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makeitmingi · 7 days

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The Cat and Dog Game [Chapter 35]

Genre: Romance, Fluff, Comedy

Pairing: Yunho x Reader (y/n)

Characters: Chef!Reader, RestaurantOwner!Yunho, MaitreD!Hongjoong, Waiter!Yeosang, Waiter!San, Waiter!Mingi, SousChef!Seonghwa, SousChef!Wooyoung, PrepChef!Jongho

Summary: Yunho's dream was to open and run his own restaurant. But he doesn't know anything when it comes to cooking. Until you came along and accepted the job, bringing with you a small crew. How will the black cat tame the energetic golden retriever?

Word count: 3.2K

Chapter warning(s): Alcohol and alcohol consumption.

"Hey, I'm headed off. I'll see you back at mine?" You told Yunho.

"Hang on." He told Yeosang and came over to follow you into the kitchen. Even if he was seeing you in an hour or two, Yunho always insisted on walking you out.

"Mmm, rest well. I'll see you later." He bear hugged you and kissed your cheek. Lip kisses was still a little rare with the two of you, especially in a public space. But Yunho was grateful to receive them anyway. When it was just the two of you, he would always steal kisses and kiss you whenever he could.

"Let me know when you're on the way. I'll leave the door unlocked in case I'm in the shower or something." You said.

"Alright." He patted your head, waving to Seonghwa, Wooyoung and Jongho, who were waiting by their cars. The 3 waved back to the tall male as you jogged to Seonghwa.

"Let's go." You jumped in.

"Luckily I did all the prep last night and some cooking just now. Tomorrow's off day will be spent sleeping." You giggled.

"Yeah, we'll probably all end up crashing at yours anyway after tonight." He chuckled in agreement as he drove back to your house. When he parked, you saw Wooyoung and Jongho.

"Come on." Jongho held your hand and all 4 of you headed in.

Tonight, all of you were surprising Yunho with a party to celebrate the restaurant being open for 6 months. His friends were in on it too, they'll try to get to your house before Yunho since he is driving alone, thinking it was just another night of sleeping at your place.

"Let's get started." You pulled your apron on to continue cooking the dishes that Yunho liked. It was an effort on everyone's part to keep the restaurant going but you wanted to make it special for Yunho.

"Check the pork shoulder for me?" You requested. Wooyoung was at the oven in an instant.

"Texture is looking good. I'll remove the foil to get the crackling going." He said and you nodded your head.

"It still has about an hour to go. It's been going for 7 hours." You informed, checking the timer and the piece of paper where you wrote down the dishes.

"Here's all the prep stuff." Jongho brought the deli containers of prepped ingredients to Seonghwa.

"Luckily we worked on all this last night. Now it's just putting it together." Jongho noted.

"Yes but like I was telling Hwa, we'll spend the day getting the sleep we deserve tomorrow." You laughed. Wooyoung and Jongho nodded in agreement. Like always, no matter where your team was, you all worked so well together.

"Abura soba is done, pork shoulder is in the oven, steaks will be done last minute. Can I start the arrancini or does anyone need any hands?" You called out.

"Don't forget to frost the cake!" Wooyoung reminded.

"You do that, I'll get started on the arrancini. Then you can take over." Jongho patted your shoulder.

"Thanks." You went to the larger fridge in your pantry and took the cake out. Grabbing an offset spatula, you frosted the cake over the crumb coat you had applied on earlier.

"Honestly, thank god for your prior planning skills in this. If you only had that main fridge out there, we wouldn't fit all this."

"I know. But honestly, that initial bedroom in the back was so small, it was easier to just turn it into a pantry. I needed that space more than a spare bedroom anyway." You chuckled, piping the frosting in a elegant pattern over the top of the cake. After writing the letters, you put the cake back in the fridge.

"Oh, Hongjoong and the others are on the way. They rushed out of there while Yunho was locking up the place." Seonghwa said. On cue, you sent Yunho a text to stall him.

"What did you ask him?" Wooyoung asked.

"Said to pick up a few blocks of butter since I'm recipe testing." You chuckled. Of course, the ever kind Yunho agreed to do it.

*DING DONG*

"Must be the others." You went to open the door for them. San engulfed you in a hug, as if you didn't just see him a few hours ago. But you still patted his back to reciprocate.

"Welcome, make yourselves at home." You smiled and went back to the kitchen.

"Woah, it's like a restaurant kitchen in here." Hongjoong said, seeing the size of the kitchen.

"Who needs a dining area?" You raised your eyebrows with a laugh. The boys all greeted each other then tried to help where they could. It was amusing seeing Mingi venture through your house, respectfully of course, and seeing your pantry.

"Wow! It's like a convenience store in here but less packaged snacks and sweets." Mingi said, making everyone laugh.

"With the way we cook, we need more space to keep stuff, which also means two fridges. And frankly, we run out of space quite often." Jongho said.

"Yunho just got the butter, he's on the way. 15 minutes." You informed, reading the text.

"We better get started on decorations." Yeosang took out the small balloons and simple streamers that they bought.

"This is the dressing, if you could help dress the salad. Just shake it up first since the oil separated." Wooyoung handed the salad bowl and dressing container to San.

"Where are the cups?" Mingi asked. You pointed to the cupboard and showed him where all the cutlery, plates and bowls were as well.

"Steak is tented and resting." Seonghwa announced.

"Getting the short ribs out." You said. Seonghwa came over held the big serving bowl for you while you took out pieces of the short rib and poured the sauce over. The meat was so soft, falling off the bone as you used your tongs to put it into the bowl. You tore off a small piece to give Seonghwa and yourself.

"It's perfect." He smiled. You laughed and he brought the serving bowl to put with the rest of the food.

"Yah! Stop stealing! Take some salad if you're that hungry." San whined as Hongjoong took a piece of the steak that he was bringing to the food table.

"Nah, no vegetables for me. Waste of calories." Hongjoong scrunched his nose in disgust.

"Hongjoong, that spiced chicken dish I made the other day for family meal? It's mostly vegetables, you ate all that." You pointed out.

"What? Really?! (y/n), I trusted you!" Hongjoong yelled.

"You trust me to take care of you, I do that by feeding you vegetables and making you healthy." You scoffed. Seonghwa slung his arm around you, laughing at hongjoong.

"Like hiding vegetables in a kid's meal." Seonghwa chuckled. You hummed, you were all used to this. Working in multiple restaurants, parents always requested that you somehow hide vegetables in their children's food.

*DING DONG*

"That's Yunho!" You broke away to go to the door while Wooyoung dimmed the lights.

"Hi, love. Sorry, I'm late. I got your butter!" Yunho held the bag up with a proud grin. You chuckled, he really looked so cute. You reached up to pat his head.

"Thank you for making the detour." You smiled softly. His golden retriever tail must be thumping against the ground happily now.

"Don't mention it. It's no big deal." He leaned down to hug you, nuzzling his cheek against yours.

"Why's it so dark?" Yunho tilted his head as he entered. You shrugged, leaning against the wall as you waited for him to remove his shoes. Being dim, he didn't notice his friends' shoes there.

"What's going o-"

"Surprise! Happy 6 months to the restaurant!" The lights turned on and everyone jumped up. Yunho jumepd slightly at the sound, eyes widening as he realised what was going on. He was speechless, turning to you then to his friends then back to you. You just laughed at his dumbfounded, surprised reaction.

"What?! So this is why you all rushed off?" Yunho went to his friends, pointing a finger at them. Even if he had an accusatory tone, he was smiling the whole time.

"Oh, just thank us for the surprise." Mingi rolled his eyes, going over to hug his best friend.

"Thank you, everyone." Yunho said over Mingi's shoulder.

"I honestly didn't even know that it has been 6 months, time flies so quickly." He continued, patting Mingi's back until he let go. Jongho was quick to put a drink in Yunho's hand.

"Hey, eat first." Seonghwa scolded. Yunho's eyes sparkled as he saw all his favourite dishes lined up.

"It's all my favourites!" Yunho took his phone out to tak a picture of all the dishes.

All the boys queued up to get their food, filling at least two plates each with food before sitting in your living room to eaat together. Wooyoung and Jongho went around, pouring everyone a drink, insisting that everyone must have a little.

"Mhmm, the short ribs are so good. The meat is so tender." San hummed happily as he chewed, already digging in. He cast you a smile, to which you smiled back.

"Yah! We haven't had a toast yet." Hongjoong said. San shrugged, not interested in the alcohol at all.

"Speech, speech!" You and Yeosang giggled as you chanted, trying to put Yunho on the spot. He shot you a glare of betrayal.

"Uhh, you know I'm bad at speeches... Thank you for this surprise and for the past 6 months. We have a good thing going thanks to all of your efforts, so let's continue to do that?" He tilted his head.

"Wow, he's really bad..." Mingi shook his head.

"I'd like to see you try." Yunho hissed. But everyone raised their cups anyway to toast to Yunho, themselves and the restaurant.

"Your ears are red." You chuckled, reaching up to gently rub his burning ears, before taking a sip of your drink.

"There you go, teasing me again." He pouted, leaning over to give you a kiss. You knew this was just Yunho trying to tease you back, plus he was happy with the fact that you've helped him keep the restaurant going for 6 months. He didn't even consider the weight of his actions until Hongjoong and San teased him.

"Get a room!" Jongho yelled. Yunho's face turned bright red, groaning as he buried his face in your chest, his arms holding your waist. You laughed at his embarrassment.

"Hey, you were the one who kissed me." You said as you stroked the back of his head.

"Stop~" He whined.

"Okay, okay. Start eating." You waved everyone off. Ultimately, you had a soft spot for Yunho and would easily give in to help him. You caught Seonghwa laughing at how soft you were for Yunho.

"Shut up, Hwa." You glared. You pulled Yunho's face away from yours and he stared up at you.

"Eat a lot. I made your favourites." You smiled. He nodded and began to eat but still kept one arm around your waist.

"So good." He smiled at you. You watched as Wooyoung and San deliberately put a heaping spoon of salad onto Hongjoong's plate, right on top of the meat that he was eating. Hongjoong yelled at the two, threatening to hit them.

"You have to eat too." You looked down to see Yunho holding his chopsticks out to you. You gave in and ate the piece of meat he had in his chopsticks then ate your own food.

"More drinks!" Jongho went around topping everyone up.

"Hope you're ready for us to crash here, (y/n)." Yeosang laughed. You nodded with a thumbs up.

"I am prepared for that. I'll just leave you guys out here. There's one guest room down the hall, help yourselves to it... If you can make it there." You giggled.

"Yeah, I'm crashing in (y/n)'s room." Wooyoung said.

"No, I am." Seonghwa hit the back of his head. You remembered the last time that happened, you were chased out of your own bed.

"But... I..." Yunho said softly before pursing his lips, about to raise his hand to interject. He wanted to say that he was going to be the one sharing a bed with you tonight but he knew Wooyoung and Seonghwa, especially, claimed that spot in your bed way before he did. He put his hand down with a pout.

"Yah, you two can take the bed in the guest room. Yunho's with me now. There's no space." You spoke up, making Yunho's head whip around to look at you in disbelief.

"Wow... Ultimate betrayal." Seonghwa shook his head. Wooyoung nodded along with Seonghwa.

"Because the last time you guys tried to squeeze on my bed, I had to go to the guest room to bunk with Jongho." You rolled your eyes.

"It's because you don't want to cuddle." Wooyoung pointed out.

"With the two of you, it's more smothering than cuddling." You scoffed as you drank your drink. The other boys just laughed at the way the 3 of you bantered.

"Okay! We're doing shots now!" Hongjoong went around passing out shot cups and topping them up.

"This is not going to end well..." San shook his head but took the shot anyway. Yunho gulped his shot and poured himself another. Jongho grinned mischeviously, refilling Mingi's shot glass while the taller was distracted by his food.

"You didn't drink, Mingi hyung." Jongho said innocently.

"What? You're lying, you just refilled it, didn't you? I swear I drank when Hongjoong hyung gave out the shots." Mingi argued, scratching his head.

"Nah, you're just tipsy." Wooyoung added to Jongho's lie, trying to convince Mingi otherwise.

"Oh... Okay, fine." Mingi took the shot, shaking the empty glass above his head to prove that he had finished everything.

"Don't get too drunk before we have a chance to cut the cake." Seonghwa announced loudly beside you. But you were not fast enough to cover his mouth

"Cake?" Yunho blinked.

"Hwa! You're drunk and being a loud mouth." You hissed but Seonghwa just smiled dreamily at you, cupping your cheeks and leaning forward to give you a big, loud kiss on your forehead. You crinkled your nose uncomfortably and slapped his hands away while Yunho laughed in amusement.

"Yes, there's a celebratory cake too. I baked it early this morning and frosted it just now. It was supposed to be a surprise but I guess not anymore." You told Yunho.

"It's okay, I'm always up for cake. Thank you." Yunho rubbed your knuckles with his thumbs.

"What flavour is it?" Yunho asked.

"It's-"

"Shh, Hwa. Shh." You put a finger to your lips. Seonghwa grinned and leaned his head on your shoulder, taking another sip of his drink. You rolled your eyes, reaching up to pat his head.

But Seonghwa was right, before the boys and yourself got too drunk, you took out the cake and placed it right in the middle of the coffee table.

"Can I know what flavour it is now?" Yunho asked.

"It's a tiramisu cake with salted caramel frosting. Like a caramel macchiato, your favourite drink." You explained. Yunho softened, the alcohol along with the realisation of everything you and the others have done for him making him emotional.

"Are you crying?!" Mingi pointed out in disbelief. Yunho let out a choked sob as he hugged you again, burying his face against your chest as he cried.

"I'm just... grateful... for all of you..." He cried.

"Yun, we're glad to have such a great boss who takes care of us." You said, comforting him.

"Don't cry!" San, obviously already drunk, came over to hug Yunho. Hongjoong, who was also tearing up, joined the hug. It was odd seeing he usually didn't like skinship from the boys.

"You big puppy! You're making all of us emotional." Wooyoung went over with open arms to hug them all.

"They stole my boyfriend so... come here, Hwa." You hugged your best friend, who blinked in confusion but still hugged you tightly.

"I love you~" He giggled.

"I love you too, Hwa hwa." You laughed, patting his back. Once all the hugs were broken, Jongho, who was the only one sturdy enough to cut the cake, sliced it up and gave it out to everyone. Yunho held his plate and insisted on feeding you. After you took the bite, he giggled drunkenly and pressed his forehead against yours.

"I love you. I love this cake!" He laughed. You couldn't help but laugh at how cute tipsy Yunho was. You were definitely feeling the effects of the alcohol too. It was the first time Yunho said he loves you.

"Don't cry anymore and eat cake, hmm?" You giggled, reaching out to wipe the stray tears on his cheeks. He nodded obediently and ate the cake with a smile.

"Thank you for doing this..." He said, pulling you close to kiss your temple.

"Nothing to thank me for. I'm glad you enjoyed the surprise." You shook your head with a soft smile. Yunho hugged you again.

"This cake is soooooo good! Best! Cake! Ever!" San yelled, jumping to his feet and pointing to the cake.

"Shh, San. No yelling." Yeosang scolded, making San sit back down. Although Jongho still spoke coherantly, you knew from the glazed look in his eyes that he was nearly gone too.

"Alright, I think it's time to go to bed. We'll all be dealing with hangovers tomorrow." You said.

"Booooo!" The boys jeered at you. Jongho helped you move Yunho to your room first. You stumbled as you picked up the used plates and cutlery, just to leave them in the kitchen. Wooyoung's eyes were half lidded as he laid on your rug.

"That's that..." You draped a blanket over him and moved to help move the others.

"Wait, where's Mingi?" You looked around, realising the other tall giant wasn't there. Yeosang went to the guest room to see the tall boy fast asleep on the bed.

"He's in... the guest room... asleep." Yeosang spoke slowly, leaning against the wall as he yawned.

"(y/n), go to bed. We'll handle it." Jongho said, moving Seonghwa to the couch and putting one of the blankets over him while Yeosang got Hongjoong.

"Okay, goodnight. See you all tomorrow." You smiled. They waved back before you enter your room. Yunho was hugging Yuyu and Yunnie, sleeping with a small frown on his face.

"Yun..." You slipped under the covers.

"(y/n)...?" He lifted his head groggily. He moved Yunnie and Yuyu aside, reaching over to hug you and tucked his head into the crook of your neck. You sighed blissfully, fingers threading through the ends of his hair behind his head. He pressed kisses to your neck, making you shiver slightly.

"Sleep, Yun." You whispered, yawning yourself. He gave a small nod and a hum, falling asleep right away.

"Shh! Wooyoung hyung, San hyung, stop singing!" You chuckled as you heard Jongho scold the drunk boy. Looking down at Yunho, you caressed his cheek with a loving smile.

"I love you too." You whispered, tilting Yunho's head up to give him a peck despite him being asleep.

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dudefrommywesterns · 9 months

Text

Ship: Mike x Joe Ricco

Words: 900

Description: Mike brings Ricco lunch at work.

Warnings: none!

Joe would be in his office at lunchtime. Mike had made sure of that. Ever since they'd been going out, they wanted to bring him a homemade lunch. They'd prepped some cilantro lime salad and sandwiches the night before so they could easily come to his law building from their job at the paper.

They walked into his office and were greeted by Jamison, his secretary. They'd heard quite a bit about her but had never met her.

Jamison was a woman about Mike's age, maybe slightly younger. She had short brown hair that was parted in the middle and surrounded her head, a bit like a long pageboy. She smiled professionally as Mike approached.

“Hello, miss,” she said, which stung a little. “It's Mr. Ricco’s lunch hour but I can make you an appointment.”

Mike lifted the bag they were holding. “That's exactly what I'm here for.”

Jamison eyed Mike's flared slacks and furrowed her eyebrows. “You don't look like a delivery boy.”

Mike chuckled. “No, I write the political commentary section of The Chronicle. Occasionally I publish short stories. I've been in a few publications. I'm hoping for The Atlantic next.”

“Ambitious,” Jamison said. “So then-” A lightbulb went on in her head. “You're the person he's dating? You're Mike?”

“Yep! That's me. Nice to meet you.”

“How old are you?” she asked.

Mike sighed. “Why does everyone ask that? I finished my English doctorate three years ago.”

“You're my age?” she asked, then cringed. “Ricco’s old. He's probably my dad’s age.”

“If we're done judging me, I'm going to have lunch with my boyfriend.”

Mike attempted to walk past but Jamison stopped them.

“Oh, I'm not judging! I'm just surprised,” Jamison said. “It's good to see him happy. He's been alone as long as I've worked for him. Maybe he'll stay out of my love life now and stop being such a busybody.”

Mike chuckled. “He told me he was trying to get you a boyfriend. Any success?”

“Maybe,” she said, stressing the y. “He was right about Markham anyway.”

“What's up with old Italians and the matchmaking?” Mike joked. “We were set up by Nino and Angela. They'd been setting him up on a bunch of dates he didn't want.”

“What a hypocrite!” Jamison exclaimed. “Doesn't like it when people do it to him but does it to everybody else.”

“Well, see you later,” Mike said, and walked into Joe's office.

“Hi,” Mike said. “Lunch is here. I got held up by a very confused Jamison. You didn't tell her I was coming?”

“No, I forgot.”

“You didn't tell her what I look like? How old I am?”

“It didn't seem relevant.”

Mike laughed. “She's probably still in an advanced state of shock out there. Wondering how you pulled such a pretty young thing.”

He rolled his eyes. “You're not so young.”

“I'm decrepit in women's years, don't you know? Dry as dust!”

Joe busted up laughing at that.

They added dramatically, “Like an overripe lemon!”

He shook his head fondly. “Come here.”

Mike set the bag down on a chair and approached his desk. They leaned in.

Joe gave them a gentle kiss hello.

“Not quite dry yet,” he said.

Mike gave him a quick peck back. “You're getting there.”

“Hm, I don't know. I sure drive you crazy.”

There was no denying that.

“Shut up and eat one of these sandwiches.”

Mike grabbed out a pastrami for him and a veggie for themselves.

“There's salad too,” Mike said. “Cilantro lime. It's really good.”

“It probably is, if you made it,” he said.

Mike smiled.

“Are you busy for the rest of the day?” Mike asked.

“Oh, there's this case and that case,” he said. “Why? Are you planning on playing hooky?”

Mike smiled. “Oh, no. I have to get back to the paper and write my thoughts about the latest White House sex scandal. Riveting stuff.”

“The readers like it,” he said.

Mike looked up from their sandwich. “How would you know?”

“Oh. People like to talk. People think you're funny. Right, but funny.”

“Well. That's good.”

“I found one of your short stories in one of those little literature journals,” he said. “You're good.”

“I didn't know you read literary journals.”

“I don't.”

“Oh.”

“You should try to aim higher,” he said. “Some big paper.”

“The Atlantic and the New Yorker keep rejecting me,” Mike said. “But that's understandable because only 0.00067 percent of people get into those.”

“You'll get in,” he said. “They'd be stupid not to at some point.”

“Thank you.”

After a while, both finished their lunch. Mike sipped their green tea as slowly as they could.

“Don't you have that sex scandal to write about?” Joe asked.

Mike sighed. “I'm trying to pretend I have all the time in the world.” They took his hand from across the table. “What if I want to stay here?”

“I'll have to kick you out,” Joe said, lightheartedly. “I can't enable you slacking.”

Mike did their best pleading eyes. “Just once? We could just go walk the dock together?”

“I'll see you after work,” he said. “The dock’ll still be there. Along with the stars.”

“Well,” Mike sighed. “I tried. Have a good rest of your day.”

“Good luck on that commentary,” he replied.

“I'm not leaving without a kiss goodbye,” Mike said.

They kissed him for as long as they could.

“You taste like pastrami and mustard,” they said with a giggle.

“Go, go,” he said, waving them towards the door.

“I'm going, I'm going! It's almost like you want me to leave!”

Joe shook his head. “See you later.”

“If you're lucky.”

“See you later,” he repeated.

Mike gave him one last smile, then left his office. They hurried downstairs and across the dock. They were 15 minutes over their lunch hour.

#self ship #self shipping community #j.r.#fun fact: i actually have submitted my original work to the atlantic and the new yorker. rejected of course #typewriter dings

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justsomeclintasha · 1 year

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“You coming back in the field or what? They’ve had me paired with Fredericks. Never thought I’d miss your sorry ass.”

“Two more weeks of physical therapy and I’ll be good to go.”

“Thank God.” The agent laughs as he ducks into one of the medical rooms. Clint flexes his arm, the fresh stitches pulling tight. If it were up to him, he would have just ignored it, but unfortunately, it wasn’t up to him.

He’s just about to head back to his quarters when there’s a commotion down the hall.

Well, that’s putting it lightly.

Three agents run past him, weapons drawn. An alarm blares loudly from the speaker above him, and yet another man sprints by.

“What the hell…?” He follows, and the source quickly becomes apparent.

“She took my fucking gun!”

“Put it down!”

“Fuck this, just shoot her!”

“I said put it down!”

Clint barges past them, angling himself in front of the cornered redhead, and ignoring the gun in her hand.

“What happened?”

“She took-“

“I’m asking her!” he snaps. The room falls silent. The archer is levels above them. No one will dare to challenge him. “Get out. All of you.”

“But sir-“

“Now.” One by one, they file out, and the door shuts with a soft click. He turns to face her. She doesn’t lower her weapon. A shiny silver handcuff hangs from only one wrist. He cocks his head, considering, but there’s no fear in his eyes.

“Disarm,” she orders. Slowly, he reaches for his gun and hands it to her. She stuffs it in the back pocket of her jeans.

“You wanna tell me what happened?”

“No.”

“Okay. I’m going to get something out of my jacket. Don’t shoot me.” He pulls out a small lock pick tool and a tablet. He tosses the tool on one end of the bed and sits on the other. She quickly removes the cuff. If he notices her hand is trembling, he doesn’t comment on it. Instead, he pulls up a game on his tablet and ignores her. For several minutes, it’s silent.

“What are you doing?”

“Playing chess.”

“Why?”

“Because I like it.”

“I have a gun. I could kill you.”

“Yep.”

Her footsteps are quiet as she paces the room. She stops at the window, looking out to the courtyard, the gun still in her hand.

“I panicked,” she admits, her voice so low he has to strain to hear her. “The doctor tried to restrain me and I just…” She swallows, shaking her head. “I fucked it up, Clint.”

“No, you didn’t. That was his fault. Not yours. We don’t do that shit here. You’re not in trouble.”

“How do you know?”

“Because I said so.” She sets the weapons on the windowsill, moving to join him on the bed. Absently, she rubs her wrist, watching him move chess pieces on the tablet screen.

“Are you any good?”

“Absolutely not.” The corner of his mouth curls into a smile, and he tilts the screen so she can see better.

“Can you do it?”

“Do what?”

“My medical exam.” He reaches for the paperwork and scans over it.

“I think so. It looks pretty basic. You okay with that?”

“Yeah.”

“Alright. Height and weight first.” They move through a series of simple, routine tests, and he checks off the papers. “Heart rate, temperature, I’m not sure what this means but it’s probably fine. Oh let me look in your ears with this little flashlight thing.” He shines the light in each ear, then writes something down. “Mhm, definitely potatoes growing in there.”

“What?”

“I don’t know, it’s an expression. I’m the last person to judge anyone’s ears,” he says with a grin, motioning towards his hearing aid. “Alright, last thing is bloodwork. You good?”

“Yeah.” She looks anywhere but her arm as he ties a rubber strap around it and preps the needle.

“Little pinch,” he murmurs as he slides it in her skin. She doesn’t flinch, but he rubs his thumb soothingly on her arm anyway as the vial fills. “You’re okay. Almost done. Deep breath.”

“It doesn’t make you less, you know,” she blurts out. He raises an eyebrow in question. “Your hearing aids. It doesn’t.”

“I know.” He places a band aid carefully on her arm. It’s bright purple, with cartoon dogs on it she doesn’t recognize, but one is wearing a police hat. “All done. I think we should go celebrate now with some burgers and a milkshake.”

“Just like that?” After everything, she expected punishment, not his typical carefree attitude and a smile.

“Yeah, Natasha. Just like that.“

#clintasha #clint barton x natasha romanoff #clintasha fanfic

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moonchildstyles · 2 years

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i’ve fallen even deeper in love with gravity h after rereading it and im very obsessed with them making a deal to look at her test scores together after each one so that h can be there to scoop her into his arms when she gets a higher grade than all the previous exams, or just tell her how proud he is (honestly still giving her the same amount of love) if she gets a similar or lower grade- but them both just seeing the evolution of her grade by the end of the semester - - when they have to write their final, harry just knows she’s ready for it because they both prepped so hard and even she feels a bit more confident that she understands most of the things they’ve covered again and again in their study sessions- but he’s just kissing her and reminding her that she’s gonna do great no matter what, and “you’re gonna do so good too h!” and it almost feels bittersweet because she’s so ready to finally be over with this class but it brought her harry:( and they won’t have to study this stuff together anymore but now they never need that excuse to be together and h is just happy that she won’t have to be so worried about the class anymore and he loves that he was able to help her SO MUCH :( - maybe they’re in a different room for the exam so they’re not right next to one another and everyone’s a little more separated and it’s still taking her longer than most of her classmates to get through the exam and Harry is one of the first people out and he gives her the cutest little smile and a thumbs up just mouthing “you got this!” which makes her bite back her own smile as he hands his exam over and walks out of the room, and she only stumbles over a few questions and she takes up the entire two hours they have but she knows h is waiting for her and she’s practically giddy as she hands over her papers and walks out of the room to see h leaning on the wall across from the door with two coffees in his hand and an expectant look on his face and “?? How’d it go?” and she’s just nodding with a growing smile as their prof leaves the room and locks the door behind him, giving a short nod to the two of them before disappearing down the hallway and h smiles when she does because it went so much better than even she thought but he never doubted her for a second and he’s handing her the coffee and wrapping his arms around her when she falls into his chest, mumbling a tiny “thank you” and he’s just so so so proud of his girl and loving on her so much - - and maybe a few weeks later when they get their exam results they’re together and open them at the same time and she hasn’t even looked at hers yet because “what did you get, h!” all excited bc she’s so proud of him too he is the smartest she’s ever known and she asks if he can tell her what she got because she’s scared now and he just pulls her laptop towards him and glances at the A sitting on her screen and he keeps a blank look on his face, rubbing his fingers over his bottom lip and glancing up at her as her brows pull together like “what? what is it?” bc he’s not smiling and he closes the lid, and sits back and “afraid you got an A, love” and she’s just blinking at him because what??? and she’s just questioning him but she knows he’s serious bc he’d never joke about that and the smile that fills his face the longer he sits there just makes her know it’s actually true and “I got a fucking A?” which just makes him laugh and she’s just so happy jumping into his lap and wrapping herself around him as he holds her tightly and listens to her little rambles of disbelief into his neck and “thank you h know I couldnt have done this without you” and he’s talking about how they need to celebrate and he has a few things in mind wanting to take her for dinner at her favourite little restaurant and he made the reservations yesterday for tonight bc he knew they’d be celebrating and “we still have a few hours before we need to start getting ready” and just laying her down on the couch and playing with her a little until she’s asking to make him feel good bc he helped her so much 😌 - 🍓

wait wait wait omg :(((((((( im like so scared to write the end of their physics class together bc I want them to be in class together forever but this is literally so sweet :((((((( like studying and supporting each other through it all esp when it comes to the final exam that has her extra nervous and even h a little jittery even tho they both know hes going to do just fine but omg :((((((the actual exam w h finishing super early and giving her a thumbs up and being so encouraging before he goes to wait in the hall for her :( and she needs the whole time but that doesn't deter him from waiting for another hour and a half for her bc ofc hes going to wait for her he loves her :( and when. he sees her smile afterwards hes just so :( bc usually she never feels great after tests like this so to see her in a good mood makes him so happy :( BUT OH MY GOD:((((( result day and ofc h does like.....stupidly well and they celebrate for that but omg :(((( him telling her her result and teasing her a little acting all serious before telling her she passed super well:(((( and I can see her getting a little teary before jumping on his lap and hugging him so hard:(((( and him already having had the reservation bc he knew no matter what that he was going to be so proud of her:( but omg......ofc part of the celebration is laying her out on the couch in his apartment and taking care of her and being so good to her bc she deserves it:(

#🍓 anon #gravity inspo #concept #anon #ask

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soobmint · 3 years

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paper hearts | choi soobin [f] ; [c] 80s! au, 9.6k words

s u m m a r y ; if there was one thing you wanted to avoid on valentine’s day, it was running into your ex best friend, choi soobin. but when a series of unfortunate events involving too much purple eyeshadow, drunken punches, and one stolen bicycle leads you right back to his side, you begin to realize that maybe you truly belonged with him all along.

c o n t e n t s ; soobin x fem!reader, 80s! au, valentine’s day, ex best friend! soobin, rich boy! soobin, but he’s a major dweeb and the biggest softie, yeonjun is a major prick (i’m so sorry junnie), reader is a part time worker, soobin is best friends with lee felix of stray kids, some themes of social classes, roughly inspired by the 80s movie “pretty in pink,” mentions drugs, alcohol, and single parent households, mostly just fluff, fluff, and more fluff, with a hint of crack/humor

n o t e ; hello friends! this was a very quickly planned, last minute valentine’s day idea, and it’s actually a collab with one of my dearest friends, @chanluster ! she posted her piece of the collab as well, you can check it out by going to the collab masterlist here! this was so much fun to write and i think that 80s! soobin was just too good of a concept to pass up! anyways, happy valentine’s day, i hope you enjoy this oneshot! do leave a like, reblog, or comment if you could, it really helps so much <3

[back to my masterlist] [oneshot playlist]

IF ONE MORE CUT-OUT, CRAFT-PAPER HEART HIT YOU IN THE FACE, YOU WERE GOING TO QUIT YOUR JOB.

Of course you would never actually quit. With your mother out of the picture and your father working nonstop overtime just to barely have enough cash to put food on the table for the both of you, you had come to rely on your minimum wage part-time hours more than you liked to admit. However, the handmade strings of paper hearts that hung from wall to wall throughout the entirety of the record shop you were employed at was enough to make you consider it; not to mention the Phil Collins record that had been spinning all day, filling your ears with melodies embodying the very air of romance, and the embarrassing pink sweater your boss had forced you to wear. You mumbled curses beneath your breath as you pulled at the collar, itching away at your neck.

When you made a step towards a crate full of records, ready to tidy it up after a customer had rummaged through it leaving it a mess, you were met with another face full of cheap red construction paper. With a large growl of exasperation, you swatted at the hearts and accidentally caused the entire string of them to fall to the ground. You cleared your throat, glad that no customers were present to see your little outburst.

Your boss, Jen, still saw it all.

“That’s not very festive of you, kid,” She said, taking a drag on her cigarette. “It’s Valentine’s Day! Lighten up.”

“Ah, my bad. I forgot that I was supposed to be overjoyed on the day honoring the execution of St. Valentine,” You said as you gave her a sarcastic smile. “I’ll make sure to smile at the next couple that walks in and ask them how they plan to contribute to the commercialization of a martyr’s death.”

“You must be real fun at parties,” Jen mumbled. She shook her cigarette at you from behind the counter. “You’re just bitter because you don’t have a valentine. I can’t blame anyone for giving you the cold shoulder with that attitude of yours.”

You scowled, picking up the string of hearts that you had sent crashing to the floor. “I’m not bitter, and I don’t want a date. Also, I told you to stop smoking inside! It smells awful.”

“Last I checked, this was my shop, not yours.” You rolled your eyes as you approached the counter, handing the discarded string to Jen so she could throw it in the trash. “Now you’re making me do chores for you too? You’ve got some nerve, I’ll give you that.”

“Jen, please, I’m really not in the mood for this today.”

Jen shrugged, bending towards the trash can to throw away the string of hearts when she paused and pulled something from the bin. You glanced over your shoulder and gasped when you saw what she held in her hand—a small red envelope with your name scrawled across the front and a pink heart-shaped sticker stuck on the back.

“What’s this?” Jen asked, opening the envelope and shaking out the contents. A single slip of paper fell out, landing atop the counter. You rushed to grab it, but Jen snatched it up just before your fingers reached the countertop.

“Give me that,” You insisted, face growing warm. “I threw it away for a reason!”

“It’s an invitation to a party?” She seemed beyond surprised, glancing back and forth between you and the paper several times. “You got invited to a Valentine’s Day party, and instead of going, you asked me to give you extra hours? Why?”

You looked down at your feet, digging the toe of your sneaker into the blue carpet. There were, in fact, many reasons why you did not want to go to that party. They were as follows:

One: Choi Yeonjun was the one who had invited you. After you had rejected his offer when he asked to take you to a basketball game a month before, you could barely make eye contact with him in the school hallway without feeling guilty. That and the fact that he was one of the richest preps in the school, you knew he had just been asking you out for some sort of prank or dare that you preferred to not potentially fall victim to.

Two: you needed to work as much as you could. Money, as always, was tight for you and your father. There was no way you would sacrifice precious hours to go to a party full of rich kids where nothing but humiliation was sure to await you.

Three: your old childhood friend and the one person you couldn’t bear to see was probably going to be there—Choi Soobin.

You had barely spoken to Soobin in the four years you had been in high school. Crossing paths with him in the cafeteria, turning down the same aisle of books as him in the library, all those tiny stolen glances and accidental encounters were the only bits of interaction you had kept throughout all that time. The worst part was, he hadn’t done anything wrong.

It was nothing but your own cowardice that had driven the two of you apart, and you were still too afraid to own up to it.

Instead of explaining all of this to Jen, you simply shrugged and said, “I dunno. It just sounds lame.”

Your boss sighed, holding the invitation out towards you. “Okay, I’m letting you off early. Go to the party.”

With wide eyes, you shook your head immediately. “Absolutely not. Why in the world would I go?”

“Well, first of all, it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity for you. Who knows when your next chance to go to a party will be.”

You couldn’t help but roll your eyes at that.

“Second, it’s a holiday! The only reason I even opened today was because you were begging me for hours. I thought it was because you were bummed about having no plans, but clearly it’s because you wanted an excuse to be a recluse.”

“Hey, I’m not a recluse.”

“Clearly.” She shook the invitation at you once more, brows raised. “If you go, I’ll raise your pay by fifty cents for the next month.”

Your ears perked up at that.

“Well?” She asked, well aware that she had hit the jackpot. “What'd ya say?”

Weighing the risks against the benefits, you bit the inside of your cheek.

“Make it a dollar and you’ve got a deal.”

“HAPPY VALENTINE’S, CHOI.”

When Soobin heard the sarcastic remark coming from his best friend, Felix, he had to fight back the urge to burst into tears then and there. He still wasn’t quite sure how Felix had convinced him to come, but he was already regretting it. The last thing he wanted to do to celebrate the day dedicated to love was spend it at a house party—or, as Soobin preferred to call them, any outcast high school kid’s version of hell on earth.

With a quick peek between his fingers, which he had used to cover his eyes immediately upon arriving at the site of the Valentine’s party, Soobin caught another eye-full of couples getting all too familiar with one another out in the open. He gulped, letting his hands grip the handles of the bike as he averted his gaze, choosing to cast his best glare at Felix, who was busy adjusting his ever-present beanie.

“Shut up,” he murmured, slowly sliding off the seat of his bike. He dusted off the worn, tearing cushion, glancing around the area. “Now quick, we gotta put our stuff somewhere safe.”

Felix looked aghast, making no moves to help Soobin in his search for a hiding spot. “What are you doing?”

“Tryna find a safe place for my bike?” He thought the answer to be somewhat obvious, but clearly Felix wasn’t on the same track of thinking. “You don’t know today’s world! Anyone is willing to steal nowadays.”

“Soobin, your bike is coughing up oil from its chains. It should be in its own care home at this rate.”

“I don’t wanna hear your slander, skater boy,” Soobin retorted, eyeing Felix’s ebony skateboard that he refused to be seen without. As if on cue, when he pushed his bike forward, the chains squealed, drawing the attention of a pair of particularly passionate individuals who had been wrapped up with one another moments before. Soobin ignored their annoyed stares, feeling his ears burn from embarrassment. He glanced back to Felix. “Help me find a hiding spot.”

Felix was anything but enthusiastic, but he began to help Soobin search nonetheless.

“Slide it in here, Soobs,” Felix called a few moments later. He was pointed to an empty space between the home’s perfectly trimmed bushes. Soobin pursed his lips together, pushing his large glasses further up the bridge of his nose—a nervous tick of his. Felix groaned, rolling his eyes. “Or you can leave it out in the open so it’ll spit more oil on the passersby? Is that what you want?”

“Fine, fine!” Soobin huffed, wheeling his bike over to the shrubbery, chains squeaking all the way. He carefully laid it beneath the brush and moved a few branches to cover it up nicely. He stood up straight, dusting his hands on the front of his loose blue jeans. “What about your skateboard?”

Felix gave the board a pat, awarding his most prized possession a dazzling smile one would expect to see a proud father giving his beloved son. But in reality, it was the school’s stoner grinning ear to ear at his old, dusty skateboard. “Nightrider stays with me.”

Soobin scrunched his nose, cringing on instinct. He still calls that thing by that stupid name?

Felix clapped him on the shoulder before he could make a remark, catching him off guard when he said, “Right. Let’s go and get your girl.”

There was nothing Soobin could do to stop the flush that rushed to his cheeks right away. Images of you, his ex-best friend and the only reason he had even come to this party in the first place, flashed through his mind. Had he not overheard Yeonjun invite you earlier that morning and then casually mention the encounter to Felix, there was no way he would have even stepped foot out of his house that night. Part of him was peeved, wishing he had never uttered a single word about you to his overbearing friend. Yet, deep down, there was hope within him—the tiniest sliver.

If there was even the slightest chance that he could talk to you that night, he would do anything. Even if it meant dealing with a stupid party, and the never-ceasing teasing he was bound to continue receiving from Felix.

“Don’t even say that,” He said, emphasizing each word as they walked up the front steps. Soobin had to glance down at his much shorter friend to see the devious grin on his freckled face.

“Say what? That she’s your girl, your woman, your one and only?”

The blush must have been creeping to his neck by that point. He could feel it. “I. . .” There were many things Soobin wished to say; angry words that would hopefully shut the blonde skater boy up real quick. But he couldn’t bring himself to say a single harsh word, so he sighed in defeat. “I can’t even say it.”

“That you hate me?” Felix only grinned even bigger, and Soobin couldn’t help the tiny defeated smile that slipped over his features. “Oh, I know. It’s because I’m too good of a best friend.”

They stepped into the house then, instantly being overwhelmed by loud music, boisterous laughter, and drunken yells echoing throughout the halls. Soobin latched onto Felix right away, gripping his friend’s sleeve as someone stumbled into him, a bit of beer spilling from their cup. He pushed his glasses up, only for them to slide right back down as he began to sweat.

“Maybe we should go home, Lix!” Soobin shouted to be heard over the noise as they travelled further into the house. “We can always try next year!”

“Stop being a scaredy-cat!” Felix shouted back, and Soobin thought he might actually begin to cry as they squeezed their way into the living room. Soobin nearly gagged at the strong smell of alcohol as it burned in his nose. The scene was nothing short of a nightmare to Soobin—loud voices, smoke rising in the air, vodka assaulting his nose and sweat beading on the back of his neck. He had never been one to drink, and he didn’t plan on starting that night; but he was beginning to understand what Felix meant when he had once told him it was nearly impossible to get through one of these parties sober.

He was about to make another complaint and beg to leave when someone from the crowd hollered his name, causing him to wince when he recognized that voice as the one that belonged to none other than Choi Yeonjun.

“Soobin! Where you been?”

Soobin smiled nervously at the school’s heartthrob—and textbook snobby rich kid—before he turned back to Felix. He didn’t want to leave his friend, but he knew that he would never hear the end of it if he ignored Yeonjun’s persistent calls. “I’ll be right back,” He promised Felix, still holding onto his sleeve.

“No, no,” Felix assured. “You go. You’ll probably find her around that place anyway.”

Soobin wasn’t so sure of that. You were definitely not of the right social standing to be caught amongst the circle of the school’s rich boys—which was why it had surprised Soobin that Yeonjun had invited you to the party in the first place. Your high school had its own caste system, and you were near the bottom of it.

And, as much as it pained him to admit it, Soobin was stuck at the very top with all the other rich snobs who cared about nothing more than their daily allowances that came straight from their daddy’s bank account.

“What about you, buddy?” He asked Felix, desperate for any excuse to remain by his friend’s side. He would have tried to bring Felix with him, but his friend was in an even worse social standing than you were—he was poor, and he was most known for being the school’s pothead. There was no way Soobin would willingly drag him into a situation where nothing but slander and torment awaited him.

“Me?” Felix shrugged, gripping his board tighter. “I’ll just smoke away the night.”

Soobin pouted, glancing back at the group of preps as they called for him once again. He sighed, clapping Felix on the shoulder. “Just make sure you won’t smell too much of it when I come back.”

Submitting himself to his doom then, he turned on his heel and slowly made his way to where the group of boys sat near the sofa, giving them a half-hearted wave.

“Why were you hanging around that Felix guy?” Yeonjun asked once Soobin had reached their circle. “Did he blackmail you or something?”

Soobin frowned, pushing his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “He’s my friend.”

Yeonjun rolled his eyes, brushing a hand through his perfectly-straightened ebony locks. “Sure he is. Tell me, do you see every kid you find on the streets as some sort of personal charity project? Or is it just Felix and—what was her name—” He snapped his fingers then before he said, “Y/N, right?”

Soobin didn’t respond—well, it was more like he couldn’t respond. By nature he was a very passive being, but nothing drew him closer to bouts of anger than when the people he cared about were being insulted right before him.

Especially when it came to you.

Yet, as much as he wanted to tell Yeonjun off or give him a nice shove into the smoke-stained walls, words failed him. They always did. Perhaps this was why you had abandoned him all those years ago. Nobody knew him better than you did, so of course you were able to see what he truly was beneath all the expensive clothes and nervous laughter—a coward.

He figured that he’d probably have left himself too.

“Drink up, buttercup.” The chipper voice that belonged to the other Choi in the small gathering of socialites, Choi Beomgyu, thrust a plastic red cup towards Soobin’s chest.

He shook his head, throwing another wavering smile in his direction. “No thanks. I don’t drink.”

Yeonjun rolled his eyes. “Of course you don’t. Why are you even here then?”

Once again, Soobin chose silence as his only response. He swallowed, patting the front pocket of his denim jacket. As the group of boys began conversing once more, he couldn’t help but let his eyes wander around the room, searching every drunken face for the features that belonged to you, trying to hear your name in every conversation, desperate for your voice to break through the blasting music and shouting voices.

“Who ya looking for there, Big Choi?” Soobin grimaced at the nickname. He was skinny, but incredibly tall, and nobody would let him forget that. “Big Choi” was one of his most common nicknames among the elitists. He despised it, but of course, he would never voice that aloud.

He glanced at Beomgyu and smiled nervously again, shaking his head. “Nobody.”

His eyes met Yeonjun’s and he gulped yet again as the latter eyed him with suspicion. It wasn’t as though he had anything to hide, but something about Yeonjun’s calculating gaze made his skin crawl.

He needed to escape. Just for a moment, at least.

“I’ll be right back. Going to find some water.”

He slipped out of the living room then, apologizing profusely to each couple he accidentally bumped into, bowing in remorse to each person’s toes his big feet happened to stumble over. He ached to be by Felix’s side—the stoned skateboarder had become somewhat of a security blanket to the taller of the duo—but his blonde friend was nowhere to be seen.

After snagging a bottle of water from the kitchen, Soobin managed to slip into an empty bathroom. He slammed the door shut and wasted no time in locking it. Letting out the biggest sigh of relief, he closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the door, taking a big gulp of the ice cold water.

He set the bottle on the counter and carefully reached into the front pocket of his jacket, his fingers finding the piece of paper he had been storing there all evening. He pulled it out and let his eyes wander over his middle school creation. It was a big heart, cut out from a scrap piece of red construction paper. Scrawled across it in his eight-grade handwriting were the words, Be mine this Valentine’s! His name was etched at the bottom, and at the very top, delicately printed in hot pink glitter glue, your name was written as well.

He had planned to give this to you four years ago on Valentine’s day. Everything had been planned out perfectly; he was to pick you up on his old, trusty bike. It wasn’t really made for two people, but the two of you had fashioned a makeshift extra seat for you to sit upon whenever you went places together.

He wanted to take you to the Dairy Shack, which was the local ice cream shop where the two of you spent the most time together. You always got a large chocolate shake to share, playing a quick game of rock, paper, scissors to decide who got to eat the cherry on top. He was going to order a shake and specially ask for two cherries that time, and planned to give both of them to you before he would bravely present you with the handmade card he had spent all day working on.

However, when he waited for you outside your house that day, the red dusk turned to pitch black night, and you never stepped foot out your door.

He had even gone up to your door a few times and knocked, but there was no answer. Eventually he pedalled off into the night, back to his house. He was disappointed, of course, but more worried than anything else. He had hoped you weren’t sick.

But when he saw you at school the next day, he knew that hadn’t been the case.

And when you ignored him calling your name as you passed by him in the hallways, he knew that something had drastically changed.

For weeks, Soobin was in great turmoil as he replayed your last few encounters together before you had stood him up. Perhaps you were angry that he had won the last few games of rock, paper, scissors? If he had known, he would have given you all the cherries for the rest of time if it meant you would still talk to him. He didn’t care about them—he cared about you.

He missed you.

And as weeks turned to months, and months turned to years, you still barely spoke to him, and he missed you more and more. The best friend he had wanted to take a step closer to had taken a thousand steps back from him, and he still had no idea why.

But that night, he was determined to find out.

Well, if he could muster up the courage to get a single word out, of course.

He folded the heart back up and stuck it back in his pocket, taking a deep breath as he observed himself in the fogged-up mirror. He fixed his bright blue hair that Felix had helped him bleach and dye, making sure the pieces fell over the corners of his eyes just right. He straightened his white turtleneck and cuffed the sleeves of his denim jacket until he was at least somewhat content with his appearance.

“You can do this, Soobs,” He told himself, adjusting his big round glasses further up the bridge of his nose. “That’s what Felix would say.”

“Hey, rich boy!” A loud scream came from outside the bathroom door, accompanied by harsh knocking that sent Soobin stumbling backwards until he fell in the shower, pulling the curtains down with him.

“Hurry up in there! I’m about to piss myself!”

Soobin let out a shaky sigh, scrambling to his feet as he rushed to fix the curtain he had torn down with his clumsiness. “Sorry,” he mumbled, though he doubted the person on the other side of the door could hear him.

He realized then with an ever growing dread that it would be a miracle if he survived the night long enough to even find you, but it would take the work of God himself for him to actually speak to you.

He figured it was time for him to start praying.

YOU KNEW IT WAS A MISTAKE TO LET JEN DO YOUR MAKEUP.

When she had stopped you on your way out the door with a compact of bright purple eyeshadow, you had turned her down right away. No way in all of creation were you walking in a party with such an atrocious color caked up to your brow bone.

“How can you say it’s gonna look bad if you haven’t even let me try?” Jen had asked.

You had given her a once-over, your lips pressed into a thin line. “If it’s gonna look anything like the way you do your own makeup, I’m gonna have to pass.”

After that snide remark, she had threatened to fire you if you didn’t let her apply the makeup. And so you obliged, though you didn’t have much of a choice.

The booming sounds of the party hit your ears before you had even reached the lawn. Screaming teens—well, there were probably some adults thrown in there as well—and the sound of music spilled through the open windows of the home. Couples and singles alike were scattered throughout the perfectly kept lawn that was now littered with empty cups and other assortments of garbage.

You looked down at your patchwork jeans and pink sweater, certain that you would be underdressed compared to the rest of the partygoers. But from the looks of things, as you carefully squeezed your way through the front door and into the home, everyone was probably too wasted to even notice your arrival, let alone care about your looks.

You caught a glimpse of your face in the hallway mirror, cringing at the sight of your eyeshadow. You had tried to wipe some of it away before arriving, but it simply smudged, giving you quite the shocking smoky, purple eye look. For someone who didn’t even know the difference between a paintbrush and a makeup brush, it was a bold look, to say the least.

If Soobin saw you looking like this, he’d probably have a heart attack.

Soobin.

In the midst of all your frantic preparation, you had nearly forgotten about the main reason why you had planned to avoid this party at all costs. With a quick glance around the room, you realized that he was nowhere to be seen. You wouldn’t have been surprised if he hadn’t shown up at all. He was never a fan of parties, anyway.

You crossed your arms over your chest and slowly slipped past the couples crowding the hallway with their limbs intertwined, mouths practically swallowing one another whole, until you reached the living room. Surprisingly, it was less crowded in here than you thought it might be. A few minglers were scattered about the room’s perimeter, but they all kept away from the center of the room, which was occupied by none other than Choi Yeonjun and all his brainless, rich-boy worshippers. You quickly scanned the group, not able to make out Soobin among them. When you realized he wasn’t there, you were partly relieved and partly disappointed. If was to be anywhere at this party, it would probably be with these guys.

With a quick turn on your heel, you planned to make your way out of the living room before Yeonjun could see you. The last thing you wanted was for the boy with a bruised ego to see you, regardless of whether or not he had been the one to invite you.

“Y/N? You came?”

Too late.

Plastering a forced grin to your face, you slowly turned to face Yeonjun, who had just called your name. He was eyeing you with slight surprise, but soon, a smirk slipped across his lips as he motioned for you to come over. You had to hold back your sigh, wishing there was some way for you to get out of this situation. It was all Jen’s fault that you had to show up in the first place. You decided you were going to demand an extra ten cents be added to your raise the next time you saw your pushy boss.

“Hey Yeonjun,” you said once you had walked over to him. “I figured I’d stop by for a minute or two, since you were kind enough to invite me.”

He smirked, glancing at a few of his friends. They shared a knowing laugh with one another, but the meaning of it was lost to you. You wanted nothing more than to get away from them, but that wasn’t an option.

“You’re too busy to go out with me to a basketball game but free enough to come to a party, huh?” He asked.

You blinked, digging your nails into your arms. “I’m sorry?”

“It’s fine, really,” He drawled, swirling his plastic cup of beer in his hand. “You didn’t think I’d be upset or anything did you? I only asked you out because I was dared to shack up with you. But I’m guessing you already knew that, since you’re so smart and all.”

Your eyes went wide, but you managed to control the rest of your expression. It was just like you had guessed—Yeonjun had invited you to the party with the sole purpose of making a scene.

If you survived the night, Jen was never going to hear the end of it.

“You’re not gonna say anything?” He asked, pushing himself to his feet. You could tell by the slight stumble in his step and his hooded eyes that he had quite a bit to drink. He took a step towards you, causing you to back up immediately. Your back hit the wall, and you placed your palms against it as Yeonjun towered over you.

“It’s okay, sweetheart. I know why you’re here anyways.” He leaned forward, his lips hovering near your ear. “You’re here to see Soobin, aren’t you? Since he’s the only one here willing to waste his time on filth like you.”

Your blood boiled, and you had to clench your fists at your sides to control your anger.

“Don’t,” You seethed, “Call me that.”

“Call you what? Filth? Or sweetheart? Why, is that something good old Binnie used to call you—”

He never got to finish that sentence, because with one big burst of anger, you stomped on his toe as hard as you could with your worn-out platform sneaker.

“What the hell!” He screeched, drawing the attention of several others in the room. His outburst even caused a few of the couples to pull away from each other’s faces long enough to eavesdrop.

Before you could even say anything back, lukewarm liquid was splashed up in your face, burning your eyes and nose. You gasped, running your hands over your eyes to see Yeonjun with his now empty cup of beer pointed towards you.

“Think twice before you act out against me next time, sweetheart. Never forget your place.”

Tears of anger burned in your eyes, and you scanned the room to see several people exchanging whispers and giggles as they glanced in your direction. You pushed past Yeonjun and quickly made your way out the back door of the house, unable to stand the humiliation for a moment longer.

Soobin arrived in the living room just in time to see you leave.

He wasted no time in rushing towards Yeonjun, grabbing hold of his arm. “Yeonjun, was that Y/N?” He asked, eyes quickly taking in the puddle of alcohol on the floor and the empty cup in Yeonjun’s hand. “What happened?”

“Nothing you need to worry your pretty blue head about, Big Choi. I just put her in her place is all.”

Soobin’s eyes narrowed. “What do you mean you ‘put her in her place?’”

Yeonjun laughed, giving Soobin a nonchalant pat on the back. “Just drop it, would you? It has nothing to do with you.”

“What did you say, Yeonjun?”

Yeonjun was growing irritated now. He huffed out a breath, crossing his arms over his chest. “I said it has nothing to do with you, Soobin. I know you like to hang around people like that pothead Felix, but the rest of us live in the real world, where we’d rather not waste our time with those who have no future anyways. I bet he’s the one that got you to dye your hair that god awful blue, isn’t he?”

Soobin bit the inside of his cheek. He so badly wished to rip Yeonjun to shreds then and there. If he had Felix’s courage, the cocky bastard would have been knocked to the ground ages ago. But if there was one thing Soobin was sure he could never be, it was brave. And so, despite his rage, he remained silent, his eyes practically burning a hole through Yeonjun’s chest from how intently he was glaring.

It seemed as though Yeonjun was about to say something, but his eyes landed on the bit of red that peeked through the front pocket of Soobin’s denim jacket. Before Soobin had time to defend himself, Yeonjun had reached forward and snatched it from his pocket, revealing the large paper heart—his valentine for you.

“So this is why you care so much,” Yeonjun said, laughing as his eyes scanned the glittery words that decorated the page. “You want her to be your valentine.”

“Give that back,” Soobin said quietly, his hands beginning to shake.

Yeonjun instead lifted his eyes to Soobin, gave him a sickly sweet grin, and ripped the heart straight down the middle. He let the two pieces fall from his hands to the ground, and with them Soobin’s heart went also.

“You’re really willing to try and go against me, and for what? For the sake of a girl who can’t even afford a new pair of jeans and a boy that smokes his life away in the bathroom stalls?” Yeonjun took a slow step towards Soobin, his eyes glinting with a sinister determination. “You may be rich, Soobin, but if you choose to lower yourself to their standards, you may as well be dirt poor just like they are.”

With his hands clenched into tight fists, his glasses sliding down his nose, and his heart quite literally in two pieces on the floor below him, Soobin decided that he had had enough.

“I’d much rather be associated with people who are kind and have actual depth to their character than be lumped together with a bunch of pricks like you with no real personality—because that’s something you can’t buy with daddy’s paycheck.”

He had to physically restrain himself from slapping his hand across his own mouth in shock. It was as if the spirit of Felix himself had possessed him to say such harsh things. He wondered where Felix was then, wishing more than ever before to have his best friend by his side as he began to tremble from either the rush of adrenaline that coursed through his veins, or from fear. Or perhaps it was both.

He didn’t have time to ponder it any longer before Yeonjun’s fist collided with his nose, resulting in a sickening crack as pain echoed throughout his face in tidal waves.

He stumbled backward as people began to shout, raising his hand to his nose and gasping when he saw that his palm was covered in blood.

Beomgyu had his arms wrapped around Yeonjun, who was desperately trying to lunge towards Soobin once again.

“Knock it off, Yeonjun!” Beomgyu shouted, pushing the elder back. “His dad is on the school board! Are you trying to get expelled?”

Beomgyu looked over his shoulder at the still stunned Soobin, who was gaping at the blood that now stained his once white turtleneck.

“Get lost, Soobin,” Beomgyu said, to which Soobin only blinked in reply, his ears ringing.

“Now!”

Head spinning, Soobin picked up the two halves of his paper heart, stuffed them into his jeans, and stumbled out the same door he had seen you go through just minutes before. After checking to make sure his glasses were still intact—they were, thankfully—he shook his head in an effort to clear his mind of the static, eyes scanning the front lawn looking for any trace of you.

It didn’t take long for his eyes to spot you among the now dwindling crowd of partygoers. Your bright pink sweater stood out against the darkness, so he was able to recognize you even with your back towards him. He sniffed, wiping the back of his hand against his dripping nose as he slowly made his way to where you sat on the curb, your feet planted on the asphalt street. He wished that he looked a bit more presentable—when he played this scene out in his head over the years in which he would finally reunite with you, he never imagined himself dazed and covered in blood.

Desperate times called for desperate measures, he supposed.

When he reached you, he simply stood beside you in silence for a moment, unsure of what to say. He could tell that you sensed his presence, but you refused to look up at him as you kept your face buried in your hands. He could have sworn he heard a few muffled sobs slip through your fingers, but of course, he wasn’t going to bring that up.

Eventually he decided to slip his jacket off of his shoulders, leaning down to drape it over you. You still kept your head down as he sat beside you on the curb, but he watched you grip the jacket and pull it tighter around your body. He smiled a bit, holding the collar of his turtleneck against his throbbing nose.

“Thank you,” you muttered, wiping your hand across your eyes. You finally looked over at him, and when you did, you couldn’t hold back your gasp. “My God Soobin, what happened to your face?”

“Oh, well, I might have gotten punched,” He said quickly, trying to wave off your concern. “Don’t worry about it.”

“Punched? By who?”

He looked down at the ground, sniffing as a drop of blood hit the pavement. “Yeonjun,” he muttered under his breath.

“I’m sorry, did you just say Yeonjun? Are you insane? Why on earth would you butt heads with the Choi Yeonjun?”

Soobin didn’t say anything in response, he simply stared at you, eyes wide with beer dripping off the ends of your hair, makeup smeared across your face, your sweater stained down the front. It didn’t seem to take long for you to put the pieces together, as the shock left your face and was replaced with something akin to guilt.

“Oh,” You said, looking back down at your shoes.

“So she knows that I did it all for her,” Soobin thought.

For some reason, the idea of that both terrified and excited him.

A second later, he glanced over to see you ripping one of the hand-sewed patches of fabric off your jeans, leaving a square of your skin exposed to the chilly night air. You leaned towards him, pushing his hand away from his nose so you could use the patch to clean up some of the blood on and around his puffy red nose.

“Y/N, your pants!” He exclaimed, trying to push your hand away. “They’re ruined!”

“I’m not worried about my pants, you idiot,” You said, swatting his hand away as you continued to press the cloth against his skin. “You got punched in the face because of me, this is the least I could do.”

“That was my choice though,” He muttered, although he stopped trying to resist your touch. He ignored the way his heart thrummed harder in his chest, hoping that you couldn’t hear.

“Well, this is my choice too.” Your eyes flicked to his for a brief moment, your bottom lip pulled between your teeth. “Why did you do it, by the way?”

“Do what?”

“Stand up to Yeonjun for me and get a nasty nosebleed as a result.”

“Oh.” He blinked slowly, keeping his eyes fixed on yours. “Just ‘cause.”

“Because . . . ?”

“Because of you.” He blurted, causing your hand to go still against him. He swallowed his fear, braving the best smile that he could. “Just you. That was my only reason.”

You didn’t say anything as your hand fell from his face, the cloth clutched between your fingers. The anxiety he had tried his best to suppress came rushing up all at once, and he was surprised that his ears didn’t begin to squeal like a tea kettle from all the pressure.

“Y/N,” He said, gently placing his hand over yours despite how his fingers trembled. “Why did you pull away from me?”

“What?”

“Four years ago. Why did you stop talking to me?”

You were quiet for a moment, digging into the ground with the toe of your sneaker. Soobin held his breath until you finally replied with, “I was afraid.”

“Afraid? Of what?”

“We were getting older, Binnie,” You said, and his heart skipped at the use of your old nickname for him. “You and I, we’re from very different walks of life. You get to hang out with people like Yeonjun, whereas I get a cup of beer poured all over my face just for existing, and you get a fist to the nose for trying to stand up for me. We’re from different sides of the track, one might say.”

“So?” Soobin asked, his hand tightening around yours. “Did you really think that would affect us that much, Y/N?”

You frowned, glancing down at his hand over yours.

“I thought you’d be embarrassed of me,” You said, your voice barely above a whisper.

“Embarrassed?” Soobin’s eyes went wide as he gripped your hand tighter still, pulling it into his lap. “Y/N, I would never, ever be embarrassed of you. Besides, have you seen my best friend? He’s on a first name basis with the principal because of how often he gets written up for smoking behind the school. If I’m not embarrassed of him, why would I ever be embarrassed of you?”

You laughed, wiping the back of your hand across your eyes once more. “I guess I was worried about nothing, huh?” You sniffed, giving his hand a squeeze. “I’m sorry, Soobin.”

He shook his head, squeezing your hand right back. “Don’t apologize. You’re here now, that’s what matters. Do think we could—you know—”

“Pick up where we left off?” You smiled, nodding vigorously. “I’d like that very much, Binnie.”

He beamed then, almost pinching himself to be sure that he was not dreaming, but the pain in his nose was real enough to remind him of that on its own. He jumped to his feet, pulling you right up with him.

“In that case, how about we finally go on that Valentine’s date I had planned all the way back then?”

“Date?” You asked, a brow raised. “Is it really considered a date if two friends are just hanging out?”

He didn’t respond as he pulled you along behind him towards the bushes where he and Felix had hidden his bike. He crouched down and moved the branches aside, feeling his heart drop to his stomach when he realized that his bike was, in fact, no longer there.

He shot up, turning to face you with eyes wide. “Felix—that bastard took my bike!”

You were quiet for a moment, but then, you burst into boisterous laughter, leaving Soobin utterly confused.

“It’s not funny, Y/N!” He whined, shoving your shoulder lightly. “I was supposed to take you to the Dairy Shack on my bike!”

“It is funny,” You said between bursts of laughter. “Only you would get such a rusty old piece of metal stolen from you.”

He pushed his lips out in a pout, sliding his glasses up his sore nose. “It’s a good bike, don’t make fun of it.”

You grinned, interlocking his fingers with yours, which was enough to instantly wipe the pout right off his face.

“Let’s just walk, Binnie. The Dairy Shack isn’t that far anyways.”

You were right; the walk to your favorite milkshake place was very close to the house where the party had occurred. Although Felix stealing his bike had thrown an obvious wrench in his plans, it was a minor hiccup, and one he could most definitely handle. Besides, he wouldn’t have to see Felix until the next day anyways. He could deal with his frustration then.

At least, that’s what he thought anyways, until the two of you spotted Felix at the skatepark on your way to the dairy shack.

Soobin’s eyes took in the deplorable sight before him—from where he stood on the dimly lit sidewalk, he could see Felix and a girl he had never seen before, their faces nearly pressed together, and most importantly, with his bike discarded a few yards away from them.

“Soobin,” You said, tugging on his arm. “They look like they’re busy, let’s just go—”

But Soobin, who had little patience when it came to Felix messing up his plans, didn’t let you finish before he screamed, “Give me back my freaking bike!”

You had to hold back your snort of laughter at his choice of words. Even when he was trying to sound angry, he was undeniably adorable.

Soobin watched as Felix startled, clutching his spliff between his fingers as he glared daggers back at his friend. Soobin gulped, trying not to let his fear show on his face. What did he have to be afraid of, anyways? He was the victim of thievery, and his best friend was the offender.

Felix took a big step towards him, but he paused, his eyes landing on your interlocked hands. Soobin glanced down as well, his face growing furiously warm as he realized the situation he had gotten himself into.

He decided to divert the subject before it could even be brought up by saying, “I can’t believe you stole my bike! All this time I was trying to hide it from strangers, but you, my best friend! I should’ve been hiding it from you!”

Soobin noticed Felix’s female companion step off the skateboard and walk over in his direction, and for a second he felt bad for possibly ruining her night with his best friend. However, his frustration was more prominent in the moment as he fixed his gaze back on his best friend, who had fixed a mischievous smirk upon his face that made warning sirens blare in Soobin’s head right away.

“Now, now, buddy,” Felix said, his voice calm and carefree as ever. It probably had something to do with what he had just smoked, but Soobin didn’t care all that much. “You’re just gonna have to let me borrow it for a little longer.”

Soobin nearly laughed at the audacity of such a statement. “You are gonna give me the bike, or—”

“How about this, Soobs?” Soobin’s lips clamped shut at his friend’s interruption, as the thief in question gestured with his joint to where Soobin’s fingers were locked with yours. “You let me keep your bike for the night, and I don’t tell your dad about you hanging out with the opposite gender.”

Unable to control yourself, you let out a big laugh. Soobin would have felt betrayed, but he was more terrified than anything else at the idea of his father finding out that he was taking a girl out without his permission. He would be grounded for weeks—no, months.

“You wouldn’t.”

Felix’s lips curled up even more into a twisted grin that Soobin wished he had the guts to slap off his face. “God, just imagine the look on Mr. Choi’s face. Imagine him finding out about your premarital hand holding.”

No. Not the hand holding.

Soobin almost felt faint, but he steeled himself to the best of his abilities as he cleared his throat. “One night, Lix,” he warned. “If I don’t see it on my porch in the morning, you’ll be sorry!”

“Oh, I’m so scared,” Felix teased. His expression changed a moment later though, when he finally noticed Soobin’s swollen nose and blood-stained turtleneck. “Wait, Soobs, the hell happened to you?”

Soobin, however, had already taken his first steps away from the skatepark, pulling you along behind him. “I’ll tell you later, bud. Enjoy your spliff with that kind girl who you probably don’t deserve!”

“Hey!”

Soobin couldn’t help but laugh as he swung your interlocked hands together, grinning as you let out a laugh as well. The anger that had seeped through him seemed to melt away in an instant as the two of you continued your journey to the Dairy Shack.

“Would your dad really be that upset if he found out about this?” You asked.

Soobin grimaced. “We should probably wait til next year to tell him about this outing. Or maybe the year after that.”

When the two of you had finally reached the Dairy Shack, you waited outside for him while he went in to order your drink. A large chocolate milkshake, with two straws, just like you used to get every time before.

When he had the drink in hand, he walked back outside and sat down beside you on the curb, smiling as you wrapped his jacket tighter around your shoulders. You smiled back up at him, your eyes creasing from the expression. Your smile had always struck him right to his core; he had missed seeing it every day.

He hoped he could see it every morning and every night from that day onward. There was no way he would let you go this time.

He just had to muster up the courage to grab hold of you first.

“You know what, Binnie, you turned out to be a lot taller than I thought you ever would be,” you said as you took one of the straws from his hands. “You’re actually enormous. It’s shocking.”

“Should I find that offensive? It sounds kinda like an insult.”

“Take it however you will,” You teased, leaning over as he popped the plastic lid off the milkshake. He grabbed the cherry by the stem and held it towards you.

“What are you doing?” You asked, holding out your fist. “We have to rock, paper, scissors for it. Remember?”

Soobin laughed as he shook his head. “I’m giving it to you this time. It’s what I planned to do all those years ago, when I asked you to hang out on Valentine’s.”

You seemed to be taken aback, but you simply shrugged as you plucked the cherry from his hand and pulled it from the stem with your teeth, glancing back over at him. It was silent for a moment, but then your eyes landed on the pocket of his jeans, where you could see a bit of red paper poking out. You leaned over even further, reaching your hand out to snatch the paper.

“What are you—hey! Give that back!”

Soobin desperately tried to take his Valentine back from you, but it was too late. You held both halves of what used to be a whole in your hands, your eyes scanning the words as you pieced them together.

“Soobin . . .”

He held his breath. Had his act of young love left you completely speechless? Were you so touched that you would burst into tears?

“This looks like a middle schooler made it.”

He let out the breath in the form of a long, long sigh.

“That’s because it was made by a middle schooler,” He said as he set the milkshake down beside him. “I made it back in the eighth grade. I planned to give it to you that Valentine’s.”

“Oh.” You ran your finger along the card’s surface, the smallest smile creeping across your lips. “Well in that case, it’s not half bad. Why’s it ripped though?”

“Ah—well, Yeonjun . . .”

You nodded, taking another glance at his swollen nose. “No need to elaborate. It seems you had a lot planned for our Valentine’s Day back then. Is there anything else you wanted to do?”

His mouth went dry at that, and he wished that you couldn’t see his face because he was sure that his expression was quite comical. All the way back then, four years prior, he had in fact planned the perfect, ideal day in his head. Picking you up on his bike, giving you the cherry from his milkshake, and presenting you with his hand made card.

There was only one thing left on his list.

He didn’t move at first, willing himself to have enough courage to even look back in your direction. But when he finally did allow his eyes to meet yours, he felt his shoulders relax and his heart rate became more manageable.

He took a deep breath, leaned forward, and pressed his lips against your cheek.

He lingered there for only a moment before he pulled back, daring to pry one of his eyes open to take in the look on your face.

The disappointment was palpable—from the way your brows furrowed together and the way you pursed your lips. His stomach dropped, and he scooted the tiniest bit away from you.

“I’m sorry,” He blurt out, his face growing warmer by the second. “I shouldn’t have done that, I just—”

“Is that all?”

Your question stopped him mid-ramble, his eyes growing wide. “Huh?”

“Is that all?” You repeated, closing the distance between you that he had created. “It’s Valentine’s Day, Soobin. I think we can do better than a peck on the cheek.”

The implications of what you were saying didn’t register with him right away, but when it finally did, he could have sworn his heart began to beat loud enough for the entire town to hear. His hand curled into a fist as he gripped the denim of his jeans. He leaned forward, keeping his eyes open just enough to watch you as he brought his lips closer to yours. He could feel your eyes on him all the while, causing his heart to pound fiercer still within him.

When he was just a breath away, he whispered, “Can you close your eyes?”

“Hm?”

He lifted his hand, gently placing it over your eyes. He leaned closer then, filling the space between you both as his lips met yours. You tasted vaguely of cherry and strawberry slice soda, and he found it quite nice the way his lips seemed to fit perfectly against your own. As the seconds drew on, your hands slipped around his neck, pulling him closer. He slowly let his hand fall from your eyes, tracing lines with the tips of his fingers down your cheek before he cradled your jaw, letting his lips part just enough to taste the sweet sugar on your lips once more.

He thought in a haze that it was a good thing he didn’t drink anything at the party, as kissing you was proving to be intoxicating enough on its own.

When you finally pulled away, leaving your forehead resting against his, he let his eyes flutter open enough to see the euphoric smile that adorned your features. He grinned as well, gently running his thumb against your cheek.

“I think that back then, I had planned to ask you this before kissing you,” He whispered, “But Y/N, will you be my Valentine?”

Instead of a spoken answer, you laughed, leaning forward to capture his lips with yours once again, and that was the only answer Choi Soobin would ever need.

WHEN SOOBIN ARRIVED HOME THAT NIGHT, HE WENT STRAIGHT FOR THE TELEPHONE.

It was kept upstairs at night right outside his parent’s door, to keep himself and his brother from using it in the late hours. Of course, this never stopped Soobin from sneaking it downstairs to his room in the basement to make late night calls to Felix.

And that particular evening, he really needed to give Felix an update.

He grabbed the phone from the small table in the hallway, carefully tiptoeing towards the basement stairs. Before he had even taken the first step down, the bathroom door creaked open. Soobin whipped his head around to see his brother Kai standing there, rubbing the sleep from his eyes as he raised a brow at his older brother.

Soobin froze, blinking slowly as he realized the incriminating situation he found himself in.

“Please don’t tell mom,” He whispered, his eyes pleading with his younger brother.

Kai nodded, although Soobin wasn’t quite convinced that the boy was even coherent enough to understand what was going on. Soobin offered a rushed thank you, and ventured his first step down the stairs.

Well, he tried, anyways, and ended up missing the first step. He tumbled down the rest of the stairs, landing on his butt at the very end.

He winced in pain, glad to see that the phone was still intact in his hands. He glanced over his shoulders to see Kai staring down the stairway with wide eyes, his lips parted in shock. Soobin quickly put a finger to his lips, begging his brother for silence.

Kai simply shook his head and walked away, allowing Soobin the freedom to breathe out a sigh of relief.

He quickly ran to his bedroom and shut the door, collapsing onto his bed with the phone as his breaths came in ragged gasps as an aftereffect from his tumble down the stairs. He figured he should have dialed Felix’s number right away, but he couldn’t help but brush his fingers against his lips, remembering the feeling and taste of having yours pressed against them.

He was so caught up in his daze that he didn’t notice Felix calling until the third ring.

He picked it up, breathing heavily into the speaker as he rubbed a sore spot on his lower back.

“Please tell me that panting is from running a marathon, and not what I think you’ve successfully tried.”

Soobin nearly gagged, holding the phone away from his face as he coughed, flustered by his friend's crude words. He brought the phone back to his face and said, “No, you sicko, I just fell down the stairs.”

“How the hell did you manage that with those long legs?”

“That’s not important, Lix!” He laid back onto his pillows then, twirling the phone cord in his hands as he stared up at his ceiling, the memories of his adventure with you that night flooding his mind once more. He couldn’t help but smile from ear to ear as he said, “Look, I need to tell you something important.”

If he didn’t know any better, he would have thought that he could hear the smile in Felix’s voice too as his friend replied.

“Well buddy, I got something to tell you too.”

1K notes · View notes

holdmecloser-gandydancer · 3 years

Note

44. “I’m not afraid.” w magnus :O?

Magnus sat in the stuffy waiting room, bouncing his leg restlessly, trying to free some nervous energy. It didn’t seem to be working. He tapped at arms of the chair he was sitting in. It felt like he’d been waiting for hours, thought the very patient tiefling receptionist assured him it had only been about ten minutes. He was just ready to get the interview done and over with.

Honestly, Magnus was surprised when the letter came a few weeks ago, inviting him for an interview. He’d worked as a general security officer for a while when mention of a new, exciting position was made at a meeting for all already involved at the Institute. Something enticing about journeying beyond our planes. Magnus was interested but uncertain if he really fit the bill for the two month mission. His moms had encouraged him to apply for one of the spots.

“The worst they could say is no, baby,” Ma Amada had said one night when they were all in the kitchen, prepping dinner.

“And if they do, then they’re fools,” Ma Arabella said, giving Magnus a cheeky wink and tasking him with setting the table.

So Magnus applied. He skimmed over where the listing said “Knowledge of Casting highly encouraged.” Surely enough other casters would apply, right? Besides, he thought to himself, it couldn’t hurt to try.

That’s precisely how he found himself on the top floor of the Institute, in itchy pants Ma Arabella insisted made him look handsome and professional, ready to start crawling up the walls just to do something.

“Burnsides?”

Magnus’s head whipped around. He was so caught up in thought that he didn’t even hear the door open. He stood up gave an awkward wave.

“Present!”

The gnomish man sent him a bemused look before waving him through the door. Magnus followed behind him and sat in one of the vacant chairs in front of the large oak desk.

“Do you want anything to drink? I have water but I could also procure some tea if that’s more your style.”

Magnus shook his head. “Just water is fine, sir.”

The other man let out a the barest huff of a laugh. “Son, please, you don’t have to call me sir. Davenport is fine.”

“Understood,” Magnus said, reaching for the cup of water Davenport handed him. He took a long sip, trying and failing to avoid spilling some on his nice green shirt. Silently, he cursed his stupid professional clothes. They were the best choice for the interview, he knew that, but they made him feel like some kind of caged animal.

He watched Davenport carefully as he inspected a small stack of papers in a folder. Magnus noticed his mustache twitch a few times; Davenport seemed to be amused by something in what he assumed was his file. He hoped that was a good sign.

“Forgive me, I’ve been at this all day so my brain is a little fried. So, you’re Magnus Burnsides. Human. Currently working as one of the Institute’s security officers, yes?” Davenport asked, finally looking back at Magnus.

Magnus nodded. “That’s right! I’ve been in that job for almost a year.”

“And you have no casting experience?”

“Nope.”

Davenport frowned. “You do know that the listing did say that we preferred casters, right?”

“I do. I also know that I’m still in this interview so there must be something you like about me,” Magnus said, not fully processing his own words as they flew out of his mouth. Rein it in a little, he thought to himself.

Davenport laughed a little. Good to know he seemed to have some sense of humor.

“You do have a point. Yeah, I gotta say, you intrigued me as an applicant. I have a ton of questions I have prepared but honestly? I’d prefer a more casual interview if that’s alright with you.”

“Oh man, I’d love that.” Magnus took another sip of water. He pulled at the collar of his shirt; it was a touch too tight and itched.

“So, tell me why you want to join the Institute’s Planar Exploration mission.”

“Well, I gotta be honest. It just sounds really fuc –“ Magnus caught himself. Not that casual of an interview, he thought. “Um. It sounds really cool. I’ve spent a lot of time looking up at the sky and the stars and stuff and the thought of actually getting to go up there? I mean, you’re the captain of this mission, right?”

Davenport nodded.

“Well, then you get it. There’s this idea that our lives could be meant for something bigger than us. I dig that.”

Magnus watched as Davenport wrote something down in his notes. He was writing for a while, actually. Magnus felt that nervous energy come back.

“I like your answer. Now, I do need you to be honest with me on this next question. What skills do you think that you can bring to this scientific expedition? Because while it’s true that what we’re doing is cool, this is still a research mission at the end of the day.”

“Okay, hear me out. I’ve thought about this a lot. I know you’re all going to be mostly casters and scientists and that’s cool. But uh, aren’t you worried that most of you are going to be pretty squishy?”

Davenport furrowed his brow. “Squishy? What do you mean?”

“Well, think about it. You don’t have any idea of what you might find out there. Could be something awesome, that’s what we’re hoping for. But it could be something that wants to attack, right? If everyone on the ship is busy with science, there’s gonna be no one who can protect the group.” Magnus crossed his arms and shrugged his shoulders a bit. “I can be the one to do that.”

“Magnus, you do understand that we have one of the most talented evocation specialists coming on this mission, right? I believe she has us covered when it comes to defensive magic.”

“Sure, but I don’t need any spell slots to do what I do.”

Davenport blinked and nodded before pausing to write some things down.

“Okay. Okay. Fair point. Now, remind me, son, you’re 20?”

Magnus nodded. “Yup! Birthday was two months ago.”

“Right. Alright. Well, I have one last question for you. Obviously we don’t anticipate anything going wrong but we have to always plan for the worst-case scenario. You have the rest of your life ahead of you. Are you prepared to potentially…throw that away? I’m not trying to scare you but with a mission like this, we can never be certain of what we might face.”

For the first time the entire interview, Magnus sat and thought for a moment. He shook his head. “That’s a mighty big question. But I’m not afraid, sir. You’re right, I do have the rest of my life ahead of me. This would be one hell of a start to it, don’t you think?”

Davenport smiled and nodded. He set his pen down and stood up. “Well, this was a very illuminating interview. Thank you. I’ll be in touch very soon.”

“Wait! Can I ask you one question before we wrap this up?”

“Oh, of course. What is it?”

Magnus grinned. “Can I call you Cap’n’port?”

A rich belly-laugh fluttered out of Davenport’s mouth. “Knock yourself out, son.”

#taz #taz balance #the adventure zone #magnus burnsides #thank you for the prompt!!!#Me: oh shit i dunno where to take this particular combo #Me about to start homework: WAIT I GOT IT #tazb #reese writes #taz fic

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symphonicmetal101 · 3 years

Note

After watching some anime, can I request the brothers and Side characters with an MC that makes really great bentos in their aesthetic with their favorite meals? MC could make Lucifer a fancy dish of steak done to his favorite temperature, side dishes are organized neatly, and the bento is red and black to match his design or she made pink/pastel treats for Asmo is a very cute bento that matches his style. I think it would make their day when they receive something so cute from the human

ABSOFRICKINGLUTELY! ANON! I LOVE YOU! THANK YOU! However, I write gn! Whenever possible, so I hope you don't mind. Also, I've only made bento once, so I did a tinny bit of research. Most of them stray from traditional bento, however I tried to make sure I had the four components, (protien, carbs, salad/veggies, and fruit) (except Asmo), and different cooking methods for each. Some of them I forgot to explicitly say what colour the box was, so I'm sorry about that. I didn't do Luke because he had a role in Simeon's, and I blanked. (Sorry) Also, some of them have links bc I started to lose inspiration and motivation to write the same thing over and over again bc brain juice went bye. Hopefully I did this justice, I may have gotten a little carried away...sorry for rambling.

MC Makes Bento For The Boys

Lucifer

Lucifer had been working non-stop for the past few weeks

You had barely seen him, as he was so busy going back and forth from the castle, meetings, and he had banned everyone from his office. It had gotten so bad that he would "postpone" his meals, but nobody had seen him eat in a while.

You had a lot of spare time, so you did meal prep for the whole week just for Lucifer.

It was a little past noon by the time you finished, (and made Beel swear he wouldn't touch the food because you would treat him at Madam Scream's later), so you decided to make a bento box for Lucifer's lunch today with some leftover beef and rice you had.

With your protein and carbs taken care of, you prepared some roasted asparagus to add some colour to the box as well as a couple of carrots. You also added an umeboshi plum on top of the rice to match the colour of the box. (A/N I personally don't mind umeboshi on it's own, but if anyone wants to try it, I highly suggest you eat it with rice or have water on hand 😂)(oh yeah, umeboshi is a small, sour, pickled plum.)

In the final box you arranged a couple of orange slices, strawberries and grapes.

Satisfied, you brought the box and a glass of water up to his study. You didn't even bother knocking, knowing he would just send you away anyways.

You were greeted by a low growl. "Get out."

You rolled your eyes. "No. You need to eat Lucifer, and I'm not leaving until I know you've finished this."

"I don't have time for this MC. I have to-" he was cut off by his stomach rumbling.

He blushed slightly, and continued to busy himself with work.

"Please? I hate seeing you overwork yourself like this. Have you looked in the mirror lately? When was the last time you slept? Eaten? Had something other than coffee? Have you even gone to the bathroom in the past 48 hours?"

He sighed, folded his hands under his chin and looked up at you through disheveled raven locks.

"...you really aren't going anywhere until I eat." It wasn't a question, rather a statement with a trace of relief in it.

You extended the bento box out to him once more, though this time he accepted it.

"....thank you MC.....this is quite delicious. Perhaps once I'm done my work I can take you out to Ristorante Six to show my appreciation."

You pushed his hair back and planted a kiss on his forehead.

"Once you're done your work, you're going to sleep. That's an order, sir."

He silently cursed himself as he felt himself blush again

You were planning to stay until he finished, but then you heard Mammon and Levi fighting.

"I'll take care of that love. Make sure you drink that water too. Also, I prepped meals for the rest of the week for you, so you have no excuse to not eat. I bribed Beel, so they should stay there, but as an extra precaution I got Satan to teach me a protection spell. I didn't tell him what it was for, so it should be fine."

He watched you close the door behind you and wondered what he did to deserve someone like you.

Mammon

He was complaining to you because his actions finally caught up with him, and tomorrow he had to go out and repay some witches with time and favours, (being a bagboy), instead of money

He started belly-aching even more when you told him you weren't interested in joining him.

Luckily you were on dinner duty tonight, so you had a legitimate excuse to leave his pity-party

However while you were making dinner, you decided to show Mammon a little bit of sympathy, and set some rice and pork cutlet aside that you could use later.

After dinner, Mammon followed Lucifer, trying to convince him to give him money.

So you had ample time to continue working on his bento.

He had a three compartment wooden box

You scooped the rice into the box, put the cutlet on top, and two thinly sliced pieces of lemon on top.

You cut up some yellow, red, and orange bell pepper to put in the top left corner of the box

In the last compartment, you cut up golden kiwi, pineapple chunks, and a couple blueberries

You were about to put it in the fridge, when Mammon came screaming into the kitchen.

"MC HELP ME LUCIFER'S MAD I DON'T WANNA GET STRUNG UP AGAIN AND- wait, what's that?"

You sighed. "It was supposed to be a surprise Mammon! I made lunch for you for tomorrow, because you're going to be doing some running around and who knows when you'll get a moment to yourself? I was going to cast a spell on it to keep Beel from eating it, so it would have lasted overnight too... I just want to make sure you have something healthy to eat and so you don't have to spend money on take out. If you don't want it though, I'll just give it to Beel..."

He blushed furiously. "Ya don't gotta worry bout me, silly human. The Great Mammon can take care of himself! But-uh, I'll probably end up taking it anyways, because it's umm, it's free food! And Mammon ain't about to pass that up!"

He tried to grab it, but you pulled it close to yourself and turned, blocking him.

"You only want it because it's free? Ok. Fine. You'll have to pay me if you want it." You teased

He whined a bit. "Aw come on, ya even said ya didn't want me spendin money tomorrow! And ya said it was for me! MC, this ain't fair!"

"I didn't say you had to use money."

The next day while Mammon was out and about, trying to carry multiple bags of stuff for the witches, he happily ate his food, a light blush on his cheeks as every bite reminded him of the way you felt against his lips yesterday.

Leviathan

Levi had lost out on another draw despite having spent copious amounts of money on the tickets

As such, he had locked himself in his room to temporarily drown in his sorrows

You decided to make Kyaraben, character bento, for him. (Kyaraben can also refer to animals, real life celebrities, or natural settings)

(I would do Ruri- Chan but I have no fricking clue, so here's a link to a recipe for Pikachu Kyaraben because that's what you did instead)

Hesitantly, you brought your creation to his room and lightly knocked on the door.

"...I don't wanna talk to anyone right now."

"Levi, it's me. I brought something to cheer you up! At least let me give it to you if you don't want me to stay."

You could hear some scuffling and mumbling from behind the door. "I highly doubt there's anything a normie like you can do to help."

You tried to brush that off, because, ouch, but you knew he was upset so you tried not to take it to heart.

He was pouty as he opened the door, his demon form on display.

His expression immediately changed when he saw the bento in your hands.

"WOOOOOAAAHHH!!! THIS IS FOR ME??!! YOU MADE ME BENTO??!! This is something straight out of anime!!! Uh...uhm...d-do you maybe w-want to share it?"

The last part of his sentence had him blushing furiously, and he refused to look you in the eye.

"Sure. Maybe we can watch that anime you texted me about a couple days ago too."

His eyes lit up with joy as he used his tail to gently grab your wrist and pull you excitedly to his couch.

Once he had arranged everything to his liking, he sat down and bashfully accepted the bento.

At some point, he asked if he could feed it to you, however, there was only one pair of chopsticks

Blushy otaku very much enjoyed the bento, not only because it was like his anime, but also because it was you who made it.

He also got a couple indirect kisses, and could not focus on anything but that for the next few days.

Satan

You and Satan had been spending a lot of time together lately because he was helping you study for a test

Thanks to Satan's tutoring, you had managed to get a much higher score on the test than you had imagined.

As thanks, you wanted to make a kitten Kyaraben

You found him in the library at a desk, hunched over a book, studying some foreign language.

He was so engrossed in his studies that he didn't notice you right away, so you tapped him gently on his shoulder.

"Ah, MC. I'm afraid I missed you coming in. Are you alright?"

You smiled and nodded. You brought the box out from behind your back with your test papers on top, the mark clearly visible.

"I couldn't have gotten that mark without your help, so I made you some bento as thanks. I hope you like it."

His eyes widened in surprise. "Oh MC, that wasn't necessary. Spending time with you was enough for me, but thank you."

He slid the lid off the bento and chuckled when he saw what you had done.

"That's quite clever kitten. Perhaps next time you can show me how to make it?"

His pet name made you blush a bit, but that didn't stop you from agreeing.

You two spent the next few hours discussing different meals you guys could learn to make together.

Asmodeus

Asmo had been taking you shopping lately, hyping you up and helping you destress with spa nights

In return, you decided to make a dessert bento box in a pretty pink container.

It was a square container split into nine compartments.

Across the top three compartments, you arranged a rainbow of mochi.

On the bottom three you arranged a rainbow of macaroons.

In the two outside compartments left, you put a mini Wicked cupcake in each

Finally in the middle, you arranged Hershey's kisses into a heart.

Satisfied, you made your way to his room and announced your presence at his door.

"Come in darling~ I'm just finishing up my nails!"

You let yourself in and settled across the table from Asmo.

"I brought you something. I just wanted to thank you for helping me out lately and show you how much I appreciate you!"

You placed the box next to him so he could see what you had done.

His squeal of excitement almost decimated your eardrums, however moments later you were enveloped in a very tight, heartfelt, "smooshy" hug, but his elated expression made up for your temporary loss of hearing.

"Ohh MC! You're so sweet!!!! These look delicious, let's share them!! Just let me take a picture first with my favourite snack!!"

You sat back and expected him to pick up a cupcake, but yelped as he pulled you into the frame.

"I said with my favourite snacc MC, and I meant it!!" (Yes, he still took a picture of the bento)

Beelzebub

You wanted to plan an outdoor date for the two of you that wouldn't require you to excersize.

So you decided to try and make Koraku Bento, or picnic bento, but even bigger in hopes you would be able to temporarily satiate Beel's hunger

Because you were making so much, you needed multiple boxes, and a couple days to prepare, so you asked Simeon if you could work at PH so Beel wouldn't get to it early.

Of course, he agreed

Day one, you prepared five different fillings for the Onigiri you were planning to make: sha-ke (salted salmon),umeboshi (Japanese pickled plum), okaka (bonito flakes moistened with soy sauce), kombu (simmered kombu seaweed), tuna mayo (canned tuna with Japanese mayonnaise)

Day two you prepared three large protiens, (chicken, beef, and pork), each enough to fill about two containers each. You cooked each of them differently. You also cut up/prepared vegetables you wanted to use for tempura.

Day three you woke up early in order to be ready to take Beel out after his game. You made rice and finished making the Onigiri, (which Luke was adamant you let him make with you).

And Simeon helped you make the tempura and a beautiful salad to accompany everything else.

However, now there was a lot of stuff to carry and you wanted to greet Beel out of his game.

So the angels took care of transporting the food to the roof while you went to get Beel

"Why are we going to Purgatory Hall? Are we having dinner with the angels?"

"Not quite. The date I wanted to take you on had a slight change of plans. We just need to get to the roof-"

"Do you want me to fly us up there?"

You considered it for a moment then agreed. If nothing else, you would be avoiding Solomon.

Once you landed, appreciation for the angels swelled as they had laid everything out so beautifully.

"...oh. It looks like someone else is doing something up here. It smells really good, so we should probably go. I don't want to eat someone else's food and ruin their night by accident....again." He tried to leave, but you pulled on him gently.

"I'm glad you think it smells good. This is for you! I made it for you, and the angels helped me bring it up here when I went to pick you up."

His eyes widened. "...All of that...you made it for me?"

You couldn't help but smile and nod at his bashful expression.

He hugged you gently. "Thank you MC. I know that took a lot."

"It was worth it! You haven't even tried it yet. Come on, I'm hungry!" You giggled.

Beel's stomach growled in response, causing a slight blush to light his cheeks. You're so good to him❤

Belphegor (this has a bit of crack energy, I'm sorry. So will Solomon's😅)

"MC....can you pass me my D.D.D?"

"MC....can you give me a massage?"

"MC....can you switch my laundry for me?"

"MC....can you pass me my pillow?"

"Belphie, I love you. I understand you're the Avatar of Sloth. But what the actual fuck? Your pillow is under your arm, just move it under your head. I've already gotten up, like six times to do stuff for you."

He groaned. "But it takes too much effort!" He smushed his cheek into his arm and attempted to give you puppy-dog eyes.

"Sorry, only Beel can pull that off. If you want your pillow moved less than a foot, you're going to do it yourself. You of all people should now how frustrating it is to get up as soon as you sit down."

He groaned again and grumbled as he moved his own damn pillow.

You tried to relax a bit. Normally your time with Belphie consisted of cuddles, movie nights, planeterium visits, or just plugging into some music and enjoying each other's company, like you were trying to do now.

Until you made eye contact with him again.

He was going to ask something-

"MC........... can you get me a snack?"

Dear God, he was not gonna like this.

"Of course Belphie. I'd love to."

You made your way to the kitchen with new found energy.

You were going to make Shikaeshi Bento (revenge lunchbox)

Basically, it's supposed to be inedible or embarrassing, and be used to convey anger or overall dissatisfaction

So you grabbed his bento box, dumped uncooked rice into it, cracked an egg and left the shell in the box. You used purple food colouring to make a heart.

You brought the box up to Belphie, who was surprisingly still awake

"That was quick."

You grunted in response and walked out

"Hey why are you leaving?!"

A few seconds later, you heard, "MC! ...WHAT DID I DO??!! I JUST WANTED A SNACK!!...MC PLEASE COME BACK I DON'T WANNA GET UP!!"

Diavolo

So, usually Barbatos is in charge of making sure the Demon Prince eats

However, you told Barbatos that you wanted to make something special for Dia

"My Lord would thoroughly enjoy anything you made for him. He's been very busy lately, so I'm sure he would appreciate the kind gesture."

Barbatos graciously gave you precedence over the kitchen, giving you full access to everything you could ever need or want.

You decided to make him bento with your favourite protein

One compartment you filled with rice, using sesame seeds and an umeboshi for garnish

You arranged pieces of your favourite fruits in one of the smaller compartments

Then you made your favourite type of tempura, and prepared the sauce to go in the last two compartments

You asked Barbatos where Diavolo would be, and he escorted you to his office.

"My Lord, MC has come to speak with you."

Diavolo's head shot up and his face lit up with delight as he watched you walk through the door.

"MC! A welcome surprise. How are you? Is everything alright?"

"Everything's fine! I actually just wanted to give you something." You gave him the black box.

"I made bento with some of my favourite things...you mentioned wanting to get to know me a little bett-"

You were cut off by Diavolo crushing you in a hug

"...My Lord, MC needs to breathe."

"Ah, my apologies MC. This is the most wonderful, meaningful thing anyone has ever given me. How can I adequately express my gratitude? Simply name anything you want, and it shall be yours."

Once you had regained your breath, you gave him a small smile.

"Anything? Could I trouble you for your time?"

"MC, Lord Diavolo must finish his work in a timely matter. I can clear his schedule for afterwards."

"Barbatos, could they stay long enough for us to share the wonderful meal they've prepared?"

Usually Diavolo's begging and sad eyes™ would be powerless against him, however the soft spot he had for you and your much- less-seen sad expression were enough for him to bend this once.

"My Lord, I'll be back in an hour. I'm afraid that's all the time I can allow."

He stepped out, and allowed a small smile form on his face as he heard the two of you celebrate, also knowing that later on he would be listening to a very happy prince recount everything you two talked about and how much he loved you.

Barbatos

You, the brothers, and the other exchange students had been invited to the demon lord's castle for another event

It wasn't for another day, but you felt your chest tighten as you remembered Barbatos

Did he even get to eat those days when everyone was there?

You didn't want to take that chance, and decided to set up a small, filling bento box.

It only had three compartments, so you stuffed each one.

One had rice and meat.

You made some sushi and tamagoyaki to go on top.

For the last compartment, you made a simple chickpea salad.

The next day, Barbatos welcomed you all to the castle, as per usual.

However, this time he stuck around once the brothers and others had left.

"I...Well you already know, but this is for you!"

He nodded and graced you with a smile. "My knowing does not take away from my appreciation MC. Admittedly, nights like this are very demanding. I will repay you later. Thank you."

He tried to walk away, but you yelled after him, "You're not supposed to repay someone for a gift! Just take it!!"

He smiled to himself as he started to eat some food.

Perhaps this night would not be as taxing as he thought

Simeon

You had been experimenting new dinner recipes with Luke at Purgatory Hall; you were watching him while Simeon was away.

"If we leave these leftovers out, Solomon will get to them and ruin them."

"....why don't we make bento for Simeon? He's coming back tomorrow, isn't he?"

Luke beamed at you. "Okay!"

He went to get a small bento box divided into fifths (two large bottom compartments and three small top ones).

"Ok, so in one of the big ones, we can fit the rest of the rice."

Luke nodded. "Can I use this?" He held up a star-shaped cookie cutter.

"Of course!" You helped him mould the rice into a stable star shape.

He looked so happy designing stuff, you let him take the lead.

By the time you were finished, it was easily the most stunning dish you had seen.

"Wow MC! We should do this more often!" He was very proud of himself, and rightfully so. "I can't wait to give it to Simeon!....Is it ok if I give it to Simeon? It was your idea, so it's ok if you want to do it instead..."

You just smiled at him. "You can give it to him, you did most of the work anyways. For now though, you need to get to bed."

He pouted slightly, but complied.

The next morning you woke up to Luke speaking very animatedly to Simeon.

"Yeah! We tried a bunch of new things, and then MC suggested we make you a bento box with the leftovers, and it turned out really well so I can't wait for you to try it!!"

You leaned against the kitchen doorframe observing the interaction.

"Thank you Luke, it looks wonderful. Good morning MC. I hope you slept well. Thanks for ba- for helping Luke while I was away."

He smiled gently at you before Luke was trying to get him to try the bento again.

He took a bite and smiled at Luke.

"It's delicious. You guys must have put a lot of love into it, as always." He looked directly at you at that point, but Luke was too elated to notice the silent exchange between you too.

Solomon

"Don't get mad at me! You agreed to test spells with me!"

"You asked me when I was half asleep Solomon! I also meant later, not right away!"

"Well, you're not a frog anymore, so I don't see what the problem is."

.... No, you weren't a frog anymore

That didn't mean you were happy about being a frog in the first place.

You texted Simeon, 'Who's on lunch duty today?"

"Me. Why?"

"I'll make us bento. We can picnic, the exchange students, that is."

So you spent the next little bit making normal bento for the three of you.

"Simeon said we should probably leave in five minutes" you thanked Luke and started on Solomon's.

You made Shikaeshi bento; you cracked four eggs and aligned their yolks into a rather phallic shape, added way too much fish oil, and threw a few sesame seeds on top.

However, once you made it to the picnic grounds, Solomon opened his box and gasped.

"MC, you know me so well!" And proceeded to drink right out of the box, the rest of you looking on in horror.

"I thought you were mad at me and you were going to give me something disgusting like Mac and Cheese. I guess all is forgiven. Thank you!"

At that point you couldn't even stay mad, that was just disgusting.

Aye, I hope you liked it anon, not sure if this is quite what you meant but....yeah.

Love y'all!

Masterlist

#obey me #obey me shall we date #obey me headcanons #obey me scenarios #obey me thoughts #long post #i really liked this one

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sweetkingdomstarlight-blog · 3 years

Text

truth hurts

Pairings - Ransom Drysdale x Reader

Words - 1704

Warnings - oral sex (m receiving), shitty families

A/N - My first ever Ransom fic, massive thanks to @thicccsimp and @mollygetssherlockcoffee for reading this over, helping me fix a few things and hyping me up enough to post! This is for @eurynome827 2K Challenge, well done on your milestone my love, it won’t be long until you’re at 3K I'm sure. Thanks as always to @buckyownsmylife for helping me with the idea too! As always this is not for minors so if you’re under 18 then please shoo.

I was given the lyrics to a Six The Musical song - You can build me up, you can tear me down You can try but I'm unbreakable You can do your best, but I'll stand the test You'll find that I'm unshakeable

Tagging because I think they might like this - @bestofbucky @mashep23

You handed your father the brown paper lunch bag, the one he had left sitting forgotten on the counter this morning. Quickly planting a kiss on his cheek, you turn and make your way into the grand house, leaving him to continue tending to the rose bushes.

You heard them before you saw them, arguing about whatever one of them undoubtedly saw on Fox News that morning. Grabbing a glass of red wine before you sit in the corner of the room and watch them tear into one another, you smirk at the petty insults they often hurled at each other when they didn’t have an actual counter argument.

Sipping on the wine you check your phone for the third time in five minutes, he was meant to be here before you and you need him to be the buffer between you and his family. They weren't your biggest fans and you quite enjoyed riling them up, waiting to see who'd snap at you first. You and Ransom often wagered about who would be the first to burst out into a screaming fit.

They all had such short fuses, so all you had to do was mention something ‘snowflakes’ were concerned with and they all absolutely lose it, at this point you considered it your own private theatre. Normally you like to keep a distance since they weren’t shy in reminding Ransom why you weren’t the right match for him, today however you were needed.

The family lawyer has requested that both you and your father be present for Harlan’s will reading. Both you and Ransom thought he would be getting something substantial from his grandfather and the family wouldn’t be happy, so he would need you and your father there for support.

You sit for twenty more minutes, laughing at the nonsensical crap Joni was pushing as usual, something about jade eggs and where Gwyneth Paltrow decided they should be inserted this week. You hear the front door close and jump up as he finally arrives, running and jumping into his arms, wrapping your legs around his waist, another fun way to annoy his family, kissing him deeply and moaning as he gripped you. Whispering into his ear “where the fuck have you been? I’ve had to annoy them all on my own today” he smirks and kisses the tip of your nose before putting you back down and walking hand in hand in the room greeting his family.

It was fair to say he was the black sheep of the family, he hadn’t accepted handouts as easily as the rest of them since the two of you got together, deciding instead to try and make it on his own. He moved into your apartment and gave up the house his grandad was paying for, living off his savings ever since. He had been writing his own novel for the last six months and he was getting so close to finishing, he didn’t want to tell the family and have them shit all over his idea, especially Walt who thought he was the literary one now that Harlan had passed.

You grab two glasses of whiskey and sit in Ransom's lap, kissing his cheek and handing him one of the tumblers. Asking him what kept him so long he tells you he thinks he’s finished and wanted to re-read some of it before he told you. Pride flashes over your face at how thrilled he is and you both do a mini squeal at his news. “I can think of the perfect way to celebrate” you whisper in his ear before licking the shell and telling him to come and find you in a few minutes.

You hear him looking for you a few minutes later and pull him into the cloakroom, kissing him urgently and grabbing his ass “you want to have some fun?” you say kissing down his neck and biting his shoulder. He breathes out a ‘yes’ as you get on your knees, pulling his hardening cock out and licking the tip while he leans against the wall behind you.

“We don’t have time for teasing kitten” he says gripping your hair and pushing deep into your mouth, you lightly gag on his length and hollow your cheeks, sucking and licking at what you can. It doesn’t take long for him to spill down your throat, you smile up at him licking your lips and place a gentle kiss on the tip before tucking him away. He gently pushes you against the wall, gripping your hips and whispering what he plans to do to you later when you get home.

You’re interrupted by a sharp knock on the door and someone clearing their throat, straightening yourselves out you open the door and see his father, Richard, staring down at you both. “Can I help you, Dickie” you ask, smirking at the frustrated expression on his face. He tells you there’s 20 minutes until the reading and the family wanted to discuss what they were expecting, you tell Ransom you’re going to see your father out back and blow him a kiss, sneaking away before anyone can moan at you.

You help out in the greenhouse with some of the planters he’s prepping, talking to him about work and the trip you’re planning with Ransom to New York, when you both hear it, screaming and shouting, your father goes to the house with you, always ready to protect you from those vile people.

You walk in together and Linda snarls at you but tries to hide it as a grin, instinctively you stand next to Ransom ready to jump in and defend him, your father next to you throws an arm around you and places his hand on Ransom’s shoulder in support. Ransom smiles at you both and leans down whispering in your ear “down girl” when he sees how tense you are “they aren’t worth it, I promise you” he winks at your father and turns back to them all.

They were arguing about you, apparently you weren’t worthy of a Drysdale, an argument you’ve overheard on more than one occasion, usually he shuts them down but they don’t listen and just wait until you aren’t around before picking at him again. Linda realising that her son isn’t listening decides to take a more tactful approach “look we just want what's best for you darling, we’re obviously about to come into a lot of money today and you don’t want to be tied to her, she only wants what we have”.

Your father clears his throat in warning, he hasn’t ever raised his voice to these people out of respect for Harlan but now that he’s gone and he will most likely be sacked once they inherit the home he sees no reason to stop. Ransom looks to him and pleads with him not to do this right now and your father nods his head in understanding, before pulling you into a hug and whispering in your ear that they are the problem and not Ransom, he's a good man and he always looks after you. You nod your head and turn to face Linda, about ready to give her a little reality check when the family lawyer requests you all join him in the library, your father is about to walk away when he is asked to stay and join the family also.

You take a seat next to your father, Ransom standing behind you both waiting. Both you and Ransom suspected Harlan would look after him, maybe give him some sort of payout on publication of his first novel, he was always so supportive of the idea that he could write a book too. He’d already helped you pay for college, something the rest of the family could never find out about. Harlan was always so kind to his loyal employees and your father had worked for him for more than twenty years. He was offered help with setting up his own business or even help paying his bills but your father refused, instead requesting that your college be paid for. You weren’t allowed to refuse, you were just asked that you find something that you were passionate about.

The lawyer started talking and everyone in the room seemed to hold their breath collectively, he took care of the smaller items first, most of it going to staff and friends. Then came the bigger stuff, half of his fortune was to be divided between his children equally. The family didn’t even let the lawyer finish what he was saying before they were jumping up and demanding to see the paperwork, appalled that they would only be getting half. He sat calmly and asked them to listen until he was finished, next on the list the other half of his fortune would go to you and his home would go to your father.

You stared at each other completely dumbfounded, the shouts and accusations of the family around you buzz like static in your ears. Ransom stood at full height, acting as a blockade between his family and yours as you both absorbed the news. The lawyer handed out copies of the will for their records and asked that you make appointments to see him and have the necessary arrangements tied up properly. He left swiftly after, obviously recognising that this was about to get ugly.

Ransom swept you up in an embrace telling you to ignore the family and focus on him, your father in the meantime sat reading over what he had been given, speechless for the first time in his life about what had just happened. The family were practically feral, screaming abuse and name calling at the two of you. Ransom stood at full height and told them all to “eat shit” one by one calling them out and advising them to speak to a lawyer, if they could afford one, he laughs at his own joke before pulling you both into a big hug and suggesting you all go out for drinks. “You’re paying” he winks at you and grabs your hand leading you past the angry mob waiting at the door for you.

#eury2kchallenge #ransom drysdale #ransom drysdale x reader #ransom drysdale x you

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flr-house-husband-blog · 3 years

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Female Led Relationship In Real Life

FLR explained, the woman has final say on all matters. The man accepts her wishes, her wants, and her punishments. This isn’t the FLR most men dream about in real life which is sexual in nature; I can promise in real life it is much different and more rewarding long term for both parties involved.

For us, yes housework is my responsibility and it started out with her lowering the normal standard that she kept up so that I could get down a routine. Overtime I’ve gotten better and worked longer in rooms and areas that did not meet her standards. I want to say higher, but they were only higher standards to me when we were vanilla. I see now the importance of daily, weekly, and monthly deep cleaning chores and tasks. They really do make the house ready for guests at a moments notice without worry and it really lifts a level of stress off of her which reflects back into us and our time together.

I’ve been timed and my daily chores I can do in 20 mins if I hustle. Normally it takes me an hour in between making her breakfast or getting ready for or after my work. Either way my “right” to ask permission to play video games or have screentime on my phone is once my chores are complete. The weekly tasks I’ve broken down into days to accomplish them easier (for myself), to not get behind, and make sure I meet her expectation of cleanliness.

My fav part of our FLR which has led to has been more love, time, and attention towards her is a phone rule. Dinner at home or out, regardless with friends I have to ask permission to use my phone. Needless to say no one bats an eye as they think it’s great we’re not on our phones. I like to check google reviews and see photos of different food options at a restaurant and it’s almost always a yes when I ask and then I put it away or it goes in her purse. I will say getting to that level of discipline isn’t easy.

In FLR I thrived with any new rules or expectations as soon as Goddess Amy figured out the best punishments that one changed my perspective and made me do risk/reward calculations before taking an action. What worked for her and didn’t cause her too much additional time away from what she enjoyed and was highly effective for me was corner time (30+ mins sometimes) and marking down in my shared chore app her grievances, which I too could see and were addressed with the paddle when she so decided. Unlike fantasy FLR there is nothing fun about having your pants around your ankles and being met with a firm paddle. She knows once I’m over ten that each and everyone will be remembered throughly. She has taken it a step further and makes me recite while I’m being paddled. Again not sexy but to make sure i know what I did and what I should do again.

Writing lines or the same thing over and over on paper takes a lot of time and she doesn’t except sloppy work. When that comes up I know I’m metaphorically fucked. It’s the equivalent of a cold shoulder when we were vanilla and I know a conversation is coming.

FLR isn’t all chores and sex. It’s a means to have a more loving and quality filled relationship. It’s non-standard but really does the trick for us. Of note when you’ve been met with consequences for falling short on expectations it really does change you behavior and moments vanilla you might want to give constructive feedback or argue a point of view. In FLR skip it and if you don’t like the point/topic/discussion try and bring it up at the end of the day or week, and if you really want ask if she wants feedback and if she says yes then maybe; otherwise wait until the end of the day or week.

In real-life FLR I can only give my perspective and maybe some of hers. For me I’d say the most important part is the man accepting she has the authority. Leadership isn’t all about being right, it’s about inspiring follow-ship naturally and accomplishing shared goals of the individuals under you and for the organization. Goddess Amy does that wonderfully and this is where you could say she understands my kinks (motivation) and pessimistic characteristics (frictions). She has a firm grasps on all things me and has goals for me, expectations for herself, our house, and our family. FLR works well for us because I accept and want her authority and she cares about all of the above to ensure each and everyday we move forward and improve. It’s not like the kink where things are expected to be absolutely perfect. She knows what I can handle and pushes the bubble little by little until it’s “perfect”, I look back and think wow what a difference I never thought this was possible.

Have you heard the phrase “If mama ain’t happy, ain’t nobody happy. If daddy ain’t happy don’t nobody care. “ That phrase sums up FLR. This ties in with communication and roles of FLR. She can easily say be ready we are going out and that means get in nice clothes and get everything ready to go or she can say she’s going out, which means I have the house to myself and if I’m lucky I’ll be given permission to watch TV or play games on my laptop. This ties in with staying on top of the routine she has set for me and other rules like no screentime without the chores being done. Most times I’m fortunate enough to get sceentime when I have the house to myself and sometimes it’s an opportunity for me to address a writing assignment she would like or an addtional chore. Rarely does it include me playing and sending pictures while she is out and about, but either way I’m always responsive and accept what she chooses as I know and believe it has a purpose. I just don’t sometimes fully understand it until later on down the road.

Real-life FLR the man only does what she wants and in ours she has retained meal prep for us and weekday dinners. The weekends I get to grill out and make her meals. Dishes are easy in our house. After a meal we clear the table, some things into rubber ware, some things rinsed in the sink and then into the dishwasher. We have a sign for clean/dirty and the dishwasher gets ran at night once full every couple of days and per my checklist is emptied or check daily.

A big benefit for her is me seeking ways to earn extra privileges ultimately by going out of my way to be on my best behavior, pampering her with love, surprises, and foot rubs. Some days she surprises me with the same to include paid massages and also breakfast in bed.

In public we appear vanilla, with the exception that I may secretly ask permission to have a soda or bend our diet plan a bit with a dessert. I’ve found asking before we go out with friends is better and also she has coded eye brows and looks which convey a silent approval or disapproval as I talk through what I might want when asked.

In addition to not meal prepping every meal since she loves cooking and helping us meet our fitness goals there are a few other things she retains control of. One is laundry, not because she loves it but because only she understands our walk in closet system for her stuff. Every morning I make sure everything is in the hamper and check the dryer- going through and pulling clothes tout of the dryer and separating out her dresses, tops, panties, etc in a way that makes it faster for her to put away herself, along with hanging and putting away all of my clothes neatly. Second the baby’s room there is a fancy rug which gets cleaned a certain way that’s off limits to me. I didn’t ask why and daily just make sure everything is clean and organized. Unlike fantasy FLR you won’t see me begging to do more chores, but you will see me finding areas which I add to my daily to keep off my monthly and deep clean routine to save myself time another day but just maintaining the area better. One example for this is dusting, yes the dreaded dusting. Once despised, I now prefer to address it per room per weekday versus all at once on the weekend. For me it’s less tedious when mixed in with picking up toys, vacuuming, and wiping down surfaces versus a whole hour of it another day.

To end this long discussion one thing that I like most about our FLR is despite me, the man not having final decision is that she gets my feedback 9 times out of 10 before making the final decision. I always feel heard and understood even when I don’t get what I wanted on most big topics, this isn’t the case with little chores or screentime expectations.

#female led marriage #female led relationship #house husband #the way of the househusband

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1-800-imagines · 3 years

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Summer Love |h.s|

no control part 1

tw: aggressive, douche bf (not harry)

Rowan was more excited for her second year of college at Dartmouth. She had a boyfriend and she was going to be a teaching assistant for English 1301. She had taken the course the year before and loved the professor. Dr. Montgomery had been impressed with Rowan that she had offered her a job for the next year and now Rowan basically was in charge of the class. She lectured, gave tests and quizzes, and graded papers. Dr. Montgomery was just there as a supervisor if Rowan had questions.

She was also excited for her classes because she was now able to take her major related courses. She adored English with her whole heart and now her schedule was full of English classes instead of just the basics. She had her classes that she was taking on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday's. And she taught two English 1301 classes on Tuesday and Thursday back to back.

Rowan was anxious about teaching. She was only 19. Her students would be the same age as her and might be in her other classes. It was the day before classes started and Rowan had moved into her apartment that day. It was a late start but her parents had wanted her home for as much as possible since she didn't come home much during the school year. Boston was only 2 hours away but Rowan didn't have a car.

Carter had helped Rowan move all her stuff in. Her parents had kissed her goodbye and left leaving the couple alone. Rowan flopped on her bed and laid back. She was exhausted from moving all the shit. She wanted a nap, but Carter was on her. "Not now, Cart," She mumbled with her eyes still closed.

"Come on, Ro. I helped you move all your heavy shit in and now you're gonna hold out on me," Carter said, his voice laced with guilt. Rowan sighed, but didn't move.

"No, I'm tired." She opened her eyes to look at him, "I'm sorry. Can't we nap and maybe after?" She asked him.

"God, you're such a bitch, Rowan." He snapped. His sweet attitude from earlier with his parents disappearing. He stood up from her bed and left with a huff, slamming the door. "Don't fucking text me." He yelled and the apartment door slammed again.

Rowan sighed again and shut her eyes. She honestly didn't care enough right now to deal with Carter and his antics. She was too tired. Their summer had been fun, but their relationship relied on sex and whenever Rowan didn't want to, he would get extremely mad and throw a fit. Rowan drifted into sleep without setting an alarm. It was only about 4:30.

——

When Rowan woke up, it was midnight. "Shit," She swore under her breath. She still had a LOT of stuff to do to prepare for classes and meeting with Dr. Montgomery tomorrow. On top of that, she probably wouldn't be able to sleep through the night. She sat up and looked around for her phone. When she turned it on she saw she had about 25 texts from Carter ranging from him being extremely angry to also saying he loved her and he was sorry. Rowan didn't want to deal with it. She plugged her phone into the charger and got up to finish dealing with her shit.

She was done prepping at 3am. And she had her first class at 9. She didn't have a car so she still had to walk to campus but she didn't live far. She was going to leave at 8 so she could pick up breakfast from the coffee stand. So in reality she needed to get up at 6:30 to shower. Rowan groaned thinking about everything and fell back in her bed. She set multiple alarms and fell back asleep.

At 6:30 sharp the alarm clock blared and she sprang out of bed, not wanting to be late. Her anxiety was always the worst on the first day. She actually had diagnosed anxiety and depression. She jumped into the shower to jolt herself awake. Mornings were always the hardest for Ro. She never wanted to get herself out of bed.

She let herself stay in the shower for 30 minutes and then get out and fully get ready. She dried her hair and put on some makeup. Her hair was generally pretty straight and currently was platinum blonde. She was a natural blonde but she liked it platinum best. She pulled on some ripped skinny jeans and a button up. It was 7:45 so she was good on time. She grabbed her vans and backpack and walked out the door, finally answering Carter. She simply just texted him, 'It's fine. See you after classes. R'

Before she shut the door, she yelled at her roommate, "Bye Ari!" Her best friend and roommate didn't have class till later but Rowan liked yelling at her start waking her up. Ari was even less of a morning person than Rowan.

Rowan made the trek to campus and to the coffee stand. She was in line, only kind of paying attention when it was her turn. "Hi, can I get a large double shot of espresso with cream and sugar? And then a bagel with butter?" The cashier nodded and she paid for her breakfast with her cash and change that was left from summer. She had a little bit of money from summer babysitting and knew she had to be careful about spending until the paychecks started rolling in.

Rowan turned on her foot to go wait for her order when she bumped into a very tall man, "Oh shit, I'm sorry." She said, dropping all her money on the floor, "Fuck." She had a major problem with swearing.

The man chuckled and bent down to help her pick up the money, "Don't worry about it, love." He had a thick british accent. He handed her the money and her heart skipped a beat. She realized she was staring and got a hold of herself.

"Thank you! Sorry again." She smiled and went over to wait for her coffee, slightly mortified. Rowan took out her phone to look down and texted Ari. 'I'm the biggest dumbass. I ran into this gorgeous man and dropped my fucking CHANGE at his feet and he picked it up for me and now I'm standing here looking like a fucking DORK'

She knew Ari wouldn't be awake yet, but it was a relief to tell someone even if they wouldn't read it till later.

The mysterious man walked over to wait next to Rowan and Rowan's heart was beating incredibly fast. How did someone have this effect on her? Carter sure didn't. "Rowan!" It snapped her out of her trance. She grabbed her order and awkwardly smiled at the man.

"Have a good day," The man said and Rowan nearly tripped.

"You too!" She said and ran off to try to avoid further embarrassing herself. "Jesus christ, get yourself together Rowan." She swore at herself and went to sit outside her class to eat.

Her first 4 classes went by quickly. She had biology, fiction & poetry, creative writing, and history all back to back. Then she had a break which overlapped with Ari. The two talked about Rowan's embarrassment of the day and Rowan saluted her and went to the class she was most excited about: Shakespeare's Greatest Works. It was taught by a new Professor.

She walked into class before it started and sat in the second row. She took out her notebook for that class and waited for class to start. On the dot of the hour, the door opened and Rowan gasped.

"Oh fuck me." She said a little bit too loudly. It caught the professor's attention and he smirked at her, giving her a little grin. It was the man from earlier.

"Alright class, I'm Professor Styles. Nice to meet you all." Rowan's heart nearly fell out of her chest.

#harry styles au #harry styles fanfiction #harry styles fanfic #harry styles imagine #harry styles imagines #harry styles x reader #harry styles #one direction au #one direction imagine #one direction fanfic #one direction fanfiction #one direction

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lilyeholland · 3 years

Text

Before It’s Too Late [Part 2]

[Reggie Peters x Reader] PART ONE - PART TWO

Summary: Y/N and Reggie have never officially stated what they were to each other, so Y/N plans to tell the brunette bassist how she really feels before him and his band are to take stage at the Orpheum. Little did they know this would be there last encounter. *only a little bit inspired by Stranger by Jeremy Shada*

Warnings: super fluffy at first and then BAM the angst hits you like a truck :) it’s also lowkey kinda long lol, mentions of death

Word Count: 10k I’M SO SORRY IT REALLY GOT AWAY FROM ME IT’S WORTH THE READ THOUGH I PROMISE

The night before, you had stayed up writing and rewriting your confession letter to Reggie - the one you were going to give him before he performed. There were countless amounts of crumpled papers on your floor all because you insisted on writing it in pen and making every individual letter look perfect. Finally, once you were satisfied with the way the ink stained the thin sheets of paper, you sealed it in a blush pink envelope, sprayed your perfume on it, and wrote Reggie’s name in big bubbly cursive letters, you set it on the corner of desk and anticipated its arrival in Reggie’s hands.

You knew better than to go to Reggie’s house in hopes to find him and talk to him - he was rarely ever there. Instead, he’d be at the garage studio regardless of if the boys were there with him.

You lean against the big white doors of the studio, admiring the way Reggie is laying on his back staring at the ceiling and riffing away at his unplugged bass. “Knock, knock,” you say, startling the innocent boy in front of you to his feet.

“Oh, I wasn’t expecting to see you today.” You both take steps closer to each other. Reggie sinks his hands in his pockets, unsure of what to do with him, but wanting to reach out to you and smother you in a hug.

“Yeah, I just wanted to come by and ask if it was alright if I came by before the show to wish you luck. Since, you know, I can’t watch you guys play.” You offer him a solemn smile, but he just grins widely at you.

“You can totally come by,” he bites his lip and hides his smile. “We’ll be done with our sound check around 5 and you can come by then?” He questions, just to make sure it works with you.

You nod your head and smile back at him.

“You can meet us by the backstage doors - it’s in this really creepy-looking alleyway, but I promise its safe.” Again with the cute faces that make you want to throw away the whole plan and tell him you want to be his official girlfriend right now. “No one’s died there yet... That I know of.”

“If I get murdered there, I’m blaming you,” you tease, earning a longing look hidden behind a breathy laugh from Reggie.

“You won’t,” he sings as he pulls you in for a tight hug. “I won’t let that happen to you.” As his arms envelope themselves around you, yours do the same to his torso.

“Promise?” you test him, looking up but never untangling yourself from his embrace.

“Promise.” He nods his head once, his smile beginning to form a magnet-like attraction to yours. He leans down slightly as he slides his hand up your body to cup your cheek. Your lips barely graze one another’s before -

“Oh, sorry, we didn’t mean to interrupt anything,” Luke says with wide eyes as him, Alex, and Bobby walk in. The three of them chuckle to each other, knowing full-well what they almost just witnessed.

“No, no, it’s fine,” you say as you dust off any remaining Reggie on your body. “I was just leaving anyway.”

“Okay, well, I’ll see you tomorrow,” he winks cheekily and waves you off.

All that and he still can’t call himself your boyfriend? Well, you usually have to kiss your boyfriend, so it makes sense.

It’s not like you and Reggie had never kissed before - twice actually - but neither of them count as a real kiss in your eyes. The first one was just an embarrassing moment from a few months ago where you had leaned in to kiss his cheek but he turned his head too quick and accidentally landed his lips right on top of yours. It lasted .02 seconds and you were both really flustered afterward. The second one was just a consequence of playing spin the bottle.

It was frustrating that both times you had almost really kissed had been interrupted so abruptly. You hoped and prayed that you would finally be able to kiss him tomorrow before the show.

The day finally was here and you had prepped your lips with a special raspberry shiny gloss beforehand, in hopes Reggie’s focus would be on your lips and he’d be more tempted to make the first move.

You take one last look in the mirror, fixing the smudges of lip gloss around your mouth and then spraying one last spritz of your perfume on the letter addressed to Reginald Peters, himself.

You had not expected him to already be in the creepy alleyway with 2/3 others in Sunset Curve - but he was - joking and laughing away with them. He couldn’t have noticed you any faster than he did, saying something to the band quickly and then jogging over to you so you didn’t have to walk so far. Also so you had more privacy.

The first thing he does is bring you into a hot, sticky hug. Surprisingly, it doesn’t smell bad.

“Ooh, sweaty,” you comment jokingly.

“Haha, yeah, sorry about that. I might’ve gone a little too hard during Now or Never,” he shakes himself out of the hug and smiles at you before noticing the envelope with his name on it. “What’s this?” His eyes widen as he rubs his hands together like a little kid waiting to open presents on Christmas morning.

“Oh!” You suddenly become extremely embarrassed of what you wrote on those pages, now nervous for him to open it and read it. “Just some letter I wrote you,” he had already taken it upon himself to take it and open it up, only increasing the anxiety-nausea in your stomach. His eyes begin skimming the top lines, a grin forming at his lips.

“You know, it’ll probably take you a while to read it so how about I just sum up what it says for you,” you pull the letter away from his face, beginning to panic. “Basically, um,” you giggle nervously and glance up at him from under your eyelashes. He’s giving you the puppy look again. “I like you Reggie. A lot. And I don’t really know what we’re doing each other, but I just wanted to tell you how I really feel about you before you play the Orpheum and get super famous and inevitably forget about me, so here it goes,” you finally take a deep breath after getting all that out.

Reggie grabs your hand in his, too nervous to interrupt or add anything to what you just blurted.

“I think I love you, Reggie.” He clocks his head in your direction, not in a shocked way, more in an interested way, opening his mouth to say something back. “But before you say anything, I don’t wanna rush you cause I know we’re still so young and we’ve got our whole lives ahead of us. I just - I wanna be your girlfriend.” You finish by squeezing his hand that’s still intertwined with yours and sucking your bottom lip into your mouth.

“Is that really what the letter said?” He asks.

“I may have added some stuff,” you whisper, almost ashamed of the guts you had just spilled to him.

He rolls his eyes slightly in a joking manner, pulling you closer by the hand and mumbling, “come here,” before he firmly plants his lips on yours. FINALLY. You’re shocked at first, but instinctively kiss him back without second thoughts. In a familiar motion, he drags his hand from your hip to your hair while you place both of your hands on either side of his waist.

“Does this mean I’m your boyfriend now?” He teases as he pulls apart just enough to see your face.

“Mm-hm,” you nod your head and grin at him.

He leans in for another kiss, this time getting closer by wrapping his arms behind your neck. It’s deeper and more passionate than the first one, both of you moving your mouths in sync like it was choregraphed.

“Reggie!!!” the two other musicians shout from down the alleyway.

He tries to pull away, but his lips linger on yours for a few seconds longer.

“You better hurry if we wanna eat before the show!” Alex cups his hands around his mouth to make his voice louder.

Reggie looks at you and groans still with a little smile on his face. “I’ll see you after the show, okay?”

He kisses you again, short and sweet, and again, and again, having a hard time being able to separate himself from you. As he’s walking away, reaches out his hand so the last thing to touch is your fingertips.

“Good luck, boyfriend!” You shout to him as a joke as he starts making his way to Alex and Luke.

“Thanks, girlfriend!” He jokes back and blows you a kiss from the distance.

This moment would soon be the moment you replayed over and over in your head, thinking that reliving it would somehow make it so it never ended and Reggie never left.

You went the whole night thinking everything was alright, excitedly waiting for the band to get back to the studio for the after party they had planned there. Only, you had waited too long and started to get in your head about things. Did Reggie only act like that with you to get some pre-show lovin’ to hype him up before he performed? Maybe the band got invited to a bigger, fancier afterparty by the featured band they were opening for.

You must’ve fallen asleep on the couch waiting for them. You woke up to the noise of Bobby turning on the lights and finding you cuddled up with one of the flannels Reggie had left behind.

His face was blotchy, eyes red and puffy, and the tip of his nose was shiny.

“Bobby, what’s wrong?” you stood up and walked towards him.

He couldn’t even respond, he just shook his head and began to cry again.

“Where are the other three? Where’s Reggie?” The worst thoughts started to drown you, but you countered it by telling yourself you were just being irrational, they were probably fine, they probably just had a band fight.

“They were there before-” he sobs, “-and then there were sirens- and- and-” he’s unable to finish.

“Bobby,” you say in a panicked voice. “What happened? Where are they? Where’s Reggie?” your voice is shaky and cracked now that tears have built a wall on the surface of your eyes.

“They’re gone.” He barely chokes those two words.

You feel yourself take steps backward, losing control over your breathing while stumbling back onto the coffee table behind you. “No, no, no,” you deny. “You have to be lying,” the egg in your throat makes it near impossible to say.

Bobby says nothing, instead reaches in his back pocket and takes out the blush pink envelope. “This was in his jacket,” he hands it to you before having to turn around completely to hide his wet face.

On the last page, he’s added something in bright red sharpie:

“To the most beautiful girl in the world, I’m playing for you tonight, Y/N. Love, Reggie”

You break. It suddenly becomes real to you - he’s actually gone. Him, Luke, and Alex are really gone. You crash to your knees, audibly crying and almost screaming until Bobby helps you up and takes you into a much needed hug. You still let out vocal yelps and whimpers from deep in your chest.

You remember nothing else from that night, which is probably for the best since you don’t want to remember anything about it. Instead, you relive the memory of kissing him over and over. It’s almost like you knew that would be the last time you’d kiss him, so you tried to jam the lifetime of kisses you would’ve had into one.

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medieval-canadian · 3 years

Note

Hello :) would you happen to have any tips/resources for people with adhd who are behind on work and NEED to get stuff done? It's the holidays but I have a big research paper due in 2 weeks and I haven't done a thing, it's making my life miserable worrying 24/7 about it 😭

oh man. oh babe. im so sorry you’re in this situation, and also i have no idea when you sent this and therefore no clue if im responding in a timely manner or not, but i totally 100% feel you because i was doing the same (worse) with the grading i dragged forEVER and also now im in a very very similar boat with my special fields prep. so this may end up being a useful exercise for me, too.

i guess my top tips would be:

1. take one day fully off. not off by virtue of the fact that i made no progress even though i tried (no matter if “tried” looks nothing like trying from an outside perspective, we know it’s not that simple). just. off. you are not supposed to do any work on the thing today. today you are going to wash your piled up dirty clothes (and if you’re feeling ambitious maybe even FOLD IT and PUT IT AWAY!!) (i have literally never done those things all on the same day though so like. no pressure). or whatever other thing is staring at you from its pile of filth. have a meal. take some naps. rest a bit, guilt-free.

2. once you’ve had your day off, sit down and make a list. making that list may start with looking up other lists (WITH A TIME LIMIT I.E., A LOUD OBNOXIOUS TIMER. if u have a mac look up the nag timer app). basically every time i have to write a research paper, i have to look up a step-by-step on how to write a research paper. that’s (for me) often the first obstacle--i can’t start because i don’t remember how to write a research paper, so how the fuck would i know where to start? now that you’ve got a step-by-step guide (or four), combine/customize them into your own list. my version of the list often has way more detailed steps than any of the ones i looked up.

2b. that list may look like: -turn on computer -open word doc -set up MLA formatting -pull out syllabus/assignment description -choose prompt/topic/text (30 mins) -open google & search basic terms (15 mins) -open library website and search terms (20 mins) -open google scholar and search terms (15 mins) -etc.

***N.B. i don’t know what discipline you’re working in so like, keep in mind i’ve only ever written literature research essays.

***also, it’s pretty important to try to set those time limits; use timers. if you really need more time, you can set the timer again, but having the buzzer go off helps you to pause and evaluate: do i really need to go down this rabbithole? do i need to spend more time searching for a source to support my claim that Irish independence happened in 1923 when i just wasted like 3 hours on that? or can i just assume that that’s common knowledge in the course on the Irish Literary Revival? (true story) (why that was so hard for me to find i cannot say but it was and i couldn’t get my brain unstuck from it until i got really pissed off and was like “FUCK THIS” and then thought, wait why am i bothering)

3. take a break--go for a walk, play with your pet, slice an apple for a snack. REFILL YOUR WATER (if you haven’t been drinking up till now, drain the bottle THEN refill it) (i always forget to drink and it’s WILD how much that will mess up your workflow)

4. consider playing pretend--it may sound silly/stupid/i haven’t done that since grade school, kat, what the fuck are you talking about, but honestly sometimes it works! pretend you’re your fave character lost in a research binge (i rly like stiles from teen wolf, okay, and it’s the perfect vibe for getting into it). pretend you’re a big important researcher whose findings could change the field forever and they are desperately needed PRONTO. etc.

5. if all else fails, ask for an extension if you can!

#i hope this maybe helps a little!#Anonymous #adhd grad student #ADHD #advice

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coldcocoamilk · 3 years

Text

hey y'all lousy Levihan lovers - I got a new laptop, which means I can finally write comfortably again. we know what that means - a new fic.

as always, this fic is available on archive of our own at this link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/32169334/chapters/79707976

Title: I Went to College and All I Got Was This Lousy Degree

Summary: At the start of Hange's senior year, she's told that she must tutor the ill-tempered Levi Ackerman in Biology if he wants to graduate and keep his baseball scholarship. From that point forward, she does everything she can to keep it strictly business with Levi - until they keep running into each other, everywhere. It takes a little time and some self-discovery, but eventually, she finds herself falling for that baseball boy in the midst of her college career.

chapter 1 under the cut :)

1580.

The numbers were bold against her computer screen and seemed to be burning permanently into her retinas. What was that, like, two questions? It wasn’t fair.

“What did you get this time, honey?”

She turned the laptop to face her mother, who frowned. “It’s a ten point increase, at least.”

“I wanted a perfect score,” Hange moaned. “I hate the College Board. This is some crap.”

“Well, that’s three out of three. You’ve still done better than anyone I’ve ever seen,” her mother reassured her. “Can I take these cups?”

Hange looked over her desk at the array of cups, old bowls, and soiled paper plates. “Yeah, but I want the orange one. I’ll help you bring all this down – sorry about the mess.”

“You’ve been studying hard,” her mom reassured her. “I just don’t want any roaches to be drawn in.”

The warmth from the soapy dish water was soothing on her aching hands. Ever since eight that morning, Hange had been either typing, writing, or highlighting, and when her hands weren’t in use, her eyes flew across text resulting in the typical tension headache she felt directly behind her eyes. Now that it was six, and dinner was almost ready? Done. She was done. Hange thought that senior year would be the worst year for her, but so far, junior year was setting the bar pretty high with the combination of exams, state testing, entrance exams, and college applications.

“Leave the water in the sink. I made you some veggies,” her mom told her.

Perhaps it was weird, but one of the few things that Hange enjoyed out of her mom’s cooking was vegetables. Everything else was either too bland or too salty, too mushy or nearly burnt, but her vegetables were always well seasoned and just cooked right. Going vegetarian had been easy for Hange, especially since it was pretty much all she ate at home anyways.

“Are you going to Nanaba’s after dinner still?” Her mom asked as they ate their dinner together.

“Yeah, I’ll probably sleep there tonight, if you don’t mind,” Hange replied between forkfuls of carrots. “By the way, when does dad come back?”

“Wednesday morning, so you’ll have to take the truck into school, okay? And that’s fine, just check in with me at some point. Go ahead and take the truck tonight, too.”

“Yup, gotcha,” Hange replied, finishing her plate. “Thank you for the food – I really like that new sauce you’re using.”

Her mom beamed, a rare sight for her tired face. “I used balsamic dressing in it! I knew it’d be good.”

Hange grabbed her bag from the bottom of the stairs on her way up. It was way too hefty for her plans tonight, and besides, she really didn’t need her calc II book at Nanaba’s, anyways. She packed the usual: laptop, jeans, cute shirt, a long skirt, cardigan, flats, and some pajamas. Her deodorant and perfume got haphazardly thrown in there too, along with an extra hair tie and her chargers. On last thought, Hange reached for a couple of suspiciously heavy balled-up sock pairs, throwing them in there too. Nanaba would appreciate that.

The truck keys were on the counter next to Hange’s wallet, and she clipped them onto her belt loop on the way out. Everyone in the house had ended up with her trusty carabiner trick: can’t lose your keys if they’re always attached to your pants. Her logic was that if you lose your pants somehow, you’ve got more issues than your keys.

“See ya mom!” Hange called out to the house. Her mom’s jazz music was already audible from the bedroom, and the dishes from dinner sat soaking in the sink. It was always much more laid back when her dad was out on a business trip, and a nice treat in comparison to his uptight antics.

Dusk in southern California during April was always nice – it wasn’t chilly enough to warrant a decent coat, but it was warm enough that you could get away with a dress. Sure, the daytime was utter hell, but at night, her dad’s hoodie on the passenger side of the bench seat in his truck was a welcome blanket on her lap as she drove to Nanaba’s house just fifteen minutes away.

Nanaba had been Hange’s best friend since the sixth grade, and they weren’t planning on changing that any time soon. Once upon a chilly November evening, school had just let out and they sat waiting for their parents to pick them up. Fifteen minutes passed, then half an hour, then a full hour – somehow, the two had ended up being “those kids.” You know the type. Mom fell asleep or lost track of time, child has to try their hardest to remember the house phone number, mom freaks out and arrives in a panic. In that span of an hour, the two started an inseparable bond over Pokémon Sapphire on Hange’s Gameboy Advance.

Hange let herself in with the key under the mat, making her way quietly through the house and up the stairs to Nanaba’s room. She found her with a clear plastic bonnet on her head, cross-legged at the head of the bed on her laptop, and the room reeked of chemicals. “Yo,” she announced herself, dropping her bookbag on the bed and flopping down on it. “That time of the month again?”

“You make it sound like I’ve got my period,” Nanaba complained. “What score did you get?”

“A fifteen eighty,” Hange replied. “You?”

“Fifteen thirty,” Nanaba beamed. “My highest yet!”

“Yooooo!” Hange shot up. “I’m proud of you! That’s, what, a seventy-point improvement? You studied!”

“I took your advice and had my dad buy me that SAT prep book you kept talking about. It really did work, thank you so much,” Nanaba gushed. “I feel like I can finally relax, just a little. Next weeks is finals, but in a couple hours, it’ll be Sunday, which means I’m not studying for a whole twenty-four hours.”

Hange flopped back down on the bed. “Preach. You feel like going out tonight?”

Nanaba leaned against the headboard of her bed, the plastic cap on her head crinkling against the wall. “Nah, I don’t think anything is happening. Besides, I’m doing my hair. I need you to help me touch up the sides again.”

“All right,” Hange replied. “How long do you have left?”

“Ten minutes,” Nanaba closed her laptop and stretched before swinging her legs off the side of the bed. “We’re not going out tonight, but I do have a bottle, if you wanna.”

“I brought shooters!” Hange shot back up, immediately digging through her bag and extracting the balled-up socks. “Some different ones this time, for us to try. What did you get this time?”

Nanaba walked across the room and opened her closet, pulling a bottle of liquor out from a box labelled WINTER. “Eddy orange this time. Haven’t tried it yet, but I thought we’ve abused the lemon enough.” Glass clinked as she pulled out two shot glasses: one shaped like a miniature beaker, and a normal one that simply said BOOBS.

“Beautiful,” Hange grinned. “Today we’re trying… uhh… UV Blue, Jägermeister, and this weird peanut butter whiskey stuff.”

“Did you shoplift again?” Nanaba gave her a glance. “You know, it’s one thing to buy with a fake. It’s another to shoplift entirely.”

“Does it count as shoplifting if your parents don’t drink but keep getting gifted weird alcohol gift baskets from my dad’s customers so it all just ends up sitting in the liquor cabinet for years anyways?”

“God, your dad’s job is weird.”

“Yeah, I know.”

#levihan #my writing #levi x hange #levi x hanji #attack on titan #aot #snk #shingeki no kyojin #fanfiction #ao3 fanfic #stoplookinghere

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hyunsracha · 4 years

Text

even a fool knows — lee minho

word count: 2.6k

summary: if you go further away, i might fall apart by myself.

“No.”

Han Jisung whines beside you, “Please? He said he doesn’t feel comfortable doing it with anybody else.”

You send the boy a quick glare before shutting your locker, “He should’ve thought about that before taking the role. If he doesn’t feel comfortable, why doesn’t he give it to Hyunjin or Jeongin?”

“Because Hyunjin is the cameraman and Jeongin doesn’t have the same charisma as I do,” Speak of the devil, Lee Minho slides up next to you and wraps his arm around your shoulders, sporting his signature cocky grin. You roll your eyes and you shift your lyric books around in your arms.

Minho most definitely wasn’t your best friend. You had been acquainted with him since the beginning of high school, but you were never the closest. Your closest friend was Jisung, as you two had been together since you were in diapers. You only became friends with Chan, Changbin, and Minho through Jisung.

You sigh through your nose, pushing his arm away, “I’m no actor, Lee. Why can’t you just do it with Yeji or Jeno?”

He pouts, “Because I wanna do it with you! You’d be a great love interest.”

You roll your eyes again, trying to ignore the heat rising to your face. Minho is always like this; flirty towards you for no reason, and at this point you try to tune it out.

“Please, Y/N.” Jisung speaks up again, trying to shove a carton of banana milk towards you. Banana milk was your favorite, and Jisung always bought it for you when he wanted something from you. You click your tongue and take it from him, dramatically stabbing the straw in.

“Fine. I’m in. But I demand lots of banana milk.” You sip from the straw, looking at Minho from the corner of your eye. He looks down at the ground, a soft smile growing on his face.

“Finally! Okay, after school…” Jisung breathes a sigh of relief, pulling a notebook out of his backpack and flipping to a page he had previously dog-eared. He starts rambling about where to meet after school, what your costume is going to be, and who is going to give you the script. You’re not listening, though. You’re too distracting watching Minho transform into someone less cocky and more shy.

The bell rings, and you bid the boys goodbye before heading to your first class: composition. You go to an art school, and while most of your friends want to be in the limelight, you are more reserved. You want to make music for other singers; you don’t want to be on the stage. You hate being in the spotlight, to be honest. Jisung, Chan, and Changbin are in a rap trio together, and they perform at a lot of the local clubs. Minho is a dancer, and he’s been in a few music videos for idols.

Changbin is in your composition class. When you walk into the classroom, his forehead is pressed against the desk, a blank sheet of staff paper next to him.

“It’s not 1970, why are we still using paper to write?” He groans.

You chuckle, setting your backpack next to your seat, “I like it. Looking at screens for too long makes my head hurt.” You sip on your milk, taking a sheet of staff paper out of your binder. You get to work pretty quickly, as you always have some sort of a melody stuck in your head, “By the way, Jisung and Minho convinced me to be in your short film.”

Changbin drops his pencil, a short gasp escaping his lips, “Really? You know you have to...be on camera for that?”

“God, don’t remind me. Minho kept saying he wouldn’t be comfortable doing it with anyone else. He’s so weird…” You’re talking to yourself more than anything, but of course, Changbin hears you.

“That’s because he likes you, Y/N.” He’s coloring in a quarter note, saying something that holds so much weight like it was nothing. It’s like he just told you there’s pizza in the cafeteria today.

“What? No he doesn’t, we’re just friends.” You chuckle awkwardly.

“Nah...I bet he’s got a crush on you. You’re definitely his type.”

“Great. All I’ve ever wanted to be was Lee Minho’s type.” You don’t look up from your paper as you speak with a monotone voice. You don’t even know what your type is, why would you know Minho’s? The thought sticks in your mind as you write. Does he like the quiet type? People who say all they need to in just a few words, leaving room for him to say everything on his mind? Or does he like the creative type; those who are like him, who can bond with him over their passion? You shake your head. It doesn’t matter; you don’t like Minho.

After school, you make your way to the courtyard behind the school where Jisung told you to meet. Everyone else who is working on the project is there: Jisung, Minho, Changbin, Chan, and some people you aren’t friends with. You recognize them though, as these guys are some of the most popular on campus: Lee Felix, Kim Seungmin, Yang Jeongin, and Hwang Hyunjin.

“Finally!” Jisung cries out, rushing towards you with a stack of papers and school uniform that definitely doesn’t belong to your school, “Go get changed and hurry back. We’re doing a table read today.”

Table read just meant you all sat around and read the script together, either in incredibly monotone voices or in funny accents.

“Jeongin, your Australian accent makes me want to rip my own ears off.”

“IT’S GOOD, MATE.”

“NO, NO IT’S NOT.”

You had never hung out with half of these guys before, but you’re having fun. They make you feel a little less nervous about being on camera. Of course, you get a lot more attention than you would like, being the love interest to Minho’s main character and all. You two and Jeongin are the only actors, with Jeongin playing the comic relief side character. That would explain the voices.

The first week is mostly prepping. Figuring out sets and lighting situations and learning your lines. You spend most of your time with Minho and Jeongin.

Minho practically has to feed you your lines, “Can you at least try and sound like you’re into me?”

“Um...okay. I...I like...ugh. I hate scenes like these-”

“Y/N!! Is it that hard to say you like me?” He pouts, “Here.”

Minho cups your cheeks, twisting your head to face him, “I like you.”

You flush, trying to pull away from him, but he’s got you trapped. After a few moments of silence, he giggles, “See! It’s not that hard.”

The next week marks the start of the shoot, and on the first day, you feel like you’re going to be sick. So sick, in fact, you asked to be excused after three takes.

You sit in the hallway of the school building, your knees pulled up to your chest as you take deep breaths.

“Hey.” You look up, half expecting to see Minho. But you were wrong.

Hwang Hyunjin takes a seat next to you, sending you a soft grin that’s bright enough to make you feel dizzy.

“H-Hey…”

“I know this stuff can be hard. And the lights get really hot after a while. But I think you’re gonna do great!” His voice is gentle, and you have to hold your breath to hear every syllable.

You chuckle, “Sure. Just make sure you get my good side, alright, Mr. Cameraman?”

Hyunjin stands and reaches out, giving you a hand to hold onto, “Every side is your good side.”

And so your infatuation with Hwang Hyunjin begins.

You so desperately want to avoid him, but that’s hard when he’s shoving a camera in your face for hours a day, and then taking you and Minho into the editing room to watch the progress.

The videos embarrass you. Is that really what you look like on camera? Bright red cheeks and bumbling footsteps?

When you voice these concerns, Minho cooes, “But you look so cute! You look like you have a big, fat crush on me.”

You shove his hand away from rustling your hair, “As if!”

Going back to watching the footage, you miss the way Minho’s face falls ever so slightly.

“I don’t want anybody else. It’s always been you.” He reaches out for your hand, lacing your fingers together and squeezing.

You look up at him, disbelief written all over your face, “You don’t mean that.”

“Oh, but I do,” He steps closer to you, his other hand coming up to hold your face. He leans in, his eyelashes fluttering against his cheekbones. His nose brushes against yours, and you feel his breath against your lips and-

“Cut!” Hyunjin calls out.

Minho backs away, giggling at you and pinching your cheeks before walking away.

You thought that things with Minho would be weird, with filming all of the love scenes and all. But he seems to love it. You don’t understand how he can look at you so intensely while he delivers his lines, and then giggle at you after the scene is over.

You sigh and shake your head, wandering over to Hyunjin, who’s staring intently at his laptop.

“Hey,” You start.

“Oh! Hey, Y/N. That scene you guys just did was perfect; hardly any editing needs to be done. Sit down, come look at this!”

You think you’re obsessed with the way Hyunjin speaks. When he gets excited, he stumbles over his words, and he’s always excited when it comes to the short film. He thinks in 8000 words per minute, but his mouth just can’t keep up. He’s gotten over apologizing for it, as every day you tell him that it’s fine and you understand him. Now, he just keeps going, and you rest your chin in your palm as you listen. You hardly watch the footage on the screen, as you’re still embarrassed. You only look when he points at it, wanting you to see a frame that was particularly beautiful to him or a line that was delivered well.

After shooting is over, you all still agree to meet in the courtyard every day after school, just to hang out and talk about the film. One of these days, Hyunjin calls you into the editing room.

“Now listen. I’m not supposed to tell anybody this, but I’ll tell you because you’re my favorite.” You try to ignore the way your heart flutters at his words and nod.

“This short film was just supposed to be for my film production class, right? Well! I pulled some strings, and they’re going to show it to the whole school! And post it online! So many people in the industry are going to see it and know who made it!”

You’re glued to your seat, lost in thought. On one hand, you’re so happy that your friends are going to get the recognition they deserve. They’ve worked so hard on this. But on the other hand, your face is going to be plastered on screens all over the school.

When you don’t reply, Hyunjin starts to get nervous, “Y/N? Are you okay?”

You shake your head, pushing any negative thoughts away. You’re excited for your friends. They deserve this. Hyunjin deserves this. You jump up from your seat, “So many people are going to know who you are, Hyunjin! I bet at least one person is going to want to work with you!” You grab his arm excitedly as you speak. The boy squeals, pulling you into his arms. Your heart thuds against your ribcage as you realize that Hyunjin is hugging you. You hold onto him tighter as he starts to spin around with you in his grip. You’re so busy yelling for Hyunjin to stop in between your bouts of laughter, you don’t even see Minho standing outside the door, watching it all happen.

The next day, you’re sitting in the courtyard, at the table you and the other have spent lots of time at. You’re studying for a finance test, fingers rubbing at your temple as you feel a headache forming, when a carton of banana milk is slammed on the table in front of you. You look up slowly, making eye contact with Minho, who’s breathing heavily.

“Why did it have to be him?” He yells, and you flinch at the sudden volume.

“Minho…” You sigh after a moment, but he cuts you off.

“No! Don’t say my name like that. Like you care about me. You never cared about me. It’s always been him.”

“Of course I care about you, Minho. We’ve been friends for years-”

“That’s not what I’m talking about. And you know it.”

His words silence you, and you find yourself unable to keep eye contact.

“This was supposed to be my chance. He was finally behind the camera. No one was looking at him for once. Except for you. Even when I was right there, right in front of you. Did those scenes mean nothing to you? You didn’t feel anything when I held your hand? Anything?”

“We were acting, Minho, it was a movie.” Your eyes are locked on your notes, and you feel a lump forming in your throat.

“Not to me! I was never acting. That was all Minho out there. And you still felt...nothing.” He sniffles, and you can hear his voice crack when he speaks again, “Did you wish it was him?”

“It doesn’t matter-”

“It matters to me! It matters because I like you and I’ve done everything I can to get you to notice me. And even when I’m the person holding you, you’re thinking about Hyunjin!”

You swallow your tears, slamming your notebook shut and standing from your seat, “Just leave me alone, Minho.” You push past the boy, not missing the lone tear streaking down the boy’s face. You hurry into the school building, finding an empty practice room and locking yourself in. You slide down the door with your eyes shut tight. You feel so, so guilty, but you never meant for this to happen. You didn’t even want to be in the film in the first place.

You wipe your eyes. Minho will come around, you tell yourself. He’ll come around and the two of you will be friends again and everything will be okay.

Your phone dings from your bag, and you pull it out to reveal a text from Hyunjin.

[ hyunjin ]: hey!! minho just came up to me and gave me some banana milk?? and said that it’s for you?? i didn’t even know you like banana milk lol … anyway where are you? i’ll bring it to you!!

You sigh and send Hyunjin your location, feeling too down to even be excited that your crush was coming to see you. When he comes, you sadly sip on your milk and listen to him talk about the premiere of your short film. You’re supposed to be excited, but the thought of seeing you and Minho on screen together, looking like you’re in love, makes you feel sick.

“I think Minho likes you,” Hyunjin teases when you throw the carton away.

“He does.”

Hyunjin gasps, “And do you like him back? I thought you guys were a couple when you first came on set, he was so excited to see you.”

You sit next to Hyunjin on the piano bench, your fingers dancing over the keys.

“No. I wish I did though. That would be a lot easier.”

“Why?”

“Because if I liked Minho, he wouldn’t hate me right now.”

“What? Why does Minho hate you?”

You turn to look at Hyunjin, faces only inches apart on the small bench. You admire his features for a second. He was so pretty, and you wish you could blame him for all of this, but you can’t.

“Because I like you.”

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