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#she just also isn't perfect and sometimes the way he talks about her is like. in a way that strips her of any flaws.
sirfrogsworth · 1 day
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Let's talk about vintage lenses.
Here is your cool samurai show with modern lenses.
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Here is your cool samurai show with vintage lenses.
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Hollywood is no stranger to fads.
We are currently in the middle of a "make everything too dark" fad. But that fad is starting to overlap with "let's use really old lenses on ridiculously high resolution cameras."
This is Zack Snyder with a Red Monstro 8K camera.
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He is using a "rehoused" vintage 50mm f/0.95 Canon "Dream Lens" which was first manufactured in 1961.
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This old lens is put inside a fancy new body that can fit onto modern cameras.
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Which means Zack is getting nowhere near 8K worth of detail. These lenses are not even close to being sharp. Which is fine. I think the obsession with detail can get a bit silly and sometimes things can be "too sharp."
But it is a funny juxtaposition.
The dream lens is a cool lens. It has character. It has certain aberrations and defects that can actually be beneficial to making a cool photograph. It's a bit like vinyl records for photography.
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[ Peter Thoeny ]
It has vignetting and distortion and a very strange swirly background blur.
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[ Gabriel Binder ]
Optical engineers have been spending the last 60 years trying to eliminate these defects. And I sometimes wonder if they are confused by this fad.
"I WORKED 70 HOURS PER WEEK TO GET PERFECT CORNER SHARPNESS!"
And whether you prefer to work with a perfect optic or a vintage one... it is a valid aesthetic decision either way. I think vintage glass can really suit candid natural light photography. You can almost get abstract with these lenses.
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[ Peter Theony ]
Personally I like to start with as close to perfect as possible and then add the character in later. That way I can dial in the effect and tweak how much of it I want. But even with modern image editing tools, some of these aberrations are difficult to recreate authentically.
That said, it can be very easy for the "character" of these lenses to become distracting. And just like when someone first finds the lens flares in Photoshop, it can be easy for people to overdo things.
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Zack Snyder decided to be his own cameraman and used only vintage glass in his recent movies and it has led to some complaints about the imagery.
I mean, Zack Snyder overdoing something? I can't even imagine it.
Non camera people felt Army of the Dead was blurry and a bit weird but they couldn't quite explain why it felt that way.
The dream lens has a very wide aperture and it lets in a lot of light. But it also has a very very shallow depth of field. Which means it is very difficult to nail focus.
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[ Peter Thoeny ]
Her near eye is in focus and her far eye is soft. You literally can't get an entire face in focus.
There is no reason you have to use the dream lens at f/0.95 at all times. But just like those irresistible lens flares, Zack couldn't help himself.
Here is a blueprint that you can't really see.
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Extreme close ups of faces without autofocus at f/0.95 is nearly impossible to pull critical focus on.
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Looks like Zack nailed the area just above the eyebrow here.
Let's try to find the point of focus in this one.
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Ummmm... she is just... blurry. Missed focus completely.
But Zack isn't the only one going vintage. I've been seeing this a lot recently.
Shogun is a beautiful show. And for the most part, I really enjoyed the cinematography. But they went the vintage lens route and it kept going from gorgeous to "I can't not see it" distracting. And perhaps because I am familiar with these lens defects I am more prone to noticing. But I do think it hurt the imagery in a few spots.
Vingetting is a darkening of the corners of the frame.
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Light rays in the corners are much harder to control. A lot of modern lenses still have this problem, but they create software corrections to eliminate the issue. Some cameras do it automatically as you are recording the image.
Vintage lenses were built before lens corrections where a thing—before software was a thing. So you either have to live with them, try to remove them with VFX, or crop into your image and lose some resolution.
It's possible this is the aesthetic they wanted. They felt the vignetting added something to the image. But I just found my eyes darting to the corners and not focusing on the composition.
And then you have distortion.
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In this case, barrel distortion.
This is mostly prominent in wide angle lenses. In order to get that wider field of view the lens has to accept light from some very steep angles. And that can be quite difficult to correct. So you kind have to sacrifice any straight lines.
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And sometimes this was a positive contribution to the image.
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I thought the curved lines matched the way they were sitting here.
But most of the time I just felt like I was looking at feudal Japan through a fish's eye.
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It's a bit more tolerable as a still, but when all of these verticals are bowing in motion, I start to feel like I am developing tunnel vision.
I love that this is a tool that is available. Rehousing lenses is a really neat process and I'm glad this old glass is getting new life.
This documentary shows how lens rehousing is done and is quite fascinating if you are in to that sort of thing.
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But I think we are in a "too much of a good thing" phase when it comes to these lenses. I think a balance between old and new can be found.
And I also think maybe Zack should see what f/2.8 looks like. He might like having more than an eyebrow in focus.
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steddiealltheway · 11 months
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It's El's birthday, and she gets a Polaroid camera. It's from Jonathan but funded with the help of Steve who tells him not to tell her, but after a little negotiating, Steve agrees to say the film is from him and the camera is from Jonathan.
Some people are a little weirded out by the whole thing since Jonathan and Steve were never really close, but Steve had been adamant about how he wanted to help in any way possible with the party. When Jonathan had voiced his concern about how much the perfect gift was, Steve immediately chipped in putting down any protest Jonathan had.
And there El sat with the Polaroid in her hands, gazing down at it with such wonder and joy that Steve couldn't help but know he had made the right decision - even if he was digging into some of his savings from Scoops, but no one needed to know that.
Only, Eddie leans over and nudges him as El is thanking them and moves on to unwrap the next present. Steve turns to him and furrows his brow. What? Eddie raises his eyebrows and tilts his head toward the camera. That's not a cheap gift. Steve just shrugs as nonchalantly as possible, but Eddie shakes his head with a smile and squeezes his knee. You're unbelievable.
And that's the thing about Eddie, ever since the Upside Down, it was like they were inseparable when put in the same room together. He somehow always knew what Steve was thinking and could communicate with a few looks.
And everyone thought this was way stranger than the whole Jonathan and Steve buying a joint gift thing.
Dustin was especially exasperated by the way they would sometimes look at each other and just burst out laughing, yelling at them to stop talking about him in front of him. Steve and Eddie would argue that they had no idea what he was talking about especially since they hadn't said anything (but most of the time it was about Dustin).
After El gets through the rest of the gifts, she grabs her camera and asks Jonathan how to work it as everyone starts to scatter a bit. Steve finds himself on the couch next to Eddie as Robin and Nancy talk about the latest thing Nancy had written for Hawkin's Post.
Steve is telling some random story from work when there's a bright flash to his right. He flinches but recovers quickly when he sees El smiling as the picture develops. She glances up at Eddie and comments, "You have a very pretty smile." Then, she goes on to Nancy and Robin, waiting for the perfect candid photo opportunity, but Steve can only stare at Eddie.
He's staring off at El with a slight blush on his cheeks and a bashful smile. Steve can't help but think about what El said. He had never really thought about that before, but she was right. He has a very very pretty smile.
The party goes on, and Steve can't help but try to make Eddie smile as often as he can which isn't too hard considering Eddie seems to smile at anything Steve says - even his lamest jokes. But eventually, the party is wrapping up, and Steve is in charge of taking Dustin and Robin home.
Eddie says a quick goodbye to Steve and gives him a hug that Steve tries to linger in as long as he can before he fondly watches Eddie pull Dustin into a tight hug that makes the younger kid shriek. He feels like he's bursting at the seams with joy.
He gets tapped on the shoulder and turns to find Jonathan looking at him and waving him to the side. Steve follows him quickly. "I just wanted to thank you again for your help with El's gift, and I also wanted to congratulate you, man."
Steve's brows furrow in confusion, and Jonathan claps him on the arm. "Eddie's a really great guy. And, hey, I talked to El, and I thought you'd want this."
Steve is a bit confused by the random mention of Eddie until he looks down at what Jonathan is handing him. It's the Polaroid picture from earlier with him smiling at Eddie, going on about something as Eddie fully smiles back at him, leaning toward him with his hand on Steve's knee. How had he not noticed how close they were before?
The picture sends a wave of warmth through him and his heart beats a bit faster, but he thanks Jonathan and puts the photo in his wallet. The two linger and Steve kind of thinks to hell with it and hugs Jonathan before saying goodbye. Maybe all the bad shit can just be pushed behind them.
He turns and finds Eddie staring at him with a smile that looks forced and tight, but he when tilts his head, Eddie just shakes his head. Nothing.
Steve continues to look at him but decides to shrug it off. Eddie knows he can always talk to him, but Steve can't help but hope his genuine pretty smile will return soon.
-:-:-:-:-:-
Steve finds himself pulling the photo out of his wallet a lot. Especially when he's having a bad day or feeling down. It's used as a kind of secret happiness drug. All he has to do is pull out the picture and look at Eddie in it to get a burst of joy and energy.
The problem is that people start to notice. And by people, he means the kids.
It happens when they visit Family Video a couple of times, and Steve finds himself longing for Eddie to be there with the group, so he'll hide his wallet behind the counter and pull the picture out where the kids - and Robin - can't see it.
But one time, he finds himself staring at the picture for too long and Dustin demands to know what he's staring at. Steve brushes it off as nothing, and Dustin narrows his eyes at him for a moment before letting it go.
Steve vows to be a little more careful after that, but that leaves him wondering why he's being secretive about this picture of him and Eddie. And what does that mean?
-:-:-:-:-:-
It's a few days later when Steve rushes into the basement of the Wheeler home, trying to get Dustin to leave before he breaks his curfew. Dustin begs him for five more minutes which Steve grants him, but he can't help but wonder if he would've gone quicker if Eddie was there.
Thinking about it leads Steve to wander off away from the kids so he can open his wallet and look at the picture. He instantly gets that surge of warmth that has him biting his lip to keep from giggling. He nearly rolls his eyes at himself since he's acting like a middle school girl with a crush. He takes a few moments to try to fully memorize the picture when it hits him.
A middle school girl with a crush.
He puts the picture back in his wallet immediately and stuffs it in his pocket. He looks at Dustin who is already looking at him. "Whose picture do you have in your wallet, Steve?"
Steve turns bright red and it only further confirms his feelings. Oh god, he has a crush on Eddie Munson and has a picture of him in his wallet which he uses to feel happy. Oh shit.
Steve just says, "Come on, Henderson."
As the others start yelling at him asking who it is, Steve snaps that it's none of their business which only makes them pry further. He ignores them all the way to his car, and once he gets in, he tells Dustin, "Bring up the picture again, and I'll make sure to drive under the speed limit the entire way home."
Dustin glances at the clock and mimes zipping his lips, locking them, and throwing the key away. It only reminds Steve of Eddie.
The rest of the drive is fairly quiet as Steve thinks about the new development. He has a crush on Eddie. That's fine. That is definitely fine. It is all good and fine.
When he gets to Dustin's place, the boy turns to him and asks, "The person means a lot to you, don't they?"
Steve looks at Dustin and catches the seriousness of his look. He nods confirming what he said.
Dustin smiles. "Well, I can't wait to figure out who they are."
With that, he gets out of the car and jogs off to the front door, waving before he gets inside.
Steve drives away after a minute of making sure everything is okay and is left with his thoughts again.
Everything is not fine. And he doesn't know what's happening, so he goes to the only place he knows will help.
He parks his car and gets out, rushing to the side of the house to knock on the window. The light comes on and the curtains open. "Steve?"
The window is quickly lifted up and Steve climbs through. "Hey, Robin."
Then, he promptly has a meltdown of confusion and confesses everything to Robin. He pulls out the picture and hands it over.
Robin takes a few moments to stare at the photo before she hands it back to him. The two sit in silence until Robin finally says, "Oh my gosh, you have a crush on Eddie Munson."
"Yeah," Steve says in response.
And before he knows it the both of them are laughing loudly, trying to muffle it so they don't wake Robin's parents up which only causes them to laugh harder.
Steve says through the laughter, "Am I gay?"
Both of their laughter dies down, and Robin answers, "Probably bisexual."
"What that?"
"When a person likes men and women."
Steve sits in it for a second and nods. "Yeah, that makes sense."
And for some reason, this has them both laughing again. Steve can't help but hold up the picture and stare at it again. He really really likes Eddie Munson.
-:-:-:-:-:-
Two days later, Steve is trying to determine how much longer he can avoid Eddie. It's not exactly avoiding him when they just don't happen to run into each other, but pretty soon, it might turn into purposeful avoiding.
It's just... Steve doesn't know how to act around Eddie anymore. And he knows that when he has feelings for someone he's all or nothing and extremely obvious. And all the kids are a little too smart for their own good.
He sighs and runs a hand through his hair. He doesn't know what he's going to do.
The doorbell rings, and Steve sighs again. Better not be the kids.
He opens the door and is not prepared to find Eddie Munson at his front door.
"What are you doing here?"
"Hello to you, too. I thought I'd stop by, have a little chat," Eddie says with a smile but sounds extremely suspicious.
Shit, he might know.
Eddie tries to slip past him, but Steve steps in his way. All this does is get Eddie way closer to him than Steve can handle at the moment but he manages to ask, "What are you really doing here?"
Eddie's eyes deceive him and Steve clearly sees there's an ulterior motive. Eddie throws his hands up. "Fine! I was sent here on a mission."
Steve crosses his arms and steps back. "A mission?"
Eddie nods with a small smile. His eyes flicker past Steve, and that's when Steve realizes he messed up.
Eddie shoots past him and up the stairs. "Munson!" Steve calls after him slamming the front door close before racing after him.
Steve finds Eddie in his room with his wallet in his hand. Oh shit.
Steve stands in place, trying to feel out where Eddie is going next. "Give it back now. I'm serious, Eddie."
Eddie holds the wallet up high and slowly walks back. "I've been tasked... to find out who is in your wallet." Steve slowly steps forward, hoping to corner Eddie as he talks. "Now, the kids were worried that maybe it wouldn't be an appropriate picture if you know what I mean. So, I graciously accepted because I, too, am curious. Who has caught Steve Harrington's eye and given him a picture to remember them by?"
By now Steve is only a few steps away and ready to take the wallet back. Steve waits for Eddie to open his wallet before darting at him, but Eddie instead does the unthinkable.
He charges at Steve and somehow tackles him onto his own bed. Then, he climbs on top of him, straddling him and holding the wallet up high.
Steve's brain goes slightly fuzzy, so the only thing he can do is yell, "Please, you don't want to know!"
But Eddie opens the wallet and easily plucks out the picture, and all Steve can do is watch as he's trapped under Eddie. "I told you you wouldn't want to know," Steve mumbles, flushing red.
He watches as Eddie stares at it with a blank look on his face. A few moments pass and Steve quietly requests, "Can you at least get off of me?"
Eddie looks down at him and finally says, "No, I'm not going to let you escape." He makes it a point as he fully sits back on Steve's thighs.
Steve runs his hands over his face.
"Where did you get this?"
"Jonathan gave it to me after El's party," Steve answers staring at the ceiling, not wanting to know what Eddie's reaction is.
He feels him shift above him. "And... And this is the picture you've been staring at?"
"Yep," Steve replies immediately.
"Oh," Eddie says in a tone that Steve can't begin to describe.
"Yeah. Oh," Steve repeats back.
A few moments pass and Steve risks glancing at Eddie, but he's still staring at the photo. "Steve?"
Steve sighs, preparing for the letdown. "What, Eddie?"
"So, you know?" Eddie asks nervously.
Steve props himself up on his elbows. "Know what?"
Eddie shakes his head with a laugh. "Come on. You've stared at this picture long enough to read me." Eddie turns the picture around as if proving a point.
Steve feels that same heat as he stares at the photo, he lightly smiles at it. "You look happy. And El was right, you have a pretty smile."
Eddie groans as if frustrated with his answer which causes Steve to fully sit up until he's practically nose to nose with Eddie. "You asked me to read you, and you already figured out my feelings, so why are you mad?"
Eddie groans again and thrusts the picture between them. "You're able to read every look of mine except this one. Come on, Steve. Look."
So, Steve looks back at the photo. At the way Eddie is leaning into him, the hand on his knee, the big smile, the way his eyes are lit up. Then, Steve does something he hadn't thought of before. He looks at himself.
He looks at the way he's staring at Eddie, looking for that approval but mirroring him in his look. Steve looks back at Eddie as he seems to be hanging on to every word he's saying, not even paying attention to his surrounding. Neither of them are because...
Eddie has feelings for him, too.
The realization hits him quickly, and he can't believe he never saw it before. He loves the picture so much not only because of the way Eddie looks in it but because of the way Eddie is looking at him in it.
The picture slowly moves away and Steve breathes out, "Holy shit."
He refocuses his gaze on Eddie and sees that same look. The look that's always been there, but the only one that Steve has been unable to read. Eddie slowly smiles, and Steve can't help but mirror him.
Then, Eddie's eyes flicker down, and Steve knows exactly what that look means. But Eddie looks back into his eyes searching until he raises his eyebrows Can I? Steve nods, and they both surge forward closing the already small distance between them, kissing like there's no tomorrow.
Steve breaks away for air and asks, "Can I get a picture of this, too, for my wallet?"
Eddie laughs and replies, "As long as I get one to match." Then, he kisses Steve again, and Steve feels the same way he does whenever he looks at that picture - bursting at the seams with warmth and happiness.
Luckily when Dustin goes digging through Steve's wallet days later, he only finds the picture of them on the couch and doesn't notice the picture behind it of Eddie winking at the camera as he kisses Steve.
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bhaalble · 7 months
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I like that Last Unicorn quote as much as the next guy but I do always wind up feeling a little detached from analysis that paints Astarion's disapproval as purely envy. Partly because. No one's doing this for Lae'zel for instance even though she has similar disapproval and similar trauma (all she can remember is a hostile physically and emotionally exploitative environment which expected perfect strength and obedience from her or else she would be punished or killed). But also partly because it feels pretty detached from everything he actually has to say about it.
The thing about Astarion is he loathes weakness. He loathes sentiment and he loathes dependence. You can see this when he actually opens his mouth up about the people he disapproves of saving, but also incredibly loudly when he talks about the other companions, as well as his fellow spawn. If Lae'zel submits to Vlaakith he talks scornfully about how some people just come to love their chains. He's confused and put off if Wyll submits to Mizora to save his father. In every conversation with his fellow spawn (at least when hes not actively manipulating them) he's dismissive and harsh, and clearly he's perfectly willing to sacrifice them for the sake of himself.
There's an obvious origin point of those feelings, of course. Cazador's abuse is designed to actively kill off empathy in his spawn, both towards each other and towards victims. The last time Astarion prioritized someone over his own skin he got locked in a tomb for a year. We can see glimpses of it with the other spawn too, how his siblings are (apparently uncompelled at first) willing to drag Astarion back to their master for their freedom, how Petras' first dream of freedom is getting to drain another person dry. Astarion certainly doesn't seem to feel any real sense of solidarity with them, likely because Cazador understands that them building a community is a threat to his authority the way it was to his own master.
I'd also argue its Astarion projecting his own self-loathing outwards. So much of his quest is about his desperate attempt to escape from who he was. He's been given a chance to slip free of the limitations of being a spawn. He clings to that because of course he would. He also instinctively begins to run over everything in his path, because if there's anything he has learned over the past 200 years its that good things can always be taken away unless you make sure to remove any and all possible threats to that scrap of well-being. He's disdainful of people in need of help because they represent who he fears to go back to being! He calls his siblings "poor fools" while refusing to confront the fact that had it not been for the tadpole he would be in exactly their position, forced to cling to the hope that Cazador is telling the truth for once because escape isn't an option either way. He becomes irritated when Tav slows down to help the unfortunate because they represent roadblocks on his own path to safety.
There's an idea in mental health stolen from airplane safety: that you shouldn't help anyone else until your own mask is secure. What they don't tell you, speaking from personal experience at least, is that PTSD, especially for long term trauma, has a way of making you feel like your own mask will never be secure. And while that's scary, and it sucks, and there should be the utmost patience for it: no one is going to realize that mask is secure for you. Eventually you are going to have to accept the fact that you are breathing just fine. Eventually you are also going to have to accept that people asking something of you isn't them endangering you, even if it can sometimes (often) feel like it. It doesn't make you obligated to help them. But it does mean you have to stop reacting to them like a threat, because not 5 minutes ago that was you.
I think the idea that he's only mad because he's jealous is a gratifying fantasy. He didnt feel safe before, but now through your PC and the power of love he'll feel warm and cozy enough to forgive you for not being there to begin with. But I also think Astarion cannot live in a reality where he's never pushed back on. His instinctive self-protective movements are a coping mechanism, yes, but coping mechanisms developed under survival conditions can also be a way of keeping you frozen in your trauma. Outside of the environment they were necessary for, they can even hinder you from growing in the ways you need to grow to move past what happened to you. Sometimes, you need to stop a baby tiefling from getting crazy murdered by a snake because it turns out. That can happen to anybody not just people who are weak and stupid and deserve to die anyways not like me I'm normal-
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astorianyxkings · 6 months
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The first time Selina saw tiny Dick Grayson as Robin her first initial thought was "Oh a new kitten," come to find out her new kitten can freaking fly and is actually Batman's batling.
She tries to corner him once or twice, just to make sure he's okay being Batman's sidekick and baby Dick is just like "???".
Bruce starts to realize what's up so whenever he needs to distract Catwoman, he just sends Robin to charm and disarm. Selina can't plan a heist if she's busy wondering about whether or not Batman's feeding him enough.
Dick eventually catches on and is just like "guess I have a mom now too." Does he sometime have to foil her plans? Yes but technically all kids do that. Does he mediate when Bat and Cat don't wanna talk to each other? Yes but so do children of divorce.
Selina's conflicted because she really likes the kid but she's got no idea who he is. Until, she's undercover at a Wayne Gala (gotta see what Brucie has that can go) and sees this tiny kid with a scruff of dark hair and a blinding smile running around followed by his exasperated father trying to reign him in and she has an "oh shit" moment.
Bruce isn't exactly sure she knows. Well obviously he knows that Selina Kyle is Catwoman and Dick knows because there's no keeping anything from his son. But "entrepreneur" Selina Kyle is suddenly not only interested in working with WE but also interest in his son's school play.
Dick is absolutely delighted. He begged Bruce to bring her to said play and when she shows up he's all smiles. Selina is thrilled, the teachers are confused because they didn't know he had a mother. It doesn't help that from afar he looks like the perfect combination of Selina and Bruce.
Selina babysat at the manor a few times and when Bruce returns to nothing stolen, he agrees to but her down as an emergency contact for Dick's school.
The only thing she worries about is keeping him away from his aunts. Mostly because one actively drugs his dad with flowers and the other's dating the Joker and if she's his aunt there's no way the clown would be his uncle. Dick understands but is confused because it seems to him that his aunts should just date each other. Selina feels vindicated.
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chlix · 8 months
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to do what i can do
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pairing: seungmin x f!reader
genre: fluff, light angst
word count: 6.1k
warnings: insecurity, light angst, exactly three (3) uses of "y/n"
synopsis: after a conversation with hyunjin's girlfriend, you grow worried that you aren't putting enough work and attention into your relationship. seungmin dissuades you of this idea immediately.
a/n: literally never done this before so sorry if this formatting isn't standard. also ignore any spelling errors pls <3
Seungmin kisses you goodbye every morning. It’s like clockwork: he puts on his shoes, pours his coffee in a mug, kisses you goodbye, and is out the door. Both of you are routine-oriented people. You like schedules and organized silverware drawers. Ever since you first got together, Seungmin has been kissing you goodbye whenever you part ways, and nearly a year later that hasn’t changed. It’s sweet that he always remembers, and the fact that it’s practiced doesn’t make it feel any less sincere.
This morning is more of the same. You get up before him, as always, and put the coffee on. You check your emails while your breakfast cooks. Seungmin emerges just as the food is done (too late to actually eat it, as always) and goes to get his coat and shoes from the door. He loops back around to put his coffee in the cup you washed the previous night and leans down to where you’re sitting at the table to kiss you lightly on the lips. It’s so rote as to be unnotable, but it makes you smile anyway, your day instantly brighter.
“I love you,” you call after him, as you always do, and Seungmin waves as he leaves, throwing a “Be safe!” over his shoulder.  And then the door closes, and you’re alone.
In a few minutes, you’ll go to work at your office job. Later, you’ll come home and make dinner. At some point in the day, Seungmin will text you to let you know if he’ll be coming home or not, so that you’ll know if you need to make one portion or two. You normally make two anyway, and just leave the second wrapped up in the fridge. If worst comes to worst, you don’t mind eating the leftovers. It’s far more horrible in your mind to not have food ready for him when he is home. It’s not that Seungmin expects food from you. He’s expressed multiple times that he can buy food on his way home. But you like cooking for him, and lately you don’t get much chance because he’s so busy. You want things to be perfect when he’s home because the time you get together is precious. You’re not obsessive about it, or anything. You’re not “playing housewife” as your friends sometimes say. It’s not a crime to want to take care of your boyfriend.
Right now is a bit of a hectic period, and you haven’t seen him much for a while. You were surprised he even had the time to come home the previous night, although of course you were grateful. When he does come home, he gives you his undivided attention, like you’re the only person on earth. It makes the wait worth it. And he kisses you goodbye every morning because he loves you, and you can feel it on your lips all day, and it assuages the loneliness you might otherwise feel.
Today you have lunch with Ahrin, Hyunjin’s girlfriend. You have good relationships with the partners of all the boys, but you’re a bit closer to Ahrin, maybe because you two are so similar. Ahrin is quieter than the other women, and is more content to observe rather than participate. She’s witty and sharp-tongued, but still kind, and has a gentleness to her that makes her easy to open up to. She calls you up and complains she hasn’t seen you in a while and asks to have a meal with you that afternoon. You haven’t been feeling work very much, and you do miss her, so you agree to take a late lunch and meet her a cafe near your office.
Ahrin is radiant as always, and you make small talk about your families before devolving into complaining about mundanities: annoyances at work and the price of fruit at the supermarket. As you’re speaking, you notice Ahrin is wearing a dainty gold necklace that you don’t recognize, and cut yourself off to ask about it.
“Oh, this? It’s Cartier. Hyunjin bought it for me,” she says, bringing a hand up to touch the small pendant like she’d forgotten she was wearing it. “He’s on this kick about couple’s jewelry.”
“It’s beautiful,” you say, and you mean it. It suits Ahrin’s softness and sophistication. He may have bought it because it was Cartier, but he clearly put some thought into it besides the designer label.
“Thank you,” she says, genuinely pleased. “I try to wear something he bought me whenever I go visit him.”
“Are you going to see him today?”
“I just come from there, actually. He took my credit card in his wallet, so I had to go get it back.”
“Oldest trick in the book,” you say.
Ahrin rolls her eyes. “I know. But it’ll work every time. I can’t help that I need it to go about my day.”
She doesn’t sound the least bit bothered. Ahrin and Hyunjin have been together for two years, and it’s a trick he’s pulled ever since they started living together, the “accidentally taking one of Ahrin’s things to work.” You’ve asked her before why she doesn’t confront him about it, but she says that she thinks it’s cute how he keeps coming up with excuses to see her, and anyway, she also likes having excuses to see him.
You also think it’s cute, if in a more wistful way. Seungmin is organized to a T, and he’s never needed you to bring him something he’s forgotten or vice versa. In fact, you can’t remember if you’ve ever visited him at work at all. You don’t think it’s that strange, though. It’s not like he’s made a habit of showing up to your workplace. Also, you likely wouldn’t have the time even if he’d offered. It does dampen your mood a bit though, especially as Seungmin texts you in the middle of your conversation that he in fact, would not be coming home today, meaning you would have to eat dinner alone tonight.
Ahrin notices the dip in your mood as you set your phone back on the table.
“Bad news?” she asks.
You swipe the notification away.
“It’s nothing. Seungmin just texting me about how busy they are.”
Ahrin hums in understanding. “Well, what can you do. At least it’s not as crazy as it was a few months ago.”
“Isn’t it?” You’ve been seeing less of Seungmin than you had in ages, and you’d assumed it was because their schedules had been bordering on unbearable lately. But Ahrin looks confused at your question.
“I don’t think so. Busier than last month, yeah. But they’re not filming anything right now, so the schedule isn’t as rigid. Seungmin hasn’t talked to you about this?”
You feel embarrassed, somehow. “He doesn’t talk about work much when he’s with me. He likes to keep it separate.”
“That makes sense. You should ask him to share his schedule with you, though. What if you need him and you don’t know where he is, or when he’ll answer?”
“I know where he’s at, generally. He tells me if he’s traveling. I just don’t know the minutiae.”
“You’re allowed to know. You should, for your own peace of mind.”
It’s not that it hadn’t occurred to you to ask. Seungmin told you his whereabouts if you questioned him, and he even volunteered information every once in a while, so you hadn’t thought much of it. And you didn’t suspect him of cheating on you ever in a million years. You knew he had other hobbies and friends as well- a whole life outside you that you weren’t privy to and didn’t need to be. But was it possible you were being a bit too aloof about your boyfriends daily habits? Why didn’t he share what he was doing, if he wasn’t at work? Why didn’t you know?
“I’ll ask him,” you say. “You’re right.”
Ahrin smiles encouragingly, and the topic is dropped for other matters. The odd feeling in your stomach doesn’t settle, though, and by the time you’ve finished your day and sat down to eat dinner, you realize you’ve unfortunately lost your appetite.
Seungmin calls you the next day to say he’ll be staying at the dorm for several days, and you tell him okay, thanks for telling me, I love you, goodbye. After you hang up the phone, you berate yourself for not asking more questions. You’re his girlfriend. You should be care that he’s leaving you alone for days at a time, you think as you drive to work. Maybe he’d been waiting for you to ask what he’d be doing or pester him for spoilers about the group’s upcoming plans. Maybe he wanted you to pout and whine about missing him and beg him to come home. You’d never done any of those things before, but maybe you should be. Maybe he’d called you hoping you would do those things and had hung up the phone disappointed.
The central problem of dating an idol is always a scarcity of time. They’re always busy, and because they’re always busy, you as a partner need to have a life outside them that is full and fulfilling, and sometimes those two schedules conflict. You can go long stretches without spending meaningful time together, and it’s hard to cope with, especially when they’re within driving distance of you, but still inaccessible. You know, though, that a scarcity of time does not always mean a scarcity of attention. You’ve seen it in Ahrin and Hyunjin, in the Cartier necklace and the missing credit card, that Hyunjin thinks about Ahrin all the time, and Ahrin knows that he does, is thinking of him just as much if not more. She can languish in the thought that even if Hyunjin is not with her, he desperately wishes he was, and when she wears his necklaces and bracelets and $500 hair clips, Hyunjin knows she is also desperately thinking about him.
You and Seungmin don’t have a system like that. Seungmin isn’t in the habit of buying you expensive gifts, for starters. He’s frugal with his money, hyperaware that one day his youth and fame will fade, and he won’t have such extravagant income. You’re similarly pragmatic, and you’ve never resented him for this. And that’s not to say he never spends money on you. He buys you flowers and takes you on expensive dates. He bought you a new laptop and headphones without you saying anything, and your closet is full of fancy dresses that are each tied to a high class outing you’ve been on. For each one, he’d bought himself a shirt and jacket to match. But those aren’t things you wear every day to show off. They’re for special occasions, specific memories. There’s nothing you wear or carry daily that marks you as ‘his.’
And honestly, you’ve never really thought about yourself that way. You and Seungmin are together, and you live together (by whatever measure your living arrangements currently count as), but you’ve never longed to be “branded” in a way befitting a pair of earrings or an oversized sweater. You wear his clothes at home, but never out. You don’t feel the need to show up to his practices and recording sessions. You’ve never even asked if you were allowed. If Seungmin bought you a Cartier necklace, you aren’t totally sure you would wear it.
It hits you like a freight train when you put it all together: You don’t care enough about Seungmin. You’re comfortable with him, you feel like you love him, but you don’t care about him the way you’re supposed to care about him. You’re not involved enough. But then, the same goes for him too, doesn’t it? He knows what you do for work, but he rarely asks you about anything other than a cursory how was your day? He doesn’t pester you for anything, doesn’t ask you to visit him or stay up for him when he comes home late. Aren’t those things that he should expect from you as a girlfriend? Why doesn’t he care that you’re so obviously neglecting him? When he kisses you goodbye in the morning, is that because he misses you, or is that just a habit formed over these past months, a meaningless part of the morning ritual he couldn’t resist if he tried?
You feel caught in a lurch, unsure what to do now. Seungmin deserves better than you, clearly. He deserves a girlfriend who actually gives a fuck about his life. But maybe, if you start making up for it now, he’ll forgive the past few months of you being so terrible. He’ll realize that you are an attentive girlfriend, and that you do care about him and that you love him, and you can prove it, you swear, it took you a while to realize what was wrong but you’ve got it all straightened out now. 
You can change. You can fix this. You know you can.
-/-
The next time Seungmin comes home, you wake up first the next morning, like always. You go to put the coffee on, and you make breakfast, and you check your emails. Seungmin comes out, walks past you to his shoes and coat, and doubles back to get his morning coffee.
“Busy day today?” you ask.
Seungmin freezes in his movements, caught off guard by your question. He recovers quickly enough, and answers. “Not particularly. Vocal practice, some other things.”
“Oh, good. Do you think you’ll be home today then?”
Seungmin turns to face you, his cup abandoned on the counter, unfilled. “Is everything alright?”
“What?”
“Is something wrong? Do we need to talk?”
Oh god, it’s worse than you thought. Asking if he’s going to be home to eat dinner is enough for him to think something is amiss. Have you truly never asked him that before?
“Everything’s fine. It would just be nice to eat dinner with you, is all.”
Seungmin relaxes. He leans down to kiss you, but it lingers longer than normal, as if he’s savoring the touch, your attention. “I’ll do my best,” he promises. “I love you. Have a nice day.”
You absolutely blossom under his affection, the verbosity atypical for so early in the morning.
“I love you too. Be safe.”
“I always am,” he says, and presses another peck to your lips before pulling away. He finishes pouring his coffee, grabs his coat, and waves as he leaves. You sit at the table, vibrating with satisfaction. You’re doing it, you’re giving him what he needs. Maybe all hope isn’t lost for you two just yet.
Your sky-high mood follows you to work, and the day keeps getting better with the discovery of cupcakes in the break room. One of your coworkers’ kids just had a birthday, and they had way too much food left over. You take one back to your desk to nibble on while you work, and even the mundanity of your daily tasks can’t bring you down from how well this day is turning out. Around midmorning, it occurs to you that this is the perfect opportunity to do something else nice for Seungmin by bringing him cupcakes. They’re not filming, which means they’re not on diets, so he can handle a bit of sugar and frosting, especially if it’s a gift from you. You borrow a container from the staff kitchen to carry some cupcakes and decide to defer your own lunch to deliver them across the city.
When you get to the JYPE building, though, you realize you have no idea what to do. You’re fairly sure you’re allowed access; the other girlfriends pop in and out all the time. But it’s possible no one here recognizes you, since this is the first time you’ve shown your face around here.
Being spontaneous is cute and quirky, but standing around lost and embarrassed grows tiring within seconds. You give up and decide to text Seungmin.
Are you busy?, you send, standing awkwardly by the door and hoping security doesn’t throw you out. Thankfully, he responds quickly.
Not super. Do you need to call?
Actually I’m in the lobby of your building. Can you come down?
Typing, and then a pause. Then more typing. Eventually the message comes through.
Ok.
You can’t decode that at all. It strikes you for the first time that you may be bothering him by driving over here. You did ask if he was busy, though. And it stood to reason that if you had time for a 5-minute phone call, he had time to come downstairs and accept the gift you’d brought him. It isn’t intrusive. This is what people do for each other when they care about each other.
It only takes a few minutes for Seungmin to round the corner into the lobby. His face is creased in concern, even worse than he’d looked this morning, and he’s walking at a brisk pace to stand right in front of you.
“Hey,” he says. “What’s going on?”
You don’t know how to respond to his intensity, so you just hold out the container towards him. “I brought you cupcakes.”
Seungmin’s eyebrows furrow in utter confusion. “You…made cupcakes?”
“I didn’t make them. A coworker brought them in. But I remember you saying you liked cupcakes, and I had a free minute, so I thought I’d bring them over before they got finished.”
Seungmin accepts the box gingerly, as though it contains a nest of wild hornets, or lit sticks of dynamite. “You drove all the way over here to give this to me?”
Your doubts go from an inkling to a full-on tumult. “Yes, I did. I was just thinking of you…I thought you might like something sweet.”
You don’t mean to look dismayed, but Seungmin must clue-in to the fact that this isn’t the reaction you were hoping for. He shifts the box to one hand and laces your fingers together with his other.
“Thank you for thinking of me,” he says. “But you don’t need to go out of your way to bring me things.”
“It’s not out of my way. I had time.”
“Let me rephrase. You shouldn’t expend your lunch hour to bring me food. When are you going to eat now?”
“I’ll stay an extra half hour. It’s fine.”
Seungmin clearly isn’t satisfied with this. He tugs lightly on your arm, bidding you to follow, and you do, unsure of what else to do.
He takes you up a floor, and down a hallway to what seems to be a regular employee break room, where he gestures for you to sit down at one of the tables. You do, and he walks over to the fridge to get bottled water and brings back one for you, along with napkins and a knife from the drawer next to the fridge.
“If you aren’t going to eat lunch, you might as well share your spoils with me,” Seungmin says. He opens the container and takes out one of the cupcakes (and they are huge, to be honest, you kind of can’t believe they’re from a kid’s birthday party) and cuts it in half.
“Pick a side,” he says, and you do, and he carefully picks it up and lays it on a paper towel before sliding it towards you. He takes the other half, and you pick your desserts apart with your fingers. Seungmin tells an anecdote about Jeongin from their vocal lesson that morning. It’s…nice. You’re just spending time with your boyfriend, a quick stolen minute in the midst of your busy lives. The frosting is sickeningly sweet, and you find yourself reaching for the bottle of water without even thinking of it, and only later preen at the realization that Seungmin knew you would need to wash the artificial taste out and had brought you water preemptively. He knows you well enough to identify if something would suit your palette with only a glance.
Both of you don’t have much time to spare, so after fifteen minutes you wipe off your hands and clean off the table.
“I’ll bring the rest of these back upstairs,” he says. “They won’t last ten minutes once the others see them.”
“That’s fine. That’s what I was hoping for, actually.”
“And here I thought you brought these only for me,” he says, but his lips are curled up, teasing. He kisses you goodbye, like always, lips sugary-sweet and soft as cotton-candy. “Thank you for stopping by. I’ll see you tonight.”
Your heart grows three sizes. You’re on cloud nine. “Anytime,” you say.
That night you try very hard not to be an absolute freak about dinner. You cook nearly every day, so the cooking itself isn’t that special, but for some reason your usual rotation doesn’t feel good enough. Seungmin is coming home for the second day in a row, and you don’t want to reuse ingredients, or phone it in when you’d specifically asked him to come home. At the same time, a five-course meal is definitely doing way too much. You stop by the store on the way home and scan the shelves, before wrestling yourself into a compromise and getting ingredients for a meal you both enjoy, but you’re normally too lazy to bother after a long day at work. It’s nothing fancy, just time-consuming, but you’re in such high spirits that the labor doesn’t even feel harrowing.
Seungmin gets home a few minutes before you’re properly done, with the pot on the stove ticking down steadily as you wash dishes and spoons. Seungmin greets you as he walks in but vanishes quickly down the hall to shower and change into inside clothes. By the time he reappears, you’re all but done, and you’ve never been more satisfied with yourself as you dish the food into two bowls and set them on the table. Sure, maybe it’s “playing housewife” a little bit, but you don’t even care. If playing housewife is this rewarding, you might have to start doing it more often.
Seungmin raises his eyes as the dinner you prepared.
“Didn’t you complain that this is hard to make?” he asks. You shrug.
“Felt like cooking today,” is all you say. “No biggie.”
Seungmin sits down at the table, pushes his plate to the side, and looks directly at you. “Y/n. What’s going on?”
Anxiety shoots through you. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Yes, you do. I’m not oblivious. You’ve been acting off all day.”
“Off?”
“Visiting me at the company? Cooking this fancy dinner? It’s not like you at all.”
“That’s not me being ‘off.’ I just missed you, that’s all.”
“Have I not been paying enough attention to you? Is that why?”
“No! I mean, you have. There is no ‘why’. Am I not allowed to miss my boyfriend?”
Seungmin looks distinctly unimpressed. “Nice try. Wanna go again?”
All your good humor from earlier is dissolving into your soup. “You’re mocking me.”
“I’m not mocking you.”
“I was trying to do something nice for you. I just wanted to spend time with you today. Is that so wrong?”
“It’s not wrong. It’s just unusual for you. When you told me you showed up at the company, I thought something horrible had happened, because you never visited me before.”
“And that doesn’t bother you?”
“What doesn’t?”
“That I never visit.”
“Why would that bother me?”
All your anxieties are simmering near the top, threatening to boil over. “Because the other members’ girlfriends visit all the time. I know they do. They have security clearance and everything. But I never do. I don’t even know where you are most days if I wanted to visit you.”
Seungmin frowns. “You’re busy. You have a job you’re at all day, same as me. Some of the other members’ girlfriends work less or have other things going on.”
“Maybe that’s the problem,” you mutter. “Maybe I have too much going on.”
Seungmin looks hesitant at this. “If you feel you need to cut back, I’ll support you.”
“Is that what you want? Do you think I should work less?”
“No, I don’t. That’s not my decision anyway.”
“But I just…” You’re cracking, you know you are, you can hear it in your voice- “I just want to be there for you more. I want to be attentive.”
“You are attentive. You’re there for me all the time.”
“I’m not!” It bursts out of you more violently than even you expected. Seungmin is taken aback, eyes widening as you finally break. “I’m so aloof towards you, it’s awful. I never know where you are, or what you’re doing. I never ask you to come home to me. I don’t stay up for you. I don’t visit you. Other girlfriends have bracelets or necklaces they wear for their boyfriends, and I don’t do any of that. No one would even know we were dating, based on how we are now.” You suck in a breath, reminding yourself to stay calm. “I just don’t even know what you get out of being with me. I don’t do anything I’m supposed to do, and you keep letting me get away with it. And I thought if I changed, and I started trying harder, maybe I could fix it before you realize that I don’t deserve you.”
You squeeze your eyes shut, humiliation and sadness making you feel dizzy and hot. Now that you’ve said it all out, it sounds ridiculous. It’s not as if you could fix a behavioral pattern with one good day. If your relationship really is rotten through, all you’ve done is draw attention to the problem and made it even worse. Contrasted with how you acted today, the past eleven months must seem downright hollow.
Seungmin sighs. “Y/n, look at me, please.”
You open your eyes and are horrified to see Seungmin looking absolutely mournful where he sits across the table. He looks so aggrieved, so weighed down, and a horrible rock forms in the pit of your stomach.
“First of all,” he says. “I don’t ever want to hear you say again that you don’t deserve me. It’s not true, and I won’t have you putting yourself down like that. You don’t decide what I deserve, I do. And I’ve decided you’re exactly what I want.”
You blink, confused at the turn of events. It’s a very Seungmin thing to say, yes, but in this situation, you didn’t expect him to double down on it so earnestly.
“Second of all, you’re not aloof towards me. I know you love me, and you care for me in your own ways. I also know you have a life outside of me that keeps you busy. I’m grateful for that. I would feel horrible if you spent a significant amount of your day just waiting around for me when we both know I can’t always be there.”
“That’s different,” you can’t help but interject. “You’re an idol. You can’t help that you’re busy.”
“You can’t help being busy either. Being an idol isn’t any more important than any other job. You have responsibilities too.”
You deflate, sagging in your chair. He takes this as license to continue.
“Third, I didn’t think you were the type to wear jewelry every day. If you want me to get you something, I can do that. I just didn’t want you to feel pressured to wear something just because I bought it and it was expensive. Someday, if we get married, you’ll wear my ring, and that’ll be enough for me.”
He’s right. You don’t usually wear jewelry every day, and you would feel bad about not wearing something he’d specifically bought you as a gift. You’re starting to feel more and more foolish as this conversation continues.
Thankfully, his itemized list ends there, and he leans forward, dark eyes fixed on yours. He doesn’t look angry, or upset, just focused. Leave it to Seungmin to mind-map his way through a relationship crisis.
“Can you tell me what brought this on? It’s unlike you to be insecure. If I’ve done something to make you think you’re not good enough for me, I’d like to know so that I can change my behavior.”
You let out a long breath, giving up the fight in the face of Seungmin’s rationality.
“I had lunch with Ahrin the other day. I was complaining about how you’re so busy these days, I rarely see you. Ahrin said you guys actually haven’t been that busy. It made me realize I don’t actually know your schedule, like what you do all day, much less outside of work. And I also realized part of the reason I haven’t seen you much is because I never ask to see you. You have no reason to spend time with me when it seems like I don’t even want you around.” Your voice trails off as you continue, shame sticking the words in your throat.
Seungmin hums, thinking. He lifts his hand up and stretches it toward you, your sign to extend your own hand so he can lace your fingers together. You oblige, and the contact settles you a bit.
“I have never thought for one second that you didn’t want me around. I don’t take offense to you not knowing my schedule either. I know I don’t talk about work much. It might be a flaw of mine.”
“Hyunjin is always playing these little games with Ahrin to get her to come see him. But I’ve always felt that you’d prefer I stay away when you’re working.”
Seungmin hesitates again. “That might be right. That’s not because I don’t love spending time with you, though. It’s the opposite.”
“I…don’t follow.”
“Whatever you believe, the other members’ partners don’t really come around all that much, but when they do come around, it’s not really a big event. They’re just spectators. Like when Ahrin visits us at practice, it’s easy for Hyunjin to pretend she’s not there and keep working. I couldn’t do that. If you were in the room with me, I don’t think I could be as focused as I normally am. I’d be distracted because all my attention would be on you and how you’re doing. That’s why I’ve never encouraged you to visit.”
A small hysterical part of you wants to twist his words somehow, to start a fight about him calling you a ‘distraction’ and all it implies, but you know what he meant. It’s a fairly big admission he’s given, that he couldn’t keep control of himself if you were in his eyeline. It’s…unexpectedly flattering.
“I fluster you that badly?” you ask, half-teasing, half-curious. But Seungmin answers you dead serious.
“Embarrassingly so. When I went back upstairs with the cupcakes, Minho-hyung didn’t give me a second to breathe before commenting on it.”
You find yourself grinning. “Really?”
“Don’t laugh at me. It’s unkind.”
“I’m not laughing,” you say, even though you definitely are. Seungmin rolls his eyes, but there’s no heat or embarrassment in them.
“You could at least be sorry about it.”
“I’m very sorry that I got you bullied by your bandmates,” you say dutifully. “I promise I will do my best not to place you in such a compromising position again.”
“You can visit me if you want,” Seungmin rebuffs. “I can take a little teasing if you really want to see me. My point is just that you shouldn’t feel like you have to because the other girlfriends do.”
“Okay.” You nod, then venture out into the part of the conversation you’ve been avoiding. “If that’s all true, why do you stay away so often? It’s okay if you just have other things to do, but why do you let me think you’re at work if you aren’t?”
You aren’t sure what he’s going to say to this. You believe in his loyalty, always, and you don’t think he truly intended to lie to you, but you still can’t figure out who’s to blame here, and how this miscommunication has persisted between you for so long.
To your surprise, Seungmin’s ears flare red. His grip tightens on your hand, like he’s fighting himself, but you can tell he answers you honestly when he says,
“I was worried I was imposing on you.”
You blink. “Imposing?”
Seungmin is no longer meeting your eyes, his gaze lowered to the table. “Like I said, I don’t want you to constantly be waiting around for me. I don’t want you to get used to having me around, and then when I go on tour, or get busy with activities, you feel my absence stronger. Then, when I come back, I become an inconvenience as you try to fit me into your life again. It’s hard, and it’s unfair. I thought it would be easier to try to keep the same level of involvement all the time, so that you didn’t miss me too badly when I was gone, and I didn’t annoy you too much when I came back.”
You hardly let him finish his sentence before you say, “That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard. You keep your attention from me so that I won’t miss you later? How does that make any sense? I miss you regardless. That’s the point of being in a relationship.”
Seungmin winces, and you decide to dial back your indignance. He’d spoken to you evenly, and you could do the same for him.
“Sorry. I just meant that you shouldn’t keep yourself away from me in an effort to spare my feelings. I know what I signed up for when we started dating. I know some times will be easier than others. I appreciate your efforts to mitigate that, but this isn’t the way. You being gone so often is all the more reason to be overt and intense when we do have time together. It’s fine to not want to spend all your free time with me, but don’t ever think wanting to be around me is imposing, or hurting me in some way, because it’s not.”
Seungmin looks properly chastised. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I’ll be around more.”
“And I’ll ask for you more. We both need to stop holding ourselves and each other back.” You let out a little laugh. “We’re acting like it’s embarrassing to be in love or something.”
“Hyunjin said the same thing to me once.”
“Hyunjin is smart in exactly one area,” you acquiesce. “Ahrin is a lucky girl.”
“Comparison is the thief of joy,” Seungmin mutters. You lean forward over your cold dinner and press a kiss to Seungmin’s cheek.
“I didn’t say she was luckier than me.”
You both grin.
-/-
Next week, Monday. You wake up at your usual time, put on coffee, make breakfast. You clear your entire inbox because fuck the sales department, they can say whatever they need to say in the meeting this afternoon. You set your phone down and enjoy the warmth of the tea you brewed and watch the sun come up outside your living room window.
Seungmin gets up, gets his shoes and coat, and doubles back around.
“Good morning,” you say.
“Good morning.”
“Busy day?”
“Nope. I’m free after lunch.”
“Lucky. I have an awful meeting from two to four.”
“You’ll do fine,” Seungmin says. “Sales isn’t the boss of you.”
“They actually are,” you groan, and Seungmin laughs at your dismay. He kisses you goodbye, tells you to be safe. You tell him you love him. The front door opens and closes.
At around 1pm, your phone buzzes with a text.
Are you busy?
Eh. Why?
I’m in your lobby.
No way.
You grab your security pass and head towards the elevators, watching every floor tick down until it lets you out on the ground floor. Seungmin is sitting in a chair in reception, holding a white cardboard box. When he sees you approach him, he grins and holds it up.
“Got time for cupcakes?”
Your smile is so wide it’s splitting your face in half. “Follow me. The break room is on the fourth floor.”
-/-
“I didn’t even know you knew what building I work in.”
“I looked it up on NAVER.”
“Of course you did.”
“Why reinvent the wheel when someone invented the iPhone, y/n.”
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once-upon-an-imagine · 2 months
Text
Scars To Your Beautiful - James Potter
A/N: I have no idea how I was able to finish this xD thank you @captainlunaxmen for all your help! I hope yo loves like this :)
Request - @nix-rose asked: What about a James Potter x Black!Reader (if reader can have some personality: extrovert, loyal, gryffindor but could probably be a slytherin, just a happy person, definitely rough and tumble but still enjoys looking cute-) “Have you… Always been this beautiful?” “…That’s so cheesy even for your standards.”
Warnings: reader is really insecure, mentions of abusive parents, James protecting you from a creep (nothing to explicit though) also, this isn't proofread :D
Disclaimer: I don’t own Harry Potter :) gif isn’t mine :D  
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Scars To Your Beautiful
But there's a hope that's waiting for you in the dark You should know you're beautiful just the way you are And you don't have to change a thing, The world could change its heart No scars to your beautiful, we're stars and we're beautiful
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The ‘other Black’. That's how you were known in Hogwarts. 
You knew your family wasn’t perfect. As much as they all like to make it seem that way, it was very much far from it. Being part of The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black brought a lot of pressure with it, but you were used to it by now. And, deep down, you loved your family. At least your brothers and your cousins. Well, two of your cousins, you were always pretty terrified of Bellatrix after she enchanted all of hers and her sisters’ ancient creepy dolls to come alive and it still terrified you to your very core today. But you loved Andromeda and Narcissa, even if the latter was now spending all of her time with Lucius Malfoy and you saw less and less of her. 
Even if you’d never admit it, you were always a bit envious of them. Not in a bad way, you just… wondered a little how it would feel to be like them. You remembered guys literally fighting to get your cousins’ attention. And not a day went by without you having to hear at least ten different people saying how gorgeous your brothers were. 
And then, there was you. You had a respectable reputation since you were part of the Black family. But it sometimes felt like you weren’t worthy enough to be part of it. You’ve sometimes noticed some guys staring at you a bit too long. And you’ve gone out with a few guys before. But you’ve also had people come to you specifically to get closer to one of your relatives. And nobody had referred to you as beautiful. Well, no one, except…
“Hey, beautiful” you heard that very familiar voice standing next to you. 
“Potter” you smirked. 
“Going to the match today?” 
“The Slytherin-Gryffindor match?” you smiled. “Oh, I wouldn’t miss it for the world” you told him. 
“Good, cause I need my good luck charm” he said as the two of you walked to the Great Hall. 
“Exactly, how does that work, Potter? Because I’m not really rooting for your team” you reminded him and he scoffed, pretending to be offended. 
“But of course you are, your brother plays on my team-”
“My other brother plays for my team” you interrupted. 
“Well, maybe not the team but… I’m sure you like the Gryffindor captain more than Slytherin’s” he smiled sweetly at you. 
“Well, you got me there, Potter” you admitted. 
“Promise you’ll come to the party when we win?” he asked as you entered the Great Hall and you knew you would separate. 
“That’s a lot of talk, Potter” you smirked but he offered his pinky to you. You rolled your eyes but you took it. “Never speak of this” you told him.
“See you there, beautiful” he said before he saw you walk to your table. 
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
“Here” you said, sitting down next to your brother at Potions and handing him a small bag. 
“What’s this?” he asked, grabbing the bag. 
“That girl from Ravenclaw wanted me to give you this. I think she wants to ask you to Hogsmeade next weekend” you said, grabbing one of the chocolates inside. “Bite this, if it doesn’t have a love potion, I’m stealing them” you said.
“I’m not trying anything!” he complained. “Remember when we had to take care of Sirius after that girl from Hufflepuff basically drugged him?”
“I know, that’s why I wanted you to try them first” you chuckled. 
“Hold on” he said, grabbing his wand and pointing it at the candy. “We’re good” he said when a small purple dust came out of it. You grabbed one of the chocolates and Regulus grabbed another one, reading the note inside. “So, how was your talk with Potter this morning?” 
“I didn't talk to Potter this morning” you frowned, stealing some of his chocolates. 
“Don’t do that. I’m not Sirius” Regulus glared at you. “I’m not oblivious of how you two just casually entered the Great Hall together” he said. 
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Reggie” you said, pretending to be confused. 
“Or whenever he goes to Honeydukes he just happens to buy one too many Peppermint Toads so he gives you some, which just so happens to be your favorite” he said.
“He doesn’t… do that” you said, with your mouth half full of chocolate. 
“Are you… playing dumb? Or have you actually not noticed this?”
“Notice what? James is just friendly. That’s how he is” you tried to explain. 
“Really? He’s never gotten me Sugar Quills” Regulus said. 
“He doesn’t like Sugar Quills, why would he buy those?” 
“He doesn’t like Peppermint Toads either” he smirked. 
“Y-yes he does!” you argued, nervously. 
“No, he likes Chocolate Frogs, like the rest of us normal people” he said, as you glared at him. “And besides, it’s not just that. He’s always asking Sirius and me what your favorite books are, or asking Remus which songs you liked” he shrugged. 
“He… he does?”
“Does he really strike you as the guy who would read Pride and Prejudice for the fun of it?” 
“He might” you tried to convince yourself as you grabbed another chocolate. 
“Look, I know what you’re doing, and I know why you’re doing it. And it’s not worth it, bug” he said, getting serious. 
“It’s easy for you to say, Reg” you mumbled, picking another chocolate. “Look, it’s just… not that easy for me” you added. 
“You’ve gone out with guys before” he frowned, confused. 
“Not like James” you added. “What if… what if he’s really just being friendly? What if I think he’s interested in me and then I make a complete fool of myself? Just because he’s nice to me and I think there might be something else there? I feel…” you sighed, looking down at your hands. “It feels pathetic” you mumbled. 
“First of all, there’s nothing wrong with you liking James. Having feelings doesn’t make you pathetic” he said in a serious tone. “Secondly, did you not listen to what I just said? I honestly don’t think that James is just nice to you randomly like he’s nice to everyone else. He’s always looking for excuses to be around you, and he seems happier when he is. As do you. And, to be honest, I thought you were as oblivious about this as Sirius is, but now that I know that you were just trying to live in denial well, you’re dumber than Sirius- OUCH!”
“Excuse me?!” you asked, offended. 
“Only when it comes to this” he defended himself. “Look, I know that… for some reason, you’ve convinced yourself that you’re never going to find someone who fancies you-”
“For some reason? There is a very clear reason, Regulus, her name is Walburga!” 
“I know” he rolled his eyes. He knew very well about the hierarchy of the three of you in your home. And even if you were still not as below as Sirius because you were in Slytherin, your mother never let you forget that you were not Regulus or any of your cousins for that matter. “And I know that is not easy for you to turn off her voice in your head but, if you don’t, you might miss your chance to be with someone who is actually a great fit for you and it looks like he really likes you” he explained. “Don’t do that. If you let her win, you’re admitting that she’s right. And we all know, she’s not” he reminded you. “What’s the worst that could happen if you give Potter a chance?” 
“It’s very annoying when you’re right all the time, did you know that?”
“I do” he smiled triumphally, eating one last piece of chocolate as Professor Slughorn finally entered the class. 
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
“Ugh, what is it?” you heard your cousin’s annoyed voice on the other side of the door that you knocked on before it opened, and she appeared. “Oh, hey, love” she smiled when she saw it was you.
“Hi, Cissa, um… is this a bad time?” you asked, hoping you were not just interrupting her having sex with Malfoy. 
“Oh, no, love. Lucius is just moping about losing the match” she laughed, stepping out. “What’s up?” 
“Um, w-well, I wanted to ask for a favor… if you’re not too busy” you smiled. 
“Please, anything to get away from Lucius” she said, linking her arm with yours and already walking over to your dorm. “So, what’s going on?” she said, stepping into your dorm and noticing all the clothes scattered around your bed and the floor. 
“Well, I was hoping to get your opinion on something” you said, smiling sweetly. 
“Let me guess” she said, sitting on your bed and grabbing a few skirts and dresses. “You’re going to the Gryffindor party to see James Potter” she said, erasing the smile off your face. 
“Wha-? How did you know? Did Regulus tell you?”
“Oh, please, love, I’m sure you and Sirius are the only ones who didn’t know” she laughed. 
“What?”
“Yeah, Bella and Andy also know” she informed you. 
“What? How?”
“I told them” she shrugged. 
“Ugh, great” you said, throwing yourself on your bed. “My entire family is discussing my pathetic crush” you lamented. 
“It could be worse” she said. “At least he’s a pureblood” she smiled. 
“Right” you said awkardly, sitting up. Of course that would be the only pro she’d find on James. 
“Besides, he obviously likes you back” she said as she started looking through the dresses. “Stand up” she said, pulling you up and putting the dress in front of you. 
“How are you so sure that he likes me back?”
“Oh, please, love. You can’t be that dense” she snorted. “The boy won’t leave you alone. And I’m pretty sure you’re the only one not from Gryffindor to get invited to their parties” she said. “Or at least the only Slytherin” she said. 
“W-well, maybe Sirius invited me-”
“Then why isn’t Regulus going?” 
“Okay, fair” you sighed. 
“This looks pretty. How come you haven’t worn it before?” she asked, holding up a black dress. 
“Oh, I got it a while ago in a very cute shop, but, I know it’s not something my mother would ever let me wear” you told her. 
“Well, lucky for us, your mum isn’t here” she said, throwing the dress at you. 
After you put it on, Narcissa happily sat back down on your bed and helped you with your makeup. 
“Hey, Cissa?”
“Try not to move, I’m doing your eyes” she said. 
“How do you um… get a guy to uh… notice you?” you asked, making your cousin’s look soften a little. 
“James Potter already notices you, love” she smiled. 
“W-well, yeah, I guess b-but, um… how do I let him know that I like him?” you asked. “You know, without actually telling him” you chuckled. 
“You mean, how do you flirt with him?” 
“It’s just… Regulus insists that he does these things to get my attention and… to be honest, I didn’t think it was any different from the way he acts with other girls so… I guess I have been acting normal, but… I’d like him to know that I’m interested, I guess…”
“Well, Potter seems to have a big ego, so congratulate him on how well he played today” she said as she kept doing her makeup and you glared at her a little. 
“And Lucius is as humble as they come, I suppose” you muttered. 
“Fair point” she said, before she continued. “Look, you already know he’s interested in you. Just smile at him, laugh at his stupid jokes, you should be fine” she insisted as she finished. “Okay, I’m done” she smiled. You got up and walked over looking at yourself in the mirror. 
For the first time, in a very long time, you actually felt beautiful. Narcissa had managed to make you look as elegant and flawless as you did whenever your family had a dinner party, but you didn’t feel like you were wearing a costume in one of the dresses your mother always picked. You felt like yourself. You turned around and hugged your cousin tightly. 
“Thank you so much, Cissa!” you smiled. 
“You’re welcome, love. Now go flirt with your dumb boy” she said, ushering you outside your dorm. 
“You too” you said, smiling and walking down the stairs as she rolled her eyes.
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
When you entered the Gryffindor Tower, the party was already in full mode. You felt a few people, guys specifically, looking your way but you thought maybe it was because you were possibly the only Slytherin here. You walked across the Common Room, looking for James, but you found a different Marauder first. 
“Hi, Remus” you smiled as he walked over to you. 
“Oh, thank Merlin you’re here” he hugged you. “You’re the only person I like at this party and now Prongs can finally stop moping about you not being here” he said, making you laugh a little as he pulled away and looked at you. “Wow… you look-?”
“Bad?” you panicked.
“What? No! You look lovely” he smiled. “Prongs’ probably gonna have a heart attack though” he smirked. 
“Shut up! Stop saying things like that!” you widened your eyes at him. 
“Oh, please don’t tell me that you are as oblivious as your brother” he chuckled.
“I am not-! You know, I hit Regulus for saying that today!” 
“Alright, don’t hit me” he said, putting his hands up in surrender. “But, you cannot tell me that you haven’t noticed the way Prongs acts around you. He was literally throwing a fit about you not coming today” he insisted. 
“Really? Because he seems fine to me” you said, pointing behind Remus where you saw James talking to a group of very pretty girls as he offered a drink to one of them while another one threw her hair back, clearly flirting with him. 
“That means nothing” Remus said, rolling his eyes when he looked back to you. “That’s how James is-” 
“Exactly, that’s how James is” you repeated. 
“No, it’s different with you” Remus insisted as he grabbed a drink and handed it to you. 
“Really? Enlighten me” you glared at him. 
“So, you are admitting you are as oblivious as Sirius then?” 
“You know, you’re making a big deal out of that for someone who is just as oblivious on my brother’s crush on him-”
“What?!” Remus said, choking on his drink and pulling you aside. “Alright, now you’re just making stuff up” he said. 
“I’m not! You really haven’t noticed how Sirius is obnoxiously loud whenever you’re around to get your attention?”
“He… does not” Remus said, blushing a little. 
“Or that he calls you sweet names” you smirked.
“He calls everyone ‘love’” he interrupted. 
“Yes, he does” you nodded. “But he only calls you ‘my’ love” you added. 
“He… does not” he repeated.
“What are you doing here?” Sirius asked, walking over to the two of you all of the sudden. 
“Nothing” Remus quickly said. 
“Being normal, why?” you said at the same time, making Sirius raise an eyebrow at the two of you. “Um… h-have you seen James?” 
“No, but I am seeing too much of something” he said, gesturing his hand at your body. “What the bloody hell are you wearing?”
“A dress?” you said, looking down at yourself. 
“That is too revealing. You need to go change!”
“First of all, it is not. And secondly, your shirt is literally completely open!” you complained. 
“Yeah, well, this isn’t anything they haven’t seen before” he defended himself. “I am not in the mood to fight some prick that stares at you for a little too long because of… that” he said. “Go upstairs and grab my jacket” he told you.
“What? No!” you complained.
“Yes” he insisted. “Would you reason with her, my love?” he asked, looking at Sirius and you smirked when he blushed furiously. 
“Shut up” he whispered to you. “Look, just go upstairs and pretend to look for a jacket, I’ll distract him and you can come back in a few minutes” he said while Sirius finished his drink. 
“Ugh, fine” you rolled your eyes. 
“How come she only listens to you?” Sirius complained, pouting at Remus. “It must be your beautiful eyes” he smiled.
“How many of those have you had?” Remus asked, taking his glass away from him. 
You made it upstairs to the boys’ dorm and went over to Sirius' trunk to look for one of his jackets.  You found one that you kind of liked and put it on before you went back downstairs. You looked for James but saw he was still talking to the group of girls. You tried to look for your brother instead but saw him very busy with Remus and you didn’t want to interrupt so you went to grab something to drink.
“I didn’t know they let Slytherins into our parties” you heard Augustus McLaggen on your left, pouring himself a drink as well. 
“Oh” you said nervously. You were rarely alone at these things. You would at least have Regulus by your side and he would make someone go away if you were uncomfortable. “W-well, James invited me and- I was with my brother-”
“Relax, darling, I’m joking” he smirked, walking closer to you. 
“Oh” you smiled wearily. 
“It’s actually a bit… refreshing to have someone from another house” he said. 
“Um… thanks?”
“There’s something different about you” he said, eyeing you up and down. “I can’t quite put my finger on it” he said, making you pull your jacket a little closer.
“Hey! You finally came, love” you thankfully heard James’ voice coming towards you and wrapping his arm around your waist. “I thought you were standing me up” he said, kissing your head. 
“J-James, hi” you smiled relieved. 
“Sorry, mate, gotta steal her for a bit” he said, smirking at McLaggen who was glaring at him and he quickly pulled you aside. 
“Thank you” you told him as the two of you walked away.
“Don’t mention it, love. McLaggen’s a prick, why were you talking to him?”
“I wasn’t talking to him! He was talking to me” you insisted as James raised his eyebrow. “I was just getting a drink! And I was gonna go look for you-”
“Are you wearing my jacket?” he asked, confused. 
“Y-your… what?” you said, looking down at your jacket. “This is y-your jacket?” you asked confused. 
“Yeah” he smiled.
“Oh, I’m sorry, it was in Sirius’ trunk” you said, confused. “I thought-”
“Yeah, beautiful. I’m gonna save you some time, probably none of our clothes is in the correct trunk” he laughed. “Except Remus’” he added. 
“I’m sorry” you said, starting to take it off. 
“N-no! Don’t worry about it, gorgeous. Are you cold? Is that why you wanted my jacket? ‘Cause it looks good on you- I mean, you look beautiful tonight” he said smiling at you. “W-well, you always do” he added. 
“R-really?” you smiled, feeling your cheeks blush.
“Yeah” he nodded. “You don’t need the jacket if you ask me-”
“Oh, um, w-well…” you stuttered. “Sirius just… didn’t like my dress and said I needed a jacket” you rolled your eyes.  
“Well, Padfoot just needs to snog Moony and mind his business” he laughed, making you laugh as well. “You look beautiful with that dress” he smiled dreamily at you. 
“Thank you, James” you said, feeling your heart flutter. “Wait, you know about that?”
“How Sirius calls Moony ‘my’ love? Of course I do” he chuckled. “So, what took you so long to come? Were you crying all this time because your house lost?”
“Really? Did you want me to come just to brag about the match, Potter? I can still leave” you smirked as he handed you a drink. 
“Please don’t. I was so bored before you came” he said, walking you over to one of the sofas near a window. 
“I find that very hard to believe” you said, looking around. 
“Why do you always think I’m lying?” James asked, placing his hand on the sofa, behind you. 
“Because I’ve known you since I’m eleven?” you replied, making him glare at you a little. 
“That hurts, love” he said, trying to sound offended. “When have I ever lied to you?” 
“Well, for starters, you didn’t tell me that you, my brother, and Peter became Animagi to help Remus-”
“That was your brother. He didn’t let us tell you” he defended himself. 
“Alright” you said, trying to suppress your smile. “So, you’ve never lied to me?”
“Never, love” he insisted.
“Not even to avoid hurting my feelings?” you raised your eyebrow at him and noticed him tense a little. 
“N-no, of course not” he said, taking a sip of his drink. 
“So, last Christmas when you invited us over and your mum was teaching me how to cook, you actually liked the Christmas Pudding I made?” 
“Of course I did” he chuckled. 
“James” you glared at him. 
“Yes, love?” he smiled, goofily at you. 
“I mistakenly added salt instead of sugar, it was ruined” you laughed. 
“No, no. It wasn’t ruined. It gave it a new better taste” he shrugged. 
“James!” you laughed. 
“What? It’s true! I liked it” he insisted. 
“Nobody else ate it! You can’t possibly think it was good” you laughed. 
“Well, I did” he shrugged, turning your way. 
“You’re really stubborn, did you know that?” 
“Oh, and you’re not?” he laughed making you smile. “Have you… always been this beautiful?” 
“That’s so cheesy, Potter, even for your standards” you chuckled, feeling your cheeks burning. 
“Wait… do you-? Do you not believe me?” he asked, his tone getting serious. 
“I- um… I do” you said, unconvincingly. 
“You don’t” he said, turning himself to you. “It is one thing that you don’t believe that I liked your Christmas Pudding-”
“You didn't” you insisted. 
“But how can you not believe me about that?” 
“I do!” you insisted. “It’s just… I’m sorry, I’m being stupid” you smiled sadly, looking at your drink. 
“No, you’re not” James insisted, placing his hand under your chin to make you look at him. “What’s going on, love? Did- did I say something wrong?” 
“No!” you quickly said. “You never say anything wrong” you smiled sadly. “It’s just… I’m not really used to um… hearing that” you said, feeling your cheeks blush. 
“Love, I tell you that every single day! Why is it so hard for you to believe me?” 
“Because, James, look at my entire family” you said, sadly. “You know who I live with. My mother is not warm and loving like your mum is. I grew up very differently than you” you reminded him, making his look turn soft and his heart break a little. “I know you wouldn’t lie to me” you added. “It’s just… not easy for me to believe it, I guess” you smiled sadly. 
“Well, love” he said, moving closer to you and placing his hand softly on your cheek. “If you’re okay with it, I will keep saying it until you believe me” he told you. “Because you are the most beautiful person that I have seen in my life. And, since apparently I haven’t been as obvious as I thought I was, I am completely and madly in love with you and I would love to take you out on a date” he said, making your heart stop. 
“R-really?” you asked and he raised his eyebrows at you. “I m-mean, y-yes, I would love to go on a date with you” you smiled. “And… in case you didn’t know because I’m horrible at this… I am very much in love with you too” you added, making the biggest smile appear on James’ face. “And I also think you’re really beautiful” you said before he pulled you in to kiss you on the lips. 
“I love you, beautiful” he said, making you smile. 
“I love you too, Jamie” you said. “Can I ask you one more thing?”
“Anything” he said.
“Do you like Peppermint Toads?” you asked suddenly, remembering your conversation with Regulus. 
“Do I uh-” he frowned. “Why are you asking me that?” he chuckled nervously. 
“You always give me Peppermint Toads when you say you bought too many but… I don’t think I’ve seen you have one” you explained. 
“Well, love… I hate to break it to you, but nobody likes Peppermint Toads” he admitted. 
“That’s not true!”
“Yes, it is” he said, kissing your cheek. “I just bought them because you always smiled when I gave them to you” he said. “So, I’ll buy you as many as you want” he said, hugging you to him and giving you another peck on the lips. 
"Thanks, love" you smiled. "Can you now tell me if you actually liked my Christmas Pudding?"
"I did!"
The End
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
A/N: I hope you loves liked it! :)
463 notes · View notes
nonomives · 11 months
Text
Hunt vs. Hunted AU
(a.k.a. Vampire Wally AU)
Meet the Kardashians—i mean the Pillars
Part 1 || 2 || 3
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Character line-up (Oldest to youngest)
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So a bit of character Info:
There were more of them, but given the dangers of the monster hunter's profession, theyre the only ones left.
Hannah Pillar
She isn't the actual eldest sibling of the bunch, but among those who are still alive and somewhat sane, she is the oldest. A former mercenary whose main weapons were firearms. She was quite successful in her career but a traumatic incident happened that led to her not being able to weild a gun anymore. She eventually got hired as a desk worker in H.A. (Hunter's Assossiation) mainly handing out missions or intel to monster hunters.
She has a stable relationship with all of her siblings, sometimes the person everyone tells their worries to. She's nutruing and mature, but can also be quite cold and strict when need be. She is also often apathetic to things around her, something that got carried over even after she stopped being a hunter.
Harvey Pillar
Acting second oldest, Harvey is the genius of the group, or so he constantly claims himself to be. There is truth to what he says though since he works as a researcher in H.A. where he gathers information about the various mythical creatures the company had captured. Once, he used to admire this type of work until witnessing a thing or two which led him to be quite nihilistic. He's mainly just in it for the bragging rights and the money now.
Complete drama queen. Heidonistic and arrogant, he can come off as an asshole once he opens his mouth. Hannah keeps him in check most of the time. He does try to act like a big brother but struggles to be sincere about anything because he thinks it's a weakness. Very insecure, easily gets envious, especially of Howdy. For as vocal as he is, he does have many skeletons in his closet.
Howdy Pillar
A very popular hunter that is crowned The Hero of the Century, succeeding his late older brother, Howard Pillar. This is all due to his countless instances of saving people from dangerous monsters, especially feral vampires. Add this and his family background, he was made the H.A.'s face man, appearing in many interviews and posters for the company. He is quite the busy man, and Hannah usually acts as his manager, helping him with his packed schedule.
Howdy is closest with Hannah, but he also enjoys the banters he gets with Harvey. Charismatic and witty, many would think he is a perfect person, the ideal hero. The reality of it though is that Howdy is only in it for the revenge of his deceased siblings. While he smiles and acts relaxed in public, he is otherwise serious and gruff. Doesnt trust easy either. He also doesnt like how the media portrays him and would try to avoid being detected by anybody while he's on the job.
Here's a sketch lol
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Honey Pillar
The youngest of the group. She is the black sheep of the family, refusing to associate with H.A. or monster hunting in general, and choosing a career as an actress instead. Despite the controversy that came with this decision, Honey ended up becoming famous because of her alluring personality on the screen.
Aside from Hannah, she despises everyone. She hates Howdy especially because of an instance that lead to her twin sister's death and her loss of 2 arms. She hates Harvey a little less but prefers not talking to him at all. Honey is a drama queen herself, but in a less direct way.
2K notes · View notes
braxlrose · 10 months
Note
i read your tom kaulitz weird and silly headcanons and i can't stop laughing 😭 wtf it's 4 am.. anyway will you do the same headcanons only with bill, pretty please?🤭 i know one hundred percent that this little bastard isn't so innocent what he looks like.. i'm sure he's as dirty as Tom 😭 btw sorry engilsh is not my first language ☠️ Greetings from Poland!!:)
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(his skirt is so cute?!?)
Cześć jeszcze raz! Rzadko spotykam Polaków, więc cieszy mnie możliwość ćwiczenia języka polskiego!
also his skirt is super cute omg
silly and weird bill headcanons
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cw: mentioned oral(f and m!recieving), making out, nipple play?, etc
-you are completely right, this mf is far from innocent 💀 tom is seen as the dirty minded one but this little shit would make the most dirty fucking jokes every and then act all innocent LIKE BITCH
-he's also passive aggressive. like very passive aggressive. pookie can't help it 😪
-the first time you, him and tom all got high together he got super paranoid and thought that you guys were all just figments of a dog's imagination
-when you guys are spooning, he reaches underneath your shirt and cups your boobs. it helps him fall asleep quicker apparently
-but sometimes when he's feeling like a little shit, he'll tweak and pull at your nipples and you have to slap him away. so then you make him promise not to do it again. spoiler alert. he does it again 😐
-hes an impatient mf so the amount he's burned his tongue after heating up a pop tart 😒 like bitch..just wait the two fucking minutes
-he loves kissing your temple and your forehead
-during the winter, if his hands are cold he asks if he can put his hand in your pants. 💀 like that's his exact words. "Can I put my hand down your pants?" he says it's because you're warmer down there than he is, but I think it's just cuz he's a dirty minded little fuck
-when cooking marshmallows over the fire, it's a 50/50 thing. Sometimes he's super patient and will wait and make his marshmallows a crispy, perfect golden brown color and other times he gets to lazy and will just shove it in the fire.
-he also thinks it's like the coolest thing in the entire world when his whole marshmallow is on fire
-he didn't know how to snap until he was like 16 and always got mad whenever tom could do it 😭
-he was super happy when he realized that he was the taller twin bc tom was allllwayyss talking about how he was 10 minutes older.
-YOU GUYS GOT MATCHING TATTOOS
-he literally loves getting matching tattoos with you, he thinks it's so cute and fucking loves it. somehow he convinced the both of you to get some dumb ones 💀
-when you two were little kids he used to beg the teacher to make you, him and tom partners. lil bro would get down on his knees
-speaking of getting down on his knees, the first time he went down on you he "accidentally" 🤨 bit your clit. I still say he did it on purpose though
-you guys know that thing that Gomez does with Morticia when she reaches her arms to the side and he kisses from her finger tips to the other finger tips? yall know what I'm talking about? WELL BILL DOES THAT
-he likes to sleep naked sometimes. because it's "better for sleeping" but I think it's just because he wants to sleep next to naked you.
-almost drowned tom at the pool 💀...multiple times
-him and tom make you sit by the pool and then make you tell them who's cannon ball was better. and this isn't just a like 16 yr old boy thing. they do this at 33 too.
-bill once stood up upside-down on a keg and drank it 😧. not the whole thing but it was super crazy. you later found out it was because tom didn't think he would do it
-he once jerked off in class and found a way so nobody would notice him EXCEPT YOU 😨 MF YOU WERE TRAUMATIZED
-he also doesn't know how to lock a door. so you'll just walk in and he'll be jerking off, or you'll turn a corner in his house and he'll be jerking off, you go to use the bathroom and he'll be jerking off. "I'm a teenage boy it's what we do!" BRUH GET A HOBBY
-if you don't know german, he'll randomly say dirty stuff to you in german. BUT THEN PROCEED TO GET MAD AT TOM IF HE TEACHES YOU BAD WORDS IN GERMAN 🙄
-he loves sitting in your lap when making out. like obviously he loves it when you sit in his lap, but he LOVES when he gets to sit on top of you and kiss you
-the first time he tried to give you hickies, he wasn't completely sure how to and ended up biting you 💀
-he's not a morning person, we all know this. so if you want to get him out of bed, you will have to drag him out by his feet.
-his dick is big. we all know this, but the first time you tried to give him oral, he accidentally slapped your face w/ his dick 😭
ANYWAYYSSS TY SM FOR THE REQUEST POOKIE I HOPE MY POLNISCH WASNT TOO BAD
taglist: @hearts4kaulitz @burntb4bydoll @spelaelamela @bored0writer @fishinaband @billsleftnutt @dead-tapes @tokiiohot @bluepoptartwithsprinkles
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brodieland · 1 month
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.˚ 𓈒 ࣪.𝝑𝝔 he's not just a man, mom.. ´ˎ˗
Luke Castellan x Fem!Athena!Reader Synopsis: Reader has a special bond with both Luke and her godly mother, so when Luke joins Kronos, her head starts spinning in confusion on what to do anymore Warning(s): angst. and uh swears ig Word Count: 4314 A/N: I was inspired from a Tumblr post that was inspired from that one Gilmore girls scene😛😛 the post, I mixed in some show and book moments, sometimes just can't decide what hit harder. love them both💔 ugh why did I yap?? Part 2
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You and Luke were perfect for one another. Like two pieces to the same puzzles. You were childhood sweethearts and everyone knew it. If you told yourself a couple months ago what had happened, you would've laughed so hard your lungs might've collapsed. This was not a happy ending, though it could've been.
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It was an average summer evening at camp half-blood. Normally you'd be busy helping Annabeth prepare for capture the flag, but she insisted on doing it herself. She always thought it would help prove herself more and more to your mother, Athena. You and your mom are quite close, you both talk a lot. You make sure to tell Annabeth that she already has faith in her, but she still feels the need to do this, maybe it'll help her get the quest she's been dreaming of.
Since you're close with your mother, Athena also knows of your long-lasting relationship with Luke, the Hermes head counselor. At first she didn't approve, she thought her daughter could do better than a son of the god of thieves, but she knew she couldn't change it so she let it go. Well sorta, she always gives a slight diss about it every now and then.
Now it was the day of capture the flag, and you had the newcomer Percy Jackson on your team. Annabeth whisked him away as part of her plan while you and Luke fended off the rest of red team. And for the fourth year in a row, your team won at capture the flag. You and Luke were celebrating with the rest of Athena and Hermes cabin, when you heard yelling from behind you.
"What is wrong with you?!" You turned around to see that a cut up and bleeding Percy was yelling at Annabeth for pushing him into the water. As he stood up, you and everyone around you noticed that his cuts began to heal, but before you could question it a symbol appeared above his head. A trident.
"Poseidon," announced Chiron. "Earthshaker, Stormbringer, Father of Horses. Hail, Perseus Jackson, Son of the Sea God."
All the campers in the surrounding area stood in shock, but congratulated Percy non the less. You stood there with a big smile, happy he was claimed after spending the entire day before being somewhat of a, well, failure at all camp activities.
"Luke! Percy got claimed isn't that amazing-" You turned to look at your boyfriend, but didn't see him smiling the way everyone else was. His expression seemed different. It was a look of curiosity beyond him being a child of the big three, more as if Luke seemed.. upset? He had a grudging smile hanging off his lips, you were confused but shrugged it off.
The next day at around 10AM you were sitting with Annabeth as she raves to you about how she's finally found the one. And by the one, she means that Percy ended up picking her to go on the quest with him. Annabeth goes on telling you about the quest, about how she has to recover Zeus' lightning bolt before the solstice in a week, she sounds excited but you can tell she's nervous.
Your conversation was interrupted by a knock at your door. You turned and saw your handsome boyfriend, Luke, coming to pick you up.
"Mind if I steal her away for a little?" Luke asked as he smiled at your little sister. She just sighed.
"Fine, bring her back at a reasonable time though. Last time you brought her home at 2AM half the cabin woke up." You and Luke started laughing.
"Annie you were the only one awake," you leaned forward and kissed the top of her head, "I'll be back soon to say goodbye." And the two of you were off.
Whenever the both of you had free time like this you two would head off to the strawberry fields. There aren't always many campers by the fields at once, so you and Luke would just grab and bunch and walk around through the forest before they noticed the missing strawberries. Most campers don't go there for the fear of monsters, but with Luke being the best sword fighter this camp has ever seen in years, you liked your odds. You guys decided to sit by where Percy had gotten claimed the day before, the sound of the ocean is just so calming.
"The Demeter kids really know what there doing with these strawberries," Luke groaned as he took a bite out of one of them.
"I think its in there job description," you both just chuckled and continued enjoying not just the strawberries but each others company. Not many opportunities for being alone lately. Then you remembered the look on Luke's face when Percy got claimed. Why wasn't he happy for him after all the time he spent helping him get claimed just the day before?
"Hey Luke, can I ask you something?" You yourself weren't sure if you should bring it up, but something in your gut was telling you too.
"Of course, you can ask me anything."
"Well, yesterday when Percy got claimed, how did you feel about it?"
"Hmm? I was happy for him, sucks he's gonna have to stay in that cabin all alone though. Why do you ask?"
"Yeah.. well I don't know when I turned to you, you just seemed kind of upset?"
"What? Why would I be upset?" Luke started smiling like you were crazy. Hey, maybe you were just seeing things.
"I don't know, maybe I'm just going crazy. Oh what would my mother think of her legacy losing her marbles," you giggled to yourself and turned to Luke, he was laughing but it felt like the mention of your mom hit a nerve. He knows she isn't his biggest fan so that's probably it. You both moved on and continued like normally till the lunch bell went off, which was your sign to start heading back. You both split up and sat at your cabins table with this rest of your siblings.
"Hey Annie," you greeted as you sat in the seat next Annabeth.
"Hey your back," she smiled. "I'm leaving after lunch."
"Better make this lunch count, you're probably not gonna have so many good ones out on the road," you joked. You're not really joking though. You remember back on the times when you and Luke were on the road with barely enough to eat, not fun times. You stopped thinking about it and continued to send your last moments with your dear sister before she goes off her on her dangerous quest. Please gods, mom, let her come back safe. You both finished up and walked over to your cabin and helped her finish packing up.
"I gotta go pick up Percy now."
"I'm coming with you? I'm spending all the time I can with you before Percy and Grover take you away from meee." Annabeth just rolled her eyes at you (you could still see her smile though) as you both walked over to the Poseidon cabin. When you walked in you saw Luke talking with Percy. He was giving him something.
"Hey Percy, watchu got there?" You asked as you leaned on the door frame.
"Some.. converse? Pretty cool.." He looked to Luke to see if he got it right, you just smiled knowing what the shoes really were.
"Maia," Luke said, and the shoes grew some wings.
"Yup, pretty cool shoes." Luke smirked and the two boys stood up and started walking toward the door. Percy stood next to Annabeth and you leaned in and gave them both a hug.
"Come back safe you two," you looked Percy up and down, "no funny business either."
"Haha very funny, we're not like you and Luke," Annabeth rolled her eyes, AGAIN.
"Roll your eyes at me again and they'll get stuck like that." Percy decided to stay silent, which you thought was funny. And just like that, they were off.
You pretended to wipe a tear from your eye, "They grow up so fast," You turned to Luke who was smiling down at you. You couldn't help yourself and just threw your arms around him and kissed him.
As you days went on, you still had that nagging feeling in your gut that something was off. But this time you just decided to ignore it. Questioning Luke got you no where so maybe you were just overthinking it.
The night before the trio was supposed to return, you were instantly pulled into a dream. You were standing back in the spot that you and Luke went to regularly by the water. Except it wasn't any normal dream, it was a demigod dream. And how did you know? You were currently standing next to your mother, Athena.
"Hey mom." You waved, she just nodded back.
"Hello Y/N."
"Soo.. what's up?" Normally you wouldn't be shocked of her appearing in a dream, but this time she had an extra amount of seriousness clouding her features as she continued to stare at the ocean.
"That Luke of yours, he seems off doesn't he?" You wanted to deny it, but you knew she was right. You couldn't help but just nod. "You get your instincts from me you know. I'd take it as disrespect for you to not trust them."
"But mom, I don't even know what it is that's bothering me. What am I supposed to do? Question him from a look I'm not even sure was on his face?"
"If you're not sure, why's it still bothering you?" You went silent, she was right. Mother knows best.
"You've never liked him, is that it?" You accused.
"Excuse me but this isn't a matter of me liking your little boyfriend, it's a matter of whats at stake right now. You saw the look on his face when that forbidden kid was revealed. And what was with that gift, hmm?" Athena was saying so much yet so little at the same time. This is one of the few times you've felt so useless, and it just had to be in front of your mother.
"I-" You looked down at your feet, ".. mom can't you just give me a clue, just once can you help me out here."
"You know us gods can't interfere," she stared daggers at you, and you started getting nervous, more than you already were at least. "I know you're smarter than this" It suddenly dawned on you what she was accusing Luke of, but you know he wouldn't do that, right?
You looked back at her, "He wouldn't."
"You really believe that?" You faltered for a moment.
"Of.. of course I do." Your mom just closed her eyes and shook her head.
"I thought you were smarted than this. I can't believe this boy has left you so blind." And with that, Athena and the setting around you started to disappear. You tried reaching out, trying to say that you are smart, but everything went black.
You shot up from your bed in a cold sweat, you were panting heavily. You turned over to check your alarm.
[6AM]
You looked around to see everyone still asleep. You knew you wouldn't be able to fall back asleep so you just went to go take a shower, wash off all the sweat and think. When you hopped in you just stood there under the water. You couldn't shake the conversation you had with your mother. Luke hadn't left you blind. You've known him for years, you knew him better than anyone. Especially better than Athena.
You got out and got ready for the day. This was the day Annabeth, Percy, and Grover were supposed to return. You tried to think on that instead, the positive. You hoped it was positive at least. It was now around 7:30AM, yes you took that long getting ready, what about it? You had a lot of thinking to do in the shower, and cool enough this was also the time Luke wakes up. You made your way to the Hermes cabin, watching the early birds, or Apollo cabin, sit around making haikus (every now and then they'd make a good one).
You snuck your way into the Hermes cabin, seeing everyone was still asleep. You tip-toed over to your boyfriends bed and kneeled down beside his bed, faces leveled together.
"Hey," you started to softly shake him awake, "Luke wake up." You made sure to whisper so no one around would also wake up. Luke started to stir awake. He softly groaned and rubbed his eyes before opening then. "Hey there gorgeous," you winked.
He chuckled and whispered back, "Hey beautiful." Morning voice is actually so hot. Luke sat up and pulled you up and into bed with him. You tried not giggle too loud as you snuggled closer to him. You were so close you were breathing in his scent. And there it was again, your gut feeling telling you something was wrong. After that conversation with your mom the feeling just got even worse.
"Luke," you laid on you stomach directly next to Luke, who was laying on his back, "aren't you excited? Percy, Annabeth and Grover come back today." You smiled, and so did Luke, but his smile didn't reach his eyes the way they normally do. What's up with him?
"Yup, excited to see them again." Morning voice didn't sound as hot when he didn't sound that happy to see them as he said he was.
"You don't sound that excited."
"What?"
"Luke are you hiding something?" He shifted for a split second, like he wasn't expecting such a question.
"From you? No, never." You felt uneasy, but what could you even do at this point. You can't go ballistic over an instinct.
"Fine, but you should really brush your teeth."
"You woke me up?"
You just laughed and got up from Luke's bed as he left to go get ready, and brush his teeth from that deadly breathe of his. When he walked out the bathroom in his classic orange camp Half-Blood t-shirt, you knew it was time to head out for breakfast.
As the day went on, you were anticipating the arrival of your fellow campers, mostly your sister. You loved her dearly and missed having her around. Despite her being a few years younger, she was one of your best friends. And finally she was back, and without hesitation you ran up to her and pulled her into a hug.
"Annie, you're safe!" You hugged her tightly as you both swung side to side.
"You crushing me," She groaned and you pulled away holding by the shoulders.
"You survived the underworld, you can survive my hugs." You looked around then noticed something. "Wait, where's Percy?" Annabeth looked a little worried.
"We found the master bolt despite it being past deadline. Percy went to give it back alone."
"Kids ballsy," you scoffed. "Or he has a massive death wish." Annabeth laughed softly but you could tell she was nervous. "Hey you guys made it this far, he'll be fine." She just nodded and looked up and you.
"So, wanna hear about the quest?"
"Uh, duh? And don't think mom didn't tell me about the tunnel of love." Annabeth tried looking at you with her intimidating face that read 'shut up or else' but it doesn't work out very well when she's blushing. "She said and I quote 'get your sister away from that reckless water boy'," you quoted while waving around your finger, Annabeth just groaned loudly and walked off with you laughing as you followed behind her.
Annabeth started explaining the story. Clarisse was the lightning thief? Ares covering for her would make sense but you don't know, something didn't add up.
"Yeah we called Chiron but Luke answered, he said he'd tell Chiron about it." Why didn't you know about this? And you knew Chiron definitely didn't either, so what the hell? You were cut from your thoughts when you heard cheering outside. You and Annabeth ran outside and saw Percy walking back to camp. You turned and saw Annabeth eyes go wide and run up to Percy, you saw her whisper something but didn't think much of it and went over to Luke, who was also watching the scene.
"Isn't it cool he made it back" You asked Luke.
"Amazing." Percy and Annabeth were now walking by you two, gesturing for you to follow them, which you did. As you looked over to Luke.
"Why didn't you tell me the Lightning thief was Clarisse." He swallowed.
"Oh, just slipped my mind." And he flashed you that smile of his, it doesn't looked as genuine any more. And now you four were standing in an empty Hermes cabin conspiring. You just zoned out of the conversation. Mom, please, this is the first time I wished you were wrong. Don't hold it against me.
Luke disappeared for a little bit, and to our understanding it was to inform Chiron of who the thief really was. Then, he disappeared with Percy into the woods. You were a little nervous, Luke made a new sword, Backbiter, made of both celestial bronze and steel. Hopefully there sparring would be fine.
Oh how wrong you were.
While alone in your cabin, you were organizing the mess of books when you saw Luke rushing through the doors.
"Luke are you okay, why the rush?"
"We need to talk." You were confused, but weirdly felt sweat a single drop of sweat fall from the back of your neck.
"Of course, whats up?" You said as you slid the last book onto the bookshelf and turned toward Luke.
"Remember our quest together, all that darkness and the monsters growing stronger. Don't you think all this is useless. How we're just pawns for the gods in this silly game they should've been over thrown from years ago-" Luke was rambling.
"Luke.. slow down. What are you saying? What do you mean over thrown?"
"I mean, the only reason their still around is for us, and even then they still don't treat us with the respect we deserve."
"Luke, that's our parents you're talking about. They're trying their best."
“That’s supposed to make me love them? They're killing the world and don't even seem to care. We need to start over, that's what he's been telling me in my dreams."
"Luke, what the hell are you talking about, whose 'he?'"
"Kronos." Your eyes widened, you couldn't believe what you were hearing. this couldn't be true.
"Luke, he's brainwashing you."
"No he's not. He's opening my eyes to the truth. In all the time I've been here, my dad sent me on one quest, a quest that's already been done. And I come back with this!" He angrily pointed at the scar on his face. "And all I got was pity. That's when he started speaking to me. That's where I got the ideas."
Your mouth went dry and your knees started to wobble, you couldn't believe what you were hearing. "You.. you stole the master bolt and Hades' helm, didn't you."
"And it was so easy, the gods are so full of themselves they wouldn't ever believe that someone would steal from them. And ares wouldn't have been easier to turn on my side." You didn't even recognize the man standing in front of you anymore.
"Why are you telling me all this?"
"Well, I can't continue keeping secrets from my dear girlfriend. I'm here to take you with me. Your beautiful brain is the last piece I need."
You wanted to cry. The thought was tempting. You saw how kids got ignored, how the unclaimed flooded the Hermes cabin, how most kids never hear from their parents, and how kids of minor gods don't even have cabins. You loved Luke with all your heart, you didn't want to leave him. You knew your choice.
"Luke, this is wrong. You have to know you can't just over throw the gods. They are your family."
"You're the brainwashed one here Y/N, you have to be if you can't see I'm right." He turned for the door, but you caught his wrist.
"You can't start a war like this. So many people will lose their lives." You were pleading with him. He turned to face you.
"It's the only way the gods notice, I have to go now. Last chance, are you coming with me or not." Tears were threatening to escape your eyes.
"You know I can't. I can't betray my mother." Tears were falling from your eyes, and you saw one fall from Luke's as well. He leaned and kissed you deeply and pulled away.
"Then this is goodbye." He rushed out your cabin and left you in tears. That was the last kiss you'd ever have with him. He was so gone and you didn't think you could bring him back. And that's when Annabeth came running and yelling.
"Percy's in the infirmary close to death, hurry!"
And so you wiped your tears and hurried. And there he was, a greenish grayish color with a lump on his hand.
"What the hell happened to him?" You asked worriedly.
"Looks like a pit scorpion bite, we won't know more till he wakes up." Chiron said.
Annabeth turned over to Chiron, "So did you interrogate Clarisse?"
"And why would I do that?" Chiron asked.
"What are you talking about, didn't Luke tell you she's the lightning thief?" Annabeth said.
"No he didn't," they both turned to you, looking more confused than ever. "He didn't snitch on Clarisse because it wasn't her. Luke's working for Kronos." You voice was cracking and Annabeth and Chiron both exchanged looks of worry.
"Here we are again." Percy said. Annabeth turned around and called him an idiot, ah. Young love. You feel bitter now but whatever.
"Percy. Explain everything now." And he did. He explained Luke's plan, the same one he explained to you, and how he said Percy couldn't be there and had the pit scorpion sting him. You then explained how he tried to recruit you and was now gone to who knows where. It went silent.
"I need to be alone." You excused yourself and went running to your cabin. The second you made it to your ned you collapsed and you immediately sobbing. This was Luke, your Luke, and now suddenly he was working with Kronos?? You just couldn't believe it.
As weeks went on, you became worse. You can never bring yourself to leave your bed unless absolutely necessary. Your friends and family around you started getting worried, they tried so much but nothing seems to work. At camp, you were the sweet older sister people came to for advice, now you were the girl who could barely say three or more words at a time. It got harder when Annabeth left, normally when she's gone the head counselor job would be handed to you. Of course, now that can't happen in your state. You're losing sleep and couldn't be bothered to make your self look presentable.
After about three months, you put yourself to sleep and you were pulled right back into a dream. You were standing in your special spot with Luke, and how bad you wanted to wake up but you couldn't. It was your mother who brought you back here.
"He's never coming back you know." You could barely cry, your eyes were dry. You stood there without saying anything. "I knew I never trusted him."
"Yeah because you always have to be right about everything don't you?"
"You better watch how you speak to me." Athena glared down at you, normally you'd be scared but you couldn't care less right now.
"Why, whats the point? Why are you even here? To what, rub it in my face that you were right about Luke?"
"I'm here to talk some sense into you. You're a daughter of Athena, you should be thinking with your brain, not your emotions. Yet that's the problem, you're not thinking clearly. Your ruining yourself over some guy."
"Mom," your voice was cracking. "please."
"Please what? You're grown enough to know right from wrong. Luke was just a man, nothing more nothing less." And somehow, some tears started to flow.
"No he wasn't," your voice was barely higher than a whisper.
"Speak up, you know how I feel about mumbling."
"He was more than just a man, mother," you were just barely yelling.
"Oh really, what are you saying to me? That a man who can so easily betray the gods and everything you stand for is the man for you? The love of your life? The man you would've married and had a family with?" Athena's words dripped with condescension, and it made your blood boil.
"You know what, yeah. He is, or was, or whatever. And I don't care what you have to say about it. Any future advice you have? Keep it." You were now yelling.
"Watch yourself, you might regret this. No daughter of mine will speak to me like this."
"No mother treats her daughter like her emotions don't matter, you just see me as another pawn to do your bidding. Get me out of this stupid fucking dream. NOW!" You demanded.
Athena looked at you with a face you couldn't decipher, before letting you go. The dream went black and you shot up awake just like the last time. Athena opened your eyes, just not in the way she hoped. What you knew? She didn't care about your emotions, just your ability to carry out her duties. Luke was right, and it pained you. You didn't know what to do, or who to stand with anymore.
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cordeliawhohung · 7 months
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Since you still have to go to a family dinner tonight: what would a family dinner with Simon or Price look like? Do you think they‘d be more talkative around your relatives, or just listen and/or suffer through it in silence? Do they leave room for dessert? And are you staying until the end or leaving as soon as it’s socially acceptable to catch up on much needed sleep? ❤️🌙 - A
Ah yes, family dinners a;skldfj they're fun but gosh can they be exhausting! luckily everyone only stayed around for about two hours, and as much as i'd love to catch up on sleep, i have terrible insomnia, so enjoy these little drabble/headcanons of our boys instead <3
But ah, Price, my love, I have yet to give him the attention he deserves!!!
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Family Dinner with Price and Simon
I feel like Price is the perfect gentleman, and would be great to take home to your parents!! Your mother would be instantly smitten with him with that charm he holds and the sweet tone to his voice. Careful, she might try and steal him from you! He gets along fine with your father, though there is this awkward tension between the two of them. Just fatherly instincts of course, but Price is good with the small talk that comes with these type of events.
I can just imagine sitting at the table, Price next to you trying to choke down the bitter taste of wine (because your mother told your dad he needed to lay off the beer) and he smiles as everyone converses. He eats the lavish meal your mum spent hours preparing, and even though he definitely did not save room for dessert, he can't say no to the brownies she baked!
I also imagine that this man is trying to hold your hand at least half the time. Underneath the table, he reaches for your hand and pulls it to rest on the edge of his thigh just so he can rub his thumb over your knuckles. He does it because he loves your touch, but maybe also to calm his nerves. (any man who isn't afraid of his partner's parents is a stupid one.)
By the end of the night your mother is chatting him up, asking what he does for work, how much time he has off, and if he'll be free for another dinner sometime in the future. It's not until the second dinner that Price fully wins your dad over by bringing a small case of beer with him as a gift (but really, he brought it for himself because there's no way in hell he's choking down that wine again).
Simon? Well, he's certainly a gentleman, but your mother does not like him in the least. What's with his mask? Sure he took it off at the table, but he looks like a criminal! (i feel like he would remove his mask for a dinner with parents because there's no way this man would just sit at the table and brood lmao). And what's with that tattoo peeking out beneath his sleeve? He's more of a brute than a boyfriend )))):
Your father, on the other hand, laughs at least twenty times that night due to Simon's dry, and flat humor. It's the type of jokes that gruff old men enjoy and the puns dads harass their children with. Your mother doesn't start warming up to Simon until later in the night. He's been quiet and reserved the whole night, not really speaking much about himself, and really, you've done all the talking for him. Eventually, something sort of clicks in Simon, and he goes off on this ramble about you of all things. A funny story of a mishap back at the flat, or maybe some milestone in your life that you had forgotten to tell your parents. Seeing you through his eyes makes her soften up a bit.
Like Price, Simon stuffs himself full, as he's never been one to turn down a home cooked meal (especially because, let's face it, i doubt the man is all that great at cooking) but he has to politely decline your mothers delicious pie because of it ):
By the end of the night, Simon sneaks off to the kitchen at some point to do the dishes. You find him there, sleeves rolled up, that terrible tattoo (according to your mother) on display and shiny with soap and water, and you chuckle and tell him he doesn't need to clean up. He retorts by saying it's the only proper way to thank someone for a meal. (i'm dying on this hill that acts of service is his love language) Your mother walks in on the two of you, Simon covered in more water and soap than should be humanly possible (no thanks to you) and when she sees the smile on your face and the giggles rumbling through your throat, well, she's sending the two of you home with the left over pie and the request that you two return sometime soon. (:
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"Penelope Isn't Owed Colin's Feelings"
Some parts of this fandom have a tendency to elide and otherwise get twisted the following regarding 2x08: (1) why many of those who are unhappy with Colin are unhappy with Colin and (2) why many of those who sympathize with Penelope sympathize with Penelope. And that's only more apparent in the reactions to the season 3 scene released on Valentine's Day.
It's not about thinking Penelope is owed Colin's feelings.
People are unhappy with Colin because of how he expressed that he wasn’t interested in Penelope – both because friends shouldn’t talk about their friends that way in general and because she’s in a more socially precarious position than he is and his seeming to think her less-than only makes her prospects worse. Even if Penelope didn't have feelings for him, it still would have been viewed unfavorably.
Some like to say the latter point about damaging Penelope's prospects isn’t a big deal because Penelope didn’t have prospects before 2x08 so she’s not losing anything when it’s actually a bigger deal for that very reason. Speaking like that about a Daphne/an Edwina/another popular, sought-after girl would be seen as sour grapes or otherwise not reflect badly on the girl, but saying something like that about a wallflower who has no dowry is just pushing her further down and increasing the likelihood that she’ll never have any prospects, particularly when Colin’s just been seen leading her out of a ballroom after being regularly spotted in her company. What’s wrong with her that, despite all that, the notion of courting her is not just unappealing but laughable? the rest of the ton will wonder. And Colin will recognize why this wasn’t great because he’s a fundamentally decent and sensitive person and will likely also recognize that Pen’s confidence is ground to dust at the beginning of the season. Neither of these things will sit right with him. Hence, the “confidence lessons.”  
Yes, Colin’s not perfect and he's allowed to make mistakes. He's only human. But this mistake hits Pen (and the audience) harder because he's otherwise been good and kind. And because we know, even if she doesn't in that moment, that he will feel very badly about it because he's a good guy and will hate to have hurt her.
Penelope falls in love with Colin (even if not in the fully-fledged, "see all of you" way that they both will this season) because of the kind of friend he is to her, i.e., his kindness. The fact that she develops these feelings in the course of their friendship and that these feelings sometimes influence the ways she acts doesn't make her some kind of awful predator lying in wait who feels entitled to having her feelings returned as I've seen implied by some. This makes her someone in love with her friend, which is a necessary part of a friends-to-lovers story. Hope ≠ entitlement.
And people sympathize with Pen not because they think she can do no wrong or because they believe she is owed Colin’s feelings but because, even knowing that no one is owed anyone else’s feelings, they see her grappling with unrequited feelings in particularly painful ways. In season 1, they watched her have a front-row seat to the person she loves romancing someone else, mostly in her own home, up to an engagement and near-elopement. At the beginning of season 2, they watched her and Colin talk past each other in the "you do not count" scene in a way that hurt her, even if they know that was not Colin's intent, after the pair of them spent the off-season writing heartfelt letters. They watched her hopes build up all throughout the rest of season 2 until the very moment she overheard him (more on that shortly), even if, again, it would never have been Colin's intent to confuse her or lead her on. Colin and Pen are simply not on the same page.
So people have all this context coming into 2x08. But most of all, they understand how badly it would hurt to hear anyone you care about, let alone someone for whom you have feelings (and doubly so a dear friend for whom you have feelings) say something like that in that tone and laugh, let alone in your own home on the same night you've just lost your best friend. 
Relatedly, let’s talk more about why the Featherington ball was a night of such high highs and low lows for Penelope. Up until that point in the season, Colin had shown her such care, including just a little while before and, while for him it is exclusively in the spirt of friendship, it's very much unintended mixed signals, i.e., more talking past one another. The ways Colin expresses his friendly affection for Pen are at odds with what was widely considered appropriate behavior in their time between a man and a woman who are neither related nor romantically involved. In fact, by the standards of Regency England, Colin is taking very significant liberties that are inappropriate between opposite-sex friends of marriageable age who have no intention of becoming more than friends (and even between those who are romantically interested in one another but still unmarried). For example, Portia would have been considered justified in demanding that they marry just after finding them alone together behind a closed door in 2x08 doing nothing else otherwise untoward – and likely would have, had she not been so shaken up by Colin figuring out the gemstone scheme. And, yes, Pen is not pushing back, is meeting him where he is, because she likes it and because she also values their friendship and wants it to mean more – but, in the context of their time, it’s even more understandable that she’d read more into it than someone now. And even someone now might read into some of the things Colin says and does and get confused and then hurt upon learning they're wrong and that their friend only has friendly feelings toward them, particularly in the way Penelope is forced to learn that she's wrong. 
Does that mean Penelope's reaction in the new clip is the kindest or fairest? No. But she’s human and she’s hurting. She's a lonely nineteen-year-old girl really struggling to find her place in the world who heard her dear friend express his lack of interest in her in a really disdainful-sounding way inconsistent with both his immediate and long-term private treatment of her. That’s really jarring and she not unreasonably concluded that this happened because he finds her embarrassing. If you were her, might there not be a little voice in the back of your mind wondering whether this is even the first time he’s spoken about her that way when he thought she couldn’t hear him? Still, I expect she’ll also feel badly that she spoke to him the way she did, especially in the face of an earnest apology from Colin about what he said, or she wouldn’t accept the offer of the confidence lessons and it would take longer for them to get to where they are in the “remarkable shade of blue” scene in the second episode. Let's give her space to come to that place. Let's show her a smidge of grace instead of assuming the worst of her and anyone who sympathizes with her.
Lastly, some of the same people who are mad about what Pen said and how she said it in the Valentine's Day clip (1) complain about the way the fandom is too hard on Colin for not saying things exactly right and (2) spent months preemptively raking Pen over the coals for "ghosting" Colin, for holding "never dream of courting Penelope Featherington" over his head for ages, for publishing it in Whistledown to punish him rather than talk to him directly, etc. So let’s give her a little credit for ultimately saying it outright to him, even though it must have been mortifying to do so when she believes she embarrasses him. Did it feel nice to Colin not to receive any replies to his letters? Of course not. It wouldn't feel good for any of us. (Side note: I hate that his family seems to have mostly left him on read, too! Don't get me started on that.) But would you want to reply to someone whom you believe you embarrass and who you believe has been two-faced toward you (i.e., being kind and friendly in private and laughing at you in public)? But to her credit, when confronted, Penelope does say why she's upset.
And no, Penelope does not owe it to Colin to further mortify herself by explaining that her feelings for him made his words last season that much more hurtful. (I’ve seen people criticize her for that, too.) Not sharing every single thought and feeling that crosses her mind does not make her Bad – neither a bad friend nor a bad person. Again, have some empathy and be honest: is there any scenario in which you would you be eager to tell someone you had feelings for them after hearing them laugh at the thought of you being a serious prospect for them? If Penelope does at some point admit her own feelings (and the longevity of said feelings) before she hears a declaration of love from Colin as she does in the books, then she is brave as hell and hats off to her, but not doing so at this stage would not be some dereliction of any friendly duty to Colin, especially not if she forgives him for his words as we know she does.
Actually lastly: not forgetting something entirely doesn’t mean you haven’t forgiven someone for it or are trying to punish them for it. It would not only not be Bad but also entirely understandable if Penelope had doubts when first confronted with a proposal from Colin later in the season, especially if it immediately follows the carriage scene. It would not be unreasonable for her to think this arises from a sense of gentlemanly obligation or lust or both, especially when she's familiar with his tendency to want to play the hero and when she has every reason to believe that his engagement to Marina came on the heels of a seduction. Grappling with understandable insecurities, including a fear that she might be inadvertently entrapping him, too, would ≠ Penelope trying to punish Colin for 2x08 or for not having feelings for her from the start if the show goes down that route.
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How about the towns people reacting to the farmer who despises joja. Like, think about it. The farmer left their soul sucking office job at joja behind only to see them again right across the bridge. I bet they would support the community centre out of spite.
They are normally a friendly and sweet person but the moment joja comes into the conversation they snap a little. Morris talks to them and their left eye twitches rapidly cuz this guy reminds them way too much of their old boss. They have dark dreams about the blinking lights of the work and rest lights and the bosses looming over them through the glass in their office.
Locals swear they see the light disappear from their eyes whenever they accidentally fish up a joja can.
Oh man, That's just about a perfect description of my OC Farmer. He is by nature a very kind and patient man, but every time he sees JojaMart, catching more trash with that logo on it, or sees people who use every means, even mean ones (remember that scene with Morris), to destroy the competition and become monopolists, he gets very sarcastic. Sometimes, it can be just pure rage.
But let's not talk about my OC, because the question here is about a neutral farmer 😅 So enjoy, dear anon!
SDV townies react to the Farmer who despises Joja:
Marlon's mind is more on protecting the Valley from monsters than on boycotting some store. He wouldn't have known about this until one day Farmer came in with a bunch of soda cans with the Joja logo on them, while swearing about the same logo. They told to the one-eyed adventurer that they had fished this cans of the mine waters at level 100. How these soda cans managed to end up in literal lava without burning or even deforming from the lava's temperature was a mystery to Marlon.
Stardew Valley has its own zest that makes the place unique, and according to Penny, JojaMart is ruining that uniqueness. Plus they constantly put promotions on the beer and ales they sell, which Pam just can't refuse. So Penny isn't too thrilled about Joja.co appearance in Pelican Town either.
How Willy understands them! There is already so much garbage floating in the sea from Joja's products that has endangered fish and other marine life. And the mart that was built here has only made the problem worse. So the old sailor will support the Farmer if they want to kick this corporation out of Pelican Town.
Not that George would care much where his wife bought the leek: from the farmers or from that huge store. After all, a leek is a leek no matter how you cooked it. Still, though, memories of his grandfather and his farm bring back fond memories of things that used to be both simpler and better. He's also annoyed by the loud music coming from the speakers in that supermarket, which is "supposed to attract customers" but distracts him from his nostalgic thoughts. Can't he have some quiet time in his own home anymore! If the Farmer wants to stage a boycott, then George will be the first of the participants!
Oh, this is so much fun! Abigail feel bad that she provokes Farmer on purpose, but it's not her fault that her friend gives such a funny reaction at any mention of Joja. "Look, Sam bought me a Joja cola, you want some?" *Possum hissing*
Haley thinks the Farmer is a fool. The only civilized supermarket in town, and Farmer looks at it as an insult to all humanity. Yes, the quality of the clothes leaves a lot to be desired, but there are a variety of sweets to choose from! And there's plenty goods for farming, too. The girl doesn't understand what Farmer's problem is.
Whoa whoa, easy, why the outburst of rage? What? Yeah, Alex bought a dozen eggs at JojaMart. After all, he needs protein. Hey! What's the Farmer doing? Give it back, why did they take the eggs?! If they wanted some egg, they could just ask! Wha?... Oh, the Farmer gave him three dozen eggs. These are from their farm? Uh, thank you. So big, and much better quality than he bought from Joja..... So, how's he gonna explain to Grandma that Alex now have three dozen eggs?
Gus sincerely hopes the Farmer doesn't vandalize his Saloon, at least as a sign of respect for the very owner of the establishment and his property. Because they've been looking at that Joja soda machine for too long. It's like they're trying to desiteng this poor vending machine. He may also have to take Joja Coke off the menu.
*Gasp* Hee-hee. Oh, Marnie can't stop laughing. To be honest, at first the young Farmer's angry stare and scolding caught her off guard and frightened her a little. But later, she can't stop giggling after every barbed comment towards Joja.co, their old boss and "colleagues".
Sheesh, wow. Sam would never have thought that a person could cringe like that at the mention of Joja. The young guitarist should think twice before opening a can of Joja Coke with Farmer standing next to him, because they will vaporize that very can with a look.
Jas already knows what natural resources are and has often heard from Miss Penny that many huge corporations often abuse and deplete these same resources. And this thought makes her sad. But she does not want to quarrel with anyone, so Jas will offer the Farmer to draw a poster together so that Joja will respect nature and makes products that do not harm animals and plants (spoiler: it won't work, but the Farmer was very touched by the girls’ idea).
Bad food? Bad store? But Mr/Mrs Farmer, why do you say that? Vincent doesn't really understand why they hate that store so much, where he often goes with his mother to visit his older brother and buy groceries. His mom even also buys him ice cream in the form of a dinosaur! Because dinosaur is so cool. What? Do they have a living dinosaur?! In a coop? Can he take a look please??? The farm is much cooler than this "Jodja'! Mom look, Mr/Mrs Farmer has a pet dinosaurs!
Oh, that whole blue trash things makes Leo and his bird family very sad. So he understands why the Farmer is so upset too. But the boy is not discouraged and wants to make a clean-up day together with Farmer, Linus and the parrots. Maybe the Joja people will see the beauty of nature and stop littering!
Oh, no, Farmer. You don't need to show so much negative emotion! Emily herself is not fond of Joja and their constant pollution of the environment with their waste, but absorbing so much anger and spreading it to others is not the best way to go about it. She does worry about the Farmer's mental state and will offer them meditation classes to get rid of the bad thoughts associated with the old job and Joja in general.
Shane would probably be the second person who truly hates Joja. Stupid, energy-sucking job, stupid boss who makes him work overtime, stupid uniforms that don't fit him and that make him itch. Can the occasional theft of beer and frozen pizza from Joja's warehouse be considered a form of protest?
Caroline nearly dropped her tea cup when Farmer literally hissed at the mention of Joja and Morris. The two of them were sitting alone in her sunny room drinking tea and Caroline was a little sad that her husband's business had gotten tougher since JojaMart had come to town. She had heard from the Mayor the reason for the Farmer leaving their old job and truly understands their decision (after all, life in the big city can be very tiring). Though the young Farmer's reaction to the mention of Joja.co has her a bit amused.
But when Pierre walked into the sun room (to pick up his gardening tools) where his wife and Farmer were sitting, and heard the conversation about his store and Joja, he started wailing and whining about the desperate situation. And the shopkeeper would wholeheartedly support Farmer in the idea that everyone would be much better off without blasted Joja! However, when the Farmers were about to leave, they thanked Caroline for the tea, and finally, with a sly smile, said that "Joja will not stay here for long". What this meant, neither Pierre nor his wife understood.
"Fuck! Fucking bitch ass Joja with their fucking cans and CDs! I want fish, not that dog ass shit plastic! Rot in hell, you goddamn corporation, bunch of bastards and rats!" Sebastian is used to Farmer's tirade by now, and watches from the kitchen window, sipping his coffee, as his poor friend has been trying to fish the mountain lake for the past two hours. Judging by their profanity, fishing was not going well.
But poor Maru, who almost dropped the wrench on her foot, heard the Farmer's profanity for the first time and thought something was wrong. When she went out to inquire after their fortunes, they were already sitting on the shore crying... and surrounded by the garbage from Joja.co. The young inventor invites Farmer into the kitchen for a cup of coffee with her and her half-brother.
While the brother and sister consoled Farmer with words and caffeine, Demetrius, seeing that there was now a lot of plastic lying nearby, offered to the Farmer take his recycling machine and scheme if they wanted more machines. Recycling would help to bring the environment back to its former state, also the recycled garbage would become useful products for the farm! Demetrius thinks it's unlikely that they'll be able to boycott the huge company in any way, so it's better to help the ecology like that at least.
Robin almost died laughing. "Holy macaroni, you swear like an old sailor!" She really didn't expect such profanity from such a quiet and kind person, but her son and daughter were not the only ones who heard the poor youth's tirade after a bad fishing trip. But Robin doesn't want to tease the poor Farmer, so she goes along with her husband's offer to take their recycling machine.
Oh dear, don't be so furious, you get a headache! Evelyn can understand why the poor Farmer is upset, but she would hate to see such a kind and sweet youth in a constantly bad mood because of Joja. Maybe they'll drop by for tea? She just baked cookies, and didn't use Joja products, granny promises! *wink*
Linus can feel Mother Nature weeping and choking on all this garbage and waste. And how her crying has gotten stronger since Joja their big store in town. The wise man stays calm though and tries to comfort the Farmer, because anger clouds his thoughts and it's impossible to think of ways to help nature.
Hmmm, dear, but Joja is full of good gardening supplies and farming seeds, and at a low price. Jodi thinks they should look in there and get something for.... Oh, okay, fine. Jodi won't mention Joja again, or she gets the impression that nice Farmer is transforming into a beast before her eyes.
Now, now... There's no need to get so angry or you'll get high blood pressure, Harvey knows what he's talking about. Anger is inherent in everyone, but he is well aware of how mental problems later affect a person's physical health. So if Farmer doesn't learn to control their anger, then it will be Dr. Harvey himself who gets angry. And take his word for it, Farmer, he will scold you severely.
For all his desire to help Farmer, Rasmodius feels he should not interfere in people's lives, much less use magic for it. Plus, he feels that there's no point in looking for an answer to solve a problem when the answer is right in front of them. Hmm? What is he talking about? Ah, young adept, the forest spirits will show you the way, you just have to learn to listen to them carefully.
Leah knows what it's like to live in a big city at an energy-sucking job, under the all-seeing eye of a mega-corporation (also with her ex who mumbling everyday about more profitable professions). And when Leah sees JojaMart, her mind involuntarily returns to that unpleasant part of her life. To be honest, she would also start snarling and hissing like a Farmer because of Joja or any other company that is trying to greedily take Stardew Valley for itself.
Elliott bows before Farmer: to reach such a peak of eloquence, masterfully masking sarcasm in conversation with the help of barbs and epithets - such a level was not even reached by Elliott himself, even with his rich vocabulary. The writer doesn't know why this manager from Joja.co angered the always good-natured Farmer, but Elliott made a note to himself to never get on the Farmer's bad side.
All right, kiddo! Don't bark at the store like a guard dog! Do Pam a favor and move your bum away from the main JojaMart entrance, she has to get a dark ale on special, plus a 15% off coupon. Huh, don't like Joja? Then don't look at them and problem solved! Like a piece of cake.
The tired father had to put his hands over Vincent's ears more than once to keep the youngest of his sons from hearing the endless stream of profanity from their new Farmer about the greedy megacorporation. Though Kent would be lying if he said the whole rant didn't make him laugh. Still, he tries to hide a smile under his wife's stern gaze.
All right, enough! Why don't you stop swearing, there's little kids walking around! Lewis can understand anything, but not useless swearing. The town mayor really does miss the days when they were all at the old Community Center, but yelling at Joja won't do anything. What do you mean the "Community Center will soon be alive again"? Farmer? Where are they going? Yoba, they're just like their Grandfather. Sigh, what a daredevil...bless your soul, my old friend.
Satisfied with his work and how quickly the number of visitors to JojaMart was growing, Morris didn't even notice how, when talking to a new resident of the Valley (aka "potential customer"), the poor "listener" had a twitch in his eye and a cringing their face. Well, one gets a tic, he doesn't really care. Although when Morris was at the restored Community Center where people started boycotting Joja, now his eye started twitching.
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destiny-fics · 3 months
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11:45 pm-Wang Yixiang (Nicholas)
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Pairing: Wang Yixiang (Nicholas) x Fem!Reader
Warnings: smut, sneaking out, car sex, making out, riding, dirty talk, dom!Nicholas, sub!reader, Euijoo makes an appearance, swearing, reader gets called baby and princess and also a brat, Nicho is sometimes referred to as Yixiang, he also gets called the reader's boytoy.
A/N: Hello everyone! Long time no see and here I am to drop this little Nicho fic and to say that I'll officially be adding &team to my list of groups I write for! I'll only be writing for K, Fuma, Nicho, Euijoo, Yuma and Jo so feel free to request things you'd like to see for those members! Hope y'all enjoy this.
18+ Only. Minors DNI
Tap...tap...tap...
"What the ever-loving fuck is that?"
You looked up from your journal at your roommate's expletive, raising your eyebrow at her as she stalked over to your window. Your dorm was on one of the upper floors of your building and usually, at this time of night during the middle of the week, it was quiet, peaceful even. The perfect environment for the two of you to study in, your roommate pouring over her physics notes while you scribbled in your journal.
"Ugh," your friend groaned as she looked out the window, montioning for you to come over to the window. "It's your boy toy."
You furrowed your brows, closing your journal before making your way over to the window. "My boytoy?"
"Nicholas," she rolled her eyes, opening the window. "Hey boy toy, will you knock it off? Some people are trying to study here!"
"Don't call him that," you whisper-yelled, pushing her away from the window "she didn't mean that! What...what are you doing here though?"
Nicholas just laughed, shaking his head and tucking his hands in your pockets. "It's okay princess. I was just wondering if you wanted to come for a drive?"
"Nicho it's past curfew, I'll get...we'll get in trouble."
"Ah, who's gonna know?"
"I'll know," your roommate singsonged, looking back out the window and down at Nicholas. "What makes you think I'll let you take my darling y/n away tonight?"
Nicholas merely looked amused and motioned to his car "Euijoo's in the car. I could offer you a trade for a few hours?"
You roommate hummed softly "You and y/n go for a drive and I get Euijoo to myself for a few hours?"
"That's what I said isn't it?"
"You got yourself a deal sir."
Nicholas grinned, bowing his head at your roommate before motioning to Euijoo to get out of the car "Pleasure doing business with you madam."
You rolled your eyes at their antics before pulling on your shoes and a jacket. "You're crazy Nicho, you know that?"
"Crazy about you, you mean." He ignored the disgusted face Euijoo pulled at him as he walked past, ready to climb through your window as soon as you'd climbed out. "Now jump."
"Jump?? I was joking before but you really are crazy."
"Ah c'mon I'll catch you," he smirked holding his arms out for you to jump into. "Don't you trust me baby?"
You sighed, looking over the window ledge and down at your boyfriend before swinging your leg over the edge and jumping into Nicholas' arms. He grinned as he caught you and set you down gently, kissing your cheek. "See? Told you I'd catch you."
You rolled your eyes, patting his chest gently "Yeah, yeah. You were right."
Nicholas grinned, pulling you in closely by the waist and kissing you deeply "God it's so sexy when you say that."
"Ah," you nodded your head in recognition, briefly breaking eye contact with Nicholas to wave goodbye to your roomate as she pulled Euijoo into your room, hands already tugging at his hair and lips already attached. "So we're going on a drive then? Not just a drive."
"Baby," Nicho looked mock offended as he began to walk you to his car. "I am a gentleman, I would never suggest we partake in something so vulgar."
You snorted "Good thing I'm not a gentleman, so I'll suggest it. Wanna take me to a lookout and let me ride you in the driver's seat?"
Nicholas grinned, openeing the passanger side door for you before sliding into the driver's seat.
"I'm so glad you asked."
~
"Fuck princess...that's it, mark me up. Make sure everyone knows I'm yours."
You hummed softly against Nicholas' neck, nipping and sucking at the soft skin to leave another bruise. A garden of similar marks had begun to bloom across your boyfriend’s neck and he was incredibly pleased with your work. You pulled away to admire the marks, pressing your fingers into the bruises. Nicholas moaned, looking up at you through hooded eyelids and kicking his head back so you could see the marks better.
"They look pretty baby?"
"Yeah..." You nodded "so pretty."
"That's cause my pretty girl did them." He smiled, sitting up and pressing his lips to yours in a heated kiss. "My pretty fucking girl marked me up, made me hers."
"All mine Nicho, you're all mine." You whispered against his lips, hands desperately making their way down to his belt to undo the buckle. He lifted his hips up to let you slide his pants and boxers down, just enough for his cock to spring out, the tip hard and leaking. You practically drooled at the sight, and ran your thumb over his leaking slit. Nicholas sighed, watching you with his lip between his teeth.
"You just gonna tease princess? Or you actually going to follow through with that promise to ride me?"
"Don't be a brat Wang Yixiang, or I won't follow through at all."
Nicholas raised an eyebrow, pulling your panties to the side and positioning you over his cock, just teasing your entrance with his tip. "We're using government names now y/n y/l/n?"
"Depends, are you going to continue to be a brat?"
Nicholas chuckled, shaking his head "I am not the brat baby, you are. But that's okay, I have a foolproof plan to change that."
"And what exactly would that be...?" You sunk yourself onto his cock with a moan, eyelids fluttering shut.
Nicholas snapped his hips up into yours fast and hard, pushing little desperate and whiny moans out of your mouth. "Oh it's easy really, I'll just fuck all that brattiness out of you."
"Is that a-fuck! Promise?"
"Oh princess, it's a fucking guarantee."
And Nicholas wasn't the kind of person to back out of one of his promises. He set a rough, nearly animalistic pace, fucking you hard and fast, cock hitting your sweet spot with every thrust. You could barely speak, you could barely think, only able to feel Nicholas, only able to think about him and how his cock felt inside of you.
"Nicho...Nicho fuck, please please please."
"What do you want princess?"
"Want you to make me cum...please."
Nicholas immediately slowed his pace down as the words left your mouth, chuckling as you whined. "You think you deserve to cum? Think you've earned it?"
"Yes Nicho...Yixiang, please."
"Okay then my pretty princess, you can cum, cum all over my cock for me."
Nicholas' permission was the last thing you needed for the knot of pleasure within your stomach to come lose, burying your head into your boyfriend's neck as you creamed on his cock. Nicholas pushed himself deep inside you as he came, letting out his own long groan to accompany you whines and moans of his name.
You both panted quietly as you came down from your highs, Nicholas' car hot and sticky with sweat and the smell of sex.
"Juju's gonna kill me for fucking in the car," he whispered making you laugh softly.
"If he does then I'll kill him back for fucking in my room."
Nicholas laughed, kissing your cheek softly "I love you, you know that right?"
"You've mentioned it once or twice," you giggled, pecking his lips. "I love you too."
~
Thump
"Ow..."
"Nicho I swear if you don't shut the fuck up."
You whisper yelled, helping Nicholas back up off the floor of your room and leading him to your bed.
"Sorry sorry, but who just leaves a chair there?"
You deadpanned him, falling onto the covers of your bed and dragging your boyfriend to lay next to you, quickly checking to see if your roommate and Euijoo were still asleep in her bed. "Under the desk? Where they usually are? Oh I don't know everyone?"
"Oh ha ha you're so funny."
"I'm glad you agree," you giggled kissing his nose. The two of you settled into a comfortable silence, letting the sound of the other's breathing lull you to sleep. It was peaceful, quiet and almost too relaxing, until the soft voice of Euijoo rang through the room.
"Yo Nicho, you okay? You totally ate shit tripping over that chair."
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kimbap-r0ll · 8 months
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Could I request the Vil, Epel, Azul, and Jamil with a who's basically the "team mom" of the first years? She's known for making snacks for the group, scolding them when mess around, getting protective of her friends when they're in danger, etc.
Hi, thank you for the ask! Sorry I'm getting to these asks so late, uni's starting up again and that means I'm starting to get busy again haha. This seems like a fun idea, thank you!
Vil, Epel, Azul, Jamil x mom-friend!reader
Vil
He's glad that you're extremely responsible but at the same time feels bad for you because you're constantly having to babysit your friends haha
Vil is the type of person to notice when you get tired or stressed really quickly, so even if you aren't completely burned out he'll make you do a self-care day with him
I feel like he liked you because of how you were protective of your friends from danger and you had no problem dealing with your friends' antics. If he was in your position he knows he would've had a headache 24/7, so he admires you
I feel like a lot of students would be scared of the two of you because of how strong you seem, but what sets you apart from Vil is how you're able to still be extremely kind and caring (not saying Vil isn't, he's just bad at showing it). He likes the sweet side of you that shows up from time to time
Epel
He was at odds with you first when you told him what he was doing was dangerous and things like that. However, after you two got closer, he realized that you weren't just a "no-fun" person and rather you cared a lot about the people you cared
Definitely tried to make you do some daring things while you two go on dates. While yes being a mom-friend does mean you are prone to saying "that's dangerous you're going to lose an arm" you aren't the type to say no when it comes to something new. I feel like it's a nice balance of safe and fun
You probably saved him from Vil a few times, mainly with him asking you to talk to him with you since Vil is such a scary person haha
Overall he likes that you're super caring and that you sometimes help him adjust to Pomefiore's rules. He wants to be someone people can rely on as well, and so you're sort of a role-model to him too
Azul
I feel like he tried to recruit you into the Monstro Lounge when he found out how efficient you are and how you're super good at catching details. However, he was scared of you a little bit because of how you were able to spot his more manipulative side extremely quickly unlike most students
I feel like once you two get to know each other, he sort of finds comfort in you unlike the comfort he's ever felt after mastering spells and such. You make him feel like he doesn't have to be perfect around you, and he admires how you are able to show kindness to everyone
You two are probably the reason the lounge is extremely well-organized. Whenever something slightly goes wrong, every Octavinelle student working there will come running to you before running to Azul now haha
When he saw how you were like around the first years, I feel like he could sympathize. He's had to manage so many different kinds of people through contracts, but for you it was like you were saving them from fire 24/7
Jamil
Ace joked that you two were going to date because of how similar you two were, turns out it's not a joke anymore!
Jamil and you first got close after taking care of Kalim's antics and then his friends (which were also your friends) and their shenanigans. Jamil and you often joked about how you two were like the parents of the group
Even though he's stressed out of his mind, he goes out of his way to make sure you aren't fatigued. If you need anything from him, whether it would be a cup of tea or just some time to read, he's there to help. I feel like he would almost be a mom-friend to you too haha
Overall you two are literally nicknamed "mom" and "dad" by students because you two sort of act like that haha. I think what Jamil would admire the most about you would be how even though you're strict and aren't scared to face danger, it's because you care about your friends and want the best for them
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romanarose · 4 months
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Santa Joel-y
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Chubby!Joel Miller x chubby!fem!reader
Join my taglist : Masterlist
Summary: Joel is insecure about his weight, you help him feel beautiful.
Warnings: Weight gain, insecurity around weight, mentions of eating disorders and bulimia, reader was bulimic, PIV sex, handjob, brief mentions of drinking, creampie.
Immersability: Reader is fem, has hair, is chubby, reader was at least pre-teen in the 90's so not much of an age gap. Reader isn't necessarily Christian but celebrates Christmas at least with her kids at the school
**************
He would kill Tommy right now if it didn’t mean dealing with Maria.
Joel had said ‘absolutely not’ to Tommy’s request for him to play Jackson’s Santa Claus, saying yeah, he may have gained a few pounds since settling into Jackson, but he wasn’t THAT fat.
Naturally, Tommy was annoying about it but Joel did not back down. Neither did Tommy. So, Tommy sent you. You, the school teacher. You, the woman that made his heart palpitate but he did not have a crush on you, because he was 57. You, who Joel had slowly been getting to know and would even sit with him and Tommy or Ellie, both of him teased him relentlessly about his crush. You, who said that you would be dressed up as an elf and Joel agreed faster than he was proud of.
And now, you, who conveniently brought your tape measure as if you knew he would say yes, were measuring him and finding out just exactly how fat he’d gotten.
“41 inches” You declared with the tape measure around his waist. Joel was in charge of writing everything down. 
“Jesus christ” He mumbled, writing down as he was told.
You sat back on your hunches, and it took everything in Joel to not look down. For one, he did not want to look at his stomach right now, but also if he saw you on your knees looking up, he was afraid he’d get a boner.
“Joel?” You ask him, fingers adjusting his pants to measure correctly, cold fingerprints brushing his love handles.
He wanted it to stop. “Hm?” but he never wanted it to end. He liked your skin on his, even if it was touching his fat stomach.
“You know putting on weight can be a good thing, right?” You moved to stand up, being done measuring for his costume. 
Joel held out a hand for you, helding to pull you up. “I don’t really see how.”
The smile you gave was so soft and kind, it made Joel’s heart flutter. Definitely not a crush though. 
“It means your safe, you’re eating 3 meals a day, you aren’t purely on survival mode. You body is probably so used to starvation, it’s holding onto everything it can. It’s just a sign of things… looking up.” Joel didn’t look convinced. “Look, Joel…” You shove your hands in your pocket, blushing a bit. “This might be a lot but, we’re friends, right?”
Joel’s eyes widened. Friends? Fuck, he didn’t think you considered him a friend. Sure, he took the long way home after church and stopped at your house a lot, asking if you needed a hand with the shoveling. Sure, you always took him up on it and then invited him to stay for lunch. Sure, sometimes if the timing was right, Joel walked by the school as the kids were leaving and offered to walk you home. Jackson was a safe place- he’d never let Ellie run around the way she did if he didn’t think it was safe. Still, couldn’t be too careful.
“Yeah, yeah uh, we’re friends.” He agreed, buckling up his pants again.
You looked so earnest as you spoke. “Years before the outbreak, I had an eating disorder. Pretty bad, this was before Princess Diana talked about being bulimic, so there was like… not much help for that kind of thing. Had to handle it on my own.”
“Shit.” Joel whispered, hurting for you. The idea of someone as perfect as you feeling that low that you needed to hurt yourself that way… He thought you were stunning, every curve. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. The point is, when I entered recovery- the dozen attempts it took- I gained back not only the weight I lost, but a lot extra. I found out later that was common. It was difficult, but I learned to look at my weight gain with pride. It meant I was no longer harming my body like that.” You took your hands out of your pockets and grabbed both of his hands. “I don’t wanna tell you how to think, but just know that this change means you and your daughter are safe, okay?”
Joel felt like he could pass out, his body suddenly so warm from your touch. “Okay- I- thank you, darl’n.” He blushed.
“And for what it’s worth…” Hesitating a bit, you lean in and kiss him on the cheek. You feel him giving your hands a squeeze. “I think you’re very handsome. I’ll see you on Christmas, Joel.”
*
“Why the fuck are you so giddy.” Ellie asked, mouthful, shoveling the pancakes Joel made her into her mouth.
“Wha-” Joel turned around. “Im not- I’m not giddy. I’m a grown man, you little shit.” But he was smiling. 
“Does it got something to do with the pretty school teacher you’re gonna be with all night?
Joel threw the washcloth at her.
*
Besides the fact a child said he wanted his dad for christmas, his dad who died before they came to Jackson, you thought things went smoothly. He dressed up in the costume you’d made for him, and you were in a green elf costume. You thought you looked pretty cute, if you were being honest. Joel did a good job, and after the kids cleared out and it was just you and Joel, you made sure to tell him.
“I was really impressed with you, you got really into it.” You Laughed, holding a drink as Joel flopped down on a chair.
He groaned when he settled. “God, I know I’m getting old now. Shit was exhausting. I don’t know how I can still do patrols and fighting raiders just fine but this has me pooped.”
“Kids are tiring.” You hand him his drink.
“God bless you and your work, honey. Doing God’s work there.” He said with a small chuckle and took a deep drink.
“Hm.” You hummed. “Yeah, I’m pretty tired too, mind if I take a seat?” You say, walking over to him.
“Oh!” Joel scrambles to try and sit up from the only chair in the room. “Shit, sorry, come sit here-”
You place your hands on his shoulders, pushing him down and straddling your legs over his lap, taking a seat on him. “This okay?” You whisper in his ear.
“Y-yeah,” Joel whimpers. He looks up at you hand gripping his mug of beer like a life line. 
Finishing your wine, you set the glass down and place your hands around Joel’s mug, guiding it to his lips and pushing it up. Gently tilting, you watch Joel’s throat bob as he swallows the rest of his drink, setting his glass next to yours.
“You know I think you are very handsome, right?” You ask his, running your hands over the red of the suit, feeling the swell of his belly.
He swallows thickly. “Yeah, you um… you mentioned it…” Joel admired your in your green elf costume, and he was actually aware he was still wearing the full Santa costume.
Your hands find their way back up. “And I think you are very sweet.”
“I, um… I don’t hear that one very often.” Joel’s face feels warm, that warmth spreading through his body and settling into his lower stomach. 
“Mmmmm” You touch his fake, thick, white beard, but take it off in favor of his patch greys. You kept the hat on.“And a good father. That’s a very attractive trait.”
His chest is rising a little too much to act natural. “I’m… trying…” He had a death grip on the chair handles.
“You can touch me, you know…”
Tentatively, Joel settles his hands on your hips, and when his touch makes you smile, he ventures a bit further. “I’d like to kiss you if I could.”
You look down at Joel, hands warm on his scruffy face, the red and white all over his full body. “I’d love that.” His face still in your hands, you lean down and slot your lips up against him, taking his mouth in yours.
“Mmmm” He moans, and you can’t help but grind down onto him, feeling the swell of your stomach against his. The movement caused his hardening cock to twitch in his pants.
“Ooohh, fuck, Joel.” You can’t help whining into his mouth.
His body stiffened, his grip on your wide hips pushing you back away from his erection. “Shit, sorry-”
You grind down on him agsin feeling his full hardness and kissing him wetly. “Don’t ever apoligize for that, fuck… Joel, I want you.” 
He’s still hesitant, breathless, Joel closed his eyes. “I dunno if you want that, honey. Made a real nice costume but the body under it ain’t what it used to be.”
“Joel.” You take his hand. “Do you want me? We ain’t gotta do nothing you don’t want to…”
Joel’s next words are barely ground out through gritted teeth and tightly shut eyes. “I, fuck, I want to… I just don’t think you’re gonna want me.”
With a soft sigh, you bring his hands to your chub. “Feel that?”
He can’t get words out, eyes still screwed tight.
“Do you like how my body feels?”
“So much.”
You drag his hands up your front, planting them firmly on your tits that he was happy to play with as you put your hand on his fat stomach. “Then can’t you understand how beautiful I find you?” You rock your hips, and a light whine escapes him. Joel motherfucking Miller whined for you. “Can’t you see how fucking hot you are?”
With his hands massaging your breasts, swiping his thumb over the sensitive nipples and rolling them in his fingers, his beard scrapping your face as you kiss his neck, you are fucking soaking your custome made green pants. 
“Mmmaybe?” He’s losing control, becoming needy under you, and you needed him in turn. 
“Fuck, Joel, can I feel you? Can I touch you? Please?” You beg.
When he frantically nods, you reach for the big black belt and undo it, slipping your hand in his pants to pull out his cock. “God, Joel… fuck your cock is as thick and beautiful as you are…”
Joel’s hands wander, traveling the length of your body despite being unable to open his eyes to you as you jerk him. “You’re fucking sexy, Joel, all of you. All of us. Every inch. Every scar, every bit of fat and hair loss and sagging is beautiful because we lived, we’re alive and we’re happy, and god Joel, I’m happy right now with you.”
He mumbled something you couldn’t understand as his hands groped at you desperately.
“What did you say, baby? You can say no, it’s alright.”
“Fuck me, please?”
You spit on your left hand, using it to fist his cock while your right explores his body. “That’s all I needed to hear, handsome.”
Joel helps you sit up, strong arms practically holding you up as you maneuver off your pants and line him up at your entrance. You place a hand on his meaty chest and one soft on his cheek “Joel? I need you to look at me when I fuck you, okay? Need your eyes on me when I take you inside me, alright?”
Still clearly nervous, Joel opened his eyes slowly but god he was blessed with a sight when he did. You, your green outfit and little elf hat and you smiling down at him. You were a vision. And you wanted him.
Your eyes were locked on him as you sunk down, your eyebrows pinched together in concentration as you took him, your perfect lips held tight.
“It’s alright, darl’n.” Joel says soothingly, rubbing your thick thighs. “Just go slow… You’re nice and wet for me already, arentcha? Yeah, thatsa good girl… mess girl, fuuuuuck.” Joel dropped his head back, groaning obscenely when you were fully seated, and almost dropping the Santa hat but you caught it. You didn’t want to miss out on how cute he looked in it. “Fuck, you feel amazing.”
You smile at him, feeling stretched to the very limit but so, so satisfied. “Kiss me, Santa” With your fingers entangled into his hair, you pull him towards you as you begin bouncing on his cock, repeatedly filling yourself up. His taste was exquisite, but nothing compared to his smell, he was woodsy and leather and safety, and you wanted to melt into all the senses he surrounded you with. The masculine smell, the sweet taste, the feeling of his thick member throbbing inside you and his hands gripping at your ass, his belly rubbing on yours, the sight of him, red and white on brown skin, the grunts as he thrust up… Joel was all that mattered, Joel was all you knew.
“Fuck, Joel, baby you feel so goddamn good.”
Joel moaned into your mouth, moving his hands from the fat of your sides to unbotton your green shirt.
“Joel, ‘salittle cold, don’t wanna be naked”
He paused his movements. “Is it okay if I unbutton a few so I can see your tits?” He looked up at you, hopeful but clearly allowing you to say no.
“I like that idea, handsome.”
When Joel took your breast in his mouth, he paid no mind to the way they sagged and stretched, he devoured you like you were a supermodel, licking and softly nibbling over every inch of the flesh before suckling on the tender nipple.
“Fuck!” You exclaim, bucking a bit as you rode him with everything you had. You place two hands on his protruding belly for leverage, feeling the fat on his chest graze over your fingers as you press down when you bounce. “Gonna cum, Joel, you’re gonna make me cum.”
He removed his mouth only for a moment, frequently going back to suck at your tits while trying to get his sentence out. “Me to, honey *suck* where do you *lick* want me?” His mouth was back on you in a second.
“Inside, cum inside.”
A loud whimper, and he sped up his movements, fucking up into you until you cry out in pleasure, screaming out “OH SANTA!” As you cum around him, Joel right behind. He fills you up with his warm cum, never stopping fucking you until you road out all of your orgasm and his dick was limp inside you. Exhausted, you fall onto his plush body with a cold sweat, kissing tenderly at Joel’s stubbly neck. 
Pudgy fingers were buttoning up your shirt. “‘S cold, darl’n. Let’s get your pants on.”
“Mmmmm, just a minute. Like feeling you inside me.”
“Like being inside you.”
Joel’s strong arms wrapped around you, warm and loving and pulling you closer, but then moved to your thighs. Sweetly, Joel rubbed your legs as the heat of sec cooled on your body, fingers occasionally digging into the flesh.
Likewise, you wrap your arms around his full body, feeling the way his fat felt so right against you. 
“Merry Christmas, Joel.”
“Merry Christmas, honey.”
***************
So, I don't celebrate christmas, but I wanted to put this out there <3
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO THOSE WHO DO!
@fandxmslxt69 @runa-falls @k-ra @whatthefishh @ahookedheroespureheart @mikaelak @littlenosoul @stevenandmarcslove @pikapuff-316 @del-ightfulling @faretheeoscar @harriedandharassed @my-secret-shame-but-fanfiction @campingwiththecharmings @ramblers-lets-get-ramblin @milly-louise @casa-boiardi @joeldjarin
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