#pretty cool. id excuse it if over the top nonsense happened all the time!

[kiribakuhappiness]

Strawberries Were the Fucking Worst

by KiriBakuHappiness

KrBkMonth2020 - Day 1 Prompt; Strawberries!

Read under the cut!

This was such fucking bullshit.

Katsuki glared at the mechanical crane as it clenched around his squishy reward and started lifting it from the haphazard pile of stuffed animals and badly scuffed pre-packaged gadgets. The lights from the claw machine whirred silently, flashing obnoxious colors of bright ass blue and neon pink and blinding yellow. He watched with growing agitation and dissatisfaction as the crane swayed dangerously over the hole before dropping the embarrassing excuse of a consolation prize out to him.

“Tch.” Fucking bullshit.

He’d been playing this game for close to twenty minutes now, trying and pathetically failing to snag the headphones near the back of the tank. He would have even preferred nabbing that stupid fucking dragon plushie with the ridiculously bulging eyes or that dumb little keychain of a bomb with an explosion over this piece of shit.

Scowling, Katsuki snatched up the soft toy from the machine, squeezing it as hard as he could between his fingers.

What the fuck even was it? A fucking strawberry? What kid in the entire universe has ever looked at a strawberry and thought to themselves, hm, I’d love to fucking cuddle the shit out of that bitter ass ball of jaw-aching natural sugars. Strawberries were the fucking worst. And now Katsuki had a dumbass plushie of one.

It grinned up at him with a crooked, badly stitched on smile and the dumbest set of crossed eyes Katsuki’s ever seen. He couldn’t really help but snort unattractively at how fucking stupid this thing looked. Jesus fucking Christ. What a horrible end to a horrible day.

Katsuki grumbled as he turned his back on the claw machine – because what a fucking waste of time and money – before he started out of the arcade. A gaggle of pre-teens took one look at the red atrocity clutched in his hand and they giggled so repulsively that it made Katsuki grimace and hunch in further on himself, drawing his shoulders up to his ears defensively. He shot them a heated glare that had them squirming before he disappeared out into the night.

He stopped on the sidewalk and took a deep breath of the cool, damp air.

He hadn’t really wanted to go out tonight, but fuck, the idiots back at the dorms were being especially loud and annoying and he’d just wanted to get away from all of that unnecessary chaos. He didn’t know how Kirishima could stand being around them for longer than a few hours. He could stand Tape-Face on a good day, he supposed, and sometimes Pinky didn’t totally piss him off, but stick them all together and let Pikachu fucking rile them all up over stupid bullshit to the point where they’re all screaming and Katsuki just has to fucking get out of there before he explodes them all – which, according to Kirishima, he’s not allowed to do for some reason.

It’d been a horrible fucking day.

Between his mother calling him at the ass-crack of dawn before classes to bitch about the fact that he hadn’t been home in months, him snapping at Kirishima because of the residual frustration in his chest resulting in the pouting red-head to practically avoid him for the rest of the day, and the way he’d almost failed his test that afternoon – Katsuki was wound up fucking tight. Close to snapping, even.

So, he’d done the only thing he really knew how to do. He’d gotten on the bus and trekked his ass down to his favorite arcade.

It was reflex at this point to find himself at the arcade when he was stressed the fuck out. He’d been going there since he was a kid; Deku trailing behind him and whining some dumbfuck nonsense like, but Kacchan, this is a big kid’s arcade, they don’t want us here. As though Katsuki didn’t already know that. As though he hadn’t felt the annoyed glares and aggravated side-eyes of all the edgy fucking teenagers rounding on the pair of them after Katsuki had confidently waltzed inside.

He just hadn’t cared about them the way Deku had. He hadn’t been scared. What the fuck were they going to do? Beat him up? They’d never be allowed back into the arcade if they did that. Katsuki had been too smart for his own good at that age, because he was right. Apart from a few mean snickers and well-placed glowers of distaste, nobody bothered them or said anything as they clambered into the too-big seats of some racing game that he was sure was still operational, even this many years later. It wasn’t worth getting banned over just to pick on a couple of kids.

The arcade had become his sanctuary.

He found himself there a lot – after a heated argument with his mother, or when the world just felt too fucking loud, or when he thought he was losing control and he needed to reset himself. Restart. Replay.

He’d always been good at video games. Playing them helped develop his incredible hand-eye coordination, which also helped with his quirk, and the more violent video games stirred the creative part of his brain into coming up with more ideas for ultimate moves and new ways to blow shit up. He’d even go as far to say that playing video games was similar to training for him, though his mother would scoff and roll her eyes if he ever said that shit out loud.

But he hadn’t really been thinking about any of that when he’d barreled across the threshold into the arcade earlier that night. He’d just wanted a distraction. He’d just wanted to sit and tap vigorously at some dumbass buttons and maybe win a fucking prize.

Which, in the end, he supposed he had accomplished exactly that.

He glared down at the stupid fucking strawberry still grasped in his right hand before he huffed and started back towards the buses that would take him up to campus. He knew, realistically, that he could throw the damn thing away. He could even just set it down on the sidewalk and walk away from it, if he really wanted to. Some snot-nosed kid or homeless dog or some shit would probably find it and make it their own. But he had won it, even if it was fucking stupid, so he just balled it up as much as he could to try and save some of his dignity as he flashed his UA ID to the bus driver and meandered to sit in the very back of the bus.

He’d always preferred the buses at night. They weren’t as crowded and the air conditioner was always on, making it cold enough and uncomfortable enough that most people elected to walk wherever they were going if they could.

Plus, he always got to see some really weird ass shit and he fucking loved it.

Like tonight. Seated a few rows away from him was a man sitting casually, limbs sprawled out all over the place, with his shirt slung over his shoulder as he bobbed his head along to music that he wasn’t even listening to. Like, who fucking does that? What a weirdo. Where was he even coming from? Why was he shirtless? What song was he muttering and gesturing his hands around wildly to that Katsuki wasn’t privy to hear? Didn’t he see Katsuki sitting there? Or did he really just not care? It was fucking wild.

He reached into his pocket and slid his phone out before he discreetly tried to angle it so that he could take a picture of the guy. He made sure his flash was off and he waited until they were passing under a streetlamp so he could really capture the effect of this funky ass dude just chilling in a pair of shorts and nothing else in the middle of the night.

He texted the picture to Kirishima, like he always did when he found something weird happening out in public. Which was pretty much any time he walked outside the gates of UA into civilization, honestly. People were always doing weird ass shit.

 Bakugou Katsuki [9.38pm]: Image-Attachment297.jpg

Another fucking weirdo

 He stared down at his phone, rubbing his thumb absentmindedly over the power button and waiting for Kirishima to answer. He always came back with something dumb and amusing. Like that time Katsuki had sent him a picture of some woman dressed like a mermaid on roller-skates and Kirishima had said something hilariously stupid like, Maybe she’ll roll off the peer and just splash into the water. Never to be seen again. Like, what the fuck even was that mental image? Katsuki had cackled for about five minutes straight just thinking about that dumb woman speeding her way along only to yeet herself off into the water and ‘return home’ or some shit.

He frowned down at his phone when a few minutes ticked by and he didn’t get an answer. What was Kirishima doing? Katsuki figured he was probably still hanging out with the other idiots, but even then, he usually texted back. Was he still trying to avoid him or something?

Katsuki sighed through his nose and shoved his phone away, gripping tighter to the strawberry plushie in his lap.

He wasn’t very good at friendship. Fuck, he knew that he wasn’t. He wasn’t some oblivious idiot. He knew he was a lot to handle, and he knew sometimes he blew up about shit he probably didn’t fucking need to blow up about and his doctor has been worried about his blood pressure for as long as he could fucking remember. But he wasn’t used to Kirishima avoiding him like this. He was usually more resilient than that.

Katsuki scowled at the dumb toy.

Kirishima would probably like this stupid thing. He’d say something about how it matched his hair or whatever. Dumb fuck would probably even keep it on his bed. He’d probably be pretty fucking happy if Katsuki gave it to him… Right?

His fingers gripped harder as he chewed on the inside of his cheek. He wasn’t very good at friendship. He didn’t know what it all entailed. Sure, he’d had friends before. He wasn’t a fucking loser. But they had all sucked. They were shit at video games and they were fucking stupid as all hell and they always grated on Katsuki’s last nerves.

But Kirishima wasn’t like that.

He kicked ass at video games. And he wasn’t annoying. And Katsuki supposed he liked how shamelessly the big oaf threw himself on top of him; arm slung tight around his neck and that stupid beaming smile of his fucking blinding him. He was always warm. Plus, Kirishima was strong, like he was. It was really fucking cool that Katsuki could literally howitzer the motherfucker and he’d still be standing, grinning like a dumbass and yelling something like, Did you see that? Did you see me?

As if Katsuki didn’t always see him. As if Katsuki wasn’t always looking.

Maybe that was weird.

Maybe that was a little out of bounds of what normal friendship required, but Katsuki didn’t fucking know any better, and it was hard not to automatically look for the idiot’s appalling red hair whenever he walked into a room. He didn’t want to be around anyone else, they were all so fucking weird, sue him for wanting to hang out with his best friend. What-the-fuck-ever.

Katsuki huffed again as the bus pulled to a stop in front of the gaping gates of UA’s campus. He balled the dumb strawberry up as much as he could before he labored to his feet and started the short trek back to the dorms. The campus was mostly empty at this point – curfew was at 10 o’clock so there really wasn’t any point to be out this late. Not that he was fucking complaining. He always needed some more peace and quiet.

He didn’t stumble across another person until he was almost at his dorm room.

Kirishima’s door opened just as Katsuki was about to walk past it.

“Oh,” Kirishima’s eyes widened a little before he rested a hand on the back of his neck. “Hey dude.”

Katsuki scowled at him. He wasn’t even hanging out with the fucking idiots. Why hadn’t he texted him back? “Hey.”

Kirishima leaned against his door frame and slid his hands deep into the pockets of his shorts. He looked like he wanted to say something, like he was teetering on the edge, but he couldn’t force himself over. Katsuki sneered. Why was Kirishima acting so fucking weird? It was really starting to piss him off.

He shoved the strawberry plushie into Kirishima’s chest. “Fucking here.”

Kirishima blinked in surprise for a moment before he glanced down at the toy with its stupid fucking crossed eyes. He beamed at the dumb thing and Katsuki hunched in on himself to avoid feeling… fuck, whatever it was that he was fucking feeling right now.

“Dude, this thing is so cute,” Kirishima said, as if it really was.

Katsuki snorted and rolled his eyes. “It looks like you.”

Kirishima’s eyes boggled a little and his cheeks blossomed into a deep red color.

Katsuki scowled. What the fuck? Did he really not get it? He reached out and tapped impatiently at the strawberry’s dumb face. “It’s all red and shit like your fucking hair.”

Kirishima blinked at him one more time, his face still impossibly flushed, before he let out a loud laugh. He shook his head, gripping the toy and inspecting it more. “I can keep this?”

“I’m not gonna fucking keep it,” Katsuki grunted, scratching awkwardly at his cheek.

Kirishima smiled at him and, shit, Katsuki couldn’t look away from it. It was too fucking soft. “Thanks man, I really like it!”

Katsuki felt himself brim with something that vaguely resembled pride for some fucking reason. “I knew you would, that’s why I fucking gave it to you.”

Kirishima’s smile softened even more and Katsuki physically had to stop himself from moving closer. It’d been a horrible fucking day and to top it all off he hadn’t gotten to hang out with Kirishima at all. He didn’t want to be a bitch about it. They literally saw each other every goddamn day, Katsuki could afford to spend one fucking day by himself.

But…

It’d been the worst fucking day he’d had in a while. And the first day in a while where he hadn’t hung out with Kirishima. Those two things couldn’t be connected, right?

“Are you gonna go to bed?” Kirishima asked as he fiddled with the toy, not looking at him.

Katsuki shrugged and slid his hands into his pockets. Why was he so fucking sweaty right now?

“I don’t know…” Katsuki hesitated. “What are you gonna do?”

Kirishima glanced up at him through the fringe of his hair. Katsuki really liked it when his hair was down like that.

“Hang out with you, maybe?” He grinned sheepishly, and Katsuki’s dumbass heart did a dumbass flip or some dumbass shit.

“Tch,” he reached a hand up and scratched at the back of his head. “Then I guess I’m fucking hanging out with you, aren’t I?”

Kirishima beamed and it distracted Katsuki enough that he didn’t even bother chastising him for bringing that dumb fucking strawberry into his room or for cuddling the damn thing on his bed for the rest of the night.

#krbkmonth2020 #kiribaku #kiribaku fic #kiribaku fic recs #bakushima #bakugou katsuki #kirishima eijirou #bakugou x kirishima #kiribaku month 2020 #kiribakuhappiness drabble prompts

[closer-stars]

Precious - Seonghwa (2)

Member: Seonghwa Genre: Drama and Horror for the most part Word Count: 7.3k  Requested: Yes Content: Seonghwa finds out what the fuck goes on. Slightly inspired by the fact they went to Spain. A lot of weird things happen. Mentions of body horror, food (it’s not a Stars work if there’s no food involved). Religious references. San is Protective of Seonghwa. Eden knows something that we don’t.  Note: Okay so Part 2 of Precious is here. I had to read about various Biblical references from academic papers, YA books I’ve grown up reading and some classic literature books I’ve had to read at one point. Some architecture readings, some history readings because I have a short attention span that wants to know everything. Things might not be accurate, history/biblical mythology wise but an Attempt was made. 

Part 1

The plans of going abroad to record their next album was a surprise for them, even more that this time it’s not going to be in the US. For the majority of the boys, this plan was met with excitement and curiosity. New places, new experiences and most importantly new food. Only Seonghwa met this idea with hesitance. Something about it didn’t sit right with him but did he really have a say in this? San noted his uneasiness at the news. “Hyung, is everything okay?” He asked in the midst of excited murmuring around them. The older’s eyes gaze over the other members and he found it better to keep his peace so he nods. 

“Yeah, I’m alright. Once we get back to our dorm we need to start packing.” He returned. “Also, don’t get lazy packing this time please? The last time you did, you forgot your toothbrush and toothpaste at home and we were already in America.” This was met with a small whine from the younger. 

“Okay okay! I’ll get started on it tonight.” San doesn’t press on his hyung’s discomfort. One way or another he does come clean about it. It was better to wait, he supposed. 

-------

Fast forward to a week later. They’re now in Spain. They’ve been assigned into their rooms. Instead of having Hongjoong or Yeosang as his roommate this time, it was San. Not that he didn’t mind it but it was a nice change, even if the younger teases him to no end. Since it’s their first day and everyone’s still clearly jet-lagged, their staff let the boys free for the first two days to get used to the change. 

The first day was quiet, as quiet as it can be with eight boys in a new city. Most of the time was spent getting their body clocks to fall in sync with the city’s life. Some of them went out on their own with some of their staff, exploring the shops. Others went and explored the restaurants, wondering where to eat for their next meal. Seonghwa opted to go and quiet down in a coffee shop, the spacious and antique interiors are complete opposite to the ones he knows back home. It’s a rare occurrence too to have San accompany him into a coffee shop, knowing him he usually opted to go around and buy clothes or trinkets to remember the trip. 

“Coffee? I thought you didn’t like coffee.” 

“I don’t like Americanos, San. My coffee’s just the usual mocha.” The older reasons with a pout. The younger giggling softly at the sight. 

“Alright, alright. I’ll just get the Americano and we can just split the strawberry cake you’ve been eyeing since we arrived.” 

The rest of their stay in the shop goes by smoothly, his mind distracted by the food in front of him and San excitedly gushing over the planning of their next album. “I wonder what Eden-hyung and Hongjoong-hyung have. I mean we know what this next one’s supposed to mean but song wise and choreo wise? Ugh, Hyung, I want to get back on stage soon.” San confesses and it makes Seonghwa wonder if his energy was from his itch to perform or from the coffee. Instead of saying anything, Seonghwa nods in empathy. He misses the stage too and he hopes that they’d be able to get back on it soon. 

It’s when the others found a quaint restaurant a few blocks away from their hotel that they realize that dinner was rolling in soon for them. San notices the message and the time. “Should we get going?” He asks, as he finishes the last of his coffee. Their cake long gone. 

The older male nods his head as he takes a few sips of his water. “Let’s go. We don’t know how long it would take the others to get back and knowing Wooyoung and Yeosang, those two get distracted along the way easily.” 

------

Seonghwa’s sleep for the night wasn’t terrifying but it wasn’t peaceful either. Every few hours he’d wake up disoriented, the images in his dreams nonsensical but at least he didn’t have any bout of sleep paralysis. It only takes a few minutes for him to get back to sleep but every time he does, he sees weird things. 

Colorful flames dance in front of his eyes, feathers of various birds falling into the flame, some unharmed, some turning into a crisp. It’s the first time he’s seen a flame so intensely blue that leaves some of the feathers safe from the damaging heat. He swears he could hear someone call his name somewhere, but he couldn’t tear his eyes away from the damaged feathers, too entranced by how it burns red, ashes of what was falling from the body until all that was left was a charred crisp of ashes. His name continues to be called, it’s when he feels a jolt that he’s pulled back into the waking world.  

“Seonghwa-hyung!” 

His eyes shoot open, immediately shutting them again from the glare of the morning sun. 

“Hyung, it’s 8AM. The breakfast is open for two more hours only.” San says as he fixes himself infront of the mirror. 

His hand roams across the expanse of his bed until he finds his phone. 7:45 AM. “Dammit, San. It’s only fifteen minutes before eight... “ He lies back in bed, rubbing his eyes as he tries to remember what he had just seen minutes before. “Wait, you’re awake before I am.”

San looks back at his hyung, hand on his hip. Mingi’s been rubbing off on him. “Glad you noticed! Mingi kept calling my phone to wake me up. We’re going around the city today while Hongjoong-hyung, Jongho and Eden-hyung finalize the guides.” 

A whine nearly slips from his lips, wanting to rather sleep in and do nothing all day. Another side of him reminds him that it was rare to get such an opportunity to just live and so he thinks. When he reaches for the phone, San asks what he’s doing. 

“Room service. By the time I finish showering, the food’s going to be here.” 

San stares at him for a few moments before groaning and throwing himself on the bed.

“Why didn’t I think of that… I could’ve gotten a few more minutes of sleep…”

-----

It was Yunho’s suggestion that they look around the city, see the history and the like. Considering that their leader, their maknae and Eden were in the studio, not too far from the hotel, it results in Seonghwa and Yunho being the heads of the group along with one manager as the rest of them sightsee.

“There’s this really cool park we saw yesterday but we didn’t get to go inside. There’s so many pretty stuff in there too!” Yunho explains, already looking at their map and leading the rest of the group. 

------

They arrive just outside the park. One that seems to be well known for having locals and tourists flock to for the history and scenery. Some of the boys try to read the name of where they were but San was the closest to the actual pronunciation. A quick translation: The Park of Pleasant Retreat. Seonghwa could see why from where they stood. People lounged around the greenery, taking in the warmth of the sun as they mingled with their loved ones. If Seonghwa squints a bit, he could even see a few people playing music under the shaded refuge of the trees. There even seems to be a body of water where people rowed small boats around, some lingering by the steps aged by natural forces and people who have come before them. 

The boys have already learned that if they act like they should be hidden, they’ll be noticed by the public. It’s because of Wooyoung that they decide to go and explore through this path. A part of him thinks back to Jongho who would’ve loved to see this place and take photos. Even if Seonghwa didn’t know the history that this park holds down to the details, he knew that it seems to hold a large piece of the country’s history judging by the architecture. Grandiose pillars, crowned at the top with designs that curled inwards, though the temple-like pathway looks pristine, it has definitely been colored and worn through time. His eyes take in the scenery, occasionally stopping to take a few photos. It was a good change of scenery he thought, away from the chaos of his daily life, everything felt serene and calming. He could see why people flock to this park. He notices that his members had slowed to a stop and their manager was about to get in between them and the stranger that has made their presence known to them. 

She looks like a local judging by her clothes and how she just seemed in her element. Seonghwa’s eyes study her features from where he stands: high cheekbones, pink lips that were adorned by a dainty cupid’s bow. Her almond shaped eyes were revealed after she rests her shades atop her head. Her skin, unblemished and unmarked, tanned by constant hours under the sun. She carries herself with so much poise, the male would’ve thought she was some sort of local celebrity. It was when she started to speak in Korean that they somewhat relaxed. “Hey, I’m just a local, I promise. My name’s Kayla. You guys just seemed like you would prefer getting the rundown of what this place is.” She explains as she brings out an ID to show to their manager and to the rest of them. “Also, I work as a local tour guide in my free time so…” She trails off with a shrug. The boys look to each other and under their breath they ask. 

“Should we?” Yunho mumbles as he eyes everyone.

“I mean we only have this day…” Yeosang points out, brushing through his hair that's starting to become a nuisance to his eyes.

“If she’s shady, we can just make an excuse and go.” Wooyoung adds.

“So yes?” 

They looked at each other one more time and figured: nothing to lose. They turn to their manager who has told them of their rules since Day 1: Don’t do anything stupid. To everyone, it wasn’t. To San and Seonghwa, it was bordering on stupid. 

So the rest of the boys agree, the minority: San and Seonghwa just letting them be and trailing behind the group. 

“Hyung, are you okay?” 

Seonghwa doesn’t register the younger’s question. Since the group was so busy discussing the opportunity, the male had been stuck in his thoughts. Those features were familiar but he couldn’t put a finger on it. Did he see her online somewhere? Hell, who was she even? It was impossible for him to have seen her in his dreams, he barely remembers what he dreams about nowadays. He should’ve taken a peek at the ID when he had the chance earlier. 

“Hyung.” San calls out again, bumping his elbow to the older and this brings him out of his reverie. 

“Huh? Yeah, sorry what? I was spacing out again, I think.” 

This time San lets out an exasperated sigh, much similar to the ones Seonghwa lets out when they act up. “I’m worried. You’ve been on edge since you heard we were going to come here for work.” He was right. The days leading up to this trip, he hasn’t been calm. His nights consisted of tossing and turning as he tries to get some peace. If none of those movements bring him that rest, he ends up doing the same home workout routines he sees San do until he feels exhaustion and considering that he’s an idol, it takes a long while until his body gives in to the comfort of his bed. So the older one lets out a soft groan, making sure no one hears it. 

“I don’t know. Something just doesn’t feel right.” He mumbles, opting to use dialect just to make sure she didn’t understand. How sure was he even that she wouldn’t understand him? “I had a nightmare… a few weeks or months prior to this and it’s just really weird.” He continues as the walk through the wide paths. For a moment, everyone gets distracted by a couple walking dogs they’ve never seen before. While he smiles at the sight of his members finding glee in the furry companions, he catches sight of the couple’s eyes and his blood runs cold: icy blue. It’s not like the eyes he had seen in his nightmare but these two carry a weight that made him think: it was better to stay in his side. He looks away immediately and opts to fix his attention to what the woman explains. 

“This park’s been known for their architecture. This park was commissioned roughly in the 1630s, constantly being expanded and improved upon by the Spanish monarchy. It was open to the public by the second half of 1800s and what you see people doing today, it was the same back then. I guess you can say not much has changed since then. Countless monuments and buildings have been made here over the centuries which you can see by the change in architectural and artistic design.” She explains. She gestures to a glass structure some meters ahead of them. “That over there was used as a winter garden for flowers that weren’t usually found in Spain, nowadays it’s for exhibitions and the like. Insanely pretty isn’t it?” She muses as some of the boys take a few shots as they get closer. A few moments of silence pass over them until she speaks up again. “Actually, there’s this monument I’d like you boys to see. No other place in the world has something like this. By any chance, is any of you easily scared?” 

That prompts the boys to gesture at Mingi, which he accepts with grace. “I’m not good with scary.” He explains with a bashful grin. He takes this cue to hold onto their manager, thus earning him a soft chuckle from the woman. As she sweeps her gaze across all of them, lingering for a moment or two at one particular man, she smiles. “I assure you that this isn’t too scary but it might be a little unnerving.” With a turn of heel, she leads them through another path, slowing down as they are greeted by a tall monument. 

At the foot of the monument are eight faces of beings no one can quite tell spouting out water from its respective orifices. The beings, so ambiguous, so odd it’s hard to look away from were unnerving upon a closer look. Seonghwa looked up at the top of the monument and he immediately knew: they needed to leave. At the top of the monument rests a statue, twisted in turmoil as he falls backwards. The fall clearly did not look like something the subject wished. The wings of the statue are somehow still outstretched, in a feeble attempt to protect the owner from further pain. While he couldn’t see the statue’s details closely, he could note that there were things that wrapped around its wrist and ankle. He could only guess that those were snakes or reptiles that looked just like the ones at the foot of the monument. 

“Gentlemen, I’d like to introduce to you the Fountain of the Fallen Angel.” She starts as she gestures to the anguished being on top. “It’s rather an oddly proud moment for us to be the only ones with a public monument dedicated to the Fallen Angel-- as far as I know that is. To start, this was inspired by John Milton’s book Paradise Lost. Nothing has been definite as to whether or not this fallen angel is Lucifer the Morningstar himself, falling from grace or just any other angel that has fallen but some do like to believe it is the Lucifer being depicted up there.” 

At the mention of the word star, Wooyoung teases Seonghwa. “Heh, don’t you call yourself a star too?” 

Yeosang raises his hand, just like an obedient boy in class. “Wait, why did he fall?” 

Before she could answer, San beats her to it. “Because of his pride isn’t it? That guy up there wanted to be as great as God and tried to make other angels rebel with him.” 

This pleases her. The way her lips curve into one of pride has Seonghwa’s skin crawl with discomfort. “That’s correct. Did you also know that this statue stands 666 feet above sea level?” She asks, only to further explain the math of where they stand, how tall the pillar this monument stands on, and how tall the statue is. It was a reasonable guess and considering what the statue was, the connection just seemed right. 

“On our eye level,” she continues. “We see eight different types of demons and other symbolisms related to the Bible.” she gestures to the eight different phases at the bottom. “This statue has seen a lot of things throughout history that if you have perfect eyesight, you can actually see some bullet holes on the body and wings. Those being remnants of the wars this land has experienced.” 

Everything about the statue made Seonghwa want to run, run far away from this place and head back home. The adrenaline starts to make his head pound, that he holds onto San’s forearm. 

“Hyung, are you-” 

“I’m fine. I just got lightheaded.” He mutters as he breathes in through his nose and out his mouth. The air didn’t seem as cooling as it did earlier anymore. No one takes pictures of this monument, the history surrounding it and the context behind the figure makes it too unsettling for any of them to hold a little piece of memory. 

As they walk away from that work of art, Wooyoung asks her. “Miss, are you religious? I hope I don’t come off as rude..” he mumbles a little embarrassed. 

“Dear, what makes you think of such?” 

“You just seemed like you knew a lot about that statue and its context…” 

So she hums in thoughts. “Your friend earlier, the one that answered your friend’s question. Is he also religious?” 

“He used to be.” 

“A wise decision.” She nods. “To answer your question, is being knowledgeable in one belief equivalent to being religious?”

Seonghwa wishes he didn’t hear that.

Wooyoung purses his lips, “I suppose not.. To be honest, you sounded like you believed in the stories.” 

Oh how Seonghwa wishes he could tell Yunho to make Wooyoung shut up. 

“Now tell me dear, Why should I believe in beings I have not seen in their flesh? The farthest we have seen of these beings are through art and the stories passed onto us.” 

It unnerves San how she talks in such riddles all of a sudden. 

Seonghwa’s phone rings all of a sudden and he has never felt more relief when he finds out it was Hongjoong. Everyone’s phones seem to ring at the same time. A group chat message. 

Yunho’s the first to read the message and his face falls for a moment only for an apologetic smile to quickly replace his pout. He turns to the lady, as he keeps his phone. “We’re really sorry but we have to go. Work’s calling for us.” He explains simply. 

“Oh? You guys are already working? But you look so young..” She notes, her eyes studying each of their features closely. 

“It’s okay we like what we’re doing anyways.” San says in return, his arm around Seonghwa was the only thing keeping the male steady as he tries his best to appear nonchalant. 

The lady’s bottom lip juts out at the abrupt ending to the tour. “Mhm, I suppose that’s more important isn’t it? Happiness.” No one knows if she’s talking to them or to herself so they take the cue to bid her goodbye. “Very well! I hope to see you boys soon, good luck with your work.” She gestures at the direction they came from just so they don’t get lost along the way. 

It’s only when they arrive at the same place where they started earlier that Seonghwa speaks up. “Let’s just make our way to the hotel then head to Hongjoong.” 

The guides were finished and all that was left was for them to record the songs.

-------

For the next few days of their stay, all they’ve done is practice and record the songs until Hongjoong and Eden were satisfied with the quality. Even with the troubles of the new equipment that came along the way, it was a relief to everyone to have finally finished the songs. All that was left was to decide on when the shooting and promotions will be. Seonghwa pats their leader’s back lightly. “You did well, Hongjoong.” He mumbles, throat a little worn from having pushed himself to reach a few notes that weren’t in his usual range. Hongjoong on the other hand hums in response. There was only so much he could do with what they have but if time allows, he would definitely ask for them to re-do some of their lines, maybe not here but back home. 

Eden tells everyone to call it a night after such a tiring and intense week, even forcing Hongjoong to not touch his music software for the night. Even with those words, they know better: Hongjoong would stop when he’s done solidifying all the ideas in his head. 

------

The entire week of recording and practicing had made Seonghwa forget about their tour guide and his sleep problems. The past few nights just being pure dreamless sleep, that or he forgets what his dreams were within the first few seconds of waking consciousness. Now that the week is over, he still hopes he could get the same dreamless sleep that wasn’t plagued by the stress of his work.

His eyes were closed by the time he throws his body onto his bed. 

He doesn’t feel the heavy weight on his chest this time, but he still can’t get his body to move. He hoped it wasn’t the same being that visits him now, he wasn’t sure if he should hope for a different being either. While on his side, he looks around, San’s sleeping body just a few feet away from him. It’s only when he looks by the door that he notices the being. Human looking just like the first one but with an air that carries pain masked by regality. 

“How has your stay been in our humble abode, Sir?” He asks, tone gravelly, as if his throat has been abused by cigars, alcohol and more. Seonghwa could barely make out the rest of his features from where he lays. He wants to answer but he doubts his own throat could do the same effort as the being that leans against the wall. “Oh don’t worry, you can speak around me. I suppose my sister had been rough on you the first few visits?” The stranger adds. He steps further into their room. Though spotless, the bottles of soda and packs of instant noodles are enough to tell him that these boys were not too far into their adulthood. 

At his words, Seonghwa opens his mouth. “How did you get into our room?” He mumbles, there’s still a restriction in his throat but better than the first time. Did all of whatever they are have the same sort of power? 

“Oh please, the sleep paralysis thing we do isn’t everyone’s. Just my family’s.” The unnamed male returns, reading Seonghwa’s mind. “Call me El, I’m sure you’ve met my sister, Kea. My bloodline is besides the point, I’ve come to visit to see how my people have treated you and your hm, group?” 

People? Seonghwa looks at the man once more, unsure of what he means, and fears if he were to explain any further. 

“What the fuck?”

Seonghwa’s eyes dart to his roommate, already sitting up on his bed. At his words, El looks at him and with a shit eating grin, he manages to stride across their room and out the window. A grandeur exit. While Seonghwa wasn’t able to see the male unfurl his wings, if he was indeed telling the truth, he wouldn’t be surprised if his wings looked anything like his aforementioned sister.

He regains the feeling and control in his body and sits up from his bed, San already contacting someone about what had happened. “So you saw what I saw?” Seonghwa asks, as San tries to contact someone in his phone. 

San uncharacteristically shushes the older once the recipient of the call picks up. “They’re here. One of them visited our room and talked to Seonghwa.” A few more minutes pass and San hangs up. “Hyung, I’ll explain later but we need to get everyone to wake up and head to the studio. Go get ready, I’ll wake up the others.” It’s rare to see San so steely and dark. Besides him, San was the next scariest person when angry so he does as he’s told. He kicks off the sheets and gets his clothes ready for what could be a long day. 

---------

“We need to go back.” Eden says, as he finally saves all their work into the hard drive. 

This shocks everyone, at least those who haven’t known what happened. Those being anyone that wasn’t Seonghwa and San. 

“We just got here, what’s wrong?” Yunho asks, sitting up from his spot on the couch. Hongjoong already had an idea of what was going on thanks to Eden, if his dark look is anything to go by. No other words were shared by the rest of the boys, but upon seeing Seonghwa, San and Hongjoong pack up their things from the studio without a word, they figured something was up. Hongjoong shoots them a look that tells them to start moving, any explanations will be done when they’re on the way back. 

They move back into the van, and even then nothing has been said. The air is stiff with tension, worry and confusion. Seonghwa’s face was unmoving but the lines of fear appear on his features. He looks out of the window, watching aged buildings blur past them. He wonders if any of these buildings house these odd beings as well. They might have, just not in the buildings he supposes. Wooyoung’s persistent nature of wanting to know what’s happening nearly has Hongjoong snap at the younger. It’s not until San places his hand on the leader’s shoulder that tells him to cut them slack. They don’t know, not yet at least. Seonghwa glances at the two share a conversation with loaded gazes. “Quit it, all of you. Once everything quiets down, I’ll explain.” he mumbles as he rubs his forehead, a weak attempt to smoothen out the stress that hasn’t left him since they’ve stepped foot into this country. 

It’s rare to have Seonghwa speak up like that. It’s all it takes for everyone to behave. 

They arrive in their hotel and immediately make their way to their respective rooms. San and Seonghwa speed to their room, packing everything they’ve brought out from their luggages and back inside. It only takes three hours, considering that they haven’t stayed too long in the country yet, to get everything back in. 

The older male is too busy in his head, making sure he hasn’t forgotten anything: passport, charger, wallet, among other valuables. It’s when San calls his name and tosses him his hat that he remembers that he’s going to need to keep his sight limited to what’s directly in front of him to keep him from losing his sanity. “We’ll get back safely.” San promises him. His luggage was already strapped and ready, much like his. It’s only then that he releases the breath he’s been holding since they were in the studio. 

“I hope so. I don’t think I can bear to see any of you in danger just because of me.” He says under his breath. They take one final look around their room and seeing that everything’s clean, they make their way out. The pair’s greeted by the other members already making their way towards the elevator. While the others only have hats or sunglasses covering their features, Seonghwa had to take both for safety. 

Eden was already at the reception, waiting for everyone. He looks at his phone, counting the hours from where they are to the airport, alone with their flight back. He needs to explain to Seonghwa especially what’s been happening to him. But to that, he wants to make sure there are no ears on the walls. The producer’s greeted by everyone and he already nods towards the doors. “Our rides are already waiting for us outside.”

“Rides?” Seonghwa repeats, the idea of splitting up didn’t feel right but at this point he wasn’t sure if these feelings are of paranoia or gut.

Eden glances over at the covered boy and a bit of his heart twists, he could only imagine the stress this boy was going through and being separated from the rest of his members probably was making it worse for him. “We’re too many plus our luggage but I made sure we’re with people we can trust so let’s go.” He doesn’t expound anymore as he strides out. 

The ride to the airport is quiet, and it’s the one of the rare times Seonghwa’s sleep was peaceful. His body slouched over, leaning against the younger. Throughout the entire stay in Spain, San hasn’t left the eldest’s side and it’s from there that the others figured that San knew something they didn’t know. 

Hongjoong’s the first one to speak up. “San-ah. What’s been happening?” His voice quiet to make sure he doesn’t disrupt his sleep. He should’ve noticed the bags under his eyes since they arrived. The younger looks over at the exhausted member and tries to find the right words at least for this moment. 

“There’s been something that’s been bothering him. It only got worse when we came here. We’ll explain when we’re back in Korea.” Who knew being knowledgeable in all those religious stories would be useful to him? 

The rest of the ride is quiet but no one else falls asleep. San gently rouses him awake. “Wake up, we’re here.” The older one groans at how his peace has slipped away and he’s greeted by the sight of his members jumping out of the car, to be greeted by their managers and staff who also had their luggages. San couldn’t help but chuckle softly as the other curses in discomfort as he stumbles out, rubbing the sleep off his eyes. 

It doesn’t take long until everyone’s by the boarding gate. Everything feels like a blur to Seonghwa. The nap in the car made him realize just how his body ached for some peace. As they fall into lines to get into the airplane, Seonghwa leans against the back of his manager, resting his forehead against his back. He craves for sleep, for an escape from all of this and to be frank, he doubted he’d be able to escape this hell he’s in. 

By the time he’s in his designated seat in the aircraft, he’s knocked out once more. He only manages to wake up when the stewardesses serve their meals. He doesn’t even bother with the fact all of them are in business class. He’s sandwiched by San and their manager and while he can probably talk about what’s been bothering him, he doesn’t trust anyone else. While his thoughts run amok, his eyelids feel heavy. His physical body needed rest but his mind wouldn’t let up, with a disgruntled huff he puts in one earphone, letting music be a distraction from his paranoia. It’s clockwork for the entire flight, sleep, eat, worry, sleep, repeat, until they land back in their motherland. 

It was a miracle nothing had happened during the flight. Seonghwa doubts he’d be able to forgive himself if anyone became a victim to his misery. The ride back home was quiet as well, no one expected their sudden return after the chaotic entrance into the airport a few days back. 

By the time they arrive at their agency, it was mid-day. Everyone feels the exhaustion slowly steep into their bodies but their need to understand what’s going on somehow keeps them awake. 

The eight boys file into the conference room, Eden following them into the room shortly after. “I’ll make this quick and bearable since you boys need to catch up on rest for the time being.” He starts. The producer’s eyes studies each boy, and can’t find it in himself to put them through another hectic meeting, not now at least. “Seonghwa’s been considered a hot topic among the fallen angels which I assume is what has been disturbing his sleep for who knows how long.” All eyes were on him now as he sighs. 

“San explained bits and pieces to me before I told all of you to pack up.” He doesn’t go into detail unless someone asks, out of pity over their exhausted conditions. “Simply put, someone, i’m presuming one of the fallen in Spain ended up finding out we were there too.” Eight pairs of eyes gaze at him, most of which were heavy in need of rest, one had fear and confusion mixed in their gaze, but everyone carried the question of ‘Why?’. So he sighs, “I wish I knew why but for now, I need all of you to be careful and keep an eye on each other.” He hands Seonghwa a gold necklace with a pendant that seemed to depict a holy figure, judging by the round band over their head. “You guys need to get rest first. Seonghwa, while I’m not sure of what we’re dealing with exactly, just wear that first for protection.” 

“Since when were you religious?” Seonghwa asks, as he studies the pendants. As far as he remembers, the producer was far from a man of faith.

“I’m not but because we’re dealing with fallen angels, we might as well make sure we’re on equal ground.” The adult reasons with a shake of his head. 

This cues him to look at the male, keeping the necklace in his pocket. “You know they exist but you don’t believe in them?” 

“Seonghwa, I know there’s a more powerful being above all of us. Even them, but I don’t know if they are really the God that they talk about.” 

There’s too many questions but Seonghwa shakes his head free of them. “We’ll get going, get some rest too, Hyung.” He reminds as he opens the door, letting everyone out first before him. 

-------

The feeling of being home doesn’t bring him as much comfort as it should and he’s not sure of how to process that. He didn’t want to sleep yet, even if he’s exhausted from the trip and stress, so he lets the other members wash up first before he does. As he waits, his fingers fiddle with the golden chain of his new necklace. He’s back trapped in his own thoughts with no answers to his questions. When he feels like he’s got some sort of direction, it splits into several directions trapping him in a web of ideas that make no sense. 

Mingi’s voice breaks him out of his thoughts, telling him that everyone else was finished. 

The hot water manages to calm him down even for a bit. The water beating against his back and shoulders softening all the knots that have formed over the past few months. Once he’s finished cleaning himself up, he finds himself able to breathe a little better with the loose clothing of his sleepwear. 

When he feels his body land against the worn comforter, he blacks out. The necklace laid underneath his pillow just for safekeeping. It’s worth a shot even if he doesn’t believe. 

When he opens his eyes, he feels the same weight again on his body. He’s gone past the point of scared, he’s tired. He just wants sleep, peace, a clear head to juggle his work and his personal life. He knows what’s next. Another of those fallen angels is somewhere in his room. His eyes dart from various points of the room, looking for the presence. 

There she is.

The same being from the first time. The same lady, only she looks like she finally knows what she was looking for. 

Once Seonghwa gets a better look, he realizes it’s the same lady when they were in Spain. Even in his inability to move, he wants to lunge and fight her. While he isn’t one to raise his hand on anyone, he was willing to throw that rule of his to the wind just to deal with her. Alas, he’s constricted to the bed. 

“How was your stay in Spain, dear Seonghwa?” she muses, knowing full well that he won’t be able to answer. “I see that you have people around you that know of what’s been happening.” she continues as she saunters to the unmoving male. 

He despises how his body feels so numb. 

“Who knew that what we would be looking for wasn’t an object?” Seonghwa stares at her, anger burning in his orbs. Not like he knew what she was on about, he didn’t even know how they existed or how they live. He feels her pointed nail drag across his skin, just below his neck. “You’d be useful to us, sweetheart.” Her voice felt like it was laced with honey, tempting him to submit to her. “Do you want fame, my star?” The endearment makes his skin crawl. “You’re a well known artist aren’t you? Wouldn’t you want the immortality of your name? I can guarantee that as well.” her nails dig into his skin as she speaks. “Or would you rather build an immense following? That’s something we can do for you too.” 

We? 

She stands up, smiling upon him. “Oh of course, you can’t speak.” She grabs his face, handling him roughly as she makes him look at him. “Dear, I know you’re powerless under my presence so I’ll offer you this until we meet again. Everything you want is yours, just as long as you submit to us.” Her nails dig into his skin once more and this time it’s starting to hurt. Her free hand trails down his back. “You won’t need the wings you’ve seen, you’ll have the throne right next to our leader.” With others, she leaves her mark, to prove that her visitation was no mere dream but a reality. That her words and promises were true to their ears, and that they’ve sworn an oath. As she was about to leave three parallel lines down his back, she feels her back burn. 

The same burn that she felt when she fell. 

So she lets out a pained shriek, letting go of the unmoving male and he lands back on his comforter like a discarded toy. He stares at her, questioning what had just happened. 

He sees what causes her pain. 

The feathers on her wings are singed. The feathers were slowly burning to a crisp until it reached the main body of her wings. The part of her wings that are closest to her skin are raw. As if someone had decided to peel off the top layer of skin in a swift manner. Her skin looked terrible, none of the horror films his members watch prepared him for such a scene. He doubted any film maker could come up with something so graphic and merciless. This is something beyond human comprehension. 

The painful screams are so raw, so real, it sends chills down his bones. While he’s aware of how capable the throat is in creating sounds that thrust the listener into the deepest emotions, the screams carried years, if not centuries, of pain and anger.  

Of all things that made him believe that there was something stronger out there, it was a fallen writhing in indescribable pain in front of his numb body. He didn’t know how she��s able to still stand, how she’s still conscious but all those are discarded when he meets her eyes.

It’s how she shoots icy daggers at him that makes him feel some sort of fear. 

Primal fear. 

“Just as powerful as the first bearer’s.” she hisses through pained sobs. That’s when he realizes she was indeed crying. Instead of transparent water that humans produce, her tears looked thicker, darker. 

It looked like blood. 

The two of them hear someone banging on his door, trying to budge it open. The lady-- the fallen takes her cue to escape. 

“Mark my words, Star. We will find a way, know that your peace is temporary.” With that, she slips through the same window. 

Somehow, Seonghwa believes those words. He worries how short lived his peace will be. 

As she leaves, he regains control of his body. San and Hongjoong manage to barge into the room, greeted by the sight of a pale Seonghwa. 

“What happened? We heard loud noises.” Hongjoong asks, then he spots the open window. “San, tell Eden we need to get this place reinforced.” The leader orders, as he shuts the window and locks it. 

The eldest sits up from his bed and for the first time in the months of disturbed sleep, paranoia and confusion, he weeps. He weeps the pressure and pain he’s kept to himself over the past few months. The two couldn’t do anything, too surprised to see him break down all of a sudden. The anger has ebbed away and given away for him to feel the other emotions that he has suppressed. 

No one knows how long it takes until Seonghwa manages to speak up. The other boys have woken up by the time he regains a bit of his composure. “The tour guide we had back in Spain, she’s one of them. The one who made me go for nights without sleep and anxiety.” He mumbles. He then recounts the first meeting, Hongjoong who was there but unaware wonders how they’re able to keep themselves from the eyes of others. The same question that Seonghwa poses for all of them. The way she manages to appear wherever she pleases, how he goes through sleep paralysis when she’s in the room as he sleeps. He tells them of her attempt to mark him, maybe as a warning to those who were in close proximity of him but just as he was about to feel the pain, she backs away, body twisting in pain. 

It’s San’s turn to pale at his recounting. “I’m going to ask if my dad’s free. I’m not letting him drive here but a call with Eden-hyung would do soon.” He brings out his phone again, already typing up a message for his father. 

“What for?” As far as everyone knew, his dad was just a pastor. 

“Besides Eden-hyung, he knows what we’re dealing with. I think he might know what got her acting like that too.” San explains, waiting for the small number 1 to disappear from his message.

“Do you know?” Seonghwa stares at San. Following that logic, he does know his fair share of religious practices and the like. 

“I think you got a mark. The name slips from my mind but it’s a strong mark and if I remember anything else, these fallen have a plan that they’ve been dealing with since their fall..” San trails off, keeping his phone for now, keeping his eyes trained on him. 

“What does that even have to do with me?” He knows he’s got some sort of connection but the details are nonexistent in his mind. 

“Hyung, I’m starting to think you’re going to be a vital piece to the safety of this world.”

#my writings #seonghwa scenarios #ateez scenarios #this is not an ateez x reader fic #also if you can catch some symbolisms then hehe #im not sure if i'll make this into a series as a i have other reqs to deal with #but if you want to talk about this fic then hmu #ateez fanfiction #slightly proof read #will proof read tomorrow