#''and immediately thought about your ocs'' didn't even have to say more than this i was immediately willing to answer these for you 😭

[roosterforme]

Covering the Classics Part 13 | Bob Floyd x OC

Summary: Confronting Kevin in California should have made Anna feel like she had the advantage, but nothing with him ever went to plan. As soon as Bob encounters Anna's husband for himself, he knows something isn't quite right.

Warnings: Angst, Kevin is a dick, bruises on Anna's arm, adult language, 18+

Length: 4300 words

Pairing: Robert "Bob" Floyd x Female OC (this story is part of the Beer Boy/Sugar and Jake/Jessica universe)

Covering the Classics masterlist. Check my masterlist for more!

"Did you delete her number yet?" Nat asked as she lifted her helmet and Bob's off of the shelf in the hangar where their gear was stored when they weren't flying. "Or are you trying to prolong the pain like some sort of sadistic artist?"

Bob flinched at her words, because she hit a little too close to home for his liking. It wasn't that he wanted to be missing Anna like this, but he had been writing a lot of poetry about her. He couldn't help himself. He hadn't posted any since the one about his bookshelf, but that didn't mean his computer wasn't full of it.

"I'm not trying to prolong the pain," he told his friend with a grimace. "I don't know what I'm doing."

She shoved his helmet down onto his head and told him, "I know she threw you for a loop, but either delete her number or give her another chance. Don't sit in this annoying gray area. I don't know why you guys insist on doing that shit. I tried for ten years to get Bradley to contact his wife, but he just flounced around in the gray area like an idiot instead. Don't be like him," she said firmly, pointing to where Bradley was looking down at his phone with a dopey smile on his face. He was almost definitely texting his wife if he looked like that.

Bob sighed. "Nat, I don't know if she wants me to give her another chance right now. She said she's going to deal with her husband, but I think she needs time."

Nat rolled her eyes and held her hands up in the air. "Why don't you," she said, waving her fingers like she was performing magic, "talk to her again?!"

Bob pulled his helmet off again, saying, "What would you suggest I say? She already knows I've had feelings for her for months. There's just a point where it becomes too much."

"You could tell her that even though it blew up in your face, she's the best lay of your life." Bob immediately wished he hadn't told her that. "Or that you'll still be around after she figures her shit out. I think the ball is in your court."

He was still blushing furiously and nowhere closer to knowing what he should be doing when they all got called to the tower, but he did smile when Nat snapped at Bradley to put his phone away. She probably needed to get laid more than Bob ever did.

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

The bus ride from San Diego to Carlsbad shouldn't take an hour and a half when it would take barely forty minutes to drive yourself. Not for the first time, Anna wished she had a car in California. That way she could get to Kevin faster. Kevin. Fucking Kevin. The man who was the reason she didn't have a car in California.

She needed to stay calm. If she could catch him while his guard was down and convince him to just sign the paperwork, she would be golden. But every time she thought about seeing his face, she started to panic. She had seen nothing except kind faces for months. The faces of her friends. The faces of her students. Bob's beautiful blue eyes always seemed to look at her with a smile behind them. Even now, after she met up with him for a little bit at the bookstore, his eyes were kind.

Her hands shook slightly. She needed to deal with Kevin so she could move on and never have to see him again. Then she could work on getting back to the people who didn't look at her like she was worthless. When the bus finally fought its way through traffic and made a stop near the hotel where the conference was being held, she sprinted down the steps and up the block. She had already memorized the map and knew she needed to find the grand ballroom, but when she got to the upscale hotel, she was sweaty and panting for breath, and even the doorman was looking at her skeptically as she slipped inside.

The lobby was crowded enough that she padded her way across the marble floor in her beat up sneakers, blending in well enough with the others. Signs for the National Neurological Physicians Association conference were plastered all over the place, and she had to keep from rolling her eyes. It was laughable that physicians from all over would come here to listen to Kevin blathering on and on about his specialty area of study. But when Anna paused to really think about it for a second, something close to cold fury started flowing through her veins, because she was the one who paid for that for him. She was the reason he was a speaker at this massive conference in the first place.

With renewed purpose, she picked up her pace and turned right past the elevator bank, following the signs that led her toward several people in monogrammed lab coats. The ballroom was in sight, and she was ready to push through the double doors when one of the men in a lab coat popped up in front of her. 

"Not so fast," he said, a forced smile plastered on his face. "You're late for the introductory speakers, and you haven't signed in yet."

"Oh," she said, scrambling to push her bag up on her shoulder. "Right." When he gestured toward a long table with some unclaimed name badges and information booklets, Anna's heart skipped a beat. She took a step closer, praying nobody would ask her for any sort of identification, and reached for the badge that said Dr. Angela Harmon, MD. She clipped it onto her shirt, realizing she was terribly under dressed to even try to pull this off, and then she picked up the booklet with Dr. Harmon's name on it as well. "Is this all I need?" she asked, tapping the name badge and praying this random woman didn't decide to show up right now.

With a nod, the man said, "Please try to find a seat at the back to keep disruption to a minimum. I believe Dr. Webber is still speaking, and you know how excited we all are to have him here."

Anna had to bite down on the inside of her cheek and take a deep breath before she could say, "So excited," through clenched teeth. "I wouldn't dream of being disruptive."

"Of course not," he agreed, finally smiling kindly. "Enjoy the conference, Dr. Harmon."

Carefully and as quietly as she could, Anna entered the ballroom to find hundreds of people sitting in rows of chairs listening to her worthless husband giving a presentation in a three piece suit. 

"But we already know recent attempts to update computational axial tomography are largely like someone trying to reinvent the wheel," he said with a charming smile, and the room hummed with amused laughter like everyone was in on some sort of inside joke. Anna's skin crawled as she carefully took a seat in the last row, praying Kevin hadn't seen her yet. If he was this well known and well regarded in his field, then he didn't need money from her manuscript. He was simply holding onto it to be an ass.

She had to listen to him for twenty more minutes after that. Nineteen too long in her book. His voice sounded light and carefree, and his smile was handsome and unassuming. Frankly he was putting on some sort of persona, and it was nothing like she was used to. But it wasn't until he started on a short presentation that Anna's attention was piqued, because it was then that she saw he was using the laptop that they used to share. The one she used to type up her book.

A soft sound escaped her as she stared longingly at it, wondering if her work was still there. He slammed the computer shut, and she was jolted back to reality as he said, "Once again, thank you all for being here for the next week. We have so many groundbreaking topics to learn about and some of the most renowned research physicians in the country sharing their expertise with us. Let's take a quick break and then dive right into new MRI techniques with Dr. Nunez."

There was an immediate round of applause, and Anna jumped to her feet, heart pounding so hard, it was making her nauseous. When she headed toward his cocky, smiling face, she realized Kevin was already surrounded by colleagues, shaking hands and laughing. And that was when he spotted her. They'd been on the phone just a handful of hours ago, but he looked shocked to see her here. She watched his sharp, gray eyes narrow in on her with a spiteful glare before he smoothed out his features into something neutral. And that's when she came to terms with the fact that he would know she was living in southern California. That's when she knew she needed to make this work.

"Anna," he said with absolutely no emotion as she cut in front of the person he was talking to. "What are you doing here?"

She swallowed hard, imagining Bob and her two friends were with her, urging her on, cheering for her to fix this. "I have something for you to sign," she told him as her voice shook. She took a step closer as she reached into her bag to pull out the folded paperwork and a pen.

"No," he practically growled under his breath, trying not to draw more attention to himself. "Why are you doing this here? I'm a little busy."

Anna wanted to laugh in his face. She was a little busy trying to get on with her stupid life, but that didn't stop him from disrupting her mission every day. "Just sign the divorce papers, Kevin," she demanded, but she sounded like a child even to her own ears. His eyes flashed with so much anger, she could barely breathe with him this close to her. He was built similarly to Bob, which was a frightening realization. Where Kevin always used his size as an intimidation tactic, Bob had never done that to her. She always felt safe around him. Right now she felt very unsafe around Kevin, even though they were literally in the midst of a crowd of people.

"Just sign it," she whispered, trying to push the document into his solid chest. It was unbelievable that at one time, she was in love with this man. It was crazy to think about how he used to tell her he loved her too. "Please, Kevin." He looked so angry right now, and Anna felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up in fear as the people behind her started whispering.

"Who is this woman? That's not Alyssa."

"Did she say divorce? Isn't he married to that other physician? The pregnant one?"

So Alyssa was pregnant. And nobody here even knew about Anna. It was like she didn't even exist. Like she had never existed to her husband. A mortifying little sob bubbled free from the back of her throat, and she looked up at Kevin as he said, "Let's take a little walk."

His hand closed around her bicep, and Anna wanted to yelp as he pulled her up onto the stage, past the podium, where nobody else would be able to hear them. The laptop was right there, and she considered trying to take it, but she'd never make it out of the hotel let alone back to her apartment with it. Instead she tripped along next to him until he had her where he wanted her.

"Are you out of your fucking mind?" he snarled. "Were you always this stupid? Or have you gotten worse?"

"Come on, Kevin," she pleaded, and he finally released her throbbing arm. "You don't need it. Look how well you're doing. You don't need my book."

He shook his head and ran his fingers through his hair as if he was trying his hardest to keep his composure. "You think you can come here and embarrass me in front of my peers? Mentioning our marriage like we still have one when you moved away?"

Her fist clenched at her side. "Our marriage didn't fall apart because I left," she hissed under her breath. "It fell apart because of you. And now your mistress is pregnant?"

Kevin sighed. "I understand that you're jealous, Anna. I really do, but I'm not signing anything for you."

She clenched and unclenched her fist. The desire to punch him in the face was so strong as her other hand shook with the papers grasped between her fingers. She was far from jealous, and he knew it. He wanted to get a rise out of her because he felt cornered. "I don't care what these people think about me," she whispered. "But you do. So just sign it."

He stood before her, tall and broad with his jaw set as he said, "There is no way in hell you have what it takes to intimidate me. Now get the fuck out of here, or I will have security remove you from the hotel for disrupting the conference."

She knew she didn't have any other choice. If she somehow got herself in trouble for being here, she didn't have the money to spend on more legal help. So she took a step backwards just as Kevin's hand flew up to pull the name badge from her shirt. "And you're obviously not Dr. Harmon. She has enormous tits, and I fucked her last year in Toronto. Now go." 

Twenty minutes later, Anna was back on the bus heading south toward San Diego, empty handed with tears in her eyes and a bruised arm.

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

"What happened to your pretty girlfriend?"

Bob looked up from his phone as he walked up his porch steps after a long run on Monday evening. He hadn't been sleeping well, debating reaching out to Anna again, and he was hoping the run would tire him out. But he should have known Suzanne would have her door open and her game shows blaring at this hour.

"Hi, Suzanne," he said, wishing he could just duck inside his own place without having to chat with her.

"I haven't seen her again in weeks."

Bob sighed and tipped his head back. "She's not my girlfriend. She never was."

"Not with that attitude," his neighbor mused under her breath.

"You have a good night, Suzanne." Bob swatted Sylvester away from his front door before heading inside and up to take a shower. He thought about Anna as he ran his soapy hands along his body. He tried not to, but she was on his mind a lot. When he climbed into bed, his skin felt too hot. He opened the window to let the late fall air in, but it did nothing to help him. He wanted to see her, even just to make sure she was still okay.

He reached for his phone, typed up a text, and then deleted it. "You sound so desperate for her," he groaned, trying again. But again he had to delete it rather than send it. Finally he settled on something simple.

Hey, I've been craving some peanuts from Chippy's. Feel like joining me for a bit tomorrow?

It sounded neutral enough. If she said no, he'd ask Jessica to make sure the ladies were checking in on her. If she said yes, then Bob could see with his own eyes if she was okay. He would also get to see with his own eyes how fucking beautiful she was, but that didn't matter as much, honestly.

He was just slipping into a daydream where Anna's husband divorced her tomorrow and never left the state of New Jersey again when his phone vibrated on his nightstand.

Anna Webber: Peanuts from Chippy's sound heavenly right now. I would love to join you for a little bit.

He exhaled as the cooler air finally met his skin, and he pulled his sheet over himself after he promised to meet her there.

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

Before she went down to the quad with her lunch bag, Anna adjusted her cardigan. She knew her sleeve was covering his bruised arm, but she felt naked all morning during her lectures anyway. She felt like her skin and the inside of her brain were on full display for everyone. She wondered when Alyssa was due. She wondered if Kevin slept with Dr. Harmon when he was in Toronto last June or last October. Perhaps both. She wondered how someone who was so full of shit could keep coming out ahead of her.

"Anna!"

At least her friends were still faithfully waiting for her at the weird looking tree. And at least Bob was making it a point to let her know she was welcome around him. She could hardly wait to go to Chippy's later. 

"Hi," she said, plopping down in between them on the bench, adjusting her sleeve one more time before pulling her sad sandwich out. "What's new in the world of science and mathematics?"

Almost immediately, she had a container of veggies and a homemade ranch dip in her hand while her friend told her about a fascinating math conference she wanted to go to next year in Philadelphia. Apparently the dates were just announced, and you had to be someone important to even get an invitation. Anna loved that her friend already knew she was going to go, but it made her dwell on Kevin and his conference which was still going on in Carlsbad.

"Oh!" Jessica said as she poured some potato chips on her already delectable looking sandwich. "Jake and I are going to Cabo next month! A much needed break after the term ends."

"I love that for you," Anna told her, feeling jealous in spite of herself. And that made her feel even sadder. She almost winced when her other friend wrapped her arm around her, inadvertently mashing her hand against the bruise from Kevin.

"Don't worry. Bradley and I aren't going anywhere for term break. I wanted to, but his favorite Grateful Dead cover band is playing right here in San Diego on New Year's Eve, and he absolutely can't miss it. That would be a crime." Her voice was dripping with sarcasm which made Anna laugh. "How's your week going?" she asked cautiously. 

Anna wanted to tell them all about going to the conference at the hotel. She wanted to tell them that she saw Kevin and left with less than nothing. She would tell them, but not right now when she only had a little bit of time before she had to give her Classics lecture. She didn't want to run the risk of arriving to the lecture hall with tears in her eyes. 

Instead she softly said, "I'm going to see Bob later. Just a quick visit to Chippy's for some peanuts."

Jessica was instantly vibrating with excitement. "That's great. I think you and he will have fun!"

"We will," Anna confirmed. Even though it was a little awkward, she'd had a nice time with him at the bookstore. She always did. Because he was kind and sweet and literally the opposite of everything that Kevin turned out to be. She just wished there was some reality in which she could feel his arms around her again. "We will."

The end of lunch came way more quickly than she wanted it to, and Anna found herself mentally regrouping to try to find another way to get her manuscript. She taught her last two lectures and graded a handful of essays, counting down the minutes until she could see Bob again. His blue eyes would be soft when he looked at her, and his words would be enough to make her feel better even if they only engaged in some small talk.

When she only had thirty minutes until she was supposed to meet him, she printed off sixty copies of the quiz she would need for tomorrow afternoon. Anna locked her office door behind her as she headed down to the teacher's lounge to retrieve the quizzes before someone moved them, never to be seen again. She learned her lesson after last time that if you didn't grab them right away, there was a good chance they'd end up in the trash. Then she would drop them off before going to meet Bob.

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

Since he was running early, Bob decided to just head to Anna's office and meet her there. He'd been so antsy to see her, he showered and dressed in his favorite jeans and tee shirt in record time after work. Even though he'd only been in this one academic building one time, he remembered exactly how to get to her office. Having an outstanding sense of direction just came with the territory for a WSO, but her hallway also smelled like fresh baked bread.

When he rounded the last corner, Bob skidded to a halt and ducked back behind the wall. There was a man about his age who was vigorously jiggling Anna's doorknob. "Anna. Open the door so we can talk," he said calmly even as he pushed his fingers through his hair in exasperation. Bob didn't know who he was, but he had a bad feeling, and that's when the man turned his head and spotted him.

Bob squared his shoulders to try to match the other man's height as he rounded the corner completely and asked, "Are you looking for Dr. Webber?"

The other man appraised him with cool gray eyes and smirked. "Let me guess. You're sleeping with her?"

Bob's heart lurched into his stomach as the color drained from his face. He knew this had to be Kevin. He knew it without confirmation, and now he didn't know how the hell he was supposed to respond. So he simply kept his mouth shut while the other man took a step in his direction.

"She really likes to act so high and mighty. Very hypocritical in this scenario," he muttered, making Bob's skin crawl. "I can't believe her."

Bob swallowed hard, trying to figure out why Anna agreed to go to Chippy's today if she knew Kevin was in San Diego. All he knew about was what she'd told him when she came to his house. Bob didn't think he should divulge too much to this man, so he simply asked, "What do you want from her?"

The answer was swift and felt like a punch to the gut. "She's my wife, and she's coming back to New Jersey with me where I can keep track of her. She doesn't belong here, and she needs to stop lying. So why don't you tell me what you want from her?"

His nostrils flared as his fingers curled into fists, and Bob had to take a few deep breaths before he said, "I just wanted to make sure she's okay."

Kevin crossed his arms over his chest and said, "She's nothing you need to be concerned about."

The uneasy feeling that started to fill him up spread through his whole body now, and Bob took a step backwards. Maybe Anna was already at Chippy's. Maybe she didn't know Kevin was here at all. He backtracked his way through the building as he started to panic. What if she did know he was here? What if she had played Bob and everyone else the whole time?

He would check for her at Chippy's. He made it all the way across the quad to a weird looking tree that was growing sideways when he froze again. It just didn't make sense. Anna said she hated Kevin and never wanted to go back to New Jersey, and Bob had no reason to believe someone else over her.

He started calling her phone, torn as to which direction he should head. Back up to her office? To Chippy's where they were supposed to meet up? She didn't answer. He started toward the bar, covering the few blocks at a brisk pace as he tried to call her again. He walked back and forth across that sticky floor through the clusters of students enjoying an after class drink before he was satisfied that she wasn't there. 

"Damn it, Anna. Answer your phone," he muttered as he ran back to her building and up to her office. The building was virtually empty at this hour, and now there was nobody in the hallway at all. He knocked on her door and called out her name, but he was met with silence. The kind of silence that just didn't feel right.

He felt like he was going crazy, running in circles both metaphorically and physically for this woman, and when he finally reached his truck, he had to wipe the sweat from his brow. Her apartment wasn't far from campus, and he didn't know where else to even look at this point. When he got there, he parked and tried to call her one more time before someone else who lived in the building simply held the door open for him.

"Thanks," he muttered, heading for the stairwell and taking the steps two at a time until he reached Anna's floor. And then her apartment. What he heard coming from inside made him want to rip the door from the hinges.

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

I hate Kevin. Hate. Him. I'm sorry, but he's still going to get worse. Just remember that Bob is a sweet cinnamon bun. Thanks @beyondthesefourwalls

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[mattodore]

I found this and immediately thought about your ocs….. would mind answering them someday? hope you don’t mind :33

https://www.tumblr.com/sapphire-stargazer/150875193320/the-ultimate-relationship-tag

Ultimate Relationship tag with Theo and Matthias

Disagreements:

1. Who is more likely to raise their voice? 

Theo. 

2. Who threatens to leave but never actually does?

Neither of them.

3. Who actually keeps their word and leaves?

…Theo.

4. Who trashes the house?

Neither of them.

5. Do either of them get physical?

Not with each other.

6. How often do they argue/disagree?

They disagree a lot, but it’s not often that disagreements turn into arguments. They bicker, if anything. Theo is kind of always at a defensive 100 and Matthias is at a steady 30… Matthias is very good at talking Theo down.

7. Who is the first to apologize?

Matthias. 

Sex:

1. Who is on top?

Matthias, mostly.

2. Who is on the bottom?

Theo, mostly.

3. Who has the strangest desires?

Matthias… respectfully.

4. Any kinks?

Too many.

5. Who’s dominant in bed?

Matthias in their twenties, Theo as they age.

6. Is head ever in the equation?

Matthias is between those legs and on his knees daily.

7. If so, who is better at performing it?

Matthias for technique, but Theo likes deepthroating and choking on it, so… if that’s your thing then… :)

8. Ever had sex in public?

Yes 💕

9. Who moans the most?

Matthias early on in their relationship. Theo tries very hard to keep himself quiet.

10. Who leaves the most marks?

Theo.

11. Who screams the loudest?

Theo.

12. Who is the more experienced of the two?

Matthias.

13. Do they ‘fuck’ or ‘make love’?

Theo thinks they fuck. Matthias thinks they become each other.

14. Rough or soft?

Rough.

15. How long do they usually last?

Multiple rounds. Matthias is a fan of control and delay…

16. Is protection used?

Always when they first start seeing each other, but down the line they’ll go without semi-regularly. It depends on Theo and whether or not he’s in a hurry. He has to have enough time for Matthias to clean him up properly afterwards.

17. Does it ever get boring?

I don’t think so. Matthias is a freak and they’re in love.

18. Where is the strangest place they’d have sex?

Matthias’s parents’ marital bed. No further questions.

Family:

1. Do your muses plan on having children/or have children?

No, both of them are firmly against having kids. But for the sake of not just skipping all these… let’s play pretend.

2. If so, how many children do your muses want/have?

In a world where they do want children… Theo would only want one but Matthias might want more. Two seems like a solid number. They’d only have one, though.

3. Who is the favorite parent?

It’d be Matthias. Kids really like him in general. It’s the way he talks to them.

4. Who is the authoritative parent?

Hm… I think Matthias. Matthias doesn’t believe in any sort of adult superiority over children—he guides, he doesn’t command. So there’s always going to be communication and an openness to his hypothetical parenting style. I think Theo would be almost too lenient in fear of being like his own parents. Better to just let Matthias take on that responsive caretaker role.

5. Who is more likely to allow the children to have a day off school?

Matthias. 

6. Who lets the children indulge in sweets and junk food when the other isn’t around?

Both of them. 

7. Who turns up to extra curricular activities to support their children?

Both of them. 

8. Who goes to parent teacher interviews?

Both of them, but if Theo can’t make it because he’s busy then Matthias will be there himself.

9. Who changes the diapers?

Both of them.

10. Who gets up in the middle of the night to feed the baby?

Matthias. Theo needs his sleep and Matthias would be awake anyway.

11. Who spends the most time with the children?

Matthias… he’d be a stay at home dad.

12. Who packs their lunch boxes?

Matthias.

13. Who gives their children ‘the talk’?

Matthias tries to go for it and Theo is like, “…I’m gonna stop you there.” Theo gives ‘the talk’ and keeps it PG.

14. Who cleans up after the kids?

Matthias.

15. Who worries the most?

Theo.

16. Who are the children more likely to learn their first swear word from?

Matthias. They’d copy after him while he’s talking to himself in Polish and would have no clue what he's saying... 😭 Theo would never swear in front of them.

Affection:

1. Who likes to cuddle?

They both do, but Theo craves physical reassurance more.

2. Who is the little spoon?

Theo. He likes to feel safe and held. 

3. Who gets naughty in the most inappropriate of places?

Matthias, but to be fair… Theo is really into PDA as their relationship progresses. He encourages it.

4. Who struggles to keep their hands to themself?  

When he gets more comfortable with his desires it’s Theo, for sure. 

5. How long can they cuddle until one becomes uncomfortable?

They’re disgusting. Hours and hours. I think Theo would be the first to pull away, though.

6. Who gives the most kisses?

Matthias. 

7. What is their favorite non-sexual activity?

Theo loves to play with Matthias’s fingers. Matthias loves bathing Theo.

8. Where is their favorite place to cuddle?

In bed.

9. Who is more likely to playfully grope the other?

When they’re further into their relationship, Matthias. He smacks at Theo’s ass all the time…

10. How often do they get time to themselves?

Depends on Theo’s schedule.

Sleeping:

1. Who snores?

Neither of them.

2. If both do, who snores the loudest?

3. Do they share a bed or sleep separately?

They share the bed, but they’re hardly ever asleep at the same time.

4. If they sleep together, do they cozy up together or lay far apart?

Close together. Theo will curl into Matthias’s stomach and Matthias will sleep with his head in Theo’s lap.

5. Who talks in their sleep?

Theo.

6. What do they wear to bed?

Theo wears boxers and socks, sometimes topless if Matthias is there but most likely in a t-shirt or tank if not. If Matthias falls asleep incidentally then it’s just whatever he’s wearing for the day, but if he intentionally lays down for sleep he’s either nude or just in briefs. 

7. Are either of your muses insomniacs?

Matthias 💕

8. Can sleeping pills be found by the bedside?

Theo uses them in the summer. Matthias uses them year-round but they don’t really work for him.

9. Do they wrap their limbs around each other or just lay side by side?

All wrapped up.

10. Who wakes up with bed hair?

Theo’s hair gets crazy since he’s a side sleeper and tends to unconsciously nuzzle down into his bed. I imagine one side of his hair is almost always sticking up.

11. Who wakes up first?

Matthias… since he was already awake anyway.

12. Who prepares breakfast in bed for the other?

Matthias. He’s the one who does the cooking in their relationship. He likes to show off as much as he likes to take care of Theo.

13. What is their favorite sleeping position?

Theo likes when Matthias reads to him and lets him wrap his arms around his waist and press his forehand to Matthias’s hip. Matthias likes sleeping on top of Theo with Theo’s hands carding through his hair. 

14. Who hogs the sheets?

Theo! He likes burrowing into bed whereas Matthias doesn’t like feeling smothered by fabric.

15. Do they set an alarm each night?

Theo has a lot of alarms on his phone for when he’s staying over at Matthias’s place but when he’s at his apartment he uses a clock he keeps by his bed.

16. Can a television be found in their bedroom?

No. 

17. Who has nightmares?

Both of them. Theo doesn’t remember his, though. He doesn’t even realize he has them.

18. Who has ridiculous dreams?

Well… I guess Matthias’s could be a little ridiculous if you’re, uh. Unwell.

19. Who sprawls out and takes up most of the bed?

Theo stays very contained while he sleeps and is often curled up into a ball, so it’s Matthias by default. 

20. Who makes the bed?

Matthias. Theo doesn’t believe in making the bed and hasn’t done it since he left his parents’ house... he's a little chaotic and messy. Matthias on the other hand likes for things to be neat.

21. What time is bed time?

Lateee. Theo passes out in the A.M. and Matthias doesn’t sleep regularly. 

22. Any routines/rituals before bed?

They brush and floss beside each other. Theo watches Matthias do his nighttime skincare routine. Matthias reads to Theo until he falls asleep or… uses other methods to help tire him out. Matthias hushes and hums to Theo when he starts having nightmares.

23. Who’s the grumpiest when they wake up?

Theo.

Work:

1. Who is the busiest?

Theo.

2. Who rakes in the highest income?

Matthias… on account of his dead daddy.

3. Are any of your muses unemployed?

Matthias 🥰

4. Who takes the most sick days?

Theo will force himself through anything, no matter how sick he is. 

5. Who is more likely to turn up late to work?

Theo would never be late if he could help it.

6. Who sucks up to their boss?

Theo isn’t a suck-up exactly but he’s… fawn response. You get it.

7. What are their jobs?

Theo is studying to become an investment analyst at his father’s company.

8. Who stresses the most?

Theo by default but also he’s, uh, always stressed.

9. Do your muses enjoy or despise their careers/occupations?

Theo feels physically ill even thinking about it. 

10. Are your muses financially stable?

Matthias is, but Theo is financially dependent on his parents. His parents are stable, but they use money against him.

Home:

(So many of these aren’t applicable because Matthias pays his staff to take care of these things… I'll just strike them out. I’m answering these for later in their relationship when they’re living together.)

1. Who does the washing?

Matthias will if he’s sent the staff away for alone time with Theo.

2. Who takes out the trash?

3. Who does the ironing?

4. Who does the cooking?

Matthias enjoys cooking for Theo personally. He wants to be the one to feed him.

5. Who is more likely to burn the house down just trying?

Neither of them. Theo’s taken care of his own meals since he was a child and Matthias is a very good cook.

6. Who is messier?

Theo, easily.

7. Who leaves the toilet roll empty?

Theo.

8. Who leaves their dirty clothes on the floor?

Theo.

9. Who forgets to flush the toilet?

Neither of them unless Theo is intoxicated in some way.

10. Who is the prankster around the house?

Neither of them.

11. Who loses the car keys when it comes time to go somewhere?

Matthias is the only one who drives but he doesn’t lose things, like, ever… he has scary good memory.

12. Who mows the lawn?

13. Who answers the telephone?

Theo uses his cellphone. Matthias has one as well, and the landlines at his place(s) are normally answered by staff.

14. Who does the vacuuming?

15. Who does the groceries?

16. Who takes the longest to shower?

Theo, so long as he’s not in a hurry. He’ll be in there for forty minutes at a time just letting the hot water ease all the tension and soreness in his body.

17. Who spends the most time in the bathroom?

Matthias. He primps and preens. Turns this way and that. He’s vain.

Miscellaneous:

1. Is money a problem?

Not even close.

2. How many cars do they own?

Matthias owns two.

3. Do they own their home or do they rent?

Separately Matthias owns his own places and Theo rents his apartment (…his parents are paying that rent, to be clear).

4. Do they live near the coast or deep in the countryside?

Coast.

5. Do they live in the city or in the country?

City.

6. Do they enjoy their surroundings?

Theo doesn’t think about that. Matthias likes where he’s at. 

7. What’s their song?

If I’m the one picking it, then it’s Putting the Dog to Sleep by The Antlers.

If it’s their pick, then it’s Miroirs: III. Une barque sur l'océan composed by Maurice Ravel. Matthias occasionally plays it low to help Theo sleep. It takes Matthias a bit to notice it, but Theo doesn’t have nightmares as often if there’s soft music playing.

8. What do they do when they’re away from each other?

Theo attends classes, studies, sees his parents, goes to networking events, parties at clubs. 

Matthias visits Imani, spars with Sehyuk, throws parties, bird watches, reads in his personal library.

9. Where did they first meet?

…Matthias’s home.

10. How did they first meet?

Spoilers 😁

11. Who spends the most money when out shopping?

Matthias.

12. Who’s more likely to flash their assets?

Not intentionally, but Matthias.

13. Who finds it amusing when the other trips over?

Theo. He likes when Matthias kind of breaks character.

14. Any mental issues?

15. Who’s terrified of bugs?

Neither of them.

16. Who kills the spiders around the house?

Theo kills them, Matthias pays them no mind. 

17. Their favorite place?

They like being at Theo’s apartment together.

18. Who pays the bills?

Matthias pays. 

19. Do they have any fears for their future?

Theo is all fear. Matthias doesn’t have a care in the world… he should, though.

20. Who’s more likely to surprise the other with a fancy dinner?

Matthias.

21. Who uses up all of the hot water?

Theo.

22. Who’s the tallest?

Matthias is 193cm and Theo is 173cm.

23. Who’s more likely to just randomly hop into the shower with the other?

Matthias.

24. Who wanders around in their underwear?

Matthias. COVER THEM UP 💥

25. Who sings the loudest when singing along to the radio?

Theo with the help of alcohol. Matthias will sing along with him to make him smile wider.

26. What do they tease each other about?

Matthias teases Theo a lot but it’s mostly just during sex because he’s evil. Theo doesn’t really tease Matthias… it’s more like he’s a little mean.

27. Who is more likely to cringe at the other’s fashion sense at times?

Neither of them. They like how they dress.

28. Do they have mutual friends?

Not at first. Theo does end up getting close to Imani after dating Matthias for a while.

29. Who crushed first?

Matthias.

30. Any alcohol or substance related problems?

Theo has substance abuse problems.

31. Who is more likely to stumble home, drunk, at 3am?

Theo.

32. Who swears the most?

Theo, probably.

#river dipping #asks #anonymous #oc extras #theodore doe #matthias evanoff #a burning house to live in #echthroi #nsft #<- sort of #''and immediately thought about your ocs'' didn't even have to say more than this i was immediately willing to answer these for you 😭 #spent yesterday night rewatching the passenger for the umpteenth time and wrote all these out :)<3 #i didn't give my usual detailed answers but if there's anything you want me to talk more about #just let me know and i can go a little more in depth with my response #i have so many asks to answer still……… i’m sorry 🧎

[chuluoyi]

UNHOLY MATRIMONY — 13

✩°｡ ⋆ seize your happiness

- fushiguro megumi x oc/reader - oc/reader's character name is hara sena, pronouns still refer to “you” and i won’t mention it often—just for the sake of aesthetic rather than repeatedly writing "y/n"

in another life, in which fate is still screwing his life over, Fushiguro Megumi finds himself in an arranged marriage―with you.

genre/warnings: arranged marriage au, angst, hurt/comfort

notes: i know i said this chapter will be the last... but apparently i still have a lot to say so... :') don't worry. chapter 14 will be the last chapter for real. pls bear with the angst one more time! and this turned out as a whopping 5k too oops

✩°｡ ⋆ unholy matrimony (masterlist) | chapter twelve : the most twisted curse <- previous ✩ next -> last chapter : to the one i love

What does happiness mean to you now?

When you finally woke up from your long dream and saw Megumi, you thought you were the happiest because for so long, you defined being with him was enough to make you forget all the shit you had been through in this horrible life.

"Sena...?" You heard him before you saw him. His voice cut through the blur that veiled your vision and you could barely discern his figure.

Megumi immediately got a hold of your arm, eyes wildly focusing on yours as you fluttered your eyes open. And when you blinked, his voice almost broke― "Sena!"

You felt rigid, like a broken doll. Megumi grasped your left hand tightly in his, intertwining your fingers.

"You woke up..." he muttered with a strained, choked voice. He was still out of focus but you could hear him very well. "You really woke up... Thank god..."

And through his voice, you recognize pain. Several things ran through your mind then. Why is he here? Is he safe?

What about Kurusu Hana?

Yet then all of them didn't seem to matter. He is here. Whatever happened, he is really here. He didn't leave you after all.

Still, a part of you suddenly harbored suspicions that he might abandon you once again, and so you didn't dare to hope, and you were even convinced of it when you felt a lump in your throat—

You clawed on the skin of your neck in utter panic when you found that no sound came out of your vocal chords. Megumi obviously noticed your distress― "Hey, what is it? What do you feel―?"

But then you were gasping for air and Megumi didn't think anymore. He hit the nurses' call button and held you as you trashed on the bed. "Sena, hold on―hold on! I've called the doctor! You're going to be okay, you hear me?"

The heart monitor connected to you was blaring, your whole body was now shaking, and you turned to him helplessly like a fish out of water, mouth gaping to let out any sound but unable to. You couldn't speak― it felt as if someone had stolen your voice and tightened a vice around your throat.

In that moment, Megumi caught the sheer terror in your eyes, and he bent over to pull you in an embrace. "I'm here. I'm here. Focus on me. Let's take a deep breath together―"

He coached your breathing, and gradually, you started to calm down. The heart monitor in your room no longer blared like a siren, and your fingers clung to his shirt with a grip stronger than you intended.

"You're okay..." Megumi whispered in your ear, disregarding his own thundering heartbeat by reassuring you. "You hear me, Sena? You're going to be alright."

Right in this moment, nothing else mattered. You got him back. And he was here, with you. You were certain you had never felt such a profound mix of happiness and relief in your entire life.

The doctor and several nurses then swarmed the room and took over to check on you. Dizziness washed over you—their voices merging into a cacophony that made your feel exhausted, and before you knew it you fell back asleep.

. . .

"After experiencing trauma, it's not uncommon for a patient to develop a post-traumatic mutism," the doctor explained, and Megumi was listening intently. "In most cases, the patient will regain their ability to speak after attending several therapy sessions, so you don't need to worry, sir."

Megumi let out a long sigh. "Is there any long-term side effects from this?"

"No. If the patient made full recovery, then I'd say there's a low chance of any further complications."

Once the doctor left the room, Megumi resumed his post next to your bedside once again, observing your sleeping face.

His heart broke under the weight of the reality laid to him. You had endured a trauma so severe after your duel with Naoya it left you mute. Ultimately, he saw it as a reflection of his own failure to protect you too―he was supposed to be the one to go against him. And yet, you...

Seeing you struggle to breathe like that was terrifying. As your chest heaved with every breath, Megumi felt a slight relief wash over him.

At least you're now truly safe. At least... nothing more can harm you here.

Megumi is always here.

Days after you first regained consciousness were slow and idyllic, and Megumi was always ready to attend to your every need. Though you supposed that he had to, as your guardian, since you had no one left.

With your voice still not returning, communicating with him proved to be a little challenging.

"Do you want some water?" he inquired, approaching with a glass and the pitcher in hand. You shifted your gaze away from the boring magazine the hospital had supplied and nodded.

"Here." Megumi handed you the glass and you took slow sips, before fixing your eyes on him.

It's been days. But neither of you had talked about what happened. Before now, the last you'd seen Megumi was when he left you during Zen'in's last hearing, when every bit of your dirty secret was exposed before him.

The memory of that day still made you shiver. The absolute hopelessness you felt, the way Megumi looked at you, his cutting words―

"Hey, Sena―" Megumi's got a grip on your shoulders, face contorting in worry. "What's wrong?"

You looked right into his dark green eyes, and saw nothing but concern. None of the Megumi who was so ready to cut all ties with you back then.

You were flattered that he was here, but still, you needed answers.

Reaching out for the notebook and pen Megumi had gotten you for your temporary communication, you scribbled your burning question.

Why are you here?

Megumi wouldn't admit it, but his heart sank upon reading your inquiry. The fact that you felt the need to ask it was just heartbreaking.

"You were badly injured. How can I not be here?" he responded, shoulder sagged. "I should be the one asking you―how could you have gone to Zen'in Naoya in the first place?"

Then it dawned to you. Your letter. He dropped everything to get you.

I have to end him with my own hands.

"Still! That's not―!" Megumi almost raised his voice before he caught himself. "That's not any reason for you to face him in a duel!"

He would have gone after you if I didn't.

"That's what should have been. You should've let him gone after me." There was something inside him that was this close from bursting and he was trying his hardest so it wouldn't. "At any given chance, you should've prioritized your safety first. And back then, even I―!"

I've left you. Megumi let out a sharp breath and looked away. He couldn't bring himself to say it.

You blinked at him, getting a sense of what he meant, and reached for your pen again.

I also did it for myself. He murdered my mom. I just wanted to end it with him.

"What do you― why do you have to―?!"

In that moment, Megumi felt as if he had been slapped in the face. He made you think that way. It was dreadful that you chose that self-destructive path because these unfortunate chains of events.

He was still grappling with the overwhelming guilt when you presented him with your next question.

Aren't we getting a divorce?

"No." His response was swift and resolute, his gaze boring straight into you. "Never."

You looked at him questioningly because you could still vividly recall the divorce papers you tearfully signed and left with Kurusu Hana. And seeing your confusion, Megumi thought he had to set it straight.

"It's my fault," he began. "I shouldn't have― I shouldn't have left you back then. And I should've never left you with the divorce papers. I wasn't in the right mind."

You looked down, pondering his words. Sure, he wasn't in the right mind―but at one point, that was what he wanted.

It still made you a bit uncomfortable.

Megumi held your shoulders again, sincere eyes piercing into your heart. "I regret it all. I really do. If I could turn back the time, I wouldn't leave you as I did."

Your eyes widened, wonderstruck, when a tear trickled down his cheek.

"You stupid." He brought you into his arms then, voice thick with emotion. "I'm sorry― I'm sorry for making you feel that you are alone. I'm sorry for leaving you. But even so, please, do not ever, ever put yourself in that kind of danger again. If something happens to you, I―"

His body was now trembling, and you put your hands around him. "How... could you scare me like that...? H-how could you just leave me with that letter... and tell me not to find you? Don't you know how frightened I was...?"

You didn't really know what you were feeling right now, feeling the dampness in your shoulder as he cried for you. Touched, sad, happy―all these emotions swirled within you at the same time. But still, the irrefutable truth was...

You are in love with this man. You were sure of it.

But...

"Me...gumi..."

Almost faint, but he heard it. Your voice that he had missed so much. Megumi pulled away from you, searching your face, and greeted by your soft smile.

You reached out for him and wiped his tears with your thumb. "Don't... cry..."

"Ah..." He pulled you into his embrace again, this time tighter. He buried his face in your neck, the ache in his chest almost made him burst as he shook with tears. "I'm so... so glad...! Sena, I―I'm really glad you're s-safe..."

And you are glad that he is too. That he is this concerned about you. That he loves you still.

. . .

And in the weeks that followed, you really thought you could sweep it under the rug and forget everything.

You thought that you wouldn't want nothing more now that he was back to you, as yours. You thought you'd be content with everything, even if you had to pick up the shattered remains.

But that wasn't the case. Not really.

Because every now and then, you still remembered how you betrayed him, and also the searing ache of heartbreak of when he left you.

...and so long as you still felt this way, you thought, it would be hard for you to be truly live the happy life your mother had wished for you.

Something about you had changed.

Megumi supposed it was the effect of the trauma you had experienced, and so he never brought it up―it wouldn't be fair to compare the current you with the you before the incident.

You two were back to living in his apartment after you were discharged. Your voice had come back, although sometimes you still experienced trouble in speaking. But despite it all, Megumi didn't really care, he was ready to weather it all with you.

His sense of guilt intensified whenever he caught you touching your throat. Thoughts like "I should've been there." or "I should have never let her so unprotected" popped up in his head more often than he would have liked.

Both of you had gone back to the way it was supposed to be. Neither of you should have any prolonged worries... After all, Zen'in fiasco, from the unethical mass massacre and Naoya's doing afterwards, had been sorted out by Gojo― both of you were essentially free of them now.

So... why do you still look like you are on edge?

"I'll make breakfast today," he said on one morning after waking up. "Stay on the bed longer. I'll call you when it's ready."

You still looked positively sleepy as you pulled up the covers to your face and it warmed his heart. You were adorable, yawning and mumbling, "Thank you, Megumi."

He openly smiled, and went to the kitchen. A simple breakfast of beef and bacon would do, he concluded, and that was what he did. Afterwards, he did call and lead you to have breakfast with him.

You were still rubbing sleep off your eyes when he said it―

"Look, it's done―"

Suddenly you stiffened. Perhaps you were hypersensitive because it was still morning, but the way he said it reminded you of his words from that day.

“It’s done. We’re done. I don’t want to see you ever again.”

You tried not to let it show, as you sat in front of him. You really did, because Megumi seemed particularly happy this morning, you couldn't bear to burst his bubble.

"I personally prefer scrambled eggs over sunny side up, so that's what I made," he explained, motioning towards the plate with two servings of scrambled eggs with hints of a grimace. "Are you okay with it? Do you want me to make something else for you?"

"Ah, no, no... it's fine," you replied almost instantly, forcing a smile. "Thank you."

His lips curved into a gentle smile as he said, "You're welcome. Let me get that for you."

And that was when it happened. His hand brushed against yours―and in response, you retracted your hand away too quickly as if scalded.

Megumi was stunned. "Sena...?"

He looked at you, and noticed the faint tremor that passed through your body. In that moment, everything around him crashed once again.

Why?

"Are you..." he was almost in disbelief saying it. "...afraid of me?"

"Megumi― sorry," you blurted out, not looking at him. "I―I don't feel too well. I'll have breakfast later... I'll go lie down for a bit."

Before Megumi could respond, you had already risen and exited the dining room. Adding to the weight on his already heavy heart, you didn't head to your shared bedroom but instead, to your old bedroom from before you moved in with him.

Suddenly he felt hollow. Memories of the past months flooded into his mind like a fast-paced train wreck.

Leaving you. No contact at all. Finding you in that pool of blood.

Everything that happened then, both of you couldn't possibly pretend that any of them didn't exist. At least, not anymore.

It has been awkward few days ever since then.

This gnawing feeling inside you― the ache, it's still there. The guilt. The nightmare. It's still there. You just want all of them to disappear.

You love Megumi and you want nothing more than being with him. But at the same time, you don't want to be with him― not like this.

They said let bygones be bygones, but it was impossible for you to pretend you were content and everything was fine while you were haunted by the nightmares of the day you made that deal with Gojo and Megumi leaving you with nothing to say for yourself.

To be happy, you need a clean slate. Or at least a time for yourself to think it over.

And so you reflected hard on yourself. What you wanted for yourself, what you thought was best for both of you.

You felt bad for Megumi too. He was visibly shaken ever since that day, and yet you were only there, feeling numb and at a loss for words, only able to mutter nothing more than apologies.

In the end, it boils down to this. You couldn't run from it any longer. Even though it'd most definitely bring both of you pain and sadness, you very well know that if you survived this, then...

"Megumi, I'm sorry for... the other day."

A week later, on that particular evening, he had just returned from headquarters and you met him at the living room.

Megumi looked startled, before flashing you a warm smile. "Ah, that again? Don't worry, Sena. It's fine." Glancing at the clock, he turned back to you. "Oh, have you eaten yet? I bought takeout on the way home."

His smile looked off. You tried to push the uncomfortable feeling in your chest away.

You steeled yourself and looked at him right in the eyes. "Megumi, I... I want to talk to you. Can you... sit here with me?"

It was hard to pull this on him. Really, really hard. But you swallowed the weight and bit down your lip when he took a seat in front of you.

"What is it?" he inquired with concern. "Don't be that tense... you can talk to me about it, alright?"

So be it then.

"I... think we should consider having a divorce."

Megumi never imagined he would find himself confronted with this very question a second time.

His first reaction was a blink. Then his heart sank to the pit of his stomach. And then a frown, before he exhaled sharply―

"Why?" his voice came out way harsher than he intended. For the life of him, he didn't understand why. He felt hurt. So hurt, in fact, you had no idea. "What is it that you're feeling this time? Why did you never tell me before this?"

"I―" Your voice faltered, caught off guard, yet your sincere eyes remained steady. "I'll tell you now."

Megumi could see how strained you were. You were clearly trying hard to keep yourself together. He wanted to hug you, but not before you explained yourself.

"Megumi, first of all... I want you to know that I love you." Your voice began to tremble. "I love you... and I'm sorry for using you and taking advantage of your feelings. And I'm happy being with you... That hasn't changed."

"I know it already." He clenched his fists tightly, wiling the pounding of his heart at bay. "Then why―"

"I feel like we've been avoiding this, I don't know―I'm sorry. In the end, it's more of a me thing―it's not your fault at all."

Megumi closed his eyes, suddenly he felt overwhelmed by it all.

"This guilt I've been carrying with me... and you..." you took a sharp intake of breath. "Maybe something is wrong with me― I kept telling myself that now you're with me and everything will be okay... I tried to convince myself, but then I can't forget the way you look on that day―"

"If it's that, then I'm sorry―"

"No," you quickly interjected. "You had every right to be angry. I don't blame you for that, Megumi. I'm not upset, not anymore... the problem is... it doesn't make it any less hurt."

Those words suddenly seemed to ring in his ears.

A sob broke finally through your lips. "And s-so long as I'm still not over all of this... then I-I don't think I... ―we... can be truly happy together."

God, why must your fate be this complicated?

Your unholy matrimony was not expected but falling in love was a blessing, and still, you ended up hurting each other. If you still feel hurt, then the same also goes for him―he too still carries the guilt for letting you face Naoya alone, regardless of how the circumstances justified his actions.

Megumi gritted his teeth in frustration. "And so, you suggest that we're better off having a divorce?"

You cried a little harder, unable to give him an answer.

“Can’t I do anything to make it better for you?” Megumi felt like a knife just lodged itself in his chest as he looked at your tear-streaked face. “I’ll do anything—everything you want me to do, just not this—Sena, please—”

“I… w-want to be happy, Megumi,” you managed to say amidst tears. “As much as I love you… I also want to love myself too… just the w-way my mother wanted me to.”

His heart was crushed, hearing you.

“I want us… to m-meet again in better circumstances,” you forced out the words. “With no one to force us or make us choose anything… a day w-when… we can freely choose each other…”

“I’ll always choose you.” Megumi’s voice wavered as he held back his own tears. “You don’t need to wait for that because I always will.”

A tearful smile formed in your lips in response. “Thank you, but I just… want more t-time… for myself, Megumi. To sort my life—my f-feelings... and everything else out.”

He let out a grunt, as the first of his tears slid down his cheek, before he squeezed his eyes shut and covered them with his hand. Pain throbbed in his head and chest. It was too much.

“Do you…” is this it? is this how it ends? “Can you… at least tell me… what you’re going to do from now on?”

Before, when he asked you this, you had no answer for yourself. But this time, you didn’t flinch.

“I want to go back to Kyoto,” you immediately replied. “I… want to start anew there. And honestly… I don't want to continue doing jujutsu any longer so... I think I’ll start a new business to get by.”

A new start. Leaving jujutsu sorcery behind. That life honestly sounds so nice to Megumi’s ears too he was tempted to follow your footsteps.

“That’s good.” His voice was thick and heavy, and you were on the verge of sobbing once again. “That’s… really neat..."

He didn't want this. He couldn't bear to let you go. He was desperate to find a way to make you stay with him.

"Is this... really, truly what you want, Sena?"

You sniffled. "...Yes."

It seemed as though the knife in his chest had been twisted and made his insides bleed. He still couldn't make sense of it. His vision kept blurring with tears.

But ultimately... you have to be happy. After all of shitshows in this screwed up life you two share... you deserve to be happy the most.

It was difficult for him, it pierced through the most tender part within him to utter these words—

"Then... let's do it. If it's want you want and you're sure of it... then I'm willing to let you go." Lies. All of them. "Just… —please just be well. Don’t get sick, don’t stay up too late, and don’t push yourself too hard—”

Your sniffles turned into sobs.

“And— know that…” Megumi willed himself so that he wouldn’t break down in front of you completely, taking a deep breath. “I want only the best for you. I love you— that’s why.”

You were sobbing again then, utterly heartbroken. You felt really bad, and yet you knew this was necessary.

As your parting words, you just wanted him to know—

"Megumi... f-for everything these past eight months… thank you," you managed to say, your voice choked with tears. "I’ve been happy with you… and I... I don’t regret meeting you even for a moment."

The knowledge that you did feel that way was like a consolation for him. Megumi was thankful too that he had met you.

. . .

. . .

. . .

And just like that, in that winter, your divorce was finalized, and you moved to Kyoto.

Six months later

The idea of a fresh start seemed appealing. Living in Tokyo had become suffocating. She reckoned it was finally time to move forward and put everything to rest.

“Oh, Hana-chan! Where are you going?”

Kurusu Hana put her duffel bag on the floor, looking back to find an elderly woman—her neighbor in this apartment building, as she locked the door to her unit one last time.

“Ah, granny,” she greeted with a friendly smile. “You aren’t usually awake this early.”

“Nevermind that— are you moving out, Hana-chan?”

“Oh yeah… Granny, haven’t you heard? The landlady is about to double the pay rent. It’s too much for this shabby place. I don’t want to live here anymore.”

“Really?! That conniving woman… I’ll talk to my husband and find another place soon too!”

“Hehe, please do.”

“Best of luck for you, Hana-chan.” The granny said. “I’ll miss having hotpots with you... You have been a really bright presence here.”

Something inside Hana lurched at her kind words. “Ah… me too, granny. Please take care of yourself too…”

Someone would miss her even when she was gone. This notion, simple as it was, once seemed impossible to Hana. Living all alone by herself all her life, she had grown accustomed to such thoughts.

And in her first time falling in love too… the man in question didn’t even return her feelings back.

But as they said… life goes on. Even when Megumi never looked at her way, then it just meant that they were never meant to be. She couldn’t wallow in this ridiculous one-sided love forever.

“Yosh! Hana, it’s okay! It’s going to be fine!”

As she stepped outside, she realized that summer was here already. And with that she was even convinced— with the new season came a new beginning, and this time, she was determined to find her own happiness.

“Ahh! It’s hot!”

Yuji stretched his arms in the air, scrunching up his face as he had a look around him. “Kugisaki, do you have any idea where we’re going next? Seriously, I can’t with all this temples.”

Nobara threw him a dirty look. “You are so useless. The very least you can do is look at the maps.”

“Well, it’s too hot here! And these view of temples and shrines are giving me goosebumps—”

“Hey! What you said counts as blasphemy you know! Kyoto is cultural heritage!”

Yuji then looked around. “Come to think about it… Where’s Fushiguro? Wasn’t he with us after checking in the hotel just now?”

“Ah, he said he wanted to go out a bit before we go to the exorcism site… He didn’t say where though.”

“Wha? Wait, we can’t go without him!”

[Nov 21] Megumi: Sena, have you arrived safely? I hope you’re not having a rough time. If you do, you can tell me

[Nov 23] You: hi megumi! sorry for not replying—i’ve been so busy with moving in here, it’s been hectic. and yes, i’m good here! :)

[Nov 24] Megumi: That’s good then. Well, take care

[Dec 10] Megumi: I’ve heard there’s an earthquake in Kyoto. Are you alright?

[Dec 10] Megumi: If you see this… Please answer me. I’m worried

[Dec 10] You got 8 missed calls from Megumi

[Dec 10] Megumi: Are you hurt? I’m trying to find a bullet train ticket to Kyoto but none are available

[Dec 13] You: gosh i’m so sorry for answering now! it’s been chaotic. internet and electricity are affected by the damage :(

[Dec 13] You: but no worries! you don’t have to come here, megumi! i’m fine! i evacuated safely and my building is still standing!

[Dec 13] Megumi: That’s a relief… Do you need anything? I can get you some things. Bullet trains to Kyoto will run again tomorrow, I can go there

[Dec 13] You: no no! really, thanks, i’m totally okay! most of buildings here are earthquake-resistant so don’t worry!

[Dec 13] You: still, thank you for worrying about me, i really… really appreciate it

[Mar 15] Megumi: It's been a while. Have you been well?

[Mar 16] You: hiii megumi! haha, you don’t have to be that formal, really. it’s been good here. cherry blossoms have bloomed, they’re so pretty!

[Mar 16] You: what about you? are you busy these days?

You had left everything behind in Tokyo—your life as jujutsu sorcerer, tears, nightmares, and sadness, or as much of it as you possibly could, at the very least.

Starting over was hard. You almost regretted it several times especially when the lonely nights were too much for you, or when earthquake shook Kyoto and left you reeling.

But at the same time, it brought you satisfaction. When you successfully opened your own small cafe just last week, it felt like all your efforts had finally paid off.

It felt good to stand on your own two feet. To do things you want. With no one to dictate what you should do. By all means, this is the dream life you've wanted... you just wished that your mother could’ve seen this too.

Spending time for yourself has been healing. And life is far better here, but still...

You miss Megumi. How could you not, especially when he occasionally sent you a text? You were touched that he was still trying to stay in touch at all, and also how he showed his concern for your well-being.

But it was now May... and he hadn't replied to your text since March.

You tried to brush it off. After all you got the divorce for this very reason. You wanted to regain your sense of normalcy again— "normal" as in before everything went down with Zen'in mess.

But perhaps someday, when you're ready, if he would still have you... then maybe...

Brushing off your thoughts and maybe, longing, you left your phone to attend new patrons when the bell to your cafe jingled.

Unbeknownst to you, after unconsciously waiting for him this long, your phone buzzed and its screen lit up with new notifications—

[May 3] Megumi: Today, I'm in Kyoto

[May 3] Megumi: I miss you, Sena. I really do

✩°｡ ⋆ next -> last chapter : to the one i love

🏷️ taglist

@moonmalice @hellothere9597 @qtnfer @firstplaidpeachnickel @waddlingwanderer @chilichopsticks @satorus-slut @dcvilxswish @lees-chaotic-brain @tojirin @bluebreadenthusiast @pandabooster @cole-silas @becsmarvel @giuli-in-earth @fuckimgenderfluid @haitanisrarity @kimura-uzuri i @bicchaan @lunavixia @stevenknightmarc @rory-cakes @sushisimp @sad-darksoul @iluv-ace @squidalapobre @hopeladybug @beyondmyownlittleworld @mrsyangsikmoa @kasumitenbaz @nothisispatrick300 @angrydaughter @lili-of-the-dream @kiki17483 @abcdenhb @l1n0m3 @darling006 @traacy-lin lin @akaashisbbgirl @luckily-gray @llearlert @desihopelessromantic @minazkidayi @extrology467 @en40p @zaamwa @rohanna19 @looeeevv @rzcnlb @celestedonut @hopeluna @primaverx @notsaelty @hakuwaii @skylerwhitwyo @luciiferslover @dinusawr

some of you can't be tagged bc of the settings! :(

i'm so sorry for repeated mentions, it's not showing in the tags and i'm trying to fix it :(

#fushiguro megumi x reader #fushiguro megumi x oc #jujutsu kaisen #jujutsu kaisen x reader #fushiguro megumi #jjk angst #jjk x reader #megumi fushiguro #fushiguro megumi angst #megumi fushiguro x reader #arranged marriage au #megumi x reader #jjk megumi #jjk fanfic #jjk imagines #series: unholy matrimony

[prismuffin]

so for my bday ficcc i have two ideas

idea number one: male reader is based on my demon oc. basically personality wise they very sassy and flirty. kinda a bitch ass ho. idc who u pair it with imma be real. it could be ghost, soap or or price. or like batman. he summons them n junk

idea number 2:

polycule ghost, soap x male reader. male reader is a smart dumbass. like they’re an airhead all of the time minus work. they’re a colonel but honestly dumb as shit outside of work. obvious as hell.

if u want more ideas i can tell u love u mwahhhhh

A/n: Hey Webbie!! Happy birthday!! (Or late birthday depending on when I get this out) decided to go with option 2 kay? also i didnt know how to end this- fight me-

Idiot Boyfriend

Poly!GhostSoap x airhead!male!reader

( summary: Ghost reflects on how he fell in love with two dumbasses )

Warnings?: swearing, mentions of alcohol, talks of guns and violence, reader being a dumbass

!-!more under the cut!-!

Ghost sighed as he watched you chase Gaz around base. He'd apparently tickled you which you saw as a threat, immediately taking off to get your revenge. Hearing a laugh beside him Ghost turned, seeing an amused Soap who was also watching your silly antics. "Go get 'em sweetheart!" He cheered you on and Ghost groaned. "Don't encourage 'em Johnny," "Why not? This is a funny sight," He smirked, sitting next to Ghost, his head instinctually falling onto the taller mans shoulder. Ghost rolled his eyes as he watched you trip, Gaz stopping to laugh at you. "Oh damn, think he's alright Lt?" Soap asked only to get silence as a response. "Lt?" Ghost had heard him, though he was too busy wondering why he was even with such an airhead anyway. He'd already been dating one headache why did he feel the need to worsen his pain with another.

When he'd first met you he was already with Soap, their relationship being monogamous at the time. Though that was more of a suggestion than set in stone. Maybe it was the fact that the first time he'd met you- you were choking some guy out with the power of your thighs alone that'd intrigued him. Either way you'd easily clicked with Soap after meeting him, and after exchanging war stories and silly jokes with the two men all day they both knew at the end of it that they liked you. Initially, it wasn't going to go anywhere but Soap was the one who suggested adding you to their little relationship. Ghost was hesitant at first, not because he didn't like you but because he wasn't sure if you liked him. You'd obviously liked Soap, romantically or not you both clicked immediately, but for some reason for Ghost it was so hard to read you on your feelings for him. Sure you were polite out of respect but could it ever go deeper than that? He knows sometimes his dark humor can fall flat and his stoic tone doesn't help either. Soap had reassured him that he had a charm that couldn't be beat, but of course he'd say that. You and him clicked so easily, you both told terrible jokes and fucked around when you shouldn't. You both had a mutual love for explosives and beer and karaoke and had this natural bond he could only wish for with you. After talking about it they sort of dropped it for a few weeks but it was clear that Soap had liked you and he could understand why. Especially after what he considers the true turning point for him. It was a pretty normal night on base, everyone asleep in their barracks, everyone except Ghost. He often had nights like these where sleep was the last thing on his mind, memories plaguing his brain as he fought desperately to think of anything else. He would wake up Johnny, tell him about the bad thoughts, but he really needed the sleep after the last mission they'd been on. So he thought to deal with it alone, going into the kitchen to hopefully find a stashed bottle whisky to drown his sorrows for the night. Only upon entering he found you, leaning against the counter, pouring yourself a freshly brewed pot of coffee. You both locked eyes, a mutual understanding flooding you both as you held out the warm pot, asking silently if he'd join you. He, of course, was hesitant but had nothing better to do. So he grabbed a mug from the cabinet and watched as you poured his coffee, black.

You'd both sat in silence for some time before you asked quietly why he was up. He told the truth, nightmares, but didn't go into much detail understandably. You hummed, replying with the same answer when he'd asked you a similar question. Your jokey manner was all but lost in this moment, at least for a second. You'd asked him to talk about his nightmares with you, saying that it'd be better than him just holding everything in all the time. He didn't expect it, but you were so easy to talk to. Just the smallest amount of convincing and he did what you asked. That night you both shared the stories of your nightmares with each other. You comforted him, gave him advice and told him things he definitely needed to hear. Him ranting only got the ball rolling as he found himself sitting on the common room couch with you simply talking about anything and everything, your company in the now silent base was warming. You'd even laughed at his horrid jokes, throwing back a few that he's now added to his growing roster of dark humor. He hadn't felt like this since...well...Johnny. As the sun rose and light cracked through the curtains he couldn't help but feel a little glad that he'd gotten to spend time with you. That night alone showed him he did have a natural connection with you. You understood him in ways he didn't even think you could. He found you also shared his insomnia episodes, his love for dogs and specific guns, his respect of stealth and going at it alone on missions. When he saw Soap later that day he nonchalantly added that he's now considering asking you to join their relationship, and he couldn't help but replicate the smile on Soaps face.

One which he held now.

"Lt?" Soap glanced up at Ghost, noticing the slight crinkle in his eye and the small indent underneath his cloth balaclava. To anyone else he'd look completely normal right now, but Soap knew that those miniscule signs meant that he was smiling. Smiling at you as you groaned on the floor. Closing his eyes, Ghosts shoulders bounced in a silent laugh before he moved to stand, Soap following him with his eyes before realizing where he was going, and moving to go to you too.

Rolling on your back, you huffed, the cold floor on your rear as you stared up at the blinding white flood lights that shone down on you. Only they were blocked by a shadow, then two, the smiling faces of your boyfriends stood over you. "Need a hand sweetheart?" Soaps Scottish accent filled your ears and you couldn't help the small smile that found it's way to your face. Reaching out with both hands you grabbed onto one of each of theirs, laughing as they hoisted you up with ease. You felt Ghost pat your back before his arm wrapped itself around you. Looking at him you noticed the small smile beneath his mask and reciprocated his action, now committing to a full side hug. You just held each other there before Soap joined in, now you held both of your boyfriends in your arms. You rocked back and forth between them, your chase with Gaz momentarily forgotten as you accepted this newer task of being held. Only momentarily though as Gaz came back into view you suddenly remembered what you were doing before this, your glare being set on his form. "Garrick!" You yelled and he ran again, you moved to chase him but the hands of ghost didn't seem to want to let you go. "No you don't, come on, we're leaving." "Awww but Simon come on-" you groaned, "I'm starving." He stated bluntly, practically dragging you away from the scene as Soap laughed at your pouting face, following the two of you to the kitchen. Ghost simply listened as you began ranting about some random show that you and Soap had been watching, allowing you to completely forget about the Gaz thing as you got distracted by your own thoughts again. He watched as you and Soap recounted a particular episode that seemingly got on your nerves as it ended on a cliff hanger, silently smiling once again as he relished in the company of his two idiot boyfriends.

----!----

( HAPPY BIRTHDAY WEB I HOPE YOU LIKE YOU BIRTHDAY FIC SEXY !!! )

Thanks for reading! Have a great day/night!!

My requests are CLOSED !!

See my DIRECTORY for upcoming fics!

Masterlist

#prismuffin #“cause I'm an idiot and I'm ya boyfriend yes I am” #x male reader #male reader #simon ghost riley #john soap mactavish #ghostsoap #ghostsoap x reader #ghostsoap x male reader #cod mw2 x reader #cod ghost #cod soap #ghost x male reader #soap x male reader #simon ghost riley x male reader #john soap mactavish x male reader #john soap mctavish x male reader #simon ghost riley x reader #john soap mactavish x reader #mw2 x reader #cod mw2 imagine #cod mw2 x male reader #simon riley x male reader #simon riley x reader #poly ghostsoap #poly ghostsoap x reader #poly ghostsoap x male reader #soapghost #ghost x soap x reader #ghost x soap

[nayziiz]

Stay | LN4

Summary: A new romantic prospect puts things into perspective in the best and worst ways possible.

Pairing: Lando Norris x OC (Cara)

Warnings: Angst

Masterlist

CHAPTER 6

The music was louder than Cara expected when they entered the club. Maya immediately dragged Lando over to the bar to get drinks, and Max and Pietra went on a mission to find the private booth Maya had apparently arranged. Cara hung back for a minute and surveyed the scene. It wasn't her go-to place regardless of the country she found herself in. She sighed, defeated, knowing she would be spending most of her night being miserable.

Trying to make the best of it, Cara wandered over to the bar, deciding to get herself a drink. She squeezed through the crowd and managed to catch the bartender's attention, ordering a simple gin and tonic. As she waited for her drink, she couldn't help but notice Lando and Maya at the other end of the bar, Maya clinging onto Lando's arm as they laughed together.

Cara felt a pang of something she couldn't quite place—jealousy, maybe? She quickly dismissed the thought, reminding herself that she and Lando were just friends. Still, it was hard to ignore the growing discomfort she felt every time she saw them together.

“Here's your drink,” the bartender said, breaking her train of thought. She thanked him and took a sip, letting the cool liquid calm her nerves. She turned away from the bar and tried to spot Max and Pietra, hoping to find some solace in their company.

After a few minutes of searching, she finally saw Max waving her over from a corner booth. She weaved through the throng of people, grateful to finally sit down and escape the chaos for a bit. When she reached the booth, Pietra scooted over to make room for her.

“Never really been your scene, huh?” Max observed, a knowing smirk on his face.

“Not at all. But hey, at least I've got you guys to keep me company,” Cara shook her head, managing a small smile.

“Don't worry, we'll make sure you have a good time,” Pietra assured her with a pat on the shoulder.

“See, she looks so out of place,” Maya whined when she looked back at Cara. Lando followed her eyes and found Cara slowly moving towards Max and Pietra.

“Cut her some slack, she's trying,” Lando countered, a hint of frustration in his voice.

“Why do you defend her so much?” Maya asked, her tone a mix of curiosity and annoyance.

“Because she's one of my best friends, Maya.” Lando sighed, rubbing the back of his neck as he tried to find the right words.

“It just feels like she's always around, and I don't get why you prioritise her so much.” Maya pouted, clearly unsatisfied with his answer. Lando took a deep breath, trying to stay calm.

“Cara is important to me, just like Max, just like Pietra. We've been through a lot together. It's not about prioritising; it's about recognizing the people who genuinely care about you. You should give her a chance, get to know her better.” Lando continued. Maya rolled her eyes as she shifted closer to Lando, linking her arm through his.

“Baby, she's not like us, she doesn't fit in,”  Maya retorted, her tone dismissive.

“Like us? What does that even mean?” Lando asked, baffled by Maya's comment. “Alright, if you want to see me defensive, keep saying stuff like that.”

“Calm down, Lan. I'm just sharing my opinion,” Maya shrugged, trying to downplay the situation.

“No, you're being mean towards her, and that's not cool, Maya. She's only been nice to you,” Lando continued, his voice firm.

“Whatever, Lan. I just think you should focus more on us.” Maya rolled her eyes at him once more. Lando shook his head, feeling a growing frustration.

“It's not a competition, Maya. If you can't accept my friends, then this won't work.” Lando informed her. Maya stared at him, a mixture of anger and hurt in her eyes. “Give her a chance. You might actually like her if you got to know her.”

Maya didn't respond, instead turning her attention back to the bar. Lando sighed, knowing that this was far from over, but determined to stand by his friend.

Cara spotted Lando and Maya in an intense conversation from their reserved booth where she sat with Pietra and Max, who were also chatting away. She nudged Pietra, drawing her attention to the scene unfolding at the bar. Pietra turned to look at what Cara was indicating.

"Trouble in paradise?" Pietra asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Who knows?" Cara sighed again, feeling a pang of discomfort at the sight.

Max, picking up on the shift in conversation, turned his attention to the bar as well. "Looks like things are getting heated over there."

Cara nodded, taking a sip of her drink. "Yeah, it does."

Pietra leaned in closer to Cara. "You okay?"

Cara forced a small smile. "Yeah, just...it's been a weird night."

Max gave her a sympathetic look. "Weird how?"

Cara hesitated, glancing at Lando and Maya again. "Just...Maya's been making things a bit uncomfortable. I feel like I'm in the way."

Pietra put a reassuring hand on Cara's arm. "You know you're not in the way, right? You're part of this group, and we all want you here."

Throughout the night as the drinks flowed, Cara loosened up and even ended up on the dancefloor. She danced with some girls for a while, and then the men started approaching her. Lando ground his teeth, his jaw locked, as he watched her dance against a new man every few minutes, a goofy smile plastered on her face as she did so.

He could feel the frustration bubbling inside him, his protective instincts flaring up with each passing moment. He knew Cara was just trying to have a good time and shake off the evening's earlier discomfort, but it didn't stop the surge of jealousy and concern he felt seeing her surrounded by strangers.

Maya noticed Lando's attention was securely on Cara and nothing else the second she went on the dancefloor, so in a huff, she left the club without saying goodbye to Lando. She felt a sting of betrayal and disappointment as she pushed through the throng of people, heading for the exit. Her dramatic departure went unnoticed by Lando, who was too engrossed in his moment with Cara to see anything else.

Lando was able to contain himself until he saw another new man approach Cara. The man slid in behind her, grabbing her hips as they swayed, and pressed himself right against her. She didn't move away from him, not even when his hands travelled around to her waist and later to her butt and thighs. Lando's blood was boiling as he stood and watched.

Max, noticing Lando's agitation, nudged him. "You okay, mate?"

Lando forced a tight smile. "Yeah, just... keeping an eye on things."

Max followed his gaze to where Cara was dancing, understanding dawning on his face. "She's just having fun, man. Let her enjoy herself."

Lando sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I know, I know. It's just hard to watch."

Pietra, joining the conversation, leaned in. "Maybe you should go dance with her?"

Lando hesitated. "I don't know if that's a good idea."

Pietra gave him an encouraging smile. "It might be exactly what she needs. Besides, it's clear you're not happy just standing here."

He walked through the crowd to where she was. The man dancing with her had disappeared, and Lando took the opportunity to wrap his arms around her waist from behind to see what her reaction would be. Instead of pushing his hands away, she rested her hands on his and intertwined her fingers with his. She pressed her body against his and swayed to the beat of the music. She rested the back of her head against his chest and turned her head slightly so she could just, ever so slightly, brush the tip of her icy nose against the skin of his neck.

“You know it's me, right?” Lando asked, his voice soft yet tinged with a hint of amusement.

“Uh-huh,” she hummed, warm from both the alcohol and by Lando’s sudden presence behind her.

“I thought I'd join you,” he replied, trying to keep his tone light. “Looks like you're having fun.”

"I am. But I wouldn't mind a familiar face to dance with,” she admitted, a slight flush to her cheeks. 

“Well, here I am.” He grinned, relieved.

Lando and Cara continued to dance, their laughter and movements synchronised. The energy between them was palpable, drawing a few curious glances from onlookers but mostly just blending into the vibrant, carefree atmosphere of the dancefloor. Max and Pietra, seated in the booth, observed the scene with satisfaction.

“Looks like they’re finally letting their feelings take control,” Max commented, leaning back with a contented smile. Pietra nodded.

“It's about time. They both needed this.” Pietra agreed, hinting at all of the months and trips they spent watching Lando and Cara dance around each other and their feelings.

After their night at the club, the unexpected intimacy they shared on the dance floor lingering in their minds, Cara and Lando found themselves back at the apartment. The atmosphere was filled with a mixture of awkwardness and anticipation, as both of them tried to process the shift in their relationship. They had reversed roles for the evening: Lando took the couch, and Cara took his bed.

Cara lay in Lando's bed, surrounded by the scent of him that clung to the sheets and pillows. She turned over and buried her face into his pillow, breathing in deeply. His scent was comforting, but without him being close, it felt suffocating and incomplete. The bed felt enormous and empty without his presence. It was cold. Too cold. She pulled the blankets tighter around herself, trying to find some semblance of warmth, but it was no use. The events of the night replayed in her mind, especially the moment on the dance floor when she had felt so safe and connected in his arms.

In the living room, Lando tossed and turned on the couch. The cushions felt foreign and uncomfortable, a far cry from the familiarity of his bed. The eerie loneliness of the room gnawed at him, amplified by the silence of the early morning hours. He stared up at the ceiling, his thoughts consumed by the feel of touch and the way she had fit so perfectly in his arms. He couldn't shake the feeling of emptiness that filled the room without her presence nearby.

Both of them were restless, struggling to find comfort in their new sleeping arrangements. The distance between them felt greater than the physical space that separated the couch from the bedroom. They were both acutely aware of each other's absence, and it weighed heavily on their hearts.

His bedroom door creaked open, and Cara stood leaning against the doorframe, watching Lando toss from one side of the couch to the other. The sight of him struggling to find comfort tugged at her heart. She could see the unease etched on his face, and it mirrored her own feelings of restlessness.

“Not comfortable?” she whispered as she approached him, halting his movements.

“Something like that,” he admitted, sitting back with a sigh. He looked despondent, the weight of the night’s events clearly still on his mind. Cara took a seat beside him, their shoulders brushing. “Why are you still up?”

“I’m not entirely sure,” she confessed, pulling her sweatshirt’s sleeves over her hands. The fabric provided a small comfort against the cold, but it did nothing to quell the chill she felt inside.

Lando sat there, his heart pounding against his ribcage like a caged bird desperate for freedom. His mind raced, a flurry of doubts and uncertainties clouding his judgement. Was this the right moment? Would she think he was being too forward? A myriad of questions bombarded his thoughts, threatening to drown out the faint whisper of courage that urged him forward.

Yet, amidst the chaos of his mind, there was a flicker of something different—an ember of spontaneity and daring that dared to defy his apprehensions. It was that tiny spark that propelled him forward, urging him to take a leap of faith into the unknown. For a brief moment, he hesitated, his lips parting as if to speak, only to falter at the brink of uncertainty.

But then, with a surge of determination, he silenced his doubts and let his words spill forth into the space between them.

"Fancy a cuddle?" he suggested, the words hanging in the air like a delicate promise waiting to be fulfilled.

In that instant, time seemed to stand still, the world holding its breath as they stood on the precipice of possibility. Would she laugh it off, dismissing his offer with a gentle smile? Or would she embrace the spontaneity of the moment, taking his hand and diving headfirst into the unknown?

As the blush bloomed across her cheeks, Lando felt a surge of anticipation mingled with a hint of vulnerability. He watched her, his heart pounding in his chest, wondering what her response would be. For a moment, she seemed to retreat within herself, her gaze flickering away from his as if grappling with an inner turmoil.

Then, just as he began to fear that his suggestion had been too bold, she surprised him. With a deep breath, she rose from her seat, her hand extended towards him in a silent invitation. It was a gesture filled with a quiet determination, a silent affirmation of trust and curiosity.

Lando felt a rush of relief flood through him as he accepted her hand, letting her lead him back to his room. The air between them crackled with anticipation, the weight of their unspoken feelings hanging heavy in the space around them.

Once inside, he closed the door behind them, the sound echoing softly in the silence. He watched as she made herself comfortable under the covers, her movements graceful yet tinged with a hint of uncertainty. It was a simple act, yet it spoke volumes—a silent agreement to embrace the intimacy of the moment, to explore the connection that pulsed between them.

As Lando slipped out of his shirt, the fabric falling away to reveal the contours of his frame, it felt like shedding a layer of inhibition, a symbolic gesture of vulnerability and intimacy. It was a routine he had grown accustomed to, a small act of comfort and familiarity in the quiet moments before sleep claimed him.

With a silent grace, he joined her beneath the covers, the warmth of the blankets cocooning them in a world of their own making. And as he settled beside her, he felt a sense of rightness wash over him—a feeling of belonging that transcended words or explanations.

She welcomed him into her embrace with a natural ease, her body fitting against his like two pieces of a puzzle finally finding their perfect match. He could feel the gentle rise and fall of her breath against his neck, a soothing rhythm that lulled him into a state of contentment.

Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, he pulled her close, relishing the sensation of her skin against his own. It was a simple gesture, yet it spoke volumes—an unspoken promise of protection and comfort, a silent declaration of love and devotion.

With her hand resting on her exposed stomach, he felt a surge of tenderness well up within him.

“Tell me something nobody else knows about you,” Lando quipped in an attempt to distract himself from the feeling of her body against his.

“I am absolutely terrible at skiing,” she whispered with a small chuckle.

“Is that why you didn’t come to Finland with us?” he realised.

“Partly, yeah,” she chuckled. “I did have to work, too.”

“I can teach you, you know, how to ski,” he offered.

“You’d be teaching a wall how to walk, not going to happen,” she countered.

“Then it’s a good thing I’m a great teacher. Just look at how great you are now at karting,” Lando teased with a knowingly smile.

“Alright, fair enough,” she conceded, chuckling slightly at his cockiness.

The excitement of their banter dissipated into the tranquil embrace of the night as she nestled her head into the curve of his neck once more. Her breath, warm yet tinged with a hint of chill, ghosted across his skin, sending shivers down his spine.

Lando's fingers traced gentle patterns over her arm, the warmth of her touch a soothing balm against the tumultuous currents of his thoughts. He tried to coax himself into a state of sleep, to let the gentle rhythm of their breaths lull him into oblivion. But amidst the quiet darkness, the desire that simmered beneath the surface refused to be ignored.

With each passing moment, the urge to lean in and capture her lips in a tender kiss grew stronger, a silent plea that echoed in the depths of his soul. He turned his head slightly, his gaze meeting hers in the soft glow of moonlight filtering through the window.

Their eyes locked in a silent exchange, a wordless conversation that spoke volumes of unspoken desires and hidden truths. In that fleeting moment, the world fell away, leaving only the two of them suspended in the timeless embrace of the night.

“I really want to kiss you,” he confessed, his voice so soft it was barely a whisper.

“Okay,” she mimicked his tone and volume, her breath warm against his skin.

With a tender reverence, Lando cupped her cheek, his thumb brushing lightly across her skin. He leaned in, closing the small distance between them, and gently pressed his lips against hers. The kiss was soft and delicate, a gentle caress that spoke of all the unspoken words and feelings they had shared.

For the first time in a very long time, Lando felt butterflies fluttering in his stomach—the good kind that signalled something special, something real. It wasn’t a hungry or desperate kiss, but one filled with sweetness and tenderness, a reflection of how he felt about her.

When he finally pulled away, he watched her eyes remain closed, her face serene as she absorbed every moment of the lingering sensation. A smile curved her lips, and in that moment, Lando knew that this simple kiss had sealed something profound between them.

They spent the rest of the night wrapped in a cocoon of warmth and intimacy, gazing at each other with a mixture of wonder and contentment. The world outside their little bubble seemed to fade away, leaving only the soft glow of the moonlight and the quiet whispers of their shared breaths.

With tender curiosity, they traced invisible shapes into each other’s skin, their fingertips leaving trails of warmth and affection. Each touch was a silent declaration, a wordless conversation that spoke of their growing closeness and the trust they had built.

Her fingers played gently with his hair, twirling soft strands between her fingertips, while he marvelled at the delicate way she moved. In return, his hand found its way to her hair, smoothing it back from her face with a tenderness that made her heart flutter.

As the night wore on, their words grew softer, their touches slower, each moment drawing them deeper into the embrace of sleep. The rhythm of their breaths synchronised, creating a soothing lullaby that carried them towards slumber.

Finally, with their bodies entwined and hearts beating in unison, they drifted off to sleep, each wrapped in the comfort of the other’s presence. And as they slipped into dreams, the night held them close, a silent witness to the beginning of something beautiful and enduring.

#f1 fanfic #f1 fic #f1 imagine #formula 1 #mclaren #mclaren f1 #lando norris #lando norris fanfic #lando norris fic #lando norris smut #lando norris imagine #formula one #mclaren racing #lando norris x oc #lando norris x reader #f1 driver x reader #f1 x reader #ln4 x reader #lando x you #lando norris x you #lando norris fluff #lando x reader #ln4 #ln4 imagine #ln4 fic #ln4 fluff

[ash-whimsicalfanfic]

Jealousy, Jealousy

Leroy Jethro Gibbs X Fem OC/Reader

Word Count: 3884

Warning: Mild Language, Fluff, Angst, Possessiveness, Jealousy…

Prompt: Gibbs pulled a stunt and you decided to get your revenge—by making him jealous…

Y/N Gibbs POV

I woke up today and had the most brilliant idea. I knew exactly how to get my husband back. I shake my head, still unable to believe that Jethro could do such a thing—especially at work!

FLASHBACK

I hum a tune as I step out of the bathroom with a big, fluffy towel wrapped around my. I found myself sifting through my work clothes when my eyes catch a silver gift bag. I grab it, pulling the card off it.

Y/N/N, be a good girl and wear this to work, will you? -Jet

I open the bag and pull out a beautiful dark red lingerie set. I was trying to think of what the occasion was and why Jethro would be giving me a gift. My heart beats with anticipation at the thought of us having sex. We haven't done anything intimate for weeks besides a quick kiss here and there. We've both put our focus on work and we've come home, immediately crashing is bed.

I drop the towel, sliding on the lingerie set and hum in approval. I loved the feeling of lingerie against my skin. Something about it made me feel confident and sexy. I go back to my dresser and pull on a baggy pair of black cargo pants. I pull on a white baggy t-shirt and a black blazer.

Jethro was possessive and I loved it. I joined the team seven years ago and I may be the baby of the team, slightly younger than Ziva, Tim and Tony, but I worked my ass off. I was the "heart" of the team as they put it. I was a profound profiler and negotiator. We all were great investigators, but I also brought our little team closer together.

When I first joined, I could give a care less about the dress code. Some days, I'd follow it, but my clothes were snug to my figure. I was confident and didn't mind showing a bit more cleavage than needed. Some days, I liked to wear short skater skirts like Abby, to show off my legs. I'd show the occasional stomach here and there.

But, I enjoyed the way Jethro's eyes would roam over me. I chuckle, thinking about the day he asked me over to his house. It was our first kiss and our first time together. We were friends with benefits briefly before I had enough and outed how I felt. Then we dated before marrying. All of which I stopped dressing the way I use to, noticing how possessive he got over me once we were officially together. He's a man who gets jealous easy, not appreciating others staring at "his woman" as he puts it.

I leave my red hair down, grabbing my bag before leaving our home. It was time for work and it seems Jethro left me to sleep in. I was thankful and disappointed. I knew I needed the sleep, but I also enjoy our car rides to work together. I can't remember the last time I drove to work on my own.

It was a quiet drive, mostly filled with humming before I hum my way into the building and up to the bullpen. I saw the FBI here and roll my eyes. Oh, what a case this will be.

"Hon, we are working alongside the FBI on this case. Show them the conference room." Jethro says.

"Well, good morning to you as well husband. Yeah, my morning has been wonderful, thanks for asking. Oh, how's yours? Wonderful too. It was strange coming into work without you. Oh, and I got your gift. And yes, I listened. Oh, your tired of my rambling. Right, don't forget I'm your wife, Jet. Agents, follow me." I say, mocking at Jethro.

He had a small amused smile on his face. I was slightly moody he was acting strange with me today. I lead the agents away, ignoring Tony's grin at my one-on-one conversation with myself.

I leave the Agents to set up and head back to my desk. I could feel his eyes on me and I glance up, meeting those piercing blue eyes. I quirk a brow.

"Yes, Jethro?" I ask.

"Wondering if you woke up on the wrong side of the bed." He murmurs, smirking slightly.

"Asshole! You didn't even say good morning, we didn't ride together, I haven't even had a good morning kiss or hug, I haven't had coffee nor breakfast, and the first thing you do when you see me is put me to work." I hiss and he snorts.

"I think you woke up with your hair on fire, hon." He says.

I clench my jaw, narrowing my eyes at him. I shake my head as the elevators open and Fornell walks off.

"Y/N! Any chance your divorcing Jethro yet?" Fornell asks with a grin.

"I might just be his fifth ex-wife after this morning!" You tease, sending a glare at a grumpy Jethro who was glaring daggers at the both of you.

Fornell talks to Gibbs, but your eyes widen as you bite your tongue to silence any noise from you as you clench your thighs at the sudden vibrations you felt. It clicked. The lingerie bottoms weren't an ordinary bottoms. They were meant for teasing. In your case, punishment. You glare up at Jethro who's lips twitches as he amps it up higher. You nearly jumped out of your chair, trying to suppress the moan.

END OF FLASHBACK

Oh, how he pushed the wrong buttons. He had left earlier once again much to my displeasure, but today was the day to get him back. Make him jealous and then make him have the bluest balls he's ever going to have.

I walk out of the bathroom, dropping the towel. I put on a lingerie set. I grab my black skirt that ended at mid-thigh—and that’s if I was being generous on that.

It was tight, hugging my ass and my legs. It really brought out my legs and I grin. It has a little slit, but it was cute. Not to mention the designer belt I add to it—a gift from Jethro. I had been talking about it with Abby for months and he got it as a birthday present.

I grab a white top that was like a tank-top with the wider straps. It was clinging to my body, the deep plunge neckline showed off more cleave than I've shown in years. A little bit of my belly was peaking through and I grin. Perfect. I slide on a black blazer before grabbing my black high heels.

This was going to be perfect.

I go to the bathroom, brushing my wavy red hair. I go for a slightly edgy, but neutral makeup look with a slightly dark red lipstick.

I hum, grabbing my purse and begin making my way to the Navy yard. I decided a pit stop was necessary and I grabbed drinks for the team. I get there and decided to go to Autopsy where I leave their drinks on the table as they were out getting a body. I leave a little note, humming as I head back to the elevator and head to Abby's lab.

She had her music going and I walk in, as she spins, she sees me. She turns the music off and looks at me in awe.

"You look so pretty!" She exclaims.

"Thank you, Abs! I brought you a gift." I say, handing her Caf-Pow.

"Your the best! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" She exclaims and I chuckle.

"Of course." I say.

I head to the elevator, feeling slightly nervous for Jethro's reaction. I walk off the elevator and Tony whistles.

"I brought you a coffee with loads of cream and sugar." I say, winking at him and he grins.

"Thanks!" He says.

I head to Ziva, pulling a tea free.

"A tea for you, it was a new one on the menu I thought you'd like to try." I say.

"Thank you, Y/N/N. You look gorgeous by the way." She says, smirking slightly and I smile.

"Thanks, Ziva. I felt like dressing up a bit today. I felt like I deserved it after the hell Jethro put my through last week." I say.

"Fornell can be a real pain in the ass." She chuckles and I grin.

"That he can be." I say, even though that wasn't what I was referring too.

I walk to McGee, handing him a black coffee which he quietly thanks me for as he is on the phone. I walk to Jethro, handing him a coffee.

"My office." He grumbles.

"Oh, Jethro. Take that stick out of your ass. Who's looking anyway. It's an outfit and it's cute." I say.

He was silent, staring at me with dark, narrowed blue eyes. I could see the lust in them just as I could see the possessiveness in them...the jealousy coming to the surface.

I turn, walking to my desk, throwing the carton away once I pulled my coffee free. I hum softly as the elevator doors open.

"Fornell! If you like us so much, come join the team!" I say, winking at him.

"FBI is more my forte...although, your always welcome to join my team." He says, his eyes on my chest.

Jethro clears his throat and I look at him to see him glaring daggers at Fornell.

"Eyes off my wife, Fornell." He warns.

That sent a strange sensation to my core. I knew why and I was eager for the day to go on, wanting to press more buttons.

"I don't know how you managed to settle down with this grumpy bastard, Y/N." Fornell says and I giggle, rolling my eyes.

"Y/N, my office. Now." Jethro snaps, standing up as he storms towards the elevator.

I grin which stopped the team from looking so concerned. It was their turn to chuckle.

"You planned this out." Tony says.

"That I did. Revenge is a bitch." I say and he chuckles as I walk toward the elevator that Jethro was waiting on.

The doors close and he hits the button harshly. I purse my lips, swatting his arm.

"Easy there, macho man." I say.

"What the hell are you wearing?" He snaps, glaring down at me.

"Well this is my skirt. Look! It even has a little slit right here. It's so cute. And this top...you know that though." I say, grinning.

"I don't want people ogling my wife. I have some extra clothes of yours at my desk." He sighs.

"I'm not changing, Jet." I say.

"Why the hell not?" He asks, turning back to me.

"Because, I like this outfit. And you'd like it to if you investigated a little more." I say.

"You didn't." He grits out.

"Oh, I did. Your favorite set too." I say and I gasp as he pushes me up against a wall.

"It's one thing wearing this outfit to work, knowing men will stare, but then lingerie. Your asking for your ass to be red." He growls.

His hand twitches on my hip and I smile softly, putting my hand over it as I slide it under my skirt. His eyes were locked with mine and I make his fingers brush the lace bottoms.

"I just woke up feeling really good about today, Jet. I wanted an outfit to suit my mood and confidence." I say, shrugging.

"Your changing. I can't have you on my mind all damn day as we work a case, worrying about someone looking up your skirt." He says and I roll my eyes.

I push him back, smoothing my outfit out.

"I'm not changing, Jet. I'm your wife, not some...dog you can control." I say.

"Your my bitch in bed, aren't you?" He says and my jaw drops.

"Leroy Jethro Gibbs! That is so crude and so...s-so unlike you!" I exclaim.

"I thought you liked it when I called you my bitch. Are you not? What happened to being daddy's whore?" He asks and I gulp.

I could feel my skin flush as my panties dampen. Maybe I didn't think this all the way through. He smirks, that stupid lopsided smirk, his eyes twinkling. He knew damn well what he was doing to me.

Two can play this game.

"Well daddy...I do like it when you call me those names. But, I'm not in the mood right now." I say.

"W-What? You just called me daddy. Your doing that thing with your eyes and you wore this outfit. You want my attention. Well, you have it." He says.

Oh, I have it alright and I'll have it the rest of the day, whilst leaving you hanging for that crap you pulled last week.

"I think your profiling skills are a bit off, hon." I say, feigning an apologetic smile.

I pat his arm before moving out from the wall and hitting the emergency stop button. He goes to hit again, but I swat his hand away and the doors open. We walk off and he grabs my wrist. I stop, looking at him.

"Please change...I'll do whatever you want." He murmurs.

"I like my outfit, Jethro." I say, pulling away and going to my desk.

"Gibbs! I brought the file you asked for!" Palmer says before all the papers fall out.

He looks at Jethro wide eyed and I stand, bending over to help. I was well aware what I was going and I heard Fornell and Tony whistle as Jethro curses and I hear his chair.

I feel him press against me from behind, a hand on my hip as he leans down behind me to grab a paper.

"Sit your ass down right now, Y/N or else I'll carry your ass out of here kicking and screaming." He warns quietly.

"I'm trying to help Palmer. Leave me alone, Jethro. Your being moody today." I say.

He grunts, but I finish picking up the papers before standing. I take the papers from Palmer as Jethro tugs my skirt down as it did ride up a bit. I walk back to my desk, working on reorganizing the papers before standing and handing it to Jethro.

I sit and Jethro soon was giving out orders when he realized Tony was alone. I stand.

"I'll go with Tony! It's been awhile since I've been out baiting a suspect." I say.

"Not dressed in that." Jethro says gruffly.

"Oh get over yourself, Jet. I look fine. Come on, Tony!" I exclaim.

"We'll be watching!" Fornell says before he grunts.

"Stop staring at my wife's ass." Jethro warns.

We all get on the elevator and I hum softly as Tony hands me the keys. The keys...to his very nice car that I've been dying to drive.

"You dressed to impress and it's a simple and quick undercover op where you get his attention. So, get his attention tigress." He says, winking at me and I grin.

I follow Tony to his car, more than eager to drive his baby. I glance at Jethro to see his brooding face and fiery eyes. I knew he was growing more pissed off. My eyes were on his slightly growing bulge.

The drive to the nice bar was short. Tony and I made our way to the bar with our earpieces in.

"Look a little more like a couple." McGee says.

"Boss is going to kill me." Tony grumbles before sliding his hand from my lower back to ass.

"I'll protect you." I say.

"Will you?" Jethro's gruff voice comes through.

"If you don't want the bluest balls in history, Jethro, I'd comply a bit." I murmur, looking over the menu of drinks as Tony tries to stifle his laughter.

"I don't know what to get, babe!" I exclaim, moving so I was in front of Tony.

Our chests were pressed together, his hand on my ass and I move my hand to his. His eyes widen before going back to normal. I catch a man staring and I did a brief study before looking back up into Tony's eyes.

"Blue jeans. Hawaiian shirt. Ten o'clock." I say.

"See him." Jethro grunts.

"Why don't you get yourself a martini?" Tony asks.

"I don't like girly drinks, you know that." I say and he chuckles.

"Get her a Black Russian." Jethro says and I smile sweetly up at Tony.

"Hey, can I get a Black Russian and a bourbon over ice?" Tony asks.

I giggle as he lifts me up onto the bar, both of us level almost. I was still slightly short.

"Boss, you got to get some food in her. She's as light as a feather." Tony says.

"Oh stop!" I giggle, smacking his chest.

"Black Russian and bourbon over ice." The bartender says.

Tony hands me my drink and grabs his, both of us clinking our glasses together. He took a sip, but I down mine.

"Easy there, tigress." Tony chides.

"Give me yours." I say.

He hands me his, which solves the problem of his drink and not looking suspicious. I downed his, grinning.

"Want to go out back?" He asks.

"Does either of you have a sidearm?" Fornell questions.

"Inner thigh." I say.

"DiNozzo...if I find out that your hands go up my wife's skirt, you won't have to worry about a funeral." Jethro grunts.

"Come!" I exclaim, jumping off the bar and grabbing his hand.

We walk out the back, and I glanced back at Tony to catch the unsub following us.

"He'll be right behind us." I say.

"I ain't grabbing your sidearm. Gibbs will kill me." He says.

I reach a hand under my skirt, pulling my gun out of the holster before handing it to him which he shoved inside his jacket before he picks me up and pins me against the wall.

"Alright. Couples who drink and go to the back alley do what?" McGee asks.

I could see the eye roll. Tony looked nervous and I roll my eyes, pulling him in for a kiss. He kisses back as the backdoor opens. We pull away when we hear a click and see the unsub pointing a gun at us. Tony had my red lipstick all over his mouth and he slowly sat me down.

"Back away and give me that whore. God! Why can't you guys stop! Your constantly wrecking families. He came in here the other night with a girl. His wife." He snaps.

Ziva and Tony did go undercover the other night. For todays purposes. I reach my hand under Tony's jacket, my hand on the gun before I aim it at him.

"Only one person can call me a whore, and that's for pleasure purposes. Drop the weapon. Your coming with us." I say.

"Y/N! Didn't need to know that!" McGee groans.

"Dirty girl, for real. Jeesh. I didn't expect boss to be that way." Tony says, looking confused.

I could hear Jethro and Fornell chuckling on the other side as Ziva snickers.

"Always knew you were a dirty minded woman, Y/N/N." Ziva teases.

"He calls me other names and I call him some delightful names too." I say, grinning.

Tony cuffs the unsub who finally decided to drop his weapon. Jethro and Fornell walk out the back door and Jethro looks at me with a small smile and an amused expression.

"Really had to keep running your mouth, didn't you hon?" He asks.

"He called me a whore. I didn't like it. It's not like when you call me a whore." I tease.

"Alright. Coms off." McGee says quickly and I laugh.

Jethro puts his hand on my back and we begin walking out of the alleyway. Ziva was helping Tony wipe my lipstick off and I decided to touch up my lipstick. I hum, bobbing my head slightly.

"Hey, is she single?" I hear.

"Do you not see that man's hand on her back? And the wedding ring on her finger. She's happily married. I'd keep a distance if you don't want that man to shoot you in the ass. He's very possessive over her. And I think of her as a sister so get lost asshole." Tony snaps.

I smile, looking up at Jethro who also caught the conversation. He had a small smirk on his face and I walk away from him. Eager to get home.

I walk in, Jethro not far behind me. I walk to the kitchen, grabbing two beers. I glance up when I see him hovering in the doorway with clenched fists and an unreadable expression.

"What the hell was your problem today?" He asks.

"I have no idea what you are talking about." I say, shrugging with an innocent smile.

"The outfit. Teasing me. Flirting with people. The undercover op with Tony." He says.

"Jethro, tell me you didn't forget." I chide, walking towards him.

He watches me with those intense blue eyes and I stop in front of him, looping my arms around his neck.

"Elaborate." He demands and I huff.

"Last week. You stepped on my toes, Jet. And you thought I could let you get away with it...you thought." I say.

"Your one hell of a woman. You could of found another approach to seeking your revenge, hon. You flashed your ass today more times than I can count." He says.

"Thankfully I have a nice ass, Jethro." I say.

"My point exactly, besides I don't appreciate people staring at my woman." He says, his hands settling on my hips.

The tingles I felt were unreal. This man stirred a side I didn't know I had.

"Oh, Jethro. Green isn't your color. Who knew you could get jealous over little things." I tease.

"You are not a little thing. Your the most important part of my life. And I'm not ashamed I'm jealous. I have a smart, beautiful and feisty wife that everyone seems to want and I'm not very keen on the thought of losing you." He says.

"I love you, Jet." I murmur.

"I love you too, hon. But, get your ass upstairs. I'm going to get the coffee pot ready for tomorrow. We aren't getting much sleep tonight." He says and my heart speeds up.

"Really?" I ask excitedly.

He smirks, pulling away and walking towards the coffee pot. I push the skirt down while he's turned around pull the shirt off, left in my lingerie and heels before throwing the skirt and shirt at him.

I didn't miss the way he tensed before slowly turning to me. I grin slyly at him, loving how his eyes slowly roam over me. I loved the way they darkened and narrowed. His gaze was intense.

"Upstairs, now." He says.

"You better hurry, Jethro. I might get impatient." I tease before running out of the room.

I didn't miss his low chuckle and I knew that tonight was going to be a long one. But, I knew it was going to be a good night. It's been weeks, a few months, since we've been intimate.

#gibbs #gibbs imagine #gibbs x reader #jethro gibbs #jethro gibbs imagine #jethro gibbs x reader #leroy jethro gibbs #ncis gibbs #ncis fandom #ncis imagine #leroy jethro gibbs x reader #ncis #ncis fanfiction #ncis mcgee #ncis team #ncis tony #ncis x reader #ncis ziva #gibbs smut #ncisedit #leroy jethro gibbs imagine #ncisverse #ncis fic

[starcrossedxwriter]

Wicked Fantasies Part 6 (MBJ x OC)

Warnings: Look… its literally just angst lol you're gonna feel things! Don't say I didn't warn you. NSFW

A/N: This is like 2 weeks later than I promised (SO sorry, y'all!) but I hope you enjoy!

***

“This isn’t so bad,” Michael argued. “She’s just complaining that she hasn’t met me yet and some other shit that isn’t even true. Why’s that a problem?” 

Alex shook her head as she scrolled on her phone. Her eyes did not even leave her phone screen as she spoke, her nails furiously tapping across the glass screen. “It’s not what she said that’s the problem. It’s that she’s talking at all… the only things I want to see in the media about the two of you are cute photos from date night, not tell alls from family members. Does she know about your… previous career?” 

This was the first time his manager had even directed a question at Raven, who had sat silently since they arrived. She was so angry that she could not even revel in the fact that she was at Michael’s house for the first time, not regulated to her usual place in his bachelor pad. She thought being invited to this intimate part of his life would make her happier. But instead of feeling joy and welcomed, she merely felt like a burden. She was only there out of necessity to fix the crisis her own sister created. 

This is why you can never be more, she reminded herself. Paris had started to rip out the weeds of doubt that grew in her soul, siphoning away the power of the notion that they could not be more. It had made her fall deeper in love with him, made her seriously ponder whether his feelings for her stretched into deeper territory.. But this? This reminded her of a sickening fact. 

No matter how many trips he charted for her, gifts he showered her with, or kindness he showed, she did not belong here with him in the real world. It was as if every intimate detail of his home and his real life that she saw screamed at her that she was out of place, punching above her weight, and needed to return to where she belonged: the outskirts of his life in the condo where he took one-night stands and flings that meant nothing once the sun rose. Because as soon as their arrangement was done, she would be nothing to him again. And while Paris had made her feel like she could still win in the ring, now she felt as if she was merely being punched right back down where she belonged. 

“No. Well… she doesn’t know about the prostitution. But… I always thought she figured out I was a stripper somehow.” 

Alex, who previously had been engrossed in her phone, lifted her head in surprise. “You were a stripper too? Would’ve been nice to know before now,” she muttered under her breath. 

Raven’s long stiletto nails bit into the palm of her hand as she tried not to let one comment push her right off the cliff she was teetering on. She knew Alex was not intending to be judgmental but that did not stop her from feeling the sting of it. Every choice she made in her life since the moment she came into the world seemed to be a bad one for everyone else. She could not do anything right. 

“I was a 19 year old with no skills who needed to pay for college. I wasn’t facing a fucking mountain of options. So I did the best I could with a shitty situation... Sorry my choices as a desperate teenager are making your job so difficult,” Raven snapped. 

“I didn’t me-” 

“Alex.” Michael’s stern voice cut through the budding tension, stealing the words right out of Alex’s mouth. Michael’s dominance and power seemed to have an effect on everyone, though Raven suspected it was because he was not the type to abuse it. Alex immediately let the rest of her sentence fade away, opting to apologize instead. 

Michael’s eyes had not left Raven’s body since they got in the car. He hated how her eyes actively avoided him, he had been unable to look in her beautiful brown eyes for over an hour and that killed him. They were the most expressive part of her, windows into her soul and every feeling she had. She shied away from his comforting touch in the car so he kept his distance but even still, he could see how her entire frame trembled ever so slightly. Her furrowed brow… her silence. God, her silence was so deafeningly loud in his ears. He was not used to it. Even if it was awkward ramblings, she was rarely silent with him. This was a side of her he had never seen. It was not sadness or resignation, he had seen both of those, and she seemed to be able to push through those just fine. No, this was something else and it was red hot and all consuming to the point where he could tell she could not hide it. It was a far cry from the woman who was sound asleep on his shoulder on the plane two hours prior. 

“I’m sorry,” Alex raised her hands. “I’m sorry. I’d never judge anyone for doing what they need to. I just need to know what else your sister could say.” 

“She has no proof… just speculation. But that’s it. She doesn’t know anything about my life now… we aren’t close.” 

At first, she had immediately handed Alex back her phone, uninterested in reading whatever lies her sister decided to spew. However, when Michael summarized it for her, the notions in it were so absurd, she had to read them for herself. She instantly wished she had not. 

It was as dramatic as it was false, her sister complaining about how Raven had changed and alienated her own family since her romance with the superstar had begun. She spun a web of tall tales about how Raven never spoke to them anymore, how close they once were and how much the family missed her, how Raven had told them Michael was too busy to meet them. By the time Raven got to the end of the article, she was shaking. 

She supposed the silver lining was that the article was more of a personal attack on her character than their relationship, which she was used to from her sister. She just had not expected her sister to drag it into the public eye like this. And while reading her words agitated some of her deepest wounds, they fueled more anger in her than any other emotion. Anger was not an emotion Raven often felt where her family was concerned. Slight frustration, sadness, hurt, guilt? She felt all of those often but she was used to it and often brushed them off. But true anger? That was rare, or rather, it was rare that she let herself feel true anger. And now, it hit her as high, powerful waves crashing against her shores. 

“So she’s just lookin’ for her 15 minutes. Fine. But she can’t say anything else, this’s gotta be it.” 

“Who cares if she mouths off to the media?” Michael asked. He knew why Alex cared and why he should care. But at that moment, all he could actually care about was minimizing this for Raven’s sake. He knew her well enough to know that the only person she would blame for this was herself, not her idiot sister. And it seemed to him that she blamed herself for far too much where her family was concerned. He did not want to add another unnecessary thing to that list. Nor did he want her to feel the burden of this because she was quite the opposite of a burden to him and he would clean up 100 PR nightmares for her without a second thought. They had taken 10 steps forward in Paris, walls came crumbling down for both of them. If he did not fix this fast, Raven would retreat 15 steps back from him and he could not take that. 

“That’s not the point! She’s smoke and TMZ knows where there’s smoke, there’s a fuckin’ fire. And y’all two and this whole situation is a damn forest fire. We don’t need TMZ or a fuckin’ Inspector Gadget head ass Tik Toker to look into Raven’s life or past anymore than they already have. So you need to shut her up now. Is she a fan of his or somethin?”

Raven scoffed. “If wanting to add him to her list of fuck buddies means she’s a fan then sure… she’s a fan.” Her anger meant she could not hide the bitterness in her voice, could not pretend to have a kind word to say about her sister who seemed to take joy in going out of her way to ruin all the good things in her life. 

“Well, that shit definitely ain’t happenin’,” Michael stated with a growl. 

“I mean, no nigga, I wasn’t gonna suggest you fuck her sister.” Alex rolled her eyes.

“Maybe we s-should just end this. I’m causing more problems than I’m fixing.” Raven’s voice was so quiet, Michael almost did not hear her. It hurt her heart to even consider it but Paris had rubbed her raw, left her and her emotions exposed in ways she had not experienced in a long time. And she had not minded that at first, she savored the closeness and vulnerability with another person. But now, all of her emotions felt dialed up by ten in that vulnerability and that overwhelmed her. She was overwhelmed by the rage she felt at her family for trying to use Michael the way they used her. She thought she couldn’t ruin him but she felt as if she already was. “I’m r-ruining everything…” 

Michael’s heart stopped, his head shaking vehemently before any words could even escape his lips. “What? No… why would we do that?” 

Raven’s head fell into her hands as she let out a frustrated and strangled sigh that sounded like a sob. 

“Ok, let’s all take a breath. I’m sorry, I probably made this seem like a bigger deal than it is. We don’t need to stop or end it if you aren’t ready to. This is still a good plan, no one is ruining anything. We can fix this. We just need to give her what she wants. If you just meet her, take a picture with her, get her tickets to a high profile event or party or whatever she wants, then maybe she’ll settle down and keep her mouth shut.” 

“She won’t,” Raven mumbled to no one in particular. 

“Everyone has a price and we just need to find hers,” Alex continued texting on her phone.  

“She won’t because she’s an attention seeking bitch. She’s never had a real job or ambition or anything going for her and just takes and takes and takes from everyone with no thought. I can give her the fucking world and she’ll come back with her hand still out!” Raven exploded, jumping up from her seat as the words escaped her lips before she could even hope to stop them. She buried her face in her hands and turned away from both of them as she heard them in the space, instantly regretting them. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” 

Michael sighed and gestured toward the door, Alex walking out of the room with him. He closed the door behind them.

“So I take it there’s some bad blood there?” Alex asked as she leaned on the door. 

“Lots of it. You know how family shit is… lots of heavy ass baggage there. Let me talk to her and I’ll call you tonight with a game plan. I think she just feels betrayed and upset and needs to process all that.” 

“Understood,” Alex raised her hands in surrender. “Take your time, give her what she needs. Sorry this had to happen as soon as you came back. She seemed really happy when y’all got off the plane, I didn’t mean to ruin it.” 

Michael shook his head. “Doing your job isn’t ruining anything. But my guess is the timing of this, on her sister’s part, wasn’t random. Sucks too… the past week was the most relaxed I’ve ever seen her, first time she seemed actually happy.” Michael stared through the glass panels of his office door to watch her. He could see the tension in her shoulders from all the way over here, could tell they were shaking slightly from silent tears. 

He turned away to look back at Alex whose eyes were big with shock. 

“What?” 

“You’re in love with her.” 

“Alexxxx…” he dragged out her name, his manager scoffing and dragging him by the arm further away from the door. 

“Don’t insult my intelligence, Bakari. I’ve run a couple PR relationships in my time and most fail miserably. Been trying to figure out why this one seems to be working so well… I knew it wasn’t cause you’re that good of an actor, no shade. It’s because you… Michael Bakari Jordan love her. You’re not having to play for the cameras because you’re actually in love with her. Look me in my eyes and tell me I’m wrong.” 

Michael sucked his teeth. “I love her.” He admitted. “And I know what you’re gonna say… it can’t work and it’s stupid and I’ll need to end it like we always planned. I know, I got it.” 

He started to move past her when her hand grabbed his bicep to stop him. 

“I was actually gonna say that I’m happy for you. Been waiting for you to wise up and find someone for real. If she’s what you want, I support it and you 100%. And we can figure out how to spin it.” She jerked her head back toward the office. “Go take care of your girl. Call 

me later.” 

They shared a hug before Michael disappeared back into the office. Raven sniffled and quickly wiped her tears away before standing up and walking over to him. She tried to put a positive look on her face and tone in her voice as she spoke. 

“I’m sorry… that outburst was m-mean and totally unnecessary. And not helpful. She’s right, we need a game plan and everything. Where’s Alex? I want to apologize and then I can fix this.”

He perched on the edge and widened his stance so he could pull her in between his legs. His arm wrapped around her waist as he pulled her into his chest. He did not like how she braced her forearms against his chest to avoid fully melting into his embrace. 

“I don’t need you to do anything and Alex doesn’t need an apology. She’s fine. I care more about whether you’re good or not. You’re upset.” 

She shook her head. “I’m not upset.” 

Michael raised an eyebrow. “You just called your sister an attention seeking bitch. Ain’t gon’ hear an argument from me but that’s not like you. You’re pissed, rightfully so. Tell me why though, don’t bottle that shit up.” 

Raven stared at him for a moment, her mouth opening and closing a couple times as she tried to find the words to tell him. Tell him that she was near out of relentless hope and optimism, that a not-so-small part of her hated her sister and wished she never had to see her again, that she wanted to cut her and her dad out of her life completely but she wasn’t brave enough to be truly alone so she couldn’t, that a bigger part of her wanted to call TMZ and tell them all about how horrible her family has been to her her entire life, that it cut deeper than she imagined it would to read her sister describe a relationship between them that had always been her dream but she actively denied her. She wanted to tell him that she was tired, that she felt guilty and ashamed for dragging him into this mess, that she didn’t deserve his care and kindness because all she had done was ruin his life.

It was all too much, the avalanche of emotions she felt picked up speed and power with every moment she stood in his presence. And she needed it to stop, needed to throw up some type of blockade so she was not run over and drowned by it. She needed walls again, barriers. And the only way she could think to recreate those was to put both physical and emotional distance between herself and the man in front of her. He was the only person who forced her to exist in her vulnerability, to feel everything and not shy away from it. But that was dangerous. She was not built for it. Once the avalanche hit, she knew she would not get back up. So, she had to get out. 

So she did the only thing she could think of, she threw up the walls of a working girl. She knew they would not hold for long, not with his persistence, but they would hold long enough for her to reign it all in again. Long enough for her to lock her feelings back up in their cage where they belonged. 

“I’m not angry.” Her tone left no room for argument as she pried herself out of his embrace and walked back to the couch to grab her bag off the floor. “I’m not angry. Kiara’s not a… bad person. She’s just… Kiara’s the Sun and I imagine the Sun would be upset if Pluto tried to steal its spotlight too. She’s the center of my family’s world and she hates it when it seems like I’m trying to take that away. It’s fine. I’ll give her whatever she needs to feel like the Sun again and that I humbled myself back to my position as Pluto. Everyone wins.” She said it in such a matter-of-fact way that, if he didn’t know her, he would have missed the bitterness in her words. 

“You don’t need to pretend with me, Rae. You can be upset.” 

“Nothing to be upset about. This is just how it is… I’m used to it. She wants something and she knows I’m gonna give it to her. I’ll call her and figure out what she wants and we’ll fix this.” 

She started to fiddle on her phone before Michael pried it out of her hand and threw it on his desk. 

“I don’t give a fuck about what your sister wants right now… I care about what you need.” 

“I don’t really need anything from you or anyone else right now.” Her words clipped and colder than Michael had ever heard her before. “Least of all a damn therapist.” 

Her heart broke at the hurt that flashed across his eyes but she decided that was fine. She needed distance and however she achieved that, even if it was by pushing him away, it would work for her. However, before he could respond, her phone started to buzz loudly on the desk. 

“Speak of the devil.” Michael handed Raven her phone back, her sister’s name popping up across the screen. 

“Hey Kiara.” She put the phone on speaker phone so Michael could hear. 

“I’m surprised you didn’t call me all day, I know you saw the article.” 

Raven and Michael shared a knowing glance that made Michael’s blood boil. She had done this just to outshine Raven who had been in the media and tabloids multiple times in the last week from their trip. Michael had guessed that but knowing her sister went to such lengths to diminish her sister bothered him far more than he could describe. Was there no one in his girl’s life that allowed her to shine? 

“Yea I saw it. I’m sure you also saw that Michael and I weren’t in the country. We just saw it when we landed about an hour ago.” 

“Yea I saw you both... Why didn’t you invite me??” 

Raven let out a small huff. “Do you even have a passport?”

“No… but I could’ve gotten one. it's not fair that you get to go while I’m stuck here. And with my favorite actor. All my friends sending me clips of your stories and pictures and shit. And I didn’t even know you were gonna be there. And I had to lie and tell them that you invited me but I couldn’t go. You don’t include me in shit and you keep makin’ me look fuckin’ stupid. You probably didn’t think about me once!”

“I mean no, you weren’t the first thing that came to mind when my boyfriend invited me on a trip to Paris. I’m allowed to have and enjoy experiences on my own. Also no one forced you to lie, who would have expected you to be invited on a trip with me and my boyfriend?” 

She heard Kiara scoff on the other side of the phone. “‘My boyfriend,’” she mimicked back. “You better enjoy this lil 15 minutes of fame you’re getting from him cause it won’t last. Ain’t like you’re worth his time. He’ll wise up, realize he needs a real woman, a girl like me.” 

“Did you want something?” Raven interrupted, turning her head from Michael so he could not see just how deeply her words cut. She would never argue that she was good enough for the man sitting next to her but hearing someone else validate those insecurities hurt.. Her sister certainly knew which wounds to cut into. “Or was your tell all just to ruin my trip?” 

“Oh well… None of this would’ve happened if you had gotten me even one of the things I asked for weeks ago. Like damn, I know he’s busy but he don’t even have a real job. He could come out and met me when I asked.” 

Michael’s face twisted up in a look of faux offense that would have been a perfect gif, which made the edges of Raven’s lips curl into a small smile as she stifled her laugh. How did he manage to make her smile even when she felt utterly incapable of the action? 

“Acting is a real job, Kiara. And I invited you all here to meet him. But no, I wasn’t gonna ask him to get you a Birkin, I don’t even have a Birkin.”

Michael resisted the urge to cut in and ask her if she wanted one. Because he could easily have one at the house by sunset if she did. 

“Dad and I can’t afford to jet set out to LA… the hotels, the food, all that shit. We’re barely getting by as it is.” 

Raven rolled her eyes. “Barely getting by” when they both worked and Raven often paid most of the major bills. 

As she was talking, Michael gestured for her to mute the phone. “Tell her I’ll pay for the flights and invite them to Thanksgiving.” At Raven’s wary face, Michael just nodded. “Just trust me.” 

“I’m sorry, I didn’t realize the price of the flights was the issue. H-how about we pay for the flights and your hotel and… you could come for Thanksgiving this year? Michael’s family are great cooks so it’ll be nice. And you can meet him?” 

“Really?? Thanksgiving at Michael’s house?” 

“Yea,” the words were almost painful to get out. Part of her wanted to believe this could be a good thing but the more logical part knew that it would not soften anything between all of them. After all, they were not coming to see her, they were coming to gawk at Michael. “But you can’t talk to the media anymore, Kiara. Seriously, you can meet him and everything but you can’t go give a tell all to TMZ or Page Six or any of them anymore. Understand?” 

“Fineeeee. No more media. I’ll tell dad. Send me the flight and hotel information. Make sure to put us up somewhere nice… you know like the Ritz or a five-star hotel. And can you have a car for us while we’re there? We’re gonna wanna sightsee and everything.” 

“Of course,” she muttered through gritted teeth. 

“Ok. See you then, bye.” 

Raven clenched her phone in her hand, resisting the urge to chuck it across the room. 

“Damn, sis’s got expensive taste,” Michael muttered. 

Raven’s laugh was cold and humorless. “It’s easy to have expensive taste when it’s not your money. You sure about this? Thanksgiving? Here?” 

“What? Thanksgiving is the time people spend with family. We can get a nice group shot and they can feel included. And I’ll get her somethin’ expensive and nice… nothin’ crazy. That’s all she seems to want anyway. Hearing how she talks to you… I don’t want ‘em here anymore than you do but this is the best solution. You had plans or somethin’?” 

“No, no… I just didn’t… I didn’t even know I was invited to the Jordan Family Thanksgiving dinner,” she chuckled, pulling at the sleeve of her jacket awkwardly.  

Michael’s face twisted up in confusion. “Of course you’re invited. Moms would kill me if I didn’t. But yea I guess I should’ve asked if you had plans first. What do you usually do?”  

“Nothing.” 

“Nothing?” 

“Nothing. I order Chinese and I pick a marathon of movies to watch in bed. Same with Christmas except I usually pick a new recipe to try and I always watch the Grinch,” she chuckled. 

“You spend Thanksgiving and Christmas alone?” 

She shrugged and gestured toward her phone. “If you had to pick between alone and that, which would you choose?” At his silence, she nodded. “Exactly. They never want to see me anyway so I make it easy on everyone.” 

“Well, this year’s gonna be different.” 

Raven scoffed. “How so?” 

Michael closed the distance between them and rested his hands on her hips. “Well, one, you’ll have me, which means your family will be on their best behavior. If they aren’t, two, you have me and my family as a buffer. And three, you have me… and I ain’t gon’ tolerate disrespect like that in my house. You say the word and dinner’s over.” 

“You can’t kick people out of your house for me,” she whispered, her eyes avoiding the intense stare in his. 

“Who says I can’t? Thought I’d made that clear by now that I’d do anything for you. And when you’re with me, I’m not just gon’ protect you physically… all of you is safe with me.” 

Those walls she threw up? Already starting to crash down around her. Why does he do this to me?? And why can’t I resist it? She thought to herself as she looked at him. 

“Thank you. But hopefully, they’ll be on their best behavior and then who knows, maybe they’ll see your family and want to turn a new leaf? This could be good?” In her heart, she knew that would not be how this particular story played out but she had to try… had to hope and dream that it could be different. She studied him for a sign that he agreed, and believed her. But he offered her nothing but a peck on the forehead. 

“Yea, maybe.” 

They stood there for a moment before Raven felt the overwhelming urge to run again. She hated this feeling… the contrasting emotions of wanting to melt into him and run from him at full speed. 

“D-do you think Allen would mind taking me home?” 

“I thought you were gonna stay with me tonight?” 

“Yea but I thought we were going to the condo… you want me to stay the night… here?” 

“I just thought after last week…” he stopped himself. “Here is just more comfortable than the condo. Besides, ma asked if you could stay for dinner so she can meet you. Wouldn’t want to disappoint her, would you?” At her continued expression of speculation, Michael added. “She also has been buggin’ the hell outta me to meet you so honestly, you’d be savin’ my ass.” 

Raven smiled and nodded. There was not anything but wallowing and frustration waiting for her back at her own apartment. And she had loved falling asleep in Michael’s arms during the last week. She was not ready to fall asleep alone again. 

“Just remember that next time you’re punishing me,” she winked at him. 

“Deal.” 

***

“Bakari!” Donna called over to Michael who was standing outside with his dad overseeing the fried turkey for dinner. 

“What’s up, ma?” He jogged over to her as she continued moving around the kitchen. Michael had offered, as he did every year, to have dinner catered but his mother could not dream of not cooking Thanksgiving dinner with her own two hands. Michael never pressed too hard though because he knew no caterer would ever beat his mom and dad’s cooking. 

“I think a certain girl needs your attention more than your father and that turkey,” she gestured toward Raven whose hands were filled with neatly folded napkins as she sat each one on each place setting around their giant farm style table. 

Michael’s eyes scanned over her body. He could see the tension in her shoulders but she had been tense since they woke up that morning. She had also been quiet all day, simply getting up and heading down to the kitchen to assist his mother. While she was more than happy for the help and it gave the two a chance to chat and bond, Michael knew Raven’s motives were not completely altruistic. She needed the distraction. 

“She’s setting the table, what’s wrong?” 

His mother lowered her voice. “She’s set and reset that table 5 times now in between asking me if I need help 100 times and apologizing for her family being late.” She gestured toward the pitcher which held a fall sangria for dinner. “Poor girl’s been on her feet helpin’ me all day and she’s a dream but she needs to relax. Pour her a drink, get her outta my kitchen, and make her sit down till dinner, please?” 

“Yes ma’am.” He kissed his mom on the cheek before quickly grabbing a glass and pouring a tall drink before walking over to her. 

“I think those napkins will be fine wherever you put them, baby girl,” he whispered in her ear, causing Raven to jump slightly. 

She clutched her chest, glancing down at the table setting and set of napkins in her hand. “Sorry… was in my own head. Something about it still doesn’t look right still,” she whispered as she started to rearrange the setting in front of her again. 

Michael eyed her for a moment before grabbing the things out of her hand and setting them down. He called for his sister to take over setting the table before grabbing Raven’s hand and pulling her behind him into his bedroom upstairs. He closed the door and handed her the glass. 

“Drink.” He instructed. 

Raven took a sip before lowering the glass again to hand back to him. 

“Nope, drink the whole thing and then tell me why you’re so scared.” 

“I’m not scared.” 

“Yea you are. Tell me why.” Michael wasn’t dumb. Raven had been off since her family landed in LA, more tense, quieter and not herself. He wished he could get the version of her from Paris back but that woman was buried deep beneath the seemingly never-ending bull her family put her through. 

Raven took another big gulp of the drink before sitting on the edge of Michael’s bed, her dress riding up her bare thighs slightly. His eyes sparked with lust but he tempered himself. That was not the point of bringing her up here. 

“I’m not… scared. That’s not what it is. I just… Well, first, I’m frustrated because they’re late. I explicitly told them 2 so they could meet everyone and chat and mingle and it’s almost 4. I spent over an hour on that damn charcuterie board. And they haven’t called me or texted or anything. And now your mom probably thinks I was raised by inconsiderate ass wolves.” 

“Rae, my mom doesn’t care in the slightest. Food wasn’t gonna be done at 2 anyway so they haven’t missed anything or messed up anything. And you know that. So what’s really bothering you? We aren’t leaving this room til you tell me.”

She sucked her teeth in annoyance before sighing. She knew he would make good on his promise not to let her leave until she was honest. 

“I’ve lived in LA for years. Did my masters out here, became a published author here, built a life here and you know how many times I’ve asked them to visit? And the first time they come, it's not even to see me. It’s to meet you. They’ve been in LA for 3 whole days… you know they haven’t made an effort to see me once? Never mind the fact that every restaurant they have a reservation to, we booked. Every excursion, you booked and paid for. And it shouldn’t bother me,” she whispered, throwing the entire drink back before wiping the corner of her lips. “It shouldn’t… bother me. Usually it doesn’t bother me. After all, this’s been it, my whole life. But since I met your family… I see how you are with them a-and I spend time with you all and it’s like breathing in rare fresh air? A-and I dunno, it just… the polluted air is a lot harder to breathe in than it used to be.”  

Since they returned from Paris, Raven had become a staple in the Jordan household. They still returned to the condo some nights after dates as it was often easier than getting back to his mansion in the hills. Raven had fallen in love with Michael’s family and it seemed his family had taken quite a liking to her as well. His nephew loved to have Raven read to him as she did the best silly voices, and she, his mom, and sister had already gone out without Michael for manis, pedis, and dinner - with his card, of course. 

Raven would never forget their first dinner the night they got back from Paris. She had been in such a bad mood but ten minutes at the table with Michael’s entire family had lightened her spirits significantly. His dad was charming and told stories that had Raven’s muscles aching from laughter; his mom so sweet and spent half the dinner asking questions about Raven’s book after having it finished it while they were away; his brother was quiet but he and Michael’s friendship made her heart want to melt; and his sister was witty and made Raven want to be her friend immediately. Everytime Raven spent time with them, they made her feel like part of the family. And she fell into it, despite her efforts to avoid it, with ease, like she had been part of the fabric for years. It caused some guilt to swell as she remembered that the girl they loved so much was a lie and that she and Michael were deceiving them. However, as her own family continued to disappoint her, it was nice to be a part of something so pure and loving. 

“Sorry to interrupt,” Michael’s sister poked her head into the room. “But your family’s car just pulled up.” 

Raven immediately stood up and handed the wine glass back to Michael. She went over to the full-length mirror in his room to adjust her outfit and ensure she looked perfect before putting on the most forced smile Michael had ever seen grace her lips. 

“Come on, we shouldn’t keep them waiting.” 

Michael grabbed her arm to stop her as she tried to walk around him. 

“I told myself I’d stay out of it… your family, your rules. But word of advice, if you’ll let me?” When she said nothing, he continued. “People treat you how you allow them. And just because you’ve allowed this disregard for 30 years doesn’t mean you have to allow it now or that you deserve it. It hurts more now because you know you deserve more. And you’ve experienced more. So demand more.” 

“And if they don’t give it?” Raven’s voice broke slightly with that question because she knew what his answer would be, what she should have done many years ago but did not have the courage to do.  

“Somethin’ isn’t always better than nothin’. Especially when that somethin’ is just dead weight you have to drag around behind you. No one ever got far with dead weight.” He pressed his lips to her forehead, Raven desperately wanting to melt into him and the comfort he provided. He laced his fingers in hers and kissed her hand. “That’s all I’m gonna say. We’re gonna have a good time, promise. You’re with me so you know I gotchu. You ready?” 

“Yea, I think so,” she smiled at him before following him out of his room and downstairs. 

As they descended the stairs, she was unsurprised to find the deep baritone of her father filling the foyer of Michael’s mansion as he greeted everyone. Raven fixed her face to maintain a smile as she and Michael finally made it to the bottom of the stairs. She could feel her sister’s eyes studying her, taking in her designer dress, the signature red bottoms of her heels, and the diamond necklace and earrings glistening against her skin that Michael had bought her in Paris. It may have been a role, but Raven could not lie, she enjoyed dressing the part of a movie star’s girlfriend more than she thought she would. A petty part of her also did not hate the way her sister’s nose seemed to flare with jealousy at it. 

“How y’all doin? I’m Michael?” Michael stepped forward and offered her father and sister a hug. 

Raven’s eyes narrowed as her sister tried to linger in the very chaste hug Michael offered. Neither of them acknowledged her as they introduced themselves to Michael and his family, Raven awkwardly teetering on her heels behind him. 

“It’s so great to meet you, son. Loved that Tom Clancy movie of yours. Watch it all the time,” her dad boasted as if he was Michael’s greatest fan. 

Raven rolled her eyes behind Michael, knowing how much he hated when the first thing out of someone’s mouth when he meets them is their favorite role of his. 

“Thank you, thank you. That was a fun one.” Michael reached behind him and pulled Raven to his side. He protectively tucked her under his arm and smiled down at her. “Great girl you have here.” 

“Hey dad,” Raven offered, stepping forward to accept the half hug her father offered. She knew it was merely for show but she accepted it anyway. “Kiara,” her tone made her seem far more excited to see both of them than she was. But unlike her family, she was painfully aware of the studious eyes of Michael’s family watching them. And while their foundation had cracks the size of the Grand Canyon in it, she did not want Michael’s family to see them. 

Her sister could not even stop eye fucking Michael long enough to give her a hug. She merely nodded in her direction. 

Michael, thankfully, ended the awkward silence between the family members by gesturing for everyone to follow him to the kitchen. There, the island was heavily laden with food that his mom deemed ready to serve. Everyone grabbed serving dishes and started helping move things to the table. Seeing an opportunity to grab her father and her sister, Raven pulled them off to the side for a moment while Michael’s family got ready for dinner. 

There was an awkward silence as the three of them stood in Michael’s living room before Raven found her voice again. She did not know why she was nervous, this was her family after all. 

“Just wanted to see how the trip’s going? A-and ask if y’all had plans tomorrow. Thought maybe, you could come see my apartment? And then maybe we could go hiking to the Hollywood sign, it’s such a nice view of the city. And Michael got us all reservations at a new Japanese spot tomorrow night.” 

Kiara turned her nose up at the mere idea. “Hiking?? No. Dad’s taking me shopping tomorrow on Rodeo Drive. It’ll probably take up the whole day, sorry. But dinner with Michael sounds good.” 

Raven’s heart deflated a bit. Another outstretched hand pushed away. “Oh… yea of course. Shopping sounds fun. Maybe I could meet you all?” 

“That’s ok. We know you’re busy,” her dad interjected, waving his hand to dismiss her suggestion. 

“Oh… well, it’s just… you leave Saturday, I wanted to spend some time with y’all before you leave? I tried calling you both, I haven’t seen you all week. I invited you all out here, thought we’d get to at least spend a little time together before you leave.” 

“We’re spending time together right now. We’ve been really busy. We came to meet Michael and enjoy the city. That’s what we’ve been doing. Besides, we all know Michael paid for us to come, not you.”

Raven scoffed, already frustrated and they had not been there for more than 5 minutes. She regretted everything about this plan. Her time with Michael’s family, this sanctuary she had found with them in his home, now felt tainted as if their mere presence had poisoned that sweet, fresh air. She knew she should have been more excited to see them, after all, it had been longer than she could remember since she saw them in the flesh. But now, that small part of her that never wanted to see them again only seemed to get larger and larger with every moment she stood in their presence. 

Why do you even bother?

“Oh, should I start itemizing everything I’ve paid for in the last decade? Is that the best way to get yall to, you know, actually care to spend time with me? I mean I’ve been asking y’all to come out this way for years. I just thought… since we haven’t really seen each other in a while, this could be a good chance to reconnect. But shopping is more important than me, everything seems to be,” she muttered more to herself than to them. Before her sister could cut in with another smart comment, Raven added. “Can you make sure to thank Michael for this trip you’re enjoying so much? He really went all out of y’all.”

“You don’t need to lecture me on good manners, Raven. I did raise you both,” her father spoke up, clearly annoyed and bored of this conversation. 

Raven bit down the retort that she was not sure please and thank you were even phrases in their vocabulary and just nodded. 

“Is that all?” her sister asked cooly. 

“Yea, yea that’s all.” 

Both of them immediately left to return to the dining room where Michael’s family gathered, leaving Raven in the living room. She let out a deep shaky breath as a welcomed face popped out around the corner. However, she cringed slightly, fearful that he heard that entire exchange. 

She walked over to him, Michael immediately pulling her into a tight embrace. Her head thudded against his chest. “Please tell me you didn’t hear any of that.” 

“Don’t think me lying to you is gonna make you feel any better.” His fingers brushed aside the curls that spilled into her face. .

His hand rubbed soothing circles into her back before he kissed her on the top of her head. This time Raven did not even attempt to shy away, she fully melted into his embrace, at least as much as she could without breaking down. 

“Say the word and they’re gone,” he reminded her, leaning back so he could look in her eyes. 

Raven could tell he was completely serious, that he would kick both of them out without a second thought or a care. However, she knew that was not a possibility. 

“As much as I hate it, we need them, remember?” She sighed. “For once, I do actually need them. So I’m gonna do what I’ve always done.”

“And what’s that?” 

She shrugged, pulling herself out of his embrace. “Suffer through it.” She answered simply. 

“Anything I can do to help?” 

“Keep my glass full,” she answered bluntly. “I can already tell it’s gonna be a long fucking afternoon.”

***

“So Kiara, what do you do?” Donna asked as she sat down from transitioning the dinner dishes out and replacing them with dessert. 

Raven did not know how she was going to eat the slice of apple pie Michael cut for her. Everything had been so delicious, she had eaten two plates and would have gotten a third if her sister had not made a backhanded, loud compliment about her food and her figure. While she could count the number of plates she had eaten with ease, the same could not be said for the glasses of sangria. 

She had not lied when she said she needed it. Tipsy Raven cared far less about her sister’s consistent jabs to make her feel inferior and puff herself up to Michael nor did she care about how her father objectively ignored her for the entire dinner. He talked of her and around her but not once did he direct a question or comment to her. She could not tell which slight bothered her more, the disrespect or the disregard.  

“I was doing hair for a while but I really love to cook so I’m going back to school to be a chef.” 

Everyone around the table offered the appropriate congratulations and well wishes while Raven merely smiled and stopped herself from rolling her eyes. Kiara changed career paths about as often as she changed boyfriends, which was damn near monthly. Being a chef was just another way to throw her dad and Raven’s money down the toilet. 

“Once I finish school, maybe you can float some clients my way? My dream is to be a personal chef.” 

Raven downed her glass before filling it again. She found that drinking was the only way to stop herself from commenting on everything they did that frustrated her. However, that was an incredibly foolish drinking game to play. Because everything they did today seemed to frustrate her, every slight seemed amplified now that it was in the presence of Michael and his family. Each one fueled that anger she often ignored and suppressed. She should have known this was coming, that they would try to ask him for favors. She didn’t even ask him for favors. All they did was take and it was one thing to do that to her, but Michael did not deserve it. 

You don’t deserve it either, a small voice that sounded oddly like the man sitting next to her reminded her. 

“Maybe finish school first before you start chatting up my man for clients,” Raven teased, keeping her tone light and playful though she knew Kiara could see the lack of amusement in her eyes. 

“Well, we all gotta start somewhere right? Can’t all be big time like you, sis?” 

Raven smiled, “Well, you can be if you work hard… and don't rely on boyfriends, dad and I for everything,” she added the last part under her breath, however, she knew her sister could hear her. Michael’s hand went to rest of her thigh as if he could sense the change in her demeanor and mood almost immediately. 

“Oh we loved Raven’s book,” Donna offered, transitioning the conversation away from her sister. “Such a talented and vivid writer. I probably talked the poor girl’s ear off when we first met about it. Was she always like that?” 

Raven’s dad chuckled. “Yea she always had her nose buried in a book or a notebook writing somethin. She used to write these little short stories, got a drawer full of ‘em back at the house.” 

“That’s so sweet. I’m not much of a fantasy reader,” Donna admitted. “But she had me hooked from the first chapter. Such a beautiful story.” 

“Yea the book was really great,” he added lamely, unable to offer much beyond that because, as Raven knew, he had not read her book. “I always encouraged them both to follow their dreams, great to see her accomplish so much.” 

Something about hearing him talk about her passion, her life’s work, the thing she tolled and fought for and had to give up, as if he cared about it at all made all those years of suppressed rage finally boil over. She could suffer through a lot, it was true, but she could not listen to that, listen to him lie and pretend to be supportive or caring when he was nothing of the sort. And now, she did not even care who knew it. This was simply not a piece of fiction she would allow him to sell.  

“What was your favorite part of the book, dad?” Raven had not said much throughout dinner, allowing her sister to monopolize most of the conversation. However, it seemed as though Michael was the only person who realized the unfortunate turn their Thanksgiving dinner was about to take. He leaned in closer to her, quietly whispering in her ear but he knew his sweet nothings meant just that at this point: nothing. She was too far gone to hear them or register them. Her body felt as if it was almost vibrating with rage. He wished he could take her outside and give her a few plates to smash but he knew his mom would not appreciate that. 

“Oh all of it. Whole thing was great.” 

“Huh…” she muttered, taking a long gulp of her drink before reaching for the pitcher to refill it. “Who’s your favorite character?” 

“Maybe we should slow down on…” Michael quietly whispered in her ear, subtly trying to beat her to the pitcher but she grabbed it first and poured another large glass. She raised her hand to stop his sentence. 

“Didn’t realize there’d be a pop quiz,” he let out a deep chuckle as the tension around the table grew to levels that were impossible to ignore. 

“Not a pop quiz. Just tell me one thing about the book you loved so much and encouraged me to write. Favorite plot twist, favorite scene, favorite character… hell, name one character you remember at all?”

“What the fuck, Rae? What’s your problem?” 

Raven let out a humorless laugh as she leaned back in her seat. She downed her entire drink in one go, sitting the glass down before folding her arms casually. 

“What’s my problem? What’s my problem? Right now, my problem is this fiction you’re spinning as if you give a rat’s ass about my book, my career, or me when if someone put a gun to your head, you wouldn’t be able to tell them the name of my book, let alone anything about it. My problem is the fact that I invited you all here to spend time with me, my boyfriend, and his family, all for you to ignore me for most of dinner. My problem is that you wax poetic about stories I wrote as a kid when, if you had ever bothered to read a single one of them, you would have seen a child writing herself into literally any other world and family to escape the pitiful one she had. I have a lot of problems, too many to list right now. But the common denominator in all of them is you two.” 

Everyone’s movements and side conversations halted at her outburst. The silence and her deep breaths were only interrupted by Michael’s brother accidentally dropping his fork against his dinner china, the loud clanging filling everyone’s ears as they stared at Raven and her father.

She was not one to start a scene or draw attention to herself. But she could not let any of this go on for another moment. 

“Baby… why don’t we take a break for a minute?” Michael asked, standing to pull her chair out. Raven knew that if she sat there for a minute longer, she’d lose whatever little composure she had left, so she forced herself to heed Michael’s advice. She wiped her lips and immediately threw her napkin down on the table to stand and leave. 

“Excuse me.” 

However, as she turned around, she heard her father’s voice. 

“I didn’t mean to cause an issue. I tried my best with her and Kiara but you know, some kids are just harder to handle than others.”

As soon as those words hit her ears, she exploded. Before she even realized it, she had returned to the table and was leaning over it yelling at her father. 

“‘You tried your best??’ YOU TRIED YOUR BEST? You never tried! All you’ve done is give the bare minimum and suffer through my presence like I’m was a fuckin’ pest you couldn’t get rid of!” 

“You think you can talk to me that way? I’m still your father! All I’ve ever done is love you and take care of you.” 

Raven scoffed, throwing her hands in the air. Michael shifted so he was standing behind her, an arm wrapped around her waist as if to stop her from jumping across the table. It was not that he thought she would actually do anything, baby girl did not seem like the scrapping type. But he prayed his presence would calm her down if nothing else. This was a side of her he had never seen before. He could not lie, it was kinda sexy, seeing her finally stick up for herself and be assertive. 

In a part of her brain that felt distant and detached, she could feel Michael’s presence, hear his soft whispers to calm down. And she knew and appreciated what he was trying to do: stop her from doing something she’d ultimately regret. But at that moment, she did not know if she wanted to be stopped.

“All you’ve ever done is give me scraps! Scraps of support, scraps of your attention, but not an ounce of your love or affection. All to punish me for the sin of being born.” She had always bought into her family’s narrative that she was to blame for what happened. But it was as if the small voice that nagged at her her entire life was finally roaring. This was not her fault. No part of it was. “You can’t be mad at God for that shitty situation and you won’t be mad at mom for making her choice. So for 30 years, I’ve endured you hating me because you needed someone to be mad at. When you ignored birthday after birthday and accomplishment after accomplishment and need after need, I persisted in trying to win your love and win your affection. When you threw me out and cut me off after one year of college, I dusted myself off and kept going. When you rebuffed every attempt to reconnect and build a new relationship, I kept reaching out, kept trying. When you ignored me on every holiday and at every visit and everything, I still showed up. And when you ask for everything I have despite not deserving a cent of it, I give it. Every single time. Even after I lost my book deal last year and my career and didn’t know how I was gonna pinch pennies together for rent, I put myself and my needs last to help you two every single fuckin’ time. And you both expect me to be gracious for scraps while I kill myself to give you the Sun, Moon and stars and you take and you take and you take without so much as a thank you.” Every ‘take’ punctured by her hand slamming down on the farm-style dining table. “It’s not enough and I refuse to spend the next 30 years pretending it is. I’m done!” 

“God, you’re such an embarrassment,” Kiara muttered. 

“Oh fuck you, Kiara!” She cried out. “You miserable, attention-seeking bitch. You can say whatever you want about me but unlike you, I made something of my life and I did it all on my own. Meanwhile, you float through life without a single responsibility or thing to your name that someone else didn’t give you. And you can’t stand the fact that my life, despite both of your best efforts, is better than yours.” 

“Wow. Nice to know how you really feel about your family.” 

“I’ve never had a family. You both made damn sure of that. You want me out of your lives so bad? Fine. I’m out. Let’s see how far both of you get without taking from me. Get out. Both of you.” 

Raven had no authority to kick someone out of a house that was not even hers but she could not hope to care. She knew Michael would not argue with her or lobby for them to stay after she just cussed them out six ways to Sunday in front of his entire family. 

“You can’t kick us out!” 

“Yes she can,” Michael piped up, speaking for the first time since the blow up began. 

The intense stare down continued before her father and sister angrily stood up and stalked to the door. 

“And Kiara!” Her sister stopped walking to turn around to her. “Say another word about me or my relationship to the media and I won’t hesitate to tell this entire world what a shitty person and sister you are. See how your friends like that story then.”

Her sister merely glared at her before stomping out of the house behind their father. As soon as she heard the door shut, Raven felt the adrenaline in her system crash and the weight of what just happened set in. 

What the fuck did you just do? And in front of Michael’s family? 

She let out a shaky breath as a wave of shame hit her. “U-Um… I am… I am s-so so so sorry,” she whispered. She rang her hands together, unable to make eye contact with anyone in the room. She had not felt this embarrassed in a long time. “I-I should go too.” She pulled herself away from Michael and tried to race toward the door, ignoring his calls for her to stay. However, before she could leave the dining room, Michael’s mom stopped her. 

She grabbed the young woman’s hands and patted them softly. 

“No, no you aren’t. No one leaves my table till dessert is over. You’re gonna sit and finish your pie with family.” 

The tears brimming in Raven’s eyes spilled over. 

“I-I’m sorry for r-ruining dinner.” 

The older woman laughed. “That ain’t the first blow up this family’s seen at a dinner table… won’t be the last. Go on and sit down.” 

She steered Raven’s body back into Michael’s arms who pulled back her chair for her to sit. She ate her pie in silence, conversation flowing with ease around her. The Jordans acted as if her meltdown was just par the course, though she knew they were likely just trying to make her feel better. But still, she appreciated it. Within 15 minutes of eating dessert, the mood across the table felt lighter and easier than it had all day. Raven calmed down enough to laugh and joke. By the end of several rounds of drinks and a very rowdy spades game to cap off the evening, Raven’s heart and soul also felt lighter than they had in years.  

However, that quickly ended when she and Michael finally retreated to his suite for the evening. She collapsed onto the edge of his bed and kicked off her shoes, her movements sluggish and slow as if the weight of what she had done was finally creeping on her now that she was alone. 

“I’m… alone,” she whispered to herself. 

“What?” Michael crouched down in front of her, her eyes misting over slightly as she realized the truth. 

“I’ve always been alone for the most part… after my grandma died. And I couldn’t keep a relationship going for long ever. It’s always just been… me. But it was ok because even though they were awful, I still had… family a-and there was still hope that it could be something. But now… now I have no one cause they’ll never come around after what I said to them.” She rubbed her eyes with the palm of her hand. “I don’t regret it, I was holding on to something that just wasn’t ever gonna be anything. But the dead weight was… something? Didn’t expect how empty I’d feel without it.” She sniffled and wiped her eyes. “It’s stupid,” she whispered. “Sorry.” She cleared her throat and stood up to walk to his bathroom. “Give me a minute to get my life together and then we can do what you actually pay me for and not this sad shit.”  

Michael watched as she dapped her eyes in the mirror to rid them of tears before she reached behind her and pulled down the zipper of her dress. She looked gorgeous, her body clad in another one of her lingerie sets from Paris. This one was a nude brown that perfectly matched her skin. He knew she was merely trying to use sex to move on and forget, and he would oblige. But he could not do so without saying one thing.

“You have me.” It was not a question, but a firm statement. A matter of fact statement that left no room for arguments or questions. 

Raven’s hands paused as she tried to fix her hair for a few minutes. She turned and smiled at him, closing the distance between them. 

“Yea I have you… But this’ll end and you’ll find the right girl for you and then…”she shook her head, not wanting to think about that: being alone or being without him. “Thank you… for today.” 

She leaned forward and pressed her lips to his. Usually, Michael initiated their kisses and they were domineering, hurried and passionate. While this moment held the same passion, it was slow and measured, each second inching past them. And Raven used every second to convey what her simple thank you could not. She prayed he felt it and appreciated it, because at that moment, the small action was all she had left to give. She did not have the energy for grand speeches or words. 

She broke off their kiss and slid down to her knees, assuming the same position she did almost every time they had sex.

However, tonight, Michael decided he needed something different, that she needed something different. His finger gently lifted her chin so her eyes were on him.  

“You take care of me every time we have sex. Let me take care of you for once.” 

He did not let her question it as he helped her to her feet and led her to his bed, gently pushing her down. She let out a dramatic huff that made him chuckle. 

He stood over her for a moment, his eyes taking in the hills of her breasts, the soft panes of her stomach, her thick plush thighs. He often found himself just staring at her and this moment was no different, moments where he wanted to commit her beauty to memory, burn her image in his brain matter. 

“You are fuckin’ gorgeous,” he whispered. “You know how beautiful you are?” he asked as he sucked on the skin of her neck. 

She turned her head, giving him more access to the skin of her neck as he sucked and bit. She whimpered slightly as his kisses moved down her body, savoring the taste of her soft supple skin. He took his time, however, this felt completely different than when he teased her. Then, he was purposefully avoiding giving her what she wanted. Now, her moans created the roadmap he followed. His lips and hands lingered where she needed them to, only pausing to shower her with praises. As his kisses continued, Raven lost all control of her senses, of the world around her. Everything else, the pain and emotions of the day faded away as every thought in her mind and every cell in her physical body turned their focus on him.

“I love everything about you. The way you moan, the way you beg me for more, the face you make when I make you cum.”

“Michael, please,” she whimpered.  

He paused his ministrations and grasped her chin with a featherlike touch, her eyes focusing on him. 

“I’m gonna take care you, I promise. Always. Trust me.” He hoped that the look in his eyes conveyed the truth, that her pleasure was not the only part of her he would take care of. He would worship and care for her mind, body, and spirit. 

His fingers hooked into her lace panties and slid them off, settling between her plush thighs for his favorite meal of the day. Her eyes clenched shut as he spelled his adoration and love for her with his tongue on her clit. Michael had always been a generous lover but river always bent toward his pleasure. Every action, while it brought her pleasure, carried the reminder that it was not for her pleasure, it was for his. And she loved it, craved it, got off on it. It was one of the benefits of the arrangement to her. 

But it had been so long since she had had sex like this, where the river flowed toward her and only her, where someone was so committed to bringing her mind numbing pleasure and ensuring she knew she was cared for and safe. She knew why he was doing it, after seeing how unsafe she was with her own family. She knew it was not real but she could not close the gates to her heart fast enough and stop herself from feeling it, from enjoying it. Every touch was gentle and sweet and let her know she was safe in his arms, safe in his sanctuary. And even though she knew she could not stay there with him forever, she loved him even more for letting her in from the cold for a moment. 

Michael’s eyes never left her face as he devoured her, every moan, groan, and plea for mercy spurred him on. Her thighs clamped around his head as he pushed her farther and farther up her mountain to the peak of desire. He knew Raven’s body almost as well as he knew his own now, increasing his speed and efforts when he felt her legs shake and heard her moans grow louder. 

It did not take much longer for Raven to feel the snap of a powerful orgasm crash over her. She let out a continuous stream of praise and lewd words as she road those waves of sweet bliss. 

“That’s it, baby. Cum for me. Fuck, you taste so good.” He emerged from between her legs, kissing her deeply. 

He wrapped his arm around her waist and used his strength to hoist her farther up onto the bed. He placed her legs on his shoulders and lined himself up with her entrance. Raven offered him a raised eyebrow at the position choice, she could not remember the last time they did missionary on the bed like this. On creative surfaces, like tables? Sure. 

“I wanna look you in the eye when I make you cum. Keep your eyes on me, baby,” he whispered, Raven’s heart’s fluttering as she felt him fill her to the brim. 

“Fuckkkk,” she cried out as he drove into her deeply. Every stroke felt like heaven, a promised land he was so graciously sending her to. There was a vulnerability to the position that she had not expected, the way he looked at her with every thrust forward and retreat. 

“Look at me.” He demanded as her eyes fluttered closed. As soon as her eyes were trained on his, he uttered three words Raven never would have thought to hear from his lips. “I love you.” 

Raven was rendered speechless, her moans catching in her throat as she felt her stomach drop 100 stories. 

Did he say what I think he said? She thought to herself, her brain trying to cut through layers of pleasure fog to work properly. 

“You deserve the entire world, Rae. You deserve someone who’ll  give you this world… the sun, the moon, and the stars. And I don’t deserve you, I don’t deserve this. But I’ll spend everything I have, I’ll give everything I am to make sure you got it. I want more than an arrangement and six months with you… I want you, all of you, for as long as you’ll allow me.” 

His words directly clashed with the narrative she had in her mind, the seeds of doubt life and her family had sowed. And despite her heart begging her to scream the words back at him, those doubts stopped her. She heard his words but she did not believe them or rather, she could not believe them.  

She did love him, she was so in love with him. It was a devastating, beautiful, painful, once-in-a-lifetime sort of love she thought she would only read in the pages of love stories. But she felt it… every devastatingly beautiful moment of it every time she was in his presence, every time she felt his touch, every time he comforted her or looked into her eyes. 

But the words, those three precious words, were stuck in her throat. A barrier of fear and doubt, made even heavier by the events of the day, weighed them down. Instead of celebrating that the man she so desperately loved felt the same about her, she could only focus on how that just could not simply be true. The story she had built in her mind that she was not good enough, that she did not deserve him, that he could never love her, a part of her brain clung to it as a lifeline. She had given Michael this grand speech about living and falling but she could not do it herself. Because if she gave in and  allowed him to love her, truly love her, and then this was all a lie? That was the crash she did not think she could survive. She could handle her family hurting her. It knocked her down but she could always get back up again. But Michael? He would be her armageddon. If he hurt her, she would not get back up again. 

The avalanche was hurling toward her once again, only this time she was standing at the bottom without a barrier or way to outrun it. She was mere feet away from being swept up by it and all the emotion and vulnerability it brought in its wake. The day had just been too much, too heavy. And emotionally, she had not been prepared for any of the twists and turns the day had brought. She suddenly felt overwhelmed, so out of control of everything, particularly her emotions, the one thing she usually had under control. 

She felt tears sting the back of her eyes but she knew they were not good tears, the tears Michael usually induced during sex. No, these were entirely different. She quickly realized she needed a break, a moment. And the only thing in this world that she could control in this particular moment was the man above her. He was the catalyst every single time, the cannon blast that started the avalanche, that forced her to feel everything all at once. And she needed that to stop. She needed him to stop. 

“Wakanda…” she choked out, her voice as broken and small as she felt. 

She did not have a chance to repeat it as Michael immediately stopped his movements in mid stroke, his face stricken and concerned. 

“Shit.” He slid out of her without a second thought  and braced himself over her, shocked to find tears streaming down her face, her body trembling. He  immediately grabbed the blanket that was hanging half off the bed, wrapping her nude form tightly in it. “Hey, hey. You’re ok, you’re ok. You’re having a panic attack. Deep breaths for me.”

Raven curled into a small ball under the blanket, gasping for breath. Michael pressed her hand into his chest. 

“Focus on me, baby girl. That’s it. Deep breaths.” 

She closed her eyes and focused on the faint thumps of his heart in his chest, the way it rose and fell against her hand as she tried to sync up her breathing to his. He held tightly to her hand as she took long deep breaths. It felt like hours passed before either of them moved, before she felt calm enough to speak, but she knew it had likely only been a few minutes. 

“First a concussion,” she wiped her tears. “And now, a panic attack. I must be the worst woman you’ve ever had sex with,” she let out a watery chuckle. 

“Or the best?” he offered in a voice so gentle and quiet, it made a new set of tears well up in her eyes. She did not deserve him. “What happened? Did I hurt you?” 

She shook her head. “N-no, you d-didn’t. I j-just couldn’t… you can’t look at me l-like that o-or keep doing stuff l-like this. Pretending you love me just to make me feel b-better.” She shook her head rapidly. “I know you feel obligated to be g-gentle and shit when I’m having a bad day. But i-it’s just confusing. I know t-this isn’t real a-and I c-cant take anyone else pretending to love me or care about me when they r-really don’t.”  

“I’ve never done anything for you that I didn’t want to do, Raven. I’m not kind and gentle with you because I feel obligated. I’m kind and gentle because I want to be, because you deserve it. Do you find yourself so undeserving of all these things that it is that hard to believe that I’m in love with you? That I do all this shit for you because this is real to me??” 

“There’s no way that is true! You don’t love me!” She argued. 

“Yes I do!” 

Raven wanted to pull her hair out and scream at him. “Stop saying that! W-we are just fantasies to each other, Michael! P-playing a role that the other needs filled and j-just because the fantasy is nice, doesn’t mean I should kid myself into believing it is real. You’ll toss me aside as soon as this agreement is done because everything you feel is based on a fantasy!”

“You aren’t some fantasy to me, Raven!” 

“Fine! Not a fantasy! But everything we are is conditional… even you have to admit that. I mean we have a fuckin’ contract! Everything we are is based on me fulfilling those conditions! You can dress me up like a girlfriend but I know what I am when the cameras go away, Michael. I’m the girl you met in a hotel who was paid to fuck you!” 

He jumped off the bed and grabbed his phone, thrusting it into her hand. “Robert Pearson. Call him.” 

“W-who is that?” she asked, completely bewildered by the change in the conversation. 

“He’s one of the top reporters at TMZ. Call him, call him right now and tell him this whole thing is a fuckin’ sham. Hell, want me to start an Instagram live for you so you can tell the whole fucking world? I’ll do it.” 

She threw the phone back on the bed and stood up, wrapping the blanket around her like a dress. “I’m not gonna fucking call anyone or do that!” 

“But you could! That’s my point! You could call TMZ right now and tell him this whole thing was a sham, sell a fuckin’ tell all and I’d still love you. I’d honestly thank you for it because then I wouldn’t have to pretend I only love you because of some arrangement. I could admit that I love you for you. I love you for your vulnerability, your spirit, the fact that you give and you give and expect nothing in return and don’t even stop giving all of yourself when everyone else would. I love that you talk in fuckin’ sonnets and monologues. I love your relentless optimism and hope. I love your smile, the way you can’t look someone in the eye when they compliment you but it lights up your entire being. I love that you’ve got a wild imagination and you're quirky and funny and…” he threw his hands up in the air. “I. Love. You. I am in love with you. You can keep telling me to stop saying it, you can ignore it, pretend you don’t hear it, you can reject it. But it won’t change it. I love you. No conditions, no expectations. Just you for you. The question is do you love me?” he demanded. 

“It’s not that simple!” She tried to move around him but he blocked her way. She needed to get out of her, needed to escape this chaos. “Move, Michael.” 

“No! It is that simple. Do you love me? Forget everythin’ else. What you think you do and don’t deserve. Do. You. Love. Me?” 

“Of course, I fuckin’ love you!” she cried out. “I fell in love with you the morning I woke up with a concussion and you were sitting in my hospital room. I love you! But t-there’s… no one loves me like that. What you’re claiming to feel… no one feels that for me a-and there’s no way that you, a man who could get any one of the billions of women on this planet, would be the first. There’s no way you would settle for loving me.” She let out a deep sigh. “A-and my heart can’t take it… I can’t take the rejection and pain from people I love who don’t love me back anymore. I c-can’t. Which means I can’t believe that you love me. I’ve taken all I can take a-and if I accept that you love me, then I risk you rejecting o-or hurting me. And when you do, it’ll kill me.” The last word hung in the air as she sank down to the floor by his bed, her head buried in her hands. 

Michael settled down on the floor next to her, his hand grasping hers as he intertwined their fingers. There was so much to unpack in her words, so much that he knew he would not be able to convince her of or solve in one night. But there was one thing he knew he could assure her of right then and there. 

“There were a hundred ways I could’ve spun what happened between us that first night, hundreds of ways I could’ve dealt with you that would not have led us to this moment. But I chose the road I chose, not so I could have a body to use or fix a crisis. But because you stole my soul the moment you turned around in that hotel room. Loving you isn’t fuckin’ settling, it’s everythin’ I’ve wanted for damn near a decade but didn’t think I could have again. We’ve been standing on the edge of this cliff, waiting for the other to be ready to jump for months now. And I’m ready and you’re holdin’ on for dear fuckin’ life. I’m askin’ you to let go and trust that I won’t hurt you. I know that’s scary… shit I’m scared too. But I’m willing to jump if you are.” His thumb wiped away her falling tears before kissing her on the forehead. “I’m not lookin’ for an answer tonight, love. I know today… this week’s been a lot for you. I didn’t mean to add another thing on top of all the other shit, I just… needed you to know how I felt.” 

“Don’t… don’t apologize. I-I j-just got overwhelmed b-by everything. It’s been a day of unexpected emotional confessions,” she chuckled. “I…” she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “I’m really scared. Scared of being hurt, scared of falling even more in love with you a-and another good thing being taken from me. B-But I want this for real with you too. I don’t wanna keep pretending what we have isn’t real when we know it is. If you’re ready to jump, so am I. And we can just be scaredy cats while we fall together?” 

He pulled her into his lap and pressed his lips to hers softly. “Not a fan of you callin’ me a  scaredy cat,” he teased. “But yea. I meant it when I told you, you’re safe with me. All of you. And I’ll do whatever I gotta do to make sure you believe that shit.” 

Her heart fluttered a bit. She knew he meant his words. If there was one thing she had always been with Michael, it was safe. And she adored that about him. 

“I love you,” she whispered. 

“I love the way that shit sounds. Say it again.” . 

“I love you, I love you, I love you,” her lips tugged upward into a grin as he started peppering her face with kisses and having her repeat the phrase over and over again. He picked them both off the ground and continued kissing her and causing her to giggle as he placed her back in bed. 

He settled her under the covers and pulled her tightly into his arms. Their legs were quickly tangled in each other’s as she laid her head on his chest. They laid there in silence for a while before Raven sat up. As much as she enjoyed cuddling in his arms, Raven wanted more. Emboldened by their confessions of love, she pushed herself to her knees and straddled his hips. 

“You used your safe word. We ain’t gotta…” she pressed a finger to his lips stopping him. 

“I know what I want and need, Bakari,” she whispered, using his nickname, which was only reserved for family and close friends for the first time. Michael was not much of a crier but hearing his nickname on her lips made his heart skip one or two beats, made tears sting the back of his eyes.  “And I want you. You showed me how much you loved me… now let me show you.” She gave him a sly smirk before shifting between his legs to taste him. 

The pair lost track of how many times they moaned or screamed those three magic words to each other. But by the time they were finished, their bodies a tangled mess of limbs and bodily fluid, Raven knew, in her heart, that his words were true. And so she fell asleep nestled in his warm embrace, feeling true happiness with anther person for the first time in her life.

Tag List: @readinghere2023 @blackerthings @prettyisasprettydoes1306 @physicxal @purplehairgawdess @miyuhpapayuh @rueruesclues @geemamii @certifiedlesbianbaddie @pipsqueak-98 @nyifly22 @destinio1 @twocentaur @gopaperless @musicisme333 @roguekiki @majesticbrownjawn @taurusqueen83 @mysteryuz @miamormilan @itsknor-thedeep @naj-ay444 @mads-grace4 @nayaesworld @kholdkill @msniaimani @nccu-rnc @apenasumlug4r

***

A/N: The babes finally confessed their love for each other!!! Woohoo! How do you think our two lovebirds make the jump from fake romance to a real relationship? Thank you for reading! Drop a comment and let me know what you thought :)

#black writers #michael b jordan #michael b jordan x oc #michael b jordan x reader #mbjordanedit #black panther #michael b jordan fanfic #creed 3 #adonis creed #creed iii

[angstywaifu]

The Lost Sister - Part 16

Synopsis: Xaden is known as an only child due to his sister who 'died' during the Rebellion. Little do they know she didn't die and has been so close this entire time.

Garrick Tavis x OC A/N: Hope you guys are excited, we are about to start diving into Ophelia's signet! Let me know your thoughts on what you think it could be!

The Lost Sister Masterlist | Masterlist

As I dismount Mealladh after finishing flight training for the day, I hear Tairn growl. So loud to ground shakes slightly. I look up to see his eyes trained on someone. Dain. And he looks angry, more so than usual. Tairn clearly does not like the sight of him as he bares his teeth at him, saliva pooling on the ground beneath him.

Remind me to never annoy you. I say to Mealladh through the bond.

She chuckles. I will never get that angry at you unless you do something stupid. Which I highly doubt.

My bond with Mealladh was getting strong quickly. We could easily communicate with each other, shield each other out with ease. Even without having taken a single Signet Training class. So far the only one in our squad to show a signet had been Sawyer. He could control metal. Nearly took his opponents arm off in challenges when it manifested. Ridoc had told us the story over one of our meals. He thought it was the coolest thing he had ever seen. When would I get my signet? What would it be? They always said the signet represented the rider. Something about their personality or something to aid them. Something they needed. Every time I had tried to think about what it could be I came up short.

Rhiannon appears next to me as Dain slowly approaches Violet. “What do you think that’s about?”

I shake my head. “No idea. But Dain looks angry and Tairn does not look pleased about it.”

”No he does not.” We both laugh.

As it was our last class of the day we were waiting for Violet. All of us usually headed back to the dorms together before . As Tairn takes off Violet looks over to us and motions for us to leave. She had obviously agreed to talk to Dain.

”Have they talked since threshing?” I ask Rhiannon as we start to walk back down to the Quadrant, Ridoc and Sawyer not far ahead.

She shakes her head. “Don’t think so. She hasn’t mentioned if he has. And she would have.”

I nod. “That could be an interesting conversation they’re about to have then.”

”I’d love to be a fly on the wall for that one.” She adds with a smirk.

”Definitely. He says one wrong thing and she’s gonna rip into him.”

As if on queue I hear loud voices behind me. I turn my head to see they’ve barely made it a few steps and she is already angry at him. Poor boy. But he did this to himself. He’d been trying to baby her, send her to the scribes where he thought she belonged. But Violet had been thriving here despite her the limitations of her body. Hell she had bonded the strongest dragon in the Quadrant. Hell she had gotten two dragons. Something no one had ever seen before. And yet he still saw her as this poor frail girl that needed protection. I was thankful Garrick and Xaden had pretty much looked past that with me. I had made sure to prove I was not the girl they left behind in Aretia. I had grown, I had changed. I had adapted to survive. Not that I had much choice. Though I probably could have refused and ended up dead or locked in a cell. I chose the option that kept me alive. The option that got me back to my family, and as close to home that I could get.

The afternoon sun blinds me for a moment as we walk into the courtyard, busy with other riders now that classes are out for the day. I feel that familiar feeling and look over to see Xaden and Garrick leaning against the Academic Building, as if watching over their domain. Their eyes immediately meet mine.

”So what’s going on with you and Tavis?” Asks Ridoc as we stop just inside the courtyard, waiting for Violet to catch up. “Made it official yet now you’ve done the deed.” He wiggles his eyebrows at me.

Rhiannon groans and rolls her eyes at him. “Really? You still call sex the deed? How old are you again?”

”Hey I was just trying to be more subtle about it in case anyone was listening.” He defends with his hands raised.

”Then don’t ask in a courtyard filled with almost the entire quadrant?” I bite back a laugh at her sassy remark.

”It’s fine Rhi. But if you must know, not yet.” I tell him bluntly.

”Was-”

”And I am not telling you details.” I say as I cut him off causing Sawyer and Rhiannon to laugh at his annoyed face.

Violet storms into the courtyard, clearly not pleased after her conversation with Dain. I laugh as she looks over at Xaden and gives him the middle finger as he arches an eyebrow at her. He can probably sense her mood through the bond. His gaze flickers to Dain who walks through the archway looking sorry for himself.

”Everything all right?” Rhiannon asks as she walks up to us.

”Dain is an ass -”

”MAKE IT STOP!” Someone screams as they run down the steps at an alarming speed, holding his head between his hands as if he was in pain. Not if. He was in pain.

I don’t know his name, but I know he’s one of the first years in third wing. He sits near us in battle brief.

“For gods, sake, make it stop!” He screams again, stumbling into the courtyard.

Every rider is on alert. Hands hovering over weapons ready to attack. Mine move to the daggers on my thighs. Next to Violet I see Xaden and Garrick move forward in a defensive stance, ready to jump in at a moments notice. The riders slowly creep forward, a circle forming around him. He was manifesting his signet. And something in my gut told me it wasn’t good.

”Jeremiah!” A cadet shouts as they rush forward.

”You!” He yells as he spins towards a third year, pointing his finger at him. “You think I’ve lost it!” The way his eyes flare and the tilt of his head, I don’t blame the third year. All of us are thinking it. “How does he know? He shouldn’t know!”

That’s when it clicks. He’s inntinnsic. The one signet that means instant death. All of our thoughts are open to him. And the thought makes my blood turn cold.

”And you!” He spins around, this time to a second year. “What the hell is wrong with him? Why is he screaming?”

He spins towards Dain. “Is Violet going to hate me forever? Why can’t she see that I just want to keep her alive? How is he…? He’s reading my thoughts!”

I have to give Jeremiah some credit. He mimicked Dain’s tone almost perfectly. I look over at Violet to see she looks just as terrified as the rest of us. Xaden and Garrick step forward, shoving Ridoc aside as they move up next to Violet and I who were at the front of our group. Everyone grasps their weapons as Jeremiah unsheathes his shortsword.

”Make it stop! Can’t any of you see? The thoughts won’t stop!” He’s panicking.

”Xaden. You need to do something.” I say sternly, dagger now gripped in my right hand.

He nods before turning to Violet. “Start mentally reciting whatever bookish shit you’ve learned.”

She looks at him confused.

He looks at both of us. “If you value your secrets, clear your thoughts. Now.”

Shit. I quickly slam up my shield as hard as I can. Try to recite what ever useless information I can as well.

”And you!” My heart drops as his eyes lock onto Garrick. “Damn it all to hell. He’ll know about Are-” He barely gets his sentence out before Xaden’s shadows wrap around his mouth, silencing him.

All I can do is stare at Jeremiah. To anyone else Are could have been anything. Could have been any word. But with Xaden’s reaction, I know its not nothing. Something in my heart knows what he was about to say. He was about to say Aretia. My home. Our home. That was destroyed years ago. But why would Garrick have been thinking about it.

Something tugs in my mind. And it isn’t Mealladh. It’s as if something else is there. I focus how Melgren had taught me. I’m in the courtyard back in Aretia. My home. To my left is the throne room door, where I can see Mealladh’s red and white presence glowing around the door I’ve shut off. But at the end of the courtyard is something else. Another presence wrapped in… black shadows? Just like Jeremiah was now. Something in me is calling to pull at it, investigate. I feel my left hand twitch as if wanting to tug on it. I’m so focused on it I don’t even see the professor rush towards Jeremiah. My left hand flexes as my mind tugs on the presence in my courtyard in my head. But as I do so the professor grips his head and a crack echoes off the walls. But I hear it louder in my head as the presence disappears as well as the shadows. Everyone’s so focused on the professor and Jeremiah to notice my recoil. Everyone except for two. As I snap out of it I look over to see Xaden and Garrick staring at me wide eyed. Their eyes darting between me and the floor. Underneath my foot is a deep but short crack. One that was definitely not there before. I can tell from the slight scorch mark and power radiating from it. They go to start towards me but I push through the crowd and use my size to get away before they can get to me. Yet again I am running away as Garrick calls my name from behind me. Part 17 Tag List: @riorgail @going-through-shit @fw-gt @bbkissme99 @xceafh @leptitlu @came-to-laugh-but-cried @onthewaytotimbuktu @daardyrnitta

#fourth wing #fourth wing fanfic #the empyrean #the fourth wing #garrick tavis #garrick tavis x reader #garrick tavis imagine #garrick tavis x oc

[akoyaxs]

Dangerous Games - II

✮ Pairing: Aonung x Tayrangi/Omotikaya fem reader ✮ Tags: Reader POV, oral sex (m and f recieving), slight voyeurism if you squint, banter, fluff, friends w benefits ✮ Read Part 1 here Note: this (backstory and character dynamic) is heavily based of my wattpad fanfiction "Dangerous Game", it's just a little more mature than I would post on my WP so I'm doing a Aonung x reader part now instead of the Aonung x OC in the fanfiction ˙ᵕ˙

So maybe things didn't go exactly to plan - not that there had ever been a plan in place.

But when you and Aonung returned back to the village, the others hardly failed to notice the marks you'd left all over each other.

Neteyam had been quick to notice the nips and hickeys along your neck, and Lo'ak's eyes nearly bulged out of his head when he saw the scratches you'd marked along Aonung's back.

The two Sully boys had instantly pulled Aonung aside. By their gleaming eyes and slight frowns, you could tell they were torn between their obvious disbelief that Aonung managed to have sex with you and their brother-like protectiveness of you (which was completely unnecessary as you outranked them both put together).

Kiri and Tsireya had been raising their brows at you, which you ignored after sharing the whole story with them. Tsireya had been slightly disgusted with her brother yet amused with your easy control of him, whilst Kiri had just listened intently with an incredulous grin on her face.

Unfortunately, in the moment where you and Aonung made that bet and engaged in certain activities in that soft forest clearing, you hadn't though about the longer term consequences.

One of them was Aonung himself. He couldn't stop shooting you strange glances despite your insistence that it meant nothing.

You had thought that finally giving him a taste would satiate his inexplicable fixation with you, but if anything, he was just seems to want you more.

You sigh as you walk out of your hut, forgetting the crucial fact that your kelku was next to the one the Metkayina were staying in.

You're striding past without your weapons when you hear a voice call your name from inside.

Tsireya is smiling at you from the entrance, nestled comfortably against Lo'ak. You can spot Kiri and Rotxo by the fire, chatting with Neteyam.

Not spotting a certain someone, you follow Tsireya's welcoming wave and duck into the kelku.

Yet upon entering, you realise you made a mistake in assuming Aonung wasn't there, because your foot catches on a thick turquoise tail, and you find yourself promptly falling into someone's lap.

Stupid ass skxawng, leaving his tail lying wherever for people to trip over. Why does he just have to be so stupidly massive.

You grumble a little as you push yourself up, finding Aonung's face suddenly inches from yours, an amused little smirk on his face.

"Shut up and get off me fish lips," you snap, gripping his shoulders to push yourself out of his lap.

"You were the one that sat on me," he points out, before he cuts himself off.

You don't miss the way his eyes instantly travel over him as you sit up and push yourself away, but before you can snap at him that your eyes actually aren't on your tits, Tsireya speaks up.

"You look beautiful," she gasps, smiling at you. "Where are you going?"

"There's a party tonight," you say, frowning at Lo'ak.

"Oh yeah," he says, shaking his head slightly. "I forgot about that- that's why we came here, to invite you!"

Immediately, your eyes widen, but Kiri's grabbing Rotxo's arm and begging him to come.

Which only means-

"You're coming too bro, right?" Neteyam asks Aonung.

Aonung clears his throat and peels his gaze away from you. You hadn't even noticed him staring- you'd gotten so accustomed to his bright blue eyes on you.

"Yeah," Aonung shrugs, and Neteyam grins.

"We had some good times in the reef- now it's our time to show you a good time in the forest."

"Here's your chance," I whisper to Aonung, so only he can hear.

"Chance to what?"

"To fuck around with some villagers and leave me alone," I hiss, grinning at him.

"I think you like having me around sweetheart," Aonung whispers back, not in the least deterred by the words.

"And what gives you that impression? My overwhelming love and affection for you?" you taunt.

"That and the way you were moaning in my ear the other night," he grins, teeth glinting sharply, and you feel the places where those very fangs lightly sunk into your skin prickle under his bright blue gaze. "Oh yes, yes, yes-"

"Shut your stupid mouth," you snap, quickly checking that the others couldn't hear your whispered, furious conversation.

"I thought you liked my stupid mouth," Aonung grins, before you whip his leg hard with your tail. "Ow."

The others turn to see him rubbing his leg and wrinkling his nose at you.

"Sorry, accident," you say, rolling your eyes.

"Yeah well, we should go before you murder Aonung," Kiri smiles, hauling you up and away from the stupid skxawng. 

You allow yourself to be led away by Kiri, Rotxo on her other side, and the others trailing behind you as you walk together towards the party.

You can hear Tsireya giggling at Lo'ak's stupid jokes, and Neteyam and Aonung are having a low, quiet conversation, though you can feel eyes burning on you.

You'd bet anything they were a very familiar ocean-blue set of eyes with that strange, unreadable expression.

Thankfully, you get a distraction as soon as you arrive at the party - alcohol.

It's been a long fucking week, what with training Aonung and scolding Aonung and avoiding Aonung and the other business with Aonung, and this is a time where you can just get away from fucking Aonung.

It's so stupid, the way he just always seems to be there, and when he isn't physically, it's just imprinted in your mind.

You don't love him - you don't even like Aonung - but there's just something about him that just remains with you wherever you go.

It's something about his faint sea-breeze scent lingering after he's been in the forest for weeks, something about the way his large blue eyes glitter no matter if they're illuminated by sunlight filtering through the foliage or the forest bioluminescence.

You grunt, downing a sweet, very strong drink of some unfamiliar sort.

You can still almost feel the ghost of his hands all over you, feel your fading nips and hickeys prickle when he's near, hear the faint groans and curses he left, messy and hot, along your neck as your back arched against his muscular chest.

Fuck, this isn't good.

The alcohol isn't drowning away these constant thoughts of Aonung.

Never once have you ever spared two flying fucks for a guy after you fucked.

It's not like you like Aonung, but you've hardly ever felt this level of... awareness... with any other guy before.

Each encounter has been the same, a quick fuck then you leave before things can get awkward, or worse, intimate.

So okay, maybe seeing your whole clan get murdered and destroyed by sky people at a young age could be traumatising, maybe even give you a few silly little intimacy issues, but your total aversion for intimate affection had always been uncomplicated.

You didn't need people to protect or defend you, you didn't need someone to take care of you.

Not once had you ever wished to stay and be cleaned up and praised and loved after sex; sex was just meaningless escape and occasional enjoyment.

These repeated thoughts of Aonung didn't mean anything. Nothing at all.

The next drink is even stronger, a whole coconut full of some shiny sapphire liquid that tastes faintly of lime, and you sloppily down it before swiping away the droplets.

Aonung didn't matter- it doesn't matter that you can feel his eyes on you from across the party.

But you only notice the burn of those ocean-blue eyes when it suddenly disappears.

You frown, turning to where you last saw Aonung, to find him speaking to some other girls.

Ha. Ninat was, simply put, a slut. She was named after her obviously egocentric mother, who Neytiri had once told you had put quite a few moves onto Jake.

Now Ninat 2.0, not exactly improved, was giggling obnoxiously at Aonung, twirling her long dark hair and batting her long lashes at her.

You just scoff and turn away, sipping another coconut. You don't like Aonung, but you know he can do better than that.

"Quite a step down, don't you think," a voice whispers in your ear, before you realise Neteyam's standing beside you.

"What do you mean?" you ask, frowning drunkenly at your friend. 

"Come off it," Neteyam grins, rolling his eyes. "It couldn't be more obvious you fucked Aonung, he's even more pussy whipped than before."

"He's not pussy whipped," you mumble. "He's just-"

"Totally obsessed with you and everything you do and everything that has to do with you?" Neteyam suggests.

"Sure," you shrug, too hazy to argue with him as you down another drink.

"But I mean, who isn't," Neteyam grins. "All the other guys in the clan are furious - they know how picky you are about lovers and the fact you chose an outsi-"

"Gross Tey," you swat at him. "They aren't my lovers, I'm just having fun. I'm still young, just let me live, mighty warrior."

He laughs, but lightly holds your arm to steady you.

"Look, Khalo has been glaring at Aonung this whole party. Moy'ka is working up the courage to come talk to you, and those five guys over there are literally fighting over who gets to shoot their shot."

"What's your point," you frown. 

"My point is that you are literally the most desired girl in the clan, and it speaks volumes that you're fucking a guy that has been here for weeks when every other guy has been bending backwards to get you to look at them their whole lives," Neteyam says sternly.

"I'm not fucking Aonung," is all you reply with. "It was a one-time thing, and now I'm ready to move on and forget about it."

"He won't."

"Come on Tey," you grumble. "I heard a million stories about Aonung when you were in the reef, he was fucking girls left and right and he never got hung up on anyone. Why would he be so obsessed with me?"

"Because you aren't falling at his feet," Neteyam points out. "Look, Ninat is practically trying to suck his dick already, and he couldn't give two fucks. You have him hooked, and I know you're intrigued by him too."

"You mean annoyed," you grumble.

"No I mean intrigued," Neteyam says sternly. "I mean, why else would you be avoiding him, then having all these weird whispered conversations with him when you think we don't notice, then taking him so far away to train?"

"I take him far away so no one can hear his screams of pain," you grin, drunkenly cackling a little.

"You're fucking demented," Neteyam says fondly, tucking your face back behind your ears.

"True," you shrug carelessly feeling eyes snag back onto you.

You don't need to sense that it's Aonung looking, but you turn to meet his gaze anyway.

He's shameless about his staring, pupils tiny slits in large blue eyes like an ocean trench, before a voice interrupts you.

"Hey," Moy'ka says nervously, holding a small wrapped leaf of meat. "I brought this for you."

"What is it?"

"Yerik meat," he says awkwardly. "From my hunt. I saw you hunting one a few days ago with um... with..."

He trails off nervously, and you follow his gaze to where Aonung stands.

Aonung looks normal, half-listening to Ninat chatter on about some stupid shit, but you can see his tail flicking agitatedly behind him, and you can sense the hard coldness of his gaze from here, snagged right on your face.

You have a moments hesitation before you turn back, ignoring Aonung and smiling at Moy'ka.

"So I hunted it for you," Moy'ka says nervously.

How cute, going to the trouble of hunting a hexapede and bringing you a meal. It's not much to impress the best hunter and warrior in the clan, but you accept it graciously, and he looks so relieved and jittery that you can't help smiling.

This is another strange idea that the men in the clan have, bringing you gifts from their hunts as tokens for your "affection". It never seems to occur to them that you could easily hunt for yourself, could easily murder them too, but it seems to be some pathological need for you to accept their silly little gifts.

Moy'ka seems to be mumbling about something or another, about hunting and archery, and you find yourself thinking more about his large hands then the words he's speaking.

"Really?" you sigh, struggling to pretend you aren't bored out of your fucking mind.

"Well," Moy'ka says, before looking nervously down at you. "We could discuss it in a more private area."

At this, your ears prick up.

You're drunk and need a distraction and to be frank, you're horny.

So you grin agreeably up at Moy'ka, and follow him away from the party.

It's a little shy and messy, your head banging uncomfortably against the back of the tree you're propped against as Moy'ka clumsily holds you up.

You've barely been at this for more than a few minutes, which is undoubtedly long enough for you to realise that your standards really have slipped.

First Aonung and now this, bumbling, clumsy fucking with this endearingly nervous but not at all worthwhile guy, who's grunting - like a hog - his praises of your tightness and sweetness and beauty and other stupid fucking bullshit.

This is what you get for trying to be nice, you think. Give a sweet nervous guy a chance opposed to the cocky stupid ones, and end up with steadier rhythm of your head slamming into the tree than his thrusts.

You'd never ever fucking admit it, but Moy'ka feels like a fucking twig compared to Aonung.

You can tell Moy'ka is getting close - a good fucking thing so this can be over and you can go sleep - and he looks up at you.

"Can I-"

"Yes, yes fine," you wince, reaching up to clutch the branches in an unsuccessful effort to stop your head knocking.

He comes undone in an embarrassingly quick, loud groan, shaking with the orgasm and the effort of holding you up and against the tree.

When he finally pulls out, you wince and steady yourself on the ground, feeling extremely disgruntled and unsatisfied.

The one good thing about this interaction was that you smartly chose to go near the river, so you quickly slide away from Moy'ka.

It's only when you turn back, you spot the figure in the shadows of the trees. There's no mistaking that massive outline, or the distinctly paler, more greenish tint of their skin. 

But it's the large blue eyes, seemingly gleaming out of the darkness with cold amusement that makes you shiver slightly. You duck underwater, knowing he saw you notice him, before resurfacing.

"Are you alright?" Moy'ka asks.

"Yes," you say, trying not to sound bitter about your overwhelming lack of pleasure. "You should be going."

"Are you sure?" he asks, looking slightly hurt. 

"Yes," you say, eyes travelling over Moy'ka's shoulder to Aonung again.

Moy'ka also looks, and completely freezes when he sees Aonung.

"So I'm fine," you say pointedly, waiting for him to leave.

"Are you um..." Moy'ka says nervously, his gaze constantly flicking between you and Aonung. "Are you alri-"

"Yes yes I'm fine," you grumble, resisting the temptation to roll your eyes.

Finally, he slides up and tentatively steps away.

He gives Aonung a wide berth, cautiously avoiding his gaze as he scrambles away, and Aonung steps forward.

"What, skxawng," you grumble, not bothering to look at Aonung as you slide out of the river.

"Nothing."

You glare at him, able to sense the waves of his amusement from miles away.

"Mhm, and how long were you standing there?" you ask suspiciously. "Watching him fuck me-"

"Is that what that was?" Aonung scoffs. "It looked more like he was trying to hammer your head into that tree."

"Perv," you scowl. "Don't you have better things to do then stalking me?"

"Not really."

"So you were stalking me then?"

"I was going for a walk," Aonung says elusively, and your eyes narrow. "Then I heard him grunting like a fucking pig. Oh, you're so fucking tight- uhg, uhghhhhhh-"

"Didn't sound that different to you," you snap, feeling your face grow hotter.

Aonung raises an eyebrow and straightens up, so he's a good head and a half taller now.

"At least you had a good time with me," he grins.

"You are such a dick," you snap, glowering at him.

"And you have terrible fucking taste. Besides me, obviously."

"That was just one thing," you say hotly, "It wasn't that bad-"

"Not that bad," Aonung repeats incredulously. "That wasn't bad?"

"Well-"

"He was literally about to send you through that fucking tree," Aonung scoffs. "You looked so uncomfortable, I thought I'd have to come rescue-"

"I don't need your rescuing," you hiss.

"No, I think you need a good fuck," Aonung grins. "Because if that 'wasn't bad' then someone's royally fucking up with you, princess."

"Well I tried, didn't I," you hiss. "So I didn't get a good fuck, I admit it. Can you fuck off now?"

Aonung just scoffs.

"Is that really what you want?"

"What else would I want," you snap. "The great pleasure of your delightful company?"

"Have you had a good fuck?" Aonung asks instead, ignoring your sarcastic words.

"Yes."

"Besides with me," Aonung says.

You turn to glower at him, but instead of finding the expected cocky smirk on his face, you find him looking genuinely interested.

Ugh, why does he have to be so fucking invested? Why is he actually fucking caring?

"What does that matter?" you grumble.

Aonung blinks, looking sincerely engrossed.

"You haven't?" he whispers.

"I have," you grumble. "I just... I don't have very high expectations when it comes to guys."

"Oh paksalin-"

"Don't call me that," you snap at the name, which seems taunting and cold in this conversation. "I'm tired and unsatisfied so-"

Aonung settles back slightly, leaning against the same tree you had just been fucked against, if you could even call it that.

You're disgruntled to see that because of his stupid height, his head is resting against the same spot yours had repeatedly been knocked against.

"I wouldn't leave you unsatisfied," Aonung says coolly.

It takes you a moment to process his words before you snap up and stare incredulously at him.

"Really?" you say dryly, trying not to let your emotions get the better of you. 

What is he on about now? Is he saying what you think he's saying? Aonung nods simply.

"I think you know I wouldn't," Aonung whispers, tilting his head a little so he's looking down at you.

Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck.

But also you're tired and impatient and still annoyingly unsatisfied, so fuck it.

"Get to the point," you snap. "Or get lost."

Aonung doesn't waste any time, pushing himself off the tree and striding towards you. It seems like he only took a single step, but suddenly he's a foot apart and you're having to tilt your head to look up at him.

"Do you want me to help you?"

His question tumbles in front of you, seemingly trapped in the little space between your body and his.

He's a smug little skxawng. He knows what the answer is, but he also knows how fucking impossible it is for you to say the answer.

"Yes or no?"

You growl under your breath, growing more irritated by the minute, but the air between you is thick and charged with tension and you can feel the anticipation growing inside you.

It's pretty fucking obvious where this is headed, but it's just so... infuriating.

Infuriating that what you want happens to be offered by the most annoying dick you've ever known in your life.

"Fine," you grumble under your breath.

"What was that princess?" he asks, fangs glinting in his familiar grin.

Not bothering to speak at all, you just crash your lips onto his and snake your hands around his neck.

There's no need for the kiss, and both of you know it. The deal was for sex and sex alone, pleasure alone, and you know what it means that you kissed him.

You kissed him.

You can feel his heartbeat picking up against your chest as he shifts, one of his hands on your waist and holding you up so your faces are closer, the other tangling in your long hair.

He smells good, like amber and sea-salt, and his lips are so soft and warm that you nearly forget about everything else and get lost in the kiss.

Then it deepens further and everything is hot and warm and tangling, his hand sliding lower, nearly at my ass.

It hardly ever occured to you how little you've kissed in your lifetime- probably less than you've fucked, but now here you are, pressing yourself as close as you can to this infuriating, uselessly hot skxawng.

If you weren't so fucking horny then yes, maybe you would have paused to think, to remember your previous distaste for him, your principal for not giving in to his amused and persistent seduction.

But you are so fucking so you just kiss him harder as one of his hands cups your jaw, the other clasping around the back of your neck and tilting your head farther up to meet him.

Your height difference seems ridiculous, and after a few moments he smiles against your mouth.

"Up," he whisper, hands travelling down.

He catches you as your legs wrap tightly around his waist, arms snaking around his neck to steady yourself.

His hands automatically move to hold you in place, one on your back and waist, the other arm propped under your ass, the hand gripping your thigh.

The kiss is messy and airless and hardly graceful, but you wouldn't have it any other fucking way.

You're all greedy and breathless, desperate for anything, and the feeling of his soft lips against your own, his fangs lightly sinking into your lip before his tongue lightly licks away the small pearls of blood just... does something.

You can already feel him growing harder below you - you think he might have already been hard before you even noticed him, watching you get clumsily fucked against that tree.

Now your head is spinning slightly, and you feel more hungry than ever.

It's infuriating, but you know out of most of the clan, this stupid outsider with his massive body and pretty paler skin is probably the best person to be doing this with.

The knowledge - knowledge you'd never speak aloud - that Aonung is the best you've ever had by a long fucking shot doesn't exactly piss you off in the way you think it would.

It isn't some aggravating, world-shattering fact, because you simply know that Aonung would be more than happy to be in this position again, offering you more pleasure because he cockily knows he can give it.

And with that, you're suddenly being pushed against the tree again, but it's different.

His hands are easily holding you up, arms cushioning under you so you aren't knocked against the hard wood. You hadn't even noticed him slide your loincloth away, but suddenly your legs are tossed over his shoulders and he's gazing up at you. 

It's that same fucking look. Of the smitten, puppy-dog variety, but also with a note of hunger and lust that makes you clench around nothing.

You just look back, and there's a few moments where you just stare at each other, both of you hungry and silent, then before you know it he's dived between your legs.

It's too risky to grip his braids as you had last time - you don't want to fall down even though you know Aonung wouldn't let you drop - but you need something to hold anyway. Your hands fly to the branches above to steady yourself, nails digging shamelessly into the bark.

"Fuck," you growl under your breath as he flicks and kisses and sucks, pressing his tongue against and in you as you throw your head back against the trunk.

It isn't just his admittedly amazing talent for giving head that is just so overwhelming- it has something to do with the way he's so effortlessly holding you up, something to do with the little growls and hums he lets out against you, something to do with the realisation he's not holding himself back.

Last time, even though he had been trying to impress you, he had still restrained himself somewhat.

But now he knows your hungry, and he could probably get away with doing anything.

His hands are holding so tight to your thighs you can already see the little purple blooms of a bruise under his fingers, and he's making sure to sink his fangs lightly into your inner thighs every now and again.

The tiny pearls of scarlet blood are smearing with slick and spit all over the lower half of his face, but he's just humming delightedly against you, his tail swinging happily behind him and a dopey, self-satisfied grin on his face.

Your legs begin to shake around his head, eyes rolling all the way back as you moan louder and claw at the branch you're desperately clutching. 

"I- I'm fucking close," you manage to choke out between loud moans, and Aonung growls against you, not even bothering to look up. "Don't you want to-"

Aonung pulls away, looking distinctly disgruntled that you're talking to him and making him stop his relentless attack on your cunt.

"Go ahead, I'm planning on satisfying you much more than once princess," he says off-handedly, before diving back down with more fervour than ever.

The words you were going to say die in your throat as you gasp loudly, and before you know it, you're tumbling over that edge he had you teetering on.

He licked your essence greedily, growling with every swallow as though he was starved. But he didn't stop, continuing to lick and suck with reckless abandon, grinning at your increasingly whiny moans.

"Okay, okay," you laugh shakily, pushing lightly at his head. "I got-"

"Just one more," he mumbles against you.

You're about to protest, to tell him he doesn't need to, when he gives you large, pleading eyes and you realise this isn't just about you.

He's sincerely enjoying himself - your taste, your moans, your heels digging into his back and legs trembling on his shoulders from the increasingly overwhelming overstimulation.

You just whine loudly when he blinks pleadingly at you, but you aren't about to back down now.

He's watching you carefully, eyes flicking between your trembling body and your rolling eyes and shamelessly loud moans.

Your breath is so shaky that your body trembles with each desperate inhale you attempt at, but it's hard to beat off your moans and whimpers for a moment long enough to draw breath.

Finally you just let go, squirting all over Aonung with a keening cry, trembling all over and nearly going limp in his arms.

You're mortified at how intense your orgasm was, even more so when you open your eyes and see yourself limp against the tree, propped up carefully by Aonung.

"Are you alright?" he asks, looking distinctly pleased with himself but also a little concerned.

"Sure," you say with a shaky laugh as Aonung sets you back down. "Where did you learn that shit?"

"I picked it up," Aonung shrugs modestly, at complete odds with the cocky confidence gleaming in his ocean eyes. "Just here and there."

"Right," you say, rolling your eyes at him, before noticing the bulge in his tewng.

He's painfully fucking hard now, and you can see the seams of his loincloth straining.

"Do you need some help?"

Your questions surprises you both. But then again, he did do a great job with you, and you weren't selfish. You're happy to help him out.

"I'm supposed to be helping you," Aonung points out, shifting slightly to cover his erection.

"You did," you argue. "Don't be up yourself, you can ask for help too."

When Aonung just stares at you, you shift closer and lightly trace his bulge.

Instantly, his breath hitches and his body instinctively moves to follow your touch. You teasingly let your hand drop and he exhales as you turn to raise your brows at him.

"So?"

"Yes," he breathes.

"Yes what, Aonung," you ask, feigning stupidness.

"Please help me," he begs.

It was easier than you thought as you grin and oblige, moving to your knees and sliding his tewng down, reaching out to grab his cock before it smacks against his admittedly very toned abs. 

It feels fucking massive in your small slim hand - the smooth teal colour looking prettily pale against the azure blue of your forest na'vi skin, the glowing blue tahnì gleaming invitingly at you.

You pump his cock a few times, grinning as he chokes out a groan, and lick a stripe along him before closing your lips around the tip. Instantly, his hand closes on a fist full of your hair as his head tips back against the tree, swallowing a choked groan as he watches you take him into your mouth.

He jerks when you open your mouth wider. You don't hate the way it stretches your lips - he's the biggest you've ever had and it makes the hinge of your jaw ache as you force him down your throat. 

When he hits the back of your throat, he groans loudly and inadvertedly thrusts his hips forward. You choke a little and his grip on your hair loosens slightly as he mutters a bashful apology, but you just grin slightly to yourself before taking him even deeper, suckling on the head and the sides over and over. 

You're pulling groans and curses out of him as easily as he pulls your head gently up and down on his cock. You don't mind it, he did a good job and this is his reward.

You feel him getting closer, twitching in your mouth. His moans are getting louder and breathier too, and his grip on your soft dark braids is only getting stronger and stronger until you're just letting him move your head, mouth open for him and eyes watching him all the while.

But as he's nearly at his peak, he pulls you off him, not wanting to cum in your mouth, but you just grab his hips and push him deep into your throat, moaning slightly and sucking faster. 

That alone makes him come, letting out a stream of low groans and softly mutter your name again and again as you keep moving through his high until he's cursing, catching his breath and lightly pulling you off him.

His pupils are blown wide, large black spheres ringed in a fine line of bright icy blue as he looks down at you, hand absentmindedly moving to cup your face and gently wipe away the rest of the mess he left on your face.

"Sorry," he mumbles. "You didn't have to do-"

"I wanted to," you say without thinking.

Aonung blinks, still struggling to catch his breath as he realises what he's doing and quickly drops his hand away.

"Well," he says thoughtfully. He looks like he's trying to wrench his gaze away from you, yet those large blue eyes stay stubbornly fixed in yours.

You don't exactly want to look away, but you have a strange feeling that even if you wanted to, you wouldn't be able to tear your own gaze away either.

It's something about the way you're both standing, him hunched and slumped slightly against the tree, you drawn to your full height, and the fact that he's still nearly a foot taller.

Then there's a shout of laughter through the trees, and you remember about the party and the village and every other single fucking thing that you just happened to forget when you were with Aonung.

Stupid skxawng.

"We should go back to the party," you say quickly, the first words that jump into your mind.

You know what you're doing. For the first time in your life, you're backing down. And it's not because he intimidates you- quite the opposite.

It's what you see as the possibilities that frighten you. Because sure, the night was obviously going to end with you and Aonung doing that, because the fucking tension was just unbearable. Because when he looks at you like that, it's pretty fucking obvious what he's thinking.

Neteyam was right, but he isn't just fucking pussy whipped. Despite all of Aonung's cocky joking comments, he doesn't only like you. He's not just attracted to you. 

He wants more than these little forest quickies, and you... you just have no idea what you want.

So maybe you have intimacy issues. What do you do now? This has never happened, feeling a desire to overcome those very issues.

WHAT HAS THIS STUPID, MASSIVE, FISH-LIPPED, MUSCULAR, INFURIATING, HANDSOME, RIDICULOUS, COCKY, SWEET, GENTLE SKXAWNG DONE TO YOU?

Aonung just nods, eyes still following you as you pass him his loincloth and slide on your own.

"Hey," he says, nudging you slightly as you walk back towards the village. "If you're ever left unsatisfied, just come and find me again."

"I'm pretty sure you'll be the one to come and find me if I'm hooking up," you grumble. 

"At least I can deal with you," Aonung shrugs. 

"Same with you," you grin with raised brows. "Seems like we can't have a conversation without you getting hard."

Aonung swats lightly at you, and you shove him into a bush.

"So is that a yes then?" Aonung calls after you, struggling to stand back up and brush the leaves off himself. "We'll help each other out? Friends with benefits?"

"Not friends," you point out. "We'd have to like each other to be friends."

"I don't have a problem with you," Aonung shrugs. "I think you're quite fantastic."

"Okay I already sucked your dick, don't try to get in my pants again," you grumble. "I'll see you later."

"Alright," Aonung says, grinning at you as you return to the village.

No one pays any attention to the fact that you returned together, though you notice Neteyam's golden eyes on the pair of you as you walk towards your kelku.

You don't bother saying goodnight as you and Aonung split up to go to your neighbouring homes.

But as you duck into the shelter of your kelku, you can still feel the burn of that icy gaze on you.

Friends with benefits?

You're still pretty drunk, but you can't bring yourself to bother about anything else as you crawl into your woven bed.

You can worry about the events of tonight tomorrow, but it's not like your agreement to Aonung's proposal means anything. Just sex- just helping the other out.

Nothing intimate.

At all.

#avatar the way of water #aonung fanfiction #avatar fanfiction #avatar fandom #avatar #aonung #aonung x reader #aonung x y/n #aonung x you #aonung x female reader #avatar smut #avatar 2 #aonung fic #na'vi #na'vi x reader #na'vi avatar #fics #avatar twow #avatar x reader #avatar fic

[writingbyshiloh]

Cautious yet Optimistic and Graceful Part 2

Part 1 & Part 3

CW: Morally gray reader, F!Reader, John Wick-type universe (ie, killing, the reader thinks about past injuries from fights. training not descriptive). Not smut but suggestive thinking from both Vincent and the reader, mutual pinning, and worldbuilding but no description of the reader. Smoking, a nonsexual cigarette burn on the reader, brief drinking. MAYBE OCs (Fictional staff for the fictional hotel). NO BETA

Summary: The Marquis de Gramont still annoys you. But he needs help from you(r hotel). Like a good manager, you help. 

AN: PART 2 everyone!!! Thank u for the likes/comments/reblogs! This takes place a few months after part 1. IDEK if this is ooc the man had like 30 minutes of screen time overall and I’ve been writing this for a week. I read it a few times for spelling but something got messed up copy and pasting and a para or 2 got dropped. Part 3 will be out ???? soon(ish)

Something about today had his words bouncing around in your head. Out of all the ways to describe someone, he narrowed it down to three (well technically he used six). 

Cautious. Sure, you can see that. Out of a love of being alive, you tried not to take any unnecessary risks in your fighting days. You also tried to avoid having a marker whenever you could. There was one in existence with your blood on it. A favour for someone you thought was a friend. You held up your end, the bloody fingerprint stored in the New York Continental as proof. 

Optimistic. That also makes sense. You actually enjoy what you do, loving being part of the criminal underworld before and now. You haven't been the manager for too long but would already die for this hotel. 

The part that was throwing you was graceful. You didn't think you were that graceful physically. You have scars to prove that you've taken a hit, slash, or burn many times. Did he mean gracefully with people? Camille did so much for the hotel, you just deal with regular hotel things (like getting Monument Historique status for a collection of French weapons, take that, Vincent). The other part was implanting rules from the high table. Maybe just being graceful and polite when you were resisting the urge to claw your eyes out. 

It could also be flirting. You felt he wasn't the type to hit on someone out of the blue. Sure he was smart and confident, but it seemed like too big a risk for him to take. Unless he is just a playboy, which is something you find yourself tempted to google twice a day. 

You would rather die than admit it, but you almost like when he called you Mademoiselle. Almost. It was like a nickname, plus it brought out his accent more. When you found yourself enjoying.

To make things worse Camielle caught on to your crush immediately. While embarrassing, it did show how clever she was and you were glad she was the concierge. Her knowing also gave you an excuse to just tell Vincent your direct number, so Camille would stop reminding you how frequently he called.

You love the bar in the hotel. It is beautiful, decorated in an Art Nouveau style, with large windows allowing for the sun to filter in during the day. You were almost pleased that Vincent asked to meet you there, allowing you to subtly show off your business. 

Finding him at the bar wasn’t hard, no one else was wearing a dark green three-piece suit, complete with a complexly tied tie and their coat of arms pin. He looks good but tense, one long leg crossed over the other. Plus, you could see Chidi and another guard in their gray suits keeping an eye. You were thankful that you took extra time this morning on your outfit. 

You slid into the chair next to him, after shaking a few hands with other big names down in the bar for a late-night drink. 

“I hear you have a problem.” You say, while not knowing the full details, just that he wanted to meet you in the bar and something was wrong. It kicked your heartbeat up, even if you only told yourself it was the stress of him being here. 

“Correct.”. 

“I’m sure you know because of your love of rules, but I can only help those who are using the hotel services.” 

You didn't care that much, and would absolutely bend the rules to do him a favour, but couldn't resist a chance to get a dig in.

The Marquis pulls out two gold coins and slides them across to the bartender. He orders a top-shelf spirit before his eyes cut to you. Now he's buying you a drink in your own hotel. You would want him to buy you a drink in a different situation but at least he didn't order for you. That may cause you to actually kill him.  

Clearing your throat you order your usual, quietly thanking the bartender when the drink was placed in front of you. 

The bar wasn't loud, but he dropped his head towards you so you could hear him better and to give the conversation some privacy. 

“You have a cartographer here, no?”

You nodded. The cartographer is excellent. He had blueprints for buildings past and present, as well as the catacombs. He also had knowledge and keys to abandoned buildings if something had to be desponded and not be found. 

“How soon do you need him?” While one of the best, he was away for his daughter's wedding

“Tonight.” 

You took a small sip of your drink. You could probably get the information he was looking but you wouldn't be as efficient. 

“While we do have a cartographer, he's gone to a family event. If your plans are that urgent I can try my best to fill in.” 

Content with your answers, Vincent leaned back into his seat taking a swig of his drink. You took the finishing sip of yours before pushing out of your chair. 

“I have spare keys in my office. I’ll meet you back here in five.” 

For how commanding and prideful he is, you never expected him to need the services from your hotel.

The maps room was fairly boring. Three out of the four walls were filled with lockboxes to various maps. Blueprints, and documents for France and even some other countries nearby. 

“Are these your beloved catacombs?” The Marquis asks, studying the paper taped to the wall. You asked the map maker for more information and for ideas on what you could do with them. 

You hum in agreement, deep down thrilled that he remembered such a small part of your conversation ages ago. 

Your eyes jump over the numbered lock boxes in front of you, trying to find the one he needs. 

You half expected him to help you pull out maps and building plans, a blend of chivalry, showing off his height, and getting under your skin. He didn’t, letting you struggle with the lock instead. 

Vincent knew he should help you, but the way your back was arched as you tried to open one of the lockboxes out of the dozens was more interesting. His gaze moved over your legs, before looking at your ass in your skirt. 

Feeling the lock give a turn to the side, you peek inside the box to make sure the plans were there. Hand sliding in, you pulled the thin tube out, double-checking the label on the front to make sure it is the one you need. Leaving the box unlocked you turn to face Vincent, a triumphant grin on your face.

Maybe your grin and pride in getting the correct documents were a bit unprofessional but he didn't care. Not since the small room amplified the smell of your perfume and how the spent the better part of the last five minutes checking out your legs. 

Uncapping the tube, you pulled out the blueprints and spread them on the backlist glass table in front of you.

“Here are your prints,” you state awkwardly. You're not sure why he needs them, and why he personally came here. Chidi is keeping guard outside the map room, despite you repeating the hotel policy of no business. 

The Marquis nods in response already focusing on the table. You flatten a small map from the tube in case he needs context on the area. Not likely since he already knows what to look for, proven by his notebook and the constant sound of his pen against the paper taking notes. 

Watching him study the map may have been alright at first, but three hours later you are tired. There are only so many times you can look at his hair and wonder if he would get mad if you run your hands through, or gently tug it. Or what his hands would feel like, especially with his signet ring. 

The grandfather clock tells you that it's only 2:36 am but you feel like it's later. Even Vincent looks slightly less than perfect, hair falling out of place from where he had gelled it that morning.

He is a guest of your hotel so you're going to keep helping him no matter how long he stays. Just with a bit less optimism. 

“Mademoiselle?” Your eyes snap to his face at the sound of his voice, pulling you from your thoughts. 

“You look tired. You should go to bed,” he comments. 

Wow. Thanks, you think. 

“I’m okay. I’m happy to stay here as long as you need,” you say while hoping he leaves soon. “How are the plans going? The cartographer can help you with the finer details when he gets back.” 

“That is not necessary. I have all I need here.” He slowly stretches and starts to stand. You never considered it but being hunched over the table must have been hell on his back given his above-average height. Finally seeing your chance to go to bed, you quickly make it over to the door, opening it for him. 

“Merci, again.” He thanks you as if this is not your job. 

“Do you want me to walk you to the main door?” You have all your floor plans memorized. 

“We are fine.” He replies. 

He looks at you and you can't read his expression. He's less tense, obviously getting what he needed from the plans. 

“The high table did a good job making you the manager.” 

You feel pride swell in your chest, despite the exhaustion you feel behind your eyes. 

“Bonne nuit, Mademoiselle” 

“Bonne nuit. Bon matin.” You quietly wish him as he leaves, wasting no time putting the plans away and locking the map room door. 

You let out another exhaust of bitter smoke, watching it curl away on the cool night air. You didn't start smoking in Paris, but dropped and picked the habit a few times.

“Fumes-tu, Mademoiselle?” a voice behind you makes you flinch. You didn’t tell anyone that you have a secret smoking place, let alone that you went out to smoke. 

You spin around before relaxing at the sight of the Marquis, clad in a dark suit, his signature pin on the lapel reflecting the light. 

You nod, before realizing he probably can't see you well under the lights in the alcove. He is by your side quickly, long legs carrying him the short distance. 

You tip your head to the small table, where your rolling papers, tobacco and other smoking paraphernalia sit in a silent offer. Vincent looks at the table before facing you again. Guess he's too fancy to smoke you assume while taking a drag.

You turn your head to blow out more smoke, careful not to blow it in this direction, a hard feat considering he was extremely close to you. The smell of his cologne drifted under the smell of smoke. 

You move your cigarette down and out to the side, fully ready to see why the Marquis interrupted you. Watching his face, his eyes dipped down to your lips and then back to your eyes almost a silent asking. The smooth and sophisticated era was still there but there was uncertainty under it. 

You slowly leaned closer, not wanting to make the first move, but you want this to happen. He hand-cupped your face, the cool metal of the ring nice as he shifted closer, leaving a small gap for you to make the final push to kiss him. Just a few more inches and then -

Pain. A sharp burning pain on your pinky finger. 

You jerk back, trying to examine what happened. Your cigarette slipped while you were distracted and the glowing embers of the end dropped only to land on your pinky. 

“Shit. Sorry,” you apologize, letting out a nervous huff of a laugh while holding up your burn. The Marquis was unreadable, hand withdrawn. Does he think you rejected him? 

He reaches for your wrist and you let him take it. Slowly he brings your hand up to the outdoor lamp to inspect your burn. The stinging has subsided but you are sure the flesh is a bit swollen. 

With his free hand, he takes the offending cigarette and brings it to his lips. You can't help but stare, cigarette burns long forgotten as you watch him take a deep inhale, before exhaling over your head, so no smoke blows in your face. Part of you regret not making the final push to kiss him, while another hopes he takes another puff. 

Vincent brings your cigarette down to examine it in better lighting before placing it back in your hand, still firmly in his grasp. 

“It is not a well-rolled cigarette. It is too tight.”

There it is you think. The classic Vincent snark. But you secretly hope he rolls one so you can watch his hands and watch him smoke it. 

“You don’t have to smoke it.” 

“I just wanted to give you this.” He reaches into his suitcoat pocket, retrieving a white envelope. His hands brush yours while you grab it. 

You know his handwriting from the time with him in the map room, and you could easily tell he wrote your name on the front. 

“Thank you?” you weren't sure what was inside but you were being all the things he described you as. 

“I will go, and let you read it.” 

You watch him leave, thoughts racing too fast to try and save the situation.

Do you call out after him? Does he think you rejected him? Maybe not because he still gave you the envelope. 

You ash your cigarette before collecting your things and going back to your office. Maybe things would make more sense there.

Taglist: @heartrot666

#ONCE AGAIN ITS DONE !!!!! wooohoooooo #marquis de gramont x reader #marquis de gramont #marquis vincent de gramont x reader #Vincent de Gramont x reader #john wick movie x reader

[yandere-sins]

I'm not sure how thirsty our thirsts are allowed to be but I just stumbled upon your ghost oc from the halloween thingy while searching ghost from cod and WHAT?!?!?!?! Listen....all I'm going to say is 💦💦💦💦🥵🥵🥵 that is literally the best smut I've ever read in my ENTIRE life and I've been reading smut since about the 2000s. Would you be interested in continuing that piece or for writing an additional part? Maybe when they come to the apartment for the exorcism, they try 'channeling' or calling to the ghost to come, but he's fucking reader the entire time right infront of the roomate and officiate? My brain is thinking it would be so sexy if there was a glitch and he was visible for half a second but that can't be right....right? Why else would your roommates see a tall, sexy man taking you from behind at such a time? Must be a trick of the light! I love the perspective you write in and how even though this very supernatural sex scene was happening, you didn't describe it in a confusing or overly complex way. Your way of describing things, especially naughty things just hit different. It was extremely enjoyable! And so freaking hot!!!!! Seriously, there isn't a lot of content out like that so you're literally an angel for providing us with that haha. Going to give myself an anon name here, is 👻 available? Ahem, no reason why I chose that emoji hehe

Aww, I'm so glad you enjoyed it! It was a lot of fun to write :D Not sure I am always as clear when describing smth, but I'm doing my best! Thansk for you sweet ask and nice request, I hope you enjoy this story as well! ♥

Disclaimer: I don't speak latin. I google translatored this. Warning: Yandere, Heavy Sexual Content, Biting

»»———————— ♡ ————————««

"Dele omne mal-- ah--!"

"Malum, Baby. If you want to erase all evil, you gotta say your words right~"

It was hard enough to read the little pamphlet in your hands with your body shaking like crazy, thanks to the thick cock plowing into you with every word you were saying. You could have really forgone the condescending nitpicking of the ghost you were trying to exorcise, but you weren't that lucky.

"Malum," Eli whispered, leaning over to you and raising an eyebrow you could see even in the sparse flickering of the candles around you. They couldn't ask, not wanting to disturb the ritual you three had initiated. Still, their gaze alone silently questioned your inability to perform your part properly, even more shame washing over you.

"M-Malum," you finally finished your sentence, giving them an apologetic glance before lowering your head to avoid any more eye contact. You wanted them to notice this bastard of a ghost as soon as possible so they'd believe you, but at the same time, you were too embarrassed to be caught by them like this.

Aside from Eli, another person had joined you in this strange rite meant to banish the evil from your apartment. A guy named Brian, who seemed to really believe in this stuff despite being unable to see the ghost haunting you either. You had held your breath when you entered the apartment together with him, wondering what his reaction would be to seeing the spirit clinging onto you almost instantly, rubbing his cock against your ass and whispering lewd nothings into your ear.

But Brian made a grand show of convincing Eli that the apartment had bad 'juju', and needed cleansing immediately, which, strangely, your roommate believed him without any doubts. It only gave the ghost another chance to taunt you as he revealed that Brian was no more sensitive to the supernatural than Eli was, there being no escape from your unwanted roommate.

Now, you three knelt around a drawn-up pentagram on the floor of your room, the epicenter of paranormal activities how Brian explained, and between the fog of incense, the dim candle lights, and your nightmarish lover slipping in and out of your wet cunt, you could barely think even one cohesive thought.

It wasn't that you actually enjoyed being exposed to other people, the tension doing nothing for your pleasure other than making you squeeze the ghost cock tighter whenever it was your turn to speak. It wasn't a comfortable environment in any way. But something had changed. The ghost had changed.

You hadn't noticed it this morning at the breakfast table, nor when he bent you over the counter, feeling too worn out and fucked loose to actually feel the difference. But he had grown. After a few hours of staying away, you finally noticed the change in girth of his ever-so-eager cock. It was thick and bulging, especially when he pressed it to your sensitive cunt. It had made you gasp and tremble the first time it entered you, painfully spreading your walls, and even now, you could barely produce enough slickness to have it rammed into you comfortably.

Despite this, juices were flowing out of you, pooling on the floor beneath your gaping pussy as the ghost kept spreading and demanding deeper and deeper access. You blamed the incense for getting to your head, making you feel all aroused as you clenched around the suddenly bumpy and pleasurable grip his cock had. "Just like this, Babe. Fuck, you're so unbearably tight," the ghost groaned, burying his face in your shoulder as you unwillingly shuddered, your walls holding on to his length as it twitched inside you, the bumps and ridges covering his cock, stimulating your soft flesh.

You were going to cum. There was no denying it. In front of Eli and Brian, no less. 

"Now, let's hold hands, so we ask the ghost to pass over to the other side and leave this apartment peacefully."

A hand on each side of you was held out, and forcing yourself to take them, you couldn't help squeezing them tightly, earning a rather displeased look from both before Brian cleared his throat, continuing.

"I'll pass over, all right," the ghost mumbled, his pace picking up, cock twitching while he picked up the speed. You prayed to any god that could hear you that the others wouldn't notice your shaking and rapidly building orgasm. Your breath was hitching, pussy tingling delightfully as you closed in on violent spasms. 

"You feel so fucking heavenly~ I might die all over again. And I'll pass all my jizz right here."

And with that, you felt his tip kiss your cervix, your pussy spread to the max as the ghost stopped his movement, arms wrapped around you as he pressed you against his body, squeezing the air out of your lungs as if he wanted to take you with him to the afterlife. Your body had no choice but to accept his cock, wrapping around him and having him brutally stimulate all the sensitive spots inside you while you could barely hold on to reality.

Brian said some incomprehensible words, the rumbling of thunder suddenly scaring all three of you to the bone, making you jump. That little movement was enough to send you over the edge, the ghost pulling you back as you slid off his cock a little, his tip ramming into your cervix. It released all the pent-up pain and pleasure inside you first before soothing the burning heat of desire inside you with cold, dead spunk shooting up into your womb.

You were shaking harder than ever as lightning lit up the room, followed by another bellowing thunder. Brian gasped, his eyes widening as he stared at something behind your shoulder, the ghost letting out a husky laugh as he let his long tongue slip from his lips, dragging it over your ear before wrapping it around your throat once completely. "Mine," he growled, the tip of his tongue caressing your cheek, searching for your lips to dig in, and Brian let go of your hand, unable to get away fast enough as he let out a scream, stumbling to his feet and out of the door, leaving everything, even the things he lent you guys for the ritual, behind.

"What's up with him?" Eli asked, totally confused as they looked after Brian, surprised by the sudden freak-out. "What the fuck is going on? Why is he-- hey? Hey, what's wrong?"

Shocked, they noticed your unnatural hunched-over body, hanging only in the arms of the ghost that they couldn't see. Eli touched your shoulder, only to get shocked by electricity you could only guess came from the ghost. "It's over," you mumbled, feeling spit drool out of your mouth, your throat too restricted by the ghost's tongue to swallow. "Finally over."

"Never, Darling. We're only beginning," the ghost chuckled. "Tell them to leave."

"You can go, Eli," you slurred, letting your body fall back against the ghost's chest. Your eyes were hazy with the brutal orgasm you still felt shaking in every bone of yours. Gaze unfocused as you tried to direct it at Eli. The cock was still buried inside you, emptied yet hard and solid as if it manifested. Juices began to drip out, and had Eli looked at where the Ghost bundled up the black robe Brian made you wear in his grip, they would have seen the pool of indecency collecting on the floor between your wide-spread legs. 

"Are you sure? You seem... weird. Are you really okay? Should I call an ambulance? Do you need to go to the hospital?"

"No!" the ghost screamed, followed by the loud crashing of thunder as he grew bolder with every orgasm he could steal from you. He no longer lived to tease and bother you. He was finally evolving into an even worse spirit than before. Possessive. Starving. Greedy. Only you could hear him, and you shook your head in pain, exhausted.

"It's fine! Just... Just go. Please..."

"Err... okay?" Eli definitely wasn't considering hurrying up as they collected the few things Brian allowed them to take with her into the ritual, like their phone. But eventually, they stepped out of the door, closing it while watching you warily. "Let me know if you need something, okay?"

And with that, the lock finally snapped into the frame, and you breathed a sigh of relief as the ghost lowered you gently onto the floor, laying you down on top of the pentagram. "You're not going anywhere. And you can't get rid of me, do you understand now?"

"Please..." you mumbled, covering your face with your arms. You felt weak, used, and disgusted. So many bad things had happened in the last few days, and you were exhausted. Nothing you did made it better, and you were running out of ideas. It made you feel exposed and vulnerable, you even felt...

"I'm scared..."

Tears welled up in your eyes. A reaction you never wanted to show him, knowing the ghost would take every chance to belittle you. However, to your surprise, he leaned over you, licking and kissing the tears away gently, softly, a purr escaping his throat.

"It's okay, Sweetling. No one's going to take you from me. I'll satisfy all your desires and perform all these sinful things you'll come to wish from me as you fall from your graces. You are bound to me, and I am to you, and we'll grow stronger together until we can leave this place. We'll cause havoc and chaos wherever we go until we're strong enough to even wreck hell. I need you. You need me."

Pressing his body between your legs, you could feel his hard cock rub all over your cunt, now even teasing your clit. You mewled, head falling back as he pressed it painfully close, your pussy suddenly aching to be filled by his thickness while his lips trailed down your body, licking the sensitive spot between shoulder and neck before replacing it with his teeth.

His tip prodded against your entrance, and your cunt gave him little resistance as he pushed it in slowly, fangs sinking into your flesh at the same time. The ghost pinned you down by your hands, and with his weight, your whole body trembled so hard as if you were going to explode while you gurgled from the pain and pleasure. You were so out of it, you didn't even notice the pentagram beginning to glow beneath you as your blood spilled from the bite, some lucky drops dripping to the floor while the ghost licked up everything else.

"My queen, my life," he mumbled against your body, and you could feel his lips curl into a mischievous grin. "My pretty little fucktoy."

A burning sensations spread all over your back, making you gasp. Even more tears leaked from your eyes, but at the same time, you arched your back, the ghost's cock slipping inside you completely, turning the pain into pleasure.

"We're bound now," the ghost groaned loudly, lifting himself from you, and you felt his cock twitch inside as if he was ready to spill again.

Looking up at the ghost through teary eyes, you couldn't believe what you saw, his translucent skin slowly turning black and solid. You were horrified to see the burning mark of a pentagram go up in flames on his chest as his body solidified, great satisfaction brimming from demonic eyes.

"Finally, we're bound to each other. And with this new body of mine, nothing can stop us."

His touch had always been real, but the leathery feel of his hands wrapping around your throat was different. Frightening. You gasped and gurgled as he pulled you on his lap, now the one to kneel on the ground as he impaled you on his cock, one hand falling to your ass so he could move you up and down his shaft. "You're going to make such a beautiful pet for your future king of hell. I have to thank you for giving me enough strength to recover my true form. And I know just what to do to reward you."

Hugging you to his chest, you were pressed into the burning pentagram. The flames licked at you, lapping at you like an excited dog but didn't burn your skin where they touched. They were warm and comforting, engulfing you in an unlikely sweet embrace. All while more warmth spread through you like wildfire. Your back felt like it was burning up the same as his chest was, bigger and hotter with every toe-curling, scream-enticing plunge on his thick, slick cock.

"Birth my army as well, Human. Let's rain down disaster on this planet, and I promise you will never lack anything in life ever again."

You didn't care anymore.

Your tongue was hanging out of your mouth as your brain got shredded by otherworldly pleasure. Flames had spread everywhere, playing with your clit and nipples like eager appendages, teasing and lighting you on fire, even licking at your butt, waiting for a chance to enter you alongside their master. You could hear the wailing voices straight from hell as your ghost—demon?—grunted like a boar in heat while plowing into you mindlessly, satisfying his lust and need for your life force. You felt your life drain from you just as a new life built in you, strengthening you. Against your will, he was transforming you into something you didn't want to be. Something like him. A being that could weather all his desires and wishes. That would be just as depraved and selfish as he was, with a mind too broken to refuse him.

His queen. His life source.

His pretty little fuck toy.

His.

#ghost #yandere!ghost #yandere ghost #yandere #yandere imagines #yandere headcanons #yandere scenarios #yandere fanfiction #yandere writing #yandere stories #yandere oneshots #yandere oneshot #yandere drabble #yandere x reader #yandere x darling #Yandere TW #lemon

[gatheredfates]

For the relationship ask thing: Kor & Alphinaud!

Have your followers send you NPCs and you describe your OC's feelings/relationship to that NPC! I have nothing to say except I went insane.

He is just a child.

She reminded herself of this fact through gnashed teeth and folded arms; he is just a child, he does not deserve your ire.

But Kor was very tired of children. She had only recently interred one to the sea — to the crabs, the fish and the three-day rot — and the arrogant intervention wore thin in the repetitive belief that Alphinaud knew better simply because he was the prodigal grandson of a man who gave his life to Eorzea. He intermingled with the potentate, both of city-states and non, and she watched with loosely contained annoyance how he prattled on.

But she watched. That was one thing the Captain was good at, she supposed — watching. Guarding. He monopolised it with lazy gestures and self-assured smiles, and she fell easily into the role of dog to its master. Not because she respected him exactly, but because it was all she knew. Because she couldn't be better.

Should she have said something? Should she have intervened? She saw the way they looked at him like he was a thing to be used, a stepping-stone to their aspirations, armies and Warrior of Light. When Ilberd glanced to her she could see intention in the edges of his easy smile, "Daughter of Ala Mhigo, don't you see the opportunity?"

If looks could kill she'd encase him in the amber of her eyes, right at the juncture where equitable manner bordered on ridicule.

Why didn't she? Because the last time she had said something, the last time she tried to intervene, it only sent the child running.

Right into the jaws of the deep.

He is just a child. He was tired. Alphinaud doesn't complain (perhaps he knew better the limits of her patience), but she could see the weariness in his eyes — exhaustion hugging the corners, hoping to fuse with the rest of the cold truths.

And they were cold. Not just of the temperature, for Ishgard was abysmally frigid, but of the loss of their comrades and the fall of their station; how their pedigree had diminished to the kindness of an foreign nation determined to arise from the ice, even if their sanctuary to accused murders might isolate them all over again.

Or heresy. Koret thought herself more superstitious than religious, though maybe it was all the same in the end. An offering to a deity, a prayer for good luck (give Llymlaen a Dagger just so she can throw it at the bastard again), click your heels three times or whatever-the-fuck. She wasn't praying to anyone when she rescued Tataru and he from the Tribunal. She only knew outrage and the acrid taste of bile in the back of her throat at the thought she could lose them too.

"Are you alright?" It was the first time she reached for him since the banquet, her fingers just a little too tight on the groove of his shoulder. Kor hadn't even thought about it, so natural was the movement, but when he jumped and fixed his gaze to her, she immediately knew her misstep.

"...I am fine, my friend," he answered, and before she could whip her hand away he had laid his own atop of it. They stood there for a far too long in their strange silence until Kor thought to squeeze once and finally relinquish her hold. She stepped back, awkward in her intimacy, and could not look directly in the eye.

"Good."

She soon realised he was learning the values of leadership, too. He saw them in Aymeric's careful navigation, Estinien's brute force and Ysyale's hope. All had their merits but all had their flaws. He internalised them and stepped carefully over the ruins of his mistakes until his friends were whole and hearty again.

Not a leader, just a comrade... a friend.

He is just a child, but fucking hell he's a clever one. Kor couldn't deny his intelligence, especially given what she knew of Sharlayan, but she was reminded of the old idiom of teaching a man to fish: teach a boy bureaucracy and he might become a man through it. Show him what it means to lead, to plan and to prepare; allow him the privilege of the floor, but be prepared to challenge him when he oversteps. Do not squander his inexperience, but allow innovation to bleed through tried methods.

Frankly, she appreciated his methodology, for it allowed her little room to think about herself. He was the enthusiastic foreigner, not the diaspora grasping at the hems of the little culture his father felt prudent to leave him. He could meet the gaze of M'naago, Lyse and Conrad instead of staring just a little too far to the left.

She only had the left these days. When she woke up screaming in the night, disorientated from a lack of vision, his were the hands intermingled among the many that grasped her frantic fingers. "You are safe," he reassured her, squeezing tightly in the din. "Koret, you are safe."

She wasn't sure she believed him, but it was comforting all the same. There was a familiarity in their company now, whether she liked it or not. Kor teased him for his whimsy and his innocence (the art, the sword — fuck, he was a terrible swimmer) while he offered wisdom beyond his years and a hope they could make a difference in the world.

So who was holding him — why did he need to be held? It was her job to protect him, her job to guard; she knew the job well well since the banquet, it was the one thing she was good at. Kor ran to him so desperately, wrenching his lifeless figure out of their arms as if her violence might be the one thing that would bring him back to her, yet his weight was like an anchor that pulled them roughly to the ground.

"Alphinaud!"

She cradled him, one hand in his hair while the other gripped him far too tightly, but he did not wake. Not even when she shook him, not even when the other Scions had to pull her from him, not even when her voice cracked in its snarl. "Wake up you fucking — WAKE UP!"

She wondered if he was a child in body only, given all the things he'd seen. Weeks for her was a whole year for him; a year of separation, strife and sorrow. Alphinaud was so infuriatingly formal when she found him, as if embarrassed by his failings on the Source, and balked when she wrapped her arms tight around him to prove to herself he was real.

"A-Are you alright?" By the navigator did she laugh! It was a desperate, pained sound, but how could she hope to encapsulate anger and relief in the same breath?

"Just dandy. Now shut up."

And he did, bless him. He hugged her tightly back.

She wanted... a lot of things then. Mostly she just wanted to apologise. She wanted to apologise for failing him and forcing him to this foreign world. She wanted to tell him that she was alright, even when she was igniting from the inside and spewing hot ichor across the floor.

Kor wanted to lie to him, but she was a terrible liar. When she writhed on the floor of the Crystarium, and the veins in her hands turned a vibrant gold, she wanted to scream that he was just a kid! He was a child discussing how much time she had left, contemplating how they might survive if she were to purify in front of them. He did not deserve it. Alisae did not deserve it. Ryne did not deserve it.

He had weathered the brunt of her suicidal ideation for far too long. Enough. Enough.

"If the fucking bastard is going to disown you, I'll just adopt you myself. It can't be that hard. You're like, what, seventeen —?"

The way Kor paused was enough to make them snort with laugher, so stunned was she that she rendered herself speechless. The Captain looked like she had swallowed a lemon, as if she only just became reacquainted with the passage of time, and her single eye narrowed to glare at the twins suspiciously.

"How old are you?"

"Literally or figuratively?" Alisaie asked, slicing through the tension of the hour with impish wit.

Koret Swan threw up her hands as she came to the horrific realisation they weren't really children anymore. But they were hers — they were her kids — and they only laughed harder despite it.

"I think I should like to watch you contemplate a bell longer," Alphinaud teased, that self-assured smile appearing when Alisaie snickered, and she had a mind to strange him anew.

"I think I should like to kick your arse," Kor answered, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Fuck me."

"Brother, we graduated! She swears openly in our company!"

Never mind, she was going to kick both their arses. They could be orphans.

The end of the universe was no place for anyone, least of all them. They held her hands in theirs, small when pressed against the leather of her gloves, and it was their steps that carried her to the precipice of apathy.

It wasn't that Kor would not continue (they had come so far, seen so much, done too much), but that she knew what taking those last few steps meant.

She thought she knew death a thousand times. She swore It was her friend when her sister died, a siren calling her so sweetly from the craggy rocks as it ushered her into the king-tide. It wore the faces of friends — occasionally her enemies if it suited — and soothed her aching bones when exhaustion became almost too much to bear. "There is a solution," it cooed, "if you're brave enough to take it."

No! She wanted to live! For fuck sake, she wanted to live — and she wanted them to live! She didn't want to walk towards the yawning void with its songbird's dead-eyed stare; she wanted to be home in Mor Dhona with the their annoying merrymaking and cheap, frothy beer. She didn't want to keep stepping over ground earned with her loved ones' lives while the Endsinger herself prised her ribcage higher with her butchers knife. I will take everything from you, and you will only know despair.

Kor did not feel worthy. Tears streaked her cheeks as she tried not to cry, and the tension in her jaw was excruciating when she stalled.

There was no bravery in death, but they were so brave. Alphinaud sensed her pause and took the first step forward, turning just enough to face her, and smiled as he squeezed her fingers in his.

"Come, my dearest friend," he softly encouraged, "There's not much farther left."

I love you, I love you, I love you. She wanted to tell them more than anything but her mouth would not make the sound. Instead, Kor looked to both of them, desperately trying to memorise every inch of their faces on the chance she might lose them forever. I love you. I don't want you to do this. I don't want to do this.

Acceptance was the swallow that felt like ingesting razor wire. When this was over she would bring them back, and she would give them everything.

They deserved everything.

Hence, she walked.

#｡･ﾟﾟ･ — 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫 : koret #my writing #THERE'S PROBABLY STILL ERRORS IN THIS BUT Y'KNOW #WE DIE LIKE MEN #i went insane i went feral #'i'll just do an npc ask' #nearly two THOUSAND words later #can you tell i have a lot of feelings about this game #can you

[wenutted]

Hello. I'm sorry if this is sudden but I was wondering if you could make a platonic Neuvillette story with a little angst with the reader being the youngest of his 3 children and they were extremely stressed especially after Lyney and Lynette's trial along with Neuvillette and the readers mother getting divorced so their older brother and sister Elliot and Odette who were twins decided to take their little sibling out to get their mind off of everything but when Neuvillette realized his children left he went to the traveller, Paimon and the readers best friend and longtime crush Lyney for help and Neuvillette was not happy his children just left without saying anything. (If you're not okay with writing this that's completely alright and I wish you a good morning/afternoon or good night, you can also change Elliot and Odette's names if you want to)

Platonic!Neuvillette & teen!reader (ft. Uh... ocs, technically, I suppose)

[Warnings]: Spoilers for the Fontaine archon quest, and death

[Notes]: Apologies, but I removed the Lyney part, as I only write platonic characters. I hope you understand!!

—————

-> Too much.

-> This has all been too much for you.

-> Everything feels like it's happening at once.

-> At first, it had been bearable. As heartbreaking as your parents' divorce was, you and your siblings had long since noticed them falling out of love, and were already expecting it.

However, what you weren't expecting was the long custody battle that took place afterward. Frankly, you didn't understand why either of your parents cared so much, as you weren't particularly close with them. Normally, you, Elliot, and Odette spent most of the time locked away in your rooms, instead of really interacting with your parents.

Regardless, all of the paperwork and court cases were really annoying and stressful.

And as soon as you thought you had gotten a break, everything falls apart again.

—————

-> Lyney and Lynette's Magic Show was supposed to be a form of relaxation, after all of the stress you've been enduring.

You were incredibly excited. Your good friend, Cowell, had even managed to secure you and your siblings front row seats!

The actual performance itself was spectacular, too! Each act leaving you inching further away from your seat, eyes sparkling.

...Until the finale— where the water tank snapped from its bindings and came crashing down upon the 2nd box— with an all-too-familiar mask floating along the rapidly spreading water.

Your heart sank immediately as the theater fell silent. Cowell, Lyney and Lynette's assistant, had been murdered. Not only that, but a girl had gone missing, too— leading your mind back to several old cases. You were now a first-hand witness to the serial disappearances case.

—————

-> You didn't even get any time to mourn before the court case began. And you managed to barely hold it together throughout the case.

Elliot and Odette were incredibly worried. They weren't particularly close with Mr. Cowell, but they know you were friends with him, and given how you've basically been teetering on the edge of a breakdown for the past couple weeks, the twins weren't sure how much their baby sibling could take.

Safe to say, as soon as the trial is over, the twins practically drag you out of the Opera Epiclese; more than eager to empty their wallets to take everyone's minds off of the recent tragedy.

In the end you all book a few hotel rooms, and decide it'd be best to just stay in for a while.

—————

-> To be frank, it takes Neuvillette quite a while to notice his children have disappeared— after all, none of you are particularly close, and he has a lot of paperwork to go through— especially now.

By the time he does notice, it has already been a few days. He tries to remain calm about it, but by the time dinner rolls around and still no one's home, Neuvillette can't help but begin worrying. Where were you all?

Again, Neuvillette tries to wait it out, but the longer you're gone, the more he worries. Usually, whenever you, or your siblings, left for longer than a day, you'd tell him first.

So, it only makes sense that when he manages to pass the Traveler on his morning stroll, he immediately asks them to search for you.

You best bet papa Neuvillette is happy to see all three of his children return home on the same day. Albeit he still lectures you about your unannounced leave.

Completely worth it, though.

—————

[A/N]: I was planning to add some dialogue after that last blurb, but I've been procrastinating on this for quite a while, and I wasn't sure what else to add, this was super fun to write, regardless!!!

#genshin impact #genshin x reader #x reader #fontaine #platonic #neuvillette x reader #platonic genshin x reader #father figure #tw death #dragon sovereign #neuvilette x reader #neuvillette #gender neutral reader #oc #technically #I think

[del-thetiredwriter]

Firstly sorry for late responding. Actually I wasn’t planning any second part but here I write it. It’s a bit long but I hope you like it.

For your question I think Daemon would immediately realize that his wife is meeting a man regularly. He would track his wife and always watch their meetings afar. But when he sees his wife kissing that he would immediately barge in.

Close to you yet so far away part 2 ?

Part 1

Warnings: Oc ( Theo) ,cheating, stalking?, Daemon is his own warning

"Madam! Madame, please stop.” The butler was running after you. Your quick steps stopped suddenly and you turned around.

"What?!" You said angrily.

“Madam please, where are you going again?” the butler asked.

“This is none of your business. Tell Prince Daemon that I won't be coming to dinner, that I have work to do." You said sternly.

“But sir, Prince—“ you interrupted before the butler could finish.

“I don't care what 'my husband' says. Do you understand me"

You ran into your husband as you were walking down the hall. daemon

“My dear wife, where are you going?” He asked in a tone you didn't like.

"It's none of your business," you said sternly.

“You've always been going somewhere lately. Do you realize how hard I try just to spend time with you? Despite this, you always say you have a 'job' and disappear.”

It's true Daemon has been more around lately and was always trying to spend time with you. At breakfast, at dinner… maybe in the past you might have been overjoyed, but what they were doing now just made you feel awful.

"If you're feeling lonely, go to the pleasure house." You said.

You left quickly. Meanwhile, Daemon looked at your receding silhouette.

-

“What the hell”

You woke up to the sound of a door slamming. You thought, 'Who knocks on the door like that in the middle of the night?' When you opened the door, you were surprised to see Daemon in front of you. He swooped down on you with a mischievous grin.

“Why did you open so late~”

"What's wrong with you Daemon ? At this hour-" was cut off by Daemon's kiss. You tried to push him away, but he had a tight grip on you. It smelled of alcohol. Was Daemon drunk? Besides, he come to your room in the middle of the night and kiss you. It was inconceivable that he behaved like this towards his wife, whom he was incapable of even looking at.

When he finally let you go, you were out of breath. Your liked the way he kissed you. But you shouldn't have hoped, after all, it was your husband who would never love you. You couldn't relive the disappointment you had before. You recovered quickly and spoke again in your old cold tone.

“Prince, please come to yourselves. You're drunk, don't do things you'll regret later."

“Oh come on, don't be so cold. You know that I love you." said Daemon.

You had an perfect night with Daemon that night. He was kissing every inch of you, telling you how adorable you are. It was perfect until "Mysaria" came out of his mouth.

-

You were startled by a gentle voice.

“My lady, are you okay? You are lost in thoughts again. Is there anything I can help with?" A brunette youth asked. You smiled when you saw his worried expression.

“You worry too much, Theo. I'm fine, just unpleasant memories."

The young man gave a shy look, not very convinced by what you said.

You met Theo after that unpleasant night. He would listen to the arguments you had with your husband and calm you down. He would worry about you in the slightest thing.

Theo was the exact opposite of Daemon. Theo was kind, Daemon was cruel. Theo would listen to you and try his best to make you happy, but Daemon wouldn't even look at you.

"You know, you're so much better than my stupid husband." You said. At these unexpected Words, Theo got tangled up. For some reason you wanted to kiss Theo at that moment. And your lips touched his. The door suddenly slammed on his touch. You're surprised to see a bloodthirsty Daemon in front of you. What was he doing here?

“you bastard! Get your hands off from my wife!”

If you hadn't intervened at that moment, Theo would have been dead already.

-

"Leave me!" You shouted. You were fluttering when Daemon was carrying you in his arms. The servants all stared at you at this unusual situation. You were red with embarrassment.

You finally arrived at his room. He threw you on the bed.

“You are not allowed to go out from now on. We'll stay in the common rooms and you won't leave my side, you understand?” Daemon said.

" What's your problem!" You shouted.

“I mean what!? I caught my wife kissing someone else!” He said angrily.

“You said I could do whatever I wanted. Also, you are always with others. Why can't I be?" you said.

“You told me you weren't like me. If you feel lonely, you will come to me from now on. I have you too.” Said Daemon.

You stopped. You didn't want to talk. No matter what you said, you would still be wrong.

Daemon took one last look at you.

“Like I said, you are not allowed to go out from now on. We will stay in the common rooms and you will not leave my side. I will tell the servants to prepare the water. You need to clean up.”

And you were alone again.

Notes: if you liked it please tell me. I have something in my mind like part 3

#yandere hotd #yandere house of the dragon #dark hotd #dark house of the dragon #yandere house of the dragon x reader #dark hotd x reader #house of the dragon #hotd fanfic #yandere daemon #yandere daemon targaryen x reader #yandere daemon targaryen #dark daemon x reader #dark daemon

[jananakookie]

Rumor Has It | pjm - Chapter 6

💬 Pairing: Jimin x OC (Reader)

💬 Genre/Tags: enemies(?) to lovers, fake-dating au; angst, fluff, smut

💬 Chapter warnings: sex-talk but nothing too spicy, foul language, mentions of divorce, mentions of incompetent father figure (not important for the story or heavy in general but just so you know)

💬 Word count: 7.5k

💬 Recap:

Rumor has it, Park Jimin is single again after his latest girlfriend cheated on him with his best friend.

Rumor has it, he's willing to get back at them.

Rumor has it, you're the perfect means to an end.

A/N please consider reblogging and commenting if you enjoyed 💚

Previous Chapter - Index - Next Chapter

Chapter 6: Not that different.

It's been several weeks since you met Jimin's parents, and neither you nor he talked about what happened at the bonfire after the two of you were left alone. You prefer it that way, and you don't see any benefit to it anyway, since it will never happen again - that much is clear. 

It was a drunken mistake from both of your ends. A mishap resulting from the fact that both of you were under pressure all day and let loose in the evening. A bit too loose, yes - and yet, it doesn't have to mean anything. 

Talking about it would only give it more meaning than it has. Nothing has changed. You still have a goal to achieve and you haven’t changed your opinion on Jimin either. He’s still the annoying prick that gives you a headache on a daily and nothing will change that.

Yes, casual sex wouldn’t necessarily mean that would have to change - you’re perfectly aware of that yourself. Many people have a non-strings-attached relationship with a person they don’t necessarily like outside the bedroom, and there is nothing wrong with that, of course. However, you cannot help but think about the talk you had with Jungkook a while ago. The one where he specifically told you to be aware and not get in too deep, and you feel like sleeping with Jimin would definitely count as getting in too deep - no pun intended. 

And why the hell does it feel like you're trying to convince yourself? All of this should go without question. You seriously feel like the biggest idiot for even considering this could ever be a possibility. Ew. 

Sure, it’s been such a long time since you had the company of other people, especially guys, but that's no excuse to have these thoughts about Jimin.

He’s handsome, and he kisses well. You’re too damn sexually frustrated to resist this temptation when you’re not master of your senses which means, you will have to stay sober from now on. 

No more alcohol in the presence of Park Jimin. That sounds doable. You can surely manage. You just hope it is also in his interest not to complicate your agreement and keep it as non-physical as possible.

“You’re unusually quiet today, is something wrong?” 

Your silent stare into space is interrupted by Jimin's voice, and you have to blink a few times until your eyes manage to focus on him. 

“Do you sometimes miss having sex?” you blurt out, immediately taking him off guard with it. It surprises you as well, but you blame it on the fact that he interrupted your intense flow of thoughts so abruptly.

You watch as his eyes widen for just a split second before they’re back to normal, weirdly mustering you while a grin slowly forms on his lips. 

“If there is one thing I'll never get used to, it's your loose mouth and your ability to say the most random shit at the most unfitting times,” he chuckles scratching the nape of his neck. If you didn't know any better, you'd almost say your question made him shy. “Uhm, may I know why you are suddenly asking me this?”

Pretty unbothered, you shrug your shoulders while picking a grape out of his fruit salad, gradually ignoring the glare he sends you right after since you now know he doesn’t actually mind you stealing them. 

“I’m just wondering. Hookups aren’t an option for you these days without revealing our secret, so… I figured you must be sexually frustrated at times, no?”

He devolves into a burst of throaty laughter, pushing the bowl with the fruit salad a little closer to you so you don't have to reach so far while keeping his eyes locked with yours. “I’m aright. I am not a caveman, nor am I a teenager, so I do have some self-control, you know?” He explains, leaning his face a bit closer before whispering, “and I still have a well-functioning hand.”

You automatically lean back into your seat with your face showing nothing but pure revulsion. “Disgusting, Park.”

“Hey, you were the one interested in my sex life,” he chuckles, holding his hands up in feigned surrender. 

“I just wanted to know if you sometimes feel frustrated. Not how you take care of it,” you declare, rolling your eyes while you try to hide a grin of your own.

“Same difference,” he shrugs, offering you a wink. “But going back to my original question - Why?” Resting his arms on his elbows, he rests his head on his clenched fist and smiles at you as if waiting for a bedtime story. 

The reason why you have avoided this question until now should be obvious, but you should have expected it. And it's not uncomfortable for you either - quite the opposite actually, since you’re only human, and stuff like that is nothing out of the ordinary. You just don't know exactly how to explain your curiosity to Jimin without giving him the wrong idea.

Munching on a couple more grapes, you muster him while pursing your lips. “I just had a guess,” you shrug, seeing Jimin furrow his eyebrows at you immediately as if offended, and you laugh. “I know what sexual frustration looks like, Park. I built this city. And I’ve been living here for a while now.” 

A deep laugh escapes Jimin’s lips while he shakes his head, but he halts for a quick moment as if to think about his next words before he clears his throat, making it clear that he’s gonna say it anyway.

“Wanna know what I like about you?” he asks in a serious tone, looking like he’s not only surprising you, but him as well with his bold words. 

You take a moment before you nod your head in an unsure manner. “Depends. Am I going to regret it?” 

“No, I’m being genuine, I promise,” he says, sending a small but honest smile your way as you nod again, silently telling him to continue. 

“You’re not afraid or embarrassed to be honest with me. That’s pretty cool,” he admits, becoming sheepish right after while he clears his throat. 

To be completely honest, you didn’t expect that but smile, shrugging your shoulders a little to shake the awkwardness off. “I mean, yea. I don’t know why it never feels awkward with you,” you agree, chuckling quietly. 

“Must be because I’m so amazing,” he winks, biting his lip. A couple weeks ago you would have gagged at this scene, but you know he doesn't really mean it.

“Or maybe I just don’t care what you think of me,” you return the wink, and grin brightly, feeling that you got the upper hand again.

He scoffs, shaking his head with a grin of his own. “So predictable.”

“Mhm… and does that tell you more about you or me?” You fire back, biting your lip to suppress your own smile. 

Jimin smiles at you for a while and you do the same. And it's just about to get awkward again when he shakes his head as if to try and remember what this conversation was actually about before you drifted off to… whatever this was. 

“So what exactly is the point of this conversation, ___? Would you like to offer me something?” He gradually bites his lip while grinning and wiggles his eyebrows, thinking exactly about what you did not want him to think, but it’s not a surprise. He's still Jimin.

“Not at all. As I said, I was just wondering,” you say, breaking eye contact with him and shaking your head slightly.

“Are you sure? I like to help where I can,” he smirks, seeing you scoff at his lame attempt at flirting.

“I’m not that desperate yet,” you chuckle, shaking your head immediately. 

“Funny you say that now because I have a feeling that’s not always true,” he mutters, while he lowers his gaze and concentrates on eating again. It seems like you shouldn't have heard that, and you almost wouldn't have if you weren't still waiting for an answer anyway. 

Whether there is a hidden meaning behind his words or not, you don’t find out because he soon after changes the topic when he starts asking you about an assignment he didn’t understand. 

Jimin left just a few minutes ago because he had to go to the bathroom but your concentration, which you actually wanted to direct to your paper, is already interrupted when you suddenly feel the presence of a person next to you.

“Back so soon? Don’t tell me you missed me already,” you grin as you finish the sentence you were already typing out. 

Your words get stuck in your throat, however, as you look up, and it's not Jimin who is looking down at you. Instead, it's Yeji, as in Jimin’s ex-girlfriend, who never even acknowledged your existence before this whole fiasco. 

But now she’s here, and she obviously wants something from you, considering there isn’t really anyone else close enough to be her person of interest right now. 

“Uhm, can I help you?” you look at her, unsure of what’s about to come. Seeing how you never exchanged a word with Lee Yeji before you have no idea what she could want from you. Well, you actually do have an idea because if there is anything connecting the two of you it has to be Jimin, no?

“Don’t worry. I’m not here to cause any trouble,” she quickly says probably sensing you’re in defense mode just from seeing her about to talk to you. “I just have one question for you.”

Furrowing your brows, you make a motion for her to continue, not expecting much in the first place but still interested enough to not just walk off. You don't offer her a seat, though. We do not wanna rush into anything now, do we?

“I know the opinions of the people here are very different, but I just can’t form one for myself. Are you really dating Jimin?”

You raise your brows, closing your laptop while you try to understand what's going on. She did not actually take it upon herself to come to you and ask you that question after everything that happened, did she?

 “You know what’s funny?” you ask her, looking her straight in the eyes. “You guys have no problem spreading and believing the most absurd lies about me. But the moment I actually am involved with someone, you refuse to believe it? Make it make sense, please,” you scoff, already grabbing your laptop and standing up from your seating position. 

“It wasn’t me who said you were the one in the picture,” she says, eyes firmly kept on yours. “Taehyung said that, not me.” She rushes the words as if to try and keep you longer. For what reason? You have no idea. Probably to get some well-needed information.

“Oh? So what did you do to try and tell everyone the truth?” You ask, raising a brow even though you already know the answer. 

It's almost comical how quickly she throws her lover under the bus just to appease you and get some information. But what can you expect from people like them?

Yeji doesn’t say anything to that, and for the first time, her gaze leaves yours, even if it’s just for a split second until her eyes are back on yours. 

“Well, if it really is true, then just look out for yourself. I’m not saying he has an ulterior motive, but… he moved on pretty fast.” She has the guts to almost look offended when she says that. As if him moving on is what went wrong between them. 

“Thank you for trying to look out for me, but I’ll be fine,” you sarcastically say although you feel as if it didn’t quite reach her as such. 

“I don’t know what you want me to say. I’m not trying to be a bitch, ___. I’m here because I felt sorry about what happened and wanted to make sure there’s no bad blood between us. I’m not a bad person. I’m really not. I’m sure there are lots of people who wouldn’t agree with me and you’re probably one of them, but just know that I do feel bad about what went down. I would have liked things to happen differently, but… honestly, I can’t change the past. I just hope we can move on from this someday.” 

You glance up at Yeji with your mouth agape, trying to suppress a genuine laugh. That must have been the most half-hearted apology you've ever received, and the bored look on her face almost does the rest.

Fortunately for her, you learned a long time ago to see the humor in almost everything, so you don't even hold it against her. Rolling your lips inwardly, you nod your head, making her sigh out in what you interpret as relief. 

It's not like you're going to forgive her for what she did, nor will you forget about it. But you don’t see the sense in starting an argument either, and if you’re honest, all you want is for this awkward encounter to end as soon as possible. 

To your luck, Yeji leaves soon after, obviously not very keen on talking to you either. And to your amusement, she’s quickly replaced by Jimin, who suddenly pops up next to you, panting heavily as he looks in the direction Yeji just left in. 

“Wow, did you run here?”

“What did she want?” He asks, deciding to ignore your question while still glaring at the table where his ex-girlfriend went to. 

“Who, Yeji? I’m not too sure. It was an experience I could have gladly missed out on,” you shrug, not really wanting to go into detail since you have no idea what that was either. “But you can relax, she was asking about us, so maybe your plan is finally bearing fruit, and she’s starting to get jealous.” 

Jimin groans quietly, rolling his eyes before looking at you. “How many more times, ___. I’m not trying to win her back.” 

You’re just about to argue, when your phone starts beeping, signaling you got a new message. Briefly distracted from the actual topic, you take a look at who messaged you and curse under your breath as you hurriedly pack your things together. 

Jimin, who was originally just waiting for you to give him attention again, quickly starts to help you put your things in your bag, sensing that whoever just texted you must be more important to you now. 

“What’s up?”

“Ugh, it’s my mom. I completely forgot she was coming over today,” you hurriedly answer with a deep scowl while not even looking at him as you walk away with fast steps, knowing he’ll follow you anyway. 

“Are you not happy to see her?” 

“I am. It’s just that every time she comes over, she’s asking to meet ‘my friends’ and it usually ends with me making up some big ass lie that makes me feel awful as soon as she’s on her way back home.”

“So she doesn’t know about… you know?”

“My situation?” you ask, briefly looking at him before you turn your gaze forward again in fear you might run into something or someone. “Of course not. And I’m not planning on ever letting her know. She has enough on her plate. I don’t need her to worry about me. I’m an adult, after all. I’ll be alright.”

Jimin only nods, completely understanding your decision not to confide in her, even if it makes him uneasy to know that you probably never had anyone to confide in and talk to about your problems. He remembers too well how uncomfortable it was to tell his family about Yeji and Taehyung, especially when he saw how much it upset them out of concern for him, but it still helped him a lot to talk about it. Knowing that you didn't and couldn't do that for years really makes his insides churn for some reason. 

You should not have to go through something like this. Especially not alone.

“So, what are your plans for today then?” He would like to disagree and tell you that your mother would understand, but Jimin knows you well enough to know when to keep his mouth shut. Not to forget that it is none of his business anyway.

“I’ll just take her to the café near my apartment. We usually go there when she comes to visit me,” you explain, finally letting a small smile appear on your lips. “And then, I’ll just hope she doesn’t try to dig too deep today and accepts my lame excuse about my friends being busy one more time.”

An idea of how he can help you suddenly comes to Jimin's mind, but he decides to not let you in on it for now. Instead, he only accompanies you to your apartment door as usual and immediately disappears on your demand. 

And while you try to fix up your apartment as best you can until your mother finally arrives, Jimin is on his way to save your day.

You must look like an idiot. 

You really must look like an idiot right now with your mouth hanging wide open, your mother happily chattering about whatever the hell you were talking about before you caught sight of a familiar blond mop of hair, neatly gelled back.

Not that you did it on purpose, but the moment you thought you saw Jimin outside the window of the café where you're currently sitting with your mother, you completely blanked her out.

But despite the rain, there are so many people out and about today that the blond mop, which seemed to be familiar, has disappeared somewhere in the mass of people and can no longer be located by you.

With a frown, you shake your head in an attempt to direct your thoughts back to what is actually important. Jimin would tease you for weeks if he knew he had taken over your thoughts enough that you would confuse him with some rando on the streets. Without a doubt, making it sound like you cannot stop thinking about him or some shit like that.

As if. 

“—Lately we have hardly been in touch. I've almost forgotten what you look like, honey.” The condemning, yet partly joking tone in your mother's voice draws your attention back to her for a brief moment as you sigh. 

“I told you, mom. There’s just a lot going on these days. I hardly find the time to do anything.” 

“It’s fine,” she says, sending you a warm smile. “I just worry about you. Please don’t overwork yourself too much. You are too old now for me to remind you to eat regularly and healthily.”

Apathetic, you poke around in your cheesecake while you hum a response. “Been doing stuff with friends for the most part. We’re going out to eat a lot, don’t worry.” 

Technically that’s not a lie. Since you've been spending time with Jimin, you have been eating healthier and more balanced meals than ever before. And you would say that's probably one of the reasons you've kept up this charade for so long. 

The instant noodle days are not yet missed by you. 

And even if you don't like to admit it, lunch with Jimin and Hyunjin often involves a lot of laughter and fun. Sometimes there are a few other friends of Jimin's, often it's just the three of you, and lately, Jimin and you have managed to persuade even Nayeon to join your little group. 

In those moments it sometimes even feels like you really belong, and it almost makes you dread the doom day when your fake relationship with Jimin is over, and you're going to be back to being alone. 

Being alone never was that big of a deal for you. Yeah, it did get lonely at times, but with time you got used to it. Getting used to the company of others again, however, went a lot faster. It certainly won't be easy to master the art of being on your own again after all this time.

She literally beams all over her face at your words and it makes the guilt almost unbearable. “I’m glad to hear that! It’s such a shame your friends couldn’t make it.”

You swallow thickly, lowering your gaze back onto your half-eaten cheesecake. Your appetite is completely gone now. Literally, all this woman wants is for you to be happy and live a normal life, and you can’t even do that? A woman in her twenties, making up friends to tell her mother about. How fucking pathetic. 

“Nevertheless, I would be very happy if you would call or send a message at least once in a while. Let's say once a week, so I know that you are still alive,” your mom grins, making a smile crack on your lips as well. 

“Mom, please. It’s not like I never—”

“I’m afraid that might be my fault.” A voice suddenly cuts through yours, making your words stuck in your throat. Turning your head, you see Jimin standing in front of your table, kindly smiling down at your mother. “I just take up all of her time these days,” he chuckles, smiling brightly as his gaze drifts from your mother to you. “I tried to come as soon as possible. I’m really sorry I couldn’t make it sooner.”

You feel yourself shrink in your seat as you sense your mother’s eyes burn through your skull, but you’re unable to take your eyes off of him. You’re too stunned to say or do anything at the moment. What is he doing?!

He cleans up nicely, looking as smug and expensive as always, even if he undoubtedly walked through the rain to get here. In his left hand, he’s holding a big, bright-colored bouquet while his right hand is already shaking your mother’s. 

You see how their mouths move, and they talk to each other. Your mother laughs, Jimin grins, he hands her the flowers, she gestures with her arm while saying something to him, and the next moment you see him sit down next to you. You see all of this happening but don't really hear a word they're saying. 

You are much too busy to realize that this is really happening. Jimin is really here. 

His gaze travels over you in a way that makes you gulp and causes you to shiver involuntarily so you take a deep breath, finally getting out of your trance as you sense they’re both waiting for you to say something. 

No doubt you immediately recognize this excited glimmer in your mom's eyes and watch as she expectingly raises her eyebrows, wordlessly telling you to introduce him too. 

You clear your throat and slide a few centimeters further to the window to try and put some distance between you and Jimin because as usual he doesn't understand the concept of personal space.

Honestly, he might as well have sat on your lap…

“Uhm Mom, this is Jimin. My friend—”

“Boyfriend.” 

In a fraction of a second, you turn your head to him, not believing what he just said. He doesn’t react, doesn’t even look at you. Instead, he puts his arm around your shoulders and pushes you closer against him while rubbing your arm.

You clench your fists under the table, hoping that your mother doesn’t notice, and suck your bottom lip into your mouth before you turn your gaze to at her again to see her reaction.

It is no surprise that she almost bursts with joy from the unexpected news seeing how she inconspicuously has been trying to find out something about your love life for ages — without any success, of course. So it was probably to be expected that she would react like this.

“A boyfriend, ___? Why didn't I know about this?” 

She doesn’t sound disappointed in the slightest. If anything, she uses more of a teasing tone with you, making it even more awkward. 

“This has not been going on for long, mom. I just didn't get to tell you about it yet,” you lie, once again poking around in your cheesecake. “It’s not like it’s that important.”

Your mom gasps, frowning at you with a displeased, judgmental look in her eyes, and you know if you were alone with her right now, you would meet the slipper. “You little— How can you say that. Of course your boyfriend is important!”

You can hear Jimin snicker beside you, and you would love to shut him up, but you don't want to make it even worse with your mother.

The two of them happily engage in a conversation, completely ignoring your presence while your mother asks him question after question, wanting to know everything about him and seemingly being more than smitten with him already.

It’s understandable, really. You can’t blame her. Jimin really is charismatic. He answers every question with ease, not once stuttering or stumbling over his words like you found yourself doing while conversing with his family. 

He is friendly, polite, extremely handsome, and well-spoken, and it worries you how comfortable and familiar your mother already seems with him. The little shit even brought her flowers! 

This is exactly what you feared and what was the reason that you didn’t want her to find out about this. You know your mother and you know that she will not let this go which only means you have to lie to her again and again.

As if your conscience was not already burdened enough.

The moment your mother excuses herself and leaves to use the restroom, you finally crumble, ready to yell at him but before you can muster a word, he beats you to it.  

“This is going pretty well, don’t you think?” With a bright, content grin on his face, he leans back in his seat. 

The moment he lifts his arm and wraps it around your shoulders again, you snap. Grabbing his arm, you immediately push him off with force before you bark at him. 

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?!”

Jimin is visibly surprised by your sudden outburst, and he takes a couple of moments before he clears his throat and runs his fingers through his hair, a slight frown now visible between his eyes. 

“I’m… having a nice little chat with your mother,” he states in a calm voice, obviously not seeing anything wrong with what he’s doing. “She’s nice. I think she likes me too,” he adds, raising his brows in question when your only response is a loud, annoyed groan before you lean your elbows on the table and slap your hands over your face.

“No no no no no…” you silently chant to yourself, your voice coming out muffled. “This is bad. This is so bad.”

“What is?“ Jimin asks, sounding unbothered as if to silently tell you that you're overreacting. 

You face him again, and for a split moment, you seriously consider smacking the back of his head. “My mom likes you, Jimin! She really likes you,” you sigh. 

“So?” He scoffs. “Of course she does. I’m amazing. I thought you’d be happy about that. I mean… isn’t that what normal people want? For their parents to like their boyfriend?”

“But that’s the thing, Jimin!” you groan, gaping at him with your eyes opened wide. “You are not my boyfriend. And when we ‘break up‘, she’ll be sad about that now,” you explain, annoyed that you even have to do that. “Even worse, she'll want me to pour my heart out to her or something!”

Jimin stays silent, pressing his lips together while he draws his eyebrows together in a slight frown. “Why do you always have to do that?”

“Do what?” 

“Worry about things, that haven’t even happened yet. You always do that. Why can’t you just enjoy things as they are from time to time?”

“What do you even mean? There isn’t anything to enjoy. This is an act, you remember? And it will end soon, and then—”

“See? You’re doing it again. You’re so uptight. Just let loose for once and live a little.”

“Excuse me?” you scoff, feeling offended.

“What? It’s true. I can offer you a jacket when you forgot yours and you’d be like ‘don’t do that Jimin, we aren’t actually dating’, or I could pay for food when we’re alone and you’d say ‘stop it Jimin, you’re not actually my boyfriend’, and now I can’t even be liked by your mom without you complaining about her being sad when we eventually break up. It’s annoying. Your mantra is making a mountain out of a molehill.”

“Well, what else do you want me to say? I’m just trying to do the job and stay focused. Stay rational. As we both agreed from the start. I didn’t want my mom to find out about us. That was not part of the deal. Not to forget that it was not necessary for her to ever find out about this in the first place!” Even though you are already boiling with rage, you try to be as discreet as possible and not raise your voice. But it’s hard. It’s so hard right now. 

“I even told you that I did not want my mother to know about it. Several times,” you hiss, shaking your head in disbelief. 

“I know,” he sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. “But I just wanted to help. You were complaining about her asking about your friends and stuff earlier, and I thought—”

“You thought just showing up here and pretending to be my boyfriend would magically make it better?” You scoff. “All you have achieved is that you have only made things worse. For you it seems to be the easiest thing in the world to lie to your family, you don't even bat an eye when you do it, but I'm not like that. This fucking sucks, Jimin.”

You cross your arms in front of your chest and stubbornly look out the window without exchanging another word with him. 

It may be childish behavior, but you don't feel like talking to him anymore. Fortunately, he seems to feel the same way, because he also doesn't say a word to you. And so it comes that you both keep silent until your mother comes back from the restroom and directly joyfully continues her previous conversation with Jimin in which he immediately engages without letting on anything.  

And even if your mother doesn’t seem to notice anything, you sure do. Because it is obvious that your words have not left him untouched. 

Hours passed, your Mom has left, and you’re seriously happy you somehow survived the day without any major problems occurring. She bought your little lie and was more than happy to spend the day with not just you, but Jimin as well and it’s eating at you.

It makes you shoot daggers from your eyes into the bathroom door behind which Jimin is just now, a shallow beam of light shooting out from under the door, the only recognizable sign that there is anyone else in the apartment besides you.

To be honest, you’re quite surprised he’s still here. Your mother left fairly late, seeing how she was too engrossed in getting to know your boyfriend and swooning over him. You internally cringe just thinking about it. 

It’s going to be so embarrassing having to explain to her why she won’t ever meet him again. Even if you were able to push it to the back of your mind for the past couple of hours for your Mom's sake, you’re still mad at Jimin for pulling that stunt out of the blue earlier. 

This boy just never stops complicating things for you, and you don’t get why he does the things that he does. 

“So, it’s just you and your mom?” Jimin asks, which is the first thing he does as soon as he comes out of the bathroom and joins you in the kitchen.

You nod, not turning your attention from washing the dishes. Jimin wordlessly grabs a towel to dry up and help you finish sooner. 

“My parents divorced when I was still very young. Haven’t really seen my Dad ever since, but we were never that close anyway, so it’s whatever. I always had a much stronger bond with my mother.”

Jimin hums, thinking for a moment before he speaks again. “Do you miss him sometimes?”

You shrug, taking a brief moment to answer, and Jimin studies the way your brows draw together while you seem deep in thought. He’s afraid he asked too much, scared of being too nosey, but to his relief, you shake your head soon after with your lips forming a small pout. 

“Can’t say that I do,” you say, once again looking at him for just a blink of an eye before turning back to work. “As I said, we were never that close. I barely have any memories of him doing... well, anything with me really. It was always my mom who did the most work which is also why they ended up getting a divorce. He was never much of a father figure anyway.”

“Sounds like you aren’t upset about it,” he wonders, a little surprised by your nonchalant tone. 

You laugh shortly, but to Jimin, it seems genuine, which confuses him even more. Shouldn’t you be hurt or angry? Last time he checked, most people didn’t like their fathers leaving them without a trace. 

“What do you want me to do? Cry about it? Should I curse and insult him?” You joke.

“No, but… don’t you care?”

“I was nine when they split, Jimin,” you explain in a calm, very collected voice with a face showing no trace of any foul emotion. “I had plenty of time to be angry about it when I was younger, but now? I think I can understand him. He wasn’t happy with his life, so he left. Stuff like that happens all the time, and there’s nothing we can do about it. My mom and I managed just fine on our own. Trust me, It’s easier to live your life without someone who doesn’t really want to be in it in the first place. I barely ever saw him after he left, but he made sure to support us financially and he still sends me a card every year on my birthday. Was he a good dad? Hell no, but he did what he could, I guess. Not everyone’s cut out to be a parent.”

Jimin doesn’t say anything after that for a long time. It makes you wonder if you said something wrong.

You didn’t. Jimin just doesn’t really know what to say. You clearly have made your peace with the situation so there isn’t really anything for him to say against it. 

“I guess it probably drew you and your mom even closer,” he suddenly speaks up again. “It’s obvious you guys share a tight bond.”

“We do, and I’m very happy it’s like that,” you smile, not really looking at him as you put away the cups and plates, Jimin has already dried. 

“I’m sorry I made you lie to her,” his voice suddenly appears behind you, sounding a lot smaller and quieter than it usually does. 

You turn around to face him, mustering the look on his face. “Yea, I’m not gonna lie, that really bugs me. Although I’ve kinda been lying to her for the past couple of years now when it comes to me and any social contacts so… I guess it’s not that big of a deal.”

Jimin knows you’re not happy with him right now. Not that you ever are, but this time he really feels bad about it, knowing how uncomfortable you must have felt the whole day. He knows how bad it feels to lie to your family about this kind of thing, but at least he made the decision himself. You didn’t have that luxury, and it’s his fault. It’s not that he meant for you to feel this way, he just didn’t think things through - again. 

“That wasn’t my intention. I honestly just wanted to help but ended up making it worse for you. I’m sorry. Didn’t really think about the consequences,” he apologizes, looking a little embarrassed.

You loudly exhale through your nose, jokingly rolling your eyes at him. “How about you stop trying to help or do things for me?” You suggest, grinning at him slightly. “’Cause honestly, you’re pretty shit at it.”

Jimin purses his lips while slightly nodding his head in agreement. “I might consider it. Can’t really disagree with you here.”

You snort out a laugh and smack him with the towel which makes him laugh as well while he tries to avoid getting hit a second time - without much success. 

“Why did you lie to me that time at my parents’?” Jimin asks, making your head shoot up as soon as he finishes, making it clear you immediately know what he’s talking about even without him having to go into detail. 

You gulp, lowering your head again because looking at him would add another layer of awkwardness right now, and you don’t need that. 

“Yes, I noticed. No, it was not hard to tell you were lying. Not at all,” he adds after a while of you not giving him an answer. 

“It’s not like it would have changed anything,” you scoff. “I was just drunk. Saying and doing things I didn’t mean. And so were you. It didn’t mean anything, so why talk about it?”

Jimin doesn’t instantly say anything to that but he’s watching you intently before shaking his head as he sends an arrogant smirk your way. “You sure about that? Because it didn’t really seem that way when you were—”

“Alright, we get it!“ You interrupt him, knowing exactly what he’s going to say. Turning your back on him, you ignore his mocking laughter. 

“No, but seriously, why are you always so keen on not crossing any boundaries? I understand that our situation is a bit… unusual, and it’s not like I’m asking you to have sex with me, but we can be friends. There is nothing to say against getting along well with each other.” 

Jimin halts for a moment to see if you’re going to contradict, but when he sees no reaction whatsoever on your face, he continues with a sigh. 

“I like teasing you because it’s fun, and you look like a puffer fish when you’re about to snap at me which is a bit cute— however, that doesn’t mean that I don’t like you or that you constantly have to be on edge with me. I’m really trying here. Why can’t I be friendly without you immediately going for my neck?”

Having your arms crossed over your chest, you roll your eyes when he finishes his little speech. “Want to send a little prayer, or are you done?” 

Jimin scoffs at your incapability of being serious, but you think you can see him trying to hide a little smile as he leans against your kitchen counter and sends a defeated look your way. 

“You’re a bit much sometimes, Jimin.” You tell him, being as honest as you can. “Ever since we got into this fake relationship thing, you've been around me constantly. And that can be pretty overwhelming at times.”

“Why? Are you scared you could catch feelings for me?” He smirks, wiggling his brows, obviously back in joking mode, whereas you gulp and shrug your shoulders as your eyes drift from him to the floor.

“Maybe.” It comes out in a small voice, but Jimin still hears you clearly, and it wipes the grin off his face almost instantly.

“Oh.”

“It’s not what you think, Park,” you quickly add, not wanting him to get the wrong idea. “Please don’t get ahead of yourself,” you then scoff, rolling your eyes when his expression tells you he already did have the wrong idea. “At this point, even if I tried to deny it, I just have to accept that I obviously am very desperate, okay?” 

Jimin is frowning now, eyebrows knitted together as he inspects your face.

“Yesterday while shopping, a stranger held the door open for me, and I got flustered and giggled while thanking him. I giggled, Park! I got flustered because a stranger did not slam the door in my face! What is happening to me?”

Jimin doesn’t answer as he bursts into laughter, very visibly amused by your distress, whereas you start to pout, seeing how he doesn’t take you seriously at all. 

“I’m not joking,” you mutter, feeling your ears getting hot. Granted, it does sound pathetic and a little dramatic, you can admit that. But it doesn't change the fact that it is a true story after all. 

“In any case, it's important to me that we maintain a certain distance. When all this is over, we’ll just go back to being strangers anyway,” you shrug, getting back to work and putting some of the dishes back into the cupboards.

Jimin’s laughter has died down. Your words were pretty harsh and Jimin knows you didn't mean it sarcastically either. Even though your way of being straightforward and always honest with him is something he really admires and likes about you since it’s refreshing, it can be just as hurtful sometimes. 

He knows that you don't do it on purpose because you want to hurt him but because it's your way. It honestly took some getting used to on his part, but he thinks he can manage by now. 

And still, when you say stuff like that and then act as if nothing happened, it pisses him off. 

“You were wrong by the way,” his voice suddenly interrupts the silence you were about to enjoy, and you turn back around to face him again, not quite knowing what he means.

“I don’t enjoy lying to my family. And it’s not easy for me either.”

His voice is calm and collected, and his eyes do not stray from you which allows you to see the disenchantment in them again, just like you did earlier. You’re struck with a pang of guilt when you notice it, feeling bad about never being able to shut your damn mouth, especially in the heat of a moment.

You didn’t mean it like that when you accused him of that. It was just the frustration and anger getting the best of you, and you regretted your words as soon as they left your lips. There is no doubt that he loves and respects his family very much, and you should not have said something like that. Especially since you aren't any better. You have been lying to your mother for years, inventing friends and stories that don't exist only because you’re ashamed to tell her who you actually are.

“I know. I didn’t have the right to say that to you. Not in my position,” you scoff at your own stupidity and shake your head as you feel a headache coming up. 

“Well, you have every right to be mad at me. We did talk about our families before, and you told me more than once that you wouldn’t want her to find out, so yea… that’s completely on me again. I can see how that would make you mad.”

You purse your lips and muster him slightly. “See? This is literal proof that you are in fact, able to have clear thoughts so why don’t you ever decide to think before you act?” You then ask, smirking a little. 

After that, the atmosphere between you starts to be a little lighter again, and it is very much appreciated by both of you. 

Without any more words, he quickly helps you put away the rest of the washed dishes and then announces that he is slowly making his way home.

“Your mom is very nice by the way, and she cares about you a lot,” he says while putting his jacket on while on his way to your door. “She would understand. I’m about 99% sure she wouldn’t judge or blame you.”

You of course know what he’s digging at, but there is one thing you don’t quite understand. 

“Who said anything about her judging me?”

Jimin offers you a kind smile while his hand already goes for the knob on your front door to open it. 

“We’re not that different, you know, babygirl?” 

And with a last obnoxious wink, he walks out, wishing you a good night without actually turning around to look at you again. 

You keep standing there a little dumbfounded for a while, looking after him until he’s gone around a corner and you can’t see him anymore before you frown and scoff, closing your door. 

“We are very much different, Park Jimin.”

tagged: @ggukkieland | @ttaeby | @rkvi | @cuteipat | @pjiminslove | @mawwnsterr | @aamalaaa | @spideyxxboi | @lil-sracha | @katsbqbe | @bex-92br | @natalie-rdr | @canarystwin | @wespers-jaan | @bangtanxcoffee | @bri-mal | @so-kou | @lonleycoffee | @rjsmochii | @kiwiaroha | @chimchimmarie | @scoupshawt | @xmochiloverx | @kristinkristinuk | @thejiminshieffect | @yes-fangirl-things

#jimin au #jimin fake dating au #jimin enemies to lovers #jimin angst #park jimin #jimin smut #jimin fluff #jimin fanfic #bts jimin #jimin scenarios #jimin x reader #jimin imagine

[blueparadis]

▏CAN'T PRETEND ▏M.SANO ▏

+. content warnings — afab-reader, college au, modern au, college boy!Manjiro and college boy! Draken, enemies to lovers, angst, mention of Draken, Baji, Kazutora, Mitsuya, Emma, OCs, explicit smut, oral acts, mature language. ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

+. synopsis — Draken, it was all draken; it was his fauilt that Manjiro came to know about your feelings for him but you didn’t regret it, you regretted what happened afterward. ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

+. notes — HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY SUNSHINE BOY ( I LOVE EVERY VERSION OF HIM) & this piece is a part of “begrudging beloved”, hosted by @hishalo .

— you can also read this in ao3. It took hours for me to format this post because tumblr decided to thrash my remnant energy.I'm so very tired that I feel stoned.

⌗ tags —» @fueledbysano @michiphoria @cursedmoonchild word count — 10k REBLOGS ARE GREATLY APPRECIATED | tap here to view my works.

Manjiro Sano, the heart and sunshine of the college. He was good at sports, quite fertile-brained in academics, and always managed to be in good books with the professors even though he was the pioneer of anything that could sprout into a chain of never-ending trouble.

With Ken Ryuguji on his side all the time, he seemed unreachable yet he had a bevy of girls around him. Most girls swooned over him and he did not exactly enjoy the stares but never bothered to shoo them away. Why would he? He didn't have to do much for their attention; better put it to good use rather than throw it all away.

He was the most outspoken among his friends. Something about him stirred an affinity among most hearts. Was it his smile, his kindness, his mischievous acts? you couldn’t tell. He was a boy full of dreams and the heart wrecker of your soul.

He excelled at keeping up roses and sunshines reputation of his but when you first saw him it shattered too much to mend by itself. He was at the infirmary getting his cock sucked by a senior of his. Boxers gathered at the foot, the jersey tossed aside while his hands were rested on the bed.

There were rounds of practice matches on that day that provided him the perfect opportunity to sneak out. His skin glowing in dim light, soaking in sweat. Eyes closed, the head was thrown back and you exhaled a sharp breath when he flipped his head in the front followed by a husky groan.

At that moment, as you watched him struggle with his breath, gasping and panting heavily, his eyes fell over you. And you immediately vanished in the nearest girl's washroom almost under the reflex.

Sick. Horrid. Who does he think he is? It's not like no one's stopping them but why here? why here of all places? Unfortunately, that wasn't the last encounter. Since your art class was on the fifth floor, opposite the playground it gave a great view, a subject to think about, for most students but you, it turned out to be your maddening distraction.

Classes were fine and with a friend like Naomi, you couldn't ask for more. She was the principal’s daughter but she never exposed the flag to show dominance, to have her way with everything. And that's why you liked her.

Who the fuck cares about the talk going behind your back? And knowing Naomi, she couldn't bother to give a flying fuck who spewed nonsense into her ears, saying that you were trying to use her, to be in good books with her to clear semesters and blah blah blah.

“What’re you going to have for breakfast Nao?”, she peered through her eyelashes pouting a little trying to give thought to you.

“Unlike you, I eat my breakfast and don't stay up late either. So. . .”

“Yea! Yea! Yea! Got it. I'll be right back then.”, rolling your eyes heavenwards, you quickly ended her trail of talk otherwise she'd soon start sounding like your mom.

That was your routine and you never go out of it since this was the only time when you could know if he was absent or present, playing a match or not, having a practice study session, or just detention.

Somedays, Mitsuya, Naomi’s boyfriend came with snacks and you could still find yourself searching for him, Manjiro. It's a good thing that you've English in common with Draken otherwise it's like a circle in a spiral just to get a glimpse of him.

And without Draken, Manjiro hit like a cold wave washing over your soul every time you crossed paths with him. As you reached the food court, you beamed and your heart leaped with joy finding Draken at the usual spot. He was friendly, and well-mannered unlike his friend; why couldn't you just like him instead?

“How was the first class?”, Draken said as he grabbed his bag to put it near the foot of the table.

“The usual. I’m glad I pulled the all-nighter otherwise I would have lost this scholarship”, you quipped adjusting yourself beside him.

“ Da faq ”, Draken screamed. His eyes focused on your body, eyebrows growing closer with annoyance as you try to figure out his awful usage of words, that too in the morning. It's way too early for this.

“God! Sometimes I don't know whether you're careless or just thoughtless. ”, he gives his jersey to you gesturing to put it on. And as you did, you realize that the high-neck ivory top didn't do a great job hiding your bra color. The bra lining was perfectly visible if it were to be against the sunlight.

“I was in a hurry so…”, Draken's eyebrows jumped at your feeble try to put up an explanation as if he hasn’t heard thousands of lame excuses of yours, “Yeah, I’m sorry.”, you amended instantly putting those strained focused eyes of worry at ease.

After the first period, both of you had a free class and he has always been the first to hit the canteen since he has grown accustomed to your ways and habits — of being punctual even if it meant skipping your breakfast. Hence, he is always ready to pay for your breakfast. He is nice and kind but he isn’t witless. He knows which button to press to impress you, which to piss you off and which to use to get to his girl, Emma.

“I’ve one more class, that too a self-study one, then all classes are dissolved...Ah Shit”

“Why are you like this y/n?”, Draken tried to imitate your tone. silencing the call that lit up his phone he apologetically asked, “no but seriously y/n. Why are you so irritated?”

“I did not just come for a single class, well, it wasn’t all in vain . . . ”, of course, it wasn’t. Only two classes and the rest are dissolved. What could be more time-captivating than to watch him play while all you do is sit at a lonely corner of a bench to watch his current ‘fling’ being all over him?

She wasn't the one who had given him a blow job. She was different, a brunette and this one was a blonde bitch. Sometimes you just wanted to scream from the bottom of your lungs to tell everyone how much of scum is he but you couldn't just do that. It's not like he has come after you or harmed you but such a foul act of violating the rules made you snap every time you spotted him with a girl.

“Ken-chin.”, a high-pitched voice. “I knew I’d find you here”, created ripples in your pool of thoughts. It was him. The person you managed to avoid throughout the semester and you were successful if he hadn't just showed up in your favorite place. As much as his presence made you restless from afar, his very presence next to you boiled your blood oozing out annoyance, sometimes anger. He was way too full of himself, the only flaw you could pin till now.

Manjiro sat in front of his friend and before he could take a good look at you, you tapped Draken’s shoulders and left immediately. No words were exchanged and you wanted to keep it that way.

Even though you wanted to know him, you never wished to catch his attention simply because first, you wouldn't stand a chance against those popular girls he has been with or might not fit his needs or probably you're not his type.

Second, why would he even bother to look at you when he has a horde of hot chicks just a tap away? Moreover, it wouldn’t end well for you. While he’ll remain unscathed you’ll become more mutilated than before since there’s no coming back if he ever initiates the first step. After all, just like most of the girls you too had a crush on him.

That day at the infirmary when you saw him you knew you’d be treated just like others, a page to turn over. You could never blame him for that even in all your sanity. He dated girls, he fucked them witless, probably some relationships were broken because of him but you still didn't think he was bad.

They did say love is blind but if that was the case you would at least try once to be in his vicinity thinking he might be kind enough to pick a withering flower like you. But, he would never; Manjiro would never be the one to pick you because you are bad for his health, too pure for his bad habits, and, that he’ll know with just a glance.

Even if he accidentally picks you, all your emotions will come crashing down like a castle of sand struck by his wave of crude, cold tactics. There was no other result of such borrowed love.

Everyone was kind of aware of his flirty behavior but none knew he fucked girls witless in the changing room after winning the match except his team, the girls he tossed to Baji and then to Kazutora after a while getting bored with them.He hated losing. Miraculously, his team never lost official matches. He was always very passionate about what he wanted, be it victory or you.

“Na Ken-chin !…who’s that girl wearing your jersey?, Manjiro asked while his eyes watched you fade into the group of students like a hawk. “Tell me who is she.”

Draken has known him since his childhood and knowing Manjiro, he won’t stop chaffing at him throughout the day until he gets what he wants. Ryuguji lets out a sigh as his thoughts come to an end.

“She is y/n y/l/n. Arts major. quite quick on the tongue but doesn't talk much. she's good at sports too … and she likes to wear light-colored tops, mostly one-pieces. ” Draken states everything with a straight face except that you’re close to Emma since it would be troublesome for both of you. His eyes are focused on his plate that is getting emptied by Manjiro as he robotically spills every single detail he knew about you, that he has noticed since you've been friends with him from the beginning of the year.

And then, he pauses noticing his empty plate before finally adding the finishing touch for your introduction. Manjiro gives up searching for that familiar jacket in the crowd as his eyes finally focused on his friend.

“and today she's wearing a red bra.”, Draken utters meekly as his eyes dart onto his friend’s pale face from the empty plate. His cheeks flushed at his comment.

“Da faq Ken-chin”, Manjiro coughed covering his mouth with the length of his arm. “what’s it have to do with who she is?” He starts to cuss at him which does nothing but brighten up Baji's day who was watching all of these from the corner of the food counter.

Baji was sure taken aback when Manjiro showed interest in a girl. From what he has observed, he never had to take the first step, that is, to gather intel because it’s always the girls who lurk in his range like a moth. Manjiro was more than ready to burn their wings. But Alas! You were a butterfly, so very far from his range yet so tempting to his insatiable ways of hunger.

Draken tossed his bag over his shoulder leaving Manjiro in absolute dismal as he exclaims with a grin, “she’s too good for you. Don't get attached.”, before leaving the table.

Manjiro doesn't get to talk back much since he's still trying to recover from his thought about you since he has seen enough naked girls have an idea how you would be, under that white silk dress with red lingerie set.

But why the fuck Draken would notice such detail about you? You are just some random girl whom he has often seen around himself in breaks. Not that he was much bothered

But Manjiro always wanted to believe that it was a lot more than just some lucky coincidences. And, even though he knew you had seen him in the infirmary he never thought it would be wise to make you aware that he recognized you the very next day.

Still, he was hoping too much. After all, he has seen a lot of his friends going haywire in emotions, affections or love, or whatever they prefer to call it. To him, you were another passing cloud but for you, he was the whole sky full of grey hues, devoid of rainbows and sapphire serenity

“Emma you’re here? Don’t you have classes?”, Naomi’s voice was audible through the corridors. You smiled to yourself since it’s rare for her to come and visit your class. Thanks to whatever meeting the teacher’s council was having, the students could finally breathe freely and even fly.

“Well, it’s all dissolved and I know you two have another class which is more of a self-study period. So, I came to visit. I was getting bored.”

“I’m back”, Naomi and Emma were startled by your excitement. You quickly got rid of Draken’s jersey and handed it to Emma. At first, she hesitated but when you both of you smirked wiggling eyebrows towards her at a rhythm, she could not help but take it with a grin plastered on her face.

“Let me take some pictures”, you muttered taking the phone out of your pocket.

“Woah! You’re quick-witted. And good at this”, Naomi praised as Emma put the jacket on. It was double her size. Still, she looked so adorable.

After taking a few pictures Emma warned, “Do not show them to Draken.” “Aye Aye Ma’am”, you and Naomi, both said in unison perfectly making it clear, that Draken is getting those pictures before her. He’ll get a boner if he sees Emma in his jacket.

The clouds started to cluster at the bosom of the sky while the boys were at the peak of playing volleyball. You glanced through the window and it first fell on Manjiro, then on Mitsuya. You didn’t seem to find Draken, not yet.

“It might rain soon. The forecast said there will be a heavy downpour. Emma, why don’t you go home? I’ve car so I’ll drop Y/n home and we’re staying for a bit to work on our projects.”, Naomi suggested.

Although, Emma didn’t seem to like the idea. She agreed but she needed to inform her brother that she was going home early.

She faded into the corridor while you picked up your palette knife. Keeping the cake crumb in your mouth you started to paint the blank canvas. Naomi was talking to her mom. You noticed Emma running through the field to go to his brother.

“What the actual fuck?”, it took a while to connect the dots; Manjiro Sano, shortly Mikey or Mike. You were aware of both of his nicknames but Emma’s Mikey and the heart-throb of this college would be the same person was a tough fact to digest. You could feel your heartbeats against your ear drums while you watched Manjiro nod at his sister’s predicament and smile at her.

Now, that’s new. You’ve been watching him for months now, well you had to. If you could change your college you’d do it in a heartbeat but that’s impossible so as this; to get a glimpse of him smiling so happily. Even when he was with his friends it was close to scoffing or smirking.

You watched Emma run towards the school building with a grin on her face and when your eyes went back towards Manjiro, his eyes were already on you. Nerves stilled, breathing seemed to stop, you counted your heartbeats sitting like a statue eyes settling on him.

You pondered. Perhaps, he was watching someone else but when you looked towards the coach at the sound of the whistle, he immediately averted his gaze. He was looking towards the net, where players were yet to take positions and the coach was standing.

Damn, he was watching you. It was just a mere fraction of the moment like a flickering light yet it recoiled back to the first eye contact you had with him, vile yet exhilarating! You spotted Baji, Kazutora, and Draken as your eyes scanned the field.

The time flew faster than you imagined. Naomi was busy with her project and judging by the splotches on her dress she got stuck with her art project. Your canvas remained empty since every time you tried to give a shape to your thought his face would appear as well as vanish instantly. Your mind was restless, and so was your soul and you cussed him for that.

The rain had just started pouring. All the boys were still playing except Manjiro. It is not that hard to pick a blonde boy with a short stature among all of them or maybe he rubbed off on you. You scoffed as the thought of being bound to him by anything other than hatred crossed your mind.

The corridor was empty and devoid of the normal chatter. The only sound that prevailed was of the splattering raindrops against the window pane. Manjiro was merrily whistling walking through that lonely corridor and texting his friends to come over to Izana’s place.

Izana, Izana Kurokawa; his step-brother. He was still studying with the aid of scholarships. Unlike his brother, he wasn't very athletic. He was all brains and beauty. He graduated three years earlier than Manjiro. The smile in his yearbook photo declared that he could win many hearts in an instant.

Manjiro had no problem arranging for a place to chill and relax since he gets a little shy in front of his eldest brother, Shinichiro. It’s not the place, it’s the person, he would say. Being ten years elder than him, Shinichiro was like his dad. So, he was always confined in Izana especially in the matters of heart and girls because he believes Shinichiro wasn't like them;

While he held the ability to attract butterflies even though they never seem to come back, Izana and Manjiro were always the flames that would burn their wings. Such was their jealousy, their possessiveness.

Albeit, it would be less tedious to bring a girl over to his house rather than Zana's but Shinichiro had an idea how much it would mean to a girl while his gem of a brother would remain oblivious to such blooming emotions. So, Shinichiro declared a straight no to such habits.

“Listen, Zana. Emma went home early. We’re coming over to your place. Did you score?”

“Yep. How many are coming today?”, Izana exhaled as he checked the watch, 7:30 pm.

Manjiro paused. Draken went to drop Emma. Mitsuya would get busy with his girl.

“It’s just Baji, Tora. Two.”, he wiped his body with his jersey.

“No, make it three” He ended the call immediately and quickly hid against the turn of the corridor as he saw you standing absent-mindedly staring at the rain. There she is, the girl in red.

Without much thinking, he strolled towards you.

“Do you know where”, if he didn’t grab your hand you’d have bashed your head against the floor? His fingers remain clamped around your wrist. You exhaled strongly at such a surprise and before you composed yourself properly as he asked again, “Do you know where Draken is?”

“He went along with Emma to drop her home.”, It’s odd that he has to ask since you clearly remember Emma being all giddy while mentioning that Manjiro insisted on taking someone with her, someone as in Draken.

“Leaving you all alone…”, you quickly detached your hand from his hold and tucked it behind your waist. Your eyebrows congested at his remark.

What did he exactly mean by that? Why? Why would he leave me alone? First of all, why the fuck does he think we’ve something that might end up with him leaving me?

“Well, if you’re free you can come with us.”,

“She isn’t”, Naomi slipped in. Perfect.

Being Mitsuya’s girl as well as the daughter of the principal she was desired by many, perhaps Manjiro too but only to fuck her up. There is nothing he hated more than when he didn't get what he wanted and when his ploy gets an unmendable deviation.

“She is coming with us. I’m going to drop her home after Karaoke”

“What? When did that happen?”, Mitsuya’s jaw dropped because in this weather he would rather spend his time with Naomi rather than along with her friends in karaoke. Manjiro noticed how the love birds talked in eye codes and let out a short throaty chuckle. His pitch black pupils shun in thrill.

“So, if you change your mind. Let me know. I’ll be at the changing room”, he crossed by you leaving you in utter anger and disgust.

“I won’t. I won’t change my mind every time you ask.”, you bit your bottom lip inwards to control your anger but it was in vain.

“And as for Draken, he asked me before leaving with Emma.”, you lied and when he looked back at you, his aghast gaze was the greatest victory.

You walked away into your room leaving Naomi and Mitsuya baffled at your behavior. They kinda knew how you hated him but they happen to believe it’s the otherwise.

Manjiro didn’t realize he was grinning at your sharp display of wit until Baji smacked at the back of his head exclaiming that he looked like a stuffy toy, like Mickey mouse. He let out a trail of throaty chuckles this time gaining Baji’s stares.

“One, two”, Izana searched for number three as he held the door open with a cigarette pressed in between his teeth. He was barely dressed. “Where is number three?”

“Not coming.”, baji and Hanemiya followed as Manjiro stomped through his lavish apartment and sat in the middle of the sofa.

“She’s not easy.”, Baji added

“Ah, it’s a She”, Izana said with a dragging tone earning Manjiro’s stare.

“Yeah, she isn’t easy. Any girl would have jumped at an opportunity like that. How close is she with Ken-chin?”

“Quite close!”, Kazutora added as he started to roll a joint. Manjiro’s eyes flared at Baji and then to Kazutora who seemed too focused on his joint than usual.

“How close are they?”, Manjiro’s voice was stern, bold laced with possessiveness. At first, Baji hesitated, but when Izana nodded at the way he gave in.

“Well, word around the campus is y/n has a crush on him.”

“We all know about Draken but no idea about how he feels about y/n”, Kazutora finished Baji’s thought as he sealed the joint with the tip of his tongue.

For the first time, Manjiro felt awful about himself. Not for craving you only for himself even if that would last only for a few months, but because you saw right through him. He never bothered too much to find answers for why. He thinks those bring more trouble than lies. So, he didn’t give a flying fuck why he was so hooked on you. He just wanted you.

“What are you doin’?”, Draken asked from the other side of the phone.

“Ah! Cursing myself to death”, you said as you gazed at the imprint Manjiro Sano left on your right hand of his hold

“Ya’ know y/n Mikey was asking about you… and”

“And you told everything you know about me?”

“Fuck, at least be a little happy. At least you caught his eyes”

“Why? Why would I be? He is … forget it. I don’t wanna talk about it”

“Oh, c’mon do you think I wouldn't notice how you look at him? ALL THE TIME? ”

“I don’t know. You’re not getting those jersey pics of Emma's. Good night”, your cheeks flushed at his remark. Yes, you watched him. You watched him every chance you would get but if only Draken knew that you could never have him the way you wanted, only yours. So, you had to bury the feeling of liking him before it would bloom into love.

The next day, you couldn’t spot him anywhere on the campus. Even Draken didn’t know his whereabouts. Emma was hard to find too but since she was finally making some progress with Ken, you swallowed your curiosity, your bubbles of worried thoughts about him. Baji, Kazutora - those two were your only option since Nao as well as Mitsu would rather leap with joy thinking you’ve finally come to terms with their opinion. Sometimes, they’re so mom and dad to you.

It has been almost two weeks since you stopped going to the canteen; three since you didn’t spot Manjiro. The former had hurt you more since watching Draken and Emma soaked in happiness and with promised roses, it made you aware of how lonely you were. It is not that Emma stole your place; you never had a place, to begin with. You knew that from the very beginning but to see it all play out was such an eyesore.

At last, you decided to drop by the changing room. You could hear different male voices overlapping with each other. It was difficult to recognize. The moment you entered the volleyball court, there was a silent wave that washed over both of you as you spotted Manjiro spiking the ball. He noticed you since you leaned against the railing over the balcony. It is the last set and surely it wouldn’t hurt to wait and watch him play.

One more score and then the practice match would be over. It was Baji’s turn to serve. You inhaled a deep breath as you started to walk toward the exit but a sharp voice made you jolt. Still, it didn’t stop you.

“Hey the girl in red” “Hey y/n”, it was his voice, Manjiro. you searched for him and as your eyes landed on him he smiled brightly. Your heart leaped into the core of your throat.

“Wait for me. Please. Till the finish the game.”, with all the loneliness and sadness piling up inside your body, you barely could bite back like most of the time and hence you had to wait.

As the game finished you stood near the entrance of the changing room. Kazutora left without much fuss but Baji eyed you up and down, then looked at Manjiro before leaving.

“Thanks for waiting!”, he quipped as you offered him your insulated water bottle still trying to figure out your actions. If you still had a place to go after the first period, as you had a few weeks ago; perhaps, you wouldn't have been here. Thanks to Draken.

“Did you tell anyone?”, Manjiro noticed the confusion in your eyes. “About what you saw at the infirmary last semester?”, your eyebrows jumped as the memory flashed at the back of your head.

He emptied the bottle over himself and drank the rest of the cold water as his dark globes scanned you.

Manjiro was at his limit, cautious around you since he never dealt with your kind. The kind that would look breathtakingly beautiful while drowning in vulnerability. He didn’t know that until he noticed you coming day in and day out at the canteen. Watch you stare at Draken and Emma as you grabbed a packed food and then leave without a word.

Manjiro knew you were friends with his sister and secretly he was thankful for the friendship that kept you from being the third wheel in her relationship. But what he couldn’t digest was how you looked at Draken.

It is such a vicious cycle how Manjiro will never know how you looked at him, thought of him, and pushed him out of your soul before you gave in to the illuminating flame of affection.

“No” His eyes were pale. “My turn. Did you seriously make me wait to ask this?”

Even though Manjiro wanted to slam you against his closet, hold your thighs tightly to kiss those soft lips of yours, he couldn’t. Manjiro banged shut his closet making you a jolt.

“Sorry. Did that startle you?”, you felt awful when he thrashed your question just like Draken slowly forgot to buy food for you.

“No. your behavior did”, you tartly spoke and vanished from his sight as soon as possible. He watched you as your faded in your off-white dress. She likes to wear dark-colored inners.

It was almost the end of another semester. All were busy preparing for their exams and at a boiling moment like this, your phone rang in that familiar ringtone. It was Draken.

“Yes, what?”

“I need your help y/n”

“With what? Notes? We’re from different streams Draken. Plus, I’m sure Emma would be happy to help you with that. She knows everyone, bye”

“Wait, wait wait. I need your help” and that tone alone declared that he still hasn’t confessed his feelings. You rolled your eyes since even without the confession they looked like they made it official.

Around four o'clock in the morning, the call ended. He was complaining about how you stopped coming to the canteen and when you came clean, he was so nice to apologize at length, probably overdid it.

The day exams ended, Emma and Naomi insisted you on attending the party at Izana’s penthouse, more like dragged you in it saying it would be fun but here you are standing on the lonely balcony while others were dancing, drinking, and enjoying their youth to the fullest.

After the end of every semester, this was a must. And all thanks to Izana. After his mom died he inherited all the wealth. Even though, he was adopted he inherited all the property as well as the alimony. At first, he didn’t want it. Cursed money he’d say to Ran but the rumor has it a certain girl changed his devilish heart. They’re not together though; It is a wonder how a devil let go of his angel who was ready to soak all his sins.

As soon as you entered the room where DJ was set up, Draken pulled Emma after nodding in your direction. You smiled as you knew what he meant. He is going to confess today. Emma dragged you into the crowd. Emma is not much of a freestyle dancer, she wished to pursue ballet so she stood in a corner watching both of you go wild. You felt a bit remorse thinking she might misunderstand but then again you can’t say explain yourself not when she has not asked for it. It would backfire.

But when Manjiro saw you, you were already swinging your hips along with Ryuguji who seemed too absorbed in the moment. Naomi went to search for Mitsuya. You spotted a guy with a sleeveless vest, headphones around his nape moving his body in rhythm. His tattoo was glowing in the dim light. He looked so hot. You searched for a familiar stature since Rindou was never alone, he always had his brother, Ran by his side even if they were polar in every way.

As you skimmed through the crowd you bumped into Kazutora. He was a bit handsy, and so were you. You still couldn’t spot Manjiro which was a good sign. “Sorry Y/n”, his breath was refreshing non-alcoholic unlike other guys but his eyes declared how stoned he was.

You grabbed his hand and pulled him to a side where it’s less crowded. His ear-spread smile was enough to let you know how thankful he was. A dark-haired boy with emerald green eyes came to his savior. Kazutora immediately wrapped his arms around him and you excused yourself as you noticed the eyes of the other guy. Some would say he’s high but you tend to believe it was little more than just friends.

“Wanna paint your body y/n ?” speak of the devil. You turned your gaze towards Izana who just finished painting Manjiro’s body. A face of a lion on his back. No wonder Izana was selected as a guide for the previous art exhibition. Unfortunately, you missed it since you still hadn’t enrolled in this university.

Manjiro started complaining about how there’s no point in painting his body if he can’t see it. Izana ignored and nudged him to move aside. You hesitated at first, but when you noticed most of the girls were in short tops, you swallowed your inner thoughts before slipping the shirt on the floor.

Now, you were just in a skirt, a pant, and a lacy black bra.Izana grinned. He tapped the cigarette as he kept the brush in the paint bucket. He looked at Manjiro and then towards you before leaving. Great, so everyone knows how you hated him, liked him, or whatever.

Manjiro stood in front of you with that brush in his hand as every sound seem to fade. Can’t you just live for once? Can’t you just have him? Just for once? What could he possibly do in the remaining two semesters?

The moment he was about to say something there was a power cut. A shrill cry of disappointment echoed through the room while you thanked the heavens. You wanted to go away from this place as soon as possible and this seemed like a perfect chance. “Just stay.”, a feeble voice reached your ears while Manjiro pulled you to an adjacent cubicle where the moonlight fell over your face.

The power was back up, and so was the music. He still had the brush in his hand. “Why were you dancing with Ken?”, eyes boring into you as he cornered you more. “Because your sister dragged me”

“Half-sister”, he corrected.

“I don’t care. Move”, you raised your voice as you felt your pulse rising.

“What if I don’t ?”, he blocked the exit with his arm having your naked belly brush the length of his arm. “Look at me”, his lips brushed your ears.

“What if I don’t?”, but your words were responded with action. Manjiro swiftly pulled you against his firm chest. His skin was burning. You froze at his audacity and were ready to scream.

“You’re free to do anything you want”, his limb grazed your boobline. “And so am I”, he murmured before turning you around.

It happened within a blink of an eye. Your hands were above your head pinned by his, one of his legs shoved under your skirt as he sucked your lips. You wanted this, wanted to have him. So what if he forgets after a few months and calls you just for sex? You were not bound to answer him, were you?

“Do you still want me to move?”, he asked. Breathing perfectly normal while you struggled to inhale. You looked at him since his question is so baseless given the fact that he still held your hands above your head. “Right ‘course”, he let go of your hands. As he was about to walk away, you grabbed his toned muscular arm. He is strong. He turned around and nothing need to be said since he noticed your soft parted lips. And just like that, a butterfly was ready to burn its wings in fire, like an ordinary moth.

When you opened your eyes, you were in an oversized shirt, your pants and wrapped in his arms. Manjiro was still sleeping, his blonde strands of hair curled at the bottom. His back was half-clad with the cover. You removed the quilt from him in an instant as the last night’s impulse twinkled like a star. Thank god he is in boxers.

No discarded condom packet was lying as you scanned the floor and the dustbin looked intact. But that still doesn’t mean you didn’t do it. Your chest heaved at the thought of waking him up. You extended your hand and then retreated, then again extended it near his cheeks and instantly curled it in your lap.

“Woah! That was hard to watch”, Izana was so loud or maybe it was the booze that still fazed your senses. He majestically stomped into the room and smiled as he exclaimed, “This is my favorite part”

“Wake up Mikey.”, he grabbed his arms to jerk him a bit. He groaned and curled against your thighs. You never looked so lost before. What exactly you could do when your crush is still asleep beside you while his step-brother wakes him up?

“Shin called me ten times”

“T-E-N times ?!”, Mikey sprung up on the bed.

“He falls for it, every damn time”, Izana quipped looking at you before leaving his brother in absolute horror. Mikey jumped out of the bed and as he turned around he noticed you sitting like a good girl at his display. He swallowed hard noticing the bite marks near your inner thighs and neckline. “Just gimme two minutes, I’ll drop you home”

“No. Thank you”, and that surely woke him up if a lie like that didn’t. He sat near the edge of the bed. “I know girls like you”, he mumbled tapping your nose. He is not even sorry that he tosses girls so easily. You peered through your eyelashes, he continued, “Who thinks it’s a mistake, who thinks it’s bad to do something like this, who thinks they are bad to enjoy their life before marriage.” Your heart flipped inside your ribs as those very lips that spouted such sweet talk dashed on to your lips.

Yes, he knew everything. He knew how easily you would give in, how you were so stubborn to avoid him because this is what scared you the most; to be just another girl to him. If he remembered you as Emma's friend that wouldn’t be a bother but you lost the chance yesterday when you kissed him back.

You pushed him away saying, “I’ve to go” and didn’t pay any heed to his pout. You dressed in the bathroom and before leaving you remarked, “Good luck with that” pointing towards his boner. You smiled as he quickly covered himself.

Manjiro enjoyed this as much as you regretted it, for him, he had won this. He couldn’t care less about you, your silly crush on Ken-chin, or that you’re Emma's dearest friend. He had won the bet.

A new semester began. Naomi and Mitsuya were no doubt in utter shock at such vivid progress. You just had to go through another semester, then you don’t have to see him anymore and he would never know how much your heart ached for him. But things weren’t that easy. While you tried your best to avoid him, he used to pop now and then. He even stopped seeing other girls and the most shocking part is you didn’t even ask for it.

Most of the girls envied you and talked behind your back which made you feel awful since you didn’t ask any of these. You barely kept in touch with him. Sometimes, he would take you for a bike ride and talk about his dreams, and his friends but he neither asked about Ken nor Emma.

He was certainly curious about Naomi but you were lost in him. Those moments however seemed unpromising meant the world to you. Why? Because you had fallen in love with him. You no longer loath him with every beat of your heart. You now desired to let him burn your wings so that you could never leave him, even if your sane voice told you to.

The semester ended way too early or so as it seemed. And like a tradition, most of the familiar faces gathered at Izana’s penthouse. Baji mentioned that he saw Mikey on the balcony with Izana but when you reached there it was empty.

“Looking for Mikey I guess”, a boy with strangely symmetric scars at the edge of his lips asked you as you entered the lift. He followed. You searched his face trying to place if Mikey ever mentioned him in his talks. “Haruchiyo?”, you muttered gaining a wide grin from him. When you looked at him a little too long, he wore his mask. You wanted to apologize but the moment the door of the elevator opened, you stopped as you saw the blonde boy. He was sure with Izana; that was correct but Baji got the wrong floor.

“So, you’re gonna ditch her? Just like that?”, Izana asked.

“ I mean. We’re not together. We are not even official or anything like that. I’ll just walk when I’ll feel like it”, Manjiro puffed out a ring from his drag, as he continued, “I wouldn’t have bothered to do this if Haruchiyo didn’t point it out … that how close she was with Draken. I mean I would ruin everyone who would break my sister’s heart.”

“Still, she needs to know Mikey. It's better that way. She is different ya’know, she is …” Izana absent-mindedly glanced in the direction of the elevator.

There you were standing with blank eyes with Haruchiyo by your side who had no idea that his silly comment would turn into an obsession and eventually end with such an awful heartbreak. Izana was staring at you with parted lips.

“yep. She is different.”, Manjiro added following Izana's trail of vision. You snapped into reality and immediately took the stairs as your eyes met his. That was your last eye contact with him before you walked out of his life.

“Fuck Haruchiyo, move !”

“Mikey? You get most of the girls here and you pull this shit? When you talked about her to me over the phone I thought you changed. You didn't...”

“Fuck, fuck fuck…just move”, Manjiro pushed Haruchiyo aside and ran as fast as he could.

“y/n you're gonna hurt yourself. You're gonna fall off the stairs.”, Manjiro shouted as he ran through the stairs pushing through the crowd. When he reached near the pool area he saw you in a yellow dress running towards the main road.

“y/n STOP. Listen to me. ”, he panted as he saw you pause. “I can explain.”

“Manjiro Sano. I don't want your explanation. You're free now. So, stop following me.”, with that you slowly walked towards the mouth of the main road to catch a bus without looking back. For the first time Manjiro knew how heartbreak sounded. It sounded as if a wounded creature wailed all night till it was dead.

“For the first time in my life, I've seen you interested in a girl.” Manjiro shot his hazy gaze upwards.

“Ken-chin!”

“told you she was too good for you.”

“fuck you.”, Manjiro hissed as he took Draken’s hand to stand up. She indeed is different.

The next day was normal and the day after was too. You didn't speak of him to Naomi. Even, Mitsuya’s visits became less frequent. There were quite a lot of spectators so it's quite normal for people to know about it. Mikey's girls were smiling again but not for long. It was a week.

It was a week everything was like this. Slowly, people started to talk, blame you for Mikey's cold behavior, and hold you responsible if Mikey was absent. Naomi couldn't defend you anymore.

Rumors and lies spread like wildfires. Some even said that he left you because you cheated on him with Haruchiyo. It broke his heart when he saw you in the elevator with Haruchiyo. You pretended not to care while he did the same.

Haruchiyo was easy to find. He was a transfer student at your university. He always wore a mask most probably because he didn't want to catch anyone's eye but you saw him without his mask, that day, more like he let you. Why would he do that?

“Y/n what's wrong with you?”, a shrill high pitched voice gained your attention enough to make you look at the face of the person. You’ve been avoiding people’s faces lately.

Emma. You knew this day would come. You've prepared for this day. You exhaled deeply before she started to cuss at you but all you heard were words of apology.

“Why didn't you tell me? I could have talked to him. I could have talked to Shin— she was on the verge of crying because she held herself responsible when she heard every ounce of truth from Izana. Izana sure is all beauty and brains.

“Emma. Relax. Breath.”, you cupped her hands. “I knew it from the very beginning. I knew it all along. Just pretend that I was one of his easy fucks. that's it”

“is that what you tell yourself?”, Draken quipped. You wondered how long he had been standing near the door but he sure looked concerned, not sure for whom exactly — was it you, Mikey, or Emma?

“No. Because we never fucked each other ”,

“Rrrrr-right!”, he nodded and stared at you.

“We just like had … make-out sessions and bike rides...”, you trailed off when Emma and Draken both were shocked at your words. They couldn't believe it. “Why are you two looking as if I'm lying? Did Mikey already brag about how he fucked me or did he already tell that I was clean so that others could have me...after all I was Mikey's girl ?”

“This is serious.”, Emma remarked.

“Indeed.”, Draken nodded three times. “Mikey doesn't take anyone for a ride, for all the girls he has fucked and he is ...

“what Draken is trying to say is that he is himself with you.”, Emma picked up his cue, and before she could tell you to mend the broken ties you let out a snort.

“Emma. I'll talk to you later. I've classes today”, another lie along with a few thousand others. You checked your watch and quickly walked towards the exit. You headed towards the music class since it was empty at this time.

You were sitting near the window facing it at the music class when you spotted Haruchiyo playing baseball. You watched him through the window as he hit the ball flying across the field. He seemed happy. maybe he still isn't aware of the rumors.

“y/n, do you have class here?”,

“Yes. no. I'm sorry. I'll leave.” when you turned around you noticed a blonde guy and a familiar dragon tattoo peaked through his collar. Manjiro Sano. of course needed a change. He couldn't even look at you.

“We didn't have a proper chance to talk...I’ I’m sorry for all of these. I didn't realize it back then...

his words seem to fade. he seems to become hazy. You felt a burning sensation near your temple before you almost lost balance. you grabbed the handle of the chair but alas! the ball hit you hard enough to make you faint.

When your heavy eyelids opened, you noticed Emma sitting near your feet. Draken's bag was near the bottom of the door. The beeping sound slowly helped you regain your senses. You turned your head only to find Manjiro sleeping as he held your hand. His cheeks were pressed against the back of your hand. You didn't feel his warmth. The sedatives and painkillers were to blame.

You tried to move your hand a little as you tried to remember the last thing before you fainted. You remembered how Manjiro’s voice slurred as he held you in his arms, as you tried your utmost to say I love you too.

You closed your eyes thinking he might just act out of pity. After all, if you hadn't seen him at the infirmary, if he hadn't acted on such an impulse thought, if you didn't know Draken he wouldn't even give a fuck about you, maybe he still doesn't but the way he was grasping onto your palms screamed how desperately he wanted you to stay in with him, only him. You drifted to sleep again.

Damn ! the pills and baseball players. damn Haruchiyo. damn it. fuck everything...

It was night when you woke up in your vivid senses. Your parched throat ached for a drop of wetness. You manage to stand but with that slipper, you were bound to fall and it would surely knock you out forever with such weakness in your body.

The corridors were silent, devoid of bright lights. Your room was engulfed in darkness except for the light perforating through the glass windows. “You never learn do you?”

If it wasn't for the fall, you'd have died out of a heart attack. Who on earth does that?

“I’m thirsty.”

Draken switched on the lights. He texted someone. Probably his dearest friend, Mikey. Before leaving the room he handed you a bottle. You cursed how weak your body was since you were unable to open the cap. Fuck you Draken. You tried a few more rounds and then gave up.

“Here”, a small bottle finely opened with a straw dipped in it. “It’s chilled. Just like you prefer”, you knew that voice, those rough hands, long fingers with a firm grip. You couldn’t seem to get the name properly.

“Izana?”

“Uh…no”, he cleared his throat, “You don’t remember me? It’s Manjiro. Your Manjiro” You tried to gain your composure but finally gave in to his adorable ways, his long eyelashes that reeked of loneliness and surrender; his pink lips that slightly parted and trembled at the possibility of losing you. You had no idea you could wield such power, power to see him vulnerable, to see the Manjiro Sano on his knees. You started to drink the cold mineral water using the straw. Sitting on the bed, having him standing near your knee you left him bobbing like a broken boat with the greatest trail of confusions.

What if the concussion was too much? What if she seriously doesn't remember me? What if she thinks of Izana as me and me as Izana? Oh my god fuck! That’s even worse.

You noticed his grip stiffened and clenched the bed sheets. “It’s fine. I’m fine. I’m fine Manjiro”, you uttered giving him an apologetic look. His eyebrows knitted close. And so you kissed him clearing all his doubts, soaking all his waves of anger and disappointments, absorbing every bit of loneliness from his frail body.

“You shouldn’t have done that”, he remarked as you pulled away from the kiss. His hands were underneath your thighs while yours curled around his slim nape.

“Mikey. Control”, and both of you flew away from each other. Mikey even bashed the back of his head against the wall. He glared at Izana but a bigger stature appeared. It was Shinichiro.

“A word Mikey”, Shinichiro scanned you with suspicious eyes.

As both the Sanos were talking outside, well Mikey was on the explaining end that included lots of hand movements while Shinichiro listened keeping his hands folded in his chest. There was no doubt that they were discussing you since at every other minute Shinichiro looked at you with surprise in his. At each glance, the surprise kept swelling until Manjiro turned him around to make him face his back to you.

“Remember that rumor, that I changed myself for a girl?”, Izana gave you a lollipop because the way Shinichiro shook his head declared that it’s gonna take a little while.

“Yeah…”, you supplied as you took the lollipop.

“Well, it wasn't. It was him”, he popped out his lollipop and smiled looking at you. You raised your eyebrows at him.

“He is so handsome”, and Izana almost choked on his breath since he knew Mikey’s pout would last weeks long because of this. Both the Sanos left in a hurry after Shinichiro got a call. But Mikey came back to say. “Izana watch her. Just watch her”, no one would suspect Izana of being a tease the way he nodded his head like a good boy.

“Do you know why he got that dragon tattoo similar to Draken and Mitsuya?”, Izana asked but he rolled his eyes noticing your curious globes.

“He felt lonely. He was happy for Emma and Draken, for Mitsuya too. No doubt about that but he missed them. He couldn’t exactly roam around the campus like he used to” he looked at you pulling out the candy into his mouth and discarding the stick into the bin. “And then he met you. You whom he thought had a crush on his friend, Draken. So, trust me when I say that handsome brother of his might do the same what Manjiro has done with you.”

“I know I got lucky but that doesn’t change the fact that he is an asshole”

“A valid fact”, he shook his head. He took a few steps towards the exit. “Try to think”, he slipped before leaving you in all sorts of confusion.

When you were discharged from the hospital, it was Izana who came to take you. He brought his car.

“Your mom drained your father in alimony”, you remarked looking at his black Lamborghini. He simply smiled. It smelt of pride and confidence. The car ride was mostly silent but your mind was not. It was a pool of questions, questions like where is he taking you? Why did he come? Why Manjiro didn’t come? Is he angry? Or is he sick?

“I think you’re taking the wrong route”

“Ha-ha. No no. y/n. Mikey couldn’t come. He was nervous since he kinda blames himself for your accident. Plus, the doctor asked you to remain under watch. So, Mikey thought it would be better to take you to my house” Izana noticed your denial as you frowned. “Mikey told me you wouldn’t like the idea” and that softened your expressions.

“Your house? House as in your penthouse?”

“House as in my house”, he corrected. A staff got all your bags while Izana guided you up to your room.

“Wait here! Mikey will be here shortly” and with that Izana left the room.

You pulled the curtains and gasped at the view. The whole city was drenched in rain and the glass became foggy. You wrote, “I love you Manjiro Sano”, and felt childish about it.

“Can I come in?”, you immediately pulled the curtains back and turned around.

“Mikey. It’s you”

“You never call me Mikey,”, his eyebrows grew closer but this time there was a curve at the edge of those pink lips. “What did you do?”, he was wearing a black suit and his boots clicked against the wooden floor as he approached you.

“Stop right there.”, you exhaled “Tell me something, are you planning to take me somewhere and then marry me and then keep me somewhere away from everyone-

Manjiro walked towards you even with your disapproval. You closed your eyes, the curtains clenched in your fist hold as his body grazed yours while his hands swiftly made you release the hold on the curtains.

“I might!”, he whispered as he drew the curtains. “I think I’ve to if you keep doing things like these”

You grinned at him as his eyes bored into you without blinking. Your smile sublimed and a low gasp evaporated through your lips as he pulled you against him, his hands stilling around your waistline. Your nose crooked as he brought his face closer to yours.

"That day if I would have looked you in the eye and said those things, perhaps you wouldn't be so hurt..."

"That day if you looked me in the eye, I would have fled out of your sight", there was a smile on his face, a smile that wouldn't wither away. He took your hands in his and kissed your palms as he continued, "I'm...I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I was such an asshole. All I cared about was winning, winning at everything and anything until I lost myself. I think I love you"

"You still think...?"

"Hey, At least I'm trying...", he muttered softly while your eyes darted to the view outside.

"I think I love you too", you murmured as he wrapped his arms around your belly pulling you close to his body. You were now facing the view again as his lips started to work its wonder.

“I remember how you told me that you’d win every match if I take you to arcade games”, his hands slipped under your dress. “You were so drunk that you barely let me do anything; I wasn’t drunk drunk but I’m glad it was your pussy that I tasted while going down on someone”

“Oh my god! Please stop talking right now.”, you palmed your face in embarrassment but he wasn’t going to stop, not anytime soon.

“And, when you talked about Draken and Emma, about how happy they were, about how lonely you were, I felt that too. It was so hard to hold myself back”, Manjiro sat at the edge of the bed having you in between his legs, his hands still clamped around your thin torso.

“Don’t tell me we did it while I was drunk”, you uttered in dismal.

“No, we didn’t.”, he chuckled as he swung sideways. “You almost cried saying that you’re strong, that a one-night stand doesn’t define you, and that you’re gonna prove Nao wrong”, that it is just a dried leaf of autumnal fall.

“So, try to trust me when I do this…

“Do wh-at …ah aH”, your hands flew back on his thighs. With a firm grip, you gasped as one of his hands massaged your boob while the other rubbed your feminity. You were squirming in his hold but that didn’t faze him. “Man-Ji-ro”, you moaned and it was responded with a harsh bite against your pulse point. He brought his slick wet fingers near his lips. You watched him lick it clean as his other hand rested over your tummy.

Your palm dived into his soft strands of yours as you kissed him instantly. You could feel his smile through the kiss. His hands gave a squeeze on your waist muscles. Manjiro felt you relax as he pulled the elastic of your panty and then released it. It made you flinch and immediately pull away from the kiss.

That was his chance, the only chance to turn the tables around. Within a blink of an eye, you were underneath him. “Fuck, you’re so gorgeous”, he murmured staring at you. You noticed the gleam in his eyes that roamed all over your body and stilled over your excited nipples. You got rid of the red dress that Emma brought you before the day you were discharged.

This is the first time he has seen you naked. You were far more angelic than what he had imagined. Manjiro latched his lips around your pebbled nipple as he interlaced his fingers with yours. You squealed as he sucked too hard before biting your flesh.

“Mikey”, and he rolled along your side. It was Shinichiro's voice. Thank god the door was closed.

He cupped your cheeks and rubbed his thumb over your flushed cheeks.

“MIKEY”,

“Yea! Coming”, he responded. He checked his watch. “Gimme fifteen minutes” and before you could ask him not to stall his brother further he positioned his mouth near your clit. He pushed aside the cloth and gave a broad lick.

A smirk laced his lips because it would take less than fifteen to make you cum. It turned him on as he smelt your arousal.

“Fu-ck! Don’t stop”

“As you wish babe”, his mouth kept altering between broad licks and strong sucks. He paused as he felt you struggle for breath, wraith under his touch till you came.

“May I know where you’re going?”, you asked as he stood motionless staring at your naked body that was glistening in sweat.

“Get dressed !”, he pointed towards your bag. “And stay close to me. Don’t go around jumping all over the place”

You frowned thinking how much of a child he thought you would be. You couldn’t exactly blame him since all he knew about you was from Draken. Mikey had no idea about how a lover acts when they’re around the people they fancy; After all, you are his first love.

networks — @tokyometronetwork

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