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#and u can see her little brain ticking away and going....hm....okay
teshamerkel · 3 years
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Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Seekers of Soul
[Chapter 21] (32 Pages)
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Tobias and Nia make the journey to Ghatha!
-
“Are we getting close?”
Tobias swallows back an annoyed growl, trying to keep his temper under control. He will not snap at his partner. Or light her on fire. “For the fourth time, Nia, we’re almost there. Stop asking before I turn us around.” 
The riolu shrinks into herself with a sheepish smile. “S-Sorry. I’m just excited.”
Tobias doesn’t answer, hoping Nia will finally fall silent and let them walk through the forest in peace and quiet. He doesn’t mind going on this trip to Ghatha, and although he’d never admit it, he isn’t even that annoyed by Nia’s presence anymore. Most of the time.
But by Entei’s fire, Tobias has his limits. There’s only so much excited rambling he can handle in one short walk to the flight outpost.
“O-Okay, actually important question.”
“Hm.”
“Should I eat before we fly? Or, uh...”
Tobias finally cracks a grin. “Or are you gonna barf your brains out? Dunno. Guess we’ll see.”
Nia‘s nose scrunches up at the mental image. “You sound a little too happy about this.”
“I will definitely laugh if you puke.”
She shoots him a playful glare, so Tobias adds, “If you want an actual answer, I wouldn’t eat before we go up. If you’re fine flying then you can eat on the way there. If not, then we won’t immediately tick off our ride by puking all over ’em.”
Nia fidgets nervously with the strap of the satchel thrown over her shoulder. “That makes sense. I’d like to be on good terms with the Pokémon carrying us 10,000 feet in the air.”
There are a few minutes of quiet after that, and Tobias takes advantage of them to enjoy the cool morning air. Dawn sunlight is filtering through the trees of the forest, clearing away the chilly fog of the night. He notices that the green leaves overhead are starting to shift to gold, catching the morning rays. It really is going to be fall soon.
“Are you nervous?” Nia asks. “About flying?”
Tobias mourns the loss of silence with a sigh. “You do know my final evolution is half flying, right?”
“Well, yes, but that doesn’t mean you can fly now. So I just wondered. Have you ever flown before?”
For a heartbeat, memories slip by before Tobias can stop them. Vivid snapshots of sitting atop a broad orange back, wings spread endlessly wide on either side of him. His hands, much smaller, clutching tight to warm scales, the blue sky seeming to go on forever in all directions, the wind whistling by and stealing away his laughter.
Tobias shoves the memory from his mind, holds his breath until he knows it won’t shake. Keeps his eyes glued to the foliage around them. Eventually, he manages to say, “I’ve been flying before. A long time ago.”
Maybe Nia can hear the lump in his throat, because she falls silent with a tiny, “Oh.”
They continue on, Tobias focusing his senses on the world around them to distract himself from the memories suddenly trying to rise up and choke him. His heart twists inside his chest, and it takes everything in him to blink back rising tears.
The trio. The outlaws. Focus on them, on taking them down. Focus on what he needs to do.
“Is that it?”
Tobias snaps out of his musings to look up, and sure enough, the outpost is in sight. It’s still halfway hidden by the trees and undergrowth, a lanky structure of white-painted wood, but it’s definitely what Maggie pointed out to him from the mail floor, years ago.
A quiet rabble of voices meet them as they get closer. Calm conversation, occasional laughter. The two of them emerge into a small clearing, and there it is: a tower reaching almost too high up to see the top. Roosts of moss and hay and twigs are haphazardly wedged here and there throughout the structure, and flying Pokémon of all kinds flit about. Some are napping, others chatting, and a few are on the grass, talking with clients.
“Wow,” Nia breathes, eyes wide with wonder.
A talonflame is the first to notice them, and glides down to meet them with a respectful dip of his head. “Greetings. Looking for a lift?”
Tobias nods. “We’re guild members under August. We need a ride to Ghatha.”
The talonflame tilts his bright head, humming thoughtfully. “I don’t take on distances that far, especially with fighting types on-board. But I think I know who can give you a lift. Wait here.”
The fire type beats at the ground and lifts off again, flying high into the roost. Nia follows him with her eyes, brow furrowed.
“Fighting types can be squirmy in the air, and talonflame are already lightweights,” Tobias explains, snorting. “Don’t look so offended.”
Nia’s troubled expression clears, and she gives him a thankful nod for the explanation.
A large, winged silhouette takes off from one of the perches, circling down to land before the two of them in a gust of wind. A braviary. She’s huge, easily four times the size of Tobias and Nia, with navy and crimson feathers and a soft mane of white. She’s clearly a sturdy Pokémon, with a few scars visible on her body, cutting irregular patterns through her feathers. Most startling of all is the closed, puckered skin over where her right eye should be, a thick scar running across the area and cutting into her beak. A bright yellow designated flyer’s scarf is tied around her leg. To say she’s impressive-looking would be an understatement.
“Hey there, folks! Name’s Felicity,” the braviary chirps, her voice bright and sharp. “But y’all can just call me Fliss. I hear you two are hoping for a ride to Ghatha.”
Nia looks as awed as Tobias feels by the flying type’s presence. “Y-Yes, ma’am!”
Fliss laughs, loud and hearty. “You sure look spunky for a fighting type at the outpost. You ever flown before?”
Nia opens her mouth to respond, then pauses, a distant confusion glossing over her expression. Tobias has seen that look before. Are her memories acting up again?
He’s about to cut in when the riolu blinks back to the present, hesitantly answering, “U-Uh. No? I-I don’t think I have, at least.”
Fliss gives Nia a curious look but doesn’t push, instead giving the riolu a firm nod. “Well, I’ll do my best to keep it a smooth flight. Since you’re both small, it’ll only be 400 poke for a one-way trip. Discount since you’re in the guild.”
Tobias nods and gestures for Nia to let him rummage around in their satchel. When he pulls out their team poke pouch, Nia pulls out her own personal bag as well. She grabs 200 poke, handing it to him and answering his questioning frown with a small smile and a shrug. “I’m the one who wanted to go on this trip in the first place—it only seems fair that I pay a little extra from my own cash.”
Tobias doesn’t argue, accepting the poke and gathering it with the other 200 from their team earnings. Fliss holds out her leg, and he dumps the coins into a thick pouch strapped securely to her foot, which she ties shut with her beak.
“Great! You two ready to set off?”
Tobias and Nia nod, and the braviary crouches down low, belly to the grass and wings spread wide to help them get on her back.
Nia freezes, wide-eyed. “W-Wait, there aren’t like, safety harnesses or something? S-Seatbelts?”
Tobias rolls his eyes as Fliss guffaws. “Don’t be silly! We wouldn’t be flying grounders around if we weren’t confident in our ability to keep ‘em safe.”
“But what if we f-fall?”
“Then I’ll catch you,” Fliss replies simply. “Look, hun, what’s your name?”
“N-Nia.”
“Look, Nia. I’ve flown all over the world, and I’ve taken a lot of passengers along with me. Haven’t dropped a single one—promise.”
The riolu still doesn’t look convinced, and Tobias groans. “Arceus, would you just get on? Pokémon do this every day!”
“And the winds are in our favor today, too,” Fliss adds, motioning Nia forward.
The riolu steps up to the braviary’s side, and then uses the offered wing as a boost to climb onto Fliss’s back. Nia sits, paws hesitantly holding onto her feathers. “A-Am I hurting you?”
Fliss laughs, making the riolu jump. “You’re light as a feather. Feel free to hold on tighter if you need to, I’ve been through worse.” Then she turns her gaze to Tobias. “Up ya go. What’s your name?”
“Tobias,” the charmander replies, watching Nia as she fidgets. “Where should I sit?”
“Probably in front, so the little fighter’ll have something to hold onto.”
Right, that makes sense--even if he really doesn’t want her clinging to him the whole flight. Tobias climbs up the braviary’s back and plops down in front of Nia, carefully setting his legs on either side of Fliss’s feathery shoulders and letting his tail curl over his leg.
“Hold on tight to my feathers, now!” Fliss calls. “Riolu, if you get scared just hold on tight to your partner.”
“Or don’t,” Tobias mumbles under his breath.
“I-I think I’ll be okay just holding on,” Nia says, voice high and unconvincing.
“Suit yourself! We’re taking off, so if you need me, tap my back three times!”
And with that, Fliss beats her wings hard, powerful gusts of wind tearing at the grass and billowing out in all directions. Slowly, they rise up, and Nia squeaks from behind Tobias.
Tobias can’t help a sudden burst of excitement. He watches eagerly as the forest sinks around them and they rise higher and higher, above the treeline, into bright morning sky. It’s windier up here, a little more chilly.
It feels like freedom.
The wind smells fresh and whistles past them as they gain altitude, fluttering his scarf and Fliss’ feathers. The world stretches out around them, all at once remarkably small and endlessly large. There’s forest as far as the eye can see, making up Bethoc’s Haven. Tobias laughs, unable to contain the giddy feeling in his gut. He’d forgotten how exhilarating it was to be in the sky like this. To fly.
“All right! Hang on, kiddos—we’re off!”
Tobias grips the braviary’s feathers and grins, thrilled as Fliss snaps out her wings and catches an air current. They shoot forward, picking up speed in an instant.
Nia screams, and then there’s a pair of arms locked around the Tobias’ middle, squeezing the life out of him. Tobias chokes, immediately moving to pry the riolu’s wrists away. A quiet whimper stops him, buried in his shoulder and just loud enough to be heard.
The snarl dies in Tobias’ throat as he hesitates. He doesn’t want Nia pressed so uncomfortably close, arms determined to cut off his breathing, but…he also hasn’t heard her this scared in a while. Plus, shoving her off would probably break the unspoken rules of their Tobias Not Being a Jerk team agreement, so. He sighs, resigning himself to this embarrassing situation and forcing his body to relax.
At least the sights are a distraction. The view really is gorgeous, an expansive sea of forest, leaves just starting to turn from green to warmer shades for the fall. The day is bright and brisk: perfect flying weather. Tobias feels a bittersweet tug in his chest, but tips his head back to enjoy the wind and sun on his face with a content smile.
After a few minutes, Tobias peers over his shoulder, only able to see the top of Nia’s head, her ears still pinned flat to her skull.
“Hey,” he calls.
She doesn’t answer, but the hold around his torso tightens.
“It’ll help if you look around.”
The riolu shakes her head against his shoulder, a muffled, “No!” barely reaching his ears.
Tobias rolls his eyes at the childish response. He knows that fighting types tend to have problems with heights and flying, but this is just ridiculous. He is not going to have this flight ruined by Nia cowering in terror and slowly cracking his ribs.
Plus, this is too beautiful a view to miss.
“Just try looking around.”
Nia whines again. “Why?”
“Because we have three more hours of this and I’m pretty sure you’re trying to suffocate me.”
Nia manages to loosen her hold, just a bit. Tobias can breathe again, but the riolu is still quivering, face tucked away.
“Nia.”
“No! I’m n-not looking!”
“Just look up! Don’t look down, idiot, that’ll make anyone’s stomach jump.” Nia doesn’t respond. Tobias peeks back at her again. “Okay, what’s it gonna take for you to look.”
“Take me back to solid ground!”
Despite his frustration, Tobias snorts a laugh. “Too bad, pick something else.” No response. Stubborn. What would entice her enough to surpass her fear? “I’ll, uh…Tell you about the landmarks we pass if you look. You mentioned wanting to know more about geography or something, right?”
Nia shifts against his shoulder, hesitant but clearly interested.
“You’re such a nerd,” Tobias snorts.
“I-I like learning stuff,” she defends. At least, that’s what he thinks she said. It’s hard to properly hear anything up here.
“Well, you have to look for me to teach you, otherwise you won’t know what I’m talking about.”
Nia slowly lifts her head, still tucked close to his shoulder with her eyes squeezed shut. A few seconds pass.
“We’re gonna land in Ghatha before you open your eyes.”
“J-Just give me a sec.”
“Look up first, not down.”
Tobias can feel the riolu take a deep breath. Then, she cracks her eyes open, looking up into open blue sky. He watches as the riolu blinks, then lets her eyes open a bit more, squinting ever-so-slightly against the wind. Good.
“Still alive,” he teases.
“S-So far,” Nia shoots back.
Tobias moves his gaze away, to the forest underneath them. Even without looking straight down, there’s a huge chunk of the region visible. Mostly trees for now, a few fields and clearings, but a set of mountains can be seen faintly in the distance.
“Try looking forward,” he suggests.
“Y-You sure?”
He shrugs, the movement odd with the weight of the riolu still wrapped around him like a scarf. “Gotta do it eventually.”
The riolu seems uncertain, but takes another deep, bracing breath. Her ruby eyes flick a degree down from the sky overhead, looking forward as they fly. For a moment, her expression drops into something awestruck, and Tobias almost smiles.
Then she shrieks a terrified sound, and is back to burying her face into his shoulder.
Tobias groans. “C’mon!”
“J-Just give me a bit, o-okay? I...I’ll try again in a bit.”
Tobias huffs an irritated breath, disappointed. How can Nia not love this view, this feeling of freedom and speed? It’s so soothing being up in the air like this, effortlessly gliding over miles of woodland that would take them hours—days, even—to cross on foot. The brightening sky is slowly changing the hue of the treetops below them, cooler grays coming alive with color, and there’s just something hypnotic about the gentle dip and rise of Fliss’ flying, the slight shifts between air currents. He almost feels like he’s in a trance, with the heat of the rising sun and the balancing bite of the wind, Nia a warm weight against his back. Tobias could probably fall asleep up here, if he tried.
After a while, the fuzzy silhouettes of the mountain range become more visible, fading into existence as towering peaks of white, their tops cloaked in eternal snowstorms. Even the winds feel colder as they fly on a current slightly closer to the mountains, though they’re still a great many miles away.
“You can kinda see the Silenfroar mountain range from here,“ Tobias says, far too casually. “We’re passing by right now.”
Nia’s curiosity is too much for her, and she tentatively lifts her head to peek over Tobias’ shoulder.
“To the left.”
Nia follows his instruction, and all at once he sees amazement take over the fear. She unfolds, ears pricking up, head lifting, the hold around his gut loosening until she’s lightly gripping his sides.
Tobias can’t help it—no one can see him up here anyways. He grins, gazing at the mountains as well. “Pretty cool, huh?”
“They’re beautiful!”
“There’s a village on top of those mountains!” Fliss shouts over her shoulder, catching their attention. “I hear they aren’t fond of outsiders, so I’ve never been there myself!”
“August trained up there for a while!” Tobias yells back. Maggie had mentioned it once or twice, quoting it from the rillaboom’s younger days. Apparently the treacherous Silenfroar settlement is infamous for being an incredibly challenging training ground—or so August says. “He’s still on good terms with ‘em, from what I hear.”
“Whoa,” Nia murmurs, still mesmerized by the intimidating mountain peaks.
Tobias shifts his own gaze down to look at the landscape below them. The trees are starting to thin out a bit, meaning that they should be hitting the Bethoc Bluffs and the Obsidian Sea relatively soon. Tobias is nervous about crossing the stretch of open ocean between them and Ghatha, but Fliss seems strong—
A tiny eep! of fear is Tobias’ only warning before Nia grabs him in another death-hug, crushing the breath out of him.
“Arceus, Nia, give me some warning!” Tobias wheezes, pulling her arms a bit looser. She’s stronger than she looks. “Is this how you’re gonna be the whole way?”
“N-No, it’s getting better! J-Just, uh. Slowly.”
Tobias rolls his eyes and focuses back on the flight, determined to enjoy the peaceful feeling of it all. As they fly, the landscape transitions from forest to rocky pines as they near the edge of the region. They pass several different settlements and tiny villages along the way, the homes and Pokemon living there barely visible from their height. Some are set up in clearings, quaint little homes and businesses clustered close together, and some are nearly hidden by leafy treetops, a bit more spaced apart.
Tobias has traveled to villages like those in the past, he thinks, with Maggie. Usually to treat a severely ill Pokémon or purchase rare herbs. He can’t really recall much about those trips, and certainly not any of the tiny towns’ names. Fliss, however, seems to know them by heart. She calls out each village’s name as they soar over them.
Nia leans forward to hear the braviary better as she speaks, hanging onto every windswept word. After the second or third village, Nia leans back, tightens her grip on Tobias, and cranes her neck to catch a glimpse of the town below. She retreats almost immediately, and Tobias isn’t sure whether to encourage her or make fun of her, so he settles for both.
“Wow, don’t get too adventurous,” he drawls.
Nia gives him a powerful squeeze in retaliation that makes him cough.
From there, the flight is quiet and uneventful, Nia’s face once again hidden in Tobias’ shoulder as the charmander enjoys the wind whipping past them. He doesn’t speak again until he can finally see the glitter of the ocean on the horizon, meaning they’re almost to the bluffs, where the region drops off into the sea.
He taps Nia’s arm to get her attention. “Ever been to the ocean?”
There’s a moment of thoughtful silence, and then, “I-I...don’t think so? I don’t remember seeing the ocean, at least.”
“Now’s your chance.”
That catches Nia’s attention. Slowly, the riolu peers over Tobias’ shoulder. Then she gasps and straightens up, ruby eyes blown wide with wonder. The ocean and the scraggly cliffs of the seaside are coming at them fast.
“Beautiful, ain’t it?” Fliss calls. “That’s the Obsidian sea! We’ll be flying over it for another hour or so before hitting Ghatha.”
Tobias isn’t particularly fond of the sea himself, for obvious reasons, but he does have to admit that it’s pretty to look at. And the salty air smells nice.
To Tobias’ surprise, Nia stays where she is, watching with open awe. She doesn’t even flinch as they finally meet where the water touches the cliffs, Fliss’ wings carrying them out over open waves. The water is dark with slices of white waves, choppy ripples reflecting pieces of the sky. The braviary’s flight levels out into a gentle glide, and she slowly lowers them closer to the water until they can see their own reflected shadow speeding across the waves.
Tobias holds on tighter to Fliss’ feathers and brings his legs up higher, feeling a pang of fear in his gut. If something were to suddenly happen to Fliss and they dropped into the sea, he’d be a goner this far from the shore.
A wave crests underneath them, spraying up a salty mist. Tobias leans away from it, hissing, and Nia laughs. It’s so unexpected that he looks back at her, caught off-guard by how she suddenly looks totally unafraid. She’s leaning right over Fliss’ side, watching the ocean waves with delight, one paw outstretched to catch more of the ocean spray, one paw still gripping Tobias’ side. Tobias blinks. He knew the height was an issue for the fighting type, but seeing such a drastic shift just from them lowering their altitude is really…something. Too bad Tobias feels like he’s currently dangling over certain death if Fliss gets so much as a wing cramp.
“S-So you haven’t ever like...crashed or anything, right?” Tobias yells, turning to look forward again.
Fliss’s back rumbles underneath them with a laugh. “‘Course not, hun! You think I’d offer to fly a fire type across the ocean if I had? We’ll be fine, trust me.”
Tobias takes a deep breath and tries to relax. It doesn’t work. Nia leans forward to catch his eye. “Hey, you okay?”
Tobias snorts, eyes forward and resolutely not on the ocean below them. “Fantastic.”
Nia stares at him with a little frown, before her expression clears. “Oh! It’s the water, huh? I didn’t even think of how scary that’d be for you. Sorry.”
Tobias doesn’t answer, trying not to feel embarrassed by how tense he is, and for a moment Nia is silent too. Then she leans forward, past him, and yells, “Hey, Fliss? Can we go a bit higher? J-Just a little!”
Fliss turns her head to give Nia a confused look, and Tobias does the same. “Odd request from a fighting type,” the braviary says. “But all right.”
Fliss tilts her wings and flaps, catching an updraft that takes them a bit higher. They’re still over open water, but it feels less threatening when it isn’t clawing at Tobias’ feet and spraying his skin with salty, stinging mist. He relaxes, and both of Nia’s paws hold firmly to his sides again. When he glances back at her, she still has her eyes open, looking out over the horizon. She doesn’t look quite as at-ease as she was before, but she doesn’t seem terrified, either.
Nia notices his stare and furrowed brow, and shrugs with a little smile. “S-Seemed like a good compromise to me. Better for both of us to be a little uncomfortable rather than either of us being completely terrified, right?”
Tobias blinks, surprised by the explanation. He…guesses that makes sense. If it keeps him from getting sprayed with stinging water and Nia from breaking his ribs, then he’ll take it. He nods and looks forward again.
After that it’s silent, save for the roaring wind and the crash of sea waves below them. They’re making good time from what Tobias can tell, but they’ve still got a bit of traveling ahead of them. Tobias has taken to closing his eyes and losing himself in the relaxing sensations of the flight when Fliss makes a mildly surprised sound that puts him immediately on edge. He looks around, not seeing anything, then follows the braviary’s gaze down to the ocean, heart jumping in his chest when he sees the shadow of a Pokemon speeding along below them, serpentine and absolutely massive, easily multiple times longer than Fliss is large. Before he can get concerned, Fliss takes them higher, safely out of range of the mysterious Pokemon.
“By Yveltal’s wings, that’s a big ‘un!” the braviary cries out. “Must be a gyarados. Likely travelling to Ghatha too.”
Tobias watches the shape, frowning. It’s still matching their pace perfectly, nothing but a dark blur broken up by the choppy waves. A gyarados, huh? He can’t remember seeing one before so he can’t be sure, but something about the silhouette seems…different from what he remembers in the books.
“Th-That’s a Pokemon?” Nia asks, clinging closer to Tobias. “I-It’s huge!”
Tobias doesn’t respond, watching as the shape suddenly falls back and out of sight.
Nia cranes her head back to watch it go, then leans into him again with a more relaxed grip. After a moment, she asks, “‘By Yveltal’s wings?’ Yveltal is one of the, uh...the legendary Pokémon, right?”
Tobias nods. “God of destruction, but also a deity of flight and war.”
Nia blinks, looking startled. “War?”
Tobias glances back at her. “Yeah. Hasn’t been a war in centuries, but a lot of Pokémon still look to the war deities for help in battle.”
After a beat of silence to digest that information, Nia hesitantly says, “I’ve been meaning to ask, a-and I hope this isn’t like…offensive? But, uh. What exactly is the deal with legendary Pokémon? I’ve heard people reference them and I’ve read a couple of books but are they, like...real Pokémon?”
Tobias bites back a sharp retort. He’s not allowed to snap at her for asking questions about the Pokémon world, no matter how ridiculous they are. “Did you not have gods in your world?”
“Well,” Nia says thoughtfully. “From what I can remember, there were different...religions, in the human world. So, like…I think my family believed in one god and one god only. But some people believed in a different god. Or multiple gods. Or no gods at all. And there wasn’t ever really any hard...proof, I guess? Of any of them existing. So I guess I’m wondering if it’s the same way here.”
Tobias frowns. “The gods here are real Pokémon, as far as we know. According to records and some of the older Pokemon, we used to see them and interact with them regularly, but in the last century or so they’ve just...disappeared. We don’t know if something happened or they just abandoned us or what.”
“You don’t sound all that worried about it.”
Tobias shrugs. “What’s there to be worried about? The situation’s been the same ever since I’ve been alive. Nothing’s changed for me.”
“But most Pokémon still believe in them, right?”
“To an extent, yeah.”
“Do you?”
Tobias pauses and looks up at the endless blue sky, thinking about how to respond. He hadn’t ever given it much thought, honestly. “…Maybe. My parents prayed to a few of them, and Maggie is pretty devout even if she keeps it quiet. I don’t really know if I believe in them or not. All I know is that if they used to be real, they aren’t watching over us anymore.“
“Really? Why do you say that?”
Tobias feels something tighten in his chest as he remembers rain and fear and a terrible sense of being completely alone, no matter how much he cried for help.
“Because they sure weren’t watching over me when I needed them.”
Nia goes quiet. Then, softly, she says, “I think I believe in a higher something, but I don’t know for sure what that is. Especially now, coming here to this world. I’m just more confused than ever.”
Tobias makes a noncommittal noise in his throat.
“I’ve read about some of them,” Nia continues. “You’ve mentioned an, uh...Entay?”
“Entei,” Tobias corrects. His parents had taught him to pray to the legendary beast when he was young. “Protector of fire types and children. Part of a trio alongside Suicune and Raikou. Suicune protects water types and watches over lakes and rivers. Raikou protects electric types and watches over storms.”
“Oh! I think I remember seeing a picture of those three. They kind of looked like…dogs? Or tigers, maybe? Weren’t there two birds, too?”
Birds? Tobias thinks Nia has called some of the flying type Pokemon that before. “Probably Lugia and Ho-oh—deities of the moon and sun. Lugia controls the seas and protects ocean voyages, and Ho-oh controls the Summer and Autumn seasons. Protects from fires.”
“Wow,” Nia breathes, sounding fascinated. “That’s so specific! And there are a lot of other ones, too, right?”
“Yeah, but they’re not all that specific. Like…Mew is just called the Mother of All Pokémon, so she’s more of a common deity. It’s said that she’s willing to help any Pokémon because in a way we’re all her children or something.”
“I think I remember Mew. Little pink cat Pokémon?”
“She’s definitely pink.”
“Okay. So is there like...a god above all the other gods?”
“There’s Arceus,” Tobias says, slowly. “I guess they’d be the closest thing. Although that’s one Pokémon they say no one ever saw, even when all the others deities were pretty common. They say Arceus created the other legendaries, who in turn created us.”
Nia’s silent again, probably thinking, and Tobias takes advantage of the brief moment of quiet, closing his eyes again to fully enjoy the sun against his face. He really missed flying.
“But not all gods are like...good, right?” Nia asks eventually. “Like yuh...yuveltel? He’s a god of war, right?”
“Yveltal is the god of destruction,” Fliss corrects, startling them both. “But that doesn’t mean he’s bad. All things have to die for new life to take their place, after all. It’s just the natural order of things. Yveltal destroys and ends, and Xerneas creates and starts anew.“
“I...guess that’s true,” Nia says, still sounding doubtful. “But war isn’t a good thing, or necessary.”
“But it still happens,” Fliss says. “Battles happen and we all need someone to turn to for hope in bleak, bloody situations. So Yveltal got that job, as a destruction legendary. If it’s too late to hope for peace, it gives a lot of hope to think you have the god of destruction himself on your side.”
Nia hums. “Okay…I guess that makes sense. But what about that one kind of scary legendary Pokémon? The legends made him out to be really, really bad.”
“Darkrai?”
“It looked kind of like a dragon. Something about dimensions?”
“Ah,” Fliss says, nodding. “That would be Giratina. He was exiled long before the other legends disappeared, banished to the dimensional rift. I will admit he’s a real piece of work, according to the stories.”
“I couldn’t find much about him,” Nia admits, leaning past Tobias to talk more directly to the braviary.
“That’s because a lot of Pokémon ain’t comfortable talking about him!” Fliss crows, sounding amused. “But I ain’t scared of some dusty old tall tales. Wanna hear about his banishment? My granny told me the story when I was just a chick.”
Nia grins. “Yes please!”
Fliss laughs, and Tobias doesn’t complain when the braviary slows, leveling her flight into a smoother glide over ocean drafts. The charmander is admittedly curious, too. He can’t remember anyone telling him much about Giratina’s story before, though he’s heard the name whispered once or twice over the years.
“Well, the legends claim that Giratina was once the guardian of our world’s borders,” Fliss begins. “He kept our dimension safe and sturdy, keeping out anything that didn’t belong in the Pokémon world and making sure no Pokémon got too big-headed and tried to explore past its borders. Myths about humans existed even hundreds of years ago, y’know? Some suspected that if we could cross that dimensional border, we’d find them. It was part of Giratina’s job to keep Pokemon from trying to do so.”
Nia’s hold on Tobias tightens as she whispers, “The human world?”
“I guess it would have messed with something, if we were allowed to hop between worlds like that,” Fliss continues. “So it was Giratina’s job to upkeep that land surrounding our own, keep us in and others out so nothing would be disrupted. He was always a bit of a shiny wooloo among the gods, never deigned regular Pokémon worthy of his presence and kept to himself. But he did his job! They say Pokémon would see him sometimes in reflections, blood-red eyes cold and fierce. But he was never aggressive, never abandoned his duties.”
“Until one day,” Fliss’ voice drops to something low and dramatic. “He just lost his head. Attacked another legend out of the blue and nearly killed ‘em! I believe it was Cresselia? Or maybe it was Celebi. Anyways! As punishment, Arceus themself banished Giratina to his own dimensional rift, trapping him so that he couldn’t leave it or even contact our world. They say he’s still there to this day, plotting his revenge, and that on still nights you can see the shadow of him flickering in reflections, watching and trying to break free.”
A beat of quiet, and then Nia shudders behind him. “O-Okay, that’s creepy. So no one knows what set him off? Why he would just attack another legendary like that?”
“Beats me!” Fliss says, chipper once more. “Most Pokémon don’t even like to talk about him, so we don’t know a lot about the story anymore.”
Nia makes a dissatisfied noise, then asks, “Well, what about the dimensional rift between the Pokémon world and other dimensions? Has anyone tried to cross it since Giratina was trapped? There are humans popping up in this world, so wouldn’t that mean something’s gone wrong there?”
There’s a heavy, out-of-place pause. Then, Fliss says, “You aren’t a normal Pokémon, are you Nia?”
Nia jerks back in surprise, and Tobias freezes.
“Most every Pokemon knows about the gods, after all,” Fliss continues casually. “You wouldn’t happen to be heading to that human meet-up in Ghatha, now would ya?”
For a moment, Tobias thinks of August’s warning for them to keep quiet about Nia being human. From how Nia clutches him tighter, he bets she’s remembering the same thing.
“I, u-uh. I am, actually,” Nia finally says, quietly. “Is that okay?”
Fliss laughs as Tobias gives the riolu a nasty glare for blowing their cover so easily. “Sure! It’s just fine with me, lass. Just hope you weren’t trying to keep it a secret—if so, you’re doing a right poor job of it!”
Nia makes a quiet, unhappy sound in her throat. “Should…Should we be keeping it a secret?”
Fliss makes a thoughtful trilling sound. “Heard about that squabble between the humans and Pokémon, eh? I doubt you’ll run into any real trouble around here, but if you’re worried about it then don’t go asking such obvious questions in front of other Pokémon, all right? I knew something was odd since we left port.”
Nia groans and bumps her head dejectedly into Tobias’ back. “I’ll…try to keep that in mind.”
Fliss laughs again. “Aw, cheer up! I’m excited, at least! Never thought I’d be takin’ a human across the sea! What a world.”
Nia and Fliss continue to chatter on about humans and Nia’s experiences since coming to the Pokemon world, and Tobias closes his eyes to relax again. He gets dangerously close to dozing as they continue into the roaring wind, sun rising higher to warm them and dazzle the sea. Nia and Fliss eventually fall silent, and the riolu slowly relaxes against him as the minutes pass, probably falling into a nap herself. Tobias idly wonders if every charmander or bagon feels this connection to the sky, or if it’s just him.
They stay like that until they hear a distant cry, nearly snatched away by the wind. Fliss calls back, loud and jarring, and Nia jumps. A moment later, Tobias spots a small flock of Pokémon flying to the left, veering towards them. Fliss doesn’t seem alarmed, and as they get closer, Tobias can pick out a togekiss and flygon guiding a group of smaller flying type Pokémon, letting them ride their drafts in the harsh wind.
“Fledglings?” Fliss calls, eyes fond as she spots a little rufflet in the pack.
The togekiss corrects a wobbly swablu’s form and the flygon nods, eyes flicking from Fliss’ designated flight scarf to Tobias and Nia before he smiles. “First day out over open ocean.”
Fliss laughs. “Terrifying, ain’t it? Feels like Kyogre herself’s gonna leap outta the ocean and snatch you up! If y’all are out here, that must mean we’re getting mighty close to Ghatha, right?”
Tobias feels a stir of excitement—comfortable or not, he’s ready to stretch his legs—and squints at the direction they’ve been heading in for the past hour or so. Is that a faint silhouette on the horizon or is he just imagining it?
The flygon nods again, looking at Tobias and Nia. “You two been to Ghatha before?”
Nia must shake her head no, because the flygon smiles. “Well, you sure picked a perfect time to come visit. There’s a magic show planned for tomorrow evening! A big one, at the convention center at central square”
Nia gasps behind him. “A magic show?!”
Flygon nods. “Cheap admission too. I think there’s a big meeting happening at the conference center beforehand so it’s sure to be packed, but I’ve heard of these guys so they should be good. I think they do a lot of fire manipulation.”
At that, Tobias perks up. A magic show could be all right, but a fire-based one? He doesn’t get to see many fire types aside from himself in the Haven. It can feel a bit isolating, especially with so many grass and bug types around.
Fliss sighs. “Darn. Wish I could stick around to see it, but I’ll likely get called away for a flight before then. The kiddos could probably go, though!”
“Thank you for letting us know!” Nia yells over the wind.
The flygon nods, then glances at his flock. “I have to head back. Enjoy Ghatha!”
The dragon type tilts his wings and wheels back to his group. Tobias watches him go, wishing somehow he could join them, until Nia squeezes him.
“Look!”
Tobias does, eyes widening at the sheer size of the city they’re approaching. The silhouette of it becomes more detailed as they get closer, murky grays revealing tall stacks of stone buildings, almost all of them painted with bright accents of color that give the city an immediate sense of life. It’s huge, sprawling along the oceanside cliffs and stretching from one edge of Tobias’ sight to the other.
Fliss is clearly familiar with the area, and immediately flies to a tall flight tower right along the edge of the cityscape. She circles it, finding an empty loft before gliding in and flapping to a stop. It’s dim inside, and a few flyers glance over at the new arrivals. A swellow lifts a wing in greeting, calling, “Fliss! Long time no see.”
Fliss laughs and calls back, “Cobalt! Good to see that handsome mug. Gimme just a sec to set these two off.” She crouches low to the ground, wings spread, and glances back at Tobias. “All right, kiddos, Ghatha awaits!”
Tobias slides off the braviary’s back and barely manages to catch himself before his legs buckle from the long flight. With a yelp, Nia falls onto the ground beside him in a heap, clearly as stiff as he is.
“Thank you for flying us, Fliss,” Nia says once she gets back to her feet. She gives the flying type a grateful smile. “Really. It would’ve been a rough ride without you.”
Fliss laughs and retracts her wings. “Not a problem. You’re two of the most pleasant customers I’ve had in a while!”
“Maybe we’ll see you again on the way back,” Nia suggests hopefully.
“Maybe so!” Fliss gives the two of them a wink. “For now, you two just have a good time in the city and enjoy that magic show. Stay friendly, okay?” Her gaze flicks to Tobias, an unfamiliar note of something serious entering her voice. “Just not too friendly.”
Tobias stiffens. That...was that a warning? Fliss hadn’t acted particularly concerned about Nia keeping her human life a secret during the flight, but…
Fliss gives them both another nod before walking over to the swellow. Tobias looks at Nia, wondering if she caught the braviary’s subtle warning, but the riolu is just digging through their satchel with an oblivious smile on her face. Great.
Tobias sighs, wordlessly turning and leading the way to the staircase when Nia finally looks up with an eager expression and a thumbs-up. They descend to the ground level and wave at the check-in Pokémon, an emolga. Before they can step out into the street Tobias reaches out to grab Nia’s arm.
“Wait.”
Nia does, looking at him with a tilt of her head.
Tobias glances back to make sure the emolga isn’t listening. “Look, I know it’s important to you that you used to be human.”
Nia pulls her arm away from him, open expression becoming more wary. “Yes?”
“And I know we’re here for the human meetup. But I’ve been thinking about what August said, and I think he might be right. Just…try to be discreet, all right?”
Nia frowns, looking disheartened. “What? But I thought everyone said not to worry about it too much.”
Tobias has to take a deep breath not to retort with something sharp. Nia’s not dumb by any means, but she’s just so trusting. It’s gonna be a problem one day. Fliss might’ve wanted to spare Nia any unwarranted panic, but Tobias is more concerned about them being attacked than the riolu’s soft heart.
“Did you not hear Fliss up there on the flight floor? That was a warning. Whether anything actually happens or not, it’s a good idea to lay low when we can.”
Nia looks away and whispers, “I guess.”
Tobias sighs. “Good. Let’s get a move-on, then. We should find this place right away so we know where to go tomorrow without getting lost. We can decide where to stay afterwards.”
They step out onto the street, and Tobias barely catches Nia’s sullen expression smoothing away to something awed and starry-eyed as she looks around. He’s too busy doing the same.
If the city looked huge from far away, then that’s nothing compared to being in the heart of it. The streets are bustling with all kinds of Pokémon going about their business, types and species he’s never even seen before in real life. A huge copperajah passes by, making the cobblestone road beneath them shake with her steps, and a group of tiny mincinno dodge around her legs with ease, not even breaking their conversation. A Seeker team lead by a rapidash trots by, laughing, and a couple of starly swoop by overhead. The stream of Pokémon is endless, a thick crowd blocking out the buildings on the opposite side of the street entirely. Everything is in noisy motion, and the energy in the street is unreal. Beyond the passing Pokémon there are shops bracketing the path, and a few vendors yelling to try and market their wares. It would be stifling if not for the brisk sea breeze cooling everything down, a cut of bright sunlight slanting down between the maze of buildings.
“Oh wow,” Nia breathes, a beaming smile forming on her face. “And I thought Afon’s Cap was amazing!”
“This place makes Afon look like a dump,” Tobias agrees, still looking around. He’s never been here before either, and it more than lives up to the hype.
“How’re we ever gonna find the meeting place?” Nia asks, digging into the satchel to pull out the crumpled flyer for the human meetup.
Tobias leans over to look. “It says it’s just north of the main plaza. Whatever that means.”
“I guess we’ll have to just ask around?”
Tobias nods, looking around at the crowd. “Yeah. Let’s just ask for the plaza, so Pokémon don’t start wondering why we‘re looking for the convention center.”
Nia wilts, giving him a pathetic look. “Do you really think Pokémon would attack us? If they knew I was—well. You know.”
Tobias sighs. “No, not really. But I’d rather not take any chances. This place is different than the Haven, and we don’t know anyone, either. We get in trouble here and we’re screwed.”
Nia doesn’t look happy with that answer, but she nods. “I…guess you’re right. Pokémon have just been so nice to me that it’s hard to believe any of them could be cruel like that.”
Tobias looks at her, then gestures to the scarf tied around her arm over fang-shaped scars. “You already forget how you got those?“
Nia winces. “Of course not. But that was an outlaw.”
“Any Pokémon in this city could be an outlaw. Trust too easily and it’ll get you killed,” Tobias counters, looking around. He nods to the left. “C’mon, we should get moving before someone needs through to the flight tower.”
Nia still looks pensive, but tucks away the flyer and follows as Tobias steps into the flow of Pokémon and starts moving with the crowd. It’s hard to keep up the right speed and dodge stray tails and paws when neither of them are used to it, and they quickly find themselves being jostled and tripped by the overwhelming crowd. He and Nia almost lose sight of each other when a stantler charges right between them. After that, Nia hooks a paw around Tobias’ elbow, stepping closer. He gives her a look but otherwise doesn’t comment. It’d be nearly impossible to find each other if they got separated in a crowd this big.
“S-So where exactly are we going?” Nia asks.
Tobias shrugs. “The crowd will have to open up eventually and we can ask around when that happens.”
Nia nods but doesn’t answer, still too focused on looking around at the colorful variety of Pokémon and buildings they pass.
Eventually they reach a small plaza where the crowd thankfully thins out. There’s a large fountain in the middle of the space, and Tobias steers them over to it to catch their breath.
“Whew! I thought we’d never get out of that,” Nia says, hopping up to sit on the edge of the stone fountain and kick her paws. “I think it’d be too lucky for this to be the plaza we’re looking for. There are some vendors and shops around, though. Wanna start here?”
“As good a place as any,” Tobias huffs, still a bit on edge from the walk. He’s not sure he’s ever been surrounded by so many Pokémon at once, and he doesn’t like the feeling. “We could—“
“Get back here and let me peck your nose off, you coward!”
Tobias spins around at the shout, just in time for a flash of brown fur to zigzag past him. A moment later, a furious ball of blue, black and yellow feathers flies into view from the crowd of Pokémon. A rookidee?
Tobias doesn’t register the flying type’s sudden expression of panic or how they try to backpedal until they slam into him, knocking them both to the ground.
Tobias immediately shoves the rookidee off, snarling, “Watch it!”
The bird shoots him their own glare. “You watch it, you overgrown lizard! That scrap of fur stole my money!” And with that, they’re off again, fluttering back into the air and shooting off after the brown-furred Pokémon.
“Jeez,” Tobias grumbles, brushing himself off. “Warm welcome, huh?”
When there’s no answer, Tobias looks up to find Nia gone. Of course. He whips around, just in time to see the riolu’s fluffy tail vanish into the crowd—in the same direction as the rookidee and the thief.
Tobias groans, tipping back his head and shoving his palms into his eyes. They’ve been in the city for half an hour and Nia is already sticking her nose where it doesn’t belong and trying to stop a street robbery. He’s going to kill that riolu.
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Jealousy
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Kili x Reader
Could you do a Kíli x dwarf!reader where reader is jealous of Tauriel? Kíli is as thick as ever and doesn’t realize that his flirting bothers reader who gets very agitated and jealous. Some angst but then a fluffy love confession perhaps? ---AmuletofMara
---
How could you ever hope to compete with such an exquisite creature? 
She's tall, radiant, smooth skinned, has very braid-able hair, and is, all around, perfect. 
Her voice is smooth and sweet like honey; her hair is fiery in the sunlight; her skin is creamy and perfect from all angles; her physique is tall, thin, well proportioned, and flawless; her laugh emulates jingling bells; and her fighting technique is impeccable. 
She is, for lack of a better term or phrase, perfect. 
In every sense of the word.
You've loved Kili for a long time now, you've known him even longer than you have loved him in fact, but that fact only makes seeing him flirt with her so much harder.
Of course, it's only flirting, but it hurts you all the same. Especially since you're in the same cell as him and you have to watch him flatter and woo her. 
Each time she giggles or asks a question and he shoots back with a fond memory or complimenting phrase it feels like a stab to the chest and punch to the gut. 
You truly believed that you had a chance before, what with the words his brother spoke to you as well as his 'apparent' interest made you sure that he would ask for your hand at any time, but now? It seems it was just something your mind made up to smooth over the pain of knowing he will never love you back. 
Listening to their playful back and fourth banter is beginning to make you feel sick, so, not wanting to listen to it anymore, you hiss out, "Will you shut up? I'm trying to sleep." 
At the sound of your irritated and groggy (you managed to force that bit) voice, Kili pauses his speaking and looks over at you quickly. 
"Oh! Y/N, I'm sorry." He looks apologetic and sounds it too, but your expression doesn't soften in the slightest. "I'll be quieter, I'm sorry." He repeats. 
Hearing his slightly frantic apology makes you feel bad for a split second, but then you get a glimpse of the she-elf and all remorse goes out the window.
"Right." Is all you say before closing your eyes and curling up in on yourself in the corner. 
The two then begin to whisper instead of full on speaking, and that positively makes your blood boil...
But you do end up going to sleep eventually. 
---
When you wake up you're comfortable and warm beyond belief, so much so that you actually forget for a few blissful seconds where you actually are, but it does eventually come back to you. 
You jerk awake when you remember where you are, and you glance around with bleary eyes before you notice that you're pressed into Kili's side. 
At first you smile since it's a nice way to wake up, but then his flirting with the red-headed elf floods back into your mind and your smile drops. 
You untangle yourself from the napping dwarf carefully and walk over to the opposite end of the cell, looking out at the rocky dungeons for a time while your mind runs a mile a minute with various envious and angry thoughts.
"Y/N...?" 
You turn your head and see Kili looking at you with confused, unfocused eyes, and while you would normally find it to be a super cute sight, all it does it make your heart ache with the knowledge that such an expression will never be yours. 
"What?" You reply curtly, turning to face him completely. 
He reaches up and rubs his eyes lightly, yawning lightly before replying again, "What are you doing all the way over there? I thought you were tired." 
"I was, but now I'm not." 
Your short and cold answers throw him off guard, for this new behavior is completely frazzling. 
"Is everything okay?" He asks with furrowed eyebrows, pushing himself up to his feet so he can approach you. 
"Yes." Another one word and not ver convincing answer. 
Kili looks at you weirdly for a few moments before stepping right in front of you. He reaches up and grabs your arms lightly, leaning down a bit to look at your face more clearly, "No it isn't. What's wrong?" 
"Nothing! I'm fine." You growl out, stepping out of his grasp with a glare pointed at the ground. 
A moment of silence passes by where his gaze just burns into you, his eyes scanning over you and calculating before he continues, "You're acting strange. Please tell me what's wrong..." 
"Nothing is wrong!" You snap, turning on your heel to avoid his eyes, "I said I am fine, and I mean it! Leave me alone." 
Once more he doesn't reply, but if you had turned you would've seen the pain and hurt that flashes across his features at your cold treatment. 
When the silence persists you trudge back over to the corner where you had been napping and take a seat with your back facing him and your knees pressed up against your chest. 
The cell isn't very big which only makes you press further into the corner to keep away from him. 
His shoes thump against the stone floor gently while he approaches you, and you can feel his presence looming just behind you. You don't give in to that nagging voice telling you to look at him and instead close your eyes, holding yourself a bit tighter while you mentally will him to go away. 
Kili stares down at you with furrowed eyebrows and sadness in his eyes, and while his brain is telling him to leave you alone and give you your space, his heart is nagging at him to press just a bit more. 
"Y/N..." He repeats your name once more, crouching down and reaching out to place his hand on your shoulder when he does. "You're upset with me." 
This time you say nothing. 
"Why?" 
You scoff bitterly and turn your head to glare back at him, faltering slightly when you see how dejected he looks. When your heart pangs with regret you turn forward again and grumble, "Figure it out." 
Kili shuffles closer and rests his chin on your shoulder, "Because I didn't save you from the spiders?"
"No." Why on earth would you be mad at him for that? He did his best, everyone did, so it wouldn't be fair of you to be angry at him for that. 
"Because... hm..." he pauses as he thinks it over before offering, "Because I got separated from the group?" 
"Not even close." 
"Stepping on your foot while we were brought here?" 
"Obviously not." 
He sighs heavily at still not having guessed the right cause of your anger before guessing again, "I don't know what I did." 
"You-!" Right as you're about to let him have it, you realize that you really don't have much of a valid reason to be angry. "I'm mad because you... you were..." 
"I was what?" He presses further, removing his head from your shoulder to move so he's seated right next to you, his gaze trained on your face. 
"T-The elf..." Your voice is weak as you realize you've been rather unfair, and your face has begun to redden now that you know as such. 
He furrows his eyebrows and places his hand on your elbow, leaning closer, "The elf? Did one of the elves hurt you?" 
"No!" You groan and shake your head, threading your fingers through your hair roughly as you will your thoughts to just transport into his head instead of having to explain yourself which is not very ideal at the moment. "T-The she-elf." 
"Tauriel? What about her?" 
God, you just wanna rip your hair out and freak already, but you take a deep breath and say slowly, "I didn't realize... that you were so familiar with the elf." 
Kili just looks at you for a moment with that same confused expression on his face, "Familiar? Y/N I don't..." He trails off and glances away for a moment before realization seems to dawn upon him, "Are you-" 
"No! I'm not jealous!" You exclaim before he can finish his thought, your face going hot immediately.
He just stares at you for a second with a raised eyebrow, leaning back slightly before saying, "I didn't finish speaking yet somehow you knew exactly what I was going to say." 
"U-Uh..." You glance away from him nervously once you realize what you accidentally admitted to, feeling worse and worse as the seconds tick by. "I'm s-sorry." Your voice becomes soft and thick with emotion, and you avoid eye-contact adamantly. 
Kili doesn't say anything right away, and you can only imagine how upset he must be with you. 
"Y/N..."
The tone of his voice is much more tender than you thought it would be, but though you're tempted to look at him, you keep your eyes squeezed shut while you hug yourself a bit tighter. 
He repeats your name, and when he does he reaches up and places a hand on your cheek, turning your face towards him, "Look at me..."  
As much as you don't want to, you abide by his request and allow your eyes to flutter open. Once you do you're met with what has to be the softest expression you've ever seen on that face. 
A small frown tugs at the corners of his lips and his brows are knitted together, his eyes holding a mixture of sadness and... is that understanding? 
"Why were you jealous?" 
"I-I wasn't." You shoot back way too quickly, cringing internally at how horrible that lie was. 
You reach up and hide your face with your hands, groaning out loud from how unpleasant this all is. 
Kili reaches up and takes your hands in his, holding them down between the two of you, "You can be honest with me...I won't be upset, I promise." He whispers, scooting a bit closer so he can look at you full on. 
"I was... only a little jealous, I guess." You whisper, eyes becoming downcast since you don't really wanna see the expression on his face. 
His thumb smooths against your cheek delicately in an attempt to make you look at him once more, and while he does that he says, "Why were you jealous, Y/N? Whatever reason you give me won't make me angry or anything, I swear it." 
"B-Because I... don't like when you flirt with others...," you begin hesitantly, glancing up at him briefly, "It makes me... upset." 
"But why?" 
"You know why!" You exclaim, turning your head away from his hand so he can't make you look at him this time. 
Kili drops his hands to rest between you both, his eyebrows no longer furrowed since a small smile has taken place on his face. "I do."
"Then don't make me say it if you don't feel the same." You snap back, trying to scoot away from him. 
"I never said that!" He cries, grabbing your hand so you can't scoot away any further. 
"You don't have to. I'm not stupid." You look at where he grabbed you and glare at his hand, trying to pull away from him as you feel your anger flare again. 
His grip tightens and he pulls you forward sharply, wrapping an arm around your waist when you fall into his chest. "N-No, please, listen." His voice is pleading and frantic, and while you're irritated that he's basically manhandling you, you let him speak. 
"Fine."
"I care about you deeply, Y/N." He starts, holding you tighter against his chest. 
"Yes, you care about me but not like that I know." You hiss, starting to squirm to get out of his grip.
"You're not listening!" He snaps this time, sounding more annoyed since you're not getting his point, "Let me finish." 
"Okay, fine! Sorry!" Your voice holds no actual apols, but you don't care. 
He sighs loudly and loosens his hold on you, though he doesn't let go completely. "I think I might just love you." 
Now that does give you a pause. 
"Y-You what?" 
Kili leans back against the stone wall and drags you over into his lap, rubbing a hand up and down your back gently. "You heard me." 
You're at a loss at the moment, for you're both confused and also in shock at what he just told you. "B-But the she-elf-"
"Is someone I've only just met that doesn't hold my heart." He cuts you off, using his other hand to tilt your chin up, "If I had know flirting with someone else would get such a reaction from you...," he trails off for a second before continuing with a smile, "I would've done it a long time ago." 
"B-But..." 
"Do you doubt what I tell you?" Kili inquires with a softer tone this time, leaning his face down closer to yours, "Have I given you reason not to believe me...?" 
"W-Well not really but-" 
"Then no more 'buts', take my words and understand that I'm being truthful." He's really making a habit of cutting you off, and you're not too sure that you like that. 
"How do I know you're not just saying that?" You grumble looking up at him with a deep-set frown. 
Kili doesn't respond this time and instead stares at you for a time, then a smile breaks out upon his face and the next thing you know, he's kissing you. 
It's short and sweet, and when he pulls away you're left in awe. 
You look up at him with wide eyes and flushed cheeks, then you stutter out, "Y-You just k-kissed me-"
Once again with the cutting you off, but he makes good on his promise and smashes his lips against yours, mumbling against them when you return the kiss all too happily and grab onto his shirt, "And I'm going to do it again." 
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Between The Pipes [Chapter 20]
Rating: M Words: 2130 Pairing: Kristanna Summary: When a new owner takes over the Arendelle Ice Breakers, Kristoff isn’t sure about his future with the team. That is, until a PR nightmare throws the newest member of the media team, who also just so happens to be the daughter of the new owner, right into his arms. Kristoff and Anna can’t even stand the interviews they have to do together… how on earth are they going to fix this mess? Hockey!AU.
[Chapter Index]
Where To Read: [AO3]
Notes: In which Kristoff shows his fondness for children and Anna wants him to Nut With Purpose.
I know I had said there would be smut.... but this chapter was long enough........ So i’m going to add a chapter of their date after this night and there u will have the smut. I also literally just finished this so i hope it’s fine I cba to read it LMFAO.
OKAY. BYE. 
Enjoy!
Kristoff couldn’t lie, the last month had probably been the best of his life. He had bounced back in the game and was playing better than he had in a long time, he had an excuse to do all sort of touristy and cheesy things that he had denied himself in the past, and he had Anna, warm and generous and enthusiastic, burrowing under his skin most nights a week, filling in all the cracks he hadn’t realized were there.
She congratulated and comforted in a similar fashion, her mouth hot on his skin as she brought him to climax. Though sometimes he celebrated or mourned by taking her as rough as she was okay with, his teeth nipping at her creamy throat before his tongue soothed the ache. There was a fire between them that burned brighter with each encounter, raging wildly through their veins with no intention of cooling down.
He knew, each time he left her apartment and felt the small ache of loss in his chest, that this was quickly becoming something more than he was ready for, but he couldn’t risk losing her. Not now. Not when she kissed him with such ease, not when she looked so cute as she struggled to wrap her arms around him in all of his gear, and definitely not when she could fuck him within an inch of his life and still leave him begging for more.
He never stopped flirting with her. He couldn’t. Winks and smirks and kisses below the ear with something filthy whispered as he pulled away had become his norm. He wanted her all the time… and he got her, whenever he wanted her. 
And Anna got him, whenever she wanted him.
This new easiness that came from near-constant release gave him a sort of laser focus he didn’t even know he was capable of. Sven teased him that that’s what happens when you have sex after four years worth of dry spells. A newfound ability to not be distracted by how badly you want to fuck.
Kristoff punched him in the arm, but didn’t really disagree.
Today was the children’s event, where local children’s teams of mites, squirts, and pee-wees came out to play with the team and get some invaluable experience learning from professionals. It was undoubtedly Kristoff’s favorite event. He absolutely adored hanging out with the kids, letting them shoot pucks on him, and playing alongside the mini-goalies who all looked up at him with admiration in their eyes.
He wasn’t lying, about wanting a big family. 
Everytime he looked at them, he felt his heart clenching.
The media team was filming the event for their website, and Anna was running around doing some quick interviews with some of the players before the kids arrived. 
“Babe,” Kristoff hollered, quickly getting her attention. “C’mere.”
Her face lit up and she bit at her lip - he’d never get tired of it - before she came over, camera in tow, and grinned up at him, “Yes, honey?”
Kristoff moved swiftly, scooping her up into his arms as she protested, giggles making her seem way less serious, before skating backwards on the ice, his lovely girlfriend gripping his jersey, and the man with the camera jogging out onto the ice after them. “Let’s do some … on-ice interviews, hm?”
And then he set her down to sit on top of his net, skating just out of her reach, knowing she wouldn’t dare jump down in those heels. 
“You’ll regret this, Bjorgman.”
“I’m sure I won’t.”
After a few of the teammates humored them and interviewed with her sitting on the net - each and every one commenting on how nice it was that she was closer to their eye level now - Kristoff finally shooed them all away and kindly told the cameraman he didn’t need to film this next part, before wrapping his gloved hands around her back, pulling her closer to the edge of the net and pressing a firm kiss against her mouth. “I can not wait to take you home tonight and -“
Anna cut him off with a hand over his lips and laughed, a blush rising high on her cheeks. “I’m mic’d!” 
Then Kristoff heard the meek voice of the cameraman hollering across the ice. “Yeah, she’s definitely mic’d.”
And then he leaned closer to where the tiny microphone sat and said “and fuck your brains out” anyway, causing Anna to shove him away and apologize profusely to the man who had to listen. 
“You’re awful.”
“But truthful.”
“So sorry again, Ryder,” Anna called as she turned off the mic pack and waved to the boy whose cheeks were slightly flushed as he tried to focus on getting some b-roll for the video.
“Yeah,” Anna could hear the sarcasm dripping from Kristoff’s lips as he ducked down to bury his nose against her neck. “So, so sorry.”
Kristoff could hear her shortened breaths and feel her quickened pulse beneath his mouth before her hands pushed up against his shoulders. “We’re at work, Kris, you shouldn’t…” He sighed and pulled back, taking in her rosy cheeks and fond smile. “But… later…”
Yes, definitely later. It had been a few days, anyway. “My place? I’ll make you dinner.”
Anna ooohed as she lifted her hands up to touch his cheeks. “I haven’t been to your place…” and then she bit her lip and he felt his heart hammer against his ribcage. “But dinner? With no publicity? Sounds like a date.”
He hummed, bracing his hands on either side of her thighs. “Probably shouldn’t call it that.”
“Probably not…” She winked and ticked a finger under his chin. “Just fueling up for the … marathon.”
Kristoff couldn’t help the little snort that left his nose as she smiled wickedly. He moved quickly to scoop her up, one arm under her knees as he carried her back to the bench. “It’ll be a marathon, all right. 
Setting her down gently on the ice, Kristoff helped her hop up onto the platform of the floor outside the rink and felt the smile on his face widen as she pulled him forward by the collar and planted one more kiss against his cheek. 
“See you later,” she hummed before turning to head into the lobby, and Kristoff felt his knees weaken just a little beneath his weight.
-
The kids showed up a little early, so Anna spent some time learning all of their names and where they were from before they got to go out onto the ice. They ranged from six all the way to thirteen, and she could feel her uterus crying out as each of them shook her hand and bounced with excitement. 
Their coaches and parents took them to the locker room to get ready after the Ice Breakers had finished their meeting, and when they came back out, Anna couldn’t help but feel her eyes misting up at the sight of all these kids in full hockey gear. They were too cute. 
She leaned over to get closer to eye level, and held out two thumbs up. “Are you guys ready to meet the boys?” They all giggled at the idea of big professional hockey players being called boys, but all started clacking their sticks against the ground as substitution for applause. “Because I know they’re ready to meet you guys.”
Mattias and Sven came up from the ice, gave them all a pep talk, and had everyone organize themselves by position, preparing to partner them up as best as they could. There was almost a one-to-one ratio, but a few of the players would take on two kids at once. Anna gave them all a wave before she headed back out to the bench, sitting and waiting for her next job, watching as Ryder moved around the ice with ease before he settled down to get a good shot of all the tots coming down the runway and onto the ice.
Sven came out first, his voice lowered and booming, and announced them as if they were coming out for a game. 
“Ladies and Gentlemen, the moment you’ve been waiting for…” The whole team started banging their sticks on the ice. “Your Miniiiii Iiiiiiice Breeeeakeeeers!!!!”
And they came running, all giggling and shaking their sticks in the air, a parade of excited children doing a lap around the ice as everyone applauded them. Then they lined up against the boards, and Sven skated down the line, telling them which player to go meet up with, grinning wickedly as he sent two towards Kristoff. 
Anna watched as one jumped up to hug him immediately, and she literally felt her stomach swoop in excitement. Oh Jesus she wished she could hear what he was saying as he swung the little girl around and smiled brightly up at her. Clearly there was a history there, and she could immediately see why Kristoff wanted so badly to be a father.
He was a natural at it.
He let her go with a smack of his glove over her mask, and got down on one knee to greet the much younger and clearly nervous boy who stood beside them. Kristoff’s smile was bright and inviting as he spoke softly and after a few minutes, he stuck out his mitt, cheering as the little boy gave him a fist bump. 
They skated around for a bit, shot some pucks on Kristoff, let Kristoff shoot some pucks on them, and overall were seeming to have a great time. 
Anna knew she should have been attempting to pay attention to other people as well, but she could not take her gaze away from Kristoff. And when he looked up and caught her staring, the soft smile that pulled at his cheeks stabbed her in the stomach.
There was no way in hell he’d ever be like that scumbag of a father he had.
Never.
Eventually they had some of the kids skate over to her, and Anna did little interviews with each of them, asking them if they were having fun, what their favorite part of the game was, and who their favorite player was. They were all clearly getting a kick out of the feeling of being interviewed like a professional, and Anna absolutely fed into it, talking to the camera like she did during games as she dismissed each kid.
Finally, god finally, Kristoff came up with his kids, bumping them with his hips and skates as they approached, making them giggles as they tripped and moved to right themselves.
“Well hello,” Anna grinned, working hard to tear her eyes away from Kristoff. “What are your names?”
The girl jumped up immediately, grabbing onto the boards and pushing her little purple mask up over her head. “I’m Lily, and that’s Connor!”
“Hi Lily, and hello, Connor.” Anna shook both of their hands and held up the microphone. “Would either of you like to do a little interview?”
Lily, with her lightly dyed pink hair bouncing on her shoulders, could not have said yes faster, making Anna laugh as she reached for her microphone.
“Connor? Would you?”
He shook his head no before ducking behind Kristoff’s legs, and Anna smiled softly. “Well that’s all right. Lily will do all the talking then, right?”
Kristoff leaned down to Connor and grinned. “It’s okay, buddy, I don’t really like interviews either. Anna usually does most of the talking.”
She snorted before leaning over to Lily, tucking her hair back behind her ear. “All right, Lily. When did you start playing hockey?”
Her smile was wide and she grabbed eagerly at the mic, pulling it close to her mouth. “Krissy came to a program I was in when I was like five and he volunteered with us and he taught us how to skate and then he started teaching us hockey things and I” deep breath, “thought it was really fun so I kept playing and he helped me a lot and now I got adopted and my mommy really loves that I have a passion so she let me keep playing and it’s” another deep breath, “been four years and I still really love it and I’m so happy to be playing and it’s all thanks to Krissy!”
“Ah, jeez, Lilypad,” he pushed against her face with his mitt, her giggles muffled by the sequipment. “Don’t embarrass me.”
“Oh, no, no,” Anna grinned, her eyes flicking up to meet Kristoff’s. “Please tell me more about Krissy.”
She watched with intrigue as his tongue ran against his bottom teeth under his lip, as if he was holding back from what he really wanted to say.
Yeah, she was going to wreck him later. She had no more doubts about that.
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httpjeon · 5 years
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❝ make me hot ❞ pjm ― m.
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― summary:
you messed up a presentation in front of your boss. he calls you up to his office.
ceo!jimin/reader | ceo!au | smut | 2.3k ↬ content warnings: dirty talk, blow job, cunnilingus, orgasm denial/edging, DADDY KINK, forced orgasm, multiple orgasms, squirting
a/n: this is a gift to my best friend @kinktae for her birthday which was january 14th. this fic was made to her wishes and specifications!
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Your hands trembled as you sat at your desk, running over the way you completely fucked that presentation up. Normally, you wouldn't mind about a little mistake but it was much a different circumstance this time.
Park Jimin, the CEO of the company you worked at had personally sat in on the meeting.
While you worked in the headquarters, where Jimin's office was located, you'd only really seen the man a handful of times. One thing you did know about him was that he was the most stunning man to ever grace this Earth. Also, every time you ran into him, he looked at you as if you were a piece of meat. Usually a man staring at you like this would disgust you but there was something about the dark lust in his eyes as he licked his plump, pink lips at the sight of your tight pencil-skirt you wear to work.
The 2 times you've been ordered to go to his office, they weren't pleasant experiences. You had messed up on filling out some forms and had been called to his office where he sat on his desk in front of you with his sleeves rolled up, looking delicious. He had spoken to you in a low, belittling voice that had your whole body heating up under his condescending gaze.
It made you feel quite unprofessional -- soaking your panties because your boss treated you like that.
"Miss. _____, Park Jimin would like to see you in his office right away," A tall girl named Rose, Jimin's secretary, said as she approached your desk.
Immediately, your heart was racing and and a pit settled in your stomach. It was lunchtime now, which meant you'd be missing your lunch break to get chewed out by your hot boss. By the time you reached the executive floor, it was mostly silent aside from your heels clicking down the gleaming white floor.
The big golden plaque with Jimin's name was mocking you, letting you know that you were about to have to sit through him belittling you with soaked panties. The desk where Rose would be sitting was empty; clearly went on lunch after getting you to come up here. Your whole body was trembling as you knocked on the door, the sound echoing down the empty hallway.
"Enter," Jimin commanded from inside and you hurried to push the heavy door open.
As it slammed shut behind you, you were standing in the open room staring at Jimin. He was sitting at his desk, mindlessly typing away on his desktop. He was wearing the same suit he had been at the meeting, though his tie was loosened a bit now as he had been relaxing in his office.
"Mister-"
"I'll be with you in a moment," He interrupted, motioning you to take a seat in one of the plush chairs in front of his desk.
The room was washed in complete silence, save for the rhythmic clicking of Jimin's keyboard. Your leg bounced nervously, fidgeting as you looked around his room just waiting for him to be done making you wait.
"Nervous, Miss. _____?" He asked, and your eyes jumped to him to find that he was now leaning back in his desk with a smirk on his lips.
"I...um..." You were at a loss for words but didn't need to search long as he suddenly stood up, pulling off his blazer and draping it over the back of his chair.
"I assume you know why you’re here," He carefully rolled his sleeves up his forearms, making you lick your lips at the sight. He sat on the edge of his desk, balancing his weight on just one leg as he looked down at you.
"Yes Sir, I do," You admitted, fiddling with the hem of your skirt.
"Good, how about you tell me what you did then, how you made a fool of my company in front of Kim Namjoon,"
There it was.
That belittling, condescending tone.
"I-I...I messed u-up the...uh...the s-statistics, Sir," You whispered, avoiding eye contact with him. He wasn't having any of it, gripping your chin and making you look up at him. He was smirking, dragging his tongue over his pretty pink lips. You inhaled sharply, swallowing thickly as you were forced to stare at his pretty face.
"Say that again, sweetheart," He chuckled, making your face heat up immediately.
"I," You cleared your throat, speaking clearer at his sharp gaze. "I messed up the statistics Sir,"
"That's right," He sighed, letting your chin go but you could feel as if his grip had burned you. "How will you make it up to me?"
"I...I don't know Sir?" Jimin stood up once again, loosening his tie some more which nearly took your breath away.
"I know you find me attractive, babygirl," He whispered,
The pet name had you nearly fainting, having to clench your thighs at the rush of arousal that flowed through you.
"Isn't that right?"
"Yes," You breathed, shivering when he crouched beside where you sat in the chair. His hair, a soft blonde, looked so bouncy and pretty that you wanted so badly to touch it.
"If you want to stop, you can just tell me, yeah?" You nodded, feeling your breathing beginning to pick up as he got to his feet once again. "Then how about you be a good girl and take my cock in your pretty mouth, huh?"
Your brain nearly short-circuited at those dirty words, already feeling the thin cotton of your panties ticking to your core from how wet you were. With deft fingers, he unbuckled his belt, and unbuttoned them to pull his cock from the confines of his expensive slacks. You were positively salivating at the sight of him already hard, wrapped in his fist as he languidly touched himself until a pearly drop of precum dripped down the head.
He opened his mouth, perhaps going to ask you if it was okay, before you surged forward and took the head of his cock into your mouth. He choked on his breath, releasing his cock in favor to lacing his fingers through your hair as you took him deeper into your mouth.
"You dirty girl," He growled, tightening his grip in your hair as you took him deeper until he was nudging past your gag reflex. He felt you choke slightly before you relaxed and whimpered at the feeling of him holding your hair so aggressively.
"That's a good girl," He cooed, slowly beginning to rock his hips into your mouth while keeping his eyes on your face.He could see that tears were filling up your eyes every time he sunk into your throat. "Look at you sucking my cock so well, being so good to make it up to me,"
You whimpered, gazing up at him through your lashes; you clenched your thighs together as a rush of arousal made your skin tingle. Jimin seemed to notice how you were clenching your thighs together as he grinned, eyes dark and lustful. His cock throbbed on your tongue and you did your best to swallow the precum that was pooling in your mouth -- not that you minded, he tasted rather good.
"Is the dirty girl wet?" He growled, chuckling darkly when you nodded and whimpered around his cock. "How about you let Daddy eat your little cunt, hm?"
He pulled you off his cock, leaving you panting and licking your lips to clean up any spit or precum left on your lips. Helping you stand up, he lifted you to sit on the desk. You were so turned on by this point that you couldn't even think to be embarrassed over the fact you were about to let your insanely hot boss eat you out on his desk.
He hiked your dress up, pushing it up to your hips to expose your panties, so wet that the material could no longer stop your juices from reaching your thighs. He chuckled, making you face heat up before he yanked the material down with ease, tossing it over his shoulder. Then he was leaning down, pinning your thighs open so your cunt was completely exposed to his greedy tongue.
The second his lips were on you, you knew that Park Jimin was a god with his mouth; gazing up at you through sweaty blonde bangs as his tongue circled your little bud. Your hips jumped from the stimulation, muffling your cries of pleasure as he tirelessly tasted everything you had to offer him.
"So fuckin' good, baby," He groaned, licking a fat stripe up your folds to collect the leaking, oozing cream on his tongue to savor your sweetness.
"Oh god," You whined, reaching down to grip his hair similar to how he had done to you.
As an afterthought, you realized how soft his hair was before he quickly let go; you probably shouldn't be tugging on your boss's hair like that.
"It's okay, baby," He whispered, detaching his lips from your clit for a second to grab your hand and place it back into his hair. "You can touch me all you want,"
Your grip tightened over his hair as he resumed eating you out like his life depended on it. His grip on your thighs prevented you from closing them as the stimulation quickly became too much -- you were close to your orgasm. However, before you could even voice this realization to the man between your legs, he stopped.
"Sorry baby," He chuckled at your whine. "I don't want you to cum unless it's all over me cock,"
"Fuck, please," You whimpered, sitting up on your elbows to watch as he pulled his belt out of the loops. You could feel your cunt pulse around nothing as he undid the first few buttons of his shirt, which you now noticed was sticking to his body from how he had been sweating.
"You want it, sweetheart?" He cooed, wrapping his fist around his cock again, languidly smearing the precum down the shaft.
"Yes please!" You begged, pulling him closer once he was close enough to touch.
Instead of entering you, however, he simply ran the fat head between your folds, teasing your entrance before lightly slapping at your bud with his cock. Your hips jumped and you whined at the teasing stimulation after being denied an orgasm just moment ago.
"Yes please..?" As you opened your eyes, you were met with a shit-eating smirk on Jimin's pretty face. It didn't take you even a moment to realize what he wanted from you. You almost wanted to deny him, to make him beg you to hear the word fall from your lips, but when he used to head of his cock to slap your clit again, you knew you couldn't hold it back.
"Please Daddy,"
Jimin groaned, immediately sliding into your cunt; you were so wet and ready that you hadn't even needed prep to take him. A lewd, wet sound filled the room every time he sunk into you, coating his cock so generously in your juices.
"God, what a tight little cunt you have baby," He growled, grabbing yoru hips and yanking you down so you were now on the very edge of the desk, providing him more room to fuck you. "It's my cunt now though isn't that right?"
"Fuck yes Daddy," You wailed, digging your nails into the luxurious mahogany wood as he managed to find your g-spot with terrifying ease.
"That's my good girl," He sighed, pausing to grind against you, catching your clit easily in the process.
"Y-You're gonna make me cum, Daddy," You sobbed, now throwing all caution to the wind in panting out the title he seemed to love so -- you could feel his cock throb inside you when you uttered the word.
"Yeah?" He chuckled, resuming a calm pace this time as he fucked you. This time his thumb found your clit, rolling the hard little bud under his finger to make you positively explode. Your thighs trembling, eyes rolled back into your head as you came hard around his cock. Through the pounding in your ears you could register Jimin whispering dirty praises to you telling how good you squeeze his cock and how pretty you are when you cum.
"W-Wait," You sobbed as Jimin stopped his calm, level pace in favor of a much more brutal pace. His thumb was still poised over your clit, threatening to touch the sensitive bud but not doing it quite yet.
"You're gonna cum again, little slut," He growled, not even faltering in his pace as you sobbed and clung to his shirt now.
"P-Please," You choked, not even aware of what you were begging for.
"More? You want more, baby?" He chuckled, a sadistic warning before his thumb was on your clit again.
You keened, eyes rolling back once again as you wailed. You grappled at his hand, the feeling of him fucking you so well, abusing your g-spot while circling your clit was too much for your sensitive body. Soon, you were falling into yet another orgasm -- this one much more brutal.
"Fuck, baby!" Jimin cried, suddenly sinking in as deep as he could before cumming. You could feel him filling you up, hot and thick inside your still-spasming cunt.
As you came to, you were greeted with nothing but wetness splattered along both of your bodies. Your face nearly burst into flames at the mess, making Jimin chuckle.
"Lunch is almost over, we better clean up before Rose returns," He muttered, making you laugh.
Well, you fucked your boss and now you had no idea what you were meant to do in the future. However, as Jimin used a little bit of tissue to help dry your skin, you couldn't help but smile.
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© httpjeon 2019. do not repost or modify.
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City Lights and Coffee Nights
Welcome to the City. A wonderful, magical place split into various districts, home to all manor or humans, elves, and dragons alike. Might we interest you in the business adventures of the great Avizandium Industries? Or perhaps you might like to try a coffee at the Katolis Castle café? There's something here for everyone here!
---
A collection of little Modern!AU oneshots by me (Dee) Sugarssaur (Jade) and Piecesofarose (Dani)!
You can read chapter one ‘The Winter Shift’ below the cut, or here on AO3 ! 
---
‘The Winter Shift is always so cold and dark at the Katolis Café. When Callum gets stranded with no safe way home, he's offered a lift from Rayla.’
Winter shifts at the café were always such a pain.
The hours were still the same, and yet it always felt so much longer, it was barely brightening when Callum got in to open up, and it was pitch black by the time he left. There were few highlights to his day, whether it be the interesting stories of customers, or the regular visits of his new regular friend Rayla, and it was those moments he clung to dearly to help him get through the day.
Rayla was here now.
He was acutely aware of that. She was sitting in her usual spot by the window decked out in the leather she wore when she was out and about on her moped. If it hadn’t been so busy he’d have happily strolled over for a chat, but it was always frenzied at this time of day, with everyone bustling in to get out of the cold.
He was rushing about in circles for almost an hour to keep on top of it, and it wasn’t until he was back behind the counter he allowed himself to sigh and catch his breath.
“Busy day, huh.” It was her standing there, slightly aside so she wasn’t being obstructive. She offered him a sympathetic grin.
“Gods, you have no idea. Do you have the time?”
“It’s 2:30. Don’t worry, you’re past the busiest bit, from what I’ve learnt coming here.”
He smiled weakly at her. “You after a refill?”
“No, I was just heading out. I uh-” She paused, suddenly uncharacteristically unsure of herself. She glanced down nervously, then back up to meet his eye. “Are you gonna be able to get home safely tonight?”
“Huh?” Well that caught him off-guard. “What do you mean?”
“Well it’s just, it’s starting to get really dark now. And I know have to cut through the Skywing district to get here… I dunno.”
“Oh! Rayla that’s so sweet of you to worry, but I have a bus pass, it’s okay!”
“Callum… the buses aren’t running today, remember? They’re doing a bunch of road work for the next couple weeks.”
Callum faltered. “Oh… I… I forgot about that.”
The concern grew on her face now. “Callum… I can give you a lift home on my bike if you want.”
“What? No, no, you don’t have to do that, I live so far out of your way-”
“It’s fine.” She waved him off with a gentle smile. “I’d just… feel better knowing you got home safe. That’s all.”
“O-Oh.” Callum managed, his heart stuttering. “I… Are you absolutely sure?”
“Yeah, your shift ends at 5 today, right?”
“Mhm.”
“Cool. I’ll be here about 4:45, okay?”
“Okay!” He grinned, and she smiled that soft little fond smile she often gave him just lately.
“Alright. See you in a bit then.” As she turned, she gave him a little wink and a casual wave, before heading out the door. Callum’s eyes lingered on the frame with a little sigh, even as he meandered towards a customer flagging him down. He hardly registered himself refilling their glass out of instinct until;
“Um, sir? Sir. Sir! Sir you’re spilling-!”
“Huh? Oh!” Callum squawked in alarm, yanking back the jug of water. The poor customer stared at him concerned, holding the overflowing glass of water as it puddled, creeping outwards over the table. “I’m so sorry! Let me go get something to mop this up-!”
 ---
 4:45 couldn’t come soon enough. The busy day was lulling into a slow sleepy afternoon, the sun not long having disappeared over the city horizon. With little to occupy himself with, his anxiety rattled in his brain.
‘She won’t stand me up, will she?’ He thought as the clock crept to 4:42. ‘Gods, I really hope she doesn’t, I don’t want to have to walk home through Skywing territory in the dark.’
The clock ticked over to 4:46 and his heart did nervous flutters. As he wiped down tables his eyes flicked constantly, desperately to the door, willing her to appear.
4:47.
4:48.
4:49-
Ding.
The bell on the door chimed and his face lit up. “Rayla!” Her name dropped from his lips without thinking, his voice warm and relieved. Her face was hard for a moment as she stared irately at her watch, but the second her eye met his, her face melted and she gave him a sad, apologetic smile.
“Hey! I’m so sorry I’m a little late, the traffic was a nightmare, and then I got a puncture a few minutes away.”
“It’s okay! Oh, a puncture?”
“Yeah,” She sighed. “It’s alright, I have a repair kit with me. It might just take a minute once we’re outside.”
“It’s alright.” He smiled. “I’m in no rush or anything.”
She relaxed, leaning against the counter. “Well that’s a relief since we’ll probably have to take the long way to yours to avoid the roadwork.”
After his shift came to a close and he locked up, Callum scurried off to get changed and grab his belongings from his locker, and he met Rayla around the side of the building where she was already busying herself with repairing the offending tyre.
“Is it bad?” He asked, walking over. She grunted and shrugged.
“Not as bad as it could’ve been.”
“Can I help at all?”
She smiled up at him. “Nah, it’s alright, this’ll only take a moment.”
It wasn’t long before she seemed content and she stood, stretched and smiled back at him. “Alright, sorry for the delay. So where’re we heading? It’s in the Katolis suburbs somewhere right?”
“O-Oh, yeah. Do you know Castle Lane?”
“Yeah.”
“It’s near the top of the hill, number 72.”
“Right then!” She turned to her bike and rummaged around, throwing something rather large over her shoulder. “Catch!”
With Callum’s terrible hand-eye co-ordination it nearly hit him in the head, and by some miracle landed in his panicked arms. It took him a few seconds to register what it was. A helmet. She had slipped her own on, her face now obscured all but her eyes as she hadn’t flipped the visor down yet, and hopped onto the moped, staring at him. Waiting.
“Well?” Her voice came out muffled.
“Oh!” He slipped it on, a rather large fit then joined Rayla on the bike. “U-Um, Rayla?”
“Hm?”
“Where… where do I um…”
“You can hold onto me, it’s fine.” She laughed. “I don’t want you falling off and getting hurt.”
He did so a little sheepishly, suddenly highly aware of what little space was between them. But Rayla seemed unfazed, starting the engine and off they went, speeding down the road.
Rayla didn’t take the same roads as the bus, or the ones he took when he walked to and from work. No, it seemed she really was taking him the long way, avoiding the city centre and taking him way out into the Xadian suburbs.
…She was taking him the scenic route.
Callum would have never dared set foot in these parts of the city at night. Though elves and humans lived in relative peace, tensions were still high, and muggings weren’t uncommon for elves or humans if you stepped into a different residential territory. But he was here with Rayla. And that made him feel… safe. Safe enough to appreciate just how beautiful it was here in the evening. There was a glow to it all, it truly was rich with magic here, he could feel it radiating all around him.
He could just make out her voice shouting over the engine. “You alright back there?”
“Yeah! I’m just taking in the scenery!” He called back. “It’s beautiful.”
“Isn’t it? This is an Earthblood district. I love driving through here at night. Check out the trees, Callum, do you see the lanterns? They’re enchanted.”
Enchanted and enchanting, Callum thought, watching as the lights in the trees glowed warmly in the dark, floating like fireflies of all different colours of the rainbow.  He relaxed, and before he knew it his arms had wrapped gingerly around her, his chest flush with her back. He felt a chuckle vibrate through her back, and fought back the giddiness in his heart as he rested his head, or well, at least the helmet, between her shoulders.
“You falling asleep on me or something?” She teased. “If you do you’ll miss the best part.”
“Best part?”
“You’ll see.”
Well now she had piqued his curiosity. They drove silently for a good five minutes, Callum watching the world go by in a colourful blur, before she began to slow to a halt.
“Here.” She kicked out the stand and then turned slightly to look over her shoulder at him, pulling off her helmet. “Look.” She pointed out and Callum gasped, his eyes glistening as they reflected what he saw.
She had stopped them on a ledge overlooking the cityscape. It stretched as far as the eye could see, all of it, Callum could see and make out every district, every residential area, every park, shopping centre…
“Nice, isn’t it?” She smiled softly. “I like to stop here as I drive past sometimes. There’s something about… seeing it all, the bigger picture. Like you can see the divisions where the Xadian districts meet the Pentarchy ones, right? But when you see the whole thing together… it’s just one big city. It makes all the petty little conflicts seem so silly, don’t you think?” She shook her head and rolled her eyes. “Ugh, listen to me, I’m getting sentimental. You’re rubbing off on me.”
Callum laughed at that. “Rayla, what you said is beautiful, and very true.” He gazed out over the twinkling city lights. “It’s… sad that not everyone gets along and there’s still so much division and tension everywhere in the districts. But at least in the city centre people get along. …Mostly.”
She softened. “That’s true. It’s better than it used to be. Maybe there’s some hope yet, hm?” She elbowed him gently in the ribs. “C’mon. Let’s get you home.”
 ---
 They drove silently the rest of the way, both quite content and relaxed in each other’s company. Perhaps, Callum thought, winter shifts wouldn’t be so bad if they always ended like this. He was almost a little disappointed when she slowed at his house and he had to let go of her.
“This the place?”
“Yes, thank you so much.” He stumbled slightly, his leg catching on the seat as he hopped over it, and he heard her chuckle fondly as she pulled her helmet back off to walk him a little way up the path. Her fingers wove almost coyly into her hair when she stopped, her eyes glancing back to her bike.
“I uh… better get back. Y’know, before my dads worry.”
“Oh… sure.”
And yet she didn’t go. At least, not right away. Rayla stood there sheepishly, staring at him like she was trying to make sense of something, fingers still twirling her hair. Callum’s own feet felt glued to the floor. Was she waiting for him to leave first? To make sure he got in okay? Well now this felt a bit awkward-
Before he knew it Rayla’s hand had found his shoulder and his breath hitched in surprise, his eyes snapping back to hers. She pulled him, or rather guided him a little closer to her, and he let her with a clumsy little stagger, confused.
“Ray-” It was all he managed before a little surprised squeak left his lips as Rayla leaned in and he felt her lips press to his cheek. It was soft, but fast, barely enough time for him to register what had happened, and she tore back quickly, whirling around before he got a chance to see her own expression.
Her ears were burning. That was the one thing he could see, bright red almost glowing in the dark. His own cheeks felt alight, the sensation of her lips lingering on his cheek like static electricity thrumming over his skin.
“See ya, Callum!” She called out without looking, her voice a little too cheery, forced, as she pulled the helmet back over her head.
His own voice came out small in comparison, barely a breath on the cold winter wind. “Oh… b-bye…”
He watched her hop back onto her bike, and she turned to look at him, her expression hidden behind the visor. What was she thinking, he wanted desperately to know, as she threw him a quick peace sign before driving away. Callum couldn’t see the giddy elation and pride on her face, nor feel her pounding heart as she sped off back towards the inner city. But neither could she see him standing there, stunned and breathless, his fingers at his cheek as though hoping to preserve the feeling, the moment that had just happened, as his other hand waved a weak little farewell.
Callum stood there his eyes lingering on her until she was far out of his sight, his brain stalled, lost in the moment, until his toes and fingers began to go numb. Only then did his lips split into a love-struck grin, his face and chest warm enough to distract him from the stinging cold. He nigh on pranced to the door, barely able to get his key in the door with his shaking hands, and he skipped over the threshold unable to contain the joy in his heart.
A voice snapped him out of his dreamy daze. “So… Who was that?” Ezran was kneeling on a stool by the window, his hands on the windowsill and a sly expression on his face.
“W-What? Oh, that’s Rayla. She’s uh… she’s a friend from work. Well, I mean, she doesn’t work at work, she just… hangs out a lot there and-”
“Does dad know you’ve got a girlfriend?”
“Wh- What?! No! No Ezran she’s not my-!”
It was too late, with a cheeky grin, Ezran had already sprung from the stool and was bound for the living room, shouting, “Daaaad! Callum’s got a girlfriend!”
“What?” Came Harrow’s startled voice.
“No!” Callum’s voice went shrill as he sprinted in after his little brother. “It’s not like that I swear! Ezran!”
37 notes · View notes
jungshookz · 5 years
Note
*kicks open door* kiNDERGARTEN TEACHER!TAEHYUNG THAT HAS A FAT CRUSH ON THE HOT SINGLE MOM HE SEES WHEN SHE COMES TO PICK UP HER CUTEASS KID
Tumblr media
→ pairing: kim taehyung x reader
→ genre: kindergartenteacher!taeHYUNG aka THE FLUFFIEST FLUFF like i don’t think i’ve ever felt so SOFT in my entire life great googly moogly please prepare yourselves 
→ wordcount: 3.3k
(gif isn’t mine!)
“shit shit shit shIt shit” you curse to yourself as you vEEr right into the first parking spot you see
you immediately crank the brake and unbuckle your seatbelt
“i was going to park there, asshole!” you hop out of the car to see an angry looking mother glaring at you from her minivan and you give her a sheepish smile
“i’m sorry!!!! my kid just got off from class and i can’t be late because i need to drive her to ballet and-“ you’re definitely oversharing with this stranger and she obviously doesn’t care because she rolls her eyes and flips you off before zoOming off to find another parking spot
soccer moms are so aggressive
you double check that you have everything with you and you fish your parent lanyard out of your backpack and sling it around your neck quickly as you approach the front doors
you thought that once you became a mother you would instantly become more responsible more organised more matuRe
obviously you were mistAken because you’re still late to almost everything you go to
some things never change!!!!
you hurry your way down the hallway and pick up the pace when you see the swarm of parents standing outside the classroom
as you approach the crowd you get up on your tip-toes to see if emma’s been excused yet
you accidentally bump into a couple and a bit of your coffee splashes onto their shoulders and they turn around and give you a dirty look
“oh, sorry!!!! ….fridays, am i right?” you joke and they both scowl before shuffling to stand somewhere else
oof
tough crowd
none of the parents here like u that much
which is a real shame because you think you make greAt company
you’re just,.,, there’s a big age gap between u and most of the parents here
you’re one of the younger parents in the class
actually you might be the youngest
min yoongi and his wife (you forgot her name whoOps) are pretty young but they’re still a couple years older than you
and side note their daughter is adoraBle
emma is actually friends with hwayoung so you talk to yoongi sometimes
it’s nice to talk to someone who’s around your age
he’s just veRy businessman-y so it’s difficult to joke around with him
but he’s still a nice guy!!
speaking of yoongi and hwayoung
a bright smile makes its way onto your face when you see yoongi nudging hwayoung through the crowd of people before grabbing onto her small hand
“yoongi!” yoongi looks up and he smiles politely
he’s still dressed all spic and span in his suit from work
“ah! good afternoon, y/n. hwayoung, say good afternoon to auntie.” he hums before bending down to zip up her backpack that’s just wiDe open
relatable
“good afternoon, auntie!!” she looks up at you with bright eyes
she’s sO CuTE
“hi, hwayoung-ie!” you bend down and pinch her cheek before reaching into the pocket of your coat and fishing out a little caramel “don’t tell your dad,” you joke and yoongi snorts in response
“thank u!!!!!” she snaTches it immediately and you coo before pinching her cheek again
you get back up onto your feet “you guys on your way home now?”
“mhm. is emma still available for a playdate this sunday?” yoongi swoops hwayoung off her feet and props her up onto his hip and she immediately rests her head against his shoulder
“affirmative, sir.” you salute and yoongi rolls his eyes playfully “i-“
“emma y/l/n?” you perk up when you hear emma’s name being called
“yeah, we’ll see you sunday! have a nice night!” you turn to squeeze your way into the crowd and once you make your way to the front your heart immediately starts going boom-boom because
it’s taehyung
emma’s teacher
kim taehyung is uh
whOo
putting it simply he is a very attractive man and he’s only a couple months older than you so like you’re preTTY sure this is god’s way of telling you it’s meant to be
the only time you’ve really talk to him is during the parent-teacher conference and even theN you can barely get a word in because emma’s a little chatterbox (one time she almost let it slip that ‘mommy dressed extra pretty for you!’ and you were literally about to pounce on your child in the middle of a classroom)
he’s really sweet n nice and when he smiles that boxY grin you can’t help but smile aNd he’s endearingly dorky and super charming aND funny and he’s so good with the kids and OH my god his voice is like..,., silky smooth dark chocolate.,,.,. rich caramel.,, that u want to driZZLE all over your BODY
okay no R-rated thoughts when there are children present don’t be weird
since he’s your kid’s teacher so you’re not sure if that’s even allowed
the whole parents dating teachers thing
anyways
he looks so soft today
he’s wearing a crisp button up with a pair of jeans
he obviously let the kids mess with his hair because he has a little sproUT in his hair
and you’re pretty sure you have a glasses kink because you’ve never felt this way when seeing someone with their glasses sitting on the top of their head
“hi, yeah, that’s me- i mean, that’s not me, but that’s my child- you know what i mean” you blow a strand of hair away from your face before adjusting your backpack with a sheepish grin
woW what the hell was that lol  
taehyung presses his lips together to keep himself from bursting into chuckles
you’re so awkward sometimes but he supposes that’s just part of your charm
he wants to tell you you look real cute in your periwinkle sweater
and it’s endearing how the laces on your converse shoes are undone
no doubt from your frantic running down the hallway (he notices everything)
but of course he has to keep it professional because you are the parent of one of his students it doesn’t matTer that you’re the same age as him and that he’s very very very veRY attracted to you
“hi miss y/l/n.” taehyung smiles kindly before ticking next to your name on the clipboard “emma’ll be ready in a minute! we did finger-painting today so the kids are taking a little longer to wash up. how was your day?” he suddenly remembers the little ponYTAIL in his hair and he yanks the hair tie off quickly
“oh, y’know, the usual. i don’t know why i thought it’d be a good idea to keep studying after four whole years of studying.” you snort before pulling your own hair tie from your ponytail and letting your hair down
“i admire that! education is important.” taehyung hums
your hair looks so soft
it probably smells good too
o god he’s being creepy stop being creepy
“i suppose you’re right. what else happened…uh… had a really good caramel macchiato and a mediocre turkey sandwich for lunch-“  
“mommy!” you snap out of your little trance when emma suddenly ziPs out of the classroom
her little backpack bounces against her back
“hi baby!” you grin and swoOp down to scoop her up into your arms
you smoosh kisses against her chubby cheek while she giggles away before you plop her back down onto the ground
it takes everything within taehyung not to mELT into the ground because even tho he sees you do that basically every day it never fails to turn him into a pile of mush IT’S SO CUTE
“we finger-painted today!” she cheers and holds her paper up for you to look at
“yeah, mr kim was just telling me-“
“that’s me, n that’s you, n that’s mr. kim!” she grins and points to the third figure in the painting and almost immediately bOTH yours and tae’s faces go bright red
you think you might actually be on fire right now (even tho this isn’t the first time this has hAPPENeD) ((ur referring to the time the class made play-doh people and emma made one of you and one of tae and the play-doh versions of you two are holding hands))
“oh! that’s, heh, uh, that’s nice! that’s so good, you did a good job, baby” you clear your throat and your eyes flicker over to taehyung
he tilts his head and offers you a meek smile
“will you put it up on the fridge when we go home?” she asks as you tuck it into her backpack for her before ziPping her bag up
“mhm…” you get back up onto your feet and dust your knees off “say g’bye to mr. kim”
“bye mr. kim!” emma turns around and hugs his legs
her face is like on the same level as his knees so he’s basically kneeing her and are u an awful mother if you kinda laughed at that
“goodbye, sweetheart!” he replies with the same level of enthusiasm as he gets down onto his knees so that he can give her a proper hug and she gives him a sweet lil kiss on the cheek “have a nice weekend, hm?” his eyes flicker up to you and you feel your heart skip a beat 
emma pulls away from him and skips over to you 
“oh, and don’t forget to tie your laces, emma.” taehyung hums as he gets back up onto his feet 
you look down because you remember putting emma in slip-on converse this morning not- 
“he means you, mama.” emma not-so-subtly whispers and you look down at your undone laces before looking back up at taehyung who’s looking very amused at the moment 
there it is again 
that fuzzy feeling in your stuPid heart 
u know what you have to get over it because it’s never going to happen 
you’re an adult 
you can get over it fine 
you’ll be finE 
this is just a silly little crush
“how do you feel about spaghetti and garlic bread for dinner?” you clutch emma’s little hand in yours as you guys make your way down the empty hallway
“yummy! with extra cheese?”
“it wouldn’t be as yummy without the extra cheese… but we obviously have to go to our usual place to get a hot chocolate first…” you’re rambling on and on about hot chocolate but emma isn’t really paying attention
because she has concocted a sneaky plan in that tiny brain of hers
she knows you like mr. kim
and she’s positive mr. kim likes you back
you always get so red around him
and he always gets so red around you
and red is the colour of love
which means that you must love mr. kim and mr. kim must love you
and she’s been trying her hardest to try and get you guys to hold hands or touch butts or whatever it is grown-ups do to prove they love each other
but each time she does something she’s never successful!!!
she tried to tell mr. kim about you dressing extra pretty for him but you smacked a hand over her mouth before she could get it out
she made a play-doh mommy and a play-doh mr. kim and presented them proudly to you and mr. kim and the both of you just laUGHED in hER FACE
do you people think she’s just a SIMPLE F O O L
and she has to admit the painting of you and her and mr. kim is probably one of her weaker moves but it’s better than nothing
and u know what
she just wants you to be happy
because she loves you a lot
and you’re a good mommy
and good mommies deserve to be happy
SO
this next part is all part of her evil plan and she’s positive that this time something will happen
all of her peers (including herself) have their own cubbies in the classroom
emma purposely left her snack box in there so that you’d have a reason to go back
AND she left a little note in there for you and (hopefully) mr. kim to read
emma is your child after all
meaning she’s a very verY clever girl
she just has to wait for the right time.,.,.
and the right time is noW
“mommy, my snack box is still in the classroom!!” emma stops in her tracks and you nod before pointing to the direction of the classroom
“go ahead, go get it”
“but i need to pee.” she squeezes her legs together and makes a face of discomfort “you need to get the snack box, mommy”
“i-“ you look back at the closed door of the classroom “mommy can wait for you to finish peeing and then you can go-“
“no, no, you need to go get it i need to pEE” the next thing you know she’s spRInting towards the washroom and you’re left standing in the middle of the hallway with question marks floating around your head
what in the hickory ham is going on
“gO GET MY SNACK BOX MOMMY” you hear her voice echo from the washroom
“alRIght alright” you snort before turning and heading back to the classroom
you don’t know why you’re suddenly so nervous
you’re retrieving your daughter’s snack box from her super attractive teacher that you definitely have a crush on there’s nothing to be nervous about
hi tae! emma left the ol’ snack box up in here!
whaddup mr. kim! mind if i just pOP right in??
yo Yo yOOoo have u seen a purple box anywhere?? because it belongs to emma and i need it
o god
all of these options are terrible
you need more time to rehearse your lines-
you’re about to reach up to knock on the door when suddenly it swiNgs right open and you stumble back in surprise
“oh shit!” taehyung reaches out and grabs onto your waist before you can fall flat on your aSS and you let out a squeak
in the midst of your almost-fall you’d grabbed onto his bicep and now.,.., he has an arm…, wrapped around your waist.,., while you have one hand on his bicep and one hand curled around the nape of his neck.,,,..,.,
the two of you snap out of your respective trances when you hear a door open down the hallway and you immediately leT GO of each other
also tae was right ur hair does smell really nice
“hi. sorry about that! i was on my way to the washroom and i didn’t know you were outside…” he clears his throat and prays to god he’s not as red as a tomato right now
“no, no! it was my bad, i’m sorry.” you reach up and scratch the back of your neck “i, uh, emma said she left her snack box in here.” you breathe out
“oh, uh, come in! i’ll help you search for it. it’s probably in her cubby. she’s always leaving things in there.” taehyung falls back into his ‘mr. kim’ persona as he leads you towards the cubbies in the back “let’s see… emma… here~” he bends down and you follow suit
oh my go d he even smells good is this aLLOWed
you perk up when you spot emma’s box
“hey, you’re right! here it is-“ you reach in and grab the box but you’re surprise when you notice the piece of paper stuck to the back of it
it’s an A4 piece of paper with a little card stuck to it and a note written in crayon on it
you recognise the card
it’s the business card of that little cafe you take emma to every friday after school
the one that you’re supposed to take her to right noW
‘mommy’s faveriate drink is karomal makkiatoe and mr. kim’s faverieote drink is hot chalklate’
“huh.” both you and tae are kinda just staring at the note
the gears are click-click-clicking away in both your guys’ heads
and then it hits the both of you at the same time
oh.
oh.
taehyung isn’t typically a ballsy guy but like
he’s feeling vEry brave all of a sudden
“can i take you out sometime?” he blurts out and your eyes widen in surprise
oh
well
you certainly weren’t expecting that
the both of you get back up onto your feet and you tuck emma’s box into your backpack
your cheeks flare up and you let out a little chuckle before scratching the back of your neck “i… uh…”
“i mean, don’t feel pressured to say yes just because i’m emma’s teacher!” taehyung stammers “i just, y’know, i don’t want to overstep here but i think you’re a very beautiful woman and-“
“i would love to.” you clear your throat and take your bottom lip in between your teeth “yeah, i would love to. actually, uh- emma and i, we usually go to this cafe every friday - if you’re free right now, maybe you can come and join us?” you rub your slighTLy damp hands on the back of your jeans and taehyung immediately lightS up and nods quickly
“i would love that. yeah, just… just gimme a second to clean up real quick! i’ll meet you and emma outside?”
“great! yeah, totally. she’s just.. she’s peeing right now so i should probably go check and see that she hasn’t flushed herself down the toilet or anything” you joke as you make your way towards the door and tae splits off to head to his desk “i’ll see you outside!”
you shut the door behind you and you have to quickly press yourself against the wall and you nearly bite your bottom lip off to keep yourself from screaming
your heart is going a million miles an hour and there are butterflies just having a raVE in your stomach
as soon as you leave the room taehyung pumps a fiST into the air in victory because Y E S  HE DID IT
“did you find my box?” emma’s sitting outside the washroom as you approach her and you raise a brow before nodding
“mhm.” she gets up and grabs onto your hand before looking back at the classroom door
huh
did her plan not work
she knows she’s not supposed to say bad words but what the h*ck
she really thought her plan would work!!!!
“mr. kim’s joining us for hot chocolate today, by the way. hope you don’t mind.”  you add casually and a cheshire-cat grin takes over emma’s face
the whole time you and emma and tae are at the cafe emma can’t help but feel proud of herself
you and mr. kim are sitting very vEry close to each other in your booth chatting away while she sits opposite of you two quietly nibbling at a scone and taking small sips of her hot chocolate
S U C C E S S has never tasted so good
help me help you make your wishes come tru (aka send me a request)
masterlist
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frywen-babbles · 5 years
Text
Sounds of Silence pt5
A/N: TW: mentions of assault and violence, stalking
They stood awkwardly in the aisle, watching Oichi find her way through the clothing racks, picking up clothes here and there. After what felt like hours (but was probably no more than 20 minutes) Oichi wandered back to them with a huge pile of clothes in her arms and took her arm to lead her towards the fitting rooms. She looked helplessly at Mitsunari while being dragged away and Mitsunari couldn't help but follow.
Almost as soon as the door to the fitting room closed after her, Mitsunari felt his phone buzz in his pocket.
<cant u do smthng abt miss Oichi>    <I don't think anything can save us from her anymore.> <ths is way 2 much> <cant affrd it>
Mitsunari glanced at Oichi who looked like she was eagerly waiting for her to come out of the fitting room.
   <Just roll with it and maybe we’ll make it back alive.> <ur tlkng like ths is a battle or smthng lol> <fine> <shes been so nice 2 me i dnt evn know hw 2 repay>
Several pairs of pants and skirts later Oichi handed her a sleeveless dress a wide smile on her lips.
“I’m sure it’ll look amazing on you. Go on, try it on!” Oichi ushered her back to the fitting room, but it took way longer than it should have for her to come out.
<i cant>    <It can’t look that bad.>
Slowly she opened the door and stepped out. The dress looked good on her, but it wasn't what drew his attention. There were faint finger marks on her neck and bruises on her arms.
Neither he or Oichi said anything. She turned her head away from them, hugging herself, but just when she was about to step back into the fitting room Oichi reached for her.
"It's a little cold for sleeveless clothes yet, don't you think?" Oichi draped a cardigan over her shoulders and offered her a smile. A smile she returned after a few seconds before bowing at her gratefully.
"I'm sorry," she said to him, "I didn't mean for you to see this..." She bowed to him as well, but he shook his head annoyed.
"It's not your fault what he did to you. Don't apologize."
"Sorry..."
"What did I just say?"
A silent laugh lit her face up. "Sorry, sorry!" she said again before she turned to Oichi and mouthed 'thank you'. "The dress really is nice, isn't it?" she asked, turning around in front of the mirror. All he could do was nod.
Somehow, Oichi managed to get bags filled with clothes for her, the poor bodyguards rendered to shopping assistants, their arms filled with shopping bags.
They were heading outside when he noticed she wasn't following them anymore. His heart made an uncomfortable thump before he spotted her at the electronics department, fingering large headphones excitement clear on her face.
He touched her shoulder to get her attention and she jumped a little bit, a sheepish smile replacing her surprise.
"People leave me alone when they know I can't hear them," she explained and was about to say something else when her eyes fell on a display a bit further down the aisle. "No way! They have the kitty ear headphones! I've wanted them as soon as I saw them!"
"Kitty headphones? Those are so cute! Do you want them?" Mitsunari was startled when he heard Oichi's voice next to him. He had been so mesmerized by her excitement he had completely missed Oichi’s arrival.
"Ahaha, I see this is the department I should have brought you for some stress relief shopping!"
The blush colouring her cheeks was so cute Mitsunari wished he could watch it all day. And the unguarded joy in her eyes when she finally held the headphones in her hands and tried them on was something that made him smile like an idiot.
***
The apartment she managed to find was already furnished. Something Mitsunari was sure Oichi had her fingers in but thought better of telling her about it. She felt bad enough already about all the things Oichi had done for her despite the fact it hadn't even been Oichi's idea to have her stay at the Oda residence.
The more she seemed to get her life back together, the lonelier Mitsunari felt. She had dragged him here and there to do some shopping, to her apartment to help her settle in, but now that everything was finished she mostly focused on working as much as possible.
His phone buzzed in his pocket in the middle of a lecture. He glanced at it to see who the message was from.
<can u pick me up frm wrk>    <I'm at a lecture now. See you at my place in 3 hours?>
He didn't usually message anyone back but it was unusual for her to message him during the day.
<no> <now> <hes here>
He nearly dropped his phone in his haste to get up. The whole class turned to look at him when he collected his stuff and rushed out of the lecture hall.
The wait for the bus seemed like forever. And the trip didn't go any faster, the minutes ticked slowly by until he finally reached the bus stop closest to the store she worked at and ran inside.
When he found her, she was with a coworker, her face red from crying. As soon as she saw him she stood up and hugged him, burying her face on his shoulder. His first instinct was to crush her to his chest and hold her tight, but somehow that turned out as an awkward pat on her back.
Her coworker motioned he needed to get back to work and slipped out of the break room. Mitsunari pushed her away from him to get a good look at her face.
"Tell me what happened?"
"He..." she started but her hands stopped as soon as she had started. She looked at him searching his face for something.
"You can tell me," he tried to encourage her to speak.
"He has been waiting for me outside. Every now and then. For three weeks now."
"Three weeks?! And you didn't think to tell me?" Mitsunari closed his eyes and took a deep breath to calm down. Now really wasn't time to lose his temper.
"I didn't want to worry you!" she tried to explain, biting her lip.
"This is exactly why I worry. You never tell me anything!" He ran his hand through his hair irritated before he continued. "So, what was different about today?"
"He came inside. He..." Her hands begun to tremble, but still, she continued. "He cornered me when I was alone. He asked 'did you think I wouldn't find you'. Here, I recorded it."
Mitsunari took her phone but looked at her sceptically.
"It translates speech into text." She held a small break before she continued. "I didn't want to read it."
He put the phone to his ear.
"-you, I know where you work. I have been very patient with you and given you plenty of time to return home now. How long do you plan to make me wait? Don't even think you can disappear. You know I'll find you no matter what, don't you? Hm, no, there's no problem, I was just talking to my wife. See you at home, darling!..." At the end of the recording, Mitsunari heard what he assumed to be her coworker's voice, asking her if she was okay.
It was clearly a threat. A threat his brain should have focused on. Instead, the words 'my wife' played in his head over and over again like an error code you couldn't get rid of no matter how hard you tried.
A touch on his arm rebooted him out of his momentary blue screen of death.
"Can you take me home?"
"No. We need to go to the police."
She shook her head, "No police. Just take me home."
Mitsunari closed the door behind him when they reached her apartment. She flopped on her bed face first and let out a deep sigh. Mitsunari sat next to her and tapped her shoulder.
"I think we need to talk," he said when she finally turned to look at him.
"Yeah..." she covered her face for a moment before she continued, "I've been meaning to ask. How did you find out my address?"
"I asked the librarians."
"And they gave it to you? Just like that?"
"No, they needed some convincing. But I told them I needed to return a book to you."
"That's like the lamest excuse ever." She sat up and crossed her legs before she continued. "Thank you for coming for me. I don't know what I would have done without you."
"You're married." It came out more like an accusation rather than a question like he had meant it to be. She stared at him her face blank.
"How did you know?" she finally asked.
"He called you his wife."
"I see." She stood up and turned her back at him. He stood up and tapped her shoulder to get her attention.
"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked.
"I don't want to talk about it."
"But-"
"I'd like you to leave now." She walked to the door and held it open for him.
"What-" Mitsunari started baffled by this turn of events.
"Leave. Now." She pointed at the door and turned her eyes away from him.
Why was she being so difficult? Did she think this would change something between them? Sure, he was surprised by her being married, but nothing he'd done warranted such a cold behaviour towards him. The door slammed shut behind him leaving him alone in the hallway.
When he returned that night tired from training at the university dojo, he fell down on his bed. Maybe it would be good to retire early from time to time.
Except when he closed his eyes sleep refused to come. After an hour of twisting and turning in bed, he went to knock on Hideyoshi's door.
"Hideyoshi, can you talk?"
"Uh... sure... what is it?" Hideyoshi opened his door rubbing his eyes, a red pencil impression on his cheek. "Is this about her?"
Mitsunari didn't need to guess which 'her' Hideyoshi was referring to.
"Yes. She's married."
"She's what now?"
"I didn't realise your hearing comprehension was so terrible. She's married. To the man, she claimed to be her boyfriend."
"Uh... yeah... okay... Just... give me a moment."  Hideyoshi rubbed his eyes again and yawned, "So she's married. What's the problem?"
"Why didn't she tell me?"
"Did you ask her?"
"... No."
"Well, there you have it. It really isn't that surprising considering her situation. She might be worried people try to push her to get back together with him."
Mitsunari stared at Hideyoshi in shock. Somebody would actually do something like that? Hideyoshi let out another big yawn.
"Look, if that was it, I really need to get some sleep. Good night, Mitsunari." he closed his door and after a few minutes, Mitsunari could hear soft snores.
Two days later he was at the library, trying to concentrate on reading. But his thoughts kept going to her again and again until he picked his phone up.
   <I don't care if you're married.>
He stared at the message for a while before he pressed send. Her reply came after a few minutes.
<I know ur lying>    <I’m not. I just want to know why you were lying about it.> <i rly dnt wnt 2 tlk abt ths> <i lost my job>    <What?> <the mngr dnt wnt 2 get into trbl> <dnt wrry i found a nw 1> <and they paid me a mnth slry>    <How can they just fire you?> <mde me resgn. didnt wnt mre trble>    <I'm so sorry.>
He cringed as soon as he sent the message. How did apologies sound so bad in text.
<naaah s cool> <knew it wld happen evntually> <wanna grab some coffee tmrrw> <at tht european coffee dwnstrs>    <Yes. What time?>
He was so relieved she still wanted to see him. He hadn't even realised how worried he had been until he felt the tension leave his body.
***
The next day he hurried to the cafe after his lectures were over. She was already sitting there, headphones on her ears, her nose in a book.
He was only relieved Oichi's annoying friend and his fellow student wasn't on shift today. He didn't need her "encouragement" on his... non-date. Definitely not a date. Just two friends meeting over a cup of coffee.
He sat his cup down on the table and tapped her shoulder gently. She jumped a little bit and put her book down. Only then he noticed she had put some lip colour and his eyes were drawn to her lips. To her beautiful and very kissable lips.
"Sorry, I didn't see you at all. I was just getting at a good part." She took her headphones off and put them on the table.
"It's okay. How was your day?"
"Boring." Her phone on the table buzzed with a new message. "Except for that."
"What's 'that'?" he felt his brows furrow and he looked at her phone which buzzed with a new message.
"I ran into one of my friends and gave her my new number. Now she and my other friends keep messaging me."
"It's... nice they want to be in touch." Did that mean she didn’t need him anymore? Was that why she hadn’t been in touch for the last few days?
“I wish...” She unlocked her phone and pushed it towards him. The screen was filled with messages.
<he misses you so much how can you do this to him>
<do you have any idea how this will affect his career???>
<stop telling lies about him you cunt>
<ungrateful bitch>
His mouth felt dry as he read the hateful messages that seemed to go on forever.
“How long... how long have you received messages like this?”
She poked at her cake with a fork and sighed.
“About two weeks now. Don’t worry, it’s not a big deal.” The way she pursed her lips and the angry poke her cake received told him it was a big deal. To be betrayed by the people you thought you could trust the must hurt. Did hurt.
@masamunesmistress @you-mass-effect-my-dragon-age @han-pan @dreamfar628
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skadventuretime · 7 years
Note
"you’ve been looking through the self-help section at a bookstore for at least 2 hours and this one employee keeps walking by looking more and more concerned every time" any bnha u want but bonus for including Iida because he is my Son
I gotchu fam. [AO3 / FFN]
If it’s not some offshoot of Generalized Anxiety Disorder, then it’s gotta be mild panic attacks. Or maybe a hybrid of Irritable Bowel Syndrome and asthma? Unless he’s getting some kind of new tick-borne disease…
Izuku was sitting on the floor at the campus bookstore surrounded by a steadily growing pile of half-open medical texts and Psychology for Dummies books, alternating between scribbling notes on a dog-eared moleskine and chewing the eraser off the end of his pencil. For the last ten weeks or so he’d noticed the onset of a suite of symptoms he’d never experienced before. So, like the good medical student he was, he’d kept a journal about when and where they manifested.
But so far, none of the data he’d gathered was adding up; in fact, the more he thought about it, the more confused and frankly nervous he became. This wasn’t meeting any of the run-of-the-mill diagnoses for any common or easily-cured conditions, which meant he might be exhibiting signs of something more serious.
A sudden stab of pain in his mouth jolted him out of this train of thought, and he quickly realized it was because he just bit through his eraser and into the metal casing that was decidedly un-masticable. Before he could spit it out, though, a shadow fell across the books in front of him. A quick glance showed that it was one of the store employees he vaguely recognized from a gen ed class a semester or so ago, looking at him with a level of concern on par with witnessing someone about to set himself on fire. 
“Can I help you with anything?” the man – Iida, his nametag read - asked in a slow, careful voice. “You’ve been here for over two hours and you look a bit…ill.”
“Uh, no, it’s okay, I’m fine. Or, well, I think I’m fine – I’m probably fine, as long as my white blood cell count is above 4,500 per microliter and my liver function tests pan out well and there aren’t any lumps that would require a biopsy–”
Iida cleared his throat with a kind look on his face. “Med school student?”
Izuku blinked. “Yeah, I want to be an emergency surgeon one day. How’d you know?”
“Well, let’s just say you’re not the first one I’ve seen thinking you’re going to die from some archaic illness,” Iida said with a chuckle. “Now, let’s get you sorted: what kind of disease information are you looking for?”
Groaning, Izuku said, “That’s the thing, none of my symptoms add up to any clearly recognizable illness. I’m not entirely sure what I should be looking for.”
“How about you start by telling me what’s been going on, if it isn’t too personal?” Iida moved a stack of books aside so he could join Izuku on the floor before folding his hands in his lap, expectant.
“Uh, let’s see.” Izuku frowned at the opposite bookshelf for a few moments, trying to organize his thoughts. “I guess it started late last semester. I was talking to my friend Ochako about what she was doing over the weekend, and then out of nowhere I had the first of many tachycardic episodes. She was chatting like she usually does, laughing here and there, nothing I haven’t seen or heard before. Then, a few weeks later, we were grabbing lunch when I started getting really sweaty, and that progressed to a stomachache that only went away when I was in my next class.
“What really scared me, though, was a couple weeks ago when she came over on a whim to do some homework. She asked me a simple question and I couldn’t seem to form words at all; it was like I couldn’t think or move my lips or look away or do anything except gape like an idiot, but I don’t think I have any reason to have any clots so a transient ischemic attack seems unlikely.”
Iida looked at him with a peculiar expression. “Your friend seems to be the common link. You know what this means, right?”
Izuku shook his head, not at all liking the seriousness in Iida’s expression. “No, what?”
“You must be allergic to her. Or something on her person. Has she taken to wearing a new fragrance or fabric?”
“Hm, I don’t think so? She’s always smelled nice, this sorta citrus body spray I think.” Izuku smiled. “We were in this little beachside boutique while everyone else was busy getting second degree burns tanning last summer, and she kept bringing these little bottles up to me asking which one smelled the best. That’s where she got it, and it’s never bothered me before. I can ask her about her clothes.”
Iida nodded. “You might also wish to see whether her detergent upsets you or if there is a kind of mold in her room–”
“Oh, for the love of god, he’s in love.” From the end of the aisle, one of Ochako’s friends in the engineering department – Jirou, he thought she went by – stood up from where she had been leaning against the shelves and walked over, trademark Sennheisers around her neck and face caught somewhere between exasperated and amused.
“Excuse me?” Izuku said, voice cracking.
“You are clearly head over heels, bro.” She nodded at the shelf above his head. “I won’t charge you for the therapy session this time, but could I please have access to those books? You guys aren’t the only ones with problems to work out.”
“Right, of course miss,” Iida said, standing abruptly. “Let’s get going – Izuku, right? From freshman seminar?”
Izuku stood slowly and turned to face him, feeling like he’d been hit over the head with a blunt object – repeatedly. “I…like her?”
Jirou snorted and shouldered past him to grab a book on the top shelf. “You tell me. You’re not dying – you’re crushing, and hard, by the sounds of it. Try being a little more in touch with yourself.” She walked back to the end of the aisle and paused, turning around to wink and say, “I’m rooting for you, Casanova.”
It all made sense. The rapid heartbeat, the sweating, the brain-melting gibberish that was all he could say to her sometimes when she got really close and he could smell that citrus perfume  and see the little wrinkles in the corners of her eyes when she smiled–
“Hey, are you all right?”
Izuku shook himself. “Ah, yeah. Yes, I’m Izuku.” He stopped for a moment while a slow, incredulous grin spread across his face. “And I think I’m in love with my best friend.”
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athreadofscarlet · 7 years
Text
[Fanfic] Haircut
Tenten stares glumly at the pouring rain with a distant look in her eye. It is Monday, oh so lovely Monday, with an hour left before she can go home and devour whatever fattening dessert she has left in her fridge. She tugs uncomfortably at her apron, upon which in large bold lettering reads “Windy City Hairdressers”.  She has worked at this salon for about a year now, her first day being only a week or so after she had settled into an apartment in Chicago.  It is her part-time job until she earns her degree.
During her twelve months of cutting, styling, and washing hair, she has developed a sort of infatuation for a particular customer. To her it seems as if her affection is only one-sided. After all, how could the nephew of the head of Chicago’s most prestigious company ever fall for her? He’ll probably develop eyes for his secretary before he even considers her as girlfriend material.
He won’t come.
Tenten pushes the thought aside. Neji always comes, rain or shine, on the first Monday of the month to have his locks trimmed. He has trudged through knee-deep snow before, with nothing to keep out the cold save for a sweater, to have her cut his hair.  A little bad weather will not keep him away.
Tenten’s belt of tools is slowly sliding from her waist, and with a tug, she adjusts it and pulls out her scissors to clean for the fifteenth time (she has already swept every nook and cranny of the salon at least five times before she got tired of standing and took up her current perch at the register).  He won’t come.
Tenten shakes her head, blaming her growing headache for messing with her brain. Of course he will come, he always does. And even if he doesn’t, it isn’t a big deal, right? Still Tenten cannot find the justification for her words, and she continues to stare at the door. He absolutely has to come.
To keep herself occupied (and ignore the annoying ticking of the clock), she glances around her workplace humming whatever song comes to mind. In the background, the radio drones on and on. It is a rather cozy salon, situated between a sandwich eatery and a wedding dress boutique. The interior consists of white tiled flooring, baby pink walls, and comfortable leather chairs facing mirrors and tables laden with every hair product imaginable.
Her first day on the job had been a bit of a disaster due to an unfortunate misfiring of the hairspray bottle right into her eye. But it hadn’t been all bad. It was that evening she had met Neji.
With a start, Tenten’s gaze snaps back to the clock. It is a half hour till closing time and still no sight of Neji. Tenten frowns. She had so been looking forward to hearing all his office gossip, while providing her own input on whatever disasters had taken place at the salon that month. He’s not coming.
This time she believes it and is about to get off her stool when the door chimes. “You weren’t leaving without seeing me first, were you?” a deep masculine voice asks.
Tenten nearly falls over in delight. There is Neji in all his drenched glory.
“Neji!”
“Boring day, hm?” he asks as he shrugs off his jacket and places it on the coat rack.
“You have no idea.“
Neji smirks as he settles himself in the chair at her station.
“Same trim?” Tenten asks as she spreads a smock over his body and secures it at the nape of his neck. Neji nods, observing her in the mirror. “So, how has work been treating you?”
Composing himself with a clearing of the throat, he replies, “Same old, same old. My uncle fired the head of the legal department over something about an affair with his daughter. Though I find that highly unlikely. We all know, save for him that is, that Hinata only has eyes for that idiot blonde-what was his name? -Naruto?”
Tenten lets out a chuckle. “He’s not that bad. But he’s awfully loud. He wouldn’t sit still long enough for me to cut his hair last week. I debated whether I should just shave his head off in your name.”
“Oh please do next time you see him. He’s a nuisance alongside that Inuzuka man. I’ve lost track on the number of times I’ve found his dog hiding underneath his desk. He was nearly fired too,” Neji says. “Shikamaru got engaged by the way. “
Tenten raises an eyebrow. “Pineapple head? He buys every hair gel we have in stock. He’s incredibly lazy too. When he came in last Friday, he just asked me to cut his hair in the waiting room because he was too tired to walk twenty feet. I didn’t think he had it in him to get married.”
“Same. It was quite a surprise. Though I don’t applaud his choice in partners. That Temari lady is nearly as bad as Naruto,” Neji complains, adjusting his head so Tenten won’t snip off his ear in her excitement at this news.
“Temari?” she shrieks. “She never told me she had a boyfriend! When she comes in again, I’m going to cut off one of her pigtails for good measure! Some friend she turned out to be.”
“Make that two, one for saying yes to pineapple head, one for not telling you. Shikamaru insists on bringing her in three times a week. It’s got me going gray,” the Hyuuga says, closing his eyes as Tenten mists his hair. Tenten smacks his arm teasingly.
“You have the most gorgeous hair I’ve ever seen! You’ll be ninety and not have one discolored strand.” She is mortified before the words even finish leaving her mouth. Oh God. What have I turned into? I will not fawn over him like some half-wit! Pull yourself together!
It is Neji’s turn to raise his brows at her. “The most gorgeous hair you’ve ever seen?” he quotes, lips twitching into his trademark smirk. “Really?”
If I stab his neck and hide the body in the backroom, and then high tail it to Mexico, I’ll never have to be reminded of this again. I wonder how much I’d get penalized for murder if caught. Tenten reprimandes herself for such thoughts. You’re not going to kill him no matter how mortified-
“Well I think you have gorgeous hair too,” Neji interrupts her thoughts, looking thoroughly surprised with himself. Tenten’s face shifts through a dozen shades of red.
“T-thank you,” she squeaks, staring at his head with such intensity it could have burst into flames. Neji does not respond, still going over his words.  The silence stretches out between them, both a little too embarrassed to speak.
“U-uh, so… nice weather we’re having,” Tenten finally comments some five minutes later.
“It’s… lovely,” the Hyuuga replies, carefully planning the sentence out. “Like you.” This second slip of the tongue causes Tenten to choke on her own saliva, her scissors slipping from her fingers and clattering to the floor.
“E-excuse me?” she asks, recovering from her coughing fit.
Neji grunts, “Don’t make me repeat myself.” Tenten is instantly reminded of the first time she cut his hair. He had been practically breathing down her neck, nearly causing the mirror to crack under his glare. She had thought harder than she ever had before cutting off a single piece. He had been so intimidating. But over time, she had come to really enjoy his company.
“I lo-“ Tenten clamps a hand over her mouth, dropping her scissors again. Her eyes are as wide as saucers. What has gotten into you?
Neji’s gaze is smoldering. “Pardon?” Why does his voice sound so husky all of a sudden?
“Nothing. Umm… you’re finished. Trim is on the house. Okay bye.” Tenten turns to run and lock herself in the employee lounge and never emerge when the Hyuuga catches her wrist. Slowly he stands, and presses a piece of paper into her hand.
“W-what’s this?”
Neji cracks one of his rare smiles, “Just read it. See you tomorrow at six. I’ll pick you up.”
Tenten stands gaping long after he has disappeared into the rain. Almost afraid, she looks at the scrap of paper in her hand.
Dear Tenten,
I’ve been trying to tell you this for a while, but I can’t stop thinking about you. I’ve been trying to figure out how to ask you on a date for nearly three months.
Sincerely, Neji
P.S. You probably didn’t finish cutting my hair so I’ll be back in the morning.
Tenten grins. Perhaps her affection isn’t only one-sided after all.
A/N: Thank you for reading!
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