#you can open your web browser of choice at all cause again getting to that point in a timely manner usually takes me about 30m-1hr

[seithr]

girl i need to get this new laptop i swear to god

[harrys-titties]

Y/N and Harry hate each other, until they don’t. 

29K+

Warnings: Asshole Harry, A LOT of swearing (I’m sorry,) mentions of anxiety, a questionable game of drink or truth & smut 

(A/N FINALLY I FINISHED!!  Blood, sweat and tears has been put into this one, so I hope you all enjoy! Love you all <3 Also you may have to open in your web browser bc she is big af xx) 

-masterlist-

It wasn't that Y/N didn't like Harry, in all honesty, she didn't know him well enough to come to that conclusion. But from what she'd seen so far, she wasn't too impressed. She had never found it too challenging to make new friends, often finding herself able to get along with even the oddest of characters, but with Harry, it was a different story.

Perhaps if they weren’t forced to stay in the same house during quarantine, having to spend days on end with only each other and their housemates to cure their boredom, things would be different. Maybe, just maybe Harry wouldn’t have come across as so disagreeable and overbearing. 

However, at this rate, Y/N was led to believe it was just who he was. An asshole who had somehow tricked the entire planet into believing he was the epitome of the ‘boy next door’ stereotype. 

Sarah, Y/N’s cousin, had called her sometime around July, asking her if she wanted to quarantine with her, her boyfriend, Mitch and a few mates rather than alone in her somewhat dingy apartment. Y/N had immediately jumped at the opportunity. Quarantining by herself had already proved to be somewhat tricky and incredibly depressing. While she loved her charming little abode, she was certainly not prepared to spend the next few months stuck inside it, alone, watching ‘Friends’ reruns with a bottle of wine and only her three potted cacti to keep her company. 

So, naturally, that led her to the doorstep of Sarah and Mitch's huge shared house with butterflies in her stomach, imagining what her new housemates would be like. 

Sarah had told Y/N all about Mitch, Jeff and Harry, exclaiming how funny, kind and welcoming they would be, and well, Y/N was excited, she needed some new friends. After her last break up about a year ago, had lost her a boyfriend and subsequently the mutual friends of his that she thought had become hers too, she felt slightly lonely. For Y/N the chance to cure isolation boredom blues and make some new friends was an offer she wouldn't dream of refusing. 

Upon arrival, Y/N noticed that Sarah's description fit Jeff and Mitch to a tee, but Harry? Well, he barely managed to squeeze into it. When she'd walked through the door, Mitch had immediately offered to take her bags and even offered her some of his favourite tea to help her relax after her relatively stressful journey. Jeff gave her a huge hug and asked what her favourite snacks were so he could add them to the shopping list. And Harry? He sat in silence with his head practically glued to his phone, hardly even sparing a glance in her direction. 

Y/N didn't let this discourage her. She prided herself on being friendly and often easy to get along with and so approached him readily. However, greeting him with a cheerful, "it's nice to meet you!" and her renowned smile had only earned her a grunt and a disinterested look. Maybe he was just having a bad day?

On the drive to Sarah’s house, Y/N had been thinking about how exciting it was to be able to meet him. While she’d never been an avid fan of his music, she wasn’t blind to the enormous impact he had on the industry. He seemed kind and beyond charming, and well, Y/N had a working pair of eyes, she knew how handsome he was. She had only ever heard good things and was excited to get to know the man who had made her cousin's dreams come true. 

However, Harry's blase and borderline rude personality really rubbed her the wrong way. Y/N could understand having a rough day, even she could get a bit grumpy the days leading up to her period, but Harry's impertinence surpassed a simple 'bad day' or two. He was impossible! He would hardly even acknowledge her existence, and on the rare occasion when he did, he was insolent and passive-aggressive. He would nitpick everything Y/N did, from the way she would dress to something as simple as how much soy sauce she had on her sushi! Y/N didn't know how she would survive another week with him, let alone the whole of isolation. 

Maybe loneliness, copious amounts of alcohol and friends reruns would’ve been the better option. 

——

It wasn't that Harry didn't like Y/N, in all honesty, he didn't know her well enough to come to that conclusion. There was just something about her that grated on his nerves. It could possibly be the fact that Sarah had insisted she was his type before he'd even met her. While Harry had countered, unless she looked exactly like the ex he was still very much pining over he doubted it to be true, Sarah had insisted. She showed him picture after picture from their trip to Europe together, pointing out how pretty Y/N's hair looked, or how dazzling her smile was.

While there was a resemblance to the girl on his mind, Harry doubted it was enough to remind him of the heartbreak she had instilled upon him. Alas, Harry was wrong. When Y/N had floated through the door without a care in the world, Harry had frozen. While Y/N did kind of resemble his past girlfriend Elle, it was the way she acted that frustrated Harry more. She had the same air about her, carried herself in the same way that Elle did, with humble confidence and poise.  

Harry hated it. The more he got to know Y/N, the more he realised that she was somehow simultaneously similar and completely different from the girl he was still in love with, and he hated it. She was a constant reminder of what he could no longer have, and he didn't know if he wished Y/N were more like Elle so he could have a part of her back, or if he wished she was a completely different person altogether.

Either way, Harry could hardly hold in the frustration he felt around her, snapping at anything she said and nit-picking her every move. 

While he knew he was acting unreasonably, he barely had a cause to stop it. 

——

Y/N was usually self-confident and relatively sure of herself, but she was also stubborn, and for some reason was bothered by Harry's opinion of her more than she cared to admit. 

So, over the first few days of her staying at the house, Y/N had tried her hardest to get Harry to like her, but her endeavours only seemed to further annoy him. She baked him carrot cake because she'd heard it was his favourite, but with a screwed up nose, Harry had swiped his finger through the icing to taste it and grumbled, "way too sweet," before retreating back to his room. Y/N was embarrassed as Sarah had given her a sympathetic look and insisted "everyone else will love it!" 

When doing her washing, she added Harry's whites with hers and even went so far as to dry and fold them too. But when she woke the next day, the clothes had been taken from the laundry, and Y/N was not given a spare glance.

 Harry had insisted they watch a horror movie during their weekly movie night, and Y/N didn't say a word of opposition, even though she knew she would have nightmares that night. Sarah had even tried to say something on her behalf, but Y/N quickly hushed her, not wanting to cause a scene and have Harry hate her even more than he already did. 

But Y/N's quick agreeance to watch 'Halloween' disagreed with her a lot more than she thought it would. She had hardly slept at all, jumping at the smallest of sounds and debating the probability of a murderous man being able to break into the house. When she turns again for what seemed like the fiftieth time that night, only to be met with the glaring '3:30' from the mickey mouse alarm clock she had nearly forgotten to pack, she gives up. 

In an attempt to calm herself down from the numerous haunting images flashing through her mind, Y/N begins her trek to the kitchen. A cool glass of water and perhaps one of the cupcakes Sarah and herself had baked the day before, would surely put her overworked mind at ease. 

As Y/N begins to walk down the stairs, she can't help but imagine behind every door a murderer with a knife, that each step in the pitch black was one closer to her death. The eerie silence of the house full of sleeping people only made her feel worse. 

Scolding herself for ever agreeing to watch the stupid movie in the first place, she turns around to flick on the lights to the hallway and stairway. Feeling slightly more comfortable now that she could see, she walked downstairs only to repeat the process in the kitchen, dining room and living room until the whole house, bar upstairs, was flooded with light.

Standing in the fully lit kitchen with a mug of hot chocolate she had found in the cupboard and munching away at the sweet treat, Y/N finally begins to feel somewhat safe. That is until a dark figure suddenly emerges from the hallway.

 "Harry! What the fuck? You scared the shit out of me," she exclaims while clutching at her rapidly beating chest. With his chestnut curls in a tangled heap upon his head, one sock on and clad in only a white shirt and boxers, he looks slightly worse for wear. "What the fuck are you doing, making such a racket at four in the fucking morning?" His voice sounds strained as if he'd just woken up and his face is screwed in annoyance as he points at the provincial-style clock hanging on the wall for emphasis. 

Y/N hesitates, she knew telling Harry his movie choice had kept her awake would not end well, "I- I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you or anything." At this, he scoffs, "didn't mean to wake me, huh? Turning on every fuckin’ light and slammin’ cupboards will usually do that to a person." 

Now Harry knows he's being mean, can hear the way his accent thickens with annoyance and can see how she flinches with every raised decibel, and it makes him pause some. He realises there’s more than likely a reasonable explanation as to why she’s awake at such an hour. He's a dick, but he's not a bloody monster, and as he sees her eyes well up with tears, he decides his anger can be put on the backburner.

 "Why are you even awake?" At the softened tone in his voice, Y/N seems to visibly relax some but still remains tense. "I, um, I really hate horror movies, and I was scared, and I couldn't sleep." He sighs, and his voice lowers even more, "Is that why all the lights are on?" She nod's sheepishly, "why didn't you say anythin'? You were the first to bloody agree to watch the movie." 

"You already hate me enough, I didn't want to give you another reason!" Harry's not sure why his chest slightly aches at that, because if he's honest, she's right, he doesn't really like her at all. As soon as she’d walked through the door and up the stairs to get sorted in her new room, he'd approached Mitch. He'd even made a proper scene, asking why she had to quarantine with them. Mitch had defended her, pointing out that everyone else liked her perfectly fine so far, which Harry supposes was a part of his problem with her. He had made sure she knew of his distaste too, barely even paying her mind, and only doing so to mock her. 

So why it felt like his heart was cracking just slightly, he'll never know, but it does lead him to walk towards her slowly, "I can't really sleep either, did you want to watch tv with me until you can?" If Harry was truthful, he'd actually been sleeping like a baby before he heard the cupboard doors shut slightly above acceptable volume considering the time. However, the way her mouth pouted somewhat, and her eyes misted as she acknowledged his dislike for her made him feel awful. 

So as he sits on the couch with her, now donned with his own steaming cup of hot chocolate, he leaves the lights on and gives her his favourite blanket to wrap herself in. He sits on the opposite side of the couch and tries his hardest not to fall asleep, so Y/N could feel somewhat protected.

After a few episodes of 'SpongeBob' had played he looks over to the other side of the sofa and sees Y/N fast asleep, snoring with her head tilted at a slightly unnatural angle. He can't help the smile that finds its way onto his face, as he turns off the television and settles himself further into the couch to hopefully catch a few hours of sleep too. 

——

To say Y/N is confused would be an understatement. While she wasn't expecting to wake up to Harry presenting a friendship bracelet and a new found love for her, she was expecting him to at least stop hating her.

She was surprised at his kindness last night. She knows Harry gave her his favourite blanket. Jeff was always griping on movie nights because Harry manages to nab it before Jeff has the chance and although he claimed he couldn't sleep, Harry's croaky voice and dishevelled hair led her to believe he was in fact lying.

She definitely hadn't expected him to offer to watch cartoons with her. She also definitely had not expected to wake in the middle of the night to find herself pressed against him with his arms tightly wrapped around her.

 Y/N briefly considered moving back to her side of the couch, but if she was being entirely truthful, she missed cuddling. It was one of her favourite things about being in a relationship, and ever since her last one had crashed and burned, she missed the simple feeling of being held. So in her sleep-muddled state, she decided to stay put and hope Harry was as avid a cuddler as she was.  

To be honest, after all that, she thought he'd at least start to acknowledge her existence, or at least not act as if it was the bane of his. However, when Y/N awakes the next day, Harry is in the kitchen with Jeff and Sarah, debating on where to start their tour when quarantine ends. He moves animatedly and is clearly laughing and joking about as he usually does with the other occupants of the house. But when she enters, he instantly stops talking and instead puts his head down, seemingly very focused on shovelling his pancakes into his mouth. 

Y/N hopes, with every part of her being, that he didn't wake up feeling disgusted by her unconscious affection, but she knew it was a real possibility. And suddenly it feels like she had taken one step forward and two giant steps back.

So yes, Y/N is understandably confused. 

——

When Harry had woken up overheated, and with a stifling sense of claustrophobia, he was understandably confused. As he opens his eyes, he recognises the living room's shaggy carpet and cream walls; however, it takes him a few seconds to process why he was actually here rather than in his own bedroom.

The pressure against his chest causes him to startle some, and when he looks down to see Y/N still huddled under his favourite blanket but now pressed against him rather than the opposite end of the couch, the feeling doesn't fade but instead escalates.

How did they end up in this position? Harry knew he was a cuddler, any past lover would be able to tell you that, but that was usually with people he... liked? Why the fuck was she on top of him?

He can just see the side of her face, while the other looks to be uncomfortably pressed against him. Her hair no longer resembles the bun she usually goes to sleep with but a nest upon her head, and what looks like dried drool is smeared across the corner of her rosy lips. 

Harry can admit she's cute. In a puppy that's just been kicked kind of way. He feels compelled to brush the strands of hair away from her face and wipe the spit away with the hem of his shirt, but Y/N moving in her sleep draws his focus away. He sees his lanky legs tangled with hers and for the first time notices his arms also wrapped around her, keeping her close. 

While a half-asleep Y/N is clearly trying to change her position, his gangly limbs keep her from doing so. And Harry panics. He should not be cuddling with Y/N of all people. Instantly and as gently as possible, he rolls her off him and stands from the couch, only to hear a muffled groan of opposition from the sleeping girl. 

Harry was confused, to say the least. He knows it's not a big deal. Two, friends? No. Acquaintances? Hm nope, 'roommates?'... had fallen asleep next to each other on the couch and woken up slightly tangled. It wouldn't be that much of an issue if the last person Harry had woken up next to hadn't been the ex-girlfriend he was very much still broken-hearted because of. Don't get him wrong, it had felt nice to be close to someone again, but perhaps that's the reason why Harry begins to panic even more. 

So, Harry folds up the blanket he had been using, walks to the toilet and convinces himself not to think of it again. And it's also for this reason, that Harry can't seem to look Y/N in the eye as she walks into the kitchen. He knows she's looking at him in confusion, and he feels slightly guilty, but what was he supposed to do? Greet her with a cuddle and ask if she'd slept as well as he did? No, Harry would act like nothing had happened, and pray that a problem wouldn't arise from that.

But of course, Harry should have known better. 

——

Y/N was quite the baker. She had worked a few summers in her Aunties little bakery and had loved it, but even with her passion and keen eye for icing cakes, there was only so much sweet treat making she could do. She was more participating in copious amounts of isolation baking to please poor Sarah, who was struggling with boredom, and who also happened to love sweets. 

So, whenever Sarah would run into her room with a new suggestion, or send her a link to a 'totally awesome' muffin recipe, Y/N would simply bite her tongue and help gather the ingredients. They had already managed to make cupcakes, banana bread, chocolate chip cookies and cheesecake. So when a new recipe comes through while Y/N reads her book in front of the pool, she wonders what other baked goods could even possibly exist for them to make. 

Alas, macarons. Y/N sighed and walked to the kitchen, where she knew Sarah would be preparing their ingredients. "Hey bug, ready to bake the best macarons ever?" On the inside, Y/N started dramatically weeping, but on the outside, she exclaims, "sure am! These might be a bit more difficult than anything we've tried though." Sarah scoffs, "oh please, we're up for the challenge." 

It's then Y/N notices Harry sitting at the island bench, and he catches her staring, "what? 'M bored." She only nods in response, not really one for conflict. "Are you helping us cook? We could use an extra hand." Y/N kind of hopes he'd say yes, maybe a bit of cooperative, team bonding would mend whatever weird rift they had between them. 

However, Harry screws up his nose at her suggestion as if what she had said was the stupidest thing he'd ever heard. Before he has the chance to snarkily reply to her, Sarah butts in, "Harry actually used to be a baker! Didn't you H." Harry can see Y/N's eyes light up and knows that whatever comes out of her mouth next, he was more than likely going to despise. "I used to work in a bakery too!"

Now, if there was an award for sarcasm, Y/N's sure Harry would probably win it. When he pulls his lips into an over-exaggerated smile and says, "twinnies!" with such derision that it burns, Y/N's smile falls. She didn't know what his problem was. Had it really bothered him that much that they'd accidentally cuddled in their sleep? Who had hurt the poor guy so much that a simple night-time spoon was the be-all or end-all? 

She really hadn't meant it, guessed she'd missed sleeping next to a warm body and naturally gravitated towards him. She liked a good cuddle, for fuck's sake, who didn't? If she could turn back time, she would've stayed in bed, wracked with fear if it meant she wouldn't have to deal with Harry's bullshit.

Rather than responding, Y/N puts her head down and begins to read the instructions Sarah had helpfully printed out. Harry is about to make a snide comment, praying that her baking abilities have improved since the carrot cake she had attempted to make, but he gets distracted by the way the afternoon sun is hitting her skin. 

Was Y/N kind of attractive? For the first time, he notices that while she had similar features to his ex, Y/N was pretty on her own accord. 

While often messy, her hair looked so soft, and her eyes were wide and held a sense of innocence. If Harry looked close enough, he could see the tiny acne spots she hadn't bothered to cover and the small bags under her eyes. He briefly wonders if she'd been getting enough sleep and if he had any of the 'sleepy-time' tea left that had worked so well for him before he realises what he was thinking. 

This was Y/N, not Elle, not some chick he'd been fucking, it was Y/N. Maybe he was just confused about his feelings. That was the first time he'd slept next to someone in a while. And well, Y/N was an admittedly pretty girl, and Harry was an admittedly lonely guy who was attracted to pretty girls…

Yeh, there was nothing for him to worry about. 

Y/N mistakes Harry's staring as a glare and does her best to avoid looking at him. She didn't want him to see the well of tears in her eyes and give him the satisfaction. By now, she knew he had meant to upset her, and he had succeeded. 

It was a shame, he really was an attractive guy. Y/N is fully aware that if she'd seen him at a bar, acting the way he did with Sarah and the guys, she'd be instantly in love. She imagines him at school years ago, he probably would’ve been the guy that everyone developed a crush on at least once, boys and girls alike, and has no doubt he probably knew it too. 

Unfortunately, Y/N had not met him in a way akin to a romantic novel. No, she only knew him as an ass who tended to treat her like the dirt stuck to the treads of his overpriced shoes. The only thing Y/N could do was just try her best to ignore him. 

——

As it turns out, Y/N was right, macarons were a lot harder than anything Sarah, and she had previously tried to make. Y/N was tired, frustrated and too sweaty for simply baking glorified cookies. The macarons had taken so long to make, and worst of all, the first batch had come out of the oven flat and stiff as a board. Sarah had pulled out the tray as Y/N was beginning to wash the bowls with a hesitant, "are they supposed to be flat?" 

Turns out they were not supposed to be flat at all. Y/N tried to hide her distaste as she chewed through one of the shells, but when she saw Sarah's face mirroring hers, she giggled. Harry, who had been sitting at the bench, completing a crossword puzzle, also laughed, "guess you aren't as good at baking as you thought you were." 

Y/N would be offended, but notices he's mainly talking to Sarah, and his jesting tone suggests he's not even acknowledging her. "Here, try one. They aren't that bad," Sarah hands him one and he huffs before taking a bite, "better not poison me. You'll have millions of fans to answer to." 

As he chews, it’s apparent that he's not particularly enjoying it. After a hefty swallow, he tugs at his bottom lip with his thumb and forefinger as if in deep thought. "These are single-handedly the worst macarons I've ever had in my entire life. And I say that with absolute confidence." 

While Sarah scoffs and laughs, admonishing Harry with a gentle slap on his arm, Y/N is entirely distracted. She had never seen anyone else with the same habit as her ex. Ben would tug at his bottom lip when deep in thought, and there Harry was, exhibiting the exact same habit. She was astonished, and she hates to admit it, but small butterflies form in the pit of her stomach. She always had, for some unknown reason found it an oddly attractive trait.

While others might be attracted to muscles or deep dimples, Y/N found the little quirks of others most captivating. She loved the drunken ramblings and the uncontrollable tears during sad films. She loved watching people discover their favourite song and the way they would sing under their breath. She loved the unmade beds, dust-covered books, and overwatered plants. She loved the way people would stutter on certain words or adopt weird nicknames they had heard in their favourite movies. She loved pet peeves and the stories behind them and the routines that they followed. Y/N had always loved people. She loved the things that made individuals uniquely them, and this quirk that Harry shared with Ben, was no different. 

If he notices her staring, he doesn't draw attention to it, only continues to banter with Sarah, while Y/N stands in the middle of the kitchen, lost in thought. It’s Sarah's voice that draws her out of her reverie, "c'mon Y/N let's try another batch. I want to surprise Mitch for movie night, he loves these things."

——

This movie-night, Y/N wanted to make sure she would be able to sleep at the end of it, and for that reason, horror movies were off the table- much to Harry's dismay. Sarah, Mitch and Jeff, readily agreed, and after some pushing from Jeff and the girls, everyone agreed to watch a rom-com. The question was which one. 

As Sarah scrolls through the movie selections, 'Clueless' catches Y/N’s eye, and she immediately yells out the suggestion with vivid excitement and is promptly met with... silence. "Guys? Clueless is icon-" Y/N starts, only to be interrupted by none other than Harry, "'s a shit movie, we aren't watching it." Before Y/N can object, Sarah comes to her defence, "oi H, don't be an asshole. We know it was Elle's favourite, don't need to take it out on poor Y/N."

While Y/N prides herself on being understanding and kind, she knows she can be a tad oblivious to what's going on around her at times. She had tried to pick up on it when she noticed it and improve because it had indeed gotten her into some awful situations. And if only Y/N had paid a bit more attention to the situation around her, she may not have spat out her next words. She may have noticed Harry's misty eyes and pursed lips, Sarah's empathetic gaze towards him, Mitch's awkward glance in Harry's direction and Jeff's head buried in his hands. Alas, she didn't.

 "Who's Elle?"  

Silence. Y/N is met with nothing but silence. After a while, she can vaguely hear Jeff letting out the breath of air he had clearly been holding in, and Mitch's mumbled "oh god" under his breath, but she was much too focused on Harry's gaze that was now piercing into hers. "None of your business," he gets out through gritted teeth. 

Y/N is somewhat taken aback, she can clearly see that whoever Elle was, she was a sensitive topic for Harry and immediately tries to backtrack. "Oh, um I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-" For the second time that night, Harry interrupts her. "Does anyone want popcorn? We forgot to get some." He stands from the couch, now avoiding Y/N's gaze altogether, and she looks around the room to try and gauge the situation. 

The only one in the room paying her any notice is Sarah, who shares the same empathetic look with her that she had given Harry not two minutes ago. Sarah mouths ‘ex-girlfriend' at Y/N, and it's safe to say she feels awful. While she didn't particularly like Harry, she would never intentionally hurt anyone, and she makes the snap decision to follow him, in order to apologise to him properly. 

When she enters the kitchen, Harry is leaning on the counter facing away from her. His shoulders seem tense, and his hair is dishevelled as if he'd been continuously running his fingers through it.

"Harry, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to bring up such a sensitive topic." At her voice, Harry's shoulders seem to hunch further, and he turns around while taking a deep breath, "just drop it yeah? Think you've done enough." 

Y/N didn't think that was fair. She really hadn't known, and if she had, she wouldn't have even thought of mentioning it. "I didn't know Harry. I won't bring her up again." Y/N had grown familiar with the way Harry's accent thickened sometimes. It happened when he was tired or bored. It was most frequently when he was angry, which seemed to be a common occurrence when she was concerned, and now was no exception. "No shit, stop stickin' your nose into other people's business." 

In any other circumstance, Harry might have noticed the way Y/N's eyes instantly started to water, or how she'd retreated and hunched slightly into herself in submission. Harry had noted she was a sensitive little thing, and while he often tried to get on her nerves, when he saw her nose twitch and eyes mist up, he knew to back off. But currently, he could only see red, and the fact Y/N had made no attempt to move, made his fury run even more rampant through his veins. “Fuck off Y/N, I'm not kiddin'. Go back to the living room." 

"But Harry, I-" Y/N attempts to get out, but Harry's raised voice causes her to immediately stop. "I said, fuck off!" At that, Y/N snaps. For weeks, she had been doing nothing but try to please Harry, but there was just no pleasing him. He was arrogant, apathetic to everyone around him, pretentious, stubborn and worst of all, just plain rude. 

"You're a real asshole, you know that. I understand you're upset, and I'm sorry I caused it, but you don't need to treat me like shit,” she sniffles. “I have tried so fucking hard to get on your good side, but I'm done trying. It's time for you to wake up and realise not everyone is going to hurt you like precious Elle clearly did." Y/N expects Harry to do many different things, she prepares for him to begin screaming, perhaps start crying? She briefly wonders if he would go so far as to push her out of the way and storm out of the room. 

Although, one prospect she didn’t consider was for him to start laughing. "Oh Jesus pet, you think you're that special? You think you can even begin to be compared to her? Think I'm scared you'll.. what? Break my heart?" As he continued to speak, the sound of his voice grew as did his rage. The veins on the side of his neck only became more pronounced, and the crease in his brow caused his whole face to contort. 

The increase in volume had caused an audience to gather. Jeff, Sarah and Mitch stand in the kitchen entrance helplessly watching the two rip into each other. Mitch is the first to step in, "Harry c'mon, that's enough." 

"Fuck off Mitch, stay out of it." He turns back to Y/N, "please, sweetheart, save yourself the heartbreak. Have you ever considered that maybe I just don't like you? You're fucking annoying, and your pathetic attempts to get me to like you are even more so. What were you hoping would come from it? I'd ignore the fact you grate on my nerves 24/7 and pay you a bit of attention? Maybe even get you off once or twice? Is that it?"

Sarah is next to attempt to break up the fight, "Y/N don't bother, Harry's just upset."

It took a lot to get Y/N mad. She was usually calm, maybe a bit emotional, but very rarely did she raise her voice. But Harry, with his constant grouching and aggressive nature, had pushed her well and truly past that point. "Save it, Sarah. Are you fucking serious Harry? I was just trying to be a nice person. I'm not sure how to tell you this, but not everybody is trying to get into your pants. Guess you'd be so used to girls throwing themselves at you until they have a fucking conversation with you and see what a dick you actually are." 

He snarls at that, "trust me pet, they're proper gaggin' for it." Y/N scrunches her nose in disgust, "You're fucking disgus-" The quietest of the group is the next to interrupt. "Oh for fucks sake, both of you, shut up!" 

Jeff was usually quietly spoken and hardly ever lost his temper, he was similar to Y/N in that regard. As Harry's manager, he had formed a close relationship with the green-eyed boy over the past few years, and not once had Harry ever heard Jeff raise his voice. So when Jeff yells, even Harry knows it's time to back off. He stays quiet and instead gives Y/N one last lingering glare before retreating upstairs to the safety of his room. 

Y/N can't help but burst into tears. She hated conflict, and would usually avoid it at all costs, but Harry deserved to be put in his place a bit. Immediately, Sarah is at her side, attempting to console her, but it only makes her cry harder. Y/N feels pathetic, she hated crying in front of people, and Jeff and Mitch's lost stares were not helping the situation. Sarah follows Y/N's eye line, "can you both get out for a bit?" Both boys all but run out of the kitchen. Now that they were alone, Y/N allows herself to really cry, hoping a good sobbing session would clear her thoughts and emotions from the situation. 

——

Harry was sad. He was not going to say he was always sad, because, in actual fact, Harry was happy a lot of the time. He could admit he had a good life, filled with love, happiness and fun, but there were some times when joy felt more like a mirage to him, something unattainable. 

And maybe it just wasn’t for him, maybe true happiness wasn’t in his cards. 

He was someone who quickly became obsessed, found solace and comfort in certain things. Sometimes so much so it became a flaw, something he felt he would die if he lived without, and one of those was Elle. 

It used to be his mum, then music, then Niall, then Mitch, then Elle and then... nothing. Harry hadn’t found something or someone he felt he could rely on entirely since her. It seemed now he only had himself, and in his mind, that was a potentially dangerous thing. His mum was miles away, Mitch found his own solace with Sarah, Elle had left him, and Harry had never felt so alone. 

Isolation made it worse, he couldn’t distract himself with performing anymore, with drinking his body weight in alcohol or finding pretty girls who looked eerily similar to his ex, to spend a few hours with. So often he found himself uncontrollably crying, alone in bed. Harry never felt shame in crying, but there was something particularly mortifying about being loved by millions of people worldwide, yet still sobbing into his pillow because his girlfriend had broken up with him. Not only dumped him but had cheated on, destroyed him and ripped his heart into little shreds. 

And that’s where Harry was now. Lying in bed, his pillowcase wet with tears, eyes stinging and red, his cheeks stained and raw from his constant rubbing at them, and his back aching from the occasional sob pulling at the already taut muscles. 

Harry just needed a hug. He needed someone to tell him it was okay, that things would work out because at this point he honestly didn’t know himself. 

——

The next few days in the house are hell. Not just for Harry and Y/N but for everyone stuck isolating in the space. Y/N and Harry refused to talk to each other, only sharing pointed glares. Harry does all he can to piss her off, without ever having to say a word. While out for his regular morning walk to buy coffee, he purposely 'forgets' Y/N's. When it was his night to cook, he plays the English rap that he knew she hated at full volume, while making prawn pasta. Which really wouldn't have been an issue, if Y/N wasn't bloody allergic to seafood. While he claimed to not know, Y/N saw through him. Just the week before she had refused to eat lunch when Jeff had made tuna sandwiches and had clearly explained why. 

Y/N tried not to let it bother her and instead did everything she could to avoid him. When he'd come home with everyone's regular coffee order but hers, she exclaimed she "preferred homemade!" and brewed her own cup. She put in headphones and shut her door in an attempt to drown out the crap he called music. And when Harry had placed a massive bowl of steaming pasta that she couldn't fucking eat in front of her, Y/N smiled and ordered pizza instead. 

Mitch struggled through the week, staying as quiet as he usually was. If he was honest, he wished he was just quarantining with Sarah. He loved Harry but also knew that he could be a dick when he wanted to be. So despite Harry's constant prodding for him to join in on shit-talking Y/N, Mitch tried to stay out of it. 

Sarah spent the days keeping Y/N company. She felt slightly guilty that she had invited her to spend isolation stuck in a house with what happened to be the only person Sarah had ever met, who hated Y/N. Instead, she listened to her rant when Harry couldn't overhear. She baked cookies with her, and they sang shitty pop music at the top of their lungs whenever Harry decided to blast his music.  

Once again, Jeff surprised everyone. While they were used to his calming and genuine presence by now, no one expected him to play peacekeeper. Harry supposes he should've seen it coming, being his manager for four years, meant the guy had to have some kind of problem-solving skills. So Harry promptly nicknames Jeff, 'Switzerland' and despite his denials, Harry knew Jeff secretly loved it. 

Jeff spends the next few days quietly talking to all the other house members like some sort of pseudo spy. And finally, after three long days of combat, by some miracle, convinces both Harry and Y/N to talk out their issues and apologise. 

At first, both Y/N and Jeff agreed he should be in the room to mediate, but upon the request of Harry, he was waiting just outside the door, waiting for any sign of a fight, to run in and play referee. 

So that led them here, with Harry sitting on one end of the couch, oozing with confidence while actually being a mess on the inside, and Y/N on the other, nervously picking at the hem of her jumper. 

Harry is the first to speak, "look Y/N I'm sorry. You were right, Elle's a bit of a sore spot for me, and I overreacted." She nods in acknowledgement before speaking herself, "yeh, I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have pried like I did.” He nods along, still somewhat convinced he wasn’t entirely in the wrong. 

It’s the next question that makes Harry’s blood turn cold, “I just… I just need to ask why? What did I do for you to not like me? It started before last night. Before I mentioned… her.” Y/N scoots around the heartbreaker’s name.  

She watches as Harry bites his lip in what looked like deliberation before he replies, a deep sigh sitting on his pretty lips. “I don’t know. I know that’s a shitty thing to say, I treated you like shit for weeks, but it’s true. I just don’t know.” 

Y/N’s taken aback. Weeks of torture, hatred and tears and he couldn’t even tell her why he’d acted the way he did. “Harry, you can’t be serious. There must be something! You... you were so mean.” 

Y/N watches as tears well in his eyes, and she briefly wonders if she shouldn’t have pushed the topic. “I don’t know, I don’t fuckin’ know.” He lashes out, once again, his anger getting the best of him. 

Y/N throws her hands up in defeat, “I don’t know what you want from me, Harry. I’m trying here I really am, but you won’t give me anything. What do you want me to do?” 

“I know you are,” he all but chokes out. Harry didn’t know how to express himself, a million thoughts were running rampant through his mind, and he felt like if he were to try and speak, he’d have to spend hours detangling each thought from the other like shitty Christmas lights. He takes another deep sigh. He had to try, he knew it wasn’t fair to Y/N. And well, Harry wasn’t exactly happy either, maybe it would help to tell someone how he felt. 

“It’s just when I look at you... I see her. I see her in the clothes you wear and the way you laugh. You look the same for fucks sake, give me the same doe-eyed look and.. she never apologised. Never said a word, I found her in bed with my… with my best mate, and she just fucking left,” he cries out. “And when I first saw you, and you gave me that fuckin’ look I just... I just got so angry.” Harry’s face briefly scrunches in frustration, but it’s quickly overcome with grief. 

He begins to cry harder, his shoulders racking with sobs and Y/N doesn’t know what to do. She sits helplessly, watching the man she very much despised breaking down in front of her, crying previously unshed tears with his head in his hands. 

What was she supposed to do? She wasn’t going to say it was alright because it wasn’t. But god, he looks so pitiful, and Y/N knows what it’s like to have a shitty ex. She knows how painful it is to see them again after they’ve just broken your heart, knows how hard it can be to feel completely, totally and 100% betrayed by someone you loved. 

It wasn’t okay, and Y/N doesn’t know if it ever will be, but seeing Harry, the stubborn, prideful man she’d come to know, breaking down in front of her, well Y/N can hardly stand it. 

So she does the first thing she can think of, the one thing that made her feel better after her own breakup. 

She hugs him. 

She feels him tense up in her arms and for a brief second, Y/N wonders if he’s going to push her away, but instead, he relaxes. Even goes so far as to push into her slightly, allowing himself to rest his head against her chest, with her arms around him like a tantrum-throwing toddler. 

Harry can’t remember the last time he was hugged. Maybe by his mum before the pandemic, probably in a similar situation, crying over Elle in a pathetic attempt to find comfort in anything that wasn’t her arms. 

Harry had returned to LA to record three songs, “it would be two to three weeks max,” Jeff had assured him. But now he was fucking stuck here, in the same place he lived with her, heartbroken in a house with people he loved, but unfortunately would never talk about Elle with. 

Harry missed London. He missed him mum, his sister, the pubs and the tube. He missed hanging out with more mates than he could count, his little writing studio and his cat. Harry missed his own bedroom, his candles that he forgot to pack and his own record collection. Harry missed walking to the little cafe a few streets from his house, he missed the snow. 

But Harry especially missed Elle. 

He missed her cuddles and her sweet little kisses. He missed the way her nose scrunched when he tried to kiss her in public. He missed her laugh and her awful cooking. He missed her book recommendations and her screaming to pop music on the radio. Fuck, he even missed her screaming at him. 

And what a way to make his longing worse, being stuck with the dead ringer of his ex-girlfriend, only to find she was nothing like Elle, which Harry almost hated more. 

Y/N wouldn’t yell at him when he got angry but rather cry, her tears always sending a sharp pain to his chest. And Y/N didn’t pretend nothing worried her or upset her, she was open and honest. When Harry hurt her, he knew, not because she ignored him or called him a prat. No, he knew because she told him, even if it was with tears streaming down her face and a few “assholes” mixed in there. Y/N didn’t call Harry’s hobbies stupid, she liked them too, even had her own silly ones herself. She enjoyed baking, doing puzzles, and reading out loud to herself. She liked Disney movies and hated horror and loved cider but not beer. 

And Harry found himself not hating her at all, but rather himself. Because somehow, within his heartbreak, he had managed to become attracted to someone who looked and acted exactly like his ex on the surface but was someone completely different in every other way. He couldn’t treat her like Elle, couldn’t pretend she’d hurt him just as bad, and he knew that.

No, Y/N was a completely new risk and a new potential heartbreak. Harry was terrified, and this new territory that at first felt so familiar, made his chest ache and his tummy flutter, so he avoided it altogether. Pushed her away before anything could even happen at all, for his own good, to protect a heart that couldn’t take being broken again.

The two of them sat there for what felt like hours. Until Harry’s sobs slowed themselves down, and he was only shivering and sniffling quietly. Y/N continued to hold him, it seemed like he just really needed to be held.

Elle had clearly broken his heart, and Y/N knew that a part of healing was letting this anger and emotion run rampant. So she stayed put, allowing him to just sit in the sadness, and allow himself to feel a little bit of hope that everything would work out eventually. 

“It’s okay Harry. It’s going to be okay.” 

——

Y/N wasn’t sure this was a good idea. How could it be? Not even a few days ago, she and Harry couldn’t stand being in the same room as each other, and now they were alone in a car, on their way to the grocery store. It all felt too domestic.

But this was Harry, and she definitely shouldn’t be worried about the state of her car, or how to subtly remove the McDonalds wrapping on the floor in front of his feet. Just as Harry, after being handed the aux cord, probably shouldn’t have spent half the journey wondering if she liked the song that was playing and looking out of the corner of his eye to judge whether he should skip it or not. 

But here they were, walking on eggshells around each other. Hoping they both wouldn’t do something to accidentally piss off the other. 

If you’d told Harry a week ago that he would be on the way to the grocery store with Y/N by his side, he probably would’ve laughed and faked a gag. But Harry was actually the one who had suggested the trip, much to the surprise of not only Y/N but the rest of the housemates. 

They hadn’t exactly addressed his breakdown, but it seemed they’d both come to a mutual understanding to try and put the past behind them. Harry considered himself lucky, he knew he had caused and furthered the rift in their friendship, and it was because of this he knew he had to put more effort into building the trust between them back up. 

So, when Y/N was recounting the ingredients for the dinner she was planning on making, Harry had asked if she’d just come to save him remembering the long list. Y/N’s first thought was she could probably just write it down for him before she realised he was actually trying to be nice. And that was more than she could say for the last month of her living with him, so she agreed.

The grocery store was busy, filled with impatient mothers and fun-drunk teens, and Y/N was having trouble pushing the cart through the throngs of people. Harry was walking ahead of her, too preoccupied with his list (and she supposes himself) to notice her struggle and she’s never been one to ask for help. So instead tries her best to avoid the ankles of other shoppers and attempts to keep up with the cracking pace Harry had set. 

It’s only when he turns around to find her ten feet behind him, does Harry acknowledge her, his eyebrows pinched in annoyance, “what’s taking you so bloody long?” To say Y/N was taken aback would be an understatement. After everything, he’d manage to stay friendly for what, half a day?

“Excuse me? Doing so well at being friendly Harry, might want to pull it back, before I get the wrong impression.” 

Maybe it was Y/N’s sarcastic words that pulled Harry back, or perhaps he realised himself, but he really hadn't meant to be rude. At first, it was more of a joke, but he guessed that he’d become so accustomed to being snarky with Y/N, it’d come out a lot more maliciously than he’d intended.

“Fuck, what? No- I didn’t mean it like that. I was tryin’ to joke, but it came out wron- Fuck! I’m sorry, okay?” Somewhere in the middle of Harry’s rambling, Y/N starts to giggle. While she had taken it the wrong way, she was mature enough to understand she’d simply interpreted it wrong. 

“Harry relax, look like you're about to pass out. Sorry I took it the wrong way,” she shrugs, “now, where are the pickles? I’ve been craving them for weeks.” Harry’s slightly taken aback, he’d never met someone who could put an extremely valid argument behind them with such ease. 

Harry wouldn’t have blamed Y/N if she’d gotten angry with him, stomped her feet, made a fuss and yelled in his face, after all, he had spoken to her like a prick. But just like that, she had defused the argument and made Harry feel better instantly, even though he was in the wrong. Nonetheless, he follows her through the isles, making sure to help her steer the trolley when the crowd was busiest. 

Harry had actually started to enjoy himself on this trip, he wasn’t going to lie. Y/N had an easy going way about her that he hadn’t really bothered to notice before. It made it easy to chat about nonsensical things, including Harry’s first dog and his preferred brand of nail polish while they peruse the aisles. He was doing all he could to make sure the rest of the trip didn’t contain any silly arguments like the one that had almost sparked just ten minutes before, and he believes he was doing a good job. 

After stopping by the fruit aisle for some cherries (they were in season, and there was no way Y/N was missing out on the tiny period they were in season for, even if they were ridiculously overpriced,) they reach the aisle that contains pickles. Finally, Y/N had been craving them for weeks, and nothing could stop her now, not even the fact that they were on the top shelf. Y/N’s brows pinch in annoyance, who put pickles that high up anyway? 

She halfheartedly sticks her hand in the air, her fingers barely brushing against the bottom of the jar before looking behind her, watching Harry laughing at her struggle. “Are you going to help me or just keep that smug smile on your face?” 

This makes Harry’s smirk upturn even more, turning into a full boyish grin, dimples and all. “Say please sweetheart, and I might just consider it.” 

Y/N rolls her eyes, “please,” and although it is sarcastic and hardly genuine Harry takes it, walking over and reaching for the last jar of pickles. 

What happens next could be blamed on many different factors; the humidity in the supermarket being higher than the average store, it could be blamed on Harry’s sweaty fingers or maybe even the worker who decided to put them on the top shelf in the first place. 

Whatever the fault, Harry grabs the container and almost delivers it safely to the cart, until it slips from his grip and instead ends in a puddle of shattered glass, stray pickles and dripping juice. And of fucking course it’s the last jar, and of fucking course it’s Harry who drops it, right in front of the girl who’s been craving them for so long. 

Harry is almost scared to look up at Y/N’s face, knowing he was more than likely going to be met with a pouting, red, furious mix. She really had been talking about the fucking pickles for weeks, and after both Jeff and Sarah had forgotten to get them in the last two shopping trips, he can imagine her desperation.

It’s as if time was working in slow motion, Harry sees the residue pickle juice dripping from the handle of the shopping trolley, can feel his sock getting progressively wetter as the liquid seeps into his canvas sneaker. And Harry immediately starts to apologise, “fuck I’m so sorr-“ but is interrupted by Y/N manically laughing. Well, he had expected a lot of different reactions, but he hadn’t expected… laughter?

“How did that even happen,” she gets out through her laughter, “you’re an idiot!” Harry can’t help but join in. He was covered in pickle juice, and in hindsight, the situation was pretty funny. “Oi, ‘s not my fault the jar was more slippery than the average.” This only makes Y/N cackle harder, holding her stomach as though it was hurting. 

“Hold on, I’ll get something to clean it up.” As Harry watches Y/N walk away, probably to find a worker, he can’t help but think again how different Y/N was from Elle. Harry distinctly remembers shopping with her one Christmas and accidentally dropping the last box of red and white candy canes (what can he say, he can be a right clutz.) She had been shaking with fury, voice dripping with poison as she asked Harry why he was “such a fucking idiot?” He guesses she was stressed because of the time of the year, but Harry had always hated her vicious temper, which Y/N apparently lacked. 

Harry had only really seen Y/N angry or upset until now, but he could safely assume that was of his own doing. When they were getting along, she seemed to make him feel better without even trying. She could laugh despite herself, and poke fun at Harry without feeling like she was actually reprimanding him for something, and Harry, well he hadn’t really experienced that before.

Harry sees Y/N returning, with what looks to be a less than impressed worker following behind her. That is until she sees Harry standing there in all his six-foot glory, covered in pickle juice. 

She seemed to be around 20, with blonde hair braided into two plaits that sat around her neck. She had bright green eyes, and if she was a little older, Harry probably would have said she was cute. And by the looks of it, she would’ve revelled in such treatment, when she approaches Harry with a, “I’m so sorry, Mr Styles!” Harry waves off the apology, he had been the one to drop the pickles anyway. “No worries love, ‘m sorry bout’ the mess.” 

It’s like her eyes brighten two shades at the pet name as she begins to sweep up the broken glass, blushing as she does, “oh don’t even worry! Can see you made a mess of yourself as well.” Y/N can’t help but laugh, was she actually trying to flirt with a pickle stained Harry? He catches Y/N laughing behind the worker and grins, “sure did. I’m a bit of a clutz sometimes.” 

Now, Harry knew that his personality was very likeable, he was easy to talk to, and he wasn’t exactly bad to look at, so he was somewhat used to casual flirting. Who was he to pull up someone trying to shoot their shot? Usually, he preferred to go along with it, stay polite and at the end of the interaction, cut the conversation before anything serious came of it. And the girl (Hannah, according to her name tag) standing in front of him, cleaning his mess, was no exception. 

“Can see that,” she winks. Actually, fucking winks and Harry can’t help but feel slightly smug, his presumption had clearly been correct. He doesn’t see the harm in playing along, “oh can you? Thought customer service was all about being nice to the customer,” he teases lightly. Hannah giggles flirtatiously and if Harry thought she was blushing before, his effect on her is multiplied. “I’m nice, I promise!” 

Y/N almost gags, she hated PDA at the best of times, but to see them both drooling over each other made her feel sick to her stomach. Harry’s smooth reply does nothing to quell her nausea, “mhm, I bet.” Y/N would literally rather walk home than be subjected to this torture any longer. “Okay! Thanks again for being so understanding, c’mon Harry, we better get going.” 

Harry thanks the server again, giving her a small wave and a cheeky grin as he follows Y/N to the counter to check out their items. “Really, Harry? She looked about 15 years younger than you.” Harry scoffs, “fifteen years?! You think she was twelve, do you? How old do you think I am?” 

Y/N doesn’t hesitate to respond, “old enough to know better than to flirt with someone so young.” 

He couldn’t believe she was pulling this. Harry was a flirty person naturally! He never meant anything by it, and very well knew when it was appropriate and when it definitely wasn’t. He didn’t see how a little friendly conversation could hurt in this situation. “Oh please, she was at least twenty, and I was hardly flirtin’” As the worker is scanning their items, Y/N is packing them into the reusable shopping bags. “Still gross.” 

Was Y/N jealous? For a second, Harry felt the frustration swim through his veins like poison, but the knowledge of Y/N potentially acting out of envy acts as an antidote. “Don’t tell me you’re jealous lovey.” It was Y/N’s turn to scoff. If she’s honest, she’s not sure why the sight of Harry flirting with the server annoyed her so much. She was young, but Harry was right, she was very clearly of age and also stunning. 

Maybe it was the fact she hadn’t acknowledged Y/N with more than an eye roll but readily grovelled at Harry’s feet. It could’ve been leftover frustration from the pickles she would have to hold out from for another week. Or maybe it was that she didn’t like him calling someone else ‘love.’ Perhaps she was just frustrated that it had taken her months for Harry to be civil with her, but had taken ‘Hannah’ all but five minutes. Whatever the reason, she didn’t like the pit in her stomach or the tingling in the tips of her fingers. “Not a chance, Harry.” 

Harry just smiled in response, while Y/N felt waves of negative emotions rolling through her, he felt butterflies erupting from the pit of his tummy, a small fluttering reaching all the way to his heart. Harry was ready to admit, Y/N’s jealousy made him happy. He was a narcissist; that he knew, and a pretty girl getting frustrated that his attention wasn’t purely focused on her, made his vain little heart soar. 

This little shopping expedition had given both of them huge revelations. Harry realised, the thought of Y/N being jealous over him made him extremely happy, and maybe even gave him some new spank bank material? Y/N realised that while she and Harry could be civil, it didn’t mean they didn’t know the exact places to poke and prod at each other to cause a reaction. 

——

It was Y/N's turn to pick a card, and although she'd initially been hesitant to play this game, she could admit she was having fun. When Harry had first pulled out 'Truth, Dare or Drink,' her first instinct was to ridicule him and say, "I didn't realise we were still in eighth grade," but she bit her tongue. After the supermarket, she still felt like she was continually filtering everything she said, worried a single word may be the negative turning point for their relationship. 

And well, after a few rounds, Y/N realised the game was much too risky for a bunch of eighth-graders and found some questions too intrusive even for her adult self to answer. However, with the help of at least half a bottle of chardonnay, she found herself managing just fine. Jeff had called it a night a few rounds ago, claiming he was "getting too old for this shit," but it didn't stop the rest of the group from playing.  

"Okay, ask the player to your left what their favourite sex position is. If they can't answer- both of you drink four sips." Immediately, Y/N turns to Sarah, who happens to be sitting on her left and also happens to be bright red. With a quick, "come on babe, all friends here," from Harry, Sarah buries her head in her hands before mumbling, "from behind." The answer causes an eruption of giggles and hollers from the very tipsy group and a sly smirk from Mitch, making Y/N laugh harder. 

"Alright shut up you lot," Sarah grumbles before picking up her own card. "Dare one player to share their best and worst hookup, or both of you finish your drinks. Okay, well the only one mean enough to name and shame would be Harry, so off you go H." This is met with a disgruntled, "oi" from the man in question and a casual "not wrong," from Mitch. While Harry huffs, he seems to have no issue and responds immediately, almost like he had the answer on the tip of his tongue. 

"Best was Elle, obviously. And worst, um," he deliberates for a few seconds before continuing, "was this guy I met in Brazil, he was awful! Didn't even prep my poor arse, just went straight in for the kill. Was scarred for months." He's met with roaring laughter, and at first, he tries to look pissed but ends up giggling along with them. While his poor bum really had taken a beating that night, in hindsight it was a funny sex horror story for a drunken night. "C'mon Mitchy boy, your turn." 

Mitch picks up the card and immediately scoffs, "This one's to all players, take two sips if you have ever been attracted to someone else currently playing this game." Unsurprisingly both Mitch and Sarah drink, sending cheeky winks over their cups to each other. But what shocks every player at the table is both Y/N and Harry lifting their glasses. They make eye contact with each other as they are sipping and Harry raises a questioning eyebrow towards her. 

Y/N quickly looks over to Sarah, to see her sitting with her own bewildered look, glancing between them. She had known Y/N enjoyed Harry's music, but maybe didn't know how much she also fancied him- that is until she had a conversation with him. 

"So you've either had the hots for me, my girlfriend or the chick you hate, nice H," a very inebriated Mitch says with a laugh. If Y/N hadn't already been watching him, she might have missed the flash of guilt that flickers through Harry's eyes. He looks over at her with an apologetic look, "I never said I hated-" 

"It's fine, Harry. Just pick a card, it's your turn." Y/N interrupts him, she wasn’t going to lie and say that it didn’t sting. However, while she knew they'd come to a newfound understanding, Y/N was well aware that it had initially come from Harry's resentment of her. He sighs but picks up a card anyway, pausing some, a slight blush appearing on his cheeks, before reading it aloud. "Uh... give the person to your left a hickey, or finish your drink." At first, Y/N laughs until she realises that the person sitting to his left would be her. 

In an attempt to lighten the situation, Y/N spits out, "go on, start drinking then." Mitch and Sarah start to laugh, "I could've called that one," Sarah chuckles, but Harry looks rather unimpressed. While she actually didn't care if Harry were to give her a hickey, (let's be real he was a dick, but a hot one at that!) she knew he would be thoroughly put out by it. They had become civil, not ‘drunkenly-give-one-another-a-hickey’ level friends.

"I'm not the one with the problem. I doubt he'd wanna kiss on the girl he hates." Y/N had meant it to be a joke, she really had! But the underlying biting tone would be almost impossible to miss. She was definitely playing with fire here, knowing Harry could snap at any moment. She watches as Harry's nostrils flare slightly before he bites back, "no problem here, you're just scared you'd enjoy it too much sweetheart." At that Y/N scoffs, his arrogance never ceased to amaze her, "oh please, don't give yourself so much credit, Harry."  

He laughs, "are you saying you wouldn't?"

"Almost certain of it," she quickly retaliates. Now, Harry knew he was a dick. He knew he could be impatient and rude. Was aware of his short temper and sometimes biting passive-aggressiveness. Had been well informed of his bad habit of sometimes oversharing and even bragging too much. Even knew how annoying his constant discussion of the superiority of salads to veggies could get on the nerves of those around him. 

But the one thing Harry knew for sure, was that he was good at fucking. He loved to see the person he was with, shaking with pleasure below him. Thoroughly enjoyed giving his partner everything he had, to hear them screaming his name with their eyes rolled back in pleasure. Harry liked having sex, and on account of others, Harry was fucking good at it. So Y/N sitting there, doubting he could make her feel all amazing and jittery, probably pissed him off more than it should have. 

"Fucking c' mere then." While Harry had merely said that in the heat of the moment (and possibly to get a rise out of Y/N) he was beyond shocked when she actually got up and stood before him. "I'm here. Now what smartass?" His jaw ticks and he raises an eyebrow, silently questioning Y/N's challenge. Did she really want to get involved in this? Surely she knew Harry would come out victorious. Apparently not, because she crosses her arms and scoffs, "knew you were all talk." 

Now Y/N doesn't want to admit she's intimidated because god this was Harry she was thinking about. However, when he grips her arms, flips her around and pushes her back into the chair he was just occupying, Y/N can't exactly say she's fine and dandy. 

Harry was much taller than her when they were both standing up, but with her sitting down, he towers above her, and she can't help but feel childlike and demure. His shit-eating grin only grows when he sees that, and he slowly bends down until his cologne infiltrates Y/N's nostrils and fills her head with a fog she can't quite get rid of. "What was that, darling?" 

Y/N is willing herself to say anything, literally anything that wouldn't fuel his already raging ego. If she's honest the barely mumbled, "um, nothing," doesn't really cut it, but what was she to do? Before she'd met Harry, Y/N probably would've considered his looks to be something akin to her ‘dream guy.' So, when he places his hands on each armrest beside her, essentially trapping her, it doesn't exactly help to calm her nerves. Harry oozed sex, and if the look in his eye was anything to go off, he knew it. 

As his face becomes level with hers, Y/N can smell the sweet apple cider he had been drinking and can feel the bottom of his unbuttoned shirt brushing against the tops of her thighs. And for the second time that month, Y/N wonders if she should move away from the compromising position she and Harry had found themselves in, but she once again decides against it. Harry places his hand against the side of her neck, hooking his thumb under her jaw. He encourages her to move her head further to the side with some gentle pressure, which she happily obliges to. 

Y/N can't help but inhale sharply when she feels his slightly chilled lips gently brush against her earlobe, before placing a tender kiss behind her ear. "Is this okay?" If Y/N were in a better headspace, she might have tried to play this whole thing off with an indifferent nod. Instead, she feels herself nodding rapidly, and takes a moment to curse herself as she feels Harry's lips curl into a grin at her eagerness. 

Harry allows his lips to run down the side of Y/N's neck so lightly he knew it must be tickling her. Once he reaches her collarbone, he places a quick peck against it before once again trailing his lips up her soft skin, leaving light kisses in his wake. Y/N's breathing stops as she feels Harry's tongue touching her skin as he begins his ascent, leaving a chilling trail that sends shivers through her whole body. 

She feels herself slipping into a hazy state, in which all control was given to Harry, and while her first instinct is to break it, her second is to bask in it. Her decision is hastily rewarded when Harry starts to suction his lips against her. 

Y/N actively silences the whimper that arises from her throat as Harry continues to bruise the skin he kisses, and she briefly wonders if he had heard the beginnings of her mewl as he chuckles, sending a gust of cold hair down her neck. Harry gently bites down on Y/N's throat, which causes a small sting, the aftershocks travelling all the way down to her toes. But his tongue laving over the mark works to quickly soothe the ache. 

While she felt as if she had sat feeling the effect of Harry's mouth for hours, it had only been about ten seconds in reality. But the familiar pull in Y/N's lower stomach screams at her to ignore time, grab his shirt and push her mouth against his. However, the cough heard from behind her, quells these dirtier thoughts almost immediately. And just like that, as quickly as it had come, the pleasuring warmth Harry provided was gone. 

Y/N struggles to flutter her eyes back open, that she hadn't realised had even closed in the first place. 

Well, she wasn't expecting that, and while she assumed Harry would feel the same, his deep smirk tells her something different. He looks at her with a hunger in his eyes, and she briefly wonders if he felt the same pull towards her. Y/N was fighting the urge to drag him to the nearest bedroom and instead clears her throat and looks behind her to assess Mitch and Sarah's reactions. 

Safe to say, they were as shocked as she was, with gaping mouths and wide eyes, everyone sits in silence for what feels like far too long. Y/N was embarrassed. Usually, she hated PDA, yet she'd just let Harry suck on her neck like some kind of B-grade vampire in front of her cousin and her boyfriend. 

Y/N stands back up to move around to her own chair, but with her head down, she misses Harry reaching to brush his knuckles against her own, but only feels the comforting touch. Harry watches as she refuses to meet his eye, and while he enjoyed himself, he hoped he hadn't gone too far with her. But when Sarah grabs her head and pulls it to the side to see the blooming mark on Y/N's skin, Harry can't help but smirk and feel slightly proud. Y/N had said she was okay with him touching her, maybe she was just flustered, and if her bright red cheeks were anything to go by, that's Harry's safest guess. "Jesus H, you really did a number on her." 

Y/N refused to acknowledge the effect Harry had instilled upon her, but she can feel her cheeks radiating a cherry-red heat, and she can only pray no one else notices. "Uh, it's my turn," she manages to choke out, and a quick glance at Harry shows she's not hiding her flustered state as well as she'd hoped. His dimples are on full display, decorated with his complacent grin, and he's sitting back in his chair, arms crossed over one another. 

"Pick the most attractive player, both of you take three sips," you've got to be fucking joking, she was pretty sure everyone knew her answer to that, but she refused to give him the satisfaction. "It's Sarah. Who's next?" Sarah cheers' Y/N's glass and takes her sips as she grabs the next card. 

Y/N can see Harry's disgruntled look and can vaguely hear his murmured, "bullshit," but she only sends him a glare as she takes her three sips. 

——

Harry was drunk. No cut that, he was fucked. It was approximately six ciders ago that he began to feel light and giggly. And then maybe two or so ciders ago he began to have trouble walking in a straight line and was genuinely considering shaving his head. And now, he was here. Planted on the couch watching Y/N and Sarah sing some song he definitely knew but couldn't name, Taylor Swift maybe? 

His head felt heavy, and if he was honest, thoughts were entering his head and then leaving it before he could even acknowledge what they were. He can vaguely recognise Mitch's voice, talking about something that Harry, no matter how hard he tried, could actually listen to. So he sits on the couch and watches Y/N. She looked pretty with her hair down and messy, and Harry wishes he could stop her from dancing and ask if she could just sit next to him instead. But he thinks he's probably just drunk and maybe a bit lonely, so he doesn't. 

He's not sure if he was calling Y/N's name and hadn't realised or if she had noticed how not okay he seemed, but she approaches him anyway. "Harry, are you alright?" She looks worried, and Harry hates that he's made her feel that. He's tempted to use his thumb to mould the lines in her forehead back out like cheap clay, but he's not sure she'd want him to touch her. So he nods lightly, attempting a smile, but she doesn't return it. 

"Sarah, I'm gonna take Harry up to bed, he seems pretty gone." Harry doesn't hear Sarah's response because he's too busy focusing on Y/N's lips and how pretty and puffy they are. He briefly wonders what they'd feel like around the head of his cock, but he's drawn out of those thoughts when he realises she's calling his name. 

"Harry, c'mon, come upstairs to bed with me." Um, had Harry missed something? He doesn't really mind, truthfully he'd quite like to take Y/N upstairs and have his way with her, but, Y/N must see the look on his face because she laughs, "not like that you lecher! God, you really are pissed." 

Harry smiles and takes the hand she's giving him, wrapping his arm around her shoulders for stability. The group had experienced quite a few drunken nights during isolation, but Y/N had never seen Harry this intoxicated before and while she's quite enjoying him acting kind of goofy, she's just praying he doesn't vomit on her during their climb upstairs. 

Y/N does her best to guide Harry to his room, who provides absolutely no help, only giggling to himself as she struggles to hold him up. Finally, she makes it, only realising once she had stepped inside, that she had never actually seen Harry's room before. 

Similarly to Y/N’s, his room has the shell of a guest bedroom, the art on the walls a little too unpersonalised and the furniture stark and white. The bones of the room are fleshed out with Harry’s belongings, clearly in random places that were not permanent, as if he’d placed his records and guitar down the first day he got there, and left them in those exact same places. There are dirty clothes strewn upon the floor, and books sitting next to glasses stacked neatly on the bedside table. Next to them, is a candle that Y/N can’t read the scent of from her position in the doorway, something sweet from the smell permeating through the room, mixing intoxicatingly with Harry’s telltale sandalwood like cologne. 

Harry stands in the middle of the room, clearly having forgotten his purpose as he turns to look back at Y/N with a slightly lost expression. "Want to get into bed Harry?" He nods and stumbles over to his mattress, falling rather than laying in it. As Y/N's about to turn around to go back downstairs, she hears Harry's voice, much quieter than it usually is, "I'm sorry." She's not sure if she heard him correctly. 

"What did you say, Harry?"

"I'm sorry." He whispers. 

"For what?" Y/N knows what he could be sorry for, he did treat her like shit for weeks, but they’d already apologised and somewhat buried the hatchet. "For bein' a dick. You don't deserve it, never did." She walks closer to him, until she stands about a foot from the bed, and can see Harry's eyes full of sorrow and close to tears in the dark. 

"Come on, you're just drunk. If you want to talk about it more in the morning, we can." Y/N knows he'll forget by then, she's not sure he even remembers what he just said. He holds his hand out to her, and she hesitantly takes it, "ya just look so much like her, you know? Act like her too." Harry repeats the same words he’d told you yesterday. 

"Who, Harry?" 

He looks at her with his big green eyes, and she knows he's drunk, and she knows he'll forget this all in the morning, but she can't help but sit down beside him on the bed. 

"Elle." 

Y/N didn’t know what to say to that. She didn’t want Harry to burst into tears again, the topic clearly sensitive, let alone in his intoxicated state. So she stays silent, watches as Harry shuts his eyes, and Y/N nearly thinks he’s fallen asleep, until he reopens them again, "nicer than her though. Prettier too." 

Y/N's not going to lie, hearing Harry talk about her in a way that wasn't entirely negative for once was flattering, but she couldn't help but feel it was more the cider talking. She knew how much he missed Elle, that much was obvious, and she had thought that was what had made him hate her so much. She was worried he would wake up angry that he had told her things he hadn't intended to, or even worse, something he hadn't meant. 

So she leans over him to grab the side of the bedsheet he had torn away, but his freezing hand on her neck causes her to pause. His thumb is lightly brushing over the mark he left on her earlier, and Y/N audibly swallows. He was close enough that he could lean in slightly and press his lips against the same spot once more, but he doesn't, only whispers, "looks so good on you." Y/N feels his warm breath against her bare neck as he speaks, causing that pull to return to her lower stomach once more, "H, I don't think we should do this right now." 

Y/N didn’t know what exactly ‘this’ was, she just knew she didn’t want either of them to be intoxicated when it happened. The Harry Y/N knew, would pull back, laugh and ask if she really thought he'd ever want to do 'this' with her, but this intoxicated and unpredictable Harry presses his lips softly to her neck once, before pulling back and sighing. "I know." 

He studies her face carefully before speaking again. "You've never called me H before, I like it." Y/N sighs, "honestly I didn't think we were on that level. Thought you'd get mad at me," she laughs lightly although what she said was true. 

She had thought about adopting the same nickname everyone else in the house used but was too scared he would make fun of her or ask her why she felt she had the right to call him that. So she played it safe, only calling him Harry, but she guessed the nickname slipped out while he was very much inebriated and very much unlikely to say any word of opposition. 

If Y/N didn't know any better, she'd think Harry looked almost hopeful as he whispered, "so we are now?" but the expression is fleeting. She wants to feed into it but isn't sure if it's more her mind playing tricks on her. Showing her things she desperately wants to be true, only to turn around a reveal it was fake the whole time. So she shrugs, "I don't know Harry." 

He nods slowly but doesn't say anything else. "Try to get some sleep." He nods again, "night." 

"Night H." 

——

Harry doesn't know what happened. Had he been drugged? Used as a voodoo doll? Abducted by aliens? Something had happened, because when he woke up with a pounding head, his first feeling was disappointment. But not disappointment about having to nurse a shocking hangover, no, it was disappointing that Y/N wasn't in bed with him. He could’ve sworn she had come upstairs with him. 

Harry was slowly coming to terms with the fact that he didn't hate her and perhaps, just maybe had developed a small crush towards her. But wishing she was cuddling him after a drunken night? That was too close to something serious, something that Harry was definitely not ready for. Not after Elle. 

Walking down the stairs, he wonders if there's a reason for his sudden desperation? He vaguely remembers giving her a hickey, but that was a part of the game. He remembers Y/N walking into his room and sitting on his bed, but can’t recall what was actually said. 

Stepping into the kitchen, feels the same as usual, maybe with added head pain. Mitch is doing the dishes from the breakfast sitting on the table in front of Y/N and Sarah. Everything seems painfully familiar. Except, looking at Y/N now, with sober goggles and daylight, Harry completely understands why drunk him was so enamoured. She looks beautiful, with an oversized tee-shirt barely covering her smooth legs, her hair in a messy bun atop her head, and the striking hickey against her neck painfully obvious. Seeing Y/N with his mark against her neck makes Harry have to will his stiffy away. She hadn't even tried to hide it.

Harry doesn't know how long he'd been standing in the entrance of the kitchen, staring at Y/N like a creep, but she catches his eye and sends him a shy smile. "Mornin' H, brekkies on the table," Mitch states, as Harry quickly returns the smile Y/N gave him and sits across from her, "looks good, man. Thanks for cooking." 

Harry is slightly shocked when Y/N speaks up from the other side of the table, he had been expecting her to ignore him like she had after he’d given her the mark that was causing a tingle in his lower tummy. "How's your head?" She says softly. 

He gives her a small grin, "it's been better if'm honest." She laughs, "yeh, you were pretty fucked last night." Harry can't tell if she's genuinely just making conversation or if she's trying to figure out if he remembered the events that occurred. "Was I? Not too drunk to remember giving you that," he points at her neck with his syrup covered fork. His words have their desired effect as Y/N turns bright red, "really does look good on you love." 

Harry's not sure what he's doing, he's aware of how flirty he is being. While they were now able to be around each other and have a conversation without biting each other’s heads off, hitting on each other was a whole different ball game. All he knows is that the more he looks at Y/N, the more he wants to get on his knees before her. 

Harry had never flirted so openly with Y/N before. What the fuck was he playing at? Y/N had assumed that Harry became a tad clingy and loving with a few drinks in his system. So as he sits across from her, dead sober, and continues to flirt with her, Y/N is confused. Maybe he was still drunk? Had he taken something she wasn't aware of? Been probed in the middle of the night? She wasn't sure, but she couldn't say she didn't like it. 

She also didn't want to get too comfortable, only for him to turn around and treat her as horribly as he had when she first got here. So she gives him a small smile and continues to eat her breakfast, merely listening to the conversations happening around her. 

——

No matter how hard she tried, Y/N could not get the thought of Harry off her mind. Could still feel the ghost of his lips trailing along her neck, and the way his hand brushed along hers. She couldn’t help but imagine the way his lips would feel pressing softly against her own, his tongue licking into her mouth. She imagines his hands to be soft but still firm as they held her hips, her neck, her own fingers laced in his. His voice replays in her head, and she wonders how his accent would twirl and twist around filthy words, whispered into the shell or her ear. 

 She can't forget how she felt hearing the lilt of his voice when it was flirting with someone else. Can’t get away from the pit in her stomach, the aching head and chest. She had laid awake for so many nights trying to figure out why exactly it had bothered her so much. 

She could only amount it all to a certain type of jealousy, but what was she jealous of? Harry had never shown her any sort of romantic attention before, that is until he was suckling at her neck and calling her sweetheart. But what did it all mean? Did he feel the same pull towards her, or was she just imagining his sudden fondness of her? Did she actually like him, or just the idea of his lips pressed against hers rather than her neck. She needed to talk to someone, and thank goodness for her, Sarah was home. 

Ever since they were little Sarah and Y/N had been ridiculously close. They had experienced each stage of their lives together, from playing at the local playground to trying their first cigarette in the bathroom of Sarah’s family home. Sarah was the big sister that Y/N had never had, always there for advice or a bit of fun. Teaching her about sex and drinking, what it was like to kiss another person or drive a car for the first time. Sarah explained everything with practiced expertise that looking back on, Y/N could see she definitely didn’t have at the time.  

Their family homes were only a road apart, and every day either Y/N or Sarah would make the small trek to each other’s house and spend hours discussing nothing and everything. Sarah was the closest thing Y/N had ever had to a sibling, and after Sarah had left for tour with Harry and the band, Y/N had felt a Sarah sized hole in her heart. Honestly, for Y/N, quarantine felt like a blessing in disguise, she felt like they could make up for the months of lost time and distance between them. 

In search of her cousin, Y/N only comes across Mitch reading in the living room, “hey, do you know where Sarah is?” He glances at Y/N from above his book, owlishly blinking as if he was confused, and maybe he was. Mitch is well known for getting lost in anything he loves, from books and movies and especially in his music. “Um, the shower… I think?” 

Bidding him thanks, Y/N heads towards the downstairs toilet where she could hear the water running. While they all had bathrooms in their rooms, they’d found the downstairs communal shower particularly helpful. It was easy to slip into after they’d just come back from swimming at the beach or a run, without mucking salt water or sweat through the whole house. Y/N knew Sarah had gone out for a jog about an hour ago, so had no doubt she was having a quick wash before dinner. 

If it were anybody else, Y/N would’ve waited until they had finished, but ever since they were thirteen or so, Y/N and Sarah had an odd tradition of having intense conversations while one of them was showering. Y/N still remembers the week Sarah’s parents had decided to split up, she had spent every night sitting on the closed toilet seat crying and ranting while Y/N stood under the hot water, listening and trying her best to comfort her. It was a weird habit of theirs, but for them, the chance to chat with someone without having to look them in the eye was therapeutic, almost like a church confessional. 

Although Y/N was relatively happy, she wasn’t about to enter a religious confessional. When it came to Harry, she had definitely committed at least four of the seven mortal sins. No, it was just Sarah, and Y/N knew that no matter what she admitted, it would be received with love and unconditional support. So she charges through the bathroom door, eager to spill all that was muddling up her mind, “Sarah! We need to talk about Harry, I need your help.” 

Y/N expects Sarah’s tinkling laugh, soothing cooing, maybe even a big sigh and her calming voice asking her what was wrong. Instead, she is met with the deep and drawling laugh of Harry himself. 

Looking back now, Y/N wishes she could say she dealt with her mistake with careful grace and poise, but instead she lets out a bloodcurdling scream, and as she sees the shower curtain drawn to the left she slaps her hands over her eyes. The melodic laugh of Harry’s continues as he clearly notices her current predicament, “can look if you want babe.” 

Y/N whines, “I- um, no. I don’t- I thought you were Sarah. What the fuck is happening.” Y/N can hear the smirk in Harry’s voice as he answers, “yeh Y/N, I got that. Seriously, I’m covered up.” 

And maybe, it would’ve been better for Y/N to stay standing with her hands over her eyes like a petulant child because as she drops them, the sight she’s met with is one to behold and one Y/N’s not sure she can handle. Harry is covered with the shower curtain pulled across his bottom half, but Y/N trails her eyes upwards, sees the small trail of slightly damp hair leading down to the white curtain, and her eyes widen comically, he looks like a wet dream and Y/N’s not sure how to react. 

His curls are stuck to his neck and forehead, matted against the soft wet skin. His naturally tanned chest is on display, dripping with water, and covered in his tattoos. Y/N can’t help but notice the inked swallows along his chest, drawing attention to his collarbones, the skin taught against the bone, and Y/N wants to kiss along it and taste the mix of salt and sweetness of his neck. The butterfly covering his abs ripples as he clears his throat, drawing Y/N’s attention away from his body. 

“So what did you need to talk to Sarah about, hm?” Anything I can help you with?” Y/N can feel the blood rush to her cheeks, fully aware that Harry had caught her ogling at his partially naked body. Her tongue feels heavy in her mouth, and she’s not sure whether it’s from the sight in front of her or the embarrassment of being caught staring at it. 

Y/N stutters, trying to force herself to say something, anything at all that would make this situation less unnerving “um, I-no?” Which comes out more like a question than anything, and Y/N curses herself for her weak resolve. Harry smirks, “Cat got your tongue pet?” Y/N hates how easily he can get her worked up, and hates it even more how obvious it is to him. “Stop teasing me! I can’t, you know, I don’t-... you’re naked okay!” 

Harry’s dimples deepen, and a smirk takes over a little less than half of his face, “don’t pretend you don’t love my teasing, darlin’.” It’s at this point that Y/N realises that she had been in this situation much longer than appropriate, standing flustered and hot from Harry being so close to her while nude. 

“I need to go,” it comes out as more of a whisper, her voice rough with lust. She coughs as if to clear her throat, but from what she’s unsure. The intense desire she feels for a man she despised a month ago, perhaps? “Relax Y/N, no big deal. I think Sarah’s in the shower upstairs though if you’re still looking.”

She nods in response, slowly backing out of the room before turning around and quickly shutting the door behind her. She feels her breath heaving in and out of her lungs. Feels her throat tighten and her head dizzy, and an intense tingling feeling starts at her toes and spreads all the way to her lower tummy. The familiar pull of lust and need brings an ache to her core, and she feels the sticky heat between her legs. 

While Y/N may not know it, Harry is affected by her as much as she is by him. He stands in the shower, a stupid grin across his face, dimples indenting his cheek. Harry could pretend he didn’t see Y/N blatantly ogling him, or her cheeks burn a delicious crimson when she had gotten caught. Could even pretend he didn’t see her subconsciously squeezing her thighs together while she stood in front of him, like she was so desperate for Harry she couldn’t even wait to relieve the tension building inside of her. 

Harry could pretend not to notice, but as he felt a tingle zap down his spine, and the accustomed rush of blood to his lower half, Harry realised he didn't want to. Would rather explore this unnerving territory, and see what it had in store for him. 

——

Harry had reached a new level of boredom. So much so, he had resorted to doing a puzzle.

Harry was notorious for always being busy, was constantly on tour, playing shows and promoting his music. The quietest periods in Harry’s life were the months of writing he’d participate in, where his mind was anything but still. He wasn’t used to doing nothing all day, and while he had tried to write during isolation, the months of doing fuck all made inspiration hard to come by. 

So it led Harry to his current situation, trying to complete a challenging puzzle at the dining table. Sarah and Mitch were napping the late afternoon away, Jeff was playing Xbox games in the living room, and Y/N had gone for a walk, right after she had brought the puzzle out from her room after Harry had asked her to. He had heard her talking to Sarah about how much she loved puzzles a few months ago and had even shown her the one she had brought to quarantine; however, she hadn’t gotten the chance to start it yet. 

Harry had been doing nothing all day, and he was sick of sitting in bed, refreshing his Instagram feed every ten minutes. To be honest, a puzzle wouldn’t have been Harry’s first choice of a relaxing pastime activity, but there was only so much social media and movie marathons Harry could take. 

He was nervous at first to ask Y/N. Over the last few days, it seemed like there was a certain tension between them, as if they were both aware of the lust that had been swirling throughout the bathroom as thick as the steam from Harry’s shower, but didn’t want to admit it. They were testing the waters, sometimes stumbling through amorous conversations, while still attempting to maintain their indifference. 

However, he was slightly remorseful of his decision for a different reason, when he asked Y/N if he could borrow it from her, she had squealed in excitement, telling him her ‘top tips’ for completing a jigsaw for at least ten minutes. He guesses her passion and love for the shitty quarantine past time, overrode her awkward feelings towards their situation. If he was honest, Harry didn’t give a fuck about “making sure to find the corners first!” but he didn’t want to hurt her feelings, so he nodded along and pretended to listen. 

But Harry had really come to regret his decision when he hadn’t found a piece in over an hour. He was frustrated and the stifling temperature Sarah insisted on keeping the house at, wasn’t helping. He had completed a small section at the top right corner, five or six pieces on the left, and a few random bits he had stuck together and somehow happened to get correct. He was slightly embarrassed when Y/N returned from her walk, to find him with his head in his hands, looking more than sorry for himself. Her tinkling laughter doesn’t make him feel any better, either. 

“Having trouble H?” 

He looks up to her standing in the doorway, attempting to plaster his award-winning grin upon his face, “if I’d known it was this hard I never would have asked if I could do it.” She grins back, and walks over to the table, looking down at the pieces with a concentrated focus. “Hm I never said it was going to be easy, thought my tips would help, but I guess not.” 

Harry tries yet another piece that doesn’t fit with the ones surrounding it, and sighs, “if the puzzle master wants to help, that would be lovely,” he lilts. She picks up the segment Harry had just dropped and places into the correct position on the opposite side of the puzzle that Harry had placed it in. “You’re flattering me now.” She hesitates for a tick, “lucky for you, I like it.” 

Harry loved this new dynamic between them, it was light and teasing, something he hadn’t had with her before. He’s not going to lie and say that he didn’t slightly enjoy the biting exchanges they had previously shared, but this flirty air between them was exciting.  

“I’ll keep that in mind pet. Now, what were those tips again?” 

It’s safe to say Harry was impressed with Y/N’s skill, he had never thought puzzles were that difficult until he actually tried to complete one. Y/N however, was fast, seemed to pick up pieces and instantly be able to connect to where they should go, and quickly finished at least ninety percent of the puzzle. Harry fit the odd part in place, which Y/N praised each time, with a small cheer and a “well done!” each time. Finally, the puzzle was almost complete with only one gap in the picture of golden retriever puppies climbing on one another. 

Y/N looks at Harry and hands him the last puzzle piece, “you should put the last bit in.” Harry can’t explain the warm glow that emits from his heart, he doesn’t know why it makes him so happy. She was kind and considerate, and Harry wasn’t used to people always putting him first, usually being doubtful of anyone he hadn’t known for a while, worried about what their true intentions were. “You sure? You did most of it.” She giggles, “nah, we did it together!” Harry takes the bit of cardboard from her and places it in the last empty spot. 

He looks up at Y/N who’s grinning at him stupidly, and he can’t help but smile back. It’s then that Harry starts to really look at Y/N. He notices the dusting of freckles on the top of her nose, her eyes laced with pride and happiness and her lips, the bottom one stuck between her two front teeth, but both looking so soft and sweet. Y/N must catch Harry staring at her lips because she releases the supple flesh from between her bite. 

“Did you have fun?” She whispers. 

Harry tries to reply, but his voice dies in his throat. All he can manage is a small nod, his gaze dropping back to Y/N’s mouth. He lifts his hand to her face, tucking a piece of her hair behind her ear, and she leans into the touch slightly. Unknowingly, they had gotten even closer, and Harry can feel her small puffs of air against his lips, could brush them against hers if he leaned an inch forward. 

“Harry, what do you want to do for dinner?” Mitch yells from the room one over, scaring both Y/N and Harry, who instantly pull away from each other. Harry coughs, “um, I don’t know man.” 

Mitch walks into the room, Sarah in tow, who sees the completed puzzle on the table and runs over, “you finally did it Y/N!” Harry looks over to the girl in question. Her cheeks a cherry red as she looks over to Harry, “uh yeah, Harry and I did it together.” Sarah looks between them, with an impish look on her face mixed with slight disbelief, “oh, that’s… nice.” 

Harry’s attention is drawn away from Y/N when Mitch pipes up again, “I was thinking tacos, so we could make frozen margaritas for game night.” Harry is grateful for the change in topic, knowing Sarah was more than likely to make a comment that Harry was not ready to address. Particularly if Y/N had indeed continued the conversation she had planned to have with Sarah a few days ago when she’d walked in on Harry in the shower. 

“You know I’m always down for a margarita.” 

—— 

Y/N was slightly buzzed. She hated feeling entirely out of control when she drank, and she’d found the perfect point between dead sober and sloppy. She felt a warm feeling in her fingertips and toes, felt slightly light-headed and was just a tad obnoxiously giggly. The group had been playing monopoly, and while Y/N usually hated the game, she was thoroughly enjoying it tonight. 

Sarah had been helping Y/N, so she wasn’t so lost in terms of properties and the differences between houses and hotels. Jeff was as quiet as usual, but somehow had a secret talent for swindling properties and hoard money. Mitch had prioritised his margarita over the game, buying random properties when he felt like it, and fucking up everyone else’s plans of winning. And Harry had made it his mission to beat Y/N. If he was honest, he just loved seeing her pout every time he would buy whatever spaces were left of the colours she was aiming for, or teasing her every time she got a smaller roll than him. 

As Harry bought another green property that Y/N was gunning for, she realised she was nursing an empty glass. “Does anyone want another margarita?” Agreements come from all around the table, so Y/N gets up, grabbing a few empty glasses. As she stands, she feels the blood rush to her head, a slight dizziness tingling through her body, and she giggles as she stumbles towards the kitchen. 

Harry and Mitch had made the previous rounds, Y/N watching the first couple be made. Which meant she probably should remember the ingredients, but if she’s honest, the copious amount of alcohol running through her bloodstream has caused a lapse in her memory. Was she supposed to put one or two cups of ice in? Y/N curses herself and her shitty memory under her breath, realising she will definitely need help. She was clearly too tipsy to think coherently. 

“Oi, how much tequila do I put in? And is it Cointreau or triple sec? And how much ice do I use” She yells into the adjacent room, sighing slightly, hoping someone would come and help her. And she can’t explain her excitement when Harry rounds the corner, maybe because the pressure of making the drinks had been lifted, but more likely because it was simply him. He comes in with a smiling face, his hair slightly messed and his eyes filled with the misty happiness of someone who is perfectly buzzed. 

Y/N couldn’t quite describe the shiver that travels down her spine or the tension she feels in her stomach, all she knows is in the last few days, the intense feeling had begun to grow stronger whenever Harry was around. There was something about him, the way he carried himself, the shy smirks he’d give her, or the gentle touches he’d provide as he walked passed her. 

In every touch, every look and every feeling she got from Harry, Y/N could sense the tension growing stronger. She was amazed the rest of the group hadn’t picked up on it, other than Sarah of course, who was watching from the sidelines, waiting for one of them to crack. 

“What’s the problem bunny?” His eyes soft as he walks over to a defeated Y/N. He watches as her eyes crinkled slightly as she giggles despite herself, “I wanted to make everyone drinks, but I realised I don’t actually know how to.” She sheepishly watches Harry’s face mirror her own with a small grin, “well that just won’t do, will it? Sit on the counter n’ I’ll show you again.” 

She jumps on the kitchen bench, the surface cold against her otherwise alcohol flushed skin. She watches Harry gather the ingredients from around the kitchen, noticing the way his back strains against the white and yellow t-shirt he was wearing, the arch of his back clear and his shoulders strong and broad.

Over the past week or so, Y/N had started to see the funny and charming personality that the rest of the household had previously been privy to. His witty and sweet persona had shone through, and it had done nothing to curb the intense sexual feelings she felt towards him, instead they were only growing, especially with each pet name that his puffy pink lips shaped around. 

Harry begins to place the ingredients in the blender, and Y/N is confident he’s giving her instructions as he does so, but she is just so distracted by his strong fingers adorned by his shiny rings, each one a different shape and size. “Are y’listening?” 

She snaps her eyes back to his face, to see one side of his pretty mouth tugging upwards, suggesting he already knew the answer to his own question. “What are you lookin’ at my hands for?” She feels the warmth rush to the apples of her cheeks, sheepishly replying, “I was just looking at your rings, they’re very pretty.” 

He smiles and jokingly holds his hand up to her face, wiggling his fingers. Y/N chuckles and grabs his pointer finger, pulling it towards her to get a better look. She holds his hand while looking at the silver band wrapped around his digit, eyeing the small red ruby shining brightly in the centre of it, “like this one,” she whispers. He matches her volume, stepping closer in order to hear her, “it was my mums, she gave it to me after my first concert sold out. Her mum gave it to her after she got married.” She runs her finger over it gently, noticing the worn edges, and tries to imagine the many stories it had experienced in the hands of three generations. “It’s beautiful.” 

This felt like a moment for both of them. Obviously, Harry and Y/N had experienced many conversations and experiences before, but none quite like this. Harry feels the warmth from her body radiating into his, can feel the sweat from her hands as she holds his own. He can hear her calm breathing, the slow rise and fall of her chest. Of course, Harry had felt lust before, but he doesn’t think he’s ever wanted to kiss someone as badly as he does right now.

He can’t explain how desperately he wants to inch forward, hold her pretty face in his hands and press his lips against hers. Instead, he makes do, moving closer to her and feeling a bloom of happiness in his chest when she opens her legs for him to stand between with no hesitation. 

She smiles, his hand still nestled into hers, although her focus had moved far beyond his rings. It now laid solely on his face and the way he was looking at her. He rests his free hand on the counter beside her, close enough that she could feel the outside of his thumb brushing against her upper leg. 

Harry bites his tongue, he wants to say ‘so are you,’ but even he knows that’s cheesy. Plus he doesn’t want to overstep any boundaries, he knows Y/N is attracted to him but is also fully aware that doesn’t equal consent. He settles for lightly brushing his thumb against her leg and watches as a shiver racks through her body. With a slight giggle, she grabs his other hand, that’s causing the mildly uncomfortable sensation, with her free one, “that tickles.” 

And Harry’s not a mind reader, but now they’re just holding hands, plain and simple. He doesn’t know if she feels the same heat and tension settling between their lips, but the way she leans in slightly, tilting her head to the left gives him an indication she does. It’s subtle, and if Harry hadn’t been sitting between her legs praying she’d do exactly that, he might not have picked up on it. But he does. 

He leans in too, leaving a slight gap between them. Y/N can feel the tiny puffs of air, leaving Harry’s mouth and drawing into hers and can feel the little tufts of hair tickling her forehead. 

She brushes her lips against his gently, testing the waters. He feels as soft and warm against her as she’d imagined. Y/N retracts slightly, unsure if she had overstepped a boundary. The only reaction she could read was a sharp inhale on his part, and she was worried that it wasn’t a positive sign. 

But she couldn’t have been more wrong. 

He lifts his hand from hers and places it against her neck, his hands big enough to tuck his thumb under her jaw, while still using the rest of his fingers to gently push her back against him.

She tasted so much better than he would’ve thought, sour from the margaritas with an underlying sweetness that he couldn’t put his finger on. Harry can barely hold in his groan when her tongue slides against his lower lip, and he gladly opens up further. He feels her whimper against his thumb before he hears it, the rumbling sending vibrations up his arm, leading him to feel dizzy. 

He feels Y/N rest her hands against his shoulders, sliding them over his neck and resting her forearms behind his head. She leans further into the kiss, somehow opening her legs further, her hips slightly bucking towards his own in a silent plea for friction. Harry doesn’t hesitate to give it to her, pressing himself against her and instantly feeling the effect of his actions. She runs one hand through the curls sitting at the back of his head, tugging gently and pushing her own hips back with as much vigour as he had.

That is until the click of heeled boots is heard echoing against the kitchen tiles. 

The speed at which Harry jumps away from his position between Y/N’s legs is comical, and she almost wishes she could see it from an outsiders perspective. However, not as much as she wishes Harry’s lips were back on her own. 

Y/N looks between the boy she had been kissing with his hair messy and fluffy, and the apparent growing bulge in his pants to the shocked Mitch standing in the entrance of the kitchen. His mouth hangs open comically, and his hands hang loosely by his sides. 

The silence is too much for both Harry and Y/N to bear and looking at Y/N’s face, now bright red, and brimming with embarrassment and stress Harry feels it’s his responsibility to put her slightly at ease. “Mitch… um look-” 

“What the fuck is going on here?” Harry doesn’t even get the chance to finish his sentence before Mitch is interrupting. Harry pipes up again, “it’s nothing!” Y/N can feel her brows turning downwards and the corner of her lips curling in annoyance. She knows Harry is more than likely trying to cover their asses, but Mitch had seen them kissing, and it didn’t make Harry downplaying everything hurt any less. 

Harry sees her face and quickly tries to backtrack, “well I mean not nothing… it’s something!” 

“No shit it’s something! How long have you guys been fucking for?” This time Y/N is the first to speak up, “we are not fucking! We haven’t even-“ she starts, completely flustered, her face somehow becoming even redder, “we just kissed!” Mitch bursts out laughing, as Y/N and Harry stay completely still, both absolutely mortified. 

“Alright mate, fuck off,” Harry grumbles, praying that Mitch would just leave the uncomfortable situation alone. And he does, still laughing as he finds his way back to the living room. Y/N has no doubt that he would go straight to Sarah and Jeff to share what he’d just seen. Harry turns to 

Y/N and while he tries to maintain a serious face for her sake, he can’t help but let out a small chuckle. 

It wasn’t the first time Mitch had walked in on him during a ‘private’ moment, some a lot worse than what he’d just witnessed. But Harry doubts any would be more shocking than the kiss Mitch had just seen. According to him, Y/N and Harry were at most on civil terms. So to see them, in a more than compromising position must have been a considerable shock to the system. 

“Why are you laughing, you ass?” While Y/N’s words are anything but kind, her face gives away her true feelings, a small grin peeking through. She wasn’t too concerned, Sarah already knew the current situation Harry and Y/N had found themselves in, as well as Y/N’s feelings on it. She was probably waiting for this very scenario to occur.

However, she was worried about where Harry and her would go from here. 

She knew he was attracted to her, he wouldn’t have kissed her otherwise. Y/N couldn’t help but think that maybe Harry had done it in the moment, and didn’t feel that same attraction all the time. What if he saw her leaning in and was pitying her? Y/N was terrified that now that Mitch knew, Harry would be too embarrassed to kiss her again. 

But Y/N’s worry is immediately put to hold when Harry grabs her hand again, “you’ve got to admit it’s funny.” He rubs his thumb against her knuckles, hoping to soothe any worry still running through her veins, “are you okay though?” Y/N smiles and squeezes his hand, “yeh, more than.” 

Harry leans in slowly, making sure that even though Y/N had claimed she was fine, that she would still be okay with him kissing her again. She doesn’t move away, instead moves closer and he smiles and presses a soft kiss against her lips. 

“We should probably get back out there,” he mumbles against her plush lips. She nods in response, squeezing his hand once more before jumping off the counter. “I’ll see you in the living room.” 

—— 

Harry didn’t regret kissing Y/N, not by a long shot. What he did regret, however, is two things. The first was agreeing to continue drinking with Mitch after everyone else had gone to sleep, and the second, kissing Y/N while intoxicated. 

He had enjoyed it, he knew that much. But he’s fully aware that he may not have gotten the chance to absorb every detail of the moment. He couldn’t forget the feeling of her lips against his or the way she bucked up against him. However, he is struggling to recall the way her hips felt under his fingertips, or whether or not he could smell the strawberry scented shampoo she used, that previously, he had only caught gusts of. 

Harry needs to know, when they kissed, did her eyebrows furrow the same way they do when she bites into a warm jam donut? Or when he slotted his hips against hers, did her mouth hang open, eyes shut tightly like when Sarah dug into the knots in her back? Did she make the same sounds Harry had already heard? Or were there some privy only to moments of privacy like the one her and Harry shared? He didn’t think to notice if the skin on her cheeks was as soft as it looked, or even if her hands held onto him as firmly as they had grasped onto the chair, the night Harry had first gotten so close to Y/N. 

Harry couldn’t help but feel like he’d somehow hiked up mountainous terrain, dodged every jagged edge Y/N initially threw at him, stumbled through open conversations and insinuations. Felt he had somehow navigated overwhelming selfishness and every mixed feeling, to finally reach the top and for some stupid reason just close his eyes. He was only just able to smell the mountainside air and feel the rocky surface but was utterly blind to the magnificent sight in front of him. 

Harry was also worried that Y/N was too intoxicated to know what she was doing. Harry was big on consent, always had been, and he knew the chances of drunk him doing something Y/N wasn’t okay with was very unlikely, but what if? What if for some reason he couldn’t read the body language of the girl he had spent months admiring? Or what if she had said something of opposition and he hadn’t heard her? 

Harry was stressed, and the pounding headache beating through his head was definitely not helping. 

He knew the only way to make sure what happened last night was okay and enjoyable for both parties, was simply asking Y/N. So after going to the bathroom, splashing some cold water on his face and changing into some sweatpants, Harry makes the trek downstairs. 

He’s met with an interesting site. Mitch is sitting at the kitchen counter, head in his hands and shaking his head. Jeff is doing dishes and looks to be purposely clanging noisy dishes in front of Mitch and then laughing at each flinch racking from the man's body. While Y/N is standing at the stove, cooking something that Harry can’t decipher, in her cloud pyjama pants and a sweatshirt that looks suspiciously like his.

If Harry listens intently enough, he can hear her humming under her breath, a soft tune that lifts all the features of Harry’s handsome face upwards. 

Harry starts by walking over to Mitch, placing his hands on both of his shoulders and squeezing lightly, “c’mon Jeff, lay off the poor guy!” Jeff only laughs in response jokingly swatting at Mitch's head, still buried within his hands. 

At the joking tone within the kitchen, and the fact that Jeff had not immediately berated Harry about his relationship with Y/N, Harry realised Mitch had decided not to tell the rest of the house. Or at least not Jeff. Harry couldn’t have been more thankful for Mitch's undying loyalty and bizarre talent of somehow knowing exactly what Harry wanted or needed. With Y/N’s relaxed manner, he assumed she had come to the same conclusion.  

At the sound of Harry’s voice, Y/N whips around, her face lighting up at the sight of the man she had kissed not 12 hours ago. And the look of delight and need on Y/N’s face works wonders to calm Harry’s nerves, while Y/N’s were skyrocketing. He looked as handsome as ever with sleep still gracing his features, his chestnut hair in a mess on top of his head and eyes slightly puffy and red. In all honesty, Y/N couldn’t get over how it felt to kiss him, and while it had happened, she couldn’t help but feel thirteen again, with a crush on the cute boy in class. 

It was like he knew exactly what she was thinking, his tongue darting out from between his lips, leaving them wet and glistening in the early morning sun. And Y/N just can’t seem to draw her attention away from them, can’t stop the image of him pressed against her replaying over and over in her mind.

Maybe it was the way her eyes drooped slightly, her nostrils flaring ever so subtly, but Y/N gets the feeling that he knows exactly what she’s thinking, his left eye dropping in a wink that leaves Y/N’s tummy fluttering. 

“Mornin’ love.” His voice is hoarse and deep with residue drowsiness, and it does nothing to ease Y/N’s churning stomach. She coughs lightly before replying, “morning H.” Her voice is uncharacteristically quiet and manner docile, as she tries to hide the less than appropriate thoughts running through her head. 

He walks over to the stove, leaving Jeff and Mitch behind in the presence of someone far more interesting. “Smells good, what are you cookin’?” 

Y/N giggles, the sound unnecessarily loud and she cringes at herself before replying, “um, pancakes. Made some more just in case you guys wanted some.” In truth, Y/N knew Mitch didn’t like pancakes, Sarah wasn’t even awake yet, and Jeff had just started a very strict ‘no sugar’ diet, and so those extra pancakes were specifically for Harry after she had heard his sink running upstairs. And well, Harry knew all of that too. He feels a certain spaciousness in his chest one can only attribute to gratitude, and it makes him want to draw her close to him and kiss her cheek in thanks. 

Instead, Harry grabs her small hand in his and squeezes it lightly, before walking over to the fridge to get the maple syrup. “What’d you want on yours, babe? Nutella?” 

Y/N smiles and nods her head, giddy with the tingling feeling travelling through her hands and the prospect of spending more time with Harry. 

—— 

The day had been quiet. Y/N felt as if she had been wading through water all afternoon, sluggish and slow but somehow using more energy than walking on land required. The whole house felt slow-moving, most of its inhabitants spending the day in front of the TV, reading books or napping. And so it made sense for their daily activity to be a movie night. 

The housemates had decided a Disney marathon would be a perfect end to a hungover day, and with Jeff’s only condition being that they watched ‘Bambi’, everyone was in agreeance. 

Y/N had offered to organise the snacks and drinks while everyone else brought down pillows and blankets from upstairs, the room looking cozier then she had seen it in the past few months, and at the centre of it, Harry.

In the same position, he had been in the night they had sat watching cartoons in the early morning together, only to fall asleep and wake up in each other’s arms. It felt like so long ago now, but Y/N knows in reality, not that much time had passed. She found herself feeling thankful for how their relationship had evolved, and the effect a little time had given them. 

It was funny how far they had come. Y/N was so worried Harry had hated her after that, she now wonders if he’d always felt some type of draw towards her, or if he really had hated her as much as he made out. She briefly wonders if he’s thinking the same thing as she is, as he looks at her questioningly, standing in the doorway of the living room, unmoving. 

Y/N smiles lightly, and begins to move towards the couch, realising that there were three blankets in total, one being used by Mitch and Sarah, seemingly very close underneath the cover, one thrown over Jeff and the other sitting across Harry’s legs. She hesitates for a moment, the obvious choice being Harry, but she isn’t sure where their relationship stood, and more importantly, how much the rest of the housemates knew about it. 

Harry quickly provides a solution, “y’can just share my blanket if you want pet.” Y/N’s tummy flips, but the blank stare she gives him as she runs through all the repercussions (good and bad) coming from her doing that, comes off more as confusion. Did he forget that Jeff didn’t know about the kiss? 

Harry sits uncomfortably in the silence. “Or not, whatever you want.” Silence again, and with each passing second, Harry’s facial expression becomes more and more exasperated. 

Mitch is smirking, giving Harry a knowing glance. Sarah is looking at Mitch confused, obviously trying to figure out her boyfriend's cryptic facial expression. Jeff was the most bewildered of all, clearly completely lost. 

“Fine, fuckin’ forget it. Y’can share a blanket with Jeff ‘Mcvomit’ Aezzof. Or maybe you can jack Mitch off under the blanket with Sarah, and all of us will pretend we don’t know. How bout that hm?” Harry knows he’s being slightly unfair to all those just mentioned. 

A month ago, during a game night, Jeff had consumed slightly too much alcohol and subsequently vomited all over the living room carpet and Harry’s rainbow Gucci boots. Safe to say, Harry was not impressed and hadn’t let Jeff forget it either. 

He also knows he’s being unfair to Sarah and Mitch, although, he’s not exactly wrong. Harry had no proof anything was happening under Sarah’s unicorn blanket but they always sat suspiciously close, and some strange movements had definitely been observed during movie nights, particularly when the crew had binged ‘50 Shades of Grey.’

No one had mentioned it to each other, until one night, Y/N had tried to subtly ask Jeff and Harry if they had noticed too. The two boys immediately agreed, admitting they both had their own suspicions. However, this was the first time anyone had brought it up with the couple in question. 

He’s instantly met with outcry from both Sarah and Mitch.

“Oh for fucks sake H.” 

“You’re so crude.” 

“We do not do that.” 

Jeff also looks unamused, mumbling under his breath, although the shouts from the couple drown his reply out, “you have too much to drink one time, and no one lets you forget it.” 

But Y/N, in true Y/N style laughs, and all of a sudden Harry doesn’t feel nearly as bad for his accusations or his teasing of Jeff. “Alright bug, alright. You made your point, scoot over.” 

Y/N settles under the blanket with Harry, tucking her legs underneath her, trying to maintain a healthy distance from him. She hadn’t really been so consciously close to Harry before, only ever being asleep, drunk or… busy. Y/N noticed his signature scent was present, a warm cedarwood cologne that somehow made her nostrils tickle and insides feel slightly warmer, like a shot of whiskey travelling down her throat and spreading through her tummy. 

Maybe it was the man the smell lingered to that made her feel so comfortable and warm, or perhaps it was the blanket and heat radiating from him, but either way, Y/N loved it. She revelled in the comfort and feeling of safety that she didn’t often bask in, and it was Harry of all people who made her feel like this. 

She briefly wonders what this movie night would entail. She was happy they were already close to each other, stealing glances. Each bout of eye contact bringing a tingle through her spine, a shiver wracking through her shoulders when she noticed him glancing at her with his signature smirk and bright look. 

She was aware that they were slowly moving closer to each other with each passing second of the film playing in front of them. When she had initially sat down next to Harry, she could feel the warmth radiating from him, but now she could feel his side pressed against her, and his leg slightly crossed over hers.

If she’s honest, she was much more focused on the handsome individual sitting next to her than on the movie anyway, and consequently, she missed the first twenty minutes. 

What she cannot miss, however, is Harry’s hand coming to rest gently on her thigh. His palm flat against the plush flesh and his nails lightly scratching at the skin lying over it. 

She looks over at him, his strong jaw and cheekbone highlighted by the dim light of the TV screen, his nose slightly pointed at the end and his long eyelashes fluttering against his skin. She watches as his pink lips tug upwards, bringing a smirk and deep dimple to his handsome face. With that smile, she realises he knows she’s looking at him, and probably knows the effect his touch is having on her. The only acknowledgement she receives is a small squeeze of her thigh. 

She can’t help but scoff, his lax attitude directly opposed her own, if she was honest, she often felt on a different plane than him. Y/N tried to deny it, but she could be highly strung. When she was in a situation where she felt comfortable and safe, she was easygoing, a delight to get along with, and was often confused as someone who was undoubtedly more affable than she really was. 

It was one of the first days of year ten at school when Y/N had experienced her first panic attack. She can still remember the way her hands shook like healthy green leaves in a summer storm, could never forget the tightness in her chest, the closing feeling of her throat, and the tears that blinded her. While the panic attacks had become less frequent as she aged, the underlying symptoms that bubbled into the panic she experienced still tended to rear their ugly heads. 

Harry, on the other hand, seemed endlessly relaxed. While Y/N had initially only seen a more uptight and priggish side of him, it was almost like he enjoyed those negative interactions between them, for the sole reason that he could skillfully get under Y/N’s skin, watch her squirm and burn red. Any other time she witnessed Harry he was almost always equanimous and the voice of reason in the odd little group that found themselves quarantining together. 

He was so comfortable, seemingly so unaffected by her, while she felt his presence made her head spin and heart race. 

He leans closer to her, his curls tickling her collarbone, “are you watchin’ the film?” 

She nods, the action sending a wave of her perfume to invade his nose, the smell somehow so addicting and familiar to Harry now. “Yeh, the sad part is coming soon, though.” 

It’s his turn to scoff, “don’t tell me you’re gonna cry on me.” 

Y/N looks up at him, watching as his bunny-like front teeth capture his bottom lip, “and what if I do, hm?” 

Harry’s first thought is to say he’d get her some tissues and embrace her until the tears seeped into her sullen soaked skin, but he knows that’s even too corny for him. Instead, he looks around the room to find everyone too focused on the movie to pay attention to them, and chuckles lightly, kissing the top of her cheekbone. “Might cry with you love. Poor Bambi, never knew what was comin’.” 

While Y/N looks around the room, she quickly relaxes as she realises no one was paying enough attention to notice Harry’s affectionate action. She stifles a laugh, “we’re in this together then, aren’t we?” 

Harry can’t help but feel like she’s not just referring to a sad Disney movie, but instead the situation they had found themselves in. It was confusing, both of them not entirely over their exes, but both seemingly enamoured with the other, something that felt like it had happened overnight. 

He didn’t know if she felt the same way he did. He simultaneously wanted to fuck the shit out of her and cuddle with her on the couch, for god's sake he wanted to comfort her when she was crying over fucking ‘Bambi.’ Harry was confused. 

He hasn’t felt like this about anyone since Elle, and while Y/N hadn’t spoken about her ex with Harry directly, he had overheard a few snippets of conversation between Sarah and herself. 

Before Y/N had come to stay with the group, Sarah had briefly explained the situation, the fact she had put all her effort into a three-year relationship that had ended brutally, with the asshole showing no remorse towards Y/N or her feelings. Harry didn’t want to push her or himself, but he felt a draw towards her that he couldn’t ignore. 

The way she placed her hand gently on top of his, still laying on her thigh, and tangled their fingers together made his heart swell, and it was at that moment he decided he didn’t care about Elle. For the first time since they broke up, Harry didn’t wish the person he was with was his cheery faced ex-girlfriend. He wanted Y/N, and he hoped with all his heart, she wanted him too. 

He looked over at her, her soft skin and red cheeks glowing gently from the light of the TV screen. 

Harry’s feelings are only confirmed, when he hears the gunshot sounding through the room from the movie, hears a small sniffle coming from the girl next to him, and feels her fingers tightening around his own. Harry knows that somehow, through everything, he wanted Y/N to be there next to him at the end of it. 

—— 

Harry sat stewing in his feelings as the night progressed, each member of the house slowly abandoning the marathon, opting for the warmth of their beds instead. 

If he was honest, Harry was exhausted, but he couldn’t bear to leave Y/N alone. She had waited patiently through everyone else’s choices, sung along with Sarah through ‘The Little Mermaid.’ She had gushed with Mitch over the fantastic visuals in ‘Hercules’ and watched carefully for Harry’s reactions to ‘The Beauty and the Beast,’ squeezing his hand when the last petal fell, and Belle professed her love for the Beast. 

Harry didn’t think it was fair that everyone had chosen bed over watching Y/N’s movie, over singing along to ‘Tangled’ with her. Chosen to sleep instead of talking about how good the animation was and squeezing her hand every time Flynn and Rapunzel were close to kissing. 

So Harry does the best he can. He listens to how excited she gets through the fighting scenes, does his best to sing along to songs he’d never heard before, and listens to her speak about how mean she thought Mother Gothel was. Each scene, he watches her eyes widen in comical child-like glee, and her cheeks flush as she laughs at Harry’s impersonation of Flynn Rider. 

It’s as Mother Gothel is falling out of the window that Harry realises Y/N’s grip on his hand has loosened and that she is resting against his shoulder, asleep. He smiles, bringing his knuckle to brush against her cheek, gently waking her up. As she slightly startles, he kisses her nose, “y’ fell asleep bug.” 

She looks surprised, immediately looking to the screen, “oh shoot. Missed my favourite part too.” Harry can’t help but kiss the small pout that graced her lips as she realises this, which she quickly returns. Harry’s lips tingle as she hums in contentment, causing them to pull apart slightly, Harry touching his lips and giggling. 

It was all so domestic and sweet, a kiss leading to nothing in particular, and Harry loved it. Revelled in the idea of kissing Y/N for the pure pleasure of feeling her soft lips against his own, and for nothing else. As Y/N speaks her lips brush against his, still flush against each other, “we should get to bed.” 

As they both make their way upstairs, hand in hand, they dawdle as if to stall their inevitable parting, and as Y/N prepares to speak their goodbye into existence Harry decides he doesn’t want this night to end. Didn’t want to part from the warmth Y/N provided, to lose the feeling of her face pressed against him or the way her hand felt nestled in his. So Harry does the one thing he can think of, something he may come to regret later, 

“Do you want t’ sleep in my bed tonight? You don’ have to if you don’t want to, of course.” 

Harry observes Y/N’s face, and he feels as if he goes through the same range of emotions as she does. First surprise, then apprehension, her head tilting as she thinks through her decision.

Harry thinks maybe she’s misinterpreting his intentions. Don’t get him wrong, he would jump at the chance to have sex with someone as lovely as her, but he really just wasn’t ready to leave her. Wanted to feel her asleep in his arms, hear the small snores he’s sure she would make and brush her hair away from her face when it looked to be tickling her in the middle of the night. 

“No funny business dove, I promise.” 

Finally, a small smirk graces the young girl's face, her top teeth hooking into her lower lip, a little giggle erupting from her mouth while she nods her head. 

Harry’s face subconsciously matches Y/N’s, a replica giggle floating through his mouth and into the air between them, “yeh?” 

She nods once again, “yeh.” Harry feels nothing but relief, a giddy bubbling feeling erupting from his chest, rushing through to his fingertips. He almost believes she feels the exact same burst of emotion when she squeezes his hand as he pulls her into his bedroom. 

It smells the same as the last time she was in his room, except this time, there was a sense of certainty in the air. While Y/N had previously tiptoed into his private space, terrified of crossing a line both physically and metaphorically, she no longer felt that same apprehension.

She entered the room with confident footsteps, aware that they had already entered a territory in which they would struggle to backtrack from. Aware that Harry would more than likely revel in the fact she was in a space he considered sacred, rather than feel uneasy.

She was correct in her assumption. He watches the way she looks perfectly placed in a room he previously hated anyone else entering, her energy already matching his own, but somehow adding an exuberant light into a space that, before her, had represented his despondency. 

Harry begins getting ready for bed, takes off his pants and shirt, left in only boxers. As the cotton of his top slides over his mass of curls, he catches Y/N staring, her mouth slightly parted, pupils dilated and cheeks pink. 

The cocky boy smirks slightly, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion ever so subtly, and a gust of wind passing through his nose as a form of laughter. “Would you prefer me to keep my pants on babe?” 

His cheeky tone works to bring Y/N from her stupor. She stumbles over her words, clearly embarrassed Harry had caught her ogling at his body, again. “Uh.. no, no whatever’s comfortable, I guess. Do you want to keep your pants on? You can, of course, I just…” 

“Teasing Y/N,” his smirk grows into a grin, his dimple flashing her once again, “I’m only teasing.” She visibly relaxes, her shoulders returning to the normal position, and her eyes closed, trying to shake the remaining embarrassment from her system. 

“You are the worst.” 

He only laughs, “and you take yourself too seriously. Now, do you want a shirt to sleep in?” 

While Y/N might usually be offended by him saying something like that, she knows he’s not wrong. In fact, he’s entirely correct. He just knew exactly how to wind her up, what buttons to push to make a flush rise to her cheeks and for her sentences to become stuttered. 

“That would be nice, thank you.” 

Harry only nods, walking over to the dresser in the corner and rummaging through, pulling out a white shirt with the phrase “enjoy health, eat your honey” on the front. He holds it up in front of his body, waiting for Y/N’s approval, which he quickly receives, throwing it over to her in response. 

She looks at him expectantly, waiting for him to give her the courtesy of changing in private. “Do y’ mind, you lecher?” 

He startles, “oh uh sorry.” Y/N watches as a blush spreads from his cheeks to his neck, a clear sign of his humiliation, and he quickly turns around. 

She changes, giving a soft cough when it’s safe for him to turn around. Harry can hardly believe his eyes, he knew she was beautiful, but fucking hell, it was like an angel had been sent to him from heaven. 

Her legs were soft, and Harry wanted nothing more than to trail kisses up her thighs, past the dotting of stretch marks, patches of missed hair, and the hem of the shirt that sat loosely against her. He could see her nipples poking through the fabric, firm, surrounded by supple flesh, that Harry had trouble to stop imagining. Her face was soft, a pleasant but embarrassed smile pulling along half her face, smoothed by the leftover makeup she hadn’t bothered to remove. 

She was fucking beautiful. 

“Stop looking at me like that you…” 

“Lecher. I know. It’s hard not to be when you look like that.” Her cheeks turn an even darker shade of crimson, and her eyebrows draw up in surprise. Harry didn’t know at what, she was his very own wet dream, and he had trouble imagining that she didn’t know that. 

Unsure of what to say she patters towards the bed, lifting the covers and lying beneath them, facing the side he usually slept on, waiting for Harry to lay in her line of sight. He does, his cheek getting gently squished against the silk pillow, his hair billowing out from his head, creating an unruly mess around his face. 

“I don’t…” she sighs, clearly struggling to string together whatever was going through her mind. Harry grabs the hand laying between them, and gives it a gentle squeeze of encouragement. He had been vulnerable in front of her weeks before they had even shown interest in each other, and he wanted to give her the same comfortable space to talk through what she was feeling. 

She lets out another breath and continues, “I like when you call me beautiful. I just don’t know how to respond, I’m not all that used to it.” She snorts despite herself, “isn’t that sad?” While she’s laughing, Harry can see the sadness set behind her eyes, and so he doesn’t laugh. Only squeezes her hand once more and replies as steadily as he can, “it’s not sad. I understand.” 

Her laugh turns more genuine, “oh so even the Greek god gets self-conscious? Thank god for that.” He quickly matches her jesting tone, “for sure, need to be humbled somehow.” He pulls her closer and rests his head in the crook of her neck, listening as the giggles she emits, vibrate through her body, and he can’t help but smile too. 

He was happy and at peace. And for the first time in a long time, both he and Y/N slept through the night, relief and giddiness seeping through their pores. 

——

Harry awoke in a daze. His arm was numb, his head slightly dizzy and body just a tad too hot. Then he sees Y/N asleep in front of him, head resting on his bicep, hair a mess, and her hand resting on his, placed on the pillow in front of her face, and all of a sudden none of it mattered.

She was beautiful. It makes Harry wonder about the last time they’d woken up together. He remembers feeling scared, denying any comfort he had found within her in his arms, and he wonders if his subconscious had always known she was right for him. 

They seemed to fit together so seamlessly, for a couple who couldn’t stand the sight of each other months prior. 

Harry uses his free hand to sweep her hair away from her neck, leaving a space for him to press his lips against. Her skin was warm, slightly tacky from sweat, and he breathed her in, dragging his nose up and down the nape of her neck. 

He hears her begin to wake, repositioning her legs under the covers and her breath beginning to quicken from the lull of sleep. A small hum of contentment leaves her lips as she feels Harry’s mouth kissing on her skin. 

“Mornin’ sunshine,” he whispers, his breath tickling her. She lets out a laugh, her voice heavy with drowsiness, “morning H.” 

The hand that was already resting loosely in his tightens as she loops their fingers together, “how’d you sleep?” 

He squeezes back, “better than I have in months. What ‘bout you?” 

She leans further back into him and exhales, “so good.” Harry hears the relief in her voice, and he feels it too. Was this all it took to stop his own self wallowing? Being pressed against her? It was like she brought her own kind of calmness to his unstable mind, and while he knew she would disagree with him in saying it, she was a source of purity, a way for him to feel carefree. 

He wanted to tell her, but something was stopping him. What if she wasn’t quite as committed to whatever they were as he was? Harry had never been good with his feelings, preferring to write his emotions into his music. Fuck, sometimes even selling his songs to others to avoid the message coming from his own mouth directly. 

But as Y/N turns around, her mouth inches from his, her eyes wide and doe-like, Harry thinks he’d never be able to live with himself if he didn’t tell her how he felt. The words creep up his throat, and he tastes them on his tongue, sweet and rich. “I... I really like you. I’m not sure how you feel about everything. I just know I haven’t felt like this since… well for a while, and that’s kind of scary.” 

Harry closes his eyes, not wanting to see Y/N laugh in his face, as well as hear it. Instead, he feels a soft hand on the side of his face, her thumb gently brushing against his temple, and then softly against his eyelid, coming to rest just below it. “Open your eyes, dummy.” 

He flutters his eyes open, met with Y/N’s gaze, revering and sweet, “I like you too, Harry. Thought I made it pretty obvious.” While Harry loved Y/N calling him ‘H,’ the slow drawl of ‘Harry’ made a shiver roll up his spine.  

He can hardly contain the smile that slips upon his mouth, leaning up slightly and kissing the thumb resting against his skin. Harry feels his heart beat a little harder in his chest, the relief freeing the worry from his lungs, his muscles finally relaxing, no longer having to uphold the weight of stress upon them. 

If he was candid, Harry had never had to fight for anyone’s affection before. As narcissistic as it sounded, people usually gravitated towards him, whether for the right or wrong intentions. But Y/N had stood her ground, immediately unimpressed by his blase and borderline rude attitude and had reverberated his energy right back at him. If Harry was honest, at first he hated that about her, but it had come to represent her honesty. It made the affection she showed him now that much more special. 

Harry felt as if he had earnt her respect and affection, because he deserved it, not the ‘Harry Styles’ found in the tabloids. He had found someone who made him feel like a real person, and a good one at that, someone who deserved the love she so readily gave him. Harry was lucky enough to be lying next to that someone. 

“You’re right… you did drool over me in the shower. Remember that?” And just like that, the moment of vulnerability is over. 

Y/N lightly slaps Harry’s arm and lets out a disgruntled sound, “aish, you really are a lecher.” He laughs and grabs the hand that just hit him, bringing it back up to his face and kisses her palm gently. He looks back at her face, all traces of aggravation wiped from it like cheap lipstick, replaced with contentment instead. She slips her hand back to the side of his neck, her fingertips trailing through the baby hairs laying against his skin and kisses him. Her lips feel slightly chapped but still so warm, and Harry let’s out a relieved exhale. 

He couldn’t explain why, but this kiss felt different from any other he’d experienced with Y/N, hell any other he’d shared with anyone. It had all the intensity and lust of their kiss in the kitchen, added with a sense of emotion that Harry couldn’t quite place. Each press of her mouth, each swipe of her tongue or gentle nibble of his lower lip felt like she was desperately trying to convey every feeling Harry previously doubted existed. 

Harry remembers the night of their first kiss, recalls thinking he had never felt lust like that before, never wanted to kiss someone so badly, but now laying in this bed with Y/N running her hand through his hair and her hips lightly bucking towards him, Harry feels as if he’s surpassed the way he had felt then. 

He feels pure unadulterated need flowing through his veins, can’t even begin to explain how much he wanted Y/N. She turned to fully face him, tangling their feet together and pressing herself further into the kiss. Harry wishes he could give her more, wants to bring every drop of pleasure to her he possibly could, wants to touch and kiss each part of her. It felt as if a spark had lit within his body, beginning at his chest, travelling all the way through to his fingertips, and straight to his groin. 

Harry brings his thigh between her legs, and she takes advantage of it instantly, rubbing against him. He groans as he feels her warmth pressed against his leg, and he can tell she is suppressing her moans of pleasure as she pushes down harder with each gyration of her hips. 

“Tha’s it baby, get what you need.” 

At this, she leans her head back, a mewl erupting from her throat. Harry kisses down her exposed neck, sucking and nipping a love bite into the skin below him. Bringing his hands to her waist lightly, he helps to guide her in grinding against the thick muscle of his leg. 

She grabs one of his hands grappling at her hip and brings it to her chest, where he feels her hard nipple poking through the thin material of her top. He squeezes and pinches gently, hearing her breath hitch directly in his ear, bringing goosebumps to the skin along his arms, her hands grabbing his broad shoulders and neck. 

With his other hand, he slowly slips his thumb past the hem of her sweatpants, running it along the soft skin there. The tickling sensation completely contradicts the harsh action of her hips rubbing against him, causing a shiver to trickle down her spine. Y/N whines into his ear so quietly, Harry wonders if he actually heard her at all. “Please.” 

“What do you need, hm? Tell me.” 

A bated breath parts her lips, “fuck…anything.” She knows it’s not enough, knows Harry wants to hear exactly what she wants from him, but she’s embarrassed. Isn’t quite used to anyone asking her what she wanted and needed, and Harry’s filthy tongue only brings her more unnecessary shame. 

“C’mon Y/N, use your words. I’ll give you whatever you want, just use your word’s for me.” 

Her hands dig into his shoulders, “fingers, please!”

He kisses her temple and murmurs a quick, “good girl,” before dipping his hand completely into the front of her pants, still only teasing along the line of her underwear. 

Y/N’s not sure how much she can take. Every move, every touch is goading and light, clearly trying to provoke her, and as much as she loves it, she needs relief. She grabs at his arm that is currently so close to the place she needs him to be and tries to force it closer to her, harder against her, anything other than what he’s doing now. “Harry… c’mon, please,” she all but cries. 

He chuckles before slipping into her underwear, feeling her wet heat against his fingertips, she was already dripping for him before he’d even touched her. He presses her clit gently while he kisses against her neck, flicking his tongue against the ghost of the hickey he had given her earlier, the pain mixing so deliciously with the pleasure. 

While he had stopped his teasing touches, it didn’t stop him from using his teasing words. 

“This the first time you’ve gotten so wet for me, pet?” She furrows her eyebrows, shaking her head side to side, attempting to hide her face into his neck. He feigns surprise, “no? Filthy girl. Ever touched yourself thinking about me?” She whines, picking up on his teasing, further burrowing her face away from him, trying to hide the very obvious flush that had risen to her cheeks. 

He laughs, nudging her head with his nose, trying to encourage her to show her face again. She mewls once more, the only indication she heard him was the bucking of her hips against his fingers, now inside of her and stroking against her g-spot. 

“Next time, just ask for my help instead,” he murmurs into her ear, biting at her earlobe. She hisses, attempting to press against him even harder, get even closer to him, although it was almost impossible, being pressed flush against each other with his fingers knuckle deep in her cunt. 

He licks against her jaw, feeling the strong bone under the tender flesh, the warmth of his breath blowing against the damp skin of her neck causes her to shiver, “can I taste you?” Y/N doesn’t think she’s ever nodded her head harder, her eyes rolling back into her head, merely thinking about Harry tonguing the sensitive skin between her legs. 

He continues to kiss down her neck, taking extra time to lick against the dip in her collarbones, revelling in the tangy taste of sweat invading his mouth. He sucks her nipples through her shirt, the material clearly wet and spit-soaked once he pulls away, the air surrounding them, making the outline of her areola obvious. 

He presses a few chaste kisses against the swell of her tummy, finally reaching where she needed him most. He slowly pulls her pants down her legs, trailing the hem with pecks against each inch of newly exposed skin. Grabbing each ankle, he pulls the cuffing over her feet, playfully biting at the bone on her ankle, causing a shriek and a giggle to erupt from her and a playful press against his cheek, imitating a kick to his jaw. 

He laughs, batting her foot away from his face. “Oi don’t damage the money-maker!” 

 Y/N bursts out laughing, shaking her head. He was an idiot, but she loved that they can switch between moods so quickly. While she’s still laughing, he’s pushing her legs apart, his hand nearly fitting over the whole surface of her inner thigh. “C’mon love, spread your legs fo’ me.” 

And with that, Y/N stops laughing. 

While continuing to push against her leg, he presses an open mouth kiss against the front of her underwear, already able to taste the heady flavour. Harry can’t help but let out a deep groan, every nerve ending set alight at his mouth finally around her cunt. The tip of Y/N’s tongue tingles with a beg for him to take off her underwear, but Harry acts on his own accord, almost ripping the garment off in his haste. 

If Harry thought the taste of her was mouthwatering through the cotton, the taste of her without it was even better. 

He had meant to tease her, he really had, but he can’t help but lick straight into her weeping hole, moaning at the taste and the smooth feeling of her smeared against his mouth. Spreading her lips with his pointer and ring finger, Harry continues to explore, flicking his tongue against the swollen bud underneath her pubic bone, causing a loud moan to erupt from her mouth. 

“Holy fuck Harry! Feels so good.” 

Harry tucks two of his fingers into her while sucking at her clit, Y/N tugging at his curls harshly in response. 

It feels so good, but Y/N needs more. The feeling of Harry’s fingers is making her skin tingle, and her legs shake, but she wants nothing more than to be stretched out by him. She wants him to give her everything, push into her slowly, stretch her pussy, and finally feel his cum spurting into her. 

So she pulls him up, one hand still intertwined in his hair and the other on his shoulder, scratching and pulling as a hint to bring his mouth to hers. At first, he’s hesitant, grumbling slightly in annoyance, not wanting to part from her, “Harry please, want to kiss you.” 

He gives her one more harsh suck, before sliding back up her body, where Y/N is waiting with her mouth open and her eyes on him. Harry smirks, slipping the two fingers that had just been inside of her against her tongue, feeling more blood rushing between his legs at the feeling of her licking and sucking them as if it were his cock. 

She bites gently, causing a hiss to escape from his mouth as he drags them back out slowly, quickly replacing his fingers with his lips, licking into her mouth.

The tangy taste of her own cum slips past her tastebuds again, and Y/N had never been one to find it hot, but with the salty flavour transferring from Harry’s fingers and tongue, she’d never been more attracted to her own taste. 

Y/N desperately wants to mix his cum with hers, wants to swallow around his cock and feel the intoxicating mixture slide down her throat, “I wanna taste you now.” 

He breathes through his nose heavily and shakes his head, “just want to feel you. ‘M not gonna last long if you suck me off as well.” Y/N whines, but by the longing look Harry gives her pouting lips, it seems he’s not entirely content with his decision either. 

He reaches over her shoulder, digging into the set of drawers next to the bed, giving Y/N the perfect view of his broad chest, littered with tattoos. He looks so tan, his muscles rippling under the smooth skin, and she wants nothing more than to litter it with love bites and scratches. She teasingly licks at his nipple, and he startles, an uncharacteristic giggle leaving his lips as he comes back to lie in front of her, in his hand a condom. 

Suddenly his eyes clear, the lust caused fog fading, “you still okay with this? We don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.” 

Her heart swells, how was it possible that this Adonis-like man was also so sweet? There was nothing she wanted more than to be with Harry in every way and right now, she needed him inside of her, “yes Harry. Do you?” 

He scoffs some, “fuck yes,” he mumbles his next statement as he tucks his head under her jaw, putting the condom on at the same time, “feel like my dicks gonna fall off, I’m that hard.” 

She laughs, wrapping her arms around him, she’d never felt so happy and complete, so overwhelmed. Every positive emotion was combining within her, creating a whirlwind of passion and love, causing each feeling to increase tenfold. 

The head of Harry’s cock slips through her folds, sending a zap of pleasure through her each time it nudges her clit, and he smirks each time she twitches, unconsciously arching up towards him. “Y’ ready?” 

She nods, moving her hips closer, making her own attempt to be filled by him. 

Slowly, Harry enters her, each inch causing the delicious burn from him stretching her walls increasing. Y/N almost chokes on her own moans, can hardly stand how good he feels or the way her muscles spasm attempting to adjust to the intrusion. It feels as if each ridge and curve was being simulated, each nerve ending firing again and making her head feel dizzy. 

Harry almost looks like he’s in pain with his eyes shut so tightly, Y/N can see the wrinkles surrounding them. His mouth is parted with sharp breaths entering and leaving his mouth, his head hung back, and his jawline sharp enough to cut glass. 

“Holy fuck. You feel so fucking good.” 

At the sound of his voice, Y/N clenches, making Harry cry out. “Move H. Fuck me, please.” 

He begins slowly, pulling out before slamming back into her, reaching so far Y/N can feel him in her tummy. 

He intertwines their fingers and holds them against the pillow her head rests on. She squeezes them, and he leans his forehead against hers, the tender action contradicting the harsh snaps of his hips. “How do you feel so good?” He whimpers. She nudges his chin with her nose, pushing his lips closer to hers, each thrust smearing them closer together. 

“You’re so good to me H,” she whispers back as she wraps one of her hands behind his head, his neck in the crook of her elbow. Using leverage from her other hand against the bed, she pushes her hips upwards, creating double the amount of friction between them. The actions causing both of them to cry out, Harry seeming to be pushed impossibly further inside of her, the head of him nudging against her cervix. 

“Fuck that’s it. Look at you, usin’ me to get yourself off.”

While the new angle felt so good, it was quickly tiring. Harry could see Y/N fatiguing after a few minutes, knowing the burn in her legs would be almost unbearable at this point. So he tucks his arms under her outstretched ones, laying his torso against hers and tucking his head into her neck, kissing lightly as he completely slows down his movements. He stops the whine that leaves her throat with a quick, “shh, it’s okay. Just wanna take my time with you, never want this to end.” 

While running her hand through his curls and holding the back of his neck closer to her chest, she replies, “me either baby.” 

They spend some time like this, just enjoying each other’s company and the feel of being so close to one another. Y/N breathes deeply, the smell of sex in the room mixing with Harry’s cologne, making her relax and let out a contented sigh. She had never felt more full and so satisfied, with a hint of an orgasm sparking between her hip bones, the dull ember just waiting to be fully ignited by his movements. 

As if sensing this, he speeds up once again. The burn that stretches through her legs as Harry pulls them over his shoulders, mixes with the pleasure of his thrusts, the head of his cock nudging her g-spot with each deep drive of his hips. 

Y/N cries out, grabbing at his shoulders, her nails unintentionally digging into the skin, creating small red crescents along the tense muscles connecting his neck to his scapula. 

He just feels so good. Every movement of his hips, each inhale and exhale, each brush of their lips and dig of his fingers brings Y/N even closer to her orgasm. She can’t tell if Harry plans each of these things with her pleasure in regard or if it’s the chemistry between them that’s causing every sensation to be felt tenfold. All she knows is that she would happily lie under Harry for the rest of her life if it meant she always felt this weightless. 

Harry’s balls make a sharp ‘thwack’ against her ass each time he thrusts, the sound of her arousal echoing through the room, in such a crude fashion, Y/N almost has time to feel embarrassed. On the other hand, Harry revels in the sound, loves the fact he can see, hear, touch every part of her arousal, surrounding them in their own cocoon of sex and pleasure. 

“C’mon Y/N, please. Cum on my cock.” While Y/N had already been feeling the building pressure of her impending orgasm, Harry’s words only work to bring it faster. “Please Y/N,” she bucks up against him, chasing the feeling of his pubic bone rubbing against her already sensitive clit. “Good girl. Fuck, you’re my good fucking girl, aren’t you?” She whines a response, the noise high pitched and hoarse. Harry sees Y/N’s desperate search for her finish, and brings two fingers down, rubbing at her clit. 

“Fuck, yes, Harry!” Y/N can’t describe how overwhelmed she is with pleasure and feeling. Her face feels flushed and sticky with sweat, her legs are slightly cramped from her constant strain to get closer to Harry and his cock buried in her cunt, and when Harry brings one of his ring adorned hands to wrap comfortably around her neck, suddenly Y/N feels weightless. She feels the burst of pleasure from between her legs, a zip running up her spine, leaving her limbs with a tingle. 

Harry hears her cum before he sees it, the moans dripping from her mouth, her eyes widening before she’s squeezing them tightly together. Harry knew he would play that exact moment on replay for the rest of his fucking life. 

He watches as she brings her hand up to his that’s still spread around her neck, and Harry almost can’t stand it when he feels her squeezing it tighter, begging for Harry to give her more. If he wasn’t so close to cumming, Harry might’ve teased her, loosened his grip on purpose to watch her squirm and whine, whisper in her ear how hot it was to see how desperate she was for Harry to simply touch her, alas he’s too close. Can barely form a coherent thought, let alone tease her. So instead he appeases her, tightens his grips and begins to pound into her harder, searching for his own release.

Finally, it comes, Harry releasing a deep groan, grabbing onto the pillow next to her head, letting out a deep moan. Both of them can feel each rope of cum, as Y/N’s own orgasm works to milk each drop from him. 

His movements slowly come to a stop, leaving him tucked inside of her as his length softens. Wrapping his arms around her once again, he revels in the warmth and comfort she brings, his lips pressing against hers gently. “Fuckin’ hell.” 

Y/N giggles and nods in agreement. How had they spent so long fighting when this was the result of them getting along. She still feels Harry shifting above her, the aftershocks of her orgasm, creating an increase in sensitivity, each movement from the handsome boy above her sending a jolt through her whole body. 

“Fuck you’re still squeezin’ me pet.” She hugs into him tighter as yet another twitch is brought from his prick still buried deep within her, “mhm, still sensitive but you feel so good.” 

He kisses her soft temple, “lucky for you, in about fifteen minutes, we can go again.” Y/N scoffs, her head leaving the crook of his neck to give him a dirty look only to be met with his deep smirk. His famous dimples indented next to his smile, as he giggles and brushes his nose against the swell of her cheek. 

“You really are…” his giggle is joined by her own. 

“A lecher,” they finish together. 

[nxrthmizu]

Crash and Burn

fandom | miraculous ladybug

genre | salt, lila salt

pairing | n/a

w.c | 3.2k

author's note | hey remember that lila salt fic i promised? this isn't it but this is something i made today so yep. please accept this as an apology for yknow. me promising to write and. not doing it.

Enough was enough.

“Marinette, stop accusing Lila! She just wants to make friends!”

“Take the high road.”

“Be a good model student, Marinette.”

Enough. Was. Enough.

Marinette had the connections, the power, the choice to make Lila’s entire world crumble apart. The only thing that stood between the liar’s demise was the tiniest pinch of morality and self-restraint— And no, that self-restraint did not come in the form of Tikki. Even the kwami, who had to be an aggregation of all the good and nice things in the world, was fed up and ready to retaliate.

“What a joke.” Lila cackled, tossing a chunk of her sausage hair over her shoulder flamboyantly. The two girls were in the bathroom, with Lila smirking in front of the sink and Marinette a little distance away from her. “You can make my world crumble? What is this, a threat?”

“A promise.” Marinette corrected. “Stop telling lies. Come clean to every one. No more lying about knowing celebrities left and right, no more making excuses about not being able to take your own notes, no more making up ‘diseases’ just so your life gets a little more convenient. To be frank, I really don’t care what happens to you— But by making these empty promises to introduce my classmates to great ‘celebrities’, you’re ruining their futures. Stop.”

“And what are you going to do if I don’t?” Lila sneered, face twisted into an ugly grin. “You going to cry in front of the class? Try and convince them that I, the one they adore— That I am lying?”

“No.” Marinette’s eyes were clear when she met Lila’s. The clouds of self-doubt that used to hover over the bright, shining star inside her soul had now dissipated, letting the bluenette emit a confident, glowing appearance as she met the liar head on. “I’m just going to keep my promise.”

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

Lila headed off to a modelling shoot after school, pleased at the prospect of spending more time with Adrien. There were a couple tendrils of Marinette’s words hanging behind in her mind— Did the girl mean what she said? Did she actually… Was she actually capable of causing Lila’s downfall? … Surely not. Marinette may have once been the ‘Everyday Ladybug’, but there was no way she was that competent, there was no way the girl was capable of plotting.

The Italian hummed, brushing away thoughts of the annoying bluenette from her mind. She was going on a photoshoot— One that was going cause the rise and burst of her career, the one that was going to make her name a globally-known one. Unfortunately for Lila, her plans were going to be derailed quite soon— In fact, as soon as Gabriel Agreste’s car rolled into the parking lot of the shoot location.

“Explain this, Mlle. Rossi.” Gabriel’s nostrils flared as he pointed to the tabloid article on his tablet. The Italian girl froze, the headlines seared into her eyes, big and black and bold, shooting poison right into the core of her body, paralysing her cell by cell starting from her heart. “What is the meaning of this?”

‘Adrien Agreste Reported To Be Harassed by Fellow Model’— The image under the caption was one that was clearly taken by a hidden photographer. The picture was framed with leafy foliage, which suggested that the camera was tucked up in a tree. Despite the distance, it was quite obvious in the image that Adrien was reeling away, disgusted and uncomfortable as a faceless woman in an orange blazer, back turned to the camera— Invaded his personal space.

The subtitle was the cream on the cupcake.

‘Witnesses State Gabriel Agreste Ignorant of Workplace Harassment’.

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

As if things couldn’t quite go down a worser path, Lila returned home to a fuming mother and an unexpected visitor.

“Lila! You come here right this instant!” The diplomat demanded as soon as the front door opened, her daughter shrinking slightly at the tone and pitch that her mother was using. The last time her mother had been this angry— Well, it was when she got expelled from her last school. “I can’t believe what you’ve done! If it weren’t for your kind classmate, lord knows how long you would’ve continued with this!”

The Italian meekly followed her mother into the living room, eyes widening until they were as large as saucers, mouth agape at the last person she expected to see sitting on the couch.

Marinette smiled kindly, waving at the girl, looking every bit the part of the innocent, pure, kind child that every parent wanted to have. Before Lila could release a torrent of questions about what the hell Marinette Dupain-Cheng was doing in her living room, her mother charged on, beginning to take out her anger on her daughter while a literal angel sat on the sofa, cradling a box of pastries from her family’s bakery.

“Your friend here tells me that you’ve been taking absences from school to go on trips to help humanity!” Mme. Rossi exploded, waving her arms around madly. “She says she’s here to share her notes from the classes you’ve missed! You’ve never left Paris this year! What’s this I hear about flying off to the kingdom of— What was it called again, Marinette dear?”

“Achu.” Provided the bluenette helpfully, the diplomat’s expression instantly softening when she talked to the other teen in the living room.

“Ah, yes. Thank you, dear.” The woman turned back to her daughter, instantly snapping on a mask of anger in a matter of a fraction of a second. “What’s this about flying off to this kingdom of Achu to help homeless orphans with some random prince?”

“Um…” Lila piped up, wriggling as her brain churned at 200 lies per hour, trying to whip up a cover of some sort.

“I’m not done! Your friend here is such a helpful child that she even went as far as to ask her family doctor is there’s a cure for your… Lying disease!” Mme. Rossi practically roared, breathing flames as if she were an intimidating dragon, her daughter flinching away from the heat. “I’ve never heard of anything more ridiculous! And then there’s the fact that you lied to your classmates about having tinnitus?!”

“I actually do have tinnitus!” Lila cut in forcibly, widening her eyes to make herself look more pitiful. “I was just afraid to tell you because I didn’t want you to worry!”

“Bullshit!”

“Um… Sorry to interrupt, Mme. Rossi,” Marinette piped up, the diplomat instantly cooling down as she faced the bluenette, a soft smile tracing the Italian woman’s lips. “But it’s getting rather late and my parents would love me home soon. I also have some tests to revise for tonight, so I think I should get going.”

“Oh, of course, dear.” Mme. Rossi hastily got up to help the bluenette to the door, shooting a warning glare at her daughter— ‘Sit still and don’t you dare go anywhere’, the glare read. “Feel free to come over again anytime you want, dear. I’m not home often, but you are such a sweet child. I’m sure Lila could learn a lot from you.”

“Thanks for having me as well, Mme. Rossi. I really like your home. I left the pastries on the counter— Make sure to warm the curry puffs before you eat them.” Marinette returned the smile, bowing slightly to the older woman as a sign of respect.

“Thank you for the pastries as well, Marinette. I ought to visit your parents’ bakery sometime when I’m free.” Mme. Rossi opened the door kindly for the bluenette, waving the girl off with an affectionate smile. Her parents must be so lucky to have such a sweet little thing like her, Mme. Rossi sighed internally, turning the key so she locked the door. And she seems to be a high-scoring student as well.

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

Lila seethed, having been grounded by her mother. As far as Mme. Rossi was concerned, there was a boarding school not too far away from their current residence, and by the next week, the Italian girl would be transferred over. Lila had never hated Dupain-Cheng as much as she did in that moment.

Still furious, the Italian snapped her laptop open, too angry to bother with the fact she might’ve scratched the surface. Clicking into the web browser, she started to type in the words ‘Ladyblog’— That was, before a news article caught her eye.

‘Jagged Stone Interview Reveals Underage, Obsessed Fan’.

What on Earth…

As soon as Lila clicked into the link, the news footage from the interview immediately begin to play. The date stamp on it showed that it had aired last night— Which meant that she would’ve missed it, since her mother was too busy yelling at her to turn on the television to watch Nadja Chamack’s daily news.

“As soon as I heard this rumour about some underage teenage girl claiming that she had saved my cat on an airport runway, I called Penny and asked her to book a slot for me to clarify this,” Jagged Stone said grimly, dressed in more formal attire as he sat in the comfortable, cushioned chair of the news station, with Nadja nodding equally seriously beside him. “Let me clarify— I’ve never owned a cat. I’m allergic to fur. The only pet I’ve had was Fang, and he’s an al-li-ga-tor. Not a cat. Whatever the girl is claiming, she’s obsessed and making up stories.”

“It’s also kind of bewildering that she saved it on an airport runway,” Nadja continued, shaking her head in disappointment. “That kind of thing only happens in dramas— It’s too dangerous for anyone besides authorised workers to be on airport runways.”

“Right, right!” Jagged agreed instantly. “The whole rumour is just really baffling.”

“M. Jagged, may I ask what kind of effect these rumours have on a celebrities’ career?” Nadja continued, leading the conversation on like a professional.

“Well, rumours that circulate around tend to have really bad effects, and the worse ones can hang around for a long, long time. Tabloids are often spun off from rumours, baseless and with no evidence. Those tabloids will never truly disappear, so they can leave a mark on a celebrity’s reputation as some people will believe anything— Even things they read from un-cited tabloids.”

“That is simply terrible. Have you ever had any cases of rumours created by underaged teens before this?”

“I’ve had quite a number, but none of them really got as big as this one. From what Penny has found from digging around, the teen girl managed to spread the rumour through her school and onto a once-popular blog.” Jagged explained. “Penny has also found out that the same girl has claimed that I’ve written songs for her to thank her for saving my cat! I would never write songs and dedicate them to an underaged girl— Trust me. If I could do such a thing, I’d already have written a dozen in honour of my niece— She’s my favourite designer.”

Nadja smiled at that sentence. “Then—“

The news footage cut off abruptly as Lila slammed her laptop shut, too upset to continue watching.

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

On the other side of Paris, Alya was pacing around her room frantically, wondering why on earth Lila wasn’t picking up on her calls. She’d left at least four dozen messages to the Italian, who was absent from school that day. There had been a couple whispers here and there about why she was missing— Rose had suggested another impromptu trip to Achu.

Lila’s absence wasn’t the weirdest part of the day, however.

That award would go to Marinette, who walked into class with a smile, the slightest sprinkles of delight colouring her bluebell eyes when she spotted Lila’s empty seat.

Growing in frustration, Alya threw herself onto her bed, phone clattering onto the mattress with her. Within the next few minutes, however, her phone suddenly started exploding with notifications. Excited at the prospect of Lila finally texting back, Alya turned on her phone, only to be disappointed by the notifications all clamouring from the class group chat.

Kim had sent a link to the chat— Without hesitation, Alya clicked into it, frowning when she saw Nadja and Jagged appear on the screen. Throughout the interview, the colour on the Ladyblogger’s face only paled by the second until she was as white as a sheet, and if it were halloween at that time, she would’ve won the best costume award for being a ghost.

There must… There must’ve been a mistake.

A notification from Lila’s number made the blogger perk up, instantly clicking into the conversation— But her newfound hope didn’t last very long.

[Lila]

Hi, Alya. This is Lila’s mom. She’s currently grounded right now. Is there anything important you need to tell her?

[Alya]

Oh, nothing much… I just wanted to ask where she was.

[Lila]

She’s at home.

[Alya]

Okay, thanks.

Flopping onto her bed, Alya begin thinking, revising over the past few months like it was an old clip. Lila’s exciting adventures and interactions with celebrities of every kind— Lila going overseas and face timing the entire class— Lila letting her in on the secrets of being Ladybug’s friend…

… Marinette trying to tell them that Lila was lying…

──────── ⋆⋅❉⋅⋆ ────────

The class was awfully silent the next day. Adrien was absent as well— A social worker was looking into his home life as a result of the tabloid that arose. Things for the blonde could either get better or worse from then on, as the matters were still foggy and things hadn’t cleared up yet. The blonde maintained contact with his friends, however, calling and texting them whenever he could.

“Class, settle down.” Mlle. Bustier stepped into the class, looking very tense and uncomfortable. “Today, we will have a guest, so please be on your best behaviours, alright?”

Just as the teacher finished speaking, a tall, regal-looking Italian woman entered the classroom, a cowering principal and a meek-looking Lila in tow. The class brightened slightly at the sight of their friend— But by the way she wasn’t looking into their eyes… Things weren’t going to be good.

“Good morning. I am Mme. Rossi, Lila’s mother.” The woman begin speaking, her firm and no-nonsense tone instantly making every student sit straight, their eyes too afraid to look anywhere else but the Italian diplomat. “It has come to my attention that my daughter has been taking absences from school to do charity work— And I have to clarify that this is a lie. Lila has been doing nothing but holing herself up in her room, lying to me and saying that there are no classes due to akumas.” The Italian diplomat glowered at Damocles. “What’s even more baffling is the fact that neither her homeroom nor the principal bothered to check up with me despite a student having extended periods of absence with no note or email written whatsoever.”

The class was so quiet that they could hear the quiver of Mlle. Bustier’s trembling lip.

“In addition, I’ve been kindly told that Lila has claimed to have a lying disease, which is the most ridiculous thing I’ve heard this week.” It was impossible to miss the way the Italian diplomat was glaring daggers at both Mlle. Bustier and Damocles. “No one bothered to look it up online to see if it’s actual disorder, nor did anyone call me to confirm and ask for a doctor’s note, which is standard procedure.” Chills burst over the room, making every one shiver as the woman hissed out her words.

“Mme. Rossi, we didn’t want to disturb your busy schedule—” Damocles begin, only to be blown backwards from the sheer intensity of Mme. Rossi’s glower.

“M. Damocles, standard procedures exist for a reason. Unless you’d like to tell me about any other things you’ve been letting my daughter get away with?”

“N— No, Mme.”

The Italian diplomat continued on her war path. “My daughter also claimed to have tinnitus, am I correct?”

“Y— Yes, Mme.” Mlle. Bustier answered when it seemed like no one was going to.

“And I heard that the class seating arrangement was shifted to accommodate for that?” The homeroom teacher didn’t dare answer this time, for it seemed like whatever she said would be the incorrect answer. “And apparently, my daughter has also been faking broken wrists and requesting for her classmates to complete her work for her.” Mme. Rossi was practically breathing flames at that point, “And I am incredibly upset at the lack of action from the homeroom teacher.”

No one could breath.

“I have many concerns about the running of this schooling facility, and I expect to discuss this with M. Damocles privately after this. However, there is still something to be done.” Mme. Rossi swept her gaze towards her daughter, who found the floor incredibly interesting at that point of time. “Lila? Something you’d like to say to your classmates?”

“… I’m sorry for lying to you.” Lila mumbled resentfully.

“Louder, Lila. No one can hear you.”

“I’m sorry for lying to you!” Lila swallowed, bursting like an explosion that had finally been triggered, tears in her eyes and fists hatefully curled. “I’m sorry for lying about my diseases and injuries. I’m sorry for making you do my work,” She spat. “Sorry for causing any inconveniences.”

Mme. Rossi raised an eyebrow at her daughter. “Is that all?”

Lila glared at her mother, who was completely unfazed. “Oh, so you want an apology from me? Fine!” She turned to the class, a maniacal glint in her eyes as she sneered at the class, a few gasps puffing from around the room as they caught their first glimpse of the liar that resided in the ‘harmless’ shell of Lila Rossi. “I’m sorry that you are all such idiots that you all fell for everything. I’m sorry that Marinette has such terrible, untrusting classmates that turned their backs on her even though she was still a goody-two shoes till the end, even though she still wanted to help you sorry peasants. I’m sorry that you were all so goddamn gullible! There! Good enough for you?”

Shock was etched into the faces of every human in the classroom— Including Mlle. Bustier, M. Damocles, and Mme. Rossi themselves. Clearly, that part of the apology had not been part of the plan.

“Did I miss something?” Said a sweet voice, followed by the presence of a bluenette, her hair tied in a half-up. A royal blue blazer decorated her lithe form, accompanied by a smart-looking white blouse and a black plaited skirt. Formal had never looked so good on anyone— And if someone didn't know better, they'd think that the bluenette was a young lawyer, emerging victorious from her first successful case.

“Marinette!” Alya exclaimed.

“I’m sorry that you’re such an annoying, little, pest.” Lila bit in the girl’s face, disdain colouring her features as she ignored her mother’s enraged gasp behind her.

The bluenette simply smiled, unaffected by the liar who had crashed and burned like the liar once wished upon her. Marinette Dupain-Cheng stood at her full height, the perfect image of grace and poise as she maintained her composure, quite unlike her nemesis, who thrashed under her mother’s restraining hands.

“And I’m sorry that you didn’t take my promise to heart.”

this can count as adrien redemption depending on you cause ehhh i dont like how passive he is but i havent caught up with the recent episodes, he might have become better. idk.

also where the hell is my miraculous taglist i cant find it so eep. no tagging ppl ig oops

[homeformyheart]

heyyy girllll so I was wondering if you’ll write this

For me?

happy birthday @graysinblack! I’ve been saving this ask for months but this fic for weeks in anticipation of your birthday! I know we’re all kind of over Choices, but hopefully having Ria & Raleigh interact is still enjoyable.

author’s note: never thought i’d write a cross-over fic of any kind really, much less twc x choices, but blame @graysinblack for this idea and the brainrot that sparked it. this takes place sometime after book 2, but before book 3. hope you all enjoy this fic that likely has an audience of 2! copyright: wayhaven characters, except the oc detective, belong to mishka jenkins @seraphinitegames. raleigh carrera belongs to @playchoices. series/pairing: the wayhaven chronicles x choices (platinum) crossover – m!raleigh carrera x f!oc (ria knight); minor mason x f!detective rating/warnings: 14+; swearing based on/prompt: a would you ever write? ask game word count: 1.7k summary: ria gets called to a house party for noise complaints where she meets raleigh carrera.

sunshine past

a knock on her office door made ria pause mid-keystroke.

“hey ria, we’ve been getting repeat noise complaints from the mansion off the cul-de-sac,” tina chirped, hovering by the door. “do you think you can check it out? my shift’s over.”

ria glanced at her watch and grabbed her jacket. “i’ll stop by on my way home.”

“thanks, i’ll see you tomorrow!”

she turned off her computer and double-checked that she had her gun, taser, and badge before heading to the car. the mansion in question sat at the very edge of town, abandoned on its own grassy hill and given a wide berth by the townsfolk, even on halloween.

it didn’t take her long to get to the other side of town but even from the entrance to the cul-de-sac she could tell there was a loud party coming from the mansion. she groaned loudly at the realization that she’d likely be dealing with drunks who would only turn the music back up as soon as she walked away.

still, she trudged up the hill and knocked loudly, waiting a beat before knocking again. she stood her ground even though the door swung open and a tattooed man hovered too close for comfort.

“can i help you? this is a private party, babe,” he said, looking her slowly up and down. “although for you, i’d be more than happy to make an exception.”

ria rolled her eyes and took out her badge. “wayhaven police department. we’ve gotten multiple noise complaints. you need to keep it down.”

“i think it’d be more fun for you to find out how loud i can be. if you know what i mean,” he murmured, giving her a suggestive wink.

ria rolled her eyes and sighed. “look i don’t know who you think you are, but bad pickup lines don’t work on me. now please keep it down, this is your only warning.”

his brow furrowed in confusion. “huh, that line usually works. on women and men.”

“wow, so not only are you drunk and disorderly, you’re a prick too.”

“that’s part of my charm. wait, don’t you know who i am?”

she squinted against the hallway light behind him to take in his appearance as he leaned against the doorframe with his arms crossed. his dark brown hair was styled and she could see the lines of a tattoo on his neck disappearing into his black shirt.

“nope. and you’re lucky i’m about to be off duty and hate paperwork, asshole.”

“or what, you’ll punch me? kick my ass? you don’t seem like the type, sweetheart,” he chuckled, clearly hoping to draw a reaction from her.

if he wasn’t drunk and if the porch light was brighter, he’d probably notice that she absolutely looked like the type that would punch him – with her leather jacket, combat boots, spiked earrings, and clenched fists at the ready.

ria pursed her lips, contemplating for a fraction of a second whether she might get in trouble. fuck it, she thought, there weren’t any witnesses and this guy probably won’t remember anything in the morning.

she sucker punched him in the stomach, causing him to double over in pain before walking away.

“keep the noise down, or else. sunshine.”

she turned on her heel and headed back down the hill. the smile on raleigh’s face widened. it had been a long time since someone was able to keep him on his toes. he was definitely intrigued by… shit, he thought, realizing that he didn’t even know her name.

he ran after her and at the feel of him grabbing her arm, ria whirled around and shifted to a defensive stance, one hand on the taser.

“whoa, sorry,” he said, holding his hand out. “i didn’t catch your name. i’m raleigh.”

“officer ria knight with the wayhaven police department. what do you want?”

raleigh smiled. “i wanted to ask if you’d like to hang out for a while. since you’re off duty now.”

ria raised an eyebrow. “and what makes you think that’s a good idea?”

he shrugged. “this town seemed pretty boring until you showed up. it doesn’t happen often that someone doesn’t recognize me. i like that.”

“you’re a real piece of work,” she said sarcastically.

raleigh just chuckled. “come on, just one drink. or do i need to blast the music and bother more neighbors so you have to come all the way back here again?”

she pursed her lips thoughtfully. it had been a while since she was able to let off steam. and at least if she hung around for a little while, she could make sure they kept the noise down.

she’d also be lying if she said she wasn’t somewhat interested in hooking up with him. he was very easy on the eyes.

why not? it’s not like i have to worry about running into him again, she thought.

“alright, let’s see what’s so great about your party,” she said, following him back to the house.

six months later, sometime after the carnival

raleigh: [hey ria, it’s been a while. i’m passing by town again and wanted to know if you’re up for a drink?]

ria stared at her phone, a small smile unknowingly appearing on her face. she quickly typed a reply, agreeing to meet him at chen’s bar in half an hour.

“what are you smiling at?” tina teased. “is it from your vampire boyfriend?”

“mason and i are just casually hooking up, you know that,” ria said, rolling her eyes. “remember that mansion party i checked out after your shift a few months back? the guy i hooked up with is back in town again and wants to meet up, that’s all.”

tina’s eyes widened. “oh yeah, you never told me the details! was he hot?”

“see for yourself,” ria said, showing tina the text conversation between her and raleigh, which included him sending her photos of himself and a girlfriend a few months ago.

“do you know who this is? raleigh freaking carrera!”

“yeah, that’s his name, what’s the big deal?”

tina quickly sat in ria’s chair and pulled up the web browser on her computer. ria scanned the headlines and photos that appeared in the search results.

“wow. no wonder he had such an attitude.”

“sounds like he was great in bed then,” tina chuckled, squealing when ria punched her arm.

she grabbed her jacket. “i’m going to meet up with him at the bar before heading home. see you tomorrow!”

it was a short walk to the bar, but the last thing she expected was for unit bravo to be standing out front, looking incredibly out of place.

well, except for mason, who was leaning against the wall smoking a cigarette. he fit right in with the rest of the smokers off to the side.

“what are you all doing here?”

nate smiled. “we thought we’d enjoy a night out as a team. and make sure you were safe, of course.”

ria raised an eyebrow at the last statement before shrugging. “alright then. i’m meeting an old friend, so i’ll catch up with you later,” she gave them all a small wave as they headed inside.

only mason lingered, putting out his cigarette against the wall before sauntering over to her. he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear before wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

“so, are we going to your place after?”

ria smirked. “bold of you to assume we’re going anywhere together tonight.”

“still trying to play hard-to-get, sweetheart? you know you want me just as badly,” he chuckled, leaning in to give her a deep kiss.

one that made her forget where she was for a moment, her toes curling inside her boots and fingers wrapping themselves in the hem of his shirt.

“i’ll see you inside,” he murmured before heading in.

he was just about to close the door behind him when raleigh appeared and made his way over to ria.

she turned toward him with a smile, not realizing that mason was still within earshot, even with the chatter of the bar crowd behind him.

“hey there, sweetheart,” raleigh said, his emphasis on the word ‘sweetheart’ was clearly sarcastic, but it still made mason’s shoulders tense.

she punched him playfully in the ribs before wrapping an arm around his waist in a sidehug.

“good to see you, carrera.”

mason watched from the corner booth as raleigh and ria sat at the bar, her back facing him. he couldn’t quite hear what they were saying over all the noise around them, and it made him far more irritated than it should.

ria on the other hand, was oblivious to mason’s gaze on her. it was strange, having casual conversation with someone she hooked up with months ago, but it was easy to fall into light banter with raleigh. it probably helped that neither of them were interested in each other anymore, not with raleigh fully committed to his popstar girlfriend and with mason never being far from her mind.

not that mason needed to know that.

“it was great catching up,” raleigh said, leaning in to give her a hug.

ria was not one for casual hugs, and she was surprised at how comfortable she was with raleigh.

“not to freak you out or anything, but pretty sure there’s someone in the corner staring at you. he actually looks like he wants to murder me,” he murmured in her ear, taking care to challenge mason’s glare with one of his own.

ria chuckled. “don’t worry, i can handle him. take care of yourself, carrera.”

he gave her a mock salute before heading out and ria sauntered over to unit bravo’s booth, grabbing mason’s beer from his hand.

“hey sunshine,” she said, giving him a wink before situating herself next to felix.

“who was that, ria? you definitely looked cozy,” felix teased, eyes darting between her and mason.

she could see mason’s body tense. “just a friend,” she said honestly, looking directly at mason.

he held her gaze for a few seconds before looking away, snatching felix’s beer and chugging it. ria took a sip of her own to hide her smile at how the tension in his body seemed to dissipate.

* * * * * taglist: @kelseaaa; @kat-tia801; @anotherbeingsworld; @crackerdumortain; @gloynporslen; @sosolenoo; @alyssalauren; @fhauvilles; @wayhavenots; @gingerbreton; @takemyopenheart; @pearlsandsteel; @writer-ish;

raleigh tag (non-choices oc fyi): @raleigh-edward; @dulceghernandez; @otherworldlypresents; @brycesgirl​; @robintora;

[jokerfan99]

Jig's Up! (RWBY/RVB) by Necroceph

*RVB Opening Theme*

In the Comms Room

???: KSSHH... GRAB... NOW... KKSSSHHH... AAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!... KSSHH...

There’s nothing but poor quality sound and static.

Sarge: This one’s from a camera inside the cargo bay. Donut: Eew, the video quality is so grainy. I could do video editing better than this! Sarge: Hmm... let me try something. WORK YOU RUSTED HUNK OF JUNK!

Sarge punches the monitor, hoping that’ll fix the problem, but still static.

Lopez: ¿Es así como siempre me reparas? Sarge: Dammit, Simmons! You said you’ve extracted all the data, but all I’m seeing is dusts of monochrome! Simmons: I’m sorry, sir, but data extraction isn’t like downloading apps from a web browser. It’s all jumbled up like a pile of unorganized jigsaw puzzle pieces. Sarge: And how long will it take for you to put everything together? Simmons: Well if you want the whole incident from yesterday, a month. Donut: A month?! Sarge: That’ll take too long. Is there any other quicker way? Simmons: There is. I can try to assemble one small part of the data, which only takes about two hours to finish. But we’ll only get two minutes of video. Best choice would be the last recording from the pilot’s helm cam. Sarge: And the coordinates from where it was shot at? Simmons: Two days. Sarge: Darn! Alright, process the video first and then the coordinates. Now get to it, this old man's curiosity can't feed itself. Simmons: Yessir. With your permission, I would like to get something from my room, it-. Sarge: See her and your balls be meeting with stainless steel spikes.

Sarge points down at his shoes, now retrofitted with spike like cleats.

Simmons: Uhm... nevermind. Sarge: Lopez, keep an eye on Simmons. Make sure he doesn’t go out. Lopez: Sí señor.

Sarge and Donut leaves Simmons and Lopez. With Lopez in the room, there's no way Simmons would have any chance to get out off there until he's done with the data.

Sarge: Sigh, I just can’t understand those two. Last time they were arguing about the mysteries of the universe, and now their focusing themselves on Ruby’s older sister. Donut: I don’t know, I find, Yang to be very attractive too.

Sarge glares Donut at his response.

Donut: I-I mean to say is... how attractive her hair is. Sarge: Speaking of Ruby's sister, where is she right now? Donut: When I went to get Simmon, she was with Ruby and Grif at the armory. Sarge Ruby and... Grif.

In the Garage

Yang: This is, Pvt. Yang Xiao Long, do you copy? Outpost 48-A, respond! Dammit, what's taking them so long.

That's the fifth attempt she tried to contact her team! What are they doing over there, flag hunting?

Ruby: Yang? Yang: GASP!

Yang quickly turned off her radio as, Ruby pokes her shoulder from behind.

Ruby: Who were you calling? Yang: I was contacting Command. I asked them if they can pick me up but no response came through yet. Ruby: Yeah, Vic's probably taking a "leak" again, I'm sure. Yang: Who’s Vic? Ruby: Our Communication Officer from Command, he can be annoying sometimes. Hey, wanna see the Mongoose? Yang: Sure.

Ruby brings Yang to the, Mongoose.

Yang: *whistle* This is your ride? Ruby: Yep. It’s built from old Warthog parts from what I was told. The parts in it were too outdated so I had the honor of tuning it up a bit. Two inch plating armour, two canisters of nitrous oxide and it can go up to 150 kilometers per hour. Yang: Hmm very fast, but not as fast as Bumblebee. Grif: Don’t waste your time with that hunk of junk. What you need is a four inch armor plating of awesomeness!

The girls notice Grif sitting on the driver’s seat on the Warthog. Oh no, another attempt to hook up with Yang. Hey that’s Tucker’s job! Ruby is not please to see this.

Ruby: Oh God, please no. Yang: Whoa! Is that an M12 LRV? It’s been a while since I’ve seen one intact. And look at the bumps and scratches on it. Thing must've been through a lot of battles. Grif: Indeed she did. She’s been shot, blasted and crashed for the Red Army. It's still in one piece sll thanks to my driving skills behind the wheel. I called her the "Puma". Ruby: It's "Warth-" Grif: SHH! Yang: Nice name. Though it looks more like a boar to me. Grif: Tell you what. how about I take you on a free ride around the canyon if you make yourself comfy on this chair next to me and maybe, we can stop by somewhere more... peaceful for the two of us. Take that, Simmons! Yang: As long as it’s quiet too, I don’t mind. Ruby: Yang, no! Grif: Shut up, Rose. This is a talk between adults! Ruby: Hmph, I'm already twenty years old! Grif, So what do you say shall we go now and- what the? NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! Sarge: GOTCHA, YOU SEX DRIVED MANIAC!

Sarge (and just in time), pulls Grif out off the Warthog and starts, not with the same ‘shotgun butt to the head’ technique, but kicking him with the spike shoe to the balls.

WHACK! WHACK! WHACK!

Grif: OW! OW! OW! OHOHOHOOOOOOO, WHY?! Ruby: Phew! About time you showed up, sir. Yang, I’m telling Dad about this! Yang: Aww. Donut: What did Grif try to do? Ruby: He try to take my sister for a drive to a private place, just for the both of them. Donut: That doesn’t sound so-

Ruby gives him a serious look. He can tell what she meant by the way she’s looking at him.

Donut: Oh I see what you mean. Sarge: I DID NOT GIVE YOU PERMISSION TO STICK YOUR ROD IN, PVT. ROSE. Grif: OW!

Ruby gasped and blushed when Sarge, just mentioned her name.

Ruby: EW!! Why would I do it with- Sarge: Not you! Yang: I think he’s refering to me. Ruby: You? Why... oh, right. They don’t practice the Color Naming Rule. Grif: SARGE... OW! STOP, STOP!!! Sarge: Okay.

WHACK!

Grif: OW! I said STOP! Sarge: Sorry about my soldier, He requires a little more ‘discipline’. Yang: Nah, he did nothing wrong. He’s just doing what boys do. Sarge: Except I prefer to make him do what MEN do. Starting with him salvaging every piece of scrap metal from the derelict outside! Grif: Sarge, I doubt there’s anything to salvage there but ashes! Sarge: Spike shoe. Grif: Sigh... yessir. Ruby: Sarge, about the ship outside, shouldn’t we contact Command about it? Sarge: Right, I forgot about that. Hold on let me... Yang: Uh... no need! I’ve already told them about it. Sarge: Really? And what did they say? Yang: They still haven’t replied yet. Sarge: Dammit, Vic! What the hell is he up to?! Conga dancing? Ahh forget it. Rose, the younger Rose, I have an assignment for you. I need you to go outside and keep an eye on the Blues. They may have seen the crash yesterday and they're maybe planning on attacking us soon. Now get going. Ruby: Yessir! Hey can, Yang come too? Sarge: Hmm... she may not be part of the team but she's still a Red nevertheless. Alright. Just make sure she stays away from the men. Yang: No, I shouldn’t disturb you. Ruby: Oh come on, we haven’t seen each other for quite some time! If you go back to High Ground, we might not have time to communicate with each other. Try spending whatever time you have left with me before you get back. Yang: Hmm, good point. Alright, sis, you convinced me. Ruby: Yes! Let's go. Yang: Wait, I’ll need to get my shotgun first. I won’t last long outside if I go unarmed. Ruby: Okay. See you at the roof.

Yang leaves the garage.

Sarge: I'm beginning to like her attitude. Ruby: Who doesn’t like her? She's the best big sister in the galaxy.

Back In the Comm’s Room

Simmons: Let’s see... if I can put it here...

The door behind Simmons opens, probably Sarge coming in to see his progress.

Simmons: Come in, sir. I’ve just finished 46% of the data. I should be done in an hour. Yang: Think again.

He turns around to see Yang standing by the doorway.

Simmons: Oh it’s you!

Simmons’ eyes once again are locked to Yang’s girls. But the image of Sarge’s spike shoes appeared in his mind, making him avert his eyes from them. Just as Yang, was about to enter, Lopez, stops her.

Lopez: No se te permite estar aquí.

Lopez pushes her out off the room as the door closes behind him. What follows was the painful sound of metal being disassembled, one by one. Simmons could hear the whole thing happening. What is going on out there, he thought. Once the sounds cease, Yang enters the room but no Lopez at sight.

Simmons: Where’s Lopez? Yang: I gave him a quick break. He won’t bother us for a while. Simmons: Look you shouldn’t be here! This room is for authorized personal only, even if you’re a Red too. Yang: Aww don’t tell me, Sarge ordered you not to let a girl like me around? Simmons: I-I didn't say that... but... Yang: Hehe. Don't worry, I won't be here long. Say what’s that?

Yang points to the black box and the computer it’s connected to. She bends down to have a closer look at them, not realizing that her girls are so close to Simmons’ face. His entire blood is now flowing down between his thighs.

Simmons: Sweet beautiful heavens! Yang: Well, Simmons? Simmons: Oh of course! Ah... it's the black box we recovered from the ship you were in. I’m currently working on extracting the data from it, so it would take about an hour to get everything. Yang: Didn’t I told you guys what happened up there? Simmons: You did, but Sarge wanted to see the whole picture through the pilot’s eyes. Yang: Pilot’s eyes? Simmons: The helmet's camera. It’s also connected to the box. Yang: You sure you want to see it? ‘Cause the first thing you’ll see is him jumping out of the ship. Simmons: Still it's considered important information. Yang: Whatever you say. Einstein. Hey can I burrow the radio? Simmons: Why? Yang: I wanted to update my status to my team from High Ground but I seem to have trouble trying to reach them. I thought about using your high powered radio would help. Simmons: Want me to help you with it? Yang: No!... I mean, I can manage. Simmons: Whatever you say. Help yourself. Jesus Almighty, thank you for bringing her here!

As Simmons goes back to his work, Yang attempts to make another call to her team. She whispers, hoping that Simmons doesn’t overhear her.

Yang: This is Pvt. Yang Xiao Long. Sir, if you can hear me, please I need your help! Pick me up from a place called Blood Gulch and whatever you do, don’t call Command! Now I can’t explain why, just get me out of here!

No response

Yang: Dammit! If you’re getting this, I’m sending you my coordinates. I might not last a day or two here. Yang, out!

Yang sends her coordinates before turning off the radio. But before she can leave, she’ll need to get rid of that black box. There's too much evidence for the Reds here to know. The problem is it’s indestructable, but the data inside could be messed up if it’s connection to a computer is fried.

Yang: Welp, I’m done with the radio. Better go before you’re Sargeant and Lopez finds me here. Bye! Simmons: Wait don’t go!

Sorry, Simmons. But she's gone.

Simmons: Sigh, I wish she stayed longer.

Simmons is dissapointed that she left. He wished she could stayed longer but if she did, Sarge would give him the spike shoe. Best not to tell him that she was here just now. He continued back to work when all the sudden...

DRIP

Simmons: What the... water?

A drop of water landed on his left hand.

SPPPPSSSSSHHH!

Simmons: -AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!

Sprays of water starts pouring down on him. The sprinkler system has been triggered!

On the Red Base

It's already past five minutes and Yang hasn't come.

Ruby: What’s taking her so long? Is it really that hard to find one single weapon in the base? Yang: I’m here!

Yang finally arrives with her custom made shotgun.

Ruby: There you are! And I see you brought Ember Celica with you. What took you so long? Yang: Sorry, had to grease the old thing first. So this is Blood Gulch?

Yang looks around Blood Gulch. She is surprise to see the place entirely void of life, save some sparse grass and bushes.

Yang: Damn, looks more like a dustbowl of sand and dust. Who would want to live in this dump? Ruby: If you say that in front of Sarge’s face, he’ll rupture a blood vessel at you for mocking his ‘beloved’ battlefield. Yang: Heh, would love to see that kind of reaction. Now that we’re alone together, how about we talk to each other, sister to sister. Ruby: I see why not? Yang: So how’s the team here? Did they treat you well? Ruby: They’re okay. Though not much with Grif and Simmons. Donut’s a nice guy but sometime he complain about the base’s interior decorating. Sarge's is such a loud mouth, but I manage to get on his good side. As for Lopez... he's just Lopez. How do you find them? Yang: Studs ready to wreck my... Ruby: EW! Yang: Haha! Still the old innocent Ruby I remember. I wonder what the situation here in the canyon like. High Ground’s pretty chaotic once two teams clashed one another. Ruby: Want me to fill you in on everything? Yang: I don't mind a little info.

Meanwhile...

Simmons: NONONONONO!!!

Simmons watched in horror as every piece of hardware in the room is being fried up by the water from the sprinklers spraying from above. Sarge and Donut happened came just in time to see the chaos.

Sarge: Simmon, how goes the- Hot Sonny Bono, what's going on here?! Simmons: HELP! Sarge: Donut, turn off the sprinkler system! Donut: On it!

Donut rushes to the sprinkler system. It didn't take long for the sprinklers to finally stopped. Simmons rushes to the computer to see if the data’s safe but all he gets is the blue screen of death before it goes dark. Grif (groaning in pain as he holds a bag of ice on his balls) was passing by until he notice what happened in there.

Grif: Huh, as if things ever got better here. Sarge: Put a cork in it, Grif. Simmon's, status report! Simmons: I-I don’t know. I was working on the data, when all the sudden the sprinklers went off by themselves! Sarge: Did any of the equipment catch on fire? Simmons: If any of them did, I would’ve smell smoke. Sarge: Well that ain't important. Is the data from the box still intact? Simmons: I’m not sure! The box might be affected badly when the computer it was connected to fried. I don’t know if it’s still intact or gone. Sarge: Damn, then we're dead on the water. Lopez, help Simmons with... Lopez?

Sarge noticed Lopez is absent in the room.

Sarge: Simmons, where’s Lopez? Simmons: Ya- He went for a break. Sarge: A break? Since when does Lopez take breaks? Simmons: That's what Y-he told me. Sarge: Hmm, must've gone to oil himself. Wait a minute, are you sure you're not hiding something? Simmons: Uhm... no! Why would I, your chief technician, hide anything? Sarge: Nothing, just asking you.

If he tells Sarge that Yang was here, bye bye making children. Wait, Yang. She was with him just now in the room to use the radio. Could it be a coincidence that she's the one that caused it? No it can’t be. A girl like her wouldn’t bring this kind of trouble. Or did she? Donut finally returned.

Donut: Sir, I’ve managed to stop the sprinkler system. Sarge: I already see that. Good work. Donut: Also there’s something else you need to see.

Donut reveals Lopez’s head to Sarge.

Lopez: Hola. Sarge:... Simmons? Simmons: Crap.

On the Red Base

Ruby: And if you can see at the otherside of the canyon, that’s the Blue base. Yang: You mean the base that looks exactly like the one we’re standing on right now? Ruby: That's the one.

Yang moves her binoculars to the left and sees a Scorpion sitting silently.

Yang: *whistle* They’re packing some serious heat over there. Huh? Is that the Blues you mentioned?

She turns to the roof and see three Blues standing there. It doesn’t look like they’re discussing an attack. From the way the white blue one is acting, he’s probably ranting at two of his men, probably for not informing him about the crash last night.

Yang: That is one angry Blue over there. Ruby: Oh it gets better. Try guessing who that is. Yang: Mmm... just a random Blue? Ruby: No. Look closely.

Yang focuses her binoculars at the ranting Blue. He isn't wearing his helmet and his hair is white as snow... Oh my God is that...?

Yang: WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT BITCH DOING HERE?! Ruby: You’re telling me. I can’t believe she enlisted herself in the Blue Army! Yang: GRR! She doesn't deserve to be in any army! Ruby, why didn’t you shoot her when you had the chance? Ruby: I tried. Since she was our member of the team and my ex-partner, she knows every move I make. When I fired, she ducks. When I shoot a branch over her, she makes a step. And when I put a grenade into her pocket, she throws it back at me. Yang: Yeah, she definitely knows you too well. It's a good thing I'm here. I can go there right now and cave in through that rich girl face of hers! Ruby: I would love to see that happen! Yang:... Ruby:... Yang:... So... we're alone now? Ruby: Yes. Yang: And no one else is coming up here? Ruby: No, no one's coming. Why do you ask? Yang: Good. Listen, Ruby. I didn't want to keep this from you yesterday. Ruby: Keep me from what? GASP... Don't tell me! Blake's having another kid? AAAAAAAHHHH, I knew it! Yang: Nonono, that's not what I'm here to talk about! It's about the ship. Ruby: And what about it? Yang: There are some things that I haven't told you the truth about. Look, I didn't want to lie to you, but if I tell you everything with your team around, I'll be in big trouble! Ruby, you know me. I only cause trouble unless I have a good reason. Ruby: Yang, I'm not getting you. What are you trying to say? Yang: I-

TZZT

Sarge: Rose, I need you in the Meeting Room, and bring your sister along with you.

TZZT

Ruby: Best not to let, Sarge wait. Whatever it is you want to talk about, we can discuss this later, okay? Yang: Okay.

The Meeting Room

Ruby and Yang enters the Meeting Room. The whole team are in, already armed themselves.

Ruby: We’re here. What’s- Sarge: THERE SHE IS!

Everyone suddenly starts pointing their guns at Yang. Yikes! They found out!

Yang: Aw crap, they know! Ruby: Heyheyhey! What are you doing?! Sarge: Stand aside, Rose! I’m gonna blow this dirtbag saboteur to kingdom come! Ruby: Saboteur? Sarge: While you were out there, the sprinkler system from the comms rooms suddenly went off and fried the equipment there. Simmon told us that your sister was in there shortly before it happened, which mean it isn't a coincidence at all! Simmons: And it costs a reproductive organ to spill it... OW!

Simmons presses a bag of ice to his groin.

Grif: I feel you man. Simmons: Fuck you! Sarge: Not only that, look what she done to poor, Lopez! Bring him in, Donut.

Donut pushes a wheelbarrow and on it contains what’s left of Lopez’s. A pile of limbs and circuitry, ripped apart with Lopez The Head placed on top of it.

Lopez: Odio mi vida. Donut: You said it Lopez.

Ruby is left horrified to see Lopez like this, did Yang really do this?

Yang: Well fuck. Alright, you guys got me, let me explain. Simmons: Then how do you explain this?!

Simmons, holds up a small tablet in his hand.

Ruby: What's that? Simmons: Concrete evidence of what really happened on that ship! Donut: At first we thought the data was lost. Simmons: Yeah but somehow the short circuit did a better job than I did. Which was supposed to be theoratically impossible. Watch!

Simmons plays the video on the tablet. The first thing that appeared on the screen was the first person view of the pilot’s cockpit being piloted by someone in different color armor. The flashing red flight instruments are going crazy, indicating the ship is in critical condition.

Nebraska: MAYDAY! MAYDAY! This is, Agent Nebraska from Darter dropship, Sanctuary!

The voice of pilot is a male of twenty years of age.

Nebraska: MAYDAY! MAYDAY! Command do you copy, over?

TZZT

Vic: Heyhey, Command here. How's it going, dude, you doing fine? I'm doing fine too! Now what the hell you want? Nebraska: What? NO! Everything's not fine! Listen I can't explain much! I'm loosing control over my ship here and I can't risk landing on rough terrain! Are there any safe places to land on, over? Vic: Whoo sounds like you're in a tight situation. Alright let me read your coordinates and I'll see if there are any soft spots for you to land on. Nebraska:... Vic:... Nebraska: Hello? Vic: Okay I got one for you, there's a wide box canyon with a Red Outpost near ya. Hope ya don't mind staying too close to enemy lines. Nebraska: As long as I don't get blown to smithereens that's fine! Thanks for the help Com- what the?

The pilot turns around when he hears the door behind opened. He hoped it was one of his teammates, but instead he sees the wrathful rage of, Yang Xiao Long, ready to strike her fist through the poor soul’s faceplate.

Nebraska: NononoNONONO! AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!

And then static.

CONNECTION LOST

Ruby couldn’t believe her eyes. Yang caused the crash! She turns at Yang and glares at her. Yang let’s out a nervous laugh as she tugs her undersuits collar.

Ruby: Yang? Yang: That's what I wanted to tell you about. Hehehe. Sarge: She’s possibly Blue agent and deserves the penalty of death! Boys, prepare to fire. Grif: How about we take her captive instead? Simmons: I agree, killing her would be a waste of a perfectly good bo...

Sarge silently glares at both of them.

Grif and Simmons: Yessir! Ruby: Now hold your fire! I know what she did was horrible, but she might have a good reason to cause the crash! Yang: Yeah and I only attack them because Command kidnapped me! Ruby: Yes... wait, WHAT?! Sarge: WHAT?! Grif: WHAT?! Simmons: WHAT?! Donut: WHAT?! Lopez: QUE?! Simmons: Waitwaitwait... Command kidnapped you? Sarge: What do you think? They may have already suspected her as a spy! Yang: No, I’m not a Blue spy! I'm just an innocent Red soldier who was captured by her own will by Command for no apparent reason! Can you hear me out for a sec? Ruby: Please, Sarge, just give Yang a chance to explain. She doesn't mind any punishment but I don’t want to see my sister shot right in front of me! Please!

Ruby give Sarge a teary eyed look, begging him not to hurt Yang. Despite having a heart made of military steel, it was pierced by those big puppy doggy silver eyes.

Sarge: This goes against everything I stand for. Fine, talk. Yang: Right, here goes. The first part of what I told you was true. I really was assigned by Command to escort supplies to the other Red bases. Or that’s what I thought it was. When I got inside the dropship, things start to look suspicious. When I entered the cargo bay, it was empty. No ammo boxes, no medicine, no food. Nothing. That’s when they knock me out and threw me into a cell. Still don't believe me? Look at this bump on the back of my head, do you think I did this to myself?

Yang moves her hair aside, revealing a nasty bump on her head. The Reds gasp by the sight.

Ruby: OOOH! Uncle Qrow won't be happy to see that. Simmons: Yeah she definetly didn't do that to herself. Sarge: Mother of God, that came from a butt of a rifle! Grif: How do you know? Sarge: When you hit somebody in the head many times with a gun, you'll know. Donut: How did you escape then? Yang: I kinda "charmed" a guard and stole his keycard. After I got out, I planned on jumping out from the ship, but not while it's flying eighteen thousand feet in the air. So I went to plan B. Sabotage the ship and crash land on the dirt. Sarge: Why didn't you go with the first one? It would've been a magnificent! Simmons: Hate to ruin your excitement, sir. The ship was flying in high altitude and it would be too cold for even the Mjolnir to handle. Sarge: But that still makes things a lot better. Ruby: Wait, before you blow the ship from the inside, what did you do to your kidnappers? You didn’t kill them, did you? Yang: Ruby, you know me. I wouldn't do anything so cold blooded. I knocked them all out, put ‘em in a large crate and throw them out off cargo just before the ship crashed. Donut: That doesn't sound safe. Yang: Nah I’m sure they’re fine, with a few broken bones at least. Grif: Then why go all the trouble to lying to us and attempting to destroy the evidence? Yang: What do you think? If you had known the truth before, you’ll contact Command and they'll capture me again. Ruby: Wait if that wasn’t Command you were calling just now, who were you attempting to contact with? Yang: My team from High Ground. I tried to called them to get me out of here, but they haven't responded. Simmons: This doesn’t make sense. If you’re not a Blue spy... Yang: Which I’m not. Simmons:... then why would Command go all the trouble to kidnap you? Could it be that you might have done something to anger them? Yang: Nothing serious, really. Well I did punch my Commander in the face. But even if I did, I would've been informed of my actions rather than getting knocked unconscious. And I have seriously no idea what's their reason to kidnap me at all. But I did overhear the guards’ conversation from my cell. Ruby: What did you hear? Yang: They said that I’m a suitable “host” for... “Omega”. Ruby: Omega? Isn't that the last Greek alphabet? Yang:  Or it could be a codename. Grif: W-wait, d-d-id y-you say... Ome... Ome... O-Omega? Yang: Uh... yeah? Ruby: Guys, are you alright?

Ruby and Yang noticed that the Reds have gone quiet when they heard the name 'Omega' from Yang. The silence lasted for a minute until;

The Reds: OH NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

Deviantart: https://www.deviantart.com/necroceph

[bestbranddesign]

10 Guidelines for Good Web Design: How to Learn Web Designing

Know about Web Design Guides

Summary: A website's success or failure is determined by its usability and usefulness, not its graphic design. User-centric architecture has become a common method for efficient and profit-oriented web design because the viewer to the website is the only one who clicks the mouse and therefore decides everything. Overall, if consumers can't access a feature, it's as if it doesn't exist at all.

We won't go into interface execution specifics (like where the search box should go) because it has already been covered in a variety of articles; instead, we'll concentrate on the key concepts, heuristics, and approaches for successful web design — approaches that, when applied correctly, will lead to more nuanced design decisions and make the process of perceiving provided knowledge easier. we have mentioned about HTML, coding, new website, website WordPress menu, website portfolio, desktop, and more.

Please keep in mind that you may be involved in the following usability-related posts that we've previously published:

• Excellent Web Design Principles: Craftsmanship

• 30 Usability Issues to Be Aware Of

• 9 Common Usability Mistakes In Web Design

Principles Of Good Responsive Website Design And Effective Web Design Guidelines

To better apply the concepts, we must first comprehend how people communicate with websites, how they think, and what the fundamental characteristics of their actions are.

What are the thoughts of the user?

Essentially, consumers' web activities are close to those of shoppers in a shop. Visitors take a brief glance at each new page, scroll through some of the text, and then click on the first link that piques their attention or looks slightly like what they're looking for. In reality, they don't even look at a significant portion of the website.

Necessary of web or web design or ux design

The majority of users look for something fascinating (or useful) and clickable, and when they see any promising candidates, they click. If the current page does not meet the user's standards, the user hits the Back button and the search ends. • Users respect consistency and trustworthiness. Users are able to sacrifice content for advertisers and the site's architecture if a website presents them with high-quality content. This explains why poorly built websites with high-quality content attract a large amount of traffic over time. The architecture that supports the content is less important than the content itself. • Users search rather than read. When users examine a web page, they look for fixed points or anchors that will lead them through the material.

• Internet consumers are frustrated and seek quick satisfaction. Easy principle: If a website fails to satisfy customers' needs, the author has struggled to do his job correctly, and the business has lost revenue. Users are more likely to abandon a website to look for alternatives if the cognitive load is heavy and the navigation is difficult. [DWU / JN]

• Users do not make the right decisions. Users aren't searching for the fastest way to get the details they need. They still don't search webpages in a sequential way, going from one part of the site to the next. Users, on the other hand, are happy to settle for the first rational choice. There's a fair chance they'll click a connection that seems to lead to the target as soon as they find it. Optimizing is difficult and time-consuming. Satisficing is a more effective way of doing it. • Users are guided by their instincts. In most instances, consumers muddle along rather than reading the detail given by the designer. The primary cause for this, according to Steve Krug, is that consumers are unconcerned. “Once we discover something that fits, we don't stray from it. We don't care if we understand how things work as long as we can bring them to use. If you want your viewers to believe you're building billboards, then make amazing billboards.”

• Consumers like to be in control. Users want to be able to monitor their browser and believe that data will be viewed consistently on the web. They don't want new windows to show up randomly, because they want to be able to return to the place they were on before using the "Back" icon, so it's best not to open connections in new browser windows.

1. Website or Web design details: Don't Ask Users to Consider

The web page should be obvious and self-explanatory, according to Krug's first rule of usability. When you're building a website, the goal is to eliminate the question marks — the choices that people would make deliberately, weighing pros and cons and contemplating alternatives. The number of question marks increases as the navigation and site design become less understandable, making it more difficult for users to grasp how the system operates and how to navigate from point A to point B. Users will navigate their way to their destination with the aid of a simple layout, mild visual cues, and clearly identifiable connections.

Consider the following situation. “Beyond networks, beyond brands, beyond distribution,” says Beyondis.co.uk. What does this imply? These three statements will be the first items users see on the page after it is loaded, so users prefer to explore websites in the "F"-pattern.

Although the interface is straightforward and intuitive, the user must look for the answer to learn what the page is for. This is what an extra question mark feels like. The designer's responsibility is to keep the amount of question marks as minimal as possible. The graphic description is on the right side of the page. Simply replacing all blocks would improve usability.

ExpressionEngine follows the same structure as Beyondis, but without the extra question marks. Furthermore, the phrase takes on new meaning as users are given the option to check out the service and trial the free edition.

Reduced cognitive load makes it easier for tourists to understand the system's concept. If you've done so, you'll be able to explain why the system is beneficial and how people will learn from it. People would not use the web blog if it is difficult to access.

2. Don't Exhaust Your Consumers' Time

When you're working on a project and you're trying to give your visitors a program or a tool, try to keep your customer expectations as low as possible. The fewer steps people must take in order to test a program, the more likely a random tourist would do so. First-time users tend to gamble with the app rather than filling out lengthy online applications for an account they might never use again. Allow people to browse the web and learn about the offerings without being forced to share personal information. Asking users to submit an email address in order to test a feature is unfair.

According to Ryan Singer, a developer on the 37Signals team, users would be more likely to give an email address if they were asked after seeing the feature in action and understanding what they would get in exchange.

Stikkit is an excellent example of a user-friendly service that needs virtually no interaction from the visitor and is unobtrusive and relaxing. And that's how you want your visitors to feel as they visit your web blog.

Mite, it seems, demands more. The registration, on the other hand, can be completed in under 30 seconds, thanks to the form's horizontal orientation, which removes the need for the user to scroll the tab. Drop any obstacles as far as possible; don't need subscriptions or registrations first. The mere act of registering a user is enough to stifle user navigation and reduce incoming traffic.

3. Ensure the users' attention is focused.

Since web pages contain both static and interactive content, certain features of the user experience are more noticeable than others. Obviously, pictures attract more interest than words, just as bolded sentences attract more attention than plain text.

Online users can easily perceive edges, shapes, and gestures because the human eye is an extremely non-linear system. This is why video-based ads are particularly irritating and distracting, but they do an outstanding job at catching consumers' interest from a marketing standpoint.

Humanized makes excellent use of the concentration concept. The only thing that consumers can see clearly is the word "free," which is enticing and desirable while remaining calm and purely informational. Users are given ample information on how to learn more about the "easy" commodity through subtle hints. By using visual elements to draw users' attention to particular parts of the web, you can help the guests get from point A to point B without having to worry about how to do it. The less concerns tourists have, the greater their sense of direction and the more confidence they can build in the business portrayed by the web. In other words, the less thinking that would occur behind the scenes, the greater the user interface, which is the primary goal of usability.

4. Aim for Feature Exposition

Modern web designers are often chastised for directing users by visually pleasing 1-2-3-done-steps, large buttons with visual effects, and so on. However, from a concept perspective, these components aren't inherently a bad thing. These guides, on the other hand, are highly useful because they direct users through the site's content in a very simple and user-friendly manner.

Dibusoft blends an appealing aesthetic with a well-organized web. The site's key navigation tools are available at first sight, and there are nine of them. However, the color scheme can be too light. A basic concept of good user interface design is to make it transparent to the user what features are accessible. It makes no difference if this is done. What counts is that guests are happy with how they communicate with the framework and that the material is well-understood.

5. Make Effective Writing a Part Of Your Strategy

Since the Web differs from print, it's important to tailor the writing style to the tastes and browsing habits of your audience. Promotional copy can not be read. Large blocks of text without pictures, as well as keywords in bold or italics, would be skipped. Excessive phrasing would be overlooked.

Let's talk about business. Stop titles that are funny or creative, marketing-driven, company-specific, or technical names that are obscure. For eg, if you're explaining a web and want people to build an account, "sign up" is superior to "start now!" and "explore our services."

Eleven2 doesn't waste much time getting to the stage. There are no sweet phrases or exaggerated stories. Instead, there is a price, which is just what tourists are looking for. Use short and concise phrases (get to the point as quickly as possible), scannable layout (categorize the content, use several heading levels, use visual elements and bulleted lists to break up the flow of uniform text blocks), and plain and objective language (a promotion doesn't have to sound like an advertisement; give your users some r

6. Attempt Simplicity

The KIS theory (keep it simple) should be the primary objective of site design. Users seldom use a site for the sake of the design; in reality, in most cases, they are searching for details regardless of the design. Rather than trying to be complicated, aim for consistency.

From the visitors' perspective, the best web design is pure text, with no ads or other page blocks that precisely complement the question or content they were looking for. One of the reasons that a user-friendly print edition of web pages is important for a positive user experience is because of this.

Finch delivers site material in a straightforward and concise manner, giving users a variety of choices without overwhelming them with needless information.

7. You Shouldn't Be Scared Of White Space

In reality, it's difficult to overestimate the value of white space. It not only helps guests minimize their cognitive burden, but it also allows them to understand the information shown on the computer. When a new user appears at a design layout, the first thing he or she does is search the web and break the subject field into conveniently digestible chunks.

Reading, scanning, analyzing, and working with complex systems is more difficult. If you have the option of using a visible line or other whitespace to separate two template parts, the whitespace approach is typically preferred. Complexity is reduced by hierarchical constructs (Simon's Law): the more you can give people a sense of visual hierarchy, the simpler your content would be to understand.

White space is beneficial. White space is a significant design feature on Cameron.io. The end result is a scannable layout that gives the material the prominence it deserves.

8. Use "Visible Language" to Communicate Easily

Aaron Marcus notes three basic concepts inherent in the use of so-called "seen text" — the information people see on a computer — in his articles on efficient visual communication.

• Organize: provide the consumer a logical and coherent philosophical framework. Organizational principles such as consistency, screen structure, partnerships, and navigability are essential. All elements shall follow the same conventions and laws.

• Save money by having as few prompts and graphic elements as possible. Simplicity, consistency, distinctiveness, and concentration are the four major points to remember. Only the most essential components for contact are used in simplicity. Clarity: All elements should be built in such a way that their purpose is obvious. Distinctiveness: The necessary elements' critical properties should be distinguishable. The most significant elements can be readily identifiable.

• Communicate: tailor the presentation to the user's skills. In order to interact efficiently, the user interface must combine legibility, readability, typography, symbolism, different viewpoints, and colour or texture. Using a maximum of three typefaces with a maximum of three point sizes per line of text, with a maximum of 18 words or 50-80 characters per line.

9. The Conventions Are Our Allies

A dull web is not the product of conventional site element architecture. Conventions, in particular, are extremely beneficial because they minimize the learning curve and the need to find out how things function. For example, if all websites displayed RSS feeds differently, it will be a usability nightmare. That's similar to how we arrange data (folders) or shop in our everyday lives (placement of products). You can gain users' respect, loyalty, and durability by using conventions, and you can also prove your reputation. Understand what users want from a site's navigation, text layout, and search placement, among other aspects.

A common example from usability sessions is to translate the web into Japanese (assuming the site visitors don't speak the language, e.g. with Babelfish) and give the usability testers the challenge of finding something in the translated page. Users would be able to accomplish a non-specific goal if conventions are followed correctly, even if they don't comprehend a word of it.

According to Steve Krug, it's best to invent only when you're certain you have a better idea, and to depend on conventions when you don't.

Tags: web design, ux web design, web design gallery, web hosting, responsive web, ux design, web logo, adaptive web, images for web, research web design, web research, choose best web design, website design or web design, website design portfolio, web WordPress, work for web design, responsive HTML, web design experience, work for web design, know coding for web design, ux ui

10. Test Early and Often

This so-called TETO-principle should be extended to any web design project because usability testing will also expose serious problems and issues with a layout.

Testing should not be done too late, too low, or for the wrong reasons. In the latter example, it's important to note that most design choices are local, which means you can't tell if one layout is better than another without evaluating it from a very particular viewpoint (considering requirements, stakeholders, budget etc.).

There are a few things to keep in mind:

• According to Steve Krug, testing one user is better than testing zero, and testing one user early in the project is better than testing 50 users at the end. According to Boehm's first theorem, mistakes arise more often during specifications and design tasks, and the longer they go uncorrected, the more costly they get.

• Testing is a continual operation. That is, you plan something, test it, repair it, and test it once more. There may be concerns that were not identified during the first round when users were essentially blocked by other issues.

• Usability evaluations consistently yield valuable results.

• A developer is unsuitable to test his or her code, according to Weinberg's rules. This is also so for artists. After a few weeks of working on a platform, you can no longer look at it with new eyes. You know how it's made, but you know precisely how it works — you have the experience that impartial reviewers and site users don't.

Visit Our Official Website

Additional Resources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_design

https://wordpress.org/showcase/tag/web-design/

https://www.wikihow.com/Learn-Web-Design

Location: https://goo.gl/maps/FnRzFUVMwwopXahE8

[hightshirt]

Questions You Should Ask Your Web Host Before Signing Up!

So, you're looking to build a web-site or so fed up with your current web host that you are eager to transfer your site elsewhere? You may not even be aware of your current hosts vulnerabilities in an industry where each week there is news about a host going down for one reason or another.

Your first problem is narrowing the thousands of choices down to a few that you can research further. Seek friends or associates that have a web-site and ask for their advice. Visit one of the lots of forums about hosting, ask the members for advice or search threads from those that have asked before you.

Once you have located a few hosts to research, the ten questions below will take you a long way towards making an informed decision. You may be capable of finding lots of of the answers to these questions on the hosts websites, but always feel free to call the host and quiz them about their operations. The quality of the answers and degree of professionalism you get from a feasible host often transfers to the type of support you will get once you become a customer. Without further ado, the ten query to ask your web host: 7. Does the net host automatically backup customer websites in case of information loss? How often?

9. Does the net host provide the features that you require for your web-site?

10. Does the net host have the products and services to handle your growth?

1. How long has the net host been in business?

The length of time that a host has been in business can be related to their ability to provide a quality, reliable product. If your host can satisfy its customers, then those customers are likely to stick with the hosts service. Therefore, stay in business. there's, of coursework, situations where this is not applicable or becomes a bit hazy. Be positive to also inquire about whether a host has recently been involved in a merger, acquired what was once a widely known brand name, or launched a used brand. If any of these apply, then delve deeper in to the story behind what has happened and determine whether quality resources are still with the company.

Complete a domain name whois lookup of the host: Type in the net hosts domain name and determine what year the domain was registered. If only registered in the recent past, ask the host about it. If the domain name was recently registered this is not necessarily a red flag. basically inquire with the host about it. they may have recently launched an affinity-based brand to cater to your market.

Type the hosts name in to a search-engine and check out the results that you get, other than those from the host itself. You may run across reviews, interviews, or industry articles about the host.

2. Does the net host own its information middle?

A information middle is the foundation from which all products and services are built on. If your host owns its own information middle, then they are likely entrenched in the hosting business. they also have an experienced staff and knowledge base from which to draw from when supporting your web-site and building new products. In other words, if a host owns its own facility, then it controls more of the variables that can make or break your web presence.

3. How lots of upstream web providers does the net host have?

Your web-site performance is not a measure of your web server's speed. The ability of your web host to route traffic through the cleanest web connections is also of great importance. It is crucial that your provider have multiple connections to the net. Accidental fiber cuts in construction or telecom work and information middle equipment failure may cause your site to go offline for an extended amount of time.

This can be avoided if your web host has other connections to the net that will reroute traffic that would have normally been carried on the failed circuit. Yes, this means your host must also have additional capacity on hand to handle normal traffic levels when one connection is lost; which is another area where a host can try to cut cost. This is much like when driving your automobile, there's several streets that you can take to get to your desired location. sometimes you will encounter construction or an accident that will require you to take an alternative street. Well, the net works the same way. there's several routes that traffic can take to a location. Your host ought to be able to select the cleanest, or most efficient, route to your web-site visitor. In fact, your host ought to be able to continually tune these routes to find the best path to your visitors.

Another way to accomplish this is by minimizing the number of different networks traffic will pass through before reaching its location. It is important for your host to have direct connections to networks that have lots of eyeballs. In other words, your web-site will be served better if your web host is using connections with networks that facilitate web access to large volumes of subscribers.

There's a couple of factors that can influence the answer to this query. Does the host own its own information middle? If not, then they are physically removed from their servers and likely paying a co-location company to provide monitoring for them. When another company controls the environmental systems that provide the home for the host, one can argue that you have created another potential point of failure; that being the communication of an issue from the information middle to the net host. That point of failure can increase the latency between an issue and its resolution, leading to increased downtime for your web-site. Second, if your web host has an issue with its own infrastructure, then there may be travel time associated with their engineers getting to the information middle to resolve it or, once again, increased latency by trying to remotely resolve an issue.

You might be surprised at how lots of web hosts don't provide 24/7/365 support. The industry's hosts run the gamut from only electronic mail support to providing phone and electronic mail support 24 hours per day and 365 days per year. The best way to eliminate not having support when you require it, is to select a host that can assist you whenever you require it. When an idea wakes you from a slumber at 3 A.M., it is good to have your host on the other end of the phone to speak about it. When your site malfunctions due to a programming glitch the night before your store is to open, it is amazing to have your web host on the phone to decipher the issue with you. When your cat accidentally deletes some important files, know that your host is there to help recover them. Also make positive that your host is providing support over the major holidays. lots of web hosts will close their support middle, decrease their support to only electronic mail, or send their support team home with a pager to be called in case of emergency. All of these decreases can generate latency if your web-site goes offline. And, holidays are often days which persons will spend time on the net after they have done all of their social designs. Matter of fact, word-of-mouth business is one of the most effective means to customer acquisition. When people get together, they exchange ideas.

A web server is the hardware and application combination that serves requested web pages, files, or other information. Servers answer requests from web browsers to provide information from websites, electronic mail, and databases. they then send that information to the requesting browser. Load balancing divides the amount of work that a server has to do between multiple servers, which also adds redundancy, so that more work gets done in the same amount of time and, in general, all websites requests within the network get served quicker. The load balancers stay in constant contact with the servers to determine how busy they are and/or if one of them has failed. It may sound like a no-brainer, but having your site connected to the net is the whole reason for having a web-site as well as a load-balanced, redundant network is vital to that endeavor.

Failures that cause your site to lose connection can happen. Therefore, it's crucial to discover a provider whose hosting architecture provides the least-risk of failure. Redundancy is necessary. Single points of failure are very bad, but lots of hosts try to cut costs by risking single points of failure. Ask your web host about their redundancy in server architecture (web, electronic mail, and DNS servers), load-balancing, and file storage.

Has your electronic mail server ever been down? Redundancy is also vital for electronic mail and DNS servers. A Domain Name System (DNS) server translates requests to locate a web-site. As you can imagine, keeping electronic mail and DNS servers online is a mission-critical task for a web host. For file storage, seek a host that makes use of a reliable storage solution with multiple auto-fail over and hot-swappable drives to make positive continuous delivery of your web-site.

Backing up websites ought to be a scheme part of your web host's operation. Backup is the activity of copying files or databases so that they are going to be preserved in case of equipment failure or any other catastrophe.

Look for a web host that provides a money-back guarantee. This will let you try out the hosts service. You ought to you find that the service is sub-par in site performance, reliability, or lacking the features that you seek, the ability to request your cash back, within the parameters of the guarantee, is priceless and liable to save you from later trouble. It is always a good to idea to inquire about the net hosts cancellation procedures. there's lots of hosts out there who require you to send them an electronic mail or make a phone call to cancel, which can extend the timeframe to cancellation. A host who is confident in their service will have a cancellation form or online avenue within their control panel. Now, they will likely also have a retention program, so dont be surprised when they call or electronic mail you to ask why you are leaving. After all, your feedback helps them to evaluate their service.

A domain name, but be positive to look for hidden registration fees or renewal fees sometimes people select a host because it has the exact feature set that they require, but later find that feature set means nothing when access to those features is unreliable. Make positive that a host has your desired features and is also reliable. To make positive that the host you are evaluating has everything you require, use the following list: An ample amount of versatile electronic mail accounts including web-based, POP3, and IMAP electronic mail spam filtering and virus protection are a must these days, unless you are providing this by yourself disk space to meet your sites needs every month bandwidth allotments that will cover your traffic and the ability to increase that allotment based on your sites success Site building tools such as extensions for FrontPage or other online/downloadable site building programs Ease of upload to your site by FTP or other means Access to a sturdy traffic analysis program or the raw logs for you to scheme yourself Programming languages, including CGI, PHP, MIVA (if needed) Database capability, dependent on your application preference ecommerce shopping cart options.

You might be surprised how lots of sites that once started for fun or as a hobby have grown in to a number of the most popular sites on the net. Hence, you never know when you will outgrow your current product or service and require to move up the ladder to the next rung. Make positive that your web host can meet your anticipated growth, not only within the product range of shared hosting, but ought to you ever require a dedicated server or co-location solution, your host is there to speak about and provide the best solution.

Do your home-work by using the above questions as a template and you will likely save yourself some major headaches down the road. If you have gathered information about multiple hosts, you can now compare apples to apples and select the best host for your needs. Hopefully, the work that you have done will avoid forcing you to make use of your gut, but make an informed decision based on the facts. perhaps, the best piece advice that you will find in any article or forum about choosing a host is, if something seems good to be true, then it probably is.

[myrbizrep]

The Best Webhosting Services for 2021

Do You Need a Web Host?

If you own a business, web hosting is a necessity; it's no longer an optional luxury. Our always-connected world demands that business have an online page. In fact, even local brick-and-mortar mom-and-pop shops must be discoverable via the web. At the very least, a company needs a page with a location and business hours.

Why? Because word of mouth only gets you so far in the internet era. People discover new businesses—even local business—via Bing, Google, and Yahoo. The days when they'd just look you up in the yellow pages are long gone. If you don't have a sharable website address, your chances of building online word of mouth via social networking plummet, too. In other words, no website, no discoverability, no money. Of course, web hosting isn't just for businesses. You may want to host a personal website or blog, too. Either way, the services here have you covered.

See How We Test Web Hosting Services

The first step in building your online presence is finding a web host, the company that will store your website's files on its servers and deliver them to your readers' and customers' browsers. Bluehost, a PC Mag Business Choice winner, is a reader-recommended option.

Web hosting services offer varying amounts of monthly data transfers, storage, email, and other features. Even how you pay (month-to-month payments vs. annual payments) can be radically different, too, so taking the time to plot exactly what your company needs for online success is essential. Many of these companies also offer reseller hosting services, which let you go into business for yourself, offering hosting to your own customers without requiring you to spin up your own servers.

You should also familiarize yourself with the many web hosting tiers that are available. In your research, you'll find shared, virtual private server (VPS), dedicated hosting, and WordPress hosting plans. Each tier offers different specs and features that you should take the time to analyze. I'll break them down.

What Is Shared Web Hosting?

Shared hosting is web hosting in which the provider houses multiple sites on a single server. For example, Site A shares the same server with Site B, Site C, Site D, and Site E. The upside is that the multiple sites share the server cost, so shared web hosting is generally very inexpensive. In fact, you can find an option for less than $10 per month.

You could think of the sites that share your server as your roommates; there's really not that much separating you from them. Sure, you can close the bedroom door, but they can still cause nightmares for you in the kitchen and the bathroom. In web hosting terms, all the sites share a single server's resources, so huge traffic spike on Site A may impact the neighboring sites' performances. It's even possible that another site could take down the shared server altogether, if it crashed hard enough.

What Is VPS Web Hosting?

VPS hosting is similar to shared hosting in that multiple sites share the same server, but the similarities end there. A dedicated web host houses fewer sites per server than is the case with shared hosting, and each site has its own individual resources.

In housing terms, VPS hosting is like renting your own apartment in a larger building. You're much more isolated than in the roommate situation mentioned above; it's still possible that a neighboring apartment could causes annoyance for you, but far less likely. In web hosting terms, Site A's traffic surge won't have nearly as much impact on Site B or Site C. As you'd expect, VPS hosting costs more than shared hosting. You'll pay roughly $20 to $60 per month.

What Is Dedicated Web Hosting?

Dedicated hosting, on the other hand, is both powerful and pricey. It's reserved for sites that require an incredible amount of server resources.

Unlike shared or VPS hosting, dedicated hosting makes your website the lone tenant on a server. To extend the housing metaphor, having a dedicated server is like owning your own home. The means that your website taps the server's full power, and pays for the privilege. If you're looking for a high-powered site—an online mansion for your business—dedicated hosting is the way to go. That said, many dedicated web hosting services task you with handling backend, technical issues, much as homeowners have manage maintenance that renters generally leave to their landlords.

On the topic of dedicated hosting, many web hosting services also offer managed hosting. This type of hosting sees the web host act as your IT department, handling a server's maintenance and upkeep. This hosting option is something that you'd typically find with dedicated servers, so it's a business-centric addition. Naturally, it adds a few bucks to the hosting cost, but nothing that should break the bank if you have the resources for a dedicated server.

Business Hosting

When it's time to set up shop, look for a web host that offers the aforementioned dedicated servers, as well as advanced cloud server platforms (such as Amazon Web Services or Google Cloud), custom server builds should you need it, and 24/7 customer support. Depending on your business' focus, you may need a web host that can handle pageviews or visitors that rank in the high thousands or millions. Many busy hosting plans offer an onboarding specialist that can help you get started, too.

If you're planning on selling a product, look for a web host that offers a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificate, because it encrypts the data between the customer's browser and web host to safeguard purchasing information. You're probably familiar with SSL; it's the green padlock that appears in your web browser's address bar as you visit an online financial institution or retail outlet. A few companies toss in a SSL certificate free of charge; others may charge you roughly $100 per year for that extra security layer.

What Is WordPress Web Hosting?

WordPress hosting is for people who want to build their sites on the back of the popular WordPress content management system (CMS) from WordPress.org. There are multiple ways to set up shop using this free, open-source blogging and site-building platform.

You gain the most web-building functionality if you create a self-hosted site. This typically involves transfering the free WordPress CMS to server or signing up for a web host's optimized WordPress plan. With an optimized plan, the host automatically handles backend stuff, so you don't have to worry about updating the plug-ins and CMS, and enabling automatic backups. In these instances, the WordPress environment typically comes pre-installed on the server.

You can also host your website on WordPress.com, but that's different from the kind of hosting mentioned above. WordPress.com uses the same code from WordPress.org, but it hides the server code and handles the hosting for you. In that sense, it resembles entries in our online site builder roundup. It's a simpler but less flexible and customizable way to approach WordPress hosting. It's definitely easier, but if you want to tinker and adjust and optimize every aspect of your site, it might not be for you.

Extra Web Hosting Info

If you're not sure of the type of hosting your business needs, you might want to start small, with shared Web hosting. You can always graduate to a more robust, feature-rich package of, say, VPS hosting or even dedicated hosting in the future. Unfortunately, some hosts don't offer all hosting types. Consider how much you expect to grow your website, and how soon, before you commit to anything longer than a one-year plan. It's worth spending the time up front to make sure that the host you select with is able to provide the growth you envision for your site, as switching web hosting providers midstream is not a trivial undertaking.

Once you decide you price range, you need to consider how long you'll need web hosting. If it's a short-term project—say, less than a month or two—you can typically receive a refund should you cancel your hosting within 60 days. Some companies offer 30-day money-back guarantees, others offer 90-day money-back guarantees. Once again, it's beneficial to do your homework.

The Web Hosting Features You Need

Many web hosts offer limited features in their starter packages and then expand the offerings (sometimes tremendously) for higher-tier plans. Read the small print to make sure the plan you are selecting offers what you need. If you need a site builder application to design your website, make sure that the low-cost web host you are picking actually comes with a site builder. Many of them require you to pay for the builder as a separate add-on. Website builders usually don't cost a lot of money, but if you can find a web host that includes one for free, that's money in your pocket. And, if it's integrated with your hosting service, you're more likely to have a smooth, supported experience.

You also want a web host with 24/7 customer support—if not by phone, then at least by chat. Forums, knowledge bases, and help tickets are all well and good, but sometimes you just need to communicate with another human to get things ironed out as quickly as possible. That said, not all 24/7 customer support teams are equal. Companies like GoDaddy and Liquid Web boast incredibly knowledgeable and helpful customer support squads—a fact that we confirmed in our in-depth reviews of those web hosting services.

When it comes to server operating systems, Linux is typically the default option. Still, some services offer a choice of Linux or Windows hosting. If you have specific server-side applications that require Windows, such as SQL Server or a custom application written in .NET, then you need to make sure your web host has Windows hosting. But don't let the idea of a Linux host intimidate you. Nowadays, most web hosts offer a graphical interface or a control panel to simplify server administration and website management. Instead of typing at the command line, you'll click easily identifiable icons.

Windows hosting is often more expensive than Linux hosting, especially in the dedicated server area. That's not always the case, but it's something you should be aware of as you shop around.

See How We Test Web Hosting Services

Email Hosting

If you aim to have a web presence, you've got to have email. It's a convenient way for potential customers and clients to send you a message, Word document, or other files. Thankfully, most web hosts include email in the price of their hosting plans. Some web hosts offer unlimited email account creation (which is great for future growth), while others offer a finite amount. You, naturally, should want unlimited email.

That said, not all web hosts offer email. WP Engine, for example, does not. In such instances, you must email accounts from a company other than your web host. GoDaddy, for instance, sells email packages starting at $3.49 per user, per month. That might sound like a hassle, and just one more thing to keep track of, but there are actually some webmasters who feel that separating your email hosting and web hosting services is smart. That way, one provider going offline won't completely bork your business.

Uptime, Uptime, Uptime!

The aforementioned features are valuable to the web hosting experience, but none matches the importance of site uptime. If your site is down, clients or customers will be unable to find you or access your products or services.

Recently, we've added uptime monitoring to our review process, and the results show that most web hosts do an excellent job of keeping sites up and running. Web hosts with uptime issues are heavily penalized during the review process and are unable to qualify for top ratings.

Ecommerce and Marketing

One thing we learned in reviewing the services listed here (and many more) is that even though the packages are very similar, they are not identical. Some are more security-focused than others, offering anti-spam and anti-malware tools. Others offer a variety of email marketing tools. While most of the hosts we've reviewed have built-in e-commerce, you may want to consider using a more-robust third-party online shopping cart application like Shopify instead.

If you're ready to select a great web hosting service, check out the chart above to see PCMag's top picks in the space. When you're done with that, click the links below to read our in-depth, tested reviews of the biggest and best names in web hosting.

If you're just getting started in the web hosting game, make sure to check out our primer, How to Build a Website, and How to Register a Domain Name for Your Website. The Best Courses for Learning How to Build Websites is an excellent start, too.

[itsmeezaki]

How to protect your privacy on your iPhone

Clear cookies on your iPhone to protect your privacy :

This is an entire guide the way to clear cookies on the iPhone. It covers the foremost popular mobile browsers like Safari, Google Chrome, Firefox, and Opera.

When you delete cookies, you release space on your iPhone, stop websites from following you around the web. Therefore, you protect your online privacy.

But what are cookies?

Cookies are small encrypted pieces of data that websites store on your iPhone to recollect information about you and your visit.

A typical example would be, once you visit a web store, add a product on your handcart, but didn’t complete the order. So next time, you visit an equivalent website you’ll find your item right where you left it, within the sack. That’s the facility of cookies. Besides personalize your experience and make surfing online a pleasing adventure, cookies sometimes can become a significant problem. And, at some point, you'll get to delete them from your browser.

Even though they’re tiny, they will take up space over time, which can affect your device’s performance speed. Speaking of performance, please read this great article for an in-depth guide the way to speed up your iPhone.

Sometimes cookies get obsolete, which may create vulnerability so hackers can steal your information. You sure don’t want any of that. That’s why you would like to clear cookies on your iPhone. So enough with the waffling, we’ve tons to hide. Let’s start.

How to clear cookies in Safari on an iPhone

While cookies may pose a drag in certain circumstances, we don’t recommend you to dam them altogether. this may cause bad user experiences, instead, delete them periodically. Without further ado, let’s start.

Step 1. To clear cookies on your iPhone, open the Settings app, scroll down until you discover the Safari and tap thereon. Step 2. Under the “Privacy & Security” section of the Safari screen, tap Clear History and Website Data. A prompt window will show up posing for your confirmation

Step 3. Tap Clear History and Data to delete safari browsing history, cookies, and other data

This method not only will delete all cookies stored in Safari but also will erase your browsing history and other data. If you would like to only delete cookies for just certain websites, proceed with this manner.

Step 1. Open Settings from the house screen, find Safari, and choose it.

Step 2. Tap Advanced at rock bottom of the screen.

Step 3. On subsequent screen, select Website Data.

Step 4. you ought to see an inventory of all cookies saved on your iPhone for each website you’ve visited. Tap Remove All Website Data at the top of the screen, to delete every single cookie saved on your browser.

Step 5. A prompt will show up confirming your decision. Just tap Remove Now. this may prevent websites from tracking what you are doing online. This method not only will delete all cookies stored in Safari but also will erase your browsing history and other data. If you would like to only delete cookies for just certain websites, proceed with this manner.

Step 1. Open Settings from the house screen, find Safari, and choose it.

Step 2. Tap Advanced at rock bottom of the screen.

Step 3. On subsequent screen, select Website Data.

Step 4. you ought to see an inventory of all cookies saved on your iPhone for each website you’ve visited. Tap Remove All Website Data at the top of the screen, to delete every single cookie saved on your browser.

Step 5. A prompt will show up confirming your decision. Just tap Remove Now. this may prevent websites from tracking what you are doing online.

If you would like to delete cookies for a specific website, tap on the Edit button on the upper right of the screen, then tap the red minus icon next to the web site name. You can also just swipe to the left of the web site you would like to delete cookies for. Like we mentioned earlier, we don't recommend you to dam cookies, Some websites make it mandatory, otherwise, they won’t work. But if you insist, here the way to block all cookies on an iPhone. Open the Settings app from the house screen Scroll down and tap Safari Turn on Block All Cookies by sliding the toggle to the proper Then, tap Block All to verify your action

Not most are a lover of Safari. If you happen to use other browsers like Chrome, Firefox, and Opera to surf the online on your iPhone, here’s the way to delete cookies stored by them.

How to clear cookies from Google Chrome on your iPhone

Open the Chrome app

Tap the … menu icon on the lower-right corner

Select Settings from the menu tab.

Select Privacy then tap Clear Browsing Data

You’ll have the choice to pick what you would like to delete from the list, select Cookies, Site Data.

Choose Clear Browsing Data, then tap Clear Browsing Data again to verify your decision.

How to clear cookies from Firefox on your iPhone

From your home screen, open the Firefox app. Tap the hamburger menu icon within the lower right corner of the screen.

Tap Settings right at rock bottom. Tap Clear Private Data at rock bottom of the page and ensure your decision by tapping OK within the confirmation window. How to clear cookies from Opera on your iPhone

Open the Opera app and tap the vertical three-dots Menu button at the upper-right corner of the screen.

Then, tap on Setting.

In the Browser section, tap Clear Browser Data. Select Cookies and Site Data from the list. you ought to note it'll sign you out of most sites.

Then, tap the Clear button at the upper-right corner of the screen.

You should see a knowledge Cleared message shows abreast of the screen.

[chatsplanet-blog]

How To Get The Best Free Video Chat Service Available

To begin with, i'll just tell that video chat is among the most enjoyable and efficient platforms to make new friends and connect with family people and buddies. However, as the best websites available offer a few of the finest speeds and conveniences, they're rare as compared to the amount of possibilities to all of us.

When searching around for a web site to perform some video chatting on, I initially prefer to make certain that the website employs a group of moderators. Abusive individuals aren't exactly uncommon round the scene - users ought to be because of the choice to report any occurrences of inappropriate behavior plus they also needs to receive timely responses. Individuals who're only thinking about causing trouble should not be permitted to stay around on the webcam chat server for very lengthy.

Next, I honestly aren't seeing any advantage in spending cash for implementing a relevant video chat service. Those sites that charge subscription charges or "through the minute" charges aren't exhibiting much integrity - thinking about the truth that any other services available which are free usually offer equal (otherwise better) quality wecam.tv.

Offers for example "the first video call is free of charge" or "an hour or so of free video chat" are virtually useless. Yes, you may enjoy the very first experience free of charge, but when you've exhausted the sale you will be requested to spend money on on-going use. Don't even bother with these sorts of websites.

Another crucial step to consider is when you need to do your video chatting. Would you prefer utilizing an installed program or would you like the thought of video chatting using your internet browser?

Let me tell you at this time: Making use of your browser is the best choice. It can save you computer space by not getting to download anything and it is much more simpler to ask your buddies to some video chat session if all they need to do is open their browsers too.

If you are new to everything about video chat, these are the higher items to be aware of when you are hunting for a website to register with. You may even wish to make certain that you employ something that does not go lower for maintenance randomly occasions during the day. These kinds of interruptions can place a stump inside your plans, particularly if you prefer to work calls on webcam chat websites. The best website have a scheduled here we are at maintenance also it will not be more often than once per week.

Again, free video chat is a brilliant way to make new friends. If you wish to enjoy your experience, make certain you join the best website. Perform a little exploring prior to you making your decision and do not accept low-quality. This way, you will not suffer from any obstacles later on.

[fixxofvixx]

BLOODRIGHT - Vampire Taekwoon AU - Chapter 8

Hello~~~ I have a bit of Vampire Taekwoon for you~ I hope you enjoy it! I'm not sure what is next so we'll see~

Please let me know what you think!

🧛‍♂️🧛‍♂️🧛‍♂️🧛‍♂️🧛‍♂️🧛‍♂️🧛‍♂️🧛‍♂️🧛‍♂️🧛‍♂️

"Why?"

"What do you mean why?"

"Why do you want to take care of me? Because of the donor thing?"

"It's not just that. Yes, as a potential donor I want to look after you. But, that isn't the only reason. Over the time that I've watched over you I've......grown attached."

His blunt statement caused you to blush.

"A-Attached?"

"I care about your well-being, Y/N. Like I said when you first came here, even if you refuse to be my donor, I will still look after you."

"Are you sure you're a vampire?" He smiled at your question.

"Last time I checked, yeah. We aren't all monsters, I promise. There are a lot of us who still have a conscience."

You had no answer for him and you almost told him that you wanted to be his donor. The thought scared you more that it should have. Did it really matter anymore? When you thought about the possibility that you could have ended up with someone like Khan you shuddered.

"Are you cold? Hang on." He didn't wait for your response and sped out of the room. Two or three seconds later he appeared with a blanket and draped it over you. You hadn't thought about being cold but the warmth of the blanket was welcomed. He was careful not to let the blanket touch the bite on your shoulder.

You looked over at the two boxes still sitting on the chair that he had brought from your house. "I don't supposed you were able to salvage any clothes from my apartment, were you?"

"Unfortunately, no. That's pretty much what they used to start the fire apparently. But I can get whatever you need."

"I....honestly, I want to refuse but I don't really have a choice, do I?" You didn't like the feeling of helplessness but you had no other option. "I can find some way to pay you back."

"There is no need. I have more than enough means to provide for what you need. Here," He walked over to his desk and opened his laptop. He typed a few things on the keyboard and then came back to the couch. He reached down and picked you up, earning a surprised squeak from you. "sit here and order anything you'd like. Clothes, shoes, even a computer if you want one. Buy whatever you want."

He placed you in the chair and pushed it up to the desk. The web browser was open waiting for you to tell it where to go.

"I can't do that! I just need a few cheap clothes or something."

"If you don't order it, then I will just do it for you. And there's no telling what I might pick." He smiled at you and you caught his threat. If you didn't do it, he was going to order the most hideous things he could find.

About an hour later, you had lost count of the things you had ordered. You'd tried to keep it simple but Taekwoon kept checking in on what you were getting and made you add more things. He threatened to take away the food in the house before you gave in and ordered a laptop. He insisted that it would be good for you to have one and you could still have the outside world at your fingertips. He also vowed to give you a card of your own to use.

"I don't need that! I have everything I need now!"

"You might think of something later."

The argument lasted for about twenty more minutes before you gave up. You finally stood from the desk and made your way out of the study.

"I can take you up." He was stuck close to your side and you couldn't help but feel cherished. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if he took care of you.

"That's okay I can make it."

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

That was a week and half ago. Everyday was spent with Taekwoon showing you different parts of the estate and simply enjoying each other's company. His family had been alerted to Khan's activities and everything had been quiet. You had quietly taken over Henry's previous responsibilities of keeping the house clean. Taekwoon had tried to stop you but you were actually happy with it. It gave you something to do. He had offered to hire someone but you had both agreed that you didn't trust anyone enough. With every passing day, you had to stop yourself more and more from agreeing to be Taekwoon's donor. Gradually, you really couldn't find anymore excuses not to.

You set your new laptop aside on your bed and made your way towards the bedroom door. You were craving a midnight snack and, if you were being honest, a chance run in with a certain vampire. He was true his words that he'd said when you first came to his house. The whole floor was yours, he never ventured up there. Except for that one time a bird had flown in through the window and you needed his help getting it out.

You quietly padded down the hall and bounded down the steps. The house was dark except for the main foyer light near the front door. You turned the corner into the kitchen and stopped dead in your tracks. There, sitting on the kitchen counter, was Taekwoon. He was drinking a glass of dark red liquid. You knew immediately what it was but you had never seen him actually drink blood before. A quiet gasp escaped your lips and Taekwoon turned towards you, looking like a deer caught in headlights. His eyes were a bright red, a richer crimson that you had ever seen them. Fear gripped you for a second when you were actually witnessing for the first time what Taekwoon would look like when he feeds. His face looked ethereal and almost glowing. Taekwoon quickly placed the glass on the counter and jumped down. His quick movements caused you to jump involuntarily.

"Y/N, I....didn't hear you. Did you need something?" His voice broke the spell and you returned to your senses. You stepped closer slowly and headed towards the refrigerator.

"N-No, I was just looking for a midnight snack." You reached for the refrigerator door and noticed that your hands were shaking. You heard Taekwoon chuckle behind you.

"Me too."

You swallowed quickly as you took the container of grapes from the shelf and closed the refrigerator door. Turning, you almost dropped them when you saw Taekwoon right behind you. Your eyes automatically locked onto his teeth. Just behind his lips, you could see the ever-present sharp canines. Taekwoon smiled and leaned down to place his face level with yours.

"What exactly are you staring at, y/n?"

"N-Nothing."

"Hmm, are you sure? You seemed to be very focused on something else." He was obviously teasing you but you couldn't seem to look away from his teeth. He leaned in closer and in a flash, snapped his jaws together.

His action made you drop the grapes but he caught them before they hit the floor. Your eyes finally traveled up to his red ones. It looked like the red in his irises was a metallic liquid and it was swirling within the space. He seemed to notice your new fascination and blinked slowly.

"It's a side-effect from drinking blood."

"It's.....pretty." You continued to stare at his eyes until you realized what you'd said. A blush crept across your cheeks as Taekwoon smiled even more.

"You're prettier."

Your heart skipped a beat at his words and your jaw dropped slightly. He was trying to seduce you again. Over the past week, he had become more relaxed with you an his flirting was starting to affect you. However, this time was different. His demeanor was different. He was more unearthly. More....lethal. Your heart kicked up again.

"Calm your heart, y/n. You know you're safe."

"Says the man with the razor sharp teeth." He chuckled slightly and you took the grapes from his hand.

"You know I won't use them unless you tell me I can."

"But that doesn't help my imagination." You moved until you were standing at the kitchen counter where Taekwoon had been earlier. The glass of blood was still sitting on the counter and you picked it up, curious. Taekwoon reached from behind you and took the glass from your hand. He placed it down on the far edge of the counter. You didn't turn around and he just stood behind you.

"What exactly are you imagining? Maybe I can settle your fears."

"It's not exactly fear."

His hands appeared on either side of you on the counter top.

"That's good. I don't want you to be afraid." He put his chin on your shoulder and you saw him smile out of the corner of your eye. It was the truth. You didn't fear him. Not anymore. Now......now it had become a completely different feeling.

There was no heat coming from his body but, at the same time, it wasn't cold. He had explained once before that his body temperature would be whatever the room temperature was.

Finally, you said what had been on your mind constantly for two days.

"Taekwoon?"

"Hmm?" He turned his head towards you and you took a deep breath.

"I......" your breath hitched in your throat.

"Is there something wrong?" You shook your head and took another deep breath. You said everything in one breath so you could just get it out.

"I want to be your donor."

[hazelstandish-blog]

Convert Wav To Flac (Free & On-line)

FLAC stands for Free Lossless Audio Codec, an audio format just like MP3, however lossless, meaning that audio is compressed in FLAC with none loss in high quality. Added convertor FLAC to Wav (PCM 8, 16, 24, 32 bits, DSP, flac to wav converter windows 10 GSM, IMA ADPCM, MS ADPCM, AC3, MP3, MP2, OGG, A-REGULATION, u-LEGISLATION) files. Added easy fade in and out for player. Support Mp3 information is improved. The very last thing it's best to know is that it isn't advisable to transform between lossy codecs as you'll continue to loss high quality. It is OKAY, nonetheless, to transform between lossless formats as the quality is retained. With Windows methods, these formats require Apple Quicktime to work with Reside, which is simply available as a 32-bit software. On Mac programs, these codecs work with Stay as in the event that they had been natively supported. Using the export presets, you'll be able to choose the standard and format of the audio you want without having to suppose twice. The application has a huge number of presets masking all codecs and multimedia devices. You possibly can simply edit them your self or create your own. FLAC to ALAC audio conversion will begin mechanically after add. Click on on Convert button after which download the converted file to your computer. Creators of MP3 thought it would be an excellent concept to reduce information' measurement but at the price of quality. The information thrown away can't be heard with mediocre audio system and headphones, but having a good sound system makes a distinction. WAV, then again, has no compression, so data is misplaced, flac to wav Converter windows 10 it is purely original sound. The unique file as sent by the file label will always sound higher than any conversion. Right now in historical past, a duplicate of the original digital file created from a converter will sound totally different than the unique. If a WAV was transformed to another WAV it would not sound nearly as good as the original. We've been doing this take a look at because the mid 80's. Bigasoft WAV to FLAC Converter additionally offers good editing functions. It is quite straightforward so that you can be a part of audio information together, cut off the unwanted elements, increasing the audio volume, compressing the audio information, and so forth. When encoding to flac, ignore the file measurement headers in WAV and AIFF information to try to work around problems with over-sized or malformed recordsdata. It is vital to know why different media codecs are needed for the web. For numerous causes mostly outside the scope of this text, totally different browsers support different media codecs. Additionally, the world of media codecs on the Internet has vastly suffered from patent regulation in many nations together with the USA and EU international locations. (The notes on patents on this article are provided as-is and with none guarantee.) This text discusses the formats most related to the web, together with assist in browsers on both cell and desktop. Complete Audio converter is a versatile software program that is able to converting even the rarest codecs comparable to OPUS to MP3. A number of the output audio formats it help includes MP3, WMA, WAV, flac to wav converter windows 10, MP4, MPC, OPUS, and over 20 extra codecs. Along with that, it could actually additionally rip audio from CDs and convert YouTube videos to the various output formats it supports. Total has been on-line for over 10 years and is being utilized by tens of millions of users.

FLAC - The Free Lossless Audio Codec (FLAC) is the most well-liked lossless format, making it a good choice if you wish to retailer your music in lossless. Unlike WAV and AIFF, it's been compressed, so it takes up quite a bit much less space. Nonetheless, it is nonetheless a lossless format, which suggests the audio high quality is still the same as the unique supply, so it's much better for listening than WAV and AIFF. It is also free and open source, which is handy if you're into that kind of factor. Like MP3 before it, FLAC has been embraced by the music business as a cheap technique to distribute CD-or-higher-quality music, and it doesn't have the auditory problems of MP3s. FLAC is lossless and more like a ZIP file - it comes out sounding the same when it's unzipped. Beforehand the one solution to get "lossless" recordsdata was through the uncompressed CD codecs CDA or WAV, however neither is as space-environment friendly as FLAC.

The next factor I think is to convert my WAV files on my Promise NS4300N to a media\music folder on the ReadyNAS. So I'm on the dBpoweramp Music Converter window (compression of "5") after deciding on the root WAV folder of my NS4300N which has my WAV information organized in artist\album folders. There are in each of the album folders as the album cover artwork.

[epifaniarawls3-blog]

Obtain Free Merge MP3 4.6.4

From the album Effluxion, out February 22, 2019 on Merge Records. Though named video converter, it also comes with a fair collection of video enhancing options. You're allowed to obtain this free video editor on Windows 10 32 bit or Home windows 10 sixty four bit, and later trim video by setting start time and end time or dragging the timeline bar, cut off black bars or undesirable half, Www.Mergemp3.Com split video, merge several movies collectively, add exterior subtitle, alter quantity, change bit charge, body rate, lower video resolution, extract audio from video , and so on. Massive races present the vitality of crowd support, however after I cross the end line, I hardly ever stick around or really feel like a part of what's happening at the submit-race occasion. On the other hand, a smaller event like the Merge 25K had the most effective end line occasion I've ever been to-to the extent that people unconnected to the race got here to it just to drink beer and hearken to Merge DJs and bands in downtown Durham. Choose Menu > Merge Two Duplicates to open the Merge Information dialog field. • This program would only merge files of same format and bit charge. Kind the title of the contact that you should merge in the subject to the left of the Discover Contacts button and then click on the Find Contacts button. Merge launched Impartial Milk Hotel 's second album in 1998. It was released to little fanfare and no one ever heard both the album or the band ever again. Founded by Superchunk's Laura Ballance and Mac McCaughan in 1989, Merge Data was originally a medium for the band to release their very own records. Soon sufficient, the Durham, NC, label expanded to incorporate music by their mates and finally opened its doorways to artists all world wide. Notes - I've examined Merge MP3 with many albums and had no factors aside from one specific album the place the merging process froze (no progress inside the progress window). You are going to wish to make use of a software which might combine the audio knowledge for you. I must merge data with the identical PIN, and populate the null fields with values in the event that they exist. The highlighted ones in the picture are what I'm talking about. Click on the posters of the gadgets you need merged to select them. A2: MP3 Joiner is an easy and environment friendly FREE MP3 Joiner which can mix, merge and Join MP3 recordsdata into one large file. MP3 Merger and MP3 Cutter is used to affix a number of MP3 audio recordsdata. You just want to pick out desired songs you wish to merge and make them into one with this app easily. And its MP3 chopping function will help you trim undesirable parts of MP3 songs you downloaded in your device. You need to use this app to make attractive fusion tune particularly for dance program or set merged file as ringtone. It has simple person interface and may mix audio in high velocity. Permit the program some time to merge the recordsdata. As soon because it's full, click the Obtain" button to avoid wasting the output audio file on your computer. The person-nice and straight interface lets you find & use one thing you want in seconds. All things are properly completed simply by quite a lot of clicks. With our Free Merge MP3 including + setting + merging one-step answer, you can simply merge your audio file proper right into a single one with out reducing quality. Official video for Melody Day" by Caribou, taken from the album Andorra, launched by Merge Data. Cubase VST 5 had a merge tracks function. You chose the audio tracks to merge and clicked merge tracks. The outcome was a brand new, single observe with all your effects and mixing ranges saved in-tact. Optionally write VBR body into the merged file - useful when merging files with different bitrates. The grid is sorted in order of proportion regarding what information are most probably to be duplicates that you would be able to merge. Right-click wherever within the grid to show print or export options for the contents of the grid. Free MP3 Cutter Joiner is an light-weight MP3 audio trimmer and merger that lets you reduce and merge MP3s with out dropping any high quality. It's a exact MP3 music cutter and editor, letting you cut the audios inside one millisecond. It could possibly be very helpful in case you are in search of for the dedicated MP3 instrument to make ringtones. Phần mềm Merge MP3 có tính năng nổi bật khác đó là cho phép người sử dụng xem thông tin về các file Mp3 được ghép nối một cách chi tiết về: MPEG thông tin tiêu đề, thông tin ID3v1 và ID3v2. Ngoài ra, phần mềm còn cho phép người dùng có thể tùy chọn chơi các file nhạc MP3 trong danh sách để được ghép nối với nhau. both work nearly the same method, they reliably select from any of the choices, however the 2-approach signals can cause trains to get lost if your community has missing connections. (Not all Traces from a Direction have the same vacation spot chances at splits) As missing connections shouldn't occur within the first place, 2-means signals are acceptable and typically mandatory, however the place it's potential it is good to have 1-method pre-alerts so we may uncover the eventual lacking connections on the mergers. With 2-ways trains simply get misplaced and switch round somewhere going by some ro-ro station which is a lot more durable to note.

Free Merge MP3 is a device that means that you can merge different audio tracks into one single, longer song the simplest method possible: by dragging and dropping. I've a user recording and another mp3 file in my app, and I would like the consumer to be able to export each of these as one, which means the 2 information might be merged or laid over each other in a roundabout way. Merge your recordsdata in your web browser. It is compatible with all working methods. If not, click the radio buttons near the corresponding fields of other data to instruct CRM on which discipline values needs to be thought-about "last" to be able to merge duplicates.

[faustinoy472-blog]

On-line MP3 Cutter

The MERGE manufacturing music catalog features multiple composers and musical contributors, blending the musicianship of actual humans on real instruments with the digital and sound design styles crucial to fulfill the requirements of recent media. And you will be higher off selecting a lossless splitter or joiner that may minimize or merge your information speedily, even on an oldish laptop, with none lack of sound high quality on account of decompressing and recording. The procedures on find out how to merge music online are easy and comparable. Batch upload your music information > Adjust the sequences > Begin merging the music recordsdata > Download the processed music. Let's see how one can mix songs with this powerful and special audio and video merger. Even higher in case your mp3 file has various tracks, you presumably can merely minimize up into separate tracks. Cellsea is a free on-line video merger that has the choice for merging video recordsdata proper into a single one. UJAM presents on-line software program that lets you report and produce your own music. Freemake Audio Converter converts music information between 50+ audio joiner online formats. WAV joiner for Mac is a extremely extraordinarily efficient video joiner or merger that will help be a part of numerous small wav segments into one huge WAV file. Merge mp3 recordsdata on-line mp3 merge info mp3 merge online receive merge mp3 merge mp3 file be a part of mp3 online merge mp3 on-line wav merger free mergemp3 mp3 merger merge music together on-line merge mp3 on-line be a part of songs collectively on-line merge two mp3 recordsdata on-line merge mp3 free mp3 merger software program program program free get hold of merge songs on-line free merge two songs collectively on-line free merge mp3 audacity. You need to use MP3 Toolkit to convert audio for cellular units, make ringtones, fix tag info, rip Audio CD, document sound or merge audio pieces to a complete MP3 file. Merge two songs or movies collectively to create your own combine. Add songs to the playlist and crossfade between them, change the velocity, make loops and save your mixes. Obtain and install Merge MP3 if you want to convert audiobook recordsdata in MP3 format (see Resources). Cellsea is a free on-line video merger that has the option for merging video information into a single one. In the meantime, it enables you to export your video file to 3GP, AVI, MOV, MP4 and FLV. Via Cellsea Free Online Editor, you possibly can manipulate quite a few modifying tasks as effectively. In particulars, it empowers you to trim, crop, resize and be part of all sorts of movies. You'll be able to even add audio track to the required video. • This program would only merge files of identical format and bit rate. Need to know the right way to make your own music? UJAM offers on-line software that lets you document and produce your personal track. All you want to create great-sounding music is an idea. Turn that melody in your head right into a music. As UJAM is cloud-based mostly, no obtain is required. Seeking the most effective MP3 joiner for House windows or Mac OS that can mean you can merge a number of MP3 recordsdata into one? The software program supports MP3 file encoded with every type of encoding parameters. With it, you'll reduce up any little little bit of audio into as many items as you need, otherwise you probably can merge as many audio information as you want in irrespective of order. Audio Editor - Merge, Cut up And Edit is a sound editing program for macOS. This software program permits you to edit any audio file on your computer. You can immediately edit songs and recordings by cutting, copying, pasting and deleting the selected areas. The app is straightforward to use, you can save and open your project. You are able to do your all engaged on timeline, it's so handy. Compared with Audio Joiner, Aconvert affords yet another choice so as to add MP3 information, which allows you to either choose designated MP3 file from native folder or paste online audio URL straight. Microsoft's Windows Movie Maker software program may focus on video creation however it also has a feature that allows you to add multiple MP3 files to the venture. So long as you might be wonderful with paring the music with a photo or video, you possibly can merge each MP3 recordsdata and save it in video format. The songs and albums you buy from the iTunes Retailer routinely appear on all of your units. Music purchased on any machine is instantly accessible in your iTunes library in your Mac or PC.6 Simply faucet to play, and even download in the event you're going someplace you won't have Wi-Fi. And with Family Sharing, whenever one family member buys a new tune or album, everyone else can download and listen. Likelihood is that you're in want of merging movies on-line. Nevertheless, downside is that confronted with numerous on-line video merger applications, you don't have any strategy to decide. The primary cause is that you're not aware of each joining instrument, without understanding all pros and cons explicitly. To guide you to get more info, we're going to introduce 5 finest online video mergers to your reference. Once I performed the ensuing file (which was solely barely larger than the combined 15 data in my folder), I used to be surprised at how seamless it was, with no discernible breaks (to be sincere, I randomly chosen spots in my pc's MP3 participant program, so, though it's doable that one thing, someplace within the merged file is amiss, mergemp3.com I significantly doubt it). Press Ctrl-M" and enter a file name for the audiobook. Choose your most well-liked output folder and click on Save" to merge the audiobook information. Audio Joiner is a web based app that can merge audio dynamically. This device is free and lets you be part of unlimited audio tracks inside your browser. You land on the web site, select Add tracks, add your information, add them within the order you want them to look in your mix and choose Be a part of. The becoming a member of process takes a couple of seconds and then you definately get an MP3 download with the merged recordsdata.

Step three. Click on on Merge" button to start merging your files. It is a free instrument which might merge MP3 recordsdata. 2) As for me, the best option to split-be part of mp3s (and with out re-encoding) is famous Mp3directcut I made turning into a member of of two recordsdata of the identical bitrate actually very quickly. To regulate the scenario of two MP3 data, drag them to the place of your alternative. The audio format could possibly be WAV , WMA , MP3 , OGG , AAC , AU , FLAC , M4A , MKA , AIFF , OPUS or RA Audio file dimension may be as a lot as 200M.On the online forum for MakeItOne it was found the program is meant for streams between 96 and 320 kbps. This was fairly a shock as a result of 100s of mp3s had been beforehand joined at 64 kbps and at 32 kbps, all with 100% success. Join a free model or free trial to see how a service works. It is easiest to begin on a computer. Seek for artists you like, and save songs and albums in your music library. Playback is simple. The "buttons" appear like those on a CD player or iPod — play, skip ahead, skip again, repeat and shuffle. After that, obtain the service's app to your telephone; log in, and all of the music you saved will present up there, too.

[tahliasteffan19-blog]

Mp3Care

Core Audio Format withcaf extension, is a container for storing audio, developed by Apple Inc. At Mp3Care we are going to take care of all your Audio Conversion and different manipulation tasks. We use the most effective technology to convert audios from one format to other whereas trying to take care of the unique quality. A few of our applications like aiff to mp3 and mp3 to wav are unique on the internet. Should you face any downside in converting or other audio enhancing actions don't hesitate to contact us. It will be significant for audio converter software to work rapidly and effectively in addition to to have a wide variety of file format options, including lossy and lossless codecs. Every music streaming service has a most popular format for streaming and archiving music - sadly, not every service makes use of the same format. WAV is an acceptable lossless format for many companies. Nevertheless, depending on the service, that file might be converted and compressed to a special format. MP3 files could be uploaded to all the popular streaming companies, but there's no cause to convert a lossless file format, corresponding to WAV, to MP3 if you don't have to.

The software comes with a simple user interface that can be discovered to make use of in a single session. All the essential controls are supplied on the main web page. You'll be able to load music and announcement audio recordsdata to the participant and tweak the settings for announcement and music from their respective control tabs. Convert video online in couple of clicks, aiff to mp4 converter freeware download with out install any software on unimaginable pace and up to Full HD advert 4K qualitys. We sopport hottest video codecs like: MP4, AVI, MOV, WMV, FLV, MKV and codecs H264 or HEVC. Additionally, superior aiff to mp4 converter linux ubuntu video settings accessible resembling bitrate, decision, facet video and rotate video. I choose the mp3 profile. I select the destination. The only option i get ists container. I try altering the extension to mp3, and I get a white noise file. I go with thets possibility and I get a file with sound, but when I rename it to mp3 it turns into white noise again. 1 Add AIFF TO WAV file(s) that you just wish to convert. Converting video files is an identical operation. Point your browser to and visit the Providers downloads web page Download the Movie Services and set up them once downloaded. First, while Apple did create the ALAC format, it's now open source, so there is not any monopoly. They don't reluctantly" acknowledge the existence of MP3 and MP4; iTunes first launched supporting only MP3. Then it added AAC, which is MP4, which scads of individuals thought was a proprietary Apple format, and got all crazy about. AAC is superior to MP3, but they received accused of the identical thing you wrote right here, because not many different apps or gadgets supported it initially. They all do now. Type of like once they introduced USB on the first iMac; now USB is the usual. Mac: From the menu bar on the prime of your computer display screen, select iTunes > Preferences. The unhealthy information is that that particular MP4 video seems to either be corrupt, copy protected (DRM) or an unsupported format. Along with audio knowledge, aiff to mp4 converter online Free high Quality can embrace loop level knowledge and the musical word of a sample , to be used by hardware samplers and musical functions. Have to convert sound or audio recordsdata without downloading software? Now you can. I just need to congratulate you for the MediaHuman Audio Converter. Variety of decisions for audio quality, file extension type and a number of cpu core choice. And checkbox for including to iTunes while converting. Genius. You saved me from hours of ready. Well executed.

In the event you simply need to convert your AIFF music to file withaac extension, you choose Basic Audio > AAC - Advanced Audio Coding (.aac) from the panel; otherwise you need to get the AIFF into a format that adopts AAC to encode observe, if so, pick M4A - MPEG-four Audio (.m4a) from the list. AIFF to MP4 Converter supports most generally used widespread input and output audio codecs.The reply is as a result of Final Minimize Professional was invented to support only uncompressed audio information. There are solely three audio codecs that Final Cut helps: AIF (and AIFF), WAV (and Broadcast WAV), and SDII. All compressed codecs (like MP3 and AAC) have to be transformed into an uncompressed format earlier than you'll be able to edit them. For those who're utilizing Music Supervisor or Google Play Music for Chrome to upload music to your library, here are the kinds of files you possibly can add.Actually, we'll be satisfied when an online-based mostly converter can settle what we would like without a penny. Why should we pay for an extra third-social gathering AIFF to MP3 converter to make this conversion? The common sense tells us net-primarily based functions are simply affected by the net speed whereas third-occasion functions are not. Compared to the online device, a third-social gathering converter permits us to remodel audio recordsdata into different formats with none interference of the web connection pace sounds higher. The advice is to make use of Video Converter Studio.

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Flacon

How to convert WV to FLAC online with WV to FLAC Converter? In case your CUE file has multiple picture file then only FLAC splitting will work accurately - APE, WV and http://www.audio-transcoder.com/how-to-convert-wv-files-to-flac MP3 is not going to - it will be fastened later. Hey! The software program is superior. It took me so lengthy to find an audio converter that wasnt crammed stuffed with ineffective, superfluous features that I could not doable care about. Get Whole Audio Converter to transform complete albums in one go. YouTube MP3 is the best online YouTube video converter for altering movies to MP3, simply enter a YouTube URL, then it'll allow you convert YouTube to MP3. This system Pazera FLAC to MP3 Converter is accompanied by a particular version of the FFmpeg encoder, tailor-made to the needs of this system. Mais surtout, comme l'a si bien dit Hum a plusieurs reprises, le FLAC permet d'avoir une source de qualite irreprochable ou presque, et donc de se re-encoder a l'envi les pistes dans le format de son choix. Convert virtually all audio recordsdata from one audio format to another. HandBrake is another massively fashionable video and audio converter and includes a very useful bitrate calculator in an effort to control the standard of your transformed MP3s. How did I create thewv information: I had those tracks aswaw and easily converted them with dBpoweramp intowv. The only cause for doing this was to have the ability to tag them correctly with Mp3tag, like the otherflac and (some)mp3 music files I have, and have them included within the music library.

Great Software program, Works Perfectly. Great software program, low CPU and tons of easy choices. Now to fix the official assessment- batch mode works great, and likewise you can select your output bitrate. Simply press the red button in the Quality field, and you may choose between 32-320kbps. I've had the most success using WAV information, however I've additionally efficiently transformed videos and so forth to MP3. That is definitely certainly one of my go-to software instruments. 5 stars. This app is barely out there for iPhone and iPad , however the consumer interface is clean and easy to navigate. It imports greater than 30 file sorts, together with in style video formats, and exports to 10 of the most popular audio formats. The input and output file varieties aren't as comprehensive as the Swap app, however this app has a more consumer-pleasant interface. There's a file browser feature that makes it easy to find the audio file you need to convert and share your transformed file across well-liked social media platforms directly from the app. Versatile toolbox combines fix video metadata, GIF maker, forged video to TELEVISION, VR converter and display recorder. Break up CUE based WV audio: Right click on the WV audio to open the context menu, after which click on the "Break up by Chapter" possibility, wv/flac youtube converter for mac the WV file will probably be automatically split to tracks which will likely be listed just below the WV audio. Zamzar is a web based audio converter service that supports most typical music and audio codecs. Simply add FLAC file out of your computer or enter a URL to a web based file, after changing, it might output WAV, MP3 recordsdata and so on. Flacon extracts particular person tracks from one large audio file (in style for their high quality CUE, APE and FLAC) containing the entire album of music and saves them as separate audio recordsdata. Like MP3 earlier than it, FLAC is starting to be embraced by the music trade as an economical approach to distribute CD-quality-or-higher music, and it would not have the auditory problems of MP3s. FLAC is lossless. A converter that lets you extract audio information from CDs will help you save your audio in a more useful format. These are a number of the high options you will see that in most of the merchandise we've reviewed. But, when you have something archival, then FLAC is a no brainer. WAV and other uncompressed codecs are glorious for working on, so are used in enhancing instruments, but FLAC uses LOSSLESS compression, that means, by definition, there is no such thing as a difference within the sound when it is performed back, and is just saved in a more efficient manner. This implies you can retailer extra music on a hard drive. That's the only difference between FLAC and WAV. This is not a query of blind AB tests, it is purely mathematical. The FLAC specification states that the sound you play again from a FLAC file SHOULD BE EXACTLY THE SAME because the sound you set right into a FLAC file. Just drag and drop the audio recordsdata it is advisable to be converted instantly into this system, select an output format, and wv/flac youtube converter for mac then start the conversion. This WMV to FLAC converter can convert WMV (Home windows Media Video) recordsdata to FLAC (Free Lossless Audio Codec) audio. MediaHuman Audio Converter là ứng dụng chạy trên các thiết bị sử dụng hệ điều hành Mac OS X và Windows, hỗ trợ người dùng chuyển đổi các tập tin âm nhạc hoàn toàn miễn phí sang các định dạng MP3, AAC, WMA, FLAC, WAV, OGG hay AIFF hay Apple Lossless, cùng nhiều định dạng khác.