#but so is the softness and comfort and awkward giggling and innuendo | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

bonny-kookoo · 3 years

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Kind like you (JJK x Reader) 💜🔞☁️

Pairing: Jeon Jungkook x Reader

Genre: fluff/romance, smut, angst, comfort, friends to lovers

Warnings: kinda dense Jungkook, JK being a brat, slight Tsundere JK, Koo struggling to sort his shit, kind reader, Crush!Reader, soft smut, praising, groping, kissing, pool sex, aftercare, heart to heart convos, they talk about toys lol,

Summary: Jungkook dearly wants to be kind like you. He wants to be so sweet, and gentle, and soft like you’re with him all the time; yet all he does is tease and pick on you, it seems.

Jungkook isn’t kind.

He likes to portray himself as such, whenever it’s needed, but he’s unable to quite make this characteristic a part of himself truly. It’s not like he’s a bad person, not at all; he’s helpful, caring, and well mannered. But he’s mean, he finds it funny when he gets onto someone else’s nerves. It’s like playing a game for him; and he loves winning. He’s good at it; it’s natural for him.

Then there’s you. You’re even more awkward with strangers than he is (which says a lot), but you’re everything he wants to be. You’re so soft spoken, always seeming to know what exactly to say in any situation. You’re kind, always thinking about everyone around you before you think about yourself, typically asking everyone else’s opinion first before you make up your own. You don’t like it when people fight, you never get possessive over things like he does. It’s even the tiniest things to him that make you seem so goddamn angelic; like that one time he whined about the fact that you got the last pack of butter cookies, immediately taking one for yourself to stuff between those soft looking lips, before shyly giving him the rest of the pack- still almost full. He had taken them without thanking you. He thinks about these moments a lot. He wants to treat you like Jimin does whenever you two interact. He’s so sweet with you, easily complimenting you and making you blush with his words, always playfully holding you close without ever making you uncomfortable. It’s weird to Jungkook how much that pisses him off the most. Whenever he’s alone in a room with you, you look uncomfortable- but when it’s Jimin, or Taehyung, you seem at ease. You joke around, and hug them like it’s second nature, while at the same time, you can’t look him into his eyes at any point of time.

He hates it.

He’s talked to Yoongi about it, after he’s seen you leave his studio one day. He knows you sing, he’s heard your voice, has saved every single cover song you’ve made on his phone to listen to them whenever he needs to just shut off his mind and think about nothing. He wants to do a duet with him, yet he knows he won’t be able to ever publish it because of his position in the industry. It frustrates him, yet he would be happy just singing with you for fun- he doesn’t need to publish it, he doesn’t need anyone else’s opinion on it; but he can’t ask you, it doesn’t matter how hard he tries. He can’t get the words out, even teased you for your voice before.

“You sound like a kid!”

He wants to take it back so desperately, but now, weeks after that comment, it would be weird wouldn’t it? It would just make him look like the fool he knows he is. So now he’s sitting in Yoongis studio, listening to your voice by second hand of you will, having been too unsure to come inside while you were recording. He didn’t want to make you uncomfortable. “She sounds great, no? Really like the slight tilts she has here..” Yoongi murmurs, placing the visual pointer of his mouse on the spot he’s talking about. He’s right, and Jungkook wants to say that, but he simply shrugs. “You don’t like it?” He asks, and Jungkook again, simply lifts his shoulders.

“Not my style, I guess.”

But Yoongi sees past that attitude as he raises his eyebrow questioningly. “Since when? You sing the same kind of songs all the time too.” He says, and Jungkook just chews on the inside of his lip. “You feeling competition?” Yoongi teasingly asks, and Jungkook scoffs.

“I’ve been trained for years, she’s a simple YouTuber. There’s no reason for me to feel competitive.”

But Yoongi suddenly laughs, burying his face in his hand as he stops the song. “Do you have a crush on her or something? You’re acting weird as hell Jungkook.” He says, and looks at Jungkook, who seems like he doesn’t react- only the tips of his ears grow red, as Yoongi laughs again, breathlessly as usual. “Oh my god you do! Little Jungkookie’s got the hots, I can’t believe it!” He barks out, and Jungkook whines.

“I don’t!” He says. “I absolutely don’t. She’s way too shy, and she’s so girly and all..” he complains, but Yoongi continues to smile. “What?”

“Nothing, nothing. Topic change then.” He says, and Jungkook nods. “Why were you and Taehyung fighting yesterday? Heard you’ve got him quite bad with a pillow.” He asks, and Jungkook groans.

“You said we’re changing the topic!” He says loudly, and Yoongi seems to have the time of his life.

“I am! How should I know the fight was about her?” He asks, and Jungkook kicks his legs with frustration.

“It wasn’t!” He said, and Yoongi raises his eyebrow, resting his head on his hand.

“Why are you getting so defensive then?” He asks.

“Because he shouldn’t send her a topless picture of him like that.” He says.

“I thought it wasn’t about her?” He chuckles.

“Fuck you.” Jungkook retorts, and it’s where Yoongi draws the line.

“Hey hey, calm down yeah? Didn’t mean to poke too much.” He says, and Jungkook nods, apologizing under his breath. “I thought you didn’t like her?” He asks, and Jungkook shrugs again.

“Never said that. But she’s so awkward around me.” He says, now a bit more defeated.

“Ever tried being nice to her?” Yoongi asks, while he continues working on the track to take some pressure off the maknae.

“I don’t know..!” He whines and throws his head back. “In my mind it’s so easy; go up to her, say hello, maybe tell her she looks nice, done!” He exclaims. “And then I say hello and screw it up by making a joke on her account and boom, congrats, fucked it up again.” Jungkook sighes, and The rapper doesn’t say something for a moment until he responds.

“You’re just not like that, I guess.” He explains to the younger one. “But you could try to tone it down a bit. Some of the things you say are actually quite mean.” He scolds gently, and Jungkook nods.

“I don’t know how to do that though.” He says.

“Wrap your compliments up in you remarks.”

“How?” The younger one asks.

“Well, you can’t say she looks nice, right?” The older one asks, and Jungkook nods. “But you always call her shortie.” Again, a nod. “Tell her she looks like a doll.”

“But isn’t that mean too?” He asks, and Yoongi snaps his fingers.

“It’s one of those comments that makes you think. Is it an insult? A compliment? You don’t have to go all in. Tease her in a way that can be taken positively as well. She’s smart enough to get innuendos like that.” He explains, and Jungkook seems to understand as he nods.

Maybe he’ll try that next time.

The next time you’re visiting them, Jungkook is as ready as he’ll ever be to make things count. As you take off your shoes, and hang up your red jacket, he snickers, as he walks by. “What’s up red riding hood?” He says, and he can hear Jimin chuckle from the couch as you follow him into the living room. “She looks like a Disney character with that bag and the jacket.” He says teasingly, and to his own surprise, he can see the edges of your lips move upwards into a shy smile, because he remembers vividly how you'd once told Jimin how much you liked the old classic disney films instead of the new ones.

It’s working, and it’s making him feel daring. Jimin retorts something along the lines of if he’s the wolf in that case and if he would eat her, and he finds his head suddenly on your shoulder, gently reaching over your now seated form on the couch to steal a dumpling from Jimin as he speaks.

“Nah, I’d only eat the ugly ones.” And this time, you’re actually giggling.

It makes his skin tingle.

And the night goes on like that, his typical picking covered in icing sugar, as he watches you become restless on your spot on the couch across from him. He grows addicted to the view, of that sight of your teeth digging into your lip as you grow giddy under his hidden compliments, and Jimin seems to catch up on it pretty quickly. He watches in fascination, as Jungkook keeps his eyes on you, and Jungkook himself feels a pull on his heart when he states that he's slightly (very) upset that you're leaving so early, even though it's almost one in the morning and he typically never even so much as waves you goodbye whenever you leave.

He doesn't mind the slight bullying from his hyungs after he'd waved after your leaving form before you dissappear from his sight.

Jungkook isn't kind.

He likes to portray himself as such, whenever it’s needed, but he’s unable to quite make this characteristic a part of himself truly. It’s not like he’s a bad person, not at all; it's just that he can't help himself when it comes to you. He's quite the sadist really, always bathing in the slight pout and amusing anger radiating off of you whenever he does something to rile you up. It's just like now; even though he knows you hate it, he loves to take advantage of the difference in height between the two of you. He laughes while holding his bowl of cereal while you struggle on the very tips of your toes in the kitchen, trying to reach the pack of sweet breakfast treats that he had placed way higher than necessary.

But it's when you climb onto the counter that several things happen.

First, it's the unintended panty-shot he gets, his pupils practically zooming in on the soft pink fabric on display for his greedy self, making him feel like a schoolboy that just sneaked a glimpse of a naughty magazine his friend had brought into class. It makes his mind fill with images of you, oh-so sweetly laying underneath his form as he pulls the cotton fabric to the side, ready and wanting as you patiently wait for him to connect your souls and bodies in the most intimate of ways.

The other thing however wipes away those images, as his doe eyes widen. It's the realization that you're wearing pink fuzzy socks, on a marbled kitchen counter, the danger of slipping as high as it can be. He knows you're clumsy, knows you're always attracting trouble wherever you go, and it's the small moment of your knee bending, your foot a breath too far off the counter, as you suddenly loose balance. He practically throws his almost empty bowl on the kitchen table before he reaches you, luckily managing to make you fall ontop of him than the cold kitchen tiles below.

At first, it's awfully quiet- there is no one here other than him and you after all. Then, the pain hits him, drumming like the beat of his favorite song, making him drop his head on the floor with a groan. You immediately move at that, getting off of him as you look for anthing that could be the cause. It's when he holds his hand, red seeping through between his fingers that you move. Grabbing kitchen towels for first aid, you help him as best as you can, as he watches you, pain already not so bad anymore as he looks at your delicate hands working on his larger ones with so much care.

He's ready to use it to his fun, yet he stops himself when he sees the tears on our cheeks. "Why're you crying?" He asks, and you suddenly sob more loudly, sniffling as you continue to try and clean his scrape on the back of his palm with running water. He shuts the water off, his hand not even bleeding that much anyways anymore, as he holds your shoulders, body folding over a bit to properly look at you. "Hey hey, why're you crying? I'm hurt here!" He chuckles, but it doesn't seem to do much good- as you just continue.

He suddenly grows more gentle, the hug a bit awkward at first, the close proximity weird for you both, but once he starts to softly rock you both from side to side, his unhurt hand running over your back before he sloppily wipes your tears off of your face- intentionally messily to make you giggle and push his hands off. "You're such a crybaby!" He laughs, as you hold his hand in yours, looking at it again.

"Does it hurt?" You ask, looking up at him, and he swallows hardly as he suddenly grows uneasy with the closeness of you two.

"No, it's just a scratch." He says, suddenly cleaning up the kitchen table where he spilled some of his leftover cereal and milk- simply using it as something to distract himself to calm down. "Why were you even climbing there at all? That's dangerous as hell." He said. "You could've just asked me to get it for you." He ends, and its the most truthful thing he's ever said to you.

Because that's where his deepest intentions with you were hiding. He's so used to being the youngest, of getting away with so much and getting babied by everyone around him, staff or his members, that he craves to take care of someone instead for once. He wants you to ask him for help. He wants you to hide behind his back when you're terrified of Taehuyungs tickle-attacks, he wants you to loose to him when playing video games, just so he can pull you onto his lap, his hands over yours on the controller to show you how its done. He wants you to proudly tell him of any achievement you manage to make no matter how small, just to gain his praise.

He needs you to need him.

Because whenever he's with you, he knows that those compliments and that pure amazement on your face is not because you want something in return, it's simply what it is. You make him feel so appreciated, so desired, so wanted for himself and not for his outside qualities. Because at the same time he loves how passionate you get whenever you notice that you know something better than him- how excited you get when you explain something to namjoon or to Hobi. He want's you to teach him things too, he want's to know what you can do, what you're better at, not because he want's to get better than you, but because he knows you're so much smarter in so many things than he is.

It's your voice that gets him out of his internal terror.

"Oh.. I didn't want to bother you though." You meekly say, and he wants to groan at this, to throw a fit, to be frustrated with you because that's exactly what you never ever do; you could never bother him to the point where he would refuse to help. No, he wants you to bother him. "I-what?" You say, and he suddenly turns around abruptly.

"What?" He asks, terrified if what he thinks just happened really did.

"You said 'But I want you to bother me'..?" You ask, and he wants to slap himself.

"I- I mean, I meant it in like, you can bother me, it doesn't matter much, you know?" He scrambles out, drying his hands after washing his bowl and leaving it in the sink. He suddenly grows uneasy with you in the room, yet he stills at your next words as if frozen in time.

"Oh.. I-" You start, before you step closer. "Thank you then, Jungkookie. I appreciate it." But its not only that, it's the tiny sentence you say and the action that follows that simply fries his mind. "You're not so bad after all." And you place a small kiss against his cheek.

You kiss his cheek.

Your soft lips touched his skin.

And he stands there for a while longer, not knowing what to do.

Jungkook isn't kind.

But over the course of days where you start to grow more and more comfortable, more daring, and more used to understand his language, he slowly mutates into an overgrown puppy.

He demands your attention, loves the way you blush under his teasing, and craves the way you squirm around whenever he's close to you. He's almost certain he's got a chance with you, making his own creativity thrive under your spell. He takes more photos than ever before, starts to be even more active (after you'd accidentally let it slip that you actually like how strong he is and that it makes you feel safe), and all in all simply falls for you.

But its all gone to waste at a certain dinner with his hyungs, that his food suddenly tastes stale, and his appetite is gone. "I want to confess to her, you know? I think I really got a chance." Jimin says, and Yoongi glances at Jungkook, concerned for the youngest since he knows his secret crush. "I mean she even gets along with the brat here!" He playfully says, playfully hitting Jungkooks shoulder lightly, but he doesn't seem an innocent gesture in it. No, Jungkook is riled up, and suddenly stands at the table, taking his cutlery and dishes to discard them in the sink. "Jungkook?" Jimin asks, confused, but Yoongi shakes his head with a sigh after the youngest simply retreated into his room for an early night.

"Jimin, I don't think that's a good idea." Yoongi says, and Namjoon seems confused. "I don't intend to be rude, but your interest changes weekly. Now it's her, the next week its someone else. Jungkook however-" He calmly explains, ignoring the slightly offended look of the dancer across from him. "You know him. He's never shown interest before- in anyone." Jimin slowly seems to understand, as Taehyung nods at it. "He really likes her. Think about it. Once you take that step, there's no going back. There's no 'lets stay friends if we break up' because that's just awkward. There's no second chance for Jungkook."

Jimin slowly nods, suddenly without much taste for his food as well. "I didn't know, honestly."

"It was kind of hard to see not gonna lie." Hoseok chimes in, putting his chopsticks down as he swallows the last bite of food. "He's all over her recently." He explains, and everyone nods.

This wasn't just a simple crush for him.

This was full blown love.

Jungkook isn't kind.

But he also can't say no to you.

He wants to be mad, he really tried to as well. But it's just- he sees your smile and hears your voice, and he's all in your hands, ready and willing to your very command. That's how he finds himself at your tiny apartment, helping you to put up some of your latest paintings on your walls- because initially you'd asked if he or his hyungs had a ladder in his dorm, but after you'd told him you'd use it to climb up to hang some paintings, he'd instead told you he'd help you instead, just to make sure you wouldn't fall and have an accident or something.

He want's to be mad, because he knows Jimin must've made his move at this point.

You seem so at ease, so happy, your steps so light and almost jumpy he wants to cry internally at how cute you are, for someone that isn't him.

"Ah, yes, that's perfect!" You say, and he slowly steps down from your chair he'd burrowed to boost his height a little, your hands weakly trying to steady him while he finally reaches the floor again. "I've made some cold stew yesterday, do you wanna stay and eat a little?" You ask, and he wants to nod, but doesn't.

"I don't wanna intrude or something." He says, grimply smiling as he brings the chair back into the kitchen area where it came from. He hates how deflated you suddenly look, how almost sad you simply nod as you trail after him like a lost pet, something many would find bothering, yet he loved it. He loved how you were always around him like a little shadow, as if to silently stay close to him. "So, you and uhm.. Jimin?" He asks suddenly, unable to keep the words inside.You blink, once, twice, before tilting your head in question. "He.. hasn't talked to you?" He asked, and you shook your head.

"No, what would he want to talk about with me?" You ask, and a very terrifying thought comes into his mind, like a tiny devil on his shoulder whispering in his ear. He hasn't made his move yet, so if he plays his cards right, he could still steal you from him quick and swift. You'd be his, he knows you're too kind to say no if he confessed, and Jimin would stand no chance. But just like the tiny devil, a tiny angel was there as well. Who was he to interfere with someone else's romantic life? He knew Jimin liked you enough to ask you out, and even though his hyung was never one to stay long, it would be an absolute dick move of him to ruin his chances.

But he loved you.

"Oh, you mean about you and me!" You suddenly said, and Jungkook almost choked on his saliva. "He said something about you liking me, and uh, that I should confess to you even though I know you're not interested in me like that- I'm sorry if he said something weird, it's just a weird crush, I'll get over it-" But he short-circuits, and blurts out what comes to his mind before he can think about it.

"Don't!" He says, a little too loud, and your eyes grow wide. "Don't.. get over it. I-" He's suddenly confused, overwhelmed, and has no idea how to handle this sudden turn of events properly. Should he kiss you now like in the movies or something? But he should also ask if he should, otherwise its without consent, but it would kind of ruin the moment, and oh god why do his hands suddenly get sweaty, thats so gross-

It's the shy and delicate touch to the very tips of his fingers, hand splaid out on the kitchen table that you're touching with yours, cheeks red and eyes down, and he suddenly thinks, 'fuck those movies', as he leans in and kisses you, slowly, just to make sure you're okay with it.

You're so okay with it.

He grows hungry at the movement of your lips, brows furrowing as he lets himself ride this wave of pure euphoria, holding your cheeks so lightly that you barely feel his touch at all. You snake your arms around his head as you tug him down a bit more, and his neck aches, so he simply reaches for your behind to help you up on the kitchen table for better leverage. "You're-" He starts between kisses, and can't help his smile. "-mine." He ends, and you nod with excitement, just as high on happiness as he is. "Can I, like-" He starts, almost frustrated with how he can't stop his lips from chasing yours even if he's the one talking. "-Touch you?" He finally gets out, and again, you nod, even if the tips of your ears grow a bit red at the suggestive question. His hands suddenly wander, over your shoulders down your sides, before they find your thighs. He loves the softness of them, his fingers on your knees as he opens your legs so he can get even closer to you. As if on instinct, your socked feet pull him towards you, and he chuckles at that, finally slipping his tongue between your lips as you push a hand into his dark hair, making him groan. He cups the sides of your breasts at first, delicately feeling them, before he squeezes gently, getting a proper idea of their plushness under his fingers.

He loves them already.

"I don't-" He starts, and is breathless just as you are as he places his kisses on the side of your neck. "I don't wanna fuck you on the kitchen table baby." He finally gets out, and you mewl at that. "Hm?" He asks, but you shake your head, too shy to say anything to that. He suddenly reaches for your behind, lifting you against his chest as he walks around with you, making you and himself laugh as he opens the wrong door before he finally finds your bedroom- cozy and cold due to the open window you always leave so that you can sleep better at night. You sigh at the cool feeling of the sheets underneath your hot body, and he grins down at you as he can't feel anything but pure ecstasy. Suddenly, he laughs, and groans lodly against your chest as he lets his forehead rest against it.

"What?" You ask between a laugh, and he begins to whine.

"I don't have a condom, fuck." He drawls out, and he really feels like an idiot. He's a fully grown man, he should have shit like that with him at all times, especially when he knows he's gonna visit his crush- but its so sudden, so unprepared, that he simply didn't think this would ever happen. He's deflated, painfully hard, and frustrated with himself, as you speak up again.

"Uhm, theres an orange handbag in the bathroom, its like, next to the shower. I think I still have one in there."You say, and he looks up questioningly. "It was a joke-present from a friend, please don't ask." You say, growing shy again as he simply chuckles, before getting up and searching for the bag you mentioned. It's safe to say that he doesn't only find the condom, but also a still fully packaged vibrator toy, in the same bag. His interest is definetely woken, but he decides against using it to tease you this time.

He'd get his chance soon.

But in that moment, as he climbs ontop of the bed again, it's all about you and him- its not about mindblowing sex or unusual experiences. He just wants to be inside you, close to you, he wants to claim you in ways that only lovers can. He's surprised, when he takes off his shirt, that you suddenly hold your arms high.

You're absolutely adorable in his eyes.

He chuckles as he helps you out of your sweater, kissing your nose, your cheeks, your lips, as he unhooks your bra to finally get a skin to skin feel of your breasts. He loves it even more like this, warm and soft under his palms, and you mewl in enjoyment as he continues his antics. He doesn't even notice when you'd discarded your shorts and underwear, his pants gone in a flash as his inked fingers reach between your legs to sloppily prepare you for him.

He knows he's a bit more on the.. bigger side, to say the least, a grower more than a shower, and it used to make him nervous in a weird kind of way. You're so delicate, so sweet, that he doesn't want to hurt you, and hes slow and steady as he finally enters you after putting on his protection. But you take it, you're such a champ, and pull him towards you by his neck as he moves slowly.

He picks up his pace at your demand, lost in euphoria as he lets himself go, lets himself enjoy as his mind is filled with your voice, your sounds, your scent, your everything. This is what he wanted, this is where he wants to stay for the rest of time. Not nescessarly buried withing you (although that's not a bad sound he thinks), but in your embrace, within your presence. He want's to stay at your side forever, keep you close to him so no one can hurt you, not even yourself.

He comes with a whine, an arch of his back, and his fingers on your pearl, desperate to get you over the edge as well.

It works.

And he's happy, exhausted, and absolutely in love as he falls down the mattress at your side.

"I always thought it would be weird." You said after you'd both taken a shower and cleaned up properly. He'd texted his hyungs, telling them with obnoxious emoticons that he's spending the night with his girlfriend, and Jimin plus Yoongi had reacted with a vomiting emoji.

Yet they were happy.

"What would be weird?" Jungkook asks, his hand running up and down your arm as you laid next to him, snuggled up onto his body.

"You know, having sex." You said, and it takes a moment before he suddenly snaps his head to you.

"Wait, that was your first time?!" He exclaimed, utterly shocked at it as he'd been convinced you weren't a virgin. You have had boyfriends before, he knew that, hell, he'd seen them too, and considering you were pretty close agewise he couldn't imagine. He feels bad about it, if he'd known, he would've made it more special, hell he would've asked you more times if you were okay with him taking something so precious from you. Now you could never get it back and he'd fucked it up.

"I mean, kind of?" You explained, suddenly hiding your face. "I mean, I've done, like, stuff with men before.. and I also used a.. you know, 'thing', but like, never the real.." You tried to come up with different names for the things you wanted to say, yet you simply ceased to talk.

Jungkook chuckled. "You used what? A dildo? Like, a fake dick?" He said, and you hit his chest with a whine, utterly mortified by his way of talking. "Come on I saw that vibrator in your bag there, but I never though you were a virgin!" He said, and you whined again.

"Technically I wasn't!"

He scoffed playfully. "Baby your first time was with a toy considering what you just told me, that STILL means you were a virgin!" He argued, and you groaned, trying to get out of his grasp now. "Come on, at least tell me if my dick was better than that rubber-cock?" He asked, and laughed full on at the way you hid your face behind your hands with a yell. "Don't hurt my ego, say it!" He laughs, and tickles your sides.

"Yeah yeah okay, your dick was better stop!" You laugh, and he grins, suddenly pulling you close to him as he hides his face in your hair.

"Oh baby-" He sighes out. "I love you so much."

"And I hate you." You mumble, before he playfully bites your ear.

"Jungkook no, they could see-!" Yet he doesn't let up, uncaring. The hotel they were staying at had a strict privacy policy- at this point his agency could ruin

them with a snap of their fingers just because they leaked a single strand of his hair. He wasn't concerned at all, as he continued to bite and kiss at your neck,

unable to keep his hands to himself as he grows hard.

He loves the high he gets from being in danger of getting caught.

Its silly, in a way, but it feels like a rush of some sorts. It's like he's a teenager again, sneaking in candy even though he's on a diet just to feel bratty, and its not

much different now, even though the scale is another. This was actually dangerous, but since no one else was staying at the hotel, and his hyungs had all gone

to bed, he refused to give in.

He wanted you, and he would take you.

Jungkook never liked sharing, nor giving away what was his when he himself didn't openly give it away. What was his, was his, there was no room for

discussion, even though he'd become a bit more understanding nowadays. Yet he would never let anyone see you like this, so vulnerable and wanting for him,

ready to become his slave to quench his thirst for you at anytime. You loved him just as much as he loved you, and this exchange of feelings always got him

riled up to the point of desperation.

Just like now, as he helps you stay afloat with his forearms underneath your own arms, kissing you silly while he pushes his thigh upwards underwater, feeling

you rut agains it like an animal in heat. He loved how you got whenever he pushed your buttons right, loved the sight, the sound, the entire situation. It ruined

porn for him in a way, modern erotica in no way reaching the level of satisfactory aesthetic that the sight of you could bring him. He'd taken pictures and videos

of you in nude positions and explicit situations to keep him entertained whenever he was far away, because whatever he found online of strangers couldn't bring

him a release worth working for anymore.

So it was utterly welcomed by him, when you had surprisingly told him that you had arranged to share the hotel room with him, and that you were tagging along for two weeks of his tour. Of course, his happiness was mostly simple enjoyment that you were there at his side, that you would sleep right next to him, yet it also was of a more carnal side of himself. And now, while his blood was still hot like lava inside his veins, adrenalin still high from his last concert, he was desperate to let go, end this day in a way he never thought he properly could.

He sloppily pushed the barrier between himself and your core to the side underwater, pulling his length out of his swimtrunks as well, uncaring on making it romantic. He knew he didn't need to always go overboard, he was clingy and touchy enough that you always felt appreciated and loved, even if he was impatient like that. He groaned out, mixed with a chuckle as he suddenly realized what he was doing, dipping his head down into the crook of your neck to bite and leave open mouthed kisses, rhythm just as steady and on-point as onstage just hours ago.

He came quicker than he'd liked, tattooed hand gently pushing you over the edge as well. you whined as he helped you out the pool, utterly mortified but still happy at the way he simply picked you up bridal style, carrying you out and back into your room, ready for a good nights' sleep.

The best he had ever gotten while on tour.

#bts imagine #bts #bts fanfic #bts fic #bts smut #jungkook imagine #bts jungkook #jeon jungkook #jungkook #bts reactions

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kira-fluff · 3 years

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please please PLEASE may we have a part two to the 'only one bed' piece you posted 🥺🥺 your writing is INCREDIBLE and I loved it so much 🥺🥺🥺 if u decide to do a part two then thank u so much in advance,, hope u have a good day 🥺

a/n: you asked for it (some others did too but this anon was so adorable so I’m replying to this one) so I’m gon’ give it to u <3 also, THANK YOU I am being 1000% honest that your comments seriously brought me to tears I was SO happy you all loved it. when I say pt.2, I kind of assume that it’s with the same characters (since no one specified others) so that’s what I’m gonna do!

Context provided, don’t worry babes

WARNINGS: sexual harassment, intoxication, extremely heavily suggestive (it gets pretty spicy)

Also contains spoilers from part 1 but like why would you even read part 2 if you haven’t read part 1? Get outta here and read it!! (Why is this even a warning? I don’t know don’t question my methods)

“There’s only one bed” [PT.2] PT.1

Saeyoung

You awoke to a sleeping Saeyoung, his toned arms enveloping your small body in a hug. Shamelessly, you laid still for a few moments longer.

When you’d noticed him stirring awake, you quickly shut your eyes once more, trying to conceal your growing smile

Saeyoung blinked a few times before registering at last where he was

He needed a little more time to register why you are in his arms

Pretending to be asleep again, you nuzzled further into his chest, letting out a soft groan

Saeyoung’s mind flew to DANGER MODE

He felt kinda guilty holding you in his arms because let’s face it there’s no way he isn’t enjoying this

He was so stunned that, for once, he was at a loss for words (shocking, I know)

Blinking out of his stupor, he murmured, “Y/N?”

His morning voice was... nice.

You pretended to “wake up”, fake yawning before saying, “Yes, Saeyoung?”, subtly batting your eyes a little

(It wasn’t subtle)

But since Saeyoung is an actual fucking moron, he can’t tell the difference

Play it cool, Seven. She can’t know that you know she was doing this all night and you didn’t do anything.

“Wow”, Saeyoung choked out a laugh, “I didn’t know you liked me this much.”

You look down, in between the two of you before slowly making eye contact with him again, smirking in disbelief, “I could say the same to you.”

A slow blush crept up his face at the innuendo

But he was NOT about to lose

Saeyoung Choi is NOT a loser

“Oh, yeah? Well, I wasn’t the one screaming my name last night.”

You gasped, “Screaming?! I didn’t scream -- I would’ve remembered a dream like tha-- Oh!” You quickly covered your mouth, already feeling regret seeping into every bone of your body.

Saeyoung openly chuckled, looking at you with a sort of darkness in his eyes

“You’re more dangerous than this whole mission.”

You were still out of sorts, failing to come up with a comeback besides a quiet, “I wasn’t screaming.”

A shit eating grin replaced the cool smirk on Saeyoung’s face

“I win.”

“Eat a dick, Seven.”

“Sorry, I think I’m more attracted to the one who was moaning out, ‘Oooh, Saeyoung~~~’“

You threw a pillow straight in his face, muttering a “shut up”, blushing profusely

Ever the competitive fucker, Saeyoung proclaims an all out pillow fight

It is WAR

Throwing pillow after pillow at each other in between giggles and taunts and jeers

“Take no prisoners!” you shouted, feeling unbeatable

Until Saeyoung grabbed your ass, pulling you down with him, earning a yelp from you

“What the fuck, Sev’?! You cheater!!”

“I don’t know, my hand’s a lot more comfortable here!”

You scoffed, “Oh, YOU! YOU are gonna GET IT!”

Saeyoung threw back his head in laughter but abruptly stopped when you grabbed his face with both your hands, and forcefully kissed him

He let out a “MMPH!”, eyes wide

Before, of course, kissing you back with equal force

Gasping for air at last, you spoke in between breaths, “I......win..”

“Actually, darling, I think I just did.”

Noticing your loss for words, he smirked before asking, “So.... what’s my prize?”

You didn’t have to be asked twice, “I think I have something in mind...”

His eyes met your own before slowly scanning your body, then snapping back to your eyes once more

You bit your lip

“I know you’ll lose at least one thing tonight.”

“Bold of you to assume--”

“Just shut up and kiss me again.”

Wish granted ;)

Yoosung

Yoosung glanced away, taking a deep breath before saying, “Yeah, yeah I did. I really like you.” You couldn’t hold back the big ol’ smile that took over your face as you proudly declared, “Me too!!” Right when Yoosung was going to go in for a kiss, he saw his auntie suddenly right next to the both of you

“Oh my GOD when did you get here?!”

She smirked, “My question first, dearie, what did you two like?” Neither of you answered, your cheeks growing red

“You know, the first time your uncle did it with me I felt the same way. Like, what a man! Must run in the fam--”

“OKAY! THANK YOU FOR THAT AUNTIE BUT BREAKFAST IS CALLING MY NAME MM SMELLS GOOD SEE YOU LATER.”

Your blush didn’t leave you as you smeared strawberry cream cheese on your toasted bagel. This trip was going to be very VERY difficult. Thank God there was alcohol. And Yoosung. And probably dogs. And Yoosung. Yeah. Gotta love relatives.

Following this stunning confession, you felt dumb because, well, you still didn’t know where you really stood with Yoosung

So when night came, you were ready to go to a party

Putting on your earrings and making sure your clothes were laid properly in place, you stepped out of the resort room to a waiting Yoosung

“H-hey, thanks for waiting for me,” You nervously tucked a stray hair behind your ear.

Yoosung avoided eye contact, opting for a stiff nod

You gazed deeper into the side of his head, feeling hurt.

But... you decided not to say anything.

Walking together to the reserved room the resort had made in preparation for Yoosung’s uncle was awkward, not a single word spoken between the two of you

When you arrived, Yoosung’s eccentric uncle immediately shouted, “’Sung ‘Sung! Get over ‘ere! We’re gonna have a part-ay!!”

You suddenly understood why Chaewon was the way he was

and why Yoosung’s parents forced him to go on this trip instead of themselves

Since you didn’t know his name, you opted for your nickname -- Uncle Alcohol

Cuz he had a LOT of it

In number, and in the amount he shoved down his throat at any given time

Seriously, how is this guy already drunk?!

You watched as Uncle Alcohol shoved a sloppy arm around Yoosung, not so quietly shouting something in his ear above the blaring music

You were too far away to hear, thank goodness, but you took note of the way Yoosung immediately blushed and shook his head fervently, his hands held in front of his chest

Before you could take in the atmosphere further, you felt a shiver down your back

Immediately turning around you saw the oh-so-famous Chaewon

“Heeeyyyyyyy babbeeheehe...... Wannnaaa..... sliiidee in my room tonighhht?” Laughing in a way what made you cringe and your ears numb, you replied, “No thanks, bud. You should probably get some water.”

“Nooo I want youuuu” Grabbing your boob in his hand, he laughed again, saying, “Nice”

Oh my god.. where the fuck is Yoosung??

You quickly slapped away his hand, shouting, “Stay the hell away from me asshole! Try anything else again, and I won’t give a shit that you’re drunk or Yoosung’s family, I will call the cops on you!”

He acted as if he didn’t hear you, but must’ve gotten the message because he sauntered over to another group of girls

Aren’t those his cousins? What the fuck is WRONG with that guy?!

The loud smack and curses answered the question. You didn’t attempt to help when you saw them proceed to beat the absolute shit out of him, blood and all.

What you needed was a drink. Something really, really strong.

You walked over to the resort bar tender

Something about your face must’ve given it all away because he began with a “Rough night, huh?”

“Do not even fucking ask me about it. God, please, I’m sorry that was rude. I just need something strong... just give me three fingers of rye.” You waved your hand nonchalantly, sitting at a bar stool.

“Are you sure, lady? You don’t look the type to handle that kinda liquor..”

“That’s kind of the point.”

He sighed, “Look... I’m not supposed to condone you getting completely shit-faced.. but you look like you need it tonight. I’ll make something a little easier down the throat, okay?”

You nodded, exasperated.

You didn’t know what it was, but it did the trick. It’s fruity taste easily passed down your throat, leaving you feeling lighter and more at peace.

“’nother one.”

He obliged, pouring another glass for you.

Four drinks in and your world was already unbelievably wobbly.

You were seeing double, looking at the bartender’s second form

You laughed, it all seemed to funny

Standing up, you stumbled over to the dance floor, grabbing one of Uncle A’s craft beers.

Dancing was fun for a few minutes, grateful no one had bothered you.

But you sat down, tears suddenly welling in your eyes

You were alone.

Yoosung.

Your mood brightened just by remembering his name

Giggling, you called out, “Yoosuuungg~~~” repeatedly around the room

One of the cousins heard your call, laughing because everything was funny, before grabbing Yoosung’s arm and shouting what they’d just heard

Yoosung quickly glanced over at you, brows furrowed. They softened a little upon seeing your drunken state

He’d had a beer or two, but the good feeling got old quickly and he sobered up by the time he’d noticed his cousins acting like complete fools

Upon seeing him, your smile grew to a big, childish grin

“Hiiii Yoosuuunggg...”

“Jeez, Y/n, how much did you drink?”

You giggled, playfully sticking out your tongue, “not sure~ a few.. probably..?” you laughed again, winking at him

“Hey, let’s get you some water, yeah? On second thought.. we gotta get outta here. I’ll carry you to our room.”

Your eyes shamelessly stared at his lips, not listening to a word he was saying

“Yoosunngg~~ I want you to fuck meeee”

Yoosung held the bridge of his nose in between his fingers, “L-let’s just go.”

Putting your arm over his shoulder, he carried most of your weight.

“Yoosuuung I want to have your babiess~~”

Yoosung blushed and looked down, continuing to walk, “You’re way too drunk.”

“Yoosunggieee I want to know what it feels like to have your d--”

He quickly shushed you, looking around for other observers

He basically ran to your resort room from there

Taking a long sigh as he finally had got you in the room, he wiped some sweat off his face

Just when he’d gotten up to get a water bottle for you, he heard retching noises

Before he could stop you, you upchucked all over yourself and some of the cheap resort carpeting

Groaning in physical and emotional pain, Yoosung muttered a quiet, “why me”

Before putting his arms under your arm pits and dragging you to the bathroom

He spent a good 10 minutes just trying to get the stupid shower to turn on because of course at any other place than your own house it’s never easy

Then, after getting the temperature just right, he forced you to down at least half of the water bottle

“Are you able to take off your clothes by yourself, Y/n?”

You giggled back, shaking your head

“Liar.”

“Help me take ‘em off pweaseee”

“No!”

You started tearing up again, your lip wobbling

“You know I can’t do that sweetie, you’re drunk.”

“No ‘m not.”

“Yeah, you are.”

You looked up at him before sighing and lifting up your shirt, fully exposing half of your naked body to him

He screamed like a little girl, running and slamming the door behind him

You pouted, “That’s no fun.”

After getting out of your clothes, you devised another poorly thought through plan

“Yoosunngggieee I need help washing myselffff”

“Um.. okay, lemme go see if I can get a hold of someone...”

“I want it to be you. I want it to be you who sees me like this. I want it to be you. Only you.”

“S-stop..” He said through the door.

“Please?”

Sighing, Yoosung knew there was no one who wasn’t drunk or available to help.

He did what any good guy would do. He proceeded to blind fold himself, opting for reaching his hands out to guess and where things were.

You laughed, “’Sunggiee you know you’re still gunna be touchin’ me”

“I’m not going to.”

“You said you’d help me!”

“Yeah, getting shampoo or something like that!”

“How ya gunna do that with somethin’ over your eyes?”

“I didn’t think it through that far.”

You sighed, conceding and attempting to wash yourself (which ended pretty badly) but, keeping his word, he managed to assist you the best he could without touching you.

He pitied the hangover you’d have... and the regret.

At last carrying you to bed after getting you another drink of water, he began cleaning the putrid stain you’d left on the carpet.

It was about 5AM when he’d finished, finally crawling into bed.

He thought about the way it felt last night compared to now

and he blamed himself.

He was the one that made you get so drunk you essentially passed out

Looking at you again, he sighed.

Tugging you close into his arms, he whispered a soft, “I’m sorry.”

Your subconscious must’ve heard him because you said in your sleep, “’s ok.”

Jumin

And suddenly your faces weren’t so far apart. And you couldn’t help but slowly close your eyes. Jumin was confused. He can be a bit of a pea brain, so he of course said, “I’m sure you’re very tired.” He shut off the light, reaching over you. You held back the big frown you’d gotten when you realized he’d rejected you. Unbeknownst to you that it took everything in him, from the moment he’d saw you in the jet cabin, not to scoop you up in his arms and make out with you the whole way there.

You were awoken by birds chirping outside the massive estate window

You made eye contact with an already staring, wide-eyed Jumin

Upon realizing you’d woken up, he averted his gaze saying, “Breakfast -- soon.”

You missed the crimson color of his face, instead getting up and stretching (like you didn’t learn your lesson last time)

Then, you made your way over to the fresh coffee that had been delivered to your room minutes before

Adding a shit load of cream and a dash of sugar, you turned to see Jumin staring at you. Again.

You breathed out a laugh, “What are you looking at?”

Jumin’s brows knit together for a split second before he again looked away, his soft blush never fading, “It’s hard not to.”

“Look at wha--” Your eyes grew wide in realization, looking down at the lingerie hardly covering your skin, Jumin’s shirt no where to be seen.

You screamed, making a poor attempt to cover yourself shouting, “Oh my god I’m so sorry I forgot!!”

Again, Jumin found his gaze resting on your body, stifling a groan.

He at last spoke, his deep voice reverberating throughout the room, “You... you’re making this all.. so much more ....difficult.”

You then grew defensive, “Made what difficult? Ogling at me without staying anything?!”

His eyes glowered with something you couldn’t quite place. “That’s not what I meant”

He walked slowly toward you, causing you to take steps backward

He’d backed you up against the wall, letting out a deep breath through his nose

With glittering eyes, he grabbed your chin with his fingers, forcing you to look up at him instead of the ground

“You’re doing on purpose, aren’t you?”

You gulped in anticipation, “D-doing what?”

Jumin raked his eyes down your body then looked back up at you with a sarcastic expression that said, “really?”

“N-no! I didn’t have a choice!!”

“Your clothes would’ve been dry hours ago.. if it really bothered you--”

“Well I was really tired from the jet ride and putting up with you!”

Jumin looked surprised for a moment before grinning sardonically, “Putting up with me? Do you have any idea how fucking hard it is to control myself when you’re constantly grabbing me, touching me, everything!”

“I didn’t do all that on purpose!” Okay, maybe that wasn’t entirely true, but you weren’t about to admit that to him when he was being such a dick.

He laughed dryly, “Yeah, okay. All I’m saying is that I don’t find it very funny.”

“You think that you’re just some big joke to me?!”

“What other explanation is there?”

You were practically hysterical in your laughter saying, “You’re unbelievable.”

“Oh yeah?” he challenged.

“Yeah,” you glared back at him, your faces inches apart.

Before Jumin could realize what he was doing, he pulled your hips flush against his own, crashing his lips harshly on yours.

Letting out moans of both desperation and anger, your eyebrows furrowed as you deepened the kiss, gasping when Jumin slid his tongue so far into your mouth you swore you felt it going down your throat.

After what felt like hours, you parted for oxygen, both breathing heavily, before going in for another long, simmering kiss

You felt Jumin smirk against your mouth causing you to lightly smack his chest, hating that he knew he’d gotten a rise out of you.

He grabbed your wrist against his chest, slowly guiding it to his first button of his night shirt.

You made quick work of removing all the fastenings, nodding and obeying him when he commanded, “Jump”

Your legs tied round his waist, you continued to make out, pulling at the waistband of his pants.

Jumin moaned into your mouth before parting to say, “You will be the death of me, little spitfire.”

Let’s just say the whole fiance thing might not be a lie anymore.

Zen

Zen wanted to say something smooth like “I’ve always wanted to do that.” But instead he said “I’ve always wanted to do you.” He mentally smacked his head, blaming the lack of oxygen for his stupidity. But you smirked up at him coyly, replying, “Then why don’t you?” Um, yeah, rip your hotel neighbor he will literally hate both of you so much.

You awoke you Zen rubbing his thumb on your arm, basking in the morning light

He groggily said, “’mornin’ babe.”

“I’m ‘babe’ now?”

“What else am I supposed to call my beautiful girlfriend?”

You leaned up and kissed him softly, smiling.

“I love you, Zen. So much.”

“I love you, too, Y/n. If you didn’t already get that from when we...”

You laughed shyly, “yeah..”

“I know I skipped a few steps, but I have never been happier and more sure of anything in my life.”

You looked up at him, peacefully grinning.

“Hey, let’s get married.”

Zen choked on his spit, “R-right now?!”

You giggled, “Not right now, but soon. I dunno, we’ve been friends for, like, forever. Now that we know we like each other it seems like the next step.”

Zen looked at you, searching your face to determine whether you were serious or not.

Detecting that you weren’t joking he laughed airily saying, “Sure. Whatever you want princess.”

He kissed the top of your head, whispering, “You’re so beautiful, ya know that?”

Sighing comfortably, you nodded, falling back into sleep.

“H-hey! Wake up!!” Zen shouted, giving up and just cuddling up to you instead, stroking your hair gently.

The concert wasn’t until late that night -- he had time to spare.

....Even if he didn’t, he’d make time for you. - 3 months later

In classic Zen and Y/n style, you’d eloped shortly after the tour ended.

“Hey, Y/n? Have you seen my grey t-shirt?”

You looked up from your laptop, “Mhm, it’s in the dryer.”

He sighed, “Thanks babe”, before making his way down to the mudroom where your laundry was kept

He sifted through the hot laundry in the dryer, not seeing his shirt anywhere, when he hard a crash.

“Y/N?!”

He rushed out to the living room, glancing from the smashed coffee mug on the ground, to you.

“Y/N?! Are you okay?!!!”

You clutched your stomach in anguish, beads of sweat forming at your brow, “Y-yeah.. my stomach hurts so bad ‘s all.”

Zen was having NONE of that

He rushed you to the Emergency Room, holding your hand the entire time.

“It’s gonna be okay, Princess, I promise.” You nodded, before losing consciousness -

you awoke to a depressing hospital room, meeting Zen’s worried eyes.

“How long was I out..?”

“For a few minutes.”

You sighed in relief, feeling a lot better than you were when you were rushed to the ER.

All of a sudden, a doctor entered the room looking stern.

“I wanted to discuss the diagnosis with the two of you when you were both physically present.”

You blanched, looking at Zen with fear etched in your eyes.

Zen held your hand tighter, before saying, “What’s the problem?”

The doctor looked in between the two of you before letting out a little laugh, “There’s nothing wrong, actually.”

You both looked confused, Zen proudly saying, “Then why’d you look all doom and gloom when you came in here?!”

The doctor roared with laughter saying, “Eh, I get a kick out of the faces you guys make. Ah, now to the diagnosis.”

“There’s still a diagnosis?!”

You shushed Zen, nodding at the doctor.

He took a breath before saying, “Miss Y/N Hyeon, you’re pregnant.”

Both your eyes grew wide, mouths slacked

“O-oh, oh my gosh!!”

Zen enveloped you in a big hug, congratulating you (and also hiding his tears)

This man could not hold back the proud grin he sported for MONTHS

I simp for this prompt so if someone asked, it’s not like I could say no to writing it for more characters.......right? lol Also, I came to a realization that I made that a fanfic rather than a headcanon.. so oh well, right?

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miyalove · 3 years

Text

⋆｡˚⁀➷ PILLOW TALK.

cr. originally posted by houseofkarasuno

⤷ pairing. suna rintaro x fem!reader

⤷ genre. fluff, suggestive, timeskip au, established relationship au

⤷ warnings. swearing, crude language, crude humor, implied sex, mentions of bondage, mentions of hickeys, *unedited’

1.5k | after one of the greatest fucks in your life, suna pops the big question. your response has him not as surprised as he would have thought.

your breath evens out slowly while you trace the outlines of your dull ceiling. besides you, suna plops down on your sheets. he faces you, golden eyes hooded while exhaustion dances behind them.

“how was that?” it’s a question that has you giggling around your jagged breaths. the noise makes him quirk a brow.

“you always ask that after we fuck.”

“it’s cause i wanna know if ya liked it,” you can practically imagine his cute little shrug after he speaks. it’s become a habit of his to nonchalantly shrug things off, but you know him better than that. it’s not just a simple question. he doesn’t just want to know if you liked it. he wants to know if you liked it. if the position he had you in hurt or if the knots bounding your wrist to the bedpost were too tight. he wanted to know if you were okay. they’re two vastly different concepts, according to him.

you let out a sigh, shifting your position to face your boyfriend. a thin layer of sweat is still present on his skin. under the lighting he looks like he’s glowing making him impossibly more attractive. unbeknownst to you, he’s thinking the same thing. your delicate body fits perfectly next to his like you were simply made to be with him.

“yes, i liked it, rintaro.” you punctuate your claim with a soft grin, “more than that actually.” you shift closer to him. “that might of just been our best one yet.”

as you wiggle, the mattress moans with your heavy movement. the familiar groan cracks a small smile on your boyfriends face, probably thinking of a stupid innuendo. you shot him a glare, daring him to say it. he let’s out a dry chuckle, rolling his eyes instead.

“good boy,” you lean down pressing a chaste kiss to his forehead. it taste salty from the lingering sweat and it’s quick not wanting to get his gross bodily fluids all up on your face either. no matter how quick you are though, you could never be as fast as professional athlete suna rintaro (it’s something he always reminds you about).

in one quick motion, suna wraps his macular arms around your middle. he drags your body over his own. the shock has you struggling to find a grip. your hands fail around to find some kind of support. your legs twist and tangle themselves in your blankets. suna’s arms stay wrapped around your core, steadying you while you struggle.

it’s an awkward sight. your legs try to mount his hips, but the room is too dark and you’re bones rattle with exertion. to suna, it’s a sight to behold. your hair is messy from your previous action but it frames your pretty face in just the right way. he admires the way you struggle to hop over him. you’re a lot smaller than he is (just the way he likes it, if he’s being honest) so you’re determination to fit is admirable. he can’t help the feeling that washes over him while he eyes you cutely struggling.

it’s laughable. it’s clumsy. it’s you-- that’s all he could ever want.

“you looked like a fish nearin’ it’s last days,” you huff at the dig. only he would throw such a specific insult. when you finally find purchase on top of him, you feel his knees bend behind you. gladly, you lean back thankful for the support. a comfortable silence takes over the room. he watches as your eyes flutter shut. it seems like fatigue as finally caught up with you.

he allows you to lean into him. all your weight shifts onto his legs and even if they ache from practice, he doesn’t dare move or mention it. he doesn’t want to wake you. you do so much for him. the least he could do was let you have a few minutes of rest. in the silence, his eyes get to work on you.

you’re tits are on full display as well as your tummy and if he were to pull at the sheets, your pretty pink panties would be uncovered. it was the only thing you managed to throw own before flopping yourself into bed. pink looks good on you. it was a something he noticed a while ago. he racks his brain to the first time he saw you in the soft color.

3rd year, lantern festival.

you looked stunning in that outfit. the dress curved and accented all the best part of your body. the bright pink contrasted perfectly with the dark sky surrounding you. you shined bright that day, heads turned and necks were broken. at the time, it worried him having not been yours. he stuck beside you for an uncharacteristic amount of time. every corner you went, he seemed to randomly be there and ready to help you win prizes or to tease you about the little things.

he was worried then but now, he he’s able to hold you in his arms without a worry. he’s able to fuck you senseless until you’re begging for more. he can be little patchy with replying back to your messages and sometimes he isn’t in the mood for PDA but you understand that.

you understand him.

you understand his silences. his thoughtless grunts. his wordless stares.

at this realization, something switches within him. he needs to say something. his words are caught in his throat. choked between waking you up or letting you rest. his heart pounds, his fingers are suddenly jittery. he loves you so fucking much. from the day you stepped into his classroom to introduce yourself to the moment you made fun of atsumu over a shared interest. he finally saw you that day. he knew then he wanted to have your melodious giggle as the sound track to his life.

he was so stupidly in love with you then.

he takes one last glance your way. his throat dries with that same nervousness he had when he asked you out for the first time (he was a broke 3rd year, so he took you out the the fanciest ramen vending machine spot he knew then the two of you stayed up all night walking and venturing the city. it was absolutely perfect).

and now five years later, nothing has changed.

“till death do us apart.” it comes out in a mumble of anxiousness, but it’s loud enough to stir you awake.

your eyes gently open and he’s staring straight into you. your brows crinkle, slightly worried. you’ve only seen him this tense a few times in your time together. they were all about volleyball. weather his time was going to win or not weather he was training hard enough-- all worries that were be quickly squashed once you were there to call him down.

never have you seen this look as you laid down with him. in the middle of your thoughts, it remember that you had to reply. rubbing the sleep out of your eye, you shake your head, “what was that, love?”

he repeats himself again, just a little bit louder this time. it still makes your head tilt in question. ‘till death do us apart? what the hell is he on about? what about death? and why are we apart of it?

you sit on on his lap staring into his widened eyes. they’re glossed over, hazed with a fear that brings you back to the honeymoon phases of your relationship. you’re so tied up in the thought, you have to force yourself to focus again. till death do us apart... ‘till death do us apart? wait--

“proposing on valentines day?” you lean over him. your chest presses up against his bare torso. you smirk, “how... original.” sarcasm laces your tone. the way you’re able to tease him in such a delicate situation has him huffing out a breath he hadn’t know he was holding.

“that doesn’t sound like a yes to me.”

“that’s because it wasn’t, silly.”

that heavy feeling presses at his chest again. “oh.”

one word yet you could already tell he was overthinking it.

“hey, hey. slow down there.” you pet at his dark locks, gently lacing your fingers through them. your hot breath fans at his face with how close you. mindlessly, he rests his hands on your hips pulling you impossibly closer.

“i’m not saying no either, rin.” he tilts his head, obviously confused. you read him like an open book as you continue. you can’t help the disappointed sigh, “i’m not saying yes because a proposal on valentines day, rin? come on! you’re 1000 times better than that!”

so many emotions show through him. there’s confusion because why would you play with him like that. there’s a side of him that want to roll his eyes at your childish antics. then there’s a side of him that gets it. it’s too cliché. it’s too lovey-dovey honeymoon phase. you were never one for romcoms anyways so he gets it.

“so it’s not a no either?”

“it’s a- uh... to be decided,” you purr.

silence.

“you’re so fucking lucky i love you.” he angles himself forward, pressing a kiss to your lips. it’s starts off soft. your mouths slotting together perfectly. then his grip on your hips gets tighter. your hands start to roam his body. and the way his hands coax you to move has you already knowing where this is going.

“yeah, yeah. i love you too.”

#haikyuu #haikyuu!!#haikyuu x reader #haikyuu!! x reader #haikyuu fluff #hq x reader #hq!! x reader #suna x reader #suna rintaro x reader #haikyuu smut #hq smut #suna rintaro #suna smut #suna rintaro smut

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bukojuiice · 3 years

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ʚ Going to Universal Studios Japan with them (ft. Izuku, Katsuki, Shoto, Denki, Eijirou, Shinsou and Dabi) ɞ *‧.₊˚*੭

— @bukojuiice’s 720+ followers gift! thank you so so much for supporting my works! ♡ ily all i never would have thought i would reach this milestone 🥺

— uni student! izuku, katsuki, shoto, eijirou, denki, shinsou and evil turned good! dabi x reader headcanons ♡

— To further elaborate, this is a Dabi that turned Good for his bby bro because I know that this is physically impossible in the manga and i found it hard to play around with a cute and fluffy set of hcs within a villain context. so pls let me have a good Dabi just this one time qwq

— if you like to see more from me, i have an ongoing bakugo x fem reader! smau called cuddle buddy! read it here! for my bnha masterlist check it out here! ♡

— please reblog, reply and leave like if you enjoyed! it means a lot! c:

— all universal studios japan photos are taken by me. Most of these headcanons are also based on my experience in Universal Studios Japan! (๑•͈ᴗ•͈)

— content warning: slight innuendo/sexual content, strong language and mention of Endeavor

— summary: You spend a wonderful day in one of the most happiest places on earth with your just as wonderful significant other.

— You and Izuku stroll through Hogsmeade of the newly opened Hogwarts area of the Park. Your hand in his and your arms interlocked.

— Izuku would geek out. As in geek out. He very much loved Harry Potter growing up and being able to go to USJ was a dream come true.

— “It’s LeviOSA not LeviOSAR.” You continue to make Harry Potter jokes and Izuku was loving every minute of it. He could not stop laughing.

— You loved seeing his laugh as it made your heart feel all fluffy inside. God. why must this boy be so cute?

— Izuku is just as big of a Potterhead as you. The two of you took the Hogwarts House test online and Izuku was sorted into Gryffindor whilst you were sorted into Slytherin. Two complete opposites yet you guys were the most adorkable couple ever.

— Even the amusement park goers (the couples in particular) couldn’t help but turn their eyes to the two of you.

— The two of you are wearing matching Hogwarts robes, earning compliments from the staff giggling about how cute the two of you are!

— YOU GUYS WERE MOST PROBABLY THE CUTEST COUPLE IN THE AMUSEMENT PARK!??

— LIKE YES TWO SOFT CUTIES AND IN HOGWARTS ROBES OF ALL MATCHING OUTFITS THEY COULD HAVE WORN?? COUPLE GOALS

— You were originally going to hang out with the entire Dekusquad but ofc your friends just decided to play matchmaker and instead collectively backed out and said they were busy bc of uni (obvs a lie)

— You wonder why they would play matchmaker when the you and Izuku were already together in the first place and they know that very well HSKHSHSKHS

— anyways ochaco, tsuyu, shoto and tenya are very supportive wbk

— Izuku just wanted this day to be very special and to be between the two of you only.

— “Izu-kun! Let’s try out the Butterbeer and see if it tastes just as good as the books and movies make them to be!” You point to a food stall that sells the famous beverage seen in the series, with both alcoholic and non-alcoholic kinds.

— “Of course (Y/N)!-chan Anything for you!” He says sweetly and gingerly hands the money to the food vendor.

— For fun and because why the hecc not, you decided to order the alcoholic variant of the drink whilst Izuku had purchased the non-alcoholic one.

— In turn, you ended up becoming a little bit tipsy as the two of you enter the Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey ride.

— Izuku stares in awe as the waiting line makes you go through the interior of Hogwarts Castle. Both you and Izuku couldn’t help but just stare in amazement.

— You smile at the sight of your cute freckled boyfriend admiring the view and the area before him. It was as if he was transported into the actual world of Harry Potter and you couldn’t help but feel the overwhelming emotions he was feeling right now.

— The two of you hold hands during the entire attraction as both of you are seated in a 3-seater ride. T’was cute uwu

— Albeit the fact that you were a little bit tipsy, the entire 4-D ride was magnificent as it literally took you through every adventure Harry Potter and the rest of the cast had experienced.

— It was probably one of the best rides you’ve been to tbh??

— “The Dementors were so creeeeeeepy.” Izuku shuddered, rubbing his arm. “”They looked so real!” He turns to you, wonder and amazement plastered all over his face.

— “THE WORST THING ABOUT PRISON WAS THE DEMENTORSSSS.” You howled, your voice practically echoing around the exit area.

— “IZUkU!!! I LOAF YOUUUUUUU SOW MUCHHHHHIE.”

— Midoriya knew that you got a bit tipsy due to the butterbeer, as soon as he had noticed the body language you were showing, he supports your weight by holding you tightky and then slowly take you to the cafe near the entrance that served hot coffee.

— Thankfully, you were able to sober up so that the two of you could go around the rest of the park before the Night show took place in Hogwarts Castle.

— “You know, I’m so lucky to have you (Y/N)-chan. Just like how lucky Ron is to have Hermione.” He plants a kiss on your forehead, he firmly holds you as the evening light show of Hogwarts Castle begins.

— “You’re overreacting Izu-kun. I’m not as smart as Hermione.” You shake your head, trying to avoid eye contact as he just made another cheesy Harry Potter Joke. “More like I’m the Ron to your Hermione. I mess up sometimes yet you’re always there for me to help me up when I’m down.”

— “Then I guess we don’t have to compare ourselves to Ron and Hermione then. Because I wouldn’t have a life like this with you any other way. I love you (Y/N)-chan.”

— “I love you too Izu-kun.”

— An array of colorful fireworks pop in the sky and the both of you look deep into each other’s eyes, holding each other tightly til the festivities end.

— The two of you arrived at Universal Studios Japan earlier than most people. Bakugo always wanted to be first in line even though the two of you had fast passes to specific rides. He just rolls like that.

— You forced him to wear matching matching elmo and cookie monster headbands with you. You were wearing the Elmo one and he was wearing the Cookie monster design.

— He’d spoil you soooooooo bad like he’d be grumpy at first and refuse to buy you this cute little souvenir item you’d probably never use, but he’d still spoil the heck out of you. Just as long as it was mildly reasonable.

— He was all for thrill rides. As long as he got to show off how bad-ass and brave he is to you. That was until you discovered one of the Jurassic Park rides in the park and HOO BOY...

— You were internally squealing at the sight of him wearing the cookie monster that your brain just?? kinda stopped?? You secretly take a pic of your explosive boyfie and then change his contact name to Cookie Monster.

— You first enter the Jurassic Park area at the insistence of Kirishima, Kaminari, Mina and Sero whomst you were supposedly going to meet after 2 hours

— As you roam around, there’s awkward silence between the two of you until you begin to obnoxiously sing the theme song of the series to try and annoy Bakugo, “TENENENEN TENENENENEN TENENENEN”

—‘’(Y/N) Geez, could you stop singing that stupid song? It fucking annoys me.’’

—‘’No way we’re riding that shitty fucking water ride. I will not get wet today.”

— “Oh really? What if you get wet in different ways?”

—He smirks at you, taking your hand and rubbing your thumb, “Let’s see when we get home.’’

— “OH WAIT BUT FIRST LET’S SHARE A TURKEY LEG!’’ You point to a nearby food stall, selling turkey legs for 980 yen.

— Katsuki begrudgingly follows you to the stall and buys a turkey leg for the two of you to share.

—You were deep in thought. Fantasizing if you could eat the Turkey Leg with Katsuki “Lady and Tramp” style.

— Much to your dismay, Katsuki had finished the Turkey Leg before you could get another bite. You pout and cross your arms, yet he doesn’t notice you silently shooting daggers at him.

— You then quickly forget about the Turkey Leg as soon as the Flying Dinosaur attraction hovered above you. The amusing screams of the people riding it could be heard as it passed at a speed you could have never imagined.

— ‘’Suki-kun!! Let’s ride that next!’’

— ‘’We just ATE. Are you fucking serious right now?’’

— ‘’Or are you too chicken?’’ You tease him playfully. ‘’Hmm… Looks like eating the entire turkey leg turned you into a chicken now didn’t it?’’

— ‘’Fine. Fuck this.’’ He tilts his head, gesturing you to follow suit. ‘’Let’s get into the fast pass line.’’

— You get on the ride and see up close the details of the dinosaur as it’s positioned upright for you two to get on. You take your seats and are instructed to strap yourselves in the seat.

— You get a wonderful view of the sea as the ride continues to ascend, going up and down, at high speeds. You begin to scream your heart out, the adrenaline rushing through you. Bakugo tries to put up a face, not wanting to scream and show any weakness. You look at him again as the ride arrives at a downwards slope, creating a momentum before it descends again at high speed.

— The ride begins to move, positioning itself like a pterodactyl would. You take Bakugo’s hand and give it a tight squeeze. You look at him for comfort and he nods at you lovingly. You were at ease albeit the fact that the two of you are about to experience one of the most terrifying amusement park rides ever.

The two of you are then positioned to be dangling in mid-air, the safety strap from a while ago being the only thing holding you in place.

— ‘’(Y/N)! I LOVE YOU!’’ He screams his lungs out as the ride passes through the ocean again, giving you a clear view of the sea surrounding the wonderful prefecture of Osaka.

— You smile cheekily and begin to scream from the top of your lungs too. ‘’I LOVE YOU TOO KATSUKI!’’

— ‘’Did you really mean that I love you?’’ You ask him. Your adrenaline is still pumping you up.

— ‘’Of course I did you nerd. I had to get it out of my chest.’’ He says, avoiding eye contact, scratching the back of his neck.

— The ride then ends abruptly and you could never feel more grateful. You could practically kiss the floor as your legs shaked once you got off. Katsuki supports you with his arm around yours and the two of you get off the ride.

— ‘’I want to hear you say that again.’’ You poke his cheek but he doesn’t move an inch.

— ‘’Come on. We have to go look for Kirishima in the others.’’

— ‘’One more time Suki-kun! Please?’’ You look at him with your most dramatic puppy eyes and he couldn’t help but give in.

— ‘’Fine.’’ He says grumpily. ‘’I love you.’’

— ‘’I love you too. Let’s never ride that again.’’

— ‘’Agreed.’’

— Shoto made sure that he would make the most of the time with you before the two of you go back to University. Booking the most luxurious hotel available, fine dining every single night you were in Osaka and going on private local tours and taking high-end trips to Nara and Kyoto.

— He’s spoiling you so so so bad and as much as you didn’t want Shoto to spend too much, he kept on insisting.

— This is also why he decided your trip near your birthday so that in a sense, this is his birthday surprise for you too!

— He wanted to go all out just for you.

— You feel like you’re in Cloud 9 every time you’re with Shoto. How much more when you’re going on an extra special trip with him?

— “This Eren Jeager’s voice sounds familiar. It’s as if we have the same voice.” Todoroki looks at the screen perplexed, putting on the 4-D Glasses and making sure you were already comfortable on your seat.

— ‘’I know right. You’re hotter of course.’’ You whisper, giving him a peck on the cheek.

— Attack on Titan is your all time favorite anime ever.

— Shoto wasn’t too well-versed in anime, so him bringing you to USJ is one of the best things he could ever do for you.

— Especially since the park had a limited time Attack on Titan 4-D Attraction!!

— YOU KNEW you had to go there and it was also a perfect opportunity for you to bond with Shoto

— As long as you were happy and he could support you with your interests, he was happy too.

— Being able to go on the Attack on Titan 4D Ride was a dream come true.

— You brought Shoto to the souvenir shop first and bought matching headbands for the two of you.

— You were wearing a headband that had two little chibi Levis on each side whilst Shoto had little chibi Erens on his uwu

— He’d be spoiling you so so much !!! Any souvenir item you’d set your eyes on, he’d immediately buy it for you!!

— Before you can even say no, he’s already bought it using his luxurious black credit card. YOUR BOYFIE WAS RICH OFC I MEAN WHAT WOULD YOU EXPECT!?

— "That was amazing." Todoroki says in awe, still trying to process the thrill he had just experienced. "I wonder what would happen if titans started appearing all of a sudden?"

— "Let's say a smol titan appears right now. I wonder if you could pierce it with your ice?" You tilt your head, beginning to think about unrealistic scenarios. "Anywhooo, shall we go to the next ride on our list? It's called Hollywood Dream!"

— "Let's gooooo~" He hums monotonously, earning giggles from you. He wraps an arm around your shoulder, pulling you close as you walk side by side.

— “Okay... so there are two variants to this ride. There’s one that goes in reverse and the other one goes so high up that we have an overview of the whole park.” You go through a brochure that you picked up at the entrance.

— “Whichever one you’re more comfortable with (Y/N).”

— “Let’s go on the one where we can see our hotel because of how high it is!”

— “OKAY NVM THIS WAS A BAD IDEA.” You say as the rollercoaster begins to reach it’s momentum, the ride going higher and higher. Until you can see your hotel and every recognizable landmark from afar.

— Shoto then clasps your hand, giving it a tight squeeze. “It’s okay (Y/N). I’m right here. Just hold my hand okay?”

— You nod slowly, taking a deep breath. You close your eyes and feel a fell swoop on your stomach as the wind passes through your face.

— Justin Timberlake’s Can’t Stop the Feeling begins to play as the rollercoaster begins to descend from roaring heights. They purposefully attached speakers to the ride so that the park goers would feel hyped up and excited instead of being terrified of how high up they are.

— Shoto’s hands are still intertwined with yours. You weren’t letting go.

— The screams of everyone else in the ride grows louder and louder and you can’t help but sing to the song instead.

— “I GET THIS FEELINGGG INSIDE MY BONES! IT GOES ELECTRIC, WAVEY WHEN I TURN IT ONN.” You began to sing, raising your arms up high as you slowly begin to enjoy the ride.

— Shoto who was sitting on the end yet is still able to keep his calm composure, turns to you, and a small smile flashes on his face when he sees you channel your nervousness through singing.

— He begin to sing along with you too! AAAHHH WHAT A CUTIE

— “All through my city, all through my home, We're flying up, no ceiling, when we in our zone.” He continues. You look at him and ease up a little bit once you see his handsome face and comfortable presence beside you.

— And before you knew it, the ride came to a stop. It was finally over. You take a deep breath and Shoto helps you out of your seat.

— “I got that sunshine in my pocket! Got that good song in my feet. I feel that hot blood in my body when it drops!” You and Shoto begin to duet to the pop and colorful song. You begin to fully enjoy the ride, barely even noticing the ride making sharp and fast turns as it continues to go up and down.

— “I might have hated it at first but that was exhilarating.”

— “I knew you could do it.” He says proudly, planting a kiss on your forehead. “You are the bravest person I know after all.”

— “I wouldn’t have overcome my fears if it weren’t for you though.” You scrunch your nose, and hold on to Shoto’s arm. Your heart still beating so fast. “Thank you for being my safe space Shoto. I’m always at peace whenever I’m with you. Thank you for always being my comfort person.”

— “Of course (Y/N). Why wouldn’t I be?” He tilts his head, clueless. “Are you game enough to ride the reversed one this time?”

— “Of course I am!”

— He chuckles, “That’s my love. If you feel like you can’t do it, Just know that I’m always here to support you.”

— The first attractions on your list were the water rides. More specifically the Jurassic Park Water Ride and the JAWS ride.

— You and Kirishima would try every ride in the park if you could. He loved to try and experience new things especially if he’s able to do them with you!

— Kiri is a very very fun person and would always be game with anything tbh!!

— You’re wearing matching dinosaur hats with Kirishima!!

— ‘’RAWR!’’ You make cutesy dinosaur gestures at your boyfriend, jumping around in your place. ‘’Can you believe we’re finally here in USJ!?’’ He blushes profusely, pecking your cheek.

— ‘’I can’t believe it too.’’ He chuckles then pauses for a moment before...

— ‘’RAWR!’’ He says back, his hands forming into claws, his cute mouth open wide and his sharp shark teeth very much visible. You giggle at his returned gesture, finding it more cuter than you should.

— ‘’(Y/N) you’re adorable! You know that right?’’ He laughs and continues to hold you tightly.

— ‘’Pshh of course I do! I have an equally adorable boyfriend too!’’ You look up at him, beaming.

— The two of you then jump in your place in unison, both mimicking each other’s cute ‘’RAWR!’’ and hand gestures as Kirishima pulls you into a hug.

— ‘’Don’t forget manly!’’ He winks and grabs your hand, taking you to the Jurassic Park Water ride.

— “I actually find it smart that we go on the water rides first so that we can just change clothes immediately after. Good thinkening Kiri!” You remark, patting him on the head.

— THINKENING??? THINKENING??? Eijirou could not think straight right now because of how cute you are

— ANYWAY HE WASNT GOING TO LOOK OR ANYTHING KIRISHIMA IS A GENTLEMAN HE IS NOT A BAD BOI WHO WILL GIVE IN TO TEMPATION!!

— You looked so excited to go on the rides and he couldn’t be happier seeing you like this

— IT ALSO DIDNT HELP THAT YOU WERE WEARING A WHITE SHIRT SO IF YOU DID GET WET THEN 👁👄👁

— The ride begins and the all too familiar theme song of the series begins to play as the gates to the Jurassic Park opens as the water ride begins to move

— Although the ride was very predictable, and you knew the surprise at the end was the T-rex trying to jumpscare you as the ride falls down a high incline, splashing all of the people on the ride.

— Kirishima still looked like he had lots of fun.

— He turns to you, a huge cheeky smile plastered upon his face as he tries to dry his clothes. “That was fun!”

— The ride may seem calm at first, but then the T-Rex begins to secretly appear around the forest-ish area surrounding the water ride.

— “It was!” You smiled back. You look down on your shirt innocently. “I didn’t expect that I’d get this wet so I thought wearing a white shirt would be-”

— “LET’S BUY YOU A JURASSIC PARK SHIRT IN THE SOUVENIR SHOP OKAY!? SO THAT YOU WON’T WASTE YOUR OTHER CLOTHES AND YOU CAN CHANGE IN THEM FOR THE JAWS RIDE INSTEAD.” Eijirou stands up so suddenly from the boat. He takes you by the hand without shooting you another glance as not to show how flustered he was.

— “Okay then...” You reply, as Kirishima whisks you away, leading you to the souvenir shop just outside of the attraction.

— Kirishima breathes a sigh of relief as he sees you exit the comfort room.

— He calls you over, “(Y/N)! While you were changing your clothes, I went back to the souvenir shop and realized that they were actually couple shirts!

— We are so Adora-saurable! was written on both of your shirts along wtih a cute dinosaur couple print on them.

— “Funny how you were able to find a Dinosaur pun on the word adorable! What a coincidence!” You giggle, poking Kirishima’s cheek. “I think we had enough of dinosaurs for now. Shall we check out the other rides?”

— “Right beside ya!” Kiri flashes you his signature smile, taking your hand in his again, swinging it back and forth as the two of you continue to your next destination.

— The way you scolded him was more in a joking way though!!

— You guys arrive a bit late because Kaminari ended up sleeping through his alarm 🙃

— When the two of you met up at the entrance you scolded him so bad because you practically lost two hours and HNGGGGG

— All he could do was hug you tightly from behind and say “gomen!” “gomen!” over and over again

— you were loving every second of it!!!! denki was being super cute and you couldn’t help but just go uwu

— BUT THEN YOU SCOLDING HIM DIDN’T REALLY MATTER BC YOU GUYS HAD FAST PASSES

— YOU DO BE FLEXING YOUR FAST PASSES THO

— THE TWO OF YOU FELT LIKE RICH KIDS FLEXING YOUR GUCCI FLIPFLOPS WHEN IN FACT YOU WERE FLEXING YOUR FAST PASSES

— OK SO you and Kaminari decided to go to the Despicable Me/Minions area first not just for the memes but also because it was the most popular attraction this season.

— You also wanted to get on the rides there first since it takes 2 hours before you can even get in

— YOU HAVE MATCHING MINION POPCORN BUCKETS WITH HIMM!!

— The design of yours was a cute little minion holding a teddy bear whilst his was a special Christmas reindeer edition.

— “(Y/N)-chan! Look at the line! Should we line up and take a picture with the Minions!?” He points to a meet and greet line for the yellow mascots

— You weren’t exactly the biggest fan of these abominations but facebook mom memes aside, Denki looked super super excited and you didn’t want to ruin a great start to a perfect day so you just went with it.

— The staff attendants thought Kaminari looked super excited like cute little sparky puppy seeing the minions so they gave you cute minion button pins!!

— The Despical Me Area pretty much played Happy by Pharell Williams non-stop as people stroll around so you and Denki couldn’t help but dance along to it.

— It didn’t matter if people looked at the two of you weirdly either!! Just being with denki and being chaotic with him is one of the best feelings ever and he feels the same way too

— You guys did all kinds of funky dances til the two of you got exhausted and decided to try out the other rides.

— There were also carnival game stands and Kaminari ended up winning you the exact same unicorn stuff toy seen in the Despical Me movies.

— Cotton Candy, Gumballs, Skittes, anything remotely sweet being sold on the stalls, you tried all of them.

— “IT’S SO FLUFFFFFY!!!” You imitate one of the cute characters from the movie, hugging the stuffed toy to your chest. “Thank you Kami-kun! I will cherish this forever!”

— Kaminari grins widely, “I know you aren’t too fond of the Minions but thank you for still going with me to this area first.” You can see the emotion and the appreciation in his eyes.

— “OMG DENKI OFC! WHY WOULD I NOT ENJOY THIS!?” You say incredulously. “I had such an amazing time! Minions and their annoying voices aside. I always have the best time when I’m with you!”

— Crocodile tears start to form on Denki’s eyes as he pulls you into a hug. “AAAAAAAHH (Y/N)-CHAN I LOVE YOUUUUUUUUU. THANK YOU FOR BEARING WITH ME. I’M DOING THIS FOR THE MEMES.”

— You giggle, patting Kaminari on the back. “It’s alright alright. I love you too! But this time you have to compensate by going on a horror ride with me okay?”

— “Ahahahahahaha what?”

— Endeavor had sponsored your trip and all expenses to ~try~ and start to mend his broken relationship with his son, although you refused at first, Toya did not. When he went to visit his mother and Enji was there to visit too, He got the money from him, ignored him, and flipped him off (aka gave him the bad finger) before leaving.

His three other siblings were in on this trip too. However, Toya wanted your trip to Universal Studios Japan between the two of you ONLY. His siblings went on a different day.

— He wasn’t the biggest fan of matching outfits or any accessories with you like any couple would and you didn’t want to pry on that. He really wasn’t the type of person to do that to begin with.

— And although on the inside he does feel a bit sorry about not being able to be cutesy with you it just really wasn’t his thing.

The two of you would most probably make out in a secluded area in the Hogsmeade area that is barely noticed by any other park goers. How daring and how secsy

‘’Seriously? Snoopy and Hello Kitty? THIS is the area you want to go in first?’’

—‘’Come on! It’s not everyday you get to loosen up like this. Why not try out the kiddie rides first? Besides, I want to see how long you can last without taking the cuteness anymore.”

— The staff sees you enter the Snoopy and Woodstock ride and couldn’t help but ask a very imprudent question. “The two of you look like such a cute couple! I bet your child is just as precious!”

—“Excuse me… what?” You ask, your eyes widen. “We’re not-”

—“The kid is on it’s way. We’ll have one soon once we return here.” Toya says casually, sending you a flirtatious wink and you feel flushed and slightly embarrassed.

—“Jeeeeeeeeeez. Did you really have to say that?” You try to avoid contact with him so he wouldn’t see the embarrassment or rather the arousal present all over your face.

—“What? It’s true.” He smirks, taking your hand. “Do you not want anything to happen between us?” He teases again.

—“NO NO NO NO ITS NOT THAT.” You yelp in embarrassment, your eyes still cast down on the ground.

—You notice him kneeling down and before you could even react, instead of facing the ground, you were staring down at your boyfriend’s handsome face instead.

—“Come on… I thought we were going to the Hello Kitty ride next?

— “Oh yeah right! That ahahaha let’s go!” You look up again before he could see your face looking like a tomato.

— You couldn’t help but be flustered by his words time and time again. This time though there was no point in hiding it. He got to you.

— He grabs you by the waist, and whispers into your ear, “Besides, I’m saving matching outfits with you once we bring our child here in the future. We would be the cutest fucking family out there.”

— You’ve already been dating for a year?? and your heart still flutters every time?? anything remotely romantic comes out of his mouth???

— HE WAS SUCH FLIRT OH LORD AND YOU JUST SWOON AND FALL FOR HIM EVEN MORE

— The other couples for some reason never thought of going on the cutesy rides, so as soon as they saw you and Toya going on them, the line for most of the rides got even longer.

— Toya might be lowkey an edgelord but you guys became trendsetters in a span of an hour!!

— OK BUT SPEAKING OF EDGELORD... DABI AS AN E-BOY HURRRRRRRRR YOU MAY OR MAY NOT BE MANIFESTING YOUR BOYFRIEND TO SUDDENLY BE IN E-BOY CLOTHES ON THE SPOT TOTALLY NOT NOPE NOPE NOPE NEVER

— He still looked hot just wearing a plain dark hoodie but you still couldn’t get the thought of Toya wearing those fits out of your head.

— “Earth to (Y/N)? You’re spacing out again.” He waves a hand in front of your face and you snap back to reality. “We’ve rode every attraction here. I think we should go check out the other rides? The Jaws one next please. I can’t stand all this cute sparkly cuteness anymore.”

— “AHAH! YOU FINALLY SNAPPED!” You laugh, acting as if you finally got back at Toya for making you such a blushing and stuttering mess just a few minutes ago. Dabi shrugs it off however.

— “OKIE! Now that I got out of my system, let’s continue to go around shall we?” You huff and pace off to the next ride that you wanted to go on.

— Toya shakes his head and smirks, following you to wherever you were going to take him next. That didn’t stop him from teasing you every few minutes though.

— The two of you did come back to USJ, but only a few days later to accompany Shoto since Fuyumi and Natsuo had to take the train home due to having to attend important matters.

— The same park attendant who complimented you and Dabi was managing the Snoopy ride again. She recognizes the two of you instantly and waves. “Oooh! I didn’t think the two of you would come back again so early! Is this the cute child you were talking about?”

— You and Toya collectively facepalm whilst Shoto looks at the staff with a very puzzled look.

— Hopefully, the next time you come back, you finally have a happy family with Toya and you can finally show off to that sassy ol’ attendant that you have a cute little kid with you to go on rides with.

—This is officially your 7th date with Shinsou.

— Although the two of you are already official, you can’t help but feel and notice how cold and distant he is to you still. As if he hasn’t exactly opened up to you.

— And you didn’t want to end this day without seeing him loosen up and open his shell.

— You wanted a relationship with Shinsou in where the two of you could talk to each other about your own problems and help each other out.

— That was the ideal relationship after all, and you knew for a fact that you could have something special like this with Shinsou.

— He did confess to you through a love poem and if that isn’t the most romantic thing ever, then I don’t know what is.

— You wanted to be his comfort person after all. Just as he is with you although I think he doesn’t know that yet exactly.

— “SOU-KUNNNN you know what else we can do?”

— “...What?”

— “Let’s go on all the boring rides!!” You take his hand and start running to the next attraction.

— “T-that’s not actually a bad idea. Let’s go.” He mutters, albeit shy at the touch of your hands at first, he grows comfortable after a few minutes with your hand intertwined with his.

— SHINSOU IS SO TOUCH-STARVED AND YOU CAN’T WAIT TIL YOU GIVE HIM ALL THE HUGS AND KITHES IMAGINABLE LATER THAT NIGHT

— It was the middle of the afternoon and the park was less busier than usual, which meant all the time for you and Shinsou to try out every exhilarating ride the park had to offer.

— The only ones left were more performance-based attractions where you would be watching a live musical or play. One of those being a Terminator based ride.

— The concept of a Terminator live-action retelling was pretty cool but certainly not you or Shinsou’s cup of tea either. However, it was your goal with him to try out every ride in the park. So, eh why not?

— The two of you sit in the front seat, making Shinsou within range of the stage actors to be affected by his quirk.

— “Don’t try to make them do anything bad okay?” You whisper to him. “This live show does look boring and really needs to liven up a little.

— “I won’t do that of course. Let’s just make this show more entertaining.”

— He then uses his quirk on the stage actors, making them do fun and entertaining dances.

— The audience burst out into laughter as Shinsou had unintentionally made a twist to the musical playing before you.

— “Of course not! You made that Terminator Musical much better! I bet they took notes and try to switch up the acting and the cheesiness for the next show!”

— “Hopefully they will. Because the show was boring as hell.” He deadpans, putting his hands in his pockets.

— Everyone in the theatre left in good spirits.

— He stops in his tracks and looks at you. How lucky he was to have someone like you in his life.

— “Thank you for today too (Y/N). I really enjoy spending time with you like this.” He looks away, yet fails to hide his flustered face.

— “You’re welcome!” You lean in and tiptoe to kiss him on the cheek.

— Despite how cold and straightforward he may be sometimes, you never complained. You accepted him for who he was and who he is.

— The two of you take the train ride home in peace and solace knowing that slowly but surely, Shinsou becomes more and more comfortable with you and you can’t wait for the time he finally opens up and bears his heart to you.

Thank you for reading ♡

-Fin

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totalbetty · 2 years

Text

Touch || Lee Jeno - III.

description | In a world where everyone has a soulmate, but not everyone is destined to meet their other half, Ru didn't think she could be an exception. After all, what kind of story starts with an ordinary, teenage orphan like her? However, all that changed when her eyes met his: big, dark and mysterious.

chapter eleven.

The wooden floor of the bedroom wasn't exactly the most comfortable place to study— or to do anything, for that matter— but Ru laid on the floor anyway, her textbooks sprawled across the floor.

It had been over an hour since she gave up doing her homework. In the middle of working on a particularly boring essay, Ru received a phone call from Chohee; it was a group call for the three of them. Since then, she had been on a call with them, her school tasks completely forgotten.

"No waaay, seriously?" Chohee's squeaky voice blared through her phone.

"I know!" Jia's sweet voice filled the air, "I felt so bad, letting him down in front of all his friends like that."

"Hold on," Ru interrupted. She was now lying down on her back, facing her ceiling fan. "Is this the same guy we were talking about last time?"

Jia chuckled. "No, actually, this is another—"

"—Oh my god, we forgot to tell you," Chohee squealed, speaking over Jia. "This one's a toootally different guy! He's, like, not even from our school."

Another guy? Ru laughed in disbelief. She couldn't blame these boys for liking Jia, though. Not only is she gorgeous, but she has this sweet and angelic presence. She'd be lying if she said Jia didn't catch her attention too.

"What was his reaction?" Ru asked.

"Oh, it was bad!" Jia exclaimed. "He got all sad and walked away without even saying a thing. His friends made it even worse, though; they all laughed— made everything so awkward. Now I just have a bouquet of roses and a bunch of chocolates."

Ru could hear Chohee cackling on the other line. "Share the chocolates!"

"Come over and we'll eat the chocolate together! We can paint our nails again and talk about our failed love lives— my nail polish is already chipping."

Ru instinctively raised her hand above her, admiring the viridian green nail polish on her hands as a little smile formed on her face.

Chohee responded, "oh, what do you mean, 'failed love lives'? You've had plenty of chances at a love life. Are you ever gonna accept anyone's confession?"

There was a slight pause, before Jia said, "I will! I'm just waiting for that someone special."

"Oooh, someone special? Are you talking about a particular someone?" Chohee teased.

"No, of course not! Ru's probably bored of my stupid drama, anyway, we should talk about something else."

Bored? Ru spent many nights watching and reading drama-related content, and now she finally has a real one; it was weirdly exhilarating.

"Don't try to change the subject Jia," Ru giggled, "give us all the details."

Chohee's laugh filled her room. "You see, even Ru's invested!"

There was another brief silence, like Jia didn't quite know what to say now. However, Chohee interrupted the silence with a little gasp.

"Oh my god, don't tell me you're waiting for your soulmate or something! That stuff only happens in the movies, babe."

"No!" Jia's soft voice responded quickly. "Are you crazy? I'm not one of those soulmate fanatics."

The three of them laughed boisterously at Jia's declaration. However, Ru couldn't help but feel something tugging at her.

She's not a soulmate fanatic, is she? She never intended on finding her soulmate, she just... did. Nonetheless, she couldn't ignore the fact that for these past few weeks, soulmates had been a pretty prevalent topic in her mind. She befriended a boy just because she stupidly thought they were soulmates— oh god, did Jeno think she was some soulmate fanatic?

Obviously, there's nothing wrong with explicitly waiting for your soulmate, it's just that it has been proven to be such a lost cause, anyone who does so comes across as foolish. She hoped she didn't sound stupid... No, you know what? Having a hunch that you may have found your soulmate but not acting on it is what's stupid.

Yeah, would've been stupid to stay silent, Ru nodded at herself in reassurance.

She was interrupted from her agitation by a voice calling her from a distance.

"Ru, can you come downstairs?"

It took her a second to realize that it was Mrs. Choi calling her from downstairs.

"Guys, I have to go now," Ru spoke into her phone. The girls greeted her goodbye and she hung up.

"Coming!" Ru called out, picking up her phone as she stood up. She walked out of her room and down the stairs to find the entire family by the front door. Dabin was on the floor, putting on his shoes, Mr. Choi putting on his jacket just by the coat hanger.

"Ah, there you are," Mrs. Choi said as she was fixing her coat.

Ru stopped just in front of them, feeling slightly out of place.

"We're all going to the hospital. Will you be okay home alone?" Mrs. Choi asked, finally turning around to face Ru.

"Yes, I'll be fine." Ru nodded. "Is something wrong?"

"Oh, no, no—" Mrs. Choi waved her arm dismissively— "just a hospital check-up."

Ru nodded again, feeling slightly awkward. She didn't really know if she should wait for them to leave the house or if she could go back to her room now. She watched silently as Mr. Choi rummaged through her bag until she finally fished something out of it.

"In case you want to leave, here's the spare key so you can lock up the house." Mrs. Choi handed her a key with a tiny bird keychain.

"Thank you—" Ru reached out for the key, giving Mrs. Choi a polite smile.

As Ru grabbed the key, Mrs. Choi noticed her dark green nails. "Oh, did you get those with your friends?"

Ru nodded as she grinned shyly; a warm smile spread across Mrs. Choi's face. "I used to do those with my friends too, when we were younger. You know, we should go and get our nails done sometimes! I've always wanted to go with someone, but Little Dabin here would throw a tantrum if I ever dragged him to a nail salon."

She glanced at Dabin, who was now scowling at his mother.

Mrs. Choi chuckled gleefully. "Alright, then. We'll see you later, darling. Bye!"

Ru waved them a silent goodbye as they all walked out the door, closing it behind them. She sighed in relief, skipping steps as she climbed up the stairs. She could name a lot of things she didn't want to do right now, and one of them would be spending hours alone with Mrs. Choi.

She felt slightly guilty about feeling that way, but it was weird how Mrs. Choi treated her like a little kid— or even worse, her little kid. At least she didn't have to worry about that today.

Upon entering her room, she was greeted with the messy pile of work on the floor. She groaned, crumbling to the ground at the thought of spending the rest of the day doing homework. She didn't really feel like doing anything particularly productive today, so she collected her textbooks, closing them all and putting them on her desk.

The sun was leaking into her room, giving the space a natural glow. She was tempted to sit all day and do nothing, but she decided against it. She got up to the bathroom, washing her face and brushing her teeth, even though she already did it this morning when she woke up.

Ding!

Her phone lit up beside her. Curious, she looked at her phone to find a new notification.

Jeno:) sent you a message.

She felt her heart skip. She reached for her phone but hesitated for a moment— what could he possibly be texting her for? She was almost too nervous to swipe, but she ignored her irrational anxiety. She picked up and swiped her phone, reading the message:

Jeno:) : Hey

Jeno:) : You busy?

She stared at the text. Was she busy? Does it matter if she's busy? Why does he want to know why she's busy? Confused and slightly intrigued, she replied.

Ru: No, why?

Oh god, the text must sound so dry. Her fingers danced over the keyboard, trying to come up with something else to say. Why was it so hard to come up with anything—

Ding!

A new message popped up on her screen.

Jeno:) : You still have the address for that psychic?

She furrowed her eyebrows. The psychic? She thought back to that day when they got the address; it was written on the back of the list of soulmate books she had written down. She hurried out of her bathroom and towards her backpack, crouching to reach it on the floor.

She rummaged through her bag, flipping through many books and stuffing her face into her bag to look into the deep corners of her bag. However, she was disappointed to find nothing.

Where did she put it? She didn't remember throwing it away, so it must be somewhere here. Her eyes wandered throughout the room cluelessly until they landed on a pair of jeans, barely peeking out of her clothes hamper.

She felt a tiny glimmer of hope surface as she crawled her way towards the hamper. She reached into its pockets, not expecting much. However, she felt a tiny piece of crumpled paper. Pulling it out, she straightened out the paper to find the address written messily on it.

Yes!, she cheered internally.

She took her phone and texted him back, telling him she had it with her. It took a while, but another message finally popped out on her screen.

Jeno:) : Good

That's it? Good? She tossed her phone on her bed, annoyed that she was expecting something else. What did he want with the address, anyway? Did he even want it? He didn't exactly ask her for it—

Knock, knock.

Her head shot up straight. What was that? She looked at her bedroom door. The knock didn't sound like it came from her door. After a moment of silence, she shrugged; it must be from outside.

Just as she was putting all her things back in her bag, she heard another knock— louder, this time. She stood up, confused. The knocks sound like they're coming from the...

She turned her head to the window and yelped.

There, just outside her window, was Jeno. He was crouched behind the window, pointing downwards for her to unlock it. She shook her head as she exhaled in relief, walking towards him. She unlocked her window, pulling the handle upwards to open them.

They stared at each other for a moment; Ru was a little speechless— there he was, just casually kneeling behind the window.

"You know," Jeno broke the silence, speaking in a low voice, "your room's really easy to break into."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "What on earth are you even doing outside my window?"

"We're going out," Jeno stated simply.

"No—" she rolled her eyes as she chuckled— "I mean, what are you doing outside my window? I hope you know what front doors are for."

"Oh." He paused, looking down at himself. He didn't realize how easy it was to climb the tree by her window; the fact that there was a roof conveniently placed under her window also caught his attention.

"I, uh—" he smiled— "as you can probably tell, I sneak out a lot."

He watched her lips curve into a little smile. "You idiot."

She turned around, gesturing for him to come in. The roof of her bedroom was strangely low; he could touch the ceiling if he raised his arm.

"Let me just get changed real quick," Ru announced as she grabbed some clothes from her wardrobe drawer.

"Why?" Jeno asked, trying to hold in a smirk.

She gave him a confused look. "Why? I'm in my pajamas, Jeno."

"So?" Jeno walked slowly towards her until they were in front of each other. He bent a little lower so their faces were at eye-level of each other.

The smirk finally grew on his face, and he watched in amusement as her confusion became more apparent.

"Changing out of your pajamas won't make you look any less like the sleepy little toddler you already look like most of the time, anyway."

"Wha—" Ru opened her mouth in retaliation, but nothing came out. She looked away shyly, before looking back at him with narrowed eyes— "I'm changing."

She huffed softly and turned around, walking into her bathroom. Jeno let out a little chuckle, shaking his head. He sat on her desk chair as he waited for her, pulling out his phone and randomly fiddling with it.

That was when he came accidentally across an email he had received earlier today— the message he wanted to distract himself from, even by visiting a stupid little psychic store he had no interest in.

It was a message from the foster care administration, informing him about his father. He felt his blood boil; what made them think he had any interest in his father's well-being? The man could jump off a cliff for all he cared.

Nonetheless, he couldn't help but re-read the message, his eyes painfully scanning through the paragraphs.

Lee Jeno, We have received updated information regarding your father, Mr. Lee's recent illness, which we are obligated to notify you about. Please be reminded that you also have 37 letters in our possession, addressed to you from said relative, one of which includes an application form to become an inmate-approved visitor. Please confirm your new address below in order to receive these letters.

He stopped reading the message; he let out a breath of frustration, turning his phone off in annoyance. He didn't care. He didn't want to care, nor would he ever care. He stood up, his eyes scanning the unfamiliar room around him as a way to distract him from his anger. Strangely, he felt his breaths steady the longer he looked at her room.

Her bedroom was a plain and small space; there wasn't much decoration or anything that would indicate a teenage girl lived here. All she had in her room was a small twin bed, a clothes drawer and a study desk just by the window.

On her bed was a single pillow, her blanket folded neatly on the corner of her bed. Her desk was a little messier than the rest of her room, the textbooks messily stacked and her stationery scattered across the desk.

His eyes wandered to her clothes drawer, a few bottles of lotions and other bathroom supplies neatly lined up on top of it. He walked towards it mindlessly, observing it. He noticed a little box, on top of it labeled 'Memories'.

Memories? Curious— and completely unmindful of the fact that he shouldn't be snooping around other peoples' belongings— he picked the lid off of the box. He expected to find pictures or letters but instead, he was staring back at a box full of buttons.

He noticed on top of all those buttons was the daisy button she bought with him all those weeks ago. Why does she have so many buttons?

"Ru?" Jeno called out.

"Yeah?"

"Do you sew?"

Her muffled voice responded, "I wish I did, why?"

"Uh, nothing." He looked back at the box of buttons, slightly more confused than he was before. So she just collects them? What kind of person collects buttons?

Suddenly, he heard the bathroom door unlock. He closed the box silently, sliding it back to its place.

Ru stepped out, wearing a slightly large grey wooly sweater, layered with a baby pink overall dress. He glanced at her briefly; he didn't know how it was possible, but she actually looked tinier now than she did before in her pajamas.

"So—" Ru picked up a small sling bag hanging on her door— "unless I completely misread your text, I assume we're going to that psychic."

"We are," Jeno replied.

Ru turned around to face him; now that she actually took the time to observe him, she realized how out of place he looked in her room. For starters, his black shirt and black ripped jeans made him look like an intruder— although she had to admit he'd be one hell of a fit intruder. Being in her low-ceiling room also made him look freakishly tall.

The sight of him against the background of her bedroom took her off-guard, but she regained her thoughts enough to utter, "I thought you thought it was stupid."

"I still do," he stated, stuffing his phone into his pocket, "but I'm a little curious now."

She furrowed her eyebrows skeptically. "O-kay, let's go then."

With that, she led them out of her bedroom and down the stairs by the dining room. They walked out the front door, Ru locking the door behind her.

"Can I have the address?" Jeno asked as they walked down the street.

"Oh—" she pulled the paper out of her little bag before handing it to him.

He read the address on the paper for a brief moment before stuffing it into his pocket. "I don't know the exact address, but I know the area."

She nodded silently, and off they went, into more crowded streets and sidewalks. It was hard for them to talk with all the crowds and chaos of the people around them, so Ru followed him quietly like she always did.

For the first few minutes of their walk, Jeno walked slightly ahead of Ru; his long legs made it really easy for him to do so. Every once in a while, he would look beside him and slightly to the back to make sure she was still there. It flustered her, honestly, making her feel like the little toddler he described her to be.

"Could you walk any faster? I feel like I'm walking with the Flash or something," Ru called out, slightly out of breath.

Jeno turned to look at her, slowing down with a slightly amused expression. "Could you walk any slower? I feel like I'm walking with a toddler or something— oh wait, you are one, huh?"

Ru narrowed her eyes, crossing her arms in protest. Before she could say anything, Jeno started laughing— his mesmerizing, crescent eyes almost distracting her from her frustration.

"Okay, seriously, you look even more like a baby now," he tittered as he approached her.

"Come here—" he pulled her in front of him. She didn't even process what he was doing yet, and suddenly they were walking again.

"Just walk," he instructed her as he chuckled.

"Wait—" she tried to look back at him without tripping— "I don't even know where to go—"

He grabbed her shoulder on both sides, steering her to the right just in time for a crosswalk. She tried not to stumble as she took one step after the other. He let go of her shoulders, but hovered closely behind her.

She took a deep breath— there it goes again, her stupid heart.

For the rest of the journey, she found herself trying hard not to think about his hands gripping her firmly to guide her through the crowd, about their bodies colliding with every abrupt stop, with every difficult path they had to navigate themselves through.

She cursed herself for feeling this way, but the truth was, she felt safe. The bustling people, the disorder she found herself whirled into as they passed little markets and underground malls; she had no clue where they were going, but she felt confident that they'd get there— that he'd get them there.

Soon, they entered a new stretch of road. Ru's mouth was slightly agape as she tried to take in the new scene before her.

The streets were lined on both sides with traditional structures, the red paper lanterns decorating the sky in a zig-zag pattern. The scorching sun blessed the landscape with a surreal glow, emphasizing the bright colors before her. The sea of people bustled about like a swarm of scattered ants, and in that moment Ru could only blink.

They were finally in Chinatown.

________________________________________

chapter twelve.

Ru had never been to a chinatown before, but this was exactly what she imagined it to be.

Her nose was greeted with the rich scent of various street foods, an abundance of little stalls settled along the long stretch of road, some even in the middle of it. Ru hated the crowd— she always has— but the life and excitement around her was undeniable.

Every nook and corner of the place, there were people going about their day. A little boy running after his mom with a miniature traditional lion dance puppet, an old man in a battered old undershirt fanning the skewered meat on his open grill.

"Buy four, get one free! Buy four, get one free!" The man boomed, inviting nearby passers with his sonorous voice.

The new and invigorating atmosphere almost made her forget about why they were here in the first place. That was until Jeno leaned in from behind her and spoke up, "how are we gonna find the psychic?"

How were they supposed to find the store in the middle of all this? She started to fan herself, the heat of the place finally catching up to her. Maybe she shouldn't have worn such a wooly sweater.

She leaned back so that he could hear her. "I guess we'll just have to look around."

They pushed their way through the crowd, keeping their eyes peeled for some sort of psychic store. Ru didn't actually know what she was trying to spot. What would a psychic store even look like?

As her eyes scanned the vast area, she spotted an otherwise ordinary stand that displayed two words Ru didn't know she wanted, but definitely did now— Cold Smoothies. Suddenly, it felt like the heat around her increased two folds, her throat instantaneously dry.

"Jeno—" she tugged on his shirt, her excitement building— "let's get smoothies!"

"What?" He leaned down, their height difference apparent as he bent down to hear her better.

"Let's get those smoothies!" She spoke up, pointing at the stall; the poorly drawn cup was starting to look tempting.

It seemed the crowd was relentlessly loud, as Jeno gave her a confused look and again, asked, "what?"

She sighed in mild frustration. With her mind occupied with the smoothie, it didn't even register in her brain when she took his hand in her's, pulling him with all her weight across the mass of people.

This time, it was her hand tightly bound around his, her small fingers wrapped eagerly around the palm of his hand. He followed her helplessly, his arm tugged forward as he took large strides to keep up with her fast pace. She couldn't walk this fast before?

They finally reached the stall; she dropped his hand without a second thought, letting his hand fall down to his side. He stood quietly beside her as she scanned the small menu board taped to the front of the stall, trying his best not to think about the tingling feeling that lingered on the palm of his hand.

"Excuse me, sir, I'll have the peach smoothie, please—" she looked up at Jeno excitedly— "do you want anything?"

Jeno stepped forward and gave the man a polite smile. "I'll have the chocolate smoothie."

The man gave them a jovial smile before he started cutting up fruits and crushing blocks of ice. Jeno's eyes lingered on her. She stood patiently, waiting for the man, but he couldn't help notice her head slightly bobbing to the rhythm of the crowd, her eyes glued to every move the man made.

The man finally finished the smoothies, handing it to them as they paid for it. They were about to walk away when Ru suddenly stopped.

"Wait—" she turned around, taking the piece of paper with the address on it and presenting it to the vendor— "excuse me, but do you know where this place is?"

The man wiped his hands on his apron as he took a closer look at the paper.

"Ah, that one—" he nodded— "red window over there."

The two of them looked simultaneously at where the man pointed. Barely visible from across the street, Ru spotted a small store cramped just at the edge of an intersection. Though rather plain and unassuming, her eyes easily found the red-painted door frame and windows.

They thanked the man and made their way across the four-way street while sipping their drinks. Ru had gotten used to the rowdiness by now; she slipped in between people with ease, her eyes locked on the psychic store.

Finally, they were in front of the store. On top of the store was a large sign written in Mandarin, presumably the store's name. The paint on the walls were already cracked and fading, although she could tell they had recently tried to paint at least the doorframe and windows a bright red— it didn't really do much for the store.

For such a crowded environment, this store looked as dead as they come. People walked past it like it didn't exist; if Ru didn't know any better, she'd imagine there were some sort of force field around the store that pushed the people around it further from the store.

Jeno walked up to one window, taking a quick peek inside. "Pretty empty."

"Oh, wait, look—" Ru pointed.

There was a sign just by one window: a silhouette of a burger and a beverage, with a large, red slash over it.

"No drinks inside." Ru shook her half-finished peach smoothie at him.

Jeno took another peek in contemplation. "There's no one inside."

"The shopkeeper's gonna be there. I'll just finish my drink here." Ru plopped down on the curb in front of the shop.

He wanted to protest, but couldn't be bothered. He sat down next to her, shaking his head. "You're such a goody-two shoe."

She gave him a cheeky smile, her teeth clasped on the straw.

Together they sat, people watching as they slurped down the rest of their drink. Ru didn't think it'd be so hard to finish the entire cup, but she felt her stomach expand further and further as she swallowed the drink. Jeno was almost finished with his drink, taking small sips as his eyes jumped from person to person.

He didn't even notice her glancing at him; she traced the outline of his lips with her eyes, the natural yet subconscious pout evident on his face. He always did it when he was distracted— pout.

It was the softest little pout she had ever seen on anyone— so tempting, so intriguing. Her eyes wandered to his; the secrets it hid behind, she wanted to know. His eyelashes were thick and long, giving his eyes an alluring charm.

She wanted to know.

"Jeno," she called suddenly, her straw still wedged in between her teeth.

His head snapped in her direction. "Mhm?"

"Can I ask you something?"

He furrowed his eyebrows skeptically, taking the final sip of his drink. "Shoot."

"Last week, when you guys almost fought with Jinwook..."

His face dropped; his jaw clenched.

"Jaemin, he uh—" she fought to keep her eyes on him even though she wanted to look away— "kinda told me about all your history with him. And his brother."

"He kept talking about a favor, and uh..."

Jeno looked away, taking in a sharp breath. God, maybe she shouldn't have asked. Her eyes started blinking in nervousness.

"You don't have to answer it if you don't want to—"

"No, it's not a big deal." He faced her, his eyes emotionless. "Jinkyu knew all about how I came into the system— about my dad. When he heard that my dad was only going to be sentenced to ten years with a chance of parole, he offered his help, told me he could get him to stay for longer."

Jeno shook his head subtly. "I wanted nothing to do with my dad, so I agreed. I don't know how Jinkyu did it or what he did for it, but my dad somehow ended up being sentenced thirty years with no chance of parole."

Oh. She looked down at her almost-finished peach smoothie silently. She didn't quite know why she was surprised. When he first told her about his mother's murder, she immediately assumed that prison was where his dad would be. But it felt different, hearing it come out of his mouth. It was like a bitter reminder, almost.

She bit her lips, not sure how to react. "Sorry."

She looked up and to her surprise, the stoic expression was gone. He shrugged nonchalantly. "Don't be. If I could have him sentenced for the rest of his life, I would."

She shot him an apologetic look, partially relieved that he wasn't mad.

He cleared his throat as he stood up. "Come on, let's go in."

They threw their cups into a nearby bin before finally entering the little shop. The little bell above them rang as they pushed open the door, and they stepped into the shop.

When the door closed behind them, it was like the crowd was muted. The hectic chinatown atmosphere faded into the background as Ru found herself in a new little world.

The room was so much dimmer and cooler than the brutal sun outside, with velvet curtains hanging on all sides of the wall. Rows of shelves held numerous little trinkets, many of which were unfamiliar to the two of them. In the centre of the room was a round table that displayed colorful gems and flashy tarot cards.

Ru looked over at the cash register. Nobody was there. Behind it was a door, slightly ajar. The shopkeeper must be back there; Ru reckoned the person could stay in there all day and it wouldn't really matter.

Next to it was a rotating bookshelf, and as Ru discovered, the entirety of the shelf showcased only one book: 'The Game of Chance: a Memoir'.

It finally dawned on her that she didn't quite know why they were here. Jeno was across the room, picking up a gem keychain off of a basket.

"So—" she walked over to him casually— "what are you looking at?"

He chuckled, lifting up a gem to show her. "Apparently this gem speeds up the Binding process between you and your soulmate so you could be Bound faster."

The bright teardrop-shaped opal gem hung motionlessly from his hand. She giggled at his comment, looking down at the collection of gems in the basket.

There were all sorts of colors and variations, each of them with a little tag that explained what the gem could do.

Who came up with these?, she wondered as she picked up a random, yellow stone.

She almost gagged. It was an irregular shape— probably the strangest one she could find. It was a rough textured, cylinder-like shape, and attached at the bottom of it were two big blobs of crystals protruding from its sides.

She tried so hard not to let her jaw drop to the floor. Do they not know this is shaped exactly like a...?

At that point, Jeno looked over at the gem in her hand. Just like telepathy, they both made eye-contact, their lips pursed in shock. A second later, they both burst out laughing, his nose scrunched in bewilderment.

Jeno took the gem from her hand, uncontrollable laughter now escaping his lips. Still in disbelief— and slight amusement— he opened its tag and they both read:

like the compass points due north let this crystal set forth your journey towards the beauty of spiritual re-unity

She shook her head, a wide grin forming on her face. Seriously?

She still couldn't believe the shape of the gem; how could nobody have realized while making this?

She read the tag again and scoffed. "Like the compass that points due north? More like due south—"

Eyes wide, she stopped mid-sentence, feeling awfully out of place that she had said that out loud.

Jeno, on the other hand, looked at her; his eyebrows were raised in pleasant surprise. "What did you just say?"

She shook her hand and looked away, burying her head into her hands as she tried hard not to burst into laughter again.

Beside her, Jeno nudged her in protest. "Say that again, you dirty—"

"Greetings, my dear soul searchers! Are you looking for anything in particular?"

The two of them jumped at the sudden voice, immediately dropping the gems back in its basket.

Before them was a lanky middle-aged woman, dressed in a silky patterned dress that reached her ankles. She wrapped herself in a concerning amount of dark scarves, her long nails digging into the fabric as she stared at them through her thick-rimmed glasses.

Ru gave the lady— who must be the shopkeeper— a kind smile. "Oh, no, we're just looking around, thank you."

She looked away on purpose, hoping the lady would do the same. However, she could still see from the corner of her eye that the lady remained. Ru gave the lady another glance, and was surprised to see she was actually approaching them.

The lady had her beady eyes on Jeno. He seemed to have noticed this as well; he plastered an awkward smile, his eyes avoiding her gaze.

It was safe to say the lady was mesmerized by him. She walked towards him with subtle steps, her arms slightly outstretched like she wanted to reach him. As soon as she was in front of him, she stopped. Her hands cupped his face in amazement. Maybe it was her glasses, but her eyes looked wide in fascination.

"Beautiful boy—" she studies his face, oblivious to the fact that she was touching a random stranger's face— "strong bones, pure skin. Your nose brings you fortune, my boy, and your eyes— wisdom!"

Ru bit her lower lip; she didn't know it could be so difficult to try not to laugh. Jeno's cheeks looked soft and squishy under the woman's grip.

All of a sudden, she let go. Her gaze switched towards Ru now; her abnormally large eyes looked at her like it were its own creature. Just like that, Ru's smile faded. The lady displayed a crooked smile, eyeing her up and down.

"You're not so bad yourself, darling. I believe if I focus enough energy, I ought to discover your fortunes."

What's that supposed to mean?

Before she could say anything, however, the lady grabbed ahold of Ru's arm, wrapping it around both her hands as she hugged it and pulled her in the direction of the back room. The lady gave Jeno a brief glance, not stopping. "Now, boy, you must come with her."

Ru turned around and gave Jeno an alarmed look. He merely shrugged, following closely behind her without saying another word.

The lady dragged her past the cash register and through the staff door, her arm still wrapped around Ru like a child hugging their favorite teddy bear.

Ru didn't know what she expected, but it definitely wasn't this. Through the door was a small room, the walls covered in the same velvet-like material that hung outside like curtains, only this time they covered every corner of the wall.

The room was cramped, big enough for only a single round, wooden table and a few cushioned seats. There was a shiny crystal ball sitting in the middle of the table, a variety of gems and tarot cards along with several wood-scented candles lit around the room.

Of course it's a reading room, she thought, wondering why she hadn't expected this before.

The lady finally let go of Ru and rushed to her seat at the further side of the table.

"Come, sit, children—" she gestured at the seats opposite her, waving her hands in what felt like an attempt at mysticism.

The two of them gave each other a very brief, yet very telling look before they sat down awkwardly. In front of her on the table was a name placard, presumably one that belonged to her. Esmeralda, it read— definitely a stage name.

Esmeralda put both her hands on the table, the palms of her hands opened, facing up. The room was silent for a moment; Esmeralda looked at the two of them, her eyebrows raised. "Come on— your hands, please."

"Oh—" Ru took her hand and placed it on top of her hand reluctantly; Jeno did the same.

Instantly, Esmeralda gripped both hands tightly, swaying them slowly on to the spot as she closed her eyes. Her hands were rough; Ru could feel the calluses on her palm.

Ru was tempted to look at Jeno because she knew for a fact that he was trying his absolute best not to laugh. However, she looked straight ahead, terrified that if she looked his way, she would burst into uncontrollable laughter and ruin everything for this poor lady.

Esmeralda started to sway herself, humming incoherent little tunes. With her eyes still closed, she started to whisper, "I feel it... the energy. From the moment you walked in, I felt the energy. Yes... yes, it's true."

She opened her eyes. "Two soulmates, re-united."

This time, Ru looked at Jeno and he was already looking at her. He raised his eyebrows at her, and she instantly understood what he was thinking— she's delusional.

Jeno cleared his throat, trying to play along; the lady looked at him, her eyes wide and lips slightly parted.

"But ma'am, how is that possible? I don't have a soul mark."

Esmeralda's eyebrows went rigid; her eyes shrunk a little, and it actually almost looked normal now. She opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out.

Oh god, this is so embarrassing for her.

Ru was waiting for her to stutter, to take back her words, or even kick them out but instead, she closed her eyes again, the dazed expression back on her face.

What was she doing?

"Of course, no soul mark... How fitting! The energy still prevails. I feel it, I can feel the energy. The story demands to be told."

Esmeralda opened her eyes and this time, she faced Ru.

"You, darling... You had a twin in the womb—" she nodded in confirmation— "Yes... But you swallowed dear Seoyeon before she had the chance to see the light of day."

What?

Did this lady just conjure up a fake sister for Ru and give her a name?

Esmeralda's eyes glided over to Jeno, causing him to lean back in apprehension. "Stripped... She was stripped of her birthright: re-unity with her soulmate."

"But of course—" Esmeralda shook her head in conspiracy, her eyes darted back to Ru— "you still have a piece of Seoyeon within you, which is why I felt the connection between the two of you."

Ru's lips were slightly parted in confusion. She must be joking.

Slowly, the lady let go of their hands, a solemn look on her face as it seemed like she was trying to focus on something. There was a weird moment of tranquility, almost like time was frozen.

Esmeralda looked up at the two of them and in all seriousness, said, "I can still feel the lingering aura, the prevalent energy begging to be brought forth. But with both your energies bouncing off of each other so magnificently, I'm afraid it makes it hard for me to further read your auras."

Ru sighed in relief, feeling the tension on her shoulders loosen. She anticipated her to draw an end to whatever it is they were doing, but Esmeralda crossed her arms, a certain intensity in her eyes. Now Ru was beginning to feel like they were far from over.

Esmeralda placed her hands on top of Ru's hand, causing her to flinch. The lady looked at Jeno and began to speak in a low tone, "I would like to further read this young lady's energy. Would you care to step outside for a moment?"

Jeno lifted his eyebrows skeptically, glancing at Ru.

It seemed that Esmeralda sensed the hesitation, because she continued, "don't worry, dear— you'll have your turn."

Her eyes continued to linger on Jeno, giving him no choice but to leave the room. He stood up, giving Ru a brief sucks-to-be-you kind of smile before he finally left the room.

Silence hung over the room once more as it was now just the two of them. Esmeralda's grip on Ru's hand tightened as their eyes connected. As much as Ru was weirded out, she found it very hard to break eye contact.

"I sense it... The strong connection you have towards that boy. You feel yourself yearning for him, your soul reaching out for him like two halves wishing to be whole, your primal instincts overpowering you, like two lovers wishing to bond in each others' naked embrace—"

Okay, what the f—

"—your chemistry raw, synchronized, eager to explode into a firework of passion. Am I right?"

Ru was speechless. What?

She struggled to register whatever hyperbolic symbolism this psychic was trying to sell.

"Um..."

Esmeralda's eyes looked eerily child-like, waiting for her response.

Oh, screw it.

"...I guess?"

A wide grin spread across Esmeralda's face. Ru regretted her answer immediately, watching the excitement and validation light up instantly on her face.

"Now, listen carefully, young lady. You must ignore the energy, ignore the instinct. Because you are not the master of these desires. I sense it— the foreign energy within you, small but powerful. You must know that it doesn't belong to you, but your deceased twin."

Oh, for god's sake—

Esmeralda's face remained stoic, almost hilariously so. How could she say that with such sobriety?

"Now, close your eyes."

At this point, Ru was in no capacity to even question the lady, so she obliged.

Again, Esmeralda began to speak in a sultry tone. "Relax your mind. Let the darkness sink in, but focus on the light. Let the light grow, let it spread. Your soulmate is calling, let it guide you."

Esmeralda squeezed her hand; Ru's palm started to feel sweaty.

"Listen for his voice, and feel as you slowly lose your inhibitions. In the core of your soul, you see him."

Strangely, the calm yet commanding voice drifted Ru to a bit of a trance. She sat with her eyes closed, her shoulders beginning to loosen.

"Now, what do you see? Explore his features— the shape of his nose, the gloss of his eyes. Yearn for it, reach for it..."

As Esmeralda continued to speak, Ru felt the voice slowly drift away, shutting it out completely.

Within her mindless daze, her thoughts wandered into a whimsical daydream.

Curious, brown eyes. Crescent like the moon, the way they fluttered when he spoke. Lips, red like cherry, the way they glistened when he licked his lips. The crinkle on his nose when he smiled, cheeks flushed.

She could trace the lines of his jaw with ease, feel the hollow shape of his collarbones. The curves on his arms; his hands— soft, warm. The mesmerizing sound of his deep voice, calming and alluring all the same.

The scent of peppermint; a bitter reminder that he's there, but out of reach.

"Miss?"

Ru's eyes shot open, her senses coming back to her like a rush of blood in her ears. Her eyes fluttered nervously as she stared back at Esmeralda.

"Do you see him? Can you picture your soulmate, dear?"

Ru was at a loss for words. A sudden realization hit her, quick like the prick of a finger— but it lingered.

She withdrew her hand from the lady's, rubbing them together in discomfort.

"No—" Ru snapped, looking down.

Before Esmeralda could say anything, Ru stood up from her chair.

"I'll, uh—" she gestured at the door awkwardly— "go get my friend for his turn."

She turned around, quickly walking away from the table and out through the staff door. The bright sunlight greeted her with a warm welcome as she stepped out of the stuffy back room, her eyes immediately searching for Jeno.

"How was it?"

Ru jumped on the spot; she looked to her left to find him leaning against the wall right next to the door.

She sighed in relief. His expression was curious, although he had a hint of anticipation etched in his eyes.

"Just get in," she chuckled, shaking her head as she playfully nudged him towards the room.

With that, he disappeared into the room, closing the door behind him.

She sighed once again, strolling aimlessly around the shop. She tried hard not to dwell on her imagination, but she couldn't ignore the thumping of her heart.

She knew he wasn't her soulmate— that was the whole point of all this, wasn't it? To help her figure out why her soulmate wasn't here with her yet, to figure out who it was.

She rounded back to the basket with the gems, absent-mindedly picking them up as she bit her lips.

She had been so preoccupied trying to find her soulmate, but she never once thought to wonder what he would look like, what he would be. It was only when Esmeralda urged her to picture him, that she did.

Well, she didn't, though— she pictured Jeno.

Her mind trailed back to her image of him, back in the reading room. As soon as she did, however, the image shattered into a million pieces as it hit her— he doesn't belong to her.

Someday, her real soulmate would finally find her, and that person won't have his smile, his shy chuckles, his mysterious presence.

It won't be him.

Her jaw clenched in bitter frustration. She knew this— this wasn't a newfound revelation, so why does it feel like this?

Why does it feel like she's actually lost a soulmate? What did she expect, really? For it to be him waiting on the other end? Maybe she has lost her mind—

"Why are you holding the dong?"

She snapped out of her internal dilemma, whipping her head to the left. Jeno stood there, looking at her with a puzzled— yet slightly amused— look on his face.

Only then did she realize she had been twirling the suggestive piece of gem around her hands, too deep in her thought to have realized.

Without missing a beat, she looked at him, gem still in hand.

"Oh, don't be so crass—" she narrowed her eyes at him, waving the gem in front of him— "and his name is Mr. Shlong."

It must've taken him by surprise; he let out a breathy laugh, his shoulders shaking as he scrunched his nose— "god, that was so bad."

Ru giggled in response, partially glad that she made him laugh. "Hey! You laughed—"

"Well, that was a transformative session, wasn't it?"

Their laughing ceased gradually, and Ru quickly dropped the gem back in the basket as they turned to see Esmeralda walking out of her reading room. She approached them with a certain sway. In her hands were two brightly-animated tarot cards.

She handed one tarot card to Jeno— "for spiritual empowerment."

She looked at Ru, handing the remaining card. "This will help you expand that light within you."

Though she felt awkward, she had to admit that it was a nice gesture.

"Thank you," Ru gave her a sincere smile.

"Of course! They're free for first-timers," Esmeralda chuckled.

"Oh!" Esmeralda held up a finger, gesturing for them to wait as she shuffled across the room. She took a book from the shelf by the cash register before she came back to them.

She handed Ru the book she had seen earlier. "Here you go, darling. For you guys, it's free!"

Ru laughed nervously, taking the book almost hesitantly. With that, they both thanked her and walked quietly out of the store and back out into the busy commotion that Ru had almost forgotten about. They took a path around the side, avoiding the crowd.

As they walked, Ru flipped the book to read the blurb on the back. She noticed that on the book was a price sticker, crossed about three times to display a new discounted price.

She couldn't help but snort. Esmeralda was something else.

"What did the lady talk to you about?" Jeno asked.

Ru looked straight ahead; frankly, she felt a little too sheepish to look at him. "Nothing that crazy. She, um, just asked me to visualize my soulmate or something, let the image form in my head."

She looked at him. "What about you?"

"That woman's convinced your twin is my soulmate. She kept talking about it, for a second I was convinced you had one— you don't, right?"

Ru let out a hearty chuckle, shaking her head. "No!"

He laughed in return, the wrinkle on his nose apparent under the bright sun.

"She messed up that first time, assuming we were soulmates. After that, it's just her trying to convince us she's legit. She kept insisting we were connected."

Ru laughed, but this time, she felt a little weight on her chest. She watched the way his lips move so subtly when he talked, and she felt a knot form in her stomach.

"I don't know—" Ru shrugged dismissively, looking down— "maybe she has a point."

Jeno looked down at her, his eyebrows furrowed in total bewilderment. "You're joking."

She looked up and laughed at his shocked expression. "No, seriously! I mean, obviously she's crazy— nice, but crazy."

There was a slight pause when she looked into his curious eyes.

"I know we're not soulmates—" she didn't think it'd be so hard to say that sentence out loud; she took a deep breath, trying her best not to let it show.

"But maybe us meeting wasn't really a coincidence. Maybe the reason my soulmate's missing has something to do with why you don't have one."

Jeno's face became stoic, his little pout showing as he pondered the thought. "Maybe."

He looked straight ahead, but her eyes remained on him.

It was true that her soulmate was out there, waiting for her to find him. She knew this.

But god, she wanted so badly for it to be him.

________________________________________

chapter thirteen.

Ever since that visit to the psychic store, Ru couldn't stop thinking about her soulmate— or more specifically, how Jeno wasn't.

She tried not to, distracting herself with school and hanging out with Jia and Chohee. Mostly, she had been avoiding it— and him, for that matter.

Although, she didn't really have to put much effort into the latter; she hasn't had the chance to talk to him ever since that day.

They always seemed to miss each other; whenever she was having lunch, he was either in the court playing basketball or downstairs by the mini mart. She had been busy with extra projects, so she would stay back after school and he'd leave early on his own, for god-knows-what reason.

Today, she had more assignments that kept her in school for another hour and a half. Jaemin offered to wait for her, but she knew she couldn't have him wait that long so now she found herself walking home alone.

She was pleasantly surprised to see that the sun was still bright out; it felt like she had been cooped up in school for several hours.

She tapped on her phone absent-mindedly, her eyes darting back to the time every once in a while. It seemed she still had some time before the sun would set. It didn't really mean anything to her, however, so she marched on in the direction of the Choi's.

The city ambience, the traffic and the chatter had become a little bit like tradition to her. She was so used to it that it blended into the back of her mind. The road back home had also become another natural routine. Past the little shops, busy markets and quiet houses until finally— home.

It had been a long day, that's true, but a part of her didn't want to go home yet. Her heart was tugging at her, and her feet itched to move.

In the peaceful silence, her eyes wandered to her bedroom window on the side. The roof below it sat in a fixed position, the orange tiles faded with time.

In her mind, she pictured it: him, crouched outside her window, the hood above his head. The knocks on her window, she could hear clearly. Another adventure awaits, just beyond the window.

A hopeless sigh escaped her lips; she shook her head and looked away. She couldn't fathom why, but her legs kept walking. Back up the street she just came from, through the corner and past the convenience store.

Her eyes glazed lazily over the bright, green and purple neon sign above the convenience store. Where was she even going? She didn't have a plan. All she knew was that she didn't want to be alone.

Actually, no, scratch that— she wanted to be alone, but she just didn't want to be alone with her thoughts.

She pulled out her phone from the pocket of her bag, instinctively looking through her contact list. It wasn't a long list, so she found herself scrolling up and down numerous times in a daze. She finally decided on texting Jia, just to see what's up. She wrote:

Ru: Hey, are you busy?

Did that sound weird? Why was she even texting Jia, it's not like she had anything to say to her—

Ding!

Jia replied:

Jia<33 : Nopeee

Jia<33 : What's up?

Uh... She stared at her phone, unsure how to reply.

How does she explain that she potentially likes someone but couldn't be with them because she is already tethered to her soulmate, but that soulmate is someone else. Oh, and that soulmate is also nowhere to be found.

She rolled her eyes. This is ridiculous— forget about it. She texted Jia back on a whim:

Ru: Do you wanna hang out?

She waited for a few seconds, and got an immediate text back from Jia, agreeing to hang out. She sighed in relief; maybe Jia could help her get out of her mind. A few moments after, Jia sent a location— a cafe— where they should meet up. At the end of the text, Jia signed it with:

Jia<33 : See you soon, cutie ;)

Ru smiled at the text. She stuffed her phone into her pocket, suddenly feeling very much excited about the mini date.

Walking felt a little more relaxing; the skies were a subtle orange now, the sounds of distant traffic somehow soothing. She walked and walked, blended in with the city ambience. Before she knew it, she found herself standing in front of the cafe.

She entered the cafe to find that Jia hadn't arrived yet, so she picked a corner that was vacant and sat down. She didn't have to wait for long before Jia came walking through the cafe doors. Ru waved her hand in the air so that Jia could notice her.

Her hand caught Jia's attention; she flashed a cheeky smile and skipped in her direction.

"Hey there," Jia greeted in a sweet tone.

Ru smiled in return, patting the seat next to her. "Come sit."

Jia sat next to her on the sofa, her luscious hair tucked neatly behind her ear.

"Should we order?" Ru asked.

"Let's just wait for the others."

The others? "Is Chohee coming?"

"Oh, no she couldn't come; she has some sort of family gathering—" Jia tilted her head— "aren't the boys coming?"

"Oh—" Ru raised her eyebrows, feeling slightly sheepish. She thought that this was going to be just the two of them; she didn't know Jia thought differently.

"I didn't invite the boys, actually."

"Ah—" Jia's shoulder slumped ever so slightly, but it was gone as soon as it came— "no worries, then, we can just order now."

Ru felt slightly awkward all of a sudden, but she tried to shake it off. Together, they stood up and walked towards the line at the counter.

"Hey, actually—" Jia gave Ru an apologetic look—"I can't stay for long, my dad's gonna need me soon. Is it okay if we take this to go?"

Ru nodded immediately, giving Jia a reassuring smile— "of course, yeah. I don't actually want anything, so you just go ahead and order."

Jia gave her a bright smile as they finally made it to the front of the line. Ru stood by Jia as she ordered a complicated drink she couldn't be bothered to try and understand, specifying that it was a take away.

After Jia paid, they walked back to their seats, plopping down on the sofa next to each other.

"So," Jia began, her head slightly leaning to the side, "why'd you wanna hang out?"

"Oh, nothing, really— it's fun hanging out with you guys."

Jia gave her a cheeky smirk, in which Ru returned with a slightly giggly smile. It was true, though. Hanging out with Jia and Chohee had been the highlight of her days, besides being with the boys, of course. They spent a lot of their after-school time hanging out at cafes, visiting karaoke rooms just for the sake of it.

"Hey, I actually have something to tell you—" Jia shifted in her seat, facing Ru.

Ru raised her eyebrows, her lips curving in anticipation.

"Alright, so please don't laugh, cause I know this is stupid—" Jia fiddled with her fingers, looking down with a silly grin on her face.

What was she going to say? Ru didn't realize but she inched closer towards Jia, excited to hear more.

"I, uh—" Jia looked up, the light shining perfectly on her bright eyes—" actually like someone."

What? The Jia finally likes someone? Ru burst into an excited giggle, letting out a little squeal. She didn't quite know where that came from; she was hoping Jia would be too occupied with her situation to bother making fun of her weird squeal.

"I know, it's stupid—" Jia shook her head, looking down again.

Ru interjected. "What— no, it's not, tell me about it!"

Jia looked up and smiled, before her lips curved into an 'o' shape in new excitement. "Also, I know Chohee's gonna kill me for telling you, but she's got her eye on someone too."

What? Chohee, too?

"You guys!" Ru teased, lightly nudging Jia. "Now you're making me feel left out!"

They both laughed, Ru's curiosity for these boys growing even bigger. "So, who is it?"

"Oh, but please don't laugh," Jia pouted dramatically.

"Why would I laugh? I get to know who finally caught your attention."

"Alright..." Jia took a deep breath.

"It's Jeno."

The stupid grin was wiped off of Ru's face. She felt her shoulders tense and for some reason, her neck started to feel hot. Her heart felt heavy; all she could think to do was stare blankly as her heart started to thump at an irrational speed.

"Oh, it's stupid, isn't it?" Jia looked concerned, her eyes looking slightly sad.

Ru managed to shake herself out of her little stupor. "What— no! Of course not, why would it be? He's a really cool guy—"

God, why was she still talking?

"—and honestly, you guys would look good together!"

Oh, just shut up!

"Really?" Jia's slight pout was now turned into a relief smile. "Aw, Ru, you're such a cutie. Also, seriously, Chohee's gonna freak out that I'm telling you this, but she likes Donghyuck."

...Seriously?

"At first I was a bit worried that she liked Jeno, too, but then she told me yesterday that it's Donghyuck she likes."

Ru was speechless. "Wow..."

"I know! Actually the reason why I'm telling you is also because I kinda need your help."

Ru felt her heart deflate a little.

"My help?"

"Yeah, could you help us out and set something like a double date for the two of us?" She made puppy eyes as her lips curved into a childish pout— "I know you guys are super close to each other."

Oh god, no.

Ru chuckled nervously. "What? We're not that close— and besides, you guys are friends too, why don't you ask them? I'm sure they would like that."

She hoped to God he wouldn't.

"I knooow," Jia groaned, "but I'm still super shy around them and I don't want to come off too strong in front of them, you know? Maybe you could pretend to invite them to a hangout and then let the four of us have a double date, how does that sound?"

Ru spaced out. Before she even realized, she was replying, "yeah, of course!"

A bright grin spread across Jia's face. "Yay! Thank you so much, Ru, you're just the best, really!"

Ru smiled, but that was only to cover whatever she was feeling underneath. What in the world did she just agree to? She didn't quite know what to feel, but all she knew was that she didn't really want to be in this cafe anymore.

She jolted up from her seat, not quite sure how to play things out from here. "I, um— I kinda have to go, actually. I'll talk to you soon!"

Jia seemed a bit taken aback, but it didn't last long; she nodded her head with a satisfied grin on her face.

Ru didn't waste another second; she nodded awkwardly, turning around and taking quick steps out of the cafe. The streets weren't as busy as they were before she entered the cafe, but she still felt claustrophobic, like the people around her were closing in on her.

Well, it's safe to say that she has it down bad for him. She groaned in frustration. What was she even doing? She tried her best to ignore the heat in her chest— it truly felt like it was on fire.

She bit her lip subconsciously, marching through the peaceful passersby with her thoughts running like bullet trains through her head.

But seriously, of all people, did it have to be him? She could picture it already: the two of them, hunched under a tree with the beautiful view of the city landscape somewhere, his jacket draped over her because it's raining and they didn't bring an umbrella.

Alright, maybe that was a little too dramatic— she's only asking for a double date. But regardless, Ru felt a knot in her chest she wanted so badly to untangle, but didn't know how to.

She hated the thought of them together; she wanted to be mad at Jia, but how could she? She's feeling the same thing Ru was feeling.

Why? was all she could muster up in her head as she walked past a crosswalk towards her neighborhood. She was still trying to come to terms with the fact that he wasn't her soulmate, that she shouldn't even have feelings for him— she didn't think she'd have to see him with someone else.

She slowed down, finally coming down to a halt just at the entrance of her neighborhood.

Shut up, Ru, she scolded herself.

Stop thinking. Stop thinking about him, stop thinking about your soulmate, just stop.

Maybe it was her desperation to forget about it, maybe it was her anger, but in a split second decision, she broke into a sprint. She dashed down the street past the trusty convenience store, letting the house blur down on her peripherals as she rushed to her house.

She didn't stop there; she burst into the house (although she had a moment of panic, hoping none of the Chois caught that) and ran up the stairs into her bedroom.

She shut the door behind her, plopping onto the floor dramatically. Her lungs were on fire now, her legs wobbly. Maybe this was a sign that she needed to exercise more.

She groaned, ignoring the thought.

No, this was a sign that she just wanted some sleep.

Hopelessly drained, she curled into a fetal position on the floor by her bed. The hard, wooden floor cooled her down and she let each deep breath lull her into an uncomfortable, yet much needed nap.

⭒⭒⭒

The first thing she felt was the deep pumping of her heart against the hardwood floor. The only thing she could hear was her husky breathing, her body sprawled across the floor in an awkward position.

Feeling slightly disoriented, she sat up from the ground, rubbing her eyes in circular motions. Her room was dark now; all the lights were off, the skies outside were glum. However, she noticed that her door was now slightly ajar, the dim yellow light seeping in a thin, straight line.

As soon as her heart quieted down, she finally noticed another soft, subtle noise repeating itself— sniffles.

She looked across her room and her heart almost jumped out of her chest.

By the door to spot a boy huddled in the corner, his knees clutched closely to his chest. It took her a second, but she finally recognized him as Dabin. A feeling of relief washed over her for a second, but it was soon replaced with concern.

Still on the floor, she crawled her way to him in the dark.

"Hey," she whispered, placing her hand gently on his shivering shoulder, "are you okay, Dabin?"

He didn't answer; he continued to sniffle, his head buried into his arms.

"Dabin?" she whispered again, tilting her head downwards in an attempt to glimpse his face.

At that moment, Dabin looked up and quickly wrapped his arms around Ru's neck, sobbing into her shoulders. It took her by surprise; she was almost knocked backwards from his sudden hug.

"Woah, Dabin—" she gasped, hugging him back in alarm— "what's wrong?"

The longer he cried, the harder his body shook. Ru could tell he was trying his best to hold it in, but it must've been really hard for him because he continued to cry into her shoulder.

"Mom—" Dabin hiccuped, trying his best to control his breathing— "mom is sick, I think she's very sick."

Ru's breathing became shallow and she sat there in silence, waiting for more words to come out of his mouth.

"She has a tumor."

She felt her whole body ice up, the feeling of instantaneous cold enveloping her as she sat on the ground, a crying boy in her arms.

She held her breath in shock. Mrs. Choi: such a warm person, with such a unique smile, full of life and full of questions. She didn't dare think it, but what would life be like without Mrs. Choi?

She felt a wave of guilt surge through her; all those times Mrs. Choi had been so nice to her, constantly asking questions, all her efforts to be part of Ru's life. Ru was always irritated by it, feeling as though she was just a charity case, but what would she be now without it?

In her silence, Dabin's crying grew louder. She forced herself not to dwell on the guilt— she needed to comfort him.

"Hey—" she pulled herself away from him, just enough that she could see his face— "don't you worry about it, okay? Your mom will be just fine, because she's strong."

He looked at her, the innocence barely holding on in the tears threatening to fall down. There was a slight pause, then he whispered, "but what if—"

"—No," Ru interrupted, her voice cracking slightly, "no buts, no what ifs. Just focus on how strong your mom is, okay? You have to believe in her, because that gives her strength."

The pout on Dabin's face was short of devastating. He sniffed once more, and then nodded silently.

Ru plastered a reassuring smile. "Are you hungry? Do you want to eat?"

This time, he nodded much more quickly.

She smiled as she got up. "I'll go make something for you, alright? You can stay here if you want."

He nodded, still sitting cross-legged on the floor as he wiped away his tears with the long sleeves of his sweater.

She took quick steps down the stairs and towards the kitchen. She opened one cabinet after the other, re-checking the fridge about three times before she realized she didn't really know how to cook anything.

Damn it, she muttered to herself as she continued to search through shelves.

She finally landed on a big pack of instant ramens. She paused for a moment, then shrugged.

This'll do.

She opened two packets and dropped it into a pot, letting the water boil. It didn't take long for the noodles to finish cooking; she poured them into two separate bowls and placed them on a tray.

Hm. She quickly circled back to the snack cabinet, taking a few packets of marshmallow-filled chocolate pies and a packet of seaweed. She placed them neatly on the tray, looking at it with somewhat of a satisfied look on her face.

She was just about to head out of the kitchen when she started hearing a soft cry.

Was Dabin crying again?

Her eyebrows furrowed.

The sound seemed like it was coming from the hallway, though.

She peeked into the hallway right by the kitchen, where the bathroom, living room and parent's bedroom would be. As she tiptoed into the hallway, the crying got louder. She creeped slowly towards the noise until she found herself a few steps away from the slightly opened parents' bedroom.

There she was: Mrs. Choi, sitting at the end of her bed, her head buried in her hands and shoulders shaking. Beside her was Mr. Choi, solemn as he placed his hand on her back, rubbing circles.

Ru wanted to cry. Why did this have to happen to someone as kind as Mrs. Choi? Not that she wanted it to happen to anyone else, but of all people—

"Ru? What's taking so long?"

She flinched, turning to find Dabin standing at the end of the hall. He walked towards her lazily, trying to get a peek at what she made.

She gave Mrs. Choi one brief look before turning to Dabin.

"Here you go—" she passed him the tray gently— "why don't you go in there and share this with your parents? They must be hungry, too."

He nodded, taking the tray and slowly walking into the room. She watched as Mrs. Choi quickly wiped away her tears, forcing a smile for her son. Upon seeing the tray in his hands, it seemed both Mr. and Mrs. Choi were momentarily distracted; Dabin sat down next to his mother as Mr. Choi ruffled his son's head playfully.

She didn't even realize when Mr. Choi looked up in her direction; she suddenly felt like she was imposing on a family moment.

As she was about to turn away, Mr. Choi gave her a quick, grateful smile.

She returned the smile, feeling a tear build up in her eyes.

________________________________________

chapter fourteen.

"Are you okay?"

"Huh?" Ru looked up to Donghyuck staring at her.

"Are you okay?" He chuckled, "you've been quiet all day."

She shook her head dismissively— "yeah, no, I'm fine."

Ru wasn't exactly fine, but what else could she have said? She tried to focus on the board, but it must've looked like she was just staring at it; Donghyuck leaned closer to her, whispering so the teacher wouldn't catch them.

"Are you sure? Jaemin bought you that strawberry jelly drink you like so much and you didn't even drink it."

She tore her gaze from the teacher, giving him a funny look. Was it that obvious?

She chuckled, "yesterday was just a weird day, is all."

"Well—" he shrugged— "today's not yesterday anymore, you know? So if it's still bothering you, it must be more than just a weird day."

Her eyes were stagnant on him, her mind slowly wandering away.

"You can talk to me about it, if you want."

His little smile pulled her back, and she couldn't help but smile back.

She was upset about Jia's sudden confession. But after what she found out at home, she felt guilty feeling bad about something as silly as that.

She looked down at her textbook, fiddling with its pages.

"My foster mom—" she uttered softly, glancing at him— "we found out yesterday that she has a tumor."

Donghyuck's eyes widened.

"Jeez, Ru—" he sat back on his chair, rubbing the back of his head— "that's more than just a weird day, that's terrible."

"Yeah," Ru sighed. "Now I kinda wish I drank that jelly."

Donghyuck chuckled silently, leaning closer to her again. He glanced briefly at the teacher to make sure she wasn't looking their way, before he whispered, "let's just ditch school after this."

She furrowed her eyebrows. "What?"

"Yeah, I'll buy you the jelly downstairs and we can all just walk around."

She looked at him incredulously. "ditch school? We still have half the day to go!"

"You're not gonna die from missing out one day of school," Donghyuck pointed out like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Besides, you need it."

She bit her lips and stared at the board... She had never ditched school before.

She watched as the teacher continued to write on the board, the endless words spilling on the board like scattered, illegible letters.

It's not like she could focus if she stayed.

"Fine," she conceded, "but we're not making this a habit, okay?"

Donghyuck flashed her a cheeky grin, giving her a small salute. "You got it, ma'am."

She rolled her eyes playfully; a little smile lingered on her face.

⭒⭒⭒

The hallways were always packed with students during recess time. Ru stayed close to Donghyuck as they walked down the stairs, jostled in between other students also rushing to get to the courtyard.

Donghyuck stuffed his phone into his back pocket just as they reached the bottom of the stairs.

"I just texted Jaemin and Renjun to meet us by the mini mart. Meanwhile, we'll get you that jelly you really want—" he squished her cheeks.

She swatted his hand away, nudging him playfully on the ribs. However, she stopped midway. "Wait, what about Jeno?"

"Oh—" Donghyuck shrugged— "he's not in school today."

Oh? "Why isn't he in school?"

"I don't know, he was kinda sick last night. It's those headaches again. You have no idea how cranky he was this morning, I just told him to skip school," Donghyuck explained, "he's scary when he's cranky."

Oh. She forgot about the headaches he used to get. Well, technically he still gets them.

She felt a sudden, hollow feeling in her stomach. She couldn't believe she was bummed that he didn't tell her, which was stupid in itself. Why should he have told her?

Even worse, she was upset that she didn't know. She couldn't have known, but she wanted to. She couldn't believe she was thinking it, but she wanted that aching pain on her chest, even if it meant she knew.

She took a deep breath, letting reality sink. Even if she did feel anything at all, it wouldn't be because of him. It would be because of her soulmate.

"Hey, we could buy Jeno some snacks, see if he feels better," Donghyuck suggested, pulling Ru out of her own thoughts.

Ru smiled. "Yeah."

They stopped by the mini mart just by the courtyard and like Donghyuck promised, he bought her a jelly drink, along with other snacks they thought the others might want. As he laid out the snacks on the counter, Ru waited behind him, tapping incessantly on her phone.

Maybe Jeno felt better already, so there's no need to check up on him... But what if he's still sick in bed? It would be nice to receive a message when you're not feeling well.

Ru contemplated, her thumbs hovering over her phone's keyboard.

"Hey—" Ru looked up from Donghyuck's voice— "can you text Jeno, ask him if he's feeling better?"

"Oh, u-um—" she stuttered, but he was still too busy with the snacks to notice— "okay."

She typed out a quick sentence, sending it before she thought too much of it.

Ru: Hey, I heard you're not feeling well. Are you okay?

The message delivered.

No answer.

She scoffed internally; it's literally been a few seconds, of course he hasn't answered. She dropped her phone into her backpack just as Donghyuck finished paying for the food. The two of them walked out, a jelly drink in Ru's hand and a small lollipop in Donghyuck's.

Students were scattered across the courtyard, some girls sitting at a corner watching boys play basketball. Ru remembered when her school was just an all-girls school; the courtyard was always much more quiet then.

"So," Ru asked in between sips, "how are we going to sneak out?"

"There's this hole on a wall behind the school, and it's covered with a bunch of these metal sheets. I don't know if the teachers even know they exist, but nobody watches the place."

She raised her eyebrows, impressed. She's been here for four years now, but has never heard of this hole. They've only been relocated to this school for a few months and they've already found it?

"How did you even find it? I've been here so much longer than you and I didn't even know you could sneak through the back of the building."

Donghyuck laughed. "Yeah, that's because you're not looking. A quick getaway's the first thing we always look for in new places."

Why, of course. It was easy to forget how delinquent they were.

Her eyes wandered mindlessly as she sipped the last bit off her jelly drink. She waited for the familiar faces of Jaemin and Renjun, but as she looked into the courtyard, she spotted another set of familiar faces: Jia and Chohee.

Her eyes widened, the memory of yesterday flashing in her mind. They were talking casually amongst themselves as they walked slowly— but surely— in her direction.

"Hey—" she started pulling at Donghyuck's sleeve— "let's just go to the back first, they'll catch up with us."

"What?" Donghyuck looked at her, eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Yeah—" she nodded, trying not to sound too rushed— "if the four of us went to the back together, it'd look too suspicious."

He pouted for a moment, but with her subtle nudging, he shrugged. "I mean, we do it all the time but I guess you have a point."

She nodded again, barely hearing what he said as she pushed him towards the building and away from Jia and Chohee. She didn't even realize, but soon she was dragging him. It didn't take them long, but the sound of the crowd began to fade away and they were finally at a deserted section of the school.

She sighed, finally coming to a halt. Yes, she felt bad avoiding them like that, but she really didn't have the energy to think about the favor she promised them. She really hoped they'd just forget about it, however unlikely it may be.

She finally took in her surroundings: a few broken tables and chairs were piled on a corner by the building wall. The walls enclosing the school were tall and undisturbed, and just like Donghyuck told her, a tattered metal sheet leaned against one section of the wall.

"I guess it isn't that hard to sneak out, huh?"

"It's a piece of cake, really," Donghyuck shrugged as he pulled his phone out of his pocket— "anyway, I'll text them to meet us at the court, it's better than waiting for them here."

"The court?" Ru asked, her head tilted slightly.

"Yeah, we always just chill there when we sneak out."

Ru couldn't really imagine 'chilling' at a basketball court, but at this point she just wanted to be anywhere but school.

"Alright—" Donghyuck put his phone back in his pocket, walking right up to the metal sheets he described earlier. He lifted the sheets slightly to reveal a big hole in the middle of the wall.

"Ladies first."

It was hard to see what was on the other side, but all she could see were overgrown grass. She crouched under Donghyuck's arm that was holding the metal open for her and slowly, she crawled out through the hole.

Her feet planted firmly on the ground below her and she felt the tall grass tickle her feet. Behind the school seemed to be an empty plot of land, covered with an ocean of unkempt plants and weeds. Not far off where the plot of land ends, an empty road stretches out towards the corner and out of view.

She could hear the slight shuffling behind her; Donghyuck finally crawled out of the hole. They walked carefully through the tall grass until they finally reached the side of the road.

It was mostly silent as they walked, until Donghyuck broke the silence.

"So... How are you feeling?"

"Um..." She kicked the tiny rocks beneath her feet. "I don't know, really."

"Are you close with them? You know—" he looked at her and bobbed his head lightly— "your host family."

She bit her lip in contemplation. "Honestly, I've only ever seen them as people I share a house with. But after yesterday, it's like... I know them, you know? And they know me. That must be worth something, right?"

She looked over at Donghyuck, who nodded back in consolidation.

She swallowed the lump on her throat. "I want her to be okay."

He put one arm around her, pulling her close to him as he rubbed her shoulder. "She'll be okay, you just have to believe it."

She hugged him back. It wasn't much of a reassurance, but it was nice to have a hug.

She pulled away gently from his embrace, nudging him playfully. "Look at you, being such a sweet boy and all."

"Shut up—" he rolled his eyes, a cheeky grin evident on his face; Ru could swear she glimpsed a slight rosy tint color his cheeks.

Before they knew it, they finally rounded a corner and were greeted by the sight of a big basketball court. Unlike the other basketball court Ru's been to before, this court had no barrier net. The court was bright and empty; it was certainly much cleaner, too.

There was a thick collection of trees right next to one side of the court, with little benches placed nicely on either side of the area. They walked towards the bench closer to the trees to get a good, shady spot to chill.

"Alright—" Donghyuck plopped himself on the bench— "which snack shall we eat first?"

He dumped the snacks on the spot beside him as Ru found herself a comfortable spot on the ground, taking off her bag next to her. They didn't waste another second before diving into their snacks, too eager to even wait for the others to arrive.

Unnoticed by Ru, the odd beating on her chest steadily subsided; the warm breeze and delicious snacks brought her out of her own head. She looked over at Donghyuck— it seemed like he was enjoying himself just fine.

"Hey, so—" Donghyuck crunched on a big bite of chips— "you and Jeno have been spending a lot of time together, huh?"

Her heart skipped a beat.

"Well, yeah—" she cleared her throat— "I guess."

"You know, if I didn't know better, I'd think you two were, like, soulmates."

There it was again! Her heart...

She tried to mask her nerves by chucking a snack at him.

"Hey—" Donghyuck blocked it from hitting his face, chuckling.

Ru looked down. "It would be easier if he were, though."

There was a brief pause, but Donghyuck continued, "trust me, though, once your soulmate shows up I can guarantee you'll forget you ever thought Jeno was your soulmate."

She sighed. Hopefully, that was the case. At this moment, she couldn't even fathom it.

Her thoughts started to slip through the cracks of doubt, so much so that she didn't even notice Donghyuck pick up a large rock littered on the ground next to the bench.

"Ru, get up." Donghyuck instructed her suddenly, his tone so much deeper.

"What—" she looked up and finally saw his face.

His eyes were steely and alert, one hand behind his back and the other balled into a fist. She stood up immediately, heat spreading through her body in alarm. She barely had time to look at what's causing his apprehension before Donghyuck pulled her behind him.

Then she finally spotted them— six guys walking towards them at an alarmingly fast pace. They were all wearing uniforms— presumably from another school— but the way they were wearing them, you'd need a double take: collars up like thugs, sleeves rolled in a pompous manner, ties hanging loosely around their necks.

There was a tense silence when they finally approached them. The one in the center stood a little higher than the rest of the boys; he was tall, his messy hair greasy under the sun. He had this permanent scowl on his face like he just smelled shit nearby.

"Well, this is a rare sight." The one in the center spoke with smug lips. "Where're your buddies at?"

Donghyuck stared straight at him. "They're coming."

The boy smirked a little too confident for Ru's liking. His finally flickered in her direction, and the smirk grew into a malicious grin. "And who's this chick?"

His question was met with silence.

"Come on, Donghyuck, introduce her, why don't you?" The boy stepped forward slowly.

Donghyuck's hand reached for her, pulling her closer behind him. She didn't know what to do; her eyes peaked tensely from over his shoulder.

The boy started to chuckle; other kids behind started snickering along to him.

"Don't worry... I won't bite."

Donghyuck scoffed and this time, he took the step forward until they were face-to-face.

"Are you that desperate for another beating?" Donghyuck questioned, his eyes narrowed.

The boy kept his stance, his smirk ever so apparent on his face.

Donghyuck's voice turned into a low growl, a challenging look now plastered on his face. "We fucked you up once, we'll do it again."

"Don't start acting all smug now, your shit friends are nowhere to be seen! Actually..." the boy paused, raising his hand in conclusion. "Maybe now's a perfect time to teach you a lesson."

He took a quick step towards Donghyuck again, this time grabbing him by the collar.

Ru gasped as she was shoved slightly from the boy's force on Donghyuck. She grabbed onto the back of his uniform in apprehension.

What the hell do they do now?

That's when she finally noticed the rock on his hand. He held a tight grip on the rock, the rough surface of it dangerous to the touch. Something told her that she should take a step back and away from the rock.

"You think you're all high and mighty, maybe it's time someone made you think twice." The boy spoke, barely above a whisper.

"Well—" Donghyuck adjusted his shoulders— "I don't really have to be all high and mighty to do this."

"What?"

In a flash, Donghyuck swung his hidden hand as hard as he could, the jagged surface of the rock making brutal contact with the boy's face. He immediately stumbled backwards and down to the ground.

She couldn't even register the scene before her when Donghyuck took her hand, pulling her in the opposite direction and into the trees.

Before she knew it, she was running.

Her breaths were shallow as they sprinted, tree after tree. She could hear the harsh shuffling behind her; she didn't need to turn around to know that they were all hot on her trail.

"YOU'RE FUCKING DEAD!" She could hear a vague voice scream somewhere in the collection of trees.

It didn't take them long, but they were finally out of the trees. She no longer had any idea where they were. They were met with a tiny stretch of road, with a few shops lined up on one side.

They didn't take a second to catch their breaths as they ran down the street in a direction she didn't recognize. She followed him until they reached a main road. Looking back once, she saw that they were gaining in on them.

She could only barely glimpse the blood trickling on the thug's head before she was whisked into the crowd of the busy road.

Donghyuck's hand never let go of her's, pulling her through crowds and occasionally shoving people to get through. As fast as she felt like she was going, she could still hear the ruckus behind her; she knew they weren't going to back out anytime soon.

The longer they ran, the smaller the streets became. Gradually, the crowds started to thin out; he began to lead her through weird turns. After a dramatic few minutes, they found themselves in the midst of a few abandoned buildings.

"This way—" Donghyuck muttered.

He finally let go of her hand as they approached a run-down building; it looked like an old, abandoned apartment. They dashed up the stairs in the entrance, moving past one floor after the next.

When they finally ran out of stairs, he stopped moving, and she halted promptly behind him. Her breathing was ragged, her heart pumping right out of her chest.

Did they lose them?

It seemed like Donghyuck was trying to find out just that; his eyes stared into the space in concentration, trying to listen for noise.

It was silent. She listened for any unusual noises, but there was none.

Still afraid that they would get caught, she whispered, "are they gone?"

He looked at her, his eyes focused and alert. "I think so, but we have to wait—"

Clang!

Loud, clanging of metal caused her to flinch. Donghyuck didn't waste another second— he grabbed her hand again and led her down the dank hallway, past peeling wallpapers and rotting floorboards.

Along the hallways were about a dozen identical doors. He tried each one as they went, but they were all locked. She felt her stomach curl into a nauseating knot; at this rate, they'd be cornered and they'd beat him up real bad. Judging by their character, who's to say they wouldn't beat her up too? They looked like the type of boys who would beat up a girl—

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a clicking door. This one's unlocked!

They rushed inside, closing the door behind them. Even though they were completely hidden now, they instinctively crouched. Both of them were breathing hard, but were trying hard to minimize it.

"We can't stay here, they're gonna check every room and they'll find us unless we get out of here," he whispered.

"What do we do now?" Her voice came out raspy and dry, the panic obvious in her tone.

He didn't answer her. Instead, his eyes flicked towards the only window in the room. He stood up and looked out the window, before he finally turned to her.

"We'll go out through the window."

What?

"Are you crazy?" She hissed, trying her best to keep her voice down.

"Come on—" his hand reached out to her, gesturing for her to come— "there's a balcony on the building beside us, we'll jump."

"What? I can't jump buildings, Hyuck!" She whisper-screamed, her throat scratchy and dry now.

"Well, do you have a better idea?!" His eyes were wide in exasperation.

Before she could even respond, the sound of muffled footsteps shook the floor. They were getting closer.

She groaned. This can't be happening.

Donghyuck pulled the window upwards, sliding it open. "Just climb out of the window and jump to the balcony— it's lower so you should jump easily."

She was speechless. She peeked her head through the window to find another similar building right next to the one they were in. There was a balcony one floor lower, protruding out of the building.

Slowly, she slid her legs out of the window, securing them on the ledge before the rest of her body followed suit.

"Careful—" Donghyuck grabbed onto her arm as she wrapped her hands along the line of railing conveniently placed along the sides of the building.

She took timid steps, sliding her legs so that she could reach the edge of the building and closer to the balcony. Eventually, Donghyuck had to let go of her when she was too far out of reach.

"Alright, now jump, Ru!"

Oh, god.

Her eyes were blurred now. She knew it wasn't much of a jump, but in her panicked state, it felt like she was attempting a parkour stunt.

Thumping sounds grew louder, more violent. She looked over at Donghyuck to see that he wasn't looking at her anymore; he was looking inside in a frozen position. She wanted to ask him what was wrong but before she could even say anything, his body disappeared back into the building. The window shut quickly after.

Oh, hell no.

He wasn't going to leave her, was he?

She wanted to cry. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

Alright. She has no choice but to jump. She let out a subtle breath, focusing her energy on the jump.

One...

Her heart was beating out of her chest. Ignore it.

Two...

A vague thump could be heard somewhere inside the building. Ignore it.

Three!

She mustered all of her strength and let go, pushing herself off the side of the building and towards the opened balcony.

The air rushed past her until she finally fell on the hard floor of the balcony. The wind was knocked out of her lungs as her body crashed harshly against the tiles. It took her a moment, but she finally regained her strength and stood up, dusting the tiny debris off of her clothes. She tried to ignore the subtle aching on her back. That's definitely going to bruise.

Her eyes lingered on the closed window. Where was he?

Where does she go from here? She stood, hopelessly confused. She wanted to call his name, but she knew she couldn't.

A sudden movement in the corner of her eyes caused her to look down. Her heart did a little somersault as she spotted two boys step out of the building she was just from, scanning the area eagerly.

She immediately ducked down, peaking out ever-so-slightly. She didn't even realize she was holding her breath, her chest constricted as she watched them stomp back into the building.

Shit, what should she do? Donghyuck's in there— she couldn't just leave him like that.

She retreated into the balcony door and luckily, it wasn't locked. She tiptoed through the room, making as little noise as possible as she walked out of the room and into the hallway. The building had almost an identical structure to the previous one, so Ru found herself navigating the place easily.

She found the stairs and took quick steps towards the ground floor. What in the world does she do now?

Walk out of the door and she would risk getting caught by them. Stay in the building and Donghyuck has a very good chance of getting caught by them. Fuck! She wasn't good at this at all.

She creeped towards the main door leading outside. The door wasn't shut all the way, so it was perfect for her to peek through. Her eyes adjusted to the bright sun that made its way through the crack of the door, and she spied for the thugs.

She almost yelped when a figure walked past her building; she shut her mouth with her hand, terrified that her irregular breathing would give her away.

Three boys met up just a few steps away from her, in perfect view from her hiding spot.

"We searched the building, we couldn't find them," one boy reported to the leader; the crimson tinge on his forehead was now dry.

"He's in there, search again—" his hands balled into a tight fist— "NOW!"

The other boys soon disappeared back into the first building. The infuriated boy stood there, pacing around like a hawk waiting for its prey.

How was she supposed to help Donghyuck like this?

She looked around frantically in search of any ideas. There was nothing around her except the debris and a few metal rods laying on the floor under the stairs. Her eyes furrowed in contemplation, her heart burning from nerves.

Maybe she could distract them. Yeah, she could do that— get them out of the other building. She took a deep breath as she picked up two metal rods. Her hands were shaking at this point; this was either a genius idea or a stupid one.

This could work.

She didn't know if she was just trying to convince herself, but it wasn't really working. Her eyes scanned the first floor of the building. Near the flight of stairs was a hallway that ended with another door, the tiny window on it allowing the sunlight to shine naturally on the dusty ground.

She just had to make sure she wasn't inside when the boys swarmed this building. Just create a diversion, then run out through the backdoor of the building.

She crawled back towards the crack of the door. The boy was still standing there, waiting.

Alright, here goes nothing.

With all her strength, she hit the two metal rods against each other, letting the loud clanging echo throughout the building. She felt her chest heat up as she watched the boy's head snap in her direction.

She didn't wait another second; she dropped the rods and sprinted for the back door. She couldn't even manage to slow down, bumping into the door with a loud thud. She pulled on the doorknob, but a daunting realization finally set— the door was locked.

Fuck! She felt her eyes tear up as she turned around, desperate. She ran along the hallways, turning each doorknob with ragged breaths.

This can't be happening, this can't be happening—

Just as she was about to give up, she finally pushed one open. She rushed inside, closing the door behind her.

The room— unlike the one she was in before with Donghyuck— was packed. There were a bunch of old furniture, all of them covered in white cloth.

She rushed towards a small rectangular piece of furniture. She pulled up the sheet to reveal a small cabinet, opening its doors and crawling in. She could feel her skin scrape against the splintery surface of the interior, but she didn't care; she forced herself into the tight space, closing the cabinet doors in front of her.

With that, she fell silent. She covered her mouth, her cheeks damp from the tears.

She focused on the sounds, all of them clear as day. She could hear distant thumping, getting closer each time.

Please don't come in the room, she begged in her head, hoping for anyone— or anything— to listen to her prayers.

Just a few seconds after she settled into the cabinet, she could hear the door open, its heavy creaking taunting her. Maybe someone listened to her prayers, but it certainly wasn't God.

She crouched, helpless. Her breath was held, and she tried with all her might not to let out a sob.

Suddenly, a low voice echoed throughout the room.

"I know you're in here."

Her lips trembled. She could no longer control her tears; they were flowing down her cheeks, her hands now wet over her lips.

"You have nowhere to run, so why don't you make this easier for the both of us—"

His voice was cut and he fell silent.

Her eyes shifted uncomfortably in the dark. Why was he silent all of a sudden? As much as she hated him talking, his silence wasn't any more comforting.

She held her breath as the vague footsteps outside the cabinet retreated, slowly fading away.

She anticipated him to come back at any moment, so she stayed put.

The minutes rolled by; she didn't dare make a move. With each daunting second, she felt her heart start to regain control.

Maybe he's gone now.

Her body was frozen; she didn't want to check, but she didn't want to stay here either. She slowly reached for the cabinet door, pushing it forward.

The natural light seeped in and she paused.

Nothing.

She made tiny movements, slowly reaching for the sheet that covered the cabinet and lifting it upwards—

Heavy footsteps suddenly erupted; her heart leapt out of her chest as she immediately retreated back into the cabinet, closing its doors quickly with a loud thump.

Shit! He must've heard her cabinet shut.

This was it.

She wanted to scream— He was going to find her. This was it, wasn't it? She's definitely dead now—

In a swift, daunting motion, the cabinet door swung open and she let out a terrified screech. Her eyes were shut, her body pressed against the confining walls of the cabinet.

She felt an arm on her thigh and suddenly—

"Ru."

The soft and deep voice jolted her; her eyes flickered open and she finally saw the boy kneeling before her.

She didn't hesitate, jumping out of the closet and hugging him. Her heart was still beating out of her chest, but this time her body was light and frigid.

"Jeno," she whispered, her face buried into his neck.

His arms were wrapped around her, his hand cupping the back of her head. She felt her breathing slowly start to steady.

"Ru, thank god!"

She let go of the hug to find Donghyuck running into the room, immediately kneeling in front of her. He pulled Ru into a tight hug.

"I'm so sorry I left you, but they were coming and I knew we'd be caught if I went out the window too, so I had to distract them—" he pulled away from the hug, observing her face with guilt and concern— "are you okay?"

She mustered up the best smile she could. "Yeah, I'm okay. Are they gone?"

Donghyuck nodded back. "Yeah, they heard the others coming and thought they were the police, so they ran."

The others?

"You made Ru climb out of a window?"

She looked up to see Renjun and Jaemin standing by the doorframe. Seeing all four of them here with her, she felt an intense feeling of relief wash over her.

"Dude, we were surrounded!" Donghyuck retaliated.

As shaken up as she was, a vague smile escaped her upon Donghyuck's casual, defensive tone. She finally gathered the strength to stand up. She dusted off the dirt from her skirt and blouse, trying her best to fix her hair.

Jeno had already stood up and was now peering out of the dirty, translucent window. Jaemin approached her, giving her a quick side hug in reassurance.

"You okay?" He asked.

She looked up at him and nodded. This time, she really meant it.

Renjun was standing in front of her, a reassuring smile on his face. Now that she had calmed down, one question finally popped into her head.

"Hey—" she looked at Renjun— "how did you know we were in trouble?"

"We came to the basketball court and you weren't there, but all your things were— Donghyuck even left his phone."

"Wait, how'd you find us, then?" Donghyuck interrupted.

Renjun reached into his pocket, pulling out his phone and showing them the screen. "Your location's on."

Ru did a mental face-palm. On his screen was her little icon on the map. She had her phone this entire time, but didn't think to call anyone.

"Come on, let's not stick around to see if they come back," Jaemin advised, gesturing for all of them to get out.

Ru looked in Jeno's direction. He had been silent ever since they got here. She wanted to thank him, also possibly ask him if he was feeling better now. However, before she could even approach him, he walked out of the room ahead of the others.

Maybe next time, she thought.

As they all walked out of the musty and dim room, Donghyuck muttered to the rest of the group.

"So, are we going back to the court?"

Everyone groaned simultaneously— "No!"

________________________________________

chapter fifteen.

Ru was lucky the school didn't notice that she skipped school; the Chois were none the wiser about what happened yesterday. Nonetheless, it's safe to say that Ru wasn't going to skip school anytime soon.

Thursday was a quiet day for Ru. As soon as school ended, she bid the others goodbye and walked home— alone, this time. Jaemin and the others had offered to walk her home as usual, but she didn't really feel like having company at the moment.

At least that's what she kept telling herself. The truth was, she didn't know if she could spend another second around Jeno.

Why?

He was ignoring her again. She had been racking her brain all day, coming up with a reason why he had barely spoken to her. They had been fine all of last week but now, it felt as if they were back to square one.

She pushed the house key into its keyhole, the bird keychain dangling as she twisted the key and unlocked the door. She took off her shoes and walked towards the stairs past the dining room.

Ru was surprised to find Mrs. Choi sitting on the dining table, looking at a bunch of opened envelopes, one hand rubbing her temple. Her presence distracted Mrs. Choi from the papers, however, as she looked up at her. "Oh, hello Ru."

Ru returned a sweet smile. "Hi, Mrs. Choi."

Mrs. Choi got up from her chair, scrambling to collect all the sprawled out papers, barely looking at Ru— "would you like anything to eat, darling? I can cook you something from the fridge, I think there might be some leftovers from yesterday—"

"—Oh no, I'm good, Mrs. Choi," Ru replied quickly, shaking her head.

Mrs. Choi paused, looking at the abundance of paperwork on her hands. She sighed, dropping them on the table and looking over at Ru.

"Would you like to go out for some ice cream?" Mrs. Choi blurted.

Ru paused for a moment. Ice cream?

She watched Mrs. Choi's hopeful expression, and something told her the offer wasn't really just for Ru.

"Yes, that'd be nice, thank you." Ru gave Mrs. Choi a grateful smile.

"Perfect—" Mrs. Choi sighed, looking down and gathering the mess of papers on her hands— "let me just put this away and we can go."

Ru nodded awkwardly. She excused herself and went up to her room to get changed. A few minutes later, she came back down to find Mrs. Choi already waiting for her by the door.

"Shall we?" she invited, opening the door for the both of them.

She unlocked her car and they both got in, driving off in silence.

It was weird being in a car with just Mrs. Choi. Normally, the whole family would be together and all she had to do was be silent or occasionally answer questions from the usual prying Mrs. Choi.

This time, she didn't ask Ru any questions. They rode in silence, the saturated orange hue reflecting against the interior of the car like a warm, cartoon movie. Mrs. Choi made turns in directions Ru didn't really recognize, but she didn't mind. She thought that the silence was going to make the car ride feel like an eternity, but before she knew it, the car came to a halt.

The engine stopped, and Mrs. Choi pulled on the hand brake.

"We're here," the poised lady announced in a mild sing-song voice; she was definitely in a better mood already.

Ru stepped out of the car to find that they had parked across the street from a quaint little ice cream shop, its pastel pink and blue striped awning giving the place a homey vibe. Their car was right next to a big community park overlooking a nice, little lake.

Together, they walked across the crosswalk and into the ice cream parlor; the little bell rang as they pushed the door open. It was a tiny shop with only a few round tables aligned on the wall and several ice cream-related decorations hanging from the ceiling.

A long ice cream display freezer was situated right by the door and Ru could immediately spot the overwhelming variety of ice cream flavors: chocolate chip cookies, matcha delight, strawberry swirl, lemonade, Ferrero Rocher, peanut haven, mandarin pistachio, bubblegum...

Ru felt her mouth water from all the colors, all the choices.

The girl behind the counter gave them a warm smile, showing them some of their best-sellers. Ru wasn't really listening— she had already decided which flavor she wanted: Ferrero Rocher.

The rich chocolate color tempted her, pulling her in like a child in a, well, ice cream parlor. She could only remember eating the Ferrero Rocher chocolate once when she was fourteen; one of her many foster families had bought a large box of the round delicacies and she snuck down the pantry at midnight to steal one. She remembered it was heavenly— both the treat and the fact that she got away with it.

"Do you know which flavor you want?" Mrs. Choi asked.

Ru nodded enthusiastically. "Yes, I'll have the Ferrero Rocher, please."

Mrs. Choi gave her a warm smile before turning to the employee and placing their orders.

Just as Ru was watching the girl scoop her ice cream into the cup, she felt her phone buzz in her pocket. She pulled out her phone to find a text message.

Jia<33 sent you a message.

Oh, no. Normally, she'd be excited to receive text messages from Jia or Chohee. But this time, she knew what the text was going to be about. With an uneasy feeling in her stomach, she opened the text:

Jia<33 : Hey cutie!! How are you?

Ru bit her lips as she sent a short response:

Ru: Hey Jiaa, I'm just out with my foster mom

It wasn't even a minute before Jia responded:

Jia<33 : Sounds fuuun

Jia<33 : Btw, what's the status on the double date? I told Chohee about it and she got so excited you should've seen her scream uWu

Her lips turned into a bitter frown. Before she could even think of a response, Jia sent another few texts:

Jia<33: We're actually free tomorrow, can you check if they're free?

Jia<33 : I know a super cute cafe that just opened up

Jia<33 : I'll send you the location

Jia<33 : Hopefully we can double date there! <3

Ru sighed. She didn't respond to the text messages, stuffing the phone back into her pocket. She'll respond later.

"Here you go, Ru—" she looked up to see her glorious ice cream in her foster mother's hand.

"Thank you!" Ru took the ice cream, her excitement growing. She forced the thought of the text out of her head and luckily, the mouth-watering ice cream in her hands was an effective way to do so.

The two of them found a seat in the corner of the shop, plopping onto their seats across from each other. It was silent for a while as the two indulged in the first few bites of their ice creams, until Mrs. Choi finally looked up at Ru, clearing her throat.

"So—" she took a quick scoop off her ice cream— "how's the ice cream?"

"It's delicious."

Mrs. Choi presented a grateful smile, looking down at her own ice cream. If Ru didn't know any better, she wouldn't have noticed. But she did.

Ru cleared her throat— "How, um... how are you, Mrs. Choi?"

She looked up, slightly taken aback. "Oh—" she shook her head dismissively— "I'm alright, I'll be alright."

Ru wanted to put on a brave face for her. It should be her telling Mrs. Choi that she'll be fine. But maybe she wasn't that good at hiding her feelings.

"Don't you worry about it, Ru," Mrs. Choi reassured instead. "What about you, how are you?"

"Oh, you know, I'm fine. Just usual school stuff," she dismissed.

"No, no—" Mrs. Choi leaned in closer, a hint of gloss in her eyes— "tell me about it, I want to hear it."

Mrs. Choi's expression was hard to read. Normally she just looked eager and nosy, but this time it was different. Was it desperation? Maybe there was a bit of sadness in it.

Ru wondered back to Jia's text, Jeno's cold shoulder, even the frightening run-in with those thugs yesterday. How could she explain any of it to her? None of it would make sense, would it?

Mrs. Choi's expression now shifted into anticipation.

It's just Mrs. Choi.

Ru cleared her throat. "There's this boy..."

Mrs. Choi's eyebrows raised in enthusiasm, but she kept quiet. Ru looked down at her ice cream, feeling too awkward to look directly at Mrs. Choi while she told her story.

"I thought he was my soulmate, but it turns out he wasn't. I know I've touched my soulmate, but I don't know where he is... I feel guilty, because I kinda wish that boy was my soulmate, while my real soulmate is out there waiting for me. Even worse, I think the boy wants nothing to do with me."

Ru shifted uncomfortably; she looked up to see Mrs. Choi smiling at her endearingly.

"Honey, soulmates are a tricky thing."

Ru chuckled; she didn't have to be told about that, definitely.

"It's one thing to wish you'll find your soulmate, but when you know you've touched your soulmate? You have absolutely nothing to worry about. He's getting here as fast as he could, and so are you.

Everyone has something to say when it comes to soulmates, but at the end of the day, you have to let your heart decide. Forget about the rules and let your heart guide you. Just relish this moment, every emotion and uncertainty. When your soulmate finds you, you'll just look back at this and laugh."

A smile formed on Ru's face as she felt a warmth in her chest, easing her shoulders from its tensed posture. "Thank you, Mrs. Choi."

Mrs. Choi nodded in return, taking another spoonful of her ice cream. "Despite all the drama, it's still exciting that you've found your soulmate, right? It's such a special and rare thing to happen to someone!"

Mrs. Choi's eyes perked up as she made a barely-audible gasp— "You know about astral capabilities right?"

Ru tilted her head slightly— the word did sound familiar.

Ru's eyes shifted as she tried to recall where she'd read it before.

"I'm sure you've learned it in class before—"

Right, that's where she's heard it.

"—but if you think soulmates re-uniting are a rare thing, astral capabilities are even more so. There's this one documentary I watched once about soulmates with astral capabilities; some soulmates get these powers after they Bind with each other. Isn't that cool?"

Ru nodded; Mrs. Choi looked genuinely excited as she continued to explain.

"This one couple from Costa Rica can breathe underwater when they touch each other. Apparently, they experienced the Binding while kissing underwater in the ocean, and researchers speculate it's why their astral capabilities are related to the water. Amazing!"

"Wow..." Ru heaved, her face a little blank.

They could breathe underwater? She was surprised she had never heard of it before.

"Isn't it crazy to think that you have the possibility of getting astral capabilities, too? Oh, this is exciting, isn't it?" Mrs. Choi squealed, her eyes crinkled in excitement.

Ru took the last scoop of her ice cream as she imagined herself with astral capabilities. She had to admit, it would be so cool to be able to breathe underwater, or whatever other astral capabilities she might be able to get— if she got them at all.

As soon as the two of them were finished with their ice creams, they bid the girl behind the counter a nice goodbye and walked out of the ice cream parlor. The afternoon sun greeted them warmly, the view of the park ahead of them serene and bright.

"Shall we take a quick walk around the park?" Mrs. Choi asked.

Ru nodded as she smiled. "That would be nice."

They walked across the street right past their car and into the park.

The last time she was at a park, Jeno told her he had no soul mark. The atmosphere was so different then; everything was dark and the air was positively chilly.

Now, the sun was out in a warm hue like from the movies, watching over the birds as they chirped joyfully, smiling over the flowers as they swayed with the wind.

The two of them walked through a wide and long stretch of road in the middle of the park, past little stands selling various little trinkets. She didn't even realize when Mrs. Choi stopped in front of one stall, her eyes scanning the rows of accessories on the table.

"Ru, come here—" Mrs. Choi called her— "we should get matching necklaces!"

Ru walked over to the stand and observed an array of matching accessories. A set of necklaces with the sun and the moon, another one with a yin and a yang.

Mrs. Choi gasped lightly as she picked up one set of necklaces— "these ones look beautiful, Ru, what do you think?"

At the end of the necklaces were two tiny, silver robins. Both their heads stuck right next to each other with magnets, like they were leaning against each other. Ru was immediately reminded of the keychain on their house key, which she now realized was also a robin.

"You must really like robins, Mrs. Choi," Ru chuckled, holding the necklace in her hands as she observed its smooth texture and intricate details.

Mrs. Choi laughed. "I used to have a robin when I was a child. I've always thought about getting another bird, but I never got around to doing it."

It was strange hearing Mrs. Choi talk about her childhood. Quite frankly, Ru never really imagined that there was a time when Mrs. Choi was just a child.

She watched Mrs. Choi admire the little birds with awe.

"Well, you should," Ru piped up, "we have a really nice porch out front; it would be a perfect place for its cage."

Mrs. Choi looked at Ru. "You think so?"

Ru nodded. Mrs. Choi gave her a wistful smile and avoided her gaze. There was a moment of silence before the elder finally said, "let's get this necklace then, shall we?"

"Looks perfect," Ru confirmed.

As Mrs. Choi was paying for their necklaces, Ru felt her phone vibrate again. Her little date had caused her to completely forget about her whole Jia and Chohee situation.

She fished out her phone to find that this time, she got several texts from Chohee. Her heart dropped a little as she struggled to click on it; she couldn't bring herself to open the text messages.

Ru stared blankly at her chat history: Jia's texts from earlier that she hadn't even replied to yet, the unopened text messages from Chohee.

Her eyes wandered a little lower until she came across her chat with Jeno. She clicked on it subconsciously, almost like she thought she would find answers in it.

The latest message was one that she sent him yesterday— she had asked him if he was okay. Her eyes flickered down to the bottom of the text, where it said one simple, yet disappointing word: read, 21:36.

The words blared at her. Maybe this was her answer.

On a whim, she exited the chat and clicked on Chohee's messages. It read:

ChoheeO.O : Ruuuuu I'm gonna give u a big fat HUG

ChoheeO.O : As soon as I kill Jia for spilling my secret, you'll get ur hug babe

ChoheeO.O : Ily thank you for the date, we owe you

ChoheeO.O: MUACH !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

She really had no choice but to move forward with the date, huh?

Her fingers lingered on top of the keyboard. She wanted to type something— anything— but no words came out.

Ru looked up in mild frustration. She watched Mrs. Choi admire her newly-bought necklaces. The crinkles by her eyes were accentuated from the subtle smile playing at her lips. The sunlight hit her face perfectly, casting a golden glow on her brown hair. She suddenly looked so much younger, so much more alive than she had ever realized.

Ru knew it then.

There are more important things in life.

She typed in her responses to both Jia and Chohee, telling them both that she was glad to help.

Her fingers hesitated, but she sent them.

She'd be lying if she said there wasn't a heavy weight on her chest. Despite the sad little pit she had dug for herself, Mrs. Choi was right— she'll laugh about it later.

At least, she hoped to God she would.

________________________________________

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quickspinner · 3 years

Text

Snake in the Silk

Written for the @lovebugs-and-snakecharmers Sprint Challenge, using the @mlweeklyprompts Next Door Neighbors. The fic is supposed to be 45 minutes plus "editing," but I kind of doubled the length in editing, so...oops.

I received a lot of prompts for my 500 follower celebration that I never used (although I did end up writing a surprising number of them eventually, when I looked at the list), and I was sharing them with the sprint server as possible future prompts. One of them involved Luka getting an exotic pet, which collided with the neighbors thing in my brain, and thus this fic was born.

As always the irrepressible Dingo King belongs to Verfound, who's kind enough to let me use him.

Rated T, mostly for innuendo and language

Find it on AO3

“I hate you,” Luka fumed, keeping the phone pressed to his face as he kicked his door shut behind him. “I hate you so much right now.”

“Not true,” Dingo said cheerfully over the phone.

“I’m serious, you jackass, I can’t trust you with anything!” Luka threw his bag in the corner with probably more force than he should have, and then winced. He set his guitar case down more carefully.

“Also not true,” Dingo said, a little sheepishly this time. “Buuuuuuut I’ll grant that maybe you shouldn’t have trusted me with this.”

“I didn’t have a choice,” Luka snapped as he stomped through his apartment. “Juleka was with me, and Evan’s a freaking pansy, and—” Luka stopped dead and sighed as he stared at the empty cabinet—the cabinet he had personally, carefully refurbished and remodeled to be as escape-proof as possible. Not that any of that did any good, with the door sitting ajar. Luka swore and only barely resisted the urge to kick something. “If anything happens to him,” Luka warned his best friend, “I will murder you, do you hear me?”

“Fair,” Dingo sighed. “Look, Lu, I seriously am sorry, and I would never have left except I had to work, and as soon as I can find an excuse to bail I’ll—”

“No,” Luka gritted out. “No, it won’t matter if you’re here or not. Don’t lose your job over it. I’ll figure something out.”

“It’ll work out, Lu. That stupid snake adores you, he won’t stay gone for long.”

Luka made a frustrated noise in the back of his throat and grit his teeth around the things he wanted to say. “I gotta go,” he finally managed to grind out. “I’ll deal with you later.”

“Right.” Dingo laughed nervously. “I’ll bring takeout and beer and then we’ll turn your place upside down looking for the little bugger.”

Luka hung up without saying anything else, and jammed his phone in his pocket. He put his face in his hands and screamed quietly, then dragged his hands down his face and surveyed the empty enclosure again—as if Sass were just going to show up and slither right up his favorite branch and flick his tongue out like ‘Sup .

Okay, he needed to think. It wasn’t the first time Sass had taken a little pleasure jaunt. Think. How many places could a four-foot corn snake find to hide in a small apartment like this? Luka didn’t even have that much stuff, so he shouldn’t be that hard to find.

If he was even still in the apartment. Luka swallowed hard. That had never been much of a worry on the Liberty, since while there were about a billion little crannies that a snake could crawl into, most of them were unpleasant for a cold-blooded reptile, and at least he couldn’t escape the ship entirely. But here, who knew? And this was the first time he’d escaped since Luka had moved into the apartment, so Luka didn’t know what his favorite places were likely to be, and—

And standing here panicking was not doing anything to find his beloved pet. For all that Sass was a little shit of an escape artist, Luka had raised him for years and he loved the quirky little snake and his stupid little snakey face with those bright black eyes and—

“Come on, Sass,” Luka muttered, looking around helplessly. “Don’t do this to me.”

Okay. First things first. Luka swung the front of the cabinet open wide, so that if Sass did decide he preferred his (very comfortable, Luka thought with a little pout, he had done a lot of work to make sure it was) home to whatever random, dusty corner he’d managed to find, he could get back in. Probably if nothing else, Sass would come back when he was hungry, if…

Luka sighed, and took Sass’s little pool out of the bottom of the enclosure to dump it out and refill it with fresh water. He made sure the heating mat was at the right temperature, and checked under the substrate and poked around among the various hides—damnit, he’d worked so hard to make this habitat, and that stupid, ungrateful little—

A muffled but clearly audible scream broke into his thoughts, and Luka froze. There was a second, yelping shriek— from the apartment next door, he suddenly realized, and he ran for his apartment door, knocking over his guitar case in his haste to get it opened.

He’d barely had time to turn from his door to the next door down when it burst open and a young woman stumbled out of it, eyes wide in panic. She collided with Luka and he grabbed her arms on instinct.

“Are you okay?” he asked stupidly, as she looked up at him.

“I—there was—” she panted, clearly still panicked. “A snake in my panties!”

Luka stared at her for a moment, uncomprehending as he took in big blue eyes, pink cheeks, and a soft mouth that was opening and closing without saying anything, and then she balled her hands into fists and closed her eyes and shrieked, “There’s a huge snake in my underwear drawer!”

Understanding hit him like a lightning bolt. “Oh thank God,” Luka sighed, and the young woman gaped at him as he moved her aside and went into her apartment.

“Wait, what are you—” she spluttered. “Where are you going? Hey!”

Luka halted about four steps into the apartment, abruptly realizing that he didn’t know where he was going, and she crashed into his back in her rush to follow him.

“Sorry,” Luka said, turning and holding his hands up placatingly. “Sorry, it’s just—my friend was watching my flat, and he let my pet snake out and I’ve been frantic to—find...him…” It struck him all at once that the young woman currently staring at him had wet black hair hanging around her shoulders, and a red and black polka-dotted silk robe wrapped haphazardly around her very nice body. It was still sticking to her in places and he suddenly felt like his tongue was glued to the roof of his mouth.

“That thing is yours?” she demanded, pushing her wet hair back and gripping her robe more tightly closed with the other hand. “I don’t know whether I’m mad at you or just relieved the whole building isn’t...infested or something.” She looked around nervously. “So there’s no more? Just the one?”

“No,” Luka laughed, burying the fingers of one hand in his hair. “No, no, no infestation, just one irresponsible best friend and my freaking Houdini-wanna-be pet snake. I’m so, so sorry he scared you, but if you show me where he is, I’ll get him out of here and you can get—uh, get on with your day, um….Miss.”

“Marinette,” she sighed, tugging the robe around herself a little self-consciously, her cheeks turning an attractive pink. Shit, she was cute, and this was really awkward. Ugh, Luka was going to kill Dingo, and maybe Sass too for good measure.

“Luka,” he said, offering his hand. “I live next door and I promise I don’t let my snake out all willy-nilly.”

Marinette snorted and covered her mouth with one hand as Luka blinked at her, feeling his face slowly turning red. “I can’t believe I just said that,” he muttered under his breath, and Marinette laughed aloud.

“Come on,” she giggled. “This way. Um, watch your step...I’m still getting unpacked and all and...okay that’s a lie, it’s always this messy, but it’s organized, I swear—”

“Hey, I’m not gonna judge your housekeeping choices, trust me,” Luka told her absently as he followed her down the short hall. “I don’t think I’m in any position to judge you at all, given the situation. Even if I did that kind of thing. Judge people, I mean. I—I don’t, or I try not to, at least—” He paused and took a deep breath, trying not to let it out as a frustrated sigh.

Marinette pushed open a door and edged into the room—her bedroom, it was immediately obvious. She stayed pressed up against the wall. “It’s, um, over there,” she said, pointing to a pink and black chest of drawers, the top drawer of which was hanging open. “I just opened the drawer and there it was and I—” She fluttered her hands.

Luka went over to the drawer and surveyed the contents. “I don’t see him,” he sighed.

“What?” Marinette’s voice jumped several octaves.

“It’s okay, he probably just—” Luka reached out, and stopped just before he touched anything, hand hovering over the rumpled pile of silk and lace in the drawer. “Uh…” Luka looked back at Marinette. “I mean, do you mind if I…” he gestured weekly at the drawer full of underthings. “See if he’s underneath this stuff?”

“Oh,” Marinette blushed again, but waved a dismissive hand, shifting nervously. “Go ahead. Do what you need to do. I just want you to find it.” She cracked a small smile. “Thanks for checking, though.”

“Sure,” Luka grunted, carefully lifting a pair of lace edge panties from the top of what had probably been a neat pile before Sass decided to rummage it into a nest. He shifted things aside carefully, trying not to look too hard at any of it. “Come on, you little shit,” he muttered. “You’re killing me here.”

“Um, could you actually, uh...maybe hand me a pair of those?” Marinette said, and Luka glanced back at her in some surprise. She was still pressed back against the wall and her face was red again, and she was clutching her robe tight around her, fingering her wet hair as she fidgeted— oh .

“Oh, yeah, uh...any particular...color?” he asked weakly. She seemed like the kind of girl who liked to match. Which was such a weird thing to be thinking right now. He was definitely going to kill Dingo. Slowly . Maybe feed important bits of him to Sass before he murdered his beloved pet, too.

“Anything’s fine,” Marinette replied, with a slightly hysterical sounding laugh.

Luka lifted another pair, trying not to think too hard about which pair he grabbed and what it might say about him. He tossed the panties to her, and then quickly turned back to the drawer.

“I’m just gonna step outside for a minute,” Marinette muttered, and Luka swallowed as he heard her bare feet pad away.

“This is the weirdest fucking day,” he muttered under his breath, carefully moving more underthings aside and trying not too hard to think about what other kinds of things a lady might keep in her underwear drawer. Ugh, why did the damn drawer have to be so deep—wait, was that—

Luka picked up a distractingly pretty blue pair decorated with black ribbons, and breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the familiar tip of Sass’s tail sticking out. “Got you, you little shit.”

“You found him?” Marinette said behind him, and Luka jumped. She was wearing shorts and a t-shirt now, and she’d pulled her wet hair back into a ponytail. She stood on tiptoe to look around him, though she still kept back behind him.

“Yeah, now I just have to get around to his head and get him out without spooking him,” Luka said, reaching into the drawer again. “The last thing I want is him musking all over your things because I grabbed him too quickly and startled him.”

Marinette wrinkled her nose. “I don’t know what that means, but it sounds gross.”

“Trust me, it is,” Luka said, removing another pair of Marinette’s underwear and adding it to the pile he’d been making on top of the dresser. “I am really, really sorry about this. I shouldn’t have trusted Ding—my friend. He’s got a good heart but he’s a little loose on details.” In the drawer, Sass shifted, and lifted his head, tongue flicking out curiously, a pair of teal, scale-patterned panties draped over his head. Luka bit back a laugh. “Hey, buddy,” he murmured, moving his fingers near Sass. Sass’s tongue flickered once, and then again, scenting, and then he moved forward, sliding out from under the pile of panties to glide onto Luka’s hand. “There we go.” Luka brought his other hand forward to move under Sass’s body, and finally, carefully, lifted the pile of snake out of Marinette’s underwear drawer. Far from looking stressed, Sass seemed as relaxed and laid back as ever, gathering his nearly four-foot length into Luka’s hands like nothing was amiss. It kind of made Luka want to shake him, but that would have been really dumb, so he didn’t. He sighed with relief instead, feeling his shoulders go slack as Sass poked his head up towards Luka’s elbow.

“I wasn’t imagining it,” Marinette murmured, keeping behind him, but still leaning on his arm to peep curiously around him at Sass. “He really was that big.”

“He’s pretty near his full growth,” Luka agreed, and lifted Sass up to eye level. “Which is why I built you that nice, big habitat and made it so comfortable, so that you had room to be you. I can’t believe you just bailed on it.” Sass swayed forward, bumping his snout against Luka’s face. “Yeah, it’s me, you little dummy.”

“Does he bite?” Marinette asked, and Luka snorted softly, moving his hands to keep the snake supported as Sass began to slither up his arm.

“Not usually. Sometimes he bites me just to make a point, but not enough to hurt,” Luka told her, “For the most part he’s well socialized, and friendly. Really, he’s harmless to anything much bigger than a rat. I promise, you were never in any danger from him. I’m sorry he gave you such a scare, though.”

“Can I...can I touch him?” Marinette asked, as Sass slithered across Luka’s shoulder and extended his head out a bit, tongue flickering. Luka grinned at her.

“Yeah, sure. Here, let’s just...” He backed up a step and sat down on the edge of Marinette’s bed, then reached up and took Sass off his shoulders to gather him between his hands again. Apparently no longer inclined to stay put after his little panty-nest nap, Sass began to slide up his arm again as Marinette set down next to him. She reached out a tentative finger to stroke Sass’s body as the snake moved up towards Luka’s shoulder. “Oooh, that’s so weird,” she said, but she was grinning, and Luka chuckled.

“I’ve had him since he was a baby about the size of my hand,” Luka told her, closing one eye as Sass poked his snout into Luka’s cheek. “I was freaking out, thinking that I’d lost him. I’m sorry we interrupted your day, but I’m grateful you found him, and didn’t hurt him.”

“Hurt him ,” Marinette laughed. “ He just about gave me a heart attack. I just moved in, you know, and—well, I’d seen a mouse a couple of times so I was already a bit jumpy, and then I saw that and suddenly I was sure the whole place was crawling with pests. Which was maybe a dumb thing to think, but I...it’s my first time living on my own and I guess I’m a little paranoid.” She shrank a little, reaching up to tug at her still-dripping ponytail.

“I don’t think there’s any reasonable reaction to finding a snake in your...er, unmentionables.” Luka coughed as Marinette snickered.

“Unmentionables,” she snickered. “You sound like an old man.”

Luka laughed with her, only a little self-consciously. “I, um... don’t think you’re going to have a mouse problem anymore,” he commented, stroking a swollen place in Sass’s belly. “I guess that’s why Sass ended up here. He probably smelled it.”

Marinette eyed the lump in Sass’s otherwise sleek form with a conflicted expression, but she only sighed.

“If it’s any consolation, I’ve been here a few months and I haven’t had any pest problems,” Luka continued.

“I don’t guess you would,” Marinette laughed, looking at Sass. “They can probably smell him and stay away. Maybe I should borrow him sometimes.”

“Well, clearly I could use a better babysitter,” Luka chuckled. “So if you’re interested, we can definitely work something out.” He turned his head to look at Sass, who was draped along his shoulders again. “No more hunting, though. That mouse could have messed you up, you little jerk.”

Sass yawned, tongue flickering, and then stuck his head down the collar of Luka’s shirt. Luka rolled his eyes. “I should let you get back to your day,” he said, standing up. “And I should get this guy back into his cage.” Sass slid further into Luka’s shirt, and then reversed course, his head peeping back out. “What are you even doing right now?” Luka asked him. “Missing your heat rock?”

Marinette giggled. “He’s kind of cute, actually. He’s very pretty, with those markings...wait, is that him?” She caught the edge of Luka’s sleeve, lifting it slightly to reveal the top of the tattoo on his upper arm.

“Yeah,” Luka grinned, shifting so she could see it better. “I love that one. They made him look amazing.”

“They really did,” Marinette said admiringly, and then her eyes widened slightly and she dropped his sleeve, moving back as her face reddened. “Um, sorry.”

“No worries,” Luka chuckled. She was really adorable, and sweet when she wasn’t screaming. She’d certainly warmed up to Sass quick enough, too, so he gave her points for courage and open-mindedness.

“Well, it was very nice to meet you, Sass,” Marinette said to the snake, bending down slightly to be eye to eye with him. “Next time I’d appreciate it if you’d wait for an invitation, though.”

Sass slid up and away from Luka, stretching out toward Marinette as if planning to explore her shoulders next, but Luka put a hand under him and lifted away. “None of that, Casanova,” he told the snake, redirecting Sass back to his own shoulder. “Let’s get you home.”

Marinette walked them to the door, and when she opened it, Luka paused on the doorstep. “Um, thanks again for being so understanding,” he said, trying not to stare at her too intently. “I’m glad to have met you, Marinette. If you ever need anything, well.” He gestured vaguely. “I’m right next door, and I owe you.”

Marinette smiled at him, pink tinging her cheeks, and his stomach did a little flip. “Thanks, Luka. I’m glad to meet you too. I’m sure I’ll see you around.”

“Yeah, definitely,” Luka smiled back, and then practically fled back to his own door. “See you.”

She gave him a little wave before closing her door, and he was grinning widely when he opened his own.

He took Sass straight back to his enclosure, and Sass eagerly slid from his hands, beelining for his favorite warming spot. “I’m really mad at you,” Luka told him. “I was worried. I’m definitely still killing Dingo.” He couldn’t keep his face stern, though, a smile twitching his mouth. “I might owe you big time, though. That was a hell of an icebreaker.” Luka sighed, and shut the enclosure, making sure it was securely latched.

He went back to the door where he’d dumped his bags, and picked up his guitar case, leaving the suitcases where they were for now. He got out his guitar and settled down on the couch with a sigh.

He lost track of how long he’d sat there, playing a soft tune that reminded him of blue eyes and giggles and silk. When his phone buzzed in his pocket and brought him back to himself, he could see sunset colors through the window.

“Oi, mate,” Dingo said when Luka picked up the phone. “I finally escaped—ooh, poor choice of words...I mean I’m off work now. I’ll grab some takeout and meet you at your place so we can—”

“I found him,” Luka interrupted, wincing a little. He probably should have texted Dingo hours ago to let him know.

Oh well, the bastard deserved it.

“You did?” Dingo repeated, obviously relieved. “Yes. Good. Okay. Welp, cancel that then—”

“Oh, no,” Luka interrupted him. “You’re not getting out of bringing me dinner. I still need to kick your ass.”

“Not exactly incentivizing, mate.” Dingo sighed. “You want your usual?’

“Actually,” Luka said, thinking fast. “I’ll text you my order in a minute.” He hung up before Dingo could protest, stuck his phone in his pocket, and went out the front door.

“This is stupid,” he muttered to himself, rubbing his palms on his jeans before he knocked on Marinette’s door.

She opened the door and her curious expression morphed into a smile. “Luka.” She was fully dressed now and made up to boot, and just as cute as he remembered.

“Hey,” he managed to get out, and hoped his smile didn’t look too manic. “Um, my asshole best friend is bringing me takeout to make up for being a dummy, and I’d really like to buy you dinner to make up for earlier.”

“Oh,” Marinette’s expression shifted into uncertainty, and she bit her lip. “I’d hate to intrude…”

“If you’d rather, I can just bring your food over when it gets here,” Luka offered. “But you definitely wouldn’t be intruding, I’d love for you to join us. Totally your call, though. You don’t even have to decide now. Do you like Thai?” He pulled out his phone to show her the menu.

“I love Thai,” she admitted shyly, taking the phone he offered her. “Um...but you really don’t have to…”

“I want to,” he told her sincerely, and the smile she turned up at him made his heart rate kick up a few beats.

“Okay,” she said, and he nearly stopped breathing as she pulled up his contacts. “How about I just add my number and you can text me when he gets here, and...I’ll come over for a little bit, if you guys really don’t mind.”

“Y-yes, yeah, definitely, go ahead,” he said quickly.

Smiling to herself, Marinette did just that, and then sent herself a text before she handed him back the phone. “I’ll text you my order, it’s a little complicated,” she told him, “and then I guess I’ll see you in a little bit.”

“Yeah,” Luka smiled at her. “Looking forward to it. I’ll text you in a bit.”

He managed to make it back into his own apartment without cracking, and then he had a (very quiet, since she was still next door) freakout in his living room as he texted Dingo both of their orders and hit send. He found himself in front of Sass’s cage, trying to slow his pulse with some deep breathing. Sass was looking right through the glass at him, and if Luka didn’t know better, he’d have thought the little bastard looked smug.

“I’m still mad at you,” Luka insisted, but the grin splitting his face probably wasn’t very convincing. “Don’t look at me like that.” He sighed. “Dingo’s never going to let me hear the end of this. If she’ll even speak to me ever again after she meets him.”

Well. That was a problem for future Luka. Present Luka just got the number for the hot girl next door, and she thought his snake was cute, and—

“Yeah, this dinner with Dingo is going to be a disaster,” he laughed helplessly, flinging himself down on the couch.

#quickspins #lukanette #endgame lukanette #lukanette endgame #luka couffaine #marinette dupain-cheng #miraculousladybug #miraculous ladybug #neighbors au #meet-cute #i'll never not know you #a single spark #quickfic

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theboredwritertm · 4 years

Note

hi if you write smut.... maybe mando being the reader’s first time?? if not, ignore this :))

Innuendo

A/N: I’m going to admit this was the first request I received (ever) for The Mandalorian and it’s been gathering dust for the past couple of weeks (because I’m a simp for Cobb Vanth apparently??) Anyway, so sorry it’s taken this long, anon. I haven’t written this kind of thing before, but always love the chance to try new subject matter. Thanks for sending it through! I’ll admit this piece felt kind of clunky as I was writing it, but since I’m (sorta) sticking to a posting schedule now, I just wanted to get it done. And apparently, I can’t write something without backstory, so it got a little long!

Rating: 18+ for adult situations

Pairing: Din Djarin x Reader

Warnings: Awful jokes and innuendos, awkwardness, a clueless Din, probably swearing, consensual sex, loss of virginity

Word Count: 5930 (Once again, consider the first 3000 words terrible foreplay)

Summary: After putting up with months of your supposedly-unintentional innuendos, Din finally takes charge…only to find out things aren’t quite what he expected.

He’d picked you up like a Bantha tick and hadn’t been able to shake you since.

You’d managed to argue your way into a semi-permanent position onboard the Crest after what he would call a rescue, but what you still stubbornly referred to as an ‘assisted retreat’, and it didn’t look like you planned on leaving any time soon.

So, he was stuck with you. At least that’s how he liked to think of the situation.

Never mind that it was nice to have someone to come back to after a long mission that could actually talk back to him. Or that you kept the ship neat and tidy. Or that you were practically a live-in babysitter for the little one at this point. Not to mention the way you always managed to throw together decent meals for the three of you that didn’t always come out of a pack – and that you seemed to enjoy doing so.

And never mind that he liked listening to your soft, happy hums as you stirred together whatever ingredients you had managed to pull together, and that he’d stand in the doorway, silent as a shadow as he took this in, thinking to himself that if a Bantha was half as lucky to pick up a tick like you, it could do much worse for itself.

But what really got to him were the jokes.

You weren’t what he would consider shy, not since you seemed to have no problem at all talking back to him when he had grown so used to others shrinking back at the mere sight of him – still, he hadn’t been expecting the first comment that had just sort of slipped out of you after a few weeks of being in each other’s company. By that point you were comfortable enough to throw the odd sarcastic quip around at each other without having to worry about someone getting offended, so that’s what he had decided to take it as: a joke. At least, the first time.

Since the Crest was prone to the odd malfunction, given its age and what he guessed to be a few too many battles before it was decommissioned, it hadn’t surprised him to walk into a cockpit full of smoke one day. What had surprised him was the way you had stepped into the room, taken one look around as you waved the smoke from your face, and said, “Is it hot in here, or is it just you?”

He’d taken it as he thought he should. A bad joke. You were prone to them as he had come to find, and there’d been plenty of times that he’d heard you use the same kind of lines on people you needed something from. In his case, he guessed that something was shelter and a place to lay low for a while. And he had obliged.

The second time wasn’t as bad. It was worse. Terrible, even. He had no idea what you’d been going for, but as he’d approached the ship after a particularly grueling job and found you standing on the ramp, one foot balanced on a crate and look of mock-seduction, you’d cocked an eyebrow and greeted him with, “Hey, handsome. Looking for a ride?”

His response? A semi-confused, completely weary, “It’s my ship,” as he’d passed you by.

The third time he thought maybe he’d just taken it the wrong way.

You’d been discussing his work, how long it had been between jobs, and how you were both getting a little light on credits. You’d shaken your head, lounging sideways in the co-pilot seat in a way that always looked uncomfortable to him, but seemed just fine to you, when you’d said, “I don’t get it. There’s got to be work out there somewhere.” Then you’d paused for a moment before adding, “If I looked hard enough, I’m sure I could find a few openings for you to fill.” He had frowned and glanced over, certain he’d caught the passing ghost of a smirk on your lips before you resumed looking completely innocent, as if you were simply pondering the tricky predicament you found yourselves in.

Then there was the touching.

At first, he’d found excuses to move out of your reach, an attempt to make his knee-jerk reaction to shrug you off look less obvious. Then one day he’d exercised some restraint as you’d popped a warm, friendly hand on his thigh before getting up from the co-pilot’s seat, announcing you were ready for bed, and he’d realized…he kind of liked it. What, to you, (he was sure) was just fleeting, friendly touches – something ordinary and human he had been deprived of growing up – started to become something he would linger on for hours, sometimes days afterwards. There was something frustrating in the way you could make something that felt so intimate to him look so casual to you.

Another time, more recently, was probably the worst of the lot – but only because of the effect it’d had on him.

During the last stop-off, you’d both been standing in the holding bay surveying the handful of acquisitions he had stored in carbonite. Work had finally picked up, and you’d proven surprisingly helpful in acquiring them, but in that particular instance, there had been a slight problem – two of them were destined for the same planet, but the cities were in complete opposite directions. The timeframes to meet the employers would never have allowed him to make both trips. So, you’d stepped up, placing a hand on his arm as you’d surveyed the captives and said, “Look, I’ve never been much of a delivery person, but I’m more than happy to handle your package for you, just this once.” He’d stared at you, glancing down briefly at the hand on his armor, then up at your smile. “What do you say?” you’d asked, eyes never leaving his visor.

It had taken a troubling amount of self-control not to close up the ramp and show you just how okay with that proposition he was. Because it had been a long time since he’d last gotten the chance. He’d blame the dry spell on the kid, on new responsibilities that hadn’t been there before, but it had been like this for well-over a year, way before the Child had even come into his life. Gone were the days of his youth where he could pick someone out of a bustling cantina crowd and lead them off silently to some grimy bathroom or backroom for a quick fuck – them, for the thrill of being with one of his kind, and him, out of sheer physical need. He’d made peace with the fact that those days were behind him (and considering the state of some of those bathrooms – and some of the partners – it was probably for the best). But that didn’t mean that the need went away. And then there was you.

You, with your perfect skin and the glow of youth still about you. Your long, shiny hair that always made his fingers twitch with need to reach out and run them through it. Your (cute) annoying laugh, and the way you would crinkle up your nose as you found something he’d said particularly funny for some reason he could never figure out (him, fumbling with switches from the pilot’s seat as he attempted to focus, ignoring the smile prickling at his own mouth as the sweet sound of your giggling flipped the doofus switch in his brain). You with the form-fitting pants you sometimes wore when a mission called for something you could move easily in, ones that made his own pants feel a little more form fitting when he stared for long enough to let his mind wander.

You and your damn jokes.

In the end, much to his surprise, it wasn’t a joke that had finally sent him over the edge. It was a simple word, and this time you actually had context to back you up, to assure him that it wasn’t you just fucking with him. Given the situation, it absolutely shouldn’t have had the effect on him that it did. But it had triggered something in him that even he didn’t know he was into.

The kid had been seated in his usual spot, in the seat behind Din’s, when you’d walked in and spotted his big eyes beginning to droop. You had developed a routine with him now – dinner, a bit of bonding time with Din in the cockpit, then bed – and so far, it had seemed to work well for the little guy. You were new to the whole childcare thing, but it made it easier for you to know where punishment and reward was warranted – especially since you were terrible at telling him off. One look at his little face and all wrongdoings were forgotten, something Din never seemed particularly impressed with (even if he was just as guilty of it as you were).

You approached the seat, reaching down to scoop up the sleepy bundle, and pulled him close.

“Come on, little one. Let’s leave daddy to his thing. Time for bed.”

As you turned and headed for the steps leading down to his cot, you failed to notice the way Din had stiffened in his seat. He turned his head to watch you go, eyes dropping down to linger on your ass as the word replayed in his mind. Then he turned back to the flight console, hand lingering over it in a split-moment of indecision, before he flicked on auto-pilot and got to his feet.

Enough was enough.

You had absolutely been fucking with him.

The first time it had just sort of slipped out, you’ll admit. After years of dealing with the Guild, which what was honestly a bit of a boys’ club, you’d developed the shitty flirting as a reflex to seem more at ease with whoever you were working with (and, okay, sometimes it got you better jobs, too. So what?) But after catching Din’s initial reaction (back when you knew him solely as the strong, silent Mando) you knew it was a thread you had to tug at. And tug at it, you had, just to see the man unravel.

You knew the risks, knew the Mandalorian’s reputation, but part of you had wondered how far you could take it…how far you wanted it to go.

You were about to find out.

As you pressed the button to close up the baby’s metal capsule, smiling as you caught one last glimpse of his sleeping form, you turned to find yourself face-to-helmet with the man himself. Even without seeing his face, there was still an intensity to the way he was looking at you, how he leaned in until you have no choice but to back yourself up against the cold steel of the wall.

“This needs to stop,” he says, tone full of warning. Though you could have sworn there was a touch of something else to his voice. You want to say it sounds like desperation, but that feels a little self-indulgent, even for you.

“I’m sorry. Did you want to put the kid to bed? I just thought—”

“You know exactly what I mean.”

His hand comes up to rest beside you on the wall, as he leans in closer, effectively boxing you in.

Oh, boy.

You wonder if this is the same technique he uses on people he’s trying to get information from and if it should be having this effect on you. You’re almost certain it’s fear that you should be feeling, not, uh, this. You clear your throat and look up at him, wracking your brain for what you’ve done or said in the last ten minutes to warrant this kind of reaction from him, especially given the more obvious attempts to rile him up over the past couple of months. You’d picked up the kid, same as you did every other night. Maybe it was the way you’d bent over to do it. You glance down briefly at your clothes, but it’s not a particularly revealing outfit. You’d worn much less in front of him before with far less reaction. Maybe it was something you’d said?

Come on, little one. Let’s leave daddy to-

Oh.

The word leaves your mouth as a soft question intended mainly for yourself, a thought given voice. Din stiffens immediately, across from you. You look up at him, realizing at the same time he does that you’ve caught on.

“Wait, really? Is that what this abou—?”

His other hand comes up towards your throat, and for a moment you think he’s going to choke you (and you’re a little concerned that the feeling you get from that thought still isn’t fear) but his touch is gentle. His hand comes to rest on the side of your neck, thumb against your cheek as he looks at you for a moment before his voice comes through once more.

“Say it again.”

You keep your gaze trained on his visor, where you’re sure his eyes are currently burning into you, and feel heat flooding in opposite directions in your body; up to your face, and down between your legs. And you feel ridiculous. You had never been into that kind of thing before, and you feel silly saying it; but if there’s one thing you are into, it’s the big guy in front of you – the one telling you to say this one little word, just for him – and having him this close talking to you like this, well it might just be worth the humiliation. Hell, maybe that’s something you’re into, as well.

“Daddy?”

The hand on the wall next to you pulls back as he growls, and slams forward fast enough to make you jump, smacking against the light switch, bathing you both in sudden darkness. You feel him lean in closer, certain that if you were to move your head even slightly forward it would come into contact with the cold beskar of his helmet.

“Do you want this?” his voice, gravelly with lust, sounds through the modulator, as the hand on your neck begins to slide downwards.

Shit.

Even if you had wanted to say no before – you hadn’t – you’re sure the low rumble in his tone would have changed your mind. You’d never heard him keyed up like this before. He always had a way of keeping it together, of staying in control, but you’d been messing with him for so long, teasing, casually throwing your innuendos around, knowing exactly what you were doing to him. You don’t know why you feel so surprised that it’s finally come down to this. It was kind of like a daydream, a fantasy finally coming true, and you feel completely unprepared.

“I do, Din, seriously, but, uh, there’s just—”

“What is it?”

You wonder how you’re going to break it to him. Honestly, you feel like a fucking fraud after everything you’ve put him through. You feel like you’ve been leading him on. You sigh and duck your head as you make your confession.

“I’ve never done this before.”

You don’t know how to explain it, but you feel him suddenly deflate, as if the tension in the room has been replaced with something akin to disappointment.

“You’re joking?” And for once, you’re not.

He doesn’t mean for the words to come out the way they do, and even though he can’t say he’s any less turned on by this revelation he knows there are implications there that can’t be ignored if he wants to keep going. Only, right now, he’s not feeling very patient.

You wince at the level of exasperation in his tone. “No.”

There’s silence for a moment and you have to reach out to feel that he’s still there, your hand landing on his chest plate. His hand comes up to rest on top of yours, and you think that maybe its to pull it away, that the lights will come back on at any moment and this opportunity will disappear forever, but he holds it there, thinking things over.

“How much experience do you have? Any?”

There’s a change to his tone, now. He sounds curious.

“Yeah, I mean I’ve…”

Why does this feel so fucking awkward suddenly? You’ve spent the last six months in this man’s daily company, and while that might not seem like a lot of time in terms of getting to know a person, a majority of that was spent in the confined space of the Crest. You know each other’s routines now; all the little habits and pet peeves you can only pick up on when living in close quarters with someone else. You know he likes silence at meal times, but that he’s more open to conversation after time away on a job, and you’ve come to be able to tell just from his posture if that job had gone well. You know some of each other’s history – him mostly learning yours, since you’re by far the chattier person – yet, still, your face is hot with embarrassment as you recall the handful of experiences you’ve had. You’d never talked about this kind of stuff. You’d only ever joked about it.

“You know, like, mouth stuff.”

“Mouth stuff?” he repeats, and you swear there’s laughter in his voice when he says it.

Your face is beginning to feel unbearably hot, and you’re sure that if he decided to read your heat signature right now your skin would look like you’d just spent a week straight wandering the Tatooine desert.

“Shut up, you know what I mean.”

“Hm,” he replies thoughtfully, like he does and that maybe he’s picturing it, “What else?”

“Hand—”

“Hand stuff?” he cuts you off, undeniably making fun of you now.

You smack him in the chest plate, only managing to send a sting through your hand in the process, then push forward as if to move past him, like you think you could make your way anywhere in this darkness. “You know what? Maybe I don’t want this, after all.”

It’s a blatant lie, but you’re starting to think maybe humiliation’s not your thing after all.

He stops you and you don’t resist. You’d been wanting this pretty much from day one, back when he’d assisted with your retreat after a hunt had gone sideways – from the moment you’d watched him swagger into the cantina and stand calmly between you and the half-dozen armed men who were protecting their wanted leader. Back when you’d been just a young, fellow hunter in need of aid.

“Tell me what you want,” he asks you now.

You think about it for all of two seconds. “I want y—This. I want this.” You stumble over what is almost too much of a confession. It feels too soon to tell heavy truths like that, so you settle for what you already know he’s offering. “Just…go easy.”

There’s a silence that seems to drag out in the darkness, then a hiss as he removes his helmet. You feel his body move closer to yours, and you swear that’s his hair brushing your cheek as he leans in and says, “I can do that.”

He scoops you up without warning, reminding of how quick and strong he can be even when he’s weighed down by all that armor, and you find you can’t help yourself as you say:

“You really know how to sweep a girl off her feet.”

Without the helmet, his sigh meets your skin as a warm huff across your face.

“Do me a favor?”

“Sure,” you reply without hesitation, feeling him still beneath you.

“No more jokes. Please.”

You laugh at the exasperation in his voice and find yourself caught completely off guard when you hear a huff of breath escape him that might have passed for laughter, too, but before you can say anything you find yourself being whisked away towards what you assume is the small space of his sleeping quarters. He seems to know his way well enough to not bump into anything along the way, but even so you hug yourself in tight to avoid any knocks to the head. You look up as a door rasps open in front of you and you can only barely make out the outline of the bed. Din is quick to place you down on it before he drops his helmet to the floor and starts tugging off his armor, placing it somewhere nearby. You sit on the edge of the mattress staring awkwardly into the darkness, knowing you should probably start undressing, too, but suddenly feeling self-conscious despite the pitch darkness that surrounds you.

“Do you want me to undress you?” Din asks, and his tone is gentle enough for it to be a serious question.

You shake your head in response after thinking it over for a minute before remembering he can’t see you.

“You’ll have to use your words,” he says, “The lights need to stay off.” He pauses for a moment, then adds, “Is that okay?”

You know it’s not him asking if you’re expecting him to betray his creed in order for this to happen; it’s him asking if you’re okay with not being able to see anything for your first time.

Your first time.

Urgh. It sounds so juvenile when you think about it that way, but so far, it’s living up to the adolescent kind of awkwardness you had expected, back when you had actually been an adolescent. You were past that now, and if you’re being honest with yourself that’s part of what’s making you feel self-conscious about this whole thing. You feel like this should have happened a long time ago. You wonder if Din thinks it odd that you’ve left it for this long.

“That’s fine,” you tell him quickly. Though you wish you could see him, not only to know what you’ll be working with, but also because doing it this way adds a layer of anonymity you didn’t necessarily want to associate with your first time. You’d always pictured it being with someone you felt close to – as cliché as it sounded, someone who was special to you. And even though that was true in this case, not being able to see that certain someone was detracting from the whole experience.

You feel movement in front of you and a large, warm hand finds your knee, running it over the fabric that still covers your body.

“We don’t have to do this if you’ve changed your mind,” Din tells you. His voice is different without the helmet; softer, gentler. Or maybe it’s just the circumstances that has him talking to you this way. You’d heard him use this kind of tone on the Child, and you had always admired the level of patience he always managed to show the kid, but you’d never found yourself on the receiving end of it like this before. It’s comforting.

Comforting enough to confirm your decision.

His hand moves away as he feels you start to shimmy out of your clothes. Your top goes first, up and over your head, joining his pile on the floor, then you reach down for the button on the front of your pants. You pause, realizing how exposed you’ll be, even with the cool air meeting your already-exposed nipples. This is a different kind of exposed, you think; more intimate. You give yourself a moment.

“May I?” he asks, and you’re surprised enough by his politeness that you nod, forgetting again he can’t see you, and breath out, “Yeah.”

You move your hand and let him take over, feeling his deft fingers make quick work of your button and zipper before he starts to tug the fabric down your legs, taking your pants and underwear all in one go. His hands find your knees and you sigh at the skin-on-skin contact, never expecting the man to feel this warm. You hear him drop down to his knees and suddenly feel warm breath between your legs. You make to close your legs at the unexpected sensation, unsure about having him this close to that area, but his hands come up to pull them back apart.

“What are you doing?” you ask, only to distract you both, because your heart feels like it’s going to beat out of your chest at how fast this is moving.

“Mouth stuff,” he replies simply.

It’s simple, dry humor, but you swear he never makes you laugh more than when he catches you off guard with stuff like that. You don’t think anyone else would believe you if you tried to tell them how funny he can be without even trying. The joke manages to diffuse some of your anxiety and you relax back onto the bed, trusting him with whatever he’s about to do. Still, you gasp when his mouth meets your core, and he hums happily against you. You’ve done this with someone once before, but the memory feels clumsy compared to what Din is doing now; his grip tight around your waist and tongue immediately finding the right places. You try not to think about where he’s had the practice, focusing instead on the sensation he’s creating with a simple flick of his tongue.

You start to make noises you don’t think have ever come from you before, unable to help yourself with the sudden assault on your sensitive nerve endings. He pauses from what he’s doing as if struck by a sudden thought, smiling at the way you whimper at the sudden loss of contact.

“Have you ever cum before?” he asks.

“I think so,” you reply, but if you were being completely honest, you’re not sure. And least, not with another person. You’re pretty sure you’ve gotten there on your own. You think. You feel like that’s something you should know for sure.

“You think so?” he repeats, sounding unconvinced.

“Yeah. I mean, I’ve had, you know, urges, I took care of them, then they were gone.”

He makes a thoughtful sound and ones of his thumbs finds your clit, rubbing a couple of circles before he dips it down to your center to scoop up some of the wetness there to bring back up again.

“You don’t sound very sure,” he says casually, like he’s not driving you crazy right now with a simple touch. Feeling slightly pathetic, you can only whine, your brain feeling scrambled as his assault on your clit empties it of all coherent thought. “Next time I ask you, I want you to be a little more certain,” he tells you, and without warning dives back in, his tongue taking over from his thumb at a much faster pace. Your back arches off the bed and he slips his free arm across your hips, holding you in place.

You soon feel pressure at your entrance as he presses a finger carefully against it and in your frenzied state you push forward onto it, forgetting in a moment of desperate need your body’s inexperience with something like that. You’re wet enough that it doesn’t hurt, but it’s still a foreign feeling having something inside of you, and you realize that’s only one finger. Before you can start to imagine how something larger is going to feel, he presses the finger upwards inside of you and hits a spot you’ve never felt before. You cry out, caught completely off guard as the tight feeling in your lower belly breaks and you cum hard against him, hips bucking uncontrollably against his face. He growls against you, but doesn’t stop moving until your hips do.

“Fuck,” you whine, still panting as he slides his finger out of you and gives you one last lick. Still sensitive, you yelp and jerk back from the sensation, making him chuckle.

“Now you can say you’ve cum,” he tells you, and hell if he doesn’t sound proud of himself for giving you that.

“Yeah,” you agree, still barely able to form a proper thought. Then one comes to you. You sit up. He’s getting to his feet in front of you and it’s put him at the perfect height for what you have in mind.

He’s not expecting it when your hand finds his length, giving away his surprise with a sharp intake of breath. You take a moment to guess at his size, thinking once again how it’s going to feel once he’s inside of you, but any thought of pain is completely overridden by the very idea of having him inside you at all. But one thing at a time – you want to explore a few things first.

“Do you mind if I return the favor?” you ask him. You’re feeling different after your orgasm – feeling a sudden, renewed confidence – and the way his breath hitches as you start to pump him up and down sends a thrill through your body. He doesn’t reply, answering instead with a simple touch as his hands find your head, brushing your hair back from your face. You’ve done this before, too, but unlike your partner’s attempt on you at the time, yours had proven more successful.

You bob your head forward to find him, lips meeting the head of his cock and parting to let it enter. As your tongue laps at its underside, Din drops his head back with a moan that only encourages you further. You take as much of him inside your mouth as you can, letting the salty taste of him hit as close to the back of your throat as you’re comfortable with, and his grip tightens on your head as he fights the urge to buck forward. You’d said to go easy, and he’s mindful of that, but picturing what you must look like right now, face pink and glowing from your orgasm, mouth stuffed with his cock, he wishes he could flick the light on for a second just to see it. You guide your head back and forth, taking in all the sounds he’s making for you, testing particular places just to see what else you can make him do. All the while he continues to stroke your hair, murmuring praise that sounds strained as tries to force the words out, things like, ‘Good girl’ and ‘Yeah, just like that’.

All the praise starts to go to your head though, it seems, as you forget your earlier feelings of humiliation and whisper back, “You like that, daddy?” Then you pick up your pace and have him moaning to the point where he has to stop you. He gently grabs your head, pulling his hips back and plucking himself from your mouth with a slick ‘pop’.

“We’re going to have to stop there, sweet girl, or your going to make me cum.”

You simply look up to where his voice is coming from and make a sad little hum, any self-conscious thoughts or anxiety long gone at the sound of his half-ruined tone, and you find yourself eagerly awaiting the next step, your body begging for further touch. He chuckles at your reaction and leans down to find your lips, capturing them in a searing kiss, both of you groaning as you taste each other. It’s the first kiss you’ve shared with him, and as he moves forward and forces you back onto the bed, you find your legs come up automatically to wrap around him. That’s when you feel him, hard and pressing into your thigh.

“How do you want to do this?” he asks, as he grabs his length and rubs his tip between your folds to coat himself with your wetness. You moan when he passes over your clit and give yourself a moment to bask in the sensation as he continues to rub over that area.

“Just go slow,” you tell him, then you feel his cock move down from your clit to your entrance, now that you’ve finally given him permission. He only applies the slightest pressure, letting you get used to each new sensation as he introduces it, but you’re so slick down there that he begins to slip in. You tense, waiting for the sharp sensation you’re sure is coming.

“Relax.” Din’s hips have stilled, and he reaches up in the darkness to run his thumb across your cheek, soothing you. “Deep breaths, okay? I’ll make it feel good for you.”

You nod, and this time he feels the movement against his hand and doesn’t ask you to voice it, instead taking it as his cue to continue on. There’s a momentary sharp, burning sensation deep inside as you feel everything stretch, but as he slowly begins to move his hips, you find it fades more and more with each thrust, your wetness coating him and amplifying your pleasure. You’ve never felt this full before, not in this way, but he’s big enough to be hitting all your best spots at the same time. You’ve never felt this close to cumming this quickly.

“Shit.”

Hearing that single word, he starts to pick up speed and you clutch at whatever part of him you can reach, giving yourself up to the sensation as you feel that electric, tightening sensation starting again in your lower belly.

“Do you think you’re close?” he pants, because he knows he is – dangerously so – but he wants to keep true to his word. He wants to make this experience just as good for you.

You fail to answer, unable to stop the harsh cries leaving your mouth instead, and you don’t have time to tell him before the feeling breaks inside of you again and you’re pulsing around him. You cry out, louder than before, and this is enough to send him over the edge, too. He slips out at the last moment, and you feel warm bursts of liquid squirt across your stomach.

“Sorry,” he pants, grunting as he braces himself on one hand and then shivers through a couple of aftershocks, “I didn’t— I couldn’t—”

“It’s fine,” you tell him, voice just as breathless. And it is fine. You couldn’t care less about it. Your entire body feels more relaxed than it has in months. You feel spent in the best possible way and right now you’d be fine to just fall into a pile on the sheets and sleep.

He collapses onto the mattress next to you, his body close to yours in the small space, warm and sweaty, and you’re surprised when he slips an arm underneath you to bring you closer. “So, was that okay? Do you feel okay? Sore?”

“Yeah. I mean, no, I’m okay.” The words come out as a few huffs of breath and, still high on endorphins, the noise makes you laugh.

Din gives you a squeeze at the familiar sound, smiling to himself in the darkness. Then he makes a thoughtful noise.

“What?” you ask.

“It’s nothing. It’s just…You’ve never been in here before.”

“So?” You gaze around in the darkness, thinking it is a little cramped compared to the space you’d made for yourself in the much larger cargo hold, and realize maybe that’s what he’s hinting at.

“I think you should cum here more often.”

“Did you just…?” You sit up to look at him the darkness, never in a million years expecting such a horrible, so very like-you joke to be uttered by the man and he yanks you back down and pulls you close, ignoring the sticky mess he’s made of you.

Then you hear a sound you’re not familiar with, and feel his warm breath against you as he laughs.

“Din Djarin, that joke was terrible.”

He presses a kiss to the side of your head and heaves a sigh that suggests fast approaching sleep. “I learned from the best.”

#din djarin x reader #mandalorian x reader #fic requests #the mandalorian #din djarin imagines #din djarin

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zigtheeortega · 3 years

Text

if we meet again

[part one of the again series]

pairing | bryce x mc

word count | 10k

warnings | mentions of sex, innuendos, drinking.

tags | @raleighcarrera, @pixeljazzy, @dakotawinchester, @writinghereandthere, @pixelsandkink, @masquerade-reimagined, @choicesarehard, @nerdferatum, @bobbymckenzie, @agentdumortain, @bryceslahela, @lahellacute, @violinet, @zigsnose, @adamdusmortain, @drsobemoji, @choeries, @houserosario, @plasticdodecagon, @noimarocketman (tagged sideblogs instead of main blogs!)

author’s note | so i recently finished the before trilogy of films, and i really wanted to write something based off of it but in a way that would better encapsulate bryce and my mc spencer! part one consists of years 1 - 4, taking place through their undergrad years at university. this is gonna be a bit of a journey so buckle up!

read on ao3! [disclaimer: ao3 version has smut included, not separate.]

•─────────────────•

year one

The ride from the airport to her parents’ home was long and grueling, the slushy ice pelting the windshield barely passing for snow.

It was practically sub-zero outside, a stark difference between the mid seventies weather she’d just left.

Boarding a plane wearing a tank top and layering as she stepped off was a weird experience to say the least. It was like stepping into another world.

The cookie cutter suburbs were nauseatingly bland. Was this really what her parents wanted?

Sure, they were the typical awestruck immigrant family who were obsessed with the American experience, but to be wholly consumed by it? God she never wanted a roundtrip date to come so fast in her life.

They’d closed on the house faster than she could complain about it, but she couldn’t have done much anyways. They’d packed the house up right before she left for her freshman year of college, so the decision didn’t affect her too much.

The slush came down harder, sounding nearly like hail on the roof of her taxi.

She glanced down at her dirty tennis shoes and grimaced – she dreaded having to lug her suitcase from the taxi to her front door.

When it screeched to a stop, she handed the driver a couple bills (leaving a hefty tip, because hey, it was the holidays) and retrieved her things from the trunk.

Backpack slung over one shoulder, suitcase gripped in her right hand, she braced the freezing wet rain.

The walk from the mailbox to the front door was way longer than she remembered. About halfway up the short stairs, she made a crucial mistake. The ball of her foot caught a patch of ice and she tumbled to the ground.

“Ah, fuck,” she grumbled, twisting her body so she was sitting on the stairs. The rain seeped through her jeans, freezing her ass and thighs.

“Hey, miss, you okay?” A voice called from across the lawn.

Her loose hoodie obstructed her vision, so she couldn’t see the man, but she heard his shoes squelch across the grass as he jogged towards her.

“Here, lemme take that,” he said, grabbing her backpack and suitcase before helping her up with his free hand.

She tossed her hood back to catch a glimpse of the kind stranger, and her breath hitched in her throat at the sight of the handsome boy in front of her.

A single dimple appeared on one of his flushed cheeks as he flashed a grin at her, his hair damp from the falling rain. “You good?” He asked again, brown eyes searching hers.

“Uh, yeah, I’m alright. Thanks for coming to help me up,” she said, a smile tugging at her lips.

“I’ll help you to the front door. This is your house, right? I’m not aiding and abetting a burglar?” He teased, turning to walk towards her door.

“No, no. My parents live here,” she said, pointing at the house.

“And you don’t?”

“Technically yeah, in between semesters,” she said, shrugging. “Just took my last final this morning.”

“Oh, cool, me too. I made it in a couple hours ago,” he said, gesturing to the house to the left of theirs.

“So, our parents are neighbors?”

He grinned. “You sound disappointed.”

She shook her head, shoving her hands in her pockets. “No, it’s nice to know someone my age around here. They moved into this house right as I was moving into my dorm, so I didn’t get a chance to get to know anyone.”

“I guarantee my parents were the one to sell you this house,” he said, handing her the backpack and rolling her the suitcase.

“Your parents are realtors? That’s cool,” she said, nodding. “They must be great at their jobs if they convinced them to buy the house so fast.”

He laughed, eyes crinkling at the edges, his irresistible dimple popping up again. “I don’t know shit about the housing market, stranger.”

She couldn’t hold her giggle back. His laugh was infectious. “I’m the stranger? You ran up to me first.”

“Yeah, but I landed first, so I deem you the stranger,” he said, gently poking her arm. “So, stranger, do you have a name?”

“Spencer Matsuzaki,” she said, holding a hand out, half of her palm covered with the damp wrist of her hoodie.

“Bryce Lahela. Nice to meet you, stranger.”

––––

The first night home wasn’t terrible. She was practically interrogated, though.

She zoned out, slipping into the same routine she always did when she was bombarded with questions about school.

She had to stay neutral and cordial while explaining aspects of her life in grave detail on top of leaving out tons of information for her parents' health. Her parents would go into cardiac arrest if they knew how much she’d drank that semester.

After dinner, she retreated into her room for the night, grimacing at the catalogue-esque decor. Her parents really leaned into the middle class american aesthetic, and she wasn’t fond of it.

She missed living in the city. Their apartment overlooked her favorite movie theater, favorite coffee shop, and the playground of her old elementary school a couple streets over.

She missed being within walking distance of places that harbored her favorite memories. And from her new window, her view was nothing more than the house across the street and a few scattered bare trees.

The only thing she enjoyed about her new house was the balcony in front of her window, just large enough for her to sit comfortably with another person. Not like that was happening anytime soon, though.

She tugged the blanket around her shoulders, trying to fight off the biting cold. She tightened the drawstrings of her hoodie, shielding her headphones from the wind so she could hear her music clearly.

Her thoughts wandered to the boy next door.

Bryce Lahela. Beautiful face, beautiful name.

She couldn’t really put a finger on it, but something about him was so familiar. Like she’d known him for lifetimes already.

God, she admired people with that quality – being able to make someone so comfortable the minute you meet them that they just slip into whatever void you’d needed filling.

Potentially a dangerous quality, but Spencer didn’t let herself think about that possibility.

The snow had let up, the freezing temperature preserving what’d already fallen. She allowed herself a glance over at the Lahela residence, half hoping she’d find him outside.

Thankfully enough, he was exiting the front door with a wide shovel in hand, bundled up properly, unlike when they’d met a couple hours before.

She watched him as he easily shoveled the muddy sludge off of the walkways. It was just quiet enough that she could hear his soft grunts with effort at the initial plunge of the shovel into the snow.

She didn’t mean to stare. But what else was there to watch? The road was quiet, bare, like a car passing by too loudly would break the suburbian immersion.

After he’d shoveled the first pathway leading up to the house, he moved to the driveway – not before he ripped the beanie off of his head, shaking out his golden strands.

She watched unabashedly, trying to figure out how the hell a gorgeous surfer bro straight out of a Hollister ad was living next door.

He squinted in her general direction, throwing up a gloved hand to cover his eyes. A grin spread quickly, and he tossed the shovel to the ground with the other hand, using it to wave.

“Hey, stranger!” He called.

She ducked down, trying to hide her blushing cheeks as his laugh rang out, disrupting the silence.

–––

Ten pages from the end of her crime novel, right before they revealed the killer, a heavy handed knock caused Spencer to jolt nearly a foot into the air from her sitting position on the couch.

She picked up the book that morning, trying to do something productive that’d double as an excuse to get out of conversing with her parents. Eight hours later, give or take, and they’d barely bugged her for meals, let alone awkward small talk.

Shuffling to the door in her pajama pants, she yawned as she yanked the door open, expecting to see a mailman or something of that nature.

Bryce stood there instead, flirty smile and all, dimple pronounced like the cherry on top of his overwhelming attractiveness.

“Am I boring you already? Sheesh,” he teased, shoving his hands in his pockets.

She cut her yawn off, squeezing her eyes shut. “Sorry, I –” She cut herself off with yet another yawn, shaking her head. “Uh, sorry. I know that was probably super ugly.”

He shrugged. “I thought it was cute.”

She tugged her arms around herself, the tank top doing virtually nothing to shield her from the cold. “So… What’s up?”

He grinned, digging in his pocket. “I’m glad you asked.”

He whipped out two tickets, handing them to her. “Light show. You and me. Now.”

“Now?” She asked, eyebrows shooting up to her hairline.

“Yeah, now. What about it?”

She gestured to her outfit. “I’m not dressed.”

“So? Get dressed,” he shrugged again.

She rolled her eyes. “You really think my parents will let me out this late? I came back to a curfew, you know.”

“Oh. We can work around that.”

“How?” She was genuinely baffled by this guy’s confidence.

“Sneak out.”

“Did you… Did you just skip over the part where I hinted at how strict my parents are?”

He shrugged, again. “Worst case scenario, they ground you for the rest of the break. Then you go back to college in a couple weeks, and they can’t boss you around there, so what are you really risking?”

She chewed her lip, contemplating. “I mean, I can’t argue with you on that one.”

“So you’ll come?”

“Yeah. You’re lucky my parents aren’t home right now,” she said, jabbing an accusatory finger at him.

“Like they could resist this face.”

––––

Downtown – or what she presumed was downtown – was overtaken by lights, the edges of the area blocked off, vendors lined up in parking spaces, nets of overhead lights illuminating the huge displays below.

They’d been walking in silence for a while, just soaking it in and basking in the holiday spirit.

Despite her disdain for the town, Spencer loved the way they celebrated the holidays.

“Hey, I’ll be right back,” Bryce said a bit suddenly, running off before she had a chance to respond.

“Oh… kay,” Spencer murmured, watching him disappear into the crowd. She tugged at her beanie, raking shaky fingers through her hair.

Bryce was… unwavering. He had such a strong personality and a knack for flirting without meaning to.

To put it in its simplest terms, he made her nervous. Really nervous.

It was like the minute he left her immersion was broken and she realized just how hot he was and that she should be nervous.

Her eyes wandered, trying to alleviate some of her apprehension. She hadn’t been to a community-unifying event like that one before, so watching the families and children prance through the snow was enough to fulfill the soft spot in her heart only classic Christmas movies could fill.

“Here,” Bryce huffed from behind her, breaking her concentration.

She turned at the sound of his voice, flinching when she realized how close he was to her, disposable coffee cup in hand, steam slithering out of the small hole in the lid.

“What’s that?”

“Hot chocolate. I figured you’d want something to warm you up,” he smiled, lifting one shoulder in a lazy shrug.

“Oh, this is perfect,” she said graciously, taking the cup from his hands, warming both by the way their fingers brushed each others’ and the heat from the drink. “Thank you.”

“Ah, no need to thank me. It’s the least I could do after dragging you out here,” he said a bit sheepishly, kicking the toe of his boot into the snow.

“You didn’t drag me out anywhere. You were convincing,” she laughed, taking a small sip of the hot chocolate, revelling in the way it warmed her from the inside out. “Maybe a bit too convincing.”

“I don’t need to know how powerful I am or I’ll let it go to my head,” he winked. “How is it?”

“Delicious.”

He nodded. “Perfect.”

She sipped on her drink in silence for a while, racking her brain to come up with conversation topics.

They’d really only spoken in passing, so what the fuck were they supposed to talk about?

“So… you want to ride the train?” He asked, pointing at the train riding through the town square.

Within minutes they were seated on the train in the caboose – the very last seat. Families were spread out through the first couple cars, then onto couples.

They probably didn’t want toddlers watching high school aged kids swapping spit, so they sent them to the back.

That notion made Spencer nervous. Was she on a date? He hadn’t really specified – hell, he was barely giving her details about where they were going before dragging her out of her house.

The train began to move, slowly riding through the square, the families in the front chatting and the children giggling and waving at the passing patrons.

She chatted with Bryce about nothing in particular, just kind of getting to know each other. She found out he loved baseball, hated night classes, and was a huge fan of pineapple – he could smell it in her shampoo.

She’d just begun to relax before noticing the young couple in front of her lean in for a kiss that turned a bit heated. Her hands were clasped in her lap to keep them from trembling, her breath just as shaky.

A warm arm grazed her shoulders, his arm resting on the top of the seat. There wasn’t any pressure for her to do anything with him. But she kind of wanted to.

She mustered up the courage to flick her gaze in his direction, settling on his soft, pleasant smile, seemingly permanent on Bryce’s features.

“Is this a date?” She blurted, cursing herself immediately.

He didn’t seem phased.

“If you want it to be.”

She definitely did.

––––

The walk to her front door was long, even longer than when she was on her own lugging her belongings through the icy slush.

“I had a really nice time, Bryce,” she said, ambling up the last couple steps.

“Me, too. I’m glad I bought an extra ticket yesterday,” he grinned.

She raised a brow at him, prompting him to continue.

“After I helped you inside I immediately left to go get tickets,” he said bashfully. His cheeks were flushed – from the cold or the admission, she had no idea.

“So you’d had this date planned for a whole day?” She asked, a bit taken aback. He’d definitely painted it out to be a spur of the moment thing, no premeditation in sight.

“So it was a date,” he teased, dimple even more prominent as he spoke.

She scrunched her lips to the side to hide her own smile. “Yeah, I think it was.”

“Can I kiss you?”

She made the grave mistake of breaking eye contact, her gaze darting from his mouth back to his eyes. He closed the gap between them in one step.

“I can’t kiss you in front of my house. My parents could see,” she whispered as his gloved hand flicked her messy strands away from her cheeks.

“You wanna save this for another time?” Her heart couldn’t help but race at his playful tone.

She nodded.

“How long are you gonna be here for break?” He asked. “I wanna see you again.”

“I’ll be here through the week.”

“Good. I’ll see you tomorrow.” He pulled her into a hug, warm and enveloping despite the cold. “Goodnight, Spencer. Sweet dreams.”

She was so comfortable, so safe in his grip that when she felt him loosen it, she squeezed him tighter without really meaning to.

It was scary how quickly she’d grown attached to a complete stranger.

“‘Night,” she waved, eyes still trained on him as she closed the door.

––––

It took her way too long to fall asleep that night.

His last question and her agreeance to the terms ran through her head on loop.

She was anticipating what he was going to do next. Excited to see how the rest of her break would look like.

After a restless night, she awoke pretty early, lounging around in bed for way too long, aimlessly scrolling through social media.

A day ago, she’d have been jealous of her friends vacationing at the beach, but… she wasn’t as upset at the idea of being home for break.

She stood up, stretching and popping her limbs, grabbing a hoodie from her luggage to throw on.

As she did, something caught her attention, just at the edge of her peripheral – a folded slip of paper in her window sill.

She grabbed it, unravelling the damp paper, trying to decipher the bleeding ink.

“Had to leave earlier than I thought. Sorry. Not sure when I’ll see you again, so here’s my number.”

The paper had been covered in water for a long while, so long that the number at the bottom was smudged, the hardest to read out of the whole message. She could barely make out the area code, let alone the rest of it.

She crumpled it up and threw it in the trash, deciding she could just head over and ask his parents for his number instead if he’d left for school.

After trudging across the lawn through the snow, she noticed something was a bit off, but decided to push the feeling down and ring the doorbell.

She peered through the glass of their front door, realizing that the lights were off, clothes and boxes and bags strewn across the foyer.

No one was home.

––––

year two

The moment the taxi pulled to a stop in front of her house, her eyes searched the front lawn of the house next door.

The familiar sensation of disappointment lingered, despite her constant chastising to not get her hopes up.

She sat on her balcony for a couple hours a day, the space heater on full blast at her feet, trying not to look desperate as her eyes flickered to and from Bryce’s house.

But no one entered or exited the house all break.

––––

year three

He stared down the bottom of the glass, eyes trained on the milky film the eggnog left behind, the spiced rum shots he’d taken warming his limbs.

The trial had been grueling.

No one could’ve prepared him for the way the legal system chewed him up and spat him out each time he entered the courtroom and sat on the opposite side of the room, avoiding his parents’ cold glares.

He shouldn’t have had to testify against them in the first place, but who else were they going to call to the stand? Keiki? She could barely write her own name, let alone understand her rights.

And she shouldn’t have to see her parents – hell, her whole family – being scrutinized and ripped apart, televised for anyone within a thousand mile radius.

He didn’t know that this town was their escape.

If someone would’ve told him two years ago that his first Christmas in college would’ve left him in shambles, his entire world upturned, he wouldn’t have believed them.

Thank god it was one of the only properties they owned that was untouched by their blood money.

Word had spread to his university students, causing him to have to go into hiding. Did all his work from home, got special permission from the chancellor to move his courses online.

He was forced to stay in Hawaii, juggling court and school on top of the press and the general stress of life – he’d been on autopilot since his parents woke him up in the middle of the night to fly back home.

The moment he finished his finals that semester, he boarded the plane without a second thought.

He needed an escape.

Despite the whirlwind, she was on the back of his mind through it all.

Anytime his life got a little too difficult, his mind roamed to the last time he felt normal – the last 48 hours before everything went to shit.

When he’d touched down he’d entered the empty, dusty house, throwing his things down and trudging next door.

The heavy raps of his knuckles against the wooden door were the only display of confidence he could muster.

Is Spencer here? He asked.

She’s in Europe for break.

Europe.

Of all the places she had to be during the holidays, it had to be across the world.

So he found himself at the bar, a newly 21 year old downing holiday drinks as fast as the bartender could make them.

She’d probably forgotten about him. It’s best he moved on anyways.

––––

year four

Graduation was so close she could taste it.

Yeah, she was drowning in med school applications and coming down from her post MCAT high, but her degree was peeking over the horizon, just within her reach.

She could only afford to visit home for a couple days before she had to roadtrip to a couple med schools to tour and interview.

She’d grown into herself the past three years, gaining confidence she didn’t know she had in her. Countless haircuts, style changes, shifts in interest – anytime she was uncomfortable she reinvented herself. It was freeing as hell.

So… going home was weird. Like she was regressing. She knew she wasn’t, but it didn’t stop the itching feeling that she didn’t belong there.

Her parents convinced her to visit for the holidays since it was her last year before she was truly on her own. The car ride was anxiety inducing – she tried to shove the thoughts to the back of her brain.

It’d been three years. She couldn’t dwell on it anymore. It was just a fun weekend, a spontaneous date, a gorgeous guy. Nothing more than that.

She’d moved on for sure – lots of dates, sloppy bar makeouts, and one night stands – but she couldn’t completely forget about the stranger.

It wasn’t like anything super memorable happened – it was a classic crush because of how confident he was.

Now that she’d started to emulate that same confidence herself, the allure was mostly gone, but she just couldn’t let him go no matter how hard she tried.

This time her eyes flickered to the house next door, gaze lingering a bit longer than she wanted to allow herself to look.

At least on paper she was growing.

–––––

Her first dinner at home was the same as always. She spent most of the time dodging intrusive questions and diplomatically answering as well as she could.

Maybe she should’ve thanked her parents for pressuring her to come home – it was perfect interview preparation and she didn’t have to lift a finger.

Her room was untouched as usual, the decor nauseatingly basic – if she hated it before, she hated it more now.

The suburban life was even farther away from what she’d wanted three years ago. Fast paced city life and a job in a world renowned hospital were her only two goals as far as she was concerned. Anything else could wait.

As she unpacked her toiletries, she found herself glancing at the door to her balcony.

She shook it off, choosing to settle in bed with a warm blanket with her laptop and planner, trying to focus on her diploma application.

––––

She jolted awake, scrubbing the sleeve of her jacket across her cheek, grimacing when she saw streaks of drool on the fabric.

She shuddered a bit, realizing she fell asleep on top of the covers, the room’s temperature absolutely freezing.

The space heater was close by, luckily, so she didn’t have to shuffle far to plug it in, crouching down next to it to rub her hands in front of it.

The window to her balcony was cracked just slightly – it’d probably blown open bc of the wind or something. She pushed herself to her feet again, closing and locking the door, but not before catching a glimpse of a light. It wasn’t a streetlight. It was a porch light.

She flung the door open and stepped onto the balcony, ignoring the snow seeping through her fuzzy socks, numbing her toes.

Bryce’s lights were on, and fresh tire tracks trailed up the driveway to the garage.

––––

She tossed and turned that night, a little glad that she’d gotten at least some sleep in the form of a nap.

She gave up after a while, brewing coffee and sitting in the kitchen with her laptop for a couple of hours before her parents awoke.

When they finally woke up, she practically jumped at the chance to ask them about him.

“No one’s lived next door for years. Someone comes and checks up on it once or twice a year, but other than that, it’s vacant,” her mother said, elbows deep in a sink full of dirty plates.

She was thankful her mom was preoccupied so she wouldn’t see her deflate.

––––

Spencer allowed herself approximately thirty minutes of sulking before she made a to-do list of everything she needed to get done before noon.

She’d been home for less than a day and she was already itching to get out.

The drive from her parents’ house to the tiny coffee shop was short, the handful of tables inside bare. She guessed it was because most people were at home enjoying spending time with family – she was the odd one out for having her planner and laptop splayed across the table.

She was neck deep in a chem textbook when she saw him.

He was more chiseled. Taller, too.

The beanie was tugged tight around his head, cheeks flushed. The quarter zip up fit him like a glove, hugging every single muscle.

He slipped his gloves off, tucking them into his pocket, squinting – probably trying to decipher the inane pun names for each drink.

“Can I get a, uh, latte with a couple espresso shots?” She heard him ask, peeking over the top of her textbook, trying to get a good look at him.

He chuckled pretty suddenly, pointing at the clear display of pastries. “Add one of those little things onto it.”

“You mean the ‘Rudolph Red Velvet’ cake pop or the ‘Dasher & Dancer Dark Chocolate’, sir?” The teen said.

His grin stretched even wider, hunching over to read the labels. “Can you tell me the rest of the flavors?”

“Well, we’ve got the full setup of reindeers. It gets pretty confusing at times – ’Dasher & Dancer Dark Chocolate’, ‘Prancer & Vixen Vanilla’, ‘Comet & Cupid Cheesecake’, ‘Donner & Blitzen Berry’, and ‘Rudolph Red Velvet’,” the teen listed off, pointing at the nearly identical cake pops.

He laughed, booming throughout the small room, ringing out even over the blenders.

Yeah, that was Bryce. No doubt about it.

“Give me one of each,” he said, handing the teen a couple bills. While they counted the change, Bryce tossed a $20 bill onto the counter. “This is compensation for having to read those god awful names.”

They mirrored his expression, pocketing the bill.

Spencer was nearly frozen with fear – she didn’t think she was going to run into him. She looked frumpy and felt exhausted, and was a little frustrated at how little she understood from the passages she’d tried deciphering.

She stood up, then sat down immediately. She stood up again, conflicted.

But before she could decide what to do, he turned, coffee in hand, bag of cake pops in the other – one cake pop tucked deep into his cheek.

She saw him.

He saw her.

Time slowed.

She was grateful that he was the first to move towards her, eyes bright, gaze soft like he’d seen an old friend – God, that reaction alone was enough to make Spencer float above the clouds.

He chewed his cake pop on the way over, setting down his bag and coffee near the edge of the table out of the way of her mess.

“Hey,” he mumbled through a mouthful of food, chewing vigorously.

“Bryce, oh my god, I – I thought I’d never see you again – you just disappeared and –”

He held up a hand, swallowing. “What’d you say?”

“Oh, I said that I thought I’d never see you again –”

“Wait, wait,” he flipped the side of his beanie up, revealing wireless headphones, which he tugged out and immediately pocketed.

Christ. Embarrassing. Her cheeks burned, inwardly cringing. This is going so swimmingly, Spencer.

He shook his head incredulously, mouth moving like he wanted to say something, but no words came.

“I… didn’t think I’d see you again,” he said, eyes slowly raking over her features.

“Oh my god, I didn’t think I’d see you, Bryce,” she said, nervously adjusting her glasses. Good thing he didn’t notice her recycling sentiments.

“So… how have you been?” He smiled, taking a sip of his latte.

He was playing this way cooler than she was. How was he not freaking the fuck out?

“I’ve been good. Uh, good and kinda busy I guess. I’m waiting to hear back from a couple of med schools and I’m graduating this spring, so I’m excited about that,” she said, trying and failing to figure out how to condense three years worth of personal growth into a couple sentences without boring him to tears. “What about you?”

He nodded, tipping back the steaming latte again. “I’ve been pretty good. Got into my dream med school and it’s, like, across the country from where I am now, so that’ll be good for me. Fresh start, you know?”

She gave him a slight smile, closing her textbook and stacking her planner on top of it.

“Oh, I was just picking this stuff up, so I can let you get back to studying,” he said, unsure, jabbing his thumb towards the door.

“No, no, I was closing it so I can give you my full attention,” she explained, shaking her head. “Just getting some random stuff done. I’m fine.”

He relaxed a bit more at that, settling into his seat like he was at home. “So… what are you working on?”

“I’m getting some last stuff done before I leave this weekend. Just some basic housekeeping. Ironing out details, you know,” she nodded, fiddling with the frayed hole on the hem of her hoodie.

He was trying to jump back in like everything was… normal. This wasn’t normal.

“Oh you’re leaving?” He seemed disappointed, a wrinkle forming between his brows where he pushed them together.

“Yeah, I’m using part of my break to fit in some last minute tours and interviews.”

“Oh… Well if you’re leaving soon, do you wanna do dinner at my place tonight?” He asked. “I feel like we’d be more comfortable catching up there.”

A… date? After all these years? And he still knows literally nothing about me?

––––

She chewed her lip, trying to hold back a smile.

His pulse raced, wondering if she’d reject him. He should’ve thought it through before blurting out a question like that. He’d spoken to her for all of five minutes and he was already asking her to go back to his place.

“So… is this a date?”

The mischievous look on her face was contagious – just a hint of flirtatious teasing like the first time they met.

“Yeah, but only if you want it to be,” he answered, tossing the drink back again, the liquid warming his insides (his morning run was long, and the wind was biting).

“And if I don’t?” She adjusted her glasses again, the only sign of tension amidst her otherwise calm demeanor.

And if he hadn’t ran through the memories of that night over and over, fixating on every little detail he managed to retain, he might’ve not caught it.

Her nervousness was a comfort – It meant she still liked him enough to be on edge around him.

“Then we’re just two neighbors catching up while eating food,” he shrugged, popping another cake pop in his mouth.

He held the bag out to her. “Want one?”

She peered over into the bag, lashes gently brushing her under eyes. “Will you get mad if I take Rudolph?”

God, she was so fucking pretty. He couldn’t get over it. All these years and she only managed to get hotter.

“Why would that bother me?” He mumbled through his mouth full of cake.

“He’s supposed to be special, right? I just thought you’d want him,” she said, crossing her arms on the table and leaning in more.

He sat up, leaning an elbow on the table, tipping forward to close the gap between them – he plucked the cake pop from the bag by its stick, waving it in front of her face.

She didn’t retreat. The only reaction was the color rising to her cheeks, a hint of rouge beneath the spatter of light freckles on her face – the ones that no one could see unless they were this close.

“You’re special, too, y’know,” he said, pushing the limits even more, bringing it to her lips. “Take it.”

He was egging her on, testing whatever change she’d clearly been through – underneath the confidence lurked something sultry that he desperately wanted to bring out of her.

She leaned forward and lowered her mouth around the pop, sinking her teeth into the stick, her lips grazing the tips of Bryce’s fingers.

She pulled back, chewing through a smile. “Yum.”

His stomach flipped, but he kept his poker face even.

It was odd, having this girl in front of him that he’d thought about for years when he’d convinced himself it was a fluke or a dream or a little bit of both.

They both chewed in silence, eyes still firmly locked on each other.

There was so much he needed to say but it just wasn’t the right time.

“What time should I come over?” She asked after swallowing.

“When do you usually eat dinner?”

She rolled her eyes at him, still trying to hold back a smile even though she clearly found him mildly entertaining if not infuriating as hell (which was an attitude he thrived off of).

“I don’t care, Spence. Whenever you want.”

––––

Bryce tapped his foot, adjusting the napkins and cutlery for the hundredth time before pacing towards the monitor that showed him the front door’s security cam.

He should not have told her to come over whenever. The delivery guy was stuck in traffic, so his whole plan of pretending like he cooked was thwarted by the icy roads.

He checked the delivery app for the millionth time, the time remaining still stuck on “14 minutes”.

Was a button up with slacks too much for dinner? Christ, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d actually been nervous before a date.

He wasn’t sure if it ever had happened before, because it didn’t happen.

He wasn’t afraid of shooting his shot with anyone. That cute guy at the gym? No hesitation. His bio lab partner sophomore year? Of course. The ex-girlfriend of the one fraternity brother he didn’t like? Yup. That one fraternity brother he really liked? Hell yeah.

There wasn’t a time that he he actually had to try to get someone to like him – his conquests weren’t really conquests. They’d always just kind of… fallen into his lap, for lack of a better phrase.

But he also couldn’t name a single person he’d “pined” for, whatever that meant. Spencer was the first girl that had slipped through his fingers – maybe this date would be closure. If she was down to fuck, maybe they’d get the weird three-year-long outstanding “what if?” question answered.

He filled the bucket with ice, neatly digging the champagne bottle’s base into it, even grabbing a rag to wipe the perspiration off the metal to buy some time.

A few more minutes passed. When he checked the app again, it’d changed to “13 minutes”, and Spencer was walking down his driveway.

Even on the grainy screen he could tell that whatever she had on was gonna drive him wild.

He strode towards the door, flinging it open to greet her.

“Hey, Spencer,” he grinned, opening his arms wide for a hug.

She matched his expression with a sweet smile of her own, slipping into his grip and molding herself against his body like she belonged there.

Fuck, she smelled delicious. Her hair, her lip gloss, her perfume – everything about her was delectable and made holding back all the more harder.

“Hey, Bryce,” she murmured, squeezing him. “It’s cold. Can we move inside?”

“Oh, yeah. Sure. Sorry about that,” he apologized, pulling back but keeping his palm on her lower back, shutting and locking the door behind him.

She walked into the main corridor, just kind of… observing. Taking everything in.

“Huh.”

“What do you mean, ‘huh’?” He asked, glancing down at her discreetly.

“It’s… nice. I can tell it’s your parents’ house.”

He chuckled, surprised. “Yeah, but what is that supposed to mean?”

“None of your personality is in this house. I figured it’d be brighter. Less marble, too,” she said, gesturing towards the decorations straight from a catalogue sprinkled throughout the house.

He couldn’t help that his parents insisted on flying out their personal interior designer to every house they owned. But it didn’t make it any less cringe worthy.

“No, you’re right,” he nodded, shrugging. “Can’t argue with that.”

He gently steered them towards the kitchen, his eyes flitting towards her as she scanned the house, a pleasant enough look on her face.

“What would you change about this house?” She asked, sliding onto one of the never-been-used barstools.

“Well, for one, I wouldn’t even have it in the first place,” he said, opening the cabinet next to the fridge, retrieving the champagne glasses.

“Really?”

“Really. If I had it my way, we would’ve never left Maui.”

She nodded, teeth sinking into her bottom lip.

Setting the glasses down in front of her, he stood on the other side of the counter, grabbing the bottle by its neck, unravelling the wrapping on the outside. “Hope this is alright. I just picked a bottle that looked expensive.”

“Expensive doesn’t mean better,” she said, eyes trained on the bottle, probably trying to read the label.

“You’re right, again. Two for two,” he joked, sliding the cork from the opening with a loud “pop”, the sound ricocheting off the walls and flooring.

After pouring it, he cocked his head her way, encouraging her to take the first sip.

She tipped the glass back, her nose scrunching after taking a deep swallow. “Mmmm. I would’ve settled for the shitty boxed wine I drank in college over this.”

He took a sip and shook his head, sticking his tongue out with a grimace. “Yeah, this tastes like ass.”

She snorted, covering her mouth as she laughed, making a breathy choking sound that he found oddly endearing.

“To answer your question, I’d probably paint the walls yellow. Hang up my grandpa’s old surfboard my dad passed down to me, if I can even find it. Maybe some movie posters,” he continued, gesturing towards the deadspace on the walls in the kitchen.

“Yeah, that’s kinda what I pictured, too,” she hummed, shivering after downing the rest of the glass.

“You don’t have to drink anymore. We agreed it tastes like shit,” he walked over to the cabinet, browsing the bottles, nearly empty. “I only have… a little bit of tequila and some rum.”

“I’ll take a rum and coke then,” she smiled gratefully, pushing the empty glass to the side.

While making the drinks, he checked his phone, hoping that the driver was close by. No luck – the time hadn’t shifted.

“So… when’s the delivery guy getting here?”

He could sense her behind him. When he turned to offer her a glass, he realized just how close she was.

She accepted the glass, craning her neck around him to look at his phone’s screen. “I knew it.”

“What? What’d you know?” He asked, unable to look anywhere but her plush lips, curved upwards into a grin.

She was life-ruiningly pretty. It was like God himself scanned Bryce’s brain and 3D copied his fantasies into the form of Spencer Matsuzaki, who was quite literally the girl of his dreams.

“I knew you weren’t a cooking type. I figured you were gonna get takeout, and I was right,” she pointed at his screen, the delivery app still open.

“Yeah, I was gonna try to impress you and pretend that I’d cooked everything but clearly that didn’t pan out,” he chuckled, peering down at her.

“That’s the oldest trick in the book, Bryce. I would’ve easily clocked that,” she shook her head, taking a quick sip of her drink, still standing close enough to him that he could feel her breath on him each time she laughed.

Before he dropped everything and propositioned her right there to take it to the living room, she turned on her heel and walked back towards her stool.

They sipped their drinks in silence, an air of awkwardness settling into the atmosphere – for the first time in, well, years they were completely and utterly alone.

She chewed her lip, swiping her thumb across the perspiration on the cup. “So…”

“So?”

“I feel like we have a lot of ground to cover.”

He nodded. “I guess the question now is ‘where do we start?’”

“We could just ask each other stuff and see how that goes.”

“I’ll go first – are you still single?”

A laugh ripped from her chest, bounding off the walls and floor, filling up the space with sound (one that was quickly becoming his favorite).

“That’s the first thing you ask me? After all these years?” She asked incredulously, shaking her head in awe.

He grinned. “Sounds like you’re avoiding the question.”

“Yes, I am.”

“Avoiding the question? Or you’re single?” He teased.

“I’m not seeing anyone at the moment, no.”

“Oh, at the moment. Seems like I’ve got some competition.”

Laughing, she tipped her head back to take a deep gulp. He watched as she did, a bit envious of the glass wrapped between her fingers and the rim caught between her lips.

She was a bit more timid when she drank the hot chocolate he offered her years before, cupping it with both hands and taking soft sips, smiling shyly, like being offered a drink on a date was something she should be grateful for.

The way she held herself was different. Before, it was like she was apologetic for taking up too much space, but this version of Spencer took the world by storm – like when she walked into the room, she claimed the space as her own before anyone else could tell her differently.

Whatever miniscule reservations he had about sleeping with her were out the window before she set her glass back down.

“I’m assuming you don’t have anyone at home waiting for you if you asked me that first,” she said, bluntly, chewing on a piece of ice.

“What makes you say that?” “Well you’re obviously gauging whether or not you want to fuck me tonight so I might as well be as upfront as you,” she shrugged, a teasing smile tugging at her lips.

“Is that so?” He quirked a brow at her. “Would you count frequent hookups?”

“Nope. I’ve got those, too, but I don’t count ‘em.”

“So you turned out to be pretty wild, huh?”

She laughed. “I hope you realize how weird you sound. I’m not who I was at 18. Shit, and you barely even knew me then!”

He held his hands up in protest. “My bad.”

She tapped her nails on the counter, looking a bit conflicted. “No, it’s okay. Just a bit of a sensitive topic, I guess.”

“Parents, huh?”

“Yep. Don’t quite approve of who I am, even though I’m literally going to be studying to be a doctor,” she rolled her eyes. “I did get pretty wild, though. I mean, I had to get it out of my system before med school, you know?”

He shrugged. “Totally understandable.”

“Speaking of, why aren’t yours here? I figured I was going to accidentally run into them or something,” she mused, crunching on another ice cube.

He tried hiding his reaction, but he couldn’t help the way he tensed up at the mere mention of them. The thought of her bringing them up crossed his mind before, so thankfully he was able to keep it moving.

“Oh, they moved back to Hawaii a while ago. Been waiting to put this house on the market but it just didn’t seem like the right time.”

“So why aren’t you with them for the holidays?”

He stiffened, racking his brain for a believable lie. There was no fucking way he was baring his soul to the girl that just stepped back into his life.

She was the last good memory he had before everything went to shit, so he couldn’t break the illusion. Spencer was too good for this – maybe too good for him.

Court baggage was a heavy load to bear. Criminal baggage was even heavier. Lying to save face was the only way he could protect them both.

“Oh, it was just cheaper for me to stay here than fly back to Hawaii.”

She nodded, seemingly in agreeance, swirling the last bit of ice around her glass before tipping it back again. “S’good you get a little peace and quiet between semesters.”

“You have no idea,” he breathed, practically sighing in relief, thankful the crisis was averted.

“I do have a question, though,” she said, setting the glass down and pushing it away from her. “Why did you leave your number on my window sill?”

He leaned over the counter, bracing his arms against it. “So you did see it.”

“You’re lucky I found it! You could not have chosen a worse place to put it.”

“Well, you used to always walk out on your balcony so I thought it’d be safe.”

She pursed her lips, seemingly holding back a smile. “You remember that?”

“Yeah, of course. Why didn’t you, you know, use the number, though?” He asked, teasing.

Her mouth popped open, looking almost offended by his words. “Oh my god, you think if I had your number we still wouldn’t have talked for three years?”

“When you put it that way, I guess it doesn’t make sense,” he laughed, taking a swig of his drink.

“No, but I can’t get over that – you thought this entire time that I just didn’t try to contact you? Bryce, you offered to kiss me before literally disappearing into the night – you thought I wouldn’t have at least, you know, tried following up on that?” Spencer was giggling in between her words, barely able to get it out of her system.

“Yeah, well, you think I didn’t want to follow up on the kiss either? I’m the one who offered!”

They were cutting up, both leaning over the counter, folded over in laughter. They’d shifted closer as they got more comfortable with each other, their arms nearly grazing each others’ over the cold granite.

God, she was so beautiful. Everything he felt when he met her three years ago was pretty much amplified. He had it bad for her.

When she noticed how close they were, her eyes flitted to his lips, tongue darting out to wet her own.

“You wanna cash in on that now? I heard that ‘Bryce Lahela Kiss Coupons’ never expire,” he said, voice low, reaching out to swipe the pad of his thumb over her chin.

“Bryce…” she said, closing her eyes, before leaning back to put some distance between them. “We have to lay some ground rules first.”

He sighed, standing up at his full height. “Okay, shoot.”

“I’m not trying to go all analytical on you, but we have to get this out of the way first. Tell me where your top three med schools are.”

A snort escaped him before he could stop himself. “What, do you only fuck guys that go to –”

“– And girls –”

“And girls – that go to John Hopkins?” He asked, teasing. “Me, too, by the way.”

She shook her head, ignoring his joke. “Nope. Just tell me.”

“Well, I’m looking at California, New York, and Chicago. What about you?”

“Ohio, Virginia, and Washington.”

The pieces fell into place for him. “Damn, you were playing chess and I was playing checkers, huh?”

She laughed. “No, no, I was just curious. I didn’t think we’d get as far as relationship talk, but I figured after everything we’d been through, we might as well discuss it, you know?”

“So that means this is a one-and-done type deal.”

“I guess so,” she said, scratching at her neck. “I’ve made out with plenty of people before and forgotten it, so if you want to just see how we feel, I’m down.”

“Oh, I think you’ll remember this for a while,” he said, stretching across the counter to gently cup her face in both hands, pressing a deep kiss to her lips.

Their first kiss was unlike no other. What’d started out as an offhanded joke to relieve three years worth of tension quickly morphed into desperate grabbing of clothes, heavy pants, and even heavier tension crackling like a fire between them.

She fisted his collar, dragging him to her over the counter, kneeling on her bar stool and pushing herself closer and closer to him.

Bryce had his share of sloppy bar makeouts, passionate kisses amidst sex – even sweet domestic kisses during mundane tasks. But this kiss? Somehow it was a bit of everything rolled into one.

They parted pretty abruptly when he elbowed her empty champagne glass and it clattered against the counter.

“Shit,” he cursed, pulling back just a hair to check the damage.

When he turned back, she was still holding him, staring at him, a look on her face that he hadn’t seen before.

“That was…” her lids fluttered, tongue darting out to lick her lips – like she was savoring his taste.

“Really good.”

She nodded. “Insanely good.”

“So?”

“So what?”

“Is it what you were dreaming of?” He teased, but there was a hint of sincerity to it.

She nodded again, her grip tightening on his collar. “I’m a little scared at how much I enjoyed it.”

“Scared? Why?” He murmured, stroking his thumb against her cheek in comfort.

“Well… this can’t happen,” she gestured between them.

“It doesn’t have to happen. We can pretend like the kiss never did, just like you said. I don’t mind,” he shrugged.

“But… what if I want it to?”

He couldn’t conceal the smirk tugging at his lips. “You wanna take this upstairs?”

She tried holding back a smile. “Maybe.”

“Well, you can think about it over dinner, whenever that gets here.”

The driver took about twenty minutes, and eating took them twenty more. Small talk was managed, jokes were cracked, but there was an unmistakable feeling in the air that both of them could sense.

Bryce was no stranger to sexual tension. Hell, he thrived on it.

Making a cute girl blush? Exhilarating. Getting a guy at the bar fund his hangover? Incredible. Those few minutes between knowing you’re going to fuck someone and actually fucking them? Couldn’t get enough.

The minute their plates were cleared, she took his hand and led him upstairs, throwing glances back at him like if she let go for a second he’d disappear.

As much as he just wanted to fool around, he couldn’t help but pocket the small details for later, just in case he decided it was alright to get emotionally invested. Despite feeling like he had a hold on the situation, he definitely didn’t.

He was a bit delusional in thinking he wasn’t already falling for her the way she was for him.

––––

[part 1.5 coming soon]

____

They’d been curled up in bed for nearly an hour and a half, just talking, every once in a while pulling the other in for another kiss that led to roaming hands.

In another life, if they’d both lived in that town and grew up there, there was no doubt they’d be best friends. High school sweethearts, even.

But she knew that whatever daydreams she’d conjured up could never be reality.

This was a one-time thing. They both knew that.

After a lull in conversation she slipped out of bed, gathering her clothes and tossing them onto the bed.

“You leaving?” He asked, sitting up.

“Uh, yeah. I think I need to get going. I’ve still got a curfew,” she shrugged, making a hand motion like she was pulling the trigger.

“Still have one? Damn, that sucks. Am I gonna get to see you tomorrow?” He rubbed the back of his neck.

He remembered her curfew?

She snapped her bra back in place, avoiding his eye as she slid on her straps. “I, um, have to leave.”

“I thought you were staying through the weekend?” He sounded taken aback, like he thought he had more time.

She slipped her underwear and pants on fast. “I have a long drive ahead of me and I kinda wanted a night to breathe before I tour and interview, you know?”

He was silent. She threw her sweater on before daring a glance at him. His eyes were trained on the mattress, refusing to look at her.

“Bryce,” she called, but he shook his head.

She sat on the mattress, tipping his chin up with her finger. “What’s wrong?”

He lifted one shoulder in a shrug, sighing. “It’s stupid.”

“C’mon, it’s not stupid. Tell me.”

“I’m kinda regretting this being a one-time thing.”

She raked his hair back, leaning in to press a kiss to his cheek. “I am, too.”

He met her eyes again, brows furrowed. “You are?”

She nodded. “I like you. A lot.”

“So what’s stopping us? We can make it work if we try –”

She sank her teeth into her bottom lip, looking at the ground. “I don’t know if we can.”

“Why not?”

“The distance, first of all. And we’re going to be in different programs in different states, so there’s no way we can fully commit to school and our future if we’re trying to start a relationship and maintain it –”

“Spencer, you think I’m gonna give up that easily after all this time? I just got you back,” he said, lifting a hand to cup her cheek.

“This isn’t giving up, Bryce… this is… practical. Rational,” she added, leaning into his touch. “The right thing to do.”

“It doesn’t feel right.”

“I know, but… I think it’s easier to move on now rather than later when we’re in too deep,” she gulped, trying to soothe the lump forming in her throat.

She knew this wasn’t gonna be easy, but she figured it’d be easier than falling for him over phone calls and video chats and sweet good morning texts and the inevitable breakup that came after.

“You sure we’re not already in it?” He asked, underneath his breath, gaze flitting to her lips.

She rolled her lips, shaking her head, trying to mask her wobbling chin.

“If you don’t want to get hurt, I get it, but I need you to know that I haven’t stopped thinking about you since I met you,” he said, cupping her cheeks with both hands. “And – and I never thought I’d see you again, so I don’t want to let you go without at least, you know, trying to fight for you.”

He brought her in for a deep kiss, seemingly trying to plead his case with his touch.

“Maybe we should just go our separate ways and pretend tonight didn’t happen. It might be less difficult,” she murmured after he pulled away.

“None of this will be easy for us, Spence,” he pressed their foreheads together, both of them closing their eyes.

“Honestly, I want nothing more than to be with you. I want you so badly, but I’ve got so many commitments and my career and I can’t just throw my responsibilities out the window, because I know I would – that’s what scares me,” she whispered, voice cracking.

“You’re right. I hate that you’re right.”

––––

When she slipped back into her room after saying a quick goodnight to her parents, she curled up in her bed and cried.

She didn’t want to cry – it was like her body wouldn’t let her hold it in any longer. The sobs wracked her body as if personified guilt had grabbed her by the shoulders, dug its fingers into her skin, and shook her the tears from her.

Hours later, she woke up in the middle of the night, face still puffy and irritated. As she stood up to go throw cool water on her face, she noticed something taped to her window.

His number and socials were listed in a neat bulleted list, and below it, he’d scrawled a simple note:

“If we meet again.”

––––

#playchoices #bryce lahela #bryce lahela x mc #bryce x mc #my fic #jade writes choices fics

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