#whenever a show gets cancelled I sigh and move on bc nothing will hurt as much as losing the lost world

[jonroxton]

Lost World fans, I fucking love that you're all still around. I'm on my billionth rewatch, per usual.

[asian-hero]

You are literally the best at writing angst, your fics make me feel some typa way. Can I request a todoroki shoto fic where him and reader are dating and he’s a prohero and she’s a doctor. And shoto is absent a lot bc of work and s/o gets sad bc she feels the relationship is 1sided. They fight bc shoto prioritizes hero-ing, & rder is like “but I save lives too”. They get “close” to splitting, but they makeup somehow. Thank you!!!!!!!

A/N: You think you can get away with breaking my heart just because you complimented me on my writing? 😤 (but in all seriousness, thank you for the compliment!)

You guys know you can request fluffy shit too, right?

Summary: You knew that you and Shouto came from different worlds, and while both of your jobs helped to save people, that didn’t mean that the two of you necessarily saw eye to eye on certain things. One of the things that the two of you never seemed to agree on was your relationship, and you were starting to feel that the two of you would never agree when it came to that.

Words: 3,307

You knew from the start that dating a pro hero wasn’t going to be easy. One day you could wake up next to the love of your life, and then five hours later, you find out that they died while watching the evening news. Or, one day you could find yourself being abducted by villains as a pawn to lure your hero lover into rescuing you, and either become scarred from the trauma of being kidnapped, or be the reason why your partner had fallen. Along with this, the hours for a pro were sporadic and unpredictable, which made it even harder to keep up a healthy relationship. So, it was safe to say that most heroes didn’t usually get into relationships with civilians, and, as a doctor, who had to deal with said heroes, you promised yourself to never get involved with one of them. If not for your physical health, then for your mental health.

Oh, how naive you were.

Somehow, whether it be due to some force in the universe that wanted to prove you wrong, or your own lack of willpower, you not only caught the attention of a certain elemental hero, but he had also caught yours as well. At first, you blamed your flustered state on the fact that he seemed to be one of your most, regular, patients. You tried to fool yourself that you were just simply worried for his health. After all, it wasn’t healthy to be visiting a hospital almost every other week. A few weeks of trying to convince yourself, and you suddenly were faced with the horrendous idea that you may have actually been worried about him because you cared about him, more than you were supposed to. It didn’t help that he was so handsome and sweet. In all honesty, it was truly a marvel that you managed to keep it together for as long as you had.

While you tried to keep your feelings tucked away deep inside of your heart, Shouto seemed to have other plans. On the days that he wasn’t in your hospital, bothering you with some large gash from a villain, or some serious bruises and broken bones from attempting to catch a falling building, he would still make his presence known through vases of flowers addressed specifically to you, as thanks for patching him up. Soon, arrangements of flowers were no longer delivered by the mailman, but instead by Shouto himself. He’d make sure to catch you on your break, or whenever you weren’t busy, just so he could strike up a conversation with you. It was both the most sweet and baffling thing that someone has done for you. Fairly soon after his common visits, the hospital became like his second home, where everyone knew why he was there, and the glamour of having a famous pro hero in their work environment was no longer exciting. 

So, no one could really blame you when you started dating him a few months later. 

Loving Shouto was one of the easiest things that you’ve ever done. Being in love with him came naturally to you, as if it were another part of your body. He was always so kind and caring, and while he did have his moments where his inexperience in terms of relationships truly showed, he always strived to be the best boyfriend that he could be. You knew that Shouto was the one who you wanted to spend the rest of your life with, to grow old with. In fact, about a year into your relationship, Shouto had suggested that the two of you move in together, under the guise that you would both be saving a lot of money when it came to water and electricity, since the two of you practically lived together anyways. Not that you needed a reason to move in with him.

However, life wasn’t always that easy, and relationships don’t always turn out the way you thought they would.

After two years of dating Todoroki Shouto, you knew that the two of you would fall into some form of routine. The “honeymoon” phase wasn’t going to last forever, and you were perfectly fine with that. You still loved him dearly, and even though you both didn’t express it nearly as much as you used to, the feelings were still there, at least, on your side of the relationship.

While the two of you began to fall into your normalcy, with you growing comfortable with each other’s company, you found yourself realizing just how absent Shouto was. It started when he’d cancel your little dinner dates at home, saying that you shouldn’t wait up for him, since he’ll be home late. Of course, you gave him the benefit of the doubt, because you knew that his schedule wasn’t always the best, so you never complained to him. Soon, though, instead of missing dinner, Shouto was missing the entire day. It wasn’t very often that you had the day off, so when you did, he promised that he’d be home as well, so the two of you could make up lost time. But, when the time came, you woke up alone in your shared bed, a short note on your bedside table being your only indication that he’d left the house, and that he wouldn’t be home until late at night. Eventually, your shared apartment started to feel as though you were the only one living in it, and the only way that you knew Shouto was still living there was because the leftovers you’d put in the fridge for him would be gone the next morning.

At first, you tried really hard to be understanding. You knew that he couldn’t always be there with you, as he had a job to do. Any annoyance that you held toward him would be instantly replaced by guilt, since you knew that he was busy. However, as the days turned into months, your patience began to grown thin, and you were starting to question whether or not he even loved you anymore. If he did, he certainly never showed it, nor did he seem to feel the need to tell you that he loved you. In all honesty, you couldn’t remember the last time he told you he loved you, or the last time you ever felt loved. At this point, you were just wondering if he even cared if you were around, or if you were just someone who he knew would always be there.

Though you had managed to keep your feelings away from him for a while, it didn’t take long for your heart to no longer be able to carry your sorrows, and soon enough, you found yourself sitting on your couch at one in the morning, balling your eyes out as you waited for Shouto to come home.

Luckily for you, you didn’t need to wait much longer, as you could hear the soft click of the lock, and in a matter of seconds, you found yourself staring down the love of your life, who seemed shocked at the fact that you were still awake.

“(Y/N)?” He called out, concern filling his voice, “Why are you still awake?”

Wiping your eyes, you took in a deep breath, preparing yourself for what was to come. “We need to talk,”

Though it was a bit hard to see, with only the light from the kitchen illuminating your apartment, you could make out the tired expression on Shouto’s face. With a soft sigh, he moved toward you, patting your head.

“Can we talk about this in the morning?”

You rolled your eyes, crossing your arms across your chest. “Will you even be here in the morning?”

Hearing the edge to your voice seemed to catch his attention, as he tilted his head, clearly confused. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

You shrugged your shoulders, standing up from the couch in order to meet his eyes. “It’s a simple question, Shouto. You’re not even here when I wake up, so how are we supposed to talk?”

He furrowed his brow, not quite understanding what you were getting at. When he didn’t respond, you let out an obnoxious sigh, all of the anger you’ve been bottling up for the past few months finally rearing its ugly head.

“You know, at first I was fine with you cancelling for dinner. I did my best to understand that you’re a hero, and you have an important job to do,” Your eyes bore into him, almost as if you thought you could convey all of your hurt and anger by just your stare, “But, when you start to become less of a ‘roommate’ and more of a cryptid, that’s where I draw the line.”

“What are you talking about?” You could hear the defensive edge in his voice, and it did nothing to stop the fire from raging in your stomach.

“Do you even remember the last time that the two of us were together? The last time we did something that was remotely romantic? I certainly can’t!” You knew that you were unloading a lot of feelings onto him, but you couldn’t care less at this point.

“Well I’m sorry that I can’t be here all the time, but it’s not like I can just stop what I’m doing just to come home and chat,”

You wanted to rip your hair out. “I’m not asking you to do that!”

“Then what do you want?” He asked, his tone becoming as sharp as a knife, “Do you want me to quit my job? To stop being a hero? I’m not going to stop just because you feel upset. There are actual lives on the line.”

“Do you think that I don’t understand that?” You snapped, your nails digging into the palms of your hands.

“I save lives too, you know! Every single day I go to work and do my best to help out those who need me the most, but you don’t see me neglecting this relationship,”

He scoffed, his lips quirking downwards. “Just because you don’t see the work I put in doesn’t mean that it isn’t there. You knew what my life was like when we started dating, I don’t know why this is surprising,”

“I know what I got myself into! I just wish that I would matter just a fraction as much as your job,”

“You want me to prioritize you over my duty to the people?”

“That’s not what I’m saying! I just want to feel like I’m important to you,” You could feel your shoulders deflating, “Why is that so hard to understand?”

The two of you could have fought the entire night and have gone in circles. Instead, Shouto merely took in a deep breath, closing his eyes. “Can we just talk about this in the morning? It’s late, and I can’t think about this right now.”

All of the fight that was in you had suddenly dissipated, and all you were left with was this hollow feeling in your chest. Shaking your head, you brushed past him, heading towards the guest room.

“Don’t worry. There’s nothing to talk about anymore,” You didn’t even bother turning towards him, “Just, do whatever you want.”

With that, you shut the door behind you, locking it and then throwing yourself onto the bed, praying that you’d get at least a couple hours of sleep before your shift.

Unfortunately for you, you ended up getting about two hours of sleep before waking up at six in the morning. Wordlessly, you got ready for work, not bothering to check if Shouto was still home, though, you wouldn’t be surprised if he’d just taken off right after you left.

Once you had arrived at the hospital, you were instantly greeted by the concerned stares from your coworkers, with some even voicing that you didn’t look so good. Not wanting to worry anyone, you told them that you were fine, and that you just didn’t get that much sleep last night. It wasn’t a complete lie, and it got them off of your case, so, you figured that you got away with it.

You honestly couldn’t remember what happened during the rest of the day. Bits and pieces would come to you, like when you had to do a routine check-up for one of your favorite patients, or when you took a thirty minute nap during your lunch. Other than that, you truly could not remember what you did. In fact, if your receptionist didn’t tell you that it was nearly eight in the evening, you were sure that you would’ve stayed the night by accident.

As you left your shift and hurried onto the next train to take you home, you couldn’t help but replay the conversation you had with Shouto. You weren’t quite sure where your relationship stood. Neither of you had made the effort to contact the other, and although it had only been one day, you couldn’t help but feel anxious. While of course, you were glad that you told him how you felt, and that you wished he could be more present as a partner, you felt bad about how you went about telling him. There were better ways of telling him that you felt as though he didn’t care anymore, and snapping at him was probably one of the worst ways to go about it. So, as you continued your journey home, you figured that you’d apologize for snapping at him like you did, but you were in no way going to apologize for how you felt, or for telling him that you didn’t feel like a priority for him.

Once the train had reached its destination, and you had finally made it to your front door, you were just about ready to collapse onto the couch. Maybe get in a quick nap before eating dinner, or maybe you’d just head straight towards your bed and get a full eight hours of sleep. However, once the door swung open, rather than being greeted by the deafening silence that you had grown accustomed to, you could hear the soft hum of the radio being played, along with the quiet sizzling of something being cooked. Closing the door gently, you took off your shoes and jacket, quietly making your way towards the kitchen. As you peered from the doorway, you watched in awe as Shouto stood over the oven, watching almost warily at whatever he was making. It was obvious that he had no idea what he was doing, and, judging by how messy your kitchen looked, it was clear to you that this wasn’t his first attempt. Glancing over at the dining table, you noticed the pair of bowls and cups that were set, as if he were setting the table for two.

Deciding that you were tired of just standing there, you cleared your throat, making your presence known.

He jumped a bit, whipping his head towards the source of the noise, before letting out a sound of relief. Quickly turning off the stove, he faced himself towards you, and you could tell that he felt awkward.

“What are you making?” You asked, trying to break the tension in the room.

“Fried rice,” He started, rubbing the back of his neck, “I thought I could make dinner, it seemed simple enough,”

You hummed, slowly making your way over to him, trying to gauge his reaction. When he didn’t move away, you stepped closer, peering into the pan to look at what he made. While it was slightly overcooked, you appreciated the effort. Motioning toward the table, you spoke, “Go grab the bowls,”

After a few more beats of silence, the two of you found yourselves sitting in front of each other, staring awkwardly at your bowls of fried rice, unsure of what to say. While you really did want to apologize, you weren’t sure of how to approach the topic. You were worried that, if you brought up last night, it’d just end up with the two of you fighting again.

It seemed as thought Shouto had the same idea as you, as he finally spoke up, “I think we should talk about last night,”

Putting down your spoon, you nodded. Glancing up, you noticed the nervous expression on his face, and though you were about to talk about something serious, you couldn’t help but find comfort in the fact that he was just as nervous as you.

“Before we start,” You began, placing your hands in front of yourself, “I just wanted to say that I’m sorry that I got so angry last night. I was bottling up all of my emotions, and instead of just telling you, I let them get the best of me, and I exploded when I didn’t mean to,”

He frowned, moving to take one of your hands in his own, “I’m sorry that I tried to brush off your feelings and got defensive. I was tired and ready to go to sleep, so when you said you wanted to talk, I just snapped.”

You squeezed his hand, offering him a small smile. He returned it almost immediately, holding onto your hand as if you were his anchor. Rubbing his thumb against your knuckles, he gave you a reassuring look.

“I’m sorry that I wasn’t listening last night, but I am now,” He pressed a gentle kiss to the back of your hand, “Tell me what’s going on,”

You felt a pang of anxiety rushing through you, but you pushed through. Even though you felt awful saying it, the two of you didn’t fight just for the fun of it.

“I know that being a hero means the world to you, and I’m so proud of what you do. You constantly put yourself in harms way in order to protect those who can’t save themselves, and I admire that,”

He nodded his head, ushering you to continue, “But?”

“But,” You said, trying to choose your words carefully, “I feel like you put so much of yourself into your work that there’s not enough of you left when it comes to our relationship.”

You smiled sadly at him. “I’m not saying that I should be your number one priority, I know that would be too selfish. I’d just like to be in the top five, you know?”

The frown on his face made you rethink your words. Mirroring his features, you squeezed his hand. It took him a minute to respond, letting your words sink in. Once he found his voice, he spoke, “You shouldn’t feel like you have to settle for the top five,”

He got out of his seat, pushing it closer to you before sitting down once more. This time, he took both of your hands in his, resting his forehead against yours. “I’m sorry for ever making you feel like you weren’t important to me,”

You shook your head, your nose gently bumping against his. “I know you’re busy,”

“Never too busy when it comes to you,”

You found yourself breaking out into a small grin, laughing a bit. Seeing your relaxed figure, Shouto found himself laughing with you, disconnecting his hands from yours in order to place them on your waist, pulling you closer. As you found yourself practically straddling him, you couldn’t help but run a hand through his hair, pressing a light kiss to his forehead. He seemed to relish in your touch, as he leaned closer to you as you pulled away, causing you to let out another stream of giggles.

While the two of you still had to figure out how to manage your schedules, you were finally filled with a sense of comfort and love, one that you hadn’t felt in a long time. 

[nickmuch]

c.z.k. - high school (part 3)

PART 1 / PART 2

Note: Honestly, I have nothing to do at work atm, so I might update this daily. Can’t wait for Part 4! Bc I have finally some more Zion action planned.

Also: It might be prom season there, but you didn’t hear it from me. My favorite part to write was probably the one that took place after prom.

Aaand: mobile tumblr seems to ignore all the paragraphing I put into the text to indicate the end of a scene???? So it’s probably easier to read on the desktop version.

A week had passed since my outburst. If you thought that everything magically turned upside down and we lived a happy life riding into the sunset on our white horse, then you thought wrong. Absolutely nothing happened. I returned back to class that day, not even flinching from his words. And he came back a couple minutes later, both of us acting as if we didn’t just kiss. He went back to her and I went back to feeling like shit. The usual story.

I acted like it didn’t faze me when he approached my locker at the end of the school day. “So …” he began. “You and Edwin?”. His voice sounded nervous when he asked me. Scrunching up my face, I fully turned towards him. “Me and Edwin what?”. Sighing, he grabbed my arm making me look him dead in the eyes. “You guys together now? You both seem oddly close these days”. Wow, I couldn’t believe the words that left his mouth. “Congrats! You have officially lost your mind, Caleb” I started picking up my pace. The front door wasn’t too far from here, so I hoped he would just let it go and let me drive home in peace. I hoped for nothing because clearly, he and his long legs caught up to me rather quickly, opening the door to my passenger seat before sitting down. “Look, I’m sorry for everything. But honestly, I just wanna put this all behind us. I miss my friends and I feel like I can’t hang out with the group while you’re still mad at me” “I’m not mad at you, in fact I give zero shits about you. But if you have something to talk about with the boys, then do so. I’m not keeping you from seeing them. They were your friends first, so you have every right to chill with them. I just don’t wanna be included, s’all”. A tap on the window made us look up. There she stood, tight smile on her face and eyes cold like ice. “Aw shit” he said, hurriedly opening the door to get out and explain why in the name of God he was sitting in his Ex’s car talking. Since I seriously didn’t need to hear their arguing – which was bound to happen any second now – I quickly drove off.

“Prom is right around the corner. What do you mean you’re not going?! Yes, you are! Don’t leave me alone with these fools!”. Edwin was close to having a breakdown. All because I didn’t plan on going to prom. There was no reason to go, really. I had no date, it was way too cold In New York to walk around in a dress the whole evening, and I wasn’t in the mood anyways. “Eddie, I love you, but please don’t make me go. I would only destroy the fun” I begged, thinking that would change his mind. Wrong! Because Edwin was – well – Edwin. My excuses were exactly that: just excuses. And he knew. “Okay bebecita, I knooooow you don’t feel like going”. He was convinced that easily? Wow, okay. “But!”. Ah there it was. “We will have fun. Trust me! When have I ever lied to you?”. I mean, he was right. Whenever he said something was going to be fun, it actually turned out to be. “Fine, we’ll go! But make sure that Zion leaves me alone. He thinks we’re dating and I don’t feel like dealing with his headassery again”. Edwin’s eyes nearly fell out of his face. “What?! Oh my god, is he serious?”. A hearty laugh filled up the whole living room. “Mijo, not so loud!” his mom shouted from the kitchen, making him quit immediately. “Anyways” he plopped down next to me on the couch. “No offense, but even if you’d be the last girl in the world and we had to reproduce in order to save the human civilization, I still wouldn’t touch you” Edwin finished. “No offense taken. You’re not my type anyway” I casually said while not breaking my eyes off of the tv screen. Gasp! “I- what? I meant because you’re my twin sister! Not because of your looks!” he cried. “Uhm … oh y-yeah, that’s what I meant too …?”. No way I could save my ass out of this. He looked hurt for a second but didn’t seem to dwell on it when he used my lap as a pillow to watch the show. “Don’t be fooled, you still suck ass”.

The night of the prom, Edwin had officially turned into a bridezilla. Minus the bride, of course. His steps could be heard from everywhere in the house, like a ticking clock you couldn’t dismiss. It was driving me insane. It was driving us all insane. “Edwin, you need to calm down” I tried. “There’s no way! No. Way.” he frantically walked from one room to the other. “My clothes need to be ironed, you still aren’t in your dress- “. “It’s 2 p.m.!” my voice sounded squeakier than expected. “- … your hair’s a mess, face not beat, my hair is acting up, and the damn rental car is running late” he finished with one last breath before collapsing on my bed. “We won’t be on time. Just cancel on the boys for me, the stress isn’t good for the baby”. “What baby?!”. “Me. I’m baby”. I couldn’t believe my ears. This boy lost his mind. Narrowing my eyes at him, he challenged me back to a stare-down. “Listen here, egghead” An offended gasp left his lips. “You’ve been talking about this night for weeks. There’s no backing out now. Move your ass up and get your to-do-list, so I can help you with everything. We still have four hours left before the boys are supposed to be here. So, let’s start!”.

The white Range Rover came to a halt right in front of the school building. Loud music could be heard already, some new rap song playing in the background. “This is gonna be so lit!” Edwin bounced on his seat excitedly before jumping out and dragging the rest of us with him into the gym. The motto for this year’s prom was “neon festival”.The wall decoration was painted in a mix of fluorescent colors, which reflected every time the lights hit them. Bright yellow stars adorned the ceiling, some white smoke even coming out of a smoke machine. Everything was arranged so nicely, I couldn’t help but admire the great effort of the students who probably worked hard for this to come true. Now I understood why Edwin wanted to go so badly. Back home, our prom nights were pretty basic. No one could be bothered to put so much effort into an event, just for it to be over on the same night.

“Here, for you” Nick handed me a red solo cup, which was filled with some pink drink, accompanied by a cocktail umbrella. “Thank you” I said, turning my gaze towards the shining stars again. “I’m so sorry about what I’m gonna say next” he looked slightly uneasy, so I tried to calm him down by laying my hand on his shoulder. “Z and Asya will be joining our table. I mean, only if it’s alright with you”. As if on cue, my eyes wandered over to where I last saw the boys, seeing that – in fact – they were surrounded by the couple. All of them looked so happy, laughing and joking with each other. No matter what I felt towards Caleb, I had to set my pride aside and act nice from now on. The boys were longing to hang out with their friend again and I didn’t want to be the reason for a strain in their friendship.

“It’s alright with me” I replied. His hand cautiously wrapped around my hips, like he was scared of making me uncomfortable. “Lead the way, Mara”. He grinned at me. “Say no more, Honoret”. I rolled my eyes at the name. He knew I wasn’t really a Honoret, and yet everyone just called me that, totally ignoring all my attempts at correcting them.

Luckily, I got the seat between Edwin and Brandon. I didn’t know how to greet Zion and his girlfriend. She was too busy typing away on her phone to notice my arrival, anyways. So, I just gave him a short wave and a shy smile. “Looking nice” he said, motioning to my baby blue velvet bodycon dress. His girl was so busy, she didn’t even notice him complimenting another female. Either that, or she didn’t care. “Thanks Caleb, you too”. Coincidentally, he wore a dark grey suit with a baby blue pocket square. To not give awkward silence any room, Austin suggested to me to dance. Gladly taking his offer, we made our way to the dance floor. Soon enough, Edwin and Nick joined us, their dance moves putting me and him to shame. “You guys enjoying yourselves?” Brandon shouted over the music. I pulled him closer by his forearm to join us. “Very”. My grin however didn’t last. When I looked back to our table, I saw Zion all by himself. He looked bored, occasionally scrolling through his phone. “I’ll be right back” I told no one in particular before making my way over to the lone boy.

“Why so lonely, Kuwonu?” I nudged his arm. With a weak smile on his plump lips, he answered “Asya is preoccupied with her group of friends. I don’t really vibe with ‘em”. Nodding understandingly, I offered him to accompany me back to the others. “As long as you don’t hit the folks, we’re good” I playfully teased him. “Ha ha, very funny” Caleb sarcastically remarked. It was nice to talk to him without an attitude or tension building up. Maybe I overreacted a little bit in the last weeks. Having him around felt good, if you ignored the butterflies that erupted deep down in my stomach every time he looked at me or smiled his goofy grin. But we had our chance and it didn’t work out, that’s why I had to get over it. Better to have him as a friend than anything else. Right now, though, was about having fun and enjoying the company of good friends in a night that seemed to be endless.

The thing is, everything has an end. And so, I found myself in the booth of an old diner. The fake leather of the seats was peeling off and little bolts of cloth got stuck to our clothes. One of my legs was pressed against the window side, my other leg was touching Brandon’s involuntarily. Edwin thought a corner booth would totally suffice for all seven of us. Well, he thought wrong because now we were all huddled up, trying to get as comfortable as humanly possible with not much space between us left. Asya decided to not tag along, saying she was too tired from dancing with her friends all night.

“I hope they hurry up with our order, I’m starving!” Ansley sighed dramatically. Turns out, Austin was talking to her for weeks now, he just couldn’t build up the courage to ask her out yet. So, Edwin being Edwin, persuaded her to join our trip for a midnight-snack, claiming that “this pizza is going to be the best you’ve ever had!”. Judging from the interior design and the slack expression we were getting from the waiter, I highly doubted he was right. But then again, never underestimate Edwin.

“Okay, you were right. This is the best pizza I’ve ever had. Kudos to you, Ed” Ansley munched happily on her slice. Suspiciously examining the pieces in the center of the table, I couldn’t really put too much trust into her words. For some odd reason, the pizza had more grease on it than my face in the morning before washing it. “Just try it, she isn’t lying” Zion slid me a slice over. “If I die, tell Mama, Papa and the babies that I love ‘em” I told Ed before taking a bite. This was actually pretty good. Maybe not the best I’ve had, but it came close. “What makes this the best pizza in all of New York, though? It doesn’t taste that special”. The boys smirked knowingly, all eyes looking down trying to avoid my gaze. “It’s not necessarily the taste but rather the memories this place holds, you know? Back when we were younger, we’d spend our evenings after school here since our parents were working and we had no one to watch us in the meantime” Brandon nodded along to Edwin’s words, clearly remembering it all as if it had happened yesterday. “Can you imagine the mess we’d make?! Five little boys, full of energy rushing in to buy themselves some junk food, not a single care in the world” he paused for a moment, giving the others a short smile. The moment was filled with a melancholic retrospective feeling. “We literally grew up in this place. T’was safer to play and wait for our parents in here than at home or on the streets. I guess that’s what makes this so special to us” he shrugged. Sensing that he had finished the story, I nodded slowly, comprehending everything he just told me. “I like it here. Has charm to it”. Grinning widely, I took another bite to further prove my point.

People think of New York as this cool and hip city, with expensive luxurious apartments and such, but they seem to forget that not everyone is fortunate enough to live that life. Some of us have to learn from an early age that this world is full of bad people. Not everyone is going to wish you the best or give a helping hand. “We kinda are like OMB if you really think about it. Sure, no one is forcing us to join a gang or sum, but we do live a similar life” Zion threw in. “Actually, the weedhead might be onto something” B exclaimed. “You moving here out of nowhere” he said, pointing towards me. “Ed having to give up his room for you. A weird crackhead as a friend like Jamal” Now it was Edwin’s turn to be pointed at. “Hey! That’s rude! Besides, don’t do my bro Jamal like dat. He’s a great friend, always got their backs and shit” Ed tried to argue. “You’re a great friend, too. And an even better twin brother” I genuinely told him. A chorus of “Awwee”’s followed the round. “Now this is how you talk to friends! Take notes, ladies”. When he said ladies, he definitely wasn’t referring to me or Ansley.

The night itself turned out being amazing and I was glad that Edwin had convinced me to go to prom. We were talking about everything and nothing, really. Moments turned into minutes. Minutes turned into hours, and soon it was already time to leave. Ansley had to be home soon, so Austin took it upon himself to make sure she would arrive there safely. Edwin was craving donuts from the corner shop across the street, but since he couldn’t be trusted on his own, Brandon decided to follow him. “Is B really the right fit to watch him not do any shenanigans?” Nick asked warily. “… honestly, talking from experience, I should probably go with ‘em before their sugar high kicks in”. With that, I was left alone with Zion in the booth of a run-down diner in the middle of New York. Despite being in one of the biggest cities, the world suddenly felt so small around me.

“So …” Zion said, looking around the place. “So …” I mimicked. Shaking his head, he just laughed. “This is low key awkward, not gonna lie”. It was true. In a group we no longer had trouble talking, however when alone it was a whole another story.

“I’m sorry”.

“You say sorry way too much”.

“Maybe. But this time I wanna apologize for attacking you with that kiss last week”.

“It’s all forgotten”.

His mouth opened and closed, scared to say something but I knew there still was something he wanted to get off his chest.

The bell above the door frame signaled the arrival of someone. “Guess what I gotchu guys?!” Edwin trotted over, taking a seat on the table, so that he had both me and Z on each of his sides. A small brown paper bag rested on his lap. With one swift movement, he pulled out some twizzlers, and shoved them in our hands. “And we also bought you make up wipes!” happily Brandon said in a sing-song voice. Fishing out the pack, he handed them over to me. “I love you guys!”. Nick walked in last. “Yo, I’m slowly getting tired. Can we drive home now?” sleepily he rubbed his eyes, already pulling on Zion’s sleeve. Reluctantly, Edwin followed behind, even though all he wanted was to eat his candy. His sugar high was still going in full force. Therefore, he didn’t feel an ounce of sleep.

“Why the fuck is he so bouncy?!”Austin asked. We had called him earlier to ask for his location, so that we could pick him up and drive home as well. He climbed up the Jeep, sitting next to an energetic Ed. “Twizzlers?” he offered to his friend. “No, thanks. Also, please stop smiling so creepily, you’re scaring me”. This was going to be a long drive.

Note: Part 4 will have more Zion moments. The plan is to have only one or two settings, so hopefully it’ll work out as planned.

I’d love to get some feedback, good or bad doesn’t matter!! What direction would you want this to go? How would you like this to end? Let me know!

Cami

[panda-noosh]

Hello 😁 scenarios for the Paladins where they're nervous bc they've got to do something like a friendly fighting match against some selected champion or whatever and when they reveal to their s/o that they're worried they'll lose the match, s/o gives them an invigorating kiss, leaving them all like "I'm winning this damn thing for you" Thank you Aticus!

  Sorry this tookso long to get to! I hope you enjoy it!

  Shiro:

  Shiroknew he had no reason to be nervous. This fight had been planned agesago, and he had been training for it ever since. He was ready. Asready as he could be.

   Heknew that all he could do was try his best. He had to get in the ringand show them just how much he had been working during the build upto this very day.

   Andyet the nerves grabbed a hold of him only moments before the fightwas due to begin. His opponent had arrived, confident looking withtheir planets flag draped over their broad and buff shoulders – alot broader than Shiro's, though that had never been a warning signfor the Paladin. Strength wasn't measured physically – he couldoutsmart anybody, no matter their size.

   Shirolooked on from the side lines, hidden behind the draping curtainwhich cut off the ring from the crowd. He could only see half of hisopponents face, but even that was enough to make him feel even morenervous than he was before.

   Hehollows out his cheeks and shakes his head to nobody other thanhimself. He could have swore he was alone, though whenever he turnsaround to face the large room in which he had been locked in for thepast three hours, he is surprised to see you sitting in the arm chairin the corner, a book in your hand. Your eyes aren't skimming thepages, though. You're looking at him, one eyebrow raised.

    “Youseem tense,” you say, not even bothering to elaborate on why you'rehere and not in the crowd with everybody else. “Since when didTakashi Shirogane get tense?”

   Shiroshakes his head, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his oversizedhoodie. “It's nothing.”

   Younarrow your eyebrows, setting your novel down beside your chair andpushing yourself upwards. “You can tell me if you're nervous, youknow. I think it's only natural for you to feel nervous in thissituation.”

   “Hejust looks so -” Shiro shrugs. “-confident.”

   Youpeak your head past Shiro's shoulder, catching a glimpse of the manin question. He does, but you would never say that to Shiro. Instead,you find yourself chuckling as you approach the Paladin, winding yourhands over his shoulders and pulling him into you a little bit.

   Helooks down at you, hands on your waist now.

   “Hehasn't got anything on you,” you say. “You weren't a Paladin ofVoltron for nothing. That guy – he probably got this gig off ofsome druggie on a street corner. You can show him who's a realleader.”

   Youkiss him. It's sudden, and sweet, and filled with the words of 'Goodluck' and it means everything to Shiro in that moment. Some fighterstake steroids – all Shiro needs is you.

   Thekiss is over all-too-soon as Shiro's name is called from outside. Helooks down at you, ignoring it for just a moment longer – a momenthe spends looking at you, at the way you look up at him with yourhands wound around his shoulders and your cheeks tinted a red colourdue to the passion you had just built up only a moment before.

   Shiroinhales. “Alright, alright. I'll win it.”

   Youbreak out in a smile, pressing another kiss to his jaw line. “Don'tkill him.”

   Keith:

   “Iswear to god there's a dent in the carpet from where you've beenpacing.”

   Keithis startled by the sound of your voice, and yet he makes no move toshow this. He simply flicks his eyes up to you for a single moment,before he goes back to doing what he was doing – pacing.

    Todaywas the day. Theday.The one day of the year he had to prove to the Blade of Marmora thathe was, in fact, capable of being one of them. Testing day camearound once a year, and this year would be his first one. He couldn'tlook weak now.

   Butanxiety had a nasty habit of robbing him of that feeling ofconfidence he so desperately needed in this moment. He needed amiracle, he thought. He needed some holy Angel to come down from theheavens and bless him with the skill to actually stand upright,because today, it felt like he could collapse at any minute.

   Itwas eating him alive, and there was only hours left before he was dueto step into the examination centre and prove himself to the peoplehe had wanted to impress for the past year and a half.

   Yousigh when you see him. Always so silent about his struggles, and yethis actions spoke paragraphs.

   “Isaw you training the other day.” You step into the room, closingthe door quietly behind you. Keith looks up again, finally stoppinghis movements and opting to simply tap at his lip to get rid of thenervous energy as you spoke. “You're good. Very good. They'd bestupid to let go of you now.”

   Keithcrinkles his nose up. “I was good for a Paladin. Not for them.They're on another level. One I don't think I've quite reached yet.”

   Youraise a brow. A part of this was almost humorous to you. Kulivan hadexpressed how impressed he was of Keith's performances on multipleoccasions, and praised him on his tactics after almost every missionthe Blade of Marmora went on. It was close to impossible at thispoint that they would ever willingly drop Keith.

   “Well,”you say, trying to hold back your giggles, “I don't know who toldyou you weren't onthat level yet,but from an outsiders perspective, you're the most fierce Galra I'veever seen.”

   Youstep forward once again. Keith narrows his eyes, noticing your littlesteps towards him that make him want to reach out and drag you intohim to speed the process up. Either way, he keeps his hands tohimself.

   “Andit would be a damnshameif this was the last time I saw you in that suit,” you continue,trailing your eyes down his toned body which is being hugged by thetight Blade of Marmora suit.

   Keithswallows thickly as you look back up at him, a smile gracing yourfeatures which is soon melting away as you press your lips to his asa final good luck charm.

   Keithfeels relief wash over him as soon as your lips touch his, and forthose few seconds, he isn't panicking. He's simply feeling. He'senjoying this moment with your hands wrapped around his torso and hishands on your waist and your lips on his all over again.

   Youpull away, looking up at him with those big eyes that scream 'faith'at him. Faith you have in him. Faith you've always had in him.

   Heswallows again and nods. “Right. That would be a shame. I guess Ihave to get through this then.”

   Lance:

   SeeingLance nervous was like seeing a newborn baby form a full compoundsentence – it didn't happen.

   Atleast, that's what you thought.

   Youdon't know what to think now as you sit back and watch your boyfriendpace back and forth, a thumb lodged between his teeth as incoherentwords of panic escape him. He looks so scared in this moment,thoughts clearly racing through his mind about todays fight.

   “Lance,honestly, you got yourself into this mess.”

   Lancewhirls around, a dramatic gasp exaggerating his sudden movement. “Youthink so, too?”

   Youroll your eyes, standing up and walking towards him. “You literallytold the guy you were going to fight him. He was perfectly fine withjust leaving it as a verbal argument.”

   “Idon't know what you're talking about.”

   Youcrinkle your nose up as you finally reach him, taking his hands inyours. They're clammy and slightly bruised from where he had beenpunching the punching bag all day.

   “Youcan just cancel it if you want,” you inform him, flipping his handsover to inspect his bruised knuckles. “I'm sure the bloke hasbetter things to do then fighting a Paladin of Voltron.”

   “Hetried to kiss you,” Lance says. “I'm not just gonna cancel thefight.”

   “Ipushed him away!” you exclaim, a laugh escaping you. “Andbesides, I didn't even know what had happened before you camebarrelling in and pushed him away.”

   “Godknows what would have happened if I didn't.”

   “Himand I probably would have gotten married, had kids, moved into abig-”

   Lance grunts, not letting you finish before he'spressing his lips to yours in an attempt to shut you up. You chuckleagainst his mouth, letting go of his hands so they can wrap aroundhis shoulders, clipping at the nape of his neck where you findyourself absent-mindedly messing with a strand of his hair.

   Whatwas meant to be a kiss to quieten you slowly turned into a kiss whichcalmed Lance down. The nerves that had been piling on due to thefight he himself had organised were slowly being released through thekiss, making him crave more whenever you pulled away.

   Hiseyes fluttered closed as he remembered why he was fighting in thefirst place – the guy had tried to hurt you. That was all he neededto remember to have the motivation to win.

   Hunk:

   “I'mreally not the fighting type.”

   “Thenwhy did you say yes?”

   “I'mreally not the type to say 'no' either.”

   Youpress your fingers into your eyes, rubbing the exhaustion out ofthem. You had been trying to calm him down for the past hour and ahalf, and yet here he was, repeating the same words over and overagain as if doing so will cancel the fight altogether.

   Youwant to tell him to stop, that fighting somebody wasn't going tosolve anything, but he was far too absorbed in the idea of beingtough thatyour words didn't seem to filter in his brain. He had taken notice ineverybody elses ability to fight hand-to-hand, meaning he had to doit as well.

   “Idon't know what you want me to say.” You let your hand drop, itlanding in Hunk's lap where he softly intertwines your fingers. “I'vesaid good luck about a thousand times now, and it doesn't seem to bedoing anything.”

   “Maybeyou could fight the guy for me,” he suggests. You raise a brow,tilting your head to the side and he groans, finally slumping backagainst the pillows behind him. “I don't know why I get myself inmesses like these. There's really no need for it.”

   “Youwant to prove your strength,” you point out. “It's normal, Iguess. I understand why you would want do. It's just – you reallyaren't muchof a fighter, Hunk.”

   “Goodwords of encouragement, babe.”

   Yougroan, tapping his arm. “You know what I mean. You're thehappy-go-lucky Hunk, and everybodies perfectly fine with it. Youdon't have to fight somebody to prove yourself.”

   “Everybodyelse fights really well in hand-to-hand combat.”

   “Becausethey trained. You haven't even gotten up from sulking yet.”

   Hunkcloses his eyes. He knows you're right. He knows he got himself intothis mess all because he needed an ego boost – one he might noteven get if he loses. Everybody had told him that he wasn't cut outfor fighting, and yet here he was – getting ready for a fight.

   “Okay,change of plans,” he says, rubbing his eyes. “I need somethingelse to calm me down. Your words of encouragement suck.”

   Youroll your eyes, finally deciding to use your last resort. With asigh, you lean forward, take his hands away from his face and placeyour lips over his. For a moment, he doesn't respond, too shocked toreally do anything.

   Butthen his body is relaxing and he is kissing you back. It's not justrelaxing into the kiss, though – his anxieties suddenly seem to beoozing out of him, replaced by the butterflies which never fail toarise in his stomach whenever you kiss him.

    Youpull away all too soon and intertwine your fingers with his again,looking down at him with that smile that made his head spin just thesame as it did all them years ago.

   “Howabout that?” you question. He licks his bottom lip, swallowingthickly.

   “Okay.Yeah. Yeah. I can do this. You're right. You're always right.”

   Pidge:

   Pidgewasn't sure who was more nervous about the upcoming fight – you orher.

   Ofcourse she was nervous. She always was when it came to this time ofyear. She had to prove herself to the masses yet again – she had tomake herself look good in front of thousands of people, yet again.

   Lastyear had been a disaster for her. She had gone on after Shiro, andhad immediately been snickered at. After seeing Shiro completelydominate his opponent, the last thing the crowd had expected was forsomebody like Pidge to walk out of backstage, ready to fight whoeverit was that was given to her.

   Thisyear, she had to prove herself. She had to show people that shewasn't just thesmall Paladin of Voltron. Shewas Pidge Gunderson. She was smart, and fierce, and scary when shewanted to be and she could prove it if she just-

   Yougroan loudly all of a sudden, swinging your head back in the dramaticway you had been doing for the past half hour. Pidge looks up fromher space on the sofa. She had been reading, said activity being herway of calming down.

   Apparently,your way of calming down was pretending like you were dying.

   “Everythingokay?” Pidge calls over to you, casually flicking the page of hernovel.

   Yougroan again, wriggling in your seat until you're laying across itsideways, feet hanging off of the arm rest with your other arm slungover your eyes. “This is too much. The tension is killing me.”

   “Youand me both. I just know how to keep quiet about it.”

   Yougroan a third time. “I'm serious! How the hell am I meant to justsit back here and watch you fight some random alien thing?”

   Pidgeraises a brow. “Are you saying I can't do it?”

   “I'msaying that if you get injured, I'm scared I'm gonna snap and do somedamage to the people outside.”

   “Youalways did believe in me.”

   Youopen one eye and send Pidge a warning sideways glance. She sighs atthe sight of it, rolling her eyes once as she sets her book downbeside her.

   Youshuffle upright, sitting up properly so Pidge can settle into thechair beside you. Her shoulder hits yours, her legs slightly tangledwith your own before she rests her head on your shoulder, pressingher warm lips to your exposed collar bone.

   “I'llbe fine,” Pidge says, messing with your fingers as she speaks. “Youknow the rules – no killing allowed.”

   “Pidge.”

   “Iwas trying to be comforting!” she insists. You shake your head,unable to hide the smile on your face. It only takes a moment for youto grab your girlfriend by the chin and pull her lips up to yours,pressing them together.

   Ina way, it was for good luck. Telling her she can do this if she putsher mind to it, just like every other task Pidge had ever taken on.But the kiss still brings Pidge back to earth, replacing herbutterflies of nerves with butterflies of need which she quicklyexaggerates by getting her fingers lost in the strands of hair she iscurrently tugging at on your head.

   Youbite down on her lip whenever you notice her getting handsy, makingher pull away with a pout.

   “Itwas meant to be for good luck. Don't get too carried away,” youwarn. She rolls her eyes one last time.

   “Ihave to win this damn fight so I can get some later on, don't I?”

   Yousmile. “Well, you certainly won't be getting some if you come homebattered and bruised, will you?”

   “Ilove motivation.”