#but while sketching I saw this really cool flower and got inspired by that | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

hellyeahbakubby · 3 years

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“just a drawing” | sero h.

♔ - Running an NSFW art patreon, the reader has lost their motivation. Maybe Sero can help them find their inspiration, or be it. {wc: 1870} pairings - sero hanta x reader tags - SUGGESTIVE ONESHOT, mentions of sex, nothing explicit but be warned, fluffy bf sero, like I want boyfriend sero, pls, gimme a/n - thank you for requesting this, I had a really fun time writing it, and even though it took a while to put out I hope you enjoy it :) masterlist ▬ WARNING: SLIGHT NSFW, nothing explicit or graphic but proceed responsibly if you are under the age of 16.

For weeks now, your inspiration had abandoned you and your motivation extended to nothing more than staring at a blank screen. The hundreds of suggestions from your avid followers had begun to pile up and the hope you had of actually drawing something had been lost. None of the characters that usually stirred you to create were giving you any enthusiasm and you feared that you’d lost your spark for good.

“Hey,” Hanta greeted you as he entered the room, munching on his lunch, “Whatcha up to?”

Flicking around to face him, you instinctively flipped your tablet to your chest as if to hide the screen. “Just some drawing,” you replied as if you’d actually made any progress

“You’ve been doing a lot of that lately, huh,” he said leaning again the doorframe, digging his fork back into his dish, “Working on something big?”

“Uh, not really, just drawing,” you lied, smiling up at him. He smiled back. You sighed, you were getting nowhere with your drawing. Sitting there, lying about your progress to your boyfriend was just dumb. “Except I haven't been able to draw for weeks. I’ve lost my mojo for good.”

He watched your shoulders slump at the admission and couldn’t help but feel sympathetic to your cause. He knew just how much you admired creativity and to have lost your own would be weighing on you more than a bit. “I’m sure it won’t be forever, babe,” he said coming to sit in the chair beside you. Turning in his chair so his body was facing you, he placed a warm, reassuring hand on your knee. “Maybe instead of just sitting staring at your screen, we should go get you some inspiration. Yeah?”

You stared down at the device in your hands, the blank screen. Hanta went back to chewing. He watched your expression avidly. You were always so cute which only made seeing you so down worse. So used to your usually happy attitude around him, he wanted to fix whatever was bugging you.

Taking a deep breath in, “Yeah,” you said. He grinned.

“Nice. Why don’t we just go for a walk? And since I’ve got patrol tonight we can grab dinner after. Sound good?”

“Yup.” Even if you didn’t manage to find any inspiration you were grateful to be spending time with him. Since his schedule wasn’t exactly a typical 9 to 5 he was often working resulting in you being able to spend less time with him.

“I’ll finish my lunch then we can be off,” he said, “There’s a new park across the city that I saw last night. It’s beautiful, plus lots of flowers and stuff that might spark something.”

You smiled up at him. “Sounds good.” He was so considerate. You’d really lucked in with this one. And although you really needed to post on your patreon, maybe drawing something basic for yourself first would help get you back in that mindset. Leaving your tablet behind you went to get a drink before you left the house.

Hanta had been right. This park was beautiful. The grass was greener than you’d ever seen in person. The trees that edged the park created an atmosphere that separated the park from the outside world. It was its own little world. And the flowers. Hundreds of them. All different colours and types. The variety was astounding. You blinked a couple of times, making sure what you were seeing was real. It was captivating.

“Cool, huh?” he said with a cheeky smirk. Watching your expressions made him chuckle. He was secretly relieved that your mood had taken such a dramatic change.

“Real cool,” you said softly, nodding. You turned back to him and smiled. Throwing your arms around his neck you pulled him into a suffocating hug, kissed his cheek. He returned the hug with a laugh, wrapping his own arms around your waist in turn. Holding you in place after you loosened your grip he looked at you, thoroughly enjoying the spark of joy in your irises. “Thanks, babes,” you said.

“Anytime, doll,” he said before placing a kiss on your nose, “How about we go walk around and you can get some photos, eh?”

“Of course.”

Not a second after you’d taken his hand and begun to walk down the path when you heard someone call out from behind you. Both you and Hanta turned to look.

“Cellophane! Wait! Please!” A young woman ran towards the both of you, only slowing to halt right in front of you. She looked utterly exhausted, panting heavily.

“You’re… you’re my favourite Pro,” she managed to get out, standing up straight and looking up at Hanta with a look of admiration you’d never seen before. “Would you mind taking a photo with me?” she pleaded.

“Oh, sure,” he said with a smile, letting go of your hand to stand beside her as she pulled out her phone, “It’s nice to meet you.” She blinked at him in awe, her cheeks reddening.

“You too,” she squeaked out. Holding up the phone as he leaned in to get in the frame, she snapped a couple of photos.

You were oddly surprised by how you felt watching the interaction. It wasn’t jealousy or any sort of possessiveness. You knew that it was just an interaction between a fan and a hero so it wasn’t like she was gonna make any moves, or rather that he simply wasn’t interested. Instead, it was almost like a realisation. You were that lucky person, that lucky fan, who got to hold him, who got to be held by him. Your life was someone else’s fantasy, it was your own fantasy. There it was.

You knew exactly what you were going to draw to get your rhythm back.

“You good there?” Hanta asked returning to you as his fan walked away, every now and again turning back as if making sure he was real. “You look a bit zoned out.”

“Always,” you replied with full sincerity, squeezing his hand. His lips curled up at your response.

“Huh? Oh, I’m fine, just thinking,” you said, taking his hand again.

“About me?” he joked.

As Hanta retrieved his hero costume, preparing himself for the night of hero work ahead, you returned to your drawing room, knowing exactly what the finished work was going to be. You were one hundred per cent assured that this would cure your art block and although you had no intention of posting it, you were both anxious and excited for the one person you’d show it to, to see it.

Peeping his head around the doorframe, he grinned at seeing you already back to work. He did feel responsible for your returning motivation and was delighted with his achievement.

“I’m off now, babe,” he said. You got up, placing a kiss to his cheek for good luck before pulling his face towards your own. Pressing your lips to his, you relaxed momentarily into his arms. He was so warm, all-encompassing. You felt so safe with him, so secure, so free of judgement. He was everything you’d ever wished for and so much more.

“Be careful,” you said, running a finger down his cheek.

“Whatever you say,” he gushed, leaning to kiss your forehead.

“See ya later, handsome.”

Walking him to the door, no sooner than he was gone you were back at your desk, sketching out the picture already finished in your head. You were almost surprised you’d never thought to draw something of this flavour before. God, just thinking about it made you flush. He was a well-known, well-desired Pro-hero; surely you weren’t the first person to concoct such a lewd creation of him. And well, it wasn’t like you were a stranger to him. You knew him up close and personal and you knew exactly what made him tick. You’d never post such a thing but you couldn’t think to draw anything else now that the idea was in your head. Not to mention you couldn’t help but imagine his reaction when he saw the finished product.

Stretching your muscles, you turned in your bed, waking slowly. Hanta wasn’t beside you despite having said he’d return at around four am but it didn’t worry you. He usually fell asleep on the couch, even after telling him countless that you didn’t mind him waking you when he came home. You made your way down the hall, careful to miss stepping on the floorboard that always groaned under your weight. If Hanta was indeed asleep on the couch you didn’t want to wake him. You knew how much hero work took out of him, especially if he’d had a busy night.

Creeping into your drawing room to continue working on your piece your heart plummeted to your stomach when you saw the empty space on your desk where you’d had your tablet last night. Come to think of it you didn’t remember going to bed which could only mean that Hanta had moved you to your bedroom after you’d fallen asleep midway through drawing. Oh god, that meant he had your tablet.

“Fuuuck,” you heard him drawl from behind you. Frowning you spun around.

“What?” you said before you saw your tablet in his hands and you felt heat rush to your cheeks.

“That’s my line right, babe?” he teased, tongue between his teeth, “At least that’s what I’m saying in this drawing, aren’t I?”

“I…” you couldn’t find any words.

“No, no. Your line’s ‘Oh please, god’ and then I think you’re meant to moan.”

You opened your mouth to reply but you didn’t know what to say.

“It’s a really good drawing, just not what I expected.” He returned his gaze to the image in front of him. Although he was hiding it really well you noticed the pink tips of his ears.

“You… inspired me,” you said sheepishly.

“Clearly,” he said grinning again, “Just not in the way I thought I did.” You scowled at him.

“I just needed something to get my motivation back.”

He looked up. “Huh? Oh, I’m not complaining. I just didn’t know you drew this kinda stuff, makes sense why you hide your drawings from me. I mean bondage? Heh. Kinky.”

“Stoppp,” you begged, one hand on your face in embarrassment. You inhaled, trying to steady yourself. “It’s just a drawing,” you said defensively.

“Pretty sexy drawing though,” he mumbled. You looked up at him. His flushed cheeks said more than his words as he rubbed the back of his neck.

“If I knew what you wanted I would’ve given you a different kinda inspiration.” He was definitely as nervous about the whole thing as you were. He placed the tablet on the pile of boxes by the door. “I mean I’m happy to help you out.”

“Really?” you replied softly, “That’s sweet of you.” You sent him a sly grin and he swallowed quickly. He reached out, grabbing you by the hips.

“‘Just a drawing’,” he said mocking what you’d said earlier, “You gonna show me your others.”

“Maybe later,” you said in his ear as he lifted you onto your desk,

“Right now I’m feeling the inspiration for something different.”

#sero hanta #sero x reader #sero smut #sero x you #sero bnha #sero mha #sero hanta x reader #sero hanta x you #sero hanta x y/n #sero hanta mha #sero hanta bnha #hanta sero #hanta sero x reader

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fenheart87 · 3 years

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The Dress

For @bloody-no-kissu, you're art is always amazing and inspirational! I love you bloody!

It was a rare day that Marinette was fully rested, had no events to attend and the bakery wasn't busy enough for her parents to ask for her help. Feeling inspired but not able to pick up a recent project without being hypercritical of her work, the young designer decided picking up something different might help. Grabbing a blue folder with various doodles and stickers, she spread the sketches one by one on her desk.

"Oh, these look great!" Tikki chimed, flying closer to examine the handwritten notes.

"I know but I can't choose! I want to do them all, eventually but where do I start?" Marinette huffed, eyeing the designs with a playful pout.

"Hm, why not choose randomly? You could number the designs and put matching numbers on slips of paper to pick the one to start with!"

"Tikki, that's a great idea!" Marinette cupped the floating ladybug gently in her hands and pressed a quick kiss to her forehead before scribbling on a scratch paper. Tearing the numbers apart, she put them in a hat and let Tikki do the honors.

"Here we go!" Tikki dropped in the hat and shook the pieces around before flying back out with one piece between her paws. Twirling in excitement, she opened the paper and held it up like a sign. "Lucky number four!"

"Okay so four is," the designer stacked the extra papers and pulled out the fourth design page, "this one. Huh, I don't have one color scheme for this, I made two. Oh wait, this started out as a design for Rose but I made something else for her. I can finish this dress for me though, time to go fabric shopping!"

"Oh can you get some crushed velvet? It makes a wonderful bed." Tikki asked, hovering by the trapdoor as her holder ran around the room to gather her things.

"Sure! Any color requests?" Marinette paused to let the kwami zip into her purse, handing Tikki the list.

"Blue or green, maybe aquamarine!" They shared a giggle before the designer made her way downstairs to let her parents know about her trip into town.

"Maman, Papa, I'm going to the fabric shop. I've got so much creativity I feel like I'm going to explode!"

"Well we don't want that, then we couldn't possibly have family bear hugs!" Tom shouted, scooping up his wife and daughter who giggled and snuggled in for the hug. "Please be safe and call if you need help or eat somewhere else for lunch."

"Of course Papa!" Marinette withdrew from the hug and grabbed her personalized tote bag that she used for trips like these. With one last wave goodbye, she set off to her favorite shop. A ten minute bus ride and quick shortcut through the plaza, she arrived in front of The Special Thread. The bell rang merrily as the younger design held the door open for an elderly lady before beelining towards the crushed velvets. It was the backrest left corner and after a glance around, Marinette popped open her purse to let Tikki out to be able to help pick out the right color.

"Okay here are all the cool colors of the crushed velvet and then here’s the penne velvet too. What did I need and who did I need it for? Oh wait, the list!” Marinette knew the shop owner and many of the regular customers were used to the young designer talking to herself as they tended to indulge in the habit as well. Actually checking the list after fighting the urge to ruffle through the soft velvets, “I need a burgundy color to accent Marc’s and a peachy tone for Nathaniel, more princess tulle for Rose and some black lace for Juleka… Oh that’s perfect!”

“Marinette, I like both of these colors but can't choose…” Tikki chimed, respectfully waiting until Marinette’s attention was back from her creative mindset.

“It’s on sale, why not get both and I can make a matching pillow or something? I have a coupon too and those colors are gorgeous, the blue reminds me of Luka.” She may have not noticed the dopey grin on her face as she grabbed the selected velvets and moved to another fabric wall but Tikki could see it clearly and cheered internally. “Let’s get a couple yards of each and then I saw the perfect shades for Marc and Nathaniel but Ms. Cribler might have more in the back so I can get a little extra, just to be on the safe side.”

“Hello, Marinette, you looked especially inspired.” The shop owner smiled as she spotted Marinette, sorting through some bolts of fabrics to be put away from previous customers. Today she was sporting her favorite cardigan, the plum on bottom faded into lilac near the collar and the different embroidered designs and patches were still like new and matched her skirt that had vines and flowers blooming all over in a field of wildflowers. The addition of several animals made Marinette smile, it was the elder woman’s way of supporting the superheroes that protect their fair city.

“Hello Ms. Cribler, I am feeling very inspired and had to even get creative in choosing what to make next! How has the shop been today, need me to return anything? I’m passing through the solids and plundering the lace next.” The young designer placed her chosen bolts of fabric on the counter, eyeing the rather large pile that was being sorted.

“Oh things have been busy, it seems the creativity is floating in the air! I can hold these until you’re ready of course, if you can run this pile,” Ms. Cribler patted a pile with about ten bolts of various creams and browns, “they need to be put away. I have gotten everything I need from those. Is there anything in particular I can check the back for?”

“Ah yes, I need some more of this burgundy shade and if you have more peach colors, something more pale orange and less pink peach color that would be perfect. I’ll take these with me and see what I can find in the lace bolts.” Marinette picked up the pile with ease and marched carefully to the proper section and began putting them away. Tikki joined her, zipping back and forth to help quickly find the right spots she needed. Once those were completely put away, the duo weaved through the aisles and found the lace bolts. With a soft hum, the young designer pulled several options down. Marinette set them down on the return cart that was nearby, carefully unrolling them just enough to see a clear picture of the lace.

“What part of the dress is going to be lace?” The kwami inquired, floating at the top of the pink bag.

“Mid back up to my shoulders, just along the back side.”

“Oh, then this one would be so pretty!” Tikki flew up and showed off her choice, wrapping it around her tiny body like a toga.

“Super stylish Tikki!” Marinette giggled and returned the other options back to their proper places. Picking up the one she wanted to purchase and making sure Tikki was in her bag once more, she weaved her way back to the solids for another look and didn’t have anything that spoke to her. Continuing on, Marinette returned to the front cutting table where Ms. Cribel was helping out a familiar face but not a familiar face to see in the shop. Tikki giggled and ducked completely out of sight, closing the clasp of the purse.

“Found the lace alright Marinette?”

“Yes ma’am, take you time Luka, I still have to check out these other colors.” The girl smiled brighter as the other customer turned around, his typical and slightly goofy Luka smile in place.

“Hey Marinette, look like you have quite the haul.” Luka teased, shifting to talk to her.

“Yeah, I just had this moment of inspiration but now that I think about it the dress I’m making would be ideal first date material… I could tweak it for Rose and embellish it a bit for an anniversary vibe…”

“Is the dress for you?”

“Yeah it was originally, I just don’t think I’m going to have a date to wear it for soon.” Marinette scrunched her nose slightly, it felt weird to talk about dating in front of Ms. Cribel. Finding a salmon color that would be fantastic, she moved the bolt to her purchase pile and scooted it closer to the register where Luka had a thoughtful frown on his face.

“Well why don’t you change that? Isn’t the dance coming up?”

“Yeah, in a couple months.” The designer giggled as a light pink dusted his cheeks, sometimes she wished she liked Luka first. That thought struck her like lightning and decided right then and there she was going to be true to herself and no longer be pressured by the Girl Squad for her change of heart. “Hey Luka, are you, uh well, are you busy later? The weather is really nice and Maman made the best dumplings and the park doesn’t have a big photoshoot or news report or meeting going on today…”

“Yea- no, I mean no but I mean yes.” Luka clenched his jaw while taking a deep breath to calm down, eyes wide with hope before continuing, “I have no plans unless you wanna have plans later?”

“Yeah, it’s a date… I just have to finish my dress first and I can text you?”

“Yeah, anytime. Ever. Yes.” The musician clench his jaw again, making Marinette laugh in sheer joy. He was just as nervous as her but they would work it out on their date.

“Okay, well I think you’re good to go and I still need my materials cut. Uh did you- nevermind.”

“Can I walk you home? I can carry some of your stuff, these are good for other things than playing guitar.” Luka playfully flexed his arm, seeming to forget he had his jacket on and she couldn't see his muscles.

“Oh you will and you had better let him or you’re banned from my shop.”

“What? Ms. Cribel-”

“Marinette, you have a boyfriend now. Call me Ana as a thank you for giving you a discount to celebrate. Now, how many of what do you need today dear? You need to hurry and get home!” The shop owner punctuated her words with a few snips of her scissors, reaching for the lace first.

“Ah, the lace I need four yards, six of the salmon and burgundy and since the velvet is half off..” Marinette dropped into thought and with a glance at the boy beside her made a decision, “let’s do ten of each. And my special order too, if you have it in.”

“I sure do! Let me finish this right up and I’ll grab it for you.” Ana swiftly unfolded the bolts and made precise, clean and quick cuts, working through the small stack in under a minute. The musician seemed a bit shocked but Marinette knew she could move faster and still have the same pinpoint accuracy. Folding all the cut lengths and wrapping the bolts once more to set them aside, the shop keeper tucked the purchases into a bag and threw in some extra thread. Leaning down to reach under the counter, she put another bag that had a receipt attached onto the counter as well.

“Did you have everything?” The young designer asked, rolling and tucking that big into the bigger one.

“Of course! You are my favorite customer, anytime you call I make sure I have everything or get it delivered before you show up. It brings me joy that you create so many beautiful things when these hands are not quite steady enough anymore, it makes me happy to see you thrive.” The younger was touched and the awe showed in her face, causing the older woman to smile.

“She is pretty amazing.” Luka’s soft voice drew their attention, Marinette blushing while Ana had a knowing smile.

“Total today is one week of fresh croissants and details of today’s date.”

“What? No, i couldn’t possibly take all this for free-”

“Marinette. I am trading you, your parents food and you story for my measly fabrics. I will simply kick you out of my shop if you refuse.”

“Okay but two weeks at least and I can come help you put things away.”

“Deal, now go finish your dress and knock his socks off!” Ana winked playfully, both teens were blushing as they left.

“She isn’t usually like that but thank you for helping me.” Marinette grinned shyly, Luka had taken the bag of fabrics before she could and left no room for protest.

“Seems like she knows you well. And of course Marinette,” the soft way he spoke her name was going to give her heart problems if it kept skipping every time he said it, “anything to spend more time with a beautiful girl.”

The girl in question just blushed and ignored him, not that Luka seemed to mind as he escorted her home in silence. It was a comfortable and breathable bubble they were in and not even when he had to catch her when she tripped boarding the bus that would take them to her house. In a smooth and thoughtful move, Luka managed to hold her hand without her noticing until the end of the bus ride, only smiling in his sweet way at her blush.

“Well thank you for walking me home, now I can finish the last piece and then we can go on our date.”

"Yeah, no problem. Now I know where to pick you up too." He grinned crookedly, her blushing was too cute.

"Yeah now you know… Um, I haven’t done this before and I know you’ve been there for you through a lot and i appreciate it so much but like I don"t want you to think I'm going on this date as like a rebound or something stupid to deal with Adrien when its not.”

“Marinette.” Luka met her eyes dead on, a growing smile on his lips. “You have never and would never lead anyone on like that. I have always respected your feelings, even when you decided to gift them to someone other than me. My feelings for you haven't changed at all, you’re still the song in my head.” This boy was too much for Marinette, she suddenly stopped in the middle of the sidewalk and Luka calmly looped around her and gently guided her into movement again with a gentle press of a hand.

“You are something else.”

“A good something else?”

“Depends how nice our date is later!” With that teasing remark, Marinette used the last of her courage to press a kiss on Luka’s cheek before dashing inside and up to her room. Carefully the designer set down her purchases on her desk before jumping up and down and squealing in happiness.

“Great job Marinette!” Tikki giggled and flew in a few loops to show her excitement as well.

“Oh my gosh, Maman! I need your help, if you’re not busy!” Marinette stumbled a bit on her way down but caught herself before she fell. She knew this would be one of her best creations yet.

#lukanette endgame #fenwrites #fen's plunny corner #lukanette #luka couffaine #marinette dupain cheng #fluffy #Luka loses his cool #but its okay #he recovers

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druid-for-hire · 4 years

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new hadestown au: BIKER ! EURYDICE, in which she’s a rogue lone-wolf biker dwelling in the urban jungle of a Neo Tokyo-type city called Hadestown, wracked with biker gangs, violence, poverty, corruption, and civil unrest, still recovering and rebuilding from an apocalyptic event many years ago. Heavy-handed with the AKIRA inspirations here, haha.

She fights for herself on the dangerous streets, an illegal racer with a consistent top-three placement and a reputation for ferocity that earns her the money she needs to scrape by. And then she meets Orpheus: a dopey bartender who has no place being in her business.

okay okay okay i’m gonna be jumping around a lot here. be warned. thanks @supercantaloupe, @regzillas, @birdmanlyss for your contributions! (sorry if i missed someone it’s been a while)

she's a lone wolf in a city infested with biker gangs and it's brutal

she's run over plenty of limbs in her day

then there's orpheus, this gentle, kind-hearted soul, an indie musician and shes like. fuck. now i gotta keep this bastard safe

puts a long pipe with a mess of bolts and metal on the end in his hands and tells him he'd better buckle up and learn to fight the road

this sort of thing is common among biker gangs to cause destruction and knock people off their bikes onto the road. other types include mallets, hammers, baseball bats, etc

shes small but knows a lot of self defense and is very good at handling herself on the road

besides teaching orpheus to steel himself and yes use that pipe on people, push them off and jam it in their wheels and let it break if it does, she's gotta teach him to hold on while she pulls all this crazy shit on her bike

she avoids taking him on the road because having to fight people gives him so much stress but he also stresses about her so it's all weird

the first time orpheus sees her run over someones arm hes like ""???????????????????!!!!!!!!"

"Don't worry it doesn't happen often" "WHAT IS 'OFTEN'"

she has a red songbird on her helmet and flowers on her jacket

and flowers painted on her bike too probably

or patterns like on the album cover

orpheus thinks it’s the prettiest shit he’s ever seen

so eurydice races, right? everyones like “who is this tiny little upstart” and then she takes off her helmet and shakes out her hair and everyone loses it

somethingsomething ig hades (who is something of a crime boss here, similar to Tombstone from the Spectacular Spider-Man cartoon, but not so unambiguously villainous in nature) becomes a contractor and he catches her in like, a bad contract that's hard to get out of without some kind of consequence

and now orpheus has to topple a capitalist again

anyway she like, meets orpheus in this little bar he works at

it's about lower middle class, so it's not too bad but it's still mostly populated by like, poorer people and bikers, etc.

they meet and it's cool and fun blah blah Come Home With Me shit

also this is a scene:

biker!eury: we gotta cross through downtown orpheus: what???? but there's a riot going on there! right now! eury: that's too bad, it's the fastest way! that's why you get this! (tosses him her pipe weapon) orpheus, barely catching it: sajskhsfdfs ???? eury: and i am gonna take this. (kicks open a trunk and takes out a rifle) orpheus: ???????!!!!???!?? WHERE DID YOU GET THAT AND DO WE REALLY NEED IT eury: Yes we do now come on orpheus: H-HOW did you get it eury: (loads gun) no worries orpheus: No i have many worries HOW DID YOU--

actually, on this emergency ride, orpheus proves surprisingly competent with her pole weapon—ruthless even, and eurydice wonders just where and how the hell he learned that

the conversation she has with him about that is the same one where he shows her his old, old scars

(besides ruthless—orph has apparently learned how to pose and intimidate. he does stuff like putting the tip of the pole-pipe to the asphalt as they’re riding, skipping on the road and creating sparks)

eurydice loves her bike more than certain relatives

certain complications lead to it being destroyed by hades as punishment for doing him wrong. and it destroys her. that is her most trusted sacred bike, that thing has been with her since she was a teenager

once she repurposes that devastation into white-hot anger orph has to physically restrain her from hunting hades down and breaking his kneecaps with a thick lead pipe

he's never seen her this absolutely devastated and furious

he goes to persephone for more work because he wants to buy eurydice a new bike

he keeps it a secret from her until he leads her out to a garage, hands over her eyes

(some of these bits are copypasted from my friend @regzillas)

orpheus takes his hands off and says Tada!!! it's just like the old one, there's no painted birds but she can do that. She just stands there in total silence mouth open, and orpheus goes 'so? do you like it?' before she bursts into tears. and at first orpheus is like :O!!!!! oh no!!! do you not like it? and eurydice through sobs just says 'nobody's ever done something like this for me’

it's... beautiful, it's touching, it's deep and it's love and she's so in love and she loves him so much, and she cries and holds him close and takes him in and she's so overwhelmed by her emotions, full of the care that orpheus so freely gives to her; and it's a breath of newness, fresh air in the cycle of dread and bitter anger that haunts the city (but she's still going to find hades and shoot him in the foot)

he just holds her and kisses her head

they spend the day painting it, the day after he buys the bike

hand-painted. and they both leave their handprints in paint on it, like carl and ellie do on their mailbox in the beginning of Up

a significant amount of time is spent thinking of a good name

theres lots of joking and eurydice playfully shoves orpheus and he falls over into paint

okay i wrote something like. Obnoxiously long for orpheus. i sort of have his backstory in this down, but i don’t have anything for eurydice unfortunately :( suggestions are welcome! but first: Hermes

biker!au hermes owns a chain of bars, several of which find their patronage among the ruffian youth, several of which are more refined and serve the middle class, and another several of which serve the upper crust hermes has a hand in every world and it serves him pretty well, and his chain is a bit of a channel of communication and its unspoken rule that whatever socioeconomic class or gang or organization you're a part of, hermes' chain is neutral territory no fighting allowed

eurydice walks in and hermes just gives her a Look and taps the 'no fighting' sign and she huffs

hes >:( if anyone does try to start shit. the honor system is strong enough that usually the other patrons will just throw them out, and if there are really problems, they'll hear from hermes personally

he maintains a very strict "no bitching in my fucking kitchen" atmosphere

and now, Orpheus

this really is kind of akira but without the government conspiracies; the city is a neon corrupt hellscape that’s still struggling to rebuild after an apocalyptic event that wiped it all through. the city is wracked with frustration and violence and anger, there are still urban ruins everywhere and the scars of rebuilding and struggle are plain in every corner of life; plain to see are the shells of ruined buildings, gigantic boats levelled from the sea and left in the middle of inland sectors.

orpheus was abandoned by his mother at an early age—kind and timid, he had to learn fast how to be suspicious and cautious in cruel ways. he couldn’t land himself a spot in any of the groups that other ragtag raging folks had eked out for themselves, still too hesitant or ungraceful or young for any of them. sure, he made friends, sitting and talking with lots of people, but never got to really team up—all he could do was just fight for himself in the blown out corners of the city. weapons made from whatever he had. a young child already spitting blood and teeth in hadestown’s vicious ground-floor landscape.

hermes is his mother’s close old friend, though the times they see each other are few and far between. when he saw him, hermes hardly recognized her son, wild-eyed and clawed and alone in one of the city’s more dangerous neighborhoods, with a pole full of screws slung over his back. how did she lose track of her kid for so long? he thinks. and takes him in.

hermes eventually realizes that his mother didn’t lose him. meanwhile, tiny orpheus, kind-hearted orpheus, despises hermes at first. he’s full of suspicion and desperately wants to lean into hermes’ kindness, but the streets have taught him to hold back. he spits curses at him, though the words slide right off hermes’ shoulders. it’s not genuine. just frustrated. and picked off of the delinquents that were his friends, just like most everything else about him.

(hermes knows he’s gotten his trust when orpheus starts getting soft, when he’s crying over littler things; it means he’s been deemed safe to be vulnerable around, and he damn near starts crying himself.)

orpheus owns a little vespa! it’s covered in stickers, some of them worn out and old, some places with just the adhesive and the fuzzy white paper from where he tried to pull them off. some of them aren’t even proper stickers and just shit he peeled off from places while he was wandering around and stuck onto the vespa

even in canon i see him as the kind of guy who like. you look at him and think jesus how is this guy still alive he’s so noodly and soft, but he’s unexpectedly sort of street smart

anyway i mentioned this before but didn’t elaborate. biker au orph, to eury's surprise, does have his collection of scars, since he had a bit of a rough go at life

also he’s just ungainly and runs into shit

you can see em on his sketch page. he has a bit more than what’s shown, but what’s visible is a little slash across the bridge of his nose onto his cheek, and two on his left forearm. he probably has a stab scar in his side from just getting fucking knifed. the ones on his left forearm are from when a drunk coming out of a bar charged him with a fork

eurydice also has scars. kind of hard not to with the kind of life she lives

ok thats it. For Now. i don’t know how persephone or the fates or the workers factor in, if at all. I barely know how Hades factors in, mostly what i’ve said so far and that he does what he does to support himself and persephone. ah well! just have this

as this is extremely based off of AKIRA, i verily recommend listening to the movie’s soundtrack. besides the fact that it slaps hard as hell, the opening song, Kaneda’s Theme, has the perfect vibes for the city and the tone of eurydice and orpheus riding at night through it

#hadestown #hadestown art #hadestown fanart #hadestown au #broadway #musicals #biker au #my art #this au first came into being because i wanted eurydice with fingerless gloves

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loneveenas · 4 years

Text

morning coffees and flower sketches

pairing: iwaizumi x reader words: 1140

summary: your flower shops gets its daily visit from the cute tattoo parlor owner who has his shop across the street.

note: i wrote again ha ha ha i’m super busy with uni projects as i hope to graduate within a month so !! sorry for my inactivity :(( but please enjoy this short-ish piece

there he was again. you looked at the door from your seat up and waved at him, indicating that he could walk in. “it’s open,” you still said.

“yo,” he said, nodding, pushing his body through the wall, his sketchbook tucked underneath his arm.

“hi.” you smiled back. “busy day today?”

he nodded another time, and just like that you fell into your normal morning routine. he went to sit on a different spot than he usually did and started sketching some flowers, while you went and got the fresh flowers from the back and started organizing them and making pre-made bouquets.

you couldn’t help but glance over in his direction every now and then. he was looking exceptionally… interesting today.

he looked cute, with his spiky but messy hair, his hand going through it once in a while, the pencil in his other hand often traveling to his mouth. it was…

just as he was about to look around, you quickly looked back to your work, cutting flowers at the decent length.

you hear him approach you and your heart beat picks up. he put his sketchbook down on your counter. you look up to meet his eyes and your heart skips a beat for a second.

“do you still have some dried flowers in the back?”

“yea—” you cough, choking on your breath — just great — “yeah. i put them to dry for you last week, so they might not be too great yet, but you can go have a look at them.”

he put up a grin. “cool, thanks.”

he already started walking away when you couldn’t help but call after them, “you know the way,” to which he raised his hand, his back already disappearing around the corner.

you breath out. why was it so hard facing him? no, haha, you knew absolutely why.

the cute tattoo artist from across the street, iwaizumi hajime, would always come over right before your shift to sketch some flowers for inspiration. and he wasn’t just cute… with his tattooed sleeves, and the big pieces on his thighs, and the smaller tattoo you once peeked in the nape of his neck — you didn’t really know what it was, though.

you shook it off. what you did know is that in the last couple weeks the strange tattoo artist from across the street had become familiar with you in a way that you hadn’t expected. he came over to sketch flowers for inspiration — before you opened, because you had once idly expressed that you disliked it when he came when there were customers, and he listened — and you asked him to drink a cup of coffee before he left and you opened the shop.

and that’s what you also went and did this morning. right before he’d come in, you made sure to get a pot of fresh coffee going.

“hajime, are you done? coffee is almost ready,” you called for him, suddenly realizing how rude that might have come off as. “i mean, uh, don’t feel pressured or anything.”

you heard a laugh coming from around the corner, with him entering your little kitchenette shortly after. “don’t worry about it,” he replied, sitting down in ‘his’ stool. you said down in yours and gave either of you your coffee cups.

you grinned at his coffee cup. two weeks ago he had brought his own so that you didn’t have to keep on using paper cups for him — “paper tastes so bad,” he had complained.

you stared at him for a while, but neither of you noticed.

you opened your mouth to ask him something that has been on your mind for a little longer than just today, but something loud and shrill interrupted you before you could even utter one word.

the beeping of his watch announced the next hour, meaning it was time for your shop to open and him to return to his shop.

he drank the rest of his coffee quickly and stood up, grabbing his cup and tucking it between his bicep and his side. “thanks for the coffee,” he smiled, looking down at the ground.

“of course,” you smiled in return, trying to make his eyes avert the ground and face yours.

but he didn’t. he turned around and left for the door, while you kept looking at him. his hand moved up to pull open the door. he looked over his shoulder, waved at you one last time and finally made your eyes meet.

you raised your arm to wave back, smiling softly, and saw him disappear outside, across the street and into his own shop.

staring at the glass door a little longer, you finally decided to stand up and get your day started. a new delivery was coming in today and you had to get a part of the store ready.

while you were busy, your mind couldn’t stop wandering away to the cute tattoo artist who had his shop across the street from you.

you honestly wished you could me more than just neighbors.

you huffed softly, picking up a new pot of flowers, and mumbled to yourself, “as if. he’s no match for me, that’s for sure...”

but saying that ached your heart so much, you nearly dropped the vase. you stood in shock, as you stared at the shards on the floor.

“to hell with that,” you mumbled, leaving the shards as they were as you hurried outside, running across the street. you had to take care of more important matters.

you rather had shards on the floor than shards in your heart for the rest of your life. it was now or never.

you barged in through the door of the tattoo parlor, quickly catching your breath from your short run. you knew he had a customer in the morning but he luckily hadn’t started yet.

“iwaizumi hajime!” you yelled out, eyes shut tight, afraid to look him in the eyes for the following seconds. “i like you! i’ve liked you for a while now! i’m sorry i came barging in like this but i couldn’t hold back anymore!”

you breathed heavily in and out, adrenaline rushing through your body as you made your first confession ever. your eyes were still closed.

footsteps came closer and closer and you flinched when you felt a hand on your shoulder.

“i’m sorry,” is what the familiar voice told you.

you opened your eyes, confused. “what?” was he going to say that he—

“i’m sorry that you were the one who had to confess first,” iwaizumi’s said with softened eyes and his mouth in his stupid little grin.

you stared at him for a little while. “what... are you trying to say?”

he laughed, shaking his head, and embraced you. “fill that one in for yourself.”

tagging @tamcitrus, @settersloveletters thank u my luvs <3333

click here for part two!

#haikyuucreations #iwaizumi x reader #iwaizumi hajime #iwaizumi hajime x reader #haikyuu x reader #iwaizumi imagine #iwaizumi scenario #haikyuu imagine #haikyuu scenario #iwaizumi fluff #haikyuu fluff #always think i'm forgetting tags #dyo's fic

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sxfterhearts · 4 years

Text

35. [4:28 pm]

➳ pairing: youngjae x reader

➳ genre/warnings: fluff, royal!au, prince!youngjae, lady!reader

➳ word count: 1,496 words

➳ summary: 35. “After you.”

➳ author's note: hello angels! i’m so so sorry for my recent absence, uni has been really busy. here is a youngjae fluff to make up for it! this is my first time writing this au so i’m excited to share this! it was a lot of fun and i got really inspired by nbtm + the wildflowers i saw on my trip :)) have a nice day and week lovelies <333

“After you,” Youngjae said breezily, a royal blue, satin covered arm coming up to brush a stray branch aside, clearing the path ahead for you.

“No,” You shook your head with a faux frown, refusing. “After you, Your Royal Highness.” Insistently, you rooted your leather high boots firmly onto the ground, not moving an inch.

“C'mon, Y/N!” He sighed exasperatedly, dramatically. Youngjae always harboured a burning hatred for formalities. “I know you liked our old spot at the top of the hill, but I swear you’ll love this place even better. I just want to show you a part of this kingdom that you’ve never seen before!” A glint of excitement flashed across your eyes at the mention of exploring another corner of his family’s vast lands. Sensing that you were about to cave to his request, the Prince hastily interlocked your fingers with his, guiding you through the dense forest just beyond the edge of the Royal Gardens. “Besides, as your host, I ought to bring you someplace that didn’t make you sneeze your brains out every other minute. The canola fields have triggered your allergies ever since you were a child.” Youngjae added.

“But I like the canola!”

Youngjae scrunched up his nose in distaste. “Well, I certainly don’t like explaining to your maids why their precious Lady turned into a swollen, slimy tomato by the end of our evening together and–”

“Okay, fine!” You squeezed his hand to signal your defeat. He couldn’t see your resigned, dejected look, the one that you wore every time he won an argument, but if he did, you’d bet on every single horse in your stables that he would clutch his stomach and double over in boisterous laughter. “You’ve said enough. Point taken.”

Satisfied, the Prince continued to lead you further into the forest. His pleasing, melodic whistles (charming renditions of folk songs, you supposed) were in harmony with the tunes of the lively forest. Your ears could easily pick up on the airy whispers of rustling leaves, the sweet sopranos of chirping birds and the trickling stream singing in an allegro tempo. It was shaping up to be quite an orchestra, with the one and only Youngjae taking centre stage as both lead singer and conductor.

Throughout the far-reaching kingdom ruled by the Choi dynasty, Youngjae was known as the precious youngest son of the reigning monarchs. The boy made quite a name of himself by gracing those around him with his sunshine smile and bright personality. There were even poems and songs written about the Prince’s ability to shine his brilliant light onto his people’s lives. Many claimed that the Prince had a heart of pure gold, as he would often roam beyond the gates of the Palace, interacting with the locals by personally buying his art supplies from the markets, painting murals and paintings for the young and old, and lending a hand whenever a carriage got stuck in mud or when an old grandpa strained himself while moving large crates of vegetables. The people often muttered under their breaths about how it was such a shame that Youngjae had little chance of claiming the throne, for he was the last in line after his elder siblings. But the Youngjae you knew and grew up with had never set his sights on being King. Ever since spending that first summer in the Palace with his eleven-year-old self, you were certain that he was meant for even greater things. Youngjae loathed politics and diplomacies. He hated pretending like someone he wasn’t, just for the sake of strengthening relations and maintaining peace. All Youngjae wanted to do was to live a carefree life and practice his art.

“We’re nearly there, My Lady,” Youngjae chirped in his best impression of a maid. “Just have to cross this tiny little stream.” The young royal came to a halt before the gushing stream, his free arm circling around your waist securely.

Your mouth went dry in an instant. The body of water a few steps ahead of you seemed like anything but a tiny little stream; it was fervently licking at the banks, swallowing and chomping up any leaf or branch or insect that stood in its way. You were deafened by the relentless roars of rapidly flowing water, causing you to shrink into his side in search of safety. Petrified, you glanced upwards at the Prince, shaking your head slowly to get your point across. You did not like this, not at all.

“I know you’re scared, Y/N, but I won’t let anything happen to you. Trust me. I’ll hold onto you so tightly that we’ll be stuck together like two peas in a pod.”

“But I… I don’t…”

“You’ll never get hurt, not on my watch.” Youngjae declared resolutely. He knew; he could tell from your shallower breaths and widening pupils that you were afraid of falling in, just like you did five summers ago. You and your brother loved spending time within the Palace’s walls, but you had taken a special liking towards the koi pond right at the heart of the Royal Gardens. Each summer when you returned to the Palace from your home in the Northern Lands, the trees and the flowers and the design of the Gardens would change beyond recognition. The pond was the only thing that remained untouched, year after year.

You used to love sitting by the edges and feeding the koi fishes or testing out your paper boats with Youngjae and your brother. You could stay there for ages, from sunrise until sundown. That is, until you accidentally tripped into the pond and nearly drowned. After that, you avoided it like the plague.

“If you’re really not comfortable with this, we can turn around, no big deal.” Youngjae reminded you in the gentlest voice he could muster. The stream was barely a meter wide, with a large sturdy rock smack bang in its centre, but he knew; he could feel the hesitation radiating off your skin. He was aware of how the minutes seemed to drag into hours as you gasped for air that afternoon, your feet straining and struggling to reach the bottom. Youngjae knew that the memory still haunted you.

Your clammy hands clawed onto his back, your fingernails leaving deep imprints through his luxurious tunic. Sensing his eagerness to show you this new hideout of his, you tried your best to swallow your fears and gave him a slight nod.

“You sure? We really don’t have to.”

“I swear, Choi Youngjae,” You whispered impatiently. “If you don’t move right now, I’m going to change my mind.”

He chuckled at that, all melodious and warm. His laughter felt like a blast of sunshine on a cool spring day, which did wonders to ease your nerves. He wasted no time in holding you close to his chest, similar to how you would position yourselves when dancing side by side in the Palace’s ballroom. “It’s a lot like dancing, really.” Youngjae said, inching towards the very edge of the stream. “You just have to coordinate your steps with mine. We’ve done this before a million times. Now, right foot, oh yes, your right. Okay, ready? Take a big step and –”

Your feet moved in perfect unison. The two of you arrived on the rock in the blink of an eye. “We made it.” You breathed out in disbelief.

Youngjae simply cradled you snugly in his arms for several moments. You relished in the immeasurable amount of security you felt being with him, while he grinned smugly at the sight of you finally overcoming your fear. “I told you so,” He pressed his lips against your ear and whispered.

The rest of the journey only took another five minutes. Before you knew it, you arrived at a small yet breathtaking clearing in the forest. The ground was decorated with a plethora of wildflowers emerging amongst tall grass, specks of white and gold and pink everlastings flooding your entire vision. In the middle of the clearing sat a large rock and a fallen trunk, the ideal place to sit down, catch your breath and take in the wondrous scenery.

Which was exactly what you and Youngjae did for the rest of the late afternoon. You drank from your flask of elderflower cider while inhaling the fragrant, floral perfumes surrounding you; Youngjae chewed on the end of his sketching pencil while also crafting a rough sketch of you in his notebook, resting on the trunk. You laughed and you talked, all while sharing a loaf of buttered rosemary bread you swiped from the kitchens this morning.

Much to your pleasant surprise, you didn’t let out a single sneeze. Not even when Youngjae passed you his sketch for your inspection and placed a white flower behind your ear. This was exactly why he brought you here, he claimed.

He was right. As it turned out, you loved this place the most.

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2manyfandoms2count · 4 years

Text

AU Yeah August Day 13

Here’s another AU for @auyeahaugust! Will it evolve into a fully-fledged story? Probably. Hope you’ll enjoy! xxx

---

Day 13: Flower Shop AU

Marinette stared at the blank page in front of her, pensively tapping her pencil on her desk. She could have sworn that she’d found the perfect outfit to close her next fashion show as she was about to fall asleep the previous night. Something so spectacular, she knew she’d remember it in the morning.

Except morning had come, and still the design eluded her. She had raked her brain throughout breakfast, causing a couple of spills, during her commute to work, which had almost made her miss her stop, and ever since she’d sat down at her desk, three hours ago. The page just stared right back at her.

She sighed and dropped her pencil. Leaning her head on top of her hand, she took a look at her surroundings. She loved her office. She had furnished it in a way that let her creativity flow, and it did the trick - most of the time. The wide windows let the Spring sunshine in, the rays ricocheting against the smooth white surfaces of the cabinets, and the strategically placed mirrors. It made the room look larger, brighter.

She had restrained what she considered to be her clutter to the right hand side of the room. A large cork board took up most of the wall space there, covered in overlapping swatches and sketches. On a low table below it were piles of fashion magazines, more or less old, that she kept for reviews or inspiration. A couple of picture frames also stood there, containing pictures of her parents and friends, and some good shots of herself at fashion shows.

Her eyes swept the room and landed on an intricate vase that sat opposite her. The cleaner, Mister Fu, always made a point to buy flowers for her office, and refused to put them on the company’s bill. It was his way of thanking her for keeping him on despite his old age. She’d never been able to tell exactly how old he was, but one thing was for sure: he was beyond French retiring age. He’d appeared seemingly out of nowhere when she’d established her brand, and worked around as the two-room office expanded into a three-room, a full floor, and now a whole building with Marinette Designs gaining more and more recognition in the fashion world. He cleaned, DIYed, decorated, and had a good eye for things that needed fixing, even if no one knew it yet. She’d come to consider his services as invaluable, especially the odd wisdom bits he provided every once in a while. She really could have done with his help today, maybe he could have helped her with the eluding dress. He’d taken the day off, though, and, if she judged by the wilting flowers that stood in front of her, had forgotten his self-appointed florist duties. Maybe that was what was blocking her flow.

She stood up and walked towards the vase, grabbed it, and made her way towards her office bin. It had been a wonderful bouquet, colourful and fragrant. The sweet smell of lilies remained as she picked them up and shook them gently above the vase, so as to get rid of as much water as she could before throwing them away. As she dropped them, a small card disentangled from the stems and landed next to the paper basket. Marinette crouched down and picked it up.

“The Cat’s fleowers.”She read, cringing at the bad pun. A little black cat holding a four-leafed clover sat under the flower shop's name, and above its address.

She recognised the street as one she took every day, and the number as being between her metro station and the office, yet she couldn’t picture the shop. She shrugged, slid the card on her desk and walked back to her chair, plumping down in front of the taunting white page.

Quarter of an hour of fidgeting, head scratching and deep sighing later, Marinette looked up again, having achieved nothing but weak sketches. The vase caught her eyes once again, its emptiness now bothering her.

She glanced at her watch. Quarter to twelve. She’d be off for her lunch break soon, anyway. She grabbed her vest and handbag and left her office, giving a small wave at her secretary as she did so.

She breathed in deeply and smiled contently as she exited the building, reveling in the warm sunshine that landed on her face. She dug out her butterfly sunglasses and walked down the street.

---

Adrien was bored. He usually never tired of working in Mr Fu’s flower shop, but today seemed like the exception. He’d met Mr Fu by chance one day as he came back from one of his modelling jobs, and had helped the old man carry large potted plants inside the premises. Adrien had fallen in love with the cool atmosphere and the plethora of flowers, which made him feel like he’d just stepped into a different corner of the world. He hadn’t hesitated when Mr Fu had asked him if he’d be interested in working there on the days he couldn’t come in. The fact he could wear a relaxed attire, rather than his usual smart dress, was a bonus. So far, no one had recognised him.

Although the shop was generally quite busy, it seemed like everyone had decided to shun flowers today. Not one customer had pushed the door to his little botanical heaven. Even Plagg, the resident black cat, had decided to loaf around, hidden somewhere between the azaleas and the hibiscuses.

Adrien was about to give up and head out early for lunch when he heard the characteristic jingle of the door. His breath caught as an elegant lady walked in. She wore a simple, yet tasteful, red polka-dotted dress which had him instantly nickname her ‘Ladybug’. Her eyes were masked by large sunglasses. Standing in the midst of the flowers, she looked like a model in a jungle-themed photo shoot. He would know, having participated in more than one.

From where he stood, at the till, he had a good view of what was going on in the shop, without actually being seen, hidden behind the hanging plants section. He watched as she walked around hesitantly, examining the different bouquets on display. She turned around and her apparent perplexity made him shake out of his admiration. He strode out of his hiding place, smoothing his black and green apron as he did so.

“Hi, welcome to the Cat’s fleower’s, may I help you?” He wished there was something more original to say, but he could hardly go ahead and just offer her flowers.

Marinette frowned slightly, although her expression was hidden by her bangs and glasses. There was something familiar about the man standing before her, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it. She quickly scanned his appearance, her designer eye turning into critique mode, and tried to identify where she’d seen him before. He was, she would say, conventionally handsome, in an ‘I don’t try’ way. His blond hair was tousled like he’d just rolled out of bed (it wasn’t a bad look, but it could be improved on), and his glasses bore a layer of dirt which occulted his eyes, that she assumed were green. He definitely would have stood out from all the manicured men she mixed with in the fashion world. A stray Chat Noir amidst a bunch of aristocats.

Maybe she’d just seen him in the street.

“Hello, I wanted to buy a bouquet, but I can’t really pick. You have a beautiful selection.” She smiled, and Adrien could swear his heart skipped a beat.

“Thank you.” He replied, deciding to take the compliment as if he’d ordered the flowers himself. “If I may ask, what’s the occasion?”

“Oh, nothing in particular.” She shrugged. “I just like having blooms around when I work.”

“That makes two of us.” He winked. “Is there anything you feel drawn to? Or any emotions you’re feeling?”

Marinette thought it was quite a personal question to ask someone he’d just met, but didn’t dislike it.

“I’m short on inspiration these days.” She admitted.

“Creativity boost, coming right up!” He grinned. Now was his time to shine; ever since starting this part-time job, he’d started reading up on the flower language, and it seemed like his study would finally be paying off. “As it happens, I have angelicas, which represent inspiration, in stock. I’ll also add hollyhock for ambition, gerberas for stress relief, sweet basil for good wishes, and-”

He was interrupted by her ringtone. Ladybug fished her phone out of her handbag, and saw a familiar face on the screen.

“Sorry, I have to take this.” She apologised, swiping to answer. He nodded understandingly and gestured that he’d be wrapping the bouquet.

“Hello?”

“Hi boss!” Alya, her PR manager, and incidentally, her best friend greeted. “You are going to LOVE me.”

Marinette shook her head, amused. “You know I already do, what did you do this time?”

“I only went and got you THE Adrien Agreste’s number!” Her friend squealed, making her move her phone away from her ear.

“You didn’t!” She gasped. “How?”

“Girl, I’ve seen how you drool over his pictures, I needed to do something about it! Nino knows him, it wasn’t very hard to convince him to give me his number.”

Marinette had nursed a crush on the model ever since he’d given her his umbrella at the end of a fashion show, back when she was still an intern working for a big brand. It didn’t hurt that he was one of the most handsome models out there. They’d seen each other again from afar during fashion weeks, their interactions often summarised to a little chit-chat over a glass of Champagne, surrounded by a crowd.

“But what will I even do with it?” She asked, panic seeping through her words. How could she justify getting his number? And what would she say? Would he even know who she was?

“Marinette, I can feel your anxiety from here, breathe.” Alya chuckled. “We’ll work on it.”

“Okay.” Marinette steadied her breathing. “Meet you in ten for lunch?”

Adrien’s heart sank as he heard the words. He’d been about to ask her if she felt like grabbing a bite with him. He grabbed his pen and scribbled a quick ladybug sketch on the back of the business card, along with the words ‘see you again soon!’ and stapled it to the bouquet.

Marinette stole a last look at the flower shop as she exited it after paying, and smiled. She had to admit, Chat Noir’s enumeration had left her dubious. She definitely wouldn't have thought of arranging those flowers together, yet the bouquet was beautiful. She held it out at arms length to examine it, and saw the card. Her mind raced, and she suddenly knew how to end her show. She accelerated her pace to get back to the office before the idea flew away.

Adrien Agreste’s number, wonderful flowers, and a strike of inspiration. The Cat’s fleowers had worked like a lucky charm.

She had a feeling she hadn’t seen the last of it.

#mlauyeahaugust #auyeah2020 #flowershop au #lovesquare #miraculous ladybug #the miraculous tales of ladybug and cat noir #mlb #miraculous fanfic #miraculous fanfiction #elle writes

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warmau · 4 years

Text

{Special} College!AU Shinwon

*this post was commissioned | find all my college aus here | commission info

major: media management

minor: rhetoric

sports: brags about how his long legs are perfect for volleyball, but screamed bloody murder when hongseok spiked the ball in his direction once so you could say,,,,,,,,shinwon’s not a sports person

clubs: drama club (less for the acting, more for the strutting), public speaking, and of course - it’s not a club per say - but the fashion department always loops him into helping them out as an impromptu model

shinwon,,,,,,,,,,really didn’t think he’d even end up going to college,,,,,,,,,,,,,

really he was sort of set on debuting as a model and working it out from there

but after a while, waiting around for work just got boring

so he left the agency he’d signed up with when he was still in highschool and applied to college

much to everyone's collective shock, his parents, sister, and himself included

hui: im so proud he took this step, you know shinwon is bright and im sure he’ll use his brain for good.

shinwon: exactly!

shinwon five seconds later: actually i just realized i have to do homework again and i think im going to drop out?

hongseok: i knew it

shinwon’s reputation is all over the place - he’s kind of known as being messy, beautiful beyond comprehension sure,,,,,

but he’s messy messy

from his dorm room

cluttered with magazines he’s been featured in, his guitar stands, vinyls which no one understands why he buys like this is the twenty-first century ......, and clothing strewn from the lampshade

to his dating history

pretty sure he’s had a hook up with someone from every department available on campus like pre-meds, literature, music, hell even someone in egyptology was smitten by his good looks

and of course ,,,,, his personality

from playing childish tricks on tired masters student jinho, to owning the student held fashion shows with impeccable grace and posture

yuto affectionately refers to shinwon as a rubix cube made of spikes, flowers, and a little bit of hot sauce

shinwon thinks it’s such a compliment, he tries to lean over and grab yuto in for a kiss

(which is refused with an almost punch to the face)

he’s definitely a force on campus and is famous for different reasons with different people

but if there’s one thing shinwon has learned from life it’s that he really cannot stand to give two shits about what people say about him behind his back

not like he’s going to hear it anyway

and he’s blunt to the point where it’s sometimes too much and hongseok on occasion (many occasions) has had to just pick shinwon’s six foot tall body up

and carry him out - as shinwon continues to spew well-deserving facts at whoever it is that tried to start with him

(or any of his friends. someone once made an offhanded comment about yeoone who is way too nice to say anything and shinwon just stopped in and turned on his gucci boots heel to be like “come again?”)

loves when cute shy freshmen get all nervous around him like

“oh my god, he looks like a marble statue! wasn’t he on that one magazine? he’s so pretty~ he must be so cool~”

shinwon: basking in it

hongseok: trying so hard not to tell them about how shinwon is nothing close to cool

has the worst diet imaginable - lives on fast food

and he does NOT work out which adds more confusion

pre-meds will be like “hey,,,,,,so,,,,,,,,,do you have like ibs or something? or is your stomach literally made of iron?”

and shinwon just slaps his scrawny tummy and is like “i don’t know man, but this machine runs smoothly!”

more clothes than he knows what to do with - likes brand names, but cannot afford them unless he has gigs - says he doesnt but totally owns a cheap tracksuit that he lazes around in during campus holidays

backpack covered in old rock band pins

always steals his classmate's pencils

notes stained with coffee

binders unorganized, lost his textbook at a nightclub

really again - does not look like he belongs in college LOL

does media management because it still keeps him in the loop of fashion, but without all the actual drawing and sewing

because no one trusts him near a sewing machine or fabric scissors

the rhetoric minor was a big surprise - but shinwon just goes

“i get grades for talking good”

jinho, twitching: “talking well. you can’t say “talking good”

shinwon: “talking sexy ;) hahaha”

jinho: ill kill him

he is an enigma with a shit-eating grin ,,,,,,,

but he’s also hot. and has perfect proportions,,,,,,,,,,

you,,,,,,,are a fashion major,,,,,,,,who knows the legends about ko shinwon

about how he’s nothing but fire to play with

that being said

you are absolutely, utterly, one hundred percent, totally infatuated with him

he’s been your muse since you first stepped into the fashion building and saw him making his way down the hall

half of someones finished project still pinned to his shoulders, messy orange hair pulled up with bobby pins and that smile

almost,,,,,, angelically,,,,,, twisted?

you had no idea how to describe it - but you had remembered him and even though you knew no one else's name yet

he was the person you could visualize in an instance

you’d learned his name at your first student held fashion show, where to your dismay he had already been picked by someone else to be their model

and they’d skipped past calling out for him

“shinwon~”

you repeated it again on your lips in a small whisper “shinwon”

it was unique, it was different, and you really really started liking it

everything about him was unique, different, and you can guess,,,,,,,,you were really starting to like him

not like you would ever act on it though

shinwon seemed untouchable, not because he was standoffish - actually he seemed like he’d be super easy to get along with

it was because he was just,,,,,,,,he was just so ,,,,,,, unusual

and you wouldn’t consider yourself a shining star, you were like everyone else

waking up, doing your schoolwork, trying your best to breakthrough in fashion

you had a small group of friends - you had your regular hangout spots - your favorite kind of coffee flavor

you were simple, you would say, and shinwon was not

that’s why he gave you so much inspiration

if you were one speck in the galaxy, he was like a whole milkyway

you had started off just admiring from afar, but as time went back you started sketching too

at first it was what you could conjure from your memories of him

the flashes of him around the fashion department, when you saw him in the library, the orange hair - the sparkling oak brown eyes - the over-the-top outfit he pulled off effortlessly

and when you think you’d filled up half of your sketchbook with stills of him

you started to envision him in your designs

actually, you had lied, you were a simple person

but your mind was not - you might have stuck to simple tones and patterns in your wardrobe

but when it came to clothes you made, you were vibrant and loud and risky

some of your professors had initially mixed up your work, thinking your submitted designs were someone elses

because well ,,,,,,,,,,,,, they just didn’t match

your designs were for someone,,,,,,,,,,,,,,someone like shinwon

bursting with confidence, immune to shame, always ready for a thrill

your goal had quickly went from being able to saying hi to him in the hallway

to one day having him wear an original creation of yours

but getting shinwon as your model was a feat

either he wasn’t doing the show at all, or he was everyone elses number one pick

with long, lithe limbs and an almost wonderland like face

that is ,,,,,,,,,,,,,, until the final project for the semester came up

you were expecting it all to go as usual

the older fashion majors would get first dibs on their models - someone would pick shinwon (if he was even showing up)

and you’d only have to go back to drawing him with your designs rather than seeing them come to life

but to your almost painstakingly obvious shock

that was not the case

shinwon did volunteer to model for the final project - but,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,no one was picking him

actually - everyone was actively avoiding him

and when your turn came around you couldn’t believe you were finally getting to say it

“i’ll pick ko shinwon.”

suddenly there was a swarm of muffled whispers - you couldn’t hear anything clearly but as shinwon strode over to you

he gave you a once over and winked - and the was enough to make your entire body flare up

after everyone got settled with their models, you were shaking with anticipation as shinwon slipped into the seat across from you

“are you cold or am i just so handsome you can’t help shivering?”

he jokes, running a hand through his hair for added effect

“y-yes”

you answer, stupidly unsure of what else to say

he lets out a laugh, leaning over to pat the top of your head which once again sends you into a blank

“cute, so - let’s see what you’ll be dressing me up in huh?”

he leans over and you flounder as you flip to the page with the outfit you’ve chosen to create for your final

it’s inspired by 80s punk and glam - rhinestones, spikes, rainbows

shinwon’s eyes light up when he sees it and he looks at you with a giant smile

“where have you been all my life - this is totally my style!”

i know,,,,,i made it thinking about you,,,,,,,,,,,

is what you want to say - but you just stutter over your words instead

“o-oh, im glad you like it,,,”

he nudges at your elbow and you think electricity rides up your spine

“can’t wait to wear it! by the way-”

he moves his body, gracefully around the table so he’s standing beside you now

it makes everything else melt away as he leans in closer to your face with his own

“don’t listen to what people say about me - and trust me, ok?”

it’s,,,, cryptic - and in the moment you had no clue what he was talking about - but he’s your muse

and he’s inches too close to you

so really - it goes over your head as you nod with moonstruck stars in your eyes

shinwon says his goodbyes and tells you to text him when you want to do measurements

you only realize after he’s gone that,,,,,,,,,,you don’t have his number

so you approach an upperclassmen who usually works with him and politely ask if she might have it

she stops what she’s doing and sighs

“you really picked shinwon for your final project - you’re crazy!”

you look around - not sure if she’s really talking to you - until she huffs

“this is the final - you can’t rely on someone like him!”

someone like him?

“wh-why not, he’s done other shows?”

she shakes her head

“other shows aren’t the final project. he might just not show up on the day or he might get the clothes dirty. he’s fun when there are no consequences but you know this is worth fifty percent of our grade right?”

you’re left sort of speechless and she just mutters that she pities you as she scribbles down the number in your sketchbook and hands it back to you

you turn and realize other students are eyeing you from their station

a lot of them are already doing measurements on their models, while yours

well shinwon just left

you hadn’t stopped him - he just said he had to go

you feel something twist in your stomach but you ignore it

he had said it right - not to listen, and to trust him

the first couple of weeks go by,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, perfectly

you finally suck it up after typing and deleting a text to shinwon about measurements

spending nearly half a day trying to come up with a casual and cool way of asking

and all you get in response is a misspelled “yeha” from him when you make a date and time

you think it’s goofy and cute

and shinwon does show up

charming, joking, making you embarrassed and happy all in the same breath as you take his measurements

wiggling his eyebrows when you ask him to take his shirt off for the chest measurement

excitedly rambling about this underground show he’s seeing on the weekend

mind you - you and him haven’t ever had a conversation before this

shinwon just naturally opens up - having no problem doing the talking as you either 1) stare at him like a puppy or 2) nod enthusiastically in agreement to whatever he’s saying

you’re pretty sure he can tell how much you admire him and with anyone else you’d be dead from the shyness

but with him it’s like,,,,,,,,,it’s like he’s a celebrity to you

so it’s not that bad to be so so so enamored

his flirting doesn’t come off as anything romantic either, just part of his persona

and despite those doubts from other students

“he could just now show up” “he isn’t super reliable” “he might go to a party and just forget in the morning to show up!”

it doesn’t happen - when you need him, shinwon is there

and it’s like a dream come true - watching your outfits slowly come to life on his perfect figure

there is a hiccup at some point

shinwon agrees to meet you on a thursday evening for some help - you had initially been shy about asking him to come and look at fabrics with you

you don’t really ask models for that kind of advice

but when you’d mentioned - he’d been the one to get all giddy at the thought

and, with your heart over the moon, you waited outside the fashion building

for two hours

your phone was barren of any texts - any calls

and even though it hit 10 pm and the store was closed - you stuck it around for a little while

but he ,,,,,,,,,, didn’t show up

it’s fine! he probably had to cram for an exam or something - he seems like the type to push studying to the last minute

you make up the excuse and nod to yourself, happy with the conclusion you’ve drawn

pushing down any doubt that might have tried to bubble up

and it’s just a hiccup - because shinwon bumps into you three days later and snaps his fingers

“AH! we were supposed to go shopping right? i totally forgot! please forgive me! shinwon has been a bad boy!”

he clasps his hands together and pouts and you laugh, telling him it’s totally fine

yuto and jinho who are beside him look confused and so shinwon introduces you as you shyly hand over your sketchbook

because shinwon insists you show his friends your outfit planned

“wow, you’re so talented - these look so much like shinwon.”

yuto compliments, flipping to some of the old drawings you had of shinwon

you forgot about them and try to stutter out an excuse but shinwon is already sticking his nose between the pages with wonder

“woah! you’ve drawn me so much!”

you clasp your hands together - awkward and shy

jinho takes note of the way you can’t help but smile as shinwon continues to muse about how much he likes your drawings

and when you finally get your sketchbook back - shinwon promises he will never forget when you ask him to do something again

he does this by taking your hands in his own and giving them a squeeze

you’re so happy you can’t even speak and again,,,,,,,,,,,,jinho takes note of that

as you scurry past them - realizing you’re late for class now, he turns to shinwon with a tilt of his head

“they seem really sweet. are you sure you’re being nice to them?”

shinwon rolls his eyes

“im always nice”

“no - you did forget to go shopping with them.”

shinwon puffs out his chest with a whine

“because i woke up on the roof at like 5pm - i didn’t remember my own name hyung. now stop grilling me about it - they weren’t mad and so why are you?”

jinho pulls his lips back into a tight line - yuto breaks the tension with a question about lunch and shinwon ignores the side glances jinho still throws his way

you really aren’t mad, just like shinwon said

because he shows up when you ask him to for some extra measurements and test runs on the runway

he’s the same silly, weird, and lovely boy as usual

playing with the sleeves of the half-finished top piece you’re working on -

showing you the new candy bracelet he got

putting his arm around you when he leans over to look at your new sketches

knowing damn well your head goes spinning

“you’re cute when you get all nervous - do you really think im that handsome?”

he makes the joke again and you try to answer but all you can squeak out is “yes?”

he even offers to make it up to you for not showing up - the offer is to go to mcdonalds but it’s still sweet - and you assure him it’s fine, you’re not angry - not at all

but ,,,,,,,, the happiness of those moments with him dulls as more and more hiccups begin to happen

he texts you that he can’t make it to the practice runway - he’s sick

you understand

then he doesn’t text you or tell you anything on the next one - you don’t have your model and all the students shake their head with pity at you

the final date approaches faster

and shinwon,,,,,,,,,,,,,goes ghost

you don’t want to be that person and over text him - but you have to, this is about your grade

suddenly the worries you’d been told about in the beginning of all this start coming true

maybe he got super sick - i should ask his friends, but i don’t know them that well - did i do something wrong?

you don’t get it - every day without word from him is another day closer to the final runway

it stresses you out and you notice the acne coming in - the refusal to eat because it makes your stomach sick

you’re running across campus because you’ve pulled another allnighter working on your designs and fell asleep on accident

when you slam right into someones chest

your books go flying, the yogurt you had bought falls and explodes somewhere behind you

and when you look up you see ------- what was his name ------ jinho?

“oh gosh, im so sorry”

you mutter, leaning down to get your things

jinho realizes you’re scrambling and he helps you - for which you bow over ten times and apologize again for bothering him

but before you continue on your run he asks you, much to your shock

“have you seen shinwon?”

your face pales and you can’t move forward even though you know class has started

you shake your head slowly and jinho lets out a sigh

“how long has it been?”

“maybe two weeks....”

“ah. ill talk to him.”

you perk up - and then just as instantly your shoulders sag - you shouldn’t be so excited over someone whose been ignoring you for no apparent reason

“no it’s ok-”

“isn’t he supposed to be helping you with your project. it’s not ok - he’s being a brat.”

you don’t want to argue because jinho is older and closer to shinwon, but you also don’t want it to seem like you’re begging for his help

“please,,,,,just ask him if i did something wrong?”

you look into jinho’s eyes and it clicks for him

“you like shinwon don’t you?”

your books fall out of your hands again and this time it’s not because you’ve been knocked over

you just don’t know how to answer the sudden question - because you really,,,,,,,,,,,,don’t know

“he’s my muse.”

you start

“and im just,,,,,,,i just don’t want to lose that.”

jinho leans down to help with your books again, he gives you one last look before turning and heading toward the dorms

you don’t even bother getting to class anymore - you just drag yourself to the workrooms in the fashion department and sit beside your final project

it looks much less extravagant on the mannequin then it does on shinwon

and when you open your sketchbook it flips to one of your first drawings you ever did of him

it hurts to think about him.....not even because of my grades......but because........

you shake your head and lay it down on the table

no, you always have to remember what you say. you’re a small tiny star - that boys a milkyway.

jinho finds shinwon in the bathroom of the dorm, the ramones are blasting from his phone and he’s got his hands covered in black hair dye

jumping when he sees his older friend, shinwon grumbles that jinho should at least knock

but jinho crosses his arms, stern gaze unwavering on shinwon

“why are you ignoring that sweet fashion major who obviously idolizes you?”

“im not ignoring them - they’re ignoring me.”

shinwon points a finger

“and no one ignores me, you know this.”

he turns to look at himself in the mirror - making a face as the old orange goes back to his natural thick black

jinho cocks an eyebrow

“really? i just bumped into them and the poor kid looks like a mess.”

“are you saying im lying - look at my phone!”

jinho picks it up from where it’s charging on the bathroom sink

“this isn’t your phone........ is it new?”

“yeah - my last gig gave it to me along with some free clothes, my old ones on my desk but im using this one now”

he scrolls through the texts messages, gagging at some of them, and he finds what he can only assume is your number

it doesn’t have your name - all it says is

“cutest fashion major ive met in a hot minute”

jinho opens the messages and ,,,,,, it’s true - shinwon has sent an abundance of texts to you but ,,,,,,, none of them are answered

it takes three minutes for jinho to figure out what’s going on

he picks up shinwon’s old phone - find your contact (saved with the same corny name) and opens it

shinwon typed your number in..................wrong

and in his old phone are the messages from you that going unanswered

jinho groans

“ko shinwon - you’re an idiot.”

shinwon pokes his head out of the bathroom - “i know that, but what did i do this time?”

you pick your head up after what seems like hours - drool embarrassingly on the edge of the workroom table

did i fall asleep here? guess i missed more than one class.......

you stretch and look down at your sketchbook with tired eyes

“oh you’re awake?”

you jump at the sound of the voice and nearly fall out of your chair when you see shinwon sitting across from you

he’s,,,,,,,,,he’s got black hair now - and he’s not wearing his usual outrageously expensive outfits

he’s just got a flannel over some simple jeans

the sleeves are rolled up and you see those candy bracelets he loves making, the silver rings you’ve sketched on his hands a million times over

“sh-shinwon?”

“wanna hear something hilarious?”

he pulls his phone out and grins

“i was texting the wrong number for a whole two weeks - the person must think im insane! well,,,,,,,,they wouldn’t be wrong.”

you don’t understand - you look down at the screen and see the contact name

“cutest fashion major-”

“ah ah ah don’t look at that - look at the texts.”

he waves his hand and you read them one by one

“hey - do you need me for measurements? you know my body is always ready!” “hey hey hey” “doesn’t a designer need their model?” “are you mad at me? did i do something dumb when i was drunk and i dont remember?” “heeeeeeeelllllllllloooooooo?” “ill make it up to you~ shinwon was a bad boy wasn’t he?” “hey, is everything alright?”

you still don’t really understand - you look up and shinwon is resting his cheek on his palm

“i got a new phone which is why i wasnt getting your texts and you weren’t getting mine.”

something that feels better then relief washes over you

“o-oh, i thought you just ,,,,,,,,, you just didn’t want to help me anymore?”

shinwon makes a dramatic noise and jumps up from his seat - pointing at the outfit on the mannequin

“and miss out on wearing THAT masterpiece, never!”

he rounds the table

“it’s the best design ive ever seen - from the people here and from the magazine shoots ive done.”

he looks at you and for the first time they’re not those crazy, sparkling with mischief eyes

they’re almost,,,,,,,,,,,,soft

“i really love it. i won’t let you down.”

suddenly the stress and the tiredness that had hung over you seems to vanish

you get up to and smile up at him

“well then - i should finish it quick. i won’t let you down either!”

shinwon grins and when he reaches over to ruffle your hair like he’s done many times before

it’s like gravity refuses to let him - instead all the wires in his brain connect and he puts his hand on your shoulder gently

tugging you into his chest and into a hug

he smells like ,,,,,,,, fresh laundry and there’s the residual lingering from the hair dye

but there’s also the smell of his skin and the warmth of his tall frame

it sends an earthquake through you - but it makes you feel safe too

and shinwon,,,,,,,,,,,,shinwon can’t believe that there’s someone on this earth who fits so perfectly into his arms

for the first time in...............ever ...........shinwon pulls away and misses the feeling instantly

he doesn’t show it - he starts blabbering to forget the mess starting up in his brain

and you are content, as always, to go along with him

shinwon feels like something has taken him over when he offers to walk you to your dorm and you think nothing of it

waving goodbye as you go inside and some students pass by shinwon in awe

ko shinwon,,,,,,,,walked someone home? and is staring at the spot they just stood in with - is that - is that -?

this time shinwon keeps to his promise - actually he probably goes up and beyond that

he even starts asking if he can come over and see your progress

sitting beside you as you work - much to the shock of everyone else

because,,,,,,,, shinwon is never one to sit still

he’s there for measurements, the show, and then he’s out

doing whatever it is he does on campus

someone asks you about it - but you just go “he wanted to come!”

it doesn’t seem all that remarkable to you - you’re just happy to see he’s proven everyone who doubted and didn’t pick him wrong

you start to talk more too, you get excited as the final project comes to a close and the day of the fashion show approaches

you explain to shinwon the colors you chose, the fabrics, the inspo

and he stares at you in wonder this time

but you just can’t wait to see him under the lights - glittering like the beautiful model he is

on the day of the show - you’re excited to see your friends and even some of shinwon’s show up

and as you get ready behind the stage - tailoring the pieces to sit just perfect on shinwon

he watches your fingers work and your concentration and you apologize when you lean in to apply some makeup to his eyes

but he just welcomes it - your touch which was just like everyone elses when this started

feels like heaven all of a sudden

you hear your professor call out the order for the models - shinwon is last and it makes you nervous but you’re also happy because

this outfit is showstopper - it’s shinwon to a T

and it deserves to be the best, so it should be saved for last

you fix one of the lapels and make sure shinwon’s accessories are in order before you take his hands in yours

you look into his eyes - it’s dark behind the curtains but shinwon sees you clear as day

“thank you - you’re the only person who could wear what i’ve made. shinwon, you’re my muse.”

you breathe as you say the word - the word you’ve wanted to say for so long now

“im your muse?”

“yes, im honored to make this outfit for you. and im so happy you worked with me. i couldn’t have done it without you. you look so beautiful-”

shinwon can’t stop what comes over him

it’s not stupid lust like it usually is with him - it’s another worldly force this time

it’s what they sing about in all those love songs - all those songs about wanting to be connected to someone

“no - you look beautiful.”

he presses his lips to yours before you can finish your sentence

and his name is called out for the order

he rushes to the line and you

you are frozen - unsure of what just happened

am in a movie? did shinwon just ,,,,,,,,,,,, kiss me?

you can’t even process it - one of your classmates comes and tugs you toward the audience

you look over your shoulder and shinwon is staring at you from the line

oh my god - i think shinwon just kissed me for real.

the fashion show is a haze - you want to pay attention, but you keep touching your lips

it’s not until the shinwon steps out into the limelight and struts with everything he’s got

flaunting your design, making it move and sparkle just like you had seen in your vision

the crowd all let out a wave of oohs~ and the professors who are judging seem to be impressed

and when he makes his way to the turn - he spots you - the background music seems to stop

the people seem to disappear

he was fucking right - you are beautiful

you get rave reviews on your outfit - people flock to you after the show to ask about it

you want to answer questions and thank everyone - but you are looking for him

you’re looking for shinwon

who is in turn, looking for you - ignoring the people who try to get in his way

he pulls you out from the conversation - waving off the complaints of others

and tugs you through the crowded stage until you guys are alone - stuffed into a corner of costume racks and abandoned makeup stations

“shinwon why did you-”

“am i just your muse? am i just someone you idolize - or do you - do you -”

he has never struggled this much in his life

you’re looking at him with such purity that it feels overwhelming as he puts his hands on your face and kisses you again

you melt into it and he eats it up - until you’re caught by stagehands who usher you annoyingly back out into the mess of people

jinho, yuto, hongseok and hui who came to see shinwon spot you guys and jinho’s eyes avert right to your hand - in shinwon’s

he smiles - he knew all along

because yes, you looked at shinwon like he was the only man in the world but

jinho had never seen shinwon text someone seven times in a row

and he sure as hell had never seen shinwon reject an oncoming hookup like he had for the past couple of weeks

“so - something you want to tell us?”

hongseok asks, and hui looks at you and then at shinwon

shinwon shrugs

“nah not really, just that ,,,,,,,,,,, well,,,,,,,,,,,”

he shakes your hands a little and you go red

“looks like ko shinwon is off the market! sorry ladies and gentlemen - i think ive found,,,,,,,,,,,,what’s a word for it,,,,,,,,,,,,,, my muse?”

so dating shinwon,,,,,,,,,is like a whole new world for you

you were always so sure you’d be a secret admirer - at most someone who got to work with him

but now you were like ,,,,,,, you were his significant other ,,,,,,,,,,

you were basically like an overnight star

you showed up the next morning after the fashion show and everyone was just like

“YOU LOCKED DOWN SHINWON? KO SHINWON? HOW? WAS IT MAGIC?”

shinwon is so dramatic you know he opened up his contacts and deleted nearly everyone he’d ever fooled around with and you’re like

that’s not necessary and he’s like

“once im committed im committed. i should delete hui’s number too i think he has a crush on me”

hui in his composition class: my shinwon senses are telling me im being clowned

no one knew,,,,,,,shinwon could love someone so hard

for most of his life he’s taken everything happy-go-lucky, he’s always just lived by the flow

but now he’s like ,,,,,,,,,, he’s like a changed person

you are the only thing he seems to put real effort into

which you actually know isn’t true, shinwon takes modeling seriously and although his studying is slacking

you are there to encourage him

because jinho and hongseok poking at him for never doing his homework is not going to get shinwon a degree

so you offer to help him study and your first dates consist on you trying to get him from a D to at least a C+ in most of his classes

he probably doesn’t even know how to properly use excel so you’re like babe let me

as you date him, you realize that the uniqueness you fell for in the first place stays true with shinwon

there’s so much more to him - like his musical talents and his secret nerdiness

and also the anxiety that sometimes spikes in his throat and that he plays off but that now,,,,,,,,,now he has someone who’ll take these thing seriously

you can see it - when he can’t figure out his schoolwork or when a gig gets canceled on him

the furrow of his brow - the silliness gone from his face and in the beginning he tries to keep up appearances

but you just pull his long body down to yours and you tell him that nothing in this world is going to stop him from being successful

“you were born to shine, shinwon. it’s why i saw you for a second and never forgot”

“babe.............omg you had a crush on me from first sight?”

“im trying to be serious ko shinwon”

him wrapping his arms around your waist and tugging you in closer “i know but like oooo a crush on me hehe you’re so cute”

you: rolling your eyes but also it’s true,,,,,,kinda

he gives you a tour of the infamous madhouse dorm - stock full of vinyls, his guitar, and brand name clothes on the floor

you’re kinda like “ooo this is cute” picking up a sweater off the floor and he’s like that’s versace i think?

you: and it’s on the floor

shinwon, shrugging: i ran out of hangers

oh my god shopping for anything with shinwon is a trip he somehow always tries to buy something that’s shiny and not useful and you’re like hey hey no

you become his impulse control - like at least 75% of it. the other 25% is jinho yelling at him over the phone

he’s such a cutie pie he loves making those candy bracelets with little rainbow charms and he makes some for you with your favorite song lyrics

which he hums as he puts on your wrist

and you promise not to take it off - which shinwon is more proud about then he should be

gives you nose kisses a lot - ruffles your hair a lot - asks you to sit on his lap and you’re like no we’re in public

loves it when you sit behind him and put your hands in his hair as he flips through the tv channels or plays a video game

won’t admit how much it kinda turns him on when you tug it - but you learn

you once are making out and shinwon keeps trying to tug at your shirt and you’re just like “listen to me shinwon, stop rushing me.” and oooooooooh my gooooooooooood

he thinks he sees stars

you most of the time: his precious angel who he can make all blushy with just some cheesy words

you also: bosses him around and points out his bullshit (which he is very into)

you and shinwon probably rock halloween parties - even though you’re not to big on the whole scene - you make the costumes and they’re killer and shinwon is just like

“they made this. for me. only me. only i get to wear the clothes they made”

complains about how when you’re a rich famous designer everyone else is gonna get to wear your masterpieces

makes you promise you’ll make exclusive outfits just for him

he does the MOST embarrassing thing ever

he marches into the fashion dept workroom one afternoon and he’s like “everyone, psa: when im a model i want to by chosen by ONE person and ONE person only - you know who!”

he winks your way and the whole room (including you) groans

like no one was planning on it anyway shinwon - he just lives for theatrics doesn’t he

his modeling gigs usually last a long time and go late into the night and he doesn’t expect you to stay up or anything

maybe send a text and a photo or whatever

but when he comes back to the dorms and you’re waiting in his bed wearing one of his led zepplin tshirts he just

he just gets all giddy - can’t keep his hands to his damn self

but also shinwon is a bad texter to everyone

but you

you get constant updates and constant photos which are demanded to become your phone background now

hongseok told you to change it to hui as a joke once but you guys were both like

no,,,,,,,shinwon might actually cry

jinho basically adores you because you actually do your work and try to help improve shinwon

but he’s also big brother mode where he’s like shinwon you better not screw this up or i will end you :)

yuto silently agrees - so does basically everyone else

jealous shinwon is ,,,,,,, like a yappy baby puppy

wooseok visits campus - a younger friend of the groups and he doesn’t know you’re dating shinwon

but he thinks you’re SOOOOOOO cute and tells everyone and shinwon just goes huffy like

“no. mine.” and wooseok is like oh ok-

shinwon: “see my phone wallpaper - it’s us kissing. see these sneakers - it was a gift from them on our anniversary - see this bracelet on their wrist? i made it and -”

everyone: OK SHUT UP

you finished your old sketchbook and you wanted to throw it out - but shinwon salvaged it and sometimes he opens it and traces the sketches you did of him

and he just,,,,,,,,,,feels so good knowing you’ve loved him for a while - and he thought he’d never have something so real and powerful

you once jokingly tell shinwon as you’re sitting cross-legged across from him in the park that you used to say you were a tiny star and he was a milkyway

and he just blinks and shakes his head

“no - if im a milkyway, you’re my entire galaxy.”

and then hung his head because OK CORNY but it’s true,,,,,,it’s so true

shinwon is always opening up the world for you - from music to art to whatever

he’s still your muse - even if he’s your boyfriend

but now instead of having to see him from all these miles away - like he’s some untouchable force

he’s sitting beside you

strumming on his guitar, hair messy and only an arms length away

you lean over and kiss his neck and he chuckles as he continues to play and you continue to sketch

only to realize some things never change

the page full of shinwon, and his heart is full of you ~

#pentagon scenarios #pentagon au #pentagon imagines #shinwon scenarios #shinwon imagines #shinwon au #shinwon #pentagon #ptg scenarios #ptg au #ptg imagines #college au #writing commissions #this really ......... helped me

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nad-zeta · 4 years

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Matchup! ( ﾟヮﾟ)

hiya! I only just found your amazing blog and I was wondering if I could get a ship for IkeSen?

Basics~ I’m a straight Australian/scottish female (also huffelpuff) with longish brown wavy hair, green eyes, freckles and dimples. I’m somewhat average weight but with more of an athletic build. People are always trying to hug me even though I hate hugs and also squish my cheeks. Im very ticklish and if someone tickles me I will fight back.

Personality~ I have an INFP personality type which really explains a lot about me. I hate talking about how I feel with people and tend to just ignore feeling like sadness or anger, but then I love it when people rant to me about their own problems since I like giving advice. So I guess im quite reserved, which I think annoys people who don’t know me to well. For me, being reserved means a lot of awkwardness, and when at school I tend to just stare out the window (if I have no friends in that class) If I am comfortable about someone I love deep conversations. Like, not necessarily about proper issues more about dumb stuff like how we are our soulmate from a past live (idk me and my friend talked about that one for ages) I also have a weird laugh but oh well…

I’ve always been quite spiritual I guess, and would always see and hear things that my family wouldn’t. I used to be really quite when I was younger, not really because I was that shy or anything but more because I had a very active mind. That got better as I grew older, but im still really into tarot reading and all that squiz! Aries is my zodiac and im very passionate about research and trying to figure out strangers zodiacs.

My hobbies include: field hockey, swimming, reading (ASOIAF over and over) binge watching shows, drawing, collecting stones and making stone pets, sewing and making clothes, stargazing, researching the biology of strange insects, journalling, baking, gardening, going on rides with friends and being in my hammock for hours.

Things I dislike are: sleeping in (im an early bird), when people ask personal questions and I hardly know them, when my friends fight (im usually not apart of that), getting chilblains on my toes, when my neighbours dog won’t stop barking, tarragon (ew!), throne of glass book series (sorry, just can’t, nothing against the author), randomly judgmental people (like if you smile at them and they scoff, arggghh im already socially awkward safe me!) and the character Hannah from dark on Netflix.

- Thanks so much, I may go stalk your account now. ღ ღ

@ophelias-flower-bed

Hi hi dear! ❤🦊Thank you so much for the request! I’m sorry for taking sooo freaken long with this!🦋🥰 Hehe, hope you have a super good day! And I hope you enjoy this, love! ❤🌻🦋

I match you with……………… Yoshimoto

After having arrived back in the past and saving Nobunaga’s life you were settling in rather nicely. The warlords had gotten used to their new reserved princess, who, low key kept to herself. It had taken you a while to get Hideyoshi to trust you, mainly cause when you did communicate with him, you would awkwardly stumble over your words. Although after some time, he had come to realize that you were just a reserved little cinnaroll.

You worked extremely hard for the castle and its people, and you were starting to wear thin

As an apology for suspecting you of being an assassin, Hideyoshi showered you with gifts and turned into a big brother figure. He noticed pretty early on that you never really talked about your feelings, but the exhaustion from working hard was painted clear as day across your face. He shooed you to the markets with a bag of coins and told you to treat yourself.

You walked around the market aimlessly when a fabric stall caught your attention. The fabrics were dyed bright colours and incredibly soft. Your fingertips danced across each of the blots until you found one that you liked. You hadn’t sewn or made any clothes since arriving in the past, and you low key missed it. As you went to pay for the fabric and a few sewing notions, a loud voice boomed behind you, “What a beautiful design.” You tuned back to find a beautiful man dressed in a rather extravagant kimono. You gave a small smile, not really knowing what to say in these situations and left.

A few days later, you had successfully made your first kimono of the past and decided to test it out by going to a teahouse, to peacefully sit and sip on some tea. You sat outside, enjoying the warm sun as you looked out onto the beautiful scene before you. The teahouse had a beautiful garden, and you couldn’t help but feel inspired to draw it.

Yoshimoto had just finished spying on the Oda forces, when he spotted you sketching in the summer sun. He curiously made his way up to your table and sat down. He was low key thankful for the fact that the teahouse was packed. The only open seats to chose from was the one opposite you and one on the other far corner of the tea-house.

Your eyes shot up curiously at the new presence at your table. He simply gave you a kind smile, “Wow did you make that from the fabric, it’s absolutely stunning! You are a very talented seamstress little bird.” You gave a weary laugh in your usual awkward way, and told him that you were no seamstress, rather that you enjoyed making clothes for fun. He smiled as he sipped on his tea and watched you draw.

A light conversation flowed between the two of you, and you found yourself actually enjoying is company. In the weeks to follow, you had run into the man more and more. These run-ins would usually take place in fabric shops, and end with the two of you sitting down to have tea together.

He honestly loved your accent, and that you would listen to him rant about all his problems. He loved the way your eyes would light up whenever he would ask your opinion on a matter. He especially loved that unusual laugh you would do, whenever he complained about one of his travelling companions always wanting to pick a fight with him. As the two of you got to know each other better you found yourself opening up more and more to him

He found your love for zodiac and tarot extremely amusing. He would ask you all about it, even wanting to know what his sign was and the traits that would go along with it. Definitely asked you more than once to read his cards. He even low key wanted to try his hand at reading your cards for you. It was also at this point when you low key told him you loved to collect rocks.

He wasn’t sure exactly when it happened, but Yoshimoto found himself completely in love with you. You had honestly been the first person to see him for him and not as some extravagant man or the head of his clan. He would often take you on horse riding trips outside of the town. His favourite spot to take you was the beach, cause you would always get that excited glint in your eyes at the idea of finding some cool new rocks for your collection.

The two of you would walk together for hours looking at and showing off cool rocks you had found on the sand or in a nearby cave. Sometime you cuties would have a competition as to who could make the best stone pet. Yoshi has had a hard life having to burden the responsibility of being the head of his clan, but during time like this with you, he felt completely relaxed and at ease.

One day Yoshi found a bright red ruby during one of your dates on the beach. He carefully tucked it away before you could spot it. He gave the stone to Shingen and asked him to turn it into a dainty necklace for you, setting his plan in action. He had planned out the perfect date to give it to you and confess his love. After a week of reporting back to Kenshin and Shingen, he made his way back to Azuchi to spend some more time with you.

At this point, both of you knew of each other’s secret identities. You knew he was an enemy spy and the head of an enemy clan and he knew you were an Oda princess, but that never stop the two of you from hanging out with each other. You always missed him when he would go home to report back. So much so that even the Oda forces suspected that you had a special someone in your life. TBH when yoshi was away he would write the most beautiful poems and letters to you. They were never too romantic as the two of you had only been friends, but they did speak of how much he missed you.

On his way back, he spotted you in the forest with a notebook in hand sketching out strange little bugs that you had found. No matter how long he has known you, every time he saw you, you managed to surprise him. He walked his way up to you and glanced down at your notebook, you low key smacked his chest for scaring you. He spent the afternoon with you looking at strange bugs and telling you about the biology of the ones he knew. He was slightly surprised, as he never realized how many different types of bugs actually existed and inhibited the forest.

As evening fell, he took your hand and helped you onto his horse to take you to a surprise destination. You rode until the sun was well beneath the horizon and finally arrived on the hop of a big hill. He carefully helped you down and lead you to a little picnic that he had set out for the two of you.

He remembered that you had mentioned during your various conversations that you also loved stargazing and it just so happened that he too was a lover of the stars. He had told you that on that particular evening there would be a meteor shower.

The two of you sat and chatted in deep conversation about soul mates and past lives as you waited for the meteor shower to start. The two of you sat and looked up at the heavens as the meteor shower started. After the last star shot across the sky, Yoshimoto presented you with the ruby necklace and a small little ruby rock pet. He smiled as he told you that a friend of his *cough Sasuke cough* had told him the significance of giving someone a ruby and that he thought it was rather fitting for this situation.

After that, you decided to move to Kasugayama castle with Yoshi to get to know him better. You weren’t even there two days and you were named as the official castle seamstress by Kenshin due to the beautiful clothes you made. The bunny lord loved your kimonos so much that he commissioned you to make a few tiny ones for his beloved bunnies

Yoshi couldn't helps but smiles as you would sit in the council room, silently looking out of the window. He loved watching the shocked expressions that would play across his friends’ faces whenever you would instantly open up whenever he walked into the room.

He was absolutely over the moon when he found out the two of you had a hobby in common, that being gardening. He legit loves to spend hours with you outdoors as the two of you dig in the dirt and plant some beautiful flowers. Sometimes if he is feeling playful, he will try and tickle you, which usually ends up in a bit of a tickle/mud fight.

Because Yoshi is a warlord, he needs to stay fit and keep up with his training so when you tell him about your favourite sports he absolutely wants to include them in his training regimen, as a way to stay fit and spend time with you. He 100% drags his Kasugayama friends out to the open field so that all of you can play a match of field hockey. Thanks to Sasuke’s amazing ninja skills, he managed to construct a makeshift goal and hokey equipment for everyone.

Usually in the summer when it is scorching hot, Yoshi would take you to a nearby waterfall or beautiful lake to swim to your heart’s content and to cool down from the scorching sun.

He absolutely loves, loves, loves it when you surprise him with baked goods, and will 9/10 time go and brag about your fantastic baking skills to his cousin.

His all-time favourite thing is to lay in a hammock with you in his arms as you read. He would usually just sit and watch you read occasionally falling asleep while gently holding you.

Yoshi knows you hate hugs so he will keep them to a minimum, but he honestly can’t help but want to warp you up in his arms or pinch those cute cheeks of yours. His favorite thing in the world is to drop a small kiss on your dimples, as he finds them incredibly cute.

Often the two of you will be out on some fun adventure together, collecting rocks or having a blast. Quiet times between the two of you would usually involve merely enjoying each other company in random deep conversations.

Other potential matches……………. Kennyo

I hope you have a super good day!❤🦋🥰

#matchups #match ups #ikesen matchup #matches #ikesen yoshimoto #yoshimoto imagawa #yoshimoto matchup #ikemen sengoku yoshimoto #submission

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cheeky-kookie · 4 years

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Muse | K.T.H

Taehyung/Reader | Fluff, Slice of Life | Photographer!Taehyung x Artist!Reader

Word count: 3.7K

Summery: Run dry from the hustle and bustle of everyday life, you find yourself without inspiration and a blank page of your sketchbook in front of you. That is until your eyes fall on a handsome stranger who sees through a lens of a camera.

A/N: It’s been a while since I’ve written but I’ve felt so inspired by writers on here that I began to write again. So if you are reading this one, thank you for the support!

It was a sunny day, one of those days where all you want to do is in some way spend it outside. You had decided when you had woken up that it was exactly what you were going to do; spend it outside. It wasn’t out of your element to spend every nice day you encounter outside, since nature seemed to be constantly changing. It gave you new things to be inspired by. Yet, with work and school, finding the time to go out and enjoy yourself and create some art had became almost absent. It had started to drain you, being in a cycle of classes, work, then sleep. All you needed was a little kick to get back into the thing you loved.

You had decided on going to this park located somewhere in the middle of town. It was a few blocks down from this coffee shop you really liked that served the best muffins. It was a guilty pleasure of yours to stop by there on the way home and snag one of those pastries, whether it be coming home from classes or spending the day sketching in your pad. There was just something about how moist and fluffy those muffins were that made you want to keep going back for more.

Searching the park, you looked for a spot to sit and pull out your sketch pad. You were waiting for something to catch your eye and trigger inspiration. You didn’t necessarily need to draw what was sitting in front of your face. Honestly, you were looking for a certain feeling to pull you to where you needed to be.

Defeated, you went and sat by this giant oak tree located in a clearing, farther away from the chatter of the park. It was off the main path of the park, so no one seemed to be around it. The closer you got the more it seemed to feel like a good decision. It was quiet and had a great view of the rest of the park. You let your bag drop down your arm and land in the soft grass by the roots of the giant. You followed suit, plopping down next to your bag and tucking yourself comfortably into the trunk of the tree.

You rummaged through your bag before pulling out a black spiraled book you purchased a few months back when your other one had become so full with sketches you hadn’t had room to continue to use that one. The old one was safely tucked away at home on your desk, waiting to be picked up and examined someday in the future. The current one you had in your hands held nothing on the pages because there had been no time or inspiration to do anything with it. Flipping to the first page, you stared at the blank paper in front of you.

With pencil in hand, you let the tip rest on the paper without movement. You waited for something to strike you but again, nothing did. Sighing, you leaned your head against the trunk of the tree and closed your eyes. You heard a distant scream of some kid playing on the playground on the other side of the park causing you to reopen your eyes.

That’s when you saw him.

He stood out, but not in the obvious way. It wasn’t like he was trying to stand out. But even from the distance, you could tell he had a face that made people want to keep looking at him. His caramel skin was complemented by his dark curly hair and brown coat. In his hands he held a large camera, strap slug around his neck. You watched as his eyes scanned the surroundings and he slowly brought the camera up to his face, finding just the right image he wanted to capture.

Part of you was jealous he was able to find inspiration while you sat by yourself at the base of a tree wallowing in your own self-pity. Shaking your head, you looked down at the blank page in front of you and started sketching him. You had spent a good while at the park, and he seemed to be the only thing to truly catch your attention. You weren’t about to let that go to waste.

This was how your sketchbook started to become filled with nothing but a few pages of this handsome stranger who seemed to love to take pictures of nature.

Another day free from the stress of adulthood and you had found yourself back at the park; your eyes catching a yellow flower and finding yourself wandering over to it in wonderment. You sat down on your knees, taking your bag off your shoulder and pulling your sketchbook out. You started sketching the flower out on the blank page, a small smile creeping on your face as you found inspiration far easier than the other day.

Even with the inspiration flowing, your mind wandered back to the handsome man you had sketched the other day. For some reason something about him intrigued you. Maybe it was because he carried himself in such a way that he exuded confidence but didn’t come off as cocky. Or maybe it was because you felt like your drawings were incomplete knowing you couldn’t get the tiny details from the distance you sat at. You could only really imagine the small features his face might have held.

When you arrived home that day from the park, you confided in your roommate about the handsome man you came across and sketched. Of course, she had gotten all excited, telling you to make contact with him if you ran into him again. If you remembered correctly, her choice of words were ‘If he was as handsome as you sketched him, I would take the chance’ though you realized that in reality things don’t necessarily line up how they do in stories. She reminded you that sometimes things do indeed line up.

You did owe him for sparking the creative flow that had taken over your body. You weren’t sure if there would ever be a time to thank him in person so you were left appreciating him in your own head and thanking him mentally every time you drew something new within the pages of the spiral book in your hands now.

The flower was on the page after a few minutes. Nodding in approval of your art, you closed the sketchbook and held it to your chest. You then proceeded to throw your bag back over your shoulder before making your way in the direction of the tree you had found solitude at a few days prior.

You felt a buzz in your back pocket. Grabbing the source of the buzzing, you peered at the reminder going off on your phone. Rolling your eyes, you swiped away the reminder your roommate had snuck onto your phone before you had left to the park. It was a reminder to introduce yourself to the guy if you saw him. Sighing, you put your phone back into your back pocket to be forgotten about.

Once back at the tree, your bag was back on the ground and you sunk back into the spot you found comfortable the other day. You pulled the sketchbook from your chest and opened it back up, looking at the new addition to the book. You lightly shaded part of the flower you deemed not shaded well enough.

When you peered up from the page, your heart sipped a beat. He was back. Again, he was sporting the brown coat which you were sure was protecting him from the cool air of spring. He seemed preoccupied with one of the trees of the park, finding it interesting enough to capture in picture.

You thought briefly about setting your sketchpad down and walking over there to introduce yourself but the idea was soon discarded as you determined that you may have all the confidence int he world of your art and were comfortable and confident with yourself, but there was just not enough to convince you to speak to him without rhyme or reason. Yet you couldn’t keep your mind off him. There was just something about him you couldn’t shake, and it didn’t help that he kept showing up. You hummed to yourself and shook your head, bringing your pencil back down to shade the flower.

What you didn’t notice while your head was buried deep in your sketches was the curly haired man’s attention had landed on you.

He had been capturing a picture that had pleased him when he turned around and saw you sitting against the tree, pencil in hand, and attention focused in some kind of book. He couldn’t determine what kind of book, though you seemed very invested in what you were doing. He could see your passion from the distance and he himself was kind of envious of you. Your hair had fallen in your face and he watched you tuck it behind your ear, still completely focused at your task in hand.

Though you had a majority of his attention, his artistic mind had also noticed how perfect the image was in general. He noticed how you fit perfectly leaned against the trunk and how the tree was placed in the perfect spot where no bystanders could get in the way of the image. The tree itself was magnificent. It was quite old, he had determined by size, and the branches framed it well.

He slowly brought his camera up to his face and snapped a picture of the tree, and you. He looked down at the image he took and nodded in approval. It was the first picture he truly felt confident about in a while and he had gotten it first try, which he deemed a success on top of it.

It had been a week or so since you had found time to do art. Though you had somehow found time to escape your apartment and your responsibilities for a bit today. You had wandered the park for a little bit adding a few pages to your sketchbook before you had made your way to the coffee shop you were so fond of.

You smiled, peeling the wrapper of the muffin back so you could take a bite. It was just as great as you remembered it; Moist and fluffy. It was exactly what you were craving after a long day of sketching, along with the cup of coca placed on the right side of you. Setting the muffin down onto the plate they provided for you, you flipped your sketchbook to an empty page. You sighed to yourself as you bent down to your feet to access your bag, wondering where you had put your pencil. Finding it, you resurfaced to the table and started to put your imagination down on paper.

You heard the bell of the front door of the café echo throughout the business and out of curiosity, you looked up to see who had entered.

It was like time had stopped. The murmur of the other customers had been drowned out by the own sound of your heart pounding in your ears. You didn’t even notice your mouth dropping slightly at the person who had entered.

He looked like he always had, perfect. His dark hair falling in curls around his face, almost blinding him because of the length. He hadn’t worn his jacket today which you could only assume was because it was a warmer day, but he still opted for an oversized grey sweater. He also didn’t have his camera, but you were more than willing to bet your life savings that the bag he was carrying around his arm held the camera in question.

You were too preoccupied with him being there; you didn’t notice that he too was shocked to see you. You didn’t notice the way he paused when you two met eyes, or how his own lips parted at the sight of you. And you for sure didn’t notice how his eyes grew huge and he had to quickly look away to hide his own reaction. Instead, you just saw him turn his attention towards the barista and proceeded to move in that direction.

You shook your own head, staring at the almost blank piece of paper in front of your face unable to focus anymore. You could still hear your own heartbeat in your ears as the adrenaline slowly ran its course through your body. You took a deep breath to calm you down, before trying to go back to working on what was in front of you. Well, until you heard the chair on the other side of the table slide out and the sound of a bag being set on the floor.

You didn’t want to look up because you knew. You knew that the mysterious and oh so handsome man you had been thinking about for weeks was sitting across from you. You could feel his stare bare into you as you focused on the page at hand. You could also smell his cologne which was musky but not at all overwhelming. It was almost a comforting smell.

“Who comes to a coffee shop for hot coca?” A voice said, sending shivers down your spine at how deep and smooth it sounded. You took a deep breath and looked up at him for the first time since he had sat down moments before.

Up close, you realized your assumptions about him being attractive were very right. You realized that when he walked in the shop, but now that he was only a mere tables width away you really knew. He sat with confidence, leaned back with his legs parted covering as much space as possible. He seemed to make that chair his own and it really was a show of confidence. His plump lips held a small smirk, the corner tilted only slightly upward. His eyes were a deep brown that you felt you could melt into. And on his perfectly shaped nose, was a faint beauty mark which seemed to actually make him seem less god like and more human. Though in your professional opinion, you still found it attractive.

The worst part wasn’t that you were suddenly confronted with this inhumanly attractive male you’ve been mulling over but the fact that you were totally right before. The smaller details mattered, and your sketches were rightfully incomplete.

“I’m not a huge coffee drinker but these muffins are to die for.” You respond, setting the pencil down. You watched as he nodded, taking a sip of his coffee before setting his cup back on the table.

“I don’t like coffee either,” He said. He watched one of your eyebrows raise and your eyes zoned in on the cup at the table. A laugh escaped his lips, “It’s tea. But now I might have to go back up there and get myself one of those muffins since you’ve talked so highly of them.”

“I recommend,” You said, a small smile playing on your lips.

“You know,” He said, pausing for a second, “I’ve been wanted to talk to you for a while, but I just haven’t had the opportunity to do so.”

You felt your heart start pounding again, and just when you thought you had gotten it back under control. How long had he known you existed? You had gone to the park for a few weeks now and you seemed to always find him there as well.

“I’ve been wanting to since I saw you sitting underneath that huge oak tree at the park down the street. You seemed so engrossed by whatever you were doing that the world didn’t seem to matter to you. It’s sort of driven me to start getting absorbed by photography again. I had quit for a while and I had been going to that park for some time before and I just couldn’t get past the judgement I put on myself. But I saw your passion and I wanted that back.”

He reached down in his bag and pulled out his camera. He seemed to be looking for something specific, skipping through picture after pictures until his eyes grew wide when he found what he was looking for, “I sort of ended up taking a picture of you under the tree that day. It just reminded me to be as passionate as the girl under the tree. I will delete it of course, if you don’t want me to have it.”

You looked at the picture he had pulled up on his camera. It was just like he said, you were perched in your usual spot under the old oak at the park. The way the shot was framed was exquisite to say the least. The branches of the tree framed the picture perfectly and the way the sun peaked through them had added a really nice contrast to the very green picture. Overall, your artistic brain could see why he couldn’t pass up the picture. Your average human brain was on fire with the idea that you had sparked passion within such a talented person without even speaking to him. You also couldn’t shake the similarities.

“I love it,” You said to him, watching his tanned skin be graced with a twinge of pink. He smiled and shut his camera off. You sighed as he did, “I have to admit something to you too.”

You flipped to the front of your sketchbook and opened the first page before turning it around, so it faced him. You watched as he slowly grabbed it, his face becoming slightly pinker at the realization that his own features were sketched onto the first few pages of the sketchbook.

“I had this huge creative drought. I was staring that the first page of this sketchpad for weeks hoping something would catch my attention or my mind would drum up so cool idea to put down, but nothing came to me. I had gone to the park and sat down at this huge oak tree and stared at the page some more. I saw you. You seemed to be so sure of what you were picturing. I guess distance could be misleading, but you still were the first thing that truly caught my attention that day and I just had to draw you. I’ve been able to sketch since so, I guess, thank you.” You spoke softly, watching him slowly leaf through the pages.

“You are talented,” He hummed, still absorbed within the pages.

“I sure would hope so, I’m an art major. If I wasn’t my teachers have been lying to me for years,” You joked, “Though I probably could have done better.”

“You’re your own biggest critic, or so the saying goes,” He closed the book and slid it back over to you. He then leaned forward, looking you in the eyes, “So, girl under the tree, do you have a name?”

“Y/N.” You told him, ripping a piece of the almost forgotten muffin off and popping it in your mouth, “Do I get the pleasure of knowing yours?”

“Taehyung,” He introduced, “I’m happy to finally get to meet you.”

You were back under the oak tree, this time the leaves were finally turning shades of red and yellow and the cool breeze was knocking them loose causing them to fall to the ground. The ground had become cooler, but you had reminded yourself to bring a blanket to sit on instead of the dirt.

Your pencil danced on the page before you, sketching an individual who you could probably draw from memory now. You could remember exactly how his hair falls into his face and how the corners of his mouth turn upwards when he spots something he likes. You knew just how his eyes sparked in wonderment and where exactly that faint mole sat on his nose.

You could sketch him from memory but why would you give up the chance to keep looking at him any chance you got.

You heard a click of a camera and you looked up at him slowly from the page you were focusing on, a huge smile gracing his face making him seem almost childlike. You raised an eyebrow at him, and he plopped down on the blanket next to you, peering at the paper in front of you.

“Don’t you ever get tired of drawing me?” Taehyung asked, meeting your eyes. You could feel your pulse quicken. You had known this man for seven months now and you still couldn’t get over how your body reacts to the way he looked at you.

“Don’t you have a billion pictures of me on that camera of yours?” You asked. He licked his lips and looked away knowing damn well he did have many pictures of you on his camera and you had proven your point.

He then looked back into your eyes, “So, girl under the tree, is there any way I could talk you into kissing me on the lips right now or is it too much to ask?”

You rolled your eyes at him and pushed his chest away from you. He chuckled and turned back towards you, eyes finding yours again. He slowly closed in the gap between the two of you and placed a soft kiss on your own. Even the smallest thing could make your heart soar. If there was any problem, it would be that you were absolutely and utterly engulfed in everything that Taehyung was. He was genuine and passionate, and it fueled your own drive. You both fed off each other’s energy and to be honest, you wouldn’t have it any other way.

“Just go take pictures of something,” You mumbled, his face still inches away from your own. He cracked a lopsided smile and backed away, pushing himself back off the ground and putting his camera back around his neck.

“Don’t miss me too much,” He teased, and you were just happy that he had turned around quick enough he couldn’t see the red in your face because the last thing you needed was another reason for him to keep flustering you.

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lonelypond · 3 years

Text

Protect All Idols, Ch. 2

NicoMaki, NozoEli, Love Live, 2.3K, 2/2

Solutions are decided on.

Next Steps

Nozomi couldn't not stare. Eli, in her sharpest tailored suit, the light blue collar of her shirt accenting her eye color, brought out all Nozomi's interupting urges. But this wasn't high school. Young women's health and reputations were endangered and Eli was in full on protect mode. Nozomi wondered what she'd be like with their own children.

"So you will be messengering a copy of this agreement to Yazawa-san immediately, correct?" Eli's stern look matched her professional tone.

"Of course, Ayase-san."

"She will be handling the details of arranging the volunteer shifts so please assist her with the same courtesy and competence you have shown me."

"It will be our pleasure, Ayase-san."

"Thank you. We look forward to working with you in the future." "We would be grateful for the opportunity." The video conference was wrapping up. Nozomi sat up. She saw a slight shift in Eli's posture and giggled silently. Eli was bracing for what would happen next.

"Please give my thanks to your board of directors and staff, Adachi-san."

"I hope we can meet when you are next in Tokyo."

"I will certainly be in touch to schedule that. I appreciate your personal effort to help us resolve this."

After a few more formalities, Eli closed her laptop, and turned her chair to face Nozomi, eyebrow quirked, "So..."

Nozomi raised her own eyebrow, "So..."

"I bet I can guess what you're thinking." "Really..." Nozomi slid into Eli's lap, "Have you named our children yet?" "What?" A startled Eli nearly jumped. Unfazed, Nozomi had one armed wrapped around her shoulders, and undid Eli's tie with her other hand.

"You're just so cute when you're in hyper protective parent mode."

Eli blushed. "We're still in college." Undone buttons, "Then it's good that there's things we don't need to worry about."

Eli would be missing that evening's discussion session.

###

Aki couldn’t decide on a lipstick color.

“Nico-chan said natural was cuter.” Kawano Aki announced.

Harada Mai sneered. “Unless you want a contract as a makeup influencer.”

“Some makeup companies are pushing the natural look.” Ryuen Shizu glanced up from her phone.

Mai leaned over Aki, picking through the makeup. “You went undercut and blonde so skip cutesy and go with vivid red. I like this one.” She handed Aki a lip paint. “Uncensored.”

“Oh you can’t beat Fenty...but Uncuffed will go better at an elementary school.” Shizu glared at Mai, “We’re going out to bring lunches to school children, not clubbing.”

“Whatever.” Mai flopped on her bed, “I say if you’ve got an image, push it. I’m tired of daylight events.”

Aki frowned. No one was saying out loud what the discussion was really about, which was their current schedule of events doing community service, concerts for seniors, tech help for orphans, school lunches to help boost Aki’s popularity.

“So stay here.” Aki snapped, “No one’s ripping into you for having feelings.’

Shizu snorted but when Aki turned to her, she smiled benevolently and shrugged.

“Look, I have rehearsals with the Bokeh Blossoms right after every one of these; it’s exhausting." Mai frowned, "Nico doesn’t go.”

“I don’t mind.” Shizu spoke up.

“You’re too nice.” Mai threw a pillow at the ceiling.

“Nice is always a good look.” Shizu countered.

“Amateurs.” Mai let the pillow fall on her face.

Aki frowned, confronting the array of lip color choices before her. She grabbed a dusty pink GlossBomb and confidently applied it.

Mai sat up, “Compromise. Smart. I like the way it glitters.”

“FU$$Y”

“$uits you.” Shizu giggled; Aki stuck out her tongue. Mai grinned thinking, this conversation would probably make it to the final broadcast edit. It was cute.

###

Tsubasa leaned forward, fingers splayed out over the table as she TwigTimed Anju and Erena. “Nico and Muse have been really clever, setting up this whole Idol House gig. It’s time to get involved.”

“So you want us to set up a mini A-Rise house?” Erena spoke slowly.

“No, too much like copying. We just fix their PR problem for them.”

“How?”

“Find a couple of other girls, maybe 3 actually, so they’re not a trio once we add Kawano-san. We want to avoid direct comparisons.”

“That might be cute.” Anju giggled, “an A-Rise Jr.”

“She’s not a strong singer or rapper.” Erena pointed out.

“No, but she’s a talented dancer. And she’s very vocal.”

“Isn’t that the problem?” Erena countered.

Tsubasa shook her head, “Nico and Muse are idealists. This happened because they leave too many things to chance. We give her the best PR training in the business. She’s sharp and wants to be noticed.” Tsubasa thought about Kawano-san moving from Nico to Maki once she figured out Maki was the better catch. “And she’s got an instinct for glamor.”

“Sounds like a fun project. It’d be fun to costume a different group. There’s looks I’ve wanted to try that won’t work for us.” Anju was already sketching.

“A couple of our back up dancers from the last video caught my eye.” Erena admitted.

“Which just leaves one more girl to find.” Tsubasa smiled, “We can do our management company a favor and take a trick from K-pop and find a Chinese Idol wannabe looking for a group. Raise our profile in that market.”

“Ooohh, I like that.” Anju added a mandarin style hat to her design.

“Very solid strategizing.” Erena nodded.

“As always. I’ll call the management team, Erena, you reach out to the dancers, and Anju…”

Anju glanced up from her sketch.

“Galaxy level cute.”

Anju winked and tapped her nose with the pencil. “Of course.”

###

“B-HOLD!!!!!!!” Nico was shouting and stomping. A pillow that had fallen to the floor got kicked across the room. Maki, an amused gleam in her eye, was curled up like a cat on Nico’s bed in Nico’s former room at the Yazawa apartment, watching Nico rant and storm.

“Tsubasa wants revenge.”

Maki raspberries, “What? For all the flowers.”

“Hey, that was before Nico met you. And Tsubasa tried to steal you. And then you wrote a WHOLE album for her. And now she’s not happy stealing Nico’s girl, she’s gotta steal Nico’s ideas too…”

Nico rushed by, Maki reached out an arm, and pulled Nico in, dragging the grump into a hug, “She never stole me, Nico-chan.”

“An entire album.”

“Nico-chan.”

Nico sighed, “I know. You needed music.” Nico flopped back on the bed, “I’m sorry I didn’t pay enough attention. I just wanted to keep you out of messes.” Nico punched the mattress, “And now we’re in the middle of messy.”

Maki rolled over Nico’s arm, curling up next to Nico, “ “s my fault. I should have talked to you. And I should have stayed out of Idol House. But when Kawano said that…”

Nico heard a growl coming from her fiancee. She pulled Maki closer, dropping her head to rest on Maki’s hair, smelling the soothing coconut lavender shampoo, “Nobody’s stealing Nico either. Ever.”

“I know.” Maki moved even closer, “I love you, Nico-chan." A pause, "It’s so weird being back here.”

Nico glanced around the room. Cocoro had taken it over, kept the pink color scheme, and put up even more posters of Nico than Nico ever had. Maki shouldn’t mind that. “What’s so weird about it?”

Maki muttered something into Nico’s shoulder.

“What was that?” Nico’s fingers slid through the softness of Maki’s hair. Was that a shiver? Nico suddenly felt more alert.

“Your mom’s in the next room. And we’re…”

“Currently very child friendly.” Nico chuckled, “Except for the language Nico is going to use about Tsubasa.” Nico wondered if Maki was blushing. Or thinking about all the times in this room they’d ALMOST...Nico needed to stop that train of thought. Now that they’d...well, Nico had a lot more trouble focusing, especially when Maki was so near and felt so warm...and suddenly Maki’s eyes were...and so luminous and…

###

Tsubasa Kira spoke right to the cameras, winking, seizing the room, flopping down on the couch next to a glammed up Harada Mai and throwing an arm around her, “We would have stolen you from Nico to, but the Bokeh Blossoms will have a really nice set up here while they record their next album.”

Mai bounced, torn between giving Super idol Kira Tsubasa her full attention and following Kira-san’s example and working the cameras. She finally just deciding on grabbing Tsubasa’s arm and squealing, “And Nico has set up meetings with the best makeup and fashion brands. It’s so cool. We’re getting total makeovers.”

“Nico understands better than anyone the value of GOOD publicity…”

The Nishikino media room exploded as Nico flew off the couch, Maki reaching out to pull her back before she attacked this week’s episode of Idol House, filmed two weeks ago, this conversation happening after Nico moved out.

“She didn’t say anything negative, Nico-chan, it’s a compliment.”

“It’s the tone...Tsubasa has it in for me.”

“Tsubasa has been very helpful, Nico.” Umi stated calmly from where she was wedged between Honoka and Kotori.

“Yeah, they set up a whole group to put Aki-san in the middle of.” Honoka added.

"And that press conference," Kotori swooned again, she'd been texting Nico about A-Rise's new look for a week. Nico A-Rise tolerance was currently non existent but Umi had mentioned to Nico the improvement in Kotori's mood so Nico just sent back (*•̀ᴗ•́*)و ̑̑ when Kotori sketched new A-RIse inspired ideas.

“Which got them impressive amounts of positive mentions. Trending topic for 3 days.” Hanayo glanced up from her phone, “Idol House is trending now.”

“Nico Ni needs to trend.”

“Just wait’ll you move in with the” Rin made a huge sweep with her arms, almost knocking Hanayo’s phone out of her hand, “hottie heiress you stole from her tower. Everyone’ll go wild.” Rin stuck her tongue out at Maki.

“Well, Nico did do that.” Nico’s smug look made Maki pause her throwing a pillow at Rin action to smash Nico with it, “Hey, what was that for?”

“I proposed to you.”

“But only because Nico…”

Maki didn’t want to hear whatever Nico’s brag was going to be and just leaned in, kissing the Super Idol silent. Umi paled. Kotori giggled as Honoka cheered. Rin rolled away and Hanayo quietly put her phone down after capturing the image for Nico’s TWIG feed.

A quiet chuckle pulled everyone not kissing’s attention away from the screen and to their non Muse guest, Ryuen Shizu. “Are you always this...insane when you get together?

“Yes,” Umi’s tone carried the weight of years.

“You need to be here when Nozomi’s here, that’s the real crazy.” Rin flipped over, hanging off the couch upside down to watch Shizu packing boxes onscreen, “Hey, you’re in two places.”

Shizu glanced at Nico, but Nico was still making out with Maki, so then she turned to Honoka as the only other person she’d really ever talked to, “Is she serious?”

“Rin? Seriously silly.”

“You betcha.” Rin did an ab crunch, pillow poised to launch and knocked Maki out of her embrace with Nico. “Ha! Gotcha.”

Maki took the pillow and without breaking eye contact with Nico, tossed it back toward Rin, actually hitting Hanayo, who squealed and dropped her phone. This launched Rin at Maki, pulling the taller girl into a wrestling hold

“Nico?” Shizu asked quietly, now that Nico was laughing at Maki, not kissing her.

“Huh?” Nico took a minute to get acclimated back to the watch party, “Oh, Shizu-chan? What’s wrong?”

Shizu scooted closer, almost whispering, “Is the tour going to be like this?”

Nico shook her head, “No. Nico is a total pro. You and Maki will record and livestream, Nico will rehearse with the dancers, and you’ll open each show. There’s a lot of travel time.”

“And halfway through, Kayo-chin and I will visit and there will be fireworks and pillow fights every night.”

Maki had Rin in a chokehold, “Not if I don’t reserve you a hotel room.”

“Nico.” Rin whined, “You won’t let her leave us out. Kayo-chin’s your biggest fan.”

“No, she’s not. Take that back.” Maki growled.

“Rin.” Hanayo turned away from both screens, “Don’t make Maki mad.”

“Don’t care. She can’t keep me away.”

Umi was now standing over Maki, a steady hand on her shoulder, “Let Rin go.”

Kotori was whispering something distracting in Honoka’s ear or Nico thought there surely would have been a third in the WrestleMania portion of the evening.

With a grumble, Maki released Rin and flumped next to Nico.

“I pressed pause. Do you want me to start up again?” Hanayo asked.

“Nico’s tired.” Nico exaggerated a yawn. Maki got a hopeful gleam.

Kotori stood up, sliding her arm through Umi’s, “Let’s go back to Honoka’s, Umi-chan. I want a snack.”

“C’mon, Kayo-chin, we can walk with them and finish it at our place.” Rin pulled Hanayo off the couch.

“All right.” Hanayo agreed reluctantly, looking back at the screen.

“See you soon, Maki.” Rin waved cheerfully.

“Sure.” Maki was back to staring at Nico.

Shizu waited for someone to say something, but then realized no one was going to pay attention to her. She stood.

“I’m going to go up to my room. Thank you for your hospitality, Nishikino-san.”

“Maki.” Maki waved in a random direction.

Nico had a hand sliding around Maki’s shoulder to get tangled in her hair, “Remember, we have a breakfast meeting.”

“Of course. Good night.”

“Good night.”

The kiss started before the door closed, and in one of the pauses, Nico whispered, “You’re going to miss them.”

Maki shook her head, curls bouncing as she drew Nico back on the couch, “Not for a month.”

Nico laughed. Being an Idol House producer had more perqs than being an Idol House resident, hands on time with Maki being the best.

Maki pulled away, blushing, “What’s funny, Nico-chan?”

“How everything works out.”

“As long as I’m right here, with you, I don’t care.”

Nico, as much as her head was full of future plans and successes and pitfalls, let herself get lost in the intimacy of having Maki so near and was surprised to find herself in full agreement, “Me neither.”

“Good.” And then somehow, Maki’s lips made the gentlest touch against Nico’s, an invitation igniting an inferno.

A/N: Thanksgiving here. Having a quiet day building a Christmas playlist to write to. Drop a song or favorite holiday trope in the comments, please and thank you.

#NicoMaki #NozoEli #idol house #Protect All Idols #Nishikino Maki #Yazawa Nico #Love Live #RinPana

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letsbenditlikebennett · 4 years

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Petals for Armor || Ariana & Luce

TIMING: Prior to Bea’s ressurection PARTIES: @divineluce & @letsbenditlikebennett SUMMARY: Ariana goes by the shop when Luce happens to have a cancellation. A new tattoo is gifted and the girls get to talk. CONTENT: Some sibling death mentions and general descriptions of tattooing (needles and blood)

“You can take the wrap off in the next two or three hours. No pools, hot tubs, or swimming for the next two weeks.” Luce said as she escorted her latest client out, handing them a little bag of Aquaphor and printed out aftercare instructions. They’d gotten a geometric calf piece that, any other time, would have made her really excited to work. But, her nerves were still raw from her experience with Felix and she felt frayed at the edges, like she might just unravel. Which is why she was throwing herself into the more menial aspects of her work-- she cleaned up her room with even more vigor than usual before returning to the lobby to look at her bookings for the day. As she looked at the screen, the bell over the door dinged as someone walked inside. Fuck. Her 4 o clock had rescheduled. Which meant she had nothing to do for the rest of the day. Her cabin was all repaired and she wasn’t… she didn’t want to go back to Bea’s house. Not yet. Not until she was back. Not until all three of them could walk through that door together. Realizing she’d been lost in thought, Luce forced a smile and looked up from the computer. “Welcome to Ink, Inc. Do you have an appointment or are you here for a walk-in?”

After a couple of weeks off from training under Shiloh at Trusty Wood, Ariana found it felt better to be back again. There was a lot less time to get stuck in her own head when she was busy soaking up all that Shiloh could possibly teach her. As heavy as things felt some days, she knew she had to keep pushing forward. It’s what Celeste would have wanted and she still wanted to be someone Celeste could be proud of. It was all she could do to keep part of her alive. Things were slowly getting easier, she still let herself feel her way through the waves. She still found she preferred to not go back to the trailer alone after work today and Ulf had said he wouldn’t be too much later. She could hang out at the shop a bit, look through some of his newer sketches and watch videos on Tik Tok while she waited. Her air pods had still been in her ears as she walked through the door, but she could still hear a familiar voice over the music, so she took a bud out. She smiled when she realized it was Luce though a wince followed shortly after. She wondered if Ulfric had mentioned what happened to Luce. The last thing she needed right now was questions about her hot sister. She quickly recovered and waved, “Hey, Luce. Not here for an appointment or anything. Ulf had said he’d be done for the day soon, so figured I’d hang around a bit so I don’t have to walk home.”

Looking up, Luce’s expression faltered for a moment as she saw Ariana waving at her. Fuck. Fuck. “Ariana. Hey,” She looked down at the computer and grimaced. Ulf was still in his appointment, but that meant that Ariana was going to be stuck waiting around for a little bit. The night Ulfric had told her what had happened to Celeste, Luce had been… floored. Her heart had broken for Ariana, for what she was going through-- she understood the pain of losing a sister, of the cruel reality of death. But, unlike Ariana… She could bring Bea back. She was actively working towards it. And while it would take sacrifice and magic Luce had never thought she would ever degrade herself to doing, here she was. Preparing to murder a man. Swallowing, Luce stepped out from behind the counter and leaned against the receptionist’s desk. She clenched her jaw for a moment before glancing at the clock. “You need a ride? My next appointment bailed on me, so I can give you a lift if you want.” She said with a shrug, tilting her head out to the 4x4 that was parked out back behind Ink Inc.

While a ride sounded better than waiting around the shop for Ulfric to finish with his appointment, Ariana perked up at the mention of her appointment bailing on her. With her first tattoo, she found she kind of liked the sensation of the needle and it’s constant buzzing. She liked the finished product even more. More often than not, she’d find herself admiring her own tattoo literally any time she wore shorts short enough to show it off. As fun as the 4x4 looked, a new tattoo sounded even more fun. “Thanks,” she said, a small smile present, “A ride would be cool, but taking your appointment’s place actually sounds even better. I’ve been kind of wanting another tattoo anyway.” She looked to Luce hopefully. She totally understood if she preferred to go home as planned, but it was worth a shot. “If you’re ready to head out, that’s totally cool, too.”

At Ariana’s words, Luce nodded. A ride, a tattoo? Fuck, if the girl had asked for one of the art pieces off the wall, she would have given it to her. “Sure, no problem. You got any ideas that you’re thinking about? Or do you wanna take a look through some of the designs I already have? C’mon, we can chat in my room.” She said, walking back to her workspace and grabbing the binder full of stencils and designs that she carefully curated. While her designs lately hadn’t been the most inspired or the ones that she liked the most, she’d done well to make sure that she kept a wide selection for people to look through. And, for the most part, people seemed to like them. Geometric tattoos and floral patterns, blackwork and animals, neo-traditional, those designs were pretty well received amongst the others. “You can check this out to get an idea of my style and talk me through what you’re thinking.” She handed over the binder before settling down in front of her laptop.

Being genuinely excited for something after weeks of feeling like life was a haze was a welcomed feeling. Ariana eagerly followed Luce to her room in the shop and answered, “I was thinking of doing some wildflowers in black ink. Color ink is kind of lost on me because color blind and all. I’d love to look through some of your designs though!” There was a hint of sadness at the mention of wildflowers and she decided to not explain her choice. Maybe she should have told Luce about what happened so she didn’t think Celeste ghosted her or something, but as many times as she already had to say it, she didn’t find it getting any easier. It still felt like a kick to the gut every freaking time. She thumbed through the pages of the binder and found she enjoyed Luce’s style. A lot of the floral patterns seemed to fit perfectly for what she wanted, but one in particular reminded her of a hike with Celeste. The shapes of the flowers and how the flowed across the page reminded her of the ones that grew around Dog Mountain in Washington. She’d suggested the spot for hiking based on the name of the mountain alone, but she could still remember the beaming smile on Celeste’s face as they ventured into a clearing that was filled with flowers as if it was yesterday. It was hard to think that was nearly six years ago and they’d never share another hike like that again. She looked a bit more wistful as she looked back to Luce, holding the binder up and pointing, “I like these. They remind me of--,” she started, ready to say Celeste but quickly cut herself off and said, “One of my favorite hikes.”

“Well, you’ve got the right artist for that. I prefer to do black and white tattoos in general.” Luce nodded as she gestured to a couple of the charcoal art pieces on the wall, the stencils in the binder, and the larger designs she’d tacked up to her corkboard. While she waited for Ariana to make her selection, Luce set to work prepping her workstation. Even if nothing caught Ariana’s eye, there was nothing wrong with wiping down the chair, making sure the drawers of her tool chest were neatly organized. It was just good practice. When Ariana held up the binder, showing her the delicate wildflower patterns, Luce nodded with an approving grin. “Where are you thinking of putting it? So I can size up the pattern for you. And would you want to add anything else to it? I’ve got plenty of time, I can make a couple small tweaks if you’d like.” She said as she opened up the stencil on her computer. She heard the slight falter in the girl’s tone, the way she paused. A part of her suspected that… no-- she wasn’t going to pry. Not about the death of a sister. “Nice. Where’d you go hiking?” She asked conversationally.

“Why am I not surprised that the artists here are werewolf friendly,” Ariana joked before admiring the charcoal pieces on the wall. She enjoyed Luce’s style. Art that wasn’t filled with lots of color was a lot easier for her to process and make sense of. Plus, it was totally an aesthetic. She took a moment to think over where she’d like to put it. Since this one didn’t scream I’m a werewolf, she wanted it somewhere more visible. She scanned over her arms and answered, “My left forearm. I think that’d work nicely. I want to be able to just look down and see it whenever I want to. I’m always bummed when I wear pants because I can’t see my wolf tattoo.” She briefly considered adding something specific to Celeste on there, but ultimately decided against it. The design as it was was already perfect and a subtle nod to her sister. “I’d like to keep the design as it is, but thanks.” Luce was being really nice, noting she had plenty of time to customize it however she wanted. There was even something more gentle about her than normal that Ariana couldn’t quite place, but she figured Ulfric must have told her. That would explain it. It didn’t make her feel too inclined to talk about it just yet. Instead, she focused on the happy memory with a fond smile that slightly deflected from her sad and tired eyes. “Lots of places, but these flowers remind me of the ones Celeste and I saw on a hike through Dog Mountain in Washington. There was this one clearing that was just filled with them. I swear you’d think Celeste had just won the lotto or something with how happy she looked.” The dull ache that came with remembering Celeste was present. Still, it felt better to keep her memory alive than to simply let it fade away with her.

Letting out a wry laugh, Luce shrugged, “Werewolf friendly businesses are few and far between in this town, we gotta maintain our reputation as a safe space for all. Besides, a happy boss means a happy me.” She said as she pulled up the stencil. With a cursory glance over at Ariana’s arm where she directed her, Luce nodded, mentally sizing up the area. Shrinking it down a little, she printed out the design before holding it up to the girl’s arm. Needed to be a bit smaller “I get that. I like my leg tattoos a lot, but yeah, they don’t spend as much time in the spotlight as my others.” She said. Under her black shorts, fishnet tights made criss crossed patterns over the tattoos on her legs, obscuring them slightly from view. That’s what happened when you had an aesthetic and stuck to it. As Ariana mentioned Celeste by name, Luce kept her face neutral. She couldn’t help the twist in her stomach at the thought of the woman, someone she’d only briefly known but was Ariana’s whole world. “Yeah. You see a lot of these in the Pacific Northwest. Not that I’ve ever been there, but I like the flowers that grow there.” She said with a nod as she went back to her computer and adjusted the stencil so it was just the right size. “Alright. You ready for this?” She asked, gesturing for the girl to take a seat in her chair.

Ariana knew she one day wanted both her arms to be covered in tattoos though she hadn’t gotten as far as what all she wanted. She kind of figured she liked enough of Ulfric’s random sketches that she could just point something out she thought was cool and he could just tattoo it on her. It didn’t need some special meaning. It being the art of someone she cared about was enough meaning for her. Plus, doing things just for aesthetic reasons were fun. It was her body. She didn’t need to justify her tattoo choices to literally anyone. Hell, she had half a mind to get the stupid tattoos her and Nell were joking about getting. Those would be more fun to get together anyway. With a small laugh, she mused, “Listen, your arms and legs are both goals.” She took a seat in the chair as directed and swallowed back a bit of the giddy energy that was building up inside her. She tried to position her arm so it was easy for Luce to work with and said, “Oh, I’m so ready. I’ve been dying to get another tattoo since I got my first one.” She kept still as she spoke, not wanting to mess up the outline Luce was preparing for her. “I liked the Pacific Northwest a lot. There’s a lot of places to go where it’s just nature which is basically wolf paradise. Do you do a lot of hiking here? I really love all your floral designs.” Focusing on something that wasn’t the Celeste part of the memory was a little easier. Soon, there’d also be the nice dull buzz of the needle to distract from that, too.

At the girl’s words, Luce offered a crooked smile, glancing down at her arms as she pulled on a pair of gloves. “Thanks. I’ve worked on them for the past eight years. Ulf, he did your first one, right?” She said as she wiped down the area and applied the stencil, stepping back to take a look at it. Hm. “He did my first tattoo, this one.” She said, extending her arm to show Ariana the lightbulb and bouquet that decorated the inside of her right forearm. “Fast forward eight years and… well, I caught the bug. So I get that.” With a smile, she redid the stencil a few times until it was lined up, so that the flowers were angled just so. Measure twice, cut once-- it applied to tattoos in a manner of speaking. “Let’s get started.” She said and turned on her machine, the familiar buzzing comforting in her hand. At Ariana’s words, Luce spoke up, “Yeah, there are a lot of good hiking trails around here. Probably can’t compare to Oregon or Washington or anything like that, but they’re solid.” Working on the outlines first, she smiled, “Thanks. Flowers are kind of a family thing.” She said, though the smile faded slightly from her face as she did so. “I had a lot of references around the house when we were growing up.”

Ariana figured it would take her about as long to work up to a tattoo collection that mirrored Luce’s and Ulfric’s. At least she personally knew two awesome artists and was more than happy to support them in any way she could. “Eight years, I’m sure you’re not done yet either,” she scanned over Luce’s arms and smiled at the lightbulb bouquet Ulfric had done on her forearm, “Oh, I love that one. He did do my first one, too. Though it’s unfortunately covered by jeans right now. It’s a big wolf in a nature motif surrounded by the moon phases because clearly I was going for subtle.” She did her best to remain still as Luce applied the stencil, not wanting to mess the artist up by moving around. Already, she loved the design and the placement. It’d be nice to have something she can glance down at more readily and it’d be nice to have another small piece of Celeste to carry around with her. A small pang reminded her of the sadness that seemed to constantly linger these days, but she wanted to keep those memories alive. She wanted to remember and be someone Celeste would still be proud of. Her focus shifted back to Luce. “The hiking here is actually pretty good, at least in the Outskirts. Although I will say, way more dangerous than the pacific northwest, at least the parts I’ve been too. Never saw a hedgehound out there. Or murder mimes. I’m sure you can hold your own out there though,” she mused, still kind of in awe of the whole witch thing. The hum of the tattoo machine soothed her even as the needle hit her skin. It was a dull pain and it served as a good distraction. “Oh yeah, I remember your sisters had a lot of flowers in the house. I actually got Nell a nice little arrangement of succulents since you said she likes plants. She seemed to love it… or at least she hasn’t cancelled our matching face tattoo idea yet.”

“Definitely not.” Luce agreed as she dipped the needles back into the small tub of ink before continuing her steady linework. “There’s a lot more I want to do. But, I also want to save space. Don’t want to fill things up too soon just in case there’s something else I want.” She said. Listening to the girl speak, Luce focused on the tattoo, mentally planning out where she wanted to add the shading around the petals and the leaves. “That’s really cool that he did that for you. And a super solid design. Ulf does good work, he always has.” She nodded. “And yeah, it’s always a good idea to be prepared for any and everything when you’re out in the woods around here. But, what with your wolf situation, I’m sure you can handle yourself.” Luce said. At the mention of Bea’s house, a lump formed in the back of her throat, but she did her best to ignore it. “Mhm. Nell has a whole greenhouse all to herself, full of all kinds of plants. Doesn’t surprise me that she liked the succulents, I don’t know how many of those she has.” She replied before lifting an eyebrow, glancing at Ariana as she wiped some of the excess ink away, “Matching face tattoos, huh?”

“That sounds like a struggle,” Ariana mused with a small grin. Self control had never been her strong suit and her tendency to act on impulse would make it hard for her to save space for new ideas that came up in the future. “That makes sense though. Saving room for new fun things. I still have a lot of room, so I figure I can go a little crazy with it for a bit. Well, as crazy as my wallet will allow anyway.” She kept her breathing slow and steady, focusing on both Luce’s words and the feeling of the needle in her arm. Even the gentle buzzing of the tattoo gun going had a soothing sound to it. “Yeah, I love the piece and I got to meet Ulf… who’s been totally great. Bet he didn’t expect to end up taking care of a teen werewolf, but he’s a pretty good sport about it. At least, I think he likes having me around. He’s working on getting a cabin built for us,” she rambled a bit, which wasn’t normal for her, but she kind of realized that him taking care of her hinted that Celeste wasn’t around anymore. She felt the slight jump her heart made in her chest and nodded, “Oh yeah, it’s hard to sneak up on or fight a wolf.” The greenhouse thing sounded pretty cool. She hoped to get her own garden going once they were settled into the cabin. “That’s so cool. I’ll have to ask her to see it some time. We’re supposed to be sparring soon, which should be fun.” She laughed a bit at the matching tattoo part, “Yep, they’re going to say ‘My Wolves, My Witches, & My Bitches’, but they gotta be like Post Malone style you know. Alternatively, it’s ‘spicy witch shorty’ and ‘shrimpy salsa wolf’ even though Nell is probably the only person who could call me shrimpy and not get punched… Well, and Blanche.”

“Not gonna lie, some days it is. Particularly when I’m surrounded by great artists.” Luce admitted as she filled in the next area. When was the last time she’d just talked about what kind of art she was looking to put on her body? Not since she’d talked to Dot, when the woman had been sitting in this very chair. Months ago. Must have been. But… it was nice. To pretend as though nothing was wrong. As though it was all normal. “Oh yeah, you’re young. You’ve got a lotta time and space.” At the mention of money, Luce kept her mouth shut as she continued to tattoo. The second Ariana had said she wanted a tattoo, Luce knew that she wouldn’t let the girl pay. A gift, in a way, in remembrance for Celeste. It was only the more fitting that the tattoo directly related to the woman. Swallowing, she pulled away and took a look at the outlines that she’d drawn. It was all coming together, looking even better inked on the skin than it had on paper. “Yeah? Well, not that I think either of you will need an extra hand, but I have a cabin of my own. Didn’t build it, but I’ve done some repair work on it. Some interior remodeling too.” Her jaw clenched slightly at the memory of herself, hurling fireballs at the ruined countertops of her cabin after she’d heard the news of Bea. Not one of her finest moments. “If you need someone who’s decent with a power drill, you can always give me a call.” She said as she drew one of the long stems of the flowers. “Yeah, I’m sure she’d be happy to show it to you. And, have fun with the sparring. Give her a good punch for me.” Luce said with a wry grin that was only half joking. A part of her really wanted to beat Nell into the dirt for all the secrets that she’d been keeping from her. At the sound of their planned tattoos, she snorted. “Sounds like a fantastic idea, I approve as both an artist and older sister.”

“You’re valid. Do you ever go to like conventions or stuff like that,” Ariana asked, genuinely curious if that was even a thing and if she could attend one. Her eyes were still on her own arm, watching in awe as Luce finished up the outlines of the flowers there. Somehow, her arm already felt a little more complete and they weren’t even done yet. The directions the flowers flowed in seemed to follow along gracefully with the curves of her arm. They looked as if they were just always meant to be there, meant to keep a part of Celeste with her always, even on days where she felt even further away. She nodded, “You right, you right.” Talking about the cabin did make her happy though. She’d finally have a permanent home, even if it stung that it wasn’t with Celeste, she was glad to have Ulfric. It wasn’t the same, but it didn’t make his role in her life any less meaningful. “Dude, that’s so cool. I mean, I know that’s literally what I’m going into, but it’s always awesome to see other women who are good at wooding, too. I’m sure one of us will let you know if we need an extra hand. Either way, you’ll have to come by and check out the finished product,” she said as she grimaced slightly as Luce worked on the part of her arm closer to her elbow. It wasn’t unbearable my any means, just more sensitive that the other parts had been. “I’m sure she would, we get along pretty well. Comes with the being short and always ready to fight. Think I can do that for you. Nell did insist I called woodworking wooding around you just to see your reaction,” she explained, smiling fondly as she remembered just how ridiculous 90% of their conversations were. “Well, now we have to get it.”

“I’ve been to a couple of expos, yeah. A couple in Boston. One in Montreal a few years back, one all the way down in New York.” Luce nodded as she moved onto the shading. She wanted to keep it delicate, to match the fine lines of the flower petals that she’d made. So, light, careful strokes were key. “Nah. You’re actually gonna be learning big time woodworking, framing stuff. I’m just a DIY kinda gal when it comes to the smaller stuff. Very stereotypical of me.” She said with a wry grin. The jokes about lesbians and Lowes had some merit to them. But, that’s just what happened when you lived on your own in the middle of the woods. You figured out how to take care of yourself. You learned how to live without needing another person. When had that changed? She hadn’t even realized that she was a different person from the girl who’d first moved into the cabin until the day she’d heard the news. That was when she realized just how… fucking stupid she’d been. To cut her sisters out. Clearing her throat, she focused on Ariana’s words again, “Yeah, for sure. I’d be happy to check it out, if only to fuck with Ulf and tell him the joints aren’t lined up right or something.” She laughed and wiped away some ink once more. Nice. It was all coming together into a beautiful arm piece. “I figured she’d put you up to that. Or maybe Blanche. Either of them have a knack for being little shits sometimes.” But, the words lacked some of the fire she’d normally have. They were both working just as hard as she was in their joint endeavor to bring back. She couldn’t be too hard on them. They were just trying to have fun, to be kids, in this fucked up town.

“That’s so cool. Do they ever do any near here? I think I’d like to check one out,” Ariana replied, still super intrigued with the whole thing. Getting to see a bunch of artists and their work. The prospect of also leaving with a new tattoo was fun. She was still intently focused on this one and was entranced watching Luce work. Her hand was definitely gentle and steady as she worked, never holding the needle to her skin for too long to bear. The flowers were looking better than she could have even imagined. At the mention of stereotypes, she laughed a little bit. “I guess we’re both stereotypes in that regard. Does that one still apply if you’re bi? Oh well, I’m claiming it. You can 100% catch me in a Lowe’s… or Trusty Wood.” At the mention of messing with Ulf, there was a devious grin on her face. “Please do that, I love that. I’ll even go along with it.” She let out a soft sigh at the feeling of the cool paper towel wiping away the excess ink. This was only her second tattoo, but she’d quickly realized what a satisfying feeling it was. “Blanche and Nell? Little shits? They would never,” she retorted with a small smirk as she lightly shook her head, “We have to make up for what we lack in height with pure anger and chaotic energy. It’s the law.”

“Boston’s about the closest one to us. Five hour drive. It’s not terrible,” Luce said with a nod. “If one comes up, I’ll let you know. I’m sure you’d be able to have enough time off to come down for a weekend at the very least. Expos are cool places to see other artists, network, figure out what sorta stuff you like.” As Luce looked at the tattoo, she leaned in to finish up the last few areas of shading. Other than that, the tattoo was done. As she added a few speckles to one of the leaves, she realized that the time had passed by far quicker than she’d thought. Huh. Maybe it was just because she had someone to talk with, rather than being talked at. That must have been it. “”You know, I feel like it’s just a big queer woman mood. So you know, you can own Lowe’s.” She said with a slight laugh. Wiping down the tattoo, she leaned back. “What do you think of it? The offer from before stands. If you want me to add anything, now’s the time to say so.”

“That’s not too bad. I’ll hopefully have enough for a used truck by the end of the summer,” Ariana explained, “But totally let me know. I’d love to check one out.” She watched as Luce added the finishing touches to her tattoo and admired her new piece. There was no doubt in her mind that it would look perfect once it healed up. All in all, it was a win. She’d enjoyed getting to talk with Luce some and she had a dope new tattoo to show for it. She laughed along with the joke and added, “I love that for us. It works either way because we don’t need a man to do our home repairs for us.” For a moment, she thought over if she wanted to add anything to the tattoo when Luce asked and she couldn’t help but admire it just the way it was. “I think it’s perfect as is,” she said confidently. It was a subtle dedication to Celeste, one she wouldn’t have to explain over and over. It was just for her. She watched as Luce wipes away the last of the excess ink and wrapped her arm. She vaguely remembered the instructions Ulfric gave her last time and was sure he’d also be able to remind her at home if she forgot. “So aquaphor and antibacterial soap for the after care, right?”

“Nice. And yeah, for sure. They’re cool places.” Luce said with a grin and waited for Ariana to voice her approval. The way the girl’s eyes flicked over the tattoo, taking in the design-- these were moments that she lived for. When clients got to see the art she’d created, this new part of who they were. It was gratifying. Especially when it was a design she liked. “Awesome.” She said, tossing away the used bits of machinery and gloves into their designated disposal bins. Stretching, she walked Ariana back out to the main office, grabbing one of the bags with Aquaphor and instructions for her. “Yep, you know the drill. And besides, you can always ask Ulf, he knows best.” Leaning against the check in counter, she nodded, “You’re all set to go. I’m glad that you liked that one. It turned out really well, if I do say so myself.”

“Oh yeah, living with a tattoo artist definitely has its perks,” Ariana replied with a small laugh. If she did by chance forget something on tattoo care, she probably didn’t even have to leave the room she was in to ask him. Small place paired with werewolf hearing did have some advantages. The fact she relied on voice to text and audio texts software for half her messaging endeavors was not one of them. She’d slung her bag back over her shoulder and gave Luce a puzzled look. “It does look damn good, but how much do I owe you?”

“You’re all set.” Luce repeated, folding her arms across her chest as she looked at the young woman before her. “The tattoo’s on the house. For your sister.” She said with a nod, her jaw tightening slightly. Ariana would never know it, but she was very aware of what kind of grief the girl was going through. The unique pain of losing a sister. And if getting a tattoo would help, if it could ease the pain just a little, she was more than happy to foot the bill.

It took Ariana a moment to process what Luce had just said. She had a feeling Ulf may have told Luce, but she still hadn’t been expecting the tattoo to be on the house. She nodded slowly, trying to push back the feelings that the mention of Celeste brought up. “Thank you,” she said, barely above a whisper, “Really-- it was… well, it’s to remember her by.” Not wanting to get too emotional in the middle of the tattoo shop, she gave a wave and a small smile before she made her way out the door. The tattoo was still wrapped, but she knew it’d being her a sense of peace in the months and years to come. She’d definitely remember the kind gesture from a friend as well, somehow giving the piece even more meaning to her.

#wickedswriting #luce #petals for armor #sibling death mentions?

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claryaastark · 4 years

Text

Endlessly

04162020

March 25, 1920

Dear You,

I am writing this letter just to let you know that I still miss you so much, my love. Being far from home is not easy, I made a lot of adjustments here in our dormitory. We do a lot of scheduled daily tasks, also the housemistress is very strict. I cannot eat my mom's special calderata, I don't really like the foods here, the amount is small and it tastes way too different from my mom's cooking. I miss the smell of my father's brewed coffee as I woke-up every morning. I miss the sound of the water from the Estero and the cool breeze of the wind from my window. I miss Binondo, and most importanly, you.

It's 8:30 in the evening, the housemistress will do the head count and evening checking at 9. Writing this letter for a short span of time is not easy, especially now that I am expressing how much I long for you. I still remember the first time that we met. I was riding the Kalesa with ate Maria, on the Calle Escolta. And I saw you lifting a sack of flour on the famous Pan De Sal bakery. You held my hand and help me get down from the Kalesa to get the orders from your shop. And that moment of time, I fell inlove with you. I remember the times when I used to sneak from our house's window during dark and we are going to ride the boat and roam along the Estero de Binondo. You are holding my hand, and we are both hoping not to get caught. As we look at the stars above, and the moon shines through us. We used to do a morning walk on the Calle Real Palacio and enjoy the scent of the fresh Kalachuchi. You also love to pick a pink gumamela, and put it beside my ears while telling me how lovely I am and how much you want to be with me.

I can't also forget the time that you held the guitar and sing for me in the Plaza Moraga during the town's feast. I was so happy that time and I feel like I was the luckiest woman in the world. You held my hand, and asked for the permission of my parents. And we danced. We danced under the stars while you speak to me, telling me how beautiful I am that night, telling me how much you appreciate me. After that, you ask me to marry you and I said yes. We were just so happy.

But the world is uncertain and things always change. Two months before our wedding day, a letter came to me. I was accepted by my dream university here in Baguio City. This is something that I've been waiting for a very long time, this is my dream. But chasing this dream for myself also means losing you. And I don't want that to happen. I tried not to chase this dream for myself and just be happy with you. But you pushed me, you pushed me to do this for myself. You made me choose this dream instead of you. It's hard, but you promised that you will wait for me. Even if it takes forever.

But promises are meant to be broken. I know that you won't read this letter and there is no chance of seeing you again. But I want you to know, that I still mourn for you. That I will never have the chance to move on and get over from that night. That night when a letter came to me telling that you died from an accident. It still feels like a dream to me. All our hopes, all of the things that we planned together were just gone, in a snap. I can't do anything, I can't force things to happen. It hurts, I still cry every night my love. I miss you so much. And writing this letter is just my way to live in a dream. A dream that you and I are still together. Maybe another place, maybe another time. Till then, let's say goodbye I see you in another life. You will always be my love, my life and my everything. I know that will meet again, someday. Someday.

Forever Your Love

Today is March 25, 1970. It was so weird that I saw this letter out of nowhere while cleaning my dorm. And upon reading this, I didn't notice that I was already crying. I can feel the pain of the woman who wrote this. I don't know who this person is, nor the ending of their story but I hope that she found her happiness.

I pick the letter and put it on the box of my stuff. I insert my newly purchased CD on the Sylvania console stereo. This is a gift from my father before I left Cebu to study here in Baguio city. He knows so well that I love music so much and it was some sort of magic that makes me feel comforted. I played Let It Be, the last song that was released by my favorite band, The Beatles. Two weeks had passed since Paul McCartney stated that he is leaving the band. It was heart breaking especially for me, who is a big fan of this band. Sadly, I prepare for my morning class while listening to their last song.

Long day was over. Everything is just typical. Acads, people, routine. Though it was still tiring. I am a Fine Arts student in University of The Philippines here in Baguio City. Living an independent life is not easy. I miss my family so much, I miss my mom's cooking, my dad's silly joke as we spend our time under the mango tree during siesta. I miss my friends in Cebu, the sea, the farm. I miss everything about my home. The sun is setting and I am walking along the busy street of the Session Road while wearing my earphones. I decided to eat my dinner alone on Inihaws, my favorite restaurant here. While eating my dinner, I noticed a boy who keeps staring at me. I tilted my body to block his view, it feels awkward and creepy. As I continue to eat my food, I can see on my peripheral vision that he is still staring at me. I heaved a sigh and look directly to his eyes, I waved my hand and patted the seat beside me. Asking him to come and sit.

“What are you staring at?" I asked arrogantly.

He pouted his lips, pointing my plates and artworks. Ah, so he's looking at my artworks.

“What about them?" I asked him.

“They're nice and classic, I love them. Fine arts?" He talks so manly and attractive, uhh?

“Yup. There is just something that I saw this morning which inspired me for my plate today"

I explained as we both looked on the sketch of a woman riding a Kalesa, and a man who is holding her hand, they are both alive and smiling. They are the people on the letter that I read this morning.

The conversation went smoothly. I found out that he is an Architecture student on Saint Louis University, we are both into arts. I got no stuff to do this evening, so I decided to go with him as he asked me to have an evening walk along the Session Road. We talk about our interest, arts, music, things that we are fond of. We got a lot of things in common. He talks a lot, and I like how quick-witted he is as he tells a lot of jokes. We didn't notice the hour, it was already 10 in the evening. I do not as well, but I don't feel scared on this man that I just met few hours ago. I feel comfortable and we have this sort of connection like we knew each other on the past. We spent the night telling each other's story. We went to his small art room, and he painted me. He ask me to hold a plastic flower as I smile while he is painting me. It seems like I met a stranger, and this whole night is like a fairy-tale.

It was already 3 in the morning, we are sitting on the grass while we look on the city lights below. It was so beautiful. As well as the man beside me, he is lovely. I didn't ask for his name but it feels like I already know him so well. He tilted his head on my direction and caught me staring at him, he smiled and out of nowhere, his face turns sad.

“I'm married" he said.

I was shocked. I was hurt, and there is something that stings on my chest.

“I know you since we were freshmen, I first saw you sketching on the Inihaws. You are alone and you seem so committed with your passion. I find it so adorable, the way you move your hand, the way you put your hair on the side of your ears. The way you frown your forehead as you make some mistakes. I fell in love with you, the first time I saw you. Since then, I always follow you. I see you walking on the street while wearing your earphones. I always see you eating alone on the Inihaws. I always see you smiling on the street vendors, you are adorable as you say your good morning to them. And when I finally decided to introduce and show myself to you. My mom from Sagada called me. Asking me to come home. That day, I went home to Sagada. I saw my ex-girlfriend, and she has a child — our child. We were a stubborn, inlove teenagers during high school. We broke up just like a typical puppy love story. But I didn't know, that I got her pregnant. My son is already two years old when she showed up. She can't raise our child alone, so she decided to tell it to me and my family. Two months after, we get married."

My heart is aching as I listened to his story, I feel bad for him, I feel bad for us. I didn't speak a word. I just let myself stare on the city lights below. I can't process my thoughts right now. Feels like the fairytale is finally over. Surprisingly, he held my hand.

“I love my son, he is the reason why I am working hard to become an Architect. I love her mother, but not the way that I love you from a far. I fell in love with you and you deserve to know it. I was so happy loving you from afar, and thank you for that. Maybe another place, maybe another time. Till then, let's say goodbye I see you in another life, Stella"

He called my name, and he left.

Those were the last thing that he said that night. And I never saw him again. Maybe, maybe someday we will have the chance to love each other not just from afar. We will be together, someday.

March 25, 2020. This is it, this is the day that me and friends are finally seeing each other! After one year of not meeting everyone because of College, we're finally going out today. We chose the art exhibit as a venue for our date today. I'm excited! I kissed my mom as I went downstairs for breakfast, she teased me that our plan for today will be cancelled because of my excitement. I love my mom so much but sometimes, I hate her for ruining my moments hmp. I eat my favorite egg roll and decided to ignore her.

The time is 2:30 in the afternoon. I am already prepared for today's meeting. I drove the car and play my classic OPM playlist. I love music so much, and I can't live without it. Kamikazee's Tagpuan is currently playing, I bang my head and sang along with the melody of the song. It's 4 in the afternoon when I arrived at the venue. It is odd because I see no familiar face here. I opened my phone to ask where they are, and found out that the exhibit plan was cancelled during the last minute. And they decided to just eat on the restaurant nearby our place. I don't know what to feel, I feel bad for not checking my phone before leaving the house. I feel bad for being excited, mom is right. I don't know but I kinda felt lazy to go on the restaurant near our place because I traveled to get here for 2 hours. My excitement just all went down. I get in the car and think. Upon fighting with my thoughts I decided to just stay here and continue the exhibit plan, alone. It is a new experience though.

I went inside and everything feels amazing. I’m not an artsy kind of person, I don’t have any talents in art but one thing is sure — I really do appreciate art. I love to spend my time on looking at the green grass outside, the blue sky above and the beauty of nature. I do love aesthetic things because it reminds me that despite of being cruel, beautiful things on this world still exist. The ambience is nice, the people are few but I can see that they are enjoying the paintings inside the hall. I walk and took a photograph of the artworks. After that, I posted it on my instagram story and send it to our group chat to tell them that I can’t make it on our dinner anymore. And I decided to just stay here and stick to the original plan.

I roam around the hall and appreciate the beauty of art. While walking, a painting caught my attention. It was a woman with curly hair, and she was smiling from ear to ear. She was wearing a floral dress and holding a piece of rose. The woman seems so happy and I can feel the genuine emotion of the one who painted it. Is her boyfriend the one who painted her? It was romantic. Suddenly, I feel something weird and unexplainable on my chest, I can really feel something on this painting. Something that is connected with me.

“It was nice and classic, isn’t it lovely?”

I was shocked when someone has spoken out of nowhere, I tilted my head on the direction of the voice, it was a man. He was wearing a black shirt, and he is holding a camera. He is smiling sincerely while looking at the painting, weird but it seems like the voice came from the painting itself.

“Uhh yes. This painting feels so real and sincere. I can feel the emotion of both the painter and the subject” I said while looking directly at the painting. And I was smiling.

Our conversation went smoothly, and it seems like I found an instant date. He talks a lot and I found out that we were on the same University. He is an Engineering student, and he loves to play the guitar. I felt fascinated because I was attracted with men who are inclined to music. We roam around the hall and we were just so happy. Finally, long day is over and we bid our good byes. But before that, he asked for my phone number.

Oh shoot. I forgot to ask his name. But nevermind, I still have a lot of chance to meet him again. I smiled as my phone beeps and I got a text message from an unknown number.

“Take care, I had a good time. See you around” -Mr. Engineer

That’s the text message. I went home with a big smile on my face, the date with my friends have been cancelled. But I found a new experience today. Something more happy, and amazing. I lay in bed and look at the ceiling of my room along with its fake galaxy. I smiled as I remember the man that I met few hours ago. While giggling, I replied on his text message.

“Good night, Mr. Engineer! Had a good time too” -Ms. Psychologist.

To sum it up, we talk on the phone everyday. He always made my day, he always make me smile. He jokes a lot and he had a lot on his mind. He is quick-witted and very manly. After a few weeks of talking, I admit that I already had a crush on him. Along with that, we decided to spend our time together. And as time passed by, I am knowing him more and more.

We had the same interest in almost everything. We watched the same movies together. We listen to our favorite songs. We eat our favorite foods. Though we never share any of our favorite foods, especially him who can fight with anyone who touches his food, even me. We travelled places to taste various delicacies. We went to church regularly to pray. He became a part of my everyday. He loves picking a flower and putting it on the side of my ears. He loves playing the guitar for me.

It was really nice, to found someone who appreciates every little thing on you. Someone who can lend his ears and shoulder to listen. Someone who can cheer you up whenever you are feeling down. He loves kissing me, but loves hugging me more. I felt home and safe on his arms. It was weird but there is something that is telling me, that we really had the connection and we knew each other a very long time ago. All that he made me feel was something new. It was my first time, to fall inlove with someone. I had no doubts and regrets.

But the world is always uncertain, there are lots of things that we are unsure, so is us. We are just happy, and then in just a snap we parted our ways, and we fell apart. Maybe another place, maybe another time. Till then let’s say good bye, I see you in another life. I know that he is a blessing from God, and whatever it takes. We will meet again, someday.

Parang isang panaginip, Ang muling mapagbigyan, tayo ay muling magkasama.

Panatag na ang kalooban ko, At ika’y kapiling ko na Kay tagal kitang hinintay

I smiled as this classic song by Spongecola played on my car’s stereo. Today is 25th of March, 2025. And I am finally seeing him again. I smiled, a nervous smile mixed with excitement.

It was weird because last night, as I was fixing my stuff in our Ancestral house in Bagac, Bataan, I saw an old box . It was a collection of CDs, some of the albums are from The Beatles. And I saw a very old letter, the pen was already disappearing and it was already stained. The letter was from March 25, 1920. It was very old ; a hundred and five years ago. Along with the letter, I also saw an artwork. A sketch of a woman riding a Kalesa, and a man who is holding her hand, they are both alive and smiling on this artwork. I asked mom about this stuff, and she said that it belongs to my great grandmother, Stella. It was her stuff during her college days on Baguio City.

Anyway, after the very long wait. I am finally seeing him again.

The hall is full of people. I am wearing a red polka dots dress, I know that black is his favorite color but I want to show him something new. It seems like I was lost in the crowd and I can’t see him anywhere. But as I was walking through the sea of people, someone held my hand and whispered.

“You look so beautiful, baby. You never changed” I got teary-eyed as I heard his voice. Oh God, I miss him so much. I miss this man. The man that I lost and the same man that I found again. The long wait is over, we finally have the chance to be with each other. I hugged him tight, the only man that I ever loved, love and I will love wherever and whenever.

“Baby, I’m no angel, I’m just me. But I will love you endlessly” those were the words that I whispered through his ear.

“We parted our ways together, we fell apart but fate will always make a way for us. Time will always tell. In another place, in another time, we will always be together, our love is endless”

Words that I said, while directly looking into his eyes.

It’s 25th of March, year 2030. And today is our wedding day.

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youremeimyou · 4 years

Text

Promise Me(pt.2)

Part 1 - Part 2

pairing: Park Jimin x reader (ft. Kim Taehyung) genre: Lots of angst, fluff and pure drama... word count: 5k warnings: alcohol consumption, sexual tension

Description: Y/N is Jimin’s longest and best friend. Certain feelings are caught and meanwhile, Jimin accidently sets Y/N up with his other best friend. But not before getting her to make him a promise.

A/N: First off, sorry cuz I know it’s been a long time since pt.1. But finally pt.2 is here, yayy! This one’s a bit more angsty but these two boys are both fluffballs so there are lots of cute stuff. (sighs)I just love Vmin so much, it was hard to do this justice. I hope I could and I hope you’ll like it. I’d love to know what you think. Enjoy!

It had almost been a month since the eventful Christmas. Taehyung was walking to the girl's dorm to spend some time with Y/N. This was his third time going without Jimin since he finally found the courage to go alone a few weeks ago, when he made up a stupid excuse for showing up at her door in the middle of the night.

Of course he was drunk that night. A few words may have slipped out of his mouth that made Y/N a blushing mess. But he never made a move on her in his drunken state and she appreciated that. Y/N took care of him, helped him sober up, let him sleep on her couch. So it became normal for him to drop by just to hang out since then.

After everything that went down on Christmas, Jimin only had one mission in mind: Avoid both of your best friends at all costs.

It was obviously hard considering one of them was a person he saw everyday since he was a kid and the other was his roommate. But he tried his best. It was starting to become tiring, feeling bothered and even heartbroken without understanding why and pretending to be okay so they wouldn't figure out. So he was more ghost than man over the course of last month.

It didn't go unnoticed by Y/N of course, she saw through his acts easily. Especially the times they would work on the musical. Normally doing anything with Jimin was fun for Y/N, even work and studying. And producing a musical normally would've been crazy fun. But Y/N could tell he was being distant. He wouldn't even come over much, saying there was still a lot of time to work on the project. All of that broke Y/N's heart to pieces.

There was a flower in Taehyung's hand that he picked up from the little winter garden at the coffee shop he'd been coming from. And he contemplated whether or not to give it to Y/N as he waited outside her room. But suddenly the door opened.

"Oh- Hey Tae! What're you doing here?"

"Uhh.. Hi. I just came by to ask you if you wanted to play some Mortal Kombat." he said, having trouble keeping eye contact.

"You mean you wanna get your ass kicked by the best player around? Sure." Y/N smirked. "I was just about to take out the trash so after that-"

Taehyung took it from her hands.

"I'll take it out and you get the game ready?" He made it sound like a question but started walking away to do as he said at the same time.

"Wait. What's that in your..?"

Taehyung looked back to see Y/N pointing at the flower in his hand, a funny expression on her face. He mentally face palmed.

"Oh this? Uhh it's just-" he sighed defeatedly and passed it to her. "It's for you." She was cringing and laughing but it still made his heart race as she took it to her nose.

"Thanks, it smells so nice."

After 15 rounds of K.O. -each with fatality- from Y/N, Taehyung gave up and put the controller down with a frown. Then he noticed the sketches on the coffee table.

"Oh, come on. You're good at music, acting and drawing? How's that fair for the rest of the world?" Taehyung protested.

"I'm merely mediocre at the first two and I suck at the last one. Admit it."

"No way! What were you drawing here?"

"Uh.. Jimin.."

Taehyung's eyes went wide. "Oh. Okay, sorry it just looks more like Bart Simpson than anything."

They both burst into laughter.

"I know. It's just- the professor wants the posters to also be original and made by us. So I wanted it to be a cool drawing of Jimin. You know, cause he's the lead." Her face dropped as she continued. "And also.. Jimin's been out of my reach lately. Which sucks.. So I thought maybe I could surprise him and make up for anything stupid I did to make him avoid me."

Taehyung could tell how important this was to her. He also was on Jimin's 'to avoid list'. An idea popped into his mind.

"Well, I can work on a poster for Jimin. Though, it'll be kinda hard to keep it from him. He always loves to snoop whenever I'm working on something."

Taehyung was a graphic design student that did illustrations for a comic book shop as part time gig. So he was more than qualified. But all of his equipment and designing programs were on his computer. And his wasn't a laptop but a desktop pc.

"You're just gonna have to distract him for me!" Taehyung said while looking like he presented the best idea ever.

"That is a brilliant idea. But our lovely Chim doesn't really talk to me novadays." Y/N's frown returned. She really had missed him.

"Come on, he can never resist you."

Now that was true. All three of them knew it. Even if it made Taehyung a bit upset, he just knew their relationship was something way bigger than anything else. And so, they made a deal and shook on it. Taehyung was gonna get free tickets to the musical in return for designing the poster.

Later that day, Taehyung texted Y/N saying he had an inspiration and that she needed to get Jimin out of the room to start working on it. So she quickly got ready and went over there.

She knocked on the door and heard both of the boys collectively say "Come in!" When she walked in she saw that Jimin really was trying to look at what Taehyung was doing on his computer. A curious little baby, she thought.

"Hey Chim. Whatcha doin'?"

The look on Jimin's face as he looked at her was confusing. Because it contained nervousness and edginess but also longing and relief. It gave hope to Y/N in thinking she wasn't the only one missing a best friend. Jimin walked over to her and when he noticed a strand of hair fall on her eyes, he gently put it back behind her ear.

"Nothing much. You?"

"Same. Wanna come over and work on some dance moves? I feel like I can't do any of 'em right. I really need you.."

She had no idea why she expressed that last part with so much emotion. But it made Jimin inhale sharply.

"Okay, sure."

"Great! Oh, you go ahead and I just gotta return Taehyung this uh.. pen I burrowed."

Y/N had one of her own pens in her hand and Jimin knew it. But he wasn't gonna dig on the subject. He just settled for rolling his eyes and saying "Fine.." as he walked out. Taehyung on the other hand was confused not remembering ever lending her a pen.

"Here Tae, thanks!" She shouted that so Jimin would hear and then whispered the next part.

"Whatever you do, just draw him dancing. Oh, and I want my pen back later."

Y/N knew her neighboors would complain about the noise she and Jimin were making while practising. But it didn't matter. With the way his body moved fluidly as he showed her his smooth and flawless moves and the way he held her hips to move her and teach her when she couldn't get it right.. Y/N didn't care one bit about the neighboors, no.

Every once in a while he would dance behind her to lead her through the choreography, all the while his breathy voice in her ear, panting and counting the steps. Needless to say she felt hot and bothered. So she suggested to take a break.

The chamomile sitting on the little table inside a glass of water caught Jimin's eye. He knew for a fact Y/N wasn't a flower person. Whenever he'd buy her some in the past, they'd always end up dead. He did have a guess in mind about who might've brought it here, though.

"I hope he won't get upset when it dies in like two days." He pointed to it with his head.

"I know he's your friend but sorry, that thing was a goner as soon as it was placed in my care."

"Well, sad. Cause coming from Taehyung, it's kinda a big gesture."

A frown formed on Y/N's brows, with the worry of making Taehyung upset. But flowers just didn't grow with her, nothing could be done.

"I'm afraid it wasn't the right gesture to pull on me."

"He doesn't know you like I do."

By this point, he was much closer to Y/N than he was at the beginning of the conversation. Y/N hadn't even realized him moving towards her. This rehersal had been nothing but tense so far.

"No one does, Chim."

They looked into each other's eyes as if it was a staring contest. Jimin would normally win those. But having her right in front of him, with drops of sweat falling from her face down to her collarbones and heat radiating off her skin, he felt a push like never before to get even closer so he had to step back as caution.

"Good job today, panda. These moves fit you so well."

"Thanks. And thanks for teaching me. Sorry for being such a burden-"

"Hey!" Jimin cut in and stepped towards her again to look her in the eyes once more. "You could never be a burden." He gave her a kiss on the forehead and left soon after.

The evening came pretty soon and Y/N was very exhausted after all the dancing around earlier. Jimin was a professional at it. His body and condition would rival any of the boys on soccer team. But Y/N wasn't fit like that. So she was getting ready to call it at a day. In fact, she was barely awake as she layed on the couch. She nearly jumped out of her skin when her phone went off loudly with notifications. Her brain immediately presumed to see 'Chimmy' on the screen but instead it was 'TaeTae'.

-Hey wanna come over real quick? Jimin went out.

-I mean to talk about the poster, I swear I’m not a perv.. u awake?? I really need opinions!

-Y/N, he'll be out prolly all night, this is our chance.

Out all night? Why would he be out all night? Y/N quickly called Jimin first before even opening the messages.

"Angel? What's up?"

"Hey Chim, where are you?"

"Uh.. on my way to the library. I have intel that there'll be a quiz on Theatre History tomorrow." He voiced the last part like those characters in spy movies.

"Oh. Why didn't you tell me? I took that class last year and still have my notes, I could come help you."

"I know but no need, lovely. You were already tired today. And Namjoon hyung's here to give me an intensive course."

He always managed to make a smiling fool out of Y/N with the endless, sweet nicknames. This time wasn't an exception.

"Anything up with you? If you need something I'm already outside I can-"

"No, I just wanted to check in on you, I'm about to go to sleep. Good luck and say hi to Joon."

"I will. Sweet dreams, angel."

She got up to walk to her bed but remembered Taehyung’s messages. Her body desperately craved sleep but Taehyung was right. It was a great opening with Jimin out of the room so she dragged her feet over there.

When Taehyung opened the door and saw a sleepy Y/N, his stomach started doing flips and somersaults. As a result, he was a stuttering mess.

“Hey, sorry if uh.. if I wake- woke you. Come on- come in! Come in.”

His hair was wet. There was a towel over his shoulders and he held a t-shirt over his chest. Fresh out of the shower. Y/N eyes traced the t-shirt down to where once she knew his tummy was from P.E. classes in high school. Tummy was no more, though. Those were qualified abs. Not overdone but just the right amount of them. Once she noticed she was staring, her eyes quickly changed direction. And when he noticed what she had been doing, he visibly blushed and audibly gulped.

“Oh.. When you didn’t write back, I thought you might’ve gone to sleep so I just hopped in the shower.” he explained as he quickly put on his shirt.

They went over to his computer to see the progress of the poster. Taehyung sat on the chair in front of the table and Y/N took a seat on Taehyung’s bed right next to it.

“Woah, Tae it looks incredible. I can’t believe you’re done so soon!”

“Done? No, I’m not done. There’re still a lot of details we should go through.”

As Taehyung mumbled the list of said details, Y/N couldn’t get her attention away from the poster. The elegancy and the delicacy of the move Jimin was pictured doing seemed so real, like an actual photo. But the colors and the environment looked so abstract.

“You’ve really captured the essence of Jimin and the way he loses himself to dance. Wow.”

“I’ve seen him perform enough times to familiarize with the demon that posesses him on stage.”

Thank you Mr. Demon, Y/N thought as she always did when seeing Jimin perform.

Taehyung then settled on his bed next to Y/N with a pen and paper on his hands to sketch. He was asking Y/N about the stuff he wanted to change or add and etc and showing her what it would roughly look like. And Y/N tried her best to give opinions but her eyes were slowly but surely closing, drifting into sweet slumber. And so she dozed off. Taehyung didn’t even notice until he also was pulled by sleep.

He thought about waking her up but couldn’t bring himself to do it. He watched her steadily breathing for a while before being taken by sleep himself.

A few hours later Jimin came back from the library and slowly got inside his room, guessing his roomate would be sleeping. What he never would’ve expected was seeing Y/N curled up next to him. Sleeping by his side.

That devastating feeling came back to sit on Jimin’s chest. She knew Jimin would be out for hours, maybe even until the morning. She called Jimin before coming here. Why? Why would she sneak in here without saying anything to him? Why would she keep this.. whatever it was a secret from him? They were clearly way closer than Jimin imagined.

His breath got stuck in his throat. He felt furious and heartbroken and he wanted to run away but stopped dead in his tracks. The thought of leaving them alone in here like this seemed inconceivable at that moment. So he walked over to his bed and plumped on it. Pulling the cover over his head he hoped it wasn’t real but when he got his head out again, the view was the same.

That’s when he saw Y/N twitching and grunting in discomfort. She was slowly gaining back consciousness. Her head was between her hands as she tried to wake up fully, realizing she fell asleep unintentionally. After miraculously managing to slip out of the bed without waking Taehyung up, she noticed Jimin sitting on his bed staring at her. She wobbly walked over to him. And even though Jimin was upset, he still felt worried, she didn’t look well.

“What’s wrong with you?”

“This crazy headache woke me up. I feel like vomiting.”

Jimin got up and went to check on her by instinct. “Let’s get you to a doctor.”

“No no. It’s just normal migraine stuff, Chim. It won’t pass unless I manage to go back to sleep. I should get back to my room.”

She started walking towards the door and decided to explain everything to Jimin in the morning when she’d be able to do it better. Jimin on the other hand couldn’t leave her alone when she was in this much pain. Putting everything aside for the time being, he pulled her back by her arm.

“Just come here, Y/N.”

He pulled her into the bed next to himself and gently turned her to face the other way. His hands travelled on her temples, eyes and forhead, slowly massaging the areas. He would place little kisses on the back of her head from time to time, too. She’d get these headaches every once in a while so Jimin had learned over time what he could do to make her feel better.

“It’ll be okay. Just close your eyes, try clearing your head and take deep breaths, baby.” he whispered in her ear.

Jimin’s arms were home. Warm, comfy and familiar. Even that headache couldn’t hold Y/N back from dozing off once more and sleeping soundly in his embrace. Jimin kept watching over her and only allowed himself to sleep when it seemed like all her pain was gone.

With the morning sun Y/N slowly came around from sleep. She felt the lack of a set of arms around her so she turned around to regain them as her eyes were still closed. They opened in disbelief when she couldn’t find the source. Her eyes looked around the room next but only to find that both Jimin and Taehyung were gone.

Y/N stayed in bed, trying to remember details of last night. She had accidently fallen asleep on Taehyung’s bed. She wondered what Jimin thought when he saw her like that. He did seem upset and she’d love to explain it to him but that terrible headache.. And how Jimin took care of her. Wasn’t new that he helped her but the atmosphere felt different at that moment. Despite being distant for a while before, he was being more intimate with her lately. A different kind of intimate. She really wanted to have a talk with him. She decided to text him but she saw the texts he had sent before on the screen.

-Y/N, I had to leave to get to class. If you're still not feeling okay, you have to go to the doctor. Let me know if you do. If not, bagels in the fridge and coffee's made.

-My keys are on the night stand you can leave them under the mat if you go out. But I'd love to have you there when I get back, angel.

There it was. An opportunity to have the talk. Jimin seemed to want to, as well. So decided on waiting there, it was a free day for her anyways.

Some time later sounds came from the door implicating someone coming in. Y/N thought it must've been Jimin. It was his taller counterpart.

"Oh, uh.. morning, Y/N."

"Hey, Tae. Did you have an early class?"

"No, it's my free day just like you. I just went out for a walk."

"In this cold?" Y/N teased, smiling.

"I was kinda hot headed so the cold helped."

His voice was even deeper than normal. And the features of his face were unusually hardened.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, sure."

He shot her a quick smile that didn't even reach his eyes. And anyone that knew Taehyung knew he was never insincere. That was against his nature.

"You can talk to me about anything." Y/N said as she handed him the cup of coffee she poured for him when he came in.

Taehyung stared at the mug. Then, at her strecthed out arm and lastly at her eyes, without saying a word or moving. He looked like he was thinking carefully about what he was gonna say next.

"I didn't wanna scare you away last night. I hope I wasn't but I apperantly have this habit of hugging things as I sleep so I'm sorry if-"

"Wha- No Tae and I wouldn't mind if you were either. You didn't scare me away. A headache woke me up."

"But when I woke up, I saw you over there." He pointed to Jimin's bed. Shit. Y/N worried about what Jimin thought of the situation last night but it didn't occur to her how Taehyung would take it. She sometimes forgot what Jimin told her about Taehyung's feelings. The last thing she'd want would be to break his heart.

"Jimin helped me. There's this massage thing he invented for when I get headaches. That's why we were-"

"I know it's not the first time I've seen you two like that but it's just-" Courage came to him all of a sudden so he took a step forward. "I thought I was being more.. open with you. And call me crazy if I'm wrong but it feels like we've become closer. Haven't we?"

They had been.Taehyung wasn't someone Y/N could easily disregard. And she knew she kept letting him in more and more over time. But she was just confused by Jimin all the time. Maybe she shouldn't have been, though. Jimin's been witnessing them getting closer but wasn't doing or saying anything about it, she thought. Guess he really was okay with it. Obviously he didn't want his relationship with Y/N to change into something.. else.

"You're not wrong, Tae. We have."

His eyes lit up and his mood got back up after hearing her say that. He didn't wanna rush things but he didn't want to do nothing either.

"Tonight, when you're hungry and when I'm also hungry we could- could we? Eat? Like outside- I know a great place."

Y/N couldn't help but smile seeing him stumble over his words.

"How are you this shy with the way you look is still beyond me." It was a sincere comment and she was pleasently surprised to be able to say it to his face. Taehyung still blushed like crazy, though. Then he took a deep breath and asked more confidently.

"Can I take you out to dinner tonight?"

Maybe she needed to move on from the limbo she was in, after all.

"Yeah.."

------

A ryhtmic knocking came from Y/N's door. She opened it and was met with a Jimin holding a lot of shopping bags.

"Chim! What's all that?"

"Well my quiz went amazingly, thanks for asking. So I thought we could celebrate. We're gonna make a cake!"

"I think you've gotten enough stuff to make ten cakes. And congrats."

"Ten cakes are even better. And thanks. But hey, I thought you’d be waiting for your man to get back at his room where he left you." Jimin teased with a smug smirk on his face. And Y/N’s mouth fell open a little in shock. But she quickly recovered and played along.

“Well my man took his time to come back. I can’t be kept in a cage, waiting forever for a guy.” They stared at each other until Jimin said “And scene..”

They were laughing as they carried the stuff inside and upon Jimin insisting, they started with the cake immediately. Twenty minutes in, they already created the biggest mess and didn't even get much done from fooling around. Jimin was in a good mood, dancing around, teasing Y/N and it all felt normal.

Y/N was making chocolate sauce and beckoned Jimin for a taste test. He came to her, sticking his head out from behind, over her shoulder and placing his hands on both sides of the stove, trapping her body with his own. Closer than close. He reached for the spoon and immediately closed his eyes after tasting, humming deeply.

"Mmhhmm.. my diligent panda, it tastes like paradise! Great job."

"Exaggerate away.."

"It does! Go ahead and taste for yourself."

Jimin took the spoon out of her hand and offered her some. He watched her as she tasted it. He was already staring at her lips and now they were covered in chocolate. There was some left on the corner of her mouth, too. Jimin felt that push again but this time he was already too close to not act on it.

He leaned forward and licked the chocolate away. Y/N just froze, not even being able to react.

"You had a little left.. on the corner right there."

When they finally broke apart Jimin got a bottle of wine out from one of the bags.

"I got this for when the cake is ready."

A while later there was some music they put in the background, only a few pieces were left of the two cakes that they made and the wine bottle had been emptied very quickly. It was still early into the evening but emotions, thoughts and feelings were already all over the place.

They were at their usual spot. On the floor in front of the couch with Y/N seated in the space between Jimin’s legs and Jimin’s arms wrapped up around her. Movements were sloppy due to alcohol. Jimin placed his head on her shoulder.

“I’m sleepy.” Y/N almost couldn’t understand what he said because of his mumbling.

“Are you now? I don’t ever remember you being an early bird.”

“What can I do? You’re so cozy.”

“Me? It’s probably the wine making you sle-”

“Nope, this much wouldn’t affect me. It’s all you, bear.”

Bear was a new one, she loved it.

“Oh!” Jimin hopped up and down where he was sitting. “I know your secret~” he sang. Y/N’s eyes went wide. Did Taehyung tell him about the date? And why was he taking it this excitedly?

“Umm.. I don’t know what you’re talki-”

“I saw it on Taehyung’s PC. I figured it was your idea. And the way you were sneaking around with him made much more sense.” He huffed as if in relief. Y/N was also relieved. He meant the poster, not the date. Good. She wanted to be the one to tell him.

“He did all the work. And you weren’t supposed to see until he felt like it was done completely!”

“My dude’s got talent. And I always snoop around, he knows that.”

They were giggling, Jimin put his head back down on her shoulder and closed his eyes. Y/N’s eyes went to the clock to see the time they agreed on meeting with Taehyung was getting close. She had to tell Jimin about it.

“I gotta jet soon, Chim.”

“No, you wouldn’t leave me.”

“But I have to get ready.”

Jimin got his head up suddenly in denial with a lovely pout.

“Where’re you going?”

“Out to dinner.” She paused to avert her eyes from him. “With Taehyung.”

Jimin had a rude awakening. “A date? An offical one?”

She just nodded. They didn’t speak for some time and just stared into space. But something happened in the silence. Jimin understood now. Up until that moment, what he knew was that Y/N was his person. Everyone around them knew it as well. But the void Jimin felt whenever this subject was brought up finally made sense to him. And he had promised himself that he’d tell her as soon as he knew. So that’s what he’d do.

“Don’t go.”

He spoke clearly and seriously.

“What?”

“Even though you complied back then, it was wrong of me to make you promise to not care about anyone the way you care about me.”

“Jimin, I could never-”

“We might be best and oldest friends but that wouldn’t be fair to anyone we open our hearts to. And especially you. You’ve given so much to me and I became comfortable on the recieving end. The reason I made you make that promise is because I knew I wanted to be the one you loved most but I was so dumb to not realize why until now.”

He moved his head closer and closer until their lips were so close that they even touched but only slightly.

“I know I’m so stupid. But I’m so in love with you, Y/N. I wanna kiss you so bad..” Y/N was sure her heart would jump right out of her chest at any second.

“But I won’t if you don’t want me to-”

Y/N quickly closed whatever little distance was left between their faces, not being able to take it any longer. Jimin was surprised but when he felt her trying to pull away, he held her and deepened the kiss. He slowly and gently pushed her down on the ground with his body on top of hers, lips still connected. Then linked one of his hands with hers while the other one was still placed on the back of her head, protecting it from bumping onto the ground earlier.

When they finally parted lips, both were panting. Y/N ran her hand through Jimin’s hair. Jimin was looking at her with fragile eyes.

“Does this mean you’re not going?”

“No, I only kissed you because there was some chocolate left on your lips and I didn’t want it to go to waste.”

Jimin actually took it seriously for a moment. He let out a relieved sigh when he realized the corners of her mouth curving upwards in humour.

“I can’t believe it took you this long, Jimin.” Y/N complained.

“What do you mean? Wait- Did you already-”

“You finally figured out your feelings but you never had a clue about mine?”

Jimin was shocked. “Are you serious right now?”

“I’ve always loved you, idiot. And I’ve been pining after you for the longest time.”

“I’m sorry.” he quickly pecked her lips over and over and spoke in between kisses saying “I love you.”, “I’m an idiot.” and “I love you” again.

“It’s okay, Chim.” she softly tapped his chest, signaling to sit back up. And they were seated once more.

“What’re we gonna do about Tae?” She felt so worried about that. Feeling like she played him. He was an amazing person and a true friend to both of them. The thought of breaking his heart terrified her. It made Jimin upset too, they both cared about him.

“I don’t know.. But we’ll figure it out.”

He laughed bitterly. “You know what? Tae knew. He always told me to stop being an idiot with you. I should’ve listened. But yeah.. I know he’ll understand.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. And whatever happens I’ll make it right with him. He’s my brother. Brothers might fight but they’re still brothers.”

She pinched the side of his arm. “No fighting over anyone! Not ever!”

“I meant that figuratively, angel.”

“Wait. Did you just quote High School Musical?” They both burst into laughter.

Then he smiled at her endearingly and pulled her into the tightest hug ever.

“Let’s just stay like this for a while.”

...

@world-moon @nopedopebts had requested to be tagged so here you go :)

A/N: I’m sorry for this long ass part. Thank you soo much if you bared with me and read it. I seriously hope you liked it because I struggled a lot with the ending, I hope it was good and satisfactory. I’d really like it if you guys let me know what you think and who would you have liked Y/N to end up with.

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athingthatwantsvirginia · 4 years

Text

California’s Living Dead

PART TWENTY-ONE OF THE DO YOU SEE HER FACE? SERIES

Pairing: Jess Mariano x Original Character (Ella Stevens)

Warnings: some smoking, a bit more angst here fellas, plentiful pop culture references, the original post of this got deleted somehow so I’m reposting it sorry guys idk anything about tumblr or anything really

Word Count: 4.6K

Summary: Half a year passes for Ella and Jess.

The key zipped back and forth across the chain of Ella’s necklace, clutched in her shaky hands. Cloudy afternoon light shone down on her, gray and gloomy. Cool, humid breezes blew past her, and she knew a thunderstorm was coming. As she trudged into the diner, she made a pointed effort to stare down at her converse. A Sunday afternoon lull left the place less crowded than it would have been were she scheduled for the morning. Instead, she had woken up with a headache and an urge to call Luke’s, but decided against it. She knew Jess wouldn’t be able to hide the cut on his cheek or the bruising on his jaw from his uncle. If anyone picked up, it was bound to be in the middle of an argument, and she didn’t need any more reason to bite her nails until they bled.

Slipping behind the counter, she noticed the way Luke’s eyes widened at the sight of her. As though he hadn’t been expecting her to show up. Salty air hung around them as Caesar fried up some burgers in the back, a sizzling hiss in everyones’ ears. Tying her apron around her hips, she frowned at him and furrowed her brows.

“Something wrong?” she asked flatly.

“Did you know about Jess?” Luke crossed his arms over his chest, tilting his head at her.

Ella shrugged, unsure of whether the cat had yet been fully let out of the bag. “What about him?”

Sighing heavily, Luke brushed past her and gestured for her to follow him into the stock room. Rolling her eyes at his dramatics, she went with him. Apparently it couldn’t just be another day at the office. She wondered in the back of her mind where Jess was, but knew it was more than likely he was off somewhere with his nose back in Dead Souls, or escaping with another shift at Walmart. Biding time before he had to let Luke know what happened.

“I’m not stupid, Ella,” Luke said.

Nodding slowly, Ella bit the inside of her cheek and cast her eyes back down to her shoes. “I know. I know you’re not. Look, I didn’t know about school. He only told me last night, alright?”

“And did he tell you where he was planning on going?”

Immediately, she turned her head up to face him again. “What do you mean?”

“This morning, I got a call from Kyle’s parents, about Jess and Dean tearing up their place-”

“Dean sucker-punched him,” Ella interjected.

Luke rolled his eyes. “Nice excuse. I had to write the kid’s father a check! And Jess didn’t even apologize. Instead, he let me know he’s not graduating, and he’s not going back! And we had an agreement!”

Again, she nodded slowly, fiddling with her necklace. “I know. So...you kicked him out?”

“Not exactly. We hadn’t really talked it out all the way. I went out to get some stock, and an hour later, I come back and he’s just gone!” Luke exclaimed, exasperated.

“What do you mean gone?”

“All his stuff, I mean everything he could fit in that nasty duffel of his, he took it. No message, nothing!” Luke watched Ella’s expression fall and the color drain from her cheeks, and he immediately regretted letting all the information slip out in an angry rant the way he had.

Searching the room to focus on anything but Luke’s face, she shook her head to herself, attempting to conceal the way her stomach began doing anxious flips. No message, nothing. Overnight. Gone. “Well...did you know his dad was here? Would he try to go after him?”

Luke sighed again. “Yeah. I told him not to go near Jess, but-”

“You knew before Jess? You didn’t tell him his dad was here?” Ella interrupted, her voice growing tense.

“Look, Ella, it’s more complicated than that. I saw him here last Wednesday. I found his hotel, told him it’d be better to stay away. The guy’s a nobody-”

“Yeah, well, he’s a nobody Jess has been waiting to meet his whole life!” In all her time knowing Luke, Ella had never yelled at him. Not that he was a stranger to her temper. He’d seen it directed at rude customers, mainly Taylor, many times. But never had he faced the fire in her eyes, or the crestfallen look she had. She swallowed thickly. “Jesus. I mean...last night he seemed upset, but not enough to think his father was worth going after. Fuck!”

Soon, she was mostly speaking to herself, pinching the bridge of her nose. Luke softened his gaze and ran his nervous palms over his flannel. He brought a hand to Ella’s shoulder so she would meet his eyes again.

“Ella, Jess is an adult. He has to make his own choices. I know it’s frustrating-”

She scoffed bitterly. “That’s one word for it.”

“But there’s nothing we can do. We have to just...let him go.”

Teeth clenching down on the inside of her cheek so hard she could taste coppery blood, Ella shook her head again. “Serves me right.”

“Wait here,” Luke said tiredly, disappearing back into the main room.

Confusion painted Ella’s features for more reasons than one. A cold stone of sadness sat heavily in her stomach. It was a fight. A fight she thought they would apologize to each other for eventually, and then get past. She’d truly thought Luke would find a way to let Jess stay, or at least to look after him while he floated around in his new high school dropout reality. Instead, Jess had taken it into his own hands. Cut and run. But she had to give him credit; it was the most decisive move she’d ever seen him make. Worry flooded her mind. Jess was tough, but tough enough to brave the world alone? With a father he knew nothing about? How bad was the guy anyway? Leaving his son when an infant certainly didn’t inspire a lot of confidence in his character. Tears stung in her eyes, but she shook them off as Luke returned.

“He, uh…” Luke began, holding a worn book and a CD out to her, “This had a little sticky note on it. Just said ‘Ella.’ I’m gonna assume they’re yours, I know you guys share...everything.”

As soon as she took them in her hands, Luke left the room, figuring she would need a moment. With the look she had on her face, he doubted she would be back to work for the rest of the day. Her heart skipped when she saw the CD: Turn on the Bright Lights by Interpol. She tried to stop the way her jaw tensed with anger, and her stomach swirled with nostalgia. The book was hers. The last one she had loaned him. She still had one of his Faulkners sitting on her nightstand, halfway finished. Apparently, he wasn’t eager to have it back. Flipping through her beloved copy of To the Lighthouse (she knew it was cliché, but she always considered it Woolf’s best work), she noticed how his notes stopped with only twenty pages left. She was about ready to throw the book across the room, seeing the inconsequential comments and questions he’d written, when she saw a block of his spiky handwriting on the last page:

Eleanor,

I won’t get a chance to finish, but I really liked this. I remember once you told me it was your favorite book of all time, and I have to admit I didn’t think it would live up to the hype. But it did. Lily Briscoe reminds me of you. A badass artist who doesn’t need anyone. I figured you would want this back, since you love it so much.

-Jess

Blowing out a furious breath, Ella blinked back tears for a second time and focused on the anger brewing within her. It was easier than the sadness. She refused to have her heart broken over him. Love didn’t exist. Why be surprised when the universe proves it again and again? Ignoring Luke’s questioning looks, she went out and shoved the CD and book into her bag by the door. The rest of her shift, she spoke in clipped tones and tugged in annoyance at the loose strands of her hair. And Luke decided it was better. They could both be miserable, silently, together.

. . .

A late June morning found Ella back behind the counter, filling coffee cups and twirling around on her sore feet once again. Over the summer, she worked doubles whenever was humanly possible and spent her off nights sketching in the corner table. She tried to keep Jess from her mind, and though it was difficult while spending so much time at Luke’s, a stubbornness in her refused to let her relent. Though Jess was related to Luke by blood, Ella had worked there and been there for so much longer than Jess ever had. Him leaving wasn’t going to destroy her home away from home. She simply wouldn’t let it.

Lorelai and Rory were off on their European backpacking trip, and Lane was toiling away at Bible camp. Pathetic as it was, Ella simply didn’t have anyone to hang out with. She’d always only had a few close friends. Had Jess still been there, she could only imagine what they would spend their time doing. Curled together on his twin bed reading, or arguing about what they were reading, playing cards in her room with Jeff Buckley on the record player, making out to Interpol albums, lunches at the lake, shifts together day in and day out. There had been plans. But she shook them from her brain and got back to work, blowing loose locks away from her face and yelling orders back to Caesar as they came in. Luke was on register, trademark scowl on full display. Soon, he would be away on a cruise with Nicole. Ella hoped it would lift his mood at least a little.

Though, it was a hypocritical thought. She certainly hadn’t been a ray of sunshine the past few weeks, even on her best days, even at graduation. For her speech, she’d read an Anne Sexton poem and connected it to life. She’d looked out at the crowd to see Lane, but not Rory. And not Jess. Her father had cried a little in pride, which surprised her, made her remember the man he had once been. Fiona had cheered and brought her flowers. Adam had smiled and given her a big hug afterwards. But, as much as she tried to revel in the relief and the happiness which surrounded her, there were pieces missing. Big pieces nothing could make up for. Not Jess, even. Her mother. The anniversary of her death had come and gone, and Ella couldn’t believe how long it had been. Time seemed so warped by death. Some days, she felt like she had seen her mother just yesterday. Other days, she thought it odd she had ever had a mother at all. Even Luke and Lorelai had come to watch her speech and cheer her on, but her own mother simply wasn’t there. She’d done her best the whole day to maintain a plastic smile, but that night, she sobbed quietly to Billie Holliday and sketched skeletons.

For just a moment, she took a breath. All the coffees were refilled, the orders were taken. She had no compulsory small talk left to make. She put the pot in the machine and began making a new batch. Leaning against the back counter, she crossed her arms over her chest and sighed. Across the street in the town square, they were setting up for some new, random festival. She could imagine Jess at her side, complaining about all the expensive, meaningless fanfare. A grinch who had been absent at prom, where she stood as a third wheel to Lane and Dave. The phone broke her out of her thoughts, and she went to answer it, but Luke beat her to the receiver.

“Luke’s,” he said flatly. But Ella watched his weary eyes widen in surprise. “Jess? Where are you?”

Instantly, Ella’s heart felt as though it would leap right out of her chest. She went over to stand near Luke, expression questioning. “Is that really Jess?” she asked in a whisper.

He glanced up at her but didn’t answer. “Really? Is he making you pay rent?...Well, be sure to never tell Liz that…”

Ella watched in excruciating anticipation, hearing snippets of the conversation, fragments she couldn’t exactly string together in a narrative. Was it really him? Over a month without a call, and she was beginning to think she would never hear his voice again.

Suddenly, Luke threw another glance Ella’s way, this time anxious. “Yeah, she did…”

“Give me the phone,” Ella said, holding her hand out.

“One second,” Luke muttered, then put his hand over the mouthpiece. “I don’t know if he-”

“I don’t care.” She hadn’t expected grabbing the phone from Luke to be so easy, but perhaps he was too surprised at her sudden movement to resist. Ella paid no mind to the curious eyes of onlookers as she began speaking in hushed, angry tones. “Jess?”

There was a beat of silence.

“I know it’s you, jackass. Where the hell are you?” she demanded.

Jess sighed heavily over the line. “Venice. I’m staying with my dad.”

“Really?” she asked, eyes narrowing. “That guy who walked right out of your life, twice now, without a second thought?”

“Look, Eleanor, it’s-”

“Don’t ‘Eleanor’ me,” she warned, shaking her head. “Actually, y’know what? I don’t care. I don’t give a fuck where you are. All I need you to do is let me know you’re alive. I don’t care how you are, who you’re with, anything. You just need to let me know, every once in a while, that you didn’t starve or end up lying in a ditch somewhere. Be a decent fucking human being, and let the girl with the dead mom know you’re alive.”

“Okay, I-”

“Glad we could sort that out,” she bit out, her tone absolutely venomous. Before he could say anything more, she shoved the phone back into Luke’s hands, and retreated into the stock room. For the rest of the day, Luke let her tear open the cardboard box shipments with an Exacto knife, her face with an ever-present flush as she worked.

. . .

Sat up in bed, Ella sketched the same rose over and over. She was reminded of Georgia O’Keefe, painting her door time and again. Mid-August breeze blew in for her open window, and her back leaned against the purple mural of a goddess she’d taken nearly two months to complete. Her eyes were heavier than they usually would be for eleven o’clock on a Friday. She’d finally completed her first week of classes. And it seemed about as tiring as high school had been. All her classes were interesting, and the radio played some pretty-sounding oldies during her drive back and forth from Hartford, but she was already dreading four more years of drudgery. What was the point of working so hard in high school just to have to go through the whole ordeal again?

Existentialist train of thought aside, she tried to let it fade from her mind, focusing only on her drawing. And the Stevies Nicks record playing. Without realizing it, she sang along with the words in hushed tones under her breath. Her damp waves fell over her shoulder, a comforting smell from her lavender shampoo. She’d wanted to shower in the morning, bright and early before she had to drive to math class. But it was also Adam’s first week of high school, and he’d taken much longer than necessary. Most of the time, they got along pretty well, bonding over a shared inclination towards campy ‘80s movies. But the mornings were an exception to the rule they could always count on. Admittedly, it was often Ella’s own fault. She had the tendency to morph into a grouchy monster right after waking.

She breathed a slow sigh as the phone began to ring, rubbing at her eyes with the heels of her hands. Tossing her sketchbook to the side, she picked it up. “Hello?”

“Hey, Eleanor.” Jess’s voice sounded much the same. It was odd to imagine him all the way across the country, a leather jacket city boy on a hot California beach.

“Still alive, I take it?” she asked.

“No, it’s Night of the Living Dead on the West Coast. Haven’t you seen it on the news?” he quipped.

Rolling her eyes, she let out another small sigh. “Goodbye.”

“Wait, Elle, I know you’re mad-”

She hung up before he could finish the sentence.

. . .

Eighteen years old. She was a legal adult but she didn’t quite believe it. Fiddling with her necklace, she laid on her huge mattress and stared up at the ceiling. There was a yellowed water stain on the popcorned white surface. Once in a blue moon, it would leak. The day brought torrential thunderstorms, perfect for a birthday, and she thought she may have felt a few droplets on her already-wet cheeks.

Fiona was trying; she really was. She always did. She’d made a cake and they’d sung her the song. But it simply wouldn’t be enjoyable until she got out of the house. Celebrating with her family just made her feel like she was in an episode of The Twilight Zone where they’d recast her mother. She was still attempting to make peace with Fiona, though. And if it made her stepmother happy, she was willing to endure an awkward hour of dinner.

She hadn’t allowed herself to start crying until she got in her room, saw the picture of her grandmother holding her mother as a baby in the old frame on her desk. So many dead women. And here she was, always getting older. Pearl Jam spun on the record player, but it did little to lift her spirits. She was examining the set of faux-ruby earrings Fiona and her father had given her, still in their small cardboard box, thinking about how red really wasn’t her color, when the phone ran. Sniffing harshly, she wiped at her cheeks though no one over the receiver would see her.

“Hello?”

“Happy eighteen, Stevens,” Jess’s voice spoke, making her immediately grimace. Almost exactly one year since they’d first kissed. “You go out to legally buy your porn and cigarettes yet?”

“Fuck off, Jess,” she murmured tiredly, shaking her head.

“Look, I just wanted to make sure you were okay, since-”

“Goodbye,” she deadpanned, slamming the phone down and flopping back heavily against her pillows.

. . .

Her history textbook was still open on her desk, and moonlight streamed into her small room. A long evening of studying had seen her call it quits right in the middle of a chapter. She’d collapsed in bed dressed in her jeans and thick sweater, chilled even inside from the October draught. A throb pulsed behind her eyes for what felt like forever before she finally drifted off to sleep. Her eyes were hot inside her skull, achy and dry, when the phone’s ring split through the silence of the night. Clearing her throat, she rolled over in the darkness.

“Hello?” she said groggily.

“Jeez, I thought you laid off the smokes.”

She rolled her eyes at the sound of Jess’s voice, she cleared her throat again and sat up against the mural. “Shut up, jackass, you woke me up.”

“Sorry about that.”

“Still alive?” she asked.

“Seems that way,” he said. It pained her to hear the smirk on his face.

“Well, that’s the goal,” she snarked in a clipped tone before hanging up. As she tried to drift back into dreams, she fiddled with her necklace, tossed and turned.

. . .

She chewed on her eraser, brows furrowed as she read over the same sentence in Paradise Lost for what felt like the millionth time. Mostly, she’d been having fun in her English class. But biblical themes had never been her forté, and a poem which spent so much time recounting the story of Adam and Eve made her want to do nothing but roll her eyes. Her mother had been Christian, though they never went to Church. And she’d heard her father occasionally refer to God or say her mother was in Heaven. But if Ella wasn’t going to believe in luck or love, she certainly wasn’t going to believe in any higher power. None of the religions she’d ever encountered or read about struck her fancy even a little.

The phone rang, and it was almost a welcome break, despite such a sudden interruption. Blinking the dryness from her eyes, she got up from her desk and tucked her hair, falling into her field of vision as she read, behind her ears. She sat cross-legged in the center of her mattress as she picked up, wrapping the phone cord around her fingers absently as she answered.

“Hello?”

“Hi,” Jess answered simply.

She furrowed her brows, glanced over at her small bedside clock. Only four in the afternoon. As much as she wanted to snap angrily and immediately hang up as she had for the past five months, the change in pattern piqued her curiosity too much. And there was something in his voice which felt off to her. “Little early for you, isn't it, Mariano? It should barely be afternoon there.”

“Oh, we’re talking now?” he asked pointedly.

“Gotta keep you on your toes, jackass,” she said, rolling her eyes. “But, fuck it. I’ll go. Leave you to your new dazzling West Coast existence.”

He sighed heavily. “Fine. Sorry. I’m just sick. I thought about going to work but then my Exorcist reenactment got in the way. Something I ate.”

“Hm. California food not exactly up to Connecticut health codes?” she asked.

Jess scoffed. “Like Connecticut can talk. Al’s Pancake World much?”

Ella snorted a chuckle. “Fair enough.” Then, after a moment: “Well, just make sure to drink water. You never drink enough water when you’re sick. Rookie mistake.”

“You’re not exactly one to talk,” he countered.

“What does that mean?” she asked in mock offense.

His tone was joking, but almost nostalgic. “Do you not remember the time you had laryngitis? You tried to come to work! Luke made me drag you upstairs the minute he saw you.”

“I still could’ve been on dish pit or something,” she said defensively. “Besides, that day I finally got you to watch Silence of the Lambs. Not exactly a waste of time.”

“That was a good movie.”

“Good book, too. But the movie was better.”

“Blasphemy!” Jess gasped.

Ella laughed quietly, but was suddenly acutely aware of the distance between them. He wasn’t a two-minute walk away. And she wouldn’t see him on her shift the following day. She cleared her throat awkwardly. “Well, I should go. Gotta finish this section of Paradise Lost.”

“You don’t sound too happy about it,” Jess quipped. She’d said the title in an agitated mutter.

“It’s excruciating.”

“Huh. Thought you’d go crazy for college poetry, even seventeenth-century religious stuff.”

Ella scoffed doubtfully. “Milton couldn’t hold a candle to Dickinson.”

“Strong words,” he said.

“Well, that’s the best kind,” she smirked, then bit the inside of her cheek to stop herself. “Anyway...feel better, Jess.”

“Thanks.”

. . .

Lights of red, green, and yellow flashed outside her window, hanging from the gutters of the small blue house. Icy, crunchy snow caked the Connecticut roads, new flurries coming down in sheets. Joni Mitchell’s “River” crooned from the record player, and Ella was warm beneath her blankets. Pencil in her hand, she underlined and boxed in phrases from her new copy of Adrienne Rich poems. She and Rory, back from Yale, had been to the bookstore the day after Christmas, when everything was marked down to clearance. She missed those lazy days together with her old friends.

Breathing the lavender scent of her candles, she felt content but dreaded the end of the holiday break. Rory would leave again, and Ella would have to go back to the monotony of college life. At least, now, Lane had quit her Christian college upon her mother’s discovery of her secret life. She was looking for a place to live with her band, and Ella was glad she’d have her friend still near her, living on her own terms. Ella didn’t hate Mrs. Kim, but knew Lane would never be truly happy unless she was out from under her mother’s thumb.

The phone sounded over the music, and Ella knew who it would be before she picked it up. Jess had been calling more often lately, ever since he’d gotten over his food poisoning. He told her he’d never eat another piece of sushi again. She didn’t exactly know the reason for the increase. Perhaps he finally got a cell phone, could call her wherever he was. If he had, she could only imagine the struggle it must have been for him. He was definitely on Luke’s side of the handheld phone debate. Somehow, a shift had occurred. Small. But it had happened. Though their conversations weren’t exactly substantive, she felt a little less upset each time they spoke, anger slowly cooling after all their time apart. The pleasant memories were coming back to her more easily, as soon as she let him get a few words in. She still couldn’t help feeling betrayed, but at least he kept up his end of the deal. He barely went more than two weeks anymore without letting her know he was still on the face of the Earth.

She sighed softly. “Hello?”

“Hey, Eleanor,” he said. “Has all the noise, noise, noise finally ceased?”

She shook her head. “Mostly. Luke was in an even worse mood than he usually is on Christmas. The divorce and all.”

Jess snorted a laugh. “My god, I’m glad that whole bizarro thing is over.”

“You haven’t been here. You don’t know the half of it,” she smirked, thinking back to Luke’s odd marriage to his lawyer. The back and forth, to divorce or not to divorce, made everyone who was watching dizzy. She heard Jess inhale sharply, familiar to ear. “Are you smoking?”

“Who are you? Nancy Drew?” he shot back.

“I asked you first.”

“Depends. Have you been biting your nails?”

Ella scoffed self-consciously. “Those two habits are not comparable at all. But touché.” She cast a glance out the window when the branches of the oak tree scraped up against the pane. “Jesus. It won’t stop snowing here.”

“Yeah. Here, too,” he said off-handedly.

Brows furrowing, Ella let a confused chuckle escape her lips. “In Venice Beach? Climate change is hitting pretty hard out there, huh?”

A pause sounded over the receiver, a slight crackling in between them.

“Actually...I’m in New York.”

She hesitated, blinking twice to process the information before she spoke again. “Oh.”

“Yeah. Things uh...things didn’t work out with Jimmy,” he admitted sheepishly.

Blowing out a long breath, she bit the inside of her cheek. “Jesus, Jess, I’m sorry.”

“You can say it.”

“Excuse me?”

“You told me so.”

Shaking her head to herself again, Ella rolled the phone cord in her fingertips. “I’m not gonna say that. I just...I want you to have what you want. I don’t...I don’t want other people to fuck things up for you.”

He chuckled bitterly. “Yeah, well, I think I do a pretty good job of fucking things up on my own.”

“Jess-”

“Look, I gotta go. Work and stuff. So, yeah, still alive,” he said hastily.

“Okay. Just...be safe. Don’t get mugged or kidnapped or anything.”

Jess laughed again softly, more genuine this time. “I’ll try, Stevens. Don’t worry.”

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