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bestworstcase · 3 years

Note

I like your thoughts on how Rapunzel was handling things wrong in “Rapunzel: Day One.” The episode tries to imply that Cassandra is wrong for not sharing her feelings with Rapunzel, but is a Rapunzel really the person Cassandra should be opening up to? Rapunzel never respects Cassandra’s boundaries. Cassandra’s a private person. Rapunzel doesn’t respect that. And just because Cassandra doesn’t want to open up to everyone doesn’t mean that she’s bottling things up.

ok so this is gonna be a long one bc tbh i like. fundamentally disagree that RDO, the narrative of RDO, in any way positions cassandra as the one at fault for the emotional conflict between her and raps.

to digress a bit - while tts is not immune to Aesop Episodes (e.g. rapunzel's enemy or you're kidding me) wherein the characters close out the story by talking about What They've Learned, ultimately i don't think tts can or should be read as a morality play. it's a story where sometimes characters just... fuck up and the narrative doesn't waste its time on hand-holding or spoon-feeding us the moral.

anyway, i submit that RDO is what i'll call a False Aesop Episode. it follows the basic structure of an Aesop Episode (protagonist acts badly -> protagonist learns a lesson) but the lesson rapunzel learns is a bad one. it's like if you took... say, "an apple a day keeps the doctor away" as an aesop, the False Aesop here is rapunzel confidently eating a rotten apple and then being blindsided a few months later when the doctor who kept begging her not to eat food with maggots in it steals the moonstone from under her nose and runs off into the night with her new demon pal--

and that metaphor got away from me a little bit but you get the idea.

#1: constructing the conflict

the episode opens with cassandra. she's training; we see the sword fly out of her injured hand; lance suggests she take a break, and she answers, "thanks to rapunzel's little trick at the great tree, i have to relearn everything using this hand, so breaks aren't really an option."

she isn't harsh about it. her demeanor isn't all that different from her normal self—she even segues into a very typical concern (that the woods are dangerous and they should all be on their guard) and banters with lance a bit.

what this communicates, immediately and succinctly, is that:

1. cassandra's injury is severe. it's disabling. she's either in immense pain or she's lost all the strength in that hand or both.

2. cass is really upset about this, and not happy with rapunzel.

3. nevertheless cass is keeping her feelings more or less in check; the worst anyone could say about her is she's being a bit more curt than normal.

which is to say, she's acting quite reasonable. she's not taking out her hurt feelings on anyone else or being mean or lashing out, and she's not hiding her injury either. the most concerning thing about her behavior here is actually that she's focused on training so she can do her job instead of on healing or resting or taking care of herself.

then there's a pan over to rapunzel, who is angrily watching this play out while venting to pascal. "i get why cass is mad at me," she says. "she told me—" huge disdainful rolling of eyes here "—not to use the decay spell back and the tree, and i did, and she hurt her hand. but if she had just listened to me and stayed out of it, this all could have been avoided! and i feel like we could work things out, but she refuses to talk about it!!"

line this up against cassandra's behavior and spot the differences.

cass is focused on her injured hand. cass is upset because rapunzel accidentally mutilated her in the great tree. that's what this conflict is about for cass; her injury, and how she feels about being injured.

by contrast, rapunzel thinks the conflict is about them not listening to each other. she does acknowledge that cass was injured, but 1. she puts the blame on cass, and 2. has shoved the fact of the injury to the periphery of the conflict. it's not important, it's just a natural consequence of the real conflict, which is cass being mad and petty and refusing to talk to her about how she's unfairly blaming rapunzel for something that wasn't rapunzel's fault.

[i will add here that this behavior from rapunzel is 100% not knowing how to handle guilt and externalizing it as anger, and this thread of rapunzel burying her guilt gets picked up again in rapunzeltopia; it isn't that rapunzel doesn't care that cass is hurt, so much as she's just not emotionally equipped to process these feelings in a healthy way so it mutates into...this.]

and where cass handles her feelings in a pretty reasonable way, rapunzel rants and raves and draws cass as a literal monster with fangs and claws—she's stewing in her out of control emotions and concludes that she just has to find a way to force cass talk to her, which she does shortly thereafter by ordering—not asking—cass to come with her to search for parts to fix the caravan.

#2: the breakdown of communication

i've said it before but it bears repeating: cassandra might not be perfect, but she's a good communicator. in s1 and the front half of s2, she shares her feelings with rapunzel readily and frequently. when she tries to set boundaries with rapunzel, she's able to be clear and specific about what she needs. when she expresses frustration with eugene or her dad or rapunzel, she's very articulate about exactly what she's frustrated about. she can recognize when politer, softer refusals are being ignored and become blunter and more specific to ensure the message is getting across.

the moments when cass struggles to communicate are noteworthy because they're not normal. they signal that she's in acute crisis. think of how her unhinged rant about adira in RATGT heralded a complete emotional breakdown. she clams up in RDO because it's the only thing she can do to protect herself. because rapunzel is an inexperienced nineteen year old who learned all her social "skills" from a manipulative, egotistical abuser and nowhere in the series does that show more than in RDO.

rapunzel knows cass doesn't want to talk about the great tree, so she isolates cass from the rest of the group with the intention of forcing her to talk about it anyway. she's passive aggressive at first: chattering about inanities and trying to bait cass into 'opening up,' and acting vexed and guilt-trippy when she finds out cass brought owl along. she broaches the subject by going "too bad there's not an open-up-to-your-best-friend-about-the-thing-you-guys-are-fighting-about wand, huh?"

then she leads with "i know you're mad at me, but i did the right thing. i didn't have a choice," which... what can cass even say to that? she acknowledged cassandra's anger in one breath and followed up with "but you're wrong tho" in the next. that statement makes cassandra's feelings about her debilitating injury into an argument about Who Was Right.

this is a game that cass tries very hard not to play. "look, if you feel that way, then it's fine. we're good," she says, which is a statement that is not true at all on its face but - what it means is that if rapunzel wants to turn this into a debate about Who Was Right, cass will concede because that's not an argument she's invested in. cass does not want to put her feelings on trial so rapunzel can pick them apart and decide whether she deserves to have them or not.

so she disengages. the sun sets. they camp. rapunzel pokes her again, this time with a more direct approach: "cass, i need to talk about what we both know is going on between us."

and that's when cass throws up a WALL. prior to RDO, when cass is pressed on her feelings, she either: 1. opens up and explains to the extent that she's able (e.g. under raps or RATGT), or 2. flatly shuts the conversation down (e.g. cassandra vs eugene). but in RDO?

"there's nothing to talk about."

"i never said i was upset."

"what makes you so sure that you know how i'm feeling?"

this is cass falling off the end of her rope. this is a cass who spent the last year and a half with rapunzel running roughshod over every boundary cass exhausted herself trying to set. this is cass maybe a few weeks out from rapunzel screaming at her in front of all their mutual friends and then telling her "i am going to make decisions you don't agree with and i need you to be okay with that" when cass tried to open up about her deepest insecurities. this is cass spiraling into despair because she's seen that her best friend cares more about assuaging her own guilt and exerting her authority as a princess than she does about cassandra's feelings.

this is the moment when the friendship dies.

#3: the memory wipe, cassandra's apology, and the false aesop

the details of the tangled-but-cass shenanigans are not super important for the purposes of this discussion. suffice it to say that cassandra lashes out in the heat of the moment, seriously harms rapunzel by mistake, and spends the rest of the episode trying to repair the damage, then apologizes to rapunzel for hurting her. this is, obviously, the correct thing to do when you hurt someone, even if it was an accident.

you see the parallel here, yeah?

rapunzel hurt cass with magic by accident, and then made cass's hurt feelings all about her, blamed cass for the injury, twisted the facts to justify her own indignation, picked a fight about Who Was Right and invalidated cassandra's feelings, and pushed and pushed and pushed until cass blew up and lashed out at her.

cassandra also hurt rapunzel with magic by accident, and then she set aside her own hurt feelings from the argument they were having before to focus one hundred percent of her energy on brewing a cure and keeping amnesiac rapunzel safe, readily admitted her fault, and offered an earnest apology for losing her temper as soon as she could reasonably do so.

if RDO were a true Aesop Episode, this would be the lesson, and rapunzel would of course learn from cassandra's good example and reciprocate by apologizing for the accident in the great tree and her abysmal behavior afterwards—and in a reflection of how cass shared how bottling up her anger allowed it to erupt in a catastrophic way, rapunzel would probably confess that her demanding, selfish behavior came from a place of feeling awful about what happened and terrified that it would ruin their friendship.

but RDO is a False Aesop Episode. rapunzel isn't emotionally equipped to handle the intensity of her guilt, and she lacks the social insight and empathy to draw comparisons between what she did to cass and what cass did to her, so she can't connect the two situations in her head to understand what she's doing wrong. the true aesop flies right over her head, and instead what she learns is this:

1. she was right about cass being upset

2. backing cass into a corner fixed the problem

3. friends really do "just know"

4. being pushy and forceful was the right thing to do.

because the thing is, when cass apologizes for the accidental memory wipe, she truthfully explains why she acted the way she did—she's furious and she didn't want to talk about it, so she held it in as long as she could and then exploded when the pressure became too much—and for rapunzel, i think the explanation and the actual apology get conflated. meaning, cass says "i'm sorry for what i did out of anger" and what rapunzel hears is "i'm sorry for being angry."

and because of that misunderstanding, from rapunzel's perspective her own indignation has been validated and her behavior justified, because she was right all along and cass shouldn't have been angry with her in the first place and now everything is fine--

but it's not fine.

we're not supposed to share rapunzel's perspective here, because she's flat out wrong. nothing is really better and nothing has really changed, except that rapunzel got the talk she wanted and stops putting this intense pressure on cass. so as we enter the house of yesterday's tomorrow, rapunzel is taking it for granted that things are fine with cass, and meanwhile cass is still injured, still angry, still as aloof as she can be without getting rapunzel breathing down her neck again... and then she meets zhan tiri, who gives her everything she needed and couldn't get from rapunzel.

like, to my mind, this is the entire point of RDO, that rapunzel makes this catastrophic mess of trying to patch things up after RATGT and comes out of that mess wrongly thinking she succeeded. the episode is presented through the lens of rapunzel's perspective, but the lines are very wide and i absolutely think the intention is for the audience to read between them and understand the reality that rapunzel has sort of blinded herself to.

#tts #rta #interpersonal conflict......good #theres also a whole separate layer of stuff going on in RDO w the class dynamic #this fight coming on the heels of raps pulling rank in RATGT and all but ordering cass to shut up and deal. like -#in RDO cass is Literally Doing What Rapunzel Ordered Her To Do #being okay with the decisions rapunzel made that hurt her #except that's not what rapunzel wants really. rapunzel wants cass to be her friend #but cass learnt in RATGT that her friendship can't transcend her servitude #she knows now that when push comes to shove rapunzel will treat her like a servant so... she acts accordingly #er #long post

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rae-arts777 · 3 years

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Makoto X Salazar

HELL YES @arty-dork

They became pen pals when Makoto was in jail. Salazar felt like he owned him (considering Makoto was the reason he got a second chance in life).

After case two, Makoto flew back to LA to see him and Tom. Tom took up most of his time. Salazar found it nice seeing how well the two got along.

While Makoto stayed with TC, him and Salazar started texting a lot. Salazar would send him pictures of Tom and him to show Makoto how they’re doing.

Tom started playing soccer, and wanted Makoto to come to his first game. Salazar texted Makoto and was like “but if you can’t that’s fine no worries”. Makoto showed up at the soccer field the next day extremely jet lagged, but was one of the loudest ones there cheering Tom on. After the game Salazar carried Makoto back to his place so he could sleep.

Salazar was able to taken Tom to Disneyland, Makoto of course flew down to join them. When Salazar became tired, Makoto sucked it up and went with Tom on the rides even though some of them made him want to puke.

After case 4 Makoto traveled the world trying coffee. He made America his last stop so he could go see Salazar. Makoto doesn’t know what it was, but something told him to open his coffee shop in LA.

Salazar offered for Makoto to stay with them, but Makoto felt bad so he got himself an apartment close by. Tom is just happy that Makoto is literally a 10 minutes walk away now.

Salazar quickly becomes a regular in his coffee shop. Tom tags along most of the time. Makoto knows their orders by heart now, the moment he sees them walk in, he’s already making them their order.

Game/movie night becomes a thing for them. Makoto comes over, they either play a board game (tho Makoto is always helping Tom cheat) or watch a movie, and order pizza. If they watch a movie, Tom either sits in the middle of them or on the floor cause he’s so invested into the movie. When Tom falls asleep, Salazar and Makoto will end up watching a different movie together. Sometimes in these moments, Makoto starts dozing off onto Salazar’s shoulder. Salazar let’s him and looks down, dying cause of how cute Makoto looks.

After a few months, it’s clear to all of Makoto’s coffee staff that there is some feelings between him and Salazar. They have started placing bets on who will confess first.

Makoto has picked up and dropped off Tom a few times too school. He started even showing up to some school functions. Teachers and Tom’s friends can hear convos between them “have your homework?” “Yeah” “be good” “I will”. All of the school staff is trying to figure out if Makoto is just a close friend or Salazar’s boyfriend. They’re too afraid to ask though. Tom’s friends are just as confused, if they ask Tom he’s just like “I mean I guess?” And when they go over, Makoto is 90% of the time there.

Confession, they were both drunk. They had gone out to celebrate the success of the coffee shop. Makoto got wasted real quick, probably the shots, Salazar tried to stop him but Makoto ended up roping him in for more drinks. A mutual drove them back to Salazar’s place. Tom was spending the night at a friend’s. Both were leaning on each other, stumbling to the bedroom. Makoto pressed himself up into Salazar’s lips. Salazar took a few moments to register what was happening and then slowly kissed back. Makoto was so drunk tho, he fell asleep while kissing. Salazar put him to bed and went a slept on the couch. Next morning they both has a very long and awkward conversation about their feelings.

Makoto was scared, he was like “I don’t want to put labels on this just yet”. Salazar was understanding, so they agreed, they were dating, but wouldn’t call themselves boyfriends just yet.

Few months (9-10) into dating, things are going really good. However, Makoto is still scared, mainly cause he doesn’t think he’s good enough, or Salazar will end up leaving him like everyone eventually does. Does he tell Salazar? No, he’s scared, he doesn’t want to ruin things, things are good now.

A year into dating, their first fight. Salazar wants to take it to the next level, moving in, calling Makoto his boyfriend, Makoto is still scared, still saying it’s too soon. They argued for hours, luckily it was during the day so Tom was at school. Makoto breaks down, he tells Salazar he should just find someone else. Salazar stares at him, he can’t remember the last time he saw Makoto this broken, he remembers his face his friends “died” in front of him. He kneels down and holds Makoto close, telling him too bad, cause he doesn’t plan on finding someone else that’s just like him. Makoto cried even more. Finally he opened up to Salazar about all his fears and doubts.

Makoto moved in with them, Tom was so excited. He said “fucking finally!” Makoto laughed, Salazar just shook his head sighing and went “I can’t even be mad, cause he’s right”

Makoto is the little spoon, he loves being in Salazar’s arms. He feels safe in them. Sometimes he gets embarrassed by how small he is compare to Salazar “your muscles are as big as my head” “you’re exaggerating, no theyre not”

Makoto speaks in Japanese sometimes just to annoy him. Salazar will the proceed to speak in Spanish, which annoys Makoto but also gets him flustered, cause he loves the way it sounds from him. Also, 99% of the time when Salazar speaks Spanish, he’s flirting with him.

Tom started calling Makoto dad as well, Makoto felt like his heart was going to explode when Tom called him dad. “Have a good day at school” “ok! Bye dad!”

Makoto likes to sit on Salazar’s lap and cover him in kisses. One of the rare moments Salazar becomes flustered. Makoto loves seeing Salazar stern and strict face become undone. He’s proud that he’s the only one that can unravel him.

Both have scars from their past. Makoto lovingly pecks at Salazar’s scars and tells him things like “they make you look more badass”. Makoto is more self conscious about his scars. Salazar will kiss or gently run his fingers along them, assuring Makoto he finds him still handsome with them. It’s become just a way of saying “I love you” to each other, one of them softly kissing or running their finger along the others scars.

Makoto likes to play with Salazar‘s pericings. He likes the way the rings feel, they’re just nice and smooth. Salazar hates it cause his ears are a bit sensitive, but he also still enjoys the feeling.

Salazar likes to run his hands through Makoto’s hair. Slicking it back, playing with the hair swish on top of his head. As Makoto’s hair gets longer to wear he’s tying it into a man bun, Salazar sometimes undoes his bun just so he can play with his hair.

Makoto tried his best to learn Spanish for Salazar. He’s not perfect, but he knows enough to get by. Salazar attempted to try to learn Japanese, but it was too hard for him to understand. But he does know simple phrases such as greetings, and asking where the bathroom is.

They took a trip to Japan. Tom was excited to see where Makoto was from. They spent their time there, Makoto teaching them of Japanese culture, siteseeing, and also visiting Miki’s grave. While Makoto and Tom were taking some picture with some pretty trees, Salazar slipped off back to Miki’s grave. He promised her he look after and love her son, and told her how much Makoto means to him. He promised to make sure they all come back more often to Japan to visit her.

Makoto is the one who usually cooks dinner. He surprised Salazar and Tom with traditonal Hispanic meals. Salazar is really surprised on how well and perfect Makoto makes the dishes.

Salazar did research on Japanese culture to get things for interior decorations, to make Makoto feel more at home. He attempted to make homemade sushi one day, but failed big time. Makoto came home and laughed at what a mess Salazar as made, watching Salazar struggle to roll a sushi roll with his big hands. Makoto taught them how to properly make sushi. So now, Thursday nights are make your own sushi night.

It’s no surprise Salazar gets hit on, a lot. Makoto is the one who gets easily jealous, he knows everyone wants a piece of Salazar. When he gets jealous, he’ll throw himself into Salazar’s arms and become clingy. He’ll glare at the person flirting with him, or will peck at Salazar’s neck and chin so the person gets a hint.

Salazar is the one who tends to get more clingy. When they’re out, he always tends to have a hand on Makoto’s waist. Just holding him close, like he’s afraid he might slip away.

It took a while for them to find a comfortable way for both of them to hold hands. They use to do an awkward hand dance before settling on a good position. Now, holding hands comes naturally.

Friday nights are date nights. They’ll either go out to a bar, or stay in watching their favorite show. Tom always sleeps over at a friend’s house on their date nights.

Makoto is usually the first one up, Salazar lazily follows behind. Makoto would be making coffee or breakfast, and sometimes get scared when he feels too big arms wrap around him. Salazar will hold him, and lay his head on his while watching him cook or brew coffee.

When Salazar is free, he helps out in the coffee shop, mainly doing some heavy lifting. Also dealing with rude customers. All he has to do is just show up and glare at them. One time a customer was so rude he did almost hit them, but Makoto was there to make sure that didn’t happen.

Makoto love to lay on Salazar’s chest and listen to his heartbeat. He loves being in his arms, and just listening to his steady heartbeat. It’s relaxing, espically after a stressful day.

Salazar wanted to propose and had a big thing plan, but he was very bad at hiding the ring. Makoto found it one day while cleaning. The ring was a golden band, with a beautiful engraving in it. Salazar walked in on him holding him and was embarrassed and upset he found it. Makoto just laughed and kissed him all over going “yes”

#great pretender #makoto edamura #the great pretender #grepre #edamura makoto #Salazar #Salazar great pretender #Makoto x Salazar #rare pair #they live in my head rent free #like yes #I love them

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iateyourdoggo-part2 · 3 years

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Chapter 2 of my little story :D

(a/n: so i made another chapter and idk what to call this story and pls help me ;-; and pls enjoy the story!)

tw: caps (some)

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"How were the dates my dear?" Saika's mother asked.

"I am most kindly mother, but not one is worth my time." Saika replied, "Yet I would love to interact with Aori Hatsuki more."

"Very well. I allow this, BUT, if your refuse to to marry any man from the next 4 families, there will be a punishment."

Saika gulped at her threat and went to her room. She heard a small sound come from her phone. It was Aori. She actually was relieved because she needed him most at the time.

hiya saika!

Hello Aori! :D

watcha doin?

Nothing much.

bet ya thinking about that kinako girl TwT

Haha you got me! She is taking up my mind too much. <3

awww but how will ur stupid mother find out

Will you keep this a secret between us?

ofc!

She said that if I refuse to marry any wealthy man from the next 4 families, I will receive a punishment. :(

great >:( y not give her 'greatest mother of the year' award while we're at it

Saika giggled at Aori's comment and turned off her phone. She fell asleep later and all she saw in her dreams was Kinako and her together.

When Saika woke, she was upset her dream wasn't real and was happy about the dream at the same time. She walked, back straight and not slouched, to the kitchen to see a note.

My dearest Saika,

I apologize but, I will be gone for 3 weeks and all the staff are on break while I am gone. You must take care of the house as a graceful girl.

Kind regards,

Your Mother.

Saika just rolled her eyes and was excited to have the house to herself. First thing, she called Aori. They spent a bunch of time together talking about their love lives. After a while, they went to the park where they became friends and once again, Kinako and Saika encountered each other again.

"Oh! Saika-chan!" Kinako called out.

"S-Saika-chan?" Saika whispered.

"It's just my little nickname for you!"

Saika got flustered a bit too much and Kinako blushed a bit by Saika's reaction.

"Oh um..." Aori said, "I am TOOOOOTALLY gonna be late for the thing I had to do!"

He nudged Saika a bit and Saika gave him a look that said 'DON'T. YOU. DARE.' He snickered and ran back down the path they came from and Saika and Kinako were left alone. Saika sat down next to Kinako on the bench Kinako was on.

"What do you want to do now, Saika-chan?" Kinako asked beaming.

'Her smile is so adorable! Her lips looks very soft too... Wait! What am I thinking! She might not like me back either...' Saika thought.

"Would you like some ice-cream?" Saika asked, "I can pay."

Kinako's eyes sparkled when ice cream was suggested. She grabbed Saika's hand and ran to an ice-cream store. Saika was now very flustered. When the two reached the store, Saika ordered a chocolate ice-cream cone and Kinako bought... 3 different ice-creams. TUBS of ice-cream.

Kinako ate one whole tub before Saika even finished her ice-cream. Saika was shocked by her. She also found it cute, too!

"How are your teeth not sensitive?" Saika asked.

"I don't know." Kinako replied feeling a bit shy, "It probably runs in my family because we all don't have sensitive teeth."

Kinako picked up her spoon again and got a small bit of mango flavoured ice-cream and put it in Saika's face.

"Try some!"

Saika's eyes widened and saw that Kinako was really desperate for her to try it. Saika opened her mouth and ate the ice-cream. 'This is amazing!' Saika thought to herself. Based on her expression, Kinako knew she loved it. After a while of hanging out with each other, they both swapped numbers and left. And out of nowhere just before Saika was leaving, she heard a small rustle. She turned around and something came out of a bush swiftly.

"EEEEEAHHHHH!" Saika screamed.

"Lady! It's just me!" Aori quickly cried.

Saika started to playfully hit Aori and had a chuckled response.

"Ehehe.. I have some photos to add to my collection board of Sainako!" Aori continued.

"Sainako? What's Sainako? And can I see the photos?" Saika questioned.

When Aori showed her the photoes he took, Saika's eyes turned into white circles.

"Eh..... EHHHHHH?!?!?!?!?!"

Pictures of Saika and Kinako were in front of her. Picture after picture was them together.

"WHAT IS THIS? WERE YOU SPYING ON US? HUUUHHHH??? ANSWER ME! DELETE ITTT!!!" Saika started yelling, "Wait if these are for your Sainako wall then... Sainako means..."

"Saika x Kinako~!" Aori started singing.

Saika yelled at him more and was mad until they got home. Aori hung out with her the rest of the night at Saika's house and stayed over in the guest room. Saika fell asleep with the memories in her head. 'Sainako a cute ship name. If only Aori told me tho...' Saika thought once more before drifting off to sleep.

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Thank you for reading once again! And I hope u enjoyed this story!

Previous << Chapter 2 >> Next

#tw slight caps #Saika #Kinako #Aori #Sainako #Saika x Kinako

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staylovehearts · 4 years

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Love on second chance

Han Jisung x Reader

Word Count ~5.1k

Summary: Maybe it was naive to believe that after your confession everything would be like a romance movie, maybe you should have been prepared for rejection

Tags: friends to lovers?, some angst, fluffy ending tho, Felix is in this for some reason

"I'm so sorry, I don't feel the same way."

If this was a movie that would be the record scratch freeze-frame moment. You may be wondering how I got here? Maybe there would be some kind of rewind, a montage, or some time loop of everything that has lead up to the moment where you confess your feelings to Han Jisung. The boy you've been crushing on for maybe half a year now. And it seemed to be going so well. You finally managed to get closer to him, befriend him, spend time with him. Confessing was the next logical step. Or so you thought. Sadly, life isn't a movie, so you'll have to deal with him rejecting you in real-time, no comedic-relief interruption.

"I see", you mumble. What else is there even to say? No one really goes into a confession preparing for what would happen if you're turned down. At least you didn't. You tend to write scripts in your mind, planning out dialogues and dreaming up scenarios. And the script for this scene looked completely different when you were imagining it. It started with you giving Jisung that dramatic speech, detailing all the things you like about him and ending it with a passionate confession of love that would leave him speechless for a moment before he'd just kiss you, one hand on your back the other in your hair, pulling you as close as he physically can. Sunset over the river that you passed on your little walk in the background. You already failed at the sunset. Wrong timing. Also, it's kind of cloudy, might even rain soon. But those were setbacks you were willing to accept. A whole alteration of your perfect script, however, is nothing you came prepared for. Maybe you shouldn't have been so naive.

"I'm really sorry", Jisung repeats. He looks extremely uncomfortable. Apparently, he has no idea how to handle this situation either. Maybe confessing out here was stupid. You'll still have to walk back to the next station at least. You can already feel the uncomfortable silence pressing down on you.

"It's not your fault", you finally manage to say. It really isn't. If anyone here is to blame it's probably you. But that's just how it is when you gamble. The more you bet the more you can lose. And you're not as much of an Ace of Hearts as you thought you were. "You feel what you feel and I feel what I feel and I guess there is nothing to be done about that."

"Maybe you're right, but I still feel bad about it. I hope we can still be friends though." There it is, that dreaded sentence. Part of you wants to say yes right away. The clingy naive part that refuses to give up. If he's asking to remain friends that must mean he still wants you, right? That he still likes you. That he still wants to be close to you. But the new, more cynical part of your mind that is beginning to form knows that he wants you as a friend only. Nothing more than that. Maybe he's even hoping that you can just go back to how things were, pretend this confession never happened. So he won't have to feel bad about turning you down anymore. Maybe he's hoping that this will be one of those in ten years we'll probably laugh about it scenarios. But you don't want it to be.

"I'm sorry I'll just... need some time to get over you. And I don't think I can do that when I still see you all the time. I need some distance. Sorry."

"I get it... I guess. I'm really, really sorry."

If he says sorry just one more time you might actually start feeling bad for him. Which is so twisted actually. Because aren't you the one who's heart just got broken? You shouldn't emphasise with him for breaking it. Sure, he didn't mean to, but with every apology, every moment of him looking sad about it you're starting to feel worse about your confession. Because see, now you made him sad, is that what you wanted? It wasn't obviously. But it's what you get. It's all your fault.

"I think I should go now", you say. You can already feel your bottom lip trembling, the tears welling up in your eyes. You don't want to cry in front of Jisung, not now. Not when things are like this. Because it'll only make him feel worse. And he'll try so hard to comfort you and it will only make the whole thing more uncomfortable. Sure, you lost but maybe you can at least keep a little bit of dignity.

"Sure, maybe I'll see you around?", Jisung mumbles awkwardly. You shrug your shoulders.

"Wouldn't count on it", you answer, voice already cracking. Then you turn on your heel and walk as fast as you can without running.

It's been roughly two weeks since Jisung turned you down. Two weeks that you spent mostly just sitting at home either dramatically crying to sad music or stuffing yourself with ice cream or whatever other snacks you had lying around while watching every cheesy romance drama you could find online. And sure, maybe you're acting a little dumb and cliche or whatever. But it hurts and all of this actually does make it feel better. And yet you also realise that you just can't live as a shut-in, wallowing in self-pity forever. All your friends realise it too. Though most of them are patient with trying to invite you out and cheer you up they are starting to become pushier. It's just a matter of time until someone actually breaks in and forces you out of your room. And it's very likely that Felix will be the one to do it.

At least that is what it seems like judging by how insistent he is to invite you to his little house party this weekend. Or rather the small get together as he has called it in his initial pitch.

"Oh come on, it's really not a big deal, just some friends. We're only going to play some games, maybe watch a movie, no excessive drinking or anything. It'll be fun."

You can pretty much hear Felix's pout even though his voice does sound a little muffled through your phone. You switch it from one hand to another before you press it against your ear again, simultaneously rolling over in your bed a little. You knock over an empty ice cream container in the process, a dirty spoon falling out of it and clattering onto the floor. Yuck, you really should clean up around here again.

"Ugh, fine, but I won't stay long", you grumble. You don't need to be able to see Felix to imagine that winning grin on his face.

"Great, bring some snacks if you can!", he says happily. And normally he would hang up with that, but the sentence is followed by a pregnant silence. So tense that it feels like one of those you could hear a needle drop kind of scenarios. You wait with bated breath until Felix finally continues to speak. "There is one thing though... Jisung will be there as well. Probably. I guess he kinda told me what happened so if you're uncomfortable seeing him I totally get it."

You take a deep breath in, trying to calm yourself. You've expected this. Of course, you have. Felix and Jisung are basically inseparable. In fact, you only ended up getting to know Felix after you befriended Jisung. And while you have gotten quite close to him where he is long past just being your crush's best friend there is no denying that at the very beginning getting closer to Felix was just a sideproduct of getting closer to Jisung.

"Is this what this is actually about? Because if you're planning to invite both of us over so we can talk things out I'm not interested." Okay, maybe that did sound a little too snappy. Maybe it's only natural for Felix wanting to play the mediator, after all, he is basically stuck in between. He probably doesn't want to sacrifice his newer friendship to you just because his best friend just broke your heart. And if you're being honest you don't want to lose Felix as a friend either. Even if that means that maybe you will have to occasionally see Jisung.

"No, no, that's not what this is about at all. I swear. I get that you don't want to see him right now. But I kinda miss hanging out with you and not inviting you would have felt wrong. But if you really don't want to we could just meet up at another time? Like just us, or at least just us and some people that aren't Jisung."

Another deep breath. Inhale. Exhale. Let go of all the negative emotions and try to be the bigger person. "No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't make you feel like you have to pick between your friends. I'll come, but if things get awkward please don't be mad if I leave early."

"I totally get that, but I'm so happy that you're coming. I promise you won't regret it", Felix's bubbly voice is almost enough to convince you that this is actually something that could be good for you. Almost. You can hear some sounds through your phone, probably someone else walking up to Felix. For a moment you can hear hushed voices talking, but you can only really make out Felix's part of the conversation – mostly just small humms and yes or of course not – the other person is completely inaudible. You clear your throat just loud enough to remind Felix that he is still on the phone with you.

"Ah sorry", he mutters. "Gotta go now, see you soon though. I'll text you the details later." Before you can even say goodbye he has already hung up again. You put your phone back down next to your pillow and take a moment to look around the room. You catch your reflection looking back at you from the mirror on your closet door. Maybe your room isn't the only thing in need of some cleaning.

It's a wonder what an hour in the bathroom and wearing some of your favourite clothes can do to boost your confidence. Well, maybe you are a little overdressed for this little get-together, but it's all self-care, right? And maybe there is just a tiny dash of revenge in it as well. Because what better way to prove to the guy who turned you down that you are doing just fine than waltzing around his best friends' party looking stunning and unbothered? Okay, it's probably more of that than anything else. But if you can prove to Jisung that you are completely over him, thank you very much, maybe you can fool yourself into believing it as well.

So you ring the doorbell, hair done, a bit of makeup on, slightly overdressed and smelling of that fruity-scented shower gel that always makes you feel good. It's almost half an hour before the time that Felix told you to be here. Which is deliberate as well. He does look a little surprised when he opens the door for you though.

"Oh, hey, you're here early", he mumbles, taking a confused step to the side to let you in. You, instead, go in for a quick hug first and then hand him the few packages of snacks you picked up from a grocery store on your way here.

"Yeah, sorry about that, but I had nothing else to do and I figured I could maybe help you set up things?", you suggest while making your way inside. Felix's parents must be out for the night, which you already assumed, but now you can clearly tell from the lack of silence. EDM music is coming from the good speakers in the living room, something Felix's parents would never tolerate if they were here.

"Well, now that you're here already...", Felix mumbles.

You two spend the next twenty minutes putting all the snacks and some drinks on the table in the living room. You clear any random items off the couch to make sure there will be as much room as possible while Felix gets a couple extra cushions to put on the floor just in case. After that, he begins setting up his console while you browse through the DVD collection. Sure, you could also just watch something on Netflix, but there is just something fun about DVDs. Probably because you can only have a few of them, so you have to pick and chose and collect only your favourite movies so you can watch them over and over again. A person's DVD collection probably says a lot about them. Well, if they still have one. Judging by some of the movies in this collection most of it probably belongs to Felix's parents. But there are a couple in there that are so definitely his.

Maybe ten minutes after the time Felix told you to be here the first people arrive. Because being exactly on time is lame, apparently. And then, as it often is with such events, people suddenly seem to all come at once. For five minutes or so the doorbell is ringing at least twice a minute until everyone is gathered in the living room. Every time a new person arrived and Felix went to open the door you kind of trailed behind him. First of all, because you are curious to see who else is coming. And second because you kind of don't want to be left alone. Because these people are Felix's friends. And while most of them are probably also Jisung's friends one way or another and you might have seen them on some occasion once you don't really know any of them. And the only other person that you really know well is not someone you want to spend time with right now. Which is why you're going to try your best to cling to Felix for most of the night. Actually, that's the main reason why you decided to show up early. If you had shown up around time or later you would have risked someone else being there first. And that person might have already got Felix roped into a super interesting conversation that you wouldn't be able to invade. So you had to make sure to be the first. Because maybe that would make tailing him for the entire night a little less awkward. And so far that has worked quite well. Maybe because Felix has also sensed that you don't want to be left alone, but even when new people start to arrive he still makes sure you are included in every conversation.

Jisung is the last to show up and just as you have with the other guest you follow Felix to the door, not knowing but already sort of expecting what's to come. Still, when you see Jisung there and your eyes meet you hide behind Felix instinctively. For a second the three of you all just stand there, no one really knowing what to do. There is an awkward tension hanging in the air as the two friends stand there, Felix trying to act completely unaware of the situation and Jisung looking everywhere but at you. And since you are standing right behind Felix, he is also pretty much looking at everything except his best friend.

"Come on, don't just stand there", Felix finally says, his voice overly cheerful. Jisung smiles a smile that is so clearly forced that it hurts just to look at it.

"Yeah sorry for holding up traffic, it's good to see you", he mumbles. For just a moment he looks directly at you and slightly nods his head. A blink and you miss it gesture. But it's enough to make you feel like something just shattered inside you. And there you thought you were starting to get over him. It's weird because you figured that you'd grow to despise Jisung for turning you down like this. That you would become bitter and no longer want to be near him. But despite everything he's still Jisung. He's still the boy you fell in love with. The one who'd always make you smile and who'd pout at you cutely whenever you poked fun at him. The boy who used to share his cake with you and who always looked like an adorable little hamster chewing on his share of the food. Despite everything, he's still Jisung. And you're still in love with him.

Still, things seem to go well for a while. Even though you and Jisung are in a room now and you basically suffer every time you as much as cross eyes with him, you're able to forget that he is there most of the time. It's easy with a group of other people shouting and laughing almost non-stop. And also there is Felix who you cling to as if your life depends on it. Well, at least you manage to do that for most of the time. But of course, you knew that this plan was bound to fail sooner or later. And when Felix winds up in an intense argument with two of his friends whose names you don't even know you're left to yourself. Which means that it's time to hide for a while.

You walk over to the kitchen after announcing to whoever was close enough to hear you speak that you are going to get yourself something to drink. Not that anyone particularly cared. You’re leaned against the pretty marble counter in the middle of the room, back to the door, a glass of cold tap water in one hand when you suddenly hear someone else entering.

"So, are you and Felix dating now?" You recognise the person behind you right away. That voice is just way too familiar. But you still turn around slowly, hoping that somehow it will be someone else standing there. But it's Jisung. Of course, it's Jisung. He's standing in the doorway leading into the kitchen. The only door leading into the kitchen. And thus also the only way out of it. And you are standing next to the fridge, only the kitchen counter between you and the boy who broke your heart. And is now inquiring about your relationship status out of the blue. As if that's any of his concern now. Still, you're basically backed into a corner with Jisung blocking the only exit. Fight or flight and well, the escape route is blocked so...

"Huh, where is this coming from? Why do you even care?" You basically throw the words at Jisung with more rage than you even realised you had. Or maybe it's sadness. Frustration. It's the first time you've actually spoken to him since the confession and he has nothing better to do than making assumptions about you dating someone else. Jisung actually recoils a little, but he's still in the way.

"You know, you're clinging to his side the whole time and all that. I'm not judging, I'd be happy for you if... you know", he raises his hands while talking as if to calm a wild animal. Or a panicked pet that managed to escape from its cage somehow. And the worst thing is that he actually seems to mean it. He doesn't even see how his words might be hurtful to you. He doesn't even think that there might be something wrong with it. Your first notion about how he intends to handle this situation was right apparently. He thinks this meant nothing. And that it will all be forgive forget and we'll laugh about it in a few weeks.

"You broke my damn heart not even three weeks ago and now you think I'm trying to hit it off with your best friend? What the hell, Jisung? Do you really take me for that kind of person? Do you think after everything I said to you I could just move on and find someone else in just a few weeks? Do you think that this is how I treat other people? That this is how I treat my own emotions? Because I'm really serious about what I feel and I don't just tell people that I like them if I don't actually mean it. But if that's what you honestly think of me then I'm starting to wonder why I ever even liked you in the first place!"

You push past a completely stunned Jisung before he can manage to bounce back from the verbal punch you just dealt. Good. You probably wouldn't be able to deal with any more of this. You stumble into Felix on your way through the hallway and he gives you a slightly confused slightly concerned look seeing how you are clearly worked up and probably close to tears.

"Hey, what's going on?", he asks, grabbing you by the wrist gently, but with just enough force to make you stop in your tracks.

"I'm going to leave. I'm sorry", you mumble. You avoid looking directly at him, worrying that the compassion in his eyes would be enough to break you completely. And you don't really want to start crying here. It's not you're party so sadly you can't cry if you want to.

"Did something happen? I swear if he said anything stupid to you I will kick his ass."

"It's fine I just can't deal with this right now. I'm sorry for spoiling your night."

Felix sighs. "You're not spoiling anything. I get it, it's fine. Take care on your way home. Text me if you want to talk."

He pulls you into a quick hug before letting go off you entirely, allowing you to go and grab your shoes before sneaking out the door.

You haven't even made it around the lock when you hear the loud sounds of fast footsteps catching up to you. Your first instinct is to walk faster, just slightly, not running just speedwalking. All possessions clutched tightly, tight grip on your keys. Then you hear the voice calling out to you and maybe running isn't that bad of an idea after all.

"Hey, stop, I just want to talk to you!" Jisung sounds out of breath already. He must have run all the way just to catch up. As if he hasn't already said enough. You stop and turn around to yell back at him.

"If the others told you to go after me and apologise you can save your breath. I don't want to hear about it."

Jisung slows down a bit, trying to catch his breath, but he doesn't stop walking towards you.

"It's not that at all", he shouts. Almost automatically you start glancing around yourself for any random passerby listening in on the conversation before you turn back to Jisung. By then he has come close enough to speak in a normal volume. No more shouting needed. And you still didn't run away. "Please, I just want to talk", he says.

You look around yourself again before you let out a sigh. "Fine, then let's go somewhere and talk. The last thing I want to do right now is causing a scene."

Jisung sets down his tray on the table between you. He's got himself some fries and a strawberry milkshake. Because he insisted that you had to at least get something if you were going to lother around and block a table. He also offered to get you something, even said he'd pay for it. But you've turned him down. You just want to get this over with as quickly as possible.

"So, what did you want to talk about?", you ask impatiently, after Jisung has fumbled around with the lid of his milkshake for a while because he forgot to get himself a straw. He looks up at you with an almost bashful expression.

"It's just... I'm really sorry. About earlier. I shouldn't have said that. That was stupid of me." He seems to mean it. Even though you're not sure whether he has actually realised his mistake or if he just feels bad for offending you. But in either way, his apology is genuine. And yet, you can't really get yourself to forgive him that easily.

"Is that it?", you ask. Seeing Jisung's hurt expression you want to take it back immediately. But you won't get anywhere if you just back down every time someone gets uncomfortable. It's just the way feelings work. Someone will get hurt. And it has never been about trying to avoid that hurt, it's about learning to deal with it. Learning to cope and to talk it out and to make it go away again. Maybe it's time for that now.

"I just, and I know this must sound super silly to you, I got so jealous seeing you with Felix earlier. And it was stupid of me to accuse you like this. But for a moment I was afraid that you actually moved on that fast. Because I didn't want you to. And I know that's selfish, but I wanted you to still be into me."

You let out an annoyed huff to let Jisung know that this is in fact very much selfish and not really helping his case right now, but he doesn't let it discourage him from speaking.

"Because I like you too. And I didn't realise how much until I didn't have you around me anymore. And when I saw you with someone else I just kinda lost it completely. I can't bear to lose you."

Instead of replying you reach out a hand and snatch one of Jisung's fries.

"Hey!", he complains as you dip the fry you just stole from him into his milkshake, making sure to scrape up as much of it as the tiny piece of burnt potato can hold.

"Shush, let me have this", you say, popping the loaded fry into your mouth. You catch Jisung's gaze and suddenly both of you are smiling. And then you're laughing. And it's as if a weight has been lifted off your chest. You haven't felt this free in weeks. But of course, the moment doesn't last and the two of you quickly fall back into an awkward silence. Yet you're also not done talking. And there are some things you need to say now or you will maybe never be able to say them at all.

"You know, I'm still really hurt and as much as I'd like to just say that I still like you as well and pretend like everything is alright now, I just can't."

"I get that. And as I've said before, I'm really sorry. I was stupid back then and I didn't realise how much you meant to me until you weren't around anymore. It's like I took you for granted. And I shouldn't have. I swear, if I could turn back time I would. If I could go back to the day you confessed to me I would tell you that I feel the same about you."

"You can't though. We can't replay that scene, it's over." And the script you wrote for it in your mind is torn to shreds and thrown away.

"How about a new scene then?", Jisung suggests. You raise one eyebrow at him, trying to give him a questioning look but he just grins at you. "Let's start again right here." He stretches his arms out as if to point to the place around him. At this time of night, the fast-food shop isn't really full, but it isn't empty either. It's filled with a weird mixture of businessmen who just want to get a single black coffee-to-go and groups of young people that are between slightly tipsy and straight-up high lining up to order insane amounts of fries and cheap burgers with too much sauce. The place is kinda dirty, there are still crumbs on your table from who knows what time of day, a mustard stain on the chair next to yours. The air smells greasy and some annoying pop song is playing from a speaker that must be rather close to you and still you can't locate it precisely.

"Jisung, I don't think-" But he doesn't let you finish. Instead, he reaches out and grabs your hand.

"Listen, I really like you. Because you're cute and funny and beautiful. And you have such a good way with words, you made me the most beautiful confession I have ever heard and I was so flattered to hear all of that from something as wonderful as yourself. And having you as my friend is one of the best things that has ever happened to me. Because you add so much to my life, I feel like I could never get bored with you. And I like that you're weird, I like that you dip your fries into ice cream and milkshakes and how you sometimes just stare into thin air as if you're somewhere completely different. And sometimes you're really quiet as if you're stuck in your head, but I still like you then. Because you're dreamy and sort of weird and just such an amazing person to be around. And I'm sorry that I took you for granted. Could you find it in your heart to forgive me? I'm not asking you to just date me right away after I hurt you like this. All I'm asking is that we can try again. And if you ever want to make that confession again I promise I'll respond properly."

It's weird. This is nothing like you imagined it. The setting is far from romantic, the mood far from perfect. No one would write a script like that. But that has always been the thing that makes Jisung so attractive to you. He breaks the script. He doesn't need one. He just says whatever he thinks. Whatever he feels. He's so genuine. So easy to make you forget about all your overthinking. Put the script aside and just watch how things will play out.

"I accept your apology", you mumble. With your thumb, you draw a tiny circle onto the back of Jisung's hand and he gently squeezes yours back. "I'm ready to try again."

#stray kids #stray kids fluff #stray kids scenario #stray kids x reader #han jisung #han #jisung #han x reader #jisung x reader #han fluff #han scenarios #scenario #fluff #angst #friends to lovers

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notasiren21 · 4 years

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Lukanette 24, 86. First day at university/college?

Hell yea bud I gotchu (even tho I have classes in the morning and finished this af 4AM but lol idc)

Rootbeer Floats & Milkshakes

Rating: Teen basically

Pairing: Lukanette

Word count: 3,839

Prompt(s): (24) “Wanna go grab a drink?” & (86)”Don’t be scared, I’m right here.”

Characters: Luka Couffaine, Marinette Dupain Cheng, Ayla Cessaire

Description:

Marinette’s first day at university comes with a surprise planned by a certain quiet girl off somewhere else for school and her best friend/roommate Ayla. It’s been two years since Luka and Marinette last saw each other and inner thoughts get spilled and fluff takes place.

So many boxes.

That’s all there was to it. There were too many boxes she had carried up and unpacked between her and Ayla that filled their new university dorm room.

In fact, she was almost certain there was a god out there when a student happened by saying he was taking spare boxes to store away for a later time.

She collapsed onto her bed, black high waisted skirt spanning the mattress and covers, pink silk blouse hanging off one shoulder. An arm carefully draped across her face to avoid makeup, lips parting in an exaggerated moan of exhaustion.

“You alright there, girl?” Ayla snickered, folding her clothes and swatting Marinette’s thigh to get her to move.

“If by alright you mean, questioning my life choices and events that led me to here and disdain for being limited to colleges because of my other persona needing to be here for an akuma, then yes. I’m alright.”

Ayla whistled lowly, “Damn, bug. And here I was, worrying about that small thing called tuition and student loans.”

The bluenette sat up in a huff, leaning against the wall with eyes closed rubbing at her forehead.

“Right, that. God, the thought of starting university scared me, but being here is downright terrifying.”

And then she heard it.

“Aw, Mari, don’t be scared, I’m right here.” And there standing was the owner of the smooth and calming voice. Grinning with his perfect teeth and one snake bite piercing ring on the bottom left of his lip, hair more of his natural black roots and electric blue tips, and a few tattoos.

She was screaming excitedly and hurling her body into his for a hug before Ayla had the chance to turn around and the poor boy could blink.

“Luka!” She smushed her face against his middle ribs, feeling the muscles of his now matured figure and the soft cotton blend of his black hooded long sleeve.

Ayla still folded, more than pleased Juleka involved her in a scheme like old times and reunited the two after Luka left for university for those two years and spent breaks being Jagged Stone’s new protégé.

He placed a kiss to her hair, squeezing her tight and feeling his face burn from her presence altogether. “It’s nice to see you too, Ma-ma-Marinette.” He teased, watching as she pulled away and wiped some small flecks of glitter highlighter away from his shirt. “It’s fine, I don’t mind it.” He said, carefully grabbing her hand and bringing it down to rest between them.

“I didn’t know you went here.” God, her eyes were so blue.

“I could say the same. I came to visit because Ayla said she needed help with boxes and Juleka told her I attended the same school and lived in the same building.” He raised their hands, placing a kiss to her knuckles, “This is by far the greatest surprise though.”

Marinette blushes heavily from the gesture. She used to whenever Luka was sweet around her but the time spent apart seemed to reinforce her feelings. She smiled before a frown took over her features. She quickly whipped around to stare at the taller female.

“Why didn’t you just invite him over sooner? We would’ve finished forever ago.” Only receiving a huff and glance to her.

Luka blinked, “Oh, so you don’t need any help?” Great, now he was feeling like he was intruding and a possible nuisance hanging around.

He was about to offer to leave them so they wouldn’t be distracted when the small and petite girl he spent his last teenage years loving squeezed him into another hug.

“Oh my god, you being here is more than enough help. I think I can see the light, is this it? Seeing Luka has killed me with such peaceful serenity I’m able to leave this horrid place for a possible paradise?”

He gave an amused laugh that rushed out of him, staring wide eyed to his old friend with glasses.

“Don’t even bother. She spent a summer with Chloé having to serve punishment by working in her family’s bakery and everyday it was nonstop dramatic monologues until their shifts ended.” She smiled, “It was amusing and did get better as time went on though.”

He only nodded, hating when she let go and moved to put small and casual heals on, long hair falling over her shoulders as she lent to the side, finding solid balance along her bed post.

“Well since it’s a reunion and all, wanna go grab a drink?”

Luka only dimpled down at her in response, excited she wasn’t ready to part ways with him just yet.

“You even have to ask?”

~*~

There was no question about it in her mind; Luka had definitely gotten hotter in their time separated.

His hair was messy in his young rockstar way but still gravitated the urge for Marinette to play with from across the table. His eyes seemingly more of azure than just regular blue when he was younger. Eyelashes and brows black and more defined.

How in the hell did his features harden after two years?

Marinette played with the straw in her milkshake, glancing up frequently to catch a glimpse of Luka who was at the counter ordering a root beer float. She coward every time he looked to her like he felt her stare.

Ayla passed on the reunion trip, saying she was going to go visit Alix and then spend the rest of the day with Nino who attended the same school as them.

“Sorry I couldn’t take you to a bar or something to ease your nerves, I can’t drink.” He said, sitting down and alternating between a spoon and a straw for his drink.

“You can’t?” She was surprised, most university students would frequent shops and stores to buy out the liquor section back home.

He shook his head, the curve of the spoon sitting on his tongue before he spoke. “Nope, alcohol intolerant. Pass out the second it hits my system, I get sick and the worst hives ever.”

“That sounds awful, how did you find out?”

He laughed lightly, “My roommate was in charge of making punch for a party he was going to later when I would be out buying a new release of this one game. He asked me to try it and only told me of the fruit ingredients, wondered if it needed more sugar. Had no clue until I woke up in the campus’s infirmary.”

She grabbed his hand with hers, white nail polish tips visible to him on short nails of hers. “If it makes you feel any better, I had planned to order a Shirley temple or something had you taken me to a bar. Never like the idea of drinking anyways and I don’t have the luxury of freedom to.” She faltered before she smiled at him.

“Yeah, never know when one will need to run across the rooftops of Paris huh?”

She went impossibly still before he realized what he confessed.

“You knew?” Her voice was a mere whisper, eyes growing wide and beautiful mascara lashes blinking rapidly.

He let go of her hand quickly like he just hurt her, opting to lean on his elbows on the hard table and mess with his hair nervously, avoiding her gaze.

“I mean, I’ve always known since I first met Ladybug in person,” he was speaking quietly to avoid drawing attention. “The way you spoke was just, it was mesmerizing and like a song in itself. When she talked to me, all I could hear was you. And one day you approached me from behind and said my name in that way you do that gets to me and I turned around and saw her instead. And I just knew, I mean that day I was more sure than I had been the first meeting.”

The air suddenly turned thick and she didn’t know how to respond until she thought about certain things he said that she could focus on and giggled.

“And yet the people I spent everyday with in class never picked up on it. You truly are one of a kind, Couffaine.”

The hand that messed with his colored locks stilled, eyes meeting hers that were amused and he felt himself burning like mad. Clearing his throat and sipping the soda from the ice cream concoction.

“So, how’s Adrien?” He wouldn’t dare give himself hope like last time when he first fell for her.

“Adrien? He’s fine. Why do you ask?”

“Haven’t you guys hit like your third year yet? When was that anniversary?” He really didn’t want to know but it would provide him a slap of reality before getting hurt again by his own damn self.

She giggled again, head hanging low and bit her lip in a way that made his chest tighten. “I wouldn’t know. We broke up a few months into our first year because we just weren’t made for one another. We’re still great friends and that’s all we are to each other. Nothing more.”

Ah fuck...the hope is seeping in.

“Huh, didn’t see that coming.”

She added some sprinkles to her shake that sat on the ice cream parlor’s table besides the napkins. “We were younger, thinking everything made sense and it would work out. In reality, I just had some tween love obsession goggles on that inhibited my logic and real life objectives.”

He was smiling now, arms folded with one able to eat the soda flavored ice cream, “You really grew up, huh?”

“I could say the same to you. Wonder how a Viperion would look today than from two years ago? Sexier? More fitted? Definitely hotter no doubt.” She flashed a smile and her shoulders shook when he coughed harshly and choked on his spoonful, looking at the way the red traveled down to his neck and his eyes shook in panicked awe of her. “You okay there, Vipey?”

“Vipey?” He hit a fist to his chest, drinking the soda at the top again. Questioning that one little thing was far easier to draw attention to her teasing compliments.

She waved him off like that new nickname wasn’t twisting his heart in the most delicious pain he ever felt. “Always wanted to call you that but Chat was such a jealous and possessive thing back then, I was afraid he’d claw you to bits if I gave you your own pet name.”

Did she really not know what she was doing to him?

Wait.

“Okay, I get it. It’s a cute name.” He leaned towards her again, “On another note, is this you confessing that Chat Noir is Adrien? Because I kinda already figured.”

She gaped before smiling, “You’re just too good, aren’t you?”

“Not really. I mean, a socially repressed kid who lives by a set of rules and is made to be perfect all the time suddenly gains powers, and what is he expected to do? I would think look untamed and be unfiltered as much as possible. It wasn’t that big of a leap when I knew she was you. Well, a small fraction of you at least.”

Marinette ignored the last part. “You know, most people love to say her name. Ladybug’s. Why don’t you?”

His dark brows furrowed before he held a spoonful of his ice cream up to her lips, still leaning forwards and meeting her eyes. “I like your name better, Marinette. You’re what makes her, you’re always Marinette. Why call you by something else unless it’s required of me to do so?” She pretended like the hitch in her breath wasn’t obvious and ate the ice cream, noting the way his eyes didn’t dart down to watch her eat it like most boys would but instead held her gaze, and only dropped to grab more for her.

“What do you mean by that?”

He gave a sad smile, “You’re a smart girl, Mari. Ladybug isn’t who you are, it’s just a persona you created to ease the worries of an entire city that’s heavily populated. Someone you made real to stand up against someone with a power and lust for evil when I’m sure you wanted to hide away like the rest of us. Who you are behind the mask is so much more powerful than the one presented to us because you’re human. You made her to get through the challenging times and give a hero to a city when you wanted to be protected and safe just like them. I admire Ladybug for all she’s done, but I admire Marinette more for the sacrifices she’s made to help Paris and the victims of akumas.” He wiped the corner of her lips when the tinted ice cream caught his attention, his smile dropping. “Every time Ladybug got hurt, my heart didn’t break for her, it broke for you.”

“Me, what why?”

He chanced it and leaned his forehead to hers. “Because everyone saw you gain injuries throughout battle and they cried for Ladybug. Then your purification presumably took away the pain and injuries, but I always assumed some lingered. And that the memories in fact did stay and I wondered how many sleepless nights you had where you jolted awake in fear of getting hurt again, and I prayed to whatever deity there was that you didn’t cry alone in the dark.”

She wanted to cry now.

“People worry about the hero and then the fight is over, then worrying about themselves and the close calls. No one ever stops to worry about the person behind the mask though. I’ve always hated that.”

“No one but you, huh?” They had quieted down significantly and whatever had been flickering between the two had grown to sparks that remained unsettled inside them.

Luka glanced down at their hands that were close to one another’s, taking a deep breath before pulling back. “C’mon, I’ll take you back.”

The walk back was silent, Marinette holding onto his arm that was lazily available while his hand rested in his shirt pocket. He gave her a small smile when she took off her heals to walk through the carpeted dorm hallway, offering to carry the small shoes for her that now dangled from his free hand’s hooked fingers. He watched her step on the patterns in graceful ways, dancing around them to his humming in the near empty hallways.

He assumed there was a first day party raging on somewhere in the building.

They stopped at her dorm, finishing out keys and letting him walk inside to place her shoes down on the rack she brought with her from home. He looked up just in time to see a familiar bracelet presented to him, a snake kwami floating near it and a red one zipping in the back to eat baked goods from home.

He couldn’t find words for how surprised he was, looking between the little god and then her and the bracelet.

“You don’t have to if you don’t want to, Sass won’t mind. I just felt like I would’ve had a great partner in Viperion if I was given the chance to work with him more.”

He willed himself back, “How do I know this isn’t some elaborate excuse to check me out in a skin right suit?” He nearly prided himself when she became equally as flustered.

“That’s only a quarter of the reason why I’m offering, Luka.” She pouted, avoiding his eyes and shifting her weight nervously. He smiled down at her, grabbing her arms and wrapping them around his waist as his crossed over her shoulders, cheek resting to her hair again.

God, this felt like home.

“When have I ever said no to you, Mari?” He could feel her excitement shoot through her and the small squeal of excitement reached his ears as he laughed. Letting her pull one arm from her shoulder and slip the bracelet on. “Hi, Sass. I’ve missed you.”

The snake smiled, glancing between Luka and the smaller girl in his arms that was beyond content with the turn of events for the night. “Not assssss much asssss her I presssssume?” Earning a snicker when he winked to the small god.

“Luka, the main reason I asked you?”

He pulled away, letting her sit on the bed on her knees, messing with her skirt in her hands.

“Yeah?”

“It’s because, I’m, um,”

“Take your time, Marinette. I don’t mind.”

She took a breath, “I’ve never trusted anyone with my inner thoughts and feelings like I do with you. You read me like an open book and try to keep it to yourself so I never become embarrassed. But you know the real me behind the mask that most others don’t even if they know my secret, and that counts for something.” She met just azure eyes, “Who better to protect me than the one who sees I’m just as weak as any civilian.”

He didn’t know what to say to that, instead walking closer to her and letting his right hand guide the back of her head to his lips as he placed a kiss to her forehead.

“Is that a yes?”

He nosed her hair, “Maybe I just want to hear you call me Vipey again.”

She giggled in kind, flicking his nose. “It’s a cute nickname for a cute boy who is a cute superhero.” She nudged the tip of his nose again, “With a cute, button nose.”

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were flirting with me, Dupain Cheng.”

“It took me a few years to gain the courage for it, but yeah, I guess you could say I am.” She blinked up innocently at him. He crossed his arms with a smirk.

“You know it’s dangerous for cute and beautiful girls like you to make guys like me hopeful right?”

“Is it?” She tried matching his height, even with the extra inches of the bed she only reached to his chin while she stood on her knees. “You said I’m smart, meaning I’ve learned my lesson this second time around. It’s okay for you to be hopeful, right?”

“Marinette?” He couldn’t move, afraid he would scare her off and praying to those kwamis he knew what was happening next.

“Luka?” She nudges her nose to his chin, giggling lightly when he shifted down to meet her nose like she wanted. He couldn’t and wouldn’t make the first move, she knew that. He respected her too much to read too far into things she did. “You know I always had this crush on you, right?”

“You what?”

She frowned, tears glistening around the blue hues of her eyes. “I really did miss you while you were away.” He forced a swallow, ignoring the matter that no one has ever spoken those words to him before and the weight they carried to him. “I’m not messing up this time, Luka.”

She pulled at the collar of his hood, bringing him down to her lips as her name died on his tongue and his hands slipped out of the pocket of his shirt to find support from her waist. His eyes screwed shut in fear of it all not being real or worse, her realizing it was a mistake to take with him.

But she still let her hands travel to his hair, giving a small happy noise with the ability to now play with it and feel it between her fingers. That alone coaxed him out of his potential nightmare slowly and encouraged him to move his lips against hers , feeling her smile when he found the bed to sit on so she wouldn’t have to lean up and felt her legs draped over his lap sideways.

He couldn’t bring himself to do anything when she broke the kiss, scared she’ll kick him out or express regret. Instead she gave a shy smile and then pressed a chaste kiss to his lips, hands framing his face before she hugged him with enough force to send Luka tipping backwards into her pillows with her on top of him.

She didn’t move off of him, only brought her face up to rest on her arms on top his chest while he refused to look at her. She held his face again, feeling the heat of the blood rushing to his face.

“Is it my turn to say how cute you look when you’re a blushing mess?” Her impish smile widened when the depths of his blues met hers, his jaw hardening in response to let her know he was at a loss for words. She ran a hand through his hair, noting the way he couldn’t stop the hum from escaping his throat. “You always were the one who got away, I didn’t want to risk it this time around and knew it the moment I saw you step into the university dorm that it had to be.”

He swallowed nervously, fingers twitching on her back. “Does this mean you want to be-,”

“Boyfriend and girlfriend for the time being? Absolutely.” She gave a firm nod, lips pressed in a straight line to make him laugh finally. He tried not to think about the her response and what the “time being” could lead to, hopefully a future together like he always wished for.

“Okay. I want that too.” She grinned, resting her chin on her arms again and staring up at him with an awed look. “What?”

She shook her head, leaning up to peck his lips before darting down to his chest and resting her cheek against his heart, “Nothing, you’re just really cute, Luka.”

“Oh my god, you’re going to kill me.” He muttered, arms leaving her and covering his red face.

“You okay?”

He whimpered, “Peachy. I meet up with the girl I’ve had a crush on forever and have a date with her and she ends up being my girlfriend before the night is over. And she’s the type to shower me in compliments. I’ve sighed my own death wish.”

“While you’re dealing with that, you mind if I turn the television on and catch up on an anime I’m watching?”

He uncovered his face to look at her then the tv across her bed, “Does this mean we have to move?”

She shook her head, moving to grab the remote and he noted he recognized the show already from some posts and expressed interest to himself of it before.

“No, I’m too affectionate to pass up on cuddling.” She sat up to grab a blanket before resting on his chest again, tangling her legs with his and giving a happy wiggle when he hugged her close. “You smell nice, I like it.”

“Fuck, you’re really too adorable, Marinette.” Luka sighed, forever grateful the university he didn’t care much about had one thing he would give the world to and she wanted nothing but him instead.

“You’re adorable too, Vipey.” Giggling when he squeezed her in retaliation and muttered to just watch her show and cuddled him.

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