#one time a group of us were all hanging out mass cuddling on the floor watching community

[bakugohoex]

“look at the camera, baby”

parings: jean kirschtein x female reader

cw: established relationship, nsfw (MINORS DNI, blowjob, face fucking, use of camera, clit sucking, nipple play, bruises, blindfolds, unprotected sex, creampie, kissing, jaw grabbing, finger sucking, praise kink, clit slapping) and language

word count: 2700+

a/n: late late post for jean’s birthday which ends in half an hour, but yeah happy birthday to my favourite boy and hope you guys enjoy some birthday sex, kisses

summary: in which its jeans birthday and he wants to bring a camera into the bedroom, throughout the night the two of find yourself taking pictures of one another orgasm after orgasm

↞ back to attack on titan masterlist

Jean’s birthday had never been a special day, of course his mother would always celebrate but when he moved away and started living by himself. His birthday seemed to be the last thing on his mind, well that was until he met you, the way you had been giddy all week from hearing it was your boyfriend’s birthday. He had told you straight up he didn’t want a party and that your group of friends could instead just hang out the night after, which everybody agreed upon.

You knew he didn’t want it to be a big deal, that he would want to spend it with you, cuddling most likely. But as he entered the apartment from work, taking his shoes off as the cold emptiness made him shudder, you had already given him his present and sang happy birthday to him multiple times in the morning. Even the mass texts from his friends and calls from his mother couldn’t compete with the love and joy he had felt as you passed him the cupcakes you had bought for him.

Seeing the cupcakes to the side he found an envelope as he opened it, having dropped his stuff on the table. He had been at a meeting with Levi and Armin and didn’t expect to be home as late as he had, opening the letter up he was met with your handwriting.

‘I have a surprise for you, come to the bedroom baby, y/n x’, the x was large as he chuckled at how far you were going for your surprise. He held the letter as he stepped passed the corridor and went straight to the bedroom, even the corridor was dark as he passed it.

You heard shuffling from outside as Jean slowly entered the room, his eyes adjusting to even more darkness. Until he felt your hands wrap against his eyes, you were on your tiptoes as he gave a chuckle at how extravagant this ordeal was, “happy birthday baby.”

“Thank you princess, but you’ve told me this a gazillion times,” he felt a cloth take the place of your hands as he felt your chuckle behind him.

“Can’t a woman just show their appreciation for her man,” you had shifted in front of him as you took his hands making him sit on the bed, pushing him down as his back laid across the sheets and head against the pillow.

He put his hands out wanting to hold you, but you had other ideas, “It’s your special day, I want to do something you’ve been wanting to do for a while.”

There were a lot of things Jean wanted to do with you but what you had planned was something he never expected from you. You sat on his abdomen, already undoing his shirt buttons as your fingers trailed his chest and nipples, he gave a moan as your mouth moved down his neck and circled his nipple. Tongue swirling past it, he could feel your bare skin against his own as you seemed to be wearing a bra, and as his hands cupped your ass, he could feel your underwear as he gripped onto you.

Your mouth moving along his neck as you licked a strip down to his collar, “bab…baby…” He could barely speak wanting to take the blindfold off to see his pretty girl, but against his better judgement he let you keep at it. He tried to grind against your ass as your back arched on top of him, but the tighter his trousers got the harder it felt to move. “Wha…what’s my surprise?”

“Patience my lov…” before you could continue you felt his hands on your hips move, fingers trailing past your underwear and moving up and down your clit which had left a damp spot in your underwear.

He smirked at hearing you moan at his actions, his finger moving lazily against your clit occasionally pressing against your clit before he heard shuffling as you moaned. “I’m…gonna take your b…blindfold off…just keep your…eyes closed.”

Agreeing, he could see you having put the LED lights on as a red hue settled through the blindfold, feeling it being taken off, you perched yourself closer to chest, before speaking once more, “open your eyes.”

His eyes adjusted to the red light but what he saw turned him even more, you wore his favourite lingerie set but even better, you had a polaroid camera in your hand, bringing it up to your eye as you took a picture of him, his chest heavy and lips licked, hair a mess and shirt unbuttoned. Hearing the polaroid come out, you shook your hand in the air as the image came through, “my pretty boy.”

“This the surprise then…” he smirked as he placed his hands on your thighs, your underwear choking at your hips as he watched you smile at him. He remembered why it had been something he wanted, having sent a Tik Tok of some random guy talking about bringing a camera into the bedroom, he had sent it to you on a whim. But forgotten about it since then, but now all he wanted to do was have pictures of you filled up with him. “I love it baby.”

You watched him take the camera away from your hands, grabbing your hands as he pulled you to his side, hands holding each other as he topped you. He licked his lips as he stared down at your pretty boy, how perfect you looked in all your beauty. His hand wrapped around your neck as your moaned just as the camera flash went off, he straddled your lap as his cock brushed against your underwear. Waving the image up in the air as he inspected how pretty you looked with your tongue sticking out, eyes rolled back and his hand around your neck.

“Does the birthday boy get a treat?” He questioned as placed the camera to the side, taking his shirt off as he felt your hands move to his chest gliding back and forth mesmerised by his body.

You nodded eagerly as he got off your chest, undoing his belt as he stood up standing by the edge of the bed. He watched how you licked your lips, anticipating his next actions, with his trousers falling to the floor and his boxers swiftly after. You kneeled on the bed as your face was directly in front of his hardened cock. His hand moves to cup your face as you give him a smile.

“So pretty,” his thumb brushed your lips as he forced it past your lips. Watching how you sucked at it as his other hand undid your bra making it fall past your arms. He couldn’t wait to have your mouth on him, as soon as his thumb left your mouth, you instantly wet to his cock.

Holding it as you licked the base right up to the tip, you licked his tip, his hands moved to your head as you swirled your tongue against the top. He groaned before watching you slowly take him down your throat, you paced yourselves as you went back and forth each time moving closer and closer to his base. “Fu…fuck baby…”

Your moans that escaped from your full mouth made it harder for him to hold back. Pushing your head further down, wanting to feel your throat clamp down against his tip. As the room filled with his groans and whines of your name, your mouth clasping around his cock became faster and harder at each thrust. How could he not use what was his, you were his birthday present after all, so pretty with drool coming from your mouth and tears falling down your pretty face.

“J…Jean…” your voice was muffled as he moved his cock down your throat thrusting, doing your mouth as he held your hair to help him move freely.

“Yeah…f…fuck baby…” even if he was groaning at each word he looked down at your face, the way you looked an entire mess in a matter of seconds.

He continued to thrust down your throat going a lot slower to allow you to speak but still deep enough to feel the back of your throat, “fa…face…”

He understood what you wanted, as much as you both loved having his cum down your throat, you knew how much he loved having his cum right on your face. Watching as it mixed with your tears and drool. “Want my cu…cum on your face…p…pretty thing?” Your whine of a yes as he went back to his faster pace made you gain a high, you loved Jean’s cock. How the tip was always pinker than the rest of him, how even with how big he was you were able to fit him down your throat or the fact that whenever you cockwarmed him one move and you’d cum in an instant.

“Gon…gonna cum…fuck…” You saw how his pace became sloppy, Jean was a vocal person in bed, whining for more when you were in control or groaning and speaking taunts of his actions as he used you like a toy.

You felt his cock twitch just as he left your mouth, cum falling out right onto your face, the way some went down your mouth, around your lips, on your cheeks mixing with your tears, down your throat. It was a perfect pretty sight, Jean’s cum still falling down onto you as he moved his cock to brush against your lips, tracing his white gush against your pretty plump lips. “You look prettier with my cum on your face,” he groaned grabbing the camera as he held your jaw up, ��tell me who you belong to baby?”

“Y…you dad…daddy,” you moaned as the flash went off as he took the picture, waving it in the air as he watched you lick away at the cum on your lips as his other hand remained on your jaw.

He found your eagerness to please a turn on as he watched you kneel for him as if he was some God and you his pet. “Want to be good for da…daddy, want to give me a real present?” you nodded watching as he grabbed your arms pushing you down before topping you once again, but as he held your wrists up in his arm, head against the pillow you couldn’t help but admire how much you loved this man.

The way he gently kissed against your abdomen and played with your nipples or how he tugged your underwear down with his teeth, bringing it down to your ankles with his fingers. “Pretty cunt, my pretty cunt…” his mouth moved to lick your clit, tasting your slick as you put your hand in his hair making him look up.

“Fuck me…I want you to fe…feel good as well…”

He couldn’t help smile as he came up to your face, hands on each side of the bed as he looked down at you, “I always feel-good eating you out baby, you cunt is all mine…” his hand moved down as he gave your cunt a slap, “isn’t it?”

“It…it is…” You could hardly breathe as he kissed you, tongue tasting of you as he could taste his cum that pressed against his own face as well. Both your saliva mixed together, his hand moved to massage your breasts as he couldn’t wait till fill that pretty cunt up.

He easily moved you to straddle his lap, lips still locked as he grinded his cock against your slick filled cunt, “can…can’t wait to fill you up…baby.”

His voice was harsh through the kiss as you tugged at his hair to force him up as your cunt was barely a few inches away from his cock, “wan…want you da…daddy.”

He watched how your mouth moved to his neck, he moaned your name as your slick seemed to help him out.  Watching as you went down on his cock, hands gripping your waist as he watched your arch, your neck taking him all in with one go. “F…fuck Jean…” you could barely move but as you began moving your hips to his cock the feeling of being stretched out was overcome with the feeling of pleasure.

“Fu…fuck pl…please…” Jean could barely speak as he sat up against the pillows, watching you use his cock, the way each movement made him groan.

Your eyes were shut but as soon as you got used to the feeling of him once more, you went to grab the camera from the side, “let me…me take a p…photo of my…my bi…birthday…agh God…bo…boy.”

Your words finally formed as you opened your eyes, the way he held onto you as you continued to move your hips, each time moving further up and slamming right back down onto his cock. “Y/n…”

He watched you drool at how you couldn’t help but love him, his hands remaining fixated on your waist. Each movement made your tits bounce as he couldn’t help but lick his lips, you took the camera to your eye, gaining a better view through the lens of your pretty boy.

His hair was damp as it rested against the back of his neck, his face damp from him cum that had gotten from your own. Eyes watching you move as his chest was on show. Even then he was still your perfect boy, the man who would risk the world to be with you. He felt the flash as you shifted making him groan as the picture got taken, even if it was blurry he knew you’d still end up keeping it. The image moved with you as you waived it to the side at each thrust back and forth.

Your breathing became heavier as your cunt squeezed at his cock, the camera fell to the side, as Jean took it wanting to have one more imager permanently ingrained into his vision. He put his eye to the camera, your body on show for him as your neck was littered with his kisses, your tears running down your face and cum that still stuck to your neck. “Look at the camera, baby,” the only sight he wanted to see was your reaction to, “I love you.”

You smiled at him as you couldn’t help but tear up at how much he loved you and as the camera flashed as he got the prettiest image of the night. “I love you…too.”

He pushed the camera to the side having waived the image to come through, before using your hips and thrusting upwards, “I want you forever.”

His breathing became heavy as did your own, the feeling of his cock moving harder to the back or your cervix made you reach a high. And as you felt a coil in your stomach snap, your white gush fell out squelching past Jean’s cock as he used it to fuck harder into you. You moaned his name as his thrusts became sporadic wanting to cum right in that pretty cunt of yours.

“F…fuck Y/n…bab…baby,” you watched his eyes shut as cum shot into your cunt, the way you felt filled as he continued to sloppily fuck into you.

As you finally got off of him and lied beside him, cum falling out of your cunt, he held you close in his arms. Switching the desk lamp on beside him, your heavy breaths against his chest making him feel at home, he eyed each image how the ones you took of him whilst riding him were blurry. But his favourite of yours covered in his cum, with tears as you rode him was the one he was going to keep with him forever.

“Gonna put this in my wallet, baby,” he chuckled holding you closer to him.

You nodded tiredly as you replied back, “as long as I can get one of us for my  phone case you can take as many pictures as possible of me naked baby.”

“I’ll keep you to that…” he kissed your forehead knowing you’d be tired and as he turned to the side seeing the midnight approach, he knew that maybe birthdays could be a bigger celebration. As long as it was just the two of you together, because that was where his true home lied.

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#jean kirschtein #jean kirstein #jean kirschtein x reader #jean kirstein x reader #jean kirschtein x you #jean kirschtein x y/n #jean kirstein x you #jean kirstein x y/n #attack on titan #attack on titan smut #attack on titan x reader #aot #aot x reader #snk #snk x reader #shingeki no kyoujin #shingeki no kyoujin x reader #shingeki no kyoujin smut #jean kirschtein smut #jean kirstein smut #jean kirschtein x female reader #jean kirstein x female reader

[that-one-weeb-but-starwars]

Asks: How about some Wrecker Fluff?

Y/N is on her period. She tries to hide the fact from the boys but Hunter can smell it and Tech knows because of his useless facts. Clones probably aren't taught much about the female anatomy as it's not "important" for a Soldier. Wrecker knows something's wrong and after Y/N explains the issue, he ends up bringing her stuff like chocolate and cuddling to make her feel better. Bonus points if she ends up losing her crap on a whole bunch of baddies. Whether it's Droids, bounty hunter, or something else.

I think this is cute- so Ima do it

Strong Muscles Stronger Gut| Wrecker

"Are you. Um..." Hunter spoke.

The two stood in the hanger, both alone.

"What?" Y/n asked.

"You uh...smell...stronger"

"I what!?"

"I mean! Well! You smell...diffrent." Hunter tried to explain, "You do atleast once a month for a week. Are you okay?"

Y/n rubbed her temples- oh so she had to have this talk.

"Yes. Im fine." Y/n spoke, "its a girl thing."

"A. Girl thing?"

"Yeah." Y/n spoke, "Every girl gets- well most, usually around pre teens."

"Its important then?" Hunter asked, "I uh. Know she won't want to go to me about it. She might. I- I don't know-"

Hunter started to ramble, mixing up his words with uhs and ums. He was talking about Omega.

"Can. Uh. You explain it to me? I know it affects you. I just...wanna be there for her you know?"

Y/n nodded, she had explained periods before to boys- men- young girls that were sobbing in the bathroom confused.

Y/n explained what was happening to her body, and what essentially Omega would go through. She told him- everything- spilled all the beans. Y/n had offered to show how much periods really hurt and he agreed saying "its only fair so I understand"

Y/n held his shoulder, he growing increasingly worried.

"What are they doing?" Wrecker asked as he watched them from a far.

Tech looked up from his work, Y/n holding and apologetic face as she then proceeded to slander his guts, kneeing his stomach as hard as possible.

Hunter doubled over letting out a spew of Mando as he went down.

"Yeah thats about a quarter of the pain. But it depends on each girl." Y/n told him, as he was slolwy getting up.

"Remind me never to call you weak even if we are just messing around." Hunter spoke Y/n holding his shoulder.

"Sorry about that..."

"Oh." Tech spoke understanding what was happening, "Y/n must be busy this week then."

"Busy?" Wrecker asked looking at the two, Y/n now in pain as she held Hunter's shoulder leaning over holding her stomach.

"Right now?! You didnt even do anything?!" Hunter complained.

"E-excatly- fuck! Fuck fuck! Ow..."

"Is she okay?" Wrecker asked Tech.

"It will go away- soon- unless. How many days has it been since mid week?"

"Uh..." Wrecker spoke, "three?"

"Makes sense." Tech spoke, "she has most of her pains three days in."

"Three days in of what?" Wrecker spoke.

"Menstruation." Tech spoke, "hand me the-"

Wrecker handed him a tool, "no not- oh yes this one thank you."

"What's Menstruation?" Wrecker asked.

"When a women, in this case, our lovely brutally honest Medic, Y/n." Tech infromed, "is going through a cycle once of month..."

Tech contuined to ramble- Wrecker. Well Wrecker didnt process one piece of information Tech was saying.

"What?" Wrecker asked.

Tech sighed looking back at Wrecker, "she bleeds and has cramps."

"Why is she bleeding? Did she get hurt?"

"Wrecker-"

"Is she okay-"

"Yes-"

"Then why is she-"

"Wrecker!" Tech stopped him, "her monthly bleeding means she's healthy, shes fine. Sure she is emmense discomfort and I certainly hate to see our sister like such, but thats what makes her strong- well also the fact that she can- at any momment be with child, carry the damn thing for almost a year give birth and take a squadron of droids down with just one blaster."

Tech looked back at Wrecker who still looked confused out his mind as Tech sighed, "You know somethings wrong?"

"Yeah." Wrecker answered.

"Go ask her."

"Good idea!"

Wrecker made his way over to Y/n and Hunter the pain Y/n was mild now, she could deal with it.

"Wrecker." They both greeted.

"H-hi."

Y/n looked at him worriedly, "something on your mind?"

"Can. I talk to you?" Wrecker asked, "alone?"

Y/n looked at Hunter, "I'll leave you to it." Hunter responded and left.

Y/n looked up at Wrecker worried, "Wrecker? Hun? What's wrong you look worried?"

"Tech says you're bleeding." Wrecker tried to explain.

"I'm bleeding?" Y/n asked- oh- oh here we go again.

"Y-yeah.." Wrecker spoke rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly, "and I. Don't really ever understand what comes out of Tech's mouth....unfortunately...and I saw you in pain for the last three days. I just- are you okay?"

Y/n smiled at Wrecker, "Im fine."

"Oh. Oh good." He spoke, not seeming fully satisfied with what she had said, "but uh. Why are you bleeding? Can I stop- We stop you from bleeding?"

"Please I wish you could." Y/n spoke with a light chuckle, "No Wrecker, see women once a month go through a cycle, it unfortunately makes you bleed like you're birthing hell out of your guts but is one of the ways we stay healthy."

"Oh." Wrecker spoke, "so. You bleed to stay healthy? When I bleed Tech's always poking me with needles."

"Well... yes and no. The cycle once a month helps get rid of an egg- well its called an egg, but Im not a chicken alright?" Y/n explained.

Wrecker sat and listened intently to her, something that wasn't really common when learning about what would be considered a random thing to him.

Y/n was pretty impressed by him to say the least. She had never seen him so focused, and it was honestly kind of cute.

"But boys or men don't have it." Y/n told him.

"That doesnt seem fair! Why do you have to suffer?" Wrecker argued as Y/n shrugged with a laugh.

"You tell me." She smiled.

It went silent as he thought intently, "well nothing can make you feel better? While your on your period?"

"Well because of War I've been so busy with fighting That I've only used heat packs and compresses. Usually I just have to fight through it." Y/n spoke, "but I've heard of alot of women saying like affection makes them feel better."

Wrecker hummed in thought, "Hey! Wrecker! Y/n!" Omega called.

The two turning there heads seeing the girl across the hanger with the others.

"We're going to a Cantina for dinner! Come on!"

"Come on Wrecker." Y/n spoke.

They met up with the rest of the group, walking to the Cantina with as usual happy Omega. They sat down for dinner as usual. Talking back and forth with smiles. Wrecker would frown though everytime Y/n winced, closing her eyes taking deep breaths. She was obviously in pain.

"Can I leave earlier?" Wrecker asked.

"Uh, sure?" Hunter asked as Wrecker got up.

"Can I come?!" Omega asked.

"Oh. Uh..." Wrecker spoke, "not this time...sorry Omega."

"Oh." Omega frowned, "Okay then! I'll see you later!"

Wrecker left the group who was relaxing.

"Odd." Tech spoke, "Wrecker always likes to take Omega."

"Maybe he's found a girl." Y/n recommend leaning back and drinking her water.

"I doubt that." Echo spoke, "thats not him"

"Maybe he just wants to go back and sleep?"

"Now that sounds like Wrecker." Hunter admitted.

Y/n shrugged, the group talking casually. Until some bounty hunters came up to them.

"Well hello Doll."

Y/n only contained her arguement about physics with tech.

"Whats a princess like you doing hanging around a few clones?" The man spoke with a purr.

"Call me princess again and you'll have no cock."

The men laughed as the batchers kept quiet, it was bad to mess with her in one of her moods.

"Oh come on Princess. Whats a small fry like you gonna do?"

Y/n quickly grabbed her pistol from her tigh, aiming it at the guys head.

"I warned you didn't I?"

"W-woah now put the-"

She aimed the gun down shooting the man right in the Kenobis.

"FUCK! SHE SHOT ME IN THE DICK!"

"I fucking warned you!" Y/n argued.

"What the hell!" His friends shouted.

Y/n lifted the gun up, "It may just be on electric shock but I will turn it to live ammo!"

"You bitch!"

Y/n growled as they came at her, Y/n grabbing a bottle on the table smashing it against of there heads as they fell to the floor. The third ramming Y/n into the table as he pulled out a knife, Y/n reaching back grabbing a fork and stabbing the man in the shoulder.

He cried out in pain as he fell to the floor.

The group left the cantina after paying, no bystander daring to make a comment. The group returning to the Havoc Maurder.

"Wrecker! Wrecker! You should of been there!" Omega cheered rushing inside to find the large batcher.

Y/n rubbed her stomach in pain, "still bad?' Echo asked.

"Just a bit yeah..." she groaned.

"I can see if we have any heat patches" Echo spoke as Y/n nodded in thanks, the group walking in.

Omega came back out, "Y/n Wrecker wants you in the bunks."

Y/n nodded, Echo handing her a heat patch.

"Thanks."

Opening it with her teeth she walked towards Wrecker and her's shared bunk.

"Yeah Wrecker? Omega said-" She stood seeing Lula on her bed and a large paper bag.

"Hey!" He cheered holding lots of blankets in his hands and in his blacks.

"Hi." She spoke, "whats up?"

"Oh well I heard about the fight." Wrecker spoke, "and uh. I know you've been in pain for a few days so this is to make you feel better!"

Y/n cocked an eyebrow up still confused, Wrecker wrapping her in one of the blankets as she held it so it stayed in place.

"What in the bag?"

"Well me and Omega always go get sweets and it makes us feel good so..."

Y/n walked over seeing the mass amount of choclate bars,

"I bought a few." Wrecker spoke.

A few? More like a whole isle.

"And thought made you'd want a hug." Wrecker recommend, climbing into the bottom bunk, it was often they shared a bunk.

"Oh." Y/n spoke, "uh. Are you sure? I don't wanna...you know bleed on you by accident."

"You've bleed on me on the battle feild how is this any different?" Wrecker spoke with a smile.

Y/n chuckled, only Wrecker.

Wrecker had wrapped a blanket around him waiting with open arms to Y/n. Y/n smiled making her way into his arms, her blanket wrapped around her and his, Wrecker pulling another blanket over them. She smiled head in Wrecker's chest. He rubbed the middle of her back as she hummed in pleasure, her head barried into his warmth.

"Your like a heater..." she spoke muffled as he chuckled, rubbing up and down her spine.

"Do I ever tell you how much I love you?" Y/n purred, "especially your back rubs..."

He kissed her head as she smiled.

"Thank you Wrecker." Y/n told him.

"Anything for you, after all. Your always making sure we're all okay."

#submission #star wars wrecker #tbb wrecker #the bad batch wrecker #tcw wrecker #wrecker x reader #fluff #star wars: the bad batch

[mythicamagic]

In the Company of Wolves: Inukog oneshot

Summary: Every place feels like a temporary home for a Hanyou. Kouga offers Inuyasha a welcome respite within his wolf pack. Inukog oneshot

Written for @gaykagome​, who has been a lovely, encouraging commenter and fandom friend ^^ thank you for your support bud.

Rated T

7,000 words (you can also read this on ao3 via the same username)

In the Company of Wolves

Leaping through sprawling trees, thick white hair flew out behind a red figure. Inuyasha landed on a sturdy branch, legs bent, muscles coiling and springing free as he leapt forth again. He smirked, a fang hooking over his bottom lip.

"Nice try, but you ain't got a hope in hell."

The deer fleeing for its life beneath the branches had skittered to the left, racing through dense undergrowth. Perhaps it hoped to lose him, or maybe it was running scared. Either way, this would be over quick.

Stepping from branch to branch, long fingers flexed, claws catching on sunlight. Pushing off from a tree trunk, Inuyasha sprang down with every intent of landing atop his prey.

He fell within range, closing in- only for his foot to collide with a mass of thick black fur.

Inuyasha's eyes flew wide, crashing into the beast and hitting the floor in a tumble of limbs. The deer merrily pranced away out of sight.

Snarling and lifting his head, Inuyasha cradled his throbbing skull. "Damn it, what the-!"

A large bear-sized wolf staggered to its feet, rumbling a noise of complaint. Two cobalt blue eyes glared at him.

Inuyasha stopped, "Kouga?" he rose a bushy brow.

There was no mistaking that smell. He'd never seen the mangy wolf's true form before though. In all honesty, it was kind of surreal. Hell, the guy even looked a bit more dignified.

Kouga tilted his head, standing. As he shook himself, yellow, static powder fell from his fur like gold dust, swirling into a whirlwind of youki. In a matter of moments, Kouga's humanoid form stepped out, hands on his hips.

"Why'd you get in my way?! You lost me my meal!"

White triangular ears flicked and pressed back against his skull. Fuck taking that. Inuyasha stood, hands balled into fists.

"Your meal?! I've been tracking that deer for at least an hour! You weren't even in the picture, I didn't smell ya chasing it once!"

Kouga tilted his chin up, flashing a cheeky grin. "Tch, that's what happens when you track from downwind, Dog Breath," he muttered, ignoring the pissed off Hanyou and looking around. "How come you're out here huntin' anyway? Isn't Kagome with you? She always carries some goodies to chew on. Tastier than venison too."

Inuyasha glanced away moodily, crossing his arms. "Shaddap. Like it's any of your business."

Kouga hummed, scratching his jaw. Odd. There was no bite in his tone. Sniffing a little, Kouga picked up the faint scent of sadness clinging to the robe of the fire rat.

Inuyasha's face heated. He quickly bared his teeth, "quit with that! She's just busy, alright? Besides, I can still hunt for myself. Ain't you a little far from your territory to be hunting out here?"

Kouga blinked, mildly concerned despite their history together. "Uhh… where do you think you are, Dog Breath?"

Frowning, Inuyasha glanced around. Clearly no answers were forthcoming from the forest, so leaping up, he climbed a tree, digging claws into rough bark to hoist himself up. Minding the tallest branches aside, Inuyasha gaped as he surfaced from the sea of greenery. Sprawling, picturesque mountains met his startled gaze.

How far did I chase that deer?

And why'd it have to lead him to Kouga's turf, of all places?

Dropping down to solid ground again, Inuyasha avoided eye contact. "I just got caught up in running, that's all," he answered the silent question hanging in the air.

Kouga tilted his head slightly, "… right."

A rumbling sound rang out between them. Inuyasha grit his teeth, ignoring the impatient gurgling of his stomach and swiftly turning. "Whatever. See ya," he started walking.

"Hey-" Kouga called, causing him to nearly trip in surprise and frown over one shoulder.

The wolf winced, looking awkward and weirded out to even be asking. "We got leftovers. If you want some," the offer was casual. "Don't want you keeling over on the way back, Kagome would kill me."

Inuyasha stared. Maybe he'd hit his head or something because for some reason, the offer sounded like a tempting one.

"Keh," he grunted, pivoting on one heel and trudging towards Kouga's territory instead. "Better be good," he complained with no energy behind it.

"Its free food! Be more grateful to your host," the wolf snarked, jogging to keep pace with him.

---

Mutters echoed throughout the cave, causing white ears to twitch and swivel atop his head. Inuyasha ignored the curious wolves, digging into tough boar meat. Uncooked. Miroku and Kagome would've called it ghastly. His lips twitched at the thought, soon wiped away. Something squeezed his chest instead.

"Hey, blabber-mouths! Keep it down!" Kouga's booming voice caught his dazed attention.

Ginta and Hakkaku quickly shut up, apologising. The rest of the wolf pack fell quiet, though their eyes blazed with questions.

Inuyasha rose a brow and glanced at the Wolf Prince. Did he think the gossiping bothered him or something? Weird guy. He should know a Hanyou would be used to it.

Kouga's tail flicked as he strode through regular wolves, minding some beasts aside. He then threw himself down beside Inuyasha on some soft furs, stealing a rib. Not having the energy or inclination to snap at him for it, Inuyasha merely flashed his teeth, grunting and continuing to eat.

"So what brings you to us, Inuyasha?" Hakkaku asked bluntly. Ginta gasped and fretted, clearly having wanted to ask more delicately.

Inuyasha drew into himself slightly, noticing a hush fall over the atmosphere within the damp cave.

"Was just in the neighbourhood is all. If ya wanna blame someone for dragging me here, look no further than your precious leader," he snorted, sidestepping the question.

Kouga elbowed him and chuckled in a deep, rich baritone. Triangular ears flicked upon hearing it. "Aw c'mon! You practically tripped over yourself getting here you were so eager," glimmering blue eyes swung to his pack, giving a shit-eating grin. "He's just too proud to say 'thank you for the meal' because he lost his prey and is still being a sore loser about it~"

Inuyasha blinked, noticing his verbal diversion and change in topic. Kouga was... helping him?

Sure enough, the wolf demon gazed at him, brows raised in challenge, trying to encourage a rebuttal.

Relief touched Inuyasha's face for a moment, before snorting loudly and thrusting his nose up in the air, turning away. "Me? You're the one who got in my way, Mangy Wolf."

"Dog Breath!"

"Flea Bag!"

The wolves glanced back and forth between them, noticing the lack of malice in their nicknames. Their scents were calm, giving them away. A touch of humour and enjoyment radiated from them as they bickered.

"Alright, prove it-" Kouga suddenly threw out. "Hunt with us tomorrow. Then we'll see who's better at it," he jabbed a thumb at his chest. "Obviously, it'll be us wolves! I've provided for my pack as leader for tons of years and I'm faster than you."

Rolling golden eyes, Inuyasha picked up a stone, hollowed out cup of water, taking a sip. "Keh, wouldn't be the first time people have underestimated me. Won't be the last," easing slightly closer to get in Kouga's face, he bared sharp fangs in a feral grin. "I'll beat you just like I've beaten everyone else who figured a half-breed couldn't measure up to a full demon."

Kouga stared, a funny look crossing his face- both palms shooting up to wave slightly. "Huh? Nah, you've got me wrong," he grunted, straightening his spine. "I was just trash talkin' you as competition, not because you're a Hanyou. I honestly wasn't thinkin' of that," his voice trailed into a musing tone.

A stab of surprise and disorientation swung through Inuyasha. There was no time to recover, however, as the demon kept talking. "Though now that you mention it, you're probably used to hunting alone, right? We'd call you a Lone Wolf if you were one of our kind. My pack will win through sheer teamwork."

Inuyasha huffed. So clearly it was more like 1 vs 30 rather than a fair fight. Coward.

Ah well. Looking down at the bones he'd picked clean, he gave a rough shrug of his shoulders. Not like he had anything else to do. He could stick around a little longer.

"You're on."

----

Many hours after the sun had gone down, taking its vibrant colourful sky with it, the moon had opened up her blanket of stars. Inuyasha sat at the mouth of the wolf pack's cave, hands thrust inside his sleeves. Tetsusaiga rested against one shoulder.

The wolves had finished singing their melodies to their mother, the moon, so they'd settled down.

Golden eyes slid towards their sleeping forms. They'd packed themselves tight against one another to retain some heat. Only a few had broken off in pairs to cuddle by themselves. Ginta and Hakkaku were well and truly wrapped around one another, swathed in furs.

They all looked comfortable. Trusting, together. A family unit.

Inuyasha stared. The most annoying part about it was that he could never pinpoint exactly what he was feeling, looking at groups like this. It made him uncomfortable, a reminder that they had something he didn't. Maybe he had, for a time, but his friends had all split off to live their own lives. Shippo was growing up. Miroku and Sango had their own family now.

Kagome…

He wasn't needed anymore. Their quest had been over for a long time. He should be over it by now.

Staring at the pack was like looking into a store window in Kagome's time. Unseen glass forever separated him from what they possessed.

Kouga lifted his head from where he lay, noting a chill in the air. Inuyasha met his gaze, quickly turning to face the other way and pretending to look at sprawling scenery. A snort sounded out in the cave before sharp, static youki fanned into the breeze.

Transformed, Kouga stepped around his pack and lay down towards the entrance, blocking out the night's chilly breeze with his thick fur and large form.

Inuyasha glanced behind him with mild surprise.

Kouga was maybe, actually, kind of…

... a good leader.

---

It started at midday.

The pack immediately flooded the forest, racing through it like droves of rats. Inuyasha shared a look with Kouga, before smirking and starting to leap from tree to tree.

Hunting with wolves nearby started to look next to impossible, considering how eagerly they dove and ran through the undergrowth, loud and clumsy. However, the second they caught wind of a herd, they split off into different, smaller groups. Inuyasha watched them from his vantage point above.

Scouts ran on ahead. Kouga kept towards the back of his pack, signalling orders with mere grunts, growls or gestures of his hand. Inuyasha followed the scouts, dropping down to run alongside them. They were slightly younger demons, teenage boys and girls, lithe and built for running. They stared at him but gave tentative grins.

Inuyasha blinked and offered a slight smirk, soon powering on ahead and leaving them behind.

Sniffing out a herd of deer that the wolves intended to close in on, Inuyasha kept to his vantage point in the trees. He rounded one side of a large clearing, heart thundering.

It had been a long time since he'd hunted seriously. It took him back to old times. Kagome had spoiled him with ramen, and complacency softened his body. But now rusty instincts were awakening, shaking the dust away. His fangs ached. Demon senses kicked in, blood pumping. He could hear and smell everything, down to the blades of grass, fusty scent of deer and pungent odour of wolves.

As predicted, Kouga's scouts halted at the opposite side of the treeline. Lower-ranking wolves and wolf demons alike burst through into the meadow then, causing the herd to take off running.

Right towards Inuyasha.

Dumbasses. Didn't they figure they were leading them right to him?

Grinning, Inuyasha's clawed nails elongated slightly. Waiting as a few deer ran beneath his position- he suddenly lept. Free-falling and spreading both arms wide, he tackled a stag around the neck, yanking it down with him using his weight.

Grabbing it by the antlers the second he recovered, Inuyasha gave a quick jerk, snapping its neck cleanly.

Panting and grinning, he raised triumphant eyes-

Only to see Kouga bent over a felled deer not too far away. His mouth was bloodied. His prey lay dead on one side. It was obvious from the number of adults mid-way through their meal that they'd taken it down much quicker than Inuyasha. They'd had the same idea, flushing out prey and leaping upon them from the opposite direction. Somehow they'd evaded even his detection.

Younger wolves looped around, waiting pensively for their turn.

Kouga licked his lips, maintaining eye contact. Dark hair hung loose from its typical ponytail, claws stained crimson. Inuyasha's heart skittered. His breath halted.

The demon drew bloodied lips back over his fangs when a lower wolf sniffed too close to his food- a loud, powerful snarl thrumming through the clearing.

An answering rumble built in Inuyasha's throat, unbidden. Blazing, twisting heat hooked low in his stomach, cock twitching.

Golden eyes snapped wide, realising just what the fuck he was reacting to.

Kouga's feral expression softened back to normal, shooting him a surprised grin and happily digging into his meal, none the wiser.

Shaken, Inuyasha grimly started tucking into his own, busying himself with eating. He then offered some scraps to some salivating teens, ignoring the amused demons watching. He wasn't above dining with pups. Especially if it meant never confronting what had just happened.

---

"So you and Kagome broke up, huh?"

Inuyasha jolted, wondering how obvious he'd been about it. Frowning at Kouga, who seemed content to laze within the den after the hunt, he gave a long exhale. "Have been for a few months now."

"Gotcha."

"We're still friends though, so don't even think about sniffing after her again."

"I ain't about to, Dog Breath," Kouga flashed him a wolfish grin, slowly sobering, "you wanna talk about it? Only it seems to be eatin' at ya."

Running a hand through his hair and giving a dusty sigh, Inuyasha stared blankly at the forest down below. With no other wolves around, he felt somewhat better about talking so plainly.

"Nothin' much to talk about, she's with someone else now. Seems happy."

Kouga made a noise of affirmation, showing he was listening while picking at his teeth with a pinky.

"I've got a crappy track record with relationships."

"You've got a crappy track record with women, yeah."

Inuyasha whipped his head back to stare at Kouga, wondering what he meant by that. If he meant what Inuyasha thought he meant.

Kouga remained in a reclining position, meeting his gaze easily. The late afternoon sun touched his skin, giving it a warm glow, hooded eyes seeming to darken. "You ever think about trying to be with someone else, rather than pining after the same soul over and over?"

Inuyasha's lips thinned, cheeks heating.

"I dunno. I was with Kikyo and then after being sealed to the tree- I woke up and met Kagome like no time had passed," he grunted. This would usually be the part where he clamped up. He didn't like talking about something so vulnerable. Self-preservation had taught him not to divulge too much, even to friends like Kagome. Kouga could easily mock him. However…

Looking over, no sinister motivation seemed to compel the wolf. He was genuinely interested. Inuyasha's insides screamed at him as he reluctantly continued. "It was like… it made sense to be with her, but I barely had a chance to process losing Kikyo. Things just kinda happened," he shook his head slightly. "Startin' fresh? Sounds like a fairy tale."

Kouga chuckled deeply, causing Inuyasha's ears to twitch again. His stomach did a nervous flip, but there was no cruelty in that rich tone. "Kinda set in your ways, huh? You're like a human in that respect."

"Keh, well what about you? Been with anyone recently?" Inuyasha asked flatly. He wasn't fishing or anything.

Kouga stretched languidly, yawning and exposing sharp-pointed canines. Blunt claws flexed wide, before curling into his palms again. "Nothing permanent. My last 'relationship' was with a guy for a couple of weeks. Just casual stuff. Heh, bet that's unthinkable to you, right?"

Inuyasha bristled, cheeks reddening. He tossed his head and huffed in answer.

"Oi, I don't mean anything by it. I think it's great you're such a loyal pup and have soul-consuming relationships instead of flings. Still, it sounds kind of exhausting to me," the wolf shrugged.

"I thought 'wolves mated for life', you sure tried that line on Kagome."

"We do," Kouga muttered, looking at him, "but only after we find someone special. We got an expression, us wolves. It basically translates to 'my heart and liver.' You gotta find someone that really fits your needs, who you pursue like they're a missing organ inside you. Till we find our chosen one, we're free to pursue who we want."

Inuyasha snorted, "and Kagome was that person to you?" he drawled sarcastically.

Kouga shrugged, not catching it. His earnest, blunt disposition was somewhat refreshing, if Inuyasha were being honest. "I figured so. But after three years of thinking about it, I kinda dove headfirst into loving her without really knowing her. I pursued her so hard that I forgot to think about why I was even running."

Unbidden, a smile came to the Hanyou's mouth, a fang hooking over his lip. He chuckled, eyes warming. Something heavy lifted from his shoulders. "We're both dumbasses," he said, golden eyes dancing. It felt kind of good to not be alone in that. To know they both should've done better.

Kouga blinked, gaze roving over his face. Slowly, he gave an answering, amiable smile. "You get a snaggle-tooth when you grin," he pointed out teasingly. "It's cute."

"Don't think you can flirt with me just because we bonded for a second, wolf," Inuyasha rolled his eyes and forcefully snuffed out his grin.

"No I'm gonna," Kouga chuckled, tail thumping beside him.

Something dissuaded the Hanyou from hotly shutting this down. His heart sat a little lighter in his chest, shoulders relaxed. If the dumbass wanted to keep saying stupid shit, who was he to stop him?

----

After that day, Inuyasha resolved to stay- at least until he caught a kill quicker than the wolves during a hunt.

Kouga became somewhat more shameless and flirty. It started out subtle. Well, subtle for Kouga.

One time, Inuyasha had leisurely taken a sip of his drink, setting it down and not noticing the wolf sit beside him. Kouga then proceeded to pick it up.

He crooked his wrist as he lifted the cup so that his lips landed squarely over the same place Inuyasha's had just occupied. He'd performed the manoeuvre so quickly that Inuyasha wasn't sure at first of what he'd seen. But as Kouga drank, he glanced at him, and Inuyasha knew then that the move had been intentional.

There were other small, maddening things. Kouga's tail brushing against his hip in passing. How he always brought over a slab of meat from a fresh kill to Inuyasha first during evening meals. How he offered over and over to take a 'friendly' dip in the waterfall together.

Inuyasha rolled his eyes at the attention. It never strayed too far into 'Miroku' territory, but it also wasn't something to take it seriously. The other wolves by now had caught on and sometimes teased their leader. Kouga laughed it off yet continued undaunted. When he next offered Inuyasha a pot, the Hanyou blinked.

"Are those stingers?" he grunted.

Sure enough, bee stings dotted bronze skin. The idiot hadn't removed the stingers from his hand.

The wolf chuckled, gesturing to the covered pot. "Ya mentioned that honey goes well with meat, so I got some for you."

Staring and feeling weird again, Inuyasha heaved a sigh and grabbed Kouga by the wrist, tugging him to kneel beside him. "Hold still, idiot. Do your feet run away with your brain or somethin'? You have to take these out," he bent over his hand, clawed fingers grasping a stinger.

"I was just eager to get it back to y- OW!"

Huffing, the Hanyou continued in his task, ignoring the whimpering demon. Despite his gruffness however, he leaned Kouga's arm over his knee, one hand gripping the back of the wolf's to keep it steady. He could feel Kouga's sharp inhale close to his cheek.

Finally removing the last of the stingers, Inuyasha's dog demon side betrayed him. As natural as breathing; he'd bent his head and swiped a careful tongue over a red sore to soothe the wound unthinkingly. Human embarrassment kicked in then, and he dropped Kouga's wrist like a rock, lurching back and standing.

"There! Tend to your own damn hand now!"

A ripple of laughter washed over the pack as Inuyasha stormed away, leaving Kouga to stare at the spot of saliva on his hand like it were a dewy jewel.

---

When next hunting, Inuyasha set off on his own under cloudy skies. He didn't keep track of the mass of wolves flooding the forest. Closing his eyes and removing the robe of the fire-rat to leave him in his white underlayer, he sank into a crouch. Burying Tetsusaiga somewhere safe at the base of a tree, he exhaled. The hanyou then began the process of shedding.

Shedding didn't entail fur. Rather, for him, it meant shaking off the layers of bullshit that weighed on his mind. He even stopped thinking about himself as a person. His mind turned blank, running through the forest like an animal.

He hadn't hunted via pure instinct in so long. He forgot how to speak with a human tongue, letting out grunts and growls. Saliva pooled in his mouth. Unknowingly, golden eyes tinged red. Faint markings cut across his cheeks. Fangs and claws elongated, youki pounding through his system with every thunder of his heartbeat.

A hare darted out from the bushes- and Inuyasha lunged.

He was barely aware of Kouga looping closer until he jogged out from the trees. "Hey, mutt- no luck for us today. Think that last hunt scared the herd too far awa-"

The creature hunched over spun around, a mangled kill hanging limp from his mouth. It hit the ground with a sickening thud as long white hair bristled, puffing up. A deep, rumbling snarl deafened Kouga's ears.

Inuyasha gazed at him, unblinking, panting with ragged breaths.

Kouga stopped and stared. Unbidden, the wilder, fiercer side of his nature reared its head. Teeth and claws gleamed, interest piqued.

However, something was wrong.

Inuyasha gasped and grunted, bending low and whimpering with pain. His body began fighting with itself, his demon blood coursing too strong for his hanyou form to withstand.

Kouga didn't really know anything about hanyou kind. However, he knew enough about the situation to realise a particular sword was missing from Inuyasha's hip. Turning tail and hurrying away, it was a simple matter of tracking Inuyasha's scent all the way to the base of a tree.

The fog cleared from crimson eyes, and Inuyasha blinked, panting. He flexed his shaking hand around a muddied Tetsusaiga, the partial transformation leaving him worn and ragged.

Kouga was squatting next to him. Concern probably wasn't the right word for it, but he gazed at him seriously for a moment before standing.

"Don't do stupid stuff just to win bets, Mutt Face."

Coughing, Inuyasha slowly adjusted back into his old senses, gripping his sword so tight his knuckles bled white. "Yeah... fine, whatever... Mangey Wolf."

----

The 'incident' as Kouga called it was not an isolated one in terms of throwing him for a damn loop. After bathing at the waterfall in a nice, refreshing midday dip, Kouga noticed an absence immediately.

"Where's Inuyasha?"

Ginta looked up from polishing some armour.

"I'm not sure. He started getting fidgety and sniffed around- then he looked at the sky and took off without a word to anyone. I think he looked a bit pale."

Kouga frowned. In a few hours, it would get dark. Tracking him would be more difficult.

Wasting no time, Kouga lept from their den, sailing down the side of the rocky mountain face. His black hair and wolf tail flew up to flutter in the breeze. "Be back later!" he called, ignoring Ginta's confusion.

Bursting into a mini tornado of power, Kouga started running, lifting his nose to scent the air. Locating Inuyasha's unique smell, he sprinted into the gloom of the trees. It seemed the Hanyou hadn't wanted to be found. His scent zig-zagged everywhere, even travelling upriver, perhaps intending to lose anyone tracking him.

Kouga smirked. As if that would work on a full demon.

By the time dusk settled in, however, Kouga felt antsy. Still no sign of the mutt, and it was getting dark. Even his scent had become strange and diluted.

Stopping beneath the canopy of trees and frowning, Kouga shifted his attention to the waning light above. The moon was out, but faint.

Kouga's eyes widened slightly. A new moon.

Hearing a sigh and the crunch of weight shifting on dried leaves, Kouga turned, nose twitching.

A willow tree sat relatively still and serene, located near some stretch of water. Weeping, draping branches were parted by Kouga's rough palms. He peered into the shadows behind the sweeping curtain, finding a familiar face.

Inuyasha stood, eyes incredibly dark. Midnight locks of hair split down broad shoulders. He stood weary and watchful, gripping a useless Tetsusaiga.

"What are you doing here?" Inuyasha muttered.

Kouga gave a look, as though it should be obvious, stepping into his private space beneath the darkening tree. "I came here to find ya, obviously."

Dark eyes widened slightly at his blunt honesty. Sighing anew, Inuyasha rubbed at his forehead. "Dumbass. I'm guessing you forgot what night I transform despite seeing it yourself before?"

"Kinda," the wolf demon shrugged, resting both hands on his hips and walking around the tree, glancing at the fresh kill of a rabbit. "Glad ya fed yourself at least. C'mon, let's go back before we lose any more light. Unless of course you wanna stumble around in the dark, forcing me to hold your hand?" he teased.

Inuyasha gazed back soberly, causing the mirth to leave Kouga's eyes. Both fell quiet.

As a human, Inuyasha lost many things. Animal ears, a keen sense of smell, golden irises that gleamed like a treasure trove. He also lost a certain harshness. The thick wall of defence usually built up around his heart had crumbled.

Like this, Inuyasha looked much softer. In more ways than one.

"I don't want to go back looking like this," Inuyasha muttered. "And neither do you."

"What're you yappin' about?"

Bushy brows pulled down, and he backed up slightly. "Listen, you've had your fun little charity experience including a Hanyou in your shit, but I know how full demon society works. I'm not stupid. You're all fine with me hanging around as some little project to measure yourselves against, but when it comes down to it, you don't want to confront this part."

Kouga's heavy brows pulled down, a sneer marring his lips. "Ah, I get it. Ya think my pack will mock you because it's your human night? You're a fucking idiot," he sighed. "I was in love with Kagome. Ya think anyone's gonna say shit? Admit it, you just feel vulnerable because you got baby skin and no fangs."

Inuyasha's expression flickered; an open book. His hands balled into fists, stubbornness setting his mouth into a thin, grim line.

Kouga gave an exaggerated sigh, grabbing his arm, "quit bein' stubborn-"

Yanking himself free, Inuyasha gave a poor imitation of a snarl, exposing blunt teeth. "Get lost!"

Growling, Kouga blurred in the air- appearing behind him and grabbing the failing human around the waist- lifting so that his kicking feet left the ground. "We're going back, it's cold out! Your baby skinned, barely furred ass will catch a cold, and I ain't dealing with that!" he started walking.

With a yowl of outrage, Inuyasha swung his elbow back into Kouga's face. With a grunt, he was released, only for the two to snarl and grapple once again. Heels dug into mud- foreheads smacked, palms clasped and muscles strained on Inuyasha's end to match the power of a demon, failing. Kouga licked at his bleeding nose, before giving a hard shove. Landing on forest ground and losing themselves in senseless scrapping, sharp teeth closed around a curved ear.

Inuyasha yelped, dark eyes flying wide. Did he just?-

He had! Kouga had reprimanded him like a damn pack member.

Sensation burst within his chest, boiling over, consuming. He didn't know how to react to it. Therefore, Inuyasha didn't stop to think about his actions. When drowning in feeling, his mind turned blank, and he acted on impulse.

Curling coarse fingers in dark hair and latching tight- he yanked Kouga down by the back of the neck- mouths colliding.

Teeth knocked. Lips strained against hard pressure. Inuyasha's grip tugged Kouga's hair tight against his scalp. It was painful. It was uncomfortable. It was brilliant.

The wolf demon reeled, inhaling hard through his nostrils. His senses flooded with Inuyasha's human scent.

There was a reason Kagome's slap had cemented her into Kouga's head as a potential mate. He wasn't used to being opposed. Everyone listened to him, and he talked freely. But a push back, a stubborn, fierce 'no!' made his world tilt on its axis. It was exactly what he needed. Someone to raise their voice and get his attention. An opposing view to clash with his own. That was what leaders primarily looked for in partners, not meek obedient types.

And Kouga couldn't say he personally disliked it either.

Releasing him, Inuyasha panted. His face suddenly paled, realisation dawning. "Shit," he muttered, drawing back and falling silent.

Kouga opened his mouth, then closed it. There were no words he could scramble together in his currently fried brain. What he did know- was that the weather still felt chilly, and Inuyasha needed a place to sleep. He kind of felt the desire to prod for more, but judging by Inuyasha's closed off, guarded look, that wouldn't be happening anytime soon.

They picked themselves up, standing. Inuyasha wiped some mud from his ashen cheek.

"You won't come back to the pack tonight, right?" Kouga asked.

Mild relief seemed to touch his features as he nodded glumly.

"Gotcha, well, don't kick up a fuss. I'll take ya somewhere else for the night," the wolf demon stepped away, youki swirling around his form, tumbling faster into a fierce gust. Inuyasha watched as a 10ft tall dark-furred wolf eventually lept out of the whirlwind. Kouga then knelt down as best he could, jerking his head to indicate Inuyasha climb on.

"You've got to be kiddin' me?" he grumbled. It didn't take much prompting for him to give in, burned out from nerves and high tension. The new moon always messed everything up.

Grasping onto thick, feathery fur, Inuyasha climbed onto his back, sitting behind Kouga's shoulder blades. The wolf demon flashed him a toothy smile, pushing off starting to run.

Gaping and swaying from the momentum, Inuyasha ducked down and gripped his hackles. Kouga talked a lot of shit, but he got one thing right; he was fucking fast.

Muscles coiled and shifted, prowling through dense undergrowth with quick footfalls. Kouga panted softly, paws thundering over chilled forest floor, scattering leaves.

Inuyasha ducked to avoid a few low-hanging branches, feeling the wolf's sturdiness and warm form beneath him. Despite being in human form with his dulled, dim senses, the silence of the forest combined with Kouga's rhythmic noises made him feel strangely wild yet lulled. He was a creature again, not a man nor demon. It comforted him.

Kouga's breath fanned out in visible puffs of curling smoke by the time they reached an abandoned cave beneath a slightly upturned tree- it's hanging, frozen roots slightly obscuring the entrance. Snowdrops littered the ground- crunching under Inuyasha's feet as he dismounted and quietly entered.

More snowdrops awaited him inside the mouth of the cave, and he sank down exhaustedly into the flowers, cheek cushioned by soft petals.

Kouga huffed, staring down at Inuyasha's near motionless body. Shifting, he settled beside him, acting as a shield against the elements.

Inuyasha's feet were turning blue. Knowing he'd probably be insecure about holding onto him in inhuman form, the wolf shifted closer, bumping against his side.

Making a tired noise, a dark brown eye cracked open. With a sigh- Inuyasha's coarse hands met Kouga's fur, settling closer into the mass of warmth. "This means nothing," came his muffled voice.

Resting his head upon enormous paws, Kouga ignored this, tail thumping slightly behind him.

"Thanks for... coming to get me."

At that, Kouga stiffened with surprise, lifting his head to look at him.

Inuyasha's breaths evened out, and in the quiet hush that followed, it was difficult not to notice how his dark hair seemed to mesh and meld so naturally into the wolf demon's own black fur.

In the morning it would be harder still not to stare at sprawling wisps of long white hair blending into the snowdrops.

Kouga's blue eyes blinked, nose twitching. It was then he realised he was probably in danger of something much larger than either of them could've expected.

----

Predictably, Inuyasha acted as though nothing had happened.

He stuck around the wolves for a few days longer, before finally approaching Kouga, arms thrust inside trailing sleeves.

"So… gonna be headin' out soon."

Kouga continued sharpening his knife. He then stood, rolling one shoulder and keeping his tone casual.

"For good?"

"Yeah," Inuyasha muttered, face guarded. "No point in sticking around here any longer than I need to. Keh, I ain't in the habit of getting in people's way."

Kouga heaved a sigh, putting the knife away and folding his arms, walking from the cave and out into bright sunlight. Rounding one side of the mountain and following a rocky trail, his tail swished with agitation. "You ain't in the way, Dog Breath. I made that pretty clear. You wanna talk about the kiss or not?"

Inuyasha made a noise behind him. He then scrambled for something to say, "we don't gotta talk about it! Weird shit happens when I turn human! Stuff I wouldn't usually do-"

Kouga cut him off with a dramatically loud groan, turning on his heel to face him. Inuyasha jumped, feet skidding to bring him to a stop- rocking forward with momentum and ending up nose to nose with the wolf.

Cobalt blue eyes remained flat, "dunno how Kagome put up with your damn wishy-washy ass. I ain't about to listen to that crap when my nose can sniff out lies unlike her. Since you're so bad at this, I guess I'll be the mature one; and that's how ya know you're being an idiot, stupid mutt."

Inuyasha blinked, opening his mouth with an irate expression.

"I want ya to stay," Kouga said bluntly. "The kiss didn't bother me. In fact, I kinda liked it and I'm open to doing more of that stuff, weird as it sounds saying it out loud. I was into it," he shrugged broad shoulders. "But if you're too busy getting yourself worked up about feeling like an outsider, that's up to you. As pack leader, I'm telling you you've got a place here, dumbass. You can quit being a lone wolf if you want to. My group won't mind."

Inuyasha stared at him, completely stunned. He put a little distance between them, ears pressing flat.

His expression rapidly changed with a multitude of conflicting thoughts. He opened and closed his mouth, eyes flickering to the scenery, to the rocks, to their bare feet. Heavy brows drew down.

Kouga sighed and scratched his pointed ear, figuring he'd be stubborn about it. Not like he could force him to stay. But still… an odd sense of disappointment weighed in his chest. He'd had fun. He'd had a lot of fun with him around.

"I don't do casual," came Inuyasha's reluctant reply.

Kouga's brows rose. Oh. That's what he'd been having reservations about?

"Fuck- I'm bad at this," the hanyou gazed stubbornly at the horizon, cheeks heating. Hands curled into fists at his side.

Blinking, Kouga let out a rasping chuckle, shoulders shaking. It immediately won him Inuyasha's attention. "You really are," he agreed, tone turning into a teasing one. "I didn't know you were that into me."

Growling and bristling, Inuyasha seemed to assume he was laughing at him, so Kouga held up a hand. He then used it to grab hold of the robe of the fire rat, bridging the distance between them.

Inuyasha's breath rushed out of his nose, exhaling sharply. He froze, becoming completely still. Kouga's mouth remained against his in a firm kiss, before shifting into a yielding one, eventually drawing away.

Kouga grinned, "if you wanna get stuck with me, then I'm totally capable of being serious too."

Inuyasha slowly relaxed. He snorted, lips quirking as golden eyes warmed. "Dumbass," he mumbled, tugging him back in again. This time Kouga's ensuing chuckle came out muffled against his lips.

"Heh, you really do have dog breath."

"Do I gotta keep shutting you up?"

Kouga lifted a shoulder, flashing him a wolfish grin, tail thwacking his thigh. "If that's the method you're going with to do it, I guess so."

Inuyasha's gaze flattened, feeling large hands slide around him to rest on his shoulder blades. Oddly comforting. The warmth of a wolf was a strange, foreign thing, but one he could get used to. Kouga had a strong scent. He could feel it saturating his clothes. The robe of the fire-rat would reek for weeks.

And that was okay too.

Their noses bumped, and they huffed with amusement, teeth nipping. They'd be clumsy for a while, but sticking around suddenly didn't sound so heavy. Inuyasha resolved to stay for a few more weeks.

And then maybe he'd linger for a little while after that too.

---

The wolves always howled in their true forms, conveying their love, heartbreak, hunger, stories and other things into their haunting songs. They were beautiful, powerful, twisting, waxing poetic about nothing and everything.

Inuyasha stepped out onto the summit of their mountain that they gathered upon. When he threw back his head and howled suddenly, it startled the others out of their songs.

His voice strained, held back by untrained vocal cords. It wasn't wild enough and held no finesse, too tempered by humanity. Imperfect.

Kouga beamed upon hearing it. He then transformed, black silky fur receding.

Throwing his head back, he let out a loud howl, hair dancing in the breeze. Inuyasha finished and looked at him breathlessly, heart drumming loudly. His throat hurt, cheeks stinging from the cold bite in the air. It felt fucking fantastic.

The rest of the wolf pack demons followed suit, transforming into their mockery of human appearances. Their inhuman forms joined in, baying with hoarse, powerful voices.

If someone had happened upon the pack that night, they'd have found the wolves packed in close, huddling for warmth in their cave. And at the very centre of the pack would be one hanyou, nestled amongst their slumbering, monstrous forms, nose buried into windswept fur, heart in sync with theirs.

---

It would be a few weeks later when Inuyasha would return to Kaede's village. It had been two months since he'd left.

Kouga jogged around him on the trail, sniffing the air and chattering animatedly. He loved travelling. Inuyasha grunted a few replies but was content to listen to him. It kept his mind off inevitably seeing a certain someone again.

That person seemed to spot them almost immediately as they approached the village.

Kagome came rushing over, causing Kouga to grin and call a greeting- his words going completely ignored as the miko drew back her hand.

Inuyasha blinked at the ensuing slap. His cheek stung like hell.

Salt peppered the air then, causing guilt to sink heavy into his gut.

"H-how dare you!" Kagome's watery eyes blazed. "You disappear for months- without a word to anyone?!- and then just swan back here like nothing happened? I searched for you! Do you have any idea how WORRIED I was? You jerk! You're such an absolute JERK!"

Inuyasha slowly stepped closer and brought her into a hug just as she burst into tears.

Kagome thumped her fists weakly against his chest, shuddering and prattling nonsense.

"I just… needed to get away," Inuyasha muttered, ears pressed back tight to his skull. "Didn't feel right being here."

Letting out a rush of hot air, Kagome drew back slightly to look at him. "N-nothing had to change. I told you that," she hiccuped. "Just because I'm in a relationship with someone else- it doesn't affect us. We're still friends. Your place is here. Miroku, Sango and Shippo were worried too."

"They were?"

They'd seemed so busy with their own lives before. Too busy to hang out with him- or maybe he'd been alone in thinking that? Had he put distance between them unknowingly because they'd all changed but he'd stayed the same?

"Idiot," Kagome and Kouga sighed together.

Noticing their wolf companion, Kagome wiped her tears and turned to Kouga. She gave him a much gentler reception, hugging him tight with gratitude.

"So he was with you the whole time? Thank you for looking out for him, Kouga."

"Heh, no worries. It's actually been pretty fun."

Kagome pulled back and rose a brow, glancing between them. "Really? You two haven't been fighting?"

"Sometimes," Inuyasha scratched his nose, combing some claws through his hair. "That hasn't been so bad either, though."

Completely lost, Kagome tilted her head. She then located a hickey on Inuyasha's neck, the skin bruised and red. She reddened herself, meeting Inuyasha's awkward gaze.

"Oh," she put the pieces together slowly. "So… are you just visiting?" she asked quietly.

Inuyasha nodded slowly. "Yeah. I got…" he took a breath, words faltering. He then continued, voice full of conviction. "I got a place to return to now. The wolves ain't a bad bunch to stay with now that my nose has adjusted to their damn smell."

"Hey-" Kouga scoffed.

"I'll keep coming back here though," he continued. "I'm just-"

"It's okay," Kagome soothed. "That makes me really happy to hear. Sometimes new things are good. Different, but good."

It was the same thing she'd said when trying to talk to him about her new relationship. Inuyasha nodded slightly, rendered mute by the heaviness of her words. Change was inevitable. It had freaked him out enough to run from the only real family he'd ever known.

Sadness flitted through her gaze before acceptance gentled matured features. Ageing had changed her too. That was partly why they'd broken up as quickly as they had. They were too different now than how they'd been at 15, swept up in a whirlwind teen romance. There was a sadness in never being able to return to their glory days, but it wasn't necessarily a bad thing to move on.

Kagome scrubbed at her eyes and smiled for him. She always smiled when he needed it most. Grabbing both of their coarse hands, she tugged. "C'mon, everyone will be wanting to catch up. There's also some ramen I saved with your name on it."

Inuyasha's slack fingers twitched in her hold. He then adjusted them, squeezing her hand. Something brazen, fragile and guarded in his heart soothed and healed. His shoulders relaxed. Finally, he felt a sense of peace sweep over him that he hadn't experienced for some time; ever since they'd been flung out of orbit from their romance and back into friendship.

Meeting Kouga's amiable, enthusiastic gaze, Inuyasha bit back a snort. Golden eyes danced, lips twitching- before tilting up. A fang hooked over his bottom lip, snaggle-tooth peering out.

---

End

#Inukog #inuyasha #inukoga #kouga #koga inuyasha

[jamkookies]

𝐅𝐮𝐜𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐀𝐧𝐚. 𝐒𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐲, 𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐤𝐨𝐨𝐤. ♡

𝑺𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒌𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒚 𝒃𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒌 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒃𝒐𝒏𝒆𝒔 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝑨𝒏𝒏𝒂'𝒔 𝒈𝒐𝒏𝒏𝒂 𝒇𝒖𝒄𝒌 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒖𝒑 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍 𝒃𝒂𝒅. 𝑬𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝑱𝒐𝒋𝒐. 𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒉𝒆, 𝒂𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒙𝒊𝒄 𝒈𝒊𝒓𝒍, 𝒔𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒅𝒐 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝑱𝒖𝒏𝒈𝒌𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒔 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆? 𝑸𝒖𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚.

Pairing: OC X Barista!Jungkook

Contains: humor, mutual pining, fluff, cuddles, vine references, hurt and comfort, sexual tension.

Warnings: swear words, angst, dark themes, anorexia, mentions of self-harm, starvation, binge eating.

Word count: 30k+ (don’t ask)

A/N: I spent almost a year working on this, during which time I went on and off from writing. It’s finally here and my excitement is through the roof. Special thanks to @keopitae​ for sharing her thoughts on the fic and for her continuous support. Eli out.

____________________________

"My name is Jojo and I suffer from an eating disorder."

The words echo across the small bathroom walls, crashing against the mirror I so passionately detested. Punching the mirror as hard as I can, blossoming cracks scatter in every direction. The pain in my right knuckle screams, blood already oozing out of the peeled skin.

Fucking cringe. What was all this for? Was there a camera up my ass for acting all dramatic and shit?

"Good job, Jojo, you just ruined another one." I sigh and let the running water wash the blood off my hand. This was the third time this month and honestly, I think I deserved a slap across the face for the amount of money I was spending on fucking mirrors.

Heh.

That made it sound like mirror prostitution.

I grab a bandage from the stack I kept on the drawers and wrap it around my injury. Talking to your reflection first thing in the morning wasn't exactly the best way to start off the day, but it had been a mere attempt at self-therapy. Well, since I can't go to a real one, anyway. Too bad it didn't work.

 I sigh one more time for good measure and pull a hoodie over my head.

 Ah yes, a hoodie. The ultimate piece of clothing. 

Feeling cold? Wear a hoodie. Your bra is cutting your blood circulation and you can't keep it on anymore? Wear a hoodie. You feel self-conscious of your body and try to hide every curve and shape? Hoodie is your best friend.

I put on a pair of sweats to complete the look because let's be real;  everyone loves a baggy outfit. Not even sparing a glance at the mirror anymore, I unplug the charger from my phone's ass and sit down for a second to scroll through some memes.

Yup.

That's exactly what a person does after losing their job.But come on, I mean who fires someone just because they went to take a piss? Yes, it took fifteen minutes and yes, I was in the middle of working, but my dude, I drink three bottles of water a day. I need to let it out somewhere.

I take a deep breath as if to clear the disarrayed thoughts in my head. As much as I tried to make it sound funny, it wouldn't work because, at the end of the month, the rent wouldn't pay itself. Living on your own had its pros and cons and up till now, if I was completely honest, I had only seen the bad side of it.

 Supporting my hands on the sofa, I try to stand on my feet but almost flop back down. Every time I get up, black spots dance across my vision. I can even see whole galaxies and not in the pretty sense of the word. One time I think I witnessed the glory of the Milky Way itself.

The pills that are strewn across the floor remind me of the impulsive decision I'd decided to make last night so I collect them one by one and put them back in the bottle.

Maybe some other time, I think to myself. Another day.

I'm perfectly fine, after all. I did lose my job yesterday and now I'm hanging on a thread for dear life but it's fine. I can make this work. A small green apple on the counter is the only promise of a so-called decent breakfast. 

"Well hello there, little guy," I say before sinking my teeth into the juicy flesh of the innocent fruit.The apple doesn't respond.I take my phone out of my pocket and tap on the Notes app.

  52 calories are way too fucking much for an apple, I think to myself as I aggressively type the number down.This was about the only positive side of this disease. I was more educated on the nutritional values of food than a real dietitian.

This was how it all had started in the first place — from wanting to make healthier choices to cutting on particular groups of food. Just a slight change. Nothing too alarming. But then, I had to know what I was eating, right? So I start counting.

And that's how it all went to shit. 

After I finish eating the apple and throw its core into the almost empty trash can, I wash it down with a tall glass of water. At last, my animalistic hunger was sedated and I could finally move on with my life. Indeed.

I grab my keys and shut the door behind me, wanting to go out for a while, maybe clear my head a little bit. It's not like I had to feed my kids or anything. There was nothing holding me back. So, I exit the apartment building, my keys clinking in my right pocket, and I hop on my beloved bike, parked right on the corner of the street. Did I have any idea where I was going? No. Was that going to stop me from strolling around like I didn't have a pile of shit waiting to be dealt with? Hell no.

I start pedaling like crazy from the moment I put some distance between my apartment and the main street. Maybe it was because I needed to let off some steam, maybe the amount of calories I would burn excited me. Either way, that doesn't justify the high pitched scream coming from a girl that I almost run over.

 I skid to a stop, the hands on the brakes stopping me from a fatal mistake. The girl's face has gone pale and one of her hands is clutching at her chest, terrified.I notice the way her flawless make-up matches her porcelain foundation, the fitted jeans hugging her slim legs like a second skin, and I feel sick.Sick for the fact that I'd almost killed this girl and all I could think about was how skinnier than me she actually was.

"Watch where you're going, fatass!"

Scratch that.

The Regina George flashback turns it all around.This bitch was going down.

I throw the bike aside in the middle of heavy traffic and shoot daggers from my eyes at her ridiculously perfect form. Any shred of remorse I'd felt up till now dissipates like a wisp of smoke on the wind."The fuck did you just say?"

She flinches from the humorless tone of my voice and I can see from the way her eyes widen that she's starting to regret her poor choice of words. 

"I–"

Before I can blink, she's out of my sight, scurrying away like a frightened little mouse and I can't help but huff an incredulous laugh right there in the middle of the street. A car honks loudly behind my back and I don't hesitate to flip the guy off, the hint of a smile still lingering on my lips.

I wasn't taking any shits from people today.

So I hop on the bike once more and round a corner in search of a place to cool down a little bit. My eyes roam over the long line of stores and shops decorating both sides of the road in a flourished aesthetic and pause on the frame of a particular coffee shop, the strong flavorful smell inviting to my senses. I don't have to think twice before leaving my bike on the sidewalk and entering the shop with curious steps, scanning the interiors in a quick once-over. I sit by the window since it faces the street and make myself comfortable enough to attract a few pair of judging eyes. 

A woman seated on a table close-by looks at me disapprovingly, staring at my clothes for a little longer than needed. She was probably wondering why was a tomboy wannabe man-spreading with an arm thrown across the chair like she owned the place.

Look, ma'am. It's the twenty-first century. No one gives a shit about girl mannerisms anymore.

"Didn't anyone tell you staring is rude?" I say, not bothering to make myself look somewhat presentable. She looks appalled by the bluntness of my words, probably not used to being called out so straight-forwardly but it seemed to have worked as she just turns her head on the other side, pretending to not have heard anything.

That's what I thought.

I fish my phone out of my pocket and scroll down mindlessly. A distraction more than anything. But I don't even get the luxury of having a moment's peace when a pair of black stomper shoes slow down to a stop down my line of vision. I raise my eyes deliberately, following the two long legs protruding from them that connect with a bulky chest till I finally reach the top.

A boy.

No, a man.

Well, a mix of both.

His well-built figure screams "I've never skipped a day at the gym", the veiny muscles tight against the black shirt he's wearing. A swirling black tattoo makes an appearance on the side of his neck, disappearing inside the collar of his shirt, peeking again at his biceps and then snaking its way down his arm. There are multiple piercings on both of his ears, the silvery dangling pieces curtained by a mass of black messy hair reaching past his cheekbones and falling in front of his eyes carelessly.

Those eyes...

His whole physique resembled that of a fully grown man but his eyes were the ones who gave him away. Big and round and boyish.

I wasn't sure why I had spent more than a minute ogling at a stranger coming up to my table. Maybe it was the dark, mysterious aura radiating off of him or the way he was looking at me expectantly. Still, this motherfucker was too handsome for his own good. And he still stays right in front of me, unmoving, waiting for something.

"Are you lost, child?" I ask, looking at him dead in the eye.

He scoffs, clearly offended. "Child?"

"Your fly's down." I deadpan.

Unfortunately for him, his eyes slightly dip down to the front of his pants.

"Ha! I made you look!" I proclaim, a spark of amusement making the corners of my lips upturn. 

He, on the other hand, doesn't look so happy, his curled up fists shaking by his sides, trying to keep himself in control."Can I take your order?" he grits the polite words through his teeth, even though he looks like he's about to strangle me from any second now.

"You're the waiter? Where's your uniform?"

"I don't have it with me." The boy's expression has turned angry, irritated even by the consistency of my questions.I decide to take it down a notch or two for the sake of the bulging vein on his throat, threatening to pop off. "Kay, chill. I was just asking."I lean closer and put my elbow on the table. " Soo...You come here often?"

It's his turn to deadpan. "I work here."

"Whoops. Silly me, I forgot." 

"Are you gonna order or not?" He can't help the slight raise of his voice, more than enough proof that his patience was wearing thin.

Uh oh. Hoe's mad.

I throw a leg across my knee in the most arrogant way possible and lean back on the chair. "Aren't you gonna write it down somewhere?" I ask, raising one eyebrow.

"I can remember it." he simply answers.

Fine then, pretty boy. Let's see how you remember this.

"I'll have a quad long shot grande in a venti cup, half calf, double cupped, no sleeve, salted caramel mocha latte with two pumps of vanilla."

Oh, I've definitely made him mad now. 

With a look of pure hatred on his face, he clenches his jaws together and stomps off in the opposite direction with God knows how much memory of the order in his head but before he can go further, I shout for him to stop. I was starting to feel bad for the boy with the long hair flying behind him dramatically. Not to mention, there was no way in hell I'd let that much sugar enter my body.

"Wait!"

He pauses and slowly turns around."I changed my mind. Just a cup of dark coffee will do. No sugar."

Surprisingly, a subtle smirk creeps its way on his lips, throwing a whole new light to his features. "Aren't you gonna tell me to make sure it's darker than your soul?"

Hmph. The little puppy can bite back, after all.

"Nah, that's overused," I say. His eyes scan me from head to toe and then he pivots on his heel, disappearing behind the multiple tools of the counter, probably communicating the order to someone else. It doesn't take long for him to come back once again, his long elegant hand gently picking up the cup of coffee from the tray and putting it on the table.

In that fleeting moment I can make out a messy layout of tattoos; a smiley emoji on his middle finger, four small crosses in the spaces between and a bunch of other symbols I don't recognize. All that, gracefully completed by a gorgeous black flower and a bunch of other patterns wrapped around his forearm. 

How contrasting it was, the way his appearance clashed with his personality. Did I actually know him? I think so.The guy was obviously kind enough not to spill the thing all over my clothes in an act of rebellion and I had to say it was an admirable thing to do considering how far I was pushing his limits. I am almost ready to hold out the olive branch to him.

Almost.

"I thought I said no sugar," I say, noticing the small white pack by the side of the cup."I guessed you would probably change your mind again." he teases, but the displeasure is still quite evident on his face.

Interesting.

"Next time, just make sure to do what I say." I retort, very much aware that I was prolonging the situation more than needed, but I just couldn't help it. I was really enjoying the reactions I got from him every time I pushed his buttons. 

He's practically fuming with anger but still doesn't fall prey to my relentless attacks, instead choosing to walk away like a civilian.

Pity. I wish he'd stayed a little longer.

The coffee is absolutely disgusting. Its bitter aftertaste almost makes me gag. 

This is what happens when you refuse to add sugar to any kind of drink, Jojo. It basically tastes like shit.

I forcefully down the last gulps and rise from my table, leaving a tip for the emo kid even though I'm running low on money. He deserved it after putting up with my bullshit for that long.

The woman staring at me earlier goes wide-eyed when I lift two fingers to the side of my brow, offering her a salute before making my way out of the coffee shop.

 I don't eat lunch that day. Not even dinner. I just stare at the black screen of the turned-off TV, sipping water from my mug like it's the most flavorful thing in the universe and not having the energy to even cry myself to sleep anymore. I do that every night. Cry and cry and cry like there's no tomorrow. It feels relieving somehow— like I've let something off my chest, even though momentarily.

I grab my phone and type down the stupid number anyway. 

2 calories. I write 2 calories for a fucking cup of coffee like it's gonna make a shit ton of difference.

Fucking ridiculous.

I want to sink deeper into this misery, let it consume me whole till there's nothing left, but like a beacon of light, the image of that boy's face emerges into the surface. 

"That guy was cute." I voice the words that have been on my mind all day before falling into a deep dreamless sleep.

~ JUNGKOOK ~

There she was. That girl again.

In all my three years of working here, I'd never encountered someone so rude, shameless and utterly irritating. She's sitting on the same spot from yesterday, looking out the window and throwing casual glances at her phone. She also has the same baggy hoodie and sweats, probably too lazy to even bother change into something else.

 However, what attracts my attention is the bandage wrapped around her hand, a pink hue visible where her knuckles should be. I'd noticed it the first day too, wondering where in the world would she get that kind of wound. She did seem like the type of girl who would get into fights actually, judging from her boyish clothes and brash personality but I wasn't sure if–

Whatever.

It was none of my business and I had work to do, anyway. I couldn't be bothered with the antics of a rebellious teenage girl. The glass I'm wiping almost slips out of my hands. Bold of her to call me a child when she couldn't be more than five feet tall. I wondered if her feet even reached the pedals of her bike.

"Hey Jungkook, you got a customer." Kwan's voice shakes me out of my thoughtful state as he flicks his chin towards the girl.

"Can't you get this one for me?" I grimace."Why? Are you afraid she's gonna bite?"

"Seems like it."

His eyes narrow into slits as he glares at me suspiciously.

"Come on man, just do what I say for once," I insist, not really wanting to deal with her shit for a second time. Kwan raises his palms up in surrender and goes to take the girl's order, but not without mumbling a "kids these days" on his way out.

The girl looks up from her phone upon  Kwan's arrival but then her eyes quickly roam around as if searching for something. They exchange a few words too quietly for me to hear amid the general bustle of the shop, and then my coworker is by my side before I can blink.

 "Nothing to be scared of, Jeon. She just asked for a green tea," Kwan says and grabs a number of items from the counter.

"So, she didn't say anything rude?"

"Nope."

"Not even an insult?"

Kwan tsks with his tongue.

Hmph.

Maybe she just hadn't been in the mood yesterday because there's definitely something different about the way she's just sitting there–

Barbecue sauce on her ti—

A snort accidentally escapes from my lips and I lower my head further to hide the embarrassment of the uninvited thought.

"Something funny?" Kwan asks, looking up from the tea he was brewing. I click my tongue just as he'd done.

 It takes about a minute or so until the order's ready and I note the way the girl's face contorts with each sip of her tea as if someone had actually put a gun to her head to drink that horrendous beverage. She still drains the cup to its dregs, though.

Gets up.

Sways a little.

The hand wrapped in bandages holds onto the table for support and she finally pushes herself up to her feet. A little light-headed, if you ask me.

That confident image I'd created of her yesterday, crumbles into pieces when I observe the vulnerable state she's currently in. I wasn't sure why I was paying much attention to a complete stranger who I would probably never meet again, but I just couldn't stop myself. It was like being pulled into a black hole and finding yourself secretly enjoying it even though your gut tells you that it's wrong. 

It was weird but true.I'd experienced it before.

The brief moment of realization had been enough to make me get lost in my thoughts so I snap my eyes back to the girl's table only to notice that the seat was empty.

She'd left.

~JOJO ~

Discipline. I need to practice discip–

Fuck. Is that a hamburger?

The delicious treat from the glass showcase of a fast-food restaurant winks at me and my mouth waters just by looking at it. When was the last time I ate anything decent? I rack my brains out, calculating the number of calories I'd consumed for the last two days and the only results are an apple, a cup of black coffee, green tea and maybe a tank of water.

Wait!

I did lick that spoon of peanut butter this morning, so in total, 144 calories. Might as well call it a fast for all I care.

My breath quickens with every push of the pedal, thighs burning with the strain. It's been almost three hours since I left the coffee shop and I'm pretty sure the tires of my bike must be deflated from going through every damn corner of the city.

Why would I do that? Because I'm a stupid ass bitch who likes to push herself to her limits and who doesn't know what rest means.

I know I'm going too far. I know it won't be long before all of this comes crashing down on me, sending my progress back to the starting point, but I can't seem to stop. Not when the ecstasy is so overwhelming, filling me up with a fake sense of achievement. This was probably the reason why this disorder was addicting. It made you feel like you had the reins in your hands, not it.

Not her.

Oh, Ana. How much I wanna fucking kill you right now.

It was all her fault, after all. 

No. It wasn't her fault. It was the people's fault.They were the ones that said things. Things that hurt me. And their words didn't affect me directly but they fed my insecurities. 

It was confusing, actually.They said I was fat. I tried and built some muscle by working out.They said I looked too manly with my muscles now. It didn't suit me.I dropped ten pounds starving myself.

What did they want?

What was the right body?

I didn't know anymore.There would always be something not right, not good enough.

I grip the handlebar tighter when the flood of old memories engulfs me without warning, making its appearance like an uninvited guest. I'm not even sure how it all started in the first place because believe it or not, I was the biggest body-positivity enthusiast.

And then suddenly I wasn't.

And then I find out that there's a whole community out there with people just like me but so radical, so different from anything I'd ever seen before. At first, I was outraged, disgusted even, by the naive statements of young girls saying they wanted the thinnest body possible, fantasizing about skin and bones, but as time went by and as I delved deeper and deeper into the swirling vortex of these intoxicating thoughts, I started succumbing to them. They suddenly seemed appealing.

I let out a sigh between heavy breaths.

Did it matter now? Besides, that guy didn't even show up today. Maybe it's his day off or something.

The brilliant rays of the afternoon sun make the glass panes of the cars passing by gleam like a swarm of fireflies.It would've looked pretty if it weren't for the way it made me shield my eyes. I was already having a hard time trying to keep them open as my strength started to run out, the view in front of me doing half–circles and then turning back to its optimal position. My legs feel like lead and I stop pedaling altogether, letting my bike guide me instead.

Tired.

So, so...tired.

A familiar face swims into my line of vision. It's the emo kid. 

And he's....falling?

The handlebar spirals out of my control and my knee hits hard concrete. That face is the last thing I see before a black cloak of darkness swallows me whole 

~JUNGKOOK~

Never in a million years would I have thought  I'd have to carry a random person to the nearest hospital on my way home. Yet here I am, sitting on a chair for the past hour, staring at the girl's chest rise and fall with slow, rhythmic breaths. 

There are fresh bandages wrapped around her scraped knee and multiple bruises all over her body. I'd seen the slightest look of surprise cross her face before her eyes rolled up in her head and she fell off the bike, hitting her head in the process. It had been a chaotic situation, that one. People had kept gathering around, trying to sneak a peek at the accident but still not doing anything to actually help. So I'd taken things to my own hands, done my duty as a normal person would.

Then why are you still here, Jungkook? my logic reasons with me. The doctor said she would be fine so why are you still sitting over here, waiting for her to wake up?

That's right. I should be going.I lean my palms on my knees but before I can fully rise from the chair, the girl's eyes crack open. She takes a look around the room, analyzing her surroundings, and then her eyes stop on my face. 

"Who the fuck are you?" she croaks.

Here we go again... I internally sigh."We met at the coffee shop. Or don't you remember?" I answer, praying for her life not to get my anger rise so fast.

"Right," she says, even though something tells me she had known exactly who I was in the first place. "The fuck are you doing here?"

"I saved your life."

"Why bother?"

"You should be grateful, you know."

"Did I ever ask for your fucking help?"

I had to admit I was slightly taken aback. The girl swore and cursed worse than a sailor. As if on cue, a jumble of profanities spill from her lips as she struggles to sit up, suddenly finding herself tangled in tubes and needles trickling colorless liquid into her veins.

 "Get this shit off of me, " she says and rips the said piece from the inside of her forearm.

"You should keep that for a little longer." I protest, hands already reaching for the needle laying on the sheets but she flinches from my touch and throws a leg across the bed, attempting to get up.

 "Sit down!" I say a little harsher than I intended but it was impossible not to.

Unbelievable.

Her nonchalance and irresponsible behavior made me want to punch her in the face, regardless of her being a girl. At last, she has the dignity to actually do what she's told. "Someone's cranky, " she mumbles as she leans back on the pillow.

 This girl must have a split personality disorder because only two seconds later her legs are crossed comfortably despite the nasty injury on her knee and she's leaning forward with her cheek on her palm, staring intently at me with a curious smile hanging on her lips. 

"You never told me your name, " she says.

"You never asked, " I reply.

She scowls. "Stop trying to play the smartass with me, child and just tell me your fucking name."

"It's Jungkook."

Her eyebrows lift in surprise.

"I know, it rolls off your tongue, doesn't it?" I tease.

"Actually, it sounds like a chicken dying, but okay."

My lips twitch in amusement, trying to suppress the silly smile demanding to make an appearance.

"To be honest, I'm kinda disappointed, " she continues. "I was expecting something more special, like Sebastian or Gabriel or something." She scratches her chin while her eyes still stay rooted on my face. "You know what, imma call you Juan. Yeah, Juan's better. Got that Latino vibe to it."

Her never-ending shenanigans were pure torture so I decide to turn the tables for a change. "And what is your name?" I ask.

For once, she doesn't try to make fun of me. "Jojo."

Cute.

"It fits you."

Her eyebrows scrunch themselves together as she carefully observes me. "Hmmm....Anyway–" She crawls to the side of the bed and grimaces when her left foot leans on the floor. "Thanks for spending your precious time with me, Juan but now I gotta blast."

"Miss, I'm gonna have to ask you to sit down, please," another voice is heard and the doctor I'd talked to earlier steps into the room. He stares the girl, Jojo I remind myself, down but she doesn't relent, staring right back with the same intensity.

"I'm perfectly fine—"

"Your blood sugar levels are at their lowest point, that wound on your knee needs to be changed continuously or else you'll get an infection and you might have a concussion from the way you hit your head. I'm surprised you're still even talking."

There's a slight tremor in her pupils, which I 'm pretty sure is caused by the panicked state she's trying to hide. She plasters a smile on her face. "Come on now, Doc. I'm sure you can let me off this one time. The fact that I'm still talking proves I'm better, right?"

"Miss—"

"I'll accompany her, " I blurt without thinking and both of them snap their heads in my direction. No turning back now. "I'll make sure she gets home safely," I assure him.

"I don't need your—" Jojo starts, but her words falter when she meets the doctor's glare. "I mean... sure, why not?"

The doctor seems satisfied enough as he turns on his heel without a moment's hesitation. However, he hasn't even made it past the threshold when he pauses, turns halfway around and looks at her dead in the eye. "And by the way, miss. You should eat something. Your heart's gonna fail at this rate."

I could have sworn I saw something flash behind her eyes but she doesn't show it, choosing to keep that sad smile on her face like an anchor linking her to sanity.

"Son of a bitch." I hear her mumble under her breath.

~JOJO~

Son of a bitch I repeat in my head over and over again till the words start to sound foreign to my ears, suddenly losing their meaning. 

That damn doctor just had to point out the fact that I hadn't eaten anything for the last couple of days. He was right, of course, but that didn't stop me from mentally sending a series of curses his way.

I have never felt so shitty in my life. Both physically and mentally. My head feels like it's going to split in half, the stinging of the wound on my knee is crying like a bitch and there's not an ounce of strength left in me. 

Powerless. 

And if that wasn't enough, Juan's endless questions only add to my misery.

"For the last time, no, I don't live with my parents," I say for what felt like the gazillionth time, still refusing the hand he kept offering my way. I might be on the verge of collapsing but under no circumstances was I to let myself be held like a damsel in distress. 

Nuh-uh.That's a line you can't cross, mister.

"That sounds kinda hard to believe," Juan says and sticks his rejected hand back in his pocket, probably to get rid of the awkwardness.

"Bitch, I don't need your approval to say something. If you don't want to believe me, fine. Suit yourself. "

His shiny black hair glints in the darkness, catching the beams of moonlight as he flicks it away from his face. "How can I be a bitch? I'm a male." he retorts.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Man whore." I reply, putting a clear emphasis on the last syllable. 

He scowls, seeming genuinely offended by my words, especially when he says " Swearing is rude, you know."

"You know what else is rude? Asking people too many questions."

"But can you blame me, though? I mean you pretty much look like a high-schooler who ran away from home."

I stop dead in my tracks. "You have a strong sense of guessing."

He blinks. "Wait. You're  really a high-schooler who ran away from home?"

I resume my walking, using the concrete wall on the side of the road for support. "For your information, I did finish high-school so suck on that."

"But you still ran away from home, right?" he insists.

"Oh for fuck's sake— yes, I did run away from home. Are you happy now?"

The blank look on his face, combined with the slight shrug of his shoulders almost causes me to snort. "Cool, " he says, unbothered."Aren't you gonna ask why I did it?"

"Not interested, " he states and looks straight ahead, completely ignoring my presence."Liar. I can see that you're one of those assholes who are dead-curious about everything."

"Am not!" he whirls on me.

I scrunch my nose and sniff the air around me like a wild dog hunting on its prey. "You smell that?" I ask him.

"What?"

"Smells like bullshit to me."

Even in the darkness, I can see the dramatic roll of his eyes, causing their whites to stand out. He had pretty big eyes, this guy. They softened that edgy aura he gave off, all muscles, tattoos, and black clothes. And the fact that he tolerated my irritating behavior, which I was deeply aware of, made him look even more appealing to my eyes. 

"Why did you volunteer to take me home, Juan?" I quietly ask, glancing at him through the corner of my vision.

He seems to mull the question over in his head for a moment, eyes staring his shoes down. "I don't know. You seemed like you needed some help." He throws a look at me. "Which by the way, is still valid. You look like hell."

For some reason, that makes me retract my hands from the wall and I try to keep myself stable on my own two feet, limping heavily on the process. 

"What exactly happened with your bike?" he continues, unaware of my recent action.

"I was busy stalking hot guys all day, so my bike got tired. Guess she just couldn't handle it anymore." 

The boy doesn't seem to fall for any of my lies, narrowing his eyes till their nothing but slits. "Do you tend to not eat when you stalk hot guys?"

This little shit...

"Nah, it's just that I'm so fucking forgetful." I immediately reply. "I forget to eat all the time.

"He doesn't relent, still boring holes into my eyes. 

"Hey, what's with all the questions, anyway? I thought you said you were not interested?" I repeat his own words.

"Right, " he admits.

My apartment building comes into view, the looming structure now as familiar as the back of my hand. "We're here, " I announce. My eyebrows raise in wonder as his legs keep heading for the entrance of the building instead of pausing.

 "Where are you going?" I ask.

"To your apartment, obviously."

"What the fuck makes you think you can come to my apartment, boy?" I did not want him to see anything personal of mine, yet for some strange reason, I found myself hoping he would stick around a little longer. A little controversial, considering the fact that my words proved otherwise, but I couldn't just say that to him, could I? Like, hey, kid you're nice. Let's have a little chat before you go. 

Ridiculous.

"I'll just escort you to the door, " he assures.

"No need for that."

"But what if you fall down the stairs?" he insists.

"You got me there." I punch in the code at the main entrance and hurry up the stairs as much as my limp would let me, Jungkook's eyes never leaving me for a second. After what felt like an eternity, I grunt  heavily and lean on the doorstep of my humble apartment. "Okay, you've done your service, soldier. You're free to go now."

Jungkook throws a quick glance at my mustard-colored door, probably weirded out by it but then his eyes flick to my empty hands. "Where's your keys?" he wonders.

My mouth gapes open and my eyes go the size of tennis balls as I frantically pat my pockets. When I notice the way Jungkook's lips part slightly, I burst into hysterical laughter, jiggling the retrieved keys in front of his face. "You should've seen your face!" I laugh. "Hilarious."

He exhales, relieved. "I thought you'd lost them."

"Nah, Juan. I forget a lot of things but not my keys. Besides, these bitches stick up my ass like fucking glue." 

The door's lock clicks with a flick of my wrist but I resist the usual temptation of kicking it wide open, in fear of letting emo-kid sneak a peek. It's not like I was embarrassed of the mess in my apartment or anything like that but it felt weirdly intimate to let someone else get a glimpse of my domestic life. In fact, I hadn't invited anyone over since...

Yes, it had been that long. 

Jungkook notices my reluctance and clears his throat. "So...um...you're all good now, so I better leave. You should–you should take care of your wound."

How weird to see an overgrown, muscular dude stutter and not know what to do with his hands. I usually didn't have the tendency of stereotyping but this definitely struck me as odd. 

I smirk. "Getting shy, Juan?"

He almost flinches at my words. " What? No!"

"Are you waiting for a thanks then?"

A stray hair falls in front of his eyes but he doesn't move it away from his face. "That's not something you ask from people."

I bite my tongue and try not to let the pain on my leg get to me as I squeeze into the room through a thin sliver of space. Still, his words bring a smile to my face and as much as I try to suppress it, it just keeps floating on the surface again. "I'm not an asshole, Juan. So thanks."

"Actually, you refused to say thanks from the start—"

"Okay, now you ruined it," I interrupt. "Get outta here."

He slowly starts to back off and his lips stretch into a barely contained smile. "Good night, Jojo." And then just like that, he's climbing down the stairs with his long legs taking two or three steps at a time.

I shut the door and lean on it for a moment, sighing deeply through my nose.

"Little shit, " I whisper. 

Rise and shine.

That's exactly what my alarm tune doesn't say. Even after so much time hearing it pierce my ears every single morning with its shrill screech, I can never stop myself from wanting to smash the damn thing into pieces. However, that's the only thing that can actually get my ass up from the bed. All the other gentle-sounding melodies had proven to be absolute failures, dragging me even further into the sweet crevices of sleep. 

The numerous late arrivals to work had made me suffer more shouts and scoldings than I could remember from my boss. The guy was a total dick. Good thing I don't work there anymore.

My room is still coated in patches of darkness here and there, the bright rays of the morning sun nowhere to be seen. It is about 5:30, an unholy time to wake up, but since I was now unemployed, I had made an oath to force myself every day into going for a run outside. 

There was no overwhelming hustle and bustle, no moving crowds of people. The city had yet to rise from its slumber and the only activity on sight included slow, quiet movements of passers-by.

I finally kick the blanket off and swing my legs over the bed. The cold surface of the floor awakens my senses as I prepare to go over the usual ritual: Stretch, pee, step on the scale. 

The number has slightly changed from yesterday but not to the point where I want it to. A wave of disappointment washes over me. It happens every day yet I can never get used to it.

I decide to go easy on the breakfast. A cold glass of water, an apple, and a boiled egg. 

I probably should've thought about putting some pants on first, I say to myself as a crumb of egg yolk smears my bare thigh. I use the pad of my finger to wipe it off and cringe intensely. These thick bitches turned three sizes wider when sitting down and it only spurred on my body dysmorphia.

Disgusting.

Not forgetting about my daily dose of green tea, I hurry up before the sun rises and put some sports clothes on, which wasn't really that hard since they were the only thing in my closet. I shut the door behind me but it feels like something is nagging the back of my mind, demanding my attention. 

Did I forget anything?

I rack my brains out in search of a clue but nothing makes it into the surface. 

This stupid obsession...

Making sure my shoelaces are tightly secured and my earphones plugged in, I climb down the stairs and burst out of the entrance of the building. I welcome the sharp sting of fresh air that fills my lungs with a deep breath and waste no time to sprint into a run, the loud music already blasting my ears in full force.The wound on my knee does not approve of this but I don't give two shits. It can cry like a bitch for all I care.

It's easy at first, obviously. Your body is rested and unspent so you relish those twenty minutes with pure adrenaline flowing through your veins. But then, the run takes its toll on you. It's unavoidable.

The sky switches from dark blue to a pastel pink, announcing the official start of the day and reminding me of my tiresome condition. I'm panting like an asthmatic by now and my clothes stick uncomfortably with sweat so I slow into a light jog. The sting on my knee grows stronger and stronger til I can barely stand it. The clean sidewalk grows hard under my feet and it's all I can do not to faint from exhaustion. Running tires you out? Try running with not enough food in your system.

I scan my surroundings in an attempt to distract myself from the fatigue. A few trees lining up the street, a grey car hurrying to God knows where, hair—

Wait, what?

I redirect my eyes to the spot I was staring at and notice a mop of dark hair swinging wildly. The body they belong to is in fast-motion, arms shifting from side to side as the legs make long, speeding strides.

No fucking way. I guess it's not such a bad day after all.

I smirk as I gain speed, now heading straight  towards the boy with newfound strength. As I maneuver from side to side with a few random strangers, I can't help but stare at the way his sweatpants hug every curve of his butt. He had a nice butt, this guy. I'm kinda jealous. And as if that wasn't enough, the material of his loose T-shirt  turns darker from the collar down to his back, marking a trail of sweat. He'd ran just as hard from what I could see.

The music in my earphones dies out as I quickly catch up to him and slip by his side, matching his constant rhythm. He doesn't notice at first, but after the numerous glances I throw from the corner of my eye, he finally flinches and stops abruptly. "Jojo?"

His hair is completely drenched in sweat. The dark strands form wet tendrils on his forehead and numerous trails that drip from  his temples and down to his chin. He almost rips his earbuds  off and I have to say I feel slightly endeared. As a person who preferred not to be disturbed while listening to music, I could appreciate the fact that he removed them in the blink of an eye. If a person does that, he respects you. Simple as that.

 He gives me a look of mild curiosity, which for a surprise makes him look ten times hotter. I also slow down to a stop as a smile tugs at the edges of my lips. "Oh, hey Juan! Didn't see you there."

He looks behind his back for good measure and turns to stare at me. "Are you stalking me?"

I scoff in feigned annoyance. "What the fuck? Am I not allowed to go for a run now? Do you own these streets or something?"

"No, but—"

"Hey, hey, " I quickly interrupt him. "Less chatting, more running."

I will my feet to start moving again and he immediately catches up. "So...how are you feeling?"

"Tired, " I reply.

"I meant from last night."

Well that's a surprise. I didn't think he would remember it, let alone be worried about my condition. "Oh. I'm fine. It's nothing, really, " I wave a dismissive hand.

He stares at me for a moment too long before turning his head straight. "That's good."

After that, neither me nor him try to elaborate on the topic. For some moments, the only thing heard is our combined panting and heavy breathing and it doesn't do much to tame my wild brain from going places. I push the dirty thoughts aside for later reference and give my head a slight tilt to peek at him."Tell me more about yourself, Juan."

"What do you wanna know?" he asks without looking.

"Everything."

He laughs delightedly. "Ok but you're gonna have to ask me questions, though. I don't know where to start."

"Perfect. Where do you live?"

His neck does a ninety-degree turn with such a lightning speed that I'm scared he broke a bone or two. "I knew you were stalking me!" he exclaims as if he had made a scientific discovery.

I smack my lips impatiently. "Just answer the damn question!"

"Two blocks from here."

"That means the coffee shop is close to your house, right?"

"I live in an apartment, " he adds and gives a curt nod before his attention is back to me. "Okay, my turn now. Did you ever go to college?"

Not this shit again. If I hadn't been attracted to his ridiculously good looks, he would be rubbing at a sore spot in between his eyeballs. "Goodness, child. You really are stubborn."

"Hey, it's only fair if you keep asking me questions, " he protests and instead of angering me, the harmless expression turns my insides into jelly. I was finding it hard to keep up with the constant appearances of his duality. It was weird. I barely knew this guy and I still told him things so strictly personal that I'd never thought I'd say out loud. 

" I dropped out of college after the first year. Couldn't afford it."

And just like that, the jolly, playful countenance disappears to be replaced by a darker one. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be."

"I dropped too, " he continues. " Guess studies weren't exactly my thing."

"Oh wow. We have so much in common."

A pause.

"Where's your family?"

I was starting to think this kid was more interested in my personal life than me as a person. "Back home."

He doesn't say anything, waiting for me to explain further and unfortunately, I fall prey to his puppy eyes staring at me intently. An uncomfortable ball of imaginary yarn settles at the base of my throat. I try to gulp it down while fighting to keep the slight tremble in my voice from showing.  " They...did some things to me. Bad things. I'm never going back."

He notices my discomfort, bless his soul, and decides to drop it. "My parents live far from here and I don't visit them as much. So yeah, that sucks."

His poor attempt at sympathizing with me makes my lips crack into a subtle grin. "Are all parents bad or are we just awful teenagers?"

"Both, I guess, " he chuckles.

Just when I assume the twenty-one question game has finally come to an end, he proves me wrong for the bazillionth time. "Is there anyone you hang out, at least?"

"You, " I answer.

His eyes widen twice their original size and I laugh through my nose. "Just kidding. I have a friend called Anna. Such a nice, caring and sweet girl." My lips twitch on the side to impersonate a somber smile but I had the feeling it looked like I was having a nervous tick. "She's to die for."

Time is cruel to us, swallowing up each patch of daylight until the sky has turned into the purest baby blue and let the rays of sunlight fall astray into our poor backs. The heat and the exhaustion makes us slow our pace. Then, suddenly a sharp pain stabs me across my knee and I wince discreetly.

"Do you go to work?" Juan asks, oblivious to my current torture.

"No, I quit, " I say, refusing to admit that the reason for that hadn't really been my choice. "Why'd you ask?"

"Well, it's just that—" He abruptly stops and his eyes shift their attention to my legs, staring hard at them.

"What?" 

"You're bleeding, " he states, matter of factly.

I snap my head down and take note of the way my knee is soaked in a dark red stain, slowly webbing its tendrils along the fabric."Aw shit, " I curse under my breath.

"You need to go to the hospital, " Jungkook quickly intervenes before a long string of profanities can spill over my lips.

"No. No more hospitals. I'll just go home and put some fresh bandages on it."

"Okay, well let me come with you."

I take a step back and shake my head from side to side. "For the last time, I don't need your help, Juan. Here are my key—" I frantically fish my pockets but they're completely empty, save for that stupid paper towel that I had somehow forgotten there. "Fuck no! Fuck no!"

Juan's brow bunches up in distress as his judging eyes give me a hard stare. "You already made that joke once."

"I'm not joking around, you idiot!" I snap, probably a bit too harsh but the panic seems to have gotten under my skin for me to care at this point. "I forgot my keys!"

So, that's what kept nagging me in the morning. I mentally slap myself for being such a careless mess and vow to not make the same mistake again.

"Let's go to the hospital, " Juan calmly repeats, seemingly unaffected by my sudden burst of anger. I wonder if he was hiding his hurt on the inside. If that was true, I'd have to give him a round of applause because he was sure doing a hell of a good job.

"No."

"Do you want to bleed to death?" This time he can't help the hint of anger from seeping into his voice.

I say nothing.

"If you don't want to go to the hospital then come with me back at my place. I have some bandages too."

"Absolutely not!" I protest, outraged. If this kept going on, we would end up at each other's throats.

"Look, it's either that or the hospital. You pick." 

Shit. He had me cornered. Well, what was I to say? I liked hanging out with him but I also didn't want him to see me in such a vulnerable state and make me feel indebted to him. It had already happened once and I hadn't liked it not even one bit. "I can't just come at your place, " I say with a lilt of playfulness in my voice. My figure was already frayed at the edges and he was quick to catch sight of it. "What if you're a murdering psychopath in disguise?"

He smiles in earnest, as if I'd just told him he was the nicest guy on the planet. "Then you can always stab me with a kitchen knife."

This was wrong. This was so wrong. I couldn't just go to his house, dammit. I was letting my guard down way too much. No way I was doing this.

"Fine, " I finally surrender and wish I'd bitten my tongue in time before the word made it past my lips.

~ JUNGKOOK ~

By the time we get to my apartment, the sun has already reached its highest peak in the horizon and the powerfully bright rays start to make me feel a bit wobbly.

I had offered Jojo to at least hold on to me but she seemed hellbent on making it by herself. I could see how much the wound was hurting her, yet she refused to let any emotion whatsoever show on her face.

I open the door unceremoniously and pause to let her in first. She carefully shuffles her steps with a heavy limp weighing her down but I could see that she was still having second thoughts on whether to enter a complete stranger's apartment or not. As soon as she passes the threshold, I release a sigh I didn't realize I'd been holding.

Her head starts turning from side to side, scanning the interiors of the living room. I suddenly feel self-conscious. Is the place messy? Did I forget to put my socks on the laundry basket? I was worried she would shy away and leave altogether. 

"Nice place you got here, " Jojo says with a whistle.

I unconsciously smile but it fades away the moment she plops down onto the couch, ignoring the still-fresh wound on her knee. She even has the audacity to swing her leg over the edge and let it dangle there. So much for shying away.

"I'll go get the bandages, " I announce and retreat into the bathroom, keeping an eye on her from the way back. She gives me a salute before going back to studying the walls with curious eyes.

I hurry up and lock myself up in the bathroom and immediately, the sight of my disheveled look greets me in the mirror. My hair is wild, some strands clinging with sweat onto my temples and some flailing in the air like unmowed grass. My skin glistens with a fine sheen of wetness that makes me itch with discomfort and there's a pink blush settled on my nose and cheekbones. Did I really look like this all morning?

I let the water of the faucet run under my hands and give my face a quick splash. Why am I so nervous, dammit? It's just a girl. I really need to get a hold of myself. The image of her face reminds me of the reason I came here in the first place. I hurriedly grab the bandages from the counter along with some alcohol, cotton pads and a towel.

I take a deep breath and return to the living room with a forced air of nonchalance. "I got the—" I announce but the words falter when I see the empty couch. Where the hell did she go?

"You have very good-looking parents. No wonder where you got the genes, " her voice is heard from the other side of the room and I see her standing by one of the shelves, examining the tiny picture of my mom and dad, smiling at each other while my older brother cuddles my dog's white fur.

"Uh..thanks, " I manage as I scratch my neck.

At this, she turns around and finally looks at me. "Nothing to be shy about, Juan. You're handsome. You don't need glasses to see that."

"I—"

"Alright, are you gonna give me those or not?" she questions with a sly smile, pointing her chin towards the items in my hands and I internally curse from the distraction. Oh, she really did enjoy toying around with me. 

I prevent myself from stuttering another word and slowly approach her. She grabs the things from my hands and sits on the couch yet again. Her condition was no better than mine. A single drop of sweat slides from the side of her cheek and travels down her neck in an excruciating slow motion. Her complexion had turned ruddy and her hair stuck to her edges with perspiration. How she had managed to run so hard in that state was beyond me.

I silently hand her the towel first. "Dab your neck with this before you catch a cold."

 She looks at me with a slight tilt of her head but accepts it nonetheless, mumbling a "dab on them haters" under her breath. 

"What about you?" she asks aloud. "You're literally dripping." As if summoned, another drop of sweat free-falls from my chin and onto the floor.

"It's okay. I'll be fine, " I quickly reply.

"Well aren't you a tough cookie?" she giggles. "Get it? Tough? Kookie? Jungkookie?"

I almost snort. And as if that wasn't enough, the nickname she used made this weird sensation creep onto my stomach.

After she's done drying her skin, she crouches down to take a look at the wound that still kept trickling blood. Her careful fingers roll the dirtied bandage around her knee to reveal such a nasty sight, I almost gasp in surprise. The blood had smeared the skin around the edges and on its center there's a blackish liquid that looks like anything but blood.

"Oh shit, " she whispers, obviously not expecting the wound to be in such a degree. I move forward with worry in my trembling form but she's quick to stop me."No, it's okay. I got it."

"But it looks really ba-"

"Thanks Juan, but I said I can handle it."

I silently get back and let her do the work herself. She seemed so used to this process, as if she had done it countless of times before. Her hands are quick and agile, snatching the alcohol and cotton pads and then proceeding to wrap brand new bandages around her knee. Not a single hiss or whine falls from her lips. After she successfully finishes, she lifts her head to gift me a charming innocent smile. As if she hadn't just split her knee open. This girl...

After that, the room falls into an awkward silence so I keep looking everywhere else but her. "Do you want something to drink?" I offer.

"Once a waiter, always a waiter, " she sighs while scratching her forehead. 

"Okay, what do you have?"

"Let me check," I announce and head to the fridge without another word. I examine the contents within and yell from across the room. "Um... coke?" "I don't do drugs, " she yells back.

"As in the drink, Jojo."

"Oh. What kind?"

"The regular one."

"No diet coke?"

"No. Sorry."

"Okay, just get me a glass of water."

I come back with the glass and hesitate a split second before handing it to her. 

"I really like your place, Juan," she says after a tiny sip. "Its so....you."

A discouraged laugh escapes from me. "You don't even know me."

"Says who? I'm excellent at knowing people's personalities on first sight, " she continues after another sip.

"What about you then?" I suddenly ask.

"My place or my personality?"

"Both."

She considers it a moment before answering. "Well, both suck compared to you. Especially my apartment, Juan. You wouldn't believe the fucking mess I make all the time."

She sounded nonchalant about the matter but I could sense the discomfort behind the words. She was having it harder than she let on.

"What are you gonna do from now on?" I ask, careful not to sound intrusive. "You lost your job right? How are you gonna pay your rent?

She plasters a smile on her face. "I'll figure something out." 

Before I can push it further with my vast myriad of questions, she rises from the couch and sets  the glass on the table. " Well, I better go now. Thanks for the help, Juan. I'll see you around."

I watch with frozen limbs as she makes her way towards the door with that tilt on her step and wonder if I really was crazy after the next words I hear coming out of my mouth.

"Wait!"

She slowly turns around and gives me a curious look.

"I have a proposal, " I say before I can regret it.

She grins in response. "Thanks but I'm too young to get married."

"No, not that. I was wondering... I mean if you want to...." I've never felt more nervous in my life. My words keep stumbling into one another and I can barely keep the the inexplicable stutter out of my voice. "You can—you can work at the coffee shop with me. I can convince my boss to get you the job."

She smiles and pivots on her heel. " Yeah, right."

"Hey, I'm serious."

"Forget it, " she says without turning around.

"Why forget it? Aren't you struggling?"

For a moment it seems like I've caught her attention. She pauses in her steps and slowly turns around until she's completely facing me. There are no more hints of smiles or amusement. Just a blank expression that for some reason looks sadder than anything else. "I don't want your pity."

"Its not pity, " I protest. "We've been short of staff anyway and you need a job. It's a win-win for both of us."

She takes a deep breath and lets it out just as harshly. "Why are you doing this, Juan? The hospital and the bandages and everything... Why are you helping me?"

"I like helping people, " I simply reply.

"Some people don't like to be helped."

"Well, if you think that, you're an idiot!" I snap as a pinch of anger sneaks into my voice.

She raises an eyebrow.

"Look, " I continue. "I don't know if I've done something wrong or if you just don't like people in general. I was just trying to help. If you don't want it, the door's right there."

Okay, now I really fucked up. I'd never been so straight-forward to someone before but it was like her sharp jabs had forced the harsh words right out of my mouth. Sometimes, the frustration overwhelmed me to the point I couldn't tell right from wrong.

She's frozen in her spot, wide eyes staring at me in a mix of shock and wonder. But then, her eyes slowly drag along my body, giving me a once-over before setting on my face. Her lips crack into a lopsided grin that was anything but innocent. "I like you, Juan, " she says and heads for the door before pausing on the threshold.  "And I'll think about your offer."

The door closes shut behind her and just like that, she's gone.  

~ JOJO ~

There's no way I'm doing this, I say to myself as I take a hot shower. No fucking way, I repeat as I get dressed and tighten my shoelaces. I felt like a mere sheep heading to meet the butcher's axe. But the sheep was making this choice herself. She was willing. 

I was afraid the boy had put a spell on me. I'd never been so weak-hearted and obedient to someone's  requests. Here I was, going to that cursed coffee shop even after all the fights with Anna last night. She kept persuading me to stay inside, lock myself up in my room and not talk to anyone for the next week or so. She'd never been the social type, the bitch.

Most people said it was like a voice in your head urging you to do whatever it wanted, but that was not the case at all. If the concept of Ana was that unrealistic it wouldn't be so hard to label it as just another link into the shackles of mental disturbances but the thing was, there was that doubt that made you hesitate on whether these were actually your thoughts that made you behave this way or something actually real and tangible. The feeling of something not claiming its existence but still lingering like a shadow on your every step.Is it me or her?Who said that?

I shake my head violently to clear my thoughts as I find myself in front of the shop's entrance.The floor seems to wobble beneath my feet and I doubted whether it was just because of the fact that my stomach had crumpled in itself like a sheet of paper.

I clear my throat loudly to capture the attention of the man hunched on the counter.He slowly lifts his head as an automatic smile appears on his face. “Yes?"

I steady my posture. "I'm looking for someone named Jungkook. He works here."

His eyebrows almost touch his hairline but he's quick to recollect himself. "Oh, sure. He's in the back fixing some stuff. I'll go get him for you."

He disappears behind a door and comes back two seconds later with the reason of my sleepless nights by his side. 

"You're here!" Jungkook exclaims, a little too loud for my liking. He seemed slightly surprised, as if he hadn't thought I would actually come. Couldn't blame the guy. There were times when traces of bipolarism would make it hard for people to understand what I actually meant.

Jungkook's open-lipped smile is almost contagious. He tramples his way forward and stops just an inch further, towering over me.The all-black outfit was present even today but this time an apron adorns his slim waist.

"I am, " I simply add.

"Oh, I almost forgot. This is Kwan, " he says as he gestures toward the smiley man. "We've been working together since I can remember."

I flick my eyes to the latter and nod a salute at him. "You should've called this place 'Juan and Kwan'. Quite catchy, if you ask me."

The man named Kwan chuckles. "She's funny. Where did you find her, Jungkook?"

"Oh, I'm the one who found him, " I intervene. "Besides, we've met before. I'm the green tea girl."

His eyes slightly widen with a sense of realization as he nods along. Ironically enough, my stomach whines so loudly to the point where even Jungkook hears it. He points a finger at it. "You really need to shut that thing up."

I look down to my stomach and talk to it as if it were a real person. "Hey thing, shut up. Juan doesn't like the way you sound."

"Did you even eat anything on the way here? There are some cupcakes if you want, " Jungkook insists with the tone of a concerned mother.

"I'm not hungry, Juan. Must be uhh... my seven month-old baby."

Jungkook shakes his head in surrender and asks for me to follow him behind the same room he came from. My nervousness raises tenfold as a bunch of unpleasant thoughts immediately rush into my brain. If I didn't get this job, I could say goodbye to normalcy. I would fall down the hole dug by my own hands and never come back out. All the hard work of these past months out in the trash.

"Don't worry, " Jungkook reassures. "You'll do great."

~ JUNGKOOK ~

She was bursting with joy. It was like her face had been washed in the late afternoon sunlight, illuminating its every corner. She wasn't ridiculously beautiful or anything like that but there was something so captivating about watching that smile brighten up her features like a glorious sunrise, I could barely keep myself from staring.

However, one thing I learned about her was that she really knew how to celebrate. Her hands are struggling to hold all the groceries she'd gotten at the supermarket. Well...if you could call them groceries. All I could see were tons of candies and deserts and all sorts of sugary stuff able to furnish a dozen sweet-toothed five year-olds.

 But the thing that baffled me the most is that she'd invited me at her place to thank me for the new job. I thought after all the fights she'd put up to keep me far and away she wouldn't give in so easily. Guess I'd been wrong.

"I thought you said you weren't hungry. " I watch her chew on a chocolate-covered donut that gave me diabetes just by looking at it.

"If there's one thing you need to know about me, Juan, is that I change my mind way too often, " she mumbles in between mouthfuls.

"Yeah I can see that, " I add.

"Hey, shut up now, will you? We need to celebrate!"

"By eating trash?"

"They say you are what you eat, " she replies.

I angrily grab the grocery bags from her hands and let her lead the way to her apartment. "Don't call yourself that. "

The jokes she constantly jabbed could be hilarious to someone else but they just did not sit well with me. I only found them as extremely self-deprecating and dark. It was the go-to type of thing for the depressed and people were so used to normalizing them, it was hard to point it out from time to time.

Her mouth pauses chewing as she gives me a hard but harmless stare.  "Fuck, don't do that to me."

"Do what?" 

The deep sigh she lets out through her nose tickles my eyelashes. She stops in front of the door and leans her back on it. "You keep being nice even when I annoy you."

"You don't annoy me, " I say quietly.

"Yes I do. I annoy everyone." Another sigh. "You know, Juan, all my life I've been treated like a joke. Yeah, I joke around a lot so I'll get joked at. Understandable. But like, no one has treated me the way you do before. You listen to what I have to say and give me honest answers and most importantly, you are serious when you need to be."

"Isn't that how everyone is supposed to be?"

"No. If I told someone I'm feeling sad they'll laugh at my face 'cause they think I don't have the right to feel anything."

"Well, fuck them, " I snap.

Her jaw almost drops to the floor. "Woah! I've never heard you swear before. That was low-key hot. Do it again."

I scratch the back of my head in discomfort and fumble with the edge of my T-shirt. Out of all the things she could've said..."Um...shit?"

The disappointment washes over her face as she scoffs and shakes her head disapprovingly. "Fucking rookie".

It is quiet for a few moments, save for the slight creak of the yellow door opening wide enough to finally offer me a front seat view of her apartment. I'd been strangely curious about what it would look like, eager to get to know more about where she lived, where she slept, what things the was interested in and no matter the weird turn my thoughts had taken I couldn't help but crave for more.

She lets me pass the threshold and takes the grocery bags from me to put them on the kitchen counter. The place reeked of lemons, their acrid stench filling the air to the point where it made my nose itch. I spot a few loose skins and other remnants by the table.Except for that, everything looked pretty much normal. Plain and bare of excessive decorations but I could see that she'd made efforts into putting her own preferences out in the open, littering the walls and ceiling. She liked minimalism, I could see.

"Did you throw a lemonade party last night?" I ask with the tiniest bit of chuckle tumbling from my mouth.

Her eyes flick to the evidence and I sense something I'd never witnessed so boldly in them before. Panic. "Oh, t-that..." she nervously stutters but it's gone in a blink as she quickly gains her composure. "Just an experiment. I love science." I hum in agreement and eye the couch on my right. "Can I sit?"

"Yeah, yeah sure. Make yourself at home. But I have to warn you there's nothing on the fridge so you're left with these, " she says, giving the sweet goodies a single heave.

"Oreos, please." I stretch my hand across and a huge grin pulls at the edges of her lips. 

We spend the next few minutes sitting in silence, munching cavities away like they were our last meal. It was surprising to say that it did not for a moment feel weird nor awkward. We barely knew each other and yet we seemed like two old pals seeking comfort into each other's presence.

"My place sucks, doesn't it?" she suddenly asks.

"Not really, " I reply. "I think it's pretty."

A confused frown appears on her face as she keeps munching on a chocolate bar. "How come?"

"Well, beauty is subjective, Jojo. What looks pretty in my eyes may not be the same for you."

"Deep words for a teenager, " she mumbles.

"Look who's talking."

"Yeah, yeah..." She waves her hand dismissively but I don't miss the tiny smirk hidden in her cheeks.

The grocery bags start to slowly empty. I was worried she was gonna make herself sick with all the sugar already flowing in her body. 

She suddenly gets up and stretches, reaching with the tips of her fingertips up to the ceiling. Her hoodie rides up and I almost gasp in surprise. There are several marks littering the thin stripe of exposed skin, some dark, some purple and some turning yellowish. They made such a stark contrast with the pale white complexion that didn't exactly match the tone of her face. She'd obviously never worn anything too revealing, the sun rays far from tanning the skin. Before I can gawk my eyes out, it's gone in an instant when the hoodie falls back in place. 

"This shit's addicting, " she says pointing at the leftovers on the table.

I could only wonder if she really had more problems than she let on. From what I'd gathered, she'd subtly admitted to being a victim of domestic abuse but that was a long time ago, wasn't it? Why were there still fresh scars on her body? As if to add on to my assumption I take notice of her bandaged hand.

"Where's that friend you mentioned?" I ask. "Was it Annie...Ann?"

Her eyes flick back to mine. "You mean Anna? She's always here for some reason. I consider more like family, to be honest. Never leaves my side. Just not today." 

There was something fishy about the way Jojo's eyes turned glassy and distant every time she mentioned her friend. It kept rubbing me the wrong way.

I ask her to use the restroom and she shows me the way in a few curt gestures. As soon as I get inside, I am met with my distorted reflection on the mirror. A huge web blossomed into the side. Someone had cracked it, that part was fairly obvious. 

What the hell was wrong this girl?

I wash my hands mindlessly and return to the living room. Jojo sits on the couch, man-spreading like a fourty-year old man on his second divorce. She winces once or twice and exhales through her nose. " I think I ate too much, " she whines.

"You think?"

"It's all your fault. You're the one who convinced me to eat, " she accuses.

"Well, I certainly didn't tell you to eat junk." I join her on the couch from a fair distance as she sulks away the nausea.

"What happened to your mirror?" I softly ask.

"I punched it, " she answers without looking.

"Why?"

"There was a fly on it and it kept buzzing while I was taking a shit."

I didn't believe that for a second but I nod my head nonetheless. From that moment on, she only adds to the dark jokes and I pretend to fall for them. All until the moment I require permission to leave with the excuse of having to work again tomorrow.

 I can't deny the sick, empty feeling at the pit of my stomach when I watch her follow me with her sad stare as I leave the apartment .

~ JUNGKOOK ~

The days go by smoothly. It took a while for Jojo to get the hand of it, but soon enough, the orders look like mere tools in her hands, bending to her will. Thank goodness, she had the conscience not to lash out at rude customers even though I could see how hard she strained the muscles of her forearms by her sides. She was the first to arrive and the last to leave the coffee shop. All that and she still kept to her strict schedule, running every day at the crack of dawn. Every single day. Even I didn't work out that much.

I had to admit that my interest for her kept increasing more and more with every new detail I noticed. I was intrigued to find out more about her and I strangely found myself being pulled to her presence like a magnet. We'd continued our shared runs and conversations on each other's apartments more often than I remembered but there was still no progress on our status. Well, I once called her my friend and she didn't object to it so that must be a start.

"Well, someone's got a new crush."

I rip my eyes off Jojo's figure and come face to face with Kwan's amused stare. "What?"

"You like her, don't you?" Kwan teases further.

I sigh deeply and put my apron on the counter, ready for my lunch break. "I don't know, honestly, " I admit. "I'm not sure what it is, exactly."

"Listen, I know a crush when I see one and yours definitely is . Why don't you ask her out?"

"It's complicated."

Before Kwan can torture me with his long string of questions, Jojo stomps her way toward us with closed fists. "I swear to God if that bitch asks for a menu one more time..."

"Hey, hey we talked about this, " Kwan interferes. "Deep breaths. In and out."

She does what she's told a couple of turns and then rests her hand on her hip. "Nope. I'm still angry. I have to punch something."

"No violence in our workplace, Jojo."

She pouts in distaste and then suddenly her eyes land on mine. Her hand reaches out and points at my chin. "You got a little something.."

I dip my vision down only to be met with her index and middle finger giving my head a hard flick. She erupts in teasing giggles, soon joined by Kwan's booming laughter.

"Gotcha! Bro, I feel better already, " she says and gives Kwan a manly fist bump. I shake my head in surrender, a coy smile tugging at the corners of my lips and head for the room on the back. I hear the swish of Jojo's apron on the counter as she  soon falls into my steps. We had a ten minute break everyday and Jojo was never one to miss it, always deciding to share that precious time with me. She kinda ruined it with the jokes sometimes but I didn't really mind.

She offers me a slice of cucumber trapped on the sharp edge of her knife and I politely decline. She always did that, sharing food left and right even though most of the times it wasn't even that much to begin with.

"Wanna hangout after work?" I suddenly ask. I hadn't planned this at the slightest. It was like the words jumped right out of my throat. Sure, we'd hung out before but only on days off and certainly not on evenings.

She hesitates for a moment before chewing on the cucumbers. "Sure, why not? It's Sunday tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah, " I admit.

"Cool."

I try not to let the excitement show on my face as I finish the last bits of my lunch. The late afternoon takes longer than usual to arrive. By the end of the shift, I'd been itching to get the apron off. Jojo, on the other hand seems unbothered. For her it was probably just another day with the bane of her existence. She nudges her elbow into my side as we exit the doors together, throwing a glance at the bike by the side of the road. She would ride that thing here everyday even though the memories of the accident were still fresh. "I'll just leave it here tonight, " she says, as if reading my thoughts. "Don't wanna make your sorry ass struggle to keep up with me."

I give her a teasing light push and pull at a string on her hair. "Fuck off."

We go for a series of playful kicks and thrashes that turn milder and milder with every inch we come closer to my apartment. By the point we've reached the door, my poor hair is being twisted like a rope in her cruel hands. She really liked touching my hair. She kept saying she'd braid it or put it in a ponytail at least once before she died. Me on the other hand had scolded her for mentioning death in the first place.

"Ok, but you have to let me style it for you, " she insists, never dropping the issue.

"No, thank you. I like my hair the way it is, " I reply in feigned smugness.

"Asshole, " she mumbles under her breath.

"What?"

"I said Casserole. I'm craving some."

My eye creases soften on their own. "I can make it for you if you want."

"You know how?"

"No, but I can look it up online."

At that, a shy smile brushes  her features. "Nah, it's alright. I think about all sorts of food all the time. I'd probably change my mind after five minutes."

She plops down on the couch comfortably and groans when the bones of her back click to let her unwind. The way she'd grown more and more comfortable around me gave me this weird sense of satisfaction, as if I'd been seeking for that validation from the start. In fact, our whole situation was weird. I enjoyed her company and hopefully the feeling was mutual but there was still something missing. I didn't know exactly what but I certainly knew that deep down she was hiding a whole different personality.

My apartment had become so familiar to her, she doesn't hesitate to let me know without much further ado that she'd be using the restroom. But just before fully rising, she types something down on her phone with the utmost concentration. The only reason why it attracted my attention was the excessive amount of times she'd done that for today. And yesterday. And days before that. It would take one bite of her food and she'd immediately reach for her phone.

Did she use a calorie tracker?

I curse myself enough to damn my soul to hell for the rest of eternity but it still doesn't stop my hand from shakily grasping the phone lying on the couch. I draw the pattern I'd memorized from watching her unlock it all those times and just like that, the  Notes app lights back into life. My eyes widen with every single line I read.

Day 35 I fucked up today. I had three donuts for breakfast and pizza for dinner. The cravings are fucking horrible. Total : 1560 cals

I scroll down to some days back.

Day 34 I wouldn't say it's bad. I went for a run and had an apple afterwards. Take that Anna, you  whiny bitch! Total: 78 cals

There's a visible pattern in the notes; wins, losses,relapses. My eyes scan the screen speedily, fleeting through each letter and word.

Guess what? I fucked up again—

I hate myself—

I did not eat anything today! Nothing, I tell you! Haven't felt this empty since—

I so wanna die right now—

Please make it stop—

Day 71 No comment

Day 72 No comment

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No comment—

"That's my phone, you know."

I raise my head to level my blown-out pupils with her calm ones. Unperturbed. Smooth like waves in a gentle breeze. She doesn't look angry to witness my shameless snooping, just disappointed. She knows that I know. It all makes sense now. The scars, the small meals, the excessive workouts...I feel a pang in my chest for being such a fool all this time.

I muster whatever courage left within me and rasp out the words. "Who exactly is Anna?"

~ JOJO ~

"She's a bitch."

"An imaginary bitch, " Jungkook emphasizes.

"Doesn't make her less of a bitch, " I mumble.

He has been giving me a cold yet sympathizing stare for the last five minutes but I knew that deep inside he was bashing himself for not knowing.

"It's short for Anorexia, " I clarify.

"How long has this been going on?" Jungkook continues. He didn't seem like giving up on the detective role anytime soon. Little did I know that he would fully embrace the title.

"Three years."

His head drops in his hands. He gives his pretty face a hard rub before turning it back towards me, eyes now laced with something similar to compassion.

"Why aren't you looking at me like that?" I ask him.

"Like what?"

"Like I'm some sort of freak."

"You're not a freak, " he grits between his teeth.

"But that's what everyone would say if I told them. I know they'll look at me differently."

"I'm not everyone."

He was right. He wasn't everyone. That's why I kept dropping hints on him with every chance I could get. I wanted him to know but then again I didn't want him to know. It was hard to explain.

Jungkook keeps his piercing stare on me, hoping to get a reaction. Then he pats the spot next to him on the couch as a few strands of hair fall into his eyes. It made him look so adorable, I decided right there and then I would do whatever he said. Just asking would be enough.

"What's it like?" he asks as soon as I make myself comfortable.

"My disorder?"

He nods.

I think for a few moments before answering. How was I supposed to to explain it? It had been by my side for such a long time, I didn't know how to tell my disease and myself apart.

"Well, to begin with, I'm fat."

Come on. Say it. Come on.

His eyebrows scrunch in disbelief. "No, you're not."

There you go.

"You look pretty normal to me, " he continues.

"Normal is just another word for "you're fat but I don't wanna say it in your face, " I spit and it only makes him look more confused. "Oh, come on. I bet the first thing that came to your mind when you thought about anorexia was a skinny pale girl looking at a mirror. See? I knew it. In people's eyes anorexia and non-skinny people do not correlate."

Jungkook looks embarrassed to say the least. I know he's trying his best to find a gentle way around me but the deep crimson of his cheeks doesn't make it any easier for him. "I—"

"Look, Juan. I don't wanna overwhelm you with my bullshit. I'm sick in the head, okay? The things I do are not cool and I don't want you to be part of it."

"I thought we were friends..." he whispers in a low voice.

"We are but—"

"Just explain it to me, please. I'll help you get rid of it."

He really had no idea. His gullible self couldn't understand that this was not just a disorder. It was a lifestyle and the only way I knew how to survive. I release a sigh of defeat and try to muster the most joyful tone. "Fine. You wanna know what it's like? I'll tell you what it's like. Every day, I get up from that bed with the sole purpose of starving. I don't want to eat. It's that simple. Now you're probably thinking: ' why the fuck aren't you dead yet?' That's because I can't starve correctly, Juan. I can't do shit."

Jungkook keeps his unwavering stare directed towards my face and hands that passionately make weird gestures from time to time. I notice something sparking within me, a small flare of anger and pent up frustration finally getting some release. Saying the words out loud was unnerving. I'd never imagined them anywhere but on the interiors of my head.

"Numbers are important. I can't tell the difference even if I lost some weight. That's why I use the scale everyday."

"What do you usually eat?" Jungkook carefully asks.

"Anything that has low calories in it. But it doesn't last long and I'll immediately eat junk food three times the amount. Starve. Binge. Starve. Binge. It's a vicious cycle."

"Why don't you try a healthy diet?"

I let out a humorless laugh. "Wow, you're richer than I thought."

He blinks. "What? Why?"

"Healthy diets are expensive, dumbass. Ever wondered how rich people have those avocado diets and that type of shit? But that's just an excuse. The real reason is that I lack will."

"If you lacked will, you'd be dead by now."

"That's where I'm heading."

His head falls in his hands again and those pretty smooth lips mumble under his fingers. "You're not satisfied with your body?"

"Not satisfied is an understatement. I hate my body. It's hard to explain actually. I don't want to be sick to the point where I can't even stand but I don't want to be curvy either , you know what I mean? Its like I want a thin body but then I see a muscular one and I'm like ooh I want that one too and I don't know..."

Jungkook's eyes seem to sparkle on that. "So, you want a lean muscular body?

"Yes."

"That's not so hard to achieve."

I put up my best fake surprised-expression. "No shit, sherlock. Why didn't you just say so? You would've saved me from a lot of trouble."

"Fuck you, " he grumbles.

"I'm already fucked for life my man."

His deep sigh tickles my face. "You're impossible. How can you joke about this?"

"Then what am I supposed to do? Cry about it? Trust me, I've tried that a lot of times. It won't do shit. If I laugh about it, it won't be as shitty, " I add. "But jokes aside, it's not just about being thin. Its also about being in control, being aware of your own body. I feel so angry and frustrated  every time I lose my streak."

To my surprise, he smirks in such an inappropriate way, it paints his face in a whole new canvas . "Don't worry. There are some situations where control just isn't needed."

I almost choke on my spit. Jungkook, being audacious? Well that was new. "Feeling bold, Juan?" I tease.

"Maybe, " he admits but now it had turned into what seemed like a shy smile. I try to latch onto that glimpse of humor and normalcy in hopes of taming the wild turns and takes of our conversation. But just when I thought I'd taken hold of it, Jungkook jumps into a new question. "What else can you tell me?"

I highly doubted I would be able to spill the contents of my soul in such a short time but if he was so hellbent on knowing more, knowing he would get." I can tell you a lot of things but I can also guarantee they're not pleasant."

He doesn't even blink.

"Fine. You asked for it." I pause. " I've been like this for three years now and it has only gotten worse as time passed. I already know what you've seen online and what you think eating disorders are. Trust me, it's bullshit. Don't believe the shit they give you. Do you know how many overweight people are anorexic? A whole bunch of them but if they tell anyone about it they'll get laughed at 'cause apparently anorexia exist only for skinny white girls. A lot of guys have it too. But they call it cutting back some pounds when they hit the gym. No way that's unhealthy, right? Totally justified. It's all just a big pile of shit. There's nothing cute or romantic about it. You know what's funny? I can go for days without taking a shit but I'll pee every two hours. I drink so much water to the point where it makes me sick. I never get warm. I take every single bite counting numbers in my head and wondering how I'll burn it off later, I spin in circles to make myself sick just so I won't be able to eat, I measure my waist three times a day and I feel like fainting every time I get up. I hurt myself 'cause I don't like what I see."

I feel that familiar ball of imaginary yarn settle to the base of my throat but I push it back down just as fast. Not now. Anytime but now.

Jungkook's eyes glint with sadness. He gulps once before lowering his vision and choosing to stare at the hands resting on his lap. "I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize, " I reply. " It's not your fau—"

His hand shoots out to capture my own. A thousand tiny electric sparkles tingle up my arm. Maybe it's the lack of contact or just the knowledge that it's him but the way his warm palm fits into mine feels so right and I can't move it away for the life of me. His thumb brushes lightly across my knuckles. "I'm not pitying you, okay?" he says in a gentle voice. "I would never pity you. I just don't want to see you like this."

I lift my eyes to his own and stare at him like he was a glass statue, pouring some of his brightness on me. I didn't understand why he hadn't kicked me off yet. And to think that I was enjoying it...

Jungkook observes the slight tremor of my hand in his, which I'm desperately trying to hide and a subtle smile graces his lips. "You're touch starved, " he murmurs. Not in a malicious way. Not mocking me for it. Just stating things out in the open. It was the quality I liked the most about him.

"Physical contact is a luxury to me," I admit.

"It shouldn't be. You're human."

"I'm not even sure about that anymore."

The smile stretches wider as his nimble fingers intertwine with my trembling ones in a gentle, yet firm grip.

"Is this okay?" he questions, eyes set on the motion.

"No, but carry on."

It all felt like a guilty pleasure, like those sweet candies your mother keeps hiding from you and when you do find them, the taste is but absolute bliss. A forbidden fruit. I knew I shouldn't be leading him anywhere and spoil his peaceful life with my problems but I couldn't make myself pull back either. I was all of a sudden caught up between two fires that would scorch me and themselves in the end. Pushing people away or letting them in the confines of my chaos. I would lose either way.

I put on my best unperturbed mask to make it known I wasn't affected at the very least but just like that, his other hand slides up to my elbow and locks it in place. His deep look burns with something I can't quite decipher. "Can I kiss you?" he suddenly asks.

I freeze for a split second but try to shake it off with an intentional raise of my eyebrow. "Why?"

"I want to, " he breathes.

I was torn between slapping some sense into him and laughing my ass off but I do neither. My posture stays unmoving, waiting. "Do you really want to?" I ask again.

"Yeah, " he confesses and I catch his eyes glancing down to my lips.

I shrug. "Okay."

I've barely gotten the word out when he closes the small distance in a matter of seconds. A hand latches onto my jaw to angle it better and that's where I feel the soft, plushy texture of his lips come into contact with mine. They're so delicate and move so gently, I feel like I've ascended into time and space. I let his bangs tickle my cheekbones because it obscured his eyes from view and I didn't want to witness the reality of it.

Before I can dwell longer on them, he pulls back, forming the smallest of distances. His pupils are blown out, dark eyes staring with something more than just interest. I take notice of my fist bunching up the T-shirt he's wearing. Apparently, I hadn't been able to block out all my reactions.  I release the material immediately and rise to my feet. A quick glance at the window showed that it was already dark.

"Good night, " I chirp and grab my phone resting on the table, heading speedily for the door.

Jungkook panicks and stands up just as fast. "Wait, where are you going?"

"Home," I reply.

His eyebrows bunch up in confusion yet again. "You can't just go like that after I kissed you."

"Watch me."

In less than four strides I've crossed the threshold and shut the door behind me with a thump. People were right when they said you couldn't see yourself blush but you could feel it. My whole face felt like it was on fire, an uncomfortable warmth spreading equally up to the tips of my ears. Who the fuck even blushes anymore?

I smack my lips in annoyance as I make my way down the stairs in a newfound rush. I cant deny it. I liked the kiss. Maybe a little too much. In fact I wanna go back there and steal the breath out of his lips. But I can't. It was a one time thing. And it will remain that way. Or at least I hoped so.

~ JUNGKOOK ~

Anorexia nervosa, often referred to simply as anorexia, is an eating disorder characterized by low weight, food restriction, fear of gaining weight, and a strong desire to be thin. Many people with anorexia see themselves as overweight even though they are, in fact, underweight.

Sleep is far from reach as I keep scrolling down page after page of the same generic description. Countless of pics of young girls with ribs and bones sticking out of their pale skin had been more than enough to make my own skin crawl, the after-images blazed forever behind my eyelids. She was right— they all said the same thing but I'd always known that no matter what what was said, you couldn't really  understand something without experiencing it yourself first hand.

I put my laptop aside and lay down on the warm comfort of my bed. Even though I'd willed my eyes shut, sleep just wouldn't come. She kept busying my head with all kinds of thoughts— thoughts of her disorder, thoughts of what she was doing right now and the memory of her soft lips on mine. I keep replaying that exact moment like a loop, feeding off my imagination like a middle-schooler. She'd acted like she barely gave a shit but there was no mistakening the furious blush that had fallen across her nose and cheeks all the way to the tips of her ears. It looked surprisingly adorable on her, different from any type of reaction I'd gotten in exchange.

I roll over the other side of the bed and smash the back of my head on the pillow. I'm such an asshole. And she's no better either. How can you just leave after someone kisses you?

I leave my mind pondering to these thoughts as my eyelids slowly start to weigh down on me. But just when I'm about to pass out cold, a dark figure intrudes the corner of my eye, causing my body to turn upright.

Jojo's standing by the threshold, dressed up in what looked like loose see-through sleeping clothes. The material fell in graceful waves from the hems and pooled around her ankles. It felt weird not seeing her dressed up in her usual tomboy look but I was enjoying the view nonetheless. Her hair drapes over her shoulder and hides a part of her face, the rest of it, illuminated by the moonlight seeping from the drawn-back curtains. It looked like she'd just awoken, eyes mussed up with sleep but still focused on my form. She stares deeply at me, as if waiting for something.

All traces of exhaustion now wiped clean, I push myself up on my elbows and return the stare. How had she gotten here this late? Did she know my password?

She saunters over to the bed in such a seductively delicate manner but yet it was so subtle, I doubted whether she did it on purpose or not. Her left knee touches the duvet first, making the bed dip slightly under her weight. Then she leans her palm facing down and proceeds to come closer and closer on all fours like a predator targeting its prey. I was like a deer caught in the headlights in the most cliché sense of the word. I kept observing her movements with silent adoration and the more I tried to look away, the harder my eyes seemed to fixate on her approaching form. At some point she's sitting so close to me that I can feel her soft breath fluttering my eyelashes. She slowly tilts her head and gives me a look of mild curiosity, as if puzzled by my existence there altogether.

"Can I touch you?" she softly asks. Her dark orbs bore into mine, waiting for my answer. Such a sheer persuasion is held inside of them that I find myself gulping audibly before nodding without a moment's notice. She comes impossibly closer, almost attaching her body into mine and then raises a hand up to my hair, the small fingers playfully twirling the dark locks. I then notice her own hair falling in curtains in front of her face, slightly obscuring her eyes from view. It makes her look even more mysterious and alluring, I can barely resist the urge to tuck a string back behind her ear.

"Can I do more than just touch you?" she asks again and this time the movement of her hand slows into a halt. The edges of her lips pull slightly  in a teasing manner and seem to merge into a coy smile.

My heart starts beating like crazy. I can feel it accelerate into a manic pace as it pulses with an unfaltering heat underneath my fingertips. I muster whatever air left in my lungs and whisper the words in a breeze. "Whatever you'd like."

That's all the approval she needs. She tilts her head on the side and lets the tip of her nose brush my earlobe. The breath she lets go draws from me an involuntary shudder that washes over my body; from the top of my head and down to my toes.

I fist the sheets to the point where it hurts. I wanted to touch her too, to feel her and to breathe her in. But I don't. I decide to let her be the one in control, to let her know that just a word tumbling from her lips would be enough to give her all of me. All that I had.

She drags those sinful lips along the side of my neck painfully slow and then puts her legs on each side of my hips, straddling them. And then she kisses me. Even though barely a peck, it burns scolding hot and causes my lips to burst into a heap of tingles.

My hands find their way into her waist, digging through the material but she stops me with her own and gives my chest a light push. I try to relax and let my back lower till it finally makes contact with the sheets. She hovers above me, graceful strings of hair tickling my neck as she attacks my lips again with bruising strength.

That's when I feel it. My shirt being lifted. Her cold fingertips, in stark contrast with my ridiculously hot skin, leave goosebumps in their wake. I try to reach with my hands and help her get it off but she grabs them and puts them back down. "Don't. I'll do it for you."

She resumes her previous action and sweeps my shirt completely off but not before making sure those nimble fingers slide along my skin with an added pressure. I let her. I let her do whatever she wants with me. She can have me.

I pray silently with my eyes for her to kiss me again and surprisingly, she understands. But this time I can't help the small whine coming deep from the back of my throat as she dips her head down and lets her tongue swipe a sensitive stripe on my neck. I'm scared the sheets will rip into shreds from how hard I'm twisting them.

She doesn't stop. Only goes lower and lower with open-mouthed kisses, down my chest, through the ridges of my abs, all the way to my navel. She stops there and the hard muscle of her tongue moves in a way that makes me gasp out loud. I shut my eyes tight.

When I open them again, the pressure on my tummy slowly dissipates. I drag my eyes to my front but there's no one there. Just the open window swaying the curtains and the entirety of my room swallowed by semi-darkness.

She's not here. It was just a dream.

I sit up on my bed and drag a hand to my face, rubbing it hard to pull myself together. What the hell just happened? I hate myself even more for the fact that I wish it wasn't a dream. I let my head fall back with a thump into the pillows and notice the uncomfortable heat at the bottom of my stomach. "Holy shit, " I whisper.

~ JOJO ~

Sometimes even the most colorful butterflies in your stomach cannot stop the tears from falling. Me, like the miserable human being I was, had cried myself to sleep last night instead of hopping cheerfully around my room. Jungkook's shut eyes and the serene expression on his face when he'd put his lips on mine had only made me wallow into self-doubt even more than usual. Did he actually mean it or had it just been a reflex, something to pass the time? I felt as if I didn't deserve any of the things he offered me, regardless of his intentions. But fuck, did I want to have him. Fuck. I'd never met a more perfect person with all of those tiny imperfections that actually made him real and whole.

That perfect smile that puts all of his pearly white teeth on display shines bright even know as he notices me entering the shop but I don't fail to detect the eyes that shy away in embarrassment. How cute.

"Hey, " he tries to hold the grin from spreading across his face as he scratches his neck awkwardly.

"Hey yourself, " I reply with forced nonchalance. It doesn't work. I fall under the scrutiny of his eyes as he can tell something's off.

"Your eyes are red, " he states matter of factly.

"Last time I checked they were brown."

His face falls. "Don't give me that shit."

Wow. That kiss had definitely given him some confidence. As far as I remembered, swearing was something he found hard to do unless absolutely necessary. Was I getting to him already?

Preparing to start the work, I click my tongue and move into an arc around his back.  I let the silence fill the empty slots, too tired to come up with some lame excuse when suddenly, the presence of warm fingers greets the skin of my elbow. I look down to see Jungkook's hand on it, eyes brimmed with genuine worry, something I hadn't seen in a long time. "Is everything alright?" he questions and the words alone make the butterflies in my stomach almost turn into pigeons. "You left all of a sudden last night."

The angle on which he bends his neck to level his eyes with mine makes them stand out so adorably, so bright and full of life, I can barely hold a squeal from ripping out of my throat. He was just standing there in all his glory and looking at me like I was the thing he cared about the most. Maybe I was. Did it sound too far-fetched?

I slowly reach up and twirl one of his dark locks on my forefinger, letting it drag to the side of his cheek as I give it a small poke. I hear the breath that hitches on his throat and it only spurs me on even more. "Why? Did you miss me?"

He doesn't back down, eyes boring into mine with an intensity that deserved some recognition. They occasionally flicker down to my lips and I already know what passes through his mind at this moment.

Someone clears their throat.

I immediately put some distance, eyes dragging to the new intruder only to find Kwan staring at us both with a shit-eating grin. He was gonna use this to blackmail us, I was sure about that but I couldn't care less. Not when Jungkook's eyes follow me without failing as I backtrack a few steps.

"He had something in his hair, " I explain with a faint gesture. Kwan's grin grows impossibly larger but he doesn't say anything, deciding instead to grab one of the glasses and wipe it raw, a habit more than out of intention.

I ignore his teasing remarks for the rest of the day and watch Jungkook's prying eyes from the corner of my vision. He'd throw a glance my way with every chance he got and without even being subtle about it. When it's time for our lunch break, his stare becomes so bashful, I can't help but stare back with an offended glare.

"You're doing it again, " he says before I can part my lips.

"Doing what? " I ask.

"Putting a mask on your face. It's funny but it's bullshit."

More swearing. Was it really possible to change someone for the worst with a few words? The last thing I wanted was for him to follow into my steps.

"There's no need to act cool all the time. If you're not okay, you can just say so." His hands fumble with the edges of his lunch box, fingers scraping at it out of nervousness. "You can say it to me, " he adds more softly. " I'll listen."

"Hey, its not that big of a deal, " I wave him off.

"Not that big of a deal?" he mimicks. "You can die."

"So? What's it to you?"

Jungkook sighs deeply. "Jojo—"

"Are you gonna feed me the classic love yourself bullshit?" I interrupt him before he has the chance to say the words I've heard being trumpeted so many times. "Cause there's no need for that. I already love myself. I mean, sure I would jump off a cliff if I could but I love living. I love life to death."

I'm pretty sure that so called mask he mentioned was glowing with pride right now. Even though deep down I knew it felt wrong, I still—

"You do this on purpose, don't you?" I turn my eyes to him only to see a smug expression that looked so foreign and uncharacteristic on his face. "I know what you're doing. You act rude and sassy and uncaring to fend people off so they won't get attached to you because you think your presence alone harms them." He leans forward with his elbows on his knees and his face floats mere inches from mine. "Isn't that right?"

When I don't answer back, his hands cup my knees as he leans so impossibly close that I can count all the dark brown flecks in his eyes. "Hate to break it to you but you can try as much as you want. You're not getting rid of me so easily."

His husky voice brings a smile on my face and I still make no move to put his hands away. "Oh, I can get rid of you. I just don't want to."

~ JUNGKOOK ~

"What do you mean you don't want to? I thought you liked hanging around with me?"

"It's late, Juan."

Jojo grabs the handles of her bike and turns it around in a semi-circle but before she can hop on the seat, I give her hoodie a pull and take over. From the moment I start pedaling, she sighs in exasperation. "Dude, come on, give it back."

"I'm not taking no for an answer, " I quickly reply. "I'm making chicken breasts tonight. Low calorie. You have to come over."

Jojo slowly catches up and we move like that for a while; her walking and me on the bike. It felt strangely relieving to have a moment of peace after a long and exhausting workday. I close my eyes and let the sun rays bask on my face with their warm texture. From the silence that follows, I suppose she's left with no other choice but to give in.

"Watcha thinking about?" I hear her ask after a few moments.

I open my eyes and turn my head towards her. "You."

She snorts. "You've stepped up your game, my man. Glad to see some progress."

"I learned from the best."

"Nah, I'm pretty sure you were already popular with the ladies way before you met me."

The soles of my feet touch the concrete and I force the bike into a halt. "What makes you say that?"

"Well, " Jojo grins, "there's a girl behind us staring at your asscheeks–"

I choke on my spit.

"–and I mean like I can't exactly blame her because your ass is really looking pretty puffed up in that seat–"

"Anywaaaays, " I drag the word long enough to make her stop and proceed to flick my chin on the side. "Let me give you a ride."

Jojo's whole face dismorphs as her lips twist into a barely contained smile. It takes me a while to get the dirty reference. "Oh come on, " I yell out of frustration. "A ride. On a bike. Here on the street. Out in the ope–"

"Yeah, yeah. Just scoot over."

I do as I'm told and not a moment longer, Jojo tries to get comfortable on the back seat. However, I had a better idea. "Hey, why don't you pass to the front?"

Jojo peeks over my shoulder. "No. We'll fall if I do that."

"No, we won't, " I insist. "Just trust me. I'll keep you safe."

I don't know if those words struck a cord within her because she looks genuinely caught off guard with those big sparkly eyes staring at me in earnest. That's where I understood.

Words have power.

I could help her turn things around for the better. I could help her get back to normal. I could do all of these things and more if only she would crack the door of her soul open just an inch to let me in.

"Okay, " she finally answers in a tone much softer than usual. I scoot back and let her sit on the bike's supporting rod.

"Ugh, my ass is gonna be bruised like hell by the time we get there, " Jojo whines and squirms in discomfort.

Chuckling, I give the pedals a push and soon fall into a constant rhythm. Unfortunately for Jojo, it is hard to keep the balance so she is forced to hold onto my shirt. She barely touches it though. "Oh God."

"What?"

"Don't tell me this is one of those cliché supposedly romantic moments where the girl almost falls and they look into each other's eyes and shit like that."

I keep my eyes on the road. "I mean, it's not so dramatic to begin with. We're just chilling. And for the record, we did kiss so I don't see how just looking at each other can be such a big deal."

"Can't believe you pulled that card on me."

"You deserved it, " I reply in a smug tone.

After another moment of comfortable silence, Jojo's arms snake around my waist and the side of her head leans back on my chest. It feels like holding a baby, warming my body up with the presence of blood and life flowing underneath the skin.

For fear of scaring her away, I decide not to add any teasing remarks on why she changed her attitude in a matter of seconds, despite how tempting it was. If that loneliness she constantly felt was reduced even by a fraction, my job was done.

"Are you sleepy?" I carefully ask.

Her arms squeeze me even tighter. When she rubs her cheek affectionately on the front of my shirt, I fight the urge to erupt into giggles. "No, " she answers. "Just tired."

It would only take some time. Just a little bit more time and all her exhaustion would ripple away with no traces in her body or mind. This was my job from now on.

~ JOJO ~

It wasn't exactly his job to nurture me like a newborn baby but I couldn't deny the fact that I liked this new attention. I'd always tried not to feed my narcisstic side too much but it was a pleasant surprise to find out that someone other than Ana acknowledged my existence. These are the thoughts spinning round my head as I stare at the tiny bow of Jungkook's apron tied up at the small of his back. Or at least that's what I was supposed to be looking at because for the past fifteen minutes, my eyes had been trying not to drag down on the voluptuous planes of his ass that stuck painfully tight to the black jeans he was wearing. It's like the sucker was doing it on purpose, keeping his back to me the whole time.

"I really can't blame that girl for staring at you earlier, " I wonder out loud after the uncomfortable silence becomes unbearable. "With jeans that tight, you're asking for it, my man."

Upon hearing the words, Jungkook turns around with a spatula on one hand and a look of confusion on his face. "Isn't that what men usually say to women?"

"Exactly. But there are way less chances for a man to be sexually harassed by a woman, now isn't there? So don't come at me with that equality bullshit."

A small, understanding smile creeps up on the side of Jungkook's lips and in contrast to my words, it really seems genuine. "True. But that still doesn't make it okay." He turns back to flipping the chicken breasts on the pan.

I sigh. "Yeah, alright. Sorry for complimenting your ridiculously gorgeous butt—"

A snort.

"— but I won't hesitate to slap that shit if you piss me off, Juan. And I won't do it in a kinky way."

At that, Jungkook fully turns around, places the fresh meal onto the table and hurriedly  takes a seat. "You're into that sort of thing?"

"Nah, man. I like being normal."

"Normal? You?" Jungkook cocks an eyebrow, the emphasis on the word clearly intentional. I understood that something like that was to be expected from people but it didn't mean it didn't secretly hurt my feelings. Being always ousted as the weird one took a mental toll on you and if you ever tried to blend in, it would only make you stand out more.

I let out a noise of impatience. "Listen, here Juan. I might be sick as fuck but my life doesn't revolve around my disorder. I have favorite hobbies and colors and that kind of shit."

"Is it black?" Jungkook jumps in, suddenly curious.

"Navy blue, but that's not the point."

"I know it isn't." He sighs wistfully.  "Sorry, Jojo. The only reason I said that is because every five seconds you try to assert your dominance so I assumed your preferences on that particular side were a bit...freakish." His expression is halfway between apologetic and entertained and he seems torn between the two.

Curse my dumbass brain for ever acting on impulse.

I scratch the back of my head in discomfort and avert his eyes. "Okay. Okay, I get it. I jumped too fast to conclusions–" I lean my elbow on the table, "–but that's because I'm very athletic."

Jungkook deadpans.

After another uncomfortable silence settles in and after Jungkook realizes he's not getting another word from me, he absentmindedly taps the table with his fingertips. " By the way, same for me, " he mumbles.

"Huh? " I logically reply.

"I have the same preferences as you." He raises his head and looks at me dead in the eye. "Normal."

At this point, I had no idea why we'd decided to reveal our sexual preferences for absolutely no reason but it had come to that. Crazy, right? Me and emo-boy pouring our hearts out to each other...

"So, " Jungkook interrupts my train of thought as he starts chewing on the fresh chicken pieces. "You seem like a competitive person."

"I guess you could say that, " I hum in agreement.

"Well, I have another proposal."

"Like I said, it's too early for me to get married."

The expression he makes as he tries to keep the food from spilling  almost causes me to burst out laughing. Even after he's successfully managed to breathe in some air, the faint traces of a phantom smile are still visible.

"I meant a challenge. For you. A bet, to be more exact. Do you like bets?"

"I do, actually."

"Well then. We'll play a game of tic-tac-toe. The rules are simple. If you win, I'll do everything you want for the rest of the day. Now....if I win....." A devilish grin stretches on one side of his face. "You'll practically do whatever I ask you to. It's the same for both cases."

"What's the catch?"

Jungkook leans back in his chair and links his hands on the back of his head. " There's no catch. I like games, that's all."

The satisfied, confident expression he was wearing made it clear that this was not just a simple game. I was sure as hell he had something up his sleeve but that didn't turn me off nor made me back down. Why not let the guy have his own fair share of fun? However, that didn't mean I couldn't at least give things a little twist.

"Okay, then. Take your shirt off."

This time Jungkook really can't help but choke on his chicken breasts, sputtering pieces of food everywhere. One of them barely misses my face.

"What the fuck! Why?" he screeches, hands wildly attempting to clean the mess.

I slowly drift into a smile. "Relax, pretty boy. We're playing the game on your abs.

~ JOJO ~

"This is stupid."

"You're stupid. Now shut up."

Jungkook gives me one last incredulous look before pulling the shirt completely over his head. In all honesty, the sight was to drool for. That swirling tattoo I'd always caught a glimpse of, is now clearly displayed on one part of his chest and on his left side, reaching up to his neck and down to his hipbone. I try to keep my composure as best as I can but some of my facial expressions must have been on point because Jungkook seems to start feeling uneasy. He shifts his weight from foot to foot and scratches the back of his head. I almost feel bad for lightly snorting but then I think better of it.  After all, I was allowed to have some harmless fun, right? No biggie.

The ridges of Jungkook's magnificent abdominal muscles come into view as he slowly approaches. His posture is a bit stiff, however. The guy was trying his best to suck his stomach in, in hopes of flaunting his slim waist in the most perfect angle.

"Stop flexing, Juan." I say in a monotonous voice. "I already know you're ripped. "

Caught in the act, he shyly smiles and lowers his eyes. "Sorry."

The smile only grows further when I use a marker to draw the lines for the game on his stomach. He squirms and twitches with every flick of my wrist. Apparently, ticklish was another adjective to add onto the dictionary of my names for him.

After a rough sketch is drawn on his tummy, Jungkook gestures for me to make the first move. "Ladies first, " he says with a grin that almost looked pained. His eyes follow my hand that had been finishing the last touches.

I draw an X.

He draws an O.

We move back and forth, exchanging the marker every time, until I realize.

I'm fucked.

He had me cornered in both rows. Wherever I put my next mark, I would still lose. It was an old technique that everyone had used at some point but my dumb ass had fallen right into the trap. But was I really to blame with him looking at me like that?

Jungkook chuckles. "I win."

Fuck. I'm screwed.

"Looks like you're gonna be my servant for the rest of the day. " He throws a careless glance at the windows, pitch dark background already behind them. "Or should I say, night?"

I sit back down on the chair and man-spread in defeat. "Fine. You won. Congratulations. Now what do you want me to do?"

He doesn't even hesitate, his voice as clear as glass. "Kiss me."

I stare at him in disbelief but it didn't seem like there had been a slip of the tongue. He was dead serious with those hooded eyes and the fact that he hadn't even put his shirt back on was for some reason unnerving.

A scoff escapes from me. "Out of all the things you could've asked.... I thought you were gonna make me clean your kitchen or something."

"Oh ,we have plenty of time for that, " Jungkook replies with a newfound smugness.

I mull it over in my head for a second before slowly rising from the chair. He leans forward in anticipation and it's as if his every fiber feels ready to pounce in action.

I honestly found it hard to comprehend the concept behind all of this. Out of all the nice looking girls out there, he found a dirty looking rag called me? Me?!

I give my head a slight shake and reach up with the tips of my toes. I listen to Jungkook's breathing stagger for a moment, only to be released with disappointment when I touch my lips to the side of his cheek, furthest from his two plumps of pink rosy flesh. Jungkook's expression looks slightly annoyed as I pull back, observing the ruins left in my wake.

"That's not exactly what I was thinking, " he laughs to himself, half out of disappointment half out of disbelief.

"You never specified where to kiss you, " I explain.

There had been nothing forcing me to act the way I did. Absolutely no one but myself yet I still felt like something was missing. Like I wasn't enough for him or any other person. My mind kept lying to itself, in the hopes that if I could avoid being too touchy, he probably would forget about me altogether.

Jungkook, bless his soul, gets rid of the awkwardness in a moments's notice, his cheeks puffed up in what resembled a pout. "You played me good, huh?" he huffs and I hold the urge to laugh like a little girl. It felt weirdly cute to see him so worked up over a small rejection when he could make any girl fall in his arms with just a snap of his fingers.

I lower my voice in a mockingly deep baritone. "What are your next orders, my lord?"

Jungkook smiles.

* * *

After that, it's hell hours for me.

It's like he had been waiting for this chance all this time and now that the flood gates were open, he couldn't afford to waste any buckets of water. From cleaning to organizing to heaps and heaps of orders, Jungkook had been vastly generous. And the worst part was that I had to eat my next meal with him and not even dare think about counting calories. He would purposefully mess up the portions and make it impossible for me to calculate. As if I didn't already have a hard time doing that on the daily...

At one point I was even scolded for counting in my head because apparently, the genius had noticed my eyes moving upwards in circular motions as the food lay down in front of me.

In other words I was utterly fucked. The anxiety of not knowing what I was putting inside my body, of having no perception of numbers or weight scared the shit out of me and if it hadn't been for Jungkook's  appreciative glances or encouraging words, I would've said goodbye a long time ago. With him it felt a little less guilty, less of a sacrilege.

"Just don't think about it, " he'd said to me and even though it was one of the most conventional phrases you could think of, coming from him felt different. As if there was an actual purpose behind the words.

"What's next?" I ask in a dead-sounding voice after finishing the rest of the dishes. " A hand-job?"

Jungkook raises his eyebrows in sudden amusement, his expression shamelessly entertained. "As tempting as that sounds, I think I'll settle for a massage for now."

I drag my eyes to his still bare torso and motion for him to lay down on the couch. "Good. 'Cause I wouldn't give you a hand-job even if you threatened to throw me off the balcony."

Jungkook's laugh is muffled by the pillows as he turns his sculpted back to me. "I like how you have no shame."

"Shame is for the weak, " I add.

My fingers work tirelessly on the smooth planes of his skin, pushing and pressing on specific points which I knew would grant him relief. The way he tries to hide satisfied grunts makes me feel light-headed but I bite my tongue and will my creative mind to take it down a notch, focusing on the task at hand. Maybe it was the fact that I hadn't had so much physical contact in a long time. Who knew? It was still an enjoyable sight, what with all the tattoos gracing his beautiful bronze skin in long shapes and lines.

"You're really good at this, " Jungkook grunts after a particularly hard press of my hands on the small of his back, even though to me it sounded more like a moan. He folds his arms at his front and leans his head sideways.

"I am?" I question as a smile already pulls at the corners of my lips.

"Yeah, " he agrees.

"Well, to return the compliment, I really like your tattoos."

Jungkook turns around and lays on his back, staring at me under his long eyelashes. He doesn't utter a single word, just keeps looking at me like he would a statue in a museum, his fringe falling between his eyes but leaving enough space for him to see. My hand is left to linger on the velvety skin of his stomach.

"Most people say they look scary, " he says in a low, raspy voice.

"They're not, " I add and trace a curved black line with the tips of my fingers in reassurance.

Jungkook gently grabs the said hand, still not losing eye contact. "Are you scared of me, Jojo?"

"No. I'm not."

A silence falls in the room, its echo almost deafening but this time there's no discomfort, no weird looks, just the consoling presence of each other that hangs in the air like a halo of light. Then–

"Juan, I think I'm starting to catch feelings for you."

He stops himself from smiling, but it's useless. The smug grin had already made it past his lips. "Yeah, me too."

"Hmmm, " I mutter. "How do we make it stop?"

Jungkook slowly rises in a sitting position, that damned expression still visible on his face. "I don't–  I don't think it's something you can stop."

" Aw shit man, " I scoff.

"Yeah, you just gotta go with the flow."

I'm positive there's a subtle irritated look on my face, which to Jungkook apparently looked hilarious. This had never happened before and I didn't know what exactly to expect. Was it normal? Was I going to be hurt again? What the fuck was I supposed to do?

"You're overthinking it. There's no need to put a name on your feelings." Jungkook cuts like a knife through my jumbled thoughts. "Besides, I thought we were talking about my tattoos."

"Right, " I confirm. " Is there a meaning behind them?"

"No. They're just for aesthetic purposes." The hooded eyes and dark expression is back on his face. "But–" he takes one of my hands and guides it on the side of his torso, "– this one does." He slides it a little further, on the underside of his forearm, tracing what I recognized as a tiger lily. "This one too. I'll tell you about it someday."

His stance is crouched. Even though he's a good feet taller than me, I somehow look towering over him. This position is suggestive enough in itself but it becomes even more so when Jungkook's knees cage around mine. Our eyes now levelling, I drag the line of my vision upwards, refusing to break the eye contact. And then, my eyes focus onto his lips and specifically the tiny little mole under them. It had caught my eye dozens of times before but for some strange reason, right now it looks like it's inviting me. By impulse, I gently meet his lips with mine and surprisingly he doesn't pull back, peppering me back with pouty kisses that are interrupted only by quick pauses for breath. I take the chance and discreetly lick that very mole with the flat of my tongue, feeling his lips' softness with a quick swiping motion.

It's like his gears are put into action. The sweet, gentle Jungkook is utterly forgotten from the moment he slackens his jaw to deepen the kiss, wrestling his own tongue in full force. But then his hands reach up and slip under my sweater to feel the skin underneath and that's all it takes for me to flinch and push him off.

He immediately stops himself from going further and lowers his hands down by his sides. His hooded eyes turn back to alertness as he tries to comprehend what just happened. I feel bad for a moment.

"J—Jojo?" His eyebrows raise in concern. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No, I just—" A deep sigh leaves my lips as I try to keep myself from panicking.

He was about to touch my tummy. My fat, squishy tummy. Just the idea of him touching me there gives me chills.

"I remembered something I have to deal with."

I rip myself off from the couch and drag a hand through my hair in distress, about to turn on my heel and get the hell out of here.

"Wait!" Jungkook yells after me and he grabs my forearm. Not harshly, just strong enough not to let me go. "Did I upset you?"

"No. I–"

Calm down. Deep breaths. One, two. One, two.

"I just have to–" I rush with my words, but Jungkook's hands are made of steel, such a stark contrast with his pleading eyes.

"Stay. I'll take care of you. " He's begging me now. " Please."

I give in–

~ JUNGKOOK ~

–but at what cost? She's been acting distant ever since the panicky incident and I don't know what else to do to get her back the way she was. She barely touches me, barely comes close and I wonder if it's a shame to admit that I miss her kisses too. However, the jokester in her has never left. She'll crack dark jokes from time to time, acting like nothing ever happened and I'll pretend to play along for fear of not making her leave.

It pained me to see her like this, to see her crumbling apart day by day while my hands were frozen in place. A soldier stuck on quicksand. Someone had to tell her this was toxic, that she was poisoning herself and was fully conscious of it.

Weeks and weeks under her presence had trained me to notice all the changes, all the little shifts in her demeanor. Today was no exception. At least not with the incident that had made me do things I'd never imagine doing.

It had all started when a new employee had joined us on the coffee shop, courtesy of my boss, whose relationship with him was rather close. It was one of those cases where you had to make favors for the sake of family relations, et cetera, et cetera. So far, so good. But was one really to imagine that the guy had the audacity to act like he owned the place? I tried to ignore his antics up until the moment he fucked with the wrong girl. My girl.

Despite my disapproving glances, Jojo had been making comments on her weight, constantly seeking Kwan's opinions on the matter.

"But I'm fat!" she had exclaimed, exasperated. In Kwan's eyes, this was just another one of her lame jokes but I knew the sting behind the words.

Then, completely out of line, the new employee had chirped. "You're not fat, you're just thick."

I'd whipped my head in his direction and jumped off the table I'd been sitting, my hands suddenly itching but Jojo had been quick to secretly wave me off. "Well then, you're not stupid, you're just dumb, " she 'd snarked, earning a whole-hearted guffaw from Kwan. The joke had been let at that, or at least that's what Jojo thought. My fists hadn't stopped til the itching sensation was satisfied.

"You okay, Jo?" I'd asked at lunch break, the new nickname making her lips barely twitch. She was upset. I could tell.

"Yeah, why?" she'd replied, eyes trained on my face. For once, she'd given me that warm, old look that went beyond friendship. I'd tried to cherish it for a few seconds before adding, "That asshole was rude to you."

I'd unconsciously rubbed my knuckles and that hadn't skipped past Jojo's eyes. "Nah, he's just– wait a second! Did you do something to him?"

I'd adverted her eyes and cleared my throat awkwardly. "I kinda beat the shit out of him." The image of the guy's swollen face and broken nose flashes into my memory.

She'd gasped but there'd been a mix of amazement and incredulousness in the tone of her voice. "That's my job!"

I'd smiled. "No one messes with my Jo."

She'd smiled back but her eyes had still been sad.

Now I ring the bell on her door, impatiently carding my fingers through my hair as it remains shut. Where the fuck is she? She hasn't been answering my calls for a while and I'm worried sick.

I torture the bell button again and slam my palms on the door. "Jojo, are you there? Come on, it's me! Open up!"

What if something had happened to her? What if– I slam my shoulder repeatedly on it and the lock busts open with a loud clang. Rubbing the sore spot, I quickly scan the room and finally, my eyes find her crouched form on the floor.

There's a pile of junk around her, chocolate wrappers, plastic bags, food splayed apart chaotically and vomit on the floor as well as traces of it on the corners of her mouth. Her eyes are fixed in space, staring at nothing. Dried tears have left moist streaks on her cheeks. She looks lifeless until the moment she takes notice of me and does a double take.

"Jungkook? What– what are you doing here?"

I fall down on my knees next to her, worry written all over my face, but she immediately closes in on herself, her body language radiating fear and protectiveness. "No! Go away, please!"

I don't listen, scooting further till my hands are on her arms, trying to find a way in but she only keeps resisting. "No! Please, don't look at me! Not like this!" Her body shakes with convulsions and quiet sobs rip through her throat.

This was the first time I'd seen her cry.

I grab a towel from the kitchen and dip it in the streaming water. Jojo tries to keep me at bay but I set my mouth on a straight line and force it to her lips. Cleaning her eyes, her face as if I wanted to exfoliate her from any traces of sadness. "Please, " she's begging me now. "Please, go."

I keep my hands on a steady pace, gently rubbing the towel where needed. "Shhh, it's okay. It's just some spilled food. You're okay."

She quiets down at the words and it only goades me further. "Shhhh. You're my baby. My baby, " I lift her up and clean the rest of her, whispering other sweet nothings in her ear until at last the storm passes.

~ JOJO ~

There were two options left when someone made comments on my weight. I either starved myself for two full days or binged on everything I could see like a fucking cow because hey, I'm still gonna be fat, right?

Unfortunately for me , I'd picked the easier way out and emptied the contents of my kitchen in the blink of an eye. It was one of the things I hated the most; stuffing myself till I couldn't breathe. However, what I hated even more was people seeing me in my own misery. Even if that person was none other than the dreamy-eyed boy who had cared for me more than anyone ever had.

I stay silent as Jungkook cleans me thoroughly, making sure to also get rid of the mess on the ground and give me enough privacy to slip out of my nasty clothes and brush my teeth. I just keep staring at him and wonder to myself if I had done any good deeds in this life to deserve him. It pissed me off.

"Do you need another pillow?" Jungkook asks under his dark curly fringe, his back crouched as he stands on the side of my bed.

"No, I'm good, " I rasp, my voice strained from bawling for a good couple of hours. I avert his eyes once more. The guilt and the anger keeps bubbling up on the surface.

Jungkook abandons his chair and sits on the bed, his outer thigh barely touching my forearm. The springs creak and whine under his weight. He takes my hand in his, rubbing comforting circles with the tip of his thumb. "You okay, baby?"

I lash out in a second, grabbing the collar of his black T-shirt and pulling it inches from my face. "Call me baby one more time and I'll rip your throat out."

To my surprise, he's not even fazed. A dark chuckle falls under his lips as he grins widely for me to see. Then, as if it couldn't get any more intense than this, he lets himself fall backwards on the bed, taking me along with him. My legs escape the cover of the sheets and straddle his waist, trying not to fall over and crush him. In that particular order. What a typical movie-like moment. I'm wearing pajama shorts and the pale skin of my thighs is completely exposed. As if on cue, Jungkook's eyes flick towards them, drinking in the view. Had he ever seen this much of my body?

"Do it, " he says in a low voice.

I slide one of my hands upward and gently wrap it around his throat. "You really want me to choke you, Juan?"

The bastard doesn't even say anything. He raises the hands laying by his sides and traces the outline of my thighs higher and higher till they settle on each side of my hips. Goosebumps chill my skin like flowers after rain. I'm torn between punching him and kissing him senseless.

"Who knows, I might actually like it, " he says. He hasn't even tried to wriggle out of my caging body, going as far as even baring his throat at me.

I smirk. "Are you always this submissive?"

Uh oh. Wrong move.

In a matter of seconds, I'm pushed backwards, the soft texture of the sheets smoothing the land on my back. Just like that, the positions are completely switched. Jungkook's grin never leaves his face as he's on top of me, his curly locks swinging like a crown on his head. He takes both of my curled fists and pins them on each side of my head.

"I was actually letting you in charge but now that I think about it ; I also deserve to have some fun right?" he states with a smug expression.

For a moment, I'm left speechless. My limbs too, have nothing to say. At least not with the way they're frozen in place, too caught on the spot to dare move.

Jungkook takes the chance and nuzzles his nose on the gap between my neck and jawline. On another situation I would have felt ticklish but not right now. A heavy weight on the pit of my stomach is proof enough for that. He starts leaving small pecks on the skin of my throat, making a beeline for the collarbones.

I honestly don't know what to do with myself. We've been playing around for a long time now but things have never gotten so serious. Not at this point. Only recently had I pushed him off and now here I was, the one turned into full submission.

"Do you plan on ruining yourself every time someone upsets you?" he mumbles, smooth lips barely grazing against my skin.

The image of that new guy flashes behind my eyes and my face sours, all those butterflies in my stomach crushed to dust, just like that. "Can we talk about something else?"

Jungkook pauses his administrations and pulls back just an inch, his eyes staring at mine in full concentration. "No."

I huff in frustration. "You're on top of me."

"So?" he raises one eyebrow.

"So, get the hell off!"

My wrists are suddenly pinned harder against the sheets, Jungkook's hands forcing them further down until they form little dips.

"No, " he repeats, almost mechanically.

I'm about to protest again when his tongue swipes at the vulnerable skin of my throat and that's all it takes to throw all caution to the wind. My back arches off the bed without my permission and I think I must've let out a sound because Jungkook is laughing that quiet laugh of his that makes his shoulders shake.

His lips are on mine, silencing whatever literate thought that tries to make it out. My hips are now straddled by his own knees and oh- my wrists are free because he lets them go gently and puts his hands on my cheeks, kissing me even more deeply, threading them through my hair and its suddenly too much, too much for me to handle.

I feel like I'm floating ten thousand feet off the ground and buried under layers and layers of earth at the same time. My breath shudders violently when his lips drag across the side of my face and nudge the sweet spot below my ear.

"Why are you doing this to me?" I whisper but it comes out so broken, so desperate. I'm practically begging at this point and I don't even know why.

Jungkook's hands settle on my clothed waist. His fingertips twitch in hesitation as he bunches the fabric and just like that–

"I'm sorry, "

–and lets go.

I feel relieved and disappointed.

His body peels off my own with reluctance that rips me apart in a million different ways and I feel my skin grow cold from his absence. He leans back on the heels of his hands, staring me down with an apologetic look. "I'm sorry, " he repeats and rises from the bed, disappearing into the living room.

* * *

I lay there for a while, staring at the ceiling as if it held the secrets of the universe. My body has not even moved an inch, too shocked, too frozen. My legs feel like lead, two slabs of heavy stone that pin me into place.

If it weren't for Jungkook's presence snapping me out of my empty reverie, I would've probably stood there like a dead body for days. He comes back (from the bathroom, apparently) his wet hair still trickling droplets of water on his shirt, eyebrows shining, and stands on the middle of the room.

"It's midnight, " he says, as if in a trance.

My eyes flick to the window. Pitch black. Indeed.

"Can I stay here tonight?" he continues, and I can swear the tips of his ears go spicy red. My heart melts into a hot buttery mass. He's blushing like crazy. I can see it! A guy, blushing in front of me. I suddenly can't contain my smile, all things forgotten in a blur.

"Yeah. I would like that, " I breathe.

He locks eyes with me and breaks the contact almost immediately, looking anywhere but in my direction.  "I can take the couch–"

"No. Sleep here, " I say and my eyes close of their own accord. "With me,  " I slowly add.

"Are you sur–"

My eyes fly open. "We just made out five seconds ago. Why is that such a problem now?" I lift my neck just an inch, to glare at him but there's no real malice in it.

His lips crack into a smile and I'm glad for the tension that dissipates like cigarette smoke. "I sleep without a shirt on, " he confesses.

"Okay."

He slips it off his torso in a swift motion but it's too dark me for me to make out any details expect for his dark silhouette and the wide planes of his shoulders.

"You can take off anything you want. I won't touch you, " I say and roll over on my side of the bed.

"I wouldn't mind it, " I hear him mumble but he complies, the sound of his belt unbuckling echoing against the room.

The bed dips under his weight as he occupies its other side and I feel more than hear the fall and rise of his chest, the labored breathing coming to a steady rhythm.

Two strong hands clasp around my waist and I'm pulled backwards into his chest. I don't push him off. I let him hold me to himself, caged by his body, by the feeling of him; his bare chest, his bare legs, his long hair tickling the back of my neck.

Everything is going to be okay.

I'm okay.

"Jojo?"

"Hm?"

"Do you care about me?"

I smile. " More than I'd like to admit."

He kisses the nape of my neck and pulls me harder against himself. It's not long before sweet, calm sleep sneaks its way into into our bodies.

~ JUNGKOOK ~

It's not the sun the one that wakes me up, despite it having been up for a while, not even the sound of the cars honking in the distance. It's the gentle caress of skin on skin, making goosebumps rise and my eyelids flutter.

I slowly crack one eye open and the smile that blooms on my face is automatic. Jojo's cuddled up on her side right next to me, her head laying between my chest and shoulder, arms splayed out to hug my torso like a teddy bear. But what really does it for me is her left leg thrown across my side. She keeps moving in her sleep and it's doing things to me. I can't breathe.

I suddenly realize that I'm only wearing my boxers. Nothing else.

Oh God.

I lift a shaky hand and try to detach her leg but my fingers linger for too long and she suddenly stirs. Her lips nudge my chest and unconsciously give the latter a tender kiss. Her eyes slowly open. For a moment it looks like she doesn't know where she is but then the realization dawns on her.

"Good morning."

Shit.

Her raspy voice only makes it harder for me to keep myself collected.

"Morning, " I manage.

She sits up and drags a hand through her hair, frustrated. "Why is your nice body the first thing I see? I'm jealous, " she huffs.

I open and close my mouth like a fish, caught on the spot. I'd never thought of my body as particularly nice. "It does its job so yeah, I guess, " I admit aloud.

At that her eyes drag down to a very unholy spot in between my legs. She smirks. " Oh, it does its job, alright. I think you have some problems with morning wood, my boy."

I grab the sheets on the side and swing them over my legs, embarrassment setting my face aflame.

She bursts out laughing. "Relax. It's not like I've never seen a guy with no pants before. Though, I'm kinda disappointed. I was expecting for you to have Lighting Mcqueen patterns on your underwear. " She shakes her head mockingly. "They're so plain."

I uncover my legs once again and this time I don't care. Let her see whatever she wants.

She stops laughing. Gives another glance to the crime scene. Gulps. "Yeah, like I said. Plain."

This whole exchange is so entertaining, I feel my insides flutter with joy. Last night's episode is forgotten in a ditch with no problem. We're back to the old times.

I get up and pace around the room, in search of a glass of water. My throat is parched.

"You know what? Go take a cold shower. All that–" she gestures toward my middle with a wave of her hand, "– is distracting me."

I stop pacing. "You know what? I'll put some pants on if you put some food on your stomach. That's a fair deal."

The color completely drains from her face, replaced by a dark expression that seeps the life out of it. Regret weighs me down.

"I'm never eating again, " she says, while her eyes bore holes into the floor. " Not until I reach my goal weight."

I  drag a hand across my face and rub it. Hard. My sanity is on the brink of falling apart. "Then what are you gonna do?" I ask, frustration finally creeping on my voice. "When you get to your goal weight."

She shrugs. "I'm just gonna keep being unhappy, I guess."

It's the way she puts the words out there so easily that draws the line for me. So carelessly, like I mean nothing to her. Like she means nothing to herself.

"This is ridiculous. You know you're harming yourself and you still keep doing it. You know you're not gonna change anything in the end and you still keep doing it. I don't get it."

"Oh yeah?" she spits, her own voice full of poisonous venom. "Why do you keep living if you know you're gonna die one day? Huh, Juan? Why do you do it?"

"This is killing you!"

"I don't care!"

I flinch. It takes me a while to gather myself before I muster the strength to spell out the next few words. "I don't even know why I care about you when you don't even care about yourself."

Her lips curl into a half smile but it doesn't exactly reach her eyes.

"You're right, " she says. "I don't."

Silence.

"Maybe you should go now."

I look up into her face but she's not looking at me, too focused on a spot on the wall. She's telling me to leave. To get the hell out of here. I'm suddenly realizing the absurdity of all this —me shirtless and half nude, boxers stuck to my body like gauze, having a fight with the girl I love with all my heart. I realize the enormity of it. Of how much I love her, of how much I'm hurt by seeing her hurt and I choose to leave.

I pick up my pants from where they lay carelessly on the floor and put them on in excruciating slow movements. I grab the belt and the T-shirt and make my way out of the apartment. Her eyes never leave that spot.

I shut the door behind me and lean my head on its cool ugly surface.

What an ugly mustard -yellow door.

" Jojo, don't do this, " I say, loud enough for her to hear. "Come on, please."

No answer.

The anger falls off me in waves I can't control, swallowing me whole until my eyes see black. I kick the door so hard, my leg grows limp. Another punch and I think I've cracked the wood but I don't care. I don't give a shit. I scream and slam my fists and palms like a madman throwing a tantrum.

"Dammit! Why do you keep doing this?! Stop it, damn you! You're hurting yourself for fuck's sake!"

"You're hurting me, " I add in nothing more than a whisper, my voice already hoarse.

The door never opens.

~ JOJO ~

The door opens easily with just a push of my fingertips. I try to look uninterested but my restless eyeballs betray me in an instant, scanning the coffee shop in all four directions within seconds. I'd spent the whole night spacing out while sitting at the foot of my bed on the floor. I'd never felt so much regret, so much of it that it had felt like I was drowning–

"He's not here." A voice startles me out of my thoughts and I turn around to find Kwan looking at me with something that looks similar to pity.

I blink. "What?"

"Jungkook, " he explains. " He's gone."

My heart falls into the bottom of my feet and I suddenly can't keep the panic from tainting my voice. I grip Kwan's shoulders. "Where?"

"Woah, calm down! I think he's gone to his parents or something. Boss already gave him permission."

My grip loosens. "Oh."

Kwan blanches but soon a look of genuine concern flashes behind his eyes. "What's the matter? Did you two get into a fight?"

"No, " I deny.

I can faintly make out Kwan's rambling but it sounds so, so far away because soon my ears are thundering.

he's gone he's gone he's gone he's gone he's gone he's gone–

"Jojo."

I'm shook awake, courtesy of my man-handler. He looks truly worried but I just can't seem to care. All I know is that I need to get out, distract myself, do something–

The indecisive old bitch lady steps foot into the shop and I curse her existence and mine altogether. This is so not the time to be arguing over extra menus.

She takes her usual seat with an excessive amount of unnecessary grace and looks at me pointedly, waiting to be tended to.

I smile. "Welcome, Mrs. Park."

* * *

Everything feels empty, blurred around  the edges.

Meaningless.

I finally realize how important purpose is and how everything we do is driven by it.

Lately I've been walking in circles, wandering like a fly trapped inside a jar, not knowing where I am or what I'm doing.

I'm just there.

I never eat anymore. I never drink. I savor my body like an untouched temple and hope against hope that I'll get better.

It's okay if I'm not. I can't make the difference anymore, anyway. I've spiraled into the bottomless pit of oblivion and the process is slow. It makes me feel numb.

I stare at the rumpled apron laying on the floor along with the rest of the garbage and Ms. Park comes into mind. She hadn't really appreciated my spilling hot tea right onto her chest. The dumb bitch had gotten me fired but it doesn't really feel like a great loss. I'd only worked there because of him, anyway. Him and only him. I never cared about anyone else. But he's not here. He'll never be here anymore.

I fish my phone out of my pocket and make use of the sudden memory to type down his number. I have it memorized by now. The line beeps.

"Hey."

My heartbeat spikes in excitement. "Hey yourself," I reply hastily but my voice cords haven't been used for days, so it sounds more like a rasp. I clear my throat.

"How's it going?" he asks. Casually. Like he would a friend. I missed hearing his voice.

"Good. You?"

"Same."

I bite my lower lip anxiously. I don't like his answers. I don't like how short and clipped they are. Clipped. Nipped. Chipped. Ripped. Zipped–

"So, the guys have been wondering when you'll be back, " I lie.

I hear him release a subtle sigh. "Oh. I don't really know, honestly. I've been hanging out with my parents and they plan on keeping me here for a while longer."

I nod my head slowly then remind myself he can't see me. "Right. Right, you must've missed them."

White noise.

Hmmm.

What else rhymes with noise?

Choice.

Boys

Toys

Turqoise–

"Well, have fun."

"Thanks......um, are you oka–"

I end the call.

he's gone he's gone he's gone he's gone he's gone he's gone he's gone–

i told you he doesn't give a shit

"I never said I did, " I reply without looking.

you hoped, though

"Shut up."

laughter

you do realize you're pathetic, right?

I turn my head to the mirror. "Shut the fuck up, you fucking bitch! Shut it!"

I spit and throw whatever I can get my hands on it but there's a smile there that I just can't see.

what rhymes with smile?

aisle

bile

rile

guile

worthwhile–

I scream and yell. I rip the sheets of the bed, swipe off the contents of my desk, punch and punch the mirror till my hands are raw and bleeding a waterfall. I kick and thrash with every ounce of strength left in me but there's no use.

She's still smiling at me.

* * *

I'm sitting down on the floor, surrounded by a pool of my own insanity. I can't tell how many days have passed and my cheeks feel surprisingly moist. Have I been crying?

There's no one else around here.

It doesn't matter. I like being alone.

It feels nice to just be with your own thoughts, not having to fear being overheard when you scream ideas and screenplays in your room. You can just be yourself and enjoy doing the things you like the most. But still, sometimes it gets really lonely and not just in the literal sense. I'll always check the dark corners to see if someone's there, I'll always feel like someone's whispering, saying bad things about me, that coat hanged on the rack will always look like a person and then I'll even start getting scared of my own shadow, my head will always shake uncontrollably when I'm crying because there won't be anyone to hold it for me, anyone to assure me that things are gonna be okay.

I don't like being alone. It's not nice.

I glance at the broken mirror, bloody cracks and lines making up the whole of it. There's only one spot in the corner that remains clean and untouched. A smile attached to it.

I realize now. Why she wouldn't go away. The reason why I could never win this war was because the enemy I was fighting against was none other than myself. She was no stranger. She was me. No matter how much we tried, me and my own  resemblance would still be standing at the end of the day. If i was alive, she was alive. It was like a symbiotic relationship, a Yin to the Yang. We kept each other afloat and neither could exist without the other.

he's happy.

"I know, "

without you

"I know, " I repeat.

is that enough proof for you?

"It is."

then do it

"yes."

I rise from the floor and blindly look for my phone in the midst of all the trash. It's nowhere to be found. I then turn around and grab hold of the old telephone hanging on the wall. It stands out, an ancient relic hard to be found these days. I roll the numbers by memory. The line crackles for a couple of seconds before a familiar voice breathes into it. My chest constricts as I let out a pathetic whimper. "J– Jungkook... I'm sorry."

I don't give him time to answer, slamming the phone down with a loud ring.

it's over it's over it's over it's over i'm sorry i'm sorry i'm sorry i'm sorry

Big, fat tears trickle down my cheeks and chin and I do nothing to stop them. I whimper and whine as I head for the bathroom, reaching up with my toes to get the pills I'd hidden all these weeks. They're still here.

Waiting for me.

~ JUNGKOOK ~

I'm running as hard as my legs can take me but it's not really me doing it. It's my impulses being triggered with full force, struggling for survival. I'm completely detached from my body, my mind going through only one simple rule : I have to make it on time.

I don't even notice the heavy torrents of rain blurring my vision, making my feet trudge with difficulty. I don't even notice the people I push harshly out of my way or the red stoplights blinking past me. My eyes are focused inwardly like a camera, set on breaking through the sea of umbrellas.

please please please please

I repeat the word like a mantra in my head, praying against whatever odds that she will be okay when I get there, that she won't do what I think she intends to do.

please please please just not that anything but that please make her be alright

If only I could've hurried earlier, she wouldn't have had the chance to say those things. To say my name.

It was the first time she'd said my name. My actual name. Those few seconds hearing the syllables tumbling from her lips had been pure bliss to my ears, only to be ripped apart with the realization that she was pleading.

She doesn't answer the phone. I curse myself to hell and back. I should've told her I was coming today. I should've told her I was only two blocks away from her apartment and that all this time far from her had been nothing but torture. There hadn't been a moment when I didn't feel her absence or when I didn't wonder what she was doing. I should've told her I regretted every single word I'd sa-

Something slams against my arm. I fall onto the rough asphalt but I'm on my feet in seconds. The man I'd run into stares at me in anger but I can't  deal with his shit right now, so I push him blindly, my feet already finding their footing. "Out of my fucking way!" I yell at him without looking.

I run and run and run until I can't feel my calves and my jacket is soaked through.

Drip

Drip

Drip

please don't die

drip

Her apartment building zooms into view. I punch buttons and take the stairs by four.

please

stay alive

please

Mustard yellow door.

I don't wait to check if it's open, kicking the lock open immediately.

Things happen in a blur, straight out of a dream. I kneel to the ground, forcing her mouth open. Her tear-stained face spits the pills reluctantly and then she tries to push me off as hard as she can. I knew she'd do this. I just knew it. I had seen the pills standing on the drawer for days, weeks. I knew how she gave those bruises to her body, how she tortured herself by her own will.

"NO! GET THE FUCK OFF OF ME!"  I hold her hands down and bend them behind her back but she keeps screaming and it's like all hell has broken loose. "FUCK OUT OF HERE! YOU HAVE NO RIGHT!"

I squeeze her hands tighter and I can suddenly hear myself crying, fully sobbing my heart out and then she's crying too and we're both sitting on the floor like two poor beggars with our limbs awkwardly splayed out.

"That's my decision, Jungkook.  You can't take that away from me, " her muffled whimpers are heard as I lean her head on the crook of my neck.

I release her hands, which soon find their way around my neck, hugging my body till we fit perfectly together.

"Jojo."

I pull back just a few inches, capture her face with my palms and kiss her like there's no tomorrow.

~ JOJO ~

Do you know that feeling of finally getting home after a long trip, of how your body relaxes upon finding its lost familiarity? That's exactly what courses through my body right now, except that it's multiplied tenfold, to the point of numbness. I'd missed sensing his body beside mine. I'd missed his dark locks tickling my neck, his soft lips, but more than everything, I'd missed having him here. With me.

It's hard to believe the number of things that have happened today. It feels like I'm watching the scene unfold in front of me like a spectator and wonder if it's just a figment of my imagination. And the way he is kissing me..... It feels brand new. Desperate in more ways than one. He morphs our lips together as if they are made of clay and his hands start feeling around my body, begging for some purchase.

I don't realize the fact that I have started crying. Silent tears tumble down my cheeks, wetting his own face with their saltiness. I can't control them. I can't stop them. And Jungkook understands that. He pulls roughly at my bottom lip and suddenly lets go, creating a gap between our bodies. I can't help but feel that I must look like a little child in his eyes right now; grubby, disheveled, teary-eyed...

And then he's looking at me dead in the eye, beyond my appearance, beyond my outer core, cutting through weeds and vines growing inside my soul. "I know none of the things I say will ever convince you. So, I won't be using any words."

He slips my left sleeve from my shoulder, exposing the skin underneath. His head lowers down to it and gives it a feather-light kiss.

I stare at him in confusion but he chooses to keep silent. His eyes never leave my face, even when he starts repeating the action with my other sleeve, rolling my whole shirt up and off my body. He discards each piece with surprising gentleness and that's what makes my tears fall even more violently. He's so kind.

So good to me.

And he's taking off my pants.

I instinctively tense and Jungkook makes an obvious pause, letting me make my choice. The rigidity dwindles away and a flash of relief passes behind his eyes. I close my eyes and then he moves on with his graceful touches. I'm lain down into the bed, my hair fanned out behind me like a halo, and he slowly crawls on top, observing his work of art with a look of genuine satisfaction.  His clothes are gone before I can blink and he slowly dives in for the sensitive part of my neck, breathing it in.

"Beautiful," he mumbles against my throat. My body convulses with whimpers. He nuzzles his way up until his lips are meshed against mine.  "Touch me, " he whispers.

My breath hitches but I raise my hands that had so far lain on my sides and put them on each side of his face. "Jungkook."

He smiles and my heart bursts into a million fireflies. "I like it when you say my name."

"Jungkook,"  I repeat.

He drags those sinful lips down through valleys and crevices, leaving soft kisses in their wake, tracing every inch of my skin, tracing every bruise, every wound, every trace of self-harm. I am nothing more than a hot pool of lava. I do not own a body anymore. Or rather, I feel each sensation being magnified into infinity and I can no longer tell where my body starts nor where it ends. I feel too much. I feel everything. And I am not ashamed of this mundane mass of flesh and bones and blood.

I kiss back.

That's all it takes for him to finally let himself go freely. No obstacles. No barriers. I am free of the voices in my head, free of my fears and judgment.  It's like we want to devour each other, drain every single drop until it is the only thing our tongues can taste. I don't really care about anything else right now. I wanna forget about it all and just focus on the soft texture of his lips ghosting the skin on my neck and then going stronger and wilder and swallowing it up till I can feel the delicious sting of pain. We fight. We love. We pour our hearts out like a warm waterfall. And as our bodies tangle restlessly with each other, sticky with sweat, I go through an indescribable ecstasy. Something I've never experienced before.

Acceptance.

_____________________

EPILOGUE

I'd never imagine the storm would go on all night but it somehow did. As I lay in my bed, feet tangled up with someone else's, I hear the distant rumble of faraway clouds first thing in the morning. If it weren't for my daily habit of waking up early, I wouldn't have even bothered cracking my eyes open. The sun remains hidden in some corner as the dark gray sky salutes me instead.

I like it. This mood. It's cozy and warm and safe .

I turn my head on the side and almost melt. He's sleeping like a baby. Eyelids relaxed, lips slightly open, an angelic expression on his face. Pretty.

"That's bold, coming from you, " his lips spell.

I lightly gasp as I realize I've said the word out loud. "I thought you were asleep." As if by instinct, my hand slides up into his face, gently caressing it.

Jungkook grabs my whole arm and pulls me towards him, giving the edge of my jaw a kiss. "I was kinda faking it."

I kick his butt with the sole of my foot. "You prick! Stop playing!"

The whole bed shakes from his laughter as he massages his poor backside. "Did you sleep well?" he asks.

I smile. "Mhmm."

Jungkook mirrors my expression, but it somehow looks more devilish on him. "I'm sure you did."

"Shut up, Jungkook."

He smiles again, genuinely this time and turns, facing the ceiling with his eyes closed. "I really like it when you say my name."

"Jungkook," I whisper. A pause. "Jeon Jungkook."

His eyes open. "Yes?"

"You know, the night before I met you, I was about to kill myself."

His body goes rigid, but I continue. " I don't know why I didn't do it. Then, the next day I met you and it was like it just slipped my mind. The thought was no longer there.  So I came at that coffee shop every day, hoping I could see you. You weren't some kind of prince charming or anything. It's not like I looked at you and knew we were meant for each other or that kind of bullshit. I just liked looking at you. One glimpse was enough. It made me feel better somehow. It felt.... nice. But the moment we stopped looking at each other it all came flooding back. That longing to die. I turned back to my starting point."

Jungkook's arms envelop me and I feel my bones shatter. "I'm sorry," I whisper, barely a breath.

He caresses my bare shoulder. "There's nothing to be sorry about. It's okay now. I'm here. It's over."

I throw my arms around his neck and hug him tightly. "Don't leave."

"I won't."

We stay like that for a while, holding each other in our arms and relishing the sweet silence of early morning. Until-

"Hey Jungkook, you know how you're hot and cute at the same time?"

"Don't do it, Jojo. I'm telling you, don't-"

"Hute."

My obnoxious laughter annoys the hell out of him, but he eventually joins me.  I smile to myself.

The old back me is me but more different than ever. I want to go through a deep cleansing. I want to throw away all the trash that has been accumulating in my house and my very soul.

A new person.

A new life.

A new me.

I can't promise I' ll make it in the end but I can promise I'll try.

"You know, " Jungkook says, "you turned out to be much more different than I thought you'd be."

I turn his face to him. "Did I meet your expectations?"

He smiles. "No. You exceeded them."

#jungkook fanfic #jungkook fluff #jungkook imagines #jungkook scenarios #jungkook #jeon jungkook #bts fluff #bts fanfic #jeon jeongguk #kookie #kook #jk #bts #btsfanfiction #bangtanfic #bangtan #btsimagines #bts scenarios #bts story #jungkook story #bangtan imagines #bangtan scenarios #bangtan fluff #bangtanff #bangtan sonyeondan #bangtan ff #jungkook ff #jungkook fanfiction #bts ff #jimin

[alj4890]

Six Sentence Sunday

I'm behind on so much due to life in general, LOL. But to show that I am working on things here is a sneak peek into the next parts of Delicate (which this should be the last chapter of this short series), And Then I Left You, and a few drabbles I have in my WIP folder.

tagging a few that might be interested  @jooous @krsnlove @nomadics-stuff   @twinkleallnight @motorcitymademadame @gkittylove99 @darley1101  @kingliam2019 @texaskitten30 @yourmajesty09 @mom2000aggie @ofpixelsandscribbles t @lodberg​   @my-heart-beats-for-ya​ @aworldoffandoms​ @flyawayboo​  @trappedinfanfiction​ @everythingmarvelsherlockspn​  @sophxwithers​ @esmckenzie​ 

Delicate

This might be the first ball in the history of Drake's years in Cordonia to actually cause a certain excitement. He usually put up with the pomp and traditions to simply be with those he cared about. For years it was to support Liam, then going meant he could hang out with Riley, Hana, and Maxwell.

And then there were his activities in secret for a year with Olivia.

He knew she would be arriving soon. Her absence from Cordonia had been one he felt more acutely than any other. His failure in telling her how he felt about her, his inability to have a civil conversation, even his voicemail had kept him fixated on this date.

He intended for this new year to involve a new relationship with Olivia. He simply needed to find a moment alone with her.

Which as he entered the drawing room Riley and Liam used frequently for their closest friends, he realized that was going to be more difficult than he originally thought. All their friends had come home for the ball.

"I can't believe they gave us that ridiculous moniker." Thomas shook his head.

"The press isn't always known for their intelligence." Liam said, fighting a smile.

"Thomanda." Amanda laughed just saying it. "It sounds like some weird foot fungus cream."

"The press have had five years to come up with anything better than that." Thomas wrapped his arm around his wife's shoulders. "They should have combined our last names. Brunt is more tolerable than Thomanda."

Maxwell rolled off the couch laughing. "We now have to come up with crazy couple names for all of us!"

"We were given Riam." Riley replied. "Personally I prefer Liley, but Riam stuck."

"Naxwell or Madia." Amanda said between giggles while pointing at Maxwell and Nadia. "That's your possible couple's name."

"Naxwell sounds like a snack cake or cookie." Riley added with a chuckle.

"We are sweet." Maxwell responded, cuddling Nadia close.

Hana sighed at seeing them all so happy together. "What would mine and Rashad's be?"

"Rashana?" Riley offered.

"Oh I like that so much better than what I thought." Amanda laughed. "I at first thought Hahad."

The group burst into laughter while more couple names were bandied about.

"So what do we dub Olivia and Ethan?" Liam asked.

"Ethalivia?" Hana offered.

"Olithan?" Maxwell added.

"Oooh! Olithan!" Riley exclaimed. "Sounds like a sea monster. Olivia will love it!"

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

And Then I Left You

Thomas had worried that first day how they would handle the hotel situations he believed they were bound to encounter. He had gotten used to Olivia's secret passageways allowing him to see Amanda whenever he wanted.

He should have known that the intelligent lady he adored had already solved that problem.

Pulling onto a gravel road, she drove him toward a cottage that sat alone in a rolling meadow dotted here and there with trees. The two-story, thatched roof building sat amidst large Cordonian oak trees. Roses twined around a drain pipe while wisteria grew in wild abandon adding even more beauty to the rough stone walls.

"I know we could stay somewhere different with each place we visit," Amanda explained. "But then I thought we could stay our entire time somewhere in the middle of it all. It will mean more driving each day, but we will have nothing but privacy here."

Thomas stepped out and followed her inside. The cottage was just as charming on the inside as it was on the outside. Much of the furniture was designed strictly for comfort and a few for whimsy. The wooden floors creaked with each step as he explored the different rooms.

Upstairs, there were two bedrooms directly across from one another with a bathroom dividing them.

His lips curved at knowing he wouldn't have to find a way to sneak around and see her whenever they weren't out in public.

"What do you think?" She asked, a bit nervous from his silence.

"It's charming." He set his arms around her waist. "And perfect for our needs."

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

This next sneak peek is a second part to the Liam angst I posted earlier 😬 So sorry how dark that went. Since many wanted to see how Liam is after losing Riley, Drake and Maxwell, here is some of how it is going for him. Let’s just say it isn’t easy and will take some special persuasion from those left behind to help him.

Liam ignored all of it. He went to his chambers and remained secluded from the world for days. He refused entry to anyone who knocked. He simply sat there staring at the few mementos he had of those he had lost.

He flipped through the photographs Maxwell had insisted on taking of the three of them through the years. He paused at the few his mother was in, wishing she was here now to tell him how to move on from something like this. She had encouraged his friendships with Maxwell and Drake, knowing he would need them to face life in the public eye.

And now he would never have them again.

Setting the old album aside, he reached for the key chain Riley had given him the night of the Coronation. Thinking of that night and their confessions of love only to be cruelly parted...his head dropped as he carefully set it back on the table. Next he picked up the pearl he had given her. The plans and hopes they had while meeting in secret. It had helped him through every moment he was kept from her side.

He then lifted the photograph Anna had taken of them for their engagement. Liam's fingers trembled as they brushed against the image of Riley. Her smile so warm. Her eyes so filled with joy.

Reaching for a decanter, he attempted to metaphorically drown his sorrows. In one night he had lost everything he had held dear. How was he to go on from this? There was no enemy to slay, no way to find those he loved and rescue them. Nothing. Nothing except funerals to attend. Nothing but giving them to the cold, unforgiving dirt.

All he had ahead of him was visits to graveyards. He knew his father didn't have much longer to live. It would be just one more loss in his already devastated heart.

Death was what his life had become. He had feared that when his mother was poisoned. Many a night he would wake up crying at the thought of being completely and utterly alone. This long forgotten fear rose up within him, showing that it hadn't been a mere nightmare. It had been a premonition.

Dropping his head in his hands, he sobbed into the void that had become his only companion.

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

This next peek is a miniseries idea that will be called, Mixed Signals, that hit after that last Open Heart Chapter. It will focus on my MC Chris getting closer to Tobias (and gah, I am wishing now she could dump all the LI's and be with him. His humor and confidence have won me completely over). It will take place in both books 2 and 3 and focus on her frustration with Ethan and Bryce never committing or saying how they truly feel about her. Since, especially in the chapters before the Hawaii trip, they both would randomly act romantic towards her then friend zone her in the next scene, I'm letting this series show her choosing to step back and see what she wants and needs from a significant other. This begins after the attack and Chris has yet to return to work. She goes to Mass Kenmore to thank Tobias for coming to help find a cure for her and ends up opening up to him a bit.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Tobias asked softly, gently squeezing her close.

"Not really." Chris admitted. "Everyone keeps telling me to give myself time and all." She eased back. "I wish they would leave me alone."

He kept his hands on her waist while studying her. "Then tell them."

"Ha. You've met them." She snorted. "They don't take orders like that well."

"True." He replied. "You want me to do it?" His smirk brought a grin to her face. "Ethan already considers me a pain in his ass. What's one more mark against me?"

She laughed, while dabbing at her eyes and nose. "After what you did for me? No way am I letting you continue to be the bad guy."

"Aww shucks, Valentine." Tobias teased. "You're going to give me a big head."

"As if it wasn't already big enough." She teased back. Tilting her head, she pretended to study him. "How do you lift it?"

"I work out." He winked then stood up. "I'm glad you came by."

"Me too." She held her hand out.

He shook his head. "You already hugged me. I figure that could be our thing."

"Our thing?"

Tobias pulled her back into his embrace.

"Yeah." He hugged her close. "Now that you won't let me be the big bad guy, I think this means you want us to be friends."

"Whoa. I'm merely a girl coming to thank a guy for saving her life." She teased. "Don't be thinking this means more than that."

"Sorry. Thought is already there." He countered, letting her go. "You're stuck with me now Chris whether you like it or not."

"Ugh, fine." She playfully grumbled. "I already deal with so many ego maniacs. What's one more?"

He opened his office door for her. "I knew you would agree."

"Just because you won this round doesn't mean you'll win them all, Dr. Carrick." Chris warned.

"Allow me to let you in on a little secret, Dr. Valentine," he leaned down close to whisper. "I win all the rounds that are important to me." Swiping up the folder he had previously been studying, he saluted her. "See you soon."

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

And finally another miniseries "What if" for Thomas Hunt and my OC. I've been inspired by rewriting And Then I Met You and decided to do the same with their story in Second Chances. Here's a peek of Amanda actually telling Thomas she is pregnant instead of storming out of his office. I've yet to come up with a title I like for it, LOL, so we'll just wait on that.

Amanda ignored the words Thomas was saying. She didn't want to hear that he had fallen for an actress. All she could focus on was her pain turning into fury. How could he have moved on so quickly?

She wanted to hit him. Never in her life had she ever wanted to hurt someone so much as she did Thomas.

She felt sick to her stomach thinking about him and Kara. The nausea reminded her that she couldn't give in to her desire. She had someone else to think of. Someone who deserved every sacrifice she knew she would have to make to keep Thomas in their child's life.

"...and that's why I am sending Kara flowers." Thomas stepped closer to her when he noticed how pale she was. "Amanda?"

Her eyes lifted to his. Taking a deep breath, she blurted out the reason she came to his office.

"I'm pregnant."

She watched as her words slowly registered. The shock of her announcement caused him to collapse in the chair she had been sitting in.

"Pregnant." He breathed. "Are you certain?"

"Yes." Amanda clasped her hands in front of her. "I wouldn't have come here if I had not had it confirmed by a doctor."

Thomas knew she wouldn't have darkened his door for anything. If there was one characteristic they shared, it was pride. Neither ever wanted to appear foolish.

He got up and took a step toward her, uncertain how he was supposed to react. "What do you intend to do?"

Tears sparked her eyes. "Well, I am going to keep the baby and I hoped..." She bit her lip while lowering her eyes. Seems he had no intention to get back together with her. "I hope you will want to be a part of our child's life."

Thomas reached for her hand. Just because he wasn't sure whether or not to try a romantic relationship with her again, it didn't mean that he didn't want to be there for her.

"I will." He promised.

Her head jerked up and she noticed that there was no condemnation towards her reflected in his expression. Though the surprise announcement had knocked him for a loop, he was at least trying to do the right thing.

Though she had hoped to hear that he wanted to try again, she was vastly relieved to hear his promise.

"Are you planning on staying in L.A. for a while?" He asked.

"I could stay a few days." She wiped her tears with her fingers. A nervous laugh escaped her. "I wasn't sure if you would want me to after I told you about the baby."

"I would like to discuss how we will work this out." He squeezed her hand before urging her to sit down. "I have some meetings that I don't think I'll be able to get out of, but how about dinner tonight at my home?"

"I don't want to interrupt your date." She struggled with the word. "I can--"

"I'm not dating anyone." Thomas explained. "That's why I told you the flowers were more of a professional courtesy than romantic in nature."

"So you and Kara Bennett?" Amanda felt a brief spark of hope. "You're not--"

"No. She's one of the actresses on an upcoming film I'm directing." He replied.

"I see." She mumbled.

"Does 7:30 sound good?" He asked.

"Yes, of course."

"Should I pick you up?" He remembered she was staying at a hotel.

"No, I'll call for a car." She got to her feet again and held her hand out. "I know you have work and a lot to think over." Her lips curved into a sad smile. "But thank you for meeting with me and hearing me out."

He came around his desk and pulled her into a hug. Realizing how hard it was for her to come here, touched something within his heart. She seemed so fragile that he felt the need to comfort her.

Hugging her was the safest way in his opinion.

She trembled in his arms before returning his hug. Struggling with her tears, she laughed.

"Forgive me. I haven't had control of my emotions these last few months. These pregnancy hormones have a mind of their own."

Thomas handed her some tissues. "No need to apologize."

She thanked him as she dabbed under her eyes. "If I'm not crying then I am losing my temper. Poor Maxwell. I practically jumped down his throat for drinking the last Sprite on the way here."

His eyebrows lifted. "Maxwell came with you?"

"Everyone came with me." She shook her head in exasperation. "They were worried that you--" she winced. "They came to support me."

"I see." He replied. Reaching out, he gently grasped her arm. "I hate to rush you, but--"

"Of course." She gathered her things. "I'll see you this evening."

He smiled at her. "I look forward to it."

#six sentence sunday #delicate #and then i left you #olivia nevarkis #dr. ethan ramsey #tobias carrick #thomas hunt #king liam #choices open heart #choices the royal romance #choices red carpet diaries #choices crackship #a second chance #what if #long post

[sandpumpkin]

The Calling...for spooky games

Inspired by the amazing selfship drawing @erupan​ did for me. Eru you lovely human bean. 

I also love the idea that Kid is terrible with anything horror. 

“I’m here!” Hana called, closing the door to the large group house of Kid and his friends. Taking her boots off in the hall, she poked her head into the living room where Kid was wrestling with a bundle of wires. Today was their weekly date evening. Kid had mentioned something about games and she remembered seeing a wii last time she was here and had brought a few games of her own “Do you need a hand?” she asked,

“”How did this even happen?!” he huffed, dropping the bundle of wires to the floor. Hana chuckled and leant down to plant a kiss into his hair,

“Maybe because you threw all your wires into a box again..” she hummed, kneeling beside him to untangle the mass of wires. “What were you trying to plug in anyway?”

“Borrowing Wire’s console..I got us a game to play..” he said, reaching for the case on the table. “Looks cool right? Zombies and shit.” he grinned excitedly, holding up the resident evil case. 

I’m so bad at zombie games..they are fun though.

Hana nodded and plugged the console in “there we go, all set.” She smiled. “I brought some games too and snacks..I baked those gingerbreads you liked-” Kid’s eyes lit up and he pulled Hana onto his lap to hug tightly, “Kiiidd.” she laughed as he nuzzled her neck playfully. 

“I’ll make coffee.” Kid lifted her onto the cough effortlessly “Oh..Killer baked too..” he added quietly, watching her out of his peripheral vision and seeing her smile excitedly. Once they were sitting comfortably on the sofa with drinks and home baked snacks in abundance, they loaded up the game. 

“I’ve only played the old ones..” Hana admitted beside him handing him the controller, “your house, you get player one first and we switch when you die..that's the rule.” she stated seriously, Kid shook his head in amusement she has such cute quirks. Once he started played heavily focused on the game 

this is fine.  He cheered himself on internally but his whole body jolted when a pair of arms slid around his bicep. Glancing down at his little orange haired pumpkin clinging to him, her eyes focused on the screen in front of them, his heart swelled like his ego. 

I..make her feel safe? Of course I do!

Though that didn’t last long..Kid’s blood ran cold and his heart was running a marathon in his chest, he jumped and fumbled the controller when a horde of zombies ran at him. 

Load from last save point?

Kid didn’t even look at her when he relinquished the controller. She laughed “I doubt I’ll do much better.” she added. Kid threw his arm protectively over her small shoulders and offered a cheeky grin. 

“Don’t worry, I got ya.” he winked, making her blush. She’s doing better already… when the game started to get intense Kid jolted and grimaced and ended up resting his head on hers hiding the game behind her soft orange hair.

“Kid are you- ARGH! NO!” Hana’s sudden yelling caught him off guard as she pulled the control closer to her to try and fight off the horde better “I died…” she sighed, hanging her head in shame. “Want to try another game?” she offered, recoiling quickly. Kid nodded and tousled her hair.

“You did good.” he nodded proudly “what else did you bring?” Hana moved from his arm and rummaged into her tote bag and produced two games for the wii. Kid felt his eye twitch when he looked at the covers. 

Ju-on fright simulator….The calling….

“They’re horror games!” she explained excitedly, plopping down beside him turning them over to look at the back “This one uses the wii remote as a phone! And you get calls from the ghosts and then they come and find you and you have to run away! Oh and the ju-on is the grudge film. It’s so scary!” she rambled holding them up to him with a bright smile. “Which one would you like to play first?” she asked. Kid reluctantly glanced between the two games and pointed at the ju-on. 

Fright simulator...simulators are stupid right? And I don’t remember the film being..great..

Hana put the game in grabbing the controllers and ran towards the door switching the lights off. 

“What are you doing?!” he asked, his voice holding a minor crack to it. 

“Oh. These are so much more fun in the dark. It’s atmospheric.” she explained, not switching the light on and carefully making her way back to him. 

Is she a masochist?! Oh shit..

“You go first..it’s your game.” Kid stated, not wanting to even humor this game. Hana nodded and started the game, it took to the first jump scary for Kid to lift Hana onto his lap wrapping his arms around her waist. This was the most apt spot for cuddlings and hiding the stupid game with her hair. 

“You won’t be able to play like that…” she chuckled. 

I have no intention of playing this...what maniac willing plays this? He glanced down at the pumpkin in his arms grimacing, her hands trembling slightly as she moved the camera around the abandoned factory. My maniac apparently.  He smirked but almost jolted out of his skin as there was a loud thud followed by an unnerving groaning and Hana yelped and flailed the wii remote around willing the player to run faster. 

“Nooooo!!!!” Hana soon sighed with relief as she had outrun the terror in the lift. “Safe-” The living room door slammed open and they both yelled in fright. Kid’s arms tensed around her, pulling her closer into his chest. 

“What are you two doing?” the light flicked on revealing Killer, Heat and Wire staring at them with a smirk on their faces. Hana started laughing nervously,

“Playing the Ju-on game! Sorry Wire I forgot to ask if I could use the wii.” 

Wire nodded, “I’ve wanted to play that mind if we join?” 

Kid huffed nonchalantly “Gladly..” he mumbled. As long as he didn’t have to play this ridiculous game. Kid caught Killer’s eyes who looked at him smuggly, Kid looked away suddenly. 

“How did you get Kid to play this?” Killer asked, taking his spot in his usual arm chair “Kid’ so bad at horror anything.” he teased.

“But..Kid was the one who suggested spooky games. They’re my speciality...well kind of..I’m really bad at them but they’re so fun!” she rambled nervously, handing the controls to Wire who sat down on the floor to carry on the game.

“We have to play this next.” Wire stated seriously, holding up The Calling “this game is so expensive. I have to play it!”

“Of course!!” Hana exclaimed excitedly, punching the air. 

Kid sighed deeply and kept his grip on Hana, resting his chin on her head reluctantly watching the screen.

So much for date night….this is okay too though…best write off sleep though..

#pumpkin writes #metalpumpkin #eustass kid #eustass kid x pumpkin #Sorry Kid!

[bbydanvers]

Baby!Danvers is struggling but her sister are here to help

Your depression always got worse around the holidays, Seasonal depression or SAD Kelly had called it. This year though was especially rough. You felt weighed down like your limbs were made of lead. You haven’t been sleeping. You haven’t been eating. You’ve forced yourself to go to work but it was all becoming too much too fast. It was only Wednesday but you just couldn’t do it anymore.

But, calling out of work proved to be a difficult task when your eldest sister was your boss. But you ended up calling winn and hoping He could process the call out without alerting Alex.

No such luck though as an hour later Alex was calling. You sighed as you rolled over and answered.

“Hey Alex” you said, thankful that your voice was groggy helping your ‘sick’ charade.

“Hey Y/N Winn told me you called in. Are you okay?” She asked with concern in her voice.

“Yeah. Yeah Alex I’m fine. Just a bad cold. Probably needs to run its course for a few days you know?”

“Oh baby girl I’m sorry. I can bring by some soup after I get off okay? Do you need anything else?” She asked.

You floundered really not wanting your sister to see you like this, “No!” You said too fast, “I mean, I just don’t want you to catch this.”

“Oh” Alex said sounding disappointed, “Kara is in metropolis babysitting for Clark tonight but I feel sure she could-“

You stopped Alex before she could continue, “No no. It’s really okay. I have everything I need, I think I just need to sleep for a few days.”

Alex thought it over for a minute, “okay, but call me or Maggie if you need ANYTHING. Okay?”

“Yeah yeah.” You said, ready for this conversation to be over.

“Okay I love you sweetie. Get some rest.” She told you before finally hanging up.

You sighed and rolled back over on the bed. You curled the duvet over you and stared forward, Drifting in and out of fitful sleep.

You stayed that way until Saturday. You didn’t eat. You barely slept. Cried on and off. You only got up to use the restroom and to get bottles of water that you barely drank. Maybe a bottle a day.

Your sisters had tried to come over but you deflected them each time.

You were bad. And you knew that. You needed help but you didn’t want your sister to be disappointed in you and you didn’t want to be a burden to them. It was an internal battle.

Saturday your thoughts were becoming dark, you didn’t want to be here anymore and you were tired.

About midday you got a text from Kelly. She had become good friends with you and your sister and your whole friend group. A few months ago you started therapy with her and she was helping, but this seasonal stuff was hard.

The text was simple, a mass text she sends every Saturday to her clients, but it’s what you needed to hear. “Asking for help is not a weakness. Lean on other when you need to. See you all this week -Kelly”

You decided to text Your sisters after that, your group text was the best option.

“I need you guys. Can you please come over when you’re free today?”

You sent the text and put your phone away, scarred of the answer. But not even half an hour later you heard a knock on your door followed by your sisters key unlocking it.

“Y/N?” Kara called as she followed Alex into your appartment.

You didn’t say anything, knowing they’d find you sooner or later.

Alex knocked on your door and cracked it open, “sweetheart, can we come in?” You didn’t have the energy to answer her but you were glad when your sister both walked into your dark room.

They both came over and sat, Kara on the bed beside you and Alex sat on the floor right by your face.

“You still sick little one?” Kara asked as she rubbed your thigh through the blankets.

You closed your eyes and shook your head no.

Alex reached up and pulled the blankets away from your bloodshot face before cupping you’re cheek, “You were never sick were you?” She asked. Not accusingly though, more in an understanding tone and that’s all it took for your damn to burst and you were sobbing.

You had cried on and off throughout the week but this was a full on sob.

Kara quickly picked you up out of the blankets and sat you on her lap, holding you close while Alex got up and sat next to you rubbing your back.

“Shhh. It’s okay. We’re here now, let it out.” Alex kept telling you while Kara gently rocked you.

You felt like a toddler who needed her mom when you reached out, still sobbing, for Alex.

“Come here.” Alex said as she sat against the headboard. Kara brought you up to her and sandwiched you between them.

You sobbed for half an hour before you calmed down. Alex and Kara whispering to you and comforting you the whole time.

“Y/D sweetheart, it’s okay if you can’t talk but I need you to at least nod your head yes or no for me okay?” Alex asked once you were calm.

You nodded your head to let her know you we’re listening and squeezed Kara’s hand.

“Have you been out of bed since Wednesday?” Alex asked first and you shook your head no.

“Have you eaten at all?” Again you shook your head.

“Have you showered?” But she knew the answer.

“Last one baby girl. What about water have you had water?” And you nodded your head this time bowing towards the water bottle on your side table that only had a swallow out of it.

“Okay. Thank you for answering. You’re doing so well. Sissy and I are going to help you feel better okay?” She asked using Kara’s nickname you’d given her when she first arrived on earth.

“What can I do to help?” Kara asked her older sister.

“Can you help me get her in the bath and then find us some juice and food while I bathe her?” Alex asked

“Of course.” Kara said, “Y/N, baby, I’m going to move you now okay?”

You nodded and Kara gently picked you up and took you to the bathroom, sitting you down on the closed toilet seat. Alex was right behind with towels and fresh pajamas in hand.

“Thanks Kara. Can you see if she has any juice while I get the water ready?” Alex asked.

“Sure thing. I’ll be right back.”

Once she left Alex started the water and started to undress you slowly. She didn’t talk and for that you were thankful.

Kara came back in with a cup of apple juice a few seconds later and held it up to your lips. You loved apple juice but it didn’t taste like anything unfortunately. You pushed the cup away and sighed.

“All done?” Kara asked concerned that you only took a few sips.

You nodded and she turned to Alex, “Alex she only had a sip.”

Alex turned with a sad smile, “that’s okay. As long as she had a sip with some sugar in it. We can try again after the bath. Can you help me get her in?”

Kara nodded before she gently picked you up and sat you in the tub. She kissed your forehead before standing up, “I’m going to figure out dinner.”

“Thank you Kara” Alex said as she knelt down to turn off the water.

Alex took her time in washing you, making sure to scrub gently yet firm and she took extra time to clean out your hair.

“Alright. Lean back one more time for the last hair rinse. I know you don’t like anyone touching your hair, but it needed to be clean sweetheart.”

You did as she said and soon you were out of the tub and dressed in new pajamas. You don’t know how you got there but eventually you ended out on the couch with your sisters trying to feed you. Pizza and potstickers, comfort food courtesy of Kara. You had two potstickers and a bite of pizza before you felt sick, but that was enough to please your sisters.

“Good girl.” Kara said as she took your plate to the kitchen.

She sat back down and you cuddled into her shoulder. Alex was on your other side rubbing soothing circles on your back.

“I know it’s hard, baby girl. But you did so good today. We’ll be right here until you’re ready to talk.”

You just nodded and weakly croaked out a “thank you.”

You finally slept that night curled around both of your sisters. The depression was bad, but you had support and you we’re going to get through this.

—————

Hope you enjoyed!! If you have Any requests send them my way :)

#baby danvers #alex danvers #kara danvers #kelly olsen #supergirl

[creative-poptart]

What do you think US!Papyrus would do if his S/O ran in giggling and fell on the floor but then his bro ran in yelling that the floor was lava and started screaming about how S/O was gunna get burnt up and she was trying to save herself but was having a laughing fit and couldn’t get up and crawled over to the couch and all over Papyrus saying half her body is gone. basically Papyrus’ S/O and his bro being silly and once she starts laughing she can’t stop. Cheesy but my heart loves it 😂

Stretch was half sprawled on the couch, flipping through the channels on the Surface television with mild interest only. There had been so much of this world that he had yet to explore, though he wasn’t exactly sure what some of these things were. Lots of the shows were almost as bad as Napstaton’s performances in the Underground. Regardless, the Surface had much more variety than the Underground’s singular channel had ever had to begin with. For now, it was filler, something to break the silence of the house and create a reasonable noise that was easily ignored if that was so desired.

A set of poorly contained giggles caught the tall skeleton’s attention, and he turned his skull to look back towards the kitchen. Both you and Blue were hanging out in there, trying to get lunch ready for the three of you together, but it sounded like that had been put to a stop, at least for the time being. Stretch would usually pay it no mind, but the giggling continued and piqued his curiosity. Before he could get up however, he heard a shout of something awful familiar.

“THE FLOOR IS LAVA!!” 

Ah, yes. That was the favorite game of the little Ambassador to monsterkind, Chara. They loved to pull that prank on anyone and everyone, after explaining what it meant first of course. You had already known about it, and the moment that Chara reintroduced it to your imagination, you hadn’t quit trying to implement it. Blue had even been roped into it by you telling him that it was a test of his speed and agility on the fly. He had heartily taken to that explanation, but now the two of you ended up yelling it at any time they felt like it, resulting in mass chaos in their friend group and some funny videos. Stretch had never really been one for the game, choosing instead to make some magma and rock related puns so that he could weasel his way out. 

There were some squeals and shrieks from the pair in the kitchen, laughter soon following with a mild thump of someone landing on something. Stretch could only shake his head and smile to himself at the antics of you and his brother. He certainly wasn’t complaining about this, as he loved to see the goofy and regular sides of you. A series of rapidly approaching footsteps came out of the kitchen, and Blue was shouting something.

“NO!! YOU’RE GOING TO BURN UP (Y/N)!! DON’T STEP IN THE LAVA!!!” 

You tumbled dramatically to the floor in front of the television, giggling madly with a huge grin splitting your face in two. As much as Stretch wanted to make a joke about the lava on the floor, or perhaps how you had been falling for him, he couldn’t bring himself to do it. Your radiant joy was too brilliant for him to ruin it with a pun right now, so he settled instead for chuckling at how silly the two of you were being. In an overly dramatic and unnecessarily painstaking manner, you dragged yourself over to the couch, complete with groans and false screams that were broken by near incessant giggling. Blue was laughing too at your antics while he perched carefully on the armchair in the corner to avoid the “lava” on the floor. 

After a few moments, you managed to drag your upper half over to drape yourself dramatically over Stretch’s lap, one hand flung out to the side with flair. He was having a bit of trouble containing his laughter, though he managed to get away with just a simple grin instead, though it was beginning to break. You looked up at him and flopped out your tongue as well, adding a half dying sound effect that was very comedic. 

“Stretch, I’m dyyyyyyinnnnggg,” you lamented in the most exaggerated format ever. “I got burnt up by the lava, I’m only a torso right noooooowww.”

Stretch allowed what little self control he had left slip as his grin widened on his face. Blue eyed him curiously, then became stern, knowing full well what that look meant.

“BROTHER, DON’T-”

“you sure your left side didn’t get all burned up instead? because-”

“DON’T YOU DARE FINISH THAT SENTENCE!! I MEAN IT!”

“you look all right to me!”

Both you and Stretch broke out into laughter while Blue groaned in the armchair, sliding dramatically off of it and onto the floor. He proclaimed himself dead by puns and lava, blaming Stretch for his untimely and unmagnificent demise. That only made you two laugh harder, and before long, everyone in the room was laughing mirthfully. The taller skeleton pulled you up into his lap fully to plant a small kiss against your cheek and cuddle you close.

“stars, i love you, please don’t ever change.” You were more than happy to plant a kiss on his cheekbone in response, resting your forehead against his skull affectionately.

“Don’t worry, I won’t.”

#undertale #undertale imagines #undertale headcanons #underswap sans #underswap papyrus #underswap #underswap papyrus/reader #poptartasks #tarts answers

[malisonquill]

Half-Raptor Rex (and Emmet)'s Biology

So to start things off, Rex is roughly half raptor. For the purposes of making things simpler, I'm gonna refer to him as being half and half, but that's probably not the case. He didn't set out to be a hybrid when he altered himself to be stronger, that was an accident, so he had no say over just how raptor-y he ended up. I would say when you take into account his looks and all his behaviour and stuff it does work out to being half human and raptor. But physically? He's definitely more human. After all, his body structure looks pretty human. He's still got a very human looking torso, head, and arms. It's just his extremities (his legs, hands, and addition of a tail) that are far more raptor looking. That's why when I draw him, those raptor-y parts fade to a darker shade of blue. So like, raptor parts = darker blue like how the raptors have, human parts = lighter blue similar in tone to what his normal human skin colour would be. (That's excluding his markings of course. They don't count in that and they're all over him.)

And whilst we're on the subject, let's first take a look at his outward appearance!

So the stripes. They start on his neck near the base of his skull, run all the way down his back/ spine, and down his tail. Then there's more stripes on his shoulders, that run down his bicep and the top of his forearm and hands, stopping at his knuckles. He's also got stripes that start at his hips and go down the sides of his thighs, all the way down to stop near his ankle/ where his trousers end. (Hmm… I should probably draw a ref for all that at some point 😏)

Then like I said before, all his extremities go to a darker blue at the ends. You can see this on most pics of him I've done.

Then of course there's his strength. He's very strong, very buff, and also very tall (I’d say he’s about 7’6” and you can see his height in comparison to Lucy in this pic). I don't constantly jokingly refer to him as "beefman" for nothing! xD Cuddlesome summed it up best in her fic: 

“Dumbbells and barbells had long since stopped being a challenge for his mutated body to handle, so he’d taken to power lifting with the Rex-wing fighters. It’s the only thing that poses even a bit of a challenge to his massive arms.”

Strength was the aspect he was going for and most hoping to improve when he changed himself, so of course he’s physically very strong. To workout, he either has to lift very heavy objects or maybe use some kind of sci-fi dumbbells that can have their gravity increased (like in that one episode of Futurama). People pose no challenge for him to lift. He could easily carry both Emmet and Lucy over his shoulders, or under his arms if he wanted to and be able to keep that up for a long time. (Here’s a doodle/ wip of him doing that. Rex is a tad too big in it tho.)

He mostly uses his physical Dino strength when it comes to him master breaking. He only uses the more mystical "destroy a temple in one punch" kind of thing in rare circumstances when he's incredibly mad. Because his dino strength is enough most of the time. 

But before I can talk more about physical stuff and behavioural traits, I first gotta talk about my headcanons for Rex’s/ the Lego Movie-verse raptors. 

Now real velociraptors were covered in feathers and about the size of a turkey, only coming up to about the average adult human’s knee. Obviously the Lego Movie raptors are a LOT BIGGER and much more based off the Jurassic Park interpretation. 

So I came up with the idea that the movie raptors are a subspecies that are a lot larger. It’s a fictional world after all, you can take liberties. Though despite me doing that, I have tried to include as much real science as I can. So for example, real raptors apparently went from hatched to fully grown in about a year. And as the movie raptors are 3/ 3 ½ times bigger than a normal raptor, I think they’d take 3-4 years to fully grow. They eat a lot in that time to grow big real quick.

As for noises they make, I think they make many different sounds. They can roar, screech, growl, chirp, hiss, all that stuff. 

And for their behaviour, they obviously act like dinosaurs. So they’d do a lot of lizardy/ snakey/ crocodile-like things. But the movie has them act like dogs too, what with how they go after tennis balls and all. And personally I’ve given them some cat like aspects too xD Like with their slitted eyes going wide in fear or at something they like. So their behaviour to me is kind of a melting pot of all that.

And so of course, how does that apply to half-raptor Rex?

Well let’s start with behaviour. He has a lot of raptor instincts, and they can overpower his rational thinking when his emotions get too intense. Which is why he has a fairly good handle on controlling his feelings. Using things like meditation techniques to calm himself down is very important when you can do a lot of damage when their left unchecked. Or conversely, if the situation calls for it, he can let himself go entirely to unleash maximum destruction. 

The most obvious example with his heightened emotions is anger. He gets angry, he’s gonna growl and snarl. He starts off with quiet growls when he’s only a little angry, and would react like a human would mostly. If he was fighting someone at this point, he’d be using normal things like punches and martial arts techniques. But the angrier he gets, the more he loses control and the more raptor-like he acts. So when he’s furious and out of control, he does a lot of roaring, growling, snarling and goes into raptor fighting mode. Claws and fangs and kicks with his feet are used. (Also apparently scientists think that raised claw raptors have was so it’d be constantly sharp. So… he could use that in a fight >:3).

But raptor behaviour taking over his rational human behaviour doesn’t just apply to anger. It applies to all of his emotions. Fear can make him go wide eyed and whine, or super happy makes him go into raptor puppy/kitty mode. Some days he’ll get in a sad mood and follow Lucy and/or Emmet around like a sad puppy. He mopes and whines if they leave him (for too long). He'll just want to sit near them if they want to do their own thing, or cuddle until he feels less mopey. 

Raptor instincts taking over like that could help as a kind of defensive thing. Tho probably annoys Rex more than anything xD Like you know, if he's just trying to be chill and normal, but then someone throws a tennis ball and he has to REALLY restrain himself xD

Now obviously being around pretty much just the raptors for years, he picks up a lot of their behaviours and is more prone to doing them unconsciously. He’s generally more aggressive, but that’s probably more his normal Rex anger being heightened by the raptor-ness. He’s defensive of his food, he’ll hiss or growl involuntarily a lot, swish his tail at things, his pupils will change, etc. 

The raptors probably taught him how to ‘properly hunt’ as well. Which thinking about it, the image of him running alongside a group of them as they teach him and chase something down is almost cute? But he himself is probably gonna only take down small things. Taking down a big animal with a group of raptors might be a bit too raptory for him to want to do. Tho he probably did it at least once to see what it was like. (Also on the note of hunting, because he’s so equipped to do it, eventually during his redemption, he becomes a bounty hunter, but more on that in another post…)

All these raptor like things that he does, he only becomes really aware of post movie, when he’s hanging around Emmet and Lucy. He realises just how much humanity he’s lost after spending time with them. It hurts. It makes him loathe what he’s done to himself even more. 

But those two will help him act more human again. They can pull him up on behaviours and help him, and he’s grateful for that. Any little thing to make him feel ‘normal’ makes him feel better.

Now about some more physical stuff. 

When he’s standing still, he’ll let the end of his tail rest on the floor. Unless the floor is super dirty, then he might lift it up or curl it around a leg to keep it elevated. When he’s walking he’ll lean his torso forward slightly and lift his tail up. When he’s running at full tilt, his tail is out straight behind him and he leans forward a lot. (Almost like Naruto running xD but his arms are forward.)

Diet wise, he needs more meat than a human. He’s still an omnivore, but with a lean towards the carnivorous side. So he does need a balance of foods. And he can’t last on a meat free diet. If he tried to be totally vegetarian (not that he would xD) he would get sick or malnourished in only a few weeks. He can’t live on just veggies. And conversely, he can eat raw meat, more so than a human could, but if he tried to eat nothing but raw meat in his meals, he’d make himself ill with food poisoning after a week or two. Also to keep up his muscle mass, and also just because he’s a very big guy, he needs to eat big meals. Lots of protein, that kind of thing. 

So on that note of food, he’s got a lot of fangs to deal with eating meat, and if he was hunting prey, and that’s mostly at the front, but he does still have some flatter molars at the back of his mouth. Also he can open his mouth quite wide and has very strong jaw muscles for clamping down on things. 

His eyes are obviously raptor/ cat-like, so he can see in the dark quite well. 

His skin is rougher and feels a bit like soft scales. It’s gotta be tough you see. Means he isn’t as injured by light scratches. And the more raptor parts of him have tougher/ more scale like texture. 

He isn’t cold blooded, but in some ways he is a bit? He is a lot more sluggish in cold weather. He hates being out in it, and avoids it at all costs. He’s more susceptible to the cold too and can have trouble keeping up his body temperature in cold environments. He needs to wrap up warm and can’t stay out in the snow or something for as long as a human could. 

He can make all those sounds the raptors can, and speak and understand raptor fluently. Sometimes he talks like this instead of using words by mistake. He’s just so used to the raptors for company. 

“How many T-Rex jokes does he have to deal with?”

Mostly the raptors joke about that to annoy him if he wants them to do something they don’t want to do. But if they piss him off too much by doing that, they quickly do as they're told. He’s like their Alpha. He’s the boss, and you don’t mess with the boss 0-0

Lucy would joke about that too. He begrudgingly lets her get away with it more than he otherwise would.

Now for some Emmet stuff!

Emmet as a half raptor is still pretty sweet, but if he gets aggravated he can snap a lot more easily and violently than he would as a human. He doesn’t have any control over his feelings/ instincts like Rex does. Rex could hold himself back if someone threw a tennis ball for him. Emmet would case after it, catch it, and not realise he’s done that till it’s in his mouth and he’s chewing on it. He does a lot of things like that involuntarily. 

But for the most part, Emmet is like a giant puppy. Playful, clumsy, likes to chew on things he shouldn’t. It’s cute.  

And that’s pretty much all I can think of for now!

#Roarsome Rex AU #i spent a long time on writing this ;-; #rex dangervest #tlm2 au #tlm2 #lego movie 2 #lego movie #emmet brickowski #My writing #mali speaks

[jadorehale]

just dudes being bros

I found this deeeeep within my computer folders. I remember writing it in 2016 while the anime was airing and then not liking it but I just did a quick read and ehh it's not the worst thing I've ever written {ao3}

Figure Skating News: Five-time world champion coach, Victor Nikiforov, and protégée, Katsuki Yuuri, share friendly congratulations peck at Cup of China.

The Daily Mail: 7 Things You Need to Know About Victor Nikiforov and Yuuri Katsuki’s Gold Medal Friendship!

People Magazine: Spotted: Victor Nikiforov & Yuuri Katsuki snuggling closely on ‘bros date’ at Barcelona’s most romantic restaurant!

ESPN: Yuuri Katsuki chimes in on why relationship with world-famous coach, Victor Nikiforov, has been a success! “Victor and I make love multiple times a day,” the figure skater says. These two seem to be the best of friends!

❄

“How come it doesn’t bother you that the international media is still portraying our relationship as platonic? Do you even care?”

“No. Not really.”

“But they’re refusing to take our relationship seriously!”

“So?”

“And all those weird pictures they print of us making out, they keep calling them ‘friendly embraces.’”

“Well, our mouths are great friends at this point.”

“Victor!” Yuuri whined with a pout.

“Yuuuuuri!” Victor sang back, grinning.

While it was true that Yuuri was most adorable when he was angry and riled up, Victor sure wished that Yuuri would put all that fire into preparing for his competition instead of looking up pointless crap to get upset about on his phone. Today was the day of Grand Prix Final free skate and no one knew more than Victor how badly Yuuri wanted that gold medal. As his coach, Victor’s sole focus was on making sure Yuuri’s body was one-hundred percent ready for his program. Which was why he really needed Yuuri to focus on stretching and warming up.

However, as a boyfriend, it really irritated Victor to see Yuuri concerning himself with the silly tabloids that were being written about them. Victor had no idea what Yuuri wanted him to say about the issue or if he was just seeking out validation for his indignation. In truth, Victor didn’t give a crap. If you’d asked him a year ago if he’d ever imagined him and Yuuri becoming an item, he would’ve said no. He’d never dreamed he could be so lucky to be in a relationship with Yuuri, who he’d been head over heels for since the night they first met. So, it was quite difficult for him to care about any negative things people had to say.

“But aren’t you the one who loves attention?” Yuuri stressed. “If the press caught wind of how it really is between the two of us, it would be a media frenzy!”

“Well, short of Phichit Chulanont, the paparazzi are the second best photographers in the world.”

He grabbed the phone from Yuuri’s hand and scrolled through the article until he stopped on a photo of the two of them leaving their hotel, fingers laced together as they shielded their eyes from the sea of flashing cameras.

He held the photo out to Yuuri and said, “Look, how cute! We should have it framed!”

Since he was about to skate, Yuuri didn’t have his glasses on and had to squint to view the photo clearly. When he finally did see the shot that Victor had been raving about, his face fell and he sent Victor a flat look. “Victor, you’re the only one that looks good in this picture.”

“Exactly!” Victor beamed. Someone should’ve told Yuuri that he had a big, fat booger hanging from his nose and spinach in his teeth before he’d been photographed. That person probably should’ve been Victor. But Victor always managed to look like a model in candids, flashing the crowd his signature wink as he casually flipped his hair. “Who knew there’d be such talent in a group of professional camera-holding stalkers.”

Along with his now ritualistic pre-game cry and cuddle session, Yuuri had developed an unhealthy habit of googling nasty things being said about him on the internet to get revved up. For anyone else, this action would seem conceited and egotistical. But for Yuuri, seeing how much people hated him and were attacking him for stealing Victor from the sport online made him even more determined to succeed and show the world that only he could satisfy Victor. It was ridiculous, and absurd, and Victor would be putting an end to it once the Grand Prix Finals were over. However, he wasn’t about to halt anything that could potentially help Yuuri in his fight for gold. But, Yuuri had read enough offensive, anonymous, cyber-bullying comments for one day.

Victor tossed the phone over his shoulder without bothering to see where it landed and ignored Yuuri’s outraged cries. He got a firm grip of Yuuri’s knees and drew them down toward his chest, stretching out his hamstrings.

“My phone screen had better not be cracked!”

“Uspokoit'sya! Don’t worry. You have an Otterbox case. They’re indestructible.” Victor glanced back and saw that a crowd of people were now trampling over the phone, kicking it along as they went but felt no dire urge to chase after it. “No more news headlines,” he told Yuuri sternly. “We need you in the zone for your free skate. Now, give me fifty sit-ups.”

Groaning loudly, Yuuri did as he was told, exercising his abdominal muscles as Victor anchored his feet. It was amazing how far Yuuri had come under his tutelage. Not that Yuuri needed Victor in the first place. He had more than enough potential and talent to do this all on his own. For Victor, it was an honor to watch Yuuri flourish into such an impressive skater. This was the most fun Victor had ever had in his career. Far more enthralling than his own successes. He lived to surprise the masses, and if there was anyone that could shock the world with such a strong comeback after placing dead last the previous year, it was Katsuki Yuuri.

“Twenty more, little piggy,” Victor instructed, proud when Yuuri continued without complaining.

On his last one, he leaned forward and crashed his lips against Victor’s which was a very welcomed surprised. Victor hummed when the kiss turned bold, parting his lips as Yuuri’s tongue licked obscenely into his mouth. Positive reinforcement was important to Victor as a coach and Yuuri deserved a reward for his good behavior.

He’d almost forgotten they were in public until he heard, “Look mommy! Those boys are in love!”

Pulling away, Victor turned and saw a little girl gawking at them with wide eyes and pointing a chubby little finger in their direction. She couldn’t have been more than four-years-old and was so darn cute that Victor was seriously contemplating kidnapping her. She tugged on her mom’s skirt, demanding her attention, and pointed again for her mother to see when Victor closed the distance and placed a soft kiss on Yuuri’s cheek.

“Honey! Haven’t I told you it’s so rude to point!” Her mother quickly swatted her hand down, blushing from severe embarrassment as she began to explain, “They’re not in love. It’s just a good luck kiss between coach and skater. It happens all the time. No way notorious playboy Victor Nikiforov is off the market.”

Victor didn’t need to see Yuuri’s face to know that his expression had darkened. He already knew Yuuri wouldn’t take kindly to that sort of remark and that he’d be furious. The media was always spreading falsehoods. Victor was not a notorious playboy. He was very much the monogamous sort.

The woman looked over at them, cheeks a bright red as she waved. “We’re rooting for you, Katsuki Yuuri! Longtime fan, Mr. Nikiforov. Can I just say that you’re so much sexier in person! Hope to see you back next season!”

She fluttered her lashes seductively and blew him a kiss before flouncing off with her daughter, not at all aware of the damage she’d just wrought. The little girl was still wide-eyed as she was dragged away. It seemed like she hadn’t believed a word her mother had said. Smart girl. Her young curiosity made him smile, reminding him of how he once was as a child. All those long, long, long, long years ago...

With a deep sigh, he turned back to Yuuri, already flinching as he caught the hard set of Yuuri’s jaw and the burning rage behind his eyes. He failed to hide his amused smirk and earned himself an impressive lethal glare.

“Jealous?” he asked.

“You know damn well I am!” Yuuri scowled and hopped up onto his feet.

He turned his back to Victor and continued warming up, running back and forth. His shoulders were tense as he jogged and he was muttering to himself bitterly. Victor moved closer to listen, trying to decipher just what was being said.

“So, it’s not just news reporters, then,” Yuuri was grumbling to himself. “It’s the general public as well. Is it that hard for people to believe that Victor and I are in love? That Victor would want to be in a relationship with me? I need to remember that the outside world only gets to see his good looks and it is I who gets to see the true beauty of his heart. It’s his love shining through that has helped me improve the most. We have something special and amazing and if people can’t see our love then I’ll just have to make them feel it by winning the gold medal!”

“Awwwwwww!!” Victor gushed. Yuuri was seriously the cutest. He just had to hop on top of him and squeeze and hug him tight. “What an adorable internal monologue. Tell me, is this how you always talk in your head?”

“Get. Off. Me!” Yuuri picked himself up from the floor and brushed himself off.  

Victor frowned, pressing a lip to his finger as he tried to figure out how to get back into Yuuri’s good graces. No one would think from just looking at him that Yuuri was such a high-maintenance partner. A part of him loved that Yuuri was a huge drama queen, quick to get jealous over Victor and feel the need to stake his claim. But another part of him couldn’t stand the thought of Yuuri being upset or insecure.

The petulant glower on Yuuri’s face didn’t look like it would be going away anytime soon, which wasn’t ideal in this specific circumstance. The judges definitely wouldn’t find it as cute as Victor did. He was preparing to get down on his knees and beg for forgiveness when Yuuri grabbed him by his very expensive tie and yanked him down to his level.

For a moment, Victor thought Yuuri had only pulled him this close so he could clobber him, but like always, Yuuri took the unexpected route. Which naturally made it impossible for Victor to predict what he was thinking as he began sucking a large bruise on the side of Victor’s neck.

Just as abruptly as Yuuri had grabbed him and reeled him in, he curtly let him go. His face flushed as he avoided Victor’s eyes and stammered, “T—There. That way no one else will be throwing themselves at you. They’ll know you’re mine.”

Victor couldn’t help being extremely delighted by this display and his brain quickly devised a plan. “Hmm, I really don’t think just one will do…You should put one over here too.”

Feigning innocence, he pointed at another spot on his neck, arching so Yuuri could mark there.

“How about here! And here! Oh, there’s good too! Also, here! Da, there too

“Jesus Christ, Victor!” A voice cried. A voice whose owner was just so happened to be flamboyantly Swiss.

“What’s happened to your neck?! Don’t tell me this is some kind of career-ending injury,” Chris gasped. “I don’t think I can make it through another competition season without you.”

“They’re love bites!” Victor presented proudly, showing off the fresh marks littered across his skin. “From my Yuuri.”

He noticed Yuuri trying to slink away and flee the scene of the crime. But before he could go far, Victor locked an arm around his waist and hauled him back to his side. That way Yuuri would have to own up to his work. What he’d done to Victor’s neck was nothing short of a masterpiece. He’d truly left his signature.

Victor turned back to Chris, elaborating, “See, my Yuuri’s very upset that the media isn’t taking our romance seriously.”

“Ah, yes! I’m afraid they’ve done the same thing with my bisexual Bernese Mountain dog, Hans,” Chris commiserated, pulling out his phone and showing them an article on his pooch written by The Inquisitor. “Completely erased his sexuality to fit into some toxic heteronormative box. I showed him a picture of Maccachin and he was absolutely smitten! We should get them together and see if they hit it off. That way, we can be…”

“IN-LAWS!!” Victor shrieked at the same time Chris did.

They squealed excitedly, jumping up and down as they chattered away about wedding plans. They discussed where Hans and Maccachin would vacation on their honeymoon. Victor had heard Fiji was lovely this time of year and Maccachin, the groom-to-be just adored laying out on the beach. He was a real beach bum with expensive tastes and only enjoyed the finest cuisines. He was a lot like his owner in that way.

In the midst of his conversation with Chris, Victor noticed Yuuri from the corner of his eye, slumping and staring down at the floor.

“Oh, Yuuri, don’t think too much into the media thing,” Chris said, reaching out and pinching Yuuri’s left butt cheek. A trick that was very effective in removing that sad, dejected expression from Yuuri’s face, replacing it with scandalized one. “News reporters can be so oblivious sometimes. Only seeing what they want to see. Every skater here knows how in love the two of you are. You’ve got tons of teenage girls on social media ‘shipping’ you. They’ve named you…Victuuri!”

“Victuuri? Eh!! Why does Victor’s name get to go first?!”

“Because I’m the one that fell in love first!”

“Please, not that again,” Yuuri sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Don’t start that argument here before I have to skate. I already told you, I’m sorry I didn’t remember that night!”

“You completely wounded my pride!” Victor harrumphed. “I can’t believe you don’t remember our dancing!”

Chris snickered then declared, “Maybe it’s good that the media doesn’t take you guys seriously. The world already hates you for hogging Victor as your coach. Men and women everywhere will hate you even more if they find out you’ve stolen his heart as well. You’re a very selfish man, Katsuki Yuuri. Adieu!”

With one last ‘good luck’ pinch to Yuuri’s exquisite rump, Chris sauntered off, rejoining his coach and the rest of his entourage. Which left Victor and Yuuri to return to stringently readying Yuuri to take the ice. Sure, it might seem like they were going a little overboard but they were both aware of how important it was for Yuuri to nail every jump in his routine and execute his presentation perfectly.

On the outside, Victor exuded nothing but positive energy and optimism, but on the inside, he was a nervous wreck. He worried that Yakov might be right. That he wouldn’t be able to pull off this massive victory his first time as a coach. It would kill him if, for some unfortunate reason, they missed the podium. Victor didn’t want to lose the opportunity to pair skate with Yuuri at his gala exhibition. And poor Yuuri; what would become of his spirit if he failed? Obviously, Victor wasn’t going to let that happen, but what if it did. He refused to let Yuuri take any of the blame. He’d take full responsibility as his coach.

Victor watched Yuuri silently lacing up his skates, not liking how solemn and morose he was so close to his free skate. It was often difficult for Victor to get into Yuuri’s head and figure out what was going on with him. Which was a telling sign that he was a terrible coach. After all, this was it! Potentially Yuuri’s last performance before he retired from figure-skating. Though, if Victor had his way, Yuuri would never retire. Still, it made sense that Yuuri would be in such a mood being on the brink of making history.

“Have I really stolen your heart?”

Victor’s head snapped up sharply. “…What does that mean?”

One day in the future, Victor hoped Yuuri would stop asking him such provoking questions. Even though they both spoke fluent English—their best common language—Victor planned on purchasing Rosetta Stone. That way he could learn Japanese and finally understand Yuuri. It was evident that he wasn’t speaking English well enough. Not with the way Yuuri was constantly doubting his love.

Yuuri’s voice was barely a whisper as he fiddled with his thumbs, not looking up. “I mean, will I get to keep it forever?”

“Of course.”

Victor wasn’t remotely surprised when Yuuri huffed and rolled his eyes. “How do you know?”

Victor shrugged. “I just do.”

“But how?!”

Exasperated, Victor placed a hand on his hip. “What’s gotten into you? Why the sudden mood swing? Is it the news outlets? Because them not acknowledging that we’re together doesn’t mean anything. Listen to me and not them! I refuse to live without you. I won’t stand for it.”

“But what if after I retire, I let myself go and gain a ton of weight? Or what if we lose our romantic spark and you get bored of me? There’s nothing exciting to keep you here. What if in a couple of years, you wake up and realize this was a huge mistake? I’m a terrible nag and at the same time a giant hypocrite. I’m messy and horrible at cleaning up after myself. What if all we do is fight and bicker and you start to hate me? I majorly lack self-confidence. What if that starts to annoy you too? Me always doubting myself can be a hassle. Hell, I’m doubting myself right now!”

Victor opened and closed his mouth a few times, gaping like a fish. Yuuri had some nerve trying to convince him to stop loving him. He stepped forward and leaned his forehead against Yuuri’s, cupping his cheek. “I think you already know nothing you come up with will change how I feel about you. Am I right?”

“But—” Yuuri protested.

“Nothing,” Victor repeated firmly.

Yuuri peered into his eyes for a moment longer, eventually giving up and sagging his shoulders. “I believe you.”

Yuuri inched closer, his long lashes fluttering closed as he went to give Victor a kiss. But before their lips could meet, Victor stopped and asked, “What about me?”

“Hmm?” Yuuri blinked multiple times when he opened his eyes.

“Will you always love me?”

“Of course!” Yuuri snorted, waving it off as an unserious question then tried to kiss Victor again.

Victor evaded his lips. “Even when all my hair turns gray?”

“Er…um…” Yuuri squirmed uncomfortably, distress in his eyes as he fumbled for the right words. “How— How do I say this? All your hair is already…um…gray...er…silver…?”

“What?!?” Victor cried, his mouth falling open as he reached up and tentatively touched his hair like he was noticing this for the first time. He kept the act up for a couple of seconds before throwing his head back and laughed at how scared Yuuri looked, then dodged a punch to the arm when Yuuri realized he was being insincere.

“I’m just kidding,” Victor snickered, “And my hair is platinum, not gray. But on the subject of getting older, my mother’s side is prone to male pattern baldness. What if the thin spot on the top of my head gets bigger and all my hair falls out? Or what if I don’t age as well as I’m expected to and forget to use under eye cream at night and develop crow’s feet? What if I have to get Botox, or worse, a full facial reconstruction! Will you love me with a new face? What about my fashion sense? What if I lose that too and start walking around in mix-matched patterns and socks with sandals? Will you still love me if I walked around in socks and sandals? What if, Yuuri!!”

“Wow,” Yuuri commented as Victor panted, needing a minute to catch his breath after his rant. “All your concerns are very superficial.”

“Comfort me, Yuuri!” Victor wailed and threw himself into Yuuri’s arms, sighing contently as they immediately wrapped him up securely. Victor buried his face into the side of Yuuri’s neck, feeling at home with the first inhale of Yuuri’s fruity cologne. Never had he felt so safe from the dangers that were inevitable aging.

Yuuri chuckled, pressing a light kiss to Victor’s temple and whispered, “You’ve changed my whole life, Victor. Of course, I’ll be here till the end with you.”

“D’awwwwwww!”

A chorus of cooing echoed from all around them. Victor and Yuuri both jumped at the racket and discovered that not only was everybody leering at them, they were also shamelessly eavesdropping.

“Our wedding vows are going to be so much better than theirs, right babe?” JJ boasted, slinging an arm over his fiancé’s shoulder.

With the exception of JJ and an absent Yurio, the rest of the crowd was in tears. In fact, if Victor hadn’t known any better, he would’ve thought this was a funeral. A box of tissues was being passed around as people sobbed and blubbered, some even crying their mascara off. Most notably amongst the mourners was Otabek Altin. He was the last person Victor would’ve expected to be moved by such an overt demonstration of eternal love. Mainly, because he was Yurio’s new friend and to apply for the job, one must already have their cold dead heart locked in a steel volt in the Himalayas and be committed to hating everything.

Naturally, JJ saw this as an opportunity to plug his new project. “The ghostwriter who wrote my book, Ice Jewel—which comes out January 20th, so stop by your nearest Chapters to pick up a copy or pre-order online—will come up with something a lot less cliché and contrived. Right babe?”

“Shh!!” His fiancé slapped a hand over his mouth, “That was the most romantic thing I’ve ever witnessed. I want to die!”

Victor quickly stepped back from Yuuri and tried to laugh the moment off but was sweating too profusely to be convincing. Yuuri’s face was getting redder by the second and looked like it was about to combust. This was not how they wanted their competitors to see them. They were supposed to be exhibiting that they were at the top of their game, ready to take the world by storm and crush everything in sight. Or at least that’s what Yakov had always taught him to do.

“It’s almost time for you to skate, little piggy. So, get back to work,” Victor decreed. “This is a direct order from your coach. Not your handsome doting lover who spoils you rotten. I won’t have any slackers!”

Who was he kidding? He never acted like a real coach before, so why start now?

Yuuri grimaced. “It’s so embarrassing when you say that word.”

“What word?” Victor asked then scoffed, “Lover? How else would you like me to describe it? No wonder the media doesn’t think we’re together. This world is way too sexually repressed!”

"Yeah, yeah,” Yuuri said, no longer paying him any mind. “Now, just where did you throw my phone?”

So maybe it was a little mean of Victor to let Yuuri search for his phone all on his own knowing that Yuuri wasn’t wearing his glasses. But it was just so funny watching Yuuri bumbling around, eyes scrunched up as they uselessly inspected the floor. Eventually, Yuuri located the phone after two failed attempts, picking up a discarded coke can and an empty water bottle at first. It was impressive that even though the phone had traveled long and far there wasn’t a single ounce of damage, thanks to the case. Victor should totally see if he could get Yuuri an Otterbox sponsorship. After all, sex sells and he knew Yuuri would be able to sell a ton of phone cases with an evocative television ad.

A wild idea suddenly sparked in his mind. One he knew Yuuri definitely wasn’t going to like. Still, this idea had Victor pulling out his own phone and opening his camera app. He snapped a picture with a flash just as Yuuri was bending down to pick something up.

“Eh?! Victor” Yuuri swiveled around and rushed back over to him. “W-What are you doing?!”

“Posting a picture of your juicy bottom on my Instagram.”

“Why?!”

“Because I’d like the world to see how nice and juicy it is.”

“Victor!” Yuuri whined and made a grab for the phone.

“Yuuuuuri!” Victor sang back and kept it out of reach. “Look, I’ve written a risqué caption full of Eros! Maybe the media will see this picture and a news story will break about our insatiable lust for one another?”

“Give it to me right now!” Yuuri grounded out through his teeth and held out his hand.

Thinking it wasn’t worth the spat, Victor handed it over. He expected Yuuri to take the phone and delete the picture immediately, but instead, Yuuri’s fingers began tapping quickly on the screen as his face burned up.

He thrusted the phone back into Victor’s hand and averted his eyes. Victor glanced at it and saw that not only had Yuuri posted the picture, he’d written an even sexier caption that almost blew Victor off his feet and made his nose bleed.

“It’s such a shame that no one would believe me if I told them how you lord over me in bed.” Victor shook his head in amazement. “Bossy, confident, sex torturer, Katsuki Yuuri? Not with how innocent you act in public. No one will believe how mean to me you really are.”

A glint flashed in Yuuri’s eyes as his gaze trailed him up and down. “Oh, you have it so wrong. I think I’m very, very nice to you in bed. Especially when I—”

Once again, it felt like the whole world was listening in, and sure enough, when they looked up they saw everyone staring like they were tuning into a television show. They were rather shameless about it too. Didn’t even have the decency to look remorseful or pretend like they hadn’t been invading people’s very private moments.

It was lucky that they’d caught themselves before they got any more explicit. With Yurio present in the audience, things had to be kept PG-13. He was looking between them now with his big, innocent blue eyes, his brows furrowed in confusion.

“When you what?” he asked Yuuri who was turning very, very red. “Eat pork cutlet bowls?”

Everyone around them who knew better nodded in affirmative, but JJ, of course, had never really been too bright. “I think he meant—”

Thankfully, his fiancée was there to jab an elbow into his gut and cut him off before he could go into detail. Realizing his mistake, he nodded his head along with everyone else and that seemed to satisfy Yurio who just shrugged and walked away with Otabek.

When he was gone, Yuuri groaned and thumped his head against Victor’s chest, his face still hot with shame. “That was unbelievably embarrassing,” he said. “Let’s focus on the competition now and the celebration later. And let’s stop giving these vultures something to eavesdrop on.”

“Da,” Victor chuckled as Yuuri glared at all in their vicinity.

It was time anyway for Yuuri’s skate. They were as prepared as they could be and now was Yuuri’s chance to show his stuff. He pressed a kiss to Yuuri’s cheek and lead him towards the rink. Yuuri’s grip on his hand was like a vice. He was obviously nervous. Victor knew by now that nothing he said could make Yuuri lose those nerves, but he hoped Yuuri would be strong and wouldn’t let them overtake him.

“Even if I don’t win—” Yuuri started, but Victor wasn’t going to let him go any farther with that statement.

“You will win.”

“No, just let me finish.” Yuuri laughed, shaking his head. “Even if I don’t win, thank you for always taking care of me.”

Victor melted into a smile and opened his arms to wrap Yuuri up in a tight hug. He held on for as many squeezes as he could before Yuuri was asked to take the ice then clasped his hand with Yuuri’s and kissed his ring, wishing him luck.

“Well, go on. Show them how much I love you,” Victor said and Yuuri nodded with determination.

He knew something amazing was going to happen today. He just knew. Whether it be Yuuri winning the gold or breaking a world record or even… saying yes to spending the rest of his life with Victor, it was going to be a historical day.

Victor fiddled with the secret velvet box hidden deep within his pocket. His heart thundered in his chest as the music began to play; the happiness and pride overwhelming as he watched Yuuri wield his magic over the crowd.

❄

Morooka: Welcome back, everyone. We just witnessed a beautiful performance by Katsuki Yuuri. One that is bound to make him a top contender in today’s competition and displayed an excellent comeback after his loss last season.

Stéphane: Yes, it was simply magnifique! A perfect performance that shows the true power between this first-time coach and skater duo.

Morooka: Let’s flash over to the kiss and cry to see their scores.

Stéphane: Katsuki Yuuri looks nervous. I don’t know why. No one can doubt that that performance will score high.

Morooka: And he’s broken the world record! In case you’re just tuning in, Katsuki Yuuri has just scored a 221.58 today with his free program. The audience is just going wild.

Stéphane: And what’s this! Victor Nikiforov just got down on one knee and presented Katsuki Yuuri with a ring. What a wonderful congratulations gift from a coach to his skater.

Morooka: I think that’s why their dynamic works so well, Stéphane. Victor is such a caring and rewarding coach.

Stéphane: Let’s see if we can hear what’s going on down there. Ha! It sounds like funny guy Victor there just asked Katsuki Yuuri to marry him and Katsuki Yuuri said yes. There were rumors that Yuuri might be retiring but maybe after this symbol of sheer commitment Victor has displayed today, he might reconsider coming back for another season.

Morooka: As you know, these two have exchanged partnership rings in the past. They have a very close professional relationship. You can tell by how they’re kissing now on the lips.

Stéphane: Yes, such a friendly embrace! I see Victor’s getting a little cheeky there slipping in some tongue.

Morooka: We’ve got some reactions here from twitter. One user says ‘They’re gay, you dumbasses.’ Another says, ‘I can’t wait for Victor and Yuuri’s wedding. You can tell that they’re super in love with each other.’ What do you make of that Stéphane?

Stéphane: Impossible! I see no signs of romance here! Look at how they’re rolling on the floor kissing now. It’s nothing but a coach and skater being excited about a fantastic score.

Morooka: I agree with you, of course, Stéphane. Victor’s done such a great job coaching for the first time. These twitter fans must be seeing something that isn’t there.

Stéphane: Absolument! There’s no way notorious playboy Victor Nikiforov would ever be taken off the market.”

Morooka: You’re right, of course. No way indeed.

#victuuri #victuuri fic #yoi fanfic #viktor nikiforov #yoi #yuuri katsuki #mine: yoi fic #humor fluff

[captainbaneberry]

Hmm, I didn’t think I’d be writing this so soon, but... Welp. Ride that inspiration train before it runs outta fuel, am I right?

Anyway! Y’all remember this post by rudeicusdudeicus? Y-Yeah, I wrote something to it.

Fixit is our main Minibot, but everyone else... I couldn’t decide on his partner, and a number of the guests, so I’ve left them up to your imaginations. Titles were given, and since this is RiD, you can use characters from this ‘verse or other universes who carry those titles as placements, if you so desire. On that note, this fic takes place pre-cartoon.

Despite some moments where things feel dubious, this entire party is built on consent. Every person involved consented. I just wanna make that clear--shit’s kinky, but it ain’t n-oncon.

Plenty of warnings to go around: BDSM, objectifying, exhibitionism, drug use, wet ‘n’ messy, moderate inflation, size difference, ahegao in prose form.

With all that out of the way, please enjoy~

Read on AO3: http://archiveofourown.org/works/13932372

This would be Fixit’s first party, and although the Senator had reassured him everything would be fine, he’d take care of him, he knew and agreed to the rules, the Minibot was still nervous.

After all, it wasn’t everyday you got invited to upscale orgies.

But Fixit trusted the Senator, and he was a little curious. The Senator showed him the harness he’d be strapped to, and explained the rules for the umpteenth time and how things usually went. The Senator obviously wanted to make sure Fixit gave his full and complete consent. Fixit listened closely, taking notes, determined to please his partner.

Didn’t work out entirely as planned. Kind of hard to concentrate, bound to the Senator and impaled on his unit to remain there for the rest of the evening. Little awkward, too, given the position of his channel.

The Senator interfaced with Fixit thirty minutes before the party was to start. It was good, but nothing extraordinary; they both overloaded, leaving Fixit pliant enough to fit easily on the Senator’s large unit. He’d never taken the whole thing before, but now he sat to the hilt; it pushed against his tanks, brushing along his abdominal armor. A little painful, but the Senator shifted some mass so it wasn’t excruciating or unbearable. Just the right amount to go along with the arousal still lingering after the interface.

The Senator also fitted the Minibot’s unit, half-mast at the moment, with a tight ring that clenched down on transfluid and lubricant pumps. It would cut off any overloads from his cord, but channel overloads were still permissible, even if it was currently stretched and stuffed, anterior node exposed. To complete the look was a nice spider-gag, keeping Fixit’s mouth wide open; if it got too painful, he would be allowed to dampen his pain receptors or ask for its removal. The safeword without the gag was "mirror"; safeword with the gag was four revs of his engine. A pack of energon was stored in a compartment on Fixit’s back, its thin pump plugged into a socket below a shoulder. It would feed him energon when levels got too low, ensuring Fixit remain online and stable with some stamina to spare.

“You look beautiful,” the Senator smirked, stroking beneath Fixit’s chin with two of his fingers. Fixit cuddled against his touch, coolant trickling from his open mouth. The Senator tested the collar around Fixit’s neck attached to the harness; after polishing them both up, the couple headed out.

Fixit knew this would be… well, not entirely painful. It would be a lot of things. But he hadn’t expected to be so… so “weak” so soon. They’d only just now arrived at the party, and already Fixit overloaded twice. The Senator had fitted him perfectly to his frame, so whenever he walked, whenever he moved, his unit would rub just so nicely against Fixit’s nodes, the quivering mesh walls; it was like being slowly (and frustratingly) fucked. Really, the fact the ride to the party was also a little bumpy was partially to blame for one of those overloads.

A tall, sleek jet greeted them at the door. She, too, was wearing her own Minibot; shorter than Fixit, teal and blue, their harness was designed differently but served the same purpose. They wore a blindfold, hands bound behind their back. “Welcome, Senator,” the jet purred, leaning in to peck the larger bot on the cheek. Her Minibot whimpered, bouncing on the unit.

The jet stared down at Fixit. “And this must be Fixit,” she said. She touched his face, drew a finger along his open jaw. “Looks like a real sparkbreaker.” She winked, and Fixit couldn’t help but heat up a little–-well, a little more. “Here you go, darling,” the jet said, holding up a syringe.

Fixit almost forgot about this part.

“It’ll sting,” the Senator said, patting Fixit on the head, “but only for a second.”

Fixit invented. Nodded.

The jet placed the needle to Fixit’s neck, between seams. “Just a pinch,” she said, and injected the pink fluid.

The drug’s affect was instantaneous. Already aroused and on the edge, Fixit’s receptors were suddenly pushed past their limits. Stimulation increased by fifty percent. The Senator stepped aside, just a small step, and Fixit almost shrieked. The sensations of pain and pleasure were completely blurred; the lightest touch to any part of his body, especially his interface array, was now overwhelmingly powerful.

“Have fun, you two,” the jet giggled.

The party had started ten minutes ago. There were food and drinks, music that set a nice, sensual mood, the lights dim in some places and brighter in others. There was even a medium-sized stage set up with a microphone, though it was currently vacant.

If Fixit could see clearly, he’d count at least twenty-two to thirty people. Most of them also wore their smaller partners on their units, while some came alone or with friends. They broke off into groups, chatting and sipping cubes of high grade, chattering on about life and work and the weather as if they didn’t have bots sleeved on their cords, wriggling and whining, trying to or actually overloading. A few outliers had broken off to more private, shadowed corners to focus on simply fragging their partners outright, either still strapped on to their bodies or removed and placed in different positions. Moans and cries and whimpers almost drowned out the music.

Fixit whimpered; every single step the Senator took was equal to one hard thrust inside his channel. Lubricant increased in trickles, dripping along the ground. Nothing unusual; a pack of drones went about cleaning any messes up. His head hung low, actuators weak and shaking, CPU a hazy, dizzy, aroused mess. Coolant spilled in thin lines from his mouth. The pain he felt in his jaw struts didn’t hurt so much as add to the excruciatingly wonderful stimulation cocktail.

“Senator! So good to see you could come!” Fixit recognized that voice, but couldn’t focus enough to remember who it belonged to. A large, round bot flanked by two smaller partners (twins) hanging off his arms and wearing a pretty pink Minibot sauntered over. He pat the Senator’s shoulders warmly. “You’ve brought Fixit!” He leered. “Looks like the little guy’s enjoying the party.” The twins snickered, stroking their date's chest playfully.

“Fixit, you remember the Councilor, right?” the Senator asked. He raised Fixit’s head for him, at the same time pushing his hips out just slightly. Fixit gave a strangled gasp, his own erect unit twitching around the ring. “You haven’t met Arc yet, however.”

“Arc, say hello to Fixit,” the Councilor said, gently nudging the Minibot with his unit.

“Nnn!” Arc whined, squirting a little transfluid. A drone rolled by, mopping it up. “H-Hello… F… Fix… it…”

“We won’t keep you two,” the Councilor chuckled, slapping the Senator on the shoulder again. “I agreed to introduce these two lovely bots to some of my colleagues.” The twins giggled coyly into their hands as Arc’s engines loudly revved. The four left, crossing the room to a group mingling by the energon fountains.

The Senator continued making his way throughout the flat, greeting and chatting with both friends and strangers alike. Fixit had lost count of the overloads he’d had, but most of the lubricant and transfluid was still inside him, trapped by his partner’s unit. Fixit’s own unit hurt, bobbing and twitching along uselessly. For the most part, the Senator left him alone, focusing on the other guests and socializing. Everyone here was either a politician of some sort, a celebrity, or just very, very rich.

The Senator laughed after hearing one hilarious joke, and the vibrations of his chassis and the slight swaying had Fixit’s optics cross, tongue hanging out obscenely. The drug increased his coolant levels, ensuring his throat and mouth would remain nice and wet. A bot talking with the group glanced down at Fixit, grinning at his wasted expression.

“Do you mind…?” she asked the Senator, pointing at Fixit.

“Go ahead.”

As the Senator resumed talking, the speedboat squatted in front of Fixit, now eye level. “You’re such a cutie!” she giggled, optics glimmering. “You know, orange is one of my favorite colors. Orange and purple…” She wiped lubricant off Fixit’s groin; her touch, the sweep of her finger, caused the Minibot to squirm. The Senator twitched–-he, too, was affected, but not nearly as heavily as his partner. “… Makes a nice color scheme, too.”

The speedboat gasped, smiling widely. “And if your node isn’t one of the most adorable I’ve ever seen…!” She pinched his anterior node, and Fixit wailed, jerking around the unit. The Senator almost dropped his drink, but like the prim and proper politician he was, continued on with the conversation. “Does that hurt?” the speedboat asked. She rolled the node between her fingers; Fixit started venting, more drool and lubricant pattering on the floor. “You just shake your head if it does, okay?”

Fixit, shivering, did nothing.

“Good!” She flicked his node, and once again caused him to lurch. This time the Senator had to step back, the edge of his unit pushing into Fixit’s tanks.

“Excuse me for a few minutes,” the Senator said, cheekplates warm.

“Sorry about that,” the speedboat apologized, still smiling.

“No problem.” The Senator cupped the side of Fixit’s head, the Minibot instantly nuzzling against his palm. “He’s a charmer, that’s for sure.”

A bot hustled over to the group, causing the Minibot on his unit to cry and whimper, transfluid streaking across the floor. “The show’s about to start!” he exclaimed, then hurried off to the next group.

Fixit vaguely remembered the Senator telling him something about these shows. “We won’t be participating in tonight’s,” he told Fixit while he strapping him into the harness, “you’re not ready. Maybe in another year or so…”

The Senator found a nearby booth and table; a total of six, maybe eight steps. Might as well have just been six, or maybe eight thrusts in his channel. The Senator sat down carefully; both he and the Minibot winced. From this position, somewhat awkward as it was, Fixit could see the stage.

The host of the party, a tank, stood at the microphone. His partner was the largest of the Minibots here–-had to be, if she was going to fit on his unit. She had her legs and arms tied and pinned open, allowing everyone to see the remaining few inches of the host’s unit that could not fit inside her. She was heaving, visor so bright it was close to short-circuiting. The edge of her partner’s unit pushed against her mid-section, forming a bump alongside the transfluid sloshing around in her tanks.

“Before we begin the show,” the tank said, “it is with great pleasure to announce tonight’s honorable guest is none other than the chart-topping, spark-stopping Rosanna!”

The crowd cheered and clapped and overloaded (well, half).

“Now,” the tank crooned, “let’s sit back, relax, make sure your little partners are nice and snug, and enjoy the show.” The crowd gave another round of applause as the host stepped down to take his seat beside the stage, petting the trembling bot in his lap.

With a guest like Rosanna, Fixit briefly (very briefly, before switching back to focusing on grinding on the Senator’s unit) expected a type of musical concert. And while there was music, sure, the performers weren’t musicians.

The first performer was a tall bot, chartreuse and silver, with her partner. She unstrapped him from her body, plucked him off her unit, and pressed him to the ground, aft in the air. Kneeling behind him, she took the Minicon’s hips, and jerked back inside. The crowd whistled and shouted catcalls; the Minicon made such adorable noises (maybe that counted as singing) rocking back and forth on hands and knees. The bot pulled out, releasing her overload on the Minibot’s back; a few stood to applaud, successfully bringing their Minibots to climax as well.

The next performance wasn’t so different. Another set of partners. This time the Minibot sat facing the crowd, riding on his endura’s unit as the jet sat comfortably, hands holding his legs open for him. The Minibot was ridiculously fast, and some party guests hastily ran to the stage. The Minibot snapped his hips forward, squirting transfluid from both unit and channel, drenching those in the front. They gingerly caught some in their mouths, others simply wanting to get a nice facial and rub their fingers through the fluid on their overheated frames.

Another performance involved two Minicons by themselves. Same mold, one green, one red; they kissed, sloppy with winding tongues on display, before interfacing in the sixty-nine position. Nearby, Fixit could hear a mayor and a Crystal Towers resident bet on which of the two overloaded first. Other guests swarmed around the stage, shouting and pounding their fists; it was like they were watching a simple wrestling match, encouraging the Cassettes they gambled on.

Green overloaded second. His partner, a robust black-red bot, collected the winnings. The mayor bitterly handed his shanix over.

Watching all of this was almost nearly as intoxicating. Fixit, optics lidded, mouth twitching around his gag, felt surges of heat throughout his chassis, especially at the final performance. He overloaded again, barely felt the rush from the energon pack refilling him. Though Fixit was surprised that the Senator hadn’t… responded to any of the acts. Sure, sometimes he reached down to stroke Fixit, to adjust his unit inside him, but mostly remained still and quiet.

When Rosanna finally came on, that all changed. The room dimmed, a single white spotlight on the singer. She started with a song fitting of the mood; something slow and sultry and deep. And that seemed to be just enough for the Senator to finally get interested.

Fixit winced as two hands encircled his hips. The Senator watched the show, enthralled, as he started pumping inside the Minibot. Fixit whimpered, tears tracking down his face; none of the earlier charges could compare to the one he was accumulating now. Fixit grunted, a mantra of ah-ah-ahs each time his channel slapped against the Senator’s groin. The Senator picked up pace just as Rosanna’s song started building. Fixit could still hear the moans of the other guests under her hypnotic, silky voice.

The Senator overloaded, Fixit slamming back against his partner as his entire body heaved and shuddered. The Senator, however, went completely still, his grip around Fixit’s hips hard enough to dent plating. Fixit looked down, vision doubled, to see the bulge in his abdomen grow a few inches wider. The sight alone made his channel clench and quiver around the unit, too flared up for anything but a couple droplets of fluid to empty.

“You mind if I join?”

It was the speedboat from earlier. She winked down at Fixit.

“N-Not at all,” the Senator tittered. Fixit just shook his head once.

The speedboat smirked, releasing her pressurized unit. She held it at the base, brushing it along Fixit’s cheeks. Fixit mewled. As she grabbed the finial on his head, the speedboat thrust her unit hungrily inside Fixit’s mouth.

Fixit cried around the unit, surprised, tears spilling down his slick cheeks. Be it the drug or something else, Fixit’s intakes spread easily for her, allowing the cord to move deep down his throat. As she began pumping, grinding her crotch against Fixit’s face, the newly aroused Senator started moving again.

Fixit wasn’t sure why he hadn’t fainted. The onslaught of sensations were enough to knock his overstimulated system out, after all. But… Well, maybe the drug, et cetera. He gulped and grunted around the unit, swinging back and forth in swift, fast motions between the two bodies spit-roasting him. There was no way to describe what he was feeling; Fixit’s optics rolled up, almost into the back of his head, wide and lids twitching. His limbs went limp in their straps. He overloaded again–-and again, before either of the larger bots. Fixit wondered if he was going to be split apart, but found it probably wouldn’t be so bad–-especially if it felt as amazing as this.

“S-Such a soft m-mouth,” the speedboat stammered, licking her plush lips, “i-if you were mine, I-I’d frag it f-for hours…” She swat Fixit’s node with her free hand. The Minibot screamed, again muffled from the unit and Rosanna’s new song; his node was throbbing, turned dark from the energon welling at its surface. Fixit tried to suck, tried to massage the unit with his tongue, but the speedboat insisted on doing all the work, picking up the closer she got to release.

It was the Senator who overloaded first. Fixit’s optics blazed and glitched as more transfluid collected inside his tiny body, his bloated tanks. His abdomen was painfully distended, the armor stretched out to show dermal layers beneath. When the speedboat finally climaxed, he couldn’t even swallow her fluids; as soon as she pulled her depressurizing unit free, milking the rest out on his face, Fixit’s head dropped forward, coughing up large gobs of transfluid. He continued purging for a whole minute, the speedboat watching on fondly. That at least gave his tanks some more room.

The speedboat took Fixit by the chin, tilting his head up to meet her yellow optics. His mouth twitched around the thin bars of the spider gag, optics wide and apertures dilated, transfluid and coolant dribbling from his face. “That’s a good look on you,” she cooed. “Thanks for the ride, sweetie.” She nodded at the Senator, swaggering off with a sway of her hips.

Rosanna finished her show, waving and blowing kisses to her fans before exiting the stage. The lights brightened, and those not in the middle of fucking their bound partners went to have a drink and continue mingling.

The host came over to finally welcome the Senator, laughing heartily at Fixit. “My my, looks like he’s a bit full up,” he said, patting the Minibot on the cheek. Fixit could only wheeze, tongue lolling in his mouth. “You discussed the rules with him, I do hope.”

“Yes, of course,” the Senator reassured. “His vitals are a little low, but he’s stable. He’s agreed to the terms.”

Fixit groaned. He stared at the host’s Minibot in front of him; she was smiling, enjoying a tasty mouthful of transfluid.

“And he’s equipped to handle the girth?”

“Of course.”

Oh. Wait. This sounded… familiar. It took Fixit a moment to realize the Senator was removing him from the harness. That, and his energon pack was almost empty. “You know the safewords, Fixit,” the Senator whispered. “He knows them, too.”

Fixit's partner finally pulled him off his unit. But before he could finally release all the pent up transfluid and lubricant, the tank took him, held him tilted so as not to spill. Fixit was a bit disappointed. He watched as the Senator picked up the host’s Minibot.

“I’ll see you soon, Fixit,” the Senator said, bowing down to kiss the top of his head.

Fixit made a wet noise. He understood. The music was starting to fade, and for a moment it was dark. Fixit heard a door shut, blinked; the lights in this room were a little brighter. He felt himself lowered, placed on his back on a slab.

“Gah!” Fixit grimaced as the tip of the tank’s unit pushed an inch inside his channel. Plugging up the fluids again.

“This won’t be necessary,” the tank smirked, unbuckling and removing the spider gag. Fixit hiccuped, rolling his jaw and clenching his teeth. His tongue felt a little numb. “I like my partners noisy,” the tank snickered. His massive hands wrapped around Fixit’s hips, bulging from all the transfluid.

Fixit threw his head back with a loud cry; loud enough that his vocalizer glitched and trailed off into static. The tank had thrust half his unit inside Fixit-–all he could manage to fit.

“So warm,” the tank groaned, and started pumping.

Fixit had never taken a unit as big as this tank’s. He wasn’t quite sure what he felt, but it wasn’t the same confusing mix of sensations and emotions like earlier, like the clusterfuck he’d been feeling all night. It hurt, a lot, but it also felt good, a lot. Each pull out allowed some of the fluids to escape; each push in hit his tanks and abdominal armor. His receptors, his nodes–-all raw, too sensitive… Fixit could only grin, wet and lopsided, optics rolling back and crossing.

“Look at you!” the tank laughed. Fixit vented, tongue bouncing out from one corner of his drunken smile. “You like this? How about this?” He shifted, thrusting his unit off to the side.

Fixit howled, fingers clawing at the berth. “Yeth! Y-Yeth!” His jaw and tongue were still too weak to form proper words, but the tank got the gist of it. Fixit reached his shivering hands down, clumsily rubbing his hard node as fast as he could. “Tho–tho good, ’m…!”

The tank ground his teeth, and with a loud grunt, buried himself inside Fixit and overloaded. Strong enough to knock another overload out of the Minibot as well. Fixit’s mouth formed into a perfect ‘o’ as his optics bulged; shock, pure shock, at the sensation of being completely, utterly filled to the brim.

The tank pulled out, and with a little shake of the Minibot’s body, all the trapped transfluid finally broke free. Fixit squealed, bucking off the bed and jerking his hips; the fluids gushed out in waves, his abdomen shrinking little by little. His teeth clamped down hard enough to shatter. Finally, the flow stopped, and the Minibot flopped back onto the slab. The emptiness felt alien, strange; he rattled and twitched, mouth hanging wide open in awe as he stared blankly at the ceiling.

“Welcome to the club, Fixit,” the tank smirked, gently stroking his face. Just as he turned to leave, Fixit finally collapsed into stasis.

—

When Fixit came back online, he felt… different. Not only was he completely refueled, but he was also repaired and back to his normal shape. He’d even been washed and polished. Remembering the events of… last night? Fixit supposed after being in that state of hyper-arousal for so long would make one feel weird after coming back down.

Fixit was still lying down, but not on the tank’s slab. Not in his own mess, either. Rather, it was the Senator’s–-his berth. Fixit rubbed his optics; he looked beside him, almost jumped. The Senator was curled around him, recharging peacefully. Fixit blinked–-he quickly hid his face in his fingers, completely flustered.

Fixit exvented, smiling; he wiggled over. He slowly, carefully took the Senator’s nearest hand, draped it over his chest. Closing his optics, Fixit went back to sleep, gently holding the Senator’s hand.

“And that’s what my life was like before the tour–sore–war!” Fixit declared proudly, standing before his Autobot companions. He waited for a response, a big, smug grin on his face. After a minute of silence, he opened one optic, baffled.

Bumblebee, Grimlock, Sideswipe, and Strongarm stared in total awe at the Minibot.

Finally, Grimlock spoke up. “Holy fucking shit.”

END

Okay, I was admittedly channeling Thunderblast for the speedboat bot

#valveplug #rudeicusdudeicus

[sominbiased]

6 from the fluff prompts, either seuldy or sowoo, if you want!! thank you bby

Prompt: “Welcome Home”

[Pairing: Seulgi/ Wendy| Genre: fluff, confessions, warnings for slight mentions of ED but no unhealthy mindsets | Brigi I love u please take all this sappy stuff]

“Loneliness,I began to realise, was a populated place: a city in itself” – Olivia Laing

When Wendyfinally makes it out of the plane, the cool, crisp air hits her in the face andshe takes a deep breath. For a second, she almost misses the snow.

It snows inSeoul too, soft fluffy flakes lightly dusting the ground, but there’s somethingfundamentally different about the same weather in another city; some sort ofmetaphor about how places had personalities that seemed to bleed into theclimate. In Vancouver, it would snow relentlessly during the coldest nights,thick heavy sheets that blanketed everything and made it impossible to push thedoor open when she was a little kid. It was the kind of cold that chased you,seeped into the cracks of the buildings, made you wear socks even to bed andturn up the heating. It was the kind of weather that demanded attention, thatrequired every conversation to start with the words wow its really freezing today isn’t it?

She’salways had a funny relationship with snow. Back in Canada it had been thebiggest nuisance when she was a kid, forcing her to bundle up in layer afterlayer that eventually made her feel hot and suffocated, struggling to wadethrough mountains of the sparkling white power with her tiny frame that neverseemed to grow taller.  Mostly, though,Wendy used to hate how the snow blanketed everything around her and cut her offfrom the rest of the outside world in their old family home. Sometimes duringearly mornings when everyone else was fast asleep, she used to peer out of thewindows with her hands pressed to the cold glass, watching the flakes swirlaround outside with an aching sense of loneliness that was too big and toostrong for someone so young.

Now inSeoul, she couldn’t cut herself off from the world if she tried. The air inSeoul buzzes with friction, cars honking endlessly, the subway making endlessloops, businessmen running frantically in the mornings and children heading offto their hogwans late into the night. Even the houses seem to get smaller andmore cramped every time she returns even if that’s not actually possible, thethin walls leaving everyone inevitably eavesdropping on each other. In Seoulthere is no feeling of infinity, of Wendy being swallowed whole by herfeelings. Instead there’s only the relentless drive to push herself further tothe breaking point, the intense pressure that can only come when everyonearound you seems to be working harder than you.

( It’s notperfect but when you’ve felt it long enough, loneliness could be comforting.There could be some real, genuine satisfaction in that mass anonymity, in aplace were you were known for nothing but your work. Wendy will take it, shethinks, as she unlocks the front door of her dorm, ready for to be confrontedby a freezing cold apartment  covered indust and a todo list that will be miles long. It’s what she left home for. )

When sheunlocks her door and walks into her dorm  though, the heating has already been turned upand the curtains are drawn, muffling the sounds of traffic outside. The dorm isusually cramped, but now even more so thanks to all the cardboard boxeslittered on the furniture and floor, as well as a bunch of grocery bags thrownon the table instead of stocked in the fridge. The shower isn’t running, butthe bathroom door has been left open and the room smells like the fruity scentof shampoo.

“Hey” saysSeulgi.

Wendysquints, trying to adjust to darkness and can just about make out a lump ofblankets she assumes is her roommate and fellow student Kang Seulgi.

(Andgirlfriend, if months and months of Seulgi flirting with her and Wendymisreading the signs and then one kiss and confession just before wintervacation qualifies as dating. Wendy isn’t sure how to have that conversationyet)

“Hey” shereplies, parking her meagre suitcase by the door, “did you seriously just cometo the dorm and then go to sleep?”

“Uh no”says Seulgi indignantly,though the last word turns into a yawn, which kind ofruins the indignation. “I took a shower, you know. And went grocery shopping”

“And forgotto put away the groceries” she retorts, face twisting into a fond smile despiteherself.  

“How wasthe flight?” asks Seulgi, stretching luxuriously in her bed and clearly tryingto change the topic.

“Alright”replies Wendy. It was hell; there was a baby screaming for atleast eight hoursbut that doesn’t matter. Right now, she’s kind of awkwardly shifting from footto foot without trying to give that away because she’s tired and muddled and  her eyes have adjusted to the darkness, so shecan see Seulgi’s face, mouth crinkled into one of her usual smiles and her faceall puffy and soft from sleep and it is…um…distracting. She doesn’t know whatto do with herself.  She’s terrified ofsaying the wrong thing.

Seulgi humsthoughtfully, her voice raspier than usual from waking up. Then she sticks herarms out from under the blankets and makes grabby motions, gesturing for theother girl to join her.

Wendy feelsa small blush work its way onto her face despite her best efforts, stillslightly frozen to the spot. Seulgi makes a whining sound, wiggling her handsadorably and Wendy relents, kicking off her shoes and carefully draping her jacketon the head board before crawling into the space Seulgi’s left beside her. Itwas freezing cold back in Canada but right now its so warm, with the heat of Seulgi’s body and the three blankets she’swrapped tightly around them.

Cuddlingwith Seulgi is both comforting and nerve racking, long before they admitted thekind of feelings between them: it’s just so much close proximity, the two of them pressed tightly against oneanother, Seulgi’s chest right upto hers and their legs wrapped around eachother. She smells like shampoo and her skin is soft and warm in the kind of wayit can be when you’ve just woken up. Wendy can feel her body struggling to meltinto it and tense up at the same time.

Seulginotices, because she’s always noticed Wendy, long before the other girl thoughtthere was even a sliver of chance that the great Kang Seulgi would even thinkof her as a friend, and she smooths Wendy’s bangs away from her forehead,shifting away a little so that Wendy can get space.

“We didn’treally talk about what happened before you left, did we?” she says.

(Here’s howit went: Wendy arrived in Korea and was given a student accommodation with abubbly, bright dance major named Seulgi who seemed to single handedly be themost popular student on campus. Wendy had liked her obviously, subtly fallenfor her the way every single male student seemed to, but college wasdisorienting and overwhelming even without the element of Wendy adjustingawkwardly to cultural and language differences.  As the weeks past, she’d made a few friends,and was beloved by most of the professors, even on the days she didn’t havebaked goods to give them, but Seulgi-almost too beautiful to be real Seulgi-had turned into the kind of roommate that seemed to care almost as much asfamily members in those movies Wendy had grown up on as a kid. She’d gentlywake up Wendy on the mornings where she’d sleep through her alarm, leave herbreakfast on the kitchen table, and approach her late night with softsuggestions to sleep. She’d invite her out for fun nights and plan for both ofthem to watch movies together, cuddled up in one bed like teenagers. Wendy didn’treally cry when she was sad, didn’t like to show that she was down, but Seulgifelt everything unabashedly and honestly, and more that once or twice Wendy hadheld her close to her chest, stroking her hair, reassuring her that it wasgoing to be fine after specially harsh feedback. It’s a strange thing to admit,but it was a while before Wendy realized that this was what genuine connectionsfelt like, that it wasn’t another person who’d be happy to hang around for thefirst few days before inevitably getting dissolved into their own real friendgroups.

Seulgiintroduced Wendy to her own little group of friends, all brilliant and talentedlike she was, and somehow, Wendy fit right in, enjoying her own quiet time withJoohyun, fooling around with Soonyoung, and helping Yeri through her homeworkwhile the girl fretted about exams. The semester had gotten easier, somethinghad loosened up in her chest after and Wendy had a regular list ofacquaintances to hit up after that but Seulgi still remained the first personshe wanted to spend all her time with, and both of them had jumped headfirstinto the confusing, dizzying heights that came with adulthood, the person thatshe left with for ramen at three am in the morning.

When Seulgiasked her out, it wasn’t an impulsive, late night thing though. Wendy had beenpacking, arranging everything neatly on her bed, when Seulgi had gotten up andstood next to her, hands clasped nervously. “I want to tell you something” shewhispered, and then instead leaned forward and kissed her on the mouth, a soft,nervous peck. Wendy had dropped the clothes she was holding, kissed her back,and then she had to get on a plane and not see her for the next three weeks)

“You sentme a text that was like three paragraphs long trying to assure me that nothinghad to change if I didn’t want it to” says Seulgi, chuckling slightly.

“In mydefense, I was drunk” protested Wendy, still remembering sitting on the floorof her family bathroom, ignoring the Christmas party going on downstairs andsquinting at her autocorrect. “And-and”-she’s stammering again, fucking hell-“Imean, I do mean it, nothing has to change if you don’t want it to or anything,three weeks is a really long time to think about things, I mean, I care aboutyou deeply and your comfort comes first so-“

Seulgismooths down her hair again, looking at her with the kind of pinched expressionon her face, like what she’s saying hurts to hear in a way. “You’re so kindWendy” she says, warm breath tickling her face. It makes her shiver. “But rightnow, you don’t have to be. Do you want to date me?”

Wendy feelsher face go hot. It’s not really a sad moment, in fact its one of those momentsthat should  make her scream and jumpwith joy if she watched it on a movie, but she feels tears prick the corner ofher eyes even though she’s not sure why. “Yes” she confesses, and it’s the firsttime she’s put those feelings into words. It makes her throat go warm and itchy. “I would-would like to I mean I’vewanted to for a long time but I’m-I’m not, like, um in tip top condition and I’dprobably be really bad at it so sorry about that in advance I mean-“

Seulgikisses her to make her shut up. Wendy makes an embarrassing squealing sound.

“Sometimes,during the first year of college, you’d scare me” says Seulgi, and it’s aconfession too, just not the kind that gets recorded in most movies. “You’dcome over in the night, after a whole day of working nonstop, and you’d stillbe moving, cleaning, cooking, but your eyes would be completely dead. And youwere so alone, coming all the way from Canada, with no friends, and it scaredme, I didn’t know what do in the beginning, so I didn’t say anything- “

“-You didn’thave to say anything. You didn’t-it wasn’t your fault or anything, in fact itwasn’t anyone’s fault. I just…..I just had things to deal with”

Seulgi’sstill looking at her with furrowed brows, so Wendy leans forward and kisses heragain. “Being here has helped so much” she whispers into Seulgi’s skin, “beinghere, I can’t-I don’t have the words for it yet but it helps so much”

There are alot of things that Wendy used to convince herself Seulgi would never beinterested, most of all the fact that she’s ill, and the kind of illnesses thatother people don’t like acknowledge, let alone talk about. Being back in Canadawas like trying to navigate a tightrope of feelings and should nots, it wasendless questions about how much or how little she was eating, about how sheshould and shouldn’t have left, about all the things she’d missed since she’d beengone. It was family dinners where all she could hear was the sound of forks andknives scraping the plate and trying to pretend she didn’t miss the taste ofeating ramen at midnight when both of them were too exhausted to thinkstraight. It was spending hours in her bedroom with the door shut and fallingasleep at odd hours of the day

A questionthat both Wendy and Seulgi would have laughed at one semester ago: where didfeelings go when you’d spent your whole life trying to crush them out ofoblivion, bury them deep down?

Wendy usedto think they turned could disappear, melt away like the snow in Seoul, andthat given enough time, everyone would forget about them when spring emerged,flowers blooming to cover up the bruises. Instead, she’d learned the hard waythat they turned rock hard and settled into her throat and chest, bubbled upinconveniently in the form of tears late in the night and panic attacks duringher worst moments. All those issues that she’d been convinced she was over hadtaken her by surprise, showed up in odd corners and alleys, held her down, and Wendy’dlearned the hard way that feelings demanded to be felt, that there was no pointpretending otherwise. It hurts, but it also feels so much more honest. Like themoment in spring when the snow began to melt into slush and it was nowhere asbeautiful, but there was also nowhere to hide, all the cracks in the Earth laidbare to see.

“I know youdon’t like to talk about Canada” says Seulgi, lips pressed faintly on the skinof Wendy’s shoulder, her hands stroking Wendy’s back aimlessly, reassuringly. “AndI know you overthink things a lot. But even if its hard, just remember youdon’t have to worry when you’re with me”

After solong of being deprived of it, it’s hard to recognize that feeling thrumming inher chest, melting her bones and causing something warm to bloom in herstomach: happiness. It’s been so longsince she felt a sense of belonging, of that bone deep feeling of contentment,to the point where she’s slightly afraid of that feeling, but Seulgi gentlytugs her closer and presses a soft kiss to her forehead and Wendy’s buries herface into the crook of her neck almost like she’s compelled. She thinks shemight give up everything she had for Seulgi if the other girl wanted her to.She thinks she’s not ready to put that into words. Atleast not yet.  But she can kiss the dip where her neck meetsher shoulder, gently trace soft skin on her stomach, and lie in the darktogether.

“Do youthink our laundry machines are broken again?” Wendy says, because she wasmusing about how the maintenance are probably late again on the taxi ride home,and weirdly enough, it’s the only thing she can bring herself to say.

“Aren’t they ever year?” Seulgi is probablyrolling her eyes, and Wendy can’t bring herself to turn around and check, toobusy blinking away the last of her tears, but she kisses the soft skin as kindof a way to communicate anyway, to tell someone she loves them in messagestransmitted through skin.

“Welcomehome” whispers Seulgi, kissing her forehead. And she’s right. Wendy’s home now.The rest can wait.

#wendynasty #red velvet fic #red velvet scenarios #seulgi x wendy #seuldy #red velvet #my fic #updates #gay culture is getting prompts in january #and then sstaying up till 3 am in the morning finishing them bc ur friend is sad #ily

[italianexotiicbeauty]

Mary Savarese / Phoenix Fire

[ A HAUNTING IN MYSTIC. ] // [ cameos: Kelly Savarese-Becker & Reuben Gimness! * with permission ] In ghostlore, a haunted house or ghost house is a house or other building often perceived as being inhabited by disembodied spirits of the deceased who may have been former residents or were otherwise connected with the property. Being in a different body with the exact same consciousness in another timeline sounded almost like it was science fiction, matter of fact it likely would seem to be an episode of at least The Twilight Zone. However, it was in fact a reality for one Mary Savarese - the fates did not think her job was done and manipulated not just TIME but SPACE as well to bring her consciousness into another body ( and her powers followed a few days later ). Suppose it helped they somehow mystically found a woman who had been in a coma for two weeks, but of course when she woke up whomever that woman had been did not exist. No, when she opened her eyes - guess who she had seen standing near her bedside? Her older sister, Kelly. How else did she know that she was herself and not the person she took over?! Plus, that reminded her of that one Stargate: Atlantis episode where Cadman was also trapped inside McKay, yes she literally asked in her own mind about twenty times if she was the only consciousness inhabiting that body. No response every single time answered that. Guess what she was also still fully aware of? How fragmented her memory was so when she asked Kelly why she had been in the hospital? The elder Savarese for a second looked bewildered before recollecting her younger sister's memory, "You fell into one of the tanks at Mystic Aquarium - they are not sure . . . how you even got in, all they found on you were your keys, wallet and those four bracelets." . . . Three for four, get you in the door. A voice in the corner of her mind seemed to whisper, making her expression crestfallen instead of shocked which alarmed her sister. "Mare? I know you had been at Katie's grave earlier that day, and then Nonna Rita's -- you weren't trying to join them were you?" Blinking a few times, a familiar look of anger made her sister take a step back at the suggestion. "Okay, my mistake for even thinking that. Don't . . . melt or burn anything." Thankfully, that did not happen nor did Kelly seem at all aware that Mary was currently without her powers. "I realize that my best friend since junior high has been dead for almost three years now, and Grandma Rita has been dead longer but we both know the only thoughts I ever struggle with? What to have for dinner." In this timeline, Mary did not seem to have her dogs - she checked her wallet and if they existed? There would be pictures of them in there but there weren't. "I want a dog." Kelly seemed genuinely taken aback by her sister's random statement, "What breed?" The nurse walked in with the release papers, Mary had to take it easy for the next few days and Kelly drove her back to the hotel she was staying at. For some reason, she had removed her wallet, keys, and the bracelets before dropping into the tank. Which tank? . . . The shark tank. With cuts on both palms, so they ruled out a suicide and somehow the camera feed was all wonky as well. Mary flopped, face first onto the bed with a groan before rolling onto her back. "A Greenland Husky, a Bernese Mountain Dog, a Doberman, a Beligian Malinois, a Corgi, and a German Shepherd - or just one of those." Carefully, Mary sat up as Kelly handed over her niece who cooed and babbled at her aunt - seems that in this timeline, Kelly still had both kids and her husband. "Question, before you go back home . . ." She was snuggling her niece before watching her crawl on the bed, dark eyes watching the little one before her mother picked her up again and put her back in the car seat. "Yes?" Both eyebrows raised as Kelly looked to her younger sister, then turning to smile down at her daughter. ". . . By some chance there was not a shiny gold wrist communicator like right out of power rangers found with me, was there?" Mary bit on her lower lip, feeling the familiar protrusion of her piercing when teeth reached the left corner of the flesh. Ooh! Still have that and likely all of my ink! She thought to herself while looking up at Kelly again. "Well?" "Thought my silence answered that question, that's a no." Shaking her head, Kelly leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her baby sister's temple before covering her daughter with the little blanket that occupied the car seat with her. "Just try and get some rest okay? Not sure why you were even at Mystic, but just go on home to Savannah." Forcing a smile and a nod like she was ACTUALLY going to listen, Mary waved as Kelly left the hotel room with her niece as well. As soon as they were out of the room, her expression changed and immediately she searched the entire room for either her phone, laptop or tablet. Thankfully, both her phone and laptop were locked up in the little room safe, so she plugged them both in and powered up her laptop to check something in an email. Clicking on one of the opened emails, eyebrows furrowing as she clicked a link and a news article popped up. SIX FOUND DEAD IN MYSTIC AQUARIUM MYSTERIOUSLY NEAR THE SHARK TANK. PALMS CUT AND ALL DROWNED. Not that anyone would see it, but her expression paled a little when she clicked on another link from the exact same email that brought her to a forum page. They found a Ouija board and black candles, a friend of mine works for the crime scene clean-up and they had them throw it out along with other known occult items! One user had mentioned, another responded. Sounds about right, like they are trying to not create a mass panic or some shït! Totally a haunting now. ". . . Son of a biaaaaaaaaatch." She rested her forehead on the palms of her hands before scrolling down a little more to read another comment, Guuuuuys! A well known medium in our community did a podcast the other night about thiiiis!! Her spirit guides are warning no one to go there, it's a W R A I T H! " . . . Oh jeeze, that explains so much but the fūck?! Why did I survive?! . . . O h." Dangling around her neck still, was the lone white angel feather which explained how she survived the attack. A wraith is an undead creature whose name originated in Scottish folklore. A type of ghost or spirit, wraiths were traditionally said to be the embodiment of souls who are either on the verge of death, or who have recently passed on. In modern times, the concept of a wraith is more likely to refer to an evil spirit, particularly one which has unfinished business in the mortal realm. They are typically depicted as skeletal figures draped in tattered rags, and are most commonly associated with graveyards or other haunted locales. The modern perception of a wraith is that of an entity which actively seeks harm to those that it encounters, no matter their motivation. ". . . About a thousand miles from noooooowherrrreeeee!" She softly sang to herself while looking something up, turning on her phone to take a few notes before turning off her laptop. WEST HAVEN, CONNECTICUT // 7:45 PM. the alley behind duffy's tavern. Leaning against the brick wall between the bar and another building, Mary checked her watch one time before a portal opened up behind her in the shape of a door. "Mary Savarese?" A dark voice called from within, she tapped her nails on the brick three times. The being spoke again, "What is it you require?" "Four silver bullets, and a silver stake just in case." The being made a noise in it's chest before a small box slid out. "Lovely." She waited until the portal closed again before picking up the box and opening it, inside sat the bullets and the silver stake. "Excellent, the bullets for the heart and throw the stake at the head just to make sure." The box snapped shut and she exited the alley for the lot across the street where her rental was parked, opening up the little backpack in the front seat and taking out the Beretta Px4 storm to empty the bullets from the magazine, as well as the round in the chamber in exchange for the four silver bullets. Once the gun was reloaded, she placed the stake inside the backpack as well and drove back to her hotel. She cringed as she noticed three missed calls from her sister and sighed, deciding to text her back instead. SMS: Kelly I know you wanted me to go home to Savannah but I got unfinished business here. Then I am hopping the first flight out but NOT back to Georgia. SMS: Kelly I'm heading to Virginia Beach an' locatin' an unsuspectin' ex of mine for cuddles after this. Pretty certain he won't turn me down. SMS: Kelly Still thinks I am cute. Turning off the phone, she packed up everything in the room save for the outfit she would wear tomorrow. The suitcase was left open on the floor as every light but the one in the bathroom was turned off, three of the bracelets were on and she could feel the familiar pull at her stomach - like getting ready to travel through a portkey or apparating - she stepped in the far corner of the room and within seconds was within the dark halls of the aquarium. Thankfully, she was near the same location as she had been during her last visit -- oh yes, she remembered which meant that access to the shark tank was just down the hall and behind a locked door. Within seconds though, she was on the other side of the door and half-way up the darkened stairs. The backpack was left hanging on the end of the railing at the top of the stairs, soon she became ignited from head to toe in flames before walking up the rest of the way. Seconds later, she was on the platform that was used by the aquarium staff to feed or check the marine life and it was obvious which tank was the shark one because it was now taped off. Or . . . SHOULD HAVE BEEN. The tape was cut in one section and she could hear voices coming from another area. One in particular caught her attention as a group of people - carrying flashlights and recording equipment - came into view. "Oh, hell has SOOOO frozen over - Reuben Gimness, who in the HÉLL let you investigate?!" At the sound of the familiar voice, Reuben looked over to the shark tank where it came from. "Holy shït -- Hey Mary! Uh, the good people on the board of this fine establishment?" He smiled charmingly, or tried to but started saying ow ow ow ow ow on repeat when she came over and grabbed his ear. "Oh, really? Did you just HAPPEN to leave out the part about bringing tarot cards AND a ouija board to the Opera house here and causing it to be further haunted? No? Yeah did not think so!" Giving his ear a more harsh pinch before letting go, her arms crossed her chest as she glared at him. ". . . Can't BELIEVE you still remember that, come oooon! I am capable!" "Yeah and you do not read texts from books that manifest demonic santa's to hunt us like wild boar either." Her tone snappy as Reuben rubbed the back of his neck, looking at his group of ghost hunters then back at Mary. "Why am I even surprised, a walking spirit box is exactly what this needs - it's a WRAITH Reuben. Or did you just leave that out from when you accepted this case, and enlisted the help of your spooky crew here? Hm?" Mary then tossed the silver stake at Reuben who caught it, "Since you are the tallest out of all these yahoos you decided to endanger - you get to stab it in the head to insure it will not be coming back." Reuben had caught the stake as Mary motioned for the others to hunker down for safety in the starways so they did not get flung around like ragdolls. Reuben had been about to say something when the lights flickered before going off, Mary heard one or two of the Ghostfacer's scream. "Turn off all your flashlights. " The flames around Mary illuminated the area brightly as she stepped away from Reuben, watching the shadows. Extending the light forward, she saw a flicker of movement before pulling Reuben down to the floor with her as the wraith roared in rage as it flew at them. "Seems round two is off to a good start." When she said that, Reuben stared at her. "Oh uh, another story to share over pizza from Pepe's and Foxon Parks I promise." Rolling onto her back, the familiar sound of a hammer clicking back echoed a little in the room."Would now be a good time to ask if you have a plan?" Thankfully, the floor beneath them was dry and the entire front of her body was now wreathed in flames. He could see her glaring at him, the Px4 Storm was lying beside her and her right hand was the only part of her not illuminated by a brilliant orangey-red hue. "I am going to ask you that same question, or better yet !! Watch your dumbass ask Sam or Dean Winchester that one. For the record, yes - four silver bullets to the heart and that stake through its skull to seal the deal." "Where did you learn that?" "You kiddin'? I troll a hunter's forum for advice." Reuben chuckled and then winced when she punched him. "Guuuys!!! It's coming baaack!!" Swearing under her breath, Mary raised the gun into the air as the wraith flew over them and took a gamble - opening fire just as it did, two of the bullets piercing the heart just enough to slow it down. Reuben scrambled to his feet and ran full speed ahead, jumping in order to drive the stake through the wraith's skull . . . which he succeeded in doing but got flung into the nearest wall as the creature began roaring during its final moments. The whole room shaking, Mary grabbed a hold of something when a pocket of air imploded and sent whatever wasn't nailed down flying as it disappeared from sight. The lights came back on and the mice hiding on the stairs raced over to see if their fearless leader was okay, Mary moved back down the stairs for the locked door - backpack in hand and disappeared into the darkness again. BRADLEY INTL. AIRPORT // HARTFORD, CT. 4:45 am. Tiredly, Mary settled into one of the seats near the boarding gate for her very early morning flight to Virginia Beach. She had returned the gun to her safe in Savannah since it was one of the unregistered ones, flying with that would be trouble. Just as she moved to take a sip of her iced latte from Dunkin Donuts, her phone buzzed a few times with texts from Reuben. THREE BODIES END UP MYSTERIOUSLY IN THE CONNECTICUT RIVER NEAR GILLETTE CASTLE. STAFF AND VISITORS REFUSING TO BE ANYWHERE NEAR THE LOCATION WITHOUT ARMED SECURITY. RUMORS OF A MASSIVE BLACK SHADOW WITH YELLOW EYES BEING SEEN . . Mary groaned faintly and just shut her phone off, not even bothering to respond and sipped her caffeinated beverage while waiting for her flight to come in.

#[ please do not reblog. ] #[ alt timeline metahuman mare. ] #[ one shot story // vignette. ] #[ not based on anything portrayed here via tumblr. ]

[coneygoil]

Paint and Things

12 years Eleven was surrounded by white walls. White doesn’t surround her any longer.

White walls. They surrounded her for 12 years like a bland cocoon she was trapped inside. Outside of that white prison she discovered the palette that she’d been cruelly deprived of her entire life.

A mass of colors, almost overwhelming, were all around her. The warm oranges and browns that made up Mike’s basement. The tri-color of Dustin’s hat. The pale yellow of the grass. The soft pink of her dress. The brilliant blue of the sky. Eleven could hardly take it all in.

It was official. She would live with Hopper in a quaint red brick house the next street over from Mike’s street. She was relieved that they’d live so close to her friends, instead of secluded out by the lake where Hopper was previously living. A whole house to call a home and her own bedroom that she could fill with anything she pleased.

When Mike asked her what color she wanted to paint her new room, because the lifeless white was too frightening similar to her past, El had to ponder over the decision. “What color do you like?” she asked Mike as they checked out her new room.

Mike shrugged. “Blue and red are my favorite colors.”

“I like blue.” She touched the wall, imagining the color of the sky splashed onto the drywall. “It’s nice.”

“What’s your favorite color, El?”

El paused. She’d never had a favorite color; never knew there was a rainbow of possibilities out there. She didn’t need to think hard on the subject. “Yellow. Like the sun.” She glided fingertips along the wall, imagining a trail of yellow painted where the pads of her digits touched.

“That’s cool.” Mike joined her in front of the wall, drawing a broad circle with his index finger then short lines fanning out from it.

She recognized the depiction. El smiled, a tiny giggle escaping at the invisible sun Mike drew on her wall. He glanced over at her with that bashful grin of his.

“Do you think Hopper will let me have two colors?” she asked, carefully, already feeling as if she’d asked for too much.

“I’m sure he’d be fine with that. What two colors?”

“Blue and yellow.”

Mike was the sky to her. His presence surrounded her, comforting and reliable. The sky was always there, and he’d always be there for her. El was the sun in his sky. The sun represented freedom in her eyes. The sun shined on no matter how cloudy the day became, and that’s exactly how El felt these days.

Mike was right. Hopper didn’t have a problem with the two different colors, though he did raise his eyebrows at the request. The boys joined El in helping paint her bedroom. Between the five of them, the job went fairly quickly; that is when Dustin and Lucas weren’t slapping each other with the paintbrushes, much to both their Moms’ chagrin when they returned home.

Her bedroom furniture didn’t match, just pieced together like a yard sale conglomeration, but El loved it. Every piece of furniture was unique in her eyes. Her whole life, everything around her was uniform and sterile, but this mismatch group of things made her happy. In a way, her bedroom furniture mirrored her friends. They were all sort of mismatched and unique, but fit together just right.

It made the room a bit cramped, but Hopper managed to fit a loveseat in there. There was a certain comfort she felt whenever she sat on the couch in Mike’s basement and wanted the same for her own little space. That’s where she was currently sitting with Will, the other boys on the floor leaning their backs against her bed.

“Is it time to give El her presents yet?” Dustin looked at the other guys excitedly.

El gave them a bewildered look. “Presents?”

Lucas shrugged. “Just some stuff we wanna give you for your new room.”

He and Dustin got up to retrieve a large box from the hallway. “I’m going first!” Dustin proclaimed as he dove in the cardboard box to remove a smaller box. He set it between El and Will. “I got you your own secret stash of snacks. All the good stuff too.” He pointed to the food items. “Trail mix, pop rocks, smarties, chee wees, a few twinkies, and the coveted,” he held up a chocolate-covered treat wrapped in a plastic baggie, cradling it to his cheek, “ding-dong.”

“Stop oogling the ding dong, ding dong. It’s my turn!” Lucas shoved Dustin out the way. He presented to El a supercom. “My dad had an old supercom in our garage. He kinda tweaked it so it’d work as good as the ones me and Mike have.” He handed her the com system, and El accepted it gladly. Not only did she live close to two of her best friends, but now she could communicate with them any time.

“I wanna be the first person you test it on,” Lucas added.

El smiled, gratefully. “You will.” She was glad their relationship had curved a one-eighty since that first week after they’d met.

Will was next. He handed her a folded flannel blanket. “My mom made this for you. She wanted to make sure you were warm enough at night.”

El caressed the material to her cheek. The blanket was incredibly soft, and she looked forward to cuddling into it on cold nights. El set the blanket on her lap as Will handed her a piece of paper.

The drawing on the thick sketchbook paper was of a person adorned in a pink robe. Blue lines shot out of the person’s raised hand at an unseen foe off the paper. El looked closer at the robed figure. “Is that me?”

“Yeah!” Will replied enthusiastically. He pointed at the drawing. “The guys said you were like a wizard whenever you used your powers, so I draw you wearing a wizard robe while defeating the Demogorgen.” His voice dropped at the last word. Everyone knew Will had a hard time talking about the monster that had trapped him in the Upside Down.

El grasped his hand, giving it a comforting squeeze. No one had ever given her something so thoughtful. “It’s nice, Will. Really nice.”

Will leaned across the loveseat, pulling her into a hug. In the two months they’d gotten to know each other, they’d become just as close as she was with the rest of the boys. Secretly, El even thought of Will like a brother. They shared a connection that she didn’t quite understand, but was thankful that it existed.

“Group hug!” Dustin yelled, and the rest of the boys made a dog pile around them.

“Okay, I’m getting out of here before it gets weird,” Lucas said, abandoning the pile first. They all laughed and untangled from the group.

“It’s your turn, Mike,” Dustin pointed out, and all eyes fell on Mike.

The poor boy looked like he wanted to sink into the ground. He rubbed the back of his neck, cheeks flaring at his confession. “I kinda like to give El her present alone.”

Dustin and Lucas faced each other with their mouths open in feigned shock, which made Mike turn even redder. “We’ll leave you two lovebirds,” Dustin quirked, slapping him on the shoulder.

“It’s not like that, Dustin!” Mike protested, slapping him back.

Dustin and Lucas walked out, throwing more teases Mike’s way as they left. Will hugged El one more time and gave Mike a reassuring smile before following.

“Why the presents?” El asked, filling up the silence that was left by the absence of their friends. She’d received these types of things before. Papa would bring her small tokens if she’d pleased him, or every time he wanted her to bring her powers to a higher level. When she didn’t exceed his expectations, one of her meager possessions would be taken away.

Her friends weren’t like Papa. They never asked her to use her powers for their own benefits, and she trusted them that they would never use her in that way. They’d risked their lives to protect her so many times; how could she not trust them?

“Well, this is your first real home,” Mike explained. El felt a twinge at the word home. She’d thought of Mike’s basement as home for so long; this new place would take a while to accept. “And we wanted to kinda give you some housewarming gifts.” His face scrunched up. “That sounded way too cheesy.”

El touched his arm, and Mike met her gaze, bashfully. “I’m really grateful, Mike. To you and the guys.” Somehow they found their hands intertwined, and both felt the loveseat calling their names.

“I haven’t given you my present yet.” El watched curiously as Mike slid the cardboard box over. Before he revealed his gift, Mike said, “Close your eyes.”

El threw him a confused look, but complied. She felt something square placed on her lap. She opened her eyes and gasped quietly. A music box sat on her legs. She recognized exactly what it was, having seen one in Nancy’s bedroom several times. An old-fashioned flower print covered the pale pink box. El tipped the lid to find a ballerina spinning to a gentle, tinging tune.

She felt Mike’s eyes penetrating her as she remained silent and stared at the music box. He was waiting for a response and she knew her silence would probably keep him antsy.  

“It’s beautiful,” El mustered to say, the onslaught of all the generosity overflowing her heart.

Mike breathed in relief, a bright smile splitting his face. “I know you liked Nancy’s music box, so thought you might want one of your own. Nancy kinda helped me pick it out.”

El pressed a kiss to Mike’s freckled cheek, his skin warm against her lips, and she caught a full-blown blush painted across his face when she pulled away. She pushed off the loveseat, carrying the music box to set on her nightstand.

Later, after a little bit of cuddling with Mike on the loveseat, El would do a little decorating. She’d hang Will’s drawing on the wall beside her bed, stand Lucas’s supercom next to Mike’s music box, and stash Dustin’s snack box underneath her bed. Then she’d curl up on her loveseat in the blanket Ms. Byer’s made taking in her new bedroom, a home to call her own, and a life that had just begun.

#stranger things fanfiction #mileven #stranger things #eleven

[smartcookie727]

Bruised and Battered

Thanks to @whereisthefood123 for the request! This was a longer one for me. I really wanted to explore the story that led to our lovely couple being in this situation. I also tried my hand at some angst, but never fear, there are some fluffy moments too. This is NSFW cause let’s face it I’m writing. I hope you enjoy! Send me a comment, ask, tag, whatever you feel like. I love hearing about your reactions and what worked in a piece. Ok, I won’t drone on any longer, enjoy!

Pairing: Gajevy 

Prompt: Did you really knock on my door at 1 am just to cuddle?

Length: 3k 

Bruised and Battered

“Guys, I’m alright, really!” Levy stammered through ground teeth. She wasn’t alright and they knew it. Still, they knew they were no longer welcome. Levy was upset and needed to rest. Jet and Droy hung their heads as Levy closed the door behind them. There was nothing they could do for her but dress her wounds. She needed to be alone. Levy sank to the floor of her apartment and wailed. She was covered in cuts, burns, and bruises; her scalp was crusted with blood—her blood. It was supposed to be an easy job, and she hadn’t been strong enough to save anyone.

The bandits had known they were coming. Team Shadow gear had decided to take a rest about two miles from town and discuss their plan. The job was simple. A group of about ten bandits, with two mages at their disposal, had been targeting a small town just off a major trade route. A job had been posted in the guild to remove the bandits. The group had taken on plenty of jobs like this before, so it seemed like a logical choice. They would follow the same plan as always when dealing with bandits, a trap. They even had a plan for the mages; Levy couldn’t stand going on a job without a plan. Levy would act as bait to draw the group out, and Jet would kick up a dust storm with his high speed magic to confuse them. Droy’s plants could immobilize the normal members, and Levy and Jet would take out the mages. If things got hairy with so many members, Levy could always make a cage with her solid script magic, allowing Droy to assist in the magic battle. It was their tried and true method, and it was their downfall.

One of the mages working with the bandits used telepathy magic and prepared an ambush for the Fairy Tail wizards. As Levy stood up from her seat, she was hit by a bolt of lightning. She screamed in pain as her brain tried to comprehend the situation. Droy was tackled by three bandits, preventing him from accessing the seeds his plant magic worked through. Jet was being chased by five others, some desperately hanging onto any appendage they could grab to slow him down. Shit. A surprise attack. The mages focused on Levy. If she went down, the others would no doubt follow shortly. A flurry of sparks exploded around her head, dazing her as she tried to dodge the wooden club the other mage swung. What was happening? The air was forced from her lungs with a blow to her side and Levy crumpled to her knees. This wasn’t good. She needed to do something. Searing pain tore through her body as she took a direct hit from the lightning mage. Levy felt her head spinning as her heart raced in panic. The wooden club hit her hip and she screamed again. Wood. That was it. Levy brought up a barrier of wood in an attempt to stave off the lightning bolts. Levy turned to find her teammates. Droy had managed to get ahold of some of his seeds, and his plants were picking off the bandits one at a time. Jet had also shaken his attackers; there were two bandits groaning on the floor. Her voice was hoarse as she tried to call out to them. No good. She inhaled deeply as her fingers began to write, and then everything went white. Levy could feel blood trickling into her ear as she fell. When had her protective spell failed? Then there was another crack. Every nerve in her body screamed. She screamed. A deafening howl coursed through their battle ground, and her teammates blood curdled. Levy didn’t even hear them call her name as she hit the dirt.

Levy flinched at the memory of the final blow before she’d been knocked unconscious. Her heart raced with the reminded fear, but she steeled herself. She needed to keep moving, to do something, to not drift into that nightmare again. It was already past midnight. She’d lost herself in the throes of her terror for a few hours now. Levy trudged to the shower and hoped the hot water would wash away her fear and blood. While it stung, it did manage to stop her hands from shaking. As Levy stepped out of the bathroom, clad only in a towel, she heard a loud banging on the door.

“Just a minute!” Levy called. As quickly as her injuries allowed her, she shuffled to her room and tossed on one of the oversized shirts she occasionally wore to bed. This one was Gajeel’s, and wearing it comforted her to some degree. The rasping on the door hadn’t stopped. “Hold on! I’m coming as fast as I can,” Levy yelled curtly as she made her way to the front door. She wasn’t moving fast, and the knocking still hadn’t subsided. Tossing her door open Levy barked, “What!?” Her throat was sore from her screaming and crying. Before she registered who was there, she was overtaken by a large mass of onyx hair. It covered her in a tight embrace and pinned her against a heaving chest. Levy balked for a moment before she recognized the smell of trees and iron. It was Gajeel. Crap, it was Gajeel. She had hoped she’d be able to avoid him until at least tomorrow when she went to the guild. She should’ve known better.

“Shrimp! Just what in the hell were ya thinking!” Gajeel yelled as he thrust her away. He carefully examined her battered form.

Levy meekly responded, “I…”

“And to find out from Lily! Who only knew because he ran into Jet and Droy on the way home!” he roared.

Levy was frustrated and tired, “Look…”

“I should’ve been the first place ya came when ya got back! Ya should’ve called me with a communication lacrima as soon as you were ok!”

“Gajeel, please.”

“Levy! Do you not get it? You could’ve died!” He grabbed her again, and drew her close. Softly, he repeated, his voice shaking, “Levy, you could’ve died.” They collapsed onto the floor, sobbing. His hands grasped her firmly, and she ignored the pain from her burns. Her fingers were laced in his hair, pulling him down to cover her. Levy cried uncontrollably into her dragon’s shirt. A little while later, their tears dried and they regained control of their breathing.

“I was knocked out so fast. I wasn’t strong enough” Levy said between sniffles. Her head hung low, averting her eyes.

“Shrimp. What the fuck?” Gajeel asked as he gently lifted her chin, “Yer plenty strong. Yer the strongest one on that damn team of yours.”

“I was the first to go down. The only one to go down! I couldn’t help anyone. They utterly—”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Gajeel’s voice was like steel. “Why didn’t ya let me know the second ya were in town?” He stared her dead in the eye. “I’m yer man. I’m supposed to be here for ya, right?”

“Yeah.” Levy began rubbing her aching forehead. “I don’t know. I was embarrassed. I didn’t want you to see me like this.”

“I want to see you every time you look like this.” Gajeel helped her to her feet, and Levy shot him a confused glance. “And when yer done being silly about stupid things, I’ll take care of ya. Come on.” Gajeel guided her to the couch and laid down. She followed, curling into him. They barely fit on her small couch, but she didn’t mind.  She was starting to feel at peace. Levy could feel his heartbeat through the thin cloth on her back. Gajeel stroked her head and anywhere she wasn’t burned or bruised. He wanted to take away all her pain, but now right he needed rest. Gajeel inhaled deeply and did his best to lull her to sleep. Nuzzling her neck, he whispered, “From now on, I’ll go with you. I’ll be here to protect you. I’m your personal cuddle dragon for tonight.” Levy chuckled, and between the rhythmic stroking, thump of his heart, and warmth from his hold Levy drifted off.

The smell of stir fry and rice tickled Levy’s nose as she roused. She noticed she’d been covered in a blanket, and Gajeel—Gajeel was gone. Slowly, Levy righted herself until she was sitting properly on the couch. It was dark except for a single light in the kitchen. She blinked a few times as her eyes adjusted. Gajeel was hunched over her stove, and a lovely aroma of garlic, green onion, and ginger spread through her apartment. Levy yawned and began to stretch her neck. Sleeping on the couch always left her with a few sore spots.

“Hey, ya up shorty?” Gajeel called over the sizzle of the stir fry.

“Yeah. That smells wonderful, Gajeel,” Levy yawned. Her stomach growled audibly and a bright blush lit up her cheeks. “How’d you know I’d be hungry?”

“Just figured. Knowing you, ya probably kept running through the attack in yer head instead of taking care of yerself once ya got here. Ya need to eat if ya wanna get better,”

“You’re right,” Levy sighed, “that’s exactly what I did. I—I don’t even remember the last time I ate.”

Gajeel chuckled, “That’s what I’m here for.”

“My personal cuddle dragon for the night?” Levy teased.

Gajeel blushed. “I was just trying to make ya laugh and calm down.”

Levy smiled and giggled, “Well, it worked.”

“Ok, it’s ready. Ya didn’t have much to work with here, Shrimp, but I think it came out alright.”

Levy moved to stand and winced.

Gajeel shot her an exasperated look. “Don’t be an idiot. I’ll bring it to ya.” He began to gather bowls and cutlery.

“Thanks.” Levy eased back into as comfortable a position as she could find on the couch. “I’m not really used to being so…well…beaten up, I guess.”

Gajeel looked her over for a long minute. She really had taken a tough beating. He blinked away a tear. Levy didn’t have iron scales like him; she was fragile. “Would some tea help?” Gajeel planted a steaming mug in front of her.

Levy inhaled deeply. It was Jasmine tea, her favorite. Gajeel seemed to know more of her quirks than she’d thought. She watched him as he brought over their bowls. He looked quite handsome with his hair tied back in a bandana. She ran her bandaged hand through her locks. They were sticking out at every angle, she was sure she looked like a mess.

“Eat.” Gajeel ordered as he slumped down next to her.

“You know, Gajeel, you didn’t need to do this,” Levy said bashfully as she took her food.

“I said I’m taking care of ya and that’s what I’m gonna do. Even you can’t stop me, Shrimp.”

He was already scarfing down his food. Levy hadn’t even thought about how he was coping. It was probably hard on him to see her like this. “Ok. I won’t stop you.”

They finished their bowls in silence. Levy wasn’t quite sure what was supposed to happen next. Gajeel darted off to her room and returned with the book she’d left on her nightstand. He sat with his back on the arm of the couch and spread his legs to make room for her. “Ya get half an hour. Lemme know if anything hurts too much.”

Levy eagerly took the book from his outstretched hand. “Only half an hour?” she whined. Gajeel was silent. “Fine.” Levy snuggled with her back against his chest and began to read. Gajeel carefully rubbed her back and shoulders, aware of every flinch when he pressed a tender area. Still, it felt good. Levy’s muscles ached, but just his touch made her feel better. Even holding back, he was a bit strong for her, and she grit her teeth through the pain. She knew that a tough massage would help her muscles, even if it hurt now, and he was trying his best to help her.

“Alrighty. Time for bed.” He scooped her into his arms and carried her to her room.

Levy puffed her cheeks as the sudden motion caused her to drop her book. “Gajeel, really, you don’t need to go this far.” Levy looked up at him only to receive a glare. “Ok, ok.” With that, she let him place her on the bed. Gajeel grabbed his bandana and tossed it on the floor, then began to peel off his shirt. “Are you staying? Shadow Gear will be back in the morning to help me out, you don’t need to—”

“Lev.” He was facing her, moonlight from the window illuminating his bare skin. Gajeel really looked as if he was painted with iron. “I almost lost you today. I told ya, from now on, I go with you.”

Levy smiled, she was again on the verge of tears. Her dragon would always be there to protect her, to make her feel safe. She didn’t need to be scared. She had Shadow Gear, and they had saved her, but this was different. He looked at her like she was his treasure, and she knew a dragon would guard his treasure with his life. “Alright.”

Gajeel’s smile turned from relief to wickedness. “Plus. I didn’t come here so late at night just to cuddle. That woulda been selfish, and I’m not that kinda guy. I came to take care of ya” he paused, “and to make ya feel better.” Gajeel gingerly cupped Levy’s face and bent down for a long, tender kiss. She was his dainty treasure. He kissed her neck all the way down to her collarbone. “Why don’t I help ya with this?” Levy nodded. He pulled up his shirt, it really did engulf her, and tossed it to the side. He looked at her for a moment. Taking in the sight of Levy: bruised, battered, and beautiful as she was bathed in the moonlight. The bruises across her ribs were perfectly visible. As long as he didn’t hurt her he wasn’t going to stop.

Gajeel sat on the bed and pulled her by her underwear into his lap. He kissed her collarbone, circling and placing gentle pecks on some bruises; she didn’t seem to mind. His hands ran circles around her ass. It felt like his cock hardened instantly as Levy moaned softly. This was exactly what he’d hoped for. She wasn’t in pain. He ventured lower, running his tongue around her breasts. He could feel her ass lifting involuntarily as she pressed herself against his lips. He moved one hand to her left nipple and circled it with his thumb as he sucked on her right, gently grabbing the tip with his teeth and twisting slightly from side to side. He knew it would drive her mad with pleasure, and it did. He felt the muscles in her back relax as she fell further into him.  Her moans became deeper as he sucked harder, and he switched effortlessly to the other breast, repeating his wonderful torture.

Gajeel snuck a hand under her panties as he returned to her lips. She kissed him eagerly, her tongue practically begging him for more. She grabbed his back, running her hands over his muscles. She loved to feel them and he knew it. He took a special pride in those muscles, and since he’d first claimed her, he’d made sure they were well developed. Gajeel toyed with her clit, she was so wet, so gorgeous as she turned to putty under his firm hands. Her nails dug into his back as he played with her. He knew all her curves, and during her massage he’d been sure to memorize the places she was too tender to be touched. Levy moaned louder as he dipped a finger into her core. She thrust her head back as he picked up speed; he felt her hard tips ticking his own nipples as she bounced against him. It was torture trying to contain himself, but she wasn’t quite ready.  

Tenderly, he laid her onto her back and set to work, teasing her with his mouth over her underwear. Occasionally he nipped at her thighs, they were too soft and jiggled too wonderfully to ignore entirely. Levy’s mewls of pleasure became higher and more strained, and Gajeel knew she was getting close. He grabbed the fabric with his teeth and swiftly tore it from her soaked folds. Finally, she was completely bare. Gajeel wasted no time and dove back in, sucking feverishly on her clit as his fingers pinched and twisted her nipples. She was so close. Gajeel couldn’t take it anymore, the smell of her need was intense and his cock needed to be inside her. He released one hand from her soft flesh and thrust into her with his finger, curling inside of her until she cried out and her walls began to contract around him. He kept his lips firm against her has she rode out her orgasm.

Levy was breathing heavily when he finally released her. Gajeel tore himself from his desire as he walked to the door. Her head was still in the clouds, and she didn’t register the sound of his boots and belt hitting the floor, nor the rush of fabric as he kicked off his pants. “Gajeel, where are you–”

The lights went out. Then she felt his hot skin press against her again. He ground himself against her core, eagerly coating his length in her wetness. Gajeel kissed her again, strong and eager. “I’m not going anywhere. I haven’t made ya feel better, yet.”

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