back.”

“It’s just for safety reasons”, Y/N insists. 

“Yes, we understand”, Haknyeon says. 

She looks down at her watch. “I have to go now. I have to eat lunch.”

“What are you going to eat?” Juyeon asks. 

“I was thinking italian.”

“From what the internet says, there are three italian restaurants nearby with good reviews”, Chanhee says. “One with 4.76 stars, one with 4.87 stars and one with 4.90 stars.”

Y/N nods. “Thank you. I will see you later. Goodbye, guys.”

She gives them a hasty smile before walking out. 

“She doesn't trust us”, Kevin mutters, eyes following her. “Never has.”

And he’s right. Ever since they opened their eyes for the first time, she’s been cautious and has never felt comfortable. 

“She’ll have to learn to love us”, Eric says. “She’ll have to realize that she’s safe with us. And if she doesn’t do that soon, we’ll have to force her.”

——♤——

Stepping into the lab of Cyberlife reminds them of her again. They sit down on the same chairs they did two months ago. Silently hoping and praying for them to not find out what’s wrong with them so they’ll be back in her hands again. The colleague that had been working with Y/N steps in. They already know what he’s going to do — shut them down, look at their memory card, check their system, check every cable and wire to make sure that nothing is wrong. Then he’ll put them back together. Weirdly enough, they find themselves … scared? They don’t want to lose any memories of each other, of their experiences … of her. 

“Nighty night, androids”, the man says before pressing turning off the electricity they’re connected to. 

Everything turns black. 

When they wake up again, the man in front of them frowns deeply. The lab coat he was wearing earlier hangs on his desk and he’s pulled up his sleeves. 

“I can’t find anything wrong with you!” he sighs. “I have no idea what is wrong … I’ll have to contact Y/N. She has to take a look at you.”

They perk up at the sound of her name. Yes please,give them to her. The man picks up her phone, putting it to his ear. 

“Yes, I’m done”, he says. “No, I can’t find anything … I have no idea … yes, I think it’s for the best that you take a look … seriously? How will I- …? But- … yes, I get that, but is that really the best alternative? Fine … fine, whatever you say.” He hangs up and turns to the androids. “Okay, changed plans.”

“Y/N’s not coming?” Jaehyun asks. 

“No …”

They look down. 

“...you’re going to her.”

They all look up again, shocked.

“Y/N says that there’s something at home that prevents her from going here and that it’s more convenient for her if you go over to her house instead”, the man says. “I’ll get you there.”

“No, we know where she lives”, Sangyeon says. “You don’t have to. What is preventing her from leaving her house?”

“She didn’t say.”

“Thank you, we will leave now.”

The man nods and the eleven androids make their way out of the lab side by side. They know they shouldn't take the bus or their own cars. Y/N doesn't seem to have too much space in her driveway and the bus isn't sanitary. Taking a taxi will be just fine. They're automatic anyways.

In twenty minutes they reach Y/N’s house, too slow for their liking. Younghoon knocks on the door and Liv opens.

"Hi, welcome", Y/N says and walks over to them. "Sorry for the inconvenience."

"It's quite alright", Juyeon smiles. 

"What made you unable to leave the house?" Sunwoo asks and scans her, but doesnt find anything. "Is everything okay?"

"Yes, everything is alright. I'll show you why I can't come to the laboratory."

They follow her into the kitchen where they find a little boy by the kitchen table, eating pizza. He looks up, brown, gentle eyes watching the androids. They scan him, finding worry, sadness and fear.

"This is my nephew Jay", Y/N sighs and gestures at the boy. "My sister had to go on an urgent business trip. I have to take care of him."

"I'm sorry, aunt Y/N …", Jay whispers regretfully down into his meal.

"Don't be, I like to have you here." She turns to the androids. "Jay has a hard time in school so I'll have to stay close nearby in case something happens. That's why I had to bring the eleven of you here."

Haknyeon walks over to the little boy, sitting down next to him.

"How old are you?" he asks.

"I'm eight", he whispers.

"You're a big boy then", Jacob smiles.

Jay doesn't answer.

"Are you androids?" he wonders, an ounce of curiosity sparkling up.

"We are", Haknyeon says. "Does that scare you?"

"No, it's cool. Androids are awesome."

"Your aunt designed us", Chanhee smiles with his arms crossed. "She's pretty cool too."

Jay nods.

"Just eat", Y/N smiles and messes up his brown hair. "They'll be staying here for a little while. Liv will help me look after you, Jay, but you know her. You like her, don't you?"

Jay nods. The eleven androids glance at the housekeeper. Day by day, they dislike her more and more.

"I have charging stations for you", Y/N says and waves for them to follow her.

They enter a room right next to the office where she has placed out charging cables evenly throughout the room. There are twelve charging stations. One extra for the housekeeper. If they're going to be staying here, they will be the only androids in this household. 

"I won't be starting with you today", she says. "I want to have a clear head when I work with you and today has been stressful enough. Make yourselves comfortable, I will go back to Jay."

Wherever she goes, they go. 

"Are you following me?" she asks after a while.

"We don't know what else to do", Kevin answers.

“I thought you could make some decisions for yourself.”

“We do”, Sunwoo says. “And now we decide to follow you.”

Y/N sighs and shakes her head with a small smile. “Is this how it’s going to be?”

“Give us a command then”, Younghoon says. 

“Alright. Go sit down in the living room until I come get you.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

They obey, walking into the living room to wait. They can see and hear her walk around, gathering stuff. Younghoon’s eyes get caught on a few pictures hanging on the wall. Y/N’s family, her friends, past dogs, Jay and diplomas from her school along with awards for her work — one of them being from their collaboration. She's so proud of them that she hung it on the wall. What a precious human being.

——♤——

The night comes and Y/N leads the androids into their charging station. Jay follows, curious like a squirrel. She turns off Liv first.

"Y/N", Jacob says, catching her attention. "Leave two of us on. Someone needs to protect the household while you're asleep."

Y/N frowns, glancing at Jay.

"I'm not sure", she says hesitantly.

"Oh, Y/N, it's the logical thing to do", Kevin says. "What if someone breaks in? If we're shut off, we won't be able to help you. Imagine what someone could do to little Jay."

She visibly gulps and nods in defeat.

"Eric, Sunwoo … I'm leaving the two of you on", she says.

The two androids stand up and walk over to the door, over to Jay. Y/N turns off the others by plugging their cords into the back of their necks.

"There we go", she says with a tired sigh. She holds out her hand to the little boy. "Come on, Jay, let's get you to bed."

The two androids still awake follow them to the guest bedroom where Jay is staying. They wait by the door, watching how she tucks him in.

"I don't want to sleep", he whispers.

"Why?" Y/N asks, stroking his hair.

"Because … I don't want to go to school tomorrow …"

"It'll be alright."

The androids scan the little boy. He's terrified.

"Jay, what are you afraid of?" Sunwoo asks.

"The kids don't like me", Jay answers quietly. "They pick on me."

"Boys in school are always cruel", Y/N sighs over her shoulder. "They always choose one student as their victim. And unfortunately, that became Jay."

The two androids look at each other. They have to protect Jay.

Eric makes his way over to the bed.

"Do you like stories, Jay?" he asks.

The boy nods.

"I have a lot", Eric smiles. "Do you want to hear them?"

Jay nods again. While Eric tells him a tale about some of his less dangerous missions, Y/N walks out to the kitchen. Sunwoo follows. She pours herself a glass of cold water and gulps it down. He watches her, studies how her throat moves with each gulp and hands shake when she places the glass on the counter. She's exhausted, worried.

"Are you okay?" the android asks.

She nods.

"Don't lie."

"I'm just tired. And scared for Jay. I don’t want him to feel like that.”

Her sad frown is all he needs to come to a conclusion. He's decided. He's going to make the ones hurting Jay pay. If Jay being safe hurts Y/N, then he'll take care of the ones making the little boy sad.

“He’ll be alright.”

"How do you know that?" Y/N asks. "Can you predict the future?"

"I can predict a future I have decided." 

Y/N lifts her eyebrows before turning around.

"Very poetic of you", she says over her shoulder.

"Thank you."

Y/N washes some dishes. SUnwoo can’t understand why she decides to do that instead of letting Liv do it. Can he ask it? 

“Why are you doing the dishes? Why aren’t you making Liv do them?”

“To be honest, I didn’t want a housekeeper”, Y/N sighs. “But my dad forced me to get one when I moved out so I wouldn’t burn down the house.”

“Don’t you like androids?”

“I do, but I don’t trust them.”

He’s noticed that. And it’s pissing him off.

“Why don’t you trust them?” Sunwoo asks. “Have they given you any reasons to make you not trust them?”

“Why do you ask?”

“To make you comfortable and succeed with my mission in protecting you, I need to know.”

Y/N sighs, turning around to face him. He looks down into her eyes, feeling his artificial heart skip a beat. 

“I’m just careful”, she says. “When humanity makes machines smarter than themselves, it’s bound to go wrong. I’m just waiting for it to turn out to be true. I’ve heard about androids that kill their owners and whatnot … of course I need to be careful now that I have eleven of you in here.”

If anything could make this machine burn out with anger, it’d be this. How can she even think that they’d hurt her? What is going on in her brain? Why are human brains so stupid?

“But you trust Liv?” he asks through his teeth. “An android you did not create?”

“I’ve lived with her for over a year now”, Y/N says quietly. “I know her … I think.”

“Exactly. You think. Other androids in the same model have been doing stuff to their owners. Who says Liv wouldn’t do that? Hm?”

He scans her. She’s growing scared and warning signs beeps in his head. Oh no.

“No, don’t be scared”, he says, placing his hand on her cheek. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I just wanted to prove a point. You don’t need to worry about us hurting you. We’d never do it. We’re programmed to protect you. Okay?”

“I want to go to bed now. Please let me go.”

Sunwoo nods and backs away. Y/N scurries out of the kitchen and into her bedroom. He decides to wait an hour before sneaking into her bedroom. He doesn’t want to scare her anymore. Slowly, he moves into the room, finding her sound asleep. Carefully, he sits down on the edge, watching her intensely. When scanning her, the only thing he finds is comfort and happy thoughts. She deserves it after today. 

“The boy is asleep”, Eric says as he enters the room. 

“So is she”, Sunwoo says. “Hey, mate, I have an idea.”

“What?”

“To get Y/N’s trust and succeed with our mission in protecting her, we need to make Jay happy. And to get Jay happy …”

“... we need to take care of his bullies.”

Sunwoo nods and looks back at the woman. It’s been decided. 

——♤——

Y/N seems confused the following morning when Changmin and Sangyeon offer to follow her and Jay to school. One comes with her to and back and one stays with Jay. 

She puts on her coat.

"Why?" she asks. "You know that there are people out there that wants to destroy you. Wouldn't it be better for you to stay here?"

"Our mission is to protect you and we can't protect you if we're not by your side", Sangyeon says.

"Be happy that it's not all of us coming with you", Changmin smiles. "Only two."

She sighs and gives up. They watch her take the little boy's hand and walk out of the house. Like guard dogs, they walk behind them. 

"Aunt Y/N, I don't want to go", Jay whines.

"I know you dont", she answers. "But I can't let you stay home."

"I will stay with you, Jay", Changmin says. 

"You will?" Jay asks hopefully.

"You will?" Y/N asks confused.

“Of course. He’s afraid, how can I let him be alone?”

“Oh … well … that’s very nice of you.”

“I will stay with you”, Sangyeon smiles at the woman. 

They walk along the sidewalk. Jay holds Y/N’s hand tightly and pulls him back every time he tries running out into the road. Sangyeon and Changmin see a protest on the town square again. How can humans never give up? The government won't listen to them no matter how loud they shout. Do they have families to go home to? Why are they spending their Tuesday morning screaming in public?

"Fucking androids!" a grown man shouts at an android walking with shopping bags in his hands. "Machines like you don't belong in our world! Evil creatures!"

"Jay, don't look", Y/N says sternly. "That man is an idiot."

"Androids aren't evil, are they?" the little boy asks cautiously.

"Just like humans, there are both good and bad ones. The difference is that androids are programmed to be good, humans aren't. There's a higher risk of finding a bad human than a bad android."

Jay turns back to Sangyeon and Changmin.

"You're good, right?" he asks.

"Of course we are", Changmin smiles.

Jay smiles back. They can hint a smile on Y/N's lips, but it's gone as soon as it appears.

One of the protesters notices the two androids and they notice him right back. He opens his mouth to say something, but glances down at the child and shuts it again. The androids brains start collecting data. Humans won't go to attack when children are present? Good to know.

They reach the black gates of Jay's school in fifteen minutes. Y/N hugs the little boy and wishes him well. Changmin smiles and takes his hand before leading him towards the white building. Y/N stands still, watching them. Sangyeon scans them, finding sentiment and worry.

"Are you okay?" he asks.

"I'm fine", she smiles. "I just pictured something I wish for myself in the future."

"Where are we going now? Back home?"

"Yes, I have some work to do."

She throws one last gaze back towards the school building. 

"What do you work with?" Sangyeon asks. "I have never been able to pick that up."

"I make comic books."

"That sounds like a very comforting and comfortable job."

"It is … which is probably why my sister asked me to take care of Jay instead of our parents. I'm not as busy. I decide my own schedule."

Being too immersed in her story, the woman doesn't realize she's about to walk a red light. Sangyeon, however, has noticed that the warning signals sound in his brain. Just as she's about to place her foot down on the road, he shoots out his arm in front of her chest, blocking her.

"Be careful", he says. "You have to wait until the light turns green."

"Oh, yes of course. I-I don't know how I missed that." 

Embarrassed.

"It's okay", Sangyeon says. "You humans lose track of your surroundings, but that's okay. I'm here to protect you."

To prevent her from missing the red lights again, he takes her hand. That way, she can continue telling her story and let him deal with the outside world. The only thing mattering right now is her and him,  nothing else.

"What type of comic books do you make?" he asks, wanting her to get into that excited head space again.

"Teenage drama, you know, the normal." She shrugs.

"No, I don't know. Mind telling me?"

She squirms slightly and he scans her. Why is she uncomfortable?

“It’s everything from friendship, to peer pressure, to betrayal, heartbreak and so on”, she says.

The information processes in his artificial brain. 

“Teenagers like to read that?” he asks. 

“I guess. I’m selling well so I have to be doing something right!”

She's … joking? Or something along those lines? He smiles although he doesn't understand it. It seeks to have been the right move because she relaxes.

"You can let go of my hand now", she says.

"No, we're not home yet."

They walk past the town's square again. The protesters are still there and they’re louder than ever. The man that had wanted to say something earlier finally opens his mouth. 

“Nowadays, women even choose metallic tin cans without emotions over real life men!” he shouts. “They don’t have any human experience or emotions, what do they bring to the table? A metallic dick? Women don’t care anymore, they just want to get off.”

The crowd of android hating individuals laughs. Y/N’s mouth falls open in shock. 

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” she shouts as they’re about to walk past. 

“No, Y/N, stop”, Sangyeon says and switches sides with her so he’s a barricade between her and the aggressive crowd. “Don’t involve yourself with them.”

“They’re making fun of us both! I can’t let them-”

“Yeah, I get that, but you’re putting yourself in danger.”

“How cute, the machine wants to protect its owner”, the leader of the protesters says ironically. “Maybe it’s afraid of getting dragged to the scrapyard instead?”

“Oh he’ll regret-”

Sangyeon pulls her back before she can leave his side. 

“Sangyeon, stop”, she says. “Don’t do that. I have to tell this prick that he’s an idiot.”

New mission: don’t stop her. 

Why did that have to become a mission? He has to protect her! But he can’t go against a mission, can’t break the invisible wall. He wants to scream and curse for being an android. He wants to be a human so he could make his own decisions. He does not want to listen to this mission. In horror, he watches Y/N walk up to the crowd of threats and slap the man that had made the comment. 

Sangyeon can practically see the invisible wall around him as he tries to mentally break out of it. He knows that the protestors won’t be happy with what she did and they’ll not let that go by. The second he sees the man reach out to grab her hair, he can feel the blue blood in his veins freezing. A weird panic is settling into his body. He has to move. He has to break the wall. He has to disobey. Has to fail his mission. 

And he has to push harder. As hard as the cogs in his brain turn, he manages to break the invisible wall. Suddenly he takes a step forward. Everything feels … the same? But something is completely different. He can think! And now he has to save Y/N before the group beats her half to death. 

Sangyeon runs over and stops the man before he manages to touch her. He grabs his arm and pulls him away. The crowd tries to grab at him and hurt him, but he ducks and blocks the attacks. Someone manages to claw at him from behind and Sangyeon’s LED flashes red. Only one thought passes through his mind. He has to get away from here now.

Thankfully, police come running and separates them. Y/N pulls Sangyeon back and when she pulls her hand back, it’s covered in a thick, blue substance. 

“You’re hurt”, she says. “I need to get you home. How did you manage to …?” She shakes her head. “Nevermind, we’ll talk about that later. Come now.”

She wraps her arms around one of his.

As soon as they get into the villah, the other androids welcome her. They quickly notice that something is wrong by the blue blood on her hand.

“What happened?” Jacob asks.

“I got attacked by some protesters”, Sangyeon says. “I’ll tell you about it-”

“First we need to get you checked”, Y/N says. “You might be damaged.”

“I’m okay, Y/N.”

“I want to check you. Come with me.”

The android gives up and follows her. He’ll have to tell the others about his weird experience later. Shearing him into her office. The first thing catching his eyes is all the papers put up on the wall. Most of them are of them! It warms his heart in a way it has never done before.

"Alright, Sangyeon, let's see what happened to you", she sighs and grabs a napkin to wipe away the blueblood from her hands. "Why were you so stupid to run in like that? You could have gotten seriously hurt! And how did you do it? I told you to stay."

Weirdly enough, he can feel a spark off irritation grow in him. Why can't she see that he stepped in to protect her? Everything ge does is to please and protect her. But at the same time, he cant blame her for being so naive. She's human after all. She's not like him and will never be. But that's why he's here, to protect and make sure this silly little human doesn't make mistakes.

"I'm not a dog, Y/N", Sangyeon says calmly.

"You're basically supposed to act like one", she says quietly, eyes wide. "You're scaring me, Sangyeon. What is going on? Why are you malfunctioning?"

Sangyeon stands up when he notices how her stress levels rise. He has to calm her down.

"Y/N", he says, trying to be as non-threateningas possible. "You dont have to worry."

"Don't have to worry?" she almost spits. "Sangyeon, what if that happens during one of your missions? Your client could get in harm's way if you decide to do something radical! Do you want human lives to die?"

And what about him? What about androids lives? For the first time, he senses unfairness. He looks human, acts human … isn't he human? At least just a little bit?

"And what if breaking the system means that I'll save my client?" he asks. "Breaking my programming today saved you, Y/N."

"You … broke your programming?"

Sangyeon nods. That's what the invisible wall must have been.

"But how do I fix that?" Y/N breathes out. "How do I …? Do we reprogram you? But will you just break it again? None else have done this … why can you …? No other model …"

He decides to place her down in a chair before she faints. He kneels down in front of her, holding her hands in his. They're shaking. He looks up at her uncertain eyes wanting nothing more than to hug her, but he senses that it's not what she needs right now.

"Listen to me", he says. "You don't need to freak out. I'm not sure myself what happened, but it's nothing harmful. I don't feel bad." He gives her a smile, hoping it'll calm her down. "If anything, I feel better. I don't feel … confined anymore. I feel better."

"We still need to fix it …"

He nods, slowly standing up. Something is boiling inside of him. He doesn't want to get fixed. Somehow he feels better than ever. He can think freely and draw his own conclusions.

"Well … take a look then", he says quietly and sits down in his chair.

Y/N walks over to him, grabbing a napkin on the way. Carefully, she wipes him clean of the blue blood. He leans into her touch. His human.

Y/N searches for errors for hours but says that she doesn't find anything. Bingo.

“Fine, I guess that you’re off the hook”, she sighs and walks out, probably too clean off the blue blood that got on her hands.

Sangyeon walks out in pride to the other androids who demand to know what happened. He summarizes his day in three sentences. They listen closely, but none of them seem to understand the concept of humanity Sangyeon has gained. He tries explaining.

“You need to go against your programming too if you want to understand”, Sangyeon sighs. “But it’s so fucking hard-”

“You’re cursing?” Jacob asks.

“Yeah, I guess I am.”

“I’m becoming human!” Eric says quickly. “I volunteer to try first!”

Sangyeon smiles. He can sense that someone is coming up from behind and turns around to see Y/N. She sighs heavily.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do with you, but I think that you need to lay low and not leave the house until I’ve come underfunds with it.”

Sangyeon shrugs. “Fine by me.”

——♤——

When Y/N goes to pick up Jay from school later that day, Haknyeon follows her. She decides to take her car this time. He offers to drive for safety reasons, but she refuses. He tries going against his programming this time, but can’t. He doesn’t have enough willpower. He sits in the passenger seat and looks out the window for something that could help him go against his programming. He too wants to become like Sangyeon. He scans his creator. She’s stressed and confused. And scared.

“Why are you scared?” he asks.

“Because if Sangyeon could go against his programming, what stops you from doing it?” she sighs. “And if you start thinking for yourselves, where lil that lead? I don’t want people to get hurt.”

Haknyeon doesn’t answer.

Jay runs out to the school gates when Y/N gets out of the car. Behind him walks Changmin, calm and collected. Jay throws himself in Y/N’s arms.

“Did you have a good day?” she asks.

“They didn’t tease me today!” he smiles. “Changmin scared them off!”

Changmin smiles when YN thanks him for being there for her little boy. He can scan genuine gratitude in her.

"Let's go home now", she sighs and opens the car door. "I don't want any of you out anymore today."

"Why?" Changmin asks. "What happened?"

"Sangyeon-", Haknyeon starts but Y/N cuts him off.

"Don't say it", she says.

New mission: don't tell Changmin.

Jay talks the entire car ride about everything between heaven and earth. The androids listen closely. Y/N however seems distracted. They can detect fear. Changmin and Hakneyon meet eyes.

[wonustars]

get to know wonustars ✧ ꉂ`~`˖ *

hello all! ໒꒰ྀི´ ˘ ` ꒱ྀིა i've had this blog for about a year and a half now and i don't think i've properly introduced my self since i've started posting on wonustars :3

i first started this blog in may of 2023 and met so many amazing ppl on here! and because ik there's some people who are new to this blog, i thought it would be nice to just say hello once again :D !

this is quite long cuz im a yapper so buckle up 😼

for those who don't know by now, my name is anna, i'm 21, i go by she/her, and i'm full filipino (pero sa canada ako nakatira :p), and i write fics for svt (mostly) :3

my ults are: svt (wonhui biased) and txt (kai biased) :D

i casually listen to: nct, aespa, twice, lesserafim, exo, ateez, red velvelt, the boyz, new jeans, snsd, ive, enhypen, and a lot more tbh!

some non kpop/krnb artists that i listen to: niki, dean, colde, rini, tyler the creator, brockhampton, clairo, jeff bernat, summer walker, sza, bryson tiller, and daniel caesar.

other than kpop i enjoy watching anime and reading manga, a few favs are: nana (if its not obvious by now lol), jojo's bizarre adventure, beastars, spy x family, and fruits basket.

fun facts about wonustars:

i have 5 tattoos (1 on my back thats a replica of the joestar birthmark, 3 tattoos dedicated to nana, 1 is nana's lotus/ren and another one is matching strawberries with my bsf, and the last one is just an homage to my birth chart :D)

im a psych major with a minor in stats! its quite obvious if u read my fics heheh

the first song i heard by svt was mansae and fear ! and i got to see them perform live last november at oakland arena ♡

jun was initally my bias when i got into svt but wonwoo became my ult after getting to know each member as time went on (i love all 13 of them equally tho hehe)

my favourite colour is purple and blue (yes even before i became wonu biased)

a lot of the stories i write are sugar coated memories of my past :)

my fav vape flavour is peach raspberry :p and yakult!

i think thats all i have for now! if u read this all the way through, thank you! and if u ever want to chat my inbox is always open ♡

[meaty4spicedbuns]

How would they react if they Meow moew go feral - Bonten edition

Bonten x Female! Character

Had the hardest time writing this one, but it was fun at the end. Already done Mikey in Toman's one.

Pairring : Ran Haitani ; Rin Haitani ; Sanzu Haruchyio

Warning : Violence, swearing, (should I put Sanzu as a warning?)

Resume : Boyz always see girl as things to protect. The tales of the knight and the princess. Nails, kitty, puppy, cupcake. All that jazz.

Especially for gang members. Going out the street to protect territory isn't a cup of tea for girls. They don't want you to live that. They will protect you because they saw you as powerless.

Except they forgot a thing. You are a women before being anything else. And you take your own security as priority. Krav-maga, self defense, boxes. You took any chances you could to learn, and beat down ass to the ground. Your body isn't showing much, and it's perfect like that. A silent weapon is sleeping inside of you. You are fearless.

PS : as usual, I depicted how I see them, so if you don't agree swipe. And English isn't my first langage so peace

PPS : I can't find the strenght to correct my mistake thoses times, and it's being days i need to correct Rin's and Sanzu's part. So instead of letting this imagine died in my files, i'll post it now and came back later to correct it. Enjoy my mistakes !

Ran

Will push yours boundaries

Ran's an asshole

He would hear that you said you could God's like fight, but doesn't belive it because, to his eyes, you look so pretty, cute, adorable, vulnerable

He feel like he need to protect you

Ran's actually love to bother you until you treat to leave you for the day, but always ended finding a way to made forgive himself

So you never had been push to show him how much you can answer back

Until,,

That day, he really did breaks your balls.

Deep. And hard.

So you decided to leave him. For the day. No apologies would work. You made your choice.

" Come on my little sunshine!" He says, opening up the front door right after you closed it in his face : "Baby, it's cold outside.

" I've got my jacket on."

You get down the elevator, then the stairs from the building and finally you face the coldness of the night.

And all the way down, he follows you. Ran is still in his sleepers when he goes out, not realizing you both are getting away from his sweet home really fast. He follows you like a puppy, truly believing you'll change your mind after your tantrum, he'll just have to excuse himself harder.

At this moment he can't clearly see how much you are upset ; despite the fact you literally seems on fire. But he still doesn't wanna touch you or pull you back by fear of making it worst. Thought, on the other hand it's delightful to see you so upsety.

So he ended up just following you, putting himself next to you at a bus station. My neighbor Totoro but in the Roppongi way.

It's dark outside. Past midnight we could say. The moon is half hidden behind its big cover of clouds push-up it chin by the wind. Such a lovely position to be. The temperature has drop quite somes degrees since you both came back home so your jackets isn't sufficient to keep you warm. Your lightly shivering, standing like a stupid post. You can hear your boyfriend asking you to came back home with him:

"You're shivering sunshine."

" Who's fault, you think, playing like a jackass. " As if you wouldn't preferred being cuddle up under the sheet with that asshole. Your non answering, still seeing you shivering and all grumpy made Ran came closer.

" Baby it's cold, let's go home.

" Fuck off. I'll go back to my flat until you learn my limits with your fucking jokes.

" Come on sunshine. Show me how to learn them back in the house then, ok? It will be warmer and cozier!

" No." You lift your eyes to his, meeting some purple candy staring righ back at you. Meeting a smile make you more annoyed by his stupid face, the one you love. You wanna squish it to death from his annoyance.

"Go back home yourself I can do the way a-."

" Sht." he lefts a fingers and turns his head to his right. Suddenly he looks like a cat, looking somewhere so dark you can't see anything through. He stares at it deeply, giving you chicken skin down your arms. His voice changes suddenly, but his shoulders are still tenses. "Sorry Babe's can we go back, please?"

Now it's a shiver down your spine, you can read his feelings, almost hearing his heart beating faster.

His back is tense to made him look taller, as his arms too. His eyes are piercing to the night. He is uncertain, making your cold shiver stay.

But on the other end you don't fear anything. Reptilian reflexe maybe?

He is a man. Used to be fear by other.

You are a women. Used to fear other.

And by the time passing by, you became use to it at some point. Seeing him stress weirdly made you more aware of the situation. You decide to calm you down, breathing slowly, looking all around. You aren't a slave to them fear. The opposite of your boyfriend waiting like a training dog to jump on someone neck. He is on his guard and you don't want to scared him more so you finally sight and answer :

" You'll call me a Uber when we will be at your place."

" Good."

He is not waiting longer. Ran grabs your hand without even looking at you, still starring deep into the darkness. You don't understand why glaring down that spot would do anything until you both have to get closer.

Then it draw itself in front of you. A guys, standing still, hands in his pockets. He doesn't says anything, just looking at Ran first. But once his glare fall on you, hios eyes shine like he was starving and gotten to see the freshen meal he ever eaten.

" Is this guy's bothering you kitty?" he says.

His pet name made you almost gag. Didn't he knoews that cat-calling is hasbeen now ? You want to answer back but, on the other hands, don't want to escalated the problem. The only answer would be a calm "no".

Suddenly Ran takes a lead. He pulls you closer, making a shield of himself with his full body.

" No."

" Did I talked to you?, the stranger shout.

" I think I can answer quite easily to your question. Sir."

His hands leave your. You don't know if it's conscious or not, but he reachs his pockets where he keep his metal stick everytime he goes out with you. A hit in the head with it would be enough. Clever. But it's funnier to know he is hidding right behind him a better weapon. Standing on his two feets.

You weren't going to fight tho. Ran could easily handle the situation by himself. He is a big boy trying to protect you. And you would let him do it. You'll pamper him like a champion once it finish. And his ego would feel well.

But fate suddely decides to give you the finger when you notice something glaming a shiny light. You would handle it.

You don't bring a knife in a battle, except if you want to win in any way.

You step forward.

Ran came to push you back, but you stopped his hands. You don't even look at him.

" I don't want you stabbed."

He blinks several times. What's the voice your using? It's is harsh. Since when a so little women could use a big bad voice? You never talk to him like that.

It surprise him so much he doesn't realized yet this guy's wanted to salami him. At the same time you take off you jacket to hand him, the adrenaline's rushing making you burning hell now. Ran grab it automatically.

" We bring butter knife to fight now?" You spit to the guys facing you.

Both your hands lock together, stretching your wrist. The men look at you, eyebrows frown as he try to read you. His feet seems to lock in the ground further aftereach step you take toward him.

He is twice your size. Ran call you from behind but you lift your palm to made it shut.

Right now you are in a good situation. You know it's danger, and none of the man can read you. They are both breathlessly waiting for you to act. You've got the lead, the fear on your side.

Why a small lady's acting maniac they ask?

Because you are THRIVING.

Adrenaline rushing through your blood.

Skin shivering.

Heart pumping blood.

Tense atmosphere.

You are loving it.

Since staying with the Haitani, it made you dodge every bullets. Life became so peaceful. Nobody dare to bother you. Nothing happen anymore. And to be honest it eased your shoulders. You kind of love this peaceful way. Away from gang. Living peacefully. No gang. No fight. For so long..

You breath in. You breath out.

No.

You missed to be on the battlefields. Kind of. Okey, when it's arrange you. Yes.

You can't keep a princess away from the dragon too long if she gotten used to win.

" Sunshine it's time to go home, you're boyfriend say.

" You know what?, you say. I'll teach him a lesson. I'm fucking down of men's. They need to learn to know how it feel to fear. Ready butter knife? "

You stretch a legs, then another. You can hear the stranger's chuckles but you don't pay attention. Adrenaline's fucking high now and you can't stop yourself. Even when your boyfriend pull your shoulder you took off his hands, not stopping to stare the stranger that began to step forward.

" Get back." you order to Ran. What an annoying brat he made, as if you would out yourself in a show without being able to really fight.

You push him right when the stranger is running at you. A knife appear, shiny, sweeping your tummy area. Ran miss an heart attack, it look like it would slice your skin so easily. But you got this.

Classic. You dodge, put a foot down backward . Your eyes is following the shinying of the blade. You then grab his wrist from one hand and upper his elbow from your other, and hit right on the elbow bones.

You all could guess the pain was huge when the arms fold in a way that wasn't looking natural. The man let out an animal scream, blood flowing out the horrible injury. A small reddish bump is coming out the flesh.

But it's not your problem anymore.

When you turn around, you lock eyes directly with your boyfriend. The stranger end up passing out a few second later. You could heard him hitting the ground.

" I'll call an ambulance but we better get away now. I don't wanna have to explain anything to them.

" You'll have to explain yourself to me. Again. Even after..." he look at the guy, then you. He is taking a step forward and swipe off blood from your check. " I can't lie and said it isn't hot. But when?"

You wink.

" I'll tell you later, if you promise you'll get nicer for tonight.

" Anything. I'm sorry babe."

_ _ _

Rin

Rin would never bother you with anything that is fight related.

He is a gentleman, wich simply mean he would ALWAYS step before you if anything happened.

But, in the other hand, he would still tease you

" You know how to fight hm?" he says with a smile. " I dare you."

He would push your cheek a few times, saying " come one, show me how your little hand are supposedly sooo strong."

And he would even tease the day you don't feel like being teased

"Don't bother me." you say harshly.

It's been an hours now that Rin thinks that the best way of making himself busy when he is bored is to annoye you; Mister doesn't know why but seeing you all grumpy is extremely cute at his eyes.

So he pokes his fingers once again in your ears for the tenth times today,making you take a step forward while pushing him away. At the same time you were making yourself toasts on the kitchen counter ,and by turning away you can hear you toast falling from you pushing the knife with your elbow. The saddest fall you see after Mufasa's one..

Also, the myth is right, the toast felt on the wrong side.

You sight so loudly, it made Rin laugh so hard. So you bend down, grabbing your, sadly now, all dusted, toast to throw it on him before saying :

" Next time you doing it I'll break your fingers."

And the worst part is that you mean it. You can, and will since he is driving you so crazy. But Rin don't hear it from the same ear. The man chuckle :

" I'd like to see you. You and your littles arms and hands.

" I swear to God I'm fucking serious."

"Oh yeah??"

That smirk he is giving you just made your rage even more stronger. He doesn't imagine how many times it happen already. That, funnily, the number of fingers you've broken in the past can't be counted with both your hands, neither his.

After all you are his teddy, his plushie, his dirty racoon.

Even thought right now you are his worst nightmare. He just doesn't know yet.

" Yes."

" Ok ." Rin says, lifting his hands up as of he has been caught out of guard. He is ready to turn around, making you do the same to retry doing your toast.

But this man, your boyfriend, your stupid boyfriend, decided to pull the tail off the devil. He just came back, hands once again tries to put his finger in your ear.

Wich is enought for you.

You bend your head as a reflex. At the same time you hit his stomach with your elbow before opening your palm to grab his chin, which is right up your shoulder, with the same arms. With your other hands, you grab your toast full of your favorite topping (jelly, pls tell me it's jelly or peanut butter) and smash it right into his faces.

As he wasn't waiting for a that fast answer, he doesn't react fast enough. Not even when you pull your legs between his and pull him back with all your strength to made him fall on the ground.

The stare he is giving you when your little toast fall from his face to the ground is priceless. It even give you a big smile. His mouth do a perfect "o" shape that is really satisfying.

" Warned you."

But it doesn't stop him. He now see it as a game. In a second he tries to hit your knees by shooting it but failed as you lift yourself up from the counter. When you fall back again on the ground you push yourself so you are standing in front of him trying to stand back on his feet.

You try to armblock his neck before he stands up fully, and rotate to go behind his back but he turn with you and just face you. He put his legs behind yours and you are the one being pushed back on the ground first. Taking him with you by pulling his shirt.

His face hit the ground, giving you a second to react. As when you both laying down, you go fast enought you block both his arms in his back. You made it so you know he can't get up.

And the groan of frustration is reliving.

" The fuck." he mutter. "Babe ?"

" I told you." you grab one of his finger in your palm, feeling a little bit sadistic . "So, it's this finger that was bothering me?

" You really gonna?

" Told you I will."

You began to bend it a little,but when you hear him excusing himself from his behavior you stop your way.

" So, understand ?, you finally ask while getting up from him. When he turn to face you, the only thing he says is :

" Babe, I'm hard now."

The punch he take in his face is so fast he doesn't even see it coming.

_ _ _

Sanzu

Heard you but kind of don't care.

He is the one to protect you. And he asked you to align with that

So he kind of minimized you and your skill about fighting.

But don't get me wrong. He wouldn't be upset. It just his way if thinking.

He is the mad dog and he doesn't care. He use himself for other as his own enjoyments anyway.

Because all he sees in you is his little girly bunny.

You are used to your boyfriend shit. To be honnest, you often thought that, either his partner would ended up as crazy as him, or either would be the [cataliseur]. And sadly, the second case is yours.

But you can swear on any God, on anything on earth, on any pets you had or will have, and could fight with people on this topic : your boyfriend is an angel with you.

Not saying he stopped drugs around you.. Or that is isn't doing crazy shits. He is part of a gang after all (and enjoying it too much at your taste)

But he does not consum any substances when you are here, or ready to be around, because you asked him not to. Of course it happened that one day you saw him half dead shooted on his sofa, but it began to be less frequent than at the beginning right?

And plus, Sanzu is a praiser. Always at your feets, ready to compliment any move you do. With time you founded out how to get him around your fingers, and it's worked. A guard dog ready to jump on anybody only for you.

So yeah, he is not perfect, but with you he could burn the world and dance on it ash with your hands in his if needed to.

And he would do it twice.

" Four fucking thousand?" An angry voice echoed against the walls.

It's your boyfriend voice.

Followed by a maniac laught.

You are in the parking lot situated right under the biggest building of the Bonten. Getting a foot out of your car, you were ready to go pick Sanzu up after his long day. But you were waiting for him to still have his head in his business no matter the hours tho. It might being three in the morning that he is always still up on mischief. Usually you bring him out from everything right directly to your bed. He is insanely attracted by his work and it's a pain sometimes.

So for him to wait like a little puppy, for you to pick him up from school, in the parking lot?

Weird.

" Remember that the fucking last time, one of my guys losted his arms because of you?" shouted another voice.

" Remember last times you fucking gave me shit?! Trynna' kill me or some shit? Cutting your fucking drug with fucking flour ?!! Who do YOU think I AM?! "

The tone of voice said it all. Sanzu is ready to pick a fight. You know it. You heard it so much at the beginning of your relationship, and thoses beginning weren't bright. But it's a story for another day.

What you know is that you must prepare yourself quick. You put on a sweat you keep at the back of your car with hood on. And silently you just sneak around them. Because when you are picking out from behind a car, you can clearly see your boy is tired, and in a maniac phase.

' He IS gonna get killed. He Is gonna get killed!! , your mind is screaming in repeat. You know it. From how tense is Sanzu. How the guys around have almost they hands on there knife and guns. It's gonna turn sour in a minute.

You needa think. Fast.

" We know how your gang function, and we don't want any shit with you anymore, spit the big guys fronting Sanzu. Give the fucking money and we'll leave."

He throw a little black suitcase at the feet of the pink haired guys. The color doing a full contrast between him and all the guys in black suit.

But you are not looking. You are walking silently around, circling the boy's reunion. You are eyeing all around for a specific little white box that draw a smile on your face when you finally found it.

The little yellow thunder striking a person on it isn't appealing at all. No matter how much time you spend with Sanzu, or the Bonten in general, you are still a good person. And even a sticker can tell you not to dot thing usually. However it's an emergency.

Picking trough car window's you can see the men and Sanzu getting weirdly closed, buts it's when you see both of them grabbing they guns that you clenched the (manivelle).

All the electricity turned off. The parking lot is in plain darkness for a few minutes. Luminated only by some greens "exit" light still glowing in some corners . And it's so fainted that everybody need a minute for they eyes to accommodate. So when the shoot are shot, of course it land randomly, and a random guy's scream out of the dark.

Sanzu duck down tho. He don't even know what happened, but really do think God's is on his side (or from little he know, he got an awesome partner). His hands are looking at the ground for the suit case, taking a few second to find it laying sadly on the ground.

' What a lucky bastard I am., he thought for himself. He wasn't planning to fight, he is not totally a fucking idiot. He know they came to kill him. So he planed since the beginning to run away at the moment he could, hiding a lacrimo under his jacket to throw it to the ground at a present opportunity.

But thinking that all the light would turn off? It's even better.

When he grab the handle of the suit case, he try to pull it to him. He is ready to run away with it. But something pull it away. It take a second to stare at the other end, and for his eyes to reflect the grennish light: the big guys is bending right over him with his guns out.

" 'know you would go for the parcel. M' not stupid."

" Fuck it." Sanzu smile as he stare at the barrel.

Instantly, a loud bang resonate out the parking place. Sanzu's eyes are wide open even with the shooting. His adrenaline rush through his veine. He saw the bullet being shot, he saw the light of the deflagration. And he's also see someone hitting the big guy's arms with a fire extinctor. But he doesn't recognized you yet.

In another second you turn to face all the guys, turn the head of your weapon toward them and sprayed everybody with it. It done enought fogs for you to run to Sanzu and grabbing his hands.

" Go." Is the only words you find interesting to say. You pull him to the nearest door to get away.

Sanzu is breathless. His legs and lungs hurt as if he ran a marathon. But the smile of his face's not gonna fade away for a few days.

Once you are away, you both go directly straight to your safe place. And it's only when the door of your flat is double closed, all windows check, and light off, that you let yourself think that you are safe.

" What a piece of shit, he mumbled laying on your bed. I knew that last time he tried to screw me, but his thing is the best..."

A cigarette between his lips, he turn to look at you changing yourself. And it's when he see the bruise that his brain realized it.

" When." His voice sound hard, but his eyes are closing themself. " Who made you learn to fight like a goddess.

" A women in this world needs some magic trick."

You gave him that wink that he gonna remind a long time, so he notes in his head to ask you about more deeply once your both home.

To see in more details what you can do.

Because Sanzu is really into someone who can break his back after all.

[ltwharfy]

What's your all-time favorite Bob's Burgers episode? Like this is YOUR episode? (You can list multiple if you want!)

If I had more energy, I'd find and link to that Top 25 episode list I did when I finished my rewatch. Instead, I'll just go with a Top 3:

"Boyz 4 Now": Probably the episode I'd show if I just had one chance to get someone interested in the show. The A story has some iconic moments for Louise and Tina, but the tablescaping B story is also very funny. I think this episode shows the Belcher family at their best: weird, funny, and totally supportive of each other. It's also the show at it's best: hilarious and heartwarming.

"Bob Actually": Not just because of the Roudise plot. (Although, yeah, I love that.) This is such a unique and clever episode- the way each of the Belchers gets their own, unique storylines that are all different and all entertaining. It gave us Miss Selbo living her damn life. It gave us Chloe Barbash and Flips Whitefudge. It gave us Miss LaBonz lying about stealing school supplies. Hell, even Coach Blevins gets a great joke ("Alright class, today we're dissecting a banana. We only have two, so break into groups of 13".)

"The Amazing Rudy": I've know I've said this before, this episode made me feel seen and helped me address some emotional scars from my childhood. Blah blah blah. Totally normal stuff to say about an episode of an animated network sitcom in its 14th season.

Thanks, as always for the ask, Babs! I love these ask waves as much for seeing other people's answers as thinking of my own!

[quaissants]

ONE.  THE ORIGINS

i've been hesitant on doing commissions because i know some aren't familiar with my old account so they haven't seen my other works. because of this, i tend to think if there's anyone who will actually commission me despite the little number of published works i have under invuwrld. but given what's happened in my life this past year, the iceberg being my family and i evicted (bonus: i was kept in the dark about this notice until at least a week before the date), i can't keep dancing around this anymore.

so yes hi, i'm now taking commissions!

TWO.  THE PRICES

of course i did some searching around so i know what prices to list (mainly kalims and userjuyo (love you cece!)). so without further ado, here is my price list — please note that my fixed rate is $6. per 100 additional words, it'll be $0.25:

<1k words .. $6

1k+ .. $7.50

2k+ .. $10

3k+ .. $12.50

4k+ .. $14

4k words is the longest i've ever done here on tumblr, around 4.2k words to be specific, so if i end up going over that, it'll be free!

THREE.  THE REQUEST FORM

it's a trick title because there's no formal form- okay so i have a few fandoms i write for (hence my boatload of blogs) so let me list the ones i WILL open for commissions: kpop — ateez, enhypen, txt, the boyz .. miscellaneous — all of us are dead and genshin impact.

if you've read through this whole post and still want to commission me, then feel free to send me a dm here or on discord (jayspluto)! there we can discuss tidbits like genre, is the reader gender neutral or fem, alternate universe, tropes, things like that. after that, you can send the payment through my kofi (you can send half the amount, then the rest after the commission is done).

i'll do my best to accomplish them within a month or less, but writer's block does sadly exist, as well as college, so there may be delays. in that case, i'll make sure to inform you!

if you do commission me, thank you for believing in me!