#well whatever. tomorrow's a holiday so hopefully i can sleep it off | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

the-fandom-is-now-my-life · 2 years ago

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Hi! Request for 300 followers event. Genshin AU.🌸

It so happened that y/n birthday falls on a school day and she can't celebrate it with her family, which makes her very upset. But her friends decide to make a surprise and organize a cozy holiday together. As it turned out, the guy has romantic feelings for y/n and gently shows it. Even her roommate noticed it, but her doesn't notice it. And at the end of the celebration, he still directly confesses his feelings.

As one friends and roommate I see Xinyan and guy is maybe Thoma or Tartaglia. As an additional factor due to which y/n cannot celebrate her birthday with her family, it may be that she is a foreigner.

I'm bad with English and gender-neutral pronouns, so forgive me. Although I wrote about y / n in the fem, it would be nice if she was gn.

Love you😘

First ask for the event!

Wc: 2.3k

The snow is thicker up the mountain than back home, usually you would have complained to Dan that it was unfair that the students up there could get to see such beautiful sights as a freshly fallen snow on grass or the small icicles that formed on the roofs. Now, being one living in the so wished place you can't help but kick your younger self, it's beautiful indeed but you got seven comforters and it's still freezing cold

" YN!" A familiar voice whines over you as her hands try to rip you off your blanket cocoon " it's a Sunday night! And tomorrow our earliest class is at 9! Let's go to the practice room! Or even watch a movie or something!!" Even if she should keep her voice down and try not to be seen as to not get kicked out of your dorm intro her own xinyan still isn't shy about your 'illegal' sleepover 'everyone did it once! Xingqiu sleep four nights a week at chongyun's room. it's okay' she always insists

Looking to the side you see the clock, 12:07 am " today's class you would want to say"

" Same difference! We got nine hours, we can stand to watch a movie for an hour or so!" Quickly ripping a blanket out of your cocoon she whines at the many layers she would have to take off before you are out

" Give me this birthday gift, mkay? It's really cold and I really want to sleep. Pleeeeaase?"

Her body stiffens over you " aaah? It's your birthday?? OMG! Why didn't you tell me? I wanted to plan something for you!" She hugs you and kisses your head " happy birthday bestie!"

Hugging her back you answer " I'm just a bit homesick from having to spend my first birthday without my family and so" you try to detangle your hair with one hand

" Bestie, at least you should have told me, we could have gone out to shop for clothes or eat at xiangling's restaurant "

" Oh well, for next year then."

" Huff. Whatever "

The next morning the clock strikes at 8:30 and the mattress on the floor is empty and cold. Did xinyan really get so angry at you that she left early? The thought makes your chest ache

Putting on your uniform you walk to school to eat breakfast at the canteen. Maybe you could eat something sweet like the dango milk and Sakura mochi you saw last week at the Inazuma stand. Or maybe something savory like a kebab or a fisherman's toast? Choices choices choices.

By the time you arrive you have to make do with what was left, you did get to grab a bottle of dango milk but there were no mochi or taiyaki so you grab a rice ball. Hopefully the class won't last that long

Two hours hearing a teacher bicker about theater and make up for each character could have been interesting had curiosity not been in your head. Why did xinyan leave so early? You don't think the internships at the school band were until next month. Oh well, you can survive a class without your friend.

As soon as the clock ticked everyone stormed off the room. That means it should be around 11. Thankfully next class' teacher is absent so that leaves you free until 1pm. Maybe you could go to a cat Cafe for brunch? If you showed your student ID maybe you could get a birthday discount or something. But touching around your neck you don't feel the familiar fabric around it. You must have forgotten to put it on when you woke up, it should be in your nightstand

If you run, maybe you could get there by 12 and order a lemon key pie or a tres leches cake and some coffee or tea.

Running down the main stairs to your dorm you see a head peek out of a tree. Is that xiangling's hair? Before you approach someone grabs your hand. It's Thoma.

" YN!" His smile is bright and contagious enough that you match his energy in seconds " where are you going? Shouldn't you be in class?"

" Oh? My teacher is absent for next class so I have two hours free" you answer

" Really?" He exclaims before lamenting " it never happened to me before, at best we could get out early but we never lost a class in the middle of the day"

Softly you laugh " is there anything you wanted?"

" Oh, yeah!" He exclaims "as you don't have anything to do, will you come with me? I have to go run some errands and I would prefer to have someone to chat with!' His smile is wide and bright as the sun, it also serves the purpose of warming your heart a little.

" I was going to the cat Cafe but I can tag along with you" you follow him walking the commercial zone " what do you need to do?"

He vaguely answers " oh I just got to pick up a few things. Ayaka wanted some sweets and ayato's order arrived so I'm picking everything up "

" Okay, let 's go!"

The variety store is the closest one to the school, they sell everything from pens and paper to jewels and fabric. Looking around the shop while Thoma speaks with the employee you see so many kind of things, from violet gems that gave a tiny electric shock to a stand with different types of pearls right next to a feathery fabric.

Running your fingers up and down the material you feel the tiny feathers follow your movement. So soft and comfy

" Know i charged extra given the express delivery fee" the voice of the male employee sounds fed up, dragging every word

" Oh, yeah, don't worry, special occasion" looking to the side he asks " can i add something else?"

" Yes"

" Can I buy 3 meters of that fabric over there?" He points towards you playing with it

" Okay. Just let me cut it"

" Oh! I will come back for the fabric just ring it in and I'll come back later" sighting the cashier nods

" Okay, that will be 1500 mora plus the fabric " he mumbles some numbers

" Here, thanks " he leaves a bag with coins and grabs the bag " yn we are leaving"

The cafes and restaurants are closer to the exit, seemingly it's because students coming in will be starving and students leaving already ate at the school. You see xiangling's dad frying some rice and meat, you would greet him but you wouldn't want to break his focus.

The cafe that Thoma leads you to is an Inazuma specialty shop. Seemingly there has been an influx of Inazuman students after their borders opened a few years ago.

" Is Ayaka really keen on sweets?" It sounds obvious to Thoma but he knows you have yet to know her

" Of course" he accentuates those words " she has a liking for raindrop cake specially, but it's hard to get so she is happy with having mochi"

" Do you like sweets? I see you grabbing dango when I go to the cafeteria"

" Oh I'm not that much of a fan" he turns left on one of the corners " i like savory better. Do you like sweets?"

" I LOVE sweet things" he looks towards you, seemingly surprised from the emotion in your voice" the lemon cake that the cat's tail serves is identical to my aunt's. So nostalgic" you fake cleaning a tear

Thoma laughs " my, oh my. Didn't know you liked sweets that much " he enters a building and you follow along

The conversation with the girl was short but you couldn't understand a word. The Inazuman language is really different to the one spoken in your town. Quickly the girl goes behind to the kitchen and leaves you alone for a few minutes

" I have never heard Inazuman language before. It really is different from mondstrat's" you tell him

" It really is" he smiles lightly " it took me weeks to understand the locals. More so answer! It was so embarrassing. Once I asked for a box of tomatoes but got slapped because I asked the girl if she was pregnant!" He laughs. You truly hope it was a joke.

"No way!"

" I SWEAR! I was so embarrassed I couldn't go to her shop for a month. I'm so happy there is at least one shop that reminds me of home"

" Inazuman sounds so nice, tell me something in it "

Thoma thinks for a second before smiling "月が綺麗ですね"

You look at him in awe, admiring how each sounds " that sounds so beautiful! What does it mean?"

Has it gotten colder? You don't feel so but Thoma's cheeks have gotten redder. " it means 'The moon is beautiful, isn't it?' it is from a book written a long time ago"

The shopkeeper returns, but now, rather than her stern face from before she is wearing a small smile and handing Thoma a sealed box

Leaving the store you grab Thoma's unoccupied hand " your cheeks seem red so you must be cold!" Thoma's cheeks get warmer than before. It must be freezing.

Walking back to the academy the thought of checking the hour crossed your mind, looking at the clock next to the window of a shop you see it marks 12:40. 20 minutes until the next class. Shit! Turning to Thoma you excuse yourself

" I'm so so sorry! I really have to leave" kissing his cheek goodbye you start running to your next class.

The classes of art history, regional literature and dramatic reading go by and end at 7:30 pm the sun is almost completely down radiating a golden hue in its leave. Wrapping a scarf around your neck you plan to grab dinner at the cafeteria and maybe watch today's opera or play in the school theater. Maybe it's Yun Jin play, you heard they are very good.

Leaving the classroom you feel someone hug you " bestie!" It is xinyan " follow me! I got something for you"

" If it's about me missing my birthday, don't worry about it. Truly, I'm not upset"

" Don't be like that. Follow me" she runs to the exit and to the forest dividing the anemo and Geo dorms " quick, slowpoke!"

Jumping over a cut tree you catch up to her " ha! Caught you" you hug her around the waist so she can't escape. Either way she wouldn't be able, given the way she is laughing non stop.

" Happy birthday bestie" xinyan pats your head affectionately

"Surprise!" Chongyun, Xingqiu, xiangling and Thoma pop out of the trees yelling

" Now, tell me you didn't expect it. At least humor me" she begs

" Well, actually, i didn't"

" This could all be done because of Thoma'' she signals to him who only lets a soft 'hi'

"he took you around while we set this all up. He even managed to get some info" she pushes your shoulders towards him " and all that last second. Isn't he so reliable?" Her words are suspiciously honeyed

" Yes, i guess" you brush her off

" Now, c'mon the food is going to get cold, they can kiss later " xiangling yaps while everyone was talking " i didn't cook seven different dishes for you all to

" Xiangling don't say things like that!" Xinyan berates her slapping her shoulder softly

" It 's true. I didn't even add garlic as you as-" xinyan covered her mouth before she finished talking. Luckily you were too busy talking with the boys

" My auntie went to the city to buy you this" says chongyun while giving you small box

" Mine should come in a week or so. I asked for one those foreign novels, supposedly they are funny" xingqui exclaims " if only you had told us before"

" Who hung those lights?" You look around the top of the trees and see a wire with little lights around

" Oh, supposedly the hydro residence is going to use it for the new year party so i volunteer to untangle them if I can lend them for today" xingqui " they are supposedly new technology in fontaine"

" Do you want shrimp?" Chongyun offers one of the golden shrimps

" Xiangling!" Xingqiu cries out holding a dumplin " there are carrots in here!"

" I'M SORRY!!"

Watching them bicker about nonsense made you happy. Those were your friends.

" I got you a gift too" Thoma says in a whisper

" Oh, you didn't have to" you look at him, his face as red as when you kissed him goodbye

He takes a deep breath " no, i insist. Please come with me"

You two walk further inside the forest, until you couldn't hear your friends anymore

" So?" You sit in a tree stump " what gift deserves so much secrecy?" It's humorous really, how embarrassed he seems over one silly gift. He is so cute.

That is your line of thought until he kisses you. A kiss a bit too stiff, nervous and short for your liking. When you look at him you see him playing with tye hem of his uniform

" The gift of my… heart" that last part was a bit hard to spit, seemingly trying to get stuck to his throat " or my love. However it sounds Best" it seems that your friends helped him. Those are sentences only xingqiu could think of " so if you want my gift please tell me tomorrow or Friday, that way I can make you a coat that you will be able to wear this winter if you don't want the first thing" the sentences were long but quickly said. Thoma almost ran out of air

There is a second of silence where you two looked at each other and you give yourself a moment to admire him, his blond hair slightly messy, his jaw clenching, his chest rising up and down, his eyes blown wide with adrenaline.

" Uh, so, enjoy your party, i bought the cake you said you liked" he left running towards his dorm

Did he just kiss you, confess his love and now he is running away?? The audacity.

Some sounds come from bushes a few meters away.

" Did he chicken out?"

" We missed the kiss??"

" Yesss, finally"

" Are we going to be uncles?"

" yunyun, shut up"

That is why xiangling didn't use garlic in her stew then.

#genshin impact #gi #300 follower event #college days #thoma x reader #genshin thoma #genshin x reader #genshin x you #gn reader

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scknight05 · 5 months ago

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Greetings from the world beyond!!

Okay, so maybe it isn’t that *extreme* (yet) but it kinda feels that way. Especially since I’m starting Day 5 of my 60+hour shift, and still tried from being on my feet all day for my 15.5 hour shift on Thursday. I haven’t slept in my own bed since Monday night so I’m looking forward to getting the next 10 hours over with and heading home so I can sleep in my own bed again tonight!

So.. I haven’t been active for about 17 days… Didn’t really plan on that but it’s just kinda how it happened. The last time I posted I was talking about taking time away due to mental health reasons and other factors that I said I was going to touch more on in a later post. Let’s just say that whatever I was going to talk about at that point kinda went out the window thanks to life. That morning while I was on my way to work, about a mile and a half from my store something happened to my car. More specifically, something happened with the engine. I managed to make it off the interstate and barely make it to my store, albeit extremely slowly. Spent the next 4 days literally stuck at work because I couldn’t go anywhere. I had to have my car towed home and end up driving my dad’s truck after he and my mom made the trip down (for the record, I work over 40 miles away from home so it’s not a short trip). Due to my work schedule, we haven’t had a chance to take my car to the mechanic we typically use because I’ve been having to use my dad’s truck and we don’t want to pay for another tow truck. The thought of trying to figure out WHAT is wrong with my car and how much it will cost to hopefully get it repaired has been terrifying me because having a bill like that is just something I do NOT need in my life right now when money is really tight thanks to other things that have been going on.

So on top of all that, there has been a bit of a heatwave hitting the area and it just so happens that the air conditioner in my dad’s truck does NOT work so I’m stuck having to basically drive with windows down.. and only 2 of the 5 windows in his truck work properly and thankfully one of those 2 happens to be the drivers side window. Window driving is fine.. as long as it’s not raining and I’m constantly moving. And it just so happens that there is supposed to be rain/storms today and into tonight, meaning my almost hour drive home will probably be very uncomfortable.

Now.. back to the work schedule. I am EXHAUSTED at the moment. Today is the first day that I’ve been able to do “personal” stuff while at work because it is post holiday and I’ve thankfully got the store to myself again, except for when the random customer comes in. I have no one to blame but myself for being as tired as I am because I’ve chosen to work a job that revolves around holidays so I don’t get to experience “long weekends” like most do, but for the most part its rewarding. I’m paid fairly well for a retail type job and I get a nice bonus for working the holiday. It’s just the long hours leading up to the holiday, in this case July 4th/Independence Day here in the US, get tiring PLUS me being a night owl and only getting 6ish hours of sleep if I’m lucky means I’m tired. Yeah, I know it’s not healthy but it’s just how I am.

I’m hoping to find my creative streak again really soon and try and make some progress on the multiple story ideas I have lingering in my head and finally get them out. But that may not be as possible as I had hoped since my friend reached out to me at the beginning of the week and was wanting to place a rather large resin order in preparations for the conventions he’s going to be appearing at.. so whenever I wake up tomorrow (as soon as I get settled at home tonight and head to bed, I am NOT setting an alarm and will only be waking up when my body is ready… so it may be another 10am wake up time tomorrow but oh well) and get my laundry started I guess I’ll get to work on that. HOPEFULLY after I get the resin mixed I can switch over to writing.. but I’m honestly not gonna hold my breath.

Speaking of writing, I have finally started another side blog dedicated to me documenting my writing adventures. There’s nothing there at the moment, still setting up the page and whatnot but I’ll try to get that rolled out soon.

Anyway, if you’ve made it this far in this post, thank you for sticking around and reading this. I’m hoping to be more active here again now that things with work have calmed down.

#me #personal #drew speaks #long post

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fishfingersandjellybabies · 3 years ago

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Adding to the college AU: The college is actually a very elite school where Damian got in for his grades along with his family legacy of going there while Jon got in on a scholarship being one of the top players in his region. Damian keeps Jon around as fling and told himself to think of it and nothing more, because he knew they were going to move on with their lives in different directions, but starts getting very attached to him. Jon is all in on whatever their relationship is and is always doing small gestures for him like cooking for him when there is an important exam and knowing when Damian needs to rest or take a break.

Well of course! Because Damian is still in the mindset of appearances and optics for his family (despite his siblings, I'm sure always reminding him to not give a fuck/prove that themselves) so really? A serious relationship with some dumb jock scholarship student? It would be a blight on his family's image, on both sides of the tree. Besides, he knows how athletes are. Sleep around, get a body count, find another pretty person tomorrow.

This was to be no real strings attached. Hang out a bit. Move on. Jon will go be famous and find some eye candy to marry. Damian will go on to be smart and hopefully make a difference in the world, like both his mother and father.

But then...Jon is so sweet? And so kind? Damian's heard his teammates tease him for 'banging the wayne bastard' and Jon shrugs them off and defends him every time. Refuses to hear the shit talk. Leaves his teammates hanging if they continue to do so, and ignores their texts and calls when he's with Damian. He's not the best cook, but he knows the best places in the college town to get comfort food. Does the cute thing for romantic holidays and 'anniversaries' like bring flowers or favorite foods or just takes Damian out and offers to pay. Tries his best to help Damian study for his exams even though he doesn't really get it himself.

He has taught Damian the joy of sleeping in and 'lazy sundays' and staying in bed all day. He showed Damian that holding hands can be fun and the subtle sweetness of kissing his cheek or fingers or forehead.

He introduces Damian to his parents and Damian still pretends that it's all just a fling still. It means nothing. But next thing he knows, he's sitting with Jon's family at the big championship game, he's being dragged onto the field by Lois and Conner when the team wins. He's being grabbed and spun by Jon when they reach him, and Jon kisses him as excitedly as he ever has and then even as a teammate shoves the championship cap onto Jon's head, Jon's too busy to notice, whispering 'I love you' to Damian for the first time.

And oh fuck. This is most definitely not a fling anymore.

#asks #anon #au chattering #jondami #damian wayne #jon kent #college au

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dccomicsimagines · 4 years ago

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Spontaneous Valentine’s Date - Bruce Wayne x Reader

Requested by Anon - can you do an imagine when Bruce and the reader go on a date to a Burger king etc and Bruce start eating the burger like in the comic and the reader be just like wat? #-#!!!!!

Requested by Anon - can you write one where Bruce Wayne changes up date night on Valentine’s Day?!!

***

“Lois and I are taking it easy this year. We’re ordering in and enjoying quiet time together,” Clark said, walking into the meeting room with Barry. He adjusted his cape. Bruce was already seated at the meeting table. He rolled his eyes before focusing back on his paperwork.

Barry chuckled. “That’s nice. I’m planning on taking Iris on a surprise trip to Paris.” He took his seat, spinning in his chair. “I’ll scoop her up and run her there just in time for brunch in front of the Eiffel Tower.”

“Sounds nice.” Clark sat down next to Bruce. “What about you, Bruce? You and (Y/N) have big plans this year?”

Bruce grunted. “Plans for what?” His eyes stayed on his paperwork, but his mind raced to figure out what he missed. It had to be something everyone was celebrating? Did he forget your birthday again? Wait, not everyone would be celebrating that.

“Valentine’s day, B.” Barry spun in his chair, laughing in delight. “Don’t tell me you forgot.”

“He’s the world’s greatest detective. Of course, he didn’t forget.” Clark shook his head, crossing his arms. “I know what you’re planning, Bruce. You’ll take (Y/N) to that five star restaurant and buy them another piece of jewelry.”

Bruce glared at Clark. “Why does it matter?” He cursed himself for forgetting Valentine’s Day again. Hopefully, Alfred remembered and made the reservations for him.

“You do the same thing every year.” Clark chuckled, sharing a look with Barry. “Anytime you celebrate something, whether it’s a birthday, holiday, or anniversary, you take (Y/N) to the same restaurant and buy them jewelry.”

“What is wrong with that?” Bruce tensed, defensive. “That what (Y/N) likes.”

Barry snorted. “Doubt that.” Bruce turned his glare onto Barry. Barry flinched. “Come on, B. It wouldn’t kill you to change it up once and a while.”

Bruce pursed his lips into a firm line. “Don’t you two have something better to do instead of being in here distracting me?” He looked back at the paperwork with a grunt. Barry and Clark took the hint, leaving the room and taking their conversation with them. Bruce relaxed only slightly. Was he boring you? Did he really always take you to the same restaurant? Throughout the rest of day, it nagged him in the back of his mind.

***

Bruce eyed Dick from the batcomputer chair as Dick flipped around on the uneven bars in the cave. The fourteen year old swung around with the skill of an Olympian. Bruce glanced at the batcomputer before looking back at Dick. Dick somersaulted off the uneven bar to land perfectly on the mat below.

“Tat da!” Dick shouted, smiling brightly when he saw Bruce was watching. “What do you think, Bruce?” He picked up a towel and his water bottle.

“Good, but I don’t see why you need to show off. You don’t need to be that flamboyant in the field.” Bruce turned back to the batcomputer.

Bouncy footsteps echoed throughout the cave as Dick came to Bruce’s side. “Doesn’t mean I can’t have some fun from time to time.” Dick leaned against Bruce’s computer chair. “What’s wrong with you? You realize the computer is off, right?”

Bruce blushed slightly. “Right.” He turned the computer on. “Dick, can I ask you something? Hero to sidekick confidentiality?”

Dick laughed. “Sure. Fire away.” He smirked down at Bruce, clearly enjoying himself.

“Do...” He cleared his throat. “Do you think I’m boring (Y/N)?” Silence followed. Bruce bit his lip, glancing at Dick to find him trying to hold back laughter by pressing his hand over his mouth. “I’m being serious.”

A little snicker escaped Dick. He swallowed it, pulling his hand away from his mouth. “No, I mean you’re just predictable, Bruce, but people like predictability most of the time.”

“Most of the time.” Bruce frowned. “Do you think (Y/N) is one of those people?”

Dick smiled. “(Y/N) loves you, Bruce. I think they’d be happy just spending time with you.” He turned to head upstairs to the manor. “But it wouldn’t hurt to surprise them. Do something unexpected.”

Bruce hummed. He watched Dick go. “Unexpected.” The batcomputer binged with new messages. Bruce frowned, pushing aside his dilemma for work once again.

***

“I’ve made your reservations for tomorrow and Mr. Kato will be coming by your office with a selection of jewelry.” Alfred folded up Bruce’s cape. He wrinkled his nose at the sewer smell that oozed from it. Bruce had just gotten back from patrol. Unfortunately, Bruce had been forced to chase Killer Croc through the sewers all night.

Bruce paused after he peeled off the top of his suit. “Alfred, do you think I’m predictable?”

Alfred clicked his tongue. “Master Bruce, you are as predictable as they come. How do you think I am always able to see to your needs so easily?” He took the top of Bruce’s suit with a sneer of disgust. “Of course, you do surprise me once and a while. This being a prime example.”

“Sorry, Alfred.” Bruce stepped out of his suit pants and went straight into the shower. “Is (Y/N) already in bed?”

“Yes, Mx. (Y/N) retired in order to be well rested for the Wayne Enterprises meeting in the morning. They will be taking your place.” Alfred raised his voice to be heard over the shower. “What makes you ask if you are predictable, sir? You don’t often have such concerns about your character.”

Bruce grunted, washing his hair. “I’ve been told that (Y/N) may not appreciate my predictability.”

“From who? Mx. (Y/N) themselves?” The sink ran. Bruce assumed Alfred started soaking his suit.

“Dick, Clark, Barry.” Bruce blushed, cursing himself for feeling self conscious about their comments. He reasoned it was only because he felt he would never be good enough for you.

Alfred hummed. “Yes, well, Mx. (Y/N) will be happy with whatever you do, Master Bruce. Let me know if you want me to cancel anything.”

Bruce sighed, peeking out of the shower at Alfred who was leaving the room. “Why can’t you just say I should change our plans?” he mumbled. “I know you want me to.” He put his face straight into the spray, deciding he would get one last opinion before he spent time figuring out what to do.

***

He crawled into bed next to you. You mumbled in your sleep. He spooned into you, tucking you against him and burying his nose into the back of your neck.

“How was Gotham?” You turned over to look him in the eye.

“Better now that Killer Croc is back in Arkham.” Bruce sighed, touching his nose to yours. “Sorry, I woke you up.”

“It’s okay. I like to know you’re safe and with me.” You smiled and pressed a sweet kiss to his lips. “It’s after midnight, so Happy Valentine’s Day.”

Bruce’s face fell slightly. “Happy Valentine’s Day.” He returned your kiss halfheartedly.

“What’s wrong?” You noticed the change, pulling back to look at him.

“Nothing.” Bruce bit his lip. He studied you, drinking in how accepting and perfect you were. How did you fall in love with him? He’d never figure it out, even if he was the world’s greatest detective. “If we did something different for Valentine’s Day this year, would you mind?”

Your eyes lit up. “Different? What did you have in mind?”

Bruce’s heart sank. Your reaction proved he was in fact boring you. He was a failure as a husband clearly. “It’s a surprise.” He forced a smile on his face. “You’ll just have to wait and see.”

You slammed your lips against his passionately. “I’ll be happy with anything, sweetheart.” You pulled him on top of you. Bruce groaned, quickly getting distracted. He’ll have to figure out what to do for you later.

***

Bruce slipped on the leather jacket you had gifted him that morning as he stood in the entry hall of the manor. “Are you seriously wearing jeans?” Dick asked, sliding down the railing of the stairs only to flip off and land in front of Bruce.

“We’re going casual.” Bruce crossed his arms.

“What’s the big plan?” Dick copied Bruce by crossing his arms. He smirked, letting his hair fall into his eyes. Bruce was taken back by how Dick had grown. It was like it was yesterday when he was nine years old and swinging off the chandelier.

“I...I’m making it up as we go.” Bruce glanced up the stairs, looking for you. “So you have Wally West coming here and you two are going to...not go on patrol?” He narrowed his eyes when Dick flashed a charming smile.

“Yeah, we’re going to play video games. Alfred will make sure we don’t burn the manor down. Besides, (Y/N) would kill us.” Dick looked up the stairs when you came around the corner.

“That’s right.” You took Bruce’s breath away. Your clothes were causal, jeans with a nice shirt. “I don’t want you and Wally eating all the Valentines candy I let you buy and staying up all night. In bed by midnight.” You put your hands on Dick’s shoulders, kissing his forehead. “Listen to Alfred.”

“Yes, (Y/N).” Dick blushed, pulling away. “Have fun you two. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.” He winked and ran off before Bruce could smack him in the back of the head.

“He’s gotten bad.” Bruce grumbled, turning back to you.

You played with the collar of his leather jacket. “Only learns from example.” Chuckling, you smirked up at Bruce. “I have to say I have good taste. This looks amazing on you.”

“You’re stunning as always.” Bruce kissed you passionately, wrapping his arms around your waist. He loved you so much. His heart threatened to burst.

Alfred cleared his throat from the front doorway. “Mr. and Mx. Wayne, I have the Dodge Charger out front and idling.”

“Yes, thank you.” Bruce pulled away from you, nodding to Alfred. “We’ll be back some time tonight, Alfred. Don’t wait up.”

“Of course, Master Bruce.” Alfred left the room with a satisfied smile on his lips.

“So Mr. Wayne, what is this surprise of yours?” You hooked your arm with his. “I have to say, I’m quite excited about it.”

Bruce forced a smile on his face. “Just wait and see.” He led you out to the car, hoping an idea will come to him on the drive to Gotham.

***

“Ooo, so we’re going to the mall, Bruce?” You looked at him curiously. “Have you even been to a mall?”

Bruce cleared his throat. “I’m sure I took you once.” He pulled into a parking space. “Didn’t you drag me here to buy something for Dick?”

“I dragged you?” You laughed, eyes shining. “Bruce, I usually have to drag you everywhere.” You got out once Bruce turned off the car. “But this is a nice change of pace.”

Bruce stayed in the car, silently sighing in relief. Thank goodness he happened to drive past the mall and decided to take a chance. You peeked back into the car at him. He looked at you with wide eyes. “I’m coming.” He quickly got out of the car, banging his head on the way out. You laughed.

“Now you’re acting like you did on our first date.” You leaned against the car, watching him from over the roof. “We were seventeen. Alfred just dropped us off at...”

“The library. I thought I was being original.” A small smile pulled at his lips. He blinked, flashing an image of you at seventeen when you were the loveliness person he ever saw. You still were. More beautiful if anyone asked him.

“Very original.” You came around the car and kissed his cheek. “You were such a mess. Sweating, dropping books, tripping all over the place.”

Bruce laughed. “Only with you. I’ve loved you then, and I love you now.” He took your hand and kissed the back of your hand. “Come on, let’s go.” He pulled you along toward the mall entrance.

***

You sat at one of the mall food court’s grubby tables. Alfred would have a heart attack and honestly you weren’t one hundred percent thrilled by it, but this was fun. Very fun.

Bruce approached with a tray of burgers and fries. He seemed so out of his element. You enjoyed it. “Did you have trouble, dear?” You asked as he frowned at the table before carefully setting the tray down.

“No.” He sank down onto the chair across from you. His eyebrow raised when he saw the smirk on your face. “What is that for?”

“Bruce, did you really plan to bring me here?” You crossed your arms, resting your elbows on the table.

“Yes.” He took a burger and unwrapped it. “I thought it would surprise you.”

You glanced around the mall. “It certainly surprised me, but what brought this on?”

Bruce unfolded a napkin and laid it on the table to make a barrier between his burger and the table. Your eyes widened as he opened a plastic set of silverware and started to cut his burger and eat it with his fork as if it were the finest steak in town. “I just thought we should do something different this year.”

“Seriously?” He looked up at you in surprise. “Come on, Bruce. You don’t have to do that here.”

“What?” He frowned in confusion.

You rolled your eyes. “Sweetheart, I know you think you need to do that to make Bruce Wayne a spoiled rich kid, but that is just ridiculous. You don’t eat a burger that way at home or when you and Dick do your late night fast food stops.” Just to show him, you unwrapped your own burger and took a big bite.

Bruce stared at you. “Fine.” He dropped the silverware and picked up his own burger with his hands. “But if I spill on the leather coat you just gave me, it’s your fault.”

“Worth it,” you said once you swallowed. “So you never answered my question, Mr. Wayne. What brought on this surprise?”

Bruce cleared his throat, setting down his burger to take a drink. “It was made apparent to me that I was...boring you.”

“Boring me?” You blinked at him. A rare blush came to his cheeks. “Bruce, how could you bore me? You’re the most interesting, handsome man I know.”

“I didn’t realize we always went to the same restaurant and I kept giving you jewelry for every single special occasion.” Bruce shook his head, meeting your eye. “I let you down, (Y/N). You’re more special than just a habit.”

You smiled. Your heart skipped a beat. Why did he have to be so wonderful? You stood up, leaning over the table to kiss his lips. “I love you, Bruce Wayne.”

Bruce didn’t respond at first, surprised before he melted into you. Once you felt your skin burn, your body tingling with need, you pulled away. “Maybe we should head home early?” Bruce’s eyes danced eagerly.

“We’ll have plenty of time when we get home. I want to enjoy your spontaneous Valentine’s Day while I can.” You winked at him before taking another bite of your burger and settling into your seat. “What’s your plan after this?”

Bruce eyed his burger. “Well...” He glanced around. “We could walk around, see what catches our interests. I don’t know what’s here.” He looked back at you. You met his eye, falling more in love with him by the second. How could you fall more in love with the person you already loved? You guessed you were finding out.

***

“Are you sure Dick will want that?” Bruce asked, watching as you picked up a t-shirt in Dick’s size.

“Yes, he’s a teen boy, Bruce.” You held up the shirt to show him. It was a Star Wars shirt with Chewbecca on it. “He loves Star Wars and since we’re here, we might as well.”

Bruce raised an eyebrow. Punk rock music echoed in his ears as he and you stood in the crowded Hot Topic store. He couldn’t believe there could be so much crap in one place. “I would have never wore that as a teenager.”

“No, but you were raised by Alfred.” You kissed his cheek. Bruce tensed when you got a playful smirk on your lips. “You know it is buy two get one free.”

“No.” Bruce held up a hand. “Don’t think about it.”

A pout crept onto your lips. Bruce’s heart melted at the sight. “Come on, Mr. Wayne.” You smiled innocently at him, but the sparkle in your eye told him you knew how to get him to bend. “This would be quite different from all the beautiful jewelry you have given me. I love it all really, but if you did want to be spontaneous and different this year...”

Bruce rolled his eyes. You were worse than Alfred. Passive aggressive all the way. “You got me, but nothing embarrassing for me if you want me to wear it.”

“Of course, dear.” You kissed his cheek and turned back to the wall of t-shirts. Bruce’s mouth twitched, almost into a smile. He wished he would have noticed earlier, realized sooner that you would love to do something like this. A woman with several piercings came up to talk to you and you pointed at shirt on the top rack. Bruce shook his head at the sight, knowing he would love whatever you picked for him

***

“Honey, it’s okay if you can’t do it,” you whispered into Bruce’s ear as he lined up his shot. “I’ll be happy as long as you’re happy.”

“Well, I won’t be happy until I win you that bear.” Bruce narrowed his eyes before rolling the skee-ball down the lane. It bounced up and landed in the bull’s eye effortlessly.

You laughed in delight, spurring Bruce on to roll his next three balls into the bull’s eye. The machine beeped, lights flashing and about thirty tickets popped out of it. “I was worried that you broke it.” You took the tickets, winking over at Bruce.

“It’s quite easy really. Once you calculate the amount of force and the speed the ball must go to reach the correct height, it’s simple.” Bruce unzipped his jacket, warm. He smiled when his eye caught caught the red of the AC/DC logo on his t-shirt. You had forced him to put on the t-shirt you bought right away. He had to admit that he liked it.

You headed over to a racing game. “Race me?” You winked at him. Bruce nodded, eyes dropping to the shirt you brought for yourself. It pictured an old cartoon show you watched as a child. Bruce had no idea what it was, but loved how it looked on you.

He took the seat in the neighboring cabinet. A demo game played on the screen. “The physics in this game is concerning.”

“It’s a video game, Bruce. It’s supposed to be exciting.” You scanned your player card into both machines. It turned on the car selection screen. “Ooo, look at this.” Bruce frowned, glancing over at your screen to see you were selecting the strangest version of the batmobile he had ever seen.

“The car has never looked like that.” He blushed, glancing around. “Are those little batears sticking out the back?”

“Yep.” You selected it as your car. Bruce quickly turned back to his screen to chose a red corvette before the timer ended.

The race started immediately. You laughed as you stepped on the gas. Bruce frowned when he saw the hideous batmobile zoom ahead of him. “No, you don’t.” He cut you off on the next turn.

You gasped. “That’s it, Mr. Wayne. Eat my dust.” You somehow activated thrusters on the horrid batmobile, crashing into Bruce to sent him flying through the air with ridiculous speed and height. His jaw dropped as his screen went black, resetting him on the track with you far ahead of him.

“Stupid.” He shook his head, finding the button for his own thrusters.

It was a dead heat, but you crossed the finish line seconds before him. “Yes!” You jumped up from your seat, hopping around in the circle. Bruce sighed, smirking as he watched you. You went to him, sitting in his lap. “Wasn’t that exciting? Maybe you should take some design ideas from this?” You kissed his lips sweetly.

He snorted. “Maybe. Dick would get a kick out of it, that’s for sure.” He kissed you back before you hopped out of his lap to collect the tickets you earned for coming in first place. A rare laugh escaped from him as you grabbed his hand to drag him over to another game.

***

Bruce held the bear under his arm along with a few shopping bags as he went around to open your car door. “Thank you, Mr. Wayne.” You got out of the car, kissing his cheek. “I had a wonderful time.”

“Good. Maybe we’ll have to do this again sometime?” Bruce teased, acting like you both just went on your first date. You played along.

“Oh yes. Call me.” You pursed your lips with a glint in your eye. “Actually, would you mind carry my bags inside? I can maybe open a bottle of wine and slip into something more...comfortable.” You whispered the last word in his ear. You literally watched the shiver go up his spine.

“Yes, love.” He kissed your lips, leading you inside the manor.

Alfred hurried out of the kitchen to meet the two of you in the entry. “Master Bruce, the signal is up.”

Bruce’s shoulders sank. “Of course.” You smiled to hide your disappointment. “I have to go.”

“I know.” You kissed his cheek. “Just know I’ll be waiting for you when you get home.” You took the bags and the bear from him.

Bruce smiled. “Good. Happy Valentine’s Day, sweetheart.” He sealed a passionate kiss to your lips, dipping you slightly. You buried your fingers in his hair before he righted you and left the room.

You panted, shaking your head with a smile. Alfred just eyed the bear you held. “Are Dick and Wally still awake?”

“Yes, the boys just finished their fourth pizza an hour ago.” Alfred rolled his eyes. “Mr. West certainly eats quite a bit.”

“Well, he has to keep up with his metabolism.” You sighed and dug into one of your bags. “We got you some of the tea you like. There was a tea store at the mall.” You held out the box to him. Alfred’s eyes widened.

“Master Bruce took you to the mall?” He wrinkled his nose. “That was his plan?”

You laughed, delighted by the shock on Alfred’s face. “No, he was being spontaneous and we happened to drive by.” You adjusted the bags and the bear in your arms. “Are the boys still in the den? I think I’ll hang out with them for a bit, keep them from following Bruce into the city.”

“Of course, Mx. (Y/N).” Alfred smiled at the box of tea before following you into the den where you were met with Dick and Wally’s noisy chatter.

***

Bruce felt sick to his stomach as he climbed the stairs. He held back a yawn. The grandfather clock dinged loudly from the study. Four in the morning. Bruce sighed. You were probably asleep already. He hated that he missed the something comfortable you changed into.

The bedroom door was shut. Bruce paused outside, closing his eyes for a moment. He hoped you wouldn’t be upset with him. What was he supposed to do when Gordon told him about bodies disappearing from funeral homes only to reappear with missing limbs? In fact, he still hadn’t solved the case, but he had set up a trap for the body snatcher and it had to wait until tomorrow night.

Opening the door silently, his stomach dropped when he saw lit candles around the room. You were asleep on the bed in a beautiful, skimpy outfit. Your phone laid on your stomach and the blanket that was usually across the foot of the bed covered your waist.

A groan came from deep in Bruce’s gut as he locked the door behind him. He crawled onto the bed, not bothering to undress. Pulling you against his chest, he worship your neck with kisses.

“Bruce?” Your eyes fluttered as you yawned. A hand came around to rest on Bruce’s cheek. “You’re home.”

“Finally, yes.” He moaned against your collarbone as his kisses moved downward. The taste of your skin drove him wild. “I’m sorry it’s so late.”

“Yeah, it’s no longer Valentine’s Day.” You buried a hand in his hair, opening your eyes enough to watch him shower your body with kisses. “But who’s says we can’t let this be Valentine’s Eve?”

Bruce chuckled against your skin. “That would have been the day before yesterday.”

“Same thing.” You wrapped your legs around him when he crawled on top of you. “I love you, Bruce Wayne.” You looked him straight into the eye. Bruce felt the love and passion in your eyes shoot straight down to his abdomen.

“I love you, (Y/N) Wayne.” He kissed your lips and the two of you finished one of the best Valentine’s Days either of you had ever had.

#bruce wayne #bruce wayne x reader #bruce wayne imagine #dc comics imagines #dc reader insert #batman x reader #batman #batman imagine

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thewritewolf · 4 years ago

Text

Mari Christmas And A Happy New Adrien

Summary:

Lost in the aftermath of Hawkmoth's defeat, Adrien loses complete track of time and before he knows it, the holiday season is upon him. Will a Christmas visit to his girlfriend's house be just what he needs to move on?

Hello and welcome to my piece for the @mlsecretsanta event! My giftee, @lesslinette, asked for among other things, Adrienette, family bonding, fluff and just a bit of hurt/comfort and I aimed to please!

I had to do a good amount of research into French and Chinese Christmas traditions (including interviewing my long-suffering French friend - thanks @emsylcatac!), so hopefully I didn't get anything *too* wrong.

Read on Ao3

Enjoy!

Marinette 💖: You still up?

Adrien: Yeah Still not sleeping great House was always too quiet Never thought it could get more quiet tho lol Whats up?

Marinette 💖: :( Just wondering what u were doing 4 xmas Since You know

Adrien: Since father went to jail and mom died again? Haven’t thought about it Guess ive still got time to figure it out

Marinette 💖: … ..Its the 23rd of Dec Like 2am Not a lot of time left

Adrien: oh Guess uh Stay at home?

Marinette 💖: Adrien Its been like two months Youve been going crazy in there Youll just be stuck in there all by yourself Why don’t you come over?

Adrien: I don’t know… I don’t want to bring anyone down Or ruin anyone’s christmas

Marinette 💖: Adrien ‘Kindest Boy in Paris’ Agreste

Adrien: Oh no she used my middle name

Marinette 💖: You are coming over tomorrow And letting me pamper you And letting my family - your REAL family - love you And that is the end of that ...Is that okay with you?

Adrien: Whatever you say ma’am

Marinette 💖: Good Be here no later than fifteen hundred Let me know if I need to pick you up

Adrien: Will do

Adrien laid back down, his face lit up only by the glow of his phone and the only noise in the room being Plagg’s snoring. Putting his phone to sleep, he turned over, closed his eyes, and honestly smiled for what felt like the first time in a long time.

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

Adrien reached the door to his girlfriend’s house with a gift under one arm, an envelope in his pocket, and a weak smile on his face. The latter wasn’t because of a lack of feeling on his part - the exact opposite, actually.

It had been hard to go to sleep after their conversation that night, a swirl of mixed emotions keeping him from getting the rest that he craved. Last night wasn’t much better and he was left exhausted. He’d even been half tempted to call and say that he couldn’t make it, but somehow that only made him feel worse.

So here he was. He’d shambled his way to the car, driven himself there through blurry eyes and frequent yawns, and turned the doorknob. Maybe they’d understand if he just dropped off the present and headed home.

Well, maybe not home, but just where he lived.

The instant the door opened, a wave of hot air buffeted him. Not only did it warm his freezing face, it brought all sorts of wonderful smells on it. There were the expected scents - baked potatoes, salmon, chicken. But then was something else, something a little harder to place.

After puzzling over it for a moment, he shook his head and stepped into the house. No sooner had he closed the door behind him than he heard some voices calling out from deeper inside.

“Wait, was that the door? The family wasn’t supposed to be over until tomorrow, weren’t they?”

“Tom, that has to be Adrien!”

There was excitement in Sabine’s voice that warmed his heart, but not quite as much as when he’d taken a couple steps into the house and was blindsided by Marinette bursting out of the living room to wrap him in a hug.

“Worried I might not show?” Adrien whispered after they parted from their kiss.

“Not even for a moment, chaton.” She smiled up at him before her eyes wandered down to his arms, a suspicious look on her face when she saw the one present. “Looks like you showed some restraint this year.”

“Of course!” At her continued doubting look, he added. “Come on, I’m perfectly capable of giving reasonable gifts.”

“Last year you tried to give me my favorite restaurant.”

“But I didn’t!”

“Only because I hid your checkbook and credit cards!”

Adrien snorted. “Details.”

Rolling her eyes, Marinette tugged on his coat sleeve. “Follow me, you ridiculous man. You can put your gifts under the tree, we’ll open them tomorrow.”

She led him into the living room, where their Christmas tree had been set up in all its glory. There were red paper chains wrapped all around it and a huge variety of homemade ornaments - including a few that he’d made in years past. Ever since he and Marinette had started dating, he’d been welcomed into their household with open arms. And even before that, they’d been nothing but kind to him.

His eyes poured over the tree, looking for one specific ornament. It didn’t take him long to find it - with its poor quality, it stood out among the beautiful glass orbs and painted baubles. His fingers brushed over the patches of glitter, a nostalgic smile spreading across his face as he took in the patterns of melted wax inside it. His first ornament. They’d barely been dating a few months when he’d made that one.

Had it really been four years already?

Arms wrapped around him from the side and he looked down at Marinette’s chin resting on his shoulder, peering up at him with big blue eyes.

“What’re you thinking about, hot stuff?”

“Old memories, that’s all.”

“Hmm…” She leaned up to give him a kiss on the cheek. “You just about ready to make some new ones?”

“With you? Always.”

“You two want to come in and help us finish cooking dinner?” They both jumped when Sabine’s voice reached them.

Blushing, Marinette reluctantly let Adrien go and headed toward the kitchen. “Coming, maman!”

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

A few hours later and the four of them were seated around the dining room table. Some things had been moved around from what Adrien remembered from the usual arrangement, and a long table had been set up. Most of the spaces were empty - with the four of them, only about a third of the table was occupied. But while the chairs were mostly left bare, the table was not.

Even though he had helped make some of it, Adrien was still amazed at how good the food all looked when laid out on the table like this.

Most of it was pretty traditional, at least from what he knew. A lot of the time his experience with Christmas dinners were meals allowed to grow cold until he gave up on his father showing. But the roasted chicken was still steaming when they cut into it, the smoked salmon and toast still holding the heat of the oven on them. Add in the gratin dauphinois and this was just about the ideal Christmas dinner he could imagine.

Naturally, it got even better with Sabine’s contribution - spring rolls.

As Adrien shoveled them onto his plate, he asked Sabine, “Is this the only Chinese dish for today, maman?”

“Just you wait, dear.” She smiled over her plate. “Today was Tom’s turn to make dinner. Tomorrow will be mine and you’ll definitely have your fill then.”

“I can’t wait!” Adrien took some of the chestnut sauce to pour over his chicken. Which reminded him… He glanced nervously toward the oven. “I don’t suppose you made foie gras, did you?”

Marinette made a face and shivered.

Tom quickly shook his head. “Oh no, son. Back when Marinette was… what? Eight, nine? She found out how it was made and made us promise to never have it again.”

“Eleven years later and we haven’t broken that promise yet,” Sabine finished. “There are plenty of other foods in the world.”

“That’s good.” Adrien breathed a sigh of relief. “It always made me uncomfortable when my father ordered it.”

“Ordered, dear?” Sabine gave him a confused look.

“Oh, we never really cooked our own dinners.”

Tom’s jaw dropped. “Not even Christmas dinner?”

“Nope. Sometimes he’d have to order the dinner prepared the day before and then we’d reheat it the day of, since no one wanted to come into work on Christmas day, you know?”

“I see…” Tom shared a look with Sabine, but the meaning was lost on Adrien. “Well, you make sure you have your fill, son! We’ll be making more for tomorrow, so this is all for us.”

“Thanks,” Adrien said with a grateful smile.

The conversation meandered and for the most part Adrien was just content to listen in, drinking in the company after spending so much of his time recently just by himself. Well, mostly by himself. Marinette would visit whenever she could get the time between college classes and internships. Nino and Alya were more elusive, if only because they were outside the city so often these days.

But there was one person who was his constant companion, Adrien thought with a smile as he peeked into the breast pocket of his T-shirt…

...Only to see that it was empty. Maybe he’d gone to visit Tikki and the kwamis of the miracle box? Adrien was drawn out of his thoughts when Sabine directed a question at him.

“Are you ready for the pre-dessert snacks, dear?”

“Oh! Sure, yeah. What do you have?”

“You’ll love it!” Tom excitedly got up and hustled over to the kitchen, Sabine right behind him. He raised his voice to be heard as he went to the room next door. “We know how much you love camembert so…”

Adrien’s eyes widened. They didn’t…

Tom returned with a platter of cheeses in his hands and a frown on his lips.

“Something wrong, papa?” Marinette’s eyes glanced between Tom and the cheese platter.

“No, no… its just… I could have sworn I bought more cheese than this. And I was so sure that I had purchased camembert.” He rubbed his chin. “Ah well, there is more than enough for the three of us anyway.”

While Sabine set down a large bowl of salad in the middle of the table, Adrien glanced at Marinette. At his side, Marinette was biting her lips and pointedly staring into the middle distance, trying her hardest not to laugh. For his part, Adrien was frustrated that he couldn’t go anywhere without Plagg making a noticeable dent in the food supply.

His annoyance with Plagg was so great he almost didn’t enjoy the Yule Log that Tom had made for dessert. Almost, but not quite.

Once they were done with dinner, they cleared the table.

“So, how’d you like the meal?” Marinette asked as she dried off the dishes while Adrien washed them.

“Definitely better hot. And homemade.”

Marinette chuckled. “I’m glad the bar was so high for us. Really makes us feel like we accomplished something here.”

“How about…” Adrien bit down on his lips and narrowed his eyes in thought. “It was the most delicious meal I’ve had in months.”

“Ooo, now we’re getting somewhere.”

“Years even.”

“Good, good, go on.”

“I had never known food could taste so delicious until you graced me with your heavenly meals.”

Marinette’s eyes gleamed with restrained laughter, the hint of a barely contained smile ruining her deadpan. “Glad I could finally weasel how you really feel out of you.”

“Yeah you’re pretty good at that, aren’t you?” Hands still in the sink’s soapy water, he leaned over and planted a kiss on her forehead.

“No fooling around now, we still have to help put up the last decorations before we relax for the night.”

“What sort of decorations?”

“Paper lanterns and paper chains. That sort of thing.” At Adrien’s politely confused look, she added, “It’ll help make mom’s side of the family feel welcome. Plus they look pretty cool.”

“Well what are we waiting for then? Let’s kick this into overdrive!”

Adrien suddenly worked in a flurry, Marinette scream laughing as she got splashed with some of the water thrown up by his breakneck pace. Marinette could barely keep up between her giggling, but she somehow managed.

With the last fork, plate, and glass sparkling clean and put away, Marinette shook her head and dabbed at her slightly damp shirt with a fresh towel.

“You’re a dork, you know that?”

“So my girlfriend tells me.”

Adrien relished the sometimes quiet, sometimes loud evening he spent with the Dupain-Chengs. When he went upstairs and cuddled Marinette in the cozy darkness, Adrien felt only excitement for the next day

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

Morning came swiftly, but Adrien rose to meet the dawn’s first light with a smile on his lips and a spring in his step. Marinette was… a little less eager, but he managed to coax her out of the bed, eventually.

When they finally got down the stairs and made it to the kitchen, Sabine’s eyes widened and she even froze in the middle of folding one of her dumplings.

“Marinette? I’m surprised to see you up so early.”

Bleary eyed, her daughter simply jabbed a finger toward Adrien and grunted. Adrien rubbed the back of his neck and chuckled.

“I knew you’d be a good influence on her, sweetie.” Sabine patted his cheek with a warm smile. “Now, once you’ve had some breakfast I’d really appreciate some help out here. From you especially, Marinette, since you know exactly how to do it the way I like it.”

“Can’t Tom help?” Adrien made some toast for him and Marinette, doing his best to stay out of Sabine’s way. “Not that I’m not willing to lend a hand, but he’s got to be pretty good at it after all this time, right?”

Sabine laughed and even Marinette cracked a smile. “You’d think so, but no. The man can make almost any dessert known to French mankind, but I’ve yet to see him finish one spring roll or dumpling in all our years of marriage. Just about the only thing I’m trusting him with today is the roasted pork.”

“Not even the cheese plate?” Adrien asked, tongue in cheek. To his surprise, Sabine shook her head gravely.

“We don’t make one for Christmas day. After all, everyone that is going to be here is from my side of the family and we’re all lactose intolerant.”

“Oh.” Adrien glanced at Marinette, who shrugged.

“I got lucky and got papa’s tolerance for it, I guess.”

“Huh… well, can I help?”

A few hours passed, most of which Adrien spent doing vital but unskilled cooking like stirring and kneading. Although they did let him try to fold a few dumplings. It ended up nowhere near as well done as Marinette’s, but she still gave him a kiss on the cheek for the good effort. From what he gathered, Tom had never even managed to get it to stay together.

They had just put the last batch in the oven when they heard a knock at the door, Sabine quickly taking off her apron as she rushed to answer it.

Adrien’s ears perked up when he heard a conversation in Chinese start up, but between him being a little rusty and them speaking so fast, he couldn’t pick out much.

A few moments later, Sabine walked back into the room with an older Chinese couple. Marinette pulled him towards them. Sabine put a hand on Adrien’s shoulder and introduced them.

“Adrien, these are my parents. My mother, Ling,” she said, gesturing towards the grey-haired woman currently hugging Marinette. “And my father, Zheng.”

The older man’s grey eyes sparkled with excitement as he held out a red envelope for Adrien, who just now noticed that Marinette had also been given one. He froze, eyes widening. Was he supposed to have gotten them something too? He hadn’t realized that anyone would be getting him anything, except maybe Marinette. There was a moment where he was about to decline but he took a shot in the dark and accepted.

The moment his hand touched the envelope, Zheng spoke in Mandarin, “Best wishes for the New Year!”

“Thank you very much!” Adrien replied automatically in the same language. While the finer points might escape him, Adrien was fluent in niceties.

Zheng’s eyes widened before he nodded sagely to himself. “Ahh, I see you’ve picked up some Mandarin from my daughter, yes?”

“Oh, no, sir. I’ve been studying since I was fourteen.”

Once again, Zheng’s eyes widened before he chuckled and looked knowingly at Marinette. “This one is definitely a keeper! I approve.”

Marinette’s cheeks were almost as red as the envelope, but she still smiled.

The bright, enticing red of the envelope made him want nothing more than to open it right then and there. But Adrien took a nod from Marinette, who had very pointedly left it sealed even as she refused to set it down. He chose to follow her lead as they all made their way to the living room.

While the Dupain-Cheng parents and the Cheng parents were getting settled there, Marinette volunteered them to go make some tea. Once they were in the kitchen and out of earshot of the new arrivals, Adrien held up his envelope with a raised eyebrow and curious look.

“You can go ahead and look at it now, it’s just not polite to do it right when you get it.” She carefully unsealed the envelope. “It's this Chinese tradition - good luck money for the new year, you know?”

Adrien followed her lead and found one ten, one twenty, and one fifty euro note inside. Glancing over, it seemed Marinette got the same. He was half tempted to just give her his euros since he didn’t have any need for it, but decided that might be tacky. If she would even take them at all. After stashing the envelopes away in a kitchen drawer, they came back with tea for everyone.

Over the next few hours, more and more family members funneled into the house. Adrien, used to seeing maybe four people during the holiday season, thought the room would be close to bursting after the first aunt arrived with husband and two kids in tow. But then came the uncle and his family, then the second aunt with her boyfriend and by the end of it fifteen people were packed into the living room. For some reason apples in boxes became involved? Adrien thought that was a pun but that was more his pun sense than his linguistic skill.

Before anyone could get too settled in, they finally got to opening presents. Despite his fears from the red envelope, no one else seemed to have gotten Adrien anything.

At least, none of the extended family had. The Dupain-Cheng family, however…

“Here you go, dear.” While the rest of the room was chattering among themselves, Sabine placed a package about as big as a shoebox on Adrien’s lap. Before he could react to it, Marinette had shoved a bag stuffed with packing paper.

“Let me go get your-”

Adrien felt a tug on his arm and looked down at Marinette seated beside him. “Open your gifts first and then we’ll open the ones you got us.”

“Okay, okay.” Adrien looked at the box on his lap and tore it open. He tilted his head in confusion as he lifted the fabric that he found there out of the box. His eyes widened when he realized it was an apron with ‘Kiss the Chef’ on it.

“Its for when you come over to cook with us!” Tom beamed down at him proudly. “Now you don’t need to borrow our aprons any more - you’ll have one of your very own!”

Adrien felt his eyes get misty and he bit his lips to keep himself from crying. After a few moments of pulling himself together, he managed to say, “Thank you, guys. I’m really looking forward to wearing it!”

“Speaking of…” Marinette prodded the bag she left with him.

“Right, right.”

Adrien removed the paper and pulled out what turned out to be a sweater, cream colored and decorated with mistletoes and black cats in red scarves. It felt amazingly soft as he slipped it on over his head, embraced in a warm hug that - he lifted the fabric to his nose and took a deep breath - yes, smelled exactly like Marinette. For now at least.

“Do you like it?” Instead of replying, Adrien wrapped his arms around Marinette and pulled her close to him, nuzzling his nose against her neck. Giggling, she smacked his arms lightly. “I’ll take that as a yes, now let go!”

After he pulled his arms back, he stood up and stepped between the Cheng family members and made it to the tree before heading back to the little corner of the living room that they had claimed. He passed the envelope to Tom and the box to Marinette.

“A… gift card for an appliance store?” Tom said, his brow furrowing.

“I wanted to get you an actual new stove because you’re always upset at it,” Adrien explained in a rush, feeling embarrassed that his gift felt so… impersonal compared to theirs. “But when I went to the store I had no idea what actually made a good stove and searching it up on the internet only made it more confusing and… yeah,” he finished lamely.”

He glanced up at them and felt better to see them smiling back.

“That’s very thoughtful of you, Adrien! Thank you, we’ll make good use of this.”

Beside him, Marinette began opening her gift, which Adrien was much more excited for. Not because he had spent any less for it, but because that at least he knew exactly what to get.

He knew he’d done good when she gasped as she pulled out the expensive fabric she’d once stared at longingly from the otherside of a store’s window in Paris. Which, of course, meant that he was also expecting the smack on his arm from her as well.

“Adrien! This is expensive! You definitely shouldn’t have bought this.”

“Actually, you’ll remember that I get to spoil you exactly three times a year - birthdays, Valentine’s, and Christmas.” He gave her the most innocent look he could manage. “So you like it then?”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “You know I absolutely love it, you cat.”

“Then that’s great!” He continued with the overly chipper and oblivious tone, knowing how much it bugged her. He rubbed his hands together. “So… when’s dinner?”

-----------

After a Christmas dinner packed with Chinese dishes, they slowly returned to the living room.

Adrien sat in a corner of the room, taking in the warm and inviting atmosphere, the excitement and energy of so many people gathered together in such a small space.

Holding Marinette close, Adrien felt like he was part of a real family for the first time in a long time.

#Miraculous Ladybug #Adrien Agreste #Marinette Dupain-Cheng #Adrienette #Love Square #Tom Dupain #Sabine Cheng #ml secret santa exchange #my writing #Mari Christmas and a Happy New Adrien

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tyonfs · 4 years ago

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home alone with you (preview)

❝ there are criminals in the house, jisung! there’s no time to feed the cat! ❞

PAIRING ▸ park jisung x fem!reader (ft. yumark robbing your house)

GENRES ▸ fluff, crack, friends to lovers, home alone au, rich kid au

WARNINGS ▸ low iq, mild violence but for comedic purposes, seemingly unrequited love but it’s actually requited they’re both just stupid

SUMMARY ▸ a vacation with your family and the parks goes haywire when you and jisung are accidentally left behind at your house. all you wanted to do was confess your feelings to park jisung on christmas, but in an unfortunate turn of events, you have to deal with your cowardly best friend and two crooks trying to rob your home.

PLAYLIST ▸ all i want for christmas is you by mariah carey • christmassy! by the boyz

RELEASE DATE ▸ TBA (hopefully around jisung day!)

WORD COUNT ▸ around 5k words

TAG LIST ▸ @infnteen @jaehy9ngs @ridinhyuck @chubbsdabunny @fightmegirl @kiri-ah @prettyjaems @honeyju @neo-stay @kariskwn @marknolee @tacojisung @choerriesmotion

AUTHOR’S NOTE ▸ hello! this is sort of a late christmas present because inspiration struck out of the blue last night when i was watching the movie. send me an ask if you wanna be added to the tag list !! the preview is a shortened version and may be changed up in the final version btw!

IT WASN’T LIKE YOU WERE EVER NEGLECTED BY YOUR PARENTS OR ANYTHING, SO THIS WAS ABSURD TO YOU.

Forgetting one kid was one matter, but forgetting two? You wondered if you had the rights to never let your parents or Jisung’s parents live this royal fuck-up down.

Rather than being angry, you found this whole situation hilarious and slightly offended that your parents didn’t think to check if you were there during the car ride to the airport. Maybe they were stressed and trying to micromanage all of your cousins and your younger siblings, but you didn’t think you were that easy to miss. Hopefully, they had realized by now and were reflecting on their actions, but now you had to deal with being alone in your house with your best friend.

“Jisung,” you whispered harshly. When he didn’t stir, you resorted to throwing a pillow at him. “Park Jisung!”

Jisung groaned, pulling his blanket over him and shifting on the air mattress. “Five more minutes.”

Frustrated, you threw another pillow at him. “Jisung, everyone’s gone.”

He shot up in place, rubbing the sleep from his eyes promptly. “Gone? You’re joking, right?” He hauled himself up and stretched out his back. “Don’t scare me like that, Y/N.”

“Jisung,” you said, eyes sharp as you turned your laptop for him to see. “They’re not in the house and the flight left thirty minutes ago. They left us behind.”

Jisung boggled at the screen, kneeling down to get a better look. “No.” His jaw hung open while he stared at the pixelated flight moving across the world map. “Shut the fuck up. Tell me this is some sick joke.”

“I’ve tried calling them but it keeps going to voicemail,” you said, shutting your laptop. “We’re screwed, Jisung.”

“What do we do?” Jisung asked solemnly and then flinched at the sound of the doorbell. “Is that them?” he asked, looking like a dog who had just been given a treat.

“If it was, they wouldn’t need to ring the doorbell.” You pushed yourself off of your bed and made your way to the front door. “Come on.”

Jisung followed behind you, looking a bit wary of whoever was ringing your door. You looked through the peephole to see a man in a police uniform and furrowed your brows. Did your parents call them to inform you that they would be back soon? You opened the door, looking up at the policeman who started looking around your home before he looked at you.

“Um, can I help you?” you asked.

The man flashed a seemingly trustworthy smile but it just made you suspicious. “Just making sure everyone’s staying safe this Christmas with all of those robberies happening around the neighborhood,” he said. “Say, kid, where are your parents?”

Jisung scoffed from behind you. “Left us—”

You elbowed him sharply in the gut, rousing a wince from him. “They’ll be back, officer,” you replied. “They’re out buying Christmas decorations.”

“On Christmas Eve? A bit late for that, huh?”

“Well, late’s better than never!” you chirped, hand firmly on the doorknob. “Happy holidays then, officer.”

After he returned the greeting, you closed the door and locked it. You stared down at the doorknob for a second and then put the chain lock on as well, a small frown crossing your lips. Jisung took notice immediately and placed his hand on your shoulder, squeezing it gently.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” you admitted, “I just got a weird vibe from that guy.”

Jisung shrugged. “Well, we’re safe in your house and our parents are landing late afternoon so we just need to wait until then to hear from them.”

“You’re right, you’re right,” you breathed out, relaxing your nerves.

You couldn’t help but feel guilty for finding this situation to be perfect. If you and Jisung were stuck at your house alone, it made for the perfect opportunity for you to tell him how you felt about him tomorrow. There would be no distractions, no annoying siblings, and no overbearing parents.

“Y/N,” Jisung started, a grin tugging at his lips, “you know what this means, right?”

“We can do whatever we want?”

“Exactly.”

“Yuta, that plan of yours to dress up like a police officer was genius!” Mark praised, looking absolutely elated as he watched the crook take off the fake badge.

“Leave it to a few rich kids to blindly trust the police,” Yuta remarked with a cocky smirk. “And, Mark, get this: they’re alone in there.”

“Alone?”

“Yeah, their parents are gone,” Yuta explained. “The boy gave it away but the girl was trying to cover for him, so I’m thinking we should rob them tonight while their parents are out.”

Mark looked uneasy but nodded along. “Is it really okay for us to just break in with them inside?”

Yuta rolled his eyes, pulling his unmarked van out of their parking lot and onto the road. He tapped his fingers against the steering wheel as he drove out of the neighborhood. He knew better than most that the people in this neighborhood only cared about themselves. They wouldn’t waste their breath if they noticed something suspicious going on.

“Trust me, Mark,” Yuta said. “It’s a piece of cake to get past kids like them.”

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mortedeveles · 4 years ago

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BEAST. [Halloween Week] [P.1]

Summary: Throughout the years you’ve known Bakugou Katsuki, he’s never celebrated Halloween with you. This year seems to be an exception, and you’re not sure if it’s a good or bad thing. One day at a scare house unravels the secrets of the friend you’ve been pining after for months, and you experience horror and fear like never before.

PART TWO HERE: BEAST P.2

Pairing: Werewolf! Bakugou Katsuki x fem!reader

Themes: Horror, teens pining after each other jhdjhsd, fantasy!au [ONE-SHOT] [HALLOWEEN WEEK]

TW (PLEASE RED): Jumpscares, body gore, werewolves, graphic violence, cursing.

Word Count: 3.2K (aprox 3,265 words)

A/N: i had such a hard time coming up with the title DEBWEBKAW!! You might’ve noticed I was scheduled to post about All Might, not Bakugou, but I’ve been having a hard time writing for All Might so I decided to write Bakubitch. and i just whipped this up today, so hopefully it’s okay ;;

This is PART 1!! WILL BE RELEASING PART 2 (and final) TOMORROW (or in 2 days)! If anyone’s interested in P2, lmk to make a taglist!

This fic is part of HALLOWEEN WEEK, which you can check out HERE! Please support the event <3 please check out my other HALLOWEEN WEEK FIC (todoroki shouto) which is LINKED at the END of THIS FIC!

If you enjoy, please leave a REBLOG, COMMENT, LIKE AND/OR FOLLOW!! REBLOG > LIKE

Bakugou hates Halloween.

It's not the holiday he exactly hates, not at all. Although he won't admit it, the laughter of children around the corner, the ''spooky'' decorations and the hint in the air of new fall spices humors him. It's still a somewhat foreign- Western concept to him, but it doesn’t bother him, so he thinks it’s alright.

What he hates, is how you're so insistent on going trick-or-treating on Halloween. Every goddamn year, you're trying to convince him with those sweet, pleading eyes of yours, your pouty lips, and sad little voice. And there's been several times you almost win him over, but he has to put his foot down.

Halloween is the bane of his existence, the only day he loses control of his body. Bakugou spends it sitting in a cold, musty dungeon, held down by chains.

Sometimes, he'll briefly remember you, and that you're probably out in a cute, skimpy outfit, smiling and bouncing with other guys. It makes his blood boil.

But it's the way it is, even if it leaves a bitter taste in his mouth. He would rather put your safety and keeping his secret over enjoying the holiday outdoors, with you.

And this year, just like the rest, was no different. Right after the school bell rang, and the students began to shuffle out of the U.A. academy, you walked up to him.

''Bakugou!'' your quiet but determined tone reached his ears. On any other occasion, he would've basked in it. But it was October 31st, which meant that you came to attempt to convince him to spend Halloween with you.

''Yes, Y/N?'' He grumbled. You smiled as the two of you walked out of the school hallways and onto the entrance.

''I was wondering...'' you twiddled with your skirt. ''Do you want to go trick or treating with me?'' As soon as he opened his mouth to protest, you stopped in your tracks and pressed your hand on his chest.

''-And before you say no, hear me out! It's a scary house, we can go at five pm, we'll spend an hour or two there and then you're back at your house, just in time for your bedtime! God knows you appreciate your sleep,'' you snorted, shaking your head in amusement.

Bakugou groaned. He gently pushed off your hand, shaking his head and walking straight ahead. You whined in annoyance and trailed after him.

''C'mon, Baku!'' you tugged at his shirt sleeve. ''Please come with me. I'm... I'm having some problems with my friends, and...'' he slowed down at the sudden bitter tone in your voice.

''They’re going to ditch me on Halloween, and now I don't have anyone to hang out with. You know how things are with my family, and I'd...I'd really appreciate it if you could hang out with me, even if it's for a while.''

The way you lower your head makes his heart ache with pain. Bakugou knows you don't have an idea, but you've got his heart and soul around your finger, bound and desperate to make you happy.

He lets out a quiet sigh, before shoving his hands into his pockets. ''Tch. Fine, I'll go with you to this shitty house, or whatever.''

His heart leaped at the way your manner changed in a blink of an eye. The loneliness in your eyes was swept away and you smiled widely, leaping forward and wrapping him in a tight hug.

The blond barely had time to react, letting out a surprised oof! before being smothered by your hug.

''Thank you, thank you!'' You nearly wagged your nonexistent tail in excitement. The way you beamed at him made his face warm, even though he knew the rest of his departing classmates were staring at him. Frankly, if this was what it took to make you smile, he'd do it all over again.

''Whatever...'' he growled. Bakugou glanced at the sky. It was light blue, with little to no clouds. The moon was out of sight. For now, he thought bitterly.

''Just promise me something.'' You raised your eyebrows expectantly.

''Yeah?''

''We have to return before eight o'clock, nine at most. You hear me?''

You shot him a toothy grin that made his heart stutter. ''Sure thing!'

─── ･｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

You're not entirely sure how you managed to convince Bakugou- but you sure as hell won't question it. If you do, you might risk him not going at all. And that would just be the cherry on top of your melancholic week, the trigger that would make you fall apart and burst into tears.

But for now, you tucked those feelings into a corner. The Halloween costume you were going to wear was a top priority. Shifting through your small closet, your eyes drifted back and forth. Money had been tight this year, and you weren't sure what to wear as a decent Halloween costume. Buying a costume was out of the question.

When your eyes settled on a gothic dress, a grin spread on your face. It was a blood-red and black lace, with three-fourths sleeve and beautiful designs. It had a blood-red ribbon around the waist and reached around your mid-thigh.

''Perfect,'' you whispered with a wide grin. In a matter of a few hours, you texted Bakugou the location of the spooky house, showered, dressed, slipped on a pair of black flats, and did your makeup. Since the dress was gothic looking, you decided to dress as a vampire.

All you had to do was do some simple makeup, apply some fake blood- which you learned to do last year, and buy a pair of fake fangs on your way to the scary house. And if you were lucky, buy a cheap but nice looking black cloak.

Even though you told yourself to not think about it, you couldn't help but wonder what made Bakugou change his mind this year. Although the two of you had been friends since meeting during your first year at U.A. Academy, he had always opted out of Halloween.

The fleeting and conflicted thoughts swarmed your mind as you walked out of the local store, having bought the fake fangs and cloak. With them, your costume was complete.

Feeling happy and confident with yourself, you arrived at the spooky house in a matter of minutes. You noticed that your neighborhood was long behind you, and the house was in an abandoned area. It was the only house. Other than that, there was a road and on the other side, a huge, dark forest that made you shiver.

The spooky house was tall, with three floors, creaky and old wood, and a wide yard. Tall weeds and dead plants surrounded the house. The house was painted a dirty grey, with cobwebs in the corners and an empty swing creaking on the doorstep entrance. The house had gates surrounding it, easily double your height.

''Oi, fangs,'' Bakugou's gruff voice pulled you away from examining the house. You glanced at your left, and there he was, leaning on the house’s black gates.

The blonde stood a few feet away from you, wearing a simple black tee-shirt and jeans. And yet, he looked irresistibly good.

''He....'' you swallowed nervously. You had to keep your feelings down. ''Hey.''

Bakugou nodded in acknowledgment, and the two of you lingered in front of the house. The gates’ paint was chipped, and the two gate doors were slightly open, but something held you back from entering. Why weren’t there any other people?

''So... this the place or what? It looks too fucking shady for a spook house.'' He snorted, and you couldn't help but agree with his statement, even if you didn't voice it out.

''Yeah...'' seeing him in an informal outfit had left you breathless. ''Yeah, this is the house. Let's go in.'' And without further ado, you pushed the gates open. They creaked loudly and you grimaced.

The two of you walked side to side in silence, shoulders slightly brushing against each other. When you reached the doorstep, you craned your neck and peeked on the window at the right. It was musty and covered in dust, but you caught a movement or two. You weren’t sure if it was comforting.

''Well...'' you breathed shakily. ''Here we go.''

There was no one inside. The house was barren, with grey walls and a banner on one of them with the bold words; “WELCOME!’’

You didn’t see any actors or customers. It was unsettling. Slowly, the two of you stepped inside the house, tensing as the wooden floor creaked beneath your feet.

The house was too eery. Even though the website said that once you stepped inside, no one would be there, you couldn’t help but feel that neither of you was supposed to be there.

As soon as the two of you were completely inside the house, the front door slammed behind you. You jumped, and Bakugou flinched. The two of you glanced back at the door and then at each other.

‘’You better fucking hope this is the right house,’’ the blond grumbled. ‘’Or we’re in serious trouble.’’

You decided to remain silent. The two of you surveyed the room; all of the doors were closed and upon further inspection, locked. It was dimly lit with one small, flicker lightbulb.

''Bakugou...'' you whispered, clinging onto his arm. ''Are you scared?''

He snorted. ''Of course not. Knowing how these cheap-ass places work, they’re probably going to scare us from behind or something.''

You heard a ball drop on the floor. It came from behind, rolled to your feet, and you flinched.

''I don’t think we should-'' you couldn't even finish your sentence, as the floor beneath you two disappeared. A scream ripped from your lips as Bakugou and you fell into complete darkness.

''Fucking hell!'' The blonde shouted. You gripped his hand and his free arm moved wildly, desperate to grab hold onto something.

''Hooly shiit!'' You screamed. The wind howled briefly in your ears and a few seconds, you stopped falling. With a loud thump, the two of you fell on a soft surface. It was still dark, and you could barely see a thing. Then a few torches lighted up on the walls, and you strained your eyes to adjust to your surroundings.

''Jesus fucking christ...'' Bakugou rose from the ground, and it seemed that the two of you had landed on a black, wide cushion. He patted down his clothes and scowled.

''Where the fuck did you find this house, Y/N?''

You smiled sheepishly and rose from the cushion. ‘’Google?’’

He sighed in disapproval. ''Whatever. Hurry up, I don't want us to take long.''

You nodded and followed him. It seemed that you had fallen to an underground passage of sorts. The walls were rocky and cold, a rocky wall behind you blocked passage south and there was an empty trail ahead of you. Torches were on the walls, but they weren't enough to light the entire way. Farther than ten feet away, it was dark. You weren't sure if the path continued or not.

''C'mon,'' Bakugou began speed walking away and you had to jog to catch up with him.

‘’Hey!’’ You protested. ‘’Slow down!’’ With a grunt, he reluctantly slowed down. Just as Bakugou and you reached the end of the trail lighted by torches, he walked towards the wall and plucked one off the wall.

He gripped your hand and surged forward. You followed after, feeling your face erupt with warmth at his bold actions. On the other hand, he didn’t even flinch, and you wondered what the hell was he thinking.

It seemed that the trail continued forward. The torch lit the way, and it seemed that the path narrowed the farther you walked. There was an uncomfortable and questionable silence between the two of you, mainly because of your hand-holding. Katsuki was one of your closest friends, and although he had been your crush for months, there hadn’t been any noticeable changes or romantic insinuations.

After a while, he cleared his throat. ‘’It’s so… we don’t get lost. I don’t want to have to find your dumbass if you get lost.’’ He grumbled.

You smiled. ‘’Okay, Bakugou.’’

Every once in awhile, you’d hear a scream or a roar that did not sound human. You’d flinch and cling onto Bakugou, but nothing ever happened.

It felt like hours passed by until you reached the end of the path. Or at least, what seemed to be the exit. The trail had been narrowing until the two of you could barely fit, shoulders, and hips brushing against each other constantly. It was safe to say your face was hotter than a teapot.

‘’I don’t think we’ll need this anymore,’’ Katsuki released the torch and placed it on one of the wall’s torch handles.

There was a white, wooden door ahead.

‘’Do you think this is the exit?’’ You murmured. Bakugou shrugged. He pushed you behind him, and slowly opened the doorknob, kicking it open once it clicked.

‘’Who’s there?’’ He snapped and placed one foot inside, moving the torch and attempting to observe his surroundings. You trailed behind him, hand still in his.

After hearing and seeing nothing, the blonde grumbled. He pulled you forward and the two of you stepped into the room. This time, it looked similar to the design of the house’s first room.

There were two old and ripped couches, a TV that was turned on, emitting static and disturbing noises. The lightbulb flickered. At the farthest and opposite wall of the room, there was another door.

The two of you slowly stepped forward, glancing from side to side. As you passed by the first couch, something wrapped around your ankle and you screamed. Just as fast as it seized you, it slithered away. Bakugou whupped around, and the two of you raced towards the door. Just as your hand wrapped around the doorknob, you heard a gut-wrenching scream behind you.

‘’Shit!” Both of you shouted in surprise.

A low groan echoed in the room, and Bakugou gripped your arm and swung the door open. The banshee was gone, and the two of you raced inside. As soon as you were inside, you realized too late that it was a tight hallway. Quickly, the two of you raced forward, and you yelped when you felt hands, hundreds of them, grab desperately at your clothes. None of them pulled you back, but it was enough to make you scream in terror.

Bakugou tightened his grip on your hand and before you knew it, you saw light ahead of you. The two of you raced forward, only to freeze when you saw a body hanging from the ceiling. It resembled a young boy, with his eyes gouged out, his stomach ripped open. You hoped the guts that spilled from his body were fake. Dried blood stained the floor. With trembling legs, you followed Bakugou, who was leading the way, even though you noticed he was frightened as well.

Besides the dummy, there was nothing else in the room. Instead of a door, there was a wide hole, and you could see a rope from the other side. The exit.

‘’Is-is it fake?’’ You couldn’t help the tremble in your voice.

‘’Yeah, it is.’’ But even Bakugou sounded uncertain of himself.

Slowly, the two of you stepped forward, walking around the body. As you were halfway towards the exit, a roar echoed and the floor ripped open in the middle. A monster crawled out of the floor, and Bakugou and you raced towards the exit. He pushed you out first, and you wildly grabbed the rope, even as it scratched at your hands as you slid downwards.

Bakugou followed suit and the two of you landed on soft grass, panting heavily. You had escaped in time. It seemed that you had finally reached the exit of the spooky house. There was a tall, towering forest surrounding you. Trees swayed and crickets chirped. The sky was already dark, and you could see the moon slowly setting in the sky.

Slowly, the two of you rose from the grass.

‘’Oh god…’’ you mumbled. ‘’I’m never going to a scare house again.’’ As you regained your breath and muttered about how frightening it was, you noticed that Bakugou was eerily silent. His back was turned to you.

''Y/N...'' Bakugou's voice was oddly strained. You frowned and glanced at him. He slowly turned around. Veins were popping on his forehead, and he was digging his nails into his palm. Why was he acting so strange?

''What time is it?''

With a frown, you fished out your phone from the cloak and turned it on. The screen read 10 PM.

''Um...'' you froze. Nine o'clock at most. You hear me? Bakugou's previous words echoed in your head. Oh god, he was upset that it'd taken too long and would never hang out with you again-

''Y/N!'' He barked. You staggered backward as Bakugou dropped on the floor, curling into a fetal position with a low groan. The more he groaned, the less he sounded like himself, and sounded more... inhumane. His pained groans shifted between growls and whines.

''Go away. Go home, Y/N. Get the fuck away from me.'' The blonde managed to rise on his feet for a few seconds and spat out the words, before tumbling to the ground again.

''What?'' Disobeying his wishes, you stepped closer to him. ‘’No. You're clearly not feeling well. C'mon, grab onto my shoulder, and I'll take you to the nearest hospital.''

''NO!'' He flinched when you grabbed him and stepped away.

You frowned, feeling your heart sting at his actions. ''What is going on with you Bakugou? Stop being so prideful for a second, and let me help you!''

He opened his mouth to respond, and with a gasp, you noticed there was something wrong.

He had fangs.

Not the type that you were wearing, transparent and cheap-looking, fake fangs. No, the fangs that sprouted on both his canines were sharp, large, and gleamed dangerously. Your heart stopped for a second.

''Ba...ku....gou...'' With wobbly knees, you took a step backward. His eyes gleamed with frustration and panic, and just as he reached out for you, a sharp howl pierced the wind.

Both of you glanced at the sky, and you felt your hands tremble as the full moon stared back at you.

‘’No.’’ Bakugou whispered. He stared at his hands in disbelief, before falling to his knees. He groaned loudly, gripping at his head.

‘’Are you feeling okay? Let me help you-,’’ He pushed your hand away and growled.

‘’Go home, Y/N! Get the fuck away from me. You’re in danger. GO!’’

You were startled to hear bones cracking and popping from Bakugou. What was going on? Was he hurt? Why did he want you to go?

‘’Wha-,’’ Before you could complete your sentence, you watched in horror as your friend rose and became a beast. His spine grew, his arms and legs were covered in fur as claws sprout from his nails. Bakugou’s jaw elongated, the fangs you had previously seen only grew longer and his eyes became a near pitch-black, void of any human soul.

You fell on the ground from the shock, feeling your heart stutter in fear and knees tremble.

''What- what are you?''

The beast you called your friend growled in response.

A werewolf. Your friend, Bakugou Katsuki, was a werewolf. And the fact couldn't terrify you any more than it already did.

PLEASE CHECK OUT MY OTHER HALLOWEEN WEEK FIC HERE!

If you’re interested in P2; send me an ask/DM!

Taglist: @sandwichez01 @ur-local-simp

PLEASE REBLOG, LIKE AND COMMENT!

#bakugou x reader #bakugou katsuki #mha x reader #bakugou katsuki x reader #bnha bakugou #bnha #mha #Halloween Week #werewolf!bakugou x reader #werewolf #tw: violence #tw body gore #reader insert #fem!reader #my hero academia #my hero academy fanfiction #fanfiction #fanfic #mha x fem!reader

108 notes · View notes

batfam-rewrites · 4 years ago

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Batfam During Quarantine: Happy Holiday’s

December 1

Duke: So, what weird traditions do you have for Christmas.

Stephanie: What makes you think we have weird traditions?

Duke: Please, at this point you all are so predictable, I can tell you all what you’re gunna to do on Christmas Day. Dick text everyone he knows that celebrates Christmas Merry Christmas,

Dick: Why shouldn’t I?

Duke: Jason is gunna bitch about all of his presents or tune us out or both, Tim is gunna sleep through most of it because he’ll be up all night wrapping presents, Steph will spend most of the day on social media, Barbara and Dick will get very cozy on the couch probably reading something, and Damian will wake everyone up by jumping on the bed screaming,

Barbara: Sounds about right!

Cassandra: What about us?

Duke: You guys are just about as new as I am to this family so I’m not to sure.

Harper: So there is some weird tradition?

Dick: Nothing too weird, just an advent calendar.

Tim: But with movies, so for example the first day could be Home Alone, the next day could be Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, then the Charlie Brown Christmas Special, then Home Alone 3...

Cassandra: I’m assuming Home Alone 4 is in there somewhere?

Stephanie: No, fuck that movie!

Cassandra: Damn, just assuming! Don’t get so judgmental.

Jason: The only movie that is consistently.....

Dick: Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey, don’t ruin the surprise, Jaybird!

Jason: Whatever, you’ll love the movie. It’s funny as hell.

Duke and Cassandra: Coolcoolcoolcoolcoolcoolcoolcoolcoolcool.

December 6

At a mall in Central City

Dick: *grabs a large stuffed animal unicorn and walks with Wally towards Jason, Victor, Roy, and Donna This is Fred.* He’s coming with us.

Donna: Dick, what is this?

Dick: You didn’t hear it from me but *whispers loudly* Fred is a secret agent. He’s here to save all unicorn kind.

Roy: *stiffles a laugh*

Wally: *laughs loudly*

Victor: Why do you need a unicorn? You’re not a child!

Dick: It’s for Dami. And Fred is a secret agent.

Roy: Uhh no he’s......

Dick: *throws Fred at Roy* Sneak attack!

Roy: Hey!

Donna: You don’t get the unicorn back until we get to the car!

Dick: No fair! *spots the pet store across the way* OOOOO, PUPPIES! *jumps on Jason’s back* Piggy back ride.

Jason: No! *throws Dick off his back*

Victor: Jason, what is up with Dick today?

Jason: No idea.

Dick and Wally: *starts hopping like a frog around the store*

December 10

Damian: HAPPY HANUKKAH, SUCKAS!!!

Bruce: Settle down Damian.

Damian: NEVER!!!!!

Bruce: Okay, we’ll see you guys soon, we’ll be at Kane Manor. Alfred is in charge.

Dick: Why not me! I’m responsible!

Bruce: No you’re not.

Dick: I am too!!!

Barbara: Really? What about last night?

——

Nightwing: Hey, Babs, check this out! *jumps off the roof of a building* YEAH I’M FREEEEEEEE! FREE FAAALLLLLIIIN’! fires his grappling hook across the street

——

Dick: So? That proves nothing!

Selina: *whispers to Damian* Get to the car.

Damian: *starts leaving*

Bruce: Goodbye everyone see you in eight days! *backs away slowly* ALFREDS IN CHARGE!!! *running to the garage*

December 13

Jason: *to Stephanie, Tim, Cassandra, Harper, and Cullen* Okay, everyone hold on!

Barbara: What’s going on?

Jason: We’re sledding down the stairs.

Barbara: Without me! Someone make room! Let’s go!

They sled down the stairs landing outside.

Dick: I’M GOING NEXT!!!!

December 15

Damian: Can I light the candle tonight?

Bruce: I don’t think that would be safe enough. Maybe next year.

Damian: You let me roam the streets of America’s hell hole dressed with a target on my chest, how would lighting a candle be MUCH WORSE THEN THAT?

Bruce: You can’t be trusted with fire! Last time I tried to let you light Dick’s birthday candles you set the table in fire!

Kate: Shit Damian! I thought you were getting better.

Damian: I’M TRYING! NOW GIMME THE LIGHTER OR ELSE I’LL SLIT YOUR THROATS!

December 19

Tim: *walks in the back door* We got the tree!

Jason: *runs down the stairs* Lets see it!

Damian, Cassandra, Dick, and Barbara run down stairs to see the tree and stare at it.

Dick: Ummm.... Tim, Steph, did you guys think of how the tree would fit into our house?

Stephanie: Well you said to get a cheap one and we did! We got it for free!

Damian: And where did you get it? The woods?

Tim: How did you know?

Dick: Okay, we’ll find somewhere to place this one and get a new one to decorate tomorrow.

Tim and Stephanie: Okay.

Three squirrels jumps out of the tree.

Damian: SQUIRREL!!!

Dick: Don’t touch it!

Jason: Let it bite you!

Barbara: *elbows Jason in the side* Jason, shut up!

December 20

Bruce: Can someone hand over the Joker ornament?

Dick: *hands over the ornament*

Jason: That ornament is the bomb!

Everyone: Oh my god!

Jason: Look, I’m just saying I would definitely not break that one with a crowbar!

Dick: Shut up Jason!

Barbara: You’re not the only one to have been traumatized by the Joker, Jason!

Jason: Yeah, but I’m the only one the Joker killed.

Harper: Why do you even have ornaments of your villians, Bruce!

Stephanie: Oh, I got this one! Because the trophies in the Bat-cave aren’t enough!

Jason: *high fives Stephanie*

Bruce: It’s because I like to remember those who are not spending the holidays in the most ideal place.

Jason: So you are capable of emotion! I never knew!

Alfred: *hits Jason on the head*

Dick: Awww, this is a cute one *holds up an ornament of Bruce and Selina kissing in their costumes*

Selina: I’ll hang that one up! *reaches for it and places it on the tree* Do you remember that one Bruce?

Bruce: Yeah, that was when we first started working together. *both of them kiss*

Damian: I CAUGHT THE SQUIRRELS!!!

Dick: No!

Barbara: Put it outside!

Damian: I’m going to adopt it!

Alfred: No your not!

Bruce: Set it free!

Jason: *takes the squirrels and throws them outside*

Harper: Problem solved.

Damian: NOOOO! MY BABIES! *runs to the door*

Dick: *puts a hand on Damian’s shoulder* It’s for the best.

Christmas Eve

Jason: Yippee Ki Yay motherfuckers!

Harper: So we’re watching Die Hard?

Jason: Fuck yeah! And then The Ref!

Duke: Oh! That is a great movie!

Tim: Damn it! You all weren’t supposed to know the movie!

Harper: We still haven’t seen it! Sounds interesting!

Tim: Yeah but now the reaction is going to be underwhelming.

Dick: I don’t know. I’d probably just be whelmed.

Jason: NO! *jumps towards Dick and wrestles him* I...hate...your...use...of....those.....words.

Dick: Get off me!

Bruce: Jason! Get off of your brother!

Jason: Fuck you!

Alfred: *grabs Jason’s ear*

Jason: Ouchie! Alfred!!!

Alfred: I’ve frankly had enough of your swearing today Jason! Go to your room and don’t come down until it is time to grab your wrapping paper for the presents you bought!

Jason: *stomps towards his room* I’m fucking....

Alfred: STOP SWEARING OR ELSE I WILL WASH YOUR MOUTH OUT WITH SOAP! AND STOP STOMPING!! IF YOU’RE GOING TO ACT LIKE A CHILD THEN I’LL TREAT YOU LIKE ONE!!!

Bruce: Thank you, Alfred!

Alfred: Not a problem Master Bruce.

Later that night

Harper: Omg, this movie is hilarious!!!

Cullen: How have we never seen this before?

Damian: HOW DARE YOU SHELTER ME FROM WATCHING THIS! THIS IS THE GREATEST CHRISTMAS MOVIE I’VE SEEN!

Bruce: I am regretting not having Damian wait a year. Am I a bad parent?

Tim and Stephanie: Yes.

Cassandra: Hey Dick, when do we get to open presents?

Dick: I’m not saying it.

Cassandra: Babs?

Barbara: Nope!

Cassandra: Jason?

Jason: WHAT!

Cassandra: When are we going to open presents?

Dick: Jason, don’t do it!

Jason: Presents? Is that what you said? Presents? We'll open them when we get there. No, in fact, I'll save you the trouble. Your present is a giant fucking cannon. And you're gonna crawl in it. Then I'm gonna get 2 pounds of gunpowder and I'm gonna shoot you right out of Jersey! And then I'm gonna drive to Jersey, and pick up all the parts of your body and put them in a plastic bag. Then I'm gonna drive to my house with you in the bag and toss you into the fireplace. I'm gonna get my glass of whiskey and watch the Charlie Brown Special with your ashes burning IN MY FUCKING HOUSE! AGH!

Alfred: *runs in with a bar of soap and shoves it in Jason’s mouth* WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT THAT MOUTH!!!!

Christmas Day

Damian: *jumps out of bed and runs to Bruce’s and Selina’s room* YOU GUYS DRESSED!

Selina: Ehhh....

Damian: *opens the door and jumps on the bed* COME ON IT’S TIME TO OPEN PRESENTS!!!!

Dick: *walking by* Damian, what do you think you’re doing?

Damian: PRESENTS!!!

Dick: *stares at Damian* Presents.

Damian: *locks eyes with Dick*

Dick: Presents! Babs, come here!

Barbara: *walks over* What’s up?

Dick: Presents.

Barbara: Presents!!

Dick: PRESENTS!!!!! *lifts up Damian and they run downstairs to look at their presents*

Jason: Can you basic bitches keep it down? I’m trying to sleep.

Damian: *grabs one of Jason’s presents* this feels like it won’t break! *throws the present at Jason’s door*

Jason: *catches the present and opens it* AWESOME! A BOOK OF H.P. LOVECRAFT’S STORIES!!!

Dick: How is Jason such a nerd?

Barbara: *shrugs her shoulders*

Tim: PRESENTS!!!! *runs down the stairs*

Stephanie: LET’S GO SUCKAS!!!!! *runs down the stairs*

Duke: *to Bruce* Is it always like this?

Bruce: *sipping coffee* I wish I can say no.

Harper: If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em! *runs into the fray* Where’s my presents ass-hats!

New Years Eve

Everyone: 10...9...8...7...6...5...4...3...2...1...Happy New Year!

Dick: *kisses Barbara*

Stephanie: *kisses Tim*

Bruce: *kisses Selina*

Jason: *turns to look for some one* Oh, that’s right, I have no one.

Harper: *raises his glass of grape juice* Here’s to hopefully a better year!

Everyone: Cheers!

Happy New Year everyone! I hope you all had a safe and wonderful holiday! this month. Sorry if there are any errors. Much like the last one this was a bit last minute! Let’s hope that 2021 will be a much better year than 2020!

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whitelionspirit · 4 years ago

Text

Pale Fire: Hard Days and Happy Birthdays 1/2

Paring: Ace x Reader

Series: Modern au of the life of Ace and the reader

Scenario: Even after a short few months there is still a lot you don’t know about your newly proclaimed best friend. Like why he doesn’t celebrate his birthday and why his friends and family are used to it.

wc: 1.7k

warning: angst, hurt/comfort, abusing alcohol, fluff

A/N: Hello! Sorry for the lack of updates but writer’s block hit sudden and hard. Anyway I wanted to get this out yesterday but here we are and now it’s in two parts because it became longer than I had intended. Hopefully by next week I’ll be all caught up and open the inbox again! I hope everyone had a good holiday and an even better start to the new year! I’m happy people have enjoyed my writing as well means a lot! Also this isn’t edit at the moment.

The end of the year was fast approaching with only days left it felt strange to you. The fact that your first semester of college was finally over. The past few months had been wild if you could pick a word to describe it. You never imagined you would have so many friends or just good memories in general. You had gotten lucky when being paired with Perona.

She was rather strange but you really would not have her any other way. It was because of her that you met Zoro which from there meant you would meet everyone else. The collection of them were all vastly different and it made you feel included somehow into their strange little family. Though it was your friendship with Ace that you didn’t expect.

He was loud, angry, and shameless among other things you could rattle off. For some reason he had quickly taken a liking to you and it was all over after that. He had this way of coaxing you to come out of your shell and express yourself in ways you had never done before. He stunned everyone when he declared you were now his which didn’t settle well with any of the girls plus Sanji. Perhaps it was the five year age gap that threw most people off but it didn’t bother you that in the way most presumed it did.

The reason he had plagued your mind a lot recently was because his birthday was two days away. While you were excited about getting your new friend gifts and a supposed party to happen. You found out that their wouldn’t be a celebration, nothing at all. Ace hated his birthday which made you quite disappointed.

You didn’t push the subject when Sabo gave you the bad news. He had smiled sadly at you as he patted your head and moved on with his day. If no one wanted to speak of why then you wouldn’t push it. Ace would tell you if you asked you know he would but you didn’t want to pry it seemed to be a rather sore subject for everyone.

So you went about your week as you usually would which was more so spent at the three brothers apartment. You were currently splayed out on the couch with Luffy, Chopper, and Vivi laying on top of one another. It was a comfortable squeeze with Chopper’s head tucked into your lap and Vivi’s thigh bumping against your own as Luffy splayed out over her entire lap as she played with his hair. The only light coming from the flashing tv and that of the Christmas tree still up in the corner of the room.

It was a nice feeling to be surrounded by friends in a place you considered homey. The sudden buzzing of your phone dragged you out of your thoughts. Pulling the device from your sweatpants pocket you saw the familiar name lighting up the Home Screen.

Firefly

As he had so happily put into your contacts months ago. You smiled as you slide your finger across the text opening the phone.

“Work is so boring today, tell me something interesting.”

You roll your eyes at his response Ace worked a rather fascinating job in your opinion at least. Though he says his previous job had been cooler before the accident. You texted him back before closing the phone.

“You should really pay attention to your job but if you really want something good. Luffy choked on a piece of food today and Vivi had to give him the hemilich maneuver. It was a real sight I have all on video.”

You sent the text and closed your phone again only for it to vibrate. The message highlighted with a laughing emoji making you smile as you place the phone on your lap. Closing your eyes as you listen to the background noise of the tv.

You were awoken by the sensation of someone putting a blanket over you blinking your eyes open sleepily. The blurry image above you stopped before continuing and backing away as you drifted back off to sleep cuddling close down into the soft material. The sounds of chatting is what finally woke you up this time around.

They were soft almost trying not to wake up or anyone else who was still asleep. The room was dark when your eyes opened, the only light coming from that of the kitchen and even that was dimmed. You could barely make out the voices but there was definitely more than one. Pulling your arm upward you realize that it had actually been covered by a blanket. Your brows furrowed at how it got there, as your hand finally landed on your phone. The screen lit up showing the time it was half past 9 p.m. making you groan.

You had missed dinner, the sudden grumbling of your stomach reminding you of it’s emptiness. “Thanks, stomach.” You mumbled as you looked around you to still see everyone was still asleep. Chopper had moved over so he wasn’t on top of you, but Vivi and Luffy were now cuddling up one another in their sleep. The sight made you smile as Luffy’s soft snores were let out against Vivi’s neck. The voices broke through your train of thought again as a sharp “No” was admitted.

Curious but not wanting to be nosy you carefully untangled yourself from the pile. You walked towards the kitchen quietly as the voices became more distinct. The soft tremor of Ace’s voice was heard as he hissed at the slightly higher one of Sabo. Were they fighting? You thought which would be odd because they almost never fought unless it was over something serious. Over the few months you had known them you had only seen it twice. So whatever they were disagreeing on must be rather important or personal perhaps.

“You such an idiot you know that right?” Sabo said.

Peeking around the corner you could barely make out their appearances through the doorway which was blocked by the door being half way closed.

“It’s nothin’ I’m an dult I can do wha- I wannnt.” Ace said his words sounding muffled.

You frowned as Sabo sighed making you wonder if Ace was actually drunk and Sabo was trying to hide it.

A sound of shuffling could be heard as someone started walking. “Ace, come on you’ve had enough of tha-.” Sabo words were cut off as the shattering of glass echoed through the otherwise quiet house. The noise alone startled you momentarily before you decided to make your presence known.

You pushed the door open into the kitchen and the sight that greeted you was rather amusing. Sabo was hitting Ace upside the head while the freckled man pouted. He was gazing down at the red liquid splashed across the title flooring.

Sabo looked up at you and sighed. “(Name) could you hand me the mop and broom it’s in the closet across the hallway”. He pointed behind back the way you had come.

“Ugh, yeah sure are you guys alright?” You questioned.

Sabo just nodded not really akwoldging you as he hauled Ace by the sleeve of his shirt and put him into a seat at the breakfast bar.

You walked to the closet and opened the door it was dark inside but you didn’t need to see where the objects were. Grabbing them you closed the door and headed back into the kitchen where Sabo was staring at Ace in frustration.

You looked over at him he was leaned over the counter his forehead laying against the wooden surface.

“Here.”

Sabo sighed and reached out for them as you placed them in his grasp.

“Is he alright?” You asked unsure.

“He will be but it really isn’t anything new he is like this every year.” He said as he began sweeping up the glass.

You bit your lip as you stood there wondering what you should do. You wanted to be helpful but it seemed like a private matter that Sabo could easily take care off.

“If you want you can put him in his bed,” Sabo spoke without looking at you as he dumped the glass into the trash bin.

You looked at him and blinked as if you weren’t expecting him to answer your worries. Walking forward you stood next to the man who was groaning softly into his chest. Gently placing your hand on his shoulder to not startle him you also opened you mouth to talk.

“Ace.”

He groaned again as if acknowledging you.

“Come on let’s get you to bed, alright?” You said as he got up without a fuss.

....

Once inside his room you guided him slowly to the bed as all his dead weight was laid on top of you. It was extremely uncomfortable but you bared it as you mostly threw him onto the twin size bed. He landed awkwardly on his face as the mattress squeaked under the pressure. You sighed at the sad sight as you picked up his feet and hauled him into the bed. You weren’t going to baby him or be gentle.

Ace mumbled from where his face was planted in the maroon sheets. You rolled your eyes and shoved at his shoulder hard enough to move him slightly to were yup could hear him speak.

“I’m fine (Name) you can just go.” He said with no heat behind it.

You huffed and crossed your arms in annoyance at his statement.

“I’m not going until you get into bed Ace.”

The man just sighed as heaved himself upward and began shimmering his way out of his work pants. His button down followed surely until he left in a a plain undershirt and his boxers. The sight alone made your cheeks redden as you quickly hid your face into your hands.

“Well, are you happy?” He asked as he pulled his comforter around his body.

“Y-yes! I’ll be going now, I'll see you tomorrow!” You said your voice went a pitch higher as you left the room shutting the door behind you.

As soon as you left the room you groaned as you leaned your head back against his door. Well that just happened even though nothing actually occurred just him taking off his clothes to sleep. Patting your flaming cheeks to come yourself you stepped away from the door. Only to hesitate as you looked at the door as concern took over. As you ponder about what exactly could have him so uneasy and so unlike the man you knew.

#one piece #portgas d. ace x reader #op imagine #one piece imagine #pale fire series #one piece x reader

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clumsyclifford · 4 years ago

Note

For the writers prompt! 16 with jalex please and thank you, I love your work!

damn yall are really obsessed with sleepy jalex huh? well i can’t blame you because i am too <3 thank YOU for sending this in i liked writing it

read on ao3

There's a tap at Alex's window. Alex ignores it. Sometimes branches sweep down over the house on particularly stormy nights, and sometimes there are birds, and there's always the possibility that he's imagined it.

The tap comes again. Alex sighs. He knows where the sound is coming from, and it's not like he'd been falling asleep to begin with, so maybe this will help in some way.

Slowly he kicks away his covers, drags himself out of bed, and opens the window.

"Hi," he says.

"Hi," Jack whispers. "Did I wake you?"

"Not really." Alex shrugs. "It's okay. I couldn't sleep anyway. What's up?"

Jack peers into Alex's room, which looks strange for how empty it is. So much of it is in suitcases or boxes, ready to be packed into the car tomorrow and driven off to college. The only thing in Alex's room that isn't quite ready to leave is Alex.

"You wanna sit out here with me?" Jack asks. He's on the roof, a place Alex's parents have repeatedly instructed them both not to climb on. Alex thinks Jack only really does this for the drama of breaking the rule, but he has to admit there is something unique about sitting on the rooftop. Especially doing so with Jack.

"Yeah," Alex says, because why not. Sleep had been a failed venture, and Jack is a familiar presence. In the strangeness of Alex's room right now, he'll take all the familiarity he can get.

Jack shuffles away so that Alex can slide the window open wide enough to climb through, trying to tread as lightly as he can. It's not that he thinks the roof will cave under them, necessarily, but it's definitely an ever-present possibility of which Alex is hyper-aware. Four years ago, when Jack first climbed up the tree to the roof outside Alex's bedroom window and knocked like some Juliet-esque forbidden lover, they'd both been a lot smaller. As they've grown up — and gotten more freedom — they've taken up residence less and less on this roof.

It hasn't changed at all, though. Maybe it's a little leafier now. Alex brushes away some leaves and stretches his legs out in front of him, and at his left, Jack does the same.

"So I guess you couldn't sleep either?" Alex finally says.

Jack breathes a laugh. "Ya think?" He shrugs. "Yeah. I don't know. I've been excited to go to college this whole time, but now that we're going it feels like…"

"Yeah," Alex murmurs.

"Yeah. I don't think I'm scared, you know? But, I don't know, maybe. It's all just so weird."

"Yeah, who'd have thought we'd ever make it this far?" Alex deadpans. "I thought for sure we'd be high school dropouts."

"I seriously didn't think they would let me graduate," Jack says.

"Nobody thought they would let you graduate. I'm still in shock."

"Just waiting for the call. 'Hello, Jack Bearcat?'" Alex laughs. Four years at their high school and somehow their principal had never managed to correctly pronounce Jack's last name. "'Yeah, we need to revoke your diploma. You actually don't get to graduate because you skipped so many classes and we hate you.'"

"It's too late," Alex giggles. "They already let you. No take-backsies."

"No take-backsies," Jack repeats, folding his hands together between his legs. "Yeah."

They fall silent, and for a moment Alex doesn't break it.

Through the open window into his room, Alex can see a bare stretch of wall where there used to be a blink-182 poster. That poster is now folded up and hidden somewhere in the depths of one of the myriad boxes stacked upon Alex's floor. When he gets to college, he'll put it up in his dorm, and hopefully it'll feel more like home. But when he comes back for holidays and breaks, his room won't have the poster. The room where he grew up — really grew up, not from a baby to a boy but from a boy to a man, or whatever it is they’re calling him now — won't have Mark Hoppus, Tom DeLonge, and Travis Barker's judgmental gazes watching over it anymore, and neither will Alex as long as he's here.

Packing for college is just deciding how much of home you want to take with you, and how much you want to leave to come back to in the summer. Alex still isn't sure if he's one of the things he wants to leave or take with.

"At least we'll be close," Alex finally says. His voice is a little rough, but it doesn't get better when he swallows. He clears his throat. "Right? An hour, that's not far."

"You won't be able to escape me," Jack says. "I'll be at your dorm every weekend, like it or not."

"I'm counting on it," says Alex. "I’m really gonna miss you, y’know?”

Jack exhales. “I’m really gonna miss you too.” He glances around them. “I’m really gonna miss this. I don’t know what I’ll do when I can’t just walk five minutes and be at your house. Knock on your window. How am I supposed to be your annoying best friend if I can’t wake you up in the middle of the night and make you sit on the roof with me?”

“Hey, you’ll always be my annoying best friend,” Alex says, linking his left arm in Jack’s right. He leans his head carefully on Jack’s shoulder, and Jack slump down a bit so it’s more comfortable for both of them. “And I’ll sit on any roof with you. Time and place, I’ll be there.”

Jack hums. “But I don’t want to sit on any roof,” he mumbles. “I like this one.”

A dizzying feeling swoops through Alex’s stomach. He closes his eyes. “Yeah, me too.”

They’re quiet again, and so is the world. It, like Alex, might be holding its breath, waiting for some kind of resolution, some happy ending to this moment. Where Jack and Alex realize that they would rather stay together no matter the cost, and one of them decides to transfer schools; some kind of sweeping rom-com finale that has the audience in tears. But Alex knows it won’t come. Life isn’t a romantic comedy. Life is just life, and they’re both forging paths. Setting down each stone right before they take the next step across it, maybe, but forging paths nonetheless.

They’re not starkly different, but they’re not the same. As much as the two of them had dreamt of being together forever, pointing at adjacent unclaimed clusters of stars in the sky with bright, optimistic fifteen-year-old eyes and calling them the Jack and Alex constellations, Alex had never really thought they’d end up in the same place.

That might be part of the magic, though. If Alex is searching for a silver lining, he can find one in this: however far apart he and Jack drift on the map, they’ll always come back to each other. It’s only an hour now, but Alex knows the way that life can grab you by the collar and whisk you away to another state, another country, another continent, how forcefully it can shake away all the strings you try to attach to yourself to keep you from being adrift in the world. He’d been too young after his first move; now he knows better. It’s not a string this time so much as an anchor, locked around Jack’s heart, braced against his rib cage, and Alex knows with almost unyielding certainty that wherever he goes, or wherever Jack goes, they’ll always find each other.

“Hey,” Alex says, cracking the silence down the middle. “Can I give you something to bring to college?”

“Sure,” Jack says.

Alex pats his thigh. “Okay. Give me a minute to find it.”

He detaches himself from Jack and crawls back through the window into his bedroom. Compared to the breezy nighttime atmosphere, the house is eerily silent. Alex hurries over to the stack of boxes — thankfully he’d had the presence of mind not to seal them shut yet — and begins digging through the first one. He’s pretty sure it’s in this one. He’s pretty sure it’d been one of the last things he’d packed.

After emptying the box of almost all its contents, he hits jackpot. “Aha,” he mutters, carefully tugging it out from under a stack of notebooks. Ignoring the mess of stuff on his floor, he returns to the window and clambers back through it.

“What’s this?” Jack asks.

Alex unfolds the poster and holds it out for Jack to take. “You should take this to school.”

“Your blink poster?” Jack looks up from the poster and through the window, and Alex knows he’s picturing it fastened to the wall across from them. That poster has been up for almost the entire duration of their friendship. “Don’t you want this?”

“No, I want you to have it,” Alex says. “If you want, I mean.”

“Yeah, sure,” Jack says, glancing back down at the poster. “Man. The things this poster has seen. The things this poster will see. I hope these dudes can keep a secret.”

Alex knows what the poster has seen: the two of them, growing up in tandem, constantly pulled together by something akin to gravity, making a home not out of any room or rooftop but out of each other.

If all Jack brings of Alex to his dorm is this poster, Alex thinks that’s enough.

“I should probably go,” Jack says reluctantly, and panic seizes Alex, because however much he can kid himself that he’s ready to say goodbye, he’s never really going to be. They’ll be counting down the hours once it’s tomorrow, but until then they have forever. And Alex isn’t letting go.

“Please don’t,” he says quietly, looping his arm in Jack’s again and shifting closer to him. “Please just stay a little longer.”

Jack breathes out, leans his head on Alex’s shoulder, and nods. “Yeah. I didn’t want to go anyway.”

The breeze ruffles Alex’s hair. He closes his eyes, cheek to the top of Jack’s head, and breathes as quietly as he can, like maybe if they’re still enough the world will mistake them for statues and they’ll never have to leave. Like breathing slowly will delay the inevitable. These things are impossible. Alex knows that.

But Jack makes a lot of things possible, and Alex isn’t willing to give up just yet.

#alex gaskarth #jack barakat #jalex #jalex fic #all time low #atl fic #fic #my fic #yes i am drafting this as a method of procrastinating studying for my stats exam #but in my defense this exam is making me want to set myself on fire #however. i am going to draft this and not post it until tomorrow after my exam #so i can edit the tags tomorrow to be like haha that was nbd and its over now yay :) :) :)#but for now. i crave death #on the bright side i think this fic is really nice #really real #sorry to peyton i hope it doesnt hit you too hard #anonymous #ask #answered #right its now the day after my exam. i DID cry when it was over but it was fine apart from that #didnt ace it. didnt bomb it. straight down the middle i reckon #and thats fine with me #stand by for another one after this #this is one of my favourite prompts ive done in this set though i really like this one. a lot

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quirkswriting · 4 years ago

Text

the one with friendsgiving

Overview: It’s Friendsgiving time! After last year’s... explosive dinner, Akaashi. and (Y/N) decide to take their friends to a cabin when it’s their turn to host everyone for the holiday tradition. Who doesn’t love spending a weekend at a cozy cabin? Pairing: Akaashi Keiji x Reader (Uni/College AU) Word Count: 8.2k Warning(s): Just pure fluff, honestly. Author’s Notes: This is part of the ‘Leaves in the Wind’ collab, which you can find here! Please check it out, and take a look at all the other wonderful fics that have been written!

***

Friday night

The quiet hum of whatever playlist was going in the car while you looked out the passenger window at the passing trees framed against the darkening orange sky was nice background noise in the otherwise silent car; you’d been driving for the better part of the last two and a half hours on the way up to your uncle’s cabin (or, well, Akaashi had been driving but you were in the car with him and navigating with google maps so that counted for something) for the long weekend, and the sky was slowing turning into the soft dusk before night fell and the sun completely set and you couldn’t help but snuggle more into the sweater you were wearing as Akaashi switched lanes to take the next exit—you weren’t far away now, a quick glance at your phone telling you that you had maybe half an hour, if that, before you reached the cabin.

Bokuto was in the car with the two of you, but you never would have known that with how quiet he’d been. Well, for the last little while anyway—when the three of you had finished packing the van after Akaashi’s last class of the day he’d been full of energy, but as the trip went on he’d fallen asleep in the backseat with his headphones on. You’d taken plenty of pictures of him (with Akaashi informing you that he expected to have them sent to him later. Like that was even a question), and you’d have to remember that car rides put him to sleep. It might come in handy later. You had enjoyed the silence that came after a number of rounds of “LOOK AT THE COWS! (Y/N)! AKAASHI! COWS! AND HORSES! HORSES!” before Bokuto had settled in for a nap, but you were also very happy to see Akaashi turn onto the long dirt road that led right up to the cabin.

“Are we going to have to wake him up when we get there?” you asked, and Akaashi shook his head as he drove. You turned off the navigation on your phone and unplugged Akaashi’s phone from the aux cord and put both into the bag you had sitting at your feet.

“No, as soon as the car comes to a stop he’ll wake up,” Akaashi told you. “He’d better, at least. Or I’m going to make Kuroo carry him and all of his stuff inside.” You couldn’t help but laugh at that—even though you were pretty sure your boyfriend was absolutely serious despite the small smile on his face. True to his word, though, as soon as he’d parked the car off to the side of the cabin Bokuto was yawning and stretching out in the backseat. You could see the headlights of Kuroo’s car approaching from the right side, closest to you, and you were glad that they hadn’t been too far behind.

“I can’t believe your uncle gave you his cabin for the weekend!” Bokuto said, and you looked over your shoulder to see him bouncing in the backseat. His favourite yellow and grey blanket was balled up on the seat beside him, and his headphones had either disappeared into the dark void behind Akaashi’s seat or (hopefully) into the mess that was Bokuto’s travel bag. “I’ve never been to one before! This is exciting!” You smiled at him.

“It’s a really cozy place! I have a lot of good memories here,” you told him. Which was true; you’d spent a lot of holidays here with your family over the years while you’d been growing up. Once you’d entered high school, though, everyone seemed to get too busy to come up here anymore, which was why it was empty this weekend and your uncle had been more than happy to let you use it to have a nice holiday weekend with your friends.

The three of you got out of the car, with Bokuto going on about how excited he was and how much fun he was going to have, and made your way around to the rear of the vehicle to start unloading everything. Kuroo got out of his car to join the three of you, and it wasn’t long before Hinata was bounding up beside you, seemingly full of energy.

“Kenma’s sleeping in the backseat. Or he might be faking sleep so he doesn’t have to carry anything in. Either way, I’ll carry him in when we’re finished if he doesn’t wake up first,” Kuroo told you, and you nodded. If you hadn’t been on navigation duty you might have taken a nap yourself, it was a long trip. You were really looking forward to collapsing into bed as soon as possible, actually.

“If he’s faking he gets to do the dishes while we’re here,” Akaashi said. Kuroo laughed loudly. You reached out and took your boyfriend’s hand, squeezing it gently. Akaashi squeezed back. You looked to Bokuto and Hinata, who were talking excitedly amongst themselves.

“Hey guys, we’re going to bring everything inside now,” you said, raising your voice to get their attention. It worked; the two of them stopped talking to look to you and nod. “Groceries go inside first and put them on the kitchen table and the counters, and we’ll figure out what needs to go where once we have it all inside. I’ll show you guys where the kitchen is, okay?”

“Okay!” The two of them were speaking in unison now, and it was kind of cute. Akaashi and Kuroo voiced their own affirmatives as well, and you started digging through your bag for the keys while the four of them set about popping open the trunks on both cars and starting to unload everything. You found the keys and walked up the front door, using them to unlock the door before you pushed it open. You flipped the switches near the door to turn the porch light as well as the front hall light on, before sticking your head back out the door.

“Door’s unlocked! I’m gonna start turning all the lights on and cleaning up a bit!” you called out, and received some sort of affirmative reply from everyone else. You went back inside and pulled the door closed behind you. You pulled your boots off and left them on the shoe mat close to the front door. You pushed the sleeves of your sweater up as you dropped your keys back into your bag and dug out one of the bottles of Lysol wipes you’d brought with you to do some light cleaning. No one had been here in a while and it was probably more than a little dusty.You took out a wipe and started wiping down the light switch by the front door, and then wandered down the front hall until you came on the doorway to the kitchen. You flipped the lights on and started wiping things down—the light switch, the kitchen table, the chairs, the counters, the island… there was a growing pile of used wipes on the farthest end of the counter by the time Bokuto and Kuroo came in with the big cooler that held the turkey and the smaller cooler that held all the other things that needed to be kept cold. They left to go get some more of the stuff you’d all brought from the cars, and you continued cleaning. They were in and out a few more times, depositing all of the food you’d brought and then presumably going to grab everything else from the car. You were wiping down the outside of the fridge when Akaashi came in with some grocery bags.

“It’s nice in here,” he commented, and you turned to see him pulling out a garbage bag. He fitted it into the garbage can in the kitchen and deposited your pile of dirty Lysol wipes in there for you. “I’m not sure what I was expecting, but it’s nice.” You finished wiping down the fridge and came to drop your latest wipe into the garbage.

“It is, isn’t it?” You pressed a small kiss to Akaashi’s cheek, and he kissed yours in return. “I always loved it here growing up, I spent a lot of really great holiday weekends here. Playing in the leaves outside, wearing big sweaters and coming inside to warm apple cider, hot chocolate, and tons of food and snacks by the fire… I think we’ll have a lot of fun.” He nodded.

The two of you started unpacking everything and moving it into either the fridge or the freezer, depending on where it needed to go. It wasn’t long before the others came in to help the two of you—even Kenma was awake now, shuffling in with Hinata. It was quick work between all of you, and before you knew it you were leaning back against the counter.

“So there are three bedrooms plus the pull out couch in the den, and my uncle said he left two air mattresses in the linen closet,” you told everyone. “Since we’re already here we can divide up the bedrooms, and if anyone wants to take the couch or use an air mattress then you definitely can. And whatever is left over can be used by whoever comes up tomorrow or Sunday.”

“Dibs on rooming with Kenma!” Hinata yelled, loudly and suddenly, and Kuroo frowned.

“Hey, no fair!” he said, and Hinata stuck his tongue out. Kenma looked back and forth between the two, and then looked at you.

“Air mattress in the living room,” he said, and you brought your hand up to hide a laugh as Hinata protested with a pout and jumped on the older male. Bokuto took this opportunity to sling his arm around Kuroo’s shoulders.

“Hey hey hey! We can room together! It’ll be just like high school, at camp!” he reasoned, and Kuroo furrowed his brows—but you could see the smile on his face. Akaashi’s arm came to rest around your waist, and you leaned into him as you felt his warmth on your right side. His sweater was really cozy, too; you’d make a mental note of which one he was wearing so you could borrow it later.

“So then (Y/N) and I will be in one room, Kuroo and Bokuto will be in another, and Kenma and Hinata will take the last room. Then whoever else shows up gets to fight over the couch and the air mattresses. Sounds good?” Akaashi asked, and he received various affirmative responses.

“I’ll grab everyone clean sheets from the linen closet, and I’ll show you guys where the bathrooms are,” you told them. You stepped away from the counter and started walking out of the kitchen. “Things might be a little dusty so feel free to grab some Lysol wipes! All the sheets and pillows and blankets are in boxes and they were washed the last time my uncle was up here so they’ll all be clean for us.”

You found the linen closet after a little bit of searching, and then began to distribute them among everyone. Once you’d finished, you closed the closet door and led everyone towards the bedrooms. Kenma and Hinata were first, on one side of the bathroom, and then Kuroo and Bokuto to the bathroom on the other side.

“There’s another bathroom near the kitchen, but that one is just a toilet. This one has a full working tub and shower,” you explained, pointing out the bathroom door. You then turned around, and pointed to the door across the hall. “Akaashi and I will be in that room, and if you guys need any help finding anything let me know!” Everyone nodded and went about setting their rooms up. You opened the door and let Akaashi into the room you’d be occupying.

You hadn’t told the others, but you’d given you and your boyfriend the biggest room. It was because of you that you had the cabin, after all, and you’d always wanted to stay in this room when you were a kid, but it was normally reserved for your uncle. You’d kind of been planning this for a while.

“Do we have two closets?” Akaashi asked, putting the sheet set down for a moment to point to the two doors across from the bed. You smiled, coming around to stand in front of one of the doors.

“No, but we do have our own bathroom,” you said, bringing your finger to your lips as you opened the door to the ensuite. A smile graced Akaashi’s face as he came closer to take a look. It was a really nice little bathroom, with its own toilet, sink, vanity, shower, and (the best part) its own gigantic tub. That had jets. You fully intended to soak in it one night after everyone else had gone to bed.

“That’s sneaky,” Akaashi said. “I approve.” You laughed and closed the door to the bathroom. The two of you set about getting the bed ready, and before long it was comfy and warm and you flopped down on top of the covers. Akaashi was browsing the bookshelves near the window on the wall beside the bathroom. “Hm… can I borrow some of these? They seem interesting, and I wanted something to read outside of the stuff for my classes.” You waved your hand, giving him a thumbs up.

“You’re the only person I know who is still reading for fun right now,” you told him, and you felt the bed dip slightly beside you as he sat down next to you.

“That’s because no one else knows how to properly manage their time,” Akaashi said. You opened your mouth and he cut you off with, “I don’t need a lecture from you, coffee and the amount I sleep have me functioning just fine, thank you, and it’s just until I get accepted into grad school. Do we need to talk about how many shows you’ve watched on Netflix instead of doing your coursework?”

You loved your boyfriend, you did, even if he never let you get away with anything. Which is part of what you loved and it did always help you in the end, but still. He nudged your shoulder and got up off the bed, and you watched him circle around to the other side of the room.

“I’m going to get our bags so we can go to bed,” he told you, and you nodded. You closed your eyes as he left, and the next thing you knew he was shaking your shoulder. You opened your eyes and you couldn’t help the yawn that came out as you saw Akaashi hovering over you. You looked away from his face and saw he had some clothes in his hands, and he himself was wearing one of his sleep shirts. “You fell asleep,” he explained, “so I went ahead and brought everything in here and got changed. You should get ready for bed, love, and then we can go to sleep.”

You nodded, sitting up and taking the clothes from him and waking up enough to get up. You went about your nighttime routine and then, once you were changed and cleaned up, you crawled into bed next to Akaashi. He pressed a kiss to your forehead as you closed your eyes again, and it wasn’t long at all before you were asleep once more.

——

Saturday

Saturday morning passed quietly and pretty uneventfully. You gave everyone a tour of the cabin after breakfast, showing them where everything was kept and even the area behind the cabin that was full of trees and crunchy leaves, and even a swing that was attached to one of the trees out back. Hinata absolutely had to jump in all of the leaf piles created by the trees, and even Kenma let Kuroo push him on the swing while you recorded everything.

Time passed quickly, and then the six of you settled down in the living room to play some board games. It wasn’t long after you’d started playing and everyone had lunch when Bokuto asked what kind of dessert was gonna be served after the big dinner the next day.

“Um… I mean I brought a pumpkin pie, and since Akaashi and I are cooking he didn’t bring any sweets,” you said, thinking. You brought a hand up to rub at your chin. “Did anyone else bring anything?”

“My mom sent a cheesecake! And some cherries and strawberries to go with it. It’s in the fridge,” Hinata said. Kuroo shook his head, and Kenma shrugged.

“Yaku said he’s bringing something when he and Kai come tonight, but I don’t know if it’ll be food food or if it’ll be dessert,” Kuroo said. Ah, right, it’d slipped your mind that the other two Nekoma grads were coming later tonight. They both had prior commitments yesterday and this morning, but Kuroo had sent them directions and they were supposed to be coming to the cabin around dinner time.

“Is Lev coming?” Hinata asked, and Kuroo shook his head. The smaller orange haired man pouted. “Aw, that sucks! But Yamaguchi said he and Tsukishima will video call tomorrow before dinner! Tsukishima’s brother is home from America so they want to spend some time with him.” He started talking to Kenma about other people they’d gone to school with, and you leaned back into Akaashi’s side. His sweater was so soft, and you couldn’t help yourself as you rested your cheek on his shoulder. His hand found yours, and he started rubbing circles into the back of your hand with his thumb.

“I want apple pie!” Bokuto interrupted, hanging off the front of the chair he was sitting on. “Can we have apple pie? Please?” He clasped his hands in front of him, doing his best attempt at puppy dog eyes. You’d known him long enough to be able to resist them.

“Bo, we don’t have any apple pie,” you told him, but that just seemed to spur him on as his pout grew bigger.

“Apple pie does sound good, though,” Kenma said, looking up from the game console in his hand. “Can we get some?”

“There aren’t any grocery stores close enough,” you said, but you thought for a moment. There was a place… but you didn’t know if it was still open or not. You’d gone there plenty of times as a kid, and it might be fun. “But we might be able to get one at the local farm. They have an apple orchard that’s open to the public… I just don’t know if it’s still open. If it is, we could go and pick some apples and see if they have any pies for sale?”

“Apple picking! Apple picking!” Hinata started chanting, and soon Bokuto was joining in. Even Kuroo started to follow along, and you heard Akaashi sigh beside you. You pulled out your phone to see if the farm was still open to the public, and a quick google search confirmed that yes, indeed, you could definitely find apples and enough apple pie to make Kenma and Bokuto happy.

So that was how, half an hour later, you were squished between Hinata and Bokuto (who absolutely insisted on sitting next to Akaashi with his arm around him) on the tiny makeshift ‘train’ that was taking you from the main area of the farm to the apple orchard. They were definitely excited, and you did have a warm feeling in your chest as you saw the rows of trees come into view.

The train came to a halt and one of the employees who was riding in the front of the train explained how it would work—everyone was to fill their bag to the line just underneath the handles from the rows of trees with big signs in front denoting what kinds of apples would be found on those trees, and the rows without signs weren’t quite ripe yet and should be avoided if possible. Everyone stepped off the train following this, and you handed out the plastic bags for the apples to everyone who wanted one.

“Pick whatever kind of apples you want, and we’ll all meet back here for the next train! Does that sound good?” you asked, and there were nods all around. Akaashi took one of your hands in his and the two of you walked towards a row of Gala apples, while the other four disappeared off into their own rows.

“These are my favourite kind of apples,” Akaashi said as you showed him how to pick one without damaging the tree; turning it upside down and twisting it off. You gave the apple to him, and he smiled at you with his whole face. His lips turned up and he closed his eyes, little crow’s feet appearing at the corners and you couldn’t help the smile that came over your own face as you brushed his hair out of his face with your free hand. Looking around to make sure no one was watching—Akaashi was not a huge fan of public displays of affection—you pressed a soft kiss to his lips. He kissed you back, gently, before pulling away. The wind picked up and blew through the leaves and ruffled your boyfriend’s hair and honestly, you were definitely going to buy Bokuto the best Christmas gift ever for suggesting that all of you come here and letting you see the beautiful sight in front of you.

You both picked some apples in relative silence, taking your phone out to get some nice photos to remember the experience by—you even snuck in a few of Akaashi, which you’d keep for later. You wanted to get some of the two of you, but you also wanted them to be nice portrait style shots, not just selfies, and you were chewing on your lip and trying to think of how you could do it without a selfie stick before a flash of orange the next row over gave you an idea.

“Hinata! Could you take some photos of me and Akaashi? Please?” you asked, waving to the younger male. He nodded happily, setting his bag of apples down and running over. You offered your phone, and he opened up the camera app as you wrapped your arms around Akaashi’s waist and smiled. You felt his arms wrap around your shoulders, and Hinata tapped the screen of your phone to take what you assumed was a few photos.

“You guys should do some poses picking some apples! For the aesthetic!” he encouraged you, and you looked to your boyfriend and silently asked him if that was okay. He pretended to think it over a moment before nodding. You kissed his cheek and then moved to one of the nearby apple trees and the two of you started picking some slow enough to let Hinata take a few photos. After a few moments you stopped, and Hinata handed you your phone.

“Thank you!” you said, giving him a hug. He laughed and squeezed you back. He went back to grab his bag of apples, and you called out, “Stay close by! The next train should be coming soon and then we can head back to grab some pie for tomorrow!” Hinata gave you a thumbs up before disappearing down the next row over.

You and Akaashi set about filling up your bag together, wandering through some nearby rows for some variety. By the time your bag was full the temperature had dropped a few degrees and you came to sit on the bench near the train area. You huddled close to your boyfriend, apples beside him on the bench, and you waited for the others. Hinata came by not long after, sitting on your other side, and then you saw Kenma (who had not taken a bag earlier) wander over with his phone in hand. But there was no sign of Bokuto and Kuroo. You waited a few minutes before you started looking around, but you couldn’t see them anywhere.

“Keiji, did you see where Bo and Kuroo went?” you asked Akaashi, who shook his head. Kenma looked up towards the two of you.

“They went down that way,” he said quietly. You furrowed your eyebrows, and he pointed down towards the far end of the orchard, well past where all of you had been. None of those rows had any signs on them so you’d known none of them would be ready. Obviously the other two hadn’t realized that.

“What were you doing when the two of them took off to the other side of the orchard? Where we were told not to go?” you asked, and Kenma motioned back in the direction of the barn that held the cows, which was only a few minute walk away. The train was mostly for the aesthetic and the experience (and so that families with small children didn’t have to walk too far).

“I was over on the bench,” he told you, and you could make out a small bench next to the barn. You could definitely imagine Kenma sitting over there, hiding from any little kids that might wander up to him and ask to play his games or use his phone—Kenma always attracted kids, and it always annoyed him when he was interrupted in playing so it would be the perfect spot to hide from them while still pretending he’d been wandering around the orchard and hadn’t managed to find any good apples.

“Why didn’t you stop them?” Akaashi asked, and Kenma once again gestured towards the barn.

“Because I was over on the bench.” You shook your head, and you heard Akaash sigh. Kenma shoved his hands into the pocket of his hoodie and rocked back and forth on his feet.

“We should go and find Bokuto before he has a full meltdown.” You nodded, and stood up with him. “Can you two watch the apples, please? We’ll be back soon.”

“You got it!” Hinata said, and Kenma nodded as he settled into occupying your vacant spot now that you’d stood up.

Thankfully Bokuto and Kuroo weren’t too far down when you found them. Bokuto was in tears, surrounded by what were no doubt sour apples, while Kuroo was sitting underneath one of the apple trees.

“AKAASHI!” Bokuto cried, throwing himself at the younger male. Akaashi accepted the embrace gracefully, patting his best friend on the back gently as Bokuto babbled on about being left to die. You walked over and held out a hand to help Kuroo up, and he smiled at you as he took it and stood up. He brushed his jeans off with one hand, and picked up a half full bag of apples.

“Those probably aren’t ripe enough,” you said, and he shrugged. He kept hold of the bag, though.

“Yeah… Bo tried to eat some and started crying about starving and being stuck with poison apples,” he said, and you tried to hide your laugh behind a cough as he winked at you. “We were too far to see the train or any of you and he was worried we’d been left behind.”

“And you?” you asked, smiling at him. He smiled back.

“I wasn’t worried,” he said. He shoved his hands in his pockets. “Kenma wouldn’t let you guys leave without me. Who else would drive him home? I have his charger cords in my car and he won’t leave without those.” That was smart, you had to admit. You’d have to remember that.

“We should probably get going, we don’t want to miss the train,” Akaashi said, and you looked from Kuroo to your boyfriend, who had managed to calm Bokuto down enough to get him to let go. You nodded, and the two of them turned around and started walking back to where you’d come from. Kuroo put his hand between your shoulder blades and the two of you started walking behind them. You talked quietly while you walked, asking Kuroo about how his classes were coming this semester and him asking about your plans for the coming winter holidays because Yaku was having a Christmas party and wanted everyone that had been friends with him at Nekoma to stop by (and of course that meant you, who’d graduated the same year as Kenma and Yamamoto) and you agreed because it would be so nice to get everyone together again.

The four of you made it just in time to catch the train, and you took your bag of apples from a smiling Hinata who squished in beside Kenma on the benches in the train car, and you settled in between Kuroo and Akaashi to continue getting details about Yaku’s party.

The six of you rode the train back to the main area of the farm, and after thanking the drivers and farm workers, you wandered into the general store near the exit. Everyone had fun, looking through all the homemade blankets and scarves and different items scattered around. You helped Kenma and Bokuto pick out two apple pies, and even grabbed some ice cream made from the dairy on the farm. Once everyone had gotten what they needed, you all walked back to the two cars you’d taken and piled in.

The ride back to the cabin from the orchard had been fairly uneventful, and by the time you made it back Bokuto was bouncing back into good spirits. He and Hinata took the volleyball that one of them had brought and went around the back to throw it around while you busied yourself putting everything away. Akaashi took one of your uncle’s books and settled on the couch to do some reading while Kenma curled up for a small nap. Kuroo sat at the island in the kitchen while you moved about, working on some lab reports and coursework. He also helped you get dinner ready while everyone else was busy—just some pasta and garlic bread, nothing fancy. The fancy dinner was tomorrow night, after all.

Yaku and Kai made it to the cabin right around dinner time, and the two of them joined you at the table when they came in. You were quick to give them both hugs and plates of food, and took their bags into the living room while they settled in. They didn’t bring any dessert, so you were glad you’d grabbed the pies while you’d been out, but they did bring some homemade cranberry sauce and some of Kai’s legendary macaroni and cheese (which you absolutely hugged him for, he only made that on really special occasions and Kuroo mumbled something about favouritism). You laughed, and joined them at the table once you’d finished.

After dinner—and Kenma doing the dishes as Akaashi followed through on his words from the night before—everyone gathered in the living room to relax and play board games well into the night. It was only after Yaku almost flipped the table over when Kuroo hit him with his third consecutive ‘draw four’ card in Uno that you all decided to call it a night and you taught Yaku and Kai how to use the pull out couch in the living room.

——

Sunday

You really had to remind yourself that you loved your boyfriend and you loved your friends when the alarm you’d set on your phone informed you through a series of annoying bells, chirps, and other vaguely recognizable noises that if dinner was going to be ready on time you absolutely had to get up now. Especially since you’d snoozed the other four alarms you’d set for yourself because you’d known this exact situation was going to happen. Who the hell could actually get up at four in the morning?

“(Y/N), we need to get up now,” Akaashi’s voice, low and coming from somewhere vaguely to your left, reminded you that yes, your boyfriend could get up this early. Or maybe he just hadn’t gone to bed. You could never be sure (at least not until he crashed at some point the next day). You felt his lips brush lightly against your shoulder and you groaned, reaching out in the dark to smack your phone until it stopped making noise. Which took a few tries, but you were tired and really just wanted to stay under the covers and sleep curled up next to Akaashi.

Akaashi’s lips ghosted over the shell of your ear. “Love, come on. We have to get the turkey in, and then you can go back to bed. I’ll even let you sleep in,” he whispered, and you groaned. You pushed yourself up on the bed and used one hand to rub at your eyes once you were sat up fully.

“‘M not getting dressed for this,” you told your boyfriend, and you heard him chuckle. “Should have just stayed home.”

“Oh no, I am not risking burning down the entire apartment building because Bokuto doesn’t know how to thaw a turkey properly. Again. We are never hosting there and he is never cooking for us. We’re ordering takeout next time,” he said, and you laughed. That woke you up just a bit more, and you managed to get up and out of bed. The two of you quietly made it from the bedroom to the kitchen, and you set about getting the turkey prepped and ready. You’d done some of the work the night before, getting the bird cleaned and prepped, but now you actually had to get it ready to cook. You handled getting the turkey pan and the bacon wrap for the turkey ready while Akaashi handled the stuffing.

It didn’t take too long for the two of you to get it all put together, and then you put it in the oven once it had been preheated and set the timer according to the weight of the turkey (which, oh my god, to feed this many people you’d had to get a bigger turkey than you’d ever even thought possible and you knew it was a miracle it even fit in the oven).

You cleaned up, yawning the entire time, and eventually Akaashi came up behind you, his chin resting on your shoulder as his arms came around you and helped guide you through washing up the dishes (you hadn’t wanted to leave these until Kenma woke up, and the two of you would need the space to get everything else ready for dinner later on anyway). Akaashi kept his arms around you as he led you back to your bedroom and helped you climb into bed. You curled up, closing your eyes because it was still horribly early and you definitely did not want to be awake any longer than you had to be. You heard Akaashi close the door in the silence of the room, and then you felt the space beside you dip lower as he climbed into bed with you.

“I love you, (Y/N),” he whispered, pressing a soft kiss to your cheek. You smiled and mumbled the same back, and you felt the warm weight of his arm around your shoulders and he held you close, continuing to whisper to you as you drifted off back to sleep.

You woke up some time later, warm and snuggled up in your blankets, and you stretched out comfortably in bed. You saw sunshine coming in through the sheer curtains covering the window, and you took your time getting up and getting ready. Akaashi wasn’t in the room with you, which meant he’d either gotten up earlier than you or hadn’t gone to sleep at all—and knowing him, it was most likely the latter. You went through your morning routine, using the bathroom to get freshened up and ready for the busy day ahead, before you got dressed and headed out to join the others.

They were all lounging in the living room, and you received various greetings when you came in. It was later than you thought it was, but that was okay. You sat next to Akaashi on the loveseat, and Hinata handed you one of the apples you had picked the previous day. It was a nice and relaxing day, at least for the moment, and you couldn’t help but bask in it. Between school and life and all of the extracurriculars that everyone had taking up their time, it was really rare for all of you to be able to get together like this. That’s partially why you had started this tradition in your first year; Bokuto had suggested it, wanting to spend time with his friends.

First year had been a rough adjustment, moving from high school to university level studies, and right around this time you knew you’d been feeling a little burnt out. And since Bokuto wasn’t heading home to see his parents until winter break, he suggested everyone coming together at someone’s place and having a potluck style dinner to give everyone a temporary break and spend some much needed time together to recharge. You had been the one to call it Friendsgiving, and that’s how the tradition had been formed. Kuroo had hosted it that first year and made the turkey himself, so you’d all decided that every year someone else would take turns to make it fair. It was usually just one day for dinner, but after last year’s… accident where Bokuto had been a little overeager and assured everyone he’d known what he was doing with the turkey (he hadn’t) and almost burning down his and Akaashi’s (and yours, technically, but that had been before you’d fully moved in with the two of them and you had a feeling Akaashi asked you sooner than he’d planned to make sure that situation didn’t happen again) apartment, Akaashi had refused to let the two of you cook in the apartment. So here you were. And you were really, really glad your uncle had said yes when you’d begged him to let you use the cabin.

True to Hinata’s word, Yamaguchi and Tsukishima did video chat early on in the afternoon—you all gathered around Kuroo’s laptop to say hello, and to wish them a happy holiday. Tsukishima liked to huff and act like this was an inconvenience, that it was all for Yamaguchi’s benefit, but you caught the way the creases in his forehead smoothed as he got into talking about the volleyball league he was playing in outside of school was doing, or while listening to Yamaguchi talk about what Yachi was up to lately. It was good to see the two of them looking so relaxed, and they promised they’d come next year for sure.

“The cabin looks so nice! Are we going to head there every year?” Yamaguchi had asked.

“I hope so! It’s so fun, you guys!” Hinata said, a big and bright smile on his face as he gestured widely with his hands (and just barely missed smacking Kenma upside the head). “We went to a farm and picked apples! And there’s so much space outside, me and Bokuto jumped in leaf piles and practiced tossing for each other! I definitely think you guys and Kageyama need to come next year!”

“Are you sure you should be telling us to come when it isn’t even yours to use in the first place?” Tsukishima asked, a smirk on his face, but his tone was playful and lacking any actual venom. Hinata’s cheeks and the tips of his ears turned pink, and he looked at you while scratching the back of his head. You saw Yamaguchi elbow Tsukishima and you shrugged.

“I mean, I won’t be cooking next year but I don’t see why we can’t make this a more permanent thing if my uncle agrees,” you said, and both Bokuto and Hinata let out loud cheers. You ruffled their hair, and the conversation continued for another half hour or so before the two of them had to go and help Tsukishima’s parents get ready for dinner. You’d all bit them goodbye, and then you and Akaashi were in the kitchen getting the rest of the food made. Kenma and Hinata got the dining room table prepped, and everyone else set about minor tasks while you and your boyfriend set about heating up pre-made dishes, and getting the rest of the food besides the turkey made and ready to go.

You turned on some soft music while the two of you cooked, talking in low voices about what you were doing sometimes, other times humming along or singing to what was playing, and before you knew it everything had been cooked, heated, prepared, and was ready to be served. You placed the pies in the oven to stay warm while you ate dinner before you left the kitchen. Everyone took turns bringing dishes out to the dining room and setting them on the table. The turkey came last, balanced carefully between you and Akaashi, and you placed it at the head of the table where Akaashi would carve it for everyone. You sat to his left, across from Bokuto on his right, and Hinata was next to you, across from Kenma. Kuroo sat next to Kenma, and Kai and Yaku were beside him.

“This smells so good!” Hinata said, and everyone echoed his statements. You smiled, reaching for Akaashi’s hand and squeezing it.

“I had the world’s best sous chef helping me,” you said, and he raised an eyebrow.

“I’m the sous chef? Who was the one who wouldn’t wake up this morning?” he teased, a smile on his face, and you laughed. “No, it’s okay, we made it together. Even though I was the one who was awake for most of it.” He stood up, grabbing the carving fork and knife to start serving dinner.

“Wait! Before we eat, we should go around and say what we’re thankful for!” Bokuto said, standing up and grabbing Akaashi’s wrist before he could slice into the turkey. Akaashi froze, and Bokuto continued, “you know, because I think it’s important. And I can start! Because I’m really grateful to have all of you here and in my life, and for this good food and this really cool cabin, and I know I’m where I am because I have support like all of you with me. So thank you.”

You couldn’t help but let out a small ‘aww’ at that, and Akaashi nodded and put the knife and fork down for now. Bokuto let go of his wrist and sat down. He looked to Kenma, who was next to him. Kenma sighed.

“I’m thankful for all the success I’ve had with my company and my channel since we started up this year,” he said, looking down at his lap, where you were sure his hands were clasped. “And thank you all for being here too, I suppose. You’ve been good friends to me, and you’ve stuck by me and given me challenges and competition to make things fun.”

“And I’m thankful for the fact that I only had two lab reports to type up and that most of my first year students know how to properly submit their work through the online portal,” Kuroo said. You laughed. “And for my friends and family. You guys make the hell of school and grad school worth it. Some days.”

Yaku elbowed Kuroo, but he had a smile on his face. “I’m thankful that I met this jackass the first year of high school and he never left me alone,” he said. He looked around at everyone. “It let me meet all of you, and there’s nowhere else I’d rather be right now. And I’ll remember you all when I go to Russia next year to play professionally.”

“I’m thankful I won’t have to hear Kuroo and Yaku bickering while Yaku’s in Russia,” Kai told everyone, and you and Bokuto laughed out loud. “And Yaku and Lev, as well. I love you guys, but there’s only so much I can take. But I am very happy to be here too.”

Hinata was next, and he had his hand on his chin and his face scrunched just a bit. “Hm… I mean, I’m thankful for all of you and for this food and how lucky I am to be alive and be here! But all of you already said that!” he said. He thought for a moment more, until Akaashi cleared his throat and you nudged his shin with your foot. Hinata brought his hand down from his chin to smack onto his open palm. “Oh! I know! I’m grateful for Kageyama being a jerk! Because if he wasn't I wouldn’t have tried to compete with him, and then I wouldn’t have become his friend and met everyone and learned how much fun volleyball is! And I wouldn’t have gotten to eat so many meat buns or see Tokyo Tower! Or even try and apply for university and I wouldn’t get to see all of you!” There were a few chuckles, and you could hear Bokuto sniffling. He was easily moved.

But now it was your turn, and you also had to think for a minute. “Well… I’m grateful to have such a wonderful boyfriend like Akaashi, and the friends who are here and who aren’t here too,” you said, looking around the table. “I’m thankful to have such a nice place for us to stay, and a good roof over my head. I never thought I’d be here, but I’m happy I am and even though it’s hard sometimes, I’m thankful I’ve made it this far.” Akaashi’s hand found yours and squeezed it tight, and you turned to see him with the biggest smile you’ve seen in a long time.

“I think (Y/N) said everything I was thinking,” he started, “but I’m also thankful to be hopefully heading to grad school the year after next, and also thankful that Kenma is doing the dishes tonight.” The pudding headed man mumbled something that had Kuroo laughing like a hyena, and you were going to remember to ask him about it later. But for now, Akaashi stood up once again and picked up the carving knife and fork. “Are we good to start eating now?” he asked, and everyone gave him an enthusiastically positive response. So he started carving the turkey, and before long everyone was talking loudly and passing food around the table as they ate. You managed to sneak in a few photos of everyone to remember the night by.

Once everyone had eaten as much as they could before they burst, you stood and started clearing things away. Kai and Akaashi helped you bring all the leftovers into the kitchen, and you started packing everything to be placed in the fridge so it could be divided up tomorrow before you left (or most likely just coming home with you and Akaashi and Bokuto, where you’d be eating it all for the next and a half). Everyone else moved into the living room for the moment, sleepy and full and waiting for dessert before they took their post-dinner naps before you all started playing games again (you could hear Yaku vowing to kick Kuroo’s ass at Uno this time and you wanted to be the one to beat both of them).

Once everything had been cleaned up and put away (and Akaashi mandating that the dishes be left in the sink for Kenma and most likely Hinata who would be helping him), Kai thanked you for the food and went to go join everyone else. That left you and Akaashi in the kitchen, and you gave your boyfriend a hug the second you were alone.

“Thank you for coming here with me. And for being with me,” you said, your face pressed against his neck. His hands rubbed up and down your back, and he swayed you back and forth slightly.

“Thank you for all of this, love,” he said. “I’m lucky to have you in my life, and I’ll always tell you that as long as I have breath in me. I love you, most ardently.” You laughed, moving back to look him in the eye.

“You’re so corny, This is why you’re a Lit major,” you told him. He laughed too, letting you go to turn and start taking the pumpkin pie and the cheesecake out of the fridge. You grabbed the oven mitts and took out the two apple pies, carefully placing them on a tray on the counter so they could be moved into the dining room while they were still warm. You turned off the oven, and Akaashi placed his items on the counter before grabbing the ice cream and Hinata’s cheesecake toppings too.

“Come on! It’s time for dessert!” You patted Akaashi’s arm, giving him a kiss on the cheek before you grabbed the cheesecake and the apple pies and headed out of the kitchen to bring them to the dining room table.

Akaashi brought a hand up to gently brush the spot where your lips had met his skin. He couldn’t help the smile that pulled the corners of his lips up as he used his other hand to make sure that the small box he’d been hiding in his bag was still in his pocket, which it was. “Yeah… it’s time,” he said, keeping his voice quiet. His smile grew even bigger as he grabbed the pumpkin pie, the toppings, and the tub of ice cream you’d left on the counter and followed you out of the kitchen and ready to have the best ending to the best Friendsgiving yet.

#akaashi keiji x reader #akaashi x reader #haikyuu x reader #hq x reader #akaashi #akaashi keiji #haikyuu #haikyuu!!#hq #hq akaashi #haikyuu fic #hq fic

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korra-the-red-lion · 3 years ago

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Unnatural Affairs. Chapter 15: Back To Work.

(Ally)

Though the holiday weekend had been short, it was really lovely to have gone back home for those few precious days. I should try to make a little more effort to go home. I missed my parents and Wallaby, which mom caught me trying to sneak him into the back of the car. She wouldn’t let me take him after all the effort I put into getting him into a disguise. It was too bad. However, mom did pack me a ton of food in Tupperware that I could keep in my mini freezer.

After that conversation with grandma went so horribly, I stayed in my room for the rest of the night. Eventually mom came up to check on me, letting me know that it was okay for me to not return. Maybe dad meant nothing by his words, but my grandma most certainly did. I think mom felt bad that there wasn’t anything she could do to make the situation feel better, so her way of doing so was giving me a ton of food and offering to drive me back without dad. I took her up on that offer, but the evening of leaving I gave my concession that dad could come along if he wanted to. He had to work, though, so it ended up being mom and I alone.

She pulled into an empty parking space that was only a short walk away from my residence. Mom turned the engine off before she looked over at me with a look of pride. I blinked in mild surprise, unsure of where this was coming from. I cocked my head questioningly, which made her chuckle.

“I’m really proud of you,” she said sweetly, smiling at me. “Maybe you don’t see it, but I can see how much you’ve grown already. I know how hard it is to hear those words from your grandmother…and your dad, but the look in your eye was strong. It was hurt but I know you bounced back from it quickly. I’m not sure what you’ve been getting up to while you were here, but it must be something good because your confidence is brighter than I’ve ever seen it.”

Tears swam in my eyes as I reached over to hug her. I sniffled loudly, causing us both to laugh. When I pulled back, there were tears in mom’s eyes as well. She handed me a tissue and we both wiped at our eyes and blew our noses.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to make it so emotional,” mom said wetly. “I just wanted to know that I love you regardless. I never cared about you seeing spirits, as long as you don’t get hurt.”

Hearing those words lit a fire in my chest. Mom never outwardly said anything about my knack, except that she was very overly cautious with me at times. Her saying this to me meant more than anything in the entire world.

“Thank you,” I said softly, wishing I could say more. My inner turmoil was too much for me to comprehend at the moment. I squeezed her hand tightly, hoping the action would help get across my intense feelings.

She smiled at me again, her eyes shining with love. “Call me about anything, okay, Alexandra?”

“I will,” I promised.

I got out of the car after that, taking my bag of food alongside my travel bag. I waved to mom as she pulled away, and she waved back, sending me air kisses as she did. I caught them and held to my chest.

Just before she left, however, she rolled her window down. I walked over in confusion to see what she wanted, and she smiled cheekily at me. “Make sure you tell that girl how you feel soon, okay?”

I blushed as I stammered out my objections, but mom was already driving away laughing. Was there no one on this planet who wouldn’t tease me about it? Shaking my head in enjoyment, I walked back to my residence with a goofy smile on my face.

Sarah wasted no time giving me a huge hug and telling me about her weekend. Apparently, her family went skiing for Thanksgiving weekend. I listened with rapt attention, never been skiing myself. It sounded dangerously like something I would never enjoy as Sarah explained how her younger brother nearly careened off the edge of the mountain. I mentally made a note to myself never to go skiing with Sarah, who was cackling as she told me about her brother’s near-death experience. Actually, I decided to never do anything with her that could involve me dying.

After that, she made me tell her about my weekend. I did with some reluctance, but as I got more into it, I found myself enjoying it. I left out the bad stuff, and I was in tears with laughter as I explained how I dressed up the dog to sneak him over. Sarah demanded to see pictures, which I showed her immediately. We both laughed so hard that we couldn’t breathe over the pictures of Wallaby wearing sunglasses and a fedora.

We headed to bed sometime later in the night. But before I attempted to get some sleep tonight, I checked my phone for any notifications. I had a few from Michael, Mags, and even dad. For whatever reason, there was an unsettling feeling in my stomach as I noticed there was nothing from Lyn. Was I getting too overprotective? I just couldn’t get that look of anxiety she had on her face out of my mind. Was it even any of my business? Sure, we were friends, and I most definitely had a thing for her, but did that I mean I could pry into her private life?

Unfortunately, there were no answers to these questions. I sent a good night text to her before putting my phone face down for the night. Hopefully I would see her tomorrow.

XXX

“…which is why Medea is such an interesting tale,” finished Professor Kinkly. I found myself being elbowed awake by Michael, who was wearing a look of amusement on his face. I didn’t even realize that I had dozed off.

“Someone’s sleepy,” he joked as he put his notebooks back in his bag.

“I shouldn’t have slept in so much this weekend,” I amended. “It threw off my whole schedule.”

Michael laughed with a shake of his head. We waved to the prof as we left the classroom, who barely gave as a glance as we did. I was glad this class was easy, because I was mostly over it at this point. The material, which should be interesting, was made incredibly droll by this man. I couldn’t wait until this course was over with.

We walked out the classroom. The air was biting today, as it cut through our jackets. I pulled my jacket as close as possible, while Michael snorted in disbelief.

“You’re cold, yet you refuse to wear pants,” he said solemnly. “I admire the dedication to your style.”

“I hate wearing them,” I said. “I don’t mind pajama pants, but regular ones? Yuck.”

We both laughed as walked into the library. I bought myself a tea while Michael got a coffee. We sat down at one of the tables, letting the drinks warm us.

“I’m going to speak with her tonight,” I said quietly, making sure no one overheard us.

Michael nodded slowly, his eyes taking in the surrounding crowd. “I figured.”

“Has she spoken to you since the other night?”

“Nah, nothing,” Michael looked thoughtful. “I don’t think she will again, if I’m being honest. I think she talked to me so you would go talk to her. Which, thinking about it now, is extremely concerning. Why are they so aware of you?”

I pursed my lips. “I’m not really sure. Jamieson didn’t know anything about me. Dahlia didn’t know me either, but she could tell right away that I could sense her. Maybe she told Amelia about me? Dahlia told me she could leave the area, but she had to return. I have a sneaking suspicion that she’s been around, spreading my name.”

“Huh, I don’t know anything about her, but do you think she would do something like that?”

“It’s possible,” I hummed. “She knows so much but refuses to tell me everything. I suspect that she might even know who is behind the string of murders.”

Michael’s jaw fell open in shock. “Are you for real? And she won’t tell you who did it? Jeez, what a huge jerk.” He rubbed his face anxiously.

“Yeah, it’s very frustrating,” I grumbled, crossing my arms. “It’s like she’s testing me, but I don’t actually know what the test is. Doesn’t she want me to find the person who killed her and the others?”

“I guess being dead for a long time creates a lot of boredom,” said Michael. He slumped against the table, staring at nothing. We stayed quiet for a bit longer, until he had to head to his next class. I bade him a goodbye as I pulled out my notes from the case.

It was frustrating having so many pieces, but I couldn’t see the full picture quite yet. Maybe once I spoke to Amelia Turner something else would click, but right now it felt like I only had the frame of this puzzle.

Plus, I hadn’t mentioned it yet, but this occurred to me the other night after our chat we needed to go back to the locker room. Or at least, I had to. I needed to talk to Fiona, like have an actual conversation with her. Maybe even try and break through to who I assumed to be her brother. I saw the humanity in those eyes last time. Perhaps if I went again, I could get to him. I need to broach the topic with Lyn and Michael first, because I was scared to go alone, but I would if I had to. It felt like if I was going to be missing something important if I didn’t.

Oh, and I needed to talk to Jackie, the woman who got attacked. Maybe she knew nothing, but it wouldn’t hurt to ask. I saw her around on campus, I just haven’t had the opportunity to speak with her yet. I groaned as I wrote that down as well. There was so much to do, and I had a really bad gut feeling that I was slowly running out of time.

Annoyed with myself mostly, I gathered all my things up and tossed them back into my backpack. I was leaving the café when I happened to notice a familiar strawberry blonde standing at the water fountain, filling her water bottle. I glanced at my phone to check the time, and I had enough time to go over for a quick chat before I needed to head to my Sociology class.

“Hey, Lyn!” I chirped.

Lyn looked over her shoulder, her eyes lighting up in recognition. “Hey,” she said softly, turning back to the fountain for a minute. After her water bottle was filled, she screwed the lid on tightly before turning around fully.

“How are you?” I asked tentatively.

Her eyes searched my face before she settled with a shrug. I could see how worn out she looked, with dark circles under her eyes. While I was getting used to seeing her looking emotionally exhausted, I wasn’t used to this style of dress. I would say Lyn dresses for comfort most days, but today she was wearing skinny jeans with no distress, a button up boyfriend shirt that actually had the buttons done up, and even her ponytail seemed tighter. It was her normal look but…more put together?

“…Did you want to talk about it…?”

Lyn’s lip quirked slightly before she shook her head. “Nope, not really. How was your weekend?” she asked as she started walking. I followed after her.

“It was good, except for my grandma giving me grief again,” I said mildly.

“Grief?” Lyn questioned, eyes flickering to me for a fraction of a second before looking forward again. “What for?”

“Oh, the usual reasons. That I’m some unnatural freak of nature because of my special ability. She used to spray me with water.”

“That’s fucking stupid,” Lyn muttered darkly.

“Yeah, kinda,” I shrugged. “Okay, I shared. Now you have to.”

Lyn snorted, shaking her head. “I never agreed to that. Besides, it’s nothing.”

“Ah, I see,” I nodded. “Nothing. So, the exhausted look and new look have nothing to do with your weekend home?”

Something akin to anger flashed across Lyn’s face before she mechanically put on a smile. “Maybe it does. Let’s just say that my weekend roughly went as well as I thought it would. At least Olivia and I managed to get through it without killing each other.”

“You know you can talk to me about anything, right?” I offered.

Lyn said nothing for a few minutes as she looked far off. We walked towards her class building and once we got there, she kicked her foot against the concrete. God, she wasn’t even wearing those tattered Converse of hers.

“I’m fine. I’m just tired and processing some things,” she said quietly, her voice tight with emotion. “Honestly, even if I wanted to talk about things, I don’t even know where to start. Let’s just drop it for now, please?”

I nodded and a look of great relief crossed over her face. “Thanks, Ally,” she said, sounding a little more like herself.

“Just take care of yourself, okay?” I asked, reaching for her hand. “For me, please?”

Our hands curled around each other loosely. Lyn looked down at our hands, her face not showing anything, but there was a war playing out in her eyes. Something that I finally began to understand about Lyn was this: she was normally happy, but she didn’t let the negative emotions show often, instead opting to mask her feelings behind fake smiles and a bubbly tone. But there was only so much one person could take before they finally exploded. This next part was assumption, but I suspected that Lyn was nearing her breaking point, that her façade was cracking under the immense pressure she puts on herself. Whatever happened at home was pushing her to the limits of how much pain she was willing to take. I think I only understood the surface of how bad her home life was.

Finally, she nodded. Her face was still devoid of emotion, but there was a little twinkle in her eye. “I’ll try my best, you know?” she said, finally looking at me properly.

I could lose myself in those electric blue eyes, full of so much life and emotion normally. While it broke my heart to see her like this, I had a feeling that pushing her wasn’t the best move. I recalled how tightly she grasped my hand at the hospital when Olivia started pushing, how angry she got.

“As long as you try,” I whispered, my heart thudding rapidly against my ribs. Whether from my infatuation or the intensity of her stare, I was unsure. My eyes flickered to her lips.

Lyn’s eyes never once left mine before she finally let go of my hand. “I have to get to class,” she said quietly. I could see her mentally putting up her wall again, the light in her eye getting dimmer.

“Me too,” I replied. She looked like she was going to reach up but stopped herself. She settled for awkwardly waving before heading inside. I stood there for a couple of minutes before turning on my heel, heading to my class.

XXX

The wind was harsh tonight. I was wearing a sweater underneath my coat, and it was barely helping. I even had the hat Lyn gave me on, but my ears felt the biting cold. I walked across campus, heading towards Harper.

The amount of parties had died down some. There was barely anyone on campus right now, most of them either in their rooms or the library. Honestly, that was good for me. The less people around the better.

Suddenly I felt an intense pressure coming over me. The wind had stopped but the cold was still there. I looked around in confusion before sighing.

“Dahlia, is that you?”

Said ghost appeared beside me, looking rather interested in what I was doing. I was surprised to see her this far away from the tree.

“It’s been some time since we last spoke, Ally. I was curious as to what you were up to,” said Dahlia, clasping her hands behind her back as she walked beside me.

“I’m going over to talk to Amelia Turner,” I explained.

“Ah, intriguing. I do wonder what you are going to learn from her that you don’t already know,” Dahlia mused.

I said nothing in return, instead focusing on my mission. She wasn’t necessarily wrong in her judgement, but I didn’t want to give her the satisfaction of knowing that. I walked up to the doors, not surprised that they were locked. I chewed my upper lip as I attempted to work on the lock with a broken hair pin. They always made this look so easy on TV!

When I heard it click open, I suppressed an excited squeal. Good thing I did, because Dahlia drifted through the open door, where it was obvious that she was the one who unlocked it from the inside. I gave her a thankful nod, which she responded with a smirk. Together, we headed in.

The lights didn’t turn on automatically here like they do at the Athletic Centre. I pulled out an old school flashlight and turned it on. I could have easily used my phone, but I wanted it to available if I needed to take photos or make a call for help. It wasn’t that late, so Michael or Lyn hopefully would still be up.

I headed for classroom 223, the one Michael told me about. There she was, sitting at one of the desks looking forlorn. I slowly walked down to where she was, tapping the desk to get her attention.

“Hey, can I sit with you?” I asked, indicating the desk next to her.

Amelia looked a little surprised, tilting her head to the side. “Why are you even asking? I can’t stop you, even if I wanted to.”

“It’s only polite,” I said with a shrug.

Looking skeptical, she nodded. I sat down next to her, while Dahlia made herself at home in the seat behind us. She had a familiar look of determination in her eye, but I couldn’t quite place where I knew it from. Brushing that aside for now, I focused on Amelia. She was eyeing with me with suspicion, which I thought was curious. She was the one who wanted to talk to me, wasn’t she?

“I’m Ally,” I started with. “You’ve been talking to my friend, Mike, quite a bit, haven’t you?” I was careful to not use his full name.

“Only twice,” she clarified.

“Only twice,” I confirmed with a nod. “I wanted to ask you some questions, if that’s okay with you. I’m trying to solve all these murders on campus, and I have a feeling that you’re one of the victims from this unfortunate tragedy.”

Tears welled up in Amelia’s eyes as she nodded. “I am. I was in this very room when he came and killed me. I should have known something up when he invited me to speak with him so often.”

I reached over to her desk, placing my hand next to hers. “Amelia don’t blame yourself for the actions of the person who killed you. They’re a sick individual who hurt so many others. How could you have known?”

“He always was nice to me, making me feel special,” she said in quiet horror.

I took out my notebook, so I could quickly jot down the use of the male pronoun. The killer was male. It was a small thing, but in a case with very few leads, it was a big help.

“Would you mind showing me how it happened, Amelia?” I asked gently. I didn’t want to push her to tell me what happened if she didn’t want to. But I wanted to see it for myself, to see if I could pick up on anything. Unfortunately for me, seeing the death meant experiencing it through the lens of those who died, just like with Jamieson in the bookstore. I was fully prepared for it this time, however.

Amelia wrapped her arms around herself protectively. “It’s very gruesome, Ally. I’m not sure you should see it.”

I smiled encouragingly at her, despite my own nervousness pounding through my veins. “I’ll be okay. I want to help, honestly. Nothing you do will actually hurt me, okay?”

Finally, Amelia nodded. She reached over, placing her hand on my forehead. Although I was prepared for it, it was still shocking. I felt her confusion change into fear, fear into absolute panic. I felt the impact of my head smashing into the desk, momentarily dazing me. I felt the terror grip at my heart and lungs as I tried to get away from my attacker. I sobbed in terror as the knife slashed my wrists wide open. I hit the floor, blood pooling all around me. No one ever heard my screams. He stood over my, watching as the life drained out of my body without a single drop of emotion on his face. He looked familiar to me, but I couldn’t quite place the face right now. He bent down, cupping my face with his face, filling me with dread one last time before I died.

“Thank you for keeping me alive, darling.”

Those sickening words were the last thing I heard as everything turned to black.

Amelia withdrew her hand, and I gasped loudly as I slumped against my desk for support. My whole body was shaking, and I felt sick to my stomach. I pressed my hands against my eyes, not caring how wet they were. I needed to focus on my breathing. My wrists throbbed in agony, as if they were responding to how viciously they were cut. What a horrible way to go.

“Are you okay? I told you it was awful,” said Amelia sorrowfully.

I nodded, even though I felt far from okay. I took several huge gulps of air, sitting up straight. I adjusted my glasses, trying to focus on the fact that I was alive and not currently lying on the floor of the back room.

“She’s a lot stronger than she looks,” said Dahlia from behind. “She just needs a minute to gather herself.”

“T-t-that was so horrible,” I said through chattering teeth. “I-I-I’m so sorry y-you went through th-that, Amelia.”

Amelia nodded, her eyes mournful. “Do you really think you’ll be able to stop him from killing again?”

I grabbed a hold of Lyn’s hat, drawing a small sense of comfort from it. “I-I’m trying my best to make s-s-sure that it doesn’t happen again. I can’t m-make that promise, but I’ll be damned if I d-d-don’t give it m-my best shot.”

Amelia looked at me with a strange mix of wonderment and disbelief. Slowly, she nodded, looking towards the whiteboard again. She said nothing more, staring at something that the rest of us couldn’t see. I got up from my seat and thanked her for showing me what she did. On shaky legs, I walked towards the back door that led to the room where she was murdered. The door wasn’t locked when I tested the handle, and I numbly walked into the room.

It was just a storage room. There was nothing special in here that would ever suggest that someone was brutally murdered in here just over 15 years ago. I took it all in, snapping some photos in the process. There was nothing left for me to see here, so I closed the door behind with a firm tug.

I managed to make it outside before I threw up in the bush. I hacked and coughed, trying to get the disgusting taste of bile out of my mouth. Dahlia watched this all with mild curiosity, saying nothing as she twirled her hair around her finger.

“If you have something to say, say it,” I spat out, rubbing the back of my hand against my mouth.

Dahlia stopped mid-twirl, raising an eyebrow. “Someone is feeling a little testy.”

I whirled on her, my temper flaring. “Maybe because you seemingly know who did all these horrible things but won’t fucking tell me who it is! That was such a horrible way to die, and for the fact of the matter, so was Jamieson’s! Yet here you are, not telling me a damn thing!”

Mild irritation crossed over her delicate features. “Ally, I already told there was a reason why I couldn’t tell you everything. If you continue to behave this way, I won’t help you anymore. If you must know, the man who took all these poor lives is still on campus,” she snapped at me. “But that’s all I can speak on. Otherwise, something terrible will happen to me.”

Something terrible? I felt myself calming down a little. The look she had was annoyed, but I could see a tiny amount of fear in her eyes. Maybe she was telling the truth, there was something that was keeping her from telling me everything.

“Okay,” I dropped my shoulders. I was tired and feeling vulnerable. I didn’t want to fight, so I let it go.

Dahlia took me in for a second before she huffed out, “Good.”

I don’t know what it was about her tonight, but she was really reminding me of someone I knew. It was a strange feeling. Deciding that was a puzzle for another day, I shook my head and ran my hands through my hair, hating how sticky it felt despite the biting cold of the night.

I said goodnight to Dahlia, before heading to my room for the night. My phone told me it was after 11, which meant I was there for a few hours. I guess time flies by when you’re being murdered.

At least I learned two things tonight. First, the murderer was a man. Second, he was still here on campus. That second one really filled me with dread and fear. I didn’t know the identity of the killer yet, but I was more determined than ever to figure it out. Not for my own safety, but the safety of everyone at this school.

#unnatural affairs #ua #ally holland #lyn hart #michael yamamoto #dahlia cressman #amelia turner #ghosts #murder mysteries #paranormal #romance #wlw romance #sapphic lead #tw blood mention #original story #original fiction #writing

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sanderssidesfanfiction · 4 years ago

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If There’s a Place I Could Be - Chapter Seventy Three

If There’s a Place I Could Be Tag

November 30th, 2001

“You boys have a lot of explaining to do!” Grace snapped at Emile and Remy the second they walked in the apartment building.

“What? Why?” Emile asked. “Everything okay, Grace?”

“There was a woman screaming for the two of you all day on Thanksgiving,” Grace said with a scowl. “I couldn’t get a wink of sleep that morning.”

Remy paled but Emile just grabbed Remy’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “I’m sorry, Grace. I didn’t realize that woman might come looking for us while we were out of town, but I should have.”

Remy was trembling as Grace muttered a dark, “Don’t let it happen again,” walking away.

“Should we file a restraining order?” Emile muttered to Remy.

“Maybe we should just move,” Remy mumbled back.

October 16th, 2002

Remy stared at the ceiling of the bedroom, eyes wide open and mind racing. Emile was curled into his side, sleeping soundly, but Remy couldn’t catch a wink of sleep. He glanced at the clock and watched the seconds tick by for a while, before turning to look at his boyfriend. Emile looked so at peace, and it made Remy a little jealous. He had a small nightmare about his mother and now he couldn’t get back to sleep.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Remy made his way out of the bed without waking up Emile, and padded out to the living room. He glanced outside the windows, just to make sure his mother wasn’t around, and let out a low breath. He was being ridiculous, of course his mother wouldn’t be here. She had gotten the message to leave him alone for the time being, and she hadn’t been back here since...the holidays, where Emile and Remy had been visiting Emile’s family anyway.

Remy moved away from the windows and to the kitchen, pouring himself a glass of water. He felt wide awake, but he knew he needed at least a little sleep if he wanted to be functional at work later today...tomorrow? No, later today, it was past midnight.

Drinking the water down, Remy wandered over to the couch after putting the glass in the sink, and curled up on a corner of the couch, grabbing a book to read. The visibility wasn’t great, but there was just enough light through the windows that Remy could read the words on the page.

As he read, he could feel his nerves calming little by little, and the next thing he knew, he could hear snickering above him. He blinked blearily to find it was the early morning, and Emile was standing over him, staring at him with both amusement and bemusement warring on his face. “Comfy?” Emile asked.

Remy stretched and groaned. “Not really,” he said. “But I couldn’t sleep.”

Emile frowned. “What woke you up?”

“I dreamt about my mother again,” Remy sighed. “She had come back here, with Toby in tow, and the two of them were arguing that I should leave you and come ‘back home.’ And I know Toby would never do that in real life, because he cares about me too much, but the scary thing was that my mother could very well do that. And sure, we dodged her last holidays, but what about this year? We’re not heading to your family’s place, we agreed.”

Emile frowned. “I mean, if she shows up we can call the cops,” he said simply. “I know that’s not super comforting, but I’ve been planning to ask you something anyway, and now seems like as good a time as any.”

“Okay...?” Remy asked. A pit of dread was building in his stomach that he couldn’t explain.

“Would you want to move someplace bigger? With more space?” Emile asked. “Obviously, it wouldn’t be right away. But sometime soon. Would that help you sleep easier?”

“I...” Remy was embarrassed at his answer. “Yeah, probably...”

“No shame in that. We can look at townhouses in the area and see if anything jumps out at us,” Emile said with an easy shrug. “Maybe move after the new year.”

“And we wouldn’t have to pay rent anymore, just a mortgage,” Remy said with a small, wry smile.

“Pretty much!” Emile chirped. “Now, I think you need some coffee in your system, and I know you need a shower, so how about we start getting ready for the day and continue this talk when we don’t have to worry about me getting to classes and you getting to work?”

“Okay, okay,” Remy said, holding his hands up in surrender and heading to the kitchen to start the coffee maker. “One quick question, though: how much of the mortgage, in theory, would I be able to cover? Because I can cover half of the rent just fine, but a house is gonna be more expensive.”

“Honest answer?” Emile asked. “I don’t know. It’s gonna depend on the house we get, and the loans we get to get the house.”

Remy pulled a face. “Great. I don’t want you paying for the whole thing, Emile, that’s just not fair!”

“Relax, Rem. I could pay the mortgage and you could pay the bills, if that makes you feel a little more even,” Emile said. “But we’re in this together for the long haul. I don’t mind paying more of the mortgage than you, when it’s pretty clear we’re going to be staying together for a long time, if not, you know, the rest of our lives.”

“Oh, God, the rest of our lives,” Remy laughed. “That’s honestly a scary thought.”

“Why?” Emile asked. “I just assumed that was what we’d do?”

“No, no, it’s what I assume, too,” Remy rushed to assure. “I just...don’t really think about what that means too much, and when I do, it scares me. Not the thought of ‘tying myself down’ to one person, or whatever crap straight people say about getting married, but...the prospect of that not actually happening. What would happen if we didn’t stay together forever.”

“Well, if we both assume that we’re going to stay together, then there’s no worries,” Emile said. “Because I don’t want to leave you and you don’t want to leave me. So neither of us will be forced to leave.”

“I...guess so...” Remy said slowly.

“But if it’s a scary thought, I don’t want to force you to think about it,” Emile waved off. “And you still need to shower before your coffee is ready.”

Remy stuck his tongue out at Emile but went to take a shower. Internally, his mind was reeling, trying to put pieces of this puzzle together. Remy didn’t want to leave Emile, and Emile didn’t want to leave Remy. The fear of them not being together one day was unfounded, so why was he so scared?

As he stepped into the shower spray, Remy hummed and felt his muscles relax. It was a good question. Was it because that while they would stay together, it wasn’t technically permanent? They couldn’t get married, because no one would marry two men to each other. But you didn’t need the promise of marriage to love someone, right? Right. But...love wasn’t permanent, was it? Someone could say they loved someone and then turn around and dump them on the spot just because the spark wasn’t there anymore.

Emile and Remy had worked hard to make sure their sparks turned into a fireplace that kept going even when they couldn’t constantly tend to it, though, didn’t they? They had worked hard at their love. And yet Remy was still scared of losing Emile. Why?

Well...Toby and Remy loved each other as brothers. They had been inseparable for a long time. And now neither knew where the other one was. Remy had thought Vanessa had loved him, until she went off to college. And if he really wanted to go digging deep...Mom always said she loved him and then would turn around and act like he didn’t exist if he did something she didn’t like. Heaven forbid he break one of the rules, too. Then he’d get punished and have his mom say it was “for his own good” and that she loved him still. People in his life who said that they loved him no matter what were rarely telling the truth.

...That was depressing. But it also explained a lot. Remy nearly jumped out of the shower as soon as he was done, hollering, “Hey, Emile! I know where all my commitment issues stem from now!”

Emile opened the door to the bathroom just as Remy was wrapping a towel around his waist and Remy yipped. “Hey! No! Door closed!”

“Sorry, sorry!” Emile exclaimed, closing the door.

Remy walked out, dirty clothes in hand as he huffed. “There’s this great new thing called ‘knocking,’” he quipped.

“We’ve seen each other in less, I thought you wouldn’t mind,” Emile sighed, following Remy into the bedroom as Remy tossed his dirty clothes in the hamper and got new ones out. “Where do your commitment issues stem from?”

“Big shocker, you’re never gonna guess,” Remy said drily, facing away from Emile as he changed and said, “It’s my family. All of ‘em.”

“Wait. Even Toby?” Emile asked, and he sounded genuinely shocked.

“Well, Toby is a reason, but he’s not the reason,” Remy said. “He’s just...one nail in the coffin. But Vanessa said she loved me until she went off to college. Toby said he loved me and he’d never lose touch with me and then we did. And my mother said she loved me all the time and then turned around and treated me like something to be scraped off her shoe and discarded. I’ve never really had a steady sense of being loved in my life. So when someone says they love me forever, my brain says they don’t really mean forever, and I wait for them to drop me like everyone else always had.”

Emile stared at Remy in shock. “That is horrifying and insightful at the same time,” he said simply.

Remy shrugged and walked to the kitchen getting his morning coffee with a happy sigh. “Yeah. But I know the reason, so hopefully I can work past it now, you know?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Emile said. “That’s good. Tangentially related to that: would you ever want to get married to me?”

“If it was legal, yeah,” Remy said. “Sort of cements the idea that we would never leave each other into place. Why?”

“Because I might be low-key planning a wedding to invite all of your family to and promptly assassinate them,” Emile said simply.

Remy laughed. “I know you’re serious, Emile, but please don’t actually kill them? I don’t want to marry you only for you to spend life in prison.”

“Oh, all right, I’ll spare them for you,” Emile said simply. “But just say the word and they’re dead.”

Remy laughed more and Emile actually cracked a smile, which, considering their current topic of discussion, was surprising. “All seriousness, though,” Emile said. “You would marry me?”

“Emile, I’d propose to you if I knew there was a chance we could get married legally,” Remy said simply. “There’s no chance right now so I’m not planning on saving up for a ring, but that doesn’t mean I won’t in the future.”

“And that doesn’t scare you?” Emile asked.

“Hm? Oh, no, it terrifies me,” Remy said. “But I know the ‘why’ so we can work on it together. And once we have the chance to marry each other, I’ll have that existential crisis. For now, I’m just happy getting to be your boyfriend.”

Emile offered Remy a smile. “You know, when we first met I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t be caught dead calling anyone your boyfriend, even if you said you were gay.”

“Well, I would have seen it as a safety issue, especially if that guy wasn’t out to everyone yet,” Remy said simply. “But I’m learning that here is safe. And that’s a good thing, you know? I won’t immediately die if I say I’m attracted to someone.”

“Always a plus,” Emile said. “So. We get a house, we hopefully get engaged and we get married when it’s legal, anything else we should plan for?”

“Should we plan for one of your sperm donor kids showing up at our door?” Remy asked.

Emile burst out laughing. “I don’t think so. The chances of anyone using that sample are so small that the chances of them existing, let alone existing in a bad home life seem infinitesimal.”

“Okay, so house, engagement, marriage. Maybe my own shop. Anything else?” Remy asked.

Emile shrugged. “Me kissing you within the next five minutes?”

Remy grinned. “Only if you’re willing to stand my coffee breath.”

Emile laughed and gave Remy a long, loving kiss. “Somehow, I don’t mind,” he murmured.

#if there's a place i could be #sanders sides fanfiction #remile #emile picani #ts sleep

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