#i wonder if i can still found a secondhand somewhere

[ittomo]

ᴘᴇʀғᴇᴄᴛ ᴛɪᴍɪɴɢ

▸ character(s) : miya a.

▸ summary : you call atsumu at a really bad time, or so he thinks

▸ warnings : NSFW / MDNI, dom!gn!reader, phone sex, degradation+praise, secondhand embarrassment, (mentioned) daddy kink, edging+overstimulation, choking

▸ notes : this is a repost from my old blog !

you must have had the world’s worst timing. that was the only explanation for the situation you got him into, and it had a small part of him wondered if he could still play volleyball if he jumped out of the window in his hotel room.

“‘tsumu! he-“ you cut yourself off and atsumu mentally cursed himself for his blunder. the, uh, video that he was watching was still playing loud and clear for you to hear through his laptop’s speakers, and he was completely frozen, hand still down his pants—despite his plan to press pause—with the other holding his phone up to his ear. he prayed, begged whatever gods that may be listening in that you couldn’t hear what was playing, no matter how impossible that was. “did i call at a bad time?” he cursed himself for answering the call first.

despite the humor evident in your voice, he felt his face go hot and knew that the warmth was quickly spreading down his chest. “n-no, just watchin’ a movie.” he knew the lie was bad—awful, actually—but he wanted to maintain any dignity he had left, and it was only half a second later when he finally came to his senses and paused it.

“sure,” you said it with such a knowing tone that it made atsumu feel lightheaded. at least it seemed like you were letting it go. “anyways, i called to let you know that i’ll be there for the game tomorrow, but i’ll let you go back to your movie.” you snickered to yourself. he was never living this down.

“is- is that all?” again, atsumu found himself praying to any and every deity he could think of.

“just about,” the small pause you took felt like an eternity, “i’m glad i called now, though.” 

and all atsumu could do was squeak out a quiet, “why?”

“cause now i know what the great miya atsumu gets up to in the dead of night.” he was fucked. completely and totally fucked. you weren’t letting it go, and at this rate atsumu was starting to worry that death by embarrassment was possible. “because the only movies that i’ve ever heard of where someone’s screaming ‘harder, daddy, harder’ were porn,” and of course you had to make your voice sound all breathy and fucked out, because you’re atsumu’s biggest fucking nightmare apparently.

he felt his whole body shudder, and tried to control his breathing as he held on tight to the very base of his cock. if it weren’t for whatever that was, atsumu was sure that he could’ve dealt with the consequences, but right now? right now he wanted to bury his head in the sand and pretend none of this ever happened. but he would never be able to do that because you had to go and do an impression. and you moaned it. 

“‘tsumu?” and of course you had to use that nickname, “hey, i was just messing with you.” he knew that, but the only thing he can think about is the way you sounded before. so moved his hand, reasoning with himself that it was just to alleviate pressure, that there was no way he could carry on with the conversation if his dick was practically throbbing in his hand. “c’mon, i didn’t mean to offend you or anything. i swear i’ll make it up to you if i did.”

“no,” he managed, “’s fine.” but his words are ever so slightly slurred and his voice just a bit too light.

“are you still going at it?” you feigned shock, “you are, aren’t you?” and just as you said that, his breath hitched with a quiet whine. “oh, you dirty dog, ‘tsumu.”

and for whatever reason, that’s what did him in. somewhere, up in that empty head of his, something snapped, and he moaned. there wasn’t even enough time for him to process what had happened before you kept talking, like it was totally normal for the both of you.

“was that good for you? me calling you names?” he whined. “can’t believe you’re so filthy, baby, getting off to me being mean.” for a brief moment he thought he heard fabric rustling from your end, but quickly shut that thought down when it sent a bolt of what felt like electricity down his spine. 

“y-yeah, please.” his hand is still loosely wrapped around his cock, trying to keep a steady pace even when his hips keep stuttering.

“why don’t you tell me what you want me to do to you, then?” he could tell that you weren’t quite sure what you were meant to do, that this was new territory, and a small part of him was glad that he wasn’t alone in that.

it took yet another slow, shuddering breath for him to piece himself together enough to form an answer for you, no matter how shaky it was, “want- want ya to be rough ’n make me cry.” that time he was sure that he heard the rustling of your clothes, there was no mistaking it, and the thought alone had him letting out a desperate, frustrated noise.

“you want me that bad, hm?” again, he nodded, but you moved on, “then touch yourself. get off to me talking to you like the perfect little slut you are.”

oh.

a gasp caught in his throat.

oh, fuck.

warmth, burning hot like fiery coals, spread across his body. it made his head feel light, like he wasn’t quite there. not in the way he was before, anyways.

and his hips jerked involuntarily, forcing a moan out of him. and they jerked again and again and again. it was clumsy, but the uneven stuttering of his hips and the loose circle that his hand formed felt far too good to be true.

“i bet you look so good right now, ‘tsumu, fuck.” you moaned. you honest-to-god moaned, and atsumu wasn’t sure what to do with himself. the shuffling from your end, the quiet moan you let out—everything, down to the words you were saying, was too much, and he could tell that he was going to come and soon.

“please, god, please, can i come?” he was babbling, saying anything that came to mind, “need t’come so bad, ple-ease.” his head turned to the side, eyes shut tightly as his stomach tightened and warmth curled its way around him. he just needed one last—

“no.”

he sucked in a sharp breath, his hips coming to a stop mid-thrust, and his eyes snapped open. he was right there, right at that perfect edge. another wave of heat landed hard in his gut, and the sound he let out was something akin to a sob. 

“atta boy,” you praised in a low voice, “didn’t think you’d actually stop.” the praise went straight to his cock, and for a brief moment he was tempted to fuck into his fist again. he thought better of it, not wanting to risk any punishment.

god, which wires got crossed for that reaction?

“p-please-“

atsumu’s whole body felt sensitive, like every nerve was firing off all at once, and too hot. his hand twitched around his cock, the sudden tightness punching a breath out of him. and he knew that if you left him there for just a bit longer, he’d be close to tears.

his head was—well, it wasn’t in much better condition. it wasn’t quite empty, per se, but everything was full of you. it all felt hazy and soft around the edges, like he was underwater. and all he could focus on was the quiet sound of your own labored breathing and his shaking hand.

“where’s your phone, baby?” it took him a moment to realize that he was still holding it up.

“’s in ma hand,” he sounded so breathless—so gone.

“good, put it down next to you and leave it on speaker.”

he listened without question, placing his phone on the pillow next to him.

“i want you to bring a hand up to your throat,” you gave him a moment to comply, seemingly understanding how hazy his mind felt. but when his hand finally managed to make its way to his throat, it felt right, comfortable, in a way he couldn’t explain. “make sure that you only press down on the sides, okay? can’t have our star player getting hurt, can we?”

he shook his head, letting himself fall into the feeling of his hand and your voice washing over him. if he knew it would’ve felt this good, he would have called you for something like this a long time ago.

“you think you can fuck your fist for me, baby?” your voice was saccharine, but atsumu focused on how out of breath you sounded, how rough it made your voice.

he gave an experimental roll of his hips, letting out a whine. his nerves already felt frayed, strung out from the sudden stop before, so the first thrust felt like torture. but as he kept going—

“o-oh, god,” he gasped, “i-i wanna come, ple-please, ’s- ’s too much— i—“ he was just babbling, his words quickly devolving into incoherent begging just as quickly as they started. in the back of his mind, he knew that he was being loud, but he couldn’t think hard enough to quiet himself down, nor did he want to.

“you gonna come, ‘tsumu? gonna come for me?” the soft moan you let out had him arching his back and reciting your name like a prayer—or rather, what you assumed to be your name and whatever other babbling went along with it. “bet you’d look so pretty too, just like the cute little slut you are.“

he let out a choked groan, coming into his fist and his whole body going taut. his ears were ringing and his vision completely white, but past that he could hear your panting, the way you were repeating his name over and over. ”please, wanna hear you.“ and he rolled his hips again, the oversensitivity making his skin burn in the best way possible. "f-fuck, i-i'm—”

and that was all he managed before he was teetering at the edge again. the combination of you breathing hard into his ear and struggling to even say his name and the sharp pain and pleasure from having just come a few moments prior had him far too close. but before he could think twice to stop himself, he was coming with a silent scream and a sudden jerk all over again.

he wasn’t even sure what was going on on your end of the line anymore, too out of it to really process much of anything. things were too hazy and too soft for him to want to put them into focus.

“atsumu?” he hummed back, hoping that it’d be enough of a response for the moment. “was that okay?’ the nervousness in your voice was evident and drastically different from the confidence he had heard before.

"yeah,” his voice was slow and he was still struggling to keep up with you.

“are you okay?” he gave you another slow response. “i’ll keep talking to you until you come down, alright?” and you started rambling about different things, praising him for doing well, and reminding him to stretch if he needed it. he realized after a while that his hand was still at his neck, not that there was any pressure there anymore, and a small part of him wished you were there with him and that it was your hand. a bigger part of him knew that he’d have to have a much longer conversation with you about that. but until then, he’d revel in the comfort of your rambling and the habit that those phone calls would turn into.

#atsumu x reader #atsumu smut #haikyuu x reader #haikyuu smut #dom reader #sub haikyuu #hq x reader #hq smut #sub hq #.writing

[grandlinedreams]

Hiya, i love your writing!! I was wondering if I could request something for Ace? They're longtime friends and they're together and often sneak around to see each other and maybe they get caught one of the times and reader is slightly embarrassed while Ace is laughing as whoever found them is teasing them. Thank you!

Ough YES wkdjdnds that idea is so funny but also ghg the secondhand embarrassment,,,

[Heads up!: established relationship, a little suggestive at the beginning, Ace is a little shit but we love him]

Ace has a way with words. You know he does, energetic and cheerful as he is ㅡ he knows the weight of words and how to use them, especially to get out of trouble. (You know very well. How often has he wormed his way out of a tab at a restaurant with just a grin and a few strategic words?)

He also has a way with them where you're involved ㅡ a hand on your back, a low whisper in your ear, and you're willing to do whatever he wants.

Which is the only reason you can think of as to why you let your loveable boyfriend convince you that what you're currently doing is a good idea.

"Ace," you manage between the siege of warm kisses he peppers against your face, "we're gonna get caughtㅡ"

"No we won't," he answers, squeezing at your hips, "I promise. It's just you and me."

Your heart aches with how sincere he sounds, the comfort of his smile ㅡ so you lean in to kiss him properly. It doesn't take long for it to dissolve into something needier, the practiced exploration of his hands across your body, feeding off your muffled whimpers and moans.

Ace's fingers pop the button of your pants at the same time that the door opens.

"So this is where the two of you have been, yoi."

You freeze. Ace, in all of his casual, unbothered glory, simply turns to grin at Marco. "Hey, Marco! Sorry, we got a little distracted."

The older man raises an eyebrow. "I can see that," he remarks, amused ㅡ and he laughs when you groan and hide your face in Ace's shoulder. "The next time you two want to get distracted with each other, try finding somewhere else."

Ace's grin doesn't falter. "You got it!"

You listen to Marco's footsteps fade, face still pressed into Ace's skin as your cheeks burn. "I'm going to kill you."

"Don't be like that," he soothes. "Marco's not gonna say anything about it, and it's not like we haven't been caught before in far more compromising positions."

You blanch. "Don't remind me." You sigh before you pull away enough to cup your boyfriend's face, endlessly enamored with the freckles scattered across his face before you bump your forehead against his. "The next time we do anything, you better hope it's behind a locked door, or I'll make you regret it. Got it?"

Ace blinks at the fire blazing in your eyes, and he swallows. "Got it."

#ㅡmine. #one piece scenario #one piece x reader #ace x reader #portgas d ace x reader #ㅡanswered. #anonymous

[dee--eer]

Oh man I forgot that Gosho used to do these omake thing, it's so adorable ahah. Gosho did the actor!AU before it was cool lol

Like, Detective Conan is great and exciting and all but his earlier works are just so chaotic, y'know? It's very fun to read. You can't read Yaiba without laughing and first 2 volumes of Magic Kaito are just, really chaotic and fun lmao

Also AoKako supremacy ha

#magic kaito #kaito kid #kaito kuroba #nakamori aoko #koizumi akako #gosho aoyama #i read mk years ago when I was still on elementary school lol #man the nostalgia is real #i borrowed the books from local library then i regret not buying them #i wonder if i can still found a secondhand somewhere #honestly tho the first 2 volumes are a gem they're so fun lol #dcmk #dcmk talk

[ghost-mp4]

PERFECT TIMING

character(s) -> miya a.

summary -> you call atsumu at a bad time, or so he thinks

warnings -> NSFW / MDNI, dom!gn!reader, phone sex, mild degradation, secondhand embarrassment, (mentioned) daddy kink, edging, overstimulation, choking

notes -> this is. very self indulgent

you must have had the world’s worst timing. that was the only explanation for the situation you got him into, and it had a small part of him wondered if he could still play volleyball if he jumped out of the window in his hotel room.

“‘tsumu! he-“ you cut yourself off and atsumu mentally cursed himself for his blunder. the, uh, video that he was watching was still playing loud and clear for you to hear through his laptop’s speakers, and he was completely frozen, hand still down his pants—despite his plan to press pause—with the other holding his phone up to his ear. he prayed, begged whatever gods that may be listening in that you couldn’t hear what was playing, no matter how impossible that was. “did i call at a bad time?” he cursed himself for answering the call first.

despite the humor evident in your voice, he felt his face go hot and knew that the warmth was quickly spreading down his chest. “n-no, just watchin’ a movie.” he knew the lie was bad—awful, actually—but he wanted to maintain any dignity he had left, and it was only half a second later when he finally came to his senses and paused it.

“sure,” you said it with such a knowing tone that it made atsumu feel lightheaded. at least it seemed like you were letting it go. “anyways, i called to let you know that i’ll be there for the game tomorrow, but i’ll let you go back to your movie.” you snickered to yourself.

“is- is that all?” again, atsumu found himself praying to any and every deity he could think of.

“just about,” the small pause you took felt like an eternity, “i’m glad i called now, though.”

and all atsumu could do was squeak out a quiet, “why?”

“cause now i know what the great miya atsumu gets up to in the dead of night.” he was fucked. completely and totally fucked. you weren’t letting it go, and at this rate atsumu was starting to worry that death by embarrassment was possible. “because the only movies that i’ve ever heard of where someone’s screaming ‘harder, daddy, harder’ were porn,” and of course you had to make your voice sound all breathy and fucked out, because you’re atsumu’s biggest fucking nightmare apparently.

he felt his whole body shudder, and tried to control his breathing as he held on tight to the very base of his cock. if it weren’t for whatever that was, atsumu was sure that he could’ve dealt with the consequences, but right now? right now he wanted to bury his head in the sand and pretend none of this ever happened. but he would never be able to do that because you had to go and do an impression. and you moaned it.

“‘tsumu?” and of course you had to use that nickname, “hey, i was just messing with you.” he knew that, but the only thing he can think about is the way you sounded before. so moved his hand, reasoning with himself that it was just to alleviate pressure, that there was no way he could carry on with the conversation if his dick was throbbing in his hand. “c’mon, i didn’t mean to offend you or anything. i swear i’ll make it up to you if i did.”

“no,” he managed, “’s fine.” but his words are ever so slightly slurred and his voice just a bit too light.

“are you still going at it?” you feigned shock, “you are, aren’t you?” and just as you said that, his breath hitched with a quiet whine. “oh, you dirty dog, ‘tsumu.”

and for whatever reason, that’s what did him in. somewhere, up in that empty head of his, something snapped, and he moaned. there wasn’t even enough time for him to process what had happened before you kept talking, like it was totally normal for the both of you.

“was that good for you? me calling you names?” he whined. “can’t believe you’re so filthy, baby, getting off to me being mean.” for a brief moment he thought he heard fabric rustling from your end, but quickly shut that thought down when it sent a bolt of what felt like electricity down his spine.

“y-yeah, please.” his hand is still loosely wrapped around his cock, trying to keep a steady pace even when his hips keep stuttering.

“why don’t you tell me what you want me to do to you, then?” he could tell that you weren’t quite sure what you were meant to do, that this was new territory, and a small part of him was glad that he wasn’t alone in that.

it took yet another slow, shuddering breath for him to piece himself together enough to form an answer for you, no matter how shaky it was, “wan- wan’ you to be rough ’n make my cry.” that time he was sure that he heard the rustling of your clothes, there was no mistaking it, and the thought alone had him letting out a desperate, frustrated noise.

“you want me that bad, hm?” again, he nodded, but you moved on, “then touch yourself. get off to me talking to you like the perfect little slut you are.”

oh.

a gasp caught in his throat.

oh, fuck.

warmth, burning hot like fiery coals, spread across his body. it made his head feel light, like he wasn’t quite there. not in the way he was before, anyways.

and his hips jerked involuntarily, forcing a moan out of him. and they jerked again and again and again. it was clumsy, but the uneven stuttering of his hips and the loose circle that his hand formed felt far too good to be true.

“i bet you look so good right now, ‘tsumu, fuck.” you moaned. you honest-to-god moaned, and atsumu wasn’t sure what to do with himself. the shuffling from your end, the quiet moan you let out—everything, down to the words you were saying, was too much, and he could tell that he was going to come and soon.

“please, god, please, can i come?” he was babbling, saying anything that came to mind, “need t’come so bad, ple-ease.” his head turned to the side, eyes shut tightly as his stomach tightened and warmth curled its way around him. he just needed one last—

“no.”

he sucked in a sharp breath, his hips coming to a stop mid-thrust, and his eyes snapped open. he was right there, right at that perfect edge. another wave of heat landed hard in his gut, and the sound he let out was something akin to a sob.

“atta boy,” you praised in a low voice, “didn’t think you’d actually stop.” the praise went straight to his cock, and for a brief moment he was tempted to fuck into his fist again. he thought better of it, not wanting to risk any punishment.

“p-please-“

atsumu’s whole body felt sensitive, like every nerve was firing off all at once, and too hot. his hand twitched around his cock, the sudden tightness punching a breath out of him. and he knew that if you left him there for just a bit longer, he’d be close to tears.

his head was—well, it wasn’t in much better condition. it wasn’t quite empty, per se, but everything was full of you. it all felt hazy and soft around the edges, like he was underwater. and all he could focus on was the quiet sound of your own labored breathing and his shaking hand.

“where’s your phone, baby?” it took him a moment to realize that he was still holding it up.

“’s in ma hand,” he sounded so breathless—so gone.

“good, put it down next to you and leave it on speaker.”

he listened without question, placing his phone on the pillow next to him.

“i want you to bring a hand up to your throat,” you gave him a moment to comply, seemingly understanding how hazy his mind felt. but when his hand finally managed to make its way to his throat, it felt right, comfortable, in a way he couldn’t explain. “make sure that you only press down on the sides, okay? can’t have our star player getting hurt, can we?”

he shook his head, letting himself fall into the feeling of his hand and your voice washing over him. if he knew it would’ve felt this good, he would have called you for something like this a long time ago.

“you think you can fuck your fist for me, baby?” your voice was saccharine sweet, but atsumu focused on how out of breath you sounded, how rough it made your voice.

he gave an experimental roll of his hips, letting out a whine. his nerves already felt frayed, strung out from the sudden stop before, so the first thrust felt like torture. but as he kept going—

“o-oh, god,” he gasped, “i-i wanna come, ple-please, ’s- ’s too much— i—“ he was just babbling, his words quickly devolving into incoherent begging just as quickly as they started. in the back of his mind, he knew that he was being loud, but he couldn’t think hard enough to quiet himself down, nor did he want to.

“you gonna come, ‘tsumu? gonna come for me?” the soft moan you let out had him arching his back and reciting your name like a prayer—or rather, what you assumed to be your name and whatever other babbling went along with it. “bet you’d look so pretty too, just like the cute little slut you are."

he let out a choked groan, coming into his fist and his whole body going taut. his ears were ringing and his vision completely white, but past that he could hear your panting, the way you were repeating his name over and over. "please, wanna hear you." and he rolled his hips again, the oversensitivity making his skin burn in the best way possible. "f-fuck, i-i'm—"

and that was all he managed before he was teetering at the edge again. the combination of you breathing hard into his ear and struggling to even say his name and the sharp pain and pleasure from having just come a few moments prior had him far too close. but before he could think twice to stop himself, he was coming with a silent scream and a sudden jerk all over again.

he wasn't even sure what was going on on your end of the line anymore, too out of it to really process much of anything. things were too hazy and too soft for him to want to put them into focus.

"atsumu?" he hummed back, hoping that it'd be enough of a response for the moment. "was that okay?' the nervousness in your voice was evident and drastically different from the confidence he had heard before.

"yeah," his voice was slow and he was still struggling to keep up with you.

"are you okay?" he gave you another slow response. "i'll keep talking to you until you come down, alright?" and you started rambling about different things, praising him for doing well, and reminding him to stretch if he needed it. he realized after a while that his hand was still at his neck, not that there was any pressure there anymore, and a small part of him wished you were there with him and that it was your hand. a bigger part of him knew that he'd have to have a much longer conversation with you about that. but until then, he'd revel in the comfort of your rambling and the habit that those phone calls would turn into.

#atsumu x reader #atsumu smut #haikyuu x reader #haikyuu smut #sub haikyuu #dom reader #— for the ghouls

[immersed-in-mischief]

Prince Charming (Loki x Female Reader)- Part 2

I was too excited to wait any longer before posting part 2! This part is pretty long but it didn’t feel right to split it anywhere. Over 3k words! 

Summary: Things with Chaos begin to develop pretty quickly now that Loki his preoccupied with is new girl.

Warnings: none, just fluff 

 "Nice of you to join us, Sleeping Beauty!”

10 minutes late. Chaos had certainly accepted the challenge, alright. The sun was already peeking through the building outside your window when the two of you called it a night. Could it still be calling it a night when it wasn’t night anymore though? You had lost track of time in the shower replaying the conversation over again. The lack of hot water quickly brought you back to reality and you grabbed the closest outfit you could reach and threw your hair up in a bun as you raced to the conference room. You noticed Loki giving you a confused stare from across the table. He pretended to pay attention while typing a message out to you from his tablet.

L.Laufeyson: You’re staring off into space and grinning like a mad man. Stop it. It makes you look creepy.

You rolled your eyes and stuck your tongue out at him when Rogers turned his back to face the screen.

Who are you calling creepy? I know you only pay attention to the parts about hostile takedowns. Maybe I just really enjoy 7am mission briefings. You don’t know me as well as you think you do Mischief!

When Tony shared a look between you and Loki from his end of the table, you both put the tablets down and made a better attempt to pay attention. You tried to quietly hide your yawn. Maybe you could sneak in a nap later since you hadn’t actually gotten a wink of sleep.

Over the next few weeks, you not only talked to Chaos every night you weren’t away for a mission, the two of you had begun to exchange a few messages throughout the day as well when you both weren’t busy with work. Since you weren’t really hanging out with Loki much anymore, it was a welcomed distraction. You had come across him on his phone on several occasions with his book carelessly discarded somewhere nearby. He always seemed to get frustrated with you when you interrupted his reading so this girl must really be special to him. One afternoon, you swore you heard him sigh after putting his phone away. It felt like a punch to the gut. If he even noticed that you hadn’t had one of your movie nights or dinners together in nearly a month, it didn’t seem to bother him. It just gave you more excuses to return the flirtatious advances from Chaos. You couldn’t say that you were really fighting it all that hard though. It may have started out as a distraction, but it felt really good to feel wanted by someone again. Being head over heels for your best friend, coworker, and pretty much roommate makes dating kind of difficult.

With Rogers away on a mission, you cut training a few minutes short to hurry back to your room. A huge grin slowly spread to see the light in the corner of your tablet flashing. Even though it was hard, you resisted the huge to check the message and made yourself shower and change first. Once you were changed into your pajamas for the night, you curled up on the corner of the sofa in your room and slid the screen on.

Dove, I know you won’t see this until late this evening, but I didn’t want to wait another second to tell you that I truly missed our talks the last several nights while I was away. I’m anxiously counting down the minutes until you arrive home from work. You’ve quickly become my favorite part of my day

This guy knew exactly what to say to make you swoon. Part of you was glad he couldn’t see how often he made you blush. You noticed the message was sent just before you returned to your room and Chaos was still logged in.

What if you didn’t have to wait until late this evening?

The fact that he was immediately responding made you smile. Although it was foolish to believe the guy would be staring at the computer waiting for you, it still gave you butterflies when he was so eager to talk to you.

I’d say that’s the best news I’ve heard all day. Not that I’m not excited to see you online, but don’t you still have a few hours of work left, darling?

Grabbing a blanket off the back of the couch, you snuggled up on the couch with the charger for your tablet placed within reach.

Boss is out of town, so I cut out early today. Curling up at home to watch the rain while talking to my favorite person sounded better anyways 😉

Your secret is safe with me. Rainy afternoons curled up with a good book is on my list of favorite things, though speaking with you might have recently taken a higher position on said list. Would it be too forward of me to say that I would rather spend a rainy afternoon like this by your side instead of speaking through an electronic device?

There it goes again. You feel the heat on your cheeks as you bite your lip to control the grin on your face.

Were you really on a business trip or were you just spending time thinking of things to say to make me blush? Not that I’m complaining really. To answer your question, no it wouldn’t be too forward. I was thinking the same just now actually…

You always know how to make me laugh. Unfortunately, I’m not that smooth. I truly was away for business. I can’t help but wonder now how often I cause a blush to form on your cheeks. Maybe that will be my new mission, though it would not be a fruitful endeavor without seeing it in person. I’m sure it’s adorable

Not that smooth? I beg to differ! The number of times you make me absolutely swoon tells a different story. In order to keep my dignity, I won’t disclose what that number actually is at the moment. Let’s just say you must read classical literature and Shakespeare on a regular basis because it shows. Enough of my blushing and swooning! So, Chaos, if we were to be face to face on a rainy afternoon like this, how would we spend it? Not that I am assessing your dating skills or anything… or am I?

The fact that I make you blush and swoon often is quite flattering actually. I was raised somewhat old-fashioned I guess you could say. I was taught that a woman should be treated as a princess and that anything less is disrespectful. I guess you could thank my mother for that. If I’m being completely transparent, you tend to cause me to “blush and swoon” quite often as well, Dove. The feelings you stir within me make it nearly impossible to not let a smile grace my lips at the very thought of you…

Now that I’m sure I have a blush once again residing on your cheeks, I believe you inquired about my dating skills in a not-so-subtle way… Given the honor to have you accompany me on a date on a rainy afternoon such as this, I would say that a visit to a secondhand bookstore would be in order. I of course have a few around the city I like to frequent already. I would enjoy the opportunity to discover what books captured your attention and compare our favorites. Once we had found a few treasures and picked out at least one for the other to enjoy, we would find a place to sit and converse, just like we do here already. A quiet corner of a coffee shop would be a preferred place of mine. It would give us the chance to people watch as well. We could even make up stories about their lives and what we thought their day had entailed. If you didn’t feel it to be too intimate for such a date, I wouldn’t be opposed to finding a quiet place to curl up together to watch the rain and sit and read together.

I admit that I’m now quite curious, Darling. How does my answer fair in your assessment that you may or may not be performing on my ability to court?

You reread his answer a few times before you remembered that you now needed to write back. How could you be so flustered over….words? Now seemed like a good time to run to the kitchen for a snack. Something told you that you had already decided exactly how you wished to spend your evening.

As you made yourself a hot tea and let yourself imagine what a date like that with him would be like, you looked up to see Nat and Wanda standing there staring at you.

“I’m sorry. What did you say?”

They shared a look before turning back to you.

“Nat, I think our girl just literally floated into the room. She also hasn’t stopped smiling for days now. Could it possibly have anything to do with this mystery guy that you keep dashing away to talk to on your tablet possibly?”

Wanda and Nat laughed as they stood and waited for their answer. Nat was even more forward.

“It’s no secret. You charge that tablet nearly three times a day now. When are you just going to meet him already? You obviously are already completely smitten with each other. It’s written all over your face and if he is making you look like this all of the time, he must be pretty dreamy.”

You willed the kettle to heat up faster to escape this conversation.

“I don’t know. Maybe we will meet up at some point, but things are pretty great right now. What if we meet in person and there is no chemistry?”

Nat came and put a hand on either cheek, holding your head in her hands.

“Sweetie, if this guy was enough to help you forget that you are madly in love with your best friend, then there is zero chance that you two lack chemistry.”

They both laughed at the shocked look on your face. Wanda patted you on the shoulder and whispered as she walked by.

“Yeah, we know about that too. You don’t hide the way you stare at him very well. The only person who can’t see your feelings is Loki.”

Squeezing the bridge of your nose out of frustration, you whispered under your breath.

“Are there no secrets in this building?!”

Wanda seemed to get an idea and turned back around before leaving the kitchen.

“The costume party! That’s how you can meet him in person! Invite him to Tony’s costume party next week. If you don’t feel it in person, you will be in disguise anyways since it’s a masquerade ball! It’s perfect! Your own little fairy tale!”

Just as Nat got excited as well, you put a stop to it.

“Absolutely not! That is so cliché even for you two! Plus, I’m not meeting him for the first time in the lion’s den. That’s just cruel. Get over it. I am not inviting him to Tony’s party, end of discussion.”

“Inviting who?”

Your head whipped around to see Loki standing at the edge of the kitchen. His wet hair formed soft curls against his shoulders and left damp spots on the tight t-shirt that hugged him in all the right places. The sweatpants that hug low on his hips didn’t help stop your breath from quickening. You felt frozen under his gaze.

“Who are you not inviting, Bug?”

Before you could answer, Nat spoke up.

“Her new Boy Toy…”

You shot a warning glare to her before turning back to Loki in time to catch the smirk form on his lips.

“Boy Toy? Is that who has been stealing you away from me? Well then, sit by me tonight for movie night and you can tell me why exactly he is not being invited to Tony’s party.”

“I uh… I can’t tonight.”

He crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes at you.

“Come on Ladybug. I haven’t seen you in days and we both know we haven’t had a movie night in ages. Don’t you love me anymore?”

You unsuccessfully hid the squeak that escaped at his question. The pout he gave you told you that he was joking and not actually acknowledging the fact that you had been head over heels for him for way longer than should be allowed. Just as you tried to come up with anything at all to say, Wanda covered for you.

“She has a date with the Boy Toy.”

He seemed to accept that answer.

“Fine. But I expect you to attend the next one, Bug. Better not keep the Boy Toy waiting now.”

As he turned to head into the living room, the kettle started to whistle, and you let out a sigh of relief. When you finished making your tea and grabbing enough snacks to not have to leave your room anymore tonight, you turned to face them one more time.

“You two better help me find a damn good costume… I can’t believe I’m going to do this.”

They giggled and high fived as you shook your head. On the way back to your room, your mind drifted back to Loki. It was time to move on. At the mention of you dating someone, there was zero trace of jealously or emotion in his face. He didn’t see you like that and he never would. You had a guy that showed genuine interest in you and freely let you know as well. There was no wondering if Chaos wanted something more with you than a casual chat online. Meeting a stranger in person couldn’t be any safer than in a high security tower surrounded by the Avengers.

You took a sip of your tea and smiled at the flashing light on the tablet on the couch beside you.

I hope your silence isn’t an indication of a poor assessment…

Sorry! No not at all! I just stepped away for a minute to get something to eat. Although it is fun to make you sweat it out a little…

To say I’m relieved is an understatement, Dove. I thought maybe I had made you uncomfortable earlier.

Quite the opposite actually. It sounds like the perfect date to be honest. I’m quite the cuddler when given the chance. In fact, I’m curled up with a blanket and a hot tea as we speak…

Then I shall be jealous of said blanket and mug since they get to cuddle with you instead of me… Since we appear to both have the same thoughts as to what constitutes the perfect date, does that mean you find my skills adequate?

I suppose… 😊

So, Chaos, if you’ve already put thought into the two of us on a date, does that mean that you might want more than just exchanging messages online?... now I’m the one worried about being too forward!

 As the bubbles appeared and you waited for a response, you started to regret being so blunt with your questioning.

Darling, I’ve wanted that longer than I care to admit, so no you are not being too forward. I’ve thought about breaching the subject of meeting you in person for some time but could never gather the courage to do so. I’ve honestly never had a connection with someone truly as strong as I feel with you. Is a face-to-face meeting something you might want as well?

Absolutely. I’ve been nervous to bring it up too. I didn’t want to assume that the connection was mutual and end up embarrassing myself. I’ve made the mistake in the past of letting my heart get involved to find out too late that those feelings were not returned. It’s not something I wish to go through more than once.

Dove, I can assure you that is not the case with me. I assure you that any feelings you may have developed are returned tenfold. I have never seen your face or heard your voice, yet you have my heart… Does this mean I will soon get the opportunity to see the effects of this blushing and swooning you speak of with my own eyes?

That is really good to hear and I guess I need to start hiding such effects now… So … there is a reason for my line of questioning actually…

Oh? It that so? Please continue…

I’ve actually been given an invitation to a party at Stark Tower next weekend being hosted by the Avengers. Since we did meet in an Avengers chat room, it seems kind of poetic that we meet up at an event hosted by them.

It really is poetic isn’t it? I’m aware of the event you speak of though I hadn’t planned on attending. I would be willing to reconsider however if I knew that you were in attendance as well. Is it a masquerade ball in fact, is it not?

Yes, everyone attending is expected to be in costume. If I was not only in attendance, but there as your date, would it be enough to help you reconsider?...

More than enough, My Love.

Well, it’s a date then 😊

It would be my honor, Dove. There is still one matter to discuss. If we are both in costume, how exactly will I know when I’ve found you?

Would it be too cliché to attend as Cinderella and Prince Charming? It is a ball after all.

Not at all. In fact, I find it to be quite a romantic gesture to meet my princess for the first time dressed as her Prince Charming. You deserve to have your fairy tale moment, Darling.

So, it’s settled then. Next Saturday. Do you need me to get you put on the guest list?

That won’t be necessary. You aren’t the only one with connections, Love.

#loki fluff #loki smut #loki angst #loki fanfic #loki fandom #loki laufeyson #tom hiddleston smut #tom hiddleston angst #tom hiddleston fluff #tom hiddleston fanfic #tom hiddleston fanfiction #marvel

[halfwaythereroyalwrites]

Long Enough (Oscar “Spooky” Diaz x Reader) Kilig One-Shot

Pairing: Oscar “Spooky” Diaz x Reader (tried to make this as gender neutral as possible)

Warnings: Fluffy not smutty like the title suggests 😅. Secondhand embarrassment from flirting. Mention of buying snacks. Play fighting. No other warnings I can think of unless your secondhand embarrassment is really bad. 

Word count: 2k+

Kilig is a Tagalog word to describe the feeling of excitement and exhilaration and possibly embarrassment from anything remotely romantic.

Masterlist

______________________________________

“Don’t you have some ‘important Santos business’ to do,” you teased, crossing your arms over your chest to reserve some warmth. 

“Nah, I thought we could go somewhere tonight,” Oscar replied, looking up at you from the driver’s seat of his red ‘63 Chevy Impala. Even from where you stood, you could smell the intoxicating scent of his cologne wafting through the air. The very cologne he knew drove you wild and therefore refused to name, no matter how many times you asked. A slight breeze blew between you, sending a chill through your body. These cold LA nights were rare, and it caught you by surprise to be caught in one when walking home from Monse’s place. 

The younger girl had asked you to have a night in with her to help take her mind off the latest drama with Cesar, and you happily obliged. Well...it was supposed to only be you and Monse. Five minutes into the night, Ruby and Jamal had shown up, eager to get in on a night of face masks, movies, and snacks. You didn’t realize how late it had been until you checked your phone and realized it was close to their curfew. After bidding Monse goodbye, you ushered Ruby and Jamal out and walked them back to their respective homes. This is how you got here now, in the middle of the street, talking to the big, bad leader of the Santos, Oscar Diaz. 

Better known as Spooky. 

“Where exactly are we going?” you asked, “There’s not much open right now.” 

“Just get in the car. I thought you liked mystery and shit,” Oscar quipped, his signature smirk on his full lips. Your eyes narrowed at his answer, wondering what Oscar had in mind. Your time with Oscar consisted of movie nights at his place with tension so thick, you can cut through it with a knife. This was new and unexpected, and you weren’t sure if the fluttering feeling in your chest was a good thing or a bad thing yet. “Come on. I know your ass is freezing out here.” 

You let out a dramatic sigh and walked over to the passenger’s side, mumbling loud enough for him to hear, “you’re lucky I’m fucking freezing out here...with your mysterious ass.” The passenger’s door was pushed open from the inside by Oscar, and you quickly ducked in and shut the door. Oscar shut the windows on his side, and you quickly did the same with your window, shutting out the air from further freezing you. He thankfully blasted the heater, and you wasted no time in adjusting the heaters to point directly at you, thawing the LA cold out of your body. “Why do you always drive with all your windows down? It’s so cold! See, feel!” Without warning, you grasped Oscar’s forearm with your cold, clammy hands. 

Oscar sucked air in through his teeth at your sudden intrusion but did not make a move to pry your hands away, “Fuck, you’re cold!” 

“See?! Ugh this is Southern California. We should never be this cold.” You retracted your hands away from him, realizing you were still holding on to his arm.

He smirked at the sight of you placing your face inches away from the nearest heater, the heater blowing your hair back, before shrugging, “I don’t know. I can warm you up if you want.” His voice became lower with every word he said, and you took notice of his raised eyebrow directed at you. 

You cleared your throat, which has suddenly become dry, before saying, “Can we please get something hot to drink before we go?” 

Oscar kissed his teeth before breaking out into a wide smile, making you forget the need to breathe for the briefest moment “Sure, buckle in.” 

“Ugh thank you!” You reached around and buckled yourself into your seat and proceeded to lean closer to the heaters. The car was silent as he steered one-handed through the dimly lit streets of Freeridge. There weren’t many people out, and the only sounds to be heard were the blasting heaters and the low rumble of the engine. You took a deep breath in and leaned back into the seat before asking, “So where are we going?” 

“I told you it was a surprise.” Another silence ensued as you turned your head to look at the Santos leader, who was looking straight ahead at the road, his face void of any expression.

“...but can I get a hint of where we’re going?” 

“No.” 

“...if we’re having a movie night, you could have just texted.” 

“It’s not a movie night.” 

“You haven’t texted me in the past few days,” you whispered. “That’s not like you.” 

“I had to figure some shit out. I’m here now, aren’t I?” His response made you press your lips together and look out your window, crossing your arms once more. You could feel the heat of Oscar’s gaze intermittently focusing on you, burning the side of your head. The rush of heat going to your ears was accompanied by the audible thumping in your chest. You leaned your body against the passenger’s side door as much as you could and started contemplating words to say when Oscar’s hand gripped your left thigh. “Hey. Hey look at me.” You continued to stare out the window. “Hey, I’m sorry alright? Things got real tense with the Prophet$, and I had to sort shit out. I forgot to text you. I’m sorry.” You turned to meet his gaze, and it seemed all your anger had melted away with just a look into his dark eyes. 

“Thank you. I was worried about you, and no one knew where you went, so I thought...something had happened to you,” you begrudgingly admitted, hyper-aware of the fact that Oscar’s hand on your thigh set a warm fire throughout your body. You wanted to throw up. Or hold his hand. Maybe. This...this...pounding in your chest. The sudden rush of warmth in your ears. The hairs on your arm standing up. Cold and hot at the same time with heat slowly crawling from your neck to your cheeks. What is this?! 

“You don’t gotta worry about me,” Oscar’s voice broke through your storming internal monologue. Did his voice get deeper somehow? “I’ll always come back for you, babe,” he chuckled. 

“Ok that’s...not necessary,” you made a weak attempt to push Oscar’s hand away as your cheeks burned in embarrassment over his new nickname for you. Oscar only squeezed your thigh in return and kept his hand exactly where it was. You watched him skillfully steer one-handed into the parking lot of the nearest corner store and turn the engine off. The still silence prompted you to turn your head to the handsome man seated next to you, only to find him already turned to you. 

“What are you looking at?” You saw Oscar’s devastatingly dark eyes flit back and forth, holding your gaze as if reading your eyes could give a hint of the storm currently occurring in your mind. Oscar let out a chuckle before squeezing your thigh and giving it a light slap. 

“Let’s grab snacks too. I’m hungry.” He let go of your thigh and exited the Impala, leaving you in a daze. Your hand instinctively covered the area on your thigh that his hand previously occupied, lightly feeling the remnants of his warm touch. Shaking your head at your actions, you unbuckled your seatbelt and reached for the car door, only for the handle to be pulled away from your reach by Oscar, who had pulled the door open for you. You muttered a low thanks, eyebrows furrowed at the Santos leader. He locked the car before walking ahead of you and opening the front door of the corner store, holding it open for you to walk in, You glanced at him suspiciously before thanking him again and walking into the store, taking note of the slight brush of his hand against your hip. You made a beeline for the hot drink station at the back of the store, clasping your hands together and slightly shivering as you shuffled over. Oscar was not far behind you, acting as your taller shadow, his breath slightly fanning over your neck as he looked over your shoulder. You swallowed the knot forming in your throat and kept it suppressed by making small talk. When it came time to pay for your snacks, Oscar had pulled out a wad of bills faster than you could grab the card out of your wallet. He grabbed the snacks as you told him a halfhearted promise to pay him back. 

“Don’t worry about it. I gotchu,” he smiled, placing his hand on your waist and ushering you out the door. His cologne has taken over all your senses now, and the wires of your brain were beginning to short circuit. You found it hard to even think outside of this time with him. You found yourself taking notice of all the small ways he was currently driving you insane. 

Like the way he still kept a hold on your thigh as he drove. 

And how he told you about how he had watched the food show you had recommended on Netflix. 

And how he asked you to feed him a gummy worm and you felt the faint touch of his lips as you placed one in his mouth. 

He also told you to reply to a text from Sad Eyes on his behalf, telling him that he can’t hang out right now. 

And with every laugh and every smile, he would squeeze your thigh which would send a jolt of endorphins through your body.

Before long, the winding road Oscar was driving up on ended on a flat lookout. There were only two other cars there, considerably distanced from the two of you. Oscar had parked the car to where the trunk was facing the twinkling lights of Freeridge down below. Without saying a word, he got out of the car and popped the trunk open, where he pulled out a large blanket, big enough to fit the two of you. You got out of the car, clutching your drink, snacks in the other hand, and let a cheesing smile make its way onto your face. 

“What is this?” you asked Oscar who was now looking at you expectedly. 

“I thought we could just chill for tonight. See the stars and shit,” he gestured upwards to the dark sky. You giggled at the lack of stars in the sky. Typical for Los Angeles. You handed your drink to Oscar who took it without question. 

“May I?” you asked, looking between him and the trunk of his car. Oscar nodded, and you jumped up on the top of his trunk, and he followed suit, wrapping both you and him in the blanket. You rested your weight against him, placing your head on his shoulder. A comfortable silence settled between the two of you as you looked at the yellow lights of the city below. “Why did you actually bring me here?” 

“...I wanted to ask you something.” You slowly raised your head off his shoulder, and looked at him, his face laced with an emotion you couldn’t quite pinpoint. 

“What is it?” you whispered. 

Oscar cleared his throat before focusing his dark gaze on you. “We’ve been hanging out for a while, and I thought...that maybe...we could give this a real shot.” 

You grinned. “Oscar Diaz. Are you asking me to go steady with you?” 

Oscar kissed his teeth at your teasing grin. “Come on, I’m being serious!” 

“So am I! Are you asking me to be in a relationship or to be exclusive? They’re sort of different nowadays.”

“The first part.” 

“...I need to hear you say it.” 

Oscar gazed at you before cupping your face in his hand, his thumb gently rubbing your cheek. He whispered your name before asking, “will you be in a relationship with me?” You blinked at him a couple times before your hand came to meet his hand that was still caressing your face. You held his wrist and kissed the inside of his palm. 

“...what’s the magic word?” 

Oscar rolled his eyes at you before whispering, “please?”

You smiled before nodding, a little too enthusiastically. Oscar shook his head at you before returning your smile with a bright one of his own. “Ok now hold me,” you demanded, flinging his hand away from your cheek to go around your shoulder. You snuggled into the warmth of his body as he drew you closer and placed a kiss to your temple. “Took you long enough to ask me,” you whispered.  

“What?” 

“Nothing.”

______________________________________

A/N: I have finally broken my writer’s block. There’s quite a few life changes and obstacles I’m going through, and finally being able to finish a fic was so satisfying. Let me know what you think and if you want to be added to my taglist! 

General: @peppermintvanillaa @fantasticcopeaglepasta @panda-angela

Kilig taglist: @multifandomlife22 @thottiewinemom @princeabomination @svetlana-beilschmidt

#oscar diaz x reader #spooky diaz x reader #Oscar spooky Diaz x reader #spooky x reader #oscar diaz imagine #oscar spooky diaz imagine #spooky diaz imagine #on my block imagine #on my block fic #halfwaythereroyalwrites #kilig series #kilig one-shot

[eboyhitoshi]

Rough Night || H. Iwaizumi

Warnings: Swearing, Little bit of smut but it’s not the main focus, secondhand embarrassment

Summary: Iwa’s acting a little off today, wonder why?

Rating: Crack, Smut

Pairing: Iwaizumi x Reader

Word count: 2.2k

A/n: Iwa and Reader are in their third year here and are 18

Something was off with Iwaizumi. As his best friend, Oikawa could tell. The dazed look in Iwa's normally concentrated eyes was throwing him off. Whenever someone would call his name, his head normally turned over and he gave them his full attention. But today whenever some tried to get Iwa's attention, he turned his head slowly and listened, though it looked like his mind was somewhere else.

Iwaizumi isn't a clumsy guy. He's very careful of himself and his surroundings. Which is why Oikawa found it extremely strange for him to be stumbling around everywhere and even going as far to fall a few times. Every once and a while he also caught Iwa holding his forehead, leaning into his hand with his eyes shut.

"Iwa-Chan, are you sick?" We're the first words Oikawa said about his findings when he sat down next to the ace for lunch. Iwa shook his head slowly, keeping his eyes focused on his food. Another thing Oikawa noticed. Iwa normally are all of his food, but today he was picking at it, barely eating anything.

"No, I've just got a bit of a headache" he replied quietly. Oikawa quirked a brow at the lack of insult from the brunette. Oikawa hummed, leaning back in his seat as you strolled in with Mattsun and Makki in tow.

"(Y/n)-chan , do you any headache medicine? Iwa-Chan needs some" Oikawa asked you as you approached them. You nodded and sat down to grab some out of your bag. You handed Iwa two pills and he took them gratefully.

"Thanks babe" Iwa mumbled quietly before swallowing the pills.

"Are you gonna be alright for the practice match later?" Mattsun asked, settling in to his designated chair. Iwa nodded slowly, letting his eyes fall shut for a second.

"Should be" He answered. Iwa wasn't normally a boyfriend that was super touchy feely in public. He wasn't completely opposed to it but he preferred to keep most of your relationship private. So when he slid his hand into yours, that wasn't out of the ordinary. What was though, was him laying his head on your shoulder and snuggling into your side.

"You sure about that?" Makki snorted, cocking an eyebrow at him before stuffing his face with rice. Iwa opened his eyes to give him a glare.

"Haji, seriously, are you ok? You keep closing your eyes like you're about to pass out" you whispered to him once the other boys had started their own little conversation. He let out a small chuckle, moving his head so his chin was on your shoulder and he was looking at you.

"Yeah, I just get a little nauseous when they're open. Room spins a little bit. I'm gonna be better by the practice game tonight though. I promise" he tried to reassure you but his comment just concerned you more. You gave him a weird look but he placed a kiss on your cheek anyway.

"Ok, if you say so" you muttered, unconvinced.

***************

You watched warily down at the court as both teams warmed up for the practice game. While you were focused on watching Iwa just to be sure that he's ok, your best friend came over and sat down next to you. She went to Karasuno, the team the practice game was against today, and decided to tag along with her boyfriend's team to come and see you. You turned and gave her a huge smile, practically pouncing on her to hug her.

"Ugh I missed you so much" She laughed, hugging you back.

"I missed you too, it's been way too long since I've seen you" you replied. The two of you got to chit chatting, pulling most of your attention away from the game that was now about to start.

"How are things with you and Daichi?"

"Amazing, he's amazing" she replied dreamily, looking lovestruck. You smiled and glanced down at the captain donning orange and black before looking back at her. "Don't think I need to ask how you and Iwa are doing, after what you told me about yesterday" she joked, making you roll your eyes, but a smile came through anyway.

"That's good" you commented, settling into your seat. She nodded happily and continued on talking about her relationship. You didn't mind, it felt good to catch up with her. You had your head turned toward her for a few minutes while she was talking when a loud "boom" sounded through the gym, followed shortly by a collective gasp from the crowd. Your attention snapped down to the court.

One of the boys from Aoba Johsai was laying down on the court, not moving at the moment. You saw the number four on his jersey and your eyes widened.

"Iwa" You said, shooting up from your seat to run down to the court. Your best friend also shot up to follow you, equally as concerned.

Once you reached the gym floor, Iwa was starting to stand up. You let out a small breath of relief that he wasn't unconscious. He made it to his feet, pushing Oikawa's helping hand off of him as he stumbled to a nearby trashcan. He stood there for a good amount of time and completely emptied his stomach.

You ran over to him, rubbing his back as he gripped the trashcan. He stood back up, eyes teary from puking his guts out. He pushed your hand off of him gently.

"I'm alright, I gotta get back to the game" he mumbled, on his second step back over to the court he fell.

"No way you're going back in that game Iwaizumi, stay where you are. Someone go get the trainer please" The coach stated sternly. You sat down on the floor next to Iwa.

"What's wrong babe?" You asked. Cupping his face in your hands.

"Room's spinning" he mumbled, closing his eyes and laying his face into one of your hands. "It's making me nauseous" you mentally winced, hoping his problem was not what you thought it was. You best friend was standing over near Daichi and they were whispering back and forth, glancing at you and Iwa every now and then.

A few moments later the trainer came jogging in behind Kindaichi who went to go get him. Apparently he'd also explained everything along the way because he just came right over to you and Iwa. You moved out of his way and went to sit next to them.

"He said the room is spinning and it's making him nauseous" you stated to the trainer. He sighed and nodded pulling something out of his jacket pocket.

"Iwaizumi if you could open your eyes for a moment, I need to see something" He commented nicely. Iwa listened to him, opening his eyes slowly. He shined a light in front of Iwa, making the boy wince and close his eyes once again. "That's what I thought. Well Iwaizumi it seems like you have a concussion, do you remember how this could've happened?" The trainer pulled out a pen and a slip of paper. Iwa cracked his eyes open and turned his head toward you. Your face felt hot, having a feeling you knew exactly how this happened.

Last night

Iwa let out a low groan as he pinned your knees to your chest and sunk his cock into you. He secured your legs on his shoulders before leaning down to connect your lips.

"You ok?" He asked, pushing his hair that was stuck to his forehead back.

“I will be, once you move” you retorted, looking up at him with challenging eyes. His gaze snapped back to yours. He grabbed your chin and connected your lips once again.

“Brat” he grunted, pulling out and thrusting sharply into you. You gasped at the unexpected movement, a hand reaching around to hold his shoulder. He gave another identical thrust, then another, and then one more. Then all you heard was a loud, sickening crack. “Ow fuck!” Iwa yelled, stopping all of his movement. Your eyes snapped open and you looked up to see Iwa bracing himself on your head board while holding his head.

“Are you ok?” You asked, looking up at him concernedly. He groaned lowly, rubbing his head.

“Yeah,” he let out a strained breath. “I just hit my head” he stated. You tapped his shoulder, signaling for him to pull out so you could move.

“Holy fuck babe, you dented the head board” you commented. “That thing is solid wood, are you sure your head is fine?” You asked, running a hand over the small dent in the wooden frame. Iwa nodded and winced slightly as he moved to lay down.

“Yeah, I’m ok babe” he sighed. “I’m just gonna lay down right here” he mumbled, reaching for the blanket to pull over his naked body. His still hard dick created a little tent in the blanket that you couldn’t help but giggle at.

“I’ll go get you some medicine” you said, getting up and sliding his hoodie over your frame along with some shorts. Your legs felt a little wobbly from your earlier activities, but it was nothing you couldn’t handle.

Iwa was silent the whole time you were gone, trying to get comfortable. With his head now pounding and dick still hard, it was making it quite difficult. You returned a few moments later to see a frowning Iwa, glaring down at the blanket. You followed his gaze to the tent and once again laughed a little. You placed two pills in his hand and handed him a gatorade. He happily took them and tried settling back in.

“Babe can you ride me so this goes away” he gestured down to his problem and you gave him a weird look.

“You just hurt yourself, and you’re still concerned about getting your dick wet?” You asked, cocking a brow at him. He shrugged, watching as you picked up his boxers and shorts to sit on the bed next to him.

“Please” he gave you a look that he knew you couldn’t say no to and you sighed.

“Fine” you mumbled, dropping your shorts. You went to take off his hoodie when he grabbed your wrist.

“Leave the hoodie on” you rolled your eyes, but smiled slightly as you climbed on top of him.

Present

“I hit my head” Iwa answered shortly, not wanting to go into detail about it with a school official. The trainer nodded.

“Well yes, I assumed that. How did you hit your head?” he asked with a small chuckle. Instantly the sound of you moaning filled Iwa’s head and his face turned redder than a cherry.

“Um” Iwa mumbled, looking from you to the trainer.

“Do you remember?” The trainer asked, a valid question for someone who just got diagnosed with a concussion.

“Mm hmm” Iwa nodded slowly. The trainer looked at him expectantly, raising his eyebrows as to say ‘go on’. The court was almost silent as everyone watched in anticipation. Oikawa had made his way over while everyone was talking, squatting down next to Iwa. Iwa’s eyes found Oikawa’s and he turned impossibly redder. “It’s embarrassing”

You glanced over to your best friend and Daichi, both of whom looked like they were trying so hard to hold back laughter. Oikawa looked over to them also and looked back at you, giving a playful glare.

“(Y/n)-chan, what do they know that I don’t?” He leaned over and whispered. Your face felt hot as you made eye contact with him.

“You can whisper it to me if you’d like” the trainer said to Iwa, pulling your attention away from the brunette and back to him. Iwa glanced at you and Oikawa hesitantly before nodding. Iwa gestured for the trainer to lean down, and he did. After a second of hushed whispers, the trainer’s face turned bright red also and he cleared his throat. “Right” he commented awkwardly. “Uh, it’d be best if you went to a doctor to make sure that it’s not causing you any other issues. Is this uh- your girlfriend?” He asked, looking at you.

“Yeah” Iwa answered.

“Can you see that he makes it home safe please? Let his parents know what’s going on?” He asked. You nodded and stood to your feet. The trainer and Oikawa helped Iwa up to his feet, placing his arm around your shoulder.

“Don’t go too fast” Iwa winced, squeezing his eyes shut in an effort to stop the spinning of the room.

“Take care of him (Y/n)-Chan, and you better answer my call when this game is over” Oikawa called as you started making your way toward the locker room. You sent an apologetic look to your friend and she waved you off, letting you know it was fine.

Once in the locker room, you helped Iwa sit down on one of the benches. He directed you to his locker and you grabbed his stuff for him.

“I can’t believe that just fucking happened” He stated, placing a hand over his still very red face. “I just had to tell the athletic trainer at my school that I got a concussion because I hit my head on the headboard while having sex”

“I can’t believe you’re actually concussed” you laughed lightly. “Sorry, it’s not funny. Is this everything?” You asked him.

“Yeah that all of it” he answered. “Now we get to go tell my parents and a doctor the same thing” he said as you pulled him back up to his feet.

“Wonderful” you cringed, thinking about how his parents would react. “That’s great”

#haikyuu x reader #iwaizumi x you #iwaizumi oneshot #iwaizumi x y/n #iwaizumi x reader #haikyuu #aoba josai x reader #aoba joshai #seijoh #hajime iwaizumi #iwaizumi smut #iwaizumi hajime #haikyū x reader

[fantastic-bby]

One In A Million

Pairing: (F)Reader x Changbin ( ft housemates Felix and Jisung) 

Word count: 14.7k 

Genre: Fluff | Romance | Slow burn | Mermaid!Reader | Non-idol AU | College student!Changbin | Strangers to lovers 

Summary: In a world where magical creatures exist simultaneously with humans, Changbin, a marine biology student, knows that merfolk have been pushed to extinction by humans years before. However, while he’s at his regular smoking spot at the beach, he notices a figure watching him from the water...

Warnings: Cigarette use (Changbin) | Mentions of marijuana usage | Changbin almost drowns 

A/n: I may have gotten carried away ahaaaa... This is actually the longest fic I’ve ever written (it almost became longer) and I’m really happy with how it turned out so hopefully you guys enjoy it too owo 

Masterlist

Changbin thinks he’s gone mad. He stares at the water in so much disbelief that he’s sure he’s gone mad. Looking down at the cigarette in his hand, he’s thinking that Felix has definitely laced it with something. If he wasn’t high, then why did he just see a person disappear into the water from the beach he’s standing at?! 

“Fucking Felix,” he curses as he pulls his phone out of his pocket. 

Binnie: Did you put something in my cigarettes? [03:54]

Lixie the weedie: No??? Why would I touch your cigs? [03:55]

He lets out another curse as he shoves his phone back into his pocket. When Changbin sees the head poke out from underneath the ocean’s surface, he’s slightly more convinced that it’s an actual person and not some drug that’s messing with his head. He looks around the beach—it’s empty other than him. It’s normal for the beach to be empty around this time. Changbin’s only out there every night because he wants to smoke and his housemate—Jisung—refuses to let anyone smoke cigarettes in the house. Jisung’s a funny guy. He would gladly take Felix’s joints and edibles, but he refuses to be a victim of secondhand smoking because of Changbin.  

Changbin’s phone buzzes twice in his pocket and he pulls it out once again. 

Sungie: Come back inside D:< You’re gonna catch a cold if you’re out there any longer [04:00]

Binnie The cigs keep me warm [04:00] 

He awaits Jisung’s next response to see the message being read. The chat bubble pops up, bouncing a few times to signal that he’s typing back only for it to disappear. Changbin looks back out into the ocean only to realise that whoever was watching him is gone. He sighs, wondering what kind of a person would be in the water during winter with how the temperatures drop way below freezing. 

Sungie: I’m locking the door if you don’t come back in 5 minutes [04:03]

Binnie: Fuck you [04:03]

Sungie: Attached image (1)

Of course he sends a love meme back. Changbin rolls his eyes, a smile tugging at his lips. Jisung means well, he just shows his affection in a slightly more aggressive and dry manner than Changbin would. 

Binnie: I’ve accepted the love meme and I will be returning shortly <3 [04:05]

He gives the ocean one last look before turning around and heading towards the neighbourhood, putting his cigarette out in the process of walking. Changbin’s body shivers a few minutes into the 8 minute walk. Without the smoke warming his lungs and body, it’s just cold now. He knows he needs to stop and the constant excuses that he’s come up with to stay attached to those cancer sticks make Jisung want to punch him in the face. One of those excuses is being warm in the winter, which again, makes Jisung want to punch him. 

“I’m back,” Changbin announces as he steps into the small house and kicks his shoes off. Jisung pops his head out from the living room to look at him. 

“Lix and I are playing Super Smash Bros., do you wanna join?” 

“Uhh, I’ll pass,” he shakes his head as he steps into the living room to see Felix sitting on the couch. His Nintendo Switch is plugged into the TV, the baby pink controller in his hand while the other baby blue one is with Jisung. "Don't you have class in the morning?" 

"Our professor cancelled," he replies with a shrug as Jisung starts another round of the game. "I only have classes after lunch, so I'm not too worried about it." 

“Still,” Changbin chuckles. Unlike Changbin, Felix and Jisung somehow have more filled schedules than he does despite how they’re only first years and Changbin’s already in his third year. They’re always saying they have work they need to do when they’re doing pretty much anything else but their assignments.

“Why did you ask about your cigs?” Felix looks away from the screen for a split second to glance at Changbin.

The older man sucks a breath in through his teeth as he contemplates it. Felix and Jisung would definitely call him crazy, but they’ve lived with each other for the past four years, so it’s not like there’s any secrets between the three. “I thought I saw someone in the water for a moment, but then they disappeared.”

“In this temperature?” Jisung snorts. “You’d have to be crazy to take a dip in the ocean during winter.” Even though his attention is solely on the game, he takes a few glances towards his housemate when he realises that Changbin seems way more spaced out than usual. “You alright, hyung?” 

“Yeah,” Changbin nods quickly. “I just feel like that person may have not been… a human.” He doesn’t really know how the thought even came to him. It just popped out of nowhere when he swears that he saw a tailfin following after the person. 

“What?” Felix pauses the game and turns to look at him, earning a whine from Jisung. “What else could they have been?” Now Changbin really thinks he’s gone mad. He knows that if he actually spoke his thoughts, then Jisung and Felix would probably end up laughing at him. 

“I don’t know, man, I just feel like it could’ve been something else,” he shrugs, “like a mermaid or something.” 

“Merfolk went extinct years ago, hyung,” Jisung states, emphasizing on ‘years’, as he nudges Felix’s shoulder and unpauses the game. “Humans pushed the merfolk to extinction even before we were born. That includes sirens.” 

“Yeah, but you know how sometimes scientists declare a species extinct but it turns out they were just hiding somewhere else.” 

Felix and Jisung both pause the game once again before turning to look at their older housemate. “No way,” Felix shakes his head. 

“They’d have to have been really good at hiding or else the humans would’ve found them by now,” Jisung nods. 

“You think maybe the joint I gave you a few hours ago still has its effects on you?” he teases as he jabs Changbin’s bicep with his finger. In response, he yelps and swats at Felix’s hand until he leaves him alone. 

“I’m telling you, I know what I saw,” Changbin grumbles. “There was a fin following after them.” 

“It was probably another creature,” Jisung guesses as he turns back to the TV. “You know how water sprites can get too. Maybe it was one of them playing tricks on you.” 

“Water sprites don’t take the forms of other water creatures,” he states matter-of-factly. 

“Alright, Mr ‘I study magical creatures’,” he rolls his eyes. “Don’t think too much about it. It could’ve been something else.” 

“I don’t study magical creatures, I study the ocean’s ecosystem, asshole,” Changbin nags and reaches over Felix to punch Jisung’s arm. The younger man lets out an exaggerated howl of pain as he writhes around. 

“Felix, hyung is bullying me!” he whines. 

“Sounds like a you problem,” Felix snorts just as he manages to knock out Jisung’s character. “I win!” He shoots up from the couch with his arms up in the air, “I won because you’re too busy teasing Changbin hyung!” Jisung lets out an even louder whine. 

“That’s unfair! We have to play again! Let’s play another round!”

“It’s not unfair! I won!” Changbin crosses his arms over his chest, amused as he watches the younger men argue about whether or not they should play another game. They annoy him, sure, but Changbin’s harboured a soft spot for his housemates. As much as Felix makes him want to throw him out of the window and how Jisung makes him want to lock him in his own room, Changbin would do anything to keep them safe and happy. The feeling’s mutual across the three of them. 

Jisung, the designated demon of the house, once broke into Felix’s crazy ex-girlfriend's house and stole his hoodie back for him only to have objects thrown at him by her. Felix, the house mum, once almost lit a car on fire to try and save Jisung from being beat up by a gang of hooligans. Changbin, on the other hand, pays the most in rent and likes to use it against his two younger friends—he would prefer to call them his brothers. A happy family that the three of them decided to build together when they had started college. 

Changbin finds himself at the beach at the same time a few days later, cigarette held between his index and his middle finger. He’s come to terms that there’s no way it was a mermaid—he studies them, of course he would know what a mermaid looks like even in the dark. However, tonight, he finds himself sitting on one of the rockier areas of the coast, sitting cross-legged on the almost frozen  stone and looking out at the ocean as he smokes his problems away. 

He’s lucky that the three of them are able to afford a small house nearer to the ocean or else he would’ve been more stressed out. Being near the ocean as a student who studies marine ecosystems means that it’s easier for Changbin to do research without having to travel so far away to get to the water. 

As he looks out, he sees it again. Changbin almost falls off of the rocks and into the water when he sees what looks like a person sticking their head out of the water, eyes watching him intently. He sits upright, leaning closer to get a better look only to watch them dive back into the water. That’s when he sees it. 

A tailfin. 

“No fucking way," Changbin gasps as he crawls closer to the edge of the rocks. The waves move gently, the darkness and the movement obstructing any kind of view he would have into the water. His hand holds himself up as he slowly gets closer and closer towards the water when the head re-emerges, right in front of his face. Changbin loses his balance out of shock, his hand slipping against the rock and his body rolling off of the edge until he's enveloped in cold. 

Freezing cold.

He panics.

Changbin can't breathe. He feels the salt water gushing into his lungs and all he feels is pain. His throat burns, his eyes sting, his lungs hurt. Black spots start to fill his vision while his limbs frantically try to push himself up towards the water's surface, but it's too cold for his limbs to even move properly. He'll drown if he doesn't get out and if it isn't the water that kills him, then the hypothermia definitely will. The more he panics, the more frantic his arms become, but it’s not like Changbin’s actually able to control himself since the only thought in his mind is swim to the surface.

Arms wrap around Changbin's torso when he feels his body starting to give up but it's too dark for him to see as they pull him into a darker area. He's shoved out of the water and onto stone, his lungs painfully coughing out all the water out as he heaves to catch his breath. He looks around the area once he's more composed, only now noticing that he's in what looks like a cave. Changbin's eyes stop at a pair of eyes peeking out from right above the water's surface, staring at him. 

"Y-You…" Changbin trails when he realises how cold it is, his arms moving to wrap around himself in a feeble attempt to keep himself warm. The head further emerges, tilting curiously and watching him. Changbin manages to push out a gasp despite his shivers, her skin is patched with tinges of blue and green, scales crawling up the side of her face. Her pupils were shaped like slits, almost cat-like. "You're… a m-mermaid." Her head tilts curiously as she lowers into the water momentarily. She lifts herself out of the water further to take a closer look at Changbin. “Do you not understand me?” he questions. The mermaid blinks a few times, her pupils dilating when she sees the way Changbin hugs his soaked jacket tighter around himself. She slips underneath the water despite the human’s protests. “F-Fuck,” he curses as he realises how much shit he’s in. Not only does his throat hurt like hell now, but he knows that if he doesn’t get out of the cave or find a way to find warmth, he’ll freeze to death. 

A few moments pass before the mermaid pops back out with a plastic zip lock bag in her hands. She puts it onto the ground and pushes it towards him. Changbin looks between her and the plastic bag before taking it, ripping it open to see a perfectly dry winter coat. He turns back to look at the mermaid who’s returned to hiding half of her face underneath the water and only her eyes watching him. Changbin immediately changes out of his wet clothes and slips himself into the coat, closing his eyes as he lets out a sigh of relief when he feels his body slowly starting to warm up. When his eyes open, Changbin notices the mermaid still watching him, her webbed hands holding onto the edge of the cave to keep herself afloat. 

“I thought mermaids were supposed to speak human languages,” he thinks out loud. Once again, her head tilts curiously. “Since you guys were said to be extinct, then I don’t think it’s a surprise that you don’t understand me.” Changbin hugs himself tighter as he looks around the cave, the mermaid watching him and looking around as well. How is he supposed to get home? The only creature that knows where he is doesn’t even understand what he’s saying! 

“Mermaid,” he calls out, the creature immediately perking up at the sound of his voice. “Wait, do you understand me?” The way she simply stares at him makes Changbin realise that she just reacted because she heard him talk. He stuffs his hand into the wet pocket of his jeans, pulling out his phone. Changbin presses the home button and watches as the screen flickers before turning white and shutting down right after. He sits awkwardly as he thinks about what to do next. He lifts his head, making eye contact with the mermaid—who’s been watching him this whole time—and knows that she’s the only way he can get home. 

“I-I need to get home, mermaid.” Once again, she tilts her head as she tries to process what she’s saying. Changbin bits his lip as he looks around the cave, trying to figure out a way to get her to understand. “Home,” he says as he lifts up three rocks, building a really crappy fort. “I need to get back to where I live.” The mermaid watches his hands, her mind trying it’s best to figure out what he’s showing her. Changbin sighs when she shakes her head. He lifts his hands over his heads to try and signal a roof, “my house.” The mermaid blinks a few times before diving back underwater, leaving the human to dwell with his own thoughts and company while trying to figure out how to at least get back to shore. 

A few minutes pass and Changbin decides that he might as well explore the cave. He doesn’t even know if the mermaid will return anytime soon, so he stands up and looks around. There’s little light that shines into the cave and it’s only because of a few large cracks that scatter the cave walls, but it’s enough to help him barely navigate through the area. Rock formations jut out from the sides and Changbin’s careful to try not to bump into them, his biggest fear being accidentally stabbing himself with a rock formation if he’s careless. He follows the inside of the cave only to realise that he’s trapped. The only way out is to jump into the small body of water right in front of him. Changbin stares at the pool, panic starting to creep throughout him when he realises that this cave is most likely underwater when the tide rises. 

A glow emits from underneath the water’s surface and it makes Changbin’s face contort in confusion as he watches the way it moves around. It gets closer to the surface before the mermaid re-emerges, obviously watching him in confusion since he’s not in the same place as before, but a water sprite is sitting on her shoulder this time.

“The mermaid tells me that you’re stuck,” the sprite claims as he flies off of the mermaid’s shoulder and moves closer to look at Changbin. The dark blue sprite is small—very small. He’s probably only the size of Changbin’s finger, small blue wings holding him up in the air as he hovers around the human’s head. “How did you even end up here?” 

“I-I saw the mermaid, but I thought they were extinct and I fell in,” Changbin admits softly. The sprite turns around to look at the mermaid who watches from the water. He mutters something in a language that Changbin can’t understand and the mermaid responds in the same language. The sprite snaps back at her and she scowls as she lowers herself into the water.

“I can cast a spell on you that would keep you alive while we bring you back to the beach, but you can’t tell anyone about her,” the sprite sighs as he turns to face Changbin. “Mermaids went into hiding for a reason and I don’t want some clumsy human to be the reason that their numbers go down again. I’m Hyunjin by the way.” Hyunjin climbs up his hair and stands right on top of his head, “I’ll give you an air bubble so you’ll stay dry too.”

“Thanks…?” Changbin trails off as he watches a translucent bubble wrap around him, suddenly very aware of how quiet it is inside of the spell. “Woah,” he gasps when he hears his voice bouncing back to him. 

“Yeah, there’s a lot of echo in this bubble and you’ll still feel cold, but it’ll help you get home,” he mumbles. “Walk towards where (Y/n) is.” 

“(Y/n)?”

“The mermaid.” The tiny creature stays on Changbin’s head as he walks towards the pool. “She’s too nice to humans for her own good. I told her a billion times to not interact with them, but she still goes ahead and saves you.” Ouch. Changbin makes a mental note that Hyunjin’s a bit of a dick, but he knows that if he says anything now, the sprite might just leave him in the cave to die. 

Honestly, Changbin doesn’t really blame Hyunjin for not liking humans. His species has unfortunately had a very bad history with the other creatures that live in the same world as them. Where humans had dominated the entire world, forcing every other creature into a form of either submission or alliance, merfolk were only deemed extinct presumably due to the insane water pollution. The other creatures don’t exactly like the humans either. Even without any sort of magic, humans had still managed to force every species to live simultaneously despite destroying everything else. 

“(Y/n) has to push you back to the beach,” Hyunjin speaks up as Changbin slowly climbs into the water. “I’ll dry your clothes and get your phone working once we’re there, but only if you promise not to tell anyone about her.” The human notes how the bubble’s temperature slowly starts to drop. Changbin would probably succumb to the cold of the water if he wasn’t wearing the coat.

“So, the merfolk still exist?” Changbin questions once he’s completely submerged in the water. It’s a strange feeling to be floating so effortlessly despite being able to feel the force of the waves and the water moving around him. Once in the water, he has a slightly better view of the mermaid swimming closer to him. Unfortunately, he’s only barely able to make out the colour of her scales with how dark it is underwater. Her turquoise tail is long, lighter blue scales scattering her body and fading into a more human-like tone as they her torso. Her ‘hair’ is just as it’s described in theory in Changbin’s classes; it’s just an added fin that grows out and only appears like it’s hair. He wonders whether it’s as soft as scientists had described it to be. 

“Yes, they still exist,” Hyunjin nods before muttering something to (Y/n). The mermaid nods, moving closer to rest her hands against the bubble and starts to push it through the water. “Merfolk got so scared for their existence that they decided to ‘go extinct’ to protect themselves. Humans were pushing them beyond their limits as a living, feeling species.” 

“Well yeah, humans are greedy,” he sighs. “What about the other creatures?” 

“Dragons don’t really care since they can eat you guys in seconds. Most pegasi stay in their own dimension unless they’re needed here; that’s why you don’t see them as much anymore. Kobolds stay hidden in ships, werewolves stay in the mountains and vampires build their own mansions away from human civilisations. Most of the creatures that can travel to their own world try to stay away from your world for the sake of their own safety.”

“Have we really pushed you guys that far?” Changbin turns to his shoulder when he feels Hyunjin move off of his head. 

“Unfortunately, yes,” the sprite nods. “Soon, your world will be rid of magical creatures because they’ve run away and we’ll go to becoming nothing but myths for your future generations.” He turns around to mutter something to (Y/n) as they approach the beach. “Start walking. We can’t risk (Y/n) being seen. At least if they see me on your shoulder, they’ll think I’m the only one helping you.” Changbin does as Hyunjin says, starting to walk just as the bubble hits the inclining ground underneath the water and moving towards where the waves hit the beach. He turns around for a moment giving a wave towards the mermaid who returns it with a small smile on her face. 

“Thanks, Hyunjin,” Changbin says as he's back on the beach and the sprite hovers right in front of him. “I won’t tell anyone about this.” 

“You better,” he clicks his tongue in annoyance. “I knew it was a bad idea for her to linger in shallow waters.” Hyunjin does as he promises, using his magic to dry up Changbin’s clothes as well as getting his phone back to working order. “Be more careful next time. You humans are always so reckless when it comes to your life.” 

“I was just curious,” he shrugs in response, watching his phone start up. 

“Too curious for your own good.” Changbin ignores the comment. His eyes widen when he sees the messages spamming his phone from Jisung and Felix. 

“Shit,” he curses softly as he quickly replies to the both of them. 

“Head on home before your friends worry,” Hyunjin says when he hears the spammed sound of the notification. Changbin sticks his phone back into his pocket before looking back at the sprite. 

“Again, thank you. I’ll try not to fall into the water next time.” 

“In the chance that it ever happens again, just call out for me. I’ll be able to hear you,” he gives the human a smile and Changbin thinks that he may not be as cold as he would like to show. “But if you fall too many times, I might consider just leaving you there,” Hyunjin snickers right after. 

“Okay, now you’re just being an ass,” he scoffs with a smile on his face. “I’ll be more careful next time, I promise.”

Changbin wakes to the sound of his alarm beeping from the other side of his room, something he does to force him to get out of bed. He lets out a whiney groan as he rolls over, willing himself to ignore it until the alarm snoozes. Jisung, however, refuses to allow that. 

The bedroom door swings open to a very disgruntled looking Jisung who marches over to Changbin’s bed and whacks him with a pillow, “It’s a fucking Sunday, turn the damn thing off.” 

“You’re already here—you do it,” he yawns. Jisung’s face twinges with annoyance as he whacks Changbin another time. “God—I. Ah!” Changbin yells, thrashing around his bed before sitting up to see the younger still staring at him. “I’ll turn it off! You can leave!” 

“I also wanted to let you know that Felix’s already up and making breakfast,” he mumbles, standing at the edge of his bed like a Sims character. 

“Give me twenty minutes,” he grumbles and lays back down. 

“If you’re not out by then, I’m eating your portion,” Jisung giggles mischievously as he scrambles out of his room. 

“Fuck you,” Changbin groans as he kicks the cushion by his foot and sends it flying in Jisung’s direction, only for it to hit the door just as he closes it. Changbin rolls over in his bed, too lazy to actually go ahead and turn the alarm off and instead opts for just letting it snooze on it’s own. He stays in bed for a little longer before dragging himself out and to his desk across the room where his phone is. He doesn’t remember setting an alarm for the weekends, so Changbin assumes that he must’ve accidentally turned on one of the weekend alarms without realising it. 

Making sure to turn the alarm off, Changbin sighs as he looks through his notifications to make sure he hasn’t received anything important overnight. Once certain that there’s nothing important, he moves to taking a shower and putting on the black hoodie he wears everyday along with his jeans before stepping out of his room and making his way towards the dining room where Felix and Jisung are. 

“You took twenty-one minutes,” Jisung giggles, “means I get your serving of waffles.” Just as he’s about to reach for the waffle-filled plate, Felix swats at his hand with the silicone spatula. 

“Those are for Changbin hyung, you dick,” he scolds, earning a whine and a pout from the hungry boy. 

“Thanks, Felix,” Changbin hums as he sits down and pulls the plate towards him. “Do you guys have anything important today?” 

“It’s Sunday,” Felix shakes his head, “I’ve finished all my assignments for this week, so I’m probably just going to head back to bed after breakfast.” 

“Same for me,” Jisung hums with a mouthful of food. “I have an assignment due Tuesday, but that’s for something future Sungie has to handle.” 

“I’ll do it for you,” he offers and sits himself down, digging into his own plate of waffles. 

Changbin scoffs at that, “stop doing Jisung’s assignments for him. He should be paying you.” 

“He does pay me,” Felix corrects him, “he gives me five dollars for every two hundred words that I write.”

“I really shouldn’t be condoning this behaviour,” he sighs before turning to Jisung. “Damn it, Ji, cut Felix some slack!” 

“I don’t ask him to do it, he offers and I just pay him afterwards,” Jisung shrugs as he takes another bite of his waffle. “Don’t worry about it, the university won’t know.” 

“You know, that’s not the point, but I doubt that I can stop you…” Changbin trails off. He feels like he should be at least a bit more strict with his friends, but he also knows that Jisung really couldn’t give two shits about his academics. He just happened to luck out when he met Felix; a weed dealer who doesn’t even have to try to write papers worth distinctions. Jisung’s less book smart than he is street smart. He spends his time making friends with not-so-nice people that actually offer more convenience to him than they do company. As much as they have very questionable morals, they’re loyal to Jisung only because he sells them Felix’s edibles at a good price. 

Changbin, on the other hand, is in between the two of them. He doesn’t have a 4.0 GPA like Felix does and even though he’s more extroverted than Jisung is, he prefers not to go around and make friends with dangerous people. Changbin’s just… Changbin. He’s turning twenty-four soon, he’s in his final year of university and he’s spent his entire academic life getting slightly higher than average grades and as extroverted as he is, Changbin prefers sticking to his small group of friends. He’s able to blend into groups and make friends easily, but Felix and Jisung are the only friends that he’s actually willingly kept around for more than two years. 

“Hyung, if you want me to do your assignments, I’ll do them,” Felix offers, “no charge.” 

“Uhh, I’ll pass,” Changbin shakes his head. “I’m pretty sure it’ll be suspicious because my grades would jump from merits to distinctions overnight.” 

“Ah, I can dumb them down for you, I don’t mind.” 

“Felix, you’re not doing my assignments.” 

“Felix writes great essays, though!” Jisung pipes up. 

“Ji, you should really be doing your own assignments, man,” Changbin sighs. 

“I do do my assignments,” he huffs, “I just need the extra help sometimes.” 

“I don’t mind either way—it’s better than watching you guys fail,” Felix shrugs. Changbin can’t stop the smile that makes its way on his face when he sees Jisung trying to steal some of Felix’s food. “No, dude, fuck off,” Felix grumbles as he swats his hand away. 

“I just want a little more,” Jisung gives him a toothy grin as he stabs his fork into the waffle. 

“Jisung! Fuck off! This is mine!” Felix slaps his hand away, but it doesn’t stop Jisung who continues to try and steal his food. Changbin breathes out a laugh as he watches them fight, wondering whether or not he needs to get involved before deciding that it’s too early in the morning for him to do anything. 

Changbin stands on the shoreline, cigarette between his fingers as he looks out at the ocean. Only this time, he’s looking for the mermaid. Maybe he’s foolish for thinking that she’d return after the whole incident and Hyunjin—most likely scolding her for letting a human see her—having to save him, but Changbin wants to know more about her species. Even if he can’t communicate with her, maybe he’d be able to get a better look at her tail… which is kinda creepy. Changbin’s being creepy. 

He groans when he realises how weird he seems, taking a huff from his cig and letting his chest fill with warmth, but he almost chokes when he sees the familiar figure watching him from the distance, head poking out of the water. It’s the mermaid! 

And Hyunjin

Changbin feels himself shrinking when he sees the water sprite flying towards him, stopping right in front of his face with his hands on his hips. “Back at the beach again?” Hyunjin raises an eyebrow. Changbin’s about to answer when the sprite starts sniffing the air, his gaze moving down to look at the cigarette in his hand. “Oh.” 

“What ‘oh’?” 

“Is that why (Y/n) says you’re here all the time?” he questions as he turns back up. 

“Uhhh, yeah,” Changbin nods. Hyunjin clicks his tongue repeatedly as he shakes his head. 

“That’s unhealthy.”

“Yeah I know,” he rolls his eyes. 

“It’s not good for the environment either,” Hyunjin adds as he moves to sit on his shoulder. “People just leave them lying around everywhere and sprites are usually the ones who clean them up because it’s gross.” 

“I actually throw them away properly, so the littering isn’t something you have to worry about,” Changbin mutters as he takes a drag. “I’ve been trying to stop for a while, cut me some slack.” 

Hyunjin gives him a look but decides against pressing him further about it and instead changes the subject, “(Y/n) wouldn’t stop bugging me about coming back to the beach. She said she wants to talk to you.” 

“What?” His head turns to look at the sprite who shrugs. 

“She’s never interacted with a human before—she’s curious.” Hyunjin keeps his eyes on (Y/n)’s figure in the distance. “You remember the rocky part of the coast you were on before you fell off? (Y/n) wants you to move there so that she can get closer to you.” Changbin’s surprised. He would’ve expected her to at least be scared instead of curious, but he obliges and makes his way towards the rocks, climbing onto the cold, damp stone and carefully making his way towards the edge. He sits right on the edge just as (Y/n)’s head pops out of the water. “Say hello.” 

“Uhm, hi,” Changbin waves at her. She smiles as she returns the wave, webbed hand raising out of the water shyly. 

“I’m gonna start saying this from her point-of-view,” the sprite tells Changbin as he turns to him before turning to (Y/n) and saying something to her. She nods immediately, speaking in her language. 

“I was so worried when you fell into the water. I heard that humans can’t handle this kind of cold like the other creatures can.” 

“Ah,” Changbin laughs awkwardly. “I was just trying to get a closer look at you since I thought that merfolk were extinct.” (Y/n) looks at Hyunjin as he speaks and she smiles, making the human feel less sheepish. 

“Then I’ll assume that I’m the first mermaid you’ve ever seen.” 

“That’s right,” he nods. “I’ve always been interested in merfolk and the ocean in general.” 

“Ahh, then maybe one day I can take you into the ocean when it’s not so cold and I can properly show you my tail!” Changbin blushes at that. (Y/n)’s smiling brightly at him with her hands clasped together. 

“I think she’s as interested in humans as you are with merfolk,” Hyunjin chuckles when he sees how excited she looks. “You should tell her about what it’s like to walk around with legs. She thinks that’s fascinating.” 

“Legs?” he turns to Hyunjin in confusion. How would Changbin be able to explain what legs are like? He’s never had to think about how his muscles function before. “I don’t know how else to explain that and I wouldn’t think that (Y/n) would be able to explain how swimming with a tail would feel like either.” 

“Wait…” the sprite trails off before realising how awkward that would be. “Yeah, never mind.”

“What’s that thing you put in your mouth every night?” Changbin turns away from Hyunjin to look at (Y/n) who’s looking at him with bright eyes holding wonder. 

“Oh, uhh, it’s a cigarette,” his hand moves to rub the back of his neck awkwardly. “I-I doubt that merfolk could actually really understand what it is, but it makes my stress lighter.”

“How can that tiny stick do that?” 

Changbin pauses before he lets out a deep sigh and shrugs, “it’s…”

“Magic,” Hyunjin blurts out. “I’ll just tell her it’s magic. She won’t understand what drugs are.”

“Do merfolk not have some form of drugs?” Changbin asks. 

“They do,” he nods, “but they think it’s magic. Don’t tell them that pufferfish are venomous—they’re going to tell you they’re magical and just make them high,” Hyunjin snickers. 

“I didn’t realise humans have magical abilities.” 

“Humans have… some,” he hums. 

“Keep in mind that you can use the ‘magic’ card any time you don’t know how to explain something to her,” Hyunjin whispers in his ear as though (Y/n) can understand him. 

“Well, some of it is magic and some of it we just find convenience from what the Earth offers us,” Changbin continues. (Y/n) lets out a hum, her figure lowering into the water to keep the gills on her neck under the waves before she comes back up slightly. 

“Hyunjin keeps telling me that humans are dangerous, but I don’t think you’re that dangerous.” The human turns to the sprite who looks at (Y/n) with narrowed eyes as he translates her words. 

“Well,” Changbin adjusts himself into a more comfortable position, his legs crossing underneath him, “it’s like humans saying sharks are dangerous. It’s a cautionary thing rather than a general thing. Humans just don’t care much for the Earth.” 

“Is that why there’s so much of your plastic in the ocean?” Changbin nods, a heavy sigh leaving past his lips. “Those bags have killed more of the creatures in my ocean than any human actually has.” 

“We know,” his lips purse into a straight line. “The only people that seem to care aren’t in actual positions of power to change that, so…” 

“That’s stupid,” (Y/n) huffs as she crosses her arms across her chest. Changbin’s eyes widen and he moves back in shock when he realises that he understood her. 

“I got tired of translating, so you guys get put under a spell that lets you both understand each other,” Hyunjin lets out a sigh as he moves to sit on the rocks beside Changbin, his arms holding him up as he smiles. 

“Y-Yeah, it is,” Changbin chuckles nervously. With Hyunjin resting by his side, Changbin feels more at ease with talking to (Y/n). He doesn’t feel so weird about it since the water sprite was literally translating what he was saying to the mermaid, making Changbin feel a bit more comfortable with the situation.

“Tell me more about humans.”

“What else is there to tell?” he tilts his head questioningly. 

“Could I touch your hand? I’ve never felt human skin before,” (Y/n)’s hand slowly nudges out of the water as she asks him and Changbin honestly feels like her sentence could’ve easily come out of a serial killer. 

“S-Sure,” he glances over at Hyunjin who shrugs in response. The human carefully moves to lay on his stomach as he holds his hand out towards the water where (Y/n) gently reaches out as well. The water isn’t too far away from the rock, making it easier for Changbin to actually allow the mermaid to hold onto his hand.

Immediately when her webbed hands touch his, she gasps, “your hands are so rough!” Her hands gently hold onto his individual fingers, pulling them away from each other and just examining it. Changbin’s lips purse together again as he just lets her do whatever she wants. “Oh, these must be fingernails,” (Y/n) mutters to herself as she lets her own fingers gently graze over his nails. Her hands are pretty much as soft as human’s skin, but Changbin would think that they feel way softer and more like what fish skin feels like without the scales. Even in the dark of night, he’s able to note where (Y/n)’s skin actually has scales and where they’re exposed. 

Only her shoulders are held above the water, her shoulders scattered with dark turquoise scales that crawl up the sides of her neck and face, barely covering the gills of her neck. Changbin also notes how the scales seem to lead down her back more than they do over her front… but he doesn’t want to look down any further because from what he remembers, merfolk don’t have anything covering their chests. 

“It’s so strange how your fingers don’t have fins connecting them,” (Y/n) speaks up after a moment. 

“We don’t live in the water, so we don’t need the fins to help us move around,” he explains. “Like our hair—it’s not a fin like yours is. Yours is supposed to help you move around in the water, but our hair is just… well it’s hair.” 

“Could I touch your hair?” she asks gently. Changbin’s cheeks redden as he—awkwardly—tries to lower his head off of the rocks without falling in. (Y/n) moves closer to the edge, one hand reaching up to hold onto the rocks before she takes a deep breath and pulls herself up so that she’s closer to his head. Changbin thanks the Lord that her chest is clothed with what looks like a top made out of marine plants. Her wet fingers gently hold onto his hair and her eyes widen further as she drops herself back into the water. “That feels so strange!” she exclaims. “Merfolk don’t actually have hair. They’re more like the fins on our fingers.” 

“Could I feel it?” Changbin asks. (Y/n) nods excitedly and pulls herself out of the water once again to briefly allow the human to touch her fins. His fingers run across the smooth fin, his lips parting in awe at the way it feels because it’s just as his textbooks say, if not softer. “That’s so cool,” he breathes out once she’s lowered herself back into the water. “Your skin feels smooth like fish skin.” 

“Well, yeah, we are technically fishes,” (Y/n) chuckles. “I would love to take you into the water to show you my tail, but I don’t think you’ll be able to see anything in the dark.” 

“I also can’t breathe underwater,” he reminds her. Her lips form an ‘o’ at the realisation and (Y/n) turns to Hyunjin with a smile on her face. 

“I’m not putting any more spells on Changbin,” the sprite shakes his head. “I’m tired, it’s almost 4 a.m., I’m not doing that.” Wait a minute, 4 a.m.?!

“Oh shit,” Changbin sits up and whips his phone out of pocket only to realise that Hyunjin’s right. “Shit, I have to get home before my friends start to worry.” He looks back to (Y/n) to see how her mood’s visibly dampened, a frown pulling on her lips. “I can’t spend too long away or else they get upset and I don’t want to worry them.” 

“Will you return tomorrow?” she questions.

He nods with a reassuring smile, “I promise I’ll be back here tomorrow at the same time.”

“Alright,” (Y/n)’s eyes light up and Changbin thinks it’s cute. “Goodnight, Changbin.”

“You too, (Y/n).” 

Changbin wakes the next morning and for the first time in a while, he’s awake before his alarm starts ringing. His eyes look around his bedroom as he wonders why he’s awake so early when he’s pretty sure he slept at 5 a.m after getting back from the beach. He sits up, feeling even weirder when he realises that he feels super refreshed. Changbin looks around his room as he throws his covers off of himself, standing up and making his way towards his desk to pick up his phone. 

7:26 a.m.

His alarm won’t ring until 9 and his classes are only in the afternoon., which makes Changbin wonder why he’s awake so early? Felix and Jisung are definitely still asleep—both of them barely ever have morning classes—and Changbin contemplates what to do since he doesn’t feel like he’ll be able to fall asleep again. 

The beach!

Changbin perks up. He can visit the beach. No one would be there so early in the morning! He doesn’t even bother to shower—he can always shower when he gets back before he heads to campus—so he just throws on one of his really thick jackets, grabs his pack of cigarettes and his phone before quietly stepping out of the house, making sure to leave Felix a text to let him know where he’s heading. 

His body stiffens when he feels the cold wind slap him in the face, regretting not grabbing his beanie before leaving, but Changbin doesn’t feel like heading back into the house because he doesn’t want to waste any time. By the time he reaches the beach, the Sun’s raised just a little bit more and the tide is still low. He climbs to the rocky coast he was at the night before, sitting on the edge and looking out at the ocean, hoping maybe Hyunjin or (Y/n) are lingering around anywhere.

Changbin feels himself perk up when he sees a familiar set of eyes peeking out from just above the water’s surface, (Y/n)’s head immediately lifting out of the water with a big smile on her face when she realises who it is. 

“You’re out here early,” she comments when she swims to the rocks. 

“Kinda surprised myself,” he chuckles. “I’m not awake this early and my alarm will only ring in a few hours.” 

“You left the beach only two hours ago,” (Y/n) claims. 

Changbin nods at that, “which makes this a bit more confusing on my end.” 

“It’s because I casted a spell on you,” Hyunjin’s voice speaks up as he emerges from the water. “I had a feeling you would have trouble sleeping, so I casted a sleep spell on your mind to get you refreshed in a few hours time.” 

“Oh,” he watches as the sprite moves to stand on his knee, “thank you, Hyunjin. I haven’t gotten proper sleep in so long.” 

“Don’t mention it,” he smiles as he takes a seat on Changbin’s knee. Hyunjin’s change in personality towards the human makes him wonder whether the sprite’s already starting to warm up to him.

“Changbin.” (Y/n)’s voice makes him turn back to look at the mermaid. “What do you do during the day?” 

“I’m a student, so I’m usually at college until the evening,” he hums, “after I get home, I just spend the rest of the day with my housemates until it’s past midnight and I come to the beach to clear my mind.” She lets out an ‘ooh’ while Changbin talks, intently listening to everything he has to tell. “I live with two of my friends. They’re also college students, so we like to get things done together.”

“Are they nice?” 

“They’re amazing,” he chuckles. “I love them. Jisung made a Spotify playlist for the three of us once and it’s all we listen to now. He’s a nice guy, but sometimes he gets a bit crazy and thrashes the house until Felix has the urge to lock him outside of the house. Felix likes to cook, so he makes us breakfast and dinner. He’s a good cook.”

“Your friends sound like good company,” Hyunjin muses. 

“Very much so,” Changbin nods feverishly. “They’re really important to me. Whenever I’m at the beach for too long at night, Jisung’s usually the one to text me and ask me to come home. If I don’t respond to him, then Felix will call me instead.” 

“So that night when you fell into the water, it was your friends that you mentioned?” (Y/n) asks. 

“Yeah, they scolded me when I got home because I just said that I lost track of time.” Changbin leans back on his arms, getting himself more comfortable. “I feel bad because I worry them a lot. They don’t usually say anything about it, but I can tell that they’d really wish I would be a bit more aware of what’s happening around me.” 

“Why so?” 

“The cigarettes are one thing,” he pulls the pack out of the pocket of his jacket and shows it to (Y/n), “Jisung wishes I would stop because he doesn’t want anything bad happening to me in the future. Felix hints at it sometimes, but he can’t say much about it because he smokes weed every once in a while.” 

“Weed?” (Y/n)’s head tilts curiously. 

“It gives the same effect as pufferfish magic,” Hyunjin explains and her lips part in understanding. 

“Yeah, but cigs are unhealthy,” Changbin continues. “I’ve tried stopping before, but every time I try, I end up crawling back to them.”

(Y/n) stays quiet for a moment before hey eyes flick to Hyunjin. “Hyunjin, could you cast a spell on me so that I can breathe above water?” The sprite whips his head towards her and his eyebrows furrow. 

“Why?” his eyes narrow. 

“Just do it.” Hyunjin hesitates before sighing, climbing off of Changbin’s lap to jump onto (Y/n)’s head. Changbin watches as he holds his hands out, palms facing outwards before a bright light flashes from his hands. 

“That should do the trick,” he mutters as he jumps off of her head to return to his previous spot on Changbin’s knee. (Y/n) blinks a few times before diving into the water only to jump out and grab onto the rocks, moving to sit beside Changbin where her tail hangs into the water. The human stares at her with wide eyes, only now aware of just how vibrant the colours of her scales are in the light of the day. 

To Changbin’s shock, (Y/n) grabs onto his pack of cigs out of his hands and pulls the top open, pulling one of them out. She looks at it for a moment before throwing it into the ocean along with the rest of the pack. 

“(Y/n)!” Hyunjin gasps. Changbin’s eyes almost bulge out of his skull as he watches the pack fly out until it splashes into the water. “What are you doing?! You’re littering!” The sprite squeals as he flies out to chase after the pack of cigarettes that’s now unusable. 

“I know,” she shrugs as she turns back to the human, “but if it helps you with stopping something that’s unhealthy, then so be it.” His jaw drops when he sees the way (Y/n)’s shoulders slump, her body relaxing as she looks out at the horizon. She turns to him and tilts her head questioningly. 

“Oh,” he snaps out of his trance, “it’s nothing. I just—you do realise I can buy another pack, right?” 

“If you buy another pack, I’ll throw that one out too,” she simply says. 

“You’re adding to the pollution, (Y/n),” Hyunjin huffs when he returns. “The sprites are going to be really mad at you if I’m not able to get rid of them before they find it.”

“Then just always stay at my side,” (Y/n) grins as she pets his head with her finger. Hyunjin whines as he shoves her hand away from him. Changbin watches at the way she interacts with him, his heart filling with a sense of joy at the way she continuously teases Hyunjin and how he seems like the more stable friend in their dynamic; it reminds him of his friends. “Changbin?” Her voice snaps him out of his thoughts. 

“Hm? Yeah?” he shakes his head for a moment. 

“You alright?”

“Y-Yeah,” Changbin nods, “I was just… thinking.” (Y/n) smiles. 

“What kind of thoughts move around in your human brain?” He puffs his cheeks with air as he turns away to look at the ocean, humming in thought as he wonders what else he should share with her. 

“I feel like I’ve spoken a lot about myself since we’ve met,” Changbin says after a moment and turns to look at (Y/n), “tell me more about you.” Her eyes widen in surprise, realising that he has been only talking about the human world. 

“I don’t know what to start with,” she hums as her back subconsciously straightens. 

“What’s it like living underwater? Do mermaids live in something similar to cities?”

(Y/n)’s lips jut out in a small pout as she thinks about it, something that Changbin notes as cute in his mind. “Kind of. Water sprites merfolk pretty much live together, so we use their magic to build structures. Merfolk don’t have the same machines that humans do, all we have is magic and using similar machines would actually hurt the ocean.”

“Do you live with other merfolk?” he questions. 

“I live in my own cave,” she shakes her head, “Hyunjin’s the only one that lives with me because I’ve known him since forever and my parents thought it would be safer if I actually lived with another creature.” Silence falls between them, Hyunjin starting to zone out because he’s starting to feel like a third-wheel. (Y/n) and Changbin sit by each other’s sides, looking out at the ocean and letting the sound of the water moving fill the space instead. “Would you like to come into the ocean one day?” she asks as she turns to look at Changbin. 

He turns to her and nods, “it’s too cold for me to go into the water. The winter cold is harsh to humans.” 

“Spring is in a few weeks. We can wait for then.”

“What are you doing for Spring break?” Felix asks as he plops himself onto the couch, head dropping onto Changbin’s lap. Jisung emerges from his room not long after, falling directly onto his unfortunate housemate who yells in response. “Ji, what the fuck?!” he groans. 

“Hmm, comfy,” Jisung giggles as he rubs his face onto Felix’s t-shirt. The blond sighs, knowing that he can’t push Jisung off and instead just accepts the fact that he is now a cushion. 

“Spring break?” Changbin questions, completely ignoring the fact that Jisung is crushing Felix. “I think I’m staying here. My parents have work so they’re gonna be flying out a lot. My sister’s still in Norway, so even if I move back home, I’ll be lonely.” 

“We can keep you company,” Jisung hums. “My parents are out of town, so I’ll only be going home in the last week of Spring.” 

“My family thinks it’ll be better if I wait since I’m already planning on heading back to Australia during Summer break,” Felix hums as well. 

“Then I guess it’s back to our trio shenanigans,” Changbin chuckles as he looks up at the TV. He feels slightly The screen’s hooked up to Felix’s Netflix and he put on whatever he was watching last which just so happened to be Bunny Girl Senpai. 

“Is that girl wearing a bunny costume?” Jisung questions as he sits upright to look at the screen properly.

“Yeah,” he nods. “Why? You a furry?” 

Jisung scoffs, “you’re the most likely to be a furry, Lix. You’re girlfriend’s a puppy hybrid.” 

“Doesn’t mean I’m a furry, Sung,” Felix shoots up, “that’s fucking mean and don’t ever say that in front of Ava.”

“Furry.” 

“You’re a dick,” he scoffs as he returns to laying his head on Changbin’s lap. 

“Jisung, you do remember that the guy you have a crush on now is a cat hybrid, right?” Changbin snorts. 

“Yeah!” Felix huffs. “Minho hyung’s a cat hybrid!”

“I don’t have a crush on Minho hyung, I have a crush on KC!” he whines before slapping his hand over his mouth. Felix and Changbin’s heads whip to him with wide eyes. 

“You do have a crush on KC!” he gasps. 

“Looks like we were right all along,” Changbin chuckles. Jisung pauses before letting out a sigh followed by a whine when he realises what he’s done. 

“Be glad that I don’t go share the same classes as you and KC or else I’d tease you all the time,” Felix snickers. Jisung scowls at that as he stands up, muttering curses under his breath as he heads back into his bedroom. 

The two giggle as they watch him. “What about you, Changbin hyung?” Felix turns to look at him. “Do you have anyone that has your eye?” 

“We’re not tweens, Lix,” he snorts. 

“Doesn’t mean that we can’t talk about relationships,” he claims. 

Changbin sighs, “no, I do not have anyone on my mind.” (Y/n). His brain momentarily halts when he remembers the mermaid. “No one on campus has really caught my attention,” he hums. Felix side-eyes him as he turns to look at the TV, the feeling that Changbin’s lying lingering in his gut. He’s known his housemate long enough to tell when he’s lying and Felix can already see it from the way he blinks exactly three times after speaking. Talk about being observant. 

“If you get a partner, you’d tell us, right?” 

“Of course,” Changbin nods as he pats Felix’s head. Hyunjin watches from the ceiling, cloaked with an invisibility spell as he watches the way Changbin interacts with his friends. He knows he shouldn’t be there, it’s definitely already breached the line of being protective over his best friend and now it’s pretty much just stalking, but Hyunjin’s paranoia got the best of him. 

“Ji, if you don’t come back out, then I won’t share my popcorn with you!” Felix yells, shortly hearing the sound of Jisung’s bedroom door opening followed by his footsteps scrambling into the living room.

“Ah, don’t do that to Jisung,” Changbin laughs, “share your popcorn with him, Lix.” 

“This is a piece of dead coral that I picked up on the way here.” (Y/n) places the greyed invertebrate into Changbin’s hands. The human looks at it in awe, amazed at the structure of it. Ever since (Y/n)’s started becoming more confident with talking to the human, Hyunjin’s been using his magic to help Changbin safely reach a cave that’s more secluded to keep any other human eyes away from the mermaid. 

“This could help a lot with a research paper I’m writing about coral reefs,” the human hums as he examines it. 

“I don’t think there’s anything else I could show you outside of the water,” she confesses softly by his side. Hyunjin’s magic also helped with letting (Y/n) breathe out of water, meaning that she’s able to actually sit on the rocks with Changbin now. Hyunjin had casted the same spell he did many times before to allow them to understand each other before disappearing because he always feels like a third-wheel around the two. The water sprite can already see that they both fancy each other, but he prefers not to say anything. 

“If it hurts to bring it out,” Changbin turns to look at her and smiles, “please don’t. I don’t want anything dying because you wanted to show it to me.” 

(Y/n) stares at him for a moment before nodding, a small smile pulling at her lips. “Maybe when it’s warmer, I could bring you into the water and show you what lies on the ocean floor. From what my parents have told me, there’s a lot of things that humans still haven’t discovered.”

“I think we’ve only actually managed to uncover about a small chunk of it—most of that with the help of water sprites and merfolk,” he nods, slipping the coral into the pocket of his coat. “But I don’t think we’ve been able to actually discover much when your species started hiding away from us.” 

“I fear that if humans re-discover our existence would only bring more harm to my people,” (Y/n) sighs. “I want to interact with your people more, but they scare me.” 

“I personally think it’s better if you stay away from us,” Changbin chuckles. “They won’t treat your kind nicely. It’s as Hyunjin says; magical creatures are running away from humans because they fear for their own safety.” The mermaid stays quiet, realising that she’s put herself at a very vulnerable situation by interacting with the human regularly. Had she been more careless, she could’ve been caught by someone who had malicious intent. “My friends still don’t know you exist, by the way,” he turns to look at her, “they think I just come to the beach to smoke.” 

“But you’ve stopped, haven’t you?” (Y/n)’s head tilts slightly. 

Changbin lets out an awkward laugh, “yeaaah, they don’t know that either.” 

“What would they do if they found out about me?” He pauses at her question. He knows that Felix and Jisung wouldn’t do anything to (Y/n) intentionally, but he also knows that they might want to see her, which would end up scaring her instead. 

“I’m worried that they might scare you,” he confesses with a chuckle. “Felix and Jisung are very… excited people. I feel like they might say something that could scare you.” 

“Are they anything like you?” she further asks. 

“Hmm,” Changbin hums, thinking about it for a moment, “they’re louder than I am—which is funny because Jisung’s an introvert—but they’re nice people. I’m just worried they might make you uncomfortable.” (Y/n) hums at that as she turns away from him to look out of the cave. 

“Would I ever be able to meet them? They sound important to you,” she says softly. 

“Maybe one day,” he shrugs, turning to follow her gaze. Their meetings are still mostly at night, meaning that Changbin gets more views of the ocean in the night than he does in the day. He thinks the ocean is gorgeous every night, but tonight is particularly serene to him. The waves are calmer than they usually are and the full moon is glowing brightly in the sky, sending a beautiful reflection off of the water. When he turns back to (Y/n), she’s staring at him, her pupils dilated, meaning she’s calm; something that Changbin’s managed to learn over the time that he's known her. Her pupils change like a cat’s does, showing her mood. He feels his stomach flutter at her gaze. 

“Sometimes I wonder what it’s like to live as a human,” (Y/n) starts, “but I also know that it would be foolish of me to give up my home in the ocean to live as a species that even has sirens wary of.” Ah right. Changbin realises that if merfolk still exist, then it’s likely that sirens still do as well since they were declared extinct not long after merfolk were. “Even though I know that, I still wonder how different it must be on land.”

“Humans are dangerous creatures, (Y/n),” Changbin mutters. “A lot of us wouldn’t hesitate to put our greed first. They would hurt you.”

She lets out a bitter laugh at that, “I know, but as Hyunjin says, my curiosity tends to get the best of me.” He turns to look at her to see the way she’s staring down at her hands. “I understand why we hide. I understand why the merfolk around me are so wary of the fact that I linger in shallow water, but I just wanted to see what humans are like. The only one I’ve ever encountered is you.” (Y/n) looks away from her hands and turns to Changbin, “but you’re not anything like I’ve heard humans are.” Changbin can feel his entire face getting hot and his ears heating up as well, the butterflies in his stomach once again erupting like they did before. “I think I’m lucky that you’re the person I encountered rather than someone else. Hyunjin says that too.” 

“Really? I feel like Hyunjin doesn’t like me, though.”

“Ah, he’s just like that,” she laughs. “Hyunjin acts all cold on the outside, but he’s really just a softy on the inside. He really likes you, but he’ll kill me if he ever finds out that I’m saying this to you. The only reason why he acts so cautious around you is because he’s worried that he may have read you wrong.” 

“He really cares about you, huh?” Changbin hums. 

(Y/n) nods, “sometimes I like to do dumb things because his reactions are always really funny.” She looks down at her hands once again before sliding herself into the water. “My skin is starting to dry out, I’m sorry,” she mutters before dipping her entire head underneath and popping back out. 

“Does anything happen if your skin dries out?” 

“It starts to hurt after a while,” she shakes her head, “but if I didn’t have Hyunjin’s spell on me, then I’d suffocate on land faster.” (Y/n) rests her arms on the edge of the cave entrance, keeping herself afloat as her chin moves to rest on the back of her hands. She watches Changbin whose eyes are glued to the night sky. She wonders why she feels so much adoration towards him. He turns away from the sky to look at (Y/n), this time holding her gaze as he tilts his head. 

“Something on your mind?” he questions. She stares at him a moment longer before climbing out of the water and returning to her spot beside him. 

“Nothing much,” (Y/n) hums. She stretches her back, letting out a small yawn before resting her head on Changbin’s shoulder, the human tensing when he feels her. “I’m just thinking about some things.” He prefers not to question her sudden skinship because honestly? Changbin doesn’t want her to move. He kinda likes it. He ignores the fact that her wet skin is making his shoulder wet instead, letting his hand move behind her. 

When (Y/n) wakes up, Hyunjin’s floating right in front of her face. “You’re finally up,” the sprite comments as he moves away. 

“Huh?” The mermaid sits up and looks around in her bedroom. When did she get home? “What happened?”

“Changbin said you fell asleep while you were talking in the cave, so he called me and I brought you back home.” He floats away from her and towards her door, “you should really be more careful, (Y/n). Changbin won’t be the one who will hurt you—that I‘m sure of—but I fear that another human may find you and be the one who hurts you.” (Y/n) silently watches as he leaves, a sudden sense of fear running through her. Changbin definitely wouldn’t hurt her, but the chances of someone else finding her while she’s waiting for him just might be the reason she would get caught. 

(Y/n) sighs softly as she climbs off of the bed of algae, her tail pushing her towards the door where she pauses for a moment. How dangerous would it be if she were to grow feelings for Changbin? Her hand grips onto the doorknob as she thinks about it. What would happen if someone else found out that Changbin’s been hiding her from the world? Would he end up being reprimanded? (Y/n) sighs before opening her door, pushing the thought out of her head and heading into the living room where Hyunjin is hovering around, flying from wall to wall as he cleans up. 

The sprite turns around at the sound of her door, “Changbin asked if it was possible for him to bring his friends to the beach.”

“Oh.” Hyunjin stares at her for a moment longer before sighing, placing the gemstones in his hands onto the shelf before moving towards her. 

“Are you sure you want to meet more humans?” he asks. Hyunjin feels like he trusts Changbin enough to bring only good people to meet (Y/n), but he still worries about how she feels. “You tend to rush into things, I just wanna make sure.” 

“I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that,” she confesses. “Is it bad that I do? I know it’s dangerous, but I want to know more about Changbin.” Hyunjin eyes her for a moment before letting out another sigh. 

“You’re known him for barely three months and you already like him,” he mutters. (Y/n) face flushes pink as she looks at him. His arms cross over his chest, “if you really want to, then I’ll allow it, but the moment something seems off then I’m hiding you immediately.” She perks up, head nodding excitedly. “Maybe it would be good if people he trusted knew who he was meeting. That way there would be reassurance coming from above water as well,” Hyunjin thinks out loud as he turns around. “I’m also worried that they may scare you off.” 

“Changbin mentioned that too,” she claims. 

“If you’re absolutely sure, then I’ll fly out to Changbin’s place now and let him know,” he says. 

(Y/n)’s face contorts in confusion, “why do you know where he lives?” 

“Uhh,” Hyunjin freezes because now he has to tell her that he’s followed Changbin home before. “Well…” 

“Hyunjin…” her eyes narrow. 

“I may or may not have followed him home once because I wanted to see whether or not we could trust him,” he admits with an awkward chuckle. 

“Hyunjin,” (Y/n) groans. 

“He didn’t know I was there!” Hyunjin defends. “None of his housemates knew I was there! I just wanted to see what he was actually like.” 

“And what did you learn from that?” Her arms cross over her chest as she awaits his answer. 

“He’s… a good guy.” (Y/n)’s arms loosen and her face softens. “His friends seem like good people. I like Jisung particularly; he’s funny. I think you would appreciate Felix’s parent-like behaviour with Changbin. I don’t think I could find anything nasty on him that could hint to him probably wanting to expose your existence to the humans. He’s good. If you have feelings for him, then I’ll do my best to help hide the both of you to give you time together.” Her arms fall to her side at her lips part. “I’m only doing this because I trust him.” Hyunjin moves until he’s directly in front of (Y/n)’s face, “but you have to promise me that you’ll still be careful.” 

“Of course,” she breathes out with a nod. She raises her hand, allowing the sprite to hold onto her finger. Hyunjin’s always been really tiny due to just his species being generally small, but (Y/n)’s always found it adorable. They’ve known each other since (Y/n) was born. Hyunjin’s lifespan as a water sprite is long, but he was only born a few years before the mermaid was. Since their parents were friends, (Y/n) and Hyunjin spent pretty much their entire childhood together and they’ve gone past the need to tell each other that they see each other as family. 

“I’ll head on over to Changbin’s place, then,” Hyunjin smiles as he lets go of her finger. 

“You might freak him out if he realises the fact that you know where he lives,” (Y/n) snorts. 

“Ah, he’s a smart guy. He’ll put the pieces together,” he chuckles, shaking his head before bidding the mermaid goodbye and leaving her home. (Y/n)’s cave wasn’t too far from other merfolk, but it was far enough that it was closer to the surface. There are only two other merfolk that live a few miles away from her cave, but merfolk spend most of their time with creatures they are familiar with and seldom mix around with other merfolk they don’t know. The distance from the shore to the cave is far from humans, making it quite a long course through the water before Hyunjin’s able to reach the familiar beach of Changbin’s town. He pops out of the water, his wings unfurling before carrying him straight to the human’s house. 

Hyunjin doesn’t really bother to knock and instead flies into the open window of Changbin’s bedroom only to find him laying in bed, snores leaving his mouth with his blanket pulled all the way up to his chin. The sprite purses his lips into a straight line as he pulls the window close. It’s no wonder Changbin’s all bundled up; his window must’ve been open the entire night. The sprite hovers right above his face, contemplating waking him up, but he’s not exactly given a choice because the bedroom door swings open without any warning. 

“Hyuuuung!” Jisung whines loudly, causing Changbin to jerk awake in his bed. 

“Don’t you go spreading your false information!” Felix barks as he barges into the room beside his housemate. 

Changbin sits up and stares at them, eyes tired and face contorted in displeasure, “what?!” 

“Hyung, Felix pushed your dry coral off of the coffee table,” he tells him. The eldest’s eyes snap open and he’s scrambling out of his bed and pushing past the two younger males. 

“I didn’t push it off, it was an accident!” Felix groans, watching nervously as Changbin silently moves over to pick up the dried coral sitting on the ground. The impact managed to chip off the top of the oddly shaped rectangle, breaking the corner off while pieces of it scattered the carpet. Hyunjin watches from the ceiling, curious to see how the human would react, but Changbin’s quiet as he picks up the pieces. 

“Don’t worry about it,” he mutters as he stands, the coral pieces sitting in his palm. “I should’ve brought this into my room instead since I wanted to use this for a report.” Changbin turns around and gives his housemates a small smile to reassure them. Felix and Jisung shrink slightly, guilt washing over both of their faces. 

“I’m sorry, hyung, I didn’t mean to. I-I was just cleaning and it—” Felix reaches out to him as he walks back into his room but Changbin stops the younger man from coming in. 

“Lix, it’s fine,” he cuts him off. “It’s just coral. I can always, uhh, get more of it from the beach. It’s okay.” Changbin closes the door, leaving the other two standing outside of the room feeling lost. It’s rare for him to just numbly push it aside, which only makes Felix feel even worse because he has a feeling that someone gave him the coral. In his room, Changbin places the broken coral pieces onto his desk and stares at it. If he told (Y/n) that it’s broken, he wouldn’t want to actually tell her because he doesn’t want to make her feel bad, but Changbin doesn’t want to ask for another one. He scratches the back of his neck and sighs, “fuck.” It’s his mistake for leaving the coral in the living room when he had made a mental note to take care of it, but what could Changbin do now? 

“Is this a bad time?” Hyunjin finally speaks up. Changbin’s head perks up and he whips his head around to see the water sprite standing on his bed. 

“I knew you stalked me,” he gasps in mock surprise. Hyunjin laughs at that as he flies over to the desk to look at the coral. “I didn’t mean to leave it out in the open,” Changbin sighs. 

“You could always ask her for more, I don’t think she minds,” he claims. 

“I don’t want to make her feel bad if I tell her that this one broke,” Changbin mumbles, his fingers poking at the pieces. 

“Changbin,” Hyunjin turns around to look at the human, his hands moving to his hips, “(Y/n) won’t mind. She likes when you ask for ocean stuff.” 

“Does she?” 

He nods and flies up in front of Changbin’s face, “she really likes talking to you about the ocean.” Hyunjin only lowers back onto the desk once Changbin looks more reassured. “Speaking of (Y/n), she wants to meet your friends.” 

“What?” his eyes widened. 

“She said that she wants to meet Felix and Jisung,” Hyunjin continues, “she wants to know more about you and your life because she likes you.” 

"She—huh?" Changbin shakes his head a bit before staring at Hyunjin. 

"Do you want to introduce your friends to your mermaid girlfriend or not?" His arms cross over his chest. 

“(Y/n)’s not my girlfriend,” he’s blushing furiously as he denies it but Hyunjin raises an eyebrow. 

“Mhm, and that night where you let her fall asleep on your shoulder even though her skin was wet and your shoulder was freezing after that says otherwise,” he teases. 

“She’s not my girlfri—” Changbin’s cut off when his bedroom door swings open and Felix and Jisung are staring at him, eyes flicking to look at Hyunjin who’s looking like a deer caught in headlights. 

“I-Is that a sprite?” Jisung asks. Changbin nods. 

“Okay, cool, we were just wondering who you were talking to,” Felix laughs awkwardly as he pulls on Jisung’s collar and pulls him away from the door. 

“No, stay,” Hyunjin beckons them over. The two of humans exchange a look with Changbin before stepping into the room. “How good are you at keeping a secret?”

“Pretty good,” Felix shrugs. 

“Why?” Jisung tilts his head. 

Hyunjin turns to Changbin, “do you trust them enough to meet her?” 

“Well, if (Y/n) wants to meet them, then I can bring them to the beach,” he nods. 

“Who’s (Y/n)?” Jisung asks. 

“Are you a hundred percent sure we can trust them?” The water sprite ignores Jisung’s question, more concerned about just how much Changbin would trust them to meet a mermaid. 

“Felix has kept a secret I told him four years ago and Jisung forgets them a few seconds after—I think they’ll be fine,” he reassures Hyunjin. The sprite turns back to the obviously confused humans before relaxing his shoulders. 

“Bring them with you when you come by later. I think she'd be pretty happy if she could meet your friends.” He moves to the window, flicking his wrist upwards and the window frame lifting on its own before Hyunjin flies out. The three humans stare at the open window, completely ignoring the cold wind that’s blowing into Changbin’s bedroom because Jisung and Felix are too busy trying to figure out what the hell a water sprite was doing in their hyung’s bedroom. 

“So…” Jisung trails off as he shifts his weight from one foot to another. “Care to explain who your friend is?” 

“Which one?” Changbin turns to look at the two. 

“The sprite and whoever (Y/n) is,” he clarifies. 

“I met the water sprite through (Y/n),” he says simply, “I’ll bring you to see (Y/n) later, but you have to promise that you won’t tell anyone about her.” 

“I’m not gonna question why you’re so secretive about your obviously secret girlfriend, but okay,” Felix chuckles. “I knew that you had someone on your mind.” 

“She’s not my girlfriend,” Changbin grumbles, “we’re just friends.”

“Then why did the water sprite say she was your girlfriend?” Jisung teases. 

“Because…” he trails off as he tries to find an excuse. There’s really nothing for him to say that could deny that he may or may not be in an unofficial relationship with the mermaid other than the fact that Changbin and (Y/n) have only known each other for less than three months and may or may not be into each other. “Look, if I bring you to the beach to meet her, she’ll explain it too, okay? Just bare with me until then.” 

“Fine.” 

“You’re fucking joking,” Jisung breathes in awe. Both him and Felix are staring at the mermaid with eyes that are close to falling out of their skull and jaws all the way to the ground. 

“T-This isn’t possible,” Felix mutters, eyes trained on (Y/n)’s turquoise tail. She sits on the edge of the cave, hiding behind Changbin’s legs as his friends gawk at her. Hyunjin watches from Changbin’s shoulders, arms crossed over his chest and a smirk on his face at the way the humans are in so much disbelief that Felix smacks his own head to make sure he’s not dreaming. “She’s a mermaid,” he looks up at Changbin. 

“You’re girlfriend’s a mermaid,” Jisung states. 

Changbin blushes and shakes his head, “we’re not dating.” (Y/n) stays behind his legs, hiding her blush by sliding back into the water and only peeking her eyes out of the water. “Now you’ve gone and made her scared!”

“No!” she squeaks, shooting up to tug on his jeans, “they didn’t scare me.” Changbin turns around, eyes softening when he sees the way (Y/n)’s reassures him with her eyes. 

“Oh, we didn’t scare her. She’s blushing,” Jisung teases. Even in the dark of night, he’s still able to see the red tinge on her cheeks which only deepen at his statement. (Y/n) lets go of Changbin’s pants and lowers into the water. 

“Are you okay?” he questions softly. She looks up, nodding silently when her gaze meets his. “Are you sure they’re not scaring you?” (Y/n) shakes her head. Changbin relaxes a bit as he turns back to face his friends, “this is (Y/n). I met her a few months ago because she saved me.” 

“Saved you how?” Felix’s eyes narrow. 

“Your friend over here fell into the water while trying to get a closer look at (Y/n),” Hyunjin giggles as he jumps off of Changbin’s shoulder and floats towards Jisung’s shoulder. “(Y/n) had to drag him towards a cave because she didn’t want him to freeze and drown.” Jisung and Felix feel a click in their heads at the words ‘drown’ and ‘freeze’, both of them slowly turning to look at their friend.

“You almost drowned?!” Jisung exclaims. 

“Why didn’t you mention this?!” Felix yells. 

“Because I would’ve had to explain how my clothes dried and how I even survived,” Changbin shrugs. Felix scoffs, eyes rolling as he tries to process the new information. 

“So, you just casually almost die and decide not to tell us?!” Jisung’s jaw drops. 

“I didn’t want to tell you about (Y/n) because she’s supposed to be extinct!” he throws his arms up into the air. (Y/n) watches from the water, stifling her laughter at how Jisung and Felix continue to fire at Changbin for not telling them of his death, Hyunjin making eye contact with her and chuckling as well. She reaches up and tugs on Changbin’s pants once more, making him turn around immediately at the feeling. “Yeah?” 

“I wanna say hi.” She blinks innocently a few times while Jisung and Felix watch, their arms crossing over their chests and their eyebrows raising. 

“Oh, sure,” Changbin crouches down and holds onto her hand to help her sit on the edge of the stone where she shyly waves towards the two humans. 

“Wow,” Jisung chuckles. “You’re whipped.” Felix snickers from beside him, pursing his lips together to make it less obvious that he’s laughing as well. 

“No I’m not,” he snorts. (Y/n) looks up at him and pulls on his hand, silently asking him to sit down with her, which Changbin immediately obliges without even questioning it. 

“Sure,” Felix laughs. 

“Changbin talks about you guys a lot,” (Y/n) claims.

“I hope you mean in a good light.” 

“Very,” she chuckles, “the only reason I wanted to meet you guys myself is because you sound really important from what Changbin has told me.”

“Important?” Jisung smirks. 

“I meant that you sound like really good friends.” (Y/n)’s words make Changbin loosen up slightly. She’s trying not to embarrass him in front of his friends, so she chooses her words carefully to at least try to lessen the teasing he might receive once they head home. “I think he loves you guys more than he’d admit,” she whispers, giggling when she earns a glare from Changbin. Jisung and Felix turn to him, choosing not to tease him because they’re actually warmed by (Y/n). 

“We love you too, hyung,” Felix smiles, Jisung nodding ecstatically beside him. “I’m going to assume that (Y/n) is the event where a species pretended to go extinct and still haven’t been re-discovered.”

“Precisely,” she nods. 

“What are the chances that a stranger could find her?” Jisung questions. 

“That’s something that I’d rather not find out,” Hyunjin sighs, moving from Jisung’s shoulder to (Y/n) instead. “The only reason why I allowed Changbin to introduce you two to (Y/n) is because I trust him. So, I’m going to take a leap and trust you.” 

“We won’t tell anyone about her,” Felix reassures him. “We’re just here because we wanna see who Changbin hyung’s girlfriend is.”  

“For the last time, (Y/n)’s not my girlfriend,” Changbin groans. “We’re just friends!” (Y/n)’s expression drops and the only person that happens to miss it is Changbin because he’s too busy glaring at his friends. Jisung clears his throat and gestures to the mermaid when his friend gives him a questioning look.  Changbin turns around and panic starts to fill him when he sees the way her mood’s dampened. “W-What’s wrong?” 

“Would it be so bad if we were dating?” she mutters out, a frown pulling on her lips. 

“O-Of course not!” he stammers, his eyes squeezing shut as he tries to explain it to her. “I just don’t want them thinking we’re dating if we’re not, you know? It might make you feel awkward or uncomfortable,” Changbin mutters as he rubs the back of his neck. 

“I don’t think it’s awkward,” (Y/n) admits, her cheeks tinged red. The human’s eyes widen as well, blush creeping over his entire face. 

“I—uhm.” Changbin struggles to actually word anything out while his best friends laugh at him and Hyunjin watches with a shit-eating grin on his face. He scooches closer to (Y/n) and moves his lips right to her ear, “let’s talk about this later, yeah?” She moves away from his face and nods. When (Y/n) turns back to Changbin’s friends, they’ve made themselves comfortable on the rocks, ready to learn more about the mermaid. 

The night is spent with casual talking, the five of them getting to know each other more. Changbin learns more about Hyunjin that single night than he has in the past few months that he’s known the water sprite. Jisung also seems to make it a mission to embarrass Changbin as much as he can in front of (Y/n) to the point where Changbin’s almost holding him by the collar and hanging him over the ocean. Felix on the other hand, watches in amusement. He doesn’t say that much other than piping in every once in a while because he’s genuinely interested in learning more about the magical creatures. 

“I’ll catch up with you guys in a bit,” Changbin tells the two humans when it’s already 3 a.m.. 

“We’ll be waiting at the beach,” Jisung nods, waving at Hyunjin and (Y/n) before he walks off with Felix. Hyunjin looks at Changbin before turning to (Y/n)—who’s moved into the water because her skin was drying out—and realising that they want time alone. 

“I’ll give you guys some space,” he mutters before diving into the water, leaving the two alone. Once alone, (Y/n) pulls herself up to sit on the rocks, tail dangling in the water as she looks out at the horizon with Changbin sitting cross-legged beside her. 

“What do you think of my friends?” he questions. 

(Y/n) hums, a smile tugging on her lips as she turns away from the ocean to Changbin, “I like them. They seem like a lot of fun.” 

“They really are,“ he chuckles. Silence falls between them and whatever elephant was already in the room seems to have doubled in size because now, the two of them are painfully aware of their relationship. “(Y/n),” Changbin breaks the silence, turning to face her. 

“Yeah?” She's already looking at him and it makes Changbin’s face heat up. The moonlight reflects off of her face, the blue and green scales of her face reflecting the light like diamonds that cover her skin. (Y/n)’s gorgeous. Changbin isn’t sure whether her beauty is amplified because of the sudden serenity of the night or whether he’s just never actually taken the time to admire her, but she’s entrancing. His eyes flick to her lips, soft and glossy before they flicker back up to her eyes where she’s watching every feature on his face to try and predict his next move. 

“C-Could I kiss you?” The words come out before Changbin’s able to stop himself and he mentally slaps himself because that is not at all what he wanted to say. (Y/n) nods anyway, letting him move closer until his warm lips gently press against her cold ones. The kiss is slow and gentle, both of them testing the waters before pulling away. When Changbin’s eyes open to meet (Y/n)’s his stomach erupts with butterflies. How lucky was he to encounter a mermaid when they had hidden away from humans, faking their extinction to keep themselves safe. He realises then that (Y/n)’s, “one in a million,” he subconsciously says out loud. As rushed as it sounds, Changbin's pretty sure he’s managed to fall in love with her in the short amount of time they’ve known each other. 

“Huh?” (Y/n)’s eyes flash with confusion. 

“You’re one in a million,” Changbin says, his hand moving up to gently cup the side of her face before he leans in once again.

#kwritersworldnet #kpopccc #stray kids #stray kids imagines #stray kids oneshots #stray kids fluff #stray kids romance #stray kids mermaid au #stray kids non-idol au #stray kids x reader #seo changbin #seo changbin imagines #seo changbin oneshots #seo changbin fluff #seo changbin romance #seo changbin mermaid au #seo changbin non-idol au #changbin #changbin imagines #changbin oneshots #changbin fluff #changbin romance #changbin mermaid au #changbin non-idol au #changbin x reader #skz #skz imagines #skz oneshots #skz fluff #skz romance

[cherrynojutsu]

Title: Like Silver

Summary: A companion series for Like Gold.

It’s challenging to finish up discharge summaries and operative reports when one’s vision keeps blurring, as it turns out. And when one keeps pressing fingers to their lips in disbelief. A poetic sort of procrastination, indeed.

Blank period, canon-compliant, Sakura-centric, some expanded plot points from Like Gold, fluff and pining, eventually becomes a smut fest with feelings.

Disclaimer: I did not write Naruto. This is a fan-made piece solely created for entertainment purposes.

Rating: M (eventual nsfw-ness)

AO3 Link - FF.net Link - includes beginning/ending author's notes

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Chapter 2/?: A Poetic Sort of Procrastination, Indeed

Sakura saunters home late in the evening, admiring the stars above her in a daze of spring air and clutching her tote bag to her shoulder as if her very life force is tethered to it.

In the flurry of emotion, she completely forgot about returning her library books, but she doesn’t give a damn.

She drudged through her entire pile of paperwork, though it was an almighty effort requiring every ounce of her discipline. Even after Sasuke left, she kept tearing up and just gawking at the impossibly beautiful gift he’s given her, affection requited bubbling up inside her ribcage and unleashed into the air she breathes like some sort of ambrosial perfume she can finally afford to bask in. She has always known there is a softer side to him, that there is much more beneath the surface than he lets on with his laconic demeanor, but this is something else.

It’s challenging to finish up discharge summaries and operative reports when one’s vision keeps blurring, as it turns out.

And when one keeps pressing fingers to their lips in disbelief.

A poetic sort of procrastination, indeed.

She hangs her tote on its entryway hook and carefully removes the box inside once she reaches her apartment. After she’s padded her way to her bedroom, she flips on the two lamps before placing it tenderly on her bed.

Sakura briefly contemplates taking the lid off then and there, but she knows she really should shower first, because otherwise the evening is going to quickly spiral away from her, whirlpool of tender feelings that it already is.

It’s the quickest shower she’s ever taken in her life; berry-scented soap floods her body and seems to take forever to rinse clean in her haste, although it can’t actually be more than a minute or two in reality. It’s also the quickest she’s ever toweled off and changed into pajamas, scurrying back to her room and grabbing the first pair she lays eyes on from her dresser drawer.

Once she has shimmied them on, she opens the box again, and just looks.

It still exists - it doesn’t disappear or dissolve as a figment of her imagination - so she picks it up with careful hands.

It is so, so pretty, exquisite in a way that makes her heart hammer relentlessly against her sternum, a catharsis in her chest sweeter somehow than anything she’s ever experienced.

It’s unavoidable; her eyes well with tears again, because he said he had it made for her. Not found in an antique shop off the beaten path or some happenstance market who knows how many miles away. Not just something that reminded him of her.

Made for me.

Which means he thought of this himself. Silk that shifts colors like the Uchiha crest, fastidiously stitched petals, and a cherry blossom tree, carved light wood that is startlingly similar in tone to the accents here in her bedroom.

And the way he looked at her, after, a storm of silver and obsidian that took her breath away.

And he kissed her.

Sakura doesn’t know how she’s supposed to fall asleep tonight, deliriously happy as she is, or how she’s going to spend any of her free time from here on out not staring at this supernal treasure. She strokes the wood with careful fingers, bringing the carving upwards for closer inspection. Every inch of it is gorgeous; she is especially enamored with the pink and pearlescent stitching, coruscant in the low light. She assiduously counts the slivers of bamboo, too, and follows the rivulets of fine branches stretching upwards to the boundaries of the framework. Upon her inquest, she notices an impossibly tiny etching, faintly whittled on the interior of one of the slats of bamboo. Tai Ro, it says; she assumes that must be the craftsman’s signature. She wonders where it came from, which far-off land Sasuke traveled through to commission something so resplendent.

She has never seen anything so bewitching, except maybe silver flecks.

Tearing her gaze away from the fan, Sakura eyes the vanity by her balcony door, an idea brewing.

It’s an aged piece, of a bygone style featuring small drawers on each size and a sunken point in the middle, from which rises a large circular mirror. A framed copy of their original Team Seven portrait sits pushed against the framing, right in the center. She placed it there because she enjoys seeing it as she gets ready for the day. It’s a good memory, one of her favorites, sentimental in a way that makes her heart swell, after everything. A pale wooden hairbrush also sits perched atop its surface, given to her by her mother forever ago while she was still at the Academy.

“I found it in the market today, just after swinging by to pick up rose food from Ino’s mother. It’s old, an antique, but I think it suits you, my dear,” she’d said, ruffling her hair, still long at that point and chattering a mile a minute in the overbearing way she has always tended to. She’d brushed her already combed locks in the manner that Sakura thinks all mothers must with their daughters, even when they are starting to become too grown for that sort of thing. “What I wouldn’t give for your hair! So unique; you should have something lovely to brush it with. You’re already such a pretty girl, but someday you’re going to bloom, and when you do, heaven help the boys.”

There’s a cherry blossom on it, too, adorning the back simply with five perfect petals.

When Sakura moved out of her parents’ house, she chose the tones of her bedroom accents, inclusive of the frame, with it in mind; she’d been using it for years by then, and had developed a fondness for pale wood rooted in familial nostalgia. Most of her actual furniture in the room is secondhand, of an older variety and painted with a white stain to make them somewhat match - she prefers things with a little bit of history, has since her mom gifted her that hairbrush - but the few frames and wall-mounted shelves are lighter washes of wood.

Many of the surfaces in her apartment are cluttered with books and other knick knacks she has accumulated through the years, but she tries to keep the vanity’s top clear, almost like an altar, an ode to the things she finds lovely atop it to give her hope with which to greet the day.

Still clutching the gift tenderly in her hands, Sakura ventures over to it.

She holds the fan close to the frame as well as the brush, comparing the color, near an exact match, a fresh memory making her heart swell in a completely different way, a way she had previously thought was maybe unrealistic.

She’ll get a stand for it, she decides, and display it in the spot the frame currently sits; it would look perfect there, the curvature echoed above it in circular looking glass, a hairbrush of a similar stain beside it. Then she’ll be able to gaze at it every morning and evening. There is no way something this precious to her could ever be stored away in a box and only seen on special occasions; it’s the same reason she struggled with the idea of hiding his letters away in one.

No, Sakura is resolutely sure that admiring it will be a daily ritual.

She can relocate the photo frame to her bedside table, maybe, next to An Introduction to Electrocardiography , or perhaps to her living room, though it doesn’t really match the wood out there.

That gets her thinking. We’re... together now, right? He’s kissed her, and she really hopes he will again, surprisingly soft lips against hers, an aroma of woodsmoke, and butterflies unleashed in her stomach. Maybe she should put the frame on the shelf in the main room. He might come over, sometime; it would be good to have it visible, situated in a place where he can see it.

With the utmost care, she lays the fan on the surface in front of her. Sakura combs through wet locks, coaxing out tangles with an old gift and appreciating a new one with watery eyes. When she’s finished, she carefully clutches it again and admires it atop a lavender comforter for the better part of an hour, alternating between mentally mapping its fine stitching within the confines of her hippocampus and paging through her book of Sasuke’s letters in a way that is more than fond, affection freed from her chest after so very long. The jubilance crests to a sense of omneity as she does so, moon glow filtering in by way of the gauzy white curtains that shield the balcony’s glass door.

She absolutely can’t wait to see him tomorrow. She sincerely hopes she’s not dreaming all of this.

She is so enamored with it that she doesn’t even drink her customary evening tea, her being warmed in an entirely different manner she is as of yet unaccustomed to, better than earl grey or some variety of dessert. It’s immensely difficult to pry it from her own hands when the time comes to do so.

Always is the last word she thinks of before she succumbs to slumber, curled up in soft colors and hoping he has found somewhere comfortable to sleep. Treasured memories emanate from objects old and new, brewing together before a looking glass where she’s placed them for safekeeping and admiration.

XXX

When she awakens in the morning, Sakura jerks upright in bed, turning to her vanity to ascertain if it was all a dream, cozened in by her subconscious as she slept.

It wasn’t. The fan is still there, precious and so enchantingly beautiful, dawn flavoring the memory of Sasuke’s return just as sweet as it had tasted yesterday with his lips on hers.

She brushes her hair again, working at the task way longer than necessary and trying not to cry out of sheer happiness. She feels so light, as if being pulled upwards by a latterly existent force of gravity, theoretically possible in terms of relative physics and with the right circumstances, but never actually experienced.

Birds are singing on the balcony when Sakura finally steps outside, snacking on seeds from her bird feeder as she gives her fledgling plants a drink before leaving for work.

It is such a lovely morning.

XXX

Sakura makes it through work as if encapsulated in a brand of inertial navigation system, floating as if she’s a bizarrely sentient cloud from patients to test tubes. She feeds the mice and records the brief observations she usually does on Wednesdays, and then a Genin is being brought in with a linear fracture in their tibia, twisted wrong and impacted during training. She gives instructions to nurses, too, taking care of smaller tasks in between, part of her feeling like she is barely there.

Well, not barely. She still keeps her wits about her and heals people; she takes pride in what she does. She just… daydreams a little, too, sage, smoke, and silver occupying her spare moments, flitting in between the corridors of her head as she flits from exam room to exam room.

She’s sitting at her desk, eating an early dinner and working on a new pile of paperwork before her next appointment arrives at five thirty, when one of Naruto’s clones bangs on her window.

Her gaze shifts to the glass at the familiar boisterous whining of her name - “Sakura-chaaaaaaan!” - and she rises to open it the rest of the way, allowing him entry into her office, an easy grin coming to her lips.

“Naruto!” A million thoughts run through her head. He has to know Sasuke’s back at this point, right? Has he seen him? He must be so happy.

Cyan bores into her, and he grins as he steps down. “Sakura-chan, teme’s back! Can you believe it? Though I guess you knew since yesterday.”

Sakura’s cheeks warm at the implication of that, wondering how he knows this information, but her friend is plowing onwards.

“Anyways, wanna have an original Team Seven reunion dinner on Saturday night? Or maybe Sunday night? Kakashi-sensei said Saturday would be better for him, if it works for you. And we should also make it a housewarming party for teme, but Kakashi-sensei says DON’T tell him that, or he won’t agree! It’s a surprise.”

Laughter erupts from her chest, rich and joyful, because it is crystal clear in that moment that Naruto is as elated at Sasuke’s return as she is - okay, maybe not quite on the level that she is, but close - even through a clone. “Of course, we should! I don’t have anything planned for Saturday night.”

Her teammate grins, all infectious happiness in the way that is so utterly characteristic of him, eyes crinkling at their corners. “Good, great, awesome! Be sure to mention it to him when you see him at seven. I’m sure if you suggest it, he’ll definitely agree.” Sakura blinks in surprise, cheeks staining darker. “Man, this is gonna be so great! Team Seven is fucking back ! I can’t wait to get a mission! It’ll be just like old times. I gotta tell Hinata-chan, too!”

She can’t help it; she smiles so wide that it hurts her face, tears paying her another visit. Sasuke’s back. He’s really back. And-

“Well, anyways, I’ll leave you to eat your dinner, Sakura-chan, but we have to force him to be social. I can’t wait to spar! But also, we gotta have a picnic, and no tying me to the pole this time. We could even challenge Kakashi-sensei to get off his ass and give us another go at the bell test. And, and! We should have a movie night. And go drinking! I’ve never seen teme drunk. I bet he’s a lightweight, and he’ll probably say all sorts of embarrassing shit! And-” Naruto’s clone’s expression turns unexpectedly serious, blue eyes suddenly narrowing in a way that is all-seeing and a tan finger suddenly pointing at her accusingly.

“-I mean social outside of you and him, Sakura-chan! Don’t think for a second that you’re gonna escape my questions later, when my brain isn’t fried from staring at that stupid scroll Kakashi-sensei has me slaving over. I want answers. ”

And then Naruto’s clone disappears in a puff of smoke, leaving her blinking in a strange combination of bewilderment and somehow, shyness, too.

And ebullience. Mostly ebullience.

She stands there grinning like an idiot for a long time. She can’t wait to see him at seven.

#naruto #sasusaku #ssfanfiction #cherry writes #like silver #fanfiction #labor day weekend = finishing things

[fettsvette]

When She Wakes Up

Fatherhood was never something Boba Fett had envisioned for himself, nor had he particularly wanted any part in it. That all changed when he met his daughter for the first time.

Pairing: Boba Fett x Sintas Vel Words: 2.2k Rating: General Warnings: Mentions of pregnancy and childbirth

Can be found on Archive of Our Own here.

  Mando’a terminology

ke barjurir gar’ade, jagyc’ade kot’la a dalyc’ade kotla’shya - ‘train your sons to be strong, but your daughters to be stronger’

  ba’buir - grandfather

bu’ad - grandchild

buir - father

ad’ika - little one

kov’nyn - headbutt/forehead press

    -

  “I slipped on myself, no help from anyone else

I fell in love 

And I was humbled

  There she is

Isn't she everything?”

  Frank Turner, “There She Is”

    -

  She was so kriffing small .

  Boba didn’t think he’d ever seen another human being this tiny, this helpless. 

  Not that he’d been around very many babies in his lifetime. 

  There had been the infant clones on Kamino during his childhood, of course, but his father had never let him stray too close to the lab facilities. Not that he’d wanted to, anyway. The rows and rows of little bodies, floating suspended in translucent goo, as well as the hundreds upon thousands of children that shared his face, and the men who shared his father’s, had always scared him a bit. 

  Boba Fett didn’t consider himself to be someone who often felt fear. He could count the times on one hand, most of them occurring during his earliest years, instances of cautiously peering around his father’s leg at strange visitors or waking from imagined terrors in the night, wailing for Jango to come to his rescue from the other room.

  But he’d never felt as scared as he did in this moment, right now, gazing down upon this little pink-hued creature wrapped in a blanket of nerf-wool, fast asleep and dreaming. His daughter .

  He hadn’t even been this terrified when Sintas had first told him that she was with child, his child, nor when she’d begun to experience violent bouts of nausea every morning, nor when her belly had begun to tellingly swell beneath her clothing. Boba had felt strangely detached from the situation for the entire nine months of the pregnancy, and it was only in hindsight that he realized he had been afraid . He and Sin had only been married a year - barely knew each other, really - and they were both so young. So young. They were hardly more than children themselves. And now they were responsible for another life, this fragile creature curled in a plastene bassinet, gently tinkling mobile of miniature stars and planets hanging overhead.

  Sin had said that the name ‘Ailyn’ meant ‘graceful.’ She couldn’t remember in what language, but she’d seen it in a mothering book somewhere, some sickeningly sweet maternal tome she had browsed through in a secondhand shop in town. The child - a little girl, they’d discovered - would take her surname, ‘Vel.’ Boba hadn’t protested when Sintas had made the announcement - yes, that’s what it had been, she hadn’t even asked his opinion - nor had he questioned the decision. It would be safer for the baby, Sin had elaborated, and Boba had agreed. Yes, the baby’s safety. Our baby. Although his wife was just as involved in the bounty hunting trade as he was, Boba had already made quite the name for himself, at only sixteen. He had enemies, heartless barves who wouldn’t hesitate to harm an innocent infant solely to exact their revenge. One of the reasons he’d settled down on Concord Dawn in the first place was to escape that unforgiving life, and bestowing the decidedly infamous name of ‘Fett’ upon a defenseless babe was no way to honor that choice. 

  So ‘Ailyn Vel’ came to be.

  Boba hadn’t been there for the birth. He’d been on duty with his fellow Journeymen, out in the middle of nowhere keeping watch over one of the many agricultural sectors that had fallen victim to pirates as of late. His comlink had crackled to life as he and the squadron under his command had been patrolling the bush, the superior officer on the dispensing end ordering him to get back to base at once; his wife had gone into labor, and it wouldn’t be long now before he became a father. A father . His comrades had congratulated him, pounded him on the back and wished him well.

  ‘Ke barjurir gar’ade, jagyc’ade kot’la a dalyc’ade kotla’shya!’ one of his fellows had shouted at him as he roared past on the speeder bike that would take him back into the city. ‘Train your sons to be strong, but your daughters to be stronger!’ 

  Boba wondered if he was strong enough to raise a daughter, let alone train one.

  By the time Boba had arrived at the medcenter, Sin had already given birth. He’d missed it by several hours. The child was healthy, robust, had been squalling like a Kowakian monkey-lizard and waving her tiny fists in the air, seeming almost enraged at having been unceremoniously evicted from her dark, warm home - or so the attending medical droid had claimed. The machine had greeted him in the hall outside of the center’s maternity ward, already aware that he was the husband, the father; whether it was due to information that had been provided upon Sin’s admittance, or because of his noticeably frazzled state when he’d arrived - drenched in sweat, breathing heavily, helmet tucked precariously under his arm - he couldn’t be sure.

  Sintas hadn’t stopped bleeding afterwards, the droid had told him, and several medics had to intervene. Sensing Boba’s rising panic, his urge to smash its hydraulics against the wall and force his way into the birthing room beyond, the droid had clarified that she was fine now, recuperating comfortably, but that it was unwise for her to receive visitors at the moment. Yes, that included the husband, but he would be allowed to go in soon. The newborn girl, however, had been whisked away to the medcenter’s nursery to be poked and prodded by the maternity droids, to be bathed and swaddled and left to rest until it was time to be brought back to her mother.

  And there Boba found himself, standing in the otherwise empty nursery, gazing at this prone form tucked away in a sterile cradle, sleeping soundly, blissfully unaware of the man peering down at her. Boba allowed himself to exhale a shaky breath. His daughter. Ailyn.

  “Would you like to hold her, Master Fett?” 

  The metallic voice’s inquiring tone jerked him out of his dazed stupor. The droid stood at his side, searching his face with an uncanny mechanical imitation of human compassion. At first Boba stared, not quite understanding what the droid meant, until it stooped and lifted the baby from her cot, holding the swathed infant out to him. 

  Boba had never held a baby before, and had no idea how to proceed. The droid had anticipated this and shuffled forward, holding the newborn in the crook of one durasteel arm, guiding Boba’s hands - his rough Journeyman’s gloves having been stuffed haphazardly into a pouch in his flight suit - into the proper positioning with its other.

  “Support the head; the muscles in the neck are underdeveloped at this early stage of life. Keep one arm under the body, and the back must be kept straight - raise the infant level to your chest, like so. I shall leave you with her momentarily while I confer with our staff on the mother’s condition. Please wait here.” 

  And suddenly, Boba was alone in the room, his daughter in his arms. Ailyn snuffled at the sudden change of positioning, the sensation of soft human touch versus the cold alloy of the nurse droid. Boba gave a start, expecting her to start shrieking, but she simply let out a soft coo and turned her head to the side, closer to her father, drawn to the warmth radiating from his body. The newborn was small yet compact, a tuft of downy black hair already present atop her head, long lashes framing eyes still tightly squeezed shut, pouty lips pursed, dreaming milk dreams. 

  Boba stroked the side of a finger along the infant’s rosy cheek, downwards from her closed eyes to the soft bow of her mouth. Soon the little face would be marked on each side by distinct tattoos, three dark stripes arching across her skin, the qukuuf of the Kiffar - her mother’s people. Ailyn already bore the shape of Sin’s face, the high cheekbones and sharp chin. Her nose, however, was a perfect copy of his own - the bridge flattened, and slightly upturned at its tip. Boba found himself musing if this child would also inherit his Concordian accent, the same one he’d acquired from his father. A fierce ache lit a fire in his chest at that thought, and he wished Jango had not been so brutally cut down in his prime, that he could have met his son’s own little one, that he had lived to see himself become a ba’buir, with a bu’ad to fawn over and spoil endlessly . He briefly wondered if this very moment had possibly been mirrored sixteen years prior, between his father and newborn self. Had Jango Fett been nervous before being presented with his baby son, needed help learning to cradle him, worried that he wouldn’t be a good father? Boba found the idea strangely comforting. Shifting his hold on the baby gingerly, Boba hesitantly reached one digit out to poke at a little fist that had freed itself from its swaddlings. He couldn’t believe how tiny the fingers were, curled over as if in deep concentration - the little knuckles, the miniscule fingernails. It was while studying these details, perfect miniatures of his own hands, Boba heard a sniffling grunt, and flicked his view to the baby’s face.

  Her eyes were open.

  They were her mother’s eyes, Sin’s eyes, bright blue and already alert, and Ailyn was studying him intensely. Slowly, almost as if she was experimenting with the newfound use of her hands, she reached out and grasped Boba’s index finger, clutching with surprising strength for such a small creature, and she blinked up at him slowly. 

  Boba’s heart seemed to momentarily stop, and his vision instantly blurred over with hot tears. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d cried, was beginning to think it was no longer within his capabilities. After a moment, he spoke, and he was surprised at the level of emotion in his voice.

  “Hello, Ailyn… I’m your buir . I’m going to take care of you. I won’t ever let anything happen to you, I promise you that. I swear it on my life, ad’ika .”

  Boba bent to press his lips to the crown of her head, taking in the sweet, clean smell that only newborns seemed to carry. Not wanting to relinquish this feeling just yet, he touched his forehead to hers in a gentle kov’nyn , choosing not to notice the tears that had soaked into the baby’s blanket as he closed his eyes in pure paternal indulgence.

  “Master Fett?”

  Boba turned at the call, Ailyn cradled in his arms, to regard the medical droid standing in the doorway. He didn’t know how long it had been there, silently observing him and his daughter, but he found that he didn’t really care. He hastily wiped at his eyes with the back of one hand before readjusting his hold on Ailyn, wordlessly regarding the machine.

  “My apologies, Master Fett, but I’ve just been informed that Mistress Vel is awake and well enough to receive visitors. I can take you both to her now, if you wish.” The droid offered, extending its arm and bobbling its head subserviently. 

  Boba looked down at Ailyn - her eyes were shut again, his finger still enclosed within that tiny fist. He had only just met his daughter, but he already knew he would do anything she asked of him, gladly give up his life for her. Was this what fatherhood meant? Was this how his own buir had felt upon being presented with his son, so long ago in Tipoca City? Not taking his eyes off his newborn daughter, Boba nodded silently, and stepped forward to let the droid escort him down the hall, where Sin - his wife, the mother of his child - awaited them.

  There was still much that Boba Fett didn’t know about Sintas Vel - their courtship and subsequent marriage had been a whirlwind, and stars … now they were parents - but he knew that she was beautiful, and a crack shot with a blaster, and that he trusted her at a time in his life where he thought he could only trust himself. And he knew that he loved her, and that he loved Ailyn, this incredible new life that they had created together. 

  Perhaps that was more than enough.

#boba fett #boba fett fanfiction #sintas vel #ailyn vel

[leonicscorpio]

How to care for your Jaybird: part 2: A series of domestic Headcanons about one Jason Peter Todd.

Hey y'all. Since everyone liked the first one so much (and I'm still experimenting with my writing) I decided I'd do a bullet-point take on some of my Headcanons for normal, domestic Jason Todd. Enjoy!

Jason is a stomach sleeper if he's fully comfortable and in a deep sleep. A lot of official art has him as a back sleeper but literally every fan art has him as a stomach sleeper.

Jason has a very strong stomach and can tolerate even the greasiest of foods. Having been on the streets eating out of dumpsters is something he's had to. However when he does get a stomach bug occasionally he's crippled for at least a week. Barely being able to walk.

Jason has Misophonia. He HATES the sounds of chewing and slurping. It just drives him crazy and makes his skin crawl. Damian discovered this and egged Jason on any way he could. Dick had to hold Jason back from throwing Damian out a window.

Everyone knows Jason likes to read but he'll read just about anything and everything. Any time he travels somewhere new he'll always thoroughly read the travel pamphlets, and if a sign has a long block of text you'll find him stopped at the sign absorbing the text.

While not religious (except in The Flashpoint timeline) Jason has read all of the major religious texts and does enjoy some of their stories, but takes them at face-value.

Jason is quite casual about sex and hookups, and while he can be alluring and flirtatious, when Jason breaks down his walls and he exposes his barest self to you, he will be like a lovesick puppy and will be as tender and dotting, but you have to break down MILES of walls.

Jason's MBTI personality is ESTP-A. While you wouldn't think of him as much an entrepreneur he leaps before he looks and he lets his emotions dominate him. He's very much a shoot first, question later if never person.

Jason likes the Harry Potter movies and you can fight me all you want. Jason is a Ravenclaw and I will die on this hill.

Jason's favorite girl scout cookies are Tagalongs. He just loves a good peanut butter cookie.

After having been homeless and going without showers for days on end. Jason needs to take at least 2 showers a day. He hates smelling bad, and while he'll go without on longer missions or hits, the first thing he does when he gets home is take a shower. A long, hot shower.

Want to find a secret way to melt his heart? Take him on a date to the animal shelter. Jason will turn from an abrasive, angry, and cynical man to a precious child if he can play with a dog.

Cooking is a side passion Jason has taken up. It's mentioned somewhere that his favorite meal is pot roast and I have so many thoughts on other things he likes to eat and cook.

EDITED: I added some more that have popped into my head. 

Jason’s go to order at Starbucks and most coffee places is a cold brew. It isn’t fussy, it’s fast, and it gets the job done. 

Jason’s birthday being August 16th makes him a Leo sun. However I just look at this character and he just oozes heavy Scorpio elements in his birth chart. Probably a Scorpio rising and Mars. (I’m a Leo sun, Scorpio Moon/Rising) 

After having abused venom for a bit (Red Hood and the Outlaws) Jason sometimes forgets that no, normal people don’t curl 80lb dumbells casually. And now everyone in the gym is staring at him... awkward.

On top of looking after the prostitutes and sex workers of Gotham, Jason also frequents a lot of LGBTQ+ bars and has quite a few connections within the gay scene. Funnily enough, Jason Todd being a 6′0 200-something pound tall, dark, handsome, mysterious man in a Gay bar garners him a LOT of attention. I headcanon that Jason is bisexual and quite enjoys the same as well as the fairer sex. 

After giving a Drag Queen a particularly large tip, Jason was dragged on stage to lip-sync with the drag queen. Jason, being a Leo Sun (bless our whore hearts...) proceeded to take his shirt off and out-perform the drag queen, and I mean hitting EVERY beat, mouthing every song perfectly, and he threw a split in at the end. house. down. boots. The crowd lost their mind, the drag queen proceeded to read him to filth and heckled him off stage. Jason loved every second of it. Oh and in case you’re wondering, here’s the song Jason killed. 

If you see Jason out during the days, he often can be found at either a gym, trying a new restaurant, at secondhand book stores, or just riding around on his bike. 

Jason has a deep respect for nature, but honestly he’s quite intimidated by it. Growing up in the streets of Gotham, his first experiences in a forest he was quite intimidated. 

When he found out Damian was vegan he at first didn’t give him a second thought. However the moment Damian said he could never cook. a good vegan meal was when Jason’s passion struck. You see you can tell Jason he can do something and there’s a 60/40 percent chance he won’t or will do it. But the second you tell him he can’t do something is the moment you ignite his spite and passion. Needless to say, Damian still asks Jason to make Eggplant in Garlic Sauce and vegan mac and cheese. 

I think Seattle would be a city Jason would really feel at home. However not for the traditional reasons, Seattle is a cold, unfriendly city with breathtaking nature. I’ll bet his jaw hit the floor when his plane flew by Mount Rainer, because THAT’S A BIG FREAKING ROCK. And he freaked out when he learned that’s aN ACTIVE VOLCANO. 

Jason has EXTREME seasonal allergies. It’s not bad because Gotham doesn’t have many trees but he goes outside Gotham and he’s red eyed and sniffly. The worst part is the only allergy medicine that works for him is Benadryl so he has to chose between being miserable or perpetually half-awake. 

When he is at the Wayne his favorite activities are calling Bruce (insert expletive here), calling Dick any other expletive he didn’t use on Bruce. Bugging Tim by unplugging his computer and hiding his stuff across the manor and generally just annoying him with his presence by being the annoying older brother, tormenting Damian by taking his things and putting them in places he can’t reach. 

#jason todd #Red Hood #Domestic jason todd #Bruce wayne #Dick Grayson #Bisexual! Jason Todd #Red Hood And The Outlaws #damian wayne

[mlm-writer]

Curing Cullen (Cullen x M!Reader)

Kinktober Day 22: Sex Pollen

Pairing: Bottom Cullen Rutherford (Inquisition ver.) x  Top Qunari Male Reader (NOT trans-friendly) Rating: Explicit Words: 1798 Summary: Cullen accidentally gets a dosage of interrogation drugs, of which the only cure is Qunari semen or death. Fucking the inquisitor beats death any day. Note: This mf got such a fuckin glow up and I am so fuckin gay for him why is he straight this is an atrocity. LOOK HOW FUCKIN PRETTY HE IS I AM IN LOVE Tags: Action, canon-typical violence, no beta we die like men, beign liberal with canon, anal fingering, anal sex, creampie, dubious consent (because he is drugged ya know), bit fluffy, riding and did you know bulls have a dick of 30-40 inch? That’s dick the size of a child wtf. 

A quick favour, that was all it was supposed to be. The cargo was apparently very precious and no one was told what it was. You never wanted to get involved with the Ben-Hassrath, but with Bull at your side there was little choice, not that you wanted him gone. On the contrary, having another Qunari around was a great help on some days. 

Things went south, however, as you got ambushed by an unforeseen force. The human bandits were oddly organised and in an awfully great number. You casted a wall of ice to slow them down, but they came from all sides. You decided to give up the cargo and save both your and Bull’s men. You fade stepped towards Cullen, the commander assisting to tag along since it was a sensitive mission. “Commander, we need to go.” Cullen showed you a displeased look, but he nodded, agreeing with your assessment. 

“We can take at least one of the boxes with us. Save some of the cargo,” he insisted, “cover me.” You wanted to protest, but he was already dashing towards the cart. You casted a barrier around him as he left, followed by a lighting chain, stunning the enemies around him. Cullen came running back with a box that sounded like it contained potions. It was a clever choice. You basically lifted him up and ordered your people to retreat as you summoned some mist to cover your paths. 

An arrow grazed your leg as you ran. You slipped in your step and you dropped both yourself and Cullen to the ground. There was the sound of wood breaking and glass shattering, before you hit your head on a rock and the scenery went dark. 

You shock awake, getting a feeling of deja vu. You recognised your bedroom at Skyhold. You rubbed your forehead, feeling a bandage right below your horns. You climbed out, wobbling down the many, many stairs to the main hall. Your mind was on Cullen. It was known amongst the inner circle that you two had a… thing... Going on. It was complicated, but that didn’t stop you from worrying. Varric saw you emerge from your room and rushed to your side. “Hey, you gave us quite the shock there.” 

You forced a chuckle out. “After all I have been through, one fall on the head isn’t going to do me in.” Varric nodded, looking at you with those eyes that looked for more. “Really, I am fine. Where is Cullen? He was with me.” Varric gave you an even worse look and dragged you to Solas’ room. He looked at you as he always did. It was hard to read him, most of the time. 

“Good, you’re here. My potion is keeping Cullen alive right now, but he needs you, were he to survive.” At least you could adore his bedside manners. You wanted to ask him more, but he handed you a paper and walked away to have another look at one of the shards you found. The paper was an itinerary of what was in the box you tried to save. With red encircled there was a concoction of concentrated Qunari pheromones, Witherstalk and Felandaris, used in several torture techniques, since the only thing that got it out of your system was rectically administrated Qunari sperm.

“Please, don’t tell me that Cullen got any of this stuff on him.” Solas said nothing. 

“Well then I won’t tell you, but he still needs your help,” Varric cut in when Solas remained quiet. It suddenly dawned on you why Cullen would need you specifically. When it came to healing magic, you were not the expert, but when it came to a source of Qunari sperm, the options were you and Bull. The thought of Bull doing it made you cringe and you put the paper back on the table, before running out the door. You runned over the bridge and slammed the door to Cullen’s room open. You heard pained moans at the left, where Cullen laid on a mattress they had dragged from somewhere to here. Probably no one could get him up the ladder to his bed. 

You crouched down next to him. You tried to get the hair out of his face, but he moaned at the slightest touch. “There you are,” he mused as he gave you the most undignifying bedroom eyes you had ever seen. “Bull informed me of my… status,” he tried. Clearly Cullen was still Cullen, which was a good sign. Either Solas has done some outstanding magic or Cullen was really muscling through the potion well. “This was not how I expected to have sex with you for the first time, but you should take me up that ladder right now.” He was panting, covered in sweat and he looked even more tiny without his armour. 

“You know we don’t need to have sex, right? I could just…”

“I want to. I’ve thought about sex with you so many times, you have no idea.” 

You already felt sorry for him when he got his full mind back. He would be so embarrassed, but you couldn’t die of secondhand embarrassment right now. You hoisted him over your shoulder, noticing his cock poking through his breeches as you climbed the ladder. Maybe this was not the most practical interior design choice. You were glad that at least now the roof was fixed and a fireplace installed. You casted a fire there, the room feeling a little warmer immediately. Cullen was rutting against your shoulder, but you didn’t blame him. You placed him on the bed and he pulled you down. You had kissed before. Varric even ran into you two making out. You would probably have made it official then, were it not for Varric’s interruption. 

However, this was nothing like anything you’ve done before. Cullen was insistent, a desperate man. His lips moved against yours as if he was trying to eat you. A primal noise left him as he tried to rid you of your clothing as soon as possible. You didn’t know what came over you, but you ripped his shirt in half, throwing it off the bed. With a rough tug, his breeches went off and you had beautiful access to everything that was Cullen. You wanted to take your time with him, but you feared there was no time for that. You conjured a substance to provide lubrication in one hand and raised his legs with the other. You toyed with his hole, coaxing it open. 

Cullen mewled as you put his legs over your shoulders and touched his cock. You pleased him with both hands, trying to take the edge off for him. He was like a cat in heat. He was so vocal and you wondered if he was the same when he wasn’t drugged. When you could push three fingers inside, you let your breeches fall to the floor and kicked them off your feet. Your cock stood big and glistening with precum between you. It wasn’t very thick, but the length was easily 20 inch at least. Cullen stared at it with an odd mixture of dread and lust. You cursed yourself for thinking it was hot. “Don’t worry, a shallow injection will be enough. You don’t need to take my full length.” 

You moved him closer to the edge of the bed and rested his legs on your waist. The tip of your cock was pressed against his stretched hole. You looked up at him and he gave you an insistent nod. You pushed inside, careful to only go a few inches deep, but he felt so good and hot around you, it was hard to restrain yourself. Your slow fucked him with the tip, breathing heavily as it took all your self-restraint to not just plow into him until he swore he met the Maker. “Inquisitor,” Cullen moaned, really testing your self-control. Using titles in the bedroom was definitely your kink and Cullen played into it like a charm. “Can I…” 

You stopped when he didn’t finish. You bent forward, cupping his cheek to get his attention. “What do you want? Just name it, commander.” Cullen caressed your cheek and licked his dry lips. He swallowed the lump in his throat and you watched as his Adam’s apple bobbed up and down. 

“Sit on the bed. I’d… like to be on top.” You licked your lips at the thought. You gently pulled out and sat down, resting against the headboard. Culled straddled you and he was so beautiful. His scarred skin told the stories of many battles. His hands ghosted around your horns. “May I?” You usually didn’t like people touching them, since they were a little more sensitive than those of other Qunari, but with the idea in mind of what was to come, you wanted his hands on them now. You nodded and sighed in pleasure as Cullen leveraged himself on your horns as he lowered his body against the tip of your huge cock. 

Cullen hissed as you breached him again. You stared at him as he took you deeper than you thought he would. You groaned as he managed to impale himself halfway your length, before he raised up just a little. Cullen deep-fucked himself on your cock, taking half of it inside and moaning like a song that you never wanted to end. You placed your hands on his hips, helping him at first, but soon enough you lifted and lowered him like a toy on your cock. Cullen’s hands fell down to your shoulders, where his fingers dug into your skin. You growled as lust took over and you were chasing your orgasm with his hole. 

Another few thrusts and you held him in place as you spilled your seed inside him. You watched as Cullen let go with one hand and stroked himself. He spilled between your bodies, getting semen on both your torsos. When he was done, you were still pumping him full with the last bits of your load. You slid down the headboard and laid him down on your chest, cock still deep inside him as he rested on top of you, bodies sticking together with his semen. 

No words were exchanged as you let your semen do its work counteracting the potion. You stroked his back and hair, basking in the afterglow of an amazing orgasm. “Could we… switch positions next time?” You looked down and chuckled, humming affirmatively. A human topping a Qunari was a funny idea, but with Cullen, you were long happy he considered a next time and when that time would come, you wouldn’t care how it would go, as long as it was with your favourite commander. 

#cullen rutherford #cullen #dragon age: inquisition #dragon age #dragon age inquisition #cullen x reader #qunari #adaar #cullen x adaar #cullen x inquisitor #male inquisitor #cullen x male reader #cullen rutherford x reader #cullen rutherford x inquisitor #cullen rutherford x male reader #x male reader #male reader #qunari reader #qunari inquisitor #kinktober 2020 #kinktober2020 #kinktober #dragon age x reader #dragon age x male reader

[bittykimmy13]

Wounds (GT Angst)

This is a Shot in the Dark AU known at the “Dark Future AU”.

Fairies have been exposed to the world. Bounties have been placed on their capture. They’re not going down without a fight.

Characters belong to me and the lovely @marydublin5 / @little-miss-maggie​ , creator of the rad header image  <3

Warning: Blood

(( More Dark Future AU ))

A human in the safe house.

It was unheard of. The news spread through the halls like wildfire, accompanied by frantic questions of potential evacuation. If one human had found the haven, surely a mob of them would soon breach the glamour barrier and capture every last fairy.

That morning, Zia only heard about the rumors and chaos secondhand. If evacuation was necessary, it would have been underway by now, she assured herself. Though she was chilled at the thought of a human somewhere on the grounds, she continued tending to her patients and studying diligently to be prepared for whatever wounds were brought before her. 

During the past months, the healing ward had been so packed with the influx of arrivals that she scarcely found time to eat or sleep, let alone chase rumors. She couldn’t afford to lose sight of her role’s importance. Fairies showed up half-dead from their exhausting journeys, sometimes harboring injuries from humans.

Never had the world been such a hostile place for her kind.

“Saffron. Maeve.”

Zia looked up from her book, where she had been carefully studying an incantation for healing burns. 

It was Audrine who had spoken. She looked more vexed than usual as she entered the healing ward with three unfamiliar fairies in tow. They didn’t appear to be injured, but they had the wide eyes of new arrivals who were no strangers to suffering. Saffron and Maeve, the leaders of the ward, assigned nearby healers to their patients and hurried to Audrine. Zia tried to focus back on her spellbook, but she couldn’t help but overhear

“I’m sure by now you’ve heard about the human,” Audrine said, skipping the pleasantries. “Well, we have a bit of a situation. Which is to say, we have a clusterfuck of a situation. The human brought these three with him, claiming he wanted to get them somewhere safe.”

“It’s true,” murmured one of the new arrivals, whose face flushed when he was ignored.

“Naturally, we can’t let him leave. He knows where and how to find us.” Audrine cast a sour look at the three fairies, who must have led the human through the glamour barrier—their most reliable line of defense. “He put up no resistance to being taken to one of the south wing dormitories. We have our best guards—excluding myself, at the moment—watching him.”

Saffron, normally a picture of gentle composure, pushed himself in front of Maeve protectively. “What does this have to do with us?”

Audrine sighed. “He’s injured. And our new friends say he is worth being healed.”

“He saved us!” the same arrival blurted.

“He… he and his other human friend broke in to save some girl with a traitor mark,” said another, a young woman. “His friend was killed. The girl became unstable. She was an ice affinity. She froze the whole room and killed all the humans in it—all except for him. She told him to save us. S-she… she didn’t make it. Her own magic consumed her.”

By then, Zia was openly staring, along with everyone else in earshot.

“Please,” said the third arrival, who couldn’t have been older than seventeen. She looked to the lead healers, voice hitching. “You have to help him! He’s hurt so bad. All he did was wrap up his wounds. The blood’s showing. He doesn’t even seem to care that he’ll die.”

That finally seemed to make Saffron waver. He shared a look with Maeve, who bit her lip and said, “His injuries are that serious?”

“I’ll do it,” Zia said, the words flying out before she could stop them. When all eyes turned to her, she squared her shoulders. “Take me to him.”

Saffron shook his head. “Zia, we don’t know the danger this man poses.”

“All the more reason I should go,” she said. “You won’t let Maeve go alone, and she won’t let you go alone. And… if he is dangerous, the safe house can’t afford to lose both of you. I’ll go.”

“Excellent, glad it’s settled.” Audrine beckoned Zia to follow before there could be any protest. Nodding curtly at the lead healers, Audrine left behind the new arrivals and all but pushed Zia out of the healing ward. “She will be guarded. If the brute dares to lay a finger on her, that finger will be incinerated.”

Glowing orbs hung all around the safe house, pushing back the night’s darkness. Zia and Audrine flew through the foyer, past the enormous staircases, and crossed into a part of the building that had not been structured with fairy accommodations yet. It made sense to keep the human in the south wing, where fairies rarely wandered. However, Audrine did need to shoo off a group of teenagers who were trying to peek into the corridor to catch a glimpse of the human.

Most of the doors in the expansive hall were open. A group of five fairies hovered at attention in front of the last dormitory.

“Any issues?” Audrine questioned Emiko, one of the guards.

“He’s hardly budged,” he said.

“That’s as good a sign as any.” Audrine turned to Zia. “Are you ready?”

Zia squinted past the doorway. Something fearful fluttered in her stomach. There were hardly any lights in the room, but she could see a massive form sitting at the edge of a human-sized bed. She had the peculiar and frightening feeling of looking into a monster’s den. 

Humans had always been a threat, but the past months had proven they were more than that. They were apocalyptic. And she was about to put herself within reach of one.

He’s hurt.

“I’m ready,” Zia said in a small voice.

She entered the room flanked by Audrine and Emiko. The human raised his head as they approached. As her eyes adjusted, she saw that he was hunched forward, arms folded on his lap. A tingle ran along Zia’s skin as she sensed the injuries upon his body—puncture wounds that could have only been made with human weapons. Even a non-healer could have smelled the blood. It was a wonder he was still conscious.

The three of them came to a stop in front of the human. Dark as it was, he seemed to cast an even deeper shadow over them.

“What do you want?” His voice rumbled like thunder when he spoke, but Zia had a feeling he was barely muttering.

Audrine made a noise of contempt. “I want nothing more than to have you bleed out somewhere outside. The mess would be easier to clean up.”

“Fine by me.” The human grunted and started to rise.

Zia cried out involuntarily, covering her mouth too late to stop the noise. He was even bigger than she could have imagined. Audrine and Emiko immediately shouted incantations and ignited spells to their hands. The human looked between them with narrowed eyes before lowering himself back to the bed.

“Careful,” Audrine said. “If you frighten away your sweet little volunteer, I doubt you’ll be getting another.”

The human's overwhelmingly sharp green gaze settled on Zia. “Volunteer? Don’t tell me this is some kinda creepy sacrifice thing, ‘cause I’m not in the mood.”

“I’m a healer,” Zia said, wincing at how her voice cracked. She tried to compose herself and face him the way she would any other patient. “I’m here to help you. Can you point out what’s hurting the most—”

“No healers,” the human growled, leaning away from her like she was poison.

Zia stared, speechless. Considering the lengths humans had gone to abuse fairies for their magic, she hadn’t even considered that he would turn down the opportunity to be healed.

“Are you an idiot?” Audrine flitted closer in response to his retreat. “You’re lucky you weren’t killed the moment you stepped through the barrier! She’s offering to save you from a slow and painful death. Be grateful. That is, if humans have the capacity for it.”

The human tensed, and Zia’s eyes darted to his hands, certain that he would snatch Audrine out of the air to crush the life out of her. But he merely heaved a sigh and pressed his fingertips to his brows. 

“No healers,” he said with a note of pleading. “Just leave me the fuck alone.”

Audrine hissed, clenching her fists at her sides. “You do not tell me what to do, you overgrown, thankless—”

Zia cleared her throat. “Audrine?”

She rounded on Zia with a glare. “What?”

Fiddling with her fingers, Zia was somehow more nervous than when the human was looking at her. “You’re very good at a lot of things,” she said delicately. “But I don’t think this approach is working. Do you think… I could have some space with him? And more light?”

Emiko looked at Zia like she'd gone mad. “Leave you alone with him?”

“I’m not helpless. You can watch from the door if you like. Just some space, please.”

Crossing her arms, Audrine reluctantly pulled away from the human. “Stay sharp, Zia. He could lash out at any moment.”

“I won’t,” the human muttered.

“And if he continues to refuse your generosity, don’t bother with him.”

Zia nodded, though she had no intention of leaving the room until the human’s wounds were healed. Audrine and Emiko sent out more orbs to fill the room with light. As her view of the human was cleared of shadows, Zia felt the spike of intimidation drive deeper. She tried to see past his size and found her heart breaking for him. He looked positively wrung out. He had a handsome face, no doubt about it, but his expression was cold and empty.

As Audrine and Emiko gave her the space she requested, she couldn’t stop thinking about what the new arrivals had said about the human. When his eyes slid to her, however, she blanked for a few seconds.

“I’m Zia,” she managed, folding her hands in front of her.

“Cliff.” The response alone seemed to exhaust him. “Look, sweetheart, I appreciate it, but I already said no—”

“No healers. I know. But what about some company instead?”

“You don’t want to be here. I’m scaring the daylights outta you.”

“Says who?”

He looked her up and down, heaving a sigh like a gust of wind. “You think you’re fooling anyone? You’re shaking like a leaf. Just go.”

“I’ve never been this close to a human,” she said. “I can’t help but be a little… nervous.”

“You should be more than nervous. Healers have it especially rough out there.” His fists clenched on his lap. “You stay the fuck away from other humans, you hear me?”

Her breath caught. It was distressing to process that level of anguish on such a large face. “I heard what the new arrivals said,” she murmured. “I’m sorry about your friend. And… and the ice affinity girl.”

“They were my family,” he snapped, making her flinch. Her fright eased when he looked a little sorry for startling her. He blinked hard and swiped tears from his eyes before they could fall. “Sylv,” he rasped. “And J—” His voice choked off, mouth pulling into a tortured grimace as he doubled over on the bed and heaved a sob.

“Cliff?” She was surprised to feel tears pricking at the back of her eyes. Flying in tentatively, she reached out a shaking hand to touch his knuckle. She looked up and tried to catch his gaze. “I’m so sorry,” was all she could say.

He shuddered. “It should’ve been me.”

“It shouldn’t have been any of you!” Her own tears finally began to fall. Her voice wobbled, and she pressed on nonetheless. “But you’re here. And I want to help. Please, Cliff… Let me heal you.”

“Don’t you know what’s happening out there?” His voice rose, and he practically shook her off. “Fairies are being caged in iron until their magic is needed for study or whatever sick shit the researchers decide it should be used for. Healers like you are being forced to use their magic. If they don’t comply, they’re tortured. Hell, they’re tortured anyway. I’m not taking anything from you. Not one fucking drop of magic. Don't waste your generosity on a human.”

“You’re not taking,” she insisted, flying up closer to his face and persisting when he tried to turn away. “I’m giving. You saved some of our own, and we’re grateful. Please. Let me do this, and we’ll be even. The ice girl… Sylv. She used her magic to save you, didn’t she?”

His gaze snapped to her, and for a moment, she worried she had crossed a line that would awaken his true human nature. But sorrow flooded in.

He swallowed hard. “She told me… to save as many as I can.”

In that moment, she knew that she was not looking at an enemy, monster, prisoner, or whatever else Audrine and the others wanted to think he was. Maybe even he needed to be convinced that he was none of those things. Pursing her lips, she tried to look at his face and not at the bloodied bandages she so desperately wanted to pull away and heal. 

“We’re trying to save as many as we can, too,” she murmured. “Do you want to help?”

Their eyes met, and she did not flinch away as he studied her. Something shifted in his gaze. He gave a nod that was barely perceptible even at his size.

Zia inched toward a soaked red bandage on his upper arm. “Well, you can’t help us if you’re dead.” She started to tug, but it was wrapped too tightly for her to make any progress.

With a sigh, he unwrapped the wound and allowed himself to be healed.

#gt #giant tiny #giant #tiny #size difference #gt angst #gt writing #g/t #g/t writing #fairy #fairies #shot in the dark #dark future au #zia #saffron #maeve #audrine #emiko #cliff #mywriting

[royalstorm]

better off   *   xiaoqing // ; xiao x keqing //

content warning : pda, negative thought patterns

Xiao's infatuation is not a slow boil. His heartbreak is.

It's a realization that had dawned on him months ago. He vowed to himself to keep it tucked away, on the backburner left to simmer. To worry about an uncertain future would be to neglect the demands of the present, is what he told himself. He had believed it. He had been pretty convincing back then.

Then, last week...November 20.

In the air that day was a hum of excitement, one that persisted in spite of his itching ears. The people amongst him, too—grinning, giggling, resonating on a frequency that he was tone deaf to.

Even the thrumming in his own chest was akin to a death march.

Her voice had been his only saving grace—the symphony stringing away con brio, above all the noise. And when he offered her his present — clumsily wrapped, barely held together with a ribbon — she graced him with a "thank you" that silenced the discontent in his mind — the darkness in his heart — if only for a moment.

But that same night, the realization Xiao had forced down all those months ago resurfaced, bubbling with a vengeance. How he wished he had just rested, instead of patrolling where he had not been needed. Maybe then, he wouldn't have had to stand testament to the tragedy he came upon on Mt. Tianheng. It was a simple tragedy, but a tragedy nevertheless.

Raining down on him, like a hailstorm, were three eagles — all skewered by a singular, steely arrow.

It was when they reached ground zero — nothing short of battered, bloody feathers at his feet — that it was he who'd taken a shot to the chest.

Memento mori.

"Remember you must die."

Remember she must die.

Flash forward to the adeptus' current state: a state of motion. Running. Practically flying. For the past thousand or so years, all he knew to do was stay still. Physically, he was and continues to be on the move. Evil never sleeps, after all.

But spiritually and emotionally, where it truly mattered, he had been complacent: to the shifting sands, to the rising tides, to the erosion of Liyue's many mountain ranges.

It's useless, he chides himself. A loud thwack! punctures the air as he descends, polearm first, from a rooftop to the cobblestone ground below. He rises from his squat form to better regard his surroundings.

To think that the esteemed Yuheng of the Liyue Qixing would willingly live somewhere ordinary...remote, even. Indeed, he's still roaming the streets of Liyue Harbor, but he would've been fooled quite easily had someone told him differently.

"I don't care to live lavish, even if it's something I am able to afford," is what she told him once, when they were discussing philosophy. "Once in a while, it does you no harm to treat yourself, but it feels ... unnecessary flaunting that which so many can’t have themselves, and—" She had chuckled here. "—Never mind. You get my point, don’t you?”

Xiao keeps that thought at the forefront of his mind as he nears the front door. Upon reaching it, he silently thanks the archons for her residence's ease of access: on the first floor and as one of the very first units of the complex.

Lifting a hand, he knocks once...twice...

The door handle on the opposite end almost immediately rattles in response.

"Xiao?"

Keqing's voice is a colorful blend of concerned and (pleasantly) surprised. She fidgets with what looked to be an empty rice bowl in her hands.

"Keqing," he acknowledges, amber eyes suddenly skittering to the ground. Ignoring the heat rising to his cheeks, he follows up with, "My apologies for the unexpected visit. I hope you don't mind."

From his periphery, Xiao can see that she's still fiddling with the bowl — shifting it, inclining it, turning it upside down and right back up. He isn't sure what it means.

"No, of course I don't mind," she reassures him. Even as his eyes avoid hers, he can tell she's being earnest. Something soft and warm to the touch permeates the fabric of his glove. Eyes darting to the side, he sees her hand clasping his — on the verge of tugging him her way.

The "come inside" catches in Keqing's breath as the adeptus simply allows himself to be ushered in. Bowl now nestled solely in her other hand, she shuts the door closed with a foot. His hand still in hers, she then leads him down the main corridor and into the kitchen, where she'd been enjoying a late night dinner.

They seat themselves in her dining room, chairs directly across one another's. He ignores the arrangement of food scattering the table in favor of examining the rest of her home. The walls are relatively bare, save for two swords displayed in their respective racks front and center. Most, if not all, of the furniture looks decent enough—nothing too gaudy or flashy, though nothing secondhand, either—but even their presence is minimal ... underwhelming for a common civilian, let alone an aristocrat.

"Sorry if you were expecting something more grand." Keqing's voice rustles him from his observations.

Xiao rekindles the will to look her in the eyes. He attempts to ignore the dark circles weighing them down. "There is no need for you to apologize. I quite like your home, actually." When she chances a dubious brow in his direction, he adds, "It seems comfortable."

Keqing exhales a breath that is half scoff, half laugh. “Great save.” She props herself up on the dinner table and begins adding contents from each dish into her bowl. Xiao watches her from his periphery, realizing that this may have been one of the first times he’d seen her eat.

“You are free to help yourself to whatever you please.”

This time, he visibly flinches — once again, roused by the Yuheng’s voice.

“I will have to politely decline.” And before she can protest, he follows up with, “Adepti do not require the same amount of nourishment needed by human beings.”

Keqing’s shoulders roll into a lazy shrug. The sound of chopsticks scraping porcelain rings in the air. “So be it. Just know that the offer is yours for the taking whenever.”

For the next few minutes, the pair sits in silence — one that is only curtailed by the occasional sound of Keqing’s chopsticks against her bowl. Silences between them have been comfortable, for the most part...perhaps not in the beginning — back when they could not yet see eye to eye, back when they found faults within each other, back when they could not acknowledge those same faults within themselves — but that tension came to pass the moment their fondness for each other began to bloom...as friends and then, eventually, as...more.

Tonight, the silence feels especially oppressive, perhaps even more so than it did when they first got acquainted with one another. And as it continues to crescendo, looming over them like gallows, Xiao can only assume that she feels similarly.

”Keqing–“

”Why have you come here tonight?”

Xiao freezes, stunned. Consider the image of a deer in the headlights — not only only the fear and the wide eyes, but the acceptance of a certain, untimely fate. In hindsight, it’s foolish for him to react so severely. Hadn’t he paid her this visit for a pressing reason?

Or perhaps he still didn’t want to accept that pressing reason himself?

He’s too quiet. He hesitates for too long. He is always too quiet and hesitating for too long. The sound of a bowl settling atop mahogany, chopsticks following suit, fills his ears. With bated breath, the adeptus feels her presence shift from the seat across his to standing right beside him.

It takes everything in him not to pivot.

“Xiao.” Keqing’s voice is firmer now...still gentle, but far more stalwart in intention. His eyes glaze over briefly, searching hers, finding in them the stubborn concern he’d grown to cherish so much.

When he still offers her no reply, she lifts a hand to his arm, fingers gently running over the exposed skin. “I know you aren’t just here for the sake of being here.” Keqing continues skimming his arm with that feather light touch, just barely cognizant of the slight bumps left in its wake. “After all, it’s a Thursday night. You know better than anyone that I like to spend these nights in solitude.” Her hand halts upon contacting his bird bone wrist.

The adeptus feels his mouth dry at the tenderness of it all, sucking in a breath once her fingertips stop at his wrist, a hair shy out of his reach. He wonders if intimacy would always feel this...strange. Exhilarating. Or was this merely her Vision’s power at work? She is an Electro user, after all...

“Please talk to me.” There’s a meek lilt in Keqing’s voice that coerces Xiao to not only look up, but to also maintain his hold on her gaze. How pathetic, the way he can stare at hell itself square in the eye but could barely muster the courage to expend even a glance her way.

“I–“ Pause. Falter. Swallowing thickly, Xiao rises from his seat. He slowly takes the hand adorning his wrist into his own — intertwining the fingers one by one, marveling at how perfectly they fit together.

Then, bowing his head and releasing a sigh, he finds the courage to speak his piece — to voice his pressing reason...

“You are better off without me.”

Xiao feels the hand in his go limp.

”What? What do you mean?” There’s an incredulity that leaks into the Yuheng’s tone that he isn’t familiar with. He doesn’t like it.

”I am not worthy of you, Keqing. What we have, it cannot be.” What vile things to say. What vile, disgusting things. The words lapping his tongue taste almost as bitter as the blood he’d once shed, so he does exactly what he did all those years ago.

He gulps it down.

”You deserve better. You deserve the world. I don’t say this with the intention of discrediting myself. But I–“ Xiao trembles in spite of himself. He feels her other hand cup the small of his back. “–I am not capable of offering you all that you deserve, or even half of that amount.”

He doesn’t quite know how he sounds at that moment, let alone how he looks, but as he feels Keqing’s arms adjust to wrap around his frame, he figures it can’t be good.

”I don’t understand you sometimes,” she whispers into the crook of his neck. “You say you don’t mean to sell yourself short, yet that’s exactly what it sounds like you are doing.” She squeezes him softly before leaning further into the embrace. “Besides, who are you to tell me what I do and do not deserve? Who is anyone to decide that? Shouldn’t that decision be mine and mine alone?”

Whenever she talks like that, Xiao finds it difficult to fathom her mortality...to grasp the idea that she would one day be nothing but ashes at his feet. Yet, as he holds her, and as she holds him, her breath, her small frame, and the bray of her human heart become all the more clear to him.

”I suppose you’re right. Forgive me. This is novel territory for someone such as myself.” The adeptus feels her form loosen as she chuckles. He rests his chin upon her shoulder. “But still, I can’t help but feel that the life you lead has far more meaning than mine.”

Xiao withdraws from their embrace, if only to get a full glimpse of her face. Noticing the hints of tears pooling at the corner of one eye, he takes a thumb and lightly brushes it away.

”But you are the protector of Liyue, handpicked by Rex Lapis himself.”

Classic Keqing. Always so quick to counter him. He begins trailing his thumb down her cheek — slowly, softly. Her eyes reflexively draw closed. “While that may be so, my time here knows no limits. I can afford to be complacent. But you–“ Xiao pauses again. At this point, his thumb is bordering the curve of her jaw and her bottom lip. “–Your time in this world is finite. As a result, you cannot afford to spend it with regrets.” Now, it’s his turn to shut his eyes. He bows his head again. “I fear that may come to pass if you continue to involve yourself with me.”

The Yuheng allows her eyes to flutter half-open. She too bows her head, if to just press her forehead to his. “You don’t know that for sure.” Lifting a hand, she rests it on top of his. She prods his thumb so that it rests on the flush red of her lip, right where it meets her skin. “Even knowing the fate of our bond, much of the future is still uncertain.”

Xiao‘s head dips lower. Their noses brush. He can feel her breath hitch. “I understand that better than most. Nothing in this world is completely certain. Even the word of our gods is something that, at times, must be taken with a grain of salt.” He almost smiles saying that. You taught me this yourself. His thumb begins gingerly grazing her bottom lip. “But wouldn’t you want to pursue that which would yield you the most certainty?” Xiao can sense his feelings going awry once more. He breathes deeply and prolongs the exhale that follows, as if to ground himself. “That includes entering a relationship with...another mortal. Someone who can provide for you. Someone who is always present. Someone...whose love will not be lost to the whims of time.” He sighs in spite of himself, consciously commanding that his voice stay as level as possible. “Is that not what you want?”

Not even a second elapses before Keqing scoffs. Whether it’s ironic or not is completely lost on the adeptus, but what he does know for sure is the feeling of his other hand being claimed by hers — of it being lifted to her face, of it cupping her cheek.

”Do you even hear yourself right now? I’m not sure whether to call you foolish or stubborn, but that doesn’t matter right now.” She releases a breath. “What matters is you knowing, with absolute certainty, that no, isn’t at all what I want.” Keqing’s face nears his even more so. Lips, parted. Eyes, half-lidded. Xiao’s thumb moves to frame the curve of her chin.

”What I want is you.” Their lips brush for a fraction of a second. Her breath is a strange comfort, hot in his mouth. “Xiao, I choose you. For better or for worse. I want to spend this lifetime with you ... and if not that, then at the very least, every second of  the time we’ve been allotted with each other. Nothing can hope to alter those facts — nothing except how you decide to proceed with this information.”

He opts to respond by, at long last, closing the last bit of distance that separates them. Lips pressed against lips, body pressed against body, hands pressed against hands.

They need not talk even after they pull away from each other, the tingling in their lips and blush sweeping their cheeks speaking volumes for themselves. Moments later, they’re close again – practically insoluble as they envelope the other in their arms, as their heads settle warmly atop each other’s shoulder.

There, they stay for a while.

There, they reconcile with their comfortable silence.

#he/him pronouns bc this is reference to 'canon' xiao but i had audie in mind when i wrote this #i said i was gonna write xiaoqing so #have a refurbished fic i typed up last month #i hate how cheesy this is but whatever!!!! #pda // #xiaoqing // #* RE : GUARDIANYAKSHA / sometimes we cannot bear the thing that we crave . #* CHARA. STUDY / waiting ; seething ; blooming . #* WRITING / my wit ? as sharp as keqing's sword .

[ithinkilikeit-reactions]

Music Store Romance (Kim Hongjoong/Smut)

A/N: This was inspired by his Purple Rain cover and the fact that Hongjoong is a music lover in it’s finest form. Also this jumps around a lot because my brain jumped around a lot while I writing it. I apologize. 

REMEMBER FEEDBACK IS KIND

tags: Highschool au! because that’s all i can write apparently, loner au!, friends to lovers?? Switch! Hongjoong, Switch! reader. I don’t think Hongjoong’s parents are like this obviously but for stories sake

Word count:  5550 

The music store was a dingey, old place. Filled practically from floor to ceiling with records, cds and tapes, it had everything you could imagine. It was a little escape for music lovers and it was your home, quite literally. Your family lived above the store and owned it. It was only natural that you had a love for music, it was only natural that you worked there. 

When you weren’t at school, you were at the store and you had 0 problems with it. The amount of interesting people you met there was worth the hours you made in a day. 

Today was no different, your classes had ended and you were back in the store sorting through some records. Things were always being mixed up and with the amount of music the store had and secondhand records were flying around, it was easy to get things mixed up. Today you were the only one working and the only one in the store in general. 

You turned the speakers up, some random record playing some soft rock. It was your random choice of the day, only to be disturbed by the bell above the door ringing. Looking up from your pile, your eyes met very familiar ones coupled with a head of silver hair. 

Hongjoong wasn’t someone you expected to see outside of class, well at least not in your store. He was quiet, the type to always sit in the back of the class and hardly ever said a word. People kept their distance from him, not because he was scary but because he didn’t seem open to it and made it known by facial expressions alone. You two had never really crossed paths and you weren’t really expecting you. 

“Hi, if I can help you with anything let me know.” You simply said, putting your shop voice on. You weren’t going to go out of your way to make small talk. “Oh, thanks.” He said and paused in front of your counter where you stood. “Do we go to school together?” He asked and you looked back up, eyes locking once more. Nodding, you smiled softly. You never really looked at Hongjoong before, sure you had seen him but you never really looked. He had smooth skin in a nice shade, silver hair cut messily to just fall into his bright eyes. 

“Oh cool.” He said and nodded a little before walking further into the store. He was very unbothered by the exchange but you were left kind of breathless, you never knew he was so pretty. 

You moved to the record player, changing out the record because you were tired of the repetitive rock beat in the store. As you were flipping through your selection and deciding what to listen to, a record was being pushed over the counter. “Try that, it’s relaxing and has good vibe for background music.” Hongjoong said with a smile. “Oh okay.” You said and looked at it. It was a jazz record, mainly instrumental and not anything you had heard of before. 

“Interesting choice, didn’t take you for a jazz person.” You said, putting the music on and adjusting the volume. Hongjoong was leaning against the counter, flipping through the flyers for random events on it. “I listen to anything, as long as it sounds good.” He said, looking at you. “I’ve never seen you here before, did you just start working here?” He asked and you laughed. “I’m always here, after school, before school. Always. You must come in after dinner because that’s the only time I’m not here.” You said and ran your finger’s through your hair. 

“Hey Y/N? Can you come catalogue these albums?” Your dad asked, coming down the stairs from your house and into the store. “Ah, Hongjoong! You haven’t come in for a while.” Your father said and went to hug you school mate. You were incredibly confused, it seemed your father knew him better than you did. “Haven’t really had money to spend, sir.” Hongjoong answered with an apologetic smile, something you took note of. 

Hongjoong loved the old music store, it was a little haven for him, a hidden gem. The owner’s were kind and music lovers, people he could have a good conversation with. It was his place. 

“You know you’re always welcome to just come in and listen to stuff.” Your dad said and moved behind the counter with you. “You two know eachother?” Your father asked and you blinked at Hongjoong for a moment. “Yeah we go to school together.” He said and your dad smiled widely. “I’m gonna go catalogue those albums.” You said and left your father and Hongjoong to talk. 

Hongjoong watched you walk away to  the back of the store, you seemed close to the owner and it really amazed him how he never saw you here before. Especially considering how often he was there. 

“Hope my daughter doesn’t give you too hard of a time at school.” Your father said and Hongjoong smiled, that’s why you were so close to him. “No, she’s always nice.” Hongjoong lied, not wanting to throw you under the bus. It wasn’t that you were mean, no one was mean to Hongjoong. But no one really spoke to him either. But that wasn’t anything your father needed to know. 

“That’s a relief. Something on your mind son?” He asked and Hongjoong blinked slightly. There was a lot on his mind, all the time. Hongjoong was strapped for cash, on the verge of being kicked out of his house and he was lonely. “No, just thinking. Do you guys have any jobs available?” Hongjoong asked quickly and your father smiled. He needed money and he loved this place, it wasn’t a problem. “Always, especially for someone with the knowledge you have.” Your father said, leaving Hongjoong smiling. 

-

The next day, you headed home after class. You didn’t notice that someone was following you because of your headphones, but when their shadow caught up to you, you couldn’t help but turn around. Your school skirt lifting with the wind slightly as you did so. 

“Hongjoong?” You asked, the familiar silver head of hair a few feet behind you. “Yeah.” He said and you stood, crossing your arms. “Are you following me home?” Your words came out with a pout and Hongjoong laughed. It took him a few more moments to reach where you stood and he took a breath. 

“Don’t flatter yourself too much. Your dad hired me yesterday.” He explained and you scrunched up your face. Surely your father would have mentioned it over dinner. “Really?” You asked, your voice sounding almost disappointed even though you didn’t mean it to be. “Wow, try not to sound too disappointed.” Hongjoong said and brushed past you. “I didn’t mean it like that, dad just didn’t tell me.” You turned and caught up with him again. 

“I’m glad I actually have a coworker that isn’t my mom or dad.” You said happily. You never meant to make anyone feel bad on purpose. Your words were met with silence and you decided to just keep your mouth shut the rest of the walk home. 

Hongjoong knew people didn’t particularly enjoy being around him, he never understood why. He really tried his best but it just really seemed that way. 

“I’m sorry Hongjoong, I didn’t mean it like that really.” You said as you stood infront of the entrance to the store. He blinked at you, his eyelashes batting slightly and you swallowed thickly. Why was he making you feel this way with just a look. 

“It’s alright. I guess I’m just to people not liking me.” He said and held the door open for you. His words hurt you. Did you do something in the past to make him think you didn’t like him? You didn’t know anything about him, how could you not like him. You stopped and looked at him again. “How can I not like you, I don’t know anything about you?” You asked and he looked to the floor. “You’re right, i’m sorry.” He apologized and his eyes met yours again. 

“Clean start?” You asked, avoiding his gaze slightly. “Clean start... Now where do i get started boss?” He asked with a huge smile. “Boss, I like the sound of that.” You said and moved past him to move behind the counter. Hongjoong looked at you with expecting eyes and you were doing everything to avoid eye contact. You didn’t like the feelings that were bubbling up in your stomach every time he looked at you. The butterflies were too intense. 

He felt bad about judging you so fast and the way you thought about him. But once you get used to something it was hard to let things go. It was something he wanted to learn, something he needed to learn. 

You taught him well, his first day at the music store and he was almost dreading going home. Hongjoong found himself watching you, your little mannerisms and the way you tackled certain tasks really appealed to him. He didn’t particularly understand why. But he was still taking a minute to get comfortable with you.

-

It took about a month for you and Hongjoong to start talking, like really talking. Not about music or about things having to do with the store, but like friends. Your days at work had become something you looked forward to quite a bit, but at school he still seemed to keep his distance. Nodding his head at you, but then going to sit somewhere else. It was disheartening, made you wonder if he even liked you. 

Looking at him from across the store, you fumbled with the cassette tapes that were all mixed up due to kids messing around with them. Hongjoong heard them falling to the floor and looked at you as you shook your head and bent over to pick them up. “You alright, Y/N?” He asked and you popped back up from the floor. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just thinking about stuff.” You answered, shaking off your thoughts as you finished organizing. 

“You sure, you seem... out of it.” He pressed on and you smiled. Hongjoong was watching you intently, worried about you. “We’re friends you know, you can talk to me.” He said and your eyes went wide. “So we are friends? I wasn’t sure.” You asked and moved over to the counter to take a sip of water. It was a very slow day. 

“That was the problem?” He asked, wide eyes staring at you. “I mean kinda, I wasn’t sure if we were.” You pouted, fumbling with the papers on the counter. “Like we never really talk at school. I thought we would considering how much we talk here. So I guess I thought you didn’t want to spend more time with me than you had too.” You added on, avoiding eye contact and looking down at your hands. 

Hongjoong grabbed your hand, his thumb drawing circles in your palm. It caught you off guard but it was comforting in a weird way. “I didn’t know that you wanted that. I mean we spend so much time together here, that I thought you might want a break from my company.” He explained and you finally looked back up at him. Your expression was soft, your eyes sparkling in the natural light and Hongjoong felt himself swallow thickly. You were so kind to him. 

“Well, believe it or not but I actually enjoy your company a lot.” You told him and squeezed his hand. It didn’t help that the song playing in the shop was a sickly sweet song. “Let’s hang out more, in class and stuff. I’d really like it.” You said and he nodded. “I’d like it too.” Hongjoong said, his hand letting go of yours. 

The next week it surprised you as you ate your lunch, feeling someone scoot next to you. Your friends looked surprised at the sudden intruder on their lunch and you couldn’t help but smile feeling the leather from his jacket brush against your arms. “Hey.” He said with a bright smile. “Hey.” You said back, exchanging looks with your friends to let them know this was okay. “Guys, this is Hongjoong. We work together at my parent’s shop.” You said and they all nodded in understanding and introduced themselves. “This is something I could get used too.” You thought to yourself, hearing your friends talking and laughing. You looked at Hongjoong and watched him engage with the others. It made you feel warm. 

- 

“What made you get so into music?” You asked, the broom in your hand as you swept up the shop. Normally your father would do this, this late. But since you got a coworker who would be with you at night, he felt he could let you do it without too much worry. 

Hongjoong stopped sweeping his side of the room and leaned against his broom. “Uhh, I don’t know. Music’s just always been there. It’s so different.” He paused and looked at you as he answered. “All music is just so different. You can say so much, with no words or say a lot with words. Music helps you feel. It helps you feel understood, it helps you understand others.” He talked about it as if it was his first love, you were almost jealous. “Music helps me forget about the things that aren’t right in my life.” He added on, shrugging and continuing to sweep. 

“My parents aren’t the happiest with me. I feel like I’m going to be kicked out soon.” He said quietly, barely audible over the music in the store. Your heart shattered, his words stunned you so bad that the broom dropped out of your hands. “I’m sorry Hongjoong. I wish i could help.” You said and picked the broom up again. 

“You help me alot, you just don’t know it. This place and working here is the closest to happy I’ve been. You’ve helped a lot.” He said quietly and your cheeks turned bright red. You turned away from him, acting like you were sweeping a different part of the floor. Only you didn’t want him to see the effect he had on you. “That’s really sweet Hongjoong.” You said and a new song started up over the speakers. 

“Oh I love this song.” Hongjoong said and you heard him approach you with the broom. He tapped your shoulder, making you turn to look at him. He noticed the blush on your cheeks, thinking it was insanely cute especially when he grabbed your hand. “Dance with me?” He asked, pulling you into his chest. Your cheeks were completely flushed now and your hand was on his chest as you laughed. “Okay.” You said, trying to hide your face in his neck while giggling. 

The song was upbeat, filled with trumpets and it was a song obviously from the 50′s. Spinning you, he pulled you back into his chest and smiled. He couldn’t help but be happy, you looked so beautiful. Laughing as you stumbled slightly, he held you up. “Woah there.” He said, steadying you by holding onto your waist. The song was close to being over, but he decided to spin you again because he loved the laugh that came out of you when he did. 

“You’re so cute.” He said as he pulled you into his chest again. “No you are.” You said and let him go,  the song being over. Hongjoong leaned against the rack and watched as you tucked your hair behind your ear. That might have been one of the moments you’d remember the rest of your life. It was one of the sweetest moments in your life. 

You both sat, looking at eachother for a moment before he moved to grab the brooms. “Let’s finish this and lock up.” He interupted the silence, knowing that the night needed to end even though he didn’t want it to. 

Hongjoong was really growing to love you, though he wasn’t fully aware of that at the time. He was greatfull for you, you helped him and made him feel better. 

Though that good feeling he went home with didn’t last long. He was greeted with a shouting match from his parents and before he knew it, Hongjoong was outside with all of his things in bags. He felt it coming, he just wasn’t anticipating it happening so fast. He just wanted to go back in time, a few hours earlier where he was dancing with you and laughing. 

You were still sat in the shop, talking with your father and mother about some odd people that were an out during the week. Your parents couldn’t help but laugh at some of their regulars. The music business in every way was an odd one. 

It was already quite late, 10 p.m you read as you yawned. You were all about to turn the lights off in the store and go upstairs when a knock on the door stopped you. “Is that Hongjoong?” Your dad asked, quickly moving to go unlock the door. He had 3 bags with him, he looked distraught and seemed like he had been crying. To say you were worried was an understatement. 

“Hongjoong, what are you doing here?” Your mother asked, looking him over slightly to see if he was physically okay. You stood behind them, your arms crossed as you watched him drop his bags in the shop. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know where else to go. I can leave I shouldn’t have come.” He said moving to grab his things again. He had instant guilt the second he entered the shop, before it seemed like a good idea. “No, no what happened?” Your mother asked and it looked like he was about to break down. 

Hongjoong looked at you, blinking back tears and then started to explain what happened. “Alright, I will sort things out in the morning. You’re staying here for tonight.” Your father said and picked up Hongjoong’s things. “Come on upstairs.” Your mother added on and your parents disappeared into your house with his things. Hongjoong was frozen, just standing there and looking at the floor. You looked towards the stairs, before looking at him again. 

You didn’t need to think twice before going and hugging him, pulling him into you tightly. It caught Hongjoong off guard but he totally wasn’t against it. The physical contact was everything he needed. Wrapping his arms around you he tucked his face into your neck. The hug was so intimate, comforting in every way and incredibly long. Your arms wrapped around his neck, petting his hair lightly. This was how you comforted all of your friends. Hongjoong’s arms wrapped around your waist and took a deep breath. 

“I’m really sorry, I shouldn’t have showed up like this.” He said into your neck, the vibrations from his words tickling your neck. “It’s okay, it really is.” You said, still petting his hair. Your pulled away, making him look at you and grabbed his hand. “Let’s go upstairs yeah?” 

Hongjoong almost felt like he was intruding as he walked up the stairs straight into your living room. Your mom was getting the couch ready and all of Hongjoong’s bags were on the floor next to it. “Uhm, mom. I’ll take the couch. Hongjoong can have my room for the night.” You said, feeling like Hongjoong could use the comfort of a bed and not a couch. Hongjoong’s hand gripped yours even tighter at your words. “No, no I’ll take the couch.” Hongjoong argued with you and you sighed. “Take my bed, Hongjoong. For me.” You told him and he looked down to the floor. 

He felt like such a burden, especially as he sat on the foot of your bed. Looking around your room, he took it all in. This was exactly what he expected your room to look like. Fairy lights hanging on the ceiling, a stack of records on the floor next to an old record player and pictures of you and your friends hanging around the room. Hongjoong tucked his head into his hands and rubbed his face, he needed comfort. 

You were about to walk into your room to grab pajamas when your mother grabbed your arm. “Are you sure you’re comfortable having him in your room?Not that I don’t trust him, it’s just you’re my kid first.” She asked and you smiled, your parents always worried about you. “I know him, I trust him.” You said and she nodded. “Alright then. If you need us you know where we are.” She said and left to go to bed. 

“Hey, can I come in? I need to grab some clothes.” You asked through the door and you could hear his small “Come in.” You opened the door slowly and smiled at him. He was sat on you bed, staring at your walls. “You’re allowed to move you know.” You said and he smiled weakly. “I know.” He mumbled and you bit your bottom lip. Moving to sit next to him, you grabbed his hand and let your thumb draw shapes on the skin. It was something he had done for you before. 

“I feel like a burden, on everyone at this point.” He said, breaking the silence. “I don’t know what to do.” He added and you squeezed his hand. Your other hand moved up to his chin, you needed him to look at you. “You’re not a burden. We’ll figure things out and it’ll be okay.” You said and Hongjoong couldn’t help but let his eyes flicker down to your lips. Your fingers traced his jaw lightly before pulling it away. “You know, the happiest I’ve been in a while was today. Dancing with you and laughing. You really make me happy.” He said and cracked a genuine smile for the first time since he entered your house. His words made your chest fill with warmth and as you tried to look away. 

Hongjoong’s hand mimicked your earlier actions, making you look at him again. His face a lot closer to yours and you could feel his breath on your skin. “C-Can I kiss you?” He stuttered, you weren’t expecting the question. It made him even more endearing. You nodded and your eyes fluttered shut the second his lips touched yours. 

They were soft and gentle against yours as his hands moved to cup your face. It was a soft sweet kiss, that was too short for your liking as he pulled away. He watched your reaction before moving your hair out of your face. “Can I kiss you again?” He asked and you couldn’t help but laugh a little. Your hand moved to his shirt, pulling his lips against yours a little harder this time and you could feel him smile. You nipped at his bottom lip lightly, the grip on his shirt releasing to lay flat on his chest. 

“You really don’t have to ask.” You said as your forehead pressed to his and his arms wrapped around your waist. “Can you kiss me again then?” He asked with a cheeky smirk and you leaned forward. Pushing him back onto your bed, Hongjoong’s arms locked around you pulling you with him and you connected your lips.  The kiss escalated quite quickly, his teeth grazing over your bottom lip as he gained more confidence. You hummed against his lips, adjusting the way you sat to straddle his hips. 

You sat up, looking down at him as your hand still rested on his chest. Hongjoong propped himself up on his elbows and watched you as you caught your breath. He was always watching you, he couldn’t help himself. It was something he caught himself doing at work, watching the way you fumbled through cds or the way you pinned your hair back and your little mannerisms. He never understood why, but seeing you like this with the weight of your body resting on him comfortably made him realise why. 

“I don’t think I ever want to stop kissing you.” he said and pulled you back down against his lips. You both couldn’t help but laugh, your actions were so rushed. Very much the typical horny teenagers and you both were giving in to it. 

Hongjoong’s tongue slipped into your mouth and your hips rolled over his, making him buck against you. You let out a moan at the feeling and smiled feeling his hands travel lower, now resting at your hips and squeezing lightly. You rolled your hips again and he pulled away from your lips to throw his head back, moaning softly. It was a beautiful sound, soft and breathy, making you want to hear more. 

Your lips moved to his jaw, kissing down lightly and sucking on his neck.You were being gentle, not wanting to overstep your boundaries and Hongjoong could sense that. “You want this, right?” He asked, hands cupping your face to make you look at him. “I do, do you?” You questioned in return and he smiled. “I definitely do. I just wanted to be sure.” He said and flipped you both over. Scooting you towards the middle of the bed again, Hongjoong’s fingers gripped at your waist. He was sitting up, between your legs and taking a second to look at you. The way your hair splayed over your pillow, the way your work shirt had ridden up slightly and the way you chewed your bottom lip in anticipation. 

Placing your hands on the hem of his shirt, you pulled it up slightly. Hongjoong got the hint with a little laugh before tugging his shirt off over his head, thought it got caught on his earrings making him laugh with embarrassment. You sat up slightly, helping him pull it off of his head and quickly cupped his cheeks afterwards. “You’re really beautiful, Kim Hongjoong.” You said, meaning every word as you looked him in the eyes. You placed a swift kiss on his lips before quickly taking your work shirt off, tossing it on the floor of your room. 

Your fingers threaded through his hair as you felt his lips attach to your neck and his own danced over your bare stomach. He didn’t want to leave marks, knowing your parents would see them in the morning so he left the kisses light. His hand moved up, sliding underneath your bra gently to squeeze your boob lightly. You couldn’t help but find the way he was being so gentle incredibly endearing. 

Hongjoong kissed down your chest, the kisses becoming a bit harsher as he nipped at your skin. He reached around you undoing the confining item of clothing, pulling it down your arms and throwing it the same direction of your shirt. His mouth latched onto your nipple, sucking softly and watching you. Your fingers were still in his hair and you tugged on the strands as he bit down on your skin. “Hongjoong~” You hummed and pulled him off of you. His lips were slightly swollen and his eyes were darker than usual. 

He moved back up and pressed his lips to yours. His chest fully against yours and he loved it. The feeling of you against him like that was maybe one of his favorites. 

But that feeling left as you slid out from under him and moved to sit up. Your fingers undoing his jeans swiftly, you had a determined look on your face and well you were. You wanted to make him feel good. 

Hongjoong moved so that he was sat on the edge of the bed. Swallowing thickly as you settled between his legs, you locked eyes with him as you tugged his jeans and boxers off with them. Your hands moved up his thighs before grabbing his cock gently. He let out a deep breath, scared to lose eye contact with you as you took him between your lips. Bobbing your head slowly you took him down as far as you were comfortable before moving back up, your tongue tracing the underside of him. 

He was trying his best not to make too much noise, knowing your parents were just down the hall. But he couldn’t help himself too much, clamping his palm over his mouth as the other tangled in your hair. Guiding you up and down, but not forcing you to take any more than what you could. You could feel his muscles tense under your fingers and he tugged your hair a little harder than before, pulling you off of him. 

“I- uh- not yet.” He stuttered as you stood up, his hand releasing your hair. You stood in front of him for a second, before his hand moved to pull you closer by your jeans. He undid them and you helped him, tugging them down your legs. Stepping out of them, Hongjoong wrapped his arms around you and pulled you back into his lap. 

“Do you have a condom?” He asked as your hands held the back of his neck. “Right.” You said with a small laugh, before leaning over to your nightstand and opening the drawer. He watched you, kissing your bare shoulder as you grabbed a condom. You were a blushing mess fumbling around in your drawer and he was being just so sweet. “Relax.” He whispered, his fingers drawing shapes on your skin. 

You grabbed the packet, finally being able to find it in your drawer and handed it to him. You held his shoulders as he let you go, rolling the condom on and holding your hips again. 

You slowly sank down on to him and he stopped you. “I know you said, that I don’t have to ask. But I’m doing it anyways. Are you sure you want to do this?” Hongjoong asked and you kissed him softly. “I’m very sure.” You added on after, playing with the hair on the back of his neck. He lined himself at your entrance and you started sinking down slowly. One of Hongjoong’s hands held your hip and the other your cheek, his eyes watching your expression as you took him. 

You stilled as you took him all the way, your eyes fluttering shut and your forehead pressing into his. “You’re so beautiful.” He mumbled, doing his best to not buck his hips into you. Your hands moved to his shoulders for leverage as you started moving. Soft sighs leaving his mouth as you picked up pace. Hongjoong held you tightly, tucking his face into your neck. 

You let out a loud moan as he hit that sweet spot and you quickly clamped your hand over your mouth. Hongjoong laughed at your actions before bucking his hips, thrusting into you gently and taking over. You kept your hand over your mouth as he took over, hitting that spot repeatedly and you could feel yourself getting close. “Hongjoong, I’m-”  “Me too.” He said, speeding up before moving the hand that cupped that cupped your cheek down. He drew circles over your clit, your moans being almost uncontrollable now and Hongjoong’s sighs getting a little louder. 

“I’m cum- fuck.” You said, tightening around him and pressing your lips to his to keep quiet. Hongjoong’s hips stilled, as you felt him moan against your lips, holding you against him. “I- I. Wow.” He whispered and you smiled, hiding your face in the crook of his neck. 

You played with his hair lightly, before pecking his lips. Hongjoong’s eyes were closed and he was breathing heavily. “You okay?” You whispered, feeling a lot more intimate and quiet than you did before. “I’m perfect right now.” He whispered back and swallowed thickly. “Everything else isn’t but right now I feel perfect, with you.” He added and you moved to lock eyes with him. “We’ll figure everything else out too. I promise.” You reassured him and he blinked at you. 

You moved off of him and sat down on your bed, still fully bare. You watched Hongjoong toss the condom in your trash can and lean down to kiss you. He was feeling, better. He felt like he could handle things now, not because of the sex but because of the reassurance from you. 

“You stay here, sleep in your own bed. I’ll take the couch.” He said, moving to grab his pajama’s from his bag. “I don’t agree.” You said and he looked at you. “How about we both go to the couch, maybe watch a movie or something. I don’t think you want to be alone tonight.” You said and pushed yourself off of your bed. You quickly pulled on your own pj’s and looked at him. 

Hongjoong quickly wrapped his arms around your waist and tucked his face into your neck. “Yeah you’re right.” He said, wondering how you could tell how he was feeling. “I think you’re right about everything else too. We’ll figure it out.” He added on and you nodded. “Hongjoong, I promise you we will.” You said and he looked at you. 

Your eyes locked again and it was something you’d never get tired of. You were watching him and he was watching you and that’s how you both liked it. 

A/N: I hope you guys like it. Idk if I do. 

#Ateez #ateez smut #ateez reaction #ateez scenario #hongjoong #hongjoong reaction #hongjoong scenario #hongjoong smut