#y'all barely pay me and even if i was rich as hell why should i pay for gross food i won't eat?

[thesmokinpossum]

I just bought some cheese that turned out to taste very bad from my job and when I went to get a refund my coworker initially refused and tried to convince me that I don't know what cheddar cheese is supposed to taste like….

[thatbitchery]

So yesterday I said it's not the principle of the thing that matters but how much privilege you have to balance it that does and had everyone and their mom needing me to learn feminism and equality 101, as expected. Understandable. I understand not knowing better because you haven't learned better and that is exactly why I'm here. To teach you better.

Let's start with the lie that's egalitarianism and equality. What we call the American mindset. Everyone is equal and has an opinion and should be able to do whatever they want mentality. Reason you have little boys and girls that have never walked a fashion show or even at the very least being invited to one making videos comment on couture shows and how ugly and impractical it is. Why you have little college girls and boys running every word they know past things that they have never even had access to. The I have a right to opinion and I will give it. That mindset, we call it the American mindset because it's mostly where you'd see it. See that mindset? If you want to level up, forget it. You do not have a right to your opinion the right is given to you. You do not have the right to wear what you want that right is earned. You do not have the right to go to that party even if you were invited you earn the right to be there. You don't have a seat in every table you want , it's given to you.

It's girls out there getting in trouble over this mentality. I told y'all once a story (probably deleted it haha) of how in high school the rich kids threw a party and invited the poorer kids around town just to do drugs together and 🍇 grape the girls and only the poor girls were graped 🍇 and never got justice because what judge is convicting the Prime Minister's son? And only the poor boys went to jail and took a fall for the drugs?? Whyyyy??? Because they thought people are equal and so they, middle class working in the gas station for pocket money, should just easily be invited to an elite party. No I didn't go. Why? Because the deal was too good. Why would the rich kids that barely talk to me in school suddenly want me to party with them? This isn't a table that I've earned a seat in so why would I go sit in it?? Doing crimes under peer pressure with people that have a team of lawyers is something people with that dumb everyone is equal mindset shit does. If I told those kids not to go they'd think I'm gatekeeping my useless academically dumb rich friends,no. I had a girl ask me why I'm looking down on her because I told her it makes no sense for boys with a bunch of Aston Martins and Bentleys and access to world class professional escorts and dating the children of presidents to date them . I had a girl tell me I'm not a girls girl and an anti feminist because I told her that boy is dating her for the giggles and will show her a hell she has never seen before and get away with it. Do I not think she's worth it? Lovable? People are equal!!! But they're not are they?? Boys like that don't date little girls from public school do they?? And no buying you Versace isn't special that's his pocket change. And every single Chanel bag you get you will pay for ,dearly. But people are equal mentality girlie probably needs a lifetime of therapy, for everyone's mental health and sanity just in case you slip into the misandry dark hole I won't say what happened. There were videos it's all I'll say. Of Dubai camel type stuff. If you get it you get it. If you don't may our good Lord protect your innocence for as long as He can. The world is a dark place in general but 50× darker for women, 1000× darker for women that don't fit the standards and 1000000× darker for broke girls and then there's women of✨ color ✨.

There's a social hierarchy. Know your place in it, act like it and level up in the background.

Different people have different rules. Just because Bella Hadid can wear weird looking outfits doesn't mean you can??? Are you Bella Hadid?? First rise to Bella Hadid status then you can have Bella Hadid privileges. Society rules are not the same for everyone. Do you think anyone cares what Bill Gates daughter is wearing to the office?? Do you think that applies to you?? I almost had my Captainship almost taken from me in high school because I wore a bracelet and that wasn't appropriate while my classmates ran around with chanel pins and pearl necklaces and hairpins with bows and glitter. Why? Is my dad's name on a building?? Did my dad donate millions to the school? Am I the next CEO of a multimillion dollar enterprise?? Then why would I have the same privileges?? The rules say no accessories so no accessories. Little white girls wear 15979 kgs of make up with tattoos and piercings nd drive everywhere but if I had one, one nose ring I'll get pulled over in traffic and possibly have my visa revoked. I wore red lipstick once and my boss said I'm looking at them aggressively. This one time I let my natural hair down during church and someone's grandma in pearls just diDnT KnoW wHat WaS OfF aBouT mE tHaT dAy but anyway she loved me so much so she'd send me to her hairstylist for free because she cares about me :))) while her grandkid had braids with a purple streak 👍.Different rules for different people. Yesterday I said I have to compensate for my lack of privileges and someones very well meaning daughter with what has to be a clean heart wrote me an essay on how I don't have to change myself to fit in. Oh darling. My sweet sweet thing .

Its little girls out dressing the host in a party that was thrown for the host to show off because tHeY dOnT hAvE tO dReSs dOwN tO aCcOmodAte OtHeRs and making an enemy and never getting invited again out here. It's girls that argue with their bosses on something as stupid as social politics that will never be promoted ever and have their work picked apart like a terrorism investigation while their bubblehead yes girl counterparts are promoted left right center. It's girls arguing with their mothers knowing full well they're dependent on them because It wAs ThEiR cHoiCe TO haVe Me BLA BLA BLA bs. It's girls out there having a full on feminist debate with the pedo misogynistic CEO in the event that was created to appease said CEO like is he a feminist now?? Did you change his mind?? Is he a better man or did you just burn your network with every single person in that room? If you don't have the privilege to do it don't. Rights are backed by privileges.

Once upon a time in a far far away land I told a tumblrina she wasn't pretty enough to have the boundaries she wanted to have and that having boundaries is a privilege and she should first level up her looks then she can have that boundary and woke up to a 5996909800 word essay on how I'm an anti feminist and judgy and whatever else. Sighs .ladies won't you ever learn. Yes even boundaries require a certain privilege.

When I say it's an American mindset and my US girls feel attacked I get it because thats exactly what I'm doing, attacking you. If I tell African and Asian girls they need to appease their toxic moms they don't argue because we know. If mom says that dress makes you look like a slut I don't say mom omg that's not very girls girl of you you're being toxic I take it off and say you think so? There was something about it I didn't like haha and wear something she approves of. Why because she holds the power. As long as I live in her house I have to submit to her. It's just a dress. We placate and validate our moms and dads and elders knowing theyre toxic af simply because we know we won't win. They won't suddenly realize they were wrong they will just make our lives harder and we can't fight back we just talk crap about them in school and laugh and when we leave for uni wear whatever. Because if we fight back they'll never let us go for uni away from home and we depend on them for survival. We understand ✨ hierarchy ✨. It's Megan Markle and her American Mindset of I have rights I have opinions I should be treated well thinking she can challenge an institution that has been in power for centuries and has made a country as geographically small and pitiful as Britan a world power over larger ones, and for centuries. Princess Katherine was being torn apart by tabloids for a decade plus and held it together and is now set to be the next queen of England with her daughter being the richest kid alive. Lady Emma McQinston, a Nigerian among the British upper class- I won't even bother telling you how those ones get treated - held it for her whole life and is now the first dark skinned black African Baroness (is it baroness?? Not sure). Megan and her American values folded in what, months?? Did they tear her apart as viciously as they did Kate?? Nope. Fumbled that bag because she couldn't understand privilege, hierarchy and power.

Don't be a Megan. Don't. Get with the program. To get the power, you must first understand the power.

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[aphrodite1288]

Let's get real, kai is SM golden child. Among Exo, SM gave everything extra to him. Solo albums, brand deals, magazines, solo concert, variety shows and all, he always gets better opportunities and supports despite other members are more popular and talented than him. SM neglecting exo members but not kai. They just announced his solo VR concert next Jan. It's so obvious! Your boy must know how to suck sm bosses and sponsors d*ck .

The Jenkai was a media play, but not because jennie chose him. Hell no! Jennie is naturally beautiful, smart, educated, and comes from a super rich family. No way she wanted to "date" him. That's why she forced YG to end "their dating" early. She was so embarrassed.

If kai really care for kyungsoo, why would he agree to jenkai. He's just selfish, childish, needy, and arrogant. He doesn't deserve kyungsoo. I'm happy kyungsoo left sm and him. Kyungsoo deserved someone who is mature, stable, responsible n truly care for him, maybe like jo in sung or woobin. Look at how woobin protected kyungsoo from sasaeng camera. Kai will never do that.

First off I'm not reading all this,

So I'll reply to the first lines only, because I don't have the time to argue with illiterates,

Stop coming here if you're not brave enough to send me your IG for me to show you.

Secondly, Okay Blame SM why blaming the members?? They're just employees they do as what's in their schedules, they can't say no.

When Jongin was extra active was when all members were enlisted, he was the one who paid for most of his promotions, he was the one who contacted those shows personally to attend them to promote his albums, SM didn't want to even reprint his albums, and he had to even pay for printing his albums and pay many of his promotion from his own money, back to him being active during Exo's enlistment Hiatus, he was carrying the Exo name , it's a task remaining idol in a group does when everyone enlists to keep the band name trending in Monthly value for them to not be forgotten, and y'all should thank Ji for doing the job. he was overworked, because he indeed brings revenue and profit to SM, and he expressed how tired and anxious he was from the overwhelming schedules, he lost so much weight have you seen him, the man be ame a stick.

KAISOO and Baekhyun are the only members who were busy all year, not the other members. I think you should check their schedule. Even your Ksoo Oppa wasn't free look how many shows he attended he got a pretty decent promotion for his latest album. And before that he was busy filming three big projects. Ksoo was so busy. And you don't like the sound of that.

It's hard a to swallow pill, but your Ksoo Oppar was one of the Privileged ones in SM, you can tell that because he was constantly busy he was overworked as well and this is the second main reason back in 2019 he wanted to leave. Ksoo is the only member who was constantly busy, missing from Exo's schedules sometimes because he was busy filming his movies and drama's. The man had 3 majors movie and drama works in less than a year a half!? Who stopped him ? None! He was always saying in bubble that he was busy when members were filming shows they called him and Ji always asked him to send supportive message to "Jongdae" and "Xiumin" and many times members called him in their shows or lives and asked him if he has time to tall to them on the call or if he's busy filming.

How possibly busy could you want Ksoo to be?? He was so busy he barely slept?? You want to overwork him more than he was overworked? Is this how you support your idol? You should protect him? Do you even care for his mental and physical health? In terms of promotions blame that on SM they're doing shitty job promoting all their idols, except NCT&Aespa and they're being overworked as well. It's not their fault SM is the one giving them schedule. Why be mad at them? Let alone be mad at Exo whom r in the same shit as your Oppa .

Your Kyungsoo Oppa is the reason Jenkai lasted 24 days only Media play. That's the First main reason he beefed with SM, for minding his personal life. Second main reason was being overworked.

Stay pressed Patricia 🌚

[juletheghoul]

Mysticus Chapter 1

Ezra x F!Reader Soulmates AU

I've had this idea bouncing around in my head for a while and after reading all of the AWESOME writing on this website and with some really lovely encouragement from some of my favourite people here I've decided to give it a go. Always open to constructive criticism!

Pairing: Ezra x F!Reader

Word Count: 1649K

Warnings: Language, tension? (Smut later on)

Literally my first fic, willing to tag if that's something you'd like!

Masterlist Chapter 2

--

“Stay away from Thomas”

The words were out of your mouth before your brain had a chance to stop you. Fuck. The girl you whose palm you held in your hands frowned.

“My date? Why?”

How. How did you always manage to shove your foot in it? You had been doing so well! A steady trickle of patrons to your admittedly shabby little stand. Okay, table with a glittery table cloth and a couple of folding chairs but nevermind that.

“Uhhh, yeah. I’m not sure why but I’m getting a really bad vibe. Is this your first date with him? Where is he?” You asked. You could feel the fear creeping in, like a drop of ice cold water that slides down your spine.

“It’s our first date, he’s grabbing us some food.” She responded, brow furrowed slightly, you could see she was having doubts about her safety.

“What kind of vibe are you getting?” The fact that she didn’t laugh you off right away let you know that she most likely wasn’t as comfortable as she should be on a date.

Your dog looked up at you from her place on the floor, seemingly interested in how you were going to explain yourself.

“Look, I don’t really know what to say I just feel like you should get away as fast as possible. I think you know what I mean, and I think you felt a little weird before you sat down.” You say plainly. You had broke your only rule. No bad news. You could feel her fear now, a wave of anxiety washing over the both of you all at once. In the corner of your peripheral you could see a handsome young man walking towards the both of you with food in both hands. Nothing particularly scary about him but you could feel the hackles raising on your normally silent dog. A low growl came from her direction and you put your hand on her head to calm her.

“There you a-“ he started but before he could say anything else the girl was up, dropping money on your table and hastily making a phone call.

“Sorry Thomas – my mom just called, there’s been an emergency and she’s on her way.”

He frowned. “I can drop you off-“

“No need, thanks for everything and hopefully we can do this again” she quickly called over her shoulder and then she was off.

He stood there for a few minutes dumbstruck. Then you saw something. A glint in his eye maybe? A trick of the lights flashing either from the rides or the games on the either side of your pathetic ‘booth’ and then it was gone. When he seemed to realize that you were sitting there, he gave you a smile and walked away. You shivered and noticed your dog was up and ready to pounce.

“It’s okay girl we’re good.” You reassured her and she once again took her place at your feet, but you noticed that she followed him with her eyes until he was out of sight. Fuck you really needed to work on thinking about what you said before you said it. At least she listened instead of telling you to fuck off, little victories.

“What do you say girl, think it’s time to go?” The dogs ears perked up as you scratched behind one, she responded by standing, her signal for yes. You grabbed the box you had stashed under the little table and started putting your makeshift booth away. The sign which read palm readings $5, the table cloth and the can with your earnings for the night. Slipping the end of the dogs leash around your wrist you folded up the table and chairs and stacked everything neatly and made your way to your Jeep. Tomorrow will be better.

Next day

Carnivals had always freaked you out. A lot of places that were supposed to be fun and whimsical freaked you out. You weren’t entirely sure what it was about these places but it made your skin crawl. The music playing gave you the creeps, the smiles of the people around you seemed wild rather than happy. There was a feeling of something bigger underneath it all, something hungry. Predatory. Patient.

It was a last resort in order to make some quick money with your palm readings, but it always seemed like you were walking into the jaws of some huge monster when entering the grounds.

The dog made you feel better. You had found her in a shelter a couple of years ago and had instantly bonded with her. The staff had told you that she’d been in there for a while since she was notoriously unfriendly but she seemed to tolerate you. You suited each other. What they took as unfriendly, you understood as selective, which was fine. You were selective too. You’d had to make a little sign saying please do not pet the dog but it was a small price to pay for her companionship. She - much like you - was an excellent judge of character.

You spotted a group of teenage girls eyeing your booth, and you perked up. Tried to turn on the charm as it were, usually teenage girls were your best customers. You were usually really good with them and these girls were just what you needed to reach your goal for the night. You smiled along and told them just what they wanted to hear, and seeing them walk away giggling with a spring in their step made you happy. That and the cash you were putting into your coffee can.

Just then you felt it. Something prickling at your skin, like static before a rainstorm. Blood rushed to your ears and it seemed like everything was somehow louder. Something in the pit of your stomach was roiling and you were afraid you might throw up when someone approached your table.

He smiled an easy smile but it held something in it, something that said he knew something secret and you weren’t in on it. You weren’t sure if it intrigued you or scared you. You looked over expecting the dog to growl but she was calm, sitting quietly by your feet. Okay. Weird. She usually didn’t like anyone except you and the occasional small child. She usually hated men in fact but no reaction. It was throwing you off a bit if you were honest but all of a sudden he was speaking to you and you felt like you could barely focus.

“Well birdie, seems like you’ve utterly captured my attention and I simply must know what knowledge you can ascertain from my palm.” He smiled and sat down.

You blinked. What the hell was going? Why did your skin feel feverish? Why wasn’t the dog freaking out like she usually did? Why aren’t you answering?

He patiently waited with his palm upturned and you tried to get your shit together as you slowly reached over and took his hand. He was handsome sure, but never had you been rendered so speechless by anyone before. His rich brown eyes bore into you as you traced the lines in his hand.

“You’re going to meet the love of your life.”

He raised an eyebrow.

“Now that’s interesting, I don’t suppose you’d be able to go into specifics about how or when this fateful meeting is to occur?”

You watched his mouth as he spoke, and he noticed. Curling it into the same secret smile from earlier and you felt the blood rushing to your face. His eyes crinkled when his smile deepened it took everything in you not to smile back at him.

You noticed the blonde birthmark and for a moment you had the wild urge to run your fingers through it. You quickly suppressed that while clearing your throat.

“I don’t have a time and date for you but it’ll be real soon.” You looked back down at his palm and noticed something. There was a little mark. Nothing crazy but aside from yourself, you’d never met anyone else with the same mark on their palm. You tried very hard to keep your breathing in check.

“Is this a scar?” You asked as casually as you could manage.

“That particular mark as afflicted me since birth, curious is it not?” He asked with a tilt of his head. His drawl a little more pronounced. Is it getting hotter?

“Somewhat-“

“Has anyone ever had the privilege of reading the no doubt fantastic future in your palm birdie?”

“That’s the second time you’ve called me that” you responded focusing on the pet name he’d given you.

“It suits you, I ask again- has anyone ever been fortunate enough to read your palm?”

“No.” You responded flatly, reluctantly releasing his hand and sitting back in your chair. He stated back at you and it felt as though he was looking through you, you felt curiously naked.

“As enchanted as I am basking in your presence, I unfortunately must depart. Will you be offering your palmistry services tomorrow night? I should like to see you again birdie.”

“Uhh.. yes, I’ll be back tomorrow.” You’re not even sure why you said that, you were planning on leaving town tonight.

“Wonderful, until we meet again birdie.” He rose smiling, he took your hand in his and pressed a light kiss to it. You stared up at him in shock, your skin prickling where his lips brushed it.

He smiled down at your dog and before you could even think to warn him he reached down and scratched behind her ear. Your jaw dropped as she happily licked his palm while he murmured something into her ear before promptly rising to his feet and striding off into the crowd.

You stared after him long after with the same dumbstruck look on your face. Who the hell was that?

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Tag list: @foli-vora @frannyzooey thanks for being patient with me ladies, this ones for y'all <3 @freak-nasty-thick-dick-mando

[mostlycompetentwriter]

Domesticated

M/F Pairing: Y/N x Bang Chan (Stray Kids) 

Genre: Married Life AU

Warnings: Smut, language, some mentions of cheating (but not with the main pairing)

Word Count: 19,922 (I might break this up later on)

Summary: Marriage was something Y/N had been dreaming about since she was a little girl. But now, ten years later, she’s married to her college sweetheart, but their relationship isn’t entirely perfect. There’s the issue of her new boss, aka her ex-boyfriend Seo Changbin, and Chan’s younger brother Felix who insists on calling her Medusa. Yet, through it all, Y/N is positive she wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.

Notes: Y'all are really out here sleeping on husband Bang Chan and I won’t allow it anymore. Because Chan is 100% husband goals.

“Where do you see yourself in five years?”

I slowly exhaled after disregarding my somewhat passable resume, courtesy of one of those sketchy website builders, to look at the interviewer who waited for my response, pen poised over his expensive notebook. I swallowed hard as I struggled to compose myself under pressure. Because there was a professional answer somewhere in the back of my useless brain, but a dozen other responses, far more honest than his expectations, were waiting on the tip of my tongue.

Such as: 

Waiting at home for my husband because all I do is stare at the clock, counting down the minutes until he walks through the door. I kinda miss when we were in college and could see each other sporadically between long lectures, grabbing lunch at the Wendy’s on South Campus. Now, the most exciting thing that happens is the occasional blow job before we pass out on the worn mattress in our master bedroom.

Or

Sometimes Chan will host dinner parties at the house for his expensive doctor friends. He won’t spare me a single glance while I rush to fill glasses with rich-tasting wine, keeping an eye on Han Jisung because he can’t take more than three refills before he’s trying to dismantle the house. I’ll also have to ignore the really old surgeon who Chan admires because he likes to touch my ass when I pass through the living room. Maybe I was suited to be a sugar baby in another life.

Or

On the rare occasion when Chan actually uses his cock, he’ll pant in my ear the entire time because he’s worn out from long hours at the hospital. Chan will cum before me most of the time and I’m lucky if he’s cognizant enough to eat me out so that I can finally fall asleep from my post-orgasmic haze. Heck, I’ll even take his fingers on my clit if it means an assured eight hours of sleep.

Shit, I miss being young.

I cleared my throat, deciding on the professional answer because I highly doubt Seo Enterprises wanted to hire a desperate housewife.

I was sprawled out on the couch in our living room when Chan came home that evening. I barely acknowledged his rushed greeting, watching through narrowed eyes as he ran into the kitchen. “Babe,” came his anticipated whine. “There’s no leftovers?”

“I didn’t feel like cooking,” I said, turning over to bury my face in the throw pillows decorating the cushions. It really wasn’t that comfortable since Chan insisted we get the stiff, fancy leather futon as opposed to the appealing sectional that could actually recline. 

“You didn’t cook?”

Chan’s voice was closer this time but I still ignored him, sensing an impending headache. “I had an interview.”

“That was hours ago,” Chan pouted.

I sighed loudly. “The interview went great, honey, thanks for asking.”

“I’ve been at the hospital since 5 this morning,” Chan went on, weight dipping beneath the couch at the opposite end. “I didn’t even have time for lunch because Jisung almost fucked up a patient’s IV.”

“Remind me again why he still has a job.”

“Because he somehow graduated from nursing school and has a license claiming he’s qualified,” Chan said. “Plus, he’s my friend.”

“You have shit taste in friends,” I said, protesting when his hand landed a firm smack against my ass. 

“Minho tried to wreck the Corvette when he ran out of cigarettes.”

“Minho is loyal.”

“He still wants to fuck you,” Chan grumped. “Ten years after college and he’s trailing after your ass.”

“Darling, you don’t have to be jealous when I’m wearing your ugly ring on my finger 24/7.”

“It was my mother’s!”

“Oh for fuck’s sake, Bang Chan,” I snapped while grabbing one of my support pillows from beneath my weight, launching it at my husband’s head. Sadly, Chan dodged at the last minute, much to my chagrin, smirking as he dug his fingers into my sides, forcing loud, high-pitched giggles as we both unceremoniously fell into the spotlessly clean floor. “Channie,” I groaned as he rolled on top of me, pinning my hands above my head before deciding to offer me a sloppy kiss with far too much tongue. “You’re fucking gross,” I said, biting at his lower lip in revenge.

“Yeah? Well, you’re fucking sexy,” Chan purred, nuzzling his head between my breasts. 

“Stop it, you oaf!” I grumbled. “My period starts tomorrow. My tits have been sore all day.”

“Maybe I should have a look,” Chan teased, a free hand working loose one of the buttons on my shirt.

“And what good will that do?”

“Well, I am a doctor.”

“You just want to see my tits so you have something to jerk off to in the shower tonight.”

“Shower with me then,” Chan suggested. “I’ll fuck you against the wall.”

“Will you have the stamina?” I questioned. “You poor thing, how can you get it up when you haven’t eaten all day?”

Chan frowned at my mocking tone. “Are you turning down my cock?”

“You’re only half-hard,” I said, lifting my thigh against the tight bulge of his scrubs.

Chan let out a sigh, but his smile was endearing. “What if I order takeout? Then we can fuck in the shower.”

“Channie,” I cooed. “You always know how to talk dirty to me.”

I stand by my belief that email was now an archaic form of communication, but the number of big businesses that forced their employees to make an account @ their company name was ridiculous. But if I wanted to find a job in this big ass city, then I needed to play by the rules. Surprisingly, my most recent application was progressing with far more success than I could have anticipated, and I had read over the new email from Seo Enterprises at least half a dozen times:

Dear Mrs. Bang,

Thank you for taking the time to interview with our staff yesterday afternoon. After carefully reviewing your file with our CEO, he has asked us to schedule one last consultation. Please let us know your earliest convenience.

“That must be a good thing,” Minho remarked, digging his spoon into my ice cream since his bowl was empty and I wasn’t in the mood to argue with him. 

“I guess,” I said, formulating a quick reply because I really wanted this fancy, high-paying Secretary job. I mean, sitting at home all day was definitely not high on my list of accomplishments.

“What’s the hurry anyway?” Minho asked as he licked his spoon clean. “Bang has enough money that you could just smooch off him for the rest of your life.”

“That’s not fair,” I said. “I want us to be equals.”

“Wasn’t that the point of marrying a doctor, Y/N?” Minho asked. “Otherwise, you could still be screwing around with me.”

“Except we aren’t 18 anymore,” I pointed out, frowning in his direction. “And says the guy who works part-time at his sister’s pet shop.”

“Hey!” Minho protested, shoving his spoon in my face. “I’m helping the strays. Population control and shit.”

“So what? You’re snipping some dog penises, good for you.”

Minho sat back with a disgruntled sigh. “What do you want to do after this?”

“I’ll bring Chan some lunch since he didn’t get a chance to eat yesterday,” I said. “Interested in accompanying an old friend?”

“Not really,” Minho said. “But I don’t have anything better to do.”

I maintained a long list of places that I truly despised and the hospital was number one. I always tried desperately not to let it show when I visited Chan because it wasn’t really his fault. I had a bad history when it came to hospitals and the memories lingered like the permanent smell of alcohol that Chan brought home with him on his scrubs.

“Did you see that guy in the waiting room?” Minho asked after I checked us in at the front desk. “He was seconds away from bleeding out on the floor.”

“Don’t talk about blood,” I shivered, hurrying to the elevator while frantically hitting the corresponding floor number.

“This reminding you of Freshman year?” Minho asked since he was a total airhead and missed out on the memo where I specifically told him to keep his mouth shut about that stupid Frat Party.

“There are five reasons why I hate hospitals,” I said, holding up my hand in front of his stupid face. “Don’t make me spell it out for you.”

“Is Freshman year one of them?”

“Shut the hell up, Minho.”

A quiet chuckle resounded through the empty elevator while I impatiently waited for our stop. “You’re feisty today,” Minho remarked once the doors reopened.

I ignored the nasty linoleum floors, heels clicking with every step I took in the direction of Chan’s office. “I’m eating with Chan and then we’re never coming here again.”

“Agreed,” Minho said, keeping pace with me while cringing at the gurneys being pushed through the hallways at an alarming rate. 

We had almost made it to the end of the floor when I heard a lazy voice call out my name from one of the surrounding rooms. I closed my eyes because I could recognize that voice anywhere since it basically haunted my worst nightmares. He might not know it yet, but Han Jisung was the last person I wanted to run into because maybe, just maybe, he was one of the five reasons why I hated this place.

“Guys!” Jisung gushed, smiling brilliantly. “I’d hug you but I just finished cleaning piss off the floor.”

“Jesus, Han,” I said, wrinkling my nose against the overpowering smell of ammonia. “Is Chan in his office?”

“He was supposed to meet with our new superintendent,” Jisung said, grinning like a complete idiot when he shoved his gloved hands towards Minho who now looked a few beats away from losing his ice cream.

“You’re really pushing your luck today,” Minho growled at him.

“The meeting room is the last room on the right,” Jisung said, finally proving to be useful for once in his life.

I grabbed Minho’s arm because he was close to decking Jisung in the face and I didn’t need the security guards to tell Chan that I let my best friend attack one of his nurses. “Come on,” I said, urging him away from the potential crime scene.

“He’s this close to finding himself with a bloody nose,” Minho complained. “You know what’s funny? I’m pretty sure Han Jisung wouldn’t even know how to help himself.”

“You’re probably right,” I agreed, straightening the collar of my blouse as I peeked in through the tight blinds obscuring the glass wall of the room Jisung had indicated. “There’s Chan...” I started, trailing off when I noticed that he was engrossed in deep conversation with an unfamiliar woman.

“Oh, she’s really hot,” Minho remarked, wincing when I shoved my elbow into his chest.

“Commentary is not necessary,” I said, folding my arms across my chest as I tapped my foot against the floor. Who the hell did this bitch think she was?

“Jealousy isn’t a good look on you,” Minho teased and I swallowed my pride, trying to ignore the way she reached out to touch Chan’s arm.

Thankfully, Chan finally noticed me outside, offering me a cheesy wave which I refused to reciprocate as he said something to the woman. I waited outside the door, attempting my best stern expression even if Chan completely ignored my efforts, encasing me in his powerful arms. “Y/N,” he cooed.

“Chan,” I choked out, struggling against his strength.

Minho snorted at the display. “I’m going to find the cafeteria. Text me when you wanna leave, Y/N.”

I waved him off once Chan eventually released me. I sucked in a few grateful breaths while holding up the takeout bag I had brought. “Is there somewhere we can go?”

Chan nodded, reaching for my hand. “Sorry I took so long, I was meeting with the new superintendent.”

I pursed my lips at that revelation. “She doesn’t look old enough to be a superintendent.”

“She’s around my age,” Chan said and I frowned because that just made everything worse.

The hospital’s staff room was small, the smell of coffee heavy in the air as Chan closed the door behind us. “Nobody should come in.”

“Good,” I said, choosing the only table that looked halfway clean before sitting down with a sigh. “I brought you lunch.”

“Thanks, sweetie,” Chan said, gratefully accepting the bag from me while he sat down on the remaining chair. I glared at him from across the table, watching as he dug into the cheap Japanese like it was his last meal on earth. “Is something wrong?” he asked over a mouthful of noodles. Something college Chan would have never done when we first started dating, but I suppose that’s what you get with marriage.

“I saw you were pretty close with your new superintendent,” I said.

“Oh yeah,” Chan replied cheerfully, stuffing even more food into his impossibly wide mouth. “She’s super smart. Like, Harvard graduate smart.”

“Of course she is,” I murmured. “Do you like her?”

“As a boss I guess,” Chan said, still horribly naive to the real problem. I cathartically drummed my fingernails against the surface of the table. 

“Are you coming home early tonight?” I asked him. “I’ll fix your favorite.”

Chan’s eyes lit up because, despite the food sitting right in front of him, he always got excited at the prospect of another meal. “Really?”

I nodded. “I’ll put the good whiskey on ice.”

Chan sat back with a dramatic groan. “Are you trying to give me a heart attack? Where is all this coming from?”

“I’m just being a good wife,” I said, taking on a dismissive tone.

Chan grinned. “Do you want something, sweetheart? You know I’ll buy you anything.”

“No reason,” I chirped. “I just want you to remember how good am I to you.”

“Of course I know that,” Chan said, reaching across the table to squeeze one of my hands. “I didn’t just marry you for your beautiful face.”

“That’s not what you said when we first met,” I reminded him cheekily, enjoying the way his ears grew red. “Should I do a reenactment?”

“That’s not necessary,” Chan said, quickly dismissing the topic. “Did you hear back from your interview?”

“Oh I did,” I said. “They want me to come in and meet the CEO.”

“What for?” Chan scoffed, returning back to his meal.

“Well, I am taking on the secretary position,” I said. “Maybe he wants to make sure I have good phone etiquette.”

“Yeah?” Chan grumbled. “Or, he wants to make sure you look pretty for him so he has something nice to look at all day.”

“And what’s wrong with that?” I asked him because I loved it when Chan got possessive.

“I don’t want some rich bastard drooling over my wife,” Chan said, chopsticks clenched tightly between his fingers.

“Yeah? Well, it works both ways, you know.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Oh come on, Chan,” I sighed. “Your superintendent was totally flirting with you.”

Chan put down his chopsticks, eyeing me cluelessly. “No, she wasn’t.”

“Yes, she was,” I immediately countered, reaching down for my purse. “I watched her the entire time.”

“Were you spying on me?” Chan asked with a smirk.

“Minho’s probably waiting for me,” I replied instead, smoothing down my skirt as I stood up from the table.

“Don’t you think that’s too short?” Chan asked, pointing at my lower section as if personally offended.

“Work hard, honey,” I grinned, leaning over the table to peck him once on the lips, offering a cheeky wave on my way out the door.

My palms were sweaty and, despite my repeated attempts to wipe off the nasty residue on my skirt, the condition persisted. Hyperhidrosis, Chan might tell me, nerdy glasses falling down his nose. I grinned at a distant memory, one of the first dates I ever had with Chan. A younger, less confident version of my husband, frantically peeling his suit jacket from his body, complaining about the heat in the restaurant, only to cower moments later when he realized his armpits were totally drenched.

“Mrs. Bang?”

I looked up at the young man bowing in front of me. “Mr. Seo will see you now.”

I nodded, holding my tongue before I let the intern know that he sounded just like a passage from Fifty Shades of Gray. Oh, shit, what if I was about to meet Christian Gray in the flesh? Some sort of young, hot billionaire with the world at his feet, buying up other companies like they meant absolutely nothing.

It was a believable scenario, and I don’t know how I managed to get my feet to work, but I followed the intern with exaggerated steps. “The boss has been looking forward to this,” the intern told me, pausing outside the office door.

“He has?” I wondered, glancing around the grandiose lobby. Did I really make that much of an impression?

“You can go in now,” the intern smiled, politely holding the door for me as I wordlessly walked inside.

Of course, I was expecting something extravagant, considering the layout of the lobby, but I was still deeply impressed by the spacious, but oddly cozy interior. Could you really call this room an office? Considering how massive it was in size. I mean, was it really necessary to basically live in an apartment when you arrived to work every day? Complete with stylish hardwood floors that looked like something out of an edition of House and Home magazine. I’d bet my entire life’s savings that the CEO hired some kind of fancy architect to design the place because those engravings on the mahogany walls were quite difficult to achieve. “It’s nice isn’t it?” a disarmingly familiar voice asked, and I found the dark figure leaning against the desk in the center of the room, sleeves rolled up to show off his impressive arms. “I was surprised to see your application, Y/N.”

Fuck, Christian Grey would have been way better.

“Changbin?”

He met me halfway across the room, now completely visible beneath the low hanging lights, tan skin washed with a comfortable glow. “Shocked?”

“You could say that,” I said, suddenly feeling like I was 18 again in college, lusting after the object of my affections.

“Have a seat,” Changbin offered kindly, extending his arm towards the matching armchairs neatly tucked around the electric fireplace.

“Okay,” I nodded, unable to take my eyes off Seo Changbin as I stumbled over my heels like a complete lovestruck teenager meeting her musician idol for the very first time.

But, holy fuck, Changbin looked good. Why the hell did he not age or turn prematurely gray? I held back a whimper, eyes looking everywhere around the room except at Seo Changbin. How did I not put two and two together when I first got the notification for the Secretary position at Seo Enterprises? I mean, what are the chances that this Seo is my Seo...Or, at least, he used to be my Seo. 

“Y/N,” Changbin said, flipping through my file with lazy movements. Where did he get those pants from? They fit him sinfully good, hugging his thighs and if I look close enough, the outline of his...“How are you?”

I startled at the question, drawing my eyes up to meet Changbin’s familiar gaze. “Oh, I’m uh..” I trailed off anxiously, trying to put meaningful words together because he was making the English language harder than it needed to be. “I’ve been alright.”

Changbin smiled and I crossed my legs because that kind of smile could literally drench a girl if he wasn’t careful. “I was really happy to see your name on my list.”

“Were you?” I asked, fingers digging into the cushion of my chair.

“I’m always happy to see a familiar face,” Changbin said. “It’s been a while.”

“College,” I choked out, completely out of mind with anxiety, like the time Minho stole my phone and made me think someone had stolen it, even encouraging me to call the number only for him to hang up every time.

“You’re still beautiful.”

“Changbin...”

“I know,” he said, shaking his head. “It’s all in the past.”

“That’s right,” I said, wondering if now would be an appropriate time to snatch my resume out of Changbin’s veiny hands and flee the premises.

“And you’ve married Bang,” Changbin said, pointing to my wedding band. “Which isn’t surprising.”

“Five years,” I said, trying my best to think about Chan and only Chan despite the literal embodiment of my every erotic high school fantasy sitting right in front of me.

“This would be strictly professional,” Changbin said, holding up my resume. “You were our best applicant, but I thought you should know everything about this place before taking the position. Including me.”

“Is that so?” was all I could think to say in return to his unexpectedly thoughtful comment.

Changbin lowered my resume slowly. “The job is yours, Y/N.”

“I’d still have to talk to Chan first,” I said because there’s no way I could just start working for Changbin without Chan knowing everything about the situation. Unfortunately, I could just about anticipate Chan’s response.

“That’s fine,” Changbin agreed. “You can call us tomorrow.”

I allowed a shaky nod, wondering if Changbin knew how much of an effect he still had on me all these years later.

Chan might be one of the smartest men I know, but he was, at his core, just a man who was quite whipped for his wife. Like all men, he was a sucker for lingerie, which is why I slipped on my best matching set, squeezing myself in the little black dress that I knew he really loved. 

The hem barely touched the middle of my thighs.

I was also cooking his favorite meal, the smell filling the kitchen pleasantly as I stood at the stove. My plan was quite simple: dress pretty for Chan and surprise him with his favorite food to soften him up. Maybe then he wouldn’t have a complete meltdown when I broke the news to him about my newest employer. 

But I still shivered when I heard the door open. “Y/N!”

“I’m in the kitchen,” I called back to him, attempting several meditative breaths to try and keep myself together.

“Holy shit,” he cursed, freezing in the doorway as he undoubtedly took in the sight of his wife wrapped in a tight black number.

“I’m making dinner,” I said, flashing him an arrogant smile, amused by the way he openly gaped at me while still wearing his oversized doctor’s coat. A result of an excited, freshly employed Chan filling out his form request with sloppy handwriting.

“You look hot,” Chan told me bluntly, eyes glued to my body as he eliminated the space between us with a few quick-paced steps.

“I got the job,” I said, letting out a nervous giggle as I continued to push around the searing bulgogi with a shaky hand. “Consider this a celebration.”

“That’s great, sweetie,” Chan said, standing behind me to wrap his arms around my middle, pressing soft kisses to the back of my neck, roaming hands feeling my body. “I guess the CEO liked you.”

A hellish double entendre. “Yeah, he was really nice.”

“I’m glad it worked out,” Chan said, voice next to my ear. “I didn’t want you to feel pressured to get a job or anything. I’m proud of you no matter what.”

Was it his intention to make me feel guilty? “Channie,” I sighed, turning around in his arms. “I have to tell you something.”

Chan cocked a brow. “What is it?”

“The company I’m working for...” 

“Yeah?”

“The CEO is someone we know.”

“Is that it?” Chan chuckled, accent thick as those adorable dimples filled out his smile. “Who is it, babe?”

“He used to go to school with us,” I tried, hoping that maybe Chan could just learn how to read my mind and save me the effort of mustering some kind of courage.

“Minho?” Chan teased.

“We’re not exactly friendly with him,” I said.

“Well, I don’t know if you’ve been paying attention, but I’m not exactly friendly with Minho.”

“You jerk,” I huffed, half-heartedly pushing against his chest. “You really, really don’t like this person.”

“There aren’t many people I really, really don’t like,” Chan said. “Come on, Y/N, just tell me who it is. Are you afraid I’ll be upset with you?”

I swallowed hard. “Yes.”

Chan’s smile vanished in a minute. “Y/N.”

“Seo Enterprises,” I said. “The company name.”

Realization dawned across Chan’s face. “Are you saying...”

“Changbin,” I murmured, looking down at my feet. “He’s my new boss.”

Chan let out a rough exhale because he knew exactly who Seo Changbin was and I’m pretty sure he associated the name with deep hatred. “Are you fucking serious?”

I winced at Chan’s tone because he had quickly shifted from sweet, caring husband to angry, sinister Mr. Bang in the blink of an eye. “Yes?”

“The Seo Changbin,” Chan reiterated. “The guy you fucked for like six months Freshman year?”

“That would be the one,” I said, forcing myself to meet his gaze before immediately regretting the decision.

“Why the hell would you take a job as his Secretary?” Chan demanded, crossing his arms over his chest. Normally, I would admire the sight of Chan’s arms stretching the thin fabric of his t-shirt, but now I was just intimidated.

“Because I really wanted the job,” I said. “And I didn’t think it was that big of a deal.”

“Oh, it’s a huge fucking deal,” Chan said, glaring down at me. “You think I’m okay with the idea of you working for someone you once told me you were, and I quote, definitely gonna marry?”

“But I’m married to you,” I tried, attempting a sugary-sweet tone that usually broke Chan’s resolve.

Except for tonight.

“Yeah,” Chan nodded, “You are, and I told you I would take care of you. I have enough money to support both of us, you don’t need to work at all.”

“Chan, you know I’m not comfortable sitting at home,” I said.

“I get that, Y/N, but Seo Changbin? I could get you a Secretary job at the hospital.”

“Channie, this is a position at Seo Enterprises. One of their biggest assets is New York Publishers! It’s like the perfect opportunity to get my foot in the door.”

“Y/N,” Chan groaned. “I can’t stand the thought of you working for Changbin under any circumstances.”

“I get it, Chan,” I said. “But it’s different than college. I’m married now, and Changbin is nothing more than my boss.”

“Does he really get that?” Chan asked. “I’m putting my foot down, Y/N. I don’t want you working for him, okay? You can call them tomorrow and say you’ve got something better.”

“But Channie!”

“No, Y/N,” Chan growled. “You can look for something else.”

I frowned once I realized Chan wasn’t going to back down. It didn’t matter that I wanted the job or that I had dressed up and cooked for him. For the first time since we met, Chan was refusing to give me what I wanted. “Chan, you really don’t have the right to tell me what to do.”

“I’m your husband,” Chan said, justifying his unfair demands with such patriarchal reasoning. 

“Fine,” I muttered darkly, ignoring the way his hand reached out for mine.

“Don’t be this way,” Chan said, following me as I marched to our bedroom, slamming the door closed behind me. “Y/N!” Chan shouted against the door, knocking loudly on the wood. “This is my room too!”

“Not tonight,” I informed him tersely, opening the door only to harshly shove a spare blanket and pillow at his chest. “Goodnight, darling.”

“This is Y/N,” I said into the phone. “I’m calling about-”

“One moment, Mrs. Bang, we can transfer you to Mr. Seo right away.”

“But you don’t understand...”

“Hello?”

“Changbin!” I squealed loudly into the phone, wincing at my shrill tone. 

“Y/N,” Changbin said pleasantly, voice as deep and gravelly as I remembered. “Is this the phone call I’ve been waiting for?”

“I’m not sure,” I said, making myself comfortable at the kitchen counter since I was a notorious pacer when it came to difficult conversations. “It depends on what you’re expecting.”

“I’m expecting to hear a confirmation,” Changbin said. “This is a perfect position for someone with your qualifications.”

“I know,” I groaned. “But I’m calling because I can’t take the job.”

“Really?” Changbin asked. “Can I ask why?”

“Chan isn’t comfortable with the idea,” I said.

“Is that so?” Changbin inquired, innocently enough. “I hope it isn’t because of college.”

“T-that’s not entirely why,” I stuttered because Changbin was apparently intuitive now that he owned some big, fancy company.

“I hope not,” Changbin said. “It wouldn’t be fair of Chan to keep you from a potential opportunity because of something like that.”

“It’s just a lot right now,” I said. “I haven’t had a job in a year. My last position was really good, but the company went bankrupt and I was laid off, so I’m just trying to be careful.”

“You wouldn’t have to worry about anything like that here, Y/N,” Changbin said. “This is a great opportunity for someone looking for a fresh start.”

Did he read my Facebook bio?

“I’m sure it is, Changbin, but I can’t do something that would make Chan uncomfortable.”

“But he’s not the one taking the position,” Changbin pointed out. “I can assure you, Y/N, you won’t find another position like this.”

“God, you’re good at negotiating.”

“Take the job, Y/N. I promise you won’t regret it.”

I could blame it on my desperation later, but I actually really liked the position. It promised a lot, especially considering the publishing company attached to Seo Enterprises. That would be my ultimate goal, to spend my days reading promising manuscripts while sipping expensive Starbucks coffee.

“I guess I can’t say no.”

“Then I’ll see you on Monday.”

Message to Channie

I took the job. I’m sorry but the opportunity was hard to pass up.

It only took a few seconds for Chan’s contact name to flash across my screen with an incoming call. I muted the sound like a coward, ignoring him completely while I started the ignition to the Corvette. A one-year anniversary present from Chan who was somehow more excited than I was when he first handed me the car key.

I drove to Minho’s apartment because I didn’t want to go home and I really had nowhere else to go. Plus, at least Minho was a reliable friend who really didn’t care if I crashed on his couch while he shoved cheap wine down my throat. In fact, Minho might be glad to see me since he was constantly complaining about his new hours at the shop.

“You look like shit,” Minho commented when he answered the door, standing aside to invite me inside. I shrugged off my coat, tossing it against the wall before slumping down onto the cheap sofa in Minho’s living room. The only piece of furniture he could afford in his ridiculously small New York apartment. “What happened?”

“I took the job with Changbin.”

Minho’s eyes widened in surprise. “You did? I can only assume Chan is lying somewhere on his deathbed.”

“No,” I snorted. “I took the job even though Chan asked me not to.”

“Savage,” Minho exhaled and I rolled my eyes at him.

“It’s a great opportunity!”

“When do you start?” Minho asked, feet propped up in my lap as he made himself more than comfortable next to me.

“Monday morning,” I said, mindlessly taking the remote to scroll through his limited TV channels. 

“And Chan is mad?” Minho repeated, glancing at me for confirmation. “Can you really blame him though?”

“Why?” I frowned.

“I mean, Chan’s been in love with you since high school. He used to trail after you all the time, but you only talked about Seo Changbin.”

“You’re not being a good friend right now,” I said, remembering with perfect clarity the image of a sixteen-year-old Chan, hair untamed and clothes mismatched. Chan was a constant presence in my life, even if I preened after another boy who certainly had no intention of remaining faithful.

“Go home to him, Y/N,” Minho said with far more seriousness than I was used to hearing from my still immature best friend. The same Minho who couldn’t find work for an entire year after graduation because he was too busy sleeping with any woman that walked on two legs, living with various girlfriends while slowly draining his savings account.

“Since when are you the voice of reason?” I grumbled.

“Well, we all have to grow up one day.”

I hated the rare occasions when he was right.

The house was eerily silent when I unlocked the door, spotlessly clean just as I had left it which made me feel bad because it meant Chan didn’t even try to eat anything. “You always make me worry,” I muttered, toeing off my shoes as I decided to check the bedroom. 

When Chan had first bought the house, he wanted it to look as close as possible to the random design I had pointed out at the local fair when we were Sophomore students. The plaque had deemed it the “house of the future” and I was enamored with the idea of the future back when my whole life was waiting right in front of me. A big dreamer who was already making wedding plans the moment Chan got down on one knee and proposed with his mother’s wedding ring.

“Channie,” I whispered into the darkness, cautiously tiptoeing my way to the side of the bed where Chan was facing away from me, sheets tucked in around his waist to leave his chest exposed. “I’m sorry.”

Chan let out a sigh. “What are you sorry for, Y/N?”

“I hurt you,” I said, choosing my words carefully. “I took the job with Changbin and I didn’t think about how it would affect you.”

“I fucking hate him,” Chan said, tone bitter and laced with venom. “I hate what he did to you Freshman year and I hate that he was the first person you loved.”

“Chan,” I sighed, sitting down on the edge of the bed. “I was really young and stupid back then. I should have never slept with Changbin. But he was just a fantasy, even when we were together, and I certainly never really loved him.” I leaned in closer, brushing his hair away from his forehead. “I’ve always loved you first. You mean the world to me and I’m sorry that I went behind your back to work for Changbin. But he’s definitely nothing more than a mistake from a past full of them. There’s nothing to worry about.”

Chan shifted from next to me, rolling onto his back. His eyes were looking at me like I was literally his entire world. “I’ll always worry, sweetie. You drive me insane these days.”

I grinned at the use of his pet name for me, reaching out to run a soothing hand along the defined lines of his stomach. “Don’t worry about me, darling, when you’re the one with a supermodel for a boss.”

“Fuck, we’re both screwed,” Chan said. “Does she drive you mad with jealousy?”

“Of course she does,” I said. “She has bigger tits than me.”

“Well, I like your tits,” Chan insisted. “Don’t even think about bringing up plastic surgery again.”

“It would be to your benefit,” I pointed out. 

“And the detriment to my savings account. Plus, I don’t want some old bastard fondling your tits while he pumps silicone in your chest.”

“Of all the things to worry about,” I sighed. “Does this mean we’re okay again?”

“You could probably step on me and I would still thank you for it, sweetie.”

“What if I sit on it instead?” I asked, moving my hand down to squeeze his flaccid cock.

“Makeup sex?” Chan gasped. “You don’t have to sell yourself out like this, babe.”

“Yeah? Well, I want to,” I said while proceeding to straddle his waist, smirking when Chan’s hands instantly moved to my hips. It was almost like a magnet, the reaction automatic after years of marriage. “You’re already hard,” I teased, reaching back to palm him over the sheets. 

Chan always slept in boxers which I certainly appreciated because it made the rare nights of our passionate lovemaking even more accessible. Chan lifted my shirt, groaning low when he saw that I was wearing nothing but a pair of satin panties. “This is why I’m already hard.”

“You don’t see me walking around the house in underwear,” I quipped playfully.

“It’s comfortable,” Chan whimpered, moaning when my hand found the smooth velvety head of his cock. 

“Something you never did when we were dating,” I said. “I spent weekends with you in the apartment.”

“Wanted to make a good impression,” Chan grumbled, eyes closed as he rolled his hips in time with my careful strokes. 

“So you don’t have to impress me anymore,” I said, glancing back at his cock, hot and heavy in my hand. “But I guess you still do.”

Chan moaned even louder at my words, fingers tightening in my wrinkled shirt. “Don’t make me cum yet.”

“Why not, darling?” I asked him cheekily, twisting my wrist just right, watching as a stuttered gasp fell from between his gorgeous pout.

“Wanna cum inside,” he said, biceps straining as he pulled me closer, kissing me with a desperation that only demonstrated just how gone he really was.

“Yeah?” I smirked, tongue tracing the ridges of his full lips. “I guess you deserve it after putting up with my bullshit all day.”

Chan nodded fervently and the sight was oddly endearing. It reminded me of when Chan and I first met in high school, a nerdy sixteen-year-old boy who had just transferred schools all the way from Australia. He had a thick accent, foreign and rich, just like the untamed mass of curls covering his deep brown eyes. Chan wore thick-rimmed glasses and he had a light dusting of freckles like the main character from Freckle Juice, one of my favorite childhood novels. He was nerdy and shy, sitting alone in the cafeteria at lunch and walking between classes with his shoulders hunched like he was afraid one of those horrible jocks would try to steal his bag again.

“Y/N!” he whined loudly, forcing me out of the memory.

“Alright, Channie, you want inside?”

I sat up on my knees to work down my panties, ignoring the way Chan’s fingers tried to interfere, pulling at the fabric like he could possibly make them disappear any faster. I grabbed the hem of his boxer shorts, teasingly pulling them down his thighs before brushing a kiss across the weeping tip of his cock, precum bitter on my tongue. For a moment, I admired his thick erection, remembering how nervous Chan was the very first time we had sex back before we were even old enough to drink alcohol.

I held his cock as I positioned myself over his lap. “I’ll do all the work tonight,” I said, listening to Chan’s sweet moans the entire time I slowly lowered myself onto his cock, enjoying the way he always filled me so deeply.

“Oh yeah, sweetie,” Chan grunted, hips moving messily as he tried to find a rhythm. “I’m gonna make you feel so good.”

 “Really?” I asked, swallowing down a moan when Chan hit just right, movements growing more and more confident as I returned every thrust. “I thought I was in charge tonight.”

Chan’s hands gripped my waist firmly, eyes wide open as he focused on where we were connected. “I’m always in charge.”

“Definitely,” I said, bracing my hands against his firm chest for balance because I was weak for this version of Chan. A complete contradiction to the one I first started dating, sweetly doting as he did everything in his power to make me happy. An image of a beautifully innocent Chan looking up from his position between my thighs. “It’s good?”

“So good,” I whispered aloud, peppering kisses across the pale expanse of Chan’s creamy skin, laving my tongue against a sensitive nipple which forced a temporary break from his regular tempo.

“Don’t play dirty, sweetie,” Chan said, giving me no warning before he was pushing me onto my back, hovering over me with his irresistible bedroom eyes. His hands spread my thighs wide, giving himself more room to fuck inside, movements growing faster with every step closer to what was beginning to feel like an intense orgasm. I’m talking about the kind that I could feel between my legs for days after I tried to walk straight again. “Do I need to touch you?”

“Fuck, I think you’re doing just fine,” I said. “Where the hell did this come from?”

“You woke up my competitive side,” Chan said, hitting deep like we were suddenly 20-years-old again sneaking quickies between lectures. Back then, Chan could literally fuck me against a wall, my legs wrapped around his gorgeous hips while he knocked the breath out of my lungs. Thank god, Chan decided that college would be his glory years, working out aggressively in the gym until he had muscles filling out the places where he had previously been soft. But I would always miss his pudgy stomach, even if his ass was now something out of a porn magazine. 

“Well fuck,” I moaned. “I’ll have to do this more often.”

“I’d do it all the time if I wasn’t working until 3 in the morning at the hospital,” Chan said.

“Good point, should I come in at lunch then? You can lock us in one of the empty rooms.”

“Oh shit, sweetie, you shouldn’t talk that way,” Chan growled and it was one of the sexiest sounds I had ever heard.

“I’m close,” I warned him, digging my fingers in his scalp as his teeth teased against my collarbone.

“Me too,” he said, breaths uneven as he punctuated his words with a series of harsh ruts that sent my eyes rolling into the back of my skull. His fingers found my clit, thumb pressing down hard enough to trigger one of the best orgasms I had experienced in a long time.

I tightened around his stuttering cock, moaning when I could feel his cum deep inside, warm and wet. “Shit, you’re so good at that.”

Chan pulled out slowly, eyes growing wide at the sight of his cum leaking down my ass. “Left a fucking mess though.”

“We can shower later,” I said, grabbing his arm to encourage him to lie down next to me, burying my face against his chest, scarlet-red from the exertion.

“Was the dick that good?” Chan teased, running his fingers soothingly along my spine.

“Your dick is that good,” I replied. “The genetics are strong.”

“I’ll be sure to tell my parents,” Chan said, giggling as I shot him a warning glare. “I love you, sweetie.”

“Mmm, I love you more.”

1 Week Later

Lee Felix is the spawn of the devil and nobody could convince me otherwise. Because ever since we first met, when Chan invited me over to his house for a project, Felix had decided that I was his number one enemy, deeming me “Medusa” because he was enamored with Greek Mythology. But the unfortunate nickname had stuck throughout the years, even when Felix visited our college between breaks, forcing me to sleep on the couch while he shared the bed with his step-brother. 

Recently, Felix had just finished his Master’s program for some kind of fancy Philosophy degree that would probably do him absolutely no good in the real world. But Chan was proud of his baby brother, inviting him to stay with us after graduation until Felix could stand on his own two feet. The decision was met by my instantaneous protest leading to an argument that I inevitably lost because Chan was still using Changbin as a winning point. However, even before my employment with Seo Enterprises, Felix was the cause of at least 95% of our arguments and I was not exaggerating in the slightest.

The sound of the doorbell ringing was suddenly a lot louder than I remember. “Death is here,” I said solemnly, ignoring the way Chan scoffed at my claim. I followed behind him somberly as he opened the door, letting out an excited cheer when he saw Felix waiting on the other side. Felix dropped his bag and practically screamed, which would likely wake up the entire neighborhood, jumping into his brother’s arm as the two embraced right in the middle of my foyer. 

“Could you be any louder?” I snarled at the younger Bang. 

“Maybe I could, Medusa,” Felix shot back, eyes narrowed as he picked up his bag. 

“Come on, Felix,” Chan said, nodding at the kitchen. “I bet you’re hungry.”

Felix nodded, putting on his best smile for his ignorant brother, shoving his bag harshly at my chest as he walked by. “You can take care of that for me, right Medusa?”

“You little bitch,” I muttered, meeting his glare with one of my own.

The only thing worse than going out with Felix was including Han Jisung in the equation. For whatever reason, Jisung and Felix always riled each other up, chugging down alcohol like it was fucking water or something. However, Felix wanted to see Jisung again and Chan never said no to his little brother. This is why I was currently seated next to Chan at a cheesy bar in downtown Harlem, listening to Felix and Jisung try to talk over one another as Chan looked on with fond eyes. The only good part of the night was the fact that even Chan had allowed himself to get a little tipsy which meant he was doing his absolute best to feel me up in public. I always found it amusing, knocking his hand away when his eager fingers started to trail up my skirt.

“Felix,” Jisung whined. “How can you say that?”

“Oi, there’s no way you can put Nickleback and Green Day in the same fucking category.”

I rolled my eyes at the stupid argument, smacking Chan’s hand when he started to finger the waistband of my skirt. “Chan!” Jisung pouted. “Tell him that he’s wrong.”

“Tell the philosophy major that he’s wrong?” Chan asked, accent on full display as he reached out to playfully ruffle Felix’s hair. “You can’t even answer the phone at the receptionist’s desk.”

Felix loved the attention and I hated it when he came over only to occupy Chan’s every waking hour with his never-ending thirst for affection. But I wasn’t going to let him get away with it tonight. I cleared my throat, stretching my arms back behind my head because I knew how good it would make my breasts look in the rather low-cut shirt I had chosen for tonight’s affair. I glanced over at Chan, smiling victoriously when I saw the way his eyes had glued themselves to my chest. Even Han Jisung was looking, which would normally annoy me to no end, but I was putting on my best behavior tonight. “Chan!” Felix shouted, trying to regain his brother’s attention. “Did you hear that I scored the highest honors on my research project?”

And just like that, Chan’s attention was redirected to Satan, eyes glowing with pride. “That’s amazing, Felix!”

“I can tell you all about it,” Felix said arrogantly, tossing me a cocky smile which left me absolutely incensed. “The board was so impressed, they offered to publish my results in the University’s magazine.”

“Are you serious, Felix?” Jisung asked which was an even bigger blow because the only two things occupying Jisung’s thoughts were women and alcohol. 

So I decided to push my luck, tugging down my skirt before shifting over in the booth to plant myself directly on Chan’s lap, wrapping my arms around his neck before nuzzling into his warm chest. “Channie,” I cooed while glaring at Felix from the corner of my eye. 

“Do you want something, sweetie?” Chan asked, smile blinding as one hand wrapped around my waist, leaving the other to tease the bare skin of my thighs. 

I reached for Chan’s beer, shoving the glass at him because nothing made Chan hornier than thighs and alcohol. “Should I come to see you at work tomorrow? Like we talked about before?”

Chan’s eyes lit with recognition and I smirked victoriously when I felt him grow hard in his tight jeans. “I’d really like that.”

And to seal my victory, I leaned forward to kiss my intoxicated husband, ignoring the sloppy way he reciprocated, breath musty with the taste of beer. Felix growled lowly from across the booth and Jisung let out a wolf whistle at our blatant display. But I was on cloud nine, satisfied to have won Chan’s attention because it meant Felix was going to be quite unhappy for the rest of the night.

“Medusa, aren’t you going to make me breakfast?”

I groaned as I glanced over at the alarm clock which informed me that it was only 9:00 AM. “Fuck, Felix, go back to sleep.”

“But I’m hungry,” he whined, reaching across the bed to tug on my arm.

“It’s Saturday,” I hissed, barely clinging to the wonderful promise of more sleep which would do wonders for my hungover state.

“Chan wouldn’t be happy with you,” Felix reminded me. “Should I call him at work?”

“Get out of here you little maggot,” I snapped. “I’ll fix you some damn breakfast.”

“Now!” Felix ordered like he had every right to make demands of me, but I didn’t want Felix to say anything to Chan because that would only lead to another needless argument. 

“You’re a fucking menace,” I said, throwing off my bedsheets while briefly mourning the loss of my precious sleep. But I don’t want anyone to ever say that I was a bad wife, especially when I put up with Lee Felix just to make Chan happy. 

Felix was already seated at the counter when I finally drug myself out of my bedroom, groggily reaching for a clean pan from the cabinet. “You get eggs and bacon,” I told him. “I’m not a gourmet chef.”

“Whatever,” Felix said, ignoring me completely in exchange for his cell phone. Which Chan was now paying for to help “lessen Felix’s financial burden.” 

“Chan,” I remember telling him. “You’ll spoil him if you keep doing things like that. He’ll never want to leave!”

“What’s wrong with that?” Chan had shot back as if the idea of living with his younger brother for the rest of our married life was perfectly acceptable.

“A million things,” I muttered now, cracking one of the eggs against the side of the pan. 

“I hear you’re working for Seo Changbin,” Felix abruptly spoke up, and I could practically feel his eyes on me. “He cheated on you, right?”

“It’s really none of your business,” I informed him brusquely, grabbing a spatula while wondering if I could teach Felix a lesson if I hit him a few times.

“My brother isn’t happy,” Felix continued as if my warning meant nothing to him. Probably because it didn’t. “I think it’s a bad idea, but your satisfaction always comes first, right?”

“Why the fuck did Chan tell you this?” I gritted out while aggressively slamming the fridge closed, pack of bacon gripped tightly in my hand.

“He tells me everything,” Felix said smartly. “Because he trusts me.”

“Good for you,” I huffed over my shoulder. “I’m glad you have such a close relationship with your brother.”

“Jealous?” Felix taunted, expression smug when I roughly placed down a glass in front of him.

“Is orange juice, okay?” I asked him in a faux sweet voice.

“It’s fine,” Felix shrugged. “But whatever is most inconvenient for you.”

“What a sweet little boy you are,” I said, pouring him a generous amount. “How long do you plan on staying here?”

“Chan says I can stay for as long as I want,” Felix said, narrowing his eyes. “You don’t have a problem with that, do you?”

“Of course not,” I muttered. “Two Bangs are better than one.”

“That’s right,” Felix said brightly, taking a sip from his glass. “Ugh, does this have pulp in it?”

“Drink your fucking orange juice, Felix!”

The invention of video games was a godsend because they could occupy Felix’s attention for hours, leaving me in relative peace as I tried not to let him destroy every last bit of my resolve. I was currently having a bath alone in the sanctity of my bathroom, shoulder-deep in soothing bath salts which I kept well-stocked in the cabinet underneath the sink. The aroma was pleasant, sending me to a place somewhere far away to where Felix’s were strictly prohibited.

For the entirety of the day, Felix had been doing his best to get on my nerves. I cooked him breakfast and lunch, cleaned his disgusting laundry, and even held my tongue when he requested I drive him to the mattress store because the guest bedroom was unsatisfactory. But it had always been like this between us, ever since the day I first met Felix and tried my best to make a good impression. Unfortunately, Felix idolized his older brother, deeming any girl unworthy of his time and efforts, including myself. Of course, above anyone else, Felix thought I was the worst possible choice, reminding me every second that his brother deserved someone smarter, richer, and prettier. 

Suddenly, my phone vibrated loudly on the edge of the bathtub and I hesitantly glanced at the screen, half-expecting to see Felix’s name displayed like a caution sign. Surprisingly, it was Chan who had sent me a message to ask where I was, which meant Felix had lied through his teeth and said I’d gone somewhere. 

To Channie

Bathroom.

It was only a moment or two later when the door opened and Chan stuck his head inside, offering me a pleasant smile as he locked the door behind him. “You’re home early,” I remarked, vacantly staring up at the ceiling.

“It’s Saturday night,” Chan reminded me. “I thought the three of us could go out to eat.”

I groaned in protest. “What about takeout?”

“You love going out,” Chan said. “I’ll even let you pick the restaurant.”

“I have way too many problems right now,” I said. “I’m avoiding them by staying in the water for as long as I can.”

“Sweetie,” Chan said, taking a step closer. “You should’ve waited for me.”

“Why?” I asked him airily. “You’re one of those problems.”

“Me?” Chan asked, choosing to sit down on the edge of the tub. “What did I do wrong?”

“No arguments tonight,” I said, letting out a deep sigh. “This is the most relaxed I’ve been all day.”

“Aren’t you being overdramatic?” Chan asked, reaching down to flick a trail of water in my direction. “I was in surgery for 6 hours today.”

“Yeah? Well, I’ve dealt with Felix since 9 this morning.”

“Ah,” Chan sighed. “I figured it had something to do with my brother.”

“Just forget it,” I whined. “You know we don’t get along.”

“I do know that,” Chan said. “But I wish you both made a better effort. We’re family after all.”

I shivered at the idea of Felix belonging to any family of mine. “You can keep him on your side, then. I grew up as an only child, look at how much better I turned out for it.”

“You told me you had imaginary friends growing up because you were so lonely,” Chan teased.

“Asshole,” I muttered. “That’s sensitive information that I told you in confidentiality. You should know all about patient-doctor confidentiality. Didn’t you have a whole lecture on it?”

“Y/N,” Chan lightly chastised, reaching for a towel on the rack next to the counter. “Get dressed, we’re leaving in an hour.”

“You’ve condemned me to death,” I complained, watching through lidded eyes as he stretched out his arms.

“I’m serious, Y/N, at least try to get along for my sake.”

“That’s all I ever do,” I muttered to his retreating form.

Hwang Hyunjin is a willing accomplice to the devil himself who never misses an opportunity to throw out some lascivious comments about my appearance. He was Felix’s best friend and partner in crime, sharing his goal of making my life as miserable as possible. He was also coming out to eat with us tonight and no matter how much I whined to Chan, he remained adamant that Felix should spend some time with his friends. “He’s only young once,” Chan told me, ignoring the way I glared at him with every ounce of hostility that I could muster.

“Did you paint those pants on, Y/N?” Hyunjin asked the minute he sat down in the backseat next to Felix.

“I did, actually, thanks for the unnecessary observation,” I told him shortly, still focused on the staring contest I was having with Felix in the rearview mirror.

“Don’t mind her, she’s probably on her period,” Felix said and I took in a deep breath because I was very close to turning around in my seat to choke the life out of Felix’s pencil neck.

“How have you been, Hyunjin?” Chan asked, one hand on the steering wheel as he calmly navigated us through the permanent traffic of New York.

“I applied for a job with Amazon,” Hyunjin replied. “I don’t wanna brag, but I definitely nailed the interview.”

“Yeah right,” I muttered under my breath. Hyunjin had the worst people skills in the history of mankind. He was almost as incompetent as Han Jisung, but ten times worse because of his sarcastic attitude.

“You’ll get me Amazon Prime for free, right bro?” Felix giggled and I resisted the urge to mock the sound.

“I’m proud of you, Hyunjin,” Chan said. “I know you worked hard.”

“It wasn’t a big deal,” Hyunjin said. “But the chick who interviewed me was really hot and I think I appropriately swept her off her feet.”

“Big tits?” Felix asked because that’s all those stupid boys cared about.

“Of course,” Hyunjin said. “But I’m still waiting for you, Y/N, whenever you’re ready.”

Felix scoffed. “You could do better than Medusa.”

“How about some music?” I snapped loudly, reaching down for the radio knob to block out the sounds of Felix and Hyunjin’s voices.

Monday mornings were the worst thing to ever happen to mankind next to Lee Felix. I was sipping at my morning coffee, cold now because Felix had spent way too much time ordering me around the kitchen before I left home. But it was better than nothing and I desperately needed caffeine to get through the day. “Morning, Y/N,” Changbin greeted me smoothly, suit well-pressed and fitted to hug his arms and thighs just right.

“Sure,” I said in reply, trudging to my chair in slow motion. 

“Are you always this lively in the mornings?” Changbin remarked, leaning against my desk as he looked through his mail.

“Just on Mondays,” I said, booting up my computer so that I could answer the dozens of emails likely waiting for me, most of which would come from annoying sponsors who wanted Changbin to be on their dumb podcast. 

“Well, you still look gorgeous,” Changbin said.

My cheeks flushed at his comment. “You still need to call Mr. Kim back, he’s left another voicemail.”

“Just one call?” Changbin smirked, eyes dancing dangerously. “Have you been scaring everyone off, Y/N?”

“I did just as you asked, sir.”

“You don’t have to call me sir,” Changbin chuckled, carefully engrossed in his cell phone now as he graciously returned to his own office.

I shivered as I glanced at my computer screen. Changbin was still as notoriously flirtatious as he had been when we were younger. In fact, it might be worse now that he had finally grown into his sharper features which made him look ridiculously attractive. “I love Chan, I love Chan,” I quietly repeated to myself, even as a distant memory suddenly forced itself back into consciousness.

An 18-year-old Seo Changbin walking inside my lecture hall wearing a dark button-up tucked into the tightest pair of skinny jeans he probably owned. Every eye in that lecture room had suddenly turned to him because he was an irresistible force, impossible to ignore. “Y/N?” 

Be cool Y/N, I softly chastised myself as I offered him a friendly smile. “Hi, Changbin.”

It was purely coincidental that Changbin had ended up at the same University as me, but that didn’t stop my fragile teenage heart from declaring it as something akin to fate. “It’s been a while,” Changbin said, pulling out the chair next to mine.

I swallowed hard because my mouth was as dry as a desert. “I didn’t know you were enrolled here.”

“It was my first pick,” Changbin said. “My father is an alumnus.”

“Really?” I asked, ignoring the arrival of the professor in exchange for mapping out every single one of Changbin’s gorgeous features.

“This class is just for gen ed,” Changbin said, pushing a hand through his neatly styled black hair.

“Oh, same for me,” I nodded. “I heard it was pretty easy.”

“Is that right?” Changbin asked while flashing me an award-winning smile. Roll out the red carpets because this boy was cool enough to be in an action film co-starring Tom Holland and Ancel Elgort.

But what were we talking about? “I’m majoring in English.”

“Political Science,” Changbin returned. “And Business.”

I deflated a little because, in comparison to my lousy arts degree, Changbin seemed like a certified genius. He would be educated in the art of entrepreneurship and big money while I struggled to comprehend the meaning of Great Expectations. “Have you met anyone else from high school?”

“Not yet,” Changbin said. “What about you?”

“Well, Bang Chan’s enrolled here too...” I started, only to trail off when I realized that Changbin probably had no idea who Chan was since he never paid attention to him in high school. Actually, Changbin would have been more likely to join the football jocks who liked to steal Chan’s stuff only to tie his underwear to the flagpole outside the gym.

“The nerdy Australian kid?” Changbin chuckled. “That sucks.”

“Oh,” was all I could manage since Changbin obviously didn’t know that Chan and I were friends. 

“You don’t hang out with him, do you?” Changbin asked, peering at me closely like I was seconds away from losing the honor of his company.

“We have lunch sometimes,” I said, which was only partially true since I did like to meet up with Chan in the dining hall around 2:00 because it was never crowded. But Changbin didn’t need to know that I had spent the night in Chan’s apartment listening to him record one of his mixtapes because Chan had a newfound interest in music. 

“You could do better,” Changbin sighed. “Hang out with me instead. I’ll treat you to the nicest fast food joint on campus.”

My heart was racing, palms clammy as I nodded my head rapidly. “Lunch?”

“Whatever you want, love,” Changbin said, close proximity knocking every rational thought clean out of my head.

It was like my best fantasy coming to life right before my very eyes, and after our lecture ended I asked Changbin to wait for me while I made a phone call to Chan. “Y/N!” came his cheerful voice from the other end. “Guess who got to dissect a liver today?”

I wrinkled my nose at the nasty image. Chan was studying to enter the medical program which meant a lot of his daily life centered around the human body and all sorts of things that could go wrong with it. “Chan,” I whined. “You’re talking to someone who can’t stand the sight of blood.”

“I know,” Chan sniggered. “Does this mean you’re not gonna want to eat lunch with me today? You know I’ll pay, of course, I got a raise at the cafe.”

“Well,” I started, desperately searching for the right words. “I actually have to meet with my professor for this essay I’ve been having trouble with.”

“No problem,” Chan said. “I’ll bring you takeout for dinner. Doesn’t your roommate have practice tonight?”

I glanced back at Changbin with a guilty conscience. Why did Chan have to be so sweet all the time? “Yeah, that’s fine.”

“No liver talk, I promise,” Chan giggled and I hung up the phone before he could make me feel even worse than I already did.

“You want to get some lunch?” Changbin asked with his hands dug inside his pockets as he stood in front of my desk.

“Like, with me?” I asked warily because I wasn’t sure where the line stood on professionalism when it involves eating with an ex-boyfriend.

“Who else?” Changbin said. “I figured we could use a break from the phone calls.”

“I don’t know...” I answered hesitantly because Chan would probably lose his shit if he discovered I went out anywhere with Changbin.

“It’s not a big deal, Y/N,” Changbin said. “My job is to make sure my employees are well taken care of.”

“I guess,” I sighed, reaching down for my purse on the floor. “One lunch together won’t hurt anything.”

But Changbin seemed awfully smug, patiently waiting for me to gather my belongings, stuffing my phone with an unanswered text from Chan inside my side pocket. It’s almost like the universe was conspiring against me, doing its very best to try and force me into the worst situations possible. Here’s an irrational thought: what if Chan happened to decide to go out for lunch today? He might find me with Changbin and I couldn’t think of a worse scenario. Of course, I suppose it doesn’t necessarily have to be Chan who finds us. For example, if his younger step-brother was to suddenly wander in the building at this very moment...

“Medusa!”

Curse you, universe!

“Felix?” 

“I brought us lunch!” Felix chirped brightly, holding up a picnic basket as he waltzed right up to my desk with far more confidence than necessary.

I blinked my eyes rapidly, unable to process the idea that Felix was standing in the middle of the company’s lobby. “Is it poisoned?” I asked, trying not to alert him to any possible wrongdoing.

Felix ignored me, turning around to face Changbin with a critical gaze. “Seo? Is that you?”

“Felix,” Changbin acknowledged, frowning as if he was the last person on earth he wanted to see, and I could share the sentiment.

“Fuck,” Felix cursed, taking a step back. “You still look really young. I was surprised when Y/N told me you were her new boss.”

“I didn’t tell you that,” I said, opening the flaps of the basket only to let out a disgruntled sigh when I realized he had only brought a bag of chips and a tray of cookies.

“And what are you doing these days?” Changbin asked.

“Freelance work, mostly,” Felix replied as if he really needed to lie to Changbin about his lack of a suitable occupation.

“I forgot what you majored in,” Changbin said. “It was hard to keep up since you changed your concentration like a dozen times.”

I couldn’t hold back my laugh, even when Felix sneered in my direction. “Philosophy.”

“Interesting,” Changbin said, nodding his head. “I’m actually surprised to hear that. You never settled on anything.”

Seo Changbin needed to be careful because his charm points were dramatically increasing the more he mocked my husband’s step-brother. “I actually just finished my Masters.”

“Really?” Changbin said. “This coming from the same boy who used to party with Hwang Hyunjin at all the Fraternities, even if they were on a different campus.”

“It was just Freshman year,” Felix defended himself. 

“Well,” Changbin started, “I’m glad to hear about your graduation. Y/N and I were actually just about to head out to lunch.”

I winced at his words, withering under Felix’s accusing watch. “Is that so?”

Changbin carefully studied the two of us. “I’ll be waiting in my car, Y/N.”

I grabbed my bag while pushing the picnic basket back in Felix’s direction. “I swear to god if you tell Chan about this, I’ll castrate you in your sleep.”

“We’ll see about that,” Felix growled, and that was the moment I realized that I was treading very dangerous waters.

Changbin drove us to a charming restaurant about two blocks away from the main company building. He pulled right up to the sidewalk, handing his keys to the waiting carhop as if he had done this about a thousand times. But I guess that was pretty likely considering just how well-off he was ten years later. “Impressive,” I remarked to him, reluctantly accepting his outstretched hand as he helped me out of his car.

“Yeah?” Changbin said, offering me a wink. “Maybe I’m trying to impress you.”

“You’re a dangerous man, Seo Changbin,” I told him, bowing slightly to the waiting doorman who kindly ushered us inside.

This was why the pretty girls always lusted after Changbin. When we were both still in high school, Changbin epitomized the phrase #BoyfriendGoals because he was super attractive, incredibly smart, and athletic enough to earn himself a shining record after an impressive baseball season. And I was just as mindless as the rest of the zombies chasing him down in the parking lot at school or squealing his name in the hallways between classes.

“I eat here all the time,” Changbin assured me, flashing the hostess a dazzling smile while handing her his card. 

“Right this way, Mr. Seo,” the hostess curtsied, ignoring the long line of waiting patrons who apparently didn’t matter as much as my new boss as she led us to a private table. “Your waitress will be with you shortly.”

“Thank you,” I said politely, eyes wide as I took in the gorgeous chandelier dropping from the high-domed ceiling.

“Close your mouth, Y/N,” Changbin said. “You act like you’ve never been somewhere like this before.”

“Not exactly,” I said because the nicest place Chan had ever taken me was an Olive Garden and that had ended poorly after Chan accidentally knocked his shoulder against a poor server on his way back to the table causing an avalanche of salad and breadsticks.

“Bang should be taking you to places like this all the time,” Changbin commented, perhaps a casual observation to anyone else.

I narrowed my eyes suspiciously. “Chan and I prefer to keep things low-key.”

“Should I have taken you to Applebees instead?”

“How funny.”

“I’m kidding, Y/N,” Changbin said, reaching down to adjust the buttons on his coat sleeve. “You’ve changed a lot since college.”

“Since we dated you mean?” I asked with an arched brow.

“Well,” Changbin started, “if you want to think of it like that.”

“Hmmm,” I briefly meditated, studying Changbin’s expression carefully. “How else should I think about it.”

Changbin tsked, raising a hand to signal for a nearby waiter. “I don’t mean to suggest anything.”

The waiter approached our table with purposed steps. “How may I help you, sir?”

“A wine menu?” Changbin asked, nodding generously when the waiter returned with his requested selection. 

“You make a beautiful couple,” the waiter gushed while he pulled out a thick leather wallet, flipping to a fresh page.

“Oh! We’re not-”

“-A bottle of pinot noir, please,” Changbin said, returning the menu without bothering to correct the waiter’s observation.

“Right away, sir,” the waiter agreed.

I held my tongue until he was further away, bothering an older couple who were probably complaining about something to do with their food. “Changbin,” I warned him. “You should be careful.”

“It was a harmless mistake,” Changbin said. “How can I possibly come between you and Bang?”

I worried my bottom lip between my teeth because it sounded less like a dismissal and more like a challenge.

The sun was already setting by the time I returned home thanks to one of Changbin’s business partners who refused to leave the office building until they had a chance to speak to him. I was low on patience, tired from an exhausting day of dealing with telemarketers insisting our company needed the latest software for our clientele. There was only a limited number of times I could tell somebody to fuck off before inevitably shouting into the other end that I was in no way interested in whatever useless product they were trying to shove down my throat, complete with some kind of scammy discount and an opportunity to be represented on their website.

To make matters worse, my feet were blistered from wearing heels all day and my shoulders ached from slouching over my computer to answer emails and monitor the progress of Changbin’s latest project. My only saving grace was the message Chan had sent me earlier telling me that he had already clocked out at work, which meant I could probably guilt him into giving me one of his trademarked messages. I mean, all I wanted to do was curl up next to Chan in bed and sleep for the rest of the day.

But it looked like my desires would have to wait because as soon as I unlocked the door to the house, I could immediately sense that something was wrong. Taking a deep breath, I cautiously walked into the living room to find Chan and Felix busy with some kind of video game on our HD TV, volume high until I walked in the room. Chan waited until I called his name, reaching for the remote to mute the TV before tossing his controller onto the coffee table. From across the room, Felix’s eyes were alight with mischief.

“How was work today?” Chan asked with a tone that I only ever heard when my husband was feeling particularly pissed off about something, and I had a sneaking suspicion it involved me in some capacity.

“It was fine,” I said, deciding to play it safe while I kept my complaints to myself.

Felix smirked in my direction, whistling to himself as he reached for his game controller. “Felix told me something interesting today.”

“Oh did he?” I asked, wondering just how much pain Felix could tolerate if I marched over to him right now and hit him with an umbrella.

“He said he tried to have lunch with you.”

“I was busy.”

“With Seo Changbin?”

Felix was definitely going to die tonight. That little snitch deserved every ounce of punishment I was starting to formulate inside my head. “He invited me out instead.”

“I got that,” Chan snapped and I knew my husband was in a foul mood. I’m talking about the kind of mood that usually sent me scampering for the safety of the bunkers. Like the time some drunk asshole rear-ended Chan’s precious convertible while we were sitting in downtown traffic. Or the time when we were Freshmen in college and Chan confronted Changbin after finding out that he had been cheating on me.

But this time the problem was me which meant I couldn’t just hide from Chan and wait for things to go back to normal. “Honey,” I attempted to reassure him. “It was just lunch.”

“Yeah? But that doesn’t seem like keeping things strictly professional to me, Y/N.”

“He’s my boss now, I can’t just tell him no.”

“Actually, you can,” Chan disagreed, now refusing to look at me. “How would you like it if I ate with my new superintendent?”

“Depends on if she offered to pay or not.”

“Y/N.”

“Chan,” I pouted. “I’m really sorry! He just surprised me.”

“It makes me wonder what else you might be doing with him,” Chan snarked.

Meanwhile, Felix calmly continued to play his video game while wearing the biggest shit-eating grin. “Are you accusing me of having an affair?”

“Why not?” Chan shrugged. “Since we’re keeping secrets from each other.”

“It was just one lunch,” I shouted. “He’s never done anything like this before. Most of the time I’m alone in the lobby taking his stupid phone calls.”

“And that’s all I should ever hear about,” Chan growled. 

“You’re making this into a bigger deal than it needs to be,” I scoffed, rolling my eyes before remembering just how much Chan hated it when I did that to him.

“Y/N,” Chan addressed me sternly, deciding to abandon his seat on the couch to crowd me in the foyer. “If this was anyone else, I wouldn’t make it into a bigger deal, but this is someone you used to fuck while running around campus bragging about it to everyone who would listen...which was usually me!”

“He doesn’t mean anything to me,” I said. “I already told you that!”

“You’ve said a lot of things recently,” Chan said. “I’m not sure what to believe anymore.”

“Yeah? Well, it’s your brother’s fault since he’s always looking to cause a fight between us,” I said, glaring at Felix while he continued to play the part of the perfect little angel that Chan always considered him.

“Don’t drag Felix into this, he has nothing to do with anything!”

“Oh, don’t be stupid, Chan,” I huffed. “We fight more about Felix than we do about Changbin.”

“Stupid?!”

Oh, Jesus, Y/N, when are you going to learn to watch your big mouth? “Channie, I’m tired of fighting all the time. I feel like we’re always fighting.”

“Yeah? Well, you give me a lot of reasons to stay mad at you.”

“For fuck’s sake,” I groaned. “We never fought this much when we were dating.”

“Is that so? You think our marriage is the problem?”

I froze at his implications. At this point, Felix might as well drag out a bucket of popcorn because this was probably the most interesting drama he had watched all year. “Chan, you can’t honestly believe that.”

“I don’t know what to believe anymore,” Chan said, shaking his head. “But maybe I’ll give you some time to think about it.”

“Chan!” I whined, fighting back tears as I watched him turn his back on me. For the first time since we had met, Chan was leaving an argument unresolved, choosing to lock himself away in our bedroom while I struggled to keep myself together in the middle of our foyer. 

“Goodbye, Y/N,” Felix whispered into the silent room, waving his fingers at me because he had gotten exactly what he wanted.

Felix’s birthday often turned into a multiple-day affair because he always wanted the best that money could buy. Since Chan and I still weren’t speaking to one another, Chan was taking the brunt of party preparations which meant Felix was practically over the moon with excitement. And why shouldn’t he be? He hit the metaphorical jackpot because he somehow got me in the doghouse while he soaked up all of Chan’s attention. 

“Y/N,” Felix whined. “My toast is burnt!”

“Sorry,” I murmured softly, taking his plate even though the bread looked perfectly fine. Meanwhile, Chan chose not to say a word, heavily engrossed in his laptop and doing his absolute best to pretend I was invisible. 

“What about this, Felix?” he asked, tilting his laptop screen so that his brother could see whatever it was that probably cost hundreds of dollars. On the other hand, I couldn’t even find the courage to ask Chan for his credit card so that I could replace the broken stool at our counter.

“That’s perfect, Channie!” Felix grinned, hanging off his brother’s shoulder like the little pest he was. 

Our Amazon shopping cart was steadily filling with Felix’s party supplies. But I guess it was just Chan’s account now since he had changed the password without telling me. I tried to order a new curtain for the bathroom, only to repeatedly watch the warning screen pop-up with every refresh of the page. “Who do you want at your party?” Chan asked Felix.

“Hyunjin, Jisung...” Felix started, listing out each name while I winced every time because our house would probably end up completely trashed at this rate.

“Whatever you want,” Chan said, apparently forgetting the last time Jisung came over only to break one of my grandmother’s expensive vases. Since it was my stuff, he probably didn’t care. “I have to leave soon,” Chan said, wordlessly clicking on the ‘place your order ’ button before logging off.

“Will you be gone all day again?” Felix pouted, jutting out his bottom lip and offering his very best puppy dog eyes.

23-years-old my ass.

“I’ll do my best,” Chan promised his brother. “Do you need anything while I’m out.”

“More chocolate cereal?”

10-years-old more likely.

“I’ll see you tonight,” Chan cooed to Felix, ruffling his hair before snatching his coat from my outstretched hand, refusing to even acknowledge my existence. 

Felix waited until Chan was gone to lean in across the counter. “You two are so cute, Medusa.”

“I fucking hate you,” I said, aggressively attacking the grease stain on the stainless steel pot I was currently washing.

“Whatever,” Felix shrugged. “Will you ask Minho to come to my birthday party?”

“There’s not a fucking chance in hell that I’m asking him,” I snapped.

“Why?” Felix posed the question as if he felt absolutely no shame. “I like Minho and I want him to be there.”

“Fuck off,” I retorted, drying my hands against the rough texture of the dishtowel.

Felix sniffled, reaching for his phone and holding it up to his ear. “Channie? Yeah, Y/N was being really mean to me-”

“-Jesus, fine, I’ll ask him,” I quickly interrupted the little Devil. “How old are you turning again?”

“24!” Felix grinned. 

“Then act like it,” I muttered while dialing Minho’s number.

There were only two rings before he answered. “It’s too early on Saturday for this bullshit, Y/N,” came Minho’s pleasant voice from the other end.

“You sleep too much anyway,” I returned. “I have something to ask you.”

“It better be pretty fucking important.”

“Will you come to Felix’s stupid birthday party this Friday?” I asked him, ignoring Felix’s bright smile as he tried to listen in on our conversation.

“Did you buy booze?”

“I’m sure Chan will buy the little bastard all the booze he wants,” I said, pushing Felix out of the way.

“What time?” Minho asked. “I’m a very busy man, Y/N.”

“The hell you are,” I snorted. “9:00 PM. Don’t be late! I’ll be the pathetic piece of trash sitting on the couch alone.”

“It’s about time you learn, Y/N,” Felix remarked, giggling when I threw the dishtowel at him.

“Still in trouble with hubby?” Minho asked. “I hear you have to stay separated for a year before the courts grant divorces these days.”

“You’re an asshole,” I said. “Should I put you down on the guest list?”

“Of course,” Minho said. “Underlined because I’m a VIP”

I hung up on him before he could dig his grave any deeper.

“Don’t burn that,” Felix scolded me, hovering by my side to play the part of Gordon Ramsay while I sweated my ass off to cook everything on his stupid party menu.

“It’s not burnt,” I grumbled. 

“I hope you’re not wearing that to my party,” Felix said, casting a critical eye over my outfit. 

I reached down to adjust the waistband of my skirt. “What’s wrong with it?”

“This is a classy party, Y/N, and you look like a hooker.”

“Go help your brother or something,” I said, doing my best to be nice since it was Felix’s birthday. I could manage some form of kindness even if he didn’t deserve it.

“Chan’s fine,” Felix waved me off even though I was certain I saw Chan struggling to hang up lights on the balcony just moments ago when I went to change my clothes.

I glanced at the clock above the stove. “Your fellow party animals will be here soon.”

“You’re not cool enough for those references,” Felix told me as he straightened his tie. 

“I wasn’t trying to be,” I said, wiping my forehead with a nearby towel. My makeup was probably smeared but I didn’t care. Who was I hoping to impress anyway? The only person I dressed up for was Chan and he could care less about my appearance.

And it was only a few minutes later when the doorbell started to ring. I took a deep breath to try and reassure myself that I could make it through tonight without another Advil. “Someone’s here!” Felix squeaked, knocking his shoulder against mine in his haste to answer the door.

“No matter who it is, I’ll still be in hell,” I muttered, closing my eyes when I recognized Hyunjin’s voice mixing with Felix’s.

“Y/N!” Hyunjin sang, poking his head in the kitchen as if he owned the place. “There you are! Looking all pretty for us.”

“That was the goal,” I half-heartedly quipped back, turning off the stove once I declared Felix’s stupid Tteok-bokki cooked enough.

“Your legs look good,” Hyunjin said, abruptly leaning in closer. “Are you even wearing anything under that skirt?”

“Hyunjin!” Felix shouted his friend’s name from the living room. “Come check out the decorations.”

Hyujin blew a kiss in my direction, tossing me a poor excuse for a wink. “Bye, Y/N!”

Maybe one more Advil wouldn’t hurt.

The party was in full swing by the time Minho finally arrived, greeting Felix with some kind of cheesy handshake. It was too late for me and I had already resigned myself to the futon of isolation in the living room, mourning the loss of one of my good dishes thanks to Han Jisung deciding to request something fancier than our regular set. “Sorry, Y/N,” Jisung had apologized. “I’m sure you can easily replace it.”

“Yeah, I’m sure my dead grandmother has another lying around somewhere,” I snarled in his direction, ignoring his wide-eyed look of disbelief as I searched for the broom.

Minho eventually finished his conversation with Felix, offering me a sympathetic look while occupying the last remaining chair. “Y/N?”

“Oh, I’m doing just fine,” I told him.

“You look miserable,” Minho informed me, throwing up his feet on my glass coffee table even though I had told him countless times before to keep his dirty socks on the floor.

“Chan hates me,” I said. “Felix is happy.”

“Ah,” Minho nodded. “Trouble in paradise?”

“It’s all Felix’s fault,” I sniped. “He found out I went to lunch with Changbin and told Chan because he knew it would lead to an argument.”

“He still doesn’t like you?” Minho snorted as if the idea were amusing.

“Felix has hated me since the beginning of time. He was brought to this Earth to cause me misery.”

“I’m sure that’s an exaggeration,” Minho said. “Where is Chan, anyway?”

“I don’t know,” I sighed. “If he wasn’t with Felix, then you might want to check the balcony. I think I saw him sneaking the Advil bottle out there earlier.”

Minho snickered. “You don’t even realize it, but you two are grossly similar. I’m sure Chan would have preferred a quiet dinner out somewhere.”

“Well, Felix always gets what he wants,” I said. “It’s been this way since high school.”

Minho considered me for a moment. “In his defense, Chan has always been Felix’s best friend. They’ve been attached at the hip since they were kids, but then you came into the picture. Suddenly, Chan isn’t as interested in spending all his time with Felix any more.”

“Are you saying I need to find Felix a girlfriend?”

“Y/N,” Minho said softly. “I’m just saying, maybe you need to think about things from Felix’s perspective for once. You were an only child, so you can’t understand what it means to share a close relationship with a brother.”

“Hmm, well you’re like a brother to me,” I teased him.

“Ugh,” Minho gagged. “You’ve had my dick in your mouth before, Y/N, please never say that again.”

“I was trying to be sweet,” I said. “But you ruined it.”

“Did I?” Minho smirked, glancing up at something behind me. “Are you having a good time, Felix?”

“We’re out of beer,” Felix interrupted, face suddenly mere inches from mine. 

“You shouldn’t drink like a fish.”

“Medusa,” Felix tried again, holding out a ring of car keys. “Make yourself useful and buy us some more beer.”

I rolled my eyes but acquiesced. “Whatever you want, your majesty.”

I hated winter in New York City because the sidewalks were icy all the time and I was constantly in danger of rolling my ankle. Nevertheless, I tolerated the snow and wind by trading my heels for rain boots and wrapping my body in the thickest coat I owned. Normally, I might consider walking to the convenience store, but tonight I knew my fingers would be nothing but frozen icicles if I attempted that perilous journey.

Thankfully, the traffic was fairly light this late at night which allowed a relatively quick drive to the store, parking my corvette at the sidewalk. I walked inside with a muffled greeting to the store attendant, searching down the aisle to where the beer was stocked in the freezers. “He didn’t even tell me what he wanted,” I scoffed, deciding on the expensive Corona from the bottom shelf since Felix always liked things more when they cost a lot of money.

“Having a party?” the store attendant joked, accepting my debit card after ringing up the cases. 

“Something like that,” I said, wondering if that was always his assumption if someone bought more than one bottle of the nasty smelling beverage.

Meanwhile, it had started snowing again when I walked back outside, popping the trunk to store the beer until I finally returned home. I switched on the ignition and turned on the heat to its fullest setting before sitting back in my seat to wrap my arms around myself, fighting off a series of chills. The action reminded me of Junior Year when Chan and I used to make late-night trips to the gas station near his apartment complex. We’d buy all sorts of unnecessary snacks, driving back together because we had planned a movie marathon of Harry Potter. Chan always complained about the films I liked, but he watched them anyway because he knew I enjoyed them.

I came to a stop at a red light, frowning when I noticed that nobody was coming in either direction. “Change already,” I ordered the traffic light as if it could possibly accommodate my request. 

“I’ll teach you patience, Y/N,” Chan once told me after we waited nearly an hour in a heavy downpour outside the comic book shop because he just had to have some kind of rare edition figurine.

The traffic light eventually turned green and I rolled out into the intersection, never noticing the reckless SUV until mere seconds before it crashed into the side of my car.

I had the worst luck in the world when it came to relationships. First, there was my tired rendezvous with Minho in high school, blowing my best friend in the bathroom because he’d always fuck me with his fingers afterward. Then, there was that slimy bastard Seo Changbin who I willingly gave my virginity to, thinking he was the love of my life. That was before I found out he was cheating on me with some sleazy cheerleader thanks to a couple of photos surfacing on Facebook. My heart was instantly broken, pride in shambles as I spent an entire week hiding out in my dormitory ignoring all phone calls and text messages as I cried over a boy who never deserved my attention in the first place.

I plucked a few strands of grass from the ground next to my feet, savoring the first taste of sunlight I had allowed myself since that unfortunate discovery. Who the hell did Seo Changbin think he was anyway? Playing with my heart like that as if it meant absolutely nothing to him. 

At least I wasn’t sad anymore, having spent enough time crying over the destructive boy. Now, all I could think about was smacking that stupid smug grin off his face while thoroughly purging my built-up frustrations...“Y/N?”

I turned around quickly at the sound of Chan’s voice, rising to my feet to brush the loose grass and dirt from my jeans. “Channie,” I said, nervously wringing my hands in front of me. Chan was probably mad at me since I had been ignoring him all week.

“Are you okay?” he asked instead, tone surprisingly gentle as he stopped in front of me.

“Not really,” I told him honestly.

“I didn’t think so,” Chan said, features hardening. “I’ll beat the shit out of Seo for you.”

I shook my head. “That won’t do any good.”

“But if it makes you feel better,” Chan said, reaching out to delicately swipe his thumb under my eyes. “You aren’t sleeping.”

It was more of a statement rather than a question, but I still felt the need to reassure him. “I promise that I’m okay.”

“You don’t have to lie to me,” Chan said, offering me a kind smile. “I can tell, you know?”

“Yeah you’re good at that,” I groused. 

“I’m pretty good at a lot of things when it comes to you,” Chan admitted, eyes holding a pure kind of affection as they appraised me.

“I’m glad I have you,” I said, letting out a sigh as I allowed my head to rest against the center of his chest. “You don’t think I’m stupid for trying things out with Changbin?”

“You’ve always liked him,” Chan said with a bitter tone that sounded more like a jealous lover rather than a friend.

I chose not to say anything. “I hope the two of them make each other miserable.”

Chan chuckled. “Is this your form of revenge?”

“I don’t think it’ll work out in my favor,” I said, pressing myself even closer to Chan, pausing when my hand drug across his stomach. “Holy shit, Channie, you weren’t kidding about the gym.”

“Did you not believe me?”

“Who are you trying to impress?” I grinned, propping my chin against his sternum to make it easier to look into his eyes.

“It’s always been the same person,” Chan said vaguely, dimples on display as he considered me. “I hope Seo didn’t destroy your faith in relationships.”

“It wouldn’t be entirely his fault,” I sighed. “All my relationships have been complete failures.

“Y/N,” Chan whispered, brushing a light kiss across my forehead. “Maybe it’s because you’ve never tried the right guy.”

The memory was laced with something warm, an association that stood in stark contradiction to my current condition, slowly opening my eyes to a pulsing room, somehow much too bright for my pupils to adjust. Was I alive? I wondered because I couldn’t really feel anything which was certainly disarming. But then there was a familiar smell, rancid and burning, and it made me feel like I was definitely not in any sort of happy afterlife. There was also the problem of the blurry figure slowly coming into focus next to me, fiddling with an array of wires twisting together with the sounds of a machine distantly clicking in the background. I watched through hooded eyes as the now perceivable person in question handled an impressively large needle, pinching my skin painfully at the juncture of my elbow. 

“Han Jisung,” I began, startling him from where he was checking the IV. “Just put a fucking needle into my arm. What hellish realm have I descended into?”

“Y/N!” Jisung squealed loudly, leaning down to press a sloppy kiss against my forehead. 

“What the hell was that for?”

“For not dying,” Jisung sighed in relief. “When you came in, there was nothing but blood and glass everywhere!... Oh, and Chan may or may not have a fine against him for beating the living shit out of the asshole that hit you.”

“Why are you so loud?” I groaned, palming my forehead because the room was still swimming into focus. “What happened?”

“You probably don’t remember,” Jisung said. “It was a pretty bad concussion, but you were in a car accident.”

“I was?” I questioned, struggling to recall anything past a few minutes ago when I first realized that incompetent Han Jisung was sticking pointy objects into my veins.

“Chan was so upset,” Jisung said. “He wanted to do the surgery, but the superintendent wouldn’t let him.”

“Surgery?” I repeated. “I had surgery?”

“Cuz’ of your ribs,” Jisung said quietly as if finally realizing that he probably shouldn’t be saying all this to me at once, especially if the persistent beeping of the heart monitor was something to be concerned about.

“What’s wrong with my ribs?” I asked, somewhat panicking as I felt down my chest, noticing the thick bandage wrapped around my upper body. 

“Chill, Y/N,” Jisung placated, reaching around me to adjust the monitor. “Now I can’t get an accurate reading!”

“So sorry to inconvenience you,” I said with a hoarse voice, reaching up to quickly wrap my hand around my throat. “Is there something wrong with my voice?”

“Well, you’ve been out for three days so...”

“Three days!”

Now I was definitely panicking, full-on hysteria as the heart monitor loudly detected the irregular contraction of the muscle thundering aggressively against my chest. It was enough to alert the doctor on duty, walking into my room to check on his patient, scolding Jisung harshly as he filled a syringe with a clear liquid. “Don’t worry, Y/N,” he said kindly, injecting the fluid into my IV. “Just relax.”

My eyelids fluttered closed, overwhelmed by a disjointed sense of calm that gradually pulled me back under the current of drug-induced bliss.

“Sweetie.”

My eyes flew open at the sound of his voice, the best wake-up call in the whole world. I slowly turned my head to the side, taking in the sight of my disheveled husband, eyes blood-shot with heavy dark bags haunting tight circles against his pale skin. “Channie?”

“I’m so sorry, Y/N,” Chan sniffled, fresh tears swelling his cheeks as he leaned in closer to grip tightly to my hand. “It’s all my fault.”

I considered him closely, wondering what he could possibly mean by accepting blame for whatever was causing him obvious pain. I faintly remember Jisung telling me about am accident, but it was difficult to really think back any further, like a wall had enclosed around my brain, refusing to allow anything else to come into consciousness. But Chan didn’t need to cry, he was usually the best part of my life, waking up in bed together to share sweet kisses or eagerly waiting for him to come home and swoon over my newest K-Drama obsession. “Why are you sad?” I asked him, reaching out to do my best and wipe away those nasty tears.

“You wouldn’t answer your phone,” Chan cried, heart-wrenching sobs that broke my heart with every heavy inhale. “I didn’t know where you were.”

“Is that why you’re upset?” I asked, wiping away a few mischievous curls that had wandered into his eyes. 

“I found you in the intersection,” Chan whispered. “And the car...” he trailed off with a choking gasp as if the details were too horrific to describe. 

“I’m here now, Channie,” I said, desperate to relieve his sadness. “I didn’t go anywhere.”

Chan nodded furiously, pressing a wet kiss to the back of my hand. “I can’t lose you like that, sweetie.”

“Well, I plan to stick around for a while,” I said, earning me a half-smile in return. “Channie,” I whispered, glancing around the room conspiratorially. “Is there anything good to eat in this place?”

This time Chan did laugh and it was the best medicine I could possibly have.

“Vitals?” Chan asked, lingering around the poor nurse who clearly wasn’t expecting this much attention over one patient when she clocked in this morning.

“I already checked them,” the nurse informed him, writing down something on the chart clipped to the edge of my bed. I sipped my water as I watched the two of them, wondering if Chan had been this overbearing the entire time.

“Temperature?”

“98 degrees.”

“Blood pressure?”

“122/75”

“Respiration?”

“Chan,” I whispered softly, immediately drawing my husband’s attention who was at my side in an instant. “I think the nurse knows how to do her job.”

The poor woman shot me a grateful smile as she re-clipped my chart, hurrying out of the room as if she couldn’t possibly escape fast enough. “Sorry,” Chan said, taking his seat next to me. “I’m just worried.”

“I get discharged tomorrow,” I told him. “Pretty sure that means I’m just fine.”

“But your leg,” Chan whined, fussily messing with the large cast, tucking the blankets in securely.

“It’ll heal,” I said, frowning as I picked at the squishy jello the nursing staff had brought in earlier. “Isn’t there anything else to eat?”

Chan tsked. “That’s good for you, Y/N. It’s full of necessary vitamins.”

I should have known better than to ask my doctor husband if I could possibly have something that actually had flavor to eat. No matter how much I begged and pleaded, Chan refused to waver from the nasty daily meals I was brought, much to my disappointment. “I’d kill for a burger.”

“Too much fat,” Chan said, turning down the idea before I could possibly try to negotiate.

“It physically hurts me to eat,” I tried. “I think they’re secretly plotting my death.”

“Y/N,” Chan scolded lightly. “There’s a reason why we serve this to patients, alright?”

I frowned at him but shoved a spoonful of the nasty substance in my mouth, earning me a pleased smile in response. “Happy?”

“You can have better food tomorrow,” Chan said, pausing as he reached down to check his phone notifications. “Minho is here,” he grumbled. “I guess I’ll go get him from the lobby before he gets lost.”

“Thank you, darling,” I chirped, accepting his brief kiss.

“I’ve seen worse,” Minho declared, ignoring Chan’s disbelieving scoff. 

“You obviously weren’t here when she was first brought in,” Chan growled to him.

“How are you feeling, Y/N?” Minho asked, disregarding Chan who had gone back to check the dozens of machines somehow monitoring my every possible bodily function.

“Hungry,” I grimaced, pointing to my discarded container.

Minho lifted it curiously, bringing it his nose before he let out an unattractive grunt. “Is this garbage?”

“Don’t encourage her,” Chan said, reaching for my chart for the millionth time that day. “I’ll be right back, Y/N.”

“Okay,” I said, rolling my eyes once his back was turned.

I waited until Chan was gone before desperately reaching out for Minho. “You’ve got to help me, Minho! I can’t stand another day of jello and mashed potatoes. Get me a Big Mac and I’ll give you the number of one of my work acquaintances.”

 Minho raised an interested brow. “Scale?”

“Oh, she’s definitely an 8...please!”

“That’s impossible to turn down, Y/N,” Minho grinned. “Give me ten minutes.”

I snatched his sleeve before he could walk away. “Make sure Chan doesn’t see.”

“So ask Han Jisung to fuck something up, got it.”

“You’re my best friend in the entire world. The rest of my life will be spent in your servitude.”

Minho offered me a brief salute and I solemnly nodded my head while ignoring the way my stomach growled.

It was growing dark outside and I’m pretty sure Jisung had accidentally given me too much of whatever pain medicine I had been prescribed. I could barely keep my eyes open as Chan settled next to me on his chair. “Y/N,” he said softly, picking at an invisible string on his suit pants. “I want to talk to you about the fight we had.”

My exhaustion vanished in a flash. “Okay,” I said, even though I had been hoping Chan would just forget that the fight even happened.

“I owe you an apology,” Chan said. “For acting like a jealous prick. I shouldn’t have yelled at you like that.”

“It’s my fault too,” I said. “I know how you feel about him, but I still went out anyway.”

“It wasn’t that bad,” Chan said, swallowing down the lie even though I could always read him like a book. “But every time I think about Seo Changbin, I can’t help but remember Freshman year.”

“You act like he broke your heart instead,” I tried to joke, but Chan was everything but amused.

“Yeah, he did break your heart, Y/N, and I’ll never forgive him for it. He was an arrogant bastard back then, and I’m sure that hasn’t changed much.”

“Not really,” I agreed, recalling our prior lunch arrangement.

“And I’ll never be okay with the fact that you work with your ex-boyfriend, but since you love the job so much, I can’t possibly fight with you anymore,” Chan said. “I should trust you as my wife.”

“I’m not remotely interested in Changbin,” I said. “It just sucks that he’s got good connections.”

“But if he tries anything on you...”

“Don’t worry,” I reassured him. “I would never do anything to hurt you, even if his thighs look super good these days.”

“Y/N.”

“I know, Channie,” I giggled, reaching for his hand. “Trust me, alright? I don’t plan to work there forever. Fingers crossed for a promotion to the publisher.”

“I’ll pray every night if I have to,” Chan said. “As for Felix...”

“Don’t worry about him,” I said. “I know that I should try harder to get along with Felix.”

“It’s a two-way street,” Chan countered. “I’ve spoken to him about everything.”

“You have?” I wavered. “What did he say?”

“Well, he feels really bad about the accident,” Chan said. “I think he realizes how much better things would be if you guys were on friendlier terms.”

“He really looks up to you,” I said, recalling Minho’s words from before. “I hope he doesn’t feel like I’m trying to steal you away.”

“Felix and I have always been close,” Chan said. “We both had a hard time moving here from Australia. But at the end of the day, we could rely on each other..”

“High school wasn’t very good to either of you,” I said.

“Well, except for you of course,” Chan said, attempting a smile. 

“They were mean to you, Channie,” I said, “and you didn’t deserve any of it.”

“I’ve gotten over that,” Chan insisted. “But Felix always took everything harder than me. He wasn’t very social until college.”

“He should have stuck to being an introvert,” I said. “Look at the kind of friends he ended up with.”

“Are you saying Hyunjin is a bad influence?”

“Have you been around for our interactions?

“I’ve definitely noticed, Y/N. Remember what happened that one time when we went camping-”

“Anyways,” I loudly interrupted. “It seems like we both have a lot of things to work on.”

“But that’s why we talk about it,” Chan said, pressing a soothing kiss to the wrinkled crease of my forehead. “That’s what married couples do, right?”

“Ah, Channie, when did you become a walking cliche?”

“Should I be more serious, then?”

“You’re getting there with the doctor’s jacket.”

“Really?” Chan asked, sitting back in his chair. “Is this your way of asking us to try some kind of kinky roleplay?”

“I don’t know, but it might be interesting. Can I call you Dr. Bang?”

Chan was positively beaming. “You can always call me Daddy instead.”

“Darling, I think they accidentally gave you my prescription of morphine.”

If anyone were to ever ask me, then I’d tell them that signing hospital discharge papers was about as difficult as applying for a loan. “How many more are there?” I wondered, scribbling a messy signature at the bottom of the last sheet Jisung had brought for me to sign.

“I think that’s it.”

“You think?” I snorted, watching Jisung sort through each page carefully like he really had no idea what he was holding.

“Each year they add more shit for the patients,” Jisung explained. “I’m pretty sure they do it just to confuse me.”

“Everything confuses you, Jisung,” I said, patting his arm sympathetically. “Has Chan come in yet?”

“He’s on his way with Felix.”

“Goodie,” I grumbled. “Are you working late today?”

“Someone has to help since Chan insists on taking the day off,” Jisung said.

“I hope they aren’t planning on letting you do the surgeries.”

“Would that be such a bad thing?”

I kept my mouth shut, deciding to let Jisung live in his deluded fantasy world where he could somehow manage to cure patients of their ailments as opposed to causing them. Unsurprisingly, since the moment I had first met him, Jisung had always been completely sure of himself even if he was whole-heartedly wrong. For example, when we were all seniors in college, Chan refused to speak to Jisung for an entire week after the two of them received an F on their group project. Apparently, Jisung forgot to submit the lab report on time and waited an additional week before approaching the professor to politely ask if he could still bring it to her after class.

“Channie,” I tried to console him. “You know Jisung didn’t do it on purpose.”

“Yeah, but my GPA will still suffer the consequences,” Chan had sulked, whining about how difficult it was to maintain a friendship with Han Jisung.

Yet, when Chan was first hired by the hospital, Chan sent in a very persuasive reference for Jisung, encouraging the higher-ups to offer him a nursing position. The three of us went out to celebrate Jisung’s new job offer, nursing shots of bad vodka while eating rather terrible sushi. “Chan,” a very tipsy Jisung had said. “I love you so much, man.”

“Oi, keep your hands to yourself,” Chan had grouched despite wearing the biggest grin on his face...

“Y/N,” Jisung interrupted my recollection. “I think Chan just got here.”

“Finally,” I sighed. “I thought I would never be able to get the smell of alcohol out of my nose.”

“Thank God you’re here,” I said the moment Chan and Felix walked into my hospital room. “I’m pretty sure I had to sign my life away to leave this place, but it’s totally worth it.”

Chan rolled his eyes playfully. “I see you’re feeling better this morning.”

“I’ve been better for days,” I said. “But my doctor wouldn’t allow me to so much as breathe the wrong way.”

“Is that so?” Chan asked, reaching down for my discarded bag. “Your doctor sounds like a real asshole.”

“Yeah, but he’s pretty hot. I’d totally fuck him if I wasn’t already married.”

“It sounds like you have a thing for doctors?” Chan asked. “Does this husband of yours know that?”

“He probably does,” I said. “But I feel like he’ll probably leave me to masturbate on my own for months because of this dumb cast.”

“Y/N,” Chan scoffed. “It’s important for you to heal properly.”

I groaned loudly. “Why are you so responsible?”

Chan carefully handed me my bag. “Make sure you have everything. I’m going to talk to your surgeon one more time before we leave.”

It was difficult to prevent myself from protesting, finally realizing just how quiet it was with just me and Felix in the room. “Hi, Felix,” I said, awkwardly adjusting my blankets once Chan had disappeared from sight.

“Y/N,” Felix said, gaze focused on some unidentifiable point on the floor.

“What have you been up to?” I asked, trying to sound cheery because I didn’t like the look of despondence on Felix’s normally bright visage.

“I owe you an apology, Y/N,” Felix said with a vulnerable tone I had never heard from him before. “It’s because of me that you got hurt.”

“Felix,” I hesitated because this was uncharted territory for the both of us, a distant cry from our usual taunting banter. “You don’t need to do that. Everything’s fine now.”

“Your leg,” Felix whispered as an unexpected tear slid down the side of his face.

“It’s just a fracture,” I shrugged. “I’ll be just fine in a few months.”

“Just a fracture,” Felix parroted back, voice thick with emotion. “Why aren’t you mad at me? Because you should be. I’m always getting in your way.”

“Is that what you think?” I asked, surprised to hear Felix’s true feelings. “Felix, you aren’t in anybody’s way. You know I don’t really care that you’re staying with us, especially after you just graduated. I just wish you’d be a little bit more respectful.”

“Because I’ve always been jealous of you, Y/N,” Felix said. “Especially since Chan likes you more than me.”

“Felix, you know that Chan loves you. He would do anything in the world to make you happy.”

“He’s always chosen you over me,” Felix said. “He stopped hanging out with me on weekends in high school, and he even went to the same college as you even though he was accepted into Harvard and Yale.”  

I was shocked by Felix’s true feelings, a rare moment of vulnerability that he was choosing to share with me. “Lixie,” I said. “Why have you never said anything before?”

Felix shivered at my use of his nickname. “I didn’t want to. You guys are so happy together and I didn’t want to hurt Chan.”

“Ya! Felix,” I frowned, “your feelings matter too. And if you really feel that way, then we need to talk about it together.”

“I’m just a burden,” Felix gruffed.

“No, you aren’t,” I insisted. “You’re part of our family, and if you’re ever feeling uncomfortable, then you deserve to be heard.”

“You don’t really mean that do you, Y/N?” Felix asked with glistening eyes. “I don’t want you to say these things just to make me feel better.”

“Felix, when have you ever seen me lying to someone just to protect their feelings?” I asked. “I always speak my mind, and this time I’m putting my foot down. When we get home, we’re having a movie marathon, just the three of us. And this weekend, you and Chan can go somewhere together out of town. I’ll have Minho stay with me instead.”

“Really?” Felix asked, swiping a sleeve under his bright red nose. 

“We’re in-laws you know,” I said. “That means we look out for one another.”

“Y/N,” Felix giggled and, for once, I didn’t feel the slightest bit annoyed. 

“Lee Felix, don’t you ever let me catch you crying like this again, understand?”

Felix nodded, smiling so brilliantly that I was reminded of when we were much younger and he was just an innocent little boy who idolized his older brother.

“Careful,” Chan said, holding the door wide with one hand while keeping a firm grip around my waist. 

“I’m not gonna break,” I grumbled, pausing in the doorway as I let out a grateful sigh. It was a huge relief to be back at home and not stuck in that hospital room surrounded by questionable smells. 

Chan carefully led me into the living room and I gave him my crutches before collapsing on the futon, ignoring the rigid fabric because I had never been happier to hug one of the matching throw pillows. “Comfortable?” Chan asked, helping me prop my leg up on the coffee table. Meanwhile, Felix lingered in the doorway, grasping my bag tightly between his hands.

“Come join us, Felix,” I said. “You’ll let out all the heat.”

Felix nodded, eyes wide as he locked the door behind him. Chan sent me a curious look as if he wasn’t sure what I was hoping to accomplish by inviting his younger brother into the same room. “I have something for you.”

I clapped my hands together eagerly. “Is it something loaded with carbohydrates and fat?”

“Not quite,” he said, handing me my cell phone. “Seo Enterprises called earlier today. I already contacted them about the accident, but I guess they need to hear from you.”

“Great,” I grimaced, dialing the number from memory. It rang for a few moments, and Chan and Felix were both messing around with the TV, probably trying to figure out what to watch. Because the only thing the two brothers argued about was whether action movies were better than romance.

“Seo Enterprises, this is Eliza speaking how can I help you today?”

“Hi,” I immediately cringed, wondering how many cool points I could possibly lose in one day. “This is Y/N, can I speak to Mr. Seo please?”

“I can transfer you right away,” Eliza spoke promptly as if she had already been prepared to receive my call.

“Y/N!” Changbin’s voice now answered. “I’m glad to hear from you.”

“Yeah, I’ve been having a lot of bad luck recently,” I said. “I guess you know about the accident.”

“I heard,” Changbin said. “How are you?”

“I’m alright,” I said. “But I might need some time away from the company. Apparently, a broken leg is a pretty big deal.”

“Take as much time as you need, Y/N,” Changbin said. “I’ve hired a temporary secretary until you’re ready to come back.”

“I don’t know, Changbin,” I said. “It might take several weeks. Maybe you should just hire a replacement.”

“There’s no need for that, Y/N,” Changbin countered. “I still believe you’re the best person for the job.”

“Well, if you’re sure...” I trailed off, shaking my head furiously at Chan when he held up our used copy of The Notebook.

“I’m definitely sure,” Changbin said. “Call me when you want to come back. We still have a lot of things I want to do together in the future.”

“You’re too indecisive,” Chan said, finally taking a well-deserved seat next to me on the futon. 

“And you have terrible taste in cinema,” Felix retorted.

“Yeah? Well maybe we should just let Y/N pick,” Chan suggested, mouthing a sweet kiss against my temple.

“I think Felix should decide,” I said, cuddling up closer to Chan’s side. 

“Really?” Felix asked, appearing entirely surprised that I would allow him such freedom.

“Why not?” I sighed happily. “I’ll even watch that weird anime movie if you want.”

Felix scoffed but a faint smile remained as he grabbed the remote. Chan chuckled and leaned down to press another kiss to the top of my forehead. “I’m proud of you, sweetie,” he whispered.

“It’s only because I love you so much,” I said while shrugging indifferently, but Chan could always read through me.

“Hmm, well I love you more,” he said, brushing his fingers through my hair as the opening credits rolled across the screen.

[general-kenobi357]

Someday Soon-Chapter 7

Pairing: JJ Maybank x Fem!OC

Summary: The Pogues try to pawn off the gold they found but run into more trouble then they bargained for.

Word Count: 4.2k

🔅🔆🔅

The next morning John B parked in front of the pawn shop in town as we all piled out of the van. I grabbed the hunk of gold which had been melted down earlier, I handed it off to JJ, who began to criticize Kie’s work.

“Hell of a job melting it down, Dr. Frankenstein.” He said weighing the gold in his hands.

“Like you could've done better.” Kie countered.

“I could have.” He said, turning to look at the group. “I took a welding class.”

“Yeah, that you skipped every day to visit me in English.” I pointed out, reminding him of the previous school semester.

“Whoa, whoa. Hey. Sh! Chill out, okay?” John B broke off the bickering.

“Easy for you to say. You're not the one that has to pawn this piece of shit off.” JJ responded, looking at the gold in his hands. “How did I get this job anyway?”

“'Cause you're the best liar.” Pope answered without skipping a beat as he entered the pawn shop and we all began to follow.

The bell rang above me as the door shut, I followed Kie to go look at a shelf of trinkets while JJ started talking to the women who sat behind the counter.

After a lengthy debate a price was finally agreed upon and we were told we’d have to go to a warehouse to complete the sale. I found it strange that this pawnshop had a warehouse when there were quite a few bare shelves in the store. Why would they need a warehouse to hold stuff when their shop was half empty? I figured that maybe I just didn’t know enough about the in and outs of pawn shops and chose to not voice my concerns while we all exited the shop with a warehouse address in hand.

🔅🔆🔅

We were driving through the Cut on our way to the “warehouse” and something felt off, but then again things had felt off since we had started this treasure hunt, so I decided to push down the feelings of dread that were beginning to bubble up. I sat between JJ and Kie staring out the window which was across the van watching the rows of trees fly by as we continued down the road to the most deserted part of the island.

“So they keep money out here?” Pope asked in disbelief.

“That's what she said.” JJ replied, pausing for a minute a smirk grew on his lips. “That's what she said.”

“Stop.” Pope cut off JJ from laughing at his own comment.

“I've never even heard of Resurrection Drive.” Sarah turned around to look at us from the passenger’s seat.

“'Cause you're rich.” JJ commented.

“You've never heard of it either.” Kie defended Sarah while I smacked JJ’s arm. “There's nothing but weeds back here.”

A moment passed before the car behind us flashed on lights and sirens signaling us to pull over. The stealth cop car pulling us over in the middle of nowhere only added to the doubt I felt. Something was definitely wrong.

“Cops? Out here?” Kie asked as we all looked back while John B pulled over.

“God! Are you kidding me? What did we do?” JJ demanded on edge. “I hate cops.”

“Did you bring the gun?” Kie asked as he began to hide the gold in his bag, I prayed the answer was no I wasn’t sure what would happen if he had.

“No. Okay? Iz told me that I couldn’t bring it with me everywhere I went. I left it back at the place.”

“Thank God.”

“He's walking up.” Pope warned as JJ stuffed his bag under the seat.

I was looking back at the car when I heard the unmistakable sound of a gun cocking near John B’s open window.

“Why don't I go ahead and see them hands in the air?” A masked man demanded loudly, waving the gun in front of John B. “All y'all's hands up in the air now!”

Everything became a blur as he ushered us out of the van before instructing us to lay down in the ditch. I focused on remembering how to breathe as he began to rip apart the van clearly looking for something. It was all a set up, there was no warehouse, only a dead end road where one man could threaten us at gunpoint in order to take the gold we had found. I hadn’t noticed John B sneak away towards the car that had pulled us over but I did hear the muffled protest from the rest of the group. I could hear JJ cursing beside me while I watched the masked man find the gold and head back to his car which John B had just snuck into.

There was a pause before John B called out to us and we all rushed to his side. Incapacitating the man who had robbed us before John B ripped off his face covering so we could find out who he was. I didn’t recognize him but JJ seemed to, rambling about how he supplied his father with coke.

“Come on, let's get outta here.” John B urged as JJ grabbed the dealer’s wallet. None of us wanted to wait around for the real cops to show up.

“We got one last stop.” JJ told us, looking at the id he had found. “Let's go see where this son of a bitch lives.”

The dealer screamed threats at us as we made our way back to the van so that we could get outta there.

🔅🔆🔅

“Welcome to Crackhead Wasteland.” Sarah spoke up as we drove up to a rundown trailer.

The ride here had been silent as we all tried to recover from what had just gone down.

“I don't know about this, man.” Pope spoke up uneasily. “Dude, why are we at Barry's?”

“This'll only take a second.” JJ responded hopping out of the van before making his way to the steps of the trailer.

“Where are you going?” John B asked JJ as he made his way across the porch.

“Yo soy justicia.” JJ responded as if that answered the question before disappearing into the building.

“Did you glean anything from that?” Pope asked as we all shook our heads.

“You know somebody should probably…” Kie started to say before John B got out of the van.

“Yeah, I got it.” He reassured, following JJ’s path into the trailer.

The rest of us stayed quiet as we waited for the pair to return. I felt numb still trying to figure out what was going on and why I hadn’t spoken up when I had the chance. Maybe if I had voiced my concerns we wouldn’t be here, maybe we could’ve gone to the mainland, traded the gold with someone else.

I was pulled out of the thoughts that were beginning to drown me when the rest of the gang got out of the van as JJ and John B approached us. I stayed sitting near the door figuring we would be leaving soon anyway.

“All right, so we're looking at five grand each for reparations for putting us through that bullshit.” JJ spoke to us all digging through a bag full of cash. “Sorry about that, y'all.”

“So that's what we're doing now? We're robbing drug dealers?” Kie asked hopelessly.

“This Barry guy's gonna find out.” Sarah reasoned. “And he's gonna come after us.”

“Yes, he will. This is not the time to start wilin' out.” John B added, it seemed like he was continuing a previous conversation they had most likely had inside.

“How'd you like havin' a gun pulled on you?” JJ asked finally snapping and pinning John B against the van.

“Relax.” John B told him in an attempt to calm JJ down.

“He had it right here on you, bro.”

“What are you gonna do when he comes for us?”

“We punch him in the throat.”

“Yeah, good fuckin' idea, JJ.”

“I'm not putting it back.” JJ finally said letting go of John B. He climbed past me into the van and sat down before looking at everyone. “You guys getting in or what? What”

“We're sick of your shit.” Kie told him.

“Oh, my shit?” JJ challenged getting back out of the van.

“Yeah. Yeah. Your shit. Yes. Your pulling guns on people shit.”

“You acting like a maniac…” Pope added.

“Okay, Pope, I took the fall for you, man!” JJ cried out. “Know how much I owe because of you?”

“I'm gonna pay you back, and I didn't ask you to do that!”

“I just did pay it back. Right here, right now, by myself.” JJ spat holding up the money he had found inside. “You know what? That's exactly what I'm gonna do. Go off by myself.”

“JJ... Hey, wait, man.” John B spoke up trying to stop him. “Iz could you?”

“Yeah I’ll go see what I can do.” I said. I didn’t have to hear the rest of the question to know John B wanted me to go after JJ thinking he might listen to me.

“Should we wait?” Kie asked as I began to follow JJ.

“No, I’ll um meet you guys at The Wreck later.” I stated, figuring it might take awhile to talk to JJ.

🔅🔆🔅

It took me a couple minutes to catch up with JJ who was walking a lot faster than I expected. When I finally caught up to him I put a hand on his shoulder hoping he would turn around and he did, looking the most pissed off I had ever seen him.

“Jesus, what?” He groaned before realizing it was me, his face softened slightly but he couldn’t take back the comment.

“What? JJ, really?” I asked now that I too was pissed off. “I want to know what the hell is going on. Why are you doing this?”

“Doing what? I’m paying off the restitution.”

“JJ we have the gold, you don’t have to use that drug money. You don’t have to make more enemies.”

“It’s a little late for that Iz. Why do you even care?”

“Why do I care? Oh I don’t know maybe cause you’re important to me, because I know that you’re better than this.”

“Then clearly you don’t know me.” He told me before turning to continue walking. “Stop acting like my girlfriend, I don’t need someone telling me what to do.”

“Where are you even going?” I asked, trying to keep up with his quick pace while also attempting to let go of the comments he was making.

“Home.” He said after a moment. “I gotta go prove to the old man I did it. By myself, without him.”

After that comment I stopped trying to keep up, I stood still and watched him go. The tears I had been holding onto all morning finally springing free as I watched him fade from view. It felt like I had just lost the one person who kept me together.

🔅🔆🔅

I felt more lost than I ever had as I found myself walking up the stairs of The Wreck and towards the table that my friends were all seated at.

“There's about a zero percent chance that JJ goes home.” Pope said, I assumed it was an answer to a question that I had not heard.

“That’s exactly where he’s going.” I corrected Pope as my friends all turned to look at me.

“Are you alright?” Kie asked standing from the table and holding me an arms length away to inspect my features.

At that question I fell apart all over again and as the tears fell freely down my face the rest of my friends got up and all pulled me into a hug. After a couple minutes they all let go of me as Kie led me to sit down.

“What happened?” Pope asked concern written across his features.

“We fought about the money and then he left and I couldn’t stop him.” I explained between hiccups caused by my previous sobbing. “I’m fine guys or I will be, I’m just worried.”

They all gave me a look of uncertainty as if they didn’t believe what I was telling them but after a couple minutes Pope finally decided to change the topic effectively dropping it.

“Okay.” He started hesitantly. “It's too dangerous to pawn this thing off piecemeal. So our best bet is to go down there and get the rest of it. Bring it all up at once. Put it in... in a safe or a vault or something. I... I don't know. Just until we can find someone who won't rip us off. I can figure it out tonight, get it done, and we can be out there tomorrow morning.”

“All right, let's do it.” John B said ready to start planning.

“What about that thing with my dad?” Sarah asked him.

“What thing?” Kie asked as John B cursed under his breath.

“I have to go fishing with Ward.” He explained to us.

“You can't get 400 mil 'cause you're gonna go kill fish?”

“Look, I have to go.”

“Blow it off.” Pope spoke up. “It's 400 million in gold!”

“Make something up!” Kie added

“Look, I... I have to, okay?” John B shut down their suggestions. “He... he saved me, all right? If it weren't for Ward, I'd be in foster care. I have to go. Plus, it'll be better to do it at night. Right?”

“Fine. Fine, go fishing.” Kie said. “And at least JJ will probably have washed up by then.”

But I wondered if he would. As much as JJ’s words had hurt me I still worried, I had seen what Luke Maybank had done before and I knew he would want to keep the money that JJ had got for himself.

“I um I gotta go to work.” I said finally standing up when I noticed the clock on the wall. “I’ll see y’all later.”

“Yeah we’ll meet you at the Château tonight.” Kie reassured me letting go of my hand that she had been holding since I had arrived.

🔅🔆🔅

I closed the car door with a sigh, the sun was low in the sky. My mom had just dropped me off at home after we were done working and was about to go collect Emmy.

“I’ll be back in a while.” She assured me as I opened the back door to grab my bag from the seat.

“Okay I’ll see you then.” I said with a smile as she drove out of our driveway once again.

I made my way up to the porch and was about to go into my house when I noticed something on the dock at the Château. Confused, I dropped my bag on the steps before heading in that direction to go investigate.

As I got closer I noticed someone in a suit working on laying out a blanket. Then a head of unmistakable golden hair popped up as the old deck creaked under my feet.

“JJ?” I asked, confused by whatever was going on.

“Sweetheart.” He greeted me with a smile, meeting me halfway down the dock before leading me towards the picnic he had set up.

“What is this?” I asked him, my concern growing as he sat down.

“Sit, please. I got it all set up.” He stated, avoiding my question.

After a moment I sat as he offered me champagne.

“What is this?” I asked him again, pushing away the glass he was trying to pass to me.

“It’s um, It’s an apology. For this morning and for midsummers. I know I shouldn’t have run away-”

“It’s fine JJ.” I interrupted him trying to figure out what was really going on.

“No. No it’s not fine Iz. I mean I was a dick and I just didn’t know what to do. I’ve never liked a girl as much as I like you and I just don’t know what the hell I’m doing.” He confessed but I had no idea how to react. This is all that I wanted, he was all I wanted and yet now that he had finally said what I had been waiting for him to say I couldn’t hear it.

“JJ did you spend all your money?” I asked him.

“What? No, not on this dinner.” He answered and I knew he was dancing around the question. “Now will you please just stop worrying and enjoy this meal with me after I told you how I feel about you, Sweetheart.”

At that I decided to stop, to give into his request and push away my worries for an hour. Kie and Pope would be here soon, they would know what to do, how to help.

We had finished eating and JJ had convinced me to dance with him. Which is what we were now doing, dancing slowly to the music that played softly from the radio that JJ had brought out onto the dock.

“Can I kiss you?” JJ asked me suddenly, as I looked into his blue eyes.

I took a moment to consider it before nodding my head. This kiss was different from the last, we both knew it was going to happen and as our lips met it felt like it was meant to happen. All of the questions and worries I had melted away as I deepened the kiss.

But as I pulled away to catch my breath they all came crawling back. The questions of where we stood and what we were burned in the back of my throat, begging to be let out but I swallowed them back down as I looked into JJ’s eyes again and saw the smile playing on his lips.

I smiled back as we continued to dance, hoping to prolong this moment as long as I could before we had to go back to reality.

“Hey, do you have a swim suit on?” He asked as the song playing ended.

“Um no. Not right now.” I answered wondering what else he was planning.

“Well go get one.” JJ instructed as we pulled apart from each other. “I’ll meet you at the Château, okay? I’ve got one more surprise.”

“Yeah, okay.” I replied hesitantly making my way over to my house.

As I walked in Mom and Emmy both turned to look at me from the kitchen.

“Hey Hon what’s going on?” Mom asked.

“Um, not much I think I’m gonna hangout at John B’s for a while more.” I explained as I made my way towards my room.

I closed the door behind me before changing into a bathing suit and then throwing on a pair of shorts as I wasn’t sure where JJ was taking me. I had no idea why I needed a swimsuit but I figured maybe if I listened to JJ it would finally explain what was going on. Before I left my room I turned on my phone. I hadn’t used it in days since I had no way to charge it and I was trying to save the battery for anything important. This constituted being important. I dialed Kie’s number and listened to it ring before finally going to voicemail.

“Hey, where the hell are you guys? I’m with JJ at the Château, something is wrong. I don’t know what to do. Please get here soon.” I talked to her voicemail hoping she would hear it soon.

I tried Pope’s phone but got no response there either. After leaving a similar voicemail I figured I should head back over to where JJ was. I considered for a minute asking my Mom for help but then I thought it best not to. I wasn’t ready to explain everything that had gone down in the past few days and I wasn’t even sure how to.

🔅🔆🔅

I crossed the lawn quickly to find JJ waiting in front of the Château for me. He still wore his dress shirt which I found an odd choice since he had ditched the rest of the suit for a pair of colourful swim trunks. In one hand he held tightly to the bottle of champagne he had opened earlier which was now almost empty.

“Finally.” He said, smiling as I walked over to him. “I wasn’t sure you were coming back.”

“Sorry. I couldn't find a bathing suit.” I lied, not wanting to tell him I had called our friends.

“That’s alright.” He said, his words were slow as he finished the last of the champagne before setting down the bottle. “Okay cover your eyes, I’ve got one more surprise for us.” He instructed before taking my hand.

With my eyes closed I couldn’t tell where we were headed but I knew it wasn’t far as we came to a stop after a short walk.

“Okay keep 'em covered.” JJ spoke hesitantly as he let go of my hand. I could hear the shuffling of fabric then a pause before I heard the sound of splashing water. “Alright you can look.”

As I opened my eyes it took me a moment to readjust to the bright lights that surrounded me. I stood with my mouth open in shock. That’s when my gaze lowered to where JJ sat in a huge hot tub a smile covered his face as if he was proud of all this.

“What the hell?” I muttered, still looking around the yard which was completely different. Had I not been so worried about JJ I could’ve appreciated how beautiful it was.

“I bought a hot tub.” He stated, grabbing a new bottle of champagne, I watched him open it, trying to figure out what to say.

“Yeah.” I muttered agreeing with his comment. “Why?”

“I figured we had earned it. You know the Pogues deserve a little luxury.” He explained. “Now you need to get in here, immediately.”

“Did you spend it all?” I asked, hesitantly moving closer to where the hot tub sat.

“Pretty much all of it, yeah. But, I mean, like, come on, look at this!” He exclaimed, waving his arms around. “Finest in jet-based massage therapy, that's what they told me.”

I wanted to scream at him and ask what the hell was going through his mind but I couldn’t form any response. I stood paralyzed watching him. I could feel tears forming, clouding my vision begging to be let out but I wouldn’t let them, I had cried too much today I didn’t want to again.

“Sweetheart, what?” He asked, noticing that I was barely holding it together. “Can't a man have a little luxury in life?”

“JJ, seriously?” I asked, finally finding my voice. “You could have paid for restitution!”

“Okay, well, you know what? I didn't do that!” He snapped, standing up and pointing a finger at me. As he stood I saw the huge bruises covering his torso. It all made sense and I realized that I shouldn’t have let him walk away. I shouldn’t have let him go home. “I got a hot tub! I got a hot tub for us. For my friends. You know what? No, you know what? Screw friends. I got a hot tub for my family!”

“JJ, what happened?” I asked, the tears finally falling down my cheeks. I didn’t need to ask though, I already knew.

“No, you stop being emotional. It's fine, okay? Sweetheart, I’m fine.” He tried to convince me but his voice cracked with every word he spoke, he started moving closer to where I stood. “Just get in!”

JJ held out his arm for me to take and I did. Kicking off my shoes before I climbed over the side, I stood beside him pulling him into a hug. I held him while I cried, I didn’t know what to say. How to make it better. And as I held him he began to break down as well, sobbing into my shoulder.

“I just couldn't do it.” He started to say between sobs. “I can't take him anymore! I was gonna kill him. I just wanna do the right thing.”

“I know.” I tried to tell him but I couldn’t speak very loudly as I choked on my words. “I know.”

We stood there for what felt like hours, I could hear voices speaking behind us before two people climbed up the steps and joined our hug. I could tell it was Kie and Pope as they muttered to us, trying to sooth JJ as he continued to sob.

After we all finally pulled away, Kie explained that they had arrived slightly after our conversation had begun. They had heard it all, they didn’t need an explanation. The rest of the night we all sat in silence. I never left JJ’s side, I held onto his hand like my life depended on it, as I tried to make sense of it all.

🔅🔆🔅

[hardcore-evil-regal]

Pretty Woman

They Call Me the Cavalry (BadassNinja)

Chapter 4

Summary: Phil and Melinda go shopping, Phil goes to work and Melinda has a lovely surprise waiting for him when he gets home.

Notes: I can't believe it's been almost 6 months since the last update!!! What the hell right? Anyway, here is a lovely new update for y'all and I hope you enjoy.

*WARNING* smut in the second half of the chapter. you're welcome ;)

You can keep reading this here or on AO3 or ff.net

Chapter 4

She watches as his fingers move deftly, tying the silken fabric into a knot as he tightens it to rest snugly at his throat.

“Do you have to go into work so soon?” She asks leaning forward towards her bent knees, leaving the bed’s quilt sandwiched between her chest and her knees.

His eyes flicker over to her in the mirror as he smooths down his tie.

“After the disaster of last night there are a few things that I need to attend to. Also I'd like you to go out and perhaps get yourself a few more outfits today.”

She frowns at that, entirely not excited to have to spend a day shopping - or rather being ignored. “I don't want to go shopping,” she states looking away from his reflection in the mirror.

He pauses for a moment before continuing with getting dressed. “I thought women loved shopping?” He asks curiously, surprised by her reaction.

“The women in the stores weren't very nice to me,” she shrugs refusing to look back at him in the mirror.

At her admittance he stops entirely and turns to face her.

“They were mean to you?” He asks, needing to clarify the situation as a hard look crosses his features.

She nods, eyes downcast and embarrassed by the situation. She is well aware of how most people regard her profession and knows that it’s not what would be considered ‘respectable’, but she has her pride all the same and it hurts to be treated like she is worth less than a piece of gum stuck to the bottom of someone’s shoe.

“Well, I guess I won't be heading into work so soon then,” Phil says turning to pick up his phone.

A frown crinkles her brow as she is left unsure of what exactly he means by that. He doesn't elaborate however, instead dialling on his phone. She can only hear one side of the conversation but gathers from it that he has postponed his arrival at the office. Finishing his phone call, he turns to her with a slightly steely look in his eyes that she hasn't seen before.

“Get dressed and ready and then we'll head out,” he says gently before leaving the room to provide her with some privacy.

She watches after his retreating form, questions still on her lips as she wonders what it is about this man that makes him different from all the rest. To most he seems quite unassuming, a powerful man of course with a great deal of influence, but he has more heart than she expected. Those that usually employ her services are hard men, men that crave power and control, men looking for an outlet to unleash their darkest desires and exert their dominance over another person. Phil Coulson is not like those men. From both the field that she works in and from difficult past experiences, she has learnt to read people. When she is with Phil and he is open with her, he is surprisingly warm and kind, something which she is not particularly used to. His sincerity is another matter altogether, the way in which he seems to genuinely care about her own needs is puzzling and she cannot honestly say that she understands why he seems to care about her well being so much. After all, she is only doing her job and he is paying her for it. From what she’s experienced in life, she has learnt that the only thing people truly care about is themselves, and when push comes to shove, they will throw everyone else under the bus in order to secure their own best interests. Which is why Phil Coulson is such a mystery of a man to her.

Her skin itches as they walk down the street, all their stares burning into her back as she tries desperately not to pay attention to them.

“Everyone’s staring,” she mutters lowly, clinging close to Phil’s side.

“They’re looking at me,” he says with confidence, barely sparing anyone else a glance as he continues on,

She knows it’s not true, regardless of how much confidence Phil might have she knows that no one is truly looking at him unless it’s in shock that he is consorting with company such as herself. They are all looking at her.

When they walk into the store that Phil has chosen as their place to throw money at, they are immediately greeted by the store manager. Phil doesn’t even give him a chance to utter a word before he tells the man exactly what he is after.

“See this young woman,” he turns to Melinda directing the man’s gaze towards her. “Do you have anything in the store as beautiful as her?” He asks with a hard glint in his eyes that warms the man to tread carefully.

“Yes,” the manager exclaims before carefully backtracking at the look on Phil’s face. “I mean only things that are as beautiful as she would want them to be,” he smiles desperate to impress Phil.

“Good,” Phil tells the manager, assessing the man with cool blue eyes, “because we are going to be spending an obscene amount of money in here today.”

The man practically squeals with excitement at Phil’s words.

“And we will be needing some major sucking up,” Phil adds incase the man wasn’t already aware.

“Right,” the man nods his understanding before calling upon the assistance of his three store assistants who immediately begin to shower Melinda in compliments and suggestions of what she might like.

Phil smiles at her from his position near the store counter as she looks over at him, a silent question asked in her eyes as she tilts her head towards one of the outfits the sales women are offering her. Almost imperceptibly he shakes his head no to which she smiles back at him before telling the women she’d prefer a different outfit. An hour goes by in much the same fashion, interspersed with phone calls from the office and Grant panicking over the phone at him about how desperately he needs to come into the office. When the manager sidles over to him enquiring about just how obscene an amount of money he would be spending today, he tells the man that they are planning to spend a hugely disgusting, obscene amount of money and reminds the man that they will be needing more sucking up. Of course he has to redirect the man’s flatteries over to Melinda when he begins showering him in pretty words which is entirely not what he was after.

“Not me,” tells the man with a raised eyebrow as he tips his head towards Melinda, “her.”

The man smiles, brushing off the mistake easily as he returns over to where the women are ‘oohing’ and ‘ahhing’ over shoes. Phil manages another half hour in the store until he cannot postpone going into the office any longer.

“I have to head over to the office,” he tells Melinda as he appears over her shoulder whilst she  is leaning back on the low sofa. “Just a few hours but I should be home for dinner tonight.”

She smiles with a nod and presses a quick kiss to his cheek before he leaves. The action is so oddly domestic that for a moment Phil is left reeling, unsure of what the rapid beating of his heart inside his chest means.

Armed with Phil’s credit card, Melinda spends a few more hours in the store after he leaves which included a smothering of compliments and flatteries, along with two pizzas and a couple of Bellinis. At the end of the day she has a half dozen bags hanging from her arms, not to mention the numerous shoe boxes that Mr Mackenzie had kindly loaded up into the car for her. Having found herself a great many new outfits, Melinda had also picked up a lovely new tie for Phil which she’d eyed on the young male sales attendant who had gladly handed it over to her. It had swirls of different blues in the pattern, and she’d thought that the soft, lighter blues would be just perfect for highlighting Phil’s beautiful baby blue eyes. It is only once she returns to the penthouse that she realises the thought is oddly sentimental and just slightly outside the norm for business associates. Because that is what they are, business associates, and anything that happens between them is strictly business. Of course that doesn’t mean that they can’t have fun, and she has just the idea of how they might have some when he comes home.

One important thing that she’s learnt in her life is that timing is everything and it is certainly no exception for the surprise that she has planned for Phil. She’s ready, waiting for him as soon as he opens the door and it’s hard to contain the excitement bubbling inside her chest. Sometimes she wonders whether that excitement she feels at seeing him is normal, but she mostly just brushes it off as the thrill that comes from working with such a rich and powerful man.

“How was your day at work dear?” She asks him as he walks into the room, head bent down as he looks at the letters in his hand.

He raises his head at her greeting, eyebrows rising as he takes in the sight of her laid out in nothing but the tie she’d bought for him that day and pair of black heels, reclining in a chair at the dining table, feet crossed at the ankles and propped up on the table.

“I wanted to surprise you” she smiles at him, a seductive little smile.

His eyes roam over her as she leans back in the chair and drops her left leg to the floor, black stiletto heel settling with a click on the marble floor. He approaches her slowly, dropping his briefcase on the lounge along with the letters before moving to stand between her spread legs.

“I bought it for you,” she tells him with the cutest little grin as she watches him eyeing the tie around her neck.

“But I like the way it looks on you ,” he looks at her with a hint of a boyish grin pulling at his lips as his fingers gently pick up the tie, thumb smoothing over the silk fabric.

She looks up at him through dark lashes as she sinks her teeth into her bottom lip. Reaching out he cups her cheek in his palm, leaning in closer to press his lips to her jaw as she tilts her head up towards him. The subtle fragrance of the sweet perfume she is wearing fills his senses as he presses his lips to her pulse point.

“God you’re gorgeous,” he mumbles against her skin as he reaches a hand down between her legs, spreading the wetness between her thighs and making her gasp softly as she tilts her hips into his touch. “So wet.”

Her only response is a soft whine as he presses a single finger into her, his thumb circling her clit as the slightly rough fabric of his suit jacket brushes against the silky soft skin of her thighs. She moans quietly as he slips another finger into her, pressing into her deeper and curling them against the spot inside her that makes stars appear behind her eyelids.

“Phil,” she sighs softly as he palms one of her breasts in his hand, kneading the flesh and pinching occasionally as she arches into his touch.

His lips move over her neck, pressing open mouthed kisses to her exposed jugular as she tilts her head back for him, bucking slightly beneath him as he bites at her pulse. A moment later her feels a rush of wetness slip down his fingers as her walls tighten around them, a low keening noise leaving her throat as she comes. He keeps his fingers moving, carrying her through her orgasm until she opens her eyes to looks at him, a smile on her lips.

“Hungry?” She asks as he removes his fingers from her, tilting her head in question towards the other end of the table were it has been set for dining.

“For you,” he replies in a growl, voice deepened by his arousal.

She smirks up at him as she reaches a hand out to cup the front of his trousers, eyebrow raising as she feels the hardness of his erection straining against the fabric.

“Well perhaps we should eat something,” she looks at him teasingly through dark lashes as her nimble fingers begin deftly undoing the belt and button of his trousers before dragging down the zip.

His usually blue eyes are now dark with lust, pupils blown wide as her watches her lean forwards as she pushes him back slightly to stand up straight. Gentle fingers tug down the fabric of his trousers, closely followed by his boxers before his cock is engulfed in the most wonderful wet heat as Melinda takes him down her throat in one swift motion. Almost unconsciously he fists a hand in her hair, the silky dark strands clenched tightly in his fingers as he tries to keep himself from thrusting into her mouth as she gently cups his balls in one hand, the other hand with fingers firmly pressing into his ass as she holds him in place, head bobbing.

“Melinda,” he manages to grind out between his teeth as he struggles to keep his control.

She pauses for a moment to look up at him, lips still wrapped around his cock and it takes all his self control not to just come down her throat. It’s one of the hottest things he has ever seen.

“I want you over the table,” he tells her, missing the warmth of her mouth as she releases him with a wet pop and rises to her feet with a mischievous smile as she maintains eye contact.

“Like this?” She asks teasingly, positioning herself over the table, bent at the waist and resting on her forearms as she pushes her ass out towards him with a naughty little grin as she looks at him over her shoulder.

He barely manages to keep in the groan that wants to escape him at the sight of her spread out before him, waiting for him to take her as he hurriedly slips on the condom retrieved from his wallet.

“Perfect,” he whispers in her ear, breath warm on her skin before he pushes himself inside her without any further warning.

She arches against him with a breathless cry as he unexpectedly enters her, her back pressing against his still clothed chest as his hands settle at her hips holding her flush against him.

“Phil,” she pleads desperately as he holds still inside of her feeling her walls fluttering around him as her body takes its time to adjust around him.

What she’s pleading for she’s not entirely sure but all she knows is that it’s intense and she wants more.

“Please,” she whispers quietly as she lets her head drop down, hair falling in a curtain shrouding her face.

Something about the way she whispers the word strikes a chord within him and for a moment he believes that she actually wants him. Only him. Pressing his lips to her skin he places a kiss between her shoulder blades right along her spine before he begins slowly thrusting his hips. He curls a hand in her hair, drawing it over one of her shoulders to allow him access to her neck where he presses open mouthed kisses. A low moan breaks from her throat as he tightens his hand in her hair tilting her neck to the side to expose more of her deliciously soft skin. The sound triggers some sort of primal desire within him making him tug slightly on the dark strands of her hair in his grasp as he bites at the junction between her shoulder and neck eliciting a gasp from her that only drives him on further.

“Harder,” she begs him desperately in a voice roughened with arousal.

He doesn’t need to be asked twice and in a split second he is pistoning his hips faster, pounding into her harder as she cries out beneath him. The sound goes straight to his cock but he’ll be damned if he doesn’t make her come with him. Reluctantly relinquishing his hold of her hair, he reaches around to rub quick hard circles roughly against her clit as he struggles to hold on to the last of his control. His other hand holds tight to her waist, keeping her in place and pulling her back towards him when he pushes his hips forwards. It takes only a couple of moments before she crests with cut off cry, almost slumping against the table as her knees threaten to give out. He follows her seconds later, continuing to thrust both of them through their orgasms as he keeps his hands firm on her waist holding her up against him.

“So perfect,” he whispers against her skin as he presses gentle kisses along the length of her spine.

She merely lets out a soft groan beneath him, content to let him hold her, too spent to really care about what is going on around her other than the fact that she just experienced one of the most amazing orgasms of her life. He chuckles lowly and she can feel the rumbling vibrations travel through her from his chest to her back. Vaguely she is aware of the fact that he’s still inside her even though he’s already gone soft. She thinks that he must be uncomfortable in the spent condom but doesn’t bother to say anything about it, and in some ways it feels almost more intimate than the amazing sex that they just had. If he wants to do anything about it he will she tells herself as she just enjoys the feeling of being cocooned by his body. It’s just the warmth of him she tells herself. Nothing more.

It takes several minutes before either of them say anything and he finally leaves her to dispose of the condom.

“So I take it it was either a really good or a really bad day at work then?” She asks him teasingly when he returns, a playful smirk in place even though her body is mourning the loss of his warmth.

“Something like that,” he smiles at her with that cute boyish grin that makes something flutter in her chest.

She smiles back at him and it’s several moments more before either of them break the silence that has fallen over them. Undoing and removing the tie from around her neck she loops it around his neck, pulling Phil down to her level where she then places a light kiss on his nose.

“Come join me in the bath?” She asks, eyes sparkling with mischief.  

He releases a chuckle as he wraps his arms around her waist and pulls her body flush against his.

“I’d love to,” he replies simply before returning her gesture and placing a sweet kiss on her nose.

x

x

Notes:

So I contemplated including the bath scene but decided I'll put it in the next chapter instead. Let me know what you thought and if you're still enjoying the story, I know I have massive breaks between updates but I'm not giving up on this story yet so please don't give up on me. Throw me a bone and drop me a comment :)

[aviationfiction]

XXIV

Dante St. James

“Do you ever listen? Your ego often leaves you looking like a mixture between a jackass and an idiot. That leaves me with the job of having to clean up your shit. Shut the fuck up listen sometimes.”

I hadn’t realized I slammed my hand down on the wooden table’s firm surface until a faint stinging filtered throughout my hand and surprisingly lingered behind. The once cool darkened conference room suddenly felt like a blistering summer day as I stood to my feet and turned my gaze away from the two men who lingered behind once the lower tier members of ranking made their exit more than fifteen minutes ago. I too had every intention on walking out with the small crowd but instead I was called back to listen to a heap of bullshit from the only people in the room I share a bloodline with. The smug smirk on Richard’s face was not only there to further agitate me but also as a sign of his contentment as he laxly rested in his seat at the head of the table glaring between his preferred son and myself. These are the moments that he lives for; confrontation, tension, and wars of words. Since we were children, he’d always warn Matthew and I that neither one of us need to be comfortable in any aspect of our lives because human beings and the world thrives off of competition, so we need to be vultures ready to pounce on our prey whether they are the strongest or the weakest of kind. What he never quite stated but I know he quietly endorses is my older brother and I having that same demeanor toward one another. The reality within it is knowing that through it all he will stand by, coach, and be a cheerleader for only one of us and it’s certainly not me. I’ve always felt that he’s waiting for one of us to take the other out in terms of success and influence. I’ve done that but it’s not acknowledged and it won’t be unless Matthew regains that power and knocks me down. There’s no love in this shit. I’m biologically his son but emotionally, I’m nothing more than his most valuable tool.

“I do listen. Do you ever lighten the fuck up? I agreed with your point. What more do you want me to say?”

“If you know so much then handle that shit yourself. What am I standing here for? I could have left out and went about my business.” Every supervisor and department head walked out of the conference room more than fifteen minutes ago and as I began to head out right behind them, I was summoned back to the table by Richard for what I knew would be the cause of a migraine and a ruined day. The migraine’s already brewing and the more I sit here stomaching their identical demeanor, the more this day trickles into the category of a bad one.

“No. We need to continue figure out how the fuck we’re going to get this Apple account. I want to sign them.” Richard sternly slapped his hand down on the manila folder containing endless documents that I’d done more than enough research for.

“We don’t need to be figuring out anything. You gave that account to your son. He should be figuring it out. He’s been working on this since what? January. It’s August and how much progress has he made? Let him keep that so he can continue pretending like he has a lot of work on his plate although we all know the truth.” The smirk on my brother’s face was one of that I expected and he nonchalantly shrugged his shoulders. He knows that he lacks motivation and the drive to do anything. It’s been that way for a few years now. I carry the company on my back and they celebrate the success harder than I do. I do the brunt of the work and they stand next to me as if we’re some dynamic trio conquering the industry one day at a time. Initially, he was the man around here and he still is to some degree but it’s not for his work ethic and the respect he’s gained from it, but rather because he aims to be personable and most of all because he’s playing under the skirt of everything with a decent face and dreamy eyes for him. Without any regard for his vulnerable and loyal wife at home, he toys with woman after woman whether it be here at the London office or back in the states at the main branch and he does it with so much finesse that most think nothing of it…at least not on the surface. If ask me, he’s more passed around than the women who throw themselves at him.

“I have a life little brother. You not having one is a reflection of the type of person you are. I work to live. I don’t live to work. I can and will admit that you work your high yellow ass off. There’s not a single person on the planet who will deny that you do but you do so because you don’t have shit else to do. You’re a CEO of this company and yet you have turned yourself into a slave for it and then what did you do? Instead of being an investor in outside businesses, you’re out there opening up restaurants and nightclubs to further add onto your workload. Whose fucking fault is that? You’re a lifeless log; just dull. You’re not rich. You’re wealthy. What do you have to show for it? A lavish penthouse apartment that you barely sleep in because you’d rather be traveling around every week? A jet plane that you’ve yet to take somewhere tropical for a vacation? I don’t give a fuck what your bitter ass has to say about me. I was at this company before you were. I handled what I need to handle.”

“Bitter? That’s the last word that should be flying out of your mouth. You’ve been bitter since you met me big brother. We all know this.”

“Are you two done behaving like bitches? Can we talk business now?” Richard quickly interjected his urge to cease the growing spat and I glanced in his direction with a small smirk because he’d only done so because he knew I was on the verge of treading into a territory that would put the past on the table and would not only leave Matthew fuming, but also Richard having to be at his son’s mercy for yet another strategic tactic to repay him for the way he’d done to his now deceased mother and their family. For as long as Richard and my mother are paying for it, I’d be paying for it by association. “As I said to you before, it’s going to be hell to land an Apple account because they already have a monstrous PR department that is constructed of hundreds of professionals and interns working to craft just about whatever they need to present their products to the public. They don’t need us and it’s going to take one hell of an angle to manipulate them into believing that they do. Apple has a cult following. They can release the same phone a million times and slap a different number behind it for the sake of creating a false difference, and people will still camp outside of an Apple store for days just to have that product. They built themselves upon simplicity and making sure all of their products are user friendly. They’ve mastered how to entice people with that simplicity. What exactly are we supposed to be offering?”

“That’s for you to figure out.”

“No that’s for Matthew to figure out.”

“You just said yourself that your brother’s been working on the account since January. He’s gotten no where. Now it’s time for you to take it somewhere and get the shit done in the manner that I know you can. You’re not only the architect. You are the builder.”

“And yet when it’s all said and done, there’s a ton of motherfuckers along side me when it’s time for the ribbon to be cut. Shit, the scissors aren’t even in my hand.”

“Everyone in this room is a CEO. In addition to that, we’re a family. When one of us wins, we all win.”

“Is that so?” My snicker was loud enough for the both of them to hear and I stood to my feet to ease some of the tension tightening multiple areas of my frame.

“Yeah it is so. You’ve yet to grasp the concept of what a family is which is why you don’t have one your damn self. Until you do, you’re going to be alone and miserable. You’re turning thirty years old and you don’t have a wife nor are you anywhere near having one. You don’t even have a girlfriend.” My eyebrow raised at his statement. He presented the perfect opportunity for me to introduce Autumn to my so called family without them ever being within her presence but I’d rather not use her as a defense mechanism to some bullshit claim. That’s not the proper way of speaking of a woman of her kind; a woman that means so much to me. Instead, I’d rather them believe what they want and look like the idiots that they are later on.

“You don’t have a family Matthew. You have a wife who waits at home while you screw other women. You have a wife who sulks and cries over you and who is sadly trying to create a life with you but you’re so unfocused on doing so that she has to settle for hoping that it happens before she’s too damn old to bare a child. What other family do you have? Richard and Elizabeth? You can pretend all you want, but you resent her and that’s why she kisses your ass. That’s why your father does the same. As far as your concerned, your family is in the urn resting on the shelf in your home office. That trickles into Richard’s story. You don’t have a family either. You have a wife who you were once having an affair with and you got a bastard child out of it, while your actual wife was dying. As soon as that wife’s body was ash, you moved your mistress and bastard son to the United States like the shit was normal and created nothing but a dysfunctional and fucked up situation. All in all, it affected him and in turn, it left me to fend for my damn self. Then to top it off, it got me shipped here. Shit, I was born here but I might as well call London home. That’s what y'all call family? It sounds like bullshit to me but hey, I suppose opinions vary. I’ll take the account because that’s what the fuck I do; fix his shit, handle yours, and make the both of you look incredible. Just don’t ever talk to me about some family shit, because we’re not a family.”

“You need to see a damn therapist. I often dismiss your mother when she talks about it, but I see that she knows what she’s talking about now. You’re so angry but over what? You’ve never wanted anything because you had everything you wanted and needed. You’ve gone to the best schools. We took care of you. Yes, there were problems but every family has problems. Your treat your mother like she’s the scum of the earth and you think that shits okay? You walk around like your the poster child for morals and yet you have endless grudges that you’re holding onto and you do this just about every single time you’re within the presence of any one of us. What the fuck do you want Dante? You want people to kiss your feet and worship the ground you walk on? You want apologies? I am never going to apologize for who I am. I am not going to apologize for how I raised you because standing in front of me is an ivy league educated multimillionaire. I did my fucking job. You talk to me when you have your own kids and they turn out like my boys have. Until then, man the fuck up. There’s no room for your emotions around here. Find you a woman and take that shit home to her.” In an abrupt and swift manner, he tossed the file towards my end of the table. He awaited a response, but he got nothing from either one of his heirs.

“Snakes don’t apologize for being snakes.”

A deafening silence loomed between the three of us as I snatched the folder off of the table and finally made an exit. Though they’re heading back to the states within a couple of hours, they can’t get out of town quick enough for me. I’m at my most content point when I’m either on the opposite side of the country or on another continent and they’re no where within reach. Had I knew they too were going to be at the London office for a few days, I would have waited to show up. Now that we’ve had the meetings and I’ve completed both seminars that were on my schedule, I’m done with this building and I can enjoy being here with the only person that I want to be here with.

Teddy Pengergrass’ women wooing voice could be heard as soon as I unlocked the door to the Belgravia, London four bedroom apartment I own on the prestigious end of Eaton Place. I wasn’t adamant on finding a properly here when I reached out to a real estate agent three years ago. It was supposed to be a leisure process and if I should find something worth it over a course of time, I’d look into it and possibly make a purchase. Funny enough, it didn’t take much time at all. While here on business, he’d given me a call and invited me out to take a look at the redesigning process of the stucco fronted maisonette and I immediately gravitated towards the intimate setting and the sophistication of the place. He’d shown me the photographs of the property before the renovations began and it would have been something I passed on, but their extension of the room sizes and plans for high ceilings influenced my decision. The last step was a walk through with a highly esteemed UK interior designer. The vision was all that I needed to hear. With about a two months process behind me, I purchased the properly and it’s where I reside whenever I’m here. Only three people knows about this apartment and now there’s a fourth who has made it feel like home more than it has before. We’ve only been here for four days and the aroma of her mouthwatering meals, the soulful music she plays, and the aura of her being has breathed life into the place and has enticed me with a lifestyle that I’ve been yearning. What’s petrifying and staggering all at once is the normalcy. I’ve lost the millionth battle I’ve had with my mind and heart to slow down my thoughts and longing when it comes to this woman and what we’ve been sharing because it’s still so new, but everything about this feels just and I want to do nothing more than do everything within my power to turn this into my reality for all of my days.

Come and go with me. Come on over to my place.

Her alluring voice meshed with Teddy’s and I couldn’t peel my eyes away from her unbelievable physique as her hips swayed from side to side while the material of an old Columbia University t-shirt of mine teasingly rose and fell with each move. I ogled those flawless thighs and froze in place as her plump backside matched the movements of her hips. She hadn’t stopped stirring whatever she was preparing in the pot in front of her but the aroma of that and whatever she concocted with barbecue sauce and garlic couldn’t distract me from what I craved for in an indescribable manner. In every moment that we’ve spent together in this apartment, I’ve cherished the quality time while mentally dealing with the torture of my yearning to taste her. The visions of her thighs wrapped around my head while I become intoxicated and entranced off of her savory nectar have played out in my head more times than I can count and I’m left flustered when reality sets in. Though I do my hardest to refrain from pondering about it out of consideration for my own sanity, I am assured in my belief that to be inside of her is to fall at her mercy. I have never been fixated on anything throughout my nearly thirty years of living but I know the woman who has rocked my world with just her presence in my life has the capability to change that.

I want her.

I’m aching for her.

“You’re home!” Her excitement easily put a smile on my face and she quickly placed the spoon down on the cutting board that she’d placed beside the stove and sauntered her way over to the kitchen’s entry way. As she ran her hands over my shoulders and eventually wrapped her arm around my neck for a hug, I tightly wrapped my arms around her waist and took in my feel of her warm body and the sweetness of her scent. Her tender lips met mine and she wrapped them around my bottom lip for one of her playful and yet flirtatious kisses that tends to be yet another tortuous act of hers. A faint moan slip past my lips when I felt her tongue running along the slit between them and I obliged her request for me to open my mouth. The intensity arose as our tongues met and my hand eased down to caress the backside that I’d just been admiring as she swayed. A thong. That’s all she had on under it and those flutters filled my core with an uncontrollable intensity when she didn’t stop me from slipping my hand under the shirt to caress her smooth skin and eventually toy with the lace material.  

“I can feel tension in your back. Did something happen at work?” She pecked my lips twice after she asked her question and she continued to kiss them while awaiting an answer. I didn’t enter the door with a frown on my face, we’re pouring affection out towards one another, and yet she knows. I didn’t say anything and yet she knows. As I continued to caress her, I could help but to bury my face into the nape of her neck.

“I had an argument with Matthew and his father.”

“You mean your older brother and your father?” She ran her hand over my head and gently dug her fingers into my slightly grown out hair as I huffed.

“No. I meant it exactly how I said it; Matthew and his father.”

“About what?”

“Business. Family shit. It’s always business when it comes to Richard. All he’ll ever give a shit about is lacing his pockets. As far Matthew, when I point out the shit that he doesn’t do right or bring to the table he immediately goes on the attack. His direct aim is usually the personal shit.”

“Like what?” As she pulled herself back, she held into my shoulders and the concern written all over her face was exactly what I didn’t want. I’d rather she not sympathize over my life because I don’t feel sorry for myself. Sure, I’m indifferent about a number of things but I rarely sulk over what is out of my control as far as I’m concerned. I’m learning more and more everyday that no matter what I say, I don’t have the power to make any of them take a good look at themselves in the mirror and realize where they fucked up so why should I hold out hope for apologies and reparations? I don’t believe we’ll ever be a proper family and I’ve come to terms with that. There are people in my life who genuinely love me and though there’s only three of them, that’s more than enough.

“He usually attacks my personal life because it’s the only angle that he assumes I’m sensitive about. He calls me lifeless and dull. He claims that my whole life revolves around working which is why I’m single and can’t find love. He often says I’m not interesting enough to be involved with anyone. Oh and there’s also the assumption that I’m bitter. I’m not sure over what though. He’s yet to blurt out whatever bullshit scenario he has for that claim.” Her head cocked back in disapproval and her arms slowly fell away from my neck as the frown on her face intensified. Her disdain for my brother and his words transitioned to the back of my mind as I zeroed in on her striking face. I’ve yet to figure out the proper word to describe her beauty. I’m still astonished and in awe of it.

“How the fuck can he say something like that when he refuses to actually be a big brother and get to know you? Those are all assumptions because you’re a professional and not only do you work your ass off, but you’re successful at all that you do. That’s a testament to your hard work and dedication to that company. If anything, they should have nothing but the utmost respect for what you bring to the table and how much you uplift the business that your father built from the ground and up. You are one hell of a son and I know you’d be one hell of a brother if he’d put aside the differences that he has with your parents and embrace you. You didn’t have shit to do with what happened between those three adults at the time. You were a baby.” I reached out to caress her face and nodded my head at all she’d expressed to me. Not only did it all make sense and stand as the truth, but it warmed me to know that she genuinely understands my family dynamic and rather than judging it, she stands by me in accord with my emotions but also remains hopeful for a better and far more positive future for all of us.

“Sounds nice baby but it’s not that simple for him. Matthew takes that resent me out on me for whatever reason. While I am still very much so sympathetic to what happened back then, it was a lot more intense when we were kids. Though he could barely tolerate me, I had his back and resented both my mother and Richard for what they did. Shit, I still do have ill feelings towards the both of them about it because they owe him an apology before owing me one. Matt was mourning the death of his mother and Richard sprung a new wife and kid on him with no regard or warning. There’s a million different emotions that a person has to go through when some shit like that happens and none of them are positive. I get it. I even took a lot of his lashing out and bullying without having much of a response  but the older I got, the less I could tolerate it. Being sent here all those years for school really sparked not only a change within me, but it furthered the forced independence that I already had.” She returned to the stove and I learned against the kitchen’s island as she turned to the task of putting her cooking skills to work. We’ve gone out to dinner one time since we’ve been here and it’s because she continues to prefer to cook. I’ve gone to the office with a stomach full of breakfast, small portions of dinner leftovers for lunch at my own doing because it’s so damn good, and then I return in the early evening to a full course dinner either just being finished up or done and awaiting me. To say I’m spoiled is an understatement. How the hell am I supposed to go back to my place in New York and eat turkey sandwiches and takeout we fly back to New York?

“I know you were born here but did you like it here when you were sent to that boarding school? I think it’s bullshit that they sent you there by the way. So for that particular point, I don’t care if you ended up loving it or hating it the whole way through. They should have never done that to you unless you were interested in going.”

“Initially I was highly upset about it. It was sprung on me out of no where. I thought we were coming over here for a vacation and next thing I know we were at the Westminster School for an orientation. I went from being confused as fuck to crying my eyes out. I think that’s the hardest I’ve ever cried in my life. I pleaded with them not to enroll me in that school not even knowing that they’d already done so and I’d be coming back in a couple of weeks. When we flew home, I became stoic about it. I didn’t have shit to say and I remember not even hugging or kissing either one of them when I returned for the start of the school year.” My mind followed my mouth as the visuals of all of those moments replayed. “I didn’t hate it. I didn’t love it either. I did grow to appreciate it and I got to know myself which is what made me love it out here. It’s a safe haven because of the peace. I’d finally entered an environment that was healthy and when I’d return home for vacations, I wanted to do nothing more than return not for the school part, but for the peace. I’d gotten accepted into Oxford and Cambridge. I considered going but the desire to be back in the city at college won, so I came back. By that time, I was able to live on campus and eventually have my own apartment so it wasn’t that big of a deal.”

“You made the most out of a screwed up situation. I didn’t think you’d do anything else. That’s admirable.”

“We’ve both done that.”

“And for record, you are an incredible man. From the very first moment you and I spoke with one another, I’ve been nothing but intrigued by all that you are. You’re one of the most interesting people that I’ve ever met and that’s my honest truth. Matthew can’t speak for all of these women out here who literally fawn and lust over you. I’ve seen it first hand. He also cannot speak for me and what I feel. There’s no negating how you make me feel. I did well if I must say so myself.”

I’d been smirking at all she’d said until her final line. It was then that we shared a laugh.

“I appreciate all that you said baby, but you did well? If I’m not mistaken it was me who pursued you.”

“But it was me who kissed you.” When she turned her head she tried her hardest to wink her eyes and failed as she usually does. Between that and the multiple strands of hair falling out of her sloppily done ponytail, I couldn't help but to deem my lady to be a cutie within this moment.

“Yeah, but I was going to ask you out regardless.”

“Was going to, would’ve, could’ve, and should’ve. Those are hypotheticals at this point suga. I did the kissing.”

“You started it. I finished it. How about that?” She took a second to ponder on my truce to the playful back and forth and nodded her head.

“I’ll take that. Are you hungry? You want to eat?”

“Yeah. I’d like to. I haven’t eaten since early this afternoon. I’m sure the tension headache I’ve had for a couple of hours is also part hunger headache.”

“A tension headache from the bickering with your father and brother?” I nodded my head while she shook hers. “I have some aspirin upstairs. You want to take two?”

“Nah. I hate taking medication. It’ll go away on it’s own.”

“I hate taking medication too but you know, I’m all fucked up so I have no choice but to do so.” Though she nonchalantly chuckled at her own description of herself, I couldn’t find the funny in it. I couldn’t even crack a hint of a smile. The description of her being “fucked up” is absurd. I know some fucked up people and she’s anything but that. More than anything, I want Autumn to recognize that she’s a human being and nothing is ever perfect. We going to go through good and bad, amazing times and possibly the most terrible shit that a human being can go through. That’s life. It doesn’t make us fucked up, unless we’re living without morals and goodness within our hearts. Flaws and all, she has to love herself and champion herself as a survivor rather than the “fucked up” person that she thinks she is.

“You’re not fucked up. You’re incredible.”

“You’re biased.”

“I’m a truth teller and I’m confident in what I say. I’m one hundred percent sure there are others who can and will vouch for that particular truth.”

“You’re still biased and that’s alright. I like you biased. I think I have a remedy for that headache. Follow me Mr. St. James.”

My eyes traveled over every curve of her body as she trailed ahead of me while humming along to whatever song was faintly playing behind us. The torture worsened as she ascended up the steps, leaving me to use every aspect of my willpower to refrain from peaking under the t-shirt to catch a peep of the intimate parts of her. I’d worn that shirt around campus a couple of times. Hell, just about every senior had it but not myself nor any senior woman looked that damn good in it. Had I never went to Columbia and saw Autumn wearing the shirt in the manner that she’s wearing it now, I not only would have enrolled, but I also would have majored in whatever she was studying, made sure I was housed in same dorm building she lived in, and would have been all over her every move until she was mine. Sure, I would have been one out of the thousands vying for her attention, but I damn sure would have been the victor in the end.

“I want you to use that aromatherapy lotion I left on the counter in the bathroom once you get out of the shower. Remember when you said I smelled good when I got in the bed last night? It was that. It’s not too feminine either so you can get away with it. Besides, you’re not going anywhere else today so who else will smell you?” My mouth fell slightly agape as she carefully used her hands to push the upper portion of my blazer off of my shoulders. She then stepped around my body and completely removed it.

“You went shopping today?” I’d panned my eyes over to the bags in the corner to distract my raging mind from the work of her hands. The heat arising within my core ravaged a portion of my self control and with no sense of ease, the subtle stiffening and pulsating of my flesh worsened my need for her.

“I did. I went to Selfridges and Topshop. Since you told me we’re going to see an outdoor show tomorrow, I needed something that suited that type of setting. Oh by the way, your Coutts World card is sitting inside of my wallet and I didn’t spend a dime on it. You’re going to stop spoiling me. I told you that I was alright. What the hell is Coutts World anyway? There’s no bank in the United States with that name.” I returned my gaze to her as she loosened and pulled my tie over my head. Though I knew the stubbornness within her would cause her to refrain from using the credit card, I still left it behind because she needs to understand that I am absolutely earnest when I say that I’m going to look after and take care of her.

“It’s the bank to the Royal Family.”

“And how the hell did you pull off being a member of the bank to the Royal Family? Is Queen Elizabeth signed to your firm? Are you and Prince William golfing buddies?” My fingers met one of the loose strands of her hair and I chuckled at the playful sarcasm. I’ve actually met William. We’re not golfing buddies though. I don’t play golf.

“You need a million dollars and connections to the right people.”

“Dante…” She halted her task and stared at me as if I’d stated the most ridiculous statement she’d ever heard in her life.

“What?”

“Seriously? A million dollars? That’s how much you spent?”

“No. That’s amount of money you need in the account to have the card. Honestly, I don’t really give a shit about it. I think that was just a moment of me being frivolous. People typically do that with materialistic shit and I did it with some fancy United Kingdom bank. Now that I have a residence here, I suppose it serves a purpose.” I slowly pulled my lip in-between my teeth as she concentrated on unbuttoning the pure white dress shirt. As she did so, I imaged myself peeling off the layer covering her.

“Baby if you continue to take off my shirt, then I’m going to have to remove yours.” The air in the spacious room heightened to a unbearable sweltering as her movements delayed in paced. The breath she inhaled seemingly served as her last for that moment because her chest no longer matched the heaving of mine. As my eyes bore into the alluring set facing me, I shamelessly showcased the burning desire for her and the glimmering flicker within her own further enticed me. I reached for her skin and slowly eased my fingers up the smoothness of her thigh once she closed the small gap in-between us and her supple lips meshed into mine.

“Take your shower. Your plate will be waiting for you.” She kissed me once more.

As I watched her exit the master bedroom, I finished the task she started, left every article of clothing in the middle of the floor and scurried to the shower. As the cool water washed over my head and cascaded down the rest of body, I knew I’d be in there long enough for that plate of food to lose its warmth. 

I needed it.

I’d yet to figure out every flavor Autumn used in the chicken, but each one left my taste buds craving for endless bites of the dish. She created her own barbecue sauce and has sworn to secrecy about it’s recipe as if I can cook and would attempt to make it. She did confirm my guesses of honey, ginger, and garlic and promised that she’d make an entire bottle of it for my refrigerator if I decided that I wanted to use it as a sauce on the boring takeout I tend to grab on my way in. To further spoil me, she had baked macaroni and cheese and fresh string beans as my side dishes. Stacey’s probably going to curse me out if I tell her that her baked macaroni and cheese officially has some competition. I don’t know what Autumn put in it, but whatever it was had me gobbling down the plate she made for me and the rest of what was on hers as well. I’m one hundred percent sure I’m having the leftovers as a middle of the night snack. I’ll take the stomachache that may come with it.

“What do you love about this movie?” Love Jones. We’d it made through the nearly two hour film a half an hour ago and somehow, we were lazily watching it all over again. Somewhere between the ending and the film restarting, my body end up in between Autumn’s legs and my shirt hit the floor. Because I hadn’t followed the directions of covering parts of my body with her lavender lotion, she took it upon herself to put it all over my upper body. As her hands smoothly caressed and soothed me, I randomly massaged her left foot with both of my hands.

“Who doesn’t love an unconventional love story? Two people not looking for love and yet somehow they find one another.”

“Isn’t that how love works though?”

“Not always. It’s not just that aspect of it that I appreciate. People tend to put superficial shit in love far too much for my liking. Darrius and Nina don’t. Their attraction and eventually their love is built upon natural attraction and lust, genuine interest, and organic fun. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with impressive and even lavish courting but it’s bullshit when all of the things that I just named aren’t the foundation.”

“He stalked her though. He was on some creep shit when he stole her address.” She playfully mushed my head and though my back was turned to her, I know she rolled her eyes.

“Shut up. It’s a movie. I know people get stalked in reality, but I’m going to sum that up to just being a sensationalized part of the movie.”

“Okay, now onto the sex. They were lying to one another.”

“How so?”

“Because they both told their friends that it was nothing more than sex knowing damn well it was more than that. People use that it’s just sex excuse for certain situations knowing damn well they’re lying to themselves.”

“You’d know better than I would.” Her slick response earned me lightly squeezing her foot. I attempted to look back at her as she chuckled at her own joke and accepted defeat by returning to my relaxed state against her chest.

“I never caught feelings.”

“So you were the one stringing women along huh?”

“I didn’t string anyone along. I’m not that kind of a guy. That’s Mike’s thing. He doesn’t know how to let women down easily. That’s why he’s had a million girlfriends.”

“I can see that for him. Though he’s a joker, he’s really a nice guy.”

“Yeah, he is. Also, Nina in this movie is the kind of woman that I don’t like.”

“And what kind of woman is that Mr. St. James?” The way my last name rolled off her tongue and the way her hands deeply massaged my shoulders left me struggling to create clear thoughts. She was yet again taking my body on an emotional roller coaster.

“The kind that allows her friends to ruin her relationship.”

“Did you not see his friends telling him to play it light and not to get serious?”

“You didn’t let me finish. I was just about to say I don’t think women should like that type of guy either. People shouldn’t allow their friends to dictate their actions within a relationship because often times that advice is the wrong way to go about it. No one on the outside is going to know your relationship the way you know it, so respect that sacred boundary and check the outside influences at the door.”

“I agree. What if it’s good advice though?”

“Good advice is alright. Spiteful advice or some advice that’s filled with your friends own insecurities? Nope.”

“Heather’s in love with you. You sending her those flowers really worsened that. Now when she texts me, she texts me to greet the both of us. She’s developed a fetish for telling me to let you breed me because you’re so great. I shouldn’t be listening to that advice right?” Our laughter was loud. I didn’t expect to hear anything that coming out of her mouth and I’ve yet to meet Heather to really figure out her personality, but if statements like that are apart of it, I’m sure to be entertained.

“Actually, I think that sounds like pretty good advice.” Once again, she lightly mushed my head and sucked her teeth in the midst of my laugher. I’ve always pictured myself with three or four children. Though I don’t know for sure, I do have this feeling that I’m going to have more daughters than sons and I’m alright with that. I’d love to be a hands on father; the guy at every PTA meeting taking notes alongside my wife and being the embarrassing parent at the school plays and sporting events. I want to be the not paying attention to the directions when poorly assembling my children’s toys dad. I want to do the awful camping trips and the fun family vacations all over the globe. I want to happily record those first steps and first words, be the best dressed dad at the father-daughter dance, scare the hell of their prom dates, and cry my eyes out at their weddings. I want to teach my son how to be a better man than I ever could’ve been. I want to dust him off when he falls, encourage him to go after all that he aspires to be, and most of all teach him to always respect and champion women.

“Are you ready for kids?”

“I’m turning thirty in a week. I don’t want to wait too long but I have a few things to get in order before I start bringing lives into the world. I’ll give it another two years.”

“Kids before marriage?” Silence fell between as our hands continued to lull one another. I wasn’t sure of the job I was doing, but with the way slumber was creeping throughout my frame, I was left to believe she was doing a better job.

“Marriage first.”

“You’re getting married in two years?”

“Yeah.”

As she lifted her left leg to make herself more comfortable under my weight, I couldn't refrain from turning my head to plant a kiss along her inner thigh. Her giggle was ammunition and I did it once more as she playfully ran her hand over my face.

“The lavender is working on you. You’re sleepy talking right now.”

“You’ll say yes.”

“I’m not sure if I’m going to remarry.” I yawned while listening to her response. My confidence didn’t falter at the pessimism.

“A nice sized wedding. The United States has beautiful places but a destination wedding is the goal.”

“I’ve already been married. It looks kind of stupid for a person who has already been there and done that to be having a big wedding as if they’re doing it for the first time.”

“A two or three week long honeymoon.” I couldn’t bother to respond to that statement. She couldn’t be serious and if she was, I refused to take it as such.

“That’s a lot of sex.”

“That’s the plan.” I couldn’t join her in her laughter because I’d grown too tired to do so. My hazy eyes were just about completely shut as she ran her fingers through my hair. What kind of a spell has she put on me?

“Autumn Nicolette Dupont St. James.”

“That’s a long ass name Dante Elliott St. James.”

“It sounds sophisticated.”

“It sounds like sleepy talk.”

“You like Malibu?”

“Hate it.”

“You’re lying.” I listened to her endearing giggle as she covered my eyes with her hands.

“You’re right. I’m lying. I like Malibu, London, New York, Paris. Wherever. I like it wherever you are.” I moved my head so the tips of her fingers would meet my lips and I kissed them.

That was all I needed to hear.

I told Calvin I’d come out and watch him headline the V Festival about a month ago and though I was near opting out of attending, telling Autumn made me stick to my promise. The ridiculous crowd of people had me wondering if I suffered with a mild case of claustrophobia and the stint of marijuana reminded me of those packed wall to wall college parties I’d attend at the frat and sports houses during my time at Columbia. I attend concerts from time to time, but festivals? I wouldn’t say they’re my thing. Even with these All Access passes hanging around our necks and the opportunity to literally be anywhere we preferred the entire time we’re hanging out here, I still feel smothered.

“He was so awesome.” Autumn screamed loudly for Calvin as he stepped down from the DJ booth and exited the stage. Though I’d heard her, my eyes were on the various male gazes taking in her chosen attire for the night. The shorts she bought from Top Shop turned into a kitchen table project. She spent the morning cutting them up and distressing them to her liking. I couldn’t quite figure out how they were supposed to look as she was working on her design, but once she put them on this evening, I choked on the Gatorade I was sipping. She paired them with a neon green sports bra and Converse All Stars of the same color. She, unlike myself, blended right in with the festival goers and because of it, they gravitated towards her far more than they did me. She’d been pulled in for group photos with randoms, complimented on her attire, and fawned over by men; young and older.

“He’s talented, but I’m not familiar with the majority of the records that he played.”

“Because you don’t listen to pop radio.” She’s right. I don’t. I like the option of streaming radio stations and them being filtered by genre.

“What do you want for dinner?”

“Lets go to that Mexican place and get takeout. I want tacos.”

“You don’t want to eat inside? It stays open late.”

“No. I just want to go home.”

I glanced in her direction as she readjusted her bag over her shoulder and my fingers tingled once she laced her hand with mine. She left it up to me to guide us out of our hectic surroundings and I did so without much issue. The driver’s navigation through the never-ending traffic proved to be far more difficult to deal with than the crowds of people and it only made me wish we left at least a half an hour early so we’d be able to get a head start. We arrived at La Bodega Negra twenty minutes before closing and was able to get those that she craved. We’d eaten half of them on the way back to the house and the other half while in bed. After having stood out there watching three acts prior to Calvin’s plus his own headlining set, we didn’t want to do anything more than lazily lay in bed with the rest of dinner. Instead of a movie, our lounging around was to the sounds of her favorite soul playlist.

“Do you visit your family when you’re here?”As she lay there tucked into my left side, I played with the loose ends of her high ponytail as it rested on my chest.

“I don’t know them.” I quickly released her hair so I wouldn’t mistakenly tug on it as she flipped over. Her chin met my chest and she stared up at me with curiosity.

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know them. I’ve never met my mother’s folks.”

“None of them?”

“No. I can’t speak for when I was a baby but as far as my memory goes, I don’t remember ever meeting any of them. Her parents are alive. She speaks with them occasionally from what I know. She has a brother but he lives in the Netherlands or Switzerland. It’s one of them. I’ve never met him either but I do remember speaking with him. I was maybe thirteen or fourteen.”

“Why has she never taken you to meet your grandparents?” Her finger tips trailed up my chest and eventually trickled up to my face.

“They don’t want to meet me.”

“Why?”

“Their daughter had a fling that turned into an ongoing affair with a black man. From that came a child out of wedlock. They had a lot to be disappointed about but I believe the black part really stuck.” Racism is prevalent everywhere; even in the places you don’t believe it should hold any weight. Sure love is love and the color of skin shouldn’t be a influential factor, but you’d be surprise how much it comes into play within certain circumstances. There are a ton of white people who have no issues with blacks until they’re “stepping out of their place” and in this case, that’s what Richard did when courting their daughter. To make matters worse, he didn’t do so in the proper manner. She was a sexual object for him that eventually turned serious. After having gotten her pregnant, he continued to live a double life for three years and they knew about it. Instead of her walking away from him and starting over with someone else, she agreed to move to the United States and marry the man that influenced her to morph into a fool. The disappointment in Elizabeth St. James is what my grandparents and I share in common aside from blood relationship.

“What is it with your family members taking things out on you that you have absolutely nothing to do with? It pisses me off.” Before she could turn over in frustration, my arms locked around her waist.

“Human beings are complicated.”

“No, they’re full of shit. I’ll be damned if I don’t accept my grandchild over their parents decisions. That’s nonsense and I hope they’re rotting with that guilt on their minds. I’m going to pray they reach out to you before they’re deteriorating in a cemetery.”

“Don’t you think you should fix your relationship with your brother before you two are deteriorating in a cemetery?” Her fingers halted as a huff slipped past her lips and she peered at me as I awaited a fair response.

“I love my brother. I don’t want you or anyone else to mistake that. I love him and if Isaac needs me for anything, I’m there no matter what. I’m going to always have his back though I rarely feel like he has mine. I don’t mind us sitting down and clearing the air but the issue with that is the man doesn’t know how to be respectful and he looks down on me. I can’t stand that. As much as he thinks I need to grow up, he needs to do the same as well. I’m tired of people telling me that I need to grow up. I’m working on it.”

“Who else is telling you that?” I reached for her ponytail yet again and watched as she contemplated giving me an answer. The hesitance was clear.

“Who else?”

“I got into an argument with Andreas during Heather’s reception.” As my movements halted, she quickly shook her head. Once she sat up, I was expecting her to exit the bed but instead she lifted her right leg over and straddled my lap.

“It’s not that big of a deal. I was outside having a breather and he decided to come out there to be the asshole that he is. We had a spat and I walked away from him. The growing up thing was mentioned. He’s said it before. I think for me, one of the biggest issues I have is not understanding where I’ve gone wrong. Sure, I should have finished school and I did get married at a very young age. Maybe I should have lived life a bit more before making such a major decision. Other than that, I just don’t know where I went wrong. I think about it every single day.” Her eyes lowered as her once relaxed body tightened. “I can’t remember every single day of my marriage but I try to think about all of the fights more than the good times, so I’ll know what to improve because I don’t want to repeat myself. I’d hate to hear you call me out for the same things that he did.”

“And I don’t want to ever leave you disinterested or feeling like you’re not a priority in my life. I don’t want you to ever feel like I’m putting my career over you or like this isn’t serious to to me. See? We both have insecurities.” As I pulled her down closer, I planted soft kisses on her forehead, cheeks, and eventually her lips.

“You have nothing to be insecure about. I trust your intentions.”

“And I trust yours.” It was her turn to kiss me. As her warm lips brushed across mine, they so did with a loss of innocence and instead with a newfound fiery. The worries that tormented our minds ceased and left our frames drunk off passion. As her hips slightly swayed against the lower half of my body, the euphoric warmth exuding from between her thighs heightened and awakened every fiber of my being. An initial shock halted her movements as my stiffened fleshed pressed against her and yet she didn’t shy away. She stared down at me, almost sympathetically, as I did my best to mask not only the desire but the discomfort.

“I can help.” Before I could open my mouth to respond, she placed a finger to my lips and shook her head. “Let me help.”

I couldn’t refrain from widening my eyes as she slowly pushed herself down until she was sitting on my legs and her face was aligned with my stomach. As the tips of her fingers lifted the t-shirt to expose my skin, her lips kissed along my torso in such a teasing manner that I suddenly had the urge to halt her actions. My flinching is what I thought served as a warning, but instead it further enticed and increased her efforts. Our eyes met once more and I searched for possible signs of apprehension as her hands latched into the sides of my cotton Nike shorts and the Hanes boxer briefs under them. As she tugged both barriers away, her eyes locked on what she’d been searching for as it sprang out to greet her and relieve me. My ragged breathing worsened as her finger tips grazed it’s surface and a grunt slipped past my lips once her entire hand laced around it and worsened the jolting pulsations. The warmth of her tongue tortuously ran around the most sensitive surface and I flinched once more as the searing heat of her lips slowly trailed down in a soul snatching suction until I’d met the back of her throat.

My heart thrashed against my heaving chest in a racing that left my mind with a hint of a panic and yet in a state of passion that I’d yet to reach within in other year of my life. Though I wanted to do nothing more than close my eyes as my body willingly submitted itself to her, I couldn’t. They remained opened, locked on the movements of her mouth and the slithering of her tongue as it traced every bulging vein she could visibly find and feel. The warmth of her finger tips brushed over other portions of me leaving behind death ridden flutters and chills that forced my hand at stillness. She mingled with my soul; taking it into her possession in a match that only God could craft. I’d never felt so safe…so secure…so assured…so ensured.

My surroundings were hazy.

My sense of self was lost.

My purpose lied with her.

Time halted. I’d lost track of just how long she’d been taking in her fill of me but it’d been long enough to deepened the grunts I couldn’t withhold and leave my fingers laced in her hair. There was a method to her madness and I could barely remain on track with it as my body simultaneously intensified and weakened to her touch. My lips quivered. My body turned into a furnace; warmer than the wildest fire and glistening from perspiration of fervor. As she silently called for me, an onslaught of waves flushed through my frame and an inevitable force ripped through my core as I continuously shuddered in response to the release she’d given me.

She continued for just a while longer, lapping up and savoring what was left of me, and slowly released me from the source of such wild pleasure. I’d become temporarily paralyzed and lost in a trance that only she was capable of giving me as she returned to her side of the bed and laid back against the pillows. Marvin Gaye’s voice was a soother for the both of us; as the moment we shared lingered within the room and our beings.

Time wasn’t on my side as I awaited my body’s return to reality from such a euphoric high. Once my mental state normalized, I wanted to do nothing more than have my own fill of her. The possibility was cut short when I glanced over at a sleeping Autumn.

I was left to run my fingers along the smoothness of her skin as she peacefully slept along side me and I accepted that as the only fill of her I’d be having for the remainder of the night.

I had no desire to sleep and so I didn’t. My eyes and fingers remained on her throughout the remainder of the nightfall and even as hues of the sun’s rays peaked beyond the wavering clouds. I’d only left her side for a cup of coffee and when I returned to the bedroom with it, my attention returned to the most beautiful being I’d ever laid my eyes on.

Days ago, I’d been thinking about how quickly I’m falling in love and if I’m in the wrong for doing so but I now know what I refused to knowledge then.

I already fell.

[the-brilliant-questioner]

You're a Fine Girl ( Yondu Udonta x Reader)

Plot: Yondu has not always been the most touchy-feely man. But in a time of guilt for a terrible act he’s committed, he buys a Terran girl who was previously a slave. He starts to get this weird feeling of attachment to her as time goes on. So now both him and this girl have to get used to their new situations. ( This shall be a multi-part series.)

Tagging: @musicalcoffeebean 

 Yondu and his crew had just dropped off the newest kid Ego told him to find. But what he had found was terrifying. Ego had been killing all of those kids, each and everyone of them. A cloud of guilt waved over him. He had been taking those kids to their death and for what? Units? He started to be disgusted with himself. When the crew noticed his sudden mood change he shrugged these emotions off. He was their captain he had to move on. He couldn’t let his crew see him go soft. 

 One day they went to ravage a random ship that they detected. It had plenty of cargo which meant they could steal some goods and then trade them. Of course it went well and they had plenty of fun while doing it. They could get a few million units from the cargo. There was a potential buyer some rich guy no one heard about, but hey rich meant a lot of money. His name was Frope he was some high up official on his planet. The ship they ravaged was a rival planet’s that they had wars with previously. So naturally Frope was willing to pay any price for the cargo. And really who could pass that offer up? 

 When they arrived on the planet everything was very, well shiny. Just about every building was covered in gold or silver. The people seemed to be decorated in piercings of jewels. This was a very wealthy planet indeed. But that also could mean a lot of annoying beings with pride and greed. When they arrived at the meeting place with Frope, Yondu was surprised when a girl who didn’t look at all like anyone else on the planet. “ Are you the ravagers that the master is trading with?” She asked at barely above a whisper with slight shaking in her voice. 

 Yondu replied and she led them inside. When they got inside Yondu noticed that the girl had a chain around her neck that linked to ones on her arms. Her clothes were dirty compared to everyone else’s. She had cuts and bruises everywhere except her face where only a few were that were barely noticeable. But dispite all of that the girl didn’t look half bad. Trying to shake this feeling, the girl went up to Frope and all she did was tap him on the shoulder when he didn’t notice them the first three times she said his name. He reacted with grabbing her wrist hard enough that they noticed a hand print forming on her wrist. And whispering harshly to her. 

 " Greetings ravagers I do hope your trip was well. “ he said as he approached them. ” It was. Now let’s get to business.“ Yondu said as he told one of the men to bring the cargo. ” Thank you so much for bringing this to me. It will be very helpful to the planet. “ Frope said as his men took the boxes from the ravagers. One of Fropes men ” accidentally “ knocked into the girl making her spill the bucket that she was carrying from where Frope was sitting previously. ” Girl! What I tell you about your clumsiness! You useless little bitch, learn to keep your balance you could ruin these like you ruin everything else!“ He yelled at the girl.

 ” Guards please take care of her while I do business.“ Frope said while two clearly larger men approached her. Yondu could tell that she was scared. The men attached her chains to something that caused electricity to surge through them. The sound of her screams caused an ache in his heart. ” Excuse her, I shouldn’t have bought her from the Kree. They assured me she could work. Last time I do a trade with Kree that’s for sure.“ That caused Yondu to stop in his tracks. He remembered what monsters the Kree were when he was younger. They would take young beings from other planets and either use them as slaves or as slaves to sell.

 When he looked back over to the poor girl she was covered in tears and blood. The one Employee had been hitting her with a heated metal rod. Just as the Kree had done to him once. No one should go through such torturous activities. The other employee thrown her to the ground causing the girl to hit her head. That was enough for him, he couldn’t stand seeing a girl like that being abused. “Hey!” Yondu yelled at the man anger rising in him. They then dragged her out of the room when they blamed the girl for being a distraction . “ Oh it’s alright. She’s nothing more than a slave. A Terran nonetheless, so not much potential there.” The man said. “ Now to discuss your payment…” He was then cut off by Yondu “ The girl." 

 The man at first thought it was a joke. But Yondu had a stone cold look on his face. No one should have to go through the same thing he did. Especially when your owners are such assholes like this planet had. He didn’t know why all of a sudden it became of importance, maybe because of the whole Ego thing. But he couldn’t stand by and do nothing.

” You can’t be serious.“ Frope said. ” We trade you what ya want and as payment you give us the girl.“ Yondu explained. The man declined saying that she was good property. ” That’s a shame cause, these trinkets could be resold at about a million units each. Wouldn’t ya say Kraglin?“ He said looking back to his crew member. ” Captain?“ 

 ” We could just bring these back to their rightful owner. Seems to me Mr. Frope, that you ain’t interested in these fine items. So we’ll be on our way.“ He said turning away about to get the cargo and leave. ” Wait! Fine, is that all?“ Frope asked reluctantly.” Her things if y'all didn’t sell'em.“ Yondu said with a smirk. He could see the anger rise in this man. 

 And with gritted teeth Frope said ” Deal” Yondu gave that charming smile of his as Frope was angered. “ We’ll also be needing half a mil for each box and for wasting time.” Yondu added. Frope reluctantly agreed and told one of the employees to go fetch the slave girl. When the transaction was over they brought the girl out in a cage no larger than one for a pet. They had cleaned her up a bit from that beating she just had.

 Yondu hated seeing someone who is capable of rational thought, opinions, and so much more be diminished like that. “ Pleasure doing business withcha, Mr.Frope.” Yondu said. “ What do you plan to do with it? She can’t work correctly, completely useless. Just like all Kree slaves. So what results are you expecting to get that’s different from mine?” Frope asked in a rude tone. Yondu had just about had it with these people. “ Well at least I ain’t no asshole who acts like I’m all high and mighty that I can’t give any respect to anyone.” And with that the ravagers headed toward their ship. 

They laid the cage on the floor in Yondu’s quarters. When everyone left Yondu knelt down and opened the cage. The girl quickly scurried to the back of it, still scared. “ Come on out girl. Its okay I ain’t gonna hurt ya.” Skeptical of this strange man she came out very slowly. “ That’s it girl you got it. Are these your things?” He said holding up a small bag that had been attached to the cage. She nodded slightly happy those terrible beings didn’t try to pawn her stuff. Yondu handed her the bag and then some clothes he had gotten out of a drawer. “ Here go clean yourself up, make yourself look pretty. And then we can see about gettin’ you some clothes from the tailor . ” the girl nodded and went to where he said the showers were. 

He walked back to where the others were when he was met by Kraglin. “ Captain what are we going to use it for?” Before he could even answer the entire crew started asking questions about her. Like can they use her for when they need something fun to do? What they needed her for? Why they bought her? Then there was a loud whistle and his arrow swooping through the air caught everyone’s attention. “ Y'all listen up! She ain’t a slave no more! Especially on this ship. We are going to make her one of us. Now I want you to treat her as a member of this crew or a little bit better. She will not be doin’ your work for ya, she will not be at our services. You will treat like a person. Is that understood?!” Yondu yelled. They all agreed. 

 Later Yondu went to check up on the girl . When he opened the door she was there sitting quietly in a corner. “ Come on girly get up, we ain’t doing this shit.” He said offering his hand for her to stand up. She was wearing the bottom half of her slave garments and a shirt of his. For some reason Yondu thought she looked really good in his shirt. He started to get this warm feeling, she looks so sweet and innocent. He shook himself out of this trance and began to speak “ Now if you don’t mind we are going to get you some better fitting clothes. Then you can either try to join us or just come back in here, it’s up to you.” She nodded.

 " Now you got a name or are me and my crew gonna have to keep callin’ ya girl?“ She didn’t answer at first. Yondu sighed and said ” That’s fine girl it is.“ He then turned to leave. Then heard her say ” (Y/N). M-my name is (Y/N).“ Yondu smiled ” I like that name. I’m Yondu Udanta, captain of this fine ship.“ She bowed her head as Terrans did as a nice to meet you thing. ” Well (Y/N) welcome to your new life as a ravager.“

 They both then headed to the tailor to get her properly fitted into a ravagers uniform. Yondu for some reason felt like he had to stay there. When she came out Yondu felt like his heart was going to fly out of his chest. She had on a blue shirt that was the same as his skin, her boots stopped right at her knee, and the leather suit hugged her curves just right. ’ Damn this girl looks fine!’ Yondu thought. Where the hell did that come from? ” Now you look like a ravager. Do you want to join us the rest of the day or do you want to go back to my quarters?“ He asked . She said she wanted to go back, but as earlier it was barely above a whisper. 

 ” I’ve got some things I gotta take care of, I’ll be back later. One of the boys will bring ya some food.“ Yondu said dropping her back off at his room. As soon as he left she took a seat on the floor and curled up in a ball. What had her life become? She couldn’t have expected any of this to happen and yet here she was, she only hoped this master was nicer than her previous one.

[stuck-to-tmr-coz-newt]

Green & Yellow -chapter 4

Authors note: Okay, I know it has been almost a year, please don’t hate me, and please don’t hate the story. I never wanted to stop Green and Yellow because I have so many ideas for the plot but not enough time. For those of you whohaven’t read it, this is a TMR AU in Hogwarts! the reader is in Slytherin and Newt is in ;Hufflepuff. Please read the first few chapters here!

  chapter 3 ; chapter 2; chapter 1

“ Ms L/N, I said the potion needs to be sky blue, not military green”

You banged your face into the table in defeat. Potions had never been your strongest subject, while you found it quite cool and useful, you were more of an instinct person and precision was never your strength. Hence you’d often fumble during class. While in theory you were perfect, in practicals, your clumsiness took over.

“That’s the third time! HOW do you keep fumbling!?!” said Brenda from the next table. 

“Well” you gritted your teeth “Maybe I wouldn’t have, if my partner could be more of a help!” 

You looked pointedly at Minho who had been least bothered about the potion, instead he was half asleep, and occasionally talking to Thomas. You were so ready to smack him to his senses had the professor not been there. 

“ It’s funny how his whole personality changes between classes doesn’t it?” Newt whispered across your seat.

 You smiled, it was true. During Defence against Dark arts class Minho would pay full attention and even get pissed at people who disrupted the class at the slightest. Minho was very selective about his subjects, unfortunately those subjects were very few in number, the extra ones he had to take he paid barely any attention to (such as herbology and history of magic, which to be honest, you weren’t pretty great at either)

“ Minho, wake up! We can’t fail in practicals, we already have herbology for that.”

 Minho lifted his head and gazed at you 

“What the shuck is that Y/N, it looks like klunk.” 

“Well” you spat “ Maybe if like the others I had an extra pair of hands helping, it wouldn’t look like ‘klunk’!” 

“Fine woman!” Said Minho 

“ Hakuna your Tata’s, I’ll help you!” a few of your classmates giggled around you, but you ignored them and you restarted the preparation of the potion

Half an hour later class got over, you managed to make a potion which was almost sky blue with a little green in it. Minho told the professor that it was because of your and his dedication to Slytherin but the professor let you go because it had the desired effect…Sort of…

“Ugh why do I always mess up something in potions?” You whined 

“Because” said Brenda “ You always have Minho next to you or as your partner. Why don’t you try sitting with me or Aris? We’ll help you” you hugged Brenda “Aww thanks Brenda, next time definitely” she sighed

 “ That’s what you say every time ” 

You ignored the comment and went for your next class. Soon lunch came and you Brenda and Rachel headed for the dinning hall. A petite silky black haired fourth year girl from your house came up to you.

“ Sorry to bother you, I was just wondering, if, you would be going for the dance at Hogsmeade with Minho”

“Hogsmeade dance? That’s coming up” you replied a little confused 

“ Yes, two weeks from now remember?” said Brenda “It happens once in every two years, we didn’t have it last year.” 

You scratched your head “ Oh right, I completely forgot about it” you looked at your junior “ Yea no we haven’t decided anything yet, you can go take him”

 The blonde blushed and walked away quickly murmuring something along the lines of “ it’s not like that b-baka”.

“You sure you’re not going with him?” Asked Brenda. “ Why are you asking that, is it a rule that I must go with Minho for the dance? ”

“Well, it’s just that you went with him in first year and third year” said Brenda as she grabbed a juicy piece of chicken leg. 

“Yea but,” you said as you munched on a cheese croissant “that was because we didn’t find anyone else !”

 Brenda snorted “Every year at least two guys asked you out for that dance but you’d say no! And Minho was quite popular in third year so don’t give me that shit!” 

You shrugged and looked across the house tables “ Yea well, nobody worthwhile asked ”. 

Brenda followed your line of sight and saw Newt talking to a few oh his house mates. “Well, if they don’t ask, suck up your pride and ask the worthwhile ones, stop being such a snooty Slytherin”

You blushed and turned to Brenda “Hey!!” But she just laughed. That evening you went to the grounds to fly. It had been a while since you had taken out your Firebolt and the breeze was just perfect for a good ride.

You placed your Firebolt on the ground

 “Up”

 It zoomed into your hand. You smirked 

“someone’s eager” and you jumped onto it and zoomed up. 

You flew upwards till you reached a good altitude and had a good view of the grounds and the castle and then you started flying around aimlessly. Occasionally taking a few swivels and turns. You zoomed past Hufflepuff’s tower and that was when you heard someone call out your name

“ Y/N! Over here!” It was Newt. 

He was flying behind you with a bright smile on his face which made you almost bang into a half open window.

“Newt! How nice to see you up here” He caught up to you and steadied his pace with yours

 “Yea well, I saw something interesting fly past my window, so I decided to go check it out”

 You laughed “You flew out through your window?!?”

 He shrugged “Yea well, Maybe Thomas has really rubbed off on me..” 

 “well it’s fine, I wouldn’t mind some company”

“ Well then love, I’ll be the gentle man I am and accompany you on this magical ride.”

 You smirked “okay” and then you zoomed ahead leaving Newt to eat your dust. “Bloody hell!” He laughed and quickly zoomed after you.

The two of you flew around playing cat and mouse, Newt usually caught up to you, but just as he’d think it was over you’d take a deep turn or just randomly stop mid air for a second and get out. 

“Shucking hell, you’re a lil minx on the broom” 

You laughed and winked at Newt 

“Should that be a problem for you? You’re part of the quidditch team aren’t you?”

“ Yea well” he replied and flew above you “ I ain’t a seeker, and also” he suddenly appeared right in front of you almost nose to nose

 “ I’m wondering, why aren’t you?”

You blushed at the close proximity between the two of you. His eyes reflected yours “ What pretty eyes he has” you thought, “Warm, yet a hint of some hidden emotion, and his lips, they look so kissable”  But before you could think further his husky voice broke your line of thought. 

“Y/N, why don’t you join the quidditch team?” 

You cleared your throat and tried to fly passed him but he kept stopping you. 

“Na-ah, not letting you go till you tell me”  

You huffed “Fine, it’s because I don’t want to lose and I don’t like playing by the rules”

 "Wow, now you sound like those rotten rich Slytherin brats”

“ I maybe rich and I am from Slytherin, but I’m not rotten you shank! ”

 You then reached your hand out and stroked Newts cheek catching him off gaurd and then flew past him

 “ I just don’t like having rules to follow when I’m flying! It’s the time I feel absolutely free!” 

Newt followed “So what? You can fly otherwise, there’s another thrill to flying as a team in coordination and helping each other” 

You sighed “You don’t get it do you” and you slow lifted your feet upto the broom “What the-” said Newt in shock. 

“My broomstick is the only partner I want when flying, it helps me clear my mind” you were standing on your broom stick, surfing the wind. “

She’s one wild rare creature muttered newt as he positioned himself below ready to catch you.

You smiled “ No need for that Newtie” then you jumped from your broom.

 You heard Newt tell your name as your broom fell towards the ground, 

“ Y/N, I’ll catch you!” he yelled , but to his surprise you landed right back on your Firebolt with a smirk plastered on your face. 

“Bloody hell how-”

 "The Wesley’s jokes shop, the old man George is really sweet to me!“ 

He ruffled his hair “Well love, no more surprises, you almost gave me a heart attack there”

You gave him a toothy grin “Well you asked-" 

 Newt nodded "I think I get it, although, if you don’t want people to fly with why did you agree to fly with me?" 

You blushed "Because you’re special…One of the special people I mean”

 "Well” he replied “ Am I special enough to be a possible dance partner?”

 You blushed, thoughts about the Hogsmeade dance came to your head, but before you could respond some one yelled

 "Newt!“ It was Thomas

“There you are! What are you doing? If you two head and further y'all will reach the castle barriers!”

“Sorry mate” Newt replied “Didn’t realize we had wandered that far!”

The two of you flew towards the ground. Thomas was standing with Teresa, she smiled politely at you and you smiled back. Thomas smiled at you

“Hey Y/N, so you’re the girl Newt jumped off the window for”

Newt punched Thomas on the head in embarrassment as Teresa giggled

“ Shut up Tommy” 

“Ignore Tom, he doesn’t realize what he says”

“It’s the truth! he jumped out through his window room when he saw her fly by!”

“ Yea, but you make it sound like I jumped to my death”

“I didn’t say that!”

“ It’s implied Tom”

You smiled “ No wonder Minho likes hanging out with them” Then Thomas shifted his attention back to you 

“ By the way Y/N, I didn’t know the two of you were close, the two of you have been talking a lot recently, especially since the last time we visited Hogsmeade.” 

Newt seemed a little hesitant to answer that so you replied non-chalantly

“ We were friends since third year Thomas, it’s just that you kept hogging all of Newt’s time “

Thomas snorted “ You mean Minho hogged yours”

“He really does not” you said in defense “Especially since third year, it’s well known he’s part of the ivy trio or whatnot”

Teresa smirked “ Is someone jealous?”

Newt frowned at that comment, but you paid little attention

“No my point is, Minho and I aren’t the problem,rather your attachment to Newt. Did you know there were rumors going around that the two of you are a couple? They even gave you a ship name, Newtmas”

Newt and Thomas started blabbering on how that wan’t true, and how there was a logical explanation for both of them being caught in the bath at the same time (even though they were in different houses) and Teresa commented on how Thomas almost got expelled for that. You laughed at the comments and protested being passed among the three when you felt someone walk up behind you.

“Min?” you turned to see Minho smiling with his latest edition of the firebolt which his father had gifted him.

“Hey Y/N, funny to see you here! didn’t know you were joining us.”

“Joining y’all where?”

“To the dead heads” said Thomas

“You mean the forbidden forest?”

“ Yea… but there’s an explanation”

“which is”

“We can’t tell” said Teresa in a tone which hinted no more should be said. 

You looked at her suspiciously and then at Minho.

“Min?”

“ It’s nothing, she’s right you should stay out of it”

You sighed “Newt?”

Newt gave you half a smile “It’s nothing, just some stupid stuff, we’l catch ya later eh love?”

You narrowed your eyes at him, you knew they were hiding something from you but you walked away. They were the ivy trio +one what did you expect? but deep inside a little part of you wanted to be accepted by them, just like Brenda.

“ This is silly” you thought to yourself, “Minho is and probably always will be one of my best friends, and Newt… well Newt and you were slowly getting closer, and that was good enough right?” but then you remembered Brenda’s words

“Well, if they don’t ask, suck up your pride and ask the worthwhile ones, stop being such a snooty girl from Slytherin”

You laughed “Snooty Slytherin girl eh? well won’t that be news when she asks the Golden boy of Hufflepuff”

Meanwhile somewhere in the dead head-

Thomas walked pushed a thick branch ahead to allow Teresa to walk through

 “ Do you guys think we should have told Y/N? I mean she seemed kinda hurt”

“ I don’t think so” said Teresa “ She’d get us into trouble”

Newt scoffed “ And you’ve never almost gotten us into trouble Teresa? honestly I think we can trust her. We shouldn’t have left her like that after Minho blabbered some part of it out”

“Give it a rest” said Minho “ Focus on where we’re going, Y/N will be fine, she’s used to me being like this”

“Speaking of you and Y/N” Teresa gave Newt a quick look and continued ”Are you going with her for the dance in Hogsmeade? ”

“ Haven’t thought much about it” replied Minho “ But yea probably, we always go together”

Newt gritted his teeth “ But what is some guy asks her this time to go with him?”

Minho laughed “It’s lil Y/N, guys always ask her, but she’s not interested in them, pretty sure she’ll say no and I’ll end up taking her anyway. Its been like that since we were five, I had to scare all the boys who bullied her because they found her cute. Though she never realized that, she just cried because they pulled her pony tail and took her toys”

Before Teresa or Newt could continue the conversation though Thomas stopped them “ Okay guys, I think from here on we need to be really quiet okay? now lets go” Teresa and Minho nodded following silently behind Thomas, but Newt stood in his position for a moment,just staring down. 

“Buddy, you coming?” asked Minho

Newt snapped out of his thought and nodded “Of course mate”

[queenofrossinia-blog]

A Royal Rant On the First Amendment

Today, this article caught my eye:

http://www.salon.com/2017/01/26/watch-minnesota-protesters-erupt-after-lawmakers-pass-bill-allowing-state-agencies-to-sue-demonstrators-for-police-overtime-costs/?source=newsletter

(I don’t know if this’ll be a clickable link when I post this–here’s hoping!)

Minnesota Republicans: What the fucking fuck!? For the so-called “Party of Lincoln” who’s supposedly anti-slavery, y'all are sure doing a fine job of muzzling Constitutional rights! It’s bad enough that the Republicans who go into government are money-obsessed, blinded-by-ambition, well-to-do, clueless, bubble-inhabiting, royalty wannabe’s. You, ALL of you that I have ever seen or heard tell of are blind, blind, blind to the realities of life for those of us who are scraping by (or not, and are going underwater).

It’s bad enough that you seem to think that all of life’s problems can be solved by investing in the stock market and everything’s coming up roses. You strip us of every red penny you can, going and coming. You like to set everything up to be bought and paid for (so-called “privitization”), expecially that which should be publicly accessible. A minor, but still irritating, example of this in my opinion is the travesty to transportation known as toll roads.

But now, you’re putting a price tag on our Constitutional rights!!!!!!!

Now, you’re trying to say and make into law that we have to PAY to exercise our right to free speech!!!!! Fuck you!!! If y'all weren’t so dead-set on pursuing harmful policies that kill–yes, I said KILL, as in MURDER–poor folks, you wouldn’t have to worry about demonstrations!!! But, no, you go skipping merrily along, making the way smooth for your rich, fat-cat friends; and if any of the madding crowd decides to state their collective displeasure, unhappiness, and misery about the situation, all of a sudden it’s a big NO–unless you pay!

Oh, what’s that? “You little folks have no money, so too bad,” you mock at us? Well, it’s pretty obvious that your high-falutin’, big-money education didn’t cover the “Three R’s” very well, particularly the last “R”–‘Rithmatic. Listen in, if you dare.

My familial Americans, allow me to remind you about something regarding that ever-lovin’ 10% that’s at the top of the heap with all the money and power, and most especially the top 1% . It’s true that they hold all the strings, BUT. They’re only 1% , or at best, 10% . We are the other 90% . Ninety percent, at worst. Ninety-nine percent at best. Think about that for a moment. Even if I were to make the (probably totally safe assumption) that the bulk of the upper 25% might stick together, that still leaves the rest of us “REAL” folks being the balance of 75% .

Think Louis XVI for a moment.

The rich folks are very good about watching out after their own interests, oh, yes they are. And it is no accident that our political system is geared towards the requirement that one must have access to butt-loads of money in order to run for public office. Do the rich folks watch after their own? Do they cover their backsides? Oh, yes, you bet they do.

Do they watch after the best interests for the rest of us? Not so much. They’re CLUELESS, never forget, about our daily struggle. So, essentially one could make the argument that the majority of us have been completely disenfranchised. We’re talking total taxation without representation here. Oh, they’ll try to tell you that they represent you because they’re from your geographical area. Don’t be fooled by that!

If they don’t/can’t/refuse to keep your and your family’s best interests at heart and proceed accordingly, then THEY DO NOT REPRESENT YOU!!!!!!!!! They’re just looking out for themselves and their fat-cat cronies.

And one of their favorite tactics to make us impotent and ineffectual is to keep the rest of us divided and feudin’ amongst ourselves. We have had the wool pulled over our eyes. It is obvious to anyone with any grain of sense that those of us at the bottom of the heap have more in common with each other than we’ll ever have in common with THEM, the rich bitches. So, knowing that we vastly out-number them, they have pursued a policy of keeping us divided amongst ourselves for literally centuries now. They’ve instigated and fostered racial prejudice, especially amongst Poor Whites, so that we’d all be blinded to our common cause and rise up, united against them. They know that when we figure out that racial and religious prejudice are nothing but carefully-tended red herrings, the game’s up.

And now, they’re getting quite egregious about muzzling us, keeping us silent, so that they can go on their merry way of raping and stripping our country bare of every last thing that can be monetized to their own benefit and convenience. And meanwhile, you, there, be quiet! Don’t jostle our little lives! Don’t be noisy! Don’t demonstrate! Don’t protest! Unless you can pay. (Heh-heh, which you can’t because we don’t pay you a living wage, so there! Phhhhht!)

Well, you want to muzzle us. I REFUSE TO BE QUIET!!!!

Let me tell you something about rich folks. In their minds, democracy = cut-throat, “free”-market capitalism and white protestant christianity, and to hell with the sub-human masses (that’s us) who are shut out of all of their perks and priveleges. “Oh, but we earned this from our businesses and corporations.” Yeah, standing on the fortunes raped out of the people by your progenitors.

So, tell me this, rich folks. Why are you so scared of a level playing field? Why is it that this discussion can only take place with your being in your comforable position of absolute luxury, while the rest of us are dying, literally dying, from overwork and underpay? Why is it that your ever-lovin’ capitalism makes sure that you have every little thing that your heart desires, but you can’t be bothered to pay us a living wage? Why do our households have to hold down three, four, more, crappy jobs just to make ends meet? And while we destroy our health doing this, why is it that YOU’RE the ones who have access to medical care? Must be nice.

And while I’m on that subject, it really, really BURNS ME that you rich folks are holding medical care hostage, reserved only for yourselves. I’ve heard y'all talk. I’ve heard the blathering balderdash that comes out of y'all’s soft, plump lips regarding why you think that single-payer medicine would be the apocalyptical end of the world.

“Oh, we’d have to wait to be able to see the doctor!” Well, waah, waah. What do you think the rest of us has to do? IF we’re lucky enough to be able to go to the doctor, we have to wait. And wait, until our scheduled appointment time. What’s wrong with you coming down and being equal to us on this?

“Oh, we’d have to wait for our life-saving, life-extending operations and medical procedures! What if we (gasp) DIE while we’re waiting?” Well, what about the rest of us? We’re dropping dead due to lack of medical care! Literally! Take look at the latest mortality figures. People (and by “people” I mean REAL Americans, not you rich globalists) are dropping dead in their fifties! And meanwhile, you rich bitches are blithely popping in and out of the hospitals with nary a worry and living to your late nineties.

“Oh, but we can’t have single-payer–it’d mutilate the insurance companies!” Well, why are they making money off of people’s misery, I should like to know? Just so that they can pay good returns to their stockholders. If you (rich) stockholders weren’t so fucking greedy for profit, maybe, just MAYBE the fucking insurance companies would actually do what they’re SUPPOSED to do with our premiums, that is, invest them and use the resulting capital to pay for medical procedures. As it is, all the money is funnelled upwards to y'all; and in keeping with our Constitutional right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, we get to pursue the happiness of dying whilst being stripped of more of our hard-earned money through those self-same insurance premiums (which don’t generate any return for us in the form of availability to medical care). Hmmm, “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” = dying in misery from lack of access to medical care. Interesting. I don’t think the rest of the world realizes just how much the bulk of the United States is really a “third-world” country.

It might appear that I’m taking this point personally. Well, hell yes, you’re fucking right, I do. It goes beyond all humanity the way things are set up in this country. My husband is dead because we are poor. He needed a liver transplant. He didn’t get turned down because his body was too weak (it wasn’t–he was as strong as an ox; there’s a reason why some of his friends called him “Moose”), but because we were poor. We had go to a hospital out-of-state for this, and when we came they said, “Oh, no problem we’ve worked with the system before.” But after milking Medicaid for all kinds of money for his tests and check-ups, when he got down to the serious business of complete liver failure, all of a sudden it’s “Oh, we don’t work with Arkansas Medicaid. What made you think that we did?” Well, DUH, that’s what you told us when we were first sent to you! And then they refused to authorize an ambulance to take him to another hospital in yet another state, and I had to rent a car and drive him there myself, while he was bleeding from EVERY bodily orifice, including his eyes and ears (yet, the hospital said he wasn’t sick enough for an ambulance). He died two days later.

And to add insult to injury, the rich fat-cats have the court system set up to shut the rest of us out. I had the proof necessary to sue the first out-of-state hospital for medical malpractice, and had the doctors at the second in-yet-another-state hospital begging me to sue. But, the first out-of-state hospital got off because my suit was adjudged to be “frivolous��.

And now, on top of that, last year the Republicans changed the law so that they have now taken away my widow’s check. When my husband died, I was told that as long as I didn’t get re-married that I would get my widow’s check. So much for that. And I’m still trying to raise my family.

So, yes, you could say the question of universally-available, single-payer health care is a personal issue with me.

Meanwhile, we working folks destroy our bodies holding down jobs. The rich bitches say that if the job’s so terrible, nothing’s stopping us from getting another job that does better. Except … they’re all the same! There is no “better” to be had.

And in theory, one can “improve” one’s situation by pursuing higher education. But at what cost? To get out of school so head-over-heels in debt that you’re literally paying off the loans until you retire? And the rich folks criticize us because we don’t “save for retirement”. How? Fleeping HOW? And let’s not forget the Republicans’ attitude towards eliminating the so-called social safety net, especially Social Security, the retirement fund for poor folks. Safety net? What safety net? Where? I just wish!

Their solution? Go get aid from your local churches. Well, I follow a minority religion (Northern Tradition Paganism), and I have no desire to have christian theology crammed down our throats as the payment for assistance. I especially do not want my daughter to have to deal with the misogynistic bullshit that comes flying over the pulpit: “You women are the source of sin and all things evil because Eve.”

And this notion that you’re only good if, and only matter if you’re a christian, and all of society’s ills can be cured by christian churches—don’t EVEN get me started on that!

Oh, and you so-called “christian” Republicans? Why don’t you go back and read your ever-lovin’ New Testament?

Rich folks, your general stupidity never ceases to amaze and dismay me. You’re having fun getting rich by raping money out of a sick workforce. Does it not occur to you how much more productive and–dare I say it?–PROFITABLE your businesses would be if the workforce and employment pool you had to draw upon were healthy?

And I’d like to point out to you supposedly-Constitution-lovin’ Republicans that the Constitution very clearly states that we have the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Just how happy do you think we are, being sick and in extreme pain, and dropping dead in our fifties? How can we “pursue happiness”? How can we be “entrepeneural” (sp? I hate the implications of that word so much I can’t even spell it) and be “productive” if we’re literally throwing up from pain every day? And y'all wonder why there’s an epidemic of pain pill dependency in this country.

But, oh, never mind, you crowd there, just be quiet. If you want to kick up a fuss and exercise your First Amendment rights, you now have to pay! Yay! And, while we’re at it, we will continue to make it harder, and harder, and impossible for you to vote. How’s that splintery broomstick feel as we angelic rich folks ram it up your collective bums?

According to the above-linked article, there’s other states to be added to the List Of Shame: North Dakota, Iowa, Michigan, Indiana, Colorado, Virginia, and Washington State.

As a side note, I must say that I am not at ALL surprised that Virginia’s on that list. That’s a fucking police state, right there. I hope I never have to go to that accursed state again.

And for all of you, you government-tit-sucking, we-don’t-want-to-pay-any-taxes and give-us-loop-holes rich folks:

Fuck you.