#well that's cool though. I'm always down to understand me better. and hey what a funny way to do it too

[afniel]

Realizing that I went and wrote a bunch of intentionally aro relationships and my partner was like, "Idk, it seemed like normal relationships to me," and I was like, "I mean yeah it's not that different from ours, I guess, I was kind of going for 45° off from 'normal' romance," and they're like, "Okay, but ours is also pretty much like that," and I'm like, "Yeah, true," and now I'm like, damn hold up, are we both some kinda arospec and THIS is how we figure it out? Because I wrote a long-ass fic about intentionally queer-coded (among other things) robots? Life is weird, man.

Like I've been prone to extreme long-term crushes on a very few (mostly unattainable) people over the years, but I wouldn't have known what to do with them even if they worked out, and cough my ex was not even one of them. I just kind of assumed I was failing to feel a thing I was totally supposed to feel, there, and quite a lot of that relationship emotionally was me going, "Okay, I care like This, but I think I'm supposed to care like That? I'm pretty sure he cares That way. I'm not sure I do, but I mean, there's really only one way*, so maybe I'm just misreading this and actually I do care like That, I'm just bad at it."

*This was me being very incorrect, it turns out. There's all kinds of ways to love someone. It's a very inadequate and nonspecific word.

When I confessed my feelings (which I'd been sitting on for a year) to my partner, their reaction wasn't to be particularly romantic about it. In fact they told me they'd help me move to California if I wanted to. And after I got over my initial confusion of being kissed on the forehead (which is also not super romantic as a gesture and I couldn't decide how to even read that so I kinda skipped over even trying for a while), I was thinking, Awesome, that is a yes. They have promised to assist me with difficult stuff, and said nothing at all about emotions, because that's not a big deal anyway. The important thing is that I can rely on them and vice versa. Cool. We are basically together forever now. Which ended up being true. I just never moved out and now it's like 13 years later, go figure. But that's not what I think actually passes for reciprocating feelings for most people? Worked great for me though.

Anyway I feel like I have accidentally learned something about myself, lol. I guess romance is okay I guess, like it's not repulsive, but seriously, it's WAY more satisfying to me to guess someone else's Quiplash answer because you know they know you would think it's fucking funny, and you do, and because you think it's funny and you're well aware they know your type of humor and you know theirs and that you wouldn't expect them to use "cum" as an answer because that's not usually how they roll, so of course that is the only answer they can possibly give, which is instantly evident to both of you with no conversation whatsoever on the topic. When you got just one brain cell and it's quantum entangled with their just one brain cell so you have a lot of null discussions where nobody has to say anything but it's fully understood anyway, that's The Dream, if you ask me. And like I don't really think that's romantic by the usual definition. You can have that with friends and family, too. But that is what it turns out I prioritize in relationships, which I'm starting to feel like isn't what the majority of people are here for?

TFW it's hard to tell because I've been assuming I'm totally alloromantic so everything I experience must be typical totally alloromantic stuff too, but I'm starting to think it isn't maybe? But how do I even tell, this is like being colorblind, lmao.

[woso-dreamzzz]

Big Boss II

Hardersson x Child!Reader

Part of The Big Adventures Universe

Summary: You're not just Not-Wolfsburg's Big Boss

You're a very good Big Boss.

You know this because Coach Emma and your mothers tell you so.

Sometimes though, you wish you weren't the Big Boss of Chelsea.

Specifically, now.

You wiggle happily in your seat as you sit in a video review session. The team are playing Arsenal at the weekend and you swing your legs back and forth as some of your favourite players appear on the screen.

"That's Daan!" You tell Jessie and Niamh. "She's so cool!"

Niamh looks at you a little wounded. "Cooler than us?"

You give her a look. "Of course! 'Cause she's Arsenal."

"Maybe tone down the love, princesse," Momma laughs as she moves to sit in your seat, swinging you up into her lap," We're still Chelsea here."

You sigh. "Why? Morsa says that if I love something I should let people know."

"I think she meant someone's cooking or a game, not one of our rivals."

"But why?"

"Well..." Momma has to think for a second. "Because being a good Big Boss means that you have to take into account other people's feelings. Jessie and Niamh might feel sad if you keep talking about Arsenal."

You hadn't thought about that before so you slump in Momma's lap.

"Sorry," You murmur. You shouldn't lie but if it's to save someone's feelings you think it's okay like that time Morsa lied about how your cookies tasted even though you know that you put salt in one of them by accident.

You wiggle on Momma's lap excitedly though at the thought of seeing the Arsenal girls again. Leah and Katie are super cool and Jill's tall so you climb up onto her shoulders so you can be tall too. Beth and Daan are extra special though because every time you see them, they give you a juice box and a snack.

You kick your legs out a little as you wonder what snacks Daan will give you this time.

"That's Leah!" You say before turning around in Momma's lap to peek over her shoulder at Morsa," Is she better than you?"

Morsa chokes a little bit, thumping her chest as she coughs. "What?"

"Cause you and her play the same position," You explain like Morsa's slow," Is she better than you?"

"Princesse," Morsa says in shock," What makes you think she's better than me?"

You shrug. "Dunno. That's why I'm asking."

"Just because she's Arsenal doesn't mean she's better than me," Morsa says," I'm one of the best."

"Was just asking!" You defend, sticking your tongue out," Momma says that if I ever wonder about something it's better to ask!"

When game day rolls around, you're very excited.

You're excited for every match day but especially against Arsenal. You get up extra early and go downstairs to play with your toys while Morsa and Momma wake up. You thought about going to the Big Bed but you know that you would just fall asleep and you want to be awake for the game today.

"Seeing the Arsenal girls," You tell Morsa when she asks what's got you so hyper," They're my favourite!"

She groans like she always does when you proclaim your love for Arsenal.

Momma laughs before going serious. "I know the Arsenal girls are your friends, princesse," She says," But this is very serious, okay? You can't tell them anything about how we're going to be playing, okay?"

Your brow furrows. "Why?"

"Well, because then the match won't be any fun for anyone and we all play football because it's fun, don't we?"

You think about that for a moment. It makes sense. You love playing football. You can't imagine what it would be like for it not to be fun anymore. "Okay, I won't tell."

"You're a good secret keeper," Momma says," I have no doubts you'll do very well."

You puff out your chest in pride as the car comes to a stop and you all get out.

You don't really understand why you all have to check the pitch because it's the same every time but Momma and Morsa make you.

"Daan!" You cry out, immediately detaching yourself from Morsa to run over. You stumble a little bit before crashing into her arms.

"Hey there!" Daan laughs as she swings you around. You settle happily on her hip and she pulls a Freddo Frog out of her pocket that you munch happily on.

She walks you both over to a bigger group of Arsenal girls and you high five everyone.

"That's a nice shirt," Daan says, pulling it down from where it's ridden up," What does it mean?"

"Means I'm the Big Boss!" You boast, puffing out your chest," I'm the best Big Boss 'cause Momma and Morsa tells me so."

"Oh, wow," Daan says with the perfect amount of awe at your status," I wish we had a big boss."

You look around quickly and bite at your lip. Momma and Morsa made you promise not to blab about Not-Wolfsburg tactics to Arsenal but they said nothing about helping them.

"I can be your Big Boss!" You say," But you have to ask my Momma and Morsa 'cause I'm only little and they still make lots of my choices."

Daan laughs but brings you over to where Momma and Morsa are milling about on the other side of the pitch.

"Momma," You say because you know she's more likely to give you what you want," Can I be the Big Boss for Arsenal today?"

She seems to catch on to what you're doing because she shrugs. "I don't know. Why don't you ask your Morsa?"

"Morsa, please?"

"Trying to pinch my daughter, van de Donk?" Morsa says," That's low."

Daan shrugs. "I'll give her back?"

"See that you do." Morsa presses a kiss to your forehead before letting Daan take you away.

You make sure to be just as firm as you always are because Coach Emma always tells you that being firm is the best way to get a team to play good so, just because you love Arsenal, doesn't mean you go easy on them.

"Run! Run! Run!" You order," Hurry up! Stop being slow!"

You cross your arms over your chest firmly and stamp your foot on the ground.

"Faster!" You yell," Or my Morsa's gonna catch you and she's not going to let you win!"

[thatonefreakk-0]

~Heat~

➵Author: thatonefreakk-0

➵Content: Fluf, Smut, p in v, gentle sex, praise

➵Words: 2.844

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It's once again a hot day in hell, which is usually normal, but today is one of those EXTRA hot days. Everyone at the hotel is trying to desperately find ways to cool off a little.

Everyone seems to be wearing very little clothing to try and bypass the unbearable heat. You yourself are wearing a short skirt and tank top, which differs from your usual attire of having a lot of your body covered up. Though under these terrible temperatures you let it slide. Navigating through the hotel's long hallways, you enter the lobby and see Angel Dust and Husk on the couch, in front of a fan. You make your way over to them, "Can I join you two?" you say almost desperate to sit in front of that fan. "Of course!", Angel tells and you don't hesitate to jump in front of the fan with them. The cooling air of the fan hits your burning hot skin, you sigh and close your eyes, relaxing into the couch with the cooling breeze showering over you.

-

Most of the guys are topless, which is understandable, if you were a guy, you'd be topless right now as well. Thinking of this made you realise, you haven't seen Lucifer at all today. Lucifer and you are close, you call each other best friends, but there's definitely more.

Your head roams with thoughts of what he could possibly be doing right now, or what he's wearing. He always covers up, the most you've ever seen are his forearms from when he crumpled his sleeves to his elbows. You shake your head to get out of your train of thought and get up to walk to the kitchen, all this heat is making you thirsty after all.

Picking up a glass you fill it with cold water and chug it slowly, you set the glass down and let out a relieving sigh. Sweat pearls up on your forehead as the heat strikes you again, you wipe it away and look to your side. Your eyes widen as you see Lucifer in the lobby, talking to Charlie. Your eyes immediately dart to what he's wearing. He's topless, making his wings pop behind him and showing off his abs and well trained back. Your eyes fall further, he's wearing sweatpants, they look custom tailored to fit his tail. You just stare in awe at his striking beauty.

'Pull yourself together!', you tell yourself and snap out of the trance you were in. You decide to see what they're talking about. "Hey Luci, hey Charls, what's up", you ask mindlessly, trying to ignore Lucifer's breathtaking physique.

His head turns to face you and and his eyes widen a little, looking at your face before briefly checking you out. That's when you notice, you've never worn clothes that are as revealing as the ones you decided to wear today. A light blush crosses your cheeks but before you could think, you were cut off. "Hey y/n! Dad just wanted to tell me something real quick, what about you?", Charlie explains and I nod my head, showing that I acknowledged her words. "Ah- yes, I just went to get a drink real quick" you chuckle the notice Lucifer staring at you. "Y/n?", Lucifer says close to a whisper. "Yes, Luci?", you question his sudden mention of your name. "How are you dealing with this heat to today?", his voice shifts back to an innocent tone. "Oh, barely, it's so hot", I tell wiping pearls of sweat off my forehead. "I can tell, want to join me in my room? I have cooling". "You. Have. Cooling? And you didn't tell me?! Yes I'll join you!", you couldn't believe he had cooling this entire time. Lucifer chuckles, "Come with me then". With no further questions, you follow him to his room.

This isn't your first time in his room, you've been here countless amount of times. You enter his room and feel the shift in temperature instantly, relieved, you let yourself fall on his bed, sighing comfortably. Faint chuckling can be heard as you get comfortable on his cozy, smooth bed. He walks towards you, smiling, "Better in here isn't it?". "I'm never leaving your room, ever again". He laughs, "Is that so?". "Uh huh!", you stretch your arms then sit up on his bed when you suddenly notice his chest. You totally forgot he was topless and a faint blush creeps onto your cheeks. Lucifer seemed to notice this and sits beside you. His eyes darting different features of your body which he hasn't seen before and it's making you blush. "You know.. I really dont have a problem with you staying in my room", he explains. You were about to say something but he beats you to it, "I mean you can stay here any time you want-!" he notices what he said and embarrassingly tries to save himself. You laugh, "Relax~ I'd love to stay here, it's super comfy!", you smile at him and he seems to ease up again.

It's only now that you realise just how close you are sitting to him, thighs touching. Usually you wouldn't mind this, you and Luci hug each other a lot but something is just off with you today.. perhaps not only you are feeling 'off' today.

The tension hanging in the air is as thick as the awkward silence that was filling the room, until Lucifer broke it off, "You know uh.. I've never told you this but you're outstandingly beautiful". You can't help but blush at the compliment and look away embarrassed. "Oh stop it-", you smile nervously, trying to deny it. "Oh but you are", he speaks with new found confidence in his voice, which he definitely got from seeing you blush.

His fingers gently grab your chin and turn your head to face him. Your eyes widen slightly, flustered, you're now looking at him. His eyes dart to your lips, then meet your eyes again. His whisper breaks the silence once again, "You're so breathtaking..", he says in awe of your beauty, examining your face. Your heart starts pounding faster as he leans closer. 'Is this actually happening?? Are we about to kiss?!', you think to yourself. "Y/n..", he pauses, "may I kiss you..?". Your heart pounds out of your chest as those words leave his lips. You'd be a fool to deny it. You'd be a fool to deny him. You gather any amount of confidence left and answer boldly, "Do it". He seems taken aback by your bold answer but accepts it. His hands cup your face and he pulls you closer, "I've always wanted to kiss you", he whispers against your lips and kisses you gently.

Your heart skips a beat as you feel his lips on yours, soft and gentle, passionately kissing. Your mind eases a little, knowing the feeling is mutual now. Your hands reach up into his soft blonde hair and you kiss back, matching him perfectly. The kiss you share seems to have stopped time. You're completely lost in his sweet taste. His right hand moves gracefully to the small of your back and pulls you in closer. Your hands leave his hair and settle on his bare chest.

He separates the kiss and you both try to catch your air. You look up at him, pure love in his eyes as he meets your almost enchanting gaze. "That was.. amazing" you whisper. Both of your faces are flush pink, you want to kiss him again but you're unsure if he does too. 'He really did kiss me' you think to yourself in shock. The silence is loud, unspoken feelings are in the air and the oh so familiar tension between you two didn't seem to budge. "Y/n,..?" his smooth voice rips you out of thought and you nod. He seems to say something but all you see are his lips moving. "..y/n..? Are you listening?". You completely ignore his question, the kiss you shared with him just now fueled you. You want more so you gently grab his face, taking him off guard. "Kiss me again, I liked it". He smirks at your words and pulls you onto his lap, back your face heat up. "So eager hm~?", he whispers and kisses you deeply. This time, you both seem a bit more needy. His hands roaming your body carefully and pulling you even closer.

You separately the kiss to catch some air, look into his half lidded eyes which are full of love and lust? "Y/n..", he starts and you notice that you do see lust in his eyes. Before Lucifer could say anything, you kiss him deeply and a little rougher than before. Instantly he kiss back, the kiss is rough and sloppy, you're making out. Your hips start to involuntarily move back and forth, grinding against his crotch which makes him groan. His hands examine your body, moving down under your skirt, grabbing your ass and pulling you flush against him. "You sure you want this~? I advise you to be careful with your decisions~" he smirks. "What'll happen if we keep going~?", I tease dragging my fingertip from his chest downward. "That depends on how far you want to take this darling", he stops and leans in to whisper into my ear, "I'm willing to do whatever you'd like~". You blush. Calling you 'darling' then telling you that?? Butterflies.

"Now I'm curious~", you giggle. "We'll see how long that giggle lasts my love", he whispers and kisses you hard, making you moan into the kiss unexpectedly. You kiss back and decide to just go all out. Grinding yourself against his crotch. The groans he lets out only help to fuel your desire. You start to feel his erection growing and smirk during the kiss. "Someone's excited to see me~", you chuckle. "Always.. fuck you're so hot", he responds quick. You think you have him in a vulnerable state, but he proves you wrong and swiftly moves you onto the bed, getting on top of you. You gasp but he shushes you, "Don't worry, I'll take good care of you", he winks and starts trailing small kisses down to your neck. The kisses start to get sloppy and you feel his teeth graze your skin. He bites making you gasp and choke back a moan. He notices, "Don't hide those sweet noises baby~", he orders, his voice lower than usual. He goes back to your neck when you feel him bite. "Mhh~". "That's my girl~", he breathes against your neck. He bites your neck until he finds your sweet spot. "Ah-!", you moan, making him bite harder. "Ah~ Lucifer..". He chuckles then puts on a little more serious tone, "Are you okay with us doing this love?". "Y-yes", you can't believe he asked for permission. With your conformation, he continues. You see his gold magic remove both of your clothes and you heat up. You can see his body now, wow.. He notices your staring, "Looks like you enjoy your sight just as much as I like mine~", he licks his lips looking at my body and I blush.

He moves down and spreads your legs, brushing his fingers between your wet lips, making you gasp. He finds your clit and massages it gently, you whimper at this, your stomach feels fuzzy. He enjoys your whimpering and rubs your clit faster. "Ah~ oh my- ngh~", you hold onto the bedsheets. "So sensitive hmm~", he says seductively, his voice very deep and low, which you have never heard before. You open your eyes to look at him, his eyes glowing red and his eyelids low. 'Shit he looks hot', you think to yourself then feel a finger at your entrance and gasp,pulling you out of thought. "You're soaking wet for me already~ You want me so bad hm~". You blush and look away embarrassed but he makes you face him with his other hand at your chin, "Tell me what you want sweetheart~ What is it you want me to do~". Your blush stays content, "I.. I want you". "Want me to what~", he teases. "To.. fuck me..". "That's my good girl~", he says as he lifts my legs over his shoulders,"You ready~? I'll start slow, if you want me to stop tell me alright?". 'He's so respectful..', you think and nod.

With that he presses his tip against your wet entrance, then pushes in slowly, making you groan as his big size stretches you out. Grabbing and holding on to the bedsheets as he pushes in further, inch by inch. "That's it, you're doing great my love~", he praises, suppressing his groans. He stays still, letting you adjust to his size. As he's letting you adjust you deside to ask out of curiosity, "Lucifer?". "Hm?". "How big are you-?", you can see his face flush a little as you ask. "Right now, about 12 inches". You look at him shocked, "12 inches- No wonder it hurts-, wait- what do you mean by 'Right now'?". He chuckles, "Size manipulation darling, 12 inches is my normal size but if you need more I can give you more". You blush, "Oh- I think 12 inches is more than enough". He laughs, "You ready for me to move?". You nod and he starts to slowly slide in and out of you, gaining groans and moans. He groans as well, his hands on your hips to hold you steady. He starts moving a little faster, making you moan more. He increases the speed of his thrusts more and more. You're a moaning mess now with unregulated breathing. "Ahh~ Ngh~ please f-faster Lucifer~", you beg and he happily obliges. He thrust even faster, "Ahh~ yes~!". Without a warning he thrusts faster and faster making you throw your head back and arch your back at the intense pleasure. "Fuck~! Ahh~!", you moan loudly, your hands making their way down to try and cover your pussy in 'protest' but he's not letting that slide. His demon tail swirls around your wrists and pins your hands above your head, "Behave darling~", he orders between his own groans. He continues to slam into you rougher and harder and you start loosing control over your body. You feel yourself getting close to a climax and make sure he knows too, "L-lucifer~! I-I'm close~nghh~". "Good, cum when you're ready baby~", he thrusts faster and harder, feeling your walls clench around his length. "Fuuuck~ Deeper~~!". He does as told and thrusts balls deep into you at an insane speed. "I'm- I'm coming~~!!", you shout as you release your liquid and orgasm. You moan relieved and he let's you ride out your orgasm then pulls out. "Do you mind uhm..", he looks down at his hard dick, he pulled out to not cum inside you. You quickly move and take him in your mouth, earning a rich moan from him. You suck him off hard and rough and not soon after he grabs your hair and finishes, shooting his cum down your throat moaning loudly, "Ah~ y/n~ fuck~!". He let's go of you and you look up at him swallowing his cum. Both of you trying to catch your breath.

Both of you manage to calm down again. "That felt just amazing" you tell him. "I'm glad you liked it", he smiles. You lay down and he drops next to you, stretching his arm out for you to lay on, which you do and snuggle against his warm body. "Lucifer..". "Yes?". "I love you". His breathing hitches as you told him that, "I.. I love you too y/n", he whispers as his hand brushes through your hair. You fall asleep.

-^-

You wake up cuddled against him still and sit up carefully. "Good morning beautiful", Lucifer tells you sitting up as well. "Good morning Luci", I smile. "Let's go get breakfast sha'll we?". You nod and watch him get up, so do you and you hear him chuckle, "Looks like you're having a little trouble walking there". "Mhmm, I wonder why that is", you say sarcastically. He snaps his fingers and you're both wearing his robes. It's a little big on you but it fits. Together, you two walk to the kitchen and see the others. You don't notice that they're all looking at you and Lucifer at first but then Angel says something, "Looks like someone had fun yesterday~" he teases and laughs. You blush a bit embarrassed and just groan in response.

Lucifer grabbed some tea for both you and himself and walked past his daughter Charlie, "You have a new mum now", he says out of nowhere and takes a sip of his tea as he finds his seat at the table. Your eyes widen at his words and blush embarrassed. Angel looked surprised and Husk spit his water out. Charlie looks dumbfounded, "W-What?", she looks at Lucifer shocked. "You heard me", he simply says and sits down, you joining him.

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END

BOOM, I haven't written smut in years and I've actually never written in the 3rd perspective so I hope it was alright!

If you have requests please tell me, I'd love to hear and write your ideas!

[starlitmelanin]

ᡣ𐭩ྀི do better; t.alexander-arnold

pairing - trent x fem!reader

word count - 1.3k

warnings - none

summary - subbed off in the 70th minute, trent’s frustration boils over by the time he gets home. you comfort him, but also remind him of who he is and the responsibility that comes with it.

the door slams shut with a force that almost makes the walls tremble, the kind of force that tells you exactly how trent's feeling before you even see his face. you're in the living room, scrolling through your phone when you hear it, and the heavy thud of his bag hitting the floor follows seconds later.

you don't need to ask him what's wrong; you already know.

he's in the hallway, and the frustration is written all over his face. it's in the tight set of his jaw, the way his eyes are dark and stormy, and how his hands are clenched into fists at his sides like he's trying to keep a lid on whatever's bubbling up inside him.

"hey," you say softly, getting up from the couch and walking over to him.

your voice is gentle, careful, because you know how much he hates losing his cool, how much he prides himself on being in control, especially in front of you.

he doesn't answer, just exhales a harsh breath through his nose, his eyes flicking to the side as if he's trying to compose himself, trying to shake off the anger that's still simmering beneath the surface.

"trent, talk to me," you press, reaching out to touch his arm, hoping to ease some of the tension out of his rigid posture.

"they pulled me off," he says finally, his voice low and clipped, like he's trying to keep from shouting. "70th minute. can you believe that?"

you nod, even though you don't need to say anything. you've been with him long enough to know how much he hates being subbed off, how much he values being on the pitch, being in the thick of it with his team. and tonight, being pulled off early, in his eyes, felt like being stripped of that.

"i was fine," he continues, his voice rising just a little, his frustration leaking through despite his efforts to keep it under wraps. "there was no reason for me to come off. none."

you watch him, knowing that right now, he needs to vent, to let it all out. but you also know that once he's calmed down, he'll see things differently. right now, though, it's your job to be the balance, to be the voice of reason when his emotions are running high.

"i know," you say quietly, guiding him towards the couch, hoping that sitting down might help him relax a bit. "but you have to trust the coach's decision. maybe he saw something you didn't."

he shakes his head, the frown on his face deepening. "nah, it wasn't that. i know my body, i know when i'm done, and tonight, i wasn't done. he should've let me finish."

you sit down next to him, close enough that your knees are touching, and you can feel the lingering annoyance vibrating off of him. you let him stew in it for a moment, knowing that sometimes he just needs a bit of space before he's ready to really hear you.

"i get it, babe," you say after a while, your voice steady, even though you know what you're about to say might not be what he wants to hear. "but you can't let it get to you like this. you're the vice captain, trent. you have to keep it together, especially out there, in front of everyone."

he looks at you, his eyes narrowing slightly like he wants to argue, but there's something in your tone that makes him pause. you've always been able to get through to him, even when he's too caught up in his own head. it's one of the reasons why you work so well together, why he values your opinion so much.

"i know," he mutters, dropping his head back against the couch, his eyes closing as he exhales a long, slow breath. "i just hate it. i hate not being out there, not being able to do more."

you nod, understanding where he's coming from, but also knowing that sometimes, stepping back is just as important as stepping up. "i know you do. but you have to trust the process. trust that the coach knows what's best for the team, for you. and you can't let your emotions get the better of you, especially not on the field."

he's silent for a moment, his brows furrowed as he processes what you're saying. you can see the internal struggle on his face, the way he's wrestling with his frustration and the logic you're laying out in front of him. it's never easy, getting him to see things from a different perspective when he's in a mood like this, but you know he'll come around. he always does.

"yeah, you're right," he says finally, his voice softer now, the edge of anger starting to fade. "i just... i don't know. it just got to me tonight."

"that's okay," you say, reaching over to take his hand in yours, squeezing it gently. "you're allowed to feel how you feel. but just remember who you are, trent. you're a leader, and you need to act like one, even when things don't go your way."

he opens his eyes then, turning his head to look at you, and there's something in his gaze that makes your heart swell. it's gratitude, appreciation, maybe even a little bit of awe, like he can't believe how well you know him, how you always seem to know exactly what to say.

"what would i do without you, huh?" he says, a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips, the first sign of the frustration starting to truly melt away.

you smile back, leaning in to press a soft kiss to his cheek. "you'd be fine. just a little more annoyed, maybe."

he chuckles at that, the sound low and warm, and you can feel some of the tension leaving his body as he relaxes into the couch, his hand still holding onto yours.

"i'm sorry," he says after a moment. "i didn't mean to come in here all pissed off like that. i just..."

"it's okay," you interrupt, squeezing his hand again. "i know it wasn't about me. and i know how much this means to you. but you've got to remember that it's not just about tonight. it's about the long game, about being fit for when you're really needed."

he nods, his expression thoughtful as he takes in your words. "yeah, you're right. i just need to get out of my own head sometimes."

"and that's why i'm here," you say, your tone light, but there's a seriousness in your eyes that he doesn't miss. "to remind you of that, to keep you grounded."

he smiles at that, a genuine smile that reaches his eyes, and he leans in to press a kiss to your forehead, his lips lingering there for a moment longer than usual. "you're amazing, you know that?"

"i try," you tease, nudging him playfully with your shoulder, and he laughs, the sound warming your chest.

the rest of the evening is quieter, the tension from earlier disappearing as you both settle into the comfort of each other's company. you talk about other things, lighter things, the issues of the game left behind.

it's these moments that you treasure the most, the quiet after the storm, when it's just the two of you, no distractions, no pressures. and as you curl up next to him, his arm draped around your shoulders, his thumb tracing absent-minded patterns on your arm, you know that this is where you're both meant to be.

together, dealing with the highs and lows, the wins and losses, the frustrations and joys that come with life, with love, with being there for each other, no matter what.

[leviraaaaaa]

"LEEEVIII!"

Levi snapped his head back, eyes widening when he caught your figure hurtling through the air, the distance making you look smaller than you were. With a flip, you landed on the branch beside him, shooting him a grin.

"Hi."

Levi glared at you, as if to burn you with his eyes. "What the fuck is wrong with you?" He hissed, sheathing back his sword. "What are you doing here?"

"I got lost. Then I saw you." You beamed, uncaring of his outright pissed expression, all too used to him and the sharpness of his words. Your expression wasn't the slightest bit of upset that you got lost in a middle of a fucking forest filled with titans. Instead, you looked like someone just stuffed you with sunshine and rainbows.

"You got lost?" He said in disbelief. "How the fuck did you get lost? You were supposed to be with Hange. How do you lose Hange?"

"Ah well." You shrugged, looking down at the ugly little titan by the foot of the tree that was trying to climb up. "That's a pretty big one. Should we capture it?" You mused, tilting your head to see it better.

"No. Go back to your position." He seethes. "Stop pulling stunts. You're gonna get killed."

"Well, that's why you're here, aren't you? To stop me from getting killed."

Levi glowered, his jaw twitching.

"Fucking walls." He pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'm two seconds away from throwing you down there."

"But you won't." You grinned. "You like me."

"Not enough to resist the temptation to shove your ass off here."

You reached for his head, playfully smacking him.

"Don't be pissy." You stood up, balancing yourself on the branch. Levi stood up with you, body tense like a cat, ready to catch you if you fall. His eyes warily flicked from the titan underneath to you. "It's less boring to work with you."

"Nice to know I'm entertaining." He huffed grumpily. "Being around you is like babysitting a fucking child. I will never understand how you became a scout in the first place with your brains."

"Rude. I ranked in the top 10 of my class." You pouted.

"Yeah, yeah." He waved you off. "Does Hange know you're here?"

"I told you I got lost."

He groaned. "One of these days you're gonna get in so much crap for pulling shits like this."

"I got lost."

"I'm sure you did."

"Okay, fine." You threw up your hands in defeat. "I just wanted to be with you."

His eyes softened, watching you as you sulked. "Fine." He let out an exaggarated sigh. "Fine. You can stay with me."

You face brightened up instantly and you hissed out a joyful 'yes' under your breath. But before you got to say anything else, he cut you off.

"But."

"But what?" You squinted your eyes in confusion.

He reached for the back of your head, pulling it closer and looking you in the eyes.

"But." He said. "You stick with me. Close. You got that?"

You gave a sheepish nod.

"Do not wander away. Do not try to look cool midair. Do not go off to kill titans, that's my job. Do not fall off of trees–"

"Hey, it was that one time and you startled me—"

"And absolutely do not get killed. Hear me?"

With a slight pull on your hair, he let you go. "Oi. You heard me?"

Rubbing the back of your head, you nodded. "Yes, heard you. Loud and clear." You mumbled. "What else? Would you like to carry me as well? Piggyback ride?"

Levi glared at you, but pretended not to hear your sarcastic remarks. With that, he pulled out the ODM triggers, flexing his fingers over it. "Do not get killed." He repeated.

"I won't." You reassured, bringing out your own triggers. "Cause I'm with you, aren't I?"

Levi scoffed.

-

Levi swallowed when they carried you out, his fingernails digging into his palm. Blood has seeped through the white cloth you were wrapped in. And though you were covered from head to toe, he knew it was you.

And they took you off. Somewhere. To put you in a hole 6 foot under and leave you there.

Alone.

You never liked being alone.

That's why you always seeked him. In expeditions and meetings, always finding a way to find a place beside him, to slot your hands in his and give him that oh maddeningly annoying grin that always pissed him off but never failed to make his heart flip. And that's why when nights you couldn't sleep, you'd find yourself curled up in his bed, softly ranting about some weird dream you had or some shitty gossip in the facility that he didn't give two shits about but he let you talk because he liked watching you.

And he never thought of himself as someone people would look for if they were lonely, but you had chosen him, from the very first day.

No you never liked being alone. Or quiet. Or still.

Look at you now.

You never liked being alone.

But Levi liked being alone.

But then you came and he doesn't know how to live alone anymore.

How cruel of you to leave him alone.

-

Levi sat in his desk. For how long, he doesn't know. But it must've been a while because his spine ached and his eyes were heavy.

He'd been staring at the file in front of him for a long, long time.

He couldn't remember the last time he blinked.

The last time he took a breath.

He only stared, eyes focused only on the words on top.

Your name was written in a blood red ink.

Like the blood that you had spilled.

And besides that.

On black bold letters.

Deceased soldier.

Deceased deceased deceased.

That's what you fucking were.

Dead.

He jolted when a something touched his shoulders, breaking out of his daze. He turned to look, his heart beating out of his chest.

It can't be it can't be it can't—

"..Levi?"

He exhaled sharply. No, of course not.

Hange stood beside him, their glasses gleaming as the fireplace reflected off their glasses, it magnified their eyes, making it look bigger than it was. But the concern in them was clear.

"Four-eyes." He muttered, his voice hoarse. It sounded strange even to his own ears, as if coming from a far away place.

"Levi?" Hange said again, grip tightening.

And for the first time in his life, Levi didn't push Hange away. He let them touch him. He needed something, anything to ground him. Something to latch his sanity onto.

There wasn't you any longer.

"..Hange." He mumbled. He was so, so tired. "..I think I can sleep tonight."

@sad-darksoul @anxious-chick @raginginferno267

[allthegothihopgirls]

*holds out my probably canon headcanon like a toddler showing you a cool frog*

hey what do you think abt damian calling his dad baba and his siblings various nicknames in arabic that range from zameel or jalees when he’s particularly annoyed with them to akhi (brother)/ukhti (sister) when hes rlly happy

I LOOOOOVEEEEEE IT!!!!!

anything that keeps damian in touch with his heritage is a huge yes for me. big fan of him slipping arabic words into his sentences, or repeating phrases he grew up around when he can't think of an adequate english equivalent. etc etc

similar to how people who are learning english as a second language tend to mix their native tongue into english sentences. although with damian i don't think he would do it because he isn't confident with the language (because he most definitely is), i think it's just something that's familar to him, and comfortable to slip into his english speech. + sometimes he can just articulate himself better in arabic.

as for the familial names, although he doesn't use them in canon, he very much does seek comfort from things culturally familiar to him, in gotham. such as in teen titans (2016) special #1, when he's implied to often visit a middle-eastern restaurant 'tarbooshes' which reminds him of his home in the league and his mother.

so although the nicknames aren't something shown in the comics, i don't think it'd be unlikely. he's definitely 'in touch' with his culture, and it's far from an out there idea.

as for the specific names, such as calling bruce 'baba', i'm typically all for that. though apparently in arabic that word in particular translates more to 'dad' than it does 'father'. obviously damian's very formal with his speech, so it is a question as to whether or not that would be the nickname he uses for bruce, or whether he'd use more formal titles. (this post gives some alternatives + explains it more).

usually when i see the use of 'baba' in fics, it's very fitting. i'm very partial to the 'sleepy/hurt damian letting his guard down' trope, and i thoroughly enjoy it when the writer lets him slip a "baba" to bruce. one fic that did this really well was 'repeat your favourite mistakes and love them all over again' by watchingthestars13 on ao3, in which damian (although not the focus of the story) is aged down to 2 years old by magic, and coordinates life as a toddler with bruce, rather than with the league. he's very hesitant to affection at first, so when the writer lets an 'about to fall asleep' damian, call bruce his 'baba', it's always just right.

i'm also fond of him having personal nicknames for his siblings beyond 'brother' or 'sister' in arabic. this post talks about how in arab culture it's common for people to refer to loved ones as their organs. i think it's a fun idea for damian, especially because it's something only he would understand. i think he'd be most likely to do this for dick, although maybe he has a generic one that he uses for other siblings when he's suuuuper happy with them.

but he also takes advantage of being the only arab in the house, and one huuuuundred percent switches up the nicknames he uses depending on how he feels about that sibling at a particular time. he is not above throwing flavourful remarks when he's annoyed, in a language no one else understands (whether that be arabic or not), or calling people the nastiest names he can think of.

[rovingotter]

I started writing my own version of the Honda Odyssey scene from Deadpool & Wolverine but I probably won't develop into an entire story so I'm just putting it up here. Canon-typical violence/gore.

Logan had just jammed his claws straight through Wade’s skull, into his brain, and out the other side.  Which was rude.  Wade’s vision went fuzzy and then totally dark, and half his body went limp—it was temporary, he knew, but it was always a little unnerving.  Logan had also decided to be extra rude and entirely miss his frontal lobe, so he could still think about how hurt he was by Logan’s mean-spirited rant.

Couldn’t even save a relationship with a goddamn stripper.

Also, he was dragging Vanessa into this? Hello? Not cool.

They were probably getting a lot of blood on the seats.  Whatever.  It wasn’t his car.

Wade’s right arm still worked, so he fumbled for Baby Knife, yanked it out, and plunged it in what he hoped was the direction of Logan’s face, though it probably wouldn’t make it through his stupid adamantium-enhanced skull.  To his pleasant surprise, however, the knife encountered very little resistance.  There was a roaring scream and then a rubbery pop which let him know he’d gotten Logan right through the eye.

Ha! 

He angled it upward, making it harder for Logan to pull away, and Logan jerked.

Logan went still, panting.  Wade was on his back, on the backseat, and Logan was on top of him, crushingly heavy, damp with sweat, chest heaving.  He spoke slowly, through clenched teeth, every word a strain:  “Get—your knife—out—my fuckin’ head.”

“You first, honeypie.”  Wade was kind of impressed that either one of them could still talk.  Though he was kind of having trouble remembering how they’d gotten into this situation.  They were in a car, and Logan was mean.  That was all he could say for sure.

Logan’s claws were still stuck through Wade’s head, Wade’s movements still jerky and uncoordinated, his vision still absent due to the two-inch-thick wedge of adamantium which was very rudely skewering his visual cortex, but he had a good grip on the knife, most of which was now inside Logan’s skull.  And he wasn’t feeling very charitable.  So he wiggled it around.

Logan gasped.  He tried to pull back, jerked again, and went limp, grunting.  “Uh—fuck—hngh…”

Wade knew it was just pain, but those little grunts sounded distractingly porn-like.  But his anger was still strong enough to overpower his spasm of confused arousal.  “Apologize.”  Wade squeezed the word between clenched teeth.

Logan didn’t answer.

Wade wiggled the knife harder, up and down and side to side, feeling its edges scrape against Logan’s eye socket.  “Say it!”

Still no response.  Logan had gone worryingly limp on top of him, and Wade was starting to wonder if he’d made a mistake.  Logan’s brain regenerated just like Wade’s, sure, but brain regeneration wasn’t always as neat or clean as the rest of the body.  Sometimes memories would be fuzzy or missing afterward.  Also, he didn’t fully understand how well Logan’s brain regenerated.  And he’d just pureed Logan’s whole left frontal lobe.  It probably looked like a meat smoothie now.  It was probably leaking out. What if he didn't get better? What if he turned into a feral beast-man and ran off into the woods to live in harmony with nature? Or started shitting his pants? What if Wade had just broken the Wolverine and he couldn't ever move or talk again? No, no, he was fine. This was fine.

Wade groaned.  “Fuck.”

Logan’s claws were still in Wade’s skull, and Wade still couldn’t move his other arm.  Or either of his legs.  Or see.

“Logan…”  He gulped.  “Logan.  We’ll both pull out on three, okay?”  No response.  “Okay?”

Logan made a weird, whimpery little noise. 

“Peanut.  Hey. Can you hear me?  Can you understand me?”

“N-not…good.”

“Pull out.  Just pull out.  Okay? One—two—three!”

Logan’s claws slid out of Wade’s skull with a shhhk. 

“Agh!  Fuck!” he panted.

Wade tried to pull out the knife, but it was in pretty deep, and trying to remove it was more awkward than he’d anticipated, especially without the use of his own vision, which was returning more slowly than he'd hoped.  Logan growled and jerked back before Wade could manage to maneuver the blade free.

“Logan…”  Wade tried to sit up and flopped back down.  His body felt like a bag of mashed potatoes and his vision—though now returning—was foggy.  He reached out, groping at empty air.

Where was Logan?

Wade paused to catch his breath and give his neurons a chance to knit back together.  His head throbbed, dull hammer-blows in the back of his skull. Nausea rolled over him, then faded.

Slowly, he sat up.  This time, his limbs obeyed him and held.

The car was drenched in blood, the seats stained beyond any hope of cleaning, there were little chunks of pink stuff here and there, and Logan was nowhere to be seen.

Wade, still shaky and uncoordinated, climbed out of the car, landing in a heap on the ground.  Logan was sitting a short distance away, on the dirt, staring blankly into space, Wade's knife still jutting out of his ruined eye. He was breathing heavily.  Blood, dirt and sweat stained his suit.

“You know you can just pull the knife out yourself,” Wade said.

Logan didn’t react.  His remaining eye was wide open, glassy.  He was drooling a little.

Wade crept toward him.  He started to reach out.  Logan flinched back.

“Whoa.  Hey.  It’s okay.  I’m just gonna take this out.  It’ll only hurt for a sec.”  He could already see Logan’s squished eye trying to regenerate, but it was healing around the blade—which would, of course, make it extra unpleasant to remove, but such was life.

He gripped the hilt. Then, bracing himself, he yanked the knife out.  Fast, like pulling off a band-aid.  Logan roared loud enough to startle a nearby flock of crows out of a tree. They flew off into the sky, cawing.

Wade started to wipe the blade off on Logan’s suit, then changed his mind and wiped it off on his own. It was red, anyway.  Logan blinked at him, breathing heavily, as his eye slowly knitted itself back together.

"Do you know your name?" Wade said.

After a pause, he muttered, "Logan." He swallowed. "I...I'm Logan."

"Do you know my name?"

"Wade."

"Good. Now count backwards from ten," Wade said. "And then list every prime minister in reverse alphabetical order. And tell me the square root of pi divided by nine."

"Fuck off."

"You're gonna be fine."

[strrykais]

die with a smile

a hwang hyunjin short story

week two

its been a week since hyunjin was asked to stay here. everyday was testing, blood drawn, scans and the horrible hospital smell. as he walked down the halls mindlessly going where his feet wondered. he walks past this room, stopping and then slowing walking back. there stood a girl her hair flowing down her back. she faces the window outlooking the hospitals courtyard. she has on a painters apron on, her hands and arms were completely covered in paint. she wasn’t exactly van gogh but her style was captivating. 

hyunjin slows walks in continuing to stare at the girl he couldnt understand why there was this pull to get close to her. hyunjin freezes when he sees the girl turn around feeling the presence of a person. you smile at him, a red streak of paint laying on your pale cheeks.

”hyunjin! hi! we meet again. sorry i would shake your hand but i'm kind of covered.” you laugh out at your own little joke. hyunjin could feels his cheeks turning a light red hearing your honey laugh.

“youre a patient?” hyunjin was dumbfounded last time he saw you, you were wearing a doctors coat. you run a hand through your hair, thin layers of paint sticking to thin strands.

”yeah, sorry i havent stopped by to see you after we met. things got held up over here so i had to deal with that before they gave me clearance to leave my room.” you take off our apron hanging it on the hook nailed to the wall. “glad to see you looking better. are you feeling any better.” you asked.

hyunjin was asked this so many times a day he was starting to get really sick of it. he scoffs “i wouldn’t exactly say having cancer is something someone could feel better towards.” he rolls his eyes turning around to walk out when he hears your voice, stopping him.

”well you exactly haven't tried, have you? still feeling like the world is against you? or is it you are a good person and you don't deserve this.” you say walking to the canvas covering it with a sheet hiding the barely forming painting.

”and what do you know, you are just a kid playing doctor when other people are going through a tough time. not everything is easier because you put on a fake smile and a silly laugh.” hyunjin was pissed and stormed out of your room. how dare she even think of saying something like that to him. he was going to make sure to avoid you like you were the last thing on earth.

hyunjin couldn’t avoid you. you would always pop out at the most random times. its been about the second week of him being here and you were getting on his nerves. though he was doing everything to avoid you, no matter how hard he tried his eyes always seemed to wander to look for your cheery smile and bright eyes.

hyunjin was hiding in a supply closet when you walked in, cheeks red and out of breath. before hyunjin can get a word out, you quickly place your hand over his lips, shushing him. his heart was rapidly beating so fast he thought you could hear it. he watched as you continued to watch the door listening to the footsteps outside.

you turns looking down at him, body hovering over his sitting form, you smirked, hand still over his mouth. he gulps, he was nervous with the way you were looking at him.

"my nurse was trying to make me eat something, but i don't really feel good enough to eat at the moment." you say gently plopping beside him, your hand finally away from his mouth he lets a deep breath.

he did not want to make small talk with you so he continued to draw in the notebook he hid in here days before.

"you draw woah that's so cool, i can't draw which is probably why my paintings are so bad. hey what if you teach me. and i can teach you to paint. i see how you always walk by my room once in a while, to see how that paintings going." you say hovering over his shoulder.

" i don't and no thank you. get out. i can't hide from you if you are in here." hyunjin grumbles.

"okay well if you want to learn or get bored you know where i am." you smile wiping your hands on your hospital pants and slowly makes your way to the door.

"just so you know this was technically my hiding spot first, i've been here longer. but it can be ours now." you quickly stepped out shutting the door softly not letting hyunjin even deny the idea of a shared hiding room. he would definitely be finding a new place to hide.

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tags : @hannamoon143 @jellyleggz @tajannah-price1 @skzfelixlove @kkamismom12

[cainluvr69]

"Beyond the Diversion Called a Smile" Cain SR Card Story - A Lesson in Being Popular

Cain: So this is the house of the Sage's "Fated Someone"…

Chloe: There's chocolate absolutely everywhere! It's so amazing that they collected all of this from around the world. But anyway anyway anyway! It's their Fated Someone! Isn't that just soooo romantic?

Cain: Ahaha. You Western wizards sure love to talk about love, huh?

Chloe: Absolutely! I know that since the Sage is kind of in trouble today I should be a little more restrained and stuff, but I just can't help getting excited about this kind of thing! Hey, hey. You're super popular, right? Has anyone ever called you their fated someone?

Cain: Well, sometimes.

Chloe: Omigosh! Tell me more, tell me more! Me and the Sage got so startled we ran away, but what do you when that kind of thing happens to you?

Cain: Erm, well, it's not like I can accept their feelings. So… If they say it lightheartedly, I just laugh it off, but if they're seriously confessing to me, first I always thank them. They really had to screw up their courage to say it, after all. But after that, I turn them down very firmly. Right now I'm focusing on my duties as a Sage's wizard, and that means I can't accept the feelings they have for me.

✦✧☾✧✦

Chloe: …Wow. You're so cool…!! I… I definitely wouldn't be able to handle it the way you do. I'd be so worried about accidentally upsetting them or making them hate me that I'd get so worked up about how to respond I'd just… get stuck and not respond at all. …Even though I guess acting like that would make it all awkward and stuff. Even though we were just thinking about hypotheticals I started getting all upset…

Cain: C'mon, Chloe, don't get so down on yourself like that. Wouldn't they feel the opposite of that, anyways?

Chloe: The opposite…?

Cain: They wouldn't think it was awkward or get upset or anything like that. I think they'd honestly be happy about it. It's not like anyone enjoys knowing their feelings are unrequited, but I think that they'd be happy to know the person they love is considering their feelings so sincerely. After you let them down like that, I think they would still cry it out, but once they did, they'd think to themself, I'm so glad I fell for someone so wonderful. I'm sure you make everyone who loves you happy.

Chloe: … …Ehehe, I hope so. …I really hope that's true…! Thank you, Cain. I'm feeling a lot better now! Gosh, I really understand why you're so popular. I learned a lot!

Cain: Hahaha. Guess it was a good lesson for the West's young heartbreaker! I can teach you more whenever you want.

Training Episode: The Art of Being Popular

Akira: I'm back… Woah?! Cain, what's with all those packages?!

Cain: Oh… Is that you, Master Sage? Sorry. As you can see, I got so many presents I can't see past them.

Akira: Huh? You mean every single one of those in that huge mountain you're holding is all for you?

Cain: Yep. I had to stop by the capital for some personal business and then people just kept handing me them. I dunno if this waws planned or something but before I knew it, here I am with all of these.

Akira: Is today a holiday like Valentine's Day in Japan…? But gosh, you're as popular as ever, huh. But with so many of these you don't really know who gave you what, right?

Cain: …? No, I do?

Akira: Huh?

Cain: This box with the red ribbon is from the florist's daughter. This one with the blue wrapping paper is from a lady that runs a fruit stand. This long, narrow one is from the manager of a cafe on main street… Yep, I still remember all of them. I could tell you everyone who gave me one, and which one it was specifically, too.

Akira: Wow…!!

Cain: Ahaha, thanks. But this isn't all that impressive, really. I mean, every single one of them went out of their way to pick out a present for me, and then worked up the courage to call out to me and offer it. It'd be disrespectful if I forgot who each one was and started getting them mixed up, you know?

Akira: (He says it like it's just natural… But I guess that's what makes people like him so much.)

[queeenarii]

Cant get this out of my head

P1harmony × Reader (Polycule) MMMF

HardDom!Keeho, Sub!Jiung, Intak

Light choking, light breath play,

MDNI

Not proofread :)

The boys were working hard for their latest comeback. Jiung especially was super stressed out, and he wasn't dealing with it well. Him and Keeho were constantly at each others neck. Constantly bickering and arguing. Theyre at a music show, just lazing about until their called on stage again.

"Keeho you were like one inch off on the last chorus" Jiung states rather bluntly. But Keeho just ignores him, attempting to keep a bit of peace in the dressing room.

"Keeho? Did you hear me?" Jiung asks

"Yeah, whatever" Keeho answers back trying to maintain his cool. As the leader, he can't loose his head. He has to be calm and collected at all times. No matter how much he was to yell at Jiung, he knows Jiung's just trying to make everything perfect.

It's always perfection with him. Jiung is unable to just let something be good, or even great. Always Perfect.

"Well then say something, you know-how" Jiung starts

"Oh my gosh! Jiung just shush-okay! I was off sorry I can't be fucking perfect" Keeho explodes

The rest of the members look around, the air is thick between the two members. Theyre cat and mouse antics are usually fun. Jiung's introspection reins in Keeho's spontaneity. They're a great match despite what others might see.

Jiung's face turns red, with embarrassment and rage "hey-" he starts before Intak steps between their line of site. Theo follows Keeho out the room, hoping to calm him down. While Intak silently ushers Jiung to the couch. The couch offers little solace though, Jiung holds his head in his hand. Leg rocking and posture slump.

You enter through the door, having heard the two men yelling down the hallway and seeing Keeho rush by you in anger. Theo assures you that he'll talk to him, but you know how stubborn Keeho can be.

"What the fuck y'all? " you rush in seeing two of your boyfriends on the couch. You tentatively great Soul and Jongseob.

"Jiung baby, whats wrong" You question softly. Just then the boys manager and Theo returns, offering an empty dressing room down the hallway for you guys. The best way to get Jiung and Keeho to stop fighting is to just let them fight.

Jiung storms off, hating the numerous eyes of the stylist and others on him.

In the other room Jiung paces near the door quietly. His thoughts spiral out of control, and he's almost consumed by them. In a daze almost. Once he's like this, it's hard for him to get out. You sit with jiung in the room, waiting for him to calm down a bit, knowing that in this state there's no reasoning with him.

A soft knock is heard at the door, then Keeho walks in. At the site of him Jiung implodes getting I'm his face.

"What the fuck man? " he questions

"Jiung back up"

"No cause what the fuck was th-"

"God your so fucking stubborn"

"Like you aren't"

"Yeah, well I'm not a perfectionist little shit sometimes"

"Yeah and I'm not a narcissistic asshole, who does nothing but stare at my flawless fucking face all day"

The two breath heavily in each others face. Skin flushed red and eyes trained on each other. Keeho's flicker down slightly before he envelopes Jiung in a hug.

People wonder why Keeho was made leader and not Jiung. Why the silliest most obnoxious member was saddled with so much responsibility. The truth is no one understands each member better than Keeho. Jiung might know their mannerisms. He picks up on the little things, the observable world is his domain. Where confusion can't take route. Where he can count on a flower being a flower. He's always a beat too late when it get emotional. He struggles to even understand his own sometimes.

Keeho however, is great at emotions. He study and observes others too, but he is great at reading others, especially his fellow members. Especially his partners.

"Baby" Keeho calls out softly then he kisses Jiung. You expect Jiung to pull away, to deflect Keeho's advances. But he doesn't. All the anger and tension leaves the youngers body, he relaxes in Keeho's hold. His legs grow weak, arms lazily strech around Keeho's neck.

Keeho pulls back "hmm, I now I know why you've been such a little shit lately" he quips playfully

"Shut up" Jiung retorts soflty pushing out of the others hold. He sits down on the couch next to you.

You look down and see what Keeho is talking about. The kiss placated Jiungs rage, but it ignited a different fire.

You get up and straddle Jiungs lap, wrapping your arms around his neck. Your hips grid harshly into his, riling him up farther. Keeho takes a seat to your left, softly caressing Jiungs leg. He looks up at you hoping for a kiss.

Your last boyfriend finnaly joins you all, having time to change out of his stage clothes wearing grey sweat pants that mirrors Jiungs.

"Keeho, go return your outfit, the stylists are looking for you". Intak tells him.

Keeho reluctantly pulls away from you to quickly change.

Your lips feel empty so you search for Jiungs again. As you make out you feel him up, your soft hands rake over his hot skin under his shirt. Your hands then travel to his sweats, pulling at them.

You leave Jiungs lap so he can take the pants off, finally met with his dick at full attention. You stare for a second, taking in his thin but long length. Jiung let's out a small whine, urging you to do something. You chuckle and return to his lap, kissing him once more as you usher his dick to your entrance.

You sink down, savoring the feeling. You all hadn't done this in a while. Their promotion schedule was about as hectic as your own, bareltinf leaving you all with time to see each other. Let alone give y'all time for a good fuck.

Keeho returns to the room joining you all on the couch. Jiung is moaning quiet loudly for him. He always gets noisy and so sensitive when he hasn't come in a while. You love seeing him like this.

You continue to ride him. His head thrown back and his pretty, long neck exposed to you. Your temptation takes hold, your hand wrapping around his thin neck. At the feeling Jiung moans a bit louder, loving the attention your giving him. You ride him with vigor, loving the way he falls apart under you. Keeho whispers words of praise in his ear as Intak laps at his nipples, pinching and biting them, spurring Jiung on. Hes quick to cum, and loud once he does so. His eyes roll to the back of his head. His hands, each securely intertwined with the men beside him, squeeze theirs tightly, nails digging into flesh. His toes curl and legs tense. Slowly coming down from his high as continue to milk everything from him.

Anger no longer plagues him, instead he's left feeling giddy, boneless and satisfied.

Intak pulls you over to him next, his big brown eyes lock into yours as you two finally kiss. He flips you over you back on his chest and he guides his length into you finally stretching you open with his fat cock. You whine at the feeling, missing Jiungs length but savouring the feeling of Intak.

It's tight, so he starts of slow. Calmly he thrusts inside you. One hand grasps your breast, kneeding the flesh and teasing your nipple. The other travels to your aching clit, rubbing slow circles that elict soft moans out of you. Gradually Intak picks up speed, slamming inside you with deep harsh thrust. His fingers work magic on your clothes being you closer to your own high. After some time you start to clinch around him. Your orgasm on the horizon. Your toes tingle and eyes prickle with tears. Intaks hand on your breast leaves, clasping over your mouth. That does it, the tight chord in your tummy snaps and your creaming all over Intaks dick. He mutters filthy words in your ear as you dox Cumming shortly after.

Intak let's you go, helping you stand up on your wobbly legs. Immediately Keeho stands behind you "can you handle one more?" He asks genuinely. You mod giving him the green light.

Keeho roughly bends you over and enters you switftly. His dick is well balanced not too long, not too fat, with a slight curve. It hits every spot inside you nicely. It can't reach the depths of your cunt like Jiungs can, or stretch you wide like Intaks. But it's still perfect for him and for you.

Keeho dosent bother to go slowly. He enters you roughly, tugging your hips to meet his. He adores seeing your ass recoil at his hard thrusts.

Keeho grabs you by the shoulders, digging deep and making you go insane on his dick. He soon finds your gspot. Evident in the way you cry out and shudder once he hits it. He pulls you up by the hair, then attaches one hand to your throat.

"Gonna cum for us pretty? " he teases. His other hand slithers down to your clit once again. The stimulation burns from your last orgasm but is so intoxicating at the same time.

You nod to answer Keeho's question. Quickly feeling your orgasm approaching. After a while wetness leaves your cunt. Your loans loud and skin buzzing as your climax washes over you hard. Keeho growls at this as you tighten around him drawing him closer as well. He helps you ride it his orgasm, as once he feels your spent body relax he pulls out, coaxing himself to climax.

Once you and keeho catch your breath you look over at Intak and Jiung on the couch. Jiung, in subspace, is curled up in Intaks lap, snoozing slightly and Intak rubs his back soothingly. Finally content. Everything perfect

[restinslices]

hiiii :D

would it be okay for you to do bi-han, liu kang and kung lao x hypermobile reader if you're not too busy or anything?

like reader has alot of pain in the knees, back and gets frequent migraines and they try to help?

Hey bookie, I wasn’t ignoring you. I was just procrastinating 😭. Finally got to it though! When I looked it up a hypermobile person seemed like a double jointed person but with occasional aches but obviously there could be stuff I missed since I’m not hypermobile. Because of that I mainly focused on the things you brought up however if there’s certain things I missed, you can always request again.

Bi-Han

When it comes to your joints moving more than normal, I don't see him making a big deal about it 

I don't see him being like “omg that's so cool” but I also don't see him being like “that's freaky”

It's something he notices but doesn't point out

When it comes to pain he'll suggest stretching it out, which might do the opposite but it's what his brain conjures up first 

I just feel like stretching and trained assassins go hand in hand

He knows multiple stretches that focus on those areas and that's what he'd suggest first 

There’s also other physical activities like walking for your knees

His brain goes to physical things

If all else fails, he's a walking ice pack 

I don't think he'd necessarily want to be an ice pack but if I'm the wind under your wings, spit out a couple ice cubes for me 

As for migraines I am a firm believer that Bi-Han as the oldest brother is a mini medic

He'd assume your sick so he'd advise you to drink tea, eat soup and keep your eyes closed so they're not being strained while looking at something bright 

If you get migraines often he'd buy some thick ass curtains so the sun doesn't peek through 

He may be a lil asshole but I'm gonna stay delusional and believe he'd be a good partner 

He's a good man Savannah- 

Liu Kang

I also think he wouldn't make a big deal out of it 

He might comment on it but you'd be forgiven for thinking he forgot about it 

Idk how you could use this in fighting but if you could, all 3 of them are impressed 

When it comes to pain in the knees and back, he's the opposite of an ice pack 

His power might work better with aches and pains. Depends on your body

I doubt heating his hand up would be difficult for him 

He mostly wants you to rest and take warmth baths to soak your joints 

Him and Bi-Han are mini medics but Bi-Han is more of a physical therapist. Also sitting around is a problem for him. Liu Kang is more patient and understands that there’s nothing wrong with taking a break and letting yourself heal

He probably also knows a bunch more healing methods I don't 

He's been around the block for awhile. He knows how to do other things besides leave someone concussed 

Assuming you're a regular human, he knows how weak your body is (no tea no shade) and you really need to rest or you'll break down 

That's his thought process with migraines as well

Has you sleep a lot more since migraines can be eased with sleep 

He knows all the tricks in the book. You know when your parent is like “you have a headache? why don't you *insert the most old and outlandish bullshit*”? 

That's him 

You'd think he'd use all this worldly knowledge to oh, idk, build an empire or smth but no

Kung Lao

He wouldn't make a comment in a mean way but he would do a double take 

Maybe I'm wrong but I would imagine people don't go “hey! How are you? I'm hyper mobile btw” 

So when he sees a joint kinda move funny he's thinking “am I tweaking? I gotta be”

But then it happens again and he's like “aight, what the fuck was that?”

He asks a few more questions but that's kinda it. He won't ask your whole life story. If you wanna share more, then you will 

When it comes to pain you gotta thug that one out-

I'm joking… slightly 

Liu Kang is a demigod. Bi-Han is a human but got magic powers. Kung Lao is a normal person and only has a hat

And I don't wanna hear about the magic shit in his moves. In the game I'm pretty sure he only has that hat. The hat is cool and all but my point is, he can't magic any pain he feels away 

He knows better than anyone that sometimes you just gotta take the shit on the chin and try to go on about your day 

However, that wouldn't be his only solution 

Regular human who can't make his own ice packs means he's a regular human with tons of medicine 

Medicine he'd obviously share 

He'd even buy some specifically for joint pain and keep it on him for you 

Same with medicine for migraines 

He probably has way more of those so he can't carry all those bottles but he carries some in his pocket 

He actually has a phone so he's for sure looking up ways to help with any pain or discomfort 

Whatever comes up, he'll suggest to you or help you with 

Your pain won't go away the quickest with him but it's obvious he's trying his hardest 

I did not mean to give Kung Lao the most-

[storiesbyjes2g]

3.200 Elders

Desiree has a loose tooth, so we had a little bit of drama this morning. Sophia was excited about it and told Desi about the tooth fairy. She suggested wiggling the tooth to get it out while I suggested just letting it fall out naturally. Quite honestly, I think we just confused the girl and low-key scared her. In the end, she decided to let it be. The older she gets, the more I learn about Sophia's childhood, and I'm beginning to understand she was raised believing in all the fantastical childhood beings like the tooth fairy and the flower bunny. The only reason I even believe in Father Winter is because I've met him. My parents didn't do that stuff, and Less and I were always pretty logical, anyway. Raising Desi with Sophia will be very interesting, I see.

I love living next door to my family. We don't hang out as much as I thought we would, but it's cool to run into them or see them outside my window. This morning, I went to get the mail and saw Breanna playing hopscotch. She ran over and gave me a big hug. Within seconds, my shadow Desiree came outside just as an older, male voice called from behind me.

"Hey there, young fella."

It was Justin.

"Who are all these pretty little girls?" he asked.

"This one is my niece, and this one is my daughter. This is my friend, Mr. Walker."

"Mr. Walker," he said with disdain. "Come on, now. I might be your elder, but it's not like that."

He turns his attention back to the girls.

"You young ladies can call me Justin."

"Mister Justin," I add.

"Fine," he said.

"Come on inside."

"Nice to meet you, girls."

Justin is our first non-family guest, so I thought he could officially inaugurate the living room with me, but he headed for the kitchen when he noticed Sophia.

"Morning," he said to her. "Love the new house. I don't know how you managed to make it even cozier than the last one."

"Awww, thanks, Justin. Hey, we just had breakfast. You want some oatmeal?"

"I never turn down food."

He scarfed down that bowl like it was his first meal in a week. That man really knows how to enjoy a meal, heh. I thought to ask if he wanted seconds, but he'd probably eat us out of house and home. He rubbed his belly for a bit, and I wondered how often he gets home-cooked meals. I don't really know if he has skills in the kitchen. Finally, after thoroughly enjoying the free meal, he shared the reason for his visit. His sister—his last living relative—had died. I know he'd been anticipating it for a while, but living through it is a different experience that I know all too well. Not better than him, though. I couldn't imagine being the last Murillo on earth. Like, how do you even process that?

I expressed my condolences and told him I'm here for whatever he needed. I hated the circumstance, but it was kind of nice to repay his kindness in a twisted way. All in all, he said he was okay. Some days hit harder than others, and today he felt especially alone. I told him he had an open invitation at our house.

He said he needed to get going, so we went back outside. Lex had joined the girls, and Justin joked about the kids multiplying. He laughed heartily when I told him there was one more.

"Oh, that's right," he said. "I forgot your sister had triplets. What's your name, son?"

"I'm Lex!"

"Hello there, Lex. I'm Justin."

I cleared my throat.

"Mister Justin," he added. "Your uncle is a good friend of mine. Y'all be nice to him, you hear?"

"Yes, Mr. Justin," the kids said together.

"That's what I like to hear. Next time I come, I'll bring you something sweet."

The kids cheered.

"You have a beautiful family, young buck," he said.

"Thank you. They really are a blessing."

"Ain't that the truth. Sometimes, I wish I would have settled down, but I know it wouldn't suit me. Anyway, thanks for tolerating me today. I really needed the company."

"Man, please. Get outta here with that. You're one of my good friends, too. I told you...you're welcome anytime."

"I appreciate that."

[nabipumpum]

CAN I BE THE FIRST?-03 ᴹⁱⁿʲⁱ ˣ ᶠ!ʳᵉᵃᵈᵉʳ

Y/n always tried to manage on her own, especially with the family she had, but after becoming a trainee she realized that not everyone hated her. After the debut she still tries to deal with her feelings, but everything becomes even more confusing after having to approach NewJeans for better coexistence in the company.

Pairing - Kim Minji X f!Reader

Warning - none?

Previous | Masterlist | Next

3 months ago…

After the meeting with NewJeans, everyone was in the minivan heading to the dorm, the four girls were talking animatedly as always while Y/n looked out the window, normally listening to music, but her mind was too far away to really listen to anything. Minji and Danielle's laughter went through her head, not knowing why she felt this way, she still thought it was just something that would pass, after all, everyone gets nervous around pretty girls. No, she never felt that way about anyone, she was just nervous because she was a fan of the group and having them so close made her uncomfortable. She completely ignored the heat in her body when she thought that maybe she was attracted, that wasn't true. A slight shake of her head to try to dispel that thought didn't go unnoticed by Miya, who was next to the feline girl.

“Is everything okay baby?” Y/n looked at the puppy dog look that the older girl gave her from the corner of her eyes.

“Yeah, just sleepy, you know.” lied, Y/n became great at lying. Who can blame her?

After a few minutes they arrived at the dormitory. The 5 of them sat in the living room as they talked about how cool it would be now that they also followed NewJeans. They were already friends with the girls from Le Sserafim, so they finally formed a complete group.

“Hyein looks so cool, even though she's young, she has a cool mood” Soorin smiled as she opened her bag of chips.

“Oh yeah, Hanni is your friend too, she’s so nice.” Miya had a can of soda with her.

“I think someone liked Dani too.” it was obvious that Hari would mention this.

“Did you really think Dani was cute, Kitty?” Mary looked at her, smiling lightly, finding it amusing.

"What? No… she… she just approached me and out of the blue… I'm her fan, that's all… I don't like girls anyway.” played with the her of his shirt

“Really?" why did Soorin look so surprised? “Stop annoying her” Mary diverted her attention. Just like a mother.

“Let's see Barbie” Miya shouted.

Two days after that, another performance brought the two groups to gether. Again, Y/n just watched as everyone talked, absorbing information. But her brain stopped thinking when she had the slightest exchange of glances with Minji. Her body heated up and she didn't understand why. She normally doesn't break eye contact, but why did she this time? She doesn't know, Minji has confused her mind without a single word.

“Hey, you’re quieter than Haerin.” Dani smiled as she sat down next to Y/n, not getting a real word in response, just a nod.

“Is it weird for you that all of your members are extroverted?” She smiled so warmly, Y/n didn't feel nervous.

“It’s different…” she agreed silently, waiting for more words “I got used to it.”

“I understand, I’m sorry if I made you shy the first time, you seem like a nice person.” Y/n agreed, opened her mouth to say something but a loud noise scared her.

“Bro, are you okay?” Hanni watched as Minji picked up the water bottle from the floor.

“Yes, it slipped out of my hand.” The conversations quickly resumed.

“Well, what were you going to say?” she caught his eyes again.

“You too… look cool” she murmured, but loud enough for the taller one to hear.

“OH MY GOD, you're so cute” basically screamed the last part, as she actually screamed the first one, which made everyone look at her. Y/n flinched but laughed lightly as she nodded as Danielle continued to throw a fit of cuteness. “Really cute” Minji muttered softly without thinking, but Hanni and Hari heard her, casting a sideways glance as Hanni smiled mischievously.

After that day the two groups really became close, Soorin was already friends with Hanni, but she became friends with the other 4 just as easily. It took Y/n a while to speak more than a whisper, but with the help of Mary and Miya, she managed, of course Dani and Hyein also always tried to talk to her more. Within two weeks, everyone was communicating on Twitter like old friends, even the two feline girls.

Y/n laughed lightly as Haerin showed Miya's answer. The two girls were choosing books and CDs at a random store near their dorms, which luckily (or not), were in the same building. Haerin looked at Y/n for a few seconds as she seemed focused on choosing books, until she finally showed one, displaying it with a trophy.

“That one looks cool, right?” the youngest agreed “What did you choose?”

“I just liked this CD, it looks cool, I hope it’s good.” showed the cover.

“Ashnikko? I didn’t know they sold her stuff around here, maybe you’ll like it, but don’t put it too high.” Haerin looked at the girl with confusion in her eyes “Many songs are explicit”

“Oh” the feline looked at the CD “Do you think I should change it?” the older one slowly agreed, “Ok.”

After helping each other look for more things, the two left and walked towards the dorms, happy with their new achievements.

“Unnie, can I ask you something?” the girl with black hair suddenly stopped when she heard the girl with slightly red hair now.

“It looks serious.”

“Not exactly, do you like Dani-unnie?” Y/n stared for a few seconds before laughing.

“Why do you think that?” they started walking again

“Well, just from the way you approached each other, almost everyone thinks so.”

“Almost everyone?”

“Minji-unnie of refusal”

“No, I don’t like Dani, do you like her?”

“No either, we’re just friends”

“That is good"

"That is?"

“Maybe, you’ll find out.”

After that day, Y/n and Haerin became a beautiful duo, with some staff and idols wondering if they were a couple. The answer was obviously no. Y/n saw her as a little sister, even though she was only 1 year younger, she felt like she should protect Haerin, maybe because she saw herself in her and was afraid that she would end up destroyed too.

“You and Y/n are really close now.” Minji handed a bottle of water to the smaller girl who laughed a little.

“We’re good friends, are you jealous?”

“From you? Obviously not”

“Not from me, from her.”

Yes, Minji was.

Y/n and Minji were side by side on the couch, both tired from the performance again.

“She looks pretty even though she’s tired and sweaty.” Minji thought, actually she muttered, what else should I say? Y/n has excellent hearing.

"Thanks." she muttered before taking another sip.

Minji stopped and felt her face heat up. Y/n felt the same, but she ignored it, she should have ignored it, she wasn't gay. Right?

When she arrived in her room, Kitty slammed the door a little too hard, which caught the attention of her other members, but they ended up not going to ask because they just thought she was in a bad mood, that was true, she was in a bad mood. Her mother always said that homosexual people go to hell, she didn't want to go to hell, the image of her mother flashed through her head, screaming about the vision she had.

-(“Are you crazy? Why were you so close to her?”

“We were just hugging, she’s the physical stock type, like my cousin”

“You know this girl kisses other girls, right? She’ll take you to hell with her!”

"Hell…")-

She doesn't want to go to hell, but what if it was because of Kim Minji?

Taglist 🏷️ (open): @gtfoiydlyj @cloudinwjns @yncoreee @mylittleponeypinkrosieposie @ourlovesarang

[1moreff-creator]

Now that you've had some time to cool down from the Fuckfest of Friday Night, I'm a little curious on what you think of MonoTV's whole deal, because I haven't seen anyone actually talk about it much and that makes me so upset because wow Dev somehow managed to get me to care about this piece of steel

Spoilers up to the end of CH2

Hey! Yeah, MonoTV, huh? With everything else going on, this thing kinda got pushed aside, but there's been some really interesting developments indeed. I agree though, it's genuinely pretty incredible dev managed to get me to care about what up to this point had been nothing but a device for plot and humor.

You know, I originally wanted to keep this brief to give my full thoughts on the full part 2 analysis I'm working on, but maybe it's better if I just talk about it in full here and just link to this post from that one. Let me start by the theory side, because that's easier for me to write about :v

While MonoTV's creation being connected to XF-Ture Tech was always a very real possibility, the confirmation that at least its personality drivers come from them is nice. And there doesn't seem to be any type of repurposing going on:

MonoTV: Whenever I make a decision, ultimately, I must make the choice that fulfills my purpose [to run the killing game until the death of every participant]. After all, that was why I was created.

While we don't fully understand how this all fits together yet, I'm glad XF is being brought up because that might mean Min content in the future? For me, please? :,D

Anyways. Having a clearly stated goal for the killing game (killing all the participants) is also pretty useful for theory-crafting purposes, so look forward to seeing that line referenced in mastermind discussions moving forward. Not to mention, the secondary purpose of MonoTV playing the villain, with the reasoning:

MonoTV: This so-called TV show is more about appearances than you'd think.

So... ignoring the weird phrasing of "so-called TV show" as opposed to just "TV show," because I will go crazy if I look too deep into that, the confirmation that the appearances of the killing game are important seem to confirm a suspicion Teruko had back in CH2 Ep2.

Teruko: And also, [MonoTV is designed the way it is] as a way to reference that "past killing game," right?

Assuming via context that she's talking about THH, MonoTV being specifically created and programmed to look and act sorta like Monokuma could have some interesting implications moving forward, especially given things like Duke Spurling being alive to see the Tragedy and maybe wanting a recreation of the THH killing game. Thankfully there's no character with a talent for recreating things, such as art, an art forger of some kind, because if there was this could realistically point to them as the mastermind. :)

Final note about theories: I... called it? Sort of?

[Extract from Vivisection of the David MV] What I think is the best idea [regarding the multi-colored "original"] is that all the characters [which includes MonoTV] got the word. [...] I think it makes more sense to relate them to the meaning of "original style" under my interpretation, where "original style" means a change of heart.

Well, MonoTV sure had a change of personality, albeit briefly, now didn't it? (Please ignore the fact that I dismissed the possibility of MonoTV changing in the lines following that one :p) Admittedly "characters in DRDT will have character development" is possibly my least wild theory ever, but a W is a W (?).

Alright but screw theorizing that's for insane people. Let's go for character analysis, because the fact that MonoTV has become a genuinely interesting creature to study is possibly even wilder than the XF-Ture Tech name drop.

Now, a lot of what we hear character wise is similar to stuff we heard in MonoTV's previous character building moment; CH2 EP3.

MonoTV: Does a toaster know why it toasts? Does a calculator know why it adds and subtracts? They are simply machines that do their job without needing to understand why. To that end, I don't know who made this TV show and why. All I do is carry out the directives programmed into me.

MonoTV: I have no conscience, no sense of morality, no will at all. I am merely a robot, subject to the laws of my code. I have no choice but to perform the actions that my creator dictated I must. [...] All the decisions I make were already decided by whatever entity created me, because I am a robot.

It's stated in a much more melancholic tone, given the music in the background, the sprite pose, and the generally less silly "default personality," but it's nothing really new. MonoTV is a machine, it follows programming.

Except.

MonoTV: Even if I feel pain or guilt, I cannot stop. That is the fate that I have, to make others suffer. And there is no diverging from that fate.

Hey MonoTV what the fuck does this mean.

"Even if I feel pain or guilt"? Instead of "I can't feel pain or guilt"? The choice of wording here is very interesting, because it seems to imply that MonoTV does feel pain and guilt over the killing game, regardless of how impossible that should be. The "fate" drop is pretty huge for thematic reasons, as I'm sure you're aware; Teruko explains her own feelings about it in the rest of the scene, there's Xander's speech to Teruko before he attempted to stab her, Ace talking about how he was too much of a coward to fight his fate, Arei actually defying a similar fate in a way, David with the LGI lyrics, Whit and J and Rose and so many other people, all interconnected by this damn concept. I think it'd be fine if this is all we hear about MonoTV in relation to it, but there's definitely fun parallels to explore regardless.

Given how little we have of these particular character details so far, there's not much I can say about it other than I love the concept of an AI being forced to do something it doesn't "want" to because of code, and I'm interested to see if MonoTV will act differently in the future. It's supposed to reset to its previous personality in the full reset, I imagine, but it's not like we can just ignore all the shit it said here. I'm very curious to see where dev takes this.

That said, I also wanted to point out how this vague allusion to feeling pain and guilt and possibly hopelessness against fate aren't the only feelings MonoTV exhibits. Because for some unfathomable reason, it seems to care about Teruko to an extent?

MonoTV: Is something the matter, Teruko? Everyone else has already left.

Like, maybe I'm misreading because the personality change is fucking with me, but this feels like a concern more genuine than I would expect from pre-2-16 MonoTV. And...

MonoTV: You have to decide the answer for yourself.

This, along with the little speech about Teruko's humanity that precedes it, again comes off as MonoTV genuinely trying to help her through her emotions. I don't see how this correlates with its purpose, unless it somehow "believes" that giving Teruko advice on this will somehow lead to Teruko killing someone or something to that effect, which makes no sense.

If it doesn't help kill the participants, isn't necessary for the killing game, and doesn't make MonoTV seem like a villain, then it's not related to any of its purposes. It isn't code making MonoTV say this things. It's MonoTV's... consciousness? I guess? It's very, very interesting.

I am genuinely super interested in where dev is taking MonoTV, and if you told me that was a sentence I would unironically type before this episode, I would have called you insane. The writing in this series is genuinely immaculate, I can't believe we're getting genuine basis for MonoTV angst and it's compelling. Dev does it again!

Thanks for the ask, this was fun to ramble about!

[thewriteone]

Precipice

a/n: Finally, the very first fanfic idea I had for The Lonely Shore (@thelonelyshore-if) is completed. My brainchild. Third to be posted but no less loved for it. Still calling it an AU because idk how some of this stuff will actually shake out in canon, and this way I can just have some fun with it.

Takes place some amount of time after Hell and High Water. Switching from third person in Willow's perspective to first person in my MC's perspective because I know exactly how this bitch thinks. MC is not named but is genderqueer (she/he/they pronouns) and Willow's nickname for her is Ducky. Guest starring Beck and Perri because I love them. <3

Wordcount: 1621

cw: swearing

----------------

You would think having a closet full of clothing means always having something to wear, and I suppose that is technically true. Yet having a wealth of options only makes it all the more difficult to reach a final decision. I at least manage to narrow it down to three options in less than an hour. The finalists, as it were.

The bedroom door swings open forcefully as I’m contemplating my choices. Willow has always been allergic to typical social conventions, and I never liked this particular habit of theirs.

“Ever heard of knocking?” I say without sparing them a glance. I don’t have to look at them to know they’re rolling their eyes in response. Very mature, very respectful. As usual. Willow flops down on the empty part of my bed as I eliminate one of my finalists. And then there were two.

“I’m bored,” they say, one arm draped over their eyes.

“Then go do something.”

“I am doing something. I’m talking to you, aren’t I?” They lift their arm to look me in the eye and grin. I narrow my eyes at them, an exasperated look that is made less effective by the upward curl at the edges of my mouth.

“So you’re treating me like some form of free entertainment?”

“You’d have to actually be entertaining for me to do that,” they respond, mischief dancing in their eyes. I consider swatting them with a pillow, but I settle for flipping them off instead.

“Oh, Willow, you’re such a comedian. Look at me, I’m simply dying from laughter over here.” I pick a winning outfit as Willow takes note of what I’m doing.

“I know,” they grin. “That’s why you’re so lucky to have me as a sibling. What are you getting all ready for, anyway? Planning to ditch me so soon?”

“Yep, I have plans today. Sorry baby sib, cool kids only.”

“Guess that means you won’t be going after all, then.” I’m helpless to stop the laughter that bubbles out of me at their response.

“Hey! I'll have you know that I'm very popular in this town.” The admonishment in my tone is tempered by my still-present smile.

“And you think that's a good thing?” Before I can formulate a response, Willow asks the question that’s been burning behind their eyes.

“So, what, you’re going on some kind of date or something?” They put an arm under their head, the perfect picture of nonchalance. I know better. I hesitate a moment before deciding to be honest. This isn’t our first date and it isn’t likely to be the last, not if I have any say in it, so Willow will find out eventually. Better they hear it from me.

“Yes, actually.” Willow sits bolt upright as though they’ve been struck.

“What?? With who??” they shout, equal parts hopeful and apprehensive. They knew who I had feelings for, and. Well. Only one of those options was acceptable, according to Willow. When I don’t answer immediately, they scramble off the bed to stand in front of me. “Don’t fucking tell me it’s Beck!”

“And Perri.” I respond, arms crossed. They turn away and groan, worst fears confirmed.

“You are somehow simultaneously the smartest and the dumbest person I know,” they spit out, their like of Perri never quite enough to eclipse their dislike of Beck. I frown as they turn back around to face me, irritation prickling in my chest.

“I’ll never understand why you don’t like Beck. You’re both so similar,” I respond. Willow splutters for a moment, the creases in their brow nearly spelling out the word “indignation.” I press forward before they can collect themself. “Besides, Little Sapling, you don’t get a say in who I choose to date. I like both of them, end of discussion.” While they’re trying to collect themself enough to respond, I manage to shoo them out so I can finally dress. The reprieve from their judgemental comments is merely a bonus.

When I walk out to wait in the living room, Willow is hot on my heels.

“I cannot believe you compared me to that arrogant little coward. We’re nothing alike. Nothing!”

“Riiight. You’re definitely not both reckless adrenaline seekers chasing after the next fun thing without any concern for the consequences. Totally not you at all.”

Their face sours bitterly. I’ve clearly delivered them the worst insult possible packaged in facts they can’t dispute, though that doesn’t keep them from trying. Half a dozen sentences start and fizzle back out.

"Beck lets her fear control her. I don't," they finally manage to say.

"Sometimes fear tells us when something is dangerous, when we're taking things too far. Listening to that can be a good thing!" Willow sneers. My own irritation from before bubbles back to the surface.

"Not when it keeps you trapped like a bird in a cage! Afraid to change, afraid to rock the boat, afraid to challenge the status quo!"

"Beck is trapped here because of the fog, like the rest of us."

"Sure, but she hasn't even bothered trying. She just lets the haunting spectre of her own fear ruin good things before they can even happen." Their eyes speak what their lips did not: She'll ruin this, too. Ruin you.

My irritation sparks into a flame. I tried not to mind their opinion before–Willow and I have always had different tastes–but now it is becoming unbearable. It’s not even the fact they don’t like Beck, it’s that they’re so hellbent on changing my mind. As though they need me to agree with them and stop hanging around her. But I’m an adult now. I am no longer bound by the childish whims of my younger sibling, nor the demands of my parents. I will not allow other people to dictate how I live my life. I take a few calming breaths before responding.

"Look, I know you care about me, and I appreciate that. However, who I choose to date has nothing to do with you. I've decided that Beck and Perri are worth taking a risk on, whatever that may mean for me in the future. You need to respect me and my choices instead of trying to change my mind."

“I do respect you! That’s why I’m trying so hard to get you to see reason–”

“I’m not the one who has trouble seeing reason!” I snap.

"But you do! You're letting your emotions cloud your judgement. Beck isn't a good influence, a good person. She's going to—"

An ill-timed knock interrupts their inane ranting. Well, ill-timed for them. I, on the other hand, welcome the sudden end to this pointless argument. I almost feel the heat of Willow’s searing glare on my back as I open the door to reveal Beck and Perri, both smiling as soon as they see me.

"Hey bud, you ready?" Beck asks. Perri clocks the tension immediately, posture stiffening and smile turning wooden as their eyes dart between Willow and I. Beck must notice the change in their demeanor, her eyes darting to her companion briefly as her smile flickers. Then, Beck’s gaze lands on Willow and her expression shifts. Her smile sharpens at the edges, almost taunting.

"Didn't realize you'd be home, Sapling. Trying to tag along?" Willow rolls their eyes.

"It's Willow to you," they respond, false smile plastered on their face. "And I wouldn't be caught dead spending time with you. Just what kind of dangerous stunt are you going to take my sibling on this time? Gonna go jump off a bridge or something?" Beck snorts.

"I considered it, but I know you wouldn't want me getting hurt. You're just...so caring." I close my eyes and pinch the bridge of my nose. I have had my absolute fill of bickering and arguments for the day.

"Alright, enough you two. Don't we have somewhere to be?" I direct my question to Beck. Perri sags with relief and manages a weak smile when I catch their eye and I briefly smile back. I turn to Willow and see their frown, knowing they have a retort on the tip of their tongue.

"We will finish this discussion later once we've both had time to calm down," I state firmly. Willow grimaces and then nods. The heaviness of everything both said and unsaid hangs between us. But it can wait. Three of us start to leave the apartment before we're interrupted.

“Wait!” Willow calls out. I turn to face them, curious about what they have to say. “I’m…sorry for yelling.” But not sorry for what they said. I frown, feeling the brief sting of frustration. Always so difficult. Whatever.

“I’m sorry for yelling, too.” We’ll address the rest later. They reach out for a hug, and the anxiety melts from their expression as I give it to them. They seem to melt too, clinging tightly. 

“C’mon, Ducky! We’ve got a lot of great stuff planned for today!” Beck calls out, reaching the end of her patience. Willow tenses at the interruption, likely irritated, before we pull apart.

"Beck! Give them a moment!" Perri admonishes, shooting me an apologetic look. I laugh softly.

“Alright, alright, I’m coming,” I say with an annoyance betrayed by the smile on my face. “See you later, Little Sapling.” I nudge Willow in the arm one last time before finally leaving with my dates.

[carminecandles]

♫⋆｡ I hate myself for loving you ₊ ♪˚

prologue here

chapter one here

desc: punk!f!munson!reader and sub!Steve Harrington are not too fond of each other. However, unspoken tension becomes unbearable when stopping at a motel on a group trip, you both have no choice but to share a bed. Will you two settle your differences or find other ways to make the other shut up?

Chapter 2: like the sun and moon

(tw: toxic dynamics)

Shortly thereafter, you toss and turn in your sleep. Steve sees the look of distress on your face and reaches out, hand hovering over your shoulder, wondering if he should wake you up.

You dream about the upside down again, the memories still haunting you as they still do for all of you guys. Steve watches your body tense and trash, clearly in the grip of a nightmare.

When you yell out he immediately shakes you awake gently, so that the sudden intrusion wouldn’t startle you further. "No, no. You're dreaming, y/n. It's okay," he whispered, grabbing you and pulling you into his arms as soon as you shoot up in horror.

You tremble a little, still too disoriented to realize Steve was holding you tight against him, rubbing your back in attempt to soothe you. Soon you steady your breath, the worry slowly draining out of your body as you realize you're safe, that you all are. As you come back down to reality you pull away from Steve, as if you were suddenly remembering that you're enemies.

Steve feels a little disappointed, an emptiness filling the space where he had just held you. "Are you okay?" he asks softly, his voice low and gentle.

"Yeah…" you reply a bit too harshly to cover up the shakiness in your voice. Steve understands your defensiveness all to well, knowing that vulnerability is terrifying, especially in front of someone you're supposed to hate. He doesn't push you to talk more as you hide behind a wall a toughness.

You drag a hand across your face. Steve's concern eventually gets the better of him and he asks, "Was it the monsters or something?"

You nod slowly, avoiding his gaze. He tries to lighten the mood and says, "Hey, at least I was okay in it, right? I was probably fighting them off and being cool."

The memories of Steve protecting you guys come back, and maybe it did look kind of cool but you'd never give him the satisfaction of admitting it. "Are you forgetting your dumbass keeps getting beat to the point of near death?"

Steve feels irritated at your jab. "It's not my fault the upside down keeps trying to kill me."

"And Billy, and the Russians, and--"

"Okay, enough. Point taken, I guess. I do have a bad habit of getting my ass kicked," he says with a resigned sigh, not wanting you to push it in any further. He's been through it more times than he can probably count, and it never gets any easier.

The shift in conversation offers you relief from the horrors you just relieved, and you chuckle. "It's gonna catch up to you someday, man."

Steve shakes his head in mock annoyance, secretly glad you're back to your teasing self and not the panicked mess you were earlier. He can't help but smile at the sound of your chuckle again. "Oh come on, I always manage to survive. Like a cockroach."

"You kinda look like one too," you say, trying to deny to yourself that you actually found him attractive.

"Excuse me? Are you calling me ugly? Well, you're one to talk. You're not exactly some model yourself," he says, though it's the opposite of how he truly feels.

"At least I can admit that," you retort. Steve might be pretty, but he knows it, damnit. That's what gets on your nerves.

"Hey, I might just be the best-looking guy in Hawkins."

You roll your eyes. "'Cause Billy's dead? It's not like you have other things going for you anyway."

He scoffs. "I do!"

"Name one."

"Well, let's see. I'm pretty good at basketball, I'm a loyal friend, and I'm quite charming if I do say so myself," he says.

"You were a sh*t captain who kept Hawkins from being in the championship or winning for years."

"Not true, I was a great one!" "As for the 'friends,' you make fun of them, jerk. And charming, my ass. You probably repel women."

Steve gives up on trying to defend himself, knowing it's pointless and you'll keep going at your brutal takedown. He secretly knows you're right but it doesn't make it hurt any less to hear it said out loud. That damn smirk, he thinks. Who does she think she is to constantly want to humble me?

"Yeah, yeah, you're a real know-it-all. You always gotta be right, don't you?" he says sarcastically, annoyed by your smugness but also feels a bit of begrudging respect that you never stand down.

"Because I am always right," you say, jokingly.

Steve shakes his head in disbelief at your confidence. "You've got a real ego problem, you know that? You think everyone else are just incompetent idiots." "Not everyone, just you," you say, trying to get under his skin.

"What did I do to deserve your harsh judgment? Other than saving your ass multiple times?"

You knew that it was true, he has saved you, and you him. "So that immediately makes up for everything you did? Besides you were just tryna be a hero and all that, and I can take care of myself you know."

He almost laughs at your stubbornness. "You can take care of yourself, huh? I guess that's why you almost got mauled by those demodogs. You'd be dead right now if it wasn't for me."

"You would be too," you say. Steve won't admit it outright either. You've both saved each other's asses many times before.

"That doesn't change the fact that you're a stubborn, know-it-all who's allergic to admitting you need help sometimes."

You know there's truth to his words deep down. "And you're just a narcissistic wannabe hero who wants to show off and have people cheer for you all the time."

Steve feels a stab of anger. "And you're just a cynic who refuses to see the good in anything, always assuming the worst in people."

"I just see the truth, and I don't think you're all that. You need to be knocked down a few pegs."

"Oh really? And you think you're the one to that, huh?" "But I have been doing that," you say, thinking of how you refused to put up with his bullsh*t and called him out for his attitude since the day you met.

"I'm not just gonna roll over and take it, you know?"

"Obviously why you're insufferable."

A small smirk tugs the corner of his mouth. "Says you. You're just as insufferable, actually more so."

You huff, running out of comebacks. "You can't offend me if I don't care about your opinion anyway."

Steve finds this ridiculous and tries to rile you up further. "If you don't care about my opinion, why are you still here arguing with me at two in the morning?"

"Because you f*cking woke me up!"

"I didn't do it on purpose, you were the one thrashing around and screaming my name in your sleep."

"Not like that, damn it," you joke.

Steve smirks, knowing he pushed the right buttons. "What's the matter? Don’t like being called out on your subconscious love of me?"

"Oh you wish, Harrington," you deny quickly. "That would sure feed your ego, wouldn't it?"

He knows he hit a nerve and continues. "Come on, don't pretend. It's not like it's a secret you've got a little thing for me."

"No, sorry dude but you remain b*tchless and desperate," you say.

"Ha, you're one to talk. You're single too, in case you've forgotten. So we're both b*tchless and desperate."

"Well at least not the desperate part, if I wanted to I can get almost anyone I want." Steve chuckles at your confidence, finding it both obnoxious and attractive. "If you're so irresistible why aren’t you taken, then?"

He had a point, you thought. But you weren't looking to date at the moment. At least that's what you say to yourself. Sure, you have had casual flings lately but… something is holding you back from more. Your feelings lie elsewhere. "Well maybe I'm just not interested in anything serious."

"Figures. You just want to have your fun and move on."

"Hypocrite, much? That's what you used to do."

He remembers his past reputation for going through girls like they're disposable, knowing he can't argue with the accusation since he had his fair share of using girls for fun and moving on when he gets bored. "That's in the past okay? I'm not that guy anymore."

"Well in my eyes you still are just a heartless douche." You couldn't stand his 'King Steve' persona.

Normally Steve wouldn't give two sh*ts what people still thought of him but for some reason your opinion irritated him, and he couldn't understand why it even matters.

"And to me you're a defiant nuisance. You think you're some sort of rebel, with all that anti-conformity feminist blah blah blah."

"Shut up, you're just a mindless former jock that was obsessed with the stupid social hierarchy."

He scoffs. Did you still see him as nothing more than a brainless cog in the machine that is the high school hierarchy? It's  been long since graduation, for crying out loud. "You really think that's all I am? Some mindless jock that only cares about popularity?"

"Well yeah, you were a total d*ck like every other popular kid, and probably still are… you couldn't have changed THAT much even though you pretend," you say, still hesitant to trust him after your guys' past.

Steve feels frustrated that you don’t acknowledge he's changed, that his past actions don't define his entire character. "So I'm still a d*ck even though I went through hell and back saving the world more than once? Risking my life countless times to protect my friends and a town that hates me? You think that counts for nothing?"

You knew he had truly changed, you saw it firsthand. But you just couldn't admit to him now when you're put on the defensive. "Town that hates you? Pfft. Please, your little daddy's rich and respected, you spoiled boy."

That mention of his dad feels like a punch in the gut. "You're gonna bring him into this now? You think having a rich dad makes everything easier? You know nothing."

"I'm the town freak here. A f*cking Munson, and thanks to my cousin I get called a Satanist and trailer trash on a daily basis. You can't know what that's like." You don't mention that Steve himself even called you insults somewhere along those lines, plus the ones that hurt the most were about your sexuality, which you used to keep hidden for a reason. Even though he might be accepting now but it wasn't always the case.

Steve can't argue that he knows what it's like to be hated and ostracized by the town in the way you are. "Okay, that's different. But it doesn't mean I don't have problems too. And you seriously believe I was the same arrogant prick I was back in high school?"

"Well I wouldn't know, you're still such a pain."

A pain. That's all he is to you. He doesn't know why it hurts despite being a common insult you've thrown at him. "And you're so f*cking pleasant all the time."

You roll your eyes, knowing you can't deny it.

Steve found you infuriating, but he can't bring himself to hate you for it. He was oddly attracted to your fiery personality. "You just love being the pain in my ass don't you," he scoffs.

"I can cause another pain in your ass," you say, chuckling.

Steve pauses. You're just referring to something violent… right? "And what exactly do you mean by that?"

"Have you ever been pegged, Harrington?" you say, only half-joking.

Steve nearly chokes on his saliva but quickly composes himself, not letting you get the satisfaction of seeing his reaction. "What the hell kind of question is that?!"

"I was kidding," you say with a laugh, watching the pink rise in his cheeks. Secretly you want to do it, but you force the thoughts to stop distracting you.

"Yeah, yeah. Real funny," he grumbles. Steve hides his curiosity under a façade of irritation. He hadn't actually, but he wouldn't mind it being done by you.

"You still always seem to have something shoved up your ass though, except not as pleasant."

"You're the one with a stick up your ass, not me," he replies.

"Fine, fine. But I'd shove one-" "Woah, you're threatening me right now?" he says as you chuckle, his eyes narrowing. "What's so funny? You really think you can take me in a fight? You might have some muscles sure, but you're still a chick. I could pin you down in seconds."

You try to resist the urge to tell him to do it, as tempting as it was. But you smile and say, "Is that a challenge, Harrington?"

With that he lunges, unable to resist the opportunity to prove his point and wrap his arms around you, using his weight to press you onto the bed. "Since you're so eager to get your ass kicked."

Your foot connects with his side, and he grunts, feeling a stings where you hit him. "Jesus, ow! What was that for?"

He lets go of you and glares, rubbing his side. You use this moment to flip you two over, and Steve was caught off guard. You were back in the same position as earlier in the night, straddling him again. You couldn't resist shifting your hips to get comfortable and he has to back a moan. Instead he focuses on your smug grin and how you're mocking him to ignore the feel of you on him.

"You like getting your ego stroked like this, huh?" At that you put your hand over his mouth to shut him up.

He was about to protest some more but feels his cheeks warm up with the way you're dominating him, feeling both humiliated and aroused at being silenced like this. He hates how much he likes this but keeps his face expressionless so you don't know how much you're affecting him.

Steve tries to speak again but your hand muffles his words, making them unintelligible. All he can do is glare up at you, trapped beneath you. You pin him down harder, squeezing his body with your thighs. Steve lets out a muffled groan and bites your hand.

You let out a sharp gasp. "Ow!"

Steve grins and says sarcastically, "Oops, sorry about that." But he knows he's not sorry at all.

"Let me go, you're squeezing me too tight," he says.

"No," you reply firmly as he squirms.

"You can't just keep me pinned here forever, you know," he says, even though the thought of being trapped under you was turning him on a little too much, imagining what else you can do while he's like this.

Your thoughts drift to similar places and you grab the sheets, using them to tie Steve's hands together. He is shocked but also aroused by the restraints, struggling against them to no avail. The knots near his wrists are too tight and he lies helpless under you.

"Hey, what the hell are you doing…" he grumbles.

You stuff the remaining end of the sheets into his mouth and he tries to spit out the makeshift gag. "Now I can sleep in peace," you say.

Steve wants to yell at you, tell you to get off of him but he can't, and he's both frustrated and aroused by being bound and gagged like this, completely at your mercy. He feels your body press between his legs, making his mind go blank. You hold him down so you can't kick up at you and he wiggles, trying to hide his growing erection.

You shift your hips, acting as though it was just to comfortable, and Steve tries to hold back a moan, coming out as a muffled whimper through the gags. He feels vulnerable and exposed beneath you and hates how it turns him on. He's torn between wanting you to keep going and want to escape from the position you put him in. Each slight movement of your hips drives him crazy, his senses overwhelmed.

He tugs again against the restraints, feeling the fabric in his mouth getting soaked with his saliva. He looks up, eyes meeting yours and silently begging. But he feels heat shoot through him as you smirk down at him, enjoying the power you have over him and the contact as you 'accidentally' grind against him. With his wrists tied he couldn't push you off, but the situation ignites something in him.

Steve has to remind himself that he hates you, that he's supposed to be fighting this, but it gets harder to remember why. He feels a bit embarrassed at his lack of control, how you've reduced him to a helpless mess, since he's used to being the one in charge. Yet he wants you despite everything, and hates himself for enjoying this so much. He gives up fighting and accepts this position, feeling you lean in closer, your breath ghosting over his skin.

Your lips almost touch his neck, and he silently wills you to continue, but you suddenly snap out of your lustful daze and realize what is happening, pulling back.

Steve groans, looking up at you frustrated for playing with him like this, but you get off him, realizing you got way too carried away. Steve feels both relief and disappointment as you get off his body and starts struggling against the restraints against, trying to free himself and speak again so he can tell you off for what you just did to him.

You remove the gag and the untie the sheets, and Steve lets out a breath, collecting himself and rubbing his wrists a little, feeling the soreness from where the fabric dug in. He's not going to tell you that a part of him liked it and wanted you to keep him that way.

"What the hell was that?!" he says, hiding the slight hoarseness in his voice from the gag. Steve was still aroused from your little power play, making him more irritable than usual.

"I was just uh.. Shutting you up." You try to hide how much it excited you to see him bound, eyes begging… F*ck.

His pride was a little wounded by the implication that you can just shut him up whenever you want. "You can't just gag me whenever I say something you don’t like. I have a right to speak my mind, you know."

"Whatever. That was for pinning me down earlier."

"Yeah, well, you started it."

"You were provoking me and deserved it," you say.

"Yeah, well, you didn't have to gag me like that. That was a bit excessive, don't you think?"

You have to admit he's right, but maybe you just wanted to give in to your desires and have him at your mercy. It was quite arousing, honestly.

"You're enjoying this aren't you? Power going to your head, huh?" he scoffs.

"Now you’re making me sound like the jerk here," you respond.

"Oh, I'm making you sound like the jerk? Who's the one who just had me tied up and gagged like some kind of prisoner?"

You can't help the smirk that plays on your lips. "Maybe you're just more pleasant that way, without your cocky attitude."

"Cocky attitude? That's just my personality, sweetheart. Can't handle a little sass?”

"Nah, I like you better silenced," you say, not letting him know how much this is getting you.

Steve knows he should feel offended, but there's something about your assertiveness that he can't help but find hot. He tries to keep up his bravado but he's never had someone take control like this before, it was both exhilarating and infuriating.

"Oh, is that right? You like me better when I can't talk back to you, huh? So, what? You're just gonna gag me every time I piss you off now?"

You bite back, "I just might."

"And what if I fight you? What if I don't want to be silenced like that?" Secretly he feels heat in his stomach at the thought of you doing it again.

"You can try, Harrington," you say with a teasing smirk.

You keep saying my name like that and I'll make you scream it, he thinks. "Oh, I'll fight. Don't think you can just gag me whenever you want, sweetheart. I'm not some helpless puppy you can just tie up and keep quiet."

"Unfortunately," you retort.

Steve ignores the fact that he likes when you take charge. "Yeah, well, you just wait. Someday I'm gonna get you back for this, you know that, right?"

"Oh wow, I'm so scared," you say sarcastically. "Just go to sleep."

He pouts a little at your dismissive tone. "Yeah, whatever. Don't tell me what to do."

Still, Steve knows he should listen. He's tired and frustrated and lets out a sigh, laying down. You roll over and pull the crumpled up sheets over yourself. He stares at the back of your head, wanting to pull you closer but doesn't, knowing that it will just give you more power over him if you know what he wants.

Despite trying to keep a distance between you two, the bed is so small that your bodies brush against each other again. Steve ignores the way his pulse quickens, torn between maintaining his pride and wanting to press against you.

"Haven't you heard of space?" you bark.

"Like this is my fault, punk. Maybe if you stopped hogging the bed--"

"I'm not the one hogging the bed! I'm basically falling off the edge here."

"Oh, poor you. Cry me a river, princess. We're sharing a bed, which means we're going to be close. Get used to it."

"Don't you dare call me that!" you spat.

Steve grins at your irritation. "You're acting like one, all spoiled and demanding. Get over it."

You reach behind you to slap him lightly. "Hey! Watch it!" Steve yelps.

He rubs his shoulder dramatically as you roll your eyes and turn back around. The sting from the contact mixes with arousal and he lays there for a moment, trying to get a grip on his emotions and desires.

"You didn't have to slap me, you know," Steve grumbles.

"Yeah, I know. But I wanted to."

He huffs at your unapologetic response, not surprised that you've resorted to physical violence again when he gets on your nerves. "Yeah I can tell. You always gotta hit me whenever I get under your skin, do you?"

"Can you just shut up for once in your f*cking life?!" you say, exasperated.

Steve glares. "Oh, so now you're complaining about me being too loud? I can't win with you can, I? First it was too cocky, now too loud, what's next, huh?"

"God I hate you," you say.

"Well I hate you more, princess," he grumbles. Yet, deep down, there was an undeniable tension neither wanted to acknowledge.

"I told you not to call me that!" you say, frustrated.

Steve smirks at your indignation. "What, are you gonna slap me again if I call you princess? Go ahead, I dare you."

"Yeah, you'd like that, wouldn't you? I'm starting to think you might have a masochistic streak," you remark with a chuckle.

"Nah, I just like pissing you off. You're always mocking me, it's a wonder I haven't strangled you yet."

You roll your eyes, knowing he's probably enjoying getting a rise out of you. "Back at ya babe," you respond sarcastically.

Babe. The nickname sends a shiver through his body. Now that's a new level of mocking, he thinks, trying to keep up his annoyed façade. But it's getting harder to stay grumpy when you're being so casually infuriating.

Steve shifts a little on the bed, feeling his body press against yours even more. The sheets get twisted and tangled as they move, the fabric rubbing against his skin as he looks at the back of your head, your hair messy from sleep.

"You're really testing my patience tonight, you know that?" he says.

"You don’t think you are? I don’t know how I’m gonna put up with you till morning," you reply, your comment causing him to roll his eyes at your persistence.

"Oh, now you're acting like I'm the only one causing trouble here? You tied me up and gagged me earlier, remember? And now you're complaining about me being annoying? That's rich."

You can't help but chuckle. "Well we're stuck here together, like it or not.” And just my luck, you thought. Here with Mr. Perfect Hair.

Steve hates that you find this situation amusing. But at the same time, the sound of your laugh is kind of cute, even if it's at his expense. "Yeah, yeah, laugh it up. You think this is so funny, don't you?"

"Well it's way too easy to get you riled up."

"Yeah, well, you just make it too easy to be annoyed with you. You're like a damn mosquito, always buzzing around and biting me."

"A mosquito really? Running out of insults?"

"Oh, come on, you know I could insult you better than that. I'm just... sleepy. And frustrated. And annoyed. So, you know, cut me some slack, princess," he grumbles.

"I thought I told you not to-" You sigh. "You’re the princess here. A big one at that too."

"Excuse me?  You're the one being dramatic, who goes around slapping and tying people up like a damn psycho. Don't try to act like you're some saint." Steve's mind replays the memory of you binding and gagging him earlier, recalling how your body felt against his while you did it. He shakes the thought away, trying to focus on his anger instead.

Eventually, he just sighs. "Look, we’re stuck here. Can we just try to get through one night without biting each other’s heads off?”

You roll onto your back, staring up at the ceiling. “Maybe if you stopped acting like you’re better than everyone, it would be easier.”

“Better than— Are you serious?” He propped himself up on one elbow, looking down at you. “You don’t know anything about me.”

“I know enough,” you muttered, but your voice lacked its usual bite.

There was a moment of silence, a beat where neither of you spoke. Then, with a soft, almost resigned exhale, Steve lays back down.

“Maybe you’re right,” he said quietly. “But I’m trying, okay? I’m trying to be better.”

You turned your head to look at him, surprised by the vulnerability in his voice. For a moment, the facade dropped, and you saw the person beneath the bravado.

“Yeah, well… maybe I’m trying too,” you admitted, your voice barely above a whisper.

The tension between you shifted, softened. You roll onto your side again, grateful Steve hadn’t made some smart remark about you finally admitting you were in the wrong too.

He shifts a little, but freezes when he feels your back against his body, the contact making his breath hitch. His mind is a mess of conflicting emotions – irritation, frustration, desire. He tries to rein in his response, telling himself that he shouldn't be feeling this way about someone who annoys him so much.

You try to move away but it only gets worse -- your ass now pressing against him, making you blush.

Steve swears under his breath as a certain part of him reacts immediately. "Christ, can you move any further back? We're practically together here."

"I'm trying, goddamnit. Want me to fall off?!"

He swallows hard as he feels you wriggling around trying to move further away, the movement only serving to grind your body against his even more.  "Just… stop moving."

You sigh and stop moving, feeling an odd sense of disappointment, kinda missing the friction. No, what the f*ck, you mentally scold yourself.

Steve's back remains pressed against the wall while you're on the edge the bed. "You done moving around now? Can you just stay still for a second?"

Now you move again just out of spite and Steve inadvertently presses himself into you in all the wrong (and right) ways.

"Get away f*ckface," you say, your harsh words a stark contrast to the way your body is pressed against his. Yet you have no intention of changing your guys's current position.

"Get away? I'm literally pinned against the wall here. Not exactly much space for me to move, in case you haven't noticed," he says, but secretly grateful.

Steve shifts to find a more comfortable position but it results in him pressing even closer into you, making you nearly gasp. He feels your breathing getting shorter and your body trembling slightly, the tension building with each passing second.

"You're shaking," he says, the words coming out more like a whisper than he intended.

"I'm… just cold," you reply. Steve smirks and shifts even closer, if it was possible.

"What are you doing?" you whisper.

"Just uh, sharing the warmth. It’s not like I want you to catch a cold."

"Then why don't you give me more of that damn blanket," you say, pulling it off of him with a smirk.

He looks down, the cold air hitting his bare skin and making him realize he has nothing on but boxers. "Jesus, you could've warned me before taking away my only cover. Now I'm freezing."

"Deal with it," you say with a subtle glance over him.

He pulls the blanket back, covering himself up. "It'd be easier if we shared the damn thing," he mutters.

You huff. "Well why are you wearing f*cking boxers in the first place?!"

Steve grumbles in frustration. "I didn't exactly plan on sharing a bed with someone tonight okay? Let alone you. It's not like I knew I had to wear my warmest pajamas just in case."

You just roll your eyes and get up to close the window.

Steve watches you as you move, his eyes drifting down your body. "You're no better. You're practically naked." "It's not like I knew either!" you say, heating up now that you're aware of his gaze. You get back into bed and pull the covers over yourself.

"Seriously? Can you give me some of the damn blanket, at least? I'm freezing my ass off here."

"I just closed the window!" you say.

"Closing the damn window doesn't magically make the room warm, you know. I'm still cold."

You ignore him and roll over, glancing at the clock. "3am already? I would've kept sleeping if you didn't wake me up."

"Hey, you’re the one screaming and flailing around with that nightmare," he says looking at you, his irritation flaring up again.

"Like that's my fault? You weren't sleeping anyway!"

"Yeah, I wasn't sleeping because you're so damn noisy. Every move you make in your sleep makes this damn bed creak, and it's keeping me awake."

"Well just shut up okay? Or I'll-" "Or what huh? You'll slap me again? Nothing you do is gonna scare me, you know."

"Whatever. We need to sleep." You roll your eyes and try to get comfortable with Steve's proximity.

"Can you stop shifting around so damn much? You're making it impossible to sleep," he says.

"You're the one that’s all up on me!"

"Hey, it's not my fault we're stuck in this damn bed together." He shifts a little, feeling the heat radiating off of your body. "F*ck, you're making this so damn hard."

You snicker. "You're the one who's hard."

He rolls his eyes, embarrassed at your observation even though he tried to hide it from you. "Shut up. It's not like I can control that."

"Well it's f*cking weird. Get it away from me."

"You think I don't know that? I can't exactly just will it away, you know."

You want to make a flirty comment about helping him out but stop yourself in time. Instead, you roll over in hopes it's better but it only makes it worse as your fronts now press together.

Steve can feel each of your breaths and it only strengthens his desire. "God this is not helping. This position is even worse than the last one."

"You think I don't know that?"

He shifts and his erection unknowingly rubs against your stomach, sending a jolt of pleasure through him. "Jesus, this is torture."

"You don't say," you grumble. Your body feels like it's on fire from being this close to him.

"Can you just... I don't know, stop breathing so heavily or something? You're making me insane," he says.

"Oh you want me to stop breathing now?"

Steve huffs. "No, smartass, I mean stop breathing so damn loudly. You sound like you just ran a marathon or something."

"I’m breathing normally, you’re just annoyed for no reason," you say in denial.

"No you're not, you're breathing like you just sprinted up a mountain or something. It's driving me crazy."

"You’re the one who keeps squirming around!" you say.

Steve heats up in embarrassment. "Well it's not exactly easy to get comfortable with you pressed up against me like this."

You try to move back a little but it just causes more friction. Steve holds back a moan by biting his lip. "Stop moving, jeez."

He realizes as you move away that you're about to slip out of the bed. "Hey, careful," he says, quickly reaching out to grab you, his hand grabbing your hip to pull you back from the edge, closer to him.

His hand on your hip makes your body react in ways you can't control. "Why do you care anyway? Thought you wanted me to sleep on the floor."

"I just don't want you falling out and cracking your head open or something, okay? It would be a pain in the ass having to call an ambulance in the middle of the night."

"Right." You roll your eyes. "Cause that would ruin your nonexistent sleep."

"It's not like it's easy to sleep when you keep tossing and turning like you're having a damn seizure or something," he replies. Steve keeps his grip firm on your hip, acutely aware of the feel of your skin beneath his fingertips. He tells himself to let go but his hand somehow doesn't move. He can feel his willpower slipping away as he looks at you, your face so close he can almost count every individual lash on your eyelids.

Your pulse quickens as his hand subconsciously tightens on you, fingers slightly digging into your flesh. "What are you doing dude? I'm not falling off the bed anymore, jeez."

Steve knows he's been holding on to you way longer than necessary and snaps out of his thoughts by your voice. "Yeah, I know, I was just… making sure, okay?" He winces at how obvious he's being and lets go, seeing faint marks on your skin that his fingers left and realizing he's been gripping your hip like his life depends on it.

He feels a surge of embarrassment and guilt at unintentionally hurting you. "Sorry… I didn't mean to grip you so hard."

"Harrington apologizing? That's a first," you say, secretly wishing he hadn't let you go.

He was about to say something smartass in response but he gets distracted when he catches the way your teeth bite into your lip. Steve swallows hard, his throat suddenly feeling dry as he thinks about what it would be like to kiss you. He leans in just a fraction of an inch closer…

"Steve?"

He pulls away, the sound of his name on your lips reminding him of the fact you're supposed to be enemies. "What?" he says gruffly.

His sudden distance jolts you out of your very similar thoughts. You hate him, you tell yourself. "Nothing."

"Then shut up and go to sleep."

"I'm trying. You're the one grabbing me."

"Gee, sorry for trying to be a decent human being."

"For once," you retort sarcastically.

"Yeah well, at least I'm not some stubborn ass punk-ass chick who never shuts up and pisses me off all the goddamn time."

"Just go to sleep goddamnit," you say, filled with frustration.

"Fine. I will. It’ll be nice not having to hear your annoying voice for once," he says, rolling over, and turning his back to you. "And you better not keep moving around like a damn fish out of water."

"You're one to talk," you reply and shut your eyes.

Steve closes his eyes as well but as the minutes drag on, neither of you can sleep. His mind kept replaying the moment he'd been holding your hip. He turns and tries to remind himself of all the reasons he shouldn't be thinking about you like this -- the fights, the insults, the fact you're enemies. But he can't get his mind off of your body, the way your thighs press together as you shift around, the smooth expanse of your skin… his resolve weakened with each moment.

You sigh, realizing you could not sleep at all like this, and open your eyes, a little startled to see Steve's staring right back.

Steve feels a jolt of surprise when your eyes meet his, he hadn't realized you were awake and feels a little embarrassed to be caught staring. Still, it was impossible for him to look away.

The hint of light from between the blinds catches in Steve's brown irises and you stare at the way they reflect the moonlight. His gaze feels like a physical touch, making you shiver involuntarily.

"What are you doing?" he whispers, his heart pounding in his chest.

"What are you doing?"

"I uh… couldn't sleep."

"Me either," you say, your eyes traveling down the stretch of bare skin, seeing the dots of moles and freckles on his neck and chest that you long to taste.

"What… what are you looking at?" he says a little shakily despite trying to keep his voice steady. He can feel his muscles tense under your scrutiny.

You look away. "Nothing. Jesus, can't you put a shirt on?"

"What, is my bare chest bothering you?" he smirks, knowing you like what you see but are stubborn as usual.

"Ew, yes. Your hairy chest is gross as f*ck and you keep touching me with it."

"Oh you're so dramatic, it's not gross. You just have bad taste," he says, shifting closer so his chest brushes against yours again.

You fake gag and try to move away but Steve grabs your waist, amused by your exaggerated reaction. "Relax, it's just hair. It's not like it will bite you," he says with a chuckle. "Besides, you're gonna fall off if you keep moving back."

You don't say anything as he pulls you closer to him, his thumb rubbing small circles on the soft skin there. "You really are terrible at staying still, you know that?"

Steve squeezes your waist a little tighter, enjoying how you squirm against him. His fingers move down to edge the fabric of your shirt, slipping under to run along your stomach teasingly.

"And you talk too much, you know that?" you whisper lowly in response, pressing your hips up against his.

"Why don't you shut me up then?" he whispers against your ear.

"Is that a challenge?' You say with a smirk, not waiting for a response as you roll on top of him in one quick motion, your mouth hovering just above his. Steve's face is flushed with surprise at the sudden movement and you capture his lips in a rough, possessive kiss.

-

chapter 3 (smut warning) here