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woodelf68 · 1 year

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FAIR PLAY Summary: He'd never had Thor's gift of making friends easily. But perhaps moving to a new town had changed Loki's luck. For once, things are going his way. Non-magic AU, a very late fill for the @sifkiweek 2022 prompt "Stranger". Rated G. Wordcount: 11,812.

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Thor was going to lose, Loki thought, his eyes going between his brother and his main competitor, a burly, red-bearded man who was shoving hot dogs down his throat at a truly impressive speed. Thor was giving the guy a run for this money – he had always had a hearty appetite and had entered his first pie-eating contest as a child -- but he was also an athlete and valued his body too much to indulge in any practices like deliberately stretching out his stomach with gallons of water, not after their mother had done her research when they'd both still been children and made sure Thor was aware of the dangers of such things. Thor liked to win, but for one or two casual contests per year, he wasn't about to do anything more than skip breakfast on the day of an event. That had been enough to win him the occasional small prize usually on offer at places like the county fair, but it wasn't going to be enough to claim the championship this time. He was, as always, both fascinated by Thor’s ability to wolf down a massive amount of food without (usually) becoming sick afterwards and being faintly disgusted by it. At least the hot dogs were a lot cleaner than pies, although one of his favourite home videos of their childhood was that of a grinning ten year old Thor with his face absolutely covered with blueberry pie filling; it was good blackmail material to threaten Thor with if he had a new girlfriend he was trying to impress. The other two competitors were still gamely eating, but were obviously fighting it out for the third and fourth place standings.

"Five minutes left!" the man running the event called.

"You've got this, Volstagg!" a voice called encouragingly from the sidelines. "Just keep going, you're in the lead. Those tickets are going to be yours."

Loki looked around to see who this Volstagg's cheering section was, and saw a rather pretty girl of around his own age, her long dark hair caught back in a silky ponytail. He circled his way around the row of spectators to stand beside her.

"I assume Volstagg is the guy rocking the Viking biker look?" he asked conversationally. "Friend? Family? My brother is the disgustingly handsome blond."

The girl laughed. "Yeah, and he's a friend. I babysit for him sometimes." She glanced at Loki, a glance that turned into a slightly longer look. "Haven't seen you around here before. New in town?"

"Yeah, we just moved. I'm Loki." He nearly stuck out his hand for her to shake, but this didn't seem quite the place to trot out his best manners.

"Sif." She glanced between the two brothers. "I don't suppose either of you are going to be attending North College?"

Loki nodded. "I'll be starting there in the fall. Thor's already got two years under his belt; he's getting his credits transferred."

Sif brightened. "Great! It'll be my second year, I'll be right between you. Probably won't share any classes, but I can show you around."

"That'd be great." Loki smiled back; genuinely pleased. They'd been too busy unpacking and settling in to figure out the local hang-outs and meet anyone their own age yet. To be honest, he'd been perfectly fine with waiting until fall for that, he'd been enjoying the peaceful summer that they'd been having so far. With Thor cut off from his old crowd of friends, they'd been spending more time just hanging out with each other than they had in years, even with the part time hours that Thor had picked up at the local hardware store on one of their trips there to choose paint for their new bedrooms. It was nice.

"Where do you live?"

"About two miles east of the Asgard library." Loki loved living so close to a library; he could easily bike over any day without needing to ask for a ride or to borrow the car. He had already made time to check out the place and had discovered a light, airy space with the pleasant surprise of a decently sized used book store room crammed with everything from books and magazines to CDs and DVDs and like-new donated jigsaw puzzles selling for only 50 cents each. He'd left the store only after he'd started wondering how he was going to carry all his spoils home; luckily the volunteer at the desk had had a big paper shopping bag with handles under her desk that he'd gratefully accepted. Working on the jigsaw puzzles had become the new family activity; the first already finished and the second half-assembled on the table in the den, their parents opportunistically taking interest as soon as he and Thor had gotten the hardest part done and the picture was taking shape. It was a nice, non-demanding way of spending time with his father, working in a companionable silence without feeling the need to make conversation unless they actually had something to say, while his mother was exactly the opposite, always full of light chatter -- their neighbour Fulla had invited them over for a backyard barbecue, she'd say, or she'd heard of a new restaurant they could try from the women at her hair salon, or that there was going to be a rummage sale at the church on Pine Street. (The barbecue had been great, the restaurant had had a fun '50s theme with a jukebox, and he was looking forward to the rummage sale.)

"It's a nice subdivision, older houses, a lot of big shade trees," he added. Their front porch was kept pleasantly cool and shaded until mid afternoon by a large ash tree in their front yard; it had become Loki's favourite spot to read for a while after breakfast and watch the antics of the squirrels running up and down the tree and through its branches. There were a pair of ravens, too, that he'd named Hugin and Munin. He'd wondered if they were a mated pair, but hadn't seen any sign of a nest or babies, unless they were in a nearby yard. Or maybe they were young brothers, who hadn't found a mate yet, enjoying their freedom before the responsibilities of adulthood set in. In the backyard they had a flowering crabapple, some flourishing rosebushes (his mother had claimed the room with the window framed by one of the climbing roses as her sewing room, and he didn't have to ask why when the window was open; the whole room smelled fantastic), and a couple of lilacs half-covering the garden shed, not to mention the tangle of blackberry canes in the opposite corner aggressively spreading out from their original bed into the lawn. Plans to prune them back and install some decorative metal fencing to keep them in check were on hold until the bushes were done putting out berries for the year. Eating berries that he had picked himself was somehow much more satisfying than eating ones that had been bought at the store. His mother was in gardening heaven tending to everything, planting various annuals and some slightly late but hopeful vegetables and waiting to see what would bloom next in the flower beds.

Sif thought. "Are you anywhere near Teasdale's convenience store?"

Loki looked at her in surprise. "Yeah, it's only about a half mile away once we get onto the main road." He couldn't be so lucky as to have her living close by, could he? He didn't usually have Thor's easy way with making friends, but maybe his luck was changing.

"What street are you on?"

"It's called Roan."

Sif's face lit up. "Oh, this is awesome,you're just on the next street over from me. I'm on Sorrel." Two hot new guys around her age moving in within easy walking distance? If she was really lucky they'd be on the same end of the street as her. She cast her mind back, and vaguely remembered seeing a moving van a few months ago. Someone moving out, not in, though; she must not have been around when the new family had moved in or she'd have been more interested in hanging around and introducing herself. Somewhere in the middle of the street, Sif thought, not too bad. Heimdall wouldn't mind it if she cut through his yard; she'd made friends with him when he'd been the crossing guard for her elementary school and he could be relied upon to always let "his" kids through as long as they closed the gate to his backyard behind them so his Great Dane mix Hofund didn't get loose. Some people might have thought twice about crossing the massive watchdog's territory -- best guess was that his other parent had been a mastiff -- but he was a gentle giant around kids and Sif adored him and had made good pocket money over the years serving as occasional dog walker while Heimdall was at work. And Sif usually just vaulted the fence anyway. And Doctor Eir, whose house backed up to Heimdall's, never minded Sif crossing her yard either, as long as she didn't disturb anything, in particular any of the medicinal herbs she grew. Sif's summer was definitely looking up. "Do either of you have a car? We could share rides if we wanted to go places. I've got a motorcycle, but -- "

Loki's eyes flicked over Sif. White t-shirt with rolled-up sleeves, sturdy-looking cargo pants, equally sturdy-looking boots, a small canvas cross-body bag. "You have a motorcycle?"

"Yes, I -- "

"Big enough to give me a ride?" he asked, giving her his best puppy dog eyes.

Sif smiled. "Maybe if you're a really good boy. But I can't take two passengers, so if either of you have a car -- "

"Thor's got a pick-up; he's always happy to give rides to his friends. And I am the bestest of boys," Loki said in his most sincere tone, tipping his head down slightly so he could look up at her through his lashes. It was a very effective look, he knew.

Damn, thought Sif, feeling something fluttery stir in her stomach. "Oh, well in that case..." She certainly wasn't opposed to the idea of taking a ride with an attractive man's arms around her.

"Time!" called the announcer as the timer finally rang and all the contestants sat back in their seats, swallowing their last bites and groaning as they stretched.

"A very good showing from all our competitors this year," the event coordinator said, "But our first place winner is Volstagg Haraldson for the fourth year in a row!" He handed over a fat roll of tickets to the Midway. "Enjoy the rides!"

Volstagg took the tickets with a happy smile. "My little ones certainly will."

"You have children?' Thor asked. It made him feel better about losing hearing that. While he and Loki would have enjoyed getting the free tickets, they could afford to buy their own without any problems. Maybe this Volstagg needed them more. He didn't look like the sort of person who would have a high-paying job like a doctor or lawyer or business executive, more like a roadie or a bouncer or someone who worked the assembly line in a factory. The thought of little kids getting extra rides made him happy.

"Yes," the man said proudly. "My youngest just turned one; my eldest is seven."

Thor looked around. "Where are they?"

Volstagg looked as well, but he remembered his wife catching his eye and pointing first to one of the kids and then to a nearby small brick building. "I believe my wife had to take one of the children to the bathroom," he said, unconcerned. "I expect they'll be back any minute."

"Daddy!" As if on cue, a little girl -- the seven year old, thought Loki -- with reddish brown hair in long pigtails came running up. "Did you win?"

"I did!" Volstagg boomed, gathering her to his side. "Although this young man gave me a run for my money this year." He nodded at Thor. "I haven't seen you around before. New in town?"

"I am," said Thor, then corrected himself. "We are." He beckoned to Loki to step forward. "I'm Thor and this is my brother Loki."

"Welcome to Asgard County! I'm Volstagg, as you heard, and this is my eldest, Hildy. And this handsome young fellow is Alaric -- " A fair haired boy a couple of years younger stepped forward. "The lovely lady behind him is my wife Hildegund, the wee lass clinging to her hand is Flosi, and the little one in the stroller is our Rolfe."

"A fine family," proclaimed Thor.

"And a large one," said Loki, guessing that each child was about two years apart. "You have been busy. Planning on having any more?"

"Not planning, no," said Volstagg, sounding regretful. "The house is full to bursting as it is; If another were to surprise us, though --"

"They won't," said Hildegund firmly.

"Hey Volstagg, guess where they live?" asked Sif happily. "Next street over from me, Roan."

"Oh, that is nice for you," Volstagg said jovially.

Sif turned to Loki. "Do you guys want to hit the Midway with me?"

Thor burped. "Not for a while. Loki and I already made the rounds of the rides before the contest because going on the Scrambler with...how many hot dogs did I eat?"

"22," said the man who was cleaning up the table. "Feel free to share the rest on your plate with your friends."

Loki promptly claimed one in each hand. "Thank you," he said.

"Yeah, 22 hot dogs and being whipped around at high speed is not a good combination," said Thor. "We were planning on doing the carnival games, though," he told Sif. "Want to join us?"

"Yeah, I haven't done any of those yet either."

"Excellent," said Loki, finishing his hot dog and starting on his second. They'd be better fresh off the grill, with condiments added, but he wasn't about to turn his nose up at free food. He could use the money he'd save for a cold lemonade. He'd treat everybody, he thought generously. "I'll win you a giant stuffed animal."

"Feeling confident, are you?" teased Sif.

"Thor. The balloon game, with the darts. How good am I at it?"

"He's very good," Thor told Sif.

"And the knocking things over with baseballs?"

Thor scoffed. "Please. As if I'd let my little brother grow up not knowing how to throw straight."

"The rings tossed over the bottle necks?"

"Batter at that than me," Thor admitted.

"The duck shooting?"

"I think I'm a bit better at that, but you are a perfectly decent shot."

"All of this to say," said Loki, "That yes, I feel fairly confident that I can win you whichever tacky fairground prize that your heart desires."

"Or if he can't, I can," Thor said gallantly.

"What if I'm perfectly capable of winning my own?" asked Sif.

Loki wrinkled his nose. "What fun is that? How can I prove my gallantry to a fair lady if not by gifting her with the tokens of her choice?"

"Hm, all right, tell you what. I'll let you give me something if I can give you something in return." She mentally filed away the phrase "a fair lady" to think about later, and decide how much he meant by it.

"Deal," said Loki promptly. He grinned, delighted. He leaned over and confided in a stage whisper "I like her, Thor."

They said goodbye to Volstagg and his family and, after Thor made a quick visit to the toilets, strolled over to the rows of carnival games, Loki buying lemonades for himself and Sif on the way, Thor saying he'd already drunk enough water washing down his hot dogs for now (a water-soaked bun dissolved and slid down with almost no effort at all) but he would take one later. Loki grinned when the first booth they came to on the end of the row was the balloons and darts game.

"See anything you like?" he asked Sif, gesturing to the hanging rows of prizes.

Sif surveyed them critically and saw what she wanted. "The stuffed unicorn in the second row." He looked very soft, and had a sweet face.

"Are you sure you don't want one of the larger prizes?" Loki looked up at the big stuffed animals hanging above it.

"No. They're too big, I want one small enough to cuddle in bed."

The thought of Sif cuddling something that he'd won her pleased Loki no end. "All right, how much for the medium sized unicorn?" he asked the guy staffing the booth.

"Six balloons popped and he's yours," the man said. "Darts are three for $3."

Loki put down some money. "I'll take six." He picked up the darts he was given, and surveyed the board the balloons were pinned to, looking for those that were inflated the most. Taking aim at a green one, he threw the dart so it struck the balloon sharply at a slight downward angle, his height making that a lot easier to do than when he'd been a boy.

POP!

Sif cheered.

POP!

"Oh, we are going to make some money off of you at the Student Union dartboard before everybody learns how good you are," said Sif with satisfaction.

"Am I nothing more than a tool to be used for the advancement of your bank account?" Loki protested.

"Well, if you're not interested -- "

"I didn't say that. All right, you can set me up with people who've got a chunk of spare cash they can afford to lose."

"My thoughts exactly." Sif started thinking about who'd be confident enough to place a large bet, never thinking they would have to pay it off.

The next dart glanced off the balloon he'd meant it for, hitting another as it fell but not with enough force to pierce it. Thor and Sif groaned.

Loki rolled his shoulders. He'd hoped to do it in six throws, but seven would still be impressive. He nailed the next two balloons. POP! POP!

"I don't suppose I can buy just one more dart?" he asked the guy running the booth.

The guy grinned. "Nope. We have to make money to afford all of these high quality prizes."

Loki snorted, but he had to admit the unicorn was cute and looked to be a cut above the quality of most fairground prizes. "If I have leftover darts, can my brother or my friend use them as part of their turns?"

The man shrugged. "Yeah, sure, why not?"

Loki passed over more money and tested each one of the darts he received for the one that felt best in his hand. "What's your favourite colour?" he asked Sif recklessly.

"I like burgundy and silver," she said. "Or red, if you're asking me to pick a colour of balloon."

"Oh!" he realised. "We've heard you, roaring up and down the street. And seen you, a couple of times, if your bike is burgundy and silver."

"It is," Sif confirmed.

Loki filed away the preference for silver for future jewelry-related purchases and looked at the two red balloons left on the board. The top one looked fuller. Blessing his height again, he let his dart fly.

POP!

Thor and Sif whooped with a satisfying amount of enthusiasm. "The stuffed unicorn, for the lady," Loki told the man, grinning.

"Nicely done," the mad admitted, and took down the fluffy unicorn, white with a gray mane and tail, and passed it to Sif.

Sif took it and pressed a kiss to its nose. She had been right; it was very soft, and smelled of fresh air and sunshine. She smiled at Loki over the unicorn's head. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," he said giddily. Six out of seven wasn't bad; he'd only missed one. "is there anything else you want here?"

Sif glanced at the cheaper prizes. There was a metallic red keychain flashlight with silver accents that she wouldn't mind. "Yes, but I want my turn with the darts. Here, you can hold Moonbeam." She passed him the unicorn.

Nonplused, Loki took the unicorn. "Moonbeam?"

"Yes. It's his name," said Sif firmly. "Can I use your other two darts or do you want them to get something for yourself?"

At the moment, Loki wanted to do nothing more than keep on winning things for Sif, so he shook his head. "You can have them."

It took those two plus the three more she had to buy, but Sif won her mini flashlight and then Thor had a turn and claimed what he thought was a rather nice looking keychain with a piece of rough-cut quartz on the end of it to add to his own collection at home. They moved down the row of booths, playing games and collecting prizes, Loki allowing Sif to gift him a decently-sculpted model horse painted gold at the shooting range, and Thor winning a framed mirror with the name of a favourite band on it. By the time that they got to the end of the row, the boys had accumulated enough prizes that they couldn't fit in their pockets that Sif took pity on them constantly having to put them down at each new booth and pick them back up afterwards or asking each other to hold their things and fished a crumpled plastic grocery bag out of her canvas bag, where she'd tucked Moonbeam in securely with his head sticking out so he could look around. "Want to put the stuff you've won in here?"

"Yes, please," the boys said gratefully, almost in unison.

Sif shook her head in amusement. "Don't you ever think ahead? Stick a bag in your pocket next time."

Thor and Loki exchanged glances.

"Would you think it terribly immature of us if I told you we would usually be seeking out our mother around now to dump our stuff in her tote bag?" Loki asked, looking sheepish.

Sif laughed. "Perhaps a little, but it's also sweet if she doesn't mind. Is she here somewhere?"

"Yeah, she has a weaving entered in the fibercrafts show." He glanced at his watch. "We're supposed to meet her and Father at six in front of the bandstand."

"Oh, that's perfect; that's where my friend Fandral's band is playing; they do cover songs from the sixties and early seventies. And you should have told me about your mom; I would have liked to see her work. Is she any good?"

"All the crafts are on display until the fair closes, I think," said Loki. "We can go see it later and you can judge for yourself. I'm sure Mother would be happy to tell you all about it if you have any questions."

"We should head over to the bandstand now," said Thor, checking his own watch, then grinned when he saw the strength-testing machine at the end of the row. "That is, after I've had a go at that." He passed Loki the bag of prizes that he had been holding, and moved towards the tall contraption, rubbing his hands together in anticipation. "All right, time for me to shine," he said gleefully.

Sif eyed his biceps. "I'm going to hear that bell ring, aren't I?"

"The last time he couldn't do it was probably in junior high," said Loki. "If the darts are my sure thing, this is his." He looked at the prizes on offer as Thor handed over some money to the attendant running the game and accepted the sledgehammer in return. "You could give Mother one of those coloured bud vases, Thor." They looked like plastic but were pretty, in a wide range of pastel colours. "Maybe that light green one?"

"Hm." Thor considered the vases. "It's not bad, but she's already got a lot of vases."

"Then save it for your next girlfriend and give it to her with a flower in it," suggested Loki. "Unless you see something you like better?"

Thor looked at a Budweiser mirror, torn. "We'll see," he said at last, and swung the hammer back and forth a few times, getting a feel for it. Loki took a step back, taking Sif with him. Thor positioned his hands on the handle -- one near the end, the other up by the head, and swung the hammer up above his head and then down, slamming it directly onto the center of the pressure pad. The marker puck flew up rapidly and slammed into the bell at the top.

BRRINGGG!

Loki and Sif cheered, and someone else behind Thor wolf-whistled in appreciation.

"Nice job, big boy."

"Darcy!" a fourth person hissed.

"What? If I worked that hard on my muscles, I'd want people to appreciate what I could do with them."

Thor turned, amused, to see who had stopped to watch him, and saw two brown-haired young women, both on the short side. The darker-haired one with glasses gave him a cheerful wave.

"Hi."

"Hello." He smiled back at her but then his attention was arrested by her companion.

"You! You were the one who ran into me in the bumper cars!"

The woman looked sheepish. "Oh, yeah, hi. Isn't that the point, though? I didn't give you whiplash or anything, did I?"

"No, just stalled my car out." Thor smiled at her brilliantly. "My name's Thor, by the way."

"I'm Jane. Nice to meet you." She remembered a glimpse of a handsome face before she'd zoomed off to avoid Darcy hitting her, but she hadn't had a chance to appreciate his height when he'd been folded up inside a little bumper car. Or his muscles, she thought, noting them now. She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and smiled shyly.

"Actually, the original point of bumper cars was to avoid getting bumped," said Loki knowledgeably. "That's why they're also called Dodgems. But some people apparently find it a more enjoyable outlet for their tendencies toward violence over skill."

"Sounds like someone got bumped a lot," observed Darcy.

"My barbarian of a brother -- " Loki pointed at Thor, who was currently looking at Jane with the smitten expression of a lovesick sheep -- "Always goes for me as soon as the ride starts and ignores everybody else. That's why your friend was able to ram him so hard, he wasn't paying attention to anyone but his chosen target." It was only with a great deal of difficulty that he refrained from sticking his tongue out at Thor as he remembered Thor's car skidding across the floor of the ride area away from him with a good bit of satisfaction.

"Hey, uh, are you going to pick a prize or not?" the guy running the strength-testing machine asked. "Other people might want a go."

"Oh, right, sorry!" Thor glanced at the prizes again, then at Jane. She really was strikingly beautiful. "Is there anything I might gift you with, Jane? As a thank you for a memorable bumper car experience?"

Loki nearly rolled his eyes as Jane blushed faintly. "Oh, that's sweet of you, are you sure? I...um -- "

"She'll take the star," said Darcy decisively.

"Darcy!"

"What? All right, fine, you tell him what you want." Darcy crossed her arms over her chest and raised one eyebrow expectantly.

"I..." Jane looked at the stuffed stars, the fabric that particular shade of pale yellow that made her think they would glow in the dark, each with a hanging loop at the top and a stitched on happy face. "Okay, yeah, I want the star. I'm studying astrophysics, stars are kind of my thing."

The game's attendant passed Thor one of the stuffed stars and Thor presented it to Jane in turn. "A star for my lady, to match the ones sparkling in her eyes."

Jane blushed harder as she took the star. "Thank you."

"Smooth," admired Darcy.

"Like shark skin?" asked Loki.

Darcy ugly snorted.

"I think shark skin is rough," said Sif, dimples appearing in her cheeks.

"No, I've touched one," said Thor, mirth dancing in his eyes. "They're smooth."

"Like baby bottoms," said Darcy, not missing a beat.

"Like dolphins," agreed Loki, grinning widely.

"No, I'm pretty sure -- your name's Sif, right? You were in that self-defense class I took last year -- Sif's right; shark skin is rough." Jane looked baffled for a moment as the two boys and Darcy burst into laughter, Sif grinning as well. "Wait, is this one of those internet memes?"

"I'll find the post to show you later," promised Darcy.

Thor seized on the salient fact. "You go to the same college as Sif?" She was no longer just a pretty face glimpsed briefly on a fairground ride, she had a name, and they'd be going to the same college. Maybe they could get together before then as well, he thought hopefully. Go get an ice cream or something.

"Yeah," said Jane. "Do you guys go there? I haven't noticed you before."

"We've just moved here; we'll be starting there in the fall."

"Yeah, if I had seen either of you two before, I would have remembered," said Darcy. "What's your majors? Mine's political science."

Loki brightened. "I'm going for a business degree, but I'm doing a minor in poli sci. I'd like to get involved at the local level at some point in the future; there are so many positive changes that could be made if we just get the right people in charge." They had moved out of the way of the strength-testing game as they talked, but not far. Loki was debating whether to have his usual go at it and come up short in Sif's eyes. He could usually get the puck up to a respectable level, but knew he probably wouldn't hit the bell. Not many people did; he watched a fairgoer's face fall as the puck didn't even make it past the halfway point on their attempt.

"Oh hey, we can be study buddies," said Darcy happily.

"Mm, maybe," said Loki noncommittally. He usually did quite well studying by himself but didn't want to pass up the chance of making another friend, or at least a friendly acquaintance. "What year are you in? It'll be my first."

"Sophomore, but that just means I'll be familiar with your classes and can offer tips on what's going to be on your tests." Darcy turned to Thor. "How about you, big guy?"

"Third year, kinesiology with a minor in coaching," said Thor. "I want to coach kids' sports teams, but that isn't exactly a full time career. So I'm hoping to land a job as an elementary school gym teacher; that'd put me in a good position to get in some coaching on the side."

"Well, it sounds like you've got your future all figured out; they sound like good goals," Jane approved.

"Well, I like sports and I like kids, and if I can't be a ten year old again feeling the joy of seeing the bin of dodgeballs being brought out, then I can at least be the one putting that expression onto other kids' faces."

"Why shouldn't you?" asked Sif thoughtfully, also remembering the pleasure of a good dodgeball game. "I wonder if we could organise some dodgeball games at the gym. A weekly class or something?"

"I'd sign up," said Loki promptly.

"Same," agreed Thor.

"I'll ask Mr. Skurge about it," said Sif. "What about you two?" She looked at the two other girls.

"Uh, no," said Jane. "Thanks but no thanks. Dodgeball does not favor the small."

"On the one hand I agree with Jane," said Darcy, "Small plus glasses. But on the other hand -- it does sound kind of fun. Maybe? I'd be willing to try it once at least."

"Cool. The more interest the better. Maybe Fandral and his buddies in the band would want to join. Although Fandral might be more worried about getting a ball to the face than he was before puberty hit and he started caring more about his looks," Sif grinned. "And I bet Hogun would say yes; I'm not sure about Haldor." She hadn't met Haldor until high school, but she could remember Hogun methodically taking down one kid after another whenever they'd played dodgeball in elementary school. Fandral had always been right up in front, too; she hoped he'd join them if they could get a class together.

Loki felt a stab of jealousy as Sif mentioned Fandral's apparent good looks and decided to channel that into an attempt at the strength-tester. "All right, I'm going to go hit something; I'll be right back," he said, and took out his wallet, approaching the game again. Of course everyone instantly shifted their attention to him as he took up the sledgehammer, Thor calling out encouragement.

"Remember, use your core, slam it down sharp and fast and focus on making sure the hammer strikes the center of the pad as solidly as possible," Thor said helpfully. "You can do it."

Loki rolled his eyes. "Yes, Coach Thor, I have done this before." He felt like Thor was more invested in him conquering this game than he was; it didn't matter if he didn't hit the bell, he told himself, as long as he got the puck up near the top and made a good showing. He swung the hammer as Thor had, getting a feel for its weight and balance and judging how close he needed to stand. Then in one quick movement, he brought the hammer up and slammed it down as hard as he could. The puck flew up at a satisfying speed, slowed as it reached the coloured area just below the bell, hovered for a moment, and then dropped.

There was a general groan of disappointment. "Oh, so close," the man running the game sympathised. "Want to have another go?"

Loki hesitated, then shook his head. "I never do any better on second tries with this, I put my best effort into the first one. As it is, I can walk away feeling good with how high I got it, if I do worse in a second try, then I'll walk away feeling worse."

The man, an older gentleman with graying hair, nodded. "Fair enough. But I'll tell you what, I like seeing kids who think about other people. You really were only a hair's breadth from hitting that bell; I'm saying that's close enough today." He reached out and plucked the light green vase off of its shelf. "Here, put a flower in it and give it to your mother. Or a pretty girl if there's one you've got your eye on." He gave Loki a wink.

"Really?" Loki asked in delight, a grin spreading all over his face. He accepted the vase. "Thank you! And I will."

"You have to promise to come back next year and try again, though," the man said.

"If nothing prevents it, then I will," Loki promised.

"And don't tell anyone I'm giving out prizes for 'close enough'", the man said. "This is my one good deed for the day and that's it."

"What prize?" asked Loki, tucking his vase away in their bag. The man nodded approvingly, and Loki felt almost certain that the man had kids himself.

"Well done, little brother." Thor thumped Loki on the back cheerfully.

"I thought you were going to hit the bell for sure," said Sif. "Here, let me try."

Sif took out her wallet and then unhooked her bag from her shoulder and held it out. "Someone want to hold this for me?"

Darcy snagged it. "I love your unicorn. Where'd you get it?"

"Dart game with the balloons, down at the far end of the row." Sif pointed as she took up the hammer.

"Janie." Darcy looked at her friend with her own version of puppy dog eyes. "I need a unicorn. Look at him." She made Moonbeam wave one foreleg at Jane. "You're gonna help me win one, right? He can be friends with your star."

Jane laughed. "Yeah, sure, if I can." Despite being in general a non-athletic person, she was actually a decent shot at darts; she and her father had used to play together. She wasn't going to win any competitions, but she could probably break a few balloons if Darcy needed help. "Let's just see what Sif can do first."

Darcy raised Moonbeam's two forelegs in a victory celebration. "Yay!"

What Sif could do with the hammer was send the puck flying about three quarters of the way up the backboard of the tower.

"Thou hast made a valiant attempt," Loki read the words written opposite the band of colour where Sif's puck had reached its peak before dropping.

"Thank you," said Sif with a short bow, deciding that was good enough for this year, and handed the hammer back to the game's attendant.

"I can give you some workout tips if you want a better chance at this next year," offered Thor. "Have you ever tried using a medicine ball?"

"No, and that'd be great. I've never bothered to specifically train for this, but why not?"

"Anyone else?' the attendant asked.

Jane and Darcy shook their heads in unison. "Not me," they chorused.

"Gotta save our money for unicorns," said Darcy matter-of-factly. "It's not like any of them are going to come lay their heads in my lap in real life anymore."

Loki was so, so glad he had long since finished his lemonade, because he probably would have spit it out if he'd had any in his mouth when he realised what she meant. He did splutter a bit, though, and Darcy winked at him.

"Should you need any assistance," said Thor, reluctant to let them go when he didn't know if he'd see Jane again before college started. He didn't know her last name, or her phone number, would it be too creepy to ask for it so soon after meeting her? "My brother or I would be happy to help you get a unicorn for yourself."

"Well, we'll see," said Jane. "We'd like to have a go at it ourselves first."

"Of course," agreed Thor. Winning something was nice, but playing the game was the fun part. "We're heading over to the bandstand area, and will probably be there for a little while at least if you want to find us."

"The Daytrippers are playing," offered Sif. "Do you know Fandral? Or his band?"

"Errol Flynn wannabe?" asked Darcy casually. "Yeah, he's cool." She decided that they didn't need to know he was the reason she wouldn't be luring in any real life unicorns anymore. Totally worth it, though. "We'll try to come by before his set's over."

"Great!" Thor enthused. "And maybe we can hang out sometime, before the summer's over?" The words spilled out without conscious thought, borne out of the need to get some kind of contact information for Jane.

"Yeah, sure," Darcy accepted cheerfully. "Have you guys been to Vanir Beach yet?" She ignored the look that Jane gave her; Jane could suck up her dislike of the beach for once in her life. It's not like there were any opportunities to see some hot new guys shirtless at the planetarium.

"No," said Thor and Loki together, both looking immediately interested.

"It's a bit of a drive," began Jane --

"But really not that far," finished Darcy. "Here, give me your phone number, we'll give you a call and set something up."

Loki took her offered phone and entered his number. "Hey, Thor, want me to give her yours -- "

"Yes," Thor said immediately, but he was looking at Jane, having not missed her reaction to the mention of a beach. "Jane? Do you not like the beach?"

"Ah, you noticed that, did you? It can be okay, depending on the day -- but it can also be noisy and crowded and hot. At least around here there are patches of shade all over the place -- " She gestured. "And it's only a once a year thing. And I have to say that I prefer a nice clean pool over a lake with a mucky bottom."

"Can't bodysurf or get a game of beach volleyball going at a pool, though," said Sif pragmatically. "But you're not wrong about the bottom feeling kind of gross," she admitted. "You just gotta get your feet up and start swimming as soon as you feel it get that way."

Darcy, having gotten her phone back, was typing something into it. "Jane, shall I give them your number too?"

"Yeah, sure, go ahead." Darcy had good instincts about guys, and if she thought it was safe to give out her phone number, then it probably was.

Loki's phone pinged, and he grinned as he saw the text from Darcy containing both hers and Jane's phone numbers. He promptly forwarded it to Thor's phone as well.

Thor glanced at it when it arrived and grinned happily. He had her number. "We'll go to the beach one day, but I'd also enjoy going someplace else with you another day, Jane. Where would you recommend?"

"Oh, well, I'm always up for stargazing, but for a more daytime activity..." She ran through possibilities in her head. "There's a park I know, with some nice trails through the woods for hiking. We could do that?"

"That sounds perfect." Thor smiled at her warmly. "I'll have to look at my work schedule, but I'll call you and we'll set up a date."

Jane couldn't help smiling back, feeling warmed straight through. He could just mean what day of the month, but she really liked the sound of the word "date".

"Okay, and we'll figure out which day works best for everyone as a beach day," Darcy said. "I could call you guys tomorrow? Give everyone a chance to look at their schedules, and I'll look at the weather forecast and send you two a map showing where the beach is."

"Sounds good," said Loki. He'd missed having somewhere to swim; a hot beach wasn't his favourite thing either, but a lake full of cold water most definitely would be. And the thought of seeing Sif in a swimsuit was even better. "Sif can ride with us, and we can meet you two there. That is, if Jane wants to go."

"Well, if everyone else is, then yeah, I guess," Jane decided. Maybe she'd bring a float. And she did like the shuffleboard courts. Her decision had nothing to do with the prospect of seeing Thor shirtless and dripping wet.

"We should head over to the bandstand now," said Thor, looking at Loki and Sif. "Maybe get something to eat for you two? I think I could manage that lemonade now."

They said their goodbyes and left the rows of carnival games, Thor ducking into a porta-potty and emerging feeling much less bloated. They followed Sif as she headed towards a food truck advertising the usual selection of fair food. "So, tell me," she said, turning round to look at them and walking backwards for a few yards. "Do either of you play sports? I mean," she gestured at Thor. "Obviously you do, you want to be a coach, but let me guess which ones." She looked Loki up and down. "You're a runner," she said, pointing at him. "Or a swimmer, or maybe both?"

"I like swimming, but not competitively. I ran track for a year in junior high, but it conflicted too much with band. But yeah, I do still like to go for a run most days if the weather is decent. It's a nice time to be alone inside my head."

"Yeah, I know what you mean; I feel that way when I exercise. But band is cool too; what instrument do you play?"

"Flute."

Thor grinned. "He wanted to be Ian Anderson." He mimed playing a flute while standing on one leg.

"Can you do that?" Sif asked, interested.

"Mm, yeah, a bit," Loki admitted modestly. Thor in a food coma had toned his personality down to that of an average person, but he seemed to be coming back to life.

"Cool; you'll have to let me watch you play sometime. Maybe you can jam with Fandral's band one day." She felt pleased at finding a way her new friend and old could mesh together.

"Yeah, that might be fun."

Sif turned to Thor as they took their places in line at the food truck. "You -- weightlifting?" It was an obvious guess, his tank top showing off heavily-muscled arms and shoulders.

"Yes as far as staying fit, that and a general gym workout, but not competitively." Thor nodded at her t-shirt, which bore the name of a gym and the words Life is tough. Be tougher. "I like your shirt. Is that a local gym you belong to?"

Sif brightened. "Yes, I take a kickboxing class there. If you want to join, I'll take you down there one day and show you around, get you set up. And before you ask, apart from gym workouts and jogging, I played softball and basketball. So, what else for you? Baseball? Football?"

"Yes and yes, and rugby at my old college. Swimming and surfing for fun. Ice hockey in winter. I throw a mean frisbee." He thought. "Tennis a bit, if anyone needs a partner, but Loki likes it more than I do."

"Our mother taught us," Loki explained.

Sif imagined two young boys in tennis whites and was charmed by the image. "Did you play doubles against her? Or did your father join in to make it even?"

"Mm, no, Father's more of a hockey man, or at least he was when he was younger. Or a playing catch in the backyard kind of man," said Thor. He could remember endless summer evenings and weekend afternoons with his father and a baseball the year he'd joined Little League, Loki too young to practise with yet, but willing to scamper off and retrieve any stray balls.

"Billiards," said Loki helpfully. "Or chess. He taught me how to play chess."

"Have you got a pool table?" Sif asked hopefully.

"Sadly no," said Thor. "It got left with the old place. Father said they'd had to take the moldings off the doors to get it indoors in the first place and he wasn't going through that again."

"We're campaigning for a new one, though," said Loki. "There's room in the basement."

"Is there room to get it in the house, though?" queried Sif.

"There must be," said Thor. "People have them in their houses, I know they do."

"We'll just have to measure everything first," said Loki. "There are probably different sizes of tables."

"Maybe he'll get us one for Christmas," mused Thor. "He could wrap the cue sticks and put them under the tree. Cue sticks for one of us and the rack and balls for the other."

"And maybe he'd already smuggled it into the basement and we'd been barred from going down there," said Loki, happily going along with this pleasant scenario. "And we just assumed it was because of our usual pile of presents waiting to be put out after we went to sleep."

"If you guys get a pool table for Christmas," said Sif, "I expect to be invited over before the day is out. Or the next day would be all right, but call and tell me about it at least."

"Promise," said Loki. They had moved up in line as they spoke, and had reached the window of the food truck. "Okay, what does everyone want?"

"Large lemonade for me," said Thor, perusing the menu offerings. "And...is there anywhere around here that sells sno-cones?"

"Yeah, there's a cart on the edge of the grass in front of the grandstand," the kid manning the food truck said.

"Okay, just the drink for me, then. Loki?"

"Fries and a coke and some of the cinnamon peanuts," said Loki. "Sif?"

"I can pay for my own. Go ahead and get your stuff first."

Loki hesitated, then shrugged and reached for his wallet, because fairground food was ridiculously expensive. He didn't mind so much when it was a specialty food like the spiced nuts, but he could buy a two liter bottle of Coke on sale for less than the price of the one cup he was getting -- when Thor passed him a couple of bucks for his lemonade, Loki accepted them and added them to the total. He tucked the nuts into the bag Thor was carrying to eat later, and moved aside to let Sif order when he was done paying. Sif bought a Coke, a corndog and a popcorn and a bag of cotton candy, and they moved away from the food truck slowly, Loki carefully picking up fries with his teeth for lack of a free hand and Sif nibbling on her corn dog. Thor sipped his lemonade and tried to shoo away the bees that began to follow him.

"Let's try to get one of the picnic tables over by the grandstand," said Sif. "We can put our stuff down and Thor can go get his sno-cone."

Thor looked around as they approached the rather patchy grassy area in front of the bandstand, some trees along the edges of it offering some sun-dappled shade over near the picnic tables. He lengthened his stride and made a beeline for the last empty table, putting the bag with their prizes and nuts down and waving his brother and Sif over. "Got one!"

Loki inspected the top of the table for stickiness, gave it a quick swipe with one of the napkins he'd taken from the food truck, and hopped up, putting his drink down beside him and his feet on the bench seat. Then, before Thor could sit down next to him, scooted over so he had the middle position on that side of the table, leaving space for Thor on one side of him and Sif on the other.

Thor smirked knowingly at him as he joined Loki, Sif hopping up on Loki's other side and copying his position.

The fries smelled good. "Can I have a couple?" Thor asked, hovering his hand over them.

Knowing that this was one of the rare times when Thor really wouldn't take more than a few, Loki moved his fries a little bit in Thor's direction. "Go ahead."

Thor took one, savouring the salty potato taste. Some musicians were on stage, tuning their instruments.

"That's Fandral," said Sif. "Guy in the Hawaiian shirt with the guitar. Lead guitar and vocals. I've known him since kindergarten."

Loki wasn't sure about the goatee, but had to admit Fandral was handsome in a certain swashbuckling way. "I bet he's popular with the girls," he ventured. "Or is it guys?"

"Wow, you pinned him quick. He is indeed known as our local Lothario, and it's mostly girls but he is not averse to the charms of an attractive man." She turned and glanced at them. "He is going to love meeting you."

"Did you just call me attractive, Sif?" Loki turned his best sunny smile on her.

"I think she was talking about me," countered Thor, flexing.

Sif rolled her eyes. "I was talking about the both of you, and you know it."

"Thank you," said Loki modestly. "You're very pretty yourself."

Sif looked away self-consciously for a moment. "Thank you." She looked back at the stage. "Um, Hogun is on bass, Haldor's on drums, and that's Lorelei on the keyboards. I'll introduce you when we're done eating, if the set hasn't started yet.

"Watch my lemonade," said Thor. "I'm going to go get that sno-cone." He slid off the table, having spotted the cart, and headed off in that direction.

Loki took a sip from Thor's lemonade, just because.

Sif snorted.

He grinned at her innocently. "I gave him some of my fries," he reminded her. "Brothers share," he added in a tone that made Sif certain that he was repeating a phrase he had heard from his mother on more than one occasion while growing up.

Thor came strolling back a couple of minutes later, sucking on a cherry sno-cone, then taking a satisfyingly crunchy bite of the ground ice. "Miss me?"

"Did you leave?" asked Loki, and grinned as Thor gave him a good-natured shove as he sat back down, causing him to bump shoulders with Sif.

"Oh hey, there's Mother and Father." Thor lifted his hand, pointing towards the opposite side of the lawn.

Sif looked, and studied the only couple in that direction heading towards them that seemed old enough to be Thor's and Loki's parents. Their father, if she was looking at the right couple, was noticeably older than their mother, with longish nearly white hair brushing the top of his shoulders and a matching beard. An eyepatch gave him a rakish air that made her think of a pirate Santa. He was neatly dressed in casual slacks and a striped, short-sleeved button-down shirt, the predominant colours nearly matching the blue and white floral print of his wife's dress, a loose, flowy, comfortable-looking sleeveless affair that she'd paired with sandals and a wide-brimmed straw hat. Beneath the hat Sif could see a long honey-gold braid cascading down the woman's back. She was tall and pretty and looked more put together than Sif had ever felt in her entire life. She was walking with one arm tucked through her husband's, the other holding an elephant ear which she was taking dainty bites of, their heads tilted slightly towards each other as they spoke. They looked very much like a couple who still enjoyed each other's company. As Sif watched, the man snitched a bit of the elephant ear and popped it into his mouth, the woman promptly pulling it away from him with a chiding "Hey!" that carried across the grass. Her husband grinned in an unapologetic manner and she gave a little shake of her head that was equal parts exasperated and fond. Sif liked them both on sight. She was about to ask for confirmation of their identities when Thor stood up and waved his hand in the air.

"Mother! Father! Over here!"

The pirate Santa lifted his hand in acknowledgement and the couple veered slightly to come straight towards them, weaving around the scattering of other people milling around and in some cases, getting comfortable on a blanket that had spread out on the grass.

Their mother's brows furrowed in mock confusion as she saw them. "Odin, don't we only have two children? I know we used to talk about having a daughter, but I'm sure I would have remembered this lovely young lady here."

"Only two," Odin confirmed, his eye twinkling. "Although if the boys wish to adopt her, they can bunk together and she can have the extra room."

"No," said Thor and Loki in tandem.

"No need for that," Loki said hastily. "She already has a home, and not far from us, either." Sometimes he thought he wouldn't have minded having a little sister, but not one that he wanted to date.

"She lives on Sorrel," Thor chimed in. "The next street over from us."

"Oh! How nice. You'll have to come over and visit, my dear."

Loki jumped in with introductions. "Mother, this is Sif. Sif, these are our parents, Odin Borson and Frigga -- "

"Just Frigga is fine, Sif. I don't stand on formality with my sons' friends. Feel free to come over any time, and I'd love to meet your parents, too, if that's not too soon to mention. I was thinking I'd have to wait until school started up to meet any families with children around my boys' age. Have you exchanged addresses and phone numbers yet?"

"Phone numbers, yes. And I'll tell my mother about you."

"That's good," Frigga approved. "That a very cute unicorn you have in your bag." Frigga smiled down at Moonbeam, who was watching from the safety of Sif's bag. "Did you win him at one of the carnival game booths?"

"Loki did, actually. And was kind enough to give him to me."

"Oh, did he?" Frigga raised an eyebrow as she looked at her youngest son and saw the hint of colour rise on his cheeks. Like that, was it?

"Mm," said Loki.

"That was very sweet of you, Loki." Frigga reached out and smoothed back a lock of his hair, Loki leaning away indignantly. Frigga laughed. "All right, I'm glad you're having fun." She ran her eyes over her eldest. "How did the contest go, Thor?"

"Only second place," said Thor. "But I don't mind, because the guy who won is Sif's friend and he has four children and I think he kind of needed the tickets more than we did."

"Oh well, better luck next time. But yes, children are expensive," Frigga agreed. "And four of them!" She turned towards Odin and scolded him with a teasing smile on her face. "Why couldn't you have given me four babies?"

"Well, if you remember, it wasn't for lack of trying," he said wryly.

"Mm," said Frigga, smirking.

Loki made a face. "Please ignore my parents reminiscing fondly about how often they used to have sex," he told Sif.

Odin and Frigga exchanged a glance.

"What do you mean "used to"?" asked Odin innocently.

"Ahhh! I'm not listening!" Loki stuck his fingers in his ears.

Frigga chuckled. "You only encourage your father with those sorts of reactions."

"I don't care," said Loki petulantly. "Children should be able to assume that their parents had sex exactly once for each child and that's it."

Odin snorted. "'Fraid not, my boy. Take heart in knowing that all your body parts will still be in working order when you're my age."

Loki whimpered, and even Thor's face twisted up.

"Not a mental image I really needed, Father," Thor said.

Sif patted Thor's shoulder sympathetically. She knew well enough not to enter a closed bedroom door without knocking when her father was home on leave. "If you like kids, Frigga, I'm sure Volstagg wouldn't mind having another possible babysitter to call; I'm not as available as I used to be now that I'm in college."

"How old are the children?" Frigga asked.

"Between one and seven," Loki volunteered. "Two girls, two boys. Mostly redheads."

"Oh." Frigga looked intrigued. "I might be interested, if he needs someone. You said he was here? Any chance of meeting him?"

Sif looked around. The band was still tuning up and talking amongst themselves. "Possibly; they might show up here? The kids like the music. If I see him and his family, I'll introduce you. Speaking of which, Thor, Loki, come on; I want to introduce you to Fandral and the others before they start playing." She slid off the picnic bench, and glanced back over her shoulder.

Loki immediately got up to follow her, stuffing the last of his fries in his mouth and taking his drink with him. Thor followed, still working on his sno-cone, appreciating the fact that flavoured ice didn't take up much room inside him, while still being an integral part of the fairground experience.

"If you'll excuse us," said Loki.

"Of course, darling, go meet new friends. We'll save your seats for you." Frigga smiled at him, and Odin was glad enough to settle himself on the vacated bench, not particularly caring if the seat was a bit dusty from sneakered feet; all his clothes probably smelled vaguely of horse barn and would need to go in the wash anyway. He'd struck up a conversation with a man who'd been grooming a lovely grey Shire stallion for his show class and had the farm's business card safely tucked into his pocket with an invitation to visit some time. It wasn't too far, and Odin thought it would be a nice family outing one weekend, if the boys weren't too old for family outings. They'd both be in college come the fall, growing up, doing more and more things on their own. The unfamiliarity of a new town had kept the boys close to home this summer, and he'd enjoyed it.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Frigga sat down beside Odin, taking another bite of her elephant ear.

Odin eyed it. "I will share them for another piece of fried dough," he said gravely.

Frigga laughed and offered it. "Deal."

He tore off a piece. "Thinking about the boys growing up, moving on with their lives, away from us. College, and then jobs, and maybe marriage and families of their own."

Frigga smiled wistfully. "That would mean we did a good job of raising successful, independent men. And them finding someone to love and spend their lives with could never be a bad thing; in fact them starting new families of their own would only mean that ours would grow."

"Not losing sons but gaining daughters-in-law?" Odin asked wryly.

"Yes, exactly," said Frigga stoutly. "And grandchildren after that. Although..." She screwed up her face. "You're right, I'm not ready for that either. But I don't think we have to worry about empty nest syndrome just yet; Loki hasn't even started college yet."

"What if Thor graduates and gets a good job and wants to move out? I've heard him and Loki talking about sharing an apartment and splitting rent."

Frigga made a considering noise. "That's still two years away, and I don't think he'll be in any rush to move out, not if he can get a job close enough to make commuting feasible. They both seem to like the new house, and apartments are expensive these days. It would make sense to save some money by living at home for a while. Adding that pool they want to the backyard might be a good way to encourage that," she hinted.

Odin chuckled. "You want it too, don't you?"

"I would not be averse," admitted Frigga. "And just think of all the times you'd be able to ogle me in my bathing suit." She waggled her eyebrows at him.

"A convincing argument. I just don't want to be the one stuck taking care of it if the boys move out after college. I'm not getting any younger, you know."

"Even more important why you should have an excellent option for some low-impact exercise right there in our backyard," Frigga said encouragingly. "And the boys could still help take care of it if they're living close enough to come over to use it; if not, you could get someone in to clean it."

"I suppose," admitted Odin. He was not the sort of person who had any desire to go to a gym to exercise, the idea of a cool, refreshing swim in the summer instead of a hot walk sounded appealing. "It'll be more work to mow around a pool than going straight across the lawn." He tried a final objection.

"Good thing you've got two strong sons who are doing all the mowing already," she countered.

Odin grinned. "All right, I'll talk to them about it."

Frigga divided the last of her elephant ear in half and gave him one of the pieces, munching the other one herself. "The boys will be happy. Especially," she said thoughtfully, "If Sif doesn't have a pool of her own. I can see Loki being very happy if the rest of his summer involves a lot of a pretty girl in a swimsuit in his own backyard. If you want to keep the boys at home, at least in summer, a pool should do the trick."

"Hm; I agree that he seems to be smitten, but do you think she feels the same way?"

"Not sure how much yet, but I'd definitely say she's interested. And I'm so glad the boys have found a friend their own age even if nothing more comes of it. She seems nice." She watched as her sons and Sif chatted with the young man on the stage. Perhaps another new friend. She glanced around and her smile grew as she spotted the new family strolling onto the grass, a man and a woman and four young children. She nudged Odin and pointed. "Sif's friend, I think?"

Odin's eyebrows rose. "An impressive beard. And yes, I don't see who else it could be. Do you want to go talk to them?"

"I should probably wait for Sif to introduce us. Would you mind if I babysat for them occasionally?"

"Of course not, not if it makes you happy."

"I'd enjoy it," she admitted. "I do miss the boys being small." She watched as the boys and Sif left the stage and began strolling back towards them. The guitarist played a ringing chord, gaining everyone's attention, and picked up the microphone.

"All right, it's time to get this show on the road," Fandral announced, addressing the gathered crowd. "Our job, up here, is to get you all on your feet singing and dancing along. Your job is to look like you're having the best time of your lives so that all of those people -- " He gestured at the fairgoers passing by. "Stop and realise that they're missing out on all the fun and decide to join us. Can you do that?"

There was a chorus of affirmation.

"I can't hear you," Fandral said. "You're going to have to do better than that." He held out his microphone.

A much louder, more synchronised cheer came from the crowd, Loki wincing as Thor's deep, enthusiastic bellow sounded in his ear. Fandral grinned and then without any further ado the band launched into 'You Can't Hurry Love' by the Supremes, and it wasn't long before people started to get up and dance, the songs upbeat and familiar, the words known whenever Fandral pointed his microphone at the crowd for them to join in on a chorus. Sif brought Volstagg and his family over to meet his parents when his presence was pointed out, Hildegund taking the baby out of the stroller to hold in her arms, swaying to the music as they talked. The two older children danced around with the energetic unselfconsciousness of youth, and by the time the third song started, Frigga was dancing with the three year old, leaning down so she could hold onto the little girl's hands, a big smile on her face.

"Mother has deserted us," Loki announced, his voice loud enough to carry to her ears.

Thor picked up the cue instantly. "Mother doesn't love us anymore."

"Mother prefers to frolic with the children of strangers," Loki observed sadly.

"It is because we are no longer cute little boys," remarked Thor.

Frigga turned and glared at them in affront, but the corner of her lips was twitching.

"Oh! Oh! Jail for Mother," they chanted in unison. "Jail for Mother for one thousand years!"

Sif lost it, wheezing with laughter.

Frigga handed Flosi off to her mother and walked over to her sons. "Lies and slander," she said perfectly calmly, her hands on her hips. "You will always be my darling boys no matter how tall you've gotten, and you are just as cute now as you ever were; I have the photos to prove it." She glanced at Sif, smiling sweetly. "Come over and you can see their baby pictures."

"Hey!" protested Thor.

"I'd love to," said Sif, grinning.

"Now," Frigga said, holding out her hands. "So you don't feel neglected -- which one of you will dance with me?"

Loki looked at Thor with a grimace. "We didn't think this through."

"I'm still too full to dance," said Thor, glad of the excuse, although he wasn't, not really.

"And it would be rude of me to leave my date," apologised Loki. "Why don't you dance with Father?"

"Cowards," said Frigga good-naturedly, and turned to her husband. "Come on, Odin, let's show the boys how to have a good time."

Odin, though, was cuddling the smallest Volstaggson on his lap, both man and child looking perfectly content with this arrangement. "But -- " he began.

Volstagg turned and scooped up young Rolfe. "I've got him."

Frigga held out her hand, and Odin took it and allowed himself to be pulled to his feet. "Well, if my lady wishes it -- " he said. A minute later they were dancing.

Sif raised one delicate eyebrow at Loki. "When did this turn into a date?"

"When I needed an excuse not to dance with my mother to..." He paid attention to the music for a moment, watching his father spin his mother around, both of them looking like they were enjoying themselves. ""Help Me Rhonda" by the Beach Boys?"

"Is your issue with your mother or are you just shy about dancing in public?"

"My issue is dancing with my mother in public in front of a girl that I'm trying to impress and look cool for," admitted Loki, being unusually forthcoming.

"Well, I think it would be sweet if you danced with your mom. But your parents look nice together, too."

"He's a completely different person when he's at work, but with Mother -- yeah, you get used to it. It can be embarrassing sometimes when they start in with the flirting, but -- "

"It's nice," said Thor, knowing exactly what Loki was going to say. "Nice to know that they have such a solid marriage. That's what I want," he said wistfully. "Someone who I can still be having fun with when I'm their age."

"Mm," agreed Loki. "What about you, Sif? What are your parents like?"

"My dad's career military, so he's not always around, but when he's home it's nice; we do things. And mom gets a chance to relax and let him take care of things for a bit."

They stood there for a couple of minutes, bopping in place, watching Odin and Frigga dancing, and Volstagg's kids jumping around, and Volstagg pulling his wife up to join them, holding his youngest easily in the crook of one arm as they danced. The song wound down and a new one started. Sif made a decision and squared her shoulders.

"Come on," she said firmly. "Dance with me." She extended her hand to Loki. "If this is a date, then there should be dancing."

Loki had never really considered "Help" by the Beatles to be a good song to dance to, but, as they figured out some moves, he stopped caring about looking silly and started having fun. It was all in the company, he decided. Maybe he'd even dance with his mother if the right song came up, maybe Jane would show up and give Thor someone to dance with. Maybe this was going to be the best summer of his life.

#sifki #sifkiweek #marvel fic #ficwoodelf #fair play #loki #sif #thor #odin #frigga #volstagg #fandral #jane foster #darcy lewis #fosterson #fluff as far as the eye can see #it was so hard to get out of writing loki sounding like an asgardian prince

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bellinghamount · 3 years

Note

hi can i request something about like mase finds put you havent been eating and get really worried?? ik this may be sensitive, so you dont need to do it. thanks, ily <3

eat | mason mount

warnings: it's a fluff, but i know this is a sensitive subject, but I really don't know if there's anything here that could bother anyone or turn on triggers, but if you have problems involving e.d I recommend not reading further, talks in a superficial but unproblematic way about going without food for a day

word count: 948

notes: hii!! thanks for ur request, hope u like it!

"Come on, Y/N, we're going to be late." Mason grumbled in the living room, looking at the time on the clock. They had planned to attend a concert with Dec, Lauren and Ben. She knew he hated being late to places or being the reason for someone's wait, so she tried to get ready quicker.

Y/N had a busy day. She had to put a lot of college and her internship ahead of her, so she could stay free at night and keep up with Mason, she couldn't even remember when at some point in the day she stopped for five minutes to rest.

"I'm coming." She shouted coming down the stairs, a tremendous fatigue taking hold of her body. Her stomach rumbled, aching with hunger. "Hey, Mase, do you think we can get through before..."

"No way, we should have been gone at least twenty minutes ago." He approached her, turning the car keys in his hand.

"Okay... So, just give me one more minute."

"No, Y/N! We'll miss the beginning of the show, the opening is always the most exciting."

He tried, but she ignored it and ran to the kitchen. He was supposed to sell food there, but she didn't know if she could wait until then. Y/N was feeling a little weak, going all day without eating had not been a good idea. She didn't choose that, she just put all her obligations above her health and well-being.

"What the hell are you doing?" Mason asked from the kitchen door. Y/N was standing on a stool, so she could reach some bags of cookies on top of the refrigerator, Mason was leaving them there, so she wouldn't eat them all at once.

"Just...grabbing a snack." She smiled when she managed to reach the bags, slipping them into her purse. "Okay, we can go."

Y/N was walking past him when Mason braked her, holding her fist and making her look at him. It was very strange that she wanted to carry so many bags for a short outing, soon they would be back home.

"Wait, what was the last time you ate today?"

"Hm..." She bit her lip, thinking of some little lie, but she knew she wouldn't be able to lie to Mason, and she also knew that he wouldn't like knowing that she hadn't eaten that day.

"Y/N." He pressed her, waiting for an answer.

"Well, I had a cup of coffee this morning." She decided to say at last, and it was true. She got up very early and drank only one cup to get herself awake in the morning.

"This morning?" Mason asked, incredulous. "And just one cup of coffee?" Y/N scratched her own neck, knowing the lecture was coming by the very serious expression Mason presented. "What did you want with that? Low blood pressure? A fainting spell? Nausea? Fatigue?"

"I was busy with college stuff... I was going to eat when I got there, but I ended up staying there longer than I should have, when I got there I just had time to get ready, so we could go out." She shrugged, even though she knew she couldn't soften her boyfriend's worried expression at all.

"So busy that you forgot something vital like eating?"

"It was just this time, Mase, it's okay, I'm cool." She argued, trying to hold his hand out of the kitchen, so they could meet Ben, Dec, and Lauren at the show, but Mason disengaged his hand from hers.

"It's not okay, you're going to sit here, and you're going to eat something." He pushed her by the shoulders to the table and Y/N sat down in one of the chairs.

"Didn't you say we were going to be late? Seriously, Mason, I'll be fine with these cookies for now." Y/N tried to get up, but Mason forced her shoulders down, forcing her to stay seated.

"Stop talking about these cookies like they are the healthiest thing in the world." He said, heading over to the refrigerator, looking for the leftovers from the previous day's dinner. "We'll meet up with them later, we're not leaving until after you've had a decent meal."

Y/N just relaxed in his chair, knowing he wasn't going to be able to get him to change his mind.

─────────────

Days Later

Y/N was having a quiet day, sitting in the college cafeteria, reading an article on the computer, when her cell phone started vibrating. She smiled, seeing it was a message from Mason.

Mason: babe

Y/N: hey love, aren't you practicing?

Mason: yes, but I had to come here to see if u had eaten yet?

She rolled her eyes at the message, even though she thought it was cute. Ever since that fateful day, Mason had started to take a short leash when it came to her health.

Y/N: really mason? r u going to keep acting like one of my parents?

Mason: it's not my fault if you're now a child who can't remember to feed yourself, so, yes I will keep acting like one of your parents, have you eaten?

Y/N: I'm doing it now

Mason: give me proof then, I want pictures

She positioned the camera above his head, and sent him a selfie where Mason could have a full view of Y/N and a plate of half-eaten food on the table.

Y/N: satisfied? 🙄

Mason: very much!! now I have to go, Tuchel is giving me a hard look

Y/N: go before he leaves you on the bench for the rest of the season, and... mason?

Mason: what?

Y/N: thank you for taking care of me

Mason: always, i love you

Y/N: i love you too 🤍

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bangtanpromptsfics · 3 years

Text

pyxis.

dialogue prompt #9: “Cheer up it's Christmas Eve, sweetheart”

pairing: jimin x reader

genre: christmas au, brother's best friend au, fluff, childhood friends to lovers

word count: 3,412 (oh no)

warnings: reader is a lil sad but nothing angsty tho

summary: christmas was always an eager wait. less for the tree decorations, family dinner and the fuss of toddlers. more for your childhood best friend who you kissed under a mistletoe years back.

a/n: ahhh!!! I'm not completely satisfied with how this turned out to be. the inspiration was from a few christmas themed fics I read here and the movie ‘It's Christmas, Eve’. anyway this was my attempt though it's nowhere near christmas time. one of my personal goals is to celebrate a christmas like the west, the snow, the fuss and the commotion ;-;. Also I lost sense of time and space and this turned out to be 3k ;-;

masterlist

“Cheer up it's christmas eve, sweetheart”, your mother chimes as she pours brown batter into little cupcake moulds.

You simply smile at her, the festive mood not really getting to you because of exhaustion. Uni was tough, and enjoying this Christmas when you know you have tons of essays due in a few days was hammering inside your brain every now and then.

“Is that chocolate?”, you ask, leaning your tired body on the counter where she is at work.

“And orange”, she smiles, turning around to preheat the oven.

“Where's Jin”. Though you hated the routinely flicks against your forehead, the absence of your big brother felt weird.

“He went with Jimin to get the Christmas tree”.

The mention of Jimin brings a smile to your face. His soft features and captivating grin filling your head. If there was one of the few things you enjoyed coming back to your hometown for holidays, it's chocolate cupcakes your mom bakes and Jimin.

His family are friends with yours after all. You, Jin and Jimin attended the same school until college and other priorities in life drift you apart. Though the bond must have rusted a bit, you can't deny the fact that you still have that crush which started somewhere in middle school, on a chritmas eve like this when he kissed your cheeks shyly under the mistletoe. Your friends and family, and even Jimin himself must have seen it nothing more than platonic, but you still find yourself relieving the moment in your head however crazy it may sound.

Standing up straight, you decide to fix your bed hair and complete the skincare routine before the said duo drops.

“Mrs. Y/L/n...”, Jimin softly kicks the back door. He is carrying one end of a huge fir, and your brother on the other end, grunting from the freezing snow outside.

“Oh dear place it right there”, you mother is quick to her feet helping the boys and doing her usual commentary on how well the tree looked.

Jimin looks more handsome than ever, especially with his nose and cheeks dusted in scarlet from the cold. He looks really huggable in his fluffy sweaters and red beanie. Jin is busy commanding around so you choose to sit back, a very typical sibling energy and the size of decoration boxes and the tree itself not really appetizing to your will to find any strength.

“Hey Y/n!”, Jimin stares back at your eyes in a split moment which has your lashes fluttering suddenly. You probably look like you are carrying a disease and right now you become very hyper aware of that.

“You alright? You look tired”, he comments. You feel his eyes carefully studying the black under your eyes and worrying his mind because that's what he is like. He cares about everyone and everything, has a heart so soft it hurts to even think about it.

“Jet lag...”, you say, “I'll be fine”. You shoot a little thumbs up on his way to reassure.

“Why didn't Jin get the tree earlier? It's Christmas in a few hours”, you dodge the focus around you and walk near in an attempt to closely examine the tree for no reason other than feeling Jimin’s eyes a little too long on you.

Your brother gets visibly annoyed seeing you start a very unnecessary talk. So he is completely obliged to shoot back with, “Because you were in charge of Christmas decorations this year but your lazy ass flew down here only yesterday”.

“You know I was busy with Uni!”

“Whatever”, he shrugs, getting back to the box of tree decorations. You feel a little bad seeing yourself not being helpful during a festive season. It felt like you were procrastinating on your responsibilities as always.

“Um...is there any way I can help?”, you ask softly, earning a mischievous grin from Jin and your mom fills in the answer.

“We need more baubles. Also I missed out gifts for Aerum and June, so maybe you can get them”. Now this was already tiring and you were not lying earlier either, the jet lag was still choking you alive. You wonder if the huge pile of stars and glitters beside your foot aren't enough but then maybe it's true because this is the largest fir you ever saw for Christmas in your house. And speaking of the five year old notorious duo, your cousins-- Aerum and June, you have no other option than to step out into the butt numbing cold and get something for the sake of not getting your brains eaten.

While you stand there doing these calculations, Jimin puts a two and two and immediately suggests to tag along with you.

“That'd be great! Thanks sweetie”, your mom chimes, her fine lines of face gathering around her eyes while she does so and you catch her throwing a wink to your side and you pretend you never saw that.

“Thank you Jimin”, you smile in all honesty while he reciprocates the same.

“No problem. I'll get my car. Will you be ready in an hour? I think you just woke up”

“Uh...yeah”, you fake a laugh, “Yes I'll be ready in an hour”

Jimin still lives here in your hometown, attends a community college nearby and his house is just a few steps away from your own. You remember how you had the same analogy in your mind as well. You like living here. You like Jimin’s company. The lake Park and the annual ice skating competition in December and the bookstores and coffee shops at the outskirts of the town. And you can't seem to clearly remember when and where that feeling started to become foreign. Maybe it was a teenage quirk to explore the world that you are now a three hour flight away from all of this. It wasn't a deep regret, but seeing Jimin, it almost felt like it. It felt like you betrayed him. Because he seemed to be keeping his word to this day.

This year, it's a few degrees lower than what it usually is and you find yourself chattering your teeth together as you walk to Jimin’s house.

His footsteps rush to get the door as soon as you ring the doorbell and he greets with the same wide grin as if he hasn't just saw you an hour ago.

“Let's go?”, he asks immediately, getting house keys from his coat pocket and locking the front door before stepping out making you confused.

“There's no one home? Where are your parents?”

“Oh well didn't Mrs. Y/L/n tell you?”, he studies your features and gets his response so he continues “They went to New York this year for Christmas. It's some elder people thing I think...so I'll be spending Christmas this year with your family”

“Really!?”, you chime, and then immediately notice a very childish jump you did with tiny fists and all, feeling a little embarrassed at yourself, “Ah... uh I mean that's great”.

“Yeah”, he giggles, sounding like a twelve year old who is still waiting for his growth spurt, “Get in the car it's freezing in here”.

Since it's been six odd months you've spoken to Jimin, you figured it would would be strange and awkward to be with him, but his demeanor states otherwise. He could effortlessly begin conversations and build momentum with you and by the time you are at a thrift store, he is aware of the little gist of student life and the dramatically exaggerated history research paper still due.

“What are you getting for the twins?”, he asks, seeing you checking out the kids toys section with absolutely no idea and that's exactly what you reply to him.

“How about this puzzle?”, he brings a big jigsaw to your glance and you figure it's a great thing to have their little brains engaged and give yourself time to breathe.

“It's perfect!”, you add, immediately placing it your cart with a few decors you picked up from earlier aisles.

Jimin places an extra pack of Christmas candies in the cart, and you send him a questionable look knowing it's his way of bribing the kids coming this evening. He puts too much effort into people's happiness, something you wish you were capable of as well.

The shopping went smooth. It was therapeutic to get hot chocolate with extra marshmallows afterwards like he insisted followed by that very cliche movie scene where one of them develops a creme moustache and the other notices and dabs it off.

You want this moment to linger a little longer, but your whole family arrives in less than two hours and the decorations were due. If Jin doesn't have you in the next thirty minutes he might as well eat all the cupcakes your mom is baking as revenge.

“I had a great time”, Jimin states as he stops the car in front of your house, stealing the words from your mouth and warmth hugs your cheeks immediately.

“Me too. It's been long since we spent time with each other”

You hear a lone sigh with white fogs coming out of his plump lips while he does so, as if he were suddenly sad when you mentioned that.

“Are you okay?”

His grips tightens around the steering, “I've missed you”, he says, eyes meeting slowly. And as if he was suddenly pulled back to earth he conjures another sentence to not sound so vulnerable.

“I uh... It's just--”

“I've missed you too”

Even with the gear box painstakingly blocking the way, you throw your upper half towards his body anyways and you find him hugging you back. His hugs still feel the same from years back; safe and warm and filled with love.

If it wasn't for the constant reminder that your brother is probably plotting a murder against you, you would've stayed much longer in his embrace. Maybe the hug was a big straightforward for a bond still gradually blooming, but it didn't feel weird at all and when you pull back he is smiling down at you.

“I thought you two lovebirds flew off”, a very annoyed Jin states from above you. He is balancing himself on a chair to attach the mistletoe to the ceiling.

“Sorry hyung”, Jimin says. And somehow now you are getting super aware of the way your family is low key shipping you both. Not that it's an irritating thing of course though you seem to act like it. But you have no idea what's going on with Jimin, what if he said he missed you as your childhood friend? It's a lot difficult to segregate his priority of giving affection. He seems to be giving justice in terms of care for every living being he knows.

“The circus is on its way so I hope you both hurry with putting up everything together”, the voice above states, now lowering himself to ground after putting up the twig.

Three of you giggle at the mention of your family as a circus. Well in a way it definitely was. You have a bunch if uncles who crack awful jokes, a trait Jin himself as picked up from a tender age of ten. Then their wives and kids who share certainly the same braincells in comprehending things. You bet they'll ask you again about your major and your dating history once they walk in through that door amidst clearly stating everytime that you are a history major and yes still very single.

In the hallway there is a half decorated tree. A thread of fairly lights wrapped around the green and very few baubles hanging here and there.

“I'll put up the star and join you”, Jimin says, digging out a golden star from the carton. Though now he doesn't know why it was a good idea for him to announce that when both of you were almost the same height. He is just a few centimeters taller than you and the top of the fir is still very much way above your heads.

So with a chuckle you both figure Jin has to do it.

“This is your final year right?”, Jimin asks stepping closer to you. He seemed nervous about something. Or was it anxious?

“Yeah...you?”

“Yeah...”, his sweet tone was drawn almost like a whisper and you sense you should ask him further about what's wrong. But before you had to deal with a starter he continues,

“Are you planning to work in Chicago as well?”

“Sweetheart help me clean up the kitchen please”, your hear your mom's voice overpowering through the house. Which is good. Because you don't know what you are supposed to answer. It was as if he was almost hopeful that you'll choose your hometown all over again. But you aren't sure. So you take the opportunity to step away from the situation excusing yourself.

And while you are clearing the blobs of batter stuck on the counter, your mind is a haywire. What are you going to do? Though you know your whole family wants you to stay, it's still a foggy place to be in. Four years apart in another city as a college student has not provided much, except caffeine addiction and sleepless nights. Things were not even as fun as everyone told you.

A few steps away Jimin silently prays that you stay, because he had truly missed you. Even though you have outgrown from the eighteen year old shell as he had known, he finds himself actively choosing to be with you. Even when other things in life occupies his mind, there's an element of it which goes back to you.

“They are here!”. You groan silently, while your parents are throwing their hands in air, giggles and chatter fills in as your uncles and aunts and the taunting toddlers welcome themselves in.

“Y/n! You have grown so much!”, the older aunt comments, and you supply a manufactured smile to tag along. Other comments follow by soon, about how tired you are, gasps about not having a partner and future plans, all of which are not completely answerable at the moment but you manage to get through them all and finally excusing yourself back to the garage convincing there are more decor supplies in there.

Families are nice. They make festivals brighter and lives less lonely. But yours was just hard sometimes. Not that you completely loathed the people now fueling themselves off the cup cakes your mom bakes, you were just merely lost, still yet to come up with an answer to what your stance is after graduation.

“Hey...”. Jimin has joined you now which you notice feeling a warmth against your shoulder when he sits, with an extra scraf knowing the garage is still comparatively chilly than the house, “you okay?”.

“Yeah...I was just...thinking”

“Is this about earlier? I'm sorry if I made you anxious”, he quickly adds.

“No!...I mean yeah but, it's high time I find a ground with this. What are your plans?”

“I was thinking about teaching at Jefferson High”, he shifts rather uncomfortably. He is talking of the school in your town, your school, where you have lots of memories with Jimin, “You know...like we said during Junior year in high school?”

“I'm sorry Jimin”, you feel the guilt inside you growing, “I never kept my promises”.

“Hey...that's okay! Everyone changes. I just want you to be happy. I...I hope you are happy Y/n”, he reassures, taking your hand from your side and squeezing it between his soft palms.

“I don't know about that either...”

As much as you hated showcasing vulnerability to another person, you know Jimin is an exception. You had cried to him about everything during school days and he had never invalidated a single thing, even when you were visibly dramatic over a downpour during a family picnic when you were five.

Jimin is frozen on his seat as if he can't find the words. He was never good with words so instead he hugs you, a little longer than the last time till he is sure you have calmed down. Grateful for not ending up crying, you smile up at him and remind yourselves to get back inside to avoid suspicion, especially from the kids who take humiliating people as an important milestone to achieve.

When you enter back inside and get immediately surrounded by a million questions and chores thrown at you, you find your answer. Maybe your heart belongs back to everything your younger self had blabbered about. Not to mention, this fairly good reunion with your crush feels nice, though, he might still see it as platonic. Maybe he makes things less daunting.

By the way Jimin was owning everyone's heart in the house, it felt like he was family. Well in a way he is. But to put more clarity, he bought things together and his actions bought so much peace and love within everyone. Even the notorious twins listen carefully to him and help the uncles and aunts in the kitchen.

He is again by your side, two cupcakes rests on his palms and you take it with a silent ‘thanks’.

Seeing no signs of him beginning a talk now, you think of coming up with something. Maybe a memoir from today? Or about how absolutely handsome he looks right now? Wait.

“They are under the kissing twig!”, Aerum screams like the house caught in fire, her sibling joining by the side to provoke the habit even more.

“It's called a mistletoe Aerum”, your aunt corrects before pasting a smug across her lips.

Nothing changed. They are the same people. Hyping you and Jimin to kiss just like when you were thirteen. If the factor of time is removed, this is the exact night. Both of you cemented to the flooring as if you forgot to exist.

Both of your necks snap together to the mistletoe Jin had attached to the ceiling earlier. And when you lower your gaze back, face gawks at each other eye to eye. It's the same. He has that blush, the shyness from years ago. It's going to be platonic. Yet again. And this moment will only ever be romantic and flowery in your head.

June was the first to squeak, and Aerum shuts her eyes the moment Jimin is leaning his mouth towards your lips. It was difficult to relax under the stares of many, but when he ghosts his mouth over your again and leans in for a second kiss, you are fixated on him. Hands holding each other, the plump of his lips so soft it felt like you were biting into a fluff of cloud.

Maybe he'll have an explanation to your family for this. Not like anyone in the audience was disappointed. Your mother was almost in tears? And Jin looked hardly surprised with any of this. As if it was all swell according to his plans.

“You both are so cute”, one of the aunts awes and your mother is quick by her side, completely agreeing to it.

“Jimin...”, you return your gaze to the equally flustered man who just kissed you and he sounded almost breathless,

“I'm sorry if this was wrong it ju--”

“I like you”, you immediately snap in and his face is a void for an instant. Fully processing the words, his eyes disappear when he grins, “I like you too...a lot”.

“Are you two dating?”, the twins haven't dropped the case yet, running to your feet to help their curious brains.

“Yes...”, Jimin responds, looking up at you for a reassurance, which you quickly supply with a nod, “Yes we are dating”.

When the kids are satisfied they go away snickering to themselves.

“I decided to stay”, you say.

“Really!?”, his disbelief was comical, yet wholesome considering how much he wished for this, “I'm...I'm so happy!”.

Giggling at him, this time you lean forward and peck the corner of his lips.

“You lovebirds better get a room”, Jin announces and thankfully not loud enough to catch everyone else's attention.

Usually Jin expects a punch to his arms from his sister, but he sees how grateful you are for his mistletoe decor. He leaves the couple, satisfied that there won't be any more ranting about how much Jimin likes you.

Thank you so much for reading!! ♡♡

Original Content of ©bangtanpromptsfics

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funtarou · 3 years

Text

Wishes || Kuroo x Reader

The Second Part of "Plans" || Kuroo x Reader" fic

Second part is here and I hope it's decent or maybe satisfying enough. Like wise, I'm rusty and still trying to regain my writing zone. Also I haven't throughly slowly proof-read this so-- Also also ya know, like wise, how I depict Kuroo has no guarantee that it's the actual Canon Kuroo, ya know. But I'm tryna get a bit close-

Story Warning: Angst, Comfort/hurt?, Human emotions are weird okay. There's one Sexual action but not described specifically. Still just incase, 13 year old below minors do not interact.

Writing Warning: Bad English grammar and possible spelling mistakes and wrong use of words. English is not my first language and I'm still tryna get back in writing groove.

Read part 1 here

Kuroo Tetsurou never expect such a dirty play from life. He though all of the dark side in life for him has already ran out the moment his mom stormed out of their house when he was a kid. He though it was already enough the moment he heard his own older sister said she doesn't want anything to do with him. He though it was satisfying enough for life to see him bid farewell to his friends back at his old neightbourhood. Maybe he's still naive to think that he won't be affected by any games life would play him after the things he need to went through in his early childhood. Even after it already forced him to think more maturely in a young age, and developed a sort of social anxiety in those younger days, there just seems to be more and more things life had planned for him.

But after witnessing a near-death experience, Your near death experience, he wish life would let him off the Hook. Because it was just too much.

It has been 96 hours since you were hit by the bastard with the car who drives away the next second. And despite already being treated, you still haven't wake up. The doctor said you'll be fine despite the injuries, but might experience headaches when waking up. But on the matter of when, it was still uncertain. For now it's best to let you rest, let your brain process the shock from the hit.

96 hours, and Kuroo still stays by your side. Only leaving on occasion to get some supplies he needs to stay at your hospital room. He hasn't attend his classes for the past four days yet, but has someone he's on good-terms with (and has the same classes as him) to give him notes and stuff that was taught at those classes. Kenma occasionally stopped by to give him food and check up on your condition too. A few of your friends and family also came for the same reason for the past four days.

Even though his heart ache and yearns for you to open your eyes, to know for sure that you'll be okay, he always tries to maintained a cold head. Despite the lingering fear that stays at the back of his head and the image of your frail body being hit and thrown to the side of the road, he put up a strong front. to himself and to the people around him. He has been focusing on his studies despite not present in classes, still maintaining a proper diet and sleep schedule. Acting normal, and trying to think everything is fine now that he knew you're treated and is going to be okay. He cant just go in deep depresso espresso mode now while you're unconcious. Because he knew you'd be upset if you wake up and found out he hasn't been taking care of himself. Another thing he always keep in mind is, that he cant let this bump in life ruined his plans. Not to mention he's nearing graduation if he Ace his essays and IP. He can get a job soon, a well-paid one if he works hard enough. Soon enough he can buy you the things you always dream of getting ever since highschool. He can already imagined the beaming in your eyes when he give it to you, one day.

Yeah. This is just a bump in life. Everyone Will eventually experience it at Times. Nothing is perfect, but that doesn't mean he cant stop trying to reach his future plans with you.

As Kuroo was typing on his laptop, sitting beside your bed with one hand on top of your hand, he sensed a sudden movement. His eyes quickly shot up from the device to your laying figure. He stays quiet for a few seconds, that is before he can feel the sudden broken movements of your fingers in his once again. He stand up, putting the laptop aside before putting another hand on your hand that had moved. Eyes slightly wide in anticipation for your own to open.

"... (Y/n)?"

He whispered, not wanting to startle you. The movement on your hand in his owns slowly became stronger, until it managed to lightly close in to a half fist and open again. Your eyelids trembles lightly, making an effort to open. But when it does, your orbs slowly land on him. He cant help himself, as he feels his vision getting blurry with the unintentional tears gathering up.

"Hey love... How are you feeling...?"

He softly and slowly questions, letting you process your conditions as he notices your eyes roaming around as if trying to understand where you are. And then he sees your eyes roaming at his figure, at your conjoined hands. And for some reason, the way your eyes looked at him, the way it moved as if analyzing him and the way your hand slightly shifted in his soft grip, gave him a bad feeling under the relief.

And it seems like Kuroo's gut feeling has always been spot on. For the words you weakly utter next Made his heart drop.

"... W-Who... Who are you...?"

And he wish you were pranking him at that moment.

2 years since the incident.

The day when you woke up, Kuroo called the doctors to check up on you. After going through some tests, the doctor concluded that the impact and shock from the accident Made you lost a big part of your memories. Your family was called the same day to received the information.

Ever since that day, Kuroo has been trying to rush your memories back. He's taking it slow, not wanting to pressure you and the recovery of your memories. He's been really supportive and optimis on making you remember your family, your friends, your life style, hobbies, and him. Gladly you still remember and can manage most of the things you learned at your major, and you returned back to campus a few days after you woke up. Now you've successfully graduated with an average but good scores. Yet due to not remembering your passion, you're not quiet sure what career you want to take, up until now. You've only been doing part-time jobs and online shops. Everything still feels unfamiliar to your head, yet strangely familiar in your chest.

After getting out of the hospital, You agreed on still staying with Kuroo at your shared apartment. Kuroo also persuaded your family that it might make you remember faster on your latest life style. And in a way, he has a point. Most of the stuffs you supposely enjoy and most of the things you use in your routines is in the apartment. The things back at your family house are the old things you didn't use and left when you moved out for college. In the end you spend those two years living in the same roof with him, someone who people told you is your lover of some years now.

For the past 2 years also, Kuroo tried giving you your space. He restrict himself from kissing you everytime he sees you. He tries to hold back on smushing you againts his chest. He lets you choose where you wanted to sleep, either it be the guest room or your shared bedroom. If you're not comfortable with him hugging you, like how you two used to do everyday, he'll make a distance from your side of the bed or sleep on another place. Through those Times, be tries to done the deeds on his own, not with anyone else, without you knowing too. It's been hard for him to locked up all of his swelling feelings and affections for you, yet he doesn't want to overwhelmed you. Not until you remember him, or maybe, developed the same compassion feelings for him as your new self.

But it seems like you've caughed on his hidden desperation for you. And if there's a side of you that stays, it's your need to return the favor he has been giving you. Afterall, he's the most supportive person you've met ever since you woke up. The one who let you stay at the apartment despite not remembering him, the one that pays for all your need with his new found job, the one that's with you through the twisted road for you to remember the people you love and cherished. And so that night, you confronted him.

"Please let me help, Kuroo."

Despite the sting in his heart when hearing you call him with his last name, he cant hold himself back. Afterall, saying no to you feels so heavy for him to do.

You felt familiar under his touch, under his warmth. And whatever he did to your body, you always response accordingly. He knew every parts of your body, every beauty and insecurities. He knew what to do, because before the incident it's not like you two were playing holy-boy holy-girl in your relationship.

There's this momenterally serotonin he felt when being connected with you once again. Seeing your raw emotions of pleasure and your body doing the talking. It feels like everything was back like how it was. Everything was normal, back when you would know every part of him as much as he does, back when you utter the words of love as much as he does. But, he described the feeling as "momenterally" for a reason.

You two spend the night, cuddled againts each other, or could also be said him pulling you close out of habbit. But after experiencing one of the world's pleasure with you again, he really just need to be slapped with a sour something.

"Kuroo... I don't think I could keep pretending..."

Because deep in your heart, Kuroo Tetsurou is still a stranger in your foggy head. To your old self, your old memories, he would be the man of your dreams, the man you wish would spend forever with you. But now everything is different. You tried to find that passion within you for him, it's not like it's that hard because he was an attractive man. Despite all that, you come to realized it feels wrong. You knew, you've been knowing of how he loves you with all his beings and existence, while you only stays and manifested your love for him through a facade and a form of "Pity" for his desperate heart. It fills your chest with aching guilt, feeling as if you're using him at his more vulnurable mental and emotional state.

One could say you utter your next words on panic and quite irrantional thinking. Yet it felt right at the back of your head, to let him break free from the past. To let yourself break free. Because your little heart cant keep this game much longer.

Yet, He wish you would for a little longer.

4 years passed by.

The whispering noises of the audiences are audible through the whole building. Some excited whispers, some casual talks. They're all waiting for you, not to mention the spiky haired JVA member.

His head hang low, looking down at the ground. Hands remains restless, patting his neat suit here and there and occasionally being put in his pant's socket. Beside him was Kenma, putting a hand behind his back and soothing his best friend.

Minutes passed by, and finally the slow music started playing, silently announcing to the people in the building of your soon arrival. The flower girl appeared from the door first, your nephew dressed In beautiful frilly white dress with flowers decorating. Her Tiny hands throwing the pastel mix colored petals as she skipped her way down the aisle. Some of your relatives coo'ed at her cute attics while throwing the flowers. And then when your form is visible In the room, all eyes are on you. Dolled up beautifully in your long white wedding attire, a thin veil lightly covering your face. You walked down the aisle, a family member holding one of your arm, accompanying you to your soon to be husband.

If someone were to ask what Kuroo Tetsurou though Angels looked like, he would describe this scene in front of him.

The scene was beautiful and breath-taking to Kuroo's eyes. Even Kenma can hear his tall friend's breath hitching for a second when his eyes land on you. Your face moved up, eyes locking at Kuroo's cat like ones as if on instinct. You two starred for a few seconds, before a small smile softly tugged at the edge of your glossed lips. But after that smile, you turned your head and tore your gaze away from his.

A drop of tear unconciously traveled down his face. Followed by another from his other eye, and then followed by a few more soon after. He's silently crying, holding on a sob as his hands formed in a fist shakingly. Kenma of cource notices this, as he glanced to his tall friend beside him. But he was unsure of what to do himself that can comfort his best friend, and so he continued rubbing (hopefully) comforting circles behind the taller male's back.

Afterall, Kenma doesn't think he's in a much better emotional state than Kuroo at this moment either. Where Kuroo cried on his realization of fully loosing you to another, Kenma hold tears of his mix emotions. Kenma's happy for you and your soon to be husband, but he cant help but sympathize with Kuroo. Afterall he's the only guy that has seen and hear you two go through all the hard and happy Times. It's always you three since grade school. Even though you and Kuroo formed a romantic relationship Along the way, you two never left Kenma behind and Kenma never stop supporting you two. And at this moment, Kenma is unsure how to feel with the whole ordeal. He wanted his best friend back together like before, but he doesn't want to force you in to it, not when you forgot all those happy and sad Times you three experienced together.

And as you reached the end of the aisle, a hand awaited to take yours in. A hand that was not Kuroo's, but someone whom he atleast knew at one point in life. Osamu Miya. The man you met and developed deep feelings for, after you left him back in Tokyo.

Kuroo thinks you're being subconciously quiet mercifull for him. If you were to marry someone you and him knew for years, it would be more painful for him to try and mask his sadness with a smiling face in false supportive-ness. And as he sat there in silent tears, he watch and listens to you ex-changing vows with the Kansai man you've chosen to plan your new future with.

He wish it was him again. He wish he has that privilages to be a part of your future again.

Afterall he already planned everything beforehand.

As Osamu slipped the gold ring through your delicate finger, Kuroo's mind went back to a few days a go. Where he had found a neatly wrapped letter in his mailbox. He wished he didn't come when you had sent him a wedding invitation. But years of not seeing you nor ex-changing much conversation through text, could add to the factor on how desperate he is to remain in contact with you. Even after years, He's not used to being so far away like this yet.

His cat like eyes bore on to the piece of decorated paper.

How he wish it was his name written there beside yours.

5 years has passed by since the wedding.

After the ceremony Kuroo only greeted a few familiar faces and then silently leave with Kenma. For some reason Kuroo doesn't have it in him to face you, nor say his congratulations for you. He doesn't feel like tugging a smile for you at all that day. He hoped you didn't dechiper his emotionless face as something bad.

Now he's sitting in quietly, looking at the stars above him. Behind him can be seen a wooden cabin he had rent for a small nature trip, by himself. He thinks maybe he needs it, to atleast distract himself from the though of you. Honestly the first thing that dragged him to nature and disconnect with technology, is when he sees a picture being posted by Osamu Miya and shared by Atsumu on his social account. A picture of you and your 3 year old daughter with Osamu, smiling happily as it seems the three of you are eating at Onigiri Miya.

But for some reason, having his time within the fresh air of the mountains and therapeutic noises of the forest surrounding him, only Made his thoughs Drifts further on you. He though that your love is truly for him. He though that maybe he does deserve "forever". Maybe he shouldn't expect so much back then. There was never been a perfect love story from the beginning and he should've seen it coming. Even if all the odds around him seems to lead him on thinking "yes you two are meant together", maybe it's just another one of life's trial. He kept thinking like that through the 5 years.

Crouching down, Kuroo grabbed a small gasoline can that was placed beside his leg. He walked further to the wild, the backyard of the cabin, nearing a cliff where in the morning the breath-taking view of the waterfall and field can be seen. From his inside jacket pocket, he pulled out a paper file. When opening the file, it can be seen there are several papers within it and one quiet thick handmake-shift book.

He took a seat on the dirt, not minding some dust getting on his already dirty pants from the previous hike he had. One by one, his eyes wander off through the pieces of paper in the file, reading his small writings on it before dropping it to the ground in front of him. Until all the paper has been read lightly and dropped on the ground, he moved to the book. He only ever took the moment to fully and slowly read the words on the first date of the book. The date where he finally mustered the courage to confess his long-time feelings for you, and the date where he found out you also felt the same. Felt.

He schemed through the rest of the page, rather carelessly. Because he knew if he ever took the time to read each and every single plans he had for you and him, he would spend the rest of the night in tears. Heck maybe he couldn't even sleep seeing how many he wrote in the past.

Finally he reached the last page with his writings on it. His saving plans to buy you a ring. His written plan of how he was going to pull one of the best proposal action, only for you. Seems like all of that is for nothing now.

Kuroo closed the book, dropping it down with the other papers on the dirty ground. Standing up, he stretched his limbs lightly before moving to grab and open the gasoline can. Pouring all over the papers and book, not leaving any surfaces untouched, until all the papers are nicely soaked. After he emptied the gasoline can, he pulled a box of matches out from his pant's pocket.

He lights one up and throw it at the pile of papers. It went out before it could touch the wet surface, which Made Kuroo clicked his tongue in annoyence. He lights up another one, but this one went out in his hand when a sudden gush of wind hit his face. He groans in silent frustration.

'Now nature wants to hold me back?'

Was his first though.

He tries one more time. Lighting up a match, but this time dragging it down and guiding it to touch the surface of the papers. This time it finally lights up the flames on the paper. He sight contently, standing back up to see how the fire slowly covered and burns every pieces of papers and the book. Soon enough, the small fire turned in to a camp fire with the amount of fuels given to it.

The mountain around this place is quiet, especially at this time of the night. The only thing prominently audiable to the spiky haired male at the moment are the sound of the fire eating the papers.

And just like that his future plans are all ruined by the flames. The flames in front of him right now, and the flames of lingering love he still has for you. Just this week he figured he should destroy the pieces of papers that still Remind him of the old Times with you, so that he could move forward. He's in his late twenties already, he needs to get over with things and start looking up for his own future. No matter how lonely it seems like without you by his side.

He wish in another life, he could have the privilages to plan a future with you once again.

And maybe if that time does happen, he wish that everything wasn't just mere plans and wishes.

If he were to be given another chance, in another time or another universe,

He'll make sure to make every wish and plans he had in this life, a reality.

A solid reality of you and him.

But for this life, it seems like it was never meant to be.

- End

A/N: I hope I delivered well. Maybe- Actually I wish I could deliver my ideas better

Like wise, cover edit by me but the image belongs to the Haikyuu manga

#kuroo x y/n #kuroo x reader #kuroo angst #kuroo x you #kuroo tetsurou #haikyuu!! angst #haikyuu!! x y/n #haikyuu angst #haikyuu x reader #haikyuu x you #haikyuu x y/n #kuroo tetsurou x reader #kuroo tetsurou x you #kuroo tetsurou angst

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lilfellasblog · 3 years

Note

I tried to choose a question but, I'm pretty interested in answers to all those tbh

You. I like you.

Talk about the first ship you ever had. - Tiencha (Tien Shinhan/ Yamcha), which is why I'm very sympathetic to those also suffering in rarepair hell.

Talk about three of the most important ships throughout your life. Destiel, Tiencha, Analogical

What’s your current OTP? Oof, I think I gotta go Prinxiety! So much potential for angst with hurt/comfort.

What’s your current NOTP? You know, I honestly can't think of any tbh.

Do you have any poly ships? For my OTP question, I originally answered LAMP/CALM, so definitely that!

How do you feel about love triangles? I think they can be intriguing if done well. If there's cheating involved, it would be pretty difficult for me to feel sympathy for the cheater.

How do you feel about RPF? It's fine, do whatever you want. Fanfic has always been for fans, not for creators. Purity culture and entitlement needs to stop. It's like seeing a sign that says "Snapping Turtles", jumping in the pond anyways, then yelling at the people who put up the sign after you lose a couple pounds of flesh.

Have you ever shipped yourself with a character? Tbh, the closest I've gotten is wanting different characters to adopt me and take me from my home. But I don't think I've ever romantically shipped myself with someone.

Do you have many ships that never got together at all? *cries in All Of Them*

Do you ship any characters that have never met? Huh. I don't think so tbh.

Talk about your favorite first kiss. Well in college there was- Oh! You mean fictional characters! :3 I think Virgil's first kiss with Roman in Healing Broken Wings is my favorite.

Have you ever been disappointed when your ship finally got together? *cries in It's Never Happened*

Has a ship ever broken your heart? In fanfic? Yeah, I've read some sad endings before and that's usually not my jam.

How do you feel about will they/won’t they? I'm fine with it so long as it ends in "Yes they will!"

Have you ever “shipped at first sight”? Analogical, actually!

Talk about a ship you initially disliked. I think when Remus first appeared, I had a hard time imagining him with anyone because of what a gremlin he is. I've come around to the trash rat tho.

Talk about a pairing you’ve stopped shipping romantically. Destiel.

Talk about a moment which made you question an entire ship. Season 6 of Supernatural. Destiel. >:(

Have you ever shipped something despite yourself? Kind of? I've done spite fics with spite ships.

Talk about a ship you feel alone in shipping. Tiencha, or Tien Shinhan/ Yamcha. They'd be so cute together!

Is there a ship you just don’t get, but have nothing against? Any ships that are part of fandoms I'm not in. I guess maybe Tony Stark/ Steve Rogers? They have such different values and ethics. They literally need a threat to the entire universe to come together.

Which of your ships have the best chemistry? Oh Analogical, easily. Royality too I think.

Which of your ships deserve better writing? Tiencha :(

Do you mostly ship canon pairings? Lmao no.

Have you ever shipped a pairing before you even started watching the show/movie simply because of gifs and graphics or similar? Yes I have! Crowley/ Aziraphale.

Have you noticed a pattern in your shipping? Is there a romantic dynamic you’re more drawn to? Not really, it's kind of all over the map.

Is there a ship you’ve shipped for most of your life? Tiencha.

Does shipping come easily to you? Yes, I am trash.

Do you need to ship something to really enjoy a movie/book/tv show/comic? Definitely not. I was a Potterhead, and I still don't really ship anything there.

Name a couple of fandoms in which you have no ships. Harry Potter, Marvel, DC Comics. I'm not in those fandoms tho.

Talk about one of your favorite headcanons for a ship you love. Roman is playfully protective of Virgil, and Virgil teases him by dramatically swooning.

Share five must-read fics. "Unexpected Destinies" was my first fic that I got into. Destiel fic, very complex and interesting AU. I think it got deleted during a LiveJournal purge tho. I got really into the "Battle Scars" series for a hot minute. Disabled Goku/ disabled Yamcha. "Perfect Attendance" by Periwren is great hurt/comfort starring Roman and Logan. "Welcome to the Neighborhood" by LeFay_Strent is absolutely hysterical. Shenanigans with Remy and Virgil, background Prinxiety, baffled Logan, it's a good time. And "War is Hell (but crushing is way more awkward)" by Jasper01 is incredible in so many ways! Funny, tragic, accurate, romantic, sweet, heartbreaking, all the things!

Name your favorite fanartist(s). So many fanartists have moved away from Sanders Sides, so I'm having a hard time thinking of many. To make sure I cover everyone, if there are any recs please let me know and I'll signal boost!

Share your favorite fanmix for your OTP. *Googles fanmix* It would appear I have none.

Recommend 1-5 shipper blogs. Gosh, so many of the shipping blogs I follow have become inactive in the Sides fandom. So! If any of you shipping blogs would like a shout-out, lmk and I'll signal boost!

Do you create fanmixes/gif sets/fanart/fic/fanvids and so on for you ships? Fic. So much fic.

Do you have a favorite trope and/or AU for your OTP? I mean I'm partial to Healing Broken Wings AU. As for trope, I'm a sucker for angst with hurt/comfort.

Do you like and use ship names? Definitely! Much faster to type.

Is there a fictional relationship you’d really want for yourself? I'm taking the word "fictional" literally here, because there is someone I'm in unrequited love with that I'm working on dealing with and I would really love a relationship with this person even though I know any hope is fiction.

If you could change one thing about your OTP, what would that be? Prinxiety, and that Roman would get some goshdang therapy!

#roman sanders #logan sanders #prinxiety #virgil sanders #patton sanders #supernatural #dragonball z #remy sanders #this took me an hour I think

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aondaneedles · 3 years

Note

University they attend for all premade children and teens, that you want to do it for - starting a megahood with all three unis so I'm curious

Hello there!

To what university I send my teens heavily depends on what university I add to that neighbourhood (for example, all of the uberhood teens will go to La Fiesta Tech because I'm not playing two university hoods!) That being said, I have some headcanons for all three universities, so it's nice thinking about this.

Pleasantview:

the Pleasant twins: Angela would totally be pressured by her parents to apply to ALT, which makes it so much worse when she gets rejected. Lilith is seen as a lost cause and was left to her own devices. She gets into LFT, mostly to get as far away from her family as possible. Angela ends up studying at SSU, which is fine. At least it means she is close to Dustin...

Dirk Dreamer applied to both SSU and LFT. SSU because they have the best economics programme, LFT because Lilith applied there. He gets accepted into both. He’ll probably choose LFT to be with Lilith, but a long distance relationship is also an option...

there is no way in hell that Brandi can afford university for Dustin and his grades are pretty bad, so he doesn’t really bother with applying for college. Maybe he manages to secure a full-scholarship for SSU, maybe he doesn’t, who knows?

Alexander Goth has the option to choose between ALT and LFT and chooses the latter because it’s his dad’s alma mater

Lucy Burb strikes me as a SSU gal. She’s be more than content to study there

Strangetown:

the Grunt boys: if Tank decides to go to university (I feel like he might consider skipping it for a career in the military, but Buzz might pressure him to get a degree to have better chances of becoming a top-ranking officer), he’ll go to LFT, no questions asked. It’s nearby and convenient. Ripp probably wants to go anywhere but LFT and with his grades, SSU is probably his best bet. I can see Buck surprising everyone by getting into ALT for some reason.

where Ophelia might go depends heavily on her relationship with Olive. I can see Olive being a bit neglectful and not wanting to spend an unneccesary amount of money on Ophelia’s education, in which case Ophelia will probably go to SSU (on a partial scholarship). On the other hand, Olive might want to keep her close for... reasons, in which case she’ll probably offer her to pay for her education at LFT. She shouldn’t have any difficulties getting into either, though

I just can’t imagine Johnny and Ophelia deciding on a long distance relationship, so he’ll probably decide where to go based on her options. He’d probably be the happiest at SSU, but I could see him choosing LFT instead because it’s closer to home and more familiar. His sister Jill will probably go to LFT. That girl wants to be a marine biologist so badly...

Veronaville:

the main Capps: Tybalt and Juliette will go to ALT, that’s for sure. With their connections and grades, that won’t be an issue. Hermia might want to skip that nonsense and applies to LFT instead? On the other hand, she’d fit right in with the ALT crowd

Goneril Capp brood: Goneril will fight tooth and nail to get her kids into the same prestigious university as her sister’s kids, but the tuition might be a bit too much? In that case, most of them would end up at SSU, perpetually disappointing their mother. Miranda might just skip university altogether and move to to big city once she turns 18

Puck and Bottom would probably fit right in with the SSU crowd, but them being fairies might just be a tad too weird. In that case, they’d go to ALT as well.

the main Montys: they go to SSU. The Monty’s think that ALT is a snobbish school for big snobs and they pride themselves in not being as snobby and desperate as the Capps. Romeo and Juliette will have a miserable long-distance relationship and at one point, one of them will totally transfer to the other’s school (my bet’s on Juliette, triggering a whole ‘nother thing to feud over)

the Monty twins: I honestly have no universtiy headcanon for them. Benedick is set up as this inquisitive child that’s supposed to solve his mother’s death, so SSU might work for him (social sciences?). Beatrice is more outgoing, so she’s be happy at either LFT or ALT

Thank you for asking, that was fun!

#ask #anon #text

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allsassnoclass · 3 years

Note

i cannot help myself i'm sorry here's another one: “No, mom, don’t tell him/her I said that about him/her!” with mashton please i love you i love your mashton i love your writing

I! love! mashton!!!! in case anyone didn’t know!!!

This one takes place in the same college AU as this fic but it is also very much a standalone

mashton: “No, mom, don’t tell him I said that about him!”

Michael is incredibly nervous. He's not having a panic attack, but that's mostly because Ashton is standing next to him, holding his hand and with just as much tension coursing through his bloodstream, even though Ashton is trying so hard to hide it and be reassuring.

Michael has never met someone's family before. Well, obviously he's been to Calum's house and met his family, but he's never been introduced to family members as someone's boyfriend. All of his brief relationships in high school were very surface-level, nothing lasting long enough to require a meeting with family, and when Ashton first broached the idea of meeting his, Michael reacted like a deer in headlights.

"Your family?" he had asked.

"Yeah," Ashton said. "My mom and siblings are coming up from family weekend, and they want to meet you."

"They want to meet me?" Ashton had nodded, and said please and that it would mean a lot to him, and at that point Michael was powerless to refuse.

He likes what this represents, in any case. It's a lot of pressure, because Ashton adores his family and Michael wants them to like him, but Ashton wouldn't ask him to meet them if he wasn't serious about this. Everything about their relationship feels so casual and effortless, and it's nice to have an indicator that they're not just passing time together, because Michael certainly has fallen head-over-heels.

Still, now that they're standing outside of the restaurant, the panicky feeling is definitely overshadowing how nice it is that Ashton wants to meet this relationship milestone with him.

"What if they don't like me," Michael says.

"They'll like you," Ashton replies, staring at the restaurant resolutely. "They'll like you. Just try not to get overwhelmed, okay? They can be a lot. They might be embarrassing, so don't think differently of me afterwards."

"I won't," he says. Ashton squeezes his hand, then pulls him towards the restaurant.

Michael can tell the moment Ashton spots his family by the way he lights up. All of the tension leaves his body, and they bypass the hostess and navigate to the table like it's a lighthouse in a storm. Before they fully reach it, Ashton's brother is out of his seat and running towards them, flinging his arms around Ashton's middle at breakneck speed.

"Hey Harry," Ashton laughs beneath called greetings from the rest of the family. "I'm glad to see you, too."

"I missed you," Harry says, then pulls away from the hug and studies Michael critically. Michael straightens up. He feels like he should be in a tie, or something. This feels more important than meeting royalty would, and Michael definitely would be wearing a tie if he was saying hello to a monarch.

"Hi," Harry says, sticking out his hand. "I'm Harry."

"I'm Michael," he says, cautiously taking the outstretched hand. Harry gives it one solid shake, then beams. He and Ashton have the same smile, and Michael feels himself relax a fraction.

Ashton's mom and sister join them, tugging Ashton in for hugs and giving quick introductions to Michael while he mostly tries to stay out of the way of this family reunion and simultaneously make a good impression. When they descend into their seats, Michael is relieved to see that they left a spot by Ashton open for him. He didn't think they'd split them up, but it's reassuring to have confirmation that they can brush elbows and knock knees if Michael needs it.

Michael is going to need it. He's already wondering if they'll judge him based on what he orders, and he hasn't even seen the menu yet.

"So," Anne-Marie says when they sit, "we know what's going on with Ashton, because he calls home all the time, but what about you, Michael? How's your semester going? Ashton said you're a music major."

"Music business," he says, because he sounds much more likely to get a job that way. "I want to write music for video games, or be a music supervisor."

"What's that?" Harry asks, and Michael explains about how he'd choose and acquire the rights for different songs in the background of movie trailers or tv shows. Harry then asks about his favorite video games, and Michael finds himself settling into an easy conversation with him. He wishes that Harry could be the only one he's meeting right now, because 11 year old boys are easier to talk to than 14 year old girls or his boyfriend's mom.

Michael answers sporadic questions from the rest of the family until their food arrives, at which point he finally gets a break. Ashton asks Lauren about something at school they talked about on a recent phone call, and Michael tries to be attentive even though he has no context. He's so confused trying to figure out the situation that he blurts questions before thinking, and Lauren launches into a story involving her, her friends, a teacher, and a game of truth-or-dare that makes Anne-Marie roll her eyes while hiding a smile. Lauren looks immensely pleased when he laughs with her. Something in his stomach unclenches the more the family talks over each other with him joining in.

He can do this. This is fine. Ashton’s family is funny, kind, and happy to have him here. Michael knows that Ashton can tell when he relaxes, because Ashton’s smiles get wider and he touches Michael more, little brushes of their hands or pressing their shoes together under the table. Neither of them overly indulge in PDA, but Michael loves every piece of contact. It’s easier to make conversation with Anne-Marie once Ashton drapes his arm across the back of his chair.

Anne-Marie orders dessert, because “this counts as a very special occasion,” and Ashton alternates between taking spoonfuls of Michael’s sundae and forkfuls of the cake Lauren and Harry are supposed to be sharing. Anne-Marie watches with a smile on her face and a fancy cappuccino in front of her.

“It’s been so good to meet you, Michael,” she says. “Once Ashton called you the love of his life, we couldn’t get down here fast enough.” Ashton’s fork clatters onto the plate.

“No, Mom, don’t tell him I said that about him!”

Michael turns and blinks at him. He knows what the words mean in theory, but his mind is still whirring like a computer trying to open too many files.

“The love of your life?”

Ashton scrunches down in his seat, cheeks turning a pretty shade of pink.

“Oh,” Anne-Marie says. “Have you not told him yet? I’m sorry, honey.”

Michael barely hears her. He clears his throat.

“That’s, um… Those are some big words to be throwing around.”

“That’s why I didn’t tell you yet,” he mumbles. “You don’t have to say it back, or anything, but it’s out there now.”

It’s too early for Michael to say those words. They might be true, but they’re still so young, and the relationship is so new in the grand scheme of things. Michael doesn’t want to say them until he knows they’re true without a shadow of a doubt. Once he calls Ashton the love of his life, he never wants to have to take it back.

He reaches out and squeezes one of Ashton’s hands, then brings it to his lips so he can kiss the back of it.

“I love you, too,” he says. It’s a compromise, but it’s not a rejection and Ashton gets that. His lips turn up slightly, then he gives his mom a look.

“If you have anything else to embarrass me with, now would be the time, Mumma.”

“Well,” Anne-Marie says, “I do have a few of your baby pictures on my phone.”

“I want to see those!” Michael says. The kids roll their eyes and Ashton groans, but he doesn’t let go of Michael’s hand, keeping their fingers tangled while they lean forward to look at a young Ashton giggle at the camera. Michael can see this scene and dozens like it playing out in the future in different settings. Eventually, he’ll get to see Ashton’s childhood home and the physical photo albums that these pictures are housed in. Maybe he’ll get to attend Irwin family reunions and build his own inside jokes with Harry and Lauren.

Michael glances at Ashton out of the corner of his eye, but Ashton catches him and smiles. He’s not the love of his life yet, but he very well could be someday. His family isn’t Michael’s family, but he thinks they could be, at some point in the distant future.

#my writing #drabble #mashton #hmmm meeting the fam fics.... I like them but they're hard to write

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missmentelle · 4 years

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I just watched the Netflix show You and it's been discussed but I don't really understand - in a relationship, how does one project their own views and fantasies onto another person? How can you tell if it's happening? Is there a certain point where it's normal or it can't be helped? It's happened a lot in the show but I'm having trouble identifying it. Also, I recommend watching You: it's a thoughtful take on how we view romantic relationships as a society and how that can be twisted

I absolutely love that show. For those of you who haven’t seen the thriller show “You”, it’s about a charismatic but underachieving man named Joe who works as the manager at a bookstore in Manhattan. He meets a young grad student named Beck when she comes into his bookstore one afternoon, and is immediately infatuated with her; he is completely consumed by his desire for a relationship with her, and it becomes clear very quickly that he’s willing to go to extreme lengths to make it happen. (Mild spoilers for Season One ahead) Joe is obsessed with Beck from the moment he lays eyes on her. But of course, he’s not really obsessed with her - he is obsessed with the person that he wants her to be. He decides - based only on her clothes, the book she buys and a three-minute conversation with her - that she’s a bookish “good girl” and an intellectual, a serious writer who values real literature and doesn’t crave men’s attention. And he’s very interested in that. She’s his Manic Pixie Dream Grad Student, whether she likes it or not. It’s clear from the very beginning that Joe thinks extremely highly of himself, and he feels entitled to a woman who is just as intelligent and sophisticated as he is - when he looks at Beck, he decides that she’s that perfect girl he’s been waiting for all along. Moreover, he decides that she’s equally interested in him - she pays for her book with a credit card, and Joe decides that she did that because she intentionally wanted Joe to learn her full name. And of course, as Joe learns more about Beck, he discovers that she’s not the artsy, aloof writer he had been envisioning in his head. She goes out drinking with friends that Joe dislikes, she has a trashy boyfriend, she posts selfies on Instagram, and doesn’t actually do any writing. But instead of deciding “oh wow, I was super wrong about this girl, I definitely got carried away”, Joe decides that the REAL Beck is the girl he fantasized about in the bookstore, and that she just needs his help to realize it. He decides that he knows what’s best for a woman who is a complete stranger to him, deliberately manipulating her life to turn her into more of the person he wants her to be, until... well, you know how it ends.

When you first start watching You, it can be hard to understand how messed-up Joe actually is. He is the main character of the show, and the narrator. He is also capable of great kindness - he genuinely cares for the neglected child who lives in an abusive household next door - and it kinda feels like we’re supposed to root for him. After all, he just wants what’s best for Beck. He sees who she really is inside, and he knows that she deserves better than the life she has right now. He just wants her to reach her full potential and stop wasting time with people who don’t really care about her... what could be so bad about that?

The problem, of course, is that Joe doesn’t know jack shit about Beck, and he has no right to decide what is and isn’t good for her. She is a grown-ass woman, and he is a stranger she met at a bookstore. Joe claims to have good intentions, but his intentions aren’t the point here - nobody has the right to meddle in someone else’s life behind their back, no matter how much they love and care about them. When you truly care about someone, you respect their choices - Joe has absolutely no respect for the decisions Beck makes, and sees no issues with isolating, stalking and terrorizing her if it gets him what he wants. Joe claims that Beck is miserable, but we don’t know actually know that - he filters everything he sees through a very thick lens of his own self-interest. He doesn’t allow her basic autonomy to choose what matters to her. Beck is not actually a real person to Joe - she is a prize that he wants to win.

Think about the show from Beck’s perspective - you’re an adult, with your own whole, complete life. You have friends, dreams, a boyfriend, guilty pleasures. You make bad choices sometimes, sure, but they are YOUR choices, and you have the freedom to make them. And then you walk into a shop one day and the man behind the counter suddenly decides that you’re his soulmate and it’s now his job to make decisions for you. You barely know this guy, but he thinks he has the right to control your life - he wants to control who you date, who you talk to, and how you spend your time. Imagine doing something as ordinary as paying for a book with your credit card, and having the person behind the counter interpret this as evidence that you want them to Google you and come to your house. The very idea of it is terrifying.

The plot of You is obviously a huge dramatization, but the same dynamic does appear in real-life abusive relationships. Abusers often have very specific ideas about what their ideal partner should be like, and they believe - consciously or unconsciously - that they are “owed” this person. When they meet someone, they tend to decide extremely quickly that THIS is finally the person they’ve been waiting for all along. They don’t really feel the need to get to know the person as an individual - they assume that they already know everything they need to know about the person, and that the relationship will be effortless. When that inevitably doesn’t pan out because their partner is a real person with needs and flaws, they get angry and the abuse starts to come out - they try harder and harder to control their partner and force them back into being the perfect person they’d envisioned, and they lash out angrily when that doesn’t work.

Although it’s nowhere near as extreme as what happened in You, I’ve had my own experiences with dating someone who was projecting their fantasies on me. My long-term college boyfriend was several years older than me, and already finished with grad school while I was still an undergrad. As the relationship went on, it became very clear that he was looking for a meek, nerdy girl who would appreciate his geek interests but never try to overshadow him. He strongly encouraged me to do the nerdy thing he approved of - cosplaying, attending conventions, playing D&D - but didn’t want me wearing makeup (I wear winged liner every day of my life), dyeing my hair strange colours (which I used to do quite often as a student) or even wearing my contact lenses instead of glasses (I got contacts the moment I was old enough and haven’t been seen in my glasses since). He was hugely threatened by the fact that I took my academics seriously, and he freaked out when I was accepted to an Ivy League grad school because “it would be so humiliating to have a girlfriend who went to a better school than I did”. He had a very specific vision of the kind of girlfriend he wanted to have, and he was prepared to try to stamp out the parts of me that didn’t align with what he wanted. It’s okay to have standards and expectations for the kind of partner you want to have. That’s normal. I’d argue that it’s necessary. Speaking from personal experience, life is a lot easier when you expect your partners to have mastered basic communication and coping skills. And sometimes you will need to look for a partner who has very specific traits - if your dream is to have 12 children and live on a goat farm, you need to find a partner who is on board with that goal. It’s also fine to have preferences in terms of aesthetics, interests and lifestyles - we’re always going to have certain things that we find appealing, and it’s okay to be into that. What’s not okay is to have such rigid expectations about how our future partner will look, dress and behave that we can’t cope with not getting our exact fantasy. It’s fine to think that dating a quirky art major with a nose ring would be awesome. It’s not fine to think that dating a quirky art major with a nose ring is the answer to all your problems. And it’s definitely not fine to latch on to the first quirky art major with a nose ring that you can find, and then punish them when they turn out to be a complex human with real issues and not just a living doll. Whenever you’re dating, it’s important to remember that you are dating a real, live human, and not a cartoon character. They are going to grow and change, and they are going to have flaws, off-days and traits that don’t match up with your fantasies. Your punky goth girlfriend is going to have days where she just wants to lounge around the house in her pajamas and watch Keeping Up with the Kardashians. Your tough, manly lumberjack boyfriend might have a super sensitive gag reflex and spend an awful lot of time on the phone with his mom. We’re all weird, and each of us needs to have the freedom to be our own kind of weird in a relationship - if you find that your desire to be with someone is extremely dependent on their appearance, dress, weight, hobbies, friends, job, etc, and you can’t handle not having control over those things, you aren’t ready to date. The other big red flag to look for here is how fast someone rushes the relationship. If you’re projecting your fantasies on someone, you don’t really feel much need to get to know them - like Joe, you’re pretty sure that you know everything that you need to know about them soon after meeting. You are fully expecting this person to be the fantasy partner you desire, and so there’s no point waiting to see how the relationship goes - within weeks, you’re ready to move in together, adopt a pet together, and even get engaged. If you’re convinced that a person you met three weeks ago is your soulmate, it’s time to stop and take a hard look at things - you don’t know a person you meet three weeks ago, and you have no idea if they’re your soulmate or not. You are trying to date a fantasy and not a real person. Hope this answers your question! MM

#Anonymous

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seblainelove · 4 years

Text

A playlist dedicated to Seblaine

For seblaine week, day 3 @seblaineaffairs

I choose songs with lyrics that reminded me of seblaine and wrote a drabble with them.

1. I knew I loved you - Savage Garden

I knew I loved you before I met you

I think I dreamed you into life

I knew I loved you before I met you

I have been waiting all my life

Sebastian loved Blaine before he even met him at Dalton. He saw his performances with the warblers through videos and fell in love with him. He was hoping to meet him one day. Praying he'd come back to Dalton. When Blaine came back to Dalton it was too good to be true.

2. Whenever you need somebody - Rick Astley

When you're all alone and if you're feeling down

Call me, I'll be around

Whenever you need somebody

I'll bring my love to you

You don't have to say you love me

I just want to be with you

Lost inside your love is where I want to be

I'm just asking you to spend some time with me

Time and time you say you want to be free

And you can have some fun that's okay with me

Sebastian took his chance and invited Blaine for a drink. He told Blaine about him being a legend and that he regreted he missed him. Blaine was happy someone actually appreciated his talent. He was feeling down because he wasn't performing anything at McKinley. Sebastian was a fun and wild loving person. He told Blaine about his life in Paris. Blaine felt happy with Sebastian. Like he finally found someone warm and accepting. Blaine opened up to Sebastian and told him about the hardships he faces at McKinley. Sebastian told him he can call him anytime he wants and he'll listen to him. He can even meet him up anytime he likes.

3. I want you - Joseph Tilley

We can take it slow

They don't gotta know

Focus on my lovin baby let it take control

Dance the night away

Nothing left to say

You and me together baby that ain't no mistake

Blaine told Sebastian that if the warblers know that he's meeting with sebastian alone they'd be hurt because they're all like a big family. Sebastian told him that the warblers shouldn't know about them meeting so no one gets hurt.

4. Pay my rent - DNCE

When you love so good

Wanna give you every hour

If you said you could

I would give you all the power

Blaine and Sebastian started texting each other. The two of them got along so well. they texted every hour and almost every minute of each day. They also hung out together a lot. Blaine was so happy with Sebastian as if he found his soulmate. Sebastian was always flirty with Blaine so Blaine took it that Sebastian likes him. Blaine told Sebastian about his feelings and Sebastian kissed him in the middle of his confession. Sebastian promised him that he'll always make him happy.

5. Love me less - Max

I got too much dirt to come clean

Closets full of skeletons that you don't wanna see

Will you judge me? All my ugly?

I won't blame you if you do

No lies, don't wanna keep no secrets

Even if what I'ma say will leave speechless

No secrets

If I introduce you to my demons, tell me, baby

Would you love me less?

Sebastian and Blaine were happily dating but one time they met a group of boys who were from another school. they approached Sebastian. They seemed to know him. Sebastian just greeted them back and left while pulling Blaine's hand. Sebastian knew that his past would hunt him now and he should come clean to Blaine. He didn't want to keep any secrets away from him but he was worried Blaine would love him less. He gathered his courage and told him he used to date these boys. Blaine was surprised that Sebastian had a lot of ex boyfriends when he is just in highschool. Sebastian told him that he was ashamed of himself.

6. I Believe - Jonas Brothers

Every night, every day, how about every lifetime?

Yeah, I know what they say, and that's fine

'Cause I'm here to stay through the good and the bad times

Babe, you send me to space and you're mine, yeah

Blaine told him that he shouldn't be worried or ashamed. Having dated a lot of people doesn't make him bad in any way. Blaine told him that he'll never leave him ever for a stupid reason like that and he'll always stay by his side. Blaine told him that he believes in him.

7. Don't talk to me that way - Dayon

Say that you will change the way you walk,

The way you talk,

The way you wear your hair.

Change the way you dress, the way you kiss,

Everything cause you are scared that i'm might leave you

Oh why should I leave you

Blaine tries not to let Sebastian exs get into his head but he couldn't. They were all so handsome and attractive. So Blaine decides to change how he looks to impress Sebastian. He puts gel and wears tight clothes. Sebastian got confused by the sudden makeover and realizes that Blaine was insecure. So he tells Blaine that he shouldn't change anything. He loves Blaine the way he is. There is a reason why an ex is an ex it's because Sebastian wasn't into them.

8. Because you live - Jesse mcartney

Because you live and breathe

Because you make me believe in myself

When nobody else can help

Because you live girl

My world

Has everything I need to survive

Because you live, I live

Ever since Blaine started dating Sebastian he felt more confident. Sebastian always supported him and cheered him on. He always was the first to attend Blaine's performances. And he always took Blaine to celebrate after each performance. Blaine felt fortunate to have Sebastian by his side. Blaine told Sebastian that he loves him. Sebastian told him that he loves him more.

9. 5:32 pm- the deli

Everyday at five thirty two pm Sebastian makes Blaine a cup of coffee at his house. They sit on the balcony while hugging each other and watch the sunset together.

10. Do you remember the first time we met- 316

Blaine plays this song on the piano for Sebastian. He dedicates this song for him. His life has been from good to better because of him.

Blaine and Sebastian graduate highschool and enter the same college. They live together in the same dorm room. They spend their days studying together and cheering each other on. Sebastian decides to surprise Blaine on their college graduation day. He comes with a plan to propose to Blaine.

11. Never gonna give you up- Rick Astley

Never gonna give you up

Never gonna let you down

Never gonna run around and desert you

Never gonna make you cry

Never gonna say goodbye

Never gonna tell a lie and hurt you

Sebastian leaves the ring box on their desk so Blaine sees it and assume that Sebastian would propose to him today. He takes Blaine to a fancy restaurant. Blaine expects Sebastian to pop the question but Sebastian doesn't. Sebastian then goes to the mini stage they had for performers and announces to everyone that he's dedicating this song to his precious person. Blaine was sure that Sebastian would propose to him now but Sebastian sings Rick Astley's never gonna give you up the whole time then sits down and eats the rest of his food. Blaine was dumbfounded. Was he just rickrolled? Blaine was upset he told Sebastian he saw the ringbox and he thought Sebastian would propose to him. Sebastian told him that wasnt a ringbox for him it was a gift for his mom. Blaine felt embarrassed.

12. I do - 98 degrees

I do Cherish you

For the rest of my life

You don't have to think twice

I will love you still

From the depths of my soul

It's beyond my control

I've waited so long to say this to you

If you're asking do I love you this much

I do

On their graduation day. Sebastian puts the ring in his pocket. Him and Blaine wear their graduation robes and hats. They sit waiting for their turn to get their diplomas. When they got their diplomas they posed for pictures. A lot of their friends came and they were taking a picture of both Blaine and Sebastian. In one of the poses Sebastian kneeled down. Blaine was shocked he looked at Sebastian. In Sebastian's hand was the ring. Sebastian opened it. " Blaine Anderson. In These past few years we had the best times together. So will you continue living the best life with me together as my husband? I'll love you and cherish you until I die"

Their friends were taking a lot of photos and cheering them.

" omg of course, of course I do" Blaine's tears rolled down.

Sebastian put the ring around Blaine's finger and they kiss.

#seblaineweek2020 #seblaine week #seblaineaffairs #seblainelove.fav.fics

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i-only-roll-crits · 4 years

Text

Impatience

Gideon x reader, college AU

Gideon Jura was the king of campus, and no one would attempt to argue otherwise. He was (somehow) involved in practically every club or sport that the school offered, managed to get good grades despite that, and never even seemed tired or grumpy. Everyone loved him...

Except for you.

That being said, you didn't even dislike him for any substantial reason. It was just the simple fact that he was everywhere, at all times, and always in your way. Basketball game? Yep, there he is - almost mowing you down chasing after the ball. Dorm game night? You don't even need to look for him; you can hear his hearty laugh from across the room. Every class you've ever attended?? Oh look, he's sitting directly in front of you, taking up all the space and hiding the whiteboard from your view. You didn't need that information anyway, right?

The number of times he's almost knocked you over, or had knocked your things to the floor, or blocked your line of sight, was astronomical. You weren't oblivious; you knew he was actually a really cool guy - well-rounded, friendly, responsible... maddeningly perfect.

You scowl as you think it, arms crossed, watching the half of the slideshow Gideon wasn't currently blocking with his annoyingly broad shoulders. If only he didn't seem to exist just to irritate you!

You manage to make it through class without grinding your teeth too much, and allow the other students to filter out while you slowly pack up your things, since crowding around the door doesn't appeal to you. As you leave, someone still manages to bump you, and you drop your bag. Cursing, you kneel to grab your notebooks - only to realize, with no surprise, who knocked them out of your hands in the first place.

"I'm so sorry," Gideon says, contrite, joining you on the ground and also reaching for your scattered materials. He somehow manages to only try for the things you're already in the process of grabbing, which leads to a lot of fumbling and awkward tug-of-wars. It's worse than unhelpful. He apologizes every time.

"Don't worry about it," you sigh, resigned, waving away his attempts at assistance, "It's just a couple things, I can handle it."

As you finish the sentence, you slide the last of your things into your book bag and stand up. He follows, still looking sheepish.

"Wow, I sure do this to you a lot, don't I?"

He won't meet your eyes, and he looks a little red in the face. It's just as well he's not looking as your expression becomes a mask of surprise.

You didn't think he paid attention to you, or even really noticed the other times he'd made your life difficult. The fact that he was aware he'd been a burden to you... softened it somewhat? Also, you've never seen him look this awkward before. He's always been calm and smooth and maybe even a little charming.

"Oh. I mean, yeah, you kind of bump into me a lot or whatever..." you begin, not sure where you're going with this sentence, but luckily for you he interrupts.

"I'm really sorry. I get clumsy when I'm nervous, and... uh," he finally glances up at you, just a flash, but he looks like he's working his way up to something. Your heart is pounding. "Well. I'm here now because I was waiting for you to come out, I wanted to talk to you... this isn't the first time I've tried, but as you know, it never seems to go well," he laughs a little in a self-deprecating way. He's still only looking at you in glances, choosing to mostly let his eyes wander the immediate area, which is fine with you since you're pretty sure you're turning as red as he is. If he starts stuttering, you're pretty sure it'll kill you. Your heart is still doing a good imitation of a bongo drum and you have the wild urge to flee -

"Spit it out. Please," you add, attempting to soften the bite of your impatience. You're not mad - it's just that you don't think you can survive this tension for much longer. His eyebrows shoot upward and his eyes lock onto your face for the first time, probably checking to see if you're angry with him. Whatever he sees must not be as bad as he imagined, because he continues, albeit at a faster pace.

"Oh - I just - wanted to ask, been wanting to ask, if maybe you'd, uh," he sputters, falters, and you're done for. Without thinking, you grab him by the collar of his shirt and pull him into a deep kiss. He melts immediately, and all of your worry that you'd misread his intentions dissolves in his mouth. A moment later, you push him away from you as quickly as you'd pulled him in, hand still clenched in his shirt. He looks like he's reeling.

"Yes, absolutely," you answer firmly, and then go instantly breathless when he grins.

#Rune writes #x reader #I've got a whole set of Gatewatch college AUs #BTW he has to sit in front #If he sat where he could see you he wouldn't be able to focus #Mtg fanfiction

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chitaprrr · 5 years

Text

I Love You in New York City

Cast: Jung Jaehyun x female reader

Genre: fluff, romance

•••••••

Jung Jaehyun, 22 year old guy, who attend his bestfriend wedding party this morning in New York. His best friend, Johnny, just getting married.

It was a huge wedding party and Jaehyun was the only guest who attracted the most attention, even Johnny seemed to be less charming on his own wedding and he's already get used to it. Many women approached him but none of them caught his attention.

Jaehyun isn't the type of person who is in a rush to find someone, but seeing his one and only best friend finally gets married, he becomes worried.

After the wedding, Jaehyun took the time to relax in one of the cafes near his hotel, still with his suit, and continue reading his new novel that he bought yesterday. When he's about to reach the last pages in Chapter Three, he heard the bell jingle, which that means there's a customer had opened the door and went inside.

That's the first time he saw you; wearing your violet sparkling short dress. You just cut your long hair into shoulder-length hair, that may look normal to you, but is enough to attract his attention. He compeletly forgot his books, his coffee and his meal, he focused on you.

He caught his breath when suddenly you walking towards him, his eyes get wide when you're brave enough to sit in front of him as if you have known each other for a long time.

"Hello! I'm sorry for what happen next but I really need your help," you said.

Before Jaehyun ask you what's going on, you grabbed his hand and the door opened. He saw a guy, with a suit and he's scanning the whole room to looking for somebody. Then he landed his sight to the two of you and walk towards you. This guy is staring at you, feel suspicious and don't like what he sees.

"Who is he?" he asked.

"I'm her new boyfriend," Jaehyun, who knows your plan, answered; make you quite surprise on how confident he is.

"What are gonna do?" you ask, follow his plan.

"You're supposed to attend the wedding with me, not with him," the guy said, staring at you. "I flew from Seoul to New York just to meet you and we can come to your cousin's wedding."

"You're supposed to attend the wedding with your new girl that you're kissed at my birthday party, Mingyu," you said and Jaehyun quite surprised to hear that. He get it, you just get broken heart.

This guy, Mingyu, seems about to get mad but he held his emotion. He just took a deep breathe and leave you guys after that.

"Sorry and thank you," you said as you let go of his hand. You're not so sure, but you feel like this guy won't let your grip at the first.

Jaehyun smiled, seems like he didn't mind at all being touched by a stranger. "I'm okay, I love helping people."

You smiled a little.

"Ummm.. Your boyfriend cheating on you?"

"Ex-boyfriend, please," you correcting him. "Well yea, he was cheating on me, he's doing something terrible on my birthday party."

Jaehyun sighed. "Gosh, that's terrible."

You nodded, as you unconsciously took and eat one of his french fries. "He's such a jerk."

Then he scanning your outfit; your very formal outfit.

"Are you going to attend some kind of event? Wedding party if I'm not mistaken," he asked.

"Yeah, a wedding party. My mom asked me to bring someone, my future husband preciesly, because she really want me to get marry soon. But the fact me and boyfriend just broke up and my mother must be upset."

"Did your mom meet him already?"

You shook your head. "She hasn't saw him until we broke up."

"So.. are you still gonna attend the wedding or not?"

"I don't know," you feel depressed. "I'm so confused."

"Well you can take me."

You gasped. "What?"

"Yea, you can take me, we can make you mom feel proud and at least relieved because he saw you found someone."

You raised one of your eyebrows; is he really serious?

"I-I really appreciate your kindness but we're strangers, how can you be this kind?" you ask.

"Well, look at yourself; you're a stranger but brave enough to hold my hand," he said and you blushed. He giggled. "Beside, I have no friend here. My best friend just get married and I and I just came to his wedding a few moments ago."

You think for a while before you finally nodded. "Ah, I see. So, you're gonna help me?"

He nodded; confidently. "Beside, I'm still wearing this outfit."

You only smiled.

Jae offering his hand. "My name is Jung Jaehyun."

You grabbed his hand. "Hwang (y/n). Nice to meet you."

Jaehyun smiled and both of you get off from your seat.

•••

A few moments later you both already arrived at your cousin's wedding party. Not so many guests come because your cousin doesn't really like to invite many people. Only certain people he invited.

And just like usual, people will pay their attention towards Jaehyun because of his looks.

"(y/n)!" someone shouted.

You turned around and saw your cousin, looking gorgeous in his wedding suit. You walked over him and give him a hug. "Congratulation, Doyoung!" you said and pulled yourself. "Sorry I was late, something happened."

Doyoung smiled, showing his gummy smile. "That's fine, don't worry."

Then he notice, Jaehyun, who stand not so far from you. "Who is he?"

"Oh!" you turned at Jaehyun and Jaehyun smiled at you. "He is Jaebum-"

"Jaehyun," Jaehyun correcting you.

"Ah yes! Sorry, this is Jaehyun, my boyfriend," you laughed nervously.

Both of them shaking hands in such a good manner and introducing themselves. Jaehyun also congratulate him as if they're both already know each other.

"Hey, your mom is looking for you," Doyoung said to you.

"Really? Where is she?" you asked.

"Near the pool, she's talking with my mom."

"Okay, I'm gonna meet her. Thanks, Doy! Have fun!"

Then both of you leave Doyoung.

"Who's your mother's name?" Jae asked.

"Hwang Sora, my dad is Hwang Junhee but he passed away last year so you're not gonna see him," you said.

Jaehyun stop his steps and staring at you.

You turned around and raising one of your eyebrows. "What?"

"Nothing, I just a bit surpised when you explain everything, especially about your dad."

You giggled. "Well, that's the fact."

Jaehyun smiled and take a deep breath. "Are you ready to meet your mom?"

You looked up at him. "I think I should be the one asking you that question; are you ready to meet my mom?"

"Sure," he said, confidently.

You feel both amazed and surprised, this guy doesn't look nervous at all since earlier. Even though the fact is he really doesn't know anyone here because the only people here are your family; your people. He smiled politely to each person you introduced to him as if he would be part of your family.

"I adore your confident, Jaehyun," you said. "In fact, I'm the one who nervous here."

Jaehyun smiled. "Why? She's your mom after all."

You giggled. "Yeah, we're also friendly but I don't know why I feel nervous. Maybe it's because I'm worried that my mom isn't sure that you're my boyfriend or even my future husband."

He leaned closer which make your heart skip a beat. "You want me to be your future husband?"

You didn't answer him and only blink your eyes which make him laughed. Then he offering his large hand. "Come on, we must act like we're a couple."

You staring at his hand then grabbed it. Both of you walked towards your mother.

"Hi, mommy," you said as you both stood near her, who busy drinking tea with her friends.

Your mom turned around and immediately hugging you. You both laughed, it's been a few years you didn't came back to New York cause you've been busy with your study in Seoul.

"You're getting fat," your mom tease.

"Moooom~" you whinning.

She laughed then he notice the guy beside you. You can see through her eyes that she staring at your boyfriend a bit intense; she's examining.

"Ummm, mom," you said as you grabbed Jaehyun's arm. "This is Jung Jaehyun, he is my boyfriend."

Jaehyun smiled, grabbed your mom's hand and kissed it. "Good evening, Mrs. Hwang. My name is Jung Jaehyun and I'm your daughter's boyfriend."

You mom smiled while you keep praying that she believes and everything goes smoothly as you've planned.

"How long you've been dating?" your mom ask.

"Almost a year, we met at the Bukchon Hanok Village. I was lost and she show me the way. I was lost my way and she came the showed me the right way. Apparently we had the same direction; we were going to the traditional library there."

You really have no idea about how real and convincing Jaehyun's explanation is. You know when people lie; like they will unconsciously touch their nose, or they don't dare to look at the other person when they talk or they're scratching their back 'cause they're nervous.

But you didn't see those signs on Jaehyun, he was really calm, confident and he even smiled.

"What is your job?" your mom asked and that's the scariest question.

You turrned to your mom who unexpectedly smiled at him. She patted Jaehyun's arm and said, "I appreciate your honesty, many men approach my daughter and lie about their work just to get her attention."

"Well, just be hoenst I have no job for now, I just graduated from college a few months ago. I'm not gonna lie, Mrs., the college life was very difficult and even I almost gave up, I can give up easily because both of my parents are rich, my mom is a teacher and my dad is a doctor. I can take their money as if that's not a big problem for them. But that's not what my parents taught me, they taught me to always fight and not give up so easily. So, for now I haven't worked, but I've applied to several companies and there are even some companies that choose me to join them."

You caught your breath when you listen to his explanation, this one is real and you can feel it cause you've been through the same thing.

Jaehyun smiled. "Thank you, Mrs."

Your mom nodded and patted both of your shoulders. "Alright then, I am very happy to see you two. Go on, have fun and hope you guys get married soon."

You usually refuse or whinning when your mom talking about marriage. But when she talk about it with Jaehyun near you, you didn't feel uncomfortable at all; you hope a little.

Both of you leave your mom.

"I never thought you're gonna say that," you said.

Jaehyun smiled and take a deep breath. "Yeah me too. I was nervous, just be honest. I'm a good liar, aren't I?"

"You nervous? You didn't seems nervous at all!"

"Okay, so you actually want me to be nervous?"

You laughed and shook your head. "No no no. I'm sorry, you do a great job."

"Thanks, honey."

Your smile immediately disappears; you're surprised. "What?"

"I call you that cause you're my girlfriend and convince people here that I'm your boyfriend. You forgot the plan?"

You slowly smiled. "Y-yeah. You're right."

Then he wrapped his hand around your shoulder, which makes you shivered and a bit nervous. "Oh I have a question. Can you please tell me what happened in the cafe? Did you ex-boyfriend just chasing you or something?"

You sighed and nodded. "Yeah, but luckily he's not in the same hotel with me. He still didn't accept the fact that we're broke up. I planned to look for a taxi and came to the wedding party by myself but I had promised my mother to bring someone here. I can't think clearly at that time, then I just walk and I see you sitting near the window. And I choose you to help me. End of the story."

"Wow. Your life is seems like Korean drama. Do you watch any of it? You'll be the main cast."

You laughed. "Yeah, but not too much."

During the events, Jaehyun really treated you as his girlfriend; he hold your hand, he calls you in a very sweet names, he brings you food and drinks, asks how you are, do you want to just sit or walk around.

Suddenly you don't want all this to just be pretending. Deep inside your heart, you want everything to be real, especially when you take a family photo and of course Jaehyun has to join in because everyone believes that Jaehyun is your boyfriend. You admit it; you fell in love with Jung Jaehyun in only half a day.

A few hours has passed and the party is over. After saying goodbye to your mom, you and Jaehyun leave the party.

"Thanks for helping me," you said once both of you arrived in front of your hotel.

Jaehyun nodded. "Sure."

"This is.. not our last meeting, right? I just barely know you and I wanna be your friends. I wanna know you more, you seems nice."

Jaehyun blushed. "Aw, that's sweet. Unfortunately tomorrow morning is my last day here."

You surprised. "What?"

"Yeah, I've been here for 4 days and tomorrow I'll be back to Seoul."

You feel dissapointed when you hear that.

Jaehyun giggled as he hold your hand. "Hey! Why you suddenly become sad? I still have time until tonight."

"Yeah.."

He can feel your dissapointment. "How about this, tonight I'll take you for a walk. How is that?" he asked.

"Mmmm.. That's better."

"Meet me in the front of the coffee we've met earlier. I'll wait you there."

You smiled widely. "Okay."

"Great. Before that, can I have your number?"

You nodded and you both exchanged your phone numbers.

"Thanks," he said.

And you blushed when he suddenly winked at you before he went inside the car.

•••

It's almost 7 and you already on your way to the cafe. But when you're about to pass Jaehyun's hotel, a heavy rain suddenly came. "Oh my gosh!" you sighed while running to the hotel where Jaehyun stayed.

Once you get inside, you immediately calling Jaehyun. "Hello?"

"Hi, baby. It's raining outside, right?"

You didn't answer cause you're too flustered that he gave to you. "Y-yeah, and I'm already in your hotel. Do you mind if I stay?"

"Sure! Just wait me at the lobby, I'll pick you there."

"Oh! N-no! Just stay on your room and I'll come to your room."

"Ummmm.. Okay." Then he said his room and you just found out that he stayed in VIP room at the high floor.

Jaehyun opened the door once you knocked it. He smiled widely once he saw you. "Hello! Come in!"

You smiled and get inside his room.

"Make yourself comfortable. What do you want to drink? Tea or coffee? " he asked.

"Ummmm... A hot tea please."

"Alright."

You looking around and his room ia quite huge, especially for himself. You walked towards the window and you can see the New York's view from here.

"Tea is ready," Jaehyun said from behind you.

You both sat on the chair near the window and enjoy your hot drinks. You silently glancing at him who pay his attention to raining New York out here. He look so good in his t-shirt and his short pants.

"Wanna watch something?" he suddenly ask, making you gasp.

You shook your head. "No, thanks."

"Okay, so how's your mom?"

"Ummmm she's fine. She.." you stopped for a while, make Jaehyun looking at you. "She keep asking about you."

Jaehyun slowly smiled. "Oh yeah?"

"She likes you."

"Looks like our plan went pretty well," he smiled.

You smile faintly, feeling that everything just makes you confused. You both just pretending but in the end you fell in love with him. You suddenly remember all the things he had done to you at the party; the way he hold your hands, call you in such a sweet name and many others. You don't want that to stop and just disappear.

"(y/n)?" he called you.

You looked at him. "Yes?"

"You okay?"

You nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"Are you sure?"

No, I'm not sure, you said inside your mind. "Y-yeah, I'm pretty sure."

Suddenly there's a huge thunder, you even see the thunder clearly from the window and you scream really loud. Jaehyun stood from his chair hug you immediately; and you gasped. You're about to pull him but another thunder comes and you screamed again, made him tighten his hug.

"I'm so scared..." you cry as you burry your head on his chest.

"Sssshhh.. I got you, babe," Jae whispered.

That call again, you sighed.

The rain is getting heavy and you're not so sure if you can return your hotel or not.

"Hey, you okay?" Jae asked.

You sniffed. "I-I don't know."

Jae pulled his hug and staring at you. He hold your face in his arms and wipe your tears. "I'm here, don't be afraid."

"Why you are so kind to me?" you asked, almost whispering.

His forehead frowned. "What?"

"Why you keep being so nice to me?"

"Is that wrong?"

"This is isn't part of our plan," you said as you stood up. "Y-you should stp. You should be as sweet as this, act like my boyfriend, treat me with kindness and protect me like this only when we were at the wedding party. I think I should-"

And he suddenly pressed his lips againts yours. You gasped and about to pull him away but he hold you very tight. No matter how hard you tried, he's stronger than you and you give up in the end. You slowly closed your eyes and melted in hiss kiss. You wrapped your hands around his neck and bring him closer.

"I'm sorry but I'm in love with you," he whispered as he broke the kiss. He kissed you again. "I'm sorry." Kiss. "I can't help myself." Kiss. "I love you, baby."

"Jae.." you broke the kiss but he pressed hiss lips againts you again.

He finally broke the kiss and let you catch your breath.

"I don't want pretending anymore, my love isn't fake and when I said to your family how great I am for having you, I want it to be real. I wanna own you, I wanna have you and I want you to be mine," he said.

You looking at him, but he already looking at you deeply, deeplier than you. "Are you serious?"

He nodded as he touch your cheek. "I think I fell in love with you in just one day."

You smiled as you grabbed his neck. "Yeah, me too."

He leaned closer and kiss your lips again. "So, can we stop pretending? Let's be real?"

You smiled and nodded. "Sure. Let's start everything."

He giggled and kissed you again as he wrapped his arms around your body. "I love going to New York, at first I refused but then... everything changed. I found you in New York City. "

••••

This is my first story. Hope you like it!

#jung jaehyun #nct fluff #nct jaehyun #nct imagines #nct mark #nct johnny #nct 127 #nct boyfriend #nct blurbs

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