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translations-dark-matter · 3 months

Text

Living as an Extra in an Omegaverse novel

Chapter 83

"What are you thinking?"

"I was thinking about the bidding."

Hiding his true thoughts, Se-hyeon shamelessly brought up work matters, causing Shin Tae-oh's eyes to narrow.

"Our little fireball blushes whenever he thinks about work."

"I love the company."

"Seems like you're really fond of the company."

"In that case, please consider my passion highly and include it in the next salary negotiation."

If our salaries increase, it's good for both Se-hyeon and Shin Tae-oh. There won't be a capable secretary who can support him as well as I do. With that confidence, I have successfully led negotiations every year and have even endured overtime work. I don't particularly have any hobbies, so I don't mind being fully dedicated to my work.

"Do you know what's better than a salary?"

"There's nothing better than a salary in this world."

Shin Tae-oh sharply cut off the nagging voice. He wasn't about to let anyone tarnish the sacredness of his salary.

"Well, what if we add something sparkling to the salary?"

"I receive sufficient bonuses as well."

"Do you know how impenetrable you're being right now?"

"Did I come across that way?"

Shin Tae-oh subtly raised a barrier, making it difficult for Se-hyeon to cross over.

"You're hindering my progress by pouring oil and rolling stones."

It wasn't an incorrect statement. Because of the fact that he was alone with Shin Tae-oh, Se-hyeon was constantly on high alert.

It wasn't an easy task. The fingerprints on Shin Tae-oh's intertwined fingers felt as if they were staining Se-hyeon's own hands, making him conscious of it. He had to keep looking ahead, fearing that their eyes would meet when Shin Tae-oh glanced around.

As a result, he couldn't really see the bamboo closely. He only pretended to look at the road, with a faint green line obstructing his field of vision.

Could this even be called a walk?

"Aren't you thirsty?"

Although the sun was still out, it wasn't cold, but Se-hyeon continued sipping on the cold water. It made him think of warm tea, so he took out his phone.

It seemed that the next schedule Shin Tae-oh was thinking about involved caffeine.

***

Se-hyeon, holding two cups of coffee, approached the car where Shin Tae-oh was waiting.

"Why are you always in the car?"

Se-hyeon muttered to himself as he approached the car. Since Shin Tae-oh wouldn't be able to hear him anyway, there was no need to feel frustrated and keep those thoughts to himself.

"Why would he choose to drink in the cramped car when the café is more spacious? Snacks in the car, sleep in the car, and even coffee..."

Se-hyeon paused for a moment and looked at the coffee cups.

"After drinking this, I wonder where he'll say we're going."

Shin Tae-oh only drinks two cups of coffee a day. Since he had bought one at the rest stop, the one he was currently holding would be his second. Se-hyeon was curious about their next destination.

"I guess we should take a break, right?"

Even if he were to suggest resting in the car, it would probably be uncomfortable. There wasn't much I could do about it.

‘He wouldn't suggest having alcohol, would he? That would make him unable to drive.’

Shin Tae-oh obediently acted as planned, as if he intended to stay in Ulsan. However, Se-hyeon always had the intention of going up to Seoul whenever an opportunity arose.

"If he suggests going to the beach, it might be cold. Where should we go? Should I book a room?"

Was there a hotel nearby? Since he never planned to stay in a hotel when he came alone, he hadn't looked into it, and now nothing immediately came to mind.

Se-hyeon placed a cup of coffee on the car hood and searched on his phone. While looking for suitable places nearby, he became lost in thought, still holding his phone.

"What should I do if he said he won't go to a hotel?"

If the innocent guy turned perverted catboy doesn't go to a hotel, should they sleep in the car? Se-hyeon thought about various variables and looked down at his phone again, but then he accidentally dropped it.

He sensed something from Shin Tae-oh.

"How should I interpret this?"

Startled, Se-hyeon froze while holding his phone. If Shin Tae-oh were inside the car, there should have been the sound of the door opening, but he didn't hear anything. Did I miss it because I was engrossed in my search? Or...

"Should I admire his professionalism for showing it at this point, or should I call it foolishness?"

I realized that Shin Tae-oh had heard all of my soliloquies from his gaze. If I had known he was listening, I would have said them in my mind.

[TL note: an act of speaking one's thoughts aloud when by oneself or regardless of any hearers, especially by a character in a play.]

"I hope the conclusion leans towards me being competent."

Regret is regret, but for now, Shin Tae-oh subtly directed the situation in a way that was advantageous to me, presenting two possible choices.

"Well, Secretary Ahn is indeed competent. He remembers even my private matters."

"Not... not everything about your private matters, though."

It's true that Shin Tae-oh knows more about my personal life than others, but it's not to the extent of being privy to everything.

"I was contemplating whether to book a room or not, and that's considered a private matter, right?"

"In that case, I'll ask for your opinion on that matter. Where would you like to spend tonight?"

Since Shin Tae-oh overheard, he could make a clear decision right here. If we make the reservation, there won't be any need to cancel, so we won't have to do things twice.

"Let's think positively."

Se-hyeon waited with his phone in hand, but Shin Tae-oh simply sipped his coffee and remained silent.

"That might depend on Se-hyeon's response."

"I will follow your instructions, sir."

"Then should we book a room?"

"No."

"...You said you would follow my instructions."

Se-hyeon ignored the dissatisfaction of being told it was all lies.

Since I heard the response that they would go to a hotel, I decided to book two rooms. To proceed in earnest, I even placed the coffee I was holding on the car hood.

"Se-hyeon, what's the rush? Let's sit and have coffee first."

"Yes."

"Let's have a conversation too."

"I understand. Just this first."

"Don't you mind doing things twice?"

"Well, I'm only doing it once, though?"

Se-hyeon looked at the coffee that I had placed in front of them.

"It's cold."

"Thank you."

It's a bit strange to offer greetings for the coffee I bought, but since I had brought it, I accepted their gratitude.

"Let's talk while you drink your coffee."

"Huh? Wait a moment..."

As Se-hyeon was being pulled by Shin Tae-oh, they tried to resist by exerting force with their feet but quickly let go of the coffee they were holding, feeling concerned.

Anyway, when I'm with Shin Tae-oh, nothing goes according to my heart.

***

"Look, look."

Shin Tae-oh said, reaching out and covering Se-hyeon's back of the hand, as if about to reveal something. It made the hand holding the coffee cup feel warmer both inside and out.

"There's something we need to find out before we go to the hotel together."

What could it be that they need to find out?

"How much closer do you think we can get?"

"I'm sorry, but I already declined discussing your feelings, sir. And what does that have to do with going to the hotel?"

"It does matter. At least we can hold hands when entering."

Se-hyeon lowered his gaze and looked at my hand. Is this hand still within reach?

"If it's about the hand, I can hold it like we did while taking a stroll earlier."

"That's not what I want."

"Then what?"

"You're saying you'll give me a chance to truly understand your feelings."

Shin Tae-oh formed a sticky smile and pondered inwardly.

"What kind of chance are you offering?"

"A chance to understand each other through our bodies?"

"There have been more than enough opportunities to understand each other through our bodies."

It wasn't just once. There were two occasions, including moments I can't quite recall, so it could be said that I understood enough.

"But you know that's not everything."

With every word Shin Tae-oh spoke, his breath brushed against my face. It's not like our lips were touching, but it gave me that sensation.

"Maybe we need to match our lips to know for sure."

So, he had been longing for a kiss all along. I couldn't believe the depths of his perversion that were only now coming to light.

Se-hyeon pondered on how to respond and looked at Shin Tae-oh.

"Tae-oh."

"I'll address you as Shin Tae-oh, not the boss, to indicate my position," I called out, refusing to divert my gaze from his smiling face, with his eyes narrowing.

"Do you think such a petty trick would work on me?"

I've been watching you by your side all this time. There's no way such a petty trick would work.

Seeing Shin Tae-oh lightly trace my lips with his thumb, I concluded that he had nothing else to say. It seemed that my expression of being unaffected by any words had hit the mark.

It was a relief.

Since I no longer thought Shin Tae-oh would resort to petty tricks, I could find the right time to go to Seoul and get some rest...

"I'm being sincere."

"... "

Shin Tae-oh's taunting words grabbed hold of Se-hyeon's ankles. Unable to move forward, he stood there awkwardly, feeling as if he could collapse at any moment, his sense of balance disrupted. This uneasy posture was not his usual demeanour.

Se-hyeon glanced at his legs for no reason, then turned his head. Standing firmly in that spot, Shin Tae-oh looked at him with a heavy gaze.

"If you really dislike me, tell me the reason. Don't try to evade it and try to convince me."

Shin Tae-oh cut straight to the point. He insisted on hearing words spoken from the heart rather than mere intellectual arguments.

Words spoken from the heart... those were something Se-hyeon couldn't reveal to Shin Tae-oh. It wouldn't be good for him to catch on to my wavering.

"What if I told you that I felt nothing even after kissing?"

So, he presented another suggestion.

"Are you going to give up?"

I asked if he could abandon his feelings in this moment. If this was the way to make Shin Tae-oh give up, I was willing to comply.

"Se-hyeon."

Shin Tae-oh's eyes sparkled as if he found it amusing.

"You never know how the situation might change with this kiss."

Let's see how far we can go.

Shin Tae-oh rushed towards Se-hyeon.

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dourpeep · 3 years

Note

Fun scenarios for teashop!darling (that's what im gonna call them)

One time Scaramouche saw a customer come out crying(andrunningfortheirlife) and when he asked teashop!darling they said that "The customer was told to leave for causing a ruckus and they were heartbroken that they couldn't drink tea here anymore" and he doesn't completely believe that

Signora once saw teashop!darling one-shot four Geovishaps (without using their vision) because the Geovishaps kept bothering them while they were trying to pick herbs

Tartaglia was talking to Baizhu while he was getting patched up after a fight and found out that Baizhu was scared low-key scared of teashop!darling because he met them while teashop!darling was still an adventurer and they left quite the impression on him

Bonus: one time when all 3 of them were at your shop they noticed you were wearing a ring and thought 'wait- they were in a relationship with someone? Who??!' and no you weren't you just found that ring when you were cleaning out your room and thought 'why not wear it? It looks good.' they only found out when they were about to leave lol

-no primogems

Ehe going back through the stuff in my inbox to answer the longer things nowww

Aforementioned//og teashop!Reader post

You're running a business and has no time for people trying to cause trouble. If a customer refuses to understand that? You'll make sure they will.

Of course, it'll all be done quickly and quietly as to not disturb the atmosphere.

And...well, with you being an incredibly pleasant host at all times, it's certainly unnerving when the gentle gaze turns sharp and cold. Anyway-

Scaramouche was making his way down back towards Liyue Harbor following an assignment just in area of Guili Plains. It was getting late and, while he normally would head back to camp, there was a peculiar sight that drew him towards your teahouse.

Or, rather, a panicked man nearly knocked the Harbinger off his feet in attempt to get as far from the place as possible.

If it weren't for the sight of your figure standing in the entryway, he would've responded with more than a quiet curse and scathing look. Hands on your hips, you watch the man disappear over past the hills before perking up at the sight of one of your favorite customers.

A quick stop for tea wouldn't hurt.

Once inside, he noticed that the other patrons were entirely unbothered. Little drifts of small talk and laughter from a table in a further off space instead filled the pleasant warmth of the teahouse.

So...if it wasn't something within the building...what did you do to that man to make him so terrified?

If he asks, you'll give him a little shrug before offering a complimentary slice of house-made matcha cake.

Not gonna lie. Anyone who can oneshot four of those guys should be feared.

Especially alone. With little else than a plain straw hat and a basket carefully filled with various herbs, it only took a mere moment--the blink of an eye--before the Fair Lady saw you wipe your hands against your apron.

There's still a lingering bit of frost that nips at her skin, catalyst primed and ready in the case that she'd have to jump in to help you.

Were there not just a group of vishaps...?

Even with the sure knowledge of this, there wasn't dust floating in the air (a normal occurrence in fighting geovishaps in the plains) nor was there the tell-tale sparkle of their bodies disintegrating upon defeat.

But Signora was smarter than to ask you of it

Instead, she watches for a little longer until you notice her standing beneath the shade of a sunsettia tree.

Once you do and the two of you head back to the teahouse, you share a cup of freshly brewed herbal tea. The knowing look in your eye is really all she needs to understand.

Now, don't get me wrong, you are good friends with Bubu Pharmacy's owner. After all, you did offer quite a few medicinal brews that agreed to offer at his pharmacy.

But, even with Baizhu's enigmatic personality, he's clever enough to know not to cross you. Even his employees are sure to keep in your good books (though, both Qiqi and Herbalist Gui don't have a problem with that).

It's a slight reaction that the man has to your name that gets Tartaglia's curiosity going.

Just a passing mention when he noticed that the pharmacy carries a certain tea that you served last time he visited the teahouse. While purchasing a few pounds of the mix, Tartaglia laughed and started to talk about that first meeting where you simply said Get out--

Baizhu almost immediately changed the subject and the Fatui's left with a slightly more inflated charge.

Once more, the three meet at your shop. With Tartaglia and Scaramouche assigned to their respective posts in Liyue and Signora making frequent stops between her own missions, it's become a sort of rendezvous point for the three Harbingers.

The moment that the glittering ring catches the light, Tartaglia chokes.

You, being sweet, immediately come over to make sure that he's alright and that's when the other two catch the sight of it.

Surely you weren't already engaged? Just a mere two months ago you mentioned how you had no suitor in your life-

But it's not really something that someone can congratulate on right?

Even when the passing comment about the piece floats, you laugh and wave it off like it's a joke. Perhaps it wasn't something you wished for? If so, the three of them had more than enough ability to sway this...person's wishes.

By the time the tea is drained and the light snacks they ordered finished, another customer voices a congratulations. An older woman who is almost always at the shop.

"Oh? Oh! No, no, this is one of my own, ahma- I simply found it while fixing up last night."

"It's lovely, but a shame you have not yet found a lovely person."

Her eyes drift over across the teashop before settling on the table with three very curious Harbingers (all in various modes of 'listening in').

Needless to say, she takes her leave and the trio are left with a few thoughts of their own.

Hm.

At least you're not taken.

Yet.

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tobiosmilktea · 3 years

Note

hiii can i request tsumu, kenma, oikawa, and kuroo where they’re in a secret relationship and the reader feels like they’re hiding her bc they’re ashamed of her ? like a hurt too comfort type of thing? thank u bb 🥺🥺

- 🍒

secret relationships w/ atsumu, kenma, oikawa, and kuroo

a/n: i have so many angst requests,, yall must like getting hurt 💀 also this wasn’t as angsty as i thought it was gonna be since im going through writers block yet again and i can not handle pain rn (also not proofread, so read with caution lmao)

— m. atsumu

it honestly surprised you at first, the way someone like miya atsumu returning your feelings the moment you told him you liked him near the start of the school year

there wasn’t that instant gratification though, knowing that one of inarizaki’s golden boys still felt out of your reach

despite being in a relationship with you, it wasn’t like anyone knew of it besides osamu and your closest friend

of course you didn’t really mind as you’ve always thought couples who were obnoxious with their relationships 24/7 and constantly making out in the hallways wasn’t your cup of tea either, so you get why atsumu wanted to keep it a secret

besides, with a guy so popular like him, you really just thought he was sparing you from the harassment (not that it would be bad if all the girls crushing on him new)

you get that he was just trying to protect you, and yet the more you thought of it, the more than it was simply just an assumption and you really didn’t know why your relationship was kept secret

it wasn’t like either of you would get backlash in any way, so what was the problem?

you weren’t exactly the type to be the most insecure either

sure, you were aware of the flaws you had, but it wasn’t something you were ashamed of as you learned to get used to it

yet it’s hard to fully love yourself when your boyfriend isn’t even comfortable with the fact that no one knows you two are even together

you hated jumping to conclusions, but you couldn’t help but to think the worst case scenario—was he ashamed of being with you?

you honestly thought the idea was impossible

if he was seriously ashamed of the thought of being with you in public, why would he even waste all those months dating? were all those dates and nights sneaking out to see each other for nothing?

it was like this for weeks with the way your own thoughts sabotaged you as you stood next to him during lunch

in moments like this in school, surrounded by your classmates and acquaintances, you and atsumu were only friends who sat next to each other occasionally and shared conversations that only friends would have

only friends

god, you hated the way that atsumu wouldn’t even look at you the way that he would when you two are alone

was he that embarrassed to be with you?

you didn’t want six months of all your hard work and effort of making time to be with him for nothing,, you had to do something about it

everyday, you, atsumu, and osamu would walk to school together with osamu typically walking ahead of you and your boyfriend

most couples would hold hands as they walked together, but atsumu had made it explicitly clear as the closer they get to school the farther they had to be from each other to avoid suspicions

thinking of it now, it sounded wrong to begin with and you had no idea why you even agreed to do such a thing

the school was close, maybe a block away and instead of slowing down your pace to create a gap between you and atsumu, you stubbornly stayed next to him to which he flickered you a weird look

he shrugged it off but the moment you two passed the gates and into campus, you slipped your hand into his

without missing a single beat atsumu immediately pulled his hand away from you with a look on his face that held all the questions running through his head at that very moment

“what are you doing?” he asks, almost in a harsh whisper

a frown melted upon your expression at how quickly he pulled away, almost as if he was disgusted by you. “i um, didn’t know you hated the thought of people seeing us together so badly.”

you didn’t know where all your strength went as it disappeared the moment you needed it the most

yet as you were about to walk away, atsumu tugs at your wrist lightly and pulls you into his embrace—his warmth and comforting scent of chamomile from saved you from the embarrassment that was tainting your cheeks red

“no, no it’s not that,” he mutters, lips tickling your forehead. “i just wanted to keep you to myself a bit longer.”

— k. kenma

you honestly weren’t surprised at the fact that kenma wanted this relationship to be kept secret

he never seemed like the type to be in a relationship let alone get the attention of being in one in the first place, yet it irked you to the core

it was fine at first; acting like you two were just friends while at school or at volleyball practice and it wasn’t at all weird or out of the ordinary

maybe that’s why you were okay with it in the first few months of your relationship with kenma as you were always near him the majority of the time

yet you constantly had to fight the urge to not be so touchy with him from wanting to hold his hand to leaning your head onto his shoulder—you often had to stop yourself especially in front of your friends and his teammates

you were good at keep secrets, but it was absolute hell not being able to even tell kuroo considering you always hung out with him too (it was a given obviously but you digress)

kuroo is a bit curious in his closest friend’s antics so his constant teases of how you and kenma would be such a cute couple annoyed you to your core

he laughs as if you and kenma being together would be absolutely impossible and wouldn’t happen in a million years, and yet here you two were, pretending to laugh at his jokes and agreeing and it would be, in fact, impossible

as mentioned before, you’re more annoyed at keeping your relationship secret rather than angry

your actions were more abrupt and cold rather than your usual warm self and kenma definitely noticed

despite his usual calm and collected expression that he has on a daily basis, it covered up his own emotions of blatant insecurity and worry that you were losing your feelings and losing them quick

the last thing kenma wanted was for everything that happened between the two of you to be wasted over his own fear of being judged for being with you

you were his first in everything and he certainly wasn’t going to let you become his first heartbreak either

he worried about this for a few days, overthinking while he played video games with kuroo, lev, and yaku that they noticed how quiet he was being over the call

it was then did he impulsively asked kuroo to go on a separate voice channel with him just so he could blurt out, “i’m dating (y/n).”

and to his surprise, all his best friend said was: “yeah, i know. (y/n) told me.”

“what? why?” kenma asked with confusion evident on his visage

“she had no one else to go to vent.” kuroo answers, his amused laugh echoing through kenma’s headphones. “don’t worry, i won’t tell anyone.”

“thanks, but... i think (y/n)’s angry at me and i don’t know what to do.”

“she told me that she was getting tired of keeping your relationship a secret. she asked me if you felt embarrassed or even ashamed of being with her.” he explained.

confusion and a bit of worry washed over kenma as his words suddenly faltered, “i could never be ashamed of being with her,”

“then i guess, you should tell her that.”

“what should i do?”

his best friend lets on a smirk (not that kenma could even see it, anyway), “i’m so glad you asked.”

you weren’t exactly sure what you expecting to be honest

you knew there was something going on between kenma and kuroo as if they were planning something intricate, but you weren’t bothered to even ask

perhaps you were still in that petty mindset of giving kenma the cold shoulder after having to keep your relationship on hold all the time that stopped your curiosity

sure, it was a bit childish, but you were planning on talking about it with kenma the moment he came back into the classroom after going off somewhere with kuroo

which by the way, where the hell were they? lunch was ending soon and you needed to talk to you boyfriend asap

the timing was almost perfect the way the thought of him entered your mind was at the same time as his familiar blonde hair walked back into the classroom with a melon bun and a canned drink in his hand from the vending machine—your favorites

“i noticed you didn’t eat lunch, so i bought you this.” he says, placing them down onto your desk.

“is this supposed to be your way of apologizing to me or something?” you mused at him.

there was a faint smile on kenma’s face when you did. this was your usual self, one that constantly smiled at him rather than deadpanned and cold. “no,” he simple put it. taking in a breath of confidence before pressing his lips on the corner of yours. “but i was hoping that would.”

with wide eyes, your eyes scanned the room to see if anyone noticed, afraid at the fact that you broke the first rule. despite being a blushing mess from a minuscule peck on your cheek, there was an inkling of confusion still evident within you, “why did you do that?”

“kuroo told me everything.”

“i knew that guy couldn’t keep a secret,” you mutter as you tried to ignore that infamous feeling of butterflies in the pit of your stomach. “i don’t think people saw, so they won’t think we’re together—”

“what if i wanted people to know we’re together?” ded asf

— o. tooru

you honestly should’ve known oikawa was going to keep this relationship between the two of you a secret since the moment he confessed his feelings to you

what else could you have expected from aoba johsai’s most popular boy wonder with an actual fanclub full of naive girls

perhaps you’ve become naive yourself considering you dealt with months of having your relationship constantly being swept under the rug, psyching yourself out that he was doing this for your sake

and you understood that

it was the reason why you even agreed to keep your relationship on the downlow considering how annoyingly notorious oikawa’s fangirls were, they wouldn’t have let you see the light of day if they were to find out

if you were in fact being honest, there was a period in time near the beginning of the relationship how cautious you were being—barely talking to oikawa unless it had to do with school, avoiding his gazes during class, and even swallowing your pride by just watching his fangirls flirt with him and there was nothing you could do about it

you honestly had to give yourself a pat on the bat for dealing with six months of this treatment

you figured it wouldn’t be that bad, especially after schools where you and oikawa could finally have alone time to yourselves, but even those times alone with him there was a lingering feeling of tension and unease

the thought of someone from school even finding out of you two being together even affected your relationship outside of school hours

you were tired of waiting outside the school gates for hours just for him to come out of volleyball practice and apologize that he couldn’t walk you home yet again

you figured that oikawa had grown far to used to seeing you waiting for him all the time that it was practically common sense that he was going to reject you again and again

you had to stop waiting for him at some point, but there was an inkling inside that for once, just for once, he would look at you with a smile so sweet that he would finally go with you

but not once has it happened

was he really that afraid of people finding out of his relationship with you that he’s willing to disregard all your hard work to even make this thing (whatever is was) to even happen?

if you were truly being honest with yourself, the only reason why this relationship is still up and active for this long is all because of you

you’re the one always asking him when he’s available during the weekends so you two could finally see each other, you’re the one always texting him first, you’re the one always being the most understanding of the situation

and yet it’s almost like oikawa isn’t even batting an eye at how difficult it has been for you

you absolutely hated jumping to conclusions and thinking of the worst case scenario and yet here you were, suddenly drowning at the possibility that the only reason why oikawa wanted a secret relationship was because he was ashamed to be with you

it was a thought that kept you up at night, tainting your optimistic thoughts of hope that this relationship would actually work out to decimate into thin air

the more is simmered in your head, the worse it became—what if his feelings that he confessed to you was a lie?

you hated overthinking

but if you really thought about it, even before you and oikawa dated, neither of you two were close. just two acquaintances in the same class that occasionally shared answers with each other just by the convenience of sitting nearby

you even went as far as believing that him dating you was just a joke, that this whole goddamn relationship was just some mindless prank just because he was bored

six months of wasted time. you were over it

the next day at school, you didn’t even look at him, you didn’t smile or even acknowledge the way he said good morning to you (as a friend does)

you figured he’s probably too dense to even notice, but he did. the usual glow you had each morning when you said good morning back to him was gone

he already missed the way your gazes would meet and how he would constantly find himself lost in your irises, but now you couldn’t even look at him in the eye

the only person who’s aware that you and oikawa were dating was iwaizumi. it was a given as who else would oikawa ramble on and on and on about how pretty you looked or how smart you are if it wasn’t his best friend?

if anything, iwa was the only guy oikawa could complain about how you were ignoring him

“maybe she’s bored of you for once,” iwaizumi cuts straight to the point. there was really no point in beating around the bush

offense was written all over oikawa’s face, utterly surprised, “how could she?”

“you can’t keep your relationship with her a secret forever, you know.” his best friend goes on to explain, “with the way things are going with you two acting like you’re nothing but acquaintances, (y/n)’s bound to lose her feelings.”

“but i don’t want her to lose feelings for me! and it’s not like i can suddenly tell all my fangirls that i’m dating someone, they’ll freak!” whines oikawa.

“why do you care about your fangirls’ feelings more than your own girlfriend? seems to me, it doesn’t even look like you care about (y/n) at all the way she’s constantly waiting for you after practice only to be rejected.”

it’s obvious iwaizumi wasn’t here to sugarcoat

“i just don’t want them to harass (y/n)...” oikawa reasons, trying to ignore the way his heart drop at iwa’s words like a gripping poison

“then that’s your job to tell those girls to back off.” he suggests, “they literally treat you like a god, surely they’ll listen if you tell them to leave her alone.”

the following day, you came across oikawa waiting outside your door, dressed in his uniform with his gaze lingering about to occupying his attention

“what are you doing here?” you ask him as you close your front door behind you. he’s probably here to break up with you, you thought to yourself

you had to force yourself to ignore the way your heart dropped at your own self-destructive thoughts

taking a deep breath as you approached him, you readied yourself for harsh news to come your way

but it never did

instead, you were greeted by oikawa’s infamous smile that made everyone at school to fall in love with this guy (including you)

he takes your hand into his, intertwining his calloused fingers that dwarfed yours in size. you don’t remember the last time you held oikawa’s hand, but it felt so familiar and warm

it was like home

you couldn’t help but feeling the ends of your lips tugging into a smile as you looked up at him, “what if someone at school sees us?”

you were expecting some kind of excuse, but all he did was shrug. “who cares?”

— k. tetsurou

when you and kuroo started going out, you certainly wasn’t expecting it to be like this

if anything, ‘going out’ would be a stretch if you count late night dates and sneaking out at midnight just to see each other as dating

it certainly wasn’t your usual definition of dating either as you yearned greatly to be able to do normal couple things with your boyfriend—like actually going out on dates during the day, eating lunch together, hell, even just holding hands!

it almost seemed laughable how normal things done in relationships were something you never even experienced with kuroo even after a few months of being together all due to him wanting to keep the relationship a secret

and if you were truly being honest with yourself, you never really understood why he wanted to keep it on the downlow in the first place

you never really questioned it as you just that much of an understanding person, but at a certain point it just wasn’t adding up

it wasn’t like he had girls going after him 24/7 despite being at the top of his class, popular, and nekoma’s volleyball captain

it wasn’t like oikawa who had an actual problem with hoards of girls surrounding him and tracking his ever move, so what was the big deal of letting your relationship public?

it was then did it hit you

the suddenly downpour of insecurity within your own loving boyfriend that you trust so much was getting the best of you

“what if he’s embarrassed to even be with me?” you contemplated in a harsh whisper to your best friend

it was in the middle of lunch and you two were sitting alone on a bench in the school’s courtyard chatting while eating—well, more like overthinking in your case while you friend just sat there and nodded

“if he actually felt that way, then he would’ve broken up with you already.” your friend stated in between bites, “besides, if i didn’t have feelings for someone, i wouldn’t put in the effort to sneak out just to see them.”

you hummed, not sure what to say as she did have a point

but could you really blame yourself for wanting an actual relationship rather than one that’s forced to go unnoticed?

“i should talk to kuroo about it...” you sigh out.

“talk to me about what?” an oh-so-familiar voice calls out to you and your friend

kuroo’s figure approaches the two of you as he give you a curt smile with hidden meanings that you weren’t able to even notice. you were too caught up in your own meddling thoughts that you also didn’t notice the way kuroo frowned slightly at the way you avoided eye contact with him

“nothing,” was all you said before standing up and throwing your trash away. “lunch is almost over so we should all get to class.” was all you said before briskly walking away

kuroo’s brows furrow in confusion as he looks over to your friend, “what’s up with (y/n)?”

“she thinks you’re too embarrassed to be with her, that’s why you hide your relationship.” she cuts straight to the point (homegirl just wants to eat her lunch in peace ffs)

“what?” your boyfriend huffs out in shock, almost offended at the fact that you out of all people would believe such a thing. “why does she think that?”

your friends shrugs, “not sure. that’s something you should be asking her, but if it were me, i would want a normal relationship as well.”

kuroo doesn’t say another word before walking away. and yet his walk quickened so he could catch up to you before you could get to class, footsteps echoing through the hallway in patters as he sees your familiar figure near your classroom

“(y/n)!” he calls out to you as you slide the classroom’s door open. it was sure to catch the attention of the rest of the students already in the classroom as you turn towards him, brows furrowed in the same confusion

as he neared you, there was almost no sign in him stopping, sending your heart beating in a frenzy as you parted your lips to tell him to slow down

but before a single syllable could even fall from your lips, your boyfriend’s own pair press against yours harshly. it was sweet like caramel and you swore everything moved in a slow motion when you suddenly realized where you two were

he stole your breath away when he pulled apart from you, eyes immediately scanning the room of his own classmates staring at him in awe

“since when were you two dating?” matsukawa asked rather loudly, it seemed that others were interested in knowing as well.

panic suddenly coursed through you as you gave kuroo a look, gravely ignoring the way yoru heart was thumping against your chest and the dozens of unanswered questions running through your head

“w-we’re not actually dati—”

“we’ve been together for a few months actually.” kuroo cuts you off, sending you a wink before entering the classroom

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startanewdream · 3 years

Note

I just wanted to say that I love all youe stories about jily being alive and harry being a teenager! The talk is one of muy favourites, I'd love to read more of jily learning to deal with Harry and ginny

Hi! I'm so glad you enjoy those stories! ❤

I wrote a moment of one of the milestones for Harry and Ginny, as innocent as Lily will swear it was. Hope you enjoy it :)

_____________

James is rubbing his eyes lazily, not yet quite awakened when he drops himself in the chair in the kitchen.

‘Morning,’ he says tiredly, looking down at the table; then he blinks and looks again. There are four places set at the table.

‘Morning,’ Lily says distractedly, kissing the top of his head before sitting down next to him, her eyes on the Daily Prophet.

‘Sirius is here today?’ he asks, surprised.

‘Hm, no. He said he was going to be in Ireland all week, remember?’

‘Yeah, but then… why four sets?’

Lily presses her lips for a second, glancing in his direction briefly before turning back to the Prophet, turning a page idly.

‘Ginny spent the night here.’

It shouldn’t be something new. Harry’s friends have slept there before; they have plenty of guest rooms for situations like that. But the way Lily says it leaves no room for what she’s suggesting and through the myriad of feelings going through James’ mind at the moment, he settles for a summarized ‘Oh.’

‘It’s no big deal,’ Lily tells him, and her voice tells him adamantly how she is going to handle this new situation. ‘They went out last night, you know.’

‘That date that wasn’t a date,’ James confirms, feeling more awake now.

His son’s love life is always a topic that he’ll gladly discuss, as sluggish as it is at the moment, with Harry and Ginny telling everyone they are taking things slow this second time.

‘Yeah, and Harry mentioned that they might crash here afterwards, because as you always say—’

‘Don’t drink and apparate, yeah.’ He frowns. ‘Why didn’t he tell me anything?’

She looks at him over the paper and James has a sudden vision of Professor McGonagall doing the same over her glasses, watching him with something that borders on disbelief.

‘What would you have done if Harry told you his not-a-date would come home with him?’

‘The conga, probably’, he admits. ‘I can’t help if I cheer for them!’

‘You would make a fuss, and we are not making a fuss about it. It’s just a normal Sunday.’

‘It’s Thursday.’

‘Oh, you know what I meant,’ she replies, though she is smiling now. ‘They need time, they are still working things out.’

‘They’ve seemed to have worked a lot of things if they are sleeping together.’

‘Sleeping—what? No, I set the guest room for her.’

James can’t help his smirk now.

‘Same as my parents set you the guest room the first time you came to visit me?’

Lily shakes her head, crossed, though James won’t be fooled: her cheeks are red, and he knows exactly what memories she is recording right now.

‘They aren’t even together—oh, stop it. You know your son, too noble to do anything improper, unlike his father.’

‘Really? We are playing the innocent card now? It took two to do what we—’

‘Hey!’ Lily cries suddenly, rising to her feet and beaming at Harry and Ginny, who are just now entering the kitchen. ‘Good morning!’

‘Morning, Mum, no need to scream,’ Harry complains, and James won’t be fooled by his son’s apparent nonchalant expression either. His neck is red.

Ginny takes a look at him, then at Lily, and she fights back a laugh. ‘Morning, Mr. and Mrs. Potter,’ she says, taking a seat next to Lily.

Harry looks at the place next to Ginny, where there is nothing set, and after a moment’s hesitation, he sits next to his father.

‘So how was last night?’ Lily asks brightly. ‘You kids had fun?’

‘Kids?’ Harry replies, lifting his eyebrows. ‘You sound as if we are seven.’

‘Well, I’m underage still,’ Ginny remembers, winking at Harry, and something on her face makes him visibly relax, sitting more at ease in the chair. ‘We had a great time, Mrs. Potter.’

‘It’s Lily, dear. So the concert was good?’

‘Yeah, I can’t believe Harry had never seen The Weird Sisters.’

‘I used to have a good musical taste before you,’ he replies, smirking. Ginny rolls her eyes, grinning as much as him.

‘You mean you heard anything Sirius hears. Maybe it’s time to develop your own tastes, Harry.’

‘Oh, I have,’ he answers immediately, and then they’re looking at each other and something is definitely going on between them, something that as much happy James is for them, he doesn’t want to see.

‘Hem, hem,’ he coughs loudly, pretending to choke with his tea, but he doubts anyone was fooled. In any case, it’s enough to break that eye… kissing. ‘You came back late,’ he says, then he winces. It sounds accusing, very fatherly.

‘We lost a little track of time,’ Ginny admits, unconcerned. ‘The show lasted longer than we thought, they kept coming back for another song—’

‘And I said I didn’t know when I was going to be back,’ Harry stresses, frowning. ‘So I can’t be late.’

‘I just meant the hour. I was up all night finishing an article, that’s why I know.’

‘We tried not to make any sound, to not disturb you,’ Ginny says. ‘We thought you would be sleeping.’

‘We came home. Went to bed. The usual,’ Harry says, and very much like Lily, James knows that’s the tone he is hoping to settle for the conversation.

James bits back his comment about going to bed.

Instead, he keeps silent, finishing his breakfast and watching the glances that Harry and Ginny exchange when they don’t think anyone is looking. Whatever they say, they were on a date last night, most definitely, and things were good.

Ginny thanks them for the breakfast after a few minutes and she rises, telling them she needs to go home now. Harry makes a scene of offering to walk with her to the fireplace—James bits the inside of his cheek very hard to not chuckle at this—and when they are gone, Lily turns to him with a smile.

‘Very good. Not a single double-meaning comment about them.’

‘I can behave. When I want.’

‘And I’m proud of you.’ Lily winks at him. ‘If you must know, they did sleep in separate rooms. I heard them coming home last night.’

‘Snooping around, Lily?’

‘Well, I was curious. I may not be as loud as you, but I do support them, you know.’

James laughs. ‘Fair enough. And here I was thinking you had cast Chastity Spells around the house.’

‘Chastity Spells? Is that real?’

‘My mother assured me so, but if they exist, then they are not very effective.’

‘How do you—oh.’ The fire is back at her cheeks, a colour that James enjoys very much. ‘I can’t believe they thought we would need one!’

‘Well, they weren’t wrong,’ he says, smirking, placing his hand over the top of hers and caressing it lightly. ‘Anyway, if they didn’t want me visiting you in the middle of the night, they shouldn’t have made a rule out of it, should they? I was a rule-breaker.’

#Jily Lives AU #Jily supporting Hinny lives rent-free in my heart #jily fanfiction #Hinny fanfiction

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kass-storycorner · 3 years

Note

I really loved your ghost fic with Xiao. But it left me curious to have a second part in which they finally find the way to communicate. Whenever is just to say goodbye and having reader going to the afterlife or getting stuck there forever in an eternal solitary pseudo-company together is up to you, I just want to see them talk 😭

awww, thank you! I'm so glad you loved it (though I am sorry for the sad feelings haha). And I was really struggling to find a way to end that orginal story in the beginning, which is the reason why it ended that way oops. Well, now here is the follow up for it. Compared to the small bit I wrote for Xiao... I mean not even compared to it, this is the longest fic I've posted on here so far? Ah, well. I just had so much fun with it.

Idea/Prompt: a follow up to Xiaos part in this post

Genre: a bit of Angst and Hurt, more comforting than the first part, but if the ending is a happy one is up to you!

Characters: Xiao (Zhongli as side character, mention of Hu Tao, Verr Goldot, a new character I made up that did not get a name)

Format: Text

Word count: 5593

Content warning: mentions of blood, spoiler-y for the second act of Zhonglis story quest and the same spoilers warnings as for the OG post! this is not proof read, I started writing this at midnight and its 5am now ahha fml

The Ghost of you Part II. - To the end

yes we are keeping the mcr names

“Xiao”, he felt an uneasiness in his body upon hearing his name. Where was he? Looking around, Xiao saw he stood in a field of flowers. When did he come here? He had no recollection of it at all. Confused he furrows is brows, worry filling his heart and then- “Xiao.” There it was again, that voice calling out to him. Speaking his name softly, voice filled with affection. Where did it came from? He walked around the field, no end of it in sight, looking for that voice calling out to him. The longer he searched for it, the more his heart was filled with dread. “Xiao.” This time the voice came from behind him and when he turned around, he saw you, holding your hand out to him and smiling. “(Y/N)”, Xiao looked at you in disbelief. Was it really you standing in front of him? Your laugh pulled him out of his trance. “Xiao, why are you standing there like a pillar? Come, take my hand,” and at that you wiggled it a bit, signalling him that you're waiting for him to take it. “(Y/N),” Xiao repeated, standing still and looking at your hand, then to you. “What are you doing here?”. Again, you laughed as if what he said was the silliest thing you ever heard. “What do you mean by that? Xiao,” you shook your head and then you shoot him a bright, warm smile. “You wanted to come here, remember? Now come, take my hand and dance with me before the music stops.” Dance? Music? At first Xiao did not understand what you meant, but then he heard it. In the distance, the low sounds of a flute, a sweet melody that sounded strange but all too familiar. “Xiao”, he heard you whisper his name, speaking so gently. Slowly, he was still a bit hesitant, he reached out for your hand, taking it in his. A smile came across your face at the touch of your hands. With a swift motion Xiao was pulled into your arms, you both at first staying still in that embrace. “Xiao, lets dance, okay?”. With that you both started to waltz around the field, Xiao not knowing how he knew to dance like this, but somehow, he did. The dread that started to spread in his chest earlier was now gone, replaced by the feeling of love he felt for you. Still, there was something tugging at his mind, telling him something was amiss here. It felt familiar, yes. However, it also seemed to be strange to him at the same time. Though Xiao tried to push the nagging feeling away, wanting only to enjoy this pleasant moment with you. Which is why he at first didn’t notice how the sky darkened above them nor that the music had stopped a while ago. As you both stopped to dance, still holding each other in your arms, he heard you call out to him again. “Xiao”, the sound of your voice was filled with pain and when he looked at you in his arms the light behind your eyes was gone, your face stiff and emotionless. At the sight of your dead eyes, he wanted to part from the embrace, but he couldn’t let you go. Xiao saw the blood, saw the bruises and suddenly he was on his knees again, you are laying in his arms. He wanted to cry, wanted to say your name but he couldn’t. It was as if there was no air to breath so he could speak. And then – “Xiao.” His name. “Xiao.” Again. “Xiao.” Over and over again he heard how his name was spoken, but with every whisper of his name the voice became more distorted, louder. Until he cowered in pain at the sound of it, wanting it to stop, wishing for it to stop. “Xiao”.

With that Xiao woke up, his body covered in cold sweat and his breathing erratic. Another nightmare of you, another nightmare of something he wished the both of you could’ve done but never did – because of his shortcomings. Xiao sat atop of a rock, looking over the forest in which your ghost continued to wander aimlessly around. He had been watching you for a few weeks now, trying to figure out what kept you here and how he could help you. However, Xiao was clueless at what could be the cause of this. It was clear to him now that he couldn’t help you, he needed to find someone who could. Looking down at the forest, seeing your ghost wander around between the trees, he softly whispered. “I will be back soon, I won’t leave you again for long, I promise.” There weren’t many people Xiao could ask for help. Back when you were alive Xiao wasn’t the most social, wanting to keep his distance from humans. After you died this habit of his, avoiding others, only worsened. So, the only person Xiao could think of to ask for help in this matter was the same who saved him from his servitude as a bloodhound. Zhongli spend most of the last hundred years among the people of Liyue, but for a few decades now he lived in a remote house. It was now the door of said house Xiao knocked on, knowing that although he could easily enter the house, Zhongli preferred it for him to knock. “Ah, Xiao, it is nice to see you,” Zhongli greeted the adeptus. As Xiao entered the house and followed the tall man into his kitchen, it was a standard practice of Zhongli to drink a tea with anyone who visited, he couldn’t stop to notice that the notebooks scattered around the house grew in number. “So,” Zhongli began his question, “what brings you here? From your troubled look I can tell you didn’t come for the tea or my company.” With that Xiao didn’t waste any time on more formalities, explaining his predicament to the former Geo-Archon. “Mmmh, I see,” he replied, taking a sip from his cup. “I fear I might not be much of help in this case, although I have some knowledge on the topic of the human afterlife, I can’t think of a solution to this. However, it might be best to go ask Hu Tao on advice, as she is way more… let’s say, perceptive when it comes to the dead.” How bothersome, Xiao thought at the mention of Hu Tao. “Zhongli, Hu Tao is long dead”, was all Xiao could say. It happened more frequently now that Zhongli seemed to forget things, small ones but also important pieces of information and this filled Xiao with unease. He didn’t like it that the erosion of Zhongli already was set in motion, thinking about that one-day Xiao might have to face him in battle should he lose all sense of self and sanity. Neither did Zhongli enjoy slowly losing his memories of the past – although he wrote down as much as possible, it bothered him that he had to even rely on his notebooks. “Ah,” Zhongli replied, setting his cup down on the table and with a troubled look, “I seem to have forgotten something again. Would you please help my memory, when did this happen?” “One thousand years might have already passed,” Xiao saw how much it stirred Zhongli up that he had forgotten the passing of a friend. “She had a good life, right? I’m sorry for asking, but I somehow can’t seem to remember much about her later life.” “Yes,” Xiao answered, thinking about the 77th Director of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. There weren’t many humans he tolerated or even enjoyed being around, but Hu Tao was one Xiao always was fond of. She was also the one at the Parlor that day you died, when Xiao came in with your dead body in his arms, he hoped he might find Zhongli maybe he could do something about it, but… Xiao knew there was nothing anyone could do. Hu Tao understood his pain, without a word she showed him where to put your body and prepared your funeral, without even asking for a single Mora. “Then, “Zhongli pulled Xiao out of his thoughts, “maybe you might find help with the new Director, her family always had some knowledge about that human afterlife that’s even a mystery to me.” With that

Xiao said his goodbye to Zhongli and made his way to Liyue. The city of Liyue changed over the last thousand years a lot, but the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor was still one of the constants in the city. Xiao couldn’t remember the last time he visited the city, though it must have been a few hundred years ago for sure. He just never really liked it and since, what the humans called a ‘industrial revolution’, the city was even more crowded and overwhelming for Xiao. “Welcome to the Wangshen Funeral Parlor, how may I help you?”, a young person greeted Xiao as he set foot into the building. At the enthusiastic way the person greeted him as he entered a funeral home, Xiao was sure this was one of Hu Taos descendants. He barley could imagine anyone else be so happy surrounded by death. “Are you the director?”, Xiao asked in his usual stern voice. “The 107th Director of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, yep that’s me!” “I may need your assistance.” “Wonderful, I’m always happy to help- oh well, not happy as I am happy for your loss, my condolences by the way, but in happy as I am happy that I can be of help. So, what do you need help with? We have some wonderful new coffins out of a wonderful wood, really they are also very comfortable, not that comfort is that important for someone who’s dead, but I thought it might be also of interest to say that they are really comfort-“, ah yes, Xiao thought, definitely related to Hu Tao. “I don’t need a coffin”, he interrupted the young director. “Oh, um… what can I help with then?”, they asked and then Xiao explained everything to them. At first, he wasn’t sure of the director would be of help, most humans have long forgotten the existence of the gods and adepti, as most of them died or lived a life among humanity, but sure enough the director did turn out to be well versed with the forgotten knowledge of the world. “So, you say the ghost is just roaming around those woods? Nothing else happens?”, the director asked, sitting in their chair in the back office of the Parlor, and they had their hand on their chin, looking like they were thinking about something “Will you be of help now or why do you keep repeating the same useless questions?”, Xiao became a bit impatient now. He just needed to know if someone was able to help you. Without even answering the question the director stood up from the chair and walked towards a bookshelf, pulling a big and old looking book out and opening it up on the table. “Mmmh, from what you’ve described it seems to be nothing to grave, they don’t seem to have become an evil spirit just yet, moreover it seems like they are just one who got lost, though it is surprising that after such a long time the spirit didn’t just turned into something malicious. Normally for most human ghosts it takes a few hundred years until they go insane and well, you know all too well what then happens with an evil spirt I guess.” Xiao was aware what happened to the evils in the world, because it was mostly him. Though he didn’t like to think about it what it would have meant if you- no, he didn’t even want to finish that thought. “How do I help them?”, he didn’t care about any of the other information, he just wanted to find a way to help you. The director pointed at a passage in the book in front of them and continued. “What we have to do is easy if you think about it, I just need something that belonged to the deceased they held dear, a few materials like Qingxin flowers, around twenty should be enough, and the next part is more tricky if you don’t know the deceased that well, which shouldn’t be a problem here, but we need to, well you need to, speak some words that you know are important to them. A story or something like that, sometimes even the voice of a loved one is enough to help to guide the spirits back. Though I will definitely have to accompany that spirit to the border, just to make sure it won’t happen again, you know getting lost, because I can’t guarantee this method will help a second time.” Xiao was quiet. Something that belonged to them, when the director said

those words, his hand immediately flew up to the necklace with the small pendant he wore. Xiao wasn’t the most adept with words, he rather enjoyed listening to what you had to say to him most of the time. He enjoyed the sound of your voice; it was so much more pleasant than his own. One day, Xiao still remembers it so well, your voice said something he did not expect for you to say. “Xiao, I love you.” It took him by surprise, standing on the balcony of the Wangshu Inn, watching the night sky… he suspected that you liked him that way, he did too. Oh, but how he hoped that you wouldn’t say anything about it, like he planned too. Your openness scared him. The idea of being loved scared him, for what was there to love about him? He didn’t want to be a burden to you, his karmic debt, his burden – he feared it would all just make you hate him one day if he let you see it all. That night, after you said these words, Xiao disappeared without a word from your sight. He wasn’t far away, but he wished back then that he teleported out of his hearing range. The sobs that came from you after his departure broke Xiaos heart. After this he avoided you, which wasn’t too hard because you did the same thing too. But with every day that passed when Xiao didn’t see you, hear your voice, his heart grew heavier. Asking himself if he really did do the right thing. Verr Goldet approached Xiao a few weeks after your confession, inquiring why now you didn’t come to the Inn anymore. Xiao did not answer her question, but Verr was a smart woman and at the look in his eyes she understood. “Don’t give up someone you love, only because you are scared of the love you both feel for each other, Xiao”, was all she said. This was the final push for Xiao to finally get over himself and embrace the feelings he felt for you. He didn’t know anymore where the idea came from, but he decided to gift you a handmade necklace along side his confession. Xiao was scared that it might be too late for telling you that he felt the same. However, he knew he had to do it and he wanted to give you something that showed you how he felt too. So Xiao collected the material all around from Liyue, creating a metal necklace and using a small piece of Cor Lapis, your favourite you told him once, as the pendant. With that he looked for you, finding you sitting in the middle of a flower field. “(Y/N)”, he said, stopping himself from continuing when he saw how you jumped at your own name. “Xiao! You scared me!”, you quickly stood up and turned around to him. Xiao wasn’t the most adept with words, he enjoyed listening to you – but you stayed quiet after facing him and you kept quiet when Xiao came closer. “I-“, he began, but unable to speak the words he so wished you to hear from him. Instead, he took your hand and put the necklace in it. “I- I made you this,” was all he could say, feeling how fast his heart pounced in his chest. The look in your eyes, Xiao saw the love you felt for him in them. “Xiao, I-“, he saw how you viewed the necklace in your hand, tears starting to form at the corners of your eyes. Before you were able to finish the sentence or let the tears fall down, Xiao took your face in his hands and kissed you. Yes, he wasn’t the most adept with words, but he learned that he could show you how much he loved you in other ways.

From that day on you wore that necklace every single day, never taking it off since Xiao but it on you after the shared kiss. You joked that it was a physical representation of your love for each other, though Xiao felt like you actually meant it. And somehow it really was. Xiao remembered how that necklace was still around you neck when he took your body to Hu Tao, he remembered that it was covered with your blood. He didn’t even think about taking it off you. It was Hu Tao who gave him that necklace after your burial and since then he hadn’t taken it off. It was the last thing he had of you, the last reminder of your love for each other and every night after your death, when he cowered in pain because of his karmic debt, the cool touch of the stone on his skin helps him to stay sane. Just like the flute he heard even long before he met you.

When Xiao and the director arrived at the forest, they collected the flowers on their way, he could see your ghost again. Walking around, calling for him. His heart breaks every time he had to witness your suffering. “Okay, we have the flowers… do you have something that belonged to them with you, Xiao?”, the director asked, and Xiao shifted his focus from you to them. Slowly he took the necklace off, feeling somehow so vulnerable without it, and gave it to the director. “You know where they start their walk and end it right?”. Yes, Xiao knew that. He had watched over your ghost for the past couple of weeks and noticed that you were walking in circles, without even knowing so it seemed, starting from the place you died and ending up there again. Although your body was buried in another part of Liyue and already long gone, taken back by nature, you stayed here. Where you died. Xiao wished he had come here earlier. Together with the director Xiao made his way to the place where your life ended and your endless suffering in a sort of limbo started, laying down the flowers and the necklace. “And how is that supposed to help them now?”, he asked, not sure how any of this will work. “Like I said, we put down something that belonged to them and was important because they will gravitate to the feelings still connected with that object. The flowers are helping, because they built a bridge between the living realm and what state they are in. Now we just need some words that they have a connection with, in the past it used to be certain prayers because people kept using them a lot, but you know it honestly doesn’t matter what you say, it just needs to be connected to them in some way. Maybe their favourite story or a lullaby, there are many possibilities.” “A lullaby, huh,” this was something Xiao hadn’t thought about in a long time. “Xiao, are you alright?”, he heard your voice from across the dark room. It was the middle of the night, normally he would be out killing monsters, but for tonight you were able to make him sleep with you. When you found out that he never sleeps you were shocked, though he tried to calm you saying that an adeptus didn’t need to sleep. “Maybe you don’t need to,” you told him with a stern look, hands on your hips, “but it will be good for you too, believe me!”. And somehow, after each of you confessed the feelings for the other, you were able to make him sleep next to you some nights. Just for that night his karmic debt plagued Xiao. He sat in front of your window, trying to keep his distance from you, not wanting to disturb your sleep and he didn’t want to worry you. “Xiao?”, you asked again, but instead of an answer Xiao growled in pain. Suddenly you were beside him. “Don’t”, he said through gritted teeth as you tried to touch him. “You’re in pain, let me help you.” He saw your worried painted face, ashamed that you had to see him like this. “It’s fine, I’m used to it. Don’t worry.” “Don’t tell me not to worry when I see the person I love most suffering,” and with that you took his hand. “Please Xiao, let me help you.” Even when he wasn’t in such a weakened state it was hard for Xiao to refuse you and now – all he wished for was your comforting touch. You led Xiao back to bed and when you noticed how he had a fever you quickly prepared a cold and wet towel for him. As you both lied down in bed you took Xiao in your arms. “I don’t know if this will help,” you began after a short amount of silence, “but when I was a child my mother always used to sing this lullaby to help me fall asleep. She even continued singing it when we were older and got sick… it always helps me feel better and at ease, shall I sing it to you?”. Xiao only gave a small nod, not believing it would help when you sang that song for the first time. But it did, you soothed his pain and helped him fall asleep. From that night on you would sing it more often to Xiao, he never asked for it but you somehow always knew when he wished to hear it, especially on the nights when is karmic debt caused him great pain. That lullaby became

another sign of how much you loved each other – the necklace was Xiaos gift, the song yours.

Now there he stood, in this forest that once was just a plain field, the flowers and necklace to his feet singing that lullaby. Xiao never sang it when you were alive, he never sang at all. No matter how much you begged him to sing for you, this was something he always refused to do. Thinking about how beautiful your voice sounded, he never wanted to soil this song with his voice.

It felt like you screamed for Xiao for hours and hours on end, but your voice doesn’t hurt. Where were you? What had happened? In your head you repeated and repeated the last things you could remember again and again. You were walking in the fields, wanting to collect some crystal flies for a commission. Then you remembered that you were attacked, who or what attacked you slipped your mind. However, the fight was tedious and hard… and then you called for Xiao. That’s it. That’s all you could remember. But where was he? Where was Xiao? Didn’t he say he would always come when you called out for him? Why didn’t he come now? You feared that he was still angry with you, though you didn’t know anymore why he even should be angry with you in the first place. The two of you had a fight yes, but… was that it? You spend so much time apart, did he just decide you weren’t worth his time anymore? Did he maybe stop loving you? Those thoughts filled you with dread and you wanted to cry, cry at the thought of Xiao not loving you anymore, but somehow you couldn’t. So you kept calling for him, over and over again. “Xiao,” you screamed. “XIAO!” And then you heard something, at first you weren’t sure what it was, but there was a noise. You stopped calling out for him, trying to focus on where the sound came from, following the direction. It got louder and – was that Xiao singing? The closer you came towards the sound, towards Xiaos voice singing that lullaby… your mothers’ lullaby, the lullaby that became yours and Xiaos. Which he always refused to sing, no matter how much you pleaded. The closer you came you started to remember the things that happened more clearly. How you didn’t want to call for Xiao at first that day, how something hit you in your stomach and how you felt the blood gusher out of you. Yes, you remember how you couldn’t stand anymore and all that was on your mind was Xiao, you wanted to see him again. Just once. You wanted to tell him how sorry you were, how stupid it was for you to fight and how stupid it was to wait this long to call for him. You wanted to say this to him, all of it. But all you remember you said was his name. “Xiao.”

He stopped singing, his head flying up seeing your ghost stand right in front of him. His name. You just said his name. “Xiao,” you said it again, this time he heard you say it clearly and you looked right at him, not through. “(Y/N)”, it came more out as whisper. This is what he wanted. He wanted you to see him, to get out of that limbo, but why does it still hurt as much? “Ah, seems like it worked, great!”, the director interrupted the moment, looking at Xiao and the ghost of you. “I ummm- I’m gonna leave the two of you alone for a while, so you can talk things out, say your goodbyes, yadayadayada.” With that the director walked away and it was just you and Xiao.

“I-“, Xiao began, but somehow his voice failed him. What was there to say? What should he say? “Xiao,” he heard the hesitance in your voice. “Xiao, I am dead, right?”. He couldn’t stand looking at you, his eyes avoiding yours as he gave his short answer. “Yes.” “I see,” you replied quietly. You slowly started to remember the nights you stood on the field, waiting for him to come. “Why,” you weren’t sure if you wanted an answer to your question, “why didn’t you come? After, you know… I- I waited for you. I called you. Why-?”. “I felt guilty. It was my fault, if I just hadn’t tried to push you away again, then you wouldn’t have died, I’m so sorry,” his voice was so quiet, but you could hear how he tried to hold back the tears. “Xiao,” at hearing his name again he looked back at you, you now seeing the tears that pooled at the corner of his eyes. “It wasn’t your fault. I shouldn’t have pushed you… and I should have called for you earlier. But Xiao,” you saw how the tears started to fall down his face, “it wasn’t your fault.” He couldn’t hold it in any longer, Xiao fell to his knees, hands in his face and crying. “Please,” he sobbed. “Please, forgive me. I should have protected you that day, I should have come here earlier and see what was happening… please, forgive me.” You walked towards Xiao, reaching out your hand, wanting to touch him. Wanting to take him in your arms, but you couldn’t. It broke your heart. “Xiao, please, please look at me,” he did, his eyes red and filled with his tears. “There is nothing to ask for forgiveness for, you did nothing wrong Xiao. It’s alright. I’m sorry for leaving so soon, for running away that day we had this stupid fight. I don’t even know what it was about…”. “I don’t know either”, Xiao admitted and somehow you had to laugh a bit at that. None of you ever remembered why you fought even in the first place, all of this nearly felt so normal. But it wasn’t. Xiao wiped away the tears from his eyes and stood up again, this time to be able to face you. You looked just like he remembered, except for the see-through part but… your smile hasn’t changed. Even if this was a sad one. “Xiao, how much time has passed since I died?” That question surprised him. “Around…”, he was hesitant to tell you the truth. Should he really tell you? “Xiao,” and you looked at him and he knew that he couldn’t hide the truth. “A thousand years perhaps.” Thousand years, you thought. For thousand years he walked around with this guilt, for thousand years he kept that necklace that still was on the ground… for thousand years he lived his life, still mourning you it seemed. “Did you get over me?”. Again, another question he didn’t expect. Why were you asking him this? Did he get over you? “No, every single day since you died you were on my mind, I couldn’t forget you and I do not wish to. I can never get over you.” This wasn’t the answer you hoped for. “Xiao, I’ve been dead for thousand years. Even if I hadn’t died that day, I would have died on another one. Thousand years compared to what, sixty? Maybe seventy years if I had lived a full life is nothing. Humans are weak after all, aren’t we?”. You didn’t mean to stir him up with your last comment, it was more intended as a joke, alas a sad one, but somehow you struck a nerve within him. “No, they are not. I always said that, but I was wrong (Y/N). I don’t understand how you human can live your life, knowing that you will die, that those you love will inevitably die. How you can idly sit next to people you care about forgetting important things, things about themselves, struggle to remember who they are, seeing them die… and you move forward. I watched over you humans for such a long time, protecting you and I still- I don’t understand how. How can they love again? Where does the strength come from to keep moving forward?”, Xiao’s voice was full of pain, you heard it clear as day, seeing how tears rolled down his face again. You felt that there were even other things weighing heavy on him, not only you, but you knew that you couldn’t comfort him. That this was

something he needed to figure out himself. “Xiao, you will learn. You will understand it one day, it just takes time.” Your voice heavy with sadness and oh, how you wished you could take him in your arms, wipe his tears away and kiss him.

Before Xiao could reply anything in return the director disturbed the two of you again. “So, are you ready now?”, looking directly at you. “No, but I stayed here for far too long now, didn’t I?”, a sad smile coming across your face. You really didn’t want to leave, but you knew you couldn’t stay any longer. It was time. “I will come with you as far as I can,” Xiao had wiped his tears away and stood now right next to you. If you still had a body your shoulders would touch.

Xiao and the director accompanied you to the border of life and death in silence. Before you crossed it you looked at Xiao. He looked so sad, as if he was to lose you a second time. “I wish,” you heard him say, “that you could stay just a bit longer. I know it’s selfish, but I just wished you could have stayed by my side forever. But you can’t stay, and you shouldn’t.” “Xiao, I feel the same. I wish I could have spent eternity with you, but I can’t and it okay. I just want to ask you for one thing, one last promise before I go, okay?”. Xiao looked at you with a heavy heart. “Yes.” “Promise me you will try to find happiness for yourself again, okay? Promise me you will love again, please. Don’t stay alone.” Silently Xiao looked at you to then finally say “I promise.” “Thank you Xiao,” Archons, you wished you could take his hand. “Now then,” you said looking in the directions you had to go. “Time to go.” “(Y/N)”, you heard Xiao say before you left. “I love you.” “I love you too, Xiao.” As Xiao and the director left the border, he stayed quiet, the atmosphere being quite sombre. “Maybe,” the director pulled Xiao out of his thoughts, “there is nothing behind the border and they stopped existing completely. But maybe their soul will now find a way back to you, just in another way? Who knows,” and with that the director left. Xiao didn’t know if he believed that you would find a way back to him, but as it started to rain and as it fell down on his skin, Xiao felt now lighter as if a heavy burden was taken off of him. With that he started to move forward again.

#genshin impact x reader #genshin impact #genshin impact fan fiction #reader x xiao #xiao x reader #xiao #genshin impact xiao #angst #hurt #comfort #xiao angst #genshin angst #gn!reader #xiao x gn!reader #writing #fan fiction #zhongli #genshin impact zhongli #genshin writing

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thomaslightwood · 3 years

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“What if Paris was the first time we’d met?” || Thomastair University AU

I wrote this because 1) anxiety and 2) the idea of what would happen if Thomas and Alastair had met for the first time in Paris is killing my soul so here you go

•

Thomas closed his notebook with a sigh.

“I know you want to say it,” Thomas grounded.

Lucie looked at him with big innocent eyes. “Say what?”

Thomas rolled his eyes.

Lucie smiled at him and while they both stood up, she said with a grin, “Okay, I will say it. I told you not to drink last night. I told you.”

Thomas signed again. “Yeah, you did. In my defense, that guy was cute and I was nervous!”

“No excuses!”

“Mr. Lightwood.”

Thomas stopped on the exit and looked at the professor. “Yes, Mrs. Jahanshah?”

Sona Jahanshah handed him a list. “Your paper. I wished to give it to you yesterday but well.” You weren't here was left unsaid but they both knew what she meant.

Thomas felt ashamed. His Farsi class was his favorite and Mrs. Jahanshah was an awesome woman. Strict and rarely allowing compromises but amazing teacher. Thomas didn't want to let her down by missing her classes to get drunk. Especially on the second day of the new semester.

He hesitatingly took the paper and looked at it. A small smile appeared on his face.

“Thank you Mrs. Jahanshah,” he said. He hurried to Lucie who was waiting for him at the door.

“Well?” she raised an eyebrow.

Thomas grinned but only said, “Nothing.”

“Come on, let me see!”

“Nope.”

Lucie tried to grab it from him but she was too small compared to him. And in general. In the end she gave up but said this wasn't the end.

“One day I will read your work, Thomas Alexander Lightwood, remember my words.”

“Yeah, of course,” he said with a smile.

Together they left the university and went to the near coffee shop where they were supposed to meet with Lucie's friend, Cordelia.

Thomas was a little jealous how Lucie could find a soulmate so fast. It has never been so easy to Thomas. It will never be. Maybe he was just too awkward. Sometimes he felt like his insecurities were written all over his face.

Lucie's smile widened. “There she is. It seems her brother is also here.”

•

“I have work,” Alastair said.

“We all have,” Cordelia said.

“Okay, I have a lot of work.”

“Come on,” Cordelia arched an eyebrow. “You should take a rest from time to time. Or else your brain would explode.”

“Sure,” Alastair said sarcastically. “Tell me again, why am I here? To rest? By meeting people?”

“It's just Lucie! And one of her friends, Thomas, who is a really adorable guy. It would be fine!”

Alastair wasn't convinced but didn't say anything. Cordelia was determined to make him talk with people for some reason.

“Oh, I see Lucie. She's right there.”

Alastair followed his sister's look. He spotted her friend, Lucie Herondale, a small but lively girl. They have spoken a few times but Alastair didn't really know anything about her except the things Cordelia told him.

Next to Lucie was a tall, broad-shouldered guy with a shy smile that was laughing at something Lucie said.

Alastair felt like someone kicked him in the stomach.

“Fuck,” he breathed. “You didn't tell me your friend is so cute.”

Cordelia blinked at him and smiled playfully. “I didn't know he is your type.”

“He is now,” Alastair stated.

Cordelia couldn't help but grin.

“Fuck,” Alastair said again looking at Thomas.

•

Thomas and Lucie sat on the table with Cordelia and Alastair. He was introduced to the Cordelia's brother and Thomas got worried he'd do something stupid and would make fool of himself in front of the beautiful guy next to him and-

Thomas forced himself not to space out too much but to listen to what the rest were talking about. He did his best to join the conversation but it wasn't easy to concentrate.

At some point Alastair said he's going to the bathroom and Cordelia went to ask for more coffee. Thomas breathed out and turned to Lucie.

“Why didn't you tell me your friend's brother is so cute? You know I don't know how to act around cute guys!”

“You are doing just fine,” Lucie said, trying to calm him down.

“Well, I was drowning in anxiety. But... I think it was sort of... the normal anxiety?”

“You mean...”

At this moment Cordelia returned to the table and Lucie didn't finish her sentence. Thomas was grateful. He was diagnosed with social anxiety and didn't feel comfortable talking about it in front of strangers. Only a few close to him people knew and Thomas did not want too many people to find out about it. It made him, well, anxious.

When Alastair got back he said he should hurry up for his next lecture and said goodbye. Thomas was a little disappointed.

Cordelia, Lucie and he had almost an hour until their next class so they remained in the cafe. Thomas wanted to know more about Alastair Carstairs but he thought asking Cordelia may look creepy and out of place. He may ask Lucie to do it. Or he himself to ask. Some day.

•

Thomas was nervous. It was his first time in a new class where he didn't know anyone (he didn't know many people in the university as a whole but still).

As he entered the room he tried to calm down. Took a deep breath. His anxiety was still there but after Thomas took his seat he felt like he wouldn't get an anxiety attack in front of the whole class and will survive this. Probably.

He prepared to take notes, took out a few pens (just in case) and tried to breath normally. He reminded himself no one was paying attention to him. There were a lot of people in the room, he was just another guy in it. It was going to be fine.

“Hey, can I sit here?”

Thomas turned to the person talking to him and blinked. Alastair Carstrais.

“Sure,” Thomas said after a second.

Alastair smiled a little and Thomas couldn't help it - he returned the smile.

“The room is just so full. I was worried there weren't any left seats.”

The room was indeed full. Thomas was happy he got here early so he could sit at a place he liked.

“Cordelia didn't mention you like history.”

“Cordelia is awesome but I'm not very close with her,” Thomas said. “And I'm a little bit of history buff,” he admitted.

“Enough history buff to take a class for it, it seems,” Alastair said with a small smile.

Thomas laughed. “Yes, apparently.”

The professor walked into the room and it got quiet.

Thomas listened with interest to the lecture, taking detailed notes. But he was also excited because of the person sitting next to him.

•

Thomas wasn't sure how much time had passed but he knew he was hungry.

“Hey,” Thomas turned to Alastair who had a little strange expression as he said this. “Wanna, like- I mean if you're not busy, to have lunch with me? Or even just coffee if you don't have a lot of time?”

Thomas' stomach did a flip but it was a good kind of flip, nervous and excited.

“I would be happy to have lunch together.”

Alastair smiled. It was a real, warm smile. “Okay.”

They went out of the university and Alastair said he knew a good place in the area. Thomas followed, careful to remember the way to it. He may need to come here again, hopefully.

As they sat, menus appeared in front of them almost immediately. Thomas ordered tea, Alastair - coffee until they waited for the food.

They talked about the lecture. It was about the history of the Ancient Near East. Alastair was half Persian and Thomas was fascinated to hear a few curious history facts about the Persian culture from him.

“I admit,” Alastair said. “My love of the Persian stories and songs is influenced by my mother. Sometimes she says it's her duty as a teacher to tell us, Cordelia and I, as much as she could about our heritage. Which of course has nothing to do with her profession but we don't say anything," Alastair laughed a little.

“Your mother is a teacher?” Thomas said curiously.

“Yes, for a few years now. She's a professor here.”

Thomas' eyes widened. “Wait, your mother is Sona Jahanshah?”

“The same,” Alastair said before drinking from his coffee.

“Whoa,” Thomas said with a smile. “I should have thought about it earlier. You have the same eyes.”

Alastair's eyes sparkled at this. He looked amused. “Most people would say we share the same temper not eyes.”

“This too,” Thomas laughed.

The conversation went in different directions a few times. They found out they share a great love for music. That Alastair's favorite book is The Prince by Machiavelli. Thomas in returned said his is Rubaíyat́ of Omar Khayyaḿ. They promised to read each other's favorite books because they haven't read it before. Thomas found out Alastair can play a piano and sing. Thomas wanted to hear him.

“What made you choose to come to France?” Thomas asked at some point.

“It's mainly because me and Cordelia wanted to study here. Paris is one of the cities where we were the happiest. So we moved here.”

Thomas wanted to ask about his father but he knew from Lucie Cordelia and Alastair's father was a sensitive topic so Thomas decides to leave it alone.

“How about you? Are you a big fan of France?”

“Not exactly,” Thomas laughed nervously. “Actually, coming to France doesn't seem very wise. My father wanted me to go study in Spain or Wales. Which would be logical because I know Spanish and Welsh. My father has connections in Spain and Lucie's father is Welsh. I started to learn French only a year ago. But...” Thomas tried his best to explained it. When he was saying it out aloud it sounded like a stupid decision but it makes sense Thomas' head. “It's about the university. The history of this city. I admire it. Lucie and I talked about it and our parents let us study here only because they know we're together.”

The waiter came to serve them the food and Thomas paused. He even didn't remember ordering a second time.

“You probably think I'm silly," Thomas said, feeling stupid.

“No, no," Alastair shook his head. “Not at all. I think I understand.”

Thomas looked at his eyes. He believed him.

“Also, you speak Spanish, Welsh and learn Farsi and French? I'm impressed.”

Thomas smiled a little shyly at that. He didn't mind compliments but coming from Alastair felt different.

The time was passing and they barely noticed. They both missed their lectures but as much as it was unusual for Thomas he barely cared. He did not regret the time spent with Alastair.

They exchanged numbers and social media. Alastair promised to send him more book recommendations. Thomas kept smiling the whole day.

•

the tree: sorry luce i can't have lunch with you today

small bean: ooooh, and why is this, little john?

the tree: i'm just not hungry

small bean: yeah yeah and i'm cinderella

small bean: are you seeing someone? someone dark haired maybe?? 👀

Thomas blushed a little and put his phone back into the pocket without answering.

“Ready to go?”

“Yep,” Thomas followed Alastair through the exit and together left the university.

They sat in the same place as the last time. Even on the same table. Thomas liked that.

“Okay, I suggest not to miss our lecturers this time,” Alastair said.

“Agreed,” Thomas said, laughing. “I can't survive this class only on Lucie's notes.”

They talked about books. They both have read each other's favorite book now and had thoughts to share. Alastair passionately talked about one quatrains of Rubaíyat́ of Omar Khayyaḿ while Thomas was eating from his toast. Since he left London he has forgotten the pleasure of talking about books with someone who was as much investigated in it as Thomas.

Same as the last time the conversation went in different directions. They talked a little about themselves.

“I miss my friends and family,” Thomas admitted. “We were always together, very close to each other. It was weird at first when I came here, without them being around.”

“Tell me about them.”

With almost every other person Thomas would think they were trying to make small talk. Alastair though, Thomas knew, didn't speak things he doesn't mean.

So Thomas told him. He told him about his sisters but not much about Barbara who had passed away because he felt like this was too personal. About the Merry Thieves and a little bit about how they're families were friends.

In return Alastair told him about the cities he had traveled to and what he likes about them, which places were beautiful, the history of them. After his parents' divorce when Alastair was almost 18, he, Cordelia and Sona moved to Paris because the siblings wanted to study here.

They could talk for many more hours but an alarm sharply interrupted them. It was Alastair's phone. He shut it down.

“This is for me. My lecture starts after ten minutes.”

“Oh,” Thomas couldn't hide his disappointment. “Okay.”

“Hey, do you want... to meet tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow is Saturday?” Thomas said, confused. “We don't have classes.”

“I know,” a strange look appeared on Alastair's face. Thomas in shock realized it was nervousness. “Actually, I... I’m asking you to go on a date with me.”

Thomas' heart skipped a beat. It was impossible to stop the smile on his face.

“Okay.”

•

“You're nervous.”

“I am not,” Alastair said defensively. Cordelia arched an eyebrow. “Okay, maybe a little bit.”

“Try not to freak out too much. He's just a guy.”

“A guy with a cute smile.”

“Yeah,” Cordelia laughed. “But you're cute too.”

Alastair frowned at her. “Don't you have homework?”

“I have,” she admitted. “But I also have a brother who has a date.”

Alastair sighed. “He is far from the first guy I have a date with.”

“But he's the first after you-know-who.”

Alastair shook his head. “His name is not a trigger. You can say it. And it doesn't matter. It was a long time ago.”

It wasn't too long ago and Alastair maybe wasn't too happy about his situation with Charles but Cordelia didn't need to know this.

Alastair out on his shoes and coat. The weather wasn't too chilly.

“Actually, I meant... Doesn't matter,” Cordelia said. “Just have fun, remember he is just a guy as nervous as you and don't break his heart because he's Lucie's friend and I like her.”

Alastair couldn't help it but smile. He kissed his sister's forehead and went out.

•

Thomas saw Alastair coming and tried not to look too anxious or look if his clothes were okay.

And he tried his best not to stare at the gorgeous view Alastair was.

Alastair led them on the way to the place he had in mind. It was far from the center, in a small alley that had one beautiful fountain. As they entered the small restaurant Alastair said a few words to the staff member and she immediately led them to their table.

It wasn't what Thomas imagined. They went upstairs. This floor was definitely emptier than the first one - the tables were farther from one another, with only a couple of people on them.

Their table was on the balcony. Thomas' breath stopped when he saw the view. He barely noticed as they sat and the waiter put menus in front of them.

Paris was beautiful during the night. The city of lights. The Eiffel Tower stood gold and sparkling.

“It's beautiful,” Thomas said and turned to Alastair. He caught him staring at Thomas with a smile on his lips.

“It really is,” Alastair said and also looked at the view before opening his menu. “I got lucky to reserve a table here. Part of which was that my mother and the owner are good friends,” Alastair laughed.

Thomas smiled and also opened his menu. “So. What do you recommend?”

Alastair carefully scanned the page he was on. “The toast is awesome. And the desserts are unique. Here is the best tiramisu in Paris.”

“You really like coffee, don't you?” Thomas said with a smile.

“Yes,” Alastair said. “I admit, I do love coffee a hella lot.”

Soon the waiter came to take their orders. After he left, Thomas said, “I'm curious about something. How did you come out? Wait, are you out to your family? Is this a sensitive topic? Oh god, I'm so-”

“It's okay,” Alastair laughed. “Do you always ask every guy such questions on the first date?” he teased.

Thomas blushed a little. “Well. Sometimes,” he cleared throat. “Anyway! Answer my question. Or don't if you don't want to.”

“I'll answer,” Alastair said, trying to hide a smile.“I came out to Cordelia first, a few years ago. Then she convinced me that coming out to Mâmân wouldn't be a disaster. And she was right. It was difficult at first. But it's mostly fine right now.”

The waiter came with their drinks - ginger beer for Thomas and black decaffeinated coffee for Alastair.

“How about you?” Alastair asked after they were alone again. “Are you out?”

“I am kind of out to my family and friends too, yes.”

“Kind of?” Alastair arched the eyebrow.

“It's a funny story actually,” Thomas said. “At first, one of my cousins, Anna, came out as non-binary lesbian. Not long after this Matthew, one of my best friends, came out as bi. And you see, in some way they cleared the path for me. When I came out no one was even surprised. I think they kind of expected everyone to come out as gay at some point,” Thomas laughed.

He didn't mention how sickly anxious he was to come out because he was worried his parents would react bad. Or how he worried his friends and sisters won't understand. Or the irrational, freezing fear to let even one person know something so personal about him.

They talked more about London. Alastair said he was there only once but would like to visit again. They joked that Lucie would drag Cordelia there for the first holiday that appears.

At some point they started to talk about Paris. Which museums they have visited so far. Alastair was scandalized Thomas hasn't visited the Louvre yet. They agreed they should go to one museum together some day.

It was a beautiful night, warm, with a nice breeze. They talked for long, so long they were the only ones left in the restaurant. In another time, in another life the same was happening. They were both different people, with different pasts and so different memories, unsaid words and broken hearts. But as the city of light was watching over them tonight they had this sweet memory, echoing through the centuries.

#thomastair #thomas lighwood #alastair carstairs #tlh #tsc #the last hours #the shadowhunter chronicles #lucie herondale #cordelia carstairs #tsc fanfiction #university au #feel good fic #sav's writing #paris #tsccreatenet #my post

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rosyl-stuff · 3 years

Text

Monster Hunter!Eric

Paring: Eric (The Boyz) x reader

Genre: science fiction? You live in an apocalyptic world and there are monsters; enemies to friends with slight potential to be lovers, angst?

Warnings: a tiny bit of violence, monsters?

Word Count: 4k (~16 minutes reading time)

A/N: Still not over the Monster performance on Kingdom

The world drastically changed in the last few years. Someone from the last century might describe the world you live in now as the apocalypse. But it wasn't that bad. Sure, things are different now. The world population of humans decreased immensely due to diseases and the rising of new species, which most people refer to as monsters. Most of them are similar to extinct species, but every one of them had a little twist to it. Unfortunately, no one really knows much about these creatures, since the science community collapsed with the government together.

Now people lived as nomads or, they lived in small communities. You grew up in such a community and, you still lived in that said community. You had a little hut near the fence that surrounded your community. Your parents are no longer with you and, you were only tolerated by the others due to your skills as a medic.

There were rumours about you being a little too friendly with the monsters and, you had to admit that they were true. Most of the monsters were harmless creatures and only ventured into human settlements because they were curious or accidentally. True, human flesh was the favourite meal of some monsters, but it was 1 out of 30 who hunted humans. That was the reason most humans despised the monsters.

In the last few years, more and more people who called themselves hunters emerged. They moved from community to community and claimed to protect these by killing off any monsters nearby. In exchange, the community gave them free food and a bed to stay in the night.

Most hunters travel and work in groups. But once in a while, a lone hunter comes by. That was also the case this night when a young man, calling himself Eric, walked into the pub. It was business as usual: he ordered a beer and, while he waited for it, Eric would find someone to whom he could talk about his “heroic” deeds. People were always keen on such stories, so it wasn't too difficult to find listeners. When he had entertained the people enough, he would ask for information. Someone always had a monster sighting to report.

Unfortunately for Eric, a few weeks before, a group of hunters came by and killed a whole nest of monster spiders. Even though these spiders were as big as your little hut, they were harmless as long as you stay away from their nest and eggs. But hunters don't care about these kinds of details, unlike you. You were very interested in the different monster species and spent your free time studying them. Some of the creatures even lived in your little hut. But no one knows that and, you intended to keep it that way.

However, since the last visit of hunters, there were no reports of any monsters sightings, which meant no work for Eric. You suppressed a smile as the others in the pub told him there were currently no monsters here for him to kill. You emptied your drink and left the pub. On your way home, you had the feeling that someone was following you. At your doorstep, you turned around, but you saw no one. You quickly moved inside and locked the door. The curtains were already drawn, so you didn't have to worry about anyone accidentally spotting your unusual housemates.

The next morning you only managed to make yourself a tea before someone knocked on the door. You went to open the door and, there stood the man from the pub last night. He looked quite handsome as he smiled at you.

“Hi, I’m Eric!”

“Hi…" you muttered, not really in the mood for a conversation with him. You tried to avoid hunters as good as you could.

Eric moved his weight from one leg to his others as he tried to spare a look inside of your hut.

“What do you want? You don’t look hurt”, you said as you stepped outside, closing the door behind you.

“I- ehm. I just want to talk to you. The others said you have a lot of knowledge about monsters.”

You just shrugged, “And?”

“Can I come in?” he asked.

“No.”

“Why not?”

You laughed dryly, "First of all, because I don't want to. Second, you are a stranger. You could rob me. If you have any questions about any monsters, you can ask me tonight at the pub.”

He raised an eyebrow. Were you suspicious?

But then he said, “Okay. Then, I see you at the pub tonight.”

Without another word, you went inside and locked the door again. Eric probably thought he was being a smart-ass by hiding near your hut. But you saw him as you ate your breakfast and decided to be extra careful today. Someone must have told him about the rumours and, you wanted to make sure he would have the most boring day in his life while stalking your house.

When you arrived at the pub later that day, Eric didn’t give you a chance to order a drink. He already came to your table with two drinks and sat in front of you. He moved one of the drinks to you and gave you a charming smile. You eyed the drink suspiciously before moving it to his side of the table again.

“I’m not drinking that.”

"Oh, you want something else?" he asked as he already moved to stand up to run to the bar to get you another drink.

You couldn’t help but smirk at his eagerness. He must be really desperate.

“No, I just won’t accept any drinks from you.”

He looked at you, clearly confused. Then, it dawned on him.

“I’m not planning on drugging you. Why would I do that?”

“I don’t know. You seemed a little desperate to get into my house this morning.”

He took a sip from both drinks and moved both to you, “Choose one!”

“You could be sick. I’m not drinking that.”

He sighed and ran his hands through his hair. He was clearly frustrated with your behaviour.

"I get you a new one. You will keep an eye on me and will see I have no intentions of drugging you."

"Well, what are your intentions then?"

“I want information.”

“About?”

“Monsters.”

“I didn’t see any. Sorry, I can’t help you with that.”

“Then, just let’s drink together”, he suggested.

You shrugged and, he moved to the bar to you a new drink. Throughout the evening, he tried to fulfil your every wish, so you would give him a little bit of information. When that didn't work, he wanted to get you wasted, but you wouldn't let him. His ears were slowly getting red from anger and, he cracked his knuckles every so often. You couldn't help yourself, but you laughed out loud. That seemed to be the last draw. He abruptly stood up, which made his chair fall. He leaned over to you. Suddenly, he was so close to you that you smell his musky scent and feel his breath fanning over your lips.

"You think you're really smart and funny playing with me, don't you? But let me tell you something. I know that you're hiding something and, I guarantee you I will find out what you're hiding", he whispered as you his lips almost touched yours while speaking.

“I don’t have anything to hide”, you told him calmly, but your heart was beating out of your chest.

“Then why can’t I come to your house?”

“I already told you that I simply don’t want to.”

“Okay then, come on a hunt with me tomorrow.”

“I don’t know how to hunt.”

“Don’t worry, I teach you”, he said with a satisfied smirk.

Hunting was the last thing you want to do, but at the same time, you didn't want to be more suspicious than you already were. So you agreed. What could go wrong when you two were just walking through the forest? A lot, as you would soon find out.

At first, it was almost boring. You two were strolling aimlessly through the forest. There wasn’t any trace of monsters.

“This is pointless”, you grumbled as your feet started to hurt.

Eric sighed. He hated it, but he had to agree.

“Let’s take a break. Do you know a good spot?”

You looked around and then pointed in a direction behind Eric, “A few meters in that direction should be a pond.”

Eric nodded as he turned around to walk through the dark forest. You followed him and, as you reached the pond, it was much brighter. But it was surprisingly quieter than usual. Usually, many other animals, especially birds, can be found at the pound, but no one was there.

“Eric”, you whispered.

“What?” he replied, a little too loud for your taste.

You moved your finger to your lips to show him he should be quiet.

"Stop playing with me. Here is nothing", Eric responded as he moved further towards the pond.

You looked around. “Something is wrong here. I’m not playing”, you whispered angrily.

Eric just scoffed and squatted down by the pond to get some water. You turned your back to him to inspect your surroundings. Then, you heard a scream, so high and loud, that you thought your ears would fall off. You turned back around to Eric to tell him off, but then you saw the monster that made him scream. An enormous toad had emerged out of the water, right in front of you. It was double your height and, you knew that they were always hungry and not picky about their food. You had only ever heard of these toads but never seen one in real life. So you stood there a bit star-struck. Eric, on the other hand, was already moving for his first attack. He climbed up a tree that hovered over the pond. Eric was fast and, it seemed like he planned on jumping on the toad's back. You knew that the skin of the toad is probably poisonous, but before you could warn him, he jumped. You had to admit that his fearlessness impressed you. As his hands touched the toad's skin, he grunted.

“I think the skin is poisonous”, you yelled.

“No shit, Sherlock”, he yelled back and moved his dagger from his belt.

The toad seemed unimpressed by Eric's presence on its back. Instead, it moved towards you. Lucky for you, it wasn't fast, so you could easily run away. You moved into the forest and, the toad followed you. The movement of the toad made Eric struggle to stay on its back and, after a few meters, Eric fell off the toad onto the hard ground. He grunted in pain and, you were sure you heard something break. You hoped it was just a branch he fell onto and not his bones.

The toad ignored Eric and kept on following you. You had to find a way to stop the toad. You looked around hastily. You heard a buzzing sound and, you knew what to do. You ran towards the sound and soon spotted a wasp nest in a tree. You climbed up that tree as fast as you could. The toad also reached the tree and opened his mouth wide to let out his tongue to catch you. You had a hard time dodging it, but you still started to kick against the nest. The wasps began to swarm out and, some of them stung you in various places. But you managed to kick the wasp nest off the tree, directly into the toad's open mouth. It swallowed it immediately and, then the neck of the toad started to swill. It made choking noises for a little while, but ultimately it collapsed and stopped moving. It was dead.

You carefully climbed down the tree. It took you a lot longer to get down because your knees felt weak and, the wasp stings started to hurt. Slowly, you walked back to the pond to look after Eric. He laid there where he had fallen off the toad. He was unconscious and had a massive gash on his temple. His arm was in a position no limb should be in. You contemplated what you should do. You couldn't leave him there, but you couldn't carry him without hurting him anymore.

He will have to stay here for a while, you thought to yourself and hurried home. At home, you collected everything you needed for a makeshift stretcher to transport Eric. It took you a little while to convince Cora to come with you. But in the end, she was easily bribed with sweets. Cora was one of the monsters living with you. She was a diva and obviously knew how pretty she was. She had dark red fur, but along her spine, the fur turned golden and her tail was completely golden. Her head was decorated with horns that looked like a crown. Cora liked to use them if something doesn't go her way. She was significantly smaller than the toad since she walked on all fours and her shoulders were the height of your hips. But Cora had the muscles and stamina you would need to get Eric back to your hut.

You walked back to where Eric still laid. You’re exhausted when you found him again and let yourself drop next to him on the ground. Eric was conscious again but didn’t dare to move due to his injuries.

“I thought you would leave me here dying. Where is the toad?" Eric asked.

"Dead", you panted, still exhausted.

Eric's eyes moved over your body.

“Stop staring, you pervert!”

“I was checking for injuries”, he defended himself, “You’re covered in stings.”

“I made the toad swallow a wasp nest”, you explained.

He didn’t have the chance to be impressed or anything because Cora came to you. Eric let out a horrified scream.

“Shut up, you idiot. I’m gonna lose my hearing, thanks to you.”

Cora's muzzle nudged you gently, which was her way of asking for another sugar cube. You sighed and gave her one while Eric stared at you with an open mouth.

Eric mumbled something incomprehensible and searched for his knife. But he couldn’t move that much without having to endure a lot of pain.

"Relax. That's Cora. She, or any other individual of her kind for that matter, won't eat us. They eat fruits and are obsessed with sugar. They do anything for a little bit of sugar. She will help me to get you back to my house.”

“You’re insane”, Eric sneered.

You laughed it off and got up to build your stretcher. You bind ropes to Cora’s back which to Eric surprised she willingly let you do it and connected Cora to the stretcher. For someone who was severely hurt, Eric could talk someone’s ear off. The whole time he didn’t shut up about how you were doing a terrible mistake by letting monsters like Cora live. As if monster hunting was religion and you were committing blasphemy. Even when you moved onto the stretcher, he was whining and groaning but still complaining about you working together with a monster. You ignored him, gave Cora another sugar cube and, you moved through the forest to your hut.

When you reached your hut, Eric was passed out again. Maxwell, a giant dog with three heads, tried to help you to move Eric onto your bed. He wasn't exactly helpful, but he tried. Dodo was the only one who moved on two legs and had two arms. Even though they enjoyed living with you, they were never keen on helping you.

“Dodo! Your help would be appreciated here”, you scolded them.

Dodo sighed, "Isn't he the monster hunter that was pestering you?" Another speciality about them was that after living with you for a while, Dodo learned how to speak. With a little more practice, they will be able to read and write as well. Dodo was very much human-like. Their skin was grey and had a woody texture to it and, their head was deformed into a semicircle.

"Please", you begged and, Dodo stood up from the couch and helped you lift Eric onto the bed.

"We should tie him up", Dodo suggested and, you agreed.

Within an hour, Eric was stripped of all weapons, which you made Dodo hide. Eric's injuries were treated and, he was tied to your bed. Eric woke up another hour later. He called for you and, you came into the bedroom.

“I didn’t expect you would be that kinky”, he remarked as he inspected the ties.

“Don’t enjoy it too much. If you get a boner, I will cut it off.”

“You wouldn’t.”

“Yes, I would.”

He sighed, “I’m hungry.”

“Dinner is ready in an hour.”

“Where is your monster?”

“Do you mean Cora?”

“Yeah, whatever.”

“She is in the living room with the others.”

“Others? Wait, more monsters?”

You opened the bedroom door, so Eric could look into your living room filled with monsters. Eric screamed again, which Dodo commented with a sassy, “Rude!”

“What the hell? They could kill you any moment. Why do you live with them?" Eric asked.

"Well, humans can kill each other as well and, we still live with them. I and the monsters came to an agreement which is called friendship. Something you never heard of."

He scoffed, "You must be really lonely if you decided to live with monsters."

You felt a sting at your heart. Eric's words had hurt you. You wordlessly left him alone again.

“H-Hey, wait…” Eric tried to get your attention back, but you ignored him.

The next few days, you took care of Eric and tended to his wounds. For the majority of the time, he was tied to the bed and, when he had to use the bathroom, Dodo would accompany him. Eric got used to the monsters around him faster than you had anticipated. Just last night, Dodo told you that when you were away, Eric would play with Maxwell.

“Dinner is ready in ten. If you want and if you promised to not hurt anyone, you can eat with us at the table.”

“You let me eat by myself without ties?" he asked.

You gave him a short nod and, he enthusiastically nodded. You untied him and, he followed you into the living room, where he got greeted by an excited Maxwell. Eric petted him and tried to give each head the same attention.

“Seems like not every monster is that bad?" you teased him.

“Shut up. He’s kinda cute, okay?"

You couldn’t help but smile.

“How come that you are so interested in monsters?" Eric asked.

“Ehmm, I’m currently trying to write a book about them…" you admitted and acted like you were busy in the kitchen.

Dodo laughed, “How cute. You’re getting shy.”

Eric smiled, “An educational book?”

You nodded.

“Why?" he asked again.

"My parents started it and, I want to finish it."

“Are your parents…”

You just nodded.

“Mine too”, Eric confessed, “They were killed by monsters.”

“I’m sorry. “

He gave you a weak smile, “Let’s eat. I’m starving.”

For the night, you tied Eric up again. He protested and insisted that he wouldn’t harm anyone, but you stayed persistent. However, you agreed on untying him in the morning again.

And you kept your promise and untied him again the next day.

"I have to run some errands. Dodo is in charge", you told Eric.

He nodded confidently and followed you into the living room. He screamed when he saw Dodo aiming at him with a shotgun.

“I don’t trust him”, Dodo explained.

You rolled your eyes and left them alone.

As you passed the pub, you saw a group of hunters arrive there as well. Promptly, one of them stopped you. To your astonishment, she didn't ask about monster sightings but about another hunter. She described Eric's appearance to you and finally confirmed your suspicions when they told you that he called himself Eric. It was no use lying and saying you had never seen him, so you confirmed that he had come here a few days ago, but you didn't know where he was now. When you asked them if they were friends, they all laughed. "He is lucky if we don't kill him when we see him," one of them said.

You run as quickly as you can home. You ripped open the door. Eric and Maxwell were playing catch in the living room while Dodo took a nap cuddling the shotgun. Cora came to greet you.

“What happened to you?" Eric asked, amused at your panicked state.

"Eric, there is a group of hunters looking for you. They don't exactly have friendly intentions either. What do they want from you?”

Eric blushed, “Ehm, there was an incident a few months ago."

“That explains literally nothing.”

"Okay, fine. I might have stolen some weapons from a group of hunters", he mumbled so fast that you could barely understand him.

You sighed, “You’re really in trouble.”

“Did you tell them I’m here?”

You shook your head.

"Perfect. Then, I can hide here until the hunters moved on to the next community."

You sighed but nodded.

“You’re the best”, he stood up and excitedly hugged you.

The hug took you by surprise, so it took you a few seconds to reciprocate it. Eric's hug was more comforting than you expected and, you found yourself cuddling into his chest. His hand gently caressed your hair as he mumbled a soft "Thank you" into your ear.

It was a sweet moment, but Dodo woke up and was visibly disturbed by your moment of affection. "That looks absolutely and utterly disgusting", they commented. You separated from each other with a slight blush on your cheeks.

At night, you tied Eric back to the bed. To your surprise, he didn't even protest. The whole time he was staring at you with a soft look in your eyes.

“Why are you staring at me like that?”

“Because you’re the best thing that happened to me.”

“I’m literally tying you to the bed right now. How can you say that?”

"When I said that you must be lonely because you're living with monsters, I was wrong. I'm sorry. Actually, I was the lonely one."

After you finished, you gently pushed his hair out of his face, “It’s fine. Maybe I was a little bit lonely too."

“But we have each other now. I swear I will do anything to earn you trust.”

You smiled at that, “We’ll see about that. Goodnight!”

You went to the living room and went to sleep too. You couldn't sleep for long, however, because you were woken up by Maxwell's howling. It was hot and unusually bright. When you woke up completely, you were shocked to find that your hut was on fire and you and your housemates were in it. The way to the front door was still clear and, Dodo peered out the window next to it. You went to them, "Why don't you go out?" Dodo told you to look out the window, which you did. There stood the group of hunters you had met the day before in front of the pub, waiting. Eric started calling your name. You ran into the bedroom and untied him. Your heart ached at what you were about to do, but it was the only way to protect your creatures. "The way out the front door is clear. Quick, run out." And Eric ran.

You and your creatures fought the way to the back door to escape into the forest, hoping the hunters won’t notice you because they would be busy with Eric.

As you ran into the forest, you heard Eric scream and, at the same time, you felt how your heart shattered into thousand pieces, "I'm sorry, Eric, I'm so sorry!"

#the boyz eric #the boyz fanfic #eric fanfic #son youngjae #the boyz au #the boyz imagines #the boyz scenarios #eric scenarios #eric imagines #eric angst #the boyz angst #tbz eric #tbz fanfic #tbz imagines #tbz scenarios #eric x reader #the boyz x reader

46 notes · View notes

honeykawa · 3 years

Text

Home

pairing: oikawa tooru x single parent! reader

genre: fluff, angst, hurt/comfort

word count: 4.8k

a/n: wow it’s been a hot minutes since ive posted but this is something ive been working on for a while. hope you enjoy!

Summary: Oikawa wanted nothing more than a happy life and when he met you he thought it was within his reach. The days he spent with you filled him with so much happiness, happiness he didn’t even know existed. The way you smiled, laughed and cried for him made him want to keep you all to himself. But he knew he couldn’t be so selfish.

“Y/n!” your nephew called out to you as he ran home from school. You picked up your adorable nephew and gave him a big hug.

“How was your day Kota?” You walked back to your home as Kota told you about his day at school. His face lit up as he spoke to you. It was only recently that he had begun to smile again since the passing of his mom, your sister, and had been placed in your care.

“Do you want to go to the volleyball program for kids your age today?” he nodded his head enthusiastically. “Then go get changed and we’ll go,” you smiled as he ran off to his room. As soon as he ran back out he was putting on his shoes to leave, “Let’s go y/n!”

He was basically dragging you at this point as he ran up the stairs to where the volleyball program was. “Kota please slow down! Someone might fall!” And as if on cue you tripped over your own feet but before you hit the ground you felt someone’s arms catch you.

“Are you okay?” You looked up to see a man with brunette hair and a gentle smile. He helped you back onto your feet as your nephew came over to you with teary eyes. “I’m so sorry y/n!” You quickly kneeled down to his height and patted his head, “Ahh it’s okay Kota! Look! I’m not injured anywhere so go ahead and go to your lessons!” He nodded his head and went off after you wiped his face.

After you made sure he was enjoying himself you turned to the man next to you and bowed, “Thank you so much! I’m sorry if I troubled you,” your words were frantic. “Don’t worry about it! Just be careful okay? Wouldn’t want you to worry Kota,” his words sounded playful but the concern was there.

You both started walking to where all the kids were playing, “Do you know Kota?” The way he casually said his name made you curious. “Oh, I’m one of the instructors here! My name’s Oikawa Tooru.” Your eyes widened at the name. “Oikawa Tooru? I thought you lived in Argentina?” You could have sworn that he played for the national team there. His hand scratched the back of his head and a light laugh left his mouth, “Aha well I recently moved back after another injury and now I help out here in my free time.” His story left a lot to be desired but you left it at that.

“Well in any case thank you for looking after Kota while he’s here! Ever since his mother passed he hasn’t really smiled but after attending this program it’s come back little by little,” he watched as your gaze settled on your little nephew, “I know I can’t ever replace my sister but if I can do anything to make him happy then I’ll gladly do it.” The words just fell out of your mouth as you spoke to him, “Sorry if that was too much! I have a tendency to overshare sometimes. I’ll let you get back to the kids now! I’m sure I’ve taken up too much of your time already. Thanks again!” Before he could even say anything you had already run away.

You came back a little later to pick your nephew up with groceries in hand. You didn’t realize how late it had gotten and rushed back only to see Oikawa and Kota still playing together even though everyone else had gone. A smile appeared on your face at the sight of them together. “Ah y/n!” Oikawa saw you and waved.

You walked towards the two of them and picked Kota up. “Thank you for watching him Oikawa! I lost track of time at the grocery store.” Kota was already asleep in your arms and you both chuckled.

“Must have been a long day for him.” Oikawa smiled as he ruffled Kota’s hair. “I’ll see you later y/n” he was about to turn and leave before you called out to him.

“Wait! Would you like to have dinner with us tonight? It’s the least I could do after you stayed with him,” the smile on your face made his heart speed up a bit. It couldn’t hurt to just have dinner, right? He nodded his head and followed you home.

“Here let me carry that,” he reached for the grocery bags in your hand and took them before you could object. “Oh, thank you!”

As soon as you two made it back to your apartment you set Kota down in his room. “You can just sit at the table and wait for it to be ready! I hope you don’t mind having curry. Do you like yours spicy or sweet?” You were so preoccupied placing everything out you didn’t even hear Oikawa behind you.

“Hmm let’s do sweet since Kota’s still young,” his breath tickled your ear causing you to jump. “Oh sorry y/n! I didn’t mean to scare you!” Even though he said that you could see the mischievous look on his face.

You rolled your eyes and went back to cooking, “Sweet it is then. Now, either sit back down or help me. Don’t just stand there.” you lightly smacked him with the back of your wooden spoon to which he just laughed. “Ok, ok. Just tell me what to do.”

Dinner was quickly ready and Kota came out of his room rubbing his eyes. “Why good Morning, Kota! C’mon, let’s wash your hands before we eat.” Oikawa’s eyes never left you as you took care of your nephew. You were so kind to him, it almost made him jealous. Would you also wish him a good morning after he wakes up? It was something he could only dream of.

“Oikawa why are you here?” Kota took a bite of his food as he asked his question, making it a bit hard to understand what he said. “I’m just here to play with Kota,” He patted Kota’s head to which his eyes lit up. “Really?! Can we play some more volleyball?”

You laughed at their little interaction which caught Oikawa’s attention. It was a sound that was soft and light on his ears, he wanted to hear it again. “Kota, there’s nowhere to play volleyball here so why don’t you show him your room after we eat instead?” Kota nodded his head and quickly finished his meal.

A little while later Kota fell asleep for the night after forcing Oikawa to play with him and now it was just you and Oikawa in the living room. You brought out a can of beer for him while you just drank some water.

“You’re not going to drink with me?” You shook your head and looked towards Kota’s room. “If something were to happen to him I need to be ready to act. But please, go ahead.” He opened the can and talked with you for a little bit.

After a couple of cans, he was definitely starting to feel a little tipsy. “You know, you’re a good parent. Kota might not be your kid but you treat him with such care and kindness. I was worried when I first met him that his home life wasn’t good since he was always quiet and never smiled but...after meeting you I can see that everything’s fine.” his eyes widened and he quickly covered his mouth. “I’m sorry, that was rude of me. My lips are a little loose right now.” He laid his head on the table with his shoulders slumped, a bit embarrassed of his sudden words. You just smiled and ran a hand through his hair, “Thank you Oikawa. You can sleep here if you want. Let me go get a few blankets and pillows for you.”

You set up the couch for him and helped him settle for the night. “Goodnight, sleep well,” but before you could leave he grabbed your wrist and pulled you onto the couch with him. “Sleep with me” he leaned down to give you a kiss but fell asleep before he could with you locked in his arms. You took a sigh and brushed some hair out from his face. Despite the happy-go-lucky attitude he had, you felt a sense of sadness whenever you looked at him.

The morning quickly came and Oikawa woke up before anyone else. He felt a weight against him and when he looked down his memories of last night suddenly came back to him. Of course, he was embarrassed by his actions but at the same time waking up next to you didn’t seem so bad.

He felt you starting to move around and saw your eyes flutter open, “Good morning, y/n~” He had a cheeky smile on his face that made your face feel as if it were on fire. You immediately shot up, “G-good morning, Oikawa.” You stood up and headed towards your bedroom to get ready for your day. You had to go to work in a little bit and needed to get Kota to school soon.

You quickly came out in work attire and made some breakfast for the three of you. Kota sat down at the table and ate quietly as you prepared some bentos for the day. “Okay, Kota! We have to go otherwise you’ll be late for school!”

You turned to Oikawa and handed him a bento as well. “I don’t know if you need to get to work too but here’s some lunch! See you later Oikawa!” You parted ways at the street and he couldn’t stop the smile from appearing on his face. You truly were a kind person.

A few days passed and Oikawa decided to stop by your apartment to return the bento box to you. Maybe he was acting on his own whims but he just wanted to see you again. “Oh, Oikawa! It’s pretty late but come in!”

You ushered him into your house and poured him a cup of tea. “So to what do I owe the honor?” He held up the bento box and handed it back to you.

“Just thought I’d return this. It was really good, I wouldn’t mind eating your food every day,” his eyes locked with yours and you could feel your face heating up from his blatant flirting. The look on your face made his breath hitch though. Just how cute could you get?

“You know, you should call me Tooru. We’re friends, right?” The more embarrassed you got the more he wanted to tease you. He wanted to see all of your expressions. “C’mon, say it!”

He leaned closer and closer to you as he kept trying to get you flustered. “T...Tooru,” he smiled at the sound of his name.

“See? Was that so hard?” He patted your head to which you just swatted it away. He knew when to stop and you might end up hating him if he went any further. So he drank the rest of his tea and then got up.

“Well, it’s been fun y/n but I’ll see you later.” He was about to leave before you stopped him.

You pulled on his shirt and gave him a quick kiss on his cheek before letting go. “Good night, Tooru” and with that, you closed your door leaving him there too shocked to even move.

Once he got a hold of himself he chuckled a bit as he walked home. He had always thought you were interesting but who knew you could catch him by surprise like that as well.

A couple of weeks went by and you’ve seen Oikawa a few times at volleyball lessons and you talked to him a bit every time. Your conversations with him, though short, were always meaningful. They were the highlight of Oikawa’s day and he couldn’t wait to see you again.

Sooner or later he and Kota had started playing together on the weekends because if there was even a slight chance that he’d see you again, then he’d take it. Plus Kota wasn’t bad company. Oikawa had always been fond of the kid, he saw the same loneliness in Kota that he had in himself.

Whenever you came to come pick Kota up you always greeted the both of them with a smile. With the way you looked at Oikawa anyone could tell that you liked the man. Soon enough, you two waved goodbye and left the park.

Kota wanted to leave it alone...and he did for a few days but the weird feeling he got when he saw you two together looking at each other like that made him want to know. So he finally asked you what’s been on his mind.

“Do you like Oikawa?” You and Kota were walking home together hand in hand. An unconscious smile appeared on your face and maybe you weren’t aware of it but Kota saw it. And it left an uneasy feeling in him again.

“I like him. He’s a good person, though I get the feeling he’s hiding something but I hope that he’ll be comfortable to let me see someday. Now c’mon, you don’t want to miss volleyball right?”

You dropped him off at practice and as Kota ran off to go to his friends, Oikawa came up to talk to you for a moment. Kota looked back at the two of you and the weird feeling from earlier came back to him. He didn’t know how to even explain how he felt other than...scared.

When you came back to pick him up he was still feeling weird. He didn’t like feeling like this. The next few days he couldn’t shake this feeling and he didn’t know what to do.

As time went on the gross feeling never left Kota and you noticed his change in behavior but thought that he would talk to you when he was ready. “Kota? Do you want dinner?” He just shook his head and went to his room. Odd.

You decided to call your parents and talk to them about it, “I don’t know what’s happening. He was just starting to smile again but he hasn’t in the past few days...I think something happened but he won’t talk about it. Maybe he’d be better off somewhere else.” Little did you know that he was listening and he felt like time just stopped around him.

The sudden noise of your front door slamming shut scared you. You said your goodbyes to your parents and went looking around. It was raining so maybe it was just the storm, “Kota?” You opened the door to his room only to see it was empty.

You immediately ran out of your apartment after noticing Kota’s shoes weren’t there anymore. “Kota?!” you called out his name as you ran, not knowing where he would even go. Tears were streaming down your face at the thought of something happening to him.

Suddenly you got a call on your phone from Oikawa, “Tooru I lost Kota I don’t know where he is or where he went!” your sobs could be heard through the cell phone and he could hear the hurt in your voice.

“Don’t worry, y/n. He’s with me at the park, the one where we have volleyball and he’s fine.” He heard you hang up the phone and in less than five minutes you were seen running towards the two of them.

Despite the ground being wet and hard, you slid onto your knees and took Kota into your arms, “Kota! I was so worried! Why would you run off like that?!” Kota pushed you away and wouldn’t meet your eyes. “Kota?”

Oikawa patted the kid’s head, “Don’t you think it’s time you told them? And you,” his eyes landed on you, “listen to what he says. He’s nervous and yelling won’t help right now.”

You watched as Kota looked up at you as he tried to say something but the words were struggling to leave his mouth. “Y/n please don’t get rid of me I promise to be good! I don’t want to be alone again!” He went in and hugged you, clinging to your clothes.

You held him as he cried, “Kota I love you so much I would never get rid of you!”

“But..but you said maybe it’d be better if I went somewhere else…” Did he overhear your conversation with your parents? You shook your head and held his face in your hands.

“Kota...that was because you seemed so sad again lately. I thought you didn’t like living with me so I thought that you’d might want to go somewhere else. But I would be so happy if you wanted to stay with me.” You kissed his tears away and picked him up as you stood. “Let’s go home, okay?” You then looked at Oikawa and gave him a smile and a slight bow before walking back home.

Once you thought Kota was asleep you called Oikawa, “What’s up y/n?”

You sat on your bed while you talked, “Just calling to thank you for today. I didn’t know what I would do if I lost him. So thank you for finding him.” He smiled listening to you speak.

“Don’t worry about it. Just be sure to keep talking to him. He’s quiet but...he’s holding a lot in.”

“You sound like you’re talking from experience.” You let out a breathy laugh but were met with silence on his end.

His eyes narrowed slightly before speaking his next words, “And what if I am?”

There was a brief silence between the two of you, “Then I’d let you know that it’s okay to lean on other people every once in a while. And that it’s okay to lean on me.”

His breathing was silent and you thought that maybe he had hung up. “Don’t be so serious y/n! I was only joking. Well, I have an early start tomorrow so I’m going to let you go. Good night, y/n.”

He hung up before you could even say goodbye back. Just when you thought you were having more than a surface-level moment, he goes back to playing around. You took a deep sigh, slightly hurt but also maybe you were overestimating your importance in his life.

“Y/n?” you looked over at your door to see Kota just barely poking his head in.

You just smiled at him and waved him in, “Can’t sleep?” He snuggled right up to you and shook his head no.

“I thought you sounded kind of sad so I came over.” The walls here must be really thin huh. But you just pulled him close and the both of you fell asleep together.

A few days later it was finally the weekend so Kota went to the park to see if Oikawa was there to play with him. Oikawa had been meeting up with the kid to watch him while he played. That scare really did a number on you so Oikawa thought the least he could do was watch him while you were busy.

After an hour or so of playing together Kota asked what’s been on his mind ever since you and he had that conversation about the tall setter a while back, “Oikawa why do you seem different when it’s just you and me?” Oikawa let out a small laugh as he bumped it back, “Different? Different how?”

Kota tossed it up while not holding anything back, “You just seem lonely around others but at the same time it doesn’t feel like you want to get to know them. But I feel like you don’t hide things around me”

Oikawa had never felt so called out before, especially by a seven-year-old. “I think y/n would still like you if you let them get to know you. I mean, I still like you,” Oikawa just shook his head and focused on keeping the ball up. “I’m not confident they would but thank you, Kota. I like you too.”

The two of them played for a bit longer before Oikawa asked Kota a question, “How would you feel if I took y/n from you?” the ball dropped onto the ground as Kota just stood there with a look of pure fear evident on his face. “No! Please don’t take them!” Oikawa almost regretted asking him the question, “I don’t want to lose y/n!” His heart shattered at his words and before he knew it Kota was being held tight in his arms, “Don’t worry Kota, I promise I won’t take them.”

Oikawa soon walked Kota back to your apartment once the sun started to set. Kota immediately ran to you as soon as he opened the door and you gave him a nice big hug, “Oh, welcome home!”

Welcome home. It was a simple greeting but he hadn’t heard it in years. The thought of you greeting him like that after a long day...it was something he could only long for. “You’re staying for dinner right, Tooru?”

How could he say no? Dinner went along just fine and soon enough Kota fell asleep in your lap as the three of you watched some cartoons with him. Oikawa’s eye never left you as you set Kota down in bed.

“Sorry ‘bout that. He always falls asleep at the most random times.” You flipped off the TV and went to get up to clean but was quickly pulled down onto the ground with Oikawa on top of you with both hands beside your head.

Your eyes locked with his, his clouded with a mixture of emotions. He wanted to take you and keep you only for himself. “I think they would still like you.” How he wanted to believe that was true.

He wanted your kindness and the soft and gentle feeling you gave him whenever you spoiled him but he also wanted to see you withering beneath him on the edge of tears. He leaned down and kissed you and you could feel the desperation in it. Both of you pulled away out of breath. He went to kiss you again but you stopped him before he could. “Tooru, Kota’s in the other room. We can’t do this here.”

It was brief but you saw a look of hurt run across his face. He got off of you and stood up. “Sorry, y/n. I’ll see you sometime!” He quickly put his usual smile back on his face before leaving out the front door not even stopping to look at you as he left.

Oikawa walked home drowning in his thoughts. What the fuck was wrong with him? For a brief second, he forgot about everything else like it was only you and him. But you had Kota and Kota needed you. But the smile you showed him...the laughter you had...he hated this feeling. The feeling of having something so close but just barely being out of his reach.

Once he got home he curled himself in his bed, still possessed by thoughts of you. ‘I want them. I want them. I want them so bad.’ He held his head between his hands, ‘I want to be loved by y/n.’

Kota’s crying face suddenly flashed through his mind, “Please don’t take them!” and he knew he had to stop. He couldn’t do that to that boy.

Oikawa didn’t come back to volleyball lessons after that. You hadn’t seen him in a little over a week and it was starting to scare you. Your change in behavior started to worry your nephew and he started to feel somewhat guilty.

Tears started to form in his eyes as you two sat at the table together, “Y/n.” He got out of his chair and came over to you to which you picked him up and sat him in your lap, “What’s wrong Kota?” The tears just wouldn’t stop coming out of his eyes as he tried to explain what was wrong.

“Oi-Oikawa and you aren’t talking, right? That’s why you’ve been so sad! Y/n doesn’t smile anymore and it’s my fault! I said something mean to him and said he couldn’t have you and now he’s angry...I’m sorry, y/n!”

Your heart ached at his words. You held him tight against you until he calmed down, “Shh Kota it’s okay. It’s not your fault, it’s not anyone’s fault, do you understand? Oikawa isn’t angry I promise you that. He knew you’d answer like that because he knows how much I love you.” His sniffles got quieter and quieter as you spoke. “I love you so much Kota but I also...like Oikawa too. Would it be okay if I fell in love with him?”

Kota nodded his head into your chest and got off of your lap, “Okay because I like Oikawa too. Please find him.” You ruffled his hair and kissed his forehead. “Thank you, Kota. Please know that this doesn’t mean I’ll love you any less, rather, my love for the both of you will be doubled.”

The next day when you went to drop off Kota at volleyball you talked to some of the other instructors there and they told you where Oikawa lived. You thanked them and went on your way hoping that it wasn’t too late.

You finally found his apartment and knocked on the door in front of you hoping that he’d answer it. The door slowly opened to reveal a disheveled Oikawa. “Y/n, What are you doing here?” His voice was cold and emotionless and his eyes seemed like they were just looking through you instead of at you. You could cry seeing him in this state. You couldn’t hold yourself back before lunging at him for a hug. But you weren’t met with a warm welcome.

“What, I kiss you once and you want me? You must be so easy huh. Bet you’d do it with anyone that showed you any amount of affection.” The words just...came out. It hurt him so much to say them but Kota...he couldn’t bear for Kota to cry because of him.

But you wouldn’t let go. “That’s not what you really think. I know it isn’t. I love Kota so much and I’ll always be praying for his happiness but I love you as well and want nothing more than for your happiness too. Please don’t think that I can’t love you both. You’re always holding back how you feel and your true self may be selfish and stubborn, but Oikawa is Oikawa through and through and I’ll always love every aspect of you. I know I don’t know everything about you but you don’t know everything about me either. I want to be with you and Kota does too! So will you please stay?”

You held onto him as if your life depended on it and slowly he raised his arms to hug you back. Tears streamed down his face and he held you as close to him as he could. “I’m sorry y/n. I’m so sorry. I love you too.”

You had told Oikawa that your parents had picked Kota from volleyball and he was staying at their house. “Is it really okay to send him off like that?” Oikawa couldn’t help but feel a bit guilty about making him feel like he needed to leave.

“Kota actually said he wanted to go visit them. When I said it was okay he refused to take no for an answer.” you chuckled at your nephew’s clumsiness. But he was a good kid and you loved him for it.

Oikawa came up behind you and snaked his arms around your waist, “He’s a sweet kid.” He kissed you tenderly and slowly you two made your way into your bedroom.

Every touch from you was like a drug leaving him only wanting more. That night was filled with nothing but gentle touches and soft kisses. And he absolutely couldn’t get enough of it. Enough of you. “I love you, y/n” he wiped the tears that left your eyes as you laid under him. You leaned into his touch and kissed his warm hand, “I love you too.”

The next day Oikawa went to go pick Kota up while you went to go get some groceries for dinner and Kota immediately clung to Oikawa’s leg upon seeing him, “I’m so sorry Oikawa! Please don’t leave again.” Oikawa picked him up and threw him into the air a bit to cheer him up. “Don’t worry Kota, it’s not your fault. Y/n talked some sense into me so I won’t be going anywhere.”

The two of them walked in the door and were welcomed by you, the person that they both loved the most, with a smile on your face.

“Welcome home you two!”

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prettytoxicrevolver · 3 years

Text

Worried | Corpse Husband

Requested? Nope

Warnings? Mentions of a toxic household, struggling mental health

Summary: After visiting your family for a bit, you isolate yourself out of old habits. However, after days of not hearing from you, Corpse comes to check up on you

Word Count: 1,701

You were beyond shocked when Corpse showed up on your doorstep in the middle of the night a few days after you returned to the west coast.

You had headed home to the east coast for a bit to visit your family and catch up after living on the west coast and not coming home for a few years. You didn’t mean to intentionally stay away from your family, but after building up your savings and getting yourself settled, you didn’t realize how long it had been since you had seen your family.

So, you decided to fly back for a week and finally catch up with them. You missed them a bit but you were aware of how happy you’ve become since moving to the west coast and following your passions. You were finally able to escape your small town and be able to spread your wings.

Growing up you had always struggled with your mental health and your hometown mixed with family issues never helped it. It was part of the reason you felt trapped when you were growing up in your tiny hometown. You didn’t get as much help as you should have and the support you needed wasn’t there.

You made it through thankfully, but when you got to the west coast you felt like you could breathe. The weight of everyone knowing everyone was lifted and you had more access to help than ever before. You felt motivated to work on yourself and with new friends who were more like family you felt better.

Going home sent you back probably ten steps. Your mom had commented on your looks. Your dad claimed you weren’t doing well out west and shouldn’t try anymore. Your brother gloated about his new promotion all week. You felt torn down the whole week through subtle hints and tiny jabs and you couldn’t wait to get home.

You had texted your west coast friends practically the entire time you were gone telling them how everything was going and how you couldn’t wait to see them when you got back. You and Corpse had texted every day and he was the reason you made it through the painful dinners and conversations with your family. He either sent you memes or inside jokes during the dinners and called you every night when you got back or had a moment alone to check-in.

He was simply there for you when you needed someone to make you smile. He understood what you were going through and didn’t want you to go through it alone. You hoped you could repay the favor one day.

On the flight back you were excited to get back home but you felt yourself falling back into spiraling thoughts. This always happened with your family, making you feel like you’re not good enough and that you’d end up failing. You ended up getting so into your head and falling back into a depression when you came home.

You ignored pretty much all of your friends’ calls, texts, and even tweets about where you were and what was going on. It happened pretty much every time you got into your head about your family’s comments. You kept to yourself and didn’t let anyone in on what you were feeling.

So you should have understood when Corpse was worried sick. He had been texting and calling you all week and when you come back that’s when you ghost him? He was worried he did or said something, overbearing with his messages, or didn’t help enough. He was wracking his brain for days after you had gotten home and couldn’t come up with anything.

It also stemmed from the fact that he liked you. He’s liked you since your first among us game when you teamed up as the ultimate impostors together and you had the same mind as he did. You two played off each other’s energy and he knew immediately he wanted to know you. He knew you were someone special.

So, when his best friend and the girl he likes dips, he’s concerned and that’s most of the reason why he ended up on your doorstep unable to sleep.

You found it hardest to not respond to Corpse. The man’s electric personality, stunning laugh, and caring heart hooked you from the start. You had fallen hard for him and the fact that he was there for you even thousands of miles away while you were with family meant everything to you. But your brain betrays you and you wish you could tell him everything.

It was a few days after you had gotten home and you found yourself plagued with insomnia. It had to be at least 2 am when you got up from bed to make a cup of tea and read a bit more of the book you had started recently. Whenever you couldn’t sleep, most of the time you gave up, not caring if you went back to bed or not knowing you could always drink more coffee the next day if you were too tired.

Just as you sat down, a knock on your door sounds and for half a second your heart stops. You try to convince yourself it was something falling over outside but when you hear it again, sharp and clear, you nervously set down your mug and head to your front door.

You pop up on your tiptoes and peek through the peephole to see the one person who hasn’t left your mind the entire time you had gone dark since you’ve come back home.

“Corpse?” you ask when you swing open the door. The older boy scans you up and down before stepping forward and instantly wrapping you up into his arms.

You react immediately lifting your hands to grab the fabric of his sweatshirt and pull him close. He pushes his face into your neck and it’s like every bit of stress is being relieved slowly by his touch.

“I’m sorry,” he whispers still holding you tight. “I was just worried.”

You pull back at this, raising a hand to his cheek which he instinctively leans into. Your thumb rubs soothing circles across his cheekbone and you feel the flutter of a sigh leave his lips.

“I’m sorry,” you whisper back and he shakes his head.

You dive back into his arms, his hands now resting securely around your shoulders and you press your face into his chest. You stay like that until you know he’s not going anywhere.

He presses a kiss to your head before pulling away and slipping his hands from your shoulders to your hands. His left-hand slides down the inside of your forearm, his fingers dancing across your skin delicately until they meet your palm.

You try not to seem too eager as his fingers slide perfectly into yours and you practically come alive as soon as your palms meet and you’re whole again.

Your eyes finally meet his once again and he offers a tiny smile before tugging on your hand lightly to pull you into your bedroom. You follow him feeling a million times better than you did when you woke up this morning or any morning for the past few days.

He leads you to your bed and you fall down onto it with him crawling into it next to you. You sit criss cross with him sitting in front of you, a curious look on his face.

“What’s wrong princess?” he asks quietly, reaching out to place a comforting hand on your knee.

“My family has spent most of my life telling me I’m not good enough. Not supporting me. Going home felt like I was 16 again and trying to show them I’m good enough,” you say as tears start to fall down your face.

Corpse moves at this sight, carefully placing himself next to you and placing both hands on the back of your thighs to pull you closer to him. His left-hand cups your cheek and wipes away the falling tears. You take a deep breath, looking into his gorgeous eyes and feeling calm wash over you once more.

“I just don’t feel good enough. I feel like no one wants me and I’ve always struggled with how to talk to people about it so I shut down.”

“You don’t have to tell anyone, anything love. Talk when you’re ready but know I’m here no matter what. I want to hear about your biggest victories and your worst days. Your passions and your nightmares. But if you’re not ready that’s okay.”

You’re almost sobbing at this point because you’re not sure if anyone has ever loved and supported you this purely. You had learned to do the heavy lifting of loving and supporting yourself but always dreamed of someone supporting you on your bad days and you were so grateful for Corpse to be that someone.

“Thank you,” you whisper.

Corpse nods and you give him a small smile. Your eyes search his for a moment when you notice his eyes flicker from yours to your lips. It strikes you how close the two of you are and your heart drops to your stomach and rolls around a bit out of nerves.

His hand is still on your cheek and he pulls you forward and just as you’re an inch away your eyes flutter shut. Your lips meet his and it’s like time stops. It’s breathtaking like you’re certain you’re not breathing but you never want the moment to end. You sink straight into the feeling in case it never happens again.

As you break apart you stay close together, resting your foreheads on each other as your eyes search the others. And then he smiles that rare, room brightening smile and you’re lit up at the sight of it.

“C’mere,” he whispers and you fall carefully into his embrace.

He wraps you up in his arms, one wrapped securely around your waist while the other comes over your side to hold your hand. His face is pressed into your neck and you know for certain this is going to be the best night’s sleep you’ll get in a while.

#corpse husband #corpse #corpse x y/n #corpse husband imagine #corpse imagine #youtuber imagine #imagine #bravebesson

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seihun · 4 years

Text

i have never once been jealous of park chanyeol in my entire life

ϟ pairings and aus :: oh sehun x reader, college au, friends to lovers au, fluff

ϟ word count :: 2.3k

ϟ author’s note :: this is technically a part of a (now completed!) au i’ve been posting, but it can also be read as a stand-alone!! so, i hope you enjoy!! i’ll link things later, if necessary :) more notes at the end!!

Sehun hears you before he sees you, sending a panicked text to Junmyeon before you come crashing through the front door.

Except you don’t.

Sehun swears that he’s hearing your voice, though, loud and clear. He shoves his phone into his back pocket, ignoring the repeated notifications from his elders, and trudges towards the window.

Sure enough you’re there, alright, and that is your voice. Through the small hole he’s made in the curtain, he sees you opening the back door to a car, obviously searching for something inside. His eyebrows pinch together for a moment, unsure of what you’re looking for, or who’s car that is, but he’s not left wondering for long.

Because Chanyeol rounds the rear of the vehicle, playfully shoving you out of the way as he reaches into the backseat himself. He can hear the two of you talking, laughing, but he drowns out the words; too focused on watching the scene in front of him.

Chanyeol pulls out two white plastic bags, full of what appear to be containers of food, but that’s not what Sehun sees. He sees your bright-eyed look of affection, the cheek to cheek grin painted on your face as you take a bag from Chanyeol. He hands you another one, a grocery bag this time; the exchange is quick, but Sehun feels like he’s been watching for a lifetime.

Chanyeol must have said something funny, because he has you laughing again, gently nudging his hip with yours before giggling himself. You have him goodbye with your free hand, before turning to head for the stairs to the front door.

He rushes to close the curtains, almost trips over a pair of Baekhyun’s shoes on his way to open the door for you.

“Hey, there you are!” you greet him, shoving the door closed with your foot. Sehun smiles back, taking the bags of food from you while you take your shoes off, following him into the living room after.

It’s easy banter as you help him unpack all the food. You hand him the bubble tea, and excited, waiting grin on your face. It’s almost childlike, the way you glimmer up at him, waiting for him to take the first sip—like a kindergartner waiting for their parent to taste a cupcake they decorated.

It’s good, of course. It’s his favorite, and Sehun’s satisfied smile seems to be all the approval to you need.

“I got spaghetti, and ziti, and three types of garlic bread—and also carbonara. We probably won’t finish it, but if there was this deal going on and Chanyeol insisted we should buy as much to get the discount, and I figured Baekhyun would probably—”

“I think you should ask Chanyeol out.”

If Sehun surprised himself with the words that came out of your mouth, he surprised you ten times over. At least, so he thinks, judging by the way you completely freeze, wide eyed with an aluminum foil take-out container barely maintained in your loosening grip.

“You—what? Why would I ask out Chanyeol?” you question, blinking slowly and setting the container on the coffee table.

Sehun shrugs, preoccupying himself with opening the rest of the food. He’s careful to avoid eye-contact, lest tears threaten to spill from his own. “Chanyeol’s a good guy,” he says, words quiet, slow, deliberate, “And he seems to like you a lot.”

“I mean—yeah, Chanyeol’s great, but I, um, I don’t think he likes me like that, though.”

“He probably does,” Sehun pushes, “He has no reason not to.”

“Hun, where is this coming from?” you ask with a chuckle. You shove his shoulder playfully, forcing him to look up from twirling pasta around his fork.

He shrugs again, bringing your mood down a notch. “I just—I don’t know, I think you deserve to be happy and date someone if you want. And Chanyeol’s a good guy.”

He’s twiddling his thumbs, biting his lip: telltale signs he’s anxious or lying, or in this case, both. He notices his actions, but stops them too abruptly, insighting disbelief on your features in the form of crinkled eyebrows.

“What—I mean, does something give you the impression that I’m not happy now?”

“No!” Sehun’s tone is pitched and jumpy. Then quiet and somber, “I’m just saying, you know. If you like him, you should go for it.”

It’s silent for a while, too long for Sehun’s comfort, filled only with longing stares and curious eyes. He dares not say anything else, untrusting of the sound of his own voice and his ability to swallow his sorrow; forces himself to stuff food into his mouth as a distraction.

“Thank you for looking out for me.” You scoot over, sitting directly next to him on the couch before wrapping your arms around his torso. Sehun borderline chokes on his garlic bread. “You’re a good guy, too, Hun,” you add, head resting against his bicep, words eerily close to those Junmyeon was murmuring to him just hours ago.

Neither of you say anything for a moment more, Sehun trying his best will away the scratchy feeling in his throat. He closes his eyes briefly, and sighs. It’s not that he didn’t know it before, but the realization that he’d do anything for you crashes into him. It hurts just a much as it gives him a sense of relief.

He can’t hear the way your heart beats in your chest, can’t hear the whirlpool of thoughts threatening to overflow in your mind, but maybe it’s for the best.

“Well! Come on then,” you startle him, words breaking through the silence. You lean forward to reach for the food, “This pasta isn’t gonna eat itself!”

A few days later, Sehun sees you off to your study session with Chanyeol. Study-date is probably the more appropriate term. If you hadn’t texted Chanyeol at all over the weekend to say something, Sehun was sure you’d speak up today.

Because, like a self-inflicting fool, Sehun brought it up just before you opened the door to exit his car; and completed his act by sending you his best smile and most supportive words. After confirming you’d safely entered Chanyeol’s house, he proceeded to slam his forehead against the top of his steering wheel for approximately seventeen minutes straight, before driving himself to Junmyeon and Minseok to wallow in his emotions. As per usual.

“So, you told the girl you’re in love with to ask out some other guy, and now you’re upset that she might have gone and done just that,” Junmyeon ponders, looking down at his lap where Sehun attempts to bury his face into the pillow resting upon it.

Sehun groans, kicking his feet a little like a child. Minseok tuts at him from the loveseat, “When we said talk to her I thought it was clear that you were supposed to ask her out. Not encourage her to ask someone else out.”

Sehun continues moping, laying dramatically on his back, half of his limbs falling off of the small couch. Maybe encouraging you to ask out the guy he’s extremely jealous of wasn’t the brightest idea he’s had in terms of his goals to ask you out—but if you wanted to date Chanyeol, then so be it. Sehun wasn’t irrational enough to try and push the taller out of the picture due to spite.

“Part of me admires you, Sehunnie,” Junmyeon starts, tapping his fingers against the younger’s forehead, “But I can’t help but think that you’ve been reading this wrong.”

“You mean like he’s been reading everything wrong,” Minseok scoffs, “Sehun can’t tell when certain people are in love with him. No wonder he falsely assumes the opposite for others.”

“You’re extra sarcastic today,” Sehun grumbles. “It’s not appreciated.”

“Sorry I’m not team watch Sehun’s existential crisis unfold,” Minseok grins, “I told you the only way this is ever going to work is if you talk about your feelings.”

Sehun whines this time, flipping himself onto his stomach to resume burying his head into the pillow. The older boys laugh at him, Junmyeon doing his best to comfort his friend with pats on the back, but it makes Sehun feel like a patronized toddler.

“I need a drink,” the youngest mumbles soon after, pulling his face from the plush, “Or food. Or both.”

Lazily, he pushes himself from the couch, turning in the direction of the kitchen. The others follow suit—Junmyeon out of concern for both their liquor and food supply, and Minseok for purely entertainment purposes.

A curious knock on the door stops all three of the boys in their tracks. Junmyeon and Minseok weren’t expecting anyone else over—anyone who knocks that is. That ruled out the possibility of it being Baekhyun immediately, and with Yixing away visiting his parents, neither of them could rack their brains for an expected guest.

Still, it’s Minseok who makes his way towards the entrance, gingerly stepping up on his toes to look through the peep hole before opening the door with a knowing grin.

He’s greeted by your even smaller, fuming figure. Hands balled into fists with a kindergarten-esque scowl on your face.

“Where is he?” you demand, marching into their apartment before receiving an answer.

Minseok simply chuckles, letting you storm into the living area, and closing the door behind you. Shocked, both Sehun and Junmyeon are at a standstill. The older is equal parts confused and concerned, but Sehun is petrified.

You stop abruptly in front of him, and Sehun opens his mouth to start spewing apologies—for whatever it is that you’re upset about, he’s not sure, but he knows a few are due—but he doesn’t have the chance to, before you’re fisting his shirt in your hand, and pulling him down into a kiss.

If Sehun could describe the feeling of an out-of-body experience, it would be this. Kissing you, being kissed by you; something he’s imagined, dare he say dreamt of. Despite his eyes fluttering shut, it’s like he’s watching himself being kissed,unable to wrap his head around that fact that you stood in front of him, pulled him towards you, and kissed him.

He doesn’t have time to consider relishing in the moment, either. Because he hears Minseok and Junmyeon wooing in the background, loud and obnoxious, and because you pull away, parting your lips from his.

There’s a storm of emotions brewing in your eyes, a similar phenomenon happening in his own; but before he has the chance, to act, to say anything, your scrunch your nose, and jostle his shirt in your hold.

“You think you can just tell me to go ask out Chanyeol—which I didn’t by the way, because I’m not exactly keen on looking like a clown—and then come here and sob into Junmyeon’s lap?”

Sehun blinks. “Well, it’s not that—I—”

“You are the biggest idiot I know,” you say, “Who tells the person they like to go ask out someone else?”

“A fool!” Minseok hollers. Sehun doesn’t even have the clarity of mind to toss him a glare.

Flustered, cheeks a little red, and neck very warm, he sputters, “I thought you liked him!”

“Hun, I don’t get it,” you frown, untwisting your hand from his shirt in favor of running your palms along the length of his arm, “Why would you want to see me with Chanyeol if you like me?”

Sehun sighs before inhaling deeply. Slowly, he bends his arms to rest his hands on either of your shoulders, gently tugging you closer. He stares at you, eyes watery with a mix of emotions even he couldn’t hope to make out.

Carefully, his hands tread upwards, gently cupping your jaw in his hold and tilting your head upwards. “Because I love you.”

“Exactly,” the word leaves your mouth in exasperation. Sehun watches the confusion dance in your eyes. “It clearly made you upset, so why encourage it?”

“I already told you,” he says, a soft smile on his lips, “Because I love you.”

“I don’t—you’d make yourself sad because you love me?”

Minseok’s right about a lot of things—(as much as he hates to admit it)—so maybe, just maybe, saying what’s on his mind will end this once and for all. For better, or for worse.

So he sighs, then lets out a breathless chuckle, before stepping just a millimeter closer. “I just want you to be happy. And if Chanyeol could have made you happy, I would bear the pain.”

He thinks you might cry, with the way your eyes grow cloudy. If you were going to, you do a good job at sweeping the tears away, offering him an ironic chuckle instead.

“I’m happy now, Sehun. You make me happy, idiot. I’m sorry, though, if I didn’t make that clear before. I should have just said it—and I was going to that day, but then you started talking about Chanyeol, so I figured you didn’t like me like that and—“

“I do,” he cuts you off quickly, thumb padding against your lower lip, “I love you.”

The tow of you just stand there, staring at each other, blissfully happy for a little bit, before Minseok reminds them you of his and Junmyeon’s presence.

“So, are you going to kiss her this time, or?” Minseok chimes in, the dirty grin on his face never left. From beside him, Junmyeon chuckles, eggs on the teasing to hide from the fact that he was ready to cry moments ago.

Sehun pulls you into him with a roll of his eyes, squeezing you into a hug. “Fuck off,” he mumbles, giving Minseok the finger behind your back.

The older chuckles, opting to further his embarrassment by snapping a picture. Junmyeon’s loud laughter permeates the living room, as he immediately receives the image. Sehun’s phone pings in his pocket and he groans, letting his chin rest atop your head—that means Baekhyun and Yixing have that picture too, which means Sehun’s life is over. Unfortunate, because he feels like it just began.

You pull away first, not before leaving a fleeting kiss against the fabric of Sehun’s shirt—and even so, the action makes him warm inside. He could get used to this.

“They’re never going to let me live this down,” he mumbles, peeking as the elders chuckle at something on Minseok’s phone. Sehun’s going to have to remove himself from every group he’s ever been in.

“Do you wanna get out of here,” you pull his attention back to you with a laugh, gently lacing your hands together, “Maybe get boba or something?”

And Sehun grins, squeezing your interwinted hands before dipping down to kiss the crown of your head, “Absolutely.”

He doesn’t even care to grab his jacket from the kitchen stool, opting to snag Junmyeon’s cardigan misshapenly strewn over the couch. With your hands tied, Sehun makes quick work of heading for the door, leaving his older friends chuckling at his tinted cheeks and hasty mannerisms.

He should have known trying to get out without one last jab would be borderline impossible.

“I hope boba is code for go home and make out!”

“Minseok!”

ϟ more author’s notes :: this is the first (and probably one of the very few) times i’ll ever formally write on this blog, mostly because it took me a year and day to even plan and begin to write this LOL i think i’ll stay in my lane and stick to fake texts and instagram posts, i’ve learned my lesson. ps: hope all you team sehun anons are happy—and if it wouldn’t have taken 5k more words of writing, i would have made her talk to chanyeol about it too just to create some drama :’)

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petersasteria · 3 years

Text

𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐢𝐟𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 - 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝

Pairing: Harry Holland x Reader 5,170 words

𝐌𝐄𝐑𝐑𝐘 𝐂𝐇𝐑𝐈𝐒 𝐄𝐕𝐀𝐍𝐒 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐏𝐘 𝐇𝐎𝐋𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐀𝐘𝐒

Harry felt so free. He just turned 18 and he was able to move out of his parents’ house and live on his own. The apartment building looked old, but it was home. His first ever home where he’s alone. Everyone was supportive of him, of course. They always knew he was independent.

He felt homesick from time to time, but that was normal. The apartment next to his was empty and it kind of saddened him that no one was living there. The rest of the units were taken, but they were all older than Harry. In short, it was difficult to make friends with people because the people there were either divorcee’s or really busy people who work at offices. He was on the young side.

Because of that situation, you could picture his excitement when he saw a moving truck outside his apartment building. Harry smiled excitedly and silently prayed that the person moving in was the same age as him and that they were moving in the apartment unit next to his. Otherwise, he’d be lonely in that building.

Well, he wasn’t totally lonely. Every morning Mrs. Johnson would smile at him when they get their mail together and sometimes invite him inside her apartment for tea and they’d talk about their families. She was a lovely old woman. Mr. Bradley would knock on Harry’s door from time to time to ask if he could babysit his son in case the babysitter cancelled. Then of course there’s Rick ‘The Maverick’ Nelson. He insisted that Harry should call him maverick. A maverick is a noun and it means an unorthodox or an independent-minded person which is totally the opposite of Rick ‘The Maverick’ Nelson. He’s a divorcee and every weekend, his 8 year old daughter would come over. Harry didn’t really care about the kid going there, but what he did care about was the fact that Rick would always drink. It made him worry about the 8 year old. So whenever the 8 year old kid was around, Harry would give her a few sweets and sometimes would take her to the park nearby (with Rick’s permission, of course).

As soon as Harry arrived on his floor, he was ecstatic to see a girl around his age bringing in the last box in the now occupied apartment. Harry knew he had to introduce himself because he finally had someone his age to talk to. He was truly happy!

He decided that he should look for something in his house to give to you, so he rushed inside his apartment and immediately looked for something. A pan? No, Sam uses it whenever he visits. Body lotion? He uses it because of his skin care routine. Cologne? He only has one. A house plant? His mum would be upset if he gave his one and only house plant away. Harry settled for a box of pizza. He called and thirty minutes later, the pizza was delivered to his door. He fixed his hair one last time and left his apartment to knock on the apartment next door.

The door opened and Harry smiled, “Hi, I’m Harry! I live next door. I bought you some pizza as a welcome gift.” He handed the pizza to you despite your awkward smile.

“Um, thanks.” You said as he handed the pizza to you. Both of you just stood there for a minute. He was just looking at you all giggly and smiley, but you were looking elsewhere, avoiding his gaze. “Well, uh, thanks for the pizza.” You told him with a tight-lipped smile.

“You’re welcome!” Harry grinned.

“Okay… you can go now.” You said, backing up a bit, getting ready to get inside and close the door.

“I’m actually not busy. I could help you unpack or something.” Harry said. He was desperate.

“That’s okay. I don’t have a lot of things, anyway.” You shrugged off.

“But there was a moving truck awhile ago.” Harry pointed out.

“Believe it or not, when I got here, someone was moving out. Hence, the moving truck. I only got here in an Uber with four boxes and a foldable mattress.” You awkwardly chuckled. Harry blushed in embarrassment and said, “Oh, I see.”

“Yup.” You said. It was really awkward.

“I’ll leave you to it, then.” Harry said and smiled. “If you need anything, I’ll just be there next door.”

“I’ll be sure to keep that in mind. Thanks again.” You said with a small smile.

“Okay. Bye!” Harry said.

“Bye.” You smiled before quickly getting in and closing the door. Harry sighed and bowed his head down.

“That went well.” A voice said from across the hall.

Harry looked up and turned around to see Mr. Bradley and his son. Harry awkwardly chuckled and waved at them.

“She’s pretty.” Mr. Bradley’s son said. He’s 5 years old.

“She is.” Harry nodded in agreement.

“Ask her out.” Mr. Bradley said and winked.

“Maybe next time.” Harry said with a smile.

“Good luck!” Mr. Bradley’s son said with a cute smile.

“Thanks, little dude.” Harry smiled too. The 5 year old’s smile was contagious, after all.

Birthday

Harry didn’t want to be nosy, but he was really curious as to why you had a bouquet of flowers on your doorstep. He looked around to see if anyone was looking before picking up the bouquet. ‘To: Y/N’ was written in beautiful cursive. A million thoughts were running through his head and he didn’t know how to react: who was it from? Do you have a boyfriend? Why isn’t your boyfriend around? Is he hiding as a surprise?

His thoughts were cut off when you arrived.

“What’re you doing?” You asked. Harry slightly jumped in shock. He turned around and looked at you and looked at the flowers and looked at you again.

“N-Nothing! I just saw these on your doorstep and I was just going to give it.. to you.” Harry smiled and handed you the bouquet. You took it from him with a suspicious look on your face.

You read the card and smiled a bit before turning to him with a b;ank expression, “Thank you for handing to me.”

“You’re welcome. What’s the occasion?” He asked.

“Nothing special.” You shrugged as you moved around him to unlock your door.

“Flowers are involved… it has to be a special occasion. Is it an anniversary?” He asked once more.

“I’m single, so it’s definitely not an anniversary.” You chuckled humorlessly.

“Um...a secret admirer?”

“Nope.” You shook your head. Harry opened his mouth to guess again, but you cut him off. “It’s actually my birthday. The people who raised me sent me these which is surprising because they’re usually super cold and shit.”

“Oh, happy birthday! Why didn’t you say so? Let’s celebrate!” Harry cheered.

“I don’t celebrate my birthday, sorry. Thank you, though.” You nodded at him.

“Why not?” Harry frowned. “It only happens once a year and-”

“Exactly. It only happens once a year and there’s not much to do, anyway. If I threw a party, the whole place would be a mess and no one would clean it up except for me.. the celebrant. Plus, I have to spend money for the food and drinks for people who I secretly find annoying, but I invite them anyway so that they won’t nag me for not inviting them.” You rambled.

“And I totally get that, but it could just be the two of us, y’know?” Harry suggested. You stared at him, “...Is this your way of asking me out? Because I don’t want to date anyone. Not right now, at least.”

Harry blushed, “O-Of course not! We could celebrate as friends.”

“I only know your first name and that you live next door.” You crossed your arms and raised an eyebrow.

“This is our chance to get to know each other then.” Harry smiled. “What do you say? Wanna celebrate? There’ll be no party and it’ll just be you and me. My treat, so that you don’t have to spend. It’s my birthday gift.”

You thought about it for a while before un-crossing your arms and nodding, “Fine. Let’s celebrate.”

“For real?!” He exclaimed.

“Yup. A little change won’t be so bad, I guess.” You gave him a small smile. “I’ll put these inside first and then we can go, okay?”

“Okay.” Harry smiled as he watched you go inside your apartment. A few seconds later, you exit your apartment, lock the door, and turn to Harry.

“So, where are we going?” You smiled.

Mother’s Day

You were making a fresh batch of cookies when you heard a knock on your door. You stopped what you were doing and waited for the knock to repeat in case you were just hearing things. When you heard the knock again, you washed your hands and made your way to the door.

“That’s weird. I’m not expecting anyone today.” You told yourself before opening the door. You were surprised to see a woman you’ve never seen in your life before. She was smiling at you and she had two boys with her.

“Um, hello.” You greeted politely.

“Hello, love! Harry never told us that he had a girlfriend.” The woman smiled excitedly. You looked at her dumbfounded. “I’m Harry’s mum. You can call me Nikki.”

“And I’m Dominic, Harry’s dad. But you can call me Dom.”

“This is my youngest, Paddy.” Nikki said with a smile.

“Hey.” Paddy nodded at you.

You smiled, “It’s nice to meet you all, but there must be a mistake. I don’t live with Harry nor am I his girlfriend. I’m his neighbor, Y/N. Harry lives next door.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” Nikki blushed.

“It’s okay.” You chuckled. “It was an honest mistake.”

Just then, Harry’s apartment door opened and his eyes widened when he saw his family on your doorstep instead of his. “Mum! Dad! Paddy! That’s the wrong apartment.” Harry said, clearly embarrassed. He turned to you and said, “I’m so sorry, Y/N.”

You shook your head and waved your hand, “It’s alright.”

Harry smiled and turned to Nikki, “Let’s go?”

“Yes, please! I’m starving.” Paddy said.

You all laughed and you said, “Well, I’ll leave you guys to it.”

“Let’s leave Y/N now. She’d want to spend Mother’s Day with her mum.” Harry said. You wanted to tell him that your mum was out of the picture, but you kept your mouth shut; not wanting to receive any look of pity and not wanting to answer questions about your personal life. Instead, you just smiled and nodded your head politely. You closed your door as soon as they left after you wished them a good lunch and a ‘Happy Mother’s Day’ to Nikki.

A few hours later, you hear another knock on your door. You opened the door only to reveal Harry with a small paper bag.

“We had leftovers at lunch and I figured I’d let you have it. My fridge is full, anyway.” Harry said and handed you the paper bag.

“Oh, thank you.” You smiled. Harry nodded and was about to leave when you stopped him, “Wait!”

He turned to you quickly and said, “Yeah?”

“I have an extra batch of cookies. Wait here.” You left and went to your small kitchen as Harry waited out in the hallway. He took a peek at your now furnished apartment and frowned at the sight of no visitor. Surely, you had one whilst he was away, right?

You came back and with a plastic Tupperware of cookies and gave it to Harry, “Here you go.”

“Thanks.” Harry smiled and left.

His Birthday

Harry knocked on your door and he smiled when you opened it, “Hey Y/N!”

“Hey!” You smiled.

“Sam, my twin, is here and he cooked some food. Thought I’d give you some.” He handed you a Tupperware of food. You took it gratefully and thanked him.

“What’s the occasion?” You asked him.

“Mine and Sam’s birthday.” Harry said with a smile.

“Happy birthday!” You smiled.

“Thanks. There’ll be a party later tonight and I’d love for you to come.” Harry said.

You smiled sadly and said, “Parties aren’t really my thing and I have work tonight.”

“Oh, that’s okay.” Harry said, covering up his sadness.

“I’ll make it up to you. Are you free tomorrow?” You asked casually. You felt bad for him.

“Yes, I am actually.” Harry said. “But Sam is sleeping over.”

“You shrugged, “Take him with us. It’s his birthday too, after all.”

The next day, you kept your promise and took them to your favorite restaurant as a birthday treat for them. It was really fun and you got to meet Sam.

A Random Day

You were going back to your apartment when you saw Harry exiting his apartment to take out the trash. He looked up and smiled at you, “Good morning, Y/N!”

“Morning, Harry.” You greeted back. “I’m surprised you’re up early.”

“Same here.” Harry laughed. “My parents are dropping off Paddy here in an hour and I have to clean up a bit.”

“Oh, okay. Do you need help? I’m free.” You shrugged.

“That would be really nice, thank you.” Harry smiled gratefully.

“Okay, well, I’ll let you throw your trash first and I’ll get changed in my cleaning clothes. I have a lot of cleaning supplies in my storage closet. Living alone is lonely, you know. Cleaning keeps me occupied.” You chuckled lightly.

“I’m excited.” Harry laughed. You exchanged a few more sentences before Harry threw his trash and before you got in your apartment to gather your cleaning supplies and change your clothes.

Five minutes later, you knocked on Harry’s door with your cleaning attire and cleaning supplies. “Wow, you have the whole cleaning package.” Harry chortled as soon as he opened the door and saw you.

You shrugged, “What can I say? I’m Monica Geller.”

“Okay, then.” Harry smiled and let you in before closing the door. Both of you started cleaning up and before you knew it, there was a knock on Harry’s door. He opened it only to reveal his parents and Paddy. They entered the clean apartment with a shocked expression on their faces.

“It’s so clean in here.” Nikki said in awe.

“Y/N helped.” Harry said and looked at you gratefully, mouthing a small ‘thank you’. You smiled back and mouthed back, ‘you’re welcome’.

“Hello!” You greeted with a smile.

“Hello, Y/N! Thank you for helping Harry.” Nikki smiled. “It’s so nice of you to do that.”

“It’s no problem, really.” You smiled. “Well, I’ll leave you guys to it.”

“Thanks again, Y/N.” Harry said before you left.

“Anytime, Harry.” You grinned before waving goodbye to everyone and going back to your apartment.

Those happened for years and throughout the years Harry has known you, he realized that you’ve never had visitors in your apartment. It was such a mystery to him as to why you never had anyone come over. He never even saw any family member of yours. He’s been in your apartment a few times, but other than him, no one else went there.

The holidays were coming and the snow was covering the ground. Harry decided that enough was enough. He wanted to confront you about it. It wasn’t his business, but it was bothering him. It was lonely, after all. He just wanted to give you company.

He was on his way to his parents’ house for the holidays and he didn’t want to leave without asking you what the matter was.

He knocked on your door and you smiled when you answered it. “Hi Harry! Aren’t you supposed to go to your parents’ house?” You asked.

“Yeah, I’ll go tomorrow. I just wanted to hang out with you before I leave.” Harry explained.

You nodded, “Come in, then.” You opened the door wider for him to come in. He went in and took in your apartment’s interior. You didn’t even have Christmas decorations on.

He went in and made himself comfortable on the couch. You closed the door and joined him. “What’s up?” You turned to him and asked.

“Just wanted to talk, that’s all.”

“Is something bothering you?”

“Yeah, actually.” Harry bit his lip nervously. “I just noticed that throughout the years of us being neighbors, you never had anyone come over to your apartment. Y’know, it’s always quiet and you don’t go home during the holidays. I’m not trying to be nosy or anything. I’m just… concerned and curious.”

You oursed your lips and nodded. He saw this and said, “I’m so sorry for sounding like I’m prying into your personal life or anything. I’m just concerned.”

“No, it’s okay.”

“You kinda remind me of Becca from Pitch Perfect. Closed off and all that.” Harry said and you chuckled at his analogy.

“I’ll take that as a compliment because I love Becca.” You said with a smile. Then it went silent. The comfortable silence filled the room as you thought about telling Harry or not. You decided to tell him because you’ve been neighbors for so long and he’s the only person you’ve been talking to in the building.

“Fine, I’ll tell you.” You said, breaking the silence. Harry didn't say anything. He just turned to you and patiently waited for you to talk.

“I grew up in an orphanage. My mother couldn’t take care of me, so she dropped me off there. It was like Meet The Robinsons minus the genius and the looking like the Cornelius thing. To be clear, I was Goob and not Lewis. Except, I don’t have a bowler hat and this is getting way off topic.”

Harry laughed and nodded for you to continue.

“Anyway, based on my story about me being Goob, I wasn’t adopted by anyone. I was interviewed a couple times, but I guess no one ever liked me. So, I grew up in the orphanage and stayed there until I was 18. The people weren’t bad there, but they weren’t good either. I can’t really describe them, so all I can really say is that they’re cold people.”

“When I turned 18, though, they gave me the biggest surprise ever. I was given a huge sum of money and a key to a decent apartment. I packed up my things and left that day and moved here immediately. I’ve never looked back since.”

“Remember the flowers on my doorstep?” You asked and he nodded. “It was from the orphanage. I was surprised that they remembered.”

“What about your friends from school? Or the ones who were adopted? Surely, you had contact with them.” Harry asked.

“Those who were adopted became bitches and we were kids. Those were empty promises. I expected a call from the first kid who was adopted, but after a few more kids you start losing hope that they’d call, y’know? Besides, I heard from the orphanage that one of those kids is in jail now for robbery. Big yikes.” You said casually.

“Big yikes, indeed.” Harry nodded in agreement.

“It doesn’t matter, anyway. I’m leaving this apartment next year.” You told him which took him by surprise.

“Next year? Why? Where will you go?” Harry frowned.

“I got a promotion, but they want me in Singapore.” You explained.

“Well, it’s Christmas in three days and now that you’ve told me all about you, I really don’t want your last Christmas to be alone.” Harry said.

“I’ve been alone for as long as I can remember, Harry. I’m used to it, really.” You chuckled lightly.

“You don’t have to be. I’m going home to my family tomorrow and I’d like to take you with me. It may not be the family that you want, but it’s the family you need. So, what do you say?” Harry asked.

“I don’t want to ruin your holiday. Besides, it’s family members only and if it didn’t already occur to you, I’m not family.” You said.

“You’re a family friend, though. That HAS to count.” Harry said. “I hope you know that I won’t stop until you say yes.”

You playfully rolled your eyes and said, “Okay, I’ll go, so that you can shut up.”

“Good.” Harry grinned. “I promise you that we’ll have so much fun!”

The next day, you and Harry were on your way to his childhood home. The drive was a bit long, but it was fun and filled with singing. You arrived there 45 minutes later and you were extremely nervous. You’ve met all of them except for Tom and Tessa. You didn’t even know he was related to the Spider-Man actor mainly because you didn’t know Harry’s last name and you’re not active on social media. And like Becca, you don’t watch movies.

Both of you got out of the car and brought your bags to the front door. Harry unlocked the door and both of you went into the cozy house. You looked around and immediately noticed the smell wafting through the house. It smelled of fresh baked cookies and cinnamon.

“Harry and Y/N are here!” Paddy announced and everyone went and greeted both of you. A familiar face smiled at you and said, “Hi, I’m Tom. Harry’s older brother.”

“I’m Y/N.” You smiled. “You know, you look familiar.”

“I do?” Tom furrowed his eyebrows.

“Yeah. The kid from ‘The Impossible’. You look like him. I don’t watch a lot of movies, but I remember faces of the cast.”

“Oh, that’s me, love.” Tom chuckled.

Your eyes widened, “Really?! Wow. That’s so cool! What’re you up to these days?”

“I still act and I’m in Spider-Man.” Tom said. “Do you really not know?”

“She doesn’t watch movies.” Harry said. “So she doesn’t know your movies.”

“Or movies in general.” You chimed in causing all of you to laugh.

“We’ll let you guys get settled in, then.” Nikki smiled. “Sam, show Y/N her room.”

Sam smiled at you, “Hello, m’lady. It’s been a while since I’ve seen you.”

“Hello and it’s been a while indeed.” You chuckled as you and Sam went upstairs to the spare room that was cleaned up especially for you. As soon as you got settled in, you went downstairs to hang out with everyone.

Your time with the Hollands has been wonderful. They never made you feel like an outcast, they treated you like you were one of them. Tom made you watch a lot of movies, especially the ones he was in. You and Sam cooked and baked together. You played with Paddy and Tessa. You went last minute shopping with Nikki and you helped Dom in brainstorming ideas for a new book.

It was now Christmas Eve and you were preparing dinner with Sam when suddenly you felt someone giving you a side hug. You slightly turned your head and smiled when you saw Nikki. She smiled back before pulling away.

“I’m sorry about that. It just felt right.” Nikki said shyly before helping out in the kitchen.

You never experienced a mother’s hug before. In fact, you’ve never experienced a hug before. It was nice for a change and it was at that moment you knew that Harry was right. His family was a family that you needed. Sure, they weren’t perfect and you were sure that they had arguments here and there, but you could see that they really took care of each other and loved each other. It was also obvious that they would do anything for each other.

As you sat down for dinner, you couldn’t help but think that you were on the outside looking in. Honestly, you didn’t mind observing. Laughter filled the table and warm smiles were shared as they passed the food around. And for the first time in your life, you felt like you belonged.

After a week, you and Harry were packing up again to go back to your apartment. “Thank you so much for having me. I’m truly grateful for it.” You smiled at them while you stood on their doorstep. Harry was busy loading up your things in his car.

“It’s no problem, Y/N.” Dom said.

“Yeah, and you’re welcome to stay here as well. We love having you around.” Nikki smiled. “It’s quite sad that you’re going to Singapore next year. If I had known that you were going next year, I would’ve told Harry to bring you every Christmas since you’ve met.”

You chuckled and said, “I’ll be keeping in touch, Nikki.”

“I know.” She said and stepped forward to hold both of your hands. “It’s just sad that I’ll lose someone who I think of as a daughter. While I had so much fun with you every time I visit Harry and while I especially had fun having you here for a few days, I have to let you go to have fun on your own in Singapore.”

Both of you teared up and hugged for a while. Harry cleared his throat and said, “I’m sorry to cut this moment short, but we have to go, Y/N.”

You pulled away and wiped your tears, “Okay. Thank you again for having me!”

“You’re most welcome.” Nikki smiled, kissed your cheek, and wished you good luck in Singapore. You walked to the car and Harry stayed behind to say goodbye to his family.

“You should tell her how you feel, Harry.” Tom chimed in. “Y’know, before it’s too late.”

“I don’t feel anything about her, Tom.” Harry lied. Of course he felt something for you.

“I’m not stupid. I know the look of love when I see one.” Tom chuckled.

“He’s right.” Nikki said. “Listen to me; I’m your mum.”

“I’ll think about it.” Harry said. He bid his goodbyes once more before jogging to the car and getting in. The drive back home was just as fun as the drive going to his childhood home.

Harry didn’t know what to do. It’s been three days since you got back and he hasn’t seen you. You were too busy packing your things and giving some of your things away. Packing for Singapore really made you busy. Harry wanted to help, but that would make it real. He didn’t want it to be real. One thing was for sure, though. He promised to drive you to the airport.

As much as Harry hated it, the day he dreaded most finally came: your flight to Singapore. Some of your things were already shipped there while your other things were donated or sold. Harry parked the car and helped you get your things from the car.

He walked you inside and stopped when you reached a point where Harry wasn’t allowed in anymore. “It seemed like yesterday when you were moving into your apartment with just four boxes and a foldable mattress.” Harry said, making you laugh. “Now you’re going to Singapore with two big suitcases and a carry on. You leveled up.”

“Thank you.” You playfully bowed your head.

“Before you go, there’s something I want to tell you.” Harry said nervously.

“My flight’s boarding in five minutes, but sure. Tell me.” You said to him. He took a deep breath and looked in your eyes.

“Y/N, I love you.” He said seriously, your eyes going wide as saucers. You clearly didn’t expect that. “I’ve loved you even before and I’ll love you from here on out. I’ll support you and I’ll be here for you whenever you need me.”

“Oh, Harry.” You smiled sadly. “I love you too, but…”

“But what?”

“I can’t do this whole relationship thing. I’m sorry, but I can’t.”

“Aren’t you willing to try?” Harry pleaded, but you shook your head.

“It doesn’t always work, Harry. I’m sorry.” You said sadly.

Harry nodded and asked, “Will I ever see you again? Will you come back here?”

“I don’t know, but all I know is that I can’t stay here.” You frowned. You looked at each other with sad eyes and you leaned in to kiss his cheek. “Goodbye, Harry and thank you.”

“Goodbye, Y/N. Thank you too.” Harry pulled you in for a quick hug before letting you go. He watched as you walked away. His heart was broken, but something inside him told him that yours and his story hasn’t ended yet.

He was right.

It took him five months to think about it and it only took his cousin’s wedding to finally decide what he should do. Your last encounter with him at the airport didn’t affect your friendship which he was grateful for.

Harry didn’t even stay at the wedding long because he walked out after his cousin and her husband said their ‘I do’s’. He rushed home in a cab and packed his things and rushed to the airport to buy a ticket to Singapore. He successfully got a ticket and rushed to the gate where he needed to be. His phone rang and he hurriedly took it out of his pocket and answered it as he ran.

“Hello?”

“Harry! Where the bloody hell did you go?” Tom hissed.

“I can’t talk right now. I’m at the airport.” Harry said, out of breath from all the running.

“Airport?! Where are you going?” Tom shrieked.

“Singapore. I’m going after her, Tom.” Harry said with a smile. He got through the gate and is now boarding the plane. “I’m on the plane now.”

“How long are you staying there?” Tom asked.

“I don’t know, but I’ll let you know when I land.” Harry said. “Bye!”

“Wait!-”

Harry hung up before Tom continued speaking. Harry got seated and in truth, he was excited to see you. He could almost imagine the look on your face when you see him. Hours later, his plane landed in Singapore and after a few minutes of getting off the plane and finding his suitcase, he hailed a cab and immediately told the cab driver where you lived. He remembered that you weren’t working today and he was so happy.

Harry paid the cab driver when he arrived at your apartment building and he was nervous. He got out of the cab and went into your building. He searched for your apartment number and was elated when he saw it at the end of the hall. He grinned and knocked on the door and waited for you to answer.

You opened the door and gasped when you saw him. He smiled shyly and said, “Hi, there.”

“Hi Harry.” You smiled brightly and pulled him in for a tight hug. He pulled away after a minute and you asked, “What’re you doing here?”

“You said you couldn’t stay in London, so I came to you.” Harry grinned. “Although, I have to go back after two weeks because I need a visa if I’m staying here with you and-”

“Shut up and kiss me.” You smiled and pulled him in for a long awaited kiss.

* * * *

𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐑𝐘 𝐇𝐎𝐋𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐓𝐀𝐆𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓: @sufwubi @abrielleholland @purplepizza-summerrain @marshxx @lizzyosterfield @justanamesstuff @croissantwriting @blueleatherbag @euphorichxlland @givebuckyhisplumsnow

𝐆𝐄𝐍𝐄𝐑𝐀𝐋 𝐓𝐀𝐆𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓: @justasmisunderstoodasloki @allyz @miraclesoflove @god-knows-what-am-i-doing @drie-the-derp @hollands-weasley @itstaskeen @call-me-baby-gir1 @the-panwitch @iamaunicorn4704 @geminiparkers @holland-styles @calltothewild @herbatkazmiloscia @whatthefuckimbisexual @theonly1outof-a-billion @piscesparker @unsaidholland @musicalkeys @lost-in-the-stars03 @hufflepuffprincess24 @hollanddolanfangirl @parkerpeter24 @bellelittleoff @agentnataliahofferson @aqiise @lexirv @blairscott @pearly-pisces @u-rrose @speedymaximoff @theliterarymess @beequeen8020 @justafangirlduh @sarcasticallywitty15

#harry holland #harry holland imagines #harry holland one shots #harry holland imagine #harry holland one shot #harry holland x reader #harry holland x y/n #in-a-lot-of-fandoms-tbh

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lifeofkaze · 3 years

Text

When Stars Ignite - Chapter 12

HPHM Rockstar AU

A/N: Surprise, a new chapter already! This one and the Chapter 11 were actually supposed to be one single chapter but we decided to cut it due to my inability to keep things short length. Hence, the same title with an addition and the consecutive days - just so you don't wonder. Also, in case anyone was confused by the timeframe reading Chapter 11, this supposed to be a flashback to when the whole thing between them started - sorry for not making this clear in the first place 💛

General Warning: This whole fic has a general warning of being NSFW / 18+. We will give specific warnings for every chapter in itself, but several adult themes will be more or less present in every chapter, may it be explicitly or in mention. These include sexual topics, drug abuse, (ab)use of alcohol, smoking and a whole lot of cursing.

Specific Warning: Langague, mention of alcohol and drug abuse, mention of NSFW content

~~~

Find the masterpost here, the previous chapter here and the next one here. The songs featured before every chapter can be found on this pretty badass playlist here.

~~~

This work is a collaboration with @the-al-chemist

Taglist: @slytherindisaster @night-rhea @carewyncromwell

It's just the way that you walk

It's just the way that you talk

Like it ain't no thing

And every single day is just a fling

Then the morning comes

~ Smash Mouth - Then The Morning Comes ~

Lizzie woke the next morning to a painful pounding inside her head and a mouth as dry as dust. It took her a few moments to find her bearings; the light of the morning sun didn’t fall onto her bed like it did now, and neither did her sheets smell like Orion’s aftershave.

With that thought the memories of last night hit her like a freight train. Covering her eyes with her hand, she let her head slump back onto the pillow, a breathy chuckle leaving her parched throat. She certainly hadn’t expected that to happen when she had agreed to go to her first poetry slam with Orion. Saying she regretted sleeping with him would have been a blatant lie, though; it had been far too good for that.

Sitting up slowly, Lizzie stretched her back, rolling her neck from side to side; her head hurt like hell but it wasn’t as bad as she had anticipated. Orion seemed to be up already, which didn’t surprise her; Lizzie knew he was an early riser from the many years they had spent touring together.

Her eyes fell onto the nightstand and the corners of her mouth twitched into a smile. A full bottle of water and a blister pack of painkillers were waiting for her there. Not sure what she was more grateful for, the meds or the water, Lizzie took a large gulp out of the bottle first before washing down one of the pills with a second, smaller sip; her mouth was so dry, she wasn’t even sure any of the water was reaching her stomach at all.

She sat between the sheets for a little longer, her back leaned against the rough brick wall. Taking small sips out of her bottle every now and again she contemplated last night’s events.

In a thousand years she wouldn’t have anticipated ending up in bed with Orion when all they’d had planned had been a night out together. And it wasn’t like she could blame it all on getting drunk and high out of her mind either; Lizzie was honest enough with herself to admit she’d always found him more than a little attractive, but so far, it had stopped for her at that.

The dreamcatcher hanging from the window frame directly above the bed was painting intricate shadows on the sheets. Lost in her thoughts, Lizzie watched them, trying to discern if she felt any different after spending the night with one of her best friends.

If she was completely honest with herself, the answer was no. Neither she nor her feelings towards Orion seemed to have changed in any way.

She shrugged the thought off and swung her legs out of the bed, standing up slowly in case her circulation was still funky. She grabbed her shorts from the ground where she had unceremoniously tossed them last night. Exchanging the shirt Orion had given her with her own top, she pulled a new hair tie from her pocket and pulled her tangled hair out of her face.

With the warm shirt and her hair gone from her bare shoulders, Lizzie noticed how cool the morning air felt against her skin. She grabbed the black hoodie she had borrowed yesterday from another place on the floor and put it on again. Following the soft sound of Orion’s guitar that was drifting down from the rooftop terrace, she climbed up the steps and through the open skylight.

Orion was sitting on the deckchair with his acoustic guitar in his hands, playing a melody Lizzie didn’t recognise. One of his countless notebooks was lying in front of him and she could spot a pencil being stuck behind his ear. Lizzie waited until he stopped playing to write something down before she walked over to him.

He looked up from his notes as she sat down on the end of the deckchair. “Good morning.”

“Morning,” Lizzie smiled. She tilted her head, trying to catch a glimpse of what Orion was composing. “What was that you were playing?”

“Something new,” he smirked. He closed the notebook and carefully put his guitar away. “Did you sleep well?”

“Like a baby,” Lizzie chuckled, “No wonder though…” She indicated the water bottle she was still holding, “Thanks for that, I didn’t even realise how thirsty I was.”

“That’s what smoking does to you,” Orion shrugged. “I got us some fruit from the market down the road for breakfast, if you want some.”

Lizzie had already spotted the huge plate laden with an assortment of colourful fruit on the table behind him. It was only now that she realised just how hungry she was. “How do you know that’s what I like for breakfast?”

He looked at her as if she had lost her mind. “We’ve been touring together for five years now, remember?”

Lizzie felt her cheeks go red. “Obviously. I can’t think before coffee.”

“I made you some, but no idea if it’s good,” Orion shrugged. “You know I don’t drink coffee myself.”

Lizzie made her way over to the table and poured herself a cup. “Then why do you have coffee in the first place?”

“Merula likes some when she’s here.”

She took her first sip after adding sugar and milk but even then the bitter taste was so overwhelmingly strong that Lizzie couldn’t help but grimace.

Orion watched her with a sympathetic expression. “Too strong?”

“A little,” Lizzie croaked, trying to wash the taste away with another sip of water.

“Sorry, that’s how Merula likes it.”

“No wonder she never laughs if her days start like this,” Lizzie replied sardonically.

Orion had to chuckle at her words. “Our tastes can mirror our personalities, that’s true; I wouldn’t tell her that, though.”

He raised his own mug that had been resting on the floor beside him. “If you don’t like the coffee, I can only offer you tea, I’m afraid.”

Gingerly pushing her coffee cup as far away from her as possible, Lizzie nodded gratefully. “I’d be fine with that.”

Lizzie was surprised at how relaxed and comfortable the atmosphere between them was; it was like having breakfast with her best friend, just like it always had.

None of them spoke about what had happened last night, nor did they feel the need to. Now, in the light of a new day, the fact that they had slept with each other seemed almost surreal. Lizzie was relieved to see that, just like her, Orion didn’t seem to have any issues with it whatsoever.

She had just picked out another cherry from the fruit platter when her phone started ringing, the familiar picture of Skye flashing across the screen. She motioned for Orion to be silent before accepting the call.

“What’s up, Skye?” she greeted her breezily.

Skye didn’t seem to share her good mood, however. “Where the fuck are you?”

“What?”

“We were meant to go running today? I’ve been waiting for a solid twenty minutes now.”

Lizzie mouthed a silent curse; she had completely forgotten about that. “Oh shit, I’m so sorry! I slept in, it got a little later yesterday than I expected.” She tried not to grin as her eyes flicked over to Orion.

“Oh yeah, how was the slam?”

Lizzie almost choked on her tea as she tried not to snort with laughter. “You want to know how the slam was?” she repeated Skye’s words, watching Orion cover his mouth with his hand as he, too, was trying very hard not to laugh.

“It was very good, thank you for asking. I got some whole new perspectives out of it.”

“Maybe I should come next time.”

“Oh, believe me,” Lizzie grinned, “it wouldn’t have been your thing at all.”

“Hm, if you say so. How about Orion? Haven’t seen him quite so excited about something in a long time.”

“Well, I think he had quite a good night,” she smirked, throwing her cherry at Orion as he was shaking with silent laughter.

“Anyway,” Skye sighed through the speaker, “what’s the deal now? Could be at your place in ten minutes.”

Lizzie racked her brain, trying to come up with a suitable excuse. “Uhm no, I’m actually not home right now.” Her gaze fell onto her cup of green tea. “I ran straight out of coffee this morning and I’m on the hunt for some.”

Luckily, Skye seemed to buy it. “Fine, want to meet for lunch later?”

“Make it dinner and I’m in,” Lizzie answered, “Say hi to Erika for me,” she couldn’t help but add with a wicked grin.

She could practically see Skye blushing, even through her phone. “What makes you think I’m with -”

But Lizzie had already hung up on her.

The laughter was still dancing in Orion’s eyes when he shook his head. “You’re truly evil, do you know that?”

Lizzie chuckled. “That’s not what you said last night.”

“Fair enough,” Orion conceded. “But I’m curious, why did you lie to her?”

“First of all, I didn’t lie; I just didn’t tell her all the details. It’s none of her business anyway.” The smile vanished from her face and Lizzie averted her eyes. “And besides, I don’t want her to get into a conflict because she’s hiding something from her father.”

She took a deep breath, the mood suddenly not at all relaxed anymore. “And about that…”

But Orion had already guessed what she wanted to say. “You want to keep this a secret.” It wasn’t a question but an observation.

“If that’s cool with you.”

To her relief, Orion nodded. “It suits me well. I agree with you, it’s no one’s business but our own. And a secret shared between friends can only serve to deepen the friendship.”

Lizzie nodded in agreement, glad to see they were on the same page about this. She finished her tea, popped another cherry into her mouth and got up to leave.

“Is it okay if I borrow that for today?” she asked, motioning at the sweater she was still wearing. It wasn’t cold by any means, but the sweater was cosy and soft, just what she needed on a hungover day like this. It smelled like something resembling ginger, a scent she found very pleasant.

Orion followed her inside and showed her to the door. Just as she was about to leave, he caught her wrist and held her back.

“Any chance for another kiss?”

Lizzie hesitated, looking at him apologetically. “Sorry, I don’t usually do that.” Her lips twisted into a sly smile as she added, “And you got way more than a kiss anyway.”

She turned to go, but changed her mind on a whim; standing on her tiptoes, Lizzie pressed a quick kiss onto his cheek.

“Maybe next time.”

#hphm #hogwarts mystery #harry potter hogwarts mystery #rockstar au #orion amari #lizzie jameson #when stars ignite #wsi #besties collaborate

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chibinekochan · 3 years

Text

How to become a Demon Ruler 207

Part: 00 I 01 I 02 I 03 I 04 I 05 I 06 I

Gender Neutral Reader insert

taglist: @ayesha95 ; @nomnomcupcakesworld ; @fex-phoenix ; @depressed-bixch ; @kitsune-oji ; @witch-o-memes ; @gallantys ,@tanspostsblog ; @undertaker-02 ,

---------------------------------

My classes are finally done for the day and I'm more than ready to go home.

I spot Beel, he carries Belphie on his back.

"Is he alright?" I worry that he got hurt somehow.

"He is just sleeping, happens all the time." Beel smiles lightly. "Are you done for the day?"

"Yeah, I was just about to head home. What about you?" I feel relieved that nothing bad happened at least.

"Same, want to go together?" Beel offers with a big smile.

"Of course." It's definitely better than going alone.

We start walking at a casual speed.

"You and Belphie must be super close." It seems unusual to carry a sibling home at least.

"We are twins so it's natural," Beel explains.

"Ah, that explains it. I just didn't think of that, since you two look so different." It's a bit strange at least.

"We were just born at the same time. You see we are all brothers by choice." Beel says this with a big smile. He must really love his bro

I can only smile at this. "That is very awesome. I'm kinda jealous of that." I admit a bit shyly.

"You, Diavolo and Barbatos seem to have a good bond too. It will only get stronger. By the way, if you run into any issues you can always come to me or any of my brothers. I know they can sometimes be trouble but they would always support people they care about." Beel is serious about this.

It fills me with warmth."I hope they will care about me soon then and I kinda feel like I belong here already thanks to all of you. It might be a bit early but I'd like to see you all as my friends someday." It's a nice goal to have at least.

"Sounds good to me." He smiles, but then his stomach rumbles. "Oh, do you mind stopping by a bakery quickly?" He looks guilty at me.

"I don't mind. I'm getting hungry myself." I have to admit that school drained all of my energy.

"I'll get you something too then." Beel offers this very nicely to me.

"Better not. I'm getting fat anyway at this rate." I admit with a low voice.

"Fat? Were?" He narrows his eyes at me. "Well, if it bothers you you can train with me. I do that too since I don't want to gain too much weight either plus I enjoy the exercise." Beel has a good idea, but there is one issue.

"I don't think I'd be able to keep up with you at all." I sigh, remembering my training with Barbatos.

"Hmm true, humans are fragile apparently. In that case, I will go easy on you. Just stretches and a few rounds around the house of lamentation and some light exercises for the start." Beel seems to have made a plan already.

"Let's start with one round and tone down whatever your definition of 'light exercises' way down." I can only shudder at the thought of repeating my experience.

Beel shrugs. "Alright, it's a plan then. I'll buy you something."

He heads into the store and comes out with a bag filled to the brim. He hands me a small bag with two items.

"Can you keep one for Belphie? I usually just end up eating his food too." He admits sheepishly.

"Of course. No problem." Both items seem to be the same. It looks a bit like a croissant with chocolate and berries.

I take a curious bite. It's sweet and very juicy while also somehow not dripping. "Wow, this is amazing." I can't hide my enjoyment.

Beel nods while stuffing his mouth.

When his mouth is empty again, he starts speaking again. "I'm glad you enjoy it."

At that moment, Belphie wakes up. "Hm? Oh, is class over? Thanks for carrying me, Beel." He smiles sleepily.

"No problem. I got us all a snack. Do you want to walk the rest?" Beel let's Belphie down.

"Hm? You haven't eaten everything yet?" Belphie yawns and stretches.

"No, I gave yours to them." Beel smiles at me.

"Here you go." I hold out the tasty treat for Belphie.

He takes it. "Thank you both." Belphie smiles mostly at Beel, but that's okay for me.

"It's very good. Is it one of your favorites, Belphie?" I can imagine that Beel would buy that for his brother.

"Nope, never even seen this." He bites into the treat.

"It is brand new and I wanted you two to have it." Beel smiles sheepishly.

"It's good. Good choice, Beel." Belphie seems pleased enough. "What did you two talk about when I slept?" He looks at Beel.

"We made plans to train together," Beel replies calmly.

"Hahaha, good luck with that. I might come to watch that." Belphie finds this very amusing.

"Just wait and see." I feel strangely motivated by his comment.

Belphie just shrugs. "Suit yourself."

We soon arrive at the house of lamentation. We say our goodbyes and I quickly make my way back home.

I laugh at the thought that the big castle is now my home. It's a nice feeling. I wonder if anyone is home yet?

Then I see Barbatos waving at me with a smile. My heart jumps with happiness.

It's been only a few hours since I saw him but I realize that I missed him.

"How was your first day?" He greets me in a friendly manner.

"It was pretty good. I even managed to get access to Diavolos power but sadly I set a table on fire. Overall it was a lot better than expected." I figure it's best to be straightforward with my mistake. There is a good chance that Barbatos knows already anyway.

Barbatos raises his eyebrows, and this information surprises him after all. " Are you unharmed? " He sounds very worried.

"I'm fine, it was just pretty surprising. I need to train to control that better. I still have no idea how to access my power yet either, but the other human exchange student is some wizard and he will help me." I shrug and share more news with Barbatos.

He smiles at me. "I'm glad you are alright and you speak of Solomon, I assume?"

"Yeah, do you know him?" This is pretty interesting to me.

"Indeed, as a matter of fact, I have a pact with him." Barbatos' face doesn't move.

It's hard to tell what he feels sometimes.

I know what I feel at least, jealousy. It's not a nice feeling for sure. I have no clue why I'd even be jealous of that?

"Is there anything troubling you master?" He looks at me.

"I'm just kinda tired." I turn away from his gaze, fearing that he somehow can peer straight into my heart. I'm truly stupid for feeling this way. Not only does Barbatos only see me as his master but it's just a pact. It's not like they are dating.

I sigh deeply.

"Let's head inside then. I have coffee and strong tea that will wake you right back up." Barbatos politely smiles, seemingly unaware of my inner turmoil.

I'm thankful for that though, I don't like my ugly feelings right now.

He serves me some hot coffee. I drink it slowly, enjoying the quiet moment after my hectic school day.

I tell Barbatos about the rest of my day. He listens calmly and seems very pleased.

"For the rest of today, you can take off. It would be pointless if you would exhaust yourself." Barbatos is still concerned.

"I'm fine. I want to train a little bit at least. Solomon said I should train with fire or another strong force. I think I will stick to something less dangerous though. Any ideas?" The fire incident is still fresh on my mind.

Barbatos sighs lightly, then he thinks for a moment. "There is a waterfall in the far back of the estate. It's far enough away if any flooding should occur."

I sweat lightly at the implication. "Sounds great."

"I shall show you the way but promise me to only train for an hour and then take at least a break." Barbatos knows me too well at this point.

"Thank you. Let me just quickly redress and it will only be for an hour. I have to text Beel anyway regarding our training." I don't plan to exhaust myself.

"You certainly are getting along well with the brothers. I need to keep an eye on that." Barbatos looks troubled.

"They are pretty nice and I'm glad to make friends." It's been a long time since I could call anyone my friend, it's a nice feeling to be so accepted.

"I don't mind you making friends of course. Though it troubles me a bit knowing that you will spend less time at home." Barbatos' words surprise me.

"Are you feeling lonely?" I say with a teasing smile.

Barbatos' eyes widen for a split second. "I guess I do…" He looks like he just realized that. "I might have gotten too used to you being around all the time." He admits with a bashful smile. This is a very rare moment. I try to burn it into my memory.

"Aww, I missed you too," I admit, feeling a bit bashful myself.

Barbatos smiles unusually softly. "I'm glad we are on the same page about that." There seems to be so much more he wants to say but simply decides to keep quiet.

I leave him be and quickly run to redress. My outfit is perfect for training and getting a bit wet.

"I'm ready." I almost run into the waiting Barbatos, who is tending to the flowers in the garden.

"You are certainly filled with energy. Must be nice." He looks at me with a slightly teasing smile.

I pout at him. "Are you going to show me that waterfall now?"

Barbatos gives me a slight smirk. "Of course, follow after me."

Barbatos leads me through the vast garden, it's even bigger than I assumed.

I keep an eye on the path, not wanting to repeat the time I fell into Diavolo’s arms. Well, it's not like that was bad, but I shudder thinking what would've happened if I'd fallen into the rose bush.

It's a bit hard since all of the plants just look so interesting to me.

Barbatos keeps a close eye on each of my movements, which motivates me to not get distracted from walking.

Finally, we reach the waterfall. It looks man, or better said, demon-made. It's pretty impressive regardless.

"I never thought someone would build a waterfall this big in their backyard." I stare at it in awe.

"It's one of the many projects that the young master build for fun. At least it has some use now for you." Barbatos frowns lightly.

"Does Diavolo often build random things?" He doesn't seem the type, but then again he kinda does.

"He sometimes just acts a bit on a whim. It's not necessarily a bad thing but sometimes it can become a burden. Like when he wanted to create a beach. That was quite a hassle." Barbatos sighs.

I giggle imagining that. "Doesn't the devildom have beaches?"

"We do, but we have a lava ocean. He wanted to experience a human beach." Barbatos seems slightly troubled.

"A human beach? That sounds like fun. I wonder if I'll ever get to see one again." I remember a vacation that I spent at the ocean. I somehow feel nostalgic.

"Maybe we can arrange something." Barbatos smiles mysteriously at me.

I don't doubt that Barbatos would create an ocean just for me if I'd order him to do so. Even when it seems like a ridiculous idea it makes me smile.

Barbatos looks at me with curious eyes but doesn't ask.

I settle on the side of the river flowing from the waterfall.

Barbatos seems to be thinking for a moment and then nods. "This is far enough away, but be careful or you might slip."

"Don't worry, I'll just stay here." It's pretty comfortable on the grass here anyway." I get into a more comfortable pose.

Barbatos still seems a bit reluctant to leave. " Sadly I have duties to attend to but you just need to yell and I will be right there." He seems to mostly assure himself.

"I will do that." I agree, even if it's mostly to assure him.

Barbatos seems to accept this and leaves me alone.

#how to become a demon ruler #obey me barbatos #obey me!#omswd #demon ruler 201 #obey me fanfiction

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valkyriesryde · 4 years

Text

Release the Hounds {5/?}

Chapter Five: Stand Your Ground

Pairing: Persephone!Steve x Hades!Reader

Chapter Summary: Hades has a meeting with Thor to discuss the upcoming debate and Steve’s part in the drama.

Word Count: 1kish

A/N: Here’s a little filler sort of to see the relationship between Thor and Hades as well as perhaps hinting at some answers to some questions perhaps maybe...

Series Masterlist ~ Masterlist

The tea sat on the desk between them, the steam rising up and Hades couldn’t help but chuckle about how formal Thor always kept things.

“We never go for lunch during these meetings,” she said offhandedly, reaching for her mug.

“That’s because you always refuse, I’ve simply stopped asking.” Thor sipped his own drink and raised his eyebrows over the brim, “would you like to go out? I know a lovely cafe, you’d love a salad they do there it’s magnificent.”

“Oh gods no,” Hades smirked and crossed her legs nonchalantly. Thor’s office was homely, cluttered with things from his children and places he’d been. Though she could pick out the touches of Hera, the parts that were neatly organised and her little sticky notes on his computer with reminders for him written in her messy handwriting. “Anything exciting happen in the past week?”

You didn’t really think Hades was left out of the loop about the going ons behind closed doors in Olympus? Of course not. She may rule another domain, the citizens of Earth and Olympus may fear her and not want her present but Thor was her brother. They were family and there was no beef between the two. So they decided that every week they would meet, Thor would give Hades the minutes from his meeting with the twelve gods and the only ones who knew were those they could trust; Loki, Sam and Jane.

“When was the last time you spoke to Loki?” Thor asked, testing the ice to gain some information about how Hades would take the news of the most current events and gossip amongst the olympians.

“Not for a couple weeks, I believe we’re having drinks tomorrow though. Why? What has our idiot brother done this time.”

Thor chuckled a booming laugh that made Hades smile as he shook his head. “I almost want him to be the one to tell you.”

“Dear Gaia help me what have you boys done?”

“Loki had a suggestion for the council,” Hades rolled her eyes as Thor picked at the loose paper in front of him. “He suggested you join the council. Come to meetings and everything.”

“I imagine the first to disagree was dear Demeter,” Hades smiled but it was full of sharp teeth and fire behind her eyes.

“I don’t understand the grudge you two have with each other?”

“SHE CALLS ME SATAN!” She rose from her seat, the tea forgotten about and the papers on her lap spewed onto the floor. Her heart pounded in her chest and she felt her blood boil, she focused on what she could see around her. The keyboard on Thor’s desk; the plant in the corner of the room, the bookcase along the wall next to her. It brought her breathing back to normal and her powers at bay.

“Hades,” Thor warned, still calm in his seat.

“No Thor. That woman is nothing but cruel, I don’t know if the mortal’s way of thinking has brushed off on her or if that’s just who she is but she is not someone I wish to associate myself with.”

“So you don’t want to rejoin the council?” Thor was curious, he wondered if she actually wanted this, if she wanted a seat beside him or if she was happy watching and contributing from behind the curtains.

“What good would that do? It’s not like anyone on Olympus or in the council wants me here.” But Thor could see it behind her anger. A part of her did want to be on the council. A part of her did want to be respected and listened to in the same way Jane and Loki were. Thor wanted that for her. He wanted the council to know just how much she already helped them and Thor as he ruled over them. People forgot that they were the only two who ruled over a body of people, over a kingdom. She was the only one who understood the pressure he was under and the meetings they had each week allowed them both to discuss the matters they couldn’t discuss with the others.

“That’s not true and you know it,” he took a deep breath as Hades sat back down and rolled her eyes. “I want you back on the council, you may not like to admit it but the way of the living affects you too.”

“Uhh yes, with your wars, famine and disease sending millions to my gates. Like I would support that.”

“Exactly, you deserve a say in the matter.”

“You sound an awful lot like the God of Spring,” her mind drifted to Steve and his argument, his insistent fighting for her to be on the council, to ‘have a say’. It drifted to him sitting before her wounded and tired looking as Sam patched him up after he fell into her domain. She remembered his cuts healing as he argued with her.

“Oh? And how would you know the God of Spring? I can’t imagine a scenario where your paths would have crossed.” Thor smirked at Hades and raised his brows as he leaned forward.

“So you didn’t send him then?” She questioned.

“Hades what are you talking about?” Now he was concerned, he wouldn’t it past Demeter to go behind his back and try and sabotage the debate, or just mess with Hades for the fun of it.

“He sent me a letter, claiming I should fight for my right to be on the council, I thought it was a trick from Demeter at first but that doesn’t seem to be the case. I thought perhaps you sent him because you knew I’d play nice. Apparently he did so on his own though, interesting.” She continued to think of Steve, wondered if perhaps he liked the decorations on her gates, if perhaps Wanda had been nice to him like she thought she would be. She wondered if she was too harsh to him, if he would turn to resent her because of her pushing him away.

“Steve isn’t like his mother.”

“Apparently not, for one he didn’t refer to me as the devil.” She rolled her eyes again, she felt like she constantly was today. “She knows I’m not god of death right?? She’s met Thanatos?? Does she know of her own son’s fut-” An attempt to take the attention off of her interaction with Steve and perhaps to remind herself of where he came from.

“ENOUGH, you know for a fact she doesn’t know of that, Bucky’s prophecy is only known between us and Loki, not even Steve knows.” Thor’s voice boomed over her and thunder rattled above them. Of course, how could he have forgotten, how could he have thought this was about anything else. The thing that was the final straw for Hades, the prophecy that set her mind to hide away in the underworld. He cursed letting her in the know, perhaps it was a mistake. Perhaps thing would have been difference. But the rift between Demeter and Hades had already been put in place before the prophecy had even come to Bucky, Thor knew, deep down, that whether she knew or not it wouldn’t change anything.

“He should, his interest in the underworld proves as such. This is his destiny Thor, bringer of destruction, father to the dead. That's what Bucky told us. Steve currently only knows half of who he is. He is not just the God of Spring.” That stupid good for nothing prophecy. That stupid good for nothing promise of secrecy.

“It’s for his own safety.” Thor bit back at Hades. His voice stern and it gave no room for argument. But Hades didn’t care.

“No it’s not.” She stood from her seat and began to walk towards the door, pausing to turn back to Thor, “it’s for Demeter’s.”

Chapter Six: Am I Supposed to Fight

Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed it!

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unpredictable-probabilities · 3 years

Text

A Birthday with Scarlet

Word Count: 2,955

Summary: It’s Azul’s birthday party at Octavinelle and the twins have invited a guest that he was not prepared to meet.

Includes: angst, fluff, kissing

Author’s Note: This is the sequel to A Rival in Scarlet, I wrote it months ago for Azul and my OC, Scarlet Coldfire. It’s not necessary to read that part 1 in order to understand this sequel, but here it is in case you’re interested~.

Thanks to @patchyegg87 for helping me come up with the concept and providing the pictures.

“Karaage, Azul?”

“What?” Azul distractedly looked up at Jade holding a tray of Karaage fried chicken.

“No one should look that glum on their birthday,” Jade replied. “I had hoped your favorite food might lift your forlorn spirit.”

“I’m not forlorn,” Azul scoffed and took a sip of his tea.

“Yeah, Jade,” Floyd interjected from his seat on the couch behind Azul. “He’s not forlorn,” he pointed lazily to where Azul was glowering over his teacup, “he’s jealous.”

“Excuse me?” Azul turned to Floyd so fast that some tea spilled on the table.

“Ah,” Jade set the tray down and looked to where Floyd had pointed. A lady in an elegant red dress was conversing merrily with Cater at one of the tables. “Miss Coldfire does look ravishing tonight, doesn’t she?”

“Definitely,” Floyd agreed. “You can’t blame Cater.”

Cater moved closer to Scarlet Coldfire and held up his phone. Their shoulders were pressed together as they smiled for a photo.

“Why did you invite her?” Azul scowled and turned to look at the twins.

“I thought you would have liked to see her,” Jade replied. “You had a lovely time together when she first came here.”

Floyd nodded, “Exactly. You guys were totally making out in the VIP area—”

“Be quiet!” Azul hissed and looked around to see if anyone was within earshot. He took his cup and drank all the remaining tea in a single gulp. “I’m getting another drink,” he got up and walked to the bar.

The twins were right; he did have a wonderful time with Scarlet when she visited during their Open House event. With her being the owner of a rival café, Azul had wanted to lure her into giving him information to his advantage. But Azul found her much more interesting than any information he could have gained about Crimson Café.

They had walked around campus and found a quiet spot on a bench beneath a tree. Scarlet was as clever as she was beautiful, and Azul found himself immensely enjoying their conversations. He couldn’t remember the last time he had felt so relaxed.

Before she left, Azul had said he would be calling her. They had exchanged numbers, after all.

But each time he picked up the phone, he got nervous and unsure of what he wanted to say. What if she was busy running her café? He understood what it was like to manage such a popular establishment. What if he asked her to meet again and she said no? What if she hadn’t enjoyed his company as much as he had hoped?

A month passed and Azul kept finding questions and excuses not to call.

And now she was here.

When he saw her at that table, it felt like he had stopped breathing for a moment. He was not prepared at all to see her and while he was wondering whether he should approach her already, Cater appeared out of nowhere and started chatting her up like an old friend.

Azul sat at the bar and randomly chose one of the prepared drinks on display. He lifted the glass to his lips and stopped halfway when he noticed what he had picked up. Vermouth. The drink Scarlet ordered at Mostro Lounge all those weeks ago.

“Oh hey, Azul!” Cater appeared next to him and clinked his glass against his. “Happy birthday!”

“You’re here,” Azul said in mild surprise. He looked over to the table where Cater had been talking to Scarlet, it was now Rook who was sitting beside her and engaging in conversation. Azul wondered if the entire campus would work up the courage to talk to her before he did.

“Yeah, she mentioned you,” Cater noticed where he was looking.

“What?” Somehow Azul was curious and afraid at the same time, he wasn’t sure he wanted to know what Scarlet had to say about him.

“I recognized her from MagiCam and asked what she was doing here. She said you guys met last month and Jade and Floyd invited her to your party. Have you talked to her yet?”

“Not tonight, no.” Not on any of the past several nights either. “You, on the other hand, seemed like you were having a grand old time talking to her.” Azul tried to keep the edge off his voice.

“I was!” Cater said cheerfully. “She even agreed for us to take a selfie so I can post it on MagiCam.”

“That’s why you wanted a picture with her? To post on your social media?” Azul didn’t know if that was better than if he wanted to keep it for himself.

“Yeah, and she’s really pretty,” Cater grinned.

“Why did you stop talking to her, then?” Azul took a sip of the vermouth but barely tasted it.

“Oh, Rook showed up and they started speaking in French. I had no idea what was going on so I just got up to get another drink.”

Azul remembered how Rook had spoken French with Scarlet last time too, how he made her laugh with his smooth words that Azul couldn’t understand.

“Well I’m glad they’re having fun at my party,” he glanced at their table again and saw to his horror that Jade and Floyd were there, too. Floyd was whispering something to Scarlet and then he pointed at Azul. Scarlet looked at him in surprise.

He stood up and quickly walked to them, forgetting about his drink on the bar. Who knew what the twins had been saying about him. He had to come up with an excuse to get them away from her, perhaps some minor emergency about Mostro Lounge.

“Monsieur !” Rook greeted him when he reached their table. “We are honored with your presence on this special night.”

“Jade, Floyd,” Azul wasted no time, “you’re needed in the kitchen,” he blurted out.

Floyd frowned at him, “What? Why?”

“We were just getting acquainted with Miss Coldfire,” Jade explained. “Certainly the other residents can handle the kitchen.”

“Yeah,” Floyd turned back to Scarlet. “Anyway as I was saying, when we were in elementary school, Azul—”

“Now,” Azul wanted to yank Floyd backwards by the collar. “Make sure everything is running smoothly.”

Floyd rolled his eyes. “Fine. Catch you later, Scarlet.” He stood up and walked away.

Jade held out his hand to Scarlet, “It was enchanting to have spoken with you tonight, Miss Coldfire,” he planted a kiss on the back of her hand and left to follow Floyd.

Rook looked across the room. “Ah, I think I see Vil and Epel over there. I shall go and join them. Happy birthday once again, Monsieur,” he tipped his hat. “And mademoiselle, remember,” he turned to Scarlet, “la mer est parfois froide mais elle est toujours belle.”

Scarlet smiled, “Je suis d’accord.”

Only when Rook was walking away did Azul realize he had been lured into a trap; the twins knew that if he saw them with Scarlet, he would immediately come over. They had most likely told Rook to leave too.

Azul looked at Scarlet, as nervous as he felt, he was relieved that he finally got the chance to talk to her. “May I join you?”

“It’s your party,” she pointed out with a slight smile.

He sat down next to her. “My apologies for not speaking with you sooner.”

“That’s alright, you can’t be expected to speak with every one of your guests.”

“That’s not what I meant,” he clarified. “I’m sorry for not calling when I said I would,” he adjusted his glasses and averted his eyes.

Scarlet didn’t say anything so he looked back at her, worried about what he might see.

“I appreciate the apology,” she was smiling at him with a curious glint in her eye. “Though I must admit I didn’t expect it. You’re more chivalrous than I thought, Mr. Ashengrotto.”

Azul blinked and noticed a fluttering feeling in his stomach. “I wasn’t expecting you to say that, either.”

“Floyd explained why you weren’t able to call,” Scarlet picked up her strawberry daiquiri, “I didn’t ask, but he explained all the same.” She took a sip of the drink.

Oh no. The thought of Floyd explaining anything to anyone was already troubling, but it was especially worrying in this case. “What did he say?”

Scarlet looked amused, “No need to be so panicked. He just said he saw you fidgeting with your phone a few times but never actually dialing.”

“Floyd,” Azul cursed under his breath, he had no idea Floyd had seen his nervous attempts at a call.

“He seemed to be under the impression that you were shy,” Scarlet tilted her head slightly. “He even pointed you out to me earlier and said you were jealous of Mr. Diamond.”

Azul’s blood rushed to his cheeks. He was already coming up with various punishments for Floyd later. “I said no such thing.”

A soft laugh escaped her lips. “You look absolutely adorable when you blush, I should have told you that last time.”

Azul cleared his throat and willed himself to focus. He still wanted to know what exactly the twins had done. “What about Jade? I refuse to believe he just stayed silent the entire time.”

“Oh, it was all Jade’s idea. He texted Cater to go to you at the bar so you’d look back at this table and see me talking with Rook. Then he and Floyd approached us and said you would certainly come over if you thought they were ruining your reputation.” She looked at him intently, gauging his reaction.

Azul furrowed his brows, “Why are you explaining all this?” He wondered aloud.

“Why wouldn’t I?” A smile tugged at the corner of her lips. “Besides, I don’t want you to worry about what Jade and Floyd might have done. You shouldn’t be so stressed on your birthday.”

Azul shook his head lightly. He should have known that the moment he left the twins, they would be up to their antics again. “Why would those two go to all that trouble…”

“Jade said he wanted to help you, Floyd said it was funny,” Scarlet smiled in amusement and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

“I see that Floyd is as kind as ever. How did they rope Rook into this?”

“Oh, Rook wanted to help me,” she said simply.

Azul wasn’t sure what to make of that; the music and all the people around them were distracting him. He felt paranoid that Rook or the twins might be watching them, and he wanted to be able to talk to Scarlet in private.

He had an idea. “Would you mind going out to the corridor with me? There’s something I’d like to show you.”

Scarlet raised her perfectly shaped eyebrows in interest. “I’d be glad to join you.”

They quietly left the party and walked along the blue and purple halls of Octavinelle until they reached a section where an entire wall was a glass window.

The lights from the corridor illuminated the sea outside; various coral reefs grew in a myriad of colors and a school of fish was swimming by. Azul grew up under the sea and this was nothing new to him, but he still always appreciated the view.

“It’s beautiful,” Scarlet breathed.

Azul looked at her eyes bright with wonder and her slightly parted lips. He wondered to himself how he was able to withstand not seeing her for weeks.

“Yeah,” Azul said, unable to take his eyes off her, “beautiful.”

“It’s incredibly marvelous,” Scarlet turned to him and smiled. “Thank you for sharing this with me.”

Azul smiled back and looked out the window. “Floyd was right.”

“About what?” Scarlet asked.

“I was jealous of you and Cater,” he didn’t like at all how that sounded so he quickly added, “which is completely idiotic considering I have no right to be.” He hesitantly looked back at Scarlet.

She looked surprised at his sudden confession and thought for a moment before speaking. “Rook talked to me earlier, as you had seen. He recognized me and asked why I wasn’t getting up to talk to you instead of just stealing glances from across the room.”

Azul’s lips parted but no sound came out. He didn’t know what to say, knowing that Scarlet had been looking at him too almost made him feel lightheaded.

Scarlet smiled. “I told him I wasn’t sure if you wanted to talk, because you didn’t call me after you said you would. I was wondering if you had changed your mind.”

Azul shifted uncomfortably. “I meant what I said earlier; I’m sorry that I didn’t call you when I had every chance to. I was just… well, nervous. And then it only got more difficult to dial your number as the days went by because I wasn’t sure if you’d still want to talk to me when it’s been so long.” He wasn’t used to expressing such sentiments, but it felt right to be honest with Scarlet. He didn’t want to hide anything from her.

She stepped closer to him and caressed his cheek, “The sea is sometimes cold but it is always beautiful.” She ran her thumb lightly over the beauty mark under his lip. “That’s what Rook said earlier before he left. I told him I agree.” Scarlet put down her hand and Azul immediately missed its warmth on his face.

He realized what she meant and felt a stab of guilt. “I didn’t mean to seem cold.”

Scarlet nodded in understanding. “That’s what Rook said too, he was telling me that I should still try to speak to you even if I’m not sure that it’s what you want. He said you might just be nervous.” Her hair had come loose from behind her ear and Azul fought the temptation to brush it back.

“Rook Hunt does like to dabble in things related to romance and love,” he said without thinking. Then his eyes widened and he blushed furiously when he realized exactly what he had just said. “That’s not what I—I just meant...” he had no idea how to explain himself; he didn’t want to seem like he was confessing his love so soon and scare her away.

Scarlet laughed pleasantly. “Calm down, mon chéri. As much as I love seeing you blush, I would much rather that you be relaxed and comfortable around me.”

Azul had learned a few French words while he had been procrastinating calling her, and he wanted to make sure he heard her correctly, “Did—Did you just call me ‘my dear’?”

“I did,” Scarlet gazed into his eyes. “Don’t you like it?”

“I do,” Azul replied, inwardly cringing at how enthusiastic he sounded. “I like it,” he felt himself blushing again. This terribly honest side of his was going to take some getting used to.

She beamed. “See, isn’t that better? We’re asking each other about the things we’re unsure of, rather than being too nervous to talk at all.”

“Agreed,” he moved closer to her. “I, for one, do regret not having spent time with you for the past month.” It was true and he wanted to make up for it.

“And I don’t regret coming to this party at all,” she stepped even closer.

Their faces were so close now that their noses were almost touching. Azul swallowed. “Can I ask you something now?” He spoke softly.

“Of course,” she murmured back. Feeling her breath on his lips made his heart start drumming in his chest.

He delicately put his arms around her waist. “Would you like to go on a date with me? Perhaps on Saturday?”

“I would be delighted,” she smiled and slowly reached up to take off Azul’s glasses, making his breath shake in anticipation.

Azul barely noticed that she put it in the pocket on the side of her dress as he leaned in towards her.

She put her arms around his neck and leaned in to meet him, gently pressing her lips to his.

Azul sighed as his eyes fell close; Scarlet’s lips felt even softer than he remembered. At that moment, he was floating and nothing else mattered.

After weeks and weeks of longing for her, being so close now was like a soothing balm to his heart. The familiar scent of her perfume filled his senses, settling deep within him and unfurling into a desire to pull her closer.

Her tongue grazed across his lips and before he knew it, he had moved and pressed her back against the glass window, his own tongue diving deep into her mouth.

He could hear the crinkling of his birthday sash and ribbon from the way they were moving against each other, and his once perfectly-pressed suit must be wrinkled by now, but he didn’t care; the feeling of Scarlet’s hands on his collar and face and hair overwhelmed any other thought in his mind.

Soon enough they were both gasping for breath with their arms wrapped around each other. Azul slowly opened his eyes.

The majestic view of the sea was just in front of him, but all he could see was Scarlet. Somehow he still couldn’t believe that he was with her now.

He felt elated that there were no more uncertainties between them and they were actually going to go on a proper date. As he gazed into her warm brown eyes and she gazed back, he reveled in the feeling of their embrace and knew it was the best gift that he could have possibly received.

“The sea might be beautiful,” Azul said softly as he stared at Scarlet and felt each beat of his heart, “but not nearly as much as you.”

(Masterlist)

(Ko-fi)

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