#wow the people who make these movies really like the word secret

[neofelis----nebulosa]

against my better i ended up seeing some of the clips people are posting from kfp 4 and i actually really like it

[reputationmunson]

Crossing Lines | s.h x fem!reader

part one | part two | part three | part four | part five

series summary: steve isn’t your biggest fan, so why does he ask you to be his date to a wedding? | enemies to lovers, fake dating

chapter summary: your first date with Steve! and more :)

content: fluff, secret relationship, kissing, steve feeling insecure, mentions of eddie having a crush on reader, reader wears steve’s shirt, reader and steve being so in love it hurts, swearing, she/her pronouns, pet names, use of y/n, barely proofread

word count: 4.5k

a/n: IT’S FINALLY HERE! thank you for all being so patient with me and i hope the wait was worth it. (i also made steve softer than originally intended but i couldn’t help myself). also this is not the final chapter!!

thank you to @strwbrrydaydreams for listening to me talk about this chapter and for all of your kind words. i appreciate you so much ❤️

_

You had a date with Steve tonight. A date. With Steve Harrington. 

The same guy who, not so long ago, acted like just you existing was to spite him, the same guy who acted like being in the same room with you was pure torture, and the same guy who groaned after every time you spoke. 

He wasn’t that guy anymore, though. You hoped, at least. 

Steve kissed you silly two nights ago. He slept in your bed, nothing nefarious, just two people who no longer hate each other sharing body heat and kisses under covers. Then when he left for work the next morning, he pressed a soft, barely there, kiss to your temple.

He called you that night and asked you on a date. Due to the fact that you were keeping whatever was going between you two from your friends, you decided on a night in at your place. 

Just because you were staying in didn’t mean you weren’t going to put in any effort. You spent the whole day cleaning your apartment until it looked good enough to be in a magazine. You spent an embarrassing amount of time on your makeup until it was perfect. You even went out and got a new dress. It wasn’t anything fancy, just a simple sundress, but you thought it made you look pretty and you hoped Steve thought the same thing. 

You had candles lit, popcorn for the movie popped, and a bottle of wine ready to be poured in case things were awkward. 

There’s no way it won’t be a little weird going from barely being able to stand each other to…dating? You weren’t even sure what to call it. You knew you and Steve had to talk about it. You liked Steve, a lot, but there was also a bit of hesitation. He was so mean to you and he gave you a little explanation as to why the night of the wedding, but it was still confusing. 

Would he be hesitant too? Would he freeze at your touch? Would he still be cold towards you?

Or would he be the sweet Steve you used to know? 

You check the clock hanging on your wall and realize you don’t have time to worry about this as Steve would be here any minute. 

Your leg bounces anxiously as you hear footsteps approaching your door, followed by a knock. You take a deep breath, unlocking and opening your front door. Your nerves disappear when you see Steve. He looks so handsome, something you can really appreciate now. He has his hands behind his back, like he’s hiding something. 

“Hi” you quirk your brow “whatchya got there?” 

“You’re gonna think I’m so lame” he cringes. “I already do. Did you get me a present?” you grin. 

Steve chuckles at your excitement and moves his arms from behind his back to reveal a bouquet of your favorite flowers. 

“Steve” you whisper and your face softens. “How’d you know my favorite flowers?” 

“You told Robin one time and I guess I never forgot” he tells you and hopes you don’t make fun of him for remembering a mundane detail, but knowing you, you definitely will. 

“Wow” you breath out “you are so obsessed with me, aren’t you?” you joke and he playfully rolls his eyes. “Hey, you’re the one that got a new dress today” he teases. “How’d you know it’s a new dress? See, obsessed!” you counter and he throws his hands up in defense as a way to say “alright you got me. I might be obsessed”. 

“Are you going to invite me in or just let me stand out here while you bully me?” He cocks his head to the side and you pretend to ponder over your answer. “I guess you can come in since you got me flowers”

Steve follows you inside and into your kitchen. You rummage through your cupboards trying to find a makeshift vase for your flowers while Steve admires you. He wonders how soon he’s allowed to kiss you. Does he wait until the end of the night? Or can he steal kisses throughout the entire date? All he’s been thinking about for the past two days is kissing you. He’s not sure he can wait much longer. 

“Hey” he whispers, gently grabbing your hand and pulling you closer to him. “You look really pretty” he says and his hand cups your cheek. You lean into his touch, partially to try and convince yourself that this is real .“this is sorta weird” you mutter and his brows furrow. “Weird?” he questions. 

“Not like a bad weird, just different. I’m not used to you saying stuff like that” you confess “Oh, sorry. You look so bad tonight. Truly horrendous” he jokes and you stick your tongue out at him. “Meanie” 

“Let me make it up to you” he says, stepping closer so your bodies are pressed together. His lips brush over yours, but he doesn’t kiss you yet. 

“So pretty” he mutters against your lips. Your hand cups the back of his neck as you decide you can’t wait much longer and press your lips to his. 

As you kiss Steve, you realize there’s no point of return. There’s no world in which you could go back to hating him, or even just being his friend, after you know what it feels to be kissed by him. 

A simple kiss has never made you so weak in the knees before or made you feel like you had a zoo of butterflies in your stomach. 

The hand not on your cheek moves to rest on your lower back, keeping you as close as possible to him. You can’t help but smile, totally messing up the kiss. “Sorry” you chuckle and he rests his forehead on yours. “It’s okay. I’d smile if I was kissing me, too” 

“Oh my god” you groan before chuckling. “You’re insufferable, Steve” you kid, no malice in your tone.

“So insufferable” he jokingly agrees. “Do you wanna watch a movie now?” he asks, nodding in the direction of the living room. “yeah, um, but, is it okay if we talk first?” you nervously ask. “Yeah, sure. You’re not breaking this off already, are you?” he jokes and you shake your head. “No it isn’t like that. C’mon, let's sit.” you grab his hand and lead him to sit on the couch. 

“So,” you start and fiddle with the hem of your dress “I wanted to talk about us, I guess. I mean, not that long ago I swore you hated my guts and now you’re bringing me flowers and kissing me in the kitchen. I think it’s just making my head spin, ya know?” 

“Yeah, I understand. When I was buying flowers for you I kept thinking ‘this chick used to drive me crazy and now I’m picking out flowers and can’t stop thinking about kissing her’ and don’t get me wrong you still drive me crazy, but just a tiny bit less now that I get to kiss you.” he responds and grabs your hand that nervously fiddles with your dress. “Do you want this? Us, I mean.” he asks. 

“Of course I do. It’s just-ugh- I’m scared because what if we move too fast? or what if you have this image in your head of me and I turn out not to be that and you go back to how you used to treat me? And like I said before it’s a little weird, right? To kiss and hold hands? I just get scared that I’m gonna reach out to touch you and you’re gonna pull away.” 

“Yes, it does feel a little weird, but we’ll take this as slow as you want to, okay? I wanna be the guy you deserve. I know I can be an ass, but I’m gonna treat you the way I always should’ve treated you.” he promises, bringing your hand to his lips and pressing a soft kiss to your skin. 

“You really can be cheesy, you know that?” you tease. “Baby, you don’t know the half of it.”

“Baby” you repeat, your voice soft and sweet. “I’ve called you baby before” he states. “Yeah, but when we were fake dating. I know that you mean it now and it’s nice.”

“I’m sorry” he says and you look at him puzzled. “For?” you ask. “How I used to be” he clarifies. 

“Steve, you’ve already apologized. It’s okay” you assure him. “I know I have, but it doesn’t feel like that’s enough. I wish I could change it. Go back in time and smack myself upside the head.” 

“Oh, I’d love to do that too. Smack you, I mean. Not me, I’m perfect. But, we can’t change the past, so let’s focus on the future. Starting with watching a movie because this popcorn is probably cold and stale now.” 

Steve quickly pops a movie in, some cheesy horror that you’ll both make fun of. He lays behind you on the couch, his arm wrapped around your waist. It feels nice. Better than nice. You fit together perfectly like two puzzle pieces. 

As you watch the movie, he occasionally peppers kisses along your jawline or your shoulder. Sometimes you turn your head to give him a proper kiss on the lips, which turns into a brief makeout session before turning your attention back to the movie. ‘Slow, Harrington. Take it slow’ Steve thinks to himself. 

Steve knows that he loves you. He thinks he’s loved you since he met you. He doesn’t think you’re there yet, though. Hell, he hasn’t even asked you to officially be his girlfriend. How much longer should he wait to ask you that? He doesn’t want to ask too soon, but he’s also not sure how much longer he can hold it in. 

If he can’t tell you he loves you, he’ll definitely show you. He’ll buy you all the flowers in Hawkins, he’ll hold you and kiss you until you shove him off you, he’ll do anything to show you and make up for the past. 

_

You and Steve are fast asleep when there’s a knock at your door. By the second frantic knock, Steve stirs, but thinks it was maybe just part of his dream until there’s a third knock followed by a voice that’s too familiar. “y/n! Open the door!” Robin exclaims. 

Steve shakes you a little to wake you up. “y/n, wake up! Robin’s here!” he whisper yells. “That’s not funny” you mumble, still half asleep. 

“Hello! I know you’re home!” Robin yells and your eyes widen before you jump off the couch. 

“Fuck! What is she doing here?” you ask, frantically blowing out the candles you lit for a ‘romantic ambiance’. 

“I don’t know! It’s your apartment! Did she tell you she was coming over?” he asks, still whispering. “No, it’s Robin. She always comes over unannounced.” You quietly move to the kitchen, dumping out the popcorn and hiding the flowers in a cabinet. “Quick, go hide in my room. In the closet” you tell him. 

“Why in the closet? Why can’t I just sit on your bed until she leaves?”

“No arguing! Closet, Steve” 

He doesn’t argue any further, he quickly and quietly goes to your bedroom and squishes himself into the tiny closet. 

You gather yourself before opening the door to see a frantic Robin on the other side. 

“Hey, Robs. What’s up?” you try to sound casual. “I’m so bored, y/n, ugh and today sucked so bad! Work was awful and I dropped my burrito on the ground and- why are you wearing a dress?” 

“Oh, um, I just bought this, so I’m trying it on. Do you like it?” you ask, hoping she doesn’t ask anymore questions. “You look great, duh, but why is your makeup still on, it's like ten at night?”

“Just testing out some new makeup, ya know. I had zero plans tonight so I figured, why not?” you lie, but she seems convinced. “Makes sense, I guess. Since you’re free, do you wanna have a sleepover?”

“Oh, I don’t know-” “pleasepleaseplease” she begs like a toddler and it’s clear she won’t be leaving any time soon. “yeah, okay. Tell ya what, go wait out and my car and we’ll get some snacks. I’m gonna change.” you say, tossing her your keys. “Yay! Don’t take too long!” she says and walks outside. You lock the door behind her just in case and quickly go to your bedroom. 

“Is she gone?” Steve asks when he walks out of your closet. “um, sort of. She’s waiting in my car because we’re having a sleepover, so you’ll have to leave like ten minutes after I do. I’m so sorry” you apologize and rest your forehead on his shoulder, letting out a sigh. 

“It’s okay. Trust me, I know how Robin is” he chuckles and starts to rub your back. 

“I had fun tonight. Even if it got cut short.” you tell him and he beams. “Me too.” 

“Alright, turn around. I gotta get changed.”

“I can’t watch?” he jokes and you lightly shove his chest. “Face the wall, Harrington”

You change as fast as you can into a pair of sweats and a t-shirt then give Steve the go-ahead to turn around. 

“How do you still look so good? Don’t think I can let you leave now” He says, sauntering over to you. “You’re gonna have to. Unless you want robin to break down the door and find us making out.” 

“Hm, very true. How about just one kiss then?” 

“Okay, but then I really have to go.” you say and he pouts, but quickly pecks your lips. Then he pecks them again and again. 

“Steve” kiss “I really” kiss “gotta go” kiss

You like this side of Steve and love how sweet on you he is. It makes everything worth it. 

“Alright, get outta here. I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?” he promises and you plant one last kiss on his cheek before leaving. 

You hope Robin doesn’t notice how flustered you are. 

_

Although part of you wished you were still with Steve, it was nice to spend time with Robin. 

You hated that you couldn’t tell her about this. She’s your best friend and you tell her practically everything. Guilt eats away at you thinking about sneaking around with Steve behind her back, but she would absolutely blow a gasket if she found out. 

“You okay?” she wonders, snapping you out of your thoughts. “Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little tired” you lie, giving her a half-assed smile. 

“Can I ask you something kinda weird?” she asks and you worry she might already know. “Don’t you always?” you respond and both of you chuckle. 

“Have you seen Steve since you came back from the wedding?” she asks and you stiffen for a second, but quickly act natural. “No, I haven’t. One weekend was enough for me. Why?”

“He called me one day while you guys were there,” she starts and you wait for her to continue “and it just seemed like maybe you guys were starting to become friends” 

“What did he say when you guys talked?” 

“Basically that spending a weekend with you wasn’t the worst time of his life. He said you were funny and that his family loved you. Especially a little girl named Peneople. He really admired how great you were with her and please don’t tell him I said this he would kill me, but he thought it was cute, too, which drove him nuts.” she laughs

“He said that?” you hold back a smile, but you can’t stop the feeling in your chest. Like your heart just might explode. “Weird, right? I mean, coming from him. I really thought you’d guys come back and at least be acquaintances.” she sighs. 

“Nope. Definitely didn’t come back as friends” you say, which technically isn’t a lie. You didn’t come back as friends, you’re more than just that. “Anyways, I’m exhausted, Robs. Wanna go to bed?” 

After tonight, you really had no reason to be hesitant with Steve. You were all in. 

_ 

It had been a week since you saw Steve. A long, dreadful week. You missed him, which is something you never thought you’d say, and you still had to poke fun at him for telling Robin that he thought you were cute. 

You barely even got to talk on the phone with him. With conflicting work schedules and late-night shifts, it was difficult to find the time. 

Luckily, you’d be seeing him tonight, but unluckily, all of your friends would be there. You love them dearly, you really do, but you just want alone time with Steve and you hate that you have to act like you don’t want to be curled up next to him all night. 

You would be able to have a little alone time with him, though. He told you everyone would be there around nine, so you said you’d be there at eight in hopes to make up for lost time over the past week. 

_

Your excitement got the best of you, causing you to show up at 7:30 instead and you hoped Steve wouldn’t mind. 

Little did you know, Steve was counting down the seconds until he got to see you. He practically sprints to the door when you ring the doorbell, almost slipping in the hallway. 

“Hi” he greets you with a big smile on his face. “Hi, Stevie. Sorry I’m a little early.” 

“Oh, yeah, I hate that I have to spend more time with my girl”

My girl. He says it so naturally you can’t help but smile and feel all giddy inside. “You’re such a goof.” you say before leaning in to give him a kiss to say how much you missed him. 

Both of you melt into the kiss and you feel the weight of missing him lift off of your shoulders. His arms wrap around you and he pulls you inside without breaking the kiss. ‘Impressive’ you think to yourself. 

Your hands find a place in his hair, threading through the soft, brown locks. His hands grip your hips, occasionally squeezing your sides. You feel warm all over from his touch and his affection. You’re half tempted to tell him to call everyone and cancel. 

He kisses you until you can’t breathe, which is more appealing than it sounds. You’d kiss him till your lungs give out. 

“Mm, I missed you” he says when he breaks the kiss, pulling you in for a hug. “I missed you too, cheeseball” you reply and he snorts. “Cheeseball? What the hell does that mean?” 

“Cause you’re cheesy. Cheesy Stevie” 

“Please don’t let that become a thing” he whines. “Maybe it will. Maybe it won’t.” you say, nuzzling your face into his shirt. He smells like body wash and laundry detergent and his shirt is so soft you definitely need to come up with a plan on how you’re going to steal it. 

“um, so, I was wondering if maybe you wanted to spend the night tonight? You could come back after everyone leaves or something.” 

“I didn’t bring any overnight stuff.” 

“You live, like, ten minutes away, babe. Grab your stuff and come back.” 

“You must really want me here, huh?” you tease. “Yeah. I hate sleeping without a blanket stealer” he teases back. “I am not a blanket stealer.” you defend yourself and he laughs. “So is that a yes?” 

“I suppose it is. Consider yourself lucky” 

“yeah, yeah, I know. You’re the best and I worship the ground you walk on, blah, blah, blah.” He sounds like he’s being sarcastic, but he means every word. 

“As much as I enjoy this, we’ve been standing here hugging for like ten minutes. Can we snuggle on the couch now?” 

“You read my mind, pretty girl.”

_

Steve hated that he couldn’t kiss you, or touch you, or tell you how cute you look every time your nose scrunches when you laugh. He especially hated how close Eddie was sitting next to you. His forearm touching your thigh was driving Steve crazy. It doesn’t take a genius to see that Eddie has a tiny crush on you. He tries to hide his annoyance, but he isn’t doing a very good job. 

His jaw is clenched as he gives Eddie a death stare. Eddie is oblivious to it, though, thankfully. You? Not so much. You can tell Steve is annoyed and you want so badly to assure him he’s the only one you want.

Eddie’s crush was harmless, it could barely even be considered a crush. You knew that and so did Steve, but he still let his insecurity get the best of him. He was never mean to you, he’d never treat you the way Steve did. Should you be with him instead?

As Eddie tells a story, he theatrically moves his arms around and in the process, he accidentally spills his coca-cola on you, causing you to gasp. 

“Oh, shit, I’m so sorry, y/n” he apologizes, looking at you with puppy dog eyes. 

“Jesus christ, munson” Steve groans and stands up from his seat. “It’s okay, Eds, it was an accident” you smile and assure him it’s okay. 

“C’mon, I’ll get you a shirt” Steve says and you follow him to his room. Everyone is momentarily confused at how fast Steve jumped to your rescue, sharing confused glances at each other. They quickly brush it off, not thinking too much into it. 

“You okay?” Steve asks once you’re in his bedroom. “It was coke, Steve, not battery acid. I’m fine” you giggle. “Are you okay?” you ask when you see the unamused look on his face. 

“Yep” he responds in an irritated tone. “Steve, don’t do that. If we want this to work you gotta talk to me.” you rest your hand on his upper arm, giving it a light squeeze. 

“I love Eddie, I do, but I can’t stand how much he likes you. I don’t like seeing him all over you when I can’t do anything about it.” he confesses. 

“Steve” you sigh “thank you for telling me, but I don’t think Eddie likes me as much as you think he does. Yeah, we used to be a thing for like five minutes, but that was so long ago and it doesn’t even matter. I want you and only you.”

“But he’s so nice to you. He always has been and it makes me think you deserve to be with someone who’s always treated you that way, ya know?” 

You step closer to Steve, grabbing his hand and running your thumb over his knuckles. “Steve, please stop beating yourself up about that. I swear I forgive you, okay? Call me crazy, but I’d go through it all again just to be where we are right now” you promise, pressing a gentle kiss to his cheek. 

“And you call me the cheeseball” he playfully scoffs. “I’m sorry for being weird. It’ll probably happen again” he says and you giggle. “I know it will. Now can you get me a shirt? I feel sticky.” you whine. 

“Here” he says, handing you a t-shirt with a faded basketball teams’ name on the front. “Thank you. Now get back out there before they get suspicious” you tell him and he nods in agreement. “I love them, but I can’t wait for them to leave” he says with a sigh before leaving his bedroom. You couldn’t agree more. 

“What took you so long?” Robin asks once Steve returns. “Couldn’t find a shirt up to her standards. You know how she is.” he replies briefly. 

You come back out moments later and Steve can’t wait to tell you how good you look in his shirt. 

_

After the longest hour of your life, everyone eventually went home. You rushed back as quickly as you could from picking up some things at your place and you hoped that no one decided to come back once you got to his place and question your reasoning for being there. 

Steve left the door unlocked for you, so you entered without knocking and find him cleaning up the mess left behind by the neanderthals (Eddie and Robin to be specific). 

“Hi, handsome. Need any help?” you ask when you walk into the kitchen. “No, I’m pretty much done. You can go get in bed if you want and I’ll be in soon”

“I gotta do my skincare routine, then I’ll be ready for bed” 

“Skincare routine? What do you gotta do for that?” he asks out of curiosity. “C’mon, I’ll show you.” 

Once you’re in the bathroom, you pull out all of your necessities out of your bag and Steve carefully examines each of them. 

“Do you wanna do it with me?” you offer. “Only if you do it for me” 

You pull a scrunchie out of your bag and pull Steve’s hair out of his face. “What do you think?” he asks, referring to his new hairstyle. “You’ll be starting a new trend in no time” you kiss the tip of his nose and he hums in appreciation. 

You take him through each step of your routine, carefully massage the products across his face. 

“Mm, feels nice” he lets out a relieved sigh. “And you do this everyday? No wonder you’re so happy all the time.” 

“Yeah, that’s why” you snort. Sure, it’s relaxing and brings you peace, but the real reason you’re so happy is sitting in front of with half of his hair in a ponytail being pampered by his own personal facialist. “All done. You look pretty good if I do say so myself” 

“I feel like a million bucks, honey. Can we go to bed now?”

“Mhm, let’s go. I’m exhausted” you reply and quickly gather up your products, putting them back in your bag. 

Steve dramatically flops on his bed, opening his arms as an invitation to join him. You accept his invitation immediately. 

Your head rests on his chest and one of his arm wraps around you. The sound of his heartbeat soothes you, you’d like to think that it’s beating a little fast because of you. 

He whispers your name and you hum in response, half asleep. “Are you awake?” he asks and starts to rub your back up and down with his hand. 

“Barely. What are you thinking about?’’ 

“I know we talked about taking things slow, but if I’m being honest, I’m dying to ask you to be my girlfriend and you can say no, but-”

“yes” you interrupt. “What?” he asks, unsure if he heard you correctly. 

“Yes, I’ll be your girlfriend, dork.” you clarify, then press a kiss to the column of his throat. 

“I call you baby and you call me dork. How is that fair?”

 “Get used to it. I’m your girlfriend now”

_

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[callsign-venus]

I'll Be Home for Christmas | Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw x Reader

Description: With Bradley on deployment, you don't find the Christmas season as cheery as usual. The Daggers make it their mission to help you get into the holiday spirit. Cue intensely competitive gingerbread house decorating competition.

Word Count: 4k

Warnings: Fluff with a teeny dash of angst. Drinking. That’s pretty much it. Really just self-indulgent, friendship-heavy fluff with lots of pining. Enjoy x

Nat King Cole’s voice dances out of your record player has you put the finishing touches on your cranberry Aperol spritzes. Their cherry warm color makes you smile despite yourself. 

You have always loved Christmas, but this year it hits you like a truck – and not even one with a tree strapped on top. All the little traditions that usually warm your heart with holiday cheer feel just plain sad to do alone. You had a tremendous battle with your artificial tree, which fell on you twice. You were proud of yourself for not crying, and in the end you were able to admire all of its eight feet of glory. Then you remembered you had to light the whole thing. Two hours later, you had undone no less than three tangles of light strands, found out two of them were dead (and all your untangling had been for nothing), and had one big cry fest for yourself. Not even a steaming cup of cocoa made you feel better after that disaster.

Wrapping presents for your friends and family, rewatching all your favorite Christmas movies, and driving around rich people neighborhoods to admire their lights hadn’t gone as poorly, but they all made his absence grow harder to ignore.

When Bradley told you his deployment would last through the holidays, you struggled to keep your disappointment to yourself, though you’re sure he could see it shining in your eyes. As much as you would miss him during the holidays, you knew it was worse for him, with only emails and skype calls for comfort – no silly little Christmas rituals to occupy his mind.

“You need help in here?” Natasha’s voice jolts you out of your pity-party spiral.

“No, I just got distracted,” you say, scooping up two of the spritzes and offering her one. “Let’s get this party started.”

Phoenix smiles and accepts your cocktail. She herself had just gotten back from her own deployment, and pretty immediately sensed your holiday ennui. She was the one who suggested this festive evening, and you’ve never been more grateful for her friendship.

While you were listless in the kitchen, she had assembled the most perfect gingerbread house making station you’d ever seen: frosting packed into several near-bursting bags, candy canes arranged in perfect rows, gumdrops with a shimmering dusting of sugar, and a scattering of gingerbread roofs and walls waiting patiently to be dressed.

“Wow, Nat, this looks great.”

“Thank you. I’m sure the boys will mess it up in three seconds flat, but at least you appreciate it.”

As if on cue, your front door bursts open, and a clot of merrily dressed sailors spills into your home, arms stacked with presents for Secret Santa. You point to the open space under the Christmas tree, and quickly your and Natasha’s presents are joined by all the others.

After the presents are unloaded, you and Phoenix are engulfed in hugs. Fanboy is wearing a Santa hat, and he has two in hand that he passes to you and Phoenix, insisting that you put them on right now. You happily oblige, as you’re inching closer to how you usually feel during the holidays now that you’re surrounded by friends. Even Jake is cheery, having rocked up in an ugly Christmas sweater covered with bows and tinsel, which is bizarre yet comforting. You do your best not to think about the person you wish was here most, as the Daggers seem dead set to help you have a great Christmas despite his absence.

“This is for you, our gracious host.” Bob hands you a potted poinsettia. “Thanks for putting up with us.”

“It’s really no problem,” you insist as you place the flowers on the side table by your couch. “I love you all.”

He runs a hand through his hair. “Still, we’re a lot, I know.”

He’s not wrong – Coyote and Payback have already found the spritzes and Fanboy’s popped three gumdrops into his mouth – but you don’t mind. Even when the gingerbread house decorating competition starts. Calling it a competition might be an understatement. The Daggers are more than competitive, especially about inconsequential things. Nobody speaks as they draft their houses in bright white icing and stud them with decorative candies. The only way to get them to quiet is through arts and crafts, you muse as you decorate your house with swirls of icing like snow drifts and tiny snowflakes dotting the roof and walls. 

The sabotage begins early, when Hangman reaches for a bowl of peppermints and not-so-subtly brushes his hand over Phoenix's roof, smearing the frosting.

“Hey asshole,” Natasha says. “That’s my house.”

“Oh really? Looks like you got a little smear there.” Jake slides a finger across Phoenix’s carefully piped shingles, messing up her roof even more.

“You’re a dead man, Seresin.” Nat narrows her eyes. She won’t go for Jake’s gingerbread house, she’ll bide her time. You’re glad you’re not Hangman right now.

“Got anymore spritzes?” Coyote asks you.

You nod your head. “In the kitchen, help yourself.”

When Coyote gets up to refill his glass, Fanboy snatches his piping bag and swaps it for his almost empty one. While Fanboy’s distracted, Payback helps himself to the pile of Twizzlers Fanboy’s been hoarding since the beginning of the competition.

“Who is even going to judge these?” You ask almost absentmindedly as you stand a gingerbread couple together at the door of their house with copious amounts of frosting. “We all know whose house is whose.”

There’s a smattering of laughter.

“We’ll figure it out after Secret Santa,” Nat assures you as she completes the retiling of her roof, the eaves perfectly punctuated with peppermints.

Before you can question the logic of that solution, Bob asks for your opinion on colored versus strictly green and red gum drops.

“Hey, no helping the competition,” Fanboy complains.

“What?” You level a heavy gaze on him. “Scared you won’t win if Bob and I combine forces? I would be.”

“I’m just saying, this should be a fair contest,” he says.

You shrug him off and answer Bob, but in the spirit of sabotage, you neglect to tell him about the frosting dried on his cheek.

Even though you’re risking your gingerbread house’s safety, once you’ve finished, you slip into the hall. You refresh your inbox on your phone, and you smile as you see an email from Bradley.

Subject: Miss you

Hey pretty girl. Been missing you all day today. Wish I was there to hang stockings and give you the best mistletoe kiss the world’s ever seen. Don’t forget to hang it – you can leave it up until I get back. Don’t have a lot of time, but I just wanted to let you know that I love you and I can’t wait to come home to you.

Your heart flutters, as it always does when you get an email from him. You quickly type out a response.

Subject: Miss you more

Hey hot stuff. I’ve already hung the mistletoe and have no plans to take it down until you make me see stars under it. I miss doing holiday things with you (you really know how to wrangle the tree), but Nat especially has been helping me through it. Still, I really miss you. All I need is your arms around me and everything will feel right again. Can’t wait to see you again.

You press send and sigh. You never want to complain – it’s Bradley who had to live on an aircraft carrier for months at a time – but sometimes it feels so unfair for two people to be so in love and yet spend the holidays all alone.

You give yourself a moment to collect yourself before you go back to the increasingly hostile competition. Jake has icing in his hair – you know Phoenix is responsible, but her wrath won’t end there – and Payback’s house had a giant fist-sized crater in the roof. Surely unrelated, Coyote’s knuckles are dusted with gingerbread crumbs. You couldn’t help the smile the chaotic scene pulled from you. Especially since your gingerbread house remains in pristine condition.

You thank Nat for watching over it, and she responds with a bright smile. “No problem, I can’t have the boys messing up your Christmas celebration.”

“Hey!” All the boys except Bob protest in unison. Phoenix raises her brows, point proven.

Once all of the gingerbread houses are complete and aligned in a row like a candied neighborhood block, the party shifts toward the Christmas tree. Bob distributes presents to each of you. Yours is an envelope, and you know it is from Nat. Your name is written on the thick, cream paper in Nat’s graceful script, which you know like your own after years of friendship.

“No one can beat my present,” Nat boasts as she catches you studying the envelope.

“Oh we’ll see,” Coyote says.

You swallow down a little lump, seeing everyone around the tree without Rooster. Though you love and appreciate your friends, the emptiness of his presence is almost smothering.

Your mood warms when Jake volunteers to go first. You’re his Secret Santa, and just as you predicted, he loves the smartphone-controlled paper airplane you got for him. He opens it and has it folded  in a matter of seconds. He syncs it to his phone, and his first flight ends with the plane crashing into Coyote’s head.

“Durable.” Hangman remarks as he picks up the paper airplane, which holds its shape just fine.

“Asshole.” Coyote replies.

Payback is next, and he gets a bottle of scotch from Jake. You don’t know much about scotch, but from Payback’s reaction, you can tell it’s a really nice bottle.

Coyote gets Bob a navy Aran sweater, which Bob wastes no time throwing on.

“Feel how soft!” Bob says as he smothers Coyote in a hug. Cue three minutes of Bob inviting everyone to touch his sweater – you can’t blame him, though, it is really soft.

Bob’s gift to Coyote makes you wonder how Nat is going to top it. Bob made a crochet version of Taffy, Coyote’s miniature pinscher. 

“Thank you, I love it.” Coyote cradles the crocheted dog tight, and you wonder if you’re just imagining the tremble in his voice or if he’s actually about to cry.

“Come on Javy,” Jake says, “don’t go all soft now.”

Fanboy gets a countertop pizza oven from Payback, which instantly becomes one of his most prized possessions based on the sheer amount of pizza he consumes.

“Thanks, man.” He gives Payback a friendly punch on the arm. “You all have to come over for pizza night.”

You all hum in agreement. Fanboy’s pizzas are amazing, and you wouldn’t mind spending another night with everyone together. Well, almost everyone. You swallow down the lump in your throat.

Phoenix opens her gift from Fanboy slowly, as if she’s afraid of its contents. She peels back the shiny green paper to reveal a charcuterie board and a set of cheese knives with wooden handles that match the board. She hugs it close to her chest and mouths thank you across the room to Fanboy, who doesn’t notice because he’s reading the pizza recipe included with his oven.

Finally it is your turn. All eyes in the room land on you, strangely sober despite the freely flowing spritzes. You give Phoenix a quick glance as you slide a finger under the flap of the envelope, but her expression is unreadable.

“It's a…” you say as your fingers graze a satiny band of fabric. “Blindfold?”

You hold it up for everyone to see. Everyone’s expressions are carefully arranged to not convey anything. Not quite the laughter you were expecting. A sense of uneasiness blooms in your stomach.

Nat stands up and takes the blindfold out of your hands. Quicker than you can think, she’s tying it around your head.

“What is going on?” You ask.

She finishes the bow and pats your shoulder. “Just you wait.”

A few suppressed snickers fill the room and make your uneasiness melt into dread. The gentle shush of a door opening and closing makes it worse.

“I swear, if you guys are ‘How the Grinch Stole Christmas-ing’ me right now I will be so angry.”

The silence that falls after you speak is so, so loud. No one turned the record, so even Nat King Cole is quiet. But then you hear it. It’s hard to explain, but you’d know that breathing anywhere. You’d spent many nights falling asleep to that gentle lullaby or hearing it as he held you close in the kitchen, neither of you caring that dinner was burning on the stove.

You rip off the blindfold, and there he is. Bradley. Bradley. Standing next to your Christmas tree, a bow tied around his chest. The Daggers surround him like magician’s assistants, all their hands raised in a sort of ta-da manner.

You leap off the couch and into his waiting arms. He smells like an aircraft carrier and shitty coffee, his clothes rough and government-issued, and his hair cropped a little too close to his head than you know he likes – but he’s yours. He’s yours in the way his embrace consumes you, blurring the line between you and him, erasing the months and miles of distance between the two of you. He’s yours in the way the beat of his heart drums in rhythm with your own. Yours in the way that you are his as well. He lifts you up so your feet dance in the air, pressing kisses to the top of your head.

He sets you down and crashes his lips into yours. He slips his tongue into your mouth unabashedly, and despite your audience, you let him. The kiss is long enough that you start to feel bad for everyone else, so you sheepishly pull away.

“Goddamn, Rooster,” Hangman says, “let the girl breathe.”

“Yeah, yeah.” He waves the comment away.

But you don’t want to breathe. Not if your other option is to kiss Bradley until you’re both oxygen starved. Because you’re starved for him, need to feed on his presence. 

Then the realization sets in. Rooster is supposed to be deployed for another month. You wheel around to face Nat. “How the hell did you do this?”

She shrugs. “Loverboy emailed me last week, just after I got home from my deployment. Said he was coming home earlier than expected, and he wanted to surprise you.”

“Wait, so all of you knew?” You pointedly look at everyone, but nobody can quite keep eye contact with you.

Bradley wraps an arm around your waist. “They all did pretty good keeping it under wraps, huh?”

“I would hope so, given our clearance levels,” Jake says.

Everyone laughs, but you’re still reeling. You can’t believe Bradley is here. His calloused fingers rubbing the skin of your back, just under the hem of your shirt. His gentle laugh reverberating against your body, reminding you what wholeness feels like. His lips, slightly chapped (with none of your chapstick to steal on the carrier), murmuring into your hair. You can’t hear what he’s saying, but you know what he means nonetheless.

You’d imagined Bradley’s homecoming as a flurry of ripped clothes, bruising kisses, and mutual insatiable hunger, but this is better. All of your friends in the same room, sharing in this festive homecoming, looking like absolute dorks. Fanboy’s Santa hat sits askew on his head. Payback and Coyote are obviously drunk off their asses (they definitely pregamed the festivities, as Payback has been reduced to giggles and Coyote has actual tears streaming down his face). Jake has yet to realize the frosting in his hair, Bob the frosting on his face. And Natasha is a dork by association. You and Bradley too. But the overwhelming love in the room makes you want to sob happy tears.

Bradley happily indulges you all in judging the gingerbread houses. He gets down to eye level with each entry, runs his fingers along the roofs, occasionally snaps off a piece of candy and pops it in his mouth.

“Very good job, everyone.” He speaks to the group as if you’re all kindergartners, reveling in the building anticipation. There’s never a prize for Dagger competitions, but there doesn’t need to be. Bragging rights is all they need, no matter how menial the situation.

Bradley carefully reshuffles the houses in order from last to first place. Fanbody. Jake. Payback. Coyote. Nat. He purposefully shields first and second place. Only you and Bob are left – maybe the least competitive people in the room – and still, tension is thick in the air.

“And the winner…” Bradley’s voice booms like an old-fashioned gameshow host, “...is…”

He finally slides to the side to reveal your house sitting in first place.

Bob sticks his hand up for a high five. Your hands collide with a solid thunk.

 “Not fair,” Fanboy protests. “Rooster’s obviously biased.”

“Come on, he didn’t know whose house was whose,” Phoenix says. “Besides, you weren’t even in the top five, and Payback had a hole in his roof.”

“It’s ok, Nat,” you voice oozes with fake sympathy. “I’d be upset too if I spent so much time on a shit gingerbread house.”

Fanboy’s eyebrows shoot up. “Oh you want to play that game?”

He lunges around the table, and you immediately grab Bradley to use as a human shield. 

“Lots of talk from someone who’s gonna hide behind her boyfriend,” he says teasingly.

“I’m not hiding.” You tighten your grip on Bradley’s waist, his hands covering yours. “You can get to me, you’re just gonna have to get through him first.”

Bradley puffs out his chest. “Nobody disparages the gingerbread contest queen. She earned her title by being the best.”

Later, because he can’t keep a secret from you (the only thing that saved the Secret Santa surprise was only being able to communicate through email), Bradley confesses that he knew which house was yours the moment he saw it. But still, that one little detail doesn’t negate the fact that you are the gingerbread contest queen.

And Bradley defends your honor well as you maneuver him from behind to keep a distance between yourself and Fanboy. Eventually, Bob steps in to broker a peace deal to end the conflict. Somehow, you are roped in for bringing more spritzes to Fanboy’s pizza night, but he can no longer dispute the fact that you have the best gingerbread house. A win is a win, and your gloating privileges remain.

Later, when everyone is winding down and glancing at their coats hanging by the door, Bradley pulls you into the kitchen.

“Honey, I think our guests are about to leave.” You try to move back toward the living room, but Bradley keeps hold of your hand. “Please, let’s not be rude.”

He shakes his head. “They’ll understand. They know. They know exactly what it's like.”

You relent because he’s right. Even you don’t know what it’s like. Loneliness has been a long lingering companion of yours, but you suffer her presence at home surrounded by close comforts and your parents a short drive away. For Bradley, for Nat, for Jake, for Bob and all the rest, it’s different. It’s their job. They suffer loneliness with mostly long shifts and shitty food for company. 

So you let Bradley chase out his – and your – loneliness in the kitchen. As he pulls you ever closer, his palms flattening you against him, you wonder how you ever survived apart when it was so clear that your souls were really just one.

You break away panting. God knows how long you were indulging, but you just about jump out of your skin when you realize Phoenix is in the kitchen right behind you, pouring herself a glass of champagne.

Your cheeks warm. “Nat!”

“Sorry, didn’t bother me, so I didn’t want to bother you.” She shrugs. “Want a glass?”

You decline, and you and Bradley shuffle out of the kitchen like teenagers caught in the act. Nearly everyone is shrugging their coats on, chatting about the night, when they catch sight of the two of you.

“Now, just where in the hell did y’all run off to?” Jake prods.

You can’t even look at them.

“Just the kitchen,” Rooster says, locking his hand in yours. “Needed to make sure the champagne was still flowing.”

Everyone shares the same knowing look that makes you want to shove them all out the door. Instead, you and Bradley post up at the door like perfect hosts and thank everyone for coming as they slip into the surprisingly chilly night. Then, only you, Bradley, and Phoenix are left.

While everyone was saying their goodbyes, she was sipping her champagne and quietly wiping sugar, gingerbread crumbs, and crusted frosting off the dining table.

“You bitch,” you say as you swoop in to help her clean up. “How come you didn’t tell me as soon as you found out?”

She laughs and takes another sip of wine. “Why don’t you ask Rooster?”

You raise your eyebrows at him. He sheepishly grins.

“In my defense,” he says, “it was a really good surprise.”

“I can’t believe you two.” You laugh. “But thank you for the surprise. It was wonderful.”

You try to direct your gratitude to them both, but something in Rooster’s expression snags your gaze and won’t let go. There’s still an unsatiated hunger heavy in his eyes.

Nat sets down her now empty glass. “Alright, lovebirds, I’ll take that as my cue to leave.”

She gathers her things, and you walk her to the door.

“Thank you.” You give her a hug. Neither of you are super touchy, but your gratitude for her tonight is almost endless. “Thank you for everything.”

“Don’t mention it.” She squeezes you tight before letting go. “Goodnight, Rooster!”

“Goodnight!” He calls from somewhere deep in the house.

“Sounds like he’s waiting for you,” she winks. “See you soon.”

“Get home safe!”

And with that, it’s just the two of you. You expect Bradley to pounce the second the door closes, but he doesn’t appear as you linger by the doorway. Odd. You check the kitchen, living room, and dining room. All empty.

“Bradley?” You call.

“Right here.”

His response floats from down the hallway, from your bedroom.

And sure enough, there he stands in the doorway. Right under the mistletoe you hung up earlier in the week, the biggest grin on your face when you pictured his homecoming some time after New Years, all the Christmas decorations gone except the lonely mistletoe, waiting patiently for his arrival. But now, you can put the mistletoe to good use while Christmas is still bright on the horizon. The warmth of the season bleeds into the warmth of your kiss. Christmas will come as surely as it would have if Bradley was on deployment, but now you welcome it. You want lazy days sipping eggnog and baking cookies. You want late, festive nights at the Hard Deck with the Daggers, getting into pool competitions with Bradley as your loyal teammate despite how disastrous you are at pool, assured in his easy we-lose-together attitude. You want a Christmas morning with presents that don’t matter because the best gift you could ask for has already appeared right by your tree tonight, wrapped in a bow.

“Don’t leave me ever again,” you whisper against his chest.

“I won’t,” he says, “I won’t.”

You both know it’s not something you can ask of him, not a promise he can keep. It’s not fair to either of you to pretend like this will be his last homecoming, the last time you both are starved of each other for months. But right now, it feels good to pretend.

You can’t think long about his future deployments, however. Your worries melt away as Bradley makes good on his promise to give you the best mistletoe kiss the world’s ever seen.

[okaylikeschaewon]

Part 7: Rooftop

With a passed out Chaeyoung in your arms, you carefully opened the door to their apartment. After the first step in, you were greeted by Tzuyu who was walking around all dressed up, as if she had just arrived home.

“Oh! H-Happy birthday!” she stammered, blushing profusely.

“Thanks Tzuyu,” you replied with a smile as you put Chaeyoung down on their couch, remembering Tzuyu’s feelings towards being carried. As you turned back, your heart sank as you saw her expectant expression. “Oh, umm, thank you for the gift.”

“You didn’t open it, did you?” she asked, immediately figuring it out.

“Not yet…” you muttered, embarrassed by your thoughtlessness.

A weak smile to hide her pain and a subtle nod is all she gave you before turning away and avoiding eye contact. Before either of you could say more, Dahyun entered the living room.

“HAPPY BIRTHDAY!” she screamed while running at you and jumping into your arms.

Over her shoulder, you saw Tzuyu walk to her room and close the door behind her. You felt terrible, but you decided to suck it up to avoid ruining your plans with Dahyun.

“I’m so excited for this,” you said while squeezing the soft girl in your arms.

She hopped down and looked up at you with the brightest of bright smiles. “I made you something!” she squealed while handing you a little container.

“Oh? What’s this?” you asked while opening the lid to find a bunch of chocolate.

“Completely from scratch!” she said proudly as you took out one of the pieces of chocolate. “I even started with the cacao beans."

“Wow Dahyun I am impressed, this tastes really good.”

“Does it?” she asked with a slight pout of her lips. “I haven’t actually tried a piece myself, I was too nervous.”

“Here,” you held out a little piece for her which she accepted directly into her mouth before her eyes shot open.

“Wait, it’s actually not bad.”

“That’s what I just said,” you laughed while taking another bite. “So, where are you taking me for lunch?”

“It’s a secret!” Dahyun said happily before grabbing a bag from the kitchen counter. She walked back over to you and held her hand out for you to take. With her little fingers interlocked with yours, the two of you walked out of the apartment towards the elevators.

“What’s in the bag?”

She pressed the button for up before smiling at you again. “I spent the morning making kimbap,” she answered. “That and the chocolate. Oh, and remind me to send you home with some extra for Sana.”

“Will do,” you replied as the two of you walked into the elevator. It did sting just a tiny bit knowing Sana still hadn’t even sent you a text or anything. Maybe she forgot? You ignored it, figuring it wasn’t that big of a deal, before turning your attention back to Dahyun. “By the way, you hit the wrong button dummy.”

“No I didn’t.”

“You did, you pressed the button for up.”

“I know.”

Confused, you watched as she entered the elevator and then pressed the button for the top floor. When the elevator arrived, she held her hand out again and guided you down the hallway.

“Dahyun are we even supposed to be here?” you asked as she opened what looked like a maintenance door.

“It’s fine, I’ve done this before.”

“What exactly is this?”

“Come see for yourself,” she teased while opening another door.

As you followed her, it almost felt like you suddenly entered a new world. It was gorgeous. The door opened up directly to the roof where you could clearly see the Han River below. People were walking around, going about their daily business, like little ants scurrying for food.

“Dahyun…” you muttered, at a loss for words as you overlooked the view. “How’d you find this place?”

“I was exploring the building one day when I found it,” she explained. “I love living with Chae and Tzuyu, but sometimes I just like being completely alone. I would often come up here to be alone with my thoughts.”

“This feels like something straight out of a movie.”

“I guess it is a bit cliché,” she laughed while reaching into the bag and pulling out a blanket to sit on. “Regardless, I wanted to share my little special spot with you.”

“Thank you, Dahyun, this really does mean a lot to me,” you said while taking a seat next to the smiling girl. You kissed her on the cheek gently before helping her unpack the bag, noticing a subtle blush on her cheeks as you took out her homemade kimbap.

—

“Art museum?” Dahyun asked.

The two of you looked at each other before speaking at the same time.

“Chaeyoung.”

“Yeah that one was easy,” Dahyun sighed while laying down onto your lap. “What about something athletic, some sort of sport?”

“Well, I already have to workout with you girls all the time,” you said while resting your hand on her stomach. “Momo makes me go to the gym with her, Nayeon makes me do pilates with her, but I think golfing with Jihyo would be pretty fun.”

“You’re into golfing? Since when?”

“Not at all,” you answered with a smile, “but I’d go to the range with her. You girls look so damn cute in those Pearly Gates outfits.”

Dahyun started to laugh while you checked your phone.

“You know, we’ve been up here for almost three hours.”

“Has it really been that long?” Dahyun giggled. “Alright last one. Which member would you take to an amusement park?”

“Ah, and I’m still not allowed to pick you, right?”

“Stop trying to pick me,” Dahyun chuckled. “The whole point is that I want to hear which other member you would take.”

“Hmm, in that case,” you contemplated while lightly stroking Dahyun’s hair. “Momo.”

“Momo?” she gasped with her eyebrows furrowed. “I agree she’s pretty and all, but I don’t get that one. She’s terrified of rides.”

“I know, but I think it would be fun forcing her to go on them with me,” you explained while stifling a little laugh. “Also, she’d be down to try every single piece of food we could find.”

“Ah, okay that makes more sense,” Dahyun agreed. “It would be pretty funny seeing Mina all scared, too.”

“You’re one to talk by the way! You’d be just as scared as those two,” you chuckled while giving her cheek a playful poke on the cheek.

“No I wouldn’t,” she protested with a pout before her demeanor cracked and she started giggling, knowing that you were right.

“Alright how about I ask you which member you’d take out,” you suggested.

“I’m going on dates with Twice members?”

“It doesn’t have to be romantic, I meant more for fun,” you explained. “Unless you want it to be romantic.”

She gave you a strange look before nodding, “what did you have in mind.”

“Who would you take to a candlelit dinner?”

“Yah, what kind of friends go to a candlelit dinner?” she huffed, crossing her arms. “Give me a real suggestion.”

“Fine,” you laughed. “Who would you go on a trip abroad with?”

“Whoa, that’s…” she paused, pondering the question. “I think I’d pick Nayeon.”

“Oh? I’m not surprised, but why her?”

“I feel like she’d be fun to go with,” Dahyun answered. “I watched her whole Hawaii vlog, and I couldn’t stop wishing that I was there.”

“That’s so sweet of you.”

“I don’t really know how to explain it, but I feel safe around Nayeon.”

“Well, I think it makes sense,” you explained. “People might not notice it, but Nayeon really is always looking out for you guys.”

“I guess you’re right,” Dahyun said softly. “You know, back in the day I seriously got upset because she would always leave when I would show up on vlive. I made it a bit of a joke, but I was actually upset about it.”

“Oh yeah? This must have been before I joined the team.”

“Yeah, it was, but afterwards in private Nayeon came up to me. I realized after that how much she actually cares for us.”

“That’s so sweet.”

“Yeah, I’m pretty lucky to be around people like this,” Dahyun added softly.

“All of these date ideas sound pretty fun. What about you, where do you want to go?” you asked softly while rubbing her arm absentmindedly, staring into the distance as the sun began to set.

“Bold of you to assume I’d want to go on a date with you,” she mocked you while smiling.

“Ah good point, alright well then pretend for a second that you’re going to go on a date with someone else, where are you picking?” you responded while poking her in the ribs.

After pondering the question for a bit, she looked directly up at you again with a tender expression.

“I don’t know, maybe something along the lines of sitting alone on a roof with a guy I like for a few hours.”

Your hand paused while your eyes met with hers. The afternoon had been full of casual flirting and cheesy lines like this, but this one felt more real. It wasn’t clear if she was being facetious.

“Lucky guy,” you said, staring into the distance.

Time seemed to stop for just a moment - a pause, a second alone with your thoughts - then, without warning, Dahyun stood up and walked over to the edge of the rooftop. She began to lean against the parapet, the wind gently blowing her skirt around as she watched the sun setting in front of her. It was a beautiful sight: Dahyun’s gorgeous body eclipsing the sunset, the orange glow surrounding her hourglass frame.

After a short moment of admiration, you stood up and walked behind her. She didn’t react as you wrapped your arms around her from behind, nor did she react when you kissed her cheek. Inch by inch, the sun disappeared over the horizon, leaving the river below shimmering. It was beautiful. The two of you stood there peacefully, enjoying the sight, when suddenly you heard a sniffle.

“Dahyun?”

Still, no response, but she let you turn her around. With her back to the sunset, that amber glow surrounding her pale skin gave her a divine aura, one of true beauty. She had dewy eyes, but her minimal eyeliner remained untouched. Before you could say anything else, she kissed you.

She held her face right in front of yours after it ended, her untouched eyeliner no longer untouched. Behind her, the sun had set, dimming the entire world around you. She reached forward with her hands, grabbing yours and squeezing.

“Alone on a rooftop with a guy I like,” she whispered into your face.

“You sure you wouldn’t go on a date with me?”

Dahyun giggled as a couple of tears slid down her face, letting go of your hands to wipe them away. She was smiling, but you could see through the facade.

“One day maybe,” she mumbled before starting to turn back.

“Dahyun,” you said sternly while grabbing onto her again, refusing to let her turn away.

She bit her lip, not wanting to open up, but your insistent eye contact eventually convinced her.

“It’s just really… I feel like… I’ve just been trying so hard.”

It was your turn to kiss her.

“Dahyun, I notice your effort.”

“Do you really, though?”

There was another pause.

“Am I just not good enough for you?” she asked as her voice cracked, but this time no tears came.

“How could you ever think that?” you responded with a hint of anger, unable to hide your passion for her.

“It just feels like you’re always picking the other girls, am I being crazy?”

Instinctually, you wanted to affirm her belief, you wanted to call her crazy for ever thinking that you didn’t find her good enough. However, you held back and looked from her perspective. She probably understood that your job was difficult, juggling nine girls, but it was probably still not easy to see you with the others.

“You’re not being crazy,” you said carefully. “I’m not perfect, all I can do is my best when it comes to being fair to all nine of you.”

“I know, you’re trying your best,” she sighed heavily. “I’m being selfish again, aren’t I?”

Again, you kissed her, but this time you were more soft and reassuring.

“No, you’re not being too selfish.”

“Then why do I feel this way?” she cried out in pain. “I just can’t shake this feeling.”

“You have worked your butt off for years, all that effort as a trainee, those years of hard work after debut,” you pointed out. “It’s completely reasonable for you to want more. In fact, you deserve more.”

She looked up into your eyes, her self-consciousness palpable.

“Do I?” she whispered.

“Yes,” you muttered, kissing her lips again. “You deserve the whole world, and then some.”

“I don’t want the world.”

“Tell me what you want.”

She bit her lip, unsure what to say. It was on the tip of her tongue, the words just weren’t coming out.

“Be selfish,” you whispered to her. “Forget everything else, be selfish. Tell me what you want.”

More hesitation.

“Forget about my job, just tell me exactly what you want,” you pushed.

She continued to waver, biting her lower lip again while you stared deeply into her eyes. She was nervous, unsure if it was appropriate to speak her mind. It wasn’t until you gave her hand a soft squeeze did she finally speak up.

“I want you,” she whispered.

“Then I’m yours.”

“I want you to lust for me.”

“I already do.”

“Show me how much you lust for me,” she added softly before kissing you briefly. “It’s your day, I want you to take what you want.”

“The only thing I want is you,” you mumbled, kissing her lips again while your hands slipped up her skirt.

“Make me feel wanted,” she moaned as you kissed her neck. “Make me feel… special…” (lol)

“You are special,” you grumbled into her neck, kneading her soft ass with your hands.

“Then hurry up and do it. Take me right here. Right now.”

“Right here?”

“Yes,” she moaned as you began toying with the wetness between her legs.

“Right now?”

“Stop teasing!”

With an added roughness, you slipped her underwear off, dropping it down to her ankles. You stared into her eyes. There was doubt, worry, insecurity. She still wasn’t entirely confident in herself, but you weren’t going to let her keep that presumption. You ripped her shirt off, leaving her in just her bra and skirt. Next came her bra as you reached around her back, swiftly undoing the strap and letting it fall to the ground.

She stood there with her bare breasts open to the world, the cool air making her nipples taut and firm. One arm came up across her chest, covering the beautifully shaped curves, and you ignored it temporarily as you crouched down and lowered her skirt to the ground. You took a single step back and admired her body - her bright red face, one arm across her chest, the other covering between her legs which were squeezed tight together.

“That’s not allowed,” you said while grabbing both of her hands, pulling them away so that her nude body was fully displayed. “Don’t look away.”

As she started to look at you, you picked up her right hand and pressed your lips against the back of it, staring back into her eyes. Then, with your eyes now on her body, you kissed her forearm. Then her bicep, her shoulder, the side of her right tit, her hip.

Then you crouched down, pausing face level with the wet part between her legs. Next, you planted a kiss on her thigh, followed by her shin. With a final bend, you kissed the top of her right foot before pausing, shifting over the left foot and kissing the top of it as well.

As you moved up her body from the other side, instead of kissing it, you ran your tongue across her skin. All the way from her shin, up to her chest, her soft body conformed to the pressure of your tongue - a subtle line of wetness left behind. When you got to her left tit, instead of kissing the side, you pressed your lips directly against her nipple - this earned you a gentle moan. Then you kissed her shoulder, while her left arm hung down next to her body.

Slowly, you began to kiss down her left arm, crouching down as you went closer to her hand. With a final kiss on the back of her left hand, you shifted your body over slightly so that you were between her legs.

She looked down at you, as you looked up at her. You’ve never seen Dahyun blush this hard before, that messy eyeliner making her eyes that much more gorgeous. With the sun completely set at this point, the night sky above was shining down on the two of you.

While staring directly into her eyes, you leaned forward and pressed your lips between her legs, finally getting a taste of her ecstasy. As soon as your lips touched the skin, Dahyun let out a long, drawn out breath through her barely-open mouth. As your tongue escaped your lips, finding refuge on Dahyun’s moist folds, she started to moan into the sky.

Licking and sucking, left and right, up and down. Anything you could do to make her moan louder, you did. The taste was driving you insane, an ever-growing sense of lust developing inside you. She wanted you, but you couldn’t get enough of her. Even though you could feast on her wetness all night, it was time to take your prize - to show Dahyun how badly you really wanted her.

“Do you believe me now, when I say I want you?” you whispered while standing up in front of her and lowering your pants. You tossed off your shirt and placed your hands on her ass while she grabbed your shoulders.

She nodded with her face, still bright red, scrunched up in desperation. Despite being unable to vocalize it, she couldn’t wait. She needed you. It wasn’t until you stepped a bit closer and grabbed the back of her thighs did she finally come to terms with what was about to happen - you lifted her up from the legs with her back against the wall.

Her slick pussy was beckoning to you, begging for you, even as you held your cock right up against it you could feel the heat emanating from it. Teasing was not an option right now, not that you could even if you wanted to. You pressed forward, pushing your hips into her body, receiving another one of Dahyun’s painfully sexy moans directly into your ear. You kissed her neck, a final act of tenderness before what was to come.

Moans and gasps became one as you stretched her pussy out. Her body was calling to you in desperation, the wetness and warmth of her inner walls cradled your shaft as you pushed to the base. Part of you wanted to just go at it, have your way with her pussy, but your body had other plans. Slowly, methodically, your hips moved back and forth, stretching her pussy to the limit with each thrust.

It was slow, but not gentle. Each pump of your hips had force, making Dahyun recoil against your body. Her soft tits squishing against your chest. Pleasure reverberated through her body with each heavy thrust. She took a sharp breath each time your cock slammed into her, the sound of her audible satisfaction right next to your ear.

She was getting considerably wetter, evident from the puddle forming between your feet. Gently, you spread her ass cheeks a bit with your hands, her soft body easily moving. Now, every time you thrusted into her, even more of her juices sprayed down onto the rooftop.

Finally, her pussy began to convulse around your cock. You didn’t speak up nor slow down, you simply continued jamming your body as deep as it would go into her, using as much force as you could muster while holding her up. She was losing strength in her own grip, her fingers no longer digging into your skin.

As she slowly slid down towards the ground, you fell forward with her, keeping your cock embedded balls deep as her inner walls sent waves of pressure along your shaft. Her moans became muted briefly - she was unable to make sound.

Keeping your cock deep inside her, you slowly moved back and forth just a tiny bit - easing her into extending her orgasm. The warm contractions continued to engulf your cock, you had to slow down just a bit in hopes to delay your own orgasm.

“That was amazing,” she moaned softly, her body completely out of energy in front of you.

“You’re amazing,” you whispered, leaning forward and kissing her mouth. You kissed her mouth a few more times, when a sudden urge hit you like a truck.

After pulling out of her wetness, you stood up in front of her. She looked up at you, her tits bouncing up and down with each breath she took. Stepping over her, your legs on either side of her little body, you grabbed the back of her head.

There was zero resistance, she let you take control of her: she let you use her. Once you leaned forward a bit, she even opened up her mouth wide - it seemed like she was just as excited for you to enter her throat as you were.

Slowly, you inched forward into her mouth until there was resistance. Then you pushed through, past the barrier. Noises began to emanate from her mouth, her saliva dripped down her chin onto her chest, her legs bent at the knees and came up towards her chest, her hands gripped onto your legs. You paused for a second, staring down at her with her eyes shut tight.

Part of you wanted to stop, part of you wanted to see how far she would let you go. Your uncertainty was erased when she tried to move her head forward - she wanted you to push the limit. You tightened your grip on her head, bunching her hair up with your fingers, and pressed forward until your entire shaft entered her warm mouth. After holding yourself inside her for a few seconds, you swiftly withdrew from her lips, leaving her coughing.

“You alright?” you asked while gently rubbing the back of her head.

She looked up at you with her eyes watering just a tiny bit and nodded, wiping the shiny mess off her chin with the back of her hand.

“Please keep going,” she whispered to you.

The way she spoke made her sound so desperate. Begging, yearning for your attention. She didn’t care how tough it was, she only cared that you were focused on her. In a strange way, seeing how badly she wanted you made you lust for her even more - it seemed her plan was working.

Hurting her was not your goal, it was the last thing you wanted to do. So as you stepped up in front of her face again, you were gentle. Lovingly, you slipped into her mouth again. Despite knowing she was fine with you grabbing her head and ruthlessly throat-fucking her, you took far more care.

Immediately, her warmth brought you back to that state of pleasure. There was no urge to push past her limit, but you did make sure to get there each time your hips moved. You wanted her to know that she was appreciated while still making her feel safe.

With your hands on the ledge, holding yourself up, you looked out into the night and continued pumping your hips. The warmth of her mouth felt unbelievably amazing on your cock, especially in the cool night. Her mouth was comforting, a place you didn’t want to leave. You kept your hips moving, not jamming yourself into her throat, but pushing her to take a good majority of your length each time.

Slowly, sensually, you took pleasure in her mouth. She was, involuntarily or not, allowing her saliva to make a mess all over your cock. Her wetness left a hefty layer along your length, making it incredibly easy to pump into her soft lips.

The pressure was building up, and you could feel yourself getting close. It was becoming difficult to maintain your slow and steady pace. There was a desire in you to unleash, to thrust your cock as deep into Dahyun’s little throat as you could.

After pushing yourself back slightly with your arms, you looked down at the pale girl. She was so diligent, never once complaining about having her mouth invaded. She took it well - like a professional. You placed one hand on her head again, and pressed deep into her throat one last time before slowly pulling out of her lips.

“Keep going if you want to,” she gasped for air while looking up at you, her chin completely drenched in saliva. She reached up with one hand and wrapped her small fingers around your cock, slowly stroking. “Cum in my throat, on my face, do whatever you want with me.”

“You’re already giving me everything I could ever want,” you replied warmly while leaning down to grab her hands and lifting her up. You turned her around so that she could also see the river below being illuminated by the lights of the night. “Bend over,” you commanded the petite girl as she leaned against the barricade.

As she moved her hips back, your throbbing manhood naturally pressed up towards the sky. You pushed down, sliding your shaft between her ass cheeks. You slid up and down between her cheeks, enjoying the soft cushioning of her ass around your cock.

With one hand pushing down on your shaft, you slipped into her pussy again. Her lips spread with little resistance, a gentle moan escaping her lips as you pushed in. You wrapped your arms around her body, grabbing her tits as your hips started thrusting.

She kept her mouth open, softly moaning into the night each time you pressed against her backside. Just like you were with her mouth earlier, you were careful with her pussy. It wasn’t soft, but you weren’t willing to risk hurting her - she was too precious.

After fucking her from behind for a bit, her incessant moans filling the air, you took one step back. Your hands slid down her body and pulled her back from her hips, bending her over even more. She was so wet, that puddle between your feet from earlier was gigantic at this point.

It was time to finish, your cock was basically begging for it now. You placed your hands on top of hers, holding the barricade alongside her, and pushed your cock into her one more time. While your hips chased that not-so-distant climax, you bent over her back and started kissing her spine.

The slightly salty taste of her back filled your mouth as you neared your orgasm. Your hands squeezed hers gently, and her moans turned into gentle squeals. That warm pussy was driving you insane. Just as you were about to cum, you wrapped your arms around her core for support, holding yourself up with her body.

“Dahyun, fuck,” you cried into her back as your cock began to erupt inside her warm cavern.

Pump after pump you shot your load into her. Like the perfect girl she was, she held herself up, allowing her pussy to become a pocket for you to deposit your load into. The strength in your legs was disappearing, and this time you were the one sliding down to the ground while Dahyun followed.

After falling to the ground, you rolled over onto your back, staring up at the sky and heaving for air. With the little strength you had left, you turned your head to see Dahyun squatting next to you, a stream of white goo dripping out of her and adding to the messy puddle from earlier.

She then straddled your body, kissing you briefly, before rolling over to your other side where the ground was less soaked in your aftermath.

“It can be difficult, you know?”

“What is?” you asked, trying to control your panting.

“Seeing you with the others, I know that it’s your job, but it can still be difficult,” she sighed, holding her knees up to her chest.

After sitting up with your back against the barrier and snuggling up closer to her, you wrapped an arm around her shoulder. “I know, and I’m sorry things have to be this way,” you said softly. You silently vowed to give Dahyun some extra attention, cherishing what this girl meant to you. “Was that as good for you as it was for me, though?”

“It was,” she whispered, moving closer to you. Her body was shivering. “Thank you for looking out for me.”

“Always, I’ll always be looking out for you,” you replied, trying to transfer your body heat to her with your hug. “Never forget that.”

“I won’t,” she whispered softly, her teeth clattering. “Do you think there would ever be a world where we could start dating?”

“Of course, if it was announced that Dahyun from Twice wanted to start dating there would be a massive line,” you said softly while crawling forward and grabbing the blanket from earlier. “And I would be at the front of that line,” you added, wrapping the blanket around her.

“What if it was just Dahyun,” she asked quietly.

Your heart skipped a beat.

“Do you mean…”

“I don’t know,” she mumbled. “I’m worried, what if the others don’t?”

“We both know I’m not allowed to tell you about the others,” you answered solemnly. “I can only discuss what you’re going to decide.”

“I’ve already agreed to renew,” she said softly, squeezing your body under the blanket. “My only worry is if the others don’t. Without them, there is no Twice.”

“When I said I’ll always be looking out for you, I stand by that,” you said while squeezing her back. “Even if the nine of you decide to move on, I’ll be here for you.”

“That’s more comforting than you could ever know,” she yawned, the fatigue of her efforts today finally hitting. “But I’m not ready to move on, not yet.”

“Then, before you move on, maybe we need to explore this idea of us dating,” you suggested.

“I don’t know if that’s fair to Sana,” she said shyly. “The two of you aren’t exactly a secret.”

“Hey, I assure you Sana is fine with it if you are,” you responded. “Are you?”

“I think I’d be open to trying,” she said, her cheeks turning bright pink.

“In that case, let’s get you inside before you hurt yourself,” you chuckled. “It’s freezing up here.”

“It wasn’t so bad while you were fucking me,” she giggled.

---

A/N:

What can I say, I'm a Dahyun simp. Honestly this Birthday series was initially only going to be two chapters, but it's looking more like it'll be four. Le Sserafim... soon... sorry to keep everyone waiting! For Twice, there is soooooo much to come. After Birthday is done, I'd expect two cameo chapters and then MiSaMo focus!

As always, I am loving all the support from my readers! I can't believe how many people genuinely enjoy my writing. Someone even said I'm their favorite author... love you guys!

I do want to ask one thing. Of course follows/likes/whatever are cool, but I'd really love to hear feedback! I honestly care about feedback through comments, DMs, whatever, way more! Not only does it make me happy to hear what people think, it also helps me with my future plans.

Of course, if you don't want to send feedback, then you absolutely don't have to. Just keep reading and enjoying or whatever, or don't, live your life <3.

[rafesslxt]

🐰 secret bunny⎥ rafe cameron

part 1 ⎥"welcome back"

「 ✦ 𝐇𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐤𝐞𝐞𝐩, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐧𝐞 ��𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐲 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞.✦ 」

summary: Scarlett, JJ's cousin comes to visit him after 4 years, surprising everyone. But even than, what would be a day on obx without a fight between the Pogues and Kooks?

word count : 2436

warning: memory of losing someone, death, shooting,JJ pulling out his gun, English is not my first language

JJ's POV:

"So when did you want tell us that you - or should I say we - get a guest over the summer?" I shrugged my shoulders. "John B knew it." "Wow, so a complete stranger spends the whole summer with us and you don't think it's necessary to tell us?" Kie raised her eyebrows in a huff and pierced me with her gaze.

I looked at my watch and got up. " Yes, and I have to go now. By the way, you know her. It's my cousin Scarlett and I didn't tell you so you wouldn't make such a big fuss like last time until she felt uncomfortable."

"What? Scar is visiting us? Today?" Pope almost screamed. "See! That's exactly why I did not tell you!" " When was the last time she was in outer banks?", Kie asked. " I don't know, I think 4 years ago?" "I hope she hasn't changed and is still as cool as she used to be."

I left the house and took John B's Van to get Scar from the ship she came on.

Scar's POV:

It had been a long time since I've been here and yet the air smelled exactly as I remembered it. I had missed the warm weather and the nice people, but the older I got, the more and more responsibilities I had at home. Besides college, I helped my parents with the marketing of their company. They were markers in New York and I supported them with their website and Instagram profiles. In addition, I would occasionally take photos of the houses for sale.

As much as I loved helping my parents, I was glad to have a break from everything and finally visit my cousin JJ. I missed him from time to time, but we never had much contact when I wasn't here. As soon as I arrived, however, we were inseparable as children. Talk about the devil.

"Scarlett!"JJ yelled, who just got out of a van. "JJ!" I smiled and jumped into his arms. "How's my favorite cousin huh?" I laughed and hugged him tightly before letting him go. "Good, I'm your only one." I took a closer look at him now that he was standing in front of me.

He had grown a lot, his face looked the same as it did 4 years ago, just a little more mature. He looked more athletic and his style hadn't changed much either. He still looked like a typical surfer boy from the movies. The girls here had to kiss his feet.

JJ took my luggage and put it in the back of the van. "I'm surprised you didn't come on your bike." I knew he loved to ride his bike and I wouldn't have been surprised if he'd come on it instead of the van.

"We'll ride it soon enough," he winked at me and got into the van. " So? Go on, tell me. How are you little one?"

During the car ride, JJ told me everything that had happened in the last few years. His life hadn't really changed and his circle of friends was still the same as 4 years ago. I told him everything about home, how my family was and what I had been doing for the last few years.

We arrived at a small hut where John B lived, as far as I could remember. Excited, I got out of the car and helped JJ unpack my luggage before we brought everything inside. "This is where you're going to live for the next 6 weeks."

We went out onto the terrace where the rest of the Pogues were sitting. " Oh my god, hey." I felt myself getting a little emotional seeing everyone again after such a long time. "Scar!" John B was the first to ask how I was and hugged me tightly. Then I hugged Pope and after him Kiara. "Kiara. I'm surprised to see you here. Are you a Pogue now too?" I smiled and pointed at the others. Kiara was always better off with the Pogues than with the Kooks. Who on the island cared more about the turtles than her?

" I needed a change of scenery from all the glamor." she shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly and smiled back. But as quickly as her smile appeared, it disappeared again when I asked my next question. "Do you know where Sarah is today? I wanted to meet her when I've settled in. Why don't you come with me if you want?" She just shook her head. "You know, Kiara and Sarah aren't really friends anymore. There was this thing..." Pope began. "This thing, exactly. That she's a bitch, you mean?" She looked annoyed at Pope.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't know that." Sarah had never mentioned anything. Back in the days, we spent almost every day together. Kiara, Sarah and me. I wondered what could have led them to no longer being friends. " But have fun with her anyway. Hopefully you'll see as quickly as I did that she's a snake."

"There's a party at the beach tonight, you'll definitely meet her there," JJ assured me. I exhaled deeply. I was beginning to get the feeling that a lot had changed in the time I had been away.

In the evening

I went to take a shower and changed into some new clothes as I was already sweaty from the warm weather and the trip here. "Hey John B, thanks again for letting me stay here with you. " I knew that his father had been gone for a long time now and probably couldn't imagine how hard that must be for him. " No problem, JJ's family is my family too. Well, except for your uncle. " My uncle was the reason I spent my time in the Outer Banks at John B's. My parents and JJ didn't want me to sleep over there because they knew what Luke was like. Besides, JJ assured me that he slept at John B's most of the time anyway.

I chatted with John B for a while until the Pogues arrived. Together we went down to the beach where I met many familiar faces again. Including Sarah's. "JJ I'll be right back." Before he could answer, I ran to Sarah. "Sarah?" A wide smile appeared on my lips as she turned around. " Scarlett!" I probably heard my name for the 1000th time today. Happy that she was as exited as I was, I hugged her tightly and closed my eyes. "Oh my God, I've missed you so much!" she murmured into my shoulder as she returned my hug.

"Look at you! You're even more beautiful than last time!" she said, making me spin around. "What about you! The boys here must all be after you, right?" Embarrassed, she looked down at the floor and something clicked in my head. "Don't tell me! Do you have a boyfriend?" " Yes, his name is Topper. He's over there with his friends." I looked in the direction she was pointing. A boy named Kelce was standing next to Topper with another guy. I couldn't tell who the third one was because he had his back to us.

Sarah waved Topper over and he followed her hand like a puppy until he stood next to us.

"Topper, this is my friend Scarlett. Scarlett, this is my boyfriend Topper." she introduced us. " Ah, Scarlett. Sarah has talked a lot about you, especially the last few days." "Scar is enough and I'm pleased to meet you. " I shook his hand. I wish I could have returned his words, but Sarah hadn't said a word about him, which surprised me a little.

Rafe's POV:

"Where is he going?" Kelce asked me. "What? Who?" I followed Kelce's gaze. Topper ran to my sister who waved him over. I wasn't really surprised at that. She had him wrapped around her little finger since day 1. What did surprise me was who was standing next to my sister. "Who's that girl next to Sarah?" I asked Kelce. "I think that's Scarlett. Topper had mentioned something about Sarah being happy because she was coming to Outer Banks today. " He shrugged his shoulders and continued. " You know I hardly listen to him when he talks about Sarah."

My eyebrows drew together. Scarlett? Why did her name sound so familiar? Kelce seemed to have noticed my look " Man, that's Scarlett! She used to play with Sarah and Kiara. It's been years since she was here. "

Suddenly I could remember her. Scar. Kelce was right. She used to play with Sarah and Kiara at our house.

I took a closer look. Her long blonde hair fell in waves over her shoulders. I could already see her curves from here. Damn, she's grown up. I licked my lips and took a few steps closer. "Watch out before something flies into your mouth." Kelce laughed loudly. I closed my mouth and punched him lightly in the ribs. "Shut the fuck up."

Scar's POV:

"I'm throwing a costume party at my house tomorrow. My dad and Rose are going to the Bahamas for the weekend. Why don't you come over if you want? Then I can introduce you to the rest of us.", Sarah suggested. "That sounds great. Is there a theme? Or a dress code?" I asked to make sure. "No. You can come as whatever you want." That meant I would definitely have to go shopping tomorrow.

We chatted a bit more with Topper when JJ and John B joined us. "Hey Sarah! Can I interest you in a tasty Milwaukee beverage?" JJ offered Sarah. Sarah looked at the beer and then at JJ " No, but thanks." " Oh sorry. Is it not fancy enough for you?" A little irritated, I looked at my cousin. "JJ, she doesn't want anything." Sarah smiled at me and said " No, we were just leaving."

Now I was even more puzzled. We had been talking normally. Why were they just leaving? The atmosphere quickly became tense. I wondered if Sarah already knew what was going to happen.

"Hey, you know what? I'll take it." Topper said and reached for the red cup, but JJ pulled his hand away.

"If you said pretty please, maybe. But you didn't." " Oh really pretty please? Pretty please?" " So Sarah, you can have it." JJ tried to give his cup to Sarah again but Topper interrupted him by tipping the cup into JJ's face. "She doesn't want it, you dick!"

JJ tried to reach for Topper but John B intervened." Hey JJ. Come on he's not worth it man." He pushed him back more while I ran to JJ's side. "JJ what was that about? What's your problem with each other?" Before I could get an answer Topper shouted "Dirty Pogues!"

John B let go of JJ, stormed towards Topper and pushed him back. It only took a few seconds for them to start punching each other. John B fell into the water and turned around. "Hey John B, don't make me drown you like your old man, all right?" John B got up and rammed Sarah's boyfriend to the ground.

Slowly everyone gathered around and shouted: "Fight!Fight!Fight!"

"John B! Stop it!" I screamed, as did Sarah next to me. Kie joined in and yelled "Guy's stop it!" JJ and Pope cheered their friend on as he slammed his fist into Topper's face. "Stop cheering him on! Stop it you idiots!" I screamed into their faces.

They continued to fight and it didn't seem to stop until Topper got the upper hand and threw John B into the water and pushed his face under the surface. My stomach turned at the sight. Why didn't anyone intervene?

Sarah screamed Topper's name in vain. " JJ do something! He's drowning your best friend!" I wiped my face in panic. This was not how I had imagined my first day in Outer Banks. Suddenly JJ came up behind me and ran straight towards them. Just as the weight on my heart dropped, my eyes caught sight of something sparkling silver in JJ's hand.

He held a gun against Topper's head. "Yeah, you know what that is." Everyone started running away when they saw what JJ was holding against Topper's head. "JJ! Put the gun down." Sarah tried to speak calmly to him and took a few steps towards them. " Did you say something, princess?" " We're good! We're good! All right? Come on, man!"

" Kie! Can you check your psycho friend please?" Sarah called out to Kiara. My eyebrows drew together at her statement.

"Okay everyone, listen up! Get the hell off our side of the island!" JJ screamed and shot into the air. My whole body flinched at the sound.

"Aaron! Can you hear me! Please say something!" I shook his body as hard as I could but got no response. "Please please get up! We have to get out of here!" Tears were streaming down my cheeks and snot was coming out of my nose. "Scar, I love you. Tell mom and dad I love them too okay? Please. " " No! No! Get up come on! Please someone help us!" I screamed but no one came. Everyone ran like crazy through the streets and tried to hide.

" Scarlett! Are you okay?" Kiara brought me out of my thoughts when she touched me on the shoulder. I jumped and looked at her. "Scarlett, you're crying." She pointed at my face, which I wiped with my sleeve seconds later. I nodded and ran over to JJ.

Pope yelled at him and pushed him. "Are you crazy? What have you done you idiot!" "What did I do? I saved him!" They continued to argue until Kiara intervened. " Hey! That's enough guys!" JJ looked at us. I saw him look at me and recognize my red eyes. " Shit, Scar. I'm sorry, I- " " Can we please just go? Everyone's gone home anyway.", I said and went to John B who was still in the water. I helped him up and handed him to Pope.

After we had gathered all of our things, we walked to John B's hut. I changed straight away and layed down. Kiara and JJ stayed here too. Pope went home because otherwise he would be killed by his dad if he didn't show up. I had a hard time falling asleep that night with my hand around my pendant that was hanging from my necklace. Hopefully tomorrow would be a better day.

—

Let me know what you think 🫶🏻

part 2

Secret Bunny Masterlist

xoxo sarah

[duusheen]

Hi! So I’ve been following the Pollock legacy since the start & I absolutely love your way of storytelling/gameplay! I’ve always been curious if you follow a specific legacy challenge or if it’s all randomized for each gen? I’ve been wanting to get into a legacy myself but I completely suck at storytelling. So any tips/advicr? Love your blog!!

heyaa!! First of all, omg thank you so much! I really appreciate your kind words 😳 and thanks too for sticking around from the very beginning lol 6 generations of Pollock… wow 😫

aaanyway! this is kinda long so ☝🏽🤓

Ngl it took me a while to figure out how I wanted to tell my sims’ story because I’d probably wither away and die from stress if I had to do 100% storytelling (I truly admire those who can seriously), and I’d most likely get bored if I went full-on 100% gameplay simmer. This balance works for me, half storytelling, half actually playing the game (because, let’s be honest, if you don’t create a story in your head, this game sucks)

So that brings me to the following tips:

Create a story! Give your Sim context, build a backstory in your head—their origins, their childhood, their personality. Even if you can’t or don’t want to write it down or showcase it in gameplay, it’ll help you connect with that Sim, who you know so well. You know their flaws, strengths, and secrets (even the dirty ones 😳)

Tell your story! Whether through gameplay, storytelling, poses, animations, random facts—whatever you’re comfortable with! It doesn’t have to be 100% one way or the other. Go wild! It’s your story, and you tell it however you want.

Look for inspiration! Other challenges, simmers, movies, TV shows… even your own chaotic life(?. Whatever works. This will help keep you from getting stuck and keep things interesting. You can also ask for help from the people here. (I promise they’re all very kind and willing to throw ideas your way if you need them!)

The most important thing: It sounds cliché, but have fun! If you’re not enjoying it, you won’t want to stick with it, so try to have a good time, do whatever you want, and enjoy it!

Try everything. Not all players like to follow a challenge strictly. Some prefer more flexibility with the rules, while others need clear objectives to play. It all depends on your playstyle and what you feel comfortable doing.

Ask (respectfully) for a Sim! If you’re not feeling attached to your own Sims, you can always ask one of your mutuals to make you one. I love playing with Sims that others have created, knowing they put love, dedication, and time into them (sometimes, if you’re lucky, they’ll even give you a backstory to work with), motivates you to give them the best Sim life possible!

Now in my case, for example, I started doing the Globetrotter Challenge (just kidding, I started with the Human Enough challenge, but shh). I made Wilde, took him all around the sim world, and at some point during the challenge, I grew attached to him. He had a personality, likes (he had a boyfriend someone made for me, my first friend in the community), and it felt wrong to just leave him forgotten in a save file. So I kept playing. Now, I’m not following any specific challenges or rules (except the ones I make myself), though I have a Jiminy Cricket in my DMs with whom I conspire every day to make life miserable for my sims (and hers lol)

[lady-phasma]

Daemon is not a character I enjoy and I don’t feel any attraction to him. But I absolutely love Matt Smith. I am vastly more attracted to him when he is himself or the Doctor, than as Daemon. I think I just vibe more with his personality. What Matt character (other than the Doctor or Daemon) do you enjoy most? 💖

HI nonnie! Daemon certainly isn't for everyone, I get it. Eleven is goofy and funny and has his dark moments.

That's a tough ask. Like runner up I guess? So Eleven is definitely my favorite, Daemon a close second. Probably Prince Philip in The Crown (and not only for these two lines) is my third.

I thought I would do some honorable mentions as well and one where Matt has given his all to a role in a pretty terrible film. People might think of Morbius when I say that, but the one that comes to my mind first is always Terminator Genisys (2015).

Wow this movie is bad and I love the Terminator franchise. It was one of the first films he did after he left Doctor Who. I really want to spoil it for everyone but I won't. His character "Alex" isn't who he seems (you can google it if you want to). Matt really did a great job here, but it's painful to watch this movie fall apart over the 2 hours. My man gave it his all. (Not to mention that I like this haircut despite loving his crazy, floppy hair.)

Another honorable mention has to go to Jack, in the absolutely amazing Last Night in Soho (2021)! Matt is so good at playing villains that I really enjoy those roles. Jack is the absolute worst, but Matt makes him believable yet not over the top. Sleazy. It's a wonderful performance.

You can literally find some of my gifs of him by searching words like "Matt Smith's ears" because I have a serious problem.

So, I'm not going to review every role he's ever had because that's not what you asked. I will say I have yet to get my hands on a copy of Mapplethorpe (specifically the Director's Cut) and will watch it as soon as I can. I know it's been out for a while but it's hard to get. Until I have watched it, my last honorable mention is his role as Martin in Official Secrets (2019). It's his most understated supporting role, in my opinion. When he's the lead or part of an ensemble, he has loads of personality, almost overwhelmingly. This film is well written and well cast and that always helps. His role isn't huge but he performs it with sincerity and authenticity.

Rescue me chin boy and show me the stars. sigh. that chin though.

Was that long enough for you anon? LoL If you follow me (seems like you might), you know that I'm longwinded when I talk about Matt's acting. If you haven't seen these, I suggest you save the best for last and get Genisys out of the way first so you can enjoy the others more thoroughly. Most Matt fans have seen more of his work than they realize as his career his been relatively short and he takes time off from film/tv to do theater. He only left Doctor Who 10 years ago so you don't have a long filmography if you decide to work your way through it.

Always feel free to pop by and tell me more about your favorite roles he has played or let me know when you watch new ones! And that goes for this anon and anyone else. My blog is definitely one third Matt Smith, if not more. This ask made me so happy because I don't often get to talk about my man, since I mostly write fics. Thank you, anon!

[williamaltman]

So, I just finished Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe. Well I'm not crying right now which is disappointing, but I was sobbing yesterday and had to stop and go to sleep so now I just read the last 3% of it.

For context, I had watched the movie a little while ago, because I saw it being talked about on twitter a bit, and tbh I thought it was pretty meh? But I was curious and I saw so many people saying the book was so much better or, just so great in general so I decided to read it.

And wow did it not disappoint!!! I knew the major plot points but I didn't mind it at all. It was so easy to read, to get into Ari's head, to feel like we're a part of their friendship ourselves.

I love me some good amount of characters just reflecting about themselves and about their life, and well, clearly this has a lot of that. I always wanted to just keep going, to continue living with them, I don't know how to explain.

I'm so in love with like, everyone in this. These parents are probably the best parents in the history of YA stories lol. Dante is the perfect little manic pixie dream girl to fall in love with, but he's so believable and vulnerable, yet also strong at the same time. His feelings about his heritage is one of the things that keep him more grounded (and I kinda like that Ari isn't the one dealing with that). Ari in his teenage angst and existential dread was so easy to relate to. I felt for him at every turn, even when I was slightly annoyed. I actually can relate to so many things about him even if I don't think our personalities are actually that close: Having such a nice intimate relationship with my mom, not really knowing how to talk to and get to really know my dad, having those girls at school who bother you all the time and are kinda your friends. And well, being bored and depressed and not having many friends, if that counts. I also broke a leg a few years ago, so even the parts related to the accident...

I thought it was great that the book wasn't just about romance, both in how it's more about friendship at first, and in how it has so much else going on in Ari's life and his family and everything. Not because I don't want all the romance, but just because it feels so much like we're actually in Ari's life, getting to deal with everything that is going on with him and around him.

I thought the way Dante's sexuality was handled was very interesting. I like that they make it pretty clear that he's gay, even without saying the word. I like that he just says it to Ari, because in so many stories it's like a shared discovery between the two characters, and when it's not then one is already out when they meet. I always end up empathizing more with the character that's in that position, so I got protective (...don't even get me startes on what he goes through) and also just so... I don't know how to say but it's Interesting to have Ari's pov as the "straight friend" (who wr know it's actually not lol) during that.

Despite this being a romance, it has also sadly reminded me of my old best friend from school, who I just haven't kept in touch with. The way we just clicked, despite my reluctance to open up at first. I'm sad that we didn't get even closer and continued being friends after it. Mostly by my own fault.

Anyway out of this tangent, I don't think there's a single thing about this that I didn't love. The moment that really got me towards the end was when Ari's dad talks about the accident. "I think you love him more than you can bear". Witj the way Ari is clearly so against talking about it because he knows deep down that it's the proof of his love...

I think if I had read the book, I would have liked the movie more, just for seeing the book play out on screen. I thought the actors were pretty good and I imagined them reading. But it just doesn't quite stand on its own as a film. It needed like 30 more minutes or so, and like I've seen someone say, a book with so much inner monologue it's probably hard to adapt.

Either way, I'm so fucking glad that there's a second book!!! I'm so excited for it. I can't wait to just, see all their parents' reaction at their relationship. I am wondering how different is it gonna be in tone with them being together now? How are things gonna be handled in general? I'm so eager to find out.

[cobycobsy2k]

"Welcome back to this Reality Show! Today we will have the first challenge where we will test our contestants and their culinary qualities! Will they be able to prepare a delicious dish for our Bachelors? Find out today on THE BACHELORS !"

THE BACHELORS Episode 2: "Drama Kitchen"

Xander and Coco: Congratulations guys! We're really glad that all of you were able to make it to this round! It's really not easy to introduce yourself and meet new people, but we two are very proud of each of you!

Coco: So for our second round, you will be assigned to prepare both Xander and I a delicious meal, whether it be breakfast, lunch, or dessert. For that they will be distributed in pairs!, since this will make things more interesting, but remember that from here we will begin the elimination rounds, if someone does not manage to have more than 10 points, unfortunately they will be eliminated!

Xander: So let's form the pairs: Keegan will go with Lexie, Hazal will go with Francisca, James and Salma will go together and finally Lauryn will go with Charlie! We recommend that in pairs you plan very well what you are going to make for food, you can tell us anything!

Apparently the assigned pairs made a lot of impression on everyone, some were a little surprised and also a little upset.

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

Francisca: Wow, first time I come to the set of this mansion, nice decoration! Well, let's get to the point, that Hazal girl and I have to do something that will shock both Xander and Coco! I was thinking about using my powerful secret salad recipe, but I think I'd better ask Hazal for ideas.

Producer: Hey Francisca, your outfit is spectacular!!

Francisca: Thank you darling! That's why I came, to dazzle everyone with my elegance and sense of glamour!

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

Lexie: OMG, I can't believe we got to work together!

Keegan: Me too, Lexie! Your outfit is really adorable! How do you manage to dress so well?

Lexie: Well, I get a lot of inspiration from watching movies and series, although I also tend to read fashion magazines a bit. You should see all my blogs on MyPlumbSpace!

James: Hey Cousin, are you thinking the same as me?

Salma: Obviously James! Let me see if there are any cooking shows on TV! Everyone should know that we Waldorfs cook very well!

Couples are busy planning what to make for food, some already have ideas ready, while others are still undecided. You can tell that Hazal, Lexie, Francisca and Keegan are getting along very well.

Hazal: We could make maybe a salad or some hamburgers… That's the easiest thing we could do.

Francisca: Hey Hazal, I wanted to tell you if we could make crepes! I'm a very expert when it comes to making crepes!

Hazal: Maybe… What if we better do both?

Lexie: Taking advantage of the fact that you and I are here in this same room, Francisca, I wanted to tell you that the other day I received a call from someone who threatened me, demanding that I leave the program… Does this sound familiar to you?

Those words quite surprised Francisca, who was quite surprised and at the same time confused.

Francisca: What are you talking about, Lexie? I admit that I'm a little competitive, but I wouldn't cheat to win…

Keegan: Lexie And why do you think Francisca was the one who threatened you?

Lexie: Lauryn and her partner told me something like that!

Hazal: Honey, do you realize who the hell is telling you that fake Francisca shit? Charlie has already made us all sick of it! I'll only tell you one thing, take good care of your friend Lauryn with him…

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

Lexie: Wow… Apparently I started a drama here, the truth is that was not my intention, I just wanted to clear things up with Francisca. But I see that she is innocent and someone wants to ruin her reputation, but who would be able to do something like that?

Lexie: I swear that if I make it past this round, I will invite Francisca to go to a nightclub to apologize!

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

Francisca: And where are Charlie and Lauryn!? Let's talk seriously with them!!

The two of them were just coming home from shopping for their prescription.

Charlie: Good morning everyone guys! Why are you so serious with me?

Hazal: Shove your good morning up your ass!! Are you so unhappy to cause problems for the other team!?

Charlie: What the fuck are you talking about Hazal!?

Francisca: Don't act stupid, all you want is to win at the expense of us all fighting!

Charlie: I swear I don't know what the fuck you're talking about!! You know what? FUCK YOU ALL!!

Salma (While she was watching TV): OMG, he is literally soo rude!!

[kaylinalexanderbooks]

Find the word tag

Still making my way through this pile up

Thanks @aziz-reads for the tag!

My words: yearn, few, tense, bounce

Your words: bet, unique, glare, pleasure

Tagging @little-peril-stories @blind-the-winds @thepeculiarbird @andyswritings @sarahlizziewrites @jezifster @jessicagailwrites @little-mouse-gardens @buffythevampirelover @emabatis @revenantlore @fairy-tales-of-yesterday @hallowedfury or anyone who sees this

Keep reading for:

Robbie and Akash angst?? Usually they're so funny!?

Everyone is concerned about Maddie except Maddie

Ash is conflicted about making a bad decision but ultimately makes a bad decision

Akash knocks himself out (this is like the third time I've posted an excerpt from this scene)

Yearn Longed (closest synonym) - from The Secret Portal Part One (Robbie POV)

The bell rang for class to start, but I blocked it out. I hated the way people treated Akash. I turned to him. He was updating his planner for the week, but I could tell that he could hear the whispers, too. Hated them, too. As much as they upset me, I honestly couldn’t imagine how they must affect him. It wasn’t all negative. Just Jason, his buddies, and a couple of other racist and/or ableist dicks. Some were sweet to him, but not because he was a cool guy—which he totally is—but because he was different. “Special.” He was a person, like everyone else. I wasn't so pessimistic that I believed everyone was only nice to him because of his disability, but I was realistic enough to know that people just act differently around someone who was, well, different, even subconsciously. Because of this, Akash and I hadn’t made a giant friend group over the years like either of us wanted. Maybe one day. There were plenty of people who liked me—an annoying amount of people, who did the same thing they did to Akash. They had a certain idea of who I was. I supposed a lot of us did that. But a large friend group seemed awesome and was something I longed for. But despite that feeling of isolation, I didn’t care much, since I had Akash. We were both a little lonely, but being lonely together was better than being lonely alone. Wow, that was a bit of a sappy thought, I thought to myself as the bell rang. I feel like that’s something Pooh said. Jesus, I haven’t thought about Pooh in years. I tapped Akash’s desk and whispered, “We need to watch all the Winnie the Pooh movies.” “I’d love to know how your brain got to that topic. Though I agree.” I laughed to myself and turned to face our teacher as class started.

Few - from The Secret Portal Part Two (Maddie POV)

“Alright,” said Wade, holding out a hand. “Can you stand?” I grabbed his hand and he helped me to my feet. I felt a little lightheaded, but nothing really hurt anymore. I gave him a thumbs-up. The crowd that formed very awkwardly began to thin. I heard a few comments asking again if I was okay, despite me saying I was. I kept holding the thumbs up until it was just me, Sam, and Liam. “One more round?” I asked, still holding the thumbs up. “No!” Sam cried, cheeks shiny with tears. “You heard Lexi; I could have killed you!” “You didn’t.” Sam’s face scrunched up before she stalked toward the elevator. I turned to Liam. “I’m fine, though, I swear.” “Yeah, now,” Liam said firmly. His arms crossed over his chest. “Kiddo, you didn’t see yourself. You looked pretty bad. Most of your bones were probably broken based on how much Wade stitched you up. Probably some internal bleeding!” “The blood’s supposed to be inside.” Liam bit his lip like he was trying not to laugh, but he looked angry about it. He sighed, pressing his palms together and resting his forehead against the tips of his fingers. “I did this so I could see where your gaps were in my teaching. You have shifting down very well. Now, you need to assess yourself and how you’re doing. And Sam is right. You’re done for today.” “It’s not even lunch, though.” “Then the morning, but no heavy stuff after this, okay?” I ran my tongue over my braces. “Alright.” “Go take a shower,” Liam said, more gently than he usually spoke.

Tense - from The Secret Portal Part One (Ash POV)

I turned onto my left side to face the rest of the room. Rose was curled up on the floor in the fetal position. Lexi lay on her stomach, her arm dangling off the couch. Noelle was on her side, almost log-like, though her arms stretched out in front of her. Gwen, too, was on her side on the recliner across the room, hugging a pillow tightly to her chest. Their dreams, I could sense. I couldn’t say what they were about, but I could feel how they made them feel. Calm, tense, uncomfortable—I didn’t like it. But I did. Giving up trying to sleep, I sat upward, placing my feet on the floor and feeling the carpet between my toes. I felt the coin-shaped devices shift in my pocket and pulled them out. I stared at them in my palm, the dim light from electronic clocks and the kitchen being the only things allowing me to see. At least with my eyes. My finger brushed the surface of the devices. They were overall smooth, but there were ridges, all in a radial pattern around their center. I felt their power pulse into the pad of my finger, causing my body to shudder. When I’d used them earlier, they allowed me to wake everyone I accidentally knocked out. However, I wasn’t so stupid that I didn’t consider they were what made me sick in the first place. Maybe they were what was crying out to me the entire time I was in Alium. An insane thought—I was a thirty-minute walk away when I’d collapsed. Carla mentioned the power activation was likely simply because I was now in Alium. But no one else had the ease that I did. What if it was these devices? That would explain a lot. I’d felt drawn to them. I ran my thumb over them like they were my rings. My curiosity piqued. It was like they were reaching out to me, specifically. Which was ridiculous to think about an inanimate object. Jedi had seemed worried after I told him what happened. He didn’t even want to go down the corridor. Maybe it was because of these. What could he be afraid of? Me unlocking my potential? Carla told me the mind had no limit, and these devices seemed to expand the limit. Maybe I shouldn’t use them just to explore, as much fun as that sounded. But I couldn’t sleep, and these things did help me earlier. Maybe they could help me sleep. It was worth trying, at least.

Bounce - from The Secret Portal Part One (Akash POV)

Gills told me I was defense. He’d understand. The real problem was Noelle. She grabbed Gills’ rock in pitch darkness. She could get me. I pulled harder on the stick. Noelle’s pull tightened, too. Smirking to myself, I let the stick go and flew upward—cutting through the air. Noelle grunted as the stick hit her with her own force. Once high enough, I shot toward the dragon, hoping to keep the momentum to pass through the dampening field and get the sphere. I knew it as soon as I passed. I lost my grip on the air and began to fall, but I latched onto the collar before doing so. Custos didn’t like that and tried to paw me off, but I managed to unclasp the sphere. “Haha!—oomph!” I celebrated until Custos did knock me off. I tried to feel when I passed the field, but the ground came fast, causing my entire body to shudder nauseously and the back of my skull to bounce off the floor, only to be hit again. I groaned. Custos apparently was too low to the ground for there to be air beneath the field. My ears rang as I felt around for the lid of the sphere and opened it the way Carmen demonstrated. “I got the feather!” I tried to say but knew I passed out before I could since it was suddenly a lot brighter. “Hey, Singh,” Gills said above me. “Did we win?” “Yeah, because you were an idiot and went right into the dampening field.” “You sound annoyed.” “Because my teammate passed out and had to be taken to the medbay. Do you know how dangerous it is to lose consciousness when you hit your head?” “But my plan worked.” “If this was real, you’d be dead.” “You’re welcome,” I grunted as I pulled myself up to a seated position.

[scientific-dog]

Yes, hi, hello, I recently got into Nope (2022) and I've been looking far and wide for JJ humanizations and may I just say yours is the best one yet? Like the design, the colors, the personality AFSGHGSDJKSA I love him

So I hope you don't mind a few questions? Like, just how big is he? Can he change sizes? Does him being able to talk and communicate with the humans change the story of the movie? Does the SLE scene still happen? Even if differently?

I just think he's neat, I wanna know more about him :3

Anyways your drawings are really cool, I'll be keeping an EYE out

(I am forcibly removed from the Star Lasso Experience)

Wow! Thank you for a question! That’s one of my favorite films, so I plan to draw a lot of things for this fandom, as soon as I finish with my bachelor degree at university xd

Human JJ is a tall and lean man, he’s like 10 ft (or 3 meters), but he mostly like a regular human. My goal was to achieve the most resembling to canon monster image in human disguise.

So, this humanoid can’t change his size. But it may be peculiar, that he has a very long hair, which he combs under the hat with bends and hairpins, so his haircut looks “short”, but if he unbends it, his hairstyle makes him look “angelic” (and bigger I would say xd) like JJ has in the end of the movie.

Generally, JJ is not aggressive to people, he has no special interest towards them, he is just an introvert, who doesn’t like to be seen by others. I have been thinking how to transfer his behaviour in the movie, so the best idea was that JJ as a human is probably very photogenic, and he faced a lot of agencies, photographers and journalists that would like to film and pic him. He’s some kind of a “star”, but doesn’t like this attention and sick of people hanging around. So, my human just moved to this side to hide from all these popularity.

In this AU Jean Jacket (which is truly his full name) is a real “extraterrestrial glamour”, a “Hollywood star which chew and split you out”, an embodiment of carnivorous showbusiness. His predatory explains like toxic and wild attitude. And Jupe saw him like “omg I want him to stole my show and bring me some money”

Yes, definitely this AU is can be different, I used the subtext as a basis:>

About SLE incident, I’m stilll thinking actually. This is kinda hard to transfer in my story, but I think I have to do it :o I had some drawings which I hadn’t post with JJ giving a wild show during the SLE, it gonna be the thing lol

Fun fact, I didn’t stayed the point was JJ alien or not, but he definitely has relatives who I haven’t drawn, but they exist! Let it be some kind of secret, was he alien who got human form or just a common man^^

Another fact: me and my beloved friend @shapter-draws have a small funny shipping au with Jupe/hum!JJ (we call it “spaceship” lol)

and IM SOOOOOO GLAD THANK YOU FOR YORRR WARM WORDS❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥

[powertaco]

How do you write so much? I'm like struggling man. My brain is just like...do the thing. What is your secret? What mines do you pick at to unveil the whiterose?

Howdy, and thanks for the ask. It's late so I'm probably gonna ramble. I promise to try and address the question at some point lol.

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

So when I first started it took me months to write and try to perfect a single one shot. (One Good Turn/Maiden crack outtakes) (This was back in September of like 2021)

My next story after that (Pizza Au) it would take weeks to even a month between chapters.

I would get horrible anxiety (being a perfectionist is hell). Sometimes there would be days I would just not write. I couldn't handle it. I'd play wow, or just do anything else. Anything to NOT BE writing.

What didn't do was stop thinking of ideas. Even if I didn't write for the story I had a little notepad with ideas I would scribble on them. This didn't bother me because it was something that only I saw and it was quick notes. If they weren't perfect it didn't matter because, well I took 5 seconds to write them so who was gonna judge me on that?

My brain could process and handle that sort of thing.

The truth is writing, and telling stories has been one of those things I've always wanted to do, and over time I've built up a habit of writing, and making sure to take breaks on certain days, or if I'm just not in the mood. I would love to eventually write an actual fantasy book some day, but for now I write fan-fiction as practice.

The mindset I helped by realizing I wasn't really getting paid to write so if people didn't like it? Well I mean who cared? Yeah my screen name is out there, and yeah I get plenty of people who don't like it, or send me some 'interestingly' worded reviews.

As for what gets me into the headspace for goobers? The easiest thing is to think of some media you like, and are passionate about.

What book, game, tv show, movie, etc do you really like? Now since most of the story is already done for you. How can you insert two characters into it to make it your desired pairing.

This helps because you're already very passionate about it, and when you're passionate it makes it easier for words to flow onto the page.

For example, if you're doing a WR legend of Zelda Au, and you know everything about Zelda then it's easy for you to just get really into it, and before you know it you have a 10k first chapter, and you're wondering how it got there.

You're just like wow Weiss would be a great Midna, and Ruby a wonderful Link, and bam you're good to go. (Although you might change the ending a wee bit for more fluff but hey)

At first this might take some time to think on, but eventually if you do it enough you'll get the brainrot and every bit of media you consume you'll be like 'i can totally think of a X au for this.

It might also help to find a genre you find more easy to relate to, to start with.

If you like humor, then make a funny little one shot. If you like coffee shop au's? Well loads of people do.

If you're stuck at the end of a sentence? Delete the sentence you just wrote and try again.

If the word isn't coming to you, and you need a break? Take one. Sometimes I write a few sentences then watch a youtube video, then get back to writing.

Just to give my brain some time to think in the background.

I would also advise that once you do a few stories in a genre you're familiar with try a few in different ones.

This helps you not get pigeon holed and stuck in a rut down the line, and gets you to think about them differently and explore different facets of your characters.

Do some comedy, crack, and then do an angst, follow that up with video game au, and then romance, etc.

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

Some early habits you can do are just set aside a set amount of time to try and write a day. Maybe even 30 minutes.

If you can't think of a story think of what you do know and make it all nice and written out for future you.

Like 'oh coffee shop au' Ruby is the barrista summer is alive in this au, and she's in college etc. Do it for characters you think will be important to the story, and even a background character you want to make an appearance. You're not writing the story, not really, but you are doing work that can help give your characters life, and a background/voice when you do write it.

All told I was in the same boat as you being told 'just write' and I would clam up.

You might try just writing random details for your au or something similar.

You can get prompt ideas from other people if you can't think of anything. You can bounce an idea back and forth on discord with a friend! Heck read a few books to get potential ideas!

You can and will make mistakes. It's inevitable. A sneaky comma you forgot, a word in the wrong tense, but you know what I learned?

Doesn't matter. The fact that you're writing and creating far outweighs any of that.

You don't even have to post or show it to anyone. I have a stack of notebooks with tons of notes in them (google docs is pretty easy to use too if you don't like writing in a notebook).

As trite as it might seem, as many times as it has been said really the secret is just writing.

One thing I will say is 'comparison is the thief of joy'. Do not compare your starting works, or even any of your work to someone else.

If you compare your writing to someone who's been writing for a lot longer then I mean /shrug.

If you do post on ao3 or another site my advice is to not look at stats at all.

What does it matter if your fic gets only 50 hits and 3 comments? Those are 3 people who looked at your story and loved it enough to say so, and 50 people who were drawn in to read it in the first place.

That's a loooot of people. Just write for fun, and not to look at the stats.

This one is more on me, but once a story has been finished? Don't go back and rewrite it to fix or update all the errors. They make valuable time capsules of your skill progression.

If all your work looks like your current work then it seems like you're not improving. (In maidens I can see many errors, and while there's still errors in my latest story I can tell you there are less of them).

You will at random points get hit with 'oh wow I'm not improving at all. This is actually a false feeling brought on by you getting better and realizing all the errors that are there. It actually means you're doing much better than you thought.

This is from auriee on tumblr

So I guess to sum it up.

1-Try to establish a habit of at least attempting to write each day. I find myself craving to write most days but it was a buildup to get there.

2-Use media you're passionate about to start with to get you into the creation mindset, and just make small tweaks to it to make it easier at the start.

3-Don't worry about it being perfect, or your stats. Just write for you.

4-It's less talent and more hard repetitive work to get good at writing just like any other skill. You will have to put in a fair/large amount of time.

5-If you skip some days because you aren't feeling it then that's fine. Take the time you need but just make sure to get back to it.

Tiny Samus believes in you.

And so do my goobers!

For real though feel free to drop an ask on here or discord if you have any specific questions, or if I totally screwed it up. (Sorry it's late so my IQ is currently room temp.

[umber-cinders]

20 Questions for Fic Writers

I was tagged by @pilesofpillows 😙

1. How many works do you have on AO3?

Four works so far but hoping to add more since I have a lot more fics written I've never published.

2. What’s your total AO3 word count?

Wow I didn't even know this was a thing! Had to look up how to find it. My total Ao3 word count is 182,483 words.

3. What fandoms do you write for?

My current works are for Black Panther but I plan to write a oneshot for MCU's Secret Invasion show because I liked Gravik and thought he was hot (I like the skrull in general lol). But I also have pretty long and large fics for Netflix's 2017 movie "Bright" that I want to upload as well. There are other fandoms too but they escape me atm.

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

I only have four fics up and one of them is brand new so 😅

Winter Moon

Mount Jabari

If The Shoe Fits

Incubus

In that order. You can find a link to my fics for both tumblr and Ao3 here

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Absolutely! I love talking to the people reading my stuff and want them to know that their comments are appreciated and often keep me motivated to write more 😁Love you guys! 💕

6. What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Hmmm, I guess that would be If The Shoe Fits. There's a planned part two that might negate this answer though.

7. What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Mount Jabari 🤣Reader was very happy at the end of that fic.

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I did on Winter Moon but I don't particularly care about the opinions of someone whose intentions are to be intentionally dismissive and negative so the comments the person received in return were likely not what they had wanted 💀

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

Absolutely yes. Bring me the SMUT! Right now! I will write it for you if you don't.

10. Do you write crossovers? What’s the craziest one you’ve written?

Nah, never did a crossover and not really a fan of them. However when I was still really young there was a gigantic, kind of OOC crossover fic with a bunch of popular anime from the 90s/2000s called Otherworld and I used to read that like it was the bible. It inspired me to do my own first fanfics. There were like 9 books to that story and multiple oneshots and short stories that tied the characters together and everything.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I am aware... and anyone who tries it....

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

Not publicly, but I have gotten a comment that someone loves my story so much that they translate every chapter so that they could read it properly and it made me so happy 😭❤💕

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Nope! But I do love giving other authors ideas and vice versa. I think it helps people think outside the box when they brainstorm with friends.

14. What’s your all-time favorite ship?

I'm going to say Attoye from Black Panther for now? I was never that big of a "shipping" person in fandoms but I definitely enjoy Attoye enough to say I ship them. I also like Nashuri and Killmora.

15. What’s a WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

Nothing atm. I tend to work on stories in order of inspiration and importance. I don't publish things I'm not willing to commit time to at some point.

16. What are your writing strengths?

I'm not sure exactly. I've been told that I write very descriptively and that it can paint a vivid picture of scenarios and characters, so I'll go with that.

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Fluff and filler. I don't dislike fluff completely but I tend to write it as realistically as possible because trying to imagine people being that super ooey gooey makes me wanna gag and cringe lmfao

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in fic?

I do it only when necessary for the simple fact that having to provide translations for entire scenes of dialogue gets tiresome and tricky.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Inuyasha in middle school💀

20. Favorite fic you’ve written?

It doesn't have a name but like I said above, it was definitely Inuyasha and or anime related.

No pressure tagging: @karisomk, @megamindsecretlair, @mamajankyy, @mickimomo and anyone else who see this and would like to participate!

[taegularities]

Day 3

I'm reading the cmi for first time AND OMG gurl I'm loving this jjk ffs so much like wow who thought I could stumble upon some good shit on like this

I'm done till cmi~light ✨✨✨✨ seriously 3 damn days it took just to be here

SWEAR these two dorkes like hell they are such idiots and clowns in love how they are not obvious to eachother but to whole world I'm sure even if stranger sits with them for moment they wouldn't able to tell...

The way (yn/oc) tells jk how he also treats her so good in (cmi light) like gurl 🐥👊🏻 what in hell you were expecting!??? A LOVE CONFESSION not in hell baby he is doing he is DUMBASS I cracked up so bad on his bant ass reply like "yea I treat Every women same as you" you ain't no special girl mf 🤭🤭 fuck man i felt second hand embarrassment for BOTH THEM because first of all why our gurl asking those dumb questions when WE know we gonna get dumber answers for that.... jezz that boy WHY HE IS SUCH idiot tell me he gets better on because no way our oc is falling in love with his super idiots ass (besides those delicious moves and sure that 🦴🔫 are very rare can't blam her) but still WHY HE thinks he not good or enough for oc or what's with so much not so required insecurities and looks like boy's all smartness 😒is in his peepee and hands only and god's be good not again those dumb secret why can't he be more open.

The scene in cmi-light gurl where jk appears from nowhere reminds of some old romance movie sitting of where this fl is all sadden up in her own misery sitting outside and suddenly another moment she try to move on and gets up but sees there the ml is all snuggled up in the sunset all the sun light covering him and all she could see is his outline and there he is waiting for her it was so good that it's making jump and paint like I wanna do sketching or water painting of that scene

Anyways I will let you know if I ever able to create one but seriously I WANT THAT SCENE HAPPENING REAL LIFE 😭😭 maybe to us or someone anyways bye

lesson to be learn never to be so desperate kids

🦴🔫 anon

lmfaoooo omg yeah, the story is kind of an idiots to lovers and a bit of a slow burn thing 😭 not sure how to react to the jk slander and the multiple mentions of the word 'idiot' lmfaooo i created the guy in a way that even i fell in love hard 🤣 you'll know why he's not so open!! he's been through a crap ton that makes it not so easy for him to speak his mind and "act" secretive, which is ofc frustrating for both, but also valid since they haven't been in this thing together long enough for him to reveal such bad trauma. be patient!! 😋

i'm happy you've been reading!! lights is somehow the chapter where most people drop by and leave a couple kind words hehe still one of my favs, too!! i hope you enjoy the rest (and them being idiots bc it's far from being overrr 😂) and thank you for going through my beloved magnum opus!!! you described the scene in lights so beautifully, too, bc yeah oc really did breathe that sigh of relief :') if you ever paint anything like that, i'd love to see it :) hope to hear from you again soon 🤍

[bohogirlsurveys]

1: The Music of the Night

Are you content with the current weather? Well, it's finally starting to feel a little like fall, so yes

Do you own many pairs of shorts? No.

Is there a place you’d rather be right now? Yes

When was the last time you were disappointed? Don't remember

Do you miss someone right now? Yes

Have you ever taken a close up shot of a flower? Probably

Is there an article of clothing you need to buy right now? Yeah, more leggings for work

When was the last time you had alcohol? Been a long time

Do you feel like you just need to be with friends and relax? Yes

Is there a situation you currently feel hopeless about? Yes

When was the last time you wanted to do something, but couldn’t? Today. Was supposed to go to the movies tomorrow but I'm skipping it cause I'm just so exhausted from work last week

When was the last time you sang out loud to yourself? Earlier today.

Are you one to often make typos? When I type fast, yes.

On a hot day, would you rather prefer ice cream or a popsicle? Neither

Have you ever wanted to get drunk and get your mind off everything? Nope

Who was the last person you texted? Sara.

Is there a fan going in the room you’re in? Yep. Just had to put it on actually.

When was the last time you felt like letting it all out and having a cry? Every damn day

Do you feel you’re fighting a losing battle? yes.

Have you played cards recently? No

Is there a band you like with amazing music but a bad vocalist? No

When was the last time you had a headache? Today

Does pizza sound good to you right now? No.

Have you ever relied on coffee to keep you awake? I work at a cafe. Coffee doesn't work for me anymore LOL

Do you sleep well during the summer? I don't sleep well at all

Anything you might be giving up on soon? Nope

Have you ever captured a moth? No

Does long grass irritate your bare legs? No.

Will you be going to the beach anytime soon? No. I don't even like the beach

Have you ever made any kind of video? Yeah. Fan videos

When was the last time someone made you feel like an idiot? Been a long time

Do you have sympathy for others when they’re upset? Yes.

Are you one of those people who can’t dance but love to anyway? No, cause I know how to dance

Is there a band/artist who has strange lyrics but you love them anyway? Sure.

Have you ever been to New York? I live in NYC

Is there a song you used to like but are annoyed of now? Nope

Does your optimism sometimes hurt you? Yes

Have you ever had a premonition? Sure.

Are you dying to see someone very soon? Yes!!!

When was the last time you wore earrings? Oh wow, it's been a long time

Are you currently saving for anything? Yes

How many pairs of heels do you own? All my shoes are heels

Has it thundered lately? Nope

Have you ever gotten stitches? Yes

Do you need to repaint your nails right now? Yes

Are you having one of those lazy days? I'm off from work the next couple of days so yet

Do you have any plans for the next week? Yes. Working this week

Has today been a good day? It was ok

When was the last time you changed your picture on Facebook? Last night

What do you do to cool down on a normal hot day? Stay anywhere with AC

Have you ever felt something was slipping through your fingers? Yes.

Describe three emotions you’re feeling right now. Tired, bored, and I don't know

Do you have a brand of deoderant you prefer? Secret

Would you consider yourself to be physically strong? Not at all LOL

Have you ever painted a piece of furniture? No

If you could change something about your life right now it would be: So much

Are you currently confused about anything? No

Do you have a really fat cat? I don't have a cat at all

Have you ever kissed someone who’s first name started with B? No.

Do your initials spell a word? Nope.

What is the closest red object to you right now? a cane

Do you currently have your cellphone in your pocket? No

When was the last time you questioned someone’s intelligence? Almost every day when at least one customer asks me something stupid at work LOL

Do you have a favorite quote? No

Do you believe the fortunes in fortune cookies? Nope

When was the last time you went to a playground? Ages ago

Are you one to give ‘thumbs up’ to people? Sometimes.

Do you ever call your cellphone when you’ve lost it, in order to find it? Yes

Do you know someone who’s blatantly sarcastic? Yes. Me LOL

What’s your signature funny face? I don't have one

Have you ever made a business card for yourself? Yes

Have you ever had an idea that you just couldn’t put on paper? Yeah

Do you own a pool? No

What do you prefer more: waffles or pancakes? Waffles.

What was the last thing you took a picture of? My best friend when I went to see him perform last night

Are you going on vacation? No

Do you have a favorite curse word in a different language? No.

Can you stand drinking vodka straight up or do you have to mix it? Have to mix it

Have you ever spun around until you got dizzy and fell? Probably as a kid.

Don’t you hate those games that expire and try to make you buy them? YES!!!

. Do you have wireless internet? Yes. What was the last thing you cooked on the BBQ? Mark and I made steak a few weeks ago.

[marshymallo]

i hear the secrets that you keep…

when you’re talking in your sleep

pairing: mike schmidt x gn! reader

synopsis: you’re abby’s latest babysitter, but there’s just one problem… her older brother is really hot and you may just have a crush on him. good thing he has no idea though, right?

tags: fluff, second person pov, two idiots in love (neither one knows until now), takes place after the fnaf movie, slight use of the song/lyrics bc it's more fun that way

word count: 1.7k (wow-)

a/n: welcome to 'i came up with a cute idea for a fic and then was encouraged by several people to make it so i did' otherwise known as my first time writing fanfiction. constructive criticism is welcome and, in fact, highly encouraged! i’m not a great writer and this was just for fun, but i’m always willing to improve. leave a like, comment, and reblog if you enjoy this!

icons by @dianauniverse

9:31 pm

it's been a few months since everything happened at the pizzeria. mike had been able to find some more jobs and even more ways to get fired from them. this most recent job had the best pay by far, but the hours were still awful. ever since he worked at freddy's, he just couldn't seem to find another job that wasn't working the graveyard shift. as mike tries to come his unruly hair, a useless endeavor, there came a quiet knock at the door. he opens it and there's you, abby's newest (and longest) babysitter and quite literally the most attractive person he thinks he's ever seen.

mike had first seen you at the grocery store, wait, no- the ice cream shop? god, he really needs to sleep more… it was both. when he worked as security in the mall, you were working at the ice cream shop in the food court. and, somehow, you always had his usual order ready for him before he had even come up to the counter. you were grocery shopping when he (literally) bumped into you. abby insisted that she could push the shopping cart just before she ran it into your side.

in that moment, mike had decided two definitive things. one: abby was never allowed to push the cart again until she was was taller than it and two: you looked really fucking cute while you were cursing under your breath so his little sister wouldn't hear such vulgar language. mike kept apologizing profusely for abby when even when you kept insisting that you were completely fine. the two of you lost track of time just talking and catching up with one another that neither of you had even noticed abby wandered off and collected the rest of the groceries by herself until she returned with a cart overflowing with snacks and sweets.

before abby dragged her brother to the register, you had written your phone number on the back of your grocery list and handed it to him saying, "it was really nice catching up with you. don't be a stranger, alright?" you hadn't anticipated him to call you that night, jumping at the sudden sound of your landline's obnoxiously loud ringing in your house.

"hey, it's mike. look, can i ask you a favor? abby's babysitter just cancelled on me last minute…" you arrived at the schmidt household not even twenty minutes later, holding some tupperware containers with food and dessert which had abby wrapped around your finger in an instant.

that fateful saturday was almost a month ago, now. mike still hadn't been able to pay you, but you kept shrugging him off. you always wore a soft smile on your face when you would tell him "i'm not doing this for the money, mike. i'm doing it because you're my friend." which is exactly what led you to where you were now: awkwardly admiring mike as you stood at his front door while preparing to watch abby for the night.

"you should really just expect me to be early by now, y'know? the day i show up late to look after my favorite schmidt is the day hell freezes over."

"your favorite schmidt? ouch… who knows? maybe one day you'll surprise us all and be just one minute late," he jokes.

"uh huh, sure…" you trail off, staring at mike as he continues to get himself ready. his curly hair fighting against him and his comb, but it looks so soft and so good on him. and he hasn't had time to trim his facial hair in a bit, but it really works for him. has being perpetually tired with eyebags ever looked so good on a man? you're so caught up in admiring him that when he turns to look at you, you avert your gaze and pretend to be fascinated by whatever was on the television.

"are my clothes too wrinkled?" he asks, one eyebrow ever-so-slightly raised as he glances at you. if looking good was a crime, mike would be given the death sentence…

"i don't think so.. then again, you're asking the person wearing an old hoodie and sweatpants…" you mention. he breathes out a laugh. "i'll take it."

mike reaches past you to grab his backpack. you can smell a hint of the cologne he put on from how close he is and god be damned if it doesn't make him even more attractive. "i'll see you when i get back," he says softly.

you let out a small "see you!" only to receive a tight-lipped smile as he gently closes the door behind him. you groan as you hand your head in your hands. you and your hopeless crush on the brother of the girl you were babysitting…

6:52 am

mike is exhausted as he pulls into the driveway with a yawn. he sluggishly walks to and leans against the front door. he can feel the sleep in his eyes and the tiredness of late hours fogging his brain as he misses the lock with his key a few times. when he opens the door, it swings open and slams against the wall from the force of his body resting upon it. shit.

you're curled up on the couch and asleep, moving slightly underneath the small throw blanket. he sets his stuff down gentler than when he opened the door so as not to wake you while tip-toeing his way down the hall to check on abby. she's asleep in her bed, tucked in and surrounded by her stuffed animals. there's a book on the nightstand indicating that the ten-year-old bargained that she would only go to sleep if you read to her. this wasn't true, of course, but abby loved to hear your tired voice read to her.

mike slowly crept his way back into the living room, just noticing the noise and soft glow of the tv as an infomercial murmurs in the background. he grabs the remotes and turns it off, the faint buzzing ceasing. you shift around again as soon as he does so, but you never wake. mike pauses his movements, awkwardly hovering over you in case you do wake up, eventually deciding you're still asleep before he quietly shuffles back to where he dropped his things. he felt bad waking you, especially since he recently found out that you, too, were struggling with sleeping at night.

he goes into the kitchen to grab a glass of water, only to see that you've cleaned the room and washed the dishes for him again. after the first time he noticed it, he insisted that you didn't need to do that for him. that he was perfectly capable of doing it himself. your response every time? "you always come back exhausted, mike. i can clean a few dishes and tidy up one room for you." he's thankful for it, for you, honestly. you just… wanted to do nice things for him. and for abby. god knows that girl loved you to death. so much so that she had even started including you in her endless colorful drawings.

mike checks the time on the microwave. 6:58 am. he'd let you sleep until 7:30. or maybe 8? he'll wake you up when abby wakes up, he decides. mike walks past you on the couch again when he hears you mumbling to yourself. at first, he thinks he's accidentally woken you up. but then, mike hears you babbling complete gibberish. he huffs out a laugh before he hears something actually intelligible.

"w…n…love you, mike…" he freezes. before he can question what just happened, you go completely silent, moving underneath the blanket once more. did he hear that right? you…love him?

all of a sudden, an alarm goes off. your alarm clock, indicating that it's already 7 am. the alarm clock you brought from home just so you could wake up early to help abby get ready for her day, how could he forget? you stir awake only to see mike frozen and staring at you from above, jaw slack and a dumbstruck look on his face. a few moments pass before he comes back to reality.

"good morning…" you mutter with a yawn. similar to how abby loved hearing your soothing voice lull her to sleep, mike loved hearing your deep and raspy morning voice as you were first waking up.

"hey… sleep good?" mike's thoughts are racing at this point, only to be disrupted by you stretching your arms above your head and asking, "yeah. did you just get back?"

"um, yeah…" he stumbles away from the couch before adding, "y'know… you were talking in your sleep…"

"did i? was it something embarrassing?" you joke, but the tense silence is the only answer you need. "well shit, what did i say?" you inquire.

"it's… nothing really. just something stupid. don't worry about it-"

"i'm going to worry about it until you tell me, mike. what did i say?" you cut him off. and it's true, you won't stop thinking about what you might've said until mike tells you. it's a fact that both of you were well aware of.

"just, um, you told me that you love me…?" mike is met with absolute silence. when he gathers up the courage to glance at you, all he can see is your wide-eyed stare in disbelief.

"is this some sort of joke?? because it's not very funny, mike-" you defend.

"what?- no, it's not a joke-" he startles at your response. "i just- …do you? …love me?"

your head hangs in your hands from embarrassment. he can just barely make out a muffled 'mhmm' and head nod as you refuse to look at him. the gentle warmth of mike's hand is placed on your shoulder as he uses his other hand to lift your chin to gaze up at him.

you stare into his eyes. has mike always looked at you with such a comforting and alluring gaze? you can feel his warm breath against your skin and you're sure that here, in this moment, you've never been closer nor wanted to be closer to mike than right now. you lean in, just a little more and…

"ARE YOU TWO FINALLY DATING?!"

aaaaaaaaaand abby's awake…

final author's note: if you're reading this, thank you so much! this is my first time actually writing fanfiction. it was fun, but i'm not entirely sure i'll ever do it again because writing really isn't my strong suit- if you wanted to write a mike schmidt x reader using this prompt idea, tag me!! i'd love to read it! i hope you enjoyed :))