#given how much his smile lightens my heart just from seeing it through a computer screen i can't IMAGINE the power it wields in person

[uhbasicallyjustmilex]

i want to put him in my pocket

#i mean #just look at him?? 🥺 #he's so lovely it hurts #also #given how much his smile lightens my heart just from seeing it through a computer screen i can't IMAGINE the power it wields in person #he is pure sunshine ☀️ #miles kane #miles gifs #my gifs #the last shadow puppets #tlsp #lulu posts

[cherryatiny]

𝐃𝐚𝐝! 𝐀𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐳: 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 '𝐝𝐚𝐝'

𝐺𝐼𝐹𝑠 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑛𝑜𝑡 𝑚𝑖𝑛𝑒, 𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑑𝑖𝑡 𝑔𝑜𝑒𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑖𝑟 𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑒𝑐𝑡𝑖𝑣𝑒 𝑜𝑤𝑛𝑒𝑟𝑠

⩥ 𝐊𝐢𝐦 𝐇𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐣𝐨𝐨𝐧𝐠

„See princess? And this is how you trim audio when working on a song.“ responded Hongjoong excitedly, from how interested his daughter was in the matter of creating and producing music, just like her dad.

The little girl squealed on his lap happily, as she just edited her first song. „Wow, daddy's work is so cool! I'm gonna be like daddy when I grow up!“ He couldn't help but smile at how his cute daughter was an exact copy of him when it came to her looks, interests or even personality.

„Okay princess, can you be a good girl and be quiet for a while? Daddy just has to finish this one song, I promise it'll take just a few minutes.“ his daughter nodded, always obeying the words of her dad.

Sitting there quietly, she looked at the screen of his computer, the small pink headphones Hongjoong bought for her on times like these when they listened and worked on music together, on her head, as she listened to the song that featured her dad and his seven friends.

The girl suddenly jumped up on his lap, his hands swiftly catching her, not wanting to imagine the piercing cry of pain she'd let out if she fell. „What are you doing, princess? You have to be careful baby, or else you'll fall. Why did you even jump?“

„I heard dad singing in the chorus!“ exclaimed his daughter. „But daddy wasn't singing in the chorus, princess.“ frowned Hongjoong confusedly, not knowing what his daughter meant. „I know. I was talking about dad Seonghwa.“ his daughter not being able to distinguish between the voices would be completely okay, after all, she's just a toddler, but his daughter calling his friend Seonghwa dad intentionally, was not that okay for him.

„But Seonghwa isn't your dad. I'm your dad.“ Weird jealousy-like feeling flowed through his veins at that moment. „I know that you're my dad, but mommy said uncle Seonghwa is my dad too!“

„No my little dummy, you missed it, uncle Seonghwa is your godfather, not your dad, him being your godfather doesn't make him your dad, princess.“ explained Hongjoong as he smiled at his little girl, embracing her in a tight but careful hug full of love since she's tiny and fragile.

⩥ 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐒𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐡𝐰𝐚

Heating the zucchini sauce, that his friend Hongjoong taught him how to cook, before pouring it on the pasta, Seonghwa served his twin daughters the meal they love so much. „Okay.. enjoy your meal, my loves, what do you say?“ waiting for their answer, the girls thanked him loud, cheerfully. „Thank you, daddy!“

Seonghwa smiled proudly at how well you two raised them. „That's it, smart girls, after your parents! And don't forget to eat everything! You have to eat, so you can be strong and healthy girls!“

No answer was given to him, as the two girls munched on their lunch, stuffing their mouths with pasta. In the meanwhile, Seonghwa washed the dishes he made dirty by cooking, before taking one serving of the pasta to eat as well.

Sitting down on the chair opposite of his daughter, he dug his fork into the meal, watching his daughters. „How is it? Do you like it?“ The younger twin tried to answer, but her words were muffled as her mouth was full.

„Princess, what did I say about talking while you're eating? Finish chewing first so you don't gag on the food and say it to me after that.“

„It was yummy but dad makes it better!“After finishing the last bits of their meals they place the empty plates one on another, the older twin, picking it up and placing it into the sink, she was hardly able to reach. „What are you talking about princess, daddy cooked it.“

„I didn't mean you, daddy, I meant dad Joong.“ Seonghwa felt his eyebrows frowning on their own at his daughter calling his best friend her dad. Yes, it was stupid to be jealous of something like this, but he just couldn't help it. „Why are you calling uncle Hongjoong your dad?“

„He's as old as you daddy, so I thought he could be my dad as well!“

⩥ 𝐉𝐞𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐘𝐮𝐧𝐡𝐨

Sitting his three kids into their child seats and fastening their seatbelts, Yunho got into his driver seat, carefully leaving the parking lot. Looking in the rear mirror, his two boys were playing together deep down in a conversation, while their little sister slept.

Nevertheless, he still drove quite slowly, because he knew the kids might throw up from the number of roller coasters they rode with Mingi's daughter today.

Coming home, his daughter was still sleeping and he didn't have the heart to wake her up from her peaceful state. Picking her up on his arms, her head laying on his shoulder, the two boys jumped out of the car, already running to the house to rant about their day to you.

Hearing their shouting from outside, you were already waiting for them in the hallway, the two boys jumping onto you, embracing you in a hug with their tiny arms. Smiling at your husband Yunho that was standing in the hallway.

„I missed you my loves! The house was empty without you. Did you have fun today at the amusement park?“

„Yes! Dad bought us ice cream!“ Yeah. You could see that since a chocolate stain adorned his light green t-shirt, smiling at your sons whose day was lightened up by the chocolate ice cream they loved that much.

„Yuyu, what did I tell you about buying the kids ice cream. It's full of sugar and chemicals, I could've made them one myself when you came home, and it won't stuff chemicals into their bodies.“

„But I didn't buy them ice cream, Y/N, Mingi did... Wait! Did you two just call uncle Mingi your dad? I'm actually hurt.“

Yunho cried and fell to the ground dramatically to show how much his boys calling his best friend their father hurt him. Only resulting in the boys laughter.

„[Mingi's daughter's name] said she's our little sister as well as [Yunho's daughter's name] and that you're one of her dads, so we thought that Mingi's our dad too!“

⩥ 𝐊𝐚𝐧𝐠 𝐘𝐞𝐨𝐬𝐚𝐧𝐠

„Mommy, mommy, can you please braid my hair?“ squeaked your daughter cutely as she ran towards you with a hairband in her small hands. Handing it over to you as you cooked a meal for lunch.

„Mommy is busy, come over here, daddy is so good at braiding hair.“ exalted your husband Yeosang himself as he motioned for his daughter to come to him.

Spreading his legs widely for his daughter to sit in between them in his lap as her back faced him.

Brushing her soft and silky hair into a ponytail, he took the hairband from her hand and started braiding her hair into a (really messy) braid.

The girl stood up, running over to the bathroom to look at herself in the mirror. Stepping out onto her stairs so she can see herself, she saw the terrible creature that was supposed to adorn her head.

Unbraiding the messy hairstyle, she ran back to the room where you and Yeosang were. Ignoring Yeosang who looked at her confusedly as to why she damaged the braid he made, the little girl tugged at your t-shirt to gain your attention.

„Mommy, mommy, why are dads so bad at braiding hair?“ scoffed the girl as she pouted with playful anger at Yeosang.

„Do you have experiences with other dads that you can generalize it?“ asked Yeosang as he watched the two of you with wide eyes, to catch every detail. „Dad Jongho couldn't braid my hair as well.“

His daughter calling his best friend dad seemed to spark jealousy and some kind of anger in him. „And who told you to call uncle Jongho 'dad'?“

„And who told you that you're good at braiding hair as you claimed?“ scoffed the little girl at her dad as she hugged you closer to her, not letting you go as she was acting petty with her dad. „Damn, who is this kid so mean and sarcastic after...“

⩥ 𝐂𝐡𝐨𝐢 𝐒𝐚𝐧

Looking out of the window on the immense garden their house had, San's two sons were playing soccer there. One as a goalkeeper and the second one trying to score a goal against his older brother.

The last night there was a big storm which caused the mud to be all over their garden. However, the boys didn't seem to care that they were covered in dirt head to toes.

Even though it was in the boys' nature to not care if they're dirty, he knew you'd be angry when you came home and saw all the dirty clothing and scraped knees. So he rather called them to come inside, the boys ran inside the spacious house.

„Boys, you know how angry mommy will be, what did we say about playing in the mud?“ Scolding them playfully the boys didn't like the restrictions you two made.

„But daddy Wooyoung lets us play outside even after rain when there's mud." The younger one whined, trying to persuade his father San to let them continues playing, instead getting a reaction out of his older brother.

„He's not your dad, Wooyoung is our uncle you dumbass.“ Not believing his ears, San kneeled down to be on the boys' eye level as he scolds them.

„Hey you, don't call your younger brother dumbass, where did you even learn that word? And you, don't call uncle wooyoung your dad, or I'll have to have a serious conversation with that dumbass.“ scoffed San at the two boys as he stood up, about to look for some clean clothes to clean this mess before you came home and scolded all three of them.

„Daddy? And if you can say dumbass, why can't I?“

⩥ 𝐒𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐢

Coming home from work, all exhausted and your body sore, you placed your keys and bag on the table in the hallway, shouting some greetings to alert Mingi and your daughter that you're home.

Not getting any response, you stepped into the living room, being met with the image of your husband Mingi pouting and sitting on the ground with arms crossed over his chest as he frowned cutely at the little girl that sat opposite of him.

Your daughter doing exactly the same as if they were imitating each other. „What's wrong with you two, did something happen?“

Looking at them with confusion in your eyes, you sat on the ground with them, waiting for their clarification of whatever happened.

„[Mingi's daughter's name] called Yunho her dad. He's not her dad, I'm her dad! If I called any other kid my daughter she'd start crying too, so why can't I?“

Trying to hold back the laughter at Mingi's childish behaviour, you looked at your daughter, expecting her to say something. „Daddy don't be jealous, even though I have eight dads and you're one of them, you're the best one, and my most favourite one! I love you, daddy, so don't be mad at dad Yunho anymore.“

You could see Mingi's bottom lip quirking at her words and you knew that he wanted to cry from the heartwarming words your daughter said to him, nevertheless he couldn't lose his composure as he was playing offended with her for the past two hours.

„Okay princess, come here, to the best daddy you have, but don't you dare wish any of them on the father's day.“

⩥ 𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐠 𝐖𝐨𝐨𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐠

Sitting on the soft couch in your and Wooyoung's house's living room, you listened to the conversation between him and San as you watched your son of 10 months laying on the mat with clattering toys dangling above him, that was placed on the living room's floor.

His tiny figure trying to reach out for them, but failing. Seeing how his eyebrows started to shrug, the displeased expression on his face, Wooyoung could sense what was about to happen and he was definitely not in the mood to hear his son's piercing hysterical almost scream-like cries.

„Okay, okay, young man, come to daddy before you make us deaf with your crying.“

Picking him up, Wooyoung placed your son on his lap, the tiny boy laying there as he looked up at San's dimples, the man in question couldn't help but smile and giggle at how cute his best friend's son was.

Leaning towards him, he tickled the baby with his fingers, not failing to make your son a giggling mess. The boy in your husband's lap reached out to touch his dad's friend, his tiny fingers gripping on San's t-shirt.

„Da-da. Dada!“ Both your and Wooyoung's eyes widened at hearing your son talk for the first time, „Say that again, bun.“

Encouraged him Wooyoung, trying to make his son say 'dad' again, however, he wasn't the one his son meant.

Reaching towards San, your son somehow turned himself over onto his stomach and tried to get over to San. „Dada!“ screamed your son once again as he was trying to move himself to San's lap somehow.

„W-what? Baby no, that's not your dad! I'm your dad, that's uncle San, he's not your dad.“ Wooyoung tried to turn your son over, so he could look at his real father, but the boy only protested, letting out those cute 'dad' blabbers over and over, resulting in you laughing at how grumpy Wooyoung got because of this situation.

Well, saying that Wooyoung didn't invite San over for about a month was understandable.

⩥ 𝐂𝐡𝐨𝐢 𝐉𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐡𝐨

Sitting on the ground of his room, while playing with cars that belonged to him, you listened to him rambling about everything - his day in the kindergarten, the toy cars, the cute puppy he saw, when suddenly he switched the topic of his chatter,

„Mommy, why doesn't daddy Yeosang have a boy, who'll play soccer with me?“ Not realising the way your son called your friend at first, you thought about a way to answer his question, when you actually discerned one of his words after a while,

„Look, baby, it's- wait, why did you call uncle Yeosang 'daddy'? He's not your daddy, as you've said he has his own child and you have your own daddy.“

„I know mommy, that he's not my real daddy, but he's [Yeosang's daughter's name]'s daddy, and when I'll be grown up, I'll marry her and he'll become my daddy too!“ explained your little son before returning to his previous task of playing with the cars that were all over his room's floor.

Not being aware of your husband Jongho that stood outside his room and eavesdropped your whole conversation, he exposed himself when he suddenly scoldingly whined from the hallway,

„Yah, aren't you way too young to have a wife, definitely not Yeosang's daughter, if that girl is at least as half the way as Yeosang is, she'll be able to kill you with her words alone. And her father is way too buff, it'd be stressful to have him as your father in law, what if he gets angry. Definitely not, he won't be your father in any way, young man.“

#ateez #dad!ateez #ateez fluff #ateez imagines #ateez scenarios #ateez headcanons #ateez x reader

[jiminisnotavirgin]

A+

Pairing: professor!taehyung | collegestudent!reader

Genre: smut

Description: A one-on-one video call with your hot, college professor takes a surprising turn.

Words: 3.8k

Warnings: inappropriate student/teacher relations, mutual masturbation, fingering, clit-stimulation, and innapropriate language.

Note: After much anticipation, I hope this is my return to the writing part of the lovely fanfic world. Here’s a little something mischievous and self-indulgent (clearly!). I started writing this when quarantine and remote-learning first began last year and I returned to it earlier this week. Let me know what you think :) I hope you enjoy A+. Love, Phoenix.

Email after email, document after document, the light from Taehyung’s laptop shines bright blue across his features. The hours go by and the sky grows darker but he remains at his desk, only taking small breaks to lighten the strain on his eyes. His chair creaks as he leans back and glances outside the window. Like most nights lately, only the stars keep him company tonight.

His courses shifted to an online-only remote format due to the need for social distancing. Despite the initial confidence he displayed to his boss and colleagues over the change, Taehyung is more unsure than ever. Frustration sneaks its way into his mind like a viper wrapped around its squirming prey. His life has turned into a turbulent sea of e-mails and complaints from upset students. What’s the best way for him to support his students? How can he assure them that their mental health is more important than any essay or assignment they’ll ever complete?

A sudden knock at the door steals his attention. Jungkook, his roommate and best friend, leans against the doorway with crossed arms. “Professor Kim,” he begins with a smirk. “Do you have a minute to speak?”

“What’s up?” asks Taehyung, ignoring his friend’s use of the name his students address him with.

“Did you see Jimin’s text? He invited us over for drinks at his apartment. Are you coming?”

“Can’t,” answers Taehyung. His computer glows in his peripheral vision. “I have—“

“Emails to write, work to do. I get it, you’re a busy man.” Jungkook shrugs. “I thought I’d ask anyway since it’s Saturday night.”

“Maybe next time.” Guilt floods Taehyung’s chest and makes it difficult to look Jungkook directly in the eye. Not only is he a shitty professor but he’s a shitty friend, too.

Jungkook finally steps inside the room, occasionally tinkering with Taehyung’s things until he reaches his desk. “Whatever. I’m just worried about you, that’s all.”

“Why?”

“Why?” Jungkook’s already-large doe eyes go wider. “Because all you do is sit at that damn computer all day!”

“I have to teach classes online, what do you expect?”

“It’s not healthy. You barely even leave your room to eat.”

“Who are you, the food police?”

“No, I’m your best friend,” Jungkook answers. “When was the last time you did anything fun? Or normal? You’re twenty-six, Tae, not a hundred and six.”

Taehyung sighs. “I can’t think about any of that right now. Actually, I should get back to my work...”

Jungkook takes the hint and leaves, but not without shooting a glare that makes Taehyung regret his choice of words. He can’t worry about it right now though—not when he has a call planned with you in about two minutes.

He was surprised to see an email from you in his inbox yesterday. You’re one of the students that hasn’t reached out all semester unlike most of the others in his courses. He knows just what kind of student you are: the type who floats through classes quietly but still gets high marks. You’re an older student. You fade into the background by avoiding the attention of your peers but your work stands out, therefore, you do too. He recognizes it because he was that student, too.

Taehyung opens the app for the call, expecting you to pick up after a minute or two but you answer within seconds. “Hello,” he greets you.

You tuck a stand of hair behind your ear and speak but no sound follows the movement of your mouth. He waits but nothing changes.

Taehyung clears his throat. “I think your microphone is off,” he says and types the same words into the chat box at the bottom of his screen.

You squint as you bring your face closer to the monitor. “Can you hear me now?”

He smiles. “Perfect. So, how are you doing? How’s the semester been so far?”

You shrug. “It’s been okay. I’m just trying my best, you know? What about you?”

“Pretty much the same. There’s nothing to do besides read and grade assignments.”

“I wanted to talk to you about the midterm, actually...” your voice fades out and your eyes drift away from the camera. He digs through his memory for what you wrote but his mind comes out empty-handed.

“Let me pull it up on my computer.” He searches through his saved files and documents.

“Oh, you don’t have to do all of that.” You pause for a few seconds. “It’s about my grade.”

“Let’s see... B-plus. Nice work.” When he looks away from your paper, he catches you frowning.

“Could you give me some feedback on it?” you ask.

“I left a few comments on the side,” he answers, eyes still glued to the document. He exits the window and focuses on your face once again. “I wouldn’t worry too much if I were you. You’re a lovely writer.”

“Not good enough if I can only get B-pluses,” you answer with a sigh. Taehyung sits up in his chair, surprised by your shift in tone.

Are you looking for an explanation? A justification for the grades he’s given you? “Most students would be satisfied with a B-plus in an almost graduate level course.”

“With all due respect, sir, I’m not your other students.”

His brows twitches. “Oh?”

“I don’t know how to say this without sounding like an arrogant jerk but I’m not used to getting anything lower than an A on my papers. The fact that I’m about to graduate and can’t hack yours is pretty... frustrating.”

He presses his lips together. “I don’t know what to tell you.” What do you want to hear? Can anything he’ll say wipe that glare off your face? It’s interesting to see you lose your cool after all this time.

You refuse to back down from the challenge. In this impromptu staring contest, your brown eyes penetrate his through the computer screen.

Taehyung decides to give in. Slightly. “One thing I will say,” he continues, “is that I’m particularly tough on my best students. If I gave you an A-plus on every essay you handed in, what would you work up to? There’s no doubt about the strength of your writing.”

Your expression changes immediately. “Oh,” is the only word that leaves your lips. The lines of anger decorating your forehead smooth out as your mouth eases into a relieved smile.

It’s in this moment that Taehyung finds himself looking at you. Truly looking at you.

There’s something about the determination in your face as you plead your case, as though nothing else in the world matters more. Your glossy, heart-shaped lips possess a reddish tint that reminds him of cherries, or rubies. Even through the pixels on the computer screen, you retain the same freshness he remembers from a few months ago, if not more now.

All this time on the computer has gone to your head, he thinks to himself. Perhaps there’s still a chance for him to catch up to Jungkook and the others.

A giggle erupts from your side of the call. “So my papers are good? And here I thought I wasn’t good enough for you.”

“I didn’t mean to make you suffer,” he murmurs and runs a hand through the waves in his raven hair. His eyelids flutter closed as he sinks into his chair and stretches his arms. Finally, a meeting he can consider a success; a meeting where the student leaves the call less frustrated than when it began. He prepares to end the call and log off for the night.

Then he hears it.

It’s faint and quiet and quick but he hears it, as if all sounds in the world were turned off and yours was amplified. The sound echoes in his mind as though you were right there beside him: “If only you knew how you make me suffer.”

This progression of thoughts occurs in a matter of seconds. By the time he’s processed your statement, his eyes have been forced open and any chance of relaxation for the rest of the night disappears into thin air.

“What?” he asks, voice betraying the casualness he wishes to exude.

“Oh, nothing.” You blink innocently, long lashes fluttering like a pair of butterfly wings. “I just care about your opinion, Professor Kim, if you can’t tell.”

“Right...” His eyes trail to the messy display of pens and papers spread out across his desk—anything to avoid your gaze. Its intensity has multiplied a thousandfold and threatens to melt him like a popsicle in the sun. He ignores the surge of anxious heat flowing through his veins.

“I mean,” you continue, lips pursed. “Who doesn’t love hearing a little bit of praise every once in a while, right?”

Your statement hangs in the air for what feels like an eternity. His shirt suddenly squeezes his torso. His pants suffocate his thighs. The room feels like a furnace and dizzying all at once, but the tension in the air keeps him in the moment.

“What are you doing?” he finally asks.

All the blood drains from your face and your limbs freeze. You hold your hands up in the air. “I’m sorry, professor. I didn’t mean to—“

“Don’t start something you can’t finish,” warns Taehyung. A new fire fuels his gaze. With his thick brows, chiseled face, and beautiful black hair to match, your professor is a flame and you’ve been dying to get burned since you first laid eyes on him.

You pull off your hoodie and toss it onto the ground behind you. With a small tug of your index finger, you adjust the spaghetti straps of your pink tank top, underneath which you wear no bra. Your nipples prick at the thin fabric that stretches with each of your breaths.

“You deserve so much more than a little bit of praise,” he murmurs, erasing any doubts over your advances towards him.

“I do?”

“Mmhmm. Especially since you’ve been such a good girl.”

This man couldn’t possibly be the same one that lectured your class all semester. Something sinful replaces the innocent, awkward mannerisms you’ve grown to know over time. No more does he hesitate with his words or actions. Instead, he leans towards the camera with his shoulders pushed back. You’re greeted by his neck and the tan slope of his chest that hides beneath the loose collar of his button-down. You want nothing more than to rip off his shirt with your bare hands. For now, you can only imagine what lies beneath.

“Good girls deserve rewards,” he says with a swipe of his tongue across his plump bottom lip, snapping you out of your daze.

“What should I do?” you ask and glance at your closed bedroom door. Fortunately, you locked it before the call started. You don’t want any intrusions from your roommate.

“You should wind down and take care of yourself. You’ve been working so hard.” His eyes dart down to your tank top. “Close your eyes and imagine it’s me worshipping your chest.”

Your eyes fall closed as your hands drift to the hem of your top. Your fingertips graze your stomach and stop when your skin begins to slope up into the mounds of your breasts. “What would you do if you were here with me right now?”

He doesn’t miss a beat. “I’d make it my mission to kiss every part of you but first, I’d focus on those beautiful breasts of yours. They’d fit in my hands perfectly.”

With your left hand, you grasp one breast and tighten your grip just the slightest bit. The squeeze forces a sigh from your lips and although your eyes are closed, Taehyung struggles to control his own breathing as he watches you begin to unfold. With the other hand, you bring two fingers to your mouth and coat them in saliva only to bring them down to your nipples which harden with each squeeze and stroke.

Taehyung swallows in anticipation. “Just like that. Keep going.”

“Wait, what about you?” you ask, voice raspy and slightly out of breath.

“What about me?”

“I’m not the only one who deserves a reward.”

“Watching you wriggle and writhe in desire is enough for me.”

You cross your arms. “Nope.”

He chuckles. “What do you suggest I do, then?”

“I want you to fuck yourself with your hand and imagine it’s my pussy squeezing the life out of you.”

Your words knock the air out of Taehyung’s lungs but he manages to recover quickly. “You may be a good girl but you’ve got a dirty mouth.”

You smirk. “What are you going to do about it?”

The sound of his metal belt buckle clinks from his end. “Touch yourself right now. Play with your clit and we’ll see if you’ve still got that nasty mouth of yours when you’re begging me to cum.”

You raise your brows. “I fully intend on cumming at least once in your presence tonight, professor, whether I have your permission or not.”

“Call me Taehyung.” He takes a moment to reflect on the current situation versus the dynamic you had only minutes ago. “Why now? Why did you initiate—”

“My grades go above all else. I didn’t want to jeopardize any of that,” you answer. “And I also waited for your sake.”

“My sake? If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were doing this to secure your grades,” he muses.

“Nothing boosts my ego like getting an A-plus based solely off my hard work,” you answer. “Fucking my hot professor is for my own personal pleasure.”

You description makes it sound so typical, just another everyday thing like washing the dishes. Are you using him? Deep inside, the thought of you using him arouses him. He wants to be used by you.

“You’re gorgeous,” he whispers, suddenly absorbed by you and the way you carefully orchestrated this interaction. How long did you think about this moment? Were you afraid of rejection?

“I know. Everyone likes me but I always want what I can’t have.” You wink. “Life’s more fun that way.”

Fun. “Enough talk. Let me see.”

“Yes, of course,” you stutter, caught off guard by the sudden shift in conversation. You don’t mind his demands or commanding tone. In fact, you invite them.

“Slide back,” he instructs you. “I want to see everything.”

You swallow and obey immediately, rising to pull your chair further away from the camera. You take the chance to slip off your sweatpants which leaves you in nothing but your underwear and tank top. Your underwear isn’t fancy but it’s what’s below that he’s interested in.

You lower yourself onto the seat, not bothering to keep your legs pressed together. You spread your knees slowly, as if your legs were a book with pages waiting to be read.

“Good. Open up more and show me how bad you want it,” he says. The smile in his voice urges you on.

Your hand creeps along the stretchy waistband of your underwear. The material works against you, forcing your wrist against your pelvis and the area you so desperately wish to touch. You have to be patient since you seek to milk this moment for as long as possible.

Your middle finger searches for any sign of dampness and you gasp when you find a small pool already built up at your core. When you look back at the monitor to see what he’d like you to do next, you watch as he adjusts himself into a similar position to yours.

“Your turn. Take off your shirt,” you instruct.

He raises his eyebrows. A mischievous smile dawns on his face. “Why?”

“Because I said so.”

“So demanding. That’s what got us here in the first place,” he remarks but proceeds to unbutton his shirt.

“I’m not afraid to go out and get what I want.”

“I know, and I admire you for it,” he says. His shirt begins to crinkle as he unbuttons lower and lower until eventually, the front parts to reveal his chest. His abs are soft and his warm honey skin looks smooth. You wonder what it would it taste like.

As he rolls up his sleeves, you observe every movement of his hands. They’re large. One of the first things you noticed about him when he spoke in class and lead discussions. You always wondered what his hands would look like if they were doing something else entirely... Now, your fantasies have come to life.

You force your jaw closed but he’s already caught you staring. “Like what you see?” he asks through his low lids.

“Oh, please. As if you don’t know you’re attractive as hell.”

A low laugh emerges from the man and you smile. If only you could bottle it up and keep it. When he reaches into his pants, you follow along, taking the slick from your finger up to your clit in one smooth stroke. You hum and bite at your lips to contain your reaction.

He shakes his head. “Don’t hide it. You sound beautiful.”

Your other hand starts to wander as you go to work on your clit. From your head to your chest, you seek something to ground you as your soft bud puffs with pleasure. No longer does it hide, tucked away beneath the crevices of your lips. You grind against it using your hand and a slow swivel of your hips from left to right.

“You’re doing so good. I’m so proud of you,” coos Taehyung. “Your body was made for this. For pleasure.”

The sight of him gripping the base of his cock is almost enough to send you over. A light glaze of sweat builds on your forehead but you make no effort to wipe it. Taehyung wishes to feel the heat of your body on his. It’s probably better than anything he could ever imagine.

Perhaps now more than ever, he longs for the days before the virus took over and broke everyone apart. He misses those times so much he could cry, especially since he took them for granted. At the same time though, he thinks about the effort those close to him have made to keep in contact. Even old friends he hadn’t spoken to in years called to catch up with him. His students have stuck out the most out of anyone. One or two of them don’t even own laptops but they show up to class on time and bring their A-game. He believes he should take a note or two from them.

As he studies you, the way you squirm in delight, and the way your body responds to the ministrations of your hand, a wave of relief washes over him. If it weren’t for these circumstances, he wouldn’t have had this moment with you.

“Taehyung,” you moan, bringing him back.

The sound of you calling his name shoots heat straight to his cock. With the precum glistening at the top, he grabs his cock and works the tip using his thumb. “Fuck. Look at what you do to me,” he groans at the sensitivity.

“Please,” you take in a breath and continue, “t-tell me more.”

If praise is what you want, praise is what you’ll get. “You’re so hardworking in everything that you do. Look at you now. Touching yourself just for me.”

“Yes, yes.” You moan as your fingers settle into the one position that feels like you’ve struck gold.

“How far inside can those fingers go? I bet you can put them in real deep.”

It’s as though your hands were waiting for his approval. You slip inside your clenching, gaping hole using two fingers. They slide in easily but the initial stretch is foreign since it’s been so long.

Taehyung groans and for the first time tonight, you begin to see him lose control. His cool exterior sinks into the pleasure of his hand—and of you—leaving him a sweaty, desirable mess. His hair sticks to his forehead and his stomach clenches with each stroke of his hand. He moves slowly, trying to match the pace of your hand. You pick up speed and allow your body to move against the rhythm of your hand. Your insides feel warm and soft and slippery. You close your eyes and imagine he’s the one fingering you with those gorgeous hands of his.

The rubber band of pleasure in your stomach begins to stretch. The squelch of your pussy grows louder with each passing second.

Taehyung is well-endowed but never did you imagine his dick would expand so much in length and girth. He could spear your pussy in one fell swoop, destroying your insides and anything else that gets in his way.

“Taehyung, I’m close,” you say with a sigh. You barely have the energy to speak.

“Fuck, me too,” he adds. “I’m almost there. Cum with me.”

His hand travels from base to tip and each part of the journey is smoother than the last. He massages each vein and ripple and moves even faster when he catches a glimpse of the uneven quiver of your thighs. Heat churns in his stomach and all he can do is chase it desperately. He needs it like oxygen, to breathe in the sight of you along with the pleasure of his nether regions.

The rubber band snaps. It strikes you in waves, each crash stronger the last. You let the waves overtake you and succumb to the burst of pleasure spreading through your limbs. You pull out your hand and clench around nothing as the sensitivity forces your legs closed.

Just when you thought things were over, Taehyung makes a request: “Taste it.”

You waste no time in taking your fingers to your mouth, gliding your tongue on the pads of your fingertips, and spreading the salty fluid in your mouth. All you can focus on is the heavenly sight of Taehyung coming. Each breath he lets out comes with a moan. You swear you can feel the vibration of his low voice against your own chest. His hair covers his eyes but you know they’re closed in pleasure. He intakes one sharp breath before it finally takes him over.

He can feel nothing but release. Release of stress. Release of work. Release of anything except you. As white spurts of cum squirt from his dick in a messy stream of strings, all you can think about is the beauty of his body.

“This was fun,” you admit with a smile. “I’m glad my attempt didn’t flop.”

“No, that would’ve been a huge mistake on my part.”

As you look down, your eyelashes brush the top of your cheeks and you bite your lip in anticipation. “I know I’m graduating and all, but we should do this again sometime. If you’re interested.”

He rests his elbows on his desk and brings himself closer to the camera. With his hand holding the side of his face, he takes in the sweet sight of you. “Did you enjoy it that much?”

“Oh yes. In fact, unlike some people, I’d give you an A-plus.”

#bts #bts smut #kim taehyung #fanfic #bts au fanfic #bts au fic #bts fic #bts au #bts taehyung #bts kim taehyung #taehyung x reader #Taehyung #jiminisnotavirgin #kim taehyung x reader #kim taehyung x you

[etherealino]

date? — l. minho

synopsis: you haven’t been on a date for months and your godsent rommate decides to take you out.

content/genre: roommate!minho x reader, based off of joey and rachel in friends s8xe12 bcs im still bitter that they never ended up with each other. purely fluff !!

warning(s): um, me being lame. other than that, none. unproof read. hehe

wc: 1.7k

note: there’s going to part 2 and maybe full length fic after part two. this is fully self indulgent bcs,,, come on, who doesn’t want a joey tribbiani?

and they were friends. m.list — next.

minho looks at you with wide eyes, blinking a few times with amusement on his face. “wow, you surely planned my date, huh.” minho teases as you close your hands together, shyly looking at him. minho thinks about it—it’s actually not that bad. he could take his date out, go to that diner that you were saying and dance with them since just like you said, the diner has a dance floor, a vintage themed one. it sounds a bit more you but he loves it.

“it’s been months since i went out on a date.” you said as you looked at your roommate with a smile. when minho asks why, you sigh, “i’ve got college, if i don’t have college, i have my extracurricular stuff and if i don’t extracurricular stuff, i’m on my bed too tired to do anything. it’s just.. i’ve been so busy, i don’t have time for it.”

“ever since..” minho trails off and you shake your head. hyunjin, minho’s best friend is your ex-boyfriend. whe you found out they were best friends, you thought you wouldn’t have a nice relationship with minho but no, this angel right beside you never let you felt like he was siding with hyunjin. minho doesn’t care, he wants to be able to talk to his roommate about everything.

“you’ve caught me couple of times with a date after that.” you remind and minho nods.

“you know what? what don’t i take you out?”

you laugh at what minho says, looking at him but he only stares at you with his eyebrow raised. “oh, you’re serious?” you ask and minho nods. “no, minho, you don’t have to. plus, i have a lot to do later.”

“like what? didn’t you finish everything this morning?” minho asks.

“how’d you know i finished everything earlier?” you asked.

“i go through your journal to know your schedule.” minho says and you look at him with wide eyes. “i don’t read your brain dump stuff. i accidentally did one time and when i realized it was private, i moved on.”

you have to admit, minho was sweet about that.

“but don’t you have a date tonight?” you ask and minho shakes his head.

“that’s not until tomorrow.” minho informs and you nod. “so, date?”

“i don’t know, min.” you shrug and minho smiles at you in a teasing way.

“we’ll go dancing.” minho says and you laugh, pushing his face back gently.

“alright, fine. we’ll go.” you said and minho smiles. you don’t know why, but you are excited about it. you sigh, smiling as you get back to your book.

“minho! could you get that?” you ask from your room as your hear knocking on the apartment, but minho doesn’t answer and a second wave of knocking comes. you come out of your room, fully dressed up for your date with minho as you walk up to the door, opening it to see none other then your roommate with a smile on his face. he winks at you and you chuckle. “i thought you were in your room.”

minho pulls his hand from behind holding a small boquet of your favorite flowers. “hey! my favorite! aw, thank you, minho.” you said as you took it, smelling it and taking it inside to put it on a vase.

“nice place you got here.” minho plays as he steps inside the apartment to which you laugh. “hey, three cats! nice, didn’t know you love cats.”

“well, they’re actually my roommate’s.” you answer, playing along with a smile as you place the vase nicely beside the sink.

“oh, really?” minho nods, approving of your so called roommate—so basically, he’s approving of himself. “i would like to meet him sometime.”

you hum in agreement, “but i have to warn you. he is very protective of me. so, you should watch yourself.” you say as you walk towards your room to get your coat.

minho lets out hum, smiling. “ah, so, this roommate of yours who is very nice considering he has three cats—is he good looking?” minho asks, wiggling his eyebrows as you close the door of your room.

“oh, yes, he is! one of a kind beauty.” you answered as you put your coat on. “but odd enough, even though he’s one of the prettiest face i’ve ever seen walk on this planet, his cats love me more than him.”

“hey! hey! hey!” minho protests, scowling as he looks at you. “they don’t. why are yout rying to ruin this?”

you laugh, looping your arm around his as you both exit your apartment. when you both got into diner which was more formal than minho expected (really perfect for dating like the old times), you both sat on a booth as the waiter got your orders.

“hey, by the way, changbin stopped by earlier to—”

“hey, what are you doing?” minho laughs lightly. “this a date, okay? two people getting to know each other. no roommate stuff, hm?”

“hm,” you hum with a smile. “okay, so, tell me! what is lee minho like on a date?”

“what do you mean?” minho asks.

“like, does he have a signature move?” you explain, smiling. “i mean, we both know you’re very flirty and all, but what is lee minho like on a date? come on, tell me.”

minho smiles, “alright,” he mumbles, “i always make sure my date would have a drink or eat that would leave a stain on their lip.”

“why?” you ask as some of your orders were placed on your table. minho’s eyes lighten up as he sees the cake he ordered. he pushes the creamy cake towards you and smiles.

“wanna try some?” minho offers and you shrug, taking a fork to have a bite of the cake. then just like minho planned, it left some of the crumbs on the corners of your mouth. when minho sees you reaching out for tissues, he beats you to it, saying, “i’ll get that for you.” minho smiles as he dabs the tissue on the corner of your mouth, slowly until his hand was placed on your cheek, thumb rubbing circles on your skin. you look back into his eyes, getting lost in the galaxies of his eyes as he stared into your soul, making you lean in—

“hey!” you exclaimed, snapping out of your trance as you remembered that you asked minho’s move. minho giggles, winking at you as you laugh. “nice. just your style, actions over words.”

“how about you?” minho asks and you hum, smiling.

“so, what’s your major again?” you ask and minho raises an eyebrow, making you gesture with your hand for him to just answer.

“computer science.”

“what?” you ask, leaning in closer.

“computer science.”

“again.” you say, leaning closer as you rest your hand on minho’s thigh and he sighs.

“y/n, i’m your roommate, you know my—” minho cuts himself off as you tilt your head towards him. minho stares into your eyes, a bit taken back when your eyes land on minho’s lips.

“okay, that’s—” minho laughs as he pulls away and you grin at him, laughing lightly. “nice, y/n. nice.” you shrug, laughing. the night went on and just like minho promised, he danced with you on the space given as he requested a slow song. minho rests his jaw against the side of your head with his arm wrapped around you and the other hand holding yours against his chest. minho frowns, feeling tingly as he hold you close against him.

“you know,” minho begins as he closes the door of the apartment behind him. “this is the best date i’ve ever had.” minho confesses with a grin on his face. you look at him, removing your coat.

“me, too.” you said with a pout but a smille still comes on your face. “thank you so much for doing this. you really didn’t have to, min.” 

minho chuckles, removing his own coat. “so, does y/l/n y/n have any final moves at the end of the night?” minho asks as he hangs his coat on the rack.

“you first.” you smile.

“i really don’t.” minho says, shrugging. “i just look them deep in the eyes, cup their cheeks and go in for a slow kiss. and then i pull away, smile wide and drag my hands down their arms until i reach their hands, grab them, lift it up to my lips and kiss their knuckles.”

you smile softly. “that’s actually sweet.” minho gestures to you, silently saying it’s your turn. “okay,” you mumble, walking towards him as you hold his hands in each of yours. “you know that thing you asked me about this one time when i had a date and i told you that i just like playing with their fingers?”

“yeah,”

“well,” you start by lifting your hands that grab minho’s as you face your palms up, minho’s hands on top of yours as you slowly pull your hands away but your fingers gently playing with his as you twist your hands, intertwining your fingers with his. “i play with their hands for a bit.” you explain. “and then, i slide my hands up to their arms until it stops by their shoulders—ooh, look what you just did?” you ask and minho looks at his arms that he might have unconsciously wrapped them around your middle. “and then i place my hands on their jaws, caress their face for a bit with my thumb. then put my hands on their hair, playing with it,” you say, taking it in action. “and that’s when i kiss them.”

you smile, looking up into minho’s eyes to see them staring right back at you.

a sigh leaves your lips, slowly pulling away. “i know, it doesn’t seem like—”

“no, no, no, it would work.” minho says, chuckling lightly. you grin, opening your arms for him as he embraces you, wrapping his arms around your middle.

“thank you so much.” you say as you rock both of you side by side. “i had so much fun.” you giggle and you pull away, kissing his cheek. “good night, honey.”

“good night.” minho smiles as you fully pull away, arm extending as you walk away, slowly letting go of minho’s hand. minho watches you as you enter your room, frowning as he put his hand over his heart as if trying to calm his heart down from the interaction he had with you. why the hell was he feeling so happy and tingly? why is his heart beating so fast?

come say hi, my loves !!

#skzwritersclub #inkidz #stray kids imagines #stray kids scenarios #stray kids fluff #stray kids angst #stray kids oneshot #stray kids reactions #skz imagines #skz scenarios #skz fluff #minho imagines #minho scenarios #minho fluff #minho x reader #lee minho imagines #lee minho scenarios #lee minho fluff #lee know imagines #lee know scenarios #lee know fluff #lee know x reader

[whatifyoulivelikethat]

aquarium ii | kth

pairing(s): taehyung x reader; ex-jungkook x reader

summary: Life after Jeon Jungkook was grey. You had to find your own color, grow your own rainbow. But what would surprise you the most is the appearance of white cosmos, seven of them clutched tightly in Kim Taehyung’s hand.

warnings: reader discretion is advised: a (half-hearted) suicide attempt; mentions of cheating in previous relationship; language; heavy angst; fluffiest fluff; non-idol!AU; kind garden-loving landlord!Taehyung x reader; ft. sadboi!Jungkook

–

part i

-

now playing – without me by halsey ft. JUICE WRLD

tell me, how's it feel sittin' up there? feelin’ so high, but too far away to hold me

You couldn’t remember that night very well, because you didn’t come up.

The worst part about being cheated on was not the actual cheating. It was the moment where you thought you had done something wrong, like somehow it was your fault it happened, like if you hadn’t done this or that, maybe things would have been different. Maybe if you hadn’t chosen that night to snoop into Jeon Jungkook’s phone, he would have had second thoughts, deleted it all, and loved you again. Maybe if you were a little kinder, a little more attentive, he wouldn’t have fallen out of love with you. Maybe... Maybe.

Maybe.

You knew that was just your brain trying to rationalize his irrationality. You had done wrong by invading his privacy by acting on sheer gut feeling. And you had run away, without confronting it, without giving him a chance, because you knew, you knew that if you gave him a chance, you would believe all his words, get dragged back into his sea, back into those dangerous waters.

All these thoughts coursed through you as the water closed in.

The milky bathwater was slowly replacing your depleting air, leaking into your lungs and you didn’t fight it, turning the darkness of the underside of your eyelids into light, because deep down you still loved him, no matter how stupid or foolish it was. Your heart still clung to his soft, I’m sorry, and you didn’t want to hear it anymore.

You didn’t want to know what loving Jeon Jungkook was like anymore. It was too painful.

you know i'm the one who put you up there name in the sky, does it ever get lonely?

You gave everything so he could be what he wanted to be, not knowing that you were the one slowly being eroded. No one could tell you. You were the one who had to find the signs. You were the one who found yourself trapped in glass walls, stuck in an aquarium, surrounded on all sides by Jeon Jungkook as he made a mockery of your feelings.

You screamed into the water and no one heard you.

The next memory you had was hazy, barely there.

You felt a tightness in your chest, harsh, solid pressure. A frustrated, agonized voice above you, desperately calling your name in deep baritone, desperately asking you to come back, praying in every language he knew for you to come back, come back, please, please, please.

“Please…”

In the whiteness, you wandered. Were you meant to be here? It was a loose fog. You looked around, seeing traces of memory like torn book pages, slipping through the haze. You reached out to touch them and they disappeared, only mirages.

And then you fell, dragged into dark blue, torn, battered, lungs burning as you struggled to stay afloat, coughing hard, your muscles screaming with asphyxiation, sudden oxygen flooding your brain. You whipped your head to the side, hacking up water, spilling it all over the green tiles of the bathroom floor, head pounding. Thoughts swimming, barely computing the shouting above you.

“I can’t fucking believe you,” one voice growled above your jerking body, so venomous that it made your blood run cold. “You absolute disaster of a man, thinking for one fucking second she would even consider taking you back. Look at her! She’d rather drown herself in my damn bathtub than hold a conversation with you!”

“What the fuck do you know?” The familiar voice, the voice that haunted you in your nightmares, the voice that fed you sweet poison. “She would do anything for me! She worships the fucking ground I walk on!”

You curled up into a ball, head pounding by the sudden explosion of light and sound. There was a towel over you, covering your wet naked body, and yet you shivered. You barely registered Kim Taehyung snarling, rising to his feet.

“You narcissistic bastard,” Taehyung spat out. “Get the fuck out of my house. Get the fuck out and don’t ever come near her again or I’ll break your fucking neck.”

“You can’t do anything to me. You’re a nobody,” Jeon Jungkook taunted. “Unlike you, I actually have money to sue you for assault.”

Apparently, Taehyung did not give a single shit, because he immediately roared and launched himself past you, the brown ball slamming into the black wall. You blinked, trying to register what was happening, but it was too much for you and your brain that was slowly trying to restore function due to lack of oxygen. They tumbled down the stairs and you laid your head against the floor, hearing the grunts and shouting, wondering why Taehyung had come back.

Wondering how he knew.

You closed your eyes.

In your dreams, you saw the soft sunlight glowing against Taehyung’s tan skin as he reached down to retrieve a dark green cucumber to show you. It was a bit wonky and hadn’t grown quite right, but you watched Taehyung tap it and smile to himself.

“Doesn’t matter what it looks like on the outside,” he said cheerfully. “I know it will still taste delicious because I gave it love.”

-

You tried to go back to work, but it was awful.

You loved your work. Perhaps it was boring to others, accounting all day, but it was mundane and peaceful, always knowing what you had to do. You never had to question the numbers. The numbers were what they were and that was that.

But now when you stared out into the grey urban jungle, it pained you.

What once was your safe haven turned into your cage, chaining you to clock in, clock out. You would go home to a motel nearby, crying into unfamiliar, starched sheets, pitying housekeepers preparing your meals, asking you what was wrong and you couldn’t tell them.

Because you didn’t know.

i'm sad inside, but i know it's for the best, right? you had to realize where you drew the line 

You didn’t check his social media. You didn’t check his Twitch, his Instagram, his Twitter. You got a new phone, only giving your new number to your work and your parents. With a start, you realized you hadn’t contacted your old high school friends in years. You had lost them all, committing social suicide for Jeon Jungkook. In fact, you had no social media presence, so there was no need to download those apps.

There was nothing on your old phone that you wanted. It sat in the storage unit, forgotten. You didn’t want to turn on your old phone to see the photos, the lock screen of his arms around you, smile on his face from two years ago.

A smile you didn’t even know was real or fake.

i still hate it when you’re not there

You tried to tell yourself you were fine, because moping over Jeon Jungkook was stupid. But you had invested so much. You had given him everything. It was hard to regrow. You were stuffed in this tiny motel room, staring out to the hazy, polluted city, yellow sunlight fighting to be seen.

You sat by the window, clutching your pink flats, remembering Taehyung’s last words to you before you left.

“I looked up the brand and bought you some new ones,” he had said sheepishly. “I felt bad that they got so ruined, all because I asked you to help me with the garden.” He gave you that big, boxy smile. “Just think of them as a parting gift for being such a great tenant.”

You inhaled a deep breath, placing the pale pink flats next to the exact same style but grass-stained, greyed-out, worn ones. You stared at them both.

And made a choice.

-

“I thought I would never see you again.”

You lifted your head. The scent of flowers, so familiar and comforting, wafted around you, a reassuring embrace. You were wearing a long-sleeved white dress, a brown ribbon around the collar. The pink flats, the ones the owner of the deep baritone voice had gifted you.

That was nearly six months ago now. You had since thrown away the other ones.

Kim Taehyung walked up to you. He was wearing brown overalls and a cream shirt, elbows smeared with dirt. His skin had lightened due to the passing winter, but it was spring now. The flower shop was very busy, but there were other employees, and Taehyung was fixated on you.

“I didn’t know you worked here,” Taehyung said quietly, his brown eyes shimmering. “I would have come here a lot more often if I knew.”

You bit you lip and bowed your head politely, smiling at him. Taehyung coughed and rubbed the back of his head, messing up his dark brown hair. It was longer and curlier now, desperately needing a trim.

“I… I came to get carnations. The shop I normally go to ran out.”

You nodded, leading him wordlessly to the red and pink carnations. There was still a good number left, but you had to pick through carefully to find the most beautiful ones for him. He watched you work, chewing on his lip. You held up the large bouquet to him.

“What do you think?” you asked softly.

He smiled at you. “Perfect.” He didn’t ask the price. “Could you make two corsages out of a few of them?”

“Of course. Right this way.”

You brought him to one of the counters, selecting a few blooms to make the corsages. You showed him the available ribbons and he picked a thin, sheer white one. He watched you work, quickly, but delicately, careful not to bruise the petals.

“You became an expert about flowers,” he remarked. “I’m still struggling.”

You smiled. “I’m still learning. It’s very different from what I used to do.” You twisted the ribbon into a perfect bow, using floral wire to secure it.

“You don’t talk to him anymore, do you?”

You shook your head. “Haven’t seen him since that day you threw him down your stairs.”

Taehyung laughed a little too loud, making the patrons stare at him. He coughed nervously, cramming the crumpled brown hat under his arm onto his head. You placed your hand over your lips, trying to hide your chuckle. Your fingertips smelled like phloem sap from the cut stems, sweet and grassy.

Taehyung gazed at you, surrounded by flowers, carnations laid out on the counter.

“Will you… let me take a picture of you?”

You blinked at him, lips parting.

Taehyung reached into his pocket, pulling out an old 35mm film camera. He looked sheepish as he held it up, hesitating.

“Sorry, I just… you look so beautiful, and I don’t want to forget that.” He rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand. “I know it’s a weird habit. But I like to take pictures and I never took one of you.” He looked deep into your eyes.

“I really regret not taking a picture of you.”

Your fingers were still over your mouth. You nodded.

Taehyung held the camera up and snapped a photo.

-

“He waits for you to get off work every day. It’s been a week now.”

The manager was teasing you, nudging your arm as you tugged on your long camel coat. You smiled at her, an old woman with knowing eyes that had seen and enjoyed a lot of life. Taehyung waved across the street as you made eye contact with him.

“There aren’t men like him anymore, you know,” she said gently. “These kinds of things happened in my generation, but now young people send pictures of flowers instead of the real thing.”

When you thanked the manager and walked out to Taehyung, he held out a small bundle of tiny flowers to you. White cosmos. You stopped, surprised. Breathless as you looked up at him. He was illuminated by a streetlight and the dying sun, the golden hour matching his golden skin. Holding out the white cosmos, shivering in the spring breeze.

“They’re not that pretty,” he said guiltily, stepping up to you. “I’ve been trying to grow flowers for months now and these are the only ones that survived, ahahaha…”

He scratched his head, brushing his hair back.

“I always hoped that if I saw you again, I could show you that I was able to finally grow flowers.” Taehyung laughed, shrugging apologetically. “This is all I got.”

You reached out and took the small bundle from him. They were a bit curled and slightly wilted from being carried around but you smiled at them.

“No one has ever grown flowers for me,” you said quietly.

The tiny yellow centers of each flower were surrounded by white. You counted seven. Taehyung had given you seven flowers. Seven flowers he grew on his own, because he wanted to show you. You placed your fingers on your mouth, the scent of the floral shop returning to you with the action. Your chest felt tight and full, a feeling unlike any other.

“I wanted to grow at least eight,” Taehyung lamented. “Because that would be luckier, but…”

You shook your head quickly, looking up at him. Him and his beautiful brown eyes, a small patch of dirt underneath his cheek. He probably didn’t even know it was there.

“No.”

You removed your hand from your lips and smiled at him.

“Seven is perfect.”

You threw your hands around him and hugged him tightly.

-

When Jeon Jungkook saw you again, everything was different.

He was distracting himself from school. University was much harder than he thought, especially since he didn’t attend right after high school to pursue his streaming career.

For a long time, he had someone to take care of him, first his mom and then you. Someone to do everything so he could recklessly chase his dreams. But things were different now. He had to suddenly become an adult. It wasn’t because of you. You hadn’t told anyone what happened.

But everyone knew.

One girl had let it slip, and then another and another, and then screenshots were plastered everywhere, all over the internet for anyone to see, not knowing the context, tossing judgements left and right. His parents found out and then his friends, everyone disappointed in him, not surprised that you vanished without a trace. He had to vanish too, every sponsor cutting ties with him immediately, not asking if it was true or not. It was bad for business to be associated with something like that.

Jungkook really regretted it now, but there was nothing he could do to take it back.

That’s why he was sitting in this tiny, one room apartment, using what was leftover from his streaming money to get a degree, saving every penny to his education. At least he hadn’t been so reckless to overspend. You hadn’t let him, always reminding him to save for his future, using your own income to pay for the necessities.

Even now, you were helping him.

Every once in a while, Jungkook would type variations of your old Instagram username into the search bar, wondering if you had ever set it up again. He had asked you to delete it, since you had been getting constant DMs from guys asking you out, sending you unsolicited dick pics. You had agreed, even through you could have fought him or simply privated it.

You had deleted it, Jungkook knew now, because he asked you and you loved him.

It hurt to know that you loved him so dearly and he was too busy feeding his own ego to see it.

When Jungkook saw you again, you were surrounded by flowers.

Your profile picture was a close up shot of your beautiful face, golden sun against your skin, a white cosmos tucked behind your ear. He knew it was you. He could tell by the shape of your lips, the contours of your eyes, even through your eyes were closed. Wearing a white dress, the ruffles fluttering in the wind.

Jungkook was breathless, seeing you again. He scrolled through your pictures. They were mostly of flowers, with captions of how to grow them. Were you a florist now? Some of them were of you in different dresses, surrounded by blue sky and green summer. The smile on your face was so dazzling that he wondered who gave you that smile.

His heart wrenched uncomfortably in his chest.

Or maybe it wasn’t a someone.

There was a time when that smile was his. There was a time when he could make you smile like that, your lips saying his name breathlessly – “Jungkook, Jungkook, look at this!” – showing him something silly or giving him his favorite banana milk with special edition packaging, saying how cute it was, just like him.

He blinked and a droplet fell onto his phone.

Right on your smiling face, hand holding a large straw hat, your pink dress fluttering in the wind.

Jungkook wiped it away, swiping at his tears with the sleeve of his black sweatshirt, wondering why had he taken that smile for granted, why he had drifted away from the safe coast, why he had thought, even for a second, that the days and nights you spent cleaning after him meant that you were keeping yourself busy and away from him, not seeing it for what it was, not seeing that it was your love for him and his own sloppiness that left him here now, staring at your summer as his summer was torn from him by textbooks and lectures.

He shuddered, still looking at the pictures, not wanting to miss a moment, even if they weren’t his moments anymore.

One of your pictures was a bundle of seven white cosmos, a little wilted and sad-looking.

Jungkook read the caption.

It doesn’t matter if you don’t think you’re beautiful. Because there is someone out there who thinks you are. They use every resource they know to give you love, even if it’s clumsy at first. Even if you don’t think you need it or want it.

The tears were really coming now, streaming down his cheeks as Jungkook asked himself why, why did he give this up?

They celebrate you and your love instead of simply tolerating it.

-

You sat on the edge of the cliff, legs dangling over the side.

Your pink flats were right beside you, and your arms were resting on the wooden fence. The ocean breeze was strong here, salty and cold. But you didn’t feel the cold, because Kim Taehyung had wrapped a thick wool blanket around you two. It was already night, but by the seaside it was still chilly, even in the summer, due to the sea breeze.

He peeled the foil back on a roasted sweet yam, taking off some of the skin so you could bite into it. You tried to take it from him but he shook his head, frowning at you. You laughed and took a bite, scalding your mouth from how hot it was. But it still tasted good.

“I asked my parents if I could have it.”

You looked up at him, trying to blow the steaming air from your mouth in attempt to cool off.

“The cottage?”

Taehyung nodded, taking a bite and wincing. “You’ll never guess what they said.”

You smiled. “What did they say?”

He scowled. “Then pay rent!” He waved a hand to the seaside house behind you two. “They own it! Why do I have to pay rent? I’m their son!”

You giggled, hiding your mouth behind you hand. Taehyung angrily bit into the sweet yam again and choked, forgetting how hot it was. Your giggles turned into full-blown laughter, falling back onto the grass, wool softening your fall. Taehyung narrowed his eyes at you, shaking the yam furiously. The white moonlight glinted off the silver foil. He puffed his cheeks and sighed as your laughter faded out.

You looked up at the stars, realizing how clear the sky was here.

It was nothing like the city.

Even in darkness, the white stars shone against the black, bright and clear. You wouldn’t have seen them if you weren’t here, on your back and looking up at them.

“Anyway, they only said it was a hundred won, so I guess that’s fine,” Taehyung grumbled. “Really made me worried there for a second, sheesh.”

You turned your head to look up at him. “You going to live here?”

Taehyung shook his head.

“No, you are.”

You blinked, taken aback. He rewrapped the yam, determining it was too hot to eat right now. He gazed down at you, smiling a little.

“It’s better than that one room you have in that house. Safer too.”

You chewed on your lip. “But I can’t pay the amount I paid when I rented it…”

Taehyung poked you with the yam. “Weren’t you listening? The rent is a hundred won. No, two hundred for you, since I have to make some profit.”

He laid down next to you, eye to eye now, smile getting bigger.

“Although I hear there’s this annoying gardener that comes around every day caring for the plants.”

You were smiling now too, drawn by his cheeky, boxy grin.

“Really? I think he’s pretty cute. I think that’s how he gets away with it.”

His brown eyes locked with yours.

“Will you let me care for you too?”

The sound of the sea, crashing into the rockface, constructing a new memory for you.

“I know you’ll be much harder than a plant,” Taehyung murmured quietly. “Sorry, that’s a dumb thing to say, I meant–”

You pressed your lips against his, cold air chilling your cheeks, warmth spreading throughout your soul.

When you pulled away, breathless, Taehyung was staring at you, eyes wide. Those three words came to you, words that you thought you were never going to say again, words you had for someone else, but you knew this was the right one, the perfect flower.

The one who struggled to grow seven flowers.

White cosmos.

Just for you.

“I love you, Kim Taehyung.”

-

The next summer.

Seven flowers. White cosmos, bright, glowing, perfectly shaped. Surrounding your left hand. The ring finger held a princess-cut diamond surrounded by six tiny small ones like petals.

The caption.

He grew them perfectly this time.

Jeon Jungkook sighed heavily, placing his phone back in his pocket. The noise around him was loud, clattering and chattering, now a familiar atmosphere. The black bucket hat was low over his eyes, shrouding them. He pulled his face mask higher, hiding his features, not wanting to be recognized. Internet shame was enough; he didn’t need public shame as well. He already had to switch universities because of it.

Jungkook placed his hand back onto the subway rail, shouldering his backpack, staring out the train window at the black tunnel.

--

masterpost

#taehyung x reader #taehyung x you #kim taehyung x reader #jungkook x reader #jungkook x you #taehyung scenarios #kim taehyung x you #jeon jungkook x reader #jeon jungkook x you

[got-svt]

the road not taken

summary: you live in la, he lives in seoul. you don’t think it’s ever going to work out, but he believes otherwise. especially when every year on the holidays, both of you rediscover that your hearts are still in chicago. aka the conversations that had you rethinking your relationship.   pairing: johnny suh x reader genre: angst, friends with benefits (but only on the holidays lmao — implied sex, so no actual smut), some fluff at the end kinda word count: 2637

part of my tales from the lakes series inspired by taylor swift’s ‘tis the damn season

___

Truth be told, despite the fact that you were neighbors and your parents were quite close with his, you didn’t know much about Johnny in the years you spent growing up in the suburbs of Chicago. Sure, you caught glimpses of him from your bedroom practicing whatever song or dance routine he felt like he needed to improve on. More often than not, you’d find yourself laughing as he accidentally bumped into a shelf or slip and fall over on the floor. And he would be lying if he said he hadn’t taken a peek out his window to watch you running lines, a script in you hand as you paced around the room, a smile creeping on his face as he watches you shake your head every time you forget a line. In a way, you both formed some sort of a relationship as you silently cheered the other on in whatever endeavor you put your minds to.

He wanted you to succeed just as much as you wanted him to succeed. 

But when he moved to Korea to pursue a career as an idol, and you to LA for acting, there were little to no opportunities to actually begin a proper conversation. 

It wasn’t until in December of 2017, when both of your parents decided to have a joint Christmas dinner in celebration of both their children coming home for the holidays for the first time in years. They thought it was time for you two to meet, having settled in your respective career paths. Maybe they also wanted to see how the two of you would get along, but they would never admit it even if you ask. 

“I don’t think we’ve ever formally met.” He told you once he entered your parents’ house and offering a hand for you to shake, “I’m Johnny.”

“Yn.” You replied, taking his hand in yours, “And, trust me, I know exactly who you are.”

He raised an eyebrow at your statement as he let go of your hand, you shivered at the immediate loss of contact, your hand immediately growing colder at the absence of his. 

“NCT?” You asked tentatively, testing the waters of what could possibly be an exciting new friendship.  

“Ah yeah,” he sheepishly smiled, reaching a hand to scratch the back of his neck, “I guess there’s no use in pretending I don’t know who you are either.”

It was now your turn to raise an eyebrow at him, crossing your arms in front of your chest, “Hmmm?”

“I’ve seen pretty much every show you’ve ever been on.” Johnny clarified, but his tone suggested a bit of embarrassment on his part, “The other members don’t believe me when I tell them I practically grew up next to you.”

“I guess I could say the same.” You replied with a shrug, but you offered him a reassuring smile “Nobody really believes me when I tell them a Kpop star used to be my neighbor.” 

“Perhaps we need better friends then.” He joked, but your gaze was fixated on the way the curve of his lips moved with each word that left his mouth. Johnny had always been attractive, whether it be through your bedroom window or your computer screen. But now here he stood, in front of you, bare faced in black jeans and a gray sweatshirt and somehow he had never looked more alluring. 

Johnny noticed you watching him, but he never called you out on it. Maybe because he was too busy thinking about how soft your hand was when he shook it, imagining how it must feel running over his skin. Or how your hair seemed fall perfectly, framing your face in a way that was enticing him for reasons he couldn’t exactly figure out. 

“Care for a drink?” You asked, breaking the brief period of tense silence that had fallen between the two of you, leading him to the makeshift bar your parents had near the kitchen. 

He smirked, placing his hands inside the pockets of his jeans, “I thought you’d never ask.”

And maybe it was because of both of your parents deciding to turn in early and the three bottles of wine that was shared between the two of you that had you pinned against the wall of your childhood bedroom, quietly giggling into his lips as he went in for another kiss. He drunkenly mumbled words that you couldn’t quite understand, but he was telling you to keep quiet. You knew you should have stopped him the second planted his lips onto yours, and he knew he should’ve pulled away when you started taking off his shirt. Maybe then you wouldn’t have woken uncomfortably cuddled up on your twin-sized bed and sneaking him out of the house before your parents could wake up. 

But both of you enjoyed the way your bodies seemed to be made just for the other too much to stop, and thus, a tradition of sorts was formed. 

2018. 

One particular night the following year had you driving around the city, Johnny had one hand on the steering wheel while the other held yours, his thumb rubbing comforting circles on the back of your hand. But it did everything but comfort you or himself. Since the previous year, you and Johnny grew much closer than either have you had anticipated. You thought it would all end after that first night or maybe when you flew back to LA, and him back to Seoul. But it had been seemingly impossible to move away from whatever relationship that began to form, as both of you sacrificed nights of well warranted sleep to call or text the other, soon enough both of you were in too deep to easily get out. 

“Penny for your thoughts?” You asked, taking note of how the streetlights perfectly illuminated his face. He had been unusually quiet and you were growing tired of the Christmas songs that had been blasting on every radio station for the past few hours. 

“It’s nothing.” He sighed as he turned to an unfamiliar street, you knew better than to believe that it was truly nothing. But you also knew him well enough to not to push it. 

“Where are we going then?”

Johnny replied with a shrug, continuing down the foreign path, he knew neither of you had been to this particular part of town but at that point he’d do anything to even remotely extend the time you spent together. 

“And if we get lost?” You asked, your voice almost challenging him to turn back, but he didn’t give in. 

“Then we get lost.” He replied without missing a single beat, the corners of his mouth twitching upwards to form a smile, “You know, the road not taken tend to be the most exciting.”

“Oh wow,” You let out a laugh, and Johnny feels his heart skip the slightest of beats, “and where did that immensely profound quote come from?”

“My brilliant mind.” He grinned, briefly turning to face you. 

Johnny wished he had a camera to capture the absolute spectacle that was you. How you stared out the window, at the unfamiliar road, eyes alive with a certain curiosity. Your finger drawing little stars on the car window, pouting when it doesn’t quite look the way you wanted it to. It was at that moment he knew, you were all he wanted. 

“What are we?” He asked, causing you to jump a little in your seat, Johnny had never brought up the nature of your relationship before. 

“Friends?” You said, at an attempt to offer him an answer, but even you sounded unsure at your response which made Johnny grow hopeful. 

“Yn, friends don’t kiss.” Johnny responded, grateful that he had to keep his eyes on the road. He didn’t need you seeing right through his pretend confidence, “They sure as hell don’t sleep together”

“Sure, they do.” You joked in an attempt to lighten the mood, maybe even change the topic to something—anything— else, “I do it all the time.”

“Well, acting is different.” He let out a scoff, annoyed at the thought of you not taking the conversation seriously,  “You know what I meant.”

“I like where we are now. It’s easy.” You explained, wanting to make him understand where you were coming from, “Relationships are messy, given the industries we are in. There’s no pressure with this. With you and me.”

“But what if I wanted something more—”

“It’s never going to work.” You cut him off before he could even make his case, before he could ask you to be his. 

“Now, why do you say that?” There was a slight tremble in his voice, and you had never heard him sound so nervous, scared even. The feeling of guilt slowly crept up your system, but you shook it away before it even had the chance to fully settle in. 

“Time, distance, to begin with. Not to mention both of our very busy careers.” 

“Then I guess this is good enough for me.”

For now, he added in his head, determined to make you see otherwise. 

You smiled at him, glad to have the conversation over with and thinking that this would be the last time you’ll ever speak about it. 

2019.

Johnny wanted to prove you wrong, show you that both of you could in fact make it work. You just needed to try. Which came with more calls and texts than normal as you got to know each other more than you already did, flowers sent to you on your birthday, several little gifts every now and then, and even slowly introducing you to the other members of NCT. His efforts did not go unnoticed, but it definitely left you more confused. 

When both of you went home for the holidays that particular year, you knew something had changed. Johnny was more reserved than usual, and you would usually have to be the one to initiate sleeping together. 

“Don’t you ever get tired of doing this?” He asked, turning to face you, as you lied side-by-side on his childhood bed. 

“Doing what?” You asked, feigning confusion, preparing yourself for the inevitable conversation you had been dreading for the past few months.

“Don’t pretend like you don’t know what I’m talking about.” His voice was calm, but it chilled you to the core. 

“What do you want me to say, Johnny?” You snapped, the tone in your voice letting him know how exasperated you were as you shut your eyes, “That I like you? That I want to be with you?”

“Don’t you?”

You let out a sigh, still keeping your eyes shut. You didn’t want to look at him, he’d know if you were lying. You didn’t know if you had it in you to lie. Instead, you focused on the sound of his breathing, steady and almost reassuring. You imagined the rise and fall of his bare chest, covered by the thick white blanket. 

Johnny knew to drop the subject when you didn’t even make an attempt to answer his question, he probably didn’t want to know the answer anyways. But Johnny knew he loved you, and part of him knew you loved him back. If you didn’t, you wouldn’t have let this little charade go on for as long as it did. You just needed time. And he was more than willing to give it to you. 

“A year.”

Your eyes opened at his words, your head turned to face him,  “What?”

“I’m giving you a year.”

You didn’t have to ask again. You knew exactly what he meant, what he wanted. He wanted an answer. 

“Is this an ultimatum?”

He takes your hands in his, “It’s me letting you know that I’m serious about wanting to be with you.”

“Johnny—”

He kisses the side of your head before you could even finish your sentence, an action so tender that it caused you to forget every single coherent thought of protest. 

“Hey, you don’t have to answer me now. Just think about it. Please?”

“I will.” 

And with those two words, you stood and gathered your clothes off the floor and put them back on. He gave you a small nod as you turned to leave his room, going back into the freezing cold and leaving the warmest bed you had ever known. 

2020.

Neither of you could come home to Chicago that year. 

And so you both had to settle for a reunion through a screen. You wished that circumstances were different, but at the same time you were grateful that you didn’t have to give him an answer in person. Mainly because you didn’t have one. 

When his face appeared on your computer screen, you couldn’t help the ache that crept up in your chest at the sight of him. 

“Hey, yn.” He greeted with a smile.

You missed him.

After the exchange of pleasantries and a bit of small talk on both ends, Johnny wasted no time in getting to the purpose of your call, “I believe you owe me something.” 

“Johnny—“

“Before you say anything, I want you to know that for me, it’s always been you. After all this time, even with all the distance between us.”

Johnny moved his face closer to the camera, as if that would somehow help his point come across more genuinely. You had to stop your hand from reaching out to try and wipe the single tear that fell on his cheek.

“This is the last time I’m going to ask.” He said, trying to keep his voice from faltering too much, “After this, I won’t try to push it anymore. But I want you to tell me the truth. Don’t you wish—“

“It’s not going to work.”

“We haven’t even tried, Yn.” It almost sounded like he was pleading, begging you to give him and the two of you a chance. He wasn’t there with you in person, but he didn’t have to be for you to feel the sincerity in his words.

“I’m scared.” You whispered, finally choosing to truly let him in for the very first time since you met, “What if it doesn’t work out? I want you in my life. I don’t want to lose you.”

“You’re not going to.”

Johnny said it with such conviction, such confidence, that you felt like you had no choice but to believe him. Your eyes studied his face, looking for any sign of wariness or doubt. Only to find none. You could only find hopefulness, and maybe even love. With one final review of his features, you had made your decision. 

“Okay.”

“Okay, what?” He asked, just to make sure, but he made no attempt in holding back the grin that slowly spread across his face. The sight of which made your heart flutter. 

“We’ll try. I want to be with you.”

You let out a breath that you didn’t you had been holding as the final word left your lips. It felt like a weight had been lifted off your shoulders, the floodgates in your eyes releasing the tears it had been holding onto for months now. Nervousness still coursed through your veins, but it was mixed with a different kind of emotion: excitement. 

“You’re smiling, but you’re also crying. I’m not sure if I should be concerned.” Johnny joked, the crinkles in eyes becoming much more apparent as he stared at your face through the screen. 

“I’m still scared,” You confessed, “but I’m excited.”

Johnny couldn’t help but chuckle at your confession, waiting for you to wipe your tears away before he continued speaking, 

“Well, Yn, didn’t I tell you the road not taken would be the most exciting? Trust me, it’s looking really good now.”

#nct 127 #nct imagines #nct johnny #johnny x reader #johnny suh imagines #johnny suh angst #johnny suh fluff #johnny suh fanfic #johnny suh x reader #johnny suh scenarios #nct 127 imagines

[marueonmain]

Hate Me ~ ImAllexx (1/2)

(part one) (part two)

Summary: Y/N is troubled, but she chooses not to go to her boyfriend, Alex, for advice, instead she goes to Will.

Pairing: imallexx x reader

Warning: N/A

Word Count: 1.5k

It might have been an unusual sight to see.

Alex in the kitchen, frying bacon for a sandwich at ten in the morning and jogging back to his bedroom every few minutes to check on how a video was rendering.

It might have been unusual if Y/N did not know it was only like that because her boyfriend had not gone to bed the night before.

Neither the delicious smell wafting into the air nor the sound of Alex’s lovely mumbled singing of sunflower could lighten Y/N’s strained expression. She looked like she would be sick if given a sink and the opportunity. Uncurling her legs, Y/N stood from her place on the sofa and walked toward the door; the metal of the handle felt abnormally cool against the burning skin of her hand.

“I’m going out for a bit, be back later!”

“Where are you going?” Alex asked over the sound of sizzling and the fan.

Y/N stopped. Fingers anxiously tapped against the wood of where she held the door open. “I need to pick up more bin bags.”

“Ok, love you.”

“Uh-hmm.” She nodded and scampered out the door into the hall. Practically vibrating with nerves, Y/N opted to take the stairs down as she left the building. 

She jogged the last little bit to her car. Crashing into the driver's seat, she pulled out her phone and read over her most recent text conversation:

Y/N: you free?

Will: depends what for

Y/N: quick facetime like ten minutes tops

Y/N: I promise!!

Will: *thumbs up emoji*

Y/N sat through two rings before Will picked up. He had taken the call from his computer. His chair was pulled up enough to his desk that he seemed oddly close to the camera. He wore a black t-shirt with large armholes and writing around the collar. Bags under his eyes almost dark enough to match his quiff.

“You alright?” the words were bogged down with tired.

“Hi, Will.” Y/N exhaled a short dramatic breath. “I want to talk to you about something because I trust you to be honest with me and to not tell anyone.”

Will’s eyes widened under raised eyebrows before he chuckled and commented in a sarcastic tone familiar to his voice, “What a way to start a conversation.”

“I rehearsed it in the mirror.”

“Sounds like it.” He leaned forward. “Where are you?”

“In my car, I couldn’t risk Alex hearing.”

“Are you ok?”

“Yeah, no, I’m fine. I just—” the last word turned into a mix between a squeak and a mewl. Y/N moved to set her phone up on her dash, freeing her hands to wipe at her wet cheeks, and started again. “Sorry, I don’t mean to cry.”

“What’s going on?” His eyebrows came together.

“Alex and I have been going together for a while now, and you’re one of his best mates. There’s something I need to tell him, but I really don’t want to. He’s going to be mad…I think he’s going to be mad.”

“You’re waffling.”

Y/N brought her hands together to fiddle with her fingers. “Sorry.”

“Alex doesn’t get mad a lot – not actually – outside of gags and stuff.”

Y/N was doing her best to listen to her friend. It was what she called him to do: listen. It was just so difficult to get herself out from under the hydraulic press that was her own fears. “But—”

“He loves you, whatever it is, that’s not going to change.”

“I’m ruining his life,” each syllable she spoke was more incomprehensible than the last as she forced them through the tears. “He’s going to hate me.”

Will leaned back in his chair and muttered, “Jesus.”

From a chair pulled up beside him but far enough to be out of sight of the camera, Alex sat watching the unfolding situation. Seeing Y/N in distress and knowing he could not be there for her felt like a pinprick to his balloon heart.

When Will texted him a screenshot of the conversation – between him and Y/N – Alex was confused. Now – after sprinting up the stairs to Will’s flat, the second Y/N left so that he could sit in on this new conversation – Alex was even more confused. He whispered to Will, “Ask her what she means.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Will’s voice remained quiet, and he ducked his head a second so that Y/N would not see his lips moving. He brushed his hand across his nose before looking back to his monitor.  “What do you mean? What did you do?”

“It just happened; I didn’t mean it to.”

Alex’s nose flared, and his hands which had been resting on his knees clenched, balling up the fabric of his shorts. He muttered a quiet, “No. Not you, Y/N.”

Will did his best to manage the two volatile people and their wildly different emotions. He lifted his one hand and pumped it in a repeated calm down gesture to which Alex closed his eyes.

On the other front, Will put on a stern voice that somehow also gushed with compassion and care. ”If there’s someone else, you can’t keep that to yourself; it’ll end up eating you from the inside-out. And it’s not fair to Alex.”

Y/N hiccuped. “No, no, it’s not that.”

“It’s not?”

“Of course not, Will,” she sounded annoyed.

Alex lifted his head and opened his eyes. As his features relaxed, it was not into an expression of relief so much as it was into one of confusion.

Y/N continued, “I love Alex, a disgusting amount, really. No, it’s...I’m pregnant.”

Will turned in his chair, facing Alex almost head-on. Their wide eyes met, and there was nothing but shock in the younger’s paling face.

Alex stood up. Shoving his fists through his hair and holding them there, he began to pace, his steps small and large, quick and slow with no pattern.

“That’s,” Will stuttered out, “t-that’s great.”

“No, it’s not. Alex didn’t sign up for this.”

“It’s not a business contract, I assume he knew what you both were doing.”

“We’re busy all the time; he’s got all these projects; I was working on some new merch designs and—and there’s just no time. Alex deserves to do everything he’s got planned. He deserves a life. He’s young, he wouldn't want this. Not now. He couldn’t.”

“You’re talking like he’s a teenager or something. Alex is a grown man.”

Y/N sighed exasperatedly. “Will. I—”

“No.” He snapped hard. Enough that it stopped both Y/N and Alex in their tracks. “It’s time to listen. You won’t know what he wants until you ask him—until you tell him. You have to.”

Wiping the last of the wet from her cheeks off on the sleeve of her jacket, Y/N found she could not look at her phone; she looked to the passenger seat, outside the windscreen, anywhere but where she knew her friend was waiting.

Eventually, Y/N spoke up in a meek voice, scared to even admit she was the one who thought to speak the words, “You and I both know there’s a version of this where Alex doesn’t have to find out.”

“I’m not sure what you mean.”

“Yes, you do. I could ‘’go to my parents’’ for the long weekend and be back without…without the problem.”

Flickering his focus up over the monitor, Will again met eyes with Alex. An all-around heaviness dragged down the younger’s features. His eyes lost some of their shine as it seemed his consciousness drew further from his physical world and more into himself.

Will cleared his throat. “Could you really do that? To Alex’s kid?”

“Yes.” Y/N sounded the surest she had the entire conversation. “I’m not looking for a morality check. Not from you. I just need to know, would you support me? If that’s what I decided?”

“I don’t think you should decide now.”

Alex left; he stormed from the room, slamming the door to Will’s bedroom. For having shorter legs, he could really run.

“What was that?” asked Y/N.

“Gee just got home. Look, I got to go, but let me finish up here. I really think Alex will surprise you. He’s a smart lad, and he loves you. You know?”

“Not this much.”

“Yes, he does. Now don’t wait any longer. Go tell him.”

“I’ll think about it.” She smiled genuinely, “Thank you.”

“Bye, be safe.”

#imallexx #imallexx imagine #imallexx x reader #alex elmslie #alex elmslie imagine #alex elmslie x reader #willne

[snippychicke]

Swedish Short--Seven

First of the prompt requests! @the-silentium​ wanted some ‘Pining for your brother’s best friend’ which I broadened to just Pining, though I did keep the original idea for Otto. whose bit is twice as long as Axel’s and Oscar’s...but we all know he’s my fav....

Rating: Everyone! 

Warnings: None!

First | Previous

--Axel--

Once again, you watched as the women in the stall next to yours flirted overtly with the tall pale man. He was a frequent customer to the small farmers market, and always drew looks. Especially from the women in the stall one down for yours whom you swore the farmer had hired to draw in people. 

Should you be happy that he barely paid their flirts any mind, unlike most men who always ended up buying more because they pushed? Well, you were anyways. 

"They flirt with any mildly-attractive male, I swear," you spoke as he left them behind and started to browse the fresh herbs you had laid out. "I mean, not that you're mildly attractive. Your very attractive. But! I mean! I'm bad at this, I am so sorry."

He looked up from the basil, his icy eyes meeting yours and a faint smile on his lips. And oh, you had it so bad for this man and you knew nothing about him. Except he came every week, quickly seeking out what he needed, yet seemed to always take his time with your stall. 

Or maybe you were just being hopeful. Maybe it was just because he was picky about his herbs and spices.

"Oh! I-I did find that cardamom you asked for last time," you ducked beneath the table and pulled out the small glass bottle full of small seeds. 

A true smile pulled at his lips, lightening his face and god you were so heads over heels. "Thank you," he spoke, taking the bottle from your hand, his fingertips brushing yours. You pretended you weren't affected as he carefully studied the tan seeds. Or the fact you were gleefully taking in the sharp lines of his face, or how his neck stretched as he held the bottle up, letting you catch a glimpse of the contour of muscles beneath, and the hint of collar bone. 

"How much?" He finally asked, turning back to you. You flushed, caught red handed. And your first impulse was to insist it was free, maybe for being a loyal customer, but you were running a business. And also didn't want to be too obvious.

"Well, since you're my favorite…" wait what were you saying? He arched a pale brow, not helping your heart any. "...customer. I don't know, whatever seems fair to you," you ended quickly before closing your eyes and wishing you could just disappear.

You think you heard an amused snort, but for all you knew it could have been the wind. Or his boot against the gravel walkway. You opened your eyes after he had pulled out his leather billfold and placed a few bills on your counter. "I'll see you next week, raring." 

--Oscar--

Oscar had a bounce in his step as he weaved through the masses of suits in the headquarters of the Comission. Axel was talking with AJ, and Otto enjoying the myriad of weapons in the store room. 

He had been given the task of getting a new suitcase, and he couldn't be happier about it. Wholly because he knew you were working in the room, as always. Doing….whatever it was you guys did; he didn't exactly know, nor really care.

As soon as you saw him walk up to the counter of the briefcase room, ringing the little silver bell despite the fact he knew you saw him, your eyes narrowed as you turned away from whatever you were doing on the old computer and stalked towards him. "You do realize that was the fifth case you three lost in this quarter alone!"

He loved seeing you so wound up. The way your face flushed slightly, your brow wrinkled just slightly. Especially when he grinned and shrugged his shoulders. "Time is relative. Technically I lost that one twenty years ago. And it was an accident."

"You accidently threw it into the Seine?" He wasn't quite expecting the fact you already knew about his escapade, until he saw the monitor behind you set to a familiar bridge. 

His smile turned into a grin. "Were you spying on me, love?

Your face flushed and you crossed your arms, anger turning into embarrassment. "What? N-no! Its just the scream you let out was hilarious…"

"There was a spider on it!" 

"You’re an assassin."

"It could have been a poisonous spider!" Despite the fact he was being teased, he loved seeing that smile on your face. That you were happy despite yourself. He wanted to see you smile openly. To hear you laugh without reservation. "We could go back and look for it together? The ice cream in Paris is amazing."

Instead of rolling your eyes as usual, you leaned on the counter, coming even closer to where he could see the mix of colors in your eyes. He leaned closer as well, happily loosing himself in trying to pick out the different shades in them. "Why do you always ask me out every time?"

He blinked. Wasn't it obvious? "Because I want to? Even if you keep making excuses, you haven't said no yet."

Was that color on your cheeks as your gaze darted away from him? For a moment he had hope as you deliberated your words. Except you snorted and shook your head. "..Yeah, right. You are such a playboy, Oscar. Here's your case."

You all but shoved the heavy box-shape briefcase in his chest, completely unaware how his heart broke. Except that still wasn't a no. He just had to prove he wasn't being a flirt, but he was completely serious when it came to you.

Somehow. 

--Otto--

Being on a break was good for the brothers. It gave them all a chance to breathe and relax from the constant fighting. 

"Oh shit, no no no!" You voice called down the hall as Otto walked towards the kitchen, which meant passing by the 'game room' as Oscar called it. The youngest had happily adjusted to the era, taking quickly to video games and had even made friends from the pawn store where he had bought his machines. 

You, being the closest. You were often over to play some fighting game Otto didn't know the name of, or even care about other than it drew you to their home. He wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not. 

Because god did it hurt to see leaning against his brother on the couch, so easily affectionate with him as you tried to murder each other virtually. 

He passed the room, expecting to see such a scene, and instead saw you stand and stretch, shirt riding up from the hem of your pants and allowing him a glimpse of the flesh of your hip. 

His hands clenched into fists as he resisted the urge to run his fingers along the curve of your hip, wondering if you were ticklish or not, or if it was as soft and smooth as it looked. 

He pushed himself to carry on, pausing only when you squeaked in surprise behind him, followed by a laugh. "Oscar! Cut it out, you know I'm ticklish there!" 

Otto squeezed his eyes shut, trying not to see that mental image. Torture. This was torture. He was head over heels in love with his brother's friend. Who was quite possibly more than a friend. Either way, you were clearly not uninterested in him, since you rarely spoke more than short sentence towards him. 

He knew he looked rather intimidating, and his usual silence didn't help much. Usually in their line of work, that was a good thing. Now he almost regretted it. 

He reached the kitchen, sighing when he saw that yes, the pile of dirty dishes earlier had only grown in size while he was away. He rolled up his shirt sleeves as he silently grumbled to himself. He didn't mind, truly. While Axel would always clean up after himself, Oscar would only do the bare minimum.  He was just in a bad mood, seeing you and his brother. Hearing you laugh, knowing Oscar had touched the same skin he yearned to feel. 

Getting to see you smile. Like always.

"Oh my god, I forgot!" You voice called out behind him, and he looked back to see you at the doorway, face slightly pink. "I'm sorry Otto, I meant to come back and work on some of these."

He wondered if his face was a pink as yours as he shook his head, turning back to the pile of suds growing. "...it's fine." You were a guest anyways, and Oscar's at that. 

"Nonsense." You appeared at his side, a dish towel in hand and determination on your face. "I'm helping, and that is that."

Why were you so cute? 

The pair of you worked in companionable silence. And Otto could feel his heart pounding in his chest as if he was in a vicious fight for his life, and not washing dishes. 

"Where...do these go?" You asked once everything was done, holding a stack of plates and looking a little befuddled. Which only made his heart ache at the adorableness of it.

"I can…" you silenced him with a look, your expression severe except for a faint smile dancing at the edge of your lips. 

Part of him wanted to push. To see if he could get you to smile and laugh if he decided to just pick you up and place you on the counter, pinning your smaller body with his own. 

But that thought led to others; like what it felt to have your legs on either side of his hips, your lips far closer to his own. 

Oscar's voice cut through his thoughts, silencing that line of thinking as he called your name. "Hurry! I need you!"

Your smile turned into a drown as you looked over your shoulder and down the hall. It was easy to tell you were wavering, torn on what to do. 

"Go," he encouraged despite not wanting you to, reaching out to take the dishes from you. Your gaze turned back to him, indecision evident. "You helped a lot,” he continued, trying to convey how appreciative he was for your time. “Thank you."

He couldn't resist shifting the dishes to one hand and correcting a stray hair and the chance to brush your face. He could watch the blush bloom across your cheeks. But you didn't seem bothered by the affectionate action. If anything, Otto swore you seemed to savor it as much as he did. 

Oscar called your name once more, urgency tingeing his voice. He watched you give, silent as you nodded your head and retreated down the hall, and he couldn't help but watch you leave.

(Next)

#The Umbrella Academy #tua #tua swedes #the swedes #the swedes x reader #the swedes axel #the swedes otto #tua the swedes #the swedes oscar #tua axel #tua otto #tua oscar #axel/reader #reader/otto #oscar/reader #fic: swedish shorts

[northcarolinanative]

𝙲𝚘𝚕𝚕𝚒𝚜𝚒𝚘𝚗 (𝟼)

Chapter 6: It Was Too Easy

A/N: This is a long one, some fluff I guess, I promise I'm getting there haha. Also two in one day? Kinda proud of myself haha. No warning on this one.. I don't think. 

Description: John B’s Sister comes home from staying with their mom, only to find out that her brother is missing and her dad was murdered. JJ may have just lost his best friend. Her and JJ have to figure out what to do and how to pick up the pieces.

Need to catch up? Ch.1 / Ch.2 / Ch.3 / Ch.4 / Ch.5 

I looked over the office space, it was pretty clean if I do say so myself, the cleanest I have ever seen it at least. The desk was bare except for a few supplies, the shelves neatly stacked with books, and the surfaces all nicely wiped down. I took one last glance over the door before making my way to the door that JJ was leaned against. I pulled it closed and locked the door. For a while at least, I would not have to be reminded of it. I walked out leaned against the counter, looking at JJ. 

“So what was that about back there.” I sat on the barstool as he moved to the kitchen, pulling out groceries. “What are you talking about?” He raised an eyebrow at me, pulling out a pot and some pasta. 

“Back at the police tent.” I walked over pulling out the spoons and stuff for the pasta. “You said I can’t be…” I paused and motioned over my body, “me. Why?” 

“Oh. Yeah umm, you know how I said Ward adopted John B?” I just nodded in response, beginning to pour the pasta into the water JJ put on the stove. “Well his social worker was standing over there, and I didn’t want her to know that you were his sister. She might try to take you too.” He looked up at me, his head still hanging low. 

My heart broke, the tone of his voice, the look in his eyes was heart wrenching. I walked over to him, wrapping my arms around his waist. This form of comforting each other through physical affection, while new, was our go to. We knew that we both lacked the words to help the other. He put his arms around my neck. I squeezed him a little tighter. “I’m not gonna go anywhere. There’s no way you're losing me J.” I felt him hold me a little closer. 

Our moment was soon interrupted by the water boiling over onto the stove. I quickly moved to grab the spoon and stir it, moving to turn the heat down. JJ moved to grab a towel, out arms brushing, just enough for me to notice. We continued to cook in silence until it was ready. 

“So to the ferry office first?” JJ questioned as we began to eat. “Or should we start somewhere else?” 

“We need to know the area that the ship was in, or was found, you know? Before we get any other ship info.” I put another spoonful of pasta into my mouth looking at JJ. 

“Do you think Shoope will give that info out?” He questioned. 

“Honestly, I have no idea, but it was your boat. Maybe we can pull that string.” 

“My dad’s boat…” JJ said before falling silent. 

“Right.” I took in a deep breath. The room fell uncomfortably silent. I was no stranger to the way that JJ’s dad treated him. I had known him as long as John B had. It broke me to know that if Luke finds out about this or finds JJ, I don’t know what will happen. JJ risked everything to help John B, and hopefully, it wasn’t for nothing.

--

We finished up eating and cleaning the kitchen before starting off the walk back to the sheriff’s tent. I was hoping that giving my car a break would help her to start again. We approached the tent and JJ stopped. “I think that you should sit in the car.” 

“Excuse me?” I snapped. 

“Not that I don’t want you to come, but a lot of Big John’s friends and Co-workers are here.” I glanced up to see the other fishermen and neighbors in the tent. “And that lady, the social worker, she's close to the agent, and-”

“Okay JJ” I put my arm on his shoulder. “I get it.” 

“I just don’t wanna risk someone noticing you, and her sending you back to the mainland. I can’t go through with this goose chase alone.” 

I laughed. “Of course. Okay, you need to ask for the coordinates of where the boat went down, and where it was found, we’ll go from there okay?” 

He held his hand up to salute me. I mirrored his and saluted back, “Aye, Aye Capt’n.” He turned away, both of us laughing. I kept my head down as I walked back to the car. The more I thought about it, the more that what JJ was saying worried me. I was supposed to start school in the fall, I had no one to stay with and they found out my uncle wasn’t here. I needed to stay as undercover as possible. I undid my keys from my pocket and got in. I was right, my car started. I rolled the windows down enough to get some air in, but let the window tint still keep me hidden in the car. I flipped through radio stations, waiting for JJ to get back into the car. Half of me expected him to come back empty-handed, because of his relationship with Shoope, and the law in general. After this morning though, the way that he looked at JJ, half of me thought JJ would not even have to try too hard for the coordinates. 

“Ah, I see she started.” JJ said, opening the door. I jumped up from his sudden burst into the car. “Maybe next time you hide, lock the doors?” He turned, pulling the seat belt over him, as I did the same. “Oh, I love this song!” He turned up the radio sitting back. I just looked at him, a confused look on my face. “What?” He smiled at me. 

“You know what? Did you get it? What happened?” 

“Oh yea.” He dug in his pockets. He pulled out a yellow sticky note.”I present to you” He dramatically handed you the slip. “The last coordinates of the Phantom” 

His smile was big as I reached out and gripped the paper. “35.081289,-75.950656” is red. “JJ how did you even?” 

“Ah, it was too easy Y/N” He took the sticky note back from me and slipped it back in his pocket. “I told him that my dad needed the coordinates for some insurance thing.” He started. “Kie and Pope were there” 

“What? Did you talk to them?” I asked, worry coating my voice. Things didn’t seem right with them since John B left, which I hated. “You aren’t avoiding talking to them because I’m here right?” I had to ask, I did not want JJ losing his closest friends because I came back and he felt like he had to take care of me. 

“What? No! Absolutely not. I don’t know. Since they kissed they’ve been figuring things out I guess.” He reached over to grab my hand. “Don’t think you’re changing me that much Routledge” He joked, but I could tell he meant it. 

I squeezed his hand before moving to shift the car in gear. “So what happened?” I asked, still wanting to know. “Did they speak to you?”

“Oh, yea. They seemed a little worried when I was talking about my dad like they wanted to ask about me, what I was doing. They didn’t though. Shoope just gave me the numbers and I didn’t really stick around. They weren’t saying anything, I’m not sure what they were there for. Shoope said that they had not found anything, but they were still looking” He scoffed at the last part. “Compared to them, well, we’re literally better than the FBI.” 

“I’m sorry that Kie and Pope aren’t talking to you. I really am.” 

“Like I said. I’ve got you, you’ve got me” He said it with a smile on his face, causing one to grow on mine as well. “So where are we going now, Nancy Drew?” 

I laughed at the nickname he had given me, at least it was better than princess. “The ferry office, to hopefully con them out of one of those maps. And a ship list.” 

“Alright then. Sounds easy enough” I laughed again, I swear JJ could lighten the mood, anywhere anytime, and I was so thankful for that. 

-- 

We walked through the large glass door to the ferry office. “All the tickets are sold out for the next ride. Try again in a few hours.” The old man behind the desk said, without even looking up from the old box of a computer that sat in front of him. JJ gave me a disgusted look before walking to one of the models in the room, after motioning for me to talk to the man. I guess it was my turn to get the materials. 

“Uh, actually I was hoping you could help me find some public records.” I said walking up to the tall desk. 

He looked at me over the glasses that sat low on his nose. “And those would be?” I was hoping you could get me an ocean liner record and map from the days around the storm we just had?” I asked as calmly as I could. I wasn’t doing anything wrong, but I was extremely nervous. 

“And what does a youngin like you need with a liner map?” He said looking back at the computer. He started typing. “What area do you want?” I let out a breath. 

“The area surrounding the Banks would be fine if that's not too much.” I smiled at him. He gave me a questioning look. “And it’s for a school project, gotta work on that home history and workforce stuff”  I forced a smile, still had no idea what I was talking about. 

“Alright. Seems a bit intense for summer school?” He said standing up and reaching for the printer behind him, which began spitting out the large paper maps. 

“Summer classes, Chapel Hill. You're looking at one smart college girl right here” JJ said coming to stand behind you. 

“Oh. Alright, I’m glad they're covering this stuff over there on the mainland. It’s important.” The old man spoke handing you a few papers and 3 large maps. 

“Yes of course,” I said taking a few steps back. “Thank you so much! My professors are going to love this.” I said making the older gentlemen smile. JJ and I walked at a quicker pace. Once we were in the parking lot JJ wrapped his arms around my waist spinning me around him. 

“We did it Y/N! And it was easy. Nothing has been that easy before!” He laughed putting me down. 

“What can I say? I have a special touch.” We got back into the car. The sun had set while we were in the office. The ride was quiet, JJ messed with the radio the whole way back to the Chateau, flipping the station every thirty seconds, nothing peaking his interest. When we made our way back to the Chateau, We both sat on the folded out couch, exhausted. 

I placed the maps and took the sticky note from JJ on the counter. We went through the first map, from the night of the storm, seeing if any of the liners were running late, and possibly stopped their track because of the storm. We looked at all the times, the boat type, path and numbers, marking the Phantoms coordinates on the map, and drawing a path and radius. We were sorting it all out until later into the night. 

“Okay, As much as I want to work on this, I can’t keep my eyes open anymore” JJ collapsed onto the table for dramatic effect. 

“Alright Alright. It’ll still be here tomorrow. We’ll work on it tomorrow alright?” JJ lazily saluted to me. I walked into John B’s room, the same wave of nausea hit me, just as it had the night before. I quickly changed and left to go to the bathroom. I saw JJ standing shirtless in the bathroom brushing his teeth. I stood, leaning against the frame of the bathroom. 

“If you took a picture it would last longer” JJ joked. 

“Oh. Haha. I’m waiting for my turn to brush my teeth.” JJ just moved to hand me my toothbrush and the toothpaste, then stepped to the side. I slid past him and made my way to the sink. I looked in the mirror as he finished up brushing his teeth. 

“So, Are we sharing a bed again tonight?” Any other time I would have thought he was being a smart ass, but there was a genuine tone to his voice. “Because I don't mind the company” I just nodded, before finishing up brushing my teeth. I didn’t want to seem like a baby, but the thought of sleeping in my dead dad’s bed, or my missing brothers, just felt wrong right now. I laid down next to JJ, mirroring his position. We both stared up at the dark ceiling. 

“What are you thinking about?” I asked him. 

“That John B is really gonna owe me one when we find his ass.” JJ laughed. 

I turn on my side to face him. “What if we don’t?” My voice cracked, giving me up as tears started to fall down my face again. 

“Hey now.” JJ turned and pulled me into his chest, wrapping his arms around me. “We will. You and your detective skills, and me with, well I don't know, but we’ll find him ok?” 

I just nodded into his chest. I put one arm over his side, letting him know I was comfortable. I just mumbled out a soft “ok.” 

“Alright, We worked hard today, let’s get some sleep alright” 

I slowly started to fall asleep, the long day had taken a toll on me. Before I completely fell asleep I felt JJ place a kiss into my hair and rest his head on top of mine, leaving me to smile against his chest like an idiot. 

Chapter 7

--

Tag List: @nikki082489 @lovelymaybankk @dolanfivsosxox @alexa-playafricabytoto​ @downbytheouterbanks @heyhargrove​ @kayln021 @readysteadygo23  @im-a-stranger-thing @thatsonobx @dumbxgurl @ameeraaa21 @zehnuhrfunf @imagines-and-preferences1216

#jj outer banks #jj maybank #jj fic #jj imagine #jj x reader #outer banks #outer banks imagine #john b routledge #outerbanks imagine #obx #obx imagine #obx netflix #outerbanks #outerbanks netflix #outerbanks masterlist #outer banks netflix #pope heyward #kiara cerrera #rafe cameron

[whatareyousearchingfordean]

I See You

Summary: Alex hasn’t been feeling quite herself, Dean is there to listen. 

Pairing: Dean Winchester x Alex, aka me (platonic)

Word Count: 1.5K+

Warnings: Language, angst, talks of anxiety 

THIS ONE COULD BE LEGIT TRIGGERING, DO NOT READ IF YOU ARE AT ALL CONCERNED THAT IT MAY NOT BE SAFE FOR YOU.

Author’s Note: Hey guys, I’ve had a really rough couple of days, some of the darkest I have ever seen in myself, so I spit out these words to try and make some sense of my own feelings. It was cathartic and I feel like I’m getting to a place where I can be alright. This is a love letter to myself, so enjoy, or don’t, it is for me ultimately. I figured I would share to remind everyone that we are not alone in our struggles. Special thanks to @waywardbeanie​ without whom I would not have made it through this hump. Thanks for always being my champion, and of course the gratuitous Jensen photos. Also, this is completely unedited, just rough and raw feelings. xo Alex

The sounds of Dean’s boots hitting the tile of the bunker echoed down the hall as he made his way inside. The hunter wiped the grease from his hands as he stepped into the war room, his eyes going straight to his little brother in front of a computer in the library. 

“Hey, Sammy.” Sam hummed a noncommittal reply as Dean came up next to the table. “Still looking for another hunt.” 

“Yeah,” Sam sighed. “Nothing out there right now. It’s almost eerily silent.” 

Dean nodded to himself. Times like these were rare, but he enjoyed them all the same. Sometimes it was nice to enjoy the silence for a little while. Only there was one thing nagging him today, or rather not nagging him. 

“Have you talked to Alex today?” Dean continued to work the oil out from his nails beds, his tongue peeking out between his lips in concentration. 

Sam furrowed his brow as he thought, his head cocking as the realization hit him. “No actually, now that you mention it. I haven’t even heard her rummaging around in the kitchen.” 

“She was weird when she went to bed last night. Quiet.” Dean commented. 

“Alex, quiet?”

“Yeah, when she’s upset.” Dean chewed on his bottom lip. “Except I figured she would just sleep it off. She usually does.” Which was true, Alex was rarely ever in a mood and when she was, like almost every girl he had ever met, all he had to do was feed her or put her to bed. The woman was basically a gremlin but with more complex thoughts. 

“Just because we haven’t seen her doesn’t mean anything. You know how much she loves getting lost in all these books.” Sam countered. The younger Winchester ran his fingers through his long brown locks and shrugged off Dean’s obvious worry. 

“Nope.” Dean shook his head. “Alex always brings me lunch when I’m working on Baby.” 

“Dude, she is not your mother.”

“I know that, Sammy.” Dean wasn’t sure what exactly Sam was trying to insinuate. Dean loved her cooking and if she wanted to make him food, why should he deny her that. Besides, Dean always made sure she ate with him, no matter how much she would insist that she had some other thing to do. “But come on, you said it yourself. This is not like her.” 

Dean turned on his heel and hopped down the steps towards their bedrooms. He took a pit stop in the kitchen to wash his hands before continuing down the hall to room twelve. He raised a fist and rapped his knuckles against the heavy wooden door. 

“Al,” he called, squinting his eyes as he listened for a response. After a moment of no response, he gritted his teeth. “Okay, I’m coming in.” The hunter turned the knob to the door and let himself in, pushing the door in hesitantly. 

Only one of her bedside lamps was on, casting a small orange glow in the corner of the room. There was an Alex sized lump in the center of the bed where she was mostly hidden under the covers. Dean could see the glow of her phone falling over her pillows. She didn’t even stir when the door creaked. 

“Really, no sarcastic remark about entering your room?” 

The woman who had lain hiding away in her room all day, sighed and locked her phone before sitting up. The covers fell to her waist and the chill of the bunker caused a shiver to run through her. She ran her fingers through her burgundy locks in an attempt to straighten out the rat’s nest that had settled there. 

Alex rubbed her eyes, “What’s up Dean?” 

He couldn’t help the frown on his face as he took in the distance look in her eye. “Al, are you okay?” 

She looked away from his gaze, and off towards the opposite corner of the room as she pulled her knees into her chest. Dean watched her for a moment, her hands rubbing up and down her bare arms. Even in the low light of the bedroom, Dean noticed the way her eyes began to water. 

“Oh, sweetheart. Do you want to talk about it?” Dean sat down on the end of her bed, angling his body to face her. Alex shook her head, holding back the full-blown tears threatening to spill down her cheeks. “Okay, well can I just sit with you then?” 

The pair of them sat in silence before she could no longer take it. Dean had proved to her that he had no intention of leaving without getting her to talk. As much as she hated sharing the deepest secrets running around in her brain, she also knew talking some of it out would help the anxiety churning in her stomach. 

“I don’t know, Dean. I mean half the time I don’t even understand my triggers myself. I just get this… this anxiety bubble that settles in the pit of my stomach.” She gestured about with her hands. “And then my mind just tells me everything wrong with my life.” 

“Like?” 

The woman scoffed, “Oh you know the usual. You aren’t good enough, your friends only tolerate you, why do you even try.” Alex gripped her hair and tugged at the roots. “And you know what that’s not even the part that gets me. I can work around that.” 

“Then what has got you holed up in your room all day?” Dean gripped her wrist and forced her to let go of her hair. He could see her chewing on the inside of her cheek, contemplating her answer. 

“It’s just that I had gotten so used to being alone that it had become my new normal. And to be honest, I was okay with that, I had reconciled being alone forever. That’s the type of life we live as hunters.” Her voice had risen as her frustration had. Never before had she ever been this down, and it scared her more than anything. Before she could have at least pretended that she had everything under control, but now things were spiraling and she had nothing to grasp onto to keep from floating away. 

“I love you and Sam. You are my family. But being around people is draining me. You two bicker at every given opportunity and not mention are just loud men in general. Then there is Jack who is literally an infant, which you know I can not handle as I have told you multiple times I do not want kids. This place has become...like sensory overload, even on my best days. At the end of the day, I feel like I have no battery left and I can’t recharge overnight. I’ve been running on empty for too long and that has forced me to put up a mask for you two because I didn’t want to lose you. But I can’t do it anymore.” She took a shuddering breath as the tears were breaking free. “I’m just tired, Dean.”

He nodded as he absorbed everything that she was telling him. If Dean knew one thing about Alex, it was that she didn’t let people into that dark side of her. She was always the first person to be there for everyone else in their moment of need and had the tendency to downplay her own struggles if it meant that the attention was not on her. There was nothing that made her more uncomfortable than the attention on her. He had to choose his words carefully. 

“Okay, first off, I know you think that you are this pro at putting up a front to hide the person you are inside, but I hate to break it to you, you aren’t. I can see right through that facade. I see when you are hurting and when you are genuinely happy. I see when you want to cry and when you are playful. I see you sweetheart, don’t ever doubt that.”

“Second, don’t ever believe you are better off alone. Just because you had gotten used to it doesn’t mean it is what you deserve. You are a strong, beautiful, and empathetic woman. The world deserves to have you out there. I know for me and Sam, our world has never been brighter than when you came crashing into our lives, literally.” They both chuckled at his reference to her being thrown into Dean at the hunt that brought them into each other’s lives. 

“And lastly, all you had to do was tell me. Take a car from the garage and go for a drive if that’s what you need. Spend all day in here mindlessly scrolling through the internet, or dissociating while watching the office for the millionth time. And if you just need me to sit quietly with you, I’ll be there. I know you only have so much in you, but sweetheart, having even only a little of you is worth so much more than none of you.” 

“Dean-” 

“You don’t have to say anything. Take your time, we will be here when you are ready. Just come back to us, okay?” Alex nodded, the tears flowing freely now. Dean reached over and brushed away a tear with his thumb. 

“Now that we have established that, I know you haven’t eaten all day. Are you hungry?” Dean leaned forward and pressed his lips to her forehead. 

“Mmm, I guess I could eat,” she sniffled. 

“That's what I thought. But what should we have…” Dean trailed off before leaning over the edge of the bed and plucking an orange box from underneath. “How about your not-so-secret stash of cheez-its?” 

Alex’s jaw dropped, having truly thought the boys had no clue about her stash under the bed. The boys always went through a box far too fast and she never got any so now she had learned to buy her own box for safekeeping. “Dean Winchester, you give me those back!” She squealed, the infectious grin on the hunter’s face enough to lighten her heart at that moment for a genuine smile to crack on her tear-stained face. She reached out to snatch the box away from him, only for Dean to pull it out of her reach. 

“I don’t think so, we are all out in the pantry and you’ve got my favorite flavor.” 

#dean winchester fanfiction #dean winchester fanfic #dean winchester comfort fic #dean winchester comfort #alex writes #and struggles #mine #I See You

[nite-shay]

His Hero Part 2 -Kirishima Eijiro x Reader

A/N: Angst? Slight panic/anxiety? Sex is mentioned but nothing graphic

Still getting used to the tagging thing. Soooo I’m just going to roll with it. 

Also, I’m sorry that this took so long. I work full time 50+ hours a week, and I may have been hooked on FF7R for the last few weeks (working on platinum). I love you, developers, for this game, but I reaaaaallly hate you for the final summon. Trying to keep it spoiler-free but for everyone else… you know who I’m talking about… 

Links: Part 1 , Part 2 ,

*********

"(Y/F/N)?" "Eijiro?"

Kirishima couldn't believe it. 

It was you. 

How did he not recognize you before now? 

Ok, granted when he pulled you from the debris, your face was covered in blood, and at the time, he was more concerned about your's and your son's safety then who you were. But still! 

God... you were still just as beautiful as before... 

Your brilliant (E/C) eyes, the lilt of your voice, haunted his dreams in the best possible way.

Looking at you now, though, after all these years, put the you in his fantasies to shame. You really hadn't changed much over the years, but the parts of you that did made Kirishima mentally kick himself for not pursuing you back then. 

"Huh? His name isn't Eijiro. Mommy, he's Red Riot!" The boy's head tilted slightly confused as he corrected you. Both of you jumped slightly at the boy's voice, bringing you back to your senses. Right now, he was Red Riot, not Kirishima Eijiro.  

"Oh.. uh... Of course, sweetie." You stroked your son's head before returning your gaze up to the hero. "M-my apologies, Eij- Red Riot. You… umm... look like someone I know…" Kirishima could only nod as he tried to regain his composure. He was in hero mode right now and needs to remain professional. But damn was it hard. He honestly wanted nothing more than to just talk to you, see how you were, get a rundown on your injuries, help you off the floor, and get you safely back to the hospital bed. Not in that order.

Your son, who seemed satisfied with your answer, then went into a spew about everything that happened, including how Red Riot had saved you. Your focus was now solely on your son. Kirishima could only watch as the more your son talked, the tighter you held him to your body. You kept him tightly pulled to you until he finally protested. "Mommy! You're squishing me!" 

"S-sorry sweetie" You lighten your hold before glancing up at the man in the doorway. The look you gave him confused him some. He expected anything then what he saw; relief, awkward, anxiety. But.... not fear. You looked over him with a fearful look in your eyes as you held your son close to you. Like you were trying to protect him. He's a hero, not a villain!  He would never ever hurt a woman or child for that matter! That fact that you even considered him a threat... hurt...

Why were you looking at him like that? What did he do wrong? What did he do to scare you? You shouldn't be scared. He was here to protect you, not hurt you. 

"You're safe now. I promise. We got the bad guys, and they'll be going away for a long time." He reassured you and gave you a soft smile while silently chanting to you, please don't be afraid of me. His instincts were telling him to walk over to you and show you he means no harm, but he kept his body firmly in place. If you were afraid of him from this distance, then there's no way he could approach you now. No, he needs to stay right here and let you process through your shock. You just in a villain attack! This wasn't just another Tuesday for you! The two of you just seemed to freeze in place while the rest of the occupants in the room moved freely about. 

"Please, ma'am, let's get you back in bed. We need to finish checking your vitals." The doctor intervened as he and his fellow staff readied you for the move. 

Thank God for the doctors and nurses in the room. It gave him something else to focus on. It also made him realize that you were injured still and he was hindering your treatment. He needs to leave. It was for the best. You didn't need a hero right now, you have your son and the doctors. 

"Sorry for the intrusion. I should get going. I'm glad to your ok (Y/-" He stopped himself. "Ma'am. Please take care of yourself, and I hope you have a speedy recovery." He watched as the doctor and nurse started to carefully help you up and back into the bed. 

"Awww… but… do you have to go?" (Y/S/N) broke away from you and made a beeline for the hero who stopped mid turn. 

"Yeah, sorry, little man."

"Ok…"  He kept his gaze fixed on the floor, but the hero could see small tears forming in the kid's eyes.

"Hey, no, tears now." He gave the kid a soft smile, patting him on the head. "It's a hero's job to help people, and there are a lot of people out there that need my help." The small sniffles pulled at the hero's heart. He couldn't leave the kid like this. He was his hero, after all, so he squatted down so that he was at least somewhat closer to the kid's height. "How about this. You want to be a hero one day, right?" He nodded, still looking down. "Well, what if I told you, you could start being a hero, right now?" 

"I can?" His head whipped up as their twin pairs of red eyes met. 

"Yeap! Wanta know how?" The boy nodded, his whole body shaking with excitement. "It's simple, all I need to do is to take really good care of your mom and be good for her. Do you think you could do that? Can you be her hero for me?"

"YES, SIR!" Those tears dried up instantly as he gave the hero the brightest smile he'd ever seen.

"Then it's settled for this day forward, you're going to be her hero!" He lightly ruffled up the kid's hair before giving him his trademark grin. "Well, I better get going. Take good care of her, ok?" The kid ran back over to your bed and watching over the doctors as they checked your vitals. 

"Thank you for saving us." Your voice was laced with pain and slightly strained as you locked eyes with the hero. This time you didn’t seem scared of him but, you seemed… sad…

Damn it. He needed to go...

He nodded, giving you a soft smile before taking his leave.

****

After a quick stop by the nurse's station to find out some information and drop off his visitor's pass, he made his way towards the hospital's exit. 

DAMN IT! 

He mentally kicked himself for bailing the way he did. He could have, no, he should have handled that better. He froze up, just like he did when he was younger. He figured out who you were... and instead of talking to you or helping you.. he ran away! It was so... unmanly! 

Should he go back? 

He thought about it for a few minutes but quickly shot that idea down.

One he's still in hero costume, and that might lead to some questions and two there were way too many people in the room, not to mention your child. 

What should he do? Maybe he should come back later after work? Would you even talk to him? What should he say? 

Hey, remember me? I'm the guy who just saved you! Oh, also, but do you remember that guy you slept with at your cousin's husband's party? Yeah, that was me too! Small world, huh?

Yeah... That wouldn't have been awkward.. at all...

Kirishima sulked as he made his way down the hall towards the exit, now completely lost in thought. Just as reached out to open the door, it was yanked open by a rather distressed blonde woman. Startled, he jumped to move but wasn't fast enough to avoid her plowing into him. Instinctively he reached out and grabbed her to keep her from falling backward. 

"Woah, you ok?" He asked, as his red eye's met a familiar set of blue ones. It was Melissa, Izku's wife. "Melissa?" She blinked a few times before she realized this person had used her given name.

"Eiji- Red Riot? What are you doing here?" She was shocked as she gently pushed herself off of him while he attempted to steady her. He reluctantly let her go but stayed close just in case. She was out of breath and trembling, no doubt, from a phone call about her injured relatives, cousins if he wasn't mistaken. He thought back to the kid, talking about his Aunt Missy. Ahh, Aunt Melissa. "I-I'm sorry. I have to go. There's been an emergency, and I have-"

"Easy. You're here about (Y/N) and (Y/S/N), right?" 

"I-I... umm... I'm sorry, how did you know that?" She was surprised by his question. 

"Don't worry, they're fine now." He reassured her before giving a quick rundown of what happened. After he was done, she let out a sigh of relief. 

"I... I can't thank you enough... If something happened to them... I don't know what I would have done... Thank you." She thanked him as she wiped a few tears from her eyes. "So… you got to meet (Y/S/N)?"

"Oh yeah! I stayed with him until (Y/N) woke up. He seems an awesome kid!"

"Yeah… he is..." Silence filled between the two of them. He could tell there was something else she wanted to say. Maybe ask? But for whatever reason, she was hesitating, and it made the hero uneasy. Did she know about him and (Y/N)? Had you told her? Of course, you told her you were family! Damn it. It's time to go. Now!

"So...umm... I'd better let you go. I'm sure little man will be happy to see you! They're on the second floor, right past the nurse's station. Room 248." He pointed behind himself before sides stepping out of her way.

"Oh. Yes. I should be going. Thank you again, Red Riot." She gave him a slight bow before hurrying past him, "Please be safe out there, and if you need anything, please feel free to call us."

"Thanks! Oh, and tell Izuku to call me later!" He bolted out the door. 

**********

"There ya are Red! I was starting to get worried about ya.” Fatgum grinned as he greeted him as he entered their large shared office. 

"Sorry, Fat! Got caught up and lost track of time, it won't happen again." Kirishima gave him a sheepish grin before taking a seat behind his computer. He needs to get the report for today's incidences done before he could leave for the day. He needed to work quickly, though, if he was going to make it out on time for his little meetup that was planned just a few minutes ago. On the way back from the hospital, Kirishima decided to take the long way back. The fresh air had done him good, but he still couldn't get you or your kid out of his head. He wanted... Kirishima didn't know what he wanted or why he felt the way he did... He just wanted. No needed to do something. Something to make up for the shitty day the two of you had and make up for the way he had acted. Now that he'd calmed down, he could tell it was just his anxiety getting to him. That all of your reactions were understandable, it was just him blowing it out of proportion. 

Now that his mind was clear and calm, he had an idea. An idea that would require the help of a mutual friend. 

"How they holdin up?" Fat gum asked while munching on some Takoyaki, breaking Kirishima from his thoughts. 

"They're going to be just fine. The kid's taking it like a champ, but his mom was pretty banged up. I overheard one of the doctors saying she'll be in there for a couple of days, but she should make a full recovery." Ok, maybe he was stretching the truth on that one. He didn't 'overheard' anything, more like he walked up the nurse at the kiosk and just asked them. While they couldn't give him any details by law, they did passively talk to another nurse saying how (Y/N) would be fine. 

"That's great to hear! You were awesome today! I had no idea you were so good with kids."

"Oh, Thanks!" He chuckled. "But I wouldn't say I'm good with kids. (Y/S/N) is a tough kid, and he was just scared. I know (Y/N) would have comforted him if she could, and I couldn't leave him like that.” 

"(Y/N)? (Y/S/N)? Ya know them?"

"Oh umm.. yeah... I met (Y/N) at a buddy's birthday a few years back."

"Really? Did she recognize you?" 

"Umm... yeah, she did." He continued typing, trying to drop the subject. Too bad for him, Fat Gum was feeling rather chatty today. 

"So, you going to go back later to visit?" 

"I-I uh…" Golden eyes watched him as he struggled to come up with an answer. "Well... she's had a long day, and you know I'm sure she doesn't want a whole lot of people up there all at once. I'll just text Izuku to see how she's doing." That sounded believable. Totally got this. "Plus, ya know, I don't want to make anything weird for her." He mumbled under his breath. 

How the hell do you approach someone you had a one night stand with years ago and just happen to see again? 

He debated on asking his partner but immediately shot that idea down. Fat would never let him live it down, plus, he just didn't seem like the kind of guy who had many one-night stands. (A/N: Do not take that the wrong way. It's not because of his size! He's just too damn nice, and my brain won't let me think otherwise. I love Fatgum. He is my favorite pro hero, and he could have anyone in the whole world!)

"Wait..why would it be weird for her?" He stopped mid-bite as he saw the redhead flinch at the question. 

Crap. He said too much. Fat Gum, the tender tank of Naniwa, typically came off as a hero who's more brawn than brains. But, after working with him for years, the sturdy hero knew to not be fooled by his appearance. Behind that big body and wide smile was a sharp mind.  A mind of a hero with years of experience working alongside some of the best detectives in the city. And with that experience came a particular set of skills that were invaluable observation skills. Though right now, Kirishima was cursing those skills along with his own big mouth. 

"I-I… ummm…. ya see... she..." He could feel his face start to flush as he racked his brain for an excuse that would hopefully throw his form mentor off.

"Wait…" A wide knowing grin spread across the larger hero's face, reminding Kirishima of the cat from Alice in Wonderland. "Do you know her, or do you know her?" 

"It was a one-time thing!" He stammered, trying to defend himself. Ok, so the implication was true, but still! He didn't have to say it like that!

"Ahhhh, so that's why you're hesitant to go back! Kirishima, you sly fox!" The man roared with laughter. Kirishima tried his best to quiet down his mentor, but that only made him louder as he started to mercilessly tease the younger hero. 

By the time Izuku texted him saying he was about to get off, Kirishima was sprinting out the door, his face as red as his hair. Fat Gum was relentless in questioning about the two of you. Fat Gum even made a point to follow him to the locker room to question him as he was changing! The redhead sighed. Now he knew how Amajiki felt when Fat found out about his and Mirio's first official date. It took 30 mins and a phone call to Mirio to coax poor Suneater out of the corner. (A/N: It wasn't anything bad! It was just praised on how proud he was and how cute of a couple they made! He’s a proud papa!)

After he was clear of the agency, he quickly fired off a text to Izuku while still walking, hoping the crisp night air would help cool his cheeks before he had to make his first stop. 

Kirishima to Izuku: Hey Bro, I'm on my way! 

Izuku to Kirishima: Ok. Just finishing up some paperwork. Sorry, I can't meet up with you for a long. Got to get over to the hospital.  

Kirishima to Izuku: All good, man. I'll make it fast. How are they anyway?

Izuku to Kirishima: They're doing good. The doctors are going to keep (Y/N) in the hospital for a few days to make sure she's ok. I'm taking (Y/S/N) home with me tonight. (Y/N) really needs some rest. Also he's bored and getting grumpy. Melissa is going to stay the night with her.  Izuku to Kirishima: Thank you again for saving them, BTW!!!!  T-T 

Kirishima to Izuku: No prob bro!! :D Kirishima to Izuku: I'm glad they're doing good. I'm almost there. Gotta make a quick stop. See ya in a few mins.

Just as he sent his reply, he made it to his first destination. With a quick adjustment to his black 'blasty' hat, he strolled into the store to make his purchase. 

********

A few blocks away.....

Izuku nervously fidgeted with his phone, checking his messages and the time for what had to be the fifth time in the last ten mins. The green-haired hero took a long deep breath as he tried to calm himself before he got here. Izuku hated this. Hated the feeling of lying, especially to a friend. 

Was it lying if he didn't know for sure? It was all speculation with no real evidence, after all. Anything he did have was just circumstantial at best, and that wasn't enough for him to do anything with. 

This needed to be handled very very carefully, but in the end, someone would get hurt. There's no way around it. How badly thought well that remains to be seen.

He wants to voice his theories to the parties involved, but... How? How should he approach this?

If he's wrong, then he risks hurting the relationship between his wife and his cousin. That was precisely the reason why he kept quiet for as long as he had. But it wasn't until Melissa started asking him questions about Kirishima that he finally voiced his own theories. After a lengthy discussion, you both agreed it wouldn't be worth the risk at that point. Neither one of them wanted to hurt you or your son. 

But… it looks like faith might have other plans. More things have come to light and can't be ignored.

*Ding* New message from Melissa.

Melissa to Izuku: Did he say what he wanted to meet about?

Izuku to Melissa: No. Only that he would be quick.  Izuku to Melissa: Did he say anything or act weird at the hospital?

Melissa to Izuku: No. He didn't seem to suspect anything.  Melissa to Izuku: Maybe we're wrong about this?

Izuku to Melissa: I don't know. Hopefully, but I don't think we are. Izuku to Melissa: Things just fit too well. Especially now, that (Y/S/N) manifested his quirk.

Izuku to Melissa: Has (Y/N) said anything?

Melissa to Izuku: Not about this. She seems pretty shaken up, though. She's had a pretty long day. Hopefully, I can get her to talk to me after you pick up (Y/S/N).  Melissa to Izuku: He said, 'Hi uncle Zuku!' and that he misses you and can't wait to hang out and show you his quirk. 

Izuku to Melissa: lol tell him I miss him too, and I'll see him soon. 

Izuku smiled as he thought about the small sharp tooth boy who reminded him eerily of the man walking his way. 

Izuku to Marissa: He's here. I'll let you know what happens. Love you.

Marissa to Izuku: Love you too.

******

"Hey, man! Long time to see!" Kirishima greeted his former high school classmate. Izuku returned his smile with one of his own as he put away his phone. He then turned to face his friend, now standing at his full height that almost rivaled Kirishima's 6'5" stature. Gone was the small built, stuttering teenager he was in high school. Before him now was the man who would no doubt be the next #1 hero. 

"Y-Yeah. It's been a while, hasn't it?" Ok, so maybe he did stutter some every now and then. Old habits are hard to break after all. "How have you been?"

"Been good, bro! I saw your last fight on the news this morning! It was amazing! How bout you?"

"Oh! Thanks! I've seen a good bit of articles on you as well. You and Fat Gum have really cleaned up your sections, and you moved up in the ranks!"

"Thanks!" He chuckled. "Still got a long way to go if I'm going to catch up, you guys those."

"You'll be up there in no time." They continued to catch up and started some small talk, but after a while, the air seemed to tense around the two heroes. Their chatting had dried up and now... Something just felt… off. Typically, he had no problem talking to Izuku, but tonight, he just seemed nervous. The green-haired man just looked like he had something he wanted to talk about, but... Just could seem to bring it up. 

Was it something he did? Maybe something he said? The redhead thought and he felt himself start to panic again.  

"So..umm... Listen. I'll make this fast, I know you got to go." He shifts slightly before handing over a medium-sized brown shopping bag to Izuku. "Could you umm… give this to (Y/S/N)? And could you give (Y/N) a message for me? It isn't anything bad, I promise!"

"S-sure, Kirishima." He took the bag from the redhead. "I trust you. So, umm... what's the message?"

"Can you...Can you... just let her know that I'm sorry if I made her feel uncomfortable earlier or if I scared her in any way." He let out a deep sigh. "I was just as shocked as she was; believe me, and I really hope she's doing ok and gets better soon." 

"Of course." Izuku looked stunned for a moment before giving the redhead a good look. His redheaded friend was clearly upset, and it made him want to spill his guts right then and there. "Kirishima. Listen..." He paused, "I'll give her the message, but... I have a question... if this isn't too personal... you don't have to answer if you don't want to, but I just want to know the truth. Did... Did something happen between you and (Y/N)?" He saw his friend's face go pale for a moment, so he quickly added, "It's fine if you did! Honestly!"

"Yeah... a while ago... We.. umm... Yeah..." The redhead's cheeks flushed as he looked away from his friend. "When did you..."

"I figured something happened between the two of you a while ago, but I wasn't completely sure until today when Melissa called about (Y/N)." He swallowed hard, clearly uncomfortable with the subject. "The two of you kind of disappeared at the same time during the party, and I didn't see either of you until the next day."  

"It just... sort of.... happened... I'm sorry I know that was really unmanly of me, especially since it was your birthday party plus she's your family. We... I was a little drunk, and I... we kind of hit it off.." His blush deepened. "Please don't be mad at me! I don't want this to come between us!"

"Kirishima, calm down! It's ok, really! I'm not upset with this, and I know Melissa wouldn't be either. You're both adults, and you're allowed to ya know... see 'each other'. " 

"Sorry for not telling you soon. We're... still bros, right?"

"Kirishima. I'm your friend, and I'll always be no matter what." Kirishima could feel the weight of his words."I know I said this before, but really thank you for saving them. I don't know what we would have done if something would have happened to them." Even as Izuku spoke, he felt his stomach twist in knots. Guilt. His guilt was eating at him. How could he call himself Kirishima friend when in reality, he was acting like anything but a friend. He can't keep this from him. He just can't. 

"I'm just glad I got there when I did." There was that silence again, but this time it was a comfortable one. "Oh! Also, can you... please ask her not to say anything about my identity? I'd like to keep mine under wraps." 

"She won't say anything, I promise. (Y/N) knows I'm a hero but doesn't know details. As for (Y/S/N)... well, he's big on heroes, but we decided it'd be best if he doesn't know about me until he's older."

"Thanks, man." 

"So, what did you get him anyways?" Izuku was curious as he looked in the bag.

"Oh! Well, see (Y/N) and (Y/S/N) were at the toy store when they were attacked. But I'm sure Melissa already filled out in on that… anyways! (Y/S/N) said they went there cause he was getting a new toy, but they got attacked before he could get it. I just… I don't know. He seems like a great kid, and he had a pretty shitty day…. Maybe these would make it at least a little bit better?" Kirishima scratched the back of his head sheepishly. Was he overstepping? Maybe this wasn't a good idea. His doubts gnawed at his mind as Izuku looked shocked at the purchase he made. There were all kinds of hero action figures! 

"These are a lot of toys…" 

"Well, I found the one he wanted, but then I was thinking, hey, he might want one of you too! Then I saw the Uravity and Ground Zero ones, and thought he might like those too!" He quickly explains. "I ummm.. may have gone overboard..."

"He's going to love 'em! He really loves heroes. Did you… did he tell you who his favorite hero is?"

"Oh, uhh… yeah…. He said it was Red Riot... Not sure why, though." Kirishima chuckled some, "Typically, I tend to scare kids his age. I'm sure he just said the cause of the attack..."

"Kirishima, please don't do that to yourself. I can promise you this, you were his hero before he went into that store. Trust me, I've seen his room.” He chuckled slightly before getting serious again. “You're an amazing hero, and (Y/S/N) sees that just like many others. You're his hero, and you always will be."

"Thanks, bro.." He let out a breath he wasn't even aware he was holding. "Well, I better let you get going. I've held you up long enough. Text me later, ok!" Kirishima turned to leave before his emotions got the better of him. It had been a helluva day, and he was ready to just chill out. 

"Ok. Take care!"

As soon as Kirishima was down the street and out of sight, Izuku took a deep breath and pulled out his phone. 

Izuku to Melissa: On my way.

Izuku to Melissa: You need to talk to (Y/N). There's no doubt in my mind that it's true. We can't keep this from him. 

Melissa to Izuku: I'll talk to her tonight.

Links: Part 1 , Part 2 ,

Thanks for the read! If you want see the other stuff I’ve done, click the link bellow!

MasterList

#bnha x reader #mha x reader #kirishima x reader #kirishima eijiro x reader #bnha x you #mha x you #mha imagines #bnha imagines #eijirou x reader #bhna x reader #kirishima imagine #eijiro x reader #kirishima eijiro imagine #kirishima x you #eijirou x you #eijiro x you #bnha kirishima x reader #mha kirishima x reader

[wedreamedlove]

[FIC] K I S S

Rating: T Characters: Li Zeyan, Xu Mo, Bai Qi, Zhou Qiluo, Reader Word Count: 12,428

Tags: Nothing explicit. Kisses. Minor jealousy. Tension.

Summary: You wake up in a white room. Fortunately, it doesn't seem like you're alone because you see four familiar men. Unfortunately, the room is sealed and no one has any idea how they got here. The only clue is a door that won't open and a piece of paper with the word "KISS". Uh oh...

You wake.

Oh, but not all of a sudden. It’s more of a slow, gradual awakening where your consciousness is pulled up to the surface from wherever it was buried.

You come to feel that your head is resting on something firm and it makes you furrow your eyebrows, shifting a little, because you’re certain your pillow isn’t this hard.

The thing below you moves when you do though and then you hear a voice.

“—Chips!”

It’s a familiar nickname from a familiar voice and you crack open your eyes, squinting against the brightness, to see Zhou Qiluo looking down at you. The stiffness in his body relaxes when he sees that you’re really awake, but concern still lingers in his eyes as he checks you over. One of his hands ghosts over you, skimming your shoulder, side, and hip, and that’s when you realize you’re lying down with your head in his lap.

“How’re you feeling? Nothing hurts? Can you get up?”

Although you’re taken aback by this barrage of questions you reassure him that you’re fine and sit up without his help.

You look around your surroundings.

Pure white.

That’s your first impression. Your second impression is that it’s not actually pure white, because you can see where the white walls join together to form a room. However, you’re not sure how the shadows are being cast since there’s no clear light source here. It hurts your head to think about it too hard though and so you look away to the spots of color that stand out in this inorganic space.

There, pacing the length of one of the walls, is Bai Qi. He looks like a caged wolf with the amount of tension radiating from his frame as he strides from one end to the other but, when his eyes catches yours the moment he feels your gaze on him, you see his steps slow slightly and the tightness in his body loosen. Bai Qi checks you over with a look and then returns to pacing after he’s sure that there’s no problems with you.

Moving on, you see Li Zeyan standing in front of a large wooden double door. He’s standing there stiffly with a subzero expression on his face and if looks could kill then the door he’s glaring at would have been microscopic rubble already.

He also feels your eyes on him and glances over. The heavy look on his face doesn’t lighten when he sees you conscious though and instead he makes a flat comment. “You’re quite something to sleep for so long in a situation like this.”

Before you can say anything, a calm voice breaks in and defends you.

“Even though there were no visible injuries, we don’t know if anything else happened. That unconsciousness was abnormal.”

You turn your head to see Xu Mo standing just a few feet away from you and Zhou Qiluo. He has a gentle smile on his face, one that deepens when you look over, but his eyes are cold when he casts his gaze over the room and stops on the door. For some reason, you feel a dangerous air around him in the way he’s standing there motionless with a hand in one of the pockets of his customary lab coat.

“How are you? Does anything feel strange or out of place?” He asks.

You try to lighten the atmosphere by saying this room and everyone being here is strange. It earns you a snort from Bai Qi, a chuckle from Xu Mo, and a laugh from Qiluo. Li Zeyan only looks over without an expression. But the invisible pressure from him makes you clear your throat sheepishly and ask for clarification on where this place is and why everyone’s here.

“No idea. We all woke up here at the same time, despite going to sleep at different hours,” Bai Qi is the one who answers you.

“You were here as well,” Xu Mo anticipated your question, “However, you were unconscious no matter what we did until now.”

There is a pause as you mull over that oddity.

Then Bai Qi continues on. “This room is 20 meters by 15 meters, all the walls are solid, the door is locked, and our Evols aren’t working.”

You’re shocked to hear him drop the word Evol here, but a quick look shows that no one else is confused or surprised. It seems that everyone here is in the know about Evols and about each other.

“Time has stopped. But, as Bai Qi mentioned, it isn’t from me,” Li Zeyan adds. He tilts his hand to show his frozen wristwatch to you.

“We haven’t been here long enough to determine if we can grow hungry or thirsty though,” Xu Mo cautions.

The small relief you feel at hearing time is stopped disappears immediately at Xu Mo’s words and your concern rises again. You look over at Qiluo who has been quiet up to now.

“Sorry, I woke up here with nothing but these clothes,” he gestures at his casual wear, “I don’t have my phone or computer with me.” You understand he’s telling you that he has no way to get access to anything inside or outside this room. Despite his words though his smile is reassuring and he rubs your back with a hand that was placed there while you were listening to the others.

You ask everyone what the plan of action is now then.

There is a heavy silence after your question is asked.

“I don’t know.” Bai Qi breaks the silence but his words are low and tense, and the muscle that jumps in his cheek shows how hard he’s clenching his jaw. He glares at a random spot on one of the walls.

Xu Mo sighs, “We can only continue to look for clues here. Maybe now that we’re all conscious something will have changed.”

Qiluo verbally agrees while Li Zeyan doesn’t object, which means he’s given his tacit approval. Qiluo stands up first before you and then offers you a hand. You take it without reservation, feeling a small comfort from his warmth, and get pulled easily to your feet. When you thank him, he flashes a smile at you that disappears when he seems to realize something.

“Oh! Guess now that you’re up, I don’t have an excuse to be lazy anymore. I’m going to have to help look around.”

It’s clear that Zhou Qiluo cracked a joke to put you more at ease and you cover your laugh with a cough as he slides a hand into his pocket and strolls off to one side of the room, examining the walls. His nonchalant act is so good you’re almost put under the illusion that he’s walking through a museum and looking at artworks on a wall instead of being trapped in a white room and staring at blank walls.

During this time, Li Zeyan has gone from glaring at the double door in front of him to studying the walls beside the door too. Bai Qi is still pacing on his side and looking intently at the corners where the walls join together to form the room. Meanwhile, Xu Mo hasn’t moved from his position a few feet away from you, close to the center of the room, observing everything in a quiet manner.

Everyone seems to have covered what to examine and so, for a second, you flounder and wonder what else you can do. But you’re driven by the need to contribute somehow; it doesn’t sit well with you to stand around and be useless, especially since you were unconscious earlier. Looking around again, you decide to start with the most obvious thing in the room.

You announce that you’re going to look at the door.

“It’s been checked and it’s locked,” Li Zeyan informs you. It doesn’t look like he expects anything to have changed even if you look at it. But he also doesn’t do anything to stop you.

Neither does anyone else, so it seems safe enough to approach the door. You know them all well enough to be certain that someone would have stopped you if it was deemed dangerous.

You go up to the door. It’s bigger than you expected and becomes even larger as you get close. The wooden double doors loom over you and you would need to tilt your head back if you wanted to see the top, but right now you’re looking at the engravings on the door. There’s carved grooves that cover the entire surface of the door and, even when you step back to look at the door in its entirety, they don’t seem to form any patterns. The grooves curl, swirl, connect, and break apart without any sense. Maybe they’re just some sort of abstract design?

Since you’re not getting anywhere with the grooves you put that out of your mind and focus on another part. There are two handles in the center of the double door; one handle for each door. Makes sense. Li Zeyan told you the door is locked, but you decide to double-check anyway. There’s no harm in doing that.

But it happens the moment you touch one of the handles.

There’s a brilliant flash of light and, right as you make an exclamation of surprise, an arm wraps itself around your waist and hauls you back. You collide into a hard chest and, next thing you know, you’re being held a few feet away from the door.

A piece of paper flutters down into the spot you were just standing at.

All these events happen within seconds of each other.

Your heart pounds from the sudden rush of adrenaline, much like the rapid heartbeats you feel from the person behind you. The firm muscles of the arm around your waist relax as the person adjusts their hold on you and that’s when you realize you’ve reflexively grabbed his arm with both hands.

Releasing him, you’re about to turn around to see who grabbed you when you hear Bai Qi ask, “Are you OK?” His breath stirs the hair at the top of your head and his words come out breathless.

You tell him that you are.

Bai Qi’s arm around your waist tightens for an instant before he releases you. He doesn’t step back though, his chest a solid heat against your back, and his hand hovers nearby just in case you need help. But, despite being shaky from the surprise, you can still stand on your own.

You quickly look around to check on everyone else.

Zhou Qiluo is frighteningly still, as if he’s a coiled spring ready to explode into action at the slightest provocation, and it’s only when he sees you unharmed that he releases his tension and rocks back on his heels. Xu Mo’s eyes are focused on your waist, his expression completely blank, but when he realizes you’re looking at him he gives you a relieved smile and then moves his gaze from you to the door.

On the other hand, the severe look on Li Zeyan’s face barely changes even after he sees that you’re safe. Instead, when he strides over to the spot you were pulled away from and picks up the paper on the ground to read it, the frown on his face deepens even more if that’s possible. Every line on Li Zeyan’s face screams with rage and you’re surprised the paper hasn’t spontaneously caught on fire.

“What’s it say?” Qiluo is the one who asks.

Li Zeyan doesn’t answer and his hand spasms, as if he’s thinking about crushing the paper. But he ends up handing it roughly to Xu Mo who comes up beside him.

Xu Mo reads the paper and you see a furrow appear between his brows.

Seeing the two of them react like this makes you anxious and this time you’re the one who asks what it says.

Xu Mo looks up at you, pauses like he’s choosing his words, and then tells you, “It only has the letters K, I, S, and S.”

You blink.

Then your brain starts spinning and puts them together. K, I, S, and S. KISS. Kiss…? Wait, that kiss? No, no way. You clear your throat, feeling silly for even thinking about something like that in this situation, and ask if those letters are an acronym for something.

Qiluo rubs at his chin, looking thoughtful. Li Zeyan still looks darkly displeased, glaring at the door again. You tilt your head back to peek at Bai Qi’s expression only to see that he’s turned his head away to the side, but his ears are a faint red. Okay, no help from this one.

Returning your attention back to Xu Mo you see him shrug, and you find yourself taking a second to appreciate how elegant he makes that look, before he says, “That is one possibility. Or it could simply be what it literally means: contact with the lips.”

Somehow, you don’t think you’re imagining the weight of all the men looking at you…

An awkward - at least for you - silence falls upon the room. Everyone is deep in their own thoughts.

But then Zhou Qiluo claps his hands, shattering the silence. “I’ve got it then!”

There’s an easy smile on his face that clears away your worries and you walk closer to him to ask him excitedly if he’s cracked the code. It looks like even without a computer, he’s still the amazing KEY.

Qiluo gives you a puzzled look, “Nope. I was thinking we should test the obvious and move on if that doesn’t work.”

Huh?

Before you can ask him what he means Qiluo grabs your arm, tugs you into him, and leans in. You hear a shout from behind you, but you don’t have time to pay attention to that when a soft sensation brushes across your forehead.

… Huh!?

You blink and then realize you’re staring blankly at the dip between Qiluo’s neck and collarbones. Did he just kiss you? You raise your head and see him looking down at you with bright blue eyes, as tranquil as a cloudless sky. He grins, flashing one of his canines, and you feel your cheeks heat up. It’s not so much the fact that he kissed you that makes you embarrassed, but that he did it in front of everyone else.

He releases your arm when you take a hurried step back. Looking over your shoulder, you see Bai Qi a few feet away with a foot forward, like he was in the middle of coming over to you and Zhou Qiluo but abandoned the idea; he switches between glaring unhappily at Qiluo and looking towards the double doors.

It turns out that Li Zeyan and Xu Mo are also staring at the door.

You and Qiluo follow their line of sight, but nothing seems to have changed with the double doors. It looks the same as always.

But Xu Mo notes, “There was a flicker of light.”

“Mn,” Li Zeyan gives a noise of agreement.

So… it is a kiss in the literal sense then? You voice this thought out loud, but no one has an answer. Xu Mo looks contemplative though.

And then Li Zeyan walks up to the door, catching everyone’s attention, and tries the door again.

Clack. Still locked.

“Maybe it’s me? Since I gave the kiss?” Qiluo brings up. He doesn’t seem to notice, or maybe he just shrugs off, Li Zeyan and Bai Qi shooting him narrowed looks and walks up to the door beside Li Zeyan to try the handle.

Clack. Nope, still locked.

The hope that rises in your chest plummets instantly and settles like a rock in your stomach. Your shoulders drop and, even though you know you shouldn’t be surprised it isn’t that easy, somehow you were hoping it would be just that easy.

Xu Mo comes over to you at this point and asks, “May I try something?”

You look at him helplessly because what answer other than “yes” is he expecting? If you don’t let him try then wouldn’t you and everyone else continue to be trapped here?

The corner of Xu Mo’s eyes crinkle in amusement like he read your thoughts and then he picks up your hand in both of his, raising it so that he can press his lips to the back of your hand. His lips are slightly dry and cool against your skin and, to your surprise, he doesn’t pull away after kissing your hand. Instead, he raises his eyes - and your breath stutters at the way those deep, dark-colored eyes glance up at you beneath long lashes - and looks towards the door.

You gather your scattered attention and look over as well to see that the double door has lit up. To be precise, it’s only the top left section of the double door that has a purple light, and even then the light barely covers a strip of the door and flickers like it’ll disappear at any moment.

In fact, the light does disappear in the next second and, just as you make a small exclamation of surprise, you feel Xu Mo push up your sleeve with a hand. You look back at him to see that he’s already raised his head from your hand and then he drops his lips onto your inner elbow. You jerk back reflexively, startled at the contact, but with one of his hands still holding yours and the other holding your arm you’re firmly restrained.

He breathes, and you think you can feel the ghost of a smile against the crook of your arm when you tremble. You hope your goosebumps have gone unnoticed though.

This time the purple light races across more of the door, following the myriad of grooves, but it still only covers a small section of the door before it disappears again when Xu Mo pulls away.

As Xu Mo lowers your hand, humming in thought, you try to work out the meaning behind these lights and the door.

Then he reaches for you again—

But someone grips your elbow and, with a sharp tug, you’re sent stumbling backwards. A broad back soon fills your vision and blocks your sight of Xu Mo.

“That’s enough.” Li Zeyan’s voice is terrifyingly low, like two tectonic plates deep in the earth grinding against each other.

“Is it?” Xu Mo’s words come out serene, but there’s also an unknown quality in them that draws the air around these two men tight with tension. You peek around Li Zeyan to see that Xu Mo’s lips are curved into a smile that doesn’t reach his eyes. “You know as well as I do there’s one more thing to test.”

“No.” This time it’s Bai Qi who barks this out and you turn your head to see that he’s come closer, one hand clenched into a fist beside his leg.

Xu Mo glances between him and Li Zeyan.

You’re sure it’s not your imagination that the tension in the air now feels like it’s sparking towards an explosion. You look over at Zhou Qiluo, trying to find help to defuse this situation. You don’t know how Xu Mo’s words rubbed Li Zeyan and Bai Qi the wrong way, but it’s certainly not going to help anyone if these three get into a fight.

However, you find that Qiluo is watching the three of them with an unexpectedly sharp gaze. It’s only when he notices you looking at him that his eyes soften and he gives you a reassuring smile. You dart your eyes between the three men and then back to Qiluo, making it obvious that you want his support before you do anything. But Qiluo’s smile turns mischievous and he puts on an affected helpless look, shaking his head. You narrow your eyes.

While you have this silent conversation with Qiluo though, Xu Mo speaks up, “I believe both of you are misunderstanding me.” He spreads out his hands in an innocent manner.

Li Zeyan and Bai Qi don’t respond.

This time you’re unable to withstand the pressure building around these three, feeling a cold sweat trickle down your back, and so you quickly ask Xu Mo for clarification. What is he testing? And what else does he need to test?

Li Zeyan angles his body towards you, disapproval in his dark eyes. But it’s impossible to take back your words.

Xu Mo’s attention settles on you. “I don’t believe we would be wrong in assuming that the more light there is on the door the closer we are to solving this puzzle. Zhou Qiluo’s kiss on the forehead compared to the two kisses I gave covered the most area. However, the lights from both our actions disappeared the moment we withdrew. Putting aside the difference of area covered by the lights, if the two of us have the same instantaneous disappearance of light I would like to see if there is a difference when we change the initiator of the kiss.”

You give him an admiring look. Geniuses really do have quick minds. Xu Mo smiles at you, catching your eyes.

So, you just have to kiss him then? You voice this out loud, and then realize how that sounds. Clearing your throat, flustered, you clarify yourself and ask if it can be anywhere like the cheek or something? Xu Mo’s smile deepens at your correction.

“No,” Li Zeyan rejects this. If his voice gets any colder, you imagine you’ll be able to see icicles forming on your clothes.

“It doesn’t have to be me,” Xu Mo calmly says, “Zhou Qiluo and I both lit up a different section of the door. It wouldn’t be a stretch to believe there are two other sections that correspond to you and Bai Qi.”

Wow… what a sadistic door. This thought crosses your mind even as you look up at Li Zeyan, since he’s standing closest to you and the one who vocally rejected this. You ask him if he doesn’t want to get out of here?

Li Zeyan looks back at you in silence with a gloomy expression, gaze sweeping across your face.

You endure it and point out that it wouldn’t hurt to try, unless he has a better alternative? The five of you can’t continue to remain here.

His eyebrows draw together, forming a deep furrow, but he still doesn’t say anything. So, before you can wilt underneath the displeasure he’s exuding you decide to just go for it. Placing a hand on his shoulder, you stand up on your tiptoes to kiss his cheek.

At least that was your plan.

However, Li Zeyan takes a reflexive step back in surprise, which breaks your balance, but as you find yourself tilting over he steadies you immediately with hands on your waist. Your lips miss the mark of his cheek though and land on the underside of his chin.

“You…!” Li Zeyan’s eyes widen.

You take a second to appreciate catching the normally composed CEO off guard before you turn your head to check on the door. By the time you look over the light is already disappearing from the top right section of the double door though. Fortunately, the disappearance is not instantaneous and you can see how the red light races backwards through the grooves. It almost seems to make out some sort of illustration, but the light is soon gone and the illusion of an illustration disappears back into a confusing mess of engravings.

“That covered more than Zhou Qiluo’s kiss did,” Xu Mo notes.

“It also lasted longer than yours, and I’m guessing mine,” Qiluo adds.

While those two are discussing this, Li Zeyan releases you like a scalded cat and takes another step back, lips thinning into an upset line. You stumble at the sudden lack of support but then Bai Qi is beside you with a steady hand.

“Are you OK?” He asks you in a quiet voice.

You tell him you are, but you don’t miss how he shoots an unhappy glare at Li Zeyan. Li Zeyan isn’t even looking at him though, or you for that matter, and you try not to let that bother you. Not only does Li Zeyan have a poker face, which always makes it impossible for you to guess his thoughts, but he also seems to have a mercurial mood around you. In one moment you’re praised and then in the next you’re called an idiot.

But, in any case, now isn’t the time to solve what’s bothering Li Zeyan. You put him out of your mind and focus on the present situation. By now, you don’t need anyone to tell you what this means. The light lasted the longest when you were the initiator of a kiss. The location of the kiss being the underside of Li Zeyan’s chin covered the most light but it still wasn’t everything. So, there’s only one possible answer this is all heading towards.

Why is it a kiss on the lips though? Every other thing that was done should technically count as a kiss too, right?

“Do you want to argue semantics with this room?” It’s only when Li Zeyan replies to you sardonically that you realize you said your thoughts out loud.

Xu Mo clears his throat and, when you and the others look over to him, he has an arm folded across his chest with the other arm raised to press a lightly curled hand against his lips. You recognize this pose as one he takes before he starts a lecture.

“I’ve been considering this, ever since we established how we all appeared here after falling asleep. That perhaps this room is a shared space between us all. This door is distinctly linked to us and, as for the definition of a kiss, the first thought an adult would have towards one is of a romantic nature. You would only consider the technicalities of a kiss after thought or if you were trying to find a loophole.”

You and Qiluo must have been thinking the same thing because he voices your thoughts. “If you’re trying to say that we’re all sharing the same dream, then couldn’t we just think really hard to change things? Or wake ourselves up?”

Xu Mo shakes his head. “Therein lies another question: just who is the master of this dream? All of us equally? Some more than others? Or just one of us?” He extends a hand and spreads his fingers, turning it back and forth in front of him. “If this is a dream then the detail is outstanding, enough to trick the perception. Because of that, I also believe it is too late now. Much like seeing an elephant in a room and then being told it doesn’t exist, some part of your mind will always accept this as an immutable fact, no matter how hard you try to convince yourself otherwise.”

“That’s a detailed explanation,” Bai Qi comments in a neutral tone.

Xu Mo gives a closed-lip smile. “My field of study is neurology after all.”

Suddenly Qiluo’s eyebrows shoot up in realization and he grins mischievously. “So, seeing as a kiss is needed to solve this door, doesn’t that mean someone here is having naughty dreams?”

Right after these words Li Zeyan and Bai Qi stiffen and then you see blue eyes land on you. The others seem to follow that line of sight to you one after another. Excuse me!? You don’t need a mirror to know that you’re red underneath everyone’s gazes because your cheeks burn with heat. You shake your head vehemently, denying Qiluo’s words. It’s just as likely to be the other way around, with you as the innocent one and everyone else here being the dreamers!

As you throw everyone else under the bus without scruples, in the corner of your eye you see Bai Qi turn to the side, hand rising to cover his reddening face. Li Zeyan spits out the word “childish”, appearing offended by your insinuation, while Xu Mo hides his laugh behind a cough.

Qiluo nods with a serious expression. “True, true. I don’t know about the others, but at least I know I’m not the master of this dream or else this place would have—”

You say his name loudly to interrupt the rest of his words. Zhou Qiluo raises both hands in surrender, laughing. “I was only going to say this place would have bags of chips! Sorry, sorry, I’ll stop teasing. Don’t be angry, please?”

You try your hardest to hold onto your glare, but your twitching lips gives away your amusement. The uneasy atmosphere that had settled when Xu Mo was talking disappears as if it has never been there to begin with.

However, this doesn’t last long and the gravity of the situation reasserts itself.

So… it looks like a kiss on the lips really is the way to get out? You bring this up again for clarification, but also hoping someone came up with an alternative answer.

But no one offers another solution.

Just as your eyes start to dart around, skirting around the men here, Bai Qi spins around and stalks over to the double door. “I refuse to believe there isn’t another way out.” He presses the handle down and pulls. Hard.

Of course the door refuses to open, but he continues to struggle with it. Despite giving Bai Qi an unimpressed look, Li Zeyan still walks over to his side and re-examines the door while discussing things in a low voice. Xu Mo watches them.

Meanwhile, Zhou Qiluo catches your eyes and tells you, “I’m happy to go along with whatever you wanna do.”

You jokingly ask him what he’d do if you decide to stay here then.

Qiluo answers without missing a beat, “No problem! I’ll treat it as a vacation. Aah, honestly, the only thing that’d make this a paradise is if there was food here… and maybe more privacy.”

You don’t catch his last words, too busy covering your startled laugh when he plops down in an exaggerated action and falls backwards to cross his arms behind his head. Again, you can’t help but be amazed by how Qiluo can make this blank and eerie room feel like a normal place.

But, in the end, you decide out loud that you’d like some time to organize your thoughts and everything you just learned.

Seeing that no one has any objections, you go over to the other side of the room and crouch down, dropping your sight to the ground. So, are you really going to kiss all four of them to get out of this room? Do you even have a choice? It doesn’t feel right to drag your feet on this when the answer is right in front of everyone. It’s just a kiss, right? But all of them? And in the same room?

As your thoughts spin around and around, you feel tempted to clutch your head and groan. If this really is a dream then why can’t it be simpler? For example, placing everyone in a different room. Why does the difficulty level feel like it’s set on extra hard!?

Wait.

If this is a dream then doesn’t that mean nothing matters? Maybe no one will remember this when it’s all over?

“Now I do not know whether I was then a man dreaming I was a butterfly, or whether I am now a butterfly, dreaming I am a man.”

You’re startled out of your thoughts by Xu Mo’s voice which flows into your ears like a calm stream. It looks like he came over to your side at some point and, after you look up at him, he takes a seat beside you, sweeping his lab coat back with an arm so that he doesn’t sit on the underside.

It doesn’t take any time to identify the words he quoted. They were from Zhuang Zhou, a Chinese philosopher back in the Warring States Period. You say this out loud.

Xu Mo touches your head, giving it a stroke. “Correct. He was of the thought that there must be a distinction between him and the butterfly; however, it is impossible to distinguish between dreaming and being awake. Perhaps this will never be known until a person reaches enlightenment. Then, in this event of not knowing whether we are in dreams or reality, should we not treat all our dreams as a state of reality? What you feel, experience, and learn exists regardless of the form of the world.”

You must have accidentally said your earlier thoughts out loud on how, if this is all a dream, then nothing matters. So, does Xu Mo mean that because any place is indistinguishable between dream and reality you should treat everything as real and do things with sincerity? It is said that a life without regrets is an important thing.

You tell Xu Mo that you think you understand what he’s getting at. To be true to yourself, right? You can’t help but smile at how this seems like another version of his very first advice to you. To trust in your instincts.

Something ripples across the surface of his eyes as he stares at you.

You clear your throat, feeling a bit flustered when he doesn’t say anything, and ask him if you got it wrong.

He blinks, looking a bit surprised at himself before he smiles. The gentle expression softens the weight of his attention. “No, you’re right. You catch on quickly.”

Xu Mo reaches out again, as if he can’t help himself, to rub your head. But this time, although you accept his praise with a self-satisfied “hehe”, you ward off his hand to protect your hair from getting mussed. He can only withdraw his hand with a helpless upturn of the corners of his mouth.

During this lull in conversation, you take a look at the other three men. Zhou Qiluo was sitting up from his previous position lying on the ground and watching you and Xu Mo; he tilts his head, glancing between you two, and mouths a question to you, asking if things are OK? He must see your confusion at his question because Qiluo points at his head, making you realize he must have seen you guarding your head from Xu Mo. You quickly nod and smile for added reassurance.

Then you search for a certain police officer in this room, reminded by Qiluo’s concern. Fortunately, because Bai Qi is still testing the double door, it doesn’t look like he noticed your small exchange with Xu Mo or he would have come over (you remember some notable incidents at your shooting sites); but it does feel like Bai Qi is about to resort to force. Meanwhile, Li Zeyan has moved onto scrutinizing the grooves in the door.

“Are you hesitant about kissing everyone here?”

You jolt at Xu Mo’s astute question and, as you turn to him, your shoulders rise to cover your awkward expression. Is it that obvious? You ask him this, but you know he’s always been able to read you like an open book.

“It’s a natural reaction in this case.”

So he’s also aware of how this room’s request is outrageous then. You don’t hide your sigh or the way you hang your head. Why is it you? Hey, wait. You perk up your head and look at him again, pointing this out. Why IS it you? Sure, the light lasted the longest when you did it, but no one’s tried out other combinations with each other.

Xu Mo raises an eyebrow and pokes your nose. “Silly fool, what do the four of us have in common here?”

You scrunch your forehead in thought, going through things like their occupation, their age, their physical features, and their hobbies, but they’re all too different from each other. The only thing they have in common is… Oh. You. Not to mention, some of them don’t even seem to know each other, or they’re just surface-level acquaintances with each other.

You duck your head down miserably again, probably looking like a turtle drawing back into its shell.

“You don’t need to think so much. I’m certain everyone understands that these are extenuating circumstances.” Xu Mo chuckles and comforts you with these words.

Right… right. It’s like giving CPR or something. You latch onto this thought and say it out loud.

However, Xu Mo gives you a troubled smile. “I don’t think that would be wise. Remember, this room is seeking a kiss. If you convince yourself that you’re not giving a kiss then you may not fulfill the requirements.”

… Inwardly, your mind does its best impression of “The Scream” by Edvard Munch. Could that even happen!? You picture the scenario of working up the courage to kiss one of them only for it not to count. You’re struck with the urge to clutch your head again. Such a sadistic room! Xu Mo has a point about getting it done right the first time, so that you don’t have to do it over again. Honestly, it doesn’t feel great having to play by this place’s rules but there also doesn’t seem to be anything you or the others can do about that.

You breath in deeply, hold the air in your lungs, and then send it whooshing out together with your hesitation and embarrassment.

Following this action, you spring to your feet and turn around to Xu Mo to hold out your hand, telling him that you’re going to do it then. It’s just one kiss, right? Well, four in total, but one for each.

Xu Mo looks up at you from his seat on the ground and you’re struck with how uncommon it is to see him like this. The sourceless light in this place shows his thin lips clearly, along with his defined cheekbones, proud nose, and the elegant sweep of his brows; altogether, these features should make Xu Mo appear aloof from the world, but the gentle curve of his jaw and the way a smile hangs on the corner of his lips transforms his atmosphere. Whenever he smiles at you, it feels like a layer of softness settles over him. However, despite the light illuminating everything, it cannot seem to penetrate the depths of his eyes, framed by long eyelashes. Like deep pools, every now and then you can catch a glimpse of a rippling purple in his eyes, but it’s a royal purple so dark that it comes off as black.

This all happens in a moment before he takes your hand and gets to his feet, although on his own without your help. However, as he stands up, you find yourself needing to tilt your head back to keep eye contact with him and suddenly the presence around him, which was restrained, seems to envelop you when he’s at his full height.

The smile on Xu Mo’s face deepens. “How would you like to do this?”

Your expression stiffens on your face. Does he need to ask this? Confirming every step just makes this more awkward! But then you catch the mischievous glimmer in Xu Mo’s eyes, making you send him a disapproving look. You tell him briskly to close his eyes and lean down.

He obediently does so, chuckling.

You reach out to grab the lapels on his coat and then pause. You only need to lean up and kiss him on the lips, but you know you’re not imagining the prickling stares from the other three men at your back and, with the deliberateness of this set up and Xu Mo’s earlier question, the mood has gone strange!

Not that there was a mood to begin with…

Realizing that you’re trying to delay the inevitable with your tangential thoughts, you keep your voice nonchalant as you tell Xu Mo that you’re going to count to three. He gives a short hum of acknowledgment.

One.

Two.

Three.

… Xu Mo, with his eyes still closed, gives a helpless smile. “Should I be the one to count instead?”

You agree that it’s probably a better idea if you aren’t the one counting.

“One… two…” he counts at an even pace, “three.”

The end of his count catches you with hands tightened in his lapels, but feet glued to the ground. You clear your throat self-consciously, telling him that he counted too fast and you weren’t expecting that so you weren’t ready yet.

Xu Mo opens his eyes with a soft laugh and then before you can react he exchanges positions with you, stepping around you so that his back is to the others, blocking their vision, before his lips descend onto yours.

You startle at the cool sensation that touches your lips, eyes closing instinctively, and try to pull back but his hands have settled at the back of your head and waist to hold you still. Quickly, you remember the purpose of this kiss and tentatively move your lips against his. Is this good enough for the door? You’ve kissed Xu Mo, right? And, even though you’re covered by Xu Mo, you can’t help but be aware of the other three men.

However, just as you think this, a sharp pinch makes your eyes fly open to see half-lidded dark eyes watching you. You realize distantly that the stinging sensation from your lips is because this man nipped you; but the majority of your attention is pinned by his gaze. Those eyes are the eyes of a beast. Hungry. Covetous. And is that not a look of exultation from a hunter catching their prey?

Surprise and a faint sense of alarm at this alien look on his face makes you tremble. You open your mouth, but only get out the first syllable of his name before he cuts you off.

“Don’t think about anything else. Just pay attention to me.”

Xu Mo’s voice is low and you don’t have time to react before he overwhelms you.

His tongue seizes the opportunity of your parted lips to intrude into your mouth. He explores this intimate part of you without any reserve, sliding his tongue against your teeth, stroking the sensitive roof of your mouth, and entangling your tongue and trapping it beneath his. You can’t keep up with this assault, feeling completely at his mercy and an indistinct pleasure fogs your head. Even though his lips and hands are cool, your warmth is shared to him and gradually both your temperatures rise.

Xu Mo’s hand flexes on your waist and then, with a tug, you’re pulled right up against his chest, which is broader than you expected. Turns out his clothes make him look more slender than he is in reality. He straightens up, forcing you to rise onto your toes and to lean against his chest. Next, he tilts your head with the hand that’s in your hair and deepens the kiss.

Through the hot haze of sparks that tingle through you every time he moves his lips against yours, you feel a desperate need for oxygen; but he doesn’t budge even when you push at him. Instead, Xu Mo presses his mouth even harder against yours. Like he’s trying to devour you. Or like he’s trying to keep you as close to him as possible. You blindly try to breathe but just end up swallowing the combined saliva in your mouth.

Finally, when you’re pretty much resting against him and clutching at him to stop yourself from sinking to the ground on shaky legs, he pulls back.

Xu Mo’s cheeks are flushed a faint red and his chest is rising and falling faster than usual, although not to the extent of how you’re gulping for air. Still, this is probably the first time you’ve seen him so disheveled.

When you blink past the mistiness in your vision you notice that his eyes are dark to the point where you can’t even see a hint of purple. But then he blinks, eyelashes sweeping down, and when they raise his expression has returned to its normal gentleness. His eyes are as serene as an undisturbed lake.

Xu Mo tidies your hair with meticulous care, smoothing out the area where he had been holding your head, before he moves on to fix your disheveled clothes.

It’s at this point that you come back to yourself and step away quickly, fixing the rest of your clothes yourself with a flustered expression. You can’t seem to look at Xu Mo directly and, as your eyes dart around, you exclaim in surprise when you happen to look past him to the double door behind him. You take a few steps past him to get a closer look. He follows your line of sight and also turns around.

The top left section of the double door has lit up in purple light, and bright and dark shades of the color fill in the numberless grooves on the door. From your position, where you can see the door in its entirety, you realize you didn’t see wrong during the moment you kissed Li Zeyan. The light and grooves do make an illustration and in this case you can see a tortoise shell outlined in a royal purple, while the rest of its body is in a purple dark enough to be considered black. The neck that comes out of the tortoise shell is sinuous and long, like a snake, and it curves partially around the shell so that its head rests on its back while its webbed feet are tucked underneath its body. The half-lidded slitted purple eyes of the turtle-snake watches everyone in this room with a solemn presence.

This is Xuanwu, the Black Tortoise of the North.

You glance between the illustration and Xu Mo, curious as to why this holy beast of water appeared for him on the door, only to see that he’s staring at the illustration with a narrow look. But when he feels your gaze on him, he turns to you with a small smile.

“Interesting.” He doesn’t add anything more to that statement.

Then Zhou Qiluo clears his throat.

You startle at the noise and you’re abruptly reminded of everyone else’s presence. The other three are looking over in yours and Xu Mo’s direction and you fight back the embarrassment that burns beneath your cheeks. You reassure yourself that Xu Mo was blocking everyone’s sight, so it’s not like they saw anything, and even if they did this whole situation is an emergency. You’re just doing what you need to do to get everyone out of here.

Qiluo looks at Xu Mo, who is standing somewhat behind you, and something you can’t make sense of passes between them over your head. But soon enough those bright blue eyes return to you and Qiluo comes up to take your hand and lead you a few steps away.

He changes his grasp on your hand so that he’s holding both of your hands in his and then grins. “My turn.”

You unconsciously squeeze his hands out of nervousness, making him tighten his own grip, but the smile on his face doesn’t change. He just watches you patiently. For some reason you feel like you should apologize, but you don’t know what to apologize for or why you’d need to apologize.

Your eyes dart around his face, taking in the casual but artful way his blond hair falls over his forehead. It almost seems to glow gold in the light of this room like a miniature sun and, paired with eyes that are as clear as a sky without clouds, you find yourself relaxing from the warmth and security he gives off. His smile widens, flashing a glimpse of one of his canines, when he feels your hands lose their tension and he runs his thumbs across the backs of your hands.

“Yup, that’s right. Relax, relax.”

Qiluo suddenly leans in and you shut your eyes reflexively, expecting to feel him kiss you.

Except you feel his lips skim across your forehead instead.

Confusion fills you, but before you can open your eyes another kiss lands on you. This time it’s between your eyebrows. Then kisses land on your eyelids. Then your nose. Then your cheeks. Each kiss is like gossamer, brushing against your skin with a light, ticklish feeling. Qiluo continues to drop this tender rain of kisses on you everywhere but your lips and behind your closed eyes you can see flashes of yellow. You don’t need to actually look to know that the double door is probably lighting on and off like fireworks every time Qiluo’s lips touch and leave you. The sight probably looks ridiculous and the image of this makes you laugh.

“That’s more like it. I love your smile.”

You’re not given any time to respond to his whisper before you feel his smiling lips press against yours.

Zhou Qiluo deepens the kiss without any fanfare. His tongue slides in through your parted lips and wraps around yours, inviting it back into his mouth, and the searing heat there startles you. He raises your hands to drop them on his shoulders before he slides his hand around to your back, pressing between your shoulder blades, while the other grips your hip and draws you into him.

He sucks on your tongue and the rush of pleasure that blazes through your nerves makes you miss how he slides a leg between yours until it’s already there. You’re helpless beneath his lack of hesitation and intensity, feeling like you’re sweltering in this fire he set. Then the hand between your shoulder blades descends, following the curve of your spine, and the scorching trail his touch leaves makes you arch your back. In your dazed mind you’re not sure if you want to get closer to him or escape the burn of his hand.

But a small part of you recalls that you’re still in public and so you squirm, wanting to pull back out of embarrassment and for air. Qiluo lets you draw back but, as your mouths separate, his tongue continues to follow yours, leading into a wet open-mouthed kiss. You can feel the flush on your face deepen, undoubtedly turning you even redder, and you clench your damp hands on his shoulders in a panic.

The tight line of muscles below your hands shifts as Qiluo leans forward again to seal your mouths together and, for an instant, you think you can feel the ghost of a smirk. His tongue gives one last lingering caress against yours before he pulls away slowly, as if reluctant to leave. There’s a thin trail of spit between your lips and his before he swipes his thumb across your lips, breaking the line and wiping away the wetness that lingers on your mouth.

Zhou Qiluo’s eyes are like blue flames and you feel yourself shiver at his gaze. Did he always look like this? There almost seems to be a flicker of a steely shadow behind his eyes before the fire there dies down and warmth returns to his eyes, softening his features into something familiar.

“I knew you’d taste swee—”

You slam a hand over Qiluo’s mouth, eyes wide open. He’s not supposed to say those things out loud! You chide him and feel him shake with soundless laughter before a wet sensation swipes against your palm.

Did he… did he just lick your palm!?

You glare at him and the playful look in his eyes. It’s the last thing that erases the strange feeling you had from earlier and returns him back to the Zhou Qiluo that you know.

“The door is lit.” Li Zeyan’s words strike like a whip, shattering the atmosphere between you and Qiluo.

You startle at that and drop your hand from Qiluo’s mouth to push against his shoulders, wanting space. He slides his leg out from between yours and pulls back his hands with a pout. You turn your head to determinedly look at the door and step away, fixing your clothes.

This time the bottom right of the double door has lit up. The grooves are predominately filled with a yellow light but there are also shades of orange and red mixed in. The illustration this time is of a bird with its wings outstretched in a flourishing arc, looking like it may take flight at any moment, and the way the three colors shimmer gives the illusion that there are flames dancing on the edges of each of its feathers. The stunning blue eyes of the bird watches everyone from its majestic pose.

This is Zhuque, the Vermillion Bird of the South.

So, according to this room, Zhou Qiluo is associated with the holy beast of fire. You’re sensing a theme from this door and you think you can guess what the other two sections will reveal.

Speaking of the last two…

Li Zeyan has such a dark look on his face that you nearly take a step back.

You decide to go to Bai Qi instead, although he doesn’t look happy either. There’s a deep furrow carved between his brows and his jaw is set as fixed as a stone sculpture. He even has a ferocious look in his eyes as he stares at Zhou Qiluo and Xu Mo.

Nevertheless, you tentatively approach Bai Qi and call out his name. For a second, you feel like the air around him is abnormally sharp, which shouldn’t be possible since he can’t use his Evol, but then Bai Qi moves his gaze - or more like rips it away - from the others and when his eyes land on you the dangerous look in them fades into a warm amber.

He steps forward to meet you and holds you lightly by the shoulders, examining you as if he’s afraid you’re injured somewhere. Then he opens his mouth and says, “You don’t have to do this.”

You blink at him, surprised. Is he really saying this at this point? Isn’t it a bit late?

His expression doesn’t change when you point this out, still serious. “If you want to stop now then you can. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to. We can always figure out another way to escape from here.”

The solemn sincerity of his words wrap around your heart like a gentle embrace. You smile from the bottom of your heart, thanking him for his concern but tell him that this is the quickest way and you’re okay with this.

Bai Qi continues to look uncomfortable but he dips his head in acknowledgment of your choice. He doesn’t move apart from this though and you realize you’re going to have to be the one to do things around here. So you lean up with a heartbeat that picks up from nervousness, gripping the front of his shirt for balance, and kiss him.

His hands stiffen on your shoulders before the stiffness slips out of his frame and he wraps his arms around you, cradling you securely into his chest and slanting his mouth against yours.

Bai Qi’s kiss is pleasant. His tongue swipes, almost tentatively, against your lips and he seems more interested in mapping out the shape of your mouth than anything else. Sometimes he caresses your lips with his, changing the angles, and other times he’ll catch your lip and graze it softly with his teeth before laving over it with his tongue.

These caresses make you unconsciously tighten your grip in his clothes, wanting to get closer to his warmth, and when you press up and fleetingly touch the tip of your tongue to his he freezes. Then he deepens the kiss with more confidence. Bai Qi eases himself into your mouth and savors you in a melting, languid movement as if he’s memorizing everything in this moment. He seems attuned to your every reaction because, just as you’re about to push against him when you feel your chest tighten from a lack of air, he pulls back to rest his forehead against yours, nuzzling you in a subconscious act.

Both of your quickened breaths land, scorching, against each other’s mouth for a moment before Bai Qi straightens his back and you find yourself blinking up at him with dazed eyes and lips reddened from his focused attention.

Upon seeing this expression of yours he stifles a groan in the back of his throat, which vibrates in the lack of space between your bodies, and then the next thing you know he presses a hot kiss against your forehead and embraces you solidly into his chest. You make a small noise of surprise, both at his action and when he presses his chin down on the crown of your head. His arms are wrapped around you like steel bands and they stop you from getting out of his hold.

You call out his name in confusion, still sounding breathless.

“Just a moment…” he breathes out, “Let me hold you just a moment longer, or I won’t be able to control myself.”

You’re not quite sure what he means, but you can hear the growl of violence beneath his words and your heart jumps as your thoughts immediately turn to the others in the room. Even though you’re aware that everything you know about Bai Qi from his high school years was a misunderstanding, his reputation didn’t spring from nothing. It’s all too easy to imagine the bloodbath that can happen in this enclosed room if Bai Qi decides to turn his repressed tension, which you can feel in his bunched muscles, into physical action. Hurriedly, you wrap your own arms around him and soothingly pat his back.

Right when you feel him relax you hear Xu Mo clear his throat.

You instinctively jump and try to step away from Bai Qi, but he doesn’t let you go. His arms tense for one, long second before he sighs heavily enough to stir the hair on your head and reluctantly releases you. He gives you another look over, as if confirming you’re presentable, before he steps aside.

You carefully don’t make eye contact with Xu Mo, Zhou Qiluo, or Li Zeyan and instead look towards the double door.

The lit up illustration that appears in your eyes doesn’t surprise you much. In the bottom left section of the double door there are alternating portions of navy blue and an ice blue so luminous it could be mistaken as white. A blue light outlines these colors and corrals them into the shape of an enormous tiger with rippling muscles. The tiger has one paw raised with its claws unsheathed, looking like it can tear its way out of its section with ease. Its mouth is open in a soundless roar that almost seems to shake through your bones.

This is Baihu, the White Tiger of the West. The holy beast of metal and a symbol of strength and military force. You can understand why the room would pick this one for Bai Qi.

Three out of four sections of the double door are now illuminated. There is Xuanwu, the Black Tortoise of the North, lit up by Xu Mo, in the top left square of the double door. Zhuque, the Vermillion Bird of the South, lit up by Zhou Qiluo, is in the bottom right. Then there is Bai Qi’s tiger which you were just looking at in the bottom left.

It doesn’t take a genius to know what will appear in the top right section.

You look over to Li Zeyan just as he so happens to shift his gaze from the door to you and you feel yourself freeze. He looks… very unhappy. There’s no emotion on his poker face, but you think you can see frost spreading out on the ground from his feet. Of course, nothing like that is actually happening but the air still feels several degrees colder over there.

For an instant, you wonder if you chose the wrong order. Maybe it would have been better to go to Li Zeyan first? But that might have killed your courage right there and then and you’d never have gone through with this. At least, in this case with him being last, you’re propelled by the feeling that you have no choice but to finish things since you’ve come this far and you’re this close.

You shore up your resolve and then head over to him.

Li Zeyan’s blank expression doesn’t even flicker as you come close to him. He tilts his head to look down at you.

You stare up at him.

He doesn’t seem to have any intention of making things easier for you, but the thought of placing your hand on him to go onto your tiptoes to kiss him like you did Bai Qi makes you falter. It’s not like you haven’t touched Li Zeyan before, however it certainly isn’t with the same ease you’d reach out to the others with. This isn’t even mentioning how displeased he is right now.

You can’t continue to stand here in this deadlock though! You rack your mind, trying to think of a way to ask him not to mind you when you grab him for balance so that you can kiss him, when Li Zeyan unexpectedly opens his mouth and breaks the silence first.

“Is this what you’ve decided?”

You laugh, startled, after you hear his words. Li Zeyan’s forehead wrinkles slightly and so you explain that Bai Qi asked you a similar thing earlier. Your answer now is the same as then. You’re sure and it’d be silly to stop now at this point.

Li Zeyan’s eyes darken the more you speak and a heavy pressure seems to exude from them, unbeknownst to you.

You go to finish off your reasons by pointing out how he’s the last one too, but Li Zeyan interrupts.

“—Idiot.”

Indignation rises up within you. His insult is uncalled for! Especially when you’re doing this to help everyone.

But, just as you open your mouth to complain, you feel Li Zeyan grab your chin in an unyielding grip and then he leans down and kisses you.

It’s a bruising kiss. All you can sense is that Li Zeyan is furious. He presses his mouth down against yours, domineering and oppressive, and squeezes the fingers he has on your chin, turning the grip just shy of painful. You knock his hand off and retreat a few steps with a reflexive exclamation. It didn’t actually hurt, but it wasn’t comfortable either. Out of the corner of your eye you see light flash on the double door and then disappear.

“Li Zeyan!” “CEO Li.” “Zeyan!”

The other three men have already reacted, saying his name in warning.

You move before you even think, somehow knowing that if you don’t stand between Li Zeyan and the others there really will be a brawl in the next few seconds. Bai Qi’s eyes are narrowed in a ferocious glare and he looks like he’ll pounce over at any moment. Qiluo has a cold expression which you’ve never seen before on his face and it sends a chill down your spine. Even Xu Mo has lost his smile and he’s clearly showing his displeasure.

You firmly tell them that you’re fine and you can handle this. You’re going to discuss this privately with Li Zeyan.

When you turn back to him, he’s looking over your head at the others without any expression before he returns his gaze to you.

You point at him and then go on a tirade about how you know he thinks you’re dumb for doing this. You know he doesn’t want to kiss you, but letting you kiss him is a small price to pay for an easy way out, right? He doesn’t want to waste his time being stuck in here, right? Even if time seems to be stopped in this room, who knows what will happen if you and everyone remain here. He can think of this whole kissing business as being bitten by a cat or something and he doesn’t need to take his anger out on you. You end your speech by crossing your arms, frowning at him.

“… Idiot,” He simply spits out.

Idiot, idiot, idiot. Is that all he can say!? You ask him to explain himself.

Li Zeyan presses his lips together, looking mulish, and for a second you think he will keep silent; however, he looks past you to the others again and then orders them, “Turn around.”

It comes as no surprise to you, when you glance over your shoulder at them, that no one listens.

“Turn around!” Li Zeyan growls.

You jump a little because it’s extremely rare to hear Li Zeyan raise his voice like that. But the three men have focused their attention on you instead. You give them a nod and reassure them again that you’ve got this.

Bai Qi looks extremely reluctant but he seems to trust you and turns around. Zhou Qiluo has a frown on his face and doesn’t hide his concern, but he still turns his back albeit stiffly. Xu Mo scrutinizes you and Li Zeyan for a few more seconds before he turns around.

You look at Li Zeyan. He watches you back.

There’s a lull of silence.

You prompt him. Well? Is he going to explain what he means by calling you an idiot?

Li Zeyan clenches his jaw, as if he’s struggling over whether to answer or not, before you see his shoulders drop with resignation. It’s such a small movement that you would have missed it if you weren’t staring at him so hard. Finally, he speaks in a low voice which sounds dragged out of him. “Who said I was angry at you? I’m displeased over this situation. I would have found another method, and there was no need for you to do this.”

You blink.

Is he… upset that you didn’t believe in him?

You take another look at Li Zeyan with this new perspective and now you can see the steely protectiveness and determination in the depths of his eyes. He stands before you with an upright posture, unbowed by the demands of this room, and undaunted by this situation everyone is in. Calm, steady, and reliable. These three words pop into your head when you’re reminded of how you can always rely on him, despite his occasional thorny remarks, and you find yourself dropping your defensively crossed arms.

But still, even though you recognize and appreciate his concern now, you’ve made your decision. He needs to trust you with this like he trusts your business ventures. You smile wryly to yourself, remembering all the times he’s scolded you on subjects for a shoot and the aid he sends you in spite of his exasperation.

You meet Li Zeyan’s eyes steadily and explain to him that you want to do something to help too. You’re not one to stand around and with such an obvious answer in front of everyone - which is clearly working - how can he expect you not to do anything? If you were really against this then you wouldn’t have done it. He should know how stubborn you are (a huff of laughter escapes Li Zeyan). So, can he trust you here?

His eyes sweep across your face. You stand resolute in front of him.

Li Zeyan’s lips turn down with his displeasure but he accepts your decision with a short, “Fine.”

He reaches out to slip his fingers beneath your chin again, tilting your face up, and then leans down. You close your eyes and tense unconsciously, remembering your earlier experience, but this time his touch is gentle and so is his kiss when he presses his mouth against yours before you can react any further.

His lips are a light touch on yours and it’s a complete contrast to his previous kiss. You feel his other hand grip your upper arm, but then he makes no other movement. Somehow, even though he initiated the kiss, you can tell he’s letting you decide what you want to do next. In response, you tentatively kiss him back.

There’s an elusive taste that seems to enter your mouth from this kiss and so, before you know it, you lick his lips. Li Zeyan breaths in sharply, parting his lips, and you take this opportunity to slip your tongue inside, too caught up in trying to figure out this faint taste. His mouth is… sweet. Huh. It’s unexpected and reminds you of the pudding he makes.

Li Zeyan’s hands tremble at your entry, but then you feel him slide his hand from your upper arm to your back and spread out over your shoulder blade. Instead of pulling you into him though, he steps closer to you. Meanwhile, the hand underneath your chin shifts to cup your jaw; his palm is warm against your skin and his fingers, when they brush the area behind your ear, leaves a trail of pleasurable tingles that make you shiver. He lets you explore his mouth to your heart’s content, his tongue patiently following yours.

It’s a slow, unhurried kiss and, at the end, he suckles your tongue tenderly before giving one last lingering kiss to your lips when you both pull back. You open your eyes slowly and your breath catches at how Li Zeyan’s eyes blaze as he looks at you. His eyes flick down to your mouth again and you catch him swallowing hard.

But then Zhou Qiluo breaks the moment. “The door’s glowing!”

You turn your head to the completed double door and, like you expected, you see Qinglong, the Azure Dragon of the East, in the top right section of the door. The long sinuous dragon, silhouetted in burning crimson and with deep blue scales that seem to glimmer red, almost seems too much for its section as it curls around itself in tight loops while its four arms, topped with five sharp claws, dig into the borders around it. However, its antlered head is raised grandly to stare down imperiously at everyone in the room. It is effusive with dignity and presence.

Qinglong, the holy beast of wood, and often a symbol of imperial power. You can only shake your head in wry amusement at this illustration representing Li Zeyan.

In the next moment, a loud click echoes through the room before the handles on the double door seem to move on their own. The door opens, exposing an extremely bright white space. You can’t see past this blinding light to whatever is beyond this door.

Just as you’re about to ask everyone for their thoughts on this new development, you hear Li Zeyan make a startled noise. You whip your head back to him to see that he’s disappearing, starting from his feet. You cry out in alarm.

“Don’t.” Li Zeyan holds up a hand to stop you from coming closer. “It doesn’t feel dangerous, but you still shouldn’t get close.” The in case it is dangerous is left unsaid.

You clench your fists, worried but unsure of what you can do, and cast a desperate look at the others.

Xu Mo is already examining this phenomenon with a serious expression. He relaxes a few seconds later though and tells everyone, “I believe we’re being returned to our original locations.”

Maybe it’s due to the unexpectedness of this situation, but no one questions just how Xu Mo knows this.

Li Zeyan takes one more glance at how his lower half is pretty much gone before he looks at you and takes a step closer somehow, even though you can’t see his legs now. “Come to my office tomorrow at ten o’clock sharp.” He only gets this out and reaches out to lightly brush his knuckles down your cheek before he disappears entirely.

You barely have time to process this before you’re drawn into a strong embrace. “I’ll be at your place to pick you up tomorrow.” Bai Qi’s voice rumbles against your ear and you feel him squeeze you tightly before he also fades before your eyes.

In his stead, Zhou Qiluo is already there and he grabs your hands. Despite the fact that he’s also disappearing, and that everything below his waist is gone already, he still has a relaxed and bright grin on his face. “Post what you dreamed about to your moments. I’ll do the same and we can see if we really shared a dream.” He winks at you and then disappears.

You expect to see Xu Mo next, but you blink in confusion when you don’t see anyone. Looking around, you see that he’s still standing in his original spot even though half of his legs are gone.

His eyes catch yours and he admits, “I made a mistake.”

Huh? You jolt with alarm, asking him if he means he’s wrong about everyone going back to where they came from?

He shakes his head, a deep smile appearing on his face. “No, I mean I made a mistake in being your first. I should have made myself your last.”

It takes a second for you to realize what he’s talking about and, just as embarrassment floods your face, Xu Mo disappears with a chuckle.

The room is now empty except for you.

You look down, expecting to see yourself start to fade, but nothing happens. Uneasiness fills you as worst case scenarios flash through your mind, like being the only one trapped here forever. But then you remember the open double door and the blinding white space. Could that be an exit too?

Hey, why did everyone else get to be transported but here you are forced to manually leave? You complain inwardly even as you cautiously move to the door.

Even when you’re right in front of the open doors you still can’t see through the glaring light. However, there doesn’t seem to be anything else you can do or anywhere else for you to go. You take another look around the room, confirming that it’s still empty, and at yourself, confirming that you still aren’t disappearing, before you breath in deeply to calm your racing heart.

You step through the door.

#mlqc fanfic #mlqc gavin #mlqc lucien #mlqc victor #mlqc kiro #love and producer #mr love queen's choice #mlqc

[cloudrecession]

My Lonely Heart Calls 

Wei Wuxian needs a distraction from everything Yanli's wedding makes him feel. Luckily, he finds a certain handsome stranger among the guests.

~3600 words | AO3 Link | modern AU

_____________________________________________________________

Wei Wuxian felt the exact moment he’d had too much to drink. He’d made it through the ceremony alright, mostly, but everyone teared up at weddings, so it was fine, and he’d made it through Yanli’s first dance with her husband, and even his own dance with her. But now, as he finished his he-forgot-to-count-th glass of wine, he felt the threat of crying in earnest building in his chest. Yanli was so happy, and so beautiful, and she was dancing with Jin Zixuan, who didn’t deserve her, but he made her happy so maybe he did, and Yanli deserved to be this happy her whole life, and--

Wei Wuxian put his glass down. No. He needed a distraction. He’d expected that he’d have MianMian to hang around with, she was always good for a laugh when Wei Wuxian had to be around Jin Zixuan, but she’d had the audacity to bring a date. Nie Huaisang hadn’t come at all, which Wei Wuxian found to be a bit of a slight even knowing that Huaisang’s brother had shipped him off to some corporate boot camp halfway across the country that he couldn’t get out of.

There was always Jiang Cheng, who stood making pleasantries with his mother’s family and barely concealing his pained expression. But Jiang Cheng would probably just yell at him for drinking.

Someone else, then. There had to be someone fun on their own in this crowd. Any of Zixuan’s family were right out. That narrowed the selection significantly, given how many half-siblings and cousins he had. It took Wei Wuxian a long moment to spot his target-- a particularly handsome man in a sharp but simple suit standing at the back of the reception hall, nursing a glass of what looked to be plain water-- perhaps he, too, had already drank too much, and the two of them could commiserate.

Wei Wuxian knew of the man vaguely. He was Zixuan’s brother’s definitely-not-boyfriend’s brother. Yanli never participated in such gossip, but MianMian did with gusto, and Jin Guangyao’s relationship status was always a topic of interest. So Wei Wuxian knew that this was Lan Wangji, the younger brother of Lan Xichen, but not much else. 

“Hey,” Wei Wuxian said. “What a party, eh?”

Lan Wangji barely glanced at him, and did not answer.

“You’ve hit your limit, too, I see.” Wei Wuxian tapped the glass of water in Lan Wangji’s hands. “Problem with an open bar, happens to everyone.”

Lan Wangji took a step back. “I do not drink.”

“Really? How uptight!” Wei Wuxian laughed. Lan Wangji did not. “Maybe that’s good. You can be my designated driver, but like, for life tonight. I already have a ride home, don’t worry. I just need someone to help me not make a fool of myself.”

Lan Wangji looked at him from the corner of his eye as though to say, not possible.

“Hey, it’s not as hard as you’d think.” Wei Wuxian put up his hands. “I just need a little company, that’s all. If I keep to myself, I’ll just keep drinking, and I don’t want to make a scene.”

“That is your problem.”

“And now it’s yours too.” Wei Wuxian nudged him. “Come on, I’m fun to be around, everyone says so. Everyone’s just occupied with…” he gestured vaguely at all the couples on the dance floor. “...their own lives.”

“Then be occupied with yours.”

Wei Wuxian could not tell if he was teasing. There was no quirk of a smile on Lan Wangji’s face, but he did not seem malicious either. Wei Wuxian chose to smile. “Maybe I’m trying. Maybe I’m hitting on you.”

That got him full eye contact. “Are you?”

He hadn’t thought about it. He wasn’t not hitting on him, but it hadn’t really been his intention either, not consciously at least. He glanced Lan Wangji over. He was indeed very handsome, with sharp cheekbones and his hair cut just so to draw attention to them. His suit was tailored perfectly to show the slender lines of his body, its deep navy color complimented by the powder blue of his tie. Wei Wuxian suddenly desperately wanted to loosen that tie, undo that top button… God, he was drunk, wasn’t he?

“You shouldn’t joke about things like that,” Lan Wangji said, misreading Wei Wuxian’s silence.

That was probably for the better. Wei Wuxian did not much feel like being rejected at the moment. He didn’t say anything more for a while, unsure he could without something stupid tumbling from his mouth. Lan Wangji at least didn’t walk away, even though he could now without being impolite. 

Wei Wuxian watched the Yanli dance with one of Jin Zixuan’s cousins, a child young enough that he could barely reach her hands without her bending down. She picked him up and spun him, laughing. Zixuan came to her side and the three of them danced together. It was easy to see the two of them forming the sort of family Yanli had always wanted. Wei Wuxian had to smile a little, wondering how soon they’d have kids of their own. Yanli would be the perfect mother. And if she got to smile like this at her own little one everyday, that was exactly the life she should have. Wei Wuxian wanted to be nothing but happy for her, but there was a melancholy he couldn’t shake. She wasn’t leaving him and Jiang Cheng, but she also was. Their lives were changing, whether they all were ready or not.

Wei Wuxian thought very seriously of going to get more wine, or something stronger.

“Your sister is very happy,” Lan Wangji said, so suddenly Wei Wuxian jumped. Lan Wangji looked directly at him for only the second time.

“Yeah. She deserves to be the happiest in the world.”

Lan Wangji watched him a long moment. “You are not happy.”

“I am,” Wei Wuxian said quickly. “I’m the second happiest in the world, see?” He flashed his very best smile. “It’s you who seems to be the unhappy one. Why so grumpy, huh? It’s a wedding, not a funeral. Lighten up!”

Lan Wangji did not rise to the bait. “You are not fond of Jin Zixuan.”

Wei Wuxian was unsure whether it was something Lan Wangji had known before, or something he could tell from Wei Wuxian’s attitude about him that day alone. “Sure, but that’s got nothing to do with how I feel. If he makes Yanli happy, I’ll hold my tongue. Mostly.”

“Then…?”

“Then nothing. Don’t be nosy.”

Lan Wangji looked away, his whole body shifting slightly further from Wei Wuxian. Without thinking, Wei Wuxian grabbed his arm to make him stay, wrinkling that perfect suit.

He withdrew his hand quickly. “Sorry.” Lan Wangji was going to come away from the night with an awful impression of Yanli’s drunken belligerent brother. Wei Wuxian should have chosen anyone else to bother, but he couldn’t make himself walk away. He felt desperate to keep Lan Wangji’s attention. “You’re not being nosy. I’m just a mess.”

“Mn.”

“You’re supposed to disagree there.” But he made himself smile. “My feelings are trivial, anyway. It’s a happy day, so I’ll be happy.” He could not read the look Lan Wangji gave him. “Honestly, don’t worry. Assume I’m just afraid I’ll end up like Jiang Cheng instead of Yanli.” He leaned in very close to whisper conspiratorially, “Madam Yu is very worried this is the only wedding she’ll get to plan.”

“That’s not what’s bothering you,” Lan Wangji said slowly. “But I am sure you will find someone who makes you happy.” He spoke with such certainty, Wei Wuxian could almost believe him. He could almost feel it was romantic. But, of course, it was only their first real meeting. He was only being kind.

“I’m sure you will too.” He pushed Lan Wangji’s shoulder lightly, to show that he wasn’t reading into it too much. “Handsome guy like you can’t have much trouble, right?”

If Wei Wuxian didn’t know better, he’d swear Lan Wangji’s ears had gone pink. “Perhaps,” he said, in his particular flat tone.

Wei Wuxian looked at him, trying to puzzle him out. There was something about him Wei Wuxian quite liked, even besides the obvious good looks, even given that he seemed largely inscrutable. “Tell me something about yourself,” he said. “I feel like you know more about me than I know about you.”

“Such as?”

“What do you do?”

“I am in medical school. Entering my final year.”

Of course he was going to be a doctor. Wei Wuxian almost wanted to laugh.

“And you?”

“Ah well.” Wei Wuxian crossed his arms and took a breath. “Nothing so glorious as that. I did intend to do the grad school thing, and still do, but you know…” He waved his hand. “I needed to save up after undergrad, but something always happens, so, you know. I just do computer repair work.”

“Just?”

“Yeah, you should hear the fits Madam Yu throws, says I’ve wasted the family’s investment in my college education. Says I should work harder and get on my way to doing something respectable.” 

“It is respectable,” Lan Wangji said with the same certainty as before.

“Well, it pays the bills. Mostly.” 

“Mn.” Lan Wangji’s face barely changed, but Wei Wuxian got the impression that he was frustrated. “I understand very little about computers. As, I imagine, does Madam Yu.”

“They’re easy enough to get the hang of. It’s just—“ He paused. “Either you don’t want to hear this, or you’re trying to trick me into saying something smart so you can say I told you so.”

“Perhaps.” The corner of Lan Wangji’s mouth ticked up the slightest bit. Holly shit. If he was handsome with his neutral, slightly grumpy expression, there weren’t words for what he was when he smiled. “Please continue.”

Wei Wuxian humored him for a while, explaining what he knew had to be boring details of how computers worked, throwing in what human interest bits he could. He worked in a shop called Wen’s with his buddy Wen Ning— Wen Ning’s family ran it. Wei Wuxian hadn’t meant to stick around, he had just meant to fill in for Wen Ning when he’d been in that accident their senior year, because he was a quick learner and the Wens needed somebody, but then he was good at it and had needed the money and had stayed, and did Lan Wangji know how much of an up charge there was if you took your computer to the manufacturer’s endorsed repair company? Wei Wuxian did not mention that the reason he needed money in the first place was that he’d stretched what he’d had thin helping get Wen Ning back on his feet. He had Jiang Cheng and Madam Yu to tell him he was a fool, and he was starting to like Lan Wangji too much to set him up to ruin it. 

“This must bore you,” he said after explaining the time he’d fixed Jin Zixuan’s computer, and how Zixuan hadn’t realized he’d gone to where Wei Wuxian worked until he popped out of the back room. “Please stop me.”

“I enjoy listening.”

“But not talking, it seems. You were supposed to be telling me about yourself, and you turned it right around.”

“There is not much to say about me.”

“Sure there is. You’re in med school, there’s got to be some interesting stories. What sort of doctor are you thinking you’ll be?”

“Pediatrician.”

“Really? You seem the surgeon type.”

“I’ve been told.”

That was a sore spot, then. Wei Wuxian smiled. “That’s nice, though. You must care more about helping people than being the sort of hot shot all the TV dramas are about.”

Lan Wangji’s mouth set in a line. “That should be true for everyone.” The image of him fighting with other students on the matter flashed in Wei Wuxian’s head. He seemed so reserved, and yet Wei Wuxian would believe that he’d said these same words through gritted teeth in another circumstance.

“Well, I’m glad it’s true for you.” Wei Wuxian flashed a smile at Lan Wangji, and was amazed to see Lan Wangji’s face relax. It made him feel a whole host of things, and he was getting to the point where he couldn’t blame the wine. “We should dance,” he said before he could stop himself. Feelings were even more dangerous than alcohol.

Lan Wangji’s mouth opened slightly— he’d stopped just sort of blurting out a no, hadn’t he, and was now trying to find a polite way to say it. But Lan Wangji’s eyes focused on Wei Wuxian’s face a long moment, and then— “Okay.”

“Okay.” Wei Wuxian laughed a little, from relief, and maybe, maybe, the bit of nervousness beginning to curl around his throat. He was more Jiang Cheng than Yanli, he knew that. Worse, even— he was Wei Wuxian. He couldn’t hold romantic notions of what this meant. Even if it went perfectly, and Lan Wangji was not just pitying some sad sack who couldn’t handle his sister getting married, then what? They’d have a few dates, and then one of them would forget to call, and then it would end the way everything else did. 

Another slow song started as they made their way to the dance floor, and Wei Wuxian’s face felt warm. “We don’t have to…”

Lan Wangji put one hand on Wei Wuxian’s back, right at his shoulder blade like he was leading him in a waltz-- Wei Wuxian knew, because Yanli had practiced for her first dance with him plenty over the past several months. His touch was firm, his hand strong. Wei Wuxian put his own hand on Lan Wangji’s shoulder, half afraid he might swoon if he didn’t steady himself. “You know your way around this sort of thing, huh?” he said, trying to keep it light.

“I have had lessons.”

“Well, I’ve practiced quite a lot with Yanli, so I can give you a run for your money, I bet.” 

“Mn.” Lan Wangji took his free hand.

They only swayed in place like everyone else-- it wasn’t a waltz, or anything else Wei Wuxian could recognize-- but dancing with Lan Wangji felt like something with complicated steps, something Wei Wuxian had to focus immensely to do right or else he’d trip right over his own feet. Though if he did, Lan Wangji certainly felt strong enough to catch him. Mm, he needed to not think about that. Or how close they were, the stiff fabrics of their jackets pressed together, giving only the ghost of touch to the skin beneath. 

Lan Wangji’s eyes locked on Wei Wuxian. That was a dancing thing, Wei Wuxian knew. Yanli had been chastised many times by her instructor for looking down at her feet. Still, it didn’t help with anything he was feeling. He had to look back, to show he knew he was supposed to. Lan Wangji had such nice eyes. And… lips. Wei Wuxian bit down on his tongue. 

“Are you… alright?”

“Yeah. Definitely. You’re just a very good dancer.”

The slightest crease appeared between Lan Wangji’s eyebrows. “If this isn’t…”

“It is.” Wei Wuxian turned his hand to lace his fingers into Lan Wangji’s. It wasn’t proper dance form, but he needed to hold on. “I’m just being weird.”

Lan Wangji’s fingers curled around the back of Wei Wuxian’s slowly, but then the tightness of his grip matched Wei Wuxian’s. His thumb stroked the side of Wei Wuxian’s hand. Wei Wuxian both relaxed and felt every nerve in his body light up. Did Lan Wangji know what that did to him? Was it maybe on purpose? His face remained unreadable. Wei Wuxian stepped in to press a little closer, just to see what he’d do. Not shamelessly close, though plenty of other pairs were toeing that line, including Jin Guangshan, who unsurprisingly was not dancing with his wife.

Lan Wangji did not pull away. If anything, he pressed a little harder on Wei Wuxian’s back. Either Wei Wuxian was completely out of touch on the dating scene— entirely possible, given the last few years, or…

MianMian caught his eye from over the shoulder of her date across the floor. She made a pointed look at Lan Wangji, and then a very unsubtle thumbs up. Wei Wuxian rose his eyebrows in response, trying to convey a confidence he certainly didn’t have.

MianMian grimaced— was he that obvious? Or... oh no. She meant—

“Wuxian, who is this?”

Wei Wuxian turned to see a very irritable Jiang Cheng. He had, it seemed, also been drinking quite a lot to deal with their family. A half empty ball glass was clenched in his fist.

“Ah, Jiang Cheng,” Wei Wuxian said with his best anger-diffusing smile, pulling away from Lan Wangji. “This is Lan Wangji. His brother’s the one that Jin G—-“

“Yes, I know that,” Jiang Cheng snapped, even though he had asked. “What are you doing with him?”

“We are dancing,” Lan Wangji said, so clearly annoyed that Wei Wuxian had to wonder how he’d been inscrutable just moments before.

“It’s a party, A-Cheng, we’re supposed to have fun.” He threw an arm around his brother’s shoulders. “You can’t have fun without me, can you?”

Jiang Cheng grunted, but Wei Wuxian knew he needed attention. He took the drink from him and handed it to Lan Wangji. “Will you get rid of this? I'll be back, I promise. He just needs… me.”

Lan Wangji nodded, and Wei Wuxian herded Jiang Cheng to an empty table. “And here I thought you were going to yell at me for drinking.”

“I don’t like that guy.”

“Come on, they’re married now, we have to stop—“

“No, that guy.” Jiang Cheng made a flailing motion with one hand towards the dance floor. “He seems stuffy. Why would you hang out with him?”

“Well, you were busy.”

“And you didn’t think of rescuing your dear beloved brother? You left me to the wolves?” He picked up a glass from the table, realizing only just in time that it was both empty and not his. “Do you know how many times someone offered to set me up? You could have at least split their focus.”

“Please, half your mom’s family still can’t handle that I’m--”

“That doesn’t matter,” Jiang Cheng huffed. “You could have…” He shut his mouth very tight. Wei Wuxian sighed and hurried him to the bathroom, waiting outside a stall for him.

“I thought I’d be the one doing this,” he said, handing in a paper towel when Jiang Cheng had finished. Then again, Jiang Cheng always had the lower alcohol tolerance, and if he was feeling the same things Wei Wuxian felt, neither of them should really be surprised.

Jiang Cheng took the towel but didn’t rise from his spot on the bathroom floor. “I might have killed you if it was.”

“If you didn’t, your mom would have.” Wei Wuxian plopped himself on the floor next to Jiang Cheng, leaning against the stall door frame. “You okay?”

“Yeah.”

“We’re not losing her.”

“I know,” Jiang Cheng snapped, but he grabbed Wei Wuxian’s wrist and held it tight. “Zixuan really doesn’t deserve her.”

“Yeah, but neither do we.”

It sat in the air a long moment. Wei Wuxian wanted to say nothing would be different, they’d all been living on their own anyway, but it would be a lie. Yanli would always take care of them, but they couldn’t lean on her the same way. And if they could, it wouldn’t be right.

“Do you really like that guy?” Jiang Cheng asked, leaning his head against the toilet paper dispenser.

Wei Wuxian laughed. “I don’t think it matters. We’ve been gone a while, and I probably smell like shit now.” He put a hand on Jiang Cheng’s shoulder. “Besides, so what if I did? You think anyone would ever be dumb enough to stick with me? You’re the only one that stupid.”

Jiang Cheng snorted. “That’s for sure.” He rolled his head over to look at him. “But you’re the only one dumb enough to stay with me.”

“And I’m not getting any smarter. Just ask your mom.”

“Well. I’m not either.”

Wei Wuxian smiled, and then bit his lip. “If I ever was in a relationship, you know nothing would change, right?”

“Oh my god, you do like that guy! You’re going to abandon me for that guy, and do married brunches with Yanli while I sit at home!”

“How much did you drink?” Wei Wuxian laughed. “In what world would I suffer a meal with Zixuan without you?”

“A world where you have your own awful husband.”

“Never.” He squeezed Jiang Cheng’s shoulders. “I’ll always need you. Besides, god knows Yanli’s gonna have plenty of kids. Who’s gonna pay attention to them while we’re occupied with those awful husbands?”

Jiang Cheng’s face softened. “I’d have to be there for them.” He looked at Wei Wuxian with wet eyes. “You want to get back to your stuffy man?”

“He’s probably already gone.”

“Sorry.”

“It’s fine. The world is full of many handsome men, but only one Jiang Cheng.”

“Mm-- hey! Do you mean I’m not handsome?”

By the time they stumbled out of the bathroom, Wei Wuxian’s arm still around Jiang Cheng to steady him, the crowd had begun to thin. There was no sign of either Lan Wangji or his brother. It was probably for the better. He’d find some way to ruin it, and besides, he and Jiang Cheng were going to need each other more than they ever had. He’d choose Jiang Cheng over a potential boyfriend any day.

But later, when MianMian slipped a napkin with a phone number scrawled onto it into his hand as she said her goodbyes, whispering, “I’ve got your back,” he felt a spark of hope that maybe he wouldn’t have to choose.

#wangxian #wei wuxian #fic tag #title is from the whitney houston song #this was originally part of a much longer work but then it wasn't going anywhere SO #I made the call to edit this to stand on its own because it's what I wanted to write anyway

[breakingsomething]

october tenth - part four (end)

basic summary: while jack bonds with chase and someone new, anti tries to fight back his ever growing pain by making many, many bad decisions. tagging @beebmo for inspiring this idea!

trigger warnings: blood, murder mention, self harm, suicidal ideation, knives

aiden finally came home five days after their fight.

jack had just been making coffee, wearing only his flamingo shorts and a pair of mismatched socks. no one was here anyway, and he had a few videos prerecorded, so he didn't really have to do much of anything. might as well just do whatever. he let his head hit the kitchen sideboard, half falling asleep standing up as he waited for the coffee maker to finish.

when he sat up, aiden was standing next to the door.

"bloody mother of mary, aiden!" jack cried, jumping and accidentally slamming his elbow into the table. then he took a closer look at him. aiden looked… so tired. big bags under his eyes, curly hair greasy and skin pale. he was wearing an oversized purple hoodie that jack didn't recognize, and he was staring at the ground in front of him, not daring to look up.

"oh, shit, aiden," jack murmured, much softer. he wasn't sure what to do, nervously cracking his knuckles and rubbing the back of his neck. "i'm - i'm sorry. i'm so sorry. i shouldn't have hidden it from you, i shouldn't have tried to hide it, i should have -"

aiden cut him off. "save it," he mumbled, wrapping his arms around his shoulders. "it's cool. i don't wanna talk about it anymore."

jack nodded, his eyes suddenly burning. the coffee maker pinged, and he turned and busied himself with that, afraid that if he kept looking at aiden he'd start crying again. he'd been doing enough of that lately.

aiden was suddenly standing beside him. "i'd hug you," he joked. "but you're not wearing a shirt and it might be a bit weird."

jack cracked a small grin, and aiden just stared into the sink, neither one looking at the other. everything felt very odd between them for some reason. like in the few days they'd been apart, the distance between them had stretched for another thousand miles.

"so you're… aiden, you're gonna stay here, right?" jack asked tentatively, not wanting to set him off again. aiden's expression soured, his eyebrows narrowing, and his fingers dug into his sleeve.

"don't call me that." he almost spat, and jack set down his mug to properly look at him.

"call you… aid, that's your name. what else -"

"anti," he said, not glancing up from the sink. "call me anti."

they were silent for a moment. and for that moment, jack saw something in his friend that made his heart feel so much heavier than he could have imagined. something that he couldn't have explained if he tried. it was like the pain of losing something important to you. the pain of looking at something you love and knowing it's not going to be around much longer. and just the thought of that made jack's eyes well up with tears, and he turned away before he pulled his friend into a hug and never let go.

"ok," he said quietly. "ok."

-

nothing was the same.

despite staying in the same house as him, aiden was definitely avoiding jack. he barely saw him, and when he did, they almost never spoke. and when they did… jack couldn't bring himself to call his friend "anti." the name felt so… harsh. so painful. like aiden had just rejected everything that jack had ever made him, given him, those almost four years of friendship. was jack really that much of a terrible friend that aiden would just throw everything away?

apparently so. but soon, jack found something else to distract himself with - an unnamed number he recognized calling him up one morning while he was washing dishes. he'd raced into the living room to answer it upon hearing the default ringtone, but aiden was already there, holding it out to him without looking.

"it's the hat wearing one," he said nonchalantly, staring down at his laptop screen. jack bit his lip and took the phone, wondering if aiden was hoping he wouldn't answer, if he was supposed to put the phone down and tell aiden he was the only one who mattered. but his friend's expression gave nothing away, and jack uncertainly left the room and stood outside the door, answering the call.

"...chase?" he faltered. "that you?"

he heard a breath on the other end of the line. jack leaned against the wall, hitting his head again it gently.

"is this a butt dial call?" he tried to lighten the tension. "or one of the kids? hello, connor, louise, is that you?"

another second of silence. jack hesitated.

"if… if this is one of the kids…" he started. "can you tell your father i'm sorry i freaked him out, and i'm sorry i didn't tell him the whole truth straight away when i should have? i only made things worse for all of us, and i was stupid. will you tell him that? please?"

there was a small chuckle. "hey. it's just me," chase murmured. "just me. sorry to disappoint."

jack snorted, a smile appearing on his lips. "aw man, get off the line. put connor on the phone." relief filled him when chase laughed, a full, real laugh. then he sighed, biting his lip. "listen, chase… i -"

"can we talk irl?" chase interrupted. "i, uh, don't have a lot to do today and… i wanna get out the house anyway."

jack nodded, feeling dumb when he remembered chase couldn't see him. "yeah, sure, absolutely," he said, running a hand through his hair. ugh, he could feel how greasy it was. he had been wearing a hat for videos because he'd been too lazy to wash it. "let me take a shower first. then we can… costa?"

he heard chase exhale. "yeah, yeah. costa sounds good right now."

once he'd hung up, jack had to go through the living room to get to his own room. aiden barely looked up at him as he passed through, pausing hesitantly by the stairs. "aid - anti?" he questioned. "are you alright?"

aiden grunted, not taking his eyes off his laptop. jack waited for a second before speaking again. "i'm going out with chase." at this, aiden blinked, his expression changing for only a split second before he got it under control again. he didn't reply for a moment.

"good for you," he mumbled, and pulled his computer closer to him so it covered his face. jack sighed before going up the stairs to get ready.

once he'd showered and gotten changed, he took a moment to just look at himself in the mirror. he looked exhausted. he'd barely been sleeping lately, opting to cover the bags under his eyes in makeup so no fans would be concerned for him. his hair was getting too long, swooping almost in front of his eyes. he would have to get that cut soon. his lips were chapped and slightly bloody from how often he bit them, and his skin was blotchy from how much he'd been crying. he looked exhausted. he looked pathetic.

he tried again with aiden on the way out. "hey, man. i'm… you're gonna be ok here?"

aiden finally looked up at that, unamused. "yes, jack. i will be fine on my own." he monotoned, and jack winced. "go do your thing with jinx hat. i'll be perfectly fine, thanks for the concern."

jack swallowed and left without another word.

chase was waiting for him in costa, biting his knuckles and staring out the window. jack nearly lost all courage and turned round, but really… he had nothing left to lose at this point. besides, chase had seen him through the glass and had visibly brightened, sitting up and waving. despite himself, jack smiled as he went inside.

"hey," he said as he sat down across from him. chase looked tired too, but he managed a smile. "how have, uh… how've you been holding up?"

chase shrugged, spreading his hands out. "'bout as well as i can be," he said casually, spinning his phone round the table on its pop socket. "everything's been a bit… hectic, recently. i don't know. what about you?"

jack mimicked chase's shrug. "same for me, i guess." he hesitated. "look, i'm sorry about… the subway thing. that was a lot, and i'm sorry."

chase gave a shuddering breath. "oh, yeah, that was definitely a lot." he glanced up, tilting his head back slightly on his chair. "but i'm totally over it." he laughed. "actually, no, i'm very much not. i don't know why i said that."

jack nodded. "do you want me to try and explain?"

"oh, please do."

they got up and ordered (a green tea with a white chocolate and raspberry muffin for chase, a flat white coffee and chocolate chip cookie for jack), and talked quietly as they did so. well, this time jack mostly talked, chase listening. by the time they'd sat back down with their stuff, jack had pretty much filled him in on everything.

"holy crap," chase murmured. "that's… a lot. once again."

"are you alright?" jack asked. "i get that i, like, just blew your entire existence. if that makes any sense."

"give me a couple minutes to come to terms with this," chase said, sipping his drink. they were silent, both lost in their own heads.

"this is a prank," chase eventually concluded, turning to look jack right in the eyes. "right? where are the cameras or whatever, is this some kind of prank show that you're a part of?" he laughed without humor. "very funny, you really got me."

"chase, i swear -" jack started, but chase cut him off.

"i looked up that youtube channel you told me about," he said. "jacksepticeye? looked it up. it doesn't exist. shit's not real. god, you could have at least tried."

jack blinked in shock. "but it - it does!" he spluttered. he fumbled in his pocket for his phone. "here, i'll show -"

"i'm not a complete goddamn moron, jack," chase muttered, but then jack pulled up his channel which was, thankfully, still there, and chase's eyes widened.

"but i - i looked it up last night on my computer - there was nothing!" he stammered. he slumped back in his seat. "i swear, there was - i'm not lying!"

jack shifted in his seat, suddenly restless. "i don't know. i don't know, ok? maybe you spelled it wrong." and before chase could protest further, jack changed the subject. "anyway, fuck. i don't wanna think about all the technical improbabilities of this fucking world. i don't even know what i am to be able to create people."

chase fanned his face with his hands, breathing heavily. "fuck!" he said, a bit too loudly. "fuck, man." he suddenly stilled. "so does your friend hate me? aiden?"

jack paused before nodding slowly. "uh, at the moment, yes. but… maybe if you got to know each other, that could change?" he winced. "i don't know. that sounds dumb. but… what do you think?"

chase unwrapped his muffin, also nodding. "i mean, yeah. i'd be down. if you're certain he wouldn't kill me."

jack laughed, relaxing slightly. "he wouldn't kill you, man. he's just… he's a bit aggressive sometimes. he's got some antisocial tendencies. and he's, uh, a bit… doesn't like new people."

"yeah, i definitely got that," chase said, and they both laughed.

a few days passed by. chase and jack kept in touch, meeting up a few times to walk around town and talk. aiden continued to avoid talking to jack. and with the end of september came a burst of extreme cold so bad that school was briefly cancelled and everyone was to stay inside as much as possible.

"it's never this cold, even in england," jack joked to aiden, who was sitting at the kitchen table on his phone. he didn't even acknowledge jack had spoken.

suddenly, he'd had enough. "are you ever going to talk to me again?" he demanded. aiden made a face, and jack felt anger and hurt rising up in his chest. "please, aiden, anti, whatever, can you just -"

"hard to want to talk to you when you won't even respect my choice to change my name," aiden interrupted, and jack deflated. he blinked away the tears that rose up in his eyes.

"anti," he said finally. anti looked up, something in his eyes that jack didn't recognize. "anti. i'm sorry i've been such a douche. ok? i'm - what else do you want, man?"

anti didn't say anything. then he craned his neck to look at the ceiling, leaning back in his chair. "dunno," he mumbled. "to go back in time, i guess."

that wasn't something jack could do. he chewed the inside of his mouth and stayed quiet.

-

anti stared at the flats, biting his lip with frustration.

they'd fucking spelled the place. anywhere he tried to get in just shocked him, so badly he couldn't seem to push through. had it been the cat who'd done it, or something other powerful magician that the two of them knew? it didn't matter. he couldn't fucking get in.

he cursed red and the cat under his breath. they were smart, he could see that. and powerful. far too powerful. it might even end up that they could be a match for anti.

whatever. they couldn't stay in there forever. he'd get them one day. one day. and then they'd fucking pay.

-

chase called him that night in tears.

"chase - chase, calm, i can't understand what you're saying," jack said, pacing the kitchen with his phone to his ear. anti, on the couch in the other room, snorted loudly.

"she's k-kicking me out," chase sobbed, voice slightly slurred. jack could hear car horns in the background. "she says 'm a bad example for th'kids, says she's afraid i'll - i'll hurt -" he cried out, the connection fuzzing for a moment. "i wouldn't hurt them, jack!"

"hey, hey, i know you wouldn't," jack consoled, trying to stay calm. "chase, where are you?"

there was a rush of noise on the other end and then the call went dead.

"f- oh, for fuck's sake!" jack despaired. he went round the corner to the living room, looking in at anti. "dude, can you help me?"

anti yawned dramatically, stretching his arms above his head. "with what?" he asked slowly, knowing exactly what jack was going to ask.

"chase is - his wife kicked him out, apparently, he sounded drunk and upset, i need you to help me find him. you can track cell phone signals, right?" jack blurted. anti sighed, rolling his eyes.

"hmm, some days i can. other days i just… can't, you know?" anti said with a small smirk. jack balled his fists up and resisted the urge to scream.

"anti, for fuck's sake, i am not kidding around tonight," jack spat, practically shaking with silent rage. "can you help me or should i go out looking for him myself?"

anti blinked at jack's anger. he evidently hadn't been expecting jack to be so upset. "ok, yeah, i can track signals," he mumbled. he got to his feet, swaying slightly on the spot. "i'll - fuck, i guess i'll help if you want."

"thank you, anti," jack said softly. anti just made a noise and grabbed his jacket, going towards the door.

anti traced the signal all right, but the time they got to where it had been, chase was long gone. anti tried to find the signal again to locate where chase's phone was now, but in such a big city with so many people, everything got muddled up into one. they searched for hours, to no avail, and went home defeated.

"can't believe i wasted my evening on that fucker," anti announced as they walked back in. "fucking waste of time, waste of a good -"

"thanks anyway," jack interrupted before anti could go on a spiel. "you, uh, didn't have to help me, but thank you for doing that. even if we - yeah."

anti softened for just a moment, brown eyes warming, before glancing away from jack and stiffening again. "whatever," he mumbled, and said nothing more.

chase called him the next afternoon. "jack!" he said, sounding a lot more chipper than jack had expected him to. "jack, my friend, i have something awesome to tell you!"

jack furrowed his brow. "didn't your - man, are you ok? where were you last night?"

he could almost hear chase grinning. "stayed with my new friend henrik!" he said. "and i think you'll definitely want to meet him!"

jack yawned, rubbing the space between his eyes. "mmhmm, yeah. chase, do you have any idea how long me and anti spent searching for you last night?"

chase paused. "oh, shit. man, i'm - i'm sorry. i got… extremely drunk." he gave an embarrassed laugh. "really sorry. i meant to call again."

"yeah, it's cool," jack said, shaking his head. "i'm sorry about your wife, man, it's a shitty situation. why do you want me to meet your friend?"

"oh, you definitely will," chase said, and jack could hear someone shout something in the background. "i'm fucking hungover as all hell, dude, and i feel like absolute shit in every sense, but i think we should meet up. uh, maybe tomorrow, cause i think i might throw up sometime very soon. can we do that? i need something to take my mind off of, well, everything."

jack heard a crash from the other room, and anti cursing loudly. "uh, yeah, if you wanna. where?"

"i'm - i'm pretty broke, not gonna lie. henrik's pretty well off at the moment, but we decided to go cheap. you ok with mcdonalds?"

jack peeked into the living room. anti had dropped his glass of water, and it had smashed on the floor. he was on his hands and knees, attempting to pick up the pieces. "yeah, sounds cool. i gotta go, k?"

"yep!" chase said cheerfully. "see you at maybe twelve or so tomorrow?"

jack made a noise of affirmation and hung up, rushing into the living room. "anti, you ok?"

he didn't say anything, just continued trying to pick up the glass with his hands. jack sighed. "man, don't do that, you're gonna hurt yourself."

"don't give a shit," anti mumbled. he gave a small gasp and dropped a piece, grabbing at his wrist.

"aid - fuck's sake, get back." jack pushed anti's hands away and scooped up the glass with a dustpan. "how did you drop the glass, did you trip or something?"

anti made several odd noises. "hands are just really shaky lately," he said quietly, and when jack turned to look at him, there was blood slowly dripping down his arm.

"shit," jack groaned. he took the glass and dumped it in a bag before putting it in the outside bin. "i'll help -"

"i'm ok," anti insisted. he stood up, shaking out his hands. "i can deal with it myself."

"anti, wait," jack protested, and in a moment of desperation, grabbed anti's arm as he tried to bolt away to his room. anti gasped in pain and shoved jack off him, pushing him into the wall.

"fuck off, jay!" anti said angrily. he held his arm close to him - the arm he hadn't hurt with the glass, jack noticed. "seriously, mind your own!"

"anti, are you hurt?" jack frowned. anti stepped back onto the stairs, shaking.

"yeah, i just cut my bloody hand with a piece of fucking glass. you were right there." anti spat. "now i'm gonna go up to my room, if you don't mind."

jack couldn't even protest as anti glitched out of sight. somewhere above him, a door slammed.

-

oh, but it hurt.

not the cut on his hand. that was barely a scratch. but his body. oh, his body fucking burned. every inch of his body was constantly wracked with pain, like permanent pins and needles throughout his entire being. anti had never hurt like this all at once before.

and it was constant. constant. for nearly three weeks now, he had been like this; barely able to move half the time, his head throbbing and feeling like a thick soup. some days he physically could not move, no matter how much he tried. he wouldn't even be able to speak or cry out for jack, not that he would have even if he could. he became static at random times, his phone and laptop short circuited, he was constantly sick and depressed and so, so angry.

and he'd tried everything to fix it, everything. he'd drank a shitton of alcohol one night, resulting in a seizure that lasted almost a full minute. he'd went out running, thinking maybe the exercise would help, but that had somehow made it worse. he'd even tried causing himself voluntary pain, like that would help the rest of the pain dull, but it did nothing. everything hurt. everything hurt.

he was dying. that was the idea that had planted itself in his brain, and he couldn't shake it out. he was dying and it would only be a matter of time before he couldn't physically form at all, left just a glitching husk of nothingness, and then gone entirely. no one would notice but jack. no one would even notice but jack.

and maybe… his mind drifted to rhudy. rhudy who was so nice to him. rhudy who didn't lie to him or abandon him. anti almost wanted to go see him.

anti was going to die and it was jack's fault.

he's trying to kill you, was the delusion that he had convinced himself was truth. jack wanted him dead so he could spend all his time with chase, so that he could find the doctor and the hero and the magician, the ones who weren't broken and fucked up like anti was. he wanted anti gone. he wanted anti dead.

anti hugged himself and tried not to shake or throw up. he felt so fucking replused with himself, with everything.

he wanted to go see rhudy. he wanted to, but he didn't want jack asking questions, he didn't want to talk to jack at all. feeling sick, he sat up on his bed and let out a shuddering sigh. he wanted to go see rhudy.

maybe he didn't have to tell jack, he suddenly thought. it wasn't like he'd care anyway. as soon as that thought entered his mind, he stood right up, his head rushing from the movement. anti stumbled over to the window, yanking it open despite how his bandaged arms screamed in pain, and swung his legs over the windowsill. he was on the second floor, and it was maybe five meters or so to the ground - not enough to kill him. he pushed off the sill and glitched before hitting the grass, landing safely with a soft thump. for a second he doubled over, nearly screaming from the sudden pain, then straightened and began to jog unsteadily in the direction of the high street.

it was starting to get dark as he reached the store. he could see rhudy standing out the front, smoking a cigarette and scrolling through his phone. even from here, anti could see he had google open and was searching up "ikeas near me." he almost laughed as he walked over, swaying on his feet as his legs burned.

rhudy looked up as he got closer, a grin breaking across his face. "hey, anti, what are you doing here this time of day?" he asked warmly. then his smile faded as he saw the state anti was in. "hey man, you ok?"

anti didn't say a word. he just threw his arms around rhudy's neck, holding on tightly as his legs gave out beneath him.

"anti!" rhudy exclaimed. he helped anti walk over to the shop door, unlocking it with a key from his pocket. "shit, man, what's up?"

anti groaned, clinging to rhudy's shoulder. "you own this store?" he mumbled.

"uh, yeah, i do," he said, pushing the door open and flicking on the lights. "i might have forgot to mention. you're hurting, aren't you? i can't - usually i can figure out reasons, but not now, for some reason."

he helped anti sit down in a chair at the side of the room near a stack of vinyls. anti didn't usually spend a lot of time in the main section of the store, so while rhudy rushed to the back to get him some water, he took a minute to properly look around. the store looked a lot smaller in the busy hours when there were tons of people, but he could now see how big it actually was. everything was in rows and stacks, signs detailing what sections each thing was in hanging from the ceiling. the walls were a light green and windows stretched all the way round them, letting in the soft evening lights and showing off the streets outside. it made anti feel very exposed, and he curled in on himself, hugging his shoulders.

"here," rhudy said, handing him a plastic bottle and sitting down next to him. anti smile gratefully and took several gulps, his hands still trembling so badly he spilled some water down his front.

"are you ok, man?" rhudy asked quietly. "you're shaking, what happened?"

"nothing," anti murmured, attempting to screw the cap back on the bottle. after a moment of watching him struggle, rhudy took it and did it himself, letting out a small laugh as anti's face turned red and he mumbled a thanks under his breath.

"are you sure it was nothing?" rhudy said. he turned his head to look at anti properly, his brown eyes looking more orange in this lighting. "you can tell me if something's wrong, you know."

anti made a small noise. "can we play some music, or - or something?" he asked, staring down at his bouncing legs. his mind was racing, he needed some kind of fucking distraction.

rhudy nodded, jumping to his feet. "what do you want on? any preferences?" he stopped and made fingers guns at the air, hair falling in his face. "wait, don't tell me. you like…" he suddenly giggled. "you like queen?"

despite it all, a grin spread across anti's face. "wow, you can tell just by looking at me?" he joked, and rhudy laughed as he crossed the room, popping out a vinyl of queen's a night at the opera and holding it up for anti to see before putting it in its player. anti smiled even wider, a pang of something hurting in his chest.

the first few notes of bohemian rhapsody began to play, and rhudy danced round back to anti, clicking his fingers and spinning in circles.

"is this the real life?" he sang dramatically, and anti couldn't help but laugh at how ridiculous he looked and sounded. "or is this just fantasy? caught in a landslide, no escape from reality…"

he grabbed anti's hand and pulled him to his feet, twirling him round despite his noises of protest. "i'm just a poor boy, i need no sympathy!" he cried, and anti giggled.

"you're a dumbass!" he grinned, and rhudy raised an eyebrow.

"sing with me then, asshole. you can definitely sing." he challenged.

"is that the clairvoyance talking?" anti asked.

rhudy raised his chin. "let's find out!"

he grabbed anti's hand and pulled him close to his chest. "any way the wind blows doesn't really matter to me…"

anti joined in at the next part. "...to me!"

the two of them swayed on the spot, giggling like idiots as they tried to sing. and for some reason, anti suddenly didn't care if anyone looked through the window and saw them. he couldn't even feel the pain anymore. all that mattered was this. not jack, not chase. just this. this man, this song, this fucking moment.

he was sure they both looked ridiculous. rhudy was not the greatest singer, and really, neither was anti, but they both knew all the words and that was what mattered. "too late, my time has come," they sang in unison. "sends shivers down my spine, body's aching all the time…"

anti paused to take a drink, and rhudy continued dancing by himself, leaving a gap and holding his arms out like he was holding a partner. when anti laughed and joined him again, rhudy twirled him round and nearly dropped him. "mama, ooh!" he crooned. "i don't wanna die, sometimes i wish i'd never been born at all!"

rhudy grabbed his guitar from the table behind him and attempted to play it along with the song but it was too fast and he gave up, pretending to play it instead. as the song sped up, so did they, taking turns singing the galileo's and bursting into fits of laughter.

"so you think you can stone me and spit in my eye?" rhudy yelled, pulling anti closer to him and laughing breathlessly.

"so you think you can love me and leave me to die?" anti yelled after him, and at that point they gave up on singing and collapsed to the floor next to a record stand, wheezing and catching their breaths. and fuck, fuck, it was such a warm, joyful feeling, and for a moment anti didn't even feel any pain, just happiness. all he wanted was to feel like this forever. he wished there was a way he could feel like this forever and never have to stop.

rhudy turned to him, and suddenly their faces were very, very close. far too close. anti's smile faded slightly. this was normal, right? this was how normal people found happiness?

maybe he could feel like this forever.

anti had, obviously, never kissed anyone before. doing so felt… odd, to say the least. it didn't feel like much of anything except touching faces with someone else. but this had to be it, the solution to his problems. this had to be what would make him happy. he'd been so happy while they were dancing and talking… this had to be what those feelings were. it had to be.

and maybe it did feel nice to be so close to another person, and that was what mattered.

he moved his head back to take a breath. rhudy opened his eyes wide, blinking. this close, anti could see pale freckles dotted across rhudy's nose.

"oh," rhudy said softly.

"shit," anti said just as softly.

he kissed him again and it felt wrong and right and it distracted him from the pain and anti never wanted to stop.

the song had ended. the room was getting very dark, as the lights had long ago flickered out. he let out a breath, almost too overwhelmed to speak.

"i - i should close up," rhudy murmured against anti's mouth.

"do that," anti said. "i - i don't really have anywhere to go tonight."

that was a lie.

"you can stay at mine," rhudy said. "if you want."

anti still had time to back out.

"i do want."

-

the next afternoon, jack was getting ready to go out again.

he wasn't really surprised that anti had gone out. he was more surprised that he had snuck out the window. had he wanted to avoid jack that badly? actually, maybe he wasn't surprised. jack sighed as he attempted to fix his hair in the mirror despite how it kept standing straight up at the ends. whatever. it wasn't like he cared at this point.

chase texted him to let him know he and henrik were inside the mcdonalds. it was crowded, and two little kids slammed into jack's legs as they ran out. frowning, he tried to scan the crowd to see his friend through all the people. he'd said he'd gotten a table, so maybe - ah, there he was, up against the wall and waving cheerily at him despite his clearly tear splotched face, and there was someone with him, someone…

jack stopped walking right in the middle of all the people and didn't breathe.

"jack!" chase called, standing up and beckoning him over. jack almost couldn't move. the man next to chase looked confused as well, tapping his arm rapidly and saying something jack couldn't hear. he slowly walked over to their table, his legs feeling like jelly.

"jack, meet henrik!" chase beamed, gesturing towards the other man. the man who, like chase, like anti… looked exactly like himself.

"hey," jack murmured, sitting down tentatively across from the other two. henrik nodded, mouth hanging open slightly in shock.

"henrik, this is jack," chase said, twirling his hand around. they both bobbed their heads up and down, staring at each other.

"it is… nice to meet you?" henrik said uncertainly, and jack jolted at his german accent. holy shit, it was him. it was him. henrik stretched his hand across the table for jack to shake, and he took it. "henrik von schneeplestein, if you please."

"jack… mcloughlin," he said, forcing a smile. then he turned to chase. "chase, can i talk to you for a second?"

chase frowned. "uh, yeah, sure," he said, and jack stood and walked over to the other side of the room, grabbing chase's arm as he followed him.

"dude, what the fuck? we've left henrik alone over there!" chase hissed.

"chase, i - where did you find this guy? how do you know him?" jack asked.

chase yawned, scrubbing at his face. "met him at a bar, his wife has just kicked him out too. we bonded over it, apparently." he laughed. "we didn't recognize that we had the same face until later."

jack glanced over at the man, who was awkwardly scrolling through his phone at the table. his mind literally could not wrap around it.

"he's a practicing doctor," chase said, snapping him from his thoughts. "studying at the local university. is this guy… is this guy the doctor you told me about? the one you made to help aiden?"

"i think so," jack said. "this is - this is fucking weird." he turned to chase. "did you tell him?"

"what, that everything he knows is fake and he's not even real?" chase snorted, fixing the brim of his cap. "no, i didn't. i barely believe it myself, i'm still convinced this is a very elaborate prank. i'm only going along with this because it'll get a lot of views on my channel if we can make this funny enough."

jack rolled his eyes and began to go back to the table. "sure, whatever."

henrik smiled as they sat back down. "everything ok?" he asked, tapping his fingers on the table. as he looked at the two of them, jack noticed a few slight differences between himself and henrik and chase. henrik's hair was flatter with a small streak of grey, and his eyes were a much lighter blue. chase looked almost younger than jack, and there were a few freckles splattered across his face that jack was sure hadn't been there the last time he'd seen him. it was so surreal, knowing he had somehow brought them into existence. that if anti's theory was correct, they were pieces of his soul. the thought made him feel almost sick.

"yeah, it's fine," jack said. "do you guys, uh, wanna get food?"

"i would," henrik nodded. "then maybe we can talk about why you are my exact copy and chase did not think to tell me this."

-

this ceiling wasn't his. these walls weren't his. this room wasn't his.

anti blinked at the lights streaming through the windows for almost thirty seconds before he remembered.

shit. oh shit, oh shit, please say he hadn't done what he thought he had. he sat straight up, panic coursing through him, and - nope, this wasn't his bed. he was shirtless, and rhudy was laying beside him, asleep.

ok. ok. this was fine, anti reassured himself, fumbling for his clothes. this was fine. rhudy stirred slightly, making a small sound in his throat. anti felt sick.

because it wasn't fine. nothing was fine anymore. he fucking hated this, he hated it and he wasn't supposed to. he had been so happy last night - why hadn't this fixed him? why had he been having a good time until he kissed rhudy, why had he convinced himself this was what would help him? jesus fuck, anti was going to be sick. he was going to be sick.

he was going to have to kill him.

that was the only thought in his panic stricken brain. kill rhudy and get the fuck out of there, go back to jack, maybe kill him too if he still felt like it. anti frantically began getting dressed, looking for his knife in his hoodie pocket. it was still there, thankfully. he unfolded it grimly, tapping it against his hand as he breathed heavily, trying not to scream. bile rose in his throat as he looked down at the other man, thinking about slitting his throat.

he'd done it before. why couldn't he do it now, why was he suddenly scared? why had he formed an emotional attachment? he grabbed at his hair, his knife dangerously close to his face. this was fucking pathetic. he took several deep breaths, and lowered the knife to where rhudy was laying. right next to his throat.

why couldn't he do it? what the fuck was wrong with him?

he didn't have time to think about it, because rhudy's was awake and he was staring at anti, eyes wide, almost not daring to move.

"anti?" he said, shocked. "what are you -"

anti yelped and leaped off the bed, stumbling back into the wall as rhudy sat up, holding both hands up next to his head. "hey, hey!" he cried, and he looked terrified, and anti held up the knife in front of him, warning him not to move.

"d-d-don't -" anti stammered, but suddenly his voice wouldn't cooperate and neither would his body. he glitched wildly, yanking his hair and crying out through the pain ripping through him, almost collapsing from the agony that had come out of nowhere. after he'd collected himself, he managed to glance up, still holding onto his head. rhudy was just… looking. just looking. horrified. anti stared back, far too aware for how disgusting he looked, half formed and probably insane. this had been a mistake. this had always been a fucking mistake.

he glitched away and rhudy didn't move to stop him.

-

his face burned.

it wasn't just from the humiliation of what had just happened, either. it felt like an actual, genuine burn, like someone was dragging a lighter down his cheek. as he quickly darted down the streets, getting as far away from rhudy's place as possible, he swiped at his face with his sleeve, trying to figure out what it was. something wet - blood, he assumed, but his sleeve wasn't stained when he pulled away, and when he touched his face with his hand it came away clear, like water, like -

oh, oh. like tears. anti was crying.

he had never cried before. never. he gasped and scrubbed at his skin fiercely, ignoring the pain. why did it burn? jack had cried before, he never told him it burned so bad, oh, it hurt. he gritted his teeth and pushed through it. fuck, he couldn't go home in this state.

he decided to just go get food at the mcdonalds near the park. might as well. it was pretty crowded, which anti was fine with; no one would notice him in a crowd. no one, except… his mouth dropped open when he saw. surely not. surely not here.

chase, sitting at a table across the room, saw him first. he tapped jack's arm, and he turned around to see him, along with the other man who was next to him. three of them. last anti had checked, that was one too many. the other man wasn't the hero, wasn't the magician… he must have been the doctor, finally found. anti looked away from them, too overwhelmed with everything to even care.

once he'd ordered and calmed himself down, he casually wandered over to their table, slamming both hands down on the surface and grinning wickedly. "hey there, assholes," he said, delighting in how chase and the doctor jumped at his sudden movement. jack just sighed. anti tilted his head at the man next to chase. "doctor schneeplestein, i presume?"

"how do you -" the man started, and anti just laughed. he was fucking furious all of a sudden, and just this man's presence was making it worse. "who are you?"

anti pulled his signature move of turning his eyes black, smirking. "is it cliche to say your worst nightmare?"

"anti," jack interrupted, about to stand, but anti pushed him down again forcefully. that didn't stop him from trying, though, and he struggled against anti's hand. "stop this, man, please."

anti was about to say something else, probably a snappy comeback or something, when jack's brow furrowed and he looked concerned. "anti, what happened to your face?"

anti snorted. "what do you mean?"

jack shrugged anti off and stood, too close to anti's face. "man, there's a big - it looks like a long, thin, burn mark, anti, what did you do?"

"i didn't do anything!" he protested, but then jack held up his phone on the front camera and - oh. he did have a long, thin burn mark on his cheek, trailing down from his right eye. oh, shit.

anti took several steps back, not wanting to look. he glared at the three man, frantically trying to think of something else to say that would put him back in control.

"order 107!" called a woman behind the counter, and anti glanced at his receipt. that was him. as he went up to collect his order, jack scrambled over to talk to him.

"anti, anti," he said breathlessly. "fuck, are you alright? where did you, uh, go last night?"

anti laughed without humour. "you wouldn't believe me if i told you."

jack made a noise of resignation and shook his head. "ok, sure, be vague about it. listen, i'm… i'm going to talk more with chase and henrik, ok? i -"

"ooh, the doc has a first name?" anti said in a mocking tone. jack threw up his hands.

"jesus shit, anti, listen to me for once! they're going to be round at the house sometimes, and you're going to have to just deal with it, ok? i'm allowed to have other friends apart from you. and these guys… well, you know what the situation is with them. i just… i have to learn more about what i can do, i guess. and i want you to be with me." he tapped anti's shoulder gently, his expression softening. "you're my best friend, dude. you got that? i'm not going to replace you."

but he already was, and he didn't even realize it. anti was dying, and jack didn't know. would he care if anti told him?

jack bit his lip, obviously concerned about anti's lack of a response. "you wanna come sit with us?"

did he? not really. but there was a small part of him that thought, maybe… he should. he should go sit with them and apologize for being an asshole. he should talk with them and find out more about their lives. he should let jack slowly explain everything to them and become friends and tell jack how badly he was hurting and then he'd fix him. wouldn't he? he could just do that. anti was so close to just giving in and letting himself do that.

but once glance at the doctor and the father at the table, looking over at them with confused and worried expressions, was all that anti needed to confirm what he wanted to do.

"no, i don't." anti said firmly. and with that, he turned and left, taking his food and not once looking back.

-

true to jack's word, chase and henrik were round at the house several times in the next three days.

at this point, anti couldn't tell if anyone had told henrik about the whole being-created-by-jack thing, and he didn't care to find out. henrik and chase tried not to be pushy or in his way, which he was slightly grateful for, but just their presence in the house annoyed him. he ended up staying in his room all the time, watching stuff on netflix and hacking phone lines when he got bored. he could often hear talking through his door and would sometimes just sit and listen. it made his chest hurt to hear jack so happy when he was so fucking miserable.

one day he bumped into chase when he left his room to get some food from the kitchen.

"shit, sorry," chase said, holding up a hand apologetically. anti just glared at him until he backed off, grinning awkwardly. "uh, you alright, dude?"

anti was getting pretty sick of people asking if he was ok. "the fuck do you think?" he snarled, taking a step forward. chase flattened himself against the wall, hands in a pose of surrender.

"fuck, man, relax," he said, laughing nervously. "i'll get out of your way."

"you fucking better," anti spat, revelling in the fear in chase's eyes. "or i'll tear your goddamn throat out with my teeth."

chase nodded frantically. "ok, ok, cool, i got it," he babbled, eyes darting back and forth down the hall. anti laughed at how pathetic he looked. he knew he should back away and go back to his room. but suddenly, this just wasn't enough.

"you know, you fucking disgust me!" anti said cheerfully, and chase paled. "i honestly do not know why jack puts up with you. you're so… boring, you know?" he yawned exaggeratedly. "boring, and just plain depressing. you get me? you're genuinely such a misery to be around." he laughed, and chase made a terrified squeak that was like music to anti's ears.

he stepped back, giving chase the room to move even though he chose not to do so, still plastered against the wall. a grin cut through anti's face.

"you don't have many friends, do you, jinx hat?" anti said, still smiling. chase's hand touched his head self consciously. "i wouldn't imagine you did. not many people would miss someone so boring, would they?"

he bounced back to his room, leaving chase alone in the hallway.

-

"anti."

he sighed loudly upon hearing jack's voice, and didn't get up from his bed. "that's me."

he heard jack tap the door gently. "i, uh, have a surprise for you."

anti raised an eyebrow despite jack not being able to see. "yeah? and what's that?" 

"come and see!" jack said, excitement in his voice. "i think you're definitely gonna like this."

anti entertained the idea of ignoring him and going back to sleep. but he was, admittedly, slightly curious, and he was all prepared to be angry if it was a terrible surprise. jack grinned when anti opened the door, clapping his hands together once. "yes! come on, come to my recording room."

"are jinx and the doc here?" he asked suspiciously as they walked across the hall.

"nope! and you know, they have names." jack pushed open his recording room door, gesturing towards his computer. "go and see!"

anti stepped in, glancing around, but he couldn't see anything out of place. the only unusual thing was that jack's computer was on and loaded up to a game. anti frowned and stepped closer, staring at the screen.

"yeah, so you got the new five night's game. so what?" anti said, turning round confusedly. jack grinned.

"you know how when i was sick and you recorded that one video for me?" he said, spreading out his hands. "well… here's a series of your very own! happy early birthday!"

anti couldn't breathe for a second.

"you're… you're letting me…" he swallowed, suddenly feeling very small. "you're gonna let me play it… as you?"

jack laughed and looked down at the floor, rubbing his neck. "yeah, i am," he said. "i've been planning it basically since i heard it was coming out. i figured it'd be fun for you."

anti's breath hitched as he tried to gather words. "i - i, um… thank you, holy shit." he blinked rapidly. "fuck, i… after i've been such an asshole?"

"you're not an asshole," jack said quietly. "i - i've been a dick too, ok? and i feel like this is a… well, a good start."

anti turned back to the computer and watched the loading screen glitch. it was weird to think that he wasn't the one causing it.

"it came out yesterday, but i could only get it now," he heard jack say. he came to stand beside anti, putting a hand on his shoulder. "what do you think?"

anti ran his fingers through his hair, trying to think of how to respond. "i'd love to play it," he murmured. "fuck, thank you."

jack hesitated, then pulled him in for a hug. anti nearly burst into tears then and there, too scared to speak or move in case he did. he let jack hold him for a moment, then slowly wrapped his arms around his friend, resting his face against his shoulder.

"i'm sorry," jack whispered.

a pause.

"me too," anti whispered back.  

-

the game took about two and a half hours to complete. it was strangely terrifying, knowing that people were going to see this, to see him. but he tried his best to keep it cool. at several point he almost had to stop from how much pain his body was in, but he was sure it was fine. he filmed four episodes in all, changing shirts between each one so it wouldn't seem like he'd played the whole game in one day; which, now he thought about it, wouldn't have been that weird for jack. once he'd finished, he considered watching it back to see if he'd made any obvious mistakes in his imitation of jack, but there wouldn't be much he could do to change it now, so he didn't really care that much. he decided to take the liberty of sending the videos to robin himself and then went out to see jack, feeling happier than he had in a long time.

jack was in the kitchen, making popcorn. anti stood at the door for a minute, listening to the popping sounds, before jack noticed him and broke out in a grin. "hey! how was it, did you finish?"

he nodded, suddenly almost shy, looking down at the chair legs. "i sent the videos to robin," he said. "and, uh… thanks again."

"no problem, dude, i'm glad you liked it." the microwave beeped and jack took the bowl out, yelping at how hot it was. "ouch, fucking burning bastard. do you wanna watch a movie or something?"

anti gave a small nod. "if you want. any ideas?"

jack moved past him into the living room, eating the popcorn dry. "well, this movie came out on netflix today. the siege of jadotville. it's irish."

anti snorted. "just the name alone is putting me to sleep."

"did i mention it's irish?"

"irish, smirish, it sounds crap!"

the two of them laughed, and anti felt warm again.

-

the movie was boring, as anti had predicted. he barely stayed awake long enough to get half an hour in before drifting off on the arm of the couch, jack gently playing with his hair. when he woke, it was late afternoon, jack was gone, and a blanket had been draped over him. he sighed warmly, not wanting to move.

"aid - anti? you up?"

he glanced up to see jack coming into the room, looking worried. anti pushed himself to his elbows, yawning. "i am. what's the problem?"

jack raised his arms behind his head, blowing all the air out his cheeks. anti immediately recognized something was wrong and sat up fully, throwing the blanket off him. "jay? what is it? come on, man, spit it out."

jack took a deep breath and folded his hands. "you know how you sent the videos to robin?"

a thick feeling of dread rose up in anti's chest. "yeah?" he said quietly, almost afraid to hear.

jack hesitated before continuing. "the, uh, files got corrupted," he mumbled. "glitches everywhere. it's… unusable, i think. i'm sorry."

neither one of them said anything for a long moment.

"post it anyway," anti said eventually.

jack sighed and sat down next to him on the couch. "dude, i can't. the facecam footage looks terrible, it's always staticy and glitchy, and you can't even be heard at some points -"

"then edit that out!" anti yelled, leaping to his feet. jack got up again right after. "edit that out and post it, it's fine, you let me film that, jack! i've waited years for you to let me appear on the channel!"

jack flinched back, shaking his head. "anti -"

"no!" he screamed, grabbing at his hair. "no, no, that's not fair, it's not my fault!"

"i thought you had your glitching under control?" jack said worriedly, holding out his hands to try and calm anti down.

"i did, i did, i have for years!" the sound of static got even louder, and anti could feel himself slowly losing control again. "it's your fault, it's your fucking fault, it's your fault that i'm dying!"

jack just watched helplessly as anti screamed, clawing at himself and glitching so wildly he couldn't stay together. "anti, i -"

"i've tried everything!" he wailed, his whole body searing with pain as he tried to piece himself back. "i tried drinking, i tried exercising, i tried burning myself, i tried - fuck, i even tried sleeping with my only other friend, nothing works and it's your bloody fault!"

"anti!" jack cried, alarmed. "i -"

someone knocked at the door.

anti whipped round, eyes blazing. "and who's that?"

"well, uh, i think it's chase and henrik - we - we were gonna go out for a bit - anti, wait -"

"oh, come in!" anti called, in a perfect imitation of jack's voice. "door's open!"

the door opened, and anti could hear the two other men chattering as they came inside. jack visibly swallowed. "anti," he said, very softly. "anti, stop."

"jack!" anti heard henrik call in that fucking german accent. "where are we going, i have -"

they stopped dead in the door when they saw what was going on. "is… is this a bad time?" henrik asked tentatively.

"oh no, you're just in time!" anti said, almost hysterically. he grinned, his body stabilizing for just a second. "just in time!" 

another glitch ran through him, and he doubled over from the pain. chase and henrik turned to leave, but anti suddenly appeared in front of them, blocking their path. "oh, don't leave so soon!" he cried. "you'll miss all the fun!"

"anti, aiden, please stop!" jack sobbed, trying to grab anti's arm. he pushed him away, almost too forcefully, and jack slammed into the table behind him. "shit, stop it!" 

but anti's attention was on chase now. chase, who was holding henrik's hand and backing towards the door, shaking. "w-why are you doing this?" chase stammered. "please, dude, we never meant to hurt you!"

anti laughed without mirth, his hand on his pocket. "a bit late for that, jinx!" 

he made a sudden move, grabbing chase's neck in a burning rage and throwing him back into the wall. one of chase's legs shot to and kicked anti's knee, and he stumbled back, henrik attempting to help chase up so they could get out. anti straightened and lunged for henrik this time, wanting to kill him, to kill him, to -

and jack was yanking him back by his hood and trying to get him off -

and anti whirled round and lashed out -

and jack fell, and anti had a knife in his hands, when did he get a knife in his hands -

and jack was on the ground and anti had a knife pressed to his throat.

there was dead, dead silence.

"aiden?" jack said softly.

aiden could see the terror in his eyes.

then someone was pulling him off of him, shoving him to the floor. anti gasped, crying out as the contact sent shocks through his body. henrik, the doctor, standing in front of jack, holding - anti's knife was gone, slipped from his hands. henrik held it, looking so tired yet so fierce. in that moment, anti had to admit he was impressed by how unwavering he was.

"stop this." henrik said. he very deliberately closed the knife and tossed it behind him, where chase was slumped against the wall.

anti got the message and left.

-

three hours later he was on the ground in an alleyway with blood on his hands.

how many people he'd killed, he'd lost track of. so much blood on his hands. he stared at them, shaking so badly it hurt, the uneven ground wet from the earlier rain. he hugged himself, his vision blurring, tasting blood in his mouth.

he could never go home now. never. not after what he'd done, not after the way they'd looked at him.

and with that sudden stabbing realization, the tears that were threatening on the ends of anti's lashes finally fell. and unlike last time, he couldn't do anything to stop them. a great sob tore from his throat and he almost screamed as the water burned his cheeks, his shoulders shaking with pain and the force of his crying. his chest tightened and he could barely breathe. he curled into himself as he sobbed, almost hyperventilating, like a panic attack he couldn't come down from. he'd never felt this kind of distress before - usually his negative feelings manifested in the form of anger, but now it was everything. sadness, rage, fear, grief, all combined into one meltdown. 

he buried his face in his knees and didn't move for several hours. when he finally did, his face stung in the places his tears had rolled down. all the nearby streetlamps had gone out and he was left in darkness. as usual.

-

he was standing just outside the doors to the corner shop, staring into the distance with his hands in his pockets.

jack almost turned and left. almost. but he had to face this eventually, even if his neck still ached with bruises and stung from the small cut anti had given him. he would have to talk to him at some point.

anti turned as he got closer. he must have known jack was there. his expression was completely blank, though jack couldn't help but blach at anti's face as he grew nearer.

"what happened to your face?" were the first words out of his mouth as he got right next to anti. his face was red and blotchy, like he'd been crying, and there were reddish looking scars down his face liked he'd been burned. anti scowled, glancing away and not answering.

they stood in silence for a little while, both wondering what to say. then jack spoke again. "this is it, isn't it." he let out a shuddering breath. "for us."

"i don't know," anti said flatly. "i would believe so."

jack blinked rapidly, swallowing hard and clenching his fists so tightly his nails dug into his palm. "ok."

another pause. the wind blew through their hair, and jack noted how different he and anti really did look, in the end. maybe they had always been like this and jack had never noticed.

"you're not going to post the videos i made." anti said. "you're going to film something entirely different and try to forget i ever existed."

"no," jack said, even though that was almost entirely true.

"i'm not stupid, jack." anti said. "and i hope you know i won't make it easy for you."

jack's breath hitched, and a tear fell from his eye. "i know. you wouldn't be aiden mcloughlin if you did."

"you're not understanding me," anti said, turning his head away slightly. "not that you ever have."

jack closed his eyes. "i wish i could have. i'm sorry."

"no you're not."

"i am, of course i am. i love you."

he opened his eyes to see that anti had vanished.

he said it anyway. 

"happy birthday."

#jacksepticeye #boop writes #antisepticeye #chase brody #henrik von schneeplestein #arc zero: cruthú #rhudy o'donnell

[melonkooky]

god of the sun [jung hoseok]

requested

word count: 3875

genre: inca god (inti) x hoseok, college reader, modern day, mainly fluff with a bit of angst (for fictional, dramatic, story purposes, you know haha)

author’s note: so, i got this request and was kinda scared to write it because it meant i had to do some research. i have to mention that there are some details that aren’t accurate. i made some things up for the sake of the story, so don’t come at me with facts. i know some of the details aren’t true lol. i don’t know how i feel about this one, it’s a bit rushed and i haven’t gone through it yet for any mistakes and plot holes. but it’s done, so i’m posting it. please give this some love, or at least go through my masterlist for better works by me. thank you everyone!!!!

please do not copy my work. but please like and reblog it. thank you!!!!

when you arrive at your new school to pursue you degree in [whatever you wish to do in college], you honestly expected things to be as normal and boring as high school. by that, you meant that you would only have a few friends, be known as the smart and quiet girl, or the weird girl for that matter, and just chug along with whatever life threw at you.

furthermore, as much as you wanted to find love in this new chapter of life, you had also given up. you always had bad luck with it. your first boyfriend was in sixth grade, but of course, that was a long time ago and you and him were extremely long. many would hardly call it love. your second boyfriend came along when you were in eighth grade. you and him dated for a few months, and many talked about you, but then he moved on with another. and your third and last relationship involved a boy that you never thought you would have ended up with. he was the captain of the school’s soccer team. you were lucky to have caught his eyes because he was popular and you weren’t. you and him lasted almost a whole year. when you and him started your senior and final year of high school, you caught him cheating on you with a junior. and that’s when you realized that you just weren’t supposed to find love.

as sad as you were, you, in a sad kinda way, accepted it. so you didn’t pursue it. however that didn’t stop you from shopping.

when you started college, you did notice the abundance of rather good looking college boys. they all smiled brightly and laughed like their friends were either the funniest of comedians or stupidest of idiots. either way, it lightened the atmosphere of the hallways.

you always looked at them, whatever it was a habit or you were desperate. you hated to think of yourself as desperate, despised it even. but, it wasn’t necessarily wrong.

as you were walking to your first class of the day, glancing at every guy that passed you in the hallway, one in particular caught your eyes. you felt drawn to him immediately, and a weird magnetic pull guided you to him.

this guy was young, obviously. he looked new too. he seemed slightly confused as he turned around in semi circles, as if he was looking for something, or someone.

but it was the way his clear, tan colored skin seemed to glow, especially so when he walked into the beam of the sun that shone through a large window. he radiated heat and warmth, and seemed to sparkle. when his eyes met yours, you were sure that your heart stopped.

your breath hitched in your throat, your cheeks burned with such intensity, you were sure that even though this hot stranger was across the hallway, he could feel it. you glanced around, trying to play it off. anxiously, you rubbed the back of your neck and adjusted the straps of your backpack. you prayed that you had looked away in time, so that he wouldn’t notice that you had been practically staring at him.

much to your surprise, however when you had looked back in his direction, he was making his way over to you. he had long legs so he easily crossed the hallway in a matter of seconds.

the man flashed a warm, shy smile at you. “hey.” he greeted.

you smiled back, feeling a little relieved. he seemed nice at least.

“i’m jung hoseok.” he spoke, holding his hand out.

you glanced at it before hesitantly grasping it, giving it a light shake. you were shocked to find just how soft his skin was. and it was as warm as his smile.

hoseok let go first. “i’m new here.” he explained. “i’m actually lost.”

“which class were you looking for? maybe i can help.”

he immediately grinned. your insides, in response, immediately felt warm and tingly. you were already falling for this man. “i think it’s a math class. with mr.-“ he paused, thinking.

your eyes widened.

“mr. bang, or bong, or byun…”

“mr. bin?” you suggested.

the corners of your mouth immediately started to tug upward. you tried not to smile too much as you watched hoseok’s eyes lighten. he gasped and pointed at you. “yeah.” his cheeks mimicked the shade of red from a shirt a student nearby was wearing.

you blushed too. “i have that class too. we can go together.” you offered.

he nodded. “thank you.” he seemed relieved.

you turned and headed in the direction of mr. bin’s classroom, hoseok trailing along behind you. “so,” he began, “are you new here too?”

you nodded. “it’s my first year.”

“that’s reassuring.”

“it’s nerve-wracking, isn’t it?”

“it is.” he agreed, a nervous laugh escaping his pretty, thin lips.

your heart beat against your rib cage, almost pounding in your ears. something felt different with him, something odd. you had never felt this way around all the other guys and guy friends. sure, you were nervous sometimes and shy, but there was an unexplainable aura around this particular boy. jung hoseok seemed completely normal, like all the other college boys, and yet, you felt a pull to him.

you guided your new acquaintance to the class, laughing to something he said as you walked inside. you looked at the large board in the front of the classroom. the teacher, mr. bin, was sitting at a desk near the front, typing on his laptop. scribbled on the board were the words: “welcome, students! sit anywhere in the room.”

you met hoseok’s eyes before shrugging your shoulders. “where do you want to sit?”

he looked around. “how about by the window?”

you agreed with him and followed him over there. you slid into the seat next to him and began pulling out all your things. “i have a question.” you said to him, opening a notebook.

“hm?”

“are you, by chance, good at math?”

he shrugged, his head moving back and forth as he thought long and hard. “i mean, kinda.”

you dramatically sighed with relief. “thank god.” you said. “i’m terrible at math.”

hoseok chuckled. “then i’ll do my best to help you.”

——

[two weeks later]

you sighed tiredly. you had stayed up majority of the night trying to study for your math test. math was already your least favorite subject, not to mention you also weren’t very good at it. math was hard for you. you struggled with it a lot. and it probably didn’t help that you were a bit of a procrastinator, only for this class that it. you were thriving in all your other classes.

you walk into the classroom, rubbing your eyes with your fingers, trying to rub the sleep out of them. the question “what were you thinking?” bounced around your brain, like those logos for computers and tvs when they’re left idle.

hoseok looked up when he felt your presence as soon as you entered the classroom. he recognized the sound of your sigh, as well as your footsteps. he noticed the slight bags under your eyes. he grew worried.

as soon as you walked behind him, finding your desk to his left, he reached up to grab your hand. “are you okay?”

you nodded, leaning over from your seat to rest your head on his shoulder. “i stayed up all night studying.”

“i could have helped you. i said i would.” he recalled the first day.

you pouted. “i know. it’s just the fact that i decided to study last minute.” you sighed again. “catch me failing this class.”

hoseok shook his head. he wasn’t worried in the slightest, he was only worried about you. you looked dead, and he didn’t like that. with his hand still holding yours, he gently squeezed it. you were barely phased when you felt a bit of warmth come from his hand. what felt a bit odd was how that very same warmth seemed to carry through your veins and towards your chest. you hardly felt it, but when the warmth reached your heart, you felt more energized, your eyelids no longer felt heavy. you lifted your head up, confused, and looked at your friend.

he had busied himself with his notebook, turning the pages with his free hand and looking at his notes. when he met your eyes, he seemed as confused as you. “what?”

you shook your head. “n-nothing.”

----

for the next few hours, you couldn’t stop thinking about hoseok. for the past two weeks, things had been changing. you always felt so warm around him and happy. he made you happy. hoseok made you feel comfortable.

while you had gotten used to it, you still couldn’t explain why you hated being apart from you. sure, you had a crush on him, but there was something about being away from him. it felt like their was an invisible string or a physical wave that tugged on you. and every time it tugged or pushed you, hoseok flashed in your mind. you were often cold when you weren’t around him, and you felt incomplete. you couldn’t understand why you felt this way. it was all strange and new.

suddenly, you felt a burst of warmth and happiness, and suddenly a pair of hands covered your eyes. “guess who?”

you grinned. “hm. i don’t have a clue.”

hoseok laughed and pulled away. it was bright around you again. you turned to see hoseok pulling the chair next to you out. he plopped down, practically tossing his backpack onto the ground. what was he excited about?

“what?” you asked, a nervous laugh leaving your lips.

there you were, feeling complete, whole, warm, happy, only around him you felt this way. this particular way.

your best friend was staring at you as if you were the sun, the most beautiful thing ever to exist. you blushed very deeply, feeling butterflies in your stomach. “hoseok.” you whined.

“i’m sorry.” he laughed too, then looked away.

“have you come here to bother me or to brag about your 100%?” you questioned him, a teasing tone in your voice.

“ah, don’t be so upset about it. i’ll help you study and then maybe mr. bin will let you retake the test.”

you poked your chin up. “i’ve come to accept my 71%. it’s a lot better than i expected.”

“alright, fine.” he said, leaning back in his chair, pushing away from the table. “anyway, what i really came here for was to ask if you wanted to go on a date?”

you almost choked on your own spit. your eyes widened, and you felt your muscles tense. “like,” you began, swallowing the nervous lump in your throat, “a friendly date?” you slowly turned around to look at him.

a look of pain flashed in hoseok’s eyes, but too quick for you to have seen. he put on a smile. “yeah, what else would it be?”

now it was your turn to feel hurt. there couldn’t possibly be a chance that he liked you as much as you liked him, the way you liked him. “oh, but, i would love to go on a friendly date.”

“great. after your next class?” he asked. hoseok didn’t have anymore classes for the day.”

you nodded.

“good, i’ll wait until then.” then he stood up, swung his bag over his shoulder and waved you goodbye. you returned a smile, but felt a small pang in your heart, a small crack. you were in love with him, and it seemed that he didn’t love you back.

----

you didn’t even have time to take a breath after your class ended. hoseok was already at your side, scaring you. of course, he found that amusing.

“jung hoseok!”

he grinned. “sorry.” he finished laughing. “are you ready?”

you nodded. “but where are we going?”

he held out his arm, to which you took, as if he was escorting you to a royal dance. “it’s a surprise.”

you rolled your eyes. “you’re always full of surprises.”

he laughed fondly, “you always say that.”

what? confused, you quirked an eyebrow up. you were pretty sure you’ve never said that to him before. what did he mean?

hoseok noticed your suddenly silence, and felt you slowing down. he looked at you. “nevermind.” he hurriedly replied.

“okay.” you hesitantly continued.

as you followed him to his car, you thought to yourself. you hardly knew anything about hoseok. he got distant or avoided any questions you asked about, whether it was regarding his past or family. his answers were often vague like, “they’re...around.”

he already knew a lot about him, and you hardly knew anything about him.

the drive was quite long, but it was beautiful. hoseok drove on a road with a bunch of trees on either side, flashes of sun shone through the leaves. it was a beautiful trip. but what was shocking was when he pulled up to a trail.

hoseok helped you out of the car, gently holding your hand. you were excited for what the purpose of this date was, or what he was surprising you with. of course, it was hard to guess because of the surroundings.

after locking his car, hoseok did not let go of your hand, not that you were bothered by it. you couldn’t help but wonder, what did hoseok feel when he was with you? he was often giving mixed signals. but most of the time, they were friendly signals, or platonic signals. it was hard to tell where he was at with you. and you were growing impatient.

you followed hoseok along the trail, laughing as you stumbled over a rock and fell into his side.

“careful.” he warned, a fond smile on his face.

he continued up the path, holding tightly onto your hand. the feeling of anticipation grew more and more strong as time went on. but so was you exhaustion. you weren’t the fittest of human beings.

finally, the sound of a steady stream flowed into your ears. and it wasn’t long before you walked into a clearing. it was surrounded by trees, but in the middle of the clearing was the stream of water you had been hearing. the water was clear and beautiful, and reflected the sunlight that casted down on it.

hoseok watched your reaction. you, of course, looked even more beautiful than the actual place.

after gawking at the scenery for a bit, you hurried back over to hoseok. “but why did you bring me here?”

hoseok suddenly seemed nervous. he hadn’t forgotten the purpose of this, but he also had buried it deep into his brain. as much as he had done this before, he was always nervous.

“i have to show you something.”

your smiled dropped. hoseok, suddenly, looked grim, hesitant, nervous.

you followed him over to a patch of grass. it was dead, and you could see old flower stems, withered and wrinkled. “hoseok, it’s just a dead patch of grass.”

he squatted down, tugging on your hand. you copied him, and kept close.

“just, please.” he begged.

you grew worried. “hoseok, what’s the matter?”

“promise me.” he spoke barely above a whisper. “promise me that you won’t scream, or run away, or leave me behind, or forget about me.”

you felt your eyes grow glasser. you had more love for this boy than you could ever imagine. “hoseok,” you hesitantly released his hand in order to touch his cheek. “i would never.”

then, he turned back to the grass and flower stems. you watched carefully as he brought his hands down, hovering over the grass, and closed his eyes. you were confused by his actions, but completely bewildered when there was a orange-yellow glow. the light came from his hands, followed by a burst of warmth. you watched with wide eyes as the yellow transitioned to green, and the flower stems grew stronger and sprouted their flowers again. your jaw dropped. you couldn’t belive it.

hoseok looked at you, his lips forming a smile. “you always reacted like that.”

your head snapped towards his direction. “what?”

then his smiled dropped, and he sighed. “i guess i should explain.”

“yeah, obviously.”

“i know it’s hard to believe this, but i’m a god.”

your eyes narrowed, lips forming an o shape.

“specifically, a sun god. my name is actually inti, but i go by other names as generations come and go, as time moves on. this generation, i happened to choose jung hoseok.”

you were still shocked, baffled to the point where you couldn’t move or speak. hoseok, or inti, continued. “this is going to sound even more crazy, but y/n, we are literally destined, fated to be together. you are my soulmate, as i am yours.”

“a- but- hose-” you tried to get out.

hoseok grabbed your hands, calming you down. “i know. it all is crazy and i know i’m dumping this onto you so suddenly, but i couldn’t wait any longer. since i first came into existence, there was a girl. many generations ago, a girl who looked just like you do was my wife. she was my moon, my love, my soulmate, but you weren’t immortal. you were just like the humans were, and i am cursed to watch you die, over and over again. a few generations after that, i came across another girl, one who looked just like her, and she acted just as she did. and i fell in love again.” he sighed. “i made it my purpose to find her every single lifetime, so find that same person, to feel complete once again.”

you felt tears in your eyes. “ho-hoseok.”

he smiled, a tear slipping from his eye. “you feel it, don’t you? the pull. we’re literally drawn towards each other. some magic that pulls us together.”

you did feel that, in fact. it was something that you had felt since the very first day when hoseok stumbled into your life. you didn’t want to think much about it. you assumed it was because you were in love with him so you were being delusional. turned out, that was not the case.

realizing that you hadn’t moved or said a word since hoseok had spoken, you nodded. you were shaking slightly, still in shock, but you managed to keep your head up and nod. “yes.”

hoseok grinned, face and posture full of relief. his grip on your hands loosened. he was no longer afraid that you would slip away, run out of his life. he would be heartbroken for many years, until he was able to find the reincarnation of the love of his life again.

“i’m going to need lots of time, hoseok.”

his bright aura dimmed.

you smiled encouragingly. “just to wrap my head around everything. it’s a lot to take in. but don’t worry.” you pulled him closer, laughing slightly as you felt your nose begin to run as more tears flooded your eyes. “i won’t leave.”

hoseok released a heavy breath. “i swear, every hundred years, my love for you only grows stronger.”

you blushed. “really?”

you felt special, you weren’t going to lie to yourself. you were destined to be in his life. in anything, you were more shocked that you were a reincarnation of a goddess, another being a long, long, long time ago. you kept coming back, and each time, hoseok, inti, found you. it was meant to be. you couldn’t help but think of your past selves, the ones before you, how you found hoseok and fell in love with him, and spent the rest of your life with him.

“hoseok,” you whispered, “does it hurt when i pass away, and you’re left alone again?”

he shrugged. “it does hurt, and it’s sad to witness, but i know that i’ll just see you’re beautiful face again in a few decades, and that’s what keeps me going.”

“that’s kind of romantic.”

he smiled at you, eyes gently and full of love. “you’ve said that before, many, many years ago.”

“because it’s true.”

he nodded. all hoseok could think of in that moment was that he was once again complete and in love.

----

[many weeks later]

you groaned tiredly, rolling over onto your other side. your body felt heavy, and you were content at how warm you were. you felt happy, warm, and all things positive and right. and just as you were slipping into another nap, an arm wrapped itself around your waist and stomach, pulling you onto your back. a second later, a pair of lips touched the corners of your own. a quiet groan echoed from your throat as you tried to pull away. “hoseok.”

his laugh was like music. “wake up.” he said.

“i don’t want to.”

“but we’ve already napped twice. it’s already late and we haven’t done anything.”

“hoseok, we don’t have to be doing something all the time.” you mumbled, prying open your eyes. “sometimes it’s best to just sit back and relax with your true love.”

he blushed at your words. as a response, he nudged his fluffy head underneath your chin, earning a laugh from you. his hair was tickling your neck. “hey!”

he grinned, cuddling closer to you. after torturing and tickling you, making you laugh, he pulled his head up, pressing a kiss to your cheek. you smiled and returned it. “i’ve been wondering.” you suddenly said, breaking the comfortable silence.

“what were traditions like back then?”

hoseok’s eyebrows knitted together with confusion. “what do you mean?”

“like in your time, the time of the incas. did people do sacrifices? or prayed to you? were their celebrations in your name.”

“you could just look all this up on the internet, you know.”

“i could, but i want to hear it from you. for all i know, the entire internet made shit up and is lying about you, or saying ‘facts’ that aren’t actually true.”

hoseok thought to himself, you could see it in his facial expression. “there’s not much to say, actually. but there’s actually a holiday that still celebrates me, to this day.”

your eyes widened. “really?”

he nodded. “this year it’s in june. the ‘celebration of the sun’.” he sighed, quite sadly. “although anything that is related to the inca is slowly dwindling and fading out. as time passes, it get lonelier and sadder. i don’t see any of my relatives, or fellow gods and goddesses as much anymore. we’re more focused on blending in, you know? making sure no one recognizes us, making sure we stay out of sight, not be noticeable, things like that.”

in a comforting manner, you gently pressed a kiss to his lips, rubbing his shoulder slightly. “that’s kinda sad, hoseok.”

he shrugged, completely wiping his weary expression from his face. “it’s not a big deal. it gets easier.” then he smiled. hoseok’s eyes were bright, and twinkled with love. “besides, i get to see you. i get to look for you, and fall in love with you all over again.”

you blushed. “a true love story.”

he kissed your lips once more. “my only love story.”

#bts #bangtan #bangtan sonyeondan #bts jung hoseok #bts jhope #bts hoseok #jung hoseok #jhope #bts one shot #bts imagine #bts scenario #hoseok one shot #jhope one shot #kpop #bts fluff #bts au #bts angst

[tastes-like-ciel]

a pink friend

Yusaku has never bought anyone a present in his entire sixteen years of life. 

Mostly because it's tedious. Mostly because it requires the arcane knowledge of knowing how to properly people and that requires several blood sacrifices and, you know, effort and Yusaku only has so much energy to spare. None of which he’s willing to expend to ritual sacrificing outside of a duel. 

However, Ai has been the literal worst since the very moment the time shifted and it transitioned from November into December. Like an operating system that’s been infected with a particularly nasty virus that only allows the cheesiest of carols to play uninterrupted through its computer speakers, suddenly Ai was hell-bent on stuffing Yusaku’s dreary flat --and life-- with holiday cheer. Decorative lights, mistletoe, even a tiny little plastic Christmas tree that’s essentially a cheap paperweight set on his desk, etc. It all comes out of nowhere. He didn’t even think Ignis celebrated human holidays. 

“Oh, come on, Grinch-sama, lighten up a little.” Ai had said with the typical pout he makes when Yusaku is being “too grumpy” for his liking. “This is something special for humans, isn’t it?” 

Is it? Yusaku never could answer that because he doesn’t know. His experience with holidays of any kind is next to nothing. He’s never participated in any of them at any point in his life. There’s been no reason to and as previously stated, Yusaku doesn’t like expending effort into something that isn’t necessary.

But Ai being Ai wouldn’t let this go and eventually, the subject of couples came up. Couples and gifts and the meanings behind both.

Which leads Yusaku to his current predicament of meeting up with Ryoken beside Stardust Road with, what he’s been told, is a lifesized plushie of a fictional axolotl from a popular series Yusaku isn’t that familiar with. It’s very pink and rather derpy looking, but Yusaku couldn’t help himself when he saw it innocently sitting on the shelf.

“I’m not good with holiday stuff...but here.” Yusaku cuts right to the heart of the matter and awkwardly holds the pink creature he’s carrying out and bounces it within his hands a bit, urging Ryoken to take it. “It’s a gift...for you.”

Ryoken blinks, for once looking quite bewildered. “...thank...you?”

“Mm.” Yusaku just hums, satisfaction filling his chest.

Ryoken hesitantly takes the plush from Yusaku’s hands and stares at it, expression very different from anything Yusaku is used to seeing. He stares down at the pink axolotl --Wooper, if memory serves-- with a look akin to someone ready to melt into a puddle of goo and it stares right back up at him, derpy smile unwavering and beady eyes watching him like it can see into his soul. And it probably can. Yusaku wouldn’t be surprised.

Ryoken opens his mouth, hesitates, and speaks like what he’s saying isn’t what he wanted to say at all. It’s surprisingly awkward, but Yusaku doesn’t hate it.

“Why a...plush?”

Why indeed... Well, it’s really not that deep of a reason. Ai simply nagged him, saying real couples exchanged gifts during the holidays and that Yusaku should make the first move if Ryoken wouldn’t. It doesn’t have to be something grand, Ai insisted and for once, Yusaku didn’t have any objections. Despite Ryoken’s general stone-faced disposition and fierce reputation within the network, he could be amazingly shy when it came to relationships. But picking a gift for someone like that, for someone who put about as much stock into material possessions as Yusaku himself does, was hard. It took him a long time to settle on something, but when he did...well. 

Yusaku pats the top of the pink Wooper’s head and answers honestly. 

“It reminds me of you.”

“Excuse me.”

Yusaku fingers the creature's antennae things --whatever they’re called; he certainly doesn’t know-- and then points out how the plush’s color and Ryoken’s favourite pink shirt match. As far as he’s concerned, they share key features. Not the face, of course, and the thing really is very silly looking, but Ryoken likes pink, doesn't he?

“It reminds me of you.” he repeats, causing Ryoken to twist his lips into something mimicking a pout. “Plus, it’s pink. I thought you liked pink?”

Ryoken’s gaze shifts from the plush to Yusaku’s face and then a bit higher. After a moment, he huffs and returns to staring at the pink creature. He looks somewhat less like a man about to hide his face out of embarrassment and more accepting of the gift he’s been given.

“I do.”

Yusaku’s eyebrows knit and he folds his hands over Ryoken’s, a determined glint in his eyes. “It reminds me of you. Don’t throw it away.”

“I won’t. You have my word.” And Yusaku relaxes. “Still...”

Here, he grumbles to himself, almost petulantly.

“I do not look like a Wooper...”

#Ryoken is a shiny Wooper #Datastormshipping #VRAINS #Sery writes a thing #i haven't been providing fic content and i felt bad and a talk with a friend had me like #yea gotta write this #you're welcome also im in Pokemon hell