#and like. ... this dudes problem seems to be he acts like being in class together when we were nine means we know each other. | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

svnoohe4rts · 2 years

Text

bed of lies ; part one

masterlist │ next

↳ PAIRING: park sunghoon x fembodied!reader

↳ SUMMARY: making a bet with jay was easy. getting your attention, however, wasn’t as easy; especially since you seem to have your eyes set on his bestfriend.

↳ WORDCOUNT: 10,3k

↳ WARNINGS: alcohol consumption, smut; fingering minors dni

↳ TAGLIST: @duolingofanaccount @sunoosbeststan @valentineyun0 @yizhoutv @jays-blue @mocha-bbys @spiderlilyfics @nyanggk @25dejulho @pshchives @hoonthoughts @shu-ramyeonz (just let me know u want me to add u !)

If you could back in time and change anything you’d like, it would probably be crossing paths with Park Sunghoon.

With his sharp jawline and melodic laugh, it was almost impossible to resist Park Sunghoon. Not a single girl in the entire school hadn’t dreamt of letting Park Sunghoon have his way with them, his presence making every girl come to a halt every time he passed them in the hallway; discreetly whispering to their friends how attractive he was.

Sunghoon was well aware of his status. He could tell how the girls adored him whenever he walked past them, no matter how discreet they tried to be with their glances; he could still tell how every girl was practically eye-fucking him every time he was near. There had been many instances where some of the girls’ jealous boyfriends would approach him, telling him to back the fuck off; threatening him that they would smash his pretty face in. Sunghoon on the other hand would just act completely oblivious, because, at the end of the day, it was their girlfriends coming onto him; not the opposite.

Was Park Sunghoon an absolute dick? Yes, he was. And he loved every second of it. He loved the power he held, he loved being able to make boyfriends fuming in anger by just making their girlfriends blush, he loved the way he’d make girls tremble by just shooting them a small smile in the hallways.

It wasn’t like his friends were any better. Sunghoon had many friends, maybe one too many; but most of them were just people he met during class or friends he mainly partied together with, none of them could ever compare to his real friends.

Jay and Sunghoon had known each other for what felt like an eternity. They had grown up together, attended the same middle school, high school, and now college. Not a single thing could ever separate the two of them, even though their friendship had been on the line many times; like in their sophomore year for example, after Jay lost one round of the video game they were playing and broke the mirror standing in Sunghoons room. But that’s what Sunghoon loved about his best friend, the rage that lived within him.

When Jake Sim, who had just moved from Australia to study in Korea, first arrived at the college Sunghoon and Jay attended, they had been quick to make him a part of the group. Jake was a sweet guy, his smile was brighter than both Jay and Sunghoons combined and his laugh sometimes even melted Sunghoons heart; even though there was no way he'd actually admit that. That’s how he knew Jake Sim fit right into Sunghoon and Jay's friend group, seeing how girls melted at the sight of him and his strong accent.

‘’What do you mean, you won’t be there?’’ Jay spat at his friend, still chewing on the food he had just shoved into his mouth. ‘’Dude,’’ Jake sighed, running one of his hands through his hair. ‘’I can’t cancel another date with her. Last time she looked at me like she was ready to kill me right there and then,’’ Sunghoon chuckled at his friends’ rant, playing with the food on the plate in front of him using the fork he was holding in one of his hands. ‘’Like anyone could hurt a puppy like you.’’ Sunghoon let out, not taking his eyes off the unappetizing food placed in front of him. He could hear Jay chuckle from across the table, Jake’s eyes burning into his skin; clearly annoyed over the fact that his friends weren’t taking him and his love problems seriously.

Sunghoon was a simple man. He had never felt the need to fall in love, because why would he? Why would he ever need to fall in love when he had a line filled with girls, waiting for him to even notice them? He hated the thought of being attached to someone, or having someone attached to him; so whenever Jake would start babbling about this new girl he had started seeing and how it might be serious, he couldn’t help but roll his eyes.

‘’It’s not that big of a deal, just tell her you’ll go out with her next weekend instead,’’ Jay suggested, knowing very well that he’d be bugging his friend to join them in going to a party next weekend as well. Jake just stared at his best friend for a moment, his lips slightly parted. ‘’Fuck you guys.’’ He suddenly muttered before standing up, grabbing his food tray before quickly walking away. The action caught Sunghoons attention, causing him to finally look up from his food; watching his friend leave the cafeteria. ‘’He’s so fucking sensitive sometimes,’’ Jay mumbled as he shook his head, taking another bite of his food. Sunghoon let a chuckle leave his lips, dropping the fork; crossing his arms over his chest as he leaned back in the chair he was sitting in. ‘’Maybe I should make his girl fall in love with me so he stops being such a simp.’’ Sunghoon snickered, half joking, his eyes still gazing over at Jake who was walking further and further away from the cafeteria.

Sunghoon was confident, a little too confident sometimes. He knew he was attractive, and he knew he could get away with anything purely because he was attractive and his alluring personality. There had been plenty of times when he had gotten away with things he wasn’t supposed to get away with, like cheating on his exam during senior year for example. Of course, he wasn’t supposed to get caught; but his teacher quickly realized what he was up to. Luckily for Sunghoon, his teacher was yet another victim of his tempting aura, and all he had to do was to bat his eyelashes at her. He knew the moment he saw a color of red flush onto the older woman's cheeks, there wasn’t going to be any problems. After all, he got perfect scores on his exams. The sound of Jay choking on his food made Sunghoon snap out of his thoughts, quickly shifting his gaze over at his best friend. He became worried for a minute, before noticing his friend was laughing; not dying. ‘’As if,’’ Jay managed to let out between coughs, a big smile still plastered on his lips. Sunghoon raised one of his eyebrows in confusion. ‘’What do you mean?’’ He asked, watching his friend desperately chugging down water. ‘’You stealing Jake's girl,’’ Jay replied as he put the now empty glass down on the table in front of him, clearing his throat before speaking. ‘’Don’t get too full of yourself.’’

Sunghoon simply stared at his friend, his eyebrows slightly furrowed as he tried to piece together the words that just left his friend's lips. ‘’What’s that supposed to mean?’’ Sunghoon questioned his friend, waiting for an explanation.

‘’Look,’’ Jay sighed as he pushed the half-full box of ramen placed in front of him to the side. ‘’There’s a difference between being attracted to someone and actually being in love.’’ He continued, resting his forearms on the table as he spoke. Sunghoon slightly tilted his head, his eyebrows still furrowed as a chuckle escaped his lips. ‘’What are you implying?’’ He asked, not taking his eyes off his friend seated in front of him.

If Jay hadn’t known Sunghoon for almost his entire life, he probably would’ve feared for his life as Sunghoon stared at him. His eyes were sharp and people knew very well to not question him or his ways of doing things, purely because he was Park Sunghoon. You simply just didn’t want to end up on his bad side. Jay, however, wasn’t imitated by his friend. ‘’That I don’t think anyone’s ever actually been in love with you Sunghoon.’’

As the words left Jay's lips, Sunghoon couldn’t help but laugh. He couldn’t believe that his friend was telling him, Park Sunghoon, that no one had ever been in love with him; like he wasn’t the only topic every girl constantly discussed. Jay stared at his friend for a second, watching him laugh until the point there were tears filling his eyes. ‘’You’re funny, Jay,’’ Sunghoon mumbled as he wiped his eyes, still chuckling from the statement his friend had just made. ‘’I’m not joking.’’

Sunghoon’s smile slowly faded away from his lips, still trying to understand if Jay was just trying to mess with him or if he actually meant to hurt his ego. At the end of the day, Jay tended to be brutally honest, even in moments he shouldn’t. ‘’You actually don’t think anyone has ever been in love with me?’’ Sunghoon asked after a moment of silence, causing Jay to shake his head. ‘’Attracted, yes, but in love? No.’’ Sunghoons lips parted, almost like he was about to say something; but he remained quiet.

At some point, Sunghoon started to believe being attracted to someone and being in love with someone were the same thing. Maybe because he himself had never been in love before, so he had no idea what it felt like. But he knew what being in love looked like, and it looked awfully a lot like the way girls looked at him. ‘’Fuck you,’’ Sunghoon spat, crossing his arms over his chest once again. ‘’I could make any girl fall in love with me and you know it.’’

‘’Want to bet?’’

‘’What?’’

A small smile crept onto Jay's lips, licking his lips as he mimicked his friend's movements; crossing his arms over his chest as well. ‘’You heard me,’’ Jay replied, shrugging as he spoke. ‘’Want to bet that you can make any girl fall in love with you?’’ At that moment, Sunghoon thanked god that his friend couldn’t read his mind, not that Jay needed to read his mind to know what was going on inside of his head; the confusion plastered on his face spoke for itself. ‘’And what exactly is your plan?’’

Jay’s eyes darted around the cafeteria, looking for a girl that Sunghoon could pursue. Jay knew he could’ve easily just picked a girl for his friend, but what would be the fun in that? ‘’You have to make the next girl that walks into the room fall in love with you.’’ Jay replied, his gaze meeting Sunghoons once again. Sunghoon raised his eyebrows, breaking eye contact with his friend as he turned around; looking over at the entrance leading to the cafeteria. A small smirk formed on his lips as he turned back to face his friend. ‘’Easy,’’ Sunghoon let out, confident. ‘’There’s more,’’ Jay spoke, sitting up straight. ‘’You have thirty days to make her fall for you.’’

Like that would be a challenge for Sunghoon. He knew all he had to do was just smile, make some small talk, and maybe ask for her number; and then he would’ve succeeded. Nice and simple, it would be almost too easy showing his friend how incredibly wrong he was. ‘’Bet.’’ Sunghoon shrugged, like it would be the easiest thing he had ever done; causing a chuckle to leave Jay's lips as he shook his head at his friend's confidence. Jay's eyes darted towards the entrance, his lips parting as he raised both his eyebrows.

‘’Well, there’s your girl.’’ Jay’s words made Sunghoon spin around in his chair, his eyes immediately glued to the entrance As he spotted what would be his girl, as Jay had put it, he raised one of his eyebrows. ‘’Who the fuck is that?’’ Sunghoon mumbled, scanning the girl who had just walked into the room, accompanied by what he assumed was her friend. A chuckle was heard from across the table, followed by a small sigh. ‘’We’re about to find out,’’ Jay spoke, reaching his arm over the table; patting his friend on the shoulder.

Sunghoon wasn’t a stranger to you. The two of you shared some of the same classes and from what you could tell, he seemed like a nice guy. If it weren’t for all the rumors going around about him, that would probably be the only image you would have of him; a polite, definitely attractive but down-to-earth guy. Nothing more, nothing less. But no, the tale of the infamous Park Sunghoon told a completely different story.

It was no secret that he had his fair share of fun, to put it simply. Every week there would be a new girl talking about how Sunghoon had dragged her into the bathroom of some random party and fucked her dumb, each and every one of them showing off the marks covering their bodies that the boy had left behind. Not that it mattered to you, you found his other friends way more attractive anyways; especially the Australian one.

If you hadn’t been so busy begging your friend to borrow one of her books for your next class, you probably would’ve noticed the way the two boys sitting across the room eyes were practically burning into your skin. ‘’Yeojin, please,’’ You begged, getting ready to get down on your knees at this point. You had been following her around the entire school for almost half an hour, spending your entire lunch break begging your friend to borrow the book you forgot at home that morning. Yeojin rolled her eyes, a small sigh escaping her lips. ‘’I’m not even sure if I brought it with me,’’ The girl replied, leaning against the wall; her backpack dangling off one of her shoulders. ‘’The teacher will literally kill me if I don’t have it with me, Yeojin.’’ You groaned, rubbing your temple using one of your hands.

Yeojin was probably the prettiest girl you had ever seen. Her strawberry blonde bangs were always swept across her forehead perfectly, even if she had just woken up or just gotten out of the shower. You had met her during one of the classes the two of you shared and hit it off immediately, her personality complimenting yours perfectly. ‘’I’ll check,’’ Yeojin mumbled, sliding the backpack off her shoulder. You let your arms fall down your sides, your eyes widening in anticipation.

She placed the bag on the chair in front of her, rummaging through it; flipping through the books placed neatly inside the bag. She pulled one of the books out, popping her tongue against the roof of her mouth as a smile spread on her lips. ‘’Here you go,’’ She let out, passing the book over to you. You let out a sigh in relief, placing one of your hands on top of the book; but Yeojin kept her hand on it as well. ‘’But promise me you’ll return it by the end of the day, okay? Otherwise, it’ll be me the teacher will want to kill tomorrow.’’ She continued, raising her eyebrows as she stared at you.

You just scoffed, snatching the book away from your friend as you rolled your eyes. ‘’Yes, whatever, I promise,’’ You mumbled, hurryingly shoving the book down your bag as you gazed over at the big clock hanging on one of the walls. ‘’Fuck,’’ You muttered as you managed to close your bag; the zipper threatening to break at any second. ‘’I have to go, my class starts in five minutes,’’ You sighed as you threw your bag over your shoulder, Yeonjin chuckling as she watched your stressed face. ‘’I’ll text you when I get out of class, okay?’’ You let out, looking over at your friend; gaining a nod from her as you waved her goodbye, hurrying to your next class.

In moments like these, you wished you would’ve paid more attention to your surroundings. But the only thing you had on your mind was the fact that you were probably going to be late for your class, and you could already imagine your teacher's disappointed face as you walked in; scrunching your nose in disgust as you thought about it. And the fact that you had just bumped into someone, dropping your bag on the floor would probably make you even more late.

‘’Shit,’’ You mumbled under your breath as a sharp pain shot through your shoulder, the noise of your heavy bag hitting the stone floor underneath you causing you to snap out of your thoughts; realizing you had walked straight into someone. ‘’Fuck, are you okay?’’ A soft voice spoke beside you, causing you to look away from your bag; your eyes meeting a pair of dark brown ones.

Your hand automatically grabbed your shoulder, which was now throbbing in pain from the harsh collision. You parted your lips, ready to apologize to the person standing in front of you; before you suddenly realized the person you had just bumped into. Jake was quick to pick up your bag from the floor, lifting it with one of his hands; meanwhile, you had to use both your arms to even get it over one of your shoulders. ‘’I was looking at my phone, I’m so sorry,’’ Jake mumbled as he wiped the dust that was now covering your bag away. ‘’No, I’m sorry,’’ You managed to get out, not being able to take your eyes off the man standing in front of you.

You had never interacted with Jake Sim before, nor had you ever interacted with any of the other boys in his friend group. You already knew Jake was attractive, but as he was standing a couple of inches away from you; you realized why everyone else found him so handsome. ‘’I wasn’t watching where I was going, it’s my fault.’’ You mumbled, looking down at your bag as you realized you had been staring at him for way too long; probably making him uncomfortable.

Jake, on the other hand, just chuckled, his pearly white teeth showing as he laughed. ‘’No need to apologize.’’ He smiled, your eyes meeting his once again as he suddenly threw your bag over his shoulder. ‘’Let me make it up to you, yeah?’’ He suggested, raising his eyebrows as he smiled at you. You stared at him for a moment, one of your eyebrows raised in confusion. ‘’Let me carry your bag to your next class.’’ He continued, pointing to the backpack which was now hanging off one of his shoulders.

There was no way Jake missed the way your cheeks flushed red, a small smile creeping onto your lips. ‘’Sure, my next class is business management.’’ You replied, trying your best to hide the fact that you were blushing. ‘’With Mr. Kang?’’ Jake asked as you started making your way down the almost empty hallway, his eyes glued to you. ‘’Yeah,’’ You nodded, not daring to look up at him. But as a groan escaped his lips, you had no choice but to look up at the taller boy walking beside you. ‘’He’s a pain in the ass.’’ He chuckled as he shook his head, causing a chuckle to escape your lips as well. ‘’Tell me about it.’’

It suddenly made so much more sense to you why there were girls thirsting over Jake Sim, the way his eyes lingered a little too long as you spoke making you realize why there were girls lining up for him. Who could blame them? The boy was gorgeous. ‘’Well, good luck in there,’’ Jake chuckled as you reached the door leading into your classroom. You chuckled as he handed you your backpack, looking up at him once again. ‘’Thank you, and again, I’m sorry,’’ You apologized, causing Jake to roll his eyes.

‘’Please don’t apologize, it was just an accident. Plus if you hadn’t bumped into me, we wouldn’t have had this chat, would’ve we?’’ He smiled, causing your cheeks to burn once again. Fucking Jake Sim, you thought, fuck you for making me blush like this. ‘’I guess you’re right.’’ You smiled, earning a smile back from him. ‘’I think you better go in there before Mr. Kang comes out here and spots you chatting with me instead of attending his class,’’ Jake joked, pointing towards the door right beside you. ‘’You’re right,’’ You laughed. ‘’Thank you once again.’’ You smiled, holding your bag using both your hands; trying your best to not show how heavy you found it. ‘’Don’t mention it.’’

You waved him goodbye as he walked down the hallway, his hand up in the air as he waved to you before turning around. Even after he turned around, a big smile still lingered on your lips. You stood there for a minute, not even caring about the fact you were more than ten minutes late at this point; feeling completely hypnotized by Jake and his smile. But reality soon caught up with you, causing the smile to fade off your lips as you looked towards the door leading into the classroom. A sigh escaped your lips as you pushed the door handle down, mentally preparing yourself for Mr. Kang’s harsh scolding.

Oh, how you would regret ever bumping into Jake that day.

‘’So you made a bet?’’ Jake exclaimed, his mouth hanging wide as he stared at his best friend. Sunghoon just hummed in response, his eyes glued to the TV screen in front of him. ‘’And you don’t even know the girl's name?’’ Jake continued questioning his friend, earning yet another hum from Sunghoon. ‘’I don’t think I’ve ever seen her before,’’ Jay chimed in, his eyebrows furrowed as his fingers moved over the controller he was holding in his hands.

Jay had told Jake about the bet he made with Sunghoon as soon as the group of boys gathered at Sunghoons house, playing video games; like they did almost every day after school. Jake didn’t really care about what his friends did, knowing he would probably agree to do something similar if he wasn’t already interested in someone, but a part of him couldn’t help but feel shocked by his friend's behavior. ‘’Well, it can’t be that hard, right? Someone has to know her.’’ Jake spoke, his eyes darting between his two best friends. ‘’Or you could just approach her,’’ Jake shrugged.

Sunghoon just chuckled. ‘’I don’t do that. They approach me, not the opposite.’’ Sunghoon mumbled, his eyes still glued to the screen hanging on the wall as his fingers pressed the buttons on the controller. ‘’And that’s why you’re going to lose this bet,’’ Jay mumbled under his breath, but loud enough for both Jake and Sunghoon to hear. Jake let out a chuckle, leaning his upper body against the headboard of Sunghoons bed.

Sunghoon heard what his friend said, but chose to remain quiet. He didn’t feel the need to defend himself, he was confident that he wouldn’t lose. His tactics had always worked, so why would this be any different this time? All he had to do was wait until you approached him, which he knew you would at some point, and take it from there. ‘’Fuck!’’ Jay exclaimed as his part of the screen turned red, indicating that he had lost the game. He threw the controller across the bed, almost hitting Jake with it. Sunghoon gave his friend a taunting smile, causing Jay to grow even angrier. ‘’You really shouldn’t underestimate me,’’ Sunghoon remarked, causing Jake to laugh as he watched Jay’s face turn red in anger.

As Sunghoon walked into his first class of the day the following day, he had almost forgotten about the bet. But luckily for him, Jay on the other hand hadn’t forgotten. As Sunghoon placed his backpack on the floor next to his seat, he suddenly felt his phone buzz in the pocket of his jeans. Running one of his hands through his hair, he quickly grabbed his phone out of his back pocket before unlocking it.

Quick reminder, 29 days left. :)

Chuckling at Jay’s text reminding him of the bet, he slumped down in his seat; muting his phone before pushing it down the pocket of his jeans once again. Students slowly started filling the room one by one, a smile occasionally appearing on Sunghoon’s lips as he greeted the people he somewhat knew passed by him. Almost every seat in the whole classroom was filled when Sunghoon felt his phone buzz in his back pocket once again, despite him putting it on mute. Pulling it out of his back pocket, an annoyed sigh left his lips as he turned off the phone completely; not even bothering to check the notification.

Yeojin had texted you that morning letting you know she wasn’t feeling too well and that she would be staying home. A part of you felt relieved as you had forgotten to return her book the previous day, knowing she needed it for her first class in the morning; avoiding having her scolding you for it during lunch. But that also meant you would have to get through the day, completely on your own.

It wasn’t like you didn’t have any friends; you did. You had plenty of people you technically could consider friends, but none of them was really your friends. They were people you could chat with during class, study together in the library, or company each other to class; but that was it. At the end of the day, they had their friend groups to return to, and well, you had Yeojin.

And since today was your lucky day, one of your classes got canceled which meant you would have to spend even more time alone; looking like a complete loner. Which you weren’t, but you sure looked like one walking down the hallways on your own while groups of people walked past you. Since everyone else was still in class, the hallways were mostly empty. You smiled as you greeted someone you briefly knew before looking back down at the phone you were holding in one of your hands, making your way towards the library.

‘’Hey!’’ The sudden voice took you by surprise, causing you to quickly look up from your phone; both your eyebrows raised as your eyes landed on a boy leaning against one of the lockers beside you, a big smile plastered on his lips. A small chuckle escaped his lips as he stood up straight, facing you. ‘’Is this going to be our official meeting spot?’’’

Jake fucking Sim. Your steps came to a halt as your eyes met his, your lips slightly parting but not a single word left your lips. ‘’Sorry, you took me by surprise,’’ You chuckled after a moment, slightly lowering your head to hide your embarrassment. ‘’My bad,’’ Jake smiled, pushing his phone down the front pocket of his jeans. ‘’I just wanted to check how your shoulder is doing.’’ He continued as you looked back up at him. ‘’Oh,’’ You let out, a smile plastered on your lips as you shook your head. ‘’It’s doing alright, considering the collision from yesterday.’’ A laugh trailed off his lips, his gaze meeting the ground underneath him. ‘’I’m sorry, again,’’ He began apologizing, causing you to shake your head once again. ‘’If I don’t get to apologize you don’t either.’’

It was scary how easy it was to talk to Jake. Moving countries might’ve made him extremely social, but you still found it weird how easy it was for you to talk to him. It was almost like he was someone you had known for years, even though you only interacted with him for the first time yesterday. ‘’I never got your name,’’ He suddenly let out, his brown eyes meeting yours. ‘’Y/N,’’ You smiled, causing a small smile to form on his lips as well. ‘’Jake,’’ He replied, extending one of his hands for you to shake. You looked down at his hand for a second before shaking it, a smile still spread across your lips. ‘’Nice to meet you, Y/N.’’ He smiled as his warm hand wrapped around yours. ‘’Likewise, Jake.’’

As soon as you spotted Jake, you had completely forgotten about where you were headed. Standing in one of the hallways chatting with Jake Sim seemed to be a way better idea than studying in the library on your own anyways. ‘’How come you were standing here on your own?’’ You asked, raising one of your eyebrows as the hallways slowly started filling with people once again. ‘’My class was canceled, so I figured I’d wait for my friend to get out of class.’’ He shrugged, his eyes gazing over the people leaving the nearby classroom. You hummed in response, about to ask him if he was in the same class as you; but before you could even open your mouth, a voice interrupted you.

‘’Jake?’’ A confused voice let out behind you, causing you to turn around. ‘’What are you doing here?’’ You looked up at the taller figure standing beside you, immediately recognizing the person standing a few inches away from you; Park Sunghoon himself. ‘’Didn’t you get my text?’’ Jake asked, furrowing his eyebrows as he looked over at his friend. Your gaze shifted over to Jake; feeling unsure if you should just leave without saying goodbye. But before you could even think about your next move, Jake's voice interrupted your thoughts. ‘’Anyways, this is Y/N,’’ The sudden mention of your name caused you to snap out of your thoughts, looking over at Sunghoon once again.

As if Sunghoon had just acknowledged the fact that you were standing right beside him, he looked over at you for the first time since he got there. As soon as his eyes landed on you, they suddenly widened. Only for a split second, but long enough for you to notice the surprised look in them. ‘’Y/N, this is Sunghoon.’’ Jake introduced you, like Sunghoon needed introducing; like no one knew who he was. ‘’Hi,’’ You smiled softly, extending one of your hands. ‘’Nice to meet you.’’ Sunghoon looked down at your extended hand before placing his own over yours. ‘’Nice to meet you Y/N.’’

Sunghoons hand was visibly bigger than Jakes, his hand wrapping around your own as a small smile formed on his lips. ‘’I think we share the same business management class on Thursdays,’’ You let out, causing Sunghoons smile to grow even bigger. ‘’We do? Maybe you can help me study then,’’ He chuckled, his hand still lingering on top of yours. You just let out a chuckle in reply, looking down at your still intertwined hands; confusion washing over you as you slowly let your hand fall down your side.

As both Sunghoon and Jake stood in front of you, it became obvious to you why both of them had girls weak the knees. They were both extremely charming, not only were they attractive; but also very good at keeping conversations going. ‘’We’re gonna head for some lunch, why don’t you join us?’’ Jake let out as he looked over at you, eyes filled with anticipation. You felt Sunghoon gaze over at you, nibbling on his bottom lip. ‘’I have one more class before lunch, sadly,’’ You pouted, causing Jake to groan. ‘’Well that’s a pain in the ass,’’ He let out, causing a chuckle to leave your lips. ‘’Well, maybe next time,’’ He smiled. You smiled back at him, nodding your head in response.

You watched as the two boys made their way down the hallway, Jake waving to you with a smile spread across his face. You gave him a small smile as you waved back, gazing over at Sunghoon. He had both his hands shoved down the front pockets of his jeans, a stern look on his face as the two of them made their way down the hallway. You stood there for a minute, trying to process what had just happened.

‘’Dude, how did you know?’’ Sunghoon let out as soon as he knew you weren’t anywhere nearby. ‘’What do you mean?’’ Jake asked, looking over at his friend; confusion lingering in his voice. ‘’That’s her,’’ Sunghoon continued, raising his eyebrows. ‘’Her?’’ Jake asked, both his eyebrows furrowed together. ‘’That’s the girl,’’ Sunghoon let out once again, staring at his friend walking beside him. Jake stared at him in confusion for a second before raising both his eyebrows as he realized what his friend was talking about, his steps coming to a halt. ‘’No fucking way,’’ Jake mumbled, a small chuckle trailing off Sunghoons lips. Bingo, Sunghoon thought, fucking bingo.

As Thursday morning rolled around, Sunghoon was fully expecting you to greet him as you walked into the classroom. He kept his eyes glued on the door from the moment he sat down, his foot anxiously tapping against the floor as he waited for you to walk through the door.

Sunghoon had surprised himself, remembering how you had told him you shared the same class on Thursday mornings; considering the fact he barely remembered the name Jake had introduced you as. Not that he really cared, he didn’t have to know your name to make you fall for him. So the moment you finally walked through the door, a small smile crept onto Sunghoons lips as he sat up straight; getting ready for you to greet him.

But as Sunghoon waited for you to greet him, he slowly realized you weren’t going to even acknowledge him. No, instead you just walked straight past him, your eyes not leaving the screen of your phone as you walked by. Sunghoon slightly furrowed his eyebrows as he gazed over at you, now sitting down in your seat. Confusion washed over Sunghoon, had you really not seen him? There was no way you had just walked past him, you were the one who had told him you two shared the same class; that meant you had to be interested in him, right?

Sunghoon’s mind kept racing the entire class, making it incredibly hard for him to concentrate or get anything done. He kept gazing over at you every now and then, but you never even acknowledged the fact that he was sitting across the room; annoyance building up inside of the boy as he realized he would have to be the one who approached you if he wanted to win this stupid bet.

It was true, you hadn’t even acknowledged the fact that Sunghoon was even in the classroom nor had you noticed the way he kept gazing over at you. You were too busy being annoyed at Yeojin for still not being back at school, resting your forehead in one of your hands as you tried your best to hide your phone underneath the table; pretending to be reading something in the book placed in front of you as you texted back and forth with your friend.

‘’Hi,’’ A low voice suddenly let out in front of you, almost causing you to jump as you quickly locked your phone. You let the phone fall into your lap as you looked up, your gaze meeting the gaze of the person who was now standing in front of you. ‘’Can I help you?’’ You let out, the tone of your voice sounding way more annoyed than you intended it to. Your lips slightly parted as you realized who the person now standing in front of your desk was. ‘’Oh,’’ Sunghoon chuckled as he shoved his hands down the front pockets of his pants. ‘’I was just wondering if I could borrow your notes? The professor left to get some coffee so I couldn’t ask him.’’

At that moment, you wanted to mentally slap yourself. ‘’Oh.’’ You quietly let out, avoiding his gaze by looking back down at the book in front of you. ‘’Sure.’’ You mumbled as you began looking through the papers laying in front of you. ‘’Bad day?’’ Sunghoon asked, his eyes still glued on you. You let a chuckle trail off your lips as you handed him the notes, still avoiding his gaze; the feeling of embarrassment for snapping at him still lingering.

Sunghoon, however, only got more annoyed when he noticed you wouldn’t even look at him. Why were you being so difficult? ‘’Y/N, right?’’ He suddenly let out as he gently grabbed the papers which in reality, he didn’t even need; he just needed an excuse to talk to you. As your eyes finally met his, Sunghoon prayed that he didn’t just mess up your name and accidentally called you another girls name. ‘’Yeah,’’ You replied while scanning his face, trying to figure out why he was still standing in front of you. ‘’Wanna study together some day after school, Y/N?’’

The question did not only surprise you, but it surprised Sunghoon just as much; if not more. As soon as the question left his lips, he immediately regretted it. He felt like he was in middle school all over again, asking girls if they wanted to study with him after school in a desperate attempt to show them he liked them; and the fact that you were just staring at him wasn’t making it any better. Before Sunghoon could even try to make the situation better by explaining himself, a laugh trailed off your lips. ‘’I was not expecting that,’’ You replied, a smile on your lips as you looked up at the guy standing in front of you.

Sunghoon had never felt more pathetic in his entire life. The question was embarrassing as it was, but you just made it ten times worse by making fun of him. ‘’But sure, as an apology for snapping at you like that.’’ As the words left your mouth, Sunghoon finally relaxed as he gave you a small smile. ‘’Sounds like a great deal.’’

You were about to lose your mind if Yeojin didn’t come back soon.

As the weekend rolled around and yet another party was being thrown, Sunghoon was getting slightly annoyed at himself; or maybe it was you he was getting annoyed at. A week had already passed, yet he had only interacted with you twice. He had seen you in the cafeteria a few times during the week, but each and every time you had simply walked past him like he wasn’t even there. The annoyance building up inside of the boy had only gotten worse as he had embarrassed himself. Not only had he embarrassed himself by asking a girl if they wanted to study someday, like he wasn’t twenty and in college but more like he was back to being twelve and desperate; he had embarrassed himself in front of his entire class.

‘’Stop sulking,’’ Jay groaned, looking back at his friend using the rearview window placed in the ceiling above him. Sunghoon however just kept staring out the window, completely ignoring his best friend. ‘’I get it, you’re worried about losing the bet,’’ Jay continued, looking back at the road. ‘’I’m not,’’ Sunghoon was quick to respond, his eyes quickly darting over to his friend. A small smirk spread across Jay’s lips, finding how quick Sunghoon was to defend himself amusing. ‘’I just fucking embarrassed myself, that’s all.’’ Sunghoon muttered, his gaze returning to the window.

‘’Major setback if you ask me.’’

If there was one thing Jay was amazing at, it was definitely getting on Sunghoons nerves. He knew exactly what buttons to push to make the boy want to smash his face in, and there had been a few incidents where Sunghoon almost acted on his thoughts; but he knew he had to be the bigger man, like right now for example. Instead of replying, he just kept staring at the window as Jay continued driving, a small chuckle trailing off his lips.

‘’Do I look acceptable?’’ Yeojin spun around as she spoke, her flowy dress exposing the skin of her thighs. You scanned her body, furrowing your eyebrows as you bit your lower lip. ‘’You look alright I suppose,’’ You joked, your eyes meeting hers as a small smile spread across your lips.

Even though Yeojin had been sick all week, she made sure to get better before Friday. You could tell she was still not fully recovered judging by her slightly runny nose and her glossy eyes, but there was also no way Yeojin would ever miss a party. If there was one thing you had noticed during the past year you had been friends with Yeojin, it was the fact that she simply just couldn’t say no to a party; which you were somewhat grateful for. Because without her dragging you along to all these parties you simply would be spending every weekend at your parent's house, which wasn’t half as fun as watching your dear friend get absolutely hammered.

‘’Fuck off.’’ Her voice was still kind of hoarse, a small smile plastered on her slips as well as she hit your arm playfully. ‘’That’s what you get for leaving me all alone for a whole week,’’ You replied, grabbing your purse before throwing it over your shoulder. ‘’You weren’t alone though,’’ Yeojin replied, bending down to tie her shoes as she spoke. ‘’You had two boys practically begging for you to fuck them.’’

Jake. It was the first thing you told Yeojin about, how the Jake Sim had approached you twice in one week. You’d be lying to yourself if you said you hadn’t thought about him and how good he looked when he’d flash you a smile, because you had thought of him; maybe a little too much. But Sunghoon? Somewhere along the lines, you must’ve mentioned your encounter with Park Sunghoon as well. ‘’Fuck you.’’

As you stood on your own, leaning against one of the walls, you slowly started regretting your decision to come with Yeojin to this forsaken party. It had only been around half an hour, yet the strawberry blonde girl was nowhere to be seen. She accompanied you to the kitchen to get yourself something to drink before she suddenly spotted some of her friends, and before you knew it, she had disappeared. So, when you stood there, sipping on your drink as people around you danced; the thought of spending the weekend at your parent's house suddenly didn’t seem so bad.

‘’Y/N?’’

Just as you were about to take your phone out of your purse and let Yeojin know you would probably be heading home soon, the sudden mention of your name caught your attention. ‘’Don’t tell me you’re standing here all on your own?’’

And just like that, like a savior sent from above, Jake was suddenly standing in front of you. He was dressed in all black, holding the same red cup as you were in one of his hands; now leaning against the wall beside you. ‘’Looks like I am,’’ You chuckled, taking another sip of the alcohol in a desperate attempt to calm your nerves. ‘’Then let me keep you company.’’

As your eyes met, you suddenly felt like downing the rest of the alcohol that remained in your cup. Your lips slightly parted as he gave you a smile, shoving one of his hands down the front pockets of his pants. You scanned his face, the darkness of the room making it hard for you to make out if he was just incredibly drunk or if he was actually trying to flirt with you. ‘’Wanna sit down?’’ His question made you nod, a small smile appearing on your lips as well.

If you would’ve known you would be spending your night next to Jake, his thigh brushing against yours; you probably wouldn’t have gone. Because there was no way you’d be able to handle this without the alcohol in your system, shivers being sent down your spine every time his thigh brushed against your bare one. Your skirt had ridden up your thigh and you could now feel the fabric of his pants every now and then, making you slightly nervous. ‘’She dumped you because you canceled your date?’’ You asked, your eyebrows furrowed at the boy's statement. A chuckle trailed off Jake’s lips, nodding his head in response. ‘’Well,’’ He replied as he leaned against the couch, holding his cup in one of his hands. ‘’I guess I kind of had it coming.’’

Not in a billion years would you have thought you’d be spending your Friday night on a couch, listening to Jake out of all people rant about his girl problems. A part of you found it oddly comforting, the fact that he felt comfortable enough to tell you about his love problems made you believe that made he felt just as comfortable around you as you did around him, almost like you’ve known each other your whole life. It was a weird feeling to say the least, but who were you to complain? Jake Sim was sitting next to you, his leg touching your bare thigh. ‘’I wouldn’t have dumped you if I was her.’’

It was probably the alcohol speaking, but at this point, you had nothing to lose. He looked at you, his eyes wide from your sudden confidence before a small smile crept onto his lips. ‘’Really?’’ He let out, not taking his eyes off you. You nodded in response, your eyes meeting his. As you felt his hand creep onto your thigh, you could’ve sworn your heart stopped beating right there and then. ‘’I enjoy talking to you, Y/N.’’ He smiled, using his thumb to slowly stroke your thigh.

If it wasn’t because of the alcohol you had in your system, you probably would’ve passed out. You weren’t a virgin, but you weren’t exactly experienced either. You had hooked up with people before, but it was never any good; it was usually drunk one nightstands thrusting into you a few times before finishing, no foreplay and you definitely never got to cum. So Jake’s touch was something you had never experienced before, and the way he was now licking his lips wasn’t making things any easier for you.

‘’Jake?’’

A part of you wanted to thank whoever just interrupted whatever was about to happen, but another part of you wanted to smack the person across their face for ruining your chances of getting laid. ‘’Sunghoon, where the fuck have you been?’’ Jake let out, breaking your eye contact as he looked over to the boy now standing in front of the couch.

Sunghoon felt like punching his best friend in the face. He had spotted you two talking from across the room and satisfaction had washed over him; thinking his best friend was helping him win the bet by talking to you. But as he came closer and saw the way his hand was moving closer and closer to your core, he quickly realized that wasn’t the case. No, he was trying to fuck you. ‘’What are you doing here?’’ Sunghoon hissed, looking down at Jakes hand which was still placed on your thigh. ‘’I got dumped so I came here, just like you asked me to!’’

It suddenly made sense to Sunghoon why he was trying to get in your pants. He had gotten dumped which meant he wouldn’t have someone to go home with, which made you his target. An ironic chuckle trailed off Sunghoons lips as his eyes met Jakes once again, Jake slowly moving his hand off your thigh as he saw the look on his friend's face. ‘’You should’ve told us,’’ Sunghoon muttered. ‘’You should go say hey to Jay.’’ He almost demanded, not taking his eyes off Jake.

Sunghoon could see the defeat in Jakes eyes, his lips parting like he was about to say something; but he refrained from doing so, not wanting to argue in front of you. ‘’Sure,’’ He mumbled under his breath, getting up from the couch. ‘’You keep her company then.’’ Jake hissed as he stood in front of his friend, not breaking their eye contact. Jake made sure to bump into Sunghoons shoulder as he walked past him, disappearing into the crowd of people.

Another chuckle emerged from Sunghoons throat, visibly annoyed by his friends' behavior. You, on the other hand, felt beyond uncomfortable. Not only had Jake left without saying a word to you after practically getting ready to finger you right there and then, but you were now alone with Sunghoon. Sunghoon quickly noticed how uncomfortable you were as his eyes landed on you, who was now pulling your skirt back down your thighs. ‘’It’s okay, you don’t need to stay here with me. I was planning on leaving soon anyways,’’ You mumbled, avoiding eye contact with the taller boy standing in front of you. The truth was, you weren’t planning on leaving; you were hoping Jake would come back sooner or later.

Sunghoon saw right through your lie. He was well aware of the fact that you weren’t planning on leaving, he could tell by the way you were rubbing your thighs together that you had hoped for something else. ‘’Do you have anyone picking you up?’’ Sunghoon suddenly asked, causing you to look up at him. ‘’No, but I’ll just walk,’’ You let out, wanting to get out of the situation as fast as possible. ‘’Then let me walk you home.’’

Sunghoon saw his opportunity, and he took it. You just stared at him for a moment, trying to figure out how you could tell him no in the nicest way possible. ‘’I don’t live too far away, I’ll be okay,’’ You forced yourself to give the boy a small smile, shaking your head as you spoke. ‘’No, I insist,’’ Sunghoon continued, shaking his head as well. ‘’I don’t want you walking alone this late.’’

Since he put it that way, you simply had no other choice but to let the boy walk you home.

As you were walking down the street, with you holding your jacket in your hands and Sunghoon walking by your side with his hands shoved down the pockets of his jeans silence fell over the two of you. You looked down at your shoes, trying your best to come up with something to say to avoid the awkward silence. Sunghoon on the other hand, was too busy thinking. He was annoyed, annoyed at his best friend for trying to get you, his bet, in bed with him; but he was also annoyed at you.

He tried figuring out why you were being so difficult. Why you tried to get away from his presence the first chance you got, why you weren’t even trying to talk to him; why you were all over his best friend and not him. He simply just couldn’t figure it out, mainly because it had never happened to him before. He was used to girls begging for his attention, but you? You were the complete opposite and it was starting to get on his nerves. ‘’I only live a couple of houses down from here, you can go back to the party if you want,’’ You suddenly spoke, causing Sunghoon to snap out of his thoughts. He looked over at you, both his eyebrows raised. ‘’I wanna make sure you actually get home,’’ He replied as he kept walking, completely ignoring the point you were trying to make; that you wanted him to leave. You didn’t get the chance to protest before he was already a few feet in front of you, making it clear that he wasn’t leaving.

The awkward silence once again returned as you unlocked your front door, turning around so you could face the taller boy. ‘’Thank you for following me home,’’ You gave him a soft smile, scanning the boy who was now leaning against the wall of your parents' house. ‘’No problem, I just wanted to make sure you got home safe.’’ He smiled at you, his dimples showing.

As you scanned the boy standing in front you, you realized your chances of getting laid tonight were nonexistent at this point. Your core was still aching for touch from the way Jake had been stroking your thigh, and you didn’t feel like getting off on your own tonight. ‘’Actually,’’ You let out, your gaze shifting over to the driveway; noticing the fact that your parents' car was gone, indicating that they weren’t even home. ‘’Do you wanna come in for a while? I can make some ramen, as a thank you for walking me home.’’ Sunghoons eyes widened for a second, shock washing over him. The question took him by surprise, it was the last thing he expected you to ask, especially since you barely said a word to him on the way to your house. ‘’Sure.’’ He smiled, causing you to smile back at him before opening the front door. Jackpot.

Sunghoon looked around as he entered your kitchen, with you walking in front of him. Your house wasn’t too big, but it wasn’t small either; and by the pictures scattered around the walls, he could tell it was only you and your parents living there. ‘’Do you want some water?’’ You asked, causing Sunghoon to look over at you who was now leaning against one of the countertops. He shook his head in response, his eyes still gazing around the room. ‘’This is a nice house,’’ Sunghoon let out, walking over to one of the pictures sitting on top of the countertop beside you. A chuckle trailed off your lips as you watched him scan your high school graduation picture. ‘’You were cute,’’ Sunghoon chuckled, not taking his eyes off the picture. You just chuckled once again, too busy scanning his side profile as he spoke.

You noticed the birthmark placed on the side of his nose, something you had never seen before. Mainly because you had never been this close to him, but also because you never really looked at him. His jawline was sharp as he studied the picture, a small smile plastered on his plump lips.

‘’Sunghoon?’’ You let out, causing him to hum in response as he continued studying the picture he was holding in one of his hands. ‘’Do you wanna fuck?’’

Sunghoon could’ve sworn he almost choked on his own saliva as the question left your lips. He quickly looked up at you, both his eyebrows furrowed as he tried to tell if you were joking or not. But by the way you were staring right back at him, your eyes filled with lust told him you weren’t joking. ‘’You want me to fuck you?’’ He let out, letting go of the picture he was still holding in one of his hands. ‘’Please.’’

You didn’t have to ask twice. Before you could even react, you felt his lips press against yours. You quickly wrapped your arms around his neck, pulling him closer to you. He hungrily moved his lips against yours, his hands grabbing your waist as he pulled you as close to his body as possible. It was probably the alcohol's fault, but at this point you craved psychical touch and Sunghoon just happened to be there. He slipped his tongue into your mouth, causing you to let out a small whimper; slightly tugging at his dark hair.

One of his hands found its way to the back of your thigh, indicating for you to get on the counter which you happily obliged, placing yourself on top of the counter using his help. The kiss was sloppy and wet, but you weren’t complaining; it was exactly what you wanted. ‘’Are you really that desperate to get fucked?’’ Sunghoon muttered against your lips, causing you to let out a small moan. His lips moved down your throat, pressing wet kisses against your skin; the pleasure washing over you.

Sunghoon noticed the way you were desperately rubbing your thighs together, a chuckle leaving his lips as he placed one of his hands on your thighs. He slowly slipped his hand under your skirt, his fingers brushing by your now soaking underwear. The touch caused yet another moan to emerge from your throat, causing Sunghoon to smirk in satisfaction.

Sunghoon knew he wasn’t the one who had gotten you this wet, he knew it was all because of Jake; but he was going to make sure he was the one to make you cum. He quickly slipped his hand down your underwear, greeted by your wet slit. He slowly ran his fingers up and down your slit, listening to your whimpers as he continued kissing down your neck. ‘’You’re so wet,’’ He murmured, using his other hand to spread your legs further apart; giving him easier access to your wet core. You threw your head back in pleasure as your core finally got some attention, the attention you had been begging for ever since Jake's hand left your thigh earlier that night. Before you could even process what was happening, you felt Sunghoon slip one of his fingers into you.

The way your slick walls pulsated around his finger made his cock twitch in his pants, a groan leaving his lips. ‘’More,’’ You whimpered as Sunghoon slowly pumped his finger in and out of you. ‘’What was that? You have to ask for it,’’ Sunghoon mumbled as he continued pumping his finger in and out of you, going at a painfully slow pace. ‘’Please, more,’’ You begged, causing Sunghoon to chuckle against your skin. ‘’That’s more like it.’’ Before you could even process what he had just said, you felt yet another finger slip into you. Moans spilled from your lips as he felt you stretch around his fingers, causing him to curse under his breath. He quickly fastened his pace, now slamming his fingers into you. You spread your legs even wider without even realizing, pleasure now taking over your entire body.

Sunghoon watched as his fingers slammed into you, the tent in his pants only growing bigger as he watched your skirt roll up your waist. ‘’Sunghoon,’’ His name left your lips, making it harder for him to continue fingering you instead of ramming his now painfully hard cock inside of you. ‘’I’m close,’’ You continued, your head was still thrown back from all the pleasure. ‘’Cum all over my fingers,’’ He mumbled, looking up at you. You face was scrunched up from the pleasure, causing Sunghoon to groan as he scanned your fucked out expression. He suddenly felt you clench around his fingers, your loud moans indicating that you were extremely close to your release. Within seconds, he felt you tremble underneath him as you came all over his fingers; whimpers leaving your throat as you came. He continued thrusting his fingers into you, letting you ride out your orgasm. The room fell silent, the only noise being your desperate pants and the sound of his fingers slowly slipping out of your sticky entrance.

‘’Open your mouth,’’ He let out as he pulled his hand out of your soaking underwear. You quickly obliged, parting your lips as you stuck your tongue out. He placed his fingers inside your mouth, your tongue quickly greeting it by coating it in saliva; sucking your own release off his fingers. A groan was heard from Sunghoon as he watched you suck on his fingers, the feeling of your tongue swirling around his lanky fingers causing his cock to twitch. He pulled his fingers out of your mouth before smashing his lips against yours once again, grabbing your face using one of his hands. ‘’That was hot.’’ He murmured against your lips, causing you to chuckle into the kiss. ‘’Will you fuck me now, please?’’

He slowly pulled away, placing his forehead against yours. A smirk crept onto his lip as he looked at you, your eyes wide; practically begging for him to fuck you right there and then. He stroked your cheek before pressing a kiss onto your lips. ‘’It’s late, I think you better get some sleep.’’ He mumbled, causing you to groan. ‘’Please?’’ You mumbled, grinding yourself against his crotch. Sunghoon let out a sigh as he felt you grind against him, making it incredibly hard for him to say no. ‘’We’ll save that for some other time, hm?’’ He let out, his other hand stroking your inner thigh. You groaned once again, followed by a small sigh. ‘’Fine.’’

You leaned against the doorway as you watched him tie his shoes, a small smile plastered on your lips. ‘’Once again, thank you for walking me home,’’ You mumbled, a snicker being heard from the boy in front of you. ‘’Is that really all you should be thanking me for?’’ He smirked, your eyes meeting his as he stood back up; grabbing his coat. ‘’And for making me cum.’’ You chuckled, watching him pull his coat over his body. ‘’Anytime.’’ He replied, a smirk still plastered on his lips; you playfully hit his shoulder, causing him to laugh.

‘’Have a good night, Y/N.’’ He smiled as he opened the front door, getting ready to leave. ‘’You too, Sunghoon.’’ You gave him a soft smile, the chilly night air causing you to shiver as it hit your bare legs. ‘’And Y/N?’’ He continued as he stepped outside, your hand placed on the door handle; ready to close the door after him. ‘’Hm?’’ You replied, tilting your head as you waited for him to continue. ‘’Remember we still have our study date.’’ The words made you chuckle, giving him a smile. ‘’Of course.’’ With a big smile on his lips, he started walking down your driveway; the noise of you shutting the door and locking it behind him and a feeling of victory lingering in his chest.

As you laid down on your bed, a sigh escaped your lips. Your head was spinning, probably from all the alcohol you had been drinking earlier that night; feeling nauseous by just thinking about the headache you’d wake up with. You might’ve made the worst mistake in your entire life by letting Park Sunghoon finger you on your kitchen counter, but that would have to be something you dealt with in the morning; your eyelids feeling heavy, sleep slowly creeping up on you.

If you only knew what you had gotten yourself into.

992 notes · View notes

renjunniex · 9 months

Text

Thank You, For Being You

Isaac Lahey x Fem!Reader Series

Venomous

Prompt: Apparently knowing what the creature is doesn’t really help when you don’t know how to stop it. Derek, however, seems to have a plan that’s going to cause a lot of trouble for everyone.

a/n: guyssss super excited for this because this chapter will be the start of WAYYY more Isaac and y/n!! anyways hope you guys like it! let me know what you think 🤗

————————————————————————

You were searching through your locker looking for your textbook but your mind was also currently very distracted. The night of the game was a stressful one, even though you did end up with more information of what the scaly murderer was. A Kanima, you still remember the conversation from that cold night crystal clear.

“Is that even a language?” Stiles commented frustration dripping from his words.

“How are we supposed to figure out what this thing is,” questioned Scott as you scrolled through the contents of Gerard’s hard drive.

“It’s called the Kanima.”

You felt yourself sneer at the approaching pair, you three faced the Alpha and Beta. You crossed your arms like it was some kind of armor against them. “You knew the whole time,” Stiles concluded.

“No. Only when it was confused by its own reflection.”

“It doesn’t know what it is,” you said letting your arms dropped to your side eventually. Derek gave a sharp and small nod, “Or who.”

“What else do you know?” Stiles asked.

“Just stories. Rumors.”

“But it’s like us?”

“It’s a shapeshifter, yes. But it’s not right. It’s like a…” he hesitated. You shuffled, the whole discussion making you uncomfortable. You mumbled slightly as you fixed your stance, “An abomination.” Derek looked at you before nodding once more. He gave the signal and Erica and him began to leave but Scott stopped them, calling Derek’s name. “We need to work together on this. Maybe even tell the Argents.”

“You trust them?”

“Nobody trusts anyone,” you felt your voice rip out of your throat before you could even think, “That’s the problem.”

“While we’re here arguing about who’s on what side, there’s something scarier, stronger and faster than any of us, and it’s killing people!” You could here the clear stress coming from Scott as he lectured Derek. “And we still don’t even know anything about it!” Scott’s point made Derek’s expression harden.

“I know one thing. When I find it, I’m gonna kill it.”

SLAM!

Your whole body jumped as your locker was slammed shut. Behind the now closed locker door was Stiles, panting, he grabbed your wrist before starting to rush you towards the classroom. Once you reached the door, he let go of your wrist and crashed into his seat leaning over Scott's shoulder.

"Dude, I just talked to my dad, who just talked to Jackson, and I've got really terrible, horrible, very, very bad news."

Scott gestured ahead of him, "I think I already know."

Isaac.

You, on the other hand, didn't respond. You just stared at the now filled seat. In your now slightly unfocused vision, you could see your two best friends turned towards you. They were waiting on your reaction.

Letting your eyes carry themselves over to the boys, you gave an awkward smile before slowly making your way to your usual seat, right behind the curly haired werewolf. The teacher's voice could be heard as class began but your focus was only on the leather jacket wearing boy in front of you. You could practically feel the arrogance radiating off of him. It made your blood boil. You didn't understand him anymore. One minute he was the shy and nervous boy you had always known and then the next he was as cocky, if not more so, than the current Erica. It made you wonder if everything he has said to you since his transformation has been an act. Could you trust anything he said anymore?

You felt two pairs of hands on your shoulders, waking you from your frenzied thoughts. You hadn't even realized the bell ringing or the students leaving. You had daydreamed the whole period. Glancing to meet Scott's eyes before shifting to Stiles for a moment, you could see the sympathetic looks they were giving you.

"Don't look at me like that, please," you uttered quietly as if your voice would shatter the world if you spoke too loudly. You finally rose from your seat, gathering your things before motioning to the door. The boys took their designated spots on either side of you before Stiles began speaking.

"Alright, I only found one thing online called the Kanima. It's a were-jaguar from South America that goes after murderers."

Scott's eyes widened slightly, "That thing was not a jaguar."

"Yeah and I'm not exactly a murderer," Stiles pointed out. You felt yourself smile at the two boys as you witnessed the exchange.

"Yeah, but you did see it kill somebody, which is probably why it tried to kill you. And it's still trying to kill you, and it probably won't stop until you're dead," Scott concluded walking away as Stiles stopped in his tracks.

A cackle left your mouth as Stiles called out to the werewolf boy now in the distance, "You know, sometimes I really begin to question this 'friendship'." He air quoted as your laugh continued to echo through the halls. Stiles scoffed at you before placing his hand on your back and pushing you forward.

Little did you know, your laughing and Stiles had distracted you enough that you didn't notice the blue eyed werewolf standing nearby staring at you, longingly.

You three had finally made it to Coach's class, taking your seats, you guys began setting up for the period. Sadly for you, you had gotten stuck behind Stiles meaning next to you sat... Jackson. Who, unfortunately for you, was here today. He rushed in sitting in his seat.

"Hey, testicle left and right." You saw the boys' forms physically change from annoyance at the rich boy's voice.

"What the hell is a Kanima?"

That question made all three of you jump and look at Jackson. Then a slam could be heard, followed by Coach's voice.

"Okay, listen up. A quick warning before we begin our review. Some of you, like McCall, might want to start their own study groups, because tomorrow's midterm is so profoundly difficult... I'm not even sure I could pass it." He took a breath before continuing, however, you weren't listening and neither were your friends as you three turned back to Jackson.

"Paralyzed, from the neck down. Do you have any idea what that feels like," Jackson snarled his head whipping back and forth between you three.

"I'm familiar with the sensation," Stiles commented unamused. You snorted earning yourself a glare from Jackson.

"Wait..." Scott paused, "Why would Derek test you? Why would he think that it's you?"

"How should I know?"

"Do they think it's Lydia?" Stiles urged. Jackson shrugged, "I don't know, all I heard was her name and something about chemistry."

"JACKSON!" Coach screamed, catching your attention. "Do you have something you want to share with the rest of the class?"

"Umm... Just an undying admiration for my... My coach."

"That's really kind of you," Coach said sarcastically. Jackson held a high and mighty look on his face but Coach ruined it before he could bask in his made up glory.

"Now, SHUT UP! SHUT IT! Anybody else?"

Once Coach had turned back towards the board, Scott's hands were grabbing Stiles' collar and your sleeve tugging you both to him.

"How do we know that it's not her?"

"We don't," you said. Stiles gave you a look before speaking, "Because I looked into the eyes of thing, okay? And what I saw was pure evil. And when I look into Lydia's eyes, I only see fifty percent evil."

You scoffed, "Oh yeah, cause that's helpful."

"Alright, maybe sixty. You know, but no more than forty on a good day."

"Stiles, that's not a very good argument," Scott replied.

"I'm aware of that, but I swear it's not her. It can't be, alright? Lydia's fine."

"On another note, please never become a lawyer," you joked earning a light smack on the head from Stiles.

You three were interrupted by Coach calling the red haired girl's name. If by fine he had meant completely out of her mind, then Stiles would be right. She had tears running down her face and she was gasping as if she just awoke from a nightmare.

"Okay then, anybody else want to try answering? This time in English?" The call reply in laughter.

Behind Lydia, on the chalk board, were letters she had written. You immediately recognized them to just be backwards, when flipped they spelt out 'SOMEONEHELPME'. Apparently you were the only one to see that.

"What is that, Greek?"

"No, actually, I think it is English." Stiles showed a photo of the words and then flipped them.

"You needed your phone to read that?"

"Derek is not gonna kill her without proof," stated Scott as you three walked into chemistry. "Alright, so he tests her like he did with Jackson, right? But when and where?"

You saw Erica and Isaac walked into class right then, their eyes immediately shooting over to you three. Your arms shot out, the backs of your hands tapping their abdomens. They both looked at you, turning in the direction of where you gestured. Scott panicked, "I think here and now."

You saw the different expressions on their faces Erica look determined and confident, ready for a showdown. Even though Isaac gave you an unsure look, he was the one to start the duo's advancing. You felt your body throw itself forward as you rushed to beat them to the seat, which you did, you gave them both a snark before giving Lydia the best smile you could without showing how nervous you were.

A second later both Stiles and Scott joined you, Scott on your side and Stiles on Lydia's. You gave them panicked eyes and all you did was receive two shrugs. Lydia looked startled, glancing at you with questioning eyes and when you gave her no answer she rolled them before turning her attention to her textbook.

Allison walked in not a moment too later, definitely surprised to see her usual spot taken by you. She looked to Scott for answers as she sat at the other table across. Scott nudged his head backwards and she got the messege.

"Einstein once said, 'Two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe.'" Mr. Harrison took a pause patting Stiles' shoulder, "I myself have encountered infinite stupidity." He walked to the front of the class as he continued his lecture, "So to combat the plague of ignorance in my class, you're going to combine efforts through a round of group experiments. Let's see if two heads are indeed better than one. Or in Mr. Stilinski's case, less than one." You could practically feel Stiles' annoyance from the man's words.

"Erica, you take the first station," you heard the rustle as almost everyone raised their hands, clearly trying to volunteer themselves, "You'll start with..." Harrison had stopped due to the show of hands, you glanced around the room seeing everyone but you, Allison, Lydia, Stiles, Scott, and Isaac raising their hands.

"I didn't ask for volunteers. Put your hormonal little hands down." His eyes met your table, "Start with Mr. McCall. Alright, next two." You felt Scott tense beside you as students started to shuffle when being called, you placed your hand on his arm trying to offer comfort.

"Ms. (L/N), you're with Mr. Lahey."

Your head shot up, eyes wide, you sucked in a breath. You gave both Stiles and Scott worried looks before slowly getting up and moving to the seat that was previously occupied by the blonde werewolf. You sat with a huff and Isaac's head tilted towards you.

"Hello there, beautiful, long time no see."

"Don't," you whispered. He had his head leaning on his elbow, he slid his elbow down the table his face now in your eye line, "Oh come on, you haven't missed me?"

"Stop acting like this is some kind of sick game," you said harshly, your voice low so no one could hear you. He smirked before straightening his posture to start working. He sat there quietly measuring with a smug look on his face. You finally turned to him when you couldn't handle the silence anymore.

"Whatever your plan is, please, just leave her alone," you pleaded. He sat down the beakers before facing you, he brushed a hair out of your eye, "Do you even like her, why do you care?" You scoffed, the audacity, who cares what you thought of the girl. Killing someone was wrong, why couldn't he see that?

"Just because I'm not close to her doesn't mean I can just toss her life away. She doesn't deserve that," you took a pause and finally made eye contact with him. His face softened ever so slightly, you could've convinced yourself that you had imagined it. But you hadn't, he almost looked like his old self. "Just please, stop, you don't have to do this," you spoke softly.

"Sorry, but I have to do this, Derek's orders."

Ding!

"Switch!"

You got up quickly, when you saw Scott sit with Lydia you headed to a station that was empty. You took a deep inhale and shook your hands, you hadn't noticed until now, you were shaking.

The screech of the seat sounded next to you meaning someone was now accompanying you at the station. You looked to your side only to feel a sense of dread, it was Erica. She was definitely the more aggressive of the two betas... at least when it came to you that is.

Trying to mind your business you just grabbed the measuring tubes and began to mix what you were being told. "You know, I don't see what he sees in you."

"Excuse me?"

"Isaac, I don't understand what he sees in you. To be honest, you seem quite boring."

You gave her a sickly sweet smile, "Well, I'm deeply sorry to disappoint but I couldn't care less of what you think of me." She shrugged, "Just saying considering how many hoops Derek has to jump through to keep him in line simply because of you, I figured there would be something interesting there." You raised an eyebrow at her words, what the actual hell was she talking about?

"I don't know what you mean."

"What I mean is that anytime you're in his eyesight he gets all mushy and Derek is concerned on his loyalty, so if I have to create some distance between you two myself I will." At this point you had one hand gripping the desk so hard to keep yourself under control. You whipped your head to finally face her.

"And what the hell is that supposed to insinuate?"

"I'm just saying, maybe the event of a hurt friend would take your mind off of him for a while."

You lightly slammed your palms on the table, "You lay one finger on any of my friends and I swear to everything, I will break every bone in your body and grind them into dust." You felt her hand grab your arm, her claws digging into your skin, her eyes glowing. You winced and you felt yourself get slightly fuzzy. You were losing what little control you had. You could feel the familiar heat from your eyes, there was no doubt they were glowing as well. Without thinking you grabbed her clawed arm with your free hand, you could feel heat radiating from your palm. She instantly let out a pained groaned, letting go as the bell dinged once more.

You got up, looking at your now slightly bleeding wound on your forearm. You looked for a seat only to see that Isaac was already sitting with Lydia. Frantically, you looked for Stiles and Scott only to find them sitting together. They gave you panicked looks and you returned it as you sat at another table.

Your eyes did nothing but burn holes into Lydia's and Isaac's backs as you watched him interact with her. He didn't give any noticable signs that he has trying to do anything to her, yet that is.

"Time. If you've catalyzed the reaction correctly, you should now be looking at a crystal." You indeed were looking at a crystal, you turned back to the boys only to see them looking at their glob and then Scott casted his attention to the red head and beta across from you. You joined him in leading your eyesight over to the pair to see Isaac picking up the crystal, observing it, and then offering it to Lydia.

"Now for the part of that last experiment I'm sure you'll all enjoy, you can eat it."

Lydia took the crystal from him and your eyes widened in realization when you could faintly see the clear viscos liquid on it. Glancing at your crystal still in the beaker you confirmed what you were thinking. The kanima's toxic, they had put it on the crystal.

"LYDIA!"

You jumped at the booming sound of Scott's voice and you weren't the only one. Lydia and the rest of the class projected their attention onto the boy, who was quickly embarrassed and dismissed Lydia's question before sitting back down. There was nothing you could do. All you did was sit back and watch as she ate the crystal. You waited for the sound of her dropping to the floor due to paralysis but...

It never came.

You led the dark haired trio into Coach's office, locking the door behind you with the keys Coach gave you at the beginning of the year. You four were currently radiating every ounce of stress possible.

"Derek's outside waiting for Lydia," Scott said as you turned to face the group.

Allison gave Scott a worried look, "Waiting to kill her?"

"Well he's sure not waiting to give her a hug," you commented scratching your forehead out of frustration, you looked at Allison for a second, "Sorry, just frustrated." She gave you a nod of reassurance before looking to Scott again for answers.

"If he thinks she's the Kanima, then yes, especially after what happened at the pool."

"It's not her," Stiles affirmed.

You groaned slightly, "Stiles, come on."

"She didn't pass the test, man. Nothing happened," Scott spoke softly but it did nothing to convince Stiles, "No, it can't be her."

"It doesn't matter, because Derek thinks it's her," Allison finally gave in with a sigh. You scoffed, "Yeah and with Derek's severe lack in brain power, that's all he needs to justify his order to kill." Allison gestured to you in agreement. "Either we can convince him that he's wrong, or we've got to figure out a way to protect her."

"I really don't think he's gonna do anything here, not at school."

The dark hair girl shot back instantly, "What about after school?"

There was a moment of silence between all for of you as you all exchanged looks. "What if we can prove that Derek's wrong," Allison asked.

"By three o'clock?" Stiles and Allison started began a back and forth.

"There could be something in the bestiary."

"OH! You mean the nine hundred page book written in archaic Latin that nothing of us can read? Good luck with that."

"Actually, I think I might know someone who can translate it," she finished.

Scott stuttered slightly, "Uh, I can talk to Derek, maybe convince him to give us a chance to prove that it's not her."

"In the mean time, we could get Lydia to our house, neutral ground. It would be safer, plus I could maybe buy us some time to get her there." You pulled out the dusty book that's been stuffed in your bag since you've gotten it. "I've been practicing," you finished.

Scott took a second to look at you three before letting out a sigh, "But if anything happens, you guys let me handle it, okay?"

"What does that mean," Allison stared at the werewolf.

"I mean you guys can't heal like I do. I just don't want you getting hurt." Allison deadpanned before pulling her crossbow out of her bag

"I can protect myself," Allison rebutted. You and Stiles let them have their moment as you placed a hand on Stiles' shoulder. You saw him fiddle with the crossbow that Allison sat down but before you could stop him, an arrow shot out and towards Scott. Luckily he had caught it in time.

"Ah, sorry. Sensitive trigger on that." You smacked his head before dragging him out of the room, where you guys tried to go about the rest of your day.

Stiles had some how gotten Lydia to agree to a study group, which led you to being dragged through the library with them two. She shrugged him off before heading off in front of him. Allison caught up with you eventually and then you felt another presence. You looked over your shoulder to see Jackson following you as well. You didn't even bother to question it, the uptight boy always had his reasons for his actions and you've never been able to make sense of them.

"If we're doing a study group, why don't we just stay in the library?"

"Because we're meeting up with someone else," Stiles gave her shoulder a light pat and Lydia made another argument, "Well, why don't they just meet us in the library?"

"Oh, that would've been a great idea. Too late."

"Okay, hold on-," Jackson squeezed passed you, grabbing Lydia's arm and jerking her forward, "Lydia, shut up and walk." For the first time since knowing the boy, you didn't see a reason to make a snarky comment.

"Oh, hey you guys? I forgot something back there. Go on ahead, I'll meet you guys there," you called to the group now a few feet ahead of you. Giving Stiles and Allison a pointed look, they nodded back understanding what you were planning to do. Buy them some time to get Lydia out of here.

You backtracked towards the library when you heard your name being called, "Hey, (L/N)!" You looked in the direction of the call, getting met with a flash in your eyes, raising your hands to cover the light from your face. When the flash cleared you were met with the face of Matt, a player on the team, sitting with Danny. "Thanks," he said. How odd. You gave him a look of acknowledgement, then you heard the door to the library open. You quickly ducked into one of the aisles, out of eye line.

"Where is she?" You dipped your head slightly out seeing Isaac, his hand gripping Matt's shirt with Erica just behind him. You softly reached over to the next aisle through the shelf, pushing the books on the floor to create noise. You made a dash for the side door leading into the hallway, not even a second later footsteps could be heard following you. You turned a couple corners making sure to not be fully seen before slipping into an open and empty classroom. You had maybe a couple of seconds to grab your book and flip to the newly marked page. Your eyes glided down the page straight to what you were looking for... a barrier spell. It wouldn't be very strong since this is without practice, but it was gonna have to work.

You followed the instructions closing your eyes, letting yourself connect to the energy around you like Deaton had taught you. Their footsteps kept getting clearer and clearer. When you were sure they were in reach your eyes snapped open and with a flick of your hand into the air you saw a wall of iridescent energy fly up. You heard noises of confusion as you walked out of the classroom to meet the duo's faces.

"Pretty neat, huh?"

"Let us go, (Y/N)." Isaac gave you a stern look while Erica just continued to glare. You put your finger on your chin in pretend thought, you straightened your posture before speaking, "No."

Erica shoved past Isaac, "You think your little party trick is going to save your friends from us? Derek and Boyd will just take care of them. And what do you expect to happen when you can't keep this up anymore, huh?"

You took a couple slow steps until the barrier was the only thing between you two, "Don't worry about them, Scott's taking care of it. As for you two, I'm not worried. This isn't to hold you forever, just long enough to make sure they can get her out of here. And even if I had to stay here to keep it up, I don't care what happens to me as long as they're safe." Both betas faltered at that, that surely wasn't the response they were expecting.

"By the way, don't forget," you raised your injured arm, "I still owe you one, for this." In your peripheral you could see Isaac's glance was no longer on you but on Erica. Isaac raised his hand pointing at you, "You did that?" The blond werewolf didn't answer, just kept her eyes on you.

You shook your head, "Doesn't matter, anyways, I have to get going. See you guys around." You made your way out the side doors nearby, the barrier wouldn't last long with you not there to focus on it so you needed to go, now.

Behind you as you rushed out the doors, could be heard the sound of two betas arguing.

When you had finally made it home, you went through the back door, locking it. You headed to the front entrance making yourself be known, "Hey, I'm here. They're definitely right behind me though."

Allison breathed a sigh of relief as Stiles gave you a secure hug, "I'm glad you're alright." You gave her a weak smile.

"Where's Lydia?"

"Upstairs with Jackson," Allison answered. You rubbed your hands together and nodded. Stiles looked at you both, "Okay, what's the plan?"

"I could maybe focus a barrier on the house, I was able to do it back in the hallway. It won't be as strong if it works but it'll at least give us some protection until Scott gets here." They gave you a look of relief and nodded.

"Okay, but don't try it until they get here, you need to preserve your energy and we still don't know how your abilities really work yet," Allison set a hand on your shoulder and you agreed.

Soon enough, night fell, Derek's pack had arrive and Scott was no where to be seen. You three were looking at the window staring back at them. They all looked so joyous like they had already won. Allison had already called Scott letting him know he need to get here.

"What are you doing?" Stiles' questioned cause you to turn to the dark haired girl who looked distress.

"I think.. I think I have to call my dad."

"But if you do that.." you started, "If he finds you here, you and Scott," Stiles trailed.

"I know. But what are we supposed to do?"

"I think now is a good time to try that barrier." While the other two kept on their conversation, you stood at the door placing your hand on it, "I'm just gonna try and focus on both doors." You closed your eyes just like before but this time you pictured that same iridescent glow wrapping around the front and back door. Once you were sure you had done it, you just tried to focus on securing it keeping your eyes closed.

"Just shoot one of them."

"Are you serious?"

"We told Scott we could protect ourselves, so let's do it. Or least give it a shot, right?"

"Okay."

"Look, they don't think we're gonna fight, so if one of them gets hit, I guarantee they'll take off. So just shoot one of them."

"Which one?"

"Derek, yeah shoot him, preferably in the head."

"If Scott was able to catch an arrow, Derek definitely can."

"Okay, just shoot one of the other three then."

"You mean two."

"No, I mean three... Where the hell is Isaac?"

Without another word, your eyes had snapped open, "What do you mean, where's Isaac?" Your focus had been completely shattered and so had the barriers. You looked out the window indeed only seeing three werewolves and the curly haired one missing. In your lost of focus you hadn't even heard said werewolf coming up behind you three.

He grabbed Allison by her shirt, throwing her aside, doing the same to Stiles as well. "Isaac, what the hell are you doing?" He ignored you, just like at the ice rink. His focus completely on Stiles, but not for long as you jumped on the boy's back. Considering you only knew a few defensive spells, you in combat was pretty much useless. The werewolf did, however, struggle to get your grip loosened from around him. You both struggled, he lost his balanced and had backed into a wall ultimately slamming you into it but you didn't let go.

In your struggle you hadn't even noticed the dark haired girl running upstairs nor the blond werewolf following her. "Let go, (Y/N)!" This time, it was your turn to ignore him, too focused on keeping your grip firm. Soon you felt the form being thrown out from under you and a grip setting itself around you. Regaining your balance you looked to your side, it was Scott. You smiled, "You made it."

You glanced at the floor to see a tall werewolf passed out on the floor, Allison came down not a moment later informing you guys of Erica's state. Scott went to collect her as you dragged an unconscious Isaac to the front door. When Scott came back with the girl, he tossed both of the betas out the front door, standing on the front porch. You walked out and joined him on his right, Allison joining you on yours and Stiles on hers.

"I think I'm finally getting why you keep refusing me, Scott. You're not an Omega. You're already an Alpha of your own pack. But you know you can't beat me," Derek held a smirk on his face.

"We can hold you off until the cops get here," you nodded in agreement. Sirens could be heard closing in, Derek's smile was quickly wiped off.

You started to hear hissing and you weren't the only one who heard it, Derek had look up at the roof. The four of you on the porch came out into the yard to see the Kanima crawling along the top of ledge. Scott kept Allison close while you and Stiles grabbed at each others arms.

"Get them out of here," Derek ordered Boyd.

Not a second later, more footsteps could be heard coming from the front door. Lydia stomping through, "Will someone please tell me what the hell is going on?"

"It's not Lydia," you whispered.

"It's Jackson."

_______________________________

a/n: another chapter doneeeee. honestly you guys this is probably my favorite episode of the whole season so i definitely had a lot of fun writing this. i hope you guys enjoyed and let me know if you would like to be added to the taglist!!

taglist: @somiaw @vvicaddiction @mushroomelephant

87 notes · View notes

fan-mans · 3 months

Note

wazzup dude!

so whaddya got for Narcis Prince hcs? u said you've got quite a few 👀👀

- erporo

YEEHAW I FINALLY GET TO TALK ABOUT MY NARCY BOY THANKLES @erporo

I've been waiting for this for so long mnbjhkgvkjhvkj

(I actually wrote 3 pages of hcs in googles docs just for this ask lol)

Anyways, this is gonna be long so hold on to your butt!

Important ones first!

He is pretty self centered, but he's not a dick about it. At least not much more than the other boxers. He's snarky and gossipy but is actually pretty amicable when you get to know him. He sees himself as superior than others not because of his looks or wealth but because he’s very skilled- something he also values highly in others.

He hates his parents, and most of the rest of his bio family too, but loves the staff at his family’s estate- the staff loves him back quite a bit.

In fact, he respects the workers on his family’s estate and most service workers over his parents or family because the workers actually have skills, unlike most of the people he’s related to, who don't do anything except ride off their wealth.

He's very passionate in everything he does and refuses to cut corners. That's why, although he could get away with it, he doesn't cheat- he's got too much respect for both his own skills and the people he's fighting.

Because of his closeness to the staff of his estate rather than his parents, he grew up pretty class conscious and aware that he got a very privileged life, as well as being aware that people who aren’t like him aren’t people he should hate.

A big theme I have for him is people having to change their view of him: most assume he’s nothing but a vain, bitchy, brat- and while he does act like that sometimes, it’s far from his entire personality. Most of the stories I want to write about him revolve around other people having to get over their own assumptions of him based on his tastes and background, accept that yes, he doesn’t inherently disrespect them because they’re poor or different from him, and open up to his warmer side, even if he isn’t always the easiest to get along with

While he is self centered, and definitely not the best at listening to other's problems, he cares a lot about his friends and will never go back on a promise to give a gift or spend time with them. He deeply values his time with people and doesn’t ever want to waste it- even if that means he has to ignore a 100 degree fever to hang out.

He also pays close attention to people's tastes and interests, he likes learning about others and participating in what they enjoy too. If he seems like he doesn’t care about something someone says- it probably means he just didn’t understand it.

Speaking of: Narcis is still questioning his orientation. While he’s sure he’s attracted to men romantically, he isn’t sure if he likes women romantically or just aesthetically. He also wonders if he's a-spec because he’s very picky about romantic partners and values platonic relationships far over romantic ones. If he had to choose between keeping all his friends and never finding love, or finding love but never having friends, he'd always choose the former.

He's also kinda frenemies with glass joe. They’ve both made off-color comments that pissed the other off but they also enjoy a lot of the same stuff and can get along pretty well when together. However, they both can get hot headed and emotional, so a bit of anger sparks between them every time they do hang out.

Now, he truly loves his fancy shit. But as much as he loves upper class culture, he’s also quite fond of lower class and folk culture as well. However, though he doesn’t want to admit it, he’s scared that if he were to get too close to lower class culture, he’d be rejected because he’s a ‘priss’. In reality he wouldn’t be- a lot of the things and people he wants to interact with would love to have him, but Narcis isn’t quite secure in his place in the world yet.

Despite that, he doesn't have many insecurities. He’s not very insecure about his appearance- he knows he’s pretty no matter what, he just doesn’t like looking (Or feeling) bruised on his face. He also rarely gives a shit what people think of his tastes, he loves himself enough.

While he will throw the occasional tantrum- he’s gotten much better from when he was a kid and has a pretty good handle on his anger. He used to be MUCH worse as a kid.

His ‘mum’ (Nanny) is still a big part of his life and they’re extremely close. She’s the only person in the world who isn’t scared when he has a meltdown or gets angry.

AUTISM- his parents refuse to admit it or tell him but he was diagnosed as autistic v young and has known most of his life cause his nanny just told him lol.

He’s got low empathy, but he still puts in a lot of work to be nice to others cause he likes people and he wants people to like him back.

He generally needs a lot of attention and people to talk to cause he’s such an extrovert- it made his childhood extremely tough and frustrating. As an adult, he's a total social butterfly and loves making friends and hanging out with people. He isn't perfect at socializing but he's p fun!

He almost never restricts himself when having fun, whether it be going places he’s never been, to trying new drugs, he IS the man of the party and always an excellent host of one.

He also loves new experiences and learning things about people. He's really curious about other people’s cultures and loves listening to people ramble on about theirs. And ofc, he's always down for trying something new.

Now for a ton of small ones:

His uncle is a baron, something narcis’ parents want him to take on over his cousin, but that he has no interest in.

He deeply respects service workers- always tips at least 50%. But though he's never rude to servers/service workers but does expect the best service no matter what.

Absolutely never takes people’s shit- he’s too good for that.

Even with his better respect of people, he does sometimes need to be treated as the specialist boy™

Loves watching people get into fights- esp over or because of him.

Super sensitive abt horror and HATES it- he can mostly handle kids horror and maybe a funny slasher sequel/parody, but nothing too serious.

He yellow under his shirt around his neck is actually a cravat.

Most of his clothes are custom made.

He has two types of shoes: White sneakers or white/pale loafers- no in between.

His taste in fashion is p tacky lmao.

Likes tight clothes in general.

Hates the name given to him at birth.

However, he adores narcissus flowers.

Fave color is red, second fave is yellow.

Because he’s usually wearing red, his eyes tend to look a little purple.

6’10- you will never be able to pry this hc from my cold, dead hands.

Yes his hair is naturally that blonde.

He’s got the cutest lil dimples :)

blushes/turns red very easily and quickly.

Has his ears pierced and has a million sets of earrings. He's the same way with chapstick and nail polish.

Really goofy laugh.

If he were to get a tattoo, it’d have to be a v on his chest- for victory.

His greatest flaw is that he’s got terrible bo

Has a 20 step skin care routine

Cries in a very pretty way (Think like ariel or belle in their movies lol)

Will use his pretty blue eyes to pout and beg for things

Giggly and flirty while drunk

Picked up a bit of cockney from not only his staff growing up, but his drinking buddies in London

Actually a big fan of beer and beans n toast

Really loves earl grey tea

Loves spicy shit- even if he can barely tolerate it

He’s lowkey vegetarian cause he just prefers fruit & veg over meat

He doesn’t know how to ride a bike anymore cause he’s so tall.

He likes playing with and petting horses but hates riding them- ofc he knows how, he just doesn’t like it v much.

His parents got him a pet ‘teacup pig’ but when it got too big he refused to get rid of it and it still lives with them.

Absolutely adores a couple of sanrio plush toys Heike gave him for his birthday- he’s got a hello kitty doll and a My melody pillow.

Heike called him narcy-warsy as a joke and got his car keyed. The only person who can call him that is a lover, and even then only ironically.

If he likes you, he’s gonna give you a ton of pet names.

He crushes very deeply and passionately- often to the point where he dips into very unrealistic daydreaming.

V much the big jakt person in any relationship he’s in.

Definitely treats any romantic partner of his not only as his bestie, but as a tiny dog he’d carry around in a purse.

Wants a chihuahua SO BAD but refuses to get one because he knows it wouldn’t do well in England’s cold climate.

Loves basketball

Jane Austen nerd, his fave book is pride and prejudice

Loves rap, hip-hop, and r&b music… even the crappy stuff

Loves horseplay, esp pillow fights- please play in the mud with him, he needs the enrichment

Loves taking pictures- he’s not good at it yet, but it’s a fun hobby for him

Has a million coloring books that are completely filled in lol

Likes the beach a lot- no matter the weather

He collects seashells, all of which he picked himself

Spends waay too much time in pinterest making aesthetic moodboards

Has a deep interest in physics. So much so that he learned the frequency of most glass just so he could cause chaos by breaking it with his voice.

Is a countertenor (Basically he can sing in a typically 'women's' vocal range)

Speaks welsh and slovak very well- though his parents don’t know that

It’s very easy to make him laugh

Dreams very vividly

Basically ignores whenever he’s sick lmao

Pays for everything- always

#I'm sorry in advance #I just couldn't be normal about him #i've been rotating him in my brain a LOT #narcis prince #my perfect boy who has never done anything wrong ever #punch out #punch out wii #headcanons #I put so many together cause I wasn't sure when i was gonna be able to dump abt him again lmao #my hcs

16 notes · View notes

imsparky2002 · 8 months

Text

The Announcement - A Prequel to Adrien's First Day

(Principal Owlcles has gathered two of his school's classes and their teachers for an announcement.)

Owlcles: I won't beat around the bush. We have decided to let a human attend this school.

(He expects, and secretly hopes for cries of protest and outrage, but it's silent, people mostly just look confused. Maridoll raises her hand.)

Maridoll: Um, not that that’s a problem, sir, but can we ask why?

Owlcles: Well, Gabriel Agreste wants to bring positive awareness to monster and human living together in harmony. So he decided to send his son here to get a taste of what it's like at DuPont!

FrankenNino: Wait, doesn't his Dad REALLY hate monsters? Like he led hunting groups! He tried to make his son see us as evil!

Owlcles: Well, it seems Mr. Agreste has recently had a change of heart, and wants to correct his past mistakes. And Adrien is quite excited for the opportunity, it seems he has no ill will towards monsters!

IsmaCat: Yeah, because his psycho of a dad sheltered him from the outside world, and kept him from finding out about his hunting years.

Astrarore: No offense, Mr. Owlcles. But this is what in my planet, sounds like a load of garthwop, or in your planet’s case, a load of cow manure.

Owlcles: Now now, students, we mustn’t be quick to judge! But I understand that some of you may be angry about this choice, and you are free to air your grievances!

WereKim: Uh... we're not angry? Why would you want us to do that, man?

Chloepatra: Ridiculous! Utterly ridiculous!

Max Steam: It sounds quite wonderous to invite this homosapien to our academy.

Nath Goyle: Seems after he learns the school rules, I won't have to worry much about seeing him on the job.

OperJean: Just b’cause a lotta humans can be pretty anti-monster don’t mean all’a them are! Least we can do is suspend judgement!

DenisQuatch: Yeah, this could be a good step towards establishing a more peaceful relationship. In theory, it’s a good idea.

Draculeka: Call me batty, but it sounds like you WANT us to be judgy.

Dracogami: Indeed, I sense a desire for such a scenario from his voice.

Owlcles: N-now, don’t be absurd! It’s perfectly reasonable for there to be a fear of humans, but I am…most pleased that you all seem open to this change!

Dracogami: He is lying once again.

(He hoots in shock.)

Flamecey: What's the deal, sir? Why would you not want us to accept them?

Zombustier: Rrrggghh. (Translation: He wanted you to all be upset so he could slowly change your minds over time. That way, he'd be recognized as a great principal, and win an award.)

Headless Olga: Very pathetic, honestly.

(Owlcles glares at them. If only he could fire these two)

Owlcles: Students, I assure you that-

(They all start laughing at him.)

Ivan Bumble: Principal prefers award over students! Garbage!

(His laughter gets louder and he pounds the desk.)

FrankenNino: Dude, just give it up! You’re not gonna look like a hero here!

(SkeleRose's bones rattle as she laughs)

SkeleRose: You think I could EVER be angry at a human?

Spider Resh: (Wiping tears out of her eyes) Just for that, I'm making Adrien the best shirt out of spidersilk possible.

(The principal is flustered and humiliated. He walks off the stage.)

Zombustier: Graaggh. (Translation: Ok, enough guffawing.)

Headless Olga: Now kids, this will be a new experience for Adrien. He’s never been to an actual school before!

Zombustier: Urrrrrggggh. (Translation: So we want to make him feel as welcome as possible!)

Zombrina: Rrrggh? (Translation: Should we just be our normal selves? We don't want to come off as being overly polite and fake.)

SliMireille: Yeah, we can be nice, but not fake nice.

Headless Olga: Of course! Show him that we’re just regular people with a few quirks, nothing scary about it.

Zombustier: Grrrrarrrrgggh. (Translation: We don’t expect you kids to act like people you’re not, just show him he’s safe in his new environment.)

Chloepatra: I suppose that it'll be nice to have a new peasant to bow down in my presence.

(They all stare at her, frowning.)

Chloepatra: Kidding! Kidding!

Alix Gorgon: We’ll make sure he’sss all ssset here, teach! Don’t worry!

MothMarc: (Whispering to Nath Goyle) I hope he brings a light with him.

Astrarore: It will be interesting to learn more about humans!

Zombustier: Graaggh! (Translation: We're so glad to hear your enthusiasm!)

Harpy Lila: (Scoffs) A human? Well, at least he’ll be fun to mess with…

Here's a prequel to Adrien's first day that me and Weeby made awhile back. It was a blast to create, and I can't wait to do more stuff with them for her awesome AU! Make sure to reblog, reply, post and ask for more. @artzychic27 @msweebyness

#monster au #monster #monstrous au #monstrous #school for monster #akuma class #science kids #miraculous ladybug #miraculous

24 notes · View notes

platonicyanderewrighter · 1 year

Text

Bloody School Year pt 1

Platonic yandere demon slayer modern AU/school au?

I woke up with a start as my alarm went off. groggily, I got up and turned it off. i regretted that I put across my room, though honestly, I would've just turned it off and gone back to bed.

Walking to the bathroom, flinching when I turned on the light, I rubbed my eyes, trying to relieve myself from the sting. Once I could, I looked into the mirror while I grabbed a hair brush and started to brush my (h/c) hair.

Walking back to my room, I grabbed my uniform and got dressed. Seeing that I looked presentable, I grabbed my bag and headed downstairs. This was the only time I'm glad about my parent's drinking problem, I could get ready in peace.

Though I have to take care of everything at home. Sure, my parents work and pay bills, yes, but they only buy alcohol and stupid things for themselves.

I have to buy things myself like clothes, food, school supplies, etc. But I've gotten used to this and thare mean comments and the occasional attacks. I'm glad that the school year has started, so I have another excuse to be away from my parents' house.

Grabbing my lunch and putting my shoes on, I started to walk to school. after a little while of walking, I saw a boy with red hair and a girl with red hair walking together. They were wearing the same uniform I was, I was going to ignore them until I heard a boy screaming before I was shoved to the ground

"NNNNEEEEZZZZZUUUUKOOO! CHAN!"

Then I saw a dude with yellow hair start to harass the black haired girl. As I got up, I saw the yellow haired boy get slapped by the red-haired boy, who i assume is the girls brother.

I think the boy spotted me as he ran up to me."Are you alright? Are you hurt?" He said in a concerned tone. "I'm alright. Who's that guy?" I said, pointing toward the guy. I'm begging for who I assume is nezuko to merry him."he's Zenitsu he has his moments, but he's a good person overall." He said as he yanked him off.

"Alright, I guess, I'm (y/n), by the way. I think we go to the same school." I said coldly as I was still annoyed from being soved to the ground, The redhead seemed to pick up on this."I'm tanjiro kamado, and this is my sister nezuko. I apologize for Zenitsu's behavior." I was about to not accept the apology, but looking at Zenitsu hiding behind tanjiro, looking terrified, made it passable.

"It's alright, but if he does that again, I'll punch him." Tanjiro then smiled."That's understandable. Would you like to join us? We're going to the same school after all." He said cheerfully. I thought for a second before answering."Sure, I'll join you."

After that, we started to walk again, I noticed that tanjiro was me shielding from Zenitsu, who was too busy bothering nezuko to annoy me. So it made the walk bearable.

As we entered the school's gates, tanjiro started to talk again. "So, what's your first class (y/n)? Mine's history." Tanjiro asked, showing his schedule, I looked at mine, and I also had history with the teacher rengoku kyojuro.

If I remember correctly, he's very nice to his students, which makes my day easier."I also have history." I was about to ask Zenitsu or nezuko about their classes, but a loud whistling interrupted my thoughts.

We all looked towards the noise and saw a man in a blue tracksuit. He then walked up to us."One no earrings." He said, pointing to tanjiro."and you need to die your hair a natural color." Now he was pointing at Zenitsu, who now was acting normal."B-but this is my natural hai-." He was cut off by the man slapping him across the face."No talking back."

I let out a small chuckle as I left the group to get to class early since I had known the school from last year. Once I got here, though, it was completely empty, so I sat at a desk awkwardly as I played on my phone.

After a little bit of waiting, I heard the door slam open and close, I immediately turned my head to see Zenitsu panting. As he spotted me, he ran behind me, panicking."(y/n) chan help me! Mr. tomioka won't stop bothering me for my hair!" I was surprised that he was trying to hide behind me.

"Well, I don't know what I can do for you. My class is going to start soon. You should go to yours before you get in trouble with tomioka again."

As I said this, other students walked in and filled the desks. Unsurprisingly, tanjiro sat next to me."I have to agree with (y/n). I'm sure he'll leave you alone.

Zenitsu eventually left begrudgingly, and then I noticed something missing."Hey, tanjiro? Where's nezuko? Did she not have the same class as us?" Tanjiro nodded."I think this is only class that we don't share." I couldn't think of anything else to say as I'm not used to people talking to me, especially for this long.

Thankfully, the awkward silence was short-lived as our teacher finally arrived, a man with yellow hair with red tips, So the dress code doesn't apply to teachers?

"Hello everyone! I'm rengoku kyojuro. I'll be your history teacher for the year!"

He said in a cheerful and powerful tone, waking me fully. He then went on to do the same thing teachers do on the first day, grading, type of work, expected, etc.

Then the thing I dreaded most. Introducing ourselves. After a few students, it was my turn."I'm (y/n) (l/n), my family owns a business in town it's lovely to meet you all." I hoped that it sounded nice enough. However, it seemed to catch the attention of the teacher."The last name (l/n) seems familiar to me. Please meet me after class."

My mind went blank with embarrassment, so I didn't pay attention to tanjiro's introduction. Except for the fact his family owns a bakery, which was interesting.

This is going to be a long day.....

#platonic #platonic yandere #yandere #yandere platonic #platonic love #demon slayer #platonic yandere demon slayer #modern au #fanfic

40 notes · View notes

toyafreethoughts · 3 months

Text

⌨️ᶻᶻᶻ...[Jaxrel] is typing... <3 ↻ᴹᵉˢˢᵃᵍᵉ ˡᵒᵃᵈᵉᵈ ꒰Enjoy Your Matchups, Star!!꒱ 🦋~* @imjustabeanie01

A/N: Hello! Thank you so much for doing a Matchup Exchange with me ^_^ I hope you enjoy this! And since this is a lot for me the headcanons are short but they aren’t at the same time, hopefully you don’t mine and a reminder towards everyone, remember to drink water and sleep well :)

You’re Genshin Impact Partner is…

Alhaitham!

Honestly, I’ve seen you get matched up with this dude a lot and I understand why people would match you with this handsome man, he likes that your a person he can get along with easily so now he doesn’t have to be annoyed, In my opinion I don’t think he’s a morning person either if someone wakes him up he would get all cranky and it just spoils the entire day.

He enjoys your sarcasm! He will sometimes join you and you guys make sarcastic comments back to back, He also enjoys that your a chill person, he’s super fascinated that you enjoy reading too, i can tell there will be nights where you both are in bed enjoying the calmness of the night together while y’all read your books silently while soaking in each others presence.

When you mentioned you we’re insecure about your weight this man will not tolerate that at all!!! he loves you too much and he will always compliment you and almost anything to let you know that you are beautiful, he’s surprised whenever he receives gifts from you! it makes his heart skip a beat each time and he never fails to return the favor back.

You’re Honkai Star Rail Partner is…

Jing Yuan!

Another one I thought was perfect! I feel like you guys would get along way more then the other characters in the game, he likes talking with you a lot! or perhaps listening to you, I wanted to mention that since you isolate yourself Yuan will not let that slide right away either but he wouldn’t provoke you he’ll calmly ask you what’s the matter and if you don’t feel like talking about it he’ll give you some time but he’ll still want you to talk your problems out to him and he can see what he can do.

I feel like you and him on your guy’s free time you would read or maybe play a video game! I’m not gonna lie to you but Jing Yuan also enjoys psychical affection of any kind so your in for a treat! He’s always resting on your shoulder or hugging you from behind, once you get with him you will never have to feel any envy at all, he will always look out for your reckless behavior and possibly will help you if you ever get in trouble because of it.

He loves just being in your presence so much, your just so refreshing to him! He’s a partner you probably needed and your a partner he also needed in his life too.

You’re Helluva Boss Partner is…

Asmodeus!

Your probably questioning my choices right now but hear me out, even though he seems a bit… twisted I feel like he would fall for you instantly, not even because of Lust at all, we know he seems to have a hatred for “true love” but after he met you I feel like sees it completely different afterwards, when you said you were insecure about yourself he was absolutely baffled, why would you feel insecure about yourself? He will praise you everyday to get you to not be insecure of yourself anymore.

He would like engaging in any hobbies and interests you like! I feel like he would enjoy playing video games with you, he would also LOVE baking with you, remember the episode where he was cooking with fizz? you guys always bake / cook together no matter what! I feel like you guys would go to a cooking class as one of your dates LOL.

He loves receiving gifts from you! He’s always super thankful towards you everytime, he would also do the same in return, tbh he would buy you anything you wish to see you happy.

You’re Hazbin Hotel Partner is…

Husk!

When I was reading your matchup information I just immediately thought of him while doing so, this relationship would be long-(forever)-lasting for sure! He was super relieved when he saw that you never acted like the others around him, he’s glad your smart but he’ll always have to get you out of trying to start anything rebellious or dangerous, he doesn’t want you to get hurt but he’ll never say it at all.

He’s your #1 supporter at all times! Whenever your feeling down he’ll always do his best to make you feel better, maybe you can do something you like together to take your mind off whatever’s happening, you’ll probably have to start doing psychical affection around him, he’ll probably stiffen up at first but later on he tends to be more relaxed and hell… even when y’all were cuddling one time he fell asleep and you had to put him back in bed.

You’re JJBA Partner is…

Dio Brando!

I had a couple others in mind but it all came down to Dio here! Even though he’s very flashy and charismatic you made him fall for you with your unique personality, I feel like your that person who has no enemies with anyone unless if they wanna be enemies, but for this you and dio got along pretty quickly, you guys would throw playful sarcastic and flirty comments at each other, I don’t feel like you can ever get dio that angry so you might as well find someone else LOL.

He’s surprised when you started bringing gifts for him! He enjoys it so much, he may tease you a little but it’s always fine in the end whatsoever, he also finds you biting your lip habit very adorable to him, I feel like be would fine with psychical intimacy but you would have to initiate it.

You’re TWST Partner is…

Malleus Draconia!

This was another relationship I thought would go really good! He enjoys your presence a lot, he’s always polite to you and your polite to him, he would always scold you for your troublesome behavior if you ever get in trouble but it’s very light hearted and you know he’s just looking out for you, I can see you guys reading together in the library a lot, weather it’s romance books or manga you guys always have a good time anyways.

He enjoys helping you with anything, wether if its homework or problems with something else he’s always there to help and figure out stuff with you, I feel like he’s also talked out some of his own problems with you too, but not a lot, he enjoys hugging you a lot I believe, he also loves the gifts you get for him as well, you’ll see him bring you so much stuff.

You’re Jujustu Kaisen Partner is…

Nanami Kento!

I really enjoy this paring a lot! Finally your not another annoying headache to him like Gojo, he’s appreciative that your polite, whenever you bring up any ideas on anything that would cause something bad he’ll give you a hard “no” and give you an entire lecture on why it’s bad but personally he’s just caring for you, when you mentioned to him that you were kinda insecure about your weight he was there to give you reassurance and hug you to make you feel better.

I feel like you and him would have a amazing time together, wether it be at home cooking together to even going on dates and bringing gifts for each other yall never fail to be one of the best relationships ever, he’s also fascinated with the languages you speak, perhaps you can teach him about a thing or two.

You’re Demon Slayer Partner is…

Kyojuro Rengoku!

With other round-ups for this I feel like kyojuro is the best option for you! He’s super Optimistic and also super friendly and kind towards other people if you saw in the anime and manga, you guys we’re definitely the friends to lovers troupe for sure, you guys always spead your time talking with one another and you guys always have lunch together and sometimes even go out to eat, you may have to tone down his loudness but you’ll get there! He’s also another #1 supporter of yours as well.

He enjoys cuddling with you too! He also loves whenever you bring gifts for him! He never fails to return the favor as well too!! He loves how you are as a person so much, if you ever have any problems you can always go to him trust me.

Round-Ups: Douma, Tengen Uzui.

You’re Obey Me Partner is…

Lucifer!

This is probably one of the best pairings I’ve done here so far but to start this, he respects you so SO much! Even though he’s cold at first you’ll slither your way into his heart, you guys are always seen with each other! I feel like he’ll probably look a bit irritated when you mess with him but he would never yell at you or anything across that line, he doesn’t wanna scare you at all, he also appreciates a partner that’s smart, he’ll be the one who always gets you out of trouble, expect a lecture but it’s never to serious.

You’ll have to be the one to initiate cuddling and all that with him, but he’ll soften up more and more with you, just y’all do that stuff in private, he’ll reassure you when you need it a lot, you can always trust him with solving problems as well!

#[❁] albert / jaxrel posts !#matchup #matchups

2 notes · View notes

khaleesiofalicante · 1 year

Note

Hello Dani! How are you doing (:

I wanted to know your opinion on sth

So, there's this boy who's my classmate in our university, and he apparently has a crush on me.

He told me so a few days ago, and I told him that I'm not really ready or willing for a relationship rn, so it's a no. But he's a good boy (I THINK?!! I've known him for about a month or two) And I told him I'm ok with being friends with him if that's sth he wants to 👀 and he said yes

But like now that we've been talking more it seems to me that he isn't trying to move on and be just friends with me, it's like he's trying to get closer to me so that he can ask me out again after sometimes. And I don't know what to do about it?!! Like the way I chat is always warm and friendly yk, and I think some people mistake it as flirting??!! I don't want to get his hopes up and lead him on, but it just feels soooo awkward to go to him and randomly say "hey, don't mistake my actions as flirting, it's just me being me, as I told you before I'm not interested"

And like, he really IS good as a friend (I've seen how he treats his male friends) but the problem is he doesn't see me that way at all :( and I can see that everytime I treat him kindly (like I would with any other friends!!) he gets his hopes up a little more

Also, he's just kinda too obvious with his crush that I'm sure half of our class knows about it, well ALL his friends know at least and they're a big group, and it's like because I don't treat him badly they all think that I'm not uninterested too :( but the problem is that I just don't want to break anyone's heart! It was hard enough that I told him no once and I really thought I was done with this shit because I explained myself completely!! But it seems like it wasn't!!

there's also another problem and it's the fact that I kinda have a crush on another boy who's not in our class, and you know how all the boys tell everything to their friends, and I just don't want them to gossip about me and the classmate boy, because he (my crush) seems like the kind of person who doesn't step up if he thinks you're interested in another person so even if he likes me back all my chances are ruined ashjkhf

So now idk what I'm supposed to do :( 💔💔

hello, lovely. some suggestions for you:

If it's the perception of others you are worried about (oh, they think I'm dating him or oh they think we like each other) then remember that there is not much you can do about it. People will only see what they want to see. It's never within your control. So, try not to trouble yourself with it.

I understand that it's awkward for you to remind this guy that you are not interested in him, but if he is a good friend as you say, then you should feel comfortable talking to him about how you feel. Maybe tell him how all the gossiping and shipping about the two of you is making you feel. Tell him you don't like it and it's making you uncomfortable. Ask him what you can do. This is a good way to reestablish your preference + finding a solution together

if you don't mind being a little cruel, then you can talk to this dude about your actual crush (or some made up crush). If you can't tell him directly that you are not interested in him, then try to convey that you are interested in other people.

Finally - and most importantly - is this guy is acting 'too close' and doesn't realize that it's making you uncomfortable (especially after you talk to him about it), then you need to reevaluate the friendship. You have no obligation to worry about people who don't respect your boundaries. If you have to repeatedly tell a guy 'hey i don't like you that way' then it means that guy doesn't know how to take 'no' for an answer, That's a red flag. You've established a very clear boundary, Make sure this guy respects it.

Hope all goes well x

#support

4 notes · View notes

geminiamethyst · 5 months

Text

Skyline Gang. Chapter 21

Prologue: click HERE

Chapter 20: click HERE

Chapter 22: click HERE

Pip had the right idea to offer those headphones.

Even if Bud was playing alone, the other games still had loud music and sound effects. Yes, he had been around the area during his investigations, but that was only for a minute. He was staying here longer than that. When he started to feel overwhelmed by the sound, he chased down Pip to request the headphones. Once he had them, he synced it up with his phone via Bluetooth. Instead of blearing music and obnoxious sounds effects, he was peacefully listening to classical music to keep him calm. It did the job perfectly. It allowed Bud to focus on the games he played without any problems. Dude offered to stay close in case anything happened and he needed help. Rainbow was pretty much glued to Bud’s hip, remaining as loyal as ever. He was ready to step up if Bud had another meltdown. So far, everything was okay.

After Bud started a different game, Mimi found Dude just a few ft away from him. She hadn’t heard from either of them for a while, so she felt the need to check up on things.

“How’s he doing?” She asked, giving a small smile.

“Better than earlier.” Dude smiled back. He broke into a small grin. “Don’t tell Pip this, but he’s beaten all of her high scores.”

“I won’t tell if you won’t.” Mimi grinned back. She observed a little more, taking note of how peaceful the air seemed. “Rainbow hasn’t left him either.”

“I think he’s appointed himself as a support dog.” Dude agreed, crossing his arms a little.

“Well, who wouldn’t want a fabulous dog like Rainbow as a support dog? He’s a natural at it.” Mimi agreed. Her smile faded a little as she started to get curious. “How did you know that Rainbow would help?”

“There’s this kid at school who is also on the spectrum.” Dude explained. He recalled the days in class that the student in question would be somewhat open about his autism. It was his own way in ensuring that people would understand, both teachers and students alike. “He’d often talk about his own support dog and even brought it to school on occasion. I witnessed him having a meltdown similar to Bud and his dog helped him calm down immediately.”

“Lucky thing you’re here, otherwise we might never have figured it out.” Mimi muttered, glancing back over at Bud and Rainbow.

“It’s lucky that Rainbow is here too.” Dude added. In all honesty, if Rainbow wasn’t here, there probably wouldn’t be as much emotional and mental support for everyone here. Bud absolutely benefitted the most from it all. A part of Dude wondered if Rainbow was trained in being an assistance dog before he came here. It would make sense of some things.

“Are you okay?” Mimi suddenly asked.

“Me?” Dude spoke with wide eyes.

“Yes.” Mimi insisted.

“I’m fine.” Dude shrugged, directing his eyes away from her. First Bud. Now Mimi. Was he being that obvious with his troubles? “Why are you asking?”

“You just seemed a bit worried.” Mimi answered, not fully convinced. Dude continued to not look at her. Just act like nothing is wrong. Try to keep everything together. Don’t start crumbling now, or else they’ll see every crack on the surface. Thankfully, Mimi was done asking questions. Not because Dude was denying his troubles, but because Bud had finished his game and made his way over.

“I believe that I have beaten Pip yet again.” He smiled triumphantly as he slipped off the headphones.

“She is probably going to get competitive once she finds out.” Mimi grinned, washing away her previous concerns.

“Is that a bad thing?” Bud asked, his voice quiet.

“No, not at all.” Dude smiled reassuringly. “Maybe a little competition but that’s somewhat normal among friends.”

“Friends?” Bud echoed, his voice almost drowned out by the arcade. The word felt foreign for him to say. He wasn’t comprehending anything. He just didn’t know how to process the words that was said to him. “Do you really consider me a friend? Especially after finding out about my disability.”

“Bud, what did you think that we were?” Mimi asked with a raised eyebrow. “Of course you’re our friend, silly.”

Bud didn’t react to that. At least externally. Internally, he’s probably been put into a spin to Dude and Mimi. Rainbow could feel the distress, and gently prodded Bud’s hand. The boy responded by a small pat on the head to help calm him down. It was like that for a while, making the air thick with tension. Bud opened his mouth to speak. However, his voice came out as a shaky scream. Rainbow started growling. Dude turned his head, looking out of the corner of his eye. He immediately grabbed Mimi, pushing her behind him. He held his arms out, acting as a shield. Standing before them was Dawn. She loomed over them, making the arcade cold. Even the lights from the games dimmed a little in response to her appearance.

“What do you want?” Dude demanded.

“Another challenge is being set.” Dawn sighed, rolling her eyes.

“Wait! Now?! But Candi had already-“ Mimi exclaimed, eyes popping out of her skull. Dawn disappeared before Mimi could say anymore. The three teenagers stood still, drinking in what just happened. Dawn was taking things in a drastic direction. She was becoming impatient. She was starting to get desperate because she was losing. She was at a huge disadvantage. Even if this challenge was won by her, she won’t be able to win. Her chances were impossible at this point. She could just let everyone go home. Why can’t she just do that already?

“It’s all wrong again…” Bud muttered, his hands shaking. Rainbow nudged his hand, already sensing a meltdown that was erupting.

“Are you going to be okay?” Dude asked calmly, forgetting his previous anger. Bud only patted Rainbow’s head to calm down. He appeared pale among the various lighting in the arcade. He looked like he was ready to go to his safe space. However, he had a feeling that even if Dawn was aware about his autism, she wouldn’t allow him to do so.

“Don’t worry, Bud!” Mimi smiled encouragingly. Bud looked up at her, still looking anxious. “If you need calming down and such, Rainbow will be right there. Right, Rainbow?” Rainbow wagged his tail and barked in response to that. Bud patted Rainbow again, becoming more relaxed. This was unavoidable now, but at least there was going to be someone to help with his meltdown.

“I suppose you’re right.” He muttered again. Dude smiled a little and gestured for Bud and Rainbow to walk in the front. They slowly started to head out of the arcade, the tension and anxiety looming over Bud like a dark cloud. However, he tried to think of how he can calm down on the way there. Einstein, Pi, chemical formulas came to mind which helped a little. Rainbow was the biggest source of comfort out of all of that. As he calmed down, only one more distressing thought entered his mind.

Time for another round.

#skyline gang #skyline gang butlins #skyline gang fanfic

0 notes

rawritzrobin · 3 years

Text

Red Knights Rising Chapter 4

Title: Red Knights Rising

Pairing: Vampire!Jason Todd x Reader, Hunter Tim Drake x Reader (platonic)

Warnings: Cursing, past major character death, blood, a little bit angsty, fluff.

Summary: You grew up with Tim. He was your best friend and confidant. But what happens when you run into his step brother Jason Todd? Tim always warned you to stay away from him. One night you find out exactly why Tim hated Jason so much.

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Masterlist

Taglist:

@0littlestwolf0 @redbircl @drayshadow @lothiriel9 @bratzdollsupremacy @captainshazamerica

A/N:

Adulting is hard. We take a look into Jason’s world today. 🥲 Please let me know if you would like to be added to the Taglist (:

Chapter 4: Plenty of Fish in the Sea

“Sorry I got caught up last night. Did you end up getting home okay?”

Tim had just picked you up for your early morning class. You two had nearly the same schedule, but different classes.

“Yup! I took a cab back home and just studied till I fell asleep. Were you able to find that guy who had been hacking into the banks?”

Tim frowned. He was hoping you would tell him the truth. But he didn’t want you to know he knew. So he merely smiled and told you the story of how they caught the hacker who had been giving Gotham city banks a run for their money.

——————

Jason tried his hardest to think of anything besides you. He even left town for a bit, trying his best to distract himself. Even off-world with Kori, he couldn’t get his mind off you. Your smile, your laugh, the way your cheeks tinted when you were slightly embarrassed. No matter what he was doing, your face would keep showing up in his mind.

He started following you around at night. You seemed to always be with Tim. Tim would pick you up from school and drop you off afterwards. On the weekend you two always went out for brunch. At night, you spent most of your time painting or reading. Jason once spent 4 hours watching you paint a beautiful painting of a sunset. He loved seeing your face light up when you finished a project.

But then, he started to feel bad. As much as he disliked his replacement, he knew you meant a lot to Tim. He saw the way he looked at you whenever you weren’t looking.

He also knew that deep down, he was truly a monster. How could someone like you even think about someone like him?

He went to the one place where he knew he could find a distraction.

----------

“Uh dude, are you okay? Earth to Jason?” Roy said, waving his hands in front of Jason’s face. Jason shook his head and turned to face Roy.

“Yeah sorry. I’m just, distracted. That’s all.”

Roy wiggled his eyebrows. “Is it that mysterious girl you keep talking about? Why don’t you just go over to her place and ask her out, instead of acting like a lovesick puppy moping around my place. You’re killing my vibes.”

Jason was currently sitting on Roy’s couch in what he dubbed his ‘Man Cave’. The place was a mess and often smelled like a mixture of beer and sweat. Jason didn’t know why he was here. He was just hoping that Roy could help distract him with his trivial problems like not being able to hit Master IV on COD, or getting rejected by a random girl at the bar again. He must of tuned out when Roy started going on and on about how Oliver was making him go to another gala.

“It’s complicated.” Jason mumbled, throwing his head back on the couch.

Roy sat down next to him and clapped his hands together. “How can playboy Roy help out? Is she not into your whole sad and brooding look? Or is this mysterious she a he? Don’t worry Jay, I won’t tell.”

Jason shoved him away in annoyance and got up to his feet. He started pacing around the room. “She’s the replacement’s best friend. I don’t know much, but I know they have been attached to the hip since they were babies.”

“So she’s taken?” Roy asked.

Jason shook his head. “From what I gathered, she just broke up with her long term boyfriend. And based on the way she speaks about Tim, she sees him more like a brother than a boyfriend.”

“Then why are you dragging your feet?”

Jason sighed and plopped down back onto the couch with Roy. He buried his face into his hands. “Do you know anything about the Drake family?” Jason asked. Roy looked at him, bewildered.

“Uh yeah, they are some rich family that has a place here in Gotham. I heard they were never around though.”

So it was a secret. Jason thought. “Do you know why they are never around?” He asked.

Roy watched him in confusion. Jason continued. “The Drakes come from a long line of Hunters. More importantly, vampire hunters.”

Roy’s mouth dropped. Roy was one of the first people that Jason told. After all the things he has seen around the world, the existence of vampires was not a shock to him. When Jason first told him he joked and told Jason that the girls would throw themselves at him now. ‘Chicks dig vampires’, were the first words to come out of his mouth.

“I know how much she means to Tim. I don’t want to get in the middle of Tim and Y/N. Especially if the Drake family is involved. I have never actually met a hunter as well known as them, but even in my small circle, they are feared.”

Jason rubbed his eyebrows together and let out a guilty sigh. “There’s that and I may have accidentally attacked her a few weeks ago.”

“Attacked?” Roy asked in confusion.

Jason sighed, and retold the story about the night he almost killed you.

Roy chuckled and clapped Jason on the knee. “Ahh the classic Romeo and Juliet story.” He got up and started to walk towards the fridge. “That’s a hell of a predicament dude. I’m sorry man.” He said as he came back with a blood bag and a beer.

He tossed the blood bag to Jason and he caught it easily. He poked a hole into the tube and brought it up to his lips. Jason grimaced slightly. Bagged blood never tasted very good. There was nothing compared to the real thing, but he was able to sustain his lifestyle like this. The blood was always older, that way people wouldn’t miss it too much when it was gone. Jason looked up at the window and noticed it was dark outside.

Taking one big gulp, he drained the blood bag. Jason tossed the empty bag into the trash can. “Thanks for listening to me rant. I should get going.”

Roy walked Jason out the door and clapped him on the shoulder. “Anytime bro. It’s my duty to take care of my love sick friend. Don’t forget, there are plenty of fish in the sea.” He said right before Jason disappeared down the hall.

Jason looked up at the moon. It shone brightly in the sky tonight. Full moons always meant more crazies roaming the night. He hopped onto his bike, and mentally prepped himself for the long night ahead.

Roy was right about one thing, there are plenty of fish in the sea, but none of them could even compare to Y/N.

A/N:

Sorry it’s a short one today! I worked 12 days straight and didn’t have much time to myself. Promise it will get better next chapter (:

213 notes · View notes

favefandomimagines · 3 years

Text

Fools Gold (r.c.)

Summary: how much are you worth to rafe and his friends?

AN: sorry the new obx pics that were posted inspired me to write an angsty af rafe fic also thinking about doing this same concept with JJ.

again, the rafe i write is not canon. he’s just a dick most of the time.

You weren’t friends with Rafe Cameron. There wasn’t any parallel universe where the two of you would be friends.

He despised you because you chose a life with the Pogues over a life with the Kooks. But he didn’t seem to have as big of a problem with Kie as he had with you.

You couldn’t figure out why he disliked you more than anyone on the island. You figured it had to do with the fact that he didn’t like the fact that everyone knew he slept with a Pogue.

Once upon a time, you lost your virginity to Rafe. After realizing how he acted towards you, you didn’t really know why. But at the time, you felt safe with him. Better him than some random tourist at a party.

But after you and Kie made the grand transition from Kook to Pogue, he never spoke to you again. And when he did, would he some mean and snarky comment that you tried not to let get to you. But a person can only take so much before the words start to stick.

—

You were at a Boneyard party with your friends, you and Kie talking about the upcoming beach cleanup the two of you were planning. You were minding your own business but you could feel a pair of eyes burning into the back of your head.

“Dude, $500 you can’t get Y/N to go out with you and stay with her for 6 months.” Topper bet the older boy. “$500? That’s it? To get Y/N to go out with me?” Rafe laughed. “Yeah, it should be an easy $500 right?” Topper asked.

Rafe thought about it for a moment, deciding if he was really that bad of a person to lead you on like that. He didn’t really hate you as much as he said. He was just hurt that you felt he wasn’t good enough to stick around for.

“It’s a bet. $500 in 6 months.” Rafe finally said. The two Kooks shook hands and Rafe’s fixation landed on you.

You were standing with Kiara by the fire, drinking your hand, clearly talking about something you were passionate about. Rafe noticed that whenever you talked about something you loved, you talked with your hands ten times more than you did normally.

He assumed you were talking about the ocean or something like that with how big your smile was.

Rafe then put on his asshole Kook facade and began to approach you. “Hey, Y/L/N!” He called. You took one look at him and instantly rolled your eyes.

“Can we help you?” Kie asked him. “I need to talk to Y/N. Alone if that’s not a problem with you.” Rafe sassed the girl. Kie looked at you, almost a nonverbal way of asking if you’d be okay alone.

You gave her a small nod and she reluctantly walked away. “What do you want, Rafe?” You sighed. “Go out with me.” He said. “What?” You questioned. “Go out with me. We can go somewhere on the mainland or somewhere local. Wherever you like.” He explained.

You couldn’t help but let out a small laugh before you realized he wasn’t joking. “You’re serious?” You asked. “Yeah, I’m serious.” Rafe answered. “Sorry if I have a hard time believing you want to go out with me after you’ve treated me.” You said.

“I was a dick. I’ll make it up to you. Just give me a chance.” Rafe replied. You looked at him for a moment, being very wary about the whole offer. “Okay. One date and if I even so much as a sense a stupid practical joke, I’m out.” You finally said.

Rafe smiled down at you before slowly backing up. “Great. I’ll pick you up, Friday at 6.” He said.

You had no idea what just happened. Rafe Cameron asked you out? And he actually seemed to mean it?

And to say the date went well was a total understatement for both you and Rafe. You both had an amazing time together, exploring the mainland and not having to worry about the Kook v. Pogue prejudice.

In the 6 months Rafe had been with you, he soon realized there wasn’t a single thing he didn’t love about you. He loved how you would dance around to your indie and alternative music as if no one was watching.

How you dragged him to the beach to watch the baby turtle eggs hatch. Even though he said he didn’t want to, he’d go anywhere if you asked.

Rafe also loved how you loved life in general. You didn’t care about the class system on the Outer Banks, you just cared about the people you loved. Your dad, your brother, the Pogues, and now Rafe.

Which made him feel even worse about the bet. It was nearing 6 months and Rafe knew he couldn’t just end it with you. He knew how that would hurt you. So he called Topper and asked him to call the whole thing off.

“Maybe we should just end the whole thing. You can have your money and we can call it off.” Rafe said over the phone.

“You aren’t going soft are me now are you?” Topper mocked. “No, I’m just saying this bet is stupid. It’s too easy now.” Rafe lied. “I’ll double it. $1,000 if you can make it to 6 months with Y/N.” Topper said.

Rafe hadn’t known you were going to come over so early so he thought he had time to talk to Topper. But you were standing out in the hallway in front of his door, listening to the whole thing.

“Wow, $1,000. Only an idiot would turn that down.” You sneered. Rafe turned around with wide eyes before quickly hanging up the phone. “H-How much did you hear?” He asked. “All of it.” You answered. “So you asking me out that night was a stupid bet? And our entire relationship has been a lie?” You asked, your voice raising.

“No, Y/N, let me explain.” Rafe pleaded. “Why should I? I think you and Topper explained everything perfectly. I knew I shouldn’t have trusted you. I’ve just been a huge joke you and your friends could laugh about.” You said.

Rafe began to walk towards you but you talking a couple steps back made it very clear you didn’t want him coming near you.

“We’re done, Rafe. I hope you enjoy the money.” You said sadly before you left his bedroom. When you walked into the hall, you saw Sarah standing a little ways away, but you knew she heard everything. “Did you know?” You asked her. “Of course not. I had no idea he was doing this for money.” She answered.

“Everything was a lie. I-I really thought he cared about me.” You spoke quietly, the tears welling up in yours eyes.

Sarah frowned and pulled you into a warm embrace. She couldn’t help but feel guilty since it was her brother who was causing you so much pain. “I know we were supposed to hang out tonight but I think Im just gonna head home.” You said.

She didn’t want you driving home in the state you were in but she also knew that you being alone was what was best for you.

When you arrived home, you avoided your father’s questions like they were the plague and made a b-line for your bedroom. But even then you couldn’t escape Rafe’s presence because everything reminded you of him.

For weeks after you are Rafe broke up, you were a bit different. You didn’t really feel like yourself because you didn’t know what was real anymore. Finding out about the bet made you question everything and your self esteem took a pretty big hit.

But you were good at faking it for the most part. You still hung out with the Pogues as if nothing was wrong.You went out to Boneyard parties, hung out with Kie, surfed with JJ, went shopping with Sarah. But you could only pretend so much.

You were sitting on your surfboard in the water, JJ floating next to you as you two waited for a wave.

“JJ, can I tell you something?” You asked him. “Of course, Y/N.” He said. “Rafe and I broke up. Apparently I was nothing but a cash grab for him.” You confessed. “What? What do you mean, cash grab?” He asked. “I was just a bet. Apparently Topper bet him $500 to go out with me and make it 6 months. I guess he was calling Topper to call off the bet but he offered him $1,000. I haven’t told anyone, only Sarah knows.” You explained.

“You know he’s a moron, right? You’re not even worth $500, you’re priceless, Y/N and don’t let Rafe and his dickhead friends make you think any differently.” JJ said.

You could tell that telling him the truth really riled him up but he never fought with Rafe for the sake of you. Your friendship was more important than wanting to knock Rafe flat on his ass.

“What are you going to do?” JJ asked. “I don’t know. I’m having a very hard time believing he faked everything the past 6 months but Rafe is pretty convincing when he wants to be. But am I really that stupid to think he actually cared about me?” You answered.

“No, that doesn’t make you stupid. And what I’m about to say I will never admit to saying but what if Rafe actually did care about you? I mean, everyone knows his dad is always on his ass about money and he was going to turn it down for you.” JJ said.

You sat quietly for a moment, watching the stillness of the water before looking back to JJ. “Are you saying I should talk to him?” You asked. “I’m saying maybe you owe yourself that much.” He answered. “Since when the hell did you become so insightful? Usually you’d tell me to beat him up or smash his car.” You laughed.

“Well, this time I just want you to be happy. And as much as I hate to say it, he made you very happy.” JJ said. “I really don’t like it when you’re right.” You muttered.

After a couple more minutes, you and JJ headed back to the beach and when you got there, Rafe was standing on the sand a few feet away from the shore line.

You slowed your pace slightly as you made eye contact with him. You readjusted your grip on your board as you and JJ kept walking. “Y/N, hey, can I talk to you?” Rafe asked uncomfortably.

You and JJ had never seen Rafe look less confident before until that moment. “JJ, I’ll meet you back at the Chateau.” You told the blonde. JJ nodded his head but not before giving Rafe a suspecting look as he walked away.

“You wanted to talk?” You asked him. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, Y/N. I should’ve never taken that stupid bet in the first place. I-I guess I was holding a grudge against you before.” He said. “For what? I never did anything to you, Rafe.” You asked. “You left me. You chose the Pogues and the Cut over me. We were always friends before and then you and Kiara just decided it wasn’t good enough anymore. That I wasn’t good enough.” He explained.

“I didn’t choose the Pogues because of you, Rafe, or over you. Figure 8 is toxic and everyone we used to hang out with was terrible and I couldn’t do that anymore. You were the one who froze me out after we slept together. Let’s not also forget that you faked our entire relationship.” You rebutted.

“No, no, Y/N, I didn’t fake anything. Everything we had was real. You have no idea how it easy was to fall for you because you are amazing and I-I messed it up. I hurt you and I know it’s not going to make it better, but I’m sorry.” Rafe said.

You pushed your board into the sand before sitting down in front of it and motioned for Rafe to do the same.

“I was falling in love with you, Rafe. So to hear you and Topper just use me for your own sick enjoyment, broke my heart.” You started. “I defended you to everyone to just find out that they were right.” You finished. “You said ‘was.’ Like past tense.” Rafe spoke quietly.

You swallowed the lump in your throat as you stared at the sunset. “I wish we could just move on, forget it ever happened but I don’t think we can.” You said.

Rafe’s body stiffened and he hung his head low, not liking where the conversation was going.

“But, we can start over. Clean slate.” You added. The boy looked up at you, almost as if he thought you were kidding. “Really?” He asked. “Yeah, really. But, on a few conditions.” You said. “Anything, I will do anything.” He said. “You leave my friends alone. He’s going to kill me for saying this but JJ was actually the one who told me we should talk so you kind of owe him. Second, you let me punch Topper, very very hard.” You told him.

Rafe laughed lightly at your words as he wrapped his arm around your shoulder. “Sounds like a plan.” He said. “Also, give me your phone.” You said. Rafe took his phone out of his pocket and gave it to you.

He looked over your shoulder to see what you were doing as you opened the Venmo app.

You pressed ‘pay and request’ and put Topper’s user name in.

@TopperThornton: Pay $1,000

Summary: congrats, i lost the bet. Y/N is worth so much more. she’s also gonna kick your ass

“Couldn’t have said it better myself.” Rafe commented. You hummed in response, resting your head on his shoulder. Rafe pressed a light kiss on your forehead as the two of you watched the sunset together.

#Outer Banks #outer banks imagine #rafe cameron #rafe cameron imagine #rafe cameron x reader #drew starkey #drew starkey imagine #jj maybank #john b routledge #kiara carrera #pope heyward #sarah cameron #topper thornton #imagine

511 notes · View notes

wincore · 3 years

Text

atlas | kim dongyoung

pairing: doyoung x reader

words: 15.4k

summary: kim doyoung has a lot of titles. student body president, music club president, favourite student of every professor who’s blessed enough to have him. in other words, he’s not your type and never will be. at least he’s a good kisser.

or, you feel the weight of the world on your shoulders and you do not know how to hold things as delicate as glass.

genre: college au, fwb au, hurt/comfort, angst, some fluff

warnings: very suggestive content, making out, language, smoking, alcohol, mentions of sex under influence, me being pretentious,,

prompt: anonymous said: slippery + doyoung + "you can rely on me, you know." from the first dialogue link! LOVE YOU ❤️

song rec(s): playlist here !

a/n: yes it’s me experimenting out of my comfort zone again. yes you are required by law to listen to keshi while reading this hahahaha anyway writing this was painful. <3 (aka today i tried writing very complex human emotions and failed again. classic.)

In the beginning, there was no beginning. Ergo, this isn’t really a thing.

You shouldn’t be thinking of summer in Introduction to Latin. You are a good (perhaps great, if your ego allows) student after all. Here you are, though, listening to the ticking of the clock and wondering if you sigh loud enough, you won’t have to construct another sentence with the word for ‘death’. You pause to tell yourself that you shouldn’t be thinking of summer out of class either. Unremarkable; that's what it was and you don’t like unremarkable things.

When two people end up alone together, there’s not much to make of.

“You know,” he had said, locking eyes. “We should get out of here.”

“And then what?”

“Fuck.”

So here’s the thing: this isn’t and won’t be a thing.

Doyoung has never been subtle when drunk, you found out, and he’s not as gentle as he looks. You flip the page of your notebook absentmindedly. You don’t like where your thoughts are going; the clinking of ice against glass rings in your ears again. It’s been far too long (one whole month) and you’re craving a bit of fun. You may forget yourself but you’re reaching your fingertips a little too far to call him again. More excuses pop up. See, in your world of perfection, there’s a hierarchy of things; men rank rather low.

(Fun doesn’t.)

Here’s another thing: you forget yourself quite often. You know very well that you’re the one who continued this not-thing and now you’re daydreaming of Kim Doyoung in class hours.

And under grey bed sheets with a tired smile, Doyoung is hard to forget.

It was a party, it always is. That time, however, was the first party of the year Doyoung and you happened to be attending at the same time. You can’t remember who hosted it—the frat probably—but it was at a bar called the ‘The Meeting Place’ which had too many people you didn’t care about. Doyoung was there, in his laid-back glory, and you were drawn in far too easily. Being single did not help your case—and the alcohol certainly didn’t. You’re not sure if it was the gentle touches against your wrist or quick words that left his mouth or the attractive all-black get-up. All you know is that it was your mouth against his by the end of the night in a small booth, hot and impatient. Once, twice, thrice and you didn’t even need parties anymore.

It’s not like you weren’t aware of what you were doing; it’s just that you were quick to give in—like you didn’t want to resist in the first place. And now, summer smells like Doyoung’s perfume.

The first night had given Mr. Student Body President a near-stroke. You weren’t the type to sleep with strange (semi-acquainted) men at parties either so the morning had been full of awkward explanations to each other till you’d kissed him to shut him up (much like in a disgusting romantic comedy, minus the feelings) and somehow, it worked. He didn’t refuse and if you recall, he’d eventually pulled you closer by the waist.

You huff, twirling your pen. He’d never admit it.

You didn’t kiss so sloppily after that, unless it was to make out against a wall or while fumbling with the keys to your apartment. The lack of alcohol can bring wonders. You were a little surprised that he’d agreed—he is the Doyoung you’ve known since freshman year after all; blunt, rude, cares more for his grades than he’d ever for you. How laughable. He’s almost the same as you.

Here’s one last thing: Kim Doyoung is not and cannot be your type.

You had the same part-time job in your second semester at a local fast food joint, and to summarize, your interactions were less than friendly. You can’t possibly count the number of times he yelled at you for trivial mistakes, and the number of times you sent angry, clipped sentences his way. So, yes, neither of you have told anyone—just acting friendly got you enough eyebrow raises. If there’s anything worse than contradicting yourself almost directly, it’s having to explain that to your friends. So, you kept it a secret and so did he, for his own reasons.

You massage your forehead. If you think any more of this during class hours, you’re going to have to classify this as a terrible, terrible problem; like you don’t have enough already. You tune in to the lecture again, hoping it drowns out the rest of your thoughts.

You tap your pen against the desk till you’re asked to stop by the professor. There goes your last resort. It isn’t the first time, but you breathe a sigh of relief at the hands of the clock. Casual means casual—you know it better than anyone. Maybe it would be easier if you could be more open about it. But you can’t. Your own problems aside, Doyoung would kill you if his reputation went down, even a nick. Men like that are so difficult, you curse to yourself.

You run into Ten in the hallways, brightening at his absurdly wide grin. In fact, you haven’t seen him remotely upset since freshman year, when he couldn’t join the dance club, not because he failed the audition but because he mixed up the dates and missed it entirely. (It’s okay; he got in the next year.)

“Guess what!” he yells before you’re even in conversation range.

“What?” you yell back.

“No, guess,” he says, when you’re close enough.

You roll your eyes. “You scored a date?”

Ten deadpans. “No. I don’t even want one.”

“Loser.”

“No, you.”

“How clever.”

Ten flicks your forehead with no provocation whatsoever, making you yelp in pain. After a minute of cursing on your part, he squishes your cheeks to bring you back to reality—like he wasn’t the cause. You bite your lip to keep yourself from scowling. His hair is still light brown from the bleach, and you fix his bangs out of habit; your dumb friends are all you have at the end of the day. You sigh. They all lean on you unwittingly.

“Anyway, the news? I’m not guessing anything else,” you warn, taking a sip of your coffee.

“Well,” he draws out the syllable. “I heard- know you’re into the smart type. You know, student council kinda guys? So…”

You choke, the coffee leaving your mouth just as quick as it entered.

“Who told you that?” The laugh that leaves your mouth is forced and certainly fake but it’s the best you can do.

Ten rolls her eyes, still smiling. “I was thinking if you would be interested in a certain Park Hyungmin.”

Oh. Student body vice-president. He’s most definitely your type, with a gifted body and equally strong academic prowess—not to mention perfectly maintained tan skin and the most radiant smile you’ve ever seen in your life.

“Oh, yeah, he’s hot,” you nod in agreement. “What do you want me to do with him?”

“He likes you. Like, totally has the hots for you. And I owe him so please help me out here.”

You furrow your brows, heaving a deep sigh.

“You...want me to go on a date with him?” you ask.

You can oblige. Park Hyungmin is the hottest dude on campus (probably). It’s a win-win situation—in fact, it’s even better. A certain bitter taste finds itself in your mouth. It must be the coffee. You swallow it.

“Yeah.”

And the deal’s done.

It was casual commitment, like most things you do for fun. You don’t think much of it, and the thought takes its final bow when you run into Doyoung himself.

Well, sort of.

You turn heel when he appears in your line of sight, pretending to fix your hair against a damn wall. You aren’t quite ready to face him yet, considering the coffee hasn’t kicked in—it’s not healthy how much you depend on it. Dependence is different, however, from consciously drowning yourself in it.

See, Doyoung is anything but tolerable without a few shots of vodka. Or after sex. Or when he’s mumbling in his sleep. And you can’t erase any of those scenes. This is you trying to save yourself (and Doyoung) from embarrassment and a whole lot of explanation.

His coat looks expensive and you’d rather he had it on instead of on his arm. The tucked-in sweater and pants combo accentuates the line of his waist and the colour—you wonder where he found a teal so fitting—looks serene in the crowd. He’s wearing his glasses though, looking a little less put together than usual. Still, no one seems to notice and he continues to explain something to his group of friends.

God forbid you find Doyoung attractive during daytime.

His lips are chapped but pink as ever, the hair messed up by either the wind or his friends—you should stop staring by now. You give in. You’ll text him to book a hotel room tonight.

Sometimes you wonder how he has that large a friend circle, and always, the question answers itself. Eloquence, wit and regrettably, good looks—what does he lack? Maybe if he lost the habit to nag people around fifty-six times a day, he’d be the perfect man.

An arm slings over your shoulder, punting the soul right out of your body.

“Fuck, Johnny, don’t do that,” you hiss, placing your hand over your chest involuntarily.

The head of the photography club apparently spends his time terrorizing everyone he remotely knows. You make a foul expression but iIt’s not like he ever minds your scowling. He says he’s had enough practice from teasing Doyoung (and you’ll admit, it’s the only time you feel sorry for him). You were certain Doyoung would have filed him for harassment sometime in sophomore year.

“What are you even looking at?” Johnny asks, raising an eyebrow at the plain offwhite expanse of the wall in front of you.

You feel hot at the neck. “I was fixing my hair.”

“In front of a wall?”

You click your tongue. “Do you not have class?”

“Oh, don’t be so quick to send me off.” He places a hand over his chest in mock hurt, fingers stretched delicately.

To your dismay, the rest of his friends gather around giving you happy greetings—greetings only carefree college boys are capable of delivering. To your further dismay, Kim Doyoung arches an eyebrow at you, the same way he does on nights you’re doing things less than appropriate to think of in broad daylight.

“Hey, Doyoung, don’t you have anything to say? Or were you too drunk to remember?”

You bite down on your lip a little too hard. Doyoung, on the other hand, looks like he’s just seen God, stammering out a “what?” nevertheless.

“Weren’t you supposed to buy (name) a drink for driving you home that night?”

“Right,” he says, clearing his throat.

Oh, he’s bought you a drink enough times. Summer has waned but whatever thread you tied around your wrists hasn’t. Right now, your guess is that Doyoung has been ensnared in the common ritual for college boys to walk around campus and declare their friend is single just to embarrass him (or by some miracle, score him a date).

Everything, apart from the way you look at Doyoung, feels like a charade. You shake your head with a quick laugh, smacking Johnny in the arm and pay your condolences to Doyoung—keep it light. You’re good at it, or pretending you’re good at it, at the very least.

Doyoung’s gaze on you lingers for a moment and then you breathe. You’re going to be late for class—you offer the classic excuse and you’re out of there. In a way, it’s exciting. You’ve always wanted to have a secret relationship, even if this isn’t a real one.

Doyoung is like the summer breeze, and you’d like for him to stay that way.

The next time you grace each other’s presence is when Doyoung’s tongue is in your mouth and his hands are running up under your shirt.

He’s quite a pretty sight—messy hair, red lips and rosy cheeks. He moans into the kiss as he has quite a few times now and there’s the lovers’ high running through either of your minds. When he presses his lips to your neck, a soft restrained sound escapes you, not quite prepared for the sting of electricity through your skin. He moves to your collarbone and shoulders and then even lower, hands gripping your waist tight. The walls do not have ears here; these hotels are cheap but they’re built for privacy and maybe you’ll let yourself believe for once that you can belong to someone.

“Why did you text me in the middle of the goddamn night?” he mutters against the base of your neck.

“You want reasons now?” you whisper, hands running through his hair.

Doyoung has pretty fingers, pressing at the right places and prettier eyes that look at you with something akin to, dare you say it, love. He kisses you like he hasn’t had enough; and it makes you feel important.

He’s even better when he’s annoyed.

You wake up at around five in the morning. Propping yourself up on one arm, you take a moment to look at your partner. It’s easy to make out the line of his nose against the pillow, and if you focus, you can see his lashes against his cheek and his dark mop of hair clinging to his forehead. However gentle the moonlight is, it is kindest on a lover.

Funny.

Too tired to sneak out, you go back to sleep.

“All I’m saying is that you have too much coffee,” Doyoung complains, slipping on his loose black sweatshirt. “It can’t be good for your health.”

You shake your head, scrolling through your phone as you lay on your belly. You’ve seen this view enough times—his back to you and sitting at the opposite edge of the bed, his incessant complaints and opinions about something that happened recently, running his hand through his hair when he sighs. You press on the calendar app and type in a note labeled ‘x’. Keeping tabs isn’t a bad thing; especially if you like order. Spending too many nights with someone is going to land you in trouble. That said, if you could trap love in a bottle, you would.

“You taste like coffee,” Doyoung adds with reddening ears.

Sometimes, it’s easy to ignore what he says if you listen to the sound of his voice instead. You sit up, scooting closer as Doyoung shoots you an alarmed look. He’s so cute like this; something about all the painted fences he puts up around him makes you want to lean in closer.

“So,” you poke his side. “How many relationships have you been in? Proper ones.”

“Three,” he answers, to your surprise.

Your eyebrows shoot up. “That’s more than I’ve been in!”

Doyoung furrows his. “How many have you been in?”

“One.”

He seems equally surprised but doesn’t probe further. After all, the price sticker that spells ‘youth’ clings to his forehead just as it clings to yours.

“How many people have you fucked?” you ask suddenly, enjoying the visible flush across his neck.

“You’re doing this on purpose,” he notes, flicking your forehead.

“Ow!” You place your palm against your forehead. “Okay, I get it, you have nothing to brag about.”

He shakes his head, an exasperated sigh leaving him. “I just don’t think you have to know. I like privacy.”

“Wait.” You gasp. “Don’t tell me- That night- don’t tell me you were a virgin—”

Doyoung squishes your cheeks between his thumb and forefinger, a laugh erupting from your mouth.

“Who’s a virgin?”

Nothing about this, you find yourself realizing, is complicated. It’s easy, gentle, natural, like a breath of fresh air—everything but complicated. Even under dim lights and within the depths of night, Doyoung is warm and uncomplicated. His chest, his hands, his lips—they are warm, as are his words.

But Doyoung is a fucking fairytale.

Even after these few months, all you know about him, in the definitive format, is that he plays the keys for more hours than he sleeps. What he does for fun, what his classes are, how he became student body president—you could play guessing games all night.

“Do your friends know where you spend your nights?” you ask, leaning back against the pillows.

“They know what I’m doing, not who I’m with,” he responds, running his fingers through his hair.

You purse your lips. It’s nothing hurtful but you don’t like the hush-hush in his tone.

“Why not?”

“Because this is a secret,” he responds as if it’s the most natural thing in the world. “Do you want them to know?”

He’s right.

“Ah, whatever,” you mutter, a stream of curses following when your elbow collides hard with the edge of the bedside table.

“Your mouth is filthy.” He looks away to his phone. “I don’t swear as much.”

“Well, of course it is. I had your—”

Doyoung presses his palm against your lips with a tired sigh. “Please. Don’t speak. For the sake of my sanity.”

You smile under his hand and he returns it; and the November morning warms up.

“Where were you last night?”

You were expecting the question. Areum is the worst possible candidate for a roommate if you want some privacy. You don’t think she ever sleeps; sometimes, you wonder if she even showers because all she does is stare at her laptop screen and adjust her designs. Her lips are always chapped and her hair is always in a simple low ponytail but somehow still messy. You’ve never met someone so exhausted yet so full of life at the same time.

“Who were you with last night?” Eunji yells from the bathroom, before the two of them laugh.

You knew you shouldn’t have stayed the morning. You have the nosiest roommates anyone could (not) ask for. But they’re still your friends, you tell yourself begrudgingly. You would tell them about Doyoung if it weren’t for Eunji’s big mouth and Areum’s lack of common sense. And if it weren’t for the inherent comfort of privacy.

(Some part of you wants to keep him to yourself. You don’t care about student council president Doyoung or his friend group’s everything-regulator Doyoung or always-has-his-shit-together Doyoung. The one in your bed is the most loving.)

Areum adjusts her glasses, narrowing her eyes at you. “So? Any answer?”

You break out of your daydream at her voice, feeling a flush creep up your neck.

“I don’t have to explain anything,” you retort, snatching the coffee she brewed from the tabletop. “It was a Friday night and the two of you like Netflix more than me.”

“That’s mine,” Areum mumbles out a weak complaint.

“But don’t go out alone,” Eunji whines. “It can’t be safe.”

You laugh. “You know me. I don’t do anything too dangerous. Besides, you guys have that tracker app.”

They shrug, offering you a thin smile. A part of you is happy that they trust you but another part wonders what it would be like to be worried over. Maybe getting nagged isn’t so bad.

You take a sip of Areum’s coffee and almost spit it out right back.

“Did you add salt?” you ask, wiping at your mouth and hoping the taste disappears.

“Uh.” A reply so intelligent, you wonder if she ever pays attention to anything she's doing.

You take a moment (a few), sigh (several times) and make your way to the shelves. Grumbling, you make her a proper cup of coffee before you leave.

Classes don’t wait for you (even if you think they should) and the world doesn’t wait for you (again, you think it should wait for people) so you’ve made it a point to understand the whole deal about rules. If everyone followed the rules, it would be quite a pretty scene; messing up is only valid if it’s done prettily. You laugh at the thought. That’s near impossible. The bus ride to the campus consists of music and thoughts of bleak tomorrows—an average commute for college kids, you think. You sure hope you aren’t alone in this.

Doyoung smiles at you in the hallway today, and despite your best efforts, it makes your day smell a little fresher.

Your day: classes, coffee break, classes, complaining with Ten, assignments, ‘me’ time. For someone who pretends to be laid back, you use your planner as though for survival. There’s no sticky notes or colourful sketches (except on occasion); just good old fashioned to-do lists and a calendar marked with time you’ve spent on productivity. Every day is a list to be completed. If people call routine a man-made cage, instinct is the biological cage. You’d rather be in control of the cage you’re in. You’d rather be in control of yourself. It’s scary otherwise.

So you know how to get the job done—it’s ingrained into you the same way you would place your hands over your ears at loud sounds, or the way you would run to your bed in the dark after switching off the lights.

It never occurs to you that the reason your world is so perfect is a sad one.

Sometime next month, it’s going to snow. Not yet though, and it’s still too cold.

The inside of the cafe helps the slightest, the heaters situated far back from where you sit. Christmas decorations are up already and the combination of red and green meshes delightfully into the form of an aching headache. The wood paneling on the walls are worn at the corners, the garlands hardly covering them, and the barista behind the counter seems as gloomy as the decorations are bright. You wouldn’t be noticing all of this if you weren’t stuck in one position.

You lean your cheek further into your palm and sigh, only this time Ten asks you to, quote, ‘shut the fuck up’.

He pulls up his sleeve and reaches for another pencil. His cryptic process continues, as it has been for the past half an hour and you feel yourself getting impatient, trying to not bounce your leg and get another bout of quibbling from your half-mad artist friend. You don’t usually run low on patience; but Ten has a special pass to test drive it.

“How much lon—”

“Shh!” He hushes you quickly. You can’t remember why you agreed to being his portrait study subject but you sure as hell regret it.

Around fifteen minutes later, you take a (permitted) breath. You have neither the energy nor the neck strength to glare at Ten but you make sure to show your displeasure by snatching the cookies from the table with a particularly sour look. He gets up and pushes you to the side of the small worn-out couch offered by the equally small booth.

“God, that chair was uncomfortable. My butt is frozen solid,” he lets you know, and you roll your eyes.

“You know, if we weren’t friends in high school, I would never be friends with you,” you state.

Ten tilts his head to the side, a mocking pout over his lips. “I would die without you, (name). Really.”

You smack his arm and he yelps, smacking your arm right back. The sound attracts some attention and giggles, and you make a gagging gesture to let them know you are in way or form in a relationship. The low-volume music changes to something with a more distinguishable beat, the sound of doors opening and closing almost every two minutes accompanying. Arriving on time is an accomplishment, especially arriving before rush hour on Fridays at the only decent cafe on campus, but both of your classes end early and there is no way you aren’t taking advantage of that. Leaving, however, is mostly done when you’re being glared at by the waiters and waitresses.

“Doyoung asked about you,” Ten says, all of a sudden. “Kim Doyoung.”

You try to not show concern, but raise an eyebrow. “What? So? He’s not my type or anything.”

You bite your tongue. That was too quick a response, too obvious. Your cheeks grow hot. Ten doesn't say anything, however, and for a moment, you think you’re in safe waters.

“Are you guys… into each other or not?”

You cough, trying to show your surprise at something so outrageous. “Why would you think that? Does he look like someone who dates around?”

“Actually, he’s been on quite a few dates.”

“No way.”

You know that. He’s told you about it before, in vague references, but you know about them nonetheless.

“Isn’t one student council guy enough?” you mumble. “Why are we talking about Doyoung?”

He shrugs, a familiar feline smile on his face. “Just asking. He talks about you sometimes. Actually, we forced it out of him but whatever.”

You shake your head. “You’re all terrible.”

“You seem to like him though.”

“Who said that?”

Ten sighs, ignoring your question. “If you guys are dating—”

“We’re not.”

“—or fucking—”

“Ten.”

“—you should learn a thing or two about him. The guy’s not as annoying as he looks. Or stuck-up. He’s really nice but don’t tell him I said that.”

“I know that,” you snap, feeling warm at the neck all of a sudden. “I know him.”

“Oh, you do? Tell me what his hobbies are then. Or his major. Or the clubs he’s in, apart from the student council.”

“He- He likes to sing and he’s- he’s—god, what is this? An interrogation? I’m not going to meet his mom for dinner.”

Ten gives you an ‘I knew it’ look before leaning his elbow onto the table. “You’re sleeping with a guy you don’t know anything about. Serial killers would love you.”

You massage your forehead. “Look, I know he’s a good guy, okay? And he’s sweet- and- and—wait a minute. Oh my god, you tricked me.”

Ten lets out a snort. “Hey. Okay, look, the other guys might be dumb as shit but I have, you know, a working set of eyes. I can tell. It’s not that hard.”

You grumble but the cat’s out of the bag anyway. You should’ve known Ten would figure it out—he’s a nosy little shit, and he’s been that way since high school.

“Whatever. As long as Doyoung doesn’t start panicking about his tarnished reputation or whatever.”

“Oh, I think he’s desperate to let everyone know.”

“To you, Ten, everything seems obvious. It’s annoying.” You mess up his hair.

“No, I mean, I thought you were dating.”

“Well, we’re not.”

Ten shrugs.

“And I don’t like him,” you add. “I like the- the thing that’s going on because there’s no feelings attached.”

He looks somewhat pained, eyebrows furrowed and lips pursed, but doesn’t respond to your explanation. “Can I ask for a favour?”

“No.”

Ten sighs. “Come on. You didn’t even hear me out.”

“You’re going to say something stupid. Or insulting.”

“It’s neither, promise.”

You run your hand through your hair, breathing shallow. “Fine. I don’t have to agree though.”

Ten purses his lips. “It’d be better if you did.”

You hum in response, biting into the cookie and trying to ignore the glare from the nearby waitress. It’s about time you left anyway.

“Get to know him, dude. Don’t break his heart.”

“What?”

“Just kidding. There’s a party tonight. Hosted by yours truly. Finally moved out of that stinky dorm room. Bring over some friends but not more than three. And lend me some money for a juicebox.”

“That’s a lot,” you mutter. “You ask for a lot of favours.”

“Oh, speaking of which, Hyungmin—”

“He already asked me out on a date. Am I supposed to say no? You never mentioned he has such an attractive voice.”

“Oh, I’m not telling you to not go on that date. You have to, actually. I’m going to be in a lot of trouble otherwise.”

“That sounds good to me.”

“Shut up. I’m not done speaking.”

You roll your eyes.

“But if you didn’t, I could draw some conclusions.”

“What am I, your chemistry experiment now?”

“Well, you and Doyoung seem to be—”

“Don’t complete that sentence.”

“I was going to say something funny.”

Ten flashes you a blinding smile and you sigh. By now, you’re about to get kicked out of here so you stand up discreetly while he packs up his stuff. You hug your jacket close to you as soon as you leave, shivering at the evening breeze. The sky is inky, but with a faint sort of ink—deep blue and light, all at once. From the crowd, you can tell classes just got over for quite a few people, eclectic chatter filling up the street.

“Fine. I’ll bring Eunji,” you tell Ten after some contemplation. “And whoever else responds to my text first. Areum never leaves the room. You know that.”

“Thanks, (name)!” he messes up your hair. “I would give you a kiss but someone will end up punching my pretty face.”

You furrow your brows. “Well, you’re not my type anyway.”

“I’m too good for you,” he responds in a sing-song manner, waving at you before running off and disappearing into the university crowd.

There’s always a sort of buzz in the air you can’t quite describe at college parties.

Even if this is a relatively small one, you feel an oncoming headache the moment you enter Ten’s new apartment, which you’re sure had a ‘no parties’ rule in the rental contract. You spot Kun, Ten’s roommate from the dorms and he flashes you a quick smile in greeting before he’s swept up by a doting crowd. Apparently, a cute guy in animal sciences is rare and it makes him rather popular.

Eunji disappears from your side the moment she spots Johnny, and the number of eye rolls you’ve given her haven’t warned her off him yet. You suppose it takes heartbreak to change a person. Sighing, you make your way to the kitchen only to be greeted with the strange sight of Yuta trying to balance Jaehyun on his back so they can imitate some anime formation and back out immediately. Living room, it is, despite its populous space. (You don’t really want to think of bedrooms right now.)

The apartment is quite big for what Ten told you the rent was. The hallway to the two bedrooms is narrow but you suppose something has to be sacrificed for space. You furrow your eyebrows at the two bedroom doors. Ten never said he was getting a roommate. You shrug it off, sitting down on the rather stiff couch. The lack of furniture, apart from the couch and a coffee table, makes the place look even larger and people sparse. You like the beige walls; Ten’s always loved warmer colours but something makes you think he’s going to be ruining them in a few days with garish green paint before he comes crying about that to you.

“Hey.”

You look up to the familiar voice, heart rising to your throat.

“You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” Doyoung remarks before sitting down beside you and offering you a cup of god-knows-what.

“I don’t take drinks from strange men,” you say, biting down your smile and crossing your arms.

“If you didn’t take drinks from strange men, we wouldn’t be fu—”

“Doyoung!” you hiss before looking at him with careful suspicion. “Are you drunk?”

“No. A little bit. Not enough.”

You sigh. “How will you get home now?”

“I live here, idiot.”

“You’re- You’re Ten’s roommate?” you sputter.

“Yeah. New one,” he responds. “He used to live across our room in the dorms, I can’t believe I actually agreed to this.”

“I can’t believe it either. I’ve seen cats and dogs friendlier with each other than the two of you.”

Doyoung laughs. “He’s surprisingly one of the better people to room with. I’d rather eat my own blanket than room with Yuta again.”

You laugh at his irked expression, eyebrows furrowed so cutely. The line of his brow bone to nose to lips, it seems a little too perfect to belong to someone. He relaxes his shoulders a little, leaning back on the couch as he looks somewhat lost in thought. (“You think too much,” you’d told him once. “And you think too little.”) If only that were true, you smile to yourself.

“Are you sure you can hold parties here?” you as when the music suddenly rises in volume.

“Well, it said student-friendly,” Doyoung responds, looking visibly disturbed. “Not sure if I want to test the limits of that so early.”

There’s a pause, filled in with loud pop music. You don’t think Ten, your dear introvert, would have agreed to such a party but there’s a chance Johnny or Jaehyun had something to do with this. You don’t know who to suspect when it comes to their group of friends.

“I still can’t believe you’re rooming with Ten.” You look at Doyoung.

“Well, that makes, what, eleven of us, I guess?”

You laugh, feeling conscious all of sudden. Maybe you should listen to Ten’s advice.

“Doyoung,” you call, looking at the cup in your hands a little too passionately. “What’s your major?”

He looks at you with eyes widened ever so slightly, and a pause over his lips.

“Linguistics,” he answers.

“Oh. You said something about it once,” you mumble, recalling something vague about an assignment of his. “You know mine?”

“Yeah,” he answers, eyes cast on his watch.

“Well, that makes me feel a little guilty,” you mumble as softly as you can.

“You should be,” he says. “You never listen to anything I say.”

You scoff. “You just complain most of the time.”

“Really now?”

“Yes,” you snap, looking away.

You look back again when you hear the sound of Doyoung’s laugh, a distinct brightness in it. Sometimes, you wonder if you really are as awful as you’ve made yourself be.

“You’re cute,” he says. “No wonder everyone is so in love with you.”

For a moment, you think he’s going to kiss you.

“Everyone?” you laugh. You don’t care about everyone. It’s burdensome.

“Everyone. They hate you too, by the way.” He smiles to himself. “Heard you’re going on a date with that dimwit. Hyungmin.”

You feel a sudden discomfort in your being. Taking a sip of the drink, you try to shake it off as best as you can.

“Yeah, I- I don’t think I’ll go,” you say, waving it off.

Why are you lying? You left it hanging on a maybe. Part of you wants to tell Doyoung; he is your friend after all and you tell friends stuff like this. The other part tells you this is cheating; lying and pretending everything is okay—it feels like cheating.

“Oh.” He looks lost before he focuses on you. “Why not?”

“Why do you care?” you ask, trying desperately to calm the uprising in your chest.

He stays quiet for a few seconds and then shrugs, looking away from you. It makes you feel a little guilty to dismiss the situation so quickly, another item to add to your troubles. You sigh.

“Sorry,” you say. “I didn’t mean it like that.”

“No, it’s okay. You’re right.” You can see his Adam's apple bob up and down.

“I’m not,” you say. “I’m wrong. I really didn’t mean it.”

He looks at you all at once, his gaze so gentle that it makes you think he wants to kiss you, or do something equally affectionate. Instead he sighs, downing whatever’s left of his drink before a wash of sudden looseness does away with the tension in his body.

“You have any more questions for me?” he asks, smiling. “What's it like to be student body president—or, or what instruments can I play? My favourite animal? Colour?”

You smile back. “What is your favourite animal?”

“I don’t have one. Don’t like them. Unless it’s a soft toy.”

“No way. You’re lying.”

“Now, I answer your questions and you call me a liar? Makes me a little hesitant to answer the next.”

You roll your eyes. “Okay, next then. Why didn’t you join the frat? All your friends are in it.”

“Hurts my ego.”

You laugh. He’s still probably an honorary member. There is no way he’s apart from friends for too long with all those feelings of fraternity he has, no matter what he says. It’s the same as you. Affection leads nowhere though; just to short-lived moments of comfort.

You realize, through the course of the night, that you never asked. How he got into the student council, what his classes are, what he does for fun—you never asked. It’s almost like you didn’t want to know.

How sad, you muse to yourself, to be this way. To be so wrapped up in your own problems that you fail to see people around you. Pity, however, isn’t something to feel at a party. You talk with Doyoung for the rest of the night till the sound of his voice makes you feel certain ghosts of butterflies, and till you have to take Eunji home before she does something she regrets. This is what it really means to have the price tag of ‘youth’ strung across you perhaps—when you feel old and immature all at once, and in between, when you feel nothing at all.

Doyoung is too old to mistake love. Or too young.

Labels don’t define anything, especially when it comes to relationships—so even if he calls it love, whispers it to himself at midnight when he’s sitting alone on his bed while his friends are passed out drunk on the floor, it is empty. And then there’s you. The heat of your skin, the curse of your smile and that cheeky laugh you do to get on his nerves. He wants all of it and he’s not ashamed—but he’d be a liar to say he can shout it to the whole world. He’s not that kind of man, and what is his can remain his without the rest of the world prying its damn fingers in. The first night, no, the second—third? He can’t remember which night it was but something pent up in him exploded and he didn’t try to control it for once.

“Ow,” he mutters.

His throat burns from the whiskey. He hates drinking alone but you’re either asleep or with friends and he can’t think of anyone else but you. He tugs at the turtleneck collar, getting uncomfortable by the minute, and then proceeds to take off his coat.

For a moment, he considers getting back to the living room. There were more than enough people with lingering touches against his shoulder and longing gazes—they’re not you. He leans back onto his bed. Another hour and everyone will be gone; why did he even let them hold a party in the first place? Parties just remind him of you—he takes a whiff and smells summer and lemon vodka all of a sudden. A deep sigh leaves his lips.

You might not seem to find yourself especially sad, but Doyoung finds something oddly touching about you. Maybe it’s the way you say his name, he muses, like you’re desperately trying to fill the gaps. But it can’t be him in particular, of course—it’s a lover, any lover.

He hates long nights, just as he hates winter but lately, they haven’t been feeling too cold. Isn’t it ridiculous the way he’s running after you? Doyoung was never meant for this. It’s fucking pathetic and it makes him want to tear all his hair out but there he is, still and quiet in the same place. A certain agony makes its way through him. His hands are freezing and yet his insides are burning—nothing makes sense and right now, he doesn’t want it to. He presses his cold hands to the warmth of his cheeks and a laugh erupts from his mouth.

He must be going crazy to laugh like this in an empty room. The car lights from the window travel slowly from wall to ceiling, the only thing moving in the stagnant of his room.

Inevitably, he thinks of the end. It should come quick; in fact, he’s never been one to do this. He’s always been someone to get attached to people. He doesn’t know how the end will come because this shouldn’t have begun in the first place.

Doyoung’s out of breath.

“Crazy bastard,” he mumbles to himself, followed by a groan when he lifts his head up. As if on cue, the door opens and shuts with a bang. Ten walks in looking drowsy, running his hand through his hair with a disgruntled face.

“I hate to say this,” he slurs. “But you’re right. We can’t have extra furniture and parties. Gotta choose one.”

Ten lays down flat on the bed. “I vote out that ugly ass clock you bought. Why do we need it? We have phones and laptops.”

“It was a gift,” Doyoung mutters.

“Oh. Uh. Actually, someone already, uh—”

“Leave it. We’ll talk about that in the morning.”

Doyoung massages his forehead, groaning at the pain when Ten suddenly decides he’s all up for cuddling.

“Ew,” he says, scooting away from Ten. “Get away from me.”

“You don’t mean that,” Ten whines, trying very hard to pull Doyoung into a hug. Of course, his attempts are blocked by Doyoung’s palm against his forehead.

After a few more seconds of trying, Ten huffs and turns away, crossing his arms. “I don’t like you anyway.”

“I know,” Doyoung mutters.

Ten erupts into laughter, sounding more like a psychopath than a close friend of his.

“You do that every time you like someone?” he asks in between fits.

Doyoung raises an eyebrow. “I just said—okay, yeah. Whatever.”

There’s a much needed silence and Doyoung wonders if he can just fall asleep without kicking Ten out.

“You should tell (name),” Ten says all of a sudden, Doyoung’s heart stopping at your name.

“What?” he whispers.

Ten looks at him as though he’s talking to a particularly stupid child. It makes Doyoung scowl but there’s too much alcohol in his system to know if he really means it.

“You don’t- you’re- everyone in this goddamn building knows,” Ten explains, exasperated. “Jaehyun knows, and he’s the densest kid I’ve ever met. God, if you like (name), go for it.”

Doyoung blushes so deep, he considers pressing his palms to his cheeks again. He thinks for the next few moments. Ah well, if they had to find out, he’s glad he didn’t have to declare it himself.

“Whatever, just ask (name) out. It can’t be that complicated.”

Except it is. You don’t have to spell it out for him—he knows the way you feel. The two of you only ever wanted one thing out of this. But if there’s something Doyoung isn’t good at, it’s keeping his mouth shut. He wonders how many times he let it slip, wonders if you even care enough to notice. God, it’s starting to sound pitiful for him.

“Ten. How much did you drink?” Doyoung asks, raising his head.

“Nothing. None. I’m not drunk.” Ten shrugs. “Just sleepy.”

A ‘wow’ is all Doyoung can respond with. He still isn’t quite finished figuring out what sort of horrific planet Ten stumbled from. A notification ding distracts him from kicking Ten off his bed and he has half a mind to toss it onto the bedside table but it’s still half. He softens almost immediately.

It’s a text from you: a ‘u’ followed by a smiley face and then a meme he can’t quite read through hazy eyes. He finds himself smiling anyway and sends a barrage of emojis, whatever he finds because he likes the way you get annoyed at them. Sighing, he decides that’s enough. He’s not in the right state of mind for conversation.

Doyoung shuts his phone off, attempts to push Ten off the bed one last time before closing his eyes and dozing off.

Not every day is meant to be fun—you know that in your twenties—but it’s still somewhat disappointing to have bad days. Like youth is meant to give you some sort of happiness daily. That’s what they make it sound like.

You groan, rubbing at your back. Sitting at your study desk for so long does not have good long term effects. At least, your temporary, meaningless assignments are done. You scowl at the text on your laptop screen; the more you look at it, the more you hate it and so, you shut it off. It’s not like your pissy professor is going to be impressed by anything you do. However, you like the orderly certainty of schoolwork.

Break time consists of guilt and sugary snacks. You’re done with most everything and you suppose leaving the final review of things to a later date can’t hurt. In fact, it sounds rather appeasing. A few more moments pass in making a decision.

You get dressed. The apartment feels eerie all alone, and you’re sure as hell not going to spend the rest of your evening here. You shiver, quickly striding out the front door and locking it before taking out your phone.

People misunderstand winter. Winter is only the end of things; and sometimes, the beginning. It isn’t cruel or crushing, it’s just taking its course. However, you have a tendency to blame seasons for all that happen in it. For instance, you shouldn’t be missing summer when you really miss the first night with Doyoung.

He picks up after calling thrice. You wonder what he’s even up to, if Saturday evenings are also booked full for such a guy.

“Why do you take so long to pick up?” you complain. “Do you not get days off?”

“I’m busy,” he hisses.

Something’s wrong.

You pause, unsure what to do. It’s not his voice but the one in the background that catches your attention.

Inviting him somewhere.

Rather sensually.

Your ears feel hot and you drop the call. Of course. Of fucking course. You’re the idiot thinking it was a thing. This whole thing is casual—feeling sorry wasn’t in the contract. Fucking around was.

It’s not like you’ll be heartbroken by something like this. Of course not. Of course. Doyoung and you never had a beginning so there isn’t an end, really. It’s fine. It’s fine. You take a deep breath and browse through your phone. With the onset of Christmas holidays, you have around three options left. Ten (yikes), Jaehyun (no way) or the latest addition, Hyungmin.

Well, you’re dressed. You have to go somewhere. And your statement about Hyungmin being the hottest guy on campus still stands.

You send two texts to the boy before deciding that’s apparently enough time waiting. He picks up after a few rings, voice groggy from what you assume to be a late afternoon nap.

“You up for a drink?” You cut to the point.

“Uh? Oh, uh, now? I am, of course- I just need—”

“Twenty minutes. I’ll text you the address.”

Nothing cheers you up like your favourite bar. Or friends. Or people who respond to calls.

Hongdae is as busy as ever. You knew the bar would be packed but not this packed. Still, you managed to grab a seat at the bar table. With the oncoming night, the smell is just going to get worse—so there’s nothing wrong with treating yourself to some lemon vodka (and its refreshing scent).

Hyungmin arrives exactly four minutes early, and the mussed up hair makes you think he must have been in a hurry. For what, you can’t be sure.

You can still see the inklings of Hongdae nightlights on his hair right before he enters, and in the fallacy of that moment, you think it’s going to be Doyoung. You sigh. This isn’t the time for that.

“Sorry,” you say, gesturing to the bar table. “All the tables were booked.”

“No, no,” he responds quickly. “I actually prefer it here.”

He’s tall, not that it’s the first time you’re noticing, but even when he’s sitting, he’s at least two heads taller than you are. His shoulders are accentuated by the mocha coat, no doubt part of the latest trend this winter. As a fashion student, he hits the mark and more.

For a moment, you feel bad for knowing his major. Ten let it slip about him and yet still, you feel guilty for remembering it. You’re not supposed to go into unnecessary detail about people that don’t matter. Does he matter?

“Surprised you could make it,” you joke half-heartedly. “Aren’t you lot always busy with something?”

He laughs. “The student council? Oh, we’re busy alright.”

Busy. Right.

“What about you? Aren’t you part of like three different clubs?”

“So what kind of busy?” you ask, ignoring his question. You’re part of two, now that you left the music club last semester. It’s not like small talk matters though.

“Uh,” he hesitates. “You know- attend meetings and events, coordinate committee work, supervise stuff, etcetera etcetera. So busy, yeah.”

“Busy on Saturdays too?” you ask, before thanking the bartender for the drinks.

“Yeah, I guess. Doyoung has it worse than me honestly. Even now, he has to take care of stuff because of me. Hah…”

You gulp down your drink making Hyungmin raise an eyebrow in concern. “Stuff? Because of you?”

“Yeah.” Hyungmin scratches the back of his head. “He’s with the girls.”

“Girls?” you ask, playing with the glass. You’re starting to feel annoyed, red lining your vision.

“Yeah.” He makes no notion of clarifying his statement.

“Must be quite the president,” you say, resting your cheek against your palm.

“Oh, he’s a nightmare.” Hyungmin laughs. “He has to control everything.”

You try to mask your scoff. You know what he can be like when you’re working beside him.

“Oh, and the guy has no sense of humour,” Hyungmin laughs, the sound easy on the ears.

You blink.

“I think he’s funny,” you say quickly. You swear you have no idea why you sound so defensive.

He hums in response and you consider biting your tongue, telling him you’re only here for one thing and forgetting the uncomfortable churning of feelings inside your chest.

“Forget I- I’m a little confused today.”

Is that an acceptable explanation? You can’t think straight enough to decide. The silence on Hyungmin’s part, however, worries you. The crowd around you fills in for the next few moments as your companion seems to debate something with himself.

“Look, I know you and Doyoung are… I don’t know, something.”

You huff in irked amusement. “God, does everyone seem to know?”

“Not until late actually.” Hyungmin takes a gulp. “He’s been acting weird. Doyoung.”

You look away, breathing shallow. You don’t like it, the way things seem to be getting out of hand. All this time, the world seemed to be in the palm of your hand and now, it’s spilling everywhere; the sand in the hourglass is already up to your knees and you don’t know what happens when it fills.

“Do you actually like him?” he asks, leaning back just a little. You know where this is going. “Are you guys dating?”

“No,” you respond, checking your watch.

“Oh.”

There’s a moment’s hesitation in him but you’ve seen that look before. You know that look.

“Then we can- uh- we can—”

“Fuck?” you ask.

He gulps. “I mean, you can say no any time—”

You pull him by the collar and kiss him, hard enough to melt away your hovering thoughts. He kisses like you expect him to, not how you want him to. You know this sort, and somehow, that makes you feel comfortable. Knowing what you’re getting into is easing but it doesn’t lessen the weight of it.

It’s sickening. The way you’re pretending it’s Doyoung.

Hyungmin pulls apart, panting heavily. “Oh, okay.”

“Tell me you drove here.”

He holds up his car keys in response.

You’re not the type to sleep with strange (semi-acquainted) men, but it’s better than falling in love with them.

So you follow a lover to a hotel room and try to feel something. Some time, when he’s kissing you against the hotel room walls, he pulls apart and asks, “You’re thinking of someone else, aren’t you?”

You know the answer; it just won’t leave your lips.

“It’s okay,” he says with a weak smile, “Let’s just have fun.”

And every time his mouth was on yours, every time you saw stars, you felt the ghost of Doyoung and his haunting touches. It was strange and unfair and unlike you—or at least, unlike the you that you built over the past few years. You feel as though you’ve misplaced something—like something was supposed to be there when you reached out but instead, it was empty space.

The night ends as it should and you leave right before dawn with an apology text you couldn’t put half your heart into.

Most winter nights, you wake up with pain so profound, it’s seeping into your bones.

It never made sense. You never tried to make sense of it. So you let the aches push you down by the shoulders, lodge itself into your neck and back; and you tell yourself, it must be what you deserve. It’s cold and you’re walking barefoot on frozen ground.

You gasp. The weight of who you are and who you have to be—it has its knee on the back of your neck, shoving you into the damp earth. There’s no particular reason to it; it makes it seem as though it’s insignificant. Unimportant. Irrelevant. But that’s the problem—the weight of the world on your shoulders makes no sense. Whose world are you even carrying? Whose approval are you trying to win? You scramble to get up, messing up your bedsheets in the process, and pull your blanket around you. Your own warmth surrounds you and it makes no difference. You frown.

You remember your phone call with your mom, and your lips tremble. You shouldn’t have told her about how crappy your finals went but it slipped. You tried to explain that you did work for them, that you gave it your best but sometimes things don’t work out. She didn’t have to say it out loud for you to hear her thoughts.

You’re disappointing.

You wipe at your eyes, feeling annoyed at the emotion. If you could let the ground swallow you whole, you would. In a heartbeat. You don’t even know what you’re doing most of the days despite that pretty planner of yours.

You get out of bed, pull on your cardigan beside the bed and grab your lighter and pack. The tiny balcony makes for a great smoking spot and while you would scold any of your friends for committing to this, you do it yourself. Hypocrite.

For all you try to shove into yourself—hobbies, student clubs, actual clubbing, friends—the more you feel less than enough, as if everything just vanishes into thin air inside you. As if you aren’t enough and never will be. You play by the rules and you lose, you break the rules and you lose.

Maybe it’s because you let yourself be filled by the intricacies of other people that they like you. And thus, you cannot stop for fear of loneliness.

Just as you’re feeling crushed again, you picture Doyoung against your back, placing his nose in the crook of your neck—something he has never done—and you wonder why it helps.

Sucking in air too fast, you cough. You shouldn’t have let it go on for so long.

It was fun—harmless fun. You shouldn’t even be thinking of taking a step in some other direction. You’re friends, barely, but you like where you are. If Doyoung was that important, you wouldn’t be going about this all backwards. You sigh, though it comes out jagged. The room is quiet and that’s the way it should be at four a.m, of course, but you crave music all of a sudden. Doyoung and you are just a temporary fix; and you let that thought relax you.

When you think of his chin on your shoulder, however, it feels feather light.

“Why are we doing this?” you ask.

The atmosphere is warm and toasty, just like you expect it to be in a bakery with light pink doors and a collection of plastic potted plants on display. The decorations aren’t an eyesore here and somehow, it makes you feel better. It’s a little far but you decide it’s worth it.

Doyoung shrugs, sipping his hot chocolate. “It’s Christmas, and we’re both here.”

Your eyes follow the hanging lights over the counter, wrapped in pine tree stickers and eventually to the neat display of a ‘Season’s Greetings’ menu, the contents of which are currently at your table. A Christmas song by some singer who’s been popular lately plays, tunes light and dancing. You hate the end of the year solely because of the extra pressure January brings. Nothing you can’t handle, of course. Nothing you can’t handle.

You sigh. It’s been a little difficult lately.

“Doyoung, really, why are we doing this?” you ask, genuinely curious.

“Are you- uh- are you not enjoying this? I could—”

“No! No, it’s not that. I feel better, actually.” You bite your tongue almost immediately after. It’s not like he’s supposed to know the sort of hell week you’re having. A poorly received term paper, finals that weren’t up to your expectations, crippling loneliness without friends and, oh, the self-doubt—you are at the lowest you can be in college. The only sweetener right now is in the hot chocolate and the way Doyoung’s looking at you.

You feel something close to guilt.

“Good.” He smiles. “You seemed… You seemed a little down.”

The sliver of warmth between your ribs makes you think this is unreal. It feels uneasy to be so affected by someone but you let it slide, turning back to your hot chocolate.

“Why didn’t you go home this time?” you ask, sipping your drink.

“Oh, I didn't really want to face my parents,” he says before leaning. “Didn’t do too well this semester. And my brother’s going to be there with all his achievements.”

You chuckle in disbelief. “You don’t like your brother?”

“I love him to bits. Just can’t stand my mom’s nagging when he’s around.”

“That’s rich coming from you.” You cross your arms, smiling triumphantly. You feel like children squabbling but it’s so lighthearted, you want to laugh.

Doyoung raises a pointed finger, about to retort but nothing comes out. He puts his hand down.

“I guess you’re right.”

You shake your head. “I’m sure she’s proud of you too.”

“I know that,” he says, laughing. “Of course she is. I don’t keep myself busy for nothing.”

You gulp, a sudden sourness rising at the base of your tongue.

“Busy, huh? Didn’t know spending saturday evenings with girls also counted as busy,” you mutter against the cup, half-hoping he doesn’t hear you.

“What?” There’s a perplexed look across his face.

You wave your hand in dismissal. “Oh don’t mind me.”

“Are you talking about me giving a tour to the fresher girls?” Doyoung leans forward, resting his elbows on his thighs. “Hyungmin does that usually but Mr Man was sore from soccer practice and Friday fucking.”

You blink. “Fresher… girls?”

“What, did you think I was at a brothel?” Doyoung laughs in amusement.

You feel your cheeks heat up in embarrassment. “No! No, of course not.”

You wave your hands about for a few more seconds, trying to come up with an explanation. This makes things rather embarrassing.

“Sorry,” you say finally. “I jumped to conclusions.”

Doyoung laughs, rather deep and heartily, and you wonder if your apology really did sound as stupid to him as it did to you.

“You do that a lot,” he notes.

“Thanks,” you quip, cutting the pastry with your fork a little too forcefully. His laugh follows. (You hate it so much. It sounds like pure adoration.)

The next few moments consist of scrolling through your phones (because Doyoung says his ‘mouth hurts from talking to you’) and you would’ve been in a better state of mind if everyone wasn’t posting pre-Christmas photos with their families.

“You know they’re opening that park. What’s it called- Winter Wonderland or something. You said you wanted to visit.”

You look up at Doyoung amused.

“Let’s be honest. You want to be in bed, Doyoung,” you say. “Why are you doing this?”

“Because I care,” he answers, looking at you with his doe eyes. “About you. You sulk when you’re upset.”

“I don’t sulk,” you reply but your smile is obvious when you exit the cafe.

It’s like a date. The more you think of it that way, the more it makes you smile.

The evening is perfect—orange and pink and loving and happy. Doyoung trails behind you as you tread over the sidewalk with cheeky remarks about his speed.

“I’m in the track club, you know?” he huffs, finally tired of your jabs.

“As what, the start point?”

A fake, sarcastic laugh leaves him. “I wouldn’t get to see you if I walked ahead.”

You feel warmth creep up your face. You mumble, “that’s cheesy.” It’s too weak though, and it goes unheard.

For the first time, you notice his eyes are a little like yours in what they reflect. You love them.

So this is where the crowd went. The amusement park, or whatever you call it, is buzzing with a faint sort of excitement, mostly in the children that didn’t get to go on a vacation elsewhere. It’s quite the wonderland though so you can’t see them complaining.

“Do you think they’ll kick us out if we make out on the Ferris wheel?” you ask, smiling at Doyoung.

“I’m not making out with you on the Ferris wheel,” he replies, making a face.

You do end up making out on the Ferris wheel, and you get butterflies from it. It’s like a teenage dream but Doyoung looks even better. You pass on the cotton candy because frankly, you’ve had enough of sweet things. You sit at the frozen wooden seat, hoping it warms up while Doyoung brings the two of you some fries.

Your phone buzzes with a notification. Your eyes light up at the mail from your professor. You had turned in the term paper three days ago, weeks ahead of schedule and were particularly proud of the way it turned out.

You look at the email and zero in on the word ‘redo’.

Your shoulders sag immediately. You spent four weeks on that—and it’s not good enough? You search frantically for how it could have gone wrong and come up with none. That’s not supposed to happen. Something’s wrong. Something’s very wrong. The week’s exhaustion swallows you up again.

When Doyoung returns, he looks at you concerned before quickly setting the fries on the table.

“(name). Is something wrong?”

“Huh?” Your voice sounds so weak and squeaky, you feel embarrassed. It’s embarrassing that after all these years, you still don’t know how to handle failure.

Because it’s not supposed to happen. You tell yourself that over and over and it makes things worse.

You feel dirty, underneath all that dust and crumbled rock dangling in your hair. Whatever rests on your shoulders is cracking and collapsing, and you’re pushing in the wrong direction to make sure it all stays up.

He reaches out his hand but you avoid it.

“No,” you mutter, weakly shaking your head.

You rub at your nose and eyes, hoping you can hide behind your forearms. Doyoung shouldn’t be seeing you like this, he doesn’t deserve to see you like this. You turn away from him, your palm gently pushing against the soft material of his shirt.

Doyoung doesn’t move. Instead, he gently tugs on your wrist so you have no choice but to face him with your red-rimmed eyes. You’re not sure if it’s embarrassment or pity, but the concern in his eyes makes you cry harder.

“You don’t have to do that,” he whispers. “You don’t have to find a place to cry.”

For the first time in adulthood, you learn what it’s like to lean your forehead against someone’s chest this way. Doyoung wraps his arms around you and the sound of his breathing soothes your near-erratic heart.

“I worked really hard on it, you know?” you mumble against his chest. “My term paper.”

“I know,” he whispers.

Doyoung strokes your head delicately, fingers running through your hair with airy touches. Eventually, you let go of a final sigh and look up to his lips.

He seems surprised at the kiss but it’s all you can think of now. It’s gentler than usual and Doyoung moves cautiously though he seems to like it all the same. His arms feel comfortable around you. When he pulls apart, he looks at you yet still with careful concern.

“We can- we should stop if you want,” he says, and he means it.

You shake your head. Night is creeping in overhead, deep and quiet and slow.

“I like you, Doyoung,” you say finally. “I really, really like you.”

Doyoung’s eyes widen, as though a rabbit wary of the traps it might set foot on but he eases into your touch almost immediately.

“I like… I like you too.” His lips waver but he looks away and takes a deep breath. “I like you so much.”

You smile and think that maybe everything is set right now, with his chin against your shoulder and your arms around him.

Doyoung discards the jacket once you’re in your apartment, kissing you fuller now. Every other thought leaves you; you beg him to make you forget the rest of the world. The walls are comforting now that he’s here, and it’s warmer, hotter.

“Can we- Can we go a little slower?” you mumble, his arms still gentle when they wrap around your waist. He parts his lips from your neck to look at you momentarily before nodding.

You suddenly understand why he always makes you feel so good. There’s a certain fondness to his touch and warmth to his kisses. There’s no one quite like him, really.

“I love digging graves, especially if it’s my own,” you mutter against the pillow.

Doyoung laughs. “What did you do this time?”

“This time? Excuse me? Do you think I’m some sort of trouble child?”

“Hm. Let’s see. Yes.”

You pause. Why do you hesitate to tell him you slept with Hyungmin? It’s not like you were cheating—you weren’t dating Doyoung. Besides, that night with Hyungmin didn’t mean anything. A horrid feeling snakes around your throat, heavy and piercing. You resort to changing the topic.

“I’m… I took another course beyond my understanding.”

“That’s it?” he asks.

You nod.

No, no, no; it’s all backwards now and you don’t know how to reverse it.

Doyoung takes your hand in his, delicately and yet firm. His chest is against your back, bare and warm. When he presses his lips against your knuckles, the warmth that flushes through you makes you want to believe in something else entirely. You feel weak.

A part of you argues that you feel honest—in a moment of clarity you don’t think you deserve. Neither vodka nor whiskey can make you this clear in the head; you struggle to breathe straight. How awful it is to feel warmth and not believe in it at the same time.

“You can rely on me, you know?” he whispers.

The knot in your chest makes you want to cry.

You feel lonely and the opposite of it all at once. Doyoung is too much for you—too kind, too pretty and too true. He makes you realize too many things at once.

There are a few things in the world that can stifle loneliness. Like the notes Doyoung plays on the piano, like the songs he hums in the morning till you place open-mouthed kisses against his neck.

You realize, all of a sudden, that Doyoung really is your dearest friend.

And yet, you don’t think you deserve it. You’ve never loved, you believe, but you have. You don’t remember it well enough. The lovers’ touches you kept searching for led to this. Hypocrite. You wanted a lover’s touch and you rejected the love that came with it. What a complicated bundle of emotions. You weren’t always this way.

You loved your first cat when you were six, all the way till it died a warm death in your bed. You loved your mother even when she yelled at you for skipping your chores. You loved your middle school friends when you talked about comics and movies you saw for the first time.

It’s hard to love the same way now.

You suppose sympathy needs a little backstory. Nothing is unconditional.

It had all started when your heart had broken into two clean pieces. You put a bandaid on it and called it a day. No one taught you to ask for help.

Your friends know someone broke your heart; you tell them everything. Friends, friends—you wanted them so bad and yet, you keep them as far from you as you can. You pretend to be paper-thin and so shallow, sometimes you wonder if that’s all there is to you. But for all they know, they know next to nothing. It wasn’t just the aftermath of reckless puppy love.

The first time your heart broke, it was watching your mother cry in the living room for a reason you didn’t understand. You wondered who committed the crime, who should be charged—and you found no one. A loveless marriage is cruel, yes, but you cannot point fingers. It isn’t just cruel; it’s infuriating.

The second time, the two pieces of your heart broke into a few more. It was a boy with an inviting smile and flags whose colour you couldn’t quite discern. They must have been red, but everything else was too—hearts, cheeks, lips, and the threads around your wrists. And eventually, he guided you to the conclusion that you are undeserving, unworthy, unloved.

You were strong, however. It was easy to collapse on the bed and feel the weight of the world settling in, but you stood up again on shaking knees and you told yourself to have fun; you can have fun without feelings. You know better than to attach meaning to fun—you might hate insignificant things but it’s only fun if it’s pointless. You’re not letting go of this place you’ve worked so hard to arrive at, with all the shattered pieces in your hands.

It’s better to offer nothing at all than offer broken pieces.

“Can we stay like this?” Doyoung’s arms tighten around your waist, his breath shallow against your shoulder. “Just for a little bit.”

His voice is beautiful as always, but for a moment, it strikes you as sad.

Everything’s twisting up into knots and you are frantically running your fingers over them to straighten it all out. You know what it’s like to let things rot; and you are tired of it. Why can’t everything disappear for one moment? Why can’t you just let it be the two of you?

You sigh in response, nodding.

“I might not know what’s happening in there,” he starts, drawing circles on your chest with his finger, touch comfortably light. “But…”

I’m here and I get it.

Is that what he wants to say? You don’t think you’ll get to know. You’re not exactly voicing yourself either.

Stay the night. You want to say it but your lips are frozen.

Instead, you rub your thumb over the back of his hand, fitting into each other as perfect as a lie. You would tell him, you try to convince yourself, if you could say it with enough conviction. There’s no point to saying things that are half-meant, that are true but only just enough. You’re a coward.

And now, this has gotten complicated.

An end.

Tapping his pen against the desk, Doyoung grows increasingly annoyed. The council's next meeting agenda isn’t going to finish writing itself but he can’t bring himself to either. Besides, Ten’s pacing outside his room is starting to get on his nerves.

“Ten!” he yells. “Can you quit it? You’re making too much noise.”

His disapproval is met with silence. For a moment, he spaces out and reflexively thinks of you, only to feel a confusing sort of emotion. It’s normal, he tells himself, and that it’ll sort itself out.

Doyoung feels like a glass box more often than not. If he breaks, who picks up the pieces? Who gets cuts all over their fingers?

‘Whoever breaks him’ should be the answer. But that’s wishful thinking. It’s not that simple.

He’s so see-through that it’s painful. He used to tell Taeyong he’s wrong but he’s never been able to prove it. He is easy. It’s embarrassing.

But then again, part of him likes it when it comes to you. He likes it when you kiss him after a particularly heated disagreement, he likes when you get on his nerves just so he’d fuck you and most of all, he loves the push and pull. Fun is just that. He doesn’t know what he’d do if that heart of his he placed so gingerly into your palms falls and shatters.

The line between hate and love is thin; and he’s enjoying walking it too much.

He has nothing to offer but himself. He laughs at the thought and shakes his head. It’s somewhat dirty, and not just in the sexual sense.

“Ten!” he yells again. “Stop pacing!”

Getting up from his seat, he strides over to his door, swings it open and finds Ten scratching his head and glancing at his phone in repeated action.

“Ten?”

He’s so in a trance that he hasn’t noticed Doyoung. He is the lovable sort of idiot if he ever chooses to be so. Most of the time though, he’s just a smartass.

“Oh, oh no, I’m a bad friend,” Ten mutters to himself, his pacing growing more restless. He scratches the back of his head, eyebrows furrowed and too inside his head to notice Doyoung. He wants to ask but something tells him he shouldn’t.

Turns out, his apprehension isn’t strong enough these days.

“Whose date did you crash?” Doyoung asks, more than annoyed already.

When Ten looks at him, Doyoung feels rather shriveled and freezes on the spot. Call it instinct but Doyoung respects fear and pain. Ten has a mixture of the two, amplified when he looks at Doyoung.

“Doyoung. Hey,” he says, trying to tone down the distress in his voice.

Doyoung still hasn’t recovered from the initial surprise of Ten looking that way.

“Did you fuck up? Did someone fuck up? Why do you look like that?”

Ten sits down on the small couch. “Long story… I guess. Too many details, you- you know? Just—”

“What the fuck happened?”

Ten still can’t look him in the eye. “The group chat’s a little…”

“Ten,” Doyoung snaps. “Cut the crap.”

“No, that’s- that’s what I’m- You’re going to be upset.”

Doyoung straightens, furrowing his brows. “I think I can fucking handle it.”

“You know that date I set up for (name) and Hyungmin?”

“You set that up?”

“(name) slept with Hyungmin.”

Doyoung quietens. The silence seems to make Ten uncomfortable as he shifts in his seat, getting up when Doyoung speaks.

“So?”

Ten blinks. “You’re not upset?”

“Just what kind of loser do you think I am?” Doyoung mutters.

Glass shatters just that easily. Maybe he wanted you to shatter him. Maybe he was already cracking at the edges.

“Doyoung, you don’t have to—”

“Stop,” he exclaims a little louder than he intended. “Stop looking at me like that. I’m a grown man, I can handle shit like this.”

It still hurts though. You lied to him and he let you in. You lied to him. Doyoung sighs, returning to his room with a realization he should have had long ago. His night ends with more deleted drafts than he’s supposed to have and eventually, with increased discomfort, he delegates the job to Park Hyungmin himself with the excuse of sickness.

Doyoung does feel sick. He felt this way once, in highschool, but it had turned to red, hot anger ready to lash at anyone and everyone, spilling from his lips as easy as it was to breathe. And Doyoung can never feel that way towards you. He was different back then too, of course, but you—you’re unlike anyone he’s ever met. He loves the comfort of you, and something like that is hard to come by.

He feels like laughing again but instead he finds tears on his cheeks. Silly boy, he can hear his mother tell him. You don’t give your heart to heartbreakers.

So Doyoung falls asleep to the sound of upbeat music in his earphones, music he hates even just to pass the night. Morning will come and he will have to become stronger. Comfort is fleeting, after all.

With everything said and done, you know very well that if you were to tell someone you love them—genuinely, truly, from the heart—it would be Doyoung. It’s not a sudden realization, like the sky falling apart or a tidal wave crashing against the shore and sweeping away the city. It is like the gentle lapping of water, though, or the way the clouds change shape—natural and anything but alarming. You want to stare at it forever, and you want to believe that’s how it will be forever.

“You told everyone we had sex?” Your voice is boiled to a shout.

Hyungmin looks torn, lips moving but no explanation making its way out. “I- I told my friends, not everyone.”

“And you forgot that your friends talk? Everybody talks, Hyungmin, what were you thinking?”

He sighs before taking a step towards you. “Why are you so angry about it? As far as I remember, you had no trouble talking about whose pants you got into.”

You scoff. “With friends, not the whole campus.”

“That’s exactly what I did!”

You cross your arms, feeling so upset you might cry and unsure as to why. You’re usually good at dealing with stuff like this, keeping things in the right place.

“It’s because of Doyoung, isn’t it?”

You snap your head to Hyungmin. There’s a serene sort of look to him despite his unkempt appearance, and a look of understanding.

“I’m sorry. Really. But if you were so into him, you shouldn’t have called me that evening. It might not matter to me but…”

You broke his heart. All that devotion he had towards you led to this.

“You’re right.” You choke on your words, leaning against the wall. “Fuck… Fucking…”

You turn around, making your way out of the hallway and hope the tears on your cheeks dry faster if you run.

You can’t remember the last time you ran. Your world didn’t need running from, it was right in the palm of your hands. Now that you look back, the world was always on your shoulders and heavy as it can be. Maybe you liked it—the weight. You could’ve shrugged it off any time; you didn’t need all those caging schedules or careful, elegant steps.

No. Atlas couldn’t shrug because his punishment was his existence. To have weight is to have meaning; and that is how you intended to live out your life.

Doyoung makes you see it differently. To love so fully even if it seems cautious—you, who has never loved at all, couldn’t comprehend it. And because he makes you see it differently, the box is now open and all hell is loose.

For once, you don’t want to live in the world you crafted. You want more love, more hurt and you want to open the doors. You don’t mind hell if it’s for him.

You ring the bell to Doyoung and Ten’s apartment and pray the news hasn’t reached him yet. He said he was busy this weekend; maybe he was detached enough from his phone for once. You just want to be the person to tell him. It’s not a perfect apology otherwise.

Doyoung opens the door with pursed lips and cold eyes. There’s a sense of ease over his shoulders and arms but he won’t look at you and panic rises to your throat.

“We’re not fucking tonight, (name),” he says.

“That’s not- That’s not why I’m here.” Your voice is so meek, you wonder what happened.

Doyoung steps back, crossing his arms. He’s still looking at his feet and you feel the urge to reach for his face.

“I wanted to tell you- I… I just—”

“That you’re fucking other people?”

“God, Doyoung, stop with the fucking. I don’t care about that right now.”

“Really?” His voice is so sharp, it digs into your skin. “You were just in it for that. That’s the fun part in your stupid life, isn’t it?”

You feel a sharp pain in your nose and forehead. “You’re- Now that’s- Doyoung. I’m sorry. That’s what I wanted to say.”

“After—” His voice chokes up. “After everything is done? Stop with the excuses and face it for fuck’s sake. You aren’t made to fall in love. That’s why you dance around it all the time.”

Although he says that, he doesn’t sound angry. He sounds defeated.

“It’s not like you aren’t cautious,” you retort, throat feeling heavy. “You said it yourself- you don’t want to care too much.”

“I was wrong,” he says, voice hoarse. “I care about everything more than I’d like to admit. I care about you more than I’d like to admit.”

“The Hyungmin thing didn’t mean anything, okay? You were busy and—”

“So why did you lie?” He strains to not raise his voice. “Of course I knew our little thing didn’t mean shit to you. Why did you pretend it did? Last week, you said- you said—”

“Doyoung, last week- last week I- I wasn’t pretending, I swear.”

“You could’ve just saved yourself the trouble and the dignity.” A short, humorless laugh leaves him.

You feel your lips tremble, the explanation not quite made its way out yet. He looks so innocent like this, rabbit-like eyes watery and full of pain, pure the way they have always been. This is your mistake, isn’t it?

“Doyoung, please,” you manage to say. “That was wrong. I couldn’t clear up my head. Please don’t—”

“No. I was an idiot. Or you see me as one.” He frowns deeper, lips trembling. “I shouldn’t- I shouldn’t have. We shouldn’t have been at the same fucking party and I shouldn’t have drank so much. You’re- I’m not that kind of person.”

You bite down your lip. “What kind?”

Doyoung laughs, the sound raspy and empty. “The kind to not fall in love with you.”

It damn near breaks your heart to look at him. You have to say something, it shouldn’t end like this. You’re desperate and all you think is that you don’t want it to end at all.

“Please, I thought of you as a friend, that’s why—”

“And this is what you call being a friend?” he cuts you off.

You feel the sting in your eyes and nose, making you turn sharply to the side. You wish he’d just make you cry. It makes you feel the rancid guilt all the more.

“Make Hyungmin your friend for all I care. Let’s stop this.”

You stare at your feet, unable to respond.

“You can have every boy in the world, (name). Don’t come to me.”

“Can you just stop talking about everyone else?” you yell, desperate. “Do I talk about your exes? Seungjae or- or what’s-her-name—”

“That’s different!” He looks distraught, breathing heavily and with a painful red flush over his nose and cheeks. He runs his hand through his hair, tousling it further. “You lied to me, (name). You lied.”

Your cheeks are wet and the look that flashes over Doyoung makes you think he wants to step right out to you. He stays frozen in place, however, looking away to the side.

“Did you notice?” he asks softly. “Even once? How much I cared?”

You can’t answer, letting the tears drip down your face. It’s getting colder and colder.

Doyoung bites down his lip before parting them. “All we did was have sex anyway. So please just- just leave.”

You take a long few moments but nod, hugging your coat closer and stepping out of his apartment. You think you hear Ten’s footsteps but it’s followed by the bang of a door—this is how it ends then.

The line between hate and love is thin; and you are deserving of neither.

You perfect your next semester’s academics, and the next. It still feels empty. You go out to drink with friends and return to a messy bed you sleep in alone. You smile as always and you laugh as always. No one asks you how you are as always. You never needed anyone to ask you how you are.

Ten tries but you push him away. You don’t need to drag in other people into a mess you made. He feels sorry for the whole thing but you tell him it was you that spilled the paint, Ten just handed a dash of it to you.

You were right. You don’t deserve Doyoung. At least, you made it so that you don’t deserve him.

‘It’s better to have loved and lost than to not have loved at all’—it still hurts.

Every day is part of a list again. You doodled in some of the pages, when you thought you were starting to fall in love. There’s only a skeleton of it left now. Soon, you’ll let it crumble to dust too.

You tear apart the planner sometime after graduation and cry and curse at yourself for doing that. No one’s good at parting with things they care about. You’re no exception.

It’s December again.

This place is a little strange to visit right after graduating, especially with the memories flashing you by. Johnny said he booked one of the private booths (“A senior’s treat!”) but you feel your steps growing hesitant when you reach the neon signs by the stairs. It spells ‘The Meeting Place’ and smells of cigarettes just like it did the first time.

You stop midway up the stairs. For a moment, you think of Doyoung sitting there and wonder if you’ll ever be able to talk to him again. If you had the chance now, would you take it?

Of course, you wouldn’t. There’s too much to be set right and you can’t do it.

There’s supposed to be the six of you. Johnny mentioned Ten and you know Eunji’s invited too. You saw Jaehyun on the way here, still a student. You sigh. It must be him, the one they failed to mention to you. Kim Doyoung. There’s no one quite like him.

You spot him first. Looking a little forlorn as he gazes absentmindedly to the side, he faces away from you and you get the inevitable urge to run away. It’s a funny feeling.

Your stomach is churning. You don’t want him to see you. Ten babbles on about something to Johnny, smiling like he found candy while clearing his drawers. Eunji looks tired, leaning against Johnny’s shoulder and you wonder if she already drank more than enough shots.

“(name).”

You jump at Jaehyun’s voice from behind you.

“Hey,” you respond, giving him a wide smile.

He hesitates. “Are you okay? Not that you don’t look okay- you look really good actually. I mean, are you and… you know okay?”

“I don’t think so, Jaehyun,” you say and make your way to the booth.

It’s a little cramped for the six of you and Doyoung gets up before you can even greet him. It’s not like you deserve it anyway but it tugs at the wound.

“I’m going to go take a drag,” he mutters.

“You don’t smoke,” you say, looking up.

He stares at you momentarily and you look away. You think Ten and Johnny glance at you with pity but you don’t really care.

“Can I come with you?” you ask, barely a whisper.

“Sure,” he says, to your surprise.

The smoking area is so small, you’re surprised it’s even there. A glass structure overlooking the neighbourhood, there’s barely any light within. The only thing nice is how warm it’s in there.

Doyoung lights his cigarette and then offers to light yours. It’s quiet, the music from inside numbed to the cold doors. You really can’t take it. You stub the barely consumed cigarette and throw it into the bin.

You’d rather just stay quietly in his presence.

“You’re not smoking,” he notes.

“It’s a bad habit.” You look out through the glass.

Doyoung chuckles. “You were a collection of bad habits.”

“And good ones too,” you quip. “I was a perfect student. I was perfect in most everything actually.”

Doyoung’s smile widens. “You were. You certainly were.”

A few more moments pass in silence, your eyes traveling over the outside scenery which seems to be growing duller by the second. City lights have never felt fainter.

“It was an accident, right?” You say suddenly. “The whole thing? Us?”

Doyoung hums. “Yeah. I fell in love by accident.”

You smile weakly. “Right. I never got to apologize.”

“I loved you on purpose.”

You look up at him. There’s not a lot of people who say what they mean. He looks the same as he used to under your grey blankets, with a warm blush over his cheeks and kind, wide eyes.

“You’re so damn pretty,” he murmurs, “even now.”

You scan his face for signs of lying.

“You’re drunk, aren’t you?” you ask finally.

Doyoung blinks before easing into laughter. “You- You’re- You’re the same as ever.”

You let yourself crack a smile.

“Doyoung I- I really am sorry,” you say quietly. “And I did- do care for you.”

Doyoung stubs out his cigarette and discards it before looking you in the eye. You notice he’s wearing his favourite black turtleneck in the proximity, the grey plaid coat covering most of it. You really liked that look on him.

“I’m sorry,” you say once again. “I want you to know that. I didn’t want to hurt you and I promise I won’t ever do it again.”

You mean it. You’re never going to hold glass again. He doesn’t deserve it.

“That’s a problem,” he responds, breath mingling with yours. “I want you… I want you to hurt me. If you really do love me, I’ll take it.”

“Doyoung,” you whisper, turning away despite your whole body screaming at you to give in. “I meant it. I can’t hurt you.”

Doyoung cups your cheek with one hand, glancing at your lips for a moment.

“You’re warm,” he says.

He’s warmer.

“I want to kiss you,” he says.

You want to kiss him too.

“We went about this all wrong, didn’t we?” he asks.

“We did,” you answer, voice barely above a whisper. “I did.”

Doyoung pulls back. “Then let’s start again. I’m Kim Doyoung, I majored in linguistics. I was student council president and I made a mistake.”

You smile. “We don’t have to do that.”

Doyoung raises an eyebrow. “After all the trouble I went through to make a good introduction?”

The two of you laugh, and it gets warmer.

“I’m (name),” you say. “I was a top student and I made a bigger mistake, Kim Doyoung.”

“Oh? I wonder what it was.”

“Kind of a long story.”

“I’ve got all the time for you.”

You smile and start. He responds with gentle kisses. You’re piecing your world back together again; but this time it’s feather-light and fits right in the palm of your hand.

2K notes · View notes

ptergwen · 3 years

Text

only you and me

w/c: 6.7k

warnings: angst, mentions of weed, and some swearing

summary: whenever peter tries to tell you how he feels, harry gets in the way

a/n: ahhhh hi my loves! my mini writing break is over :,) life has been just a mess for me and i’ve been way more critical than usual about my work but i’m doing a little better and ready to get back into everything! this helped me a lot so i’m excited to share it with y’all <3 it’s also my first time writing harry osborn so lmk how i did lmaooofwfjj but yeah pls enjoy

“dude, she’s right there! just tell her!” ned whisper yells to peter, elbowing him for emphasis. they’re hidden behind a wall to watch you at your locker. you’re grabbing books while betty rants to you and mj rolls her eyes. “not now. she looks... busy,” peter gulps, gaze trailing down your body. he always finds excuses to put off telling you how he feels.

or rather, excuses find him. something comes up every time he gets the courage to do it. he has no idea why he’s so scared because he’s pretty sure you like him back. pretty sure. there are a few reasons why you might not. also, plenty why you might. you stay up late texting most nights, and you’ve even flirted a couple of times. it never fails to make peter blush. he trips over his words whenever he tries to flirt back.

he’s had feelings for you since the first time you two hung out alone. none of your other friends could make it, but you happily took him up on his offer to come over. you grinned through his whole apartment tour, asked about may and what she does. when peter showed you his room, you even complimented his movie posters, much to his surprise.

“really? you don’t think they’re, like, dorky?”

“no, peter. your interests aren’t dorky. everyone likes what they like.”

and, he liked you. he knew it from that point on. you’d know it too if the universe wouldn’t keep stopping him from saying that.

“she’s so...” peter pauses for a second. him and ned watch you pull betty in by her shoulders as if you’re going to kiss her. she dodges you, mj pushing her back, all three of you giggling about it before you grab betty’s hands and give her words of encouragement. “cool,” peter finishes, turning back to ned. “i mean, how she puts herself out there like that.”

“what’s stopping you from doing the same thing?” ned points out with a knowing smile that peter returns. you make it look so easy. whenever you’re comfortable around people, you can let go of any doubts you have. you stop worrying about what they might think and instead do what you want. it’s inspiring to peter, and heart warming getting to be one of the people you’re fully you with.

he wishes he could apply your wisdom himself.

peter shakes his head, staring down at the floor. “oh, you know. anxiety, fear of rejection. that fun stuff.” “so, yourself,” ned concludes, clapping peter’s backpack so hard it makes him stumble forward. betty and mj wave goodbye to you before heading to their first class. you’re still getting your things together at your locker. this is peter’s moment.

“come on, dude! y/n’s not busy anymore. you got this.” ned keeps his hand on peter’s back, adding on, “it’s been a year already.” “half a year,” peter corrects him in a mumble. he’s liked you for a really long time. “ok, i’m going. wish me luck.” he takes a deep breath and focuses in on you. “aw, dude. you don’t need it.” ned gives him one last pat on the back. “good luck, though.” “thanks, man. see you in trig.”

right as peter starts heading over, harry comes up behind you and covers your eyes. you squeal, jumping up and turning to him, laughing as you playfully hit at his chest. he brings you into a hug where your face is buried in his sweater and probably inhaling his super strong, super expensive cologne.

that’s what’s stopping peter, harry freaking osborn. his own friend.

peter quickly loses the tiny bit of confidence ned gave him. he figures it might be better to hold off on his confession and get an early start to class. unfortunately, it doesn’t seem like that’s going to happen. harry has already spotted him and calls him over.

“hey, pete! come give us some love, eh?” harry beams, an arm slung around your shoulders and you smiling up at him. you direct your smile to peter when he slumps his way to your locker. his lips pull into a barely noticeable frown. you notice. “there’s my guy. why so down, sunshine?” harry offers his fist for a fist bump. peter gives it to him, eyes staying on you.

harry osborn. where to begin with such a specimen? he’s the perfect combination of everything you’d want in a guy. he gets good grades, he’s a star player on on the basketball team, nice to everyone and makes you laugh, popular yet fits right into your small group.

he was friends with you before the popular thing. what kicked it off was him making varsity basketball while only being a sophomore. yep, he’s unreal. since then, he’s been balancing his cool life and also hanging with “the nerds,” as he likes to call you. he got his own feelings for you along the way. peter can tell.

he’ll give you rides home, compliment how you look, basically act like your boyfriend without really being it. it absolutely infuriates peter because he doesn’t compare to harry in the slightest. if he were you and had the choice between himself or harry, he would pick harry.

it’s been a factor in why he hasn’t come clean about how he feels yet. he’s not trying to create a love triangle that he doesn’t stand a chance surviving in.

“for real, peter. you good?” you ask him, eyebrows knitted together in concern. “fine,” peter lies and musters up a smile. “i’m just tired. didn’t sleep too good last night.” you’re only more concerned now. this has been happening to him a lot lately. you search for his eyes. “again?”

“aw, man. you need something for it?” harry punches peter’s shoulder and lowers his voice. “i know this kid who-“ “harry, stop.” your words are serious, tone lighthearted. you throw your head back on his arm. “do you really know a kid?” “i’m not telling you,” he says in an overly happy voice, you humming the same way. peter feels like he’s third wheeling.

“i was telling pete.” harry looks at him expectantly, peter’s mouth dropping open while he thinks of what to say. harry likes to mess around. this is a different level, though. “no thanks. i- i shouldn’t. i’m-“ “relax, i don’t know a kid,” harry chuckles and points at peter. “your face right now.” it’s completely flushed. you knock into harry’s side.

“ok, well literally no one laughed. you’re scaring him,” you tell harry sternly. peter tugs tight on one of his backpack straps. he doesn’t feel like he’s third wheeling you two now. he feels like your kid. he’ll never let ned mettle in his love life ever again if this is where it gets him. “he knows i’m kidding, y/n/n. right?” harry checks with peter. you make a face at him that says you aren’t convinced.

he switches his arm from you to peter, drawing him into his side. “look, pete. i’m sorry. the only kid i know who’s selling is chocolates for his band trip.” you’re satisfied with that, grinning at both of them. peter forces a laugh and nods. “no worries, man. i gotta get to class.” “good boy,” harry lets him go. “bye, pete. we’ll see you at lunch,” you remind him. he gives you a tight lipped smile. “see you, y/n/n.”

you and harry continue practically spooning each other as soon as peter is out of sight.

what the hell is going on?

peter is back to being grumpy, plopping down in his seat next to ned. their teacher has the lesson plan pulled up on the smart board. ned looks from it to peter, almost jumping in his seat. “oh, you’re back already? how’d it go?” “it didn’t go,” peter huffs, copying down the aim. he’s only doing it so he doesn’t have to look ned in the eyes while telling him he bailed. again.

“you didn’t do it?” ned repeats, peter writing something about pi and a unit circle in his notebook. he bites the inside of his cheek. “you have to do it at some point,” ned sighs out and picks up his pencil. even he’s getting tired of this, and ned never gets tired of a good friends to lovers moment. “i think she likes harry,” peter says under his breath. “huh?” ned gasps.

peter doesn’t feel like explaining the extremely awkward moment he just finished living. although, it wouldn’t hurt to get a second opinion. “y/n. he came over, and they kept hugging and whatever.” “they always do that,” ned almost scoffs, their trigonometry teacher moving to stand in front of the class. “yeah, but he had his arm around her the whole time we-“

the bell rings and cuts their conversation short. peter struggles to label the unit circle they learn about when his mind is filled to its capacity with images of you and harry all over each other. it’s not daydreaming. this is a nightmare. maybe, he actually will be having sleep problems.

peter’s morning is relatively decent after that. he gets to do an experiment with mj in chemistry, and she lets him take the lead for once. spanish is easy, health is okay, then he has a free period, then it’s lunch. things can only go downhill from here.

he thinks about hiding in the library until it’s over, but it’s the thought of harry eating your face that gets him to drag himself to the cafeteria.

flash is at the head of your table talking to harry when peter gets there. great, now he can’t eat his soggy chicken fingers in peace. “sounds dope. let’s go on the-“ flash stops saying what he was saying and nods at peter. “penis parker, you’re late.” peter takes his seat on your left, harry on your right. you glance over at him to make sure he’s okay. he acts like he doesn’t care, peeling open his milk carton.

“just text me later, man. get outta here,” harry dismisses flash, the two of them doing a bro handshake before he leaves. he’s well aware of his and peter’s history. he keeps them separate for the obvious reasons. peter appreciates it because saying no to flash is nearly impossible. he shouldn’t be so mad at harry, should he? he’s a good friend.

harry’s arm snakes around your waist and brings you closer to him. never mind.

“who’s up for sushi later?” he asks the table, everyone agreeing and saying how awesome that sounds. everyone except peter. you tap his shoulder with a small smile. “what about you, peter? you coming?” he realizes you’re all waiting for him to respond and puts down his milk. “uh, i can’t. homework,” he lamely answers.

“dude, we have homework, too. just do it a little later,” ned suggests, betty laying her head on his shoulder. you share a look with her, your eyes wide and a grin on your lips. that must have been what you were talking about this morning. she asked for boy advice. ned advice. why can’t this crap work out for peter?

“i really can’t. sorry, guys,” peter half heartedly apologizes.

he misses the disappointment that crosses your features because he’s pouting at his lunch again.

“homework, huh?” mj tests him, squinting as she takes a sip of apple juice. harry nudges peter’s side with two fingers. “you still mad about the sleeping thing?” “sleeping thing? what sleeping thing?” betty wonders while ned rests his head against hers. a quiet laugh slips out of you as you lean in to tell her.

“peter said he couldn’t sleep last night, so harry offered him...” you mime rolling a joint. “i said no,” peter clarifies, rolling his eyes at the inevitable teasing he’s about to get. none of you have even smoked besides harry. you’re being annoying about it. “of course you did,” mj sighs and kicks her feet up on the table. “unrelated to what y/n just said... harry, i have insomnia.”

everyone bursts into laughter at that, betty shoving her side and you pulling harry by his torso as he pretends to go into his backpack. peter wants nothing to do with any of this. he usually enjoys joking around with the group, even if it’s at his expense because it’s from a place of love.

today feels like you’re straight up making fun of him. harry might as well invite flash to join in.

“alright, alright, alright. enough of the weed talk,” harry decides, you removing your arms from him and grabbing your coffee. “you’re such a bad influence.” your voice drips with sarcasm. you bend the straw and take a sip while scooting closer to peter. “you really can’t come later? i feel like i’ve barely seen you today.” that’s on harry. “i wish i could, y/n/n,” peter exhales. “i’ll text you later, okay?”

you don’t get to answer because mj tugs on your arm, distracting you from peter. she explains how she has to do an art project on what it means to be a woman and needs help brainstorming ideas. you’re full of them, offering up an interesting perspective for her to use. peter smiles to himself as he listens in. you find a new way to impress him every day.

he should tell you that.

“hey, y/n?” “listen to her! you’re seriously my idol,” betty gushes, so loudly you don’t hear peter. not a single thing has gone in his favor at this table. he gives up.

peter locks himself in his room when he gets home from his overall terrible day. he does homework like he said he would, only taking a break for dinner, giving one word replies to may’s questions about school. he’d much rather be having sushi with you. he would’ve gone if the others didn’t.

after dinner, it’s back to grumbling and scribbling down answers. there’s a knock at peter’s door around ten o’clock, which he assumes is may saying goodnight. “i’ll be done in a few minutes, may! love you.” “it’s y/n,” you reply, the smile clear in your voice. his eyes go comically wide. that’s the last thing he expected to hear. “oh. uh, come in.”

you’re holding a small takeout bag, shutting the door behind you and walking over to his desk. you meet his twinkling eyes in the dim light that hits off his walls. from his open window, you faintly hear cars as they rush by and honk their horns in the distance, accompanied by a fresh breeze. it’s cozy, safe. it’s peter.

“hey. what’re you doing here?” peter questions, leaving his pencil in his binder and shutting it. you shake around the plastic bag. “i saved you a roll.” he bites back a smile, getting up from his chair. “may let me in. she was really chill about it,” you continue and hold out the sushi for him. “it’s a california roll. i wasn’t sure what you wanted, and everyone likes those.”

peter lets his smile spread out and takes the bag from you. “thanks, y/n/n. i was honestly hoping one of you would have leftovers.” you laugh softly, peter setting the bag down on his desk. he scratches the back of his neck. “did you guys have fun?” “yeah. i missed you, though.” you clasp your hands behind your back. “everyone did.”

“i feel bad i didn’t go. just... things felt off today,” peter admits the real reason he stayed home, you letting out a breath. “it was harry, wasn’t it? god, he was being so weird.” your arms drop back to your sides. “there’s a difference between playing around and actually upsetting people.” by people, you mean peter. no one else seemed too bothered by him. “i’m sorry, peter. i tried to make him stop.”

“no, you don’t have to apologize,” peter assures you sweetly, grabbing one of your hands. “it’s not your fault, okay? he probably didn’t realize what he was doing. the jokes landed.” he’s referring to ned, mj, and betty finding harry’s comments hilarious. you lace your fingers with peter’s and frown. “this isn’t like him. maybe he’s stressed about a game.” your gaze drifts off to the side, what you see getting you to perk up.

“is that new?” you ask peter, leading him by his hand over to a poster he put up recently. it’s for 13 going on 30. you showed it to him a couple of weeks ago, and he clearly liked it a lot. any movie that makes it to peter’s wall is a special one. “mhm. i got it literally right after you went home the night we watched,” he chuckles and looks over at you while you study the poster.

you turn to face peter again, keeping your hand tight in his. “were you gonna tell me something earlier? at lunch?” he’s confused for a second, then he remembers your ideas for mj’s art project. the fact that you cared enough to bring it up after all these hours makes his stomach do summersaults in the best way. he shrugs and gives you a smile.

“the stuff you were saying about femininity and how there are so many ways to define it,” peter starts, you grinning back at him, at how he took an interest in what you were saying. “you’re so smart, y/n. you make me wanna be better.” a light pink dusts his cheeks. “peter, you’re a feminist?” you coo, joking but genuinely wondering at the same time. he squeezes your hand. “duh.”

“i thought so,” you nod, taking in the rest of what he said. “you think i’m smart? i trust you because you’re way smarter.” peter pffts in response. “i’m only good at, like, physics. you’re good at things that really matter. smart in that way.” you’re feeling your own face get hot. you swing yours and peter’s hands back and forth. “why are you the nicest person ever?”

the answer to that, may, peeks her head into the room. “hey, kids. it’s getting late.” she notices your intertwined hands and shoots peter a smirk. “i thought you were a cool aunt,” he teases, you sadly letting go of him. “she is. thanks for having me over so late,” you tell may on your way to the door. “oh, stop it. you can come over any time.” she puts a hand on your arm. “thank you so much,” you murmur back.

you walk backwards to the doorway, may leaving you two to say your goodbyes. “wanna hang out only you and me? on friday maybe?” that should make up for everything earlier. “yeah, of course. friday is perfect,” peter agrees and bounces on his feet as excitement takes over him. “thanks again for the sushi.”

“no problem. goodnight.” it’s taking every last bit of power in you to not freak out. “night. text me when you get home.” he presses his tongue into his cheek. you slowly pull the door shut. “ok, i will. bye!” it closes, leaving peter skipping across his room to his bed on one side and you doing a little happy dance on the other.

the next day at school, everything is back to normal. honestly, better than normal. your hangout with peter is tomorrow, and he’s planning on telling he likes you then. he already talked it over with ned. he’s relieved it’s finally happening, especially since him and betty have their own thing. she’ll be taking up most of his free time from here.

your group is spending lunch outside today, lounging across a picnic table, surrounded by trees and the shining sun in a bright blue sky. mj sits on the table and has her feet on the bench, which would usually bug peter to no end. he doesn’t mind this time because it takes up enough room that harry has to sit with ned and betty instead of you. you lean into peter’s side and stab a piece of lettuce from your salad.

“it’s so nice out,” betty sighs, ripping off half her cookie and giving it to ned. “we should ditch.” “oh my god, you sound like harry,” you groan between bites of salad. peter lets out a breathy laugh, you looping your arm through his. he grins down at where you’re linked. harry crosses his own arms over his chest. “she wishes.” betty only nods because her mouth is full of m&m’s.

“nah, seriously. i’d take us out somewhere, but i have practice after school.” he speaks quieter than he normally does, less confident. your theory about him having basketball drama was right. “what did we tell you? talk about the sports shit with your sports friends,” mj complains, sitting back on her hands. she glances at harry over her shoulder and catches ned mouthing you can’t say that.

sitting criss cross, she spins around to face harry, unenthusiastically saying, “what i meant was, you sound upset. what’s wrong?” harry gets into it right away, like he’s been waiting for someone to ask. “coach says there might be a scout at the next game. it’s a really good opportunity even though i don’t have to worry about... college yet.” the word makes him cringe.

“oh, damn. that’s a big deal. scary,” mj snorts, turning back to you and peter. her behavior makes ned internally face palm. “that’s awesome, dude. you’re gonna play amazing like always.” he gives harry a high five, who smiles nervously in response. he’s never nervous. “thanks, bro. you guys wanna come and watch?” he’s never invited you to one of his games before either.

this isn’t a group of friends that likes to spend their weekends in bleachers while angry teens shout around them.

“definitely. we’ll be there to support you, harry,” betty answers for everyone, ned pecking her cheek in satisfaction. mj cusses to herself before replying. “if i absolutely must, sure.” only you and peter haven’t said anything yet. he’s been chewing his lower lip, and you your salad. harry looks between you two hopefully. it’s more so at you, which peter doesn’t like.

“y/n? pete? it would help a lot, i’m serious.” he taps his fingers on the table until one of you speaks up. you’re the one who does. “i’ll go. this is pretty huge, right? congrats.” you reach across the table and squeeze his shoulder while simultaneously tightening your arm around peter’s. he takes that as a cue. “i’ll go, too. happy for you, man.”

though peter isn’t currently in the best place with harry, he should show his support by showing up. it can’t be too bad since the rest of you will be there.

a loud, long chuckle leaves harry as he hops up from his bench and comes to yours and peter’s. he bends over and wraps both of you in a hug from behind at the same time. his arms are around each of your shoulders, holding you so close his cheeks are squished against either of your heads. you giggle at that, peter finding himself laughing along and reaching back to ruffle harry’s hair.

staying mad at him is one of the world’s greatest challenges.

“you’re saints, both of you. my angels.” he kisses the back of your head, then lays one right on peter’s cheek, leaving him blushing red and grinning. “what about the rest of us? i never go to shit like this,” mj huffs and seems genuinely offended. harry wiggles his eyebrows. “you want a kiss?” his offer gets her flustered, which she can’t manage to hide. that’s a first.

“shut up. i’m just saying... never mind.” mj glares at you and peter, ned and betty making kissing noises behind her. “someone change the subject.” peter steps in. “when’s the game, harry?” he asks, harry snapping and waving his finger. “tomorrow! cancel your plans, kiddos.” “like we had any,” betty retorts.

some of you did. that was going to be peter’s hangout with you.

ned smiles sympathetically at peter before betty is getting his attention. you‘re unfazed and rambling to harry how proud you are of him.

did last night mean nothing? was it an empty gesture? were you only doing it out of guilt? peter must have read your visit wrong. he’s been wrong the whole time he’s liked you. you don’t like him back, you pity him. harry is who you’re really interested in.

may always says he should trust his instincts.

peter pulls his arm from yours suddenly, swinging his backpack onto his shoulders. you’re taken back because it’s so out of no where. you stop talking to harry so you can figure out his deal. “where are you going?” “bell’s gonna ring,” peter mumbles and picks up his lunch tray. he heads to the garbage can without another word or goodbye to anyone.

“i’m gonna go check on him,” you tell harry, already getting up from the bench. “you do that,” he acknowledges and calls mj’s name again.

peter tosses his mostly untouched food in the trash, seeing you make your way over from the corner of his eye. he tries to speed walk inside so he doesn’t have to talk to you. you’re too quick, cornering him between the door and brick wall.

“we still have ten minutes,” you state, worry flashing across your face. he’s avoiding you. well, attempting to. “what’s wrong?” peter gulps before saying anything. “my next class is on the other side of the-“ “no,” you cut him off. “what’s really wrong?”

he doesn’t feel like having this discussion. it’s bad enough he came to the realization his feelings are one sided. must he break that down for you so soon?

you toy with your sleeve while you speak because peter doesn’t. “i thought you and harry were fine again. i mean, he kissed you.” peter clenches his jaw so hard he can imagine the sound of it cracking. “it’s not about harry.” “what, then? what the fuck happened?” your sleeves are now balled in your fists. you hate it when peter does this angsty routine.

he keeps his voice low and calm so he doesn’t come off as jealous or hurt. he’s both of those things. “the game is tomorrow. friday. when we were supposed to hang out.” you meet peter’s eyes with nothing but remorse in yours. “i... i forgot,” is all you have to say.

you feel awful. he’s had a tough couple of days, and you fell through on your promise to cheer him up.

“clearly,” peter remarks, voice sharp. the way you’re looking at him makes him think he won’t like what’s coming. “peter, we have to go,” you almost whine. “i’m really sorry, i am, but this is a big night for harry. he needs us there.” peter stays silent. you’re twisting the knife deeper into him with every word. “i wouldn’t be cancelling if this wasn’t important.”

now you’re cancelling?

you reach for peter’s hand, but he shoves it into his pocket. that stings for you and him. “please, peter. we’ll hang out at the game, i swear.” this is the last chance you’ve got, so you pile it on. “harry won’t even be there, technically. he’ll... he’ll be on the court.” peter hadn’t thought about that. he lets himself unclench, starting to see the appeal. you add one more thing to lighten the mood and persuade him.

“i’ll buy you popcorn, all you can eat.” it’s that easy. cracking a smile, peter accepts. he’ll deal with his unresolved, unreciprocated feelings after he stuffs his face, courtesy of you. “you better. i’m gonna need it for this long ass game.” your face lights up, grabbing his wrist in both hands.

“so, you’ll come?” “i’ll be there,” he confirms. you throw your arms around his neck. he laughs into the hug and holds you by your middle. “i promise this’ll be the first and last game we ever go to,” you say and mean it. harry is lucky you’re even suffering through this a first time. “thank god,” peter exhales, resting his chin on your head.

that interaction leaves peter confused as hell. you’re crushing his mind and soul one minute, then hugging him the next. you were making him feel so special lasts night, and treating harry the same way today. it’s so jumbled that he isn’t sure if he’s in the friend zone or something more zone.

there are a ton of mixed signals coming his way, and he sucks at reading people as is.

he can’t take another second of this. he’d rather you come out and say you like harry already because it’s torture. knowing you don’t want him in that way would at least eliminate the possibility of anything happening between you two, and allow him to stop driving himself insane.

he’d be able to stop taking it out on harry, too.

the hold you have on peter, that you’re oblivious to, rules his every thought and decision. he’s constantly analyzing what you say to him, debating whether or not your affection is simply platonic. it’s been half a year of this madness, the night of harry’s game blurring every line so much more.

your group arrives a bit early to find seats and hype harry up before he plays. peter gets there after all of you because he’s not exactly in a rush to watch sweaty guys be aggressive. there’s only one upside, which is spending the night with you... and everyone else.

he steps into the gym that’s filling up fast with family members, friends, and the college scout harry was talking about. midtown has a different feeling to it at night. the smell of pencils is oddly stronger, and it’s a lot less intimidating.

cheerleaders are huddled in a circle while the team supervisor has them run their chants. the “leading official,” who peter thought was called a referee, takes his place off to the side. coaches give their players last minute instructions, players fool around with each other, a lot is going on.

peter scans the room for you, and grins a toothy grin when you catch his eyes. you’re sitting by yourself in one of the middle bleachers, only a bag of skinny pop in your lap. you return the smile once you spot him and wave him over.

“i don’t know why, but i thought they’d have an actual concession stand,” you explain the lack of fresh, buttery popcorn as peter takes a seat next to you. he catches the prepackaged bag you toss him. “it’s just a snack table.” “works either way,” peter hums and pokes the bag. “i’m not sure skinny pop is all i can eat, though.” “it’s good!” you defend the snack you chose for him.

“i’m kidding! you’re right, it’s kind of addicting.” he puts it by his feet for now and gives you a half smile. “you’re welcome,” you deadpan in a playful tone. “thanks.” he narrows his eyes. “where’s everyone else?” “right,” you twist around and gesture to the bleacher above you. mj is gloomily seated near the back. ned and betty are a few behind you.

“i told them to find their own seats so we can sit together, alone.” you look over at peter and move ever so slightly closer. “welcome to our friday hangout. just the two of us.” “aw, you didn’t have to do that,” peter laughs out, his knee bumping yours. “but, i’m happy you did.” he goes to put an arm around you, then harry comes racing up the stairs.

just the two of you didn’t last so long.

“y/n, i’m freaking out,” harry announces, zooming through your row to get over to you. he stops once he’s standing in front of peter and shakes him by his shoulder. “hey, pete. you made it.” “yup,” peter replies, pressing his lips together. you wince at his reaction, then quirk an eyebrow at harry. “you’re freaking out? why?”

harry sits down between you and peter, blissfully unaware of the moment he interrupted.

“i found the scout. he’s fucking terrifying as fuck. this super ripped guy, looks like he’d rather be anywhere else,” he talks quietly, like the man will hear him. “he’s not the only one,” peter says to himself, kicking around his bag of popcorn to pass time. you ignore him and grimace.

“shit. wait, how do you know it’s him? did they tell you?” you’re not sure how these things go. harry casually shrugs a shoulder. “dude has a clipboard. seems legit to me.” he gives you a cocky smile. “he’s also in the row before mj. that’s how i noticed. um...” his back now facing peter, he whispers something in your ear that makes you giggle.

peter’s face scrunches up as the spark of anger the past few days have lit reignites itself.

when harry pulls away, you motion for him to come closer with your index finger, cupping your hand around his ear and speaking into it.

nope, no more. peter is entirely about to explode. you cancelled your plans so you can force him to watch basketball, you sweet talk him so he’ll let it go, and you’re running right back to harry after all of that? what the hell does that mean?

peter stands up from his seat. “y/n, we need to talk,” he demands, you moving away from harry to respond. “ok, gimme a minute. we’re-“ “no, we need to talk now.” you don’t have time to refute because he’s taking your arm and dragging you away. harry squints at you in utter confusion.

“um, have a good game! we’ll talk later,” you call back to him, walking with peter even though you have no idea what his issue is and aren’t a fan of how he’s acting.

he releases you once you’re in the hallway. you make a point of harshly yanking your arm back, a scowl painting your lips. “jesus, peter. i was having a conversation.” “do you like harry?” peter blurts out. you’re so shocked at his abruptness that you don’t give him much to work with, only, “what?” “do you like harry?” he asks you again, this time less accusing and more curious.

“do i like...” you’re too aware of the seemingly hundreds of people surrounding you to answer comfortably. “can we talk about this somewhere else?” “sure,” peter nods, letting you lead the way since he did to get out here. you two go down the hall and choose the first room you see, which happens to be the custodian’s closet. it’s thankfully unlocked.

things were tense between you and peter on the way over, and it’s physically mirrored when you step into the room, air thick and smelling of lemon cleaning supplies. you tug on the string hanging down to turn on the light. it casts a faded glow, leaving you in mostly darkness. you sort of like it. this feels more intimate, which is fitting for what you’re both about to say.

neither one of you knows where to begin. peter’s question is ringing in the back of your mind, and you could touch on that, but there’s more to it than a simple yes or no. you don’t have to worry about it because peter gets his words out first.

“i think harry likes you, and i think you like him back,” peter restarts, already sounding deflated by what he came up with. “he doesn’t, and i don’t.” you take a step towards him. “he likes mj.” it’s peter’s turn to be shocked. the hint of a smile sets on your lips. “that’s what we were talking about. harry asked if he should take her to dinner after the game, and i said yes.”

this is going better than he expected.

“mj is the one who likes him, not me,” you reiterate and watch some life enter peter again, a tiny bit. he’s coming around, and he wants to believe you. his trust issues don’t. “but, you’re so... touchy with each other. the hugging the other day?” he mentions. you tilt your head to the side in amusement. “friends can’t hug?”

to be fair, you hugged peter yesterday. that’s a point rightfully shut down.

“he calls you pretty,” peter tries, raising both eyebrows. you have to laugh at this one. “you call may pretty.”

obviously, peter’s analysis skills could use some serious improvements. it sounds like he had the right idea, wrong person. your relationship with harry is platonic. hell, he’s crushing on a whole different person. this actually opens up the possibility of you liking peter in the romantic way, of him being in the something more zone. he had it backwards.

in case peter isn’t convinced yet, and because you really want to, you use one more trick to prove to him you don’t like harry.

“do me and harry do this?” your lips speak for you, colliding with peter’s unexpectedly yet easily. he feels like he’s floating, like he’s in some sort of magical wonderland until it hits him that this is real, and he should probably kiss you back. he does so softly and tangles his fingers in your locks. his hand supports the back of your head as the kiss goes on.

you push forward so your bodies are almost fused together, the closest you can be while you hold his jaw. peter breaks the kiss for a short breather, going back in without more than a moment passing. this one is feverish, his free arm looping around your lower back, hand resting on the small of it. you let out a giggle against his swollen lips and stroke your thumb over his jawline.

he’s been waiting to do this for the longest time, but he doesn’t have to tell you that. it shows in how eager he was to reciprocate, his shyness blossoming into passion. you feel yourself melting under his touch, the kiss eventually becoming a series of short pecks. peter gives you the final one. his pink lips form a grin when you pull apart. your hands stay on each other, not in a rush to go anywhere.

“woah, i like you so much,” peter laughs out. the words roll off his tongue naturally. “you know i like you,” you drawl, smiling at him, a full body smile while you caress his skin. he winds both arms around you and dips his head down to steal another kiss. you’re loving what’s happening. however, you don’t feel like making out while dirty brooms stare at you. you should take this back home.

“wanna get out of here? i do,” you suggest, voice muffled from his lips. they detach from yours and brush your cheek gently. peter makes a funny face. “hm, i thought we had to come. harry needs us,” he says what you did yesterday, earning a groan back. “you’re joking.” “i’m not. what kind of friends would we be, ditching him like that?”

he’s going to end you one day.

“yeah, no. i have no idea how basketball works, and i’d like to keep it that way,” peter drops the act, pressing his fingers into your sides. “i’ve been so mean to harry. i was...” “a dick?” you finish for him. it’s more of a statement than a question. to soften the blow, you rub his cheek with the tips of your fingers. “yup. he’s gonna think i hate him or something if we don’t stay.” his formerly smiley face is frowning.

“harry of all people will understand after we tell him our reasons,” you reassure him, nudging under his chin with your nose. “besides, he has other things to worry about. mj, the scout. it’s fine.” peter considers it, ultimately giving in to you like he always does, resting his forehead on yours. “i guess so. less distractions for him, yeah.” “exactly. that’s what i wanna hear.”

having his approval, you unwind yourself from him and head to the door. his fingers wrap around your wrist gently. “what about my popcorn?” a giggle escapes your lips. “you’re still on that?” “you said all i can eat!” his voice comes out high pitched, adorably high pitched.

“fine. i might have those bags you put in the microwave.” you smile when his fingers lock with yours, peter kissing the side of your head.

“even better. let’s go home.”

#peter parker #peter parker fluff #peter parker imagine #peter parker x reader #peter parker x you #peter parker smut #peter parker fic #peter parker fanfiction #tom holland #tom holland fluff #tom holland smut #tom holland x reader #tom holland x you #tom holland fic #tom holland fanfiction #tom holland imagine

606 notes · View notes