#(And almost lost my chopsticks but those I could get sent to me)

[two-red-lungs]

Pick Your Poison

Paul/Fem!Reader

Content: Slow burn, stoner!Paul, he’s the Drugs Guy and I love him, unresolved tension, the Lost Boys are SO toxic

Word Count: 2.9k

The neon sign in Saigon Soul’s window hummed, luminous and red, casting vermillion’s feather-soft hue across the rapidly cooling colors of the night. The last rays of the sun had faded less than an hour ago: but as soon as they did, like clockwork, your new favorite entertainment emerged. Just like he did every night. A reverse Cinderella.

Red looked good on Paul. It haloed his product-stiff blonde mane in a ruby glow and glittered like pomegranate seeds in a marching line down his gilded row of medallions. Turned his off-white eyes and teeth pink, too. He huffed, smacking his lips obnoxiously in an effort to puff away the heat of his extra-spicy beef noodle pho, flapping his hands about. The piles of bracelets on his wrists jangled.

“Fuck me, man. That’s good.” He said in his usual laid-back, loose tone after a gulp of iced tea from his flimsy paper cup. 

“Mmm.” You hummed and picked up a heavy shrimp spring roll with your chopsticks. Maybe it was the thick seaside summer air, or the heavenly deep-fried smells that wafted your way every time the narrow restaurant door opened, but the damn things smelled amazing. “Told ya. This place is a total hole in the wall but their food’s primo.”

“Uh-huh.” He sucked pepper oil off the pad of his thumb and scratched his stubbly cheek contemplatively. Even like this, reeking of sweat and looking like a cat got lost in his hair somewhere, he was so beautiful it was almost ridiculous. Damn those baby blues. “My man Dwayne’s gonna dig on this stuff. He’s one bona fide heat fiend. Eats the fuckin, the… the uh…” He snapped his fingers a few times, brows furrowed in utmost stupefied contemplation. “The little spoons, with the red powder on top, you know—”

“Tamarind candy?”

His face lit up like the sun. Jesus Christ. That smile was a flashbang, a dynamite stick, a stun baton. Made you go all stupid. “Yeah! Yeah, man, the tamarind candy! Gotta get him some of that stuff.”

You looked down at your paper plate of food and worried at the inside of your lip with your teeth. Somewhere down the street dance music was playing. Car lights ghosted over your and your dinnermate, lighting up the strangers that walked by on the sidewalk next to you. It was by all means a perfect night: balmy wind and the distant sound of the boardwalk rides on the air. But Paul bringing up his brother… it sent an uneasy sensation down your spine and you couldn’t quite pin down why. 

Paul had stumbled into your life three weeks ago, completely drunk on the beach. You’d been a good samaritan: held his hair back while he puked, tossed him a bottle of water while he reeled and slurred out that his brothers had dumped his ass for being too intoxicated. But the whole while, he grinned. Like he could enjoy anything. Like no matter what situation life put him in, he’d find some way to have fun. 

He sat by your little bonfire in the grassy dunes and you chatted. You showed him some of your stick-n-poke tats and he’d insisted on getting one himself. And (in a decidedly less good samaritan way) you’d given him one, india ink blackening your fingers and his inner arm skin cold under your fingers. And that’s how you’d gotten to know him, how you’d continued to know him over the last collection of days. Alone, just him. His weird, easily-distractible, impulsive, entertaining self. He mentioned he had three brothers, once or twice, and you took it in stride. 

Then you’d seen him with them. 

He was like an entirely different person. 

Across the sea of beach boardwalk heads you’d spotted him. But it didn’t feel like him. He sat lazily up on a railing surrounded by equally eccentric young men, and they watched the crowd like tigers. Like mad kings looking down on their kingdom. A beautiful young woman passed and they all jeered, whooping and whistling and clapping: even Paul. With an aggression and odd hunger in his eyes you’d never seen before. They all moved in tandem, like wolves, wordlessly communicating in a way that made your skin crawl. 

You left. 

Now he was Paul again tonight: just Paul, the Paul you knew and hoped to god was the real version. The guy who couldn’t talk and chew gum to save his life. The guy who declared a thumb war with you and proceeded to lose six times in a row. The guy who delighted in rocking the sky-glider that slowly trundled over the pier until you were shrieking and clinging to his coat.

Either way, real Paul or not, you were glad you’d yet to meet his family. 

The blonde stretched, yawned, and hopped out of his seat, digging a hand into his dingy riding pants pocket. When you moved to counter, pulling your wallet out of your bag, he uh-uhed you and flapped his own leather-bound one in your face. “Not a chance, girl. Paulie’s good for it.”

You raised your brows. As far as you knew, he was a surf bum with a penchant for partying. No way was he holding down a nine to five to pay for dinner. 

Paul scoffed at your look. “I got a freebie from a real charitable dude.” He flashed the corner of a hundred at you and stuck out his tongue with a smile before wrestling two fives out of his cash-thick wallet. 

“Uh-huh. Someone just… handed you what, looks like… six hundred bucks?”

“He didn’t need ‘em anymore.” Paul didn’t even watch his wallet fall, he just dropped it to the table, flattening the bills to presentability with his fingers. “Try not to miss me, ‘kay?” In a whirl of pungent sea salt and old-timey coattails he was inside the little eatery, the bell on the poster-covered door jingling. 

You idly scratched at the hem of his leather wallet with your thumb nail while you waited. Real charitable dude, huh? You weren’t stupid. Paul was a street fiend. Ran trades and exchanges from the pockets sewn inside his coat with practiced ease, like he was born to sell ditchweed and glass-cut coke to summer-break college students. No doubt that’s where the money came from. Hell, the way he was standing around with his brothers… you wouldn’t be surprised if they were his suppliers. 

Something crunched under the edge of your nail. You brought your thumb to your face. There was a line of red, deep and nearby brown, trapped between the keratin and your skin. Dirt, obviously. 

It was dirt. 

Had to be dirt.

Like a category three hurricane, Paul was back, and before you knew it you were on your feet and moseying down the bustling town avenue. One of his long, lithe arms was draped almost crushingly over your shoulder, holding you to his side. He jingled with every footfall. Golden strands of hair blustered in the corner of your vision and you felt his ribs, pressed against your side, swell and contract with a contented sigh.

Two could play at that overconfident, wild-child game. With a little effort you extracted a pinned arm and shoved it under his coat, grabbing his waist over his mesh top and holding him much in the same way he held you as you jaunted down the avenue. He threw his head back and laughed, his stride never wavering. 

“You kinda got guts, girl.” He cackled into the coastal breeze. 

“So, Paulie.” You ignored his needling, crossing the crosswalk and ambling past seemingly endless pizzerias and cinemas and smoke shops. “Level with your good, kind, very honest and transparent friend. How many acid tabs did you sling to get that sorta funding?”

Paule shook your shoulder with a strong hand. “Wasn’t lyin’ to you, c’mon. I really did get that green for free.” The walk sign nearby turned from stop to go and you crossed another street. “Me and my brothers, we got ways, y’know? Not gonna be strapped for cash any time soon.”

Sometimes, when Paul looked at you just right, you thought your damn heart was gonna beat out of your chest. Like he saw right through the bullshit into your soul. But other times, times like now, you realized just how little you actually knew the guy. 

“I got ‘bout an hour before I gotta jet, girl.” Paul started talking again and you blinked: you’d arrived in front of the bulb-studded Casino Arcade arched entrance at the boardwalk without even noticing it. When you looked up at him, he was already looking down at you, eyes crinkled in kiddish mischief. “You down for a puff ‘n play?”

“Just an hour?” You mockingly pouted, extracting yourself from him and crossing your arms broodingly in the small ever-flowing crowd of young adults going in and out of the noisy arcade. “Geez, Paul. What am I, a time-killer till you can go have real fun?”

He laughed and there was a bark to it. “If you could handle real fun I’d take you with me.” A little of his usual spaced-out bliss receded. “But I, uh. Don’t really think the guys would appreciate a plus one at our… parties.”

“Wow.” You deadpanned. “Not vague and condescending at all.” With a conceding huff you punched his shoulder playfully, making his body rock like an inflatable car-sale mascot. “Fine, blondie. I’m game.” Paul was grinning from ear to ear and dragged you by the sleeve off to the underside of the pier, fishing around in his inside pockets. “But none of that skunkweed, you hear me? And if I kick your butt at Speedway again you gotta gimme your ring like you promised last time!”

He stopped short so quickly you nearly collided with his tall, narrow back. Paul whirled around. “Yeah? What do I get if I win?”

You were very acutely aware of how close he was standing, nearly chest-to-chest, and how the shadow-painted back side of the arcade by the barnacle-stippled pier was much less crowded than the arcade. You swallowed and his sharp, playful gaze tracked the motion of your throat reflexively. “It’s— augh, um— mystery prize. Can’t tell you what it is till you win. Which you won’t.”

He was silent for a few seconds, sucking on the inside of his cheek. Thinking. Then he grinned. “Alright.” He flicked a lighter across his knuckles and pressed the button down. The little firelight flickered wildly in the turbulent air. “Let’s get toasted.”

Sitting down in the shadow-dark sand between the pier legs, watching him roll a joint right then and there on his narrow knee, you reeled. Sometimes you really couldn’t tell what his deal was. Were you a time-killer? A listening ear? A friend? The way he looked at you, sometimes— it didn’t feel friendly.

If it was good or bad, though… the jury was still out on that one. 

So. It wasn’t skunkweed.

It was nice and palatable and bright. Absolutely top-shelf stuff he was handing out to you pro-bono. The world was a delicious blur: arcade lights were multihued and the speaker music was pop-y and completely grooveable. Your skin prickled in the hot interior air: fabric just felt better after a few puffs. And god, Paul was the funniest, weirdest, most oddly endearing beanstalk of a man when he was on the stuff. 

He had his forehead pressed so hard to the claw machine it was going to leave a red halo: he beat the side with his fist and howled in breathy, entertained frustration when the wimpy claw let the neon green monkey plush slip from its grasp under your careful joystick management. “Ahh, you dropped it again! Unbelievable!”

“It’s not exactly made to be easy, doofus! I’d like to see you try.” You half-chuckled, half-grumbled, feeding the hungry quarter slot more change. You missed the slot a few times before you succeeded. 

Paul reeled back and rounded the machine like a big cat, waving jingly arms. “You’re an amateur, girl. Let a pro show ya how it’s done.” 

You assumed he’d push you out of the way: god knows he'd done it before. But no, of course now he decided to act exactly like the Paul you’d come to know. He pressed up behind you, chin tickling the crown of your head, and put a hand over yours on the joystick when the machine popped back to life, revitalized by the loose change. It chirped out a happy eight-bit tune and Paul hummed along to it, guiding the claw around and back. His fingers were cool over yours. You could feel his belt buckle biting into your back over your shirt. 

You held very, very still, mouth pressed into a thin line. He jammed the drop button. The claw lowered, clamped over the green monkey, and hauled it over to the prize chute. It dropped it without a hitch: the plush clunked into the deposit receptacle.

Paul’s mouth was behind your ear, cold breath on the shell of it. “See? Pro.”

Then he was gone, crouching like an animal by the chute and wrestling the monkey free, and god you were reeling again: collecting your very high nerves with hands still clutching the sweating joystick plastic. 

“What’s my prize?”

“...Huh?” 

Paul doubled down, resting his weight against the Blasteroids arcade machine and wiggling the monkey at you. “I won. What’s my mystery prize, hmm?”

You collected yourself enough, finally. At least enough to scoff dismissively. “Please, I basically wiped the floor with you in Speedway and Super Mario—”

“You can’t argue with evidence, girl.” When you lunged to snatch the green ‘evidence’ out of his grip he reached upwards with it, holding it over your head mockingly, a cheshire smile on his face. “Cough it up. I want my prize.”

You jumped for the monkey and it went even higher. Grumbling and hopping and face starting to grow very flushed with an ‘I don’t have a fucking mystery prize’ panic, you rambled and cajoled at him, flipping between wheedling and threatening. It took you about fifteen seconds to realize he was no longer staring down at you, but rather over your head. 

“Paul.” A laid-back, low male voice said evenly from behind you. 

An icy knot formed in your stomach. You turned, slow as a glacier, and yep, it was exactly what you thought it was. Two of the brothers you’d spied the blonde hanging out with before. The tall, dark, and brooding one, and the peroxide-spiked trench coat model.

The latter lifted his eyebrows at you when he caught you staring. A tight, cold smile graced his lips for a moment before he turned his cutting gaze back to his brother. “Thought we all agreed to be at the statue by ten. We missed you.” His eyes slide back to you. “Who’s your friend?”

You stood as tall as you could in the given circumstances, feeling rather like a park ranger making himself as big as possible to frighten off a bear. An introduction was on the tip of your tongue. It got knocked off of it when Paul abruptly elbowed past you, shoulder-checking you hard enough to offset your balance. When he stood by his brothers, he looked exactly in place. Like he was meant to be there. 

He glanced down his nose at you. There was a different sort of smile on his face. An insider smile. One you didn’t feel like was for you. “Just some chick, David. Y’know how it is. Where’s Marko?”

“Scoping out dinner. Probably waiting on us, now.”

“Shit man, then let’s go!” Paul crowed, snapping his fingers and grinning, tongue trapped between his teeth. “I’m starvin’.”

The whole while they talked, the tall, dark-haired one watched you with crossed arms. Taking in the way your face shifted, the confused, hurt pinch in your brow. The pac-man machine illuminated half his face, like a skull of amber-yellow. You caught his eye. The intensity of his gaze forced yours down to the multicolored carpet. 

“After you.” David gestured broadly with a gloved hand towards the arcade entrance, and Paul flounced towards it without so much as a goodbye or a sparing glance in your direction, even after an entire evening together. David looked at the dark-haired one. “Dwayne. Time to roll.”

A long-drawn out pause. You refused to look up. 

“...Comin’.” Dwayne eventually said. The trio disappeared between arcade machines, tops of their heads barely visible, then vanished into the crowded Santa Carla night. 

The green monkey was abandoned on the floor, limbs splayed. You picked it up, its glassy plastic eyes blankly reflecting the arcade lights. Like it was mocking you for being there, alone, after that. 

“Fucking asshole.” You breathed in disbelief to yourself. Far more hurt than you thought you’d be. You’d hung out with him for what, six days, tops? Were you even friends? Was he not just some nighttime stranger, a weirdo who emerged from the woodwork to show you a good time once in a while? Paul was good. Paul was fun. He was a fat blunt and a shot of tequila and a roller-coaster ride all wrapped up into one person. 

You’d picked him as your poison of preference. It was a good poison. Now you were starting to wonder if you’d picked wrong. 

#the lost boys #tlb paul #The Lost Boys 1987 #tlb fanfic #my writing #does this fic go anywhere? no. but i simply wanted to write it #having lots of Paul Thoughts today so

[sooibian]

Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Pairing: Kyungsoo x fem!Reader ft. big brother Junmyeon, arch enemy Sehun

Genre/Themes: Established Relationship AU, Fluff, Crack, Loosely inspired by the anime Horimiya

Warnings: Sexual themes, themes of sadism and masochism (nothing explicit), slight swearing.

Description: It’s Sehun’s wedding party. Kyungsoo knew these couple of hours with you were going to be anything but pleasant, however, he didn’t expect things to spiral so quickly. 

A/N: Thank you @his-mochi-cheeks​ for encouraging me to upload this. Shy tagging my closeted dandanies @vampwrrr​ and @changshapatrol​​ since this one sparked joy.

Word count: 2.7k

*****************************************

To Kyungsoo, the best thing about weddings was the feast but since you sat sulkily sipping on green juice - whatever the fuck that monstrosity was made of - he couldn't muster the courage to gorge on bulgogi and galbi in front of you. Especially not since it was a "your side of the family" wedding and your big brother Junmyeon wouldn't quit looking at him as if he were a ticking time bomb.

He’d gone out with you for five years before finally asking you to marry him four years ago. As much as he tried, Kyungsoo failed to make peace with the fact that Junmyeon still hadn't warmed up to him. Kyungsoo firmly believed in cause and effect and he just couldn’t tell when and how he’d faltered to warrant such iciness from Junmyeon. Events like these made his thoughts tread deeper into the “where did I go wrong?” labyrinth with no escape in sight.

Kyungsoo’s stomach growled, the proximity to the buffet area wasn’t helping. He stupidly slapped a hand on it as if to stop the sound from reaching you but despite the loud music and raucous conversations, you noticed. So you offered him a sip of the disgusting green gloop which he politely declined.

Shrugging, you sing-songed mindlessly, "Oof the barbecue stall sure looks inviting."

He suspiciously studied the ever so slight movements in your features, every microexpression and chose the safest response of taking your hand in his, lacing your fingers together, and planting a soft kiss between your knuckles - conscious of the fact that he’d have to tolerate the hunger pangs for just a bit longer. He was dead sure you’d ask him to stop at a McDonald's on your two hour drive back home. None of these green gloop diets have lasted over twelve hours.

Resting his chin in his hand, Kyungsoo peered over his glasses and looked around the luxuriously and aesthetically decorated lawn. In front of the gazebo Oh Sehun and his bride slow-danced to a song he couldn’t recognise. Sehun's hand mischievously slipped down his bride's waist and she teasingly punched his chest in response. She giggled and swayed in his arms as Sehun looked into her eyes with all the love glimmering in his own. Thinking back to his own wedding day, Kyungsoo smiled to himself and planted yet another kiss on your hand. Features contorted by the nasty taste of the juice, to him you still looked just as radiant as you did on your wedding day. In the moment he wanted nothing more than to join the couples on the dance floor, wrap his arms around your waist, and sway to the rhythm of the romantic, soft beats.

So he turned to you and asked enthusiastically, “Lets dance?”

“Kyungsoo - ,” pinching the bridge of your nose, you only reacted with a scowl.

Your damp response instantly soured his expression. “Come on! Don’t be such a sourpuss!” He exclaimed, tugging at your arm.

Kyungsoo observed keenly as your gaze reluctantly turned to a euphoric Sehun. Through gritted teeth, you justified, “It’s my arch-nemesis’ wedding. What do you expect?”

Junmyeon was the Academic Director of Museum Studies at Seoul National University and Sehun was his favourite student, almost like a younger brother to him and as his biological sister, you somehow felt threatened by their relationship. Over the years, your insecurity had manifested in the way of an inexplicable resentment towards Sehun.

“Why did we even come, then?” Kyungsoo reasoned.

“To avoid having to listen to Junmyeon whinging and whining for an eternity,” you dead-panned.

“You mean the way I’ve been tolerating your whining ever since we received the wedding invite?” Kyungsoo grumbled.

Wagging your finger at him, you said, “That’s a low blow, Kyungsoo.”

Crossing his arms over his chest, Kyungsoo pursed his lips and continued arguing with you, “Who even brings their own meal to a goddamn wedding?”

You rolled your eyes before listlessly scrolling through your phone. Kyungsoo understood exactly what you were upto. While you didn’t want anybody to fault you for skipping the wedding, you needed to make it known to everyone present that you were here merely out of courtesy.

On the other hand, Kyungsoo was quite fond of Sehun. The guy was fun and even-tempered and Kyungsoo truly admired people who were uncomplicated, people with whom he could freely speak his mind. It’s why he fell in love with you in the first place and stayed in love...despite all of your pettiness and quirks. Quirks that made Kyungsoo shake in his boots. He pulled his phone out of his pocket, pushed those thoughts out of his head and heaved a sigh of relief upon realizing that your eccentricity wouldn’t rear its ugly head at a family celebration.

He was jolted out of his reverie by Junmyeon who slammed a plate of dakgalbi in front of him. Kyungsoo immediately shoved his phone into an inside pocket of his blazer, inwardly reprimanding himself for behaving all the more suspiciously in front of your elder brother.

Squinting sceptically, Junmyeon remarked, “I didn’t see you at the buffet -”

“Ah - we’ve been meaning to -” Kyungsoo tried explaining the situation without having to put you in a spot. He thought, after an uncomfortably long pause, Junmyeon would drop the conversation, but he didn't. Kyungsoo gingerly ran his fingers over his brows to check if Junmyeon's intense glare had burned holes into his head. You on the other hand had your gaze fixed on your phone and didn’t break character even for a second - not even to help your husband out of an awkward conversation. So Kyungsoo picked up a pair of chopsticks to help himself to a piece of dakgalbi but Junmyeon slapped his hand away and snarled, “Ladies first.”

"O-of course," Kyungsoo stuttered, pushing the plate towards you.

"I don't wanna eat," you answered the two men, eyes now on a blank screen. Left with no choice, Kyungsoo slowly and sadly put his chopsticks down, his stomach making its annoyance known, while Junmyeon started to nag you for acting 'uppity as usual'.

Your show of indifference when Junmyeon animatedly whisper-scolded you, had started to make Kyungsoo anxious. The moment he tried to excuse himself to the bathroom, he felt your bare foot on his shoe and he froze into a still frame.

Kyungsoo shook his head at you and mouthed, 'Not now!' but you merely shot him a sweet smile in response.

"Are you even listening to me?" Junmyeon lambasted you.

"No and I haven't been listening for quite sometime now." Your reply sent a chill down Kyungsoo's spine. He was feeling a lot of things...all at once and with your toes boldly riding up his shin, he thought he'd burst at the seams. He made a mental note to have certain ground rules in place for situations like these - you weren’t much of a listener but this time he was sure to make himself heard.

"You won't be eating either?" Junmyeon asked Kyungsoo, shooting him yet another indignant glare. Kyungsoo smoothly moved his chair out of your reach but just as he extended his hand towards the plate, Junmyeon huffed angrily and walked away with it and Kyungsoo felt his heart sink to his stomach.

Tormenting Kyungsoo with a game of footsie for a while, you excused yourself to the ladies room. Ten minutes later, his phone chimed with a text from you.

'Can you come and get me? I think I'm lost.'

'No.' He replied. He was determined to not walk into your trap.

Kyungsoo clearly remembers the first time he was introduced to that side of your personality. Freshman year - it had been a few months since he'd asked you out. One evening, when things had gotten hot and heavy between the two of you, he had heard you say, 'Slap me, Soo.'

At first he thought he'd heard wrong so he ignored you but you said it again causing him to immediately pull away. Aghast, he asked, 'What did you say?'

'Slap me,' you blinked at him.

He intently studied your face - the most beautiful and the least punchable face he'd ever laid his eyes on. He wanted to do many things to you and all of them essentially involved making you feel loved and cherished and what you were asking of him was the exact opposite of how he felt about you. 

Eyes wide and lips pursed, you stood for a reaction but he would give you none. 

'Don't you love me?' You asked softly, batting your eyelashes at him. Little did you know, in that moment, he was too numb and too naked to make sense of the situation. 

At first he faulted his own personality. Kyungsoo was known to have picked a few fights here and there, had multiple piercings, and visible tattoos. Over the years, he got rid of it all and started dressing preppy but nothing changed. You still continued to ask of him something he was unwilling to give. So after a few ups and downs in your relationship, Kyungsoo finally reconciled with the fact that you were something of a sadist masochist only when it came to him.

His phone buzzed with your reply: 'The gardens at this hotel are ginormous. There's no staff here, I don't know how to find stupid lanky boy's stupid wedding party. I'm waiting by the restroom area please come and get me? ❤️'

Kyungsoo knew that you were directionally challenged. He'd test you at random and you could never tell left from right. Also, the lawn did sprawl over a considerable area but something just didn't feel right. Chewing on a hangnail, Kyungsoo sat thinking of a fitting reply only to receive another text from you.

A tempting one.

'If you come and get me now, we'll get out of here directly. No need to go back to the party.'

'What about your brother?' Asked Kyungsoo.

His phone blinked with a 'Pfft 🤪'

Patiently, he reiterated, 'I asked, what about your brother?'

'I promise I'll deal…'

'....?'

'Nicely 😘'

'Ok ❤️'

.

.

.

Kyungsoo gaped at you while you twirled his tie between your fingers and pleaded with him in a sultry voice, "Just once? Please?"

He was well aware that you knew for a fact he couldn't refuse you. Nevertheless, this time he firmly held his ground, "Are you crazy? Your entire family, your brother is just a couple metre's distance from here!"

"Kyungsoo please?" You caged him between a grainy concrete wall and your torso. The only respite to Kyungsoo in that situation was the fact that the area was poorly lit and there was not a soul in sight.

He cupped your face in his hands, planted a chaste kiss on your forehead and crouched down to whisper against your lips, "I'm not - I'm not sla- I'm not doing any of that here. Let's go home." After a lot of struggle, he finally managed to free himself from your Senior Superintendent General of Police grasp with a smirk on his face that said all your police training got nothing on him.

"Let's go," he held your hand and took a long stride towards the exit but you stayed firmly rooted to your place.

"Drag me out of here, then," you commanded.

You didn't budge and Kyungsoo wouldn't have caved under any other circumstance but…. he was hungry. Really hungry - making his stiff spine melt like candle wax. So he steeled himself, looked into your eyes, dropped his tone to a gruff, husky tenor, grabbed your wrist a little too tightly and threatened you, "Move your ass, __. Don't make me tell you again."

Exasperated, he rolled his eyes at the way yours twinkled at his crass behaviour.

"Gimme more," you said breathily.

The only way to get out of here was to stay in character so Kyungsoo did exactly that. He roughly pushed you against a wall (as gently as he could if it makes sense) and growled, "What makes you think you can act all buddy buddy with me, you ditz!" but before he could go any further he heard a man's voice yell, "How dare you!?"

Startled like a deer caught in headlights - in this case the flashlight of Junmyeon's latest iPhone - Kyungsoo turned around to find the brawny man leaping at him in attack mode at full throttle. Kyungsoo ducked, anticipating a heavy physical impact but it didn't come. He opened his eyes to you tackling Junmyeon to the ground and scolding him, "How dare you encroach upon our privacy and attack my husband!" while twisting his arm at every emphasis.

Very rarely was Kyungsoo grateful about the fact that you were a cop and this was one such occasion. He quickly moved to get you off of Junmyeon's back while the man cried out in pain, defending himself, "Pri-privacy? This is a bloody public place!"

Panting, you eventually let go of Junmyeon, fixed your hair and earrings and straightened your satin silk very pale pink dress (one that was almost white under the wrong lighting but despite Kyungsoo's repeated requests, you ended up in white at a wedding). But as soon as Junmyeon regained composure, he lunged to attack Kyungsoo again, screaming, "I always knew that there was something off about you!"

"Yah yah yahhhh!" You held Junmyeon back like you would do a violent criminal as Kyungsoo ducked again out of fear.

"Enough!" You shrieked at Junmyeon.

Kyungsoo's big brown eyes were fixed on your brother's terrifying demeanour as he barked, "I can't believe you're scolding me after what I just witnessed! That man, that man was hurting you!"

"That man? Better watch your tone Oppa, he's my husband!"

"You can't be that blinded by love or...whatever this is! Does he have something on you? You can tell me! You know I know all the right people to get you out of this mess -"

"Hyungnim -" Kyungsoo attempted to defuse the extremely tense situation but stopped short as you held your hand up at him.

"For heaven's sake, I'm happy, healthy, and safe in my marriage. That's all you need to know. Now go back to your baby brother's celebration and leave us alone!" Hand on your hip, you squeezed your eyes shut and pinched the bridge of your nose.

"I'm not going anywhere until you explain what just happened," Junmyeon glowered at Kyungsoo.

The younger man didn't know how to clarify this without embarrassing you and in a state of blind panic all he could think of admitting to some sort of a dissociative identity disorder. But before he could lose any more brownie points with your brother, you came to his rescue albeit not doing much to help his already strained relationship with Junmyeon.

"Kyungsoo, you don't have to tell him anything. You, Sir, talk to me. No need to drag my husband into this mess!"

Junmyeon scoffed before breaking into a hysterical laughter, "You're unbelievable, little sister. Unbelievable!"

Kyungsoo closed his eyes, drew in a deep breath, and started, "Hyungnim, I- "

"You have the unmitigated gall to still be standing here!" Junmyeon snapped at Kyungsoo, causing the younger man to bury his face in his hands. When the brother sister duo fell silent, Kyungsoo looked up again to find Jumyeon taking furiously long strides towards the wedding party.

"I told you this was a bad idea," Kyungsoo said quietly, rubbing the corner of his eye, as you wrapped your arms around him and buried your face in his chest.

"I'll fix it, I promise. I'll speak to him when he's calmed down a little," you replied, softly patting your husband's back, "Do you want to stop at a McDonald's on our way back?

Kyungsoo chuckled, squeezing you in a tight hug and kissing the top of your head, "I hate you."

"I love you, too!" You chirped, and his features lit up with his beautiful heart-shaped smile.

"So? McDonald's?" You asked coyly.

He cradled your face in his hands and pressed his lips to yours. When you drew a staggered breath in response, he felt a wave of heat flushing through him. You giggled against his lips causing Kyungsoo to firmly pull your body to his. He scooped you up in his arms, kissing you with an increased fervour and rendering you breathless.

Gently pulling away, he answered in a husky, gruff voice, "Sure, dumb bitch. Took you long enough."

#exosnet #exowritersnet #kyungsoo fanfic #exo fanfic #kyungsoo fluff #d.o fanfic #kyungsoo smut #exo fluff #exo smut #exo oneshot #kyungsoo oneshot #d.o smut #exo scenarios #kyungsoo scenarios #exo x reader #kyungsoo x reader #exo x you #kyungsoo x you #exo #kyungsoo #d.o #doh kyungsoo #do kyungsoo

[violetsoju]

page 30彡★

kageyama tobio · fluff · 3.2k

a/n: came up w this idea based on a tiktok vid of this trend that randomly popped up on my feed (which i can't find anymore T_T) do let me know if you enjoyed it! ❤️

“Hey, Tobio.”

The mop of raven hair doesn’t look up to you, eyes fixated on the jiggly onsen tamago on top of the curry tonkatsu.

“There’s this new trend going on.”

He hums in response, fingers gripping onto a pair of wooden chopsticks, manoeuvring the fragile soft lump towards the spoon. Just a few more steps till being cradled snugly in the deep end of the cool ceramic spoon.

“And we’re gonna learn the moves and film it right here after this.”

His fingers twitch. One of the long pointy chopsticks loses its cool and stabs the tamago right in the core, streaks of yellow bleeding across the crisp golden brown tonkatsu. Its counterpart desperately tries to put pressure on the wound to stop the bleeding, but too much yolk has been lost, and more jabs were made in the frantic rescue mission. Not even the string of ‘shit’ muttered could save the day. So long, dear onsen tamago.

You’re finally met with piercing blue eyes glaring at you.

“No. And look at what you did to my onsen tamago.”

“You should’ve scooped it up with your spoon instead of pushing it with your chopsticks. Common sense much?” You thank the waitress for the hot steaming tempura udon. “Plus, you’re supposed to break the yolk and coat the luscious essence over your rice, unless you’re a freak and eat it in one go.”

Kageyama’s scowl softens when a piece of fried tempura lands in his bowl in exchange for a piece of tonkatsu. A glint of delight gleams in the two pair of eyes at the first bite of delicious food, taste buds tingling in satisfaction.

It’s a rainy Wednesday night. And rainy nights call for warm comfort food to make up for the gloomy wet weather brought by the pitter patter parade of fat rain droplets. So after a spontaneous text message, here you are, with an old close friend of yours, inside a small cosy shop hidden in an alleyway without any prior arrangements.

“And let me repeat myself. I’m not going to do any dumb dance trends with you again.” Kageyama restates his point firmly.

“Come on, you had so much fun the last time! Even Tsukki sent a good job sticker in the group chat.” You reason.

“You mean he enjoyed seeing me almost tripping over my feet.”

“That was the highlight, to be honest.”

He smacks your chopsticks away with his at your attempt to snag another piece of tonkatsu, not giving in into your pout.

“Anyway, I was just kidding. You’re in luck this time because it’s not a dance trend.”

Kageyama raises an eyebrow at you suspiciously, tilting his head to ask you to continue on.

“This time it’s a trend where you grab your nearest book, turn to page 30, and the first sentence will describe your love life. Interesting, isn’t it?”

“Just when I thought you’ve outgrown these ridiculous nonsenses.”

“Says the one who still insists on drinking a box of strawberry milk before matches.” You jab your chopsticks towards his direction accusingly.

“That’s different because it actually works. And it’s good.” He counterattacks by returning your gesture.

“I hate to say this but, point taken.”

He triumphantly snickers as you sigh in defeat.

“Aren’t you curious on how my love life is described?” You question, blowing off the steam from your spoon full of udon.

Kageyama chomps on another piece of pork cutlet, unamused at your question. “If you’re generous enough to share, I’d be honoured.”

“‘He smiles’”

“What?”

“That’s the first sentence on my page 30. ‘He smiles’.” You reply matter-of-factly, taking a sip of your hot green tea.

“What’s that even supposed to mean?” His brows knit in confusion, hands momentarily forgetting the spoonful of curry rice in hand.

“Use your imagination, Tobio. Awaken your romantic cells.” You gesture with your hands dramatically, earning a deadpan look from the boy seated across you.

“Does it mean whoever’s smiling is the love of your life? Or someone who’s always smiling?” Kageyama rests his cheek against his left knuckle, trying to connect the dots together.

“Well-“

“Wait a minute! Don’t tell me it’s Suga-san. Because if it is, I won’t allow it because Suga-san is way too good for you.”

He yelps as you not-so-accidentally dip your chopsticks stained with broth into his green tea.

“Shush, we both know how much Suga-san adores me. And everyone else.” You smugly take another bite of your fried tempura as he frowns in disgust after drinking the now broth infused green tea.

“I guess it’s feeling of love at the sight of his smile? Like feeling all warm and fuzzy seeing him smile.”

“Is there someone who makes you feel that way with their smile?”

You swirl the udon with your chopsticks mindlessly for a moment. “Maybe there is.”

You look up to the pair of blue eyes staring back at you, holding the intense gaze firmly, neither side backing down to break the tension.

“Do I know him?” Kageyama falters, a hint of anxiousness cracks in his voice.

“Since when were you so interested in my love life?” You laugh awkwardly, hoping to conceal your nervousness.

Despite the surrounding bustling chatter, the world suddenly falls painstakingly silent, with the irregular beats of two young hearts thumping deafeningly and out of rhythm.

The raven-haired boy succumbs first, looking back down to his half empty bowl. You continue swirling your bowl of udon, mentally slapping yourself at your answer and cracking your head to come up with something to save the mood.

“Well, I could help to scan him for you, if you want. Boys know boys better after all,”

You snap back up to look at the boy seated across you, eyes not meeting yours. This is a surprise.

“Plus, you can save the tears and snot to yourself because I might not be free to attend to your midnight crying sessions. If it really happens.”

A surge of warmth radiates throughout your body at his words. Definitely not from the hot bowl of udon.

Kageyama still has his eyes on the bowl before him, looking anywhere else but you. He tries to keep himself busy by scooping more rice, groaning as he further destroys the onsen tamago, unaware of the faint blush painting his cheeks. Definitely not from the hot bowl of curry, too.

“Don’t worry, he isn’t a jerk. I’m sure you’ll like him too.” You chuckle, adjusting your chopsticks to pick up more udon.

Oh, Kageyama Tobio, what exactly should I do with you.

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽.* :☆ﾟ. ───

Scroll. Refresh. Switch apps. Repeat. Sigh.

You’ve been stuck in this constant loop for the past hour. Instead of getting much needed sleep for the next day, you subject yourself to the chains of the device held in your hand, despite the drooping eyelids and strained arm muscles.

What’s so fascinating about social media anyway? If it’s not friends or random acquaintances posting sinful food pics of ootds, it’d be someone ranting about either their work or love life, or memes you’ve already seen before. Sometimes you wonder if you’ve been casted a spell by social media.

Crying out a yelp as the gadget lands right in your face at the slip of your hands, you massage your nose bridge and forehead from the impact, grimacing in pain. It’s not easy being a slave to social media, huh.

Tossing your phone to the side, you roll over to lie flat on your back, sprawled like a star fish on your bed. A long sigh escapes your lips, eyes staring blankly at the bare celling above. Maybe you should really call it a day.

A beep from your phone tells you otherwise.

Tobio [23:17]

I did it. You owe me one box of strawberry milk.

[23:18]

IMG_20210402_961222

You immediately plop yourself up to sit cross-legged on your bed, tapping on the notification to open the message. As expected of Kageyama Tobio, it was a full-page picture of a book, with a small number 30 on the top left-hand corner. But unexpectedly of Kageyama Tobio too, the page wasn’t from those volleyball books or magazines stacked in the corner of his room. Looks like the mini ramble session you gave him on the way to the metro station worked.

“I know volleyball is the love of your life too, but we’re talking about your actual love life here! So no volleyball books or magazines, go rummage Miwa-san’s book shelf for one random romance novel. Just one. She’ll thank me for taking care of your love life.”

Sliding both your thumbs outwards on the screen to zoom in, your lips press together to form an ‘o’, brows arching in fascination at the first sentence.

She knows.

Interesting.

Your fingers dance across the screen swiftly.

me [23:20]

Ohhh interesting. See, it’s exciting, isn’t it?

Tobio [23:21]

I guess so

me [23:22]

Do you think it describes your love life well?

To actually imagine Kageyama Tobio having something that he loves as much as volleyball is, an odd and foreign feeling.

Tobio [23:24]

I’m not sure tbh

me [23:25]

Well spill the tea so I can help you analyse it

Tobio [23:25]

No

You swear you would throw punches at him if he was beside you now.

me [23:26]

Tsk tsk, so who’s the girl you’ve been hiding from me

Tobio [23:27]

Since when were you interested in my love life?

The use of your own words against you has you clicking your tongue in amusement.

You were contemplating between a civil or sarcastic remark when a new message bubble pops up.

Tobio [23:29]

But do you think she knows?

me [23:30]

About what?

Tobio [23:31]

Nvm, forget what I said

Seriously? This conversation is by no means, ending like this. You tap on the video icon on the right-hand corner of the screen hastily.

It takes a few rings for the familiar face to appear on screen, face a little too close to the camera, brows furrowed, lips pursed.

“What the heck, do you know what time it is?” Kageyama huffs in annoyance, running his fingers through his dishevelled black hair.

“Says the one who sent me such juicy information at this hour.” You bend your legs up, resting your hand on your knees for a better angle.

He throws his head back exasperatedly, muttering something inaudible along the static noise from the speakers, resting his head on a wooden frame you recognise. He still hasn’t changed his bed that he has long outgrown, complaining about soreness in his legs and arms that dangle off the edge every night.

“How do you expect me to go to bed with you hanging me like this? You have the worst timing ever.” You raise your hands in protest.

Kageyama buries half of his face in his palm. “I shouldn’t have listened to you.”

“But you get a box of strawberry milk from this! It’s worth it.” You gesture a finger gun to him knowingly.

He moves two fingers away from his face, peeking to see you through the screen like a child. Heaving a long, heavy sigh, he shifts his weight to sit up properly, half of his face still cradled in his palm.

“So, ‘she knows’, huh. Back to your question. What do you think she knows?” A tinge of excitement and fear bubble up your throat.

Kageyama avoids your gaze, looking to the side. “Well, I mean, about my, er- my feelings, I guess?”

“You mean your heart.”

The sentence has his eyes back on you, vivid blue eyes clouded by the shadows of dimly lit room.

“Yeah, uhm, well, I guess.” His voice trails off.

“Well, have you told her before?” You keep your voice steady.

“No, of course.” His words come out like a whisper.

“Then how is she going to know without any words or actions?” It comes out like a blunt statement, but somewhere deep down, a wave of relief washes over you.

“But I’m always there for her. Whenever she needs me, wherever she is, I try my best to be there for her,” Passionate flames ignite across the vast blue ocean. “I know something is on her mind when she bites the insides of her cheeks, when she flicks the tip of her thumb with her index finger constantly, or when she plays with the piercings on her ears. I’m not one with words, but I stay by her side when she needs me to, listening to her rambles or vents, or wiping away tears that stain her cheeks soft like mochi.

“I set notifications the night before to give her morning calls during her exams or important days because she tends to snooze the alarm on days like these. I always have extra band-aids ready on hand because she always somehow cuts and hurts herself, which hurts my heart too. Heck, I even learn ridiculous things that would be the death of me just for her, because nothing compares to the sparkle in her eyes when she flashes her precious smile, brighter than the sun that takes my breath away every time. I-”

Kageyama stops midway, face painted with horror as if he just let out a million-dollar secret. Panic flares in his eyes, mouth agape in incredulity as his body rigids, dumbstruck with terror by what rolled off his tongue so smoothly. You wonder if the line got disconnected because he turned into a static image, with a full-blown flustered look on his face.

You wave at the screen. “Tobio, you still there?”

It takes a few seconds for the raven-haired boy to snap back to his senses and regain his composure, coughing awkwardly in attempt to calm himself down. Small patches of blush blooming furiously on his cheeks peek out from his hands covering his mouth.

He looks cute.

No, he’s cute.

He’s always been cute.

“I- Er- Ye- Yeah, I’m still here.” Kageyama struggles to find words from his tad-larger-than-average vocabulary vault that has seem to disappear into thin air.

“Gosh, breathe Tobio, breathe. Come on, take a deep breath with me. One, two, three.”

He exhales deeply at the count of three with eyes shut close, hoping that all his jitters have been expelled away in the air.

“There you go. Feel better now?” Your lips tug up gently as the boy on the screen visibly relaxes, shoulders loosening from the tension, face free of creased lines.

He opens his eyes slowly, blinking a few times to adjust his vision before returning a soft smile to you. “Yeah, I do. Thanks.”

“Anytime.”

A tranquil silence blankets over the both of you. This time, the steady beats of two young hearts thump in tune like a metronome. Two young souls gaze at each other, basking in the calmness and comfort of the sincere warm smiles that felt so much like home; but too proud to admit they were like lovesick fools, brushing off the feelings that were screaming loudly to be heard, feelings that they were afraid to face.

“Do you think she knows?” It’s a genuine question, one that takes a mountain high of courage to come up with.

“I’m sure she does.” It’s a genuine answer, one that takes a of couple hundred meters of might to emerge from the deep ends of the sea to come up with.

And you both hope that you’re on the same wavelength.

“So back to square one. Who’s the girl?”

“None of your business.”

“Another piece of crap from you and I’ll leave without you at the metro station tomorrow.”

“Sorry.”

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽.* :☆ﾟ. ───

When you reach the designated exit of the metro station the next day, a pair of eyes as blue as the day immediately catches your attention among the crowd, feet shuffling on its own accord towards them. As if there was a detector sensing your presence within him, the owner of the beautiful pair of orbs turns to you, raising a hand in greeting.

Kageyama gives you a smile, a smile that says, ‘I hope my smile makes you feel warm and fuzzy’.

You smile back at him, with a smile that says, ‘I hope you know that I know your heart’.

It’s hard to shake off the pride to be damned, but the two lovesick fools find themselves discarding it slowly, bit by bit with each step taken, together.

【☾】

Kageyama is a creature of routine. He always has his day planned out in detail and hates it when it doesn’t go according to plan, or when something pops out of the blue. But there are a few which he can make exceptions for. So when he receives your text asking for dinner after his training session, he agrees in a heartbeat.

He felt his heart sink deeply in his guts when you said there was, indeed, someone who made you feel warm and fuzzy with their smile. But who was he to have his say when his status was merely just a close friend?

Miwa thought he had lost it when he barged into her room without notice that night, scanning her bookshelf for novels, specifically of the romance genre. It was more nerve-wrecking than retaking exams back in high school with Hinata while flipping through the pages, and it didn’t help much when he finally found the particular page, with the first line inked in black staring back at him in doubt.

He doesn’t know why he sent the picture of the page to you. What exactly was he expecting?

Worse, he doesn’t even know why he started blabbing about how he was always there for you, how much he cares for you, and how much you mean to him. It all just came out so naturally that he could actually score an A+ for impromptu speaking.

But when your eyes were filled with concern while calming him down instead of making fun of him or pestering him for more, something flutters in his mind. Maybe it was from the rush of adrenaline from before, or maybe it was his heart that had leaped out from his chest taking over. He brings up the question once again, with more confidence this time.

He knows you’re not one to lie with your eyes. And he sees the kindness and honesty in them.

A ray of hope flickers in him.

So today, Kageyama musters up every ounce of courage he has, and tells himself it’s now or never: to close the gap he has longed for so long between two hands that swayed side by side. Instead of retreating his hands away when they brush against yours, he curls the tip of his fingers with yours delicately, as if your fingers would melt at his touch.

He hopes that he made the right decision.

And when your fingers curl back, intertwined with his, he knows he has made the right decision, and that his question has been answered.

She knows.

And the fact that he’s the one behind the smile that makes you go all warm and fuzzy, he swears it feels like he could run for miles and miles without running out of breath, soaring even higher than the clouds in the skies. None of the perfect sets he has set in his lifetime could compare to the satisfaction and bliss he was feeling right now.

Because you had set his life ablaze the moment fate brought the both of you together, and you’re his end game.

#haikyuu #haikyuu!! #kageyama tobio x you #kageyama tobio x y/n #kageyama tobio x reader #kageyama tobio #kageyama x y/n #kageyama x reader #kageyama fluff #kageyama tobio fluff #haikyuu imagines #haikyuu oneshot #hq imagines #i want a soft boy like kageyama T_T #fun fact: the first line on page 30 for me is actually 'he smiles' too #which i thought to myself 'ah yes my 2d men smiling best describes my love life' #i originally started this for suga but it turned into kags midway hhh #go grab your nearest book and tell me whats the first line of your page 30!

[vivisextion]

I first saw Slipknot at age 14.

No one knows how I managed it. I'm not sure I even remember. These days, you have to be 16 or 18 to get into Standing areas. I do know I had to buy tickets on the phone, back in the old days (2005, that is). A singular ticket, too - none of my friends, not even the classmate who had gone with me to see Linkin Park the year before, was that into Slipknot.

But I HAD to see them. This was the Subliminal Verses tour cycle, and Vol. 3 was my first and favourite Slipknot album, even to this day. It's the reliable old warm blanket for my soul whenever I need it. It's on right now, as I write this.

My memory isn't that good, but luckily I unearthed a livejournal (livejournal!) diary entry about the event I made the next day.

August 16, 2005. I went right after school. I went to a very conservative Anglican secondary school, too. I tried not to get caught in the bathroom, as I coloured my nails black with permanent marker (I know, don't laugh) and changed into my standard metalhead baby outfit - Slipknot band shirt, black cargo shorts, and my pride and joy: steel-toe boots I somehow managed to cajole my parents into letting me own.

I caught the bus to the open-air war memorial park where the gig was going to be. I got there at 4pm, 4 hours early. A couple other maggots were already hanging around. I found myself surrounded by tombstones, and I read them all. It was the middle of the Hungry Ghost Festival, too - a very fitting time for Slipknot to pay a visit to this godforsaken hellhole of a small town I lived in. (Especially given the paranormal circumstances surrounding the making of Vol. 3.)

While I wandered around the venue (no security or sound guys were around at all), I spotted two white vans pull up to the stage, in the middle of a clearing. It was them! I spotted Joey and missed him by a hair's breadth. I was quickly ushered behind the stone archway entrance by security then.

(Funnily enough, while walking around, I got mistaken for Joey more than once. I am the same height as him, had the same long black hair, same pale skin, and was wearing almost exactly what he had been. One person claimed from behind, I was a dead ringer, apart from when I turned around, and they realised I was Chinese.)

It was soundcheck time. A sound guy testing the mics would say random things, like "testing one two three two one.... fudge fudge, I like fudge...." The band even did Purity, so us earlybirds were given a rare treat, and we screamed along from the entrance, and drummed our fists on the sides of nearby porta-potties. I hope no one was in there at the time. Whenever we got a glance of any of them, we'd scream and cheer. Finally they left again, but were soon to return.

This was the first time I'd been a part of the metal community. I was barely allowed internet in those days. But here, random strangers were friendly, striking up conversations like they'd been friends for years. Two big guys, called Trevor and Ted, looked out for me the entire gig after, keeping other big dudes from crushing me too much (I'm 5'3, remember). Other people commented on me being so baby, because I was only 14, and said they would take care of me.

When we were finally let in, right after the usher cut the rope, I ran in, screamed "WOOOHOOO!" along with a few friends I'd made. I only briefly stopped to receive this RoadRunner Records compilation CD from a roadie, then resumed running like a madman screaming and dashing into the VIP cage.

I was right up against the barricade - the first time I would ever be at a gig. People from assorted magazines and press took photos of us, and I think I got my photo taken about 10 times at least.

(This is how I got in trouble with my parents the next day. My photo had ended up in a local paper - you can see examples of that here. They had no idea what I'd been to see the night before, and were horrified when they saw what Slipknot looked like.)

We saw Sid filming us from the stage with a camcorder and screamed at him. We saw Jim and screamed at him too, and he flashed the victory sign back at us. I remember Metallica playing at the time, another one of my favourite bands.

The concert was a brutal religious experience I will never forget. People with their arms outstretched, crying and screaming out loud, moving like the devil possessed them.

The new friends around me made sure I was alright after every song! There were huge guys fainting behind us who had to get carried out, but I endured, a tiny 14 year old child. We got a family speech as per tradition, of course. "Are you guys out there all looking out for each other? We're all one big family, and we gotta look out for each other." What Corey said held true - strangers hugged, shook hands, talked, and made friends. I was heartened by how close-knit the maggot community was. It really did feel like a family, and it's felt like that ever since.

Of course, I did my first Jump The Fuck Up. It is possibly the most euphoria I've ever experienced all at one go. (Later, in 2020, I was extremely disappointed that I didn't get to do it again in London.)

They did the death masks for Vermilion, and I remember Chris helping Sid fix his mask and shirt when they'd changed back. Sid hung out near Clown's drums for most of the time too, and hugged him from behind and just latched on at one point. It was pretty adorable.

Fun fact: The version of Eyeless you hear on the 9.0 Live album is from Singapore, as is Eeyore. There are very few photos and videos from the crowd of this gig, because in 2005, very few people had camera phones. The crowd at the Slipknot gig in 2020 was a sea of arms with phones, filming the gig rather than experiencing it. Yes, I'm going to be that cranky old geezer who complains about the good old days.

Joey as usual, was fucking amazing and never failed. However, due to the fact that I was right up front, only his tiny head was visible behind his vast drum set, I couldn't see him the entire gig.

Amazingly, the government told Slipknot they were not allowed to do obscene gestures, curse, vomit (possibly due to the decomposing crow pre-show ritual), simulate humping on objects, throw faeces, or jump off stage (looking at you, Sid). I don't think our totalitarian government knew who they were dealing with, because watch what happens next.

Near the end of the gig, Corey tells the crowd “your government has given us a laundry list of things we aren’t allowed to do, your government has told us we are not allowed to swear”. Crowd goes “BOOOOOOOOO” and Corey goes “BUT WE DON’T GIVE A FUCK!!” And they launch into Surfacing, the last song. Everyone riots. Best night of my life.

You can find the setlist from that gig here. It had everything I wanted and more.

This story later got immortalised when Kerrang asked maggots for gig stories, for an article which came out in 2020. I had forgotten entirely, until people began messaging me to tell me, and one friend sent me a scan of it!

On the way out, I managed to get a shirt. I remember calling my best friend at the time, and got everyone at the merch booth to go "IF YOU'RE 555 THEN I'M 666" for her. This shirt has since been lost to the landfill, because my Christian mother took it upon herself to dispose of it the first opportunity she got. Needless to say, our relationship is not very good.

After that, I even managed to get that Roadrunner compilation album they were giving out signed. The band was staying at the Carlton. Unfortunately, Joey wasn't there, neither was Clown, and Mick was swarmed by guitar nerds so, 6/9 it is. It is a great regret of mine that I'll never have anything signed by him, nor will I ever get to see him perform ever again.

The next day, I went to school, my head swimming. Yes, I went to see Slipknot ON A SCHOOL NIGHT. I was a giant bruise, from my ribs and my chest, to my hips and knees, from being slammed into the barricade like a screen door in a hurricane. Most of all, my sore, headbanged-out neck could barely hold my head up. Classmates thought I had been in a fight. I was torn between battle-scarred exhaustion and hyperactive ranting about the most amazing gig of my short life (it still is, to this day). When teachers spoke to me, I wanted to reply, "Fuck trigonometry! I've just seen SLIPKNOT. Do you not understand that my world is different? Do you not understand that *I* am now different?"

My country was a small, conservative town that Slipknot had graced with their unholy presence. Corey Taylor once said that where he grew up in Iowa had a way of making a 16 year old boy feel like a 36 year old man (or something to that effect). I felt that in my weary bones as a teenager, being from a place just like that. Years later, Watain would run into worse trouble, and wouldn't even be allowed to perform. The Christian stranglehold is stronger than ever. It was a good thing that back then Slipknot had the element of surprise, striking serpent-fast and choking this society by the neck for a too-brief time, before they departed.

After that, my desire to play the drums only grew like a weed. Joey Jordison had, has, and will always inspire me as a drummer, and seeing the beast live (or what little I could spy behind the massive riser) had only spurred me on. I had always been a noisemaker, be it driving my parents mad with chopsticks on pots and pans, or driving my teachers mad with pencils on my desk. But of course, my parents wouldn't have any of it. I'd have to wait a good 14 more years before I'd be able to afford lessons and later, a kit of my own. Better late than never, right?

There will never be enough words to describe the impact Joey has had on my life. And it isn't just Slipknot, either. I could write another essay on his time with the Murderdolls and its influence on my own gender-non-conforming ways. Suffice to say, my wardrobe doesn't look too dissimilar to his during the early Dead in Hollywood days.

I told my boss I could not come into work today. I was grieving. I said that my music teacher died, as I didn't think she'd understand the magnitude of my loss. In a way, it's true. And I am not the only one Joey has nudged on the path to being a musician, that much is certain. To the rest of us, I wish strength and love for you in this difficult time. The best way to honour Joey, who truly loved music, both the creation and appreciation of it, is to pass that gift on. Teach it to someone. He is the reason I picked up the sticks in the first place, and one day, they'll be handed on, the heavy metal baton for the next generation.

And finally: remember that the ones we have lost are never truly gone.

Vinnie

P.S. See if you can spot me in the crowd photos in this post!

#Joey Jordison #Slipknot #Murderdolls

[itsuki-minamy]

LIMITED KINGSHIP, WAR STORIES:

CHAPTER 2: HEKIREKI & SENDEN

* Mini Episodes KFCN (List of Chapters) * Projects & Chapters

Translation: Naru-kun Raws: Ridia

Suddenly he realized that the enemy was gone.

The surroundings were full of the dead. Most of the folded corpses belonged to members of the "Purgatory" clan who wore black clothes. Fifteen minutes ago, a hasty force led by Gouki Zenjo raided that warehouse after being contacted by the intelligence department. And then the warehouse turned into a terrible battlefield.

With "Hekireki" bloody on his shoulder, Zenjo started looking for the next enemy to attack. But that no longer existed.

The battle was over and the remnants were hunting. There were still some in black who resisted, but it was only a matter of time before they were crushed or smashed. While he was thinking that, Bado's iron spear pierced one of the black ones, and Azuma's twin sword stabbed another. The "Purgatory" clan member, who had decent fighting ability, didn't seem to be staying anywhere.

"How boring."

He hit the field in an unsightly way and lowered "Hekireki" to the ground.

The next moment, the pile of corpses exploded.

"Zenjo!"

Fresh blood came out from the sword wound all over the body, and flames came from both feet, the one in black clothes was good at fighting. A deadly surprise attack that hid the corpse of a colleague. Long before he understood it, Zenjo tried to shake "Hekireki" with his own super reaction.

He could not.

According to a later investigation, it was an inadvertent collaboration between those in black. One in black that lay behind Zenjo was dying, but was still breathing. With the last of his strength, he grabbed the "outside" blade, regardless of whether his fingers fell.

That caused a delay of a few seconds. Zenjo was just looking at the flaming fingers approaching in front of him, holding "Hekireki's" fixed handle.

But he just grabbed Zenjo's nose.

"You need more than that..."

The one in black clothes who attacked Zenjo stopped in midair. Blood poured from the edge of his mouth which opened and closed with bloody eyes wide open. A thin saber protruded from his chest, and the saber that pierced his chest diagonally from below suddenly stopped the one in black clothing.

"Ah!"

A cheerful voice that did not seem to belong to the place, resounded behind the one in black clothes.

"I'm sorry I made a mistake! Zenjo-san, can you take care of it please?"

It was as easy as asking him to take the remote there. After blinking, Zenjo passed by "Hekireki" and frequently shook the ones in black clothes.

The flames that clung to both feet disappeared.

The body of the man in black, who had lost his neck, was thrown to the ground. A young man standing there waved his saber and wiped off the blood. The friendly look reminded him of a laughing dog.

"No, I made a mistake. If you tap it, it can't be the case, huh? Hahaha…"

"Kuze. You saved me."

Young Kuse laughed cheerfully and waved.

"I just did something extra. Zenjo-san, you could have handled it with a margin."

"No, I couldn't react now. I would have been 'without a nose' at best, because it was aiming at my head."

"Well, is that so? That's good. Soon it's new soba season!"

Zenjo smirked as he tapped on Kuze's shoulder, saying that he was out of focus.

"This season's buckwheat noodles are pretty good too. I'll use chopsticks when I get back to the barracks. Thanks for your help."

"Oh then, make it soba."

"What? Are you going to ask me to make arrangements again?"

Kuse was smiling. Zenjo saw the smile as if he was amazed. Not suitable for a bright appearance, this young man had a very persistent character.

"Well, I wish I could go home."

"Oh, thanks!"

As Kuze struck a gutsy pose, Zenjo shrugged and walked towards a group of hurrying troops who had begun to take care of the remaining work.

++++++++++

The war was escalating.

Kagutsu Detention Center "Red King" crackdown operation. The attack from "Scepter 4" intended to kill Kagutsu Genji was unsuccessful in retrospect. Although the force of "Purgatory" was greatly reduced, the original purpose of the operation was not finally achieved, and Kagutsu left his territory and fled, and the remaining clan members divided into thousands and went into hiding. The hive was destroyed, but the queen bee and the soldier bees were flying now.

The activities of the scattered members of the "Purgatory" clan were almost the same as before. Whenever something happened, there was a danger that they would explode. "Scepter 4" chased after them and they were incapacitated as soon as they were discovered, but "Purgatory" wasn't just silently hunted to death. The damage caused by a fierce counterattack who did not care about his own life was turning into a social problem that could not be covered even by "Tokijikuin".

There were two pressing issues.

One was the search and murder of Kagutsu as soon as possible. As long as that "King" will continue to exist on earth, this war would never end.

And the other was to increase the strength of "Scepter 4".

The battle with "Purgatory", who burned the people, burned the city and even burned themselves, was slowly shaving the staff of "Scepter 4". To make up for the loss, they touted that they had the cause of the war and recruited a large number of talented personnel from the relevant ministries.

Shuichiro Kuze was one of those supplemental staff members.

Originally a police officer, he achieved outstanding results on both his aptitude and skill tests, and joined the "Scepter 4" running unit at exceptional speed. He was a rare human resource who had already been dispatched several times and was not afraid to fight the deadly "Purgatory", but instead displayed a simulation as if he was enjoying it.

For some reason, Kuze teamed up with Zenjo.

Even now, Kuze and Zenjo were undergoing simulated one-on-one training in the training ground of the "Scepter 4" barracks. Except for the fact that the product was a bamboo sword, it was a form of training that came as close to the actual battle as possible. Even attacks on key points were tolerated wherever they were covered by armor.

Kuze raised the bamboo sword to eye level and turned its blade towards Zenjo.

Zenjo carried a large bamboo sword on his shoulder and was about to attack him.

Kuze's specialty was "pushing". His stab, fired by explosive acceleration with a different ability, was roughly equal to the speed of a bullet. It would be impossible to react if it were the perception of an ordinary person.

But, of course, Zenjo was not an ordinary person.

"Let's go!"

The next moment that Kuze said that, the figure disappeared.

An extraordinary light that glowed fluttering blue like the tail of a meteor. Before recognizing it, Zenjo's body was moving. The speed God's sword judgment darted into the void on the right.

Zenjo's bamboo sword touched Kuze's sword that jutted out without fail.

"Ah!"

As he wielded the sword of pursuit, Zenjo was impressed. Viewed from above, the location of the different abilities would have looked like a rank "nine". A blow from outside the field of vision due to explosive acceleration, but it did not exceed Zenjo's reaction speed.

"Che!"

Kuze sped up again, leaving a childish click of the tongue. As he repeated sharp turns ignoring the laws of physics, he jumped incessantly. He was like a spring-loaded toy that swept across the training ground.

Zenjo stopped chasing him with his eyes and closed his lids.

Behind.

Before he felt it, his body was still moving. He turns and cut the space behind him. The cut that was shot deflected Kuze's thrust horizontally upward and hit him like he was a face shield.

"Damn!"

With a stupid voice, Kuze struck and fell to the ground of the training ground. If he had been serious, he would have lost his nose.

"This is the ninth."

Carrying the bamboo sword on his shoulder again, Zenjo said that without pride. Kuze, who had stretched out into a large shape, lifted his upper body as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"I thought I could pull it off now... Zenjo-san, do you have eyes behind you?"

"Well, it's clear. You can understand it even if you can't see it."

"Mm... Zenjo-san, another one! Please."

When Kuze lifted his index finger, Zenjo was truly astonished and showed the training ground clock with his chin.

"It's closing time. It will be tomorrow."

"Really? Absolutely tomorrow!"

"I wish they hadn't sent me."

Saying that, while he was a bit crowded, Zenjo headed for the exit. Kuze also put the bamboo sword in a bag and bounced after him.

After taking a shower together, they had dinner later.

The barracks cafeteria was quiet, probably because it was late. Zenjo ordered a hazaru soba and Kuze a kitsune udon, and they ate together.

Kuze talked to Zenjo all the time while he ate.

"Zenjo-san, are you attached to the army?"

"Hmm?"

" I belonged there. There are a lot of people like that in 'Scepter 4', right?"

Surely it was so. The personnel of "Scepter 4" came mainly from other security organizations. Unless they didn't lack combat training on a daily basis, they couldn't withstand the battle with "Purgatory."

However, the situation was different for Zenjo.

After slurping his soba, he said...

"I am from a mountain."

"Mountain?"

"When I was waving a stick in the mountains, I met Habari, so I followed him."

Kuze blinked twice as he pinched the fried food with chopsticks.

"Well, what was that? What kind of situation?"

"Thanks, like I said."

Answering only that, Zenjo took a sip of soba again.

Kuze stared at Zenjo for a while with a surprised face, and then...

"Fu…"

He shook his shoulders and started laughing.

"Hahahahahahahaha! What's wrong, did you meet the commander in the mountains and follow him? Hahaha, Zenjo-san, are you a youkai?"

Zenjo was disappointed in Kuze, who bent over his body and laughed like a child. It was surprising that he was laughed at, although it was not his intention to make him laugh.

"No, sorry, I'm not going to make a fool of myself. But that was very interesting."

"Is it interesting?"

"It's incredibly interesting! I've never met such a person!"

"Mmm...?"

He wondered if that was the case. Originally, Zenjo was a guy who didn't understand many things. If they told him it was interesting, it would be true.

"No, you're good at 'Scepter 4' after all. It's not boring."

As he cheerfully said that, Kuze drank the udon from him. As Zenjo ate the soba noodles, he looked at Kuze as if he was looking at something strange.

"Bored?"

"Yes. The workplace in front of me was already boring. Anyone can do it, such as document preparation, on-site verification and traffic control. More like this, a fierce car chase with the criminal! Fighting battle! Shooting! I was imagining it."

He lifted the bowl and drank the soup.

"So it's so boring that I shouldn't do it. When I was thinking about it, they asked me and I came to try it. I can do what I want every day! It's a lot of fun, right? That's why I think you adapt very well to "Scepter 4"!

Zenjo scratched his cheeks while Kuze drank, wiped his mouth and clasped his hands with a "Thanks for the food!"

"Uh..."

"Isn't that the case with Zenjo-san? Don't you do it because it's medicinal?"

"Eh?"

He wondered if that was the case. Was he enjoying the battle with "Purgatory"?

There was no doubt that he was elevated during the battle. On the battlefield where a momentary judgment divides life and death, that feeling that inspires all cells cannot be experienced anywhere else.

But he didn't think he was struggling to taste it.

When he swung his sword under Habari's command in "Scepter 4", he felt that he was breathing properly. It seemed natural to do so and it "fit." He didn't know if he could describe it as funny.

"Well, that's correct."

It became difficult to think of the way and Zenjo answered that.

"That's right! Well, I'm glad you feel the same way as me!"

Kuze laughed in a friendly way and then a mysterious light fell on his eyes.

"But lately, it's more fun practicing with Zenjo-san than interacting with 'Purgatory'."

"Really?"

"Yes, because Zenjo-san is much stronger than them, so it's fun to do it. Hey, Zenjo-san. Someday, with me…"

Kuze cut off the words when he suddenly remembered. After blinking several times, the mysterious light disappeared. Then suddenly he stood up and held the bowl of kitsune udon in his hands.

"Sorry, it's nothing! So, good night!"

With a smile, Kuze went to the place where the dishes were being returned.

As he drank his soba, Zenjo rebelled against Kuze's words.

(Well, I'm glad you feel the same way as me!)

Maybe it wasn't.

Although they belonged to the same "Scepter 4" and wielded a saber, he felt that something was decisively different between him and Kuze.

He didn't know what it was. He didn't want to think until he knew. Thinking again that he was okay, Zenjo dropped the green onion seasoning into crushed chunks.

++++++++++

Three days later, the hidden member of the "Purgatory" clan in Minari-cho, Fengze-ku, was discovered.

According to the information department report, there was only one member. However, the problem is that he was hiding in the houses of common people. They threatened the inhabitants and parasitized their lives themselves. A bully lurked in his house and behaved inattentive. The father of the family, who could not bear such a situation, rushed to a public institution and discovered his existence.

In response to this, "Scepter 4" quickly formed a unit that rushed over. They ran to the site to "exterminate" the abominable parasite.

However, this time, it was not possible to get through the gate with the transport vehicle and cut it randomly. After all, the other party was alone and the detained hostages were a mother and two young children, according to the father's information. If they took action inadvertently, it would have the worst consequences.

The operation required speed and stealth. "Scepter 4", the deputy director, Gen Shiotsu, selected the appropriate personnel and devised a strategy.

Shuichiro Kuse was included in the staff, but it was boring for him.

Kuze was toying with that idea while biting his yawn in the car.

It had already been three hours since they arrived at the place. Because "Scepter 4" stood out in a transport vehicle, they used an ordinary sedan type and stopped from hiding to blind spot. Kuze sighed softly, looking at him stagnant out the window.

He wished he could rush in and kill him.

It would be easy. He would jump out the door, go through the second floor and invade, and drive the saber into the heart of the guy in black. That was all that was needed.

Kuze understood why he was selected as a runner. The small body was suitable for infiltration, and the "Senden" saber he had was also a slim custom-made one, so it should work effectively in a small room.

So he wanted to do it as soon as possible.

Finally, the long-awaited command came from insiders.

"The target has taken the hostage. I enclose the location."

"Yes!"

He sprang to his feet, grabbed the saber, opened the passenger seat door, and Kuze broke into a run.

In seconds, the target house came into view. When he was hiding behind the wall of a neighbor's house and observing the situation, the transmitter spoke a voice again.

"The target is in the bathroom on the second floor. The children cannot confirm the whereabouts of their mother in the next room. Each member must pay the utmost attention and do everything in their power to secure the hostages."

"Kuze, ready!"

With a light tone, Kuze pulled "Senden" out of the scabbard.

He held his breath and waited for the moment. The plan of the house is engraved on his head. All the images of how he would move, what kind of path he would take and how he would kill the one in black clothes were created in Kuze's brain.

Kuze himself did not know that there were no hostages there.

"Fast!"

By the time Shiotsu's voice echoed, Kuze was jumping.

He jumped off the wall, landed on the ceiling, and ran. At the edge of the field of vision, he could see a blue trail that went through him in the same way. There were a total of four runners, all their own competitors, who aspired to the life of a single man in black. Kuze licked his lips and accelerated to the point where the shingles broke.

He jumped with the same impulse, he broke the second floor window with his body and ran inside.

"Eh?!"

He heard a high-pitched voice. Kuze invaded the children's room on the second floor. According to the information, two children who were less than elementary school students were shaking in a corner of the room.

Kuze ignored it.

The problem was that of black clothes. If he killed him, everything would be solved. So that should take precedence. Kuze thought that way and stepped out into the second floor hallway.

Their eyes met.

There was a figure in black clothes in the bathroom that was left open. However, when Kuze found him, he was strangling and using the children's mother as a shield.

"Stay away, blue clothes! This woman will die!"

He could barely see the one in black who was angry. Very firmly, he was hiding behind the woman. The scared woman shook her head, while she shook her head, he looked and disappeared his face burned in black.

Before thinking of anything, Kuze was kicking the ground.

If he killed him, that would be it. That was the only priority, and everything else was wiped from Kuze's head.

Many things happened at the same time.

"Kuze, stop!" One of the rushing staff members yelled.

"Damn it!" The man in black's burned face turned red, and the flame-filled woman screamed in tears.

Time seemed to flow slowly. He could feel precisely the extraordinary light of "Senden", the heat of the flames that sprouted from the face of the man in black and the smell of the flesh that enveloped her.

In the slowdown time, Kuze analyzed various factors and...

(Oh, this person can't be helped anymore.), he thought.

Too easily, he cut off the hostage's life.

This being the case, the hostage's body was no longer a problem. It was just a corpse, a wall of flesh less than 8 inches.

It did not hinder "Senden".

With a half-smile, Kuze stabbed hard forward.

A bright blue tip pierced the woman's chest, and the heart of the man in black was skewered and glued to the bathroom wall.

"......"

The woman opened and closed her mouth. Kuze tilted his head and looked at her face, thinking that she looks like a dying goldfish.

When Kuze drew the saber, the woman and the one in black fell one on top of the other. Their bloods mixed.

The bodies clung to each other and wet Kuze's shoes.

He takes a breath and inform the others.

"We have deactivated the objective. The mission is complete."

At the same time, an angry sound rang out from behind.

"Kuze! Damn! What did you do?!"

He thought, and looked at the owner of the voice as if he was confused. It was Shinohara, who belonged to the same group as him. He was yelling something when he flushed with anger, but Kuze couldn't understand the meaning of the word. He turned his neck and face away to keep them from flying off.

The frozen facial expressions of the two boys, looking through the door, were reflected in Kuze's field of vision.

++++++++++

"Do you know what you did?"

"Scepter 4", Shiotsu made a heavy voice in the barracks interview room.

Shuichiro Kuze, standing in front of him, replied as if nothing had happened.

"I killed the member of the 'Purgatory' clan. I think it was an unavoidable decision in that situation."

"Right now, 'Purgatory' is not the problem. The problem is Kuze, you stabbed the hostage and killed her."

"I did not murder her. At that time, the woman had already been killed by the one in black clothes. Should I be so reprimanded for damaging her corpse?"

Shiotsu had various reports in front of him.

"Shinohara's report is different. At that time, Shinohara said that the woman was still alive. However, he testified that you ignored the warning and approached the black-robed one and went through him."

"In my eyes, she looked dead."

Kuze spoke clearly.

"I think it would have been difficult to help her, even if she had a break. Is it the right decision to leave the dangerous clansman to help a dying woman? If the action was delayed, hers, two of her children and I could have been euthanized."

"It is not you who should judge whether the woman would be saved or not."

"The judgment of the site should be left to the members of the site."

Shiotsu groaned softly.

What Kuze said was correct in some respects. In the battle with "Purgatory", a momentary misjudgment could be fatal. And that moment came innumerably. It was not enough to have many lives if they were all compared with the regulations of the body and the current law. Above all, Kuze said that a certain amount of excessive acts should be allowed to protect one's life.

But…

Shiotsu watched Kuze's expression.

There was no expression floating there. Self-blame, regret, remorse. He couldn't read any of the emotions the one with the almost innocent human hands would have.

Shiotsu muttered to himself that that was the real problem.

"Kuze..."

At that moment, Shiotsu silently inhaled, and then...

"Where do you think the meaning of 'Scepter 4' is?"

"Eh…?"

"Answer it. What's 'Scepter 4' for?"

For the first time, the color of hesitation reached Kuze's expression.

As he listened to Shiotsu, Kuze replied.

"Kill the enemy. Annihilate "Purgatory" and bring peace to society."

Shiotsu sighed deeply and said.

"No. You are definitely misunderstanding."

"......"

"Our mission is to protect the general public. The sword to protect those who cannot resist the weapon of incompetence, that is 'Scepter 4'."

"It's the same as I said, right?"

In the words that Kuze muttered, unprecedented emotions appeared.

He was frustrated.

"Killing those in black clothes is to protect the general public. If they are left unattended, tens or even hundreds of people will die if they are not treated well. To avoid that, isn't it natural to leave two people alone?"

"Still, we should not be the ones to kill. We should be the ones to protect the people. If there is a defenseless civilian, that is why we have the power to protect ourselves."

"It's stupid."

Kuze laughed through his nose. His dark and bright gaze seemed harsher, as he generally had a friendly gaze.

"Why do we have to do that? It is so stupid for a good person to be sacrificed for an inferior person."

Shiotsu closed his eyes.

What swirled around his chest was not anger at Kuze, but responsibility for himself.

He may have been too impatient to make up for the personnel lost in the battle with "Purgatory". He had hired a person who lacked the most important qualities, distracted only by the ability to fight. He should have known well what would happen if that person had a different ability and special power.

People who cannot control themselves will eventually use their different abilities as they wish.

How is it different from "Purgatory"?

Shiotsu slowly opened his eyes and said in a low voice,

"Shuichiro Kuse. Say goodbye to "Scepter 4" from now on."

++++++++++

Kuze, who came out of the interview room, was looking vaguely at the ceiling of the hallway.

(I blew it.), he thought.

With that in mind, he sighs. This time, he looked down at the ground and started walking.

When he was called by Shiotsu, Kuze had decided what he should do. That was a field decision and he didn't think he had done anything wrong. He intended to stick to that statement.

It is the members of the field who exchange lives. However, it was not uncommon for him to be blamed for a later trial. It was a common feeling not only for Kuze but also for the ER personnel.

Shiotsu was smart and looked closely at the members. That is why he thought that he would not give such a severe punishment based on his thoughts.

"He was telling me something strange."

Kuze lied and looked at his hand. When he focused his consciousness there, the blue glow of the extraordinary shimmered.

It was proof that he was an excellent person and a chosen one.

Kuze couldn't respond well to Shiotsu's words asking the meaning of "Scepter 4". That was because Kuze didn't know. Therefore, he got a rag out of there. It didn't matter if the general public died or lived, he knew that his true intentions would probably not be forgiven within the organization, so he hid it.

The important thing for Kuze was to use that power in all directions to fight. Fight "Purgatory", bypass the momentary deadline and end the life of the enemy. Never in a dull life until now, was it a bright day.

That was stolen from him.

Because he took a boring life from a boring human.

Kuze sighed again and suddenly raised his face.

A familiar giant was walking down the hall. Kuze laughed and raised a hand.

"Hey, Zenjo-san."

"Oh, Kuze?"

Zenjo's eyebrows widened when he noticed that Kuze was there for the first time.

"What are you doing in a place like this? Is it training?"

"No."

Kuze laughed bitterly and...

"Hey, I've been preaching to the vice principal. I'm here for that."

"Oh, Shiotsu? It's loud."

Sympathy reached Zenjo's eyes. Seeing that, Kuze's smile changed to a natural one.

That person knew himself.

He had always felt that way. Zenjo, like himself, rejoiced in the fight. He was a person who should have the nature of killing people rather than helping people. So, Kuze was sure that if he talked about the situation, this person would be on his side.

"But you're almost right."

Zenjo simply denied the idea.

"Eh?"

"Shiotsu is loud, but he's always right. If he claims something from you, you're wrong. I wonder what he was. Apologize properly."

"......"

Kuze looked at his toes.

"Yes, what is that?"

"If that is all."

"I see."

Kuze scratched his head again with a bitter smile.

"In a way that's correct. I thought it was suitable for 'Scepter 4', but surprisingly, isn't it?"

"Eh?"

Zenjo mysteriously shook his head, thought for a moment and then nodded.

"That's right. You said you were the same as me, but I think you are different from me."

"......"

"I can't put it right. You might not be good at 'Scepter 4'. You should stop in time."

Zenjo said that in a wonderful and irresponsible way.

Kuze was about to start laughing. Interestingly, he didn't get mad at all. This was because it had been broadcast that Zenjo was saying that from the bottom of his heart without any malicious intent.

After all, Kuze didn't dislike Zenjo. He was clean, natural, and stronger than anyone. That's why he liked dealing with this person, because he could fight without shackles.

He regretted thinking that he couldn't do that from now on.

Then, Kuze suddenly glowed.

"Ah!"

"Hmm? What's wrong?"

"Sorry Zenjo-san, I just remembered my errand now! I'm done!"

In a hurry, Kuze ran down the hall. Zenjo said, "Oh...?", and gave up, but Kuze suddenly stopped and looked back.

"Please help me again later!"

Zenjo laughed and nodded.

"Oh, I have to be sent."

"Still, please!"

Kuze ran away, saying just that with a smile.

It was that night that Shuichiro Kuze disappeared with "Senden".

++++++++++

When he got out of the transport car, a warm wind caressed Zenjo's cheeks.

The policeman raised his face and smelled a faint smell on the wind. He was delving into the battlefield with "Purgatory". He smelled like sticky, burnt blood.

According to the map, the back alley where the discovery of the men in black was reported was divided into T-shapes. The unit split into three hands, blocking all exits. The most important thing to prevent was that those in black clothes escaped. They had to make sure to capture or neutralize them, even if they took some risks.

At that moment, in front of Zenjo, the entrance to the back alley was black and open.

"Over there."

At random, Zenjo entered an alley.

The back alley was narrow and dark. Polyethylene buckets and outdoor units blocked the street, and the walls of the building that approached from the left and right blocked the sunlight. If one in black clothes came out of the shadows and emitted a flame of extraordinary skill, there would be no way around it. It could be said that this was also a dead place.

Still, Zenjo was not afraid and advanced slowly.

The process suddenly stopped.

Shinohara, who was following Zenjo, said groaning.

"What is the situation? What is this?"

One in black clothes was dead, as if his back was against the wall of the building.

Wide-eyed and in a pool of blood. The burned right hand was soaked in the blood clot, burning and producing black smoke. This was probably the cause of the smell.

In the first place, it was a mystery from the initial discovery report.

It was said that several of the black clothes were fighting. At the time, there were no "Scepter 4" units deployed nearby, and since the Hiiragi incident, the police had been told to stay away from the men in black. Most likely it was a fight between those in black, but in the current situation where they were hiding in a scattered way, he did not think they would do such an outstanding act.

So who was fighting the ones in black?

Zenjo, who was inspecting the corpse in black, said the answer.

"It's Kuze."

"What…?!"

"It is pierced all over the body. This is due to 'Senden'."

Saying that, Zenjo stood up.

Since that night, Kuze's whereabouts have been known to be uncertain. Kuze's legal status was the same as an "Illegal Strain" since he was fired from "Scepter 4". They had to capture him and put a skill suppressor on him, but there weren't enough personnel to track him down in "Scepter 4".

Kuze killed the ones in black and, perhaps, he was still hiding in that place.

"But why is Kuze here?"

Shinohara said that, and suddenly closed his mouth.

Someone slowly emerged from the darkness behind the alley.

It was also one of black clothes.

"Oh, fufu...!"

His face was distorted with anger and hatred, and blood was pouring from his entire body to the point that his black suit was still drenched in red and black. Legs wobbly, the one in black slowly approached.

"Gah!"

The tip of the saber protruded from his chest.

The saber was instantly pulled out and the one in black collapsed to his knees.

Zenjo spoke the name from behind him, standing there.

"Hekireki."

"Oh, Zenjo-san!"

Dressed in a dark green raincoat, Kuze smiled at his face, which had been bathed in blood, and called out to Zenjo cheerfully.

"No, I'm lucky! I can't get it all of a sudden!"

"What are you doing?"

"What?"

Eyes blinking, Kuze looked around him, and mysteriously at himself.

"What's wrong? It's not a job. I got fired from 'Scepter 4'."

He shook "Senden" to spill the blood.

"But if you look for the black clothes, 'Scepter 4' will come, right? Maybe Zenjo-san is there! I thought it was good."

While he smiled, Kuze,

"I never thought we could meet at once! I'm lucky! So…"

He crouched down and pointed the tip of "Senden".

"Let's go."

Before Zenjo thought of anything, Kuze was kicking the ground.

The glow of the blue genie was diffusely reflected in the narrow back alley. He bounced off the ground, scaled walls, emergency stairs, he went up, down, left and right, and hit everything, drawing an unpredictable trajectory like a pinball.

Shinohara, who was behind Zenjo, couldn't even follow Kuze with his eyes. But Zenjo reacted.

It was also an action before thinking. The thick blade of "Hekireki" flipped up as the wind scattered.

The dark green raincoat split in half.

Kuze was no longer there. He twisted in midair, tossed his raincoat, and landed on the ground.

Zenjo kept "Hekireki" jumping and stopped in an unprotected posture. Looking at his empty torso, a fierce smile appeared on Kuze's mouth.

(I caught you!), he thought.

With extraordinary power in his legs, Kuze tried to strike a stroke of luck.

He felt the shock in his chest.

"Eh?"

He lost the strength of his leg. His soles did not separate as if they were stuck to the ground. Interestingly, he looked under his feet and saw a saber thrust into his chest.

"Ah?"

When he coughed, a blood clot spilled from his lips.

Kuze slowly looked at Zenjo.

Zenjo was flipping "Hekireki", with just his right hand.

Before he knew it, he held another saber in his left hand. That pierced through Kuze's chest.

"Oh, wow...!"

Kuze distorted the edge of his mouth when he heard Shinohara make a panicky voice.

"Hey, Shinohara. It's a pay cut to have a saber stolen from you."

When Zenjo drew the saber, Kuze sank into place.

The blood was overflowing. The color of his face was white and transparent. It was clear to everyone that it was no longer useful.

Still, Kuze was somewhat satisfied. He looked at Zenjo and laughed weakly.

"After all... you are amazing, Zenjo-san. I couldn't get over you."

"Kuze."

There was no anger or sadness in Zenjo's expression, just confusion.

"What did you want to do?"

"What?"

Kuze shook his shoulders and laughed. Eventually the laughter turned into a cough and the exhaled blood created a series of stains in the alley.

"I wanted to. A real and potentially deadly battle with Zenjo-san."

Breathing out, Kuze fell onto his side.

"It was fun."

That was the last word from him.

Zenjo, holding a bloody saber, shot a confused look at Kuze's corpse.

#k #k project #k fan clan #scepter 4 #habari jin #shiotsu gen #zenjo gouki #kagutsu genji

[joonni]

Christmas lights | Jimin x reader

Characters: Jimin x reader, ft. Taehyung, a bunch of 95 liners and Jungkook

Tags: friends to lovers, high school reunion

Genre: fluffy fluff🌼

Word count: 8,9k

Warnings: alcohol consumption

Summary: A reunion with your high school classmates, a lit-up Myeongdong, bustling streets full of people shopping for Christmas presents, your dear friends that you haven’t seen in so long. It already sounds like a fun evening. What you don’t expect to find out though, is the reason why Nayeon always has and still apparently hates you. And that it has to do with Jimin.

- a part of the Christmas collab by @kooala​ 

a/n in the tags! hope you enjoy!💕 

Song recs: christmas lights, from: me, love you on christmas 

It looks like it’s going to snow. The air is crisp, and the thick clouds are covering Seoul like a heavy blanket. You stuff your hands into your pockets as you scold yourself for forgetting the handwarmer you bought earlier. It would come in handy now. The subway ride had warmed you up, but all of the warmth escaped your body once you climbed up the stairs and took a lungful of the cold outside air.

You’re now standing in front of the sixth exit of Myeongdong station, waiting for Wheein and Hyejin who organized this whole thing of a reunion. A sign on a nearby bus stop says it’s just one degree above zero and this new acquired piece of knowledge only makes you shiver more.

Seeing a group of high schoolers in their uniforms pass by made you reminisce those times, when life was probably a bit easier than now, even if it didn’t seem like it back then. You used to be an inseparable trio in high school, always hanging out together, spending your free time either in one of the many coin noraebangs or pc bangs around your school. It made you miss the idle afternoons spent singing your heart out into the microphones with those thin fabric covers and becoming so hungry that you each ate a whole serving of tteokbokki and then get scolded at home for being too full to eat dinner.

When you found out that you got into a different university than your two friends, you all promised to keep in touch and to meet often. Which you did, if you’d define often as once every few months.

Today was finally one of those days. You were excited to meet them both, but they could hurry up a bit. You pace around the entrance to the shopping district in an attempt to warm yourself up, the tower on top of Namsan peeking through the clouds signaling the air pollution is fairly bad by its yellowish color.

Your toes are starting to get cold and your ears are not much warmer but then you feel a weight landing around your shoulders. You jump up because of the sudden intrusion into your personal space but calm down as soon as you see two familiar faces.

“Y/n! Sorry for being late!” Wheein sheepishly grins at you, her head poking out of a giant fluffy scarf.

You know her far too well, when was she ever on time. You still haven’t lost hope with her though and always come on time.

Hyejin then adds as she sneaks her arm around yours, “I tried to make her hurry, but you know how she is.”

Wheein furrows her brows at you both as you start walking but soon joins in and locks her arm with your other one. It only makes you laugh, and you stumble, arm in arm, through the crammed streets of Myeongdong.

“Your hair is so long now, Y/n.” Hyejin comments. “I may be swayed by the bob trend, but I like short hair better. And I realized only after cutting it that long hair is such a pain.”

You chuckle at that. “My mom cut my hair short my whole childhood. Don’t you think I deserve long hair at least now?”

“Suit yourself but you’re gonna understand sooner or later that short hair is superior.”

“Yeah, sure, sure.” You brush off her words jokingly.

“Not to interrupt the hair debate but, Y/n, are you sure you’re gonna be alright if Jimin comes?”

You look at Wheein with incredulous eyes while holding on to both of your friends so that you don’t lose each other in the crowd. “How many times do I have to tell you I’m long over him. You’re both insufferable, you know that?” You say laughing and poke Wheein with your elbow.

So far, this evening looks like it’s going to be great. Having these two by your side makes you feel invincible, the same as in high school. The swarm of people blocking your way seems like a piece of cake to get through with them next to you.

The only thing that bothers you is that Hyejin with Wheein invited every single one of your classmates. It was up to them if they decided to come or not after all. They assured you that people change and grow up, that it’s been three years since you last saw everyone.

You wanted to believe your friends, but your gut feeling was telling you some people are never going to change.

 The pub Wheein booked is located in one of the smaller streets that connect the main streets, and one would most likely miss it if not looking for it specifically. Your fingers slowly start to melt as you go up one flight of stairs and enter the already bustling pub, your two friends following right behind you.

As luck would have it, your eyes fall on the one person you hoped not to see. Nayeon spots you and your friends as soon as the glass door closes behind you, sending you a crooked smile. You can’t help but sigh at the sight of your high school nemesis. Right next to her sits Jisoo, a girl that never really did anything bad to you but being a bystander to Nayeon’s shenanigans was as bad in your eyes.  

Why the girl didn’t like you, she never said, but she did make it obvious enough. Even now, as she stared you up and down with an irritating look.

Some people are never going to change, you thought. What a lovely start to the party.

Hyejin obviously notices the shift in your mood and pulls you by your hand to the other side of the tables booked for your class.

“Y/n, don’t let that girl ruin your mood so easily!” She sounds worried but her voice is firm. “Three years went by since you last saw everyone, are you going to let her ruin this for you? For everyone? Don’t even look her way if she’s going to act like a brat.”

You can see the sincerity of Hyejin’s words in her eyes and try to look as unbothered by Nayeon’s stare as possible.

“I know, thanks.” You give her a small smile.

It’s not easy to fool your friend, but she must have seen your will to at least try because she’s sitting you down at the table next to your friends which you haven’t seen since graduation and joining Wheein at the counter, probably because of some more organization with the pub staff.

 Once the two finally join in on the fun, much more people have come and you are actually having a nice conversation with Woosik, Taehyung and a boy you weren’t sure you remembered the name of. You were talking about everything and anything that happened during the time you haven’t seen each other. Which universties the others are attending, how your homeroom teacher had quit and started her own business and that one of your classmates is already married with a child on the way.

Nayeon is still slightly getting on your nerves because you can hear her obnoxious fake laugh from the other side of the room but it’s bearable with the others distracting you. A lot has changed since high school, but of course her demeanor stayed the same.

“So, guys, the food is unlimited for that set price I sent you earlier so just remember how much you drank, got it?” You hear Wheein shout and clank a chopstick against a bottle of soju in the middle of the pub.

“I’m really happy so many of us gathered today so let’s have some fun!” She continues even louder and everyone including you shouts in celebration, some people even clapping and clinking glasses.

 “Cheers!” Taehyung raises his glass over the center of your table, which happens to be a grill with sizzling meat, but people seated around you immediately join the toast. “Cheers to Jimin hopefully arriving before we get too drunk.” He then adds.

You see Woosik raising his brows in surprise. “I assumed he’s not coming since he’s not here already. What happened to our always on time class president?”

Everyone laughs at that, remembering that Jimin was always the first one in class in the morning.

Taehyung then proceeds to defend his friend after downing the shot of soju in his hand. “He’s really punctual even now. He just had something important at school he couldn’t afford to miss. But he’ll be here any minute now, I think.”

You hear Hyejin scoff. “It’s a Friday evening for God’s sake! Let us live, professors!”

A few people start complaining about the stuff their teachers make them do but before you can share your complaints about all the assignments you had to complete by the end of the semester, you hear excited welcomes from the other part of the pub. Nayeon’s squealing is especially hard to miss.

It makes everyone from your table lift their eyes to the entrance, where stands no one else than your class president.

“Speak of the devil.” Woosik says and Hyejin sends you a wicked grin and wiggles her eyebrows.

No matter how many times you told her that you really are over your high school crush, she wouldn’t believe you.

 “You don’t have any closure though.” Was what both her and Wheein would tell you every time. Did you really need closure for a crush that never developed into anything more than that though?

Your high school self thought that a one-sided love was pretty great. You could like a person as much as you wanted and then stop whenever you felt like it. And you convinced your heart you felt like stopping once you graduated.

Your friends then tried setting you up with some guys, you went on dates with some of them, but the spark was never there.

At some point you managed to persuade your girls to stop trying so hard, which only reinforced their belief that Jimin was still occupying a part of your heart.

 “Jimin!” Taehyung jumps up from his seat, soju bottles on the table shaking and the chair he was sitting on almost falling over.

You see Jimin’s features soften as his excited and a bit tipsy friend tightly hugs him like a koala.

He looks so different from the boy you used to have a crush on. His hair is now longer and a silverish color, both of his ears pierced by two small golden hoops, he’s wearing a bright red cardigan under a long black coat and black boots that make him look taller than what you remember.

The one thing that hasn’t visibly changed is the way his eyes turn into half-moons when he smiles.

Your heart does a flip when his eyes stop on yours for a while, that smile still plastered on his face.

 Maybe you do need closure after all.

 When you wake up from your daze, Taehyung is already dragging a free chair to your table, making Woosik and the other boy scoot over so that they can all fit.

Like that, you find yourself seated right across from Jimin, stealing glances at him while trying to keep track of the conversation as well as your composure. It could be just your imagination, but you feel his eyes on you too. You’re just not brave enough to face him, not trusting yourself judging from the glitch in your brain his mere presence caused.

The waitress brings a new glass and a plate for Jimin and as soon as she turns around, everyone’s attention is on the latecomer. Hyejin compliments his hair color but Taehyung immediately gushes that the pink he had on before was so much better.

“I got tired of it, Tae. Why don’t you dye your own hair, huh?” Jimin rustles his friend’s overgrown curly hair as he defends his hair color choice.

“I treasure my hair more than to bleach it.”

“You sure do. That’s why you‘ve gotten it permed.”

“Yah, Jimin! You don’t have to call me out like that.” You all crack up at that, Taehyung’s face turning into a sulking grimace.

Even though Jimin looks so different, he still seems to be the same boy inside, cracking jokes with Taehyung yet appearing to be the calmer one of the boys.

Some shots of soju and classmates’ stories later, Hyejin starts grumbling about the other table. “I thought Nayeon would calm down, but she’s still the same, huh?”

“I seriously don’t understand how Jisoo tolerates that girl’s temper.” You add. “I don’t even know what I did for her to hate me so much.” A pout forms on your lips.

“Right!” Hyejin is leaning in your direction to hold your hand with both of hers. “She’s never had a real reason to be so mean to our Y/n.”

“Wait, you seriously don’t know why she didn’t like Y/n?” Woosik then asks.

You look at him with a puzzled expression, your eyes then falling on Jimin who is seemingly… blushing?

“How would you of all people know that, Woosik?” Hyejin squints her eyes at your classmate who only chuckles and pats the blushing boy’s shoulder before continuing.

“She had the biggest crush on Jimin!”

“And…?” You pause, taking in Jimin’s embarrassed face. “What’s that to do with me?” You were confused to say the least.

Hyejin was more bored than anything by his statement. “Everyone knows that, Woosik. She walked around having it practically written on her forehead all throughout high school.”

You notice Jimin is pouring himself a shot and downing it right away, as if trying to catch up with the rest of you. You feel like everyone except for Hyejin and yourself knows some amazing secret that they were never kind enough to share.

“Ouch!” Woosik then cries out. “What was that for?” The table trembles a little.

Taehyung shakes his head at him. “Woosik, you sure talk too much when you’ve had something to drink.” He forces a smile that looks more intimidating than friendly. Jimin sitting between them is just looking down at the table, as if the plate in front of him was the most interesting thing in the world right now.

“You’re so secretive guys!” Hyejin whines, leaning on her hands against the table. “Tell me, tell me.” She seems already drunk by the way she can’t sit straight and also by the fact she can’t read the atmosphere.

“I’m gonna use the restroom for a bit.” You quickly make your escape from the tense air that surrounded your table. As you take a peek over your shoulder at where you were sitting a few seconds ago, Hyejin is still whining about them not letting her in on the secret and Wheein is just moving to yet another spot, probably trying to talk to every single person present tonight.

 When you wash your hands and look at yourself in the bathroom mirror, your clouded mind wanders to the previous conversation again. If you think about how Woosik put it, it almost sounds like… like Nayeon didn’t like you because you were in her way, blocking her from snatching Jimin.

You’re pretty sure you never told no one about your crush, apart from your two friends whom you trusted to not spill anything. Also, she wouldn’t hate you just because of that, right? Other girls, God knows maybe even guys, must have been crushing on Jimin, so why would she hate you of all people?

 Lost in thought and wiping the water from your hands in your trousers on your way back, you’re suddenly stopped by a wall. Wait, a wall? You lift your head to inspect the soft obstacle that has made you stop and the sight you’re met with is enough to make your heart skip a beat.

Jimin is standing mere inches away from you, looking as confused and dumbfounded as you.

“I’m so sorry, I didn’t see you. You okay?” he asks, his voice laced with concern, both arms gently holding your shoulders.

You take a quick step back from him. “I’m alright. Sorry, I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

Can it be more awkward than this, you cry out in your mind and you pace out of the dim corridor. Jimin’s appearance managed to agitate you once again tonight.

“Y/n…!” Jimin’s voice stops you in your tracks. “I’m… I’m sorry for that earlier. The air became so heavy, I’m not even surprised you ran off from that table. You’re not upset, right?” He hesitates a little on that last sentence and you see a shy smile spreading on his features when you face him again.

As expected of the attentive and kind class president, always caring for others before thinking about himself.

Shaking your head, you reply. “I have no reason to be. If anyone should be upset, it’s you.” You shoot him a sheepish smile. “You looked pretty uncomfortable when the topic was brought up.”

“Ah.” Is what falls out of Jimin’s mouth and he reaches for the back of his neck, rubbing the spot hesitantly. “I know I’m supposed to treat everyone objectively as the former class president but… Nayeon is a bit too much to handle, you know?”

“Yeah, she was always a force to be reckoned with. Especially when it comes to you.”

“Right…” He sighs. “Sorry again for bumping into you like that.”

“It’s really nothing, Jimin. Don’t worry.” At that, he only smiles and passes you in the way to the bathroom.

 You return to the table only to find Hyejin almost laying on the table face-front, mumbling something about Taehyung being a meanie. A long exhale escapes your lips at the thought of helping Wheein carry Hyejin to their apartment.

“Who’s down for round two?” Taehyung asks, hands busy playing with the strap of a cap from some soju bottle. “This place is dying down!”

“Let’s git it!” Hyejin mumbles and slaps one of her palms against the table surface. Both Woosik and Taehyung look at her with disbelief but start laughing after a while.

“Hyejin, you’re going home.” You scold her as if she were a kid. “No more drinks for you tonight, girl.”

“Y/n, I can take her home just fine, you go have your fun.” All of a sudden Wheein appears next to you and flashes you a brief wicked grin right after finishing her sentence.

“Whee, are you sure?” You send her a concerned look, baffled by the timing of her appearance. “I know how she gets when she’s had too much soju.”

She just waves her hand at you dismissively. “Don’t worry about her so much. We’re gonna get home just fine. It’s the opposite direction from your place anyways.”

“Okaaay, so Y/n is coming with us!” Taehyung then announces right as Jimin comes back. “Woosik? You down?”

“Sure, let’s burn this Friday down!”

Taehyung then continues, turning to the silver haired boy. “Jimin, you have no right to object. You came late so you need to make up for it.”

You were about to reject the invitation but Jimin was faster at replying. “Guess I have no choice.” He then lifted his gaze at you. “Let’s try to stay the more sober ones, Y/n. These two are already doomed to have a bad hangover anyways.” He gestures to Taehyung and Woosik. “Sounds like a plan?”

The idea of leaving drunk Hyejin with tipsy Wheein and staying out with the guys suddenly didn’t seem that bad. The things you do because of him.

“Sounds like a plan.” You repeat, the meaning of the words only sinking in once the guys are getting up and heading to the counter, searching their respective pockets for wallets to pay the dinner with.

“Go have fun, Y/n!” Wheein encourages you. She knows you don’t go out to party that often but there’s probably another reason why she’s so fervent about it. That reason being the boy that’s now heartily laughing at something Taehyung has said.

“I guess I owe you one, Wheeinie.” You say as you hug your girl friend tightly. “Get home safe and text me if Hyejin survived.”

“Don’t mention it. But I want updates about you and your prince charming!” the mischievous look coming back to her face.

Before you can retort to her request, the three boys are gesturing for you to hurry up. “Y/n, let’s go!” Taehyung shouts across the pub.

His loud voice makes a few people lift their heads, most of them just waving their goodbyes to you four.

Right as you smile and thank the waitress after getting back your card from her, you hear that high-pitched voice again.

“Jimin! Are you leaving?” Of course it’s Nayeon.

At that, Taehyung turns his back towards the pub and starts pushing Jimin out through the glass door, as if in panic. Woosik tags along and seen you don’t want to spare that girl a single look more, you bow to the waitress one last time and follow the three of them onto the stairs and down. The chilly air hits you right when you step out of the door and you hurriedly put on your scarf, a shiver running down your spine nevertheless. The things you would do to have Wheein’s chunky scarf right now.

The narrow street was completely empty except for the four of you and one older guy leaning against a building a few meters away, cigarette smoke leaving his mouth as he spares your group one look before minding his own business again.

You were never scared of the night but having three friends next to you made you feel very safe. Myeongdong may be a relatively small and safe district, but these alleyways are scary anywhere.

 “Do you guys know any good spots around here?” You remember that no one mentioned where you were headed for the second round of drinks.

“Don’t worry, miss, I know of a lovely place around Jongno.” Taehyung says in a lively tone. “It’s called XX. A brilliant name for a bar, don’t you think?” He then stumbles a few steps forward, apparently more drunk than you thought.

“He’s just saying that because he has the fattest crush on the bartender there.” Woosik scoffs with a laugh. “It’s a nice place though. Not too loud and it has a nice ambience.”

Jimin then speaks up, way more sober than the two boys who are leading the way. “I’m gonna have to trust you on that too. You’re finally showing me the place, Tae.”

You then watch a scene of the two of them bickering about Jimin not making enough time for Taehyung so that he could show him the bar and the bartender lady he likes so much unfold in front of your eyes. It feels like you traveled three years in time, back to your teenage years, except you’re tipsy and out after midnight in the city center. Woosik is laughing at the two friends’ antics and you join in.

Joking around with them like this makes you relax even when you’re still trembling from the cold when the wind gets under your jacket. The nervousness you felt during the evening when you were around Jimin long forgotten.

The streets of Myeongdong are now almost empty compared to the amount of people you saw earlier that night. You exit the district, cross Euljiro where at this time of the day are only taxis waiting for their drunk customers and lastly you cross a bridge over Cheonggyecheon where you stop your steps, even though the wind is stronger here.

The way the trough of the stream is decorated with Christmas themed lanterns and various lights is mesmerizing to say the least. You marvel at the delicate snowflake-shaped lanterns that hang above the water surface as if they were falling.

Only when Taehyung calls out your name, you realize that the three boys kept walking while you stayed behind, bewitched by the beauty of your surroundings.

“It’s so pretty!” You shout back at them, your voice louder than usual thanks to all the soju in your system. Stretching out your arms, you point at the lanterns and wave at the three of them to come and take a look at the decorated stream too.

Taehyung wobblingly rushes back first, almost bumping into you as he leans against the bridge right next to you. Jimin follows right behind, circling around you and leaning against the railing from your other side.

“Waah, it looks like we’re in a fairytale!” The curly boy marvels at the sight of the illuminated water stream. “We should take a picture! Let’s take a picture!”

Woosik then joins you in slow strides. “You’re impossible. First you rush to see the bartender and now we’re taking pictures. Fine.” A sigh escapes his mouth, but he still stretches out his arm as a sign for Taehyung to give him his phone.

Before you or Jimin have a chance to protest against the idea, Woosik is taking a few steps back with Taehyung’s phone pointed in your direction.

“One, two… Jimin, what’s with that stiff smile. At least stick a bit closer to each other, it looks like a very bad family picture right now.” Woosik comments while switching his attention from the screen to you three.

Taehyung does as he’s told, squishes closer against your body but retorts to Woosik’s comment feigning annoyance. “Since when were you so passionate about photography?”

Jimin leans closer against you too. The one with a stiff smile is now probably yourself. When was the last time someone’s bare proximity made you this flustered? The speed of your racing heart only amplifies when Jimin’s arm slips around your waist. He’s suddenly so close that you catch a whiff of his perfume, only making you dizzier.

“Okay, whatever. My fingers are gonna freeze off.” Woosik’s voice brings you back to reality. “One, two, three, kimchi!”

It took you a few seconds to register, but you burst out laughing at his cheesy way of telling you to smile. “Who even says that anymore?”

You feel Jimin’s hold on you tighten as he can’t hold his laughter either. You remembered it was a habit of his to fall onto the thing closest to him when he was laughing, but actually being the object in question is very endearing.

“You’re so cute when you’re drunk, Woosik.” Jimin manages to get out as his body shakes with laughter.

“Hmph.” Woosik huffs. “Let’s go Tae.”

Your heart does a flip when the boy holding you looks you in the eyes, his own still resembling two crescent moons. “Let’s hurry, you must be cold.” He says, head motioning to Woosik and Taehyung who took off already and his arm letting go of your waist.

The reply you manage to give him is a simple nod, afraid your voice would give away the state he put you in.

“Here.” Jimin offers. You look down to his extended arm, only to spot a pair of gloves in his hand. “They’re really warm, put them on.”

What is he so kind for, you internally scream. “Ah, thank you.” You say as you accept the garment from him with a smile. “Won’t you be cold though?”

“I’ll be fine. Or you can always hold my hand and share some of the warmth.”

It takes you a while to process what he just said but when you do, your eyes widen and you feel heat rising to your cheeks.

“Come on, let’s go or we’re gonna lose them.” Jimin grins and begins walking in the same direction as your two other friends.

Was he always this flirty or is that the soju he downed speaking? Anyhow, it made you feel all giddy because you’ve never before witnessed him acting like this. Not that you ever had a chance to see him tipsy since you weren’t allowed to drink yet back then.

As you catch up with the two that are leading your way, you’re tempted to really hold Jimin’s hand like he told you to, but the liquid courage doesn’t come that easy to you. Jimin never said he was joking, yet you can’t seem to shake the thought that he’s just very kind and would give up his gloves for any of his friends.

 With Jimin occasionally sending a smile your way, the four of you made your way to the bar. A small neon sign above the entrance spells “XX”, purple light from it and from the lights along the stairs that lead you below the ground level illuminating your steps.

If it wasn’t for Taehyung leading the way, you’d think it’s some sketchy club. Your opinion immediately changes once you set foot on a soft red carpet that covers the dark wooden floor. A few guests are sitting in leather armchairs that are placed around delicate looking tables, soft warm light coming from little lamps illuminates the space and Christmassy jazz music plays in the background. Though the whole room is a sight to behold, the wall of liquor bottles behind the long bar counter steals the spotlight.

Behind the counter you see a woman, maybe in her late twenties, hair tied neatly in a low bun, her bangs making her look elegant but youthful at the same time. By the frozen reaction of Taehyung, it’s most likely the bartender Woosik mentioned earlier on.

She’s very attractive, wearing a black shirt tucked neatly into her trousers but slightly unbuttoned at the neck and a golden name tag pinned on her chest. If it wasn’t for your crush on Jimin occupying most of your mind, you’d probably girl crush on her big time.

You follow Taehyung who takes a seat on one of the bar stools, closer to the bartender than at a table but still far from where she’s standing. The stools are more comfortable than they look, and you feel more tense about Jimin’s proximity than about your feet barely reaching the footrest.

“Good evening, what can I get for you?” the bartender asks, looking at you.

“Uhm…” it was your first time in a western-style bar like this and all of the bottles on display right in front of your eyes made it look intimidating. “Would you recommend me something?”

Dreading her reaction, you were pleasantly surprised to see a warm smile spreading on her lips. “Would you prefer something sweeter or something that’s more on the bitter side?”

After a moment of hesitation, you answered. “Sweet, please.”

“I’ll think of something for you, then.” She reassures you and you notice the shiny name tag on her shirt spells Hani. “And for you, gentlemen?”

As she turns to them, you see Taehyung rub his hands on his legs, probably sweaty because of the nervous state he’s in.

“I’ll have an Old Fashioned.” Jimin orders with assurance and Woosik follows by ordering a simple Cuba Libre. When it’s Taehyung’s turn to choose a drink, a silence spreads across the counter.

“Should I bring you the usual?” Hani proposes after a while.

At that, the curly boy nods and answers with a quiet “Yes, please.”

The bartender nods as well and proceeds to prepare the drinks. No sooner than she turns around, Woosik starts teasing the other boy about their brief but awkward interaction. You too were surprised that the always loud and outgoing boy became so timid in front of the bartender, but your thoughts are dispersed soon.

 “Noona!” You hear a voice that seems somehow very familiar but Jimin’s expression shifts into a dubious one at the sound of it. Once you peer in the direction it came from, you’re met with a beaming face of your hoobae from your English class.

“Ah! What a coincidence.” The boy leans on the empty bar stool where you set your purse and Jimin’s gloves. “You’re not here with anyone?” It was out of his character to be out at a bar like this. Or at least out of the character he presented himself with at school.

Jimin’s attention is now on you, and it could be just your dizzy consciousness messing with you, but you swear you feel him move closer to you, his scent stronger than a while ago.

“Here’s the Old Fashioned, and a Soul Kiss for you.” Hani slides the drinks in front of you in a graceful manner. “I hope the drink suits your taste.”

You nod and thank the bartender.

“I’m here with Lisa, noona.” He says in a hushed voice as soon as Hani moves closer to the other two boys..

Your eyes widen at his words. “You finally asked her out!”

The younger boy’s cheeks turn to a pale peachy color, unable to hide his shyness at your statement. “Sort of… I’m working on it.” He then replies, fidgeting with the hem of his sky-blue shirt that fits him like a glove. The tension that momentarily formed between Jimin and the younger boy disappearing at once.

“I told you she has a thing for you.” You playfully poke at his shoulder. “Ah, right! I haven’t introduced you two. Jimin, this is Jungkook, my hoobae.” When you turn your head in Jimin’s direction, he’s closer than expected but you try to keep your cool. You don’t bother introducing him to the other two, because there seems to be no end to their bickers.

“Nice to meet you, Jimin-ssi.” A smile blooms on Jungkook’s face, showing his bunny teeth. “Are you noona’s boyfriend?”

The younger one’s bluntness almost makes you choke on the sip of alcohol you just took, blocking any words from coming out of your mouth to reply to his curious eyes. Jimin does the job for you though, all while leaning even closer to you so that Jungkook hears him better.

“Unfortunately, I’m not. We went to high school together.”

His statement makes your heart sprint. Did he really just say that?

Jungkook’s eyes grow in size, a mischievous grin making its way on his delicate features. “It’s great keeping in touch with old friends, right?”

“It would be a shame to lose precious friends just because you don’t go to school with them anymore.” Jimin adds.

“Of course!” The standing boy nods but stills shortly after. “Ah! Lisa’s back, can’t leave her waiting.” His playful attitude now slightly stiffer. “It was nice meeting you, Jimin-ssi. See you in class, noona.” The suggestive eyebrow wiggle he manages to send without Jimin noticing makes you clench your fist.

“Yah!” You chide not so subtly.

Jimin truly didn’t notice Jungkook’s grimace because he’s looking at you with confusion written all over his face. “Why scold him, he seems like a nice kid.”

“He’s nice, but…” You honestly didn’t have anything to defend yourself with.

“But?”

“He likes to tease everyone. Including those older than him.” You reply after giving it a bit more thought. “Except for Lisa, the girl sitting opposite to him. He becomes putty in her hands.” You motion to the pair with your head.

“Seems like someone we both know.” Jimin adds as he looks over to Taehyung.

You can’t help but giggle. Taehyung was like a different person in the presence of Hani. But who are you fooling, Jimin has a similar effect on you too.

 “I guess you don’t go to bars that often.” Jimin asks and sips on his drink, a pleased smirk forming on his face after placing the glass back down.

“I don’t even go out that often to begin with…” Your words drift off.

“Really? You don’t seem that fazed by the amount of soju we had at the pub earlier.”

“I’ve always had a pretty good tolerance.” You take a sip of the orangey liquid in your glass. Your higher tolerance of alcohol was something you weren’t too fond of though. It made it harder to lose some inhibitions like other people. The liquid courage was never something you could achieve with an acceptable number of shots and getting wasted to the point of not remembering what you were doing was never your thing. “I hope it’s not limited only to Korean drinks though.”

“I guess we’ll see.” Jimin chuckles at your statement.

“How’s the kiss?”

“What?” Your eyes shoot up in his direction.

“The drink.”

“Ah.” An obvious blush spreads across your cheeks. “Yeah… It’s- It’s sweet. I like it.”

“Do you wanna try mine? It’s a little bitter though.” He offers.

“Sure.” You don’t think you’re going to exactly enjoy his drink of choice but you’re too curious as to what Jimin’s taste is to not have a sip.

He slides the low glass closer to your hand and you pick it up, briefly examining the contents’ color. Your face scrunches into a grimace as the liquid hits your taste buds.

“So bitter!” You let out after putting the glass back down on the counter.

Even though the sip you just took wasn’t a pleasant experience, Jimin’s reaction definitely is. Supporting himself by his hands on the counter, he’s falling over with laughter.

“You’re really cute, you know that?”

Jimin, you’re really blunt when you’ve had something to drink, you know that? You answered in your mind with a question.

“You expressed the taste so well with your face.” He’s still laughing.

“Why do you drink it, then?” You ask with a pout, stealing glances at his laughing form.

“I like this kind of taste.”

The silver haired boy proceeds to swipe his hair back, only for it to fall into its former place. You also don’t fail to notice the short swipe of his tongue over his lips. It suddenly makes you wonder what kissing him would taste like. Like the bitter drink he sips on? Or would the sweetness of your cocktail overpower it? You try to imagine the taste but there’s not one good comparison you can think of.

 “Y/n,” Jimin starts after a short silence due to your mind wandering off. “Do you want to know the reason why the girl we barely avoided earlier disliked you? But if you don’t feel like talking about it, we don’t ha-”

That definitely woke you up from your thoughts, not even giving you the opportunity to blush. “I don’t really mind… But you seemed quite bothered by it in the pub. Why bring it up?”

“Well… It has to do with you after all.”

“I don’t-“

“Back in eleventh grade, Nayeon overheard one conversation she wasn’t supposed to hear, hell, nobody was supposed to hear.” Jimin visibly shifts in his seat, gripping the glass in front of him a bit tighter. “I told Taehyung something that I’m a little scared to say to you even now.”

“Did I do something wrong?” Your worried look easing his unnerved figure slightly, shaking his head.

“No, no. It’s not you. You didn’t do anything wrong.” Jimin lets out a huff. “It’s me. I was being careless.” He pauses for a moment, eyes lingering on yours until you evade his gaze. “I told Taehyung that I like you. And she overheard it. So… It’s my fault she was so hostile towards you. I’m sorry.”

The words ‘I like you’ ring in your head, almost muting what he said afterwards. You stay frozen, your heart about to give out from the speed it’s beating at.

“Jimin… I-”

“I’m really sorry, I tried to talk to her, but she wouldn’t listen to anything I was saying.”

“Do you mean that?” you take a quick sip from your glass, praying the liquid would give you the courage you need.

“Yeah, I’m really sorry.” Jimin’s eyes drop down.

“No, wait, why weren’t those words in the past tense?”

“What do you mean?”

“Jimin, do you… do you like me?” You gather your courage.

“I- I…” He stutters before nodding. “Yeah, I like you.”

“Jimin…” you place your hand over his that is clutching his drink with too much force. He tenses at the contact but eases his grip soon enough. “Why did you never tell me?”

After a silence that followed your question, you can’t help but continue, the alcohol taking control of your voice. “I guess for the same reason I never told you…”

“Huh?” A confused murmur escapes his mouth.

“I had a huge crush on you during high school.” You sheepishly admit, your hands letting go of his and retreating closer to your body. “But I was never bold enough to tell you and you were out of my league. Being friends with you was more than enough for me.”

Jimin sips on the drink he was clutching so hard just a while ago and hums. “That means you don’t feel the same way anymore. It’s understandable, I’m the foolish one here when it’s been three years since we last spoke.”

There’s a sadness that spreads on his features even though the corners of his lips curl slightly up.

“I was convinced about it until a few hours ago.” You confess. “But now I feel like I’m seventeen again.”

 “Jimin,” a voice interrupts you before Jimin manages to reply. It’s Woosik. He’s on his feet already, supporting wobbly Taehyung as the gets up from the bar stool. “We’re gonna get going. Tae’s had enough. Are you coming with us?”

He pauses after examining the situation he intervened in some more because of the silence that spreads around you. Both you and Jimin are looking elsewhere, his hands fiddling with his drink and yours clenched tightly in your lap. “Did I interrupt something here?”

The boy sitting next to you replies. “I’ll stay some more. We still have a lot to talk about with Y/n, isn’t that right?”

You nod and shift your focus on the two standing boys. They don’t seem to be too concerned about you and Jimin, focusing on standing straight and not forgetting any of their belongings.

“Get home safe, you guys.”

“You always end up so drunk, Taehyung. You’re unbelievable.” Jimin says but pats his friend on the shoulder.

Woosik only snorts. “Why is it always me taking him home?”

“Maybe because he’s always willing to pay for the cab and you live in the building next to his place?” Jimin retorts playfully.

“I hate you.” Is the only thing Woosik says goodbye with before heading to the staircase leading out.

“Love you too.”

 Woosik butting in ended up lifting up the awkward tension between you two because you let out an unrestrained laugh, Jimin soon joining in.

“You guys really haven’t changed one bit.”

“You neither.” Jimin leans his chin against his hand, all while studying you with his eyes. “Only your hair got longer, and you’re not wearing a school uniform.”

“Oh? That’s all?” You pout.

“And you got even prettier.” He grins.

The instinct to hide your face behind your palms kicks in at once but Jimin is faster to get a hold of your hand, lightly holding it and kneading circles into it with his thumb. The soft gesture causes you to almost melt under his touch, biting on your lip.

“We may as well be the biggest fools on Earth, Jimin.” Your hand in his hold shifts so that you can intertwine your fingers with his.

“I know… Now I feel really bad, I’m sorry.” Jimin apologizes again but tightens his grip on your hand.

“Okay, no more saying sorry tonight. We can’t do anything about the past anyways.”

“Does that mean that you want to do something about the present?” A flirty smile returns to his face.

“I mean… Only if you want to.” Where did your confidence from a while ago disappear to, you’ll never know.

“I sure do.”

You look at each other for a while without saying a word but start giggling when the silence becomes too much.

“I can’t believe this.” You glance at your intertwined fingers, then at the boy’s brown eyes, taking in the tender look he’s giving you. “Doesn’t stuff like this happen only in movies?”

“Hmm, I’d say we’re living proof it happens in reality too.”

 “Was the drink to your liking?” Hani inquires when she notices your glass is empty.

“Oh, yes, it was delicious. Thank you.”

“I’m glad to hear that.” After collecting the emptied glass, the bartender turns to Jimin with a softer look occupying her face. “Is the man that walked out leaning on his friend’s shoulder okay? He seemed very drunk…” Her words drift off.

“Ah, you mean Taehyung? He’s going to survive. You don’t have to worry about him too much.” Jimin answers a little startled.

“Taehyung…” Hani repeats after him, collecting the glass in front of him as well.

“Should I pass him your number?”

The bartender’s eyes shoot open at his suggestion. “I shouldn’t be doing this during my work hours…” After hesitating for a short while though, she swiftly takes out a business card out of her shirt pocket and slips it close to Jimin. He only winks at her and hides the paper in his back pocket. Hani then dashes off to busy herself with work, cheeks slightly flushed.

“Wow, are we really not in a movie? Do you think she likes Tae?” You say, after letting out a breath you didn’t know you were holding.

“I’d say it’s clear as day.”

“Cupid must be busy tonight.” You let a sigh escape when you spot your hoobae in the back of the bar and motion his way by lifting your chin.

Lisa is leaning against him, sitting side by side in a small sofa looking extremely comfortable. Jungkook’s arm is holding her shoulder, pressing her body tighter to his, a humongous grin plastered on both of their faces.

“One would think you’re jealous, Y/n!” Jimin teases.

You can’t help but pout at his accusation. “I’m just surprised by this outburst of luck and love from the universe.”

“Well, it’s Christmas soon.”

“Do you believe in Christmas miracles?” you ask Jimin.

“I think I might from now on.”

“Cheesy!” You punch his arm lightly.

“Yes, yes.” Jimin’s resigned reply makes you both giggle. “Should we get going too? Leave those two a little privacy.”

You snort at his words. “I’ll probably hear about it all from Jungkook the next time I see him anyways. But I feel like my wallet can’t take many more of these drinks. Let’s go.”

 The night air is crisp but there’s some humidity that makes it feel colder than it actually is. A pout is slowly dissolving below your scarf as Jimin intently insisted that he was going to pay for your drink as well. Because he made you stay out longer and dragged you along to Taehyung’s bar of choice. You squeeze the pair of gloves he lent you earlier and burry your chin even more into the scarf that Jimin helped wrapping around your neck.

“You must be cold.” Jimin’s neck is pretty much exposed to the freezing air but he still shakes his head in denial.

“I’m good.” He then reaches out for your hand and your palms mold into each other as if it was the most natural thing. “Do you want to see the lanterns some more? You looked bewitched by it on the way here.”

“It was so pretty! Can’t blame me.” You hope the scarf around your shoulders and the darkness make the blush on your cheeks less visible but then you stop, making him turn around and face you. “Wait, Jimin, is that it? Are you trying to find excuses not to go home yet?”

“Is it that obvious?” Jimin fakes a laugh.

“Well, I want to spend more time with you too.” His eyes widen for a little bit as a current of wind ruffles his hair but then he smiles again. “Let’s go, before you freeze to death.”

“I’m not cold, Y/n!”

“Yes, yes.”

It was how comfortable he made you feel, joke around with you, yet still making your heart flutter. Just that. No other guy was able to evoke that kind of feeling in you. Just by walking next to you, holding your hand, softly bumping into each other’s shoulders on your tipsy feet.

The wind is playing with his silver hair, sometimes revealing a little more of his forehead and you almost forget to look where you’re walking as your eyes are engrossed in studying his features. The lanterns hung above the stream are of no big interest to you, mind occupied by the man next to you.

“Isn’t it too cold here?” Jimin asks, concerned.

You walked down to the path that is directly next to the icy water to see the scenery from a different perspective but failed to consider that. Water really made the air colder.

“We can just walk closer to each other.”

Jimin then guides your hand that he’s holding into the pocket of his coat but doesn’t let go. “I’ve always wanted to do this.”

“Do what? Walk next to Cheonggyecheon at two in the morning in freezing weather?” You tease.

“This.” He says as he gives your hand a gentle squeeze. “Give me your other hand.” Jimin requests and halts his steps. You comply right away, stuffing his gloves you’ve been holding into his still empty pocket along with both of your intertwined hands, leaving you standing face to face.

“It’s so warm.” You purr as his body heat reaches your skin. “But your neck still looks very cold.”

“It’s not like I will freeze when my pockets are this warm.” He defends himself with a smug smile.

Obviously not enough to convince you, before thinking twice, you close the distance between your bodies and lay your chin on his shoulder. You catch a whiff of his scent and the intimacy of standing so close to Jimin makes you melt against him.

Just then something cold lands on your nose.

“Y/n! It’s snowing!” Jimin lets out, excitement in his voice.

White fluffy snowflakes slowly fall all around you and fill the night sky. Everything seems quiet, as if the time has stopped, but the snow continues to fall, disappearing once hitting the ground.

“You know what they say about the first snow.” Jimin speaks up again. “If you’re together with someone during the first snowfall...”

He pulls away slightly, leaving your hands in his pockets and cups your face with his warm hands. You notice a few snowflakes get stuck in his hair, but they melt too soon for you to brush them away.

“You will stay together for a long time.”

“Hmm, I want to believe that.” You say, hands tightening in fists in Jimin’s pockets when you feel him pull you closer.

“Me too.” He almost whispers before his lips find yours, hasty at first, only slowing down when your arms encircle his waist.

You were right. No drink a bartender can mix can possibly come close to this. The keen movement of his lips still manages to be soft, sending shivers down your spine as he tucks a strand of loose hair behind your ear. Why drink alcohol when there’s something as addictive as this.

It seems you’re not the only one thinking that. No sooner than you pull away to catch your ragged breath, Jimin’s lips crash onto yours once more, this time in a more fervent manner, as if you’d disappear if he stopped.

You have an urge to pinch yourself just to make sure this is not a dream but the cold reassures you it’s not. Snow is still falling onto you both, lanterns swaying above your heads, but the only thing you can focus on is the man kissing your lips and his arms wrapped around you.

“Jimin-” You let out when he breaks the kiss, only to stare deep into your orbs and hum as a sign for you to continue. “I like you a lot.”

Jimin can’t contain the smile that overtakes his face, leaning his forehead against yours.

“You don’t even know how happy that makes me… Because I like you a lot too.”

“I know.” You plant a peck on his freezing nose and barely escape his counterattack.

You must look like a pair of fools, giggling and chasing each other in the middle of such a cold night, trying to steal kisses from one other, but you couldn’t care less.

As long as you’re with Jimin.

Epilogue:

 Beagles 00:24 am

Whee: You should have seen Nayeon after you guys left hahaha

Whee: She made a ruckus that she couldn’t even talk to Jimin when she was ogling Dowoon the whole time

Hyejinie: Gets on my nervres so mu

 Beagles 00:26 am

Whee: Hyejin dropped her phone lol

Whee: Hope you’re doing better than this wasted missy, Y/n

 Beagles 01:03 am

Whee: Just got home

Whee: You should see Hyejin hahahahh

Whee: …

Whee: I really hope that you not replying is a good sign and you’re not passed out somewhere

Whee: I trust you Y/n!

 Beagles 11:01 am

You: Should I start believing in Christmas miracles too?

#jimin fanfic #bts fanfic #jimin fluff #bts fluff #jimin x reader #jimin oneshot #jimin x yn #bts christmas fic #mine #writing #내 꺼 #OKAY SO I.. this is my first //finished// attempt at a fic #please don't be mean🥺 but then constructive criticism is welcome😊 #silver haired jimin is one of my weaknesses and if he's not yours yet then brace yourself #in other words this is just sappy christmas fluff with me missing seoul a whole lot #can't believe it's been exactly 2 years since I came back home ;; #there's also a reference to XX - a web drama #and before you kill me I know woosik isn't even close to being a 95 liner but he just fit there okay #I hope you enjoy and get some fluffy christmas vibes from this🥰💕

[nalgenewhore]

masterlist - part one - part two ½

“Oh, I could fucking snap that pretty little neck of yours.” 

Elide smirked and crossed her arms, “Keep it in your pants, Salvaterre. We’re still at work, baby.” 

From the other side of her office, Lorcan sent her a glare that could freeze Hellas’ fiery realm. He crossed the room in two large strides. His long, glossy hair was in disarray. Elide practically choked on her desire to smooth it back for him. She glanced around, quickly averting her eyes from Rowan’s pointed look. His fiancée beside him wore a delighted expression, almost as if she wished she was snacking on something right about now. “Lochan, c’mon. Listen to me. If we settle now, it’ll only allow big tech corporations to completely demolish software start-ups. You know I’m right.” 

“If we push, we could end up with nothing and bankrupt our client! If we settle, that leaves Nox and Luca with enough money to further their technology.” She stood up and braced her hands against the glass surface of her desk. “Lorcan, I know that you want to set precedent–”

“It’s not about setting precedent, princess,” he snapped. “I don’t give a fucking shit if people know my name or not. I’m doing the right thing here and it’s insulting that you don’t see that.” Lorcan dropped the papers on her desk. He stepped back and ran his hands through his hair before twisting his locks into a messy bun. “You’re fucking impossible, Elide.” 

Elide’s spine straightened, “ I’m impossible? This is my case and since the second I asked you for help, you’ve been–”

“You’re fucking it up, Elide! You’re scared of losing and leaving those kids with nothing so you’re playing it safe and–” 

“I am not playing it safe , Lorcan. I’m playing it smart. This is what we learned in school. It’s how we’re supposed to do it.” 

He scoffed, his words cutting, “Yeah, according to a second-year class. I never had you pegged as a coward, Elide. You’re scared and you’re hiding behind a gods-damned book . You know, I really used to think you were cut out for this, but I’m not so sure anymore.” Tears burned her throat. Elide flicked her watery eyes to the wall of windows and focused on the glittering city lights. Lorcan inhaled sharply, as if realising what he’d just said. “Princess, shit, I’m–”

“You’re not sorry, don’t you dare lie to me,” Elide whispered. She looked up at him, “You want the case that bad, Lorcan? Fine. It’s yours. Enjoy it, you bastard.” She shoved the case file box to him so hard that it slid off the smooth surface and on pure reflex, Lorcan caught it. Elide didn’t look at anyone while she strode out of her office. 

She took the elevator up to the roof and walked across the gravel-covered roof to the railing. Elide leaned against it and then, because she couldn’t help herself anymore, she let a sob fall from her lips. Elide buried her face in her hands. 

She cried softly until she heard the heavy metal door drag against the gravel as it was pushed open. Elide raised her head and hastily wiped her eyes, “If you’re here to grovel, I don’t want to hear it, Salvaterre.” 

“He’s not. Aelin’s chewing him out right now.” 

Elide turned, sighing softly. “What are you doing out here, Rowan? I want to be alone.” A gust of cold wind blew over her. Elide hugged her arms around herself and tucked her chin into her chest to conserve heat. 

Rowan walked closer and draped her heavy wool coat over her shaking shoulders. “I thought you might be cold. Might want some company, too.” He opened his arms and Elide leaned into him. “Yeah,” he said as he folded her into his warm chest and rested his chin on her head. “I know, Ellie.” 

“Every time,” she sniffled, pathetically, “every time I think we- we’re getting somewhere, we fight and- and lose whatever progress we’ve made. He isn’t even mine and I keep losing him.” 

“I know,” Rowan said, his brogue strong and comforting. Unbeknownst to Elide, his face was set in a deep frown, all directed at the man who sat floors below them, being berated by a woman he towered over by at least a foot. 

After a few minutes, Elide stepped back. She accepted the tissue Rowan procured and wiped her mascara tracks away. “I guess I should go back and… figure this out. Are you and Ae staying?” 

“No, we’ve got dinner with my parents.” 

Elide nodded and looped her arm through his elbow, “Let’s go, then.” Rowan wisely didn’t try to dissuade her and escorted her back down. Aelin was waiting by the elevators, her coat and scarf on. She carried her gloves and bag in hand and stepped up to hug Elide good-bye and fuss over her hair. “Ae,” Elide said, “I’m fine, really. Go, have dinner with Ro’s parents. I’ll call you tonight.” 

“Alright. But if you need me, I can ditch those losers and come over.” Rowan cleared his throat and arched an unimpressed brow. Aelin sent him a loved-up grin and kissed Elide’s cheeks, “Bye, honey.” 

“Good-bye, Elide,” Rowan said. 

“Night, you two. Say hi to your parents for me.” 

“Of course,” Rowan nodded his head and guided his fiancée into the waiting elevator. 

Elide turned on her heels and slowly walked back through the empty office to hers. She looked through the glass wall and saw Lorcan. He was sitting on the low, modern leather couch and bent forward with his forearms against his thighs. 

When she walked in, Lorcan shot to his feet, his eyes wide. “El, please, listen to me. I’m sorry. Really. I didn’t- I was- I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. None of it is true, you have to believe me. You- you’re an amazing lawyer, Lochan. I’m so fucking sorry.” 

“I know, Lorcan. Really, I know. It’s not the first time one of us has said something we didn’t mean.” 

Relief flooded his face, “Ok, um, yeah. That’s good.” He flashed her a rakish grin. Elide felt her own smile grow at the sight of his. She wasn’t too stubborn to deny that Lorcan was attractive and quite possibly the most attractive man she had ever laid eyes on, but when he smiled… she could only describe him as beautiful. “And, listen, I know you think we should settle, but–” 

“Lor,” Elide laughed, “let’s order dinner before we get back to it, ok? I’m starving.” 

Lorcan loosened his tie and lifted his eyebrows, “You aren’t trying to wine and dine me just so I’ll agree with you, right?” Elide just hummed noncommittally and walked to her desk. She leaned back against the edge as she picked up her phone and dialed the number to their favourite restaurant. He laughed and sat down, “Right, like that would ever happen.” He paused, waiting for her response. “Right, Elide?” 

“Hmmm? Oh, yeah, never.” Never. Never. Never.  

She hated that the thought of them never being together made her heart crack. After she put in their classic order, she sat down next to him and they read briefs in a comfortable silence. 

An hour later, their dinner arrived. Lorcan sat down on the carpeted floor and rested his back against her couch. Elide kicked her heels off and sat down against the matching armchair, perpendicular to Lorcan. 

They spread out their papers around them, interspersed with boxes of Chinese takeout. Elide rested her feet in his lap, her brow furrowed as her eyes flicked back and forth across the page. Lorcan didn’t say a word and laid his hand on her ankle. His thumb soothed circles over her skin, “What is it?” 

“I think we should push.” 

“Lochan–” 

“You’re backing down, really?” There was a fluttering sound as she dropped the package. “Stop doing that. I told you I was fine and you’re right. If we settle, it’ll only allow other corporations to go after and attack small developers.” 

“I’m sorry, what was that?” 

She narrowed her eyes in warning. “If we settle–” 

“No, no, not that,” he said, smiling at her, “the thing before that. I’m what? ”

Elide rolled her eyes and flicked his nose with her index finger, “You’re right . I should’ve listened to you earlier.” 

Picking up a box of sesame noodles, Lorcan passed Elide her vegetarian dumplings. “What are you thinking?” 

Elide took the box and picked up her chopsticks to pinch one. She lifted the dumpling, but didn’t eat it. “About what?” They both knew he wasn’t talking about the case. 

Lorcan dropped his head back against the couch cushion, “Anything.” 

“I’m thinking that… this is nice. Being with you. I like it.” He looked at her and Elide frowned defensively, “What, I like your company. We don’t always have to fight.” 

“I know,” he said softly. “I like it too.” Her pale cheeks pinked and they shared a gentle grin. 

Elide poked his thigh with her toe, her heart pounding, “Tell me what you’re thinking.” 

His eyes were so dark, Elide swore she could get lost in them and willingly, too. Lorcan rubbed his hand up and down her shin, “I’m thinking maybe I don’t… hate you. Maybe I’ve never hated you.” 

She could barely hear herself think, blood rushing through her ears. Slowly, Elide rose onto her knees and straddled his lap. Lorcan didn’t say a word, merely steadying her hips as she shifted. “Well, maybe I’m tired of pretending we wouldn’t be great together.” 

Lorcan lifted a hand to cradle the back of her head and pull her close. They both leaned in and the tips of their noses bumped together. Her hands were surprisingly steady as she gripped his collar and tugged him that much closer. Their lips were a hair’s breadth apart when he whispered, “Let’s stop pretending then, hmm?”

+*+*+*+*+*+*

an: tee hee 

@mythicaitt @werewolffprince @schmlip-scribble  @empire-of-wildfire@ladyverena @ttakeitbacknoww @shyvioletcat @alifletcher2012 @tswaney17 @ourbooksuniverse  @flora-and-fae @thesirenwashere @queenofxhearts @maastrash @mynewdreamwasyou @cursebreaker29 @empress-ofbloodshed @b00kworm @hizqueen4life @silversprings98 @amren-courtofdreams @minaidss @superspiritfestival @sanakapoor @ireallyshouldsleeprn @spyofthenightcourt  @thegoddessofyou @more-espresso-less-depresso-xx @claralady @neonhellas @darlinminds @readingismyonlyhobby​ @autophobiaxx​ @silversprings28​ @myshadowsingeraz​ @aelinfeyreeleven945tbln​ @elriel4life​ @always-in-a-daydream​ let me know if u want to be added/removed from the tag list !!

#ntf part two #nine to five #elorcan #elide x lorcan #elide lochan #lorcan salvaterre #isa writes #nalgenewhore

[sup-hoes-its-me]

Before You Go (All Might x Reader)

Part One/Part Two

A/N: okay, so this is gonna be pretty sad all around. Ultimately, Young!All Might x reader, but with Aizawa Shota undertones. Aizawa was giving me some mad professor snape vibes in this, and I sincerely apologize for that. I love him too but this isnt his story.

word count:4000

“Y/N, you seriously need to sign up with that energy quirk hero’s agency...shit what’s his name? It’s on the tip of my tongue,” Yamada remarked, tapping his chin as if that might help him remember. He sat at the lunch table with the rest of his friends, Shota and Oboro. Y/N was right beside him, but it seemed his words, despite being loud as usual, went through one ear and out the other. 

“Don’t bother. She’s a lost cause.” Aizawa replied tiredly. 

They all followed her gaze, only for their eyes to land on Toshinori Yagi. The blond walked by, carrying his food to his lunch table with his friends, people Y/N didn’t know, nor could she ever even hope to know. To be honest, Y/N was kinda sorta a loser. She was lucky that she even had friends considering she was awkward beyond belief.

“He’s too full of himself to notice you, Y/N. I’d just give up on that one,” the dark haired boy added, bumping his shoulder with the girl’s. She frowned, shaking her head to get back to reality. Aizawa was right. Not even once had the blond glanced at her or said hello. He was too cool for her. He was going to be one of the best heroes to ever exist and she was just average at best. None of her teachers ever saw potential in her, just saying that her strength was great, just that the side effects of her quirk were far too destructive.

She took a hefty scoop of rice and shoved it into her mouth, chewing grumpily. 

“Come on, Y/N! It’s alright. You could just date me or Yamada!” Oboro laughed, clapping a hand on her shoulder from where he sat across from the girl. 

“You don’t have to ruin my fantasies, Aizawa-kun. I know I don’t have a chance, but it’s nice to think about,” she snapped, sending a sideways glance at her friend who shrugged. He tried to tell himself it didn’t matter if Y/N obsessed over that muscle-head, but it bothered him. She was their friend: she should pay attention to them, no ogle over some narcissist. “He’s going to be the greatest hero this world has ever seen, I just know it. There’s something special about him, his quirk-”

“We get it. Toshinori this, Toshinori that. You know, if you like him so much, why don’t you go talk to him?” Yamada suggested. He wasn’t upset with her talking on and on about her crush, but he just knew Aizawa was about to burst with a couple more remarks. When she didn’t make an effort to move, he smiled knowingly. “You’re such a scaredy cat, Y/N. What’s he gonna do, bite you? If he’s a nice guy, it wouldn’t be a problem-”

“If it’s so easy, Yamada, why don’t you go find Nemuri and tell her how you feel?”

That shut him up very fast, as expected. Their cloud quirk friend broke through the tension swiftly, “Well, instead of talking about stupid crushes, why don’t we talk about our plans for this weekend? Karaoke and Barbeque, dudes! It’s gonna be awesome.”

“Oh my God, I totally forgot about that!” Y/N exclaimed, shoving more rice in her mouth so it bulged in her cheek like a squirrel. She probably should take smaller bites, but it was more fun to see how many grains she could fit in her mouth at one time. “Hizashi, I swear if you eat all the spicy pork again...”

“That only happened once-”

“Twice, actually!” she corrected, poking him on the forehead with the end of her chopstick. They laughed and all was well again, if not for her lowering self-esteem. If only Aizawa believed in her. He was her best friend, the only one who’d been there since the beginning. If he pushed her to talk to Toshinori maybe she would have the courage to actually do it. 

But that wasn’t important. She had friends who actually enjoyed her company, and that’s what mattered.

The weekend was two days away, and a lot could happen in those 48 hours, she found. 

_____________________________________

“Fucking useless. So weak,” Y/N cursed, staring down at her burning hands. Blisters had yet to form, but she could feel the pain of her training. She could accumulate heat from her surroundings and expel that from any part of her body. Yet, it seemed that there were more downsides than perks with this quirk she inherited from her parents. Firstly, she could not consciously choose to concentrate the heat in any one area. Usually, it did come from her hands, but often she would find other parts of her body scalding to the touch when she was using her power. Secondly, using her power at high heat would leave her with terrible burns. 

Thankfully, her mother gave her bits of a regeneration quirk, meaning the burns only lasted for a couple days, most of the time less than that. Hopefully, with time, she could control the quirk so the damage wouldn’t be so bad.

She hated her quirk. It sucked. She couldn’t do anything much with it or else she would hurt herself and have to stop. Once she was burned so badly that the hospital almost had to amputate one of her limbs just from that. 

Sadly, she fell to her knees on the sandy training grounds, just staring down at her hands hopelessly. How could she ever become a pro hero like this? She’d never be able to compete with the other UA students, especially people like Toshinori or Todoroki or even Aizawa. 

“Shit,” she shouted angrily, shutting her eyes and slamming her hands against the sand. Her hands lit up a bright red for a quick moment as heat ran through them into the ground. Sand blew up all around her face and rocks were sent flying in all directions. As the dust cleared, she could see a small crater in the ground where she channeled her energy, it wasn’t huge, maybe enough for a person to lay in, but not much bigger. 

Her hands stung terribly, and blisters started to bubble up on her skin. She was so full of adrenaline and hate for herself that the pain hadn’t entered her mind. She was just so fucking angry. She would never be good enough. Why even go to UA if she was just gonna get a job outside of the quirk realm? If anything, she’d probably get left behind to be a civilian while everyone she knew got rich and famous from quirk work.

“Hey, are you okay?” a familiar voice asked from somewhere behind her. She turned her head, tears stuck in the corners of her eyes as she drifted out of her reality into the real world. If it didn’t sting so badly, maybe she would have been more excited to see Toshinori Yagi walking in her direction. She hissed, turning back around and shaking her hands to get some cool air on them. 

He jogged to her side, kneeling beside her. His eyes widened at the sight of her hands, but also at the hole she left in the ground. “That looks really, really bad. We should get you to Recovery Girl-”

“It doesn’t matter.”

He looked up to her face, his brows raised in surprise. Why would she deny going to the infirmary for an injury like this? She had to be insane, he thought. “What? Why?”

“It’ll heal soon.”

“Do you have a regeneration quirk?” he asked, but as he did so, he gently took her hands in his, which were in comparison, freezing cold. He felt like he was touching fire, but he knew his body was strong enough to handle a little heat. Her skin was already blood red, but him touching her so delicately left her feeling faint. The school’s star pupil was holding her hands. She couldn’t believe it. Even through the pain, she felt bashful.

She nodded. “Yeah, but it will take a day or two.”

“Well then, we’re going now.” He didn’t even wait for her to say anything in reply before picking her up in his arms, one behind her shoulders and the other under her knees. In shock, she could only lay there limp, her burnt hands face up in her lap. “How’d you do that anyway? You have a heat quirk, right?”

“Yeah. I just put too much energy into my hands. I have to use my quirk in moderation,” she explained. “Also, I can walk. It’s fine, you don’t need to-”

“No! You need to save as much of your strength so you can heal your wounds. Recovery Girl can’t heal you completely, I’m sure.” 

“Okay. Thank you.”

He walked inside the school building and started talking again. She didn’t know for sure why he was giving her so much of his time and effort. She could have taken herself to the nurse or easily gone home. It was after class. He might have been coming out to train himself, actually. Either way, he was being extremely kind.

“I’m Toshinori Yagi. I’ve seen you around school before, you always hang with the boy with that erasing quirk.”

“Yep. He’s one of my best friends.”

“If I remember right, you’re L/N Y/N? Heat manipulation quirk? You were 4th in this year’s sport’s festival,” he smiled down at her, and she felt herself light on fire once again. How did he remember her? She was such a background character, and even if she did mildly well, her quirk and face weren’t much to remember. “You were super impressive out there, I was surprised. You seem so shy, but really you’re a powerhouse.”

“Not really. I have to hurt myself to do anything good.”

“If you could learn to control your quirk, imagine what you could do with your power?! You made that giant hole in the ground out there in a matter of seconds.” That made her feel good. People normally brought her down, telling her that she would just have to deal with it, that it was a condition of her power. For some reason, this boy believed in her. It made a bit of a smile come to her lips. 

His grin felt contagious, and it only grew brighter seeing her lips curl up. 

“I guess so.”

“You should let me help you out. I know a lot about control from my own quirk. We’d be a good pair, I think.”

That was when her heart officially stopped beating. He wanted to spend even more time together? He wanted to take time out his day to help her improve? She began to rethink what her friends said about the boy. He didn’t seem full of himself at all. He was generous and kind from the looks of it. 

And to think she had a crush on him before. Now she felt her heart swelling up in her chest so much it might explode.

“Really?”

“Yeah, of course.”

That’s how Y/N met the famous All Might, and the moment she started her downward spiral in love with him.

_________________________________

Y/N sat at the lunch table once again with her normal squad of friends, Aizawa to her right as usual. She had one of her books sitting out on the table, a textbook Toshinori gave to her. He said that his own mentor had given that to him to help learn control and moderation of his quirk. She studied it religiously, and surprisingly, it was beginning to work. She had less and less incidents where she had to go to the infirmary or have to extensively heal herself. The training still hurt like hell, but it was less serious.

“Y/N, you’ve been studying a lot lately. Something up?”

“Just trying to get over my weaknesses. Figured I wasn’t working hard enough.” 

Just as Aizawa was about to say something else, a loud, excitable voice yelled from a few meters away. “Y/N!”

It was The Toshinori Yagi, the best student at UA. To think two weeks ago, they were telling her he would never know her name. Turns out he already knew, and apparently they were friendly with each other. Oboro’s eyes widened and he elbowed Hizashi beside him, who was jamming on his headphones. Aizawa’s eyes only narrowed. 

Her eyes lit up at the sight of the blond boy. He walked over to her seat and leaned his hip on the table, crossing his arms over his broad chest. “You’re really studying that book I gave you, huh? Even at lunch?”

“Of course! I have to do all I can before training.”

“You’ll be fine. You’ve been improving like crazy these past few weeks.”

These past few weeks? Just how long had they been talking?

He smiled kindly at her, and she blushed, hiding her face toward the table. It was weird for the boys to see their little Y/N talking with a boy other than them. And while two of them were ecstatic she seemed to have bagged the hottest boy in the school, one was particularly stormy about it.

“Well, I just stopped by to tell you, you look really beautiful today! You’ve been practically glowing with confidence lately; it’s a really good look on you.”

“O-Oh, thanks, Toshi-kun.”

“I just call it like I see it, Y/N,” he winked, and that sent her heart into overdrive. “Well, I’ve got to go eat, but I’ll meet you outside class later?”

“Yep.”

He left for his table with his super cool friends, leaving her sitting there a flustered, awkward mess. She shoved some rice into her mouth and chewed, trying to hide her embarrassment.

“Sooo, you gonna explain what that was?!” Yamada cried out, clutching at his chest. “Your vibes were too intense, I almost couldn’t handle it.”

She waved the boy off with her hand, trying to downplay it all. ‘It’s really nothing. He’s just helping me train. He has a really good handle on damage control, since we both have stockpile type quirks. I’ve actually gotten somewhat better since then.”

“Seemed like more than that, L/N-chan,”

“I’m telling you, he's just a really, really friendly guy. That compliment was just a friendly one.”

Aizawa sighed, leaning back in his chair. “You’re so dumb, Y/N. He seems like he’s playing with you.” He said it so matter-of-factly, and she glared at him. 

“I’ll have you know he’s been helping me a lot with my training but also my healing. He’s very kind and always helps me with anything. He’s never once shown signs he’s not genuine.”

“That’s what a narcissist does to get you comfortable with them, stupid.”

“Can’t you just believe that my crush actually wants to be friends with me and help me? That he’s not just some malicious monster?” When he rolled his eyes, she stood up abruptly, grabbing her book and shoving it into her bag. He sat up quickly and went to grab her wrist, but she moved out of the way swiftly. 

“Aw, come on, L/N. Dudette-” Yamada whined, but he knew that Aizawa’s jealousy was getting to the tipping point for the girl. Years went by of him just pushing her away from other guys who liked her and were genuinely kind. Whatever Toshinori was doing with her seemed to give her enough strength to reject the boy’s malice words.

A little bit of him was even proud, the loudmouth admitted to himself. 

 She kept her head held high, eyes glaring down at the long-haired scruffy boy. He’d never seen her like this: standing up for herself. If she were angry at anyone else, he would be cheering her on, but now he just felt furious. How could she be angry with him? He’d been there since they were children and she just leaves because of some blond himbo. 

Her words cut clear in the bustling lunchroom. “I don’t need any negativity right now, Aizawa. If all you want to do is bring me down, then so be it.” After slinging her bag over her shoulder and grabbing her tray, she waved and walked away. As they watched her, she approached the table of her new friend, who greeted her happily. She sat next to Toshinori with a smile on her face, one that Aizawa hadn’t seen directed at him in weeks. 

Maybe he was wrong to be bitter, but he just couldn’t believe there wasn’t some conspiracy to all this. How is it that the coolest guy in school goes for Y/N? He thought she was amazing, he had for years, but no one else ever thought that. 

Whatever, it didn’t matter anyway. She could do whatever she wanted, and if she got her feelings hurt, so be it.

_________________________________

The pair sat outside the school as always. She munched on an icecream bar from the cafeteria while he leaned back, arm across her shoulders and his eyes drawn to the sky, fading from dimmed orange into deep violet. He had guilt hanging over his head the past few weeks, and it was finally time for him to explain himself. 

“I can’t believe we’re done. School went by too quick.”

“I think it goes by faster when you’re fighting evil a couple days a week.”

She nodded, humming in agreement. Her senior year was full of battles, emotional and physical. She was broken to bits when her friend Oboro died or when Toshinori was left to mourn his mentor and they only had each other. Being a hero comes with a cost, but no one expects to be 17 and watch the people they love die all around them. It’s worse when you’re strong enough that you know you could have saved them but you just didn’t. “It was worse than I imagined. I know we’re going to do this for our whole lives, but I don’t want it to hurt as much.”

“That’s why you have to always be better than the villains, Y/N. I know I’m going to be.”

 She tucked the clean popsicle stick into her bookbag when she was done with it, not wanting to throw it on the ground. Her hand found its way to his, curling her smaller fingers gently around his. Her smile was all too bright, a trait of his that seemed to grow on her the longer they spent together. “We’ll do it together, right? You and me on top of the charts, just like we dreamed of?”.

He relished in the warmth of her hand pressed to his, even if it was just a friendly. He was going to miss moments like this, dreams of the two of them...All that planning for nothing. He sighed, his eyes going from the sky to the dirt beneath their feet. “Y/N, I have something to tell you.”

With a furrowed brow, she asked, “What’s up?” It couldn’t be bad...

“Tomorrow I’m leaving for America. I don’t know how long.”

“What do you mean you’re leaving for America tomorrow?” Y/N asked her best friend, eyes wide with fear. He knew he should have told her earlier, but he couldn’t explain why he was leaving, and he knew the more time she knew the greater chance he would reveal the reason. She couldn’t know about All For One. It would only put her in danger.

He sighed, placing a heavy hand on her shoulder. “I have to go to America. I’m really sorry I didn’t tell you before-”

“I can’t believe this. You waited until the day before to tell me I’ll basically never see you again. You expect me to be satisfied with a two minute goodbye today and just forget about you- about everything?” she asked, a stone sinking to the pit of her stomach. She felt like she was going to cry or get sick. How could he do this to her? 

“I know. I know. I should have told you sooner but I couldn’t.”

“Why?”

“Y/N, I’m sorry, I just can’t tell you.”

That answer wasn’t good enough. It was wrong to pry, but the betrayal was too much for her to handle rationally.

She turned her head away from him, staring bitterly at the wall beside her. She refused to meet his eyes. “I thought I could trust you.You’re one of my closest friends, Toshi, but now I know you don’t care. If you cared you would have at least given me a heads up, maybe spent more time with me before you just decide to abandon me,” she sneered, the anger building up in her chest. “You’re too good for someone like me. Shota-kun was right this whole time. Everytime he told me you were just playing with me, that you didn’t actually care about me; he was right, wasn’t he?”

All Might shook his head, trying to reach out to grab her, bring her back to his side. He didn’t want her to turn against him now. He didn’t want to say goodbye with her hating him, her last memory of him being so terrible. Still, she jumped away from her seat, stumbling over her feet to get away from him. “Don’t touch me.”

“Y/N, please. I just want this goodbye to be happy.”

“Goodbyes are never fucking happy, Yagi. You’re so stupid.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings.”

“How could you not?” Y/N bit back her sadness, letting anger take over. “Just forget it. It’s not worth fighting over. You’re leaving, so goodbye. Maybe we’ll see each other again, maybe not. But just know, I would have done anything to stay by your side if you really cared about me.” With those words lingering in the air, she turned on her heel and started to walk away. 

“Y/N, please don’t go yet,” he paused, trying to gather himself. She was walking away, her back turned and her head hung.  “I love you.”

But she didn’t turn around. What was the point now? She’d lost him already, no use in saying anything back or confessing her love as well. He would still be leaving tomorrow, and they would probably never see each other again. It would break her heart to run back there and hug him, confess her long time feelings to the boy. They were never an item. Maybe if he stayed, they could have been something more. 

If he really loved her, he wouldn’t leave her behind. If he really loved her, he would have shut his mouth before those three little words, and saved her the broken heart.

Part Two is up!

#all might x reader #all might #toshinori yagi x you #toshinori yagi x reader #bnha x reader #mha x reader #boku no hero academia #x reader #fanfic #one shot #toshinori one shot #all might one shot #imagine #all might imagine #boku no hero imagine #my hero academia imagine #mha #bnha #bnha oneshot

[greenygreenland]

Operation New Me: Young! Father Figure! Wu & Reader

-pt 1 is here

Tags: @agentcheescakesart

-🛑CONTAINS BULLYING/MENTIONS OF IT🛑

Summary: You're still having trouble with bullying. Garmadon pays a visit, and Wu comes to realise just how grave a mistake he’s made.

Snip, snip!

"So that's what's been going on?"

Snip, snip!

"You do know you can always come talk to me if you need anything, right? You always forget that you don't have to do everything on your own."

Snip, snip!

"Alright. How does that feel?"

You glanced in the mirror at your bob cut, shaking it around to get a feel of your hair swooshing against your cheeks. Your hair barely brushed your shoulders, but you had to say, short hair was actually quite nice. It wasn't as heavy as longer hair and was definitely going to be less of a hassle to care for. "Thanks Sensei." 

Wu cast a glance to all the hair in the trash bin, eyeing the piece of gum for a while longer. "What they did to you was cruel. You didn't deserve that." he said. You got off the toilet and brushed a few pieces of hair into the trash. "Some people are just like that I suppose."

"Perhaps...” He paused before saying, “Why don't you shower? Morro and I will make dinner."

You barely remembered having dinner after your shower, everything seemed to pass in a blur of colours and short conversations, leaving you in a dazed sort of state. Wu was quite obviously concerned, but he didn’t say anything. That night, Morro came and slept in your room with you. He said he just 'felt like it', but you knew he felt bad about you getting hit in the face at school.

Friday was swift to come and you thanked the First Spinjitzu Master for making it happen. When the last bell rang, you wished you could be the other teens who raced out of the school like there was no tomorrow. It was silent as you waited in the main hallway, waiting for the moment your sensei would arrive.

When he entered through the front doors, you could have sworn something was off about him. He wasn’t as relaxed or calm as he should have been, and his lips pulled into a deep frown. Morro wasn’t stuck by his side today either, so it looked rather odd to see him all alone. You quickly bowed in respect before leading him down the halls to your assigned classroom.

Walking into the classroom felt like you were about to enter a serpentine’s tomb. Your language teacher, who sat in the middle of the room, sent icy glares your way. She shifted from where she sat at the grouped desks in the middle of the room as your history teacher’s jaw dropped. Wu didn’t seem to notice, but maybe that was because his mind was focused on the meeting. You both took your seats at the desks while your history teacher glanced at Wu apprehensively.

"Hello, a pleasure to meet you.” There was a sickly sweet smile on her face that made you itch. “I am (Y/n)’s language teacher, Ms. Hannden. Are you her father?" You fiddled with your hands under the table, an awkward frown pulling at the edge of your lips. "He's actually--"

"You could say that." answered Wu. He sent you a fond smile that made you feel just the tiniest bit better about the parent-teacher conference. Your language teacher nodded in understanding. "I see. And you are...?"

"Wu."

Your history teacher looked like he was about to faint. Wu kept his gaze trained on your language teacher, as if he were silently picking her apart little by little. You saw the disdain in his eyes for her, but he concealed it perfectly. "My daughter...

You almost gasped.

"...has been dealing with an excessive amount of bullying as of late. I understand that she is new, but I do not believe it is normal, per se, for her to deal with such a considerable amount of violence. To be frank--it is concerning."

Your language teacher folded her hands on the desk, that same sugary smile still on her lips. "That is completely understandable, but bullying is quite a school-wide norm and currently our top priority to fix here. We're trying to access it, but it isn't easy dealing with the large amount of students. At the moment, we are doing all we can to keep it under control. I am truly sorry for what has happened, but I can’t say there is much we can to do help her." Wu frowned in response and your gazes connected again. 

He quickly turned back to the teachers and said, "I see... Was there anything else you wished to speak of?"

Your language teacher paused for a second. There was an awkward silence that ensued before she nodded. "Yes. Your," she looked disgusted, "daughter carries weapons, and that will not be tolerated on school grounds. Were you aware at all?"

Wu looked uncomfortable. "No."

"Well she went off with a warning the first time, but if I so much as see another one of those knives, she'll have to be suspended, or worse, expelled. Not only that, but she has been late to class on multiple occasions despite it only being the first few weeks of term. She will be held-back if it continues, and there will be consequences. Not only that, she has been provoking other students and causing trouble, distractions, and so many other things in this school. She must keep herself in line, especially since I have been hearing various complaints from other students’ parents."

First Spinjitzu Master, what a load of bull that was.

You swallowed the lump in your throat, half expecting Wu to send you one of his 'looks'. Instead he stood up, giving his bamboo staff a good twirl and motioning for you to follow him. "Thank you for your time." His voice was deathly calm. The last time you heard him speak like that was when you, Garmadon and Morro accidently splattered paint on the monastery's front doors and then accidently broke it with the help of the Nunchucks of Lighting (it was Garmadon's idea, not yours).

Wu placed a hand on your shoulder, as if to silently reassure you that he knew you were completely innocent. "I will ensure that I have a...’talk’ with my daughter." You followed your sensei out the door, stiffly looking over your shoulder at the two teachers whispering. 

"Ms. Hannden, you do realise that that is Wu, the son of the First Spinjitzu Master, right?" 

Wu didn't seem to hear that, or rather didn't care to. He only marched through the halls and straight out the door with only one destination in mine: Home. You could tell just by the way he tapped his staff against the ground that he was unfortunately, angry. "Sensei," you quietly mumbled. "Are you angry at me?"

He paused in his step and swiftly whipped around to face you, eyes wide in bewilderment. "Angry? What reason do I have to be angry with you?"

"The teacher said..."

"Well clearly she hadn't a clue what she was talking about. I won't stand for bullying, especially when no one decides to do anything about it." He scoffed to himself. "A school is a place for learning, not stress and heartache. Come on, Garmadon's waiting for us." Wu turned around, flicking his staff into the air while fluidly moving his hands around in long strokes. To the untrained eye, Wu's spectacle was simply an odd performance of 'hand-waving', but to you, it was much more. Wu was harnessing his energy and utilising it to summon a great, white and golden dragon, a skill only the most focused and fearless could do.

No matter how many times you’ve watched the dragon appeared from thin air, it was like magic. The dragon huffed out a long breath as Wu petted him affectionately. You both climbed on, and as soon as Wu gave the reins a gentle nudge, you were off. 

The ride back home was silent, but as soon as you slid off the dragon and set foot on the ground, two familiar people greeted you and broke it. They jogged across the courtyard, waving and excitedly shouting as Wu's dragon disappeared in a flurry of golden specks lost to the wind.

"Took you long enough to get home. We already cooked dinner!" exclaimed Morro. He motioned to the darkened sky and setting sun with a pointed look. "Oh shut it, drama queen,” you grumbled. “It's still summer so the sun's been out all day. Not only that, but we had to sit through a painful parent-teacher conference you were lucky enough to skip."

"Oh, right.” he dumbly said. You aggressively ruffled his hair as he added, “How'd it go?"

"Parent teacher conference?" echoed Garmadon. "I thought you just started school."

Your expression lit up light the sun. “Garmadon!” You tackled him in a hug as he laughed. “It's good to see you again (Y/n)." He ruffled your hair affectionately. "You've grown since the last time I've seen you."

"And you've gotten older." you joked. He chuckled a little as you disconnected from the hug. "I'm not that old."

"Yeah, you're pre-historic!" said Morro. You and him high-fived as Garmadon rolled his eyes with a light chuckle. The emotions of joy and excitement were fleeting as you caught sight of Wu silently making his way into the monastery. He opened the doors, allowing the dim candlelight to flood the courtyard as he disappeared inside. Garmadon followed your gaze before glancing up at the rising moon shining brightly overhead. "It's about time we have dinner, I have a feeling we have a lot to catch up on." You nodded in agreement, following Garmadon inside as Morro explained about how awful your school was.

As soon as everyone had gathered around the dinner table, you knew something was bound to happen, and you were sure Morro probably felt it in the air. Today was supposed to be a good day because Garmadon was back, but all the chaos that had recently happened seemed to dampen the mood. Much to Garmadon’s luck, he remained out of the loop and had no idea what happened, so he glanced at everyone's tired faces in confusion, bouncing from yours, to Morro's and then finally, his brother's.

The tension was suffocating.

"If I may ask," he quietly began, "what exactly did I miss while I was gone?" Wu paused mid-bite to set his chopsticks down. He picked up his tea cup and took a harsh sip of tea. He seemed to be in a sort of meditative state of thought, because he didn't reply right away, so for moments, it was silent again. After another minute or so, he set his cup down, the sound echoing through the empty halls of the monastery.

"I am almost never angry because I know, especially as a teacher, that anger is a strong emotion that can blind decisions and actions." Wu said, only pausing to survey everyone's expressions like a hawk to its prey. "The last time I remember being this infuriated was when I had an argument with you, brother." Garmadon pursed his lips together almost nervously, but Wu ignored him and continued. 

"That had to be decades ago, so this feeling is something I am trying to calm, yet I can't seem to when it concerns you (Y/n). The way you have been treated at school these past two weeks is infuriating, and more so when your teachers--those who should take responsibility--say they are doing something when they are not."

His steely tone send shivers down your spine, and it made you tremendously thankful that you weren't the one on the receiving end of it. Wu took a sip of his tea again as if to calm his intense bout of anger. "None--and when I say none, I single out none--even dare recognise the fact that you have been bullied and attacked by your peers. If you were not a ninja, those girls could have hospitalised you! 

“I cannot imagine what those students have done to each other, and that fact is terrifying in itself. Teenagers will be teenagers, but there is a fine line between simple teasing and assault. I will not stand for such barbaric behaviour." Wu heaved out a long, hard breath before finishing the last of his food and taking his dishes to the sink. He placed a hand on your shoulder and gave it a good squeeze. "You will not go back there. I promise."

And with that, he turned on his heel and disappeared down the hall.

There was a good half minute of silence before Garmadon whistled lowly. His eyes were wide as he made a face that screamed 'wow'. "I haven't seen Wu that angry since...I can't remember, but he was definitely not that angry when we had an argument." Morro snorted to diffuse the lingering tension. "Sensei's a harsh teacher, but he's not an angry person."

"Couldn't have said it better." replied Garmadon. "Besides that, mind telling me what happened?"

You began from the beginning, from how you were nervous for good reason to go to school, then to how you had to deal with tripping, insults, fights, and finally, gum stuck in your hair. Garmadon nodded thoughtfully at the end of it. “So that’s why you cut your hair. I wanted to ask, but I didn’t have the chance to.” He paused, a devious smirk crawling up his lips. “If I were you, I would have fought back and given those girls a well needed lesson.” 

You waved your hand dismissively. “I’m not like you Garmadon. I can’t go around beating people up because I have a positive reputation, unlike some people.” Morro and Garmadon sent each other glances as if to ask who you were referring to. You rolled your eyes. “When I say some people, I mean both of you.”

After a long dinner of re-telling the horror stories of high school life in the city, you took a long, hot shower. It felt nice to have the water run down your tired limbs as you mumbled a little song. Once you finished, you were quick to make your way back into your room and flop down on your bed with a sigh.

As you laid there, relishing in the silence of night, you thought back to all that happened in the past week or so. You recalled all the interactions with your peers, from the times you were tripped, to the fight, then the name-calling, and lastly, the gum.

You almost laughed to yourself at how cliché your life turned out to be at the moment. It was like a high school drama, where the new girl got bullied before finally sticking up for herself. The only difference with you was that you weren't going to stay in high school because you had people who actually cared about your mental health.

Your Sensei didn't doubt your words for a second once you told him what happened, not only that, but he made the quick decision to not allow you to go back there no matter the consequence. And besides, what kind of ninja needed to go to a regular high school anyway?

A light knock at your door jolted you out of your thoughts. By the way the knock sounded, you knew it was Sensei. He had a gentle way of allowing himself to be known unlike Morro who'd rather burst through your door, or Garmadon, who shouted before coming in. You sat up in bed and said a light 'come in'.

Wu quietly slid open the door as you yawned. "Tired?" he said. You nodded as he closed the door. He hadn't changed out of his gi, and the strong scent of freshly burnt incense hit your senses as soon as he took a seat at the edge of your bed. You looked him up and down, surveying the odd way he folded his hands together to the distant look in his usually lively eyes. "I'm surprised you're not asleep Sensei." you said. He shrugged--something he almost never did being how ancient he was. 

"How are you feeling?"

It was your turn to shrug. "Tired, worried as to why you're here maybe." Wu chuckled a little to diffuse the tension. "I wanted to talk to you about school. I understand that it has been....difficult, especially with all you have dealt with as of late." He ran his thumb across his fingers in thought. "I apologise for not noticing sooner. I should have done more for you, and although it is in the past, I can't help but regret knowing that I wasn't there as I should have been."

You frowned and scooted closer to him. “There was nothing to be done.” you quietly said. He couldn't control the actions of your peers, and it wasn't like he could have predicted how evil your classmates were going to be. "It's not your fault."

Wu closed his eyes as if he were in immense pain. A soft, quivering sigh escaped his lips, as if the years he’s lived in this realm were finally catching up tot him. "No.” He turned to you, placing a gentle hand on your shoulder. “As your Sensei, I should have been more aware of what was going on. It is my responsibility to ensure you are safe and healthy. It is also my duty as well to educate you on when it is alright to remove yourself from situations you can prevent. My intentions were pure, but the world is so full of cruelty, and it...it seems I forgot to see it. So not only have I failed as a sensei, but as your guardian as well."

The guilty look in his eyes made your heart ache with sorrow. It reminded you of the day he came into your room exactly like he had done only moments ago and told you that your parents were dead. 

Wu surveyed your shifting expression as if he were afraid you would express anger towards him, or even hatred for making you go to that blasted school. But you could never say anything like that because how was it fair for Wu to shoulder such a burden? He raised you since the day your parents died, treated you like you were his own, and taught you everything you needed to know to become the skilled ninja you were today. How could you hate someone you loved so dearly?

Wu seemed to match your train of thought. He smiled again, this time much more delicately than the last. "You are more than my student (Y/n).” He wrapped his arms around you, sheltering you in warmth unmatched by the sun. “You are my daughter, and most importantly, family.” You rested your head on his shoulder, savouring the love and affection you didn’t realise you wanted to be showered in. You couldn’t stop the tears gathering in your eyes. 

After all the times people called you names, threatened to beat you up after school, and got you in trouble, this was what restored your happiness. For a moment, it was as if nothing else could go wrong because you felt so safe with Wu. 

“Sometimes, people need to change,” he said. “But that person is not you."

#lego ninjago #ninjago #ninajgo wu #ninjago masters of spinjitzu #ninjago master wu #ninjago x reader #lego

[softsalome]

Dinner.

Repost from my old account, @/softperfuma.

2$ USD = 1.64€ = 5 UNY (United Republic of Nations Yuan)

The first time Mako didn’t show up for dinner should���ve been the red flag that finally caught Wu’s eye. They’d known each other for a few years, but in the past few months they had a silent agreement that brought them closer: some obscure foreign drama that they both loved and had no one else to talk to about. So every Friday night, like clockwork, Mako would pull up to the gates of Wu’s apartment complex with takeout in the passenger seat and the gate code quickly scribbled on his palm. Until it had gone on for so long, that he didn’t need to write it down anymore.

But despite all the Fridays Mako spent in Wu’s house, all the hours of dissecting the episode and picking up noodles that had spilled on the floor, something was stirring between the lines of their friendship. Something that Wu had been afraid to acknowledge, ignoring the growing wound in the hopes that it wouldn’t get worse, wouldn’t hurt him in the end.

But for him, hope wasn’t enough.

So there he was, sitting alone in his living room with his fingers tightly wrapped around his phone, trying to remember the last time his apartment felt so empty. He kept locking and unlocking the little block in his hand, hoping that the screen would eventually light up with a reply to the text he sent hours ago.

��hey do you still wanna watch the show w me tonight?’

‘mako are u ok? u haven’t been answering me lately’

‘if u wanna talk im here ok?’

All read. All unanswered.

Wu finally abandoned his hopes and opened an app to order dinner. He decided that if he was going to be miserable, he should at least be full. Within the hour, he was pulling apart chopsticks and picking at chow mein, wondering why he was dumb enough to fall for a straight guy.

He’d been only flipping through his movie list for a few minutes before the doorbell rang again. Rising with groan and a scowl, he made his way to the door, dragging his feet the whole way. He unlocked his phone as he opened the door, hoping the lack of eye contact with the delivery boy would make him feel a little less on edge.

“Look man, I know 75Y isn’t the best tip, but I really don’t have any more cash on me right now-”

“Wu?”

One word. His own name, at that. But it was enough to make Wu feel like the air had been knocked out of his lungs. It only took a moment for him to meet those amber eyes with his own before he silently wished he was facing a grumpy delivery boy instead. He choked out a response, trying his damndest to hide his discomfort behind whatever bravado he had left.

“Mako! There you are! I was- I’m- I’m glad you were able to make it tonight!”

Mako slowly shrunk at his laughter, the plastic bag in his hands rustling as he moved.

“And-and you brought food! That’s so great because I was so hungry I was just about to hunt the turtleducks in the pond out front-”

“You don’t have to lie to make me feel better, Wu,” Mako sighed, running his hands through his hair. “I could smell the chow mein from the elevator.”

Wu swallowed hard at being caught, as if any more lies he might’ve told were trapped and sent back down his throat. He looked at his phone again, thinking the moment might pass sooner if he was looking at the clock. Then Mako spoke, the tips of his shoes sneaking into Wu’s line of sight.

“Can I- can I come in? Is that okay?”

Wu’s head snapped up as he swung his front door backwards, stumbling into the doorknob as he made space for Mako to walk in.

“Of course, of course! I can’t just leave one of my best bros stranded in the hallway, can I?”

Mako quickly passed the threshold of the door, stepping out of his shoes before walking deeper into the apartment. “I wouldn’t be surprised if you did.” Wu gasped at that, hand to his chest as he exaggerated his response.

“Mako! How could you think I’d do such a thing! What little faith ye have!” To further spoil the moment with his antics, Wu spun his way to the couch, sinking into it as he raised the back of his hand to his forehead.

“To think so lowly of me… I don’t think my heart can bear the pain!” Eyes closed, he couldn’t see the small smile on Mako’s face, but he wound up hearing it. A small laugh left his lips as he made his way to the living room, the glass table fogging as he set his food atop it.

“Would you mind bearing the pain a little less horizontally? I kind of wanna sit on the couch.” Wu laughed as a first answer, his hand still on his forehead. “Well you’ve bailed so many times, maybe you should sit on the floor.”

The silence quickly filled the room, and Wu sat up fast as he realized what he’d done. “Mako, I didn’t mean-”

“No, it’s okay. I deserve it.”

“No you don’t!” Wu shot back, challenging him with his eyes. Wu moved away from him then, making space on the couch for him as he continued to hold his gaze, daring him to let another drop of self-deprecation slip. Mako slowly sat beside him, his eyes moving towards the television. It took a moment before either of them spoke again.

“I’m really sorry I bailed, man… twice. I’m sorry I bailed twice. I should’ve told you I couldn’t come, that wasn’t okay.” Wu clapped him on the back, pulling his hand back fast as if he’d been shocked.

“That’s okay buddy! I half forgive you.” Mako bit back a smile, turning to look at Wu. For a moment, Wu pretended as if Mako was looking at him the way he always wanted him to look at him. But only for a moment. His eyes shimmered, molten in the lamplight. “Half?”

“Duh! I half forgive you now and then I’ll forgive you the other half once we watch the latest episode!” He punctuated his flawless logic by digging through Mako’s takeout bag, grabbing one of the small containers he saw peeking at him earlier. “Is this-”

“Sticky rice. With mango. And I’m really sorry, again.”

“Dude, seriously, it’s fine. Do you…. do you want to talk about it?”

Mako swallowed the bite of pad thai on his tongue, passing the remote to Wu without looking at him. “I don’t think I want to. Sorry.”

Wu bit off a piece of mango before answering, hoping the juice wouldn’t stain his shirt. “That’s okay! We can definitely not talk about it, I am so cool with that. We can just watch the show and not talk about it at all.”

Mako cleared his throat after he swallowed another bite. “I might be a little lost, just to let you know. I haven’t watched the last two episodes-” Wu cut him off, quickly flipping through the shows to look for the one they shared.

“Oh yeah, neither have I.”

“What?”

Wu glanced over his shoulder, confused at his reply. “What do you mean, ‘What’? I wasn’t gonna watch it without you.” He laughed as he looked back at the TV screen, finally find what he was looking for. “You ready for me to play it or do you need to get something else?” Wu could feel Mako’s weight shift beside him, and he turned to see Mako settling deep into the cushion.

“No. I’m fine.”

Wu quickly turned to the TV and hit play, hoping Mako couldn’t see how his eyes widened, how he almost opened his mouth to answer. Because yes, yes he was.

They agreed to watch the past episodes back to back before discussing it and moving on to the latest one., and Wu was more than grateful for the time to process both the show and the boundless energy thrumming just beneath his skin.

It was annoying and frustrating and scary how good Mako smelt, how good he looked, and how even though he completely ignored him and didn’t show up for two weeks, Wu couldn’t even fathom being angry with him. At this point, he was only mad on principle. But in truth? He just wished that they would gravitate towards each other like they did three weeks ago, when their legs were touching, and then their arms, and then Wu woke up on Mako’s shoulder, jostled awake by Mako’s strained voice telling him that he needed to go home.

But as much as Wu wished for it, the reality was more along the lines of pausing to look for blankets, spilling sticky rice on his shirt, and rewinding scenes because he was too busy thinking about how he had a crush on someone who would never return his feelings. He hoped he could tuck it all within the folds of his persona: bright Wu, happy Wu, the dramatic and dopey and forgetful ex-prince that couldn’t be bothered to suck on a spoon that wasn’t sterling silver. But he was a fool to think that Mako wouldn’t be able to see right through him.

“Wu, you doing alright? You seem a little distracted.”

Wu sat up straighter, tugging the blankets closer to him as if they’d protect him. “No, I’m fine! Great actually. Just a lot on my mind, that’s all. But not like, in a bad way. Just a lot.”

“Do you- do you want me to go-”

“No!” Wu cut him off, driving the point home by grabbing his shoulder and looking him dead in the eye. “It’s fine, you’re fine, we can talk about it and then watch the last episode.”

Mako’s eyes widened, and Wu drew back, worried that he did something wrong, said something wrong. Mako kept looking at him, as if he was waiting for Wu to say something. So he did.

“That camera angle from the first episode was so crazy right? It looked like someone was watching him through the window, but the realtor said the house has been empty for years-” “Um. Wu?”

And then came the worry. It wrapped its vines around Wu’s heart and tightened, hard enough to make him feel like the beating would be dragged down into his stomach. Mako’s tone, his lack of eye contact, the fiddling with his hands. Something was wrong. The kind of wrong that Wu knew would leave him crying into his pillow for days.

“Uh… yeah? What’s up Mako, my good man?”

Mako’s hands clasped together tightly as he stared at them, as if they held answers he desperately needed. “I don’t think…I don’t think I want to be friends with you.”

And that was all it took. Just a few moments, a short pause, before Wu burst into tears. Mako leapt to his side, holding him close as he tried to talk him down.

“Wait no, I didn’t mean it like that, Wu, please!” But Wu was too far gone to hear him, crying so hard he couldn’t see through his tears.

“Is it because I’m gay?!” he wailed as his tears began to stain Mako’s shirt. Mako pulled his head away from him, trying to meet his eyes and failing miserably.

“No, that’s not it at all! Wu please-”

“Is it because I’m an earthbender?”

“Wu, I’m literally mixed, please-”

“I just don’t-I just don’t understand, I’m sorry-”

“Wu, please just listen!”

Wu was finally reduced to quiet whimpers and sniffles, his tears still obscuring his vision. He wanted to wipe his tears away but that meant moving from Mako’s arms, and as painful as it felt, he wanted to relish what he thought would be his last time there. A few seconds passed like that, in silence, as Wu looked through blurry tears and felt Mako’s labored breathing. It came to an end as Mako moved him out of his arms, bringing his hands to Wu’s face as his thumbs wiped away his tears.

“I said that wrong, I- I didn’t mean it like that.” Wu started to tear up again, and Mako was worried that his fingers wouldn’t be able to keep up.

“Then what- what did you even mean? Mako, why would you even say that?”

Wu tried to look at Mako until he realized how close they were. He started to pull away until Mako’s hands flexed and warmed against his cheeks, keeping his face in place as he mumbled something under his breath. Wu leaned a little closer, his vision finally clearing as he searched Mako’s face.

“What did you say? I didn’t hear you…”

Mako took in a deep breath before meeting Wu’s eyes.

“I wanna be with you, not your friend. I wanna be….I wanna be…” Mako trailed off, his eyes falling to Wu’s lips. “Can I-”

“Please,” Wu whispered, nodding as he leaned in to meet Mako halfway.

It took Wu a moment to realize that the salt he tasted between kisses were his own tears, streaming down his cheeks as he leaned deeper into Mako’s arms and silently begged to meet his lips again. After what felt like forever, Wu finally pulled away, sucking on Mako’s lip one last time on his way out. When Mako moaned, Wu giggled in response, giving a peck on the cheek before speaking again.

“Does this mean we can watch the last episode?”

Mako’s laugh rang through the apartment, so loud that it bounced off the walls and begged Wu’s to join in. His head fell back and tears gathered at the corners of his eyes before he managed to catch his breath and nestle close to Wu once again.

“Sure we can. But… is it okay if I kiss you again?”

Wu’s mouth fell into a lazy smile as he looked back at the TV. They’d barely started the end credits.

“Why are you so eager for more kisses?” He was so sure of himself, so confident in his retort. And it all came crashing down once he felt Mako’s lips graze the shell of his ear, whispering soft as if what he was saying was a secret.

“I can’t help it. You taste like mangoes.” Wu whipped his head to look at Mako, their noses grazing at the sudden motion. They sat there, breaths mingling, hearts beating, until Mako said the words he was holding onto.

“I’m really sorry I made you cry, Wu.”

“I forgive you. One and a half times… and I’m sorry for thinking you were straight.”

Mako grinned, lacing his fingers through Wu’s as he met his forehead with his own. “It’s alright. It happens. But… one and a half?”

“Why of course,” Wu jokingly huffed, grabbing the fallen blanket and laying it over the both of their legs. “I forgave you for making me cry but I also promised you one half forgiveness from earlier. It’s just the proper math.” Mako shook his head as he gazed at Wu, who realized that the look on his face was the exact one that he had wanted all along.

“Of course. Proper math.”

Gazing at each other, watching Mako’s eyes flicker to Wu’s lips ever so often, the ex-prince got around to asking the question that had burrowed its way through his head from the moment their lips met.

“Mako, what do you want from this? From me?” Mako leaned closer, Wu’s voice too soft for him to catch sitting deep in the couch cushion. He grasped Wu’s hand a little more firmly, rubbing his thumb across his knuckles as he spoke.

“I want to date you. Be your boyfriend. I like kissing you… is that what you want? Do you… wanna try that?” Wu brought Mako’s hand up to his lips, kissing his knuckles before answering.

“Yeah. I wanna try that.”

Mako smiled so hard and Wu felt like he could run to the moon and back if it meant he could always bring such joy into Mako’s life. He smiled back, but it fell fast as Mako leaned forward to grab the remote.

“Mako, what are you doing?” The firebender looked back at him, confusion marring his face as he slowly leaned back into the couch once more.

“I’m playing the last episode. Don’t you wanna watch it?”

Wu looked down at their hands. Still joined, still warm. He kept looking at them, as if they left his sight, if he looked away for just a moment, they might disappear.

“I do, I just,” he looked up at Mako through his lashes then, “I just thought you wanted to taste some more mango.”

The sound of the remote hitting the floor filled Wu’s lungs with laughter, but before he could begin to tease Mako, the mans’ lips were already on his own, kissing hard and biting soft and warming him in ways only a firebender could.

#wuko #legend of korra #msww

[keichan]

Running Through the Night  Tsukishima x fem!reader Part 5: After

You and Tsukishima have been friends for as long as you two could remember. With a very unexpected confession, how will this affect you two?

Authors note: So I’ve decided that this series will end at either between parts 8-10 but I’m not completely sure. I’m glad that you guys are enjoying my first series! I plan on writing a Tanaka SMAU in the near future with @pipsqweaks​ so follow us (:

Word count: 1737

Genre: college au, unrequited love, angst, best friends to lovers, fluff somewhere in there, mutual pining

Warnings: manga time skip!!! mentions of vomiting 

Send me a message or ask to be added to the taglist !

masterlist・previous・next

“So what’s got you like this Y/N?” Sugawara sat across from you in a ramen shop not too far away from Tsukishima’s apartment. You prodded the noodles with your chopsticks before you let out a short sigh. 

“Kei confessed to me last night,” You held your breath and set your utensils down before looking at Sugawara for his response. 

He grinned, “Really? That’s great! It’s about time that he finally confessed!” He clapped his hands together giddily. Your jaw dropped open. If it was humanly possible, you’re sure it would’ve touched the ground. He slowed down at your reaction, “Are you not happy about it?”

“Wait. You’re saying that you knew about it? What do you mean about time?” You placed both of your hands on the table and leaned forward. Sugawara’s expression slowly switched from joy to confusion.

“Yeah?...” he began slowly. “It wasn’t just me... Literally everyone knew.... Are you telling me that you didn’t?” He let out a nervous laugh. 

You leaned back dumbfounded in your chair and began to tap your leg rapidly. You shook your head at the table. “I literally had no idea, I was caught off guard about it.”

“Really? The whole team thought that you two had a thing for each other and was kind of just waiting for some kind of catalyst to finally throw you two together.”

“Are you being serious?”

“Yes. You two were inseparable. It was almost unnatural to not see the both of you in the same room. Y/N, even in your first year over high school, he was already head over heels for you. The times that you weren’t there, he’s... I’m not sure if it’s the right word for it, but tense. The high strung, cocky bastard that we all know. If he sees anything that displeases him, he has to make a comment. But whenever you’re there he isn’t like that he-“

“What are you talking about? He always has to make a comeback regardless. It’s not like he avoids it when I’m there,” you insist. 

Sugawara waves his hands, “No, no, it’s not like that. His insults are barely kinder, but he says it because he likes it when you tell him to lay off. Even though he might tell you to shut up or call you an idiot as a reply. Every time you would turn away, he always had this stupid smile on his face.” 

You buried your face in your hands mumbling, “I feel so stupid that I didn’t know.”

“So.. Are you telling me that you don’t like him?”

“It’s not that.. It’s just that when I think of everything that happened last night, it just is all starting to make sense. How could I be so blind.”

“Yanno, what’s kinda funny is every time a guy would confess to you in high school, Tsukishima would go out of his way to subtly bully them after you rejected them. He’d either bump into them ‘accidentally’ or flat out insult them with a ’So I heard Y/N-san rejected you. Hate to say it makes sense’ with his signature smirk.” He let out a light laugh. 

You followed with a dry laugh. “Yeah, that’s Kei for ya.”

“Speaking of, why did you always reject everyone who confessed to you? Some of the guys were pretty attractive.” Sugawara pondered out loud. 

You took a second to think about it. There was never really a reason for you to reject all of those boys your first year. You didn’t need a boyfriend since you had Kei. Wait.

“I just had the realization that the reason why I never said yes was kind of the situation of ‘well I already have Kei, why would I need someone else.” You laughed nervously before continuing. “Everything with Kei is so easy and so natural. Being around him is like breathing. I’m always at ease around him, I just never have had to worry. I mean yeah we bicker, but we’ve never fought. I guess I just never had a reason to see him in that light because everything from our childhood to now has been consistent. I don’t really know the point I’m trying to get at, but I do love him. Maybe I’ve subconsciously blocked all of these other people off because I knew it deep down. I just have never had a reason to acknowledge it.”

After you finished the sound of the other patrons moving around the shop enveloped the atmosphere again, setting you back into reality. Sugawara offered you a warm smile. “Do you think he’s taking it hard right now? What exactly did he say last night?” 

You slowly began to retell the events of last night. He couldn’t help but smile as he saw you glow brightly every time you said Tsukishima’s name. Sugawara and many other alumni knew that this was a long time coming. It’s just nice to see it all play out.

“But there is one thing he said last night that doesn’t really make sense. He said something like ‘I can make you happier than him’ or something like that. I have no idea who ‘him’ is supposed to be.” Now in a better mood, leaving room for Sugawara to speak, you began to start eating again.

“Well is there anyone you hang out with that happens to be a guy? From college or from high school” 

You shook your head. “I’ve been so busy. Earlier this month we had midterms, so I had to balance that and my part-time job at the market. I usually spend the time I do have with Kei and Yamaguchi or some of my other friends, but only once or twice. Since Yamaguchi and I have been planning Kei’s birthday party since it’s coming up in two weeks, I guess you could say that I’ve been spending more time with him since we’re trying to get everyone from high school to come. But I don’t think that Kei would be jealous of Yamaguchi. The three of us have been so close since middle school. It doesn’t make sense, right?”

“Actually, Y/N, it kind of does. It might be what pushed him over. Especially if you’re spending more time with Yamaguchi out of nowhere over Kei, it probably is coming off like you have a thing with him and you’re just not saying anything on the matter.”

You pointed your chopsticks at him, “I’m just going to assume you’re wrong until Italk to him. Is it cool if you take me back to his place? I just hope he’s home.” 

Sugawara nodded standing up, “Yeah of course! And don’t worry about the meal, it’s my treat.”

Tsukishima knew from the moment he woke up that your friendship wasn’t going to be there anymore. If it was it would be awkward and uncomfortable. You would avoid him like you avoided all of the other boys that confessed to you in high school. 

He got dressed and began to walk out of the front door. He saw you sleeping peacefully on the couch, beautiful as ever. He scrunched his eyes closed quickly. Dumbass, she rejected you, you can’t think like that. The thoughts overwhelmed him. The realization made him feel numb. He quietly exited the apartment and began driving to his captains house. He couldn’t confide in Yamaguchi, that was clear to him. Nakamura was the next best option. Tsukishima knocked on the door and was let in immediately.

“Are you okay, Tsukishima?” The captain grabbed the tall middle blocker’s shoulder, eyes laced with concern. Tears quickly slipped from the edges of his eyes before he wiped them with his sleeve. 

He tried to make his voice as steady as possible by slowing his breathing, but he was already choking back a sob. “I confessed to Y/N last night and she rejected me. She didn’t kiss me back, she didn’t say anything, she just left the room.”  Tsukishima sank against the wall. “I really lost her…”

Nakamura crouched down and rubbed his shoulder, “Tsukishima, it’s going to be alright. This is going to pass.” 

Tsukishima shook his head in a daze. 

“I’ve loved her all of my life. It’s not that simple and it will never be.” 

Nakamura stood up and walked to his kitchen. “I’m gonna make you some tea so hopefully you can get to feeling better. Y/N has never left your side and I don’t think she ever would.”

Tsukishima felt his phone vibrating in his pocket. He fished it out to see you calling. Your profile picture was from Christmas a few years ago. You stand behind his sitting figure with your arms hanging around his neck. Both of you are smiling so big. His thumb hovered over the answer button but he didn’t click it. He couldn’t talk to you right now. His heart couldn’t handle what you were going to tell him.

He set it on the ground and took his glasses off in an attempt to wipe away his tears, but your phone call opened the floodgates. He pulled his knees to his chest and began to sob. His body wouldn’t stop shaking. Nakamura walked up to him with a mug of tea just to set it down next to Tsukishima’s cell phone. He wasn’t sure what to do besides say everything will be fine and rub his back. He didn’t know Tsukishima could emote like that. 

It wasn’t before long that Tsukishima got short of breath and began to choke on his sobs. “Nakamura, I feel like I’m going to be sick. I can’t breathe” Nakamura quickly nodded and led Tsukishima to his bathroom before Tsukishima threw himself over the toilet and began to dry heave, but nothing came up. It pained his captain to see him like this.

After a while once the tears slowed, Nakamura offered him a spare room to stay for as long as he needed. By that point he was so exhausted, he passed out immediately.

Upon waking up he had 27 missed calls and 51 text messages.

The most recent ones saying:

Y/N: Kei, I’m at your at your apartment right now

Y/N: Kei I really want to talk to you about everything, please come home.

Y/N: I’m so worried about you, please answer me

Sent at 10:17pm

Tsukishima didn’t go home that night

((a/n I’m not sure if everyone will agree on how I chose to write Tsukishima at this chapter, but I feel like if he truly thought he lost the opportunity with the love of his life, I’d think that it would push him over.))

taglist @pipsqweaks​ @pperapear​ @kapuching​ @luvmonie​ @bumbledunce​

@a-listaire​ @ysasian​ @kodzu-ken​ @montys-chaos​

#haikyuu!! #haikyuu #haikyuu tsukishima #haikyuu college au #haikyuu angst #angst #mutual pining #tsukishima x y/n #tsukishima x reader #tsukishima #tsukishima kei #sugawara #sugawara koushi

[angryinternetduck]

Sunshine

4.6k words exactly on a glowing fem!reader and Harry Styles finally realizing they're more than friends. A few bad words but no other warnings I can think of. Happy reading!!!

Harry always said that you glowed. 

He liked to say you were a star: in your actions, in your words, in your very being. He loved to gush compliments over you, drowning you in sweet words and affectionate touches and letting you know just how much he loved you. And sure, most of that took place while he was drunk, but hey - drunk words are sober thoughts, right? 

Either way, he sure did compare you to a star a lot when he was drunk, and after a while, it even carried over to sober words too when he gave you the nickname of Sunshine. And, despite your tendency to complain and correct him, you weren’t too mad about it. 

You’d met him at a bar, late one night after a particularly messy breakup. He’d been positively hammered, and had approached you with the weakest pick up line you’d ever heard in your entire life. 

“You, darling,” he’d slurred confidently, “light up my world… like… like nobody else.” 

“Really?” you’d replied, just as drunk. “Is that so?” 

“That’s so,” he’d said. He bopped your nose. “Right sunshine, you are.” 

The whole night was a blur of bad jokes and aggressive flirting that never actually went anywhere. That’s what you always assumed, anyway, because you’d woken up the next morning alone in your bed with only a killer headache and his number in your cell. 

It took you two weeks to call him, and, a bit tipsy, you’d given him your address and offered a night in. You had a few ideas in mind, ones that included quite a different morning after than the previous time you’d seen him, but him coming over in the softest blue jumper you’d ever seen and carrying bags of Chinese take away was not on the list. 

“Tell me, Sunshine,” he’d said by way of greeting, “do you have anything fun to drink?” 

“Plenty of Capri Sun,” you’d answered. 

“Well,” Harry laughed, “with Capri Sun and take away, how could we go wrong?” 

That morning after was, technically, quite different than the last, but - again - not in the way you’d expected. You’d traded favorite movies, talking over every scene of Love Actually with snarky commentary and shushing him when he tried to do the same with yours, and fell asleep on the couch hours after the sun rose. 

Another drunken night brought another drunken phone call, and another and another, until the phone calls became sober and the random drunken nights became consistent Friday afternoons. You were making a decent headway on classic movies - movies the two of you deemed classic, anyway - and celebrated the first anniversary of your meeting at the bar where you’d met. 

It was that night, one year since you’d met Harry Styles, staring at your ceiling fan and listening to him snore, that you’d realized two things at once. One, that you hadn’t dated anyone in a year, and two, that you didn’t care - you were perfectly content as it was. And, you’d thought vaguely, Harry had never mentioned a girlfriend, either. 

Strange. 

☀️☀️☀️                                  

That lasted another month, and then you met your boyfriend. 

His name was Oliver, and he was sweet. Smart. Cute. You really liked him. Of course you did. You’d met him at some party and hit it off almost immediately, and he took you out to dinner a few days after you met. He brought you flowers, and paid for the meal, and at the end of the night, he gave you a soft kiss on the cheek. 

Harry was a bit skeptical about the lad, and he wasn’t afraid to voice his concerns. 

“Sounds like a prick,” he’d said casually, mouth full of popcorn, when you’d told him all about your new boyfriend and his various hopes and dreams. Your jaw dropped. “What?” you’d said incredulously. 

“Dunno,” Harry replied. “Just giving me the wrong vibes.” 

And, when you’d shown him a picture, all he had to say was, “Those shoes are weird.”

You only scoffed, and he shrugged, looking at you like you were the one who was crazy. “What?” he said. “Can’t have a man without a fashion sense - don’t want him to be buying you rubbish gifts, hm?” 

Despite all the slander, Harry had been adamant about meeting him.

“I need to meet this guy, Sunshine,” he’d insisted. 

“Yeah, sure,” was your constant reply, “maybe some time.” 

But for some reason, you’d procrastinated with the whole meetup thing. You weren’t quite sure of the exact reason why, although Harry’s skepticism on him probably didn’t help. Harry finally took it into his own hands and sent him a message on Instagram, which led to a very strange, awkward movie night. 

“He seems nice,” Oliver said at the end of the night as he walked you home, and you nodded. “Mhm,” you hummed softly. “I don’t know about his taste in movies, though,” he’d gone on with a teasing smile, nudging your shoulder with his own. “Ten Things I Hate About You? A bit sappy, huh?” 

You laughed a bit, shrugging your shoulders. “Yeah, he’s a… sappy guy.” 

The conversation fizzled out after that, but it was a comfortable silence, and you didn’t mind too much. You seemed to have a lot of comfortable silence with him. He walked you home, and kissed you goodnight, and never came to another movie night again. 

☀️☀️☀️

“Heya!” you exclaimed as Harry opened the door of his flat, already scooting past him before he’d stepped back. “Hey, Sunny,” Harry replied, and you corrected him with your name as you plopped four bags of take away on his table. 

“Did you invite somebody?” Harry asked, and you frowned. “What?” 

Harry grinned, nodding at the food. “That’s food enough for four, love.” 

You stuck your tongue out at him and kept taking boxes out of the bags. “I’m just doing my duties,” you told him. “You’re a growing boy, Styles.” Harry raised an eyebrow. “Growing horizontally if you keep this up, Sunshine.” 

You handed him a pair of chopsticks. “So have at it, growing-horizontally boy.” 

“If you insist.”

You collapsed on the couch next to him with a box of lo maine, but when he didn’t say anything and just stared thoughtfully at his food, you asked, “Penny for your thoughts?” He glanced at you, and smiled. “I found a girl,” he said.

Your jaw dropped, your eyes going comically wide. “You found a girl?” 

Harry rolled his eyes. “Don’t sound so surprised.” 

“Well, fuck, H, my bad, but it’s been so long I -” You cut yourself off when Harry shot you a glare. A beat of silence, and then, still grinning, you dragged out, “Soooooooooooo…” and asked, “What’s her name?” Harry smiled. “Astrid.” 

“Astrid,” you echoed, pulling a face. “Sounds like a pink haired anime character.” 

“You don’t even watch anime,” Harry muttered. 

“Still,” you said. “Is she nice? What’s she look like? If she has pink hair I’m gonna -” 

“She’s blonde, Sunny,” Harry interrupted, ignoring your glare at the nickname. “And she’s very nice. Proper smart, too - going to med school at the mo’.” You pursed your lips. “Sounds snobby.” 

“She’s not.” 

You shrugged, spinning noodles round your fork. “Where’d you meet her?” 

Harry hesitated, and then, “Starbucks.” 

You paused, looked up at him, raised a brow. “Starbucks?” 

“Yeah. She’s barista-ing ‘till she gets her degree.” 

“When’s your date?” 

Harry hesitated, again, and told her, “Last night.” 

You scoffed. “Last night?” 

“Woulda gone to a pet store if I wanted a parrot, Sunshine.” 

“Sunshine, my ass!” you exclaimed. “When’d you meet her?” 

“Monday.”

“Monday?” you practically shrieked, talking over him when he murmured something about parrots and asking, “And you didn’t tell me this Wednesday because?” Harry shrugged. “Didn’t wanta tell you ‘bout something that would go south.” 

A pause. “So it went north?” 

Harry grinned. “To the stars, Sunny, she’s wonderful.” 

“Really?” 

“Yes, really, she’s amazing.” 

A pause, again, and Harry glanced over at you, and you were smiling, just a bit, and Harry raised an eyebrow. “You’re looking at me funny, Sunshine.” You shrugged. “It’s just weird, is all.” You frowned. “When was the last time you went on a date?” 

Harry flushed. “Not important.” 

“Riiiiight,” you laughed, nudging him with your elbow. You settled against the couch, twirling noodles around your fork before slurping a noodle into your mouth. “So,” you went on, running your tongue over your lips, “tell me about it!” 

“What?” Harry asked distractedly, his eyes flicking up to meet yours. 

“The date, moron.” 

Harry’s smile faded, and he shrugged, his enthusiasm suddenly lost. He looked at his food. “Erm - it was good. She’s brilliant.” You laughed, prodding him with your foot. “Gotta give me more than that, Styles. What happened to ‘to the stars’?” 

“She’s really into astrology,” Harry mumbled. 

You raised an eyebrow. “Hm.” 

Harry rolled his eyes. “You’re not giving her a chance.” 

“You’re not giving me a proper picture!” you insisted. “Give me details, dude, c’mon.” 

He bit his lip, studying you for a second before looking away. “She’s… she’s perfect, Sunny. She just - she glows. And she’s so funny. She always knows what to say, too, like she can read my mind. And Christ, Sunshine, she’s gorgeous. Her smile’s brighter than the sun and…” He looked up, meeting your gaze with a lopsided smile. “And she’s got the most beautiful eyes you’ve ever seen,” he finished, his voice going quiet. 

“That’s more like it!” you cheered. “Maybe I’ll give this girl a chance!” 

“Yeah,” he said softly. 

“Where’d you guys go?” 

“Some little restaurant by the river…” 

“Ooh, by the river - you walked with her, right? All romantic?” 

Harry nodded. “Mhm. Saw some stars, too. 

You snickered. “Did she tell you your future from the constellations?” 

Harry groaned, tossing a pillow at you. “Stop itttt,” he dragged. 

“Sorry, sorry,” you giggled, “please continue.” 

“It was fantastic. She -” 

“Wait a minute,” you interrupted. “Wait a minute, you called me this morning. At, like, eight o’clock!” Harry nodded. “Yup,” he said, and you frowned. “So you… didn’t get laid?” Harry scoffed. “Mr. Checkered Shoes over there didn’t shag you the first date, now did he?” 

“Yeah, well, he’s a gentleman, and you’re a dick, so -” 

“I am not!” Harry exclaimed. He smiled smugly. “Ask Astrid.” 

“Oh, I will,” you replied, just as smugly. “Wanna invite her over for a movie night?” 

“Abso -” He paused, frowning slightly. “Maybe later.” 

You raised an eyebrow. “Later, huh? Should I send her a dm?” 

“Don’t even think about it,” Harry warned, and you laughed.“Sure, sure,” you told him, wondering what a girl named Astrid would have as her Instagram handle and whether or not she’d reply to a perfect stranger’s message. 

☀️☀️☀️

Harry missed the next week’s movie night because of Astrid. 

You didn’t mind. 

You’d been wanting to spend more time with your boyfriend, anyway. 

And if you kept your phone by your side the whole night through, waiting for a heartbroken text from Harry saying it didn’t quite work out with Astrid the pink haired barista, nobody had to know. 

☀️☀️☀️

Astrid’s timing was perfect. She met Harry Styles at the end of January, on a cold winter’s day just begging for a warm cup of coffee. She wasn’t even supposed to be there that day; she was supposed to take off, but the guy who was supposed to cover for her couldn’t make it because of the snow. She’d never been more miserable to live walking distance from her work than that morning. 

Her mood had lifted, however, when a new face had stepped into the coffee shop. A new, dangerously gorgeous face that was grinning a swoon-worthy smile down at his cell phone when he walked in. Astrid didn’t even get annoyed when he took a call in line. Hearing him greet somebody named Sunshine with that deep, accented voice of his practically made her melt on the spot. 

She felt a bit of a twinge when the man said the name of the person he was talking to, which sounded a bit feminine, but didn’t think on it too much. She managed to take his order and hand him his coffee without making a fool of herself, and the worrying started after he walked out the door. 

He called the girl on the phone darling. And Sunshine. Who nicknames a friend or sister Sunshine? And the way he was grinning while he was talking to that girl - there’s no way that much fondness could be for a friend. He looked like he was walking on… well, sunshine, as he talked, and that laugh… 

Well. 

So her hopes fizzled out, and she was certain that was the last she’d see of him. 

Until the next day, when he came back. 

And this time, since Astrid wasn’t even worried about impressing a potential boyfriend, they actually had a conversation. His name was Harry, she learned that day, and he was the dorkiest, funniest man she’d ever met. Even just after a two minute conversation, Astrid wanted to be friends with this guy. 

The next day, Astrid learned something even more interesting. Surprisingly, it turned out that that Sunshine girl really was just a friend, and Astrid had a date with this Harry guy that Thursday night. 

The date went magnificently (of course), and he asked her out again the next week. He was like something out of a fairy tale, this guy, and Astrid was absolutely charmed. She just couldn’t wait to see him again. 

☀️☀️☀️

Oliver broke up with you. 

It came out of nowhere, a whispered, “I think we should take a break,” after a night out, and despite everything, you were upset. It was just weird not having him around. He was one of those guys that gave you good morning and goodnight texts and called you every night (except Fridays) just to see how you were doing. 

He was pretty much the perfect boyfriend, and all you could think was that it was your fault. You just were never really into him. You loved him as a friend, but he just didn’t seem like boyfriend material. You never felt that connection. 

So really, all you could do was be thankful that he’d been so civil about the break up. He hadn’t seemed too angry about anything, hadn’t made a whole big scene, just did it quietly and politely and told you he hoped you could still be friends. 

Which you couldn’t be, kind of, but at least the thought was there. 

Regardless, you were a single woman once again, and you had a best friend to rant to. 

☀️☀️☀️

That best friend you were supposed to rant to was MIA. 

The week before was fine. You understood. He wanted to be with Astrid, he had a girlfriend, whatever. And really, this week shouldn’t be any different, since - as far as you knew, anyway - the girlfriend situation was still the same. 

Only difference was that he told you. 

The week before, he’d sent you an emoji laden text message apologizing profusely for the fact that he wouldn’t be able to make it. This week was radio silence. After spamming his phone with text messages and calling four or five times, you’d pretty much given up. You were waiting in your apartment, forty minutes after he was supposed to come, and feeling like a loser with a capital L. 

After an hour of boredom and no Harry, you decided to take things into your own hands. He’d probably forgotten (not that he’d forgotten once in all the weeks you’d been doing this) and was sitting at home, scrolling through Twitter or playing the guitar or doing whatever Harry Styles did with his free time. 

So you got into your car, and drove.

☀️☀️☀️

Harry grinned when he finally shifted his key right in the door, and he pushed it open as Astrid giggled and pushed him back against it, closing it again, kissing him like there was no tomorrow. Harry kissed her back and tried not to think about how her perfume was just a bit too strong, or how she was being just a tad too aggressive with her tongue, or how he didn’t really want to go anywhere past a bit of a snog but she didn’t seem to be on the same page. 

Vaguely, Harry realized the light was on, and then slightly less vaguely, he realized he hadn’t left them on, and then not vaguely at all, he heard a clink and realized there was somebody else in his flat. 

He pulled away from Astrid, who whined and tried to pull him back, and turned around to see you sat on his sofa with a bowl of cereal and a pair of earbuds. Harry groaned and muttered, “One sec,” to Astrid before walking over to you and pulling the earbuds out of your ears. 

“What the fuck are you doing here?” he hissed. 

“Eating cereal,” you replied all too casually, holding up your bowl. 

“Fuck’s sake, you’re not supposed to be here!” 

You sighed. “Look, I’m sorry, but -” 

Harry groaned your name, shaking his head. “No, no, no, you can’t just do this! You -” 

“You know what? You didn’t show up!” you interrupted. “You didn’t show up, and ignored all my texts, and Olly broke up with me, and I was sad!” You scowled. “I was sad, and I thought you’d be here, and I wouldn’t have come over if you’d just” - you glanced behind him at Astrid who was still standing by the door - “told me you had a date!”

Harry paused. He sighed, running a hand through his hair, and shook his head. 

“I’m sorry,” he said quietly. “I just -” 

“Hey, Harry?” Astrid cut in from the door. “I think I’m gonna… take off…” 

“No!” Harry exclaimed, spinning around. “No, no, she’s leaving! We can -” 

Astrid gave an awkward laugh and shook her head. “It’s fine. I’ll see you later, Styles.” 

She left, and Harry felt a bit of shame for the flash of relief he felt. He sighed and turned to you. “Happy?” he asked. You scoffed. “Happy?” you echoed. “What, you think I did this on purpose?” 

Harry rolled his eyes. “You never come in unless I’m here too.” 

“That’s not true.” 

Harry pursed his lips, grabbing a bowl from the cabinet and pouring himself some cereal from the bag you’d so thoughtfully neglected to put back in the cabinet. He poured some milk and grabbed a spoon, and sat on the sofa next to you. “Look,” he said. “I’m sorry about Olly, alright? I just wish you would text me before coming over.” 

“Never told me to before,” you grumbled. “Well, now I have a girlfriend,” Harry snapped, and then frowned, looking at the door a bit forlornly. “I did, anyway, although I’m not so sure she’ll come back after -” 

“You guys’ll be fine, H, calm down,” you interrupted, rolling your eyes as you chased a fruit loop around your bowl. “You’re too damn pretty to be dumped ‘cause of - what, a failed hook up session?” 

Harry didn’t reply, and you looked up. He was smiling at you. Looked almost smug. 

You frowned. “What?” 

“You called me pretty.” 

You groaned and tossed a pillow at him, which he dodged, but not without spilling a splash of milk onto the couch. “Please,” you muttered. “Have some dignity.” Harry smirked. “Oh, I’ve plenty of dignity, ‘specially after the first compliment I’ve gotten from you in years.” 

“Oh, please!” you said again. “That’s just not fair.”

There was a beat of silence before Harry cleared his throat. “So, Oliver broke up with you?” You shrugged. “Yeah.” Harry nudged your foot with his. “‘m sorry,” he murmured, and you shrugged again. “Yeah,” you repeated. 

“Do you want to… talk about it?” Harry asked hesitantly. 

You shook your head. “Not really.” 

“Wanna watch a movie?” 

“Sure.” 

You stirred your milk around your bowl, deep in thought, as Harry flicked on the TV and found a movie, but you looked up when you heard the beginnings of your favorite movie. You smiled, glancing over at Harry. “Thanks, H,” you said softly. 

Harry grinned, putting an arm around your shoulders. “‘f course, Sunshine.” 

☀️☀️☀️

“Astrid broke up with me,” Harry announced as he walked into your apartment. 

You looked up from your couch, startled. It was only two days after you’d interrupted their date, and you’d been watching a TV show before he’d walked in. “Wow,” you replied, unsure what to say. “Um… I’m sorry, H.” 

“Yeah,” he said, standing in front of you with his hands shoved in the pockets of his jacket. He gave a lopsided smile. “Guess I’m not too pretty to be broken up with, hm?” You laughed a bit uneasily. “Yeah, yeah, I guess not. Are you… okay?” 

“I dunno. But I - I want to get out of here.” 

You frowned. “And go… where?” 

“Dunno,” he repeated, shrugging slightly. 

“Well…” 

“Christ, Sunny, c’mon,” Harry laughed, green eyes bright as he pulled you up and gently pulled you towards the door. You raised an eyebrow but let him lead you outside and into his car. “Are you sure you’re okay?” you asked as you slid into the passenger seat. 

“I’m fine, Sunshine. Just wanta drive. Want some music?” he asked, already pulling out his phone. He clicked around for a second, making you frown and mutter, “If we get pulled over…” 

Finally, he picked a song, and when the music poured through his speakers, you felt yourself smile as you recognized your favorite song. Harry grinned, poking you and making you giggle as he screamed out the lyrics. 

Before you knew it, you were laughing and mumbling along with the song, and you were almost disappointed when the car slowed and Harry turned off the engine. You hadn’t even thought about where he’d been taking you, and you were surprised to step out of the car and onto soft grass. 

You were looking up at some trees, feeling a bit intimidated by their enormous branches that towered over you in the dark night. The moon was barely visible through the leaves, and something about the whole scene felt a bit ominous. 

You jumped when Harry gently touched your arm. 

“Sorry,” he murmured, giving you a lopsided smile as his hand slid down to meet yours. You shivered in the cool air, letting Harry guide you through the trees. “If your way of cheering yourself up after a breakup is murdering me in a forest,” you began softly, and Harry grinned, nudging your shoulder with his. “Shoulda frisked me, Sunshine.” 

You looked up to meet his eye, smiling despite yourself. “Maybe later.” 

There was a beat of silence, and then Harry looked away. You continued to walk with him in silence, trying not to stress too much over the fact that you were walking hand in hand with him at night. 

Your breath caught as you came to a clearing, and you felt Harry grinning as he watched your reaction. He’d brought you to a small clearing in the woods, and the scene was nothing less than magical. 

The moon shone down onto the leafy ground, sparkling on the little stream that ran through the shrubs and bushes. Butterflies floated gracefully around the blooming flowers that rose from the grass, their wings iridescent in the light of the moon. Instead of ominous, the scene was calming, the humming of the insects comforting rather than scary. 

“‘s pretty, isn’t it?” Harry said quietly. 

“It’s gorgeous.” 

He sat down in the grass, and you looked at him skeptically. “Is it wet?” 

He shrugged. “Nah.” 

“I’ll bite you if you’re lying,” you said. 

“Is that a threat or a promise?” he said back, smirking at you. 

“Christ,” you muttered, crouching down next to him a bit hesitantly before deeming it appropriately dry and plopping down next to him. “So, uh… do you want to talk about it?” you asked after a moment of quiet. 

He shook his head. “No, I… I don’t.” 

You let your gaze linger on his face even as he looked away, and then sighed and asked, “How’d you even find this place?” Harry shrugged. “Dunno.” You grinned, nudging him with your shoulder. “Are you walking alone in the woods a lot, H?” you said teasingly. “Should I be worried?” 

“Only for yourself,” he told you with a smirk. 

You frowned. “What the hell does that mean?” 

Harry grinned at you and leaned in, giving you a whiff of sweet cologne and mint. “You forgot to frisk me, Sunny,” he said lowly, and he was so close that you were momentarily flustered before you laughed and gently pushed him away from you. 

Silence came back, settling comfortably between the two of you, and after a minute, you yawned, resting your head on his shoulder. “This is nice,” you murmured. Harry nodded. “Yeah,” he said. 

You looked up, keeping your chin on his shoulder. He looked positively ethereal, his profile glowing in the soft moonlight. He glanced at you after a second and smiled a bit. “You’re staring, Sunshine.” 

“Did you really like Astrid?” you whispered. 

His smile faded. “What kind of question is that?” 

“You, um… Well, you’re awful chirpy for someone who just got broken up with.” 

He looked down. “I dunno.” 

“Don’t think you’ve ever had a serious girlfriend since I’ve known you.”

He still didn’t meet your eye. “Just haven’t found the right girl yet.” 

A beat of silence, and then you spoke, your voice coming out barely a whisper. 

“Are you sure?” 

That was when he looked at you. 

“No,” he said. 

You sat up, swallowing thickly. “Hey, H?” 

“Yeah?” 

“Can I kiss you?” 

A slow smile grew on Harry’s face. “Yeah,” he murmured. 

It was like a dam broke, then, and everything came rushing out, because you felt like you’d about die if you didn’t kiss him that very second. So you did. You kissed him, and the world stopped, and everything felt like it went frozen. 

Time came to a grinding halt as your lips met his, and you swore you stopped breathing. 

And then Harry pulled back. He was grinning. “Yeah,” he laughed, and you shifted into his lap as he kissed you again, and that was when the world slammed back into motion. It was a damn Disney movie in your mind, the world spinning around the two of you as butterflies appeared out of nowhere and blue birds flew in dizzying circles around your head. 

You were both laughing, smiling against each other as you kissed each other breathless. 

You never ever wanted to leave his side again. 

☀️☀️☀️

Harry always says that you glow. 

He likes to say you’re a star; in your actions, in your words, in your very being. He loves to gush compliments over you, drowning you in sweet words and affectionate touches and letting you know just how much he loves you. And sure, most of that takes place through drowsy giggles in the wee hours of the morning, but hey - still counts, right? 

Either way, he sure does compare you to a star a lot, but at least now you can prove it to him. Now, you can kiss him back and drown him in sweet words and affectionate touches. Now, you can whisper I love yous as he presses featherlight kisses against your cheeks and eyelashes. Now, you can hold him and love him and do whatever you damn well please, because now, you’re not just any sunshine - you’re his Sunshine. 

☀️☀️☀️

la fin ❤️

thanks for reading!!!

masterlist | ask

#harry styles fanfiction #harry styles x reader #harry styles one shot #harry styles fluff #harry styles fic #harry styles x y/n #harry styles

[yodawgiherd]

Red flag pt.2

>>>Read on AO3<<<

Q and A sessions are surprisingly fun to write. Rating still M, I'm not thErE yEt. ^^

A week.

One week was how long Mikasa managed before the curiosity killed the proverbial cat and her fingers tapped the name of the newest addition to her contact list. Eren picked up on the fifth ring, sounding sleepy, which she thought was strange considering that it was about two in the afternoon.

“Yeager.”, came his muffled voice, followed by a yawn.

It took her a second before Mikasa realized that she didn’t give him her number, as per their agreement, so he had no idea who’s calling.

“Hey, it’s Mikasa.”, she re-introduced herself, “Remember me?”

There was a sound on the other end, a shuffle of bedding as he sat up straight.

“Of course I do, the pretty girl with the pretty name.”

“The one and only. Listen, is that lunch offer still on the table?”

“Totally, just tell me the place and time and I’ll be there.”

“Really? I can pick anything?”

He chuckled at how excited her voice became.

“I’m not a picky eater.”

“And it’s still on you, right?”

“Yep.”

“Well then…”

The sushi place was fancy, far above her poor-ass student budget. She was there twice so far, once Levi treated her when the news of Mikasa being accepted at the university arrived, and once when it was her birthday and Sasha decided to splurge for her best friend. And boy did Mikasa love both those experiences. She felt a bit guilty, abusing Eren’s blind trust like that, but hey, he offered it first, and judging from the state of his flat, he wasn’t doing half bad for himself. If it came to the worst, Mikasa was prepared to split the bill, she did have some money from her part-time job. The food was worth it.

Eren wasn’t there when she arrived, so Mikasa picked a table, getting herself comfortable. When the waitress came, she almost sent her away, to wait for Eren, but then reminded herself that she’s , most likely, not paying. Appetizer it was. When he finally arrived, she was already halfway done with the fried chicken pieces, which earned a raised eyebrow.

“Hungry?”, he asked, removing his coat and sitting down himself.

“Famished.”, she agreed, “Forgot to eat breakfast.”

She skipped breakfast willingly to save space for this feast, but that was something Eren didn’t need to know. Most likely satisfied with her little lie, he nodded before picking up the menu himself. The evening progressed with somewhat casual conversation and excellent food. Eren asked her how she’s doing lately, and Mikasa described the procrastinating bliss she’s been living in since her last exam. That paradise was coming to an end, however, as she needed to get out of the city soon and back to her hometown.

“To visit your parents?”, he asked, understandably not knowing the bitter truth that Mikasa wasn’t ready to share yet.

Instead, she shook her head.

“No, I have a part-time work at my brother’s gym.”, she pointed towards herself, “One personal trainer, right here.”

Luckily, Eren didn’t press the issue. The way he knew when to stop asking was an amazing thing, and Mikasa secretly wished that more people would be born with that gift. To break the silence that followed, and to change the course of the conversation, Mikasa decided to strike back.

“So, Eren, how about we stop beating around the bush.”

His grin was cheeky.

“Whatever do you mean?”

“Please, as if you don’t know why I came here in the first place.”

He picked up one sushi roll that he was eating, with a fork like a damn savage, turning it against the light.

“The free food?”

She scowled at his amused expression.

“Because of my amazing company?”, he guessed again, getting a sigh in return.

“As if.”

“Wow, you hurt me.”

The smile present in the answer was infectious, and Mikasa had a hard time resisting it.

“You are quite the egoist, aren’t you?”

“So I’m told.”, Eren shrugged, unbothered by that accusation.

Unsure how to continue, Mikasa massaged her forehead. This guy was something else.

“Since it’s so important to you, “ Eren offered, “Why don’t you just ask?”

“Fine.”, looking back up, she met his emeralds with her own eyes, “What do you do for a living?”

“Care to guess first?”

More games? Fine, you’re on.

“Okay, sure.”, putting her chopsticks down, as she was a civilized person, Mikasa rested her chin on her intertwined hands, “Let’s go over what I know then. First, there is this strange… rope fixation you have, and you said that was caused by your job, right?”

“It’s not only ropes,”, he corrected her, “But it is related to my job, yes.”

“Second, when I called you yesterday you were still in bed, and it was around two, which means that you work late at night, right?“

“I could have been gaming all night, didn’t think about that?”

“Maybe, but maybe not. I’ll take my chances.”

“All right, then put the two together. What do you think I am?”

“A smug bastard.”

Of course he grinned at that.

“That’s true. But professionally?”

Putting on her best thinking hat, Mikasa rolled the facts around in her head.

“A policeman?”, she tried.

“Not a bad guess, handcuffs and night shifts.”, Eren took the time to have a dramatic sip before finally revealing the truth, “But you’re wrong. Try again.”

“Some sort of artist then?”

His eyes narrowed.

“I guess you could say that. But what kind do you have in mind?”

“Singer?”

“Nope.”

“Painter?”

“No.”

Mikasa tried a few more art-related jobs that would fit Eren’s profile, but he shot down all of them. At the end of her rope, she pulled out a trump card. Even looking objectively, outside of that “he was totally her type” thing, Eren was very attractive. Combine that with strange working times and….

“Are you a model?”

“Yea…..Nope.”

Damn it. Out of ideas, Mikasa put up her palms in the international gesture of surrender.

“Ok, I give up.”

“Guess we will never know then.”, Eren leaned back in his chair, smugger than ever before, “What a disappointment.”

Out of words and completely against her usually serious character, Mikasa kicked him under the table. Hard.

“Ow, what was that for?”

“Spill the beans, Eren.”

“Or what?”

“Or I’ll kick you again.”

Rubbing his shin and not sure that his bones would survive another kick like that, Eren decided that the teasing stage was over.

“Very well then.”, leaning closer, he put both his elbows on the wood, looking right into Mikasa’s eyes when he spoke.

“I’m a dom.”

The clueless look on her face was priceless.

“H-Huh?”

“Dom, master, and a hundred other ways you can call it.”

In slow motion, Eren watched as that clueless expression changed. With words falling and clicking into place, the not-understanding look was replaced by a blush that began creeping up to her cheeks. In short, it was adorable.

“Y-You mean like… like….”

“Yes.”

“Err… I…”

And Eren waited patiently, finishing his drink, while Mikasa kept trying to say a word and completely failing at it. It took her about five minutes before she finally closed her eyes, took a few deep breaths, and steadied herself.

“So you’re like a s-sex worker? P-Prostitute?

“No and yes.”

“Huh?!”

“Technically, you’re right. But since I don’t have sex with my clients, I don’t usually call myself sex worker.”

“Ok, I’m lost.”

“Well, it's actually quite easy. I fulfill the fantasies of the client, I take care of their needs, I make them…. Err..”, he looked around to see if no one was around – they were in public after all, “…finish, but I don’t do it myself.”

“So what you’re saying is…”

“I’m saying that I can satisfy my clients needs without doing it the old-fashioned way. God bless technology.”

Mikasa was rubbing her forehead now, taking the information in.

“And your clients… what are they?”

“I deal with women exclusively if that’s what you are asking. But if you have a male friend in need of similar services, I know a great dominatrix, mistress A, that can take them, she’s a real top of the class. She was my…”, his gaze slid over Mikasa’s face, lingering over the shape of her eyes for a second, “ senpai back when I was beginning.”

She groaned. He had to use that word to tease her, abusing the weakened mental state she was in right now – she couldn’t think of a comeback. And, to salt the wound, he was grinning again.

“You can’t dump something like this at me without any explanation.”, Mikasa demanded, “How did you even end up working like this?”

“It’s…”, kind of personal, he was about to say, but then he met Mikasa’s eyes and that defense he usually held up around his secrets melted.

It was crazy, he didn’t even know the girl that well, he had no idea what she was truly like. But she was here, sitting across the table, and her grey eyes saw right through him. And he… he simply told her.

“When I was a kid, I was a bit fucked up. My dad…. He was not exactly a great role model. My mom was his second wife, he left the first after having a kid with her.”, he answered her follow-up question before she even asked, “Yes, I have a half-brother but we are not in contact. After leaving her, he married my mom and had me. I can’t say that he was a bad guy, from what little I remember, but he was hardly ever home. And one day, he completely disappeared. I don’t know if he’s alive or dead, neither does mom, and the police couldn’t find him. He’s gone.”

Mikasa, who had her own tragic parents-related story, remained silent, knowing that even years later it is hard to talk about stuff like this. Eren took a small break, a sip of water, and went on.

“I had a lot of issues from that, anger mostly. I lashed out on anyone or anything that I didn’t like, punching before asking. Bloodying people and getting bloodied myself was the only way to get the anger out, I did not know any better. You can imagine that didn’t go well in school. Mom did her best to keep me in line, but it was hard for her, too hard at times. Through sheer luck and endless patience of my teachers, I managed to graduate, but the anger inside me didn’t die. Even as an adult, I was a colossal dickhead. But all that changed shortly after I turned eighteen and moved to college.”

“Why?”

“Because I met her.”

Who? and How? were on the edge of Mikasa’s tongue, but she held those questions in. Eren would tell her.

“It was one of the college parties, you know how those go. I was there mostly to get drunk and get into a fight with someone because that was about everything I cared about back then. I succeeded in that too, I punched some blonde dude in the face and he didn’t take that lightly.”

“Did you beat him up?”

To her surprise, Eren tipped his head back and laughed.

“No. The dude completely wrecked me. He was a titan, both taller and heavier than me, and I later learned that he was a boxer as well. When I woke up from the beating he so generously gave me, I saw that a blonde girl had dragged me out on the lawn and was standing there still, waiting. Naturally, as I was a real gentleman back then, I spat out the blood in my mouth, told her to fuck off and tried getting up. Do you know what she did?”

“No idea.”

“She slapped me. Hard. I called her a stupid bitch, and she slapped me again. The third time, I got about two syllables out before her palm made another imprint on my face. And after all that, she kissed me, and I realized I was never so turned on in my life.”

Mikasa honestly didn’t know what to say.

“That’s….random?”

“I was a raging asshole back then Mikasa. I know that saying it now, it looks like she was acting out of her mind, but you weren’t there.”, Eren shook his head, “Anyway, that’s how I met the future mistress A. Annie.”

“How did she even know that you won't just flip out after she slaps you?”

“She didn’t. Later she told me that it was a hunch on her part, that watching me get into a fight with that giant for no good reason tipped her off, showed her that I might have some anger issues.”

“So, after that, she showed you the ropes?”

He didn’t miss the reference, it earned a respectful nod from him.

“Yes. She was already working as a domme, on her own back then, and mostly for fun and the experience. Annie was older than me by a year, and she spent that year mostly half-assing school and perfecting her skill for her future job.”

“What happened after that party? Did you two became a couple?”

“Not really. We didn’t date, like at all, but we became good friends, and Annie would train her techniques on me.”

“So what, she like tied you up from time to time?”

He nodded.

“That and other things. We practiced on each other, but we never made it sexual. I know it sounds crazy, but you didn’t meet Annie, she’s can drip hot wax on your nipples without batting an eye. I’d say that’s part of her charm, she’s completely stoic while working.”

“And you?”

“Honestly, in the beginning, it was weird as hell. But when we kept doing it, I realized that my anger was subdued by it, that this helped me overcome it for the first time in my life. With all the discipline and focus this required I managed to be in control of my life for what felt like the first time.  It was still difficult for me from time to time, I admit, but Annie was always there to put me back to my place.”

“How did she know that this was what you needed?”

“Annie also had… issues when she was younger. And this thing helped her through it, so she thought I might be the same. For the record, she was right.” Eren was having a pleasant memory trip, and Mikasa kept silent, not wanting to interrupt, “Anyway, after I realized that I prefer being the top, Annie found me a girl who liked being the bottom.”

“Finally a girlfriend?”, Mikasa tried again, but he chuckled.

“Nope, this one had a catch too. She was mostly a lesbian.”

“Mostly a lesbian?”

“Yea, she’s bi, but prefers women.”

“You’re kidding, right?”

“Why would I? She was tiny and amazingly flexible because she does gymnastics. Incredible performance partner, I still work with her from time to time.”

“But why didn’t she find a female partner then? If she prefers women that is.”

“She did, sort of, Annie worked on her too sometimes, I think that was why she even agreed to do it in the first place. But with a blindfold around her eyes and tied up so she couldn’t touch us, she kind of stopped caring who’s holding the vibrator.”

Mikasa felt like this was all a big joke, but Eren was completely serious.

“You had this little triangle of fun for how long?”

“Till we graduated. After that, Annie and I found the agency and got employed there, and Krista went on to become a doctor.”

“I’ll presume that Krista was that flexible one?”

“You’d presume correctly.”

“She’s a doctor, but she still does… things? With you?”

“She performs with us sometimes if that’s what you’re talking about. Nothing else.”

“You want to tell me that you’ve been doing BDSM…. stuff to each other for years and never fucked?”, Mikasa shook her head, “I don’t buy it.”

“You don’t have to, but it’s the truth. My relationship with both Annie and Krista was strictly professional, however crazy that sounds.”

“Then how did you develop your “can’t have sex until the girl is tied up” thing.”

“I dated in college normally, not much mind you, but a few flings found their way to me. Then it was pretty simple. When I had normal sex, I didn’t find myself half as aroused as I was when Annie slapped me for the first time. So I tried getting my hobby into play.”

Hobby, that’s one way to call it.

“And how did it go?”

“Not great. The first two girls said that I’m a creep and left. But the third one agreed and…”, Eren leaned back again, folding his hands behinds his head, “best sex of my life.”

“Fine, but if you enjoy it, why don’t you do it at work then? I’m sure some of your clients would appreciate it.”

“I’m sure they would, but I have this strange need to differentiate between work and pleasure - I think I caught it from Annie. I can’t get into it when I know that the person I’m tying up paid for it.”

“Strange.”

Eren didn’t argue.

“Strange indeed.”

All right, cool info dump and all, but Mikasa was more confused than anything. He was a sex worker BUT he didn’t have sex with his clients BUT he preferred to have the toys in bed while doing it. What the hell?

“Can you like, describe what you do then? I still can’t wrap my head around it.”

Eren shrugged.

“Sure. After making the initial contact, through the agency of course…”

“You’re still at the same one?”

“Yup, much easier that way. Don’t have to deal with things.”, Eren scrunched his nose, “Like taxes.”

“Okay, so some bored lady picks you at your company’s website, and then what?”

“Then we do the first meeting, through phone, email, or in person, that’s up to the client. There, we discuss important things, like what my hard limits are.”

“Which means?”

“Things that I won’t do, for various reasons.”

Mikasa didn’t ask what those were, so Eren continued.

“With that out of the way, we talk about what my client wants, what sort of fantasy I would be fulfilling. Once I have a picture in my head, I recommend the place to meet – one of the places owned by the agency, dungeons if you want, or even the clients own place.”

“You go to people’s homes with that?”

“If they want it, yes. It fits the best for certain scenarios, and people usually feel much more comfortable there.”

“And they trust you? I mean, you could tie them up and rob the place.”

“Would you believe me if I told you that I never thought of that?”, Eren scratched the back of his head, “That’s a valid thing what you said, but I have the agency to vouch for me.”

“Okay. And then?”

“Then we meet at the place we picked, have a quick recap to make sure I’ll do everything she wants, pick a safeword and we are good to go.”

“And you do what?”

“Mikasa, my range of services is very wide.”, putting one hand on the table, Eren began counting, finger by finger, “Bondage, suspension, pain stuff like caning, whipping and more. Waxplay, petplay, some electro, and…”

“Ok, ok! I heard enough!”

“I’d imagine so. From how you reacted when I put the rope around your hands, let me guess that you are very vanilla, right?”

“Huh?”

“It means like basic – that you don’t do anything strange in the bedroom.”

“No, I…”, Mikasa ran her hand over her somewhat heated forehead, “I’m very vanilla.”

“Weird.”

She fixed him with a look.

“Why is that weird?”

“It’s just…” he gestured towards her, “People with your style are usually into it.”

“My style? You mean black?”

“Dark, goth, however, you want to call it.”, he reached up, tapping his ear, at the same place where Mikasa’s cartilage was pierced, “And those things are also not completely usual.”

“I guess I am a bit strange, but nothing compared to you, sir. I never even imagined….”

“Well, the big mystery is over, the cat is out of the bag.”, he looked at her with a strange emotion in his eyes now, one that Mikasa couldn’t quite decipher. It looked like… worry?

“We can still be friends, right?”, he asked.

It was not like Eren did anything bad to her, and while his job was a bit shocking, he was still nothing but the perfect gentleman.

“Right, of course. I… I’ll need some time to digest this, I think.”

Eren watched her, tapping his fingers against the table, teeth chewing his full bottom lip. He was thinking about something, Mikasa could tell, but before she could ask, he dropped the bomb at her.

“Come to one of my shows.”

“Huh?”

“My shows. I don’t do individual clients only, I perform at clubs too. BDSM clubs that is. I’ll write the address down.”

She was shaking her head before he even finished the sentence.

“N-No, I.. .No... I’d never.”

“I’m not asking you to take part, there will be plenty of people as spectators. And don’t worry about being recognized or something, the club is members only and you can grab a mask at the entrance if you want, your identity will be safe.”

His words burned with intensity now, but his eyes did even more, and Mikasa was drowning in it.

“W-Why is it so important to you?”

“Because I can see how you look at me now. You think that I’m some sort of pervert, that I what do is unnatural, not normal. I want to show you that it can be beautiful too, that there is nothing wrong if two consenting adults have a go at something like this.”

“I.. Uhm…”

The address written on a napkin, Eren slid it over to her.

“Listen, I obviously won’t force you into anything, this is your choice. The show is next week and then again in two weeks. You said that you are leaving the city soon, right?”

She nodded, wordless.

“Is it far? Or could you theoretically come back for the evening?”

“It’s not that far.”, Mikasa replied, finding her voice again, “Like an hour and a half drive.”

“All right. Let’s put it like this, if you want, come to the second show, the one that is two weeks from now, the club will be less packed, and I will tell the bouncer to let you in. Just let him know that Eren sent you. If you don’t want to, that’s fine too, I will understand.”

She nodded, once again retreating to no-words strategy. Eren took it as a cue, standing up.

“I’ll go settle the bill.”

When he came back, he grabbed his coat, putting it on while Mikasa sat there, gears in her head turning.

“If you won’t show, I’ll know that you are not interested in that part of my life, but that doesn’t mean we can’t meet again. Right?”, he smiled at her, “If you ever want a free lunch, give me a call, okay?”

That said, Eren half-turned towards the exit, ready to go when Mikasa’s voice interrupted him.

“Eren?”

“Yea?”

“Give me your phone.”

He did so automatically, even unlocking it for her. It wasn’t like there were any more dirty secrets he had to hide from her, not after today. Mikasa worked for a while, tapping the screen before she set it back on the wood and slid it over to him. Picking the device up, Eren saw that he had a new contact added – certain Mikasa Ackerman.

“This will be easier if we have a way to get in touch with each other right?”

Now he was the one dumbly nodding.

“Right…”

“I don’t know if I will turn up for your show, but I want to meet again. I don’t want to cut and run because of what you told me today. You’re a nice guy.”

“You’re saying that because I bought you lunch.”, Eren accused her with a smile, getting some bravado back.

She winked at him.

“Perhaps.”

Still smiling, Eren pocketed his phone, feeling like he got more out of this meeting than he even dared to hope for.

“Well, I’ll see you around then, Mikasa.”

“Take care Eren.”

She watched him leave the restaurant, her own lips curved upwards. When he disappeared from view, she ran her hands through her hair, a half-amused/half-nervous giggle falling from her lips. She had never asked this many questions in her life, not even in her classes. And the answers she got were…. something else.

This guy? This guy was getting more interesting by the second.

#fanfic #snk #eremika #why yes I do prefer doing new drafts instead of finishing WIPs #how could you tell?

[seulgiswhoreee]

collab works

this is everything i have ever written or will ever write in regards to collabs, to be updated with every new change <33

format:

member

title of collab (collab link) - title of fic / plot

teaser link | fic link

Taeil

Crimes Through Neo City {Canceled} - All You Can Do Is Run / "Wanna tell me why you keep running from your problems? From him? And while we're at it, explain to him why you packed up and left that day.", "All I can do is run, you know that."

teaser | fic

Hide If You Can - 3, 2, 1, run! (original ik) / "If we're going to be teaming up and surviving together, let's hope you can shoot a gun."

teaser | fic

Hiraeth - greedy / in which you slowly find yourself greedy for more of famous CEO Moon's son, Taeil, touch.

teaser | fic

Johnny

Aether - mirrors / Everything is not what it seems.

teaser | fic

The Music Shop - Looking 4 Myself / Johnny's journey to finding himself, and in retrospect, you.

teaser | fic

Yuta

Traepmora Academy - causa perdida / in which professor'sson!yuta is forced to tutor you and learns what it's like to be a celebrity's daughter, always in the spotlight, always under pressure, he regrets thinking you were a lost cause.

teaser | fic

Kun

Kokuhaku - hit reset / in which kun gets a heavy feeling of deja vu.

teaser | fic

Doyoung

Twisted Eras - Who is in control? / "See you on the other side."

teaser | fic

Jaehyun

Party Time - intoxicated / in which you and jaehyun have a bad habit of only loving each other when intoxicated.

teaser | fic

The Story Of Us - the story that never seemed to end / the story of y/n and jaehyun, the story that never seemed to end, literally.

teaser | fic

Wish We Could Turn Back Time - cotton club affairs / in which jaehyun longs for something more than just your cotton club affairs

teaser | fic

Write Your Own Story - powerful / From the very first time we loved, from the very first time we touched; the stroke of your fingers, the scent of you lingers. It burns like a fire, electricity, when you're close I feel the sparks. When you hold me, when you touch me. It's so powerful.

teaser | fic

Winwin

Like A Dream {Canceled} - the moon & stars / As we sat, silence slowly loomed over us with only the bright moon and twinkling stars to accompany us. And as I locked eyes with him, I knew I was doomed.

teaser | fic

Jungwoo

Lights! Camera! Action! {Canceled} - side character / in which you are the side character in an uprising k-drama starring your crush, jungwoo, and his crush.

teaser | fic

Lucas

All Monsters Are Human {Canceled} - crazy in love / "Did you do it..?", "I did it for love.. for you." His grin widens, he must be crazy.

teaser | fic

Mark

Do You Like Scary Movies? - 13 Cameras / in which someone plants 13 cameras in your house to learn your routine, which ultimately helps in your demise. (loosely based on the movie 13 Cameras but executed differently - would now be a good time to say that i haven't watched that movie in years.)

teaser | fic

Enter: Doom - The Last Option: Gate 11 / in which you have no clue that the world is literally ending and when you do get a clue, you regret not spending every waking moment with the love of your life.

teaser | fic

Superstition Made Me Afraid To Love - chopsticks, chop this / you feel silly to be avoiding mark lee and his love just because of vertically standing chopsticks.

teaser | fic

The Language Of Thorns - unbreak my heart / "oh so you can physically heal wounds but you won't heal my heart?"

teaser | fic

What Lurks In The Dark - poison / stay home with your boring parents or be at a party all weekend with the people in school who used to pick on you, pick your poison.

teaser | fic

Write Your Own Story - guns and knives / the guns and knives are the only thing keeping you from loving mark.

teaser | fic

Hendery

The Thrill Of It All - cotton candy and funnel cakes / your first date with your highschool crush, hendery.

teaser | fic

Renjun

Remember Me For All Centuries - runaways, strays / “Let’s run away together, baby.”

teaser | fic

Jeno

The Lakes - my tears ricochet / my favorite things about you.

teaser | fic

Unsolved - be my bride, till the end of time / welcome to the best and worst 8 days of jeno's life

teaser | fic

Haechan

Lies - bad liar / "your lies can't save you now, you're trapped in them."

teaser | fic

Phantom Of The Opera - want, need, desire / in which donghyuck desires you in ways that scare you.

teaser | fic

The Dark Room - carried away / in which donghyuck gets carried away with his lovin'

teaser | fic

Olympus Is Falling - please, take me home / in which you literally are the goddess sent from heaven to brighten donghyuck's life.

teaser | fic

Jaemin

23 Ways To Fall In Love - beginning, middle, end / The story of you and Jaemin is like a rollercoaster. Bumpy, smooth, high, low, and everything in between but it all starts when you spot Jaemin on the other side of the cafeteria cozying up with the most popular girl in school and your feelings for him start to uncover. Will your newfound and obvious crush on Jaemin catch his attention or is there more to the story?

teaser | fic

Sleep Paralysis - the expressionless / in which you interview and charm a doctor who did the workup for who he thought was the expressionless woman.

teaser | fic

Open Ending - edge of a cliff / loving jaemin is like a cliff. you would haul yourself off of it as soon as you got close enough, letting yourself blissfully fall thinking you would have someone to catch you. loving you is easy. all he has to do is stand there and catch you in his arms, give you the world you deserve. but then why does it feel like such a burdened task?

teaser | fic

Yangyang

Let’s Fake It - dance with me / So move me, baby, shake like the bough of a willow tree.

teaser | fic

Shotaro

Aristocracy - i hate you, i love you / in which you get arranged to marry the one person you hate with all of your life.

teaser | fic

Avenoir - soulmates in crime / you expected to meet your soulmate in a sweet romantic way, like meeting in the coffee shop near your house, eyes turning gold to indicate that this is the person you're destined to love. you certainly did not expect to meet your soulmate during a bank heist, eyes turning gold as you bleed out next to him, bullet wound almost penetrating your left kidney. your soulmate didn't expect to meet his soulmate in this situation either, and he certainly didn't expect you to come back to life after bleeding out in his arms.

teaser | fic

Chenle

Love On The Workfield - like romeo & juliet / "like romeo and juliet, forbidden but forever."

teaser | fic

Jisung

No Promises - promises are meant to be broken / jisung breaks the one promise that kept you sane.

teaser | fic

Strawberries & Cigarettes - kiss me silly / it hurts to hate jisung as much as you do for breaking your heart. it hurts to love him still.

teaser | fic

When You Love Someone - the art of destruction / The Raven is told to be a bird that brings wisdom, affection, and healing. However, Ravens are also told to be birds that bring darkness and great voids. When the lives of two raven-haired teenagers clash, one will love and one will destroy. There is a consequence for loving, for caring but that destruction, that darkness goes unseen by those around them for weeks and when recognized, it might just be too late.

teaser | fic

[excelsi-or]

04/04/25 - working on it (woozi)

w.c. 1.7k (uh, mix of fluff & angst? just a tiny bit of angst)

BIPOC rec: This year, I participated in the Reading Rush (ran by Ariel Bissett and Raeleen Lemay). So I’m recommending two books I read this week, one being Days by Moonlight by André Alexis and The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan. André Alexis is a black Canadian author. His book Days by Moonlight is a fantastical-realism type of book with a black protagonist and one of the most baffling plot lines I’ve read in a while. Amy Tan’s The Joy Luck Club was released in 1989 and follows four Chinese mothers and their four daughters, contrasting their lives as immigrant women and American raised children. It’s an interesting story, one that feels as if there is no real plot line, and some stories remain “unfinished”, but leave you satisfied. 

December 13, 2024

April 4, 2025

“What we don’t understand is why you haven’t moved back in,” Mingyu says one morning at breakfast.

Jihoon is not happy for two reasons.

One, he’d had to be dragged nearly kicking and screaming back from the studio last night. He’s been in a writing funk and all the ideas that the other producers and songwriters have been spewing out have been uninspired, boring at best.

And two, Wonwoo and Mingyu have woken him up early for breakfast so that they can discuss his relationship apparently. Which is something he doesn’t want to discuss before he’s had any coffee.

“We like having you here,” Wonwoo mumbles. He’s only halfway through his first coffee. Jihoon doesn’t understand how Mingyu convinced Wonwoo to agree to an early morning intervention.

“But you guys have been together for a while now.”

Jihoon frowns, staring hard into his cereal bowl. Maybe his cereal will speak for him if he stares angrily at it long enough. It quickly dawns on him that no, the cereal can’t and won’t talk; and yes, Mingyu wants him to fill the silence.

“There are still… kinks we need to work out.”

“Kinks meaning…?” Mingyu prompts.

It takes all the minimal energy Jihoon has left in his reserve to restrain himself from throwing his spoon at Mingyu’s head. “Kinks as in we broke up once. We know why it didn’t work. We haven’t really discussed how we’re going to fix it yet.”

“You’ve been back for almost a year now and have been together almost as long,” Mingyu states.

“It’s been eight months and we’ve only been back together for… like, four,” Jihoon grumbles.

“All I’m saying is that maybe you should work out the kinks,” Mingyu answers. He pushes his seat back, done with his breakfast.

Wonwoo exchanges a look with Jihoon and sips his coffee. “He’s right.”

Jihoon (7:43)

Hey, you got time to talk?

She calls him about three minutes after he sends her the text. He can hear a spoon clinking against ceramic on her end. She must be having tea. “What has you up so early?”

“Mingyu,” Jihoon grumbles.

“Ah,” she chuckles. “What’s up?”

“Kinks.”

There’s a long pause as she tries to discern what that could possibly mean. “Uhm… care to elaborate?”

“Kinks in our relationship.”

“Such as…?”

Jihoon sighs. He probably should have thought about what he was going to say before she called. He can’t just ask when he can move back in. It’s her place now. She pays the rent. “I don’t know. Like… why did we break up before?”

Her answer is immediate. “Because you were too busy to communicate with me. And I got too used to giving you all this space.”

“Have I changed?”

“No, but neither have I.”

Jihoon sits up a bit straighter on the couch. In their relationship, he’d always thought of her as the saint. “What do you mean?”

“Well, to get you to come home, I have to hear it from Mingyu or Wonwoo,” she says. “If I called you more and checked in on you, instead of being scared of annoying you, I’d know all those things myself.”

“You don’t annoy me.”

“Don’t I?” She laughs. “I can be pestering.”

“But I know you care.”

She snorts. “Yes, but that bugs you.”

“But it’s important to you.”

“I can’t always have it my way. You live your way and you know yourself best.” She pauses. “Mostly I want you home so I can have you to myself. There are selfish reasons.”

Jihoon chuckles. “Least you’re honest.”

Both of them go quiet, lost in thought.

“How about you come over for dinner?” she suggests. “That way I have more time to think about this.”

Later that night, Jihoon leaves work a bit earlier than usual. He lets himself into her apartment, wondering what it means that she’s never asked for the key back. Out of courtesy, he knocks twice on her door before pushing it open. She’s swaying to the song playing through the apartment as she cooks.

“Jagi,” Jihoon calls as he slips out of his shoes.

Without even turning, she waves him to sit down. “Almost done.”

Jihoon listens to the song as he sits. It’s a song he doesn’t recognize. The voice is fluid, the beats hard enough to want to sway, not hard enough to distract from the vocals. “Who’s this?”

“Seokmin.”

“Who?”

“That friend of Hansol’s.” She tosses an oven mitt onto the table so that she can put the pan down. Jihoon goes to grab two sets of chopsticks as she brings the rice cooker’s pot to the table. Jihoon pulls another oven mitt out of the drawer next to the stove and places it down next to the pan. He grabs a Coke from the fridge and her water bottle from the counter.

When they settle at the table, Jihoon addresses this ‘friend of Hansol’s’. “Why is a guy I’ve never met sending you songs?”

“Remember when I texted you last week that I was going out with Soonyoung and Seokmin?”

“I remember you saying that you were going out with Soonyoung for lunch.”

She stirs the contents of the pan with her chopsticks before putting some meat on top of her bowl of rice. “I know you’d get upset if I didn’t tell you I was with Seokmin, so I told you that I was with Seokmin.”

Jihoon frowns, popping his chopsticks in his mouth so that he can use both his hands. He scrolls back a week. True to her word, there’s the text message that she’s going out for lunch with Soonyoung and Seokmin. Just below that is his little blue bubble telling her to have fun. When he looks at her, she has one eyebrow cocked.

“I thought it said Seungkwan.”

She shakes her head in dismay. “Is this really what you wanted to talk about this morning?”

“Well, now I realize there are more things for us to talk about,” Jihoon retorts. Roughly, he puts rice in his bowl, a few grains falling onto the table. Chewing angrily, he stares at her.

But she’s used to Jihoon’s attitude. He’s going to hold out until she cracks first. He’s weirdly good at the game. “What do you want me to say, Jihoonie? Seokmin was telling me about the music he’s been working on and I asked if I could hear it. He’s debuting as a soloist next month.”

“So he sent you the song before anyone else has heard it? Are you sure he’s not—”

“I’m positive.”

“How?” Jihoon demands.

“Because he has a girlfriend,” she snorts. “Honestly, Jihoonie, it sounds like you don’t trust me.”

Exhaling, he tries to steady his emotions. “I trust you. I don’t trust guys I don’t know around you.”

“Ah.”

“Especially musical types.”

“Why does that matter?”

“You’re dating me and told me you weren’t into musical types before you met me.”

“I’m surrounded by musical types,” she snorts. “Hansol and all your friends. I’d known of them beforehand. I wasn’t interested in them. That’s what I meant.”

“Yeah, well, clearly I’ve changed your mind. So how about any other musical type who’s tall and good-looking? They’re around too.”

“God, Jihoon.” She puts her chopsticks down and sits back with her arms crossed. “If you wanted to pick a fight with me, you could have done it over the phone.”

“I just don’t get why you don’t understand why I’m uncomfortable when other guys give you songs.” He puts his chopsticks down as well, not hungry anymore.

She shakes her head. “I do kind of understand why you’re uncomfortable, but Jihoon, this is a relationship not a dictatorship. You don’t get to decide who I get to spend my time with.”

“My feelings should be considered,” he counters.

“They are, but I’m not hooking up with Seokmin or anything. I interact with different types of people every day,” her voice is rising, “do you want to check them all too?”

Jihoon rolls his eyes. “I’m mad that a guy sent you a song to listen to. You’re blowing it out of proportion.”

She’s quiet for a while. Her voice is venomous. “I can’t believe you just rolled your eyes at me.”

A shiver goes down Jihoon’s spine, but he leans forward. “Because you’re being ridiculous.”

Jihoon watches a shift in her expression. The annoyed façade looks as if it’s cracking. There are two ways to play this: push forward or back off. If he makes her cry now, it’s over. The point of this conversation will have been proven and any attempt to reconcile will fail. 

It’s the tremble in her bottom lip at the weighted silence that causes him to slouch into his seat.

“Jagi, I’m just uncomfortable that he’s sending you songs. It’s personal and has a lot of meaning to me. I don’t let just anyone see my songs. All of mine are… love songs for you.”

She scoffs, sniffling a little. “Nice save,” she murmurs.

Internally, Jihoon is shaking. Outwardly, he struggles to keep his cool. “I know you well.”

She picks her chopsticks up again. “What exactly did you want to talk about?”

Jihoon explains the conversation he’d had with Mingyu and Wonwoo. He holds back bits of the conversation, not wanting to upset her again.

“They’re starting to sound nosy,” she grumbles as she eats.

“Well, because they are.” He takes a moment to eat. “But they’re right. Maybe we should talk about it.”

“Somehow these conversations always wind up with us arguing.”

“Do you love me?”

She answers in a heartbeat. “Yeah, I do.”

“Enough to want to work on this?”

She nods her head. “Yes, but we’re both going to have to compromise.”

“Lay it on me.”

She chews her food for a moment. “I want you to tell me how you’re feeling. I want to know so I don’t have to guess.”

“That’s it?”

“Essentially. What do you want from me?”

“To inform me of the new people in your life. I feel like you don’t tell me things, because you’re worried of hurting my feelings.” Jihoon hears the song loop for the umpteenth time. “It hurts worse learning after the fact.”

“Deal.” She holds her pinky out and he wraps his around hers.

#woozi imagines #woozi scenarios #woozi #lee jihoon scenarios #tabilrn #seventeen scenarios #seventeen imagines #seventeen #svt

[annabethsgodcomplex]

Hunters of Artemis Adventures: Two Hunters, An Empousa and a McDonald’s Happy Meal

(So I decided to go ahead with the Hunters of Artemis stories thing I was going to do. I present to you my first one. Hope you guys like it)

‘McDonald’s’ Bella said, while pulling her hair back into a braid.

‘Isy, that’s an incredibly random way to start a conversation.’ her friend Maria replied. ‘Would you mind elaborating?’

‘I was thinking that we should go to McDonald’s.’

‘Why?’

‘Normal, non-death related purposes?’

Maria sighed. ‘Like those deer bones we were going to leave behind and you tried to hide from me?’

‘No idea what you’re talking about’, the daughter of Hades grinned cheekily. ‘But the McDonald’s may be for death related purposes. Just a little bit…’

‘Do continue.’

‘You know how we visited Camp Half-Blood the other day and I was talking to my brother Nico?’

‘Half-brother.’

‘Same thing. Anyway, he was telling me how to summon the dead with Happy Meals.’

‘Let me guess, you want to try it. And you want me to help.’

‘Correct. If you help you can choose who I summon.’

‘How could I say no to such a tempting offer?’

‘Is that a yes?’

‘Of course.’

‘I’ll just grab my weapons and some mortal money and we can head off.’

‘Sounds good.’

Bella darted off to her tent and picked up her bow, her hunting knife and an axe she found in one of the trees and decided to keep. ‘I’m back!’ she called out to her friend.

‘What’s with the armoury?’ Maria giggled. ‘You planning a fight?’

‘Nah. Just wanna be prepared.’

‘Fair enough.’ Maria fiddled with the chopsticks she wore in her hair. They had been a present from her older brother in Italy before she’d joined the hunt in the renaissance period. They were all she had left of her brother other than memories. Bella slung her bow over her back and stashed her hunting knife in her belt. She struggled to find a place for the axe. Maria giggled watching her friend try to stuff it in various places before turning it into a silver brooch with a symbol of Hades on it.

‘Nice trick, how did you do that?’

‘Like my sister Hazel, I have control over precious metals. I prefer my death related powers but the metals thing always helps in a pinch. Let’s Naruto run to McDonald’s!’

‘Naruto… run?’

‘Right sorry. I keep forgetting you’re not from this century. It’s an anime thing. Watch me.’

‘Ok.’ Maria said, confusion etched on her features. Bella ran, leaning forward with her arms straight out behind her torso. ‘Now you try Mari!’ Hesitantly, Maria mimicked her friend’s actions as the ran through the woods. They ran to the edge of the woods and stopped. ‘So was that supposed to achieve something?’ Maria asked.

‘Other than fun? Not really. It’s just more fun than normal running.’

‘It’s certainly… interesting. I guess.’

‘You loved it.’

‘I didn’t hate it.’

‘Good enough.’ A cheeky grin took over her features, a glint of danger in her eye. As much as her friend liked to feign a cheeky sort of cheerfulness, Maria knew there was a certain darkness within. Bella had once confessed that she felt a constant pull to do something terrible. She scared even herself. She had been bullied relentlessly by a pack of boys in the mortal world and she joined the Hunt to get away from them and what she’d done. She’d found a new family in the Hunters of Artemis but Maria worried her friend’s darkness might come back if she could no longer control it. Maria pushed the thought out of her mind. She trusted her friend could control herself. Maria grinned back.

They headed into the shop. It wasn’t too busy, they had beat the lunch time rush but the few people in there didn’t seem like much to worry about. An elderly couple ate at a table in the far corner, some teen troublemakers who must have been ditching school hung around together casting glances in their directions before Bella pulled out her hunting knife and glared at them. ‘Bella!’ she hissed. ‘Put that thing away. We don’t need the police getting involved. We’re already sneaking away from camp. Imagine what would happen if we had to be escorted back in handcuffs!’

‘Ok, ok. But did you see the way they looked at us? Men. Ugh.’

‘True’ Maria giggled. ‘But they’ll have got the picture now thanks to you and your knives.’

‘You say the word ‘knives’ like it’s a bad thing.’

‘Well consider bringing knives out in public is considered a threat, it probably is a bad thing.’

‘Touché’

Maria rolled her eyes and went up to the counter to order. ‘Stay here and don’t cause trouble’ she told her friend.

‘No promises’. As Maria went to order, Bella noticed a young girl, around the age of 5 or 6, staring at them intently. She had a Monster High-Style fanged lipstick accessory in her hair. The girl’s gaze was piercing and sent shivers up her spine. There was something off about her and she didn’t want to stick around long enough to find out what it was. When their food was ready, Bella said to Maria, ‘There is a creepy girl staring at me and I don’t like it.’

‘You’ll live.’

‘Look at her! She’s creeping me out. I think she might be a monster.’

‘Are you sure?’

‘Of course I’m sure.’

‘Then let’s get out of here before we get confirmation of that. Lady Artemis will be worried if she finds out that we’re missing and it’ll be worse if we come back dead. You know how she is.’

‘Yeah. I don’t want to get a lecture.’

They left the store and the girl followed. They quickly realized they weren’t going to get out of there without a fight. ‘Maria. Get your weapons ready. We’ll most likely need to fight our way out of here.’ Maria nodded. ‘Need a weapon Mari?’ her friend asked. ‘I brought 3.’

‘No. I’m good milady.’ She pulled the chopsticks out of her hair and pretended to rearrange her dark curls into a neater updo.

‘Excuse me. I’ve lost my mummy and I need help.’ A child’s voice called out. They turned around and saw the little girl. Instead of looking lost or worried, she was smirking and a sadistic light flared in her brown eyes. The smirk turned into a fanged grin. Her voice changed from child-like to demonic. Maria held her chopsticks in and ‘x’ position and they morphed into long swords. Bella on the other hand was having a crisis. ‘Mari which weapon should I use. It’s so hard to pick!’

‘Use your bow, it will give you a better range.’

‘Good idea.’ Bella unslung her bow and loaded it with an arrow. ‘Bring it on Empousa! Fight me like a woman! Or are you scared enough to fight like a man?’

‘Good one.’

‘Thanks milady’ she replied with a mock bow.

Unbeknownst to the girls and the Empousa, Artemis had appeared at a safe distance. She was prohibited from intervening unless necessary by the ancient laws.

‘Well, well, well.’ The Empousa snarled. ‘Let’s see how your so-called immortality holds up against me. I heard you can still die in battle. I’ve always wanted to hear the screams of a dying huntress being ripped to shreds by my talons.’

‘Oh bring it on! I haven’t had a good workout in centuries!’ Maria called out. ‘This is your last chance to turn back.’

‘You talk a big game huntresses. You amuse me.’

‘We’re used to big game. It’s what we do’

‘Your bark seems worse than your bite, Empousa.’ Bella chimed in. ‘Oh wait. That’s for dogs! You’re like what? One quarter donkey?’

‘And 50% chicken it seems.’ Maria smirked, preparing to strike.

‘Okay Maria. On three. You take one side, I’ll take the other.’

Maria nodded. ‘One…two…three!’

‘I normally go for men’, the Empousa growled, growing impatient with the smack talk. ‘But I must say ladies, you’ve earned your deaths as much as them’

A dangerous glint in her eye, Bella snarled. ‘We’re nothing like men!’

‘You just won a free trip to Tartarus Resort!’ Maria taunted. She advanced with her swords, slashing savagely at the Empousa. ‘Nice one Maria!’ Bella called encouragingly, firing arrows at the weakest points on the monster and avoiding its bronze leg. ‘How’s it looking? You got her other side covered Mari? I’m almost out of arrows and she’s still breathing.’ Maria slashes at the Empousa’s donkey leg, crippling it. ‘I’m ok!’ Maria called back, dodging the monster’s attacks and slashing her in several places. She chops the monster’s hand off and calls to her friend ‘Isy. End her! Now!’

Bella stashed away her bow and brought out her hunting knife. She lunged at the monster’s heart, landing a fatal blow that causes the monster to disintegrate into dust. Maria’s swords turn back into her signature chopsticks as she places them in her hair. ‘Good job kiddo.’ She smiles. Panting, Bella turns around. ‘You too milady. You were quite impressive out there. We should get back to camp before anyone notices we’re missing and starts to worry.’

‘We’ve only been gone for a little over an hour.’ Maria pointed out.

‘That may be so, but I’m incredibly noisy and it won’t take long for them to figure out why the Camp is awfully quiet.’ She retorted, flashing her friend a cheeky grin.’

‘Very true.’ Maria laughed. They turn to head back to camp after picking up their bag of food and spot Artemis. ‘Oh. Hello milady.’ She said with a curtsey.

‘Hi milady,’ Bella said awkwardly, attempting to look innocent. ‘How’s the… weather?’

Maria laughed at her friend’s attempt at innocence.

‘Where have you two been?’ Artemis fretted. ‘I was worried sick when I couldn’t find you!’

Maria attempted to explain the situation. ‘My apologies milady. We were just…’

‘Just what?’ Artemis countered. ‘No note. Bows gone! You could have died at the hands of that Empousa! Or worse men could have kidnapped you!’ They all shuddered at the word men.

‘In our defence milady. That wouldn’t have been likely for us but you’re right I suppose.’ Maria admitted.

‘Regardless of if it could have happened or not, I had no idea where the two of you were!’ They started off back to camp, Artemis chastising them.

‘So,’ Bella piped up. ‘Do we get a punishment or is this a first offence sorta thing?’

Maria facepalmed at her friend’s bluntness. Artemis cracked a smile. ‘No my dears. No punishment except for making me worried out of my mind.’

‘Milady.’ Bella said softly. ‘You worry too much. We’re very capable and you have trained us well.’

‘I know my dears. I just worry for you. You and the other Hunters are the daughters I will never be able to have.’

‘I understand milady.’ Maria replied. ‘But we know how to take care of ourselves. You saw that.’

‘I guess you’re right but I don’t have to like it.’ Artemis allowed. ‘Now I’ve changed my mind about not giving you a punishment. You are so cleaning up after the campfire tonight. But if you’re lucky, Thalia might pitch in to help the both of you.’ They all shared a laugh as they made their way back to camp, the sun starting to set behind them.  

#fanfic #percyjackson #riordanverse #hunters of artemis #pjo #percy jackon and the olympians #artemis