#in my heart this au is called mall au but i haven’t gotten there yet on tumblr so ig it’s | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

chaseatinydream · 3 years

Text

sleazy seonghwa who sneezes (i) || p.sh (atz)

➳ pairing: reader x park seonghwa (ateez)

➳ word count: 7146

➳ genre: badboy au; fluff

➳ synopsis: by the intervention of fate (namely Choi San), you see a different side to the school’s resident bad boy that you weren’t aware existed.

>>>

Park Seonghwa is, decidedly, what most of the school population would call a bad boy.

With his jet black lip piercing and dyed blonde hair that is clearly in rebellion against every dress code in school, he’s exactly the sort of boy your parents warn you against. The black leather jacket he wears in place of his uniform tie and blazer doesn’t really help his image at all, and you’re sure you’ve seen him step into school at precisely twelve in the afternoon from the window of your classroom, long after lessons have started.

You’ve known Seonghwa for a long time, since elementary school, back in the days when his hair was still its natural shade of soft ebony and his lips curved up in a soft smile instead of the thin, sharp line it does now. With silent eyes you’ve observed him over the years, watching as the death of his mother struck him as hard as a speeding car and doing a million times the damage, witnessing his transformation from the boy with the cute, candy like smile to the young man with hard, cold eyes and even steelier fists.

A few years, your heart broke for him as you watched him turn away from the light and walk into the shadows without a backwards glance, casting his life away into a hopeless abyss. But as time passed, the memory of that young, lost boy reaching out for his mother’s hand faded, replaced by bruised and bleeding knuckles, split lips and cold eyes.

You had stopped keeping track of how many piercings he’d gotten when you couldn’t count them on your fingers anymore.

Students whisper about him behind closed doors every time he passes them in the corridor, citing unknown sources and rumours about smoking, gang fights, drugs, the usual deal. Girls chatter mindlessly about his good looks, he’s strikingly handsome, you have to admit, but his arctic gaze is enough to keep them at least five feet away. No one dares to cross him, not even the teachers and school authority, and honestly, it’s a miracle he’s still even in this school.

He’s part of a circle of friends the school calls ATEEZ. Their leader, Kim Hongjoong, has kept his mullet for the last three years of high school, completely ignoring the repeated warnings that the school gives him, because who dares to touch him anyway as the eldest son of one of the richest men in Korea? Some you know by face, some by name, but you’ve never met, much less talked to any of them before. Instead, you keep your distance, not wanting to be mixed up in their troubles when they come roaring into school with jet black motorbikes, smirks and bruised fists.

It’s been exactly six years since Seonghwa’s mother passed, and you’re walking to school in the morning. Your earbuds are plugged in, the radio’s on and you’re just listening mindlessly to anything that comes over the station, scrolling through your Instagram feed. Oh. San is considering adopting his third stray cat, the ‘vote yes or no’ option beneath his story.

You click ‘no’, your best friend already has two stray cats and a Shiba Inu in his house, and Shiber is terrified of the felines. It’s a miracle how Shiber even got used to Darong and Puchi, but you doubt that he’ll get used to yet another stray invading his personal territory.

Turning and entering the back gate, you’re stepping across the grounds to your classroom block when your phone suddenly pings with a flurry notifications.

It can only be one person.

[Green Mountain] how could u not let me adopt yobu hes gonna be so sad u know TT

[Green Mountain] retribution on you and your kids and your grandkids and your great grandkids

[Green Mountain] why are we even friends

You roll your eyes, feet crunching on the dry leaves under the soles of your shoes as you type out a reply.

[You] What’s the point of asking for my opinion if you’ve already named him and adopted him San

You’re nearing the back of the school building when you hear a sniffing sound. You pause in your tracks for a moment, wondering if someone is crying from the stress of the exams that are coming in a week, before a soft achoo reaches your ears.

You barely have time to be surprised before the little sneeze is followed by a rapid series of more, each sounding more adorable to your ears than the ones before. There’s another sniffle and a sneeze, and you can’t help your lips curving up in a smile. Perhaps spending too much time around San has made you soft, but you wouldn’t trade him for the world.

You fish out a handkerchief from your pocket, since it’s the first day of the week, you haven’t used it yet. The person behind the noise must have gotten a cold from the chilly autumn weather, so you think they might appreciate the gesture. Stepping up the stairs to your classroom block, you turn the corner around the building with your handkerchief outstretched and a gentle smile already in place.

“Hey, I heard you were sneezing so I thought you might want this...” Your voice trails off as your eyes widen, seeing the infamous Park Seonghwa leaning against the wall, hand over his mouth and nose, your own shock mirrored on his face.

For a moment, the two of you simply stare at each other in stunned silence.

You’ve always admired him in the same way people appreciate statues in art museums, from afar, studying each and every feature but never quite understanding the full story behind the carved jawline, the sculpted nose, the mysterious dark eyes. But this is the first time you’re seeing him up close in the dappled morning rays, someone so far away and untouchable, and you see the flaws that mar what you had once thought was near perfect skin, a bruise at the corner of his mouth, a scrape on his cheekbone, the white scar across his left eyebrow.

His handsome features pinch into a wary scowl when he sees you, straightening up his originally relaxed position against the wall. You’re a little intimidated by his height as he towers over you by at least a head, giving you a dark glare. “Get out of my sight. I don’t need your help-” The words are cut off by a massive sneeze that sends him burying his face in his hands, before he starts hacking furiously, alternating between adorable sneezes and baby-like coughs.

A snort escapes you before you can stop it and he actually pauses to give you a murderous look, right before he goes back to sneezing.

Oh my god, you think in your panic induced haze, he’s going to kill you to stop rumours of his childlike sneeze from spreading around the school.

You fight down the urge to laugh in this terrifying situation, instead focusing on the predicament you’re in. You’re trapped between a rock and a hard place, right before a person with one of the most feared and sordid reputations in the entire school. Give him the handkerchief and risk his anger, or leave without lending him a hand and still perhaps bring his wrath down upon you?

In the end, you simply do what you had set out to do in the first place.

“Here!” You practically shout in his face, trying to muster as much courage as possible so your voice doesn’t tremble, but it betrays you anyway in spite of your efforts. Thrusting the white handkerchief into his hands, you do some sort of awkward bow before the idea can run through your mind fully and your face turns tomato red in embarrassment. “I hope you get better soon!”

And then you spin on your heel and dash into the classroom block before you can die from shame of it all.

“Hey, wait-” Seonghwa calls after you, but you’re already gone, leaving nothing but your white handkerchief in his hand.

“You’re late today.” San remarks in a surprised voice when you slide into the seat next to his, panting for air from your little dash to class.

“I was lending someone a handkerchief. And you’re early.” You turn to the window, making a big show of searching the sky. “I don’t see any pigs, falling or flying… so I must be dreaming.”

“Well, I had to come early to school so my chauffeur could fetch Yobu back to the mansion for me.” Your best friend remarks with a shrug, and a silly, goofy smile crosses his face for a moment at the thought of the adorable one eared ragdoll cat. “I couldn’t leave him waiting here in the cold.”

“I swear the reason all these cats relate so much to you is because of this.” You tug at the thick leather choker resting against his throat, fingers brushing the cool metal of the round, silver studs on it. “If we just add a bell to this, you might as well be an actual cat, Sanie.”

Your best friend merely grins, cocking his head to the side as he looks at you expectantly. “And I suppose that’s…?”

Laughing, you pull a small cardboard box from your school bag, opening it and presenting it to San proudly. It’s a small silver bell, one that reminds you of one on a cat’s collar. The moment you had laid eyes on it at the mall, you had known it would be perfect for him. You gesture for his arm and he stretches it out to you with an amused smile on his face, your fingers fiddling with the friendship bracelet on his wrist. Undoing the clasp, you slide the silver piece onto the bracelet with nimble fingers where it rests next to the Siamese cat charm, the bell making a soft jingling sound.

“Ooh, pretty!” San inspects it with shining eyes, smiling broadly at you. He then takes out his own box, a red jewelry affair with the name of some expensive brand stamped on the lid in bright silver. Your breath catches in your throat as you catch a glimpse of it, the box is probably worth more than the entire charm you bought San.

“Sanie, you know I don’t like it when you buy me stuff like that…”

Your best friend pauses in opening the box, mouth turning down in a sad frown as he looks at you with earnest eyes. “But I want to do it for you. You’re my best friend, and I want to spend my money on you to show you how important you are to me.” You waver at his words, heart sinking as you feel like you’re making use of him for his wealth. But you know San is determined, and besides, he’s already bought the charm, so you sigh and try to fix him with a stern gaze.

“This is the last time, alright?”

San’s face cheers up in a split second.

“Alright!” He whoops, putting the charm of a Norwegian Forest Cat on your bracelet. It feels heavy, probably made of silver and custom made to boot. It’s been your tradition for the last two years of school. Every day, on the first day of a new semester, the two of you had promised to buy each other a charm to celebrate your friendship. Somehow, every charm the two of you had bought for you had ended up being some breed of cat, so you suppose that you’ve broken tradition for the first time today by giving him a bell instead. When San fixes the clasp of your bracelet, he grins at you and pats you on the head.

“There, that wasn’t so difficult, was it?”

You kick him in the shin. “I said this is the last time, you goof. Don’t go getting any ideas.”

San pouts at you, shaking his head so that his dark brown hair falls into his eyes, showing off the red streaks in them. Your eyes widen in alarm and smack him on the arm as he lounges back in his chair casually, placing his booted feet on the table. “I thought I told you to get rid of those last week before school started!”

Your best friend whistles cheerily, feigning ignorance. “I promised nothing.”

San, for all the adorableness he holds, is too, part of ATEEZ. A certified bad boy, a definite troublemaker. Everything on him, from the designer white shirt with scrawled designs all over it to the multiple silver piercings in his ears to the striking red coat he has slung over his chair, screams rebel in response to every dress code in existence. San rebels, but he at least does it with style.

On the first day of school when the two of you been assigned to seats next to each other in class, the very first thing he’d done upon meeting you was to rip off his tie and declare to you loudly about how the colour scheme of the tie was absolutely hideous when matched with the shade of the blazer. He had then proceeded to rant to you all about the material of the blazer and the undershirt, and you don’t think you’ve seen him in uniform since that day.

Well, you suppose he knows what he’s talking about, considering that he’s the heir to one of the biggest fashion conglomerates in the country. Besides, you’ve stolen that red coat more times you can count on cold days and it often spends the night over at your house when San makes you wear it home.

“What kind of name for a cat is Yobu, though?” You ask San, shaking your head at him as the teacher walks into the classroom. He simply grins at you, tweaking one of his many earrings with amusement.

“A friend of mine chose it-” He begins to explain excitedly, but then your teacher clears her throat in front of the two of you hesitantly and San’s expression darkens, looking up to glance at her as if she’s a pesky fly he’d like to smack. The teacher’s face drains of colour.

“What is it, Ms Kim?” His voice is dripping with venom and you feel your face flush at his bad attitude. You tug on his ear and he yelps in pain, turning back to pout at you.

“Ow! Why are you bullying me?” San sulks like a little kid and you can’t help but swat at his arm. The teacher, drawing a little courage from seeing San being steamrolled into submission by you, pipes up.

“Mr Choi… you’re not supposed to be sitting there-”

That’s her mistake.

San’s eyes turn glacial as he turns to face her slowly, gazing down his nose at her imperiously, dangerously like a cobra waiting to strike. San isn’t loud and quick to anger like some of his other friends are, but he’s no less dangerous with that vicious, poisonous mind of his. The teacher falls silent immediately, none of the other students willing to help her out lest they get on his bad side.

“I’ve said it at the beginning of term and I’ll say it again.” San enunciates every word slowly and precisely, his dark gaze never wavering from the teacher’s eyes. You can almost imagine it, a monstrous serpent like aura looming behind your best friend, frightening everyone before him into submission. You’ve never been on the receiving end of his gaze, but you hear people describing the experience to be akin to staring down the barrel of a gun. “I’m sitting besides her and no one else. Did you not hear me the first time?”

“Mr Choi, I’m just doing my job-”

“Do. You. Understand.”

His last words are nothing like a question, instead carrying a more mocking tone. The threat is like a loaded gun, the bullet unseen and hidden in the chambers of the weapon, but the finger is already resting on the trigger, eager to fire. Your teacher pales at his words, fingers trembling against her binder.

You feel bad for her, so you gently tug at San’s sleeve, pulling his razor sharp gaze away from your teacher. “Hey, San, I’m not going anywhere. How about you start thinking about ways we can get Shiber to warm up to Yobu when we go over to your house later while I have lessons?”

His face brightens right away, the icy look melting right off like snow in the summer at the thought of Yobu and Shiber playing together. “Of course! Why didn’t I think about that?” Pulling a piece of paper from your bag, he swipes one of the pens off your table and begins jotting down ideas and names of cat treats. His attention off the teacher, the entire classroom heaves a simultaneous sigh of relief.

Your teacher takes five minutes to calm her racing heart before the lesson begins.

Seonghwa sits at the bench at the school gates, waiting for the rest of his friends.

Golden and red leaves spiral through the air, caught and tossed around by the autumn winds as they flutter to the ground like clipped butterfly wings. They fall to the ground, devoid of the green freshness of spring, dead and utterly lifeless. He remembers the limp hand of his mother, her fair skin drenched in crimson lifeblood, the drunk driver having crashed right into the side of his mother’s car as she returned home from buying him supper. She’d died on the spot, right before any the ambulances and paramedics arrived.

His fingers curl around the dry maple leaves, crushing them and scattering them with the wind. He hates the autumn. All it brings is death and pain.

“Hyung!”

He’s pulled from his thoughts and turns around to see three of the five 99’ liners stepping out of the school gates, arms slung over each other’s shoulders. A smile crosses his face briefly. No matter how terrifying of an image he might have to others, he has a soft spot for the rest of the boys in ATEEZ. All of them have stuck together through thick and thin, supporting each other no matter the struggle, Wooyoung through his addiction and Jongho through his fits of violent rage, Hongjoong with his familial conflicts at home and so much more. They’re like family to him, he briefly wonders, before his eyes darken at the thought of his drunken father back in the house they share.

He forces the thought from his mind, instead looking upon his friends’ faces, frowning in confusion.

“Why are you smiling so much, Sanie?”

The boy in question merely grins wider, tucking his hands into his pockets as he dodges a kick Wooyoung aims at him. “Wooyoungie tripped on Mingi’s shoe and fell down the stairs earlier.”

Mingi stifles a laugh at Wooyoung’s flat expression.

The sleeves of San’s white shirt are rolled up, showing the cat charm bracelet dangling from his wrist. The silver bits and bobs usually tinkle and jingle, letting everyone in the area that San is coming, but today, the sound seems to be especially prominent. Seonghwa’s eyes rake over the charms, counting five, six, seven…

He spots a silver cat bell dangling at the end.

“Did you get a new charm, San?” Seonghwa asks, curious and San nods proudly, preening in front of his hyung. The bell jingles once more, as if showing off to Seonghwa.

“She got it for me!” He smiles widely, stuffing his hand back into his pocket. San doesn’t need to say who it is for Seonghwa to know. Aside from ATEEZ, San has no friends… except a mysterious girl that San doesn’t want mixed up in their business.

“Can’t have Wooyoung seducing her from me.” He’d joked once, to Wooyoung’s not so amused amusement.

But Seonghwa can understand why San wouldn’t want his friend to be associated with them. From the way San speaks about her ever so often, she seems to be a quiet, mild tempered girl who focuses hard on her studies and can even miraculously convince San to revise for the upcoming exams with her in the school library. Being related to them in any way could stain her pristine reputation, make it difficult for her to attain any student leadership positions in the school that were vital to a portfolio, or even make any friends in general.

Honestly, Seonghwa doesn’t know why she would stick with San.

But San is happy when he speaks about her. He’s clearly fond of her, he’d even dragged all of them to search for a suitable charm for her birthday gift.

Then a ticklish feeling rises in his nose and he pulls the handkerchief from his pocket, sneezing into it. He doesn’t want to admit it, but the piece of white cloth has saved him so many trips to the convenience store nearby to buy a pack of tissue. Looking down on it, he sighs as he looks the handkerchief over. It’s a piece of plain white cloth, without embellishment or embroidery, nothing outstanding to set it apart from others physically, but unique, because it was there for him when he needed it. Just like the girl who’d given it to him, he thinks to himself with another sigh, wondering how exactly he’s going to find her and return the handkerchief to her.

He doesn’t remember much about how she looks, having been trying to stop himself from sneezing in front of her when she’d literally thrown the handkerchief in his face and shouted at him to get better, before she dashed away faster than Usain Bolt on steroids.

Honestly, who still uses handkerchiefs in this day and age?

“Did you catch a cold, hyung?” Ever perceptive Wooyoung asks curiously, before spotting the handkerchief in his hand. “I didn’t know you used handkerchiefs, though.”

For some reason, something in his voice is completely judgemental and even though Seonghwa feels the same, he can’t help but feel like he needs to defend the girl who gave it to him, at least. Then he catches himself, frowning. Wooyoung’s too curious for his own good, tell him a little and the he’ll have her name, class, blood type, age, address, favourite food down to a tee tomorrow.

Besides, Seonghwa wants to do this by himself.

So Seonghwa shakes his head.

“It’s not mine. A girl gave it to me in the morning, but I don’t know who it was. I owe her a word of thanks, at least.”

Mingi raises an eyebrow, teeth fiddling with the silver piercing on his lower left lip absentmindedly. “Someone approached you, hyung?’ He sounds as confused as Seonghwa feels.

Curious, San glances over at the piece of white cloth for a moment, staring blankly. Then something in his dark eyes glint minutely, the side of his lip quirking up in amusement. Is it fate?

A thought forms and the cogs of his mind start turning, building upon that wisp of a thought until it turns into an idea, then a plan. Seonghwa catches sight of the little smirk on San’s face and frowns in confusion, opening his mouth to ask the younger boy exactly what he’s thinking. He’s a little afraid when San smiles like that. It usually means he’s up to no good.

“San, what is it?”

But San shrugs playfully, eyes shining with glee.

“Oh, it’s absolutely nothing, hyung.”

Seonghwa’s been searching for you for a week now.

For the first time, he actually attends school regularly even if it isn’t to go to class. Standing at the main gate at the crack of dawn, his eyes rake the faces of the students who walk into school every morning. All of them give him a wide berth, wearing the same terrified, yet befuddled expressions, similarly confused as why to the one of school’s bad boys would actually be in the school compound before the bell rings.

Regularly, at that.

About fifteen minutes before the bell rings, he hears the familiar thrum of an engine and raises his head to glance at the driveway outside. Just as he does, a sleek black Jaguar purrs into sight, coming to a stop. It’s presence still causes the same ripple of excitement and anticipation as it did three years ago, and Seonghwa can see all the students in the front yard of the school whispering behind their hands as they discuss the boy inside, wondering whether he’s going to abide by the school rules for once.

The driver, dressed impeccably as ever in a black, custom tailored suit and white gloves, crosses over to the passenger’s side and opens the door for the person inside with a deep bow.

“Young master.”

Kim Hongjoong, eldest son to the CEO of one of the most powerful business empires in Korea and probably the world, steps out with a yawn, rubbing at his eyes as if he’s still half asleep. Then he turns to the chauffeur, who Seonghwa recognises now as Hongjoong’s personal assistant and bodyguard, and gives him a nod.

“Thank you, Jaebeom.”

Jaebeom falters momentarily, head rising a little as he looks at his master. “Young master, you know your father does not like it when you thank me… I am a mere household servant-”

“Who gives a damn what that old fart wants?” Hongjoong grabs his bag from the backseat, adjusting the silver beads and tags in his mullet. “I’ll see you later, Jae.”

The chauffeur can’t exactly argue with his employer, so he merely sighs a little and nods, bowing once more. “As you wish, young master.”

Seonghwa watches quietly as the car zips off down the street.

“Still here, Mars?” His best friend steps up next to him, bag casually slung over one shoulder as he quirks a brow, showing off the eyebrow slit at the side. Seonghwa lets his face relax into a small smile, adjusting the collar of his maroon turtleneck.

“Yeah.”

Hongjoong merely sighs in exasperation, waving his phone in hand. “You know, like I told you at the beginning of all this nonsense, I could have just given Jaebeom a ring and you would have your mystery girl’s identity in a folder on your lap within ten minutes. It would have included handphone number, siblings, hospital records and financial accounts and you wouldn’t be standing here like some lovesick goof every morning.”

Seonghwa doesn’t take any offense to his friend’s barbed words, knowing they stem from genuine concern for him. In fact, Hongjoong only uses his glib tongue and charisma when it comes to charming people into doing things that he wants. He’s not quite as skilled a manipulator as Wooyoung, who can puppet any person like a marionette on strings, but then again few are.

Seonghwa prefers it when Hongjoong takes on this tone with him. It’s more casual, more informal and Seonghwa doesn’t feel like he’s at risk of being played. When he speaks like that, he’s not the heir of the Kim Corporation, Kim Hongjoong, but instead he’s just Hongjoong, Seonghwa’s best friend.

“You know why I want to do this myself.” Seonghwa says softly and Hongjoong pauses a moment, because he does. He understands all too well just having everything presented to him on a silver platter with a golden spoon, not having to put in effort for any of it. Things lose their value that way, and he knows Seonghwa is determined not to let this happen.

Hongjoong merely sighs as he glances at the white handkerchief in Seonghwa’s hand.

“Well, I doubt anyone’s coming in now, it’s pretty late.” He tells Seonghwa, who nods and tucks the neatly folded cloth in his pocket. “Let’s get to class.”

San calls you at approximately five in the morning. On a Saturday morning, in fact.

Groaning as you roll over in your bed, you reach for your phone, the silver cat charms clicking against the screen as you put it to your ear. You’re thinking of a hundred and one ways to slowly butcher him and rip him into tiny little pieces when his cheerful voice comes over the phone. “Hey, my dear best friend, what are you doing up so early in the morning?”

A growl tears from your throat. “It’s 5:16 AM, Choi San. If you don’t have a good reason for waking me up at this time of the morning I’m coming over to your house, I’m going to rip out your throat and I’m going to steal Shiber from you.”

A horrified squeal comes over the phone. “Don’t steal Shiber!”

You almost sigh at how he completely missed out the ‘I’m going to tear your throat out’ bit, but you pinch the bridge of your nose in exasperation, sitting up on your bed as the blanket falls to your lap. “What is it, San? If you tell me now that you want to watch reruns of the Golden Girls at this time of the morning, I’m going to strangle you in your sleep.”

“Oooh, kinky.” San whistles and you groan, smacking your head against the bedside table. Murder does really seem to be a tempting option now.

“Choi San I swear if you do not give me a good reason right now I’m going back to sleep-” You begin but then San cuts in more quickly than a swerving F1 racer.

“No no no, please don’t! Well, you see, one of the maids back at my house just told me that Yobu fell sick and needs to see a vet, but none of them are open at this time of the morning.”

Your jaw drops at the news, heart thundering in your chest. “I can’t believe you wasted all my time talking nonsense when Yobu was ill! What are we going to do, San?” You’re honestly worried for that sweet mannered ragdoll cat, fingers drumming anxiously against the table when San continues.

“But I have a friend knows about veterinary medicine since he works part time at a vet, so could you please bring Yobu to him? I’ve already told him that you’re coming.”

Something strikes you as odd and your eyes narrow suspiciously. “San… why can’t you just bring Yobu there yourself?”

“Ahh…” You hear your best friend falter a little over the phone and from the sheepish tone in his voice, he’s up to something again. You’re about to question him when you suddenly realise that there’s the thumping of the bass in the background, synthesizers screaming and the sound of drunken singing. Your heart falls.

“You’re in a club, aren’t you?”

San pauses uncomfortably. You’ve made it clear multiple times that you don’t approve of his partying lifestyle, but you’ve also told him that it’s his life and he needs to make choices for himself. “Yeah… “ His voice is soft over the phone, but then it tries to cheer you up a little. “I swear I didn’t even drink a lot! I’m not even drunk right now! I just came for a bit of booze and the atmosphere.”

At that, your smile softens a little. You know that San is desperately trying to change his ways, but it’s only the beginning, the first step of a long journey. “I know. Be back before sunrise, okay? Stay safe and don’t make me worry about you.”

You can hear San’s smile over the phone. “I promise. Now then, I’m leaving our child in your hands, alright?”

You’ve barely agreed when the call ends, the beeping of the phone all that’s left of your conversation.

You’re standing outside an apartment building at seven.

Yobu lets out a little mrrow from the basket under your arm and you stroke him on the head gently, checking the address on your phone. He looks perfectly fine to you, but then again you’re no doctor. Glancing at the block number and the unit, you’re indeed at San’s friend’s house. What friend, you have no idea, but you really need to get Yobu checked up as fast as possible.

Stepping up to the door, you press the bell once.

There’s an electronic warble and some shifting coming from behind the closed door. “Wait a moment, please-” You hear and you frown, the voice sounds male and vaguely familiar, as if you’ve heard it before. But before you can remember where, the door swings open to reveal the resident of the house.

You nearly drop Yobu in your shock.

You’re so going to murder San in his sleep.

Because it’s Park Seonghwa standing there, blonde hair mussed from sleep, dressed in a soft grey sweater and sweats, staring back at you with equally wide eyes. No leather jacket, no silver chains around his neck, simple black piercings in his ears. To your surprise, he looks soft as a kitten, not at all like that bad boy image you’re so used to seeing in school.

You glance down at his feet. He’s wearing freaking Gundam cartoon themed socks.

“Mrrow…” Yobu meows plaintively from his basket, as if demanding for the two of you to stop staring at each other and get a move on. That’s enough to jerk Seonghwa out of his shock and he opens the door a bit wider to let you in. “Uhh, please come in.”

You do as you’re told, slipping your shoes off at the door and stepping inside. The house is surprisingly bare, a pair of folded mattresses against against the wall and a lumpy couch in the corner. There’s a vet’s bag on the floor, stethoscope already laid out. You glance to the shelf at to your left as you set Yobu down on the ground, there’s a picture of a woman who you assume to be Seonghwa’s mother, and next to that is a collection of assembled Gundam models.

It seems as if someone is a fan.

You’re briefly afraid if something bad is going to happen to you when Park Seonghwa closes the door behind you, but as much as San enjoys playing pranks on you, he’s never one to put you in danger. Seonghwa sit down before you, cross legged, looking painfully awkward for the first time you’ve seen him.

“Umm… Hi…” He greets you softly and you stiffen to attention, Yobu curling in your arms and you hesitantly stroke the tiny cat gently. “So… Yobu is sick?”

Your eyes widen a little in surprise. “You know Yobu?”

Seonghwa nods slowly. “Yeah well… I was the one who named him.” He holds out his hands for the grey ragdoll, looking at you hesitantly while you’re still staring at him in shock from this unexpected information. His tongue darts out to wet his lower lip nervously, dragging across the black piercing there. “May I?’

You somehow regain enough cognitive function to place Yobu into his arms, the small feline nosing into Seonghwa’s chest and he lets out a gentle laugh, nuzzling the kitten with his nose. “Let’s see what’s wrong with you, little guy.”

Your mind is still reeling from all of… this. From what you know, Park Seonghwa is a mysterious bad boy who is a member of a terrifying group called ATEEZ that your best friend also happens to be part of. But even after knowing San for three years, he’s never really exposed you to any of his other friends, so you still steer clear of them whenever you see them in school.

But this Park Seonghwa before you is looking at the tiny kitten like it holds the moon and stars in its tiny paws, humming a soft tune under his breath as he reaches for his stethoscope. He’s nothing like the Park Seonghwa you’re familiar with, bruised fingers gentle as he checks over Yobu for any physical ailments, cooing to the cat in a sweet voice when it attempts to squirm out of his arms occasionally. You usually never say this… but you’re quite mindblown.

“There doesn’t seem to be anything wrong with him.” Seonghwa muses after a while, setting his tools down. You’re jerked out of your stunned stupor, letting out a witty ‘eh?’ as he puts Yobu down on the ground, the kitten batting at his sweater sleeve with its paws.

Seonghwa tugs his lip piercing between his teeth and for a second, you’re raising your eyes to heaven to ask exactly what you have done to deserve this punishment, but then he’s speaking once more. “I don’t see anything wrong with Yobu… He seems perfectly fine. Did San mention anything?”

You shake your head. “No, San just told me to bring Yobu over to you.”

“That’s odd…” Seonghwa frowns, fingers fiddling with the piercings on the shell of his ear before he lets out a sigh, rising to his feet. You keep your remark of ‘yeah, that sounds like San’ to yourself as you follow him with your eyes, watching as he steps over to the shelf, opening one of the drawers. “Anyway, I’m glad you came. I’ve been looking for you for a couple of weeks now.”

You pause, a little confused. Looking for you? What would the Park Seonghwa be searching for a person like you?

When he turns around, he’s holding your white handkerchief in his hands.

The two week old memory comes to the front of your mind and your mouth falls open. You remember walking to school, hearing someone sniffing quietly behind the school building, offering them a handkerchief… only for the person to be the one and only Park Seonghwa.

“Ahh…” Is all you manage to say, a little stunned as you accept the handkerchief back. It smells of clean cloth and soap that you don’t quite recognise, meaning that Seonghwa must have cleaned it for you. “You didn’t have to, but thank you anyway.”

Seonghwa shakes his head firmly as Yobu paws at the hem of his sweats, whining for attention. “No, I needed to. Thank you for lending it to me. I really appreciate it… could I repay you somehow? Maybe bring you out for a meal tomorrow?”

Your brain hits the brakes, all activity coming to a screeching halt as the words ‘meal’, ‘tomorrow’ and ‘repay’ bounce around your head like rubber balls. Thankfully, you’re saved from having to answer from the sound of your ringtone, although the second you hear it, you’re tempted to kill San right this second, and maybe yourself too, to save yourself the shame.

“You have a call! You have a call! Hey! Answer it! Don’t ignore me! Pleaseeee~” San’s voice comes from your pocket and you freeze in embarrassment, as Seonghwa stares at you in shock.

Your face turns red and you rush to answer the call, cheeks heating up in horrified mortification. Jabbing the little green icon with as much fury as you can muster, you hiss into the phone when the call comes through.

“What the hell did you do to my phone, San?”

“Hello! How’s my dear Yobu doing?” He sings, completely ignoring your furious question. You pause in your tracks, wheels turning in your mind as you put all the clues together. His too cheerful voice, the handkerchief, how he didn’t tell you Seonghwa was this veterinarian friend…

“Choi San.” Your voice is literally bubbling with mounting vexation and your rage must be clearly heard, because there’s a gulp over the phone. “Did you plan all of this?”

The line goes dead and you stare at your phone in shock.

Then you shriek in fury.

“I’m going to kill that slimy worm! That little bastard! Playing me like this!” Your fists are clenching around your phone, dearly wishing they were wringing San’s scrawny neck instead. You’re about to throw something when a warm hand settles on your shoulder and you whirl around in shock, suddenly remembering that Seonghwa is still in the room with you.

“Is everything alright?” He asks hesitantly, dark eyes wide and concerned and your rage dissipates into thin air, replaced by all too potent self-consciousness. He’d just seen you screaming your head off like a mad woman, for god’s sake.

“Yeah...I’m just going to have to kill that bastard the next time I see him.” You mumble under your breath, turning your phone to silent before savagely shoving it in your pocket. “Yobu is fine, San just played a massive prank on us.”

To your surprise, Seonghwa doesn’t even react in the least, clearly expecting something like this after having known San for so long. He merely presses one hand to his face as he shakes his head in exasperation. “I knew something was up when he was smiling so much that day. That kid, honestly…”

“Sorry for the bother.” You apologise quickly, scooping up Yobu in your arms and placing him in his basket. The ragdoll lets out a soft meow, as if confused as to why you’re leaving so soon when you practically run for the door in shame. But right before you can leave, Seonghwa’s hand grasps your wrist lightly, pulling you back, and you make a soft ‘eep’ in surprise as you turn to face him.

He actually looks painfully nervous, teeth toying with the black piercing on his lower lip as his gaze moves around shiftily, his toes scrunching up under Robot Man’s face. “Well… will you… will you let me bring you for dinner tomorrow? To thank you?”

You freeze awkwardly, the tension between the two of you thick as sauna steam. After a long, awkward pause of silence, Seonghwa finally seems to realise he’s holding onto your wrist and drops it like you have the plague, scooting back several steps to a more respectful distance. His tongue swipes across his pink lips shyly as he musters up the courage to speak again. “Please? I mean, if you’re uncomfortable, you don’t need to, I completely understand-”

You’re snapped out of your lip piercing induced shock when you finally realise that Seonghwa thinks that you’re reluctant to go with him. Not that you aren’t slightly… but maybe it’s time to give San’s friends a chance and get to know them. From what you’ve seen of Seonghwa, he doesn’t seem that bad to you anyway.

Awkwardly, you unlock your phone and pass it to him.

His eyes widen in surprise when he sees a blank contact open, the tiny line hovering at the ‘Name’ bar. Then a smile, one real and genuine, settles on his face as he enters his name and phone number, saving it before he passes it back to you.

“I’ll call you?” He asks as you slip on your shoes, balancing Yobu’s basket in one hand and your phone in the other. You nod in reply, a little breathless from his radiant smile.

“Yeah.”

From the basket, Yobu gives a smug mew of affirmation. His mission is complete.

#ateez #ateez seonghwa #ateez fanfic #ateez fanfiction #seonghwa fanfic #w; seonghwa #seonghwa #w; fanfiction

180 notes · View notes

daydream-hobii · 4 years

Text

Flowers & Weeds | Prequel to Roses & Thorns | Chapter 2

Genre: Prequel to Roses & Thorns; Poly!AU; Hybrid!AU; Fluff & Angst

Pairing: BTS x Female!Reader; Alpaca!Seokjin, Panther!Yoongi, Fox!Hoseok, Wolf!Namjoon, Bear!Jimin, Tiger!Taehyung, Bunny!Jungkook

Summary: Before Y/n rehabilitated hybrids, she was just an average rich daughter of a well-known hybrid breeder. She was also someone who didn’t want hybrids in her life, she didn’t like how they had to have an owner when really, they were more human than animals. When the government starts threatening her, she decides to get one to make them start. That’s what changes everything.

Warning: Mentions of Mental & Physical Abuse, Depression, Anxiety, and Suicidal Thoughts; High Suggestions of Smut; Future Mentions of Attempted Suicides; Read with Caution~ <3

Word Count: 1,370

Connected Series: Roses & Thorns

// Previous // Next //

Author’s Note: Welcome to Chapter 2! I hope you like it!! ^_^

A couple weeks after adopting Taehyung, it was rare that I ever saw him. For the first week, he was non-existent. I was so worried, I’d start bringing his food up to his room and setting it in front of the door.

Slowly, I’d see him examining rooms, but he’d become so frightened when he’d see me, he’d run back to his room. This morning was no different, I was making breakfast in my pajamas, making sure to set Taehyung’s on a tray for his room. When I turned, I jumped, looking at the tiger hybrid. I scolded myself, watching his nervous appearance. I expected him to run away, but he didn’t…. I smiled softly, pushing his tray across the island for him and turning back.

I continued to make my own breakfast, smiling when I heard the scuffle of a chair moving. He was staying with me…. I finished my own plate, turning and watching him slowly eat his food. I set my plate down, beginning to eat in silence. If he wanted to talk to me, I’m sure he would. It wasn’t long before he opened his mouth.

“Why are you alone…?” He whispered, making me look at him. His voice was hoarse, he hadn’t talked in a while.

“Well, I’m too young,” I replied with a smile. “I haven’t really met anyone to be with, so here I am….”

“How… how do you have this house?” He asked, slightly louder. His tail twitched behind him, eyes filled with curiosity, but also guard.

“Well,” I started, frowning. “My father was an incredibly rich man. An incredibly horrid man…. He started a bank account for me when I was younger, and it all became mine when I turned 18.”

“Oh…” He whispered, looking back down at his food and eating.

“Do you like your room?” I asked, making him look at me. “Everything is alright, right…?”

“Oh, yes,” He replied, again, a bit louder than before. “It’s all so wonderful Mistress… eh… I mean, Y/n.” He flashed an extremely small smile, before looking at his plate shyly.

“Would you like to go shopping…?” I asked, making him look up from his eyelashes, surprised. “I mean… I know you don’t have a lot, and you don’t have much clothing. I could take you to the Hybrid Outlet Mall…?”

“Um… sure,” He whispered. “Miss?” I moved my head to the side, looking at him as he looked up, straight in the face. “Why are you being so nice to me?” This was the most confident thing he’s said to me, and it caught me off guard.

“Why wouldn’t I be…?” I replied, making him frown. “Taehyung, I see you as a person. I see you as my equal, not my pet. This world is a dark place where no one is kind to one another, and I don’t intend to do you any harm.”

We continued to eat in silence, and once we finished, he stood to take his plate to the sink. He cautiously took my plate, washing both plates and placing them in the dishwasher. I thanked him, and we stood there awkwardly for a few minutes, staring at each other.

“I’ve never had a bed,” He admitted, looking towards the entrance of the kitchen, which led to the living room. “I’ve never even had a room…. The bed was… weird on my back for a bit. I don’t think I was used to it…. I have never slept as good as I do here in my life….”

I seemed frozen, stunned that he opened up so much. It showed me a little flash of his life, and my heart broke for him. What on Earth had he gone through…? I sighed, nodding my head and turning, grabbing my keys. He wore pajamas, which were much nicer than his clothing, and decided to wear them. We walked out the door, going to my car and getting in to go to the mall.

We first went into the hybrid accessories store, where we bought a collar and leash. I let him pick his colors, as well as what seemed most comfortable. The law required he be on a leash unless in an off leash hybrid park, how absurd. I was surprised to see him choose grey, but I bought them. I carefully clipped it onto him, his skin flinched under my soft touch, making me frown.

We went to a multitude of stores, and I saw multiple hybrids of all kinds. There were very few who looked happy, maybe three or four, the rest looked like… robots…. My heart was heavy as I hadn’t been in a hybrid mall since I was young.

Every store we were in, Taehyung would get so excited. I could tell he was holding himself back, but a little glimpse in his eyes showed just how thrilled he was. He would pick so many clothes, and try them on and show me. I giggled at his reactions, some were perfect, some were a definite no. I noticed he was a very tasteful and fashionable person, he loved so many name brands, and I was happy to provide them.

Once we were all finished, we each carried multiple bags. They were filled with all sorts of things, clothing, toys, decorations, posters. Everything! As we began walking to my car, his mood seemed to shift. He was tense, almost nervous. I felt his hand brush mine a couple times and, eventually, his pinky latched with my own. I smile to myself, not fully holding his hand as to let him breathe. He was still so nervous, I didn’t want to ruin any progress he may have.

Taehyung stopped at a store, staring in the window with almost heart eyes. I stopped, looking at him confused before following his gaze. It was an incredibly fancy laptop, one that was a lot of money. It looked like a gaming laptop, making me move my head to the side. I let go of his leash, telling him to wait. I went inside, quickly bought it, and walked back out with the box. Others seemed to be staring at him, and us, awkwardly. I bit my lip, I shouldn’t have left him…. He was too stunned to care, however, and stared at me in shock. I smiled, grabbing his leash once more and walking out and to my car, where we returned home.

Later, we were in his room together, and I was hanging up his clothes. He was decorating his room with everything he had gotten, and had his fancy laptop box on the desk saved for last. I hadn’t seen him this happy yet, and it filled my heart with joy. He was so sweet, and excitable, it was such a nice side to see.

“Alright, looks like we’re all done,” I said with the flash of a smile. He nodded, sitting on his bed. “I’m exhausted, I think I’m going to go to bed, okay?”

“Okay,” He replied. “Can I set up my laptop…?”

“Tae, you don’t need to ask my permission,” I said with a smile. “You can do whatever you like in the home. You’re safe here.” He nodded, making me smile.

I walked to the door, opening it and walking out, but before I closed it, he called my name. I turned to him, looking at him curiously. He hesitated, before flashed a small smile.

“Thank you…” He whispered, only making me smile large. “for everything.”

“You’re welcome, Tae,” I whispered back. “Now, get some sleep. I’ll see you in the morning.”

I shut the door, walking up to my bedroom. I bit my lip, noticing I had a bubbly feeling in my heart. I didn’t expect to feel this way with a hybrid, but a realization was rolling through my brain. Taehyung was so broken, so sad, so alone… and now, he’s safe. I wanted to help more hybrids, I wanted to save them. That’s what my life purpose is, I just know it. With this in mind, I finished my nightly routine, crawling into bed. I planned on doing my research tomorrow, to understand the length I could do to help hybrids.

154 notes · View notes

youarejesting · 4 years

Text

I will wait. (Somesay) Jk x Reader

[Masterlist] Beta: @jung-hoseok-s-airplane Pairing: Idol!Jungkook x Teacher!Reader Words: 2.1k Rating: 13+ Genre: Romance, Slice of life, Angst, Fluff, Idol AU Summary: You grew up with him. Knew him before he became a member of the worlds greatest band of all time. You watched him grow into the man he is today but he drifted away. It’s time to stand your ground because patience was a virtue he taught you well. I got inspiration from this song here: [Somesay - Nea’]

Some say you will love me one day And I will wait, I will wait to get your loving one day Just say you will love me one day And I will wait, I will wait to get your loving one day

You saw him sitting alone crying, into his Ironman lunch box. Some of the other boys hadn’t wanted to sit with him, because he was too shy and quiet. Holding your lunch box you remember your mother’s words earlier that morning.

“I packed you some sweets, and I want you to make friends. My girl, can you do that?” “I will try” she smiled at you as she walked you to the gate.

You sat across from him and he looked up nervous and you blushed, unzipping your lunch box. The two lunch boxes were similar both with Ironman on the front but different pictures and colours. His head didn’t lift from the table but his watery eyes glanced up at you a few hundred times. Holding up the small bag of sweets you opened it and gave a nervous smile.

“Would you like to be my friend? My mum told me to make friends with these” your voice growing smaller as you spoke “these ones are my favourite, what’s your favourite ones?”

“I like the apples ones” he mumbled looking at the gummies in the bag and you grinned leaning over the table.

“I don’t really like those ones so you can eat all of them if you want” he gave a toothy grin, the two front teeth looking oddly too big for his face. “I have to go to the bathroom, can you watch my lunch box?’

“I will wait.” He nodded cheeks full of sweets.

“Are you ready? We are going to be late,” Jungkook shouted backstage in the school hall. It was the first year of middle school. You and Jungkook were twelve and you had been friends for a long time now. You held hands everyday on your way to school until someone in class asked if you love each other and you both denied it stating you were just best friends. After that day the two of you never held hands on your walk home.

“I have to fix my hair” You called frustrated

“I will wait.” He said softly trying to calm you. Once everything was fixed the two of you stepped out onto the stage of your school talent show and you began dancing and singing together.

It was the fifth time you had forgotten to show up for Jungkook, this time he was auditioning for a company or something along those lines. There was so much happening you could barely keep up with his schedule. It wasn’t that you didn’t support him, or that you didn’t care. It was you were going after your own career in teaching. Your career plan wasn’t as fantastical as Jungkook’s but it was yours and you loved it dearly.

You called Jungkook to apologize for not being there for his audition. Telling him you were sorry for missing it but you were in the middle of studying. He said it was okay and that he signed at the company ‘BIGHIT’ you were so excited for him.

That was at the beginning but when he graduated early he was basically unreachable. Jungkook missed your birthday and you missed his training. He invited you almost every weekend to see the company but you always had conflicting schedules.

Eventually he stopped asking and you both stopped inviting each other to important events and milestones you used to share. No more birthday parties. No more movie nights. No more late night calls or calls in general.

Every night though he was on your mind, wondering what he was doing and how he was coping with his training. You had only to roll over and you could send him a message or call him but the fear kicked in. Had it been too long? Would it be awkward? Did he move on?

One particular night the rain outside brought with it a cold bitter loneliness. Remembering one of the last times you were together.

“Just you wait, I am going to become famous and I am going to buy us a house and we will live together, you are my best friend” he grinned down at you finally he was growing into his teeth they didn’t seem so big any more they were now almost a perfect fit.

“You always say that Jungkook but what if I am stuck in university forever, trying to become a teacher, I already had to repeat this class” You were feeling emotional from the stressful school and work life.

And like always he said those three words that you didn’t know if you loved or hated “I will wait.”

You didn’t even have a chance to think about what to send him when you sneezed three times in a row unknowingly hitting the call button.

“Bless you!” That sweet voice you remembered and held dear graced your ears once more.

“Jungkook?

“Why do you sound surprised? You called me,” He asked.

“Sorry I didn’t mean to, it was an accident while I was sneezing.” You denied perhaps a little too earnestly.

“Oh, I can go if you don’t want to talk.”

“No, I mean I was going to text you first. You know it has been so long. I wanted to ease back into conversation.”

“Come on, I am your best friend, you don’t need to ease back into a conversation with me.” Both of you shared a chuckle at the situation, he was right, you felt comfortable already.

“Yeah, I was being dumb,” you hummed, “I miss you”

“Where are you, you still live at the place near the old cinema?”

“Yeah, still the same apartment, I am busting my butt for my career and I haven’t even gotten enough to get a better place,” you frowned.

“I bet your students love you” his voice sounded proud. You heard shuffling and he spoke to you the whole time and eventually you heard a knock at your apartment door.

“Let me in!”

“You didn’t?” You reprimanded into the phone, but you couldn’t deny the broad smile on your face.

“I did.” Opening the door there he was, your Jungkook just as you remembered and yet so different. He took a deep breath shrugging out of his raincoat and placing his umbrella down. You both sat on the couch talking and he told you his group planned to debut the next day.

“No matter when or where, call me I will always have time for you Jungkook.” You watched as he walked out the front door ready to leave but stopped midway and turned back looking at his feet as they shuffled back and forth.

“I am under a contract the moment we debut, I can’t date anyone.” He explained the tips of his ears warming.

“I didn’t even think you liked anyone” You admitted slightly confused.

Heart beating in your chest as he looked up, he grabbed your cheeks and pressed his lips to yours before running off. With a soft. “I will wait.”

Four years passed and you would text or call every month or two. It was the best you could do since you had become a full teacher. You had gotten drunk one night in your empty run down apartment, you called him and drunkenly confessed how much you missed him. He apologized telling you he was on tour overseas and the time difference was different.

The next day in the afternoon he called you, it was the most soul crushing call of your life. He said he didn’t want you to wait for him, said there were guys out there, better than him. And you told him you were just drunk and being needy and it didn’t mean anything.

Another three years had passed, if you stepped outside, they were everywhere. His face was everywhere, his voice playing from every shop in the mall. You hadn’t spoken much since that day things had been kind of quiet. You had been working hard with your children, teaching them the power of patience and telling them about your best friend who would always tell you he would wait because he knew that eventually things would happen and he would feel happy.

You were contacted by the principal and were asked to join a meeting with a business man asking for his idol group to surprise the kids. Your class had been chosen, the agent didn’t specify, saying “I can’t tell you who will be on the show as it is confidential information”. You were dressed in a cute floral dress.

You stepped out and blushed, they were all handsome, but Jungkook was so different grown up and handsome he was muscular in a lean way. Eyes still as bright as you remembered from the childhood memories you shared, “This is not what I expected?”

“Wah, daebak!” Hoseok said of course you knew all the members names and faces having been secretly following them for a while. They cheered as the children filed in and sat in the left over chairs

“Gwiyeoum,” Taehyung said, “Jimin do you remember when we were in school?”

“We were just like this?” Jimin laughed, noticing the way the student’s ears and neck were heating up.

“I miss my school days,” Seokjin said.

You were shocked at seeing his face again after all this time. “Jungkook?”

“Y/n!” He shouted back running over and engulfing you in a hug, “You look so professional, it has been so long, Y/n and I have been friends since were were in first grade, she gave me apple gummies”

“I love your music, I particularly like your chaotic, up-beat songs, they make me laugh,” you grinned, “we use your songs when we take breaks in class, and we stretch.”

“Miss please we are embarrassed” The students said making you laugh

“Well you have to show us now,” Hoseok grinned with a laugh as you nodded.

“Alright everyone on your feet” they stood up and you led them through some stretch routines and the kids got embarrassed but soon warmed up shouting.

“Bultaoreune.” Hoseok was so excited, clapping with laughter while jumping up and down and Suga slapped a hand over his mouth in shock.

You were testing BTS and your students against each other to see how their brains stack up against one another, things like capital cities and fun little games. The two sides competed in mini game challenges for hints and handicaps. You spoke with them about random things, letting the kids ask questions and team up with bts members for making a fun project.

“I am curious, you grew up with Jungkook from a young age.” Seokjin asked “What was our golden maknae like?”

“Awkward,” you shrugged, “he had trouble talking with others, actually I still have an old recording of a very young Jungkook singing and dancing in the school talent show. I have it on my phone. It was to an old hip hop song”

“I want to see it,” they all grinned mischievously.

“Hey, aren’t you in that video too dancing and singing alongside me?” Jungkook said and you frowned having forgotten.

“Oh yeah, I can’t show that?” You sat thoughtfully.

“No show us, you both would be so cute,” Hoseok cheered. He really was the mood maker of the group.

“Do you remember the choreography?” Jungkook smirked at your shy nod requesting the producers to play the song. The two of you performed the dance and sang along. You were bright red and everyone laughed.

After that day you two were back in contact like there were no issues. When the run episode had aired it was everywhere that you knew Jungkook and you laid in your bed every night thinking about how much you wanted to call him. Due to certain events, his tour was cancelled but you couldn’t bring yourself to message or call.

Days turned to weeks that turned to months and you got sick of waiting and you sent him a message.

I will wait.

You didn’t think anything of it until you heard a rapid knock at the door which had your heart racing. Pulling the heavy door open to see Jungkook standing there looking older and tired.

You didn’t give him a chance to speak, repeating your promise “I will wait.”

The way he smiled so bright his two front teeth showing flashbacks of your school days. The way he kissed you on his last night of freedom before he was bound to a contract. He gave you a bright grin and nodded once before turning and leaving.

It was all worth it if it meant one day Jungkook could love you.

Just say you'll love me one day.

If you enjoyed this please share it around for others to enjoy and check my [Masterlist] for other things beautiful like this.

178 notes · View notes

daisylincs · 4 years

Note

Hear me out, 15+69 for staticquake. Could be interesting.

15 = Criminal AU, 69 = Flirting Under Fire

You're right, this could definitely be interesting! And quite a lot of fun, too, especially after I added a fakeout makeout (I couldn't resist.) As always, thanks for the great prompt, Grace 🤗

Daisy is a lieutenant in the local police force, and part of a crack police team known in the station as the Shield. Their team, specifically, is famous for handling those cases most other teams would crash and burn in. (Shield never crashes and burns - except maybe Hunter's one-liners. Those should be treated with a fire extinguisher and a ten-foot pole.)

Anyway, today's case is a fairly standard one. Daisy's done this kind of thing a thousand times before - she's pretty sure she can do it with her eyes closed. After all, what's so hard about finding and arresting someone when you know exactly what they look like? Especially if it's just one guy.

So, no, she's not worried. Which is of course why this case blows up in her face.

It starts out well enough. She goes to the location an anonymous tip-off alerted them to, and finds her guy pretty quickly.

And, God, it's almost insulting how easy this is. Here her guy is, going through his bag of stolen goods in broad daylight, in the alley behind a Walmart, of all places.

"Hands in the air," she tells him, drawing her gun. "And please step away from that bag. Your amateurishness is hurting my professional pride."

He turns around slowly, raising his hands, and she does a kind of appreciative double take. CCTV feeds really don't do him justice.

Too bad he's a criminal, she reflects, shaking her head at her own rotten luck. Why is it that all the cute guys I meet are criminals?

"Ma'am," the guy says, jolting her from her thoughts. "This isn't what it looks like, I promise."

"So you're saying you didn't just steal that stuff from Lai Shi Labs?" Daisy asks with blinding sarcasm.

He winces, ducking his head. "Okay, yeah, this looks bad," he admits.

Daisy is already getting out her handcuffs. "Yes, yes it does."

"I did steal this monoalkenicterrigenoethynol from the lab," he confesses, and Daisy takes a step back just because of that word. Damn. Jemma would be impressed.

"But," the guy says, and something in his sincere blue eyes stops her from handcuffing him immediately, "I'm not a thief."

Daisy has to shake her head at the sheer ridiculousness of that excuse. During her time as a cop, she's heard a few wild ones, but she's pretty sure this one beats them all. He admits he stole the… unpronounceable science thing, but now he's saying he's not a thief? Really?

"Dude," she says, "you're kind of insulting me here. How dumb do you think I am? Most thieves I go after at least try to fight me, not explain to me why they're not thieves."

"I don't think you're dumb," he says earnestly.

"Then why," she asks, channeling her best May-like deadpan stare, "are you trying to convince me you're not a thief while holding a bag of stolen goods in your hands?"

He winces again. "Okay, I can see how this looks really bad. But you haven't arrested me yet, so that's a plus, right?"

"That's just because I've been too caught up in despairing over how bad a thief you are," she says. (Oh, snap. Hunter should really take notes.)

"Ma'am, listen," he says, and there's some urgent layer in his voice that makes her pause. "This stuff I stole - I helped invent it. You're not really a thief if you're stealing your own product, right?"

He doesn't wait for her to reply. "But the point is, I helped make this. I know what it does."

"Okay, I’ll play,” Daisy says, putting her hands on her hips. She can always arrest him later. “What does it do?"

The guy hesitates, then starts to explain in a rush. "It's monoalkenicterrigenoethynol. It alters the biomolecular structure of the host's DNA, causing a total change in the macromolecule arrangement of the -"

His eyes go wide half-way through his last sentence (which is fine, Daisy was understanding, like, nothing that came out of his mouth, other than the word the.) "Shit," he breathes, looking at something over her shoulder.

Daisy whirls around and sees a red SUV with the words Lai Shi Labs emblazoned across the side pulling up next to the Walmart.

Okay, just how long has he been wasting her time if the owners are already showing up? She glances down at her watch and yelps. "Shit, okay. I don't care how cute you are, I really have to arrest you now."

"No," he says, grabbing her arm. "You need to run."

"Are you crazy?" she exclaims, yanking her arm away with an incredulous glance. "I'm arresting -"

But she's cut off by a shower of bullets hitting the ground just inches from where she's standing.

She turns to the thief-not-thief guy with wide eyes. "Okay, running sounds good right about now," she says, following him around the corner and into the next alley.

And because she's not stupid, she radios for backup on the way.

But she knows it'll be a while before they can get to her.

Which means she's currently stuck huddled behind a dumpster with a guy and his bag of stolen goods. Yay.

Oh, and did she mention the part where they're getting shot at? Double yay!

"Do you believe me now?" the guy yells at her through the rain of bullets.

Daisy snorts an incredulous laugh. "Believe you? Uh, no!"

"Why not?" he yells back.

She rolls her eyes. "Because, genius, you stole their stuff. Of course they're mad."

But she can't deny that a reaction like this is a little… extreme.

Okay, a lot extreme.

Fine, he has a point.

"So, what's your name?" he calls once there's a momentary lull in the rattle of bullets against the dumpster.

"Daisy," she says distractedly, trying to peer around the dumpster without, you know, getting her head blown off.

"Pretty," he says, and she can just hear the smile in his voice. "Like you."

She turns around to give him an incredulous look. "Are you really flirting with me while we're being shot at?"

He grins at her, and she thinks it's quite unfair how attractive it makes him look. "Why not?"

"I don't know… oh, yeah, bullets? Impending death? That ring any bells?" she asks, trying to get back to her assessment of the situation.

But this guy doesn't give up. "You haven't asked me for my name yet."

"Maybe that’s because we are about to die.”

He gives her a heart-meltingly warm smile. "Isn't that the perfect time to flirt, then?"

“Uh, no,” she says, as though it should be obvious. (It should.) “The perfect time to flirt would be after we’ve gotten out of here, in a nice little coffee shop.”

She can practically hear the grin in his voice as he replies, “oh, so you’re saying you would flirt with me at another time?”

Daisy splutters. “I didn’t say that!”

“You kind of did,” he argues, blue eyes sparkling playfully.

“You’re delusional,” she scoffs, peering around the dumpster again (and though she would never admit it, it’s partially to hide the blush creeping across her cheeks. He’s cute, okay?)

“And you’re pretty,” he says to her back.

She turns around to give him a deadpan stare. “Are you ever going to quit with the flirting?”

“As soon as you ask me for my name,” he answers cheerfully.

She shakes her head, but there’s a grin tugging at her lips despite her best efforts. “You know what? Fine. If it’ll shut you up… what’s your name, guy who is totally a thief despite not thinking he is?”

“I’m not a thief,” he protests for the two-hundred-and-fortieth time. “I helped create the monoalkenicterrigenoethynol, and it’s my call to say it shouldn’t be released into the public.”

“Right, so you’re a hero,” she says, the amount of sarcasm in her voice enough to knock out a full-grown elephant. “Forgive me if I don’t fall at your feet in worship.”

“I’d rather we go out on a few dates first,” he says, and oh my God, he did not just say that.

“Do you know my friend Hunter?” she asks him. “Because that really sounds like something he’d say.”

“I’m afraid I don’t,” he says, then adds probably just to spite her, “Daisy.”

“I’m going to regret giving you my name, aren’t I?” she asks with a long-suffering groan.

He grins cheerfully at her. “Oh, yes.”

“At least tell me yours so I can return the favour,” she says, because come on, fair’s fair. (She can just see Jemma’s smirk at this point, and she mentally tells her no, Jemma, I’m not flirting back, don’t be dumb, it’s just to shut him up.)

The guy seems to think differently, if the way his eyes light up in amusement is any indication. “I’m Lincoln,” he says. “Really pleased to meet you.”

“Yeah, yeah,” she says, rolling her eyes and directing her full attention to ignoring the little pleased glow she gets in her stomach.

He looks like he’s about to say something else, but luckily for Daisy’s sanity, the dumpster chooses that exact moment to blow apart, a bullet whizzing between them and narrowly missing both of their heads.

“Okay, time to go,” she says, taking charge instinctively and dashing down the alley. Dead end. Crap.

“Through here,” Lincoln says, grabbing her hand and tugging her towards the rusted steel gate she missed in the shadows.

She takes the lead again, keeping a hold of his hand for practical purposes. (Oh my god, stop smirking, mind-Jemma.) Maybe they can lose the Lai Shi guys in the mess of alleys behind the mall.

They almost succeed. They're right about to come out into the main road when they see the red SUV pull up.

Now, Daisy is a police officer, trained in one of the best teams in the business. She specializes in taking stock of a situation and acting on what she assesses, fast.

That's exactly what she does. She sees the SUV, sees the corner of the alley as a potential barrier between them, sees how it can trick their enemies into passing right by if they just add a little distraction.

The first thing that pops into her mind is a stupid, cliché idea that has absolutely nothing to do with how she and Lincoln have been flirting-not-flirting, and even less to do how she thinks he's really cute. All there is to it is that she's a good officer, and she saw an opportunity for a good distraction. That's all. Definitely.

But as she pushes him against the wall and kisses him, deliberately positioning it so that her hair blocks his face, she's really not complaining about this particular distraction.

They keep kissing even when they hear the SUV take off again - just to be sure they’re safe, of course. That’s why.

Just as they have to pull apart, out of breath, Daisy’s walkie-talkie crackles. “I’m here, Dais,” her partner Mack says, with just a hint of amusement in his voice.

Daisy turns around, and sure enough, there’s the familiar police car. She can feel her cheeks burning as she steps away from Lincoln, even though she knows she has nothing to be embarrassed about. It was just a distraction, after all.

"Need a ride?" Mack asks, rolling down the window and shooting her a shit-eating grin. Oh, wonderful. Distraction or no, the teasing about this is never going to stop.

“Come on,” she grumbles, tugging Lincoln into the car by the hand and ignoring the way Mack hides a grin. “Let’s go.”

The ride back is one of the most awkward of her life - she and Lincoln have no idea what to say to each other after, well, that, and it doesn’t help that Mack keeps smirking at them in the mirror. Daisy’s almost glad when they get to the base.

Coulson is waiting for them inside. “Oh, good, you got the criminal,” he says when he sees Lincoln step out.

Daisy coughs, not wanting to meet Lincoln’s gaze. “Actually, sir… it’s a little bit more complicated than that.”

“Oh?” Coulson’s eyebrows fly up.

Daisy coughs again. “Yeah… he says he kind of had to steal it, to prevent it from being released into the public.”

“That would be a disaster, sir,” Lincoln supplies helpfully.

“Well, Fitzsimmons will be able to tell us soon enough,” Coulson says, reluctantly motioning for Lincoln to come inside.

Daisy would never admit it, but she’s tense as she waits for Jemma’s results. (Judging by Mack’s knowing look, though, she’s not fooling anybody.)

When Fitzsimmons have finished working their magic, Daisy almost melts with relief when their faces are serious.

“Sir, this is one incredibly dangerous substance,” Fitz says, his blue eyes serious.

“It’s actually really, really lucky you stole these vials when you did, Lincoln,” Jemma tells them seriously. “If this stuff had been released into the public, well… let’s just say it’s better not to think about it.”

Coulson’s face is wry as he turns to Lincoln. “I hate to say it, but Mr Campbell is... not a criminal.” He gives Lincoln a grudging nod, and Daisy has to bite back a grin at just how grudging it is. “It seems you’ve done us all a favour.”

Lincoln nods, keeping his face serious for Coulson’s benefit. “Thank you, sir.”

But as soon as everyone else is out of the room, he turns to Daisy with a fully I-told-you-so smirk. “That’s a date you owe me.”

She folds her arms. “And how did you come to that conclusion?”

“Well, you said you wouldn’t worship me as a hero until we’d gone on a few dates,” he reminds her.

She keeps up her unimpressed facade. “Pretty sure you said that.”

He ignores her and takes a step closer. “Well, now that I actually am a hero…”

She rolls her eyes, but she’s biting back a grin. “Alright, alright, hotshot. We’ll go on a date.”

“Really?” he asks, and the simultaneously surprised and shyly delighted look in his eyes is so sweet it completely melts the glare off her face.

She reaches for his hand. “Really.”

(The rest of the base can tease her all she likes - Daisy’s finally found a cute guy who’s not, you know, a criminal. Though they do have a very funny story to tell all their friends about that…

It’s not the happy ending Daisy expected. But it’s a good one.)

#tropes mashup #criminal au #flirting under fire #fakeout makeout #staticquake #bullet-point fic

21 notes · View notes

shes-an-oddbird · 3 years

Text

Christmas at River’s End Mall

Summary - A Christmas AU in which everyone navigates their seasonal jobs, relationships and Christmas spirit, or lack there of, through woven together tales inspired by holiday prompts.

Chapter 9 - Christmas Parade

Summary - While at the annual Christmas parade, Mack and Elena discuss Hope getting older and Mack steps into help when when one of the parade floats breaks down.

Prompt - Christmas Parade Relationship - Mackelena POV - Daniel

Mack wonders if they should have brought chairs with them. Unless there was snow on the ground, they’ve always just watched the parade from the curb with a blanket folded up underneath them and another one pulled around them for warmth. But considering they invited Elena to join them, maybe a chair would have been nice to offer her.

“Dad I don’t see her!”

“Calm down Sparkplug, I just texted her a minute ago.”

“Well, that’s all some of us need.” His heart does a skip at the sound of her voice behind them. Her hands land on his shoulders, her long hair and festive red scarf falling over his shoulder and she leans down to say hello.

“Yoyo, you made it!”

“Of course, the parade is a tradition right?”

Hope nods. They have a few minutes before the parade arrives, although he thinks he can hear the first of the sirens that lead the parade in the distance. The parade, which sets up in the mall parking lot, would makes its way down the main road just outside the mall and then head down towards the small downtown area. They always stayed close by the start so they could head inside after for more activities.

Elena sets her own blanket on the ground next to theirs, sitting close although there wasn’t much other option as the street became more and more crowded. As they wait for the parade to come around the corner they talk about work and weather and other mundane topics.

“So what are we up to after the parade?”

“We’re going to go see the drones, dad finally decided on the right one which is the same one I wanted from the start.” Hope turns her eyes back on him. “Do you think Fitz will be there?”

“I’m sure he will be kid, he’s probably starting to think you’re after his job you ask him so many questions.”

“CANDY!” Several kids scream in excitement as a float from the public library drifts by and the riders dressed as reindeer toss candy canes and chocolate kisses from the sleigh. Hope and the other kids surge forward to collect them.

“I have to buy that damn drone today, I’m afraid if we go back again without buying anything their going to think we’re casing the place.”

“I’m sure they’re used to it, kids are obsessed with those gadget demonstrations.”

“That’s true and half the time we don’t even go in, she just talks with Fitz, the guy who demos them, goes well beyond what I know about them.” Elena looks at him curiously. “What?”

“Nothing.” She shakes her head but she’s grinning like she knows something he doesn’t.

“What, tell me.”

Still looking far too amused she gives in. “It’s just, it sounds like Hope has a crush on him.”

“What?” Mack laughs. “That’s ridiculous.”

“Is it?”

“Oh come on, she’s only eleven, she’s not old enough to be having crushes yet.” Was she? No she was just a kid, it was ridiculous.

“Oh please, what do you know about it?” Elena laughing now at his utter disbelief.. “I was eleven when I had my first crush, and that was well after all my friends started too.”

“That’s just not like Hope, she still thinks all the boys in her class are stupid.”

She just shrugs. “Maybe that’s part of it, look I bet Hope is the smartest kid in her class right?”

“In the whole grade, maybe the whole school.” He answers proudly.

“Exactly and all her friends are starting to get crushes on these boys who are probably so boring to her, she starts to feel left out.”

That was reasonably to assume but he still only agrees with a hesitant, “I guess.”

“Then she meets Fitz, and Daisy’s told me about him, a brilliant engineer, someone who can have a conversation on her level who’s also nice to her and let’s her test all these drones and gadgets she’s preoccupied with.”

“But he’s– “

She cuts him off. “But he’s what, a grown up, you never had a crush on a teacher before?”

“Alright, I get it.” Mack contemplates this new revelation. When exactly had Hope gotten old enough to have crushes. Was he supposed to do anything about it. He had promised they would go there to get the drone after the parade. “Should I take her back there?”

“I don’t see why not, if you don’t and she finds out why she might think she’s done something wrong,” Elena advises. “But maybe give Fitz a heads up, it’s hard having your first crush at eleven but having your first heartbreak at eleven is ten times worse.”

Mack nods, making a mental note to pull Fitz aside and explain. Then he looks back at Elena a little in awe. “How did you get so good with kids?”

“I’m not, but I was a little girl once, it’s a tough life.”

She’s so pleased with herself. That was one of the first things he realized about her that he really liked; she was confident. Determined and straight forward.

And now they’re exceptionally close together. Forced into each other’s personal space as kids return to the sidewalk, arms full of treats. He blinks and she’s closer again, leaning in towards him.

There’s a deafening screech and they snap apart. The parade has rolled to a stop and a horrible grinding noise is emitting from the truck hauling the River’s End High School’s float. It rolls to a stop and cuts off. The crowd around them chatters in concern while the students frantically dismount the float and the truck bed.

“What’s going on?” One girl yells from the float.

“The truck must have stalled.” Another answers.

“Flint, what’s going on up there!”

The skinny young boy driving the truck leans out the window and shouts back at them. “It won’t turn back on.”

“Gabe, I thought your brother fixed up this thing.” A girl with white-blonde hair storms around the float, frustration evident as she addresses a boy still sitting in the bed of the truck.

“He had the guys at the shop take a look at it.”

“Well can you fix it?”

“Yeah Ruby, let me just jump right down from here and look under the hood.” The boy snapped back sarcastically.

The boy driving the truck jumps out and runs around to the front to lift the hood. “Yeah, I don’t exactly know what I’m looking for here.”

“This is going well.” Elena whispers to him as he watches them concerned.

“Old model, bad engine, probably something one of the kids picked up for cheap.” Maybe it was the mechanic in him but he was already assessing everything wrong with the truck. Even if it hadn’t stalled making it to the end of the parade would be a Christmas miracle.

“Dad, do you think you can help them?” Hopes asks.

“I haven’t got my tools, not sure there is much I could do.”

“I don’t think it could hurt.” Elena says, her eyes wide a the boy at the hood yanks his arm back as it crashes down. He’s joined by a girl with lots of dark curly hair and they open the hood again, steading it on the support.

“Alright.” He pushes himself off the ground “before someone loses a hand.”

Mack jogs out into the parade chaos. He has to clear a path through the crowd of students now converging at the front of the truck.

“This truck belong to one of you?” He shouts.

“It’s mine sir.” The girl with the dark curly hair speaks up.

“You have this problem before?” He asks. A glance over the engine and its not as bad as he anticipated, it’d clearly already had some decent work done on it but unfortunately it doesn’t show any obvious cause to the problem.

“Yes, but someone was supposed to have it checked out for me.” She glares at the boy now wheeling his way towards them.

“Shut it Tess, I’m trying to get Robbie on the phone.”

Mack tries hard not to groan. He’s so not ready for Hope to be on the verge of her teenage years.

He needs to check the radiator and fuel but its too hot to reach for anything with his bare hands. “Have any of you got an old rag or t-shirt?”

“There’s probably one in the truck.”

“Grab if for me, what about a flashlight.”

“I’ve got my phone.” Flint grabs the phone from his pocket and holds it out over the engine.

“Thanks kid.”

“Here.” The girl hands him a stained t-shirt. He manages to get the cap off the radiator but it doesn’t appear to be the issue.

“Was there any odds smells when you were driving?”

Flint shakes his head. “No, I don’t think so.”

Alright, that rules out a few possibilities.

“No, Robbie its fine, someone else is here already,” Gabe listened for a second, nodding along unimpressed before holding the phone out to him. “He wants to talk to you.”

Mack begrudgingly accepts the phone. “This is Mack.”

“Hey,” a voice with an accent like the boy’s greets him shortly, “the truck stalls on inclines and my brother won’t tell me where you are.”

That explains a lot. “They didn’t make it far, we’re on the main road outside the mall.”

“Dammit, my crew was supposed to fix the problem.”

“No worries, I think it’ll start again, its been down for a few minutes, doesn’t seem to have any other issues unless it’s the extra weight.”

“Give it a try, if they can get off that hill the parade levels out, should make it to the end.” Mack nods at Flint who jumps back in the truck.

“Easy.” He calls. Flint starts the engine which, after a long moment, stubbornly springs to life and relief washes over the students. “Alright its going.”

Robbie sighs. “I’ll get a backup truck over there just in case, first I gotta go fire somebody.” Mack chuckles, he doesn’t know this Robbie fellow, but he thinks they’d probably get along.

“I’ll follow along behind them down the hill.”

“Appreciate that.” Mack hands the phone back to Gabe.

“Alright everyone back on board, if you can make it down the hill you should be in the clear.” If there wasn’t a damn marching band in front of them, they could just throw it in neutral and roll. It takes everyone a minute to get back in place so he hurries over to Elena and Hope who are still watching from the curb.

“Everything alright?”

“Should be fine but I’m going to follow them for a bit make sure they don’t get stuck again.” Mack explains. “Do you mind hanging here with Hope?”

“Can’t we walk with you?” Hope asks.

“She can ride with us if she wants.” Tess, the curly haired girl offers. Hope’s eyes light up and she looks pleadingly up at him. Personally, he doesn’t want her anywhere near that truck but at two miles an hour she’d probably be safe.

“Alright, let’s go.” Mack lifts Hope up onto the float. Tess takes her hand and backs her away from the edge.

“Let’s go Flint!” Gabe shouts and the other boy waves his hand out the window. They being to roll and the crowd bursts into applause.

“You saved the day.” Elena nudges his shoulder as they begin to walk along side the float.

“I didn’t really have to do anything.”

“Well, you get credit for trying, I didn’t see anyone else run out there to help, just heard a bunch of moaning and complaining.”

“Yeah well, they’re good kids, but now all I can think about is how that’s going to be Hope in a few years.”

“Don’t worry about that, she’ll be just fine, she’s got an excellent role model to look up to.” She nudges his arm again, this time slipping her hand into his as they walk.

#mackelena #alphonso mackenzie #elena rodriguez #hope mackenzie #aos fic #aos #christmas at the mall #25 days of christmas

2 notes · View notes

is0gild · 4 years

Text

Ice Cream and Fire Oven Pizza - Chapter 15

Pairing: Elsa x Lea/Axel || Side Pairing: Riku x OC

Summary: Modern AU. She's an introvert ball of nerves who works at Ice Palace, a mall food court ice cream shop. He's the outgoing, sassy goofball who works at the Pizza Planet across the way. Hilarity, snark, and fluffy romcom hijinks ensue.

Word Count: 10,487

FIRST CHAPTER || PREVIOUS CHAPTER || NEXT CHAPTER

Credit for super friggin’ cute and super friggin’ amazing cover art goes to the super friggin’ talented ky-jane here on tumblr!

So... last time on The Burning Wreckage That Is My Life (please excuse the working title).

I had a crush on a guy. Well, maybe… I mean, I think I did? But I couldn't let him know that I had a crush on him. And just to make things extra complicated, I now had to act like we were dating when we really weren't. So basically… I like-liked him but had to pretend that I didn't like-like him while at the same time pretending that I did like-like him.

Confused yet? I know I was.

Also, I really needed to stop using the word like-like.

Ugh, what had I been thinking? This was a terrible plan. A disaster just waiting to happen. There was no possible way it could end well. And yet, here I sat in my apartment, watching the clock as I waited for my fake boyfriend to come pick me up. What was the matter with me? What had possessed to ever say yes to this… this insanity?

I had gotten off work not too long ago and had come straight home to prepare for my meetup with Father. This was Lea's day off, so I hadn't had to start this whole farce of a relationship around the mall today, which at least was one small comfort. My fingers as per usual were fidgeting with my freshly washed and plaited hair as I watched the seconds slowly tick by, my stomach twisting into tighter and tighter knots.

Sighing, I forced my hands to stop fussing with the braid and they complied… only to start picking at the flaps of the empty cardboard box Rayne had scrounged up for me to put things from my old place into. With a tiny scowl, I shoved my hands into my lap, demanding they be still. That lasted maybe all of two seconds before they started fiddling and twisting at the buttons that ran all the way down the front my navy corduroy overalls dress. The long sleeved shirt I wore underneath it was off the shoulder and white with blue horizontal stripes. The dress itself fell all the way down to my ankles, with a slit up to the knee on one side, giving a peek of my snowflake-patterned tights.

Yes, I was a full grown adult who still liked cutesy prints on my socks and stockings. So sue me.

Erg, where was he? As much as I was dreading seeing Father again and wished I didn't have to deal with it at all, the wait was killing me. And I couldn't put it off forever so I'd rather just get this awfulness over with already. I-

"Hello, Lea?" I heard Rayne's voice and I whipped my head around to spot her stepping out of her bedroom, smartphone pressed to one ear. She shot me a grin but then it faded as she glanced away with a squint. "Whaddya mean you're down in the parking lot? Get your ass up here and knock on the door like a goddamn gentleman, you-"

In the space of a heartbeat, I'd zoomed across the room to snatch the phone from her. "I'll be right down, see you in a sec!" I said quickly into it and, not waiting for a reply, hung up the call before Rayne could steal her phone back.

"Hey!" she huffed, fumbling to catch the device as I tossed to her. Then she gave a tiny whine, "But sweetpea, that's no way for him to treat a lady! I expected better of him!"

I rolled my eyes as I returned to the table to grab the box by one of its flaps. "I told him to just call up when he got here."

Rayne followed behind me with a tiny pout. "But I wanted to practice my whole 'What are your intentions towards my daughter' speech on him!"

"And that," I smirked, tapping her on the nose with my free hand, "is exactly why I told him to call."

Puffing out her cheeks, she crossed her arms. "You're no fun!"

"Ouch. Your words, they wound me. But somehow, someway… I think I'll live," I deadpanned, making my way over to open the front door.

"Oh! Curfew's at ten! Not one minute later, missy, not one second or you're grounded!"

I paused to turn back and droop my eyelids at her. "...too far, Rayne. Too far." Then I left, slamming the door shut behind me.

That woman, I swear. Loved her to pieces, but the sooner that baby was out of her, the better. Then she could focus all of that crazy on her new bundle of joy instead of me.

As I hurried down the steps, I went over the game plan in my head again. It'd been another sleepless night last night as I'd mentally prepared myself for Operation Boyfriend But Shh Not Really. That's right, I'd named it. Come on, it's me, how could I not? It was the only way I could feel like I had any sort of control over this whole situation. Which I one hundred percent did not. But I needed to try and trick myself into believing that I did if I had any chance of staying sane through all of this.

This being Lea and me. Pretending to be boyfriend and girlfriend. And boyfriends and girlfriends did… things. No, not that! Definitely not that, that would be going well above and beyond the call of duty! Yeesh, get your mind out of the gutter! I only meant like, ya know… holding hands, hugging… other various public displays of affection that shall remain nameless because I quite simply could not deal with even the mere thought of such things without my face bursting into flames.

But I was going to have to deal if I had any hope of getting through this. And to deal, I needed to face facts. Lea only saw me as a friend. He was only playing along to help me… as a friend. Whatever I was or wasn't feeling towards him, he did not feel the same way. Doing all those aforementioned boyfriend-girlfriend things? Wasn't going to threaten to make his heart explode like it would mine. So if I was going to survive long enough to make it out the other side of this little fiasco, my heart needed to take a chill pill.

Conceal, don't feel. That was going to be my mantra. It was one I was actually already very familiar with and had put to good practice regularly over the years. Rayne had been right. Growing up in my family, feelings had been a luxury. And as the eldest heir to the Fryse fortune, I'd had an image to maintain, the family name to uphold. I hadn't gotten to enjoy the same freedoms Anna had since she'd been born second. Not that I think I could have ever been such a… shall we say, free spirit like her. I'd always been the bundle of nerves on legs that I am. Conceal, don't feel… that'd been the only way I'd been able to maintain the calm, cool mask in front of high society and not be a walking, talking spazz of an embarrassment to my parents.

And now that little motto was what was going to get me through all this.

At least, I hoped so.

Reaching the bottom floor of my building, I stopped just short of the exit, taking a slow deep breath. Then I smoothed my dress, swept my braid forward over one shoulder and gave myself a reassuring nod.

I got this.

With my box still firmly in hand, I pushed open the door and stepped outside into the parking lot where I immediately spotted Lea. He was looking down at his phone, his thumb swiping across its screen every so often while he leaned against what was presumably his car. A (what looked to be) few decades old yet well taken care of muscle car, black and sleek and one of the types named after an animal like viper or cougar or stingray, you know, just to let you know how cool this vehicle really was. It seemed Lea had decided to color coordinate with his ride, for he was dressed in head-to-toe black himself. Beneath the leather jacket that he wore was a fitted tee that simply read Straight Fire in cracked and faded script. His skinny jeans were ripped at the knees and tucked into a pair of tall, combat boots. If possible, his crimson locks seemed even wilder than usual today and he was also sporting a pair of aviator sunglasses.

...I don't got this.

Also, I was staring.

Also, I'd dropped my box.

Jeez, Elsa, get a grip. So what if the guy was gorgeous? We already knew that. Had established it from day one. It wasn't any sort of definitive proof you'd caught feelings or anything. Anyone, anything, even a corpse, even a frigging lamppost would be susceptible to his, er… his charms.

Giving myself a quick shake, I retrieved my box from the ground and walked towards him. His head lifted at the sound of my footsteps and I could feel his gaze on me. Pocketing his phone as I came to a stop in front of him, he then hunched to my eye level, bringing his face closer to mine as he tipped down his shades, revealing his all but trademark winged eyeliner with a wink and a smirk. "What's cookin', good lookin'?"

...okay. There was a slight chance I'd caught feelings.

But psssh, that little flutter in my rib cage could have been anything. Maybe my last meal was disagreeing with me. Yeah, that had to be it.

Remember. Conceal, don't feel.

Squelching the foreign sensation in my chest, I fixed him with a blank stare. "...wow, that the best you got? You really have been out of the game for a while, haven't you?"

With a snerk, he used a foot to push himself up off the car as he straightened up and opened the passenger side door for me. "Nah, s'not that. I'm just going easy on you. Couldn't have you going all weak in the knees on me right before our big date with your dad."

"I think my knees have nothing to worry about," one corner of my lips turned up as I took a seat.

"You say that now, but trust me," he bent towards me, propping an elbow atop the door window and jerking a thumb towards his face, "if I really turned it on, you wouldn't stand a chance, sweet thang, it'd be straight to Swoon City for you!"

I quirked an eyebrow at him, "Did you really just use the terms 'sweet thang' and 'Swoon City' in the same sentence?"

"...yeah, not my proudest moment. Can we forget that ever happened?"

Biting back a grin, I nodded. "I think that'd be in both our best interests. Mostly yours."

"Smart ass," he shook his head with a chuckle, shutting my door and making his way around to the other side of the car.

Okay. Good. This was going well. He didn't suspect a thing. Elsa, Queen of Evasion. Now I only needed to keep up the act for the duration of the ride. A mere one hour road trip to the city of Arendelle. A measly sixty minutes. And really, what was sixty minutes in the grand scheme of things? Hardly a blip in time. This shouldn't be too hard, right?

...then of course there would be when we actually got there and Lea and I'd have to put on a whole other kind of act for Father. Then the hour long trip back. Then the-

Easy there, girl. Just focus on the immediate task before you. One step at a time.

I heard his door open and glanced over, watching him take a seat and buckle himself in. My lips pursed to one side. "...so Halloween come early this year?"

"Huh?" his hand froze just as he'd been about to turn the key in the ignition, head turning my way, eyebrows shooting high above his aviators. Then he looked down at himself, patting at his shirt and jacket. "You don't like it? Crap, do I look like trash?"

I blinked.

Had I really… just made Lea self-conscious? Lea? The guy who'd dragged me up to do karaoke with him? The guy who'd been dancing around like a doofus atop food court tables while lip-syncing to corny glam metal? That Lea? I wouldn't have even thought the word to exist in his vocabulary.

Oh gosh, I must have taken it too far in the other direction. It's 'Conceal, don't feel,' not 'Demean, be mean.'

Hastily, I said, "No, it's not that. I… you look… good." Like, real good… ahem, down girl. I averted my gaze, hoping my face didn't look as warm as it felt. "I just… wasn't expecting it, is all."

"Oh!" he perked up, a tiny smile pulling at his lips now. "Well, I'm supposed to be your dark, bad boy lover, right? Just wanted to make sure I played up the part. Whaddya think, do I look like your parents' worst nightmare or what?"

"That getup is going to leave an impression, that's for sure."

He started up the engine and it roared to life. "Hell yeah! This is how you pick me out of a crowd. I make myself easy to remember. No way your padre's forgetting me anytime soon."

"I doubt anyone's forgetting you anytime soon. Don't think they could even if they wanted to," I snorted, resting my elbow on the window sill and propping my head against my knuckles.

"Never really could just blend and fade into the background. Side effect of being so majestic," his tongue clicked twice and pretty sure there was a wink behind those shades. Then he nodded to the box in my lap as he reversed the car out of its space, "You can just toss that in the back with the others."

"Others?" I looked over my shoulder to the backseat to discover a few just like mine packed in there. "You brought more?"

He shrugged, exiting the lot and turning us out onto the main road. "Well yeah! Just wanted to help in whatever small way I could."

Small way? The guy was already throwing his whole friggin' life out of whack just to basically be my rent-a-boyfriend, for Pete's sake! I hadn't thought it possible for him to help me even more than he already was. And yet, he'd found a way. To be fair, I hadn't planned to take much back from my old condo, so really, the extra boxes weren't totally necessary. But still…

"Thanks, Lea," I gave him a tiny smile as I put mine with the rest of the herd, "you're very thoughtful."

His fingers ruffled his hair as he gave a sheepish laugh. "Nah, it's nothing."

Alright. Two minutes down. Only fifty-eight more to go.

Lord help me.

Remember when I was more hermity? Yeah, those were the days. I wonder whatever happened to those?

Oh, that's right. My sister and my roommate happened.

Brats.

"So…" I began, racking my brain for the next thing to talk about. Ah, small talk. Bane of my existence. "...nice ride. Please tell me you didn't get it just to complete this whole look you're going for."

"Shit, should I have not?" I just stared at him and he snerked, breaking out into a grin, "Nah, I'm just messing with ya. It was my old man's car. Only thing he left me when he kicked the bucket. Well, that and massive debt. Thankfully, the state took that second one off my hands."

That's right. Lea'd been brought up in the foster system. So this now explained why one of his parents had been out of the picture. I frowned, tucking in my bottom lip. "...I'm sorry."

"Why? Got no reason to be," he chuckled, shaking his head. "It was ages ago, I've long since made my peace with it. I'm not broken up about it, trust me."

My eyes drifted from the buildings blurring past us over to him. "What was he like?"

His head shifted slightly towards me for a second before pointing straight ahead again. "Well… he wasn't ever gonna be winning father of the year, that's for sure. Not even runner up or one of those cruddy lil participation ribbons. The guy ODed out when I was six, so take from that what you will." He paused, tapping an index finger to the steering wheel a few times. "...but he did care. Did his best to do right by me. Saïx too, even though he wasn't his kid. The man wasn't a bad guy… he just didn't have his shit together and never really was meant to be a father."

The downward tug at my lips deepened as I lowered my gaze to my hands, folded neatly in my lap. "...can I ask, ah… your mother..."

"Where she fits into all this?" he ventured and I gave a slow nod. "Oh, she makes Pops look like he was a goddamn saint. She's a leech. Just hopping from one sugar daddy to the next, popping out kids she never wanted. Same day we buried our old man, she took Saïx and me out for ice cream after. Handed us some munny and told us to go order and pay while she snagged us a table to sit at. When we turned around a few minutes later, she'd split. Haven't seen her since."

My heart squeezed as I regarded him with wide eyes. "Wow, that… that's just awful. You have no idea where she is at all?"

"Didn't say that now. We actually did some digging into it a few years ago. Turns out she's just a couple states over, shacked up with some new sucker. An orthodontist or something. They're living up the suburbia life with the white picket fence, two-point-five kids, the whole shebang. Guess Saïx and I were just her practice run rejects before she went off and started her real family." He shrugged, "Though maybe she'll eventually skip out on this one too, who knows?"

I tipped my head to one side. "How do you know all that if you haven't seen her?"

"I haven't. Saïx has." He stopped at a red light, flicking on his turn signal. Then his hand was rubbing at the nape of his neck. "...she did try to reach out to me once. Last year. Left a voicemail saying something about wanting to reconnect or some bullshit. I deleted it. Couldn't of been all that serious 'bout it, seeing as how she hasn't tried again since. Probably just a halfhearted attempt to ease her pathetic excuse for a conscience before washing her hands of it and calling it a day."

My eyebrows met in a peak before I looked away again, fingers absently toying with my braid. He was talking so calmly about it all, so casually. As if he were discussing nothing more interesting than the weather. It made it harder for me to figure out an appropriate response in a situation that I was already so completely socially ill-equipped to deal with in the first place. Should I be just as laid back about it as he was? No, that felt insensitive. Should I express pity? Absolutely not, he'd probably hate that…

Seriously, what do?

How do you people?

"Alright," his voice broke through my thoughts, "you're up for sharing time." The light changed green and he pressed down on the gas pedal, turning us onto the highway entrance. "Why'd you do it? Go all Runaway Bride on your big day?"

I was relieved that he (whether knowingly or not) had saved me from having to come up with something to say to his tragic backstory. Even if this did mean I had to now talk about myself, which usually would have been just as anxiety-inducing of an experience. But somehow, right here, right now, talking to Lea... the idea didn't seem as uncomfortable as I normally would've expected it to be.

Twisting the tip of my braid around one finger, I mulled over it for a few silent seconds. Finally, I said, "It… he and I… we just weren't… right. I thought we were. He thought we were. My parents and his parents certainly thought we were. And I didn't want to disappoint them, so I just kept telling myself that everything was as it should be. That he and I made sense. But we didn't. Not really, not… in my heart. We just…"

"You didn't love him," he said simply, and I winced. As if I'd done something wrong. Then I nodded. "And it took you getting within a stone's throw of saying 'I do' to realize that?"

"Well," I frowned up at the ceiling, "...I'd always heard that love takes time. So I think a part of me was just waiting for it to happen. Waiting for… I don't know… that moment where it'd just hit me, that moment of just… 'oh wow! So that's what this is supposed to feel like' or something. I thought maybe… maybe our first kiss. Or maybe by our first anniversary. Or maybe when he proposed to me. Or maybe when I was trying on gowns or looking at venues with him. But then, suddenly, it was our wedding day and it struck me that still… nothing. And if it I wasn't feeling it after being together for five years, that I probably was never going to. That's when the panic set in and… well…"

"Let me guess. That's when the legendary Phonebook Heist occurred," one corner of his lips twitched up.

I breathed a soft laugh. "Yeah. Had to ditch the big poofy dress. And I used the phonebook to track Rayne down, since she wasn't listed under her full name in it."

A snort escaped him. "Ever thought of this crazy lil thing all the kids are doing nowadays called writing things down on a post-it? I know, wild right? It's new, maybe ya haven't heard of it."

"I was a bit stressed and not exactly thinking clearly in that moment," I bit back a grin, giving his arm a gentle shove.

"Gee, I wonder why," he said wryly as he shifted lanes. "Still curious as to why you felt like you had to run away. Couldn't you have just called the wedding off?"

"You make it sound so easy," my lips twisted sourly. "If it were, do you think I would have let Rayne rope us into going along with this crazy plan of Anna's and hers? You don't know my parents. They… have a way of getting what they want. No one says no to them. In their world, things are done a certain way. Always have been, always will be, end of discussion."

"Their world?" one of his eyebrows arched. Then something clicked. "That's right, you're loaded."

I shook my head, "My parents are, not me. Not anymore, anyway. Not unless you think I'm scooping mall ice cream at minimum wage just for kicks."

"What, you don't have a trust fund or something?"

"No, I do. Or rather… I did. I'm not sure anymore, really, not after everything I've done. Mother and Father control it and can make sure I never see a cent of it now. Not that I think I even want it anymore," I sighed, eyes downcast as I rubbed my elbow. "I really… have no idea what to expect at this point. How this whole meeting with Father will go. What he'll say or do or… I'm just… terrified."

I felt an unexpected warmth on my shoulder and I glanced over to find Lea's hand resting there. He gave it a small squeeze and smiled, "It'll be okay, El. Everything'll work out, you'll see. You'll get through this. And I'll be there to help any way I can, capisce? Now buck up," he lightly nicked my chin with his knuckle before gripping the steering wheel again. "Gonna need you to bring your A-game here if we're gonna fool your old man. Do a real good job and there's an ice cream with your name on it when we get back to Twilight Town."

One side of my mouth tugged up. "Don't you still owe me ice cream for helping you study?"

"And I still plan to make good on that once I've finally nailed down your fave. Speaking of," he paused with a low hum. "...Aloha Ohana?" My lips parted but he was already shaking his head, "Nope, too chunky. You like your desserts like you like your men," he waggled his eyebrows, "smooth."

My grin twitched wider. "Oh, really? And how would you know?"

"Isn't it obvious? Cuz I'm yo man," he jabbed a thumb into his chest.

"...and you think you're smooth?"

"As silk, baby!"

I hid my growing smile behind my fingers. "You're a dork is what you are… but a sweet dork."

He chuckled. "Maybe. But don't tell anyone. I got my bad boy reputation to maintain."

"Your secret is safe with me."

Somehow I was now getting the feeling that this little road trip of ours?

Maybe wasn't going to be as bad as I'd originally thought.

"Whatcha think? Too much?"

I glanced over at Lea. Sunglasses now perched atop his head, he returned my gaze, looking away from using his rear view mirror to help him up his guyliner game. The makeup pencil in his hand lifted from his cheek where he'd been applying what looked to be an upside down teardrop mark just beneath his right eye.

I snerked and wrinkled my nose slightly.

Lea huffed out a tiny laugh. "Say no more," he reached over, pulling some tissue from the glove compartment and wiping off his cheek.

We'd arrived just a moment ago and had parked on Fjord Boulevard, right in front of my old condominium building. I'd been using that minute to gather myself and work up the nerve to actually get out of the car. If it hadn't already been made abundantly clear, Lea had been using that same minute just as wisely himself.

Inhaling and exhaling slowly one last time, I finally unbuckled my seatbelt, opened my door and stepped onto the sidewalk.

The building before me was tall, imposing, and screamed munny and decadence. I'd never really noticed the sheer air of grandeur about it before, but now it all but smacked me in the face. Gosh, had it really only been about a month since I'd last been here? It felt like eons ago. A whole other lifetime. That girl who'd lived here once upon a time… she hadn't been me. Not really. It almost felt wrong coming back here now. Like I was an imposter. Some sort of usurper. It made my insides shrivel up and it took everything I had not to just jump back into the car and speed away without so much as a backwards glance.

Spotting movement out of the corner of my eye, I turned my head to find Lea standing next to me now, a couple of the smaller cardboard boxes wedged between his arm and side. My hands went to take one from him but he pivoted back a step, shifting them out of my reach as he wagged a finger in my face, "Ah ah! Don't worry about it, I got 'em. Makes me feel all buff and manly." He flexed his free arm.

I gave him a dull look. "...they're empty."

"Shush, let me have this."

My eyelids drooped. "Fine. You're the manliest man to ever man."

"Thank you." Then he gave a tiny mock bow, sweeping one hand out wide towards the building before us, "Lady's first."

Shaking my head, I walked towards the doorman standing in wait beneath the long awning leading to the entrance.

That's right. Doorman. As if this place weren't fancy enough already.

"Welcome back, Miss Fryse," he greeted, pulling the door open for me. "Or, if I may be so bold, Mrs W-"

"No!" I blurted out quickly, eyes wide, palms blurring up in a stop gesture.

Oh gosh, he had no idea I'd ran out on the wedding.

...well of course he didn't! Why would he?

...awkwaaaaard.

"Th-thank you, Cliff," I shakily lowered my hands to clasp in front of me, averting my gaze. "Ah… Fryse, please… if you would."

The man seemed unperturbed. In fact, his face brightened, "Oh, how modern! My missus will be thrilled to hear it. I trust you had a lovely honeymoon?"

And the awkward just kept on coming.

"It… er… " I cleared my throat. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to be rude, but I'm actually in a small bit of a hurry. I have plans to meet with Father here shortly."

"Ah yes, so he said as well," he nodded before looking past me with a delicate frown. "And would this be the, uh… guest he mentioned would be accompanying you?"

I followed his gaze, glancing over my shoulder to where Lea stood behind me, hooligan incarnate. He clicked his tongue, shooting a finger gun at the doorman. I said, "Yes, I suppose he would b-" the words caught in my throat and I quickly looked back at Cliff. "Wait, so he said?" I echoed. "...is my father here already?"

"Why yes, ma'am, I let him in but a few moments ago."

My heart plummeted into my stomach.

I hadn't expected him to be here before us. I'd thought we would still have a little more time.

But he was here now.

This was happening now.

Like... now now.

And I was so very…

...very…

...NOT ready!

Somehow, I kept it together enough to manage a thanks to Cliff before stepping inside, feeling my knees start to go numb. And somehow, I kept it together while crossing the gilded, marble foyer to the elevators, ignoring the clamminess of my palms. I even somehow kept it together long enough to exchange pleasantries with the lobby attendant there who called the lift down for us before Lea and I stepped onto it and I, with only a slight tremor to my limbs, pushed the button for the top floor.

But the nanosecond those mechanized, mirrored doors slid shut…

"I can't!" My hands shot up, fingers digging into my scalp as I started hyperventilating and pacing, feeling the elevator begin to rise. "I can't go through with this! I can't, I just can't do it! This is crazy, this, this is nuts! How the heck did I ever let them talk me into this?! How?! There's just… just no way! It's not possible, I can't! I can't, I can't, I-"

Lea was suddenly in front of me, gently grabbing my arms and bringing me to an abrupt stop. "Woah now, slow down, El, breathe," he bent down to look me in the eye with concern. "It'll be okay. Trust me on this, you can do this. We can. You just gotta take it one step at a time and breathe, okay? Can you do that for me?"

"But how?! How will it be okay? I have to lie to him! I can't lie, I don't know how! I have no chill! You hear me? None! Zip! Absolutely zero chill! I couldn't even lie to Anna about the Easter Bunny when she was only four years old! Four, Lea. Four!"

"Okay, alright, then just don't think about it as lying. Think about it as…" his lips pursed to the left as his eyes shifted about. Then his face lit up, "...as one of those musicals you like so much!"

"Ah! We should break out into song and dance!" I said excitedly if somewhat desperately.

This is my brain. This is my brain on panic attack.

"...let's call that plan B. But no, I meant more like we're… between numbers right now and that we're acting. You like acting, right? Told me you used to do it all the time at camp, remember?"

"Acting…" I repeated slowly, turning the word over in my mind as some of the tension started to ease from my body.

Yes, acting. Acting technically, technically wasn't lying. Acting I could do.

...maybe.

I frowned at him. "I need a script."

"A script," he blinked. Then he straightened up, tapping a knuckle to his chin. "What about instead… guidelines?"

"Guidelines?" I echoed flatly.

"Yeah, for… ya know…" he pointed back and forth between him and me, "...this. Us. When we're in front of your folks and around the mall. Stuff like, uh..." he cleared his throat, scratching the back of his head, "...PDAs? Do's and don'ts. What's okay and what isn't. Boundaries and whatnot."

...oh.

Oh fudge.

"...you're kidding me… this is only coming up now?!" Recommencing pacing forthwith, now with added braid yanking action. "What's wrong with me, what was I thinking?! We had that whole friggin' car ride here, no, the whole last twenty-four hours and somehow we didn't discuss this already?! Not even once?!"

"El, El, it's okay, we can figure all that stuff out now."

His hand tried to close around my arm again, but I jerked it free. "How? There's no time! Any second, the elevator with chime and those doors will part and we'll have to face him and I'll crack and he'll know and, and, and that's it! Done! Finito! Curtains! It'll all be over before it's even begun and-"

This time he did manage to grab hold of my arm, pulling me to him and wrapping his arms around me in a tight hug. "Shh," he murmured, lightly stroking my hair and resting his chin on my head. He felt so warm as I took shallow, rapid breaths against his chest, inhaling that cinnamon scent of his combined with the oddly soothing smell of leather from his jacket that I was tightly gripping onto. My eyes slowly fluttered shut, my muscles starting to relax again, my panicked heart rate beginning to calm.

This was actually somewhat… kind of nice...

And then it happened.

The elevator chimed. Those doors parted. My eyes snapped open to discover standing there waiting for us on the other side was-

"F-Father!" I gasped, shoving Lea away. "Hi! I mean," I stood up straighter, stepped out onto the new floor, folded one hand over the other just below my waist, and ducked my head slightly, "H-Hello."

...wait.

Did I just…?

Instant mental replay.

-shoving Lea away-

Crud.

Not five seconds in and I was already acting in a most ungirlfriendlike fashion towards my alleged boyfriend.

What'd I tell you? Zero chill. Zilch.

"Elsa," I heard my father say, drawing my attention back to him. He was a tall man with hair the same auburn as Anna's. He looked stiff and rigid in the expensive dark blue suit he was wearing, lips set into a stoic line beneath his thin mustache and green eyes stern as he regarded me. The air felt heavy around us, the long stretch of silence deafening. I was convinced there was no possible way he couldn't hear the jackhammering of my heart against my ribcage while I tried to maintain a cool exterior under his scrutiny. Then finally after what felt like an eternity, he said evenly, "You look well."

I bit down on my lip as I lowered my gaze once more, eyes darting about. "...as do you."

Insert uncomfortably drawn-out pause. Then, "And I presume this would be…?"

He was looking at Lea, standing beside me now with boxes once more lazily propped on his jutted hip. My heart jolted and I started wringing my hands. "Ah… yes… this… this is…"

Just spit it out already!

"...this is boy. He is friend."

I word good.

Alright, take two.

Suppressing my wince, I tried again, "Er, that is to say, this is…" I clenched and unclenched my hands at my sides. "...this is my… my-"

"Lea," he rescued me, introducing himself and offering his hand.

My father just stared at it, expression unreadable, and there was a second - one very long second - where I thought he might not take it. But at last he did, if a touch gingerly, and gave it a curt shake. "A... pleasure, I'm sure."

"Likewise, Pops." He grinned now, "It's fine to call you Pops, right? Might as well get all friendly cuz we're gonna be seeing a lot of each other, no doubt."

Father didn't so much as yank his hand back as retrieve it as quickly as was politely and socially acceptable, his lips tight. "...Mr Fryse will suffice."

Lea just shrugged and grinned wider, taking his own hand back.

And slid it into mine, interlacing our fingers together.

Heart.

Flatlined.

Okay, sure, this really shouldn't have been all that big of a deal. After all, Lea had held my hand before. But that had just been when he'd needed to drag me somewhere. It'd been incidental. This? This was hand holding with purpose. This hand holding was a declaration. This hand holding was up on the metaphorical soapbox with a megaphone and would not be ignored. This hand holding was making a goddamn statement.

This hand holding was causing me to burn bright red.

Conceal, don't feel, conceal, don't feel, conceal, don't feel!

Luckily, Father's narrowed gaze was too focused on said hand holding to notice my face trying to give the plush, deep crimson carpet beneath our feet a run for its munny. After another excruciatingly long second (of which I was beginning to suspect this little visit would be in no short supply of), he whipped around and strode off down the hallway, back ramrod straight and voice taut as he said, "Let's step into your condo now."

"Let's," Lea chirped, following after him.

Still holding my hand.

I stumbled into awkward step beside him, glancing out of the corner of my eye down at where my tingling fingers were intertwined with his. This was no longer necessary… right? I mean, Father wasn't looking at us anymore. So I should just let go, shouldn't I? Yes… yes, I absolutely should. Okay, here we go… letting go now… in three… two… one...

...I wasn't letting go.

I shot my hand a tiny scowl. Fine, you win. Five more seconds, bucko, but that's it.

It remained stubbornly fastened to his. Fifteen seconds.

I rolled my eyes. Ten seconds, but that's as high as I'm willing to go.

...was I seriously haggling with my hand just now?

I'm in desperate need of having my head examined.

It wasn't long before we came to a stop where the hall turned at a corner, Father using a key already in hand to open the door located there. My door. Or rather… what was now formerly my door, I suppose. He walked in first with Lea not too far behind him and me in tow, my hand still in his.

To say the condo we'd stepped into was spacious would be an understatement. The living room alone probably could have fit Rayne's and Riku's apartment in it twice over. It was a corner unit with massive floor-to-ceiling windows leading out onto an expansive balcony overlooking the city and the distant white-capped mountains that surrounded it. With its crystal tables, art deco furniture, and extravagant paintings hanging on the walls, the sitting room was quite picturesque. So pretty, so pristine, so... sterile. Like one of those staged pictures that would be on a website trying to catch the eye of potential buyers. My mother had done the decorating, not I, which was probably why it looked so unlived in. This was more space than I had ever really needed anyway. I'd rarely left my own bedroom when I'd called this place home.

A low whistle blew from Lea's lips as his eyes drifted around the room. "Wow, you really were a princess up in a tower, huh?" He slipped his hand out of mine and I had to ignore how cold and lonely my fingers now felt. Stupid, clingy fingers. "Why don't you two take a minute to catch up while I," he held up the boxes, giving them a tiny shake, "go get started in your room. Which door is it? Bah, nevermind, I'll figure it out."

I blinked. Wait, my room? I didn't know if I was all that comfortable with the idea of someone being in there without me and going through my stuff.

I turned to look at him, opening my mouth to voice my objection. Before I could utter a sound however, his hand cradled the back of my neck, drawing me closer to him and planting a tender kiss to my forehead, sending waves of icy heat rippling all the way down to my toes.

I-

Wha-

Conc-

Don-

Fe-

Con- Co- C-C-Congeal, tone eel!

...wait, what?

Please stand by, Elsa is currently experiencing some minor technical difficulties.

He pulled back, smiling down at me and murmuring, "Have fun, babe." Yup. Those were words alright. Did I understand them? Nope! In fact, I wasn't comprehending much of anything in that second. "Pops," Lea shot my father a two-fingered salute before wandering off down an archway on the far side of the room leading to the rest of the condo.

Father lifted his nose with a sniff, lips pinching almost imperceptibly. "Your… friend is quite the... character."

"Ah… yes. He is," I heard myself replying, surprised that I was able to string more than two words together, bonus points for being in the correct order to boot. Wouldn't have thought it possible, what with my brains having been melted to mush inside the blazing sauna that was currently my face. There was no way Father could miss it this time. Hopefully he just thought I was embarrassed over the impropriety of Lea's forwardness. Not wanting to give him a chance to read too much into it, I hastily asked, "How is Mother?"

"As well as can be expected," he said flatly, folding his arms behind him and shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "...better… since we've had news of you."

I winced, looking down at my feet.

And there it was again. That stifling silence.

There were so many things unsaid hanging in the air between us. A big whopping elephant wearing a friggin' diamond-studded wedding gown in the room that neither one of us wanted to be the first one to bring up, it seemed. At least, I know I certainly didn't. I knew I couldn't avoid the unpleasant topic forever, but at the same time there was a silly little part of me that was hoping if I put it off long enough, that... I don't know... the statute of limitations for discussing it would expire or something.

If only.

Well, someone had to be the one to start. Might as well get this over with. Screwing my eyes shut, I took a deep breath and-

"Snowbunny? Could you come in here for a sec please?" Lea's voice rang out from down the hall.

Great. And just when my face had finally managed to cool down too. At the rate this was going, I was beginning to suspect my cheeks might get stuck in this lovely shade of tomato rouge.

Plastering on a smile, I told Father, "I'll be right back."

"Of course," he gave a simple nod. However, the tiny scowl he was directing towards where Lea's words had come from was not lost on me.

I primly and with as much dignity as I could muster walked over to the archway. As soon as I was out of his line of sight however, I broke into a sprint down the hall, skidding to a stop in the doorway to my bedroom and scrunching up my face. "Snowbunny?" I spat out like it left a bad taste in my mouth.

He looked up from where he was neatly folding one of my dresses into a box atop my bed, flashing me a grin. "Was trying out a pet name to use around the folks. Thoughts?"

"I think there's a razor thin line between you trying to not look or sound like a pushover in front of them and you just straight up pissing them off."

"Huh," he tipped his head to one side. "...keep workingshopping it then?"

I rolled my eyes with a soft snort, moving further into the room to stand in front of him, "Yes, I'd say so."

"Noted." He closed the flaps to the box shut before crossing his arms and shifting over to lean back against my vanity, frowning at me. "Hey, we're okay right?" At my quirked eyebrow, he elaborated, "Ya know, with the this," he raised one of his hands with a waggle, then pointed at my own hand, "holding that, and these," now he gestured to his lips before gently poking my brow, "planting one right there."

"Oh." I resisted the urge to reach up to where my forehead still felt warm and had the ghost of a tickle from the brush of his lips earlier. Doing my best to suppress the umpteenth blush of the day, I looked away, "No, no, that was nice… er, I mean fine. Acceptable."

Elsa, Queen of Keeping Her Cool.

He grinned in relief. "Good. Was just winging it since we didn't really get a chance to discuss anything, but wouldn't have wanted to do something that made you uncomfortable."

"Nope! Totally a-okay here." I gave him a thumbs up. Then immediately felt lame for giving him a thumbs up and instead put my hands to better use running them down my braid. "So… I'm assuming there's an actual reason you called me in here."

"Right!" He flicked a hand at the two cardboard crates sitting side by side atop my mattress. "We're gonna need more boxes from the car."

I furrowed my brow, approaching them. "But I thought I'd only need one. How'd you fill them both up already?"

Lea shrugged, one side of his mouth turning up. "Just grabbed stuff out of your closet. Anything that'd look cute on you."

I pulled the flaps back on one to peek inside, my eyes widening before hastily opening the other one as well and puffing out a sigh, "You've packed everything that was hanging in there."

"Well, yeah! Cuz everything looks cute on you, El!"

It should be illegal for him to say things like that.

My broiling cheeks seconded that notion.

Slapping the boxes shut again, I huffed, "Fine, we'll run back down to grab more after my father leaves. But you! You're no longer involved in the decision making of what I do or don't bring back, got it? I don't have room for all this junk at my new place," I jabbed a warning finger in his direction, to which he just held up his hands in surrender, smirking and giving me another tiny shrug.

That was the face of zero remorse.

And I couldn't even really get mad about it since he'd only been being his big dumb sweet self again.

Ugh, I didn't even really want all these things. All these clothes that'd been bought and paid for with my parents' munny. This was my new life, my own life free from their control and I wanted to manage it with absolutely zero help from them, nothing, not even so much as a stitch of clothing. The only real reason I'd even come here today was to see Father and set Operation Boyfriend But Shh Not Really in motion. I'd probably just end up giving most if not all of these dresses to charity anyway.

Shaking my head, I glanced about the room. "Now where…? Ah!" I'd spotted what I was looking for - my phone resting on the vanity next to Lea's hand. Probably left there by Anna weeks ago, since she'd been the one holding onto it for me on The Wedding Day That Never Was.

Lea sidestepped out of my way as I moved to pick it up. He gave me a curious look, "The parental units still gonna be paying for your data plan?"

"Doubt it. I wouldn't accept it, even if they offered. Rayne said she can put me on her and Riku's family plan until I've gotten a few more checks from work and can start paying for my own. It'll be nice not having to borrow hers all the time anymore."

...okay, I know I'd just had that little mental spiel about not wanting to accept anything from my parents. But come on now, in this day and age, phones are all but a necessity, not to mention expensive. Besides, it's not like I was just going to take it. I planned to reimburse my parents for it… discuss and figure out some sort of payment plan with them that would work with my budget.

"Well in that case," he pulled a black Sharpie from the pen holder on my vanity, biting down on the cap and pulling it off before taking one of my hands in his and turning my palm up so he could write a phone number on it, punctuated with a tiny heart.

I stared blankly at my hand. "Um…?"

He winked at me. "My digits."

Now I stared at him blankly. "I figured, but why?"

"What, you don't think you should have yo man's number on speed dial in your phone?"

"No, that I get, but why," I shoved my palm into his face, "on my hand?"

A tiny snerk through his nose. "How else were you gonna get it? By psychically plucking it outta the air from my mind?"

"No, by having Rayne enter it into my phone after recharging it when I got home," I said flatly.

He blinked, eyes darting to the left. "...alright, point there." Then he chuckled, scratching a spot behind his ear. "I've just always wanted to write my number on a girl's hand. Seemed like a real slick move."

I drooped my eyelids at him. "Was it everything you dreamed it would be, stud?"

"And more!" he beamed.

"You're weird."

"Careful now or all that sweet talk of yours will go straight to my head."

Fighting a begrudging grin, I snatched up the charger from where it lay on the vanity as well and stepped back over to the boxes, slipping it and the mobile in with the folded clothes. Then both my eyebrows shot up my forehead and I glanced back at him. "Wait, you've never written your number on a girl's hand before?"

He blinked back at me, "...no?"

"But Rayne told me what a ladykiller you used to be, and that right there seems like Ladykillers 101."

"Gah, Raindrop," he grumbled under his breath, facepalming. "...those were… you don't really need to exchange numbers when you're just… looking to hookup for a night."

"...oh." I looked away, seriously regretting pulling at this thread.

His hand went to the nape of his neck, tugging at the hairs there. "...I've changed a lot in the last year."

"It sounds like it," I smiled gently at him. Then I exhaled heavily, "Okay… guess I better get back out there then."

"Wait," his hand closed around my wrist as I turned to go, stopping me in my tracks. I gave him a questioning look and he released me, squinting at me and tapping a knuckle to his lips in thought. Then he snapped his fingers and was shrugging out of his leather jacket, holding it out towards me. "Put this on."

My head rocked back slightly, gaze shifting back and forth between him and it a few times. "...but I'm not cold. And we're inside. Why would I go back out to Father wearing your jacket?"

"That's the point," his eyes crinkled as he moved closer to me, slipping my arms into it and tugging it on, flipping the collar up. "Make him wonder. It'll drive him batshit. Now scoot," his fingertip booped my nose before he spun me around and gave me a light shove out of my room. I staggered out into the hall, glancing back at Lea as he leaned a shoulder against my door frame. "Go get 'im, tiger."

I shot him a hard stare. "Also not an acceptable pet name in front of my parents."

"Duly noted." His arms folded beneath his chest as he tossed his head towards the living room, "Now go on already, get."

Pressing my lips together into a thin line, I looked straight ahead down the hall, squared my shoulders and started a slow march forward.

Why was I doing all of this again? Oh, right. To get my parents to leave me alone and stop trying to interfere with my life. And wearing Lea's jacket was going to help with that. Somehow. Was still kind of fuzzy on the how. The jacket itself smelled strongly of boy - really nice smelling, cinnamon-spiced boy. It was actually kind of comforting and was easing my nerves somewhat. So in a way, I guess that was helping. I glanced down at the sleeves as I walked. They were too long, stretching past my hands and hiding the number written in fresh ink on my palm. I suppose that helped a bit too. It would have been awkward explaining it to Father if he had seen it. So in that regard, the jacket was also practical.

So there you have it.

A helpful, comforting, and practical jacket.

...ugh, what was I even doing anymore? Really? Could somebody tell me please? At this point, I was just grasping at straws here.

I stepped back out into the living room to find Father with his back to me as he faced the large windows, staring out onto the balcony and beyond. I gave a polite little cough into my hand to catch his attention, saying, "Sorry to keep you waiting."

"Not at all, I-" he cut himself off as he turned, spotting me. Or, more precisely, me in the jacket. He then proceeded to give the thing the darkest look I'd ever seen him give any poor, unsuspecting garment.

Welp. Mission accomplished there I guess.

Whatever the mission had been exactly.

I gnawed on my bottom lip, absently fiddling with the zipper dangling from the left leather sleeve. Then I broke the long stretch of silence with a delicate clearing of my throat. "S-so… about the, uh… about the wedd-"

His hand shot up, stopping my words dead. His face had regained its aloof, impassive mask once more. "Regrettably, we don't have time to properly discuss that matter this visit. I have business elsewhere that I must attend to shortly. I merely came to allow you access to your old condo."

"Oh," I breathed, frowning and quickly looking down at my feet.

"...and to see for myself how you were doing," he added, his voice softening somewhat. Maybe I'd only imagined it however. "Your mother… she's expressed wishes to see you as well."

My gaze lifted once more as I sucked in a tiny breath, feeling hope prickle inside my chest. "Ah… yes, of… of course! I could come visit in a few days or-"

"We're actually having a small family get-together in roughly two weeks' time. A bit of a weekend affair, if you will. I think it would be for the best if you came by then. We could set aside time to discuss your actions between the festivities. Of course, your… your friend," he tried, really did try, to restrain the curl of distaste to his lips here, but wasn't quite fully successful, "is extended the invitation as well."

"You're too kind, Pops!" Lea's chipper voice sounded from behind me even as I'd been opening my mouth to respond. Before I could turn to look at him, I felt his grip on my arm tugging me and I stumbled backwards into his chest where he proceeded to hug my shoulders from behind and nuzzle his cheek against mine. "We wouldn't miss it for the world!"

How I had yet to suffer a heart attack during this entire little excursion was beyond me.

Once again, the words 'Conceal, don't feel,' chanted like a desperate prayer through my mind as I grasped his arm, hiding my flushed face in the crook of his elbow. Those three little words were starting to blur together into gibberish and lose all meaning, I'd recited them so much at this point.

Father fixed us with a long, unblinking stare and he'd gone so still, I could have sworn he'd turned to solid stone for a second there. But at last, he managed a, "Wonderful." I seriously doubt he meant that. "We look forward to seeing you both there." That either. "Well then... I'll just leave this here," he deposited the key onto the dining table, "should you decide you need to come back at a later date for more of your belongings. If and when we decide to sell the unit, we'll be sure to let you know. I'll be in touch shortly with further details of the upcoming gathering, otherwise I'm sure your sister will be only too happy to pass along the information as well."

"Thank you… Father," I muffled into Lea's arm.

He bowed his head slightly. "Right then, well… I must be off."

"T'was lovely to make your acquaintance," I could all but hear the smirk in Lea's voice as Father turned to go.

He froze, posture reaching new magnitudes of stiffness previously thought impossible. "...likewise," was all he said after a beat, not even looking back before striding out the front door, clicking it shut behind him.

And just like that, he was gone.

"I think that went rather well," Lea said brightly, not yet removing his arms.

I sighed, unconsciously relaxing a bit back into his chest. "I guess. Though I was kind of hoping we'd be able to air everything out today so it'd be all over and done with... I suppose I should be glad he didn't just disown me on the spot, for whatever that's worth. This thing he's invited us to though… it makes me uneasy."

His hair tickled as he turned his head to look at me. "What makes you say that?"

A small frown marred my face. "I don't know… it's probably nothing, just me being paranoid. I guess… all we can do is go, continue to put on this little performance and see what happens." My eyelids drooped, "Speaking of which, we really need to get on setting those ground rules for PDAs."

He swiftly released me now, taking a step back and holding his arms up like a criminal caught red-handed, "Sorry, did I cross a line with that one?"

I turned to face him but didn't quite meet his gaze. I knew that if I did in this precise second, I might be setting a new world record for number of blushes per minute, or BPM if you will. Feeling I'd done enough of that for one day, I looked everywhere but directly into his eyes, fingers plucking at my braid. "Not… exactly. I just… need to be forewarned on these things… know what I'm getting into, so they don't, ah… catch me off guard in the future."

"Oh, so that's why you were such an awkward walnut the whole time," he laughed, moving over to one of the couches and flopping down unceremoniously onto it, kicking his boots up on the immaculate, glossy finish of the coffee table. "Thought that was a little weird. You acted like a guy's never given you snuggles and affection before."

My lips twisted to one side and I said nothing.

His eyes widened and he sat up straighter. "You gotta be pulling my leg here. You were dating the guy, your fiancé, for what... five years was it? What were you two even doing that whole time?"

Grimacing, I made my way over to sit on the opposite end of the sofa from him. "The thing is, my ex… he was never really a fan of romantic gestures, big or small. Especially not in front of other people."

"Seriously?" he looked positively offended at the very idea. "He had to at least hug you in public, right?" I hesitantly shook my head. "Brush your hair back behind your ear?" A pause, then a second small shake. "Shit, for the love of- hold your hand?" Annnnd a third. "Please, please tell me he at least kissed you."

So much for not making it into the Guinness book for the most BPM. With a tiny scowl, I said, "Well, of course he did. Though… mostly only behind closed doors. But he'd take me on dates to fancy restaurants, art galas, the opera... oh, and he'd occasionally tuck my hand into the crook of his elbow when we were out." It almost sounded like I was trying to defend him now. "And he'd… uh…" Huh. Guess that about covered it. "...well, he just thought such things to be garish, empty gestures that were unnecessary," I finished lamely.

Lea gaped at me. "...and you were gonna marry this guy? Dude sounds like a fucking idiot."

I looked at him sharply. "Excuse me?"

"Sorry, it's just…" he frowned now, leaning forward in his seat and planting his elbows on his knees, rubbing his arm. "El, you deserve better than that. Someone who'll worship the ground you walk on. Ya know… rose petals, white doves, the whole cornball, cheesy works."

"Oh." Would you look at that? Not two seconds and I'd already shattered the new BPM record I'd just set. I was really going to need to get this whole face heating situation under control, this quite simply would not fly anymore. "...th-thank you?"

He cleared his throat and propped his cheek in his palm, looking at me sideways. "No wonder you were weird about all that stuff I did. You've never really been all that touchy-feely with a guy before, huh?" He grinned, "Good news is we got two weeks to practice."

I cocked my head slightly. "Practice?"

"Yup!" He scooched over closer to me, nudging my shoulder with his. "We threw ya into the deep end before you were ready. Now we gotta rewind and actually teach you how to swim. And you know a good place to start? Learning by example."

"Which means…?" I raised an eyebrow at him.

"Observing some of the local wildlife perform their ritualistic mating displays in their natural habitat. That's right, you guessed it: couple-watching in the food court!"

Author's Note: Our couple is off to a rocky start! But it's to be expected with what an awkward penguin Elsa is. She was not built for this! But she'll get there… maybe xD They got 2 weeks to figure it out anyway… 2 whole weeks of fluff, mwahaha! Yeah, we're gonna take a lil detour off the Plot Highway here to make a stop in the good ol' town of Fluffsville for the next several chapters xD Also, Elsa's dress this chapter is loosely based on her Let It Go ice dress - the silhouette of it is at least (I think I used that fashion term correctly…). Lea's outfit is based on nothing, I just wanted to make him... smokin' hawt ;D ALSO, Elsa's dad isn't as nice a guy in this as he seems to be in the Frozen movies, but you all probably figured that was coming with the way he's been talked about the whole story thus far. To be fair, Elsa's parents in the movie could be considered a bit controlly with how they made Elsa suppress her powers, so just consider how he is in this story a twist on that from the movies xD Yet another also: Cliff (the doorman) is apparently the name of one of the rock trolls in the movie, so I figured, SURE, why not, let's name the doorman that! And one more also (last one, I swear!) - I'd run out of KH:BBS official ice cream flavors by this chapter. The one named in this chapter (based on Lilo and Stitch if it weren't obvious) was one my friend (who I'm borrowing Rayne from) came up with! I imagine it's description up on the Ice Palace menu would read something like "It's got all the punch of Hawaii's tangy fruit flavors and a little bit of Elvis for kicks! Naturally it's blue as the sea with bits of Hawaiian fruit in the center!" In any case, by the next time I needed to come up with an ice cream flavor name later on in this story, I'd figured out a new source list to pull from, as you'll all discover very soon!

Next chapter, will our leading man and lady get the hang of this whole relationship dealio? What couple(s) did Lea have in mind for them to watch? Will it actually help? Or will it only muddle matters further? Just what IS the world record for most blushes per minute and is Elsa really in the running for that highly coveted title? Stay tuned!

Thanks for reading, I super duper appreciate it! And an extra BIG thank you to those of you who’ve liked, reblogged, and followed so far, seeing those lil notifications always brings the biggest, goofiest smile to my face!

FIRST CHAPTER || PREVIOUS CHAPTER || NEXT CHAPTER

4 notes · View notes

heechulhamster · 5 years

Text

The Truth You Can’t Hide - Junmyeon

KIM JUNMYEON (SUHO) x Fem Reader

Chapter 1 [The Truth You Can’t Hide MASTERLIST]

1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 ongoing

You did it so well for six years. You’ve hid your son from the biggest threat of his life. But one mishap led to the biggest secret in your life being face to face with the man you’ve kept him away from all these years - his father.

Mafia!AU, Angst.

You swear it was only five seconds that you shifted your attention from him. You only took your eyes off of him to get money inside your purse while on the checkout counter. The seemingly permanent contact from your hands only parted for a moment to do a seemingly simple task. But now you've surely gotten a headache from turning your head left and right in search for him. Already dizzy walking around the crowded mall in search for Jaejin, your six year old son.

In a mix of adrenaline, worry, and sheer panic, you hastily walked around the perimeter of the store you just ran out of. He's still a small boy, with his height only reaching your hips. He couldn't have reached far given that short amount of time, right? But again, you remember the stamina of an exhilarated toddler who just ate sweets. Jaejin could've stormed off like a blizzard outside of the store in a wink.

A phone on your hand, with him as the lockscreen, you politely asked around seemingly observant people if they've seen him anywhere - all to no avail. You've already approached security and mall personnel to help you search for your son. They told you to wait in the office but how could you just sit there and wait? When the only treasure of your life is wandering God-knows-where?

Where would Jaejin run off to? You try to think positive, discarding the thought that he's already caught by a person or a group who's inherently up to no good. He's just an excited child wanting to run somewhere, maybe somewhere he can play? Bullseye.

Rushing to the toy store, you search for your son. His red pullover and black beanie printed on your mind looking for a similar fit. It was beneath a small crowd dressed formally where you found a small figure wearing a similar description, it's Jaejin for sure - you convinced yourself. Taking a few steps closer, you saw a man sitting close to your son. A wave of nervousness overtook your body, they weren't trying to kidnap your son aren't they?

But stepping closer, the man clad in a khaki coat was no stranger to your eyes.

In fact, he's extremely familiar.

Familiar to a point where he's the spitting image of your son.

"Mama!" You see Jaejin turned to you with a smile on his face which makes his chubby cheeks pop out like an easter bunny. Another pair of eyes were set on you too, one you haven't met in a couple of years - seven years to be exact.

You took in what's happening in front of you. Jaejin is smiling at you as if he received the toy robot he insistently asked you for the past few weeks. And a man that looks almost the same as your son was sitting in front of him, maybe in an attempt to talk to him closer. You're pretty sure you're pale white in shock. It somehow feels like all of Earth and skies conspired for you to face your worst nightmare today.

"She's your mom?" The man in the coat turned back to Jaejin. To which he happily nodded his head to.

"Long time no see." The man exclaimed with your name, turning to you as he stood to meet your gaze.

"Junmyeon..." Your words came out as a plea, an apology, or a cry for help. It was breathy and shaky as if his name was all you mustered to say.

And you thought that your child being kidnapped for ransom was the worst thing that could happen. Here he was, standing and smiling in front of the man you kept him away for a long time.

You're now staring coldly at the man you hid from seven years ago. In front of you was Junmyeon, holding your son - his son.

Junmyeon was only looking for a gift for one of his bodyguard’s daughter. As feared as he is in the industry that he was born and rose into, he had a tender space in his heart for children. So when he heard that one of his dear colleagues’ daughter is turning 7, he wanted to give a special gift.

He was peacefully scanning along the tons of children’s toys, wondering if he’ll ever be able to have his own. Considering his current situation, one that probably won’t change anytime soon, or ever - settling down and building a family was a risk that will paint him red right on the forehead.

Another thing is that he hasn’t found the woman to settle down with. Or maybe he did, but she just didn’t stick around long enough to make his visions into fruition.

He was accompanied by three of his bodyguards, a common protocol and one that he’s already accustomed to at this point. His close friend, Minseok, also tagged along. It was all peaceful wandering until he felt a foreign object bump onto his leg. He looked down, apparently the object wasn’t an object but a child.

Junmyeon crouched down to meet his eye level. Seeing the child’s shocked face, he patted his hands over the latter’s head.

“Are you okay?” He asked the child in front of him. He slowly took in his features and it was oddly familiar. The child looked a little bit like him when he was younger.

The child nodded, “I’m sorry.” The small one bowed in front of him,almost in a ninety degree angle, which made him smile. Okay, maybe a little bit like him was an understatement. The child looked a lot like him, maybe even a splitting image of him when he was younger.

“What’s your name? Are you alone? Where’s your parents?” Junmyeon smiled carefree on the child. Showing his tender side that has been deeply buried.

“I’m Jaejin. My mom is-..” He saw the child look around with worry and panic in his eyes.

“Oh no, you didn’t run away from her don’t you?” Junmyeon already took a liking to Jaejin.

His close friend, Minseok, also knelt down beside him. “We have a bad boy over here, don’t we? Making his mom worried and all?” He exclaimed once more, shuffling the young boy’s hair a little.

“I just want to look for toys…” Jaejin responded with a pout painted on his face, as if he’s already guilty.

“Don’t worry boy, we’ll go and find your mom. What does she look like?” Junmyeon asked once more. “Or you do you want to go and look for your toy first before looking for her?” He knew that it was probably a bad idea, he could be charged for kidnapping or even worse if he bribes the child this way. But seeing a smaller him, a young Junmyeon, made his heart leap in joy.

Jaejin nodded excitedly, “Transformers!” He exclaimed before running off in the toy store, Junmyeon aptly running after the boy.

It didn’t take long for Jaejin to find a robot of his choice, going for the striking Bumblebee. He thought twice about letting a stranger buy things for him, thinking about the warnings and rules his mom set him. How she sternly told him to stay away from unknown people, marking them as danger. But what does a 6 year old boy’s conscience have against a two foot Bumblebee toy?

Junmyeon even felt too comfortable to Jaejin too, even offering him to buy more toys for him.. Almost anything he wanted. Even insisting Jaejin to call him Uncle Jun. Maybe it was due to the strange sense of familiarity he felt - how he sees his young innocent self void of all the corruptions this world, his world, he had to deal with. And somehow, seeing his younger self gave him hope - that maybe he could go back to being that innocent boy ready to do good.

“Mama!” He was caught off guard and brought back to his senses when Jaejin suddenly shouted at a distance. But Junmyeon was more caught off guard when his eyes trailed the boy’s sight.

It’s been seven years since he last saw you. Since you decided to break off things, stating the things he lacked and his apparent inadequacy and absence as a boyfriend - things that he was guilty of and he was ready to fix, yet you refused to give him an opportunity to do so.

And in that moment, he already knew why Jaejin looked too much like him.

Because Junmyeon was already certain that Jaejin was his own blood - his son.

Your eyes wandered off from Junmyeon’s, finding another distinct pair that belonged to one person only. Minseok, another person that you haven’t seen for a while - his mouth agape at the sight unfolding before him. Of course, it doesn’t take a genius to comprehend the situation. The last time you saw Junmyeon was seven years ago, when you two broke up - and now seven years forward, there’s a six year old little boy, a spitting image of him that is, that just called you his mom.

You tried to shake off the situation and approached Jaejin. “Jin, what have I told you about staying by my side and not talking to strangers?” You lightly tugged at your son’s arms, his face slowly looking downwards in guilt and embarrassment.

“Oh come on, I’m not that much of a stranger , Y/N.” Junmyeon suddenly spoke, still standing and towering the both of you crouched down. You didn’t want to look at him yet your body betrayed your mind, his sharp gaze meeting yours. An exact opposite of the soft tone he used just right now when he spoke.

“You know him, Mama?” Jaejin’s eyes suddenly sparkled with that of his youthful innocence, one that you want him to keep for most of his life. One that’s threatened now in the presence of the ghost of your past, just standing beside you.

You stuttered before being able to answer anything to your son. “Uhm, yes. Uncle Jun is an old friend of Mama. You were lucky that it was him who found you. What if it was one of those bad guys? Do you want Mama to be sad if she loses you? Do you want to be taken away from me?” It was a lie, because Junmyeon was one of the bad guys, the worst kind even. And the latter part of your statement was already an insinuation to the current situation you’re in.

“But of course, Uncle Jun wouldn’t let that happen, right Jaejin?” Junmyeon was now already sitting beside you, his hand softly patting Jin’s hair. “Do you want some Ice cream? It’s Uncle Jun’s treat!” He smiled beside you, the way that makes his cheeks pop out and his eyes just vanish - the same way Jaejin smiles.

“Of course samchon!” Jaejin answered enthusiastically, mirroring the smile of the man in front of him. “Mama, please?” He turned to you, wearing that pout that he uses to get things into his favor. Jaejin is a smart kid, very much like his father - very much like Junmyeon.

You were left stunned by the similarities of the two now that you finally see them together. It was more than just the physical aspect but the way they speak, the way they think, the way the both of them get you to do things that you wouldn’t consider at first.

“Your Mama would absolutely say yes, right? Besides, we have a lot to catch up to.” You looked beside you, with that cunning smile from Junmyeon and his eyes full of intense emotions that you’re not quite sure of.

And that was how you found yourself sitting in a diner decorated with child-friendly colors, with your ex that is also the father of your child. And his swarm of guards seated not far away. Well, Junmyeon is the son of one of the most prolific businessmen in the whole country. It was reasonable for him to have a colony of protectors shielding him from any harm, well - it was reasonable enough for you, back when you were blindsided from the truth.

“So, is this your favorite flavor?” Junmyeon asked the child beside you, who answered an eager series of nods. “This is absolutely my favorite too.” He answered with a smile.

He wasn’t lying, Pistachio flavored ice cream used to be a staple on movie night dates you shared before. You weren’t even shocked when Jaejin gravitated to the said flavor, too.

It felt extremely odd how just an hour ago, you were sincerely hoping with all your guts to not see this spectacle of a sight in front of you. Yet right now, seeing your ex and your son felt just right. As if you didn’t spend most of your time for the past years hiding all traces of you and Jaejin from this man. They looked so similar that no one would think that they only met an hour ago. One would immediately speculate that Junmyeon was there, ever since Jaejin was growing inside your stomach, up until his birth and when he took his first steps and mouthed his first words - all the things you prevented from happening.

It has only been a month since you came back to Korea. You thought that the waters you’ve tread with Junmyeon was now tranquil enough to come back home. Living overseas for seven years, transferring from LA to Japan and back, far away from all your friends and family and all marks of the past. Starting off a new career, busying yourself with juggling a nine to five job and also being a full time mom. You thought that you could finally come back to your roots, a vague home that grew distant and alien to you. But the sight unfolding before you told you otherwise.

“Mama, can I go play at the slides? Please?” Jaejin tugged a bit on your sleeves and wore that glassy pleading eyes that never failed to make you abide by his ways.

“But Mama hasn’t finished her food yet. Wait for me so I can come with you, okay?” You shone a bright smile you always give him.

“Mama, I’m a big boy already. I can go play on my own. You can stay here and talk with Uncle Junmyeon.” Jaejin flashed a mischievous smile and you were quick to think that your son is wiser than his years. Your eyes found Junmyeon’s, how his wore a cold, dark gaze towards you.

“Fine. But take care, okay. Always remember what Mama tells you.” You spoke as you caressed Jaejin’s soft cheeks with your left hand.

“Don’t talk to strangers and don’t make girls I play with cry.” He rose his right hand in a pledging manner, wearing a bright smile of victory. You nodded and Jaejin, with his audible giggles, ran to the brightly colored play place of the diner also filled with buzzing energetic children of same age as him. The said area was bursting in laughter and sugar fueled youthfulness, a great contrast to the thick dead air that enveloped your table. In the blur of your peripheral vision, you saw Junmyeon nod to one of his men - probably signaling him to keep watch of Jaejin. An order that was aptly followed by one of his guards sitting on a table opposite yours.

The clink and clatter, the dizzying rotation of the stuffed bear that hangs in the ceiling, the relentless crying of the baby that refused to be shushed no matter what plea of her embarrassed mother; you tried to focus on all of this things. Your senses floated beyond the imaginary confined space that closed off you and Junmyeon from the rest of the diner. Your hand, armed with your fork, mindlessly toyed with the barely scathed serving of blandly seasoned corn and carrots on your plate. You did everything just to avoid looking into his eyes.

There was a handful of acceptable reasons why you don’t want to converse with Junmyeon. First, you don’t have a prepared script on what to say to him when you see him again. As you never expected nor desired that to happen. Second, you were unsure of what you’re feeling. You were absolute that you’d loathe the day that you cross paths with him again, but you’d be dumb to deny that seeing him and Jaejin together didn’t make you wish that he was beside the both of you all along.

“So when did you plan to tell me?” It was uncommon for you to be nervous, moreover be tense. Yet it was also highly rare for Junmyeon to sound cold, or at least you never remembered him to be. You shut your eyes forcibly, in hopes to muster an answer. “Or did you ever even plan to tell me?”

“Tell you what?” You finally summoned enough courage to look at him dead straight in the eye. You are well aware that playing dumb wasn’t the best card to pull but your deck was thin.

“That you were pregnant? Or that I fathered a child that I never would’ve knew existed if I he hadn’t bumped to me in a mall?” His face was expressionless, unforgivingly void of any emotion. Not that any trace of sadness or anger would help your current situation but it was surely something that would give you a foundation to stand on and a trajectory to take.

“You’re not his father.” You looked away, not even you believed what you just muttered under your breath.

Junmyeon gave a bitter laugh full of disbelief, “Then who? Tell me. Because as far as I know I don’t have a twin that could make someone look that much like me.” You felt his hand grip your wrist, an action that earned him a gasp from you. The sudden contact sent a shiver down your spine, whether from the harshness of his grasp or the familiar web of fingerprints that laid down your skin once more.

You didn’t even bother to reply and just snatched your hand back. You had to admit that you’ve never been a good liar, specially not to those people who knew you best - not to Junmyeon. You looked behind you, catching a glimpse of Jaejin laughing carelessly as he’s chasing other children that cackled in the same level of amusement.

“What? How many guys have you fucked that you don’t even remember who the father of your child is?” His tone got unexpectedly higher, you shot him a stern look and looked around you right afterwards. His words wasn’t exactly fitting in the lively diner, his scandalous choice of words would surely ruin a happy family fun Saturday dinner.

“Fine, you’re his father. What now?”

“You tell me. What now?”” He retorted right back.

“I just can’t tell him that the guy he randomly ran into is his father!” Your tone raised but still maintaining a relatively shushed volume, afraid of scandalizing the peaceful diner.

“Imagine how easier it could’ve been if you told me seven years ago.” A hint of sad defeat was evident in his voice, and how that glint of emotion made you feel bad was surreal. Of course, he’s sad - probably even angry. You remember all the times he imagined the day he’ll become a father, and boy was he really excited to be one. Junmyeon made all these plans and dreams with you only for you to break it down to ashes.

“That’s not something we can still change, right?” You sighed. “Look, just forget this ever happened. I.. we’ll just go back to LA, far away from you so you’ll never have to see us again. Just forget this day.”

“Do you really think I’d let that happen? Did you lose your logic all these years, Y/N? I just found out that I have a son that’s already running around and talking and you think I’ll just let him go again?”

You slowly landed your fork on the table, depleted of any response nor resolve to the situation. It was a checkmated chess match, and you have no choice but to leave the decision to Junmyeon. “What do you want, Junmyeon?”

“I want to be a father to my son.”

Junmyeon insisted to drop the both of you back to your current apartment. Not that you could refuse to anything that he says. In all honesty, you never feared Junmyeon before. He was this sweet, almost-too-perfect man that always gets you what you want, when you want. But now armed with the knowledge of what he does for a living, there’s an imminent fear in your veins. You barely have an idea on what extents he’s willing to do just to have and get his son.

You were mum in the backseat, beside you was Jaejin and his father. They already had this undeniable dynamic with each other. Jaejin is a friendly and approachable child, but this connection with him and Junmyeon almost made you jealous. You wonder if their cheekbones hasn’t tired out from all that smiling and laughing on each other’s jokes about certain cartoon characters that you only know so shallowly of.

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” Junmyeon all too seriously asks your son, who in turn looks at you with a smile.

“I want to be a lawyer. Mama said she wanted to be one but she had to do other things. I want to continue her dreams. Right mama?” Jaejin gleamed his small, baby teeth to you. One that you answered with a warm, close lipped smile.

“I’m sure you’ll be a great one, Jaejin.” Junmyeon noted as he looked at you with his brown soulful eyes, and you already knew what he meant.

You remembered how you broke up years ago, saying how you wanted to pursue further studies in Law abroad, in a institution of a greater name and reputation. It was among many things that you reasoned out to make him let you go. It was a messy parting, for sure.

Junmyeon expected that when he sees you again, you’ll be an honorable lawyer, finally accompanied with that well-earned “Atty.” prior to your name. The breakup made him too much of a mess but he understood the weight and importance of your dreams over his personal interests to stay with you. Because if he could’ve had it his way, you’d just stay with him, settle down, and let him do all the work. He’ll be able to support you financially, after all. But that’s not the case right now. You returned after almost a decade, not with an honorable title but with a child; his child.

“Always be a good boy, okay? Don’t give your mama a hard time.” Junmyeon patted Jaejin’s head as he towered over him by the doorframe.

“Ofcourse, samchon! I’m always a good boy!”

“Yeah, remember my promise if you’re a good boy? I’ll give you all the toys you want, as long as you’re good, okay?” And they sealed their deal with a high five.

Junmyeon looked back at you, uncertainty was painted in his eyes. “Y/N.” He exhaled, to which you only nodded softly as understanding. You knew that saying goodbye was pointless. You knew he’d be back, maybe even sooner than you’d expect him to be. He already agreed in taking the revelation slowly to Jaejin. And you agreed on letting him build and start off a relationship with the child, a sequential step to getting to know each other better.

It was a part of your night regimen to lie beside Jaejin after he drinks his milk. Usually in days that he’s off to school and you’re at work, this is the time where he tells you all about his day. But right now you just layed in silence, embracing your son in your arms. Memorizing how he breathes, how his soft bubbly cheeks feel on your hand, how his voice sounds when he calls you Mama. Because despite the agreement you’ve come into with Junmyeon, you can’t help but fear these possibilities. Partly, you could blame yourself that you’re overthinking right now. You gave Junmyeon every right to hate you, you hid his child - and what if he plays the exact same cards and hide Jaejin from you? But overthinking would resolve nothing. You just hope and pray that Junmyeon is still the same person you knew from before, compassionate and thoughtful.

“I like Uncle Junmyeon, Mama. He’s very nice to me.” You simply hummed in recognition. “He reminds me of Uncle Jinki. Can I see Uncle Junmyeon again, Mama?”

“I’m sure you will.” You kissed his forehead. “It’s getting late now, you should sleep Jaejin.”

“Okay, Mama. I’ll pray now.” You nodded, and Jaejin started his nightly prayer. At the very end was always his special wishes, this was the time when he usually drops hints on wanting a new toy, or anything that he wants. “I pray that I get to see Uncle Junmyeon again, and that my Papa from far away is happy and healthy. Amen.”

The last part broke your heart, he always prays for his father. One that you told him had to be away for the good of both of you. But how will you tell him that the Uncle that he just met earlier was his actual father that he prays to see at night?

You rushed against the swarm of people to book a taxi. It was already rush hour and your cousin just texted you that he couldn’t fetch Jaejin from the daycare that you’ve left him in. You just freshly started a new job at the busy business district of Seoul, and you badly needed to stay and be at top performance at your new job if you wanted to keep it. You relied on your younger, single, cousin to keep an eye on Jaejin after his hours at the daycare center ends. But all be damned to hell that she decided to get a date on the busiest day of the week, where you just couldn’t rush to pick Jaejin up.

You don’t know why there’s a hint of nervousness in your veins and you just can’t stay put in your cab seat. Probably because it was already 5:45 in the afternoon and the day care is only supposed to be open until 4:30. They probably wouldn’t let Jaejin wander off the streets but there’s still this random unsettledness in your blood.

Office heels and preparatory school pebbles don’t mix, that was one thing you found out today. Yet you still nearly ran to catch the doors of the facility, before all lights close down.

“Excuse me? Is Jaejin still there?” You politely asked the female guard that was just closing the doors of the pastel colored center.

“Oh, Jaejin? He was picked up by someone earlier. He was this handsome, neat looking guy that looked a lot like Jaejin. He told me that you knew that he’d pick him up? And I thought he was Jaejin’s father so I let him pick him up.”

Your jaw almost dropped at her words, Junmyeon picked up Jaejin today. You were sure that he didn’t know where Jaejin studied, or where you left him during the day. You doubt if he even knows that Jaejin doesn’t accompany you to work. But now thinking about it, Junmyeon is probably capable of anything and everything.

“Is everything okay, Maam?” The lady asked, a hint of concern evident in her voice. She should be, because if any child gets kidnapped, she’ll surely lose her job.

“Yeah, yeah.” Was all you answered as you shaked down your initial shock. Almost stumbling with your nude stilettos, you jogged down to the streets and waited for a cab again. Maybe Junmyeon just dropped Jaejin at your apartment? You know it was wishful thinking, but it was the only string that kept you from breaking down now.

The ride back to your apartment was a blur, you scaled the stairs two steps at a time despite the pain on the balls of your feet. With jittery hands, you placed the keycard on the door scanner. The quietness on the other side of the walls was already a giveaway, Jaejin wasn’t here. Yet you still searched for every part of your two room apartment. But what frightened you even more was when you reached Jaejin’s room, all his toys were gone. Not even the new Bumblebee robot that Junmyeon just granted him last week. His favorite bunny stuff toy that he had since he could barely open his eyes wasn’t in his bed, too.

It took time for your senses to register that his closet was open, and all layers were void of his clothes, too. Surely, whoever took Jaejin’s stuff has no plans of letting him set foot again here. Because if not for your familiarity to your own apartment, and the fluorescent star stickers in the ceiling, none would remind you that this was his room.

“Jaejin..” Was all you were able to mutter before the first drop of tears escaped your eyes.

#junmyeon #exo imagine #junmyeon imagine #mafia!junmyeon #exo fanfiction #exo scenario #suho imagine #suho mafia #suho fanfic #exo mafia #exo fanfic #exo angst #mafia exo #suho #suho exo #kim junmyeon

283 notes · View notes

jawnjendes · 5 years

Text

a particular lie | shawn mendes

university au, shawn x goth gf

if there’s anything you wanna see happen in this series, let me know!

masterlist | series playlist

“She just goes right for the what?” I asked incredulously.

Shawn only smirked and wiggled his eyebrows.

He has been quite open with me ever since we started dating, mostly in the hopes that I would do the same. It was easy for him to be honest because he put so much of himself in his music, which was both his passion and his therapy. It was just another thing I adored about him, even though I never outwardly said it. Explicit expression of emotions was… quite the task for me.

Anyway, Shawn put a new song up on Spotify and it was a lot sexier and more fun than his other ones. The lyrics caught my attention, because they were pure sex, which he and I hadn't done a lot of. I certainly didn't do what this girl in the song did, not that I thought he was going to be singing about our sex life. I just knew Shawn got around as much as I did before we met each other. Although, his reasons were different from mine. Consider my curiosity sparked!

“So, who's this ex you were obsessed with?” I asked with a grin. The song was on repeat in the background, playing through my small bedroom in the dorm.

“Oh, you don't wanna hear about that,” Shawn replied, waving it off.

“If I didn't, I wouldn't have asked,” I said, only for my attention to be taken by another interesting lyric. I was learning a lot about the sensual side of my boyfriend.

Then, I crawled onto the bed where Shawn was laying, and I made my way onto his lap. I smiled at him and gently ran my fingers through his curly brown hair. “So, you gonna spill the tea or…?”

“If I do, will you keep doing that?” he asked, closing his eyes at my touch.

Listen, I love music. I'm not a singer or songwriter like my boyfriend, but I knew the effect music can have. Listening to music and creating playlists was one of my healthy coping mechanisms. A good song can alter my mood completely, and this song… Well, I felt a little daring.

My hands cupped Shawn's face and I leaned in until our faces were an inch apart. “I'll do whatever you want…”

His cheeks heated up almost immediately, but he sounded composed when he spoke. “It was just an idea that ran through my head.”

“Like a fantasy?”

“Uh… yeah. Something like that. Now, are you going to do whatever I want?”

The rising heat between us was enough to wipe away any other questions from my head. I nodded and pulled him into a lustful kiss, but it only lasted for a second.

I quickly pulled away hearing noise outside my bedroom. Stella had come home, and she was chatting with someone. By chatting, I mean we heard audible kissing noises, soft moans, and finally a door slamming shut.

“Is this weird?” I asked Shawn. “I don't want this to be weird.”

He shook his head. “Two… couples can play at that game.”

I smiled and kissed him again. “I'll be right back.”

Quickly, I hopped off his lap and dashed out of the room. I ran over to the bathroom and opened the cabinet under the sink, reaching for the box of condoms Stella kept in there. Just as I snagged the last one, the lady herself ran up to the doorway.

“No,” she said in disbelief. “Please tell me there's another one.”

I shook my head. “Sorry, boo.”

“Weren't you taking it slow? I thought you weren't getting dicked down yet!”

“Bitch, I might be! I told Shawn I'll do whatever he wants! I need to be ready!”

Stella opened her mouth to argue, but it seemed like she had that argument in her head. “Fine! Only because you haven't gotten any in a while! If I catch something, I'm blaming you!”

We're going to get a little TMI for a minute, okay? Cool.

I was in bed with Shawn after… three hours. Yes, three fucking hours. We each missed a class, who cares? We were sweating and panting, coming down from a particularly intense high. I was beginning to wonder why I put this off for so long, even though I had very good reasons for doing so. I was perfectly sleepy and loopy in the best way, and I couldn't stop smiling.

“Mm, Stella's gonna be pissed,” Shawn mumbled as he rested his head on my chest.

Her guest didn't stay very long, we discovered after our first round. I almost felt bad, but then Shawn showed me just how talented he was with his fingers and his mouth. Nothing else mattered.

“She’ll live,” I replied, stroking Shawn's hair.

Now, I'm not a virgin, but I was new to the concept of not leaving after sex. I was new to cuddling and still caring after sex. I was new to the other person caring about me. A long line of being kicked to the curb left me very touch and affection starved, so I needed Shawn to stay with me. I needed to be reassured that he still liked me after getting his nut. He hasn't left a single time.

Shawn picked himself up, and rolled off of me. He rested on his elbow and cupped my face with his free hand. He did that when he wanted me to look directly at him.

“Hey.”

“Hi,” I mumbled, my eyelids heavy and my heart whooshing.

“I love you,” he said quietly.

Okay, I know I said I needed reassurance… but my eyes weren’t heavy anymore, and the cloud I was on vanished and hurdled me back to earth. I blinked a few times and I smiled. Shawn had a hopeful look in his eyes, like he was expecting something in return.

“I love…” I trailed off, “that concept.”

And I kissed him on the nose.

Yup. I said what I said, and I crawled out of bed before it got weird.

“You know what?” Shawn said while I got dressed. “I'll take it.”

I didn't know what to say, honestly. I kept my back to him as I got my underwear back on.

“That's probably as much as I'll get right now,” he continued. “And that's okay. It's probably just another wall you got up, right?”

Finally, I looked at him. He was still lying on my small bed, arms resting behind his head. He didn't look upset… but he sounded like it.

He certainly knew how to call me out too. I guess it's what I get for disclosing my reasons for going to therapy. He wasn't wrong, though. I was weary around the L word, thanks to various life experiences. I guess Shawn just wasn't having it anymore.

“Is it so bad if I don't say it the second you tell me?” I asked, mild snark in my tone.

“Well, it doesn't feel good.”

That put a gross feeling in my stomach. “Huh. I definitely don't wanna say it now…” I turned away again to pick up my t shirt.

“No - sweetheart. Hey…” Shawn got up and approached me, the blanket wrapped around his lower half. “I'm sorry. I got lost in the moment.”

“So you don't feel that way?” I was confused now… and picking a fight.

“I do. I don’t know how soon is too soon for you, but I love you… a lot. You don't have to say it back at all, or ever. I know you don't use words to express those things, and that's okay. I promise.”

Why does he have to be nice to me? Why can’t we just yell and be angry and call things off? Why can’t we just ignore each other for weeks and have him come back just to sleep with me again?

I offered a weak smile and silently went to my dresser. It was time for my round of meds. Usually, I had to take 2 of my 3 pills in the morning, but I was rarely awake before ten o’clock. I knew how to take care of myself, it was just actually doing it accordingly was my problem.

Shawn approached me yet again. He looked down at my prescription bottles and whistled. “You take all of these everyday?”

“Not this one.” I held up the bottle with large white tablets. “This one is only for three more days. It’s for my abnormal digestive tract.” I smiled like I said the most attractive thing in the world. Then I held up the bottle with small, white circular pills. “I also got birth control to treat PCOS-”

“What’s that?”

“It’s a reproductive disorder. There’s that, and finally-” I held up the bottle with blue and white tablets. “Prozac for the nerves.” I wanted to jokingly ask if he still loved me, but it was probably too soon.

“Wow,” Shawn said. “My little fighter.”

I chuckled as I downed 3 pills at once. “It’s not a big deal. In three days, I’ll be down to two pills.”

Then, there was a knock on the door, followed by Stella’s voice.

“If y’all are done,” she called, “me and Camila need a ride to the mall!”

“Your kids are calling,” Shawn told me with a grin.

My boyfriend left to his next class, leaving me to drive Stella and Camila. Oh, and it wasn’t just the two of them, either. They had a third friend named Hailey who tagged along. She was long, blonde, and beautiful. She didn’t speak that much, she just sat with Camila in the backseat and scrolled on her phone. She, Stella, and Camila could wipe out the entire campus with their looks.

I really felt like a mom driving her teenage daughters around. That was partly because I felt tired and my stomach was grumbling ominously. I love being a 40-year-old mom.

“Did you guys hear Shawn’s new song?” Camila asked. “It’s different, right?”

“It sure is,” I said, blushing at the events that happened after I first heard it. “What a talented boy.”

“Why don’t you tell him that?” Stella asked, probably still salty about the screaming match from earlier.

I chuckled. “I can’t. He’s already got a huge ego.”

Then came something interesting from Hailey, who I did not think was listening to a word I had to say. Oh jeez…

“That’s not the only huge thing about him.”

I peeked at her through the rearview mirror. She was still scrolling on her phone like nothing happened. Uuuhhhhhhhhhhh-

“You know you’re talking to Shawn’s girlfriend, right?” Camila said non-too-gently.

“Yeah,” Hailey said mindlessly. “Thought I was just saying something we could agree on.”

Shit, I thought I was bad at making conversation. Aside from that, my stomach felt heavier. It made me sweat a little bit.

“Are you, like, trying to flex your BDSM thing or something?” Stella asked, looking back at Hailey.

What the hap is fuckening??

“I’m just quite particular. And Shawn would agree.”

Particular? Why particular?

“Did you date him?” I finally asked, but talking made my nerves increase.

Hailey laughed. “I wouldn’t say that. He was never the dating type. I wonder what he sees in you. No offense.”

My stomach kept flipping, so I kept my eyes firmly on the road. “Yeah, I always say he’s much cooler than me.” Especially right now, because I felt quite warm in the face.

“Hey, you’re cool,” Stella reassured. “And Shawn is very fucking lucky to have you. You’re not exactly the dating type either, it’s a match made in heaven.”

I smiled and then flipped off the AC. “Is it too cold?”

The other three girls said they were fine. While I was blushing from the uncomfortable conversation, the rest of my body was chilly. Soon enough, I was trying not to visibly shiver. Also, why did I never know that Shawn wasn’t “the dating type?”

“You know his song is called Particular Taste, right?” Camila said. “Does that sound familiar, Hailey?”

“I knew I left an impression. Guess I just have that effect.”

Suddenly, I hit the brakes and swerved to the side of the highway. The girls practically screamed at my actions and were about to cuss me out. However, the second I pulled the parking brake, I opened the door and threw up on the ground. It didn’t take long because there wasn’t much in my stomach. Once I finished, I sat back in my seat and shut the door.

“Like I said,” I told the girls, who were now looking horrified, “my boyfriend is way cooler than me.”

He’s also a fucking liar.

Shawn was out of class by the time I got back to campus. I just knew that by looking at the time, so I went back to my dorm and asked him to meet me there. If I was going to be sick again, I’d rather it be in my own living space.

I listened to his new song again while I waited for him to come over. The lyrics had a whole new meaning now that I had spoken to Hailey. This song was riddled with inside jokes and little intimate moments that had happened between them. So it was just some fantasy, huh? Just a little idea? When in reality, she actually went for the face. Holy fuck.

When he finally showed up, he had a plastic bag in hand, and he was moderately frantic. “Hey!” He kissed my cheek as he stepped into my humble abode. “Camila texted me saying you got sick, so I brought some stuff!”

“Oh…” I said, my mind not occupied by my stupid intestines for once.

Shawn went and sat in front of the coffee table and emptied the bag. “I got chamomile to calm your tummy and your nerves. Pepto for your tummy. Oh, and I got you some Lunchables because I know you only eat that when you’re sick. How do you feel now? Feeling okay?”

I was surprised at the lengths he went. “This is… awfully nice of you. I’m fine, though. I just forgot to eat with my meds. And I’m supposed to take them separately.”

He made himself comfortable on the couch. “Aren’t they supposed to help?”

A pit of annoyance struck me in the chest. “Yeah. I don’t really wanna talk about that, though.” I cleared my throat and sat down next to him. I busied myself with devouring the Lunchables, but I still couldn’t push down what was really bothering me. “I met a girl named Hailey today. Said she knows you.”

“You met Hailey?” Shawn asked, his tone changing from that sweet boyfriend voice.

“She’s very… particular.”

He gave me a look. “Sweetheart. Is there something you wanna say?”

“Is your new song about her?”

“Well, not entirely-”

“Shawn.”

He hesitated. “Yeah. Yeah, it’s about Hailey.”

I began picking at my nails. My stomach flipped again, but it wasn’t from nausea. “Why didn’t you tell me that before?”

“Why is it such a big deal? Are you jealous?”

I scoffed and rolled my eyes. “No. She’s gorgeous, and I don’t blame you for letting her sit-”

“Please don’t finish that sentence.” He paused, then he held his hand out to me. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner.”

I folded my arms, still feeling dramatic. “Are all of your songs about exes I don’t know about? Am I going to run into all of them in the hallway? In class? How many of your songs have you lied to me about?”

“Hey, I didn’t lie-” Shawn tried to say.

“You told me you made it up. You told me there wasn’t an ex when you wrote that song.” I raised my voice a little bit. He needed to know why I was so upset.

He sighed. “I told you that because you loved the song and I was worried that the real reason would ruin it. Like when you found out about Mercy.”

My mind was still searching for things to be pissed about. How do I know he’s not lying right now? Why did I have to find out the truth from the ex and not him?

“Plus,” he continued, “you liked the song so much that we had really good sex for like three hours. How could I tell you then?”

“Oh, so you lied to get into my pants? You know I was trying to take that part slow!”

“That’s not why I did it!” He raised his voice at me, but he stopped himself and took a deep breath. “I was trying to protect you. I wasn’t thinking of myself, I was thinking of you and your best interests!”

“Protect me?!”

Now, Shawn looked exasperated. He huffed. “Yes, I wanted to protect you! Why is that such a bad thing?”

This is why I don’t like letting people in. Once they see what’s in my head, I’m suddenly fragile and made of glass. They think they can’t do anything around me. They proceed with caution like I’m some ticking time bomb. But Shawn knew I was strong, he was the last person I expected this from.

“I don’t need protecting,” I said firmly. “I need you to be honest with me. I don’t mind knowing about your exes. They’re probably way better than mine. I don’t mind that you write and sing about them. It’s what you do best.” It sounded less angry than I was, but I didn’t know how to sound bitchy about it.

Shawn processed what I said and nodded. “Okay. You’re right, I need to be more honest. And, I won’t perform Particular Taste if you don’t want me to.”

Oof.

“That’s another thing,” I told him. “I will never ask you to do something like that. Those are your songs, your babies. I know you’re proud of them otherwise you wouldn’t put them out there! Keep singing Particular Taste, and keep singing Mercy. They’re both amazing songs, and I love them because I love you-”

Shawn and I gasped at the same time. He lit up like a Christmas tree, all of his frustration flying away. I had my hand clamped over my mouth. My eyes widened in shock, and I quickly tried to retract my impulsive words.

“No, no!” Shawn said over me, smiling wide. “You said it! You can’t take it back!”

I could only continue staring at him with wide eyes. I didn’t mean to say it at a time like this. We were supposed to be fighting!

“You love me.” His smile was radiant, like it was his birthday. Like when he was on stage. He placed his hands on my upper arms. “Honey, it’s okay! I love you too!”

I dropped my hand and nodded. “I’m not the type to say it all the time, though. Honestly, I don’t know when’s the next time you’ll hear it.”

“I’ll say it enough for the both of us.” He kissed my forehead. “And I really am sorry I lied to you. I won’t do it again, I promise.”

My eyes narrowed. The irrational, anxious side of my brain was screaming for me to kick him to the curb. The logical side reminded me why he did it to me in the first place. His intentions were good.

“Fine.” Then I figured I’d give him one more for the road. “I… I love you.”

“And I love that concept,” he replied.

“Nevermind. I fucking hate you.”

#shawn mendes #shawn mendes fanfic #shawn mendes blurb #shawn mendes imagine #shawn mendes smut #shawn x goth gf

106 notes · View notes

alluremin · 5 years

Text

missing you | pjm

pairing: park jimin | reader

genre: boyfriend!au | angst, fluff

warnings: possible trigger warning (hints to depression/excessive sadness)

premise: He had been on tour before, but this time, you missed him more than you ever had before.

word count: 2.7K

You would think that after four years with Jimin, you would’ve gotten used to the separation at this point. You were a relatively independent person, you could handle being away from him for periods of time. You missed him, of course, you missed him, but you knew he would always come home to you. This time around, however, the tour had lasted much longer than you were used to. You weren’t worried that Jimin would fall out of love with you or anything like that, you two were soulmates. This time around, you just missed him so much. You had lost your appetite, you didn’t want to go out with your friends. Everything just seemed so wrong without Jimin there.

Your best friend, Yumi, had the habit of showing up to your apartment unannounced. You internal cursed yourself for giving her a key. Today had been a particularly shitty one, somehow, you missed Jimin’s presence more than you had in the past four weeks. It was hard for you to handle the fact that you had to go two more weeks without him here. When Yumi showed up, you were still in bed, you rolled over to see that the clock read 12:32 pm. You had absolutely no energy and because you didn’t have work today, you didn’t see the point to getting out of bed. Yumi burst through your bedroom door and jumped on your bed. You buried your head under your comforter and groaned at her energy.

“Y/N, you haven’t left your house for anything other than work in two weeks. C’mon babe, let’s go shopping, get food, leave the house!”

“I really don’t want to go, Yumi. I’m just super tired, I’ve been at work all week.”

“Is this because Jimin’s been gone for so long?”

You sighed and pulled your comforter off of your head, “he’s been away on tour before Yumi, I’ll be fine.”

Yumi laid her head down on the pillow next to you and looked at the side of your head until you turned to face her. “Y/N, honey talk to me.”

“I just miss him so much, Yu,” you began to sniffle, and you knew that you were past the point of controlling your emotions anymore. The tears began to fall and sobs soon wracked your body. Yumi scooted close to you and wrapped her arms around you, her hand running through your hair. You weren’t sure how long you two laid there, but ou best friend hadn’t left your side through it all. After you were sure you had no tears left in your body, you sniffled a little before Yumi pulled back to look at you.

“I’m sorry you have to be without him baby, but you know he misses you and loves you so much. Does he still text and call you?”

You nod her head at her question. “We text every day, but not for very long. We don’t call much, but that’s just because the time zone difference is so extreme and he’s so busy. But yeah, we communicate every day.”

“See? I know you miss him, but this will all be over soon. He’ll be home in two weeks, right?” You nod again. “It’s gonna be alright, bub. Can you do something for me though?”

“Yeah what is it?”

“Go take a shower and brush your teeth. I’ll order take out and we’ll binge movies on the couch!” Yumi sits up in bed and you follow suit. You pull the covers off and swing your legs over the edge, stumbling your way into the bathroom. You took in your appearance in the mirror, to saw you looked awful was the understatement of the century. The bags under your eyes were almost purple, the swelling on your eyelids was unlike anything you had seen on yourself. Your cheeks looked sunken in, and your skin was pale. You hadn’t been taking care of yourself and it showed. You decided you couldn’t look any longer and turned on the shower, quickly undressing and stepping into the water.

Yumi made her way to your living room and quickly typed a message to Jimin, hoping that he was awake. When he responded, Yumi peeked into the bedroom and made sure that the water was running in the shower before she pressed call on Jimin’s contact name. The line rang once, twice, before the other side clicked, “Hello? Yumi, what’s up?”

“Jimin, Y/N isn’t handling the separation well. I don’t think she’s been eating or taking care of herself at all really.”

“What do you mean? We’ve been talking every day, I don’t understand,” The concern in Jimin’s voice was apparent. He sounded confused and hurt. It broke Yumi’s heart that he hadn’t known what was going on.

“I just showed up at the apartment because she’s been avoiding going out with me the last couple of times I’ve asked. She looks like she hasn’t slept at all. I sorry I have to tell you over the phone, Jimin,” Yumi looked back into your bedroom to check on you. The water was still running and she heard you open a bottle, taking that as an affirmation that you were okay.

“Well, what do I do? I still have to be in Japan for nearly two more weeks. I can’t just leave, but I can’t just leave her there either. God, I miss her so much, I can’t stand that she’s hurting because of me,” she heard a small sniffle on the other line. Yumi knew that Jimin wouldn’t be able to think about anything else during the tour, but she didn’t know who else to call. He was the only other person who understood you as she did.

“I don’t know Jimin, but she doesn’t know that I’m calling you. You know she would never have told you about how she’s feeling because she wouldn’t want to make you feel guilty. I just didn’t know who else to call.”

“You know what, I’m going to talk to my managers, we have a couple days off in between tonight’s show and the next. I’m gonna try to come home for a few days.”

“Do you think they’ll let you?”

“I don’t know, but just don’t tell Y/N anything unless I manage to convince them, okay?”

“I won’t. Thank you, Jimin.”

“No, thank you.”

After the conversation, she hung up the phone with a sigh. She heard the shower turn off and quickly called your favorite local pizza place. By the time she had finished placing your order, you managed to drag yourself out of the bedroom and into the living room. Yumi had plopped onto the couch and held the remote in your direction. “Whatever you want to watch, babe!”

Yumi had insisted that she stayed the night, claiming that she missed you, but you knew that her concern for you was her motive behind staying. It felt nice to be in the company of another person. Your best friend also happened to be a massive cuddler when she slept, and you weren’t complaining about that either. You missed being affectionate with somebody, even if that just meant somebody hugging you while you slept. She woke up before you and removed her body from around yours, grabbing her phone and hiding in the bathroom to see if Jimin had any news.

Jimin - 8:45 am

‘My managers are letting me fly out for the next two days before our next show, I’ll let you know final details about when I’ll be home, just make sure that Y/N is home when I get there!!’

Yumi squealed with delight, locking her phone and leaving the bathroom. You were still sound asleep in bed, so your best friend decided to go to the kitchen and make you some breakfast. You needed a home cooked meal, she decided.

By some miracle, Yumi had convinced you to get out of the house for a while. She took you to the mall and you actually enjoyed yourself. She had persuaded you to buy some cute lingerie, “for Jimin”, she claimed. You didn’t know why she was so insistent, Jimin wouldn’t be back for almost two weeks and it’s not like he really cared what underwear you wore anyway when he “just took them off anyway”, his words. You did as she said anyway. It had been a while since you treated yourself anyway, and your old lingerie was on its last leg. You had also hit a few other stores and bought random clothing items, candles, and a cute beanie you had seen a couple of times. Whoever said retail therapy worked was a genius.

Of course, you still missed Jimin, and your heart ached every time you thought of him. But the distractions your best friend provided you helped to keep your mind off of things. Yumi checked her phone for the thousandth time since you’d left the house. You wondered who she had been talking to. It was probably a new boy she had started dating. She tended to date guys for a short period of time, find a small thing that she disliked about them, then break up with them because she would obsess over that one thing. It was a vicious cycle, really, but it was just who she was. Serious relationships weren’t her thing, yet, which you fully supported. You were the same way before you met Jimin, after all.

Once again, you found yourself thinking about Jimin, he was consuming your thoughts. Every time you thought of him, you felt upset. You went shopping to distract yourself from thinking about how much you missed Jimin, and you weren’t even able to go five minutes without thinking about him. After going to a few more stores, you felt your mood slip back to how it had been before. Yumi had detected the change in your mood but insisted you go to one more store. You browsed the racks of clothes, having little to no interest in spending any more money. You turned to ask your best friend if she was ready and you could see her smiling at her phone.

“Okay spill, what is it? A new boy? Cute cat you found on Twitter?” You looked away from her and continued your search for nothing in particular.

“Uh, yeah yeah,” she said locking her phone quickly and looking through clothing racks like you had been.

“Well, what one is it?”

“The cute cat, but it was on Instagram,” Yumi made short eye contact with you and smiled, then returned to her search.

“Are you just about done, Mi? I’m pooped and want to go back home. Are you staying again?”

“Um, maybe. Only if you want me to.” She looped her arm in yours as you made your way out of the store.

“You say that as if you ever ask for permission,” you look over at her and give a small smile, leaning your head on her shoulder as you both make your way back to the car.

After putting away the spoils of your impromptu shopping trip, you and Yumi settling back onto the couch and do what you two do best; binge watch your tv shows and eat a ridiculous amount of unhealthy food. You had just gotten comfortable on your side of the sofa when you heard knocks on the door. When the sound echoed through the apartment, you noticed that your best friend had “fallen asleep” on the couch. You knew she really hadn’t but she always “fell asleep” when there was some kind of physical task that needed to be done. You sighed and walked over to the front door, you had been starving while waiting for the takeout to get here, but it hadn’t been very long since you placed your order. You made a mental note to give a good tip for the timing. When you opened the door, you were looking down at your wallet, so when you were enveloped by a crushing bear hug you let out a scream and started to thrash.

“Baby, it’s me,” Jimin said into your ear. You immediately fell limp at the sound of his voice and tears ran down your cheeks, it was a visceral reaction. “I missed you so much.”

“Jimin,” you squeaked. Words felt foreign to you, you were completely overcome with emotion. Confusion soon followed, but you pushed it to the wayside. Once you process the fact that Jimin was actually crushing you in his grasp did you manage to wrap your arms around him. You closed your eyes and squeezed him back, burying your head in his chest, and continuing to cry. You had missed him more than you ever thought possible.

“I’m here, love,” he was crying too, you could feel the tears on your neck. He was running his hand over your hair and rubbing your back. “I’m sorry I’ve been gone, that I haven’t been here for you. You pulled your head up and he did the same, reaching up and wiping the tears that were on your face. You did the same to his own cheeks and smiled up at him.

“Everything’s okay, Jimin. You’re here and that’s all that matters.” You smiled up at him but your happiness faltered when you remembered that he still had four more shows left on the tour before he was supposed to come home. “Wait, baby, not that I’m not thrilled to see you, but you didn’t leave the tour for me, did you?”

He smiled down at you. “No, my next show isn’t for a couple of days, so I convinced the managers to let me fly home to see you before the next show.” You couldn’t help but tear up again, you were so grateful for everything that Jimin had ever done for you, you didn’t deserve such a kind and gentle person. He was the greatest thing that had ever happened to you.

“I love you so much,” you blubber at him and he chuckles. Even when you were “ugly crying”, as you called it, Jimin thought you looking like an angel.

“I love you more,” he leans down and leaves a long kiss on your lips. The pillowy softness of his own making you realize how dry yours had become. If he had noticed he hadn’t made a comment about it, instead, he kicked off his boots, looped his arm around you and walked to the living room where Yumi had been sitting up and oogling over what she had witnessed at the front door. “Thank you, Yu. This wouldn’t be possible without you,” Jimin turned to face you and your eyes grew wide.

“You did this?” You asked your best friend. As she nodded her head, you tackled her where she was sitting. Surrounding her with your arms, you whispered a quiet “thank you,” in her ear. She only giggled in response and squeezed you in return. When you finally let her go she stood up from her spot on the couch.

“Well, my work here is done. I’ll leave you two alone,” Yumi sent a wink your way. “Oh, Y/N, why don’t put on what you bought earlier for Jimin, I’m sure he’d love the show.” You threw a pillow at your best friend as she scooted her way out of your apartment. Once you were alone with Jimin you couldn’t help but wrap your arms around him, deciding at that moment that you weren’t going the et go until you absolutely had to.

“So what exactly did you buy earlier, baby?” You could hear the smirk in his voice. You reached up to leave a light smack on his chest.

“Stop ruining the moment and behave yourself,” you playfully chastised your boyfriend’s words. “If you’re not careful, you might not find out, mister.”

“You could wear a brown paper sack and I would still think you’re beautiful,” You looked up at him and left a quick peck on his lips.

“Nice save, babe,” you stroke his cheek. You know he’s taking in your appearance; your slightly sunken cheeks, the bags under your eyes. But he doesn’t mention any of it, instead, he just kisses your forehead and grasps onto your legs that are curled onto his lap. You sit there in a comfortable silence. You knew that he would have to leave again in a few days to finish the tour, but seeing him brought you happiness that would allow you to carry on until he would return to your arms once again.

no reposting

334 notes · View notes

sad-goomy · 5 years

Text

31 days...31 chapters...This October, coming to Ao3, it’s

the BtVS!AU for the SuMo squad that no one asked for, including...

Lonashipping, Snowlilyshipping, and more romantic entanglements!

Found Family, All Myths Are True, and other tropes!

A song for every chapter!

The impending apocalypse!

And more!

Want a preview? Here’s the first chapter under the cut!

“Is this the Slayer?”

Moon blinks, head still foggy from sleep. She checks the caller ID and sure enough, someone’s calling her from Sun’s phone at four in the morning. Stifling a yawn, she sits up in bed and rubs her eyes, fighting the urge to simply hang up and go back to sleep. “Who’s asking?”

She hasn’t been called that title in a very long time, and it’s been a while since she’s received a vague threat over the phone. The mysterious voice on the other end of the line disregards her question, though, and instead says, “If you ever want to see your brother again, come to the shopping center on Melemele.”

She frowns, realizing that there’s an evil force holding her younger brother hostage, one who will probably wage a fight in which the balance of good and evil will be at stake.

“Keep him.”

And she hangs up, falling back on her bed with a loud groan. For a moment, she seriously considers going back to sleep, because she technically isn’t a Slayer anymore and she does have work in a few hours.

But she knows her mom would kill her if anything happened to Sun, and that would make Thanksgiving awkward, so she stands and walks to her dresser, muttering four-letter words under her breath. She opens the bottom drawer and takes out the metal box that she swears she’ll throw out tomorrow.

Opening it, Moon sighs as she looks at the vials of holy water and silver trinkets, eventually settling on taking out one of the wooden stakes.

"Damn it, Sun.”

----------

Somehow, this isn’t the worst situation Sun has found himself in.

Sure, he’s tied to a folding chair in Melemele’s only mall, watching his captor, a vampire, pace across the stage used for events. And yes, the phone call with his sister was alarmingly short and definitely didn’t seem to involve any promises of actually coming.

But it’s not as bad as the gym incident in high school.

The vampire stops his pacing, instead deciding to lean against the wall with crossed arms and stare blankly ahead with sharp green eyes. At least, Sun assumes he has two eyes; the choppy haircut covers nearly half his face. Besides the initial kidnapping and ensuing interrogation in which Sun was all too happy to drop the fact that his older sister is a Slayer, the vampire hasn’t spoken to him. He seems content to wait in silence, though as the minutes tick by he grows increasingly frustrated.

Sun looks around the room, also frustrated, but with just how boring this is all turning out to be – for a life-threatening situation, there’s a lot more waiting involved than he’s used to.

“So,” he drawls, catching the vampire’s attention. “Come here often?”

His captor arches an eyebrow. “Are you seriously trying to make small talk?”

“Yeah, why not?” He shrugs, looking around the room and confirming that there really is nothing for him to try and amuse himself with in this empty mall. “We’re gonna be here a while, what with travel time, and we haven’t really gotten a chance to chat.”

The vampire scowls, taking a few steps forward as he snaps, “Is your entire family this nonchalant?”

“On my mom’s side.” Sun smirks, adding, “Besides, this isn’t exactly my first hostage situation. Granted, taking me to the mall is an interesting move -”

“It isn’t?”

There’s genuine surprise, mixed with horrified fascination, in the vampire’s voice. Sun grins. “Well, it’s always a little embarrassing to share my number, but we’re up to thirteen now.” The blond scoffs at him, and Sun notices the curtains of the wings are moving a little. He sits back, continuing, “You never forget your first, though. Oh man, I was fourteen and so naïve - ‘course I’ve learned a thing or two since then.”

Looking absolutely unconvinced, the vampire drawls, “Such as?”

The curtains stop moving. Sun smirks, leaning forward with an impish spark in his eyes. The vampire seems to notice his shift in energy and stiffens, only able to pick up on the sound and scent a second too late.

“Such as ‘keep the bad guys distracted so your sister can ambush them.’”

And when the vampire turns, he’s greeted with a roundhouse kick to the face before being pinned to the stage by a woman half his size. Her silver eyes and black hair match her brother’s, but while he seemed thoroughly entertained by this situation, she looks nearly livid. Her freckles dance as she sneers.

“You rang?”

He struggles under her grip, realizing that the Slayer strength he’s heard about is no joke. With a quick jerk of his legs he manages to throw her off balance and turn the tables, though his pride is still bruised that she managed to get the jump on him (and in her pajamas, no less). “I’m not going to fight you,” he growls, managing to keep his hold on her.

Moon stops struggling for a moment, and he’s about to continue when she narrows her eyes. “That makes my job easier.”

One swift move of her leg later and he’s rolling off her, clutching at his groin as he bites back moans of pain.

Sun winces at the sight. “Is kicking vampires in the balls a new technique, or...?” His sister’s glare silences him, and he’s not looking forward to the lecture she’ll deliver once she unties him.

The vampire manages to open his eyes when he feels the point of a stake on his chest, right above where his no longer beating heart lies. She digs her knee into his solar plexus, keeping him pinned as she leans in. “Give me one good reason to not kill you.”

He holds her stare, his face growing calm. “I didn’t kill your brother.”

She barks a humorless laugh. “No, you just held him hostage, how thoughtful.”

“I knew you wouldn’t talk to me otherwise.”

They stare at each other, neither of them willing to flinch as Moon considers his answer. Deciding that he’s right, and that she’s not feeling particularly stab-y right now, she mutters, “Start talking.”

“Alola needs a Slayer.”

And just like that she’s feeling stab-y, raising the stake to strike as she growls, “That’s it -”

“Wait!”

Moon freezes, and the two turn their heads to look at Sun. He bites his lip, knowing he has to step delicately around the topic with his sister. “I mean, he has a point,” he explains slowly, looking between the two, “You seem to be the only one around here, and things have been getting weird.”

She hates that he’s right – back in Kanto, she’d known at least three other Slayers who could take care of threats while she was still training. Here in Alola, however, she has yet to encounter any, and though she’s sworn off her years as a Slayer, it seems that the dark magic threatening the region has only multiplied.

Sensing her hesitance, the vampire beneath her speaks up. “I have ample reason to suspect that Alola, and the world, is about to face its biggest threat from Lusamine Aether, and I can help.”

With a frown, Moon stands, keeping her stake pointed at him as he follows suit, arms raised in a show of surrender, though his gaze is merciless.

Sun raises a brow, lost in thought. “The environment lady? Isn’t her deal all about saving the whales?”

“She isn’t as she appears,” the vampire snaps, unable to roll his eyes because he needs to keep his focus on the stake-happy Slayer in front of him.

Moon’s eyes narrow in suspicion, her mind trying to connect dots that she only knows the vague outlines of. “And how do you know all this?”

“My name is Gladion – Gladion Aether.”

The similarities hit the siblings like a sixteen-wheeler; the genetics are so shockingly similar that they almost feel stupid for not realizing sooner, especially when Lusamine’s image is plastered everywhere after her organization became the savior of Alola’s natural resources.

Gladion continues, slow and methodical and all too aware of the weight of his words, “My own mother turned me, and she will stop at nothing to end the world.”

This is the moment when Moon realizes where she fits into this equation.

After a ten-year hiatus, she’s not only going to have to reclaim her title as Slayer in full, but the only things standing between the world and the apocalypse are her, her reckless brother, and a vampire she just kicked in the balls.

She rubs her temples with a sigh, feeling a headache coming on.

“I need so much coffee right now.”

----------

As vampires have no souls, they become pure id. Their emotions know no limits, and they have no conscience to temper their actions. Therefore, trusting a vampire, no matter how rational they may seem, is unadvisable and should be done in only the most extreme cases by experienced Slayers.

Doctor Gramtapen’s Grimoire, 6th Edition

----------

Two cups of coffee and a long explanation in her apartment’s living room later, and Moon can definitively say that the universe is doomed.

Sun, ever the optimist, sips from a mug and goes over his notes with a self-satisfied smirk. “So all we have to do is find your sister, she’ll tell us the details she found about your mom’s plans, and then we bust in there and stop her once and for all.” He looks up at the other two seated at Moon’s dining table, far too bright-eyed for six in the morning and post-kidnapping. “How hard can it be?”

His sister opens her mouth to answer with an adamant ‘very’, but Gladion beats her to it. “I have a lead on Lillie’s location, so the sooner we can track her, the better our odds are.”

Another line is added to Sun’s notes, scrawled hastily on some loose paper that Moon had lying around, with a pencil he found in a kitchen drawer. “Right, and we’ll probably need all the backup we can get, considering we’ve never dealt with a combination witch-vampire – oh, we should totally tell Hau and -”

“And I’m gonna stop you right there.” Moon sets down her mug, sliding it across the table as her gaze slides to the vampire that she’s allowed to enter her apartment against her better judgement. “Listen Blondie -”

“Gladion,” he corrects, the corner of his lips threatening to lift into a smirk.

If looks could kill and he weren’t undead, her glare would be sending him exactly six feet under. “Did I stutter?” She rolls her eyes, standing with her hands on the table as she mutters, “I’ve been out of the game for a decade, so I’m not stoked to kick off a come-back tour with taking down a Big Bad and preventing the apocalypse. Besides, I still don’t trust you.”

Gladion’s chair scrapes against the floor as he stands, and it’s frankly unfair that he has nearly a foot on her, glaring down at her like she’s a misbehaving child. “You don’t have a choice.”

Sun forces a laugh, standing slowly and sensing the rising temperature of the room. “Let’s slow down for a second.”

He places a hand on Moon’s arm, and she huffs but follows his lead to a few feet away (and she doesn’t bother pointing out that the vampire can definitely still hear them). Sun picks his words carefully, leaning in and whispering, “I’m not saying hold his hand and sing ‘Kumbaya,’ but there’s no way he’s lying about all of this.”

She raises a brow. “He’s a vampire – all they do is drink blood and lie.”

“He didn’t drink mine.” Moon nearly argues, but she stops short; it’s admittedly rather shocking that a vampire would have enough wits about them to not immediately drain a human, much less negotiate with a Slayer. Sun chances a glance back at Gladion, who’s decided to study the magnets on Moon’s fridge with a frown. “Besides, if even half of what he says is true, we need his help to stop it.”

But she certainly doesn’t have to be happy about it. She scrutinizes her brother for a moment longer, but he holds her gaze, just as stubborn as she is. He’s right, and they both know it, and she figures this is probably the universe’s retribution for her shirking Slayer duty.

With a groan, she turns and takes a few steps towards Gladion, who leans against the fridge and watches her. “I’m going to be late to work so I’m only going to say this once: if you want me to help you, then you have to earn my trust.”

“And how do you propose I do that?”

She points to the couch with a smirk. “Congratulations, you live here now.” His eyes ignite and he opens his mouth, but she cuts him off with her own annoyance, “It’s the best way I can keep an eye on you and see if you’re really on the straight and narrow. If not, I have a stake with your name on it.”

Turning on her heel, she misses the absolute indignation that seeps into Gladion’s face. Just when her hand is on the doorknob to her bedroom, he scoffs. “I’m not going to be babysat!”

She rolls her eyes as she opens the door, turning to face him with a scowl. “You don’t have a choice, Gladbag.”

“Gladion.”

“Did I fucking stutter.”

And she slams the door behind her, effectively ending the conversation and leaving Gladion to glower by the fridge, hands clenched into fists and mind devising seventeen different ways to end the Slayer.

Sun coughs, offering a nervous smile that withers under the vampire’s glare.

“I think she likes you.”

----------

Her vision is going dark around the edges, a mess of fuzzy circles dancing in the shadows as she coughs. It feels like her lung might come up. She peels herself off the concrete, and a gravelly voice laughs at her shaking body.

“Like I said, lil Slayer.” She struggles to keep herself up on her elbows, sneakers coming into view as a figure crouches, bloodshot eyes and a crazed smile too close to her.

“You came to the wrong neighborhood.”

Moon.

“Moon?”

She flinches back in the chair she’s settled into in the pharmacy’s back room. A dull thud sounds as her head hits the wall, and she remembers to pretend it hurts, rubbing it as she glances up at her coworker.

Ipo looks down at her with an understanding smile; however, there must be something troubling in Moon’s face, because the other pharmacist’s brows furrow and she asks, “Bad dream?”

“Something like that...” It’s been a few years since she’s had a prophetic vision, but the feeling of dread lingering in her stomach confirms it. She does her best to shake it off, to not think about how at some point in the future, she’s going to end up bloody and bruised in a place she doesn’t recognize with someone taunting her.

Moon clears her throat, giving Ipo a sheepish smile as she stands. “Sorry, I didn’t get much sleep last night.”

Ipo tilts her head, still concerned as they walk out of the back room and back towards the counter, their break officially over. “Why’s that?”

My brother got kidnapped by a vampire who revealed that his mom is planning to bring about the apocalypse.

“I got a roommate.” Moon takes her place at the counter, stretching out her back and hearing a satisfying pop.

“Oh wow,” Ipo mumbles conversationally, leaning her elbows against the counter as she looks out at the empty pharmacy. “What’re they like?”

Bloodthirsty and dangerous.

Mysterious and morally ambiguous.

Just a straight up asshole.

But then this is all based on a strange first impression, and Sun’s insistence that there’s something different about the vampire scratches at the back of her mind. With a sigh, Moon settles on the one objective fact that she can tell Ipo without revealing the existence of magic or sounding judgmental.

“Blond.”

Close enough.

#lonashipping #snowlilyshipping #pokemon sumo #btvs!au #pokemon fanfic #text #garlic cloves fic #im excited and nervous and oh man #still technically writing this ahhh #it's a tight schedule to finish but i should make it #a chapter a day - why did i do this to myself

12 notes · View notes

lixhive · 5 years

Text

the mafia leader pt.5 • myg

♡ pairing: mafia!yoongi x female!reader ♡ word count: 1.1k ♡ genre: mafia au, urban, modern, angst, fluff ♡ rating: pg16

❝..y/n thought she was your regular girl in Seoul, South Korea. Yet, a series of events led her to be in danger and meets Min Yoongi, the mafia leader. Cold-hearted and stiff but he has a soft spot for her...❞

♡ warnings: weapon use (gun), kidnapping, mafia, blood, assault

♡ note: I was inspired by a photo on Pinterest to do this.

[masterlist]

Of course, he's falling for you. "Since everything you say to me is the truth, answer this question. Are you falling for me?"

For a moment Suga looks away from her. "Fine, I'll answer the question after you get better." "Promise?" She stuck out her pinkie finger waiting for him to finish it. "Promise."

The promise has always been in the back of my mind. Constantly there. I kept my side of the promise. I started eating again and began exercising. But ever since I made that promise, Yoongi has been constantly busy. He was always doing something by himself or with one of the boys.

What bothered me more was the fact that I was able to return to my apartment and my jobs. Yoongi barely uses his own bedroom and I felt kicked out. Kookie and Tae would drop by once in a while. Checking on me.

"Noona, you're spacing out again." I heard. Snapping out of my thoughts, I look towards Jungkook. "Sorry, something's been on my mind for a while." "But you never say what it is," Kook uttered. "It's personal. Plus, it has nothing to do with you."

I walked back to the couch and sat down with a blanket covering my legs.

ring!* ring!*

Jungkook picks up his phone and immediately gets up. Once he hung up, he told me he had to leave. "Bye Kookie, tell Joon and Jin I said Hi," I waved. I locked the door behind him and went back to the couch.

Everyone but Mister Mafia Leader visits me. Even when I ask about him, he's busy. I turned the television off and into my bedroom. Dropping myself on the bed. "He's avoiding me," I yawned.

After a few more days, y/n went back to the life she had. She refused to move into a palace her father gave her. Let alone he had given her billions of dollars. She's thankful but doesn't want to spend the money unless she needed to.

Once news got out about her being the daughter of the famous Chen Dongsun, the people she never talked to wanted to be her friends. More people came to the cafe just still the girl work. "I'll see you guys tomorrow." She waved at her coworkers. Y/n wasn't closing tonight with Lisa. She had gotten a call earlier from Jimin telling her to get dressed.

"It's her. Chen Y/n, why do you want to work at a small cafe when you are the richest girl in South Korea?" One reporter asked. "Are you really the daughter of Chen Dongsun?" Another questioned. She ignored the questions and tried to find her way through the crowd.

"Y/n?!" A familiar voice called out. Looking towards the direction of voice she saw Yoongi and smiled. She rushed over to him. "Get in." Opening the door to a black car. She quickly goes in and waited for Yoongi to get into the driver's seat.

"Ready?" "Yea," she answered. The atmosphere in the car was a bit awkward. Neither of them has been in the same room in a while.

"How's life?" She said while looking out the window. "Really? The first thing you ask is 'how's life?'" "I'm sorry, I haven't seen you for weeks. What am I supposed to say?" She scoffed.

"I was busy," Yoongi voiced. "Busy my a**." Y/n mumbled under her voice. "Excuse me?" "I said, busy my a**." Saying the statement very clear for him to hear. "What do you think I was doing? I had things to do. I'm part of the mafia. I can't just hang out like a normal person." Yoongi tried.

Y/n rolled her eyes and stayed quiet. She decided to give him the silent treatment and Yoongi wasn't very happy about it. "Y/n, are you serious?" She glanced at him and went back to the window. "Why are you upset?"

There were at a red light and Yoon gave his full attention to Y/n. "Why are you upset at me? You have my full attention." She stayed quiet. She continued to look out the window. "Fine," he sighed.

After a while of driving it finally hit her that he wasn't taking her to her apartment. He was taking her to the mall. Parking the car, Yoongi looked at y/n. "Put this on so we don't get run over by your fans." He said while passing her a mask. She put on and got out of the car.

"No, he didn't say why he took me here." Y/n spoke. They met up with Namjoon and Hoseok at the mall. She's only been talking to them and completely ignores Yoongi. "You have a party to go to," Joon says. "It's more of a gala," Hobi added.

They continued to walk through the mall with Y/n. "Can you guys relax a bit. You're all stiff. I don't think someone will threaten me here." She mumbled.

ring!* ring!*

Yoongi's phone begins to go off. Answering the phone, Yoongi moved away from the other three. Y/n saw and instantly started to speed walk into a store. Namjoon following after her.

"Y/n, what happened?" "Nothing, I just thought I saw a dress I could wear." Lie. "That's a lie, you don't like the color pink," Joonie uttered. "It was a call from V, he needs back up," Yoongi informed. "Alright, see you two later tonight." Namjoon waved.

Hobi left along with him. Leaving Y/n and Yoongi by themselves now.

She looked around the store for anything she liked. But everything was so expensive. Y/n hesitated every time she picked something up. The price tag just gives the signal no. "What are you doing?" Turning around, Yoongi had a bag with clothes in it already.

"Are you still going to give me the silent treatment?" Y/n nodded her head and walked away. "What did I do?" Yoongi mumbled while walking away.

It took a while for Y/n to finally start picking up dresses. And yet it turned into a bag of dresses to put on. "Are you going to put them on?"

Yoongi didn't know how much he was going to regret saying that. They both had a bag full of dresses. It was dress after dress and they were both getting tired.

It was the second to last dress and y/n wasn't feeling it. "Are you ready to show me?" Yoongi sat by the waiting area. Scrolling through his phone. Y/n poked her head out from around the corner to see more people in the store.

"It's very revealing," She began to fiddle with her fingers.

16 notes · View notes

modernsuperhero · 6 years

Text

A Fleeting Phantom Feeling Part 2

Part 1 https://depressed--and--underdressed.tumblr.com/post/174035673671/a-fleeting-phantom-feeling-part-1

LAMP Soulmate AU

TW: major character death, implied self harm, implied suicide, tragedy, heartbreak, minor injury, sympathetic Deceit

Roman dropped out of the play. His physician told his parents to take him out of school, so they did. Hanahaki was nothing to be trifled with. He had weekly appointments with both the doctor and the therapist to make sure he’d pull through. He was lucky he still had at least one other soulmate, as the flowers showed, so they doubted the hanahaki would persist for long. However, the psychological effects could be disastrous. His therapist instructed his parents to never leave him alone with anything he could hurt himself with, and to make sure he wasn’t overstimulated.

He ended up spending a month on the couch, eating popsicles and binge rewatching musical bootlegs. Eventually, he stopped having to run to the bathroom and cough up flowers every few minutes, but he barely noticed. He just felt tired.

Roman’s friend Remy came to visit at one point. He’d heard what had happened through the gossip grapevine despite Roman’s inactivity on his social media, which was how they usually kept touch.

“Hey, girl.” Remy seemed uncomfortable as he stepped into the room. Roman barely nodded in recognition, vaguely aware that Remy’s discomfort may have stemmed in Roman’s uncharacteristically disheveled appearance. He hadn’t showered in days, and he was only wearing pajama pants, curled up in a pile of pillows as Heathers played on the screen.

“Sup,” Roman croaked. His throat was hoarse.

“I heard you haven’t been outside in a while.” Remy hesitantly sat on the couch next to Roman, adjusting his sunglasses hesitantly.

Roman laughed. It sounded fake.

“There’s this concert in town,” Remy started, “it’s pretty cheap, it’s, like, for some charity-”

“I’m not supposed to be overstimulated.” Roman cut him off, smiling wistfully. “Doctor’s orders. Don’t think a rock concert is gonna be the best idea.”

“It’s not that kind of concert. It’s this orchestra from some other county’s school. Apparently they won this national contest or something - but it’s not gonna be like a whole crowd of people dancing and screaming. I just thought it would be good for you to get some fresh air.” Remy shrugged, and Roman caught wind of Remy’s genuine concern that he tried so hard to mask behind his cool guy persona.

Roman sighed. “Get my parents to sign off on it, and I’ll go.”

Roman wasn’t sure how he was supposed to look for this kind of thing, so he cleaned himself up and picked out an outfit he figured was “business casual.” He was surprised at how much lighter he felt after a long shower. He started humming Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo as he picked up his things and checked that his phone was charged. He paused when he heard his mother gasp in the other room.

“He’s humming, darling, he’s humming again!” Her whispers were filled with tearful joy as she choked on her own words.

Roman stopped and looked down at himself. His own eyes watered and he smiled. Maybe he would be okay.

The ride to the concert was surprisingly... normal. Remy and a few of their other friends - who Roman didn’t know were even into this kind of thing or maybe they weren’t, maybe they were only there for him - gossiped about the new store in the mall, about the latest celebrity scandals and the new revival of Be More Chill. Remy pulled over the car at a little kid’s lemonade stand and every single one of them bought a cup. Roman caught himself strangely fixated on the cluster of bouvardia on the child’s elbows. Soulmate. Remy noticed his staring and lead him gently back into the car.

The auditorium was full of older people and what was probably the kids’ parents. They were the only teens in the audience, and received more than a few suspicious and judgemental stares. Remy managed to squeeze them all into the third row, and the group waited anxiously for it to start.

The curtains pulled open, and the conductor said a few words that Roman tuned out. He liked the dimness of the lights and the comfortable chairs. He loved how it all reminded him of a play theater. The performance arts weren’t all that different, he supposed, at least in setting. And as the big Shake-itty-speare man himself said, the world was a stage itself, was it not?

Roman glanced at the pamphlet and saw the first song’s name: Isle of Calypso. It sounded interesting enough. The conductor finally finished speaking and turned around. The first few measures drew Roman in instantly. He felt like he was on a beach, lonely and deserted.

And then a sound broke through. The song of someone else - a companion in his loneliness. The single violin pierced Roman’s skin like a million needles and he could feel his heart stutter in its rhythm. Roman looked up at the violinist himself and was even more awed.

The boy couldn’t have been more than a year older than Roman. His dark hair was slicked back and his eyes were closed behind his glasses. He had this memorized. His face was blank, but the light illuminated his jawline in a way that made Roman gape in amazement. The raw emotion poured into just one instrument seemed to powerful to contain. It ricocheted throughout the room. More than one person was crying. Then the solo ended and the song grew and swayed like the wind pushing an untethered island around a mysterious ocean, to be found once and never again. Roman, though, only watched that one violinist. He could feel his entire body pound every time the boy moved, bowed, danced this magical dance-

And then the song was over.

The concert was an hour long, with a five-minute intermission in between. Remy managed to drag Roman out into the lobby to buy some snacks, chattering the whole time about how old and crazy the conductor looked.

Roman was in a daze, just nodding and agreeing to everything Remy said. Then, he noticed something in the reflection of Remy’s sunglasses.

The boy working the drink booth had a scar on the skin around his left eye. It was pretty noticeable, but Remy and he hadn’t gotten to the drink booth yet. Without even realizing what he was doing, Roman tugged Remy’s sleeve and pointed wordlessly at the boy in the booth.

Finding your soulmate was usually an accident. It also, generally, involved some type of injury. Lots of people became doctors with the sole purpose of increasing their chances of meeting their soulmate. Others were afraid of meeting their soulmate - either they were afraid of the supposed injury, or in some cases, of being ridiculed for how they found each other. Society was cruel like that, and terribly contradictory. Roman had known Remy for years. Remy was the kind of person who was afraid.

Roman remembered vividly the day Remy first removed his sunglasses in front of him, revealing the orange mocks around his left eye. He said they’d been there since the fourth grade and had never gone away.

‘They… whoever they are, they have a scar. They probably get made fun of for it. I don’t want to… to draw attention to something they don’t like.’ It was the only time Remy had ever let his facade down.

‘How are you gonna tell them when you find them without drawing attention to it?’ Roman had asked.

‘I think I’m probably gonna try to take them aside - talk with them in private, you know?’

And that’s what Remy did.

Roman watched Remy walk nervously up to the boy at the booth. He couldn’t hear what they said, but he saw the way the boy’s eyebrow was raised questioningly as Remy led him to the hallway around the corner. The announcement came over the intercom that intermission was ending, and Roman went back to his seat alone. Remy didn’t come back.

Roman felt bitter. Then, he felt angry at himself for feeling bitter. Remy was only ever nice to him; he deserved his own happy ending. He thought of the oleander, Christmas roses, white heather flowers. A new song started and the violinist boy began to play. Roman’s heart began to soar again, but in the back of his mind Roman wondered - where was his happy ending?

When the concert ended, Roman headed out with Remy’s his friends back out to the lobby. Roman was only mildly surprised to see Remy waiting there. He was holding hands with the boy from before, and they were both smiling like giddy children. Good for them.

Their friends instantly starting peppering them with questions. Many of the people in the crowd - apparently everyone was listening in, those eavesdroppers - gasped when Remy took off his sunglasses and showed them how his flowers matched the boy’s scar perfectly. They matched each other perfectly. Apparently the boy’s name was Dee-something? Roman wasn’t really listening. His blood was boiling under his skin and it was all he could do to keep himself under control. He turned around and wormed his way through the crowd to the back door.

He closed it behind him, gulping in panicked breaths. His vision was blurring and his heart pounded in his chest. Everything seemed like it was too much, all at once. He tripped over something and fell all the way down. He heard someone’s footsteps.

“Are you alright?” The someone wrapped their arms around Roman and pulled him to his feet, holding him steady by gripping his shoulders. Their voice resounded in Roman’s brain, anchoring him back in reality. It was a soothing voice, really. It was soft but stern, concerned but assertive.

The blurriness faded and Roman looked up. It was the boy - not Dee-something, but the violinist. His lips were pinched together like - like he cared. He repeated his question.

“Are you alright? Do you need me to call someone?”

“I’m - ah, s-sorry. Fine. I’m fine.” Roman shakily pulled himself away.

“Are you sure?” The boy adjusted his glasses and Roman swore he felt his heart flutter. Then he remembered the oleander, Christmas roses, white heather flowers. What right had he to fall in love with someone when one of his soulmates was dead?

“Yeah.” Roman turned away and shoved his hands into his pockets, then immediately removed them when they began to sting. His palms were bloody from his fall, and he cursed himself for his stupidity.

“Wait.” The boy called. Something was different. Roman turned around.

“Let me see your hands?” He asked. Roman blinked and held them out. The boy’s expression was difficult to read as he held out his own hands. In the same places where Roman was scraped up, little jonquils were sprouting up on the violinist’s palms. Roman’s entire body froze, heavy like cement. Neither moved for a solid minute.

Finally, the boy spoke, retracting his shaking hands. “My name is Logan.”

“R-Roman.” He felt winded. His head kind of hurt, but he wasn’t focused on that at the moment.

Logan looked at the ground for a minute.

“M-May I ask, but, a little over a month ago… well,” he didn’t seem like he could get the words out.

“It wasn’t me,” Roman managed. “Who-whoever that was, they’re… gone, now.”

Logan swallowed and looked back up at Roman. “I suppose we have some catching up to do.”

Roman felt himself smile, really smile. He could still have a happy ending.

“Yeah, I guess we do. I’m lactose intolerant; how do slushies sound?”

27 notes · View notes

theluckyyyoneee · 6 years

Text

Duet Made In Heaven

Idol AU

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

Pairing: Reader x Wonpil

Genre: Angst/Fluff

Word Count: 2,446

not my gif^

“I’m sorry,” was all you could whisper to him from across the table. “and I know that sorry isn’t...” you trailed off, unable to continue what you wanted to say, not knowing how to say it. You just didn’t want to keep repeating the same word over and over again, even if it was all you could say.

No matter how many times he told you it was alright, you couldn’t find it in yourself to lift your head and face him.

After having your heart broken for the nth time by Wonpil, you had decided to move on from him without him ever knowing, but were still confused on what to do with I/N.

It seemed like a good opportunity to help you move on but at the same time you really didn’t like the idea of using him to get rid of feelings for someone else. Plus there was no guarantee of your feelings in the long run, so you had just decided that it would be better for everyone if you got over your feelings by yourself.

That’s why you had called I/N after days of basically ignoring his existence and asked him to meet you at the company’s cafe so the two of you could talk things through.

When you had started to talk he stopped you. “I have a feeling of what you want to say. Can I guess?” He said, and not giving you time to respond he continued. “That you thought long and hard about us, and that it just isn’t meant to be...”

You blinked and lowered your head, not having the courage to continue his sentence. “Hey, it’s fine.” Your head whipped up in surprise with what he said. He had a sad smile on his face, but it was a smile after all... “I can’t change someone else’s feelings about me, I’ve accepted that.”

You wished that you could accept it the same way he did.

“I don’t deserve you, anyway...” you muttered with a sad smile of your own and he laughed, making you feel a bit better. At least you could still make him laugh at a moment like this... “Are you really okay?” You couldn’t help asking.

He rolled his eyes at you with a smirk you were used to seeing. “I’m fine, really.” He laughed, and added, “plus, there’s other girls that like me, so I can just call one of them up instead,”

Throwing a napkin at his face you laughed with him, knowing he was bluffing, but you believed that he really would be fine.

Everything continued just as normal, as the song died down a little it gave you time to rest and you were glad for that. It was amazing that your album was doing great, but you also appreciated the days where you had nothing booked and could catch up on sleep.

This was one of those days and as you were settling down with a book on your couch with a coffee, your phone dinged with a notification.

Jae: Y/N, it’s Wonpil’s birthday tomorrow, you didn’t forget, right?

You: Of course I remember, I already got his present.

Your eyes wandered to your room where your birthday present for him was, you had gotten him a few shirts that were just his style and was excited for his reaction when you gave them to him. If you gave them to him, you might feel more comfortable to just have one of the guys pick it up and give it to him instead...

Jae: You didn’t have to get him a present, just bring yourself, he’d be really happy if you came to our little get together tomorrow night. Hmm? TT_TT

Scoffing out a laugh at his stupid self your mind wandered back to the last time you were over there at their dorm.

You’re just a bitch who likes attention.

Eyes narrowing, you tried to not let yourself get worked up over something that you decided was not worth your time. Still, it hurt more than anything, and the fact that it came from Dowoon, someone you had always seen as a brother to you, to just say that to you with no explanation whatsoever...

You: I’ll have to see if I’m not doing anything, but I don’t know if I can make it...

Jae: Has Dowoon tried talking to you since then? I know that’s why you don’t want to come

You scowled and cursed him for knowing you too well.

You: No and I don’t want to talk to him either

Jae: Okay okay, you don’t have to talk to him or even look at him if you don’t want to, but just please come. We haven’t seen you in forever, I feel like we don’t even know you anymore...

His words hit a chord with you, you knew that you hadn’t seen the group for more than a month, maybe two? You definitely felt a lot more distance between you all than you did before all this happened. And Wonpil was being a clueless idiot like always... But you really did want to spend his birthday with him, even if it hurt you to see him with his blinding smile.

You: Fine... what time is it at?

Jae: It’s at 7 \^-^/ see you tomorrow! Dress prettyyy

You locked your phone and tossed your phone on the couch beside you, the book you had brought with you laying there forgotten on the couch besides you, your coffee cooling down but you had no urge to drink it anymore.

It had been around two weeks since you told yourself that you were going to move on from Wonpil... and nothing had changed. You really hadn’t been expecting for your feelings that you’d had for a year to suddenly vanish just because you wanted them to... If things had worked like that then you wouldn’t be having this problem right now.

Thinking back to your last conversations with Wonpil, you tried to place his weird behavior towards you. You knew that you hadn’t been able to see him for a while, but you were also busy with your album promotions and showcases and interviews that you barely had any time for yourself.

His reaction to your call threw you off, did he forget how close the two of you are? Thinking that you’d only call him to tell him you’re dating some guy? Is that the relationship the two of you had? Plus whenever you tried texted him to keep some communication between the two of you, his answers were always short, usually one worded answers and it annoyed you to no end.

Groaning you decided to just get some rest as you cleaned up the few things you had out and went to go lay down in your bed. Lucky for them you only had one interview in the morning and that was it. Your mind was filled with too many thoughts that you couldn’t even close your eyes peacefully.

You closed your eyes and pondered whether you should just settle everything tomorrow for once and for all.

“Y/N!” Your voice was called by I/N after the interview was over, the same questions, same routine, but this time you made sure to emphasize the relationship between you and him. Since the last interview with your little moment, fans have been going crazy about the two of you and you had to stop it before it got any worse.

You greeted him with a small smile as he made his way towards you with loud footsteps. “What’s up?” You asked him, thanking the heavens that the awkwardness was almost all gone between you two.

“You wanna go get something to eat since we have nothing else planned for today?” He asked you with a cheeky smile and you thought it over.

Checking the time on your phone you saw that it was around twelve in the afternoon, and the party wasn’t until seven, but you wanted at least a few hours to get ready so you thought that it would fine. “Okay, but you can’t keep me all day,” you sang teasingly to him as the two of you headed to the car they had left him.

“Ah, why not?” He teased you right back with a cute pout on his stupidly handsome face as the two of you got in the car and shut the doors.

You couldn’t help laughing. “I have a birthday party to go to-if you can call it that, there’s only, like, probably eight people coming.” You muttered the last part, having no doubt that they invited maybe two other people, so it would be a pretty small party.

His eyes were on the road but his eyebrows raised in surprise. “Really? Is it someone I know?”

“Probably,” you nodded to his question. “It’s Wonpil’s birthday.”

Speaking of which you had sent Wonpil a happy birthday message this morning when you woke up and you frowned a little to see that he still hasn’t replied to you yet. Was this how it would be from now on, you thought with a frown.

“Ah!” You jumped at his loud moment of recognition. “I think I remember Jae telling me that his birthday was going to be sometime soon. Hey,” he parked into a spot near his favorite cafe that we usually went to. “could I come? Do you think they’d be okay if I went? Jae didn’t tell me anything, he knows how much I love parties...”

“Want me to call him?” You asked with a knowing smile from his not so subtle hints. He batted his eyes at you.

“If you want. But do it right now so I can know if I need to get a gift.”

You had the phone to your ear as you shushed him when Jae answered. “Hey Y/N, you’re not calling to cancel, are you?” His voice was rushed and had a panicked tone to it and you rolled your eyes.

“No, I’m not calling to bail,” you laughed and you heard his relieved sigh in the receiver. “I was calling to see if I/N could tag along? He was sad that you didn’t tell him anything.”

Jae made a sound like he was stalling for time but said, “Um, yeah, that’s fine, I think,” his tone was a bit unsure and you furrowed your brows.

“You think?” You repeated questionably.

“No, no, it’s fine,” he reassured you quickly but something felt a little off. “You don’t want to leave your boyfriend’s side, don’t you?” He teased quickly and you quickly shot him down.

“That’s not it-”

“Ah, I have to go, I’ll see you two later, okay?” He cut you off before you could finish your sentence and hung up quickly.

“That was weird,” you mumbled to yourself as you put your phone back into your purse. “He said it was fine, so do you just want to get his present and wait to eat at the party?” You asked I/N whose face lit up in an instant and you two were off to the mall.

“Is this fine? You think he would like this? Oh, what about this? No, I like this one better. Oh, what’s this?”

Oh my God.

You cursed yourself in your mind, but cursed I/N more. You knew he was like this, but still it was your idea to head to the mall for a birthday present so you only had yourself to blame, really.

That didn’t stop the migraine coming on, though. You followed after him slowly, your fingers massaging your head as you reminded him to quiet down. After all, the two of you were famous and couldn’t just mess around in a public place like this without gathering unwanted attention. The hats and masks you wore only made you guys look more suspicious in your opinion.

Checking the time for nth time you wanted to cry and whine like a little child at the fact that the two of you had been here for almost two hours and you had forgotten that I/N was picky when it came to everything.

“Oh, that’s nice!” You praised the watch with intricate designs on it that he was currently examining. “Let’s get this, and then go, yeah?” You weren’t lying, you really thought that Wonpil would like it, it seemed similar to his personal style and plus, you just really wanted to leave.

“Really?” He eyed the watch for a few more moments until he decided to go with your word. “Okay, I’ll get him this.”

You were all smiles on the way to your dorm, you figured the two of you would hang out until the party while you got ready. You were so comfortable with him that it didn’t bother you like it would if it was someone else.

You were busy trying to find something to wear. Could anyone blame you for still wanting to look good in front of the person you liked even if you knew there was no chance? “Hey, does this one look better or the one I had on before this?” You asked I/N’s opinion on a few outfits and now he was looking at you suspiciously.

“The outfits are fine but I think the problem is with you,” he drawled out lazily, his dark eyes narrowed at you, his lips pursed in thought.

Your heart started to race. Did he find out? How? “What... What are you talking about?” Your words faltered a bit in surprise and he looked at you with a victorious smile.

“Do you... have a thing for Wonpil?” He teased and you froze, the denials all ready in your head, ready to say them out loud, but it was like your mouth was glued shut.

You shook your head frantically, and you cringed at the obviousness that he already clearly saw. His laugh was loud and obnoxious and you had to shush him a few times before he calmed down. “How long has it been?” He asked you.

“About a year,” you mumbled, embarrassed that you had been caught.

“So...” his voice was lost in thought. “is that why you turned me down? Because you already have someone in your heart?”

Your nose scrunched with his cheesiness. “Something like that, just not that corny.”

“Does he like you back?”

You shook your head at his question and he gasped dramatically making you crack a smile. “Hey,” he whispered, suddenly right next to you instead of on the couch. “you wanna use me?” He grinned devilishly.

srry this came so late and was probably trash. this week has been really hard, not just for me but for all of us i’m sure so all i could do for a few days was cry and sleep but i’m slowly coming to terms.

there will be one more part after this, the finale! I’ll try and get that written up soon, thank you for everyone who have read the story so far! ♥ ♥ ♥

#day6 #day6 angst #day6 au #day6 wonpil #day6 jae #day6 young k #day6 brian #day6 bob #day6 sungjin #day6 dowoon #day6 drabble #day6 fanfic #day6 fluff #day6 fake texts #day6 fic #day6 imagines #day6 kpop #day6 reactions #day6 scenarios

125 notes · View notes