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stxrvel · 6 months

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hate is a strong word pt. 3

summary: after a few bumps, you and Bucky finally have that long-awaited conversation.

pairing: bucky barnes x f!reader

words: +5k

warnings: bad words, mentions of kidnapping and trauma surrounding it, reader is still stubborn when it comes to ther safety, mention of thoughts regarding death or possible death, reader tries to play it cool in front of everyone but she has a big trauma inside, reader is finally taking her time to understand things, bucky barnes?

note: this took me a while but still i hope you guys like this! this is the final part for this mini series and it didn't end up being as long as i thought but im still really satisfied. just know that feedback is always appreciated and i love reading your comments! see you next time <3

Things had become tense at the Complex. Not because of you, or Bucky. Black Lightning was attacking all of the Avengers' blind spots and was leaving them defenseless on the battlefield. It might seem like a joke that a single person with the power of lightning could defeat the planet's greatest defenders, but they couldn't underestimate a person with pain, a purpose and nothing to lose.

You had not been cleared to return to the field, yet Fury entrusted you with a special mission.

Find the infiltrator.

It was no surprise to anyone that lately it seemed Black Lightning was always three steps ahead of all your plans, any ambush or surprise takeover would be reversed and they would end up back at the starting point. Fury, very thoroughly, gave you a list of possible suspects that you were to intercept any communications from. Even though you couldn't go out in the field, you had a job that was almost as important, so you did it with great zeal.

But it was already ten days away. And, although the director didn't ask you to, you also kept an eye on the activity of the team members against Black Lightning, trying to spot any suspicious behavior through the cameras.

That's how you came to be in front of his desk, asking him to let you chase a man who went out every day at the same time and always came back two hours later, without fail. It would be too complicated for him to accept, for the same reason you weren't going on field missions yet, but you had to try. Besides, who else would he send if no one else on the team knew about it? He had to trust you.

He had to, and yet…

“No fucking way,” the director shook his head, taking with the air your precious opportunity to provide the team with a way out.

“This might be the only chance we have to get the upper hand on her,” you scowled at him, indignation bubbling in your chest.

“I'm not going to send you into the lion's den one more time,” his determined look left you speechless for a few seconds. It seemed you weren't the only one who kept thinking back to that ambush a few weeks ago.

Maybe the fear of being close to Black Lightning once again should be stronger than the desire to defeat her, but knowing the stakes gave you a little more courage to confront her. Still, you had to tense your jaw discreetly to keep Fury from noticing the fear that wanted to creep into your eyes. The very thought sent shivers down your spine, but… if not you, then who? If not now, when?

“In the position we're in, do you think that's what we should be focusing on now?”

The words burned in your throat, but you fought hard to keep your expression composed and furious. The fear in your chest was clashing with the discomfort of your rationality and you felt dizzy.

Fury shook his head once more.

“It's too risky a possibility, what are you supposed to do if she finds you?”

“I'm going to stay away from them. I don't need to hear what they talk about, just watch them together.”

The man wasn't going to budge, you knew that. Maybe, after all, you were just there to follow the regular conduit. So that, afterwards, you wouldn't have anyone wondering why you did it. You gave him the chance to go along with you on this, to be with you, because he had to know that a simple "no" couldn't stop you, and he wouldn't take it.

“There's no way she doesn't realize you're around her.”

“She doesn't carry a thermos sensor on her, Fury. And now we know she knows all our plans in advance because someone tells her, not because she has super mental powers or telekinesis.”

“I can't let you do that, Y/N.”

“And what were you planning to do with this information? If you're not going to send me and no one else on the team knows.”

Fury didn't respond.

There was nothing more you could say to him. If he didn't want to take that chance, then you would. It was a stupid, crazy, risky plan, probably the most dangerous you'd ever come up with, but it was also a great chance to get something when you'd only spent days losing.

You met Natasha when you arrived at the Complex common room. Bucky was there. You hadn't seen him since that last conversation you had in the intelligence room.

“How did it go?”

“Horrible.”

Natasha was the only one who half knew what you were planning, only because you couldn't contain the full truth to yourself without believing you were going to explode. A couple of days ago you had told her that you were going to ask Fury to let you go back to field missions, because it had been over a month. You left out some details, important and unnecessary details, but that was essentially what it was all about.

“Maybe it's for the best,” Natasha commented after pouting her lips. “It's still very fresh.”

“You guys are more traumatized by that incident than I am.”

“You could have died,” Natasha frowned at your words, looking at you as if she couldn't believe you would take so much credit for what happened. It looked like you had committed a crime.

“But I didn't die. And everyone treats me like I did,” you returned the gesture, crossing your arms over your chest.

“Don't blame us for worrying about you,” Natasha tried to move closer, raising her hand to put it on your shoulder, but you pulled away sharply with an annoyed expression. You didn't miss the flash of confusion that passed over her face.

“I've always done these missions, Natasha, what's different now?”

“That she almost killed you and you haven't given yourself time to process that like you should,” Natasha had always cared about your well being and having conversations like this from time to time wasn't that strange to you, but on this occasion it really had been too long and you hated that they think you were incapable of moving on with your life because of something that happened over a month ago that was no different than something that might have happened to you before.

“I risk my life on every mission, just like everyone else.”

“Don't downplay the importance of that. Worry more about your life.”

“Are you pulling a Bucky Barnes on me right now?”

Natasha let out an exasperated sigh. You watched as she run one of her hands through her reddish hair. You sure looked like you were going to explode, you felt your skin boiling.

Maybe you were having an overreaction, but who was determining that limit? There was no one in that Complex who knew you better than yourself. You hated to think that Fury had more reasons for not letting you back into the field, like you weren't as strong as the others with incredible powers and abilities. It was ridiculous.

And Natasha was saying ridiculous things too… but she cared anyway. You couldn't condemn her for that.

The big sigh you let out caught her attention.

“I'm sorry,” you told her, your voice a little more muffled and lower than before.

“I'm sorry too,” Natasha shook her head when she saw you were about to protest and took the floor again, “Sometimes I forget that you're one of the strongest and bravest members on the team. No one goes through everything you went through and still lives with strength like that.”

Did she just read your mind?

“Keep trying,” Natasha patted your arm. “With Fury, I mean. Maybe tomorrow you'll have better luck.”

You couldn't wait for tomorrow. He'd refuse again, that was for sure.

Natasha gave you a tight-lipped smile and you could barely return the gesture. You wanted to drag her back to your side to tell her what you really wanted to do, but you couldn't, nothing assured you that she would react differently to Fury, or worse, try to join you. Natasha was someone who would give her life to protect the team, but you were no slouch.

Besides, this was your kind of mission. Fury gave it to you because he knew you were the only one who would know how to handle it, even if he didn't want to accept it or want to let you execute it. Maybe only one person could come, but… No. You didn't have time to think about that.

You had to do it. And it had to be that night. You couldn't stand one more meeting with the team with no new news, having to endure their thinly disguised looks of disappointment. That was it, it was disappointing to not be able to get breakthroughs and keep losing at every attempt. Here was the opportunity and it could go very well or very badly. There was only one way to find out.

You had already learned the path by heart. It was the tenth day since you all had gone into crisis so you had time to draw lines on your mental map. Natasha, Sam and Tony had left the Complex and the rest of the remaining team were probably asleep or something. The point was that the coast was clear.

The person you were to follow would be leaving in fifteen minutes and that was your time to get ahead of them. You took one of the motorcycles from the parking lot and started your way to where the meeting point would be. You would leave the motorcycle at a great distance and walk the rest of the way in silence.

You were sure it was a good plan.

It had to be.

Several minutes passed when, in that building in front of the abandoned chapel, you saw the man with the glasses enter after looking both sides of the street. You were thankful that the shadows and darkness played in your favor that time. You tiptoed up to the chapel door after a few seconds. It was made of very old wood, old enough that the cracks inside it were large enough to get a good view of the inside of the building.

There, in the middle of the night and the shadows, you saw her. Once again you were close to her. And in front of her was that mysterious man who seemed to be the infiltrator in the team. You felt sorry for that poor devil.

That is until you felt movements around you and, just when it seemed that Black Lightning's head was turning in your direction, a pair of arms wrapped around you and pulled you away at incredible speed from the wooden door.

It had all happened so fast that you didn't even react until that person pulled you both into the building next to the chapel. There, hidden, it didn't even occur to you to raise your voice. You could see out of the corner of your eye through the window on your left side that Black Lightning came out of the chapel roughly, her head moving in every possible direction, surely looking for the source of the sense of surveillance she must have had.

You watched her until the person behind you gave you a tug in the opposite direction and you could do nothing but frown at him.

It was amazing how you could recognize him even without hearing or seeing him. It was as if your unconscious knew Bucky Barnes in essence.

Neither of you moved until you stopped hearing the voices a short distance away and until Black Lightning's distinctive whirring sound echoed as she flew off.

Your chest rose in sync with your accelerated breathing, increasing as the seconds passed in silence.

You had an internal dilemma thinking that night could have possibly ended very badly.

“You know what, I know how you get away with those crazy plans you always have,” you heard his voice low against your ear, his breath moving the unbound strands of your hair and sending electric currents throughout your body. “You've got all the fucking luck in the world on your side.”

His arms finally pulled away from your body. The hand covering your mouth left a cold trace on its path away from you. Everything seemed to move a little slower.

“Are you okay?”

Bucky grabbed your shoulders to turn you around. His chest was the first thing you saw, your head tilted slightly to the ground in a kind of shock. It was the adrenaline of the moment clearly, the possibility that she had found you and you hadn't returned that night to the Complex, the endless situations of suffering you could have gone through far away, no one knowing where you were or how to find you, all falling at once on top of your head.

You had been so close to death before on several occasions, but the feeling never became less tolerable. Sometimes it was easier to process it, with too much outside stimuli allowing you to escape the density of the situation. But at that moment, as at some others, the feeling of fear was overwhelming. Maybe you could walk over it, as you planned to do, but it would be whispering behind your ear at every turn, furrowing through your nerves and your bones as if it was born for that sole purpose.

Bucky moved you at some point, as you kept thinking about how you should process that not-so-close-to-death experience. Fury was quite right not to have allowed you to do this in the first place and you hated to think that maybe you should have listened to him. But you really hadn't counted on seeing her again to paralyze you so much. The idea hadn't scared you as much as it did at that moment.

Suddenly you were in a car that was parked in front of the Complex and it made you wonder how the hell Bucky had gotten to that place that no one knew about, when you had never told anyone where you were going.

You had probably fallen asleep because the next thing you knew you were in your room in complete silence with Bucky sitting on the edge of your bed. You barely looked at him not knowing what to say. How had you moved so fast? Did you really get so deep in your thoughts?

Well, enough was enough. Nothing had happened. You were fine. Just your luck. You didn't have to face Black Lightning again with the lowest chance of winning. Bucky had gotten you out of there. You were fine.

“How did you know where I was?”

“You took my bike,” Bucky shook his shoulders slightly, his serious face scanning yours for some kind of clue. “I got an alarm on my cell phone and when I saw that it had been you... I don't know, something told me you were going to do something stupid.”

Bucky rested his hands on the mattress and your eyes followed the movement as if it was the only thing you could see, the only thing you could focus on. Maybe you did, you didn't want to see him. Besides the fact that you felt ashamed because you really had been reckless, you still didn't want to be that close to him after what had happened.

But that wasn't the time to think about that. You had found the insider. You were right. Now, how were you going to tell Fury without him freaking out? He'd probably take away your license and ban you from the Complex.

“I got some great information thanks to that stupid plan,” you tried to lash out in a more cheerful tone, but it felt bittersweet between your lips. If Bucky felt it false, he didn't comment on it.

“What were you were doing anyway?”

“Fury had a suspicion that there was an infiltrator on the team. He asked me to trace calls, but… that wasn't getting me anywhere. I had been following one particular person who I noticed was always going out and coming back at the same time by watching the security cameras…”

When you ventured to raise your head, Bucky had a raised eyebrow.

“Sometimes I got bored of being there all day and checked the cameras, it's not a crime.”

“I didn't say it was.”

“You're judging me with that look.”

Bucky smiled, a short laugh flooding in.

“So you saw that person and decided they were the insider.”

“They had to be. I had to check it out.”

“And Fury wouldn't let you so you stole my bike and went to find out on your own in one of the worst ideas you've ever had.”

You twisted your lips. “Yeah, basically.”

“At least you're not contradicting me that it was a terrible plan.”

“No, I knew it was a horrible plan, but what else could I do? I was tired of not being able to get anything out of the reports and I had a great chance in the palm of my hand. Tell me if you wouldn't have done it.”

Bucky pursed his lips, but didn't deny your words. And that's because yes, it would have been even more stupid of you to listen to Fury and ignore everything after he had denied you a clearance.

Now you had a big advantage over Black Lightning. You had to tell Fury.

“You could have told me,” Bucky suddenly commented, his gaze wandering along the wall to the side of the bed.

You arched an eyebrow at him, even though he wasn't looking at you and snorted in disbelief.

“And for what, so you could charge me with Fury?”

“Ouch,” the man in front of you pretended his chest hurt and his right hand went to hover over his heart. “I would've gone along with you, of course.”

“Are you kidding me?” you let out a laugh.

“Of course I'm not. You're right about one thing and that's that it's a big advantage, but yes I would've preferred it if you hadn't gone alone. What would have happened if it hadn't been my bike you took? I don't even want to…”

A dense silence followed Bucky's words. That had been a possibility you had considered indirectly, in the back of your head, where reason didn't enter. It followed you like a blur, something you didn't know exactly what it was, but it made your hair stand on end to remember it was there.

And you had thought about telling him, you almost succumbed to the idea, but you were afraid it would go badly for both of you. For him.

“Very convenient, but thank you for following me.”

Bucky shrugged.

“We were right to follow our instinct.”

Things with Fury had become tense and you hadn't come out of one punishment and into another. Still, the information you provided was just what the team needed to get back three steps ahead of Black Lightning. She was a powerful woman, yes, but they could prepare much better.

The team was busy for days, almost weeks. You had too much time for yourself and office work, so much so that you already knew that by the time you could get back to field missions, nothing would get you out of there.

You would run into some of the team members from time to time and chat about anything. Sometimes you could almost say you missed the company of some of them. Even Bucky, at times, made himself missed.

Everything returned to a bit more of a normal rhythm when Black Lightning was defeated and locked. That day the team had a huge dinner. You spent almost the entire night with Natasha and Clint; Steve showed up from time to time and Tony moved from table to table. It was a very peaceful evening with nothing new to interrupt it. The next day you would return to the ordinary trot, but that night you all enjoyed it quite a bit.

You'd like to say you'd talked to Bucky, but…

You went several weeks without seeing him, as the team struggled to stop Black Lightning, and just as you continued with your office work and no longer had as much pressure on your shoulders having ripped that woman's Achilles heel, you used a lot of that time to do a lot of self-reflection. Weeks went by, so you had plenty of time. Also with some advice from Natasha, of course.

It had been so long since you'd last seen him that meeting him in the hallway of the rooms felt strange.

“Hello,” he was the first to speak, as you held tightly the container with the coffee you had half-drunk that morning.

It was barely dawn. You had gone to the kitchen to make your morning coffee and were on your way back to your room when you found him coming out of his. There was no way you could run away, he was literally right in front of you. But you weren't sure that was what you wanted to do, you were just too nervous. You had thought about a lot of things during all that time without seeing him, but not what to say to him when you saw him again.

“Hi,” you replied almost in a whisper, and you wanted to slap yourself at how embarrassed you sounded. You felt your face heat up.

“How are you doing?”

“Fine. All good,” you pursed your lips, swaying on your feet. You felt like you were on unfamiliar ground. “What about you?”

“Same, all good,” Bucky shook his head in assent, mimicking your gesture. He still had his white pajamas on and his right hand on the doorknob.

“I'm glad,” you tore the words from your throat, wanting to fill the silence that wanted to envelop you tightly.

Bucky continued to shake his head in slight movements, as he averted his gaze to the hallway. You had no idea what to do now, you never thought seeing him again would be so awkward.

“This is… weird,” Bucky spoke again after a few seconds, looking unsure and confused.

“Yeah, too much.”

“Sorry.”

“No,” you shook your head quickly and moved closer unconsciously. “It's not your fault. It's nothing. We must have become unaccustomed to each other's presence.”

You saw him tilt his head.

“It's just that it's been too long,” with his comment he agreed with you, suddenly looking a little less uncomfortable. “Speaking of which, how did it go? Because of what happened with Black Lightning, I mean.”

“Oh,” you took the container with your coffee in your hands, lowering your gaze. “I've been fine. It was a rough few days after that, but I'm better now. I'm not sure why that happened.”

“Really? I'd be stranger if it hadn't happened,” Bucky admitted, and at your frown, he elaborated, “She had kidnapped you a month before, we had no idea where you were. Even if it had been a short time, you must have felt desperate. She out-powered you.”

“But I've had near-death experiences before,” you shook your head. You'd had that debate in your head several times before, and it seemed Bucky had come to the same conclusion you had.

“When you've dealt with that kind of situation, it's been very easy for you to get through it because you were in control. Chance was up to you. But not that time, you were at the mercy of someone else, their power or their pity. There was nothing you could do.”

His eyes sparkled in the sunlight filtering through the window and you realized that you had missed his sympathetic, condescending gaze from time to time. You hadn't seen him many times before, especially not before that talk you'd had a couple of months ago that changed everything.

One such day, in the rain and thunder, you thought that a lot of what Bucky had to offer scared you. Maybe you hated him because imagining wanting him was so much harder when that decision was up to him and not you. Hate could be controlled unilaterally, love could not.

In conclusion, you were a very controlling person.

“You are very wise,” you smiled through your reply.

Bucky smiled too, a small gesture that triggered something in your chest, in your heart or to the side. You weren't sure where it was.

“I hope this time has served you well in many ways,” he commented as he stepped fully out of his darkened room and closed the door. “I'm going to the kitchen,” he gave a glance at your container, “I guess I'll see you later.”

You nodded absently. “Yeah, see you later.”

Bucky gave you a tight-lipped smile before he started walking back the way you had come. Watching him walk away left you with a sense of anticipation, because there was still so much you wanted to tell him but had no idea how to go about it. You still struggled a bit with the words, but you were already sure of what you wanted. And one of those things was for him to know as soon as possible.

You also struggled with the possible outcomes. There weren't many, but you didn't like one of them and you thought it might make you sad. You were trying to make peace with not controlling others and stop being a lone wolf about it, but it was still a little difficult.

You didn't see Bucky until a couple of days later.

It was Steve's birthday and Tony of course threw an amazing party as a celebration. The whole team was there and many other people close to them. You all had become a bit secretive since the issue with the insider, especially Tony with how he handled meetings and in this case, reunions. So it was crowded, but not overly so as it used to be.

You had had a good time, you chatted with everyone and drank what you wanted. You spent time sitting, on the dance floor and near the games. You enjoyed everything until finally your legs gave out. It was past midnight when you stepped out onto the balcony to finally get some air. The drink made you somewhat cheerful and social, but you continued to keep your sanity and reason. Enough so that seeing Bucky Barnes in a suit leaning against the railing caused a twist in your heart and an emptiness in the pit of your stomach.

“Did you come for air too?”

You didn't know if it was his super-soldier serum or something similar to yours, but it always amazed you that he knew when you were around. It also made your nerves calm a bit as you approached the railing.

“Yeah, they had me without a break today.”

Bucky let out a laugh, openly, and amidst your glassy-eyed stare from drinking, you couldn't take your eyes off him. You couldn't when he was regaling you with such an exquisite sight and such a harmonious sound. You didn't know how you had been able to spend so much time hating him. Or pretending you did. Hate is such a strong word, it shouldn't be used so casually.

“I'm glad you're enjoying yourself, really. You look more radiant,” he kept his gaze on yours, not wiping the smile from his face.

“How long have you been here?”

“I was just about to leave. I guess I was lucky I decided to stay a little longer.”

You arched an eyebrow at him with a half smile, which was answered with one of his own.

“I couldn't blame you,” you commented, averting your gaze to take in the incredible panoramic view you had of much of the city from where you stood. You had both worlds, the vast wilderness and the concrete jungle, “It's a beautiful view.”

“Indeed,” you heard him so close you didn't have to move much to know he was still looking at you.

With a hot face, you shook your head.

“You're very flirtatious, Barnes, I don't think I would've guessed.”

“You have no idea what I'm like, doll, you've got a long way to go,” his voice sounded a little deeper than usual and you blamed the cold for the shiver that ran through your body.

“Are you assuming I want to walk it?” you turned to see him with a falsely confused, playful look.

“I'll take my chances,” he gave you a beautiful cocked smile without taking his light eyes away from yours.

“Careful with that. You could end up walking alone,” you looked back out over the city, being all too aware of his gaze roaming the silhouette of your face.

“I have a good feeling. The wind is on my side.”

You let out a laugh inevitably, it was probably because of nerves or because he was building something around both of you that you couldn't control. And maybe that didn't bother you too much. It would be nice to let someone else carry the rope once in a while… wouldn't it?

“Are you implying something?”

You heard him sigh before taking the same position you had, facing the city.

“I guess I can't hide my curiosity,” he took a moment before speaking again. “You know we have a pending conversation.”

“Mhm,” you hummed, feeling the thrill of anticipation course through your body from head to toe. It seemed you weren't the only one who had waited too long for that.

“Do you have something to tell me?”

You turned your head, meeting his profile. The way the city shone in his eyes was magical and you didn't want to focus on anything else but that. Or on the way his eyebrows moved almost imperceptibly under your watchful gaze. Or the relief of his red lips that were almost…

“I think we should start slow.”

Liar.

Bucky turned his head, taking you almost by surprise. His blue eyes looked amused.

“So you agree that we should start?”

“Yes,” you shook your head in sync, his gaze causing you to be as unsettled as possible. “But we'll have to start from scratch.”

“I don't think I can control myself for that long,” Bucky almost whispered, his voice as low as you'd ever heard it before. He wasn't going to let you have it any easier.

“You'll have to learn to do it.”

But you wouldn't give up your arm so easily either. He could continue to provoke you all he wanted, but you'd take things at your own pace.

“You can bet on it,” his face was closer than before, you could almost touch his nose if you moved a little, “but I don't think it would be that easy for you.”

“Do you think I have no self-control? Me?” you frowned at him, but kept your expression warm. The man in front of you only laughed, creating distance between the two of you. A cold air swept over you from where he had been.

“I guess time will tell who will give up first.”

“And it won't be me.”

“Mmm,” Bucky hummed in reproach, shaking his head. “You're very stubborn.”

“There's still a lot you have to learn from me, darling.”

The nickname left your lips unconsciously, but that only made the corners of his lips lift even more. His face looked brighter than before if that was possible. You wanted to take it back, but you'd better think twice. A different, more pleasant and comfortable feeling settled in your chest and your heart seemed to beat to a different rhythm.

“Well, now that we've finally come to an agreement…”

“Halfway,” you interrupted him, rolling your eyes.

“We can start now.”

His eyes on yours felt too meticulous at that moment.

“Now?”

“Yes,” Bucky shrugged. “I can take you dancing right now, shouldn't I take the opportunity?”

You almost choked on your own words. You wanted to deny yourself for a moment, maybe it wasn't true that you were ready and able to safely embrace these new feelings he was generating in you. Maybe you really didn't feel as safe as you thought you did…

But when Bucky extended his hand towards you, with that lopsided smile and sparkling eyes, any negative thoughts disappeared from your head in the blink of an eye. You were afraid of what you two might turn out to be, yes, it was true, but you couldn't spend the rest of your life living like this. Not when already, without even having started, you knew that there would be no other place in the world you wanted to be, nor where you felt as safe as that moment.

When you took his hand securely, you never wanted to let go again, much less if you could continue to see that expression of happiness on Bucky's face. You moved beside him as if you had done it all your life before that moment, and in the life before that.

His fingers intertwined with yours and you felt like you closed a promise in that moment.

“You know, I'm not much of a dancer,” you commented to him as you approached the stairs.

“Don't worry. We have plenty of time for you to learn,” Bucky gave you a reassuring squeeze to accompany his words. “We're just getting started.”

You hoped to enjoy that night as much as you hoped to enjoy all the time you had with him, whatever it was. Despite the fear, you would take him with open arms. It was better that than nothing at all.

Anyway, you were already realizing that that wasn't something you were going to think about very often. Bucky said it himself, you were just getting started.

Taglist: @rabbitrabbit12321 @funkybarnes @pono-pura-vida @unaxv @buckybarnessimpp @madi-is-kinda-lame @saint-marvel @trixiekaulitz @ziawbarnes @immortalfangirl @dnovastark

#bucky barnes x reader #bucky fanfic #bucky barnes angst #bucky barnes #bucky fic #bucky x you #bucky fluff #james bucky barnes #bucky x reader #bucky barnes fanfiction #james bucky buchanan barnes #winter soldier #the winter soldier #james buchanan barnes #stxrvel talks

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binniebakery · 3 months

Text

Thornless Rose (2/3)

♡ Prince!Yeonjun x Princess!Fem!Reader, strangers (one sided enemies??) to lovers, fluff (slightly suggestive at some points teehee)

♡ Summary: marrying oranada's "evil" prince was not on your bingo card for the year but hey we thug it out (im not good at summaries) ♡ Warnings: arranged marriage, mentions of minor character deaths, mentions of attempted assassination (i swear the fic is just a lil bit of angst, pure fluff), yeonjun is also the cutest thing alive, yeonjun is a tease

♡ A/N: i know im late for today as its already valentines for me but i literally spent all day being busy!! i promise i will upload the final part later <3 once again ty for reading and enjoy! lmk if theres anything i should change/work on! ♡ Read: 1/3 here! 3/3 here! ♡

You couldn’t quite wrap your head around the situation, the entire trip to Oranada felt like an eternity. Your chest felt heavy with anxiety as you rested your head on your lady-in-waiting’s shoulder. Yuri currently was preoccupied with knitting herself a shawl, humming a soft tune that was so warm and inviting in contrast to the harsh cold winter outside. Your body was immensely tense and soon enough you were lulled to sleep. You were in a slightly foggy garden. Hundreds of white roses surrounded you and the soft scent of moist greenery filled your senses. It was the most beautiful garden you had ever seen. It’s bushes shaped to perfection, hedges surrounding you in an ethereal maze. Despite the peaceful atmosphere, sounds of thunder could be heard in the distance.

You looked up from your reflection in the water to see the world around you develop a greyish hue. Despite the oncoming storm and the smell of rain, you felt no fear. If anything you felt a strange peace, you didn’t want to leave this place, even with the incoming weather.A taller figure walks before you. You couldn’t make out the figure’s face, with features blurred out in the fog. You couldn’t even see the color of their hair. Your eyes squinted in an attempt to see clearer but the fog grew thicker and the storm grew closer. You stared at the figure with confidence. You weren’t afraid.

A soft melody begins to play in the distance, a romantic, soft tune. The figure in front of you stops about a foot in front of you and offers their hand, reluctantly, you reach out. “M’lady, are you awake?”

The sound of a sweet voice had awoken you from your slumber. “Miss y/n, we’re here.” Yuri’s soft voice softly echoed in your ears as you slowly opened your eyes. “Pardon me, I seemed to have slept longer than anticipated.” You smile sheepishly, your senses awakening as you stretch out your arms. “Don’t apologize, you hadn’t slept a wink the night prior so I didn't want to wake you so soon unless it was necessary” she spoke softly as her fingers ran through your slightly messy hair. You closed your eyes and for once let out a genuine smile at the gesture. Yuri always knew how to keep you relaxed. “They’re waiting for you, the king and queen are currently in an audience but for now we shall have you taken to where you will be staying and have you get properly arranged for breakfast with the prince”. Right, your fiance, the man that you would be soon spending the rest of your life with. You pinched the bridge of your nose and sighed. “Yes, of course, let us get going then shall we?” You mustered the brightest smile you could but even a stranger could tell that it was with full irritation. As your father’s assistant spoke with the royal guards in plans and details for the week, one had approached you and Yuri and offered to carry your luggage as he showed you to your guest rooms. The prominent tenseness you radiated could be felt by everyone near despite the warm smile you wore. “This way, your majesty” the guard bowed and the three of you took off. The castle was beautiful. It was large and held a very monotone color scheme. Soft greys and blues decorated the exterior as pine trees outlined the entire area. It matched perfectly with the winter atmosphere. Your heart once again felt the intense anxiety that you shoved away, just as sharp as the cold wind that stung your soft skin.

Yuri’s room was right next to yours for convenience, which was a wonderful surprise to you. You thanked the guard and as he spoke with Yuri in the hallway outside your room, you began to unpack. Your room was magnificent, with intricate paintings on each wall, and the wallpaper a beautiful cream color with black detailing. Two large windows showcased the beautiful winter cold outside with the grey laced curtains drawn. You couldn’t get your mind off of that dream you had. Normally, you had odd dreams all the time but this one felt so different. You could barely remember what you had dreamt about. A few light knocks on your door shook you from your thoughts as Yuri asked to come in. She had already been freshened up and dressed and had offered to help you herself which you accepted with a wide smile. Once you had properly showered and changed, your lady-in-waiting began to pamper and attend to your locks. “You have to make a good impression y/n. I trust that you’ll be as sweet and as lovely as you normally are but despite how the prince acts please try to keep proper composure and patience”. You sighed as you longingly gazed out the window, watching the clouds above the castle’s garden. “Yes, of course, I’ve come to terms with my fate. Can we please head to breakfast now so that I may meet my lovely betrothed?” You responded sarcastically. Yuri nodded and held a small mirror to your face. “You look so beautiful, just like your mother” she sighed as you stood from your seat. As Yuri walked over to your bedroom’s door you took a double take out the window. In the garden, a tall figure stood, back facing the castle. A young man with black hair could be seen crouching down, admiring the flora. Could that be the prince? You pondered as you approached the doors. Almost as quickly as he appeared, the young man disappeared. Shrugging it off you let Yuri guide you down the hall to breakfast. The dining room was large and like every other part of the castle, intricately decorated with the utmost depressing colors. It was a huge contrast to your home, with its main colors involving deep reds and oak browns. As you sat, you noted three other chairs on the other side of the long dining table. At least we won't be sitting so closely, you sighed to yourself. After what minutes that felt like hours, voices could now be heard approaching from the hallway, your heartbeat couldn’t be any louder with fear. You sat straighter, hands properly placed on your lap, chin held up with a smile. You had to make a good impression no matter what.

“Good morning, Princess y/n”. A velvety woman’s voice spoke to you as the doors swung open. To say the queen was a beautiful lady would be an understatement. She presented herself in a way you could only imagine to be, adorned in all black, lipstick a deep cherry red almost even looking like blood. Despite the intense vibe she gave off that sent chills down your spine, her face was soft and kind. “G- good morning, your majesties, it’s a pleasure to meet you”! You stood from your chair and bowed, mentally slapping yourself for stuttering. “The pleasure is all ours, your father has spoken very highly of you.” The king smiled, he too was dressed in all black, with navy embellishments to his uniform. His black hair was slicked back but you could easily see the slight grey hairs forming from his old age. “This is our son, Yeonjun. He is our only son and the one you have been selected to be betrothed to”. The king motioned as he stepped aside for you to see the same young man you saw in the garden earlier. Your mouth could have dropped the moment you saw him. It took everything within your power to not blush as for the first time, you felt the gaze of a male your age. He was alluring. His lips were the softest pink, plush and beautiful. His hair split in a way that his forehead was shown, said soft black hair highlighting his cheekbones. His uniform was almost identical to his father's, the only exception being he had very few medallions compared to the king. He was a sight to see and for a minute you forgot that this was a man that people rumored to be a future tyrant. “It’s a pleasure to meet you m’lady” Yeonjun spoke as he approached you slowly hand reaching out for yours. You nodded and offered your hand. Softly and as gentle as he could,, Yeonjun pulled your small hand to his lips and pressed them against it. “Y- yes of course. I- ah yes thank you I’m forever grateful” you stumbled out. Since when did you have such trouble speaking to other royals? You wanted to just run away and slam your head into the wall, head back to your kingdom, and pretend none of this ever happened. As much as you wanted to avoid his gaze, you didn’t want to be rude. Nonetheless, you couldn’t get yourself to look away. He had such an interesting aura that made you want to know more. What made things worse is that Yeonjun had the softest smile and the most beautiful eyes you’ve ever seen. This was not the prince that everyone spoke ill of, this had to be a different person. He had the intensity of his mother yet the way he spoke to you, even the way he held your hand, made you feel like he was nothing more than a delicate flower. A rose without thorns. “Shall we eat? I have something lovely prepared for us this morning” the queen interrupted, noticing the tension between you and Yeonjun. Ever so gratefully, you nodded as Yeonjun quickly pulled your chair further out for you to sit, causing you to once again feel your face warm up. Maybe the dress you were wearing had too many layers. Surely that had to be it. Breakfast went by quickly, Yeonjun didn’t speak a word as he simply watched you in silence. The king and queen were easy to converse with as they led the conversations. As breakfast came to an end both the king and queen excused themselves as they had matters to attend to, leaving you and Yeonjun alone for the rest of the day. “I’d like to take you for a walk if you’d allow me miss y/n” Yeonjun smiled as he offered his arm to you. This is it, he’s going to take you to a nearby forest and murder you, disposing you of your body. You mentally prepared for the worst as you took his arm, allowing Yeonjun to guide you to wherever location he had in mind. Though you had to admit, he was charming and this persona he was showing you definitely could have you fooled.

To your surprise, Yeonjun had taken you to the castle’s garden. Your eyes widened as you felt a wave of deja vu hit you. This garden reminded you of the one you saw in your dream. It was just as beautiful, white roses were everywhere the eye could catch, there was a fountain in the middle and a marble gazebo sitting not too far off. “This truly is beautiful, I’ve never seen anything like this” you whispered to yourself. “You’re beautiful as well” Yeonjun stated bluntly with a smile.

You turned to him, eyes wide and face turning a soft pink. “I- I beg your pardon? Could you repeat that?” Yeonjun blurted out a laugh in response to your flustered face. “I said you’re beautiful as well. I’m sure you heard me the first time miss y/n”. Why was he being so kind to you? You didn’t appreciate this fake personality he was giving you. Where was the rudeness? The snarky remarks? The selfish persona? Was this really the prince that everyone spoke so lowly of?

“Well.. thank you.. I suppose..ah..” you began, looking away as Yeonjun tilted his head awaiting your full response. “You suppose?” he quirked an eyebrow. “I suppose.. You’re also someone I find beautiful. You- you’re very handsome.” You mumbled, unable to still meet his eyes. Yeonjun chuckled and reached for your chin, pulling it upwards for you to look at him properly. “Why thank you, I know.” You would’ve blushed at the sudden contact but it then hit you.I know? You thought. What an odd response to a compliment. It was slightly… conceited? You blinked in confusion but then reminded yourself that you were speaking to the prince of Oranada. Right. You almost let yourself get fooled into thinking this was a dreamy prince from one of the fairy tales you read as a child. This is no man of your dreams.

Frowning as you pulled away, you huffed and looked towards the gazebo on the other side of the garden. “I should have known you were as narcissistic as they say” you spat, then instantly covering your mouth in shock. You hadn’t realized that you were thinking out loud. You looked over to Yeonjun in fear. Was he going to punish you? Was he going to call off the engagement? Was he upset? Yeonjun blinked and gave you a blank look as if he were still processing what you had just said. “You.. think I'm a narcissist?” he pointed to himself, his eyes growing large like a child getting accused of lying. Guilt began to slowly wash over you. Sure he could’ve been a jerk but what if he was just confident? Did you really have to say that to him? “I- I’m sorry! Please don’t be mad, I just- look! I may already have my thoughts about you based on what I’ve heard. I apologize for what I said but I’m scared okay? The world says the man I just met is crazy and a horrible person! Nobody knew you existed until a decade ago!” You exclaimed as you felt tears welt in your eyes. “I don’t know what you’re really like as a person! How can you expect me to not assume the worst..” you looked at the sky in an attempt to stop your tears from completely falling, the clouds were slowly rolling in. Yeonjun sighed and softly reached for your hand. You looked at him as he let out a weak smile. “Let’s sit over there, I want to show you something.” Not knowing what to say or do, you let him guide you to the gazebo and you both sat down. Your eyes searched around the garden in fear. Was he going to yell at you? “My parents knew the dangers of having me. When my mother was pregnant, rumors about the war were starting and they knew that if anyone found out about me, I would have a target on my head.” Yeonjun spoke softly as he looked down at his fidgeting hands. The personality he was showing you now was different from the confident and flirty one he was portraying earlier.

“My people sort of knew I existed, but no one was allowed to speak of my presence. When the war finally reached our kingdom, my parents had their hands tied, I studied a lot and begged them to allow me to help them. So I was presented to the world, and hardly even a day after an assassination attempt was made on my family and I.” Yeonjun’s voice was stern and quiet, you looked at him and could see he was still fidgeting in his chair. You reached over to place your hand over his and nodded for him to continue. “It was my first day on duty, luckily, I was able to apprehend the traitor myself. It was a spy who had been living amongst the people for a while, waiting for the perfect time to strike. My parents were right, he had caught wind of the king and queen having a son and tried to kill me himself.” Yeonjun sighed shakily and you held his hand tighter.

“I was angry, irrational even, before I could even discuss proper punishment with my parents, I simply sentenced the man to death.” Your eyes widened. Was Yeonjun telling the truth? This whole time everyone assumed the young prince had simply let the power go to his head, but he was just a young boy. “My parents found out after it all happened. After a long discussion, we immediately put the entire kingdom on lockdown. For our safety and most importantly the safety of our citizens. We chose not to explain the situation to anyone for fear that we would just invite more danger in our borders. Since then, we haven’t given much thought to the opinions of others.” He bit his lip and looked into your eyes, searching for understanding.

“Yeonjun.. If I may call you that-” He nodded. “I.. I apologize, sincerely. I realize my actions and words were harsh. If you really are telling the truth- which I assume you are- I just want to say that despite all those rumors, I want to get to know you more. If you’re willing to accept my apology.. I hope you’re willing to start over with me. Allow me to know you for who you really are, not the person that everyone else talks about.” You held his hands to your chest as you spoke, heart beating so intensely that he could feel it. He swallowed and nodded, releasing a weak smile. “Y/n.. although this marriage is already set in stone, I’m simply enamored by the thought of getting to court you.” As Yeonjun looked down at the stone floor beneath him, you could see that through his black strands his face was pure red. “Of course, I’m more than willing to offer you that chance Prince Yeonjun” you replied, and for the first time in a while, you genuinely smiled. Once you both returned inside, Yeonjun excused himself as he had matters to attend to. Thus, for the rest of the day, you were left with paperwork and your own duties as a princess. Just because you were away from home doesn’t mean you didn’t have work to do. So there you were in your room, Yuri currently organizing your clothes and you writing away at your desk. “So, you’re going to allow him to court you then? Willingly?” Yuri looked at you with hopeful eyes. “Yes! And although he won’t be making it to dinner tonight as he has to go into town, he promised he would meet me tonight in the garden” you smiled dreamily as you stretched out your arms. “Well, I’m glad everything turned out at least alright and he’s not insane.” Yuri chuckled as she placed the last pair of socks away. You placed your hands on your cheeks smiling. This was your first date with Yeonjun and you couldn’t be anymore pleased. You found yourself daydreaming of what could happen. Things finally seemed to be looking up for you, and Yeonjun was starting to seem more like the proper storybook prince you had always read about in your childhood story books.

#txt scenarios #txt imagines #txt fluff #txt x reader #yeonjun x reader #yeonjun fluff #BakeryTreat♡

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rowretro · 4 months

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✧𝐁𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐃𝐘 𝐒𝐖𝐄𝐄𝐓✧

✧CHAPTER 3✧

WARNINGS: nth I think

✧tag list✧: @chlorinecake @nikisdubblchococake @enhypensccstarlight @strwberrydinosaur @sunghoonsbeautymark

3 sleepless nights. It's only day 4 of having the baby and Riki was already starting to regret his decisions a little. He groaned, waking up a little late to find the space beside him, and the crib, empty. Riki proceeded to take a quick shower, brush his teeth and go downstairs in search of the 2.

There he saw Y/n cooking something in the Kitchen while the baby sat on a mat, playing with some soft baby toys. There were times where he did regret taking the baby with him, but there were also those small, rare times where he's just so glad he decided to keep him. He didn't want to admit that he was definitely all for the idea of raising this baby, though part of him was hoping that a real dad would take the baby, or did he?...

Riki lied down on his stomach, beside the baby and watched as the baby shook the soft dinosaur toy. "What should we call you... Junior Riki? Riki Junior? Riki Jackson? Rizziki? Nj Nishimura Jr? Rj? Lil riki? lil ki? Riki little?" As riki continued to list names that involved his name one way or another, the baby, still continued to play.

"Ugh name choosing is so complicated- I'll do it later..." Riki said as he took the baby's hand in his. "Don't end up anything like your biological dad..." Riki randomly blurted, looking the baby in the eyes. "Be more like me, unlike him I actually want to name you-" He added as he played with the baby's hands. "So cute..." He smiled.

"Ok you stay here, Im going to go annoy your mommy~" Riki smiled, softly ruffling the baby's hair, as he went to the kitchen, back hugging Y/n. "Rough night?" she asked as she kissed his hand, "Baby was crying all night, he won't even smile at me- god the things I do for you Y/n..." Riki complained as she sighed.

"Ki you can go take a nap now if you want, but after you eat lunch mkay?" Y/n smiled as Riki kissed her forehead "No need, I'm going to go play with the baby~" the male replied, as he wrapped his arms around her waist, kissing her forehead lovingly. "God I don't know where I'd be if you weren't in my life" he mumbled, as he snuggled her tightly. The girl blushed a little, not looking up at Riki, she turned to face the baby.

Riki sat beside the baby who was fiddling with some soft, building blocks. "ba!" the baby babbled, as he stacked one block on top of the other, staring up at Riki, wanting to get a reaction out of him. Riki smiled, acting a little shocked, as he pat the baby's head gently "Awww my Riki junior is a smartass!" He cooed, as the baby giggled.

"Lunch is ready babe~" Y/n called out as Riki carried the baby boy with him "Let me feed the baby this time" Riki pouted as Y/n shrugged, handing him the baby food, before serving Riki his dinner. "Lookie here Riki junior- when you grow up I'll let you smoke a joint with me, only if you eat this yummy baby food ok?" Riki asked, seeming oh so series as Y/n nudged him.

He fed the baby a spoon, and the baby happily swallowed the food, Riki sighed in relief, as he knew the last few times he tried, the baby did not want to help him. Riki then turns to Y/n "Babe I'm hungry a-and my hands are busy so can you feed me too?" Riki asked innocently, staring at Y/n with those convincing, cutie eyes, rolling her eyes, she took some food with the chopsticks "Here comes an aeroplane~" She sang as she fed Riki his lunch. The male smiled as he eat happily, feeding the baby more baby food.

Y/n finished washing the dishes after eating, and walked into the living room to find the baby asleep in Riki's hold, in his mouth was a dinky, that had a cute yet funny design of a moustache and a cigarette coming out of the mouth. the baby innocently chewed on the dinky as Rowan snickerred. "You have more facial hair than daddy" the girl joked as she gently took the baby out of Riki's hold, noticing that Riki had fallen asleep.

She kissed his forehead and pecked his lips, "Sleep well my little baby" she said as she tucked Riki in, a nice soft blanket coverring his body as he napped on the couch.

✧𝐁𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐃𝐘 𝐒𝐖𝐄𝐄𝐓✧

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littledollll · 1 year

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Hi! Your writing is stunning! Well, and truly so! 🌱✨️☁️

Are requests open? If so, could you maybe write an Angst fic of where a shy student!reader comes into contact with the Hyde and gets scratched up on their arm or something while escaping and tried to hide it with their blazer until they can try and sort it in their dorm, too worried to ask for help, but gets found by Larissa Weems along the way, so they try and play it off as something small and unimportant while trying to keep it hidden?

Multitalented

Larissa Weems x Student!Reader

A/n: absolutely baffled at the amount of requests I find I missed so this is why my requests were closed! I wanted to catch up on these<3 I have some I have ideas for, I have some that are just little imagines and others I have no idea what to write for but we’re going strong!

Warnings: injury, process of cleaning said injury, platonic pairing, only slightly angsty

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You have no idea how you managed to get away. Scratched up but you weren’t sure how much really, you just felt a stinging pain on your arm that you decided to cover up so you could tend to it later. Adrenaline kept you from feeling anything as you ran back to the school grounds.

Half and half because you were terrified of the monster and also the possibility that somebody had noticed and notified the principal that you were gone, you had half a mind to stay in the woods, surely your fate with the monster would be better than whatever principal Weems had in store for you if she found out you were out after curfew.

You had the amazing idea of deciding it would be “cool” and “challenging” to explore the towns forest at night, while a dangerous monster runs rouge, great idea, definitely. You didn’t expect to get injured during your little adventure, stupidly enough.

You didn’t notice a tall figure standing next to the door as you tried to quietly make your way in and almost screamed when you bumped into the principal. “Holy sh- what are you doing here principal Weems?” You said as you tried to recuperate your breathing from all the running you just did.

“I was told somebody wasn’t in their dorm at room checks, I had already searched the whole school and was about to head out to keep looking. I supposed Im lucky to have you run into me instead.” She was clearly not happy with you. “Why don’t you follow me into my office?”

“Um actually! Maybe if we could have our conversation first thing tomorrow? See I’m really really tired and I want to go-“ as you turned to leave Larissa grabbed a hold of your arm, making you wince and then struggle to cover it up. Larissa quickly retreated her hand before sighing, “I know for a fact that hiss was not a result of my hold.”

“N-nope! I just fell on the way here because I was so worried about getting back in time! Can I go now?” She didn’t have to say anything to convey a clear “No.” your way. “You fell and somehow managed to only injure your forearm?” Yeah she was about done with your bullshit. “My office, now.”

♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡

“Take the blazer off and let me see.” Was the first thing she said once you were both inside. “I don’t think it’s necessary- really principal Weems I’m fine!”

“It is my job to care for you students and make sure you are safe. Your parents trust me to ensure you are in one piece when they visit, something you, as one of the older ones should know. Clearly that is not the case, so show me. Now.”

Reluctantly, you pulled it off. You really didn’t have another choice but you missed the look of concern of look from the principal once you did, busing yourself with neatly folding said item on your lap, trying to avoid her and the scolding you expected to receive.

She moved to take a closer look. “I know it’s taboo to talk about but-“ with a sigh she stood to full height. “I know. Sit on the couch, we can talk about, it, after I make sure that scratch is disinfected.”

“Stay right here, I’m serious, trying to runaway will get you in even more trouble than already awaits you. Don’t even blink.” Larissa said as she walked off to the bathroom getting a first aid kit.

“Did you blink?” Was the first thing she asked when she got back. “Maybe..?” You answered with your own question, completely confused. She chuckled and pulled the chair to sit in front of you. Asking for your hand, you gave it to her still hung up on this random change of attitude.

“When I was a student I had a teacher that would say ‘when the exam starts I don’t want anyone talking, no noise can be heard, don’t even breathe!’ Then she’d wait a few seconds and ask ‘why are you guys breathing’ acting completely confused, it wasn’t the funniest thing ever, obviously, but it would always get a giggle out of us.” It was nice to get to hear about her past. Made you remember that there was a time when she was one of you, it honestly made you ease up, feeling slightly less anxious now.

You giggled but sat there confused, you wondered why she was telling you this, not that you minded, it was nice to see a different side from the strict principal. “I asked her once, why she always did that. She said it would serve as a type of icebreaker, so we would be less anxious during the test.”

“Not once did you notice I was cleaning your wound that whole time.” Wait what? “With alcohol wipes and everything” you furrowed your brows at her, making her chuckle.

After making sure your scratches were clean she took her time wrapping them up. “You will change these twice a day, more if needed, and come to me if you need any help.”

“I didn’t know you were the academy nurse too, principal Weems.” she was quite good at this, though you’d guess you at least need a first aid certification to be a teacher or principal.

“Apparently I’m quite multitalented” she mused, making you smile. “I want to see these as they heal, so come by at least twice a week.” There it was, her assertive and demanding tone once again.

“Please understand, whatever is out there is causing a great deal of issues for this academy. I will go to my grave swearing it has nothing to do with us and I assure you of that as well, but convincing Jericho press isn’t as easy as just swearing or making a promise. This is why you’re not going to the nurse. I’d like to know you understand why I’m doing this.”

“Of course, I understand principal Weems. I’ll be on my way then.” Just as you were about to leave she spoke again. “We will find out who or what is responsible for this, I promise. And I do always keep my promises.”

#larissa weems #principal larissa weems #larissa weems x reader #principal weems #principal weems fluff #wednesday larissa weems #larissa weems fluff #larissa weems wednesday #larissa weems nevermore #gwendoline christie #principal larissa weems x reader

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nailtagyuri · 10 months

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Just Not's Burger King Bonanza

fics done! ao3 is cyberbullying me specifically so im posting it under cut until they reopen account registrations ^_^ [EDIT THEY DID YOU CAN CHECK IT OUT HERE GO GO GO!!] thanks to @/klonoadoortophantomile for reading the initial drafts!

If you need something here tagged as a trigger warning, please contact me via ask! This fic contains depictions of real life political figures, occasional graphic violence, and YURI!!! *thunder clap*

Morning descended upon the bathrooms-turned-hotel where TPOT was once held. The sun shone over the horizon and its light crept through the dust-covered windows, into the already noisy cafeteria smack-bang at the bottom of the tall building. Even if Two's "mandatory mealtimes" had ended along with the gameshow itself, the cafeteria still flourished as a regular gathering area for social interaction, at least to those who could manage a consistent sleep schedule.

Price Tag spotted their designated black and yellow table, where they always sat along with the rest of team-turned-friend group Just Not. They walked up to it, quietly asking Cake if he could move so they could take the window seat. He obliged. He knew Taggy liked absorbing the sunlight.

They :]'d comfortably as they eyed their companions. Book, Nickel, Cake and Bomby were eating with them this morning. Naily was still in bed and Pillow was probably also asleep, what with the obvious. They were glad the two had more time to rest than when they had things to wake up for, but a part of them missed the way Naily would sleepily stumble towards their table each morning, mumbling sweet incomprehensibles as she shuffled next to them and lazily rested on their "shoulder". Oh, how she struggled to stay awake in the brief moment before she guzzled down her dangerously acidic energy drink and shot straight up, bright and alert. But enough about her. They could talk to her later.

"So," Taggy perked, "What's been up with all of you?" "Crunklybrunkly zooper dooper," Nickel groaned, "don't even get me STARTED on this horrid excuse for a foodish substance." Price Tag saw Two cover their mouth with their paws from the other side of the room. They seemed extremely hurt. Nobody audibly got Nickel started but he kept complaining anyway. "Like, what's it supposed to be, melted yoylemetal?" He poked his dish, a gray, gelatinous, rectangular blob. It jiggled against his fork.

"I'd say it's Tofu," Book proposed as she took a bite of her salad. "Black bean. It's a bit gray, though. You should try it, anyway, if you want." "They don't call it gray bean, Book." Nickel rolled his eyes, sarcastically. Cake slid in. "You feeling alright, Nickel? You're not usually this grumpy." "WRONG ONE!?" Shouted Bomby, who gripped his head with his hands in sudden fright. "No, no, I'm not an impostor, I swear!" Nickel replied. "Ugh, sorry everyone. Just I wish the stuff we ate was… fine-er. The food Two makes is kinda mid."

"THE FOOD I MAKE FOR FREE, NICKEL?!" Two boomed from next to him. Nickel fell back in his seat, startled. His foot slammed his plate, launching the substance high into the air and directly onto his face. Everyone stopped for a moment to process what had happened. "Oh golly!" Book cried. "Your tofu…" "Uhh, ground sevruga, actually," Two corrected, raising their finger up nerdishly. "Only five spoons of one of the most expensive kinds of caviar on the market, condensed into a chunky rectangular delight and nuked in a microwave for 62 seconds. Better learn to eat it up, Nickel, the black sea can't provide these delicious tastes forever!" They walked away, smugly.

There was a brief silence, aside from Nickel's slurping. Taggy raised an eyebrow, astounded that a simple 'hello' could lead to such malarkey. "The heck did any of that mean?" They exclaimed. "Any of what mean?" Naily perked her lips to imitate Taggy's ,':{ as she walked up to the table. Upon seeing her, Price Tag's confused expression quickly morphed into a joyous :3. They felt their string begin to wag in excitement. It unconsciously thumped against the empty spot next to them repeatedly as if to gesture where she should sit.

Naily saw this and laughed. "Oh wow, so many choices," she teased. "I can barely decide." She crouched down before launching herself into a frontflip, barreling over the table and stabbing clean into her designated spot. "Nailed it!" She shouted, triumphantly. The rest at the table clapped. She pulled herself out and quickly grabbed her meal the others had been saving for her, unwrapping it hungrily and biting into it without thinking to take off the pickles. It was a cheeseburger, its buns dyed such an eye-burning tone of hot pink Taggy wondered how they hadn't lost sight just looking at it. Naily called it the 'Girlburger'. "But really," Naily asked as she took another bite, "what's going on, buddy? I heard someone scream from upstairs."

They turned to her slightly and explained what had happened. "I don't even know what cabby car is!" Nickel exclaimed through his loaf. "Hmm…" Naily put a paw on her chin thoughtfully, taking in all the information. "I think…" she spoke in a hushed tone, widening her eyes. The others moved in. "it's from the viewers' world."

Everyone gasped. Nobody among them had eaten food from, let alone seen the viewers' world in person before. Only Teardrop had gone when she was sent for a challenge, and they were extremely hesitant to discuss her findings. "That's nonsense!" Book cried. "Sorry, I mean… Naily, Two's a really thoughtful host, but are you sure they'd venture out to such uncharted lands just to make breakfast for Nickel, of all people?" Naily shrugged. "Yeah." "It'd make sense," Taggy chimed in. "They still have some of their limitless power, right? If they used it to easily come here from their home planet, maybe they could easily go from here to the viewers' world."

"Yeah!" Supported Cake. "Maybe they just like to travel, and that was, like, a souvenir." Nickel sat up. "Why don't we go there?" He asked, casually. "Y'know, see more food like this. It'd be a nice change of pace from all the Dragons and Dragons and Dragons campaigns." "You mean you liked it?" Asked Book. "Oh no, it was disgusting." He replied. "I just want more of it." "Oh. Well, that's a bit of a strange mentality- wha, wait a minute! We can't go! Are you insane?! We don't know what's out there!" She grabbed Nickel out of fear. "Well if Two can make it back in one piece," grinned Naily as she stood on the table, "then so can we, the 7th greatest team this side of Goiky! And I think I know just the guy who can help us…"

"I can't help you." Said Winner, dryly. "L." Shouted Price Tag, making a >:L. Naily grew upset. "But Winner, you're the only one with limitless power who isn't mad at us!" She pleaded. "Dontcha have a heart?" Winner frowned, slightly. She was right. Winner, after defeating Marker in a rather anti-climatic boxing match, had prophetically won the Power of Two and subsequently the grand prize. Being carried episode after episode through their loyal voterbase was a kind gesture, they knew that. If everyone was that nice, surely they'd be nice enough to not instantly kill a whole team with a woodchipper, right?

The thought of woodchippers reminded them of the British Exterminator Incident of '24, and they cringed. They shook their head. "I'm sorry, guys, it's dangerous territory out there, and I don't think you'd all fare well with that kind of responsibility. There's a good chance that if I let you lot go, you won't come back." They put their arm on their hip and closed their eyes affirmitively. Most of the group groaned. "THAT'S WHAT I'M SAYING!" Cried Book.

Taggy slid up to them. "C'mon, Winner, ol' buddy, ol' pal, ol' winner winner chicken dinner, you know I'd give you that kinda freedom if I were in your shoes!" "No you wouldn't." "Fair enough," they turned around and walked off. "THINK OF ALL THE FOOD!" Bomby cried. Nickel's eyes lit up. "Yeah!" He perked, as he scooched up to the defiant Winner. "Maybe they even have… purple tomatoes." Winner opened one eye. "The kind Two made for me back in the first episode?" They whispered. Nickel looked away playfully. "Perhaps."

Outside the hotel, Winner prepared to open a portal, waving their hand around slowly. "You guys owe me a real one." They said. "I'd get into a lot of trouble if Two found out I were using their powers to do this kinda stuff." Nickel got goosebumps. He and Two already weren't on good terms. "Oh, Winner, I'm sure we'll be okay!" Assured Cake. "So long as we don't, y'know�� get lost. Or killed." Winner frowned. "Cake, you're a sweet guy, you don't have to be a part of this." He blushed slightly at the compliment. "No, no, really, we'll be fine! Book already told me all about how she escaped Evil Leafy, this should be no problem for her. Right, Book?" He turned to face her.

"Yeah, you could say so…" Book rubbed her arm nervously. Memories of her antics inside Evil Leafy were fuzzy after the 53rd puzzle or so, but from what she could recall she wasn't nearly as careful as Cake thought. Pits of spike and lava layered every corner of the dungeon and each obstacle grew more and more difficult for her to avoid; gruesome ends and embarrassing slip-ups were all too common and death became expected rather than feared, but at least back there she had some form of recovery. Who knew what this higher realm had to offer?

Winner shut their eyes as they began to conjure up the portal. Sparks flickered on their fingers as they moved hypnotically, a bright ball of energy starting to form on their rippling palm, flashing green and purple rapidly as it grew in size. The others looked on in amazement, gazing into the light as if they were challenging God to a staring contest. Naily, failing to break her stare, shuffled up on top of Bomby to cover up his fuse with her paws, in case a rogue flare set it on fire and blew him up. Besides the obvious, the last thing they needed was a loud explosion to draw attention to themselves, as if the electric crackling wasn't doing that already.

Winner clutched the ball with their fist. "So where are we going anyway?" Asked Nickel, choosing the worst time to ask a question. "Wh- I don't know!" Hissed Winner, hastily. "On the map, it looks kind of like a foot, if that helps!" They moved their arm back to aim. "You might wanna cover your ears…"

Two shuffled through their wardrobe, looking through their accessories before finding a large pink bow at the bottom of the pile. They brushed off the dust and slowly put it on, staring up at it to make sure it didn't fall. "How do I look?" They asked. Gaty finished her boba, slurping the contents at the bottom of the cup. "Absolutely fabulous," she complimented. "It suits you really well!" They smiled. Leave it to Gaty to give them a confidence boost. They sat down next to her, sipping their drink as they started to relax. "So what's been going on with Nickel?" Two groaned. "Ugh. It just feels like he doesn't care about all the effort I put in for everyone. He just casually criticizes my cooking like it's nothing, like I do it out of some sort of obligation! Like, I don't have to stay here, if I really didn't care I would've just up and left years ago! Why can't he see that?"

"Hmm." She thought for a moment. "Well, if I were you I'd show him the process of actually cooking the food rather than just giving it to him. It's easier for him to insult your creation because all he's seeing is the stuff on the plate, and not the hard work behind it, if that makes sense." Two swirled their tea like a wine glass. "Hmm… well, I guess it does. I'll see if it-"

The room suddenly shook violently, like a bomb had gone off and decimated one of the hotel's floors. The quaking lunged Two back in their seat, their drink splashing in their face and staining their bow. Whipped cream splutted like a cream pie in a circus act. "Oh shoot!" Gaty exclaimed. She stood up, hastily opening the closet. "You want me to grab a cloth, or some paper towels, or somethi-" She stopped when she turned back to look at them. She didn't know if their face had turned red from the sprinkles or the unbridled anger burning within them. It wouldn't take long for her to find out.

Winner stared at the portal, eyeing it to make sure everybody would fit, before hearing a flurry of muffled yet very loud curses from upstairs. "That's not good."

"RUN!" Shrieked Naily, speeding into the portal like a mouse into a hole. Taggy followed suit, then Nickel, then Bomby, then Cake. Book trailed last but stopped inches away from the portal, still extremely hesitant. "I-I can't decide! It just doesn't feel right yet!" Winner telekenetically floated some parts toward them. "Well you're gonna have to be quick if you wanna join the other five, I need to cover this up!" Book stared back at the deep, whirling maw before her… wait, did they say other five? There weren't only five other people on Just Not!

"PILLOW!" Cried Book. She'd forgotten all about her! Her heart sank. Pillow was already a hazard with her teammates around, who knows what would happen if she were left alone? She ran back up to Winner. "Winner I need you to throw me up to Pillow's room so I can take her with me!" "Huh? Book, I really don't have the time…" "You have to! Th- the lives of the contestants are at stake!" "…Book, are you going to go or-" "THROW ME!" She snapped, overpowering anything Winner had said or would say.

Book barrelled through the window into Pillow's room. Her eyes dashed around the pastel walls and contrastingly bloody splatters before spotting her, to her left. She appeared to be polishing an inanimate object of some kind. "Pillow, you have to co-" "I don't have a weapon," Pillow said, calmly. She snuck whatever she had in her sheets before turning around, giving a suspiciously contented smile. Book stared. "…Uh huh. Pillow, you have to come with me!" She grabbed her and leapt back out the window, instantly regretting not thinking things through. "Are we playing Yoylebungee again?" Asked Pillow, naively. "You forgot the rope." Book screamed her lungs out as the two fell down, down, down… Winner rushed to catch them both in their hand, throwing them in the portal just in time for them to close it off.

Two stomped around the corner. "WHAT IS GOING ON- Oh." They stopped in their tracks when they saw Winner, resting their arm against a vending machine shakily. The discomfort in their wide, crooked smile could be seen from a mile away. It created an uncomfortable vibe topped off by their worried, dilating eyes and furrowing brows. The air whistled between the two for a good few seconds, leaving silence so loud you could hear their muscles contract.

"Oh, hey Two, didn't see you there," Winner spoke hastily as they paced toward them, "sorry if I made a racket, darn vending machines stealing your money, rah! rah! rah! Really tests your temper, don't it?" They nudged the number slightly with their hand, "Hahaha, I suppose you'll be leaving now." Two waved their hands in front of them. "Wait wait wait, it stole your money?" They noted. Winner's pupils shrunk. "Oh, uhh, Two, you really don't have to-" "Well why didn't you just say something? I'd be happy to help you get it back!" Before they could get a sentence out, Two was already inspecting the vending machine for issues. "Let's see here… ew, five dollars for vanilla Dr. Fizz?" They rolled their eyes. "Stop." Winner cringed. When this was over they were gonna be owed enough favors to speedrun ten birthdays.

Book felt her eyes open slowly. Her vision was a blur, her surroundings morphing into an abstract mush of colors and simple shapes. Her head was swimming in a pool of nausea and stress. Had it been a dream? Could all this talk of portals and higher worlds be blamed on unconscious neurons firing alone? Naily stood over her, frowning worriedly. "Gee whiz, are you okay?" Book groaned as she slowly rubbed her temple with her paws. Her head throbbed against their eyes so much she felt like they were going to pop out. Pillow rushed over to her. "Perhaps she's dead. Book, are you dead? Say 'yes' if you're dead." Book sat up, mumbling to herself. "AH! ZOMBIE!" Cried Bomby, as he grabbed a rusty hammer from beside him and swung hysterically. "ZOMBIEEEEEEEE!"

"BOMBY I'M ALIVE!" Shrieked Book, widening her eyes. She slumped over, eyelids squinting as she blinked repeatedly. "I'm alive," she clarified. "I'm awake… where are we?" Cake looked around. The seven were surrounded by large, worn-down buildings, covered with graffiti and offensive etchings. An opening in front of them gave way to what looked like a street; that and the blisteringly bright sun above them were the only sources of light in what was otherwise a dark open tunnel. He certainly didn't want to be here at night. "Looks like…" "It's an alleyway." Pillow interrupted. "I didn't know we were going to the real world." Book stood up. "No, the real world is back- whatever. We've seen it. Can we go home now?!" "What? No way!" Nickel perked. "We only just got here, let's have a look around!"

NO!" She shouted. "Err, uhh, I mean, what about all the fun things we can do here in the alleyway? Like calculating the total worth of all of its many things!" "Three dollars," answered Price Tag, who represented the value on their face. "Hahahaha, that helps!" Book lied, glaring at them. "or, we could play Interdimensional Red Rover! I'll start." She made a mad dash for the portal, speeding forward and crashing into the back of a machine.

Book felt her eyes open slowly. Her vision was a blur, her surroundings morphing into an abstract mush of colors and simple shapes.

Pillow was quick to interrupt her reverie, grabbing her and flipping her back into a standing position. "That's better," she hummed. Book was dazed but at least she was still conscious. "Urgh… Wait, what am I still doing here!?" She cried as her gaze met the portal. She fixated particularly on the giant contraption blocking her path. "Wh- what's THAT doing here?! Why is this happening!?"

"Your companions probably punished you for not following the rules," Pillow assumed. "They didn't even call you on over." "They didn't even call her on over," Naily whispered to Taggy. She walked up to the portal and threw a lone pebble at it. It banged off the back of the machine and flew threw a window. "Yup, that's blocking us off alright." "So we're trapped?!" Cake yelped, fearfully. Price Tag attempted to comfort him. "Aww, don't say that, Cake! I'd say it's more like very heavy encouragement to stay." "That's all we really can do, isn't it…" Cake conceded.

The group was silent for a moment. "Well…" Naily lingered as she raised a paw. "The only missed shot you can shoot is an unshooted shot, ain't it?" She started walking off, Price Tag following close behind. The others shrugged, following in her footsteps. Book was so distracted trying to interpret Naily's phrase that by the time she could muster up a response, she and the rest of the group had already left.

Book paced up to them, "Wait, you're all just leaving?" She cried. "You can't! Shouldn't you try and break the wall down, or something? We're gonna get lost!" "Don't worry, we'll go back," Price Tag assured. "We're just exploring first!" "No. Taggy, no! This isn't as simple as 'exploring', we have no idea what this place looks like, or where everything is, or how big everything is, if we lose sight of this alleyway we won't find our way back and we'll lose EVERYTHING! Cake, you just got back with Loser after years of not seeing each other and now you're willing to abandon him?!" The color began to drain from his face. Guilt began to wash over him. "Well…"

Naily stepped forward to interject. "Book, you couldn't even break it down with your full body weight. Would you rather invest all your time in a lost cause or use what time you have in this new world to take a risk? Look," she flipped Book open to tear off a blank page, "You can scribble important information down on this and when we find something that can break down the structure, we'll go back! It solves itself!" Book sighed as she rubbed her temple. If she was so sure... "I really hope you know what you're doing. Do you have a pen?"

Just Not walked casually through the street, Book sketching important details and sign names on her pages in case they got lost. Cake was quick to notice how uncanny all of this world's inhabitants looked: their faces had strange lumps beneath their mouths and eyes, and odd, patterned shapes on both sides of their heads. He assumed these were arms. Almost all of them towered over the group, some taller than Bomby and Book combined. Their eyes were rich with detail and color, almost all of them staring back at Cake with an atmosphere of judgement and suspicion.

He felt his cheeks turn pink. Did they hate him? Did he do something wrong? He'd clearly done something wrong. Why else would they keep looking at him?! "Looks like these guys haven't seen an object before," Naily hummed, derailing his train of thought. "Everyone looks so… same-ey." Nickel whispered. "How do they tell each other apart?" Cake sighed. At least his friends were somewhat on the same page, even if they didn't completely share his mindset.

"This place doesn't look like it has what we're looking for," observed Pillow. "Well maybe we just need to dive deeper!" Taggy eyed the crowd and picked whoever they thought was nicest. They scuttered up to them, making a ^.^ and striking a kind pose. "'Scuse me, sir! Me and my buddies were just looking for some caviar, and you look like the kinda guy who'd know their stuff about that."

"I don't," they replied, briskly. "Ah, well, we've all got room to learn. But could ya redirect us to someone who knows where we can find any? My gray weezerino over here could really go for some sevruga." They dragged Nickel towards them.

"Sevruga?" The man pondered. "Sounds Russian. You'll probably need a plane ticket, or something."

Nickel broke free from Taggy's grasp. "Does it cost money?" He said, playing along with Taggy's cool guy persona. "Because I happen to be pretty experienced in the field of things worth five cents or under, if you catch my drift."

The man was silent for a moment. "If you can't afford it, you can also drive," they muttered. "Through the sea. You'd have to hold your breath for a while, though."

Book cringed at the reminder. "Aaaaand that's where we'll end things for now! Thanks anyway!" She nudged Nickel, cueing everyone to speedwalk away.

The man was left with his thoughts. His inner monologue began to scold him. "Damn it, Barack, you should've gone with them. They seemed nice, even if they were cosplaying as random objects." He sighed as he pulled out a special red, white and blue senzu bean. You'd think a former president, let alone a Saiyan, would be better at talking to people, but here he was. Alone, and about as awkward as a worm in a spider club. "What an Obummer," he mumbled as he popped it in his mouth, letting the chemicals and sudden nutrition wash the regret and loneliness away.

Just Not walked for what seemed like ages, the ever-expanding list of turns, streets and stops growing harder and harder for Book to remember. Whatever part of the journey they were up to now, it certainly didn't look like the beginning. Most of the buildings now were more than two hotels high, a far cry from the quaint forts just a couple blocks back.

Book wondered if her team were actually serious about walking all the way out to the ocean just so they could go to this "Russia" place. Finally having enough, she decided to speak up. "Hey, guys, uhh… are we going to do anything other than walking while we're here?"

Pillow looked around, before catching something in the glimpse of her eye. "We can drive!" She chirped, pointing off to the distance. The others looked: a large, black vehicle stood before them. It was chunky, sleek, and surely big enough to fit everyone. It led a trail of multiple similar cars, all empty and parked in front of a beautiful hotel, one of the tallest in the street.

Book groaned. She had to start wording things better.

Price Tag inspected the vehicle. "Hmmm… doesn't look very seaworthy." "Plus, if we're going to steal it," Naily lowered her voice to a whisper, "we'd have to take out the guards first."

She pointed to two flags, waving proudly on the front end of the van. Nobody recognized either of them. Naily winked at Bomby, who raised a hand, gesturing everyone to stand back. The others were still, as he breathed in. He leapt forth, landing quietly in front of the trunk, before wiggling his fingers and slicing them through both flagpoles at once. The flags slid clean off, landing in his palms.

"THAT SHOULD BE BOTH OF THEM," He shrilled.

The others were impressed. Naily cheered eccentrically, whistling and wooing loudly like she'd just seen pigs fly. "Wasn't that the coolest thing you've ever seen!?" She yelled. "Alright, now let's get in the car!"

Everyone obliged, Naily hastily shuffling into the driver's seat and grabbing onto the wheel. "Oh, uhh, Naily, I think it would be better if I drive this time." Book cautioned, eyeing the pawless pedals. "Why's that?" Naily responded, smiling at her mindlessly. "Oh, it's just, y'know, I have…" She stopped herself before she could say "arms". She remembered a late night bar conversation she had with a very drunk Snowball, who was unfortunate enough to bring up that subject around her.

"It was terrifying," he moped as he chugged down another shot glass. "All I wanted was to join her team. I was nice. I did nothing wrong. I told them they seemed like nice people, even if they were weak and armless." His eyes widened with sorrow as they stared off into space. The memories hit him like a shovel, jabbing into the nerves of his emotions and digging tears out of his cold, almost dead eyes. "And then, out of nowhere…" He whined, his voice cracking in pitch. He turned to Book suddenly and grabbed her shoulders. "She owned me!" He cried, shaking her hysterically. Book could see the fear and vulnerability in his pupils as they dilated and shook. "She owned me! SHE OWNED ME! SHE OWNED ME, BOOK! I WAS OWNED! SHE OWNED ME!"

She didn't quite know what "owned" meant in this case, no matter how many times it was repeated. But if famous tough-guy Snowball was afraid to get on Naily's bad side, chances were Book should very much avoid that path as well.

"…a very strong drivers' spirit!" She finished. "Mine's stronger," Naily grinned. "C'mon, Price Tag, you take the pedals!" "On it!" They saluted, sitting comfortably beneath her. Book sighed as she moved to the back seat, while Bomby took passenger's. If anything went wrong she wouldn't be to blame.

After a bit of fumbling with the ignition and figuring out how four people would fit in two seats, the car started and the group were off. Nickel could barely make out someone glaring at them from inside the building, but he didn't care. This was a whole new experience for him! He shuffled his feet, making sure that they didn't damage Cake's frosting as he sat on top of him.

Book, meanwhile, sat directly in front of Pillow, whose arms wrapped around her in a spooning position. Pillow, ironically, was very passionate about keeping herself safe. She was the only one in the car, aside from Cake, who had strapped themselves in, and had even encouraged Book to share the seatbelt with her. She denied, nonetheless. She didn't need it on such a casual drive, and would hate to make either of them uncomfortable with a tight squeeze.

Naily stared at all the viewers, and they stared back. They'd been doing that a lot, hadn't they? Was it the van this time? She couldn't understand why it'd be such a spectacle to them, what with its all black coloring and rather uninteresting interior. Perhaps these viewers were just very easy to excite. Their brains would probably implode if they saw something with as much visual noise as the Freesmart Supervan, she thought.

Her brows quickly furrowed into a frown when she saw a series of billboards looming over the rest of the town. They all had the same image plastered over them: a creature, presumably a viewer, smiling smugly at the camera, in a confident, commanding pose. Underneath them, a series of stripes and a string of bolded, instructional text:

"Vote Ron DeSantis for presidential reelection, November 2028. A stronger government, a stronger America."

Naily scoffed. She hadn't even made it past her own team's first elimination, and here this guy was, plastering their mug everywhere trying to get people to vote for them twice? As if one victory wasn't enough? Something about it made her blood boil. It wasn't like their silly campaign would even work, anyway, none of the billboards even had letters or square brackets.

She saw some viewers in blue uniforms ripping a much smaller poster off a building: it had similar messaging, but the colors and figure looked different. Most likely it was endorsing someone else, encouraging viewers to vote for an opponent or a teammate. The blue uniformed viewers tore it off, ripping it to bits, before throwing what was left on the ground.

Whoever these contestants were the prize they were battling for must've been really elusive if it meant they were willing to hire their own personal goons. What prize could somehow be more enticing than limitless power? Why were these people so desperate to win it? Just a viewer thing, she guessed. As if object traditions were any less weird.

"So what do you all wanna do first?" Nickel inquired. "Ooh, let's see if they have a beauty salon!" Taggy smirked. "I'd personally LOVE to get my nails done." "That's funny," said Naily. "Thank you. But really, wasn't the plan to get something to eat?" "Didn't you hear the guy before?" Cake butted in. "The caviar we're looking for is probably 2763 canals away." "That doesn't mean we can't try something else!" Nickel replied. "Yeah! Let's see if they have any cool restaurants 'round here." As if on cue, Pillow looked out the window, immediately noticing a sign that stood out from the others. "How does Burger King sound?"

The rest of her team turned their attention to the restaurant. The bright and colorful branding of the logo enticed all of them. The word "burger" implied food, meat. A meal they could all share; the word "king" implied either medieval decadence or supremacy, as if the cooks here were the metaphorical kings of all burgers, delivering quality unmatched by any other chain.

"Don't mind if I do," Naily muttered under her breath as she turned the car around and moved into the Drive Thru. She knew how this kind of thing worked from her team's many late night visits to Gelatin's Steakhouse, but the experience of being in the driver's seat for once was almost surreal in a way. "So what do you all want?" She asked, flinching at the unnatural feeling of those words spilling out of her own mouth.

One by one, everyone listed off what they wanted. Being the only photosynthetic creature among them, Price Tag jokingly asked for a torch.

Naily rolled down the window and forwarded the message to the speaker, whose gritty and bitcrushed voice directed them to the next window. She did so, reaching what appeared to be the restaurant's kitchen and playing Where's Woody with her order as she stared through the window.

"Oh, there's other cooks. Do you want me to take care of them?" Asked Pillow, innocently. "No, it's fine." Naily replied, not knowing exactly what that meant. She tapped the wheel mindlessly as boredom began to set in. The group was left in awkward silence for a brief moment. "Let's listen to some music!" Pillow chimed in, again. She shoved Book off her and reached into the front seat, clicking the radio on. The scratchy, radical voice echoed through the car's walls. "And next up on our totally tubular 2000s throwback, 'This is Such a Pity' by Weezer!"

Pillow appeared to recognize the name, and showing more emotion in that moment than throughout the rest of the trip, she frowned slightly and clicked the radio back off. "Silence also has its perks." As awkwardness descended upon the vehicle, each member of Just Not silently waited for another to speak up, spark a conversation and break the tension.

"How would we kiss?" Price Tag inquired.

Naily raised her eyebrows in surprise. "What? M…me?" "Yeah," They looked up at her and smiled casually. "How would we kiss?" "Uhhh…" She was confused more than anything. Hadn't she already kissed them plenty of times before? "You mean…" She moved to give Price Tag a casual yet loving smooch on their forehead. They chuckled as their face began to warm slightly. They didn't expect her to demonstrate, but weren't complaining. "Oh, nah, heheheh, I mean more…" Their voice grew quiet. "more deeper than that, if that makes sense."

"Oh." Naily's face lit up. "OH, you mean, like, you wanna make out? Like…" She looked out the window, then back to them. "…like now?" They silently nodded, making a bashful <:].

She frowned, sympathetically. "Oh, Taggy, sweetheart, I'm sorry, but you don't exactly have a… 'mouth' mouth, do you? There's not much for me to work with…" They matched their expression, a disappointed :(. She was correct. Price Tag did technically have a mouth but it lacked any depth and couldn't be used for anything other than talking and making faces. The closest thing they could get to tasting anything was their antennae, which they used to drink water and absorb light energy for nutrition. Using that would be unbelievably awkward, though…

"If there isn't a way," they technically lied, "can we at least pretend?" Naily smiled. That she could do. Turning them down at this point would just be cruel. "Oh, alright," she grinned, playfully rolling her eyes. "C'mere." She pulled Price Tag towards her for a kiss. They let out an adorable EEK! as their "lips" met Naily's.

Within seconds the LARP kissing session was in full swing, much to the chagrin of Nickel who looked on in partial disgust. Despite being on their team, he hadn't seen the two interact much, especially not with such blatant intimacy. "Ugh, somebody needs to get a room. Are they always like this?" He hissed to Bomby.

"YEP," he beamed. He could confirm what with how close the three had grown since Naily's return from years of separation. The long-distance relationship they were forced to adapt to after TPOT 5 didn't exactly scratch their mutual itch to be in each others arms. The current sight brought back a particularly pleasant memory from more recent times:

When the show ended and they finally had a chance to reunite, the three had all built up such a desire to give affection to one another that the first thing they did as soon as they made physical contact was hug for three straight days. Sometimes, Bomby would do some footwork, carrying them into their room and grabbing drinks or food, all while not breaking the hug of course. But for the most part, those blissful 75 hours were spent doing nothing but chatting, snuggling, relaxing, and watching random shows on TV. Oh, the way they all cackled watching the Exitors' real time fandubs and hilariously bad reruns of the Object Bang Theory…

Since that faithful day, one would rarely be seen without the two others. The closest they got to splitting was when they chose to sit at different tables, over an argument regarding how to spell fortnite, a period of two weeks, which was resolved later that morning. But aside from that, they were strung together like a sowed blanket. Or, rather, welded together like three small Lego pieces, pressed together with ease and virtually impossible to be separated from that point onward.

Naily slowly moved backwards as she stared into her lovers eyes. "You're so beautiful," she hummed. Price Tag chuckled sheepishly as their blush deepened, before gazing off to their left. "Naily…" "Yes, honey?" She pulled them closer. "She's here…" "Yeah, I'm here…" She wrapped her paws around them in a hug. "I'm so sorry I ever left you…" "No, I mean…" They frowned. "At the window. Our order's here." Naily looked to see someone with bags of food. "SHOOT!" She cried as she dropped Price Tag and scrambled to look natural. "We'll, uhh, be taking our food now, thanks!" She smirked, nervously.

The worker was uninterested. "Uh-huh," She muttered tiredly as she handed the bags of food over to her customer, who grabbed on to them with what she thought were really large gloves. She didn't know what it was with these kids and their weird ass fashion trends but at this point she was so exhausted that she couldn't bother to care. Working 16 straight hours without a wink of rest had taken its toll and all she wanted was to get this last bunch of customers over with so she could end her shift. "Will that be cash or credit?" She sighed.

Naily blinked. "What?" "Cash or credit?" The cashier repeated. "How are you going to pay for your order?" Nickel stood up and slid over to the front. "Oh, I think I see what this guy's deal is. Check this out!" He flopped face-first onto the counter. The cashier stared down at him, then up at Naily, who stared back with an inattentive grin. "…Is that a nickel?" The unamused cashier mumbled. "The one and only!" She confirmed. "Okay. This is five cents," she said, blankly. "Your order is $104.86." "Uhhh, actually it's worth much more than meets the eye!" Book interjected, trying to stop a conflict before it could begin. She scrambled to make something up, "It's a one of a kind, uhhh… Nicko…min…ator, the last of its species!"

"What? No I'm not!" "Oh yeah, you are!" Price Tag >:]'d, sticking to the bit. "He's only one of the highest priced thingamajigs on the market!" They wrapped their string around him and fibbed the highest value they could count to. "check it, 8 whole bucks!"

Book facepalmed. Cake grew worried. "Wait, are we really gonna just leave him here?" "It's fine," said Pillow. "There's other ones." The cashier raised an eyebrow. "So he's not one of a kind? W-Whatever, we can't accept this. If you can't afford to pay for your order I'm afraid you'll have to return it." "Well," sighed Nickel as he stood up, "I know when I'm beat."

"Now just hold on, Nickel…" Naily flicked him back over on his back. "I think I can make this work. Here, I'll write you a check." She opened the glove compartment and grabbed a paper slip. She scribbled something down and slapped it on the counter, sliding it over to the cashier, who was too tired to realize she couldn't accept that as payment either.

She picked up the slip and was met with a crudely written note, "Distraction". "DRIVE!" Shouted Naily. By the time the cashier had realized what was going on, her group of dine-and-dashers had already sped off, with the food, but without the odd nickel cosplayer that still lay on her desk. "They're gone, aren't they?" He asked. Wendy sighed. Trillions of entities in the universe and none of them wanted to give her a single fucking break. She pressed a button at the top of the room, "Code 2762 at 1:15," before resting her chin on the bar and waiting to be allowed to leave. "You got anything you wanna kill time with?" She slurred to the coin costumed fellow. "Uhhh…" He thought of an interesting conversation topic. "I cranked a machine once."

"What are you doing?!" Cried Cake as he watched the Burger King fade away from his vision. "He's still in there! NICKEL'S STILL IN THE RESTAURANT!" "Oh yeah… Well, the only option to get him back I can think of is to go through the Drive Thru again, and that's gonna need a lotta quick maneuvering now that we've burned bridges." Naily searched through the bags for some fries. "How about we eat first? Can't have good reflexes on an empty stomach!" Price Tag looked up at her. "I thought you already ate?" "But these are better for the brain," replied Naily as she stuffed a pawful of fries in her mouth. "Potatoes and all. Not as high in mercury." "Ah, that's fair."

Naily handed a fry over to Book, who handed it over to Cake. "You want this one, Cake?" "I'll eat when we get home," he muttered, quietly, as Book took the fry back and ate it. He was too pertubed to dwell on food. How could anybody not be pertubed knowing one of their friends was accidentally left behind? How was nobody freaking out?! Book could see he was fearful, almost to the point of tears. "Cake? Are you feeling alright?"

"We left him behind…" He weeped. "We abandoned him! We're never gonna see him again!" Book felt guilt wash over her. "Oh, don't say that! You know he's just a few blocks away." She rubbed his back. "Look, I know our teammates are a bit… erratic, at times, but they still care deeply about their friends, don't they? They'd never do something that out of line if they weren't sure it'd end up alright in the end." He sniffed. "But what abo-"

"Shh," Pillow hushed as she slid into the front seat, pointing onto the window. "Look over there," she exclaimed, cueing everyone to look in her direction. It was the same hotel where Naily had found the car. Pillow was particularly fixating on a suited man standing outside, who appeared particularly livid for whatever reason. He was kicking and screaming, jumping up and down in unabashed fury. "Isn't that the guy from the poster?" Taggy pointed out.

"Oh yeah," Naily replied. "Ron whacha call it. Gosh, his face's practically turning red. Pillow, try reading his lips!"

Pillow rolled down the window and peeked her head out, curling her hands around her eyes to mimic binoculars. She spoke in a monotone voice. "-idiots, I don't care who you are, I am the President. If you don't get it back in five seconds, you can tell your kids they won't be having a christmas… look, there they are, that's my car, those assholes stole my car, shoot them, shoot them."

"PILLOW!" Cried Book, who pulled her down just in time to miss the flurry of bullets coursing through the windows. Everyone followed suit as gunshots flurried through the car; the bullet-proof glass was strong, but the government's exclusive top-model NERF guns were stronger. When the noise fell silent, Naily perked back up. "Whew, that was close. You guys all good?" "Not mentally," Book whimpered. "We have one casualty…" Cake spoke, crestfallen as he held up a soda cup. Liquid bled out of the gaping bullethole in its middle, pouring through the front and back ends. Taggy giggled. "Heh. Well, if an object got shot today, I'm sure glad it wasn't one with a face. Huh, Naily?" They looked up at her, frowning when she didn't humor their playful quip.

"Naily? Are you OK, buddy?" Her eyes were wide, blank, empty, yet filled with despair. Invisible tears fell down her face, sliding down to the corners of her mouth, a small frown with lips that covered her clenched, grinding teeth, as if to give but a glimpse at her interior rage. Price Tag's face formed semicolons. They'd never seen her like this. "Slow down." Naily hissed at their partner, who understood quickly. They eased pressure on the pedal as Naily slowly turned around, the vehicle creeping onto the sidewalk.

"Wait for my signal…" She carefully waited for non-target pedestrians to clear the runway. Book began to connect the dots. Her heart sank. "Naily, it's just a cup, whatever you're gonna do, don't do it!"

"Brake…" Bomby fastened his seatbelt. Those gunmen had really done it now; there was no stopping Naily at this point. Whatever was about to happen, was about to happen. "RAM IT!"

The car shot forward. Onlookers screamed and leapt out of the way as the vehicle sped towards the clique of suits. The self-proclaimed President's jaw dropped in horror as the cadillac careened towards his body. His ear-splitting scream was cut off with a loud, painful crunch, his body crashing into the windshield, his nose breaking and his arm bones forced to twist into unnatural angles. His face flattened from the sheer force, like something one would see out of a Tom & Jerry cartoon. It quickly slipped downwards leaving only a trail of blood, which was quickly cleaned off with the wipers. The body fell under the tires as they crushed out what little life remained in the corpse.

"Aw yeah!" Cheered Taggy as they gave Naily a high-five. Book's jaw was agape. "That was… you just…" "Now that Big Red's been taken care of, let's get Nickel back!" She flicked the radio back on instinctively, and like something out of a cheesy movie, a song began on cue. "Look at this photograph," the speakers blared. Pillow barely bat an eye. She clearly didn't mind this song as much.

Nickel flailed his legs around. "And it's just, she does nothing, while I toil and toil and toil for some stupid recovery center that doesn't even work after a while!" Wendy was attentive to the story the stranged coin costumed fellow was telling. She didn't think it was real, at all, but anything to keep her awake while she waited for management to let her leave.

He stood up and started gesturing wildly with his feet, "Flumple dumple smordledorf, it was degrading! Like, I was reduced to a cranking slave, crank crank crack 'till the sky goes black." He sat back down with a huff. "Why didn't you just, like… stop?" Wendy asked. "What?" "Like, just stop cranking. If you feel, like… degraded, or whatever it was, why keep doing something you hate, y'know?"

And let his friends die? He quickly grew defensive. "Oh yeah, well…" He stuttered, struggling to come up with a comeback. "Why don't you… stop… your thing?!" She fell silent. Nickel's response was cheap, and poorly delivered, but something about it resonated with her in a way she couldn't describe. Could she really do that? Just stop doing her job for a while because it strained her mental health to the point of splinters? Then again, money was tight… She furrowed her eyebrows. "You do your whatever, I do mine," she dismissed vaguely.

A car swept by, as the dine and dashing group from before grabbed Nickel by the foot and pulled him back into the car. Taking back a tip? Now that was low… not that he was, actually, a coin of course. Was he? Whatever, he was gone anyway, but his idea remained…

Cake grabbed onto Nickel and hugged him tightly, as he sobbed hysterically. "NICKEL I'M SO SORRY I MISSED YOU SO MUCH I WAS SO WORRIED I'D NEVER SEE YOU AGAIN," He spouted, as he peppered him with platonic kisses. Nickel shut his eyes, shielding them from the brown smooch marks appearing all across his body. He was glad Cake loved him enough to fear for his safety, he just wished he wasn't caught so off guard. "Thanks, but I was kinda in the middle of something…"

"Well that doesn't matter, now," Naily said as she swung the car back onto the road, then into the nearest parking lot. "You must be starving after all that waiting! Here…" She took the items that weren't fries out of the bag. Those were for later. She threw a cheeseburger at Nickel, some nuggets at Cake, a 'whopper' at Bomby, an ice cream at Pillow, a salad at Book, and took the kids meal for herself. The plastic toy inside, presumably inedible to her, was given to Taggy; an astronaut of some kind, with Toy Story 7 branding, they were merely estatic that it eminated light of any kind for them to, quote unquote, "eat".

Nickel stared into the burger, his focus blotting out all other senses. This was it. The purpose of the entire trip, to get at least a taste of viewers' world food. With great carefulness, he moved the food toward his mouth and bit into it, his teeth digging into the papery outer layer, the soft, warm bread, and the juicy, succulent meat. He thinks he forgot a step, but it doesn't matter. He's eating now, and he can finally taste the higher realm.

But something about it feels off, artificial. Less personal than Two's cooking. It tasted better, obviously, but what it had in flavour it lacked in heart. There is no love, no passion to be tasted, rather, homogenized corporate fluff.

His train of thought was derailed by a series of blasting sirens, fading in from in front of him. "W…what's that?" Pillow looked to the front window for the source of the noise. There, crawling over the horizon, were a flock of cars speeding their way. Atop their rooves were sirens, flashing red and blue. "Oh, I know these guys! They're feds." She turned to Naily, smiling. "They're probably angry at us because we killed their leader. We should drive. Now." She got the memo, forwarding the message to Taggy, who floored the pedal and swerved the car onto the road. The chase was on.

The car bulleted down the path, dashing away from the persuing police. Onlookers gasped as sirens whined throughout the street, dispatch after dispatch chasing the rogue presidential cadillac. Many scrambled for their phones to take pictures of the incident, eager to document perhaps one of the strangest events in U.S. political history.

One enemy car managed to catch up with Just Not, preparing to throw them off course. Ram! Nickel flew off Cake, hitting the back of the driver's seat before collapsing onto the floor. "Oh dear!" Book cried as she stood to pick him up. Ram! The car surged forward. Book was thrown out of her seat, pages aflutter. Pillow, who was restrained by her seatbelt, took notice. "You seem to be having trouble with one of the drivers," She observed. "Do you want me to take care of them?" "Y-yeah, sure, do what you can!" Book groaned as she rubbed her temple. Ram! The car swerved from left to right. Naily struggled to keep balance, frantically trying to stop the car from spinning. Taggy twisted into awkward positions in a desperate attempt to hold onto the pedal. Bomby gripped onto the grab handle, failing to curb his panic. "WE'RE GONNA DIE!" He screamed. Ram! Like a kick in an already bruised chest, the car was shoved again. "HURRY!" Cried Bomby. When Book finally managed to regain composure she could make out Pillow reaching for the back of her covers, pulling out a large, black shape. Her eyes widened. "I-is that a…" Ram! Book shrieked as she fell back onto the floor. Pillow rolled down the window, unfazed.

"I lied, earlier." She said, as she unbuckled, and took aim. "I have a gun."

Right as the car was about to ram again, Pillow fired a spray of bullets, which burst through the enemy's windshield and caused the car to swerve away in surprise. It turned sharply to the left, spinning directly into a building, which collapsed on top of it in a fiery explosion. "BURN IN HELL, YOU CAPITALIST PIG DOGS!" Cried Pillow.

Naily saw the car fade away, and sighed in relief. The feeling vanished as she saw a sharp curve in the road. "We're about to turn!" She shouted. Pillow noted, grabbing onto the grab handle and using the velocity from the vehicle's swing to fling herself onto the back trunk. She used one hand to cling onto the window, and the other to hold onto the gun. Bullets fired hysterically at the cops as they swerved, desperately trying to dodge the storm of gunfire while keeping chase with the criminals.

"How are we going to get home?!" Cake panicked as he pulled Nickel in for a protective hug. "I don't know!" Naily snapped. "The alleyway could be anywhere!" Book facepalmed. Her cover was starting to redden from the amount of times she had slapped it these past few hours. Taggy made a <:[. "Book, weren't you keeping directions?!" "Me?!" Book replied. "Oh, yeah, me, uhh…" She scrambled across the floor. That page couldn't have gone too far, could it?

After a few seconds of searching and a quick buildup of fear, she finally found the page. She sighed as she sat back in her seat and buckled up, scanning the pages for any valuable information. In spite of how rushed it was, it felt surprisingly comprehensible. "Okay, do you know where Barnes Street is?" "No!" Naily responded, before seeing a street sign. "Yes!" "Okay, turn right there…"

Pillow felt herself slide sharply to her left, flipping over onto her front as she struggled to maintain her grip on the rim. She found herself awkwardly shifting onto her right as she tried to get a good look at the pack of feds, still following her with intent to kill. If they didn't recognise her before, they certainly recognised her now.

She was running low on ammo, and if she wanted to permanently get rid of the threat, she'd have to change tactics. She looked up. A helicopter flew above them at an almost safe distance. She assumed it belonged to a news station, of some sort. Stupid spies, probably broadcasting this live for the whole world to see, like it was any of their business. At least in BFDI there was a chance to edit some of the more personal things out. She took aim.

She unexpectedly swerved back to her right, this time almost falling off the car. Her feet slid off the trunk, and for the moment, she thought she would end up skidding onto the road, meeting an untimely end as her cover was ripped to shreds. Yet, thankfully, a swift swerve sent her back to the uncomfortable, yet safer position she was in before, and she, once again, took aim.

"OK, now you're gonna wanna stick to this road for a couple more metres!" Book instructed. Naily obliged, using this time to glare at the car coming up to her right. It slowly gained on her, and she anticipated another ramming. But instead, the driver rolled down the window and poked their head out to talk to her.

"DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA," they shouted, over the unending howls of the wind. "HOW FAST YOU'RE GOING?!" Naily rolled down her window. "NO," she remarked, "I CAN'T READ." "I'M GOING TO NEED TO SEE YOUR LICENSE AND REGISTRATION!" She rolled her eyes, pulling out an I.D. from who knows where and sticking her paw out to give it to them. They grabbed it and read its label, a single, crudely written word: "Distraction". Looking up from the note, they were barely given enough time to react to the car in front of them, and with a painful crash, they demolished the entire front of their car, and practically their entire body. "Naily 2, Viewers 0!" Cheered Taggy.

After skillful shooting at the helicopter's rotors, Pillow watched the fireworks. The machine barreled down uncontrollably, spiralling into the police herd and colliding with a loud, dramatic explosion, which sent debris flying even in her close vicinity. The bright orange light soon faded, leaving only piles of rust and rubble. Pillow sighed in relief, and swerved back into the car. That spectacle was worth the world. "Uhh, guys, I think we missed," Cake muttered as he pointed to the bright neon "alleyway" sign that they had just sped past. That must've been where we came from, Book thought as she facepalmed.

To make matters worse, Bomby could see another herd of cars speeding towards them. "TURN! TURN!" He shouted. Naily swerved around, this time heading in the opposite direction. Her stomach dropped when she saw a pile of cars blocking her path. "Well, we're done for." said Nickel. "Taggy, brake!" Naily commanded. Much to her surprise, they didn't. "Price Tag, brake!" "No, we can't!" They snapped. "You can make it through this, you ran over that guy, you can run through a couple cars!"

Their words were kind, if not poorly timed considering the circumstances. Nethertheless, she trusted them enough to play along. She angled herself towards the alleyway and shut her eyes, hoping with all her might that they were correct and she would push through the piles of cars. It was either that, or nothing.

By now, a crowd of almost every object in the hotel had gathered around the vending machine. Green tape was set up near the area, so nobody but those willing to try and fix it could cross. Surprisingly, after so many hours, nobody could seem to understand what was wrong with the vending machine, or how they could get Winner's "money" back. Not even Golf Ball could fix the issue.

Snowball, one of the only objects who hadn't previously showed up, stepped proudly in to the fray. He strutted down the cleared line, "You're all stumped by a vending machine? Pathetic! I can fix something like that in seconds," He boomed, shoving Golf Ball out of the way, "because I have arms!"

"No, stop, don't." Said Winner, sarcastically. He breathed in, then out, as he stretched his arms towards the vending machine. "Open sesame!"

Nothing happened. Everyone was silent for a brief few seconds. Snowball took another deep breath. "Open sesa-"

The car burst through the machine, flattening Snowball in the process. It flipped over repeatedly as the other objects rushed to get out of the way, Winner particularly growing afraid as their once dimmed fears were quickly rekindled. Finally, it settled, resting on its back.

One by one, Just Not climbed out of the vehicle. Naily, realizing that she wasn't dead, leapt around in celebration and cheered. Seeing Taggy, she leapt into their legs estatically, giving them multiple swift kisses and thanks. Their string began to wag again as the affection extinguished their uneasiness. They made a ^w^, their voice cracking as they cheered giddily that they were both okay, and they didn't think twice before reciprocating her hug as they wrapped their legs around hers tightly. Soon afterwards they were joined by Bomby, who pulled both of them in for a group hug. "OHMAGOSH! NAILY! TAGGY!" He cried, as the group barrel-rolled forward in excitement.

Soon after they were joined by Cake, who was glad to see his friends were alright, then Nickel, then Book, then Pillow…

"Just Not?!" Cried Two, as they all stopped to look at them. "Where have you been? We've been trying to fix this ve-" They froze when they turned around to see a giant, green portal. They were left in a paralyzing state of shock, their jaw agape as they stared at the wormhole.

"The real world," they slowly turned to the team. "You went to the real world."

Price Tag sighed, as they stepped forward. "I guess there's no denying it any longer." They shut their eyes into a U_U. "It was Winner. Winner forced us to go." They recoiled. "T-Taggy!" "Winner! You mean you were in on this?!" They began to sweat. "Well, I mean-" "Yeah, totally! We were just trying to keep to ourselves, but they threatened to terminate our cable subscription, it was horrible!" Naily put a paw on her forehead melodramatically, playing along with the bit. "Book, you can back us up, right?"

But Book was already running off. She held up a finger, likely to indicate that they had taken things 'one' step too far, before disappearing into the distance. The joke was on her, though, Naily thought. She was holding up the wrong one.

Either way she couldn't keep up the act. "…It's just a prank?" She shrugged.

"I DON'T CARE IF IT WAS A BIRTHDAY GIFT OR ANOTHER TRIAL FROM GOD!" Two yelled, "I AM BEYOND ANGRY AT ALL OF YOU! Winner, I gave you clear instructions to not randomly create portals to the real world without my permission."

"I'm sorry!" They sighed. "N-Nickel said there were purple tomatoes, and I was hungry!"

"You eat those literally every other day! Nickel! I tell you to be more grateful for what you have, so you run off into another dimension?!" "W-well, yeah, but the food they have there doesn't really taste- have the same heart that yours does."

"…YOU ATE THEIR FOOD?!" They cried, taking personal offense. "Look," said Naily, "I'm really sorry if we did something wrong by running off. We just wanted to find more of the exotic caviar you were talking about!"

They frumped. "The ca- Is that what this is about?" Nickel's eyes darted around. "Well, yeah, where else would you get it from?"

"Nickel." Two said, bluntly. "Nickel, look at me. We have a canal, with fish in it. That lay eggs. Caviar is fish eggs."

"Oh." He tapped his foot, awkwardly. "Well that's why we didn't really… find any, anyway. We mostly just ate burgers."

"Whatever you ate, it wasn't worth violating one of my clearest rules!" They sighed. "Look, I'll let you all off the hook this time, since clearly none of you had any malicious intent." They walked towards the portal, while eyeing Winner, "and using your limitless power irresponsibly, even for just a minute, is admittedly tempting," before standing in front of it. "But you all could've gotten very hurt, and for that risk alone, I don't want you ever sneaking out like that again."

They turned around. "Now I'm going to go get some stuff for oh MY GOOOOOOOOOOOODDDDDDDD!" They screamed as they saw a flurry of tanks, helicopters, and police cars aiming directly at them. They hastily ripped the portal off the wall, folding it into a bite-sized piece before swallowing it with a quick gulp. They breathed heavily for a few seconds. Winner raised their eyebrows. "That's impressive." "WHAT DID YOU- Thanks, by the way, thank you for noticing, but WHAT DID YOU DO!?"

Pillow pulled out some shoelaces. "We also killed the president."

Nickel bit into his fried caviar. It was crunchier, and more bitter than his previous feast. "Well, maybe two week house arrest isn't that bad after all!" Naily perked, kicking her feet against her assigned bed as she switched on the TV. "Yeah," Taggy said as they huddled under the blanket. "We get room service and everything!" "AND, THANKS TO DOORDASH, 4% CASHBACK ON EVERY PURCHASE." Cheered Bomby. Naily awkwardly nodded. Perhaps exposure to the viewers' world had gone to his head.

She looked up at the roof - gray, like the rest of the room - and silently sighed. While she appeared about as optimistic as the others, secretly, Naily couldn't wait to get out of here. The room's dull coloring was nowhere near as visually stimulating as her walls, which were somehow littered with bright neon blinkie gifs and other animated posters. She stared enviously at the bed which would've been assigned to Book had she not been pardoned by Two. Stupid justice. She was probably being rewarded with a nice, tropical vacation for her efforts to stop the situation from escalating before it began, while the rest of the team lounged in prison.

Naily was right: but in actuality, being separated from her friends even for a little while was perhaps just as punishing to Book as this ordeal was to Naily. The friend group they shared was tight-knit: nobody could stay mad at each other for long, and even if they didn't think it, they longed to see each other again and quickly reconcile.

"Well, Burger Kings come and go…" Cake stated as he ate a fry, whose recipe had been copied from the titular restaurant after much research, "but you're all the only monarchs I'll ever need."

Awkward, yet sweet. That was Cake. He huddled up with the rest of his team in a hug while thinking about how Loser would be the royal jester in this metaphor.

Ironically, Nickel thought to himself as he took another bite of his caviar, Two perhaps did need to go to the viewers' world to make proper ground sevruga after all, before the incident made it too dangerous for anyone to venture into again. Except it wasn't the caviar that was obtained from the viewers' world.

It was the microwaves, delivered by Black Sea Shipping Company.

Pillow crept into her room. It had been vacant for the past fortnite on account of her house arrest. Her friends were currently having a reunion party downstairs to celebrate finally being able to interact with the outside world. How naive, or rather, ignorant. They had finally taken a step outside of their little bubble and were still perfectly content with staying inside? Their loss.

She bit her fingernail into the shape of a key, and unlocked her drawer. Two had confiscated her gun after finding it during the car inspection. They didn't, however, think to search her room. Searching through her pile of backup weapons, she found another: a ray gun. Smaller, and with a much slower firing speed, but it packed a punch if you had good aim. Perfect for what she was trying to achieve.

She switched it to "Portal" mode. The incident was probably all over the news by now. It would take a lot of work to cover it all up, but if Pillow had her heart set on fixing what was broken, chances are it wouldn't take more than a few hours. If all went well she would be back in time to catch the end of the party.

She aimed at the floor.

She breathed in.

She fired.

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biomic · 2 months

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mom screamed in my face for telling her not to smoke and then called my sister to say i was a "fat bastard loser" and that she hopes i die. awesome. that's a lot even for her. for context, she was in the hospital last month with severe breathing issues and was essentially put on palliative care because they couldn't get a proper diagnosis before she ended up recovering. she would've died if i hadn't put my foot down and taken her there. and that's like, the fifth or sixth time i've basically saved her life. i've genuinely lost count by this point. but asking her not to smoke a cigarette is a step too far i guess!

im just so exhausted that this is all happening again. she spirals and she improves and then she spirals again and none of the systems in place that should be able to help us can do anything without more money than we can afford. my sister called me afterwards to know what the hell was going on and i just broke down. as comforting as she tries to be she's still quick to remind me that i shouldn't hate mom because she's mentally ill and she's a victim in all this too. i've tried so, so hard over the years to stay compassionate and empathetic towards my mother and i know she doesn't "actually mean" most of the things she says in this state, but when am i allowed to just say i don't care anymore? even when she's stable and receiving treatment, she downplays the impact it has on all of us and refuses to self reflect beyond a few measly "sorrys"

it's so dehumanizing to take care of someone for over 15 years, sacrificing so much of your time and energy and life just to still be treated this way. like im shit on the bottom of her shoe for daring to question her for HER benefit. i can never get those years back. i am so much less of the person i could've been because of everything i've had to do and give in the hopes that maybe this time, she'll really get better.

i will be okay. we're already putting things in motion to get her care again, and maybe by some miracle, find somewhere she can stay and get help long term this time. i will not hurt myself (and i never have before), and i will not shut down and disappear for two months without a word like last year. i still hate that i did that. i don't want to worry anybody, and i don't even want to be making this post. my new therapist has been great and so incredibly helpful already and i'll get into all this with her later in the week, but i just had to get this out of my system for today.

#awful day.#very heavy family stuff. just needed to get it out somewhere #i will be okay

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lesharl-eclair · 8 months

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strollonso fic recs part 1: fics

4 fics from authors who have just the one strollonso fic, and who somehow added SO MUCH to the genre. whose other works are equally insanely mindblowing (the charles/bono fic that i am still not oVER BY THE WAY... the painfully high-quality webbonso. charlos and landoscar.) im crying how do you guys do it (these fics actually changed my life i am not kidding:

all fics below the cut; if you enjoyed these fics, please show the authors comment and kudo love; should you be the author of a fic that's here, and don't want to be here, please reach out to me and your wish is my command :)

victor's spoil by venerat (E, 1.9k)

Two hours later Lance is told he’s going to the winner’s room. “Oh,” Lance says stupidly. "Uh. Me? Now?”

ouUEGHHGEUGHHH the rancid vibes. it's all mind games here. lance's desperation vs nando's casual (playful????!!!) viciousness.

the attention to detail is so stunning. the way the scene is set, the inherent power imbalance, lance so eager to please it's almost painful to watch....

"Even when Fernando aims it warmly, it still makes Lance shiver. That’s because Lance, of course, is fucked up. He’s already getting hard between his legs, just because Fernando chose him. Just from being here, from the anticipation of knowing his role. From the uncertainty of sitting there, waiting." im sobbign <3

this one rearranged my brain a lot. one of my favourite renditions of their dynamic.

***

in the hold by @pressurizer2 (M, 1.9k)

Lance scrunches his nose and makes a noise of protest as soon as Fernando’s hand leaves his ankle.

im still reeling at this concept okay. i havent gotten over it yet i don't think my review is sufficient to describe how good this is but can we talk about this like

"Mouth open and sucking in air, trying his best to keep quiet, Lance feels both compressed and torn apart by the intensity of Fernando’s attention, redirected. He’s being talked about, but not talked to. Praised but not acknowledged. Lifted up high and pushed down hard." such a waaay with words!!!! i am very extremely enamoured.

the push and pull here is perfect: bratty lance (<3) trying to elicit a reaction, nando willing to indulge despite his discipline (he's actually so into it.....it's all a game for him.......uuuueegeghheheu.....) the way tension is built and released is so so masterful and a delight from start to finish :)

***

A Little Bit of Exhibition by @sweetpeapoppy (M, 5.1k)

He’d heard all of the rumours about the way Fernando operated in Formula One, how ruthless he was, how he terrorised his teammates, how he would grind you down until you doubted your own abilities. Lance knew he didn’t need that. But he also knew he didn’t have a choice either, Fernando was coming to Aston Martin whether he liked it or not.

nando as an exhibitionist is...something. how he draws lance in to do the most brazen things, how lance is powerless to resist, is such a tantalising prospect. lawrence's obliviousness makes me want to shake my head patronisingly ("Lawrence agreed, feeling grateful he had another driver pairing that were getting along." ??????? ?????) this fic really shines because of all the details (sweater paws?? hand on nape??? the actual db12 feature???) the "canon compliance" makes your concept so true to life and now i can't unsee it.

the thing that stayed with me was the image of nando bent over the car. it still makes me lose my shit to think about.

***

I make two grand an hour by @kritischetheologie (E, 3.1k)

Lawrence had made Lance read an entire fucking book on this history of Formula 1 before he started the job, and all Lance could remember from the 2000’s was the German guy who won all of them, before the other German guy started winning all of them. But still, who did this guy think he was, trying a line like that on him? Aston Martin wasn’t the type of team that could hire a double world champion. “Michael Schumacher won in 2005,” he said, trying to project more confidence than he felt. “Nice try.”

BRATTY LANCE. I MIGHT ACTUALLY CRY

the voicing is nailed doWN to a tee and i am thriving. there is one very interesting roscoe related comparison in there that i will not be forgetting any time soon. this ticks all the boxes for me - backstory, characterisation, humour, there is even Plot !!

also love the offhand mention of glance.....they could have been together in another universe..... "Everyone was short except for George Russell, who was both tall and fast. Why couldn’t his father have invested in Mercedes instead?"

this author brings so much delight and depth to every single one of the pairings she writes about, and i will not be forgetting about this any time soon.

***

that's all for today :) i DO have more strollonso fic recs on the way so keep your eyes peeled if you like what you see !!

if you enjoyed this, or if i missed any fic, please let me know :) drop me an ask mayhaps if you would like more fic recs, and i will try my best to give timely unqualified opinions <3

#f1 #formula 1 #fernando alonso #lance stroll #strollonso #claire's fic recs #claire rambles #1418

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mewhenimanonymous · 4 months

Text

Paranoia (Chapter 3)

(Secret History/TSAA Tails x Paranoid!Reader)

A/N

hai guys sorry it’s been so long ;c i started writing the next couple chapters after i published 1 and 2 but i didn’t know where 4 should go so i stopped writing for a while and then i forgot about it. i haven’t been on tumblr for a while either so when i logged back on and saw how much traction paranoia got i was like ?!!?! thank you guys sm omg?! so like im gonna try to finish this fanfic eventually but chapter 4 is a total mess right now so here’s chapter 3!! im sorry it’s short but i promise chapter 4 (and maybe 5?!) will be longer :3

—————————————————————————————————————————

You couldn’t remember anything after that, or even right now as you’re trying to wake up after a deep nap. All noise is muffled, and everything is blurry, you can only make out an orange blob looking down at you.

Wait, where am I? Soon the loopiness starts to fade away, and you’re coming back to your senses, though certainly not completely yet as Tails looks totally different than when you last remember him. Crazy how the brain works.

“Tails,” you mumble quietly, but you’re shushed by a pointed, slender finger.

“It’s alright, my dear.” His usually sweet, younger voice you’re used to was replaced by a shrill and unnerving one.

I’m hallucinating. How many drugs did he pump me with? You feel his cold, lanky hand cup your cheek, his unnaturally sharp claws grazing your jawline.

“You’re all better now.” He leans into you, examining you, and you’re able to better inspect Tails’ new monstrous form your brain made up. Freakishly bright and hypnotizing blue and pink eyes staring into your soul, a wide joker-like grin with teeth so sharp and jagged even a dentist couldn’t save them, matted and unkempt fur now with a more orangish hue, not to mention how tall he’s become compared to his usual short stature, his figure so skinny you could see his rib cage… he looks sickening.

Seeing this grotesque version of your friend should be terrifying to you, but instead you’re met with an empty, numb feeling. Your subconscious must be aware of this hallucination.

“What… happened?” Your head is still fuzzy from the anesthesia, and you try to ignore the unnatural sight that’s bestowed upon you, knowing there’s no way Tails would be aware of what you’re seeing.

“Why, I fixed you! Now my sweetheart won’t have to worry about anything ever again!” He takes your hands and intertwines your fingers together, still staring… has he blinked yet?

Sweetheart? You cringe at the nickname, having an uncomfortable feeling in the pit of your stomach.

“Tails, what’s gotten into you?” You try letting go of Tails’ hands, but his grip becomes almost unbearingly tight and you let out a yelp.

“I’m protecting you! I never want my precious (Y/N) to be in harm’s way ever again! Especially not when you’re in this pitiful, repulsive universe you call home.” Tails rolls his eyes and looks to his right. You follow his gaze and widen your eyes as you become entranced by a bright, magenta-colored portal. There were many wires connected to it, most of which coming from a crystal of the same color that was sparking with electricity.

This has to be a dream.

“I was gonna wait until much later to reveal myself to you, but plans have changed. It looks like my newest project has already decided to start tearing this universe apart, and I couldn’t bear to stay in that pathetic skin-suit of my imposter any longer than I had to!” He started becoming visibly angry, and he was crushing your hands with such force you never thought could come from him. You let out a much more painful yelp, and Tails quickly lets go of your hands, looking remorseful as he picks them up gently and plants a sympathetic kiss on them. You have mixed feelings about this.

“Plus, I don’t want to hide anything from my darling. You deserve to see the real me~” Tails runs his hand up your neck, then traces a claw along your jaw and tilts your chin up to face him. His moves his face closer into yours, and seeing his face up close only makes him more disgusting to look at. Dark eye bags around his eyes, his breath reeking like he hasn’t brushed his teeth in months, and some gray hairs in his orange fur that shouldn’t be there—he wasn’t that old, yet… or was he?

He should be a major red flag to you, but now that you couldn’t feel any fear, it was replaced with sympathy. However this dream version of Tails got this way, you care about him, and you want to help him, even if it might not be real. Even if nothing he said made any sense to you.

“Tails, did you hit your head…? Have you been feeling alright?” You move his hand out of the way and try sitting up, however he forcefully twists your head to your right to look out the window. The outside world was slowly being drained of its color, with most of the world already gray and lifeless. There were veins of bright yellow light spreading all throughout the world—it looked almost like an infection of some kind. Debris and parts of the earth were floating up into the sky, and with it, the corpses of your friends—including a massacred version of a slightly familiar blue hedgehog.

“Either come with me, or stay here and DIE like the rest of your ‘FRIENDS’.” Tails’ voice becomes much more vile in tone, which would scare the life out of any normal person. “Quite frankly, you would be an imbecile to choose the latter. But I know you better than that, sweetheart~”

He was threatening you, but you can’t feel fear. You don’t fear death, but it’s not like you want to die, so he was still able to trap you. Even then, you don’t care about anything else, you just want to help him. Maybe you’re foolish, but you know that somewhere deep down, the real Tails is in there—at least, you hope. For all you know, this may not be Tails at all.

“I’ll… I’ll come with you.” You turn your head toward Tails as he lets go of your face, and a wide, sinister grin makes its way onto his face.

“Excellent choice, my dear~” He presses his chapped lips onto your cheek, giving a wet kiss that makes your body tense up. When he pulls away, he stares at you with his sickening grin for a moment longer, before grabbing your hand and leading you toward the portal.

You both stand at the edge, and he looks at you with a smug smirk.

“Ladies first~” Tails bows slightly as he gestures his hand toward the portal. You’re tempted to go ahead, but instead you push him in, and with a shrill yell he’s gone in an instant. You can’t help but snicker as you follow him inside.

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finerllines · 2 years

Text

love, harry [bestfriend!h au]

a/n: hello everyone i hope yall are still here and reading!! im so sorry it took so long i had a major slump for a couple of months but now im back and im so excited to wrap up charlie and harry's story. thank you for reading!! please give me feedback, comment, and reblog if you enjoyed <3

summary: harry needs his best friend back and he will do anything to get her to love him back

wc: 11k+

tw: none :-)

prev part

///

One of the main occupational hazards of being a touring musician is missing things. Eventually, people learn to stop sending invitations. Just as well, it gets harder and harder to find new ways to say ‘sorry, I’ve got work’. When most of the people you grew up with have moved out of your small town, onto bigger and better things, home just becomes wherever you manage to stay for more than a month.

And that’s fine. That’s all Harry can really remember. Life became a matter of watching everyone else’s from a distance. Everyone’s except one.

Charlie.

Instead of Instagram stories and posts, it was personal photos and little vlogs about her day sent straight to him, for his eyes only. He doesn’t know what he did to earn her trust and love, but he has never taken it for granted. Somehow, she was never deterred by his lack of attendance, congratulatory texts and video calls thankfully being enough. Or it was enough, until she got pregnant.

He had worked so hard to show her it’s okay to open up and let people in again, and he went and pissed it all away. But he is determined to not let her shut him out again. Which is why he’s back at her front door, on four hours of sleep, still exhausted from the show the night before.

Nothing brings you back down to earth like standing in front of a door after performing in front of five thousand people, hands filled with grovelling supplies, shaking as it raises to knock.

Despite the many women he’s dated, grovelling is new to him. He likes to think he’s a pretty good boyfriend - he’s attentive, patient, and thoughtful. But by the time they get to the point where he would need to grovel, he normally already has one foot out the door, so instead of trying to make amends he accepts their fate and ends things. Cruel? Sure. But it’s the truth. He’s never really loved or cared about anyone enough to want to make the extra effort.

Except Charlie. And Charlie has never been mad at him.

Until now. Justifiably so.

It’s not that Harry doesn’t want to have this conversation, it’s all he’s wanted to do since their call, he just doesn’t know where to start.

Should he bring up the pure rage he felt when he saw the pictures of them and Richard? Or is that something he should save for later, after he has figured all of that out himself? He’s a jealous guy, everyone knows that, but he’s never felt jealousy so ugly and intense like that before, it felt so primitive and guttural; the near uncontrollable urge to remind Richard, and everyone, that Charlie does not belong to him. Problem is, Charlie doesn’t belong to him either. And neither does Rory. Less so now than ever.

He used to think he feels so strongly about her because she is a piece of his childhood, a piece of the Harry he used to be. Now, these feelings are undeniably romantic. None of her previous partners ever felt like a real threat because he was always confident that their history and the connection is stronger than anything these men would have to offer her. Then Richard made a baby with her. Talk about a connection.

Those weeks spent with Rory and Charlie were bliss. There hasn’t been a day spent without thinking about how they were doing since: whether Rory ate all her breakfast, or whether Charlie found the time to watch an episode of Taskmaster with a glass of wine. And when the domestic got too emotional for him, he would start to wonder what her skin would feel like if he ran his hand under her shirt, or what sounds she would make if he nuzzled his nose in the crook of her neck, peppering it with soft kisses and licks.

But none of that is as important as their friendship. So, until he figures out all of that out for himself, he needs to focus on apologising and begging for forgiveness.

Taking a deep breath, he wipes his palms on his thighs before knocking the door. While waiting, he talks himself through more deep breaths. It’s a good thing he did because when the door gets pulled open his breath hitches a little.

Finally seeing the person you’ve been missing and thinking about is almost life giving. Charlie is stunning, even in an old robe and a braid that looks like it was slept in.

“Harry, hi.”

He had been mentally bracing himself for iciness in her voice. Instead, all he hears is wariness, and half of her body remains hidden behind the door

Charlie is wary of him. Shit.

“Um, H?” she asks when he doesn’t respond.

“Hi,” he raises a hand as a greeting on instinct, forgetting that he’s holding a bouquet of flowers. “Can I come in?”

“Yeah, of course.” She replies as if it’s ridiculous that he has to ask, but she can't see how guarded she looks right now.

A wave of déjà vu hits. The uncertainty and ball of emotion in his belly reminds Harry of the day he came to confront Charlie about having a baby.

She walks in front of him guiding him to the kitchen.

“Rory’s just eaten breakfast, I’m getting started on mine. You can join me if you’d like.”

In the kitchen playing with a hand towel is the most cheerful baby. The smile that emerges on his face is instinctive, and it’s fortunately shared by Rory. He’s not sure if it’s wishful thinking but he thinks he sees her eyes light up with recognition. He wants to pick her up and cuddle her close, for his own comfort more than anything, but he reminds himself of the agenda and redirects his attention to his best friend.

Standing in the middle of her kitchen, kind of stupidly, he thrusts his hands forward, like a young boy presenting a gift to his crush for the first time.

“For you.”

Her brows quirk up. “For me?”

He nods. “Who else?”

“I don’t know, thought you might be just making a pit stop.” She takes the bouquet first, taking the time to admire the assortment of flowers. “Thank you. These are beautiful.”

After getting it situated in an old jar from under the sink she takes the small gift bag. Setting it on the kitchen counter, she starts to pull things out.

“Is this …” she trails off as she studies the items on the counter.

“It’s the special knife spoon thing you talked about. The one that is designed to get all the peanut butter out the jar. And I got you another set of those small and long wooden spoons.”

She doesn't say anything for a moment and continues staring at his offerings.

While scratching the nape of his neck he says, “Sorry, it was hard to find an apology gift that is meaningful and yet wouldn’t make you mad because I spent a shitload of money on it. I’ll get you a proper gift soon but I didn’t have too much time because of, you know, the –“

“Harry,” she cuts him off firmly, “I love it, thank you. It means a lot, really.” Stepping forward, she wraps her arms around him, squeezing tightly, cheek pressed comfortably against his body.

His heart tightens in his chest. He’s missed this. He was afraid he might never experience this again.

“I’m sorry. Please forgive me. I feel like all I’ve done since coming back is apologise but I need you to forgive me one more time, please. I really am sorry. I didn’t mean anything I said. You know that, right? I … I was just irrationally jealous and hurt that I wanted to hurt you too. It’s fucked up, but it’s the truth. You’ll only get the truth from now on. I promise. Please believe me.”

How can she not believe him?

The extra precautions taken to keep her anonymity as much as possible while also making sure she could be as involved in his life as she wants. Years of texts, calls, and everything in between where they exposed their truest selves to each other without fear of judgement. Even the way he is holding her now, breath racing in and out, like he might break down if she doesn’t believe him.

“H, I believe you. The things you said … they were fucked. But I can’t stay mad at you, even if I tried.”

Shaking his head, he mumbles into her hair, “Thank you. Thank you. You’re too good for me. You shouldn’t make it so easy for a guy, you deserve grovelling. And I will, I’m not done making it up to you.”

They both hug each other tighter, gripping the fabric on each other’s backs.

“I don’t need grovelling; you’ve already done so much. Besides, you bought me my first bouquet of flowers in like four years and you got me presents that tell me you pay attention to me. I rambled to you about loving small spoons with long handles and how much I hate not being able to clean out the peanut butter jar ages ago, and somehow you were actually listening and remembered.”

“That wanker never got you flowers?”

She rolls her eyes. “No, too practical for that. And for small spoons too.” She coughs to clear her throat. “Also, you’re allowed to curse him you. You were right.”

“About what?” Harry asks.

She makes no effort to explain, simply shrugging her shoulders in faux nonchalance. There’s a brief silence once again, then, a chill shoots up his spine. He places his hands on her forearms and pushes her far back enough to be able to see her face.

“No. Fucking. Way.”

“Not now, please. Can we talk about it later? I missed you and I don’t want to think about him.”

Of course. He never wants to think about Richard more than necessary anyways.

“Okay, I don’t want him ruining our time together. I want to spend time with my best girls.”

Harry ended up staying the night.

He woke up with Charlie’s head tucked under his, and her knees curled into herself on his lap. Despite the kink in his neck and the knot between his shoulders, he can’t bring himself to separate from her. The heat emanating from her body warms him in a way that soothes him. Their bodies haven’t been this close in forever, not since they were children and had sleepovers in the backyard where they always somehow woke up curled into each other.

Growing up together meant going through that awkward stage of being afraid to get too touchy with each other, and by the time they moved past that, they had both started developing real crushes and entering relationships with other people. Harry thought they were pretty affectionate for platonic friends anyways, but the way they’re intertwined now makes him realise that they can be so much closer, so, so much closer.

Charlie’s face is right there. He can see every crevice, bump, and wrinkle on her skin. His eyes can’t help but trace every feature - round her eyes, down the slope of her nose, and across her lips. He can’t pull his eyes away from her lips. They sit together so perfectly, in the perfect pout, begging to be pinched, bitten, and kissed. Begging to be pinched, bitten, and kissed by him specifically.

He doesn’t notice his face inching towards hers until their noses brush, causing her to tense in his arms. Harry freezes, watching tentatively as her lips purse and eyes squeeze tightly together.

“Uhhmm?” she groans.

Harry slowly moves his hand up and down Charlie’s back hoping to ground her as she slowly wakes up.

“It’s me, darling. Harry.”

“Hmm? H?”

She’s so precious. Harry feels like his heart might burst from how hard it’s beating.

“I’m right here. Good morning.”

With a big huff, her eyes blink open. Her forehead is pinched with confusion as she takes in her surroundings. Slowly pulling her arm from under his body, she reaches up and places her hand on Harry’s face, patting his cheek a couple of times as if trying to make sure he's really there.

With a little chuckle, he covers her hand with his, holding it in place on his cheek. Tilting his head slightly, he presses a small kiss to her palm. “Darling, I’m here. I came over yesterday and we fell asleep on the couch. Remember?”

Satisfied with his explanation, Charlie lets her body go lax against his.

Harry can’t help but smile at the way she trusts him, even half asleep.

Despite being forgiven almost immediately, there’s still a sense of uneasiness that he cannot shake. All of that is in his head though because Charlie has done nothing to make him feel uncertain. The looks, touches, and words they shared yesterday can only be described as tender, both of them obviously still emotionally fragile.

Richard’s fuck up is still unknown to Harry. He doesn’t care though. Not right now anyways. He got to kiss Rory’s cheeks until she erupted into excited giggles and watch as her gorgeous eyes slowly fluttered shut as she fell asleep in his rocking arms. Then, a tired but smiley Charlie tucked herself against him as they watched tv and talked about life with their heads pressed together.

But the feel good atmosphere of yesterday has dissipated, both of them forced to return to reality under the morning sunlight.

A strong vibration bursts their bubble.

When Charlie tries to peel herself from Harry, his arm quickly circles her waist to keep her close to him as he leans to grab his phone on the coffee table.

“Hello?” his voice is gruff from sleep. “I know … I’ll be there on time. I said I’ll be there … yes I know what I’m doing. Okay, bye.”

Talk about returning to reality.

“You need to go,” she says, not asks.

He nods. “I uh, didn’t get in my car to London this morning so they’re just wondering where I am. I have a show there tonight.”

Right. Harry just kicked off his new tour and suddenly appeared at her door after the first show.

The air around them is still as the two friends try to make sense of all that’s happened.

“Of course, you’re an important man.”

“Not too important for you and Rory.”

“I know.”

“I’m sorry we didn’t get to talk, like properly, last night, but I promise I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

“I’m glad you came, H, and Rory was thrilled to see you. She missed you, a lot. I’ve played your album so much she recognises your voice.”

Harry’s eyes pretty much glaze over at the thought. “Thank you for letting be in her life”

Charlie shakes her head and grabs his hands that have started to tremble. “You don’t need to thank me. I can't imagine you not being in her life. We’re Harry and Charlie, so I'm stuck with you.”

“You’re too good to me,” he whispers, “And we’re Harry, Charlie, and Rory.”

He has to bite his bottom lip to stop himself from saying everything he wants to say. With the last bit of self-control left in his body, he rests his forehead against hers as they lock eyes.

Then, a loud buzzing emanates from the coffee table again. With a frustrated huff, his eyes shut.

“Hey,” she squeezes his hand, “your fans need you.”

They emerge from their little cocoon on the sofa in silence, moving wordlessly in sync as Harry pays Rory one last visit, then leaves for London after a tight hug from his best friend.

As Charlie shuts the door behind her, she can’t help but feel that her living room now feels a little empty. All that’s left is the weight of everything left unsaid between them lingering in the air.

Better Homes and Gardens Exclusive: Harry Styles Shares the Meaning Behind His New Album, 'Harry's House'

Pop music’s most sought after man has a new album coming out and the world is excited. This new release comes from a relatively quiet quarantine period from Styles. He was set to kick off his world tour for his last album, Fine Line, when travel and group restrictions worldwide were announced, and his world went quiet all of a sudden.

His new album showcases an unexpected domestic side to his glistening life. Themes of family, belonging, and domestic bliss shine through so evidently that I can’t help but wonder if all of this is hypothetical or anecdotal.

I bite the bullet and ask. Before I get an answer, he lets out a small laugh, as if he has been expecting it.

“It’s definitely not an autobiography but all the songs come from a very real place in my life. The best thing about writing from real life is that as time passes my relationship with these songs change. Even from when I wrote them up to now, some of these songs listen completely different.”

I ask if that is good or bad. “Depends”, he says after ruminating to himself, “it depends on whether there are any fresh wounds.” Right now, he confesses, some wounds are pretty fresh. “Some are hard to listen to and I’m a little nervous to sing them if I’m honest.”

His earnestness is hard to miss – it shines through in his eyes and his voice. Tucked away in our little corner of the coffeeshop, I can’t help but feel like my high school crush has somehow decided to confide in me and unveil what’s beneath the good looks and charm. I feel almost privileged to be the chosen one, entrusted with his sincerity and vulnerability.

There is nothing manmade or artificial about this man – at least not when it comes to his music. He speaks about each song with so much passion, excitement, and on a couple of occasions, uncertainty. That took me by surprise. He has learnt to let go of needing to be well liked by every listener, he tells me proudly, but the need to impress those he loves will forever be there. Whether that is a strength or a weakness he has yet to figure out.

“That need is almost stronger now. Sometimes songs become a kind of coded message for those who know what I’m singing about. And it’s scary, waiting for a reaction or some approval,” he confesses.

“I spent so much time at home this past year, but I felt like my actual home is someplace else, somewhere that I couldn’t be at that moment in time. Allowing myself to feel everything that I felt and reflect on why I’m feeling these things helped me make sense of all of that. Now I know where my home is, or at least I know where to go to find it.”

From the way he speaks I get the impression that he needs this album to be heard by some people. Not everyone, but a select few. Even though these songs weren’t necessarily written for me, I can’t help but feel excited to enter Harry’s House.

Charlie misses Harry. Like really misses Harry. Getting that little taste of him unlocked the door of longing deep within her and now it won’t shut. Like when you skip lunch then eat a cracker a couple hours later, unleashing a wave of insatiable hunger that can only be made quiet by eating until you cannot breathe anymore.

Basically, she needs so much of Harry until she cannot breathe. Until all she can think about is him.

Something changed. The moment she shut the door behind him that fateful morning, it was like a switch flipped and all she could do from then on is think about him. She’s missed him before, of course, but she’s never quite like this.

She can’t remember if anyone has ever looked at her so tenderly before. Harry’s definitely the most attentive man she’s ever met. Maybe it’s because she has the shitshow of a conversation with Richard to compare it to, but Harry said sorry, and for some reason that was more than enough for her.

Is she an idiot for choosing to believe a man’s words after just being lied to by another? Perhaps. Unfortunately, there is nothing she can do about it. Everything in her wants Harry.

The only contact she’s had with him since he left is a couple of texts. They’ve been casual, nothing too serious – he likes to have serious conversations in person – but enough to let her know that he’s still thinking about her.

“What do you think Rory? You’re a smart girl, right? You latched onto Harry but didn’t really want to play along with Richard, so what gave it away huh? Why didn’t you tell your mummy?”

The dangerous thing about getting too attached to Harry – that is, getting attached in a non-platonic way or in a father-figure to Rory kind of way – is that she’ll grow too dependent on him for assurance. Hearing him tell her that she is a good mother affected her more than she would like to admit. His words already hold too much weight, it would not be smart to give him more authority.

If the Richard catastrophe had to have a silver lining, it made Charlie realise that she needs to get her shit together and live up to the whole ‘strong, independent woman’ thing. She went from being satisfied in her own little world where all that mattered was her and her daughter, to feeling like Rory needed Richard’s love to be complete, as if her as a mother was not enough.

So, as much as her heart hates that Harry’s not here, her brain knows it’s for the best. She hasn’t had a moment like this in a while. Just her and her daughter having a quiet moment together. Sometimes she thinks it’s weird that she's a grown adult with a very adult job with very adult responsibilities, but she speaks to her year old daughter as if she’s a colleague, full sentences and everything.

“You like Harry, huh. What’d you think you’ll call him when you can speak? Uncle Harry? Or just Harry maybe. If you come up with some sort of cute nickname for him, he’ll love it.”

Rory looks up at her with a toy truck in her mouth, drool basically dripping off the toy.

Reaching for a tissue, Charlie sighs with amusement. “You’re just an angel aren’t you.”

It’s about two months later that Charlie and Harry reunite in person. He carved out a free couple of weeks and invited Charlie and Rory down to his flat in London for a ‘sleepover’, as he so put it.

Everything is sorted out for the both of you to stay over. The cot I ordered for Rory has already arrived so you can’t say no. xx

He greets them in the underground carpark. Charlie first sees him when the car he chartered pulls up in front of the lift lobby. With hands clasped behind his back, he has his eyes glued to the entrance, a smile breaking out on his face when he spots them.

After opening the door for them, his hands reconvene behind his back. She can tell they are tightly clenched from the way his forearms flex.

“Hi,” he says, voice a little tentative. He still doesn’t make a move to touch her.

“Hi,” she replies.

She can tell Harry is itching to do something - hug her or kiss her on the cheek - literally anything. His self-restraint is impressive, but she decides to put him out of his misery.

“Can you help bring Rory up please? I’ve got my hands full with the bags.”

He’s nodding instantly. The moment Charlie moves away from the door he’s swooping in to unbuckle the little girl gleefully.

“Hi my little monkey. C’mere.” His voice is soft and intimate.

Harry carries Rory on his front in the baby byon on the lift ride up. Charlie can’t pull her eyes away from their reflection in the mirror the entire time, and Harry can’t pull his eyes from Rory, who is taking in the new surroundings with curious eyes, swinging her chubby little legs back and forth.

Charlie wants to tattoo this image onto the inside of her brain.

It’s almost frightening how easily they slip back into their domestic routine. Apart from the slight tentativeness in their actions, they move around the space with complete familiarity. Before he puts Rory down, he makes sure to look at Charlie for approval first, and when she starts exploring his living room on wobbly steps, he makes sure to trail behind her, ready to grab her if she tries to walk into furniture.

He’s not sure if it’s all in his head, but Rory seems to have become a toddler in his short absence, which makes his heart ache a little. His desire to be there to witness Rory growing up probably crosses some sort of line, especially since Charlie made it clear that he is not a part of their family, however, out of all the inappropriate thoughts he has about Charlie, this one about watching Rory grow up is definitely the tamest.

“She’s basically a teenager now,” he jokes, successfully eliciting a giggle from Charlie.

With a prideful smile, she says, “She’s definitely a smart girl. There’s a song of yours she can recognise. When it plays it public she’ll give me a cheeky look and do a little dance.”

Harry’s head whips around to face her. “Really?”

She nods.

“What song? Do you have a video?”

Her face falters a little. “I don’t have any videos, sorry. It was mainly when we … you know.”

“Oh, right. It’s a new one then.” She nods again. “Thank you for letting me still be part of her life, even though we were –“

“- yeah.” They standing silence watching the exploring baby. “Like I said, I can’t hate you. And I would never make my daughter hate you too.”

He coughs to clear his throat. “What if … what if I want more?”

“More? Well, you’re her godfather, her only godfather, that hasn’t changed. And now that she … now that the father figure role is vacant again, you have her all to yourself.”

“Actually, I meant … um,” he scratches the back of his head, diverting his eyes. He chickens out. “Um, will you tell me about what happened with Richard?”

Charlie lets out a huff and rolls her eyes. She recounts what happened as briefly as possible, distilling Richard’s big villain monologue to only the salient bits, for her sake more than Richard’s.

“Huh,” he pinches his bottom lip, “wanker.”

“Yeah,” she replies, surprised that he doesn’t say more.

“I’m sorry though.”

“Why are you sorry? Richard’s shitty behaviour has nothing to do with you.”

Is this the right time to tell her that Richard’s ego competition with him was not just all in his head? That whenever Richard’s around Harry makes sure to be a bit more attentive and a bit more of a gentleman? That he gets all smug inside when Charlie’s friends tell him what a good boyfriend he’d be? And that he definitely makes sure to shoot Richard a small smirk whenever their eyes meet at parties?

Probably not.

In his defence, Harry owns up to his petty jealousy.

“Because he wouldn’t have come back to mess with you if those photos never got posted. And being slightly less of a dick than him doesn’t say much. The both of you mean so much to me, I panicked and got insecure, so I lashed out and said those fucked up things.”

“Insecure? Because of Richard?”

His nose scrunches, embarrassed. “He was never my biggest fan, and I just knew that once he got the chance, he would find a way to keep Rory away from me, keep you away from me. That’s like my worst nightmare. And being the main man in Rory’s life, Richard doesn’t deserve that. It’s entitled, selfish, and very wrong, but I can’t help it.”

Charlie goes silent at his little confession. “You’d only spent like, two weeks with Rory. I didn’t realise you’d care so much so quickly.”

“I fell in love with her the moment I heard about her. I felt betrayed and angry, but also enamoured, instantly. I didn’t even need to see her. I missed her before I met her.”

To say that Charlie loves Harry would not only be an understatement, but a mistranslation of something so intense and all consuming. Where had this man come from and why hadn’t she noticed sooner.

“Harry, I –“

“- even if I never got to see her again, I would still think about her, all the time. Just like how I’m always thinking about you.”

Their eyes lock in an intense stare, neither knowing what to do next.

Blinking away some rogue tears, Charlie closes her mouth that involuntarily fell slightly agape and crosses the short distance to make her way to Harry. With trembling hands, she interlaces her fingers with his and squeezes.

“I’m afraid that if I say everything I want to tell you, you’ll get scared and run away.” His voice is hushed. If they weren’t standing so close, she would not have heard him.

“I want to hear them.”

“Okay,” he replies. He’s smiling shyly now.

They both linger in the silence as if instinctively knowing that the rest of this conversation has to happen later. That neither of them are brave enough to have this conversation yet.

That night, he brings his girls out for ramen at his favourite spot. They sit facing each other in a booth at the back of the restaurant with Rory at the head of the table in a baby chair. He asks for the baby chair and a set of smaller utensils without any prompting, in fact, Charlie didn't get the chance to bring it up. He gets his favourite tonkatsu ramen and she gets the shio. When the two steaming bowls get placed in front of them, he reaches for Rory’s bowl, again unprompted, and puts in a couple strands of ramen and some soup, making sure to cut up the noodles with a fork and blow on it until it seems cool enough. In between bites of his own food, he checks to make sure Rory is eating her dinner okay, peeking into her little plastic bowl to make sure she’s not running low on food, as if he’s done this a thousand times before.

Conversation at the table is minimal. Apart from some comments about the food and the restaurant, the main thing that can be heard from their table is baby babble and slurping.

Charlie likes it this way, she thinks, being able to soak in this moment without any urgency to clear the air or lay everything out on the table. Her heart's aflutter the entire time. To anyone in the restaurant, they just look like a regular family having dinner together and this normalcy is quite frankly making her freak out inside.

Dinner ends relatively early – they need to get back in time for bedtime. The guest bedroom now has a cot in it, the exact one Charlie has back home. He’s a little nervous when Charlie starts examining the stuff he bought. He’s not nervous that he bought the wrong stuff, he’s nervous that she’ll think it’s strange that he knew exactly what to get, that he memorised Rory’s bedtime routine all the way down to the temperature of the room.

She doesn’t comment on anything, of course, she just looks at him with stars in her eyes.

This trip to London is supposed to be a holiday for Charlie, or at least that is what Harry intended. Fine, a city she’s been to dozens of times is not much of a holiday, but Rory has never been out of Manchester, and he stays in a luxury apartment complex complete with a pool and spa.

In his head, he would kiss Charlie goodbye (just on the forehead for now) and head to rehearsals with Rory on his hip, giving her the whole day to enjoy some time to herself. In reality, the uncertainty when he proposes his idea might as well have been written across her face.

“That sounds nice H, but … this is her first time away from home and I don’t really feel okay with not having here with me.” Charlie’s voice suddenly gets louder when she realises what she is implying. “Not to say that I don’t trust you or anything, you’re her godfather of course, but it’s been –“

“Hey, I get it. Don’t worry about it, I’m not offended. I just want you to have some actual time off. You’ve been through quite a lot these past months.”

“I appreciate it, I really do. No one’s quite as thoughtful as you, H.”

Harry turns away to put away their dishes from dinner in the sink, making sure to tuck his face into his chest as best he can to try and to hide the flush blooming on his cheek.

“Well, I’ve got rehearsals tomorrow but my whole evening is free and there’s a Korean restaurant that’s really good. Let me take you, yeah.”

With her back still turned to him, she teases, “Are you asking me out, Styles?”

“Um, we eat together all the time and I would never –“

“Oh, you would never,” she interrupts in mock offence, “I got the picture.”

“That’s not what I meant. The whole Richard thing was so recent I would never try to do anything.”

“H,” she turns to put her hands on his now tense shoulders, “I was just teasing. Korean sounds good. Thanks, H.”

“I’m happy to,” he says, tilting his head back to bump Charlie’s head.

And he means it.

“Hi,” Charlie calls out as she knocks on the door, “sorry we’re early but one of us got a little grumpy. Hope we’re not interrupting.”

Every head in the soundproof room whips around at the new voice. But the person she came in looking for was not one of them.

“Charlie!” Sarah exclaims excitedly, “Hey, not at all we’re almost done. Come in. We haven’t seen you in forever.”

At the mention of her name, everyone else’s face seems to light up with recognition, all joining in with an enthusiastic greeting.

Rory, who was hiding her pouty little face in her mother’s neck, now perks up a tiny bit at the attention.

“And who is this adorable little girl,” Sarah coos, waving a few fingers to try and catch Rory’s attention.

“This is Rory. She might be a little shy because she’s never been around so many people like this before. You wanna say ‘hi’, lovie.” She angles her daughter on her hip to better face Harry’s band and crew.

Despite being in a bad mood the whole day, she refused to take a nap even though she was very patiently rocked for about an hour, Rory is now smiling cheekily, showing off her growing teeth to everyone.

“Can you say ‘hi’?” Charlie prompts again.

Rory drops her head abruptly onto her mother’s cheek. Then, she lets out a noise that vaguely sounds like she’s saying ‘hi’. As if on cue, everyone melts into a puddle of ‘awws’.

“Don’t be fooled she’s not normally this shy. She loves the attention, a little performer.”

With a small smile, Mitch says, “She’s adorable. I see why Harry doesn’t shut up about her. She’s probably his little protégé huh. Maybe our kids can have a little playdate sometime, they’re around the same age.”

“Oh,” Charlie’s caught a little off guard by his revelation, “sure, that sounds nice. She doesn’t get the chance to play with other children too often, I’m worried she won’t learn how to share with how much attention she gets at home.”

“I bet, especially with how much Harry spoils her, huh.”

She can’t stop her cheeks from heating up.

Before she can fruitlessly deny being the object of Harry’s attention, a familiar voice is heard from behind them. “Hey, what’s going on? What are y’all – oh, you guys are early.”

Charlie spins around. “Hi, I hope it’s okay. We didn’t mean to distract everyone.”

“It’s no problem! Monkey is too adorable, how can they not be distracted.” As Harry beelines towards them, his band instinctively makes room for him. “Hi love. Hi monkey.” He gives both Charlie and Rory a kiss on the cheek which causes the little girl to turn her head to look at him. After a couple seconds, her eyes light up with recognition.

Out of the corner of her eye, Charlie sees the band exchange knowing glances.

No longer wanting to be the centre of attention, she insists that everyone get back to work, making her way to the sofa in the corner before anyone can object. (The only person who objects is Rory who tries to make silly faces at her audience for as long as she can.)

“Let’s finish rehearsing so that we can end on time. We don’t want monkey to get too hungry,” Harry instructs.

On the sofa, Charlie sits Rory down next to her. She digs in her handbag for the toys that she always carries with her to hopefully keep her daughter from interrupting the rehearsal. Before she can hand the car to Rory, a larger hand extends into her line of vision with a small pair of green headphones.

“Here, these are for monkey. They should fit her, I double checked to make sure they ordered the right size. I told the band to try and keep it a little quieter, we’ve only got a couple songs left, but just in case maybe she should wear it.”

“You got baby headphones for Rory?”

“Yeah, I want her to come see a show eventually, especially since you said she can recognise my voice, so I went ahead and got these.” The headphones exchange hands and his go behind his back immediately. “I’m not trying to pressure you by the way I was just …”

“H, you don’t need to walk around eggshells around me, or assume that I doubt your intentions.” She quickly scans the room. Satisfied that the other in the room are occupied, she assures softly, “I know you’re not Richard.”

The relief that takes over his body is hard to miss. “I just want to take care of her, and you. The last time I tried to do that I went too far. I don’t want to make that mistake again.”

It’s a surprise that Charlie can see anything because she’s sure she has hearts for eyes. Slow down, don’t get carried away. The reminder doesn’t work, none of the remaining rehearsal registers in her mind, the only time she manages to break out of her reverie is when her daughter starts squirming next to her and trying to take the headphones off. She somehow managed to understand that the music has stopped, so she’s allowed to take them off.

While she’s putting everything back into her purse, Harry thanks everyone for a good rehearsal and sends everyone off with applause. Rory, who has now crawled off the couch, joins in with the excitement by clapping her tiny hands together. Despite producing a negligible amount of noise, Harry manages to see her in his periphery.

“That’s right monkey. Say ‘yay’,” he says while slowly crouching down to meet her eyes. “Say ‘yay’, monkey.”

“Yay!” Rory chimes back.

Harry looks up to meet Charlie’s eyes as if wanting confirmation that that actually happened.

With a downward smile and raised eyebrows, she shoots him a tiny head nod as silent acknowledgement.

When they finally leave for dinner, Harry has Rory in one hand and Charlie’s purse hanging off the other, leaving Charlie to wave goodbye to everyone with a shy smile knowing exactly what this scene looks like.

Tonight doesn’t feel like any of the previous nights.

For a start, Rory isn’t within arms reach of Charlie. And instead of wearing one of the many sensible outfits she brought with her she’s somehow in a dress worth more than her monthly pay.

Harry’s label is throwing a release party tonight, something he conveniently forgot to mention when convincing her to come down to London. An hour into the night, Charlie finds herself sipping on her second glass of champagne and people watching from the sofa at the edge of the room. The dim lights and loud music make her feel safe, like a protective blanket offering some level of anonymity. Not that the party is particularly unsafe. She’s been to enough of Harry’s work events to not feel completely like a fish out of water – smile politely when he introduces her, nurse a glass of whatever to give her hands something to do, and cling to Harry until all the attention becomes too overwhelming. She’s on step three right now, hence the sitting.

Her palm is damp from the condensation from her glass, the champagne now edging on the side of too warm, but she’s too tired to be bothered, her vision having settled on a comfortable level of blurry.

“Long night?” a voice interrupts.

Her head snaps up to see an unfamiliar man looking down at her with a confident smile.

“Uh, yeah.”

The man moves to sit next to her, forcing her to angle her body to face him.

“I don’t think I’ve had the pleasure of meeting you. I’m Wes.”

She plasters on her polite grin once again and covertly takes a deep breath. “Hi, I’m Charlie. Nice to meet you,” she introduces as she shakes his hand.

“So, why are you sitting all alone with a half drunk glass of bubbly? The night is still young.”

“The night might be but I’m not,” she plays along.

The volume of Wes’ laugh is disproportionate to how funny her joke is.

“Do you want a little pick me up? I’d love if I could have one dance with you.”

Her brows raise when her brain catches on to what is happening. “I don’t know if I have any more dancing left in me,” she says as if she has done any dancing tonight at all.

“That’s fair. Talking’s fine with me too.”

“Oh, you don’t have to sit here with me, I’m fine by myself. Go have fun, find someone else to dance with. The night’s still young after all.”

“Well, you happen to be the most interesting person in the room right now, so I don’t mind sitting here with you.”

Wes’ voice is buttery smooth and his confidence is alluring. Normally her face would flush under all the attention of a self-assured man, however she isn’t feeling it tonight.

“Oh, I don’t know about that. Actually, I –“

“There you are. I’ve been looking all over for you. Hey, you’re Waz right?”

“Wes, but yeah. Hey Harry, congratulations.”

“Sorry to interrupt, I need to borrow Charlie.”

Without giving Wes room to dispute, Harry tugs Charlie to her feet by the bicep, ditches her champagne flute after shooting the rest of the alcohol, and leads her to the baby room where Rory and Sarah’s baby is being cared for by a babysitter.

When the door shuts behind her, she asks, “You needed me?”

“Hmm?” Harry hums absentmindedly as he peeks into Rory’s stroller.

“You said you needed me?” she tries again.

“Right. I was bored and wanted your company.” He punctuates his words with a dismissive shrug.

“Harry!”

“What? I missed you.”

“Is that all? Really?”

He shrugs again. She rolls her eyes, yet she can’t stop smiling.

They sit on the floor, shoulder to shoulder, backs pressed against the wall in the silent room. Their only companions are the two babies who are sound asleep, and the babysitter who is sitting on a chair in the corner, trying her hardest to seem preoccupied with her phone.

There could be a hundred other people squeezed into this tiny room, but Charlie would still feel like they are the only two people present. Harry just has that effect on her. His talent for making her feel seen and wanted is astounding.

Sitting facing a plain white wall, Harry starts talking about anything and everything. In the middle of his extensive review of all the dessert options at the refreshments table, her hand finds his and interlocks their fingers tightly. She slouches down to rest her head on his bicep. He reciprocates without missing a beat, cheek resting on the top of her head. She can feel his every breath and she’s sure he can feel the same.

She doesn’t notice that her eyes have closed until a loud buzz emits from Harry’s pocket. He doesn’t move to address it, so she lets herself get comfortable again, only to be interrupted again by a stream of vibrations.

“H, your phone.”

“Sorry,” he mutters. His hand enters and exits his pocket quickly then reaches over to encourage her head to lay on his shoulder again.

“Go check it, it may be important.”

He shakes his head. “Nah.”

They return to their conversation with Harry rambling and Charlie humming in affirmation or disagreement. As her eyes flutter shut again, comforted by the low rumbling of his voice, she focuses on his thumb that is now drawing little circles on her palm to stay awake. It doesn’t work very well because she does fall asleep and is only woken up by harsh whispers.

“… this was done for you, so it would be nice if you could be present at your own party. Everyone has been coming up to me to ask about you. And why aren’t you reading my texts?”

“I am present. I’ve said ‘hi’ to everyone, thanked all the important people, and posed for all the photos.”

“But you’re now hiding here. Doing none of those things.”

“Shh, Charlie is asleep, and so are the babies. Don’t raise your voice.”

“Why are you in here playing babysitter when you are supposed to be mingling and making connections?”

“I’m Harry Styles. That trumps whatever connections I could make.”

Then, there’s a loud smacking sound. Her eyes are still shut but any idiot could guess that the Jeff just smacked his forehead in exasperation. She would too if Harry said something so stupid to her.

“At least say goodbye and thank everyone before you leave, okay? Can you do that one thing.”

“Yes dad.”

Charlie gives up her ruse when she hears the door shut. Peeking out of one eye, she whispers, “Is Jeff gone?”

“You cheeky fucker.” Harry cups her jaw and squishes her cheeks together. “You didn’t think to help me out? You just let me get scolded by Jeff?”

She sits up slowly while rubbing her eyes. “Please, you weren’t getting scolded. I’m Harry Styles. That trumps whatever connections I could make. Pfft.”

As she tries to stand, tattooed arms curl around her waist, trapping her to his side. “I don’t appreciate you making fun of me when I got us out of trouble.”

She squirms in his arms and tries to wriggle free with no success. The more she moves the tighter his arms get.

“Us? I am not the man of the hour. This party is not for me rockstar.”

He cups the back of her head with a hand to press her full body against him basically tucking her into his side. “Well unfortunately for you I’m not leaving your side for the rest of the night. So, if I have to go out and mingle, so do you.”

“You little bitch. You begged me to come here with you.”

“I’m a little bitch?” he whisper-shouts in mock offence.

They start play wrestling in their little corner of the room, completely forgetting that there is a stranger in there with them. Their exchange of tickles and pinches causes them to topple over so that they’re now lying on the ground, Charlie’s body pressing into Harry’s with his arms still circling her waist. When they eventually tire themselves out, they remain stacked on top of each other trying to catch their breath.

He starts playing with the ends of her hair, twirling strands around his fingers then releasing it, only to start twirling it again. Lying with the woman who occupies all of his heart, mucking about on the dirty floor, Harry doesn’t think he has felt this content in a long time.

“Thank you for being here with me, it wouldn’t feel right if we didn’t speak throughout this release.”

“Well, I had to be here, for continuity’s sake, I’ve been there since your shitty X Factor audition.” Charlie clears her throat dramatically, then starts to croon, “Isn’t she lovely, isn’t she –“

“Hey fuck you,” Harry says between giggles and starts to tickle her again.

The door suddenly whips open, Jeff’s stern expression in the doorway.

“Good, nap time is over. Now, go mingle with the guests, please.”

Like reluctant children, Charlie and Harry detangle themselves and straighten their clothes, then dart out the door without making eye contact with Jeff. The moment they are out of Jeff’s eyeline, Harry grabs her hand and tugs her towards him, then shoots her a mischievous grin, like a kid with a secret. His energy is infectious, so, she returns the smile and glues herself to his side gleefully, tucking the moment they shared into a safe space in her brain.

It’s well past three in the morning by the time they’re stumbling out of the car, shushing each other repeatedly to avoid waking Rory up. Neither of them are drunk, that would be irresponsible because Rory is with them, but they are certainly not sober either. Harry has Rory’s car seat hooked on his elbow and he digs into his pocket to produce the house keys for Charlie. They ditch their shoes by the door before heading off to get ready for bed. Harry beelines toward the guest room to get Rory settled and Charlie starts doing the nightly check around the house.

Charlie is applying moisturiser when she hears gentle knocks on the door.

Harry stands behind the door in his boxers.

“Miss me already?” she teases.

He nods. Without thinking, she pinches his bottom lip that is jutting out in a pout. “Can we have a sleepover?”

She lets out a small giggle. "Okay."

He peeks into Rory’s crib before crawling into bed. The length of the day is evident in his face and yet, she can’t help but think he looks adorable with nothing but his head peeking out from under the duvet.

When they started secondary school, they had mutually agreed that they were now too old to have sleepovers. Their usual ‘boy-girl’ activities had to be minimised because they didn’t ‘like each other like that’. Despite being supportive of this decision, Harry remembers how much lonelier his life had become once they stopped spending as much time with each other. He missed getting hello and goodbye hugs, and the way they would lean against each other whenever they would watch tv. The next time they exchanged more than a brief side hug was before his audition. Charlie had grabbed his shaking hands, gave them a firm squeeze, then wrapped him in a hug so tight that he felt his breath catch. His eyes had shut on instinct from the suddenness of everything and the sudden rush of heat that zipped up his body when he felt her body press against his.

Now that Harry has acknowledged that what he feels towards Charlie goes beyond the usual ‘boy-girl’ friendship, he wants to be close to her all the time. He flips onto his belly and rests an arm over her stomach. When that faces no resistance, he curls his fingers around her waist and wiggles closer until he can feel her body heat.

“You mean so much to me,” he mumbles into the pillow, “I need to tell you how much I love you.”

Her body goes rigid under his arm. Neither of them move, their breaths audible in the silence.

“You mean a lot to me too, H,” she whispers.

He sighs.

“Sleep,” he orders, “but stay close to me.”

“Okay, I’m right here.”

Harry wakes when a cold breeze creeps its way under the duvet. Just as he reaches for the edge of the duvet, his arm is mysteriously enrobed in warmth again. It takes a second for the action to register and when it does, he forces his eyes open. With half-shut eyes, he takes in the bed he’s on – familiar but not his own.

Charlie.

He’s still on his stomach, arm stretched out over where his companion was. The rustling from the duvet as he moves to sit up against the headboard alerts the room that he’s awake. As he rubs the sleep from his eyes, he spots Charlie who is standing by the crib holding Rory.

He smiles softly at the sight. “Hi.”

“Hi,” she returns his smile. “You can go back to sleep. Rory was just a little fussy in her crib.”

“Bring her here.”

She hesitates for a moment, then makes her way back to the bed. Once Rory is placed on the soft surface, she immediately tries to walk to the middle of the bed, but the plush duvet is too much for her little limbs and she ends up plopping onto her belly with a shocked expression.

Harry giggles at the sweet girl then reaches forward to pick her up by her underarms. “C’mere,” he whispers, then kisses her chubby cheek. “Good morning, monkey.”

“She’ll start whining for breakfast soon. I can take her to the living room if you want to sleep some more.”

He shakes his head with a pout. “I wanna snuggle until breakfast.”

Rory settles against Harry’s bare chest, gnawing on her fist and slobbering all over, completely unbothered by the fact that she’s skin-to-skin with a man for the first time. Charlie joins them under the covers, eyes never leaving her daughter, trying to take in the scene before her. The thought of lying in bed with her daughter and a man she loves had never crossed her mind. Not even before Richard left the first time. Her heart feels like it might beat out of her chest. Like there’s not enough space in her chest to accommodate the amount of love she feels in heart. Even though she woke up with her mind swirling from what Harry said to her before they fell asleep, right now, she can’t think of anything other than how nice this feels.

She leaves about an inch between herself and Harry which is obviously not close enough for him because he wiggles closer to her and rest his head on her shoulder. With the hand not resting on Rory’s back, Harry pats around until he finds hers and intertwines their fingers again.

Unable to help herself, Charlie comments, “You’ve been touchy recently.”

After a quiet minute, Harry asks, “Is that okay?”

“It’s okay,” she replies without thinking twice.

“Can I tell you how much I love you now?”

“Okay,” her whisper is weak.

He takes a deep breath.

“I love you. And I know I love you because no one has made me feel the way you do. I’ve only just accepted that it’s different with you. No one makes me as happy, no one makes me as mad, no one makes me as jealous – I just, I could not function when we weren’t speaking, I’d never felt scared like that before, and I never want to feel like that ever again, I never want to have to worry about never getting to be with you. And you love me too, you have to.”

“Harry.” Harry’s neck aches under the strain of looking up at her. His watches her throat work as she swallows, anxious for her to say more. When she does, it comes in a small whisper, “I love you.”

She doesn’t have to force it past a knot or squeeze it out of her throat. It simply floats out of her, like a sigh of relief.

“Yeah?” Harry’s voice is shaky.

“Yeah.” Charlie’s voice is certain.

Tilting her head down to meet his eyes, she just stares at him with a stupid, toothy grin. Her best friend. Her lover.

They don’t get to say anything more because Rory knows how to pick her moments and she picks this one. She demands breakfast by wiping her slobbery hand on Harry’s chest, looking up at him expectantly.

By now they’ve spent many mornings like this – Rory sitting in her high chair while the adults move around the kitchen preparing breakfast together – and yet it’s somehow more special today. For a start, Harry and Charlie both wear small smiles the whole time, and whenever they bump into each other or cross paths their eyes dart away shyly, as if they didn’t declare their love to each other a minute ago.

Breakfast is apple cinnamon oatmeal topped with Charlie’s favourite peanut butter (that mysteriously appeared in Harry’s kitchen a couple days ago), with a side of coffee and shy glances over the top of coffee mugs.

He is the first to break the silence. “What are ya thinking about?”

“You.”

“Oh yeah,” he’s smirking now, “what about me?”

Charlie averts her gaze and shrugs coyly.

“Can I tell you what I’m thinking about?” She nods. “I’m thinking about you in that dress from last night. When I saw you in it, my first thought was: I should’ve wanked in the shower.”

“Harry!” she scolds, “My daughter is right here.”

“She doesn’t know what I’m saying.”

“Is this what being in a relationship with you is like? You being incredibly inappropriate?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know.”

She groans and rolls her eyes, getting up to put the dishes in the sink.

Behind her, Harry calls out in a tone that’s only half joking, “For real though, would you like to know?”

She stays silent just to get on his nerves. It doesn’t take long for him to get out of his chair. An arm wraps around her as his body presses up against her.

He drops his voice and whispers in her ear, “Please say you would like to know.”

“I would like to know,” she admits finally. She drops her head back to rest on his shoulder and presses a kiss to the bottom of his jaw.

His face almost immediately turns scarlet. He can’t wait to get used to this.

They next have time alone when Rory has her afternoon nap. The magic of their initial declarations of love fades a little as they sit facing each other with cups of tea on the sofa. Charlie wants to wait for Harry to break the silence, but she knows he’s taking cues from her. She knows he’s careful to not push things too fast after already taking the first step this morning.

With a deep breath, she lays all her cards on the table.

She tells him that despite how assured she is of their feelings for each other, she can’t help but feel hesitant jumping into a new relationship right now. That even though she knows that he loves Rory wholeheartedly, if they were to start dating, he would need to take a step back from Rory’s life because she can’t risk her daughter getting attached to him, only for him to disappear if things go wrong between them. That she doesn’t know if she can handle having a ‘boyfriend’ rather than a ‘partner’, because she’s not looking for someone to mess around with but someone to share half her life with.

He tells her that it’s going to be a lot harder to keep their lives to themselves once everyone notices that they’re spending more time with each other, but he’ll do his best to keep them safe. That he’s willing to go as slow as she needs because he has been waiting for years already, so he can handle waiting some more. That he understands her fears and is willing to take a step back with Rory because he’s confident that she’s it for him. That he’ll bear half her burdens if she’ll bear half of his.

“You don’t have to be Rory’s dad, by the way. Being with me will be hard enough with you living away, I don’t expect you to take on that emotional burden too.”

“Hey,” Harry pinches her chin gently to tip her head up to look at him, “I know what I’m signing up for. I want to take care and provide for Rory in whatever capacity you’ll let me. She doesn’t need to call me dad, or daddy, or anything – she can decide what who I am to her when she’s old enough – but please let me be there for her, and you. The only part of my heart that is not occupied by you is occupied by her.”

“I love you.”

“Say it again, please.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too. Can I kiss you now, I’ve been waiting all day?”

She barely completes her nod before Harry’s lips are on hers. His hands cup the sides of her face and their foreheads press together with eagerness. There is no hesitation. Every move intentional.

The kiss is not innocent, but needy.

Charlie runs her hands through his hair then tugs on the hair at the top of his neck to cause him to draw back.

“Wha?” he mumbles.

“I needed to see your face to make sure this is real.”

Harry’s brows furrow as if he’s in pain. “I can’t believe it’s you. I’m so happy it’s you.”

She seals their mouths together again, tilting her head just right to get more of him. Needing to anchor herself, her hands move to his shoulders, clutching on to him as if she’s scared he’ll just disappear.

They kiss, and kiss, and kiss. They kiss until they run out of breath, then dive right back in after a few hurried puffs of air. It’s simultaneously too much and not enough.

Harry has to physically peel himself off of Charlie to get himself to stop. Not that he particularly wanted to stop, he was just getting a little too lightheaded. Both from the giddiness of finally getting to taste her and forgetting to breathe out of excitement. He looks drunk with his slow movements and half-lidded eyes. He feels a little high if he’s being honest.

Not wanting to be too far from her, he rests his forehead on her shoulder and starts giggling to himself.

He can’t believe his luck.

Harry’s been crawling into the guest bed every night since. Sleeping in the same bed is not exactly ‘taking it slow’ but when he couldn’t sleep alone anymore after experiencing what it’s like waking up with Charlie, especially when she’s just across the hall.

Lots of good chats have happened in this bed. They’ve discussed how their long distance relationship is going to look like, when they would tell Anne about their new relationship, and whether she’ll be less reluctant to receive his gifts now that they are more than friends.

It’s my love language. The more things you let me buy you, the more I know you love me. She rolled her eyes so hard.

“Are you ever going to tell me which songs on the album are about me?” she asks when they’re curled into each other one night.

“Lots of my songs are about you, or could be about you, but guess.”

“Matilda?”

“Mmhm,” he affirms. “There’s another.”

She hesitates a little. “Boyfriends?” she asks softly.

“No,” he replies immediately, “if I were to write a song about Richard it would be so blatant and damning that he would be embarrassed to show his face in public again.”

“That’s a little dramatic even for you, rockstar.” After giving it another think, she admits defeat. “I don’t know the other. Tell me.”

“It’s Satellite.”

“Really? I like that one.”

“Yeah.” His voice grows soft. “I actually wrote it long ago, just never felt right on the other albums, but I um … I revisited it after that night. After meeting Rory for the first time.”

“Oh.”

“Turns out I’ve wanted to be with you for years. Knowing that you had a child with Richard made me so envious – he got to be a part of your life in a way that I thought I’d never get a chance to. I didn’t wanna just be in your orbit anymore, I wanna be with you.”

“You’re with me now. You’re here.”

“Yeah, I am.”

“I know Keep Driving is definitely not about me and frankly, I’m glad. You need to keep that shit to yourself from now on.”

“So … you don’t want me singing about how satisfied I make you?” he asks in jest.

“If you plan on making me listen to you sing about us having sex next to your mum and sister, we will never have sex .” When he starts to chuckle, she threatens again, “I’m being serious. I’ve gone over a year without having sex, and I can go longer.”

“That’s because you were having sex with small dick Richard. When I get to love on you the way I want to, you’ll want to let everyone know how good I make you feel.”

“You’re talking big game Mr. Watermelon Sugar.”

Harry pinches her chin to tip her head up. With his lips about an inch from hers, his says in a low voice, “And I plan on delivering.”

He seals his promise by slotting their lips together for what feels like the thousandth time that evening.

After Charlie falls asleep in his arms, Harry forces his eyes to stay open so that he can maximise his time with his best girls. When he can’t fight sleep any longer, his mutters one last ‘I love you’ and drifts off knowing that he’ll get to spend time with his favourite family again the next morning.

“Good evening Manchester!” Harry shouts into the microphone. The roar of the crowd widens the grin on his face. “Thank you for choosing to spend your evening with us. I promise that this is going to be a very, very special show.”

He slowly makes his way onto the runway.

“I always love playing shows here because this is basically a hometown show for me. And I don’t know if you guys feel it, but I feel like there is something in the air tonight. Something quite magical.”

The crowd erupts once again.

It’s probably not good practice to talk up one venue too much, that’s why most artists have a pretty standard spiel for every night, but he can’t help himself tonight. Even if he didn’t say it, everyone in the stadium could probably feel it. There is more pep in his step and the adrenaline rushing through his veins has never been this aggressive.

“Manchester, I have a special request for all of you.” He puts a finger to his lips as if he is a shushing the audience. “There are some important audience members amongst you today. So, I need all of you to go extra crazy and have an extra good time, because I’ve got some people to impress. Can you do that for me?

“This next song is for my best friend.”

Harry gets swallowed by screams as the intro to Late Night Talking starts to play.

liked by harryupdates, harryfan1, and 2,821 others

hstourupdates harry on stage in manchester tonight during late night talking

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harryfan1 wait who did he say that to?

harryfan2 i think he was talking to anne and gemma because he did that in their direction

↳ stylesontour there was another woman with a baby standing with them

↳ directioner1 it was his best friend charlie with them and harry was photographed with her daughter a while ago

↳ stylesfan1 wait what if he was pointing to charlie's baby because he kept looking at them and doing little waves 😩

harryfan3 to be harry's best friend 😭

taglist: @harrysfolklore @behindmygreyeyes @suspectedstyles @celestial-holland @xcaitlin101x @outofthisworl-d @haz-nn @zaynshoes @lissymarie22@duh-dobrik @harrysfinelines @rach2602 @percysaidnever @sunshinemoonsposts @sqrlgrl22

#harry styles #harry styles imagine #harry styles au #harry styles fanfic #harry styles blurb #harry styles writing #harry styles fluff #bestfriend!harry #dad!harry #harry styles dad #harry styles bestfriend

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spacexseven · 2 years

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(4/4) ok rapidfire round cuz i talked about aku and dazai WAAAY too much here are some other guys who work with this

fyodor - this fucker would legit get to the point where he actually fucking tries to kill you, and then a month later you’re just. back in his house. probably tied to a chair while he straddles your lap and pets your hair and coos about how badly he’s yearned for his little golubchik (little dove) since you last parted ways and how glad he was when he heard you were okay and how you guys should totally get married in the eyes of the lord and youre about to have a fucking anuersysm.probably wants to just pretend it Didnt Happen. he’d be very unequipped to deal with Feelings Of Guilt so he assauges it by showering you in affection and gifts and larping as Loving Husband. might tamper with you juuuust a touch so you forget about the whole thing, cuz seeing you flinch and try to get away from him makes his chest all tight and he doesnt Like It so you gotta stop doing it <3

gogol - all my ideas for him are VERY similar to what i already have down for dazai BUT differences are that he doesnt wanna torture you cuz he Dislikes you, he wants to torture you cuz he wants to see your Normal Person-ish reaction to incredible suffering! not only are you going through hellish pain, but it’s being inflicted on someone who you thought cared for you? how ghoulish! your reaction would certainly be one for the books! he gets attached to you probably the same way he did to fyodor, through you making real strides towards understanding him, but your Normal Ways would make him less keen on wanting to murder you and more keen on wanting to stay with you forever and make you his little birdie. you managing to piece together that your bf was actually that clown terrorist youve been hearing so much about DID throw a wrench in things a touch, but hes waaay too impressed with you to be bothered by it! youre even more amazing than he thought! wow! his darling birdie! lets stay together forever! why are you running away come back :(

kouyou - shout out to all my WOMAN LIKERS we got kouyou. gonna have to make this one quick i talked about the russians too much. listen. kouyou? she’s already got some baggage about losing the person she loves to the mafia, so falling for her target is EXTREMELY inconvenient for her. she wants to just ignore her feelings and be rid of you already, to save herself the trouble (insert wont say im in love from hercules somewhere in here), but you’re so... bright. much brighter than she ever thought she’d be able to experience, and you care for her so much… she just cant bring herself to let you slip away. please, dont hate her for bringing you into the darkness with her. she wont let it infect you, she promises! anything and everything to protect her precious light.

CONCLUSION: im insane

- 🩹

can you tell i'm super biased towards nikolai :< all asks in this au (basically yandere uses the reader to steal info, falls for them as well) are tagged as #spy au 🐟

cw: yandere characters, obsessive behavior, possessive behavior, jealousy, violent threats, murder, forced relationships, kidnapping, imprisonment, manipulation, nikolai has previously pulled out a knife on reader and threatens to kill them.

honestly i don't think fyodor would ever feel guilt for his previous actions. sure, he's roughed you up far too much for the sake of the mission and ruined your life and tortured your friends but all of that was to bring you both together! everything that happened was for the good of your relationship. he always knew you were something special, back when he decided to use you as a way to get information about yokohama's ability users. in fact, he had already decided back then that he would have you join him to fulfill his goal once he gained what he needed to know. you would be useful in a lot of ways, but mostly he wanted you there for a far more selfish reason.

(it did get pretty lonely at the top.)

you thought fyodor was going to kill you after his true intentions were revealed, but waking up to find him holding you like he was cradling the most wonderful thing in the world made you realize you couldn't be more wrong. he had never been to pushy when you met, never asking anything suspicious enough for you to think he was using you. in fact, you only ever met him once every few weeks in a desolate corner when you felt tired from all your work. maybe that false belief that you two were strangers who would never meet at day was what led you to confide in him things you should never have. things you would have gotten killed for revealing if he hadn't already killed your superiors. whatever it was that convinced you to do such a foolish thing, it ruined your life now.

maybe his strange attachment to you wasn't the worst possible outcome. at the very least, there seemed to be hope of you getting out of here alive if his incessant touches and condescending words didn't completely tear you apart.

nikolai is pretty similar to dazai, except he's never been bothered by the job. he likes messing with people, and it helps that you're just to cute! if you're going to freeze every time he places a hand on your back and look all shocked every time he steals a kiss, he's going to actually start liking you, you know? not a temporary arrangement, like in a 'you're-cute-and-i-can-show-you-off' way, but in a 'you're-never-leaving-my-side-and-ill-gladly-kill-everyone-so-you-only-have-me' way. he's that initially annoying and flirty stranger who eventually grows on you, so much so that when he one day puts a hand around you and gleefully announces that he was your boyfriend, despite never having talked to you about this arrangement, you can't find it in you to object. he is sort of cute, with that killer smile. even if he is so reckless you worry for him all the time and has these frightening rounds of jealousy, you supposed it could work out.

he doesn't even need you to finish his task, to be honest. stealing documents and the like was child's play for nikolai. he just wanted an excuse to mess with you while getting paid. oh, but you treating him so genuinely, with so much care...he can't just let anyone else receive that sort of treatment in the unlikely situation he had to break up with you. if he had to kill you after this arrangement, it would be quite a waste, wouldn't it? you were so sweet to him. there were always other ways to make you cry—ways he was sure you'd enjoy almost as much as him. if you didn't...well, you'd just have to learn to like it!

imagine his shock when he comes to visit one day to find you...gone! like you had disappeared from your place overnight. even he hadn't been expecting this turn, after all, the two of you had been getting even closer. was it because he kept insisting on trying some potentially dangerous things in bed? but you'd have talked to him about it first. this was...unlike you. and then he catches sight of the news and realizes someone had leaked out some of his personal history.

oops. he forgot most people weren't comfortable dating a murderer.

too bad you didn't have a choice anymore! he finds you, as expected. with his ability and his understanding of you, it was only a matter of time. thing is, nikolai doesn't really like to threaten you so badly, really. sure, there were those times when he swore he would tear apart anyone who tried to ask you out, and promised to kill everyone you ever dated before him so that he could be the only living person to boast of such an honor. and he did pull out a knife on you a couple times but it was all fun and games! really! this time, not so much.

nikolai had you grabbing onto the edge of his coat while he dangled you over the edge of a skyscraper, having used his ability to bring you here earlier. you were probably too scared to be listening to him, but all he was asking of you was an apology and a promise to never leave him like that again. promise him you'd always be by his side.

he was so worried for you! this was the least you could do to make it up to him.

koyou would be devastated when she realizes what this feeling was. the strange warmth that came from sitting next to you, sharing meals and talking about work, quiet moments together—she was stupid for letting it go this far. and now...now she was in too deep.

if only she had stuck to her goal and only been an acquaintance to you. if only you hadn't shown her such a beautiful sight and the possibility of a warm future together. she couldn't bear losing you, couldn't live knowing she could never hold you as close as she yearned to after this was over.

unless...she took some disastrous action.

she knew you would hate her more than you already did if she brought you into her world. you would hate it there, but she was foolishly hoping her presence would make it a little more bearable. you were so wonderful to her...could you manage to love her just a little more? could you overlook your disgust for her tainted soul and hold her like you did, before the truth came out?

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moonjxsung · 2 months

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STAR IM DEVASTATED so i have a priv twt acc right w some irls and this stay from stayville req-ed me a long time ago and i was soooo happy that i was mutuals w someone from stayville and i THOUGHT everything between us was cool? but today they unfollowed me and removed me as a follower and im devastated i dunno why they did that :((( i don't think they had a problem w me saying nsfw stuff cuz they previously tweeted things like "cancelling someone over saying smth nsfw abt an adult is stupid" and also ive seen them interact w nsfw minsung posts so i dunno if me tweeting smth like "i wanna suck flxs cock sooooo bad" couldve made them wanna break the mutual??? i dmed them too and i was like "heyy is there a reason you don't wanna be moots w me anymore </3" and not even minutes later they turned off their message perms and im devastated. its STUPID bcs they'd barely interact w me Sure but it felt nice to have a stay be my friend on my priv twt that's usually just for my irls and i </3 it's ironic that they did that too bcs just earlier today (before they broke the mutual) i noticed that my followers went down (i have a very low amt already. like. 25. not even joking) and i tweeted "yall dont wanan be friends w me anymore </3" bcs like. my followers are QUITE LITERALLY only my irls + a skz writer so i was (i think rightfully??) alarmed that the number went down!!!! man im just Sad about it and SIIIGH i know i shouldnt care so much bcs at the end of the day they're just a person online but the least they could've done was dm me back and explain why and GHFSDDSJHFKJADDSDSAAAAA you get me!?!! also im sorry i dropped this on you randomly feel free to ignore LMAAOOAOAO can i be 💫 anon? thank yew <3

(Adding 💫 to the anon list!!! Also fun fact that’s my favorite emoji of all time. Slay)

I feel like I’m the LAST person who should be giving advice abt this bc one of my mutuals and a very good friend of mine who I’d been talking to every day randomly blocked me on everything this week after me literally being there to console this person for every little thing and playing into this pretend homoerotic friendship we had even though she was clearly looking for another boyfriend and would get mad if I even called another girl pretty (???) I wish nothing but the absolute best for her but like…. The double standard is WILD. to not provide closure to a months-long friendship is just genuinely a very mean spirited thing to do imo.

(If she’s reading this, best of luck with everything and I hope you know I cared for you a lot more than you think I did. I distanced myself because you were clearly looking for someone to fill a void in your life that I could simply not fulfill, and I didn’t want to lead you on, nor be kept around like I wasn’t allowed to talk to other girls either. Regardless, I hope you know I used to sleep with my phone on full volume in case you called, and I deleted a page worth of poetry in my notes app for you I meant to deliver on your birthday. I also deleted your number so I have zero way of contacting you, but I will always be here if you need me. Take care and I love you always, I hope you still see me when you look up at the moon)

It’s not the first time I’ve lost an internet friend to the magical world of blocking, but fortunately the attitude I’ve developed towards it is that none of this is real!!! These are people on the internet miles away you’ve never met irl and they have no real impact in your life whether they remain following you or not. I’ve lost internet friends nearly a decade ago that I don’t even remember anymore. Better ones will come along!!! Especially stays! This fandom has so many beautiful remarkable people who are actually worth following and they wouldn’t cut you off like that. Sending so many positive vibes your way and I KNOW that the universe will send you some better mutuals. In the meanwhile I will be your internet bestie and I would never unfollow you for nsfw content or without some form of an explanation. And I also want to suck Felix’s dick. 🩷🫶

(I love you, don’t be so hard on yourself!!!! You’re wonderful, angel 🩷 anyone would be lucky to be moots with you)

#💫 anon #ask

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beepsparks · 2 months

Text

Okay so I don’t trust myself enough to design accurate YDKJ humanizations and humanoid forms (more on that later) especially because I am VERY new and only own Party Pack 3 and have only gotten like 10 episodes into The Ride (I don’t mind spoilers) so advice for what I should include is appreciated! (especially after when I finished drawing Schmitty’s humanoid quip form then 20 minutes later found out he’s bald but I like the design I did too much to give it up so I’m just making the excuse it’s based on one of the quips, which it actually is)

As for why I’m doing full-humanizations and humanoid forms and how they work, click the read more

Okay so I like “humanizing” characters but usually they turn out somewhat inhuman in a way (blame my main fixations being OBJECT characters), but since I feel this is a SPECIAL case considering the lore of YDKJ and Jackbox, I’m gonna be doing both humanizations where they are just FULLY human and then humanoid forms based on specific Party Pack games (if it has an artstyle like quiplash, tmp, and Fakin It, it’s gonna be a humanoid design)

So for example, Schmitty will be fully human until Quiplash happens, in which he’ll suddenly be able to turn into a humanoid form that kind of looks like one of the quips, since he’s now MOSTLY known FOR hosting Quiplash in most cases he’s gonna stay in that form although he CAN turn back into his original human form I guess?? I hope I’m not confusing anybody with this, either way, he’s fully human until Quiplash releases in which now he can become a more humanoid form. (Also Schmitty can probably shapeshift into other quips considering that happens during gameplay if theres an odd amount of players, right?)

This is similar with Cookie where he’s also fully human until say, Fakin It releases (I know he hosts Fibbage but I don’t think it has an actual artstyle) and now he can become a humanoid form thats in the style of Fakin It (also im kinda set on giving him a black cloak as an item he can use to transform himself into the Faker) considering he’s mostly known for hosting things OTHER than Fakin It however, Cookie is gonna likely stay in human form most of the time.

For cases like Buzz and Guy (I think) where they don’t host any Party Pack games, they ONLY have human forms and are stuck with that.

As for hosts introduced in Party Packs and NOT YDKJ (such as Redacted), I’m kinda working on what I SHOULD do, should they ONLY have humanoid forms? (Since it would make sense with what im going for) But if I did that, Redacted wouldn’t have a human form and I REALLY wanna design a human form for him so should I give Redacted special treatment and let him have both forms and the rest have ONLY humanoid forms? Should every Party Pack host be able to become fully human and have humanoid forms? Idk.

Again, advice is absolutely appreciated! And I’m open to hear what people think of what im going for, lol

Oh yeah editing this in, im already done with Schmitty’s humanoid quip form and Buzz’s human form

#ydkj #asking for art advice #art advice #jackbox

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nanamismoonchild · 1 year

Text

prev: chapter 2: taking ass and kicking names

→chapter 3: last name

→ pairing: demon! ot7 bts x rebel!poc OC named Afternoon

→ genre/au: science fiction, dystopian au, thriller, smut, fluff, angst, enemieis to lovers, enemies to friends.

→ chapter summary: afternoon tells her team the decision and most of them don’t take too well to it.

→ rating: 18+

→ wc: 6k

→warnings: misuse of authority, fighting, mention of testing, fighting, panic/anxiety attack

→ author’s note: this fic relies heavily on comments and asks! it also doesn’t have a poll at the end. But what do y’all think Aliah did? also, im hoping to get another chapter out this month to make up for october and november. :D

if you would like to be tagged for this fic, please send an ask or comment below! Or tell the ghost that’s behind you to send the message.

She was a little girl, eleven years old now, running through the forest of Disturbia. She could stop if she wanted to but she had one goal. She came to the clearing where the Moon settled on a specific spot, shining its glow on seven boys, who looked no older than she was. But she knew that was a lie.

They huddled close, whispering to themselves. Plotting maybe.

They couldn’t sense her. Couldn’t spot her from her place in the shadows.

If it was one thing the group had taught her, it was how to hide, how to run.

She wanted to creep closer to hear what they were saying; however, the children back at the lodge were waiting for her cue. Waiting for the girl who willingly stayed in Disturbia to save those who wouldn’t have made it to day two.

Her goal of finding her parents was the only thing keeping her here. She had looked to only fail multiple times. Whoever owned this place hid them well. Or had already done what was promised.

Afternoon had seen enough. She turned and prepared herself to make the long run back to the lodge. She halted as umber eyes pierced through her own. She didn’t get to scream as he pushed her into the open clearing, out of the shadows, falling on the soft grass.

She squealed, totally unlike herself, but she had been caught off guard. “Ji-”

“You should know better than to sneak around here, child,” the boy interrupted her. His soft voice hid the malice that laced his words.

Afternoon whimpered as the boy stalked towards her. This one was the smallest of the group, but he was just as menacing and powerful as his brethren.

The others had taken notice of them and were silently making their way over to surround her. She was trapped.

Good.

She kicked out aiming for his privates, but he had anticipated this maneuver–it was what she always did. He grabbed her leg and easily flipped her over onto her stomach.

Grunting, she leapt forward, tucking her legs so that she became a ball and free-rolled. A difficult maneuver that had been perfected with practice. Afternoon rolled until she became dizzy. Releasing herself from the roll, she sprawled on the other side of the clearing. The group of boys stared in shock–one of them was struggling to keep himself from laughing.

It may not have been the prettiest tuck and roll, but now Afternoon was getting exactly what she wanted.

They were distracted for a little while.

Afternoon schooled her ears to listen for the tell-tale signs of running. She could hear them in the distance, not too far from the clearing. Her hearing was getting better it seemed. They could hear them too. Better than she could.

“We have children escaping, Jin.”

The eldest, Afternoon had learned, simply shrugged, never taking his eyes away from Afternoon’s.

“I think our bigger problem is with us. Let them escape. They’ll be back sooner or later. It’s this one we need to worry about now.”

If looks could kill, she’d be dead ten times over now. The scalding looks they were giving her were enough to make her wish she had run this time.

He was handsome. He would have had women and men crawling to lick the dirt off his feet if he wasn’t a brooding asshole. Lips full and red scowled in annoyance as he glared at Afternoon who tried her best not to cower under him.

She understood that because of her actions they were constantly under scrutiny from whoever bossed them around. They were puppets as much as she was a prisoner.

Not that she really gave a damn.

“How many times are we going to go through this?” Jin tried to conceal his anger but was failing terribly.

She didn’t answer. She would never stop so long as they kept bringing innocent children to this place. She didn’t like what they did to her. At all. But it was a sacrifice that she had decided to make only a year ago.

The boy next to him, who Afternoon thought looked more like a vampire than a demon, tsked. His pale skin had a blue tint thanks to the moonlight. Unlike his brothers, his eyes were the most feline. A lion watching his prey’s every move. Out of all the seven, Afternoon thought he was the scariest and paid extra attention to him.

If he caught any of the children…she shivered.

She stayed quiet as she usually did. As long as their focus was on her, the escaping children would be alright.

They just needed a few more minutes.

“Jungkook, grab the girl and take her to the Room.”

Afternoon’s eyes widened. Shit.

The Room meant more tests.

She screamed and scratched at Jungkook’s face. He was the second biggest and strongest of his group. He was also the least demonic of the group. Bionic brown eyes stared lazily ahead while Afternoon was thrown over his titanium shoulder. Afternoon aimed for his jugular but was met with a painful throbbing in her hand. His body on his left side was mostly a mind of titanium. A metal that Afternoon knew from personal experience was enough to knock her out for days.

Whatever tests they ran in the Room made someone less human. And every time she went, she felt herself

Falling…

Every single time.

Waking up was one of Afternoon’s poorest skills. Her dad had called it “ghetto,” and her mom had chastised him for labeling anything as “ghetto.” Then they would argue about what to make for breakfast. Pancakes or waffles? Eggs or sausage? Or maybe eggs and sausage?

She found herself smiling at the memory of her parents before clearing it away in her head.

Thinking about her parents hurt. But sometimes, she couldn’t help wanting to see them smiling and laughing. Memories of the good days.

But as always, she couldn’t change the past. She had to focus on her future.

Aliah was still sound asleep. She could never wake up with the chickens. She snuck a glance out of their peep-hole called a window and saw it was still dark out. Sunrise wouldn’t be for another two hours, unfortunately. But they started their days early and ended them late.

Turning over to stare at her bare wall, she sighed. Aliah had given her a difficult decision. One day that had made her sleep restless.

In the end, though, Afternoon couldn’t take her. Like the chief said, this was her mission and only hers. She believed she knew why the commander had put so much emphasis on Afternoon going alone.

Those eyes flashed in her mind for a brief second. Similar to someone from her past who could control and morph into anyone he pleased. Whenever he controlled someone, he would lose control at times when the person fought for their mind back. They always lost so it happened quickly.

She felt a migraine forming behind her eyes.

What she was thinking was speculation. She didn’t need to dwell on it and cause herself more stress. Neither of the demons couldn’t have crossed the invisible boundary without alerting any of the agents.

She could hear signs of her team waking up. The flush of a toilet, the sound of a sink running (and not turning off), some giggles and whispers. That meant she had to end her thoughts and begin her day.

Yanking the pillow from under her head, she tossed it at her roommate. When she only got a surprised snore back, she grabbed a sandal and threw it at her dangling arm. Finally, Aliah started blinking her eyes open.

“Afternoon,” Aliah moaned. “I swear to fucking gods if you don’t stop throwing shit at me, I’ll walk the dog with you.”

“And if you don’t wake the hell up, I’ll…” she trailed off, trying to come up with something sassy, “make sure the demons bite ya hand.”

“Lame ass.”

“Loud snoring ass. Sounding like Bigfoot. Get the hell up.”

Both of the girls sat up and commenced their daily routine. First Aliah looked in the mirror and fussed over her braids. She was going to need them redone soon. Then, she’d let Afternoon look at her bird’s nest of hair and help her style it into cornrows. Lastly, they gathered their shower supplies and headed into the hallway to meet with their teammates.

Dorm rooms were too small to have showers built into them. So they all used the communal restroom at the end of the hall next to Marigold’s and Lilith’s room. There were enough stalls for them to use, but they were only given a finite amount of hot water to use for morning showers.

“Alright, you all know the rules,” Afternoon started instructing them. “Don’t turn on your hot water to the highest point as soon as you get in. That begins our time. Step in and get used to the coldness. Besides, cold showers have been proven to improve mood.”

“Do we have to?,” Holly said, her Scottish accent pronounced with sleep grogginess.

Holly was wearing Toy Story pajamas and her hair was around

“Yes, Holly.”

The Scottish girl sighed in defeat.

“OK, let’s get showered and then we’ll go down for breakfast. We’ll eat in one of the private rooms so we can discuss some things,” she made a point not to look at Aliah. She was afraid of how she would take her declination. “Aria?”

Aria looked up from her tablet. She enjoyed taking it into the shower for some reason. “Yes, Cap?”

“Book a meeting room before the other floors get to them. And make sure you make it so that they can’t hack it and steal our spot like they did last time.”

“On it.” She began tapping furiously at her tablet.

“Jack and Taylor.”

“Yah,” they both said.

“Jack, use soap that doesn’t smell like you want every boy in here to drop dead. Taylor, don’t use so much perfume, hon.”

Jack simply shrugged, but Taylor’s jaw dropped��appalled that Afternoon didn’t like their perfume. She loved it, but they usually tried to shower in it.

“Aliah, don’t take all damn day. Get the hell in and get the hell out. We might be able to save our hot water if you do that.”

Aliah scoffed and waved her away.

“Let’s go.”

Freshly showered, Afternoon felt her worry about the coming day's release with the steam from her skin. There was still the upcoming breakfast meeting that, if she were honest, she wished she hadn’t suggested.

One by one, her team filed out of the showers and into the hallway. Taylor and Jack had taken her suggestions and toned it down on their soap and perfumes. Taylor had a hint of rose and raspberries, which they had no doubt blended together. Jack’s hair was slicked back and he had applied a little mascara and gloss. Both were fabulous as always.

Aria and Holly came out next. The two girls were hunched over the tablet,murmuring to themselves as they walked in-sync to a spot next to Afternoon.

Finally, Aliah came out after having them wait an extra couple of minutes. Her moisturizer had her skin glistening and her baby hairs were laid.

Afternoon shook her head, “I thought I told you to hop in and hop out.”

“You did,” Aliah giggled. “But I needed my self-care time.”

Afternoon rolled her eyes and motioned for her team to follow her. She would not fuss with Aliah on an empty stomach.

She noticed Holly and Aria wearing matching clothes, their country’s flag and jeans. Aria was South Korean and Holly was Scottish. The two of them had met over a group they love online, and had become best friends during the First Year. They were recruited at the same time by the Facility, and had been so attached to each other’s hips–Chief had asked them both to be a part of the Computer Whizzes.

When Afternoon had met and had been offered the role of a leader, she instantly asked them to be in her group.

Same with Jack and Taylor. The two of them had been siblings from another mother before they had been split from their families in the First Year. Jack was a wide guy with the power of a quarterback. Taylor was lithe and delicate, the epitome of a ballerina. Chief and Afternoon had believed that they could split into different parts of the group. Jack with Action and Taylor with Covert. It fit them to a tee.

Marigold and Lilith were apparently sisters and daughters of Chief, a fact she hadn’t known. Then again, most of her team members didn’t even know who she was. She did know that the girls never put each other down and rarely fought. At least not in front of her.

Aliah and Afternoon were the oddballs. Neither of them had known of each other before being recruited. Aliah was an open-book. Talked about how her mom could use the money she made as an agent. Afternoon was the mystery. No one had known her background until last night. They still didn’t know much. Nonetheless, the way they had fit each other’s molding was as if they were soulmates.

Together, the eight of them created a friendship that provided the backbone for their team. A powerful one the Facility couldn’t help but always take notice of. Even when Afternoon wished they would turn a blindeye.

The smell of crisp bacon, sausage, and sweet biscuits wafted into her nose–it made her stomach rumble. The cafeteria only had a few teams already sitting around. Eating their fill before they commenced the day. To the west of the room were the four private spaces that teams could use for classified meetings. Normally, they were always full but one sat empty.

“Is that private room booked?”

Aria answered. “Yes. We have it until breakfast is done.”

“Good,” she licked her lips as someone passed her with a plate full of syrupy pancakes. “Fill your plates and meet there in four. Jack, save some food please.”

Jack grumbled something incoherent but set his eyes on sausages.

Afternoon grabbed her own plate and started piling it with sweet biscuits, cheesy eggs, and diced potatoes.

It was typical for agents to fill themselves up each mealtime. They had large breaks in between meals and did so much in between. The agenda for Team Ace was: breakfast, sword-fighting, cardio,Afternoon would go to her leadership class while everyone else went to their various classes, lunch, and relax until dinner.

Sounded boring and rough, but it was honestly the best time for Afternoon except for the class.

She unlocked the door and scooted into the chair near the whiteboard. There was a marker and a gently used eraser stuck to it. She dug in while waiting for the rest of her team. The sweet biscuits reminded her of her mom’s. Fluffy, delicious, and a tad bit too sweet. The eggs were cheesed to her consistency and the potatoes could not be wrong.

A heart meal for a stressed-out girl.

Slowly, her team started trickling in with their own plates piled high. She waited for them to sit down before asking: “We eat first or get the news out of the way?” They mulled it over before each person scooped a portion in their mouths.

Eat first it is.

They ate in semi-silence. The occasional burp and sound of chewing filling the air. They couldn’t hear outside of the room, but Afternoon saw more teams stream into the cafeteria and knew that it must have gotten louder.

After a few more minutes of eating, Afternoon was full and slid her empty plate away. The rest of the team followed suit like a game of monkey see, monkey do.

“I hope you guys had a good breakfast, but let’s get this meeting started. Breakfast is almost over.”

All of them nodded and waited for her to continue.

“First, let’s address the big issue: me going to Disturbia.”

She saw everyone lean forward. Aliah raised a perfectly arched eyebrow.

She took a deep breath, “I am going alone. Even though the file said I may take someone, Chief said it plainly. This is my mission and my mission alone.”

The hurt on her teammates' faces pained her. She was sticking to her choice though. A captain should always be confident in their decisions.

Aliah looked as if she wanted to either bolt out of the cafeteria or jump across the table and slap some common sense into Afternoon.

Jack, Taylor, Aria, and Holly appeared as if they would rather be anywhere but in that room.

“Look,” she started. “I know it’s not what you guys want, but I wouldn’t know what to do with myself if you guys came.”

“You wouldn’t have to babysit us, Noon,” Aliah scowled.

“Yes I would.”

The group gasped audibly and shame ran its course through Afternoon. Yet, it was true. She knew Disturbia like she knew her body, and there were still areas she hadn’t explored. Having to watch out for Marigold and Lilith, whoever came with her, and her own back was a recipe for disaster.

She could only take herself to minimize damage which was death in this case.

“Mate, are you sure? We could help you in some way?” Holly questioned. Her voice was shaking a little.

“If I get any help, it will have to be from the safety of the Facility.”

Jack rolled his neck, a sign that he was unhappy. “We can’t help you fight here.”

“No you can’t. But I’ll be fine. I made it through seven years there using my own wits. I can manage a few weeks.”

That didn’t seem to settle any doubts in her team.

Aria quipped, her tongue too sharp, “We only have five minutes left.”

Afternoon sighed and decided to move on. It wasn’t going to help her if they didn’t agree.

She quicked talked about their day’s agenda before dismissing them. Aliah huffed out of the room, while Aria had to carry a trembling Holly.

Taylor was about to follow Jack out before stopping to turn towards her.

“Afternoon, I know you’re a strong independent woman. But,” they slowly smiled, “we’re a team you can lean on. I don't agree with your decision, but it’s one you made. You might be our leader, but you're our friend first and foremost. We're going to stand with you, not behind you."

Somehow, she had landed on the floor with a plastic sword aiming for her face. Aliah was standing over her with irritation written over her face.

She had tried to deflect, but Aliah had parried and quickly swept Afternoon off her feet. Her twin blades were across the room somewhere.

“Yield.”

Afternoon shook her head, flipped the bird, and kicked at Aliah’s shins. Aliah defended her legs, but left the rest of her body open.

Twisting, Afternoon shot out her legs, picking up Aliah, and flipping her over. Aliah yelped, throwing her sword away before she impaled herself. In the end, Afternoon was on top, and Aliah was in the position Afternoon was in a few seconds ago. Afternoon placed her hands on her hips while shaking her head.

“Anger doesn’t do anything in battle, lovebug,” she scolded. “It only weakens you. Give your enemies the upper hand. Something that will get you killed in Disturbia faster than I flipped you.”

Afternoon fell to the floor with a shocked “oof”, hitting her chin on the carpeted floor. A booted foot dung into her back and twisted deep, sending pain signals through Afternoon.

“Talking to the enemy does the same thing, dumbass,” Aliah spat before kicking Afternoon away.

Afternoon grunted but didn’t yield to Aliah. If the girl wanted to be frustrated, then so be it. She had no qualms with taking multiple ass-beatings from her co-captain if it made her feel better.

Afternoon launched into a standing position, finding her balance and getting into a fighting stance. Left leg back, right leg forward and slightly bent, and hands in front of her face with her right arm lower than the left, palms facing outward. A kung-fu pose that Sam had taught her.

She cocked her head at Aliah who merely smirked and roun- about kicked. One of Aliah’s favorite and strongest moves. Her legs may have looked soft and pillowy, but they were actually made of cement and metal. When Afternoon had first met the girl, she had learned that a rookie had been sent to the infirmary for internal and external bleeding. Afternoon had sought her out instantly.

Right now, she was at the opposite end, but thankfully, the position she was in allowed her to swing the killer legs away from her body, and maneuver behind Aliah.

Afternoon pushed her away and heard Aliah curse. Where she had legs of steel, Afternoon had strength in her arms. Not as much as Sarah, who could pick up a heavy set person like Jack, and throw them clean across the room, but enough to defend herself.

“I understand you’re upset with my decisi-Damn,” she had been punched while talking. Afternoon tasted metal in her mouth.

“Shut up and just let me hit you a few more times,” Aliah grumbled.

Afternoon shrugged, spitting out blood and wiping her mouth. “If you can get in some licks.”

She faked a left hook, waiting for Aliah to dodge to the right, and used her right hand to knock Aliah back a couple of steps.

Aliah shook off her shock and again used those legs of hers to land an uppercut, sending Afternoon flying and landing with a grunt on the hard floor. She felt something crack and couldn’t make herself move.

Damn those legs.

She moaned, clutching her back and rolling onto her stomach.

“You already done?”

Afternoon glared at her co-captain, refusing to let the pain squash her stubborness. “Are you done?”

“I don’t know. We’ll see at the next match,” Aliah motioned for a nurse to come and help Afternoon. “See you at lunch, Noon.”

Afternoon grimaced as she was picked up and placed onto a rolling cot to go to the infirmary. Something was definitely broken, so it would take an hour or two for the nurse to work her magic. At least, she could get some more sleep.

As soon as Afternoon was ready, the nurse sent Afternoon on her way. Her hip was healed and it didn’t feel as if someone were sitting on her head.

She headed to her leadership training. A class that all team leaders had to take at the Facility.

The class was housed in the building the university had used for its business majors. Old flyers with people in professional clothing were still on the walls. The rooms were built to resemble conference rooms and she could see a few teams talking in them as she passed to get to her class.

A few team leaders were already seated. She saw Leah in the front row, who gave her a small wave before turning back to her conversation.

Chief was the teacher for her class today.

To her surprise, Chief smiled at her, the usual smile she gives Afternoon. One that doesn’t lift entirely up, but it’s just enough for Afternoon’s day to be brightened. Today, it only confused the hell out of her.

Chief began to saunter over to Afternoon, stopping right in front of her. The closeness was uncomfortable and Afternoon wished she could slink away and to her normal desk in the corner.

“Noon! I’ve been looking for you.”

“Sure you have,” she deadpanned.

“Just wanted to let you know that you have four days left.”

Afternoon failed to stop herself from rolling her eyes. She didn’t need a reminder.

“Disobedience? Out in the open, Afternoon?”

“Last I checked, rolling my eyes wasn’t disobeying anyone, “ she scowled at her commander. “I’d like to sit in my seat now.”

Chief didn’t bother to move–only held Afternoon’s gaze. Afternoon thought she saw a flicker of red again.

“Chief-”

A voice interrupted her, “Chief, if you’re going to stall class trying to intimidate our best agent, then I’m going to have to remove you.”

Afternoon and Chief both turned to who had spoken.

Sangwoo , a commander of a different group of agents, had risen from his seat and was facing the two of them. He was the youngest of them but his visage had the weary lines of someone who has been in the Facility for a long time. His hair was combed into a ponytail and laid at his neck, keeping it away from his eyes. Afternoon shivered as those storm clouds peered into her own. They felt so familiar.

Square jaw, slender nose made for a man who was a work of art. He was slender, but his height and aura made up for it. He was shorter than Chief but taller than Afternoon who stood at five feet eight inches.

Rumor had it that his hips almost made up for his slenderness.

According to Aliah anyway. And that girl would hop on anything if it could get her through a dry spell.

Afternoon turned her back to turn away and find her seat.

Chief cleared her throat and stomped over to the podium where a book was already opened for the day's lesson. She began to talk and Afternoon began to zone out as she usually did in class. There was nothing a lecture could teach her that experience wouldn't.

It was only a few minutes into the lecture that she felt someone’s lingering gaze.

“Afternoon!” Chief yelled.

The girl in question jumped and stuttered out a “yes.”

“What is the allotted time needed to be completely prepared for a mission?”

She knew the answer, but she hated that she had been called on.

“A few days. Maybe less depending on the team.”

“So do you think your mission to Disturbia should take less time? You could be out of here tomorrow, couldn’t you?”

Afternoon bristled at her boldness. Missions were confidential between commander and leader. No one outside of the team was supposed to hear details. She had only told Leah since she was a trusted friend. Otherwise, she had, technically, broken code.

But for her commander to do it?

The room bursted into conversation. Many of the team leaders wanted to know why Afternoon had to go to Disturbia. Some of them gave her nasty looks of jealousy. As if going to Disturbia was a great feat.

“Are you going to answer, Chananne?”

Afternoon stiffened at the use of her last name. Few people, excluding her team members, knew her last name. Chief wasn’t included either. The ones who knew weren’t allowed on this campus.

She heard someone whispering, probably asking a friend about the name. She hoped everyone thought it was just part of Afternoon’s mystery.

“Chief, I believe you’re violating a lot of rules,” Sangwoo stated. “Watch your words carefully.”

“I’m only asking Afternoon–”

“I think I missed how this line of questioning refers to the lesson of Rationing.”

Their argument did nothing to refrain her heart from beating faster and louder. She forced her eyes closed to dispel her growing panic.

Her name. Her name. Her name.

She had gone by Afternoon for so long. She nearly forgot who she truly was.

“Afternoon!”

No, no. Afternoon is her name. Must always remember.

Sangwoo’s eyes were peering into hers. Confusion and worry settled in the gray clouds.

“Are you alright?” “Whaddya mean?” She heard her words slurring.

“You passed out for a while.”

Shock sat her up as she took in her surroundings again. She didn’t remember fainting. She had only closed her eyes. It should have looked like she zoned out.

However, the puddle of slob and the minute throbbing of her head were clear signs that she had been unconscious and had hit her head on the desk.

The class had been dismissed and Chief was nowhere to be seen. It was just her and Sangwoo. Her face warmed as she realized. She could practically feel the drool drying on her face. Thankfully, her hair was cornrowed or it would've been pressed flat against her head.

“Thanks,” she squeaked.

“Thanks for what?” Sangwoo questioned.

“For making sure I didn’t drop dead, I guess.”

To her surprise, Sangwoo let out a breathy laugh. His smile was boxy and made his appearance youthful.

“Funny, Noon.”

He helped her stand and scanned her body again. She squirmed under his gaze, not used to anyone scrutinizing her except for the nurses and doctors.

“Well, you look alright. Just a little banged up,” Sangwoo finally said after looking her over.

“Why did everyone leave?”

Sangwoo shrugged, “I dismissed them. Chief’s behavior was unacceptable. And weird. Almost like she’s become a-”

“Different person?” Afternoon finished for him.

“Yes,” he said slowly. “ Extremely different. Like someone took over her body or is even putting thoughts into her head.”

Afternoon said nothing but her agreement must have been written all over her face.

“I wonder who you know can do that.”

She frowned in confusion. There was only one person she knew could do that and he wasn’t here. But the signs were there. He was most definitely in the Facility. Disguising himself as her former respectable commander.

Sangwoo shouldn’t know that.

“I don’t know what you mean,” she chose to answer. It sounded like a lie.

The man in front of her chuckled, a deadly smile growing on his face.

“Oh, Afternoon. Have you been here for so long that you forget how powerful I am?” Before she could question him, Sangwoo began to morph before her eyes. His back widened while his hips and waist stayed slim and slender. His hair loosened itself from the rubber band holding the pony tail, and straightened to hang near his shoulder. Wisps of hair formed bands and concealed his forehead.

The eyes should have given him away. Hell, his whole persona was a dead giveaway.

“Cat got your tongue, Afternoon?”

“You shouldn’t be here,” was only what she said. Nothing else could come out as her astonishment stilled her. Her mind raced to remember when she had first heard of Sangwoo, the new commander of floor twelve. Only a few weeks ago, right? Surely, he had to go through a rigorous interview and background check. How the hell did the Facility miss him?

“Come on,” he laughed. “You should know that I do as I damn well please.” He leaned forward so that Afternoon was forced to lean into the desk behind her.

Her heart pounded through her chest. She wasn’t sure if she was afraid for herself or for him. Maybe both.

Kim Seokjin, eldest to his brothers, was violating multiple rules and regulations of the Facility. The primary rule being that no entity from Disturbia was allowed to set a foot on campus. Apparently, the Facility was not able to follow up on that nor had they accounted for Seokjin's ability to let him do whatever he wanted with whomever he wanted.

It seemed as if several commanders were unfortunately his new playthings.

She snapped out of her growing alarm and pulled him to the side of the room that was hidden from the door. She silently prayed that a student didn’t forget anything and would come back and see an outsider in their classroom. No one in the Facility had seen Seokjin or his brothers except for Leah and Afternoon. Leah wouldn’t recognize him now though.

It was only Afternoon.

“What are you doing here, Seokjin? Taking control of Chief, causing her to order me to go to Disturbia wasn’t enough? Getting into the Facility as an actual commander wasn’t enough?”

“Nope,” he drawled.

She drew a small breath, her panic turning into unmitigated anger.

“You have three minutes to explain why you are ruining-”

He interrupted her, “Namjoon told me to remind you of why you’re here in the first place. You’re wasting time Afternoon.”

Her anger remodeled itself into anxiety.

Seokjin continued, “I thought the simplest way to do that was by getting you off your ass. Your ‘friends,’” he said ‘friends’ with a sneer, as if Afternoon having friends was an atrocity, “was the perfect reason to get you to come back. Save your friends and we reconvene.”

His voice deepened until it almost sounded like a purr. “Once you’re back, we get to catch up with you. Afternoon has really made a mark on this place. You should hear the things they say about her.” “Noon! We’re missing lunch because of you. Tell Sangwoo that if he wants to stuff you during dinner then he’s more than obliged but right now we’re on a time limit.”

The playful yelling and laughing of her team coming towards the door made Seokjin roll his eyes. It was good they thought she was still with Sangwoo. Kind of bad that they thought she was getting bent over.

“I have to go. Otherwise, someone’s gonna come in here and see us together.”

“I don’t wish to compromise either of us. I’ll change back,” he told her.

Taking her face in between his index and thumb, Seokjin lifted her face so their lips barely graced each other’s.

The small touch didn’t matter to him.

“I do wish I could hold you as Seokjin, but it seems as if I’ll have to be satisfied with Sangwoo. I’ll see you at dinner. Your friend said I'm ‘much obliged to take you’, so I will.”

She barely managed a nod before getting pushed away from him.

Afternoon made her way to the door, smoothing down her clothes and wiping at her face. It would only confirm that she had been making out with the commander Sangwoo.

Taylor was the first to let out something that sounded like a joyous screech. They were always ready to gossip about the masculine agents. Aria and Holly along with Jack were already heading towards the doors that lead outside. Aliah didn’t say anything but walked ahead of her and Taylor, who asked questions like “How big was it?”

Aliah still didn’t understand her decision. And Afternoon wasn’t going to make her understand. She had chosen her action and she was going through with it.

Besides, only Afternoon understood why she was truly being called. Seokjin had told her as much. She was running out of time.

“Are you actually going to go see the Sangwoo during dinner?” Taylor asked, much to Afternoon’s chagrin.

“I dunno,” she pretended to think. “Maybe.”

“I think you should,” they stuck their thumb out pointing to Aliah.

They made it to the doors that lead to outside. Once they opened, the afternoon sun greeted the three of them. Warmth spread through Afternoon’s body and chased away any anxiety she’d had only minutes ago.

“She got a stick up her ass,” Taylor huffed as they glared daggers at the co-captain’s back.

Aliah tongued her cheek and flipped them off. And like that, the anxiety came back. Not even a minute to let her enjoy being stress-free.

“What the hell happened?” “Missy over there decided to go against you and-”

“Shut up Taylor,” Aliah snapped. Apparently, she didn’t want Afternoon to know.

They shrugged, “She’ll find out eventually Aliah. Admit you fucked up now rather than Afternoon finding out on her own.”

Taylor jogged to meet with the rest of the group while Afternoon and Aliah stopped to stare at each other.

“What the hell did you do?” Afternoon demanded to know.

Aliah wasn’t one to step over Afternoon’s toes. They were always in sync with each other. Never going behind each other’s back.

“I’m hungry,” was all she got out of Aliah who took off running towards the cafeteria. Her long legs leaving Afternoon in a dust.

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