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cornbread-but-minecraft · 7 months ago

Text

Cornbread's Texture Fixer Devlog v0.5.0 - Beta 2 May 12th, 2024

woopsies. it's been over half a year since i last touched this pack! didn't mean for that to happen. anyway, let's go over some of the changes i made in the last few weeks, mostly in the order i made them.

first things first, i fixed the UV mapping of the regular torch. i already did soul and redstone torches in beta 1, but neglected to do regular torches since they were mostly fine. sometime after that, regular torches decided to not be mostly fine, so i had to fix them.

you might notice i'm not including an image for this, because torches have decided to be mostly fine again. the fix i implemented is still more accurate, and i don't doubt the issue won't try to crop up again, so i'm keeping my fix regardless.

to clarify, bedrock edition doesn't currently allow for custom geometry on vanilla blocks. the way i've been fixing the UV mapping is simply by upscaling the texture. why this works or why this issue even happens to begin with, i can't tell you for certain, but if i had to guess, it probably has something to do with the way the game calculates the size of a texel, since the resolution of block textures can vary. a similar issue occurs on legacy console edition.

actually, you know what, i lied. i will include an image. wall torches are noticeably less accurate than floor torches, so hopefully, this shouldn't just look like the same thing twice.

vanilla on left, resource pack on right.

i lightened the outline for the icon on the new inbox button on the title screen to be consistent with the buttons around it.

now you might be looking at those images and/or listening to the alt text and being all "wait aren't those outlines the same color already? why'd you change them?" i changed them because the bottle icon for the achievements button also needs to be consistent with the icon for the feedback button. here they are on the pause screen.

i chose to lighten the outlines of the achievements and inbox icons instead of darkening the outline of the feedback icon for two reasons:

i already had the lightened achievements icon for previous versions of the pack.

it keeps the overall level of contrast of these screens consistent. the text on these screens is a pretty light gray all things considered and to just have the icons be so much darker would've really messed with things.

i am aware that this kinda makes the darker parts of the inbox icon not really contrast very well against the outline, even being darker than it in some spots. i'm not entirely sure how i want to go about dealing with this, but it's not a super huge deal in-game.

also, i made sure the achievements icon is scaled correctly. i did this via json and not texture, even though i'm already messing with the texture, for compatibility reasons since i know a lot of people, myself included, like to keep their textures' resolutions at a multiple of the vanilla ones. this does mean that the icon is no longer aligned to the pixel grid, but that's not noticeable or a very unique problem in this game anyway.

i fixed the top- and bottom-left corners of the background for the description of a marketplace item, since i missed that when doing the other 'dialogue' backgrounds.

also the background of the readmore button, also for a marketplace item.

mojang recently broke the toolbar on the stonecutter screen. guess someone told them the help button didn't do anything and instead of fixing it they just removed it without thinking about how that would affect things. here's how i've changed it while using a mouse or touch controls:

and here's how i've changed it while using a controller:

i removed the entity folder from the pack, since mojang removed the feature that made it necessary to begin with. i added some notes to an earlier part of the changelog that weren't there before to fix some implied misinformation that i didn't realize at the time was false.

the craftable toggle (the search bar if in creative mode) is no longer a pixel too far to the right. this is actually a side effect of something i did last year, but mojang broke vanilla more since then, so i'm putting it on the changelog separately.

tweaked the nineslice information on UI texture "background_with_border" to be less buggy. i'm pretty sure this texture goes unused in this pack, but i could always be wrong.

reverted the top half of the trade screen to how it is in vanilla. that is, the items in the trade slots are no longer pixel-size-consistent with other items like in previous versions of the pack and the help button is again on the main panel instead of the toolbar. decided the design of this screen was just too much for this pack and that i'd rather mess with it in conglomeration, which i'm thinking of changing the name of to "synthesis".

not quite sure how to show these off so... quickfire round, go!

the X and Y Gamepad Helpers on the trade screen now disappear and reappear properly depending on the part of the screen being hovered over, like they do in vanilla. them not doing this was an oversight on my part as i play with Hide Controller Hints enabled.

rewrote the json responsible for messing with the texture for the scrolling panel on the trade screen. this was done to accommodate the removal of the json it was parented off.

removed the texture for the glyph for the creator tab in the settings screen since vanilla fixed its issue.

removed a misplaced pixel on the critical hit particle.

fixed a miscolored pixel on the firework trail particle.

maps are no longer pixel-size-consistent since i've decided redrawing textures to that extent doesn't fit the spirit of the pack.

the players list in the pause screen is no longer cut off by a pixel when the player permissions buttons aren't visible.

updated the metal bits on the sides of the piston head with the ones from the 1.10 texture update. the rest of the texture intentionally remains programmer art. not quite sure if i want to keep this one.

quickfire round... 2!!

large cocoa pods no longer have visible seams.

chiseled nether bricks now line up with regular nether bricks correctly. (this wasn't an issue in vanilla but rather with the pack.)

removed the json that made the hotbar render at full opacity since vanilla fixed its issue.

the opacity of the hotbar start and end caps is no longer a global variable. as such, the variable has been removed.

removed global variable "$cb_is_not_conglomeration".

the experience bar now uses custom textures at directory "textures/cb_custom_ui/hud/" instead of "textures/gui/icons.png", due to limitations with the game's texture sheet system. it should no longer break when using certain higher-resolution texture packs.

replaced all bed item textures with the ones from legacy console edition, since they're (mostly) closer in color to beds placed in the world. for technical reasons, these were taken from the wiki. i might revert some of these to their bedrock textures, but i don't know yet.

(had to start merging images here for image limit reasons.)

the icon for the general tab in the settings screen is now the correct size and no longer shrunken weirdly.

the icon on the "how to play" tab in the settings screen is now black when the tab isn't hovered over.

and it is also now white when it is hovered over.

the outlines on the heads on the friends tab on the select world screen are now at a level of contrast that is consistent with the icons of the tabs around them.

vanilla on top, resource pack on bottom.

tweaked the nineslice information for the banner / "label box" for the "acheivements cannot be earned in this world" message to be less buggy.

the chevrons on the buttons in the dressing room now properly turn white when the buttons are hovered over or pressed.

the chevrons on the buttons for cycling between items in the marketplace are now the correct color.

last quickfire round for today:

the java edition texture variants for stone, bedrock, deepslate, and related blocks have been moved over to conglomeration (a different resource pack). as such, the textures for these have been removed.

removed an unused dirt path texture that i missed before.

observers now look the same while carried as they do placed in the world since i couldn't manage to fix them.

concrete powder no longer randomly rotates its texture depending on its placement in the world. it has been reverted to how it is in vanilla.

the different sides of netherrack and the netherrack part of nylium are no longer all at the same orientation on the same block. netherrack has been made more similar (though not identical) to vanilla in this way.

lit deepslate redstone ore now has the same top and bottom texture as unlit deepslate redstone ore. (this was an oversight in the pack.)

removed some unused json from the manifest file.

changed pack UUIDs. (this was mostly for testing and not really very important.)

and that should be it, both for this post and for beta 2 as a whole. we're coming dangerously close up to the full release of this pack, so if there are any visual issues you've noticed and i haven't, please let me know about them, otherwise, i may not ever notice.

i've added a to-do list to the files of the pack to keep track of what i have yet to do. it currently looks like this:

i'm definitely forgetting a few things on here, though. we're getting to the point where i can't just look at the game and remember everything i still need to fix because there are so few notable issues left.

also, i changed the pack icon to be consistent with the new Music Fixer icon.

#minecraft #minecraft bedrock #minecraft resource pack #cornbread's texture fixer #cornbread does a devlog

2 notes · View notes

madphantom · 9 months ago

Note

Hello! I sent an anon a looong time ago asking if it would be okay to send some of the notes I took when reading Sarah. Sorry that it took so long!

At first I was trying to figure out how to format it and send them to you. I remembered reading "night flowers shirking from the light of the sun" on the google docs pdf thing, and it had the notes on the side. I thought that would be easy to read so I was trying to figure out how to convert my botes to that.

Then, I accidetally deleted ReadEra, which I used to read your book and was where my notes were. I panicked and redownloaded it, but my data was gone.

Then! While looking through my files! I realised that it made routine backups of its data, including backups that should be after I made all my notes! Hooray!

So I've been able to compile all my notes now. I've decided to forgo making a google doc esque file and just compile the text and send it to you in an ask.

The asterisks in the text was what I actually highlighted, the rest of the paragraph(s) is just for context. I read the snippets you gave before you released the book, so that’s why I referance some things that haven't happened yet (although, I did come back to past parts of the book after I read later parts of it to add more notes, I'm pretty sure).

Initially these notes were just meant for me, so I get a bit personal in some of them (and some pf them are worded a bit weirdly. I did make minor edits to some of them to make them more legible). So sometimes what I say doesn't really align with character motivations. Sometimes I am also just plain wrong about character motivations as well asdfwj.

Also I cut out some of the notes, and the spacing might be weird since tumblr made this into a single text block when I pasted it into an ask, so I had to manually add all of the paragraph breaks.

With all that said, here's the notes!

*****

"...the home of Desmond and Suzanne C. Bell, where the *childless* couple lived together from 1930 until Suzanne's peaceful death..."

If this were a real thing I'd be like "Why did you even bring up/emphasise that they were childless? Weird ass thing to do." But since this is a work of fiction.

I believe Suzanne was the one who had a secret? If I am remembering that correctly from the character intros with the picrews. I wonder if she's also trans? Although, a couple unable to conceive together could still have children. So I suppose that doesn't support a trans argument.

Like, they could adopt or have a surrogate. Many ways for a trans-Suzanne-cis-Desmond to have children.

*****

"We had briefly stopped for a chat while you were chasing your hat, and she had given her name as Suzanne and his as *Mr. Frank Carlyle*."

Ah! She took her dead lover's name! Also, given "the Carlyle boy came back", that implies that she also took his last name.

(Future me: ?? I do not know what I meant here. They already stated her name as Mr. Frank *Carlyle* in this line...

Edit: Oh wait I get it now. At the time, I didn't know Sarah was pretending to be Frankie, nor did I know Frankie's last name. So I thought that when she detransitioned, she took on a derivative of Frankie's name instead of going back to her deadname to remember him.

I also knew that in that snippet that person was talking about how Frankie dying was strange, since "the Carlyle boy came back", which meant that Carlyle was his last name.

So I thought Sarah took on the name Frank to remember Frankie, and took Carlyle like in a married way. I didn't know she took his name wholesale because she was impersonating him.)

*****

"*I shook my head. "By God, no. This beautiful creature deserves to live in freedom. Can you imagine something so unique and so mesmerizing surviving against all odds just to be kept in some cage as something to be poked and prodded at? It'd be a downright crime."*"

Ah, after reading the part where they got the croc, I see the parallels to queerness.

*****

"The deer stood motionlessly in the garden...[]

"... *I need to see it from up close*," I whispered. "Otherwise I will never believe myself.""

Me moment. Wish I could go outside to look at a wondrous deer. Or a strange, wondrous sight in general. Like when that car burst into flame in front of our house during the night, and we all gathered around to watch.

*****

"*Four silver eyes glistened at me in the shadows. The deer watched as I placed one foot in front of the other. It took a hesitant step towards me, then another. I saw the muscles moving underneath the snow white fur. Then, suddenly, it took a giant leap and disappeared in the fog.*"

I wonder what the God thought of him. I think it's a good person. I wonder if it had goodwill towards him because of how he said it would be awful to kill it.

*****

"Clouds sail past on the *lake's mirror-like surface*"

Wow what a pretty lake!

*****

""*We have to start somewhere*," I replied. "If I know how he fell, I know how he landed, but more crucially, I know what he would want to stay alive for."

Ah, I kinda expected it to be a twist, where Ignatius only sent them out so that they would not have to be there.

*****

*"Sa…" - he took a deep gasping breath - "Sa….rah!"*

I appreciate how she restarted. Reminds me pf myself. I would've been worried that the pause would have been long enough that my words sounded like two syllables, rather than two halves of one word. So, I appreciated how she started, just to make her words clearer.

Also, I wonder why she said this. I might've said this too. I want to correct you about my name. I always do, but especially now. I'm about to die. It's all about me now. Don’t I get to have this one thing? I want you to know what my name is, at least.

But I will not tell you it is mine. I will give you no context. I so desperately want to tell you it is mine, but I can’t. Doing so would decrease my chances of survival by way of decreasing my chances of receiving good medical care, and it would decrease my chances of being tolerated well in my potentially final moments.

I can't have that. Surviving is more important. But I at least want you to know my name, and that you're wrong about me. I can be satisfied with that. It's okay because I have at least that. "Sarah."

*****

"He had run there through the deep green forest, *trying to hide from his mother after breaking a pot at home*."

The real villain here is the mother (or parents). This wouldn't have happened if she did not react so poorly to similar things that the child is scared enough after breaking a pot to leave the house.

*****

"...the God rose once more, towards the surface, towards the light, to find who the culprit that had woken *it* was."

Hrrg,,, I love it/its gods,,,,

*****

"...*mesmerized by what he saw. And he stepped out into the waves, and followed the sweet sounds of the flute into the cool blue. And he thought of nothing but those slender fingers, and the rose-coloured eyes that seemed to contain the moon and stars on summer mornings.*"

Dunno if I want to interpret this in an aro or gay way. If a gay way, it's potentially really funny. Worst crush ever. Immediately drowned in a lake because of it.

(One sided, ofc. Tragic! You were accidentally so ethereal and mesmerising that the boy you wanted to interact with got a crush on you that Immediately killed him. Sad!)

*****

"...it remembered in horror how once upon a time it had been chased into the lake by the townsfolk, *who could not understand it, and it could not understand them.*"

Damn epic autism moment,,,, everyone knows that epic autism moment when you are so thorourghly misunderstood by others, and how despite how much you struggle to, you cannot seem to understand them either,,,,

They shouldn't have been such an ass to the God.

*****

"*And so the God left the child on the shore among the wildflowers, and it returned to its eternal sleep, to forget what it had done and forget once more about the world and its cruelty. But they say to this day, on moonlit nights, if you toss a pebble into the lake and find yourself followed home by a white animal, it is the God taking pleasure in seeing you.*"

Ah! Comment on this later!

Edit: It is later an I. Still cannot seem to find the words to convey what thoughts and memories this sparks in me. Oh well!

At least I know. Hope I don't forget though. At least I can say that this passage is significant to me!

*****

""It is a sad story, isn't it?" Sarah tilted her head. "After all, the God was not evil, was it?

It was simply there. It could not know that the boy would die for trying to understand it."

"*Perhaps. Or perhaps* it knew, deep down. Perhaps it thought another ghost might save it from haunting itself.""

Damn, he really wants to play devil's advocate, huh?

*****

"...[The Storyteller's] split lips drawn back in what was a smile that reminded me of a *snarling fox*."

Ah, I get it now! They *are* a fox! This is just like in dbttlor where a character is compared with a nonstandard but still familiar animal and it's like, wow! What a novel and therefore interesting and apt comparison! And then it turns out it wasn't just a random animal for sake of novelty, but it turns out they actually *are* that animal!

*****

""Do me a favour. Don't tell Suzanne until it has happened. She is such a good girl, I'd hate to see her worry in my last moments."

I chewed my lip. Then I lowered my head. "*I promise.*""

DAMN. What a difficult position to be in. She deserves to know but why should Sarah (I think) make herself uncomfortable to be better for Suzanne? She's dying. It's all about her.

*****

""Where are you traveling to?"

"Oh, well…" The Storyteller chuckled. "Nowhere, really. I just wanted to get around a bit. Not stay in one place for too long."

"But isn't that dangerous?", Sarah inquired.

"Dangerous?" They raised their eyebrows. "*Why…ohh, right.*"

*Monkey King voice* "Ohhh right. Mortality."

*****

"*But there was no ghost. There never had been. There had only been love and what it had left behind.*"

YO. COOL ASS LINE. I like how it wasn't supernatural, and instead was just grief. More relatable.

Also reminds me of the "Wasn't actually supernatural but still equally or even more horrifying" trope, which I love.

Like the story of those kids camping around a river who hear the story of a ghost who'll drown you, and at night they hear someone stepping around their campsite, so they get scared. Then cops show up the next day saying someone was killed at another campsite nearby. So they're like "0_0 ...Were they ...*drowned*?".

And the cops are like "No they were shot." So they're like "Oh.", then "OH. A MURDERER WAS AT OUR CAMPSITE LAST NIGHT."

The scares feel more grounded that way, which is cool (not that I don't like supernatural scares as well, 'cus I definitely do).

*****

""How come they left the house with all their belongings still in it? I have often asked myself that." I kicked a pebble out of the way.

The Storyteller sighed. "*Their only son drowned in the lake.*"

I wonder if this is the boy from that Gramma's story.

*****

"I thought of the child that had drowned in these peaceful green waves. *Suddenly I no longer felt like going for a swim.*"

Lol number one "guy who is going to drown" thing to say. Also, that body was recovered. I'd be more disturbed by the two corpses that stayed down there.

*****

""Was that a heron?", they inquired.

"Yes, a white one," I replied. "It flew across the lake. Looked quite majestic."

The Storyteller stopped dead in their tracks. "*We should go back.*""

Damn does the god just kill random people? It didn't strike me as a bad person.

*****

"I tilted my head in confusion. "Why?"

*"Trust me." They chewed their lip. "It will rain soon."

When I looked up, the sky that had just been stark blue had turned ash grey.*"

HUH. WAIT. What is the extent of their power? After reading the book, they kinda seem like a normal guy but with immortality, the ability to turn into a fox, see out of their rings, and with knowledge about the God.

Like, they were clearly just saying this so they didn't have to say "Yeah that white heron was a god and I want you to stay away from it in case it kills you."

But it *did* rain. Can they predict the weather as well?? (Maybe that's not even a power. They've just been around so long they can tell what the weather will be.)

*****

"Lightning made the *black lake* glint ominously in the distance"

Urgh,, I love lakes <3

*****

"Gramma Margaret smiled with *stained teeth*"

OUGH. I love stained teeth! It's always so cool! Every character ever should have stained/yellowed teeth.

*****

"Her teeth glinted in the flickering red light like *wet metal*."

Ooh, cool.

*****

"*I woke up, suddenly. It was as if a heavy fog had been lifted from my mind.

It was cold. My neck hurt. My eyes were burning.*"

Damn. Moment when you exit hyperfocus and are suddenly hit with all the status conditions.

*****

"*The Storyteller put a hand on their mouth and I felt strangely watched*"

Ah, because the ring on their hand, which they can see out of, would be facing towards him.

*****

"*Sarah was lying at the bottom of the stairs, her hair a mess, sobbing.*"

Ooh! Just like at the beginning! Maybe this is what happened to her when she was old!

*****

"Her skin was milky *white*"

White-ass.

*****

"The deer flinched when the fox bit into its leg. *The smaller animal was whining and crying in pain, but persistent.*"

Does biting into it physically hurt them?

*****

"*We do not want them to leave and it seems like, for the moment, they are content staying.*"

Aww, friends <3

*****

"Rolling [the crane] over into the grave *pushed my heart inbetween my ribs, but I kept myself contained.*"

Ooh, what a neat phrase!

*****

""Wouldn't that make a lovely story?"

"Of course it would, I just have to say, I am not particularly fond of the idea of being the protagonist in a ghost story""

Hehe, the fact that he agreed that that would be a lovely story...

Like, I thought he would go, "No! That is awfully morbid!", but no. He's like "Yes, that would be a very lovely and cool story. I would just not like to be in it."

I must say, I like this more. I'm gonna add interactions like that into my stories <3.

*****

""No, I mean…it doesn't look alive. It's full of dirt and its feathers are falling out and it's viciously pecking at itself. It looks like it should never have come here in the first place."

The Storyteller tilted their head, but said nothing. *They probably thought I was losing my mind.*"

Oh no, my friend the Normal Person Storyteller is gonna think I'm a weirdo for thinking something supernatural happened! :(. They're just a normal human with no contact with that sort of stuff, so of course they wouldn't believe me :(.

*****

"[Suzanne] sighed, glanced at me uneasily. "Will you wake me if anything new shall happen?"

"*Of course.*""

NO YOU WON'T. YOU'RE NOT GONNA. HOW HORRIBLE*.

*Not saying Ignatius is horrible. This is a complicated situation, and I don’t know what the right choice is. But this is a horrible situation for Suzanne to find herself in.

*****

"*Heavens, no. What on earth would she do with me? She's an angel, what am I? A milkman's son, who writes quite awful poetry in his free time. No, no, I think it is better for the both of us if I just continue to stare from a distance…and fall a little more in love with every passing day…"*"

Girlie, this is unfair to her! You are assuming how she feels and acting on that assumption. She should be able to come to her own decision regarding that (being in a relationship with you) with all the information in front of her.

For example, what if she liked you back? It's mean to assert that she simply cannot fall in love with certain people, when she has never said so herself!

Also, you're implying that she is quite shallow to not fall in love with common people just because they're not big fancy fraughts.

*****

""*I'm quite sure she would not mind knowing about your feelings*""

This too! What's the harm? Even if she doesn't like you romantically, she clearly loves and/or cares about you. She would still love to be friends after. Nothing would change except that you respected her ability to come to a decision on her own, and that you gave it a shot. You would give her the info, instead of just assuming.

*****

""*Perhaps not tonight*""

Pfft yeah. Don't confess when her mum's dying.

*****

"*I hesitated, unsure what to say. Then I lowered my head.

"I should go back to reading that book."*"

LMAOOO

*****

"*His body…his body was like mine, but it was so beautiful*"

FUCK. FUCK, I LOVE TRANSNESS

*****

""*You don't even realize what you've summoned. Good Lord. You have doomed yourself, my friend.*""

Did they think he was in on the supernatural shit before this?

*****

"*The Storyteller left silent as a ghost two nights ago. I woke twice during the night, once because I heard the door, once because a fox screamed outside, almost a sorrowful wail.*"

Aw man... The friends part :(.

*****

"Sarah and I spent the day inside, with *her drawing*"

Ooh, I was wondering who was drawing those pictures!

*****

""I started falling." Her voice was quiet and shaky. "I fell and fell, deep into a bottomless pit. *And then I woke up.*"" --

I wonder what it means that she dreamt this. Not as in the meaning of it, but as in, does that mean the god can make up dreams for you? And has the power of foresight? And can directly influence what you see/think? (Like straight up make it up fully. Instead of influencing one's thoughts to lean a certain way. It's instead the exact scenario, the exact wording.)

*****

"*On the way I noticed that we had forgotten to bring our laundry inside and some of it had scattered across the yard. Too bad, but nothing terrible - we had all the time in the world to wash it again, after all.*"

Aw man. Not realising that this means that the dream was a premonition, and that they are in grave danger. "Oh well, we have all the time in the world to wash it." No you don't. This marks your end. Last night truly was a quiet end of the world.

*****

"With a scream I ran back out of the barn, *leaving the deadman with my face inside.*"

OOH. Does he become a crane? When that person later says a strange looking Frankie hung out with the Storyteller, was that even Frankie? Or the crane?

*****

"Diary entry of Sarah *Winston*"

Ah, so that’s what her last name was before she took on the name Carlyle! Sarah Carlyle, nee Winston.

*****

"*Something has been wrong for a very long time.*"

And it's finally come to a head.

*****

"*Bell Senior's old man says he was quite spooked by the change. Took a crucifix with him every time he delivered the milk. Just in case.*"

Dude, she's just some guy :/.

*****

"*Avoided that blue house like the plague. You'd think he saw a ghost there.*"

Maybe Frankie didn't come back at all... Maybe it was Sarah...

But they look quite dissimilar! Did she straighten and dye her hair?

*****

"*He had a disagreement with his mother and father one night, just a few days before Sarah passed, packed his things and left.*"

Okay so I'm almost certain that it was Sarah who came back, not Frankie. By this time it was already Sarah. Did she have a disagreement with Frankie's parents about pretending to be him?

*****

"*For a while they thought it was his youthful stubbornness that kept him from returning.*"

But then why did they think this? Did they truly think she was Frankie? Or were they just saying that's what they thought in order to cover up Sarah's identity whenever somebody asked?

*****

""...It was assumed that during his hot-headed travels, he had simply been robbed and murdered. An old woman was killed in the area just a month later, so it seemed reasonable."

"Oh, what a tragedy." I thought about the night Frankie had described in his diary, the night when he told the Storyteller about the beheaded old woman. *Gramma Margaret.*"

Is this the same Margaret that is Sarah's mother? I don't think so. Is this the same old woman who died a month after Sarah went missing (as Frankie)? I don’t think it is, since Gramma Margaret died *before* that happened.

*****

"*I sat at the kitchen table, staring at the singular candle illuminating the house*"

Me fr. But also, just like the dream!

*****

"*the Storyteller standing in the doorway*"

Just like the dream!

*****

"*"I'll go get the spades if you want me to," the Storyteller said quietly.*"

Grrahhh!! He is the crane!!

I wonder if he will come back as a crane supernatural. I wonder if the zombie crane ever existed, or was just an illusion made by the god to foretell Frankie's death.

*****

""Down by the lake." I glanced at the ground beneath me. "There is…there was a willow where we always used to sit and tell each other stories…most of them old stories by the *old blind woman* in whose house we lived. We would tell those stories, or spin new tales out of them, or dream how else they could have ended…the willow fell in the storm.""

Okay see, for a sec I wondered previously if the old woman was actually the Storyteller, and they were shapeshifted. But I was like, no. She's not blind (and her eyes were described as milky, not red. At least I think. But the woman on the book cover had red eyes).

But now I'm thinking it may be so? But I didn't know the storyteller could shapeshift into anything besides the human form we see them in and the fox one.

Or maybe it's like with the crocodile. Related to but not the same. Why would the Storyteller be beheaded?

*****

"*"I am sorry," I whispered. "I was going to tell you, but your father made me promise not to say a word. He did not want you to worry."*"

Ah, there it is! Thank goodness she found out beforehand!

*****

"*Suzanne laughed; it was a hollow laugh. "Did not want me to worry! He tumbled down the stairs with a sound as if the world was ending, broke almost every bone in his body and he does not want me to worry! Heavens-" She had begun to cry. "Oh doctor. How cruel can one be, for goodness' sake?"*"

Literally!!

*****

"*Then, suddenly, Desmond reached for Suzanne's hand and began pleading with her. Her hazel eyes were haunted when she replied to whatever he had said, but he vigorously shook his head and smiled, tears running down his white cheeks.*"

Epic suicidal ideation/talking someone down from it moment (might not be what they're actually talking about).

*****

"Arms tightly wrapped around each other [Suzanne and Desmond] stood there in the snow, almost becoming *one singular grotesque silhouette melted together.*"

Aro moment. The House Party moment.

*****

"As I looked around the room that had been our bedroom I saw the jar with the two-headed crocodile standing on the windowsill and softly exhaled.

"Will you take it with you?", the Storyteller asked.

"Of course," I replied. It resides on the sill of my childhood bedroom now, the *pale skin* of the animal"

Okay, see. I was wondering how this was related to the god. When I first learned of the croc (from the snippet before the story was released) I thought this was the god, in a different form. But the croc is definitely dead, and I don’t think the god can be killed. Plus we see the god later, and the croc never disappears.

Then, I went, "wait! The croc was never actually described as white, so they're unrelated!" But now that is not so.

*****

"*I walked across the damp brown leaves, grabbed the deer by its antlers and shook it until it stared right into my face with one eye from each head. It looked different from this perspective. Surprised…no. Scared.*"

Yeah! Kill that bitch, Sarah! Teach it what's what!

*****

"*It did not always feel good, but damn it, it felt strong.*"

OUGHFF. Adding this one to the quotes pile!

*****

cracked blue building

So it really is her house? I thought she was going to Frankie's house. So is she not impersonating him? But then, why did she take his name?

Maybe she is detransitioning to an old identity that was forced upon her, and not pretending to be Frankie. But since the name she took on was Frank, maybe she swapped deadnames with Frankie when they were choosing their names?

*****

"*The deer is outside again and staring at me. I think it might be crying.*"

Ah. So that is why it is here tonight.

*****

"*A fox is wailing out in the field.*"

I'm glad they are here during the last night of their friend.

*****

"*I think it's quiet now.*"

And so she is dead. But how did the fall occur? Did she call the deer?

*****

"Swiftly, I walked over to it and with hesitation and shaking fingers, reached beneath its shirt. Indeed, there was Sarah's *sweetwater pearl necklace*"

!!! She kept it...!!!

*****

"*I realized in shock and horror that the man that had died under my roof was no man at all - it was Sarah I had been treating. All these years she had returned to hiding as what she had always been perceived as*."

That is oddly understanding of Ignat.

*****

"What a strange feeling. I believe half of my soul was left back there by the lake, waiting for the other half still flickering in my heart to reunite with it."

Waah! She returns to Frankie and her life on the lake!!

*****

"*How do you know that story?*"

"I don't want to tell stories. I don't want their lives to be laid out like they're some fascination. A [] for people to ogle at for a while. They were real people, more than some scary ghost. And they deserve privacy.

But. Their stories are being told anyway. I do not want to tell stories about them. But I have to correct them every time I hear them. Let them really be known. Adding to those tall tales."

*****

"*Before you become a deathbed confession or someone else's ghost story*"

I like that he acknowledges that he has become wrapped up in this, and that because it would make such a good story, the person who he is writing this to and who is dear to him, Andrew, will most likely also be affected.

*****

"*Author's* Note:

...The author vividly remembers the chill that ran down her spine whenever she saw this person in the now overgrown yard, smiling like a fox baring its teeth."

Is this Susan from the second book, "Susan's Hell Sprint"? (Sick ass name btw. Truly one of the titles of all time.)

*****

I wanted to say that I really liked your book, and I can't wait to read the next one! ^_^

Ayyyyyyyyy amazing notes!!!! I had so much fun reading these!!!

Suzanne is actually trans! I tried to drop a couple subtle hints about it but nothing too obvious, such as the childless thing and the deep voice. Also, the moment Desmond and Suzanne talk outside she actually confesses this to him.

As for Sarah and Frankie, they traded names when they came out to each other, and when Sarah returned, she simply took on her old name.

The author isn't actually Susan, though that would've been cool. The author is some random teenager in the 2010s. Susan's Hell Sprint is set in the 1970s :).

#personal post #sarah the novel #susan's hell sprint

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taenys · 4 months ago

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i've just read some of the personal posts you wrote about your dating life and i'm like giiiiirl fuck these men 😭😭 i'm so sorry that they all SUCK this hard. i've been a super casual lurker for over a decade and if i remember correctly you used to identify as bi/pan at some point? are there any cute girls in your area or is it literally fuckboy city rn?

no girls. or if there are, they're all polyamorous (portland, oregon is big in the poly scene...) or "ethically non monogamous." the few girls i've matched with ghosted me relatively quickly so we never actually got to an in-person date. too many femmes, not enough butch women (my preference). very slim pickings, and girls are much more selective and we all want to be pursued lol so no one is doing the pursuing LOL. no one wants to make the first move.

men on the other hand, will fuck anything with a hole so i've always got hundreds of dudes matching with me and making "an effort" (at least in the beginning lol) so i've only been dating dudes for now.

also, i live an hour away from portland, so i'm actually in a small EXTREMELY CONSERVATIVE little rural town so another issue is the distance. even when i match with girls in the portland area, none of them can drive and ain't no way i'm killing myself to drive downtown portland to meet them LOL so dudes it is for now. they all love to drive (usually) so that's at least never an issue.

i have one guy left that i still talk to, but he's so busy with 3 jobs with evening and weekend hours, he responds to my texts like twice a week (and rarely flirts back lmao ugh). idek what we're doing anymore lol. i get that he's busy and tired and probably not in a place to be dating (and definitely not prioritizing it anymore). we matched in march and had a really good connection and 3 great dates, but then my summer schedule started and now we both are working like crazy and our schedules don't align as well. i keep telling myself to stop initiating contact, but then i'll crack after 3-4 days or he'll do my favorite thing and randomly send me a selfie and i'm back to chasing, waiting, and hoping for another date. he's so cute and so fun. but he's married to his work lol he legit has no days off right now.

but considering how busy i am at work right now too, i’ve stopped actively dating. i deleted all my profiles on all the apps back in may and i don’t plan on opening them up again until october. i need some time on my own. but i’ll keep that last dude on the back burner until he straight out tells me he’s not interested lol i like him too much and he’s stuck around the longest 😂 he’s the main character from the bear, carmy. he’s a professional chef who works at 3 different restaurants and is EXTREMELY passionate and dedicated to his craft, he legit has no free time. he only had one job when we first met so he had mondays off and so did i so that’s when we could meet up but now we both work pretty much all the time so i don’t view his “ignoring” as fuckboy behavior. he’s just genuinely busy working all the time 😭

#anonymous #reply

0 notes

jennamaertz · 2 years ago

Photo

GRAD SHOW PREPARATION - REFLECTION

In January, I volunteered to be a part of the Web Design/Animation group as well as a floater for the Implementation team. There originally was nothing really to do for the Implementation team at the start, so I really focused on the Web Design team. Originally we started to use a program called Bubble and we weren’t very familiar with it and were struggling to do anything with it.

Some notes and plans we had from the start:

January 19th, 2023

Animate the Logo

Linkedin Website

Include Graphic Design posters on the website

Communicate with Advancement for sign outside college

Upload pictures of wireframes, moodboard, pictures of playing cards

Thursday Feb 23 website/ host purchase (reading break)

Thursday March 23 website is up and communicating

Fridays at 5:00pm meeting with the web/interactive crew

360 degree camera

Projection of the logo

January 20th 2023

Profiles open in the same tab, social media profiles open into a new tab

Clicking logo goes to home page

Email set up a google doc so everyone about the social media profiles they want to include on their profiles

360 degree video

Countdown button

Mail buttons working

Hover over photos - adds animation smooth transition

Time and date for the grad show

Each student’s artist statement included on the profile

Images on the students profiles of their work, and progress photos of them working

Animations for the documentary

January 24th, 2023

Created wireframes for:

Variety Pack Homescreen - “Choose your Grad”, maybe a stack of cards, maybe they shuffle when you click on choose your grad

Profiles Cards Page - 6 x 6 cards aligned horizontally. - When hovering over a card: card gets bigger and drop shadow illuminates. - When clicking on a card: card flips and zooms in

Single Profile Page - Photo, menu bar on the left, social media icons links

RSVP page - Reply by, include logo, Yes, No, Interested, Share event, Add event to calendar, What to expect - food, details, how many people responded, How many people are your bringing, Confirmation email/phone/text

Clea calling Julian about countdown

For next class: Look over exposed proposal, and create ours

Vote for song

Create document for everyone’s social media links

January 26th 2023

Created social media links shared document

Created single proposal with all our tasks we have to do

Created digital wireframes in Adobe XD (in wireframes documents)

This weekend: get used to bubble.io

After planning this all out, we decided to change course and go with a program we were more familiar with which was Cargo. We ended up moving really fast and understood it very well. We did our part for the proposal and paid for the one-year subscription for Cargo. We struggled to create a timer countdown for the website, but it got figured out. Any problem we came across took a little bit to understand, but we usually could figure it out. We did struggle to find a way to get orders and payments together onto the website because we had to buy into a third party. We ended up scrapping the idea because it cost too much to have installed and it was too complicated to figure out. After this, we spent a lot of time waiting on the Graphic Design team as well as the Photography/Social Media Team to get images and the overall design. We had to wait to see what design we were able to use to relate to the theme we had for Variety Pack. After we got all the images and style guides, we were rolling to get everything done. We had lots of setbacks where they were little issues but were difficult to fix at times. It was mostly just trying to fix up any profiles that had spelling errors or any of the images that would not scale correctly. We ended up fixing everything and were able to listen to anyone that noticed any errors. As this was all going on, we were creating animations based on every letter in Variety Pack using After Effects, Photoshop, and Procreate on my iPad. We were able to finish them all and were happy with how they turned out, but struggled to combine them. April ended up finding a way to fix them all up on After Effects and whipped up two different versions of the logo being animated. By the end, we plugged in the Documentary that the Social Media Team created as well as the Virtual Grad Show Tour. I was very happy with this group and enjoyed everything we did. We all worked together well and I found that we had no issues. We communicated when we disagreed with something, but overall, it went really well. I’m very proud of our Web cite and loved how it turned out.

For the implementation team, I helped when Matt asked, I only really helped out with putting up posters and handing out invitations. We only got posters the day before the Easter Break so it was hard to find places that were open. It was a bit frustrating to be running around town, yet finding nowhere to put up posters. We ended up finding a few places to put up posters and to hand out invitations, but I wish we could have had more places to advertise.

0 notes

beheworthy · 4 years ago

Photo

Din had previously chosen to die over breaking his creed. But losing Grogu forever is worse than death for him.

He CHOOSES to break his creed in an act of selfless, unconditional love for Grogu, and that is what makes him a true “believer” of the Mandalorian faith.

@dindjarindiaries

#the mandalorian #star wars #din djarin #pedro pascal #cara dune #migs mayfeld #bill burr #themandalorianedit #swedit #starwarsedit #pedropascaledit #tvedit #themandaloriandaily #starwarsdaily #tvfilm #tw: blood #this is based on dindjarindiaries' post #wait did i align the text correctly this time??

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teamironmanforever · 4 years ago

Text

HIGHLIGHT TRANSLATION OF THE SPANISH DUB ACTOR GUILLERMO ROJAS

Guillermo Rojas - Spanish Dubbing actor for Dean since season 12 until 15x18 (he contracted Covid and was unable to record 15x19 or 15x20 - he has yet to record those)

INTERVIEWER: “Memo (nickname for Guillermo), I am not sure if you knew, but you broke the internet”

MEMO: “Yes, a lot of people sought me out when this happened. I am so sorry I wasn’t able to answer at length all of your questions, but I was right in the middle of dealing with Covid. I couldn’t speak without feeling like I was drowning. Right now I am going to (voice) therapy. While it is not too dreary, there are 2 continued effects, so I couldn’t answer everyone who contacted me through various ways - through FB, instagram and an old youtube channel that I haven’t used in years - with respect to the situation that occurred between Dean and his friend (Cas).

MEMO: “We try to follow (our lines) in what we see of the acting. Remember that dubbing is something where we must make a parallel alignment in our own language. Under the guidelines given to us by the client, we try to expand on all possibilities and all the alignments and - as actors - they permit us to give 100% of ourselves. So there isn’t a limit per se, so long as you don’t go off track (from what was requested from the client)”

INTERVIEWER: “What were the guidelines for the line that broke the internet”

MEMO: “It’s curious because neither the director nor us the actors knew much about the tendency that existed. Because we didn’t have much previous information that suggested that something like this would happen. To be honest when we recorded it, we were asking wait what’s happening? I mean we did it, but no one knew this was coming neither in the production studio nor amongst the actors.”

INTERVIEWER “I need to ask for a clarification here. I mean we are talking about the love declaration Cas made to Dean after 12 years of intense eye-contact. But the big question is Dean’s answer. Because EVERYONE heard in your voice that clear “And I you, Cas”

MEMO “And I you, yes.”

INTERVIEWER “Where does that “And I you” come from? Was it you? What happened there?”

“The adaptation came entirely from my director (Adrian Fogarty). He adapted it and gave us our acting guidelines, and I performed accordingly - I gave what he asked of me. We all loved it. We never saw it coming so overtly.... If you remember across all seasons, we rarely see Dean get involved with any women. It just didn’t happen, unlike his brother. He just never got involved. It wasn’t his thing, especially because we have his brother to compare him to. We saw (Sam) in a relationship in the past 2 seasons with Eileen which was a very intense relationship, and very painful in the end. Dean never had to suffer through that. They tied Dean’s pain to the loss of his mother since he lost her more than once.”

FB question: “So It wasn’t a rogue translator, it was a rogue director”

MEMO: “Look, Fogarty has some really intense abilities and one of them is to adapt the dialogue. When you see him translate a script, when he has the time to do it - even when he is not the one directing - and he leaves it in Spanish. The dialogue said, if I remember correctly, “me too” or something like that and then we switched it to “and I you” due to effects of lip movement, rhythm, etc... We don’t all have the ability that Fogarty has, that speed which he has, to think and translate immediately. We are a team and we work together, and pool our collective abilities, and of course Fogarty does his part. You need a Fogarty in every company.”

(The interviewer mentioned that her cat hates Sam Winchester and loves dubbed Dean’s voice).

INTERVIEWER “Do you know what Dean said in the original script before Fogarty got his hands on it?”

“Yes, of course. It made allusions to that. (Fogarty) made the right translation. It said and so do I or me too or something like that. It said it in the (original) script.”

INTERVIEWER: “When you heard the english version while you recorded yours, did you hear Dean say I love you too?”

MEMO: “No. If I would have, I would have taken the earphone out and gone what the fuck? *laughs*”

INTERVIEWER: “What was your favorite episode to film?”

MEMO: “With my short-term memory, I would say this last one (15x18), because it says so much. In one scene, it says it all. It was impressive, and so beautiful. I never saw it coming.”

Interviewer “Well you have broken tumblr again.”

MEMO: “Okay *Laughs*. Well, that’s good. Thank you very much.”

MEMO: “I think it’s clear to everyone that the fact that he (fogarty?) broke the internet, with this information was a surprise for everyone. Absolutely everyone. Because we all say that if someone wants to be a “real man” we have to be like Dean. In fact it’s something very beautiful for me because it has nothing to do with gender and everything to do with feelings. It was a play by the writers that was marvelous. You didn’t see it coming, but damn do you like it.”

MEMO: “Nothing was left out of the translation... No I was not called to re-record the “and I you”. I have not been asked to remake the dubbing. My director perfectly understood the texture of the text.”

INTERVIEWER “Do you know if Supernatural has a quality review for the dubbing through Warner Bros?”

MEMO: “I would be lying to you if I said yes, but I have been working for WB (LatAM) for many years as both an actor and director. And there is some specific material where they do have “filters”, but with something like supernatural I doubt it. I would assume the one left in charge of all decisions was our director (Fogarty).”

INTERVIEWER “Have you been interpreting Dean as in love with Castiel this entire time or was it a surprise for you?”

MEMO: “No, never, it was a surprise. In fact, to be entirely honest, to my closest friends - of the same gender - I do use the phrase “te amo”. I don’t have any issues with that. So I actually thought it went that way - but then I found out it was romantic.”

INTERVIEWER: “Guillermo, what is your opinion, of destiel now that you know the nature of their relationship.”

“Well it was a revelation for everyone - including me. I love how they handled it because we didn’t see it coming. And I think, of our understanding of the character’s traits and psychology, we know that if someone knows how to repress their feelings, it’s Dean Winchester. *laughs*”

INTERVIEWER: “What would you say to Cas if he came back from the empty?”

MEMO: “He came back?! (he hasn’t seen 15x19 or x20)

INTERVIEWER: “No I am saying what would he say IF he did”

MEMO: “Oh, okay. I was under the assumption that I said I loved him so long as he wasn’t planning on coming back! *laughs* Well if he returns I guess I would say “Hello, Cas”.

INTERVIEWER: *Tells MEMO about the not for nothing cas but the last person who looked at me like that I got laid”

MEMO: OKAAAAY *laughs* That was too much. *laughs*

INTERVIEWER: Would you be this fandom’s Godfather?

MEMO: But of course *smiles* This was a big thing, from what I see.

INTERVIEWER: “What message would you give to the fans who are descovering the spanish dub?”

“first, thanks a lot of being part of the mexican dubbing. We do this job with all the heart and all the passion that we have. And I think I speak for all involved in this industry. We are glad to note that there are so many people from other countries that are watching these new projects in another language. So I have no words but thanks a lot.”

INTERVIWER: “What would be your ideal ending for Dean Winchester”

MEMO “I think, for all of them, they have sacrificed their lives and that of their loved ones for the safety and well being of everyone else. I think if anyone deserves to be well, happy, and calm, at least it’s those three (Sam, Cas, and Dean).”

INTERVIEWER: “What about jack?”

MEMO “Jack did attach himself to them, but I think he could find happiness in another nest.” *laughs*

#destiel #spanish dub #guillermo rojas #supernatural #there we go feast my people FEAST

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atlabeth · 3 years ago

Text

everything happens for a reason part 11 - zuko x fem!reader

Memories, where'd you go?

part 10 | masterlist | part 12

a/n: alternative name for this fic: y/n gets a crush on every pretty girl she meets. yue, katara, and now suki. she can't help it (and she questions why they're all connected to sokka in some way lmaoo)

anyways, this is kind of filler but it establishes some more with relationships and finallyyy gets us into ba sing se at the end. i know it's a lil annoying because there's a lot of episode-to-text writing, but i promise it'll get more freeform as it goes on

also i know that i just posted something yesterday but i have literally zero patience. like i cant hold chapters i have to post them as soon as i write them loll

wc: 5.3k

warning(s): some feels over zuko as per usual, but overall a pretty tame chapter

chapter title comes from memories by panic! at the disco!

Zuko could barely sleep anymore.

He didn’t know when his life became so complicated, but he wasn’t a fan of it.

Back when it was just him, his crew, and the open sea — it was simple. He had a job, a straightforward mission. Find the Avatar, capture him, return home to the Fire Nation and regain his honor.

Now, the waters were more muddied than ever. Now on the run from the Fire Nation just like the boy he was chasing, all he really felt nowadays was anger.

Angry at the world for setting him on this path, angry at the Avatar for refusing to see what was necessary, his sister and her friends for turning against him, angry at the waterbender for making things so damn hard.

He didn’t want to hurt her. A part of him wished that she had never come back into his life, if it meant he wouldn’t have to constantly be fighting against her. He hated himself for the thought, but maybe it would have been easier for her to remain a memory of a lover than his active enemy.

Late at night, when he was reaching fruitlessly for sleep that would never come, he saw her face. The carefree energy from their childhood morphed into the shock and disappointment from both the North and their fight with Azula, and…

It made him wonder what in Agni had happened to them.

He—

He didn’t know. The way he felt about her, it was different than anything he had experienced before. Zuko didn’t know what it was, but he understood that it was special. And now… it felt like he had just thrown it all away.

Zuko couldn’t stop thinking about what had happened with her in that town — what he had done to her.

He had burned her to try and get to the Avatar, and he hadn’t even allowed a glance back at the damage he had done. He had heard her cry out in pain, pain he had caused, and he didn’t even look back.

What had happened to them? What had happened to him?

He kept telling himself that the mission was the only thing that mattered. And it was, wasn’t it? Capture the Avatar, regain his honor, get his old life back and finally be enough for his father. He didn’t have time for friends, or for these feelings he had, or— or for anything but capturing the Avatar. Because the Avatar was the key to everything, to his honor, and that was all that mattered.

But now…

Now, he didn’t know what he was supposed to do. He didn’t know what was right, or what was wrong, or what path was the one he had to take.

Zuko just wished things could be like they used to be.

~~~~~~~~~~

She didn’t really know when everything had become a mess again.

It all started out fine, like it usually did. Toph had become fully integrated into the group, any past squabbles put to rest in the name of a stronger friendship emerging between all five of them. Katara continued to work on Aang’s waterbending (oftentimes Y/N joining them in their sessions) while Toph slowly but steadily beat earthbending into him — literally.

They had all been working hard for so long that, by decree of Aang, it was ‘vacation time’. They would all get to pick out places they wanted to spend as a break, and after it was over they would get back to work.

Aang had chosen some sort of field with musical groundhogs, and Y/N had opted to revisit an Earth Kingdom village that she had passed through on her journey to the North. Sokka had complained the whole time about how they were ‘wasting valuable planning time’, but had finally conceded after the promise of ‘all the planning his heart could desire’ from Katara after their mini-vacations were over.

Y/N was actually feeling somewhat relaxed for once, but she had forgotten the golden rule — never let your guard down. Everytime she let her guard down, something bad happened without fail. So it shouldn’t have been any surprise with what happened in the desert.

Because after one trip to the Misty Palms Oasis and a journey into the desert with a professor to a long lost library, Appa had been taken by desert raiders.

It was… less than favourable. During their escape from the library, Professor Zei had insisted on staying behind, and now the five of them were stuck in the middle of the desert with no way out and zero guidance. Add some brewing tensions between Aang and Toph because of her being there when Appa was taken, and they had a recipe for a huge disaster.

And a disaster they had. Multiple disasters, actually.

There was only so much she and Katara could do to hold the group together, but by some miracle, they made it out of the desert with only one Avatar State mishap.

(And an incident with cactus juice, but… she didn’t really want to talk about that.)

....at least they had the information about the Eclipse. That was about the only thing keeping her together at the moment.

They had to get the information to the Earth King so they could formulate an attack with his warriors, but without Appa, they had to resort to more traditional methods of travel. Add in one passport problem, and that was how Y/N found herself braving the Serpent’s Pass alongside a refugee family with a baby on the way.

It was… intimidating, to say the least. Despite being surrounded by her element, Y/N didn’t feel any safer from the challenge that faced them. She took a deep breath, trying to tamp down on her fear the way her mother had taught her, as she followed the group, but her thoughts were soon interrupted.

“Hey.” She turned to see who the voice belonged to and was greeted by the girl that had teased Sokka early — Suki, if she remembered correctly. “I haven’t seen you around; are you with the Avatar or that family?”

“I’m with Aang,” Y/N explained. “I’m from the North, and they offered me a spot with them after they helped us defend our tribe against the Fire Nation. I’ve been with them ever since.” Suki nodded as they settled into a comfortable stride.

“That’s cool. Are you a waterbender?”

She gestured to her waterskin and smiled. “Yeah. I’ve been training with Aang and Katara ever since I left.” Y/N then turned her gaze back to Suki, raising an inquisitive brow. “Your makeup — what’s it for? I heard you talking about the Kyoshi Warriors back there; is that some kind of thing with Avatar Kyoshi?”

Suki grinned, her every expression heightened by the sharp reds and blacks above her eyes. “We’re a group of all-female warriors that use the teachings of Avatar Kyoshi and her partner Rangi to defend our home and the place she founded, Kyoshi Island. I’m the leader of our village section.”

“Wow,” she murmured, her eyes falling to the ground for a moment before finding their way back up to the warrior. “That’s really cool. You’re really cool.”

She laughed and shrugged. “Thanks. I’ve been training as a warrior for almost my whole life, so it just comes naturally. I like being able to protect people, and there’s no better way to pay back my home for all it’s done for me like protecting the whole village.”

“Wow,” she repeated with a small laugh of her own. “That’s really brave. I gotta say, I’m kinda jealous — I would love to see what would happen if Master Pakku met you all. Katara literally had to beat the sexism out of him in order to train to be a master.”

Suki chuckled. “Sounds like what I had to do with Sokka. Guess it’s a thing with Water Tribe guys, huh?”

At the mention of Sokka, she internally laughed. There had to be some kind of connection between the two of them, the way their interests kept aligning. “Sokka… he’s had it hard. I can’t blame him that much for any kind of attitude he had before he met you. Pakku, on the other hand? He had to have had something better to do than fight teenage girls.”

“You would think so, right?” Suki agreed. “And Sokka… I know. He’s got a heart of gold underneath all that, he just needed a little push to get it out.” As Y/N glanced over at the girl, noticing a slight pink tint under the white makeup, she gasped.

“La’s fins, are you two a thing?” she exclaimed with a grin.

Suki flushed even harder as she suddenly became very interested in the ocean around her, but she couldn’t help the smile on her lips. “No! I mean— yes— but… but—” she stopped to gather her thoughts before making eye contact again with a sheepish smile. “We’re not… really a thing, but… I do like him a lot. I didn’t really think I was going to see him again after they left the island, so this is really nice.”

“Then what are you waiting for?” Y/N asked. “I can already tell that he cares about you — have you seen how careful he’s being with you?”

“Well—” Whatever kind of excuse Suki would’ve made up was interrupted by a rock falling out just under Than, one of the refugees they were with, saved in the nick of time with Toph’s earthbending.

“I’m okay!” he reassured, but no sooner had the words left his mouth before the Fire Nation ship in the distance started firing.

“They’ve spotted us!” Sokka yelled. “Let’s go, let’s go!”

Aang flicked his glider open and deflected the blast, and Katara grabbed Y/N’s hand as they all began to run. Another blast rocked the mountain, causing several boulders to fall just above Suki. Y/N didn’t even have time to shout out a warning before Sokka tackled her out of the way, but it was ultimately more of Toph’s quick earthbending that saved him.

“Suki, are you okay?” Sokka brushed dust and pebbles off of her uniform as he examined her, and once he was satisfied he grabbed her hand and helped her up. “You have to be more careful! Come on!”

As the two of them caught up to Y/N and Katara, she gave Suki a knowing look. The warrior only blushed once again and glanced away.

After hours of navigating the pass, they were only about halfway through. Sokka made the executive decision to set up camp for the night to give everyone time to rest, and then they would get up at the crack of dawn to finish their trip. It only took a few minutes for Y/N to get a fire going, and soon everyone had settled in with their sleeping bags. Sokka got up from his spot as Suki wandered closer to the edge, and Katara nudged Y/N with her shoulder.

“Hey. How are your hands doing?”

“They’re fine,” she answered with a small smile, flipping her hands over as proof. Where there were once red burn scars on her palms only tiny white marks remained — one benefit to healing via waterbending was that most injuries were able to fade away completely after enough sessions. Her burns weren’t very serious and she was able to heal them almost immediately, so both her and Katara were sure that the marks would be completely gone soon.

The mental scars wouldn’t fade as easily.

“That’s good. And you’re taking care of them, right? Like, you’re not beating up people while we’re not looking?”

Y/N grinned. “No. I think I’ll leave that to Toph.”

Katara chuckled and nodded, turning her hands over in a final examination before nodding. “Good,” she repeated. The silence between them, although comfortable, stretched out for a little too long before she spoke again, this time much quieter. “He did this to you.”

“Katara…”

“I know,” she said. “I know you probably don’t want to hear this from me, or really at all, but… I’m worried about you. Zuko isn’t good for you. Every time we’ve run into him, he’s hurt you. And you deserve so much more than that.”

“You don’t understand,” she countered. “You don’t know Zuko like I do. You weren’t there when I was. I know you think I’m insane for still believing in him, but I— I can’t let go of him, Katara. I know the Zuko I love is still in there somewhere, and I have to try and find it. For me and for him.”

Katara’s eyes were full of nothing but sympathy as she sighed — it was obvious she didn’t believe her words, but in true fashion she was still trying her best to be supportive.

“Okay. I don’t understand it, but… I don’t think I can change your mind.” Y/N chuckled sadly and nodded, Katara’s piercing gaze meeting her own once more. “It’s just… Why are you playing with fire when you know you’re going to get burned?”

And for once, Y/N didn’t have an answer for her friend.

~~~~~~~~~

The night went by quickly, which Y/N was thankful for. It meant that the nightmares didn’t last as long.

After a quick headcount to make sure no one had fallen off the pass overnight and an even quicker gathering of their things, they set off to finish their journey.

It went just as well as she had expected — a giant serpent, the namesake of the pass, had attacked them while crossing through an underwater section. Thankfully, she was able to aid Katara and Aang in defeating it with waterbending with no casualties

But in the wake of one disaster there was always another, and before Y/N knew it a baby had been born. She was mostly there for moral support — Katara had it all handled, and Y/N didn’t expect anything less.

But finally, they had made it across the pass, and they were so close to Ba Sing Se that she could almost smell the city air. Sadly, though, that meant it was time for them to part ways — Aang to find Appa, and Suki back to her warriors. After some sad but hopeful goodbyes with Aang, it was time to bid farewell to Suki.

“Are you sure you can’t travel a little longer with us?” Y/N questioned, apparently not above pleading to try and get the girl to stay. “You’re— you’re amazing, and we’d really love to have you with us.”

“I can’t even imagine what travelling with the Avatar would be like,” she smiled, causing Y/N to get her hopes up for just a moment before they fell back down. “But I can’t stay. I have to get back to the Kyoshi Warriors.”

Y/N sighed, her gaze falling slightly downcast. “I get that. I just really wish you could stay. Or that I could meet your warriors. You seriously don’t know how cool you are, Suki.”

“Well, if you’re ever in town on Kyoshi Island, find us. I’m sure we’ll be able to work something out and do you one better than just meeting them all,” she said with a grin. “I think it’d be pretty cool to have the first waterbending Kyoshi Warrior.”

Y/N was unable to prevent the heat rushing to her cheeks as she smiled shyly, once again averting eye contact. “That would be amazing. I’ll have to find my way back there after the war.”

Suki bumped shoulders with her, causing a startled laugh to spill from her lips. “We’d love to have you.”

“Wait, why does it sound like you’re saying goodbye to her?” Sokka questioned as he walked up to the two of them. Y/N winked at Suki and gestured at him with her head, walking off before Suki could protest to find Katara.

The conversation the two girls were sharing was an extremely thinly veiled excuse to eavesdrop on the lovebirds, and when they kissed Y/N actually had to hold back a scream.

Sokka deserved this. She knew how much he beat himself up over every little thing that went wrong, and it was about time he got to relax even for a moment. She only hoped that Suki would be in their corner of the world sooner rather than later.

What could she say? She was already fantasizing about life as a Kyoshi Warrior.

~~~~~~~~~

Although they had parted ways, they soon found themselves reunited with Aang to stop yet another Fire Nation threat.

“For the love of Kuruk,” Y/N murmured as she stared into the distance, her eyes wide at the sight of a large mechanical drill. “That was Ty Lee who just took down all those soldiers. And if she’s here, Mai and Azula are with her too. Guys, It’s one thing to stop this drill, it’s another thing to take those three down with it.”

“The question is, how do we do it?” Aang questioned.

“Why can nothing ever be easy?” Sokka lamented. His gaze remained trained on the drill for a moment before he realized theirs were on him. “Why are you all looking at me?”

“You’re the idea guy,” Aang said.

“Wait, so I’m the only one who can ever come up with a plan?” he protested. “That’s a lot of pressure!”

“And also the complaining guy,” Katara muttered, drawing a chuckle out from Y/N.

“Now that part I don’t mind,” Sokka admitted.

“Well, Sokka— you were a huge help in the North, and you figured out a way to defeat the Fire Nation during that eclipse at the library! Plus, there’s all that stuff that Katara told me you did before I joined.” She patted him on the back. “If anyone can figure out how to take that thing down, it’s you.”

He shrugged nonchalantly, his ego only slightly bolstered. “...okay. I think I can do it.”

“That’s the spirit!” she said with a smile.

Unfortunately, that smile faded as a young guard came running up to the wall. “Excuse me, Avatar and friends — I’ve heard that you’ve dealt with that… that pink girl down there before.” They nodded and he continued. “It would do us a great deal of help if you could come down and look at our injured soldiers, then.”

Y/N and Katara nodded in unison and started to follow the guard, the remaining three trailing after them. They ended up inside the wall, in what looked like an infirmary of sorts with all the cots and soldiers lying around, and the two waterbenders exchanged looks.

“You know what to do?” Katara asked.

Y/N hummed in acknowledgment, and they both knelt down next to separate cots. “This definitely looks like Ty Lee’s work,” she murmured as she bent water up from the pot and molded it over the man’s arm.

“What’s wrong with him?” the general questioned. “He doesn’t look injured.”

“His chi is blocked,” Katara explained. “Who did this to you?”

“Two girls ambushed us,” the soldier said, moving his arm as he regained feeling. “One of them hit me with a bunch of quick jabs and suddenly I couldn't earthbend anymore and I could barely move. Then she cartwheeled away.”

Katara sighed as she bent the water back into the pot. “You were right, Y/N. That was Ty Lee — she doesn’t look dangerous, but she knows the human body and its weak point. It’s like she takes you down from the inside.”

As if struck by lightning, Sokka lit up. “Oh, oh, oh! What you just said — that’s how we’re going to take down the drill; the same way Ty Lee took down all those earthbenders!”

“By hitting its pressure points!” Toph exclaimed with a grin.

The breakthrough brought a steely determination to Aang’s features as he looked out into the distance. “We’ll take it down from the inside.”

~~~~~~~~~

Like everything they did, it seemed so simple on paper. But now that she was actually inside the drill, it felt a lot more nerve wracking. Toph opted to stay outside where she could see and try to slow down the drill with the earth at her disposal, which left the four of them to somehow take it down from the inside.

Sokka led them through a hallway with a myriad of valves and pipes as he thought out loud. “I need a plan of this machine — some schematics that show what the inside looks like. Then we can find its weak points.”

“Where are we gonna get something like that?” Aang asked.

Sokka thought for a moment before he took his machete out and hacked a valve off a pipe. Y/N instinctively took a step back and shielded her face from the hot steam. “What are you doing?” she cried. “Someone’s gonna hear us!”

“That’s the point!” he exclaimed. “A machine this big needs engineers to run it, and when something breaks—”

“Someone will come down to fix it!” Katara finished with a smile at Aang, a sentiment the boy returned happily.

It was surprisingly easy to take down the engineer once he arrived — with a little bit of frozen mist on Katara’s end, they had the plans they needed. Sokka’s expertise combined with the blueprints got them to the beginning of the outer shell.

“Wow,” Sokka muttered. “It looks a lot thicker than it does in the plans. We’re gonna have to work pretty hard to cut through that.”

Katara crossed her arms. “What’s this ‘we’ stuff? The three of us are gonna have to do all the work.”

“Look, I’m the plan guy!” Sokka explained with a gesture to himself. “You three are the ‘cut up stuff with waterbending’ guys. Together, we’re Team Avatar!”

Katara and Aang looked wholly unamused while Y/N chuckled. “Team Avatar. I like it.”

“Thank you,” he smiled. “At least someone appreciates my genius.”

“Tui’s gills, why do you have to keep boosting his ego?” Katara complained. “Let’s just get this done before it gets worse.”

The three of them got in position — Katara and Aang on opposite sides so they could pass the stream of water between them, and Y/N making the point of the triangle to work on the other side on her own. They were hoping it would be more efficient being able to cut through both sides at the same time, but it was proving to be much more difficult than they had imagined — halfway through the three of them were already exhausted.

By some feat of strength they were able to completely cut through the brace, but their hard work didn’t pay off in quite the way they had imagined — when the beam only shifted a few inches she groaned.

“Oh, you have got to be kidding me,” she breathed as she wiped sweat off of her forehead.

“At this rate,” Katara paused to inhale deeply, “we won’t do enough damage before the drill reaches the wall.”

“I don’t know how many more of those I have in me,” Aang said sadly.

A large creak suddenly rang throughout the large chamber, and they all looked up for the source.

“Did you hear that?” Sokka asked, already backing up to make an exit. “We took it down! We gotta get out of here, fast!”

Just as they reached the door on the other side, a crackle followed by the sound of a man’s voice dashed their hopes. “Congratulations, crew. The drill has made contact with the wall of Ba Sing Se. Start the countdown to victory!”

A collective silence hung in the air between them, the threat now even more imminent as their situation sunk in. Mai and Ty Lee had proven effective in taking down any Earth Kingdom threat posed at them, and despite Toph’s skill they knew she couldn’t take down something like this on their own.

They either had to figure out a way to destroy this drill, or the Fire Nation was going to make it into the city.

Sokka ran back over to the brace and pushed against it, putting all his strength into the feat but to no avail. “Come…. on! Move!”

Katara started pacing around in a small circle, crossing her arms again as she tried to think of something. “This is bad. This is really bad.”

“Sokka, that’s not going to work!” Y/N didn’t mean to snap, but the grinding of metal on metal combined with her nervousness got to her. She sighed and ran her hand over her face. “I— I’m sorry. But it’s still not going to work.”

He groaned as he leaned against the brace. “We’re putting everything we have into busting these things, but it’s taking too long!”

Suddenly, Aang jumped up from the ground with stars in his eyes. “Maybe we don’t need to cut all the way through! Toph — she’s been teaching me that you shouldn’t put a hundred percent of your energy in any one strike. Sokka, get in a fighting stance.”

Sokka complied and as Aang talked through his points, he demonstrated it on Sokka. “You've got to be quick and accurate. Hit a series of points and break your opponent's stance. And when he's reeling back, you deliver the final blow. His own weight becomes his downfall, literally.”

As Sokka fell over from the attack, Katara lit up. “So we just need to weaken the braces instead of cutting all the way through—”

“—then I can go to the top of this thing and deliver the final blow!” Aang finished.

Y/N helped Sokka up from the ground, his spirits not dampened at all. “Then boom! This whole thing goes down!”

“Then what are we waiting for?” Y/N asked, flexing her fingers to refresh them for all the bending she was going to have to do. “Aang, Katara and I can handle the braces. Focus on getting up to the top before anyone sees you.”

He nodded and they all met each other with determined eyes. “Everyone inside that wall, the whole world — they’re all counting on us.”

“Here, take this. You need this more than I do. ” Katara took her waterskin off and handed it to Aang. “Good luck. And be careful.”

Y/N noticed a slight blush on her cheeks and she had to hold back her smile. That was definitely something she was going to tease her friend about later — when they weren’t trying to stop the Fire Nation from breaking into Ba Sing Se.

“I will,” he assured. Aang slung the strap of the waterskin around his shoulder and took off, and Y/N and Katara got to work breaking through the rest of the braces.

With the knowledge that they only had to cut through half of each column and the revitalization that came from having a plan, their work went by much quicker. Just when they finished the final brace, it all went wrong.

“Good work, Team Avatar!” Sokka cheered. “Now we— Y/N, duck!”

She didn’t question Sokka as she immediately dropped to the ground, something she was immensely thankful for as a blast of blue fire seared past her. Her eyes snapped up to the source of the attack and narrowed in recognition.

“Of course they’re here,” she growled as she pulled herself back up. “We gotta go, now!”

Katara and Sokka nodded and they all started running. Bringing up the rear, Y/N was able to hear Azula’s words right before they split off into an intersection:

“Follow them! I’m going to find the Avatar.”

Sure enough, when she allowed a glance back, Mai and Ty Lee were closing in on them. She flicked open the cap of her waterskin and bent some out, managing to freeze it at just the right moment to block the incoming daggers from Mai. Still running, she melted it quickly and let it fall to the ground before freezing it again, creating some ice on the ground that would hopefully give them a few more seconds of leeway.

“That should give us some time!” she yelled as they turned a corner, finally turning her attention back to the path in front of them. “Any idea how we’re gonna get out of this thing?”

“Maybe!” Sokka yelled back, slowing to a stop as they came to a dead end, a large hatch the only thing at their disposal. He started tugging on the wheel in an attempt to open it, and when Y/N joined in they were able to wrench it open.

“Slurry pipeline?” Katara frowned as she read the sign on the wall and looked at Sokka. “What does that mean?”

“It’s rock and water mixed together,” he explained as they looked into the rushing liquid underneath the hatch. “It means it’s our way out!”

Katara nodded and climbed in, Sokka following close after. The sound of metal footsteps got closer and closer, and Y/N ducked inside just as Mai’s knives clanked against the hatch. Never before had she been so happy to be floating in a stream of slurry.

The rest of their mission went by surprisingly easy — at least, on their end. All it took was some waterbending — earthbending, when Toph joined them — and encouragement from Sokka (though unappreciated by Katara). Whatever magic Aang was working at the top of the drill had done its job, because soon enough the drill had collapsed in on itself.

And now, they had reunited on the top of the wall overlooking the sunset. After the chaos that had been their day, it was nice to just relax for even a moment. And there was no better way to do so than with her friends.

“I just want to say, good effort out there, Team Avatar!” Sokka exclaimed as he threw an arm around Y/N’s shoulder.

“Enough with the ‘Team Avatar’ stuff,” Katara said dryly. “No matter how many times you say it, it’s not going to catch on.”

“I like it, Sokka,” Y/N smiled. “I’ve liked it this whole time.”

“You always appreciate my genius, Y/N,” he mused. “That’s why I appreciate you.” She laughed and leaned her head against his shoulder as he continued to list off names.

“How about… the Boomeraang squad! Eh? See, it’s good because it’s boomerang, and it has Aang in it—”

“Yeah Sokka,” Toph interrupted. “We got it.”

Aang grinned and scratched his head. “I kinda like that one.”

“The Aang Gang. Ooh, the Fearsome Fivesome!”

“You’re crazy,” Toph muttered as she walked away.

“Wait, Sokka—” Y/N pulled away from him and held up her pointer finger. “Aang Gang — what if we combine it, so it’s just the Gaang? But still with Aang’s name?”

And at that moment, Sokka looked more proud than ever. “Oh, you— you are a genius.”

“Oh, spirits,” Katara groaned. “Why do you insist on encouraging him?”

“You’re just jealous of our name-making abilities,” Sokka said haughtily.

She rolled her eyes but couldn’t stop herself from laughing. “You two are completely ridiculous, you know that? Let’s just get into the city before the trains stop running.”

Y/N and Sokka winked at each other as they all started walking, unable to keep the smile off of her face. She always thought it was amazing — they went through insane things every day, but at the end of it all she was always able to smile because of them. And as her gaze drifted towards the city in the distance, she hoped it would hold true.

She had no idea what Ba Sing Se had in store for her.

shit is gonna happen next chapter so i hope you all are READY bc im not

perm tags: @dv0412 @siriuslyslyslytherin @maruchan77

atla tags: @marianne1806 @brown-eyed-thang @akiris

ehfar tags: @chandies-sideblog @zacatecanaaaa @anzanity @randomthingssss @escapingthoughtsandsecrets @shanksfav @shephard17895 @ilovespideyyy @carisi-sonny @selfship-mishaps @i-belong-in-fandoms @ilistentotayswifttocope @i-make-questionable-choices @3leni

#zuko x reader #zuko x you #zuko x y/n #zuko #zuko fic #prince zuko #avatar #avatar the last airbender #atla #avatar fic #atla fic #avatar the last airbender fic #avatar x reader #avatar the last airbender x reader #atla x reader #sadie writes

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julyarchives · 4 years ago

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Lovers In The Night || (M)

Dating an idol is already hard, and when you debut it gets even harder, but your boyfriend Changgu knows just how to make up for all the time spent apart

→ Pairing: Yeo One x Female Reader

→ Genre: Smut; just a little bit of angst in the beginning

→ Words: 2.2K

→ Contains: established relationship (sort of); first time; cute soft smut

→ A/n: Finally, here is the story of our birthday boy of the week! Thank you so much 🌻anon, for your request! This can be read as a one-shot, or as a follow up of So Bad, it’s up to you!

Your debut has finally happened and because of it, your relationship was riskier than ever. Changgu and you started dating when you were still a trainee, fully aware of the consequences that come with his fame, and one day possibly yours'. And now that it's arrived, there was hardly any dating during the day, or dating at all when the schedule was packed with promotion activities.

This particular morning, Pentagon and your group had an appearance together in a TV show and it was really tough for you to act like you weren't even close. He was just perfect as an entertainer, so he always stood out on variety shows. The hardest part was backstage when you thought it could be your chance to sneak some time together, but since the other members didn't know you were together there was no chance to do so.

Acting like you were strangers really hurt you. While the other girls celebrated the success of your appearances, you just sat quietly in the corner and texted him.

"I miss you." You quickly typed.

"I miss you too, you look so beautiful today." He didn't take long to answer

"You too! I wish I could say that in-person :( "

"I'm sorry :("

You've been together for a couple of months, so this wasn't how you expect to spend the honeymoon phase, and texting somehow made you miss him more.

After the promotions were over for the day, you figured you could try and meet your boyfriend, but as soon as he texted back that he was still busy with a photoshoot you simply crumbled. It was a tiring day and all you need was some kisses and your boyfriend's embrace, but acting like strangers was all you got, and now you decided to let yourself feel sad. You couldn't vent to anyone because you had to keep it a secret, so your resolution was to just lay in bed and allow a few tears to come out. You knew what you signed up for when you confessed to him, and he warned you that this might happen, but you just could not help but feel sad for not being able to enjoy your relationship like a normal person.

You ended up falling asleep, and It was a little past midnight when the sound of your phone ringing woke you up.

"Changgu?" You answered the phone, not expecting this call

"Hey, sugar!" his tone was cheerful "I just left our last schedule, I'll be there in 10."

"What do you mean, Changgu? It's late, you need to rest!" You protested, genuinely concerned for his well-being.

"You better be ready when I arrive." You could hear the smirk in his voice before he hung up.

10 minutes later and you were properly dressed, hiding your face with a bucket hat and a mask. As soon as his car parked, you wasted no time getting in and releasing yourself from your disguise. Changgu drove off smoothly.

"Hello" you said shyly.

"Hey, sugar" he stole a glance "you look stunning as always"

"You look yourself" you replied "what's up with the sudden call? I thought you would be tired of working so late."

"Nah" His hand sneaked to your thigh, squeezing gently, and you thought he never looked so cool before. "I will always have time for my girl"

You giggled quietly, a little surprised at the sudden possessive pronoun. It makes you feel special, you are his.

You drove off of the city, taking a highway, just quietly enjoying the wind coming from the opened windows and the song quietly serenading you. You didn't bother asking where he was taking you, you trusted him completely, and knowing that it was a place more secluded like that was a nice bonus.

You finally arrived at the top of a hill where the hill offered a beautiful view of the city with all the privacy you two need.

"Wait just a second" he pecked your lips quickly and left the car after grabbing something from the backseat.

you watched him open a big cozy blanket he took out of a picnic basket on the ground and place candles carefully, lighting them up to create a romantic atmosphere for you two.

"You can come now" he opened the car door for you, reaching his hand, which you gladly took.

The date was the calm and peace you needed. You had pizza and drank wine, and now you were just quietly sitting with your back against his chest, basking in his presence.

"I'm sorry we can't have many dates, y/n," he said "I know you miss it.'

"I do" you admitted defeat. "But I understand, we've both been so busy. I just miss being your girlfriend, that's all."

He planted delicate kisses here and there, at the top of your head, neck, and shoulders.

"I'll make it up for you, sugar." He whispered in your ear, his warm breath ticklish against your skin.

You look at him, who had the most charming smile across his lips, and suddenly all you wanted was to feel it against your own. You turned to face him and hooked your hand around his neck, gently pulling him closer.

He kissed you slowly and sensually, exploring every inch of your mouth. You breathed in his scent and felt glad to be in his arms, having the privilege of being the one he kisses this passionately. You relaxed your body and laid with your back on the blanket, pulling him together so he stayed on top of you, not breaking the contact for one second.

You kissed him and kissed him, and really kissed him. You could never get tired of his touches. The way his hands caressed your sides, your arms, your cheeks, your hair His chest flushed against yours, and your whole bodies together, connected like it was meant to be. But the more you had him, the more you wanted him

"Changgu" you called him in between kisses "I want you"

"You have me, y/n" he looked deeply into your eyes, breath already heavy.

"No." You replied "I want you."

"Oh" he looked surprised "y/n, are you sure? I mean, we've never gone past this point, and don't you think it's too soon? I don't want you to feel pressured or…"

You lingered a peck in his lips to stop him.

"I don't think I can wait anymore, Changgu, I want you so bad."

As you pulled him for another kiss, you took the opportunity to remove his jacket. He started kissing you harder, touches now more desperate like he allowed himself to do as he pleased freely, not holding back or planning to stop any time soon. Your hands explored inside his shirt, grazing your nails along the lines of his toned chest and abs.

You two sat up for you to take his shirt off, but this time when lying down, you decided to be on top. You straddled him, and one of his hands grabbed behind your neck, intertwining fingers in your hair and tugging in to guide the kiss, while the other went to your thigh, squeezing its way up your dress.

He, then, grabbed your ass and guided you to grind against the growing bulge in his jeans. He never touched you like that, and feeling in his actions how much he wanted you only got you fueled. His gasps and small sounds that you wouldn’t quite catch if you weren’t this close to him.

Both of his hands went to your ass before climbing up and taking your dress out of you, leaving you wearing only your underwear. He looked at you in awe, admiring every curve of yours and caressing it gently, like he was engraving your body in his fingertips.

“y/n” he called you again, but already had your full attention “are you sure that’s what you want? You already said you miss being my girlfriend, and after this things might change between us. And if we don’t have time to meet up again so soon, I don’t want you to feel that way when things get more serious.”

“I don’t need any labels to know what I want, Changgu.” you simply answered “and I don’t think I can go back in this. All I want is for you to have me. All of me. We can worry about what that means later.”

“Okay, then” he nodded and firmly kissed you again.

You reached your hand in between you two and dared to go inside his pants after u. You felt his hard member against your palm and risked a light squeezed, which earned a hiss out of him, and a small curse to drop from his lips.

“Is this good?” you asked

“Fuck, yes” he muttered under his breath “just move slowly, please”

You followed his command, carefully watching his reactions to see if you were doing correctly. You moved your hand up and down, flicking our wrist the slightest, just wanting to make him feel good. To return the pleasure, Changgu cupped your breasts, his big hands massaging it in its whole, pinching your nipples through your lacy bra, the jolts of pleasure running through your whole body as he knew exactly where you liked to be touched, and the wetness pooling in between your legs helped his case.

“I need more, Changgu” you pleaded, lewd voice almost out of control. “Did you bring a condom?”

He nodded and dig a hand in his pocket.

You backed away and watched as he opened the wrapping and unrolled it around his dick after discarding his lasts pieces of clothing as you did to yours. ‘This is it’, you thought to yourself ‘no going back now.’.

He held your hips and aligned it with his’. He gave you a small reassurance nod and eased him into you. He was big, so you stood still for a few seconds, adjusting to his size with eyes close. You felt his gentle hand caress your face and whisper how good you were taking.

When the stinging pain from being stretched eased, you started rocking your hips. He guided your hips again in a slow movement, you two enjoying the sensation of being the closest you’ve ever been. You leaned down to kiss him again, nibbling his plush bottom lip sensually.

He jerked his hips up to meet yours and hit just the right spot that made you let out a loud moan involuntarily, leaning back up and throwing your head back in pleasure. You rested your hands on his strong pecs, balancing yourself to thrust against him harder.

“You look so beautiful, sugar” his voice came out breathy, which only made him sound sexier to you.

The pleasure was building up and your legs started shaking, the effort in your thighs also getting too much, all caused you to slow down. Changgu, always so thoughtful and attentive, sat up and held you close for a deep kiss.

“Lay down, baby” he whispered in your ear “let me make it good for you.”

With his hand supporting your back, he laid you down gently and positioned himself on top of you, not wasting any time in pushing himself into you again.

He thrust faster this time, a few strands of hair sticking to his sweaty forehead, and he never broke eye contact, watching your every move like he was hypnotized, and you felt just the same, not being able to take his eyes out of his intense gaze. You embraced him, and it was the best feeling to have his whole body flushed against yours, skin to skin warmness in the chilly evening. It all felt straight out of a dream.

He adjusted the angle for him, and now he was hitting just the right spot inside of you, your mouth hanging open with just incoherent sounds leaving it, seemingly something close to Changgu’s name.

“I’m gonna…” you managed to put these words together and Changgu understood it really quickly.

“Let go, Sugar, let me see how good you feel.”

You reached your hand and massaged your clit just to intensify your climax, and you allowed yourself to call his name like a prayer. Your walls tightened around him, and your noises drove him to his edge. He grunted and kissed you sloppily, riding off both of your orgasms.

He collapsed by your side, chest rising up and down fast, tied the condom, and tossed it aside before pulling you in to lay on his chest. His arm wrapped around you, holding you securely against him and his hand caressed along your spine while your fingers followed the muscle lines on his stomach.

“That was amazing,” he said and kissed the top of your head “You’re always amazing.”

You looked up and kissed his lips.

“You’re not so bad yourself, mister” you smirked. “I’m glad I did this with you.”

“Me too” he answered and kissed you passionately like you knew only he could do it.

The drive back was quiet, both of you dreading to get back to real life, but enjoying each other nevertheless. He was more touchy than before like he just couldn’t just keep his hands to himself anymore now that he knew he could touch you however he wanted.

He parked in the alley next to your dorm, even though the streets were empty this late at night, but better safe than sorry.

“So, I guess that’s it” He sighed, turning to face you and cup your cheek, thumb gently stroking your face

“I guess” you smile half-heartedly “We have a schedule together tomorrow, though.”

“We do. See you tomorrow, then?”

“See you tomorrow, stranger.”

#ksmutclub #yeo one smut #changgu smut #pentagon smut #song fic #pentagon yeo one #pentagon changgu #yeo one x reader #changgu x reader #pentagon scenarios #pentagon imagine #pentagon fanfic #pentagon kpop #kpop imagine #kpop scenario #kpop smut #kpop fanfiction

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hubbytaeil · 4 years ago

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Hello, can I request Jaehyun + 10 + 26 + romance, thank you!!

Jaehyun + #10 Bring your pretty little butt over here & #26 It’s okay, I couldn’t sleep anyway

genre: romance

word count: +1500

soundtrack: come thru - summer walker (ft. usher)

[prompts for requests]

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

I should've known better Can't even pretend like I don't want it again On the brain all the time Thinkin' of all the things that we did

2:15 AM

What is it about Jaehyun that has you waiting for him in the middle of the night in the parking lot of your local convenience store? You have no clue.

It’s okay, I couldn’t sleep anyway was the answer to his invite to hang out. Your friends are going to have a lot to say on the matter in the morning. Especially Jungwoo, who just hours prior had texted you ‘Good night and don’t do anything stupid.’

When Jaehyun pulls over, your heart stops and all you can think is ‘Why the hell did I agree to this?’. But you know very well the reason. Because you like him, you idiot, you say to yourself. You have tried pushing yourself to ignore your feelings, to pretend that his presence didn’t leave you short of breath; even so Jaehyun surely didn’t help in the process. Certainly, he’s not helping right now, as you’re taking place in the passenger seat, with your heart in your throat, and the speakers are playing your favourite Biggie song. You convince yourself that’s just a coincidence and that he possibly couldn’t remember you telling him that.

“Sounds familiar?” Jaehyun jokes, looking at you for reassurance. “Yeah, kind of.” you answer smiling, shrugging your shoulders and trying your best to veil your nervousness. “Good, I was afraid I was going to look like a fool. I have a terrible memory.” You chuckle at his statement, wondering if that means something more. Something along the lines of I remembered because I think you’re special.

You did somethin' 'Cause shit like this don't happen too often It's the way you put it down I don't want no one else around

You drive into the night, with no concrete destination. You chit chat about silly nothings like you always do. Jaehyun is driving therefore you have the excuse to look shamelessly at him for a while. You’re most certainly enjoying the view. His hair is messy since he keeps touching it to make it fall in a more comfortable angle for him to see the road. His hands are posed elegantly on the steering wheel and his movements are neat and expert-like. “What are you looking at, sweetie?” Jaehyun questions with a slight smirk when he stops at a red light. You’re caught red-handed, thankfully the city lights are not enough for him to see you turn into a ball of embarrassment. “Nothing, I-… I was noticing how you’re really good at driving.” Jaehyun hums at the compliment, he must hear them all the time, you think. Staying like this with him is nice, but you’re dying to understand why he called you. Jaehyun must have so many girls waiting for him to text back, why you? You only met him a few months ago when Jungwoo had convinced you to come with him to some birthday party. And there he was, in all his glory. You never would’ve thought you would’ve ended talking to him, maybe because you had drunk your share of liquid courage.

Got me takin' a step on the wild side Cuttin' all ties With them other guys Way you, way you look in my eyes Lovin' me nice and slow

‘Y/n, he’s not your type, don’t get your hopes up’ was what all your friends had told you about him, nothing more. As a consequence, in your mind you were prepared for the moment when Jaehyun would’ve gotten tired of you and your sporadic encounters.

As the car stops, you’re back in the real world. Needless to say, the location is a bit odd. “Okay, why exactly are we at a bowling alley?” “To play, you silly.” Jaehyun says, mocking you with his self-assured smile. You can’t help but smile back as you attempt to open the car door. “No, wait!” Jaehyun almost shouts making you freeze. The shock doesn’t allow you to form any words, and you’re even more confused when he hurries out of the car. “You’ve never gone out with a gentleman, I suppose.” Jaehyun affirms, opening the door for you. His words hit you like a punch, more for the expectancy of it all then for the hint of truth in them. No, no one has ever opened the door for you or helped you sit down at a table, but you don’t want to give him the satisfaction he’s looking for. “When did shouting in people’s faces become gentlemanly exactly?” you fire back, giving yourself a mental high five. You get out of the vehicle and you find yourself facing a dumbstruck Jaehyun who clearly didn’t expect such an answer for you. Quickly, his puzzled expression is replaced by an even brighter smile. “I’m sorry.” Jaehyun releases a low chuckle you reckon you could melt right there in front of him. You both make your way to the entrance of the bowling alley, unanticipatedly you perceive Jaehyun’s arm welcoming you closer to him. It’s unexpected and it leaves your mind blank. Jaehyun catches your awkwardness and decides to deal with it in his own way. Swiftly, he drags your arm on his back. At this point you can’t help but look at him. “Much better.” Jaehyun mumbles.

You make me wanna come through Quarter after two Just to put it down on you You make me wanna replay All of those things That you and me, we do

You’ve just learned something new about your midnight chaperon during your game. He’s extremely competitive. You see it in the way he’s glaring playfully at you after you’ve scored your third strike in a row. “Something wrong, loser?” you accentuate the last word purposely and it strikes something in him. You see him biting the inside of his cheek as he makes his way to you but then stops midway. “Bring your pretty little butt over here. “He almost growls. “I’m not taking my pretty little butt anywhere, mister.” you assert, swinging your index finger left and right. Your attitude sends him over the edge. Within seconds Jaehyun lifts you up, leaving you hanging mid-air awkwardly. “Put me down, Jae!” “Absolutely not.” he whispers in your ear. You start laughing hysterically when he finally puts you just to tickle you mercilessly. You tell him that the owners are staring but he doesn’t care in the least. After he’s done teasing you, he stops and stares at you for way too long. “Do I have something on my face?” Jaehyun doesn’t give you an answer, instead he brushes his thumb softly over your bottom lip. “Let’s get out of here.”

I told you, I'ma take you places I seen it in your face And I knew that you would say this, so how you wanna play this?

4:38 AM

“Aren’t you tired, y/n?” “No, I’m not tired at all Jae.” you curse at yourself mentally for answering too quickly; you don’t want him to think that he has you hanging from his fingertips. Yet, it is clear that he does. Now you are leaning against the bonnet side by side. His arm is back on his spot, around your shoulders and it feels like your own personal shield. You haven’t spoken in a while, nevertheless you feel at ease. You think just how everyone was wrong about Jaehyun, all the while letting your head rest against him. You’re close enough to make sense of his breathing pattern which becomes the only sound you’re interested in hearing. “You’re nice to be around, y/n.” you drink up those words like your last sip of water on this Earth. “That’s sweet.” you’re afraid you’re sounding phony and you regret it soon afterwards. It’s remarkable how Jaehyun has you overthinking ever single word that comes out of your mouth. “No, I mean...” Jaehyun begins, standing up and positioning himself in front of you. “I mean, I want you around.” Your eyes widen, wondering if you’re hearing this correctly. “You want me around?” “Yeah, I want to cook you breakfast, I want to take you on dates, I want to buy you flowers. You know... all that cute shit.” Jaehyun blurts out, kicking a small rock on the concrete. You snicker at his word choice. “I want to a lot of cute shit with you too.” “Really?” You nod and you notice how excited he becomes after realises his feelings are mutual. He’s beaming hard enough for his cheeks to hurt. When he gets over himself, he leans in slowly so that both of your faces are aligned. “Well then, I think we need start somewhere.” Jaehyun murmurs, looking at your lips with hooded eyes. “Like where?” you get even closer, his breathing caressing your nose. “Maybe... here.” he pecks at your right cheek ever so softly. “Or maybe here.” moving on to the left one. Then he aims for the corner of your mouth, making you shiver. “What about... here?” are his last words before finally connecting your eager lips. His hands reach for the back of your head, not willing to let you slip away anytime soon. You reciprocate the kiss just as passionately as he does, resting your own hand in the small of his back. Every movement of his mouth on your knocks the air out of your lungs. It’s everything you had ever dreamt about. Interrupting the kiss is hard for you both of you, as you look at each smiling.. “I should take you home.” he affirms but he doesn’t mean it. “I think I’m fine right here.” you mutter, playing with one of the strings of his hoodie. “Good.” Jaehyun hums in your ear before attacking your lips once again. This time you know it’ll take a while to stop again.

#jaehyun au #jaehyun fluff #jaehyun scenarios #jaehyun imagine #jaehyun drabbles #jaehyun fic #request #nct au #nct scenarios #nct imagines #nct 127 scenarios #nct 127 imagines #nct dream imagines #nct dream au #wayv imagines #wayv scenarios #jung jaehyun

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lauwrite1225 · 4 years ago

Text

Somebody to die for.

Finan x OC; The Old Guard inspired Alternative Universe

Summary : Victoria's life is rather simple until she has a car accident from which she ends up miraculously unscathed. A series of weird events animates her daily life, everything seemingly bringing her to a strange man. Until this very man knocks at her door.

Spotify Playlist • Masterlist

A/N : It's Finan Friday again!!! I have nothing to say beside, enjoy ;)

Warnings : fluff ;) and mention of death (you missed it don't you?)

Chapter 9 : And all the chaos crystallised, when you and I, supercollide

Vicky can’t stop thinking about what happened that night before they parted to sleep. The way she felt attracted by him, her heart fluttering when he cupped her cheek delicately with his calloused hand. At first, she feels a rise of blush on her cheek each time she crosses his eyes but Finan keeps acting as usual with her. He smirks, jokes and makes her no gifts during training. Though, at the end of the day, when he sits next to her to remove his shoes like last night, she wonders if he’s going to try something again.

“Tomorrow I’ll teach you how to use a gun.” He says, tossing his shoes away in the room and straightening to look her in the eyes. “Is that alright for ya?”

It takes her a moment to answer yes, waiting to see if he’d come closer but he doesn’t and simply smiles before laying on the mattress, wishing her a goodnight. And as she crawls in her bed, she can’t help the disappointment to rise. When she closes her eyes, it’s last night's event that plays over and over again in her mind, and each time she realizes how much she really did want to kiss him. The thought lets her sleepless, wondering how and why she feels so attracted to him. Finan is so different from every man she has ever dated before, standing tall with broad shoulders. But he has this childish expression when he smiles so unmatching the dark beard covering his jaw and cheeks making him endearing. His body is covered by old scars of the battles he fought before he died but during the past days, she has discovered that the wounds in his heart were far from healed. And maybe it’s what she likes about him, the way he opened himself to her and how she understood he could truly understand all the pain she’s going through.

Her heart swoons as she thinks about the promise he made her last night. As foolish and impossible to hold as it was, it’s terribly tempting to believe he could prevent her from suffering. And she finally falls asleep, a tired smile gracing her lips.

The next morning, when she walks outside for her training, Finan has settled cans on an old stoned wall falling into ruins. She joins him as he puts a small bullet in the opened rifle.

“It looks like those they have in carnivals.” She notices when he locks the rifle in a swift movement.

He grins, giving her the weapon. “It’s because it is.” The arm feels so heavy in her hands, she wonders how she’ll succeed to shoot with it. “It’s better to start.”

He steps behind her and starts to explain to her how to correctly aim by aligning the front and rear sight. She does as he asks and tries to shoot one of the cans. Obviously it’s a failure and soon after she pulls the trigger she hears the bullet ricochet on a stone as she stumbles at the force reflection of the rifle in her shoulder that she didn’t expect. Not discouraged, she accepts the new bullet Finan hands her and tries again. But after a few other failed attempts, she lets out a long frustrated sigh.

“It’s just concentration.” Osferth tells her as he watches from a bench in front of the house.

“If I have to concentrate for ten minutes to not miss a target it’s not going to be really useful.” She replies annoyed, putting another bullet in the barrel.

She positions herself again but before she starts to concentrate, she feels Finan close behind her. “Let me help ya.” He says softly as he puts his large hands over hers that she never realized being so small in comparison.

She tries to stay focused on the can in front but she can’t help but be too much aware of his chest against her back and his breath brushing her cheek as he levels his head to hers. She slows her breathing as Finan adjusts her position until her eyes, the two sights and the can are perfectly aligned.

“Now pull.” He whispers and she immediately obeys.

She lets out a small huff of joy when the metallic sound of the beer can being perforated resound in the forest. “I succeeded.” She exhales the air she didn’t realise she was holding back.

She turns her head to smile proudly at him and their noses briefly touch. She bites the inside of her bottom lip when she notices how his eyes stare down at her mouth almost eagerly. But when Osferth claps his hands to congratulate he moves away, leaving her a second time with red cheeks.

The rest of her training she succeeds to shoot other cans but she doesn’t feel like rejoicing as a deep frustration grows in her chest. When Sophie comes later, she tries to distract herself by questioning her about Osferth and her while she helps her prepare a quiche for the dinner.

“He was coming regularly to the supermarket and somehow he was always coming to my register. One day I wrote my number on the receipt but this idiot doesn’t have a phone, so he waited outside with flowers until I was finished to tell me he couldn’t text me.” She explains with a fond smile.

“That’s so sweet.” Vicky smiles, cutting the cheese in small cubes.

Sophie nods, breaking an egg in a bowl. “And you? Did you have anyone before leaving?”

“Oh no, I was as free as the wind, and still am in fact.” She chuckles as she gathers the cheese and places it on the dough.

Sophie is weirdly silent and when she looks up, she’s in fact staring at her with narrowed eyes with a small smirk dancing on her lips. “Finan and you seem close.” She says, focusing on her eggs again.

Vicky pauses for a brief instant, pinching her lips. “It’s just that we’ve been through a lot together those days. It builds friendships.” She replies to try to prevent the conversation from taking a direction she isn’t feeling comfortable with.

“Did he tell you why he left the others?” Sophie asks, not ready to give up, which reminds Victoria of Rebecca.

“He did.”

“So he told you of his wife?” Vicky nods slowly, her heart squeezing at the memory of his despair when he talked about her. “Osferth asked him about her, how their life was together, but he just avoided the subject. She’s obviously long gone now, but Osferth is sure it ended more badly than Finan pretends.” The english woman averts her eyes, knowing the truth. “He told you, didn’t he?”

“Yes.” Victoria admits while Sophie now pours milk in the bowl.

“See? He trusts you.” She half smirks at her.

During the dinner, between laughter, she catches Finan staring at her but each time, when she tries to stare back, he looks away. The game is as entertaining as annoying but mostly, she doesn’t understand why he keeps playing with her. That night in the darkness, she was at his complete mercy, this morning during her training too, and yet, each time he didn’t go further. So, when she sees him going outside after dinner, she decides to follow him.

“What are you nervous about now?” She interrogates him as he searches for something in the car, knowing perfectly well it’s in fact his pack of cigarettes.

He turns around, raising a surprised eyebrow at her. “What are ya doin’ outside in the night? I thought wild animals were scarin’ ya.” He teases her to change the subject.

But, thinking back to her earlier conversation with Sophie, Victoria is determined to know what she is for him. She walks toward him until only a step separates them, Finan having to bow his head to look her in the eyes. “Sophie told me you refused to talk about your wife to Osferth.” She starts and ignores his eye roll. “Why did you talk about her to me? You could just have avoided this part.”

His fingers drum nervously against his thigh as he sighs. “I don’t know, I just felt comfortable telling you.” He shrugs and she can hear the uneasiness of his voice and his desire to change the topic quickly.

But Vicky isn’t about to let go. “But Osferth is your friend.” She replies, tilting her head.

“I thought we were friends too.”

She wonders if he meant his tone to be so dry but it undeniably settled a tension between them, the air seeming suddenly thicker between them. She makes a step and stretches a hand towards Finan’s cheek to prevent him from looking away. She holds his gaze no matter how heavy on her it is, a warmth growing in his brown pupils provoking the one in her belly. He slowly leans forward as her thumb brushes his beard, making him close his eyelids when his nose lightly touches hers. The way their heavy breaths start to mix is bewitching, her heart beating at an uncontrollable pace, but Finan keeps resisting.

“You want to kiss me, don’t you?” He opens his eyes. Now she can see the flicker of fear in them, the one that is holding him back and she finally understands. “I’m not going to disappear, Finan.” She whispers, her hand sliding in his unruled hair.

“I know.” He breathes and his palm settles hesitantly on her waist. “But you’re forever Vicky and I don’t want to mess it up.”

She acknowledges that it is scaring her as well, that in their situation acting foolishly could hardly be forgotten. But somehow, Vicky feels confident. Maybe it wasn't a coincidence that she's been dreaming of him first and that he was the one to come to knock at her door. Maybe it was already written.

Her fingers curl in his hair and she draws him closer. “We won't.”

And then his lips collide with hers, making her whine as a shiver runs down her spine. She closes her eyes, relishing at the feeling of his beard scratching her skin softly and the way their lips seem to dance in perfect coordination. Finan grips her hips to switch their positions, pushing her against the car while groaning. His mouth is hot and eager as he keeps kissing her until they are both out of breath.

She rests the back of her head against the car's window, Finan's body pressed against her as he buries his face in her neck, her fingers lightly grazing over the back of his neck. This instant seems out of time and out of space, nothing able to break it, as the only thing that matters is his breath caressing her skin, his thumb drawing a circle on her hip and the weight and warmth of him against her. Finan moves slowly, kissing her neck and jaw with a softness utterly different from the kiss they shared until he meets her eyes. He puts a strand of her blonde hair back behind her ear before letting his thumb draw the line of her red and now swollen lips. She grabs his wrist and pushes it away to reach for his mouth, already addicted to the feel of it against hers. When they parted for the second time, Finan dares this time to speak.

“Let's go back inside, it's freezing.” He whispers.

She wants to reply that she has never felt warmer than right now, stuck between him and a car, but the words fade in her throat and she simply follows him inside. Osferth and Sophie have already left to their own bedroom when they walk inside, though, it's not completely dark, a fire creaking in the old fireplace with the wood the two warriors have been cutting during the afternoon. She sits on the floor just in front, appreciating the heat of the flames, stretching her hands to warm them.

“Have you been holding back for long?” She asks when he sits beside her.

He chuckles lightly, staring at the flames while she can't look away from the orange light dancing on his face, making his pupils turn into amber. “I could have kissed ya in my dreams if it was possible.” He turns his head, smiling fondly. “But it feels better than a dream.”

She giggles, shaking her head. “You're such a flirt.” She teases him but it only makes him grin even more.

“I had a few years to train.”

“Old man.” She calls him, satisfied by his raised eyebrows and opened mouth as he pretends to be offended.

She laughs at him before leaning forward to kiss his expression away, her hand curving on his shoulder. She likes the way his growl vibrates on her lips as she settles on his lap, his arm wrapping around her waist to hold her closer.

It's late when they finally crawl to bed, Finan laying by her side. They have been sleeping in the same room or car for a few days now and she was already finding his presence near her reassuring. But there's something utterly more intimate and comfortable as his arms embrace her while she rests her head against his shoulder.

When she wakes up abruptly, the flames have faded and Finan isn't by her side anymore. Her breath is erratic and her body shaking. Her mind is still confused but she knows what it means, she dreamt of another death. It takes her a moment to remember what happened. It's the same forest and protagonists, but this time she was staring at Sihtric until an arrow hit him in the middle of his chest, the pain sharp and overwhelming.

Once she's calmed, she hears the noise from the kitchen and decides to see who's there. She feels relieved to see Finan, leaning over the sink while he washes some dishes. He doesn't notice her until she hugs him from behind, her ear pressed against his back to listen to the sound of his heartbeats. He turns around to face her, keeping his wet hands away from her.

“Good mornin' to ya too.” He greets her, grabbing a rag to dry his hands.

She simply hums against his chest, holding his waist tighter. “I dreamt of Sihtric.” She says after a moment, moving away from him.

Finan frowns, his hands gripping the counter. “His death?” She nods slowly and he can't prevent the smile from stretching his lips. “Then, we will be able to find him soon.”

Since they have found Osferth again, he is less reluctant at the idea of finding his last old friend, even if he told her he doubts the Dane to be as welcoming as the monk. But he hopes that water will flow under bridges and that they'll forget past resentment.

“We need to warn him too.” She says, stepping closer again.

“Warn who?”

Osferth's sleepy voice makes Victoria immediately step back to let a decent distance between Finan and her. But he doesn't seem to notice their sudden uncomfort as he sits at the table and pours coffee in a cup resting on it. When none of them have yet answered, he raises an eyebrow.

Finan clears his throat, walking away from Vicky. “She dreamt of Sihtric this night. We will be able to find him soon.”

The blonde looks at them with wide eyes. “You're going to leave?”

The Irishman hesitates, his hands clenching around the back of a chair. “Not now.” He stares at Vicky who he knows probably has the same idea in mind. “She needs a few nights to gather enough information, and we'll have to do research.”

Osferth nods, looking quite sad as he puts a sugar in his coffee. Vicky sits in front of him, lowering her head to catch his eyes. “Will you come with us?”

He shakes his head. “No, I have Sophie here.” He answers, staring at Finan, knowing he would be able to understand his choice.

“We'll come back, anyway.” Finan promises, patting his shoulder amicably. “I'm starting to like the place.”

“It's safe here.” Vicky adds with a small smile and Osferth can only nod at it.

“Good, because I would miss you two otherwise.”

Tag : @for-bebbanburg @osferth @maggiescarborough @finansarms @dumbledoreisnotmyhubby @solinarimoon

#the last kingdom #finan #finan the agile #tlk #fanfiction #finanxoc #somebody to die for #the old guard

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fanfic-corner · 4 years ago

Text

Wrapped In Red

Merry Christmas, @masterofevilmonkeyness! I’ve really enjoyed writing your secret santa for @destielsecretsanta2020 this year, and it has actually ended up being the longest fic I have ever written!

First of all, here’s the playlist. My friend found some perfect songs for the different scenes, and we had a lot of fun trying to find songs with specific vibes!

Without further ado, here’s the fic. And, if you’d prefer, the link to it on AO3.

{o0o}

“So you’ll do it?” his brother’s voice crackles though Dean’s cracked phone, and he sighs. So yeah, maybe he hasn’t been on a case in a while and has been going slowly insane just hanging around the bunker, but he also doesn’t want to leave Cas alone. Since his grace had faded completely a few days ago, the former angel had hardly left his room, and Dean wasn’t sure what he could do to help.

He rubs his forehead, already feeling a headache coming on simply from this conversation, and replies, “I’ll ask Cas.”

“Okay, text me if you’re going,” Sam responds, the phone making the muffled noises that Dean has learnt means that he is holding his phone on his shoulder, freeing his hands to talk to Eileen.

“Stop worrying, anyway,” Dean tells him, cracking his back as he stands up. “You’re on holiday. Leave the cases for a while, and I’ll see you in a few weeks.”

“Alright, jerk.”

“Bitch.”

Dean slips his phone into his back pocket and wanders down the hallway, so engrossed in his plan to invest in some thick socks because the bunker floor is freezing that he nearly walks straight into Cas. His dark hair sticks up in every direction and he is wearing an old Zeppelin shirt of Dean’s and a pair of Sam’s sweatpants, which look like they are being held up by some kind of miracle. Paired with the bags under his eyes which are so dark that Dean mistakes them for bruises, he could be mistaken for a ghost.

“Hey, uh,” Dean stutters, not sure what to say. “Sam has a case that I was thinking of going on, but we don’t have to, we can just pass it on to Garth or-”

“I’ll go with you,” Cas interrupts, his voice hoarse and croaky.

Dean raises an eyebrow. “Are you sure? You don’t look...great. No offense.”

“I’m fine, Dean.” Cas’ steely blue eyes had always been able to pull off a frighteningly good stare, and Dean just decides to go along with it. It would do them both good to get out of the bunker, in any case.

“Okay,” he agrees, “shall we go in about an hour? That’ll give me enough time to pack for both of us and you enough time to have a shower.”

Cas nods, and they part ways, Dean watching the angel hoist his borrowed pants up and disappear around the corner before shaking his head and fishing his phone out to text Sam.

We’ll take it. Send me the details, setting off in an hour.

{o0o}

Dean had tried his very best to hold a conversation when they set off on the fourteen hour drive, but he had long given up and they were only at the two hour mark. Every question he asked so far had either gone unanswered or had been graced with a monosyllabic response. It was like trying to hold a conversation with a brick wall. Well, no one could fault him for trying.

Flicking his wrist out lazily, he turns on the radio without looking with the kind of graceful expertise that only comes from years of driving his baby at night. It takes a full ten seconds for him to realise that the sound of jingle bells is coming from the speakers before he groans. “Nope.”

A surprisingly warm hand shoots out to stop him before he can turn it off, and Dean looks up in surprise at Cas’ imploring face. “Please can we listen to it?”

Considering what the dude had lost recently - and the fact that apparently his puppy eyes are almost as effective as Sam’s - Dean was hardly going to deny him this one thing. He did, however, have one condition. “Okay, I’ll leave it on, but only if you fish out my Christmas mixtape from the box.”

Dean never took his eyes off the road, but he was acutely aware of the way Cas stared at him for a moment before excitedly rummaging through the old box of tapes. Eventually, he pulls it out, admiring the battered stickers and fading drawings that he and Sam had added when they made it all those years ago. Cas gently slides it in and the first few notes of Mariah Carey grace the air.

“Hell yeah,” Dean says, grinning wildly. “You, Castiel, are about to be educated in some proper Christmas music.”

By the time the mixtape finishes, they are both in a much better mood, so Dean decides it is probably a good idea to stop for a little bit to get some snacks and some gas. Frowning, Cas informs him that he needs the toilet, before disappearing towards the nasty looking bathroom. Dean can’t help but feel bad for him; as much as he loves being human, he knows it must be annoying to suddenly have the weird experience of a human body. They always seemed to hurt or need something, and he could tell that Cas found the whole thing incredibly repetitive and exasperating.

The gas station is like every other gas station Dean has ever seen; empty, with a layer of grime that seemed to cover everything and the bright lights that ensured that no matter what time of day it was, it always seemed to look the exact same. This one, however, is also covered in Christmas decorations. Glittery tinsel and rainbow paper chains swing from the ceiling, the air conditioning coaxing them into a gentle dance. Fake snow covers every surface, and flashing fairy lights force him to blink and look away.

Dean moves on autopilot, picking up snacks that Cas hasn’t tried yet and a couple of bottles of water, before reaching the counter. He has to yell to the cashier - who is decked out in a festive jumper and Santa hat - in order to be heard over the deafening Christmas music.

“Here,” she practically sings, disappearing into the back room for a second before reappearing with a ridiculous pair of reindeer antlers. “These are for you, sweetie! No charge. Cheer up, it’s Christmas!”

Dean tries to refuse the antlers, but the lady - Lucy, her name tag reads - is not taking no for an answer, so eventually he gives in, telling himself that it is just so he can leave this Christmas Hell and get back to driving. Cas is waiting for him outside, leaning on the car and watching as the first few flakes of snow start to fall.

Dean hesitates for a moment before offering the antlers to him. Cas just stares at them, his head tilted to one side. Sighing, Dean just steps closer and puts them on Cas’ head, laughing when the bells jingle as he tries to look up at them without taking them off. He slips his phone out and sneaks a picture of the bewildered former angel, hastily putting it away and bundling Cas in the car so that they can set off before the snow gets too bad.

“Why did you give me a pair of fake antlers, Dean?” Cas asks as they set off, turning them over and inspecting them in his hands. Much to Dean’s dismay, they wouldn’t fit in the car.

“Thought you liked Christmas stuff?” he replies, grinning.

“What do fabric antlers have to do with Christmas?”

And so, Dean finds himself spending the last leg of the journey attempting to explain Christmas traditions to Cas, who can’t help interrupting and pointing out the real facts, rather than Dean’s Christmas cracker knowledge. They go over Santa and his reindeers (“reindeers can’t fly, Dean”), the birth of Jesus (“I remember Balthazar telling me about that”), and mince pies (“why are they sweet? Mince isn’t supposed to be sweet.”). By the time they arrive Dean is so eager to escape the onslaught of questions that he doesn’t know the answer to, he hits someone with the car door as he gets out.

The actual reason that they have driven into the middle of absolutely nowhere dangerously close to Christmas is because a couple had gone missing last week and hadn’t been seen since. Usually, they would assume that this case wasn’t their kind of thing, but Sam had been asked to check it out by another hunter who knew them (and who apparently had some beef with a ton of shapeshifters), and so here they are..

Dean suggests that FBI agents might be a bit too suspicious for a small town in the middle of nowhere, so instead he and Cas decide to pretend that they are just family visiting them for the weekend. They knock on next door under the pretense of asking for the spare key, and are greeted by possibly the grumpiest people Dean has ever met.

“Fine,” the lady snaps, the half of her face visible from behind the door frowning at them in disgust before turning back into the house. “Harold, get the spare key for next door!”

“Do you happen to know where they have gone?” Dean asks politely, the pleasant smile on his face starting to ache.

“No.”

Cas raises his eyebrows at Dean, before he tries. “When was the last time you saw them?”

The woman huffs impatiently. “Probably when they went to that stupid office Christmas party. We could hear the music from here. It was so inconsiderate.”

“Oh,” Dean replies, sharing a look with Cas. “Where was this party?”

The door opens fully, a man appearing behind the lady - Harold, Dean assumes - who hands the key over to them. “It was those blasted Mitchells.” He turns to his wife, his bushy eyebrows raised. “Did you hear that they are throwing another goddamn party tomorrow, Ann?”

“Thanks for all your help,” Dean interrupts before they can get too carried away.

“Merry Christmas!” Cas adds, already backing away.

They speedwalk back across the victims’ house, making sure that the neighbours’ door is shut before they completely break down laughing. Dean can barely open the door, but when he finally manages to correctly align the key in the lock, they both tumble into the front room, shaking uncontrollably.

Dean collapses next to the couch, sliding to the floor. He takes a couple of deep breaths before managing to speak. “Sounds like we’re going to your first Christmas party, Cas.”

{o0o}

After making their way through most of the people in the town, two things have been made very clear. First of all, the last anyone had seen of the victims - Adam and Amelia Knapp - was at their office Christmas party. Which nearly everyone in the town had been at, and yet no one knew anything remotely helpful. Secondly, there was another Christmas party being held tomorrow night by the somewhat popular Mitchell family, and the chances of their mystery monster striking were high, in Dean’s opinion.

The most logical course of action would be for Dean and Cas to pretend to be guests at the party, so they could stop their creature before anyone else went missing and then they could disappear back home in time for Christmas. However, Dean had found that nothing in his life could ever be that simple, so instead he found himself standing in front of a wide array of hats, trying to wrestle a fez away from a former angel of the Lord.

Because of course it had to be a costume party, and just as the icing on the cake, it had to be a couples only costume party.

“Dude,” Dean says, finally managing to wrench the fez from Cas’ iron grip, “if we’re wearing hats, at least try a good hat.”

Dean plops an example on Cas’ head, laughing as it slips over his eyes. “These aren’t Christmassy, Dean.”

“Sure they are,” Dean says, grabbing a hat more in Cas’ size and a matching one for him. He strolls over to the till, grabbing a couple more things on the way. “You’ll see.”

Since they have a few hours to kill before the actual party, Dean decides that they can waste some of the day doing some Christmas shopping, especially after he finds out that Cas hasn’t got any presents yet. He drives them to a nearby mall, throws Cas a handful of notes and his antlers, and gives him strict instructions to buy some presents and then meet Dean in the food court in an hour.

“Why can’t we do it together?” Cas asks, and Dean could swear he was pouting.

“Because the presents are supposed to be a surprise,” he explains, shooing Cas away with his hands. “Look, I’ll see you in an hour, and if you need anything you can just call me, ‘kay?”

Cas nods and meanders off, disappearing into the crowd without further complaint.

It is nearly ten minutes later, while he is rummaging through some shirts in an attempt to find one in Sam’s size, when Dean realises that this is the first time that Cas has been alone since he lost his grace. A sudden jolt of panic rushes through him, and he has to force himself to take a deep breath.

Castiel was older than humanity. He had led armies of angels. He had fought against demons and archangels and every monster under the sun. He could handle buying a few Christmas presents.

But, at the same time, Dean can’t help but worry. The dude has questionable social skills at best, and he is still trying to get to grips with his brand new human body. He often has to be reminded to eat or drink water or sleep, and there were several embarrassing occasions in the beginning where he had forgotten entirely.

Dean’s hand itches, his fingers curling towards his back pocket, but he resists the urge to call and check up on Cas. He doesn’t need a babysitter. He tells himself that he should just get his presents for people and then he can meet back up with Cas as soon as possible.

The mall is packed, the usual last rush as people get the last few things they need for Christmas. Conversations and the sound of toddlers crying fight to be heard over the echoing music, festive music adding to the deafening noise. While dodging people, making his way to their meeting place, Dean tries to remember the last time he was in a mall. Certainly not recently - he thinks it may be some time before he met Cas - and he definitely doesn’t remember them making him feel this claustrophobic. The sea of people pushing against him makes him want to throw up, and he finds himself having to duck into the nearest shop to avoid the crowd, shutting his eyes and leaning heavily against a railing.

“Dean?” a deep, familiar voice asks him, concerned. “Are you alright?”

Dean cracks one eye open, laughing when he realises what shop he found Cas in. He knew he should never have introduced him to Hot Topic. “I’m fine, Cas. Just hungry.” he deflects, standing up straight and patting his friend on the shoulder.

Cas gives him a look that says ‘I know you’re lying but I’m going to let you get away with it just this once’ and instead says, “Let me pay for this, and then we can go and get some lunch.”

Not even twenty minutes later, Dean is watching Cas eat a taco for the first time and has completely forgotten that he ever felt bad, because he is laughing too hard to care. Cas looks highly bemused at the stain on his precious trench coat, but Dean thinks that, secretly, he doesn’t mind.

{o0o}

There is no question that they are in the right place when they pull up outside the address they were given a few hours later, if the ridiculous amount of fairy lights and assorted decorations are anything to go by. They can’t help but stare at the blinding display for a moment, before Dean turns to Cas to make sure he remembers the plan. “Okay, so we go in, find our mystery monster-”

“Sam thinks it is a shapeshifter.” Cas interrupts.

“Okay, so we grab this shifter, gank it, grab some food on the way out and then drive home in time for Christmas. You remember the cover story?”

Cas rolls his eyes. “Yes, Dean. We’re the Bassons, and we’re thinking about moving here. Do I need to repeat the rest?”

“Alright then, you ready?” Dean intertwines his fingers with Cas’ - in order to keep their cover, obviously - takes a deep breath, and then opens the door.

A wave of heat rolls out from the crowded house, contrasting with the painfully cold air outside. As they step inside, Dean picks up a delicious smell wafting in from the kitchen, a mixture of turkey and cranberry sauce and mulled wine and gravy. The third thing he notices is the music blaring in from the other room, loud enough that he can feel the vibrations thrum through his body. He laughs when he realises what song it is. Space Cowboy; he couldn’t have picked a more fitting song.

After they had come home from their spontaneous shopping spree, Dean had spent an hour making the perfect couple’s costume. Considering the only supplies he had were ones he had picked up from the dollar store, he was actually pretty impressed with his handiwork. Both him and Cas were wearing their normal fed suits, however, it was the hats that really sold it. Dean had affixed - using an alarming amount of superglue - a strand of purple and blue glittery tinsel to his cowboy hat, and a set of fully functional Christmas lights to Cas’.

Cas had protested at first - “How are cowboys Christmas related, Dean?” - until he had been convinced by the hidden practicality of it: any weapons they brought with them could be written off as part of the costume. Also, cowboys are awesome. Dean has yet to find someone who can prove him wrong on that point.

Cas squeezes Dean’s hand to get his attention, nodding towards two people who appear to be the hosts of the party. The music shifts into some Christmas classic, and they make their way over so they can start ruling people off the list of suspects.

An hour later, Dean officially decides that he is never attending a Christmas party again. Luckily, they’ve only had to deal with one homophobe, who Dean ‘accidentally’ dropped a whole plate of food on, but that doesn’t mean that none of the other guests are driving him up the wall. It seems that everyone is slightly drunk apart from them, and the only reason Dean hasn’t joined in is because of the dirty looks Cas sends him every time he so much as glances towards the punch bowl.

It’s the karaoke that does him in. Cas is somewhere (Dean couldn’t tell if he genuinely needed the bathroom, or if that was his attempt at saying he was going to scout the house) and there is a woman wearing a skimpy reindeer outfit and wailing along to Last Christmas. God only knows what caused her to get on top of the table and join in while crying, but Dean suspects the answer includes lots of alcohol and the fact that the man who she had arrived with had disappeared upstairs with an elf some time earlier. Her rendition certainly isn’t going to win any awards.

With Cas not there to see, Dean manages to finish two plastic cups worth of surprisingly nice punch before he can be stopped. Considering the dude has flashing lights on his head, Cas can be remarkably sneaky when he wants to be.

“Dean, I don’t think-”

“Oh, what wonderful costumes!” a woman interrupts, and Dean forces a smile back on his aching face before he turns around to face her, just in time to see wink at him. She is wearing a green dress and is covered in baubles and tinsel, and the man standing next to her is literally wearing a massive cardboard box, wrapped to look like a present. It takes all of Dean’s self control not to laugh at the sheer ridiculousness of it.

“Thank you,” Cas says, and Dean wraps an arm around his waist in order to confirm that they are, in fact, a couple. The few times he had touched Castiel, he had been cold; it had felt like touching a corpse. As a human, Cas was like a hot water bottle, and even though the house was boiling, Dean couldn’t help but latch onto him whenever the opportunity arose.

“I’m Natasha,” the woman continued, staring at Dean in what he had to assume was her version of ‘seductive’ and completely ignoring Cas. “Oh, and this is Cole,” she adds as an afterthought.

Cole also winks at Dean. He has never felt so uncomfortable in his life, and he went to Hell. Although, he has also never had both members of a couple separately flirt with him while fake dating someone else.

“I’m Dean, and this is Cas,” he replies, pulling the former angel even closer into him. “My husband.”

“Oh,” Cole says, and Dean doesn’t think he is imagining the disappointed tone.

“Sorry,” Natasha adds, not sounding in any way apologetic. “I didn’t realise you were a couple!”

Dean didn’t think he could make it more obvious, but… if she didn’t believe them, then they might be at risk of blowing their cover. There were already at least seven people who had been avoiding them after the usual weird questions and some not quite realistic ploys to get them to touch a silver coin that they had brought with them.

“Why’s that?” he asks, and regrets the question almost as soon as it comes out of his mouth.

“For starters,” Natasha proclaimed, way too eager for this to end well. “You’ve been standing under mistletoe this whole time and haven’t kissed!”

Dean’s whole body freezes as they both look up, and sure enough, the bastard plastic plant is hanging directly over their heads.

“I didn’t realise,” Cas says, somewhat dazedly.

Dean takes a deep breath - there’s nothing they can do now, not with these nosy, weirdass people watching and waiting and expecting a kiss - and pulls Cas closer, turning to face him so their bodies are pressed together. In the dim lights, the lights on Cas’ hat make his startling blue eyes twinkle like starlight, and Dean wonders how he never saw how gorgeous he was before now. Maybe he had, and it had just been buried along with everything else.

“Dean,” Cas’ low voice rumbles, but he doesn’t finish his sentence.

Kissing a man is not so different to kissing a woman, and Dean can’t help but notice how much he likes the feeling of Cas’ chapped lips on his own. Something lights up inside him like a firework, and he realises exactly how much he wanted - no, needed this. He feels better than he has in a long time, as if a missing puzzle piece had suddenly slotted into place.

Cas pulls away first, and Dean’s mind suddenly catches up with his body. Holy shit, he just kissed Cas. He barely registers Natasha and Cole walking away, still transfixed by the fact he finds a former angel of the Lord - who is a man - devastatingly handsome.

“Dean. Dean, are you okay?” It is only the feeling of Cas’ body heat leaving him that gets him to look down, absentmindedly fixing the shorter man’s hat.

“Yeah,” Dean replies, choking on the words. “Yeah, I just gotta - I’m just gonna…”

And, like a complete and utter cowardly dick, he walks away.

{o0o}

It has been twenty minutes, so Dean can be fairly certain that Cas isn’t gonna come looking for him. Which is fine. It’s not like he was expecting him to. They only kissed to keep up the pretense, and Dean’s weird behaviour has probably ruined that anyway. It meant nothing.

The problem is that Dean can’t stop thinking about how amazing it had felt to kiss Cas. He had tasted like mulled wine and honey and the promise of a thousand lazy mornings. It had felt like flying and drowning all at once. Dean had never understood when people had described kisses as things that had nothing to do with the act, like earthquakes or lightning or fireworks, but the only way he could explain the ecstasy he had felt when their lips had touch was an act of God.

And that thought only spiraled into another: Dean had kissed an angel of the Lord. An angel. Even though Cas was human now, he still remembered the birth of existence and every word that came out of his mouth was fueled by eons of knowledge and memories and experience. He held himself with a grace that only a true warrior can execute, and to him, Dean must seem so small. How insignificant was he compared to that brilliant man?

Finally, there it is. The real issue. Castiel is a man.

It had taken some time, but Dean had taught himself, eventually, that John Winchester was a terrible parent. In fact, it was generous to call him a parent at all. It was Dean who had raised Sam, raised himself. And, even now, he couldn’t help but fall back into his old mindset, into an old version of Dean who would have done anything for his father’s approval. But, if he is being honest with himself - and, let’s be frank, it’s about time - Castiel was not the first man he had liked. He probably wasn’t even the third.

In that moment, Dean decides that he doesn’t want to be a coward any longer. If he never expected his life to be a long one, then it is all the more reason to go for what he wants now, rather than later.

Yeah, maybe he’ll lose Cas, but… the possibility of what could await him if Cas does reciprocate is far more frightening than the former angel laughing in his face.

{o0o}

Castiel considers himself very knowledgeable in Dean Winchester’s emotions. He knows exactly how long to avoid Dean after eating a slice of his pie, he knows that he can hold full conversations with just a look, and, as an example, he knows that after their kiss, Dean Winchester was panicking. Badly.

That was fine. Castiel was fine with that. It wasn’t like he had been secretly in love with a man who had repeatedly called him a brother for over ten years. Nothing like that.

Sighing, Cas gently puts his paper plate on the corner of the kitchen table, the food he had been so excited to try half an hour ago now making his stomach roll. He figured that Dean had just needed some air; he would cool down, shove all of his emotions down in true Winchester fashion, and then return and pretend that nothing ever happened. The problem wasn’t just with the fact that Cas would very much be remembering that kiss until the day he died, but that Dean had been a really long time.

Time moves differently now that he was human. As an angel, everything seemed to move so much faster. There was always something to do, the faint crackling of angel radio like a comforting background noise or a million particles to study. A blink of his eye and a century could have passed, and yet here he is, thirty minutes feeling like an eternity.

It’s by the time Cas has checked every room downstairs that he really starts to worry.

Dean is not in the kitchen stuffing his face, and he is not in the dining room drinking punch, and he is not dancing to the rather annoying upbeat song that is playing in the living room. He is not in the hallway, or on the stairs, or in the bathroom. When Cas starts asking, people give conflicting answers. A bauble saw him go upstairs, a Christmas tree could swear he was in the kitchen, an elf insists that he went outside.

Since it is the only place he hasn’t checked, Cas heads outside. There, on the floor, is Dean’s stupid hat, the tinsel loose on one side, dangling pathetically into a puddle of melted snow.

Cas immediately calls Sam, who picks up surprisingly quickly. “Cas? What’s up?”

“ImighthavekissedDeanandnowIdon’tknowwhereheis-”

“Cas, slow down,” Sam urges, forcing Cas to take a deep breath before continuing.

“We’re, uh, at a couples’ only party, and we had to kiss and then Dean freaked out but he’s been gone for ages and I think he is in trouble,” Cas says, only marginally slower than before.

“Shit. Okay, send me the address. We’re on our way.”

Sam, Cas thinks as he tries a door handle that he missed before, is excellent at coming up with plans. Maybe it’s the time spent in college, maybe it’s his years of hunting experience, but even over the phone he had pointed out things that Cas had failed to spot. Like, for example, the door to the basement.

Cas turns the phone flashlight on like Dean taught him, the beam still not strong enough to light up the impenetrable darkness. The music fades to a distant hum in the background, becoming distorted and frantic as Cas feels. His eyes have barely adjusted enough to see the familiar but unconscious form on the ground - “Dean?” - before something solid connects with the back of his head, and Cas tumbles forwards, crumpling at the bottom of the stairs.

{o0o}

“Cas?”

Cas groans. When he had finally fallen completely, he had been surprised by how much being human hurts. Something always aches, and everything is so easy to damage. Even the smallest of injuries - a stubbed toe or a papercut - hurts way more than it should.

Apparently, a combination of blunt force trauma to the back of the head and the general bruises one acquires from falling down a flight of stairs hurt a lot more than a stubbed toe.

“Hey, buddy, you okay?” A familiar voice asks, and Cas tries to turn his head so that he can see Dean, instead finding out that that particular head movement causes his vision to blur and swim. When he attempts to bring his hands up to survey the damage, he can’t understand why they don't move for a moment, before his brain finally manages to catch up and he remembers the night’s events.

So, maybe he wasn’t expecting his first kiss with Dean to be followed by being kidnapped and tied up in a basement, but this is a Winchester they are talking about here.

“Come on, talk to me here.” Dean says, sounding worried.

Cas swallows, aiming to say something to ease Dean’s concern and instead causing a coughing fit. “I’m fine,” he eventually manages to gasp.

Dean snorts. “Sure sound like it.”

They are silent for a moment, the only sounds in the room an echoing drip and Cas’ raspy breaths. Cas isn’t sure how long they have been down there, but since Dean isn’t wriggling about in an attempt to escape, it has probably been long enough that he has already checked whether or not he can untie himself. From what Cas’ fumbling fingers can tell, though, the knots keeping them bound to this stupid pole are very good.

He feels utterly pathetic. He used to be a soldier - he had led armies, fought battles that humans couldn’t even comprehend - and here he was now, entirely useless, taken out by a baseball bat and kept prisoner by a length of rope. If he was still an angel this would have never happened. He could have saved Dean, he would have killed whoever did this, and they would have been back in time to enjoy the end of the party.

“What do we do now?” Cas asks, finally breaking the silence.

Dean sighs, and Cas can feel him against his back as his whole body sags down. “I don’t think there’s anything we can do but wait.”

Cas didn’t think he had ever heard Dean give up so easily, and it scared him. “What?”

“I don’t exactly see a way out of this, Cas. I’ve been trying to get these ropes off for half an hour and I think they’re probably just tighter than they were when I started.”

Cas gave an experimental yank, and Dean hissed in pain. Suddenly, the wetness on Cas’ hands made sense. “You’re bleeding, Dean.”

The hunter didn’t reply.

Cas had always thought that his death would be noble. Previously, it had always at least been in battle or a sacrifice, but this was just… pitiful. He was going to die at the hands of some random shapeshifter in someone’s disgusting basement, while wearing a cowboy costume.

“I - uh, I just wanted to say,” Dean starts, sounding unsure, “that I’m sorry about earlier.”

“It’s fine, Dean,” he replies, shutting his eyes in an attempt to block out the conversation. If he was going to die, he would rather not be rejected first.

“It was a dick move,” Dean continues, as if he hadn’t heard Cas. “I was just - I mean - I want to say…”

“What, Dean?”

Dean’s voice is barely a whisper. “I think I’d like to kiss you again.”

Cas’ eyes snap back open, and he hits his head on the pole in his confusion. “You would?”

“You don’t… I thought… I mean, I’m just kid-”

“Shut up,” Cas interrupts, not wanting Dean to panic all over again. “I would like that.”

“Oh. Really? Okay,” Dean replies, and Cas shuffles around until he manages to hold his hand. It’s sticky and wet with blood where Dean’s wrists have been hurt by the ropes, and every aching muscle in Cas’ body screams at the awkward position, but he thinks it might still be the happiest he has ever been.

{o0o}

Dean isn’t sure how long it is until he hears the footsteps on the stairs, but it’s long enough for him to feel much too tired for a fight. Can’t the universe just let him be happy for once? Is it too much to ask to not have to fight tooth and claw for one scrap of peace?

“Well, hello there,” a man’s voice says, and Dean feels Cas stiffen. It sounds oddly familiar, but he can’t quite place his finger on where he would have heard it before.

That is, until a second voice speaks. “What have we got here, Harold?”

The next-door neighbours. The old couple who had been complaining about the parties. Of course the only two people in this godforsaken town who they hadn’t checked were the bad guys. He should have seen it. They should have asked them more questions when they weren’t tied to this stupid pole in this stupid fucking basement.

“A pair of cowboys, Ann,” Harold tuts, and Dean cannot believe he is about to be killed by a weird old couple, of all things. He had prevented the apocalypse at least twice, had defeated God, and yet he was going to be killed by the monster of the week. Who looked like they were about three hundred years old, owned fifty cats and knitted in their spare time.

Ann walks around them, her heels clacking on the stone floor, until she comes to a stop in front of Dean. “What a shame,” she says, looking down at him like he was a stain on her shoe. “I was hoping we’d get a crier. Men rarely cry. Apart from that last fellow, of course.”

Dean’s stomach rolls, and he suddenly regrets eating so many pigs in blankets at the party.

“What are you?” Cas practically growls, his hand squeezing Dean’s to comfort him.

“Whatever do you mean, son?” Harold asks, and he sounds genuinely confused.

Oh shit, Dean thinks, letting out an amused huff of breath. Great. He isn’t even going to be killed by the monster of the week. He’s gonna be killed by an actual old person.

“Is something funny, sweetie?” Ann demands, frowning.

Dean smiles up at her, deciding that he may as well die how he lived: a snarky bastard. “Sorry, I just can’t believe that I got kidnapped by someone’s grandma.”

Ann steps closer to him, crouching down so she is his height. A sliver of silver reflects in the dim light like a shooting star, slicing downwards and cutting a thin line across Dean’s neck. “Don’t give me cheek, boy.”

“Let’s kill the other one first, sweetheart. Then that rude fella has to watch his boyfriend die.” Harold suggests, spitting out the word ‘boyfriend’ like it physically hurts him.

Dean clutches Cas’ hand tighter, trying not to let the panic that is welling up inside him, cold and merciless, show on his face. He tugs desperately at the ropes around his wrists one more time, hoping for a miracle that he knows isn’t coming.

“Say goodbye, now.” Ann says, and Dean shuts his eyes. He knows that he can’t deal with losing Cas again, even if he’ll be gone soon after. He spares a brief thought wondering where Cas will go when he dies; is he human enough to avoid the Empty? And even so, would he go to Heaven or Hell?

“I love you, Cas,” Dean whispered, because even though he is scared, he knows that Cas deserves to know.

If Cas says anything back, Dean doesn’t hear it over the gunshot.

{o0o}

Dying was not a new experience for Castiel, nor was dying as a human. What was a new experience was the pain he felt in his chest that no bullet or knife could replicate. It was the knowledge that he had the opportunity to be happy and it had been ripped from him. It was knowing that someone loved him and cared for him and was being taken away from him.

When Harold dropped dead instead of Cas, his heart fluttered. Maybe he did have a chance.

“Dean, are you alright?” Sam’s voice calls out, and Cas finally allows himself to relax slightly.

“Sam?” Dean asks, surprise and confusion and relief all mixed together.

Eileen appears from nowhere and stoops down, grinning at Cas and slicing through the ropes. She winks at him but doesn’t say anything, simply helping him to his feet when it becomes obvious he can’t do it by himself. Sam has backed Ann into the corner of the room, his gun pointed at her with an unwavering hand, but Dean whispers something in his ear and he lowers it slightly. He signs something over his shoulder, not even glancing away from the threat, and Eileen rushes off upstairs, essentially shoving the injured Castiel into Dean’s side.

“Hey, buddy, you okay?” Dean asks gently, wrapping his arm around Cas’ waist to hold him up. His wrists are still bleeding and they are both cold from sitting in a freezing basement for ages, but the simple action fills Cas with a warmness.

“I’ve been in love with you for twelve years, you assbutt,” he mumbles.

Dean smiles down at him, somehow looking charming even covered in dirt and blood, only looking up when Sam clears his throat.

“Look, we should get out of here,” Sam suggests, standing up. He’s tied Ann to the same post that they thought would be their deathbed only a few minutes ago, and he is shooing them towards the stairs back up to the party. “Eileen’s getting someone to call the cops and we don’t wanna be here when they arrive.”

Cas ducks down, for a moment, holding Dean’s hand so he doesn’t completely keel over, and grabs the two hats off the ground. Reaching up, he puts his on before gently placing Dean’s on his head. The tinsel is falling off on one side, the lights have run out of battery, and they are both caked in dirt, but it still makes Dean smile.

“Let’s go home,” Dean says, leaning down and softly kissing Cas.

{o0o}

Much to Dean’s surprise, Sam and Eileen said nothing about his new relationship with Cas. In fact, when he tried to bring it up - he knew Sam had seen them kissing for Christ’s sake - Sam just shook his head and rolled his eyes at Dean. “Jody owes me fifty dollars,” was all he said, and their discussion was over.

Cas didn’t seem too perturbed by the whole situation, and Dean found himself wondering whether it was just him who found their new relationship strange. Not that anything much had changed, for that matter. They both behaved the exact same way, with added kissing. So what if Sam thought Dean was weird for still calling Cas ‘buddy’? He wasn’t the one dating a former angel.

What Dean had decided, after their fun little kidnapping escapade, was that Cas deserved an awesome Christmas. It was his first one as a human, after all, and what kind of boyfriend would Dean be if he didn’t show Cas all the wonders of the holiday season?

And that is how they found themselves turning the drive home into a Christmas road trip.

Cas wore his reindeer antlers wherever possible, and Dean took a million photos of him. On the first day, they visited a Christmas market. Dean thought it was much too busy and annoying, but it was all worth it for the smile Cas had after drinking his first hot chocolate. On the second day, they went to a drive-in movie. Cas gave both the funniest and most irritating running commentary that Dean had ever heard, having to remind him every five minutes that “it’s a romcom, Cas. It’s not supposed to make sense.”

On Christmas Eve, they spent most of the day driving to make sure they got home in time for the dinner that Sam and Eileen had promised. They sang carols at full volume and blasted Christmas songs and Dean taught Cas how to play the air guitar. Dean couldn’t remember a time when he had felt such a sense of freedom and happiness. Maybe it was just a Christmas miracle.

Christmas day rolled around, and it was the nicest Christmas that Dean could remember having. Sam and Eileen had decorated the entire bunker with tinsel and streamers, and had even managed to bring in a huge tree from outside. So maybe not all the decorations on it were technically Christmas related, but the silver bullets were shiny and although no one was quite sure what the pentagram they were using a star on the top did, it looked pretty cool.

By the evening, they had eaten enough food to feed twenty people for a week and had exchanged presents. Sam was sitting at the table with his new fancy pens, Eileen had disappeared to take a shower with her new soaps, and Cas and Dean were firmly planted on the couch. Cas’ new fuzzy socks were warm and ticklish against Dean’s feet, and the angel was a surprisingly good cuddler.

All of a sudden, Dean sat up, dragging Cas with him. “Come on, dude. We should dance.”

Cas snorted but agreed, wrapping his arms around Dean tightly. They swayed slowly to the music, his head on Cas’ shoulder, gently singing along to the slow music.

Now you hang from my lips

Like the Gardens of Babylon

With your boots beneath my bed

Forever is the sweetest con.

Dean’s mouth twists into a smile. “I could spend forever with you,” he whispers, and he leans down to kiss his angel again.

#i hope you enjoy!#destiel #destiel secret santa #my writing #fanfic

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greylunar · 5 years ago

Note

I have a house lore question. Would you agree that Gryffindors and Ravenclaws tend to be more ideologically motivated and that Slytherins and Hufflepuffs tend to be more... personally motivated? Not sure I am phrasing this right but basically: Gryffindor/Ravenclaw: This is my cause, I believe in it. Slytherin/Hufflepuff: This is my person, I believe on them. Just as a general rule, not true in every case. (1/2)

Also, Gryffindors and Slytherins are more devoted to their cause/person whereas Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws are more likely to be able to be able to reevaluate their standing with the person or cause if they feel they are no longer totally aligned with it/them. Again, just as a rule of thumb. (2/2)

I wrote an insanely long answer to this so more under the break, warning there’s a LOT of like, psychoanalysis down here and a lot of its very personal and about core aspects so like please proceed with caution and PLEASE ask me to tag if I forget something

Super weird note to start this off with but did you have an icon of a dog like two days ago because if that was you it looked like my dog and made me really happy (I love the aesthetic of this one too, A+ design)

Anyways! I do have A Lot of thoughts on this topic in particular, and I’m glad you asked because I know that my interpretation of the houses verges more into “Casper has a specific idea of the sort of personality spectrums he would align into these broad JK-based categories” than “canon” haha c: My “rule of thumb” for causes/ideologies is this:

Hufflepuff: “This is my belief.” This is what is good, what is right, what I know I should fight for and stand up for when the time comes. I will stand by this belief, because a part of me wholly excepts it as fact and uncompromising. I may, however, not always be able to stand up for this belief, as there are situations where I have to evaluate what will be the safest for me and the people I love. But you will have a Hard Time changing a hufflepuff’s mind on something they believe unless you can prove to them that its hurting people and somehow in the wrong. In that case, a new belief is formed to account for this information. Now, here’s where people (in I guess my version of house lore) tend to misjudge hufflepuffs. If one of their People repeatedly acts against their fundamental beliefs, they will either A) fail to remain one of that hufflepuff’s People and get dropped from that sort of list or B) just,,, badger them with facts/reasoning/their opinion until either the hufflepuff changes their mind or they change the Hufflepuff. (Side note, but on how Puffs handle ending relationships of any kind with folks: Hufflepuffs tend to,,, ‘ghost’ toxic people because of their uncompromisable nature on these very core beliefs. A hufflepuff will often give someone a thousand and one second chances until they realize that person either refuses to or is completely unable to accommodate one of their core definitions of good/justice/kindness/personhood and then usually hufflepuffs just kinda bounce. They often struggle with conflict in an overarching sense and, to put it in a Puff’s terms for avoiding a person they couldn’t handle being around anymore “Damn, wish I could just like, disappear into the woods in Oregon somewhere and get a dog and not have to think about this and my friend Tim could make a true crime podcast about having known me.” This is normally a MOMENTOUSLY hard decision for a Puff (i mean yall get it its the house of loyalty) but its very key that Hufflepuffs don’t align themselves with people, they align themselves with beliefs or personal truths. When push comes to shove, the loyalty a Puff has is often to the concept of goodness and kindness and the Concept of People rather than clinging to a specific individual if they directly oppose those beliefs)

Slytherins: “This is my person/these are my people.” Slytherins are a house of change, and their belief systems are mostly fluid (often based on social rules, for example, “I know people don’t like it or get hurt when these types of things are said, so I will now no longer say things like this from now on” OR alternatively “I am Very Aware that acting like this makes people vaguely unnerved, and I Am Choosing To Act Like This Continuously because I am using it to separate myself from others/people deserve it/god wouldn’t that be hilarious”). Slytherins don’t have a lot of ‘fundamental beliefs’ in a way that at least they would refer to as fundamental beliefs, our lovely snake friends often struggle with knowing themselves and defining themselves rigidly enough to label them like that. In a,,, slightly depressing note some common ones are “I have to earn my worth” and “other people deserve more than me.” Hey Slytherins, I don’t remember where I heard this, but worth is a capitalist concept fed to you by corporations and you are inherently human and therefore loved and important and deserve the world. That all said, what Slytherins do not waiver from their people. Slytherin friends will text you three years after you last talked because you posted something vaguely sad on Instagram and they wanna make sure you’re good. Slytherin partners and friends will love you with all of them, the whole of their being. If someone is mean to me, my Slytherin friends will end them, and I have to be like “bro I’m not even mad, you’re being mad for me.” Slytherins don’t ghost their People, they will drag your ass through the mud until you are healthy or By God They Will Fist Fight Your Mental Illness Themselves. In this way, Slytherins are a lot like Hufflepuffs. The problem lies in when Slytherins find they don’t have any more belief or energy left in their stores to drag themselves up too. Perhaps now is the time to realize you should be one of the People you will fight for too.

Gryffindors: “This is my cause/this is a fact” I’m not going to touch too much on the “here is my ten-step plan to save the world, step one is I Do It” Gryffindors, because I think we’re all familiar with that concept of them. Again, Gryffindors will join the Peace Corps, hufflepuffs will give the person who needs cash twenty dollars if they see them, its a scope thing. What I want to dive into with Gryffindors is the Stubborn Bastard Energy that we know and love them for (I do legitimately mean that as a compliment). Gryffindors RARELY and I’m talking Borderline Never bend or leave behind a fundamental belief once they’ve established it. Gryffs often assume that these beliefs are inherent, they would not be themselves if they were not Certain about this, and therefore that certainty is essential to who they are. Therefore Gryffs deal in personal truths, or things they have decided are facts, pillars that do not change. You will want to punch your Gryffindor best friend sometimes because they put something in their head when they were six because of what someone on the playground said and now they live by that and sometimes physically struggle with processing contradictory information. This can be great, if a Gryff internalizes something like “I should do no harm” or “I will Fight A Bully” but has more frustrating consequences when its something like “If someone does something bad they are irredeemable, and I should never again respect them.” For Gryffs, sometimes the best thing to ask yourself is “wait, Why do I think that, and are there any cases that are exceptions to these rules.” But fundamentally, Gryffs often are the ones to save the world because they already believe it is a fact that they will, and that they should.

Ravenclaws: “This is complicated/This should be seen from all sides” and THEN “I’m about to end this mans whole career over this” Ravenclaws are such a fun house for this question. Ravenclaws often have a sort of information gathering stage before they even consider the idea of having an opinion in their head. Ravenclaws want to make sure they know everything they can about a cause/an issue/a person before they make that Final Call of verbalizing or standing by something, because a very serious fundamental fear for Ravenclaws is being embarrassed. I don’t mean to minimize that or invalidate it in anyway, a lot of Ravenclaws would rather be dropped in a pit of [insert distasteful creature here} than have the shame in their minds of being caught on the wrong side of an argument, without all the facts, or unprepared for a thorough discussion. Ravenclaws in this information gathering stage will often say things like “I’m not sure to be honest, I haven’t looked into it that much” or even “I don’t really like to have opinions on matters like that because I don’t think I could ever know enough to represent what I should correctly.” THAT SAID. That’s phase one. But y’all if a Ravenclaw Decides, even without acknowledging they have, a Raven Decides. From anything from “this 18th century poet was a lesbian and you simply will not convince me I’m wrong, here is a list of reasons why I’m right” to “So Determinism exists, and I fundamentally believe that, I am fascinated on what you think about Free Will though,” Ravenclaws are the probably the most complex on this subject inherently because of how much they want to make sure they know the truth. Ravenclaws will re-evaluate their beliefs, but if the information you’re bringing to the table isn’t valid enough to hold up against their previous evidence, there’s not a whole lot you’ll be able to do about it. Ravens will struggle if asked to take a stance before this phase though, so friends, please remember that no one is ever going to remember if you raised your hand and said something a little less intelligent in high school English than you would have liked other than you. It is more than okay for you to forget that too.

#high school mention #physical violence mention #ghosting mention #mental illness mention #tw mentions of violence #tw mental health #tw toxicity #yall if i miss something just let me know #tal asks #theprintedlabyrinth #hp lore #hufflepuff #ravenclaw #slytherin #gryffindor #quiz related content

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joon-ipersgirl · 4 years ago

Text

O5 - “the coveted client”

genre: mafia!au, angst, fluff, slow burn, mystery-thriller

pairing: namjoon x reader (f)

word count: 4.6k

warnings: cursing

summary: charismatic. beautiful. fearless without question. the ambitious team of seven young men in charge of spiral, downtown district's hottest new club, go above and beyond to provide 100% satisfaction to their clients.

after an eventful night out, you have no choice but to join the team for property damages greater than your intern salary. challenging a series of events that can no longer be left to coincidence, secrets threaten to burst at the seams as your professional and private life collide, and another - more sinister - debt is added to your total.

how far are you willing to go to pay back your pound of flesh? remember nothing is ever as it seems...

a/n: hello friends. here is part 5. leave a comment on how you're feeling about this story. i'm debating on discontinuing it from tumblr. thank you vi for reading as always. enjoy everyone :)

full masterlist // series masterlist // previous // next

Training tonight @ 6pm. Don’t be late. You read the incoming text with a grin. Even in text, Suga is straight to the point. Shoving your phone back into your pants pocket, you leave the small kitchenette and head back to your small desk with a fresh cup of coffee in hand. You can still remember the looks of horror on the boys’ faces after Suga announced your immediate hire and it’s been two weeks since then. Was it wrong to take pleasure in their discomfort? Probably. Would you stop? Never.

“Is that a smile I spy on Miss Y/N Y/L/N’s face? The Devil must be here to collect his wife,” Paul exclaims as you sit back down. You laugh and prop your chin on your hand as you stare at him over your desktop screen.

“Can a woman not just be happy, Paul? Why does it have to come at the expense of a man?” you ask, a fake feign of hurt in your voice.

“Of course women can. Just not you,” he says with a shrug of his shoulders. You shake your head, your smile still present on your face. Paul would not ruin your good mood.

“Ouch. That one might have hurt if I actually gave a fuck about your opinion of me,” you say while reorganizing the folders Manager Kim had dropped onto your desk from the day before.

“Y/N! Language!” Laura chides as she walks into your cramped office space. You roll your eyes and flip through the countless papers on your desk to order them in order of priority.

It’s honestly a miracle that none of you manage to murder each other while you work though it’s crossed your mind several times. JM Events and Affairs is a lucrative event planning company, but apparently could not afford to at least place its clerks in a room larger than 500 sq ft. Being entry level is a struggle most days, but eventually it would all pay off and you would become a successful event planning guru. For now though, you’re stuck here with the imbeciles you had to call co-workers.

“Manager Kim wants to see us in her office,” James says as he pokes his head around the wall of the cubicle, his glasses slipping down the bridge of his nose. “Now,” he emphasised. He doesn’t wait for you to follow.

Paul shoots you and Laura a raised brow of confusion as you grab your notepads and file down the long corridor to Manager Kim’s well decorated office. She’s an older woman who’s been in the business longer than you’ve been alive. She credits her success to always staying ahead of the trend even if she didn’t create it, though most times she did. Her style is impeccable and she is meticulous as she is jovial. She’s, quite simply, a genius.

James has already taken a seat in one of the two plush grey chairs in front of her large, industrial sized desk. Rows of colorful binders are organized on her desk - no doubt detailing the new events the company is planning on hosting. Manager Kim enjoys the arts and it’s evident from the variety of paintings that hang on the wall. Today, she’s dressed in a powder blue knit sweater that matches whatever shade of nail polish she wears tucked into a pair of belted, high waisted wide leg pants. Her matching steel toe boots peek from underneath.

“Ah, good. You’re all here,” she begins as she sits behind her desk. You gesture for Laura to take the other available seat as you stand behind James and Paul stands next to you.

“We have a new client considering the company for an event. He’s very important for future networking opportunities so I expect the very best work from you.” Manger Kim usually wasted no time getting straight to the point and today is no different. “In fact, I’ve been monitoring your work very closely because I knew a client like this would be coming very soon,” she stands from her desk, navy blue binder in hand.

“What kind of event is he planning on having?” James inquires, his pen ready to take notes.

“He didn’t give specific details, but I’m sure if we can book him for this minor event, he’ll give us the main one. I’m quite sure of it.” Manager Kim snaps the binder shut and smiles at you all. Her white blonde bob is immaculate, not a single strand out of place.

“Should we start drafting ideas now?” Laura asks.

“Yes, I need several drafts from each of you by 4pm this afternoon. Please have them -”

“Are we just supposed to forget about the other events we have coming up? This guy didn’t even give us any major details for effective planning!” Paul interrupts. Manager Kim turns to look at him.

“Well Paul, if this client is of no importance to you -” Paul tries to backtrack, but to no avail as Manager Kim continues on “- I will not need your drafts or your portfolio.” She beams at him and Paul blanches. You grimace.

“As I was saying. Please have your portfolios and 4 drafts submitted to me by 4pm today. They should be in priority order and include everything from food to colors, entertainment and venues. Remember, the customers knows best -”

“- but finesse, finesse, finesse,” you, Paul, James, and Laura finish. Manager Kim should have that framed and put on her wall.

“Lovely. Goodbye,” she waves no longer looking at you, already lost in her grueling event editing process. You knew better than to loiter and the four of you head back to your small workspace.

“You really fucked up there Paul,” you say as you sit down at your desk.

“Thanks, Y/N,” Paul deadpans. He drops his head quite heavily on his desk. Laura winces.

“It’s okay, Paul. Maybe you can still show her something and -” she starts.

“You know Manager Kim isn’t the forgiving kind,” James interrupts. “There’s nothing more he can do,” he finishes nonchalantly.

“I hate to agree -” you begin.

“No you don’t,” Paul cuts in.

“- but James is right. Manager Kim is all about quick thinking and Paul failed that test. He’ll have another time to redeem himself, but he has to sit this one out. You should be happy, Laura. Less competition,” you say with a shrug and flip open your notepad to start drafting.

“Do you even have an empathetic bone in your body, Y/N?!” Laura hisses as she walks over to rest a hand on Paul’s shoulder.

“Sometimes,” you reply. “But everyone has to eat and I refuse to go to sleep on an empty stomach.”

Laura looks disgusted at your answer and she goes back to consoling Paul. James had left the conversation a long time ago and you admired his ability to ignore almost everyone around him. His coldness and detachment made him ruthless in an unsuspecting way and you’d learned the hard way not to underestimate him. Laura would learn eventually that while people thought it was the strong who survived, it was really those who were able to adapt to any environment that really thrived.

It’s after lunch that you receive an email from Manager Kim requesting for you to meet her in the lobby in fifteen minutes without any further explanation. You ask no questions and sit in the lobby, counting the people that come out of the elevator that were not Manager Kim. It’s already 1:24 pm and you’ve just started your third draft. Creating on a time crunch with no real guidance is no walk in the park and you try to keep your frustrations under control as you run through possible color combinations for the event.

“Y/N! There you are! Let’s go,” Manager Kim calls as she exits the building without checking to see if you follow.

You scramble to grab your purse and notepad, scurrying across the lobby in the high heels she insists you wear. Manager Kim is already seated in a company car as you yank the passenger side door open and fall into the seat.

“Very good,” she says and wastes no time pulling into traffic. You awkwardly try to secure your seatbelt as she zips through the small spaces between cars. Gods protect you from this woman and her hazardous driving.

“Where are we going?” you ask after you manage to situate your purse, coat, and notepad in your lap comfortably.

“Downtown. We’re meeting with the client.”

“We?!” you repeat, surprised.

“That’s what I said isn’t it? We’re also late,” she says as she makes a sharp right turn onto Matthews St. You barely miss hitting a cyclist and you send up another small prayer for you to make it to your destination safely.

“What about the drafts and portfolios? Aren’t you going to review -”

“Did I say I wasn’t?” She glances over at you from the corner of her eye and you close your mouth. You would not fail this test.

Manager Kim pulls over into an impossibly tight space in front of a large corporate building that reads Hastings and Lewis. A well established law firm if you remember correctly. It has to be at least 14 stories high and exudes the architect’s vision of simple modern design with large windows and exposed steel structural support. You both exit the car and you align your steps with hers, your heels clicking in time against the marble flooring as you enter the building. You say good afternoon to the doorman who simply nods at you in greeting.

“Hello. How can I help you?” the receptionist asks behind the raised desk, her head barely visible.

“Yes, hello. My name is Madeline Kim. I have an appointment to speak with Mr. Cavallero at 2:15pm.” You glance at the clock behind the receptionist. 1:53pm. You bite your lip to hold your outburst. To be early is to be on time, you could hear her say.

The receptionist smiles and nods as she searches her computer for the appointment. “Yes, here it is. Please have a seat. Someone will come and get you shortly.”

Manager Kim nods and perches in one of the available seats. You shake your head as you take a seat next to her, ignoring the itching in your palm to pull out your notepad and finish your drafts. You can tell by the way Manager Kim is sitting, not scrolling through her various binders or the calendar on her phone, this is a formal interview and you would not be the one to fuck it up. There would be time to finish the drafts. You would make sure of it.

“Ms. Kim?” A young man in a sharp, black suit stands in the center of the room smiling at you. 2:05pm. Right on time. “If you could follow me this way, please.” He turns towards the golden elevators and you follow behind him. “My name is Lewis Carlisle and I am the assistant to Mr. Cavallero,” he tells you as he pushes the button for the 10th floor. He sticks his hand out for each of you to shake.

“It’s very nice to meet you, Mr. Carlisle. Thank you for having us. This is my assistant, Ms. Amani Jung.” A lie, but you go with it.

“A pleasure to meet you,” you say with a bright smile and a firm handshake. He returns a smile of his own.

The elevator doors open and you follow Mr. Carlisle through the open workspace plan. This is the kind of place that promoted collaboration and teamwork. How could it not when the light airy feeling made you want to turn to your neighbor and ask them what they thought about a particular problem? JM Events and Affairs should have hired their interior designer. Maybe some of their employees wouldn’t struggle as much to meet their deadlines.

“Mr. Cavellero unfortunately will not be able to meet with you in person today -” Manager Kim’s smile tightens at his words “- but he did relay all of his expectations for the company brunch,” Lewis says as he holds open the door to a small meeting room. It’s in the center of the floor and the walls are made of pure plexiglass. It screamed expensive.

“How wonderful,” Manager Kim comments as she sits down and sets her purse down on the ground.

“Would either of you like something to drink? Water? A Coke?”

“ A water with light ice will do, thank you,” she says.

“I’ll take a bottle of water, please,” you reply and sit down beside Madeline. You discreetly pull out your design notepad along with your actual note-taking pad. Lewis nods and promises to return quickly with your drinks as well as the file containing the event details.

“You seem upset,” you comment while scribbling down the words brunch and law firm onto a new blank sheet for your fourth and final draft, your brain already conjuring up ideas.

“What makes you think that?” she asks, turning to you slightly as she too sets up her own note-taking station.

“Your smile failed to meet your eyes,” you say nonchalantly. From the corner of your eye, you see her break into a grin as Lewis enters the room, a cup of water in one hand, a bottle in the other, and a slim manilla folder tucked underneath his arm.

“Thank you again, Mr. Carlisle,” Manager Kim says with another bright smile, her hand in his as they shake hands again.

“You’re very welcome. I’m sure Mr. Cavallero will love what you put together for brunch,” he replies.

The meeting seems to be a success and you’d gained some much needed insight for your fourth draft while being Madeline’s “assistant”. You’re no longer paying attention as you exit the meeting room and head back towards the main elevator, Madeline and Lewis making polite conversation. You run over all of your drafts as you check the time discreetly. It’s 3:20pm. You would still have enough time to review your plans and work on the others files Manager Kim had assigned. You grin in victory.

“Mr. Cavallero!” Lewis exclaims as the elevator doors open.

The man is an older gentleman with neatly groomed hair and warm brown eyes. His coal grey suit is neatly pressed, a sharp crease present in the center of his pant leg. Definitely high quality and only dry-cleaned. His smile displays a set of perfect of white teeth. As he steps out of the elevator, holding it open so it wouldn’t close, the Armani Exchange watch glitters under the artificial lights.

“Mr. Carlisle. I assume this must be our event coordinators. I’m sorry I couldn’t meet with you. An emergency meeting was called for a major case,” he apologizes.

“I understand, Mr. Cavallero. Things are sometimes out of our control. No need to explain,” Madeline says with a smile as she enters the elevator. You follow behind her. “Mr. Carlisle was quite capable. I will have Miss Y/L/N send over the final details for the event by Friday for your approval.”

Mr. Cavallero’s eyes shift over to you and he smiles. “I look forward to it. Enjoy the rest of your day, ladies.” He let the doors go as Lewis tells you goodbye, the doors closing off the last of his words.

Manager Kim’s shoulders visibly relax as you descend to the lobby, but you make no comment. Though their conversation was brief, something had clearly transpired between them. Madeline seems to have noticed you watching her as she inhales and fixes her posture. She was back to business.

“I assume I don’t have to tell you not to say anything about this meeting?” she asks as she nods her thanks to the doorman, your steps once more in sync as you exit the high rise building.

“What meeting?” You say with a grin as you wait for her to unlock the company car.

The heat of the staircase in Spiral welcomes you again like a familiar friend after not seeing them for a long time. There is still the hustle and bustle of vendors dropping off boxes as the final details of the new designs are being put into place. People couldn’t wait to see how Spiral had fared after the robbery - which you still didn’t believe was actually what happened - and it seems like Friday’s opening night couldn’t come soon enough. Even Paul and Laura were considering stopping by after all of the shit they talked before.

You enter the main space and glance around, looking for one of the boys. Your purse bag is heavy from the event files and you head over to set it on top of the bar while resting your aching feet. Paul, Laura, and James could not believe you’d managed to turn in your drafts and portfolio at exactly 3:57pm after being gone so long; they would eventually learn to not underestimate you. You glance around again and notice a group of people sitting in one of the newly upholstered booths quietly chatting to one another across the way. Were these the new employees?

“Already lounging on the first day of the job, Y/L/N?”

You look to your left as you shrug off your heavy overcoat and see Honcho coming around the bar, a pile of clothes in his hands.

“Of course not. I just wasn’t sure who to report to,” you say with a shrug.

“Well, you’re looking at him,” he replies with a grin. You have to stop your mouth from falling open. Of all people, it had to be him? “What? Are you disappointed?” he asks as he continues across the room to the small group. You grab your stuff and walk over after him.

“No, I just thought -”

“Thought it would be Suga? As much as you like to charge in and demand shit sweetheart, Suga is a very busy man and doesn’t have the time to appease you all the time. Sit,” he commands with a jerk of his head. You narrow your eyes at him, but obey. It’s only then that you notice the other five persons staring at you in confusion as you bickered. You swallow the urge to huff in annoyance as Honcho begins speaking.

“Thank you all for being on time. Congratulations on being hired. I’m Honcho and I’ll be your manager at Spiral. You’ll meet the rest of the guys later. These are your uniforms. We have a strict adherence uniform policy, so please do your best to be dressed in your proper attire. If you have long hair, it will be tied up or back in a bun or ponytail. Ladies, we ask that you wear red lipstick to match our colors. We’ve also given you options for bottoms: a skirt or pants.” Honcho holds up a pair of each for demonstration. “Whatever you decide to wear is up to you. We only ask that all your shoes are closed toed and we would prefer no sneakers; we’re trying to sell a vibe here. Any questions?” He doesn’t wait for anyone to speak up. “No? Great. If you could introduce yourselves to each other, that’d be fantastic.” He looks over to the boy on the other side of the booth.

“Uh, hi. My name is Micah. I’m 21 and recently graduated from college.” He tosses up a small wave before pushing his glasses further up his nose. He’s narrow shouldered and naturally blonde. Cute, if you will. They would chew him up and eat him alive if he continued to be so timid.

“Hey, I’m Luca. I’m 23 and a graduate student at Oberman.” Luca definitely fit the vibe Spiral os going for with his dark hair and dark eyes. He would have no problem wooing the numerous women who would walk through the door. A great business move in your opinion.

“Hey y’all, Savannah here. I’m 22 and working part time while in school.” Another blonde hair, blue-eyed coworker. How fun. The bubbles in champagne had nothing on her as she beams at the rest of you around the table.

“I’m Jack. I’m 24 and I guess I’m here to save up for a new car? Need some extra cash,” he finishes with a bashful grin. The girl next to you snorts. Jack is a big man with broad shoulders and you would assume he was hired as additional security based on his size. Imagine a man as big as him bringing over your strawberry mojito? Exactly.

“Giselle. 21. Law student. Loans have to pay themself off somehow right?” Luca laughs and Giselle smiles. Yuck. If you weren’t already sick of the office romance - if you could call it that - between Laura and Paul at JM, you were going to have to endure another one here? Gods be with you.

“Y/N Y/L/N. I’m 22 and an event planner,” you say nonchalantly and turn to Honcho, waiting for his next instructions.

“Not going to tell us the reason you’re here?” he smirks and you roll your eyes.

“You’d like that wouldn’t you?”

“I’d like a lot of things, Y/L/N. In fact, I can think of a few -”

“Gross,” you say, interrupting him, your face turned down in disgust. He laughs.

“Always think someone wants something from you, huh?” He shakes his head, still chuckling. “Everyone, go get changed and I’ll explain your duties to you once you get back.”

The six of you ease out of the booth, grabbing your uniforms as you head to the restrooms to get changed. As you follow Savannah and Giselle, you can’t help but scan the hallway for anything you could have missed as the memory of your second night here flashed across your mind. There had to be something that you were missing.

“I hope these uniforms are cute,” Giselle grumbles as she steps into an empty stall.

“I’m sure it’ll look great,” Savannah chirps.

You step into your own individual stall and drop your stuff on the floor. Slipping out of your heels, you step out of your slacks and tug off your blouse. You hold up the uniform shirt. It’s a plain black t-shirt with the letters in red spelling out Spiral in a spiral formation. The pants are made of a faux leather shiny material. They look tight and the sides have cut outs with strings laced in them from hip to ankle. The skirt is exactly the same. You sigh. This was really the vibe?

You dress quickly and tug on your Doc Martens. Honcho would have to wait for the lipstick. Exiting the stall, you see Savannah trying to adjust the strings on her pants while chewing her lip.

“Is it supposed to be this exposed?” she asks, checking herself out in the mirror.

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure,” Giselle says exiting the stall and tugging down the hem of her skirt.

“So much for equality in the workplace huh?” you say. The two of them laugh.

The three of you return to the main space, Micah, Luca, and Jack already back at the booth with Honcho. Their eyes widen when they see you.

“Looking good ladies,” Honcho calls with his traditional large grin. Of course he would comment.

“Yeah, yeah. What’s next?” Giselle asks as she wiggles her way back into the booth, trying to cover her modesty.

“We’re going to take a tour of the facilities, get you acquainted with the space, and fill out the last pieces of paperwork. We’ll also have you help with some of the decorations; don’t worry, you’re going to get paid for this session. Then, we’ll see you on Friday for your shifts,” he replies. “Alright, let’s go.”

Again, he doesn’t wait for you to follow. As you’re setting your belongings down to catch up with the rest of the group, you spot Jin heading towards the bar. Just the man who you needed to see.

“Are you coming Y/N?” Savannah calls to you as the group heads up to the second level.

“Yeah, I’ll be right there!” you lie, knowing damn well you’re going to ambush Jin. You pretend to search for something in your purse as you double-check the group is far enough on the second level to not notice you not following before you head over to Jin.

“Well hello Jin,” you say as you wiggle your way onto a bar stool.

“Y/N,” he says with a chuckle. “What can I do for you?”

“Just answer a few simple questions.” you smile as you rest your chin on your palm.

“Alright,” he replied skeptically.

“Where’d you move the body?” The bottle of Aperol nearly slips out of his grip as he turns to look at you.

“Excuse me?” There’s no laughter in his voice.

“The body of the man in the bathroom,” you clarify. “How’d you get it to disappear like that?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he replies, busying himself with stocking up the bottles of alcohol under the shelf. He won’t meet your eyes. You know he’s lying; his body language says it all.

“Oh come on, Jin. You can tell me. It’s not like I’m going to go to the cops or anything,” you say nonchalantly. “Clearly they didn’t seem to care since they weren’t that thorough with their questions.”

“Y/N, I really don’t know what you’re talking about. You were concussed remember? Maybe you imagined whoever you’re talking about.” He glances up at you. You roll your eyes.

“Really Jin? You’re going to use the concussion line on me? You knew that I shot him; I told you that. I just want to know where you put him and why there were no reports of a missing man from the incident on the news at all,” you say with a shrug. He finally turns to face you.

“Maybe nobody reported him missing. Maybe he slipped out after you ducked behind the bar. What does it matter? Look, it was a traumatic night. For all of us. I don’t know anything about whatever or whoever you’re talking about. Hell, you probably don’t know either. Please, don’t make this working relationship anymore difficult for yourself than it already is. Just come in, keep your head down, and head out.” His hands are splayed out on the bar and the distance between you has closed significantly from when he’d started talking as he stares you down. “Worry about the things that concern you, like repaying your debt.” His tone is sharp and final. There’s no friendliness in his face either.

“Y/L/N! You’re not getting paid to sit on that pretty little ass of yours. Get up here now!” Honcho yelles down to you over the railing of the second floor balcony.

Ignoring Honcho, you cock your head and look at Jin again, thinking. “Okay Jin. Heard you loud and clear.”

You hop off the bar stool and adjust your skirt. You say nothing further as you head upstairs. It seems as though Jin would be of no help to you, but honestly, it didn’t matter. If it didn’t concern you, why was Jin lying about knowing what man you were talking about? Why had Suga tried to discreetly cover up that paper in his office the other day? What was really going on at Spiral? You’re determined to figure it, even if you have to work extra hours to do it. What happens in the dark must eventually come to light.

full masterlist // series masterlist // previous // next

joon-ipersgirl, 2020

#bts fanfiction #bts mafia au #namjoon x reader #namjoon fanfic #bts fanfic #fic: double entendre

23 notes · View notes

kpoptrashibnida · 5 years ago

Text

Enough Pt. 13

A/N: Sorry for being a filthy liar you guys! I said I was going to post two days ago and I didn’t. I just needed to edit a couple scenes I wasn’t 100% happy with and that set me back. But thanks for your patience and support! You all know I love/appreciate feedback, so don’t be shy! Any way, here is the update and happy reading!

“So have you answered him yet?” Jaehyun asked, fingers caressing your arm as you cuddled on your couch.

Once you woke up, you texted Jaehyun and told him you made it home okay and apologized for forgetting to message him. At the office, he was very attentive and apologized for being distant for the past few days. He admitted that he was worried because of the phone call you got from Namjoon and he thought that creating a little distance was going to make him feel a little better. Of course he realized it was a mistake and possibly the stupidest thing he could have ever done. He asked if he could come over to your place and stay the night. You agreed of course, happy that your boyfriend was going to spend some time with you and that the awkwardness was gone. After work you both came to your apartment, had dinner together and were now cuddling on the couch as you watched a movie. You were in a little bubble of bliss and nothing could ruin that. Not even the inevitable question of what answer you were going to give to Namjoon.

“I am going to tell him that I am not going to leave early.” You say with conviction in your voice.

He sat up straight and looked at you perplexed. He knew how much you loved your job and you were amazing at it, so saying no to Namjoon was a big deal.

“Are you serious?” He asked, wanting to make sure he heard you correctly.

“Yes. There are plenty of people in Seoul who can take care of the projects he has lined up. But if he really feels like he needs me to oversee these projects, then I can do them from here via teleconference. My workload will significantly reduce now that all the final details are done. I just don’t want to be away from you.” You explain, looking into Jaehyun’s eyes.

“I am very happy to hear that. I just hope you’re doing this because you really want to and not because of me.” He says, giving you a soft kiss.

“I really want to. And I also want to be with you.” You say, leaning in to kiss him on the lips.

He deepens the kiss as he hovers over you, making you lay down on the couch, slightly opening your legs to accommodate his frame.

His fingers are quick to lift your shirt, rough pads skimming the soft skin of your stomach. You arched into him, the contact sending electric shocks through your body. You wrap your legs around his hips bringing him closer to you, wanting to feel him pressed up against you. Your fingers work fast to unbutton his shirt, slipping it off his frame and skimming his skin with your fingertips. He helped you pull your shirt off and discarded it on the floor, lips attaching to your neck, lightly biting the soft skin. You moaned as Jaehyun stained your skin, hands reaching behind you to unclasp your bra, kneading your breasts and slowly grinding into you. Your hands are quick to reach for his jeans, undoing his button and tried to pull his pants down. He pulled away from you to remove both his jeans and boxers, helping you remove your skirt and panties too. You gulped at the sight of his hard length and you could not handle it anymore. You pushed him so he was sitting upright and you straddled his hips, teasing his length with your wet folds.

“Don’t tease baby.” Jaeyun groaned, gripping your hips tight in an attempt to regain control.

“Patience baby.” You whisper, enjoying the strain in his voice.

You decided to end his torture and aligned his length with your entrance. You sat down all the way and you both groaned at the feeling of your tight walls engulfing his length. You waited a few seconds to adjust before you started to undulate your hips, walls tightening around his length.

“Oh fuck.” Jaehyun moaned, throwing his head back against the couch.

You took advantage and bit his neck making him moan louder, which turned you on even more.

You sped the movement of your hips, breath catching in your throat at the pleasure that coursed through your body.

“Ah, yes.” You moaned, Jaehyun’s hands guiding your hips, increasing the friction against your clit. That sent electrical jolts through your body, a strong shiver shaking you. You grind your hips faster against Jaehyun’s, the angle hitting deep inside you and aided in the stimulation of your clit. Jaehyun popped a nipple into his mouth, sucking harshly as his other hand kneaded your other breast. The added sensations were all it took for you to reach your end. You moaned Jaehyuns name like a mantra, hips bucking wildly against his. The tightening of your walls was all it took for him to reach his end, a low moan leaving his lips as he filled you with his cum.

Your hips slowed to a stop, hands still clutching Jaehyun’s sticky body against yours. His breath slowly turned to normal and it tickled the slick skin of your neck. He attached his lips to yours in a slow and sensual kiss, a warm feeling melting in your chest and spreading to the rest of your body. Your brain felt hazy and in that moment a single word came into your mind: Chanyeol.

You pulled away from Jaehyun’s hips and wandering hands, receiving a confused look from his gorgeous face.

“You okay?” He asks concerned, hands planted on your hips.

“Yeah. I just feel super sticky. I am going to head to the shower.” You say, hating yourself for lying to him and for thinking about Chanyeol in your post-coitus bliss. “Care to join me?” You say, a mischievous glint in your eye.

He chuckled and nodded his head, completely unaware of the stuff going on in your brain. God were you an asshole.

“Yes babe, I’ll be right in.” He says as he watched you get us from his lap, his soft member falling out of your entrance and his cum trailing down your thighs. The sight alone was enough to turn him on.

“Okay, don’t take too long.” You say in a sing-song voice as you quickly make your way to your bathroom, not wanting to make a mess on the floor.

Jaehyun was wiping himself when he noticed your phone was blinking, indicating that you had messages. He didn’t think anything of it but at that moment your phone vibrated again, illuminating the screen with a notification. Curiosity got the best of him and he looked at your screen, chuckling when he saw a Snapchat notification from Mark. He asked Mark why he had made you get the app and the young boy told him it was easier to send you funny videos and memes through there. You and Mark had a brother/sister relationship and Jaehyun thought it was cute. His smile slowly disappeared when he saw that you had three text messages from Chanyeol.

Chanyeol: I really appreciate it

Was what the preview message said in your Notification Center. He would be lying if he said he wasn’t a little bothered at the fact that Chanyeol was messaging you, but the message wasn’t incriminating. He was probably just talking about the great wok you did with the press release of him and Ara for the opening gala. Besides, Jaehyun trusted you and he felt a little guilty for even looking at your phone screen. He knew you had nothing to hide. He shook the weird feeling away and made his way to the bathroom where you and your hot wet body were waiting for him.

___________________

You were typing away replying to emails when you were distracted by a soft knock on your door.

“Come in.” You mumble, not looking away from your computer screen.

“Hey.” The deep voice says as the person enters the office.

“Chanyeol?” You say confused, recognizing the voice right away.

“Sorry to barge in, I just wanted to stop by and say hi.” He says with a cheesy smile on his face.

You raise your eyebrow at him, a small chuckle leaving your lips.

“Well hi then.” You reply, making him shake his head.

“You’re so mean.” He whined playfully, sitting on the chair across from you.

“Yes please make yourself at home.” You say sarcastically, looking back to your screen to hit the send button for your last email.

“So, what brings you here?” You ask, finally looking at him.

“Well I was here meeting Wendy for some last minute details and arrangements for Ara’s travels.” He explains, leaning back in your chair.

“Hmm, and you decided to stop by?” You question, thinking how ridiculous that sounded.

“Yes, don’t make it weird.” He joked, leaning forward on your desk.

You eye him wearily and decide he probably was being sincere.

“So when do you go back to Korea?” You ask, deciding to be civil.

“Tomorrow morning.” He pouted, which made you chuckle.

“Well, safe travels then.” You said with a cheeky grin, making Chanyeol laugh.

“Really? Why are you being so cold?” He playfully whines, splaying his upper body on top of your desk.

“Okay, okay…” You relented. “I hope that your plane doesn’t crash.” You gave him a sarcastic smile, making him laugh and causing your desk to shake.

“You are so rude.” He mumbles, reaching out in front of you and poking your hand with his index finger.

“I’m joking. But I do wish you safe travels, that’s not a mean thing to say.” You mention, not pulling your hand away for whatever reason.

“I know. I don’t know, i was just expecting something else…” He trailed off, his whole hand splayed on top of yours.

The warmth of his hand was oddly comforting, but it also felt a little wrong.

“I’m not sure what else you were expecting, Chanyeol.” You say, nervously pulling your hand away from under his embrace.

He stared into your eyes, not breaking eye contact.

“Hey babe ready to go?” Jaehyun says as he enters your office, stopping abruptly once he sees who is sitting at your desk.

“I’m sorry, am I interrupting something?” Jaehyun asks, hoping Chanyeol’s presence is strictly business related.

“No, Mr. Park was just leaving.” You smile, giving Chanyeol a pointed look, indicating that he should leave.

“Yes, I was just leaving. Once again, thank you for our time and hard work team captain.” Chanyeol said, giving you a small smile before exiting your office.

You walk up to Jaehyun and wrap your arms around his waist, embracing him in a tight hug and enjoying his warmth. You look up at him and smile, enjoying the sight of his beautiful face.

“Ready?” You ask, giving him a small peck on the lips.

“Yeah, I’m ready.” He agrees, holding your hand and heading to the elevator.

Jaehyun feels a bit uneasy and he is not one hundred percent sure as to why. He knows that unfortunately Chanyeol has to be around because of work but that did not mean he was not weary of the man and the situation. He did not want to come off as insecure and jealous, he trusts you. It's Chanyeol he doesn’t trust and for some reason he feels that Chanyeol’s involvement in this project is more than just good exposure for him.

He doesn’t want to be that guy, but he is more than sure that Chanyeol is trying to get close to you. Jaehyun looks over at your face and smiles; he felt like a winner because you were next to him, holding his hand.

______________

“Thanks for cooking dinner babe, it was delicious.” Jaehyun complimented while he helped take the dishes to the sink.

“No problem babe. Anything for you.” You wink, smacking his butt as you walk back to the table to wipe it down.

He gasps in mock offense, claiming he wasn’t a piece of meat.

“I’ll wash the dishes babe.” He offered, being the gentleman he always is.

“Thanks babe, I’m going to wash up.” You say, excusing yourself and running into the shower. You were in desperate need for a hot shower to relax your muscles.

You unknowingly left your phone on the kitchen counter and you got a text message at that moment. Jaehyun looked over and saw that it was a message from Chanyeol. Furrowing his eyebrows he debated whether or not he should let you know about your message. He ignored it and went back to the task at hand, scrubbing the dishes with unnecessary force. He was trying really hard not to lose his temper, but the fact that Chanyeol was texting you yet again was starting to annoy him. It was almost nine in the evening and he doubted that there were any business related issues that needed your attention at this moment. Your phone vibrated two more times and Jaehyun felt like he was going to go crazy. Before he could do something irrational, he grabbed your phone and headed to your bedroom. He needed the device away from him so he could concentrate on not chucking it out the window.

“Oh, hey.” You say surprised as Jaehyun walks into your room with your phone in hand. You had just gotten out of the shower and you only had your towel wrapped around your body. Normally, that would turn Jaehyun on, but right now he couldn’t even focus on that.

“Here.” He says, dropping your phone on the bed. “It was vibrating a lot, so I decided to bring it to the room.” He explains, hoping his tone didn’t sound bothered. He did not want you to know he knew who was texting you.

“Oh. Okay, thanks.” You say with a smile before Jaehyun walked out of the bedroom and back to the kitchen to finish cleaning up.

Later that night, Jaehyun lay awake in bed not being able to fall asleep. He stared at your peaceful sleeping face, admiring how cute you look. He finally found his comfortable spot on his side, facing you and he closed his eyes, ready for sleep to take over. It seems like you forgot to put your phone on silent mode because a text notification is what made Jaehyun open up his eyes again. He could not believe someone was texting you this late, but it could be an emergency. Jaehyun carefully leans over you to grab your phone from your night stand. He knows your password so he types it in and checks your messages. He scrunches his nose when he sees it’s yet another text from Chanyeol.

Chanyeol: Have a good night. Sweet dreams ;)

‘What the fuck.’ Jaehyun mutters under his breath, now thoroughly annoyed at the fact that Chanyeol was sending you good night texts. Against his better judgement, he looks at your text chain from earlier when Chanyeol was blowing up your phone.

Chanyeol: Do you remember this night? That was fun!

[Image.jpg]

Me: when we were on a double date with Suho and Mina. yeah I remember.

Chanyeol: I had a lot of fun that day. Did you?

Me: Yeah it was alright.

Chanyeol: :( why are you being so cold?

Chanyeol: Helloooooo????

Chanyeol: Fine, I get it. I won’t message you xp

Chanyeol: Have a good night. Sweet dreams ;)

Jaehyun was furious after reading the messages. How dare Chanyeol show up out of nowhere and think this is okay? He looks over to your sleeping form once again, eyeing you suspiciously. You didn’t seem interested in engaging conversation with Chanyeol, but you were also not putting a stop to his advances.

‘Stop it Jaehyun. You trust her.’ He thought, shaking his head and feeling bad for doubting you for even one second. Clearly the problem here was Chanyeol and Jaehuyn was going to make it clear to him that he needs to stay away from you.

______________

Much to Jaehyun’s dismay, he did not see Chanyeol at the office that day. He had some business to attend to all day and he was stuck in his office all day with conference call after conference call. He was upset because he was going to need to stay at the office late and he was looking forward to having dinner with you and cuddling. Your guys dynamic was finally where it used to be and he was happy. He knew he had been a bit distant for a while after you broke the news about Namjoon’s call. But he was thrown off because he had some big plans that had to be put on hold for now. He just needed some time to regroup and execute them another time. He was still bothered about the text messages from Chanyeol but he decided to forget about it and concentrate on his work. He trusted you completely so he knew he had nothing to worry about.

“Hey handsome.” You say as you knock on Jaehyun’s office door, observing his tired eyes. Poor guy has been working non-stop all day. He was barely able to get 15 minutes in for lunch and he had to basically scarf it down.

“Hey babe. I still have a lot more to do. You should probably head home and I’ll catch up later.” He said with a sigh, rubbing his eyes.

“Aww okay baby. Don’t overdo it, okay?” You say, giving Jaehyun a parting kiss.

You were sad to leave him behind because he looked so tired but you knew what he was working on was very important and he had to finish it before he was able to go home. You decided you were going to make him a nice meal for when he got home, that way he could have a full belly and be well-rested. You walked to the nearby market that was a short walking distance from work and bought some necessary ingredients and then took an Uber home. You were not about to use public transportation while carrying grocery bags. Once you got home, you started working right away. You made him some spicy kimchi stew and a few side dishes you knew were his favorite. You had sent him a text message to see if he knew when he would get home but he had not answered yet. You hoped you had enough time for a quick shower before he got home. You wanted to wear a very cute night gown to let him know he had options as to how he wanted the night to end. Wrapping your silk robe around your frame, you walk back to your kitchen and make sure the food is still warm and not overdone. You were startled by your doorbell ringing, knowing that Jaehyun had a key to your apartment and would never have to ring. You were confused as to who would visit you at this hour since it was close to ten pm. You cautiously make your way to your door and look through the peephole, even more confused with who is on the other side of the door.

“Chanyeol? What are you doing here?” You asked incredulously, not being able to think of a reason as to why he is at your home at this hour of the night. “I thought your flight left already?”

“I changed it for tomorrow. Can I come on?” He asked, looking around the hallway. You didn’t really want to invite him in, but you also did not want to stand in your doorway with flimsy clothing on for all your neighbors to see.

“Sure I guess.” You concede, moving out of the way and closing the door behind Chanyeol.

“Thanks. It smells good in here.” He said, sniffing the air.

“Chanyeol why are you here? These are not necessarily regular visiting hours.” You say, crossing your arms across your chest. Chanyeol tried not to look at your cleavage but it was hard since you looked great in that robe.

“Look, I know I have no right being here, but I am leaving and I just want to say that I am sorry for all the trouble I gave you.” He said, looking right at you.

“I think you already had this conversation with me Chanyeol. You can’t be here for too long.” You say, needing him to leave your apartment as soon as possible.

“I know. I just want to say it again and I hope you can forgive me for all the crap I did. I don’t want to interfere anymore in your life. But I just want you to know that if you ever want me back in your life, as friends! I would really like that.” He said, giving you a small smile that made you relax a little.

“Thanks Chanyeol. Look, I don’t hate you or anything. And I am genuinely happy that you are now doing what you love and I hope you keep being successful in it. I think friendship could be a possibility….. In the relative future.” You say with a giggle, making Chanyeol laugh.

“Fair enough.” He said, looking at his watch. “I better get going, I need to be on my way. I should get at least a few hours of sleep before I head to the airport.” He says, standing awkwardly in the middle of your living room.

“Have a safe trip.” You say, not knowing what else to say.

“Okay this is plenty awkward. I’m going to head out now. Is it okay if I get a hug?” He asked, awkwardly holding his arms out.

“Sure I guess.” You agree with an eye roll.

You go in for the hug and hold your breath, nervous for whatever reason. You were just saying bye to an acquaintance/ sort of friend and old lover. You were not doing anything wrong. Chanyeol wrapped his arms tightly around you, missing the feeling of your body in his embrace. He sniffed your hair, commiting the scent to memory. He wished he could have appreciated you when he had you and it was now too late for him. Hopefully not completely late.

“What’s going on here?” Jaehyun asks, making you and Chanyeol break away from each other. You did not hear him open the door.

“Jaehyun!” You say breathless, your heart was hammering in your chest and you felt like you got caught doing something wrong.

Jaehyun was silent as he looked between the two of you, not knowing what to make of the situation.

“I was just leaving man. I just came by to say goodbye. Nothing else.” Chanyeol said defensively, not expecting Jaehyun to show up. But that did explain your attire.

“Well then I guess you better go.” Jaehyun said cooly, flexing his fingers in an attempt to calm himself and not punch Chanyeol.

“Okay.” Chanyeol said with a parting glance at you and a cold stare to Jaehyun.

The room was uncomfortably silent, a heavy feeling settling over the room. Jaehyun wasn’t looking at you, his back facing you and you could see his shoulders moving up and down with every breath he was taking.

“Jaehyun.” You say softly, trying to get him to look at you.

He finally looked over after a few seconds that felt like an eternity.

You sucked in a gasp at the cold, hard look in his eyes; something he never had before. Not with you anyway.

“Care to explain?” He asks, voice low.

“I know it might look bad, but I swear it was nothing. He stopped by to say goodbye because he goes back to Korea tomorrow morning. Nothing else.” You explain, taking a tentative towards him.

He takes a deep breath and looks at you before speaking again.

“Do you still have feelings for him?” He asks.

“What?” You ask, not knowing where this was coming from.

“Do you or do you not have feelings for him?” Jaehyun asked again, getting agitated and his voice raising slightly.

You stared at him, wide-eyed and not knowing what to say. Of course you did not have any feelings for Chanyeol. So why the fuck could you not say that out loud?

Jaehyun scoffed and shook his head, not really believing what was happening right now.

“Jaehyun, I don’t have any feelings for him.” You explain, placing your hand on his arm.

“Then why did you hesitate to answer?” He questions, moving away from your touch.

“I was just taken by surprise! Nothing else.” You say, chest heaving with anxiety.

“Really? Is that why you’ve been messaging with him? Why he’s been stopping by your office? Why you’ve been kind of jumpy and dodgy?” He pressed, trying not to get agitated.

You were stunned to silence, not knowing he had been aware of the messages from Chanyeol. You knew that you’ve been a little distant because of the guilt you had felt because of these mixed feelings ever since Chanyeol has been bombarding you in your workplace.

“Right.” He says after your long pause of silence. Jaehyun let out a sigh and wiped his hands down his face. “I’m going to get my stuff.” Jaehyun says, going into your bedroom to get his belongings.

You stood there in silence as you heard Jaehyun packing his things, your heart felt like it was breaking and you did not know how to stop him. He seemed so upset and you do not know how this evening took a turn for the worse.

Jaehyun came out of your room holding a duffle filled with his clothes, stopping right in front of you before he left.

“If we are going to be together, I want you to be one hundred percent sure. No room for doubt. It looks like you might be confused right now, so I think it's better if we put an end to this.” He says, looking right into your eyes. You sucked in a breath, not expecting this to be happening right now. This relationship that you cherish so much, this person that you love, how could you be losing this? Jaehyun took your lack of answer as a silent agreement and headed for the door.

‘Say something! Stop him from leaving. Tell him you have no doubts!’ Your brain screamed. It seems like your mouth and feet were not receiving the signals, because you just stood there in silence as you watched the man you love walk out of your life.

“Oh, and one more thing.” Jaehyun says as he pauses in your door frame, looking back at your bewildered face. “You know that offer Namjoon gave you? I think it would be a good idea if you accept it.” He says, finally walking out of your home and closing the door behind him.

You stood in the middle of your living room for a few more minutes until your body finally caught up with your brain and with everything that just happened. You dropped to your knees and let out the sob that was stuck there since this night went to shit. An excruciating pain you had not felt before hit your chest and you crumpled inwards, hitting your chest repeatedly to ebb the pain away. Your screams and sobs were muffled by the rub beneath you, burying your face into it because you could not bear the pain in your chest. Your cries carried through your apartment, the emptiness in it bringing a new wave of cries, tears and sadness. You stood up and shaky legs and made your way to your bedroom, crumpling on your bed once you saw the absence of Jaehyun’s belongings. He was really gone. He did not leave anything behind. You lay your head on his pillow and inhale his scent that still lingered, the smell bringing a wave of fresh tears to your eyes and the pain in your chest intensified.

You could not sleep that night. You laid awake, blankly staring at the clock on your night stand. Every time you would drift off you jolted awake, thinking that what happened was all a bad dream. But once you realized it was all real, you broke down again. Your sobs echoing in your room and ricocheting from the emptiness in your heart. You glance at the clock and see that it is two am, which meant it was three pm in Korea. Namjoon did not leave the office until five, so you knew you could find him in his office. You cleared your throat and grabbed your phone to dial his number.

“Hey! I did not expect to hear from you at this hour. Isn’t it like two am over there?” Namjoon greets, happy to hear from you.

“Hey. I can’t sleep.” You pause, trying to hold your tears. “Um, I’m actually calling because I changed my mind. I’m not going to stay the full year in New York, I want to come back to Seoul and work on those projects you have for me.” You say, forcing a smile onto your face so you could fake sounding happy.

“Oh! Really? That’s great! What changed your mind?” He asks, curious as to why you want to come back but happy nonetheless.

“I just figured that there really is no reason to stay if everything I’m responsible for is done. Besides, my best friend is pregnant and I want to be there for her. And also because I miss you and I want to work on those projects you told me about.” Maybe faking your happiness won’t be so hard from here on out.

“That’s awesome! I’m so happy to hear that you’re coming back. When can you come back to Seoul so I can book your ticket.” He asks, browser already up on the airline’s website.

“Everything I need to do is done. Book me whatever flight is available for tomorrow.” You say, not seeing the point in dragging this out.

“Oh! So soon, okay. Give me a minute so I can see what is available.” Namjoon informs you. You can hear the fast clacking of the keys as he looked for a flight. “Okay. there is a flight at five pm. Does that work?” He asks.

“Yes, that’s fine.” You say, the reality of it all hitting you.

“Okay, I’ll email you the details.” He says before hanging up.

You sigh a shaky breath, the tears dry but the pain in your heart is still very much present. You get up from your bed and with shaky knees you make your way to your closet to start packing. You knew you were not going to be able to sleep so you might as well do something productive.

The sun was rising as you finished packing your belongings, having accumulated a few more things than what you arrived with. You were showered and packed, sitting at your kitchen table, cold cup of coffee in front of you. Your phone vibrated and you saw that it was Mina. You gulped and coughed before you answered, hoping your voice didn’t sound hoarse.

“Hey, I heard you were coming back to Seoul. What happened?” She asks. You were not aware that news traveled that fast.

“Mina…” You say, your voice breaking at the last letter of her naame.

“What? What's wrong? Are you crying?” She asks worried, not sure as to why you’re crying.

“Mina…” You say again, voice breaking into sobs.

She tried to placate you enough so she could understand what you were saying but it was no use. Your heart was broken and all you could do was sob into your phone, wishing this was all a nightmare.

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