#just couldn’t talk about because don’t actually experience but added as much as could | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

likeumeanit9497 · 3 days

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the re-do | m.s. |

matt sturniolo x fem!reader

summary: y/n participates in the triplets' "dirty q&a" video, where she accidentally infers that her experience losing her virginity to matt back in high school had been mediocre. instead of taking offence, matt makes it his mission to show her just how much he has improved since then.

warnings: SMUT; established friendship; m/f oral; unprotected p in v; dirty talk; 18+

notes: hi guys! this is my first ever one shot so pls be gentle with me (i'm genuinely so terrified to post this). it has absolutely NOT been proof read forgive me, but i hope you all enjoy <333

“Guys why am I actually nervous to film this?” Nick proclaimed from his place in the backseat of the car beside me. “No I am genuinely so scared right now.” Replied Chris from the seat in front of me as he began passing out our respective orders from McDonalds.

“We can’t act nervous or else the fans are gonna go even crazier than they already will.” Added Nick as Matt adjusted the camera on the dash. “You’re sure you’re gonna be able to handle the inevitable shit talking that’s gonna come from all this?” Matt asked as he turned to face me in the back. I took a deep breath but nodded. “The more they see me the more desensitized they’ll be. They’ll have to eventually get over it.”

As one of the triplet’s closest girl friends, I had been on the receiving end of a fair amount of hate from their fangirls on the internet. Because I had known them since elementary school, I had been a part of many of their earlier videos when their fans had still been pretty chill about our friendship. But over the past year, a new wave of younger fans had found the videos and had made it their life mission to publicly bash me any chance that they could. It became too much when, a few months ago, one of them decided to spread a rumour that Chris and I had slept together based on nothing other than strategically edited clips of us smiling at each other. It was then that the guys and I had made the decision to keep me as out of the public eye as possible.

However, the guys had sat me down last week to explain how fed up they were with how restricted they felt they had been in their content. They wanted to make an attempt at reclaiming a fandom built primarily of viewers closer to our age, and they thought that the best way to try that was to ignore the petty complaints and make content that they wanted to make. So, since I had been staying with them in Los Angeles for the month, I had agreed to not only be in one of their regular videos, but I had agreed to be in their ‘dirty q&a’ video. I couldn’t lie, I was a bit nervous, but mostly I was excited that my friends were finally confident enough to make videos with more extreme topics.

“Alright guys, ya’ll ready?” Chris asked, intaking a sharp breath while his hand hovered over the record button on the camera. We all responded with a falsely enthusiastic “ready!”, and the camera was turned on.

“Alright, first question,” Nick began after his long-winded introduction filled with disclaimers and explanations for their change in content. “How many people have you slept with?” Already with the first question, it was obvious that the guys were tentative about answering. “Bro I don’t know, next question.” Chris responded, rubbing his eyes with the heel of his hands. “What do you mean by ‘I don’t know’ Chris?” Asked Matt tauntingly. “I mean I haven’t fucking kept track of everyone I’ve slept with.” He responded bluntly, before realizing how bad that had sounded. We all, however, erupted into laughter immediately. “Okay okay it’s not that bad guys I swear, I just have a bad memory is all.” He attempted to remedy his previous answer, but all three of us continued to laugh.

“Matt, how about you?” Asked Nick, to which Matt simply held up five fingers to the camera. “Same with me.” Nick agreed before turning to me. “Y/n? Spill it.” I rolled my eyes before answering truthfully. “Seven.” I shrugged, and I caught Matt’s smiley eyes through the rear view mirror.

“Alright next question is…” Chris was scrolling through the responses to their Instagram threads. “How old were you when you lost your virginity?”

“Sixteen” We all responded in unison, and immediately buckled over in laughter. “Not all at once though ya’ll.” Nick explained through his laughter, while mine and Matt’s eyes flew open and Chris’ laugh turned into hysterics. “Well…” Chris began before he was cut short by the three of us telling him to shut up. “I’m definitely gonna have to cut that one out. Sorry you two fools, I kind of set him up there.” Nick rolled his eyes as he looked between Matt and I.

Ironically enough, the fans had been half right in their rumour about Chris and I sleeping together. I had slept with one of the triplets before, but it wasn’t Chris.

When we were sixteen, Matt and I had decided that we wanted to lose our virginities to each other. It had been a no-strings-attached decision, and our friendship thankfully never wavered after it was done. Both Nick and Chris had already lost theirs that same year, and we had both just kind of wanted to get it over with. Obviously, this piece of information was known only by Matt and I, and of course Chris and Nick since they had barged into the room while we were in bed together. Even though the vindictive side of me would love to have the fans know this piece of information and shatter their dreams, I knew that the fallout would be an absolute nightmare.

“Okay let’s see…” I had been handed Nick’s phone to choose a question to answer and was scrolling through my options. “Here’s a simple one. Favourite position? Mine’s speed bump for sure.” I placed the phone down, satisfied with my confident answer, only to be met with multiple pairs of confused eyes. “I beg your pardon? The fuck is speed bump?” Asked Nick as he took his phone back. “The one where you’re kinda just lying flat on your stomach with the guy behind you. Trust me it’s chef’s kiss.” I responded simply. Chris’ facial expression turned from confusion to one of understanding. “Ohhh yeah that’s a good one.” He replied as he dapped me up. “Great, gonna have to edit that out too unless you want the rumours to get really bad again.” Nick said as he rolled his eyes. “Shit, sorry Nick.” Chris said, giggling slightly.

“Let’s just move on.” Matt said as he began scrolling on his own phone. “Best and worst sexual experiences.” He read off of his screen. There was a moment of silence while we all thought of our answers. “I had a girl throw up on my dick once. The problem is I don’t know if that makes it the worst or the best though.” Said Chris, earning a loud groan from each of us. “You’re sick.” Replied Matt, giving his brother a disgusted look.

“I mean I guess the worst sex would probably be my first time right? Like that makes sense right?” Asked Nick in an attempt to steer the conversation away from Chris’ confession, to which I nodded in agreed response without thinking. I caught Matt’s eyes in the rearview mirror again, this time seeing them filled with a pleading expression. Realizing what I had done, I silently prayed to the universe that my action would go unnoticed by the others. Unfortunately and unsurprisingly, my head nod didn’t make it past Chris, which was made incredibly clear when he mumbled to Nick behind his hand that was hiding his smiling mouth from the camera.

“Did you see that?” He asked, and Nick looked confused so he continued, “Y/n agreed with you about her first time.” He managed to get out before erupting into laughter at the expense of his brother. Matt threw his hands up in the air once Nick joined Chris in his giggling, and I winced from my place in the backseat; also mouthing an apology to Matt’s reflection in the mirror.

“Bro come on it was my first time! I guarantee you were trash your first time too.” Matt said in an attempt to repair his ego as he threw his empty cup at Chris. “Maybe so, but I don’t have the girl who I lost it to here in the car to confirm it.” Chris snarked back, playfully nudging Matt’s shoulder. “We all gotta start somewhere dude.” He added when Matt didn’t respond. As Nick continued choking on his own laughter, Matt crossed his arms and stared out the window, very clearly wishing he was anywhere but there in that moment.

“Okay okay,” Nick began catching his breath. “We need to cool it because 90% of that what we just filmed is completely unusable. Let’s please just try to make it through this video without exposing Matt and Y/n’s bumpy sexual history again.” He pleaded as he began scrolling through his phone to find new questions.

----

“God, that was rough.” Said Chris as we all climbed out of the parked car. We had finally finished the video. It took us an hour to film, and would still be edited down to just twenty minutes of content where we weren’t exposing big secrets or directly fuelling past rumours.

“At least it’s done. It might be a while before I ever want to do that again.” Nick responded as he opened the garage door leading into their house. “Agreed.” Added Matt from behind me as we climbed the stairs to the main level. We all walked over to the fridge to grab drinks, as if the beverages would clean our dirty mouths.

“Alright,” Chris began after a hefty chug from his Pepsi, “I’m going to my room. Matt, Nick, get on Fortnite with me.” He began descending the stairs. “I’ll get on once I shower Chris. I have a desperate need to scrub this FILTH off of my body.” Replied Nick, and he began walking towards the stairs leading to his bedroom. “Y/n, come upstairs whenever you want to go to sleep and I’ll get off the game.” He called over his shoulder as he disappeared at the top of the stairs.

Matt and I were left alone in the kitchen, him sitting at the table and me sitting on top of the counter in between the stove and the fridge. Swinging my legs carelessly, I decided to break the silence first. “I’m really sorry about all of that in the car Matt. I didn’t mean it.” He looked up at me and chuckled. “Yes you did, and it’s not a big deal. I know I wasn’t great back then.” He responded before taking a drink from his can. I smiled softly at his response but decided to leave it be. There was no use in trying to deny it. The sex was just boring, short, and awkward; the way that most first times are. At least he didn’t take any offence to it.

“You know,” He began after a few moments of silence, his eyes shooting to mine as he stood up from his place at the kitchen table. “I’ve gotten much better.” A playful smirk travelled to his lips as he began walking towards my frozen figure on the counter. He stopped just a few short centimetres away from me, so close that I could reach out and touch any part of him that I wanted. I couldn’t tell if he was fucking with me, until I felt his early signs of arousal press lightly against my knee.

My throat was dry, and I felt like a deer in headlights. Even though Matt and I had slept together when we were younger, the dynamic was much different than now. The proposition came about awkwardly, and we were a fumbling mess with very little understanding of how it felt to be aroused. But in this moment, I was very very aroused just from this conversation.

In my silence, he placed a firm hand on my hip, rubbing his thumb across it gently. “I can do just about anything. Just let me know how you want it and I can give it to you.” My stomach did a somersault at his words, and I felt my panties dampen. He used his free hand to push my legs apart so that he could stand in between them, and my limp hands subconsciously moved up to grab onto his shoulders. At the first sign of my willingness, Matt quickly leaned forward and peppered soft, teasingly slow kisses along my neck. His lips travelled up to my ear, where he bit the lobe playfully before whispering, “Well, tell me. How do you want me Y/n?”

His words caused me to clench on nothing and I nearly moaned from the anticipation. With him still waiting on my response I whispered back, “You can do anything you want to me, Matty.”

Without missing a beat, he attacked my lips with his own and I melted from the immediate relief. I moved my hands from his shoulders up to the base of his head, and as his tongue danced along with mine I pulled gently at his messy hair; my own mouth filling with a moan falling from his lips. His right hand traveled up my grey hoodie to find that I had nothing on underneath, and he lightly brushed the bottom of my left tit with his thumb. Suddenly his hands moved from under my shirt and gripped my ass as he effortlessly lifted me off the counter and into his arms. I wrapped my legs around his waist and he stumbled towards his bedroom.

Once inside the undisturbed room, he placed me down on his desk, my ass hitting the mouse and causing the computer to turn on; casting a light on the otherwise dark room. He wasted no time in removing my hoodie, leaning me back slightly so he could easily twirl his tongue along each nipple. I hummed in pleasure from the warm, wet sensation of his mouth connecting to my skin, and brought my hand down in between our bodies to softly run my hand up and down his clothed hardness. After a few moments, he pushed my hand away and dropped to his knees in between my legs.

Pulling my grey sweats off my body and pushing my thong to the side in one quick motion, Matt took a moment to relish in my swollen, dripping hole. “I don’t remember you being this wet for me last time.” He smirked as he looked up at me with blown out pupils. “Let’s see if you taste the same.” My eyes rolled to the back of my head at his filthy words, and a moan slipped from between my lips as his mouth made sloppy contact with my sensitive bud. I subconsciously grabbed onto the back of his head, suffocating him with my heat as he continued to suck and kiss my clit. As his tongue worked on my nerves, he released a guttural moan that vibrated against my heat, causing my back to arch at the intense feeling.

When we had done this all of those years before, Matt’s movements were lacking in confidence. He had fumbled around my clit blindly, and had ate me out cautiously as if he was afraid of hurting me. Now, this Matt had clearly gained experience, as my stomach was already beginning to fill with the familiar pressure from the build up of an orgasm once I watched him find all of my most sensitive spots; his eyes blissfully closed.

Suddenly, he pulled his mouth away from my heat and I groaned at the loss of contact. He straightened his body back up to my level and brought his face so close to mine that our noses were touching. “Kiss me. I want you to know how good you taste.” He whispered through his glistening bright red lips. More on fire than I had ever been in my life, I immediately attached my open mouth to his, moaning at the distinct taste of my sweet arousal on his tongue. As we deepened the kiss, his fingers found my heat and he ran two of them up and down my folds to collect my wetness before slamming them into my cunt; finding my spongey g-spot on the first pump with his curled fingers.

My head rolled back, lost in the euphoric feeling of his fingers filling me up, and he watched my facial expressions intently as the wet sounds of my upcoming orgasm filled the space between us. “Holy fuck, Matt.” I slurred, my voice coming out choppy as his fingers continued to relentlessly pound into me; never losing contact with that one spot that drove me crazy. “I-I’m gonna-” I squeezed my eyes shut, feeling the very beginning of my orgasm roll over my body.

Suddenly, all of his movements stopped and my eyes shot open out of frustration. In the time since my eyes had screwed shut, his own had darkened in arousal. My body trembled from the sudden halt in its pleasure, and he smirked at me. “You want to cum, sweetheart?” He asked, his kind words a harsh paradox to his sinister expression. Still, I nodded eagerly to which he pulled his fingers out of me completely before leaning up and placing his wet mouth right against my ear.

“You’re gonna fucking wait for me.”

I attempted to squeeze my legs together to take some pressure off of my throbbing, unsatisfied core as his vulgar words scrambled my brain, before he pulled me off the desk and pushed my head down so that I was now the one on my knees. Confused, I looked up to find him gazing down at me. He gestured towards his clothed member. “Go ahead.” I grinned slyly.

My turn.

I had made an attempt at giving him head the first time we had sex. Just like him, I had struggled with confidence due to the sole fact that I had no clue what I was doing. Since then, I had had plenty of practice, and I was excited to now be the one to show him my improvements.

I grabbed onto the waist band of his pyjama pants and pulled them down to his knees. With only his tight red boxer shorts covering it now, the outline of his thick cock and the small wet spot at its tip from his pre-cum made my mouth water. I brought my mouth up to the skin on his lower stomach, right above the Calvin Klein logo on his boxers, and began peppering excruciatingly slow kisses along the light sprinkling of hair there. I glanced up at him through my eyelashes to find him peering down at me with curious lust, his mouth open slightly and his chest rising and falling with heavy breaths.

After a short while, I grabbed his boxers and pulled them down to meet his pants at his knees. His hardened cock smacked his stomach on its release from the tight material, where it left a wet patch from his pre-cum. Grabbing it with my left hand, I collected a pool of saliva in my mouth and stared up at him as I let it all drip down his swollen member. After pumping my hand for a few strokes, I placed only the tip in my mouth as I watched his eyes dilate. I swirled my tongue teasingly along the swollen tip, tasting the the saltiness of his fluid. Eventually, I began pumping my hand up and down his shaft in rhythm with my head bobbing along the top half of his cock. He shifted on his feet at the new sensation and let his head fall back. I kept my pace agonizingly lazy, knowing that it would drive him crazy.

With my tongue, I licked a strip from the base of his ball sack, up his shaft, and to his tip, earning a hushed whimper from his lethargic mouth before he grabbed my hair and shifted his hips. Looking down at me and holding my head firmly in place, he began thrusting his hips as he kept me still. He started slow, but when he realized that I could take more his pace began to pick up and his cock began to hit deep in my throat. I looked up at him through my tear-filled eyes, and saliva began to drip down my chin. “Fuck you look so good with my cock in your mouth.” He grunted out through each thrust. I lifted my hand to cup his balls, giving them gentle squeezes that seemed to send him towards his climax.

As a moan fell from his lips, he pulled my head back so that his dripping cock sprung free before he got the chance to fill my mouth with his cum. He stood there for a moment with his eyes closed taking deep breaths as if he was fighting the urge to finish right then, before he opened his eyes and gazed down at me. “Get on the bed.”

I pulled myself up off the ground and, on shaky legs, walked over to his bed with him following close behind. Once I reached the edge of the bed he stopped me, turning me around to face him and pushing me down so I would sit. “Put your feet on the bed and pull your knees up to your chest.” He commanded, and I did as I was told, albeit I was a bit confused. “Good girl.” He praised me as he pulled me right up to the edge of the bed before pushing my legs further apart.

Placing one of his knees on the bed beside me, he lined his cock up with my entrance; rubbing it tantalizingly along my wetness. Placing one arm around my waist to brace my body, he slowly pushed his cock inside of me right there on the edge of the bed. His trusts were slow but harsh, and the position he had placed us in made it so that my cervix was barrelled into each time his hips met mine. He placed his sweat-coated forehead against my collar bone and released small breathless grunts with each deep thrust. “So fucking good Matt. Oh god.” I whined as his pace began to increase in speed. He planted his teeth into my shoulder as we fell back onto the bed; his body now completely on top of mine as he continued to drive into me.

He lifted his head and looked fixedly at my fucked out face, his eyes glossed over in erotic pleasure. With this visual, I was brought back to the first time we had fucked, in a position so similar to this one. His rhythm was slower and much more tentative, and we were both certainly much less pleasing to the other, but still I suddenly got hit with a wave of recognition in how much we had both grown since then.

I was pulled out of my trance by Matt’s commanding voice. “Move back real quick and get on your stomach.” I did as I was told, feeling the emptiness that came from his dick sliding out of my soaking wet pussy. Assuming he wanted me in doggy, I got on my knees and arched my back; my head and shoulders pressed firmly against the soft mattress. I felt the bed move as he climbed on all the way, and in a moment of animalistic desperation I pushed my needy cunt subconsciously back to meet heat of his cock.

“No.” He stated simply, his veiny hands massaging my ass. Confused, I looked over my shoulder as I waited for him to explain. He had an ominous smile as he moved his gaze from my fully exposed cunt to my face. “I wanna see if your favourite position is really worth the hype.” He used his hands on my ass to push it down flat to the bed before adjusting himself so that he could line up correctly. Still looking over my shoulder with glazed eyes, I watched his expression as his cock sunk into my core once again. His jaw was clenched tightly and his eyelashes fluttered slightly from the new sensation that the position gave him as he bottomed out. “Oh fuck.” His eyes were fully shut now as he stayed still for a moment. Small beads of sweat traveled down his stomach as I took in the beauty of the man who was making me feel so so good.

Getting turned on even more just from Matt’s visual pleasure, my walls clenched subconsciously and I whined, “Please keep going Matty.” His eyes snapped open and landed on mine, before he leaned forward — one hand beside my head and the other planted firmly to the small of my back — and began pounding into me relentlessly.

The depth of this position allowed me to feel every inch of his cock, and it became impossible to keep the moans and strings of profanity from escaping my lips. This seemed to be the case for Matt too, as over the sounds of my own moans and the wet sounds of our bodies connecting, I could hear the gruff throaty moans of his own pleasure. “Fuck. You’re so fucking tight Y/n.” Even though I was aware that we were both making far too much noise that Chris and Nick would definitely hear, I couldn’t get myself to bring it to Matt’s attention, as the animalistic vocalization of his indulgence was bringing me closer and closer to my climax.

“I-I need to cum Matty.” I managed to vocalize as my nerves began to unravel. “Hold it. Want you to cum with me.” He responded, leaning even further forward so that his body was practically lying on top of mine. He took a free hand and wrapped it around my throat, lightly squeezing the sides as my pleasure became dangerously close to bubbling over.

“P-Please cum for me. I can’t hold it anymore.” I begged, digging my nails into his silk bedsheets and feeling my walls quiver each time he drove his cock into my cervix. His breathing became hitched in my ear and his movements became sloppier. Biting my ear, he asked, “Where do you want me to cum, Y/n?”

Without wasting time, I moaned my response. “Cum in me please. Want you to fill me with it.” At that, Matt slammed his twitching cock into me a few more times before finally telling me what I so desperately needed him to.

“Okay sweetheart. Go ahead and make a mess for me.” Even before his words fully left his dirty mouth, I gave into the overbearing pressure in my stomach and felt my intense orgasm over-take me. Practically screaming his name, my pussy convulsed uncontrollably. I felt the immediate relief and heard the gush as I squirted along his cock and down his legs. “Jesus.” He moaned out as his body suddenly stilled. As my legs shook, I could feel his cock twitching inside of me; painting my walls with his cum.

After we both came down from our highs, catching our breath and reconnecting with our minds, Matt slowly pulled his dick — freshly bathed in my own juices — out of my swollen core. With a satisfied sigh, he threw his body onto the bed beside mine. Both of us laid there for a moment, facing one another with glazed over expressions, before a shameless smile crept onto Matt’s face.

“Well you definitely didn’t squirt the last time we slept together.” He chuckled proudly, and I knew his ego had been inflated. I rolled my eyes. “Well, you didn’t whimper the last time we fucked either.” It was my turn to smile as he covered his face bashfully. We laid there in silence for a moment, both of us lethargic and fucked out.

“If that was anything like when ya’ll lost your virginities then I am extremely impressed.”

Matt and I both shot our heads up and looked around the room for the origin of that familiar voice. We were alone, but my eyes focused on the lit-up computer. On the screen, Matt’s Discord was open to the group with Nick and Chris. I turned to look at Matt, who had also clearly made the same discovery that I had, and whispered, “Did you for real leave the channel unmuted?” He tucked his lips together and shrugged apprehensively, before climbing off the bed and over to the computer.

“Chris, how much of that did you hear?” He asked into his headset. I heard a laugh through the mic. “Oh Matt, I heard it all. Good work. I’m a proud brother.” I covered my face in embarrassment as Matt rolled his eyes. “Fuck off. You’re a perv.” He mumbled to his brother, but I caught the small smile that tried to creep to his lips.

“I’m gonna need a fucking lobotomy to get over the trauma that I was just put through.” I heard Nick’s voice now through the mic and I couldn’t help but laugh. “Bro you could have just left the server, you act like I forced you to listen to the entire thing.” Matt argued with his older brother. “You think I stayed and listened to the ENTIRE thing? What are you crazy?” I was full out laughing now, despite the embarrassment. “I left as soon as I figured out what was happening, but I still heard waaaay too much.” Matt laughed now and muted his mic — perhaps a bit too late — then walked back to where I was on the bed, propped up on my forearms.

“Whoops.” He simply said as he pulled his boxers back up. I shook my head and smiled shyly. “We are literally never going to be able to live that down.” I replied as he draped his body along the bed beside me again. Rubbing his eyes awkwardly, he shrugged softly. “Well, at least they’re gonna have to stop teasing me about my skills.” I smacked his arm playfully and he responded by grabbing me swiftly and pulling me to his side.

“You were impressed, weren’t you?” He asked teasingly, as he held me close. I closed my eyes and sighed, “I was, Matt. Really, really, impressed.” He giggled into my neck at my truthful response and I swatted him once again.

“I’m glad we got our re-do. I’d been wanting that for a while.” He said after a moment. I looked at him with a smile and ruffled his hair. “Me too, honestly. I always knew you had some potential in you.” I teased.

“Well, if you don’t want to have to face Nick right now, you’re welcome to sleep in here tonight.” He offered and I sighed in relief. “That would be great, actually.” I said as I began to sit up. “Let’s get cleaned up first though.” He began as he got up and grabbed us both towels from his closet, “You’re not allowed to get under my sheets until you wash my children off your thighs.” My eyes shot open at his disgusting choice of words and I quickly covered myself with my towel. “Matthew Bernard you are sick!” I exclaimed as we both headed towards his bathroom. “Sure am. But so are you.”

He pulled me into a hug while we stood in the bathroom waiting for the shower to warm up. As he rubbed circles on my back with his hand, I sighed. “I think this is the secret to good friendship.” He chuckled before asking, “What is?” Playfully, I smacked his ass over his boxers. “Fucking the shit out of each other once in a while.” He laughed and pulled away from the hug before getting into the shower; leaving the glass door open so that I could follow him. “Shut your weird ass up and get in the shower with me, friend.”

#sturniolo triplets #matt sturniolo #matthew sturniolo #matt sturniolo x reader #matt sturniolo smut #sturniolo fanfic #sturniolo smut #matt sturniolo x you

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devildomwriter · 21 days

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“…Excuse me? You don’t know TSL? And you call yourself a human?! Just how clueless ARE you?! How could you not know?! Just the fact that you don’t know TSL alone is proof that you’ve been wasting your life! So, I’m going to do you a favor and teach you about TSL. Make sure you pay attention! The Tale of the Seven Lords, otherwise known as TSL, is a series of fantasy novels written by Christopher Peugeot. It’s a heroic epic spanning 138 volumes, and it’s the most widely-read fantasy series in the world. There are even theatrical versions, an animated series, and feature films, too. And it’s been translated into a total of 182 different languages. The 1990s theatrical version was an utter disaster, owing to the fact that they added several characters that were NOT present in the original manuscript. At the time I was like, “this producer totally needs to crawl into a hole and die!” But then the 2015 version came out, and it was AMAZING! Better than amazing! If you ask me, it showed that needlessly cramming a female lead in there alongside Henry was a bad idea. That’s not what he needs. What he NEEDS is a friend who really understands him, and the 2015 version proved that.

Also, the most vital element of the story is that each of the Seven lords is so unique. They’re all so interesting in their own peculiar way. That’s what makes TSL so great! The lords are all brothers…the oldest is called the Lord of Corruption. He doesn’t come across as being so bad at first, but he’s always plotting and planning in secret. The second oldest is the Lord of Fools, a scumbag who’ll do anything for money. The third oldest is called the Lord of Shadow, a brooding recluse. The fourth oldest is known as the Lord of Masks. He masquerades as a high-status, upstanding member of society, but underneath it all, he’s an inhumane monster. The fifth oldest, the Lord of Lechery, only ever thinks of sex. The sixth oldest is the Lord of Flies, and he only ever thinks of food. The seventh oldest, called the lord of Emptiness. He’s weird…you never know what’s running through his head! It seems most people like the oldest lord, the lord of corruption, the best. Everyone always talks about how great he is. But not me. I like the third Lord way more. Of course, I like Henry too. He’s the protagonist. He’s almost as great as the third lord. The second Lord is total scum, a hopeless degenerate that leads a life of extravagance and indulgence. He’s always causing trouble for the third lord. He’s got these magical pigs that can give birth to solid gold piglets, and he treasures them above all else. So Henry goes and talks to the pigs, and using his wit and powers of persuasion, he convinces them to leave with him. Then, he leads every last one of them away, and presents them to the third lord as a gift! Wow…I mean, they’re SUCH GOOD FRIENDS you can almost feel it! It’s enough to make you cry! Oh, and then there’s that one really awesome moment when the two of them realize they both like and respect each other, and they high-five! I just LOVE that part, you know? I wish I could have a moment like that. …I wish I could be like the third lord. I may be a recluse like him, but we’re totally different, because he’s got an amazing friend like Henry. Check it out. See that goldfish in the fish tank there? He’s actually named Henry. I love TSL so much that I couldn’t help naming him after the main character. But I cant really high-five a goldfish, can I?

The original author of TSL, Christopher Peugeot, he’s actually a human, you know? That’s why I’m so jealous of you guys. Humans are so lucky, you’ve got subscription services that let you watch your favorite anime anytime, you can go to Akihabara whenever you want… Why do only you guys get to experience all the good stuff? I mean, humans’ whole concept of pleasure originally came from us demons, you know? We gave it to you. So, why can’t we have a little bit of it back now, huh? I mean, I want to be able to go to a Japanese maid café, too. I want to hear the maids welcome me as if I’m the master of the house, and have them draw ketchup hearts on my friend ride omelette, to experience the magic of it all. I want to cosplay as Henry, and then go stand in the center of Akihabara, or maybe that one building in Tokyo that’s shaped like upside-down triangles. And once I’m there, I want to perform Henry’s super-powerful signature finishing move for all to see and say the incantation that goes with it. I want to shout it at the top of my lungs!...Actually you know what? I want to BE Henry.”

— Leviathan’s longest TSL rant (Chapter 1-13)

#literally the rant was so long I had to break it up because tumblr wouldn’t let me post it all together #obey me shall we date #obey me quote #obey me quote of the day #obey me leviathan #obey me leviasim #obey me tsl #obey me leviathan quotes #obey me chapter 1

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mrchiipchrome · 1 year

Text

Sleepwalking

W.C. - 4,9 k

Warnings: a little angsty I guess?

Talking, snoring and twisting and turning are all usual things that happen when you are asleep, right? You happened to do all the things listed above while unconscious with an additional action, walking.

You didn’t know when it had started, but the best guess was sometime in your early youth when you would go to sleep in your bed and wake up somewhere that was not your bed with no recollection of how you got there.

During your teenage years it had pretty much stopped, only the rare occasion when you could be found wandering around the hotel room you shared with one of your teammates on away trips. But recently it had started up again, likely due to the fact that you had an incredible amount of stress.

This all brought up many embarrassed feelings inside of you, ashamed that you couldn’t control your unconscious form and embarrassed at the locations in which you wake up. These locations include your roommates bed or right beside it, another teammates room, Sarina or one of the trainers rooms, the hallways and funnily enough the lobby of the hotel.

That was a particularly embarrassing experience as the hotel concierges had to watch over you all night until you woke up and realized where you were. Your face resembled that of a tomato when you arrived back in your room, glad that Lotte was such a heavy sleeper and thankful of your choices to wear a hoodie and pajama pants as your sleepwear.

Yet the majority of your teammates didn't know about your nighttime activities, only a handful of them actually having caught you or experienced being your roommate.

And let's just say you've had some interesting conversations with your roommates on why they were waking up with a decked out Y/n beside them, or on why they tripped over your sleeping form as they were walking to the bathroom in the middle of the night.

But you usually had one of three teammates as a roommate; Lotte, Ellie or Beth. They were all rotated around each camp, sharing a room with you every third camp they went to and that brought you an immense amount of comfort as you didn’t have to worry about your other teammates knowing.

It was also comforting to know that you had someone to stop you from going out of control every night when you went to sleep. Well most of the time anyways, like stated before Lotte is an incredibly deep sleeper not waking to your stomping around.

This camp though you’re worried about who your roommate will be for the first time in a while, with Beth out because of her ACL tear and Ellie and Lotte having been your roommates at the last two camps. This means that without Beth completing your rotation and the other two remaining rooming together, you have a new roommate and they don’t know about your little predicament.

You’re completely zoned out when the people rooming together in this camp are announced, engulfed with thoughts on how to explain why they suddenly had a person in their bed or why they stumbled over a body on their way to the bathroom.

It’s inevitable, it happens every camp and with the added stress of having a new roomie on top of the stress you’re already feeling is sure to make it worse.

The feeling of an elbow digging deep into your side has you glaring towards the assailant, seeing your blonde goalie friend staring back at you with an expecting look in her eyes.

She nods her head in the direction of the front of the room where Sarina stands, hands on her hips with the same look in her eyes. You look back at her with a deer-in-headlights look.

“Huh…oh I- I didn’t catch what you said. Could you repeat?” The look in Sarina’s eyes soften significantly at the nervousness seeping into your tone, knowing the trouble you have with big changes especially those having to do with the sleeping arrangements.

“You’re rooming with Alessia for this camp.” The lack of reaction was a point of worry for both your manager and past roommates, knowing that this only happens when you yourself are worried. Your face holds a blank look, opposed to the panic you’re feeling inside of having your longtime crush be your roommate and her finding out your secret.

You make a point of nodding your head as the entire team looks on confused about the reaction coming from your unusually calm form.

You really haven’t been sleeping well at all, even though you got prescription melatonin to take an hour before bed. No matter what you do, the fear of waking up somewhere you aren’t familiar with beats out the obvious exhaustion expressed in your every action.

Walking up to Sarina who possesses the key cards to your room, you take it from her hand as you send her a reassuring smile to let her know that it was fine and that you would survive. You continue your walk out of the room, keycard and your bags in hand as you make your way up to room 406.

Taking one step at a time, you quietly think that it maybe wasn’t the best idea to take the stairs in a building where you would need to climb 5 flights of stairs before reaching your room. Hearing your phone buzz with a message has you looking down at the way too bright screen, the text coming from the ‘roomies’ groupchat.

It contained you and your alternating roommates, usually the texts contained your whereabouts or the room number of the two others in case of emergencies where your roommate can’t find you and needs the assistance of the other two.

‘room 416, come by later’ You shoot away a quick ‘ok’ back before continuing the long, exhausting trek up the many flights of stairs.

After another minute your phone buzzes again, though this time it’s repetitive meaning that someone is calling you. Looking down at your phone once again you come face to face with the profile picture of your injured roomie and a small relieved smile takes over your face, happy to talk to someone you had begun to see as a pseudo older sister/parental figure.

Pressing ‘accept’, Beth's voice instantly falls out of your speakers with a quick greeting before asking about your wellbeing having gotten a text from Leah saying that you weren’t yourself and asking her if she knew anything about it.

You respond with a slight chuckle and tell her that you were fine but that you hadn’t really been able to sleep for the last few weeks, too worried about where you would wake up after realizing that your subconscious now could unlock the front door of your home.

You hear a snort in the background of the call and soon recognise it as Viv’s, and you start to chastise her playfully.

“This is not a laughing matter Viv! I haven’t been able to sleep properly for weeks and now I have a new roomie. What am I supposed to tell her when she wakes up to me doing a handstand at 3 in the morning while asleep.”

Now they’re both laughing and you let out a small smile before laughing yourself, hearing how completely ridiculous you sound.

“I know kleintje, but you know we’re here for you. Just one call away, at any time even if it means that you have to wake us.” Her voice turned soft and truly genuine as she spoke with you.

Ever since she had started to join in on the weekly, turning daily, calls between you and Beth she had also become like an older sister/parental figure to you. The couple had eventually fully adopted you, in every sense except legally, and you had become part of their family after your move to Arsenal during the summer.

You fit in perfectly and Viv soon started calling you kleintje (meaning ‘little one’ in Dutch) even though you were in fact taller than her, they also got to know about your crush on Alessia early into your familial relationship.

Arriving at your door, behind which housing the room where you will sleep for the next few weeks,

you say your goodbyes to Beth and Viv before inserting the keycard and entering the room. You see Alessia sitting on the bed to the left, scrolling through her phone.

She looks up from her phone as she makes direct eye contact with you, while you let out a small awkward smile quickly throwing your bag to the side of the bed on the right side before exiting the room once again.

You start to walk towards Lotte and Ellie’s room before turning back and popping your head back into the room, feeling like an ass for not properly greeting her.

“I’m sorry. Hi Less, it’s nice to see you again and to have you as my roommate. I didn’t mean to be rude by not greeting you before, it just kind of slipped my mind it’s been a lot up there as of late. Would you want to go and get coffee with me, Ellie and Lotte tomorrow? You could bring Ella if you want.”

The words spill out of your mouth like a waterfall, and you get yourself into another predicament as you haven’t even asked Lotte or Ellie if they wanted to go tomorrow. Alessia smiles back at you, her eyes crinkling and replies to your rushed question.

“That sounds good, I’ll see if Ella wants to join us but she might want to sleep in. Oh and I don’t think that you were being rude, I figured that you had a lot on your mind based on your reaction earlier in the conference room.”

Nodding your head, you throw a quick ‘goodbye’ over your shoulder as you make your way to room 416 to tell your two other friends about your collective breakfast date. You open the door without knocking and immediately throw yourself on the nearest bed, thankful of Lotte moving away before rejoining you on the bed.

Cuddling into her side has you feeling relaxed for the first time since before you found out you could unlock doors while asleep. Closing your eyes sees you letting out a tired sigh and you can soon feel Ellie joining you and Lotte on the small bed, your tall frame sandwiched between them.

“You haven't been sleeping well lately, have you?” The blonde goalie is the one who poses the question and you give her the same answer you gave Beth, albeit this time you were drifting in and out of consciousness.

You can feel how their heads nod against the pillow and you take that as a sign of them agreeing to you accepting sleep's heavy grasp.

—----------

Someone shaking your shoulders has you opening your eyes, bleary and still devastatingly tired and you put your arms over your face. Suddenly you realize that you no longer were laying on the bed, instead you’re splayed out on the carpeted floor and you once again have no recollection of how you’ve ended up there.

“I swear we’ll have to pull a page from Moon Knight’s book, tie you up to the bed.” Your chuckles reverberate through the room at the reference and the suggestion, knowing that you had already tried that.

“Lotte, my darling bestfriend, do you really think that I haven't already tried that? It was one of the first resorts my parents sought when they realized they had a sleepwalker on their hands.”

“Yeah yeah, it’s time for supper. And don’t even try to decline because I know that you’re hungry, your stomach has been rumbling for the past 15 minutes.”

You hate how well they both know you sometimes but that's the result of coming up through the youth groups together, even if you were 3 years younger than them. You had been advanced enough to join the older kids in the youth camps and you developed a relationship with them that soon came in handy.

Rising from the floor, you take the time to stretch hearing the pops coming from your back while simultaneously letting out a loud overly dramatic groan. Following the other two girls out of the room and down to the dining room, you are much more energetic now jumping on their backs and running around the lobby.

After getting your food from the cafeteria you sit down at the table which houses the younger members of the team and an overly enthusiastic Lucy Bronze, who could basically be classed as a child. You sit between Lucy and Lotte having a very interesting conversation about the marine life in Guantanamo Bay, you are so invested in the conversation that you don’t notice a certain 5’9 blonde italian striker throwing you heart eyes from across the table.

But just because you don’t notice doesn’t mean that your teammates replicate your cluelessness.

“You’re staring” The raspy voice of your captain cuts off her thoughts and breaks her gaze firmly situated on you. Alessia's head turns so quickly that Leah’s surprised that she doesn’t get whiplash, eyes wide not unlike yours earlier in the day.

“I’m not staring, just analyzing.” The words come out in a nonchalant tone that directly contradicts what she’s feeling, the slight panic of being caught staring mixed with the adrenaline of getting scared accumulating into the feeling of embarrassment.

“Analyzing what? How long it’s going to take for you to fess up your feelings? Or how many times you have to kiss her cheek for her to realize that you like her?” The blush sitting upon Alessia’s cheeks deepen when she realizes just how obvious her crush on you was to her captain and at her being caught more than once.

She turns her gaze back to you only to realize that you have your eyes on her after she meets them with her own. Feeling confident, you send her a quick wink before turning back to your conversation with Lucy and Lotte that had now changed topic.

If possible, the blush on her cheeks darkened even more making her resemble Darth Maul without the black details. Leah gives her another ‘Really?’ look before taking her leave, the rest of the table following her actions and leaving as well. But Alessia remains sitting, frozen in her place until you place your hand on her shoulder softly making sure that you don’t scare her.

“Are you okay? You seem a little out of it today.” Alessia nods her head and remains firm in her stance that she’s okay, even after you give her a skeptical look.

Retreating back to your own room, you decide to settle down in your bed after changing into your normal hoodie and sweatpants and read a book that had been thrown into your suitcase haphazardly. Alessia makes sure to not break your focus when she herself settles into bed, focus directed at her phone.

Rising from your position on the bed, you put your book down on the nightstand before going back to dig in your suitcase this time searching for your toiletry bag. Finding it, you pick up your phone and walk to the bathroom to brush your teeth and make your nightly call to your pseudo parents.

So like clockwork you call Beth, and like every other time she picks up at the second ring and routinely begins to talk about her day. You did this every evening, regardless of if you had called earlier in the day as it is a sure way to calm your mind just a little before bed and the routine something that you appreciated.

Brushing your teeth and washing your face left only one thing left in your nighttime routine, taking your melatonin. It’s almost like Beth is able to sense the hesitance radiating of you as she encourages you to take it.

“Take it, your doctor prescribed it for a reason.” It’s funny how her words liken those of a mother trying to convince her child to eat the vegetables left on their plate.

“What if I do something inexplicable in my sleep and she thinks that I’m weird?” There is a tone of insecurity in your voice and Beth feels like her heart is going to break on the other end of the phone.

“Who’s your roommate?”

The realization that you haven’t told her who your roommate is yet dawns on you and you feel like an idiot.

“Alessia”

A loud “Ha” comes from the other end of the line and now instead of being worried you are confused.

“Viv, you owe me 20 quid” Hearing rustling, you can only imagine that she’s dancing or doing some other dorky things. The small smile situated on your face disappears nearly as quickly as it appeared as her words sink in.

“You bet on who I’m rooming with?!” You express your shock through a swift whispershout, not wanting to alert Alessia to the topic of conversation.

“You seemed more worried than you would with any other teammate, so I told Viv that I thought you were rooming with Alessia and she didn’t agree so we bet 20 quid and a coffee date and I obviously won.”

The smile on Beth’s face is heard through the call and you can feel yourself replicating it, laughing softly before opening the thick bottle of melatonin and popping one into your mouth swallowing it with some water. You let your toothbrush lay on the counter as you exit the bathroom, still on the call with Beth.

You can see Alessia’s head perk up when she hears the foreign voice flooding from the speakers of your phone. Realization soon washes over her face as she recognizes it as her injured companion up top and you notice her eyes softening before turning slightly confused.

“Is that Beth?” Instead of answering yourself you just turn the phone in her direction, letting her see Beth’s face portrayed over the facetime call.

“Hey Less, how are you?” Trudging over to where Alessia is now fully sitting up, you pass her your phone to let her continue the conversation.

Turning around, you hear them talking animatedly over the phone while catching each other up on what’s happening in their lives. You occupy yourself by searching for your headphones in preparation for the bedtime story you always end the calls with.

“Aha!” You let out a sound of accomplishment when you find your headphones, at the same time you hear the two blonde strikers wrap up their conversation and feet hitting the floor in your direction. A tap on your shoulder has you looking up from your suitcase to Alessia, your phone in her hand, the call still going.

“Thanks.” You look down at the phone again and come face to face with your parental figure, her eyebrows raised at the interaction.

“I’m going to brush my teeth and get ready for bed.” Alessia informs you of her plans and you nod your head in response before plugging your headphones in. Hearing the door close behind her, you pick up the stuffed bear laying inconspicuously under a couple of t-shirts and bring him to your bed. You slip under the covers, Flop in hand as the woman on the other line waits for you to get settled.

You had gotten Flop as a housewarming gift from Viv and you gave him a name to match her own teddy, Flip.

Laying your head on your pillow, you feel the exhaustion of the day wash over you and as Beth’s soft voice reads out the story made for children you fall asleep almost immediately. Alessia notices the silence coming from the main room and she realizes that you’ve likely fallen asleep, so she’s extra careful when she exits the room.

Seeing you, headphones in your ears obviously asleep has her smiling. She then notices the stuffed toy in your arms and her heart feels like it suddenly grew 3 sizes, like she’s the Grinch.

Turning the lights off, Alessia’s feet carry her towards your unconscious form and she carefully plucks the headphones from their place in your ears before taking the phone laying beside your head. She intends on putting the phone to charge, but that’s before your hand clutches on to her own.

When Alessia looks up she expects to see you wide awake, instead she’s met with your closed eyes and soft breath coming out in perfectly timed intervals. With a tug on her arm Alessia falls down onto the bed, a soft ‘thud’ accompanying her motion downwards.

Your arm wraps around the circumference of her waist with an iron grip and after 2 minutes of trying to get you to release her, the only outcome being you tightening your grip she gives up on her mission. She reaches out and puts your phones on the nightstand before eventually settling into the feeling of strong arms holding her in place.

Alessia feels the attraction she holds for you grow tenfold with the grip you have on her waist and she allows herself to imagine that this is a normal encounter, that she’s used to feeling your strong body spooning her own.

When Alessia falls asleep that night she can’t realize the scene to which she would wake up.

——

Bright blue eyes that hold the entirety of your heart between their ridges open to a rather unusual sight. She can remember falling asleep with your arms clutching her waist the night before so waking up to you at the other end of the room, on the floor, nonetheless puzzles her.

But there you lay, the same peaceful expression on your face as you lay deep in your sleep. She notices the fact that your stuffed bear was in her grip instead of yours and she smiles softly as your smell floods her nostrils from the bear.

Rubbing her eyes, she picks up her phone and her eyes widen at the ungodly hour her body has woken her at. 03:54 glares back at her in big letters and she reaches out to put her phone back into place.

Glancing over to where your body was placed the last time she quickly realizes that it isn’t there anymore and she feels a bout of panic spread throughout her body. It’s like her head is placed on a swivel as she shifts her body around in a ploy to locate where you suddenly had disappeared to.

Eventually she sees movement in her peripheral vision and spots your body moving around the room in a mindless pattern. Strangely enough it still doesn’t look like you’re conscious, the sluggish movements and the continued closed eyes an indicator.

Alessia’s movements are sluggish in their own right as she makes her way over to where you’re still mindlessly pacing the room and she places a swift hand on your shoulder, effectively making your pacing stop.

“No, No. Stop, I’ll be late. Let me go, I can’t be late, I can’t be late. Mr Ginsley’s gonna get mad, let go, please let go, this isn’t funny anymore. I’m gonna get in trouble, please let go.” Your words are muttered, nearly unintelligible as a quick tear runs down a pathway on your cheek.

The only thing Alessia could do was watch, it felt as if she wasn’t in control of her own body. Eventually coming to her senses she pulls you into her body, enclosing you in a much needed bearhug. You continue to cry into her neck, now partly conscious classified by the way your arms no longer hang by your sides, instead clutching on to her like your life depends on it.

Alessia mutters small encouraging words directly into your ear as she slowly lowers both of your bodies to the floor, all while continuing to let you cry your heart out. She quickly realizes that you need this, you need to cry and just let out exactly what you’re feeling.

So there she sits, you in her arms as she comforts you eventually you tire yourself out as you fall back asleep in her surrounding grasp. Alessia falls asleep not long after you do, the weight of your body like a weighted blanket.

——-

You find yourself waking up to the sight of the horrid pattern of the carpeted hotel floor for the second time in the last 24 hours, only this time you’re not alone.

Something weighing you down has you sobering from the sleep clouding your senses and you look down at your own body rapidly, seeing blonde hair splayed haphazardly across your chest and the accompanying face has your heart speeding up its beats.

Wondering how you could have gotten into the situation you retrace your steps and come to the conclusion that you’d let out everything you were feeling on poor Alessia during that night.

So lost in your own head, you don’t notice Alessia coming to it before she reaches her hand up to softly caress your cheek. Looking down, you are met with one of the undoubtedly gorgeous sights you’ve ever witnessed.

A newly woken Alessia Russo, looking up at you through her eyelashes, her eyes full of an emotion you only can recall as love.

“Good morning.” She starts to lift herself off your frame but you once again stop her, this time with one hand on her waist and one on her neck before leaning in to press a lingering kiss against her lips. You start to pull away when you realize that she isn’t reciprocating, but she quickly comes to her senses and starts to kiss you back.

She lets her body rest on yours once again as you continue kissing. If someone would’ve entered the sight that would meet their eyes would likely be rather confusing, two footballers laying on the floor while kissing.

You eventually break away from the kiss as you feel the need to explain. You move your body into a sitting position and you pull Alessia with you as she sits on your lap this time. Taking a deep breath you start;

“I’m a sleepwalker, something you’ve probably noticed by now. I’ve never been able to control it but my parents tried everything to get me to stop, I mean everything. They tied me to the bed, waking me up at random times during the night, but nothing worked. In the end they decided to take me to this family friend who used to be a physician, Mr Ginsley, and trust me when I say he was horrid. My parents dropped me off before my bedtime and he would make sure that I didn’t even so much as move during the night. Eventually it stopped which meant that I was free from his borderline torture. So yeah…that’s also part of the reason why I am no longer in contact with my parents.”

Alessia had to take a moment to let everything sink in before tightening her grip on you. It wasn’t like she didn’t know about your messed up childhood, but she had no idea how bad it had been.

“I’m so sorry that happened to you. No one deserves that, but I’m glad that you feel comfortable enough to share with me.”

“It’s okay, I’ve gone through a lot of therapy but I still get nightmares sometimes. Nobody has ever been able to calm me down, except you.”

She smiles softly before kissing you again. Alessia’s body tensed before she springs out of your grip, swiftly pulling off her shirt and your eyes widen considerably the sight of her in just her bra, different now from the locker room.

“Woah, Miss Russo. What are you doing? Not that I’m complaining…”

“We’re supposed to have breakfast with Ellie and Lotte, right? By the way, Ella declined ‘cause she wanted to sleep.”

“Oh, um this is awkward. I kind of didn’t ask either of them if they wanted to go, so I guess this’ll be our first date if you want. I don’t wanna assume your feelings or anything, but since you kissed me I hope that-”

Soft lips being pressed against your own has you shutting up indefinitely, more than content with kissing the person you’re in love with.

“I’d love for this to be our first date.” Her words have you smiling down at her like an idiot before leaning down to kiss her again.

Getting dressed, you wait for Alessia to get ready and you realize that neither of your phones have any battery.

“Lessi, sweetheart, why doesn’t your phone have any battery?” You call out to her as she’s in the bathroom, brushing her teeth. She reenters the room with toothpaste around her mouth and she gives you a quick smirk.

“Well someone didn’t want to let me go yesterday so I didn’t have the chance to put them to charge” You down with a bashful smile before leaving her to continue getting ready.

As you leave the hotel room, hand in hand with the love of your life, you can’t help but send a quick text along with a picture of your hands to your Arsenal group chat;

‘Got the girl <3’

This was supposed to be 700 words... it became the longest fic I've currently written, but yeah hope y'all liked it :)

#alessia russo x reader #alessia russo imagines #alessia russo imagine #alessia russo #woso x reader #woso imagines #muwfc x reader

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multifandomsw · 11 months

Text

Apologies

Harry Styles x Reader

warnings: angst, fluff, loneliness, depression?, mental health, anxiety

summary: After an encounter with your old best friend, she gave you her number to catch up. When you decide to send her a message, someone else replies. Was it destiny?

author‘s note: I hope this is not too cringey, I‘m trying my best! If you want to be added to the taglist, just comment :) Btw, I’d love to hear your opinions!!

Part 2

Apologies masterlist

OH AND BTW I NEED SOME HARRY FRIENDS SO PLEASEEE MESSAGE ME SO WE CAN TALK!

You: Sooo

H: So?

You: What if you’re lying?

H: Lying about… what?

You: Oh my god. You use dots. You‘re definitely an old man!!

H: We‘ve been over this.

You: Yes, but I need proof

H: Fine. You can ask me anything you want

You: What do you do for a living?

H: I‘m working in the music industry

You: Woah. Okay. That‘s not what an old man would come up with I guess.

You: Unless you USED to work in the music industry.

H: It‘s very hard to gain your trust

You: Good observation

You: Where are you from?

H: How does that have anything to do with my age?

You: Just answer it!

H: England and you?

You: Hey, I‘m asking the questions!

You: Who is Taylor Swift?

H: She’s an American singer. She’s actually on tour right now. It’s called the Eras Tour

You: I’m convinced

H: What? Really? That easily?

You: I have enough proof

You: Unless you want me to doubt you again

H: NO!

H: Now it’s my turn to ask the questions :)

—

You tried your best to keep your eyes from moving to the couple in front of you, you really did.

However, every time you saw love surrounding you in any way, you couldn’t stop looking, even staring.

Most of the times your heart swelled with love at just the sight. A happy feeling would shoot through your whole body, a smile instantly grazing your lips.

It didn’t work this time.

There were no empty seats left, so the woman was sitting on the man’s lap. He had his arms wrapped tightly around her waist, propping his chin on her shoulder while she was giggling at something he said, lightly slapping his arm.

You were mainly focused on the way the man was looking at her. His eyes were filled with so much love, so much adoration. His face softened when she giggled and you could almost see his dilated pupils.

He was in love.

And at that moment, you wished you were in love, too. So badly that your heart ached at even the thought of being in love and being loved in return.

You shook your head at your own stupidity, no one would ever love you. In fact, you came to the conclusion that you were unlovable. You thought you didn’t deserve it, didn’t deserve to be someone’s first choice.

You never were and would most certainly never be.

Still, it hurt. Hurt watching everyone around you be so entranced by love. You lost your closest friends because of it, because they prioritized their relationships and slowly came to forget you.

You would have never done that to them, you were certain of it, but you wondered if you would see it another way if you yourself had a partner.

Did love really do that to people? Make them forget about everyone and everything else? You were practically non existent to your friends, you could not even remember the last time you spoke to them.

If love could truly make you forget about everything, you wanted to experience it.

You wanted to forget about your loneliness, your depression, your mental health and put your focus on one person.

You scoffed at your train of thoughts, no one would ever want to be with you that way. You had accepted it a long time ago, but the thought of it alone managed to make your eyes water.

It was hard. Very hard.

You quickly wiped the tears away from your cheeks and took in a deep breath before you pulled your phone out of your pocket.

You: Do you ever feel lonely?

H: Hey, are you alright?

You: Just answer it. I don’t want to be the only person to feel that way

H: I do. Very often. And so do other people. You’re far from being the only one that feels that way, trust me. You’re not alone.

You: When do you feel lonely?

H: Most of the time, actually. I love my job, I really do, but working as a musician also means traveling a lot. I never stay at one place for a long time. It’s very hard sometimes.

You: Oh, I’m really sorry. Are you a songwriter? Or a guitarist? Or a signer?

H: I’m all three?? Kind of?

You: I’m so jealous. I can’t even play an instrument.

H: I’ll teach you- hey wait! You’re trying to distract me. Tell me what’s wrong.

You: I saw a couple on my way home. It just made me feel lonely. Knowing I’ll never have that.

H: What do you mean you’ll never have that? Who said that?

You: I don’t think anyone will ever love me that way

H: Bullshit.

You: Sorry?

H: I don’t know why you think that, but it’s utter bullshit. Everyone will experience love at some point. And so will you.

You: Do you think so?

H: I know it. I’m sure you’re a very sweet and loving person. You seem like one.

You: Thank you, H.

H: Anytime, Cherry

You: Are you in a relationship?

H: Oh. No I’m not. It never works out. My schedule is too tight for love, I barely have any time

You: I’m sorry

H: It’s okay. I can talk to you now :)

—

You: THE MOST EMBARRASSING THING HAPPENED TO ME TODAY!!

You: I’m dying of embarrassment.

You: H!!!!

H: WHAT HAPPENED?

You: Okay so I went to H&M and bought some thongs

H: Why would you buy thongs? You said you hated them

You: And then I bumped into an old classmate and I dropped them all! He knelt down and helped me pick them up. I saw that he was kind of uncomfortable and his whole face was turning red! So I said the first thing that came to my mind

H: Oh no, what did you say?

You: That they are for my grandma! I mean who says that?

H: Oh. Hahahha

You: Don’t you dare laugh!

H: I’m not laughing! What did he answer?

You: He muttered something but I didn’t hear it. Then he left the store very quickly

H: Back to my question, why were you buying thongs?

You: Just to feel good about myself. I wanted to try out something new

H: Soo you’re not going on a date?

You: I wish

—

Harry nervously fiddled with his fingers as he watched the opening act, Wet leg, play for his show.

He needed to calm down, he was never so nervous, never filled with so much anxiety.

It felt like he couldn’t breathe, like all air was being sucked out of his lungs. His breaths were short and uneven.

He swallowed hard, gulping down the tears that were building in his eyes. He couldn’t do it, he couldn’t act as if everything was fine.

He shouldn’t have opened Twitter, he shouldn’t have read the tweets about his latest show, but he couldn’t help himself, it was addictive.

Everyone was criticizing him, pointing out that he wasn’t so cheery and happy anymore, that his shows were boring and that his interactions with his fans decreased.

Lately, Harry has been feeling very homesick and lonely. Whenever he went on stage, he would already be looking forward to finally finishing his shows. He wanted to stay in his hotel rooms all day. He wanted to go home. He wanted to see his family again, see his friends again.

It was all just too much.

The only thing he was looking forward these days was writing you-

Wait.

H: Hi, are you there?

Cherry: Yes! What’s up?

H: I have five minutes. I need to calm down.

Cherry: H, tell me what is bothering you

H: I’m feeling really homesick. I don’t enjoy going on stage anymore. I’m feeling really anxious to go. I just want to go home. I want to see my parents, my siblings, my friends.

Cherry: When will you see them again?

H: In a few weeks.

Cherry: Okay, here’s what you will do. You’ll go on that stage and think of them, how proud they are of you. They’re looking forward to seeing you. That should be your motivation. Seeing them soon.

H: Okay. That’s what I will do

Cherry: Good luck, H!

H: Thank you, Cherry

Harry put his phone away, realizing that he didn’t even have to put on a brave smile because he was already grinning like an idiot. Only because of you.

And when he sang, he didn’t only think of his family and his friends, he also thought of you.

—

Cherry: Are you a famous singer?

H: What?

Cherry: Because you always talk about your shows

Harry wanted, desperately wanted to tell you the truth, who he really was, but he couldn’t.

You were the first person he could truly be himself with, he could tell you everything without being afraid that you only listened to him and talked to him because he was Harry Styles.

You were just talking to H. He was not a one of the most famous singers when he was writing with you, he was just himself. He didn’t have to hold up to any expectations, didn’t have to be afraid to say the wrong things.

He didn’t want to lose that privilege, even if it meant lying to you.

H: Oh, I’m only the guitarist of a small band. I’m not famous yet

Cherry: That’s good, I was afraid you’d be famous

H: Oh. Would that be so bad?

Cherry: No, of course not! But most famous singers tend to be a little self absorbed. I don’t really like rich people

H: I get that, but not everyone’s like that

Cherry: That’s why I said MOST.

H: Who are your favorite singers?

Cherry: I WAS WAITING FOR YOU TO ASK ME THAT! Okay so I’ll tell you my top three.

H: I have high expectations

Cherry: Taylor Swift

H: Great choice, but I already knew that.

Cherry: Hm. I love Artic Monkeys.

H: Oh, I love them, too!

Cherry: And my favorite singer is Harry Styles!!

Harry’s heartbeat increased by just looking at the message. He felt his anxiety returning. You were a fan of his? He hoped, with all his heart, that you wouldn’t be one of his toxic fans, that you didn’t sexualize him. Deep down, he knew you weren’t, bur he couldn’t shake off the fear.

H: Why do you like him?

Cherry: I love his music and he appears to be one of the kindest and sweetest people ever. At least in interviews and during his shows.

H: That’s it?

Cherry: Yes! I hate toxic fans that only sexualize him. At the end of the day, he’s one of us. He has feelings. Do you like him, too?

H: Yeah, I guess he’s okay

Cherry: You guess he’s okay? What kind of answer is that? He’s great.

H: Okay, okay, he’s great.

Harry widely smiled at the screen, biting his lip in excitement. You thought he was kind, you thought he was sweet.

You.

He felt ridiculous, for being so excited over it, but he couldn’t help it. He loved writing with you, he loved that he could talk to you all day, he loved that you listened to his problems and that you trusted him with yours.

You seemed like such a lovely person and he hated that others and you yourself didn’t see it that way. He hated that you thought that you were not enough when you already meant so much to him.

“What are you smiling at?”, Jeff chirped in. “You need to get ready.”, he smiled at Harry, but let his eyes wander to Harry’s phone.

Lately, Harry had been constantly writing with someone. He was always on his phone, smiling like an idiot. Jeff thought it were just some friends in the beginning, but the way Harry smiled from ear to ear was not the way he smiled at his friends. This was someone else.

Harry raised his head, a small blush creeping on his cheeks. “I’m not smiling.”

“You are.”, Jeff pointed out, sitting down on the couch next to him. “Who is it? It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you so happy.”

Harry put his phone away, looking at his painted fingernails and deciding whether he should tell Jeff.

This whole thing was crazy. Would Jeff think so, too?

“It’s-“, Harry began, coughing before he continued. “It’s this girl I’ve been writing with. She’s really lovely.”

Jeff grinned at Harry, slapping him on his back. “It’s time for you to find love, too. Where’s she from? Maybe she can attend one of your shows.”

Harry bit his lip, sighing loudly. He didn’t want to say it, and yet he had to.

“She doesn’t know who I am. I don’t know who she is. We’re just writing. An old friend gave her the wrong number and-“

“What?”, Jeff questioned in disbelief. “I know.”, Harry whispered back. “But I can just be myself when we message each other, I don’t have to put up a facade.”

“Will you tell her who you are?”, Jeff wanted to know. “I- I don’t want to. But I know I’ll have to at some point. I just want it to stay like this, but I also want to know who she really is. What she looks like. I want to get to know her.”

Jeff bit his lip, not even knowing how to answer. It was stupid, writing with someone without even knowing who the person is. But Harry seemed to happy, so entranced by you. “You should eventually tell her. It’s going to mess everything up if you’re not honest.”, Jeff explained. “Now come on, let’s get you ready for the show.”

Before he stood up, he checked his phone one last time, seeing a message that sucked all the air out of his lungs.

You: He is great! I have two tickets for one of his shows. I really want to go, but I don’t have anyone to go with.

taglist: @st-ev-ie

#angst #harry styles x reader #harry styles x you #harry styles

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the-girl-wh0-cries-w0lf · 9 months

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You're waiting for a train...(9)

Mr Charles and Miss Nobody

Robert Fischer x reader

description - Ariadne pries deeper. The dreamers drop down another level. Mr Charles introduces himself.

warnings - allusions to abuse with a knife, drinking (character is of age according to the British drinking age of 18), fake kidnapping, Robert being a soft boi whilst flirting

word count - 3.5k

a/n - had a spurt of inspiration because I went to see Oppenheimer for the 2nd time today! Finally got to see it in Imax! What an experience! I took my mum and I had to persuade her to come and she was kind of just coming for me but by the end she LOVED it and we couldn't stop talking about it on the way home. It was just such a lovely memory that I got to make with my mum ❤

Previous Part Series Master list Master list

If you want to be added to the taglist - here

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

*your pov*

I stood still in front of the workbench, trying to put as much space in between me and my dad as possible. Arthur hovered close to me but couldn’t bring himself to actually come over to converse with me. Ariadne approached me from behind. I jumped as she startled me. She lowered her voice and spoke her question, that she was afraid to ask.

“Do you remember your mom, after –”

“You mean after her and my dad woke up?” I nodded my head feeling the end of her question. Looking over to my father’s hunched frame where she had just come from.

“Yeah.” She softly uttered.

I braced my body against the table and threw my mind back.

“I was the first face she saw once she awoke. But the look in her eyes was so weird. There wasn’t love there. There was confusion.” I rolled into my answer with ease, as if the words had been on the tip of my tongue. “I distinctly remember I went to hug her, but she flinched. I was so hurt and I looked to my dad but he couldn’t even look me in the eye.” I punctuated the end with a repressed sob remembering that fateful day.

I was 15 years old. Dad had wanted me to watch over their bodies as they slept and as the count went down I had begun to wait so I could be there, too excited for them to wake up. Mum’s eyes blinked open first. She rolled over to gaze to the ceiling and I had crept over into her line of sight. I saw the breath hold as she met my eyes, almost afraid at the thought of my very existence. I clasped my hands to stop myself jumping onto her body in the tightest hug possible. Every time they went under without me, I felt tremendous loss. But they always came back. Always.

“As the days got longer, so did the arguments. Hours upon hours of screaming and yelling. Philippa and James would come into my bed, and I’d build forts, read stories. Anything to make them forget.”

“So, she didn’t believe in you either?” Ariadne broke through my speech.

I giggled in disbelief at my own memories. “No. She thought me to be a projection, and there’s only one thing you do with projections who you see to be a threat.” My eyes fell down to my forearm and the raised pink flesh which sliced down my arm. Ariadne followed my gaze. I bristled under her stare. My immediate response pulled down my rolled up sleeve for extra protection.

“So she thought she was still in limbo –” I ripped my jacket from the chair to my side.

“It’s not polite to pry.” I threw my jacket on with fearsome motion. “You know you don’t have to know every little detail about us. You just have to trust what we can do.” I flicked my hair out of the colour. “After this, we become nothing to you. Don’t dig the shallow grave any deeper.” I stormed off.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

“Alright bag ‘em.”

“You’re going for a ride.” Arthur and Cobb, masked, threw bags over Robert and ‘Browning’s’ heads. Before the sack could cover him Robert rushed out.

“What about the girl? From before? What will happen to her?”

“We’re leaving her, she’s no longer any use.” Fearing this meant what he thought it meant, Robert’s eyes stung.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

The two men were dragged out, the ratty sacks making them more alike to scarecrows than humans. They were thrown into the minibus but Robert continued to plead.

“We’re worth more to you alive! Do you hear me?” Cobb dribbled the sedative onto the sack, knocking him out cold.

Eames ripped off his own sack as he got out of the car, no longer disguised. Remembering, I also removed my own, no longer posing any risk to the mission.

“What’d you get?” Dad asked.

Eames struggled to catch his breath, his fearful acting becoming hard to shake off. “That boys relationship with his father is even worse than we imagined.” My shoulders slumped.

“This helps us how?” Arthur questioned whilst circling the van.

“The stronger the issues, the more powerful the catharsis.” Cobb answered on Eames’ behalf.

“How are we gonna reconcile them if they’re so estranged?” Arthur refused to let any concern be lost.

“Well, I’m working on that, aren’t I?” Eames fought back. He baffled at Arthur’s persistence.

“Work faster.” Arthur spat. I punched his shoulder from behind. He looked down towards me and mumbled out. “Sorry, Eames.”

“What was that?” Eames exaggeratedly offered his ear.

“Sorry. It’s great work.” Arthur forced out of his unwilling mouth. Eames winked at me before getting in his seat. I slowly passed Arthur by to squeeze his arm in a silent thank you. But I felt him leave my grip as quick as I had initiated it.

“The projections are closing in quick.” Arthur hurried to an open door, armed. “We gotta break out of here before we’re totally blocked in.” He threw open the door wider, offering a clear view. He raised a machine gun, aiming it high, but his shots at the projections kept falling short. And he was met with a response of bullets.

“We mustn’t be afraid to dream a little bigger, darling.” Eames approached brandishing an even bigger gun, belittling Arthur, and his choices. The projection was vanquished in one clean trigger pull. I rolled my eyes at their pettiness and gestured for them to hurry back to the van where I’d already taken my place. I’d deliberately sat by Robert to hold his hand. Whether this comfort was for him or me. My thumb still stroked up and down his palm.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

We pulled out of the warehouse, our survival in the hands of Yusuf. Speed was imperative to our survival. We didn’t need to kill the projections, just outrun them. Yet my pistol never left my hand.

“Now we need to shift his animosity from his father to his godfather.” Cobb stated.

“You’re gonna destroy his one positive relationship?” Ariadne rightly protested. I went to agree but the necessity was too severe.

“No, we repair his relationship with his father,” Eames jumped in. “Whilst exposing his godfather’s true nature. We should charge Fischer a lot more than Saito for this job.”

“Hoping that his godfather was actually a bad man or we just lost him someone dear to him.” I solemnly said. My thumb continuing to find solace in the hand in mine.

“Maybe we’ll just have to find him someone else.” Eames whispered for my ears only with a comforting wink my way.

“What about his security?” Arthur dragged me back to the obstacle at hand. “It’s gonna get worse as we get deeper?”

“I think we run with Mr Charles.” My dad’s tone held finality despite it’s questioning words.

“No.”

“Who’s Mr Charles?” Eames inquired, feeling out of the loop.

“Bad idea.”

“The second we get into that hotel and approach Fischer, his security is gonna be all over us.” Dad explained. “We run with Mr Charles just like we did with the Stein job.”

“And we all saw how that went.” I mumbled under my breath but I was caught by Dad who fixed me a glare which I took to mean questioning him will get me nowhere. I sunk back into my seat.

“So you’ve done it before?” Eames hopefully spoke up to assure himself.

“Yeah, and it didn’t work.” Arthur corrected. “The subject realised he was dreaming, and his subconscious tore us to pieces.” I briefly inhaled to prevent the shudder that ran down my spine.

“Excellent! But you learned a lot, right?” Eames continued to be hopeful. I could no longer sense where the sarcasm ended.

“I’m gonna need some kind of distraction.”

“No problem. How about a lovely lady I’ve used before.”

“Is it vain if I assumed you were talking about me?” I teased Eames. He laughed and I enjoyed relishing in the small moment.

“Listen to me.” Dad leant forward to warn Yusuf. “You drive carefully alright?”

“Yeah.”

“Everything down there is gonna be unstable as hell”

“Don’t jump too soon!” Arthur cautioned. “We only got one shot at the kick. We gotta make it.”

“I’ll play the music to let you know it’s coming. The rest is on you.”

The IV’s were pulled out and we each relaxed back. I inserted Robert’s making sure to take my time and to be careful. I’d hate to cause any more injury. The disjointed movement of the car made it hard but I calmed myself by the time the liquid began to enter. Each muscle untethered from it’s neighbour and each joint appeared to sink into a deeper pool, spreading at the advanced area. The feeling had nearly reached the brink of my mind so I squeezed his hand tight one last time before we both slipped under.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

LAYER TWO: THE HOTEL

My eyes blinked open with the sting of tiny needles. I braced myself on the couch I had been staged on. I felt down my body feeling the harsh material of the formal business dress. Not unlike the one I wore on top. I flexed my feet in their restrictive black heels. Shit. Me falling flat on my ass was definitely not going to draw attention.

The expansive space closed in on me as the drastic structure felt so familiar yet so unknown. The hotel taunted me. It’s wide-open lobby seemed intent on swallowing me whole. For the first time I could feel my subconscious in my brain. It throbbed from it’s discovered location.

The strings in my chest loosened upon seeing Arthur walking towards me with a cheerful disposition. I sighed at his presence with relief. I raised to join him halfway but he breezed past my frame. He joined Ariadne who had seemed to appear behind me. They conversed before striding off to the vast staircase, they walked purposefully without looking back. I struggled to decide how I felt and landed on awkwardly placing one foot one direction and then turning the other way to repeat. I startled as a hand roughly landed on my shoulder and I jumped away to meet the face of Eames.

“You saw that?” I stuttered out through an awkward smile. Self-consciously closing my arms in on myself.

“I’ve said it before, but it never stops being true.” Eames huffed out. “He’s an idiot.” With a soft smile he gently gripped my chin. I blushed at the gesture and responded by knocking into him without any true force.

“Come on, I’ve got something better.” Eames sang out, intriguing me even more. I followed him laughing at the faux spring in his step.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

I struggled to contain my laughter as Eames seduced Robert in his favourite disguise. A blonde curvy gal with two big…personalities. Eames always claimed he’d designed her based on this supermodel he once dated but his story was full of plot holes. I sipped on my martini which I stewed in in the corner of the bar, just a few feet from the two. Eames had offered me a front seat to ‘his greatest performance yet’ and it had truly lifted my spirits.

I bit my lip at Robert’s responses. They were dripping in adorable awkwardness. He couldn’t meet her eye and only managed out stutters. The sight tugged on my heart and I stopped myself from gathering him up in my arms so I could never let him go.

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“There goes Mr Charles.” Arthur jutted his head to the stride of my father who was entering the bar as well. Ariadne subtly followed his gesture, in a misled attempt to be inconspicuous.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

*your pov*

“I guess my story wasn’t to your liking.” She rose from the chair and strutted away. I could no longer contain my laugh at the shake of the hips, and a giggle burst through. Robert took notice of the noise and turned to face me as I tried to stifle my laughs. I didn’t feel the need to hide myself under his gaze so I left my smile where it was.

“I’m sorry was something amusing?” He questioned but a smile crept up his lips.

“Forgive me, I am often amused by men’s follies.” I picked up my glass to sit down at the stool next to him, which he had hurriedly pulled out at my movement.

He spun his body so he could fully face me interested in the discussion I had started. “Is it so unbelievable that a woman like that would be flirting with me?” He took my bait.

“I think it’s unbelievable that you think she was doing it for free.” I finished with a victorious sip to my martini once I heard a giggle. A genuine giggle. Free of biased or agenda.

“She’s not my type anyways.” I loudly laughed at this. A woman like that was any red blooded man’s type, and I told him so.

“I prefer women who enjoy martinis.” He nodded towards my drink and I blushed at the insinuation. But I couldn’t resist the tease.

“Who say’s I’m enjoying it.” I picked up the martini-soaked olives and slid them off the stick with my teeth. Our eyes never leaving the others.

“Well I don’t know.” He rung his hands feeling uncomfortable in this flirting territory.

“I’ll give you a hint. I’m enjoying this martini as much as I am enjoying talking to you.” I leaned in close as if we were about to exchange a secret. “And that’s a lot.” I whispered and relished in the red hue which spread across his cheeks. I didn’t want to pull back. Enjoying being able to study every inch of his face. Our mouths held the skeleton of a smile but our eyes delved deeper.

“I wondered when I was going to see you again.” The words left before his mind could keep up. I panicked upon hearing. In his eyes I saw a fight within his mind before he uttered out. “I’m so sorry, I don’t know where that came from.”

“It’s fine.” I chuckled as I was out of the woods. “The mind is a vast place. Something’s bound to slip through the gaps.” I eyed him from the side as he returned to his position.

“What’s your name?” He turned to face me once again.

“I’m…” I stripped my mind searching for an answer. “I’m nobody. Nobody anyone’s usually pleased to see anyway.” I smiled to soften my words.

“Well, Miss Nobody,” He happily played along. “I’m pleased to see you.” The full sincerity of his words floored my very being. He’d once again stolen my speech.

“Mr Fischer, pleased to see you again.” My dad hurriedly interrupted the sliver of space between us. “Rod Green from marketing.” He held out his hand and Robert refused it, angered at our conversations abrupt end. “I see you’ve met my daughter.” He gestured over to me. I shot him up a glare, in disbelief at what he’d just said. Robert suddenly sat up straighter. Leaning away from me as if to prove his innocence. I opened my mouth, but no words were formed. I simply decided to huff like a child at my Dad’s embarrassing actions.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

“Who or what is Mr Charles?” Ariadne interrogated Arthur due to his apparent dislike of the task.

“It’s a gambit designed to turn Fischer against his own subconscious.”

“And why don’t you approve?”

“Because it involves telling the mark that he’s dreaming, which involves attracting attention to us.” He explained.

“Thought Cobb said never to do that?” Ariadne became confused.

Arthur hummed in agreement. “So now you’ve realised how much time Cobb spends doing things he says never to do.” They both chuckle.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

*your pov*

I shudder as the water in Fischer’s glass tilts, ignoring it’s own gravity.

Robert silently apologised before turning to address the unusual man who had just claimed to know him and to be my dad. “I’m sorry who did you say you were?”

“Rod Green from marketing.” Cobb sat down, sandwiching Robert in between us. “But that’s not true at all, is it?”

Robert glanced at me seeking my reassurance. I was saddened it could only be an assured smile rather than a gentle touch.

“My name is Mr Charles. You remember me don’t you?” Cobb pressed as the sensitivity of time was apparent. “I’m the head of your security down here. We both are.”

Robert looked towards my young form incredulously. “Security huh? You work for the hotel?” I now felt uncomfortable in the line of questioning. I wasn’t meant to be in this position and dad had knowingly put me here.

“No, I specialise in a very specific type of security.” Dad lowered his voice. “Subconscious security.”

“you’re talking about dreams?” Robert scoffed. “Are you talking about…extraction?”

“I am here to protect you, you –” A waiter dropped his tray on the bar next to me, the liquid spilling onto my arm. I reacted to the cold liquid. Robert grabbed a napkin to dab me dry. I gave him a smile in gratefulness. I noticed my dads eyes numb and focus on a distant spot. I spun around near breaking my neck. I just managed to catch the frames of Thomas and Philippa exiting the vision. My breath quickened feeling my dads problems leak into my own. I spun back before Fischer could follow my eyes. I fixed myself onto my dads troubled expression as if willing him to pull it together. If he didn’t have time for my emotional immaturity then I certainly had no time for his. The conversations around us halted sensing my father’s unusual presence.

“Mr Fischer I’m here to protect you in the event that someone tries to access your minds through your dreams.” Cobbs continuation meant the projections relaxed themselves. “You’re not safe here.” He leaned in to pour his next words directly into his mind. “They’re coming for you.”

My unconscious body’s cheek was flushed with raindrops in the van and this meant a cascade of water shuttered on to the window in front of the three of us, startling both Robert and I.

“Strange weather isn’t it?” Dad pointed out. “You feel that?” As Robert took in his surroundings I could feel his anxiety rise so my hand found itself on his thigh to calm him.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

“What’s happening?” Ariadne panicked at the shift of the earth.

“Cobb is drawing Fischer’s attention to strangeness of the dream.” Arthur explained. “Which is making his subconscious look for the dreamer.” Arthur stilled his panic. “For me.”

“Quick, give me a kiss.” Arthur asked once many eyes were on them. Ariadne followed and they met in a soft kiss. Arthur closed his eyes and he thought of y/n. The kiss felt wrong. I mean, it felt nice, he’s a man, but it didn’t feel right.

“They’re still looking at us.” Ariadne continued to observe around her.

“Worth a shot.” Arthur teased. Ariadne sensed his intent and couldn’t help the smirk she adorned. A silence hung between the two.

“So are we gonna talk about it?”

“About what?”

“The elephant in the room. The elephant named y/n who you refuse to talk to.” Ariadne pushed Arthur’s cold shoulder. “You saw her there when we first woke but you brushed right past. And you can’t tell me it’s cause you were desperate to work with me. There’s only one reason a man treats a woman like that. I’ve seen how close you two are. So what happened?”

“Nothing happened.” Arthur tried to subdue but his lie seeped right through. Ariadne was unsatisfied and wouldn’t let it rest. Arthur relented to her persistence.

“From the first moment we met, I never agreed with her being in the field with us. Of course I couldn’t understand how Cobb, as her father, could allow her but I seemed to always be more upset with y/n. She willingly goes along with it, putting herself in danger.” Arthur hung his head and focused on his fidgeting hands. He whispered out as if afraid to believe it himself. “I sometimes worry that she does it to feel something. Feel the pain.”

“Or she’s just a girl trying to keep her family together.” Ariadne finished. She sensed the information he was leaving out. But she couldn’t let him continue with a vision of y/n clouded in red of his own making. “You know, you’re gonna need a bit more makeup to cover up your bruised ego.” She poked his cheek through her tease. Arthur relented himself to giggle at her mockery. Feeling the humour in his situation. They laughed together before rising to continue with their mission.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

*your pov*

“You feel that.” Robert’s mind woke up as world around him swirled. “You’ve actually been trained for this Mr Fischer.” The room shook and began to shake off it’s various decorations. “Pay attention to the strangeness of the weather, the shift in gravity.” I could feel Robert awaken to the reality we had created. The gravity changed around us and I wished to comfort Robert more but now anything I did remained under my dads watchful eye.

I leant into his side, placing my lips by his ear.

“You’re in a dream, honey.”

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

taglist: @jonsncws @h-l-vlovesvintage @theethy @fashionki11a @felicity1994 @bearchermer @idkyoutellmesmh @mimimarvelingmarvel @butterfly-lies-chase-them-away @neotanpopper @deliriouslybi @folklorde24 @thefandomdiaries07 @viarosemcmissile @noirrose21-blog @thepoeticfirefly @xoxo-gothic-girl @skeletonwrite @jellyzelek

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sparrowofthedawnsworld · 8 months

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For everyone’s entertainment (because according to my friend, it’s hilarious that I’ve fucked to nearly every gvf song) -

Greta Songs that I have done the deed to and how I rank them:

Age Of Machine, 10/10 - this one hit. I can’t even begin to explain it. If you haven’t put this song on your filthy playlist, it should be on there. Go do it.

The Archer, 10/10 - Gah damn. That’s all I can even say about this one.

The Barbarians, 10/10 - Obviously. I mean, come on. Good shit.

Frozen Light, 10/10 - That bass line? She’s sexy, so therefore… it fits a sexy environment.

Fate Of The Faithful, 9.5/10 - This one is down right NASTY. Like holy fuck I’d let this song put a baby in me. DAYUM when I tell y’all this one just hits different. Jesus christ.

Stardust Chords, 9/10 - I know what y’all are probably thinking… but it’s so good.

The Falling Sky, 9/10 - Was definitely adding to the intensity. In the right situation, this shit will get you railed.

Built By Nations, 9/10 - Once again… if the vibes are right, shit will get you railed. It’s heavenly, really.

The Weight Of Dreams, 9/10 - This shit was almost like an otherworldly experience. The guitar solo??? Yeah. Mhm. Orgasmic.

Meeting The Master, 8.5/10 - The change in intensity throughout this song is really what makes it so good to me.

Sacred The Thread, 8/10 - This shit… whew. The drums sell it. The rhythm is immaculate, tbh.

Brave New World, 8/10 - would have NEVER truly expected this one to hit as hard as it did. Good god.

My Way Soon, 8/10 - This one is solid. If it played again while I was doing it, I wouldn’t be mad at all.

Watching Over, 7.5/10 - I can’t say it let me down. It didn’t. It doesn’t always fit the vibes, though.

Lover, Leaver (Taker, Believer), 7/10 - Again, could absolutely dig it in the right situation, otherwise I would deem it a little much.

The Indigo Streak, 6.5/10 - While the solo is sooo fuckinggg sexy, the song overall would not be my first choice, but I don’t dislike it, either.

Safari Song, 6.5/10 - this one was pretty fun after you get beyond Josh’s scream at the beginning 💀

Age Of Man, 6.5/10 - This one would genuinely be sooo much higher on the list, if it didn’t make me so damn emotional.

The Cold Wind, 6/10 - this one’s crazy but… on the occasion I like it.

Light My Love, 6/10 - Unless you’re trying to be all sweet and sappy, I’d stay away from this one… but it was lovely. I won’t lie. I liked it.

Trip The Light Fantastic, 5.5/10 - I loved it and also felt weird about it all at once???

Caravel, 5/10 - I… As sexy as the bass line is, for some reason it just didn’t quite scratch the itch in my brain all the way.

Talk On The Street, 5/10 - Before actually fucking to it, I would have said, “hell yeah, I bet this one would be great!” But it’s just mid.

Heat Above, 5/10 - So sweet… but i’d rather not have flashbacks to my greta show and suddenly be on the verge of tears.

Highway Tune, 4.5/10 - I tried it simply because Jake said it was in a sex scene…

Tears Of Rain, 4/10 - Lowkey… could have put this higher, but also I have to mentally prepare for this song or I will cry. Sooo… idk.

Broken Bells, 3/10 - Great if you like choking on sobs while having sex.

Flower Power 2/10 - This one played on accident… And i did lay there contemplating leaning over and skipping it.

You’re The One, 1/10 - I just… I can’t. It’s TOO sweet, like in a little highschool crush kind of way.

Farewell For Now, 0/10 - This one couldn’t have played at a worse time and I hated every second of it. Love the song, but not for THAT.

#inside sparrow’s mind #gvf #greta van fleet #sam kiszka #jake kiszka #danny wagner #josh kiszka #sammy gvf #jake gvf #danny gvf #josh gvf

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navnae · 1 year

Text

Imagine Eddie leaving a review at every job Steve had worked at and goes out of his way to say how the service was fantastic because of the cute employee that works there, Steve blushes every time he reads it.

“Read this one, ‘the cutie that served me ice cream today was so sweet, I’ll definitely be stopping by again!’ Or this one ‘came back to get some ice cream sadly the cutie that’s usually there he wasn’t today still good service though.’ Steve are you seeing this?” Robin asked while pointing to her phone. Steve covered his blushing face and swatted Robin’s phone away.

“Rob please! I can’t take it anymore.” Steve wanted this to stop immediately. Robin has brought the online reviews to his attention and one customer specifically loves talking about him. Which he hated because he always got flustered because of it.

“I think you want to hear this one, ‘went to scoops today and the service was just top notch! The girl who works there is so sweet and naturally funny-“

“You’re just reading a review about you.” Steve interrupted. He earned an eye roll from Robin.

“Conceited much? I’m getting to that part ‘but her coworker just took the night away for me. He was also naturally funny, captivating, kind, and overall a beautiful soul that made my experience an unforgettable one.” Robin finished. Steve couldn’t help but smile at the compliment. That’s probably the sweetest thing he’s heard from anyone.

“Okay that’s kind of sweet.” Steve said shyly.

“They also added ‘the uniform is doing him justice, what a nice piece of eye candy while enjoying some sweet ol ice cream on the side’ huh… I think you have an admirer Steve.” Robin raised her eyebrows in a playful flirtatious way. Steve shook his head quickly dismissing the idea of anything of the sort.

“I don’t have an admirer. If anything that sounds like a loyal customer to me.” Steve replied while crossing his arms. Robin started laughing making Steve turn to her with confusion.

“Loyal is the right word because recently they’ve left comments on the family video website too.” Robin said in between laughs. Steve’s eyes widened once he processed what she was saying.

“What are you talking about?” Steve asked. Robin turned her phone towards him and his eyes scanned the comments that were about him. Steve wondered who this person could be, was it someone he knew by any chance?

“Listen to this one it was posted yesterday, ‘came in early in the morning to get a new set of movies and the cutie with the best personality was working that morning, already starting my day off just right.’ You have to find out who this person is they’re actually in love with you.” Robin teased.

“No one is in love with me. Now can we please get back to work?” Steve blurted out. Robin raised her hands to surrender then went to the back to straighten up a few things in the storage closet.

Steve stayed at the front of the store behind the counter to keep an eye out for the register and if anyone bothered to come in. He was also keeping his eye out for the anonymous commenter because curiosity got the best of him. Depending on who the customer was he might just add a little bit of enthusiasm to the conversation to keep the ball rolling and if they commented about their conversation specifically then he would know who it is. This idea floated in his head for awhile until the door of the store flew open ringing the bell. Steve looked up to see Eddie coming in with a big smile on his face. Occasionally Eddie would pop up to get some movies and kill the little bit of time he wanted to waste by talking to Steve until another customer came in. Eddie walked towards the counter and placed his elbow on it then put his chin in the palm of his hand.

“Morning, Harrington. Everything going smooth?” Eddie asked sweetly. Steve didn’t know why but he felt butterflies in his stomach when Eddie stared talking. The change in his voice so quickly just caught him off guard.

“Y-yeah it’s not really busy around here in the morning and I’m thankful for that.” Steve joked. Eddie laughed softly while looking down at the counter then met Steve’s eyes. Steve could feel his heart beating so hard in his chest that he had to look away or he might actually die. “Um… so what are you looking for today?”

“Actually I came to see you. Maybe this weekend we can hangout and watch some movies, drink, smoke, get fat off of popcorn. How does that sound?” Eddie leaned in a little as he asked the question. Steve’s mind went blank for a few seconds before managing to snap out of his thoughts.

“Sounds good, text me the time and I’ll be there.” Steve said happily. Eddie smiled and bit his lip while taking his elbow off the counter.

“Definitely. See ya then cutie.” Eddie said before winking then exiting the store. Steve laughed it off. He was used to Eddie being as flirty as possible whenever he was around Steve.

Now Steve had to focus on the task at hand, who was the anonymous commenter?

Edit: WOAH! I didn’t expect people to actually enjoy and want more??? But I will definitely give a follow up story! Also this is modern day I forgot to mention that 😅

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galactiquest · 9 months

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Unexpected Waltz

Fandom: Trigun Pairing: Millions Knives x Reader Other Characters: None Notes: So ummm... Hi!!! I’ve been quiet on this blog for a while because I’ve been hemming and hawing about whether I want to keep participating in this community with others (I haven’t had a whole lot of good experiences tbh) but... I decided to whip up a little Knives x Reader for old time’s sake. Please enjoy! Also, this song inspired the title and general feel. Word count: 921

Warnings: None, just some dancing and a semi-established relationship. And maybe very slightly out of character Knives but this is my house and I get to decide how Knives talks.

[Also crossposted to AO3!]

“I see no point to the task of dancing.”

Millions Knives, the Plant who was forever unconvinced that there was any substance to be taken from extraneous activities and pastimes of humans. And you, the human who loved him and desperately wanted him to do something nice with you.

You knew there’d be a rift between your worlds the moment you met him, regardless of whether that led to a relationship or not. Knives was just so convinced that he was different that he couldn’t fathom partaking in any sort of human activity.

Which, at first, you didn’t really mind–you wouldn’t push him, and he wouldn’t push you. Most of the time.But today, you really wanted to dance with him. Everything felt right, but he stayed stiff as a board on the other side of the room, arms crossed as crackly music came from the record player.

“Come on,” you huffed, mirroring his pout. “Just one little dance won’t kill you, you know.”

“Waste of energy,” Knives added. “Waste of time. All of it, a waste.”

“You said the same thing about kissing and hugging and cuddling at night.”

“And I’m still right,” he snided. “But it’s beneficial to you. That kind of contact releases oxycontin, a critical chemical for your wellbeing.”

“And you don’t feel even a little nice when we do it?”

Knives closed his eyes and refused to answer.

“Well. Dancing feels good, for one. It’s nice to move your body in a rhythmic fashion.” You spun around a little. “Humans have developed a multitude of dancing styles, both for music and without music. Some dances are sacred and used to tell stories, while others are just for fun.”

“...So it’s important.” He was looking away, but had a slight quirk to his lip that could imply a smile–the I’m-not-interested-but-since-it’s-with-you-and-I-like-you smile.

“To me, at least.” You held out a hand. “Will you at least try it? Just once?”

Something he’d heard a lot. When you urged him to take a bite of your cooking, or to draw on some scrap paper, or read a book that wasn’t another tome full of boring nonsense. And every time, he’d groan and lament about how you were expecting too much out of his greatness, how he shouldn’t bother with these things–but he’d still do them, so who was the real winner?

Both of you, actually. He just refused to admit that he’d both lost and won.

After a moment of hesitation, he approached, putting his hand in yours. Ever so gently.

That was the one far cry of the Knives that stayed in your house and laid in your bed from the one that used to be in the elements of the desert–he was gentle in most everything he did, despite his cruelty before, despite the harshness in his words. Maybe he knew that you were human and mortal, and you could only handle a mere fraction of his power before snapping. Maybe he really didn’t want you to break, because he finally found someone who could hear him.

Maybe he didn’t want to be alone.

You placed his hand on your shoulder, reaching the matching one on your side to his hip (his shoulder was far too high to hold comfortably) and interlacing fingers on the other side.

“I’ll lead us, okay?” You were alright with dancing–not an expert, but not completely clueless, either. A simple step would be fine.

“...Alright.” Knives usually hated relinquishing control, but he had extremely barebones dancing skills, if any at all, and didn’t want to step on your toes. Literally or figuratively.

Slowly, you moved your feet to the beat of the music, letting Knives follow in your footsteps. He was able to pick up the rhythm easily, though he was primarily just copying what you were doing. You took him around the room, spinning gently, watching his unmoving expression as he stared at you. There was a slight gleam in his eye–the gleam of I-like-you-but-I’m-trying-not-to-show-it.

As the music continued, you pulled away from him slightly, twirling yourself around his arm. He seemed a bit confused, but your smile was enough for him to allow this to happen. There was a certain warmth in his chest that came from his hand on your shoulder, your hand on his waist, and the other hands intertwined to the side. It felt nice, as much as he loathed to admit it. Knives almost wanted the music to last forever, but it was coming to an end.

“I’m gonna dip you!” You said, bracing your hand behind his waist.

Knives sort of knew this move. He wanted to make some kind of remark, one along the lines of you won’t be able to hold me up, but his body reacted before he made up his mind. He fell backwards, letting you keep him close with one arm. You still strained against his weight–how can one man be so dense, you wondered–but were able to hold the move for a few seconds until the needle bumped itself off the record, music stopping.

Knives stood up, partially taking you with him as you slid off of him.

“Well? What did you think?” You asked, grinning up at him.

Knives huffed out of his nose, then replied. “It… Wasn’t that bad. But don’t expect me to do it again.”

The tiniest smile formed on his face as he turned away. I want to do it again so badly! Please dance with me again!

You knew him too well by now.

#galactifics #trigun x reader #reader insert #trigun imagines #millions knives x reader #knives x reader #those tags should be sufficient. now EAT #text #oh and feel free to send me an ask if you want...? maybe...? i'd love to try interacting with the community more i don't bite i prommy

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yueisyum · 1 year

Text

Don’t Think About It. (Part three)

Genre♥️college au/vacation au, enemies(not really) to fwb to lovers

Parings☎️haechan/donghuck x conflicted reader

Warnings🚨mentions of / alcohol consumption, and Use of nicknames, angsty!!!! Arguing? Sadness? Angst!!! Talking about love and the fear of love! (Philophobia)

Notes📌 This the part three, obviously. There is no smut, but there will be in part four. Yes, there will be a part four. This one is quite short, but that’s because I didn’t want to switch back to the college au in the middle of the same fic. So stay tuned for part four. And please don’t be shy, share your thoughts!

Ever since you were a kid, you made rules for yourself. Adding them as you grew older. And changing them as you experienced. Everyone has rules, wether they realize it or not.

Your rules were basic and simple. Crafted to perfection. And there were also some you didn’t even realize existed:

1. Boys have cooties(except for Johnny) << especially johnny

2. No falling behind <<< (school)

3. Date to marry experience <<< (boys)

4. Don’t be venerable <<< (liars)

5. Privacy is power

6. Stop being so understanding

7. Don’t allow others to love you (no “I love you”’s)

8. Don’t fall on love too quickly

Rule seven had a couple different reasons. Reasons that we don’t need to get into right now. But everyone who has ever “loved” you, didn’t seem to love you enough to stay; ripping pieces each time one of them left. So, you refuse to allow others to feel for you. Not truly. Always subconsciously inviting people into your life, people you know couldn’t hurt you.

But naturally, rules are meant to be broken.

Falling behind in school around the holidays.

Trusting too easily.

Being too understanding/to forgiving.

And allowing others to say those words to you. “I love you”. And you would continuously, stupidly believe them. nothing had changed. Your were always the stupid one, the girl who never understood who she was to people.

But you had rules, rules you tried your best to follow… until haechan.

•••

Muffled Music blared your ears, drawing you from your sleep. It was still dark out, but Haechan was still next to you. You were tired, but relived to feel his presence.

“What time is it?” you ask, Not bothering to check if he was awake.

“Don’t know” he responded, his voice far from tried or drowsy. You drew back to look at him, his body facing you. Haechans eyes find yours as soon as they come into view.

“Have you been awake?” You ask, your brows pinch together, He tried to act as if he had also just woken up. “Huh? No?”

You slightly sit up on the bed. “You totally were- you were watching me sleep!” You announce with a grin on your face.

“No, that would be creepy, and boring. On the other hand, watching you shower-“ you punch him and settle back down into the bed with a soft laugh. He winces but joins you in your laughter nonetheless.

“As much as I’m enjoying this…” heachan began, turning over to sit up straight. “…And believe me, I am” looking down at you with a stupid smirk. He continued “I’m afraid you have to go”

You paused for a moment.

Was all of this really just sex? You can’t believe that you let your mind slip- to forget that this isn’t real, for this long at that.

It’s just two friends helping each other out.

You reminded yourself.

Haechan pouted when he saw the look on your face, afraid you got the wrong idea. “Jenos been blowing up your phone. He’s wondering why you’re not joining the party, or why he can’t find you” He informs, hoping to ease the thoughts he knows have filled your mind. Your phone was in his hands, and you grabbed it. Looking through the notifications, you curse yourself- or Jeno actually.

Oh- Damn you jeno! What could he possibly need right now?

You sigh dramatically into your palms.

“I know” he said, his smile growing wider. “I wouldn’t want to leave me either”

You rolled your eyes and scouted from underneath the covers and his side. “Now you’ve ruined it.”

“Just as I intended” he chuckled, leaning back against the headboard, watching you make your way to the door.

It physically pained you to leave him. But you won’t acknowledge it more then that.

“Y/n?”

“Hyuck?”

“You can keep my shirt, it looks sexier on you”

“Ass” You replied, and grin plastered on your face, against your will. Then you opened the door and left with your phone in hand, making your way down the hallway.

The music slowly picking up in volume as you made your way into the kitchen/living room area. Though you saw almost no one. Until you peaked out the sliding doors to the backyard. Finally finding the sources of the music, along with at least 20 other people. Some people in the pool, some people grilling or just playing games. You smiled to yourself, you can feel that everyone was having a good time.

You decide you should change before joining them. As you make your way to your own room.

You think for a moment, you should probably check your phone.

JenO

______________________________________

|| JenO -

Hey, we are back from the store

Delivered

Where you at?

Delivered

y/n?

Delivered

Chaewon said she saw you with haechan, are you two talking?

Delivered

y/n it’s been 2 hours, are you ok?

Delivered

______________________________________

Damn it.

You enter your room, beginning to type all kinds of apologizes into your phone, when you look up to see Jeno sitting in your bed. “Jeno?”

He looks up from his phone to see you standing in the doorway… in heachans shirt…

“Looks like you two did more then just talk huh?” He was smiling, but he sounded agitated. And you can’t blame him.

“Sorry, I feel asleep”

“In his room?”

“Yeah…? Is that bad?” You finally enter the room to join him on your bed. He clears his throat while making room for you to sit next to him. “No, I mean- I don’t know” He answers, not looking at you. “I talked to Shihyun” he informs. You whip your head to look at him. His eyes still don’t meet yours. “She wants to try again” Jeno’s hands are fidgeting with his phone case. Waiting for your reaction.

“That’s great! Why aren’t you out there with her? I saw her in the pool.”

“Was looking for you”

“Why”

He finally turns to you. “Um, just wanted you to know that… that I’ve moved on”

“What!? From Shihyun? Wha- didn’t you just say-“

“-no not her, I love her” he interrupted quickly correcting your thoughts. You look at him confused. It sorta felt weird to hear him say those words. You didn’t like those words, but for some reason… hearing him share his heart to you about Shihyun made you feel as sense of adoration towards him. “Then what have you moved on from?”

“I-um… just- It doesn’t matter, just felt like I needed to say it out loud to you, it’s been suffocating me… but I’m happy that I found Shihyun, she really makes me really happy”

You can’t help but smile. Who needed kdramas when you have this? “And I also wanted to say that… uh… you mean a lot to me y/n, you are such an amazing friend, so encouraging and un-judgmental. I really appreciate you. Even if I mistook those feelings before.. I understand them now.”

You think for a moment, trying to make sense of his words. “What the heck are you going in about Jeno? Your not making any sense.” You laugh and stand up to begin looking for clothes. “I’m sorry, don’t worry about it. It doesn’t need to make sense to you, I just need to say it.”

“It’s Okay, don’t apologizes, I understand. Thanks for feeling comfortable enough to tell me” you smile while picking out an outfit to join the others in. Jeno watches you concentrate.

“I love you”

it was almost a whisper, you didn’t even hear it. He didn’t want you to. He knows how you feel about those three words. But he needed to say it. Out loud.

He really does love you, but not romantically- like he thought he did. But As a friend. As a person he was never scared to go to for help or advice. He loved you, and he would never leave you.

He smiles thinking about how lucky he is to have a friend like you.

“Okay I’ll go join the others.. meet us out there when your done changing.” He ends his rant with a pat to your head, making his way to the door. You nod and begin to change.

…

When you made you way outside, you find yuta and Yejun laughing at a joke Jisung must have made. Because he looked super proud of himself. His posture straightened, and he is puffing his chest out. Adorable.

Other groups of people, that your sure you’ve seen before, fill up the back patio.

Music and conversations fill your ears as you make your way towards the three. “Hey! Y/n! Nice of you to finally join us!” Yejun greets you with a smile and Jisung runs to hug you. “I feel like it’s been ages!”

“It’s been a couple hours ji” but you reciprocate nonetheless. “Jeno was looking for you” yuta informs with a small head nod. “Yeah I talked to him” you shrug and turn around to face the noise. Towards the People talking, and Shihyun and Chaewon are messing around in the pool. Isn’t it freezing?

“Y/n!”

You turn to your right to see Johnny running over. You try not to laugh when you realize he looks like a typical college jock. His hair is wet? Or maybe sweaty? There’s a drink in his hand and his jog looks ridiculous. Then you compare it to a dog, who’s just got done playing with the hose and you snicker even more. “What’s up?” You give Johnny a half hug and he takes another drink form his cup. Yejun and jisung continue whatever conversation they were having before you showed up. When you look back to Johnny, his face was slightly red and he couldn’t stand straight for the life of him.

He’s definitely drunk.

“Where’s haechan?” He asks, his voice is an octave louder so you can hear him over the music.

You don’t know why the the mention of his name threw you off. You felt odd. “How would I know?” You respond with a shrug. Johnny gives you the most unamused look you’ve ever seen. “Don’t give me that bullshit, you can’t tell me you two weren’t together this whole time” you slap at Johnny’s shoulder and glare at Him. “You talk really loud”

Johnny let’s out a laugh and hands you his drink. “Here hold this, he’s probably in his room, I’ll go get him.” Before you can even respond, Johnny’s running off, towards the sliding doors leading back inside the lodge.

You just stand there and look around once more. Haechan probably wants to sleep, you should’ve told Johnny that, but he’ll find out on his own.

When you spot Jeno and Shihyun in the pool, you can’t help but smile. She’s sitting on top of his shoulders, playing a game of chicken with another couple. Your smile grows when Shihyun wins and yells in victory. Cute!

•••

The rest of the night consisted of you drinking and talking with Chaewon and Yami. Chaewon was going on a rant about how people who ‘don’t like alcohol’ are ‘pussies’ or whatever. You laugh all throughout her tangent because the only person who came to mind was Jaemin. “Y/n, do you want to come with me to get more drinks?” Chaewon asks with a pout, her face was round but so perfectly defined, and her outfit looked absolutely amazing on her. You smile to her direction and nod. She always amazes you, her beauty, her amazing personality, she had no flaws. You admire her. “Where are they?” You ask.

“They are over by- Haechan! over there!!” Chaewon pointed towards the coolers that were stationed next to the grill. Jaemin, haechan and mark were all over there. When you saw him, you couldn’t look away.

You didn’t really think he would be joining the party, but there he was. He was wearing a black t-shirt and loose sweatpants. For a moment you felt hurt. Why wouldn’t he come to you? Does he not want to talk to you? Or spend time with you. Even after you two had sex? Is he avoiding you now? Is it’s awkward?

Then you had to mentally stop yourself:

This cannot be Happening.

You should not care about what he’s doing.

You shouldn’t care about what he’s wearing.

You shouldn’t be upset that he didn’t choose to find you first.

You should not care about Lee Donghyuck…

Then your faces with his eyes in yours. A flash of cold rushed throughout your body. You whip your head back to Chaewon so fast, your vision almost went blurry. Curse the gods, Haechan just caught you looking at him. It took almost all your strength not to drown yourself in the pool in-front of you. “Okay let’s go” Chaewon didn’t seem to notice the small interaction, maybe it’s all in your head. But that moment felt like it lasted forever. She hops up from the small pool chair and held her hand out to you.

“Actually, I don’t think I should get up-“

“-Why?”

Her eyebrows cutely pinch together and her smile drops to a frown. “Yami should go with you, my head really hurts” you squeeze your eyes shut and bring a hand to your head, as if in pain. “What? Girl- let’s gooo” she grabs at your hand and drags you to your feet. “Yami, you too, let’s go” then Chaewon pulls you along as she makes her way around the pool.

As your walking up to the group of boys, you notice Haechan’s eyes following your figure. God this is embarrassing. He has this stupid knowing look on his face, and you almost jumped in the pool. Instead you look at the water and the people in it, refusing to look up, or take any chances of making eye contact with him again. You don’t want things to be awkward, you just want to act normal.

WHY CANT YOU ACT NORMAL!?

“Haechan, where have you been all night?” Chaewon presses as she opens the cooler and grabs some cans of beer. “In my room” he starts, his eyes flicker to you, giving you a smile then back to Chaewon “you look nice” he smiles at her and she beamed in response. “Thank you” her dramatic giggle makes the group laugh in unison.

Woah. At least he smiled at you. He’s definitely trying his hardest to act normal. But you can tell he doesn’t know what to do either. You cough awkwardly, you didn’t mean too. Your trying your hardest to not draw attention to yourself, but that’s all haechan is giving you… attention.

“Are we planning on partying all night it’s almost 4 in the morning” mark begins.

You shouldn’t have been upset that he called Chaewon pretty, or griping at your arms, and holding yourself like this, or burning up this easily. You wished he would’ve said those words to you. The only thoughts that can fill your mind now are him. He isn’t looking at you anymore, his gaze is now fixed on Chaewons and Yami, you sigh in relie, but at the same time, you feel overwhelmed with emotions. Maybe he thought you wanted space? That wouldn’t be a reach, but he’s wrong, if that’s the case.

“We don’t have any other plans! I could go for 12 more hours!” Yami replies, and once again the group laughs.

So wrong.

“I’ll probably head inside soon” heachan informs with a sip of his drink.

“What you just got out here!?” Chaewon complains with a pout. The conversation continued on, and you stopped keeping track of it. Lost in your own mind once again.

Maybe he is satisfied, that’s what he wanted right? You helped him out, and he’s satisfied. But your not, you want more then that. More then sex. And you’re not pushing it down this time, your allowing yourself to feel it, maybe it’s the alcohol? Or the cold that made you feel alone, more then usual.

“Y/n?” You blink to he direction of your name. to Johnny. “Yes?” You drop your arms to the side in order to seem natural, ignoring the air that creeped up your skin, causing goosebumps.

It’s freezing.

“Aren’t you going to go with them?” Mark asks, as he gestures his hand behind you.

“Who?”

“Chaewon and Yami? They left already? …Are you drunk?” He questioned, scanning your face. You glance over at mark and Haechan, then behind you. Chaewon and Yami have made their way halfway around the pool now.

When did that happen?

Haechan eyes you suspiciously, almost asking you ‘what’s wrong?’. You send him a reassuring smile. That didn’t seem as awkward as before, and you felt relieved. “Yeah I think I am, I should probably go lay down” you blink twice more, preparing yourself to walk, and turn on your heal, heading straight for the sliding doors that lead back inside.

Is it bad that you wanted to be alone with him again? Jeno had already talked to you, there’s no longer a reason to be out here. can’t you two go back into his room? In His bed? Is that weird? Would that be weird?

When you make your way back inside, you plop down in the couch and take a couple deep breaths. Did he not think YOU looked nice?! Why didn’t he compliment YOU? I mean of course Chaewon looked perfect but-

Nonononono Nono quit it. Stop!

you feel so unbelievably confused. Every feeling is so unexplainable. Jealous? Annoyed, hurt? Alone? Tired? Drunk? Flustered? It’s all too much!

Just two friends helping each other out.

“Y/n?”

“What?!” You respond frustrated, you didn’t realize how upset you felt until your tone left your mouth. You lift your head to the person in front of you to apologize. Haechan stood there, with a cup in his hand and a surprised look on his face. You hesitate for a moment. Looking away, to spare yourself some dignity.

“Sorry, I was just-“

“-Thinking?”

“Yeah”

“You do that too much” he smiles and sits next to you. When he did, you felt your heart calm, your skin and muscles relax. And your brain stoped running so fast. It felt as if you just took some kind of drug. Intoxicating your senses.

“How much did you drink?” Haechan’s head is facing yours on the couch, you turn to him and realize the distance between you two is non existent. “Two” you mumble, distracted by this familiar position.

“Two? Two what?” Haechan chuckles at your absent mindedness. “Two… somethings, I don’t remember” you shake your head and turn back to look at the blank tv. “Hm interesting. Do you want some water? There’s some in the fridge-“

“- Nono, no water” your head shakes faster at the thought of his presence leaving you. “Okay” he chuckles again. Your lost, you don’t know what to say, or what to do. Your just… lost. You’ve never felt this feeling, it’s foreign. And it terrifies you. Your scared that you have no control over your words or actions anymore.

His body, his heat, his comfort, and safety saturated you. He fed the parts of you that are needy and starved. He grounded you and you wanted more. Then you realized that its Haechan that made you feel less alone.

And as selfish as it was, you hoped you wouldn’t be alone ever again.

“Hey…”

This is all too much…

…To much, all at once…

“…Y/n”

He smells like.. like him. And he’s so warm, almost like he’s been living on the sun for the past couple of months.

Haechan:

Full sun

Makes sense.

“Y/n” he calls once more, this time turning to you, probably checking to see if your are still alive or breathing.

“Yes?” You finally respond and look to him. “Your cutting off my circulation” he smiles and you look down at his arm. Your hands wrap around his bicep, gripping onto him like you’ll fly away if you let go. “Sorry”

When did that happen?

“It’s okay, just relax”

“I’m relaxed” you lighten your grip and rest your head on his shoulder. “Did you catch feelings yet?” He teased with smirk, you laugh lightly, your eyes remaining on the blank tv, as if there’s something playing.

Yes you did.

“You wish”

And yes he does.

“Did you?” You ask looking up at him. His gaze remains on the blank screen.

“Not a chance” he answers with a smile.

“Good” you nod and blink away thoughts that you wish would quit reappearing at the worst times. “Do you regret it?” Haechan asked, this time his voice is almost at a whisper. Haechan is a person who needs a lot of reassurance. And your not very good at that kind of thing… but you’ll try for his sake.

“No” he nods at your response this time, remaining quite as you make yourself comfortable- practically cuddling him.

You then slouch further into the sofa, into him. You can hear his breaths, they’re calm and paced. You try your hardest to match his, almost dying in the process. When you start panting, Haechan begins laughing. And you join him. That was ridiculous.

“Y/n? Do you remember my last birthday?”

“The one when we all went to that terrible restaurant? And Jisung threw up?”

“Yeah, but after that, when we ended up getting take out, at your place?”

“Yeah? Why?”

“When I joined you on your balcony, did you mean what you said?” Oh no. No no no no. Gosh this can’t be happening, everything was going so well.

“What do you mean?” You front, your body stiffens and your eyes shut to prepare for impact.

“The words you said, did you mean them?”

Yes… yes you did. But you can’t tell him that. He can’t know that. “I don’t remember any of that” you shake your head, trying your best to end the conversation.

“You don’t?” You feel his head turn to look down at you. You try your best to act as nonchalant as possible.

“No? Maybe your confused with someone else”

“Impossible”

You bite at your lip and curl your fingers into a fist to ground yourself.

“You told me that you only befriend people you knew couldn’t give you what you needed. Because.. you didn’t want to feel like you’ve lost something- you know if they ever left-”

“I did?” Yes you did…

“Yes. Then I asked if you didn’t think I was capable of giving you what you needed…”

“You did?”

“Yes. And you told me that you never actually choose me…”

“Hm-“

“-what did you mean by that?”

You meant that: heachan was capable of giving you everything you’ve ever wanted or needed, and that terrified you, so you would never have chosen him. He just entered your life, and there was nothing you could do about it but pray he would never leave. But alas, that’s not something y/n would ever admit. So you won’t.

“I’m- I don’t know. I don’t remember that”

“You weren’t drunk… you never explained what you meant and we- we kissed. do you remember-”

Yes.. god yes. You remember it like it happened just now. You remember thinking about how you would never bring it up. About how you would have to learn to forget about it. But of course Haechan won’t allow you to. He did, for a while, you assume he’s probably tired of you acting as if these moments never happened.

“-No, no. No we didn’t” you begin to shake your head again, your body moves to sit up and away from him. Your panicking.

“We did-“ haechan follows you, sitting up to look at you in the eyes. “-no we didn’t, you must have me mixed up with someone else-“

His eyebrows furrow together, you can almost taste the frustration building in his head. “I wouldn’t mix you up with anyone… who else could it have been-“

“Chaewon-“

“No, it was you. I would never kiss Chaewon” he shakes his head this time, his eye close to ensure his seriousness.

“But you called her pretty”

“That doesn’t mean I would ever kiss her-“

“-But you would kiss me?” You challenge, with a scoff. You turn your body to face him in the couch. Both of you are obviously heated and neither of you are willing to be completely honest with yourself a or each other. He doesn’t answer… because yes he would, but are you ready to hear those words… no.

“Exactly-“

“Why are you refusing to accept it?”

“I’m not-“

“You are” his gaze on you becomes more angry then upset or frustrated. You look at him for a moment longer before ripping your eyes away from his piercing ones. “I just don’t remember that” you cross your arms over your chest and try your hardest to look at verything in the empty living room but him.

“No, your choosing not to…forget it, that’s not what’s important Right now. I just want to know what you meant by that… that I’m incapable of-“ he begins, but you refuse to hear him say those words, so you give in… sorta.

“-I didn’t- I just… I don’t know, I wouldn’t have chosen you, if that’s what you’re asking”

“Because?” Haechans eyes flicker between yours, hoping your gaze will answer the questions you’re refusing to.

“Because… just because” you tried to think of a response for a moment, but the only one that came to mind was the one you didn’t want him to hear. When he continues to glare at you, you give in once more. Turning to him and letting out a sigh you explain yourself to the best of your ability: “Because your a good person, and I knew that if you left me… I would lose something”

“Something? What do you mean by something?” His face changes in almost an instant. Like you’ve said before, Haechan is someone who needs a lot of reassurance, and your not very good at explaining your feelings.

“This is stupid” you turn away from him once again, and he absolutely hates it.

“What would you have lost.. if I ever left you?”

“Why are you asking me this?”

“Why won’t you answer me?”

“It doesn’t matter, I don’t need you using it against me.”

“Against you? What does that mean!?” If you were actually looking at him, you would’ve seen how hurt he looked at those words.

“Just stop”

“Stop what? Being confused? Because that’s kinda your fault” he tries to laugh but he can’t.

“I don’t want to have this conversation anymore”

“Why do you keep treating me like I’m your enemy? I wouldn’t use anything ‘against’ you, or leave you.. ever” he tries to look at you in the eyes, but you refuse.

“Okay”

“Okay? That’s it?” Now he’s mad.

“Stop dragging this on haechan” you drop your hands from around you and glare at him.

“Haechan? Y/n what the hell?” He didn’t mean to yell, but he was upset, angry, sad, offended? All of them! You can’t do this anyMore, your not ready to have this conversation. It all escalated so quickly, you didn’t have time to think properly.

“I’m going to bed” you bring yourself to your feet and grab your phone to leave. You know haechan won’t force you to stay, but that doesn’t mean he won’t try to convince you to.

“Y/n.. y/n wait let’s finish this conversation, please.” He look up at you and watches you walk around the other couch and towards the hallway. Your upset, you know you shouldn’t have let yourself get this heated, and you know you shouldn’t have let that conversation go the way it did.

“I’m drunk and tired is this isn’t the best time to be talking to me”

“That isn’t fair, y/n..”

When you made it to your bedroom you sit on one of the beds, bringing your knees to your chest and stared into space.

You feel like such an idiot.

But it can no longer be avoided, the longer you spend with haechan, the more you realize you can’t live without him.

How could you have let yourself get this far with him!?

You had rules.

But then again, rules are made to be broken.

Taglist:

@nctzennikki09 @mings-cafe @gaeulswrld @chimiwimi @aliceinwhateverland

In all honesty, I’ve done better, however, the Juicy parts are in part four… so🤷‍♀️ yeah! Please let me know if you have any:

Questions

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loserharrington · 8 months

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i’d like to preface this by saying i am not an expert on religion (or non-religion) this is simply information i’ve learned over the years of research and talking to those who do practice satanism. if i’ve got anything wrong feel free to correct me

with that being said, i’ve always had this idea that The Munson Doctrine followed the rules of the church of satan. be it the 9 satanic statements or the eleven satanic rules

eddie has a laveyan cross patch on his vest so he must practice satanism to some extent. Especially since it’s a pretty large patch in an obvious place.

it’s sort of complicated because it’s not really a religion but it’s still a practice. (one of personal freedom and rationalism.) it’s basically things he lives by to better himself and the way he interacts with others. the “rules” don’t need the approval of any deity because satanism rejects the idea of all gods. (it goes hand in hand with atheism) it simply encourages individuality, skepticism and living your life the way you want to no matter how “sinful” it may seem to others.

i think it’s safe to say eddie resonates with this. he’s seen blatantly rejecting and criticizing societal norms and questioning why he and his friends are seen as freaks and targeted because of their interests

now here’s where i start inferring things about how he practices

i’m sure he’s added to these rules (hence the name Munson Doctrine instead of a direct reference to the rules of the church of satan) but i think it still loosely follows those rules. eddie just seems like the sort of person who’d take something like this and make it his own, which is essentially what satanism is. (again, it’s not a religion so it doesn’t require specific rituals to be done)

or, he misunderstood or interpreted some of the rules given to him differently than others might’ve, which lead to the quote that started this whole rabbit hole i’ve fallen down.

Quote: “I just couldn’t accept the fact that Steve Harrington was actually a good dude. … No way man, NO WAY, that like, flies in the face of the laws of the universe, and my own personal Munson Doctrine.”

i’m leaning toward the idea that he added his own rules and beliefs to the list because satanism encourages freedom and self expression, so he can essentially do whatever he’d like with his practice as long as he’s not infringing on the rights of others. (again, this would explain the name Munson Doctrine)

he might have added things (such as bullies/bystanders never changing. i.e: steve harrington now being a good dude when, in eddie’s eyes, he wasn’t before) because of his own experiences with people like that. [read here for more on that]

regardless of what he might’ve added or why, i do think that the Munson Doctrine is something he actively lives by. (ignoring the fact it could have just been a joke he threw in there to express his shock on how much his perception of steve had changed)

now here’s the fun part. my head canon i built off of this head canon.

i like to think that eddie didn’t come up with the munson doctrine on his own. his mother might’ve been a big influence in why he practices laveyan satanism.

now here’s why i think that:

1. it’s obvious eddie has some sort of ill feelings about his father, going as far as to say he told himself he didn’t want to “wind up like he did”.

this could just be him referencing the fact his father has been incarcerated for various crimes or it could be him referring to his character as a whole including his religion

this ties into fact that we see Wayne (who we assume is Eddie’s father’s brother due to their last names) is actively religious — at least enough to have religious decor around the trailer so it’s safe to say the munson brothers grew up religious

2. we know absolutely nothing about eddie’s mother which means i can make it all up !

eddie referring to his personal beliefs as his “Munson Doctrine” could imply that he’s not the only munson who follows these rules. he does say it’s his “personal” doctrine so i will choose to believe that is in reference to the new things he’s added as he’s grown up and experienced more things in his life

but before then, his mother could have instilled rules into him that he still follows to this day. rules such as these:

i just love the idea that eddie still has some connection to his mother and this is just one of the ways he honors her, but the idea of eddie finding comfort in satanism later in his life due to feeling alienated by the people of Hawkins because he’s different is just as good

in conclusion:

i choose to believe the munson doctrine wasn’t just a silly throw away line, and it ties into the religion he seems to practice

#stranger things #eddie munson #character analysis #eddie munson character analysis #steve harrington #steddie #stranger things 4 #the munsons #the munson doctrine #steve/eddie #steve x eddie #☕️

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shina913 · 2 years

Text

The Boyfriend Experience | JJK

The Boyfriend Experience: Jungkook

The BFE: Masterlist

Pairing: Escort!Jungkook x Fem!Reader

Rating: M

Genre: Fake!dating; fluff; light angst; SFW (generally)

Warnings: Sexually suggestive conversations and tones; cussing; alcohol consumption; boyfriend-for-hire; some kissing; JK is very touchy here

Word count: 9,355 words

Summary: 💬 He’s a confident man who takes pride in his appearance, but also in how he treats other people. He loves to have a good time, but still holds strong values on being respectful and well-mannered. Chivalry is not dead!

A/N: Ackk--okay so...I didn't mean for this to be super long but it just worked out that way! I really wanted a sweet, encouraging, JJK story. I'm also projecting a bit because...I'm a little frustrated at my job. Anyway, I hope you'll like it. It's smut-free but I hope you'll still find it endearing?😬 I do love how the boys are encouraging to fans, especially on their social media posts and such so I wanted to highlight that a bit here. I still added hints of thirst...because I'm me. 🤷‍♀️

A/N2: Thank you to my sis @internetjunkdrawer for beta'ing and being so supportive even as I kept switching up this story for the Nth time.

A/N3: If you want to read about JK and all of his sexy glory, there's always Coquet 😘

A/N4: LMK if you catch a couple of easter eggs here!

‼️IMPORTANT: Although the narration will include Jungkook's name, OC/Reader will not address him as so because she booked him under an assumed alias. Weird, I know but--let's just go with it 😉

You were proud to be a self-made woman. You had a steady corporate job, an actual retirement fund, and a decent apartment with a bedroom and a kitchen. You didn’t have any responsibilities other than your bills and yourself.

Things could always be worse, you thought. On the other hand, things could be better.

You valued your independence. You wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world. But you couldn’t deny that you had some days when you would feel pressure to lock things down with a partner or significant other.

The company you worked at was not only headed by predominantly male staff but the two women who were in upper management positions were married and had children.

Although you had a great track record, you’ve been stuck in the highest mid-level position for a few years. Recently, you’ve helped bring in new contracts, additional revenue; not to mention that all of those clients raved about you.

You’ve worked very hard and were fully expecting a promotion before the end of the year. You knew it had to be in the bag!

Today, you had a scheduled lunch date with your former coworker, Miri Jang, whom you haven’t seen since she left the company. You talked about coming so close to making it to senior account manager in the last couple years but for some reason, kept falling short.

“I think it’s my time, Miri. It should be,” you remarked.

“Not to burst your bubble, YN but don’t hold your breath,” Miri responded cynically.

You laughed. “Are you kidding me? I had the best performance this last quarter and the one before that! I could totally represent the company in front of big-name clients!”

She gave you a deadpan look. “To be the face of the company, you have to be relatable.”

Your eyebrows creased in confusion. “What the fuck does that mean?”

Miri inhaled sharply. “I was told once, ‘We need to foster a warm, welcoming environment to attract more lucrative clients to partner with’.”

“My clients like me just fine,” you retorted. “I haven’t heard otherwise!”

“Riiight…But at the end of the day, it’s a…” she gestured air-quotations with her hands, “‘Family-run company’, YN. They think that single employees are more likely to switch jobs more frequently because they see them as people who don’t believe in long-term commitments. But if you had a family? There’s a bit more incentive there,” she explains.

Much to your own family’s chagrin, you were unapologetically single. They think that if you aren't well on your way to being a wife or a mother by a specific age, there must be something wrong with you. And if you aren't looking for a partner, your parents would take matters into their own hands and arrange one for you.

You’re beautiful, smart, and have a great personality so…why aren’t you married or in a committed relationship?

Your biological clock is ticking!

It all gets very old and stale after some time.

You give her a quizzical look then shake your head in denial. “That doesn’t seem to add up.” You were unconvinced that your singlehood was an obstacle. If anything, you have more leeway to put in time and effort since you don’t have any other commitments other than your job!

“So you’re telling me that I need to be married or have children to secure this promotion?” You were incredulous.

Your former colleague threw her head back in laughter. “Of course not! At least, they can’t legally ask you to do that. They’re simply saying that being in a committed relationship or having a family helps with relatability,” she leered.

Come to think of it, most people from your cohort who were recently promoted were married and/or had children. Still–that can’t be legal, could it?

“If you ever want to take your talents elsewhere, my company has openings. We can definitely use someone like you on our team. Child-bearing hips not required,” she smiled and winked at you.

You went back to your office after that lunch date with your ego slightly deflated.

So you needed somebody in your life…to show that you were committed to your job? It sounded like bullshit and a small part of you wanted to prove Miri wrong.

The company’s year-end celebration was coming up. You initially planned on going alone, per usual. But with your recent discovery, you now needed a contingency plan. This event not only invited existing clients but it was also a huge networking opportunity.

It wasn’t like you didn’t try to bring a date to any of these company events. It’s just that there weren’t any good candidates for you. You weren’t dating anyone seriously–at least, not serious enough to bring them to company or family functions.

The only friends that you have were either unavailable or uninterested in accompanying you to the year-end party.

Until…you had a stroke of genius: hire someone to pose as your significant other for the evening.

Sure, you could have gone on dating apps or picked someone up at a bar–but those options might prove to be too complicated. If you were going to take a risk, you’d rather it be a calculated one.

******

“Do we have to have sex?” You ask Jungkook point-blank. He is an escort…and while that was usually on the table, it wasn’t what you were hiring him for.

“No.” He says simply. “This is why we have conversations like this. We need to come to an agreement about what you need or what you want.” He paused to regard you intently. He narrowed his eyes slightly, zeroing in on you. With one look, he escalated the temperature from warm to white-hot…just like that.

Geez, YN. Control yourself. Focus!

Downloading the app and creating your profile was easy. But getting your foot in the door–that was a whole other story. You had to sign an NDA before you could even gain access to this backroom speakeasy.

It was an exclusive club. One where you needed to be referred to by a current member. You got the idea from one of your high-value clients–with lots of disposable income and a frequent patron.

But even with the referral, not everyone is accepted that easily. You’d have to pass a background check and a health check, for your safety and the escorts’.

And my god! Once you were in, it was like being in a candy store. You could browse the app and explore escort profiles–which are recommended by compatibility based on your preliminary intake. Each profile had a photo and contained brief bios, personal interests, and ‘specialties’. It made you slightly uneasy, but this was better than getting a friend to do this for you. At least these guys were professionals.

On the app, you can schedule a ‘mini-date’ with an escort of your choosing. You would meet them at the secret club room–which was housed in the back of a high-end restaurant. Very unassuming, you thought, but it was an ingenious cover story.

This backroom had mood lighting illuminating the space. It was darker, quieter, more intimate. Each escort was on a mini-date, which was mostly one-on-one. You spotted a woman talking to two males. Either she was being greedy or she was having trouble deciding.

One of them looked sweet–he was touchy but not in a creepy way. He had a cute crinkle in his eye whenever he smiled. The other was soft-spoken but had a look so intense that you could swear it made any woman’s panties drop upon eye contact.

You could see her dilemma—they both looked very desirable. But poly-dates were not allowed in this club. To get the most out of your experience, you can only book one. That was a shame.

But it didn’t really matter since you were completely happy with your choice.

His photo and profile intrigued you. Of course, that wasn’t his real name. None of them used their real names–which was fine. Unfortunately, you had to use your real name since you’d have to take him out in public.

Unlike those dating apps you’ve perused a while back, the photos on this app were as close as you could get to the real thing. They were meant to whet your appetite–which was a great marketing tool because you certainly bought it. And now here he was…in the flesh. He seriously looked Photoshopped. How was that possible?

And he smelled like heaven. No, not one of those annoying woodsy-floral notes that seems to be popular amongst the smarmy senior account managers at your office. His scent was warm and spicy with subtle hints of citrus. It was more intoxicating than the glass of prosecco that you had in front of you.

You rubbed your already-crimson earlobe then cleared your throat to compose yourself again.

“Uhm, so, I guess you’ve read my profile on the app and my comments about what I need out of this experience?”

He hummed in agreement. “Yes, I read your notes.”

“Okay, great! In so many words, I need you to pretend to be my boyfriend for a work function,” you stated.

“Sounds simple enough–”

“I’m not done,” you respond curtly, making his eyebrows lift in surprise.

You softened the edge in your voice. “I apologize. I’m just a little tense, that’s all. I just…really need my plan to work and–”

“Hey, that’s what I’m here for.” Something about the look in his eyes offered assurance and it placated you.“I’m here to help you. And I apologize for interrupting you as well. Please, continue,” he urges.

“I’m trying to get in good with the senior partners at my firm. I’m done waiting for this promotion that should have already happened last year. Which is why…I’m taking matters into my own hands.” You couldn’t hide the bitterness in your tone.

“All of my bosses and some well-known associates will be at this party, along with their significant others. If I have to play their game, I’m going to need some backup.”

“Who are we trying to impress here, exactly?” He sounds genuinely curious. “I need to know who’s going to be in the room; how old they would be or gender ratio…”

“It’s…primarily men. The goal is to land a huge account that evening. If I can do that, it should show them that I deserve to be within their ranks. Our CEO will be there too, so if I can impress him–even better!”

Both his eyebrows flick up. “Okay. So, how do you see my role in this?”

You exhaled sharply. “I need to prove to my bosses that I am capable of commitment whether it’s with my job…or my personal life.”

If being single is seen as flaky or untrustworthy in your company, you want to prove them wrong. You could show them that you can be in a committed relationship. At least, until you’ve secured this promotion.

He stared at you for a few seconds to make sure that you were done talking before he responded. “Alright.”

Your face twitches slightly. “‘Alright?’ Simple as that?” You’re not sure why you were led to believe that this was going to be a more complex process given the vetting process you had to through just to secure this membership.

He lifted a shoulder. “Yeah. Just tell me when, where, and what talking points I need to look into so that I can do some research, if I need to.“

Talking points? Research?

He sounded thorough and really wanted to make a good impression to sell this story.

You give him a rundown of some interests that your senior staff had. Your CEO had a penchant for wine and recently invested in a small vineyard in Napa Valley. It was all he could talk about in the last few months. About midway through, Jungkook asks one of the servers for a pen and paper, continuing to take notes about the ‘job.’

You appreciated that attention to detail. You started to think that you may be getting your money’s worth.

You went on to describe a couple other people whom you wanted to impress at the party, most especially your managing director, who had a say in your promotion.

When you finished, it was his turn to talk through other necessary details about your arrangement.

“What’s our cover story? How did we meet, how long have we been together…in case anybody asks. Oh, and you’ll have to tell me how intimate I can be with you.”

“Intimate?” You croaked out. You thought that ‘intimacy’ was optional–which was why it was the first thing that you asked him during this mini-date. You internally panic and reach up to your earlobe to press on it gently.

“I mean, can I hold your hand? Are you okay with me touching you anywhere else? Can I kiss you?”

“Oh…uhm...s-sure.” Your eyes immediately flick down to his mouth briefly. It was very distracting.

“So…where?

Your breath hitched, snapping you out of your daze. “I beg your pardon?”

“Where can I touch or kiss you?”

You paused for a few seconds to consider this before you answered him. “Cheek, lips…” you say as casually as possible before quickly adding, “Not open-mouthed, though.”

He chuckles and nods along. “No problem.”

“And you can hold my hand, waist, or shoulders...” You rub your earlobe again as you try your best not to visibly sweat while you discuss parts of your body that this very unreasonably attractive and sexy-smelling man can put his hands on.

He cocked his head to the side, eyeing you carefully. “Is that a nervous tick?”

You stilled. “What is?”

“That,” he gestures at your hand fidgeting with your ears.

“Oh…uhm…coping mechanism,” you say nonchalantly. “It calms me down,” you reasoned.

He pursed his lips and nodded. “I see.” He subtly makes note of it.

You exhaled deeply. Focus, YN. You tell him where the event would be at and approximately how long you’d be there before he told you how much he would charge. You’d need him for about 3-4 hours. Once you agreed on his rate, you moved on to discuss the dress code.

“Do you have a tux or do you need me to rent you one?”

He chuckled again. “I have a couple, but I appreciate the offer.”

After hearing what his hourly rate was, you had no doubt he had a couple of tuxes…nice, bespoke ones, you presumed.

“What are you wearing?”

His question catches you off-guard. If you didn’t know better, you’d say it was a come-on. “Does that matter? We don’t need to coordinate or anything. This isn’t prom,” you joked.

He laughed. “I know that but I want to complement your outfit. Aesthetics draw people’s attention. I think it would help.”

You purse your lips, turning pensive for a bit but eventually acquiesced. He notes that you were wearing a jewel-toned dress.

“Okay, so I’ll need you to meet me at–”

“Wouldn’t it be more believable if we arrived in the same car together?”

You hadn’t thought about that. You were slightly apprehensive about driving around with a stranger, much less a boyfriend-for-hire. Then again, this wasn’t just any run-of-the-mill escort service. Everything about this place screamed high-class. The app also assures background checks and necessary clearances for all of their employees.

“If it makes you feel more comfortable, we can meet at a neutral place, then we can take my car to the venue.”

“Sounds practical,” you uttered then proceeded to set a meeting place and time so you could drive together. “Okay so, we’re all set? Do I give you the money now or…after?”

“You can give it to me when we meet–either before or at the end of the night, once you’re satisfied with the service,” he finished with a smile.

You cleared your throat. You were really doing this…

“So, I know our time’s almost up but did you have any more questions for me?”

“No.” You felt confident that your plan would work. “What about you? Do you have any questions for me?”

“If you don’t mind me asking, why are you single or…not in a committed relationship?”

You squinted at him suspiciously. “And how is that relevant to our agreement?”

“Knowing helps me form a bond with my clients. It also enhances the experience or customizes it, if you will.” He smiled faintly.

And then there it was again–that stare. Something about that look made you feel safe and encouraged you to open up.

You paused before you answered. You’d already worked this out in your head and justified it over and over…“I just haven’t found anybody who respects my independence. I know that seems counterintuitive especially if you’re trying to find a partner but–I want to be with somebody who is comfortable with the thought of me not needing them all the time.”

“That’s an interesting take.”

You sighed wistfully. “To me, the concept of ‘needing someone’ is because you’re expecting some sort of benefit from them…as if they’re necessary for you to function properly. That’s where dependency lies and I do not want to be dependent on anybody. I do, however, want somebody to love…or care about. Wanting something or someone involves desire, passion…comfort.”

His eyebrows lifted at that. “Wow,” he blew out. “That’s deep.”

You rolled your eyes and laughed, taking a sip of your drink. “I’ve just been in one too many relationships where my partners have always complained about me not making them feel needed. And the truth is, I don’t need them,” you said simply before turning serious again, “I want them in my life, but they just didn’t understand so I focused my energy elsewhere.”

He nodded in earnest. “I hope that I can fulfill some of your wants.”

“You already are,” you smiled.

The next morning, you called the assistant about changing your RSVP to include a plus one. Luckily, another guest backed out, and they were able to make room at your table for your date.

******

On the day of your company’s party, you pulled into the parking structure a few blocks away from the venue, where you and Jungkook agreed to meet. When you reach the third level, you spot him standing next to a sleek, black, two-door Mercedes C-class Coupe. You pull your own white, Mercedes E-class next to his and parked.

“Nice ride,” He remarked at your car as you stepped out.

“Thanks,” you responded, then gestured at his car. “Clearly…great minds think alike!”

“I wish! It’s a company car,” he clarifies. Your eyebrows flick up and wonder how many ‘companies’ like his had $50,000 cars on-hand for ‘business purposes.’

He gives you a once-over and compliments you. “You look beautiful, Miss YLN.”

“You’re not so bad yourself,” you compliment him back. He was dressed in a matte, all-black tuxedo with silk lapels and a black bowtie. The only hint of color on his outfit was a pocket square matching your dress’ hue, which you noted appreciatively.

And you thought he couldn’t get any sexier. You internally fanned yourself.

“First things first!” You opened your clutch and took out an envelope that took up most of the space in it and handed it to him.

He glanced down at it before accepting it. “Are you sure you don’t want to wait until the end of the night to see how it goes first?”

Still holding your hand out, you cocked an eyebrow at him. “Are you saying that I should have second thoughts about this?” You countered.

He smiled confidently before quietly taking the envelope from you, tucking it in his jacket’s inside pocket and smoothing the front once more.

“Ready for showtime?” He asks.

“As I’ll ever be,” you respond before he opens the passenger door for you to slide into.

******

Your company went all out—valet parking, red carpet rollout to welcome all guests.

Jungkook hands the attendant his keys and you both walk up to the entrance, hand-in-hand.

The event was held at a fine arts museum whose structure was originally modeled after a French-style pavilion. It was located on the other side of the city, over a hill with sweeping views of the Pacific ocean.

The venue had a large atrium in which guests would be drinking and dining. It was surrounded by large, concrete columns that covered the whole perimeter and at the center of it all was an illuminated glass pyramid—which was where a small stage was set up.

Since the museum housed many classic, invaluable collections, museum staff imposed restrictions on guests milling around with beverages or appetizers next to the art.

You scanned the room and spotted a few of your coworkers, already in deep conversation with a few of their current clients.

“Who are we going for first?” He asks.

You crane your neck in search of your managing director. You locate him having a conversation with your CEO. Two birds with one stone, you guided Jungkook in their direction.

“Sunbaenim,” you bowed, greeting both of them.

“YN-ssi!” They bowed back, acknowledging you.

You introduce Jungkook to them, using his assumed name, and they exchange handshakes and pleasantries.

“Are you in finance, too?” Your CEO asks him after some small talk about the weather and the party.

“No. I’m in the hospitality business, actually. Client services, specifically,” Jungkook replied. You couldn’t help but shoot him a sideways look.

“Ah, I see. And how is business?”

“Very lucrative, actually,” Jungkook smirked and side-eyed you back, making you clear your throat sheepishly.

“Really?” He asked dubiously. “How so?”

“Well, I work for a private company that caters to a very specific yet virtually untapped market. Our clients pay top dollar to acquire our services and we’ve been very successful at it in the last few years.”

“Huh. That’s interesting. Which company is this again?”

“Le Groupe De L’Atelier,” he answered smoothly. “Have you heard of it?”

Your scalp prickles while you shift uncomfortably. Jungkook sounded as if he was winging this whole part of the conversation. You wanted to jump in but your director interrupted.

“Oh wow–” he breathed out, sounding impressed. “Your restaurant is very popular. I’ve uh–been wanting to get in touch with your CEO for a while. Any way you can put in a good word for me?” Your director asks opportunistically.

You grimaced. “Oh, director-nim–he’s not here to work,” you interject nervously while squeezing Jungkook’s arm.

“That’s okay, jagi,” Jungkook says sweetly. “Hyung gets a lot of partnership offers but he prefers to keep the corporation closed and limits contractors.”

Your director frowns. “Oh…surely he needs a good financial manager–”

“I believe he already has one,” Jungkook counters with a smile. “And he’s had a great working relationship with her over the years so, I think that’s taken care of.” That effectively ended that topic.

“Anyway,” Jungkook piped up, “Hyung has been looking into partnering with a local vineyard to expand our wine offerings. Do you have any suggestions?”

Your CEO’s eyes brighten and he begins to wax poetic about his newly purchased vineyard.

Jungkook glances at you and gives you a small wink, which makes you visibly relax.

******

Next, you approached a group of other analysts from your team.

You went down the line and introduced your boyfriend. They shook his hand in awe and approval.

“See that guy over there?” You whispered to him, pointing towards your office rival on the other side of the room. He bent down, leaning his ear closer to you. “That’s Wonwoo. We’ve been gunning for the same promotion all year.”

Wonwoo was not as motivated or competitive as you were. He was technically a non-factor but you noticed that your boss had been meeting with him often to share some ‘tricks of the trade.’ You tried to think nothing of it but suddenly recalled your conversation with Miri not so long ago.

Wonwoo was married and he and his wife had a baby on the way. Picture-perfect family. 100% committed.

You took a gulp of your drink. All you need is just one huge, notable account–and that promotion should be yours.

“He looks pretty unremarkable to me,” he mumbled back before one of your colleagues brought up a new topic of conversation. Every now and then, with your consent, he would massage your neck or put his hand around your waist protectively. He also continued to call you ‘jagiya,’ but not in an obnoxious way. His actions made you giggle–which shocked you more than it did your colleagues. His touches felt like you were trapped in a heatwave…one that made you desperate for a cold shower.

At dinner, a steady stream of alcohol flowed along with the conversation. You scanned the table in search of clues to find out if anybody was onto you–perhaps a weird stare or some whispering. You didn’t see any of that. You and Jungkook seemed to be a very believable couple!

It also helped that he was incredibly charming and humble at the same time. He talked about his hobbies and varied interests which didn’t seem all that extraordinary to you but the entire table was enthralled by him.

For a moment, it felt like you were the envy of everyone not just at the table but the whole room. Jungkook was the date the women at your table wanted to be with. Every party guest and colleague you encountered wanted to be his friend.

He was certainly a gentleman in every sense of the word. Earlier this evening, he opened doors for you, helped you with your coat, pulled your chair out, and with your consent, placed his hand on your leg or caressed your bare arm every so often.

You’d never know if he was a genuine guy or just a great actor. Still, it felt nice to be treated well and showered with affection.

******

After place settings were cleared out, everyone continued to mill around the party.

“I think things are going well, don’t you?” You asked Jungkook absently while you scanned the room for your next target.

“I don’t see why they wouldn’t be,” he replies smoothly.

You turned your head to regard him. “You know, you’re really good at this,” you complimented him. He kept up with conversations, even laughing politely at your coworkers’ bland jokes. He chimed in topics that seemed way out of left-field but he was always prepared with a quip or two.

“Me?” He points to himself incredulously. “Honestly, I feel like I haven’t done much except hang back and watch you. I just crack a couple jokes and talk about random stuff. You, on the other hand, are amazing at what you do. I’m starting to forget what you needed me for,” he joked.

“You have the charm factor! And…suddenly, I seem much more interesting to my coworkers now that I’m out in public with a date,” you remark with slight bitterness.

“You’re doing just fine, YN,” he says in consolation.

You inwardly groan. “Thanks,” you say sardonically. “Now I just need to find a big fish to reel in to look even more appealing. Once I do that, it should definitely give me a boost.”

You took a sip of your drink while you tensely scan the room again for other potential clients. Suddenly, you feel a warmth curl around your bare shoulders.

“Relax,” he crooned softly. He reached up slightly, stroking your earlobe and applied the faintest pressure with his thumb. “You’re too wound up,” he purred.

You peered up at him, his eyes boring into you, making your breath hitch and your mouth dry. When you pulled on your earlobes, it was a coping mechanism that helped center you; whereas he managed to turn it into foreplay.

“Feel better?”

Quite the opposite.

“Uhm,” you stammered hoarsely. “Sure…t-thanks.” You take a huge gulp of your drink to distract yourself again until you recognize someone familiar in the crowd.

“Oh! That’s Jessica Nam! Wow, she actually came,” you gasped in disbelief and turned to Jungkook.

The name didn’t ring a bell for him so he continued to stare blankly at you.

“S-sorry.” You apologized for expecting him to know a potential client. “Her e-commerce company’s valuation just hit a billion dollars,” you explained. “She just announced an expansion.”

He eyed her for a second, noticing that she was sitting at her table alone, not counting the two other guests who didn’t seem to notice her. She was sipping on her drink quietly, and texted on her phone, looking bored. If this woman was so rich, why wasn’t anybody crowding her, he wondered.

“Okay,” he takes your word for it. “But how come nobody’s trying to fleece her?”

You sighed softly. “Her company sells lingerie–via subscription.”

“Oh…and…that’s…a turnoff?” He asks slowly.

You clicked your teeth. “No. But she’s what my boss calls ‘new money.’ She started off as a social media personality who then capitalized on her base when she launched her business. And it worked to her advantage! I think she’s impressive.”

“And she doesn’t count as a potential big fish to reel in?”

“I feel that she is! It’s my boss who thinks she’s too new to the scene. Word on the street is that she’s shopping for a reputable wealth management firm. Our company invited her in an effort to reach out but…I don’t think my boss wants to put much effort in it. He’s doing the bare minimum.”

“Well, what do you want to do about it?” Jungkook turned to you.

“I’ve been wanting to schedule a meeting with her but I can never get through. She’s a busy woman.”

“What’s stopping you now? She’s right there! It’s not like she’s got armed guards or whatever.”

You sighed. “I technically need to have my boss present before going for a big account like that.”

Jungkook looked at you incredulously. “It’s a party! You’re just trying to make conversation! This might be the ace you need for your hand.”

“Hmm…” You hesitated. You knew the protocol. Your boss allowed you to speak to potential clients but usually under his direct orders. He always had to make the final, formal pitch and afterwards, sign the client with the company. You didn’t want to steal his thunder. Otherwise, it would compromise all of the schmoozing progress you’ve made this evening.

“Aish, screw your boss! You clearly respect this woman’s hustle–use that to your advantage! What’s the worst that could happen?”

You know what? Fuck it!

“You’re right,” you say, fully fired up by Jungkook. “I’m gonna go reel me a big fish!”

Together, you approached Ms. Nam, introducing yourself and your ‘boyfriend’. When it was his turn to shake her hand, he made eye contact with her and you could have sworn that she got a bit of whiplash.

Despite that, he kept himself calm and collected and was his usual gentlemanly self. While you made smalltalk with her, his eyes wandered towards the one side of the atrium–where he found your director eyeing your movements.

******

As you chat up your potential client about what your company can do for her, Jungkook excused himself to get you another drink. Your conversation was sounding a bit technical and he didn’t want to cramp your style.

On his way there, he passes your managing director, who was now joined by your company’s CEO, looking like they were having a casual conversation. He was fully intent on ignoring it but his ears perk up when he hears your name. He walked back slightly and hid behind one of the columns to listen in.

“Do you see YN making her move with the mail-order panty lady,” your director quipped, making the CEO chuckle.

“Well, her profits have been trending upward showing no signs of stopping,” your CEO remarked. “It would be great if we can sign her exclusively to manage her finances.”

“I trust YN to get the sales-talk going. Luckily, since she’s only a junior analyst. She has to defer to me to sign clients,” your director points out.

“You know, if she books this meeting, it will really raise our profile,” your CEO adds.

“I know–which is why, I’m thinking about bringing Wonwoo to the formal pitch. He can seal the deal on this. I’ve been mentoring him in the last couple months.”

“He’s planning on buying a house up north, right?” your CEO wondered out loud.

“He is,” your director confirms. “He and his wife are expecting their first kid–would be nice to get a nice commission to cover some of that downpayment, huh?”

“Yes, I think that’s a great idea,” your CEO bemused. “Keep me posted on that progress, huh?”

“I will, sunbaenim.”

Jungkook, forgetting about his bladder, decided to double-back to where you sat. This was something that he needed to let you know right away.

******

“I love your spunk, YN!” Jessica Nam laughs.

You were making great strides in your conversation with Miss Nam. If it were up to you, you’d draw up a contract on a cocktail napkin right this second to seal the deal.

“Seriously, though–that business expansion that you’re planning? I think it’s genius and it’s the next logical step!”

“It is, isn’t it?” She remarked. “And please, call me Jessi. ‘Miss Nam’ makes me feel way older than I need to be. Well–” she suddenly switched tact, “It does come in handy every now and then…especially during business meetings with male financial advisors,” she smiled ruefully. “It’s probably the only way I can garner respect.”

You sighed regretfully. “I’m sorry to hear that, Jessi.” She was young and became financially successful unconventionally. Unfortunately, some people only saw her as a bag of money.

“One of your staff has been relentless with my assistant. He’s leaving messages at my office, asking for a meeting. He said ‘hi’ earlier, made some boring smalltalk…” she craned her neck to look around before spotting him in one corner by the columns. “That guy!” She gestured at your boss.

“Oh,” you say, slightly embarrassed. “Yeah, he’s my managing director,” you replied carefully.

Feeling slightly suspicious, she cocked an eyebrow. “That’s…interesting,” she drawled.

However, you quickly added, “We don’t share the same principles, though, Jessi. I guarantee you that,” you assured her. “And if you give me an opportunity, I can give you a more formal presentation on what I think would be the best approach for your company. Much like your business, I don’t believe in a one-size-fits-all plan. I think that there should be something for everyone–something that fits you perfectly and makes you look and feel good.”

Her face visibly relaxed. “Hm…tell me more,” she uttered, her interest piqued.

******

Jungkook returns to your table as you chat away. He quietly presents you with a drink and hands a glass of wine to Jessica.

After you mouthed your thanks, you feel his hand squeeze your shoulder. You turned your head and he smiled warmly at you. You had to admit, it was endearing.

Jessica smiled at the silent exchange. “You two look so cute together,” she mused.

“Oh, don’t mind me. I’m just the trophy boyfriend,” Jungkook jested. “It’s YN here who's the real diamond.” His thumb and forefinger grazed your earring, and moved to your earlobe.

Normally, you’d cringe at that but he was on a hot streak tonight. You had to admit, the compliment warmed your cheeks…among other things.

Jessica sipped on her drink, then sighed. “You’ve given me a lot of things to consider, YN.”

“I hope so, Jessi. And–” you paused to reach into your clutch for a business card then handed it to her. “I’d love for us to talk more. I’m available for questions, any day.”

She accepts your card and smiles. “You’ll hear from me soon, YN.”

Her tone sounded really promising. You think you’ve left a good impression. On that note, you excused yourself, not wanting to hover too much and just hoped for the best.

Resting his hand on the small of your back, you and Jungkook walk away. When you were out of earshot, he immediately said, “Listen, I need to tell you something important.”

******

You were absolutely livid after Jungkook told you about what he overheard your bosses saying about you. To avoid making a scene, he walks you out into the courtyard, to blow off some steam–away from the party.

“That is so fucked up!” You fumed.

“Wonwoo?!” You spat out. “Him?” You were incredulous. You were in the same cohort but he never operated on the same level as you did.

“I’ve been working my ass off for five years and how am I still nowhere near making senior analyst? It’s…” You shook your head, unclench your fists and let out a growl of frustration. “I have way more billable hours than Wonwoo! I work late all the fucking time; I am the first to volunteer for all of the firm’s charity shit…I should be the shoo-in here! Yet they’re picking him?” You raged.

“YN…”

You paced around and took several deep breaths to calm yourself. You still had a chance to salvage this. “You know what? I have to seal the deal with Jessica Nam and just do what I need to do…then it should be fine. It should be fine,” you repeated.

“You know, you say that word a lot.”

“What?” You say hastily.

“‘Should.’”

“Huh?” You were confused.

“Seems like you work your way through your career around the word ‘should.’ Do you ever notice that?”

“N-no. I don’t think…”

“The first time we met, you said, ‘This promotion should have happened last year;’ or if you pull this off, ‘it should show them’ that you deserve this. Then tonight, you said, you need to ‘do what you need to do then it should be fine’.”

That didn’t seem right. You couldn’t have been using the word that much.

“Do you always have an idea as to how things should go for you?”

“Well, I do have goals,” you reasoned. “And I believe that if you continue to push hard, make the right connections, you shou–” You stopped yourself and pursed your lips immediately while he grinned, proving his point.

“Fine!” You relented. “So I’m a little more determined than most people and I like to manifest things. It keeps me focused.” You then looked down at your palms. “Because if I don’t, I’ll just keep wandering around aimlessly. I’m not a fan of winging it!”

He gave you a sympathetic smile. “I get it. Some people like to believe that if they push hard enough, they can change things as opposed to accepting them as they are.”

You shifted your stance while you considered his comment.

“Have you ever wondered about what you would do if your ‘shoulds’ don’t work out? Would you be open to going about things differently?”

You opened your mouth tentatively to speak but truthfully, you didn’t know the answer to his question. You weren’t sure if you had an answer for it.

“Please don’t take this the wrong way, but coming from an outsider’s perspective? I don’t get why you’re trying so hard to get a seat at this table. A table that nobody seems to want to make room for you.”

You sighed in irritation. “It’s not supposed to be easy. It’s…it’s just the way things are,” you justified. “That’s how you filter the unworthy ones.”

He scoffed. “Just because they make it so, doesn’t mean that’s how it should be.”

You paused and stared at him as if he’d grown two extra heads.

“Why don’t you look for another table where they make you feel welcome? Or better yet, here’s a crazy idea–build your own table!”

The thought of you leaving and starting all over again–it was daunting. You had worked so hard, invested so much of your time and effort, making many sacrifices along the way.

“This is supposed to be the top company to work for! I’ve...given so much just to get to where I’m at…” You groan in frustration. “And I’m just supposed to walk away from all that?”

He nods, trying to understand your justification of the situation. “Okay, I got that part. Suppose this all works out and you manage to force your way into this promotion. What now? Do you think they’ll make things easier for you then?”

You didn’t know that for sure. You were already jumping through hoops at this point! Meanwhile, all Wonwoo had to do was be married, knock up his wife, and continue to half-ass his client calls.

“I understand that some people need some form of validation–that’s an inherent human desire. But…you shouldn’t have to beg for it. If you think you’ve been doing great things this whole time– yet you still haven’t received that recognition that you know you rightfully deserve? Maybe it’s time to move onto some place where they appreciate you for who you are and what you do, instead of forcing you to conform to their righteous criteria.”

Somehow, in the back of your mind, you already knew this but you’ve been in denial. You didn’t need to prove your commitment to the company–that should have already been evident from the moment you broke the single-day contract signing record.

But those shoulds didn’t come through for you then. What difference would they make now?

“I know we haven’t known each other long but–I think you’re a badass! You’re a badass dwarfed by a bunch of dicks.”

That made you laugh.

“I’m serious! I’m not pulling your leg here. I think you can stand toe-to-toe with any one of those guys. It’s just that–this system has you set up for failure. They don’t think you could be great. And based on what I heard back there, they didn’t even think much about you at all!”

You got a sinking feeling–especially after your former colleague, Miri, left nearly two years ago. She didn’t seem like she held a grudge against the company but you suspected that she’d been shanked.

“I mean, obviously, you have final say on whatever you want to do. I’m fully aware of my place in this.”

“No, don’t say that.” you interjected softly.

He regarded you curiously.

“If there’s anything I learned from you tonight, it’s to not minimize myself. You should practice what you preach.“

He grinned at you. “There you go!”

You let out a long sigh. “You’ve given me a lot to think about.”

Jungkook nodded gently. “Do you still want to head back inside?” He asked softly.

“Yes, but only to say goodbye to a few people. After that, I think we should call it a night, if that’s okay with you?”

His eyes softened before bobbing his head for a nod. “I’m good with whatever you decide, YN.”

“Thank you.”

“After you,” he utters, stretching his hand out towards the pathway leading back into the atrium.

After saying goodbye to a few clients in attendance, you excused yourself, telling Jungkook that you needed to make one last stop in the ladies’ room before heading back to the parking lot to retrieve your car.

******

“You know, if I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were stalking me,” a female voice said.

You look up at the mirror in front of you to find Jessica Nam’s reflection as she washed her hands over the sink next to you.

“Jessi…hi!”

“Fancy seeing you here,” she joked. “Are you staying for the dancing?”

You laughed softly. “Oh, no…I’m actually going to call it a night.”

“That’s a shame. I really enjoyed our conversation this evening. Most exciting one I’ve had in a while. Now I have to deal with all of these stiffs for the rest of the night. Your boss was not-so-subtly hovering and making inappropriate jokes,” she jested. “Maybe I should take that as a sign to take my leave, too.”

“I’m…sorry to hear that.”

“Don’t worry, YN. You don’t need to apologize for anything.” she smiled. “Well, anyway,” she sighed while she wiped her hands with paper towels. “I’ve been thinking about what you said earlier and I’ve decided that–I would love to sit down and talk more–say…at my office?”

Your jaw nearly drops to the floor in shock. “Uhm–uh…wow. Yes…yes! Thank you!” Your mind started to race. This was a huge opportunity for you.

“You can reach me here.” She hands you her business card. “I’m usually in the office during the week but if I’m not, my assistant will set up a schedule for us to meet. I’ll give her your name so she knows to pencil you in right away.”

You nearly squeal in excitement as you accepted her card.

“On one condition though,” she cautioned.

“Name it,” you replied instantly.

“I want you to be my point of contact,” she stated firmly.

Some analysts, like yourself, were experienced enough to talk to clients directly, answering their questions and handling minor issues so the managing directors would be free to work on bringing in more business. You did the grunt work while your bosses took all the glory. Still…protocol was protocol.

“Jessi–” you faltered, “My boss usually handles all of the client negotiations and I’m not sure if I have the authority to–”

Her expression unyielding, she waved her hand in mid-air to swat your excuses. “Then get the authority! Your boss is condescending and a complete asshole. You’re smart, ambitious, and unafraid to take risks. It’s either you or I walk away.” She shrugged.

Your cheeks warmed at her compliments. It was great to watch another woman beat the odds and succeed in the most unconventional way.

“Okay, I’ll be your point of contact,” you answered. It was too good a deal to pass up. You’d handle the consequences later.

“Good,” she grinned triumphantly.

“I’m really looking forward to our partnership, Jessi. You won’t regret it,” you said, holding your hand out. She took it and squeezed firmly.

“I don’t think I will,” she replied.

When you both exited from the ladies’ room, you found Jungkook scrolling through his phone. He spots you out of the corner of his eye and looks up to see an awestruck look on your face while you watch Jessica Nam walk out of the venue and into her waiting car at the front.

“Hey–everything okay in there?”

“Y-yeah. Uhm…I think that I just landed a deal with Jessica Nam,” you choked out in disbelief.

“That’s awesome!” He exclaimed. “Congratulations!”

“No, no–don’t congratulate me yet. Not until we’ve drawn up contracts and everything.”

“Yeah but isn’t that all just a formality?”

“I mean…I guess? Holy shit!” You breathed out, laughing.

“Nice, YN. You should savor it!” He was right. You should savor it!

******

Once you were back at the parking lot, he got out of the car and made his way around to open the passenger side. He offered his hand, which you held onto for support as you stepped out.

You unlocked your car, put your coat in the backseat and retrieved a pair of flats to switch out your stilettos.

When you were done, you leaned against the side of your car, and found that he had also shed his jacket and was now loosening his bowtie so he could undo the top button of his shirt.

Then he pulled his cufflinks off, pocketing them before he shut the passenger door. He was rolling up his sleeves when he turned to face you, mirroring your posture against his car.

He looked much more relaxed after all that while you, on the other hand, became unreasonably all wound up.

Crossing his arms over his chest, he asks, “Are you good?”

That zapped you back into reality. You nodded absently. “Yeah, I’m good,” you sighed.

“Sorry if things didn’t work out as you had planned,” he expressed regretfully.

“On the contrary–I think they worked out for the better,” you quipped.

He smiled broadly. “Where do you go from here?”

You lifted a shoulder. It was going to be difficult starting over again but–the great thing about it was that you had options.

“I’m taking my talents someplace else,” you say simply, alluding to Mira’s offer.

“Not that my opinion matters but I think that’ll be good for you.”

You mouthed your thanks. “So…where are you headed after this?” You ask him.

“Probably home. I was going to take another date but since we weren’t quite done, I turned it down.”

You gasped, realizing that you had gone way past your original time limit. “Oh gosh–I’m sor–”

He waved his hand, not making a big deal out of it. “It’s alright. So we went over an hour,” he shrugged noncommittally.

Mortified, you tried to rectify your oversight. “No, no, I’d feel bad. I can add more–”

He shook his head. “That really won’t be necessary, YN. As long as you got what you needed?”

You nodded earnestly. “I did! And I can’t help thinking that I owe you in some way…not just for the extra hour but in general.”

“Nah,” he chuckled softly. “I didn’t do anything. I just stood there and watched you work. It was all you.”

“Yes, but without your prompting, I never would have realized some things. You know, since I was always focused on the ‘shoulds’ instead of the ‘coulds’,” you say, thinking back to your initial conversation. “So…thank you,” you say graciously, since you couldn’t think of any other way to express your gratitude.

“You’re welcome.” He pushed off his car, straightened out, took a step closer and stretched his hand out towards you. “I hope that you were satisfied with your experience?”

You smiled, clasping your hands with his. “I was.”

Then he turned wistful. “Does this mean that this is the last time I’m ever going to see you?”

You gave him a rueful smile. “I think so.”

He hummed, releasing you from his hold to slide his hands in his pocket and rocked back on his heels. “That’s a shame. I really liked spending time with you.”

You raised a quizzical eyebrow at him. “Do you say that to all of your clients?”

“Yes,” he replies candidly, with a little chuckle.

You laughed. “Thanks for not lying on my account.”

“That aside, I will say that you’re going to be one of my more memorable clients. And uh…If you ever want to talk or hang out and grab a drink somewhere–as friends,” he emphasized, “Just let me know.”

“I might take you up on that,” you answered in all sincerity.

You’d never met anybody like him. His lack of complication was fascinating to you. It was refreshing.

This evening, your chemistry felt so natural that you had moments where you forgot that you hired him to pretend to be in love with you. You didn’t know for certain if it was the alcohol, the boost of confidence that he gave you, or the fact that he was this unattainable fantasy–but you found yourself to be in love, too…just for tonight.

Nevertheless, beneath those big, round eyes of his was a dose of reality. It didn’t make you feel bitter thinking that you would never find someone exactly like him in the real world. He made you realize that even though you should not settle for anything less, you could still consider a compromise–one that would make you and your potential partner happy.

“I’m not forcing you to, though. The choice is always yours, as it should be,” he grinned.

You stare at him silently for a few seconds–and he stares back. As safe and assuring this look made you feel before, the longer he did it, the more intense that look got. Before you knew it, it felt as if he was undressing you on the spot.

After some hesitation, you wondered, “Can I try something?”

“Sure,” he replies.

You straightened out and moved closer to him, making his eyebrow quirk in anticipation of what you would do next. The last thing you see is him closing his eyes as you tilted your chin up to press your lips to his.

Although tentative at first, you opened your mouth slightly. Instinctively, his lips moved in perfect synchronicity with yours. You felt a tingle in the pit of your stomach when you felt his hand cup your jaw while your lips continued to explore each other’s mouths.

You finally found the strength to pull away from him, which left you breathless and slightly off-balance.

“Huh,” you say with your eyebrows raised and forehead creased.

His face falters a little at your seemingly unimpressed reaction. “Was that not good for you?” He asks slowly.

“Oh–it was good. Really good.” Your mind is buzzing, heat pooling between your legs.

You watched his tongue graze his lower lip before his right pointer finger slowly reached over to push some errant strands of hair away from your forehead. “I can show you exactly how good it could be.”

For a second, you actually considered it. He was great company and you had fun tonight…not to mention that he was also really hot.

“I can get a room for us at the hotel a couple blocks away from here.” Then, he leaned in and lowered his voice to your ear. “Off the clock.”

You had to admit, it was extremely tempting. It was all part of the service: the companionship, the fantasy, and mind-blowing sex designed to specifically please you…with no strings attached!

And why were you second-guessing this again?

But something within you thought that if you took him up on his offer, you wouldn’t be able to forgive yourself. A fantasy— no matter how enticing— was still a fantasy.

“You know what?” You stepped back slightly, clearing your throat nervously, “It’s just not what I need right now. I had a really great time with you and…I think we should leave at that,” you say as respectfully as possible.

He smiled, unperturbed. “I thought it was worth a shot,” he shrugged. “You never know!”

You groaned inwardly. “Trust me…it was not an easy decision.” You clutched your keys tighter while that ache between your thighs turned excruciating. You had to be logical about this.

“Can we at least hug it out?”

You laughed softly. “Of course!” You stepped into his waiting arms and he gave you a gentle squeeze. You had a fantastic time with him and he fulfilled the task that you had hired him for. In turn, he opened your eyes to what you’ve been missing this whole time–your worth.

“Don’t be a stranger, hm?” He mumbles into your ear.

You unlocked your car and opened the door. Before sliding in, you turn to him one last time. “Thank you for…everything, really.”

“You’re welcome. And don’t forget that you’re pretty awesome, too. You just have to believe in it more.”

******

“Oh and don’t forget, you have lunch with Jessi Nam in an hour.”

You look up and acknowledge your assistant, who sat across from your new desk in your new office, at Miri Jang’s firm. After the party, you put in your two weeks and gathered your things, taking with you a couple of notable clients–one of them, Jessica Nam.

“Thanks, Kai. I can’t miss that!”

He smiled. “And Cristina in Legal just sent over the final draft of the Nam contract. It’s all worked out and ready for her signature when you bring it to the meeting.”

“Perfect!” you remarked. “That’ll be all, Kai. Thanks again.”

When he steps out, you lean back against your seat and stare out your window.

It’s been over two weeks since you last saw Jungkook. Every now and then, you’d miss him…but it was more the idea of your date. The constant physical contact, being extra-attentive, complimenting you without sounding patronizing. And even the little things like, calling you ‘jagi’ or simply leaning in closer to listen to what you have to say.

Was it nice having the perfect boyfriend for a night? Of course!

Would you ever do it again? Highly unlikely.

Then again, it’s not like you canceled your membership so…never say 'never'.

You’ve reached the end! Thank you so much for reading!

If you loved it, please comment, reblog, or send me feedback! 📩. I love hearing from readers! If you didn’t like it so much, I would still like to hear about it. Help me become a better writer! 💜

Tagging: @internetjunkdrawer @deepseavibez @itdoesntmatterwhy @effielumiere @yoongukie-ff @miksancheese

#bts fan fiction #jungkook #jeongguk #jungkook x reader #jeon jungkook #jungkook fluff #bangtanbathhouse #btswritingcafe #btshoneyhive #btscarnivalnet #bts jungkook #bts jeon jungkook #TheBFE x jjk

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thesupreme316 · 1 year

Note

Hey, this is my first request ever. So i’ll get straight to it. Could you do a HOOK fic/drabble/headcanon(you can pick) of him finding out you are a 2nd gen wrestler kid of HBK, Ted DiBiase or anyone else

I am HONORED that you chose me for your first request, hopefully, I did your idea justice

Reunited (And It Feels So Good): Hook X Reader

Genre: Fluff Headcanon, I don’t wanna spoil it but strangers/childhood friends to lovers???

Summary: Hook finds out a not-so-very-secret secret about you.

Word Count: 719

Supreme Speaks: tbh, i might do a fic based on this later on next month. thank you to the anon who requested this and I hope they (and everyone else) like it. i also wish everyone is doing well and remember you are loved and appreciated. Happy New Year!!

Warnings: None really, I TRIED MY BEST, I used gender-neutral terms to appeal to everyone

Taglist (DM if you want to be added): @hooks-martin @triscillal @diabloguapos @wwenhlimagines @sheinthatfandom

AEW has many second-generation wrestlers such as Brian Pillman Jr., Brock Anderson, The Gunn Boys, and Hook

Hook didn’t really “get along” with the others

He just wasn’t that interested in talking with them

Or with anyone outside his friend group

That was until you arrived on AEW’s scene

Many people, fans and wrestlers alike, were excited to see you in AEW

You have made a name for yourself all around the world for your wrestling skills, storytelling abilities, charisma, and attractiveness

And slightly because you are Shawn Michaels’ child

Yeah, that’s right. Mr. Wrestlemania, The Heartbreak Kid is your dad

Even though it was a blessing to have him as your dad and mentor, you wanted to become a wrestling legend by yourself

So your ring name was completely different from his and you barely mentioned him in promos/interviews (essentially keeping your personal life very private)

But everyone can see the resemblance when you step in the ring, especially when you went against Natalya or Charlotte Flair

Anyways back to Hook

He was completely “hooked” when he saw you for the first time, to the extent that he actually started to talk to you first

It surprised many people backstage as they know Hook to be cold to others

And as you were seen as an untouchable person (being the child of one of the most prominent figures of professional wrestling)

As he started to talk to you more, he couldn’t help but admire you, your accomplishments, and your personality, and vice versa

However, he felt more familiar with you. Like he already met you before or something. But he just passed it off as the butterflies in his stomach growing

After being in AEW for about a month, you and Hook started to date

Many people started to notice Hook being happier and slightly more friendly (not too much) to others, including his dad, Taz

While his son was telling him about his significant other, Taz couldn’t help but smile and laugh

“It’s so nice to see you two reconnecting after all these years.”

“Reconnecting? What do you mean?”

Taz then opened a little book of memories of his career and flipped to a random page before showing it to his son

“The number of times Shawn and I had to meet up at the park or backstage for your little playdates-“

Hook blocked out his dad as he analyzed the picture of a younger him and what seemed like a younger you smiling at each other, while Taz and Shawn were in the background

"You two were very close until they went to live with their mom full-time while Shawn was on the road. Y'all just went separate ways and sort of forgot about each other."

Everything started to click in his head as he picked up his phone and dialed your number

It made sense why you two got along so easily, how you had the same opinions on different topics, how it felt like you two went through the same experiences

He vaguely remembered you, but he didn’t know it was you

As soon as you picked up he said, “You’re Shawn Michaels’ kid?”

“Yeah…I thought you knew.”

Now he felt like an idiot…

“It's like I knew, but I didn't know it was you. It's complicated-”

“I thought it was a fact that everyone chooses not to discuss like how you’re Taz’s son.”

After explaining why you didn't bring up your dad (mainly because everyone talks about him or associates you with him), Hook said he wasn't mad but just surprised and completely understood your reasoning

"But this also explains why I felt so vulnerable with you. I'm happy we were able to find each other again"

After getting off the phone, Hook sent you the picture

A couple of moments, he was notified that you posted on Instagram

It was the picture of you two and then a more recent picture with the caption "day 1 🤍"

He found himself smiling at the post, also happy that he found you again

#aew #all elite wrestling #aew hook #aew hook x reader #aew hook imagine #aew hook fic #hook x reader #hook imagine #aew headcanon

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piedpiperart · 1 year

Text

Menagerie part 4

PART THREE

“Let’s take a break,”Aizawa instructed. The two teens had been fused for more than an hour now and the pro hero couldn’t see any viable signs of quirk exhaustion, but it was better to be safe than sorry. He didn’t know if there was a limit on how long Izuku could hold them together, but so far, they’d never gone past two hours at a time. “Then we’ll run through it again without quirks.”

Zura nodded, wild blueish brown hair bouncing and covering their eyes. They huffed and ran a hand through their hair. “We can work on kicks after, right?” “If both of you manage to repeat what we just did alone, then sure,”Aizawa conceded.

“Yes!” Zura exclaimed, and promptly unfused. The two kids burst apart in a small cloud of dust and a comical ‘pop’. Uraraka managed to stay standing, but like last time, Izuku stumbled to the ground.

“You alright kiddo?” Aizawa asked, making his way over to the downed teenager.

“Yeah,” Izuku panted, giving a weak thumbs up. “Just.. tired…and sore.”

Aizawa turned to Uraraka, analyzing for any injuries. “I’m good,” Uraraka waved,”Though I feel a bit more sore and tired than last time. Is it ‘cause we fused for longer?”

Aizawa inclined his head. “Could be that the longer you fuse the more tired you get. It could also affect Izuku more because it’s his quirk holding you two together, or that it takes his energy first and then yours. We’ll have to keep an eye on it.”

“Cool,”Izuku croaked from the floor, and Aizawa glanced over with a fond look. Despite the kids sweaty appearance, the hero could tell his harsh breathing had calmed down a bit.

“You’re sitting out of this next part,”Aizawa instructed, much to Izuku’s distaste. He ignored his foster kid’s grimace, adding,”We don’t want you wearing yourself out, and you can use the time to practice meditating.”

“Fine,”Izuku huffed, dragging out the word and managing to prop himself up to a sitting position. Aizawa frowned at the way his hands shook.

“Take a moment, then you two can get lunch,”Aizawa said, and Uraraka went to sit next to Izuku on the mats. “Uraraka, we’ll go through the same thing Zura just did and see how much of it you can remember on your own.”

“I think I remember it pretty well,”Uraraka said with a thoughtful expression. “It’s weird, like I remember muscle memory of doing it, but also learning it in a way. I think? Yeah.”

“Stuff our fusion learns becomes stuff we learned?” Izuku clarified, and Aizawa was happy to note his voice wasn’t as scratchy. Still, he tossed him a water bottle anyway.

“Yeah! That,” Uraraka nodded enthusiastically. “And ever since we used Zura’s quirk, I’ve noticed my quirk is like, different? I think I understand it a bit better I mean.” “Wh- you think you can increase gravity with it too?” Izuku asked, perking up form his seat despite his previous exhaustion. Izuku fumbled with the cap tot he water bottle before opening it and taking a long sip.

“You can talk about quirk theory later, go head to lunch,”Aizawa said exasperatedly. He knew from experience now how long Izuku can go on tangents about quirks. It was useful information and fascinating to think about, but he didn’t want the two to miss lunch.

“Yes sir!” Ochako saluted, and helped Izuku up. They continued their conversation on the way, leaving Aizawa in the gym to prepare for the next task.

The pro hero smiled a rare smile as he heard Izuku’s laughter in the hall. Despite his rough exterior, Aizawa was happy he got to get to know the two kids. He didn’t realize how lonely his house had been until he actually had to take care of someone else who wasn’t a cat. On top of that, Izuku was a really great kid, and he couldn’t imagine going back to living alone now that most of his time was spent with him even after spending only a few days with him.

Of course, Uraraka was also a welcome guest. No matter how much pestering she did, he was glad Izuku had a friend like her. Aizawa wasn’t ashamed to say that he’d looked into Uraraka’s home life too and found she’d been living alone in an apartment rented by her parents. Aizawa saw nothing wrong with it since Uraraka was given enough money to take care of herself, and that her parents video called her every night. Still, he talked to Uraraka’s parents and offered to keep an eye out for her.

A week later, Uraraka often came over to Izuku and Aizawa’s house after training. She stayed the night so often Aizawa was considering just asking Uraraka’s parents to let her stay with them full time. Even so, it seemed a little too fast, since they’d all only known each other about a week, but Aizawa figured he’d bring it up next week if classes went okay.

Training had gone well, and they learned more about Izuku’s quirk, Zura’s quirk, and thanks to Hound dog and Recovery Girl they knew a lot more about mental health when it came to mind/body altering quirks. Aizawa had insisted on therapy for Izuku at least, given his behavior and past history as someone quirkless. The pro hero was learning more about helping the kid cope with nightmares, dissociation, and dealing with triggers in a healthy way. Aizawa had found out the hard way that the smell of burnt sugar or caramel made the kid shut down.

The pro hero had suspicions about the kid’s middle school, and made a note to talk with Nedzu to look into it. As of now, the two of them were still learning to live together. Both were more or less used to taking care of themselves, so he could admit it was a bit awkward at first. He could say he enjoyed cooking with the kid though, since they both were pretty good at it and got to share their recipes with each other. Aizawa ended up finding out that Izuku enjoyed casual head pats or hair ruffles, and hugs when he had a rough day.

Today though, was their last day of training, nearly two weeks after they’d all met at the entrance exam. Zura was stretching, getting ready to fight Aizawa one on one, or one on two depending on who you asked. “Woo! Kick his butt Zura!” Mic called from the sidelines.

Not one to be left out of the drama, Present Mic had ended up watching from the sidelines or helping instruct the past week. The man had caught wind of Aizawa fostering a kid, and upon learning said kid had had a new quirk develop demanded to help his new nephew. Aizawa agreed on the basis that Mic would not tell Midnight just yet.

Izuku and Uraraka adored Hizashi though, and after their first meeting Mic had not so subtly invited himself over to the Aizawa household most nights for dinner. Aizawa had the sneaking suspicion that he was also there for the food, since the blonde man couldn’t cook at all. Most nights now consisted of Shouta and Izuku cooking while Mic and Uraraka sat at the countertop, keeping running commentary of the two in the kitchen or just talking. It was the first time in Aizawa’s life that his house felt full, in a good way. It first surprised him how happy he was now that he had two kids to look after with his best friend. Not that he would tell them that.

“Thanks for the support,” Aizawa drawled. His hair was up in a half-bun and he had his capture weapon ready to face the two turned one.

“Oh come on,”Zura snarked,”You’ve never lost against us, we need more support than you!”

“You’ll need more than support to beat me,”Aizawa snarked back, and before they knew it the hero was snapping his capture weapon out at them.

Rolling away, Zura popped back up to the balls of their feet and ran towards their teacher, hoping to get in a hit up close when Aizawa dodged. He kicked towards their leg, but Zura slid and redirected to punch. Aizawa flipped out of their range, snapping out with the capture weapon as Mic booed in the background. Dodging, Zura ran to get close, sliding on their knees to avoid the scarf again and came up behind the man with a kick. Aizawa grabbed their leg but they spun out. They gritted their teeth and went in for a punch when suddenly their feet gave out on them, sending them backwards onto the ground with a yelp.

They’d forgotten about the capture weapon, Zura realized. They let out a groan as Aizawa let out a huff of laughter. “Forgot about the capture weapon again?”

“Yeah,”Zura laughed scarf with caution and annoyance. “It’s like a snake,” They grumbled, distantly hearing Mic call out a ‘good try!’.

“You’ve improved over the past two weeks, give it some time before you’re able to go longer than that against me,”Aizawa smirked, but bent down to untangle their feet from his weapon.

Zura sat up, reaching over to help untangle them but held back when they realized Aizawa was much better at it than them. “Do you think I’ll be able to beat anyone in class?”

Aizwa huffed,”If any of those brats have even learned a form of martial arts instead of practicing their quirk,”he grumbled. Zura grinned at the familiar rant. “You’ll be fine.”

Mic came bounding over to the group with excitement,”Alright!” He cheered,”Time for lunch kiddo!”

Before Mic could get to the two, the mat suddenly erupted into bright light, and the blonde hero froze at the sight of one person standing where the two- or three should have been. Hizashi stared slack-jawed at the long wavy black hair with purple undertones, a capture scarf in shifting colors, and what looked like a more stylish and colorful version of Aizawa’s hero suit. What really amazed the hero though, was that the person had four arms rather than two.

“Sorry!” The figure immediately blurted out, waving some of their hands erratically. One of the hands tugged at their hair while another hand directed it away from their hair and held it. Mic was still staring, but to be fair it was a lot to take in. “No, it’s- take a breath- it’s okay. “They took a few exaggerated breaths.

”We’re fine. We’re fine,”The figure repeated to themself. Once they seemed to calm down Mic broke out into a grin.

“Holey smokes!” Mic exclaimed when he’d finally gotten his bearings. The figure looked over at him with wide eyes, and he could see a multitude of colors, as well as two sets of eyes. “How do you guys feel? Everything alright?”

“We- I- It’s fi- good? Yeah,”They responded, getting the hang of talking while looking down at their multiple arms and stylish clothes. “I’m… I feel okay. Safe.” They smiled almost shyly. One of their hands came up to brush their bangs out of their face, and they turned to Mic with wide eyes. “Wh- Do we- I- Is this okay? Are you okay?”

“Of course I’m okay, what about you?” Mic said, bounding up to the three. He gently took hold of two hands, making a show of looking over the fusion. “Is three people okay? You don’t feel anything off? Izuku gets tired, right?”

At those words, the figure froze. “Izuku-”They gasped, pulling their hands back from Mic before a bright light shone in front of the hero, momentarily blinding Mic. The light faded with a sharp ‘pop’, and three bodies fell to the ground.

“Izuku!” Someone yelled- judging by the black blur and deeper voice Mic assumed it was Shouta. He was still blinking the spots away from his eyes, when he caught another blur heading for the third body.

“Is he okay?” Uraraka asked, her arms outstretched to where Izuku lay passed out on the ground in front of them. She didn’t touch him, but hovered her hands like she was afraid he’d disappear.

Aizawa let out a sigh of releif, sitting back. “He’ll be fine. He’s just exhausted, most likely from the strain of holding three people together.”

Uraraka and Mic let out matching sighs of relief, and they all crowded around the sleeping boy when Aizawa rearranged him to rest his head on the hero’s lap. “We didn’t mean to,”Uraraka began hesitantly.

“I know,”Aizawa returned softly. “It wasn’t bad, you’re not in trouble. In fact, this is what training is for. The only person Izuku had fused with before is you, and no one knew he could fuse with more than one person.”

“I mean, we talked about it before but,”Uraraka paused, biting her lower lip.”He said he can fuse with people who trust him, and who he trusts back. It’s like a.. Friendship? Like he can only fuse with friends.”

“I get it,”Mic chimed in,”Both parties have to have equal positive feelings towards each other in order to fuse. That way it can never be forced, and neither side can get hurt. So on some level both of you guys were willing to make that connection, it just happens when you make contact.”

“We just have to make sure it doen’t happen at any contact. Knowing who he can fuse with is important, but also controlling when the fuse happens so it won’t become an issue,”Aizawa added. He was looking down at Izuku, who seemed to be sleeping peacefully, and carding a hand through his hair. After a moment, it seemed like Izuku was starting to stir.

“Still, it’s awesome you three can fuse! What was it like? What are you gonna call them?” Mic asked, still a bit giddy about meeting an amalgamation of his pseudo-family in one person. He felt oddly excited to have the chance to fuse someday. It seemed like fun.

“We kinda freaked out when it first happened, but it was nice? Aizawa-sensei is very good at keeping us calm and thinking rationally,” Uraraka thought aloud. Aizawa ducked his head into his scarf to avoid the look he got from the other hero. “What about Aizura? Or Shurazu?”

“It doesn’t have to be a combination of your names,”Mic added.”You could be.. Akaizu?”

“That still sounds like a combination of names,”Aizawa pointed out. Uraraka stifled a laugh.

“Well, I don’t know what your quirk was, so I don’t have good ideas for a hero name,”Mic huffed. Aizawa pondered whether or not ‘Present Mic’ and ‘Eraserhead’ counted as good hero names.

“I like it! It’s cute,”Uraraka nodded vigorously. At that point Izuku had started shifting, and Aizawa watched cautiously as the kid’s eyes fluttered.

“Kid? You with me?” The hero asked gently. The other two watched on, hopeful that the kid was waking up and would be okay.

Izuku’s face scrunched up. “...‘Zawa?”He murmured, but relaxed when Aizawa continued petting his hair.

“You overdid your quirk a bit, kiddo, how are you feeling?” Shouta asked. Maybe if he was just tired he wouldn’t have to carry him to Recovery Girl’s office.

“T’red, head’che,”Izuku grumbled, pressing his eyes shut and cuddling closer to Aizawa. “Sore.” He added on, but it was muffled. Uraraka snorted.

“Alright, seems like just quirk exhaustion then,”Aizawa sighed. “Go back to sleep, I’ll wake you up when we get home.” He added, but Izuku had already drifted off.

‘Phew,”Uraraka exhaled. “I thought he was really hurt, but it’s just quirk exhaustion? So he can’t actually fuse with three people?”

“No, no he can,”Mic interjected. “Think about it like your quirk. If you use it too much or on heavy things you get nauseous, but the more you train your quirk the less nauseous you get.”

Uraraka brightened.”So he just has to train? Do you think he’d be able to fuse three people again?”

“Let’s wait until we know more about how two people work first,”Shouta said, giving her a knowing look. “Then we can try it again.”

“Yes!” Uraraka fist-pumped. She then frowned, looking over to Izuku. “Does this mean training is done for the day?”

“No way kiddo!’ Mic exclaimed, but quietly as to not wake up Izuku. “While these two take a nap, you and I can practice grappling!”

Aizawa sighed in exasperation at the two extroverts bounding away towards the mats. Shaking his head fondly, he lifted Izuku into his arms and stood, making his way to the door. He almost smiled when Izuku brought a hand up to clutch at his capture weapon and murmured softly. He was glad he knew how to handle quirk exhaustion like this, at least. Judging by the symptoms, it wasn’t too bad, but still the worst side effect they’d encountered with Izuku’s quirk so far. But it made sense, Aizawa thought, given that Iuzku’s quirk was so powerful.

Usually Izuku didn’t get too tired after an hour of fusing with one person, but after that he had to take a nap afterwards. Given that he’d already fused with Uraraka today for about two hours on top of attempting a three person fusion for as long as he did, Aizawa was glad the kid had only passed out with an additional headache. It could have easily gone worse, and he berated himself for not looking out for the kid more.

The hero walked with his kid towards the teachers lounge, grabbing his bright yellow sleeping bag and settling everything down on the teacher’s couch. If Hizashi and Uraraka came by an hour later with lunches, only to find Izuku snuggled on top of Aizawa while both of them were cocooned into the sleeping bag on the couch, then obviously a bunch of pictures were added to Mic’s ever-growing scrapbook.

PART FIVE

#menagerie comic

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