#winter story

[sslytheringirl]

Winter

This is a cute story of y/n and Lorenzo Berkshire in the winter time.❄️

Nickname: Enzo/Enz

“Baby.”

“Yes, Enzo.”

“Can we go to hogsmate.”

“Sure.”

We both got out of bed, I went to the bathroom , little did I know Enzo followed me in the bathroom.

Just as I got my brushes.

“Sweetheart you know you don’t need makeup you are so pretty without it.”

“Thank you Enz, I just feel more confident with makeup on going out .”

“ Ok, but you are the most beautiful person I know with or without makeup.”

“Thank you baby.”

As I reach for the door and grab my coat Enzo did not grab his coat.

“Enzo it is very cold out ,you should wear you coat.”

“Baby I’m fine I have my sweatshirt.”

“your going to get a cold.”

“I will be fine.”

“Ok don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

We walked to hogsmate we went to this little coffee shop, both got hot chocolate.

As we walked out of the coffee shop,I hear Enzo sneeze.

“Baby we should go back ,you are starting to get a cold.”

“No it’s ok sweetheart ,we can stay.”

“No Enzo you getting sick, we are going back.”

“Fine.”

As we walked back Enzo’s lips were shivering.

We finely got back to my dorm.

“Baby get in bed you need to sleep and get warm.”

He immediately went straight to the bed.

“Baby can you sleep with me please.”

“Yes.”

As soon as I got in the bed,Enzo layed his head on my lap, as I brush my hands through his hair.

“I love you , Enzo.”

“I love you more, baby.”💚🖤



[bonfires-n-hares]

getcottage

[hershelchocolate]

How about one OC for each month of the year 😏 If that's too many, just the months with major holidays!

Oh I'm doing all of em babey

January:

(Art+design by hotchocolategalaxy on toyhouse)

Glace! The prince of the Winter Kingdom, constantly using the kingdom's resources to search for his parents, who had been lost in a blizzard. He keeps his head up though, and is a beacon for others who are also grieving the loss of their rulers

February:

(Art+designs by @arcaneyouth !)

Cabriel (blue) and Darciel (pink)! You get two for this one because You Cannot Separate Them. Not only were they from a valentine's themed adoptable set but they are also the gods of love who gained the title through how pure and wonderful their love for each other is. They would literally tear apart the universe to protect each other

March:

March makes me think of plants, and plants make me think of Raven! The leader of the mind control monsters, who uses vines/seeds/plants as their method of control. Very stoic and hardly ever shows emotion, but actions speak louder than words and sometimes they fuck with people for fun and it's awesome. In some sort of genderqueer toxic relationship that's lasted centuries that even I don't know all the details of and will refuse any knowledge of it if asked

April:

(Art+design by minuhime on toyhouse!)

April! Yes yes it's her name but she's also a cute bunny! She went with all her friends on a school field trip and had such a wonderful time until monsters started attacking and she was one of the first to be transformed into a creature representing her deepest fears. She was simply too sweet and soft and absolutely refused to believe she was in a horrored game

May:

(Art+design by @arcaneyouth !)

SURPRISEEE ITS EYUMIE AGAIN! She makes me think of May because that was one of the months where I was making my Junior Film starring her! Springtime always makes me think of her because of this tbh alshfgskg

June:

Daniel and Jade Hillston! Daniel is the main character of the murder mystery story that doesn't have a name yet, working hard to find the killer so he can free Jade, his daughter, who has been arrested for the crime. He knows she wouldn't do it. She would never. It HAD to be someone else. But he's always worried that person might be himself. I did a lot of the development for this story in summer and that's the time of year it takes place in so it always makes me think of it c:

July:

(Art+design by @arcaneyouth !)

Jubilee! They teleport using fireworks and are a minor deity in the Locked Love universe! Not sure what they do yet but they're definitely besties with Mirri and Ulrick. Treats checking in with them like a trip to their grandparents house

August:

(Art+design by @arcaneyouth !)

Aurelius! The final boss of a metroidvania-type game I started developing after playing Hollow Knight in the summer. They have taken on the role of antagonist simply because they didn't think the previous main antagonist was doing a good enough job to earn the role. They are dedicated to the theatrics, but always holds back when actually fighting. What kind of story would it be if the hero dies?

September:

This guy needs a name if anyone has any suggestions! One of the few humans in The Hallowed who is dedicating his time to trying to figure out what the FUCK is going on in this town. Makes me think of early fall where things are cold and chilly and just a little rainy but the trees still have leaves and there's a mist in the air. Thats his gender tbh

I'm gonna continue this in a reblog in hopes of being able to add the last two images give me just a moment

[thinkingfandoms]

One thing I've always found interesting is that we all of course love Winter's Story, but no one ever speaks about Melody Lane (the j-drama version). Of course, it's not even as remotely iconic as the og, but I think we all need to listen to it at least one time.

Also, here you can find the translated lyrics for both of the songs!

Melody Lane

Don’t go away, don’t let me go Keep smiling in the corner of my heart Don’t stop, don’t let it end Still remaining Melody Lane

I was dreaming of the old days looking close In a chilly day, the humming faded into the sky Your beautiful profile standing on the beach Too naïve to tell you anything

Letting the past times repeat Drowned in wondering to myself It’ll never come back no matter how I try

Don’t go away, don’t let me go The smell and heat you left Are still in my heart Don’t stop, don’t let it end I’ll play the rest of the song Which stopped at that time Still remaining Melody Lane

Collecting our memories Melted in long long days And break them again Silly promises, laughter And words I shouldn’t have told you

Don’t go away, don’t let me go I can’t forget The smell and heat you left That memory and that movement Here I’ll sing The rest of the song which suddenly stopped

In the city without you To tomorrow without you Keep playing this Melody Lane

Winter's Story

Just like the shade of snow That hasn't completely melted I carry on with these feelings inside me Hey, with what words Should I close the door of this love?

Your everything has lost its eternal tomorrow And now it's wandering around eternally Along with me Who was unable to say goodbye or move on from you

Just like a spell that's still unbroken Or maybe it's some kind of curse I'm still holding on to my thoughts Hey, what kind of tomorrow Should I look for in this town?

The cold tears that fall Freeze under the sky They're just pretending to be kind As they fall down my face Two people who were always together are now torn apart That's all there is to this story

Even if your everything loses its shape one day You'll always be here with me As I try to move on again Even though I couldn't say goodbye to you I’ll carry on because I know You’ll always be with me

[married-2-the-music]

SHINHWA Deep Dive #2

[fidjiefidjie]

Brambly Hedge 🐀 Winter story

Auteur et illustratrice  🔥🖌 📚 🌰 Jill Barklem

Bel après-midi 🙋‍♀️

[hershelchocolateart]

Another batch of designs I've adopted but hadn't drawn before now! A fun mix of guys I've had for a while and really recent in this one :) URLs of the creator's Toyhouse accounts are attached to the designs, except for @flowerrose14 who is! Right there! Go check out her designs they are AMAZING (and everyone else too!)

[jpopstreaming]

🆕 「 Winter Story」 by FLOW Available for streaming worldwide!🌐 Added to our weekly playlist 🎧 https://spoti.fi/3lgjH73

[kimwedlock]

In The Heart of Winter

Estimated reading time: 17 minutes

      Hmmm...a crackling hearthfire... It's quite a thing when the world outside is white, isn't it? Any other time, fire is something to be feared, something destructive, consuming...but now...heh, well now we adore it, don't we? We gather around it, we feed it, we welcome its warmth and the colour it casts over the cold, bleached world; it brightens even the wood of this old, dreary inn, glitters across these dented tankards, makes that tattered, ale-stained rug there seem a little less moth-eaten. I daresay even the woodworms are marvelling.     But the cold...it hasn't truly gone anywhere, has it? After all, a simple fire can't stop a season. And yet...knowing that winter is still lurking outside makes these flames seem almost friendlier, doesn't it? They don't seethe and spit, they laugh and flicker. But...I wonder...would we hear that at all if not for that very cold?     ...Heh, forgive an old bard her musings. Winter always slows me down, gives me too much time to think. Come, sit beside me while I tell you a story. There's plenty of room. And bring me a mulled cider on your way, there's a good neighbour.     Actually, just bring the whole pitcher.     Now, take a glance out through the window while you warm your hands over the hearth. What do you see?     It's a silly question, I grant you; what else is there but the snowfall? Drifting flakes of pure winter, floating like feathers and coating the world so absolutely. 'Smothering it', some of you might say; 'blanketing it' say others. But whether all seems dead, or all seems asleep, nothing but time can move winter away. No fire can hurry it out, nor any amount of wishing or yearning.     Nor can it hurry it in.     "Why would you want to?" I see the words on your lips. But please, keep your comments to yourself for the moment. For 'Summer Smiles, Winter Woes' - are they not, as many other things are, down to perspective? Association? Temperament? Heart?     This is an old tale, one forgotten but still familiar, as stories go: a wish against reason, a commitment to something impossible and irrational, powered by nothing more than the blind hope swelling in one's chest.     It involves a knight, of course - one of the usual breed: chivalrous, formidible, romantic, determined to the point of raising serious questions about his intellectual wellbeing. He was the Champion of House Aestas, with ancient ties to the summer, and he carried many titles, accolades and honours in their defence. He was a fury on the battlefields, a breeze in the courts, and an artist in his own spare time. But despite his allegience, it was always in the quiet solitude of the winter, when the world slumbered and war was forgotten, that his heart felt most at peace.     It had taken only one moment for that to change.     His mount had been lamed on their lonely patrol one December evening, a treacherous fault in the road hidden by the depth of the snow. The stirrup had trapped the knight's foot as they'd fallen, and his leg had been crushed under the horse's weight. With no shelter and no help in reach, the soft, gentle, numbing touch of the cold had almost taken him. Never in his battle-hardened life had the knight truly been so close to death.     From that moment on, winter's tranquil cloak had been replaced by something else - but it was not, as you might well expect, woven of anxiety or fear. Though it was also no less powerful.

    Five winters after that fateful eve, the knight clicked a younger horse along that very same snow-shrouded road, acutely aware all the while of its edge. The world glowed white around him, clouds puffed from the beast's muzzle and through the grate of his visor, and as he breathed deep the crisp air, an anxious shudder hummed in his chest. And when the road soon vanished and the thick, glittering, snow-muffled wilds closed in, it grew to a raging pounding fit to shatter his ribs.     Knight and steed descended white valleys, crossed slippery fords, passed unmounted through the black and white tangles of trees, until the wilds finally opened out and a frozen lake stood still and silent at the centre of the shimmering glade.     The knight stopped there, at the edge of the ice, and waited. His breath puffed a steady rhythm while his heart hammered at six times the pace. But it took only a moment for the radiance he awaited to appear.     A young woman stepped out from the frozen falls, a vision of youth and tranquility. She had hair of silver, snow and ice, skin of the purest ivory, and eyes as blue as the deepest glaciers. She was like a fragment of the landscape itself. And as she moved towards him, her frost-woven gown tinkled a somber melody, and glowed in the thin winter sun like diamonds.     And her smile, a smile just for him, was like the rise of the sun itself.     The knight's heart blazed like a pyre, just as it had on that December evening five years ago, when her impossible magic had revived and nursed him back to health, and the ache in his soul overpowered him. He surged towards her, threw off his helmet, and they kissed with the passion of lovers kept apart for a lifetime. The chill of the air around her crept over his skin, but he held her only tighter.     When they finally parted, the knight heaved a cloudy sigh and cupped Winter's chin in his hand. "Three seasons apart is too long."     "You shouldn't wait for me," she whispered, her voice as quiet as the snow.     But the knight shook his head, just as he had every other time she'd said it. "I will always wait. I could never love another."    "Then Spring," she said sadly, nestling her ivory cheek into his gauntlet, "will always pull us apart."     He could bare no other words, and drew her close again. In three months, he knew, she would be gone with the frosts, back to her own realm, while he remained in the plane of man and mortal. And he would not see her, hold her, kiss her, nor love her again for nine.     But neither would he hold, kiss, nor love another.     Every day, the knight dutifully tended to his master's wishes, and came back to her every evening. He slept in her arms, and she in his, and they walked, talked, laughed and sang together. With the snow flurries, her heart was warmest, her smile most joyful, and when the sky was as crisp, blue and empty as a glacial lake, her mind and demeanour calmest. And in every one of those moments, his own heart was at peace.     But all too soon, the season passed, they kissed for the last time, and she faded with the thaw, just as he'd known she would. And he returned obediently to his master, his world and his life, rigid of shoulder and dead of eye, and worked through the spring, the summer and the autumn, until he could hold her again.     The cold took an age to return, and, as things yearned for often do, passed in the blink of an enraptured eye; again she faded, the snow melted, the sun rose higher, and the flowers peeked and bloomed. And while the world awoke, his heart returned to its benumbed sleep.     But it was after the eighth winter, the eighth parting, the eighth ride back to the world that was his and held nothing for him at all, when his heart refused to quiet. He spent that year trapped in a relentless longing, mindless, just waiting for the return of the chill so he could brush her lips again.     He arrived at the lake one week ahead of the ninth winter, and watched the waterside every night, waiting for the first frost to creep and crackle over the ground. He gave her no chance to fully form when she rose from its fingers on that fifth night. But despite his haste, she saw how drawn he'd become, and the dim, faded flicker of the usual light in his eyes.     The night sky clouded, and her voice scathed like an ice storm. "I told you not to wait for me."     "I will always wait for you," he replied with a weak, crooked smile.     "The wait will destroy you. You're withering."     He said nothing. He knew it was true. He merely watched her instead. And she saw the thought in his eyes, a thought he refused to voice - a thought he feared would be set alight like a funeral pyre should even half the words come out. And a thought that screamed even louder for that fear.     She shook her head with all the regret of the stars and moved up against him, draping his arms around herself. "I can't go with you, my love. I won't survive beyond the reach of the cold."     "You control it," he reminded her hollowly. But she shook her silver head again.     "I am a slave to it. I can't leave its reach. It will kill me."     And how brightly that pyre burned.     The pair stayed together through the winter nights, walking, talking, laughing and singing, sleeping in each other's arms. But all the while, the inevitable dogged him like a spectre. A year spent yearning, and the season itself spent in fear. Knowing they would part, three months wasn't enough. It could never be enough.     The wretched world began its thaw, the sun chased out the frost, and with that final kiss, the knight's heart sank into his boots. And she saw the thought brimming in his eyes again.     "I cannot go with you," she repeated in a whisper. But this time, her words didn't cut like a blade through his chest. Instead, he fixed her with a stolid look.     "I know," he replied, taking her hands in his. "So take me with you."     Winter's ivory skin drained truly as white as the snow. "No," she replied in a panic, the sky turning from azure to thick, ominous grey, "I can't, you'll die if I do; you cannot survive in my realm any more than I can away from it!"     But the knight's eyes didn't waver, as firm as the steel that encased him. "You know this for certain?"     Her hesitation was enough.     He squeezed her fingers as the condemning sun crept higher through her clouds, she pulled him close against her, and with a kiss that was far from final, the world around them faded with the last of the winter's frost.     The chill overtook him in a heartbeat. His lips became numb against hers. But it was a familiar chill - her chill. A chill that grew as he felt her body move back from him. He opened his eyes to find her again, his heart leaping in a panic, but the gleaming landscape stunned and blinded him. He winced and searched for her hand instead. But she'd already taken his.     Slowly, his eyes adjusted, and he stared at the landscape, cautious first, then struck by awe like the kick of a horse. He took in the white hills, the crystalline pillars, the frozen lakes and bridges, the trees built from snowflakes; he watched the diamond dust shimmering in the air, the light glancing across the huge silver spheres that floated just inches from the ground, and the huge great bands of silver filigree that moved slowly across the sky, casting elegant shadows across the snow.     Their fingers laced as he took a slow step deeper into her world, his skin prickling despite his furs, and relief, comfort and wonder eased out in a single, mindless laugh. He breathed the crisp air, drawing it in as deep as he could, unlike any he'd tasted before. It filled his lungs and reached deep into his soul, clearing his every fret. With another breath, it seeped into his veins and purified his blood. With a third, it lined them. With a fourth, it splintered them.     His mind turned white, his fingers slipped, and he crumpled to his knees while his heart began to freeze. His rasping throat begged him to cough, his cracking chest begged him to breathe again, his numbing legs begged him to rise and run, to find heat. But he couldn't. Every motion burned in his tightening, seizing muscles. And while panic's frozen grip pierced deeper into his heart, he heard her voice beside him, roaring and chiming like an ice storm.     Her hands grasped him, arms squeezed around him, and the world about him warmed.     The knight lay on the thawing ground, staring up into the spring morning sky. Alone. Alone, but for the voice that trailed on a tendril of cold, frozen air.     'Wait for me no longer.'     The knight didn't return to his duties that spring. Instead of service in war, he scoured libraries. Instead of mingling with courtiers, he hounded intellectuals. Instead of pursuing the arts, he bargained with witches. And only in the dead of autumn did he find what he needed.     A legend within a legend, perhaps, but such is the way of things. Either way, the pellar answered his hopes. First bright beam Of winter's moon, Owned by glass Like glacier hewn; Housed and cradled, Of time-attuned, Proud heart 'comes Enchant-immune.     It was a long moment that the knight watched the pellar in his dark little hut, while the old man stared back in expectation. "What does it mean?" He finally dared ask. "I must capture the moon?"     The pellar answered by taking a glass jar from one of his many cabinets, a jar thick and crackled, but whole. He pressed it into the knight's hands as though it had always been his.     "I catch it in this?" He asked, his misgivings tumbling over the glass. "How will this help?"     "The first beam of winter's moon, cradled until season's end, will break the spell of winter's realm, and frozen hearts will mend."     Understanding soothed the knight's haggard face. "It will protect me from the cold of her world... Tell me, pellar: what do I owe you?"     "What can you afford to spare, my lord?"     "Everything."     And so the knight gave the pellar his entire estate. He wouldn't need it again.     When the tenth winter neared, he left for the lake, jar in hand, and captured the first beam of moonlight to grace the frosting ground. The light swelled as he jammed the cork in place, and, for a heartbeat, the glass glowed like Winter's own eyes, before fading to a subdued little pulse.     When she rose from the frost a moment later, she could see something had changed. He was aged and weary, but hopeful, and his smile dragged hope into her chest.     "I told you not to wait for me," she said as he enveloped her.     "And if I hadn't?"     He showed her the jar, and explained the pellar's plan. Misgivings moved through her eyes, but she voiced none of them. Together, they nurtured the light through the season, they kept it covered, kept it glowing, and it charged them both with hope. And when that tenth winter began to fade, on the morning of the first day of spring, the knight opened the jar, coaxed out the tame moonbeam, and let it melt through his armour, his furs, his skin, and wrap itself around his heart.     And again, Winter took a gentle hold of him, and the world faded and brightened to the realm of silver, snow and ice.     His eyes adjusted, the chill touched his skin, but he stood tall at her side this time, and looked again across the crystalline pillars, the frozen lakes and bridges, the diamond dust glittering in the air, the trees built from snowflakes, the huge silver spheres and the bands of filigree moving slowly across the sky.     And again, his skin chilled despite his furs, and he breathed deep of the crisp air. And still he stood tall. It filled his lungs. It lined his lungs.     It splintered his lungs.     And, again, the knight dropped to his knees while his heart began to freeze, and his wretched hope shattered like glass.     His lips couldn't curse. His chest couldn't heave. His fist couldn't pound the snow. Every motion burned in his tightening, seizing muscles. And again he could hear her voice, roaring and chiming like an ice storm.     Hands seized him.     The world around him warmed.     And he lay on the thawing ground, staring up into the spring morning sky.     Helpless tears finally sprung into his eyes. "It didn't work..." The voice didn't feel like his own. He couldn't feel his lips move. But as his blurred eyes adjusted onto the shadow half-obscuring the sky, he found Winter kneeling over him, and he watched her form flicker, the sky itself shining through.     Desperate urgency clasped his hands tightly around hers, and he dragged the pair of them back to their feet. "We can't be together..."     "No." Her voice was already growing distant. "We can't be apart."     Her lips pressed against his, her cold fingers brushed across his bearded cheek, and as irrational understanding gripped him, he pulled her closer and steeled against the ice splintering through his skin from her touch.     The pair of them froze at the edge of that lake, and as their hearts beat their last, the knight's moonbeam surrounded them, the cold light of a winter moon warding off the warmth of the spring sun.     When the next winter came, they awoke together and ushered the season in, and they walked, talked, laughed and sang as they oversaw it as one. The snow drifted with their joy, the skies cleared crisp more often, and storms were nary seen. And when Spring inevitably arrived to revive the world, Winter's final kiss froze them again under the shield of the knight's moonlight, until Summer's Woe passed, and Winter's Smile reigned once again. *

    The next time you look out through the window, warmed by a hearthfire's glow, what will you see, I wonder? Smothering, death and woe? Or the soft comforts of Winter's heart?     ...Would you mind refilling this? The cider's run dry.

---

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This story and its artwork are not to be copied or reproduced without my written permission. Copyright © 2020 Kim Wedlock

[blogjaneeyre]

[hershelchocolate]

🫵 pink

Great news in an effort to find guys that I don't talk about as often I literally have 5 guys burgers and fries that I so desperately wanted to share here

Amaranth, the Monster in charge of all the other Echo Monsters. She knew the role was coming and prepared for it well, insuring that she would never lose herself to the power that would someday be hers. And she's doing a great job so far! She keeps herself busy by collecting departed souls, keeping the ones she finds interesting to help her elsewhere. Because every Echo Monster is at least partially influenced by their Lead at all times, it means Echo Monsters quite often have very little apprehension towards death and pain. They know full well Amaranth is coming for them anyway

(Art+designs by hotchocolategalaxy on toyhouse!)

Celeste (right) pictured with her girlfriend Sable (left)! They are SOOO sweet and so so patient with each other. Sable is nonverbal and Celeste has godawful eyesight so communication between the two is fairly difficult but they just love each other so much. They care about each other more than anything so they've worked hard to find their own method of communication. They share music, they go places that remind them of the other, when Celeste is having a good day with her eyes they like to share art that makes them think of each other or moments they've shared, it's honestly so so sweet. They're both really shy but neither of them are afraid of standing up for each other. Celeste will berate you until you never speak to her again. Sable will just beat you up. And i love them

(Art+design by @arcaneyouth !)

Cynthia! The goddess of dreams, and protector of those who follow them. She dream hops to communicate, and tends to sleepwalk while doing so. Her assigned guardians spend most of their time making sure she doesn't accidentally hurt herself walking places, and she loves them dearly for it. She's only awake once a month or so, and uses her time to check up on those who haven't dreamed in a while and to make sure her domain is safe. Sometimes her friends try to predict when these conscious moments will be and surprise her c: she's very sweet and very quiet. And also incredibly powerful. But no one ever really sees her use that power, she doesn't enjoy it

(Art+design by @arcaneyouth !)

Mirage! The royal advisor to Raven, the queen of spades. Despite her title Raven is like 12 so Mirage has their hands full trying to guide her. She definitely knows what she's doing, she's studied hard and she's dedicated to her position, but Mirage can see slightly into the future and has debilitating anxiety so really there's only so much she can do to put his mind at ease. They try to use their abilities to help her during meetings but really they mostly use it to help her not get caught when she's trying to be a kid for once. He cares about her a lot. He's also going to keel over from stress at any given second

(Design by youronlydrpepper!)

Simon! I talk about him more than anyone else on this list but he gets added because of why he's pink. You see, Ghosts in the Whisper Court universe are color coded by how friendly they are to humans. Simon, according to this code, is naturally blue. It's nice! But it's not his favorite color. Since he's a Guardian Spirit he's given a lot more power than most Ghosts to use in protecting his given domain. Since his domain is a school that still sees daytime use, however, there's never really much to protect the place from. So he consciously and constantly uses some of his power to make himself appear pink all the time. It's fucking amazing and I love him. He comes off as this really professional and mentor-like figure to everyone around him and that he's really serious and then you find out he's constantly using 10% of his brain to make himself pink because he likes it :) I'm obsessed with him

[alphabeom10]

[married-2-the-music]

SHINHWA Deep Dive #3

PART ONE:

PART TWO:

[afropuffsartstudios]

Christmas Book Countdown 🎄(Day 4)

Title: A Christmas Carol

Author: Charles Dickens

[arhvste]

“this is killing me.” kuroo mumbled as he tossed his phone to his side. “just trust me bro,” his best friend-turned roommate bokuto grinned. “this works everytime for me i swear!”

kuroo sighed before grabbing phone again to refresh his instagram story views once more. several people had already viewed the post-gym mirror selfie he’d taken in attempts to garner attention from one particular follower of his; you. “maybe it’s too cringe…” he muttered while over analysing the photo that had already gained a couple of likes within the twenty minutes it had already been up for. “nah.” bokuto reassured him and pat his friend on the shoulder. “you look sexy.” kuroo stared back at the two-toned haired boy. “… thanks bro.”

this isn’t something kuroo would typically post but times were tough and he was desperate. he’d seen you around campus but luck was not on his side when it came to scheduling and the two of you barely had class time together. yet the little class time you did share, kuroo hung onto it tightly and would let scenes of these weekly one hour classes replay in his head more often than he’d like to admit.

“i feel like a modern jay gatsby,” the ex volleyball captain huffed. “my selfie is the equivalent of the wild parties he’d throw in hopes to get daisy’s attention except i don’t want to post every night, i’ve already made myself cringe with this one post.” bokuto stared back at his friend blankly. “yeah… whatever that means.” kuroo frowned back “it’s a classic, you should know what i mean!”

how much longer was he going to have to wait? bokuto had promised him quick results with this method and so far he’d felt deceived and lied to. if talking to you when he got the chance wasn’t enough to get a conversation going outside the classroom, then social media seemed like the next best attempt to start interacting more.

what were you doing? why weren’t you viewing his story? could you even see his story? did he accidentally block you?

these questions ran through his mind as he quickly rushed to check to make sure he hadn’t for some reason blocked you from seeing his story. he half wished he did because then at least he’d know what on earth was taking you so damn long to see the photo he was increasingly starting to hate more the longer it was posted.

“this is stupid.” he stated as he faced bokuto who had zero concerns in his method in gaining someone’s attention. “it works you just have to wait, trust me.”

kuroo frowned as the little red hearts of others who weren’t you fluttered from the bottom corner of the photo. “look!” his best friend grinned as he leaned over kuroo’s shoulder and pointed to the screen of his phone. “you’re getting likes on it!”

“what’s the point if they’re not likes from the person i posted this for in the first place.” kuroo grumbled back in response. he couldn’t believe he’d been subjected to such an attempt to gain some attention from you. it was ridiculous.

it had been about forty five minutes since he’d posted it and he was slowly losing his mind. sure, the post was going to be up for twenty four hours (if he didn’t give into the voices in his head telling him to delete it) so forty five minutes was nothing, but the minutes were beginning to feel like hours and he was dying inside. why weren’t you viewing it already and what could possibly be keeping you off your phone right now?

“this is stupid.” he decided as notifications from his old team mates started to flash up on his screen. the last thing he needed was lev replying with ‘looksmaxing’ to a post that was secretly dedicated to you. “no, it’s barely been up!” bokuto whined. “you look hot so you should get some replies anyway what’s the big deal?”

pinching the bridge of his nose, kuroo huffed. “the big deal is the person i posted this for hasn’t replied!” what was the point in making sure to go to the gym during a rest day just to take this photo if he wasn’t going to at least make his existence more known to you? he’d even worked his legs enough to the point of managing to achieve the sweaty but sexy look. the muscles in his legs were dying, but his dignity sure as hell wouldn’t.

the college student opened up his phone with the intention to end the mental war inside his head once and for all by deleting the post altogether. bokuto watched his friend in defeat but his eyes flashed. “yes they did!” he yelled and pointed to the screen as your name flashed at the top of his screen.

kuroo’s heart jumped at the sight of your profile picture he’d made a daily routine of staring at and the now blue dot indicating a message from your profile in his inbox. to think he was going to delete this post just a second too, what were the chances?

psyching himself up, kuroo took a few quiet deep breathes before letting the time next to your message pass for a few minutes. he wasn’t an instagram warrior by any means, but he knew enough about general rules in order to not look desperate online.

bokuto watched over his friends shoulders as the two stared in anticipation awaiting the message kuroo had been dying for. this was it. leg day two times in a row was gruelling and he’d regret it for the next few days but it would have been worth it. the countless messages from his old teammates mocking his attempts at a thirst trap could be looked past now that you had finally given into the bait he’d so carefully laid. this is what he’d been waiting for. days of preparing and deciding how to gain your attention had finally paid off and he was about to reap the rewards he’d sown.

clicking the message with baited breath, his heart raced as bokuto’s grip of his shoulder tightened. finally.

‘the label on your shirt is sticking out, make sure to cut it’

“a wins a win.” bokuto filled the silence between the pair as kuroo stared at his phone with a blank expression. “… a wins a win…”