#something cute like cupid outfits but instead of love they try to give you life insurance plans.

[sarcasticmothdraws]

I'm realizing now that I could've saved these for like valentines day or something. Like bullshit these as valentine cards. Oh well.

#trigun #vash the stampede #nicholas d. wolfwood #maybe ill draw something for the girls instead for the 14th #something cute like cupid outfits but instead of love they try to give you life insurance plans.

[jeongjaebae]

Love Station

⇢ Jaehyun x reader | AO3

⇢ 7k of fluff, heart fluttering moments, and meme references

⇢  You never expected anything good to come out of a train delay, much less for it to play cupid on this Valentine’s Day. 

Turning 23 wasn't something you were overly excited about.

Nothing good could come out of being this age anyway—you were starting to feel old and life was starting to feel stagnant. Besides, everyone's seen the meme about checking up on your friends born in a certain year because no one likes you when you're 23. But heck, you'd already felt that way for long enough so it doesn't really matter that it's your birthday today because no one liked you at 22 either. Or at any age.

Maybe that's why you're still single on this Valentine's Day, which coincidentally happens to be the date you enter your 23rd year since birth. Whatever deity that's up there probably planned this to give you a headache every year, making you watch couples all around you broadcast their PDA everywhere while you only became one year closer to growing old and wrinkly. And dying single.

"Are you on the train yet?" Yoojin's loud voice comes through the phone. "Also what are you wearing, because I'm having an outfit dilemma again."

"Almost at the station," you reply, checking the time for the sake of it. You knew your best friend would be late regardless of the occasion, so you never had to rush. "I didn't expect it to be so cold out here. Wearing the pink blouse with the bow, that black skirt, and some thin tights. Long coat of course."

Yoojin was your best friend of seven years and happened to be the complete opposite of you. While you were generally shy, she had no qualms about talking to strangers. She'd always been bold and unabashed with her opinions, attracting quite a large group of friends and enemies alike, whereas you have always stayed within your comfort zone of invisibility. And whereas you were completely dense and unlucky when it came to boys, she had a list of them long enough for the both of you.

"Tell me you at least have some tall boots on," she replies with some rustling sounds in the background as she probably flips her entire closet upside-down. "You should've gone with a warmer outfit; there won't be any boys around for you to impress! It's only your date with boring old me."

You roll your eyes and play along. "I'm dressing to impress the cute waiter, obviously," you say, "the one with the super sweet smile who looks like NCT's Doyoung." It's all made up, of course. In reality the two of you didn't have a reservation or even a restaurant in mind yet, and of course, there's obviously nobody who could ever be as cute as Doyoung.

Your best friend was all about being spontaneous and winging it, and even letting fate decide things.

"Oh you better hope that he's not out with his girlfriend tonight then," she singsongs. "Anyway, I'll go pick out an outfit now and bring a pair of leggings for you or something. Oh and before I forget, happy birthday!"

"Thanks," you say with a smile as you approach the train station. "I'll see you soon!"

It's slightly more crowded at the station than the emptiness that usually greets you at this hour, but that's not surprising since it's Valentine's Day after all, and people would have plans in the city. And just as you would expect, there are people holding big bouquets wrapped in a special paper with hearts all over it, packs of chocolates in pink and red boxes, and delicate single roses encompassed in beautiful ribbons.

It wasn't something that you felt like you were missing out on. You've never spent Valentine's Day with someone special anyway; it was always some sort of birthday celebration with friends. Until your friends started getting into relationships and then the birthday thing got pushed to different days. Either way you didn't mind because people don't need particular days to show their love for others, so Valentine's Day was all just a big marketing scam.

Or so you tell yourself.

The February air is cold and makes it hard to pry your transit card out from your wallet with your frozen fingers. When the machine nearby is finally free, that's when you go to tap your card.

"Don't."

A hand slides right in between your card and the machine, blocking it from being detected.

"Excuse me?" you automatically respond.

The first thing you notice about this annoying stranger is that he's tall, as it takes a while for you to look up to see the face of said annoying stranger. The second thing is that he's incredibly good looking. Nice skin, large eyes, and some evidence of dimples slightly visible on each cheek. A strong jaw line and sharp gaze.

But none of that matters because he better have a good explanation for you.

"Don't waste your money tapping your card. The train's been delayed and won't come until maybe an hour later."

"What? An hour? Is this some kind of joke?"

He shakes his head. "There was an announcement a few minutes ago but they'll probably repeat it soon."

"But it's not even April Fools Day," you mutter under your breath, but proceed to put your card away anyway. "Are you serious?"

That earns you a funny look from the annoying stranger, a mixture of a smile and a grimace of sorts. "Yeah, I'm really just going to go up to strangers and prank them by telling them about a train delay."

"Well, maybe if you're one of those YouTubers who go around pranking people for reactions?"

He rolls his eyes. "No, but your reaction was terrible, by the way. A two out of ten at most."

"Hey, you're the one who had to break the news to me like that!"

The corner of his mouth twitches but before he says anything back, the blare of the announcement comes on.

"Attention all passengers! Attention all passengers. The line 1 eastbound train is experiencing delays due to a technical issue on the tracks. It may be over an hour before the track can get cleared. Once again, the eastbound train is currently experiencing delays of an hour or more. We are sorry for the inconvenience."

"And there it is. Do you believe me now?" the annoying stranger asks, raising an eyebrow at you. It's not so much of an 'I told you so', but rather a sad 'welcome to the club'.

"Yeah... sorry for not taking you seriously."

"Nah, no worries," he shrugs and gives you a quick smile. The first you'd seen from him. "We're all just stuck here now."

When he turns to look at the announcement board, that's when you take the chance to really study him. He's dressed like he's walked out of a Korean drama: turtleneck and a nice formal jacket. He looks to be about your age, maybe a university student or fresh grad. Hair gelled up and parted at the side. Perfectly dressed to go on the perfect Valentine's Day date with his perfectly stunning girlfriend.

As perfect as it can be with this whole train delay issue anyway.

You follow his gaze to the announcement board and see that it now has red words everywhere, indicating all the delays of the trains. It definitely wasn't looking good. Even if Valentine's Day was nowhere close to being one of your favourite holidays, you were looking forward to at least seeing a friend on your birthday.

"Yeah, I guess so. On the one day I had plans in the city." You sigh at the thought that seeing your best friend might not be possible anymore.

 "I know the feeling," he frowns, somehow still looking just as good as before which is entirely a mystery to you, "I'm also supposed to be in the city tonight."

You nod, then pull out your phone to shoot Yoojin a quick text about the delay. The cold wind sears your hands and you yet again regret wearing so little when you knew this train station didn't have an indoor waiting area.  

"So, what are our options for getting out of here now? Do you think the buses are still running because we could probably take one?" he suggests.

The 'we' takes you by surprise, but then you realize that he's probably talking about everyone here. All of the ten or so people that are just stuck at this station in the cold for the next hour.

You grimace at the thought of dissipating his ounce of hope. "Well, the nearest bus station is all the way across town, so by the time we get there maybe the trains will have already started working."

The handsome stranger sighs. "Maybe an Uber then?"

"It'll be rush hour soon so that only works if you want to be going during the most expensive time of day using the most expensive form of transportation."

"Ah, that's true." He looks disappointed. "Hmm, if the trains don't come by the next hour, maybe I'll just head to the bus stop."

Oh how nice it would be to have a car to get there yourself.

Buzz. The phone vibrates in your pocket and you could already imagine how Yoojin would be reacting to your news. Hopefully she hadn't already started on her crazy makeup routine yet, because who knows if your meet-up could actually happen at this rate.

"It's chill, don't worry about it! I'll head to you instead. Text you when I'm near."

Sometimes Yoojin's spontaneity was just what you needed. You message her a quick thanks and then shove the phone into your pocket before your fingers freeze off.

It's quiet for a bit and you almost forget about the handsome stranger entirely until there's a crinkling sound and you find yourself staring at the rose in the pocket of his coat, the clear foil around it blowing gently in the wind. It was on the side facing away from you earlier, which is probably how you didn't notice upon first glance.

Of course, he has a girlfriend. With a face like that, who wouldn't have a girlfriend? Or boyfriend. Maybe even multiple.

"Special occasions, right?" The corners of his lips are curled as if holding back a grin, and like this his dimples are visible.

But why was he still talking to you? You figured he was probably just trying to be friendly seeing as the two of you would be stuck here for an indefinite amount of time. Maybe you'll even become all buddy-buddy by the time this ordeal finishes. While you weren't a fan of small talk or talking to strangers, it was nice to be able to have someone by your side who was experiencing the same struggles.

And besides, he clearly has a girlfriend so there was no point in writing that "strangers to lovers" fan fiction in your head.

You clear your throat. "So... Valentine's date with your girlfriend?"

"Valentine's—" he pauses for a second and you can almost see the gears turning in his head. "Right, it's Valentine's Day today. Nah, I'm celebrating my birthday instead." Then he holds up the rose up and glances at it as if he'd also forgotten about it. "And no girlfriend. This is for my cousin. Her boyfriend's overseas so it's hard for them to meet up, so I thought I would get something nice for her and keep her company."

That actually takes you off guard and causes you to replay the words in your mind to make sure you heard correctly.

"Wait, it's your birthday today? Really?"

He gives you a strange look. "Yeah, there are actually people born on Valentine's Day, believe it or not."

"That's not what I meant—"

"I'm just kidding." His eyes twinkle in amusement. "It's also your birthday today, isn't it?"

"What—how did you know?"

He chuckles. "Your reaction said everything."

"Wow, someone is a smartie."

"What about you? Valentine's or birthday date with your boyfriend?"

"Best friend," you correct him. "And yeah, it's a birthday dinner."

"That's nice. I've actually never met anyone else with a Valentine's Day birthday."

"Honestly, same."

His eyes curve up into crescents as he smiles with his entire body, and it's dazzling and is so bright that it makes you want to stare for just a moment longer. The two of you laugh for a while at that coincidence, still amazed.

"So, how old are you turning?"

You groan, "The age where no one likes you."

"Ah, I just passed that." He wrinkles his nose as if remembering how terrible a year it was. "But hey, can't have no one liking you at that age if no one liked you anyway."

His words immediately put an image of that roll safe meme into your head and you find yourself laughing.

"Wow, those are my thoughts exactly."

The handsome stranger only gives you an innocent shrug. His meme game was on point, and that almost makes your heart flutter for a second. Almost.

Another cold breeze whips your hair into your face and blows straight through your thin tights, making you shiver.

"Hey, um, I hope this isn't too forward... but since we're stuck here anyways for the next while, do you want to possibly go hang out in town?" He bites his lips a little, making his dimples stand out even more. "It just kind of sucks to see our birthdays go to waste like this. Only if you're comfortable with it though, but of course we'll be in public areas the entire time."

You couldn't believe your ears for the second time today.

On one hand, the logical voice in your head was screaming stranger danger because you just met him! You hadn't even exchanged more than a few sentences! On the other hand, you could already picture Yoojin telling you to never waste an opportunity, to go with the flow and live life a little recklessly. To stop waiting for a train that might never come, to stop waiting for perfectly planned moments in life that might never occur.

"So, what do you think?"

Besides, if he's not some crazy serial killer or anything along those lines, the only other danger you could possibly see was getting heartbroken. But of course there's no way you'd fall for a stranger in one day; you didn't believe in love at first sight or fate or whatever other mushy romantic cliches that movies love to portray. This would merely be a fun time between two people who happened to be stuck together because of a train delay, on a day that happened to be both of their birthdays. A simple coincidence, really.

"You know what," you smile. "Screw it. Let's go."

***

The smell of the arcade brings back memories from when you were a child—friends' birthday parties, hangouts in middle school, the occasional school trip. It had been fun as a child even though you hadn't been very good at any of the games and probably never won anything worth keeping. Looking back, you hadn't set foot in this place in years.

"We'll get the one with the most tokens," the handsome stranger—Jaehyun—says to the guy behind the counter, flashing you a smile when you raise an eyebrow at him.

Jaehyun. It had sounded so pretty when he introduced himself.

You'd been afraid that conversation would come out awkward and forced between two strangers brought together by no more than a train delay, not knowing where or when or how to start. But there was actually never a dull moment between the flow of words and laughter that made you feel as if he was someone you've known for a long time. The short walk to the arcade had been spent on reminiscing and comparing past memories of growing up in this town, brainstorming fun places and cool restaurants that you'd been to or have yet to go to, pointing at familiar buildings and telling funny stories about interesting moments spent in there.

"Come on, let's go." He leads the way into the main area where all the action is.  

The arcade still looks the same as the last time you were here, though everything seems smaller than you'd remembered it. Bright lights flashing from every machine, loud noises at every corner. So many games that you'd once thought it was impossible to play through all of them.

"Let's start with this one?" You point to the zombie shooting game. It was something that you had always wanted to try as a kid out of pure curiosity, but you'd been too scared to at the time.

"That one? Really?" He raises a brow at your suggestion. "Alright, but I bet I can beat you."

"I would also bet on you winning," you respond dully.

After choosing characters and weapons on screen, the two of you settle in your seats and finally start. It's like watching a horror movie where you expect huge jump scares at every corner except there's no music build-up or anything to warn you that a zombie might just show up. Horror was definitely not your forte but maybe he was better at handling these things than you were.

You get your answer when the first wave of zombies finally show up. Jaehyun screams. You scream.

Somehow you manage to shoot some of them by pure instinct guiding you, however your aim isn't exactly good with your eyes closed half of the time. By the time the screaming dies down and you notice that both your characters had died in the zombie battle, you finally turn to see how he's doing. The way his face is twisted in a mixture of utter shock and horror would've been something to laugh at if you hadn't been just as scared.  

"If I recall, someone said they were going to beat me at this," you tease after seeing the final score. Neither of you did particularly well, though your score somehow turned out to be much higher than his.

"You should've given me a warning that it would be this scary."

You burst out laughing at his expression. "I didn't know either!"

That's when you notice how you're clinging to each other. Your hand clutching his arm, his hand right on top of yours.

"Oops, sorry," you mutter and quickly detangle yourself from him.

"It's fine," he says with a laugh. "But yeah, those zombies were next level."

Needless to say, you guys don't go back to that game.

The arcade is quite empty on this afternoon and you're glad that most of the games are unoccupied and can be played right away. Even with everything going well so far, you still have the fear of having awkward silences and uncomfortable conversation.

It's a while later when you try again at a different shooting game, though luckily this time it isn't zombies that you're dealing with, so it isn't scary at all. It's a teamwork game this time, and what surprises you the most is just how good your teamwork turns out to be.

"To your left, in the corner."

"Phew, got him. Thanks," you reply, promptly shooting the character before he could shoot you. "Watch out—right above you."

"Got it."

It lasts a few rounds but you manage to make it to the end and finally clear the game.

Jaehyun's whole face is lit up when he turns to you. "Wow, that was awesome. Great teamwork."

He holds up both his hands for you to high-five, and just as your hands meet his, you can't help but notice the way they linger together a little longer.  

Time flies as the two of you go from game to game and you're trying your best to beat him at any game possible. While he does let you win some of the time, more often than not, he ends up winning. Though it's not like you could be upset about it at all when he looked so happy after each win, excitedly showing you his score or prize. It was definitely nice to be as carefree as kids again.

Yet there was something deeper with the adrenaline coursing through your veins and heart racing that it becomes hard to tell whether it may be from the excitement of the games, the warmth of his body right beside you as he patiently teaches you his strategies for winning, the bright smiles that seem to light up his whole face, or those damn dimples.

Why did this Valentine's boy have to be not only heartbreakingly handsome but also incredibly kind and considerate?

"Hey, you want to try one of those?" The sound of Jaehyun's voice pulls you out of your thoughts and you silently pray that you hadn't been staring at him subconsciously. And if you had been staring, hopefully he didn't notice as he's pointing to the line of game stands at the side where the games are always rigged and you can never win big prizes.

"I've never won anything from there before, so I sure hope you're good at those."

He ends up picking a dart game out of all the options, but maybe this one would be easier than the rest.

The man at the dart stand greets you and explains the rules. "Are you trying to win something for your girlfriend?"

"Oh, we're not—" you start but stop as soon as you hear what Jaehyun says instead.

"It's Valentine's Day after all," he says easily then follows with a wink at you.

He didn't deny...?

It's three shots dead center to win one of the biggest prizes or five within the smallest ring. It makes your heart pound a little faster seeing Jaehyun so focused with his nice stance, sleeves rolled up slightly, and intense eyes on the target. However, he misses on the first shot with his dart going off the board.

"Well that's no fun," the man says, frowning at where the dart landed. "I suppose I could give you another chance, since it's Valentine's Day and all. Wouldn't want to end up empty handed, right?" He laughs to himself but puts the dart back in Jaehyun's hand.

"Thank you," he says, flustered judging by the hint of a blush that sweeps his cheeks. "I'm not usually this bad."

"It's okay! You're doing great, sweetie," you joke.

He rolls his eyes at you despite the way his lips curl up at the corners, then gets ready to throw the dart again. And this time? You're sure your jaw is to the floor when he manages to get all three darts to hit the board dead center. The man congratulates him for winning and then they disappear into the back room to pick a prize. Jaehyun later comes out holding the biggest dog plushie you've ever seen.

Once you're back outside after the arcade adventure, that's when he stops and turns to you.

"I wasn't sure what you'd like but I hope this is okay," he says quietly, gingerly handing you the giant plushie.

"It's great, Jaehyun." You meet his gaze as you take the plushie and he quickly looks away. "Thank you."

"You know, I'm really glad we ended up doing this. It's even better than what I had planned originally." Then he adds more quietly, "One of the best birthdays I've had in a while."  

"Yeah," you smile. "Me too."

It's only then when you realize that Yoojin and the rest of your plans had totally slipped your mind.

***

It's chilly outside as the two of you walk around town. Valentine's Day decorations were everywhere, with the chalkboard menus of local restaurants featuring couple meal sets with tons of hearts drawn around them, various pink and red plushies lined up on the windowsills of nearby shops, and even lamp posts on the streets covered with mini heart shaped lights. The sight of those things usually would've made you roll your eyes and pretend to puke, but somehow it doesn't seem to bother you quite so much today. It's as if you're seeing everything through a new perspective—one that might find the rosy decorations pretty and one that might understand the hype of such a holiday.

"Y/N," Jaehyun suddenly says, wrapping an arm around your waist and pulling you to his side. Before you could even react, he's quickly switching positions with you so that you're sheltered between him and the wall of the nearby building.

Then he's turning to you. Hand on the wall behind your head, body leaning towards you.

So close that you could see the individual eyelashes framing his eyes.

But in the next instant he's looking behind him where a car drives by and splashes up a large amount of water from the melting snow on the side of the street. Which lands right where you were standing just a moment ago.

Jaehyun turns back to you, eyes filled with concern. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," you breathe. "Um, are you?"

"That's good." He glances behind him and then reassures you with a quick smile. "And yeah, all good."

"It was a close call. Thanks for saving me."

"Wouldn't want your clothes to be ruined by that." He laughs. "How are you doing though? It's pretty cold out here."

"I'm okay," you automatically reply.

That earns you a skeptical look. "Your cheeks are all red. Come on, let's go warm up somewhere."

When you resume walking, he's taking the outer edge of the sidewalk.

A couple of blocks later is when you find out that the place he had in mind turns out to be the local coffee shop. You'd never been there before but had always thought of it as a cute place when you pass by it, so when you enter, the interior definitely matches up to your expectations. It has a rustic theme with warm glow from fairy lights hanging from the ceiling and there's soft music playing in the background, a nice place to study if it's as empty as today.

Jaehyun buys you your drink. Kind of.

"I bought one, but they gave me one for free," he says, beaming when he comes back to the table with the drinks—a coffee for him and a latte with a cute little heart floating in it for you. "Maybe the barista was charmed by my smile."

"Hmm." You look behind him to see a sign at the front of the store saying, 'Buy one get one free—Valentine's Day special'. "Are you sure it wasn't because of my charming smile?"

"You're right, that could be it. You are quite cute."

"Exactly."

Wait, what did he just say?

You do a double take but he's merely staring back at you with dimples just barely visible and eyes sparkling through thick eyelashes that you could only wish yours looked like.

Suddenly it feels like the heater's on extra high in this cafe or maybe it was the way the latte burns your tongue as you take a big gulp. Whatever it was, it definitely succeeds in warming you up a little too well, especially your face.

"You okay? Don't burn yourself," he says, the amusement in his eyes betraying the concern in his voice.

You nearly spit your drink out at him. "Nah, no burn. I'm good, thanks," you say dryly.

Time seems to slow down as you relax in your seat, body finally warming up in the coziness of the cafe. The small corner you're in almost feels like a liminal space; such a transient place you'd only ever noticed while passing by, yet a whole different world on the inside where one can hide forever. Perhaps you wanted to hide here, to enjoy the fleeting moments of a strange but amazing birthday.

Conversation ebbs and flows though you're a little surprised when Jaehyun opens up about his life. His passion for music, especially, is what picks up traction as he happens to know your favourite group, NCT. From there it becomes a debate of whether Doyoung or Taeyong was the best looking member (you insist that Doyoung's Instagram was all the proof one needed, whereas he points out that Taeyong's sharp jawline could totally cut that VVS diamonds they keep singing about). You definitely don't tell Jaehyun the fact that maybe—just maybe—he's even more attractive than your NCT biases and that he could totally be an actor from a Korean drama.

Everything you hear about him makes you appreciate his vulnerability, yet you can't help but wonder if he's so open with just anybody. You were a complete stranger, after all.

Yet every time you see the twinkle in his eyes when your gaze accidentally meets his, part of you wonders if 'strangers' no longer fits the definition of where this strange relationship was going. It leaves you with wanting to avoid looking at him which is quite difficult with him seated directly across from you. Maybe you should've sat where your plushie was, taking up its own chair between the two of you, but it's too late and now you're left to deal with the audible thud of your heart every time you make eye contact with him.

And yet when you think about it, you realize that it wasn't Jaehyun's cute dimples or his deep voice or his lame jokes that had your nerves acting up.

It was probably the caffeine.

But maybe it was the small things that you hadn't even realized you'd noticed. Earlier at the arcade when he patiently taught you the games that you were unfamiliar with, letting you win games but also winning at them himself just so he could give you the prize. Saving you from a car first then from the cold with the warmth of the cafe. Opening the door for you, sitting closer to the door to block the cold wind from reaching you.

And how despite the number of reschedules and plan cancellations you both had to make due to the train delay, he hasn't pulled his phone out a single time. You admired how in the midst of all the chaos today, he was still nothing but calm and polite the entire time and seemed to have everything under control. He was a comforting presence that made you forget about the madness of the outside world for a little while.

Nah, it had to be the caffeine.

Still, you find yourself glad to be stuck here with him, even as far as dreading when you both had to leave. You're definitely appreciating Yoojin's ability to be late right about now.

A lull in the conversation has you sneaking a glance at your phone to check up on your best friend. There's no text from her as she's either still doing her extravagant makeup or still on her way here, but for some reason you let out the breath you held in relief.

"I wonder if the trains are running now." A glance out the window shows you the remnants of sunset and the quickly darkening skies. Then you cautiously throw out the question that you'd been holding onto for a while. Something that you'd been reluctant to bring up, carefully stepping around it the whole day, and something that he hasn't talked about either. "Oh right, didn't you say you would end up taking a bus? If the delay is still going on."

Maybe it's a test to see his reaction, maybe it's to end this vague relationship before you become even more attached than you already are. Because any rational person wouldn't just throw away all their birthday plans for someone they'd just met.

"Oh. Right." Jaehyun looks down and swirls the stir stick in his drink. Clockwise, counter-clockwise, back and forth. "I, uh, actually forgot that I didn't drive here today." He shoots you a sheepish grin then runs his fingers through his hair that has deflated quite a bit since you first saw him. "So can't exactly drive over to the bus stop."

You smile back weakly. "Ah, that's okay. There's probably a ton of traffic out there now anyways."

An ambiguous answer for an equally ambiguous relationship. It could definitely be a real excuse, yet somehow the thought of that makes you almost disappointed. Maybe there are no answers to the questions and uncertainties muddled in your mind.

"But did you want to get rid of me so fast?" He actually pouts at you, as if his regular face weren't already enough to break hearts.

"What? No, of course not? I—what?" you manage to get out.

"Okay, good!" The pout immediately goes back into his regular smile. "Phew. It's sad enough being single on Valentine's Day; no need to get rejected on top of that."

Then his phone buzzes and it finally pulls it out.

"As if anyone would reject you," you mutter under your breath while he's distracted.

It's true. You might've expected Jaehyun's appearance to be making up for other areas, or maybe even hoping he'd be too rude or too blunt or have a bad character. Because the cognitive dissonance in your head wants a reason or excuse to remain distant and emotionally detached from him. But the kindness and authenticity that you saw today just leaves you without a reason, which makes it that much harder to stop yourself from liking him.

"Sorry about that; what did you say?"

"Nothing!" You plaster on a cheerful smile.

"Okay, my cousin is going to be here soon."

"Oh."

Then there's the sinking of your heart, the inevitable dread that this unexpectedly enjoyable afternoon is coming to an end. Somehow it manages to crush the anticipation you had for your birthday celebration with Yoojin.

"You know, I kind of feel bad that you paid for everything today," you say. "Let me pay you back?"

"It's fine, Y/N. We had fun and that's all that matters."

"True, but you should've at least let me buy the drinks!"

That manages to make him smile but it quickly dies as he bites his lip, suddenly hesitant. "If you really want to..."

"Yes!"

"...you could just pay next time."

What.

"Next time?" you repeat, afraid to believe what you were hearing.

"I mean, if you—maybe—want to hang out again sometime?"

You open your mouth to say something, or maybe it was already open in your state of shock. Nothing comes out as if you lost your voice.

Jaehyun briefly meets your eyes before continuing. "Well, um—I just wanted to say that I had a really good time with you today. I know the train thing was probably an inconvenience to everyone else but to be honest, I'm kind of glad that happened." He laughs a little. Stops. Bites his lip. "And yeah, if you're down, we could hang out again sometime. Because I'd love to get to know you better."

Thud.

You could only stare back at him as the roaring of your pulse becomes all you can hear. The whole day you were telling yourself that it shouldn't be possible to develop feelings for someone within a day, almost trying to hold yourself back from enjoying your time with him to the fullest in the fear that you might be wrong. And it's not like you developed crushes very easily, but here in front of you was a boy so friendly and good-natured even to a stranger he'd just met, someone who really seemed to care about you.

"Jaehyun..."

He continues, "I know it's weird meeting like this, and I don't really believe in this whole fate thing where we just happened to be stuck here and we happen to have the same birthday. All I can say is that I really enjoyed talking to you and hearing your thoughts and um, youknowyou'rereallybeautiful."

The logical inner voice had been screaming stranger danger the entire time because you didn't know him at all! You'd just met him today! Yet the small fic writer voice in your head, which definitely sounded a lot like your best friend's voice, was trying to convince you that maybe fate does exist. That if it doesn't, how likely was it that you met someone with the same birthday which happened to be Valentine's Day? That you met at exactly the right time and that the train the two of you were going to take was delayed? That you managed to have one of the best birthdays that you could recall?

Maybe sometimes you need to let go of any fears and just live life to its fullest. Let yourself feel a wide range of emotions without being afraid of getting heartbroken. Stop holding back and just be true to yourself.

It suddenly feels too hot in the cafe once again.

"Yeah," your voice comes out quiet, unsteady, but his words give you the courage to reach over to hesitantly take his hand. "Today has been amazing and I'm so thankful that you're the one I was stuck with."

His eyes flicker to yours then away. "But...?"

"There is no 'but'. Jaehyun, I'd love to see you again."

"Yeah?" He lets out a long exhale before his face visibly brightens again. "That's a relief. I didn't think you would agree, but I didn't want to have you walk out of my life just like that."

Then there isn't a need for any more words as shy smiles are exchanged and fleeting gazes meet and there's a warmth bubbling in your chest. It's as if you spent the whole day worrying over nothing. That somehow, everything worked out. That maybe it was fate, and maybe it wasn't, but the connection you thought you felt wasn't just one-sided. It was something real, something tangible.

"Jeong Jaehyun!"

The booming voice jolts the two of you out of the moment and makes you immediately spring apart.

"Did you seriously make me take the train all the way here just for you? Who is this girl because she better be real nice for you to ditch me—" The loud voice from the woman walking into the cafe stops right when her eyes land on you. She smiles sheepishly, dipping her head lightly as if apologizing for her outburst. "Never mind; forget I said anything. I approve."

"Nice to see you too, Minah," Jaehyun greets as you both stand. You can see how his face is still flushed from earlier, but now he's put on a neutral expression again and what you'd seen just a moment ago has been erased. "Don't worry, I won't make you take the train back. I'll drive you home after."

"Oh, you have the car. Bless." Minah brushes her hair back, tidying it from the effects of the wind. Then she stops suddenly and narrows her eyes at him. "Wait, why didn't you just drive over if the trains stopped working?"

"You—have the car? I thought you said you got a ride," you muse out loud.

"Oh, uh. Actually I forgot I had it since I usually get a ride here and it would've taken too long to drive there in rush hour anyway... so... yeah..." He trails off and shifts his weight from one foot to another, and it's even more evident how flushed his face is, from his cheeks to the tips of his ears.

You hear a snort and see Minah practically shaking with quiet laughter.

"Y/N!" The bell at the door rings again as Yoojin steps into the cafe, bringing a rush of cold air in with her. "There you are! And oh—" she stops mid-sentence when she spots you with Jaehyun, his cousin, and the massive plushie sitting in its own chair. "Minah?"

"Yoojin?"

"You guys know each other?" you ask tentatively.

"We were friends in high school!" Yoojin replies. Then gives you a questioning look. "Minah, it's been so long. We should totally catch up."

Minah nods enthusiastically, jumping up to give Yoojin a warm hug. "Totally!" Then she briefly glances at Jaehyun. "Well, I was supposed to have dinner with my little cousin over here but if you and your friend are free, then we could all go somewhere together?"

"How about we head over to that cute little diner that was our hangout spot for the longest time?" Yoojin suggests with a glance over at you and Jaehyun.

Minah squeals. "Let's do it; it'd be just like old times!"

"Actually, if you don't mind, I wanted to borrow Y/N for a bit," Jaehyun says. "We'll let you guys catch up in peace without a third and four wheel."

"Yoojin, we can always hang out another time if you want to go with Minah."

Your best friend looks at you suspiciously with her eyes narrowed. "Hmm, yeah that works. I'll call you later and you better give me all the details though."

"Okay, deal."

And with that, they both head for the door. Yoojin turns to give you one last wink before they're gone.  

"I guess it's just us." Jaehyun's eyes are sparkling when they meet yours and he gives a gentle smile before shyly holding you hand. "We're probably too late for my reservation, but there are some good food places not too far from here."

"So..."

"Have dinner with me?"

"Hmm, I thought you didn't have your car here."

He looks pained. "Y/N!"

"I'm just kidding! I'm actually starving so let's go."

***

It's hours of delicious food, good conversation, and shy glances later that he finally drops you off at home. When your phone buzzes this time, it's not from Yoojin—it's a text from an unknown number followed by an image attachment.

"I have a feeling this is very false for you :)" it reads. And your heart skips a beat when you see the image.

It's the "no one likes you when you're 23" meme.

On the day of your 23rd birthday, you definitely weren't expecting anyone to like you, just as you haven't for the past 22 years. But with the words in Jaehyun's text that you read and reread, the light fragrance of the rose now in your vase and the giant plushie on your bed, and your mind replaying his bright smile and dimples and the sparkle in his eyes, it seemed like today was different.

Maybe today, someone just might like you when you're 23.

#jaehyun fic #jaehyun x reader #jaehyun x you #jeong jaehyun #nct fic #nct x reader #nct x you #valentines day fic #jaehyun fluff #loosely based on real life events #not that i met jaehyun but he did come to my city #ANYWAYS HAPPY BIRTHDAYYYY JAE BAEEEE #happyjaehyunday #Extra RushedTM #how many times did i rewrite this in the past day hmm #nearly pulled two allnighters wow #ok yolo if no one reads this it's 7k of me figuring out #how to write dialogue tags hAHAHA #my fic

[yourdreamscenarios]

When a fan stalks you

∙ Request ♡ ∙ Word count: 3,462

“Good morning.” Namjoon muttered softly, his voice still raw as he wrapped his arms around your middle and nuzzled his face into the crook of your neck. You smiled, even though you knew he wouldn’t be able to see it. His chest felt secure against your back as the smell of hair products and cologne consumed you. Blinking a few times you allowed yourself to enjoy the image which developed in front of you inside of the mirror, placed in the back of the waiting room. People were moving around you, stressing in and outside of the room, busy talking and preparing themselves for their stage. Managers were giving their bands the usual pep talk, dance moves were rehearsed one last time. But for this tiny second there was nothing but you and Namjoon, with him holding you tightly and you melting in his embrace. If there was one thing you loved about him it was that he was able to made your feel as if you weren’t apart of this world, as if the thing you had was extraordinary. “Please tell me you’re not planning on going out in that outfit.” He breathed against your skin before he pressed his lips down against the side of your throat. It probably should have been an innocent gesture, but you still shivered never the less. 

He chuckled, noticing your way of thoughts, but not really seeming to mind. His fingers brushed against your skin as he moved your hair out of the way and his nose was allowed to follow the vein which ran down your neck. Your eyes fluttered close, and you tried to think straight so you could at least form an answer to his question. With a foggy mind you formed the words with your lips, hoping that your voice didn’t sound too hoarse on its own. “No, I’m planning on changing before I go. I suspected you wouldn’t find it very appropriate.” You muttered and spun around on your heels before he had the chance of stopping you. With his touch gone, you’d at least be able to focus. He grinned as he rested his hands on top of your hips and straightened up so he could look you in the eye. How could a man like him be so gorgeous all the time? “I do find it appropriate, but only when I’m around to chase away all the mans which you’ll leave swooning.” He mumbled, pressing his nose up against yours and bumping them together. His appearance was always capable of bringing a smile onto your face. Just him being in the same room as you made the world shine much brighter. 

“Are you swooning?” You asked teasingly and you lifted your hand so it could trace the outside of his color. A soft twinkle appeared inside of his eyes before he pressed a small peck against your lips, leaving you wanting more of them. “Always.” He said, a wink joining his confession which caused you to giggle. Even after two years of dating you still sounded like a head over heels in love teenager. You wondered what people thought when they looked at you? That you were one of those couples that made you want to vomit because of their cuteness? Once, before you’d met Namjoon, you’d been disgusted of those kinds of things and they had made you cringe, but now that you’d been infected by it, there was no turning back from it. “Time to go Cupid. You’ll see her again when the show is over.” Hoseok called out as he passed by, and he gently patted his friend’s butt before emerging out of the room, on his way to find the others. Namjoon sighed, causing a few strands of your hair to fly upwards. Yet, the smile didn’t leave his face as he placed a second peck on your forehead and brushed those lost hairs behind your ear. 

“I’ll see you at home.” He reminded you and you hummed before raising up onto the tips of your toes and giving him a final kiss before he turned and walked out of the door. You gazed at him until his back disappeared out of sight and you heaved a deep sigh at the thought that you’d have to go without him. it was a shame that your showcases were this wide apart, and you had so much work left to do, it was impossible for you to stick around and wait for him here. Even though it would only be a few hours until you would see him again, it seemed way too long. Each day spent with him was a wonderful day. But instead of him heading home with you, he was staying behind, and you’d be waiting for him in your shared apartment. You hadn’t expected things to move so fast between the two of you, but everything you did around him seemed natural. The two of you had moved in together when you’d only been dating for a year. All your friends had warned you that you should take things slow, that you shouldn’t rush into it. But you hadn’t regretted listening to their advice even once. Namjoon made you happy, and that was all you wanted to be in this life, happy. 

Heaving a deep sigh you zig zagged through the crowd, stopped every once in a while to say hi to the friends you hadn’t seen in a while. Eventually you reached the dressing room, and you shut the door behind yourself. Silence surrounded you as the wood muted the voiced coming from the other side. It could be quite lonely sometimes, being a solo artist. It was during times like these, where you could meet with other idols and you could meet up with old friends that you felt best. Your make-up artist smiled at you from the other side of the room, a large bag resting in her arms as she spoke brightly. Your staff were the people who knew you best, who you were closest to and you spent the most time with. You adored them, for all the hard work they did for you, for the dedication they showed every single day. “I’ll be putting this in the van. Why don’t you get changed and then we can leave in a bit.” Lara suggested and you nodded, sending her a thankful smile. You knew exactly what she meant, what she wasn’t saying directly. She was granting you this moment to be alone, to clear your mind and to take a breath. You could get changed in silent and there wouldn’t be anyone watched your every move. 

“That would be great.” You admitted and she flashed you her sweet smile before emerging from the room and shutting the door. She’d been the first person you had informed about your feelings about Namjoon. Lara felt like a sister to you in many ways, and you couldn’t imagine that you’d have to live without her one day. Your muscles relaxed as you looked at your own reflection in the mirror. Your make-up looked flawless, your hair falling around your shoulders in sweet waves, your outfit matched perfectly. Almost every morning you spent hours fixing your appearance, and your staff spent hours on trying to make it look even better. Sometimes it felt like a waste, because you’d get back into your own clothing after a few minutes on stages. You brushed your hand through your hair and your eyes scanned around the room to look for the bag you’d brought with you from home. Spotting it on the couch in the back of the room you straightened up, felt your sore muscles protest and shuffled over. A few more weeks, and then you would promise yourself a few days off. Then you’d be able to spend time with the people you loved most. Maybe you’d even be able to bring your family a visit. That thought caused a little smile to light up your face. 

It had been so long since you’d seen your parents in real life. These days you always called or Face timed, but it wasn’t the same. You’d always been close to your family, and they fully supported your career and your relationship with Namjoon, your mother adored him. They knew he was good for you. Zipping your bag open you heard the way the door of the dressing room opened softly, and you were surprised. Usually Lara would make sure to stay away for at least ten minutes or so, to grant you the time you needed. “You’re back already? Forgot something?” You asked teasingly and looked up to see what had brought her back here. But your smile faltered the second you realized it wasn’t Lara who had walked into the room. In front of you stood a stranger, a man with short, brown hair, wearing all black. He was smiling at you as if he was someone you were supposed to know, as if you were old high school friends. But one thing was for sure, he was too old to be one of your fellow students. He looked around his mid thirties, and compared to that you were just a child. You dug around in your mind, thinking if you’d seen this guy before. It would be rude if you wouldn’t be able to remember him. But no matter how hard you tried, you simply couldn’t think of the day you’d met this man before. 

Usually you were quite good at remembering faces, but this one didn’t even seem familiar. “Can I help you?” You asked, noticing the way he wasn’t wearing the usual crew shirt and there was no name tag on his shirt. Also, no visitors pass, which meant he couldn’t be here for a meet and great. He cocked his head to the side while you slowly retreated your hands from your bag and stood up straight. Perhaps he was just lost, and he couldn’t find his way back towards the exit through the web of halls. It had to be said, even you still lost your way every once in a while. “You don’t remember me?” He asked, his voice sweet as honey, yet, it still caused all the hairs on top of your arms to stand upright. There was just something about his expression that made you get the creeps. Quickly you transformed your lips into an apologetic smile, trying to look innocent. For the first time you prayed that Lara would be back quicker than usual, you wished it had been her. “I’m sorry, I must have forgotten. We’ve got so many people working here.” You stuttered to find the right words, trying to make it seem as if you’d forgotten him because it was busy, that it was you who was wrong. 

You knew how some people could get when you made it seem as if they didn’t mean enough to be recognized by some of you. Yet, he didn’t seem pleased with your answer. A frown covered his forehead and his expression turned icy as he directed it towards you. It caused a shiver to run down your spine. There was just something about this guy that made you want to race out of the room, but a part deep inside of you told you that he wouldn’t just let you go. “How could you forget? I’m the one who texted you for so long, until next month, when they took you away from me.” His words caused your blood to set inside of your faced it was as if the temperature inside of the room dropped all at once, causing goosebumps to appear all over your skin. Of course he didn’t look familiar, you had never seen his face before. He had only contacted you through texts, and no matter how many times you had tried to block him, he’d always found another way to reach out to you. Until last month, when you’d gotten tired of it and his stalking had becoming scary. The stuff he had told you in those texts, the things he’d said, it had terrified you. 

You were glad when it seemed the police had taken care of your problem, and until today you hadn’t heard from him and your life had been much easier. Until today. Taking a deep breath you managed to put a step back, but you refused to let him see your fear, you weren’t going to let him notice what you were actually feeling. All of a sudden you realized what kind of situation you were in. You were inside of a room with a guy who’d been stalking you for months, who’d been very clear and open about everything he was willing to do for you and with you. Just thinking about those texts made your tongue taste bitter. “How did you get in?” Was the first rational question your brain was able to produce. There was security at every single entrance, every single backdoor. It was impossible for him to have gotten in unnoticed, someone had to know he was here. “The security guard had to use the toilet, it was the perfect opportunity for me to see you. I had to see you! Don’t you get it ______________? We’re perfect for each other, I love you so much…” He said, his face expressing pure joy as he took a big step towards you, forcing you backwards. Your chest expanded as your eyes darted towards the door. 

What were your chances of getting past him without him catching you? Would you be fast enough? Who knew what this man was capable of to get what he thought he deserved. Your heartbeat picked up inside of your chest as you tried to think of what to do. You had never been in a situation like this before, where a crazy fan backed you up into a corner without any security around. But he followed your gaze, and he seemed smarter than you though, because he only needed seconds to figure out what you were planning on doing. Perhaps you should have watched more thrillers on TV, maybe then you would have known what not to do when a stalker was standing in front of you, like giving away your next move. “You can’t run away from me _______________. From now on we will finally be together, we get what we deserve. I’ll make you so happy, I promise.” He muttered and backed you up further until all of a sudden you could feel your back hitting the stone wall, the coldness of it seeping through the material of your dress. Bile was gathering in the back of your throat as adrenaline kicked in your fight-flight reaction. There had to be something you could do, you couldn’t just let someone overmaster you without putting up a fight. 

A high pitched sound resounded from the back of your throat as your thoughts shot in every single direction. His hand came up and brushed against the side of your cheek, making you feel like you wanted to cry. He hadn’t even asked for the permission to touch you. Maybe you’d just throw up all over his shoes. “You don’t have to be afraid of me.” He said, his voice dangerously close to the side of your face, his breath hitting against your ear. You cringed and before you knew what you were doing, your body had moved on its own. You flung yourself to the side, dashed forward and aimed for the door. Freedom was waiting for you on the other side of it, where there’d be others who would be able to help you. But it slipped from your reach when all of a sudden you felt a hand grip your hair on the top of your head. You yelped out of pain and your hands flew up in the hope to lessen it as you were tugged back harshly. Tears stung your eyes and you were sure he had pulled a few strands of hair from your skull as your butt landed on the floor. He towered over you and by now he looked angry as he spoke, spit flying from his lips out of rage. 

“You ungrateful bitch! Do you know what I did to get here? Do you know what I’ve risked for out love?” He shouted and you could feel the first hot tears starting to drip down your cheeks. You hated your weakness, hated it that you were crying in front of a person like this. But fear was shutting you down, and you could no longer think straight. “I didn’t ask you to! I want you to leave me alone!” You shouted back at him, the logical part of your brain no longer functioning. You were too late to notice the spark your confession seemed to enlighten inside of him. You failed to realize that it was too late for you to run when he lifted his hand and smashed it against your face. You screamed, agony and pain ripping through you, while a sob took your breath away. You had never been hit before, and the blow had contained enough force to knock you out. But the adrenaline kept you going and made you witness the way he threw back his foot before planting in inside of your stomach. 

It was as if every last bit of breath was pushed out of your lungs and you were only able to groan as you rolled down onto the floor. Black spots danced in front of your eyes as you tried to fight the need you felt to pass out. You had to get up, you had to run before you’d have to witness what he wanted to do next. “You mean everything to me! EVERYTHING!” He yelled as he crouched down in front of you, ignoring your sobs as he placed his fingers underneath your chin and pushed your face upwards, demanding you to look at him. You didn’t dare to move, didn’t dare to make a single sound. Maybe this would be the moment he’d pull out a weapon, and finish it. You flinched as the door of the room flew open and crashed against the wall. Three security men sped inside of the room, followed by Lara who wore a frightened expression on her face. Namjoon was on her heels, and in the back of your mind you recalled that he should be performing right now, that he wasn’t supposed to be here. “Get away from her!” One of the guards said, and the three of them didn’t even give him the chance to do anything as they roughly grabbed him by the shoulders and slammed him against the floor in front of you. 

Even though your body was filled with pain you forced yourself to scramble away from him, to push yourself up on your feet, only to be swinging on top of your legs. Immediately as two strong arms wrapped around you, you stiffened, your instincts reacting to the touch. “Sshhh, It’s okay.” Namjoon’s soft voice filled your ears and you couldn’t recall the last time you’d been this relieved to hear it. Your fingers curled themselves inside of the fabric of his shirt as you watched the way the security men handcuffed the stranger and tilted him off the ground to lead him out of the room. “This isn’t over! I’m not giving up on us _____________! I promise you baby! I love you!” His promises continued as they took him down the hallway, until hey reached the exit and he disappeared. The large lump inside of your throat almost made it impossible for you to swallow, leave alone speak as you stood there. Those threats, you weren’t sure if you’d every be able to forget about them. You stood there quietly as Namjoon bend forward and carefully stroked your hair out of your face. You felt your cheek pounding, a terrible headache was building up behind your eyes and your ribs ached. 

“We need to get you to the hospital.” He muttered, worry and a slight hint of anger audible inside of his voice. Fear seemed to strangle you as you clenched your hand around his. “Don’t leave.” You pleaded, because you knew you wouldn’t be able to be alone right now, not after this. Work could wait, you couldn’t stand the thought of going anywhere without him. His look softened as he intertwined his fingers with yours, and used his other hand to follow the curve of your cheekbone. You could feel a bruise forming there and you were sure he could see it. “Don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere.” 

∙ BTS Masterlist ♡ ∙ Masterlist ♡

#bts #bts namjoon #namjoon #kim namjoon #bts RM #rapmonster #RM #scenario #scenarios #bts scenarios #bts scenario #bts rm scenario #bts rm scenarios #bts namjoon scenarios #bts namjoon scenario #kim namjoon scenarios #namjoon x you #namjoon x oc #bts x you #bts x oc #imagine #you #oc #reader #bts imagines #bts imagine #namjoon imagine #namjoon imagines #bts namjoon imagine #bts namjoon imagines

[klanced]

here are all my dnd episode hot takes bc i love it so much

I’m guessing that, besides being the team’s mascot/furry, Lance also functions as a tracker of sorts. 

His posture (squatting on the ground), the fact that he looks like he’s holding something (like mayhaps a scooped up bit of dirt), the way he’s looking over his shoulder as he gives the team his Opinion, the way they all seem decidedly unimpressed at his deductions considering he only sniffed dirt- Fantasy Tracker™, Babey!

Anyway, going off that, it looks like the party is trying to track something (a monster? Lotor’s character? Keith’s?).

I bet Pidge’s armor makes her super top-heavy. If she fell over, she’d look like a turtle on its back.

Also I can’t get over her CHICKEN ARMS and her BIGASS double-bladed axe like. She really is going all out huh.

I’m also digging the fact that Shiro is wearing a full-on black cloak in the middle of a somewhat sunny forest while hanging with his crew. King of wishing he stayed home! King of withdrawing from others!

I’m already in love with this episode like this is DEFINITELY going to be one of my top five favorite episodes. I feel it in my nerd loving bones.

I sincerely hope that whatever their riding is some big scary monster that scared the pants off everyone except for Allura, who immediately befriended it. Bonus points if there’s a scene where she rubs its tummy.

Maybe it’s some personification/manifestation of the White Lion? Idk, I never finished Season 5 so I don’t really know what’s up with Allura and the White Lion, but this could be a reference to that ep.

I saw a post where someone said that could be Keith’s character which is hilarious and I fully endorse.

... Y’know what? I bet whatever the team is tracking in the first pic ends up being the animal they’re riding in the second.

This is your daily reminder that I am a BIG lesbian who is in LOVE with Allura! 

LIKE HELLO? THE PURPLE BODYSUIT? FLAWLESS. THE HAIR? CURLED AND FLOWING. HER EARS? POINTER THAN HER ARROWS, AND TWICE AS DEADLY. LEGOLAS SAW HER OUT OF THE CORNER OF HIS EYE AND IMMEDIATELY WENT HOME.

I love her.

But seriously, just LOOK at her. She woke up that morning and she decided that yes, actually, she IS going to be That Bitch™! She’s winning the award for best dressed, and she damn well knows it.

I’m also still not over that one curled bang like UGH. YES. And the purple theme she’s rocking?? The way they almost match her pastel glowing marks? Her arrow feathers???? Cupid lined up the shot at my heart, and Her aim was true!

Correct me if I’m wrong, but aren’t Allura’s eyes a bit bluer than normal??? Are these.... Fantasy Contacts™?

This is pure speculation, but in my opinion it looks like Allura’s character isn’t a princess. Her armory is fancy, but she lacks Allura’s usual “crown” (it’s not really a crown, but I can’t find the proper word for it lol). Which is interesting! And if true, would confirm some of my meta on Allura lol.

........... I just realized that Hunk isn’t actually bald at the top of his head, but is instead wearing a green hat. And you know what? I’ll take the Rock Lee look over the monk bowl cut any day.

He still looks like Doctor Strange took a vacation in the Earth Kingdom, but y’know what? We still stan. I mean, the beard alone is absolutely legendary, so quite frankly? Hunk’s outfit may be weird as hell, but he still looks good. Case closed! Legends only!

Hunk’s collar is popped because he’s too busy mmmmmmmmmmblockin out the haters.

His belly button is glowing. Absolute legends only.

Also what the hell, Hunk’s sideburns look so good??? His Fantasy Barber™ is a god????? Like OOF, that cut? That fade? Can he please call his barber and ask them to fix Kuron’s hair?? Lol.

Hunk lookes like he’s playing as some kind of monk/sage class, which really tickles my fancy because Hunk as a defensive magic user is (Allura voice) absolutely divine. I mean, just look at that staff! He could either heal you or hurt you with that borderline club, let’s leave it at that.

The longer I stare at his beard the more unbelievable it gets. How did he cultivate such a majestic lock of hair? He has absolutely no facial except for this single 1″ by 1″ square. Hunk is incredibly powerful.

Voltron really wants me dead, huh. Like, they want to loot my wallet from my cold dead corpse and spend my last two dollars at Starbucks. That’s the only explanation for... this.

He looks like if Kaden from Fire Emblem Fates had a baby with Odd from Code Lyoko and that baby raided the closet of Mako from Legend of Korra.

If he has a tail, I will go full on nuclear winter, mark my fucking words.

If his ears so much as TWITCH I will really lose it I am not joking. Voltron has gone TOO FAR, and I will be the one to end it.

Okay I might be imagining things but in the picture on the left, it looks like Lance still has a right earlobe/right ear, so uh. What’s up with that. Does Lance just have four goddamn ears. Are his furry ears fake? Oh my god, is Lance faking being furry kin?

If he has claws tho, I can accept that because that’s cool as hell. I’ll also tolerate Lance having sharp canines, but only if he’s constantly biting his tongue lol.

Lance is wearing quite a bit of jewelry for someone whose clothes look like shit which begs the question of how... he has them. 

If Voltron makes Lance’s dnd character a thief we riot.

Also his facial markings look like Krolia’s which is either a funny coincidence, OR the dnd episode takes place after Keith reunites with the team and introduces them to Krolia, and Lance’s markings are inspired by hers. Which is cute.

I honestly cannot tell if she’s wearing a furry cape or if that’s just her hair, but either way I’m loving it. You go, you fierce little warrior you!

I JUST NOTICED THAT HER SHOULDERS ARE AS BROAD/BROADER THAN HUNK’S NOW GHSKDGHDJGSDGDS

I mentioned this in a different post but I genuinely thought Pidge was going to be a rogue or some sort of magic user, so DPS/Tank Pidge has completely blindsided me and I’m loving every second of it.

Pidge doesn’t roleplay based on her actual self and personality. No, she’s creating Fantasy Pidge™ for a Fantasy World™ which means living out every wild dream she’s ever had!!! She’s chaotic neutral bitch and LOVING it.

She has a DOUBLE-BLADED AXE and it it’s not at least 3/4 her size then what, pray tell, is the point. I want Pidge to heft her axe around like it’s nothing, and then when she puts it down it literally shakes the ground. That’s the ultimate power move.

Lance being a goddamn furry PROVES the existence of other Fantasy Races™ so fingers crossed that Pidge decides to play a dwarven character to explain why she’s so short ghdkjsghdkjs

Pidge looks so happy in the second pic. This really is the best day of her life. 

(ZOOMS IN ON THE SECOND PICTURE) YO IS THAT A CROWN???? 👀👀

Okay but seriously, if Shiro’s character is a prince/king I will EXPLODE!!!! Let Shiro make a dnd character with an unnecessarily tragic and dramatic backstory!! Let Shiro roleplay as a prince on a mission to avenge his fallen kingdom and free his people!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That would also explain why Shiro is constantly wearing a black cloak and hiding his beautiful, perfect face. Because he’s on the run and has to stay undercover, bitch!

NGL, I’m a lesbian but I stared at the second picture of Shiro for a good ten seconds. Mostly because Shiro’s hair looks really, really good, and it’s a balm to my eyes after season 4 and 5.

Also, I just realized, his crown/coronet/WHATEVER is in the same place/represents his tuft of white hair! You can see this most clearly in the first pic :3c That’s so cute!

I’ll admit, I’m a little disappointed because at first, I thought Shiro was wielding a gigantic two-handed sword, which is absolutely badass and kickass. However, on closer examination I can see what looks to be a shield strapped to Shiro’s back (apparently over the cloak, which is weird lol), so Shiro most likely wields a so-called “one-handed” sword.

I won’t lie, for a hot second I thought Shiro might be wielding a club or something because I couldn’t see a sword hilt, but if you look at the left picture really closely, you can see what looks to be a black sword hilt. I did some googling, because swords are cool, and I’d guess Shiro’s sword is based off a knightly sword.

#voltron #allura #pidge #hunk #lance #shiro #voltron spoilers #long post #REALLY long post lol #image #shitpost #caps #header text #italics

[bitternessbitesback]

Birds Of A Feather

AO3 FFN

Summary:  It was funny, really, someone like her dating someone like him. She was a bright and preppy whilst he was a cynical pessimist. People always say opposites attract, so who are they to disagree?

Pairing: Sasori/Sakura

      The two are like night and day, dark and light, yin and yang. One would think neither Sasori nor Sakura would ever be able to put aside their differences long enough to even think about dating, and yet here they were. Sitting in the mall food court doing just that. Sasori's friendly can recall just how many times the red haired man has lamented on and on about how he despises shopping despite the fact he went constantly with the pink haired medic. Never once complaining when his girlfriend drags them into the fifteenth store to try on a multitude of items only to either walk out with nothing or just a couple things. It was a well known fact that while Sasori acted patient, he was not a patient man. His friends honestly had no clue how the man could put up with the lively and talkative woman until they saw how soft his eyes seemed to get whenever she was around. Somehow, in spite of his introverted nature, the man always spent as much time as possible with the extroverted pinkette.

       Much like Sasori's friends, Sakura's friends also didn't quite understand how the two were dating. Ino could list five different times off the top of her head when the medic would burst into their shared apartment, annoyed at something a kid in her art class had done, only to find out that it was Sasori all along years later. Although the blonde was grateful to no longer have her messy best friend living with her, Ino couldn't help but worry about the other woman. Sasori was mean, cold, calculating, and incredibly cunning. The blue eyes woman is also convinced his morals are all out of wack regardless of Sakura constantly saying otherwise. Ino could tell, despite her preconceived notions of the man, that he made the green eyed girl much happier than the blonde had ever seen. 

       So in spite of some people's curious gazes, the two continued to enjoy themselves, laughing as they munched on mediocre mall food. Though Sakura would never admit it out loud, she too couldn't believe how the both of them have been together so long. Most men she dated got intimidated by her thriving career, fiery temper, and the fact that 9 times out of ten she was stronger than them. Sasori never once gave off that vibe and always told her how proud he was that she reached a new fitness goal or got a promotion at work. Those aren't the only reason's though for the unwelcome thoughts lingering in the back of her mind.

       Sakura was very messy, something Sasori absolutely couldn't stand, and they used to get into loads of arguments when they first moved in together. Since then she's actually gotten better about not just leaving her clothes lying around and actually doing the dishes once in a while. It's actually a little funny how he pretends to be annoyed when she puts her laundry in with his and he tells her to knock it off but does it anyway.

       Whenever she thinks about how little they have in common, she just laughs because there is so much that they do have in common, but sometimes she thinks they really are like yin and yang. For example, Sasori is such an art snob sometimes and even though she took an art class for college, she just doesn't get what he gets into arguments with Deidara for. After all, art is art, right? Wrong apparently as Sakura found out once as they both started spouting nonsense at her when she was trying to calm them down. Another example is how she is literally the definition of a prep/jock, and he is the embodiment of an angsty emo (eyeliner and all that Sakura (not so)secretly thinks is hot). And although he is taller than her, she can hold her liquor better, which you would never know since she gets into shenanigans more often due to two certain blonde friends of hers.

       Despite their differences though, they really do have somethings in common. They can both cook. for instance, even if his food always tastes better. They're both interested in medicine, albeit different sides of medicine. They both get jealous easily even though they trust each other 100%. She likes working out and he likes watching her work out, definitely not because she gets all sweaty and her hair is messed up, no way no how. Sasori loves it when she walks around their house wearing his shirts as does she. Both of them also really enjoy cuddling with Sakura as the big spoon holding Sasori while she plays with her hair. He loves drawing her and she loves that he thinks she's worthy of being drawn.

       Honestly there are as many differences as there are similarities between them, but the one that really brings them together is the fact that they're both only children. They understand what it's like to grow up wanting for siblings and finding them in your obnoxious blond friends instead. Sure they could focus on the differences that shouldn't make their relationship work like so many others, but why would they? Yeah, they could break up right now, or even tomorrow because of them, but if they only focused on the negatives that's exactly what would happen. After all, regardless of whether or not their relationship lasts, Sakura is going to continue to mooch off of her boyfriend for his heavenly back massages.

"You about finished with your smoothie?" Sasori questioned, breaking the girl from her thoughts.

       She took an extra large sip from her banana smoothie, a slurping sound coming from the straw letting them both know it was empty, while she raised one eyebrow up at him in response.

"Wow, Haruno, could've said 'no'." He teased in a sarcastic tone, "You don't have to be so dramatic."

"Oh as if I'm the dramatic one in this relationship," A scoff followed the end of her sentence as the pinkette stood up to throw their trash away.

"Nobody would be surprised." He retorted, grabbing her bags and following her lead.

"Just cause you've got them all fooled Red."

"Psh, whatever, you're the one who has everybody wrapped around her little finger."

"Oh are you jealous?"

"Hah! Of you? Never."

"I can see right through you sweetie, you're so jealous that Konan loves me more than you even though you've been friends longer."

"As if Haruno, I can't hold that against Konan or you for that matter since everyone who even comes within a five mile radius of you is immediately struck by cupid's bow."

       The woman merely scoffs and shakes her head at the absurd notion, a light blush dusting her cheeks. Sasori knew just the right thing to say to make her feel like a schoolgirl again. Giving her a light, happy feeling in her chest as her heart beat a little too fast for her liking. The man in question simply places his arm around her shoulders and pull her closer to him as they continue walking past stores and out to the parking lot.

"We done for the day?" Sasori inquired.

"Yeah," Sakura replied thoughtfully, "I'm pretty sure we've got the prefect gifts for everybody as well as some cute outfits for me, of course."

"Of course." He joked back, looking down at her with nothing short of adoration in his eyes.

       Sasori was not an overly affectionate man and he certainly did not like PDA. In general he was not even considered a loving man, in fact Sakura was the first real girlfriend he'd ever had. Of course he's dated girls before and slept around, but none of them ever made him feel anything. That was naturally before Sakura came running head first into his life, literally. She came barreling through the door of his art class on the first day of school and fell over herself trying to slow down so as not to run into him, but ultimately failing as they collided and their collective stuff fell to the ground with them. He was naturally annoyed with her, so he told her off, shocked when she decided to tell him off back. From then on he was intrigued by the energetic pink haired girl who's name he failed to catch.

       Growing up in a small town, Sasori was used to all the woman being polite and meek, and obviously Sakura was anything but. She is wild and loud and snorts when she laughs too hard. Sakura Haruno is a spitfire and if the red haired man was being honest with himself, he quite enjoyed teasing her and watching as her cheeks turned red from anger, although he wasn't sure why. After all, he'd never felt anything for anybody before, so why on earth would him having feelings for her even make the 'top 20 reasons why he could do this list' in his head? He actually told his grandmother about the strange woman in his class during winter break and could not for the life of him realize why the old lady was suddenly on the floor laughing her pants off at him.

"How did I raise such an oblivious child?" She asked him once she finally stopped chortling, "How is it you are so observant when it comes to other people, yet so obtuse when it comes to yourself and your own emotions?"

"What on earth are you talking about old lady?" He was getting tired of this.

"Honestly kid," She wiped a tear from her eye and chuckled in disbelief, "I never thought I'd see the day you'd actually get a crush on someone."

"I don't have a crush on her. She's annoying and obnoxious and her sense of justice is overpowering!"

"Whatever you say dear." His Grandma Chiyo was starting to walk away.

"She can't even draw!" Laughs could be heard from the kitchen as he called after her, " She didn't even know what oil paints were until last week!"

       Of course his grandmother was right, but Sasori wouldn't let the woman know that, despite the fact that the man introduced the two most important women in his life just after three short months of dating. Now here they are, going on six years, and he had never been happier in his entire life. At first Sasori was afraid of how much he cared about Sakura in the beginning and actually started to push the poor woman away. Could you blame him though? Here this seemingly perfect woman comes into his life, pulling his walls down brick by brick, and you expect him to not freak out? Especially one who wears her heart on her sleeve and seems to be everything he's not. However she was much smarter than she let on and refused to let Sasori shut her out. She actually came knocking on his door after the third day of silence and demanded to be let in. That was their first real fight and their combined tempers made it explosive. Somehow Sakura managed to calm down, which calmed him down, and they were able to have an actual progressive conversation as opposed to a screaming match, trying to force their beliefs on one another.

       They've been going strong ever since and Sakura has proved over and over that his insecurities about their relationship are unfounded as she will always prove just how willing she is to work on their relationship together. She eases his anxieties and vise versa. Who cares if he's a morning person and she's not, or if he enjoys quiet nights in while she wants to go out? Though are trivial things that don't matter when one looks at the big picture. Sasori can feel the familiar weight in his right inside pocket, the small box bringing a comforting feeling to the otherwise apprehensive man.

"When are you going to get hitched?" His grandmother's voice rang in the back of his head as the memory of her words played over and over in his mind. She always asked that whenever they would visit, always making sure to pull the man aside.

       Sasori always shrugged off the question, acting nonchalant about it. To be fair the ring has been sitting in his pocket for a little over two years now, but he never managed to find the right time. Sakura was constantly busy with her career and finishing off her last year of school, not to mention how she always had her friend dates every Thursday. Honestly the man took what he got when it came to what little free time the pinkette had, he was selfish like that. Was it wrong to want her all to himself though? He didn't think so, and Sakura didn't seem to mind either.

       He coveted the nights when she was able to get off early and he could actually make her dinner, or their lunches together in his studio. He enjoyed being able to draw her sleeping form as the sun began to peek above the horizon and creating a halo effect on the woman. As an artist, his girlfriend was quite possibly the most exquisite thing he'd ever had the honor of bestowing his eyes upon, especially when she was resting as the tension left her shoulders and pink strands fell around and on her face.

       Who cares if she makes him go hiking with her when he just wants to read a book? Her excuse is that she wants a workout buddy, but he knows she already has one. That just means she wants to spend time with him, and who is he to object? Really, everybody knows Sakura's the boss in their relationship anyway and he couldn't tell her no if he tried. Yeah he'll pretend to make a show of it whenever she asks him to go on a new trail with her, but that doesn't mean he doesn't already have his shoes on before the words even left her mouth. Plus, if she makes him go hiking then that means he gets to drag her to every boring art show he has to go to and show her off. The other people are superficial at those events anyway and somehow his girlfriend is the master of small talk, and he really thinks she's an angel at least fifty times a day.

               The red haired man probably couldn't have fallen harder for anybody else if he tried. Sasori was looking forward to having her yell at him for using all the hot water cause his showers took too long again, or how they can simultaneously sit in comfortable silence for hours on end and talk non-stop. Their conversations are enlightening and she forces him to look at things from a new perspective, her optimism rubbing off on him. Sakura Haruno is a storm and he is looking forward to each new day alongside her.

"What do you think of Akasuna no Sakura?" Sasori asked to woman beside him as they finally made it to their car, the sun beginning to set.

The question seemed to catch her off guard for a second as she simply looked at him before replying, "That's okay, but what about Sasori Haruno?"

               He shrugged and they got in the car and he started it, looking at his girlfriend from the corner of his eye.

"I don't mind it." The red haired man told her casually.

"Oh really now?" She inquired.

"Yeah." The radio played quietly as he waited for Sakura's reply.

"Did you just propose to me?"

"I suppose I did."

       This caused a laugh to rip through the woman's throat as Sasori looked at her quizzically, trying to pay attention to the cars driving around them, a slight annoyance flowing through him. Was the thought of marrying him really that funny? He was about to tell her off but then she started speaking.

"About time."

"What? What does that mean?"

"You know what it means Red."

"How long have you been waiting for me to propose?"

"How long have you had that ring in your pocket?"

They were almost home now, but that made Sasori do a double take. She knew? "You knew?"

"Of course I did, you started acting a little weird when I wore your jackets and always insisted on checking the pockets first."

       They pull into their garage, park, and he just looks at her for a minute. Really looks at her. Takes in her short pink hair that's no longer a chin length and to her shoulders, her emerald eyes that always had a mischievous twinkle in them, her straight nose that was just a little crooked from being broken although you couldn't tell unless she told you. She gives him her sweet smile that he knows never reached her eyes in the beginning of their rocky friendship, but is delighted at the fact that it almost always does now. Sakura was a firecracker and now she'd be his firecracker forever.

       Slowly he takes the ring box out of his pocket and her eyes follow the movement. Sasori opens it and takes her hand in his as she waits for him to speak those life changing words, both still in the car as one of them holds her breath. Meanwhile he takes a deep breath to steel his nerves, all the words he wanted to say, all the things she means to him, have suddenly vanished from his brain. It doesn't matter though, he can always tell her in his vows and every single day for the rest of his life if she wanted him to.

"Will you, Sakura Haruno, do me the pleasure and honor of becoming my wife?"

"Of course," She replies with a sigh, letting him put the ring on her finger before pulling him into a kiss.

#fanfiction #my writing #sasosaku #sasori #sasori of the red sand #chiyo #sakura haruno #naruto #same age au #real world au #bitternessbitesback #please read and give me feedback #thank you!!! #i love you all!!! #sorry to mobile users! #i put the read more two paragraphs in #whoops

[milkshake-at-pops]

Tour of the Heart: Chapter 8

chapter 7/masterpost/chapter 9

let us know if you want to be tagged!

As Hollywood-chic as the tour bus was, it only took a day or so for Archie to get sick of it. It was cramped, and besides, he wanted to see the rest of New York City. This was Ronnie’s hometown, not his, and their first concert was tomorrow. Also, he wanted to get to know Jughead.

The reporter seemed like an interesting guy— he’d mostly kept to himself — and Archie’s manager had told him, in no uncertain terms, that the publicity for this tour could make or break his career. On a more personal level, Archie wanted to know what was hiding underneath Jughead’s beanie and his quiet demeanor.

“Hey Veronica,” Archie said, to his friend who was sitting five feet away from him on the other top bunk. “Do you know any good bars around here?”

Veronica giggled a little, for no reason that Archie could see. “Hmm… who are you taking? I hope it’s me, because there’s no way I’m letting you go bar-hopping on your own.”

“Um, actually, I was thinking of taking the reporter. Jughead, I think.” Archie swung his legs over the side of his bunk, looking at Veronica, who was reading a book, glasses on. Despite her offer to go, she didn’t look in the mood. Books and clubbing don’t mix well, at least according to Ronnie. Archie had never actually gone out clubbing before, it’s not like Riverdale had much of a night scene in a town where everyone went to bed before ten o’clock.

Lowering her reading glasses to look over at him, Veronica let her book fall in her lap. “Jughead… well, that changes things! I actually went to high school with him, fun fact, so I think I can give you two a solid recommendation. He actually dated a friend of mine for a time— before he moved on to Kevin Keller. They were cute, high school sweethearts, but it didn’t last. I wish I’d stayed in touch with him to know how it ended, though. It was very Breakfast Club of them— the theatre kid and the recluse. I swear, the two of them fulfilled every single gay stereotype during high school. Which was breaking stereotypes in its own way, although I do think I did that a touch more than they did. Being a feminine and out bi girl was… something.”

Archie was already down from the bed, tugging his shoes on and picking out a shirt from his suitcase. “What was the bar’s name again?” he asked, completely tuning out Veronica’s ramble.

She sighed. “Metropolitan. It’s in Brooklyn, so you should call an uber. And, fortunately for you and Jughead, it’s pretty cheap.”

“Metropolitan. Sweet, let me just grab Jughead from the kitchen and then we can get going,” Archie said, giving Veronica the smile that, unbeknownst to him, had already enraptured Jughead Jones. “Thanks for the spot.”

He found Jughead in the kitchen, eating a bag of sea salt and vinegar chips. “Oh, hey Archie. Didn’t see you there,” Jughead said, quickly shoving his phone into his pocket the second he saw Arch. “Want some chips?”

“Um, no thanks, because I was kind of wondering,” Archie began, wondering why his words were sticking in his throat. “Do you want to go get a drink or two, and um, get to know each other? I mean, I can’t exactly have the star reporter, Jughead Jones, on my tour bus without getting to um, know him some more than just your excellent fashion sense.” Archie’s eyes moved from Jughead’s beanie to his black t-shirt to his equally black ripped jeans, not sure what to do now that he’d stopped talking.

It took a few seconds for Jughead to respond, his face flushing slightly as he responded. “Sure, I’d love to become more acquainted with the world-class musician that I’m touring with, especially since I’m just…” A Buzzfeed “reporter” who has never actually written an article for their news section before now. “... so excited for the rest of the tour. Let me get my um…” don’t say condom, don’t say condom “Jacket. Because it might be cold. Then I’ll join you in the uber.”

Jughead bolted out of the room and dove into his suitcase under his bed which, unfortunately, was underneath Arch’s bed because Cheryl had already claimed the one under Veronica’s. Trying and failing to not ponder the sheer embarrassment of having in-the-flesh Archie Andrews walk into the kitchen while he had Archie Andrews’ instagram page up on his phone, he grabbed his old leather jacket (with a snake on it, because Toni had bought it for him as a gag gift) and took a deep breath to steady himself before walking back into the kitchen.

Archie Andrews felt a little awkward with his hand in the bag of chips that Jughead had just been eating, but they were addictively good and he was still waiting for the uber. He took note of how the leather jacket Jughead wore fit him well, like the sort of thing Jughead had worn enough that it had just become a part of him. “The uber’s going to be here in a couple minutes, you ready?”

“Yeah, I’m ready to go. I wasn’t expecting this like, at all, but I mean, getting a drink barely requires a lot of preparation. Unless you’re Cheryl, in which case it’s usually an hour of raiding her closet for the best outfit and four selfies before we even reach the bar,” Jughead said, secretly very glad that his friendship with Cheryl meant that he knew rich people took ubers to clubs, not the bus. Or just walking, honestly. Just because Jughead had never actually been to a bar unless Cheryl dragged him didn’t mean that he didn’t know exactly how he’d do it without her.

“Sounds a lot like Veronica, but add the fourteen calls to the manager of the club so that she can get free drinks,” Archie said, laughing a little. His phone dinged in his pocket. “Oh, our uber’s here.”

They got in the uber, and instead of the awkwardly silent drive that Jughead had expected from someone who was as undoubtedly cool as Arch Andrews, the singer talked his ear off. From exploits with Veronica to ridiculous high school stories in Chicago, Arch had no problem sharing his life with someone that he barely knew.

And Jughead found himself, the guy who barely bothered saying more than four words to anyone unless it was via email, talking just as much. He told Archie about all the shit Cheryl had dragged him into, including when she’d demanded that he, as her best friend, find her a girlfriend, and, since it was four AM on a Friday night, Jughead prank called Toni.

“Wait, they actually got together?” Archie said, shaking his head.

“Cheryl and Toni, or fucking Choni, as Cheryl insisted on calling them, went strong all throughout our sophomore, junior, and senior year of college. I don’t know why I decided to play drunk Cupid in that moment, but I don’t regret it,” Jughead said, smiling at Archie’s attentiveness. Their uber pulled up next to the club, and Archie held the door open like a gentleman for Jughead, who wished that his beanie could become a ski mask so that his blush wouldn’t be so obvious. He could only imagine how much he looked like the cousin of a tomato.

They walked inside, and ordered drinks. Jughead took one look at the vibrantly colored menu full of words he couldn’t pronounce, and said “I’ll have what he’s having.” The bartender shot him a wink as he slid their drinks across the bar. Noting that the bartender was shirtless, Jughead took a sip of his not-half-bad cocktail and focused his attention back to Archie.

“So, Toni Topaz. How do you know her? She’s a Youtuber, and um, that doesn’t exactly seem like your crowd,” Archie said, once again taking in Jughead’s “It’s not a phase, mom” outfit.

“It’s not, really. Actually, we were friends way back in high school, she’s a part of my silly friend group. She actually gave me this jacket, by the way,” Jughead said, spinning around in the bar stool to show the back of it. “Which has a snake on it, because our groupchat name throughout all of high school was the Serpents.”

“No way, that’s so cool. Why the Serpents? Snakes are kind of gross,” Archie said, taking a drink from his glass.

“Like all good stories, this one begins with a Taylor Swift song,” Jughead said, feeling a wave of nostalgia as he remembered how it happened. “Okay, so there’s this guy in our group, goes by Fangs. He, for reasons I will never understand, was obsessed with Taylor Swift. Now, I don’t think she’s half bad, but this was next level. Anyways, you know that one video with all the snakes?”

“Yeah, I know it. Where is this going?” Archie said, resting his elbows on the bar and leaning closer to Jughead. “I’m captivated, you’re a really good storyteller. I can see why you’re a reporter.”

Jughead laughed, because this was an absolute gem of a story. “So, approximately five seconds after the video drops, Fangs decides to change the chat name to ‘Snake Bros’ with like, five snake emojis. Anyways, we were all immediately like, ‘No. Dude, don’t drag me into this. We support you, but for god’s sake the groupchat title can’t be about snakes.’ To which Toni, wise-ass as always, responds with ‘we should make it Snakes On A Plane.’”

That got a laugh out of Archie, and Jughead couldn’t remember enjoying a sound more. “But Fangs is insistent that we need to have a ‘squad,’ because he watched the video again while we were all going ‘Fangs dude, what the fuck.’ And he keeps saying that if we won’t be Swifties with him, that we at least need something that relates to his interests as a groupchat title. So obviously, no more titles with B emojis. Which is a tragedy of epic proportions, but that’s besides the point. Sweet Pea, who wasn’t Fangs’ boyfriend yet, but was getting there, suggested ‘Serpents’ because it sounded badass.”

“Okay, that’s good. And, let me guess, it stuck?”

“No, absolutely not. Betty had a freak out about how much she just hates snakes, Toni changed it to ‘Big Chungus’ at least eight times, I think I turned it into ‘Sad Emo Squad’ before Fangs changed it to fifteen more snake emojis. At a certain point, I believe that Fangs and Joaquin had a shouting match,” Jughead said, taking another drink and wondering if he could get lost in Archie’s deep brown eyes.

“That’s awful. Wait, how did you end up becoming the Serpents, then?” Archie asked, furrowing his brow in confusion.

“Me and Toni bought Fangs a stuffed snake to try and keep the peace, and quietly asked him if we could just call it ‘Serpents,’ if that would be okay with him. Fortunately for everyone’s collective sanity, he said yes.”

Archie smiled and laughed, returning Jughead’s tale with a yarn of his own. It was almost midnight before Veronica texted them to remind them that yes, they had a show tomorrow. As they slouched against each other on the ride back, Archie and Jughead wondered how people could go from being complete strangers, from pixels on a screen to someone captivating in every way.

#riverdale #riverdale fanfiction #jughead jones #archie andrews #cheryl blossom #veronica lodge #jarchie #cheronica #gay #lesbian #bi #ace #celeb au #tour of the heart #this is so Incredibly late but in my defense its mod j posting for mod * and its. hard

[tellywoodtrash]

ishqbaaz 01.09.17 lb

wishing you all Eid Mubarak! 🌙✨✨✨✨  may the day bring you and your family all the happiness and love! 💖💖💖 

(and lots and lots of yummy food. gifts/donations in the form of biriyani, sevaiyaan, and other assorted noms are always appreciated at tellywoodtrash. 😊😊😊) 

anika’s hungry. (jism ki bhook? 😆😆😆)

ohhhhhhh yeahhhhh, billu’s here to mitaaofy The Bhook. 😏😏😏

god his hair is so fucking ugly like this, please can he go back to his old non golden hair. or at least put it up in the “i’ve been electrocuted” shock-puff instead of this weird side comb over a la mahi. i can’t concentrate on the hotness of the scene thanks to this! 😣😣😣

whoooooop, the truth of the pav bhaji is out. 😬😬😬

billu’s like you’re no gordon ramsay yourself, missy. 🙄🙄🙄

BLOODY DADI. WHY WON’T YOU LEAVE THEM ALONE????/ 😒😒😒

PFFFFFT, SHE’S PUTTING HIM BEHIND THE MOST TRANSLUCENT CURTAIN IN THE UNIVERSE. 😑😑😑

eeeeeeeeeee. 😍😍😍

lord bless rudra, the stupid cupid of this house. 👼🏽👼🏽👼🏽 doodho nahaao, phoolo phalo, mere laal. 😌😌😌

waaah! billu taking anika out for pav bhaji date! who are you and what have you done to our organic and clean-eating billu? 😯😯😯

ugh pinkyyyyy ka nonsense. 😤😤😤

shaktiji has had enough of this garbage. same, shaktiji, same. 😑😑😑

did om get his satyavaadi side from chote papa? 🤔🤔🤔

goddddddd, anika is going to get the keeda to fix this mess now. GIRL NO. PLEASE. FFS, PLEASE. 😫😫😫

oh. of course he got a pav bhaji thela INSIDE oberoi mansion. this extra ass fucker. 🙄🙄🙄

ok i’ve said pav bhaji so many times in the past two days, that now i really want it. GODDAMNIT I’M SUPPOSED TO BE EATING CLEAN TOO. FML. 😩😩😩😩😭😭😭😭

lmaooooo she almost passed out from another pav bhaji induced (mouth) orgasm 😆😆😆

shivaay, you’re really facing tough competition. i really doubt you’ll be able to bring her to such ecstasy. 😝😝😝

“kya hua, theek nahi hai? daantoon mein usse?” 

ouff billu! 

“kaisi hai? boliye!” “khaate waqt bolna nahi chahiye.” “koi nahi. main bolti hoon. aap bhi boliye!” *quietly to himself* “tum bohut bolti ho.” 

i can’t handleeeeee his adorbz. 😚😚😚

“main raat mein citric acid nahi leta.”

god this man and his insane dietary rules. 😒😒😒

ugh they’re so cuteeeee on their ridiculous improvised date. 💖💖💖

oh boy, she’s gonna bring up pinky. girl whyyyyyyyyyyyyy. 😣😣😣

yup. called it. billu’s repressing all his feelings about this. it’s going to come out as a jwaalamukhi at some point. *sigh* 😔😔😔

this is the most normal outfit i’ve seen shivaay in since forever. he’s looking verrrrrrrrrrrry nice. 😍😍😍

these challenges are so amateur and childishhhhhhhhhhhh. they’re grownass adults, bruh. who’ve already been married for like, a year. 😑😑😑

ohhhhh boy. i don’t even know what to expect with this. 😟😟😟

pffffffft, he doesn’t sound anything like her, other than all the catchphrases. 🙄🙄🙄

i am loving rudra’s delight at all this though. what a cutie. 😌😌😌

lmaoooooooooooooo rudra singing O JAANA. such meta. 

ya gaana sab ko sunaayi deta hai??? 🤔🤔🤔

apparently rudra’s changed teams and is fully on bhaiyya’s side today. 😊😊😊

bhaiyya’s using opportunity to CLOSELY OBSERVE bhaabi 😚😚😚

anika’s turn! 

she’s better at this than he is! she’s got the phone waali tadi down pat! 

hein? “what the”? behenji yeh aapke pati ka dialogue nahi hai! 😟😟😟

aaaaaaand there goes the phone. 😬😬😬

damn girl, dat booty tho. 👅👅👅💦💦💦

um yeah, billu looks turned on af. 😏😏😏

aaaaaaand pinky’s here to ruin everything. 😒😒😒

my poor boy though. he’s sooooo close to tears. 😥😥😥

(great subtle acting by nakuul here, the clenched jaw, the pained swallowing. bruh, why can’t you be this toned down and effective in all scenes???) 

god, this tapasya nonsense again. 🙄🙄🙄

“MRS. OBEROI” 

yup. def taking a leaf outta omki’s book. 

he’s righteously outraged on HER behalf. she’s heartened and all dreamy eyed at her suddenly amazing pati, but oh, the guiltttttt. 😐😐😐

time for dadi to lecture. 😒😒😒

teesra challenge is... poverty? 🤔🤔🤔

hardy har har, what a fun game for these outrageously rich people to play! 😑😑😑

oh god, shivaay has to go live in a chawl. 😟😟😟

‘oh my god, i have to call the chawl ppl and warn them what’s coming. 😕😕😕’

billu’s overly confident. my god son, you should be hella scared. you won’t be able to survive. i’m middle class and *I* can barely survive middle class life in india before screaming to be put back on a plane home. 😶😶😶

rudra: yeh toh koi reality show jaise ho gaya; end mein bhaiyya bolenge “i’m SSO, mujhe is ghar se baahar nikalo!!!” 

“zero sambhaal ke!”

200 rs. dude. one of billu’s fancyass coffees for the day costs more than than. 😗😗😗

lmao “woh burger waala meal kar lena. veg. non veg toh aayega nahi.” 😂😂😂

yuppppp, no one’s nikaaling the gaadi for you, son. bus se jaa. 🚌🚌🚌

ok even the kurta he’s changed into is tooooooo fancy. 😕😕😕😕

dude, you have just 200 rs for the day. auto mein jayega toh 50% of the funds are gonna be over in that ride. 😣😣😣

LMFAO HE NEEDS TO BE HELPED UP INTO THE AUTO 😆😆😆

lmaooooooooooo SEAT BELT KAHAN PE HAI hahahahahaha 🤣🤣🤣

of course, he’s worried about his hair. 🙄🙄🙄

LOL AUTOWAALA IS PLAYING THE NATIONAL ANTHEM OF ALL AUTOWAALAS: TUM TOH TEHRE PARDESI. HAHAHAHA. 🤣🤣🤣🤣

anika just lost her patience and told him to stop being an ass to the autowaala. lmaoooooo look at him sulkkkk. 😚😚😚

lololol everytime he wants to be called “hot” instead of cute, the universe sends him a sign that it’s not meant to be; pehle daadi, ab road mein khadda thanks to which he went and hit his head. 😆😆😆

“yahi toh iski best feature hai.” chance maar raha hai billllllu. 😏😏😏

“aaraaam se le jaana, lambe raaste se. koi romantic gaana nahi hai tumhare paas? O JAANA suna hai?” 

lolololololol this idiot 😂😂😂😂

ouff tejLana nonsense. fwding. where my rikara babiessss? 😩😩😩

here they are!!!!! 😊😊😊

this set looks familiarrrrrr? was it used in the bareilly track? 🤔🤔🤔

something’s shady about this guyyyyy who’s the caretaker. he might try to loot them too. 😐😐😐

awwww, he’s giving her his handkerchieffffff. 😘😘😘

who stole the murtis????? 😯😯😯

yup. this fucker with ALL TEH GOLD on him (more gold than anika at her wedding with vikram even) def. has something to do with its disappearance. 😤😤😤

oh thank god, om at least listened to her and believes her without awaiiii ka misunderstanding and drama. 🙄🙄🙄

ouff such long tejLana scenes.

omkara’s interrogation koi rang nahi laa rahi, toh dabanngggg gauri utar rahi hai maidaan mein. 😎😎😎

LMAO LOOK HOW TINY SHE IS OMG I WANNA PUT HER IN MY POCKET AND CARRY HER AROUNDDDDDD😱😱😱😊😊😊😘😘😘

time for her lame candy trick. 🙄🙄🙄

hahaha, om’s face. 😆😆😆

oufffff what even is going on with tejLana??? ouff i have to go read the written update now. 😒😒😒

eeeeeeeeee. how impressed he looks. my babies! 😊😊😊😘😘😘

#ishqbaaz #ishqbaaaz #ib episode liveblogs #episode liveblogs #010917 ib lb

[vodkawrites]

Yuuri Week 2017, Day 6: Home Title: 28 Tuxes Chapter 6 Genre: Alternative Universe Pairing: Katsuki Yuuri / Victor Nikiforov, Jean-Jacques Leroy / Isabella Yang Characters: Katsuki Yuuri, Victor Nikiforov, Jean-Jacques Leroy, Isabella Yang, Leroy Family Rating: Teen and up audiences Warnings: None Summary: While planning his 28th wedding, Yuuri begins to wonder if he can ever find love for himself.Or; the victuuri 27 dresses AU absolutely no one asked for.

Read the sixth chapter on AO3

Yuuri wakes up in the morning with a raging headache. He really shouldn’t be surprised by now; it’s been three consecutive weekends that this has happened. Waking up in Victor’s arms, his back pressed against Victor’s chest and his hands tangled in his hair; it feels like home.

He really doesn't want to be at the office by 10AM - if he were being honest, he doesn’t want to be anywhere at 10AM - but he rolls out of bed regardless, careful not to disturb Victor.

Victor, however, stirs a bit.

“Don’t leave,” Victor mumbles with a yawn.

“Victor,” Yuuri drawls out, turning to face the reporter - his lover, he mentally corrects himself, not just a reporter. He thinks by now, it is safe to assume that they are lovers. They have spent every moment they aren’t working with each other, after all.

Yuuri groans. “You know I have work.”  

He peels himself off from the bed and walks over to his drawers. He picks out a neatly folded collared shirt, a brown sweater, and a pair of black slacks. It’s not the best outfit he could choose, but he supposes the only person he has to impress is already sleeping in his bed, demanding that he stays.

“Mmmm,” Victor hums. “Let your assistant do it. You need sleep. You’ve done enough for their terrible relationship.”

“No,” Yuuri disagrees. He turns around, hoping for some privacy as he changes into his work clothes. He knows it’s immature to even do so - Victor has seen him naked on multiple occasions (and the  love bites that litter his skin only further prove so) - but he does so out of habit.

He pulls of his (or rather Victor’s) over sized t-shirt  and discards it onto a growing pile on the floor. He’ll clean it later - or at least that what he tells himself.

“You just want me to stay home with you.”

Victor rolls over onto his side. He props his head up with his arm, resting his head on his palm. His hair is tousled from the rough sleep, platinum strands sticking out in every direction. It looks rather adorable to see him look so disheveled; it’s something Yuuri doesn’t exactly mind waking up to.

“That doesn’t sound that bad, does it?” he asks with a smug grin.

Yuuri turns around, sliding his arms through the sleeves of his collared shirt.

“No, it doesn’t,” he agrees. Regardless, he continues to dress himself, buttoning the first few buttons of his shirt.

“Then lay back down,” he says convincingly. He pats what is now considered Yuuri’s side of the bed once, motioning for him to come back to bed. “JJ and Isabella can go one day more without , trust me”

Yuuri rolls his brown eyes.

“No. I have a job to do. Unlike some people,” he mumbles mockingly.

Victor pushes himself up onto the palms of his hands, sitting in an upright position. The blanket slips down his chest, revealing his naked chest. It’s not exactly unflattering - actually it’s quite the opposite - and Yuuri is grateful for the sight.

“I’m sorry I can’t cater to JJ and Isabella every second of my life,” he quips sarcastically.

Yuuri playfully sticks out his tongue. “Yeah, but it would be nice to actually see you work for once in your life.”

“Hey!” he defends. He pouts, sticking out his bottom lip much akin to a child. “I’m supposed to have an article come out soon.”

“Then go work,” Yuuri quips with a smirk.

Victor stretches out his legs, his toes spreading apart as he does so. “It’s off season.”

“Then go spend it at your own home instead of lazing around in mine,” Yuuri says, motioning for the door. He doesn’t exactly want Victor to leave - quite the opposite actually; he wants nothing more than Victor to stay forever - but he would much prefer Victor tends to his own home and his own life.

“What if I said this is my home?” he asks with a sly grin.

Yuuri pauses from buttoning up his shirt.

“Victor, we’ve known each other for a month,” he begins rationally. Sure, one day he would like to agree with Victor - to have his apartment become their home with three poodles running around and maybe a child or two - but for right now, he is content with their lives as they are.

“Forty five days, Yuuri,” Victor corrects, licking his lips. “Forty five days, twenty hours, seventeen minutes, and fifty one seconds.”

Yuuri cocks his hip to the right, giving Victor and unimpressed look.

“Now you’re just bullshitting,” he claims with a roll of his eyes. There is absolutely no way that Victor - Mr. I hate love and will never admit that I am in love - has been keeping track of how long they have known each other, down to the mere second. Even a romantic like Yuuri isn’t that obsessive.

“No,” Victor insists. “I remember clearly when I met my boyfriend.”

Yuuri stills.

Boyfriend?

Did Victor just refer to him as his boyfriend?

Yuuri has never had anyone refer to him as a boyfriend. Yes, he has had many lovers, but that’s all they were: casual hook ups with no strings attached. But a boyfriend (a genuine boyfriend), is something he has never even considered. And with the most wonderful man in the entire world?

He must still be dreaming.

“Well if you want to see your boyfriend later tonight, I suggest you go home and make yourself presentable.” He picks up his pillow and throws it as Victor. Victor easily deflects the pillow from hitting him square in the jaw.

“Besides, you should go tend to your dog. I bet she’s dying to see you.”

Victor rips the blankets off from his body revealing his completely naked body. It’s pale and glistens in the morning light, the love bites still raw from the night before. It only incentives Yuuri to stay.

"Aw but Yuuri, it’s a Saturday,” he pouts, giving Yuuri his signature puppy dog eyes. He stands up and walks over to Yuuri’s side of the bed. He easily wraps his arms around Yuuri’s frame and hangs on him limply.

Yuuri forces him to stand upright, trying to get him to stop clinging to him. He will not be swayed by his cute pout and longing eyes, no matter how irresistible they are.

“Doesn’t change the fact that I have work to do. Rome wasn’t built in a day,” he reminds him. He pokes him in between his eyebrows for good measure.

Victor sighs and stands straight.

"But Isabella and JJ can wait,” he says, his voice low and sultry. It is usually the voice he saves for the bedroom, when Yuuri is on the verge of a climax, but he supposes he can use it now as well.

“As can you,” he breathes out, trying to echo Victor’s sensual.

“I don’t think I can!” he complains, dejectedly.

Yuuri shakes his head. “I know you can.”

“Eight hours without you? What ever will I do?”  he asks dramatically. He places a hand over his heart, pretending that he has just been struck there by cupid’s arrow.

Yuuri rolls his eyes at his theatrics.

“You have to stay home and tend to my wounds!” Victor demands. He even holds out his arm for Yuuri to inspect, as if he is actually going to find something physically wrong with it.

Yuuri narrows his eyes at his arm before twisting it over. As he thought, no visible wounds.

He drops Victor’s arm and replies smoothly “you’re fine. Now go write your article. You said you’re supposed to have one come out soon.”

Victor lets out a defeated sigh, one that is long and winded. He knows is pleas are futile in convincing Yuuri to stay.

“Yeah, you’re right,” he agrees finally. “But I’m coming back at six for our date.”

He hums in agreement. “Come back then.”

“Alright,” he agrees with a wink. “I’ll make sure to bring more orchids.”

“Stop it, I have enough,” Yuuri insists, a small blush growing on his cheeks. Victor - in all of his extra theatrics - continually brings flowers  after every night they have spent together. Everything from roses to sunflowers to even orchids, Victor has gifted. Yuuri swears his house is going to become a garden at some point.

“No one can have enough flowers, especially not my beautiful boyfriend.”

Victor locks his arms around Yuuri’s neck, pressing their bodies against each other. He nuzzles his head in Victor’s shoulder, drinking in his smell; it’s a bit musky and not all that pleasant, but he likes how natural it is.

Yuuri gives him a peck on the cheek before pulling away. It has become a comfortable routine, waking up with Victor and giving him a goodbye kiss. And no matter how many times he does it, he wants Victor to keep him close.

“Put on some clothes and remember to lock the door.”

“I’ll see you at six.” he calls as Yuuri walks out of the apartment.    

He shuts the door behind him, walking away from his home - no, their home.

He likes calling it their home.

Yuuri steps into his office, immediately making a b-line for his office. He doesn’t exactly have much time before JJ and Isabella are supposed to arrive (he would have more time if someone didn’t distract him). He hopes he can at least get a few more things done before they arrive.

However, he realizes that is obviously not possible when he spots them waiting in the main room. Isabella, JJ, and his parents are all patiently sitting on the furniture, tapping their fingers on their phones.  Phichit is chatting to them excitedly about the upcoming season, but stops once he notices Yuuri arrive. He easily excuses himself back to the main room, leaving Yuuri alone with his clients.

"Oh, you're all early,” Yuuri says, a bit taken aback. They usually aren’t the kind of family to be early to events - usually coming about ten to fifteen minutes late to every appointment - so it is a bit jarring to see them up on a Saturday morning before he has even had the chance to make a cup of tea. He wonders if Victor had kept him occupied for so long.

He pulls at the frayed edges of his sweater, continuing to stand in his doorway. It’s always awkward when his clients arrive before him, but he won’t let that bother him. Not when his morning has been so wonderful. He doesn’t think anything - not even JJ’s bothersome parents - could ruin today for him.

"Don’t worry about it,” Isabella assures him with a small, albeit forced, smile.

Yuuri nods, rather pleased that they didn’t have some nasty comment about his late arrival. He takes it as an invitation to walk into his office, gesturing for the family to follow. He turns on the lights and walks over to his desk.

“I’m sorry for the tardiness. I hope I haven’t kept you waiting too long,” Yuuri apologizes instinctively. He sits down at his desk, turning on his computer. He waits for the log in screen to show up before expertly typing his password.

He pulls up their file on the computer. It doesn’t have that many documents in it for a couple whose wedding is nearing a half of a year away, but he supposes they only started planning it one month ago. Besides, at the rate they are working, he is confident he will have everything done in time.

He opens up the schedule, looking for today’s date. He quickly finds his notes about what needs to get done. It is mostly minor things such as picking the meals and choosing items for the registry.

He has never liked picking out items for the registry. He finds it is mostly useless items that couples typically only use once. He wonders if he wants a registry. Or rather if Victor would want a registry to begin with.

No, this isn’t about his wedding with Victor (if he even decides that he wants to marry Victor because that is very far in the future). This is about JJ and Isabella and he will not be unfocused by his wandering mind.

“Today we are registering items, correct?” Yuuri asks, looking over the top of his computer monitor.

He notices that they are all standing uncomfortably close to his desk. It’ is a bit jarring to see the entire family standing instead of taking their usual seats - JJ and Isabella on one couch and the entourage of uninvited guests on the other.

“Actually we’re here for something else,” JJ confesses. He looks down at the floor, a much different attitude than his usual cocky demeanor.  

Yuuri pauses from his search, pushing up his glasses further up his nose. He looks over at the family a bit confused by the situation. He doesn’t exactly know what they are talking about.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t make note of those changes,” Yuuri apologizes, instinctively. He knows he is not the one to blame for this short term change, but he chooses to apologize anyways.

"Yuuri, did you read the paper this morning?" JJ’s mother asks with an unreadable expression. She taps her fingernails on the back of her plastic phone case impatiently.

"No...” Yuuri answers. He narrows his eyes, wondering how reading the paper has anything to do with planning a wedding. Maybe one of Victor’s articles actually got published in it. He genuinely hopes so; he sincerely loves reading his stories, even if he has absolutely no interest in ice skating or in JJ. There is something about the way he writes that absolutely enthralls Yuuri.

“I didn't know anyone still reads the paper,” he continues honestly. He assumes that reading the newspaper is outdated (he is surprised that Victor even still has a job in such a dying field).

"Well you should,” JJ’s father lectures. “You're in it."

“Me?” Yuuri asks, cocking one eyebrow. A few situations immediately come to mind: maybe Phichit promoted their company or maybe there is an article about his last wedding. Or maybe Victor finally released his article about their wedding.

“Why?”

“Read it,” JJ’s mother insists. She digs in her large tote bag for something - presumably this morning’s paper. She holds out the newspaper (yes, an actual physical copy of a newspaper) out for Yuuri to read. She watches from over the top of her thick glasses as Yuuri takes the paper in his hands and opens it.

He glances at the words on the page. There, the largest article on page 3, is a picture of JJ holding a blonde woman by the waist. He is directly smirking at the camera as if he knows the picture is being taken but the woman’s face is turned away.

The connotation is clear.

"JJ's relationship is on the ice,” he reads the title out loud. At the very least, it is a clever title.

“Keep reading,” JJ’s mother urges, her tone cold and bitter.

Yuuri scans his eyes over the article. It goes into detail about JJ’s rather public relationship with some unknown female and his supposed adultery with his fiancee Isabella. He doesn’t really see how he plays in to this at all.

He gets past the first paragraph when JJ’s father interrupts him.

“Reports from their wedding planning company I Love Yuu say that Jean-Jacques and his finance have cold feet,” he recites perfectly.

“Wait what?” Yuuri asks. He immediately scans the article in search of his company’s name. There, as plain as day, is his company’s name along with a quote.

"JJ’s mother slams her hands down on his desk. “Do you know who told?" she asks, looming over him. He tries not to be intimated by her looming figure, but it is rather hard not to be discomforted by her intense gaze.

Yuuri holds up his hands in a mock surrender. "I'm not sure!" he assures her. He isn’t exactly who would have told about JJ’s intimate sex life let alone someone at his company.  

"It's trending all of social media,” JJ’s mother says. She pulls out her phone and taps on it once with her long fingernails. She turns the screen around to show Yuuri the trending topics on her twitter feed.

Yuuri squints at the bright screen. The first one is some government hashtag about the prime minister’s trip to Japan which Yuuri figures has nothing to do with the conversation and ignores it. The second hashtag is something about the Montreal Canadiens winning another game which again is just a popular topic and has nothing to do with the couple, the wedding, or Yuuri at all.

The third, however, is the one she is referring to.

#JJBellaBreakup: 8.6K tweets.

"Well you should consider yourself lucky the family's lawyer doesn't get involved. We could sue you for this."

"Mom, chill,” JJ begins in a warning tone. He places a hand on her shoulder, hoping that the gentle gesture will somehow calm down his mother.

“We’re not breaking up. It’s just lies,” JJ confirms.

"Besides, Yuuri would never tell anyone that,” Isabella defends. Her eyes flicker between JJ and Yuuri as if they are looking for some sort of confirmation. “He knows better than to trust a slimy reporter, right dear?"

"It was probably the receptionist. He seems rather nosy to me," JJ father mutters under his breath. “You really should fire him.”

“Dad,” JJ complains with a whine. “There’s no reason to call people out like that. It’s obvious Yuuri had no part in this. Besides, what’s done is done and we should focus on the wedding.”

JJ’s mother lets out a long sigh. She pinches the bridge of her nose with her hand.

"JJ is right. his isn't the time to blame people! We'll just talk to Victor about this."

Yuuri feels his world shatter.

Victor.

Victor?

Everything seems to crumble around him. He can feel himself spiraling as if he is no longer in his own body.

Just an hour ago, his life was perfect. He had a stable job doing what he loves and a boyfriend who likes to spend time with him. He was finally happy.

And now, he has nothing.

In just a few words, he has lost everything; his less than successful career, his lying boyfriend, and any chance of having a happy life.

Yuuri feels his chest tighten, his heart constricting as he tries to inhale calmly. His breaths come out unsteady and laboured, as if he is underwater and the waves continue to crash over his head. He silently wishes they would take him to the depths of the ocean.

He feels sick, as if the bile building in his throat has to expel somewhere. He wants to leave, wants to be anywhere but here.

This mess is all his fault. He is the one that told Victor that they may not love each other; he is the reason this article is published.

He should have never trusted him to begin with. He should have never let him in. He should have never trusted him with his heart.

“Victor?” Yuuri asks innocently. He tries to hide the sound of his voice cracking, hiding any signs of tears.

He will not cry over this.

He prays that they are talking about another Victor. There has to be other Victors in the world. One that also happens to know JJ and Yuuri and writes articles in the newspaper about how much love doesn’t exist.

He desperately clings onto the hopes that is some sort of misunderstanding; anything that can destroy his doubts.

“My reporter,” JJ clarifies as if Yuuri should already know this fact about him. “You know, grey hair and Russian accent. He usually does sports articles about me. Wonder who got him to do something so ridiculous.”

“Victor’s boss probably got him to write this before the season starts cause the work must be slow,” Isabella rationalizes with a nod.

Yuuri tries not to listen, tries to block out all of the negative words.

Victor would never sell out for a dumb paycheck. He would never.

Would he?

Maybe he doesn’t know his supposed boyfriend as much as he thinks he does.

“I guess this is what people want to read because their lives are so miserable they have to ruin everyone else’s, right?” JJ’s mother says, picking at her fingernails.

Yuuri feels his heart stop.

It all makes sense.

It all makes sense now. Why he always turns the conversation towards his job, why he’s always asking for opinions about JJ. He doesn’t actually love him; he is only using him for some article to further prove his point that love doesn’t exist.

Yuuri doesn’t think it’s that far off.

“Yeah, but maybe we can spin this. All publicity is good publicity,” Isabella reminds the group. She optimistically claps her hands together, trying to make light of the situation. Yuuri should be grateful for it, but instead he finds her positive attitude fake and unwanted.

JJ shakes his head. “It doesn’t mater. What’s done is done. We should just go and talk to Victor about this.”

JJ's father inhales through his nose, bringing Yuuri back to reality. "You're right,” he agrees, rationally. “We should go talk to him before this becomes a bigger problem then it needs to be. We will be seeing you soon.”

“Y-yes,” Yuuri chokes out.

Yuuri ushers the family out of his office, watching them go. He waits until all of his clients are gone before collapsing onto his desk. He sets his glasses on the desk before letting out a loud sob. He knows it is undignified to cry at work, but he does so anyways.

"Yuuri!” Phichit calls poking his head through the opening in the door.

Yuuri freezes.

Of course Phichit has to walk in now of all times.

He immediately tries to wipe away his tears. He knows his sweater is doing an absolutely poor job of cleaning anything, but he rubs against his cheeks anyways. He prays Phichit doesn’t notice, or at least doesn’t say anything.

He just wants to climb into his bed - preferably without the source of his misery still sleeping in it - and maybe eat an entire tub of ice cream to drown his sorrows away. Or really, he just doesn’t want to be anywhere but here.

“I just saw Isabella and JJ leave so I’ve gotta know the truth! Is it true they are breaking up?” he asks, animatedly waving his phone for Yuuri to see. “I saw all over social media! Apparently you know so you’ve gotta tell me! My followers need to know.”

Yuuri doesn’t speak. He lets the silence talk for him.

“Yuuri?” Phichit asks, the concern obvious in his voice. He seems to notice his discomfort as his usual cheery smile fades into a slight frown.

“It’s fine,” Yuuri strains himself to say. He knows it must sound terrible, but he says it anyways. Hopefully it is enough to sway his friend.

He scrambles to clean his face with the back of his sweater. He knows it is only making his face and eyes look more puffy and red, but he does so anyways.

“Come in,” he chokes out.

Phichit reluctantly agrees, walking closer to Yuuri.

“So,” he begins, drawling out the word. He sits at one of the office chairs in front of the desk, as if he is a client. He even crosses his legs, trying to remain as neutral as possible. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s nothing,” Yuuri says, hiding his face in his hands. He doesn’t particularly want Phichit to see his red cheeks and tear stained face, not when the wound is still so fresh.

“Yuuri...” he warns, his patience running thin.

He knows that he knows; Phichit somehow always seems to know. It seems that he can read Yuuri like an open book, no matter how closed he may think he is.

He hates that he knows.

“I’m gonna kill whoever did this!” Phichit yells, standing up from his chair. He balls his hands into fists, his knuckles turning a ghostly white.

“Phichit...” Yuuri whines.

“No,” he argues, swiping his hand in the air. He paces back and forth in the office as if he is trying to formulate his course of action “I’m not kidding. No one hurts my best friend!”

Yuuri sighs. He knows Phichit can be a bit overprotective, but this is going to far. He doesn’t even know the situation and yet he already wants to help.

“Thanks, but I’ll deal with it myself,” he says, brushing off his help. He doesn’t to drag Phichit into this situation just because he caught him crying at work. It’s Yuuri’s problem and he should solve it by himself.

Phichit scowls, unconvinced by Yuuri’s declaration. “And by deal with it yourself, you mean fly back home and work with your parents at the onsen instead?”

“Phichit,” he warns. He doesn’t want him to do anything he will regret later. He would much rather tell him details about their wedding or breakup than to discuss this.  

“Yuuri,” Phichit challenges. He rests his weight on his left leg, jutting out his hip to exaggerate just how annoyed he is with Yuuri’s dismissive attitude.

Yuuri exhales. He flops onto the desk, his arms splayed out over the edges. “What am I supposed to do? My career is ruined.”

“No it’s not,” he assures his friend. He walks around to the back of the desk and begins to rub soothing circles on Yuuri’s back in an attempt to comfort him. Yuuri just wishes he would leave him alone.

“This will blow over,” he finally reminds him.

Yuuri sits up straight, turning to face Phichit.

"No it won’t!” he shouts. He feels his breath coming out in shaky gasps, his words barely intelligible.

"Why not?” Phichit asks, cocking his eyebrow. “No one reads the paper.”

Yuuri’s shoulders tense.

“It’s not that easy!” he argues. He balls up his fists, his fingernails digging into his palms. They leave little crescent shapes in the skin, but Yuuri doesn’t mind.

“Why not? I could take on JJ,” he says with a confident smirk. “So what if he’s like a head taller than me. I know cross fit!”

Yuuri looks to the window. He dwishes it could be this easy, he wishes he could blame JJ and have the whole ordeal done with. He wants to move on, to not be so invested in something that obviously could have never worked out to begin with.

“It’s not JJ,” he admits.

Phichit pauses.

“Then who is it?” he finally asks. “Isabella?”

Yuuri feel his lip quivering, unable to get even one word out. It’s pathetic the way he he can’t even say his name. He wishes he could forget about him.

Phichit inhales through his nose. “Is it that reporter guy?”

Yuuri looks down, unable to face Phichit’s disappointed look as he nods once.

“Fine I’ll kill him,” he says, anger boiling in his words. “He ruined your career!”

“Not just that,” he says, his voice barely above a whisper. “He’s been using me.”

“Using you?” Phichit repeats back, as if he doesn’t understand.

“I’ve been seeing him.” Yuuri inhales sharply. “Sleeping with him,”  

“Oh now I’m really gonna kick his ass. No one uses my friend for sex and gets away with it!”

“Phichit!” he exclaims, hanging his head in shame. It’s bad enough to admit that he may have feelings for him, but it is absolutely mortifiying to tell his best friend that he has been sleeping with the one person that is causing him so much pain.  

“It’s true! “ Phichit defends with a scowl. “He’s an absolute douche. He doesn’t know what he’s missing out on. He’s lucky to even be in the vicinity of you!”

Yuuri forces himself to smile. He knows Phichit can tell it is fake, but he smiles anyways. “Thanks, Phichit.”

“I’m not kidding! You’re perfect!” he assures him. ”Besides, you don’t need him in your life.”

“You’re right,” he says. He forces the corners of his lips upwards, attempting to smile for Phichit’s sake. “I’m perfectly happy being single and alone.”

Phichit lets out a long breath.

“You’re not alone,” he assures him. “You have me and Minami and that cake guy you had a one night stand with.”

Yuuri groans.

“Yeah, but this is different.”

“Why?”

Yuuri doesn’t want to answer that. He doesn’t want to admit how much he has let his heart control his mind. He is supposed to be rational, trusting his logical mind over everything else. He isn’t supposed to fall for such charming smiles and good looks.

He swallows before saying “it just is. And you know what? I should’ve seen it coming.”

Yuuri looks down at his lap.

“He’s been using me,” he repeats. “It all makes sense now. He’d always ask me about my career and my opinions on the couple. I should have known.”

“It’s not your fault. And you don’t need someone like him, anyways,” Phichit assures him.

He places a hand on his shoulder, but Yuuri immediately shrugs it off. He doesn’t want Phichit’s pity or sympathy; he just wants to cry.

“He even said he doesn’t believe in love,” Yuuri mumbles.

Phichit wraps his arms around him comfortingly.  His friend, thankfully, says nothing, and just rubs his back in soothing circles.

Yuuri finally gives in. He lets out a loud sob, burying his face in Phichit’s shoulder. He hates the way his tears are staining his friend’s shirt. He hates how ugly and pathetic he must look right now. And above all else, he hates that he still cares so much about Victor when he obviously doesn’t care about him.

His sobs eventually turn to heaving breaths, his eyes too dry to expel anymore tears.

“Ugh, men,” Phichit finally sympathizes with a shake of his head.

Yuuri lets out a laboured breath.

He should have never trusted Victor. He should have never agreed to his wants.

Worse of all, he should have never trust his heart.

Yuuri wipes away his tears with the back of his palms. He wishes the salty tears would disappear but it only leaves him with small stains on his rosy cheeks.

“And the worst part?” he asks through his sobs.

Yuuri looks up at Phichit. Phichit only looks back at him with wide eyes.

He doesn’t want to admit it; doesn’t want to say the words because he knows that if he says them, then he will know it’s true.

However, his body seems to betray him.

“I still think I love him.”

Yuuri doesn’t want to go home.

Well he wants to go home, he wants to snuggle up in his blankets and block out the world for the next 100 years of his pathetic life. He wants to watch terrible romantic comedy movies and scream at the actors for not realizing their mistakes sooner. He wants to eat an entire tub of ice cream and some leftover takeout until he falls asleep, never to wake up and face reality again.

He wants to go to his home.

But he doesn’t want to go to their home.

He knows Victor is waiting. Victor is always waiting for him. Victor is probably holding a bouquet of orchids as he always does, wearing his favourite navy suit as he waits to take Yuuri in for a kiss.

He wants to walk away, to spend the night at Phichit’s or his home in Japan or anywhere but their apartment.

He has to face him at some point, rather do it now then let it fester, delaying then inevitable. Even if flying to Japan and helping out with his parents sounds oh so tempting right now.

"Yuuri!” Victor exclaims when he notices Yuuri walking up to the apartment. He stands up from the sidewalk and dusts off his navy slacks. He holds out the bouquet, ready to pull Yuuri in for an inviting kiss. “I'm so glad I got to see you!"

Yuuri stops only a few meters in front of him. He keeps his distance, making sure to avoid all contact with him.

“Please,” he pleads, his voice small. He holds a hand up, making sure he knows not to touch him.

He doesn’t want to say it, doesn’t want to tell him what he knows. He wants to live in the fantasy where Victor loves him - even if it is all fake. He’s happy this way, and maybe they can make it work.

“Go away,” he finally musters up the courage to say. He feels his heart physically clenching as he says those words.

“Yuuri?” Victor asks, cradling the bouquet in his hands tighter.

Yuuri hates that he says his name, hates how absolutely beautiful it sounds coming from his lips. He never wants to hear Victor say it again.

“I thought you wanted me to pick you up for our date?” Victor asks, his eyebrows furrowed. He instinctively checks his watch. “Am I early?”

Yuuri looks at him miserably.

"Victor, why?" he manages to ask, his voice small.

Yuuri looks to the floor, memorizing the cracks in the sidewalk. He can’t seem to look into Victor’s eyes as he says it. He makes it so complicated.

"Why what?" Victor asks, his voice soft.

"Explain this," Yuuri says.

He reaches into his front pocket and grabs his phone. He opens his twitter account and clicks on the #JJBellaBreakup tag. It’s already up to 20K tweets.

Victor looks violated. His eyes flick between the phone and Yuuri;s face, as if this is the first time he is hearing about this nonsense.

Yuuri scowls.

Victor has not right to act like he is the victim. Not after he uses him for an article, tricks him into sleeping with him, and then has the audacity to pretend that he is innocent of it all.

Yuuri feels an anger wash over him, one that he is not sure he has ever felt before. He physically wants to hurt Victor, wants to slap him - anything that will make him feel the same way he does. But he doesn’t think any physical damage will ever mimic how hurt he feels.

"Look,” Victor begins rationally. He takes open step closer to Yuuri, trying to amend Yuuri’s broken heart. But Yuuri supposes no amount of words will ever fix his shattered heart. “It's not what you think-"

"Victor! You used me!"

“Yuuri,” Victor begins. He leans in to wrap his arms around Yuuri.

Yuuri resists his embrace and roughly shoves him a feet steps back.

“You used my words! “ he argues. Tears begin welling in his eyes, building up before spilling over onto his cheeks. ”You published an article slandering JJ and Isabella! You used me to get ahead in your career and ruin their relationship all because you’re a cynical bastard that doesn’t believe in love.”

“Maybe at the beginning but I swear I didn't mean to!"  Victor defends.

Yuuri feels his tears continue to slide down his face, reaching his chin before dripping to the ground.

"You didn't mean to?” he asks, mocking the very words Victor used. “Did you mean to start trending on twitter? Did you mean to use my company's name? Did you mean to ruin my career?”

Victor inhales through his nose. “Just let me explain,” he pleads. Yuuri think he looks pathetic for even suggesting something so simple.

“Did you mean to steal my heart?"

Yuuri inhales.

"Did you even love me?" he whispers, hoping Victor wouldn’t hear him.

Victor pauses, running a hand through his hair. He looks desperate, as if he trying to find an answer to an unsolvable problem.

"Should I just kiss you to prove it?"

"No!” he shouts. He can feel the hot tears streaming down his cheeks in thick globs. He feels unattractive, the way snot pools under his nose, but he doesn’t care.

“You shouldn’t have to prove anything!”

"Yuuri-"

"You said you were going to get the story but I didn't think you'd stoop so low as to pretend to fall in love with me!" he says darkly.

"It's not like that!” Victor defends, almost pleading at this point. It’s desperate and low, even for Victor. He has no incentive to lie anymore as there as no more articles to write. He should just confess so they can move on; there’s no reason to make it more difficult than it needs to be. After all, it’s not like he actually has feeling for him to begin with.

“You don't understand!"

"I do understand,” he insists. “You thought it would be easy to fall in love with the one person's who so desperately wants to be loved. And now I open up just to have myself hurt?"

"Yuuri, just listen to me-"

"No,” he shouts, his voice louder than he expects. “Just go home. You got what you've always wanted. It's over."

"Yuuri," he calls out miserably.

Yuuri ignores him and walks into his apartment. Yuuri feels hollow, an empty feeling in his chest. He tries not to dwell on the sound of his own heart shattering.

He slides onto the floor of his apartment, curling his knees to his chest. He begins to sob into his hands.

He just wants to go home.

#yuuri week 2017 #2017 yuuri week #theme: home #day 6 #i'm so late #i'm so sorry #yuuri katsuki #victor nikiforov #victuuri #yoi fic #my fic #27 dresses au #28 tuxes

[9r7g5h]

Remember All - P5

Fandom: Xena: Warrior Princess

Overall Rating: T+ (Rating subject to change); Chapter Rating: K  

Genre: General

Summary:   Given another chance, left with her memories of their first time through, Gabrielle knows there’s only one option for her- let Xena live. Whatever she had to do, whatever she had to change to make sure that would happen, Gabrielle was willing to do it.

Words: 4,295

AN: I got to meet Renee O’Connor! ヽ(〃＾▽＾〃)ﾉ

Disclaimer: I do not own Xena.

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, ???

By the gods, Gabrielle had always hated Draco before. He was an arrogant, cruel, evil man, and by the gods had Gabrielle always hated him. But never before, even in their previous life, had she gotten as close to killing him as she had when Xena walked up and kissed him.

It was awkward between them, Xena's guilt clear when, later, she tried to find excuses for what she had done. As she fumbled her way through plans thought of on the spot and half-lies to explain why she had kissed him, flirted with him, made it clear she wanted him; especially when just earlier the same day she had kissed Gabrielle, had flirted with her, had bit back three little words that would finally give meaning to it all.

Gabrielle knew, of course; she knew it wasn't Xena's fault, but it was almost amusing watching her panic. So Gabrielle let her continue for a few minutes before pointing out that something seemed strange. Everyone around town seemed off, not just Xena, so perhaps it was something going on here?

Xena accepted the explanation with a look of relief, though it was clear she was still troubled. Though, that troubled look disappeared as she left to go meet up with Draco, to try and tempt him over to their side so he could join the fight for good. Gabrielle could only roll her eyes and try to figure out where Bliss was, calling softly to him as she tried to catch the little flying gremlin and either hand him over to his father or his grandmother, whoever answered her calls first.

Only to run straight into the arms of some of Draco's men, sent out to try and find the virgins while Draco kept Xena busy. Men who immediately tied her to a stake in the middle of town, only for Joxer to join her shortly after. She had tried to fight them off, but when there were thirty against one, and out of the corner of your eye you spotted one of the women you were there to protect, her Hestian garb only partly hidden by the peasant outfit she had put on? It was better to let yourself be taken than to put innocents in danger.

Of course, this made looking for Bliss that much harder, but not too much so. Because as Gabrielle stood there and watched Draco storm into the temple, only to furiously run out a few minutes later, followed by Xena, Gabrielle knew Bliss had to be close. Because just like she remembered from her last life, she felt that tiny little pinprick of pain before she was flooded with warmth. A warmth that demanded she turned and look at whoever was closest. A warmth she denied by squeezing her eyes shut, her face scrunched up in concentration as she tried to fight it off. She knew who she was, knew she was in love with Xena, and she refused to let a toddler with a crossbow change her.

She stood there, still, until she heard Xena's voice, concerned over her lack of movement. Until she felt Xena's touch on her cheek- Gabrielle opened her eyes and stared into Xena's, because if she was going to be put under a love spell, she might as well have it be for someone she already loved.

Nothing happened. Sure, Gabrielle felt another surge of warmth pass through her, settling into her bones as she met Xena's gaze, but there really wasn't anything else. She still felt the same as she had the day before, as she had six month ago, as she had two years ago, when she had first laid eyes upon Xena for the second first time. There was no difference.

Whether it was because she was just already in love with Xena or because she was strong enough to fight the effects of the arrow, Gabrielle wasn't sure. But either way, it worked.

Instead of stumbling around in love with Joxer, of all people, she could continue her search for Bliss and put an end to all of this.

She almost had him a couple of times, almost grabbed him by the heel of his foot or the tips of his wings, but for an infant he was fast, blinking away before she could catch him. Once she even though she had him, had managed to get an arm wrapped around his middle, but then his wings had smacked her in the face, leaving her with a mouthful of feathers as he fluttered away, shooting arrows as he went. She stayed close on his trail, though, careful to keep him in sight as much as she could.

Until Draco rang that stupid bell, and those idiotic Hestian Virgins decided that answering its call was more important than their own lives.

It was a quick fight- she was better now than she had been before, even outnumbered as she was. She ducked and swung and fought off the enemies side by side with Xena while Joxer waved the Hestians into the temple. Step by step she and Xena gave ground, trying to reach the safety of the temple themselves, where they could hold up and create a plan.

Only for Draco to come from the side, his horse barreling right into them, the two of them barely able to jump out of the way as the animal bore down on them. His boot connected with her head, and Gabrielle felt herself land, dazed, the sand harsh on her skin. But only for a moment as Draco's men surrounded Xena, forced her back as Draco himself reached down and pulled Gabrielle onto the horse, taking off with her, taking her back to his tent.

He proclaimed his love for her the moment she reawoke, expressing sorrow for having to injure her to get her safely away. But the moment he had seen her, fighting his men, decimating his army? He had known that she was the woman for him. And if she would do him the honor, Draco wanted her to marry him.

Gabrielle tried to put him off, pointing out that she wasn't wife material (he wasn't husband material, they were a match), that she wouldn't do well pregnant (they could always kill a couple of people and take their children instead), even tried to attack him (she almost had him. It'd been a close fight, but even with all of her extra years of training from the other life, her current body was still weaker, smaller, unable to handle what her body in the previous life had been able to. Her mind knew but her physical form just couldn't do it yet. But she'd been close to defeating him, something that only seemed to make him want her more). She had tried to do this without putting anyone in danger, but, finally, as he had her arm twisted behind her, she had to make it clear.

"I can't marry you because I'm in love with someone else!"

Draco froze at that, his grip loosening ever so slightly. Enough for her to wiggle free from his hold, to put some distance between them, to grab a chair and hold it between them as a makeshift weapon. His head cocked to the side, Draco just stared at her, his hand coming to rest on his sword.

"Who," he finally asked. "Who do you love? I'll gut him like a fish and present him to you as our wedding feast. Who owns your heart, Gabrielle?"

She didn't have to answer, because at that moment Xena brought a vase down upon his head, sending him to the ground in a heap.

"Gabrielle, are you alright," Xena asked as she stepped over Draco's body, whispering a quick sorry to him as she crossed the distance between them. Checking her over, making sure she wasn't hurt, Xena pulled her into a quick hug, relief clear within her. "He didn't hurt you, did he? I might love him for some strange reason, but if he hurt you I'll kill him right here and now." There was almost a question to her words, as if Xena was wondering if she could kill the warlord, but Gabrielle just smiled and shook her head.

"No, I'm fine. You've got perfect timing. Come on, we need to go."

"Back to the temple," Xena said with a nod, taking Gabrielle's hand and leading her away. "I've got a plan."

It was the same plan from before- send Joxer as a messenger to Draco's buyer claiming an Amazon Queen was part of the mix, get Draco to betray him, send the Hestians out to a nearby cave system to ensure they would all be safe. It was a perfect plan.

Only this time, this time Gabrielle had an extra step to do first. She was tired of trying to play babysitter to a godling, and was going to end this now.

They were lucky- if things went as they first had, they would have at least an hour before Draco came to, a little while longer before both Draco and the buyer arrived, and then, in the mad dash that followed, Cupid would supposedly arrive and fix everything. And Gabrielle wanted Bliss in arm when his father arrived, if just to keep the child from doing any more damage.

She finally caught him, sitting in the center of a blueberry bush, his lips and fingers and random splotches on his toga purple from the berries he had been munching on. He seemed exhausted too- when he noticed she was there, instead of flying off once again to cause even more harm, he held out his arms to her in the universal childish sign that he wanted to be picked up and almost whimpered, though she couldn't be sure if it was real or not. Gods were strange and tricky, and Gabrielle wouldn't put it past even the small ones to know how to twist mortals to do their bidding.

But he was so cute, and within just a moment she had him in her arms, cooing softly to him as he rested his head on her chest and yawned. His fingers quickly found the beads that decorated her Amazon top, the slight clinking they made with each movement enough to keep him entertained.

She managed to get back just in time, just as Xena was yelling at Draco, trying to get him to turn away from his plan. No one seemed to notice the appearance of the small, winged boy she carried, they were all so focused on the scene outside. One of the women did, eventually, making some strange squeak as she turned and caught sight of the feathers adorning his back, but before she could say anything, Xena stepped aside.

The doors opened and men swarmed the temple, grabbing the virgins and dragging them one by one outside. Outside, where Pinullus and Draco were waiting, watching pleased as the virgins were brought before them. Pleased, until Pinullus asked where the Amazon Queen was.

Gabrielle didn't struggle when the men got to her; she had a child in her arms, a child all the men stared at in confusion and awe as they surrounded her. She doubted they could hurt Bliss, but she didn't want to press her luck, not if there was a chance he could be. So instead, listening as Draco argued with his buyer, Gabrielle stepped out into the light and presented herself to them.

There was silence- thick, confused silence as everyone stared at her and Bliss, trying to figure out something to say that would bring to light everything everyone was thinking. It was finally Joxer who spoke, his head cocked to the side as he just stared at her in confusion.

"Hey Gabby, where did the kid come from? And why does he have wings?"

"This is my son, Joxer," Gabrielle said, giving him a look that told him to accept whatever she said and shut up. Glancing around, Gabrielle almost laughed at the twin looks of disbelief and anger that crossed Xena and Draco's faces, mixing with the confusion to make a hilarious sight. "I am an Amazon Queen," Gabrielle confirmed for Pinullus, "and this is my son, Bliss, the son of Cupid, God of Love, grandson of Aphrodite, Goddess of Love herself." Gabrielle practically yelled the two god's names as she spoke, hoping her invocation of them would bring their owners to earth so they could fix everything.

No such luck. But at least Xena seemed to realize what was going on, the look on her face passing to understanding as she spoke. She gave a slight nod, barely noticeable to one not looking for it, and relaxed, her confusion gone.

"Gabrielle," Draco said, his eyes fixed upon the child in her hands, "you said you weren't mother material. That was clearly a lie. And I don't know why you couldn't just tell me you were in love with Cupid. I'll fight the god himself if that's what it takes to win you!" He pulled his sword and started looking around, glancing up in to the sky, as if expecting the god to appear before him. "Once he's dead, my love, I'll adopt Bliss and we'll be a perfect family."

"So you are going back on our deal, Draco," Pinullus asked, drawing his own sword. "Then so be it!"

It was chaos after that- Draco and Pinullus' men fighting each other, she, Xena, and Joxer trying to get the Hestians back into the temple while also taking out people who tried to attack them, trying to fight one handed while also shielding Bliss from anything that might befall him. Realizing it was useless, and she was almost more of a hassle than a help, Gabrielle quickly retreated back into the temple-

And ran right into Cupid himself.

"Thank Zeus, you found him," Cupid sighed in relief, reaching out and taking the sleepy, slightly sticky baby from her. "We heard you calling, but, well, I was a little bit tied up right then."

Gabrielle couldn't help but snort. 'Tied up' was probably right, knowing Aphrodite and considering this was her kid. "Can you fix what he messed up," Gabrielle asked, half turning to look at the door as more people began to flood in. The Hestians, she knew, would have already left through the back door, but Xena, Draco, Joxer, Pinullus, and half a dozen others were slowly making their way in, and it would be so much easier if Xena could pummel them all without trying to avoid hurting Draco in the process.

"Of course," Cupid said, almost looking insulted that she had to ask. "I am the god of love."

He waited for a few minutes as the fighting died down, Xena quickly taking out the random mooks before showing himself before the rest. Wide eyes and gaped mouths met him as he stepped before Xena and gently booped her on the forehead, sparkles flying from where he had touched her. Shaking her head, Xena stepped back, blinking rapidly as she stared around at the group, only to turn and finally smile as she saw Gabrielle.

"You dirty cur," Draco yelled as Cupid tried to get close, slashing at the god of love with his sword. "You dare to touch the woman I love? Well, prepare to lose a hand!" Draco slashed at him again as Cupid jumped back, turning to look at Xena as he did so.

"Is this guy for real," Cupid asked, taking a few more steps back as he did, his free hand raising protectively overly the sleepy Bliss. "Can I just zap him? Turn him into ash?" He sidestepped another swing. "Something?"

"Draco," Gabrielle said, stepping forward so she was between him and Cupid, watching his blade quickly fall to his side. "I don't love Cupid, so you can stop attacking him now."

"Of course," Draco said, twirling his sword before putting it into his scabbard. "Gabrielle, I've decided that I need to become worthy of you. I need to do good, go out and help people." Stepping forward, Draco took her hands between his own, and Gabrielle, remembering where this was going, had to fight hard to not laugh as she cut him off.

"Draco," Gabrielle said, shaking her head, "the only way you'll ever get me to love you is if you actually do good. No killing innocent old people, no killing their cattle and torching their crops, only good."

Draco tilted his head on confusion, his mouth opening and closing a couple of times before he finally managed to speak. "How did you know what I was going to say?"

"It's a gift," Gabrielle said, waving off his question. "Now, if you want to start doing good, you can start by taking down a certain slaver and taking him to jail."

Pinullus' face turned an interesting shade of green as Draco turned on him, drawing his sword as he lunged. Their weapons clashing, they quickly fled down the stairs of the temple, out into the forest that surrounded the village, both trying to get to their armies before the other to start their little war.

"Should I...?"

"No," Xena said, shaking her head at Cupid's question. "Love suites him. Let's just hope it stays that way."

"Well then," Cupid said, stretching out his free arm and his wings, "if that's everyone, then-"

"Wait." Everyone turned to stare at Gabrielle as she spoke up, waiting for her to continue. "I was hit too."

"Who're you in love with, Gabby," Joxer asked, taking off his helmet and scratching his head. "You seem pretty normal."

"No, she's right," Cupid said, stepping forward and touching her forehead- not a tap that would remove the arrow's effect, but instead just a gentle touch as he read what was going on within her. He whistled lowly, nodding his head. "She's got it bad. For you, warrior babe."

Xena stiffened at that, and Gabrielle knew what she was doing. Knew she was going back through their last couple of days, of weeks, thinking back through their casual touches and gentle kisses and everything else they had done, wondering if it was real. Wondering if it was true, or just the effect of an arrow that had been shot all that time ago.

Gabrielle wanted to say something, but she didn't. It wouldn't do any good to say it now, when the effect of the arrow was still on her. So instead she turned to Cupid and nodded, closing her eyes as he tapped her forehead.

Nothing happened. The overwhelming warmth lifted, but once again not much else changed. Even Cupid seemed to realize it, for he tapped her forehead again a few more times before just touching her, reading what was there and nodding.

"You were hit," Cupid confirmed- and Gabrielle would have to be deaf to miss the tiny little pained gasp that left Xena, even if no one else heard her. "But only like, three hours ago? Everything else is totally real. You're so in love." He sighed at that, his hand pulling back and resting against his heart. "Makes my eternal heart glad to see something this true, without Mom or I having to interfere." He glanced between Xena and Gabrielle, his smile soft and warm, before shaking his head and stepping back.

"Gotta go now- Psyche's been freaking out over Bliss being gone, and if I keep her waiting, it'll be my hide she tans. Bye!"

With that the god of love disappeared, taking his errant child with him, leaving the mortals below to think about the revelations he had dropped upon them.

It was easier this time, in a way. They joked about the mishap with Bliss as they left the city, Joxer bouncing happily between them as he chattered. And this time, when he looked at her, Gabrielle saw nothing. Before it had been clear that Joxer had fallen in love with her, even if it was something Gabrielle herself tried to deny that first time. Responding to the love he thought she felt, he had convinced himself he loved her, despite his feelings for Meg. Now, this time, there was nothing. A fondness, yes, a general friendship she loved, but nothing more. It was the same as meeting Lila's gaze- there was love, yes, but not that kind that would drive her insane.

As if realizing that they needed to talk (Joxer himself had been thrown by Cupid's proclamation of their love, but had quickly gotten over it), he left them after a couple of hours, claiming a fork in the road would lead him to where Meg was. A bit of a lie- it would, eventually, after a couple weeks wandering through the woods, but Gabrielle and Xena just smiled and waved him off as he left.

They didn't talk about it, not at first, as was their way- while traveling could be a time for deep conversations, both of them knew they both would be more comfortable talking around a camp fire. When the flickering of flames made faces a little bit hard to read at times, even if the warmth could drive away any chills that might arise from the topic. But, almost hesitantly, Xena reached out and took Gabrielle's hand, and that was enough.

They made camp by a lake, and quickly fell into their normal routines; Gabrielle set up camp, got the fire hot enough to cook, set out their bedrolls and started some water boiling, all while Xena fished and cleaned what she caught. It was normal, safe, allowing them to steel themselves for the conversation to come.

"About what Cupid said..."

Gabrielle paused as Xena spoke, her bite of fish going dry within her mouth. She swallowed thickly before putting her food off to the side- her appetite was gone, at least for now, and Gabrielle doubted it would be back anytime soon. She had been waiting for this for quite some time, giving Xena the room she needed in order to think and realize what she wanted. But now it was time.  

Gabrielle knew her own feelings, and even knowing Xena's from their previous life, her heart was still in her throat as she waited for her to continue, to either confirm or deny what Gabrielle knew.  

"I do, you know," Xena finally continued after a few long moments. She turned so she was facing Gabrielle, her eyes soft and warm as she smiled. "I love you."

Gabrielle had heard those words a thousand times over, said in all the ways possible, but her breathing still caught at the sound of them. It had been over two years, longer counting the last time Xena had said them in the last life (that time a soft tremble as she faded, her soul finally called to the other side, more painful than soothing in nature), and to hear them now?

Gabrielle smiled as she leaned forward and kissed Xena, muttering her own "I love you too" when they parted to breathe before the next kiss began.

The kisses turned into more, sweet pecks turning deeper, any moments of hesitation fading away as they breathed each other in. As they continued to kiss, their hands beginning to roam as they pressed closer, a need, a desire to touch and be touched driving them further. Further until Xena pulled back, her eyes dark as she panted and looked up at Gabrielle- up, because at some point Gabrielle had ended up straddling her lap, her hands in Xena's hair, Xena's on her hips, her thumbs pressing into her skin right above her skirt.

Gabrielle almost whined as Xena pulled away, as she gently leaned back with a chuckle when Gabrielle tried to lean forward and kiss her again, making it clear she needed a moment. Tilting her head to the side, Gabrielle gently ran her fingers through Xena's hair, clearing out some of the tangles she had just created, repeating the smoothing movement as Xena thought.

"Are you sure you want me to be your first?"

The question surprised her, and for a moment Gabrielle was confused; Perdicus had been her first, and it wasn't like this wasn't something they had done before. She had lost count of the number of times they had passed the night together, the number of times they had pleased and been pleased, the number of times they had taken each other to that sweet edge and fallen. She had lost count of the number of times Xena's fingers and lips had made her burn. And even after Xena had died, Gabrielle had lost count. Lost count of the number of women she had taken to her bed in the months after Xena died, trying to drown out the pain. Lost count of the mouths she had kissed and the hands that had roamed, the warm bodies that had kept away the nightmares until Caesar created that second world that led to the repeat of this one. So, for a moment, Gabrielle was confused.

Until she remembered. Until she remembered that she hadn't married Perdicus in this life; that, for this lifetime, she was technically untouched.

Gabrielle laughed-at Xena's question, and the absurdity of it all, at the memories of her past life clashing with her new- and kissed Xena again. Kissed her hard, making her want clear within that kiss before pulling back, placing another gentle one on her lips before speaking.

"My first and my only. I love you."

Xena smiled before kissing her once again, lifting Gabrielle with ease into her arms without forcing them to part, carrying her to their bedrolls.

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