#tempered chocolate and other fading memories

[cedefaci]

The Tale of Turmeric, or Löwenzahn

Extracted from the broader fic in which he is but one character.

Once upon a time, there was an old woman.

No, this gives the wrong impression. The old woman is still there, like many of her kind, keepers of knowledge—and therefore power—far beyond mortal men. The old woman was—is—a witch.

In a time—a darker time, perhaps—a meaner time, certainly, the time when magic existed openly in the world, before cold iron, hot powder, and clean penstrokes banished it to shadowed corners and liminal spaces—there was a woodcutter. Woodcutters and their children seemed to be rather prone to strange happenstances at that time, as it were, and so, he loved, and married, and his wife bore him two children.

You know this story, don't you? The two children were named Hänsel and Gretel. The first a boy, the second a girl. Their mother died, and their stepmother, in the manner of stepmothers of this sort, found them expendable when famine struck, and left them in the woods and the hands of fate. Of course, in the manner of all children left in the woods, they did not die. The first time, they found their way back home; the second time, lost deep in the dark forest, they found their way to a house. A wondrous house! One of gingerbread and icing, spun sugar and tempered chocolate. Driven by hunger, these two children ate, and for their crimes, the brother was imprisoned, to pay back with flesh what he had unlawfully taken (for witches have their own laws, see, alien to us though they may seem); the sister indentured, to work off her debt by feeding her penned brother and keeping the witch's house.

You know what happened. The brother endured—the passive sort of endurance, bearing captivity and confinement and the knowledge of his impending death, forced to watch his sister suffer. The sister endured—the active sort of endurance, biting down on rebellion and too-telling inquisitiveness and the fear of the fate in store for her brother, forced to comport herself despite her hands being forced to bring their doom. In the end, the sister's ingenuity, coupled with courage, defeated the witch and won the siblings their freedom.

This is when the story starts being wrong. Witches are feared by men, and men react to their fears with fire. No witch worth her spells can be harmed by it, not if she has any love of life. But Gretel had won the house and its contents by right of conquest, so the witch could not—would not either—oppose the girl further. The children left. The witch left also, to build another house of cakes and cookies.

The children grew up, and had children of their own, who had children in turn, allowing memory to fade to mere myth, as they lived their mundane lives. Yet their ancestors had supped at a table of what they would call a Hexe, and that marked their blood as changed. Touched by witchcraft—a very attractive quality, for certain other creatures.

Uncounted generations passed. The witch checked on the descendants of the siblings who bested her, sometimes. Call it curiosity, call it concern, call it a combination of the two. It was only natural for her to hear the news of one of them being taken by the Courts. Seelie. They had a fascination for the simple innocence of children, as great as the Unseelie love of adults' complexity of emotion. The witch watched as the mother went to treat with the Court, as such things went—and if the way to the Good Neighbors was so easily found, what of it? If the woman found two iron knitting needles in her pack, what of it? If a red riding hood could be found beneath a tree, if a wolf would startle the woman from her enchanted stupor, if a hoary crone gave her a flask of some vital substance for the price of a mere story, what of it?

These too-fair folk had changed since the days when Janet could save her knight by waiting at a crossroads and not letting go. Though the woman saved her child, she lost her life.

The old woman had cradled the infant in its swaddling, and laughed away all the fair lords and ladies who cooed endearments and dripped sympathy with honeyed voices, then tramped back to her new gingerbread house.

The baby had been fed with goat's milk and bread sops, watched over by skulls glowing with fire within. He grew up riding in a mortar and pestle, stirring mysterious concoctions and knitting cotton candy to sweaters for gingerbread children (there was an episode during which he thought himself one of them, and was deathly afraid of water and foxes both). There had been no one to return the boy to, and so he was raised by three riders, of the sun, night, and day, two witches, one tall and thin, the other plump and stout, and a single great wolf, taller than he.

He learned strange things, in his childhood years: guard your name carefully, give it to no one. True love is potent beyond measure, though it need not be born from Cupid's arrow-prick. Evil stepparents get their comeuppance. And you could not truly live if you spent your life as a boy in fairyland (although as his first human friend, who would become the woman called Oregano, demonstrated, it wasn’t as if spending your childhood in the real world was a more rewarding experience).

What his guardians forgot to teach, perhaps thinking the truth self-evident, was that the names your loved ones called you had just as much weight as the one you were born with.

It would have warned him, thought Turmeric ruefully, to beware the Young Lion when his Oma had, in lieu of his name, called him Löwenzahn.

#khr #CEDEF #cedef headcanons #Turmeric khr #fae #fairytales #hansel and gretel #according to the wiki Turmeric's German #so the witch of the gingerbread house calls him dandelion in german #AKA lion's teeth #she's lovers with Baba Yaga #they met when Baba Yaga's chicken-footed house tried to eat her gingerbread one

[rosy-cheeked-girl]

tempered chocolate and other fading memories

how the temperature of the chocolate on the counter changes quick how the apartment complexes stand tall all lined up on the sidewalk after a storm how the afternoon mist is the best for walks but my glasses fog up how i sleep and i wake and i don’t go to school for almost a year but the building still looks exactly the same a permanence of sorts or maybe just added pressure for the aftertaste of a memory will linger on far longer than the memory itself: the way i miss the chalkboards but not the too-small desks the way i miss the candy i would carry in my coat pocket the way i remember the sound of the hallway bustle yet i have forgotten the feeling of the press of bodies in that seething mass of students breathing out of sync how easy it is to forget what you never thought you’d have to remember how easy it is to miss the window of time to properly temper the chocolate still on the kitchen counter after the rain

#poem #poetry #tempered chocolate and other fading memories #minutiae #memories #wistful #reflection #permanence #imagery #tempering chocolate #extended metaphor #the aftertaste of a memory #this one's about me #spilled ink #spilled thoughts

[sereia1313]

Time of the Seasons - Chocolate

@kaoruhana08 shared the prompts for her Naruto DDN, and I liked them so much, I wrote one for SessKag. Thanks for sharing lovely!

Summary: The magic of fairytales sometimes leads to real-life revelations.

Read it on Ao3, Dokuga, and FFnet

Dark

Kagome smiled up at the sky, stars shining overhead. This was what she missed the most. Even in the most urban places in Japan, the stars were never this clear. There was always some sort of manufactured invention chasing away the darkness and stealing the heaven's spotlight.

Not here.

The only light was the dying embers of their fire, and she was glad Rin wasn't afraid of the dark.

Though, with someone like Sesshoumaru standing guard, who could possibly be afraid of anything else?

Leaning back on her hands, she gazed at the stoic lord across their measly camp.

Why he'd even agreed to her joining in on their journey back to the Western Keep was beyond her.

White

Rin used the fading light to sketch a picture of Kirara, trying to capture the essence of the nekomata's transformation in a flourish of broad strokes.

"Don't forget the teeth," Kagome said, leaning in close.

Rin stuck out her tongue in concentration, racing against time to finish the picture before the fire went out.

She looks so much like Souta.

The memory of her brother was bittersweet, and she idly wondered how tall he'd grown in the last four years.

Sighing, she raised her head to gaze at the stars once more, only to get an eyeful of white silk instead.

Drink

Startled, she jerked back, the yelp turning into one of pain when her fingers brushed the stones surrounding the fire. Hissing softly, she grabbed one of the cups they'd used for drinking tea, dunking her burnt flesh in the cold water.

"Are you alright, Kagome-sama?"

"I'm fine, Rin. It doesn't even hurt that bad."

The girl looked unconvinced. As did her guardian.

Ignoring the fact that he was still standing over them, she held her hand. "See? Nothing a kiss won't solve."

Rin gave her a puzzled look. "How will a kiss help?"

Kagome leaned in close again as if sharing a secret. "Kisses have magical powers."

Cake

She tried to hold back her laughter at the expression on Rin's face

It was almost like the time she'd introduced her to cake.

"They do?" she asked, abandoning her drawing.

"They do. Give me one, and it'll take the pain away."

Rin leaned forward, kissing the tips of her fingers, and Kagome faked a gasp, staring at her hand before flexing each digit. "Wow! It's never happened that fast before. Your kisses must be extra magical!"

Brown eyes sparkled, enthralled, before she jumped to her feet. "Sesshoumaru-sama! I healed Kagome-sama!"

Kagome met the daiyoukai's gaze, daring him to say otherwise.

Chips

"So it would seem." His acceptance cemented the notion, and Rin squealed, clapping her hands in delight.

"What else can kisses do?"

Kagome grinned. "It depends on what kind of kiss it is. And where you put it."

Sesshoumaru huffed but sat down on the other side of Rin, encouraging her to do the same, and close enough for Kagome to see the chips in his armour.

He never usually joined them, and she was left wondering why he was suddenly invested in their conversation.

"Let's see…" She placed a finger on Rin's nose. "One here will make you laugh. And one on the knee will make you dance."

Another huff.

Tempering

"What about here?" Rin pointed to Kagome's mouth.

"That's the most magical one of all! It'll make you fall in love."

Rin turned to her guardian, bubbling with excitement, but Sesshoumaru's eyes were on Kagome, raising an eyebrow at her.

For some unknown reason, Kagome's cheeks heated, skin tempering in the flickering light.

"Who have you fallen in love with, Kagome-sama?"

Her blush darkened.

"Is it Inuyasha-sama? Or Kouga-kun? What about—"

"Rin."

Both females jumped at the venom in his tone, Rin's bottom lip trembling. "Sorry, Kagome-sama. That was rude."

The muscles in Sesshoumaru's jaw clenched, the telltale ticks drawing Kagome's eyes back to his face.

Sculpting

Youki slid over her shoulders like a snake, Kagome's hackles raising as reiki tingled under her skin.

Why is he so upset?

She patted Rin's knee. "It's alright. I've never actually fallen in love with anyone."

This time it was Rin and Sesshoumaru that shared the startled expression.

"But you just said—"

Kagome let out a strained laugh. "I said you needed to be kissed to fall in love."

It finally clicked, and Rin grabbed onto the miko's face, sculpting it like clay as she pushed her cheeks together. "But you're so pretty! Who wouldn't want to kiss you?"

She blew a raspberry, Rin giggling once again.

Hot

"Is there anyone you want to kiss?"

The question was innocent but loaded, and Kagome forced herself to shrug, trying to ignore how the snake had wrapped around her neck. "Not yet. Maybe I'll kiss Ah-Un! Then he'll fall madly in love with me and carry me anywhere I want to go!"

Their laughter was light and playful but died in her throat when sapphire met gold, Sesshoumaru's gaze hot and full of intrigue.

Kagome swallowed thickly. He couldn't want—

"Rin, it is time to sleep."

She pouted but didn't argue, kissing each of them on the head before crawling into her sleeping bag.

Melt

The silence that stretched between them was stifling, Kagome feeling bare and vulnerable as she tried to distract herself from how he was staring at her.

At least he wasn't mad anymore. The potency of his youki had waned—was more of a tease than tainted—but it didn't leave her any less feverish.

Resisting the urge to melt into a touch that wasn't even physical, Kagome cleared her throat. "Sorry. I should've asked before telling Rin fairytales about the magic of—"

"I wish to test your theory."

"What?" she squeaked. "But I was just trying to—"

His lips curled up into a smirk. "Are you claiming to have lied to my ward, miko?"

Shavings

Kagome pursed her lips, then faced him head-on, raising her chin defiantly. "Fine."

"You would agree so easily?"

"You're the one who brought it up in the first place!"

"Am I?"

She growled, eyes turning stormy. "Do you want a kiss or not?"

Sesshoumaru dipped his head, and Kagome's brain turned into a pile of shavings instead of a fully functional organ capable of intellectual thought.

His lips were softer than she expected, moulding to hers in a subtle caress that left her both shocked and bereft.

And instantly addicted.

Maybe it wasn't a complete fairytale after all.

#sesskag #discord drabble night #sesskag drabbles #sereia1313 #creator: sereia1313 #sesskag fanfic #sesskag fanfiction

[river-bottom-nightmare]

headcanon that Dick is part veela.

Haly’s Circus traveled all around the world, picking strays and turning them into family along the way. One cold, dreary day in Europe, a couple showed up at the circus tent. Bedraggled, exhausted, and clutching each others hands, they were still the most beautiful people Haly had ever seen. Of course, he couldn’t very well leave them like that, so he invited them to stay, just for the night.

One night was all it took for them to charm their way into the heart of the circus. The other members could tell there was something off, something not quite human about them. It was in the way John, or so he said his name was, stayed in the air a little longer than normal when flipping from a trapeze. It was in the way Mary, or so she said her name was, tumbled down a silk before catching her foot in a lock a little to gracefully. It was in the way their skin seemed to shimmer under the limelight and the way their voices cut through the gloom of the night brighter than sunbeams when they laughed and the way they clutched at each other, fingers tangling and rarely letting go, as if they were being hunted. But they were also good and kind. John, or so he said his name was, joked around with the rest of the crew, his smile instantly putting them at ease. Mary, or so she said her name was, gave hugs warmer than the campfire and gave kisses on cheeks lighter than a butterfly. The two of them were part of the crew by morning.

A couple years later, when the crew was in northern India, Mary announced she was pregnant, with glowing cheeks and a delicate hand on her stomach. John was so shocked, he choked on his stew and upended the water pitcher. Then he ran over the Mary, a little faster than what passed for normal, and lifted her up in the air with an easy that not even Clayton the strongman could manage, and peppered her face with kisses. The rest of the crew turned a blind eye, as they always did, and congratulated the happy couple. After all, by now, they were family.

The troop took a small rest in a small village in Punjab when Mary was close to delivery. She spent her days laughing with the children as the women of the village taught the people in the circus to dance. A few weeks later, Richard John Grayson was born, or so they said his name was, and his gorgeous face became instantly beloved by the entire crew. But no one could deny that when just talking to little Dick, when they believed they were out of earshot, John and Mary lovingly called Dick by another name, one that seemed a little to quick and a little to ethereal to be able to pronounce. Dick spent his first couple of years in that small town in Punjab, doing flips and tricks from the moment he could stand. Ionana the Contortionist learned new skills and taught them to the village children, Fedir the Juggler learned about fifty new dishes to try, Bao the Swordsmaster grew so talented with her blade, not a single person could match her, and Haly added Punjabi to his ever growing list of languages. And when Dick turned four, the circus packed up and left the town in the dust, leaving nothing but memories behind.

After the pregnancy, John and Mary seemed to dull a bit. Not in terms of enthusiasm and personality, no. They were still the cheerful, loving couple they had always been. But the crew noticed how their flips became a little messier, their skin glowed a little less, their voices cracked and became a little more human. The inhuman talent they had on the trapeze was gone, replaced by a normal brand of extraordinary. It seemed that most every drop of whatever was in their blood that made them so unique had been transferred over to Dick. He was instantly a natural at performing. Perhaps a little too good. Not a single circus member missed the way the audience’s eyes drew to him, almost as if they couldn’t help themselves. They never missed the way, no matter how far up Dick seemed to fall from, he never got hurt. They never missed the way the animals came to him unprompted, the way he could almost talk to them (Zitka the elephant in particular). They never missed the way his lilting voice and golden laugh to the crowd right before his performance sent a wave of life and light rushing through everyone there. They never missed the sheer power that sparked in his eyes every time he leapt off the platform, and they never missed the way he floated in the air, more at home up there than he ever was at home. They never missed his beauty, the way his perfect little face and big doe eyes had people scrambling to give him anything he wanted. (They also never missed the way he abused this ruthlessly, gaining sweets and chocolate from the audience with one pout.) And this led them to believe that the Graysons were unstoppable. But before they knew it, John and Mary, if those even were their real names, were dead on the ground, and Dick had been whisked away, and just like that town in Punjab that raised him, left nothing but memories behind.

Now, the problem was that this was how Dick had been all his life. The light inside him, the way the air moved almost lifelike around him, this had all been normal to him. He never suspected he was anything less than human. 

Bruce had his suspicions. No human. could quadruple flip into a roundhouse kick strong enough to take out a meta. No human could balance seamlessly on a rope the size of a string while being blasted with cold air at that speed. No human could catch a socialite’s eye at a party and convince them to reveal every one of their safely-guarded secrets with only a few flutters of the eyes and well chosen words. Yet all of these things came as naturally to Dick as breathing.

So Bruce had his suspicions, of course he did. He kept track of every time Dick tried to teach another Robin a move during training that was physically impossible for everyone except him. He kept track of the way Dick could talk Jason down from an explosive rage the way no one else could. He kept track of the way Dick could bring a smile out of Tim on his worst days, the shaky quirk of the lips a pale imitation of Dick’s sun gold grin, but there. He kept track of the way Dick could communicate with Cass nonverbally, seemingly having entire complex conversations with only a few movements and gestures. He kept track of the way Dick could almost read Damian’s mind, know exactly what the boy needed at any given time, despite the way his mind changed fast enough to give you whiplash. (He didn’t think to notice that Dick was the only person who could get him to stop, take a break, to rest.)

Bruce also kept track of the way pure fear soaked into anyone surrounding him the minute anger flared in Dick’s eyes. He kept track of Dick’s temper, more explosive than his and Jason’s combined. He kept track of the graceful ruthlessness telegraphed in every move of Dick’s body, keeping it in check through years of training. He kept track of the way Dick claimed every single person in the family for himself, along with a couple of the Titans and other friends, and the way everyone seemed to know innately know about his possessiveness. He kept track of the way Dick could easily seduce anyone he put his mind to, the way Dick became unnaturally beautiful out of the corner of his eye. 

Bruce never brought this up to Dick. He let him carry on as always, believing him oblivious to his touch of something a little more than humanity. And for the most part, Dick didn’t know. He laughed with chuckle of pure light and sang with a voice that carried the depths of the oceans and danced with a grace more flowing than air and loved with a burning flame fiercer than a wildfire. 

But every so often, Dick looked at a couple old pictures he had of his parents, salvaged from the circus. On the back, it was scribbled John and Mary Grayson, Haly’s Circus, along with a couple small anecdotes of what was happening in the photograph. But as Dick held the picture that never seemed to fade and touched their faces with fingertips that either seemed to brush right over things or press with a force stronger than Superman’s, a frown tugged at his face as he recalled his parent’s loving words, a little too light and a little too graceful to come from a human throat. He remembered them calling him something, something other than Dick, something that fit the tips of his soul the way the name Richard never seemed to.

John and Mary Grayson. But were those really their names?

#THIS THING IS 1500 WORDS #jesus christ #should I post it on ao3? #i feel like I should post it on ao3 #dick grayson #nightwing #john grayson #mary grayson #bruce wayne #batman #haly's circus #batfam #dc #scribbles from the swamp #dick grayson headcanon #dick grayson drabble #dick grayson ficlet #nightwing headcanon #nightwing drabble #nightwing ficlet #batfam drabble #batfam ficlet #batfam headcanon #dc headcanon #dc ficlet #dc drabble #harry potter #veela #veela fic

[jaskiers-sweetkiss]

Sunset Swerve - Part 7

Pairing: Luke x OC

Word Count: 1.7k

Warnings: none?

A/N: This one’s a little shorter but I’ve been waiting to get to this part for a while now. It’s got some good Jordan and Luke backstory. Fair warning, I totally cried writing this so like, I’m sorry. As always, let me know what you think!

Part 6  Masterlist

___

When Jordan finally returned to the garage it was empty. She’d gone with the intention of explaining her side and apologize. She’d never meant to break up the band, truthfully it was one of the best things that had happened to her since she died. She’d thought they’d ditched Julie and herself to get revenge on Bobby, she would’ve gone back to get them if she’d thought there was even a chance that they were still at the creepy Hollywood Ghost Club. To make matters worse, Purple Suit, Mr. Covington or whatever, made it sound like they didn’t even get answers about Bobby.

She popped back into Julie’s room to grab her book, fully intending on waiting in the garage until they got back. She made it a couple of pages before she felt another jolt like she had last night. She groaned again, setting down her book in favor of clutching her chest.

By the time the guys came back, Jordan was still clutching her chest, though the pain had faded. Her face was scrunched in concentration as she tried to figure out what could possibly be causing them- she had no physical body so it couldn’t have been normal chest pains or cramps or anything like that. It felt like somebody had given her an electric shock.

“Woah, Jordan are you okay?” Alex exclaimed worriedly, rushing to her side to check on her.

“Yeah,” she groaned, rubbing her chest before removing her hand completely. “I’ve just been getting these painful jolts since yesterday.”

“You’ve been getting them too?” Reggie gasped, sitting cross-legged on the floor in front of them and Jordan nodded. “Guess it’s not related to the pizza.”

Jordan furrowed her brows in confusion. “Pizza?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Luke spoke, glaring at her from the doorway. “What matters is what you think you’re doing here.”

“I came back to apologize assh-“ she stopped herself, taking a deep breath and starting over, nicer this time. “I thought you guys had gotten your answers and gone to get your revenge on Bobby, that’s why I didn’t come back to get you. I thought you knew you were ditching us, I’m sorry.”

She looked between the three boys sincerely, hoping her apology would be enough to put them on good terms again.

“We get it,” Alex said softly, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder, “You had no way of knowing.”

“Yeah, and the band wouldn’t be the same without you,” Reggie added cheerfully, the two boys then turning to look at Luke who Jordan was afraid to look in the eye.

“Maybe if you didn’t always think the worst of us this wouldn’t have happened,” Luke said stubbornly and Jordan sighed, wanting so badly to argue in her defense but knowing it wasn’t the time.

“I’m sorry,” she just repeated quietly, looking up at the boy and she watched his angry façade crumble. “Are we cool?” She asked quietly.

Luke nodded, “Reggie’s right. Like it or not you’re part of the band now. Just don’t expect me to be nice to you all of a sudden.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Jordan smirked, thankful to have things returning to normal.

“Ooh! We have a gig tonight!” Reggie announced excitedly, scrambling to his feet to show Jordan the flyer.

They all crowded around her to watch her reaction.

“Oh, what so a coffee shop open mic is cool but a school dance is lame?” She asked, teasing the guys.

“This place will be packed with producers,” Luke said defensively, crossing his arms over his chest as he pouted.

“Wait, for real?” Jordan asked, sitting up straighter at the news and they nodded. “Oh my gosh, this is insane! We’re gonna get signed!”

“Now all we have to do is get Julie to rejoin the band,” Alex said, dampening the mood and Jordan slouched forward again.

“Right, well, if you guys apologize and explain yourselves I’m sure she’ll understand,” Jordan said hopefully and they all nodded, the guys beginning to formulate a plan.

___

As soon as Julie stepped into the studio the guys were ready, immediately breaking into their little apology song. Jordan smiled at how dorky but sweet it was from her position off to the side on the couch.

“In case you missed it, we’re really sorry,” Reggie said and the guys all nodded.

“Yeah… I got that part.” Julie said, frowning at the boys.

“Yeah, we’ve been here for three hours,” Alex added and Jordan nodded despite the fact that no one was looking at her. They really had been stating in that position for three hours. She would’ve made fun of them but it gave her some peace and quiet to read her book.

“We almost sang to your little brother,” Luke said.

“He comes in here a lot. Mainly to use the bathroom,” Reggie explained and Jordan shuddered.

“It’s not our favorite part of the day,” Alex said, pursing his lips.

“But, Julie, it wasn’t okay that we flaked on the dance last night,” Luke said, getting the boys back on topic. “We know we let you down.”

“Yeah and, and none of us wanted to disappoint you,” Alex said, “You and Jordan are the best things that’ve happened to us since we became ghosts.”

Jordan aww-ed quietly at that, making a mental note to hug Alex later.

“So, in hopes that you’ll rejoin the band, we booked a new gig,” Luke announced, handing her the coffee shop flyer.

“A mega-important, life-changing gig,” Reggie added with his signature grin.

“Check it out,” Luke explained, pointing to the flyer. “Tons of managers go here to listen to new bands. All we gotta do is blow them all away and then we’re living the dream.”

“So, this means a lot to you, huh?” Julie asked, looking up from the flyer to stare at the guys, her face hardened.

Jordan frowned at that. Clearly, the apology hadn’t been as effective as they’d thought it would be.

“Kind of how playing in front of my whole school meant a lot to me.” Julie continued and Jordan watched as the realization of where this conversation was going dawned on the guys’ faces.

“That sounds like sarcasm,” Reggie gasped, processing the situation out loud, “I’m starting to think our plan isn’t working.”

“Look, we know we messed up,” Alex said, ignoring Reggie and trying to save the situation.

“But we need you in the band,” Luke finished.

Julie rolled her eyes at that.

“Of course you do. Because without me, no one can see you guys playing.” She spat, staring Luke down. “Y’know, I thought the music we were writing was special, but you’re too obsessed with your past to even care.”

“I do care!” Luke exclaimed, nearly shouting at the girl and Jordan sucked in a breath, worried about where this was going. Luke and Julie both had quick and fiery tempers. “Our band has a real chance at greatness. I’m not gonna let that get away from us again.”

“Uh-huh. Right.” Julie said, clearly not believing him. “So then why did you bail on me to get back at Trevor?”

When Luke didn’t answer Julie continued.

“I’ll tell you why,” she said angrily. “Cause there’s only one thing that you care about and that’s yourself!”

She spun on her heel after that, stomping out of the garage.

“Julie wait!” Jordan called after her, jumping up off the couch to follow after her but stopping short of the doorway when she didn’t stop.

The studio was silent for a moment, everyone worriedly looking at Luke who was staring up at the house dejectedly.

“Dude, she didn’t mean it,” Alex said quietly but Luke didn’t respond, merely poofing away.

Jordan didn’t stick around much longer, only long enough to hear Alex remind Reggie of what day it was. She nodded solemnly at the two boys before poofing away herself.

___

“What are you doing here?” Luke asked irritably when Jordan poofed in next to him.

They were resting on the extended kitchen counter the Patterson’s had between their kitchen and dining room while his parents moved around the two rooms.

She shrugged. “It’s your birthday. Even after we told them we hated each other your parents always invited me behind your back and my parents always dragged me kicking and screaming.”

When the Pattersons had moved in down the street Jordan’s parents had been so excited that she’d have someone her age to play with. What they hadn’t anticipated was Luke putting a spider in her hair the first time they met and the pair forming an immediate hatred of each other. Still, their animosity hadn’t stopped the Moss’s and the Patterson’s from doing whatever they could to make Luke and Jordan friends so Jordan came to every one of Luke’s birthday parties and he hers.

Luke gave a watery chuckle at the memory before the pair lapsed into silence.

“Do you hate me?” Luke asked quietly after a moment. “For leaving when you…“

Jordan cut him off with a shake of her head.

“No.” She said softly but sure. “Maybe if you had left after my parents…” she cleared her throat, looking away to hide her own tears that were forming in her eyes. “No, I could never hate you for a decision you clearly regretted from the start.”

Luke nodded thoughtfully at that and Jordan reached out, placing her hand over his that was resting on the countertop. She hoped the small gesture would be comforting.

“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you,” Jordan began to sing softly as Mrs. Patterson carried the cake over to the table. Chocolate cake with chocolate frosting, Luke’s favorite. “Happy birthday dear Luke, happy birthday to you.”

Luke turned his hand over to squeeze her own before hopping off the countertop to join his family at the table. When his dad finally lit the candle Luke leaned forward to blow it out, leaving his parents shocked and confused. Mr. Patterson relit the candle and Luke slid into the third chair. Jordan wiped the tears that were falling down her own face as she watched the Patterson’s, unknowingly reunited for the first time in twenty-six years, tearfully blow out the candle together.

Jordan leaned forward, squeezing Luke’s shoulder lightly as they watched his parents eat a slice of cake in silence. As she moved to pull away he reached over to cover her hand with his, holding it in place. As they sat like that in the silence that was somehow both deafening and comfortable Jordan thought back to the thin line Julie had mentioned the other day in the band room and whether or not she was walking it as carefully as she had thought.

Part 8

___

JATP Taglist: @meangirlsx

Sunset Swerve Taglist: @oopsiedoopsie23 @angryknightstatesmantrash @onlygetaway @deni-gonzalez @advicefromnixxxx @brooke0297 

#jatp fic #julie and the phantoms #jatp #luke patterson #luke jatp #jatp luke #alex mercer #jatp alex #reggie jatp fic #jatp reggie #julie molina #julie and the himbos #luke patterson fic #luke jatp fic #jatp luke fic #happy birthday luke #sunset curve #sunset swerve

[whereflowersbloom]

Alfred’s farewell

The sky had begun gloomy since even before the sun had the chance to rise. Mist was overshadowing the city of Gotham, and drops of dew are still littering every surface. The birds were unusually quiet, nestling safely under the warmth of their nest. A large group of grey clouds lingering above the place, promising unpleasant weather to deal with later on. Lighting crackled in the grey sky and snatched away any hope of a golden day. Only songs of sadness spread around, feeling the sorrow taking place. Even the world is holding its breath and everything is still, the earth seemed to be mourning as well the unexpected loss. The atmosphere was exceptionally dark and lifeless, each face filled with silent and bitter grief and regret. Tears do not fall, there’s a blackhole forming in place of his heart. This date…this date would be burned into his soul for the rest of his existence, it would be a permanent reminder to himself of how foolish he was, how everything…could change in matter of seconds. Seconds only a few more seconds would have made the difference. The tree that was once full of life, the one Alfred looked after kindly, because he planted it himself after coming to work for Thomas and Martha Wayne, was now barren as the weather grew colder and the icy wind blew the leaves away.

There’s people gathering, familiar faces and unknown ones. The solemn mode had settled between them, and soon the ceremony comes to an end. It’s time to say farewell.

Will I always, from now on, be this cold? Was Pennyworth really gone? He didn’t dare to pronounce his name. He discerned the sounds of footsteps slowly fading away and all that was heard afterwards was the thud of knees hitting the ground. Grayson. Even Dick was so lost and crushed, the man who always looked so high-spirited and brave, so even-tempered and filled with honor, seemed so weak now.

“Alfred, I am so sorry…” Richard whispered with a low-pitched and desperate sob as he caressed the stone with his trembling hand. His face, marred for life, had an even more painful expression plastered on his face as tears started to fall slowly onto the dirt. But it’s not your fault. Damian wanted to let him know. He wasn’t there to stop it. Unlike you his mind whispered.

Jason Todd remained silent. Todd had always been quick to emotion in general, to tears when someone else was sad, to contagious laughter when their siblings were smiling, quick-tempered, choleric when provoked. Surprisingly an empathetic sensitive soul, spent many years alone, hungry for tenderness and familial ties. And yet he was wearing an expressionless mask, but his body betrayed his affliction, shaking so badly that Tim had to grasp tightly at his arms to prevent him from going down. Drake. Tim was clearly having so much invisible burden on his shoulders. His curved jaw clenching tight, and his dark blue eyes cast downwards and unblinking. He didn’t have his daily cup of black coffee. No, he didn’t have a single drop of his precious caffeine today. He kept his head low the entire ceremony, maybe he didn’t have the heart to look up at the crying mess everyone was. Perhaps he thought somebody had to tough it out, specially considering Father’s absence.

Stephanie standing close to him, blonde curls dancing with the autumn wind, biting her lips the entire time. Stephanie who tried to be strong and now, after holding in for too long, the tears break out like a leaking dam. She was devastated and weeped openly, clinging to Tim’s coat as if her life depended on it, as if she were drowning, the sight made the hole in Damian’s chest squeeze around his heart. Guilt. Distress.

Cassandra was hardly moving from her spot. She had a deep crease on her brow, and face as hard as rock. She hugged herself in the arms, shielding her frame from the icy wind, when Duke swiftly placed his Armani cashmere coat on her shoulders, her hands were going cold, and the moment Duke noticed the way she shivers with small movements. He considerately held them between his, providing temporary warmth, trying to find some kind of comfort in each other, but Cassandra avoided making eye contact with anyone, her mind was really blank as a void. Possibly still attempting to process the reality. Duke Thomas, the only one that hasn’t lost his mind amid this consequent emotional instability, drops of tears still hanging from the corner of his eyes, while the rests were slowly drying on his cheeks. Damian wasn’t exactly close to Duke but he wondered how he managed to carry on. Where did he find the strength to persist? Damian walked closer to the tombstone, feeling resignation seep into his bones.

Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth, beloved father, grandfather, mentor, friend, heroic veteran, a talented cook, a man of family, with a great big heart. Alfred Pennyworth had been a man with many facets. He brought balance to this dysfunctional family, he was the peace and voice of reason. Alfred who made Dick stay in bed when he was badly injured and encouraged him to eat proper meals, lectured Jason for his vulgar language, introduced Jason into the culinary arts, trusting him with the top secret Pennyworth recipes, who secretly switched Tim’s coffee for decaffeinated when he had too much, who prepared Stephanie waffles after a night out patrolling, didn’t say a word of the nights she sneaked out with Kara, who enjoyed the company of Cassandra lurking around the manor, when she’s having a bad day he used to watch the stars with her, listening to Cass make up stories about each star, Alfred who never had to fix anything Duke broke because Thomas instantly apologized and offered to fix it himself, Alfred that found intriguing sudden Duke’s interest in gardening. Alfred... who who spend each and every Damian’s birthdays with him ‘every birthday is special and must be celebrated Master Damian’, gifted him a cat because it made him think of him, offered him a cup of hot chocolate or tea sleepless nights. Alfred, who told him he was proud of him. Alfred, who raised him and loved him wholeheartedly until his last breath.

Damian ran his hand down a large polished stone, ‘Wayne’ carved into it expertly. He sighed wearily and stood beside a gravestone, right next to the family stone, he absentmindedly ran his fingertips along the engraved letters.

‘Alfred Thaddeus Crane Pennyworth’

August 16, 1943

-

October 10, 2019

‘The light of our household is gone. Leaving only haunting echoes lingering in this home. A place is vacant in our hearts, which will never be filled.’

It was indeed fitting. Their light was Alfred and he was gone for good. For good the words echoed in his head like an incessant prayer. He felt a pang of pain surge through him as he recalled his last moments with the man who raised him. It felt as if his life was torn apart just yesterday.

‘I miss him already.’ Cassandra gestured in sign language, a single tear rolling down her cheeks. Damian didn’t know if she was saying it to him or his siblings, maybe she just wished to get the weight off her chest, when he didn’t think it could, his heart broke even more.

“Fuck.” Jason swore with pained voice, his turquoise eyes blurring with angry tears that he wiped away roughly. Not particularly at his siblings but himself. For not being able to protect the man who offered a ray of kindness to him, who nurtured his severely malnourished body to health. He didn’t blame Bruce or the others. He was supposed to be better, strong enough to defend his father. Dick was a fucking mess in the dirt,embracing the tombstone with all his strength, like it would somehow bring the dead man back to life. Steph wouldn’t stop crying. Tim was silently punishing himself in his own way, and Cass had been in a mental limbo until a a minute ago. Bruce wouldn’t leave his room for Pete’s sake. He isolated himself from everything and everyone, he simply existed in his bedroom. Not surprised. He should be here, saying goodbye to Alfred, who dedicate his entire life to help him, instead of retreating to a dark room and lying in bed, brooding over his problems. Damian. Damian was so young, he looked like hell, devastated as everyone else. Jason could detect the shadow of regret in his green eyes. He’s seen it before because he experienced it and he saw it every day in Bruce’s eyes. But at least Damian was here, dealing with the crude reality and his anguish.

It felt unreal, like this was only a horrible slow-motion nightmare and they would wake up any minute, a sharp knife that bore a hole through their hearts yet they kept on standing still.

Perhaps it was time to fulfill Alfred’s wishes. He wanted Bruce to set his thirst for justice aside and find happiness, maybe a companion, spend quality time with the children, who clearly weren’t children anymore. The youngest being Damian, who just turned fifteen a couple of months ago. He wanted Richard to start a family of his own with Barbara. He wanted Jason to come back home and stop fighting with a Bruce. He wanted a Tim to seek professional help, see a counselor, quit drinking that damned coffee in excess. Stephanie to stop denying her feelings for Tim and give their relationship a chance. Cassandra constantly suppressing her emotions, fearing to get attached, she was human not a machine trained to commit murder when ordered. Duke should leave behind any doubts to forge his own path and accept he was loved by their family. Damian who Alfred loved like his own grandchild, no matter what he did or what type of person he decided to become, Alfred would always be proud of Damian. ‘In the end, you makes you. No one else, Master Damian.’

“How are you holding up, shortstack?” Jason asked him unexpectedly, snapping out of it, he didn’t know how long his mind had been replaying fond memories with Alfred, he felt the weight of Jason’s hand falling on his shoulder, wearing a genuinely concerned expression.

A cold wind passed by, gracing the leaves and making some brief sounds. The wind leaving with a trail in the form of chilly, close to freezing air. Damian weighted the question in his head. There was only ever-growing emptiness in his chest. After a long moment he spoke.

“I will live.” Damian answered softly, eyes completely fixed on the stone. “I’ll miss him, too...brother.” The young Robin unreservedly confessed, Jason looked slightly taken aback at the words Damian muttered. Damian’s emotions were expressed with snarky comments, throwing daggers and knives, making deadly threats and intimidating stares. He had an aggressive and confrontational demeanor. Damian has never called Jason brother, but it made his lips curl into a small smile. Yes, he was his brother.

Damian was vaguely aware of Jason’s body heat now at his side, followed by Richard who was helped by Tim to stand up, his chest sore from sobbing, black suit covered in dirt but he didn’t seem to care. Meaningless material assets, nothing compared to the irreparable loss they suffered hours ago. Steph took a couple of steps closer to them, her eyes, twins pools of sadness, red and swollen, soon the Wayne siblings gathered around their youngest brother. Embracing tightly the teenager into a group hug.

They shared the same deep numbing pain, but it's more agonizing for Damian because he had been there when it happened, they all knew Damian was suffering so much. The feeling ate him inside, consuming and breaking every part of him miserably. But he isn’t alone anymore, he has his family with him. Damian’s tears are hot and travel down his tanned cheeks, he didn’t want to cry but he couldn’t hold it in any longer, the heartache, the loss, agony, guilt, everything was hitting him all at once. It hurt so much knowing full well that Alfred won't wake up ever again from this neverending deep sleep, buried under the ground lonely and cold and breathless. His grandfather.

It'll be just the the eight of them and it is frightening to accept the truth, that Alfred wouldn’t be around anymore to look after them like he did after all these years. Ever since he first set foot in the Wayne manor. He would me missed every single day. Rchard’s heart broke at the sight of Damian in such crumbling state, his characteristic composure fallen and so alien after living together so many years. Damian was broken too. Dick did the only thing he could think of, patted him affectionately on the back, rubbing it soothingly, mumbling quietly “We are here, Dami.” Letting him know they were all there for him in every possible way. They would try to carry our Alfred’s last wish, for them to get along, integrate, be an harmonious family. Be true siblings. Always Alfred’s children. Together they sang farewell to Alfred with broken chords.

I am not sure if I want to edit this later but here s the progress. I might add Bruce’s part later or tomorrow. My tribute to Alfred 💜❤️❤️❤️

@sofiii @chromium7sky @deep-in-mind67

#alfred pennyworth #bruce wayne #damian wayne #dick grayson #jason todd #tim drake #stephanie brown #duke thomas #cassandra cain #barbara gordon #dickbabs #timsteph #batman universe #batfamily #batsiblings #angst and feels #character death #nightwing #oracle #red robin #red hood #batwing #batgirl #batfam #dc fandom #dc comics #dc universe

[mggpleasedontlookhere]

the governess

Summary: Y/N is brought in as a Governess to Timothee’s ward Daphine, the only daughter of his late uncle. 

word count: 1,703                                                                                     reading time: 6 mins                                                                               warning: uses 19th century vernacular 

A/N: I apologize for the rough ending, I haven’t written in months due to school, so I’m sorry for the crappy writing

“Miss Y/L/N, I take it to be?” asked the kind woman, popping her head out from the side of the rather large oak door. I nodded my head in affirmation as she stepped aside to invite me into the elaborate estate. 

My eyes explored the vast space before me, taking in the engraved decorations that littered the ceilings. The polished marble floors that were tattered with chains of convoluted lines, reflecting off the light that emitted from the chandelier above. Although, it was the grand staircase that sat elegantly in view that captured my interest. It was made of the deepest of oak woods, age lines painting it beautifully and engraved in it were crafted scenes that beheld ethereal creatures. 

“Mr. Chalamet will arrive momentarily, he had ventured into the town nearby for business practices and had been gone for long” the kind woman exclaimed, closing the hatchet that the door was secured with. “Mrs. Vernon” the woman introduced, stretching her hand out, in which I complied. As I observed Mrs. Vernon more, I came to the conclusion that she was at least of 40 years of age. Wrinkles have became apparent of her pale face, laugh lines seemed to emerge and carry happy memories, and the tired warm smile she expressed said it all. In contrast, she dressed in a royal blue pinafore embedded with silver pins, while lace ties embellished her silk sleeves. Based on her countenance alone, she seemed of the middle to higher rank in society. 

“How long is of Mr. Chalamet’s absence, if I may ask?” I inquired. 

“Close to a fortnight ma’am” she replied, crossing over the foyer into a grand living room with an articulate fireplace. She soon took her place in a grandfather chair next to the fire, resuming a textile she had begun knitting. “The help will accompany you to your quarters” she announced, not looking up from her work.

With a scuffle of shoes and low murmurs of conversation, two women came clambering down the stairs, taking my belongings upstairs. I bid both of them a cordial welcome, curtseying before them, and facing my attention to the warmth that the fireplace gave. Observing the decorum of the room, several paintings of nature’s beauty filled each frame, depicting the different temperances of the four seasons. One particular frame captured my attention, it was of a little boy next to a pale, yet elegant woman with an impeccable visage. Both of them were dressed with the finest of materials, most likely from an affluent lineage as the older woman sported an array of jewels that blemished her neck. The little boy on the other hand, despite the exaggerated clothing, wore a grimace with an almost grieved countenance. 

“Miss Y/L/N?” 

A voice beckoned from behind me. Turning around, it was of the servants with both her hands carrying my belongings. I apologized for my lingering, bid a goodnight to Mrs. Vernon and followed the two women up the stairs. With every creaky step on the wood steps, I took time to continue observing the estate at its glory. The walls were plastered with an elegant floral wallpaper and wood paneling, all encased by a dark brown royal trimming at the ceiling and floor. Down a dimly light corridor and a series of turns, I was led to a sizeable apartment with a queen sized bed, two dressers, and a single bay window across from the bedpost.  

I thanked the two women, nodding them off as one of them placed my cases next to the dresser. With a sigh of relief and a fixed composure, I began unpacking most of my clothes into the drawer. Sorting my items, I soon thought I was ill-prepared for the expectations that the grandness of this estate might throw at me. I had only brought a series of textbooks that I owned and a dress, along with a few accessories and linen smocks. 

In the midst of my thoughts, the sound of a pianoforte seeped into the room, diverting me from the concerns I had spiraled into. With a curious intent, I grabbed the lit candle that one of the servants had left and began to follow the sweet tunes that bounced off the walls. The creature playing must of been a formidable player as no note was off-tune or melody faltering. My steps slowed as the music became loud and coherent. It was a romance melody, a work of Mozart or Bach perhaps. 

I came towards two heavy oak doors, my feet planted in front of the entrance as I lingered around. I, then, began to push at the door quietly, careful not to disturb the player, in order to peek at the creature that was able to convey such romantic music. As I got to look inside the room, I found it to be a grand library with the pianoforte in the corner of the room. To my surprise, the creature was little girl. She was wearing a blue gown tethered together by a lace bow on the back and she had beautiful raven-black hair that were coiled in curls, decorated with pearls. 

Stepping my figure through the crevice of the door, I managed to enter the room without a sound. Although my praises were too early to be celebrated as the metal canister that housed the candle I was carrying banged into the wood of the door, emitting a loud bellow. 

The music instantly faltered at a flat note and the little girl’s eyes, filled with surprise, landed on my silhouette.

“Please forgive my intrusion, I couldn’t help but hear the enchanting tune from my quarters and beckoned to investigate what it was” I explained, stepping into the light the fireplace emitted in the room, to offer a better view of myself. 

The little girl then curtseyed, in which I replicated, and introduced herself. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Y/L/N. I’m gratified that my playing was music to a creature’s ears” she expressed with a polite tone, before taking a seat on the bench she had sat on before.

“It’s a pleasure to meet your acquaintance, Miss?” 

“Daphine Chalamet” she answered.  

“I take it that you father has versed you in the implications of my employment here”

“My father?” she repeated, halting her practice on the instrument and faced me. “Mr. Chalamet?”

I nodded in puzzlement to her bizarre address and began to think of the possibility of some sort of mix up with the students. “Yes your father, the one who’s picked up my advertisement to be your governess in the papers” I elaborated. 

She laughed and rose up from her seat, walking to a family portrait that hung near the the array of bookcases that lined the entire room. “He’s my cousin, not my father. My father was met by God last april, it was the fever” she explained, pointing up to the painting again where an elder man stood taut and confident. 

“My condolences to the late Mr. Chalamet. I would love to stay in your society longer, although I must attend to occupying my apartme-” I was cut off by a sound of hurried footsteps clattering against the floors, as they grew closer to the room we were in. One of the maids then opened the door in a haste and stated “Mr. Chalamet is present to meet your acquaintance”. With that, she scurried off back to her duties. 

Then in came a man of great height and sculpted features. His eyes were a deep green blue, similar to the color of the water near the Western river, a haven I would often find myself visiting. His hair was the color of the finest Belgian chocolates and he dressed like a man of high society. 

Me and Daphine bowed at his presence as he welcomed us both. 

“Salut mon cherie, comment ca va?” 

Daphine ran up to the man, forgetting about any type of manners she’s been disciplined to portray. “Ca va tres bien, mon frere. Et toi?” She asked.

“Comme ci comme ca” He replied with the biggest smile he can put on as he lifted her up in the air and spun her around. He finally took a glance at me and set Daphine down before kneeling beside her. “qui est-elle“ he asked. 

Daphine giggled with a light smile, “Oh don’t be ignorant cousin. That’s the governess you’ve summoned”. He picked her up once again, pulling her in for a tight hug. “I’m aware little one, now practice you’re Mozart and we’ll have supper soon”. With that, Daphine scurried off to her pianoforte and resumed her practice once again. 

I took this as a signal to curtsey and introduce myself. “Y/N of Yorkshire Sir, it’s a pleasure to meet your acquaintance” I introduced. He gave me a light smile in response, bowing his head in return

“Pleasure to have you serve my Daphine, Miss Y/L/N. I hope that you find your quarters bearable” He welcomed. 

“I assure you sir, it’s more than I can be offered Mr. Chalamet. I hope your venture wasn’t too long” 

“No no, it certainly wasn’t”

We stared at each other for a little while, pausing with each given breath. His eyes really did resemble the haven I would often visit, Maybe, this house will be a place of paradise for me. 

“Sorry Miss Y/L/N, you just have-” He paused, his voice fading out as he moved in closer to my face with his hand held up. “You have a stray hair” he continued, advancing towards me, silently asking for permission with his glance and me agreeing. 

We locked onto each other once again, this time obtaining a clearer image of each other. His lips looked like pink clouds and his eyelashes decorated his eyes beautifully. His jaw was carved into perfection and so was his cheekbones. 

He pulled away as he tucked the hair behind my ear, the redness harshly displaying on the apple of my cheeks as he returned back to his position. 

He gave me a flattering smile and said, “I hope that if you shall need anything or company, you will come to see me first, Miss Y/L/N” 

“I’ll see to it sir” 

#Timothee #Timothee Chalamet #timmy chalamet #tim #timmy #lil timmy #chalamet #timothee chamalet #timothee chalamet imagine #timothée chamalet #lil timmy tim #timmy imagines #timmy imagine #cmbyn #chalametxreader #timothee x you #timothée chalamet icons #timothee imagine #timothee fanfic #timothee fluff #timothee smut

[tuancore]

Lost You (Part 15) :

Starring- Jinyoung x reader

Genre- Angst

Summary- It's your choices and actions which made you miserable.

Jinyoung was growing impatient by the rate with which the meeting was proceeding, three hours in the meeting and he felt like he has already spent an year inside the conference hall. Hyunjin kept on mouthing incoherent things to him, trying his best to prevent Jinyoung from daydreaming in such an important meeting.

"I hope you liked the proposal, Mr. Park" The new business partner exclaimed happily, standing up from his seat, finally getting Jinyoung's undivided attention. Jinyoung nodded his head with a polite smile standing from his seat as well, "Mr. Jung, I'm really looking forward for our collaboration, thanks for your precious time".

"No worries Mr. Park, I'm glad that we are able to work together" He chuckled again with a genuine smile, "I'll let my secretary send you the drafts of the agreement, you can have a look at it and if you would like to make changes you're most welcome".

"Sure, thank you" Jinyoung spoke for the last time shaking hands with Mr. Jung, "Sir, I would like if you don't leave the meeting hall until I'm done escorting them" Hyunjin bowed politely before guiding Mr. Jung and his secretary the way out of the company. Few other employees who were also requested to attend the meeting left the hall after greeting Jinyoung.

With everyone out, Jinyoung immediately fished out his phone dialling BamBam's number. He ran his fingers through his luscious locks biting on his bottom lip impatiently. He wasn't able to concentrate properly in the meeting but he did take note of the main points, he was growing way too impatient to be beside you again, in these two months it's for the first time that he has left your side for so long almost three and a half hours.

"Why the hell isn't he picking up my calls?!" Jinyoung yelled tossing his phone on the leather chair, after BamBam failed to receive his calls.

Hyunjin entered into the room swiftly, standing in front of Jinyoung from the other side of the table, "Hyunjin, I have to go. Whatever the agreement will be just email them to me", Jinyoung expressed striding towards the door to leave.

"Ma'am is not in the hospital" Hyunjin stated slowly turning his head to face Jinyoung, who halted in his steps before he could even push the door open, "What do you mean by that?".

"Sir, ma'am is not in the hospital. Yugyeom hyung messaged me that Ma'am gained consciousness almost an hour ago and that they are taking her with them".

"S—She woke u—up?" Jinyoung's lips quivered with happiness, which he wasn't able to supress. He hugged Hyunjin tightly almost cutting his oxygen supply, "I—I understand but you're k—killing me—me...".

He broke the hug placing his hands on Hyunjin's shoulder, he reconfirmed "You sure, that they were not joking.....She really is......I mean she.....Oh god finally!". Hyunjin's heart warmed seeing Jinyoung so happy for the first time in these past months.

"I'm also very happy Sir".

"Why didn't you inform me earlier?"

"If I had informed you earlier then you would've surely left the meeting and rushed there, and you know this meeting was very important for us, for the company.....I'm sorry Sir", Hyunjin hung his head low in guilt for not informing him about you soon just because he was being thoughtful for the company and not for you who is Jinyoung's life.

"Yah!" Jinyoung called, shaking Hyunjin's shoulders, "There's nothing to be sad about, I'm so glad that you were always there beside me, always handled the official work whenever I failed to, I know these past months were hard for you as well. But not even once did you complain and I appreciate you heartily for that, Hyunjin-ah".

Smiling softly, Hyunjin nodded his head. Many of the employees of the Park Inc. wondered as to why Jinyoung tolerated Hyunjin when most of the times Hyunjin bossed Jinyoung around, but the thing which both of them hid very well was that Hyunjin was Jinyoung's cousin, he offered Hyunjin to work for him for the sake of work experience which Hyunjin gladly accepted.

He was afraid that people in the company would think that Hyunjin was trying to take advantage of being Jinyoung's brother, so he decided to not let anyone know that he was related to him instead he'll work as a normal employee along with others. Reluctantly Jinyoung accepted it, being such a young lad Hyunjin was super smart in every aspect of business administration, just like Jinyoung was. And within a small amount of Hyunjin became the most dedicated and hardworking employee of the company.

"Thank you hyung...." Hyunjin muttered softly, "So enough of this melodrama, we'll continue it later, I was starting to like it though", he teased Jinyoung for getting sentimental as he barely expresses his feelings to someone.

"Yeah.......sometimes it's good to cry and rejoice like people in daily soaps" Jinyoung added, both of them laughing heartily.

"Let's go and have Ma'am back in your arms now shall we?".

__________

"Will you both speak now?" You asked the two boys standing in front of you sternly, eyeing them in irritation. After the little confusing revelation of Youngjae being your bff, you started losing your temper growling at both of them for their stupid attempt to protect Youngjae and Jinyoung and have you to forgive them. Not knowing specifically what has to be done they brought you to their studio.

Crossing your legs on the only couch in their pretty decent studio, you sighed, "I have no idea what you both are trying to pull off.....but it's not enough to change my mind".

"Noona to be honest we are also as clueless as you", Yugyeom stated sitting on his swivel chair, "What do you mean?" You asked tilting your head.

"Can we know why you're so mad at Jinyoung and Youngjae?" BamBam cut in with a humble smile, "What did they both do? That you don't even want to hear their names".

"Did you both hit your head hard?" You blurted in disbelief, the two have been sticking around with you since the beginning of all the mess and now they are acting as if they don't remember a single thing. Unbelievable.

BamBam and Yugyeom both didn't want to force things on you seeing your still not very stable state, but your words were getting to their minds they have to know what's the reason behind your outburst, your anger for the other two.

Giving you a stoic face, they insisted for you to explain the thoughts going inside your head. With that you let everything out from the beginning to end, how Jinyoung alleged you of cheating on him with Jackson, how BamBam came to know about Jinyoung and Jisoo seeing eachother, how Youngjae was in love with you because of which he caused misunderstandings between you and Jinyoung. How your heart got broken by him because of which you lost your child and attempted suicide.

"But I'm alive any way" You grimaced rubbing your temples. BamBam and Yugyeom felt their souls leaving their bodies, their face got pale with cold sweats forming on their forehead.

"Th—That w—was.....What w—was t—that?" Yugyeom stammered wiping the little sweat beads from his head, "None of this has ever happened? Then what are you talking about?" BamBam spoke with widened eyes staring into your chocolate orbs.

"Please don't act as if you've forgotten everything! Their betrayal is not something to be forgotten within two months!"

It's not like they wanted to shout on you, but your stubbornness made it impossible to let the things run smoothly, they had to burst your bubble because whatever you were saying was nowhere close to normal and if extended it can cause harm in real as well.

"We haven't forgotten anything! You— Whatever you're saying has never happened, none of it is true. You said I was the one who told you about Jinyoung hyung cheating on you right? Then why the fuck don't I remember a single thing?!" BamBam snapped rising from his chair pacing back and forth in the room.

"What the fuck do you mean by you don't remember a thing?" You snarled at BamBam, "How can you forget everything so easily? Or you're sympathizing with Jinyoung and Youngjae?".

"I'm not sympathizing with anyone Noona! I'm fucking not!" He yelled back, "You said you committed suicide, but let me tell you, you didn't commit such a crime!".

"BamBam stop! I clearly remember that I slit open my wrist with a shard, wait let me show yo—", You pulled the sleeves of your shirt, to see your wrist but words got caught in your throat.

"What? Show us" BamBam added, crossing his arms to his chest, almost challenging you. You traced your wrist which was badly teared open by the shard, "How—How....c—come there's n—no mark?".

BamBam stood beside you taking your said hand in his, "You slit it open here?", He emphasized, "And there's clearly no mark, do you think it some sort of a joke that hurting yourself with a sharp piece of shard will leave no scar?".

"Okay, let's assume it didn't leave a scar but after stitching your wrist up will the stitch mark fade so soon?" BamBam proclaimed, "Two months are not enough, sometimes the scar remains for lifetime".

"And that's the proof that whatever you told us.......was something that never took place" Yugyeom concluded, nodding his head at you.

Thats true, even a knife cut would take months to heal then how come such a severe wound will heal this fast. Your skin seemed to be absolutely normal, same as that of your other hand, yanking your hand from BamBam's grip, you bellowed "But all I remember is dying and then all of a sudden I woke up to your face! Can it be some coincidence?".

"We don't know what it is, but all we know is that whatever you are saying is nothing but your own imagination, since nothing, not a single thing has ever happened in these past few months!" BamBam grunted, almost losing his calm.

Your mind was spinning like anything, every single moment is burnt in your memory, you can call out every single detail of whatever you've said to them. Then how come they both are trying to defy your not so old past. Everyone was aware of how much BamBam and Yugyeom are fond of joking and pranking but this time there was not a slightest hint of humour in their eyes or body language instead their faces were emotionless and voice was stern.

"What is happening?" You mumbled trying to soothe your pounding headache which suddenly caught upto you. Rotating your eyes across the room you eyes fell onto the desktop calendar.

Striding towards the table, you grabbed it, pair of eyes following your each and every move, "What month is it?" You asked.

"It's November".

Your gasped at the reply, "How can this be even possible?" You mumbled to yourself. When you committed suicide it was the month of November. Then how come it's still November.

"If I didn't commit suicide, then why was I admitted to the hospital?".

"Yes you were admitted to the hospital, but not because you had committed suicide but because you had a severe concussion", Yugyeom revealed, pointing at your head and that's when you realised a bandage was wrapped around your head the entire time which you failed to pay heed to.

"Two months ago, you had an accident in which a lorry ran into your car", BamBam professed looking at your wrapped head, "Your car was found upside down, your head smashed against the dashboard, it was a huge trauma for all of us".

"Noona we don't know what's going on with you, but trust us, none of it ever happened. We can never do injustice to you by saving them if they would have done such a terrible thing to you", Yugyeom expressed softly with a subtle smile, "And the truth is that Youngjae hyung is your bestfriend and Jinyoung hyung never cheated on you".

Youngjae is your bestfriend.

Jinyoung never cheated on you.

Pondering over his words, you forced your brain into recalling the events from the past, shutting your eyes close all you saw was a small glimpse of the time where you were grabbing coffee with Jackson teasing him bout Minyoung. Gripping on your scalps harshly, you groaned at the excruciating pain shooting through your brain.

Part 14 // Part 15

______________________________________

(A/N: I seriously have no idea what you guys are going to think about this chapter so just let me know, sorry for all the mess, probably the next part will be the last one.Anyways thank you so much to you all).

#got7 imagines #got7 jinyoung #got7 x reader #jinyoung imagines #got7 angst #got7 bambam #got7 jackson #got7 jaebeom #got7 mark #got7 youngjae #got7 yugyeom

[holy-honeybees]

Snowdrift

AO3

Rating: T+ (for swearing)

Summary: Three friends and  their dog get lost in a snowstorm while investigating the paranormal. Amidst swirling flurries of white, some lose their way and get lost in their memories, others lose sight of their friends and loved ones, and an unforgiving winter quickly fills in the footprints one would follow to get back home.

A/N: I started this back in November 2019 but sadly never finished the work. I was thinking of holding off till it started to snow again, but figured now was as good a time as any to try and finish this.The title is taken from Snail's House song "[snowdrift]" which you can check out here!

My hopes of having a regular posting schedule were completely dashed by the disaster that is the year 2020. But I’m still here, I’m still writing, and though I don’t know when the next chapter will be, I know there will be another. Beware that from here on, there may be some slight SPOILERS for the latest MSA video, “The Future!” If you haven’t already watched it though, you absolutely should, it was amazing, and the whole team who worked on it are all so talented!!

Previous Chapter | Next Chapter

Chapter One

Chapter Seven

Lewis glanced behind him to watch as Vivi and Mystery disappeared into the woods, the flashlight beam wavering as his friends passed behind trees and headed deeper into the forest. His own fluorescence gave the surrounding snowdrifts a soft, pink glow, illuminating his path as he headed along where he guessed the road to be under the thick blanket of snow. The ghost fought the urge to turn around and check on Vivi and Mystery again, knowing if he gave in now he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from watching until the last glimmer of their flashlight faded from view. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust them to take care of themselves. He knew how fearsome Mystery could be, even after his injury, and though Vivi was frustrated by her lack of mastery over magic, she’d taken to it readily. If her friends were in danger, Lewis knew nothing would stop her, magic or no. It was just hard for him to give up old habits. He couldn’t help but think of being the protector as his role in the group, especially after so many years of Arthur hiding behind him. Despite his size, Lewis had never been much of a fighter when he was alive. He’d always relied on his height and broad shoulders to intimidate, whether it was Arthur’s high school bullies or whatever monster of the week had decided to pick a fight with them. His death had surprisingly come with a few benefits, the supernatural speed at which he now travelled being just one of them. Already he had come to the bend in the road where their near miss had occurred just days ago, the guardrail and sign warped out of place from the impact with the van. Lewis ran his hand along the arrow on the sign, brushing loose snow to the ground.  

It was hard to believe that they had been having snowball fights and drinking hot cocoa just the other day. The snow which had once been so entrancing to him now seemed ominous and deadly, the winter wonderland having transformed into a frozen wasteland. Lewis suppressed a shiver. He shouldn’t have been able to feel the freezing temperatures, but the cold gnawed at his bones nonetheless. He was reminded of the walk-in freezer at the Pepper Paradiso. Once, while he’d still been in high school, Lewis had accidentally locked himself in the walk-in at the restaurant. He’d only been stuck for about fifteen minutes, but the cold had seemed unbearable for even that short amount of time. He’d been lucky that Ma and Pa Pepper were so quick to get him out. He couldn’t get his teeth to stop chattering until his mom had fixed him up a special batch of her hot chocolate flavored with cinnamon and cayenne pepper. Lewis remembered sitting in the dining area, cradling his mug of hot chocolate as his dad rubbed a hand up and down his arm to help warm him up. His mother had been livid and had immediately called the fridge manufacturer to demand they send someone to replace the faulty door release on the inside of the walk-in. Despite his parents’ best efforts, the chill hadn’t left him until late that night when he was curled up in bed, bundled in extra blankets.

Lewis wondered just how long Arthur had been gone before the others had discovered him missing. He feared that the mechanic had been gone too long already. He knew now just how fragile people were, and given Arthur’s tendency to stress himself out and forgo basic needs, he worried for the mechanic more than most. Shifting his focus from his worries to the task at hand, Lewis turned to search the expanse of snow surrounding him, trying to find a sign that the mechanic had been this way at all. Each direction looked the same as the others though. It was impossible to tell if it was because Lewis had picked the wrong way to go or if the belligerent snowfall had simply covered Arthur’s tracks. Without any kind of path to follow, Lewis picked a direction at random. Phasing through the twisted metal of the guardrail, he sped away from the road into the snowy fields beyond to continue his search. The plains the ghost now flew over were as flat and empty as the rest of the landscape had been. Lewis hoped it would make the mechanic easy to spot, even with the moon covered by clouds and the thick snowfall still coming down. The snow in the distance went almost blue with shadows, but if he passed close enough to the mechanic, the ghost was sure he would recognize the bright orange color his friend so frequently wore.

“Arthur!” Lewis called. The snow on the ground muffled his shout, and the lowly moaning winds quickly drowned out the remaining sound. Still, Lewis couldn’t help but feel disappointed when he received no response. The spirit pushed onwards, constantly scanning his surroundings for a glimpse of familiar orange amidst all the white. As he rushed further away from the road to continue his search for Arthur, Lewis was struck with a sense of déjà vu. For a moment, he could have sworn that the snowy landscape had shifted, changing from a seemingly barren tundra to a familiar hallway, lined with portraits and doors that looped back in on each other in impossible patterns. The stripes in the wallpaper blurred together as he flew by, hunting down the scrawny mechanic that had betrayed him.

“Arthur!” the ghost bellowed.

Lewis skidded to an abrupt halt, shocked by the wrathful tone of his own voice. As he looked around again, he was back in the snowy field that lay beyond the bend in the road, no haunted mansion in sight. Just an endless, featureless white landscape. It had all been so real, the desire to find Arthur and punish him so strong, that for a moment Lewis had forgotten where he was. He’d forgotten himself and had lost the careful control he had on his anger. Even now that the specter had forgiven Arthur and come to peace with his own demise, the rage never seemed to go away. It was always simmering just below the surface, waiting for him to slip up and boil over. Afterall, it wasn’t just his attachment to Vivi that had brought him back, but his desire for vengeance as well. This anger was a part of him now, as much as he hated it, as much as he was afraid of it. Normally he kept it buried deep, able to force it back down whenever it reared its ugly head. He hadn’t felt such an intense flare of rage in months, and his fury had never boiled over without any provocation before. The imagined cold that had seeped into his bones was now completely burned out, the golden locket that served as his anchor thrumming with anger.

Did he really still hate his friend so much?

Lewis shook his skull back and forth, his hair flickering wildly at the movement. He had to keep it together. He thought back to all the late night conversations with Arthur that had helped to keep his loneliness at bay over the last few months. How before the cave, they would camp out on top of the van and look at the stars, guessing at the names of constellations, the mechanic at ease enough to fill the silence with idle chatter about science fiction and space travel. He remembered how his friend had helped him study for the law school he’d hoped to get into, shuffling through stacks of flash cards filled with legal jargon over milkshakes at the restaurant. Teenage years spent at each other’s houses, sleepovers filled with binge watching Sailor Moon andsuffering through Surf’s Up Pizza because he knew how much Arthur liked it. The only kid in middle school who had readily accepted that Lewis hadn’t been a part of the Pepper household up until the day he was.  

The ghost put a hand to his anchor, willing himself to calm down as he wrapped his fingers around the heart-shaped locket. He didn’t hate Arthur. At least, not anymore. Facing down a murderous, possessed kitsune together hadn’t magically spirited away the hurt Lewis had felt. His behavior towards Arthur had ranged from cold to cruel in the first couple of months following their reunion. During one disastrous case, it had gotten bad enough that the mechanic had almost walked away from the Mystery Skulls for good. While on an investigation out of town, Lewis had lost his tenuous grip on his temper and had blown up at the mechanic to a nuclear degree. Arthur had fled, even leaving his precious van behind, determined to hitchhike his way back home to Tempo. Mystery had tried to talk the mechanic out of it, but Vivi had ended up having to drag Arthur away from the roadside herself. With the mechanic refusing to talk, the blue-haired girl had resorted to taking him to a bar and had plied him with alcohol to get him to open up. Arthur had finally broken down into a blubbering mess after several drinks. Once their tab had been paid and the mechanic tucked away safely in the back of the van to sleep it off, Vivi had tracked down Lewis to give the ghost a piece of her mind with a stern lecture that Ma Pepper would have been proud of. While she was sympathetic to the ghost’s position, she reminded him that it wasn’t really Arthur who had pushed him off the cliff, and that the mechanic had been devastated and desperate to find Lewis after he’d gone missing. Vivi also pointed out it wasn’t fair to force her to choose between the faithful friend she’d had by her side over the past year and someone she had only just started to remember having loved. Faced with the prospect of tearing the Mystery Skulls apart and driving away the people he cared about, the ghost had begrudgingly agreed to try and put the past behind him.

With the winter winds swirling around him, Lewis could feel the beating of the heart in his hand slow to a steady thump, thump, thump as he reminisced. Things had been hard at first. The smallest of slights irked the ghost, and it took tremendous concentration to think before he snapped. He had still failed on occasion, with his only choice then being to leave his friends behind while he cooled off. Little by little though, he was able to box up his resentment and pack it away, having a much easier time dealing with it in smaller pieces. He then found he could control his anger, and even if it had become a part of him, it didn’t have to control him. Talking with Mystery had helped. The kitsune had centuries of life experience to draw from, and was more than happy to offer advice or just sit back and listen when Lewis needed him to. Vivi was just as willing to help, but couldn’t always stop herself from offering up ideas and solutions when Lewis talked about his problems. Sometimes it was nice to have someone to just listen without interruption. With time, practice, and help from his friends, the ghost was finally able to be around Arthur again, and being around his former friend reminded Lewis of why they had been friends in the first place. After a while, he found he actually liked being around Arthur, even in their new circumstances. He wanted to try and be friends again, but there had been so much to remedy between them. It had taken a long time for the mechanic to let his guard down around the ghost, not that Lewis could blame him. When he finally did, they had slowly begun to mend their friendship, but something was still missing. Lewis struggled at times to keep his distance, not wanting the mechanic to feel uncomfortable or threatened by his presence after so much bad blood between them. He waited respectfully for Arthur to bridge the gap, but, even now, the mechanic still seemed wary of him. Lewis had to wonder if his friend just needed more time or if he’d irreparably broken something between them. The ghost would never forgive himself if he’d missed his chance to fix things. Lewis looked at the locket in his hand and flipped it open. Eyes unclouded by anger, he could clearly see the picture of the four of them it contained. Together, just the way they should be.

All he wanted now was his best friend back.

Lewis heaved a sigh, closing the locket again as he prepared to continue his search. The sight of the golden heart had given him an idea. Concentrating, the spirit summoned his coffin, the dark lacquered wood standing out against the snow. The casket lid sprung open to reveal six purple-colored spirits, each adorned with a small golden heart of their own. The Dead Beats immediately poured out of the coffin, winding around Lewis’s shoulders and bumping up against his shins. Vivi had been enthralled to be able to study the small ghosts up close once they’d been formally introduced. According to Mystery, they were weaker spirits drawn to Lewis’s power, feeding on his cast-off energy. The kitsune had assured the Mystery Skulls that they weren’t some kind of paranormal parasite though, and no harm would come to Lewis from their presence. It was a symbiotic relationship, and while there was no direct benefit to him, Lewis did find he enjoyed their company. They reminded him of affectionate cats sometimes. Especially with the way they rubbed against his legs, humming instead of purring, as they did now.

“I’m happy to see you too,” Lewis said earnestly, patting at one of the little specters’ heads, “But right now I need your help. Can you do something for me?”

The Dead Beats harmonized in a way he knew meant ‘yes’.

“Good,” he replied, “Arthur is missing. I need you to split up and help me look for him. If you find him, come tell me where he is right away. Can you do that?”

Another affirmative humming sound.

“Thank you! Please, go as quick as you can!” Lewis set about pointing each of the Dead Beats in a different direction, one of them doubling back to see if Arthur had travelled further along the road Lewis had left behind. The others fanned out through the field to cover more ground and expand their search radius. Lewis watched as they took off in every direction, zipping over the snowbanks as they began to search for the mechanic. Satisfied, he continued forwards on the path he’d chosen for himself. There were now six extra sets of eyes looking for the lost mechanic. Lewis only hoped that if one of them did find Arthur, they wouldn’t try to play any tricks on him. The Dead Beats had quite a mischievous streak, with Arthur being the favorite target of their practical jokes and pranks. Having the extra help in his search was a huge relief, but Lewis knew he wouldn’t truly feel at ease until his friend had been safely recovered.

Please don’t let me be too late…to find him…to fix things.

There was still so much Lewis wanted to say. They never talked about that night in the cave, and though sometimes Lewis felt that they didn’t have to, he did wonder if it would help. He hoped he would get the chance to find out. While Lewis had calmed himself considerably, his worried thoughts still tumbled about like a brewing storm as he continued the search for his missing friend. He ignored that, deep beneath the hopes and fears he felt, a spark of anger was still burning in his chest, refusing to go out.

#mystery skulls animated #msa #msa fanfic #mystery skulls animated fanfic #arthur #lewis #vivi #mystery #arthur kingsmen #lewis pepper #vivi yukino #Snowdrift

[killrqueen7]

Fate and Other Fairy Tales

A Worstthrust fanfic for the BRCU (Brandon Rogers Cinematic Universe)

Summary: A look at the events of Blame The Hero from the perspective of two villains in love

This work is also on AO3!

Bryce Tankthrust was never an affectionate woman and would never pretend to be. Growing up in a single-parent household, and with that parent being a highly successful lawyer with a no-bullshit, no fuck-up's, and absolutely no weakness policy, she could count on one hand the times she'd received a hug from her mother and still have fingers left over.

Bryce's mother was a cunt, to put it nicely. She was cold and manipulative toward every human being in her life, including and especially to her own daughters.

She was Bryce's fucking hero.

When Bryce was 7 years old, she met Bobby Best. He was a frail child with a wild temper and possibly the most dysfunctional father-son relationship she'd ever witnessed in all her seven years. The boy was mercilessly teased in PE and despite her desperate need for social validation, she stood up for Bobby against those other brats. In the way that children do, they became friends almost immediately and both, feeling a new sense of companionship and understanding no one else had ever given them, developed an innocent crush on one another; formed by mutual ostracization and strengthened by the hot summer sun.

To this day, 40 years later, Bobby Best was the only person in the world Bryce Tankthrust had ever loved.

Their friendship lasted only 24 hours, but in that time, Bryce had the world in her hands. Bobby made her laugh until she cried and that night, they talked, secretly on the phone, for hours. Bobby looked at her like she put the sun in the sky and she would be lying if she said that didn't make her feel like the most important person in the world.

As they lay in the dewy grass that day, grinning at each other under that hot sun and discussing the philosophy of fate and their every decision bringing them together for this very moment, Bryce made a secret promise; to herself and to Bobby: I'm never going to let it go.

But like all good things in Bryce's young life, the joy and innocence of childhood was short-lived. It all came crashing down around her, when in a moment of pure devotion to her new and very best friend, she'd presented her own beating heart; freshly pulled from her ribcage and held aloft like the precious gift that it was.

Bobby Best, in an admittedly appropriate reaction to seeing such gore and carnage, lost his lunch all over it; tainting both her heart and her entire worldview. A chorus of laughter hammered at her skull; the teacher joining in the act of pushing Bryce Tankthrust to the extreme bottom of the totem pole. You did not come back from something like that.

 Bryce's heart slipped from her slick, blood-soaked palm and landed on the hot asphalt below, breaking in two like some kind of dumbass metaphor. From where she knelt, it seemed as if glitter exploded from the damaged organ, scattered around it along with all of her joy and laughter. Every good and pure thing that made her who she was laid out on the ground at Bobby Best's feet and she was being ridiculed by the rest of their second grade P.E. class.

She only stared at it for a few seconds before standing in a rage and charging her teacher with the very knife she'd used to carve out her very soul. She plunged the blade into Mr. Best's gut several times before turning it on the rest of the class. Despite feeling woozy and weak, Bryce threatened the lot of them and fled, stomping on her stupid broken heart as she ran.

She never looked back, knowing that what she had with Bobby, as wonderful as it was, was over. She had to grow up now; love was for pawns and the easily manipulated. Now, she craved only power.

When she got home early, her mother didn't even question it or the red staining the front of her gym shirt. She simply received a glance and then her sister, that stupid, fussy little monster, began wailing again from upstairs.

"Bryce, will you see what your sister is crying about now? I need to make another phone call." Mrs. Brownstein picked up the landline and then turned her back on Bryce to signal the conversation was over. Helen was her responsibility until mom got off the phone.

Bryce quickly changed her shirt as little Helen cried, her little face wrinkling like an old lady's already. She never stopped when Bryce held her and Bryce was convinced that Helen just didn't like her. So much for girls sticking together.  Bryce was alone now.

Oddly enough, she was okay with that.

"Hearts are a waste of time, " she explained to her sister as she sat criss-cross on the floor with her, Helen sitting up and looking around for something to chew on, "I'll teach you to ignore it. They're just stupid. We're better off with these." Bryce tapped the baby's forehead lightly and then smiled when the little one tilted her head toward the touch.

 _

As Bobby sat in his cell, during the first few years of his sentence, all he felt was rage.

Rage at Bryce for killing his father and destroying any chance he would ever have of making him proud.

Rage at his father for treating him like a stranger in public and like garbage at home.

Rage at his mother for passing away and leaving him with someone who would never love him.

Rage at his classmates for ruthlessly teasing and abusing him.

And rage at himself for allowing all of that to happen.

Bobby swore, as soon as he got out, as soon as he was adopted by a family who actually wanted him, he would find Bryce Tankthrust – the catalyst for the single worst day of his life – and drive a stake through that empty cavity she called a chest.

Some say that there is a thin line between Hate and Love, and for Bobby, that line was nearly microscopic. There were days where he would close his eyes and imagine the sun on his face, the grass on his legs, and her hand in his.

There were nights where he would hear her laughter and see her grinning over at him from across the jungle gym.

All it took was one person to give him a chance. Maybe she did it out of pity or because she knew he would bend the knee and do anything she asked of him, but Bobby didn’t care then. It was the only shred of kindness anyone had ever shown him, regardless of ulterior motive.

“She was so profound.” He wrote out, tears welling in his eyes. “She was my everything.”

Bobby chewed at the eraser of his pencil and frowned at his own words. That was the Bryce he loved. The Bryce he wanted to remember. Except the memory of her rushing his father and driving a blade into his gut was glaring red and dangerous. Dare he admit that he was angry he hadn’t done it first?

No…despite everything, he missed his father. The man was a bastard, but Bobby was completely alone now. More alone than he’d been in his entire life, serving a sentence for a crime that he hadn’t even committed while the real killer roamed free; probably making other boys fall in love with her so she could fuck them over the same way…and never visit.

No, killing her gave him a purpose.

“One day, I will have my revenge on Bryce Tankthrust. She better sleep with one eye open because I’m getting out of here the second a family wants to adopt me.” 

_

As Bryce scowled at the pink and red hearts decorating the walls of her office, the Elmer heart inside her chest grew more and more bitter. Ever since her ex-lover had given her the one gift she couldn’t send back…and then mysteriously “disappeared” after declaring her a, quote, “unlovable, cold-hearted cunt” she’d hated this holiday more than any other.

Baby vomit didn’t easily come out of linen and silk.

His name was Robert and he was…well, he was a baby. And then a toddler. Part of Bryce hated herself for being unable to love the child like the mothers she saw in public. She thought that it might all come together when she held him in her arms for the first time. It was the moment all mothers seemed to speak of with peace and longing, but Bryce felt little more than pride.

She’d made that. A little human with fantastic genes who would never want for anything. But she didn’t feel the tug in her chest or the connection that she was told about. Robert was a stranger to her; and she knew he could feel it.

Her son was well-behaved, it was true, but outside of operating within the same large home, their scheduled interactions were limited. When she had attempted to hold him; to feed him or whatever one did with an infant, he just cried. He wouldn’t stop until Bryce handed him off and that hadn’t changed.

So if she couldn’t even buy his love – with expensive toys, clothing, and food – who else would dare?

This year, like every year before, she hadn’t even received one lousy card. Not even from her precious little Elmer army.

She took their hearts, though. In a way, it was similar to receiving a Valentine several times a month, even if she did use them up and throw them away.

It wouldn’t hurt, she supposed, to hire a boyfriend this year. There were plenty of men who would bend to her every whim; some on speed-dial even, and it would be a charity. Bryce was a woman of authority and fortune and it was good, every now and then, to give to the less fortunate. For a service, of course. She wasn’t in the habit of giving free money.

How much could love be worth? Half a million?

_

Bobby paced the floor of his cell, chewing at his nails as he went over his evil plans once again. He was going to get back at the world for treating him like garbage, tossing him away, and forgetting about him. One day, they would all know the name Bobby Worst and know that it was he that brought about the end of their cruel world. 

And Bryce would suffer with them. More if he could help it. He wanted to watch the life drain from her body and watch as that intelligent spark faded from her deep...chocolate eyes.

FUCK

Bobby slammed his palms against the iron bars and then tried flipping his bed. However, it was securely bolted down; something that had been done to it just a couple months after he was sentenced. He always seemed to forget that in the heat of the moment.

"Agggh it's not fair!" He cried out behind grit teeth and then sank down onto the floor.

And it wasn't. Why would he still be in love with the girl who had put him here and caused him so much pain? Why couldn't he just hate her like any normal person would?

"It's not fair," he muttered at himself, wrapping his arms around his knees and picking at a thread on his striped sleeve.

_

If Bryce still had a heart when she discovered that Bobby had escaped prison, it would have stopped for a moment.

It was front page news and she'd read it on a newspaper on her way into work. Bryce snatched the paper out of an old man's hands and quickly scanned the story with wild eyes.

"Shit!" The old man had gasped, "try me, bitch."

Instead, Bryce shoved the newspaper against his ugly yellow sweater-vest and stormed in to the elevator and then to her office, ignoring the whispers of her Elmer employees and the eyes of her little sister.

Bryce paced the floor and then stood at the window, looking down at the little ant-people below. Just when she was about to take a couple Xanax, the phone rang.

"Ms. Tankthrust? There's a man here insisting on adopting a baby. It's the persistent one."

Bryce nearly crushed the phone in her grip, but kept her voice even and authoritative. "Send him to the big room with the table-"

"The conference room?" The Elmer on the other end asked.

"Yes, whatever. Send him back. I'll deal with it." She slammed the phone down and then rubbed lightly at her chest. The surprise really had done some damage. She'd need a new one if she wanted to be convincing.

Bryce cracked her neck slightly and then went on a search for the fresh hearts, prepared to get this over with.

Then, she would decide what to do about Bobby Best.

_

When Bryce woke up, she was in a cell, lying atop a hard cot. Was this Hell? The last thing she remembered was looking down the barrel of a gun, held by a fucking baby. Baby Elmer; a name she'd decided to keep after stealing him from his true mother.

She didn't enjoy ripping a child from his mother's arms, but she'd been without a heart for nearly a month and it was a struggle to even get out of bed some mornings. She was weak, like a fourth stage cancer patient continuing to breathe out of spite.

In a way, that was exactly what she was living for.

By the time the first Elmer heart was ready, it had to be placed inside her chest cavity by Robert, who begged his nearly comatose mother to stay with him despite having been completely distant from him for most of his little life.

When the heart was shoved inside her chest, it was as if Bryce had done a bump of coke and drank 5 of her favorite double, half-sweet, non-fat caramel macchiato's.

However, she now felt as if she'd been run over by a truck...and then again as it backed over her lifeless corpse.

It felt so similar to the moment when Bobby lost his lunch all over her heart. That crushing, hollowed-out, desperate, clawing, pain.

"Hello!?" She called out, eyes desperately darting back and forth, taking in her surroundings, searching for weaknesses. "Hello, where am I?" She didn't want to sound vulnerable. Even now, she had to remain strong.

 "Hello Bryce," the voice came suddenly from the dark, where a man with platinum hair and a bored expression peered at her from the other side of the bars.

"Hi, would you kindly explain what's happening here?" Bryce gave him her most "pleasant" grin; one that barely hid her confusion and boiling rage.

"I resurrected you," he answered, and suddenly, Bryce knew exactly who this man was, standing there, staring at her with only malice in his eyes and a sparkling notebook under his chin. “With this.”

At one time, he'd been her greatest creation; not because she loved him at all, but because this clone had a heart that would be compatible with her body. He was the first in a long line of Elmer clones who had all...reluctantly donated their very beating hearts.

"I'll be damned, is that my first Elmer?" Her voice sounded almost fond. To say they had a history would be the understatement of the century. "Glad to see you could walk again, and you said that me kneecapping you would ruin your dance career. Oh, how you screamed in pain."

It was true; the removal of an Elmer's heart did not entirely remove the person inside. Some of her creations still held an interest for things like nature, theater, and - god forbid - art. But whatever kept them silent and complacent was fine with Bryce, just as long as they showed up to work on time and made her filthy fucking rich.

Her first Elmer displayed the most personality and had the strongest heart of any Elmer she'd ever made concurrently. She let him keep it, in a rare moment of motherly kindness or whatever, however as he discovered his love of interpretive dance, she could see that the boy was...stifled. He assured her that he was completely devoted to her; "like a son to his mother" (she never put much stock on that) but had tried to run away just a couple of weeks later. To Broadway, or what have you.

When Bryce broke his knees, she felt nothing but vindication. He'd tried to outwit and out-manipulate her.

As Elmer cried in pain, for just a moment, she thought she'd felt something; almost like a vibration or a...tear somewhere in her chest. It was the first shimmer of empathy she'd had since she was seven and it made her nauseous.

That night, Bryce ordered an army of Elmer clones be made and with each subsequent heart she stole, that tiny twinge of emotion faded. She'd "breed" it out of them if she had to.

Bryce watched as hate flashed in Elmer's eyes, a sure sign that things were not good for her.

She was fucked, and not in the fun way. 

_

After escaping prison, Bobby Worst did whatever the fuck he wanted to do. He fucked anything that walked...or crawled as well as various fruits and maybe some things that were not made to be fucked. Whatever, he'd put his dick in anything, because he was Bobby Worst; the absolute worst version of a human being he could ever conceive of. And he'd had a lot of time to think about that.

His diabolical plan was going to turn everyone into the worst versions of themselves. He would simply set off a nuclear bomb and whoever made it out alive would be just as fucked up and shitty as he'd felt for so many years.

And if everything went to plan, Bryce Tankthrust would be caught in the blast. If it didn't kill her, she would become soft, compassionate, and weak. The worst version of herself.

He could only hope she'd been lonely and miserable her entire life, but from the interviews he'd seen, she had more cash than several countries combined and she was never without a man who could dick her down. While he'd been stuck in a cell, pissed off and dreaming of revenge, Bryce had become the wealthiest and most powerful woman in the country, possibly the world.

She also mentioned that he was the skeleton in her closet and for a moment, it seemed like there was something behind her eyes. Regret? He'd replayed that moment again and again, pausing it on her face and searching for anything that said she thought about him.

 Of course, she could have been talking about any "skeleton" in any prison (who knew how many men she’d fucked over). Was he really so foolish to believe she even remembered him? That he was so important for her to regret that day for most of her life?

Bobby grit his teeth as he stared at those cold brown eyes, nearly crushing the remote in his hand. "Suck! Swallow! Set up the computer! I have a message for the world." 

_

Bryce hadn't seen the sunlight in so long. For days she was forced to kill herself and then was brought back only to do it again. She had died in every single way possible and she'd felt fear for the first time since she was a child.

She was strong until she no longer could be.

"No wait stop, Elmer, please, I can't take this anymore!" Her hand shook as she stretched it out to him, begging her tormentor for mercy though she knew she didn't deserve it and probably would not get it.

That audacity made her eldest Elmer pause, walking toward her with a glint in his eye so awful and so evil that she swore he'd adopted her own way of survival. He was enjoying this. 

The momentary distraction - his anger and vindication - was all she needed to snatch the all-powerful "Shit book" and pen, snapping both of Elmer's twig legs once again with the flick of a wrist. Once again, her entire body vibrated with power; power over her enemy, the smallest taste of freedom.

Until she discovered that even godly notebooks of infinite power had a limited number of pages. Oh the things she could have used that book for.

Elmer had had his fun with her and now, they were going to execute her. As she stared down the barrel of the gun in her face, she refused to allow them to see anything. Regret, fear, hopelessness, grief; it all swirled inside her, but her eyes were glassy and cold.

She always thought that it might come to this, though she always imagined the person on the other end of that barrel would be him.

It said a lot of Bryce that she would be happier to have been killed by his hand than to never see him again.

She tried to picture his face, but the only reference she had of him was the smiling face of a seven year old boy and the one very blurry mugshot.

"Last words?" The Elmer holding the gun asked.

Bryce tilted her head back and gave him her brightest, winning smile. "Get fucked, shitbag."

"How eloquent." Elmer said with a stony resolve.

Yet, at the last moment, the door to her lonely cell slid open with a hiss and the execution was called off by the very Elmer who had ordered her death. For now.

_

So there she remained, wrists chained to the walls, waiting for days on days for whenever the world needed her.

They say solitary confinement can break even the strongest of minds, and she had definitely had her weak moments in that cell, wishing even for the torture to continue if it meant having any sort of human interaction.

With her head hung low, she closed her eyes and wondered how baby Elmer was doing in the care of that closeted nitwit, Sam, and his disturbed vampire of a roommate...god, that had to be 17 years ago now. Did he remember anything?

Briefly, her mind wandered to Robert. Her only living relative; her continued bloodline. What would he do with her companies? Her amassed fortune? Was he happy?

In her weakest moment, her mind was stuck on a replay of that day with Bobby Best. The last, beautiful time she'd ever felt anything. The horrible last moments she'd had with him; leaving him heartbroken and confused. She wondered if he ever thought about her, all alone in his prison cell, and if he was still angry with her. She wondered if there might have ever been a chance for them. If he might have broken this door down and slaughtered the Elmer army to save her if circumstances were different.

 Bryce hissed as the stolen heart in her body gave a squeeze.

_

When Elmer rolled back into her cell, followed by a kid who couldn't be more than 29, explaining that the world had been blown to shit and he needed her help, she couldn't help but be amused. How dare he tell her what her purpose was? She knew exactly what she'd been put on this earth for and it wasn't to carry out some bastard's suicide mission. As soon as she was free, she was ripping his fucking heart out and eating it whole, right in front of him and any blonde bastard who tried to stop her. 

But then he dropped the biggest "fuck you" yet.

It was Bobby. Bobby Best. Her Bobby.

Apparently, he was Bobby Worst now - an evil bastard who had escaped prison and done all sorts of mildly horrible things until he finally managed to end the world. Oh, and he was on his way to kill her.

Bryce's snarky smile dropped from her face, and with a force enough to drop a bear, ripped the chains from the wall and stormed out into the bunker.

Unfortunately, the heart in her chest had been long since shriveled and useless and she dropped like a bag of bricks, crying out with the pain. It had taken too much. She wouldn't make it. Not even to Bobby's feet. And she still needed to get that stupid time machine.

"I'm too weak," she explained, clutching at her chest. "I'm gonna need a new heart."

Elmer didn't believe her. "You need to Get. Up."

"I ain't gonna make it 20 yards outside this stupid bunker without dying." She tried to explain. Why would they weaken their only hope?

"Yeah, but what's 'bunker' mean, though?" The kid standing behind Elmer's wheelchair asked...was this guy serious?

"Shut. Up." Bryce demanded, slapping the floor with her palm. "I need a new heart and I want yours."

Elmer just looked bored. "You can have one of the other Elmers'."

"I want yours, Professor X, and I wanna watch it come out of your body." It was only fair. Sure, she'd been cruel to him, but she'd never killed him. Not this Elmer specifically. And he had killed her. Many times.

There was a loud knock on the heavy bunker door, the other Elmer clones announcing the obvious arrival of a guest and working to unlatch and open the door as Bryce and their eldest argued over the possession of his heart.

Time was growing slim. He would have to make a quick decision and that's what she was counting on.

The sudden burst of gunfire made Bryce  jump and duck behind the chair. For a moment, everything was chaos. She didn't have time to stop and think about the voice she'd just heard. She knew it was him. Of course it was him. But she wasn't yet ready to face him. Didn't know if her weak heart could take it.

While Bobby descended upon Elmer in the chaos, Bryce and Blame - apparently that was the kid's name -  slipped out of the door and she earned a pop in the nose for her troubles.

Sure, hearing Bobby's voice demanding to know where she was after years of wondering if he even remembered her was fucking her up a little bit. That, paired with the failing organ in her chest made her a little testy. A bit feral. And it didn't take much for her to snap at Blame about the hazmat suit he was complaining about wearing. When he offered her the Elmer heart in his hand, she latched onto it like a hungry widow spider did its prey, shoving it inside her chest with a shudder.

It wouldn't last long out there, but it was better than nothing. 

_

Bryce was absolutely disgusted with the state of the world. The green assholes she’d met on the outside were even worse than she’d been rumored to be while she was the reigning CEO of multiple Fortune 500 companies. Even the low-income, tattooed heathen she was stuck with seemed like better company. If anyone wanted to know if she’d grown soft on the boy, they could eat a dick and choke on it.

But she did feel a bit bad when they stumbled across the bodies of his friends, giving him a moment alone with them to say his goodbye’s. They were all so young; probably just around her own son’s age. It was a shame, really.

As she roamed the Corn Hole Café, she could hear Blame speaking words of love to his friends and she wondered what it must feel like to lose someone like that, or to care if she did.

“Hey assholes!” Bryce’s head whipped around to the door so fast she rocked a bit in her heels. How the fuck did he find them?

“The lesbian..” She muttered to herself, suddenly regretting not killing her when she had the chance.

“Come out here with your hands up and we’ll fuck you with lube!” Bobby and his disgusting little henchmen laughed to themselves. What was it with villains and laughing like maniacs? 

Rolling her eyes, Bryce made her way back over to Blame, stepping over bodies as she went, but the idiot had decided to antagonize the assholes outside instead of staying quiet and going over a plan.

There was a series of several gunshots and Blame ducked out of Suck’s line of fire, crawling quickly toward the time machine they’d come for in the first place.

Bryce knew what she had to do.

40 years imagining and going over this very moment were thrown directly out of the window. Fuck what Elmer said, this was her purpose. Bobby was her beginning and her end.

“Don’t hurt the boy, Bobby. It’s me you’re after, remember?” She slowly made her way out of the café, putting herself between Bobby and Blame, her hands raised in surrender. She wasn’t even going to try to fight this. “It’s me you nuked this entire fucking planet trying to destroy and yet, here I am, standing like a boner.”

Bobby actually looked…hurt, which was what she was afraid of. Those damn sad fucking eyes - until they filled with rage.

“Nothing ever goes my way!” He cried, every bit as much the pissed off seven-year-old he used to be.

“I got access to a time machine,” She bargained, gesturing over her shoulder, “We can go back and fix all this. Not just the apocalypse but…everything, Bobby.” She wanted that more than she’d ever wanted anything. Standing here, seeing him again, she realized that he was the piece missing from her life; his absence in her life the reason she was so miserable. She hadn’t realized just how fucking much she missed Bobby until he was right in front of her. All she wanted to do was go to him; maybe…hug him. It was all very confusing and uncomfortable. 

Bobby was the one who got away and she had no one to blame but herself. But she had a chance to fix that. To keep him in her life and keep him out of prison. To have him forever.

“I’m sorry, Bryce.” He seemed to hesitate, bouncing on his feet like he did when he was anxious. Did he…have tears in his eyes? “But I waited forty goddamn years in prison for this fuckin’ moment, now I’m gonna skin you like a goddamn pig!”

Bryce was almost disappointed. Not surprised though; prison did awful things to the mind. Bobby was a child when he entered the system; and an innocent child at that. She was the reason he’d grown up that way and he’d had a long time to ruminate in his hate.

She sighed, the smile on her face waning with the ache she felt in her chest. A hollow, awful kind of pain. She knew exactly where this was going. They wouldn’t get a happy ending.

“Well shit, I figured as much.” She turned back toward the café where she’d heard the door creak open softly. “Get out of here now, Blame!”

“Yeah, but what about you, dawg?” How sweet. He was actually concerned about her safety. It would figure that she’d gain some attachment to humanity when she was prepared to leave it.

“This is my purpose,” she told him  and then scooped up the rifle at her feet, pointing it directly at the green man in front of her. He had a knife. He planned to murder her and make it personal.

_

Bobby took a step back, brows furrowed, holding the knife out in front of him warily. He was terrified to admit that his feelings toward Bryce had never really changed. He had missed her and now here she was. Was he prepared to lose her again?

Would she do it? Would she use the gun on him? If her interviews were anything to go by, Bryce Tankthrust was an absolute force of power. She was not to be underestimated or to be fucked with. At this point, Bobby wasn’t sure what to expect.

There were gunshots from the café behind her, where the boy she’d been protecting had disappeared, but Bryce didn’t even flinch. Her focus was narrowed, and it was all on him. The force of it was crushing.

Could he do it? Could he actually take a knife to her?

_

Bryce’s hands tightened and then loosed on the rifle at least three times. No matter what she did, she could not make her finger tighten on that trigger. A heat bubbled up inside her and everything came rushing out all at once. “DAMMIT!” She cried in anguish, dropping the gun from Bobby’s face. “I can’t do it!”

She stared at the ground, ashamed of the guilt; the weakness she felt for Bobby. Even now.

“I thought I was heartless, but there still seems to be people I can’t bring myself to kill.” It didn’t matter what Bobby did to the world or even to her; she wouldn’t take the first shot.

_

Bobby let out a small breath of relief when Bryce dropped the nose of the rifle.

She couldn’t do it. She couldn’t hurt him.

It almost made him reconsider what he was about to do. It almost made him drop the knife and run to take her hand. To live out the rest of their days as the worst living couple in existence. Almost.

“Well then allow me,”

_

The next thing Bryce felt was the plunge of metal in her abdomen, and then three more just like it. And then heat, more intense than she could ever fathom. There was so much blood and so much pain. She was dying; she'd died enough times to know it immediately.

“You stupiiiiiiid cunt!” Bobby gloated, kneeling over her to laugh in her face. Bryce coughed with the pain, blood leaking from her parted lips. "You call yourself evil. You couldn’t even kill me and I’m a fucking terrorist!”

“You’re right,” Bryce sighed, meeting Bobby’s eyes. She was resigned to her fate now, but that didn’t mean she had to do it alone, “I just need a little push.” Bryce ripped the hazmat suit from her face and took a deep inhale of the radioactive oxygen around them. Immediately, her skin flushed a deep green, altering and corrupting her very cells, turning her into someone who could actually kill the love of her life.

Bryce lifted the blade from her stomach, watching as it slid out of her flesh covered in her blood. Bobby held her wrist the entire time, eyes wide and full of fear. He knew, as well, where this was going.

As Bobby screamed about the deep injustice of it all, Bryce plunged the blade into his torso; once, twice…and then four more times, crying out as if it was killing her too. The pain she felt was much more than just physical. It ripped at her insides and squeezed at her throat. She didn’t want this. No matter what Bobby did to her, she never wanted to hurt him. But to save this disgusting planet, she needed to bring down the very worst of the assholes inhabiting it.

Bryce rolled onto her back beside her childhood friend who was staring up at the smog-hidden sky above them as they both gasped and choked on their last remaining breaths. Bryce watched his face, wishing that he might reach out and take her hand in these final few moments.

“You know what’s crazy?” Bobby forced out between gasps. “Every decision we’ve ever made has led to this moment.”

Bryce felt herself relax into the grass as she laughed warmly. He remembered.

Bryce felt her heart give out when she heard Bobby take his last breath. Her eyes lost their focus and she imagined what life might have been had they been able to start over.

Bobby had once been the most important person in Bryce’s life. More than the son she’d named after him. More than her own living, breathing sister.

In another world, perhaps, Bryce would have taken Bobby’s hand and they would have run away together. They might have fallen in love; genuinely and immensely. She might have become the most powerful woman in the world – president, even – supported at every step by her super-hot, super-villain boyfriend.

In another world, maybe they’d have started a little evil family of their own – she’d always liked the name Delmar (would they even make good parents??). Maybe they’d have a wedding on the roof of a skyscraper and start their honeymoon by blowing some shit up.

Maybe they’d be happy.

And she’d never need to steal a heart again, because she’d already have one freely given.

Author’s Notes:

 I realized after writing this that Helen and Bryce are not actually sisters in this universe but I can’t be bothered to change it. They are sisters in this fic, though it doesn’t really change the story. If you know Helen, growing up with Bryce Tankthrust as an older sister would explain a lot.

Bryce does have a son, mentioned only once and briefly. The biological father is unknown and he does not currently have a name. It doesn’t seem like he and Bryce are close. In my fic, I named him Robert (after Bobby T-T), BUT I have since decided that Delmar Lysol (from Brandon’s video, Family Friendly Halloween) could have only come from the loins and environment of these two fucked up assholes, so he’s their son...in another timeline.

This is NOT a healthy relationship (then again, is anyone healthy in the BRCU??) but Bryce and Bobby are villains for a reason. They’re assholes. To everyone. Everyone in this universe is an asshole (except for precious Sam, I do believe, though he has his moments)

#brandon rogers #worstthrust #my fic #bryce tankthrust #bobby worst #fanfiction #brcu #brandon rogers cinematic universe

[apocalypsewriters]

Not-a-Damsel in Distress: Hallway Edition

Summary: Victor-Hecate's first public short story! Their many protective layers concealed too many features, so a patrolling teacher hehe that rhymed decided to lecture them on it and subsequently put them in danger. A somewhat mysterious girl (Aster @pagesofcursive character) comes to the rescue, which may lead them back to a path they abandoned long ago for the safety of them and the mental peace of those around them.

“Miss Ernesh!” The teacher’s voice rang out across the hallway.

Victor-Hecate Ernesh jumped, their head halfway in their locker. Sighing, they tugged at their scarf, one of the many layers of clothing they wore, and closed their locker. “Yes?” they answered, their voice muffled by the cream bandana they wore.

Coldly, the teacher demanded, “Take off all those… accessories. You know the school policy.”

Victor-Hecate said nothing and began unwrapping their copious layers of clothing. Under the severe gaze of the teacher, they shrugged off the overcoat and laid it on the tiled floor, grimacing at the thought of all the grime from day to day usage getting on the soft leather. They tugged off their grey beanie, a mop of tightly coiled chocolate brown curls spilling out and hanging halo-like around their head. After trying and failing to unwrap their scarf, they tugged off their treasured gloves and added them to the slowly growing pile at their knees.

“Hey!” a voice echoed sharply from one of the nearby lockers.

A pale girl stormed over, her dark, choppily cut, chin-length hair framing her face. A scar traced down the left side of her face, through her eyebrow to halfway down her cheek. Her dark clothing contrasted starkly with her fierce blue eyes. Victor-Hecate’s eyes widened at the impressive figure she cut; they’d heard of her before - Aster had dated Dawn, one of the more popular girls in schools, and was in and out of detention so often, no one could keep track of her misdeeds. “Can’t you see they’re obviously uncomfortable? Why can’t they just wear what they want?” Aster’s icy tone matched the teacher’s.

The teacher raised an eyebrow at the fuming girl. “She wasn’t adhering to the dress code, so she had to change. And frankly, it’s none of your business, so resume getting ready for class.”

Victor-Hecate turned back to their pile of clothing, their spirits lifted a little - they’d finally managed to unknot their scarf, and someone was trying to stand up for them. They stole another look at the girl, who rolled her eyes at the teacher. Stealing a hidden smirk, they got to work untying their bandana, which had gotten caught in their short hair.

“Dress code is stupid anyway,” she snapped, her eyes blazing brighter than before, and she narrowed them at the teacher. “Are their clothes personally bothering you? Because I don’t see how a few extra layers do anything but help them feel comfortable.”

The teacher’s visage grew haughty at the fiery girl’s insolence. “It’s a matter of security. It is hard to identify the student, and he or she could be smuggling something,” the teacher said snidely.

“A matter of security?” she said with a snicker. “Did you know that four of the doors leading into the school and the front gate all have broken locks? There are malfunctioning cameras everywhere, and at least half the windows are cracked. Why don’t you focus on those instead of targeting an innocent student?” As Victor-Hecate ripped their ashamed gaze from the pile of clothing on the floor, they caught a flash of fire curling around Aster’s fist. 

“Mind your tone, young lady,” snapped the teacher.

Finally, Victor-Hecate plucked up the courage to say something. Apparently, their mumble was inaudible to the pair standing above them, as the teacher abruptly asked, “What was that?”

They swallowed and tried to muster up their drive once again. “It’s not that big of a deal. It’s fine, really.”

The teacher turned and smugly addressed Aster, who was still standing there, boiling with barely checked rage. “You see?”

Aster’s voice hardened, her eyes growing steely as she reeled back her temper. “You’re terrifying them, do you see that? Although I’m sure that during the dark ages, when you first became a teacher, it was fine to mistreat students, but it’s a different time now.” If looks could kill, the teacher would be dead on the floor. Rolling her eyes once again as the teacher opened her mouth, she quickly said, “Just let them go the rest of the day with the layers they’re comfortable with, and then I’ll help them figure out a new wardrobe after school.”

The teacher huffed before stalking off down the hallway, leaving the pair alone in front of the lockers. Victor-Hecate spoke up again, their voice filling the silence that now permeated the area, “Thank you. That was really brave. I would never be able to do that.” Their cheeks rushed with blood, giving them the color they desperately needed.

Aster’s expression softened a little. “It’s no problem. I hate when teachers do stuff like that.” She paused for a moment. “Hey, do I know you? You look familiar.”

They shrugged, “Maybe. But probably not. I don’t know a lot of people, and as you can see,” they said, gesturing to their backpack, which was bursting at the seams with their shredded layers, “I don’t show a lot of features. But I know you, though.” Victor-Hecate paused, doubting their previous observation. “You’re Aster, right? You’ve caused quite a stir at school. Even I noticed.”

Aster let out a laugh, her features alight with memories of mischief. “Yeah, that’s what I’m known for. What’s your name again?”

Victor-Hecate smarted, startled by the question. “Sorry about that. I’m not really used to people asking me. I’m pretty good at fading into the background.” They smiled weakly, pulling on their backpack. “I’m Victor-Hecate. Take your pick of nicknames; I don’t mind. It’s a bit of a mouthful, I know.” Once again, they wished they didn’t have their powers, or at the very least, were wearing gloves – this seemed like a situation that needed a handshake. Memories of normal greetings, normal interactions with people had faded over the six years of having powers.

“Well, Victor-Hecate,” Aster said, nudging them. They stiffened at the contact, preparing themself for pain, but none came. Thankfully, Aster hadn’t managed to brush any skin. “I think you’re pretty cool. And I’m sure I know someone in your family- any siblings at this school?”

“Thanks. My cousin goes here, actually. You’ve probably heard of her; she’s pretty popular. Violetta?”

Aster’s eyes widened for a moment, a slight blush rushing into her cheeks. She cleared her throat. “Oh. That explains things then. She’s in a bunch of my classes.” She chuckled. “I don’t know if she mentioned, but we kinda have a rivalry going on.”

Victor-Hecate shook their head sadly. “I don’t see her that much. We don’t run in the same circles. Like I said, I don’t know a lot of people.” They shuffled their feet awkwardly, tugging at the sleeves of their light green turtleneck. “Thanks again for rescuing me.” They started walking away, leaving Aster behind, still a little flushed.

“Well, tell her I said hi, I guess.” Her face went red again as they stopped, just shy of a chewed pencil that lay unseen one pace away from the tips of Victor-Hecate’s grey converse. Aster’s hair bounced slightly as she shook her head quickly. “Actually, don’t.”

Victor-Hecate twisted around, taking two steps towards the darkly dressed girl, raising their eyebrows, a smirk spreading on their face. “So, don’t tell her you say hi?”

Aster avoided their eyes, somehow blushing brighter. “Just ignore all of that. Uh, so am I coming over to your house to help you pick out new clothes, or did I straight up lie to that jerk of a teacher?” Fire licked out from her fists at the memory of the argument.

“You can if you want to. But I’d understand if you don’t. I’m not the most sociable person,” their smile faded.

“No, no,” Aster reassured. “I would love to hang out.”

Victor-Hecate brightened, “Awesome. Here.” They swung their bag around and fished in a pocket, searching for stationary. After a few agonizing moments of scrambling, they pulled out a pen and paper. “Write down your number so we can organize this later.”

Aster stretched out a hand. As soon as her fingers brushed the paper, they let go. The pen clattered to the floor, the paper drifting to the rest moments later. Victor-Hecate shot Aster an apologetic look as she bent to pick up the fallen materials. Aster leaned against the lockers, writing out her phone number in chicken scratch, the numbers barely legible. Stopping for a brief moment partway through writing, she aggressively shook the pen, which revolted at being used sideways. Handing back the paper, Aster blinked as the other student snatched the paper out of her hands. Victor-Hecate cringed at the situation, worried their fear was warping another potential relationship.

“Well, text me then,” Aster said, thankfully not mentioning Victor-Hecate’s odd mannerisms.

“Thanks! I will” They turned and started walking away. Suddenly, their foot slid out from underneath them, a pencil flying up in the air – the culprit of the tumble. They fell to the ground, hard, their wrists smacking against the grimy tiled floor. Anyone else would have let out a cry or grimaced at the fall, but Victor-Hecate’s high pain tolerance allowed them to brush off the injury.

“Here, let me help.” Too late, they heard Aster walk up to them, her boots clumping across the floor, and grab their hands to try to pull them up. Pain bloomed in their abdomen, their eyes flashed black as their power flared up. They snatched their hands away, falling once more to the floor. They curled into the fetal position, wrapping their arms around their middle as the phantom wound lingered. By their best guess, it would be a knife wound- and an ugly one at that. They let out a whimper as the pain surged. Finally, finally, it faded, allowing Victor-Hecate to recover and sit up.

Their voice was strained, “I’m good, but thanks.”

“Are you okay? What happened?” Concern was etched on Aster’s face.

Hauling themself to their feet, they replied, “My awful power happened.” They wilted at the worry, the pity on Aster’s face. It always happened. They were maybe, finally, respected as a person, a whole person without issues. And then, inevitably, their power surfaced and put them below everyone else again. They hated feeling weak, but the only thing worse than the pain was the looks they got. No one ever saw them as competent after witnessing a breakdown. Victor-Hecate watched curiosity light in Aster’s eyes. Maybe pity wasn’t the worst. They dreaded her horrified reaction to the reveal of the morbid powers they never wished for.

“Oh, uh- what’s your power then?” The question spilled out of Aster’s lips.

Straightening their backpack, they muttered, “I’m so sorry for the way you go out.” They brushed themself off, relishing in the final moments of ignorance before horror soured the air. Clearing their throat awkwardly, they explained, “Whenever I touch someone, I feel the pain of their death.”

With their gaze fixed on the floor, they didn’t see Aster backing up, but they heard it; her black leather boots squeaked twice on the tiles before her hand pressed against a locker, the metal letting out a crack as it warped under her weight. They imagined the shock on her face, just like the dozens before her. “I- What hap- No, I don’t want to know. Is that why...?” She stammered before trailing off.

Victor-Hecate's shoulders tightened from their slumped position. They were distraught but tried not to show it. “Yeah. That’s why I wear so much clothing - to cover any skin.” Swallowing back tears, they knelt back on the ground and pulled a jacket out from their bag. They slipped it on, jamming their thumbs in the holes by the base of the sleeves and zipping it up as quickly as possible. They forced themself to meet Aster’s gaze before continuing, “If you don’t want to come over, I understand. Nothing like a stranger knowing how you die.”

Aster chuckled weakly, the shock slowly fading from her face. “No, no, it’s- it’s okay.” She smiled at Victor-Hecate, who stood, shell-shocked in front of her. “And, exactly, I’d rather a friend know how I die compared to a random stranger. So, I’m still welcome to come?”

“Oh,” they said, caught off guard. “Of course.” The words were quiet, not quite out loud, but not quite to themself either. “I’d love that.” The pair stood in silence for a few moments before Victor-Hecate piped up, “Just, be careful around knives, okay?”

Aster’s jaw dropped at the statement. It hung open for two counts before snapping shut. “I’ll do my best. See you after school.”

“Yeah,” they said, perking up at the prospect, “Yeah…” As they made their way down the hallway, making a point to avoid the pencil, which sat innocently three feet from where it had been five minutes earlier.

Aster laughed under her breath, before starting on her own way in the opposite direction of Victor-Hecate, who now almost had a spring in their step. That day, they counted down the hours left of school for a completely different reason from their classmates. The only time the wait slipped their mind was lunch – they pulled out their phone, pulling up the number of a person they hadn’t talked to face to face for a long time.

#the original title of this is so good #so here:Teacher is a b**ch Aster is a badass and Vee is soft and ~wants~ needs to make a friend #somewhat unimportant author's note: Victor-Hecate has genderqueer listed on their school records so the teacher is being a bit of a bigot #but with this reading is anyone surprised #this is the first part of an arc that has at least 2 more parts #1 is completed another is in the works and there's an overarching story #so you have that to look forward to #Victor-Hecate #vh #aster #fusion au #original character #writeblr #writing #writers #writers of tumblr #short story #my writing #writersociety #ocs #original characters #tw death mention #because VH's powers have no chill #which is entirely my fault and I can't bring myself to feel sorry about it

[booksalwaysandforever]

Holding on to the Memories Chapter 3

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Summary: Lauren’s life was a perfect dream, until one day it wasn’t. Cutting can distract you from life, but it can also take life away. Can Lauren get back home, or has it all been taken away from her?

Tag list:  @kai-unknown​

Length: almost 3000 words, it’s pretty long!

I’m so sorry, it has been forever since I posted. This chapter took a long time to write and I have had a rough couple weeks. I absolutely love this chapter and I hope you do too! I will try and get the next chapter out a lot faster than this one.

The darkness was all consuming. There was no way out, and no way to tell how long I had been here. It could’ve been 5 minutes or a month. I didn’t know. 

All of a sudden, the darkness lit up with millions of colors. At first, I thought the light was back, but as I watched the scene in front of me unfold, I quickly realized that wasn’t it at all. 

“Please, take care of her,” a woman, my birth mother, said as she handed a baby to Carlisle. 

“We will take care of her and give her a life as grand as if she were a princess.” She smiled at the answer and closed her eyes as her breathing stopped. Carlisle turned to the baby in his arms. “Welcome to the family, Lauren. I promise to love you as if you were my own daughter, as I’m sure Esme and the rest of your siblings will as well.” With that, he turned and rushed away.

This was a memory. It was mine, but at the same time, it wasn’t. I was too young to remember this. It must’ve been Carlisle’s. It was the day he found and adopted me. Carlisle had been hunting nearby and could smell the blood. He came as fast as he could to see what had happened and if he could help. Sadly, my dad was killed on impact and my mother was severely hurt. Carlisle couldn’t save her, but before she died, she gave me to Carlisle, in hopes that he could give me an amazing life. 

The memory quickly faded into another one.

“Everyone, I have some news,” Carlisle said as he walked through the door. “Meet your new little sister. Her parents were in a car crash and she has no other family, so she’ll be staying with us.”

Everyone piled around, getting a good look at their sister.

“Nessie,” Edward said, “she looks a little like you. And a lot like you did when you were human, Bella.”

“Yeah, brown hair, brown eyes, so similar.” Renesmee said, rolling her eyes as she moved closer to me. “Hi there girly. I’m Nessie, your big sister.” The little baby giggled and stretched their hands out to grab at Renesmee’s hand. When she got a hold of it, she pulled the fingers into her mouth and began sucking on them.

“I think she’s going to start using us all as teething rings,” Esme laughed as she reached her hands out to Carlisle. “Come here girly, Mommy wants to meet you.”

The moment Esme got her hands on the little girl, she began swaying side to side and humming to her. The baby was asleep within a minute.

“What’s her name, Carlisle?” Rosalie asked.

“Lauren Lee Stoel. She is about 4 months old I do believe. I have yet to see her official birth certificate, but I’m sure I will soon. The adoption process starts on Monday.”

“Wait, we’re actually adopting her?” Esme asked with a huge grin on her face.

“Yes dear. In a matter of months, she will officially be ours. She will officially be a Cullen.”

The scene faded again as another one began appearing. Renesmee was showing me as many memories as she could find, memories from my life, taken from the rest of my family, trying to help me wake up.

Esme opened the door to a room and walked in. I followed her in, but it was so dark, I couldn’t see anything. As my eyes adjusted, I realized it was the nursery. A baby, little me, was lying in a crib with Jasper sitting in the rocking chair nearby, reading a book.

“Jasper, what are you doing?” Esme quietly asked.

“I’m tryin’ to get used to her scent and calm ‘er down. She was fidgeting and having a nightmare, I think. I was gonna try and calm her down.”

Ever since that day, Jasper had been my best friend. Slowly, he had gotten used to me and every time I hurt myself or couldn’t sleep, he calmed me down.

The next memories were like pictures. There wasn’t much for talking, but there were short snippets of my life as a baby, captured like a picture.

Jasper was holding me and singing me to sleep while rocking in the rocking chair.

Rosalie was feeding me some mashed peas, which I had effectively flung back into her face. Everyone, including Rosalie, laughed.

Edward sat me in his lap, and was playing the piano. After a moment, I recognized the tune as my lullaby. I was banging on the piano as hard as I could, making it impossible for him to play.

Alice had dressed me up like a princess, practically in a ballgown. Baby me did not like that. I was screaming my lungs out and trying to pull it off. 

Emmett was lying on the ground beside me, playing with me. After a few moments, I yawned and fell asleep. Emmett appeared not to notice and continued playing with my fascinating baby toys.

As I watched these pictures, I realized that Renesmee wasn’t in all of them. She must have talked to everyone, asking them to tell her about some memories they had of me, and she painted the picture in my head. It was almost like I was there with them, watching myself grow up.

“Oh Lauren! Look at you! You’re so grown up,” Rosalie cooed. Emmett was holding onto my hands, helping my almost one year old self walk across the living room floor. “Come here, come to Rosy”

I let go of Emmett’s hands and walked the small three steps into Rosalie’s arms.

“Oh! Lauren, you did it!” she gasped.

“Yeah, you can walk now!” Emmett shouted

And another memory. A birthday no less.

“Happy birfday to me!!” I cried as I shoved my entire face into the birthday cake Alice had made for my first birthday.

“See, this is why we had to strip her before we let her eat it,” Carlisle said. “Lauren, do you like cake?”

“Oooooh, cake. I like cake,”

“Esme, I don’t think a bath is going to clean her. We’re going to need a garden hose.”

“I’ll go get the power washer!”

Everyone laughed. “Emmett, no! You do not get to hose down your sister with the power washer.”

Images of my second, third, and fourth birthday all passed by, along with many different images of me playing games with my family, meeting the wolves and playing with them, and other random memories. None of them were very long, just a moment or two, but that didn’t mean they weren’t important to me.

“Emmett, Jasper, can you guys take Lauren and go shopping for food for her this afternoon? Your father has to work and the rest of us need to go hunting,” Esme asked the boys.

“Sure thing, Mom,” Jasper said as he grabbed the keys. Emmett helped me put my shoes on and buckled me into my booster seat.

“So, what do you want for supper Lauren?” Emmett asked, turning around in his seat to look at me.

“Pancakes. And Mac and Cheese. Oh! And chicken nuggets.” Jasper laughed.

“We’ll see what we can get you squirt.”

When we got to the store, Emmett and Jasper followed me around the store and let me pick out anything I wanted. The best part of being the youngest kid was that all of my older siblings didn’t have the ability to say no to me. After 30 minutes of following me around the store, we walked out with several bags, mostly consisting of sugar, and brought them to the car. 

After spending the afternoon playing games and running around the house with Emmett and Jasper, everyone came home.

“So, how was shopping, boys?” Esme asked.

“Good, we got everything Lauren wanted.”

“Oh no. No no no.” Esme put her head in her hands. “Please tell me you bought more than just donuts, ice cream, and candy bars.”

“Don’t worry, we did. We also got her some fruit snacks, fruit roll ups, juice boxes, popsicles, and chocolate milk,” said Emmett with an innocent grin on his face.

“And some Mac and cheese, chicken nuggets, yogurt, fish sticks, and stuff for pancakes and waffles. Don’t worry, there is some actual food in there,” Jasper said, laughing at Esme’s horrified face. 

“So Lauren, what do you want to be for Halloween?” Jacob asked me.

“That’s a secret. You’ll just have to wait and see.”

Jacob always took Renesmee and I trick or treating. Renesmee was only one year older than my four year old self, so she passed for a young teenager. People still gave her candy when she was with me, so we always went together. Most of the time, it was too sunny out when we started trick or treating so none of the rest of the family could come.

A week later, it was time to go trick or treating. Alice was in my room helping me get ready. 

“Lauren, are you almost ready? We need to go before all the good candy is gone,” Jacob called from down the stairs. 

“I’m coming. I’m coming,” I shouted back. As I walked down the stairs, Jacob started laughing. I was dressed up as Little Red Riding Hood, and Renesmee and I convinced him to be a wolf. Renesmee was dressed as a grandma to follow along with the whole scheme.

“See, we match!”

From that day on, Jacob always called me Little Red. My Halloween costumes had earned me several nicknames. I dressed up as a bear for Emmett one year and he had begun to call me “brown bear”. I became known as “spider monkey” to Edward because I dressed up as a spider monkey one year for him, and the fact that I would always climb on everything when I was little. To Jasper, I was his “mini major”. I had dressed up as a cowgirl once and I often had a bit of a temper and was pretty sassy. The best Halloween costume though, was when I dressed up as a vampire. Alice and Edward helped me get red contacts, fake fangs, a cape, and everything else to help me look like a vampire in movies, even some fake blood and red juice to drink. Everyone loved it. It was by far, the best Halloween costume ever.

“Can I please know what my birthday present is?” I asked. Jasper had blind folded me and had slung me over his shoulder while he carried me somewhere. 

“No. It’s a surprise.”

“Come on, please? Pretty please? I’m seven now. I should get to know.”

“No.”

“Wow, this is one of the first times you’ve said no.” Jasper laughed.

“We’ve all had a hard time saying no to you since you’re so cute.”

“I’m not cute,” I exclaimed as I hit him as hard as I could without hurting myself. “Rosalie says I’m beautiful. Also, your shoulder hurts. It’s too hard. I’m going to break my hand one of these days from smacking you or Emmett.” Jasper laughed at me again.

“Then maybe don’t hit us.”

“But you deserve to be hit.”

“I agree with Lauren.” Rosalie said, standing somewhere beside me. Jasper set me down on the ground. I could tell we were outside due to the sound of the creek and the breeze blowing my hair.

“Okay, are you ready to see your birthday present?”

“Yes. I’ve been waiting a whole year!” Everyone laughed.

“Okay then.”

Rosalie untied the blindfold and everyone at the party began singing happy birthday. My family, the pack, Grandpa Charlie, Grandma Sue, Grandpa Billy, and even my aunts and uncles from Alaska were there. Alice had made this a huge party, with fairy lights hanging from the trees, a huge banner that said “Happy 7th birthday, Lauren” in fancy calligraphy, and a huge birthday cake. But the coolest thing I saw was a swimming pool with a diving board and slide, a trampoline, and a tree house in the climbing tree. 

“A tree house, a pool, and a trampoline?” I exclaimed, jumping up and down. 

“Yes dear,” said Carlisle. “You’ve been begging us to get at least one for a while and you’ve been doing amazing in school, so we decided to let you have all three. 

“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” I shouted as I gave him and Esme hugs. I ran over to the trampoline, and Seth, Jacob, Emmett, and Jasper followed me.

“Boys,” Esme called. “That is Lauren’s gift. Let's not break it on the first day.”

A billion more memories went through my head. Memories of riding on Jacob’s back through the forest and going on runs with all of my siblings and the rest of the pack. Memories of playing tons of board games and video games with Emmett and Jasper, learning to play piano with Edward, and learning to dance with all my brothers and Dad. Going shopping with Rosalie, Alice, and Bella, spending the night at Renesmee’s house and her spending the night with me. Having sleepovers at Grandpa Charlie and Grandma Sue’s house, sleepovers with the pack at Sam and Emily’s house, and even sleepovers in Alaska with Aunt Tanya, Aunt Kate, and Uncle Garrett. Making a flower crown for everyone in the Volturi when they came to visit, making Marcus smile for the first time in a very long time, pretending to be a vampire princess when I visited their palace. Singing and dancing for my entire family, playing tag with everyone, only for it to end with someone catching me, throwing me in the air, and tickling me. Memories of things like going tubing, or to an amusement park with Renesmee, Jacob, Seth, and sometimes the rest of the pack. Even just simple things like blasting music in the car on the way to school, or seeing everyone in the front row at one of my dance recitals. Every one of those billion memories reminded me of why I needed to fight to stay. I needed to hold on to these memories and go home. But how?

One last memory plays in my mind. This one definitely wasn’t mine, but it was everyone else's.

My entire family was there, standing in a hospital room, crowded around a bed. My bed. Renesmee was sitting next to me, on my right side near the window, holding her hand to my cheek. Jasper was sitting on my other side holding my hand, while Alice was standing behind him. Esme and Carlisle, Rosalie and Emmett, Edward and Bella, and Jacob were all standing around my bed. Edward spoke first.

“As you’ve realized, Renesmee has been playing as many memories as she could find for you to try and wake you up. So far, it hasn’t helped. I hope this does. We need you to come back, Lauren.”

“Brown bear, come home,” Emmett whispered just loud enough for everyone to hear. “We’ve got to play Cards Against Humanity.”

“Lauren, we found your gifts,” Rosalie said, reaching for the locket around her neck. “I love it. And I promise,” she said, opening the locket to reveal the picture inside. “I didn’t put anything embarrassing in here.” 

Esme’s crying was worse than it had ever been. Her body was shaking with sobs, which was very unusual for a vampire. She was turned into Carlisle’s body, who was holding her, but he looked like he was going to collapse himself.

“Princess, please. We need you,” was all he could choke out in a hoarse whisper. My dad was never like this. He was always cool, calm, collected. Right now, he looked like a mess. I had broken my Dad. And that broke my heart.

“Little Red, the pack needs you too.” Jacob said from behind Renesmee. “They’ve all been a mess. Especially Seth and Leah. They haven’t slept or eaten in days. We need you. Fight. Please, please fight.”

“Lauren, I need my best friend. I need help eating all the candy and ice cream at home, help beating the boys at every video game we own, help pulling all nighters and watching every movie for the six millionth time. I can’t do that without you. I can’t do it without my best friend and sister.”

Both Bella and Alice couldn’t talk, they were sobbing too hard. I left Alice speechless for the first time ever. 

“I love you too.” That was all Jasper could say. I had never seen him cry. Jasper did not cry. Not once. But now, he was. My big brother, the Major, the strongest of us all, was crying, no, sobbing. And it was all my fault. Slowly, Jasper leaned forward and kissed my forehead.

That kiss was true love. My brother loved me more than anything, and that was what fought the darkness. The feeling of his lips leaving my head were the first thing I could feel. That and his cold hand in mine felt amazing against my burning skin. Now, I could hear the sounds of everyone's sobs in my own ears. I was regaining consciousness! I had fought the darkness and now I could go home. I forced my eyes open and looked at my family, who, other than Alice and Edward, had no idea I was awake. Alice had gasped the moment Jasper had decided to kiss my head, so everyone turned to look at her.

“Jasper” I croaked. Everyone turned their heads to me as fast as they could, disbelief filling their eyes. 

“Lauren!”

#twilight #twilight imagine #Cullen Family #carlisle cullen #esme cullen #edward cullen #bella cullen #renesmee cullen #jacob black #jasper hale #jasper whitlock #rosalie cullen #rosalie twilight #alice cullen #Emmett Cullen #twilight imagines

[rocksandrobots]

Of Rocks and Robots Ch. 30 - Coffee and Chemicals

"Ummm...what's Honey Lemon doing?" Fred asked as the gang made their way across the quad.

Their friend wasn't with them but stood off to the side looking up at a large shady elm through half lidded eyes.

"Hello, professor oak, I finished my…"she gave a prodigious yawn before sleepily continuing on "...report… on… color… theory..." Another yawn escaped her lips.

"Is she talking to a tree?" Wasabi asked with concern.

"She's been hit hard by midterms," Gogo explained, "three exams in one day, plus two more tomorrow, four final projects due Friday, and she just got a large order of her cosmetics that's due to ship this weekend. She's been pulling all nighters for the past three days."

As if to confirm this explanation the group heard a loud snore come from Honey Lemon's way. She wobbled as her head drooped down on her chest and Gogo skated over to her in a rush and caught the tall girl in her arms before she fell unconscious.

"Do you need help?" Varian asked as the rest of the gang followed after.

"Nope" Gogo grunted as she dragged Honey Lemon's limp body towards the doors. Wasabi ignored her and picked up Honey Lemon's legs so that they could better carry her inside.

"Man and I thought I had it bad." Kamri committed as they walked into the student lounge.

"Yeah, Honey Lemon is a double major at two schools." Hiro explained. "By the looks of it she must be stretching herself too thin."

Fred ran to snag a few chairs and put them together to form a makeshift bed as Gogo and Wasabi gently laid Honey Lemon down.

"Got... isotope project due…Friday.." Honey Lemon hummed in her sleep before letting out another snore.

"I'll go get her a coffee." Varian offered helpfully as he walked to the barista that was housed inside the lounge.

"Honey Lemon?" Gogo gently asked as she gave her friend a firm shake, but no response came other than more snoring.

"Face it, she's dead to the world." Wasabi commented.

"Here try this." Varian walked over carrying an espresso and handed it to Gogo.

Karmi rolled her eyes, "You think caffeine is the answer for everything. Remember the red bull incident?"

"Hey, that was a scientific experiment!" Varian indignantly defended himself, "Theoretically the Nyquil should have canceled out the energy drink…"

"And what's your excuse for eating the coffee beans straight out of the bag?" Hiro asked.

"I don't eat them straight out of the bag," Varian dismissed, "I roast them first."

"Ooo, have you tried the ones covered in chocolate?" Fred added, "Those are good."

"Both of you have a caffeine addiction. That much coffee isn't good for you." Wasabi warned.

"Well either way looks like the smell of the coffee is working" Gogo interrupted as she nudged Honey Lemon awake.

Honey Lemon hummed as she sat up and followed the coffee cup with her nose. She slowly blinked her eyes open before snagging the cup out of Gogo's hands, downing it in one gulp, and then yawning as she fell back asleep.

Hiro however caught her head before she could finish laying back down, "Sorry, Honey Lemon but we gotta keep you awake."

"Yeah you got an exam in fifteen minutes." Gogo reminded her.

"Nooooo" Honey Lemon moaned and tried to turn around on her side to curl up and sleep.

Wasabi stopped her this time and helped to lift her back up to her feet.

"You better go get another coffee." Karmi whispered to Varian.

"Told you." He whispered back before making his way back to the counter.

                                               -----------------------------

Keeping Honey Lemon awake throughout the day was no easy task. She kept dozing off during her exams, labs, and even lunch. The rest of the gang had to stay with her during the school day to nudge her awake or coax her with coffee.

Once school was done however, she refused to go home and go to bed; citing she had too much to do. And so that's how she wound up currently inside Hamada home studying for her chemistry midterm.

She had asked Varian to help her since he was the only one who held the same interest in the subject. He was only too happy to oblige, but it was proving to be a difficult task. Honey Lemon couldn't focus and would stare dreamily off into the distance instead of answering the questions he would give her.

"Silver has two naturally occurring isotopes, 107Ag is at 106.9 amu and 109 Ag at 108.9 amu, therefore what is the average atomic mass of silver?" Varian read off the practice test.

"Hmmm?" Honey Lemon hummed questioningly.

They were sitting on the couch in the living room, textbooks splayed out upon the coffee table in front of them. Honey Lemon's elbows rested on her knees and her chin was cradled in her fists. She looked at him as if only just noticing he was even there.

"Come on, this an easy one." Varian coaxed, "What's the atomic mass of silver?"

"Oh!"She exclaimed as what was being asked of her finally dawned in her brian. She then yawned and said, "107.9 amu."

"Correct; now which of the following is not a homogeneous mixture?" He continued with the quiz. "Air? Copper? Brass? Or-"

"Does everyone have blue hair where you come from?" Honey Lemon innocently interrupted.

Varian suddenly froze as if he'd been hit by a truck. He slowly turned to look at the other teen and saw her eyeing him curiously through heavy eyelids. He gulped and tried to brush off the question.

"Ah..well…not really.."

"Cause your stripe never fades like say a dye job would." She explained; oblivious to his discomfort in her sleepy haze.

"Umm well… I've always just had it...I think it's from an alchemy accident...or something…"

"No... that can be it..." She shook her head in confusion, "If you had just spilled a chemical on it, it would have eventually just grown out." Now with her curiosity piked, she began to perk up and unthinkingly reached her hand up to run it through his hair. "You mean it just grows out blue, and only one strand? That's got to be like a genetic thing..."

Varian tried to pull away; his cheeks burning red. How he hated being reminded that didn't fit in, not even in his own world. Honey Lemon was still oblivious however.

"Do you have anyone in your family with blue hair as well?" She pressed, trying to figure out this new mystery.

"I don't know!" He snapped.

Everything went quiet. Honey Lemon lifted her hand away and looked at him with wide eyes. She had seen his temper before, but this was the first he had ever gotten mad at her. She didn't know what to do, and neither did Varian.

He hadn't meant to yell at her, and frightening her, of all people, was the last thing in the world that he'd ever want to do. But talk of his past always sent him into a panic and not knowing the answer to something threw him off balance. The fact that the mystery was himself only heightened his concern, which is why he prefered to ignore it.

"I'm sorry." They both stammered out at the same time. They stopped in surprise at the unique timing of their apologies and then softly giggled and blushed over how silly they were being; the tension ebbing away as quickly as it had arrived.

"I..I shouldn't have pried." Honey Lemon said she tugged a strand of her own hair.

"No..I shouldn't have yelled." Varian countered. "It's just…well...no one likes being different, ya know?"

"Oh, but everybody's different," Honey Lemon encouraged cheerfully. Varian tried his best not to roll his eyes at such a lame platitude.

"No, I mean it." She laughed. She then tried to give him a smile but it was soon broken by another yawn. She stretched and then leaned over to rest her head upon his shoulder.

"I like your hair. It's part of what makes you special." She then hugged his arm and nuzzled her head as she curled up on the couch next to him, putting her feet up on the cushions and using him as a pillow.

Varian was stunned. She liked his hair? She didn't think him odd or a freak? Varian tried to remember a time when anybody had ever complimented his abnormally. Most would politely ignore it or brush it off, a few would tease, and some would even call it a bad omen. The more superstitious villagers said it was a hex, a clear sign that he was unnatural, and combined with his more unsuccessful alchemy experiments, helped to spread the rumor that he was a dangerous wizard. It was part of the reason why he hated being associated with magic.

Somewhere in his distant memory he could recall hushed conversations late at night between his parents concerning him. He couldn't remember precisely what had been said, but he knew they were worried about him and his hairstripe.

Heck even Aunt Cass had been weirded out when he told her he didn't need her to buy any hair dye for him. He probably should have played along then when she asked if needed some, but he hadn't been thinking at the time. She hasn't said anything since, but he knew she hadn't been able to process the idea that his hair just naturally grew out blue.

His musings were interrupted when he heard a loud snore right next to his ear.

He looked down to see Honey Lemon fast asleep and snoring away soundly like she normally did when sleeping. He didn't mind though. He supposed it was part of what made her special too. Also she really needed the rest.

He gently pulled his arm out of her grip and then wrapped it around her waist so she wouldn't fall forward as he reached his other hand over to the coffee table to snag his physics text book. He figured he would study for his own upcoming exam while she slept. Careful not to wake her, he propped his foot up on the table and reasted the book on his knee; using one hand to open it and turn the pages as he cradled the sleeping girl next to him with the other.

                                              -----------------------------

"Honey Lemon? Are you ready to go?" Gogo asked as she and Hiro climbed upstairs. They had agreed to take on patrol duty tonight so everyone else could study. They had finished up early and now Gogo had come to pick up Honey Lemon so that they could head home.

They found her and Varian both asleep on the couch. He had a textbook covering his eyes as he used the seat's arm as a pillow on one end and stretched his feet out to the other, with one foot dangling off the edge. Honey Lemon was sprawled out on top of him while she rested her head upon his stomach. "The answer is copper…" she mumbled in her sleep and then hugged his waist tighter like she would a pillow.

"Cute." Gogo said deadpan and then she raised an eyebrow at Hiro. "Should we wake them?"

Hiro gave her a wicked grin and signaled for her to stay quiet while he ran upstairs to his room. He re-emerged moments later with a megaphone in his hand.

"Where did you get that?" She asked.

"Did Tadashi ever tell you about the time he was a cheerleader in high school?" He whispered back. "He said it was to meet girls." He explained to a now clearly confused Gogo.

Hiro didn't give her time to process this new information however as he placed the microphone to his lips and bent down till he was right at Varian's ear.

"Good Morning!" He yelled. "Wakey, wakey! Time to rise and shine!"

Varian bolted upright, knocking the textbook to the floor and doing more to wake up Honey Lemon than any megaphone could.

"Hun?" She blinked sleepily while Gogo tried to suppress her snickering.

Varian glared at her and Hiro, but the face he made only filled them both with more laughter.

"What was that for!?" He angrily yelled.

"You.. you needed to wake up." Hiro explained through his laughter,"also next time don't leave your smelly socks and shoes in the garage. I gotta work in there, ya know."

If looks could have killed, Hiro would have been dead from Varian's gaze alone. He would have lunged at the other boy had Honey Lemon not held him back.

"Look, that was funny but you shouldn't have done it." Gogo interceded.

Hiro mumbled an apology and, he and Varian gave a half hearted handshake to appease the two girls.

"Good. Anyways Honey Lemon and I need to get home, so see ya tomorrow." She waved goodbye and headed down stairs.

Honey Lemon gathered her things up and followed after her, yawning goodbye as she went.

Once they were both gone and out of earshot Varian spoke up,

"Thanks for running the moment." He said irritably.

"What moment? You two were out cold." Hiro snarked back and then he paused as the meaning behind Varian's words came to light, "Waait...You and Honey Lemon?" He couldn't stifle his laughter. "You have a crush on Honey Lemon."

"What of it?" Came Varian's offended reply.

"Dude, she's so out of your league."

"She is not!"

"She's two years older than you and one of the more popular girls at both ours and SFAI's campus. What makes you think you even have a chance?"

"So? That's the same age difference between you and Karmi."

"Wh..what does Karmi have to do with this?" Hiro asked. He was momentarily tripped up by the change in subject.

"Oh come on." Varian rolled his eyes. "Everyone knows you like Karmi."

"I do not!"

"Do to."

"Do not...look for your information I happen to like Megan, okay?"

"Ahhh…" Varian raised an eyebrow and gave a sly smile, "So does either girl know you're cheating on them?" He teased.

"I'm not- we're not...I'm not dating either one of them... yet!" Hiro flustered. "Look it's none of your business!"

"Then stay out of mine." Varian retorted.

"Fine!"

"Fine."

"F-fine."

"Fi-- " Varian stopped, "How long are we going to keep saying 'fine' at one another?"

Hiro shrugged. "Look, I'm sorry for the megaphone gag. That was kind of mean and I promise I won't interrupt your 'it's totally not a date and your dreaming if you think it is' study sessions with Honey Lemon again. Deal?"

"Okay, and I'll make sure to throw my socks in the laundry next time and, I promise not to tell either Karmi or Megan that you like them. I wanna be around when it blows up in your face though." He gave another smug smile and Hiro rolled his eyes.

"Whatever." He dismissed and headed upstairs to bed while Varian picked up his textbooks.

                                              -----------------------------

Varian passed by the chemistry lab on his way to lunch. He paused when he heard a loud snore coming from the room. He stopped and saw Honey Lemon alone in the room with her head on the desk.

"Honey Lemon? You..okay?" He asked as he walked over to her and gave her a light tap on her shoulder.

She must not have been asleep long for she jumped at the touch and jolted awake.

"Oh? Oh, Varian! Hiiiiaahh!" Her hello turned into a yawn and Varian gave her a worried frown.

"Did you not get any sleep last night?" He asked.

"Oh sure…. Sure I did. Right after I finished my still life drawing for tomorrow." She mumbled quietly

Varian raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms. "Which was how many hours exactly?"

"The drawing or sleep?" She asked.

"You know what I meant."

Honey Lemon rolled her eyes and tried to dismiss his concerns. "I'm fiiine. It's only one more day till Friday and then I can take a long nap on Saturday. Besides I got to finnish making up these mini chimballs for my project."

She gave another yawn and groped around absentmindedly for the vial of chemical solution that she needed. " I just need to add this potassium iodine and…"

She picked up one of the vials and made to pour into the solution that she had bubbling in a beaker over a Bunsen burner, not really paying attention to nor looking at what she had actually grabbed.

Varian's eyes went wide as he noticed the label on the vial she was holding.

"Honey Lemon wait! No! That's octane!" He shouted, but he was too late.

The contents of the beaker began to rapidly bubble and foam as sparks from the flame ignited with flammable liquid that had just been added.

Varian reacted quickly, grabbing a stunned Honey Lemon by the wrist and quickly pulling her away. He sprinted out of the lab, dragging her along, as the foaming substance grew larger and swallowed the desk, now mixing itself with the other assortment of chemicals and causing small explosions. Once outside of the doorway he instinctively flung both himself and Honey Lemon to the ground as he felt a rumble behind them. He tried his best to shield her as the now gloopy substance expanded and filled the room with a sloshing, slurpy sound.

Only after a few moments of quiet, where nothing further happened, did Varian roll off of Honey Lemon and hoisted himself on his elbows to see the damage. Bulging out from the doorway was a semi-solid wall of some sort of gelatin like substance, that still steamed and bubbled from the heat of the earlier explosions.

The greenish-yellow tint of the partly translucent substance made Varian sick to his stomach. Had they been caught in that they no doubt would have been smothered or burned by the deadly goop. He heard his heart pound in his ears as it occurred to him that this was the second time he had managed to avoid such a fate.

He heard a sob beside him and turned to see Honey Lemon crying. Now his heart pounded for different reason as he hastily began to check over the girl looking to see how she'd been hurt.

"Honey Lemon? Are.. Are you okay? Are you hurt? Do I need to call Baymax?"

"No." She choked.

He swiped a strand of her hair out of her eyes and gently turned her head towards him. He searched her face in worry. "Then what's wrong?"

"I..I blew up the chim lab...again. I thought I could handle two majors but...but I can't…argh...I just want to crawl under the covers and never come out." She buried her face in her hands and groaned.

In spite of himself, relief washed over Varian as it became evident that the only thing that was seriously harmed was Honey Lemon's pride. Though he took no joy out of seeing her upset either.

"Awww Honey, it's okay." He whispered as he gently squeezed her shoulders. "You're just stressed from midterms. Like you said, things will look better by Saturday."

This did not seem to appease her though as she continued to cry into her hands. Varian racked his brain on what he could do or say to make things better. Hesitantly you wrapped her into a hug and she returned it with a sob.

"Oh, Honey Lemon," He encouraged in her ear. ",its gonna be alright. Hey at least no one was hurt right?"

He pulled away from the embrace to give her a small smile but she only returned it with a pout.

Varian sighed, "Look, you're talking to the guy who almost flooded the school remember? This ain't nothing."

That got him a snort of laughter and he flashed her a grin.

"Yeah, I remember." She nodded and finally smiled through her tears.

They locked eyes and for a moment Varian didn't know what to do. All he could do was stare at her transfixed.

Honey Lemon broke the spell herself, "I guess I need to call and tell the chemistry professor what happened she sighed. "Maybe he'll give me an extension."

That knocked Varian out of his stupor. "Yea...yeah, of course he will, and in the meantime I'll help you clean up, okay?"

"Okay." She smiled as he helped her up.

                                              -----------------------------

Cleaning up wasn't as difficult as Varian first feared. The gel like compound naturally broke down over time and washed away easily with water. Though it still took a couple of hours to get it all clear.

Honey Lemon hadn't said much during this time, still embarrassed and tired. As they came down to the last bit of the work, Varian tried to ease the tension.

"Ya know," He said nonchalantly as he mopped the floor,"after a close call like that a person could probably use a stiff drink."

He meant it as a joke but Honey Lemon only stiffened and stopped wiping down the countertop to give him a worried frown.

"....of coffee!" He hastily added. "How about we get some after we finish up here?"

He threw her one of his winsome smiles and Honey Lemon relaxed a little.

"Aren't you still grounded?" She asked.

"Yes, but school doesn't count and there's the cafe in the student lounge." He gave her a wink. "So technically, it's still not breaking the rules."

She smirked and shook her head, "You know you can't find loopholes for everything."

"No, but can't blame me for trying." He sat the mop to the side and grabbed the rag Honey Lemon was using. "What'dya say, hmm?"

"Well, I need something to keep me awake for my last class." She agreed and Varian felt like he'd just won the lottery.

                                              -----------------------------

Varian and Honey Lemon sat together inside the student lounge laughing over nothing in particular. She had cheered up significantly since the incident in the lab and was back to her usual perky self.

At the moment they were having a discussion over which was worse, being too short or too tall.

"But you've never had anyone call you a giraffe before" she good naturedly countered before taking a sip of her iced latte.

"What's wrong with that? Giraffes are cute." Varian shrugged. "At least you don't risk getting accidently stepped on in a crowd."

Honey Lemon rolled her eyes and snickered, "I think you're exaggerating just a little on that one."

"Maybe" He conceded and took a sip of his own coffee, "but it's no fun being told to get out of the way cause no one thinks you're big enough to help; like when they were raising a new barn a few years ago dad just told me to stay out of the way."

"When was this? When you were what thirteen?"

"Twelve."

"Surely you've grown a little taller since then."

"Barely." Varian groaned and took another sip of his drink to hide his embarrassment.

"Well, a least you're not constantly being asked to get things off the high shelves and stuff. Everyone in art class does that and it drives me nuts" She complained.

"Really? Cause if I suddenly woke up taller one day I'd be volunteering to get stuff off high places just to show off."

"I mean, you might. Guys don't stop growing until their like in their late teens or early twenties. Me, I'll never stop being the 'tall girl.'" She made a face, showing her displeasure over the nickname, and reached across the table to the basket of biscotti that they had agreed to share.

As she grabbed one of the Italian sweets she heard Varian say with a shrug, "Ah, you're not even that tall."

She paused mid reach to look at him in surprise and he just stared at her blankly wondering what he had said wrong.

"Thank you!" She blurted out loudly. "OMG, I'm always having to say that! I'm only 5'10". My shoes just make me look taller." She lifted a foot to show off her heels to Varian.

"Then why wear them?" He asked, confused.

"Cause they look cute." Honey Lemon pouted.

Varian shrugged again."Okay…..But no, 5'10", that's like normal height. You're no taller than say Queen Arianna is. You want tall? You should see my dad. He's close to seven feet, and he's still not even the tallest guy I've ever met. The king's actually taller than him and so a whole bunch of other guys in Corona. Now you know why I hate being so short. I'm not even taller than the princess , okay, and she's like the shortest person I know."

Then he paused mid rant and cupped his chin in thought,"Well okay, except for Shorty."

"Soooo are women usually tall or short in your world?" She asked, confused herself now as she had no reference for what Varian was talking about.

"Umm..depends on the person I guess. The tallest woman I ever met is my Aunt Adria. She's my dad's sister and about as tall as he is."

"Wait, you have an aunt?" Honey Lemon asked with concern, "Where's she at? Why didn't she come help you and your dad?"

"Well I haven't seen her since I was like five. I don't know where she is, and it's not like we have phones to call one another. I just remember her because, well, she's kind of hard to forget. She has white hair, carries a huge sword everywhere, and half her face is tattooed solid red."

"Hun…I'm guessing she's pretty … unique then?"

"I guess, all I remember was that she and dad had a big fight over something annnd I never saw her since."

"That's sad." Honey Lemon mused.

"How so?"

"Well she's his sister. I'd hate to have a fight with one of my brothers that's so bad that we'd never talk to one another again."

"Hmm...I... never really thought about it before. I guess cause I don't have any siblings and none of my aunts or uncles were ever really around to begin with."

"You have more aunts?"

"Well no, but I have a couple of uncles that I've never met. After my dad left his home country, he didn't really keep in touch with them."

"That's sad." She reiterated.

"Yeah.." He agreed quietly and took another sip of his coffee as thoughts of his dad ran through his mind. His father had kept most of his past hidden from his son. Varian only knew about his extended family because he had stumbled upon his dad's journal amongst his other things in the trunk that had kept hidden in his quarters, along with the mysterious scroll pecice that the King had hunted him down for.

A lot of secrets had come to light sitting in that dusty room, pouring over the pages filled with his father's words. Answers that only brought up more questions. He still didn't know how to feel about it all. Mostly he was angry that his dad never shared things with him, be they large or small, insignificant or not.

But Honey Lemon's words shone light on a new perspective. How much had leaving hurt? Was it just too painful for his dad to talk about at all, with anyone? Even then he still could have told Varian about the rocks, could have trusted him, and there were still secrets hidden away from him. His mind turned to the note locked away in the amber with his dad and instinctively his free hand balled up into a fist.

Honey Lemon looked on with worry as she saw the cloud behind Varian's as he brooded over something. He kept so much of himself hidden away from everyone. But the pain it caused him was always evident just underneath the surface. Honey Lemon wasn't sure she even wanted to know, given what little he had opted to share thus far. Corona scared her. How could any place be so hard and so cruel? Still she wanted to be there for him. He was her friend after all. She placed a hand on top of the fist that he rested on the table, snapping him out of his melancholy mood.

She gave a wide smile and chriped, "You know once midterms are over and you're un- grounded we should all do something fun."

"Like what?"

She thought a minute."Hmmm..Oh, I know! How about karaoke?"

"What's that?"

"It's where you take turns getting up and singing on stage. It's fun."

"It sounds fun. I'm all for it. But on one condition."

"What?"

"You get some actual sleep before then."

"Oookaaayy…" she rolled her eyes in an exaggerated manner and then they both broke down into giggles.

#varian #honey lemon #Hiro Hamada #big hero six #bh6 #bh6 the series #tangled #tangled the series #rapunzel's tangled adventure #crossover

[cursebreaker-lilith]

I only posted her original profile in September, but I’ve changed some stuff and wanted to do a new drawing. Lili was pretty new to me then, and I’ve found her voice a lot more since so it only felt right to have a do over on her profile.

This is all up to the beginning of year 6.

EDIT: Some formatting changes made 5-12-21

BASICS

Name: Lilith Silvia Vesta Brooks

Nicknames: Lili, Pipsqueak, Pip

Name Meaning: Lilith references a figure from Jewish folklore, Silvia comes from her grandmother’s name and references a figure from Roman mythology, Vesta was also chosen by her grandmother and references the Roman goddess of the hearth.

Gender: Cis Female 

Pronouns: She/Her

Age: 16 (Variable depending on what year I’m writing about)

Birthday: October 19th, 1972

Zodiac: Libra

Blood Status: Half-blood

Ethnicity/Nationality: White Brit

Sexuality: Self identifies primarily with queer but is okay with being called bisexual. Is also probably on both the asexual and aromantic spectrum, but the words for them hadn’t been coined in her time period. 

Appearance

Body:

Height: 165cm / 5′5

Build: Average to stocky, hourglass shape

Eyes: A bright yellow-green, noticeably a bit big and round.

Hair: Pale blonde hair that is very thin and fine. She likes doing it up in different ways, from ponytails, to pigtails, to braids. Right before starting her 6th year, she cut her hair short and permed it on an impulse encouraged by her Muggle friends.

Skin: Pale skin that burns easily but quickly fades into a tan

Misc: Small and usually unnoticeable scars scattered across her hands and face from ice in the Ice Vault that will fade wholly with time (most already have by 6th year). Pierced ears--one in each lobe as a teenager but adds more as an adult.

Material Items:

Clothing: As a young child, she tried to keep up with mainstream Muggle fashion. She preferred lots of bright colors, stripes, gaudy jewelry, and scrunchies. Dear lord she loves scrunchies. As she got older however, she began to phase out of the bright colors and mainstream fashion into something which would soon be called grunge. Not completely grunge however as she still loves her statement earrings and scrunchies. Usually wears baggy/non form fitting clothing.

Accessories: Almost always wearing some sort of dangly and obnoxious statement earrings. Always has at least three scrunchies on her person.

In her school bag: Her wand, at least five scrunchies, school books and papers, books Rowan wants her to read, an old crochet penguin for good luck (her first attempt at crochet animals), crochet hooks and yarn, journal and papers related to Cursed Vault plans, at least three cool looking rocks she found on the ground.

Reference:

Face Claim: N/A

Voice Claim: N/A

Personality

Traits:

+  loyal, friendly, extroverted, responsible, mature, kind, adaptable, quick learner, resourceful, hopeful, courageous

+/— determined, good liar, intense, clever, intelligent, independent

— obsessive, untrusting, secretive, forceful, quick temper, angry, abrasive, single minded, rule breaker, rude, spiteful

Description:

Lili has a lot of pent up anger and a quick temper. She’s angry at her family, at authority, at the world. She’s not good at processing this anger and thus tends to lash out at people very often and often very cruelly and violently. She knows this and tries to keep in check but isn’t very good at doing so even as she ages. Because of her anger, she also tends to keep grudges for quite a while, even for stupid or petty reasons and is slow to admit she’s wrong.

In a better world, she would be known for her friendliness. Lili can be very friendly and relaxed. She talks first and makes a judgement second, trying to be as open minded as possible. She’s very casual yet polite and likes people being the same back to her.

Lili is determined in a way that tends towards the negative. Her laser focus on things tend to quickly become obsessions if someone she trusts doesn’t intervene quickly enough.

After her mother stopped being a parent towards her at a young age, Lili learned to take care of herself quickly. She’s become clever and resourceful in her steps to becoming independent. It’s left her mature and responsible for her age, but also untrusting and secretive, convinced she can do it on her own (or with Rowan only).

Lili is very loyal to those that earn her loyalty. For those she cares about, she would do anything. If you do something to lose that loyalty, expect harsh treatment after if Lili even deigns to speak to you. She’s not afraid of cutting people out of her life if they betray or anger her.

Other:

Likes: crafts (crochet, knitting, sewing), Rowan and Barnaby, scrunchies, dangly earrings, being busy, collecting things, fashion

Dislikes: Merula and Ismelda, Rakepick, Snape, most other Slytherins, people who get in her way, Dumbledore, Doctor Who after the 5th Doctor, not getting enough sleep, flying class

MBTI: ESTP

Alignment: Chaotic Neutral

Hogwarts

Hogwarts House: Slytherin

OWL Classes:

Astronomy: 6/10 (E)

Charms: 9/10 (O)

DADA: 9/10 (O)

Flying: 2/10 (A)

Herbology: 3/10 (A)

History of Magic: 2/10 (A)

Potions: 4/10 (A)

Transfiguration: 7/10 (E)

OWL Electives:

Ancient Runes:  9/10 (O)

Arithmancy:  6/10 (O)

Care of Magical Creatures:  6/10 (O)

NEWT Classes:

Ancient Runes: 9/10 (O)

Arithmancy: 6/10 (E)

Charms: 9/10 (O)

DADA: 9/10 (O)

Transfiguration: 7/10 (E)

Extracurriculars:

Clubs: Dueling Club (3rd-4th year), Fencing Club (2nd-5th year), Transfiguration Club (occasionally from 2nd year on)

Quidditch: N/A

Prefect or Head Boy/Girl: N/A

Best Classes:

Charms It’s the one class she’s very naturally talented at. She never needs to study much, but she barely has to try with Charms. Someday she’ll beat Ben and be the best in their year at the class.

Defense Against the Dark Arts She’s not good at this because of any professor, she’s good at this because of her excursions into the Cursed Vaults giving her practical knowledge.

Worst Classes:

Flying Listen, if people were meant to fly, then they’d have wings, or a spell letting people properly fly would be created by now. Lili will be staying on the ground, thank you very much.

Herbology She’s lived in the city her whole life and being around so many plants is strange. She doesn’t hate the class, but she does use it to catch up with her friends rather than study.

Potions She doesn’t have the patience for potions, and that’s even when she doesn’t have Snape refusing to acknowledge her existence.

Favorite Professors:

Flitwick She thinks Flitwick is great. There’s not much more to say. He’s responsible but not smothering, and still thinks well of her brother. If she ever had to pick an adult to trust, it would be Flitwick.

Kettleburn She had taken Care of Magical Creatures because Rowan had wanted a third elective and Lili didn’t want to take Muggle Studies or Divination. However, she ended up loving the class and thinks Kettleburn is hilarious. She honestly wished she could take the class NEWT level, but her schedule was already full.

Least Favorite Professors:

Snape She has a very complicated relationship with Snape. He hates her because of her brother (who he did not get along with), because she reminds him of James Potter, and because her nickname, Lili, reminds him of his lost love Lily Evans every time he hears it. Lili, of course, does not know any of this and thinks he just hates her for no reason. Jacob thought he was a Death Eater (he got that from whispers older kids who Jacob knew were definitely Death Eaters), so Lili uses that as justification to not like him.

Rakepick She never trusted her and barely liked her, even before she became a professor. Her opinion didn’t go improve any time in fifth year.

Magic

1st Wand: Blackthorn, unicorn hair, 11 3/4 in, shiny and slightly flexible

“Blackthorn, which is a very unusual wand wood, has the reputation, in my view well-merited, of being best suited to a warrior. This does not necessarily mean that its owner practises the Dark Arts (although it is undeniable that those who do so will enjoy the blackthorn wand’s prodigious power); one finds blackthorn wands among the Aurors as well as among the denizens of Azkaban.”

2nd Wand: Aspen, phoenix feather, 12 in, fairly rigid

“In my experience, aspen wand owners are generally strong-minded and determined, more likely than most to be attracted by quests and new orders; this is a wand for revolutionaries.”

Special Abilities: Natural Legilimens, Occlumency

Boggart

Form: Jacob telling her she’s useless and unwanted and that everything she’s doing is for nothing.

Riddikulus: Has not found anything yet that works

Amortentia

What they smell: the Owlery, Standard Ingredient, and something else, something she can’t figure out

What they smell like to others: Lavender, hot chocolate, campfire smoke

Patronus

Form: A goshawk. Independent and intelligent hunters who focus intently on stalking their prey.

Memory: A childhood memory of going to a fair. Jacob looked after her the entire night, and it’s one of the last times she remembers seeing both of her parents laugh.

What they see in the Mirror of Erised: Herself with her family–Jacob is there and looks like how she remembers him, and her mother and father are holding hands and smiling. As she ages, her mother and father are phased out of the image and replaced by her friends, her new family.

FAMILY

Father: David Brooks

Muggle

b. 1943

Works at an accounting firm.

In theory, he was alright with magic and the wizarding world. In practice, it unnerved him more than he could say. When his children started doing accidental magic, and when Jacob came home from Hogwarts talking about nothing but spells and magic, that was it for David. He filed for divorce in 1980 and hasn’t spoken to his ex-wife or children since. He has since married to a fellow Muggle, treating her children as his own and speaking rarely of his biological children. He doesn’t even know Jacob disappeared.

Mother: Carina Flora Brooks (nee Braddock)

Pureblood

b. 1944

Ravenclaw

Works for a wizarding travel magazine as a photographer, travels around the world frequently

She was perhaps not meant to be a mother, and would have been happier following in her brother’s shoes of travelling the world with no responsibilities. However, her mother was insisting she marry and Carina, in a fit of rebellion, decided to marry a nice Muggle she knew instead of the purebloods her mother had picked out.

Carina was never very good with either of her children, and in particular could never get along with Jacob, resorting to abuse (emotional and physical) to try to get him to behave how she wanted. Despite this, she totally shut down when Jacob disappeared, feeling like a failure. This led to her severely neglecting her daughter to wallow in her own misery day and night. It also led to an irrational hatred of Hogwarts. She refuses to read any letters sent by them and has made several subtle attempts to make Lili miss the Hogwarts Express.

Brother: Jacob Seraphinus Ulysses Brooks

Half-blood

b. March 8th, 1967

Slytherin

Currently missing.

Never able to make friends easily or keep his mouth shut, Jacob always had a hard time fitting in, so he turned to books. He preferred fiction over nonfiction, but one history book’s mention of Cursed Vaults on Hogwarts’ grounds led to a search that would dominate his, and his sister’s, life.

He was an outcast in his house and Hogwarts, besides for a few acquaintances, and instead focused on reaching his goals. He was reckless and brave (the Sorting Hat considered putting him in Gryffindor), but obsessive, secretive, and increasingly dependent on the idea of “the end justifies the means.”

Grandfather: Ambrose Braddock

Pureblood

b. 1903

Ravenclaw

Deceased

Known for being Britain’s first natural Legilimens in a century. The Braddock family is known for being a line of natural Legilimens, but none in the family had had the ability in five generations before Ambrose was born. This ended up leading to an offer of marriage from the Malfoy family who wanted the connection to this rare ability. Later realized his grandson was also a natural Legilimens, but died before he could teach Jacob more than the basics on how to control it and never realized his granddaughter also had the ability.

Died of sickness in 1975 at age 72

Grandmother: Silvia Braddock (nee Malfoy)

Pureblood

b. 1911

Slytherin

Never worked, has always been a housewife

Your typical upper class, conservative grandmother. She may not believe that strongly in pureblood mania anymore, but she still believes in things like “children should be seen, not heard,” and corporal punishment. Was in an arranged marriage to Ambrose and never really grew to love him feeling she was marrying beneath her Malfoy heritage. Fairly reclusive nowadays, only entertaining old friends for brunch and going to the occasional pureblood party.

Uncle: Victor Felinus Braddock

Pureblood wizard

b. 1940

Gryffindor

Has a different job every few months, deosn’t really needs to have one and his work ethic shows that

Considered a fun uncle by his nephew, and an annoyance by his niece. Has a lot of stories, and a slight drinking problem.  While his mother was annoyed at him for having a dalliance with a Muggle-born, she was even more furious that he refused to marry Suzie. Victor didn’t want to be tied down, and left her to raise their two daughters only appearing in their lives every few years.

Cousins: Donna and Caroline Jones

Half-bloods

b. 1960 and 1975

Both Gryffindor

Welsh

Their mother Susan Jones was a Muggle-born Sorted into Gryffindor in the same year as Victor Braddock. The two have had an on again, off again relationship since their Hogwarts years that has resulted in two daughters.

Donna was sorted into Gryffindor in 1971 (meaning she would have been roommates with Lily Evans which is a coincidence I swear) and it’s easy to see why. She’s confident, brash, and blunt. She has many problems with her father and refuses to interact with that side of the family. Works in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement for the Ministry.

Caroline is the opposite of her much older sister and was surprised to find herself in Gryffindor (Sorted there in Lili’s 3rd year). She’s timid and quiet, but with a backbone hidden underneath. She wilts at any negative tones, but is always ready to extend a hand to anyone who has hurt her, even multiple times.

Step family: Sabina Brooks, Ioan and Luca Ciobanu

Muggles

b. 1949, 1975, and 1980

Immigrants from Romania to England

After divorcing Carina, David began dating Sabina shortly after and later married her, acting as a father to her two young children. The four of them live together in London.

Pets:

Alfred An easily frightened black cat that once belonged to Jacob

Doctor Hoot A large barred owl that frequently forgets it’s an owl and not a lapdog

FRIENDS

Best Friends:

Rowan Khanna Her best friend!! She originally befriended Rowan because Rowan reminded her of her muggle friend, but it soon blossomed into a different, much closer relationship. Whenever Rowan is gone, Lili doesn’t really know what to do (”I’m going to cut all the sleeves off my robes.” “Why??” “Rowan left an hour ago and she’s like 85% of my impulse control.”) and Lili would never have made it through any of the Cursed Vaults without her. She probably also would have gotten expelled for brawling and dueling in like second year without Rowan. I’m not joking about that impulse control thing.

Barnaby Lee Lili didn’t like Barnaby at first. Even before he worked for Merula, she thought he was nothing more than a stupid jock and made fun of how Snape would pick on him in Potions. Then she actually talked to him and did a complete 180. “I’ve only known Barnaby for an hour, but if anything happened to him, I would kill everyone in this room and them myself.” She liked how sweet and genuine he was despite his awful upbringing. He’s always there to support her, and she’s really grown to love him for that. He once thought he had a crush on her, but it wasn’t really romantic (”The feeling was friendship but he had never experienced it before.”).

Good Friends:

Bill Weasley He’s like the big brother Jacob should’ve been. She was not thrilled to have a complete stranger helping with the Vaults, but in hindsight she’s so very glad she listened to Rowan. Lili isn’t sure she could have gotten half of what she’s done done without Bill’s help and steadfastness.

Charlie Weasley Their friendship kind of crept up on Lili. Charlie was closer friends with Ben and Barnaby, so while Lili had a passing familiarity with him before the Forest Vault, she wouldn’t have called them friends. She was surprised when she turned out to really enjoy his company when he started helping with the Cursed Vaults.

Chiara Lobosca Chiara was someone Lili tangentially knew due to people confusing them for each other (the hair color; once Chiara hits a growth spurt and Lili doesn’t people stop). Then Lili is forced to partner with Chiara in Herbology in 3rd year, and besides seeing her Herbology grade go up the slightest bit, she finds a friend in Chiara, appreciating the girl’s seemingly infinite kindness.

Friends:

Nymphadora Tonks They get along in classes, but Lili doesn’t trust Tonks with anything serious.

Liz Tuttle The two have many overlapping friends but don’t really hang out with each other.

Badeea Ali She really respects Badeea, but they just don’t have many reasons to be around each other.

Jae Kim Lili thinks he’s hilarious and very smart, but doesn’t trust him as far as she could throw him.

It’s Complicated:

Ben Copper Probably the most complicated relationship here. She befriended him out of pity and continued their friendship because of his skill at Charms. He’s had a crush on her since they were 11 when she stood up for him which no one had ever done before. Then the Red Robed Wizard Reveal tm happened and Lili dropped him and ignored him, though he tried to make it up to her. 6th year only drives a deeper wedge between them as Lili can’t stand his recent behaviour. Ben finally confessing about his love for Lili in 6th year didn’t help mend anything either.

Tulip Karasu After finding out that Tulip had purposefully not told her about Jacob’s room, Lili instantly decided she was an undesirable but necessary ally. Lili does not like Tulip for most of their time at Hogwarts as she’s really pissed that someone would keep her brother’s things from her. Lili will talk to her about the Cursed Vaults, but they do not hang out and Lili does not consider her a friend. This really, really hurts Tulip’s feelings but Lili doesn’t really care. The relationship does get a bit better in 6th year, but it’s never going to be a close one. In a better world without the Vaults, they’d probably get along smashingly as while Lili isn’t a prankster, she has no problem egging them on.

Love Interests:

Penny Haywood Her first, longest, and most confusing crush. She was wary of Penny at first. Popular girls were rarely that 100% nice, but Penny truly was. She also had a nice smile and pretty hair and soft hands…. It took Lili quite a while (like four years and Bill telling her) to figure out it was a crush and then….she did absolutely nothing. She panicked and stopped talking to Penny for a while before sheepishly apologizing when Penny confronted her. They went to the Celestial Ball together, but “as friends.” That did not stop them from having a Moment that Lili interpreted completely wrongly and she assumed Penny didn’t like her romantically. Penny in fact did, and since Lili never reacted to their Moment in the proper way, Penny assumed that Lili wasn’t interested. The two continued having crushes on each other for the rest of their time at Hogwarts and remained close friends after they both graduated.

Talbott Winger Her second, less confusing, crush. Similar to Barnaby, Lili didn’t think much of Talbott at first. He was that one kid who was talented at Transfiguration and she once saw him chatting casually to an owl in the Owlery. He was weird and she ignored him. Then she was paired with him on a class assignment in 3rd year and a friendship bloomed despite Talbott’s protests. It was a casual thing at first, but then Lili helped Talbott find his mom’s necklace, and their talk under the stars about family and the past and future deepened their friendship. Having already figured out she had a crush on Penny by this time, she managed to get the signs that she now also had a crush on Talbott, which made her panic, again. However, since Talbott is even worse with emotions than her, she didn’t do anything drastic like she did with Penny. They went on one date in 6th year but that was going too fast for Talbott and they decided to stay friends until Talbott felt more comfortable being around people. Lili took this….mostly gracefully.

Diego Caplan The two met in the Dueling Club in 4th year. Diego was impressed with Lili’s skill and tried to befriend her and also maybe flirt with her a bit. Lili, who tends to gravitate towards people who are unashamedly themselves, found his over the top flirting hilarious and was instantly endeared to Diego. She really enjoyed being around him, finding his lightheartedness helped her forget some of her troubles with the Cursed Vaults, especially in 5th year. He asked her out on a date, her first one, and she agreed. She enjoyed the date, but 5th year was the peak of her obsession with the Cursed Vaults so she broke it off. They later dated again during 6th year, after Lili’s one date with Talbott.

Dormmates:

Rowan Khanna see above

Desdemona Selwyn An OC. Their entire relationship can be explained with that one text post that’s like “Bitch.” “Blocked.” “Wait unblock me I need to tell you something.” “Unblocked.” “Bitch.”

Vidalia Barrows An OC. Lili has said like two sentences to Vidalia and she plans to keep it that way. Vidalia just eats and sleeps and does whatever Desdemona says to do.

Doesn’t Interact:

Murphy McNully/Skye Parkin/Orion Amari/Erika Rath She’s not involved in Quidditch.

Andre Egwu I just can’t think of a way to work him into the plot lol They would get along somewhat well otherwise.

Enemies:

Merula Snyde Hated each other’s guts for a while. Then Lili gave up her Frog Choir spot and Merula gained a small crush (even if Lili was a total ass about giving it up). While they’ll never be friends, by the time of 5th and 6th year they’ve become reluctant allies similar to Lili and Tulip above. Lili will probably never totally befriend her, but she’s learned to be civil and that’s progress.

Ismelda Murk Lili doesn’t really like Ismelda but she considers her all bark and no bite. Ismelda hates Lili because she thinks Lili and Barnaby are gonna end up dating and is jealous.

Desdemona Selwyn An OC. See above.

Most of Slytherin House Lili has never been shy about being half Muggle and being proud of it, and in a house that still worships Voldemort, that sets her apart. The few that don’t find her being pro-Muggle distasteful don’t want to be exiles in their own dorms and avoid talking to her.

Story

Childhood:

Lili’s childhood was never that great. Her parents fought frequently over her and Jacob’s use of accidental magic, and this eventually caused them to divorce when Lili was 9. Her mother in particular was emotionally and physically abusive but Jacob spared her from the worst of it.

Jacob was always the best part of her childhood. She loved her parents, but Jacob was the person she always looked forward to seeing. When he went to Hogwarts, she was upset for weeks, and when he went missing, she was devastated (especially as he went missing the night of her birthday).

Her mother didn’t take it well. Carina was not particularly close with Jacob, but this obviously big failure of her as a parent hit her hard. She became very emotionally withdrawn from Lili and threw herself into her photography work, leaving the country, and Lili, for weeks at a time.

Lili had to become very independent very quickly after that. That, plus the fact that she didn’t have any non-Muggle friends meant she trusted very few people and lied often. Getting her Hogwarts letter was a relief and a promise of freedom

Hogwarts:

: )

see here: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1467043

Adulthood:

Lili is very distraught after graduation and leaves everyone she knows behind to travel Europe and find herself. She spends several years doing this, helping people and doing odd jobs.

Eventually, she finds that she has a talent for languages, picking up a few easily in her travels, and starts to consider possibly doing something related to language whenever she goes back to Britain.

Miscellaneous

She fuckin loves scrunchies.

Has lived in a Muggle neighbourhood her whole life.

Likes muggle TV. Grew up watching Doctor Who. Not impressed with the 6th Doctor, and glad she was away at Hogwarts during his run. Favorite Doctor is the 4th and she knit herself her own version of his scarf.

Likes collecting things! She loves cool rocks on the sidewalk, tacky tourist souvenirs, and things you find for $1 in a thrift store.

She can knit, crochet and sew. She likes making little crochet animals and giving them to friends (or just keeping them and having a plushy empire around her bed).

Loves having her photo taken and has a whole collection of photos, but hates taking photos. It reminds her of her mother.

One of her Muggle friends got her into fencing. She thought it would be useful to hone her athletic skills with, so she continued doing it when she went back to Hogwarts in the fall.

The type of person who needs to be doing something 24/7. When she doesn’t have anything to focus on, she tends to be all over the place and rather annoying.

Quieter and more complacent as a kid. it was after her family broke apart that the need to be so driven started to become a part of her personality.

Love Like You from Steven Universe is a song for her and Jacob (from Jacob’s POV)

Chameleon by Michela is a song that fits her

Tropes:

Big Brother Worship

Determinator

Family Eye Resemblance

Good is Not Nice

Hair Trigger Temper

Jerk with a Heart of Gold

Parental Neglect

#hphm #harry potter hogwarts mystery #hogwarts mystery #hphm mc #jacob's sibling #jacobs sibling #lili brooks #art be mine #this is super long lol #pls enjoy #texttexttext post

[elizabeth-234]

The Hourglass

Previous Chapter Eleven: Where in the World is Peter?

This fills prompt eleven for whumptober: crying, struggling, defiance. Thank you for reading!

Here is a link to summary/ chapter guide: THANK YOU

Chapter Twelve: The President, Shrek, and Sweater Vests

Peter didn’t know what to do so he did the only thing he could. He panicked and ran out the door. He wheezed against the quick motions of his feet. The cold tile was like a bucket of cold water to his body and his mind snapped to attention.

Tony – not Tony – yelled after him but he didn’t stop. Peter made it down the hall before he heard footsteps and an IV pole trailing after him. His smile curled higher despite the butterflies in his stomach. He stepped into an alcove whose walls were filled with self-help pamphlets. The blanket fell off of his shoulders as he pressed himself against the wall. His gown fell down along with it leaving his shoulder bare. He didn’t move to cover himself up and suffered through the shivers wracking his body.

None of this made sense. The blood loss and damage to his head must have been worse than he thought. It was the only logical explanation. All the evidence stuffed his brain until all stream of thought abandoned him. He stayed there leaning against the wall as the wheels of the IV came closer.

Shadows passed by on the floor, walking past him, and then the owner of the shadow stepped into view. The short shadows of hair on his face had the beginnings of a small goatee. He stepped closer to Peter and picked up the blanket drooping on the floor to secure it up around his shoulder.

“I’m sorry. It’s been an off day, well year to be honest. Rhodey is always telling me to control my temper and once again he’s proven right. You were hiding from something right? Come back to my room and we can talk. I have some contraband hot chocolate in there and to be honest, kid, you look like you could use some.”


Peter blinked but was helpless against the arm around his shoulder. They walked in quick, quiet steps. Both sets of eyes on watch for any rogue nurse or doctor on the night shift until they were safe behind Tony’s closed door. Tony settled back on his bed.

“Sit here.” He said with a wave of his hand in a casual manner at the end of the bed. Peter stopped for a moment, looking between the chair and bed. But again, he felt his lack of intelligent thought keenly. He sat on the bed, crossed legged at the end, staring Tony.

Was it him? Everything he’d seen so far led him to believe it had to be him.  

But then again, it wasn’t him at the same time.

“So, let’s start with the first thing. I’m Tony and you are?”

“Peter. Peter Parker.”

“Circumstances could have been better but nice to meet you.” Peter nodded and avoided his eyes.  The brown flecks were so familiar but lacked the warm expression in them. This Tony, or whoever, was a stranger. Peter had a feeling the other one had never been one to begin with. “So, what are you in for?”

“Huh?”

“Why are you in the hospital?” A smirk played on his lips and Peter’s neck grew hot.

“Oh. I, that is, I fell.”

“You fell?”

“Into a lake.”



“You fell into a lake?”


“That’s what I said wasn’t it?” He snapped.  Tony had the decency to look apologetic though Peter noticed that he didn’t apologize for the pestering.

“How’d that happen?”

This line of questioning was going to be the tricky part. He didn’t know how to respond and his brain was thoroughly checked out so he decided to go with the simplest answer and the one he would be most likely to remember in time. The truth at least in part.

“I was attacked – chased- and I got hurt. I was cornered on the dock and it was an accident. I fell into the water. It was cold but calm down there.” He shivered as something stirred in his memory. “It was calm until… until it wasn’t. Something must have stirred up the sand! It was everywhere and there was so much blood until everything went black. Then I was here and it’s so strange here and you look so different.”

Another shiver wracked his body and he hunched in on himself. Tony leaned forward and put his hand on Peter’s knee. His eyebrows were furrowed as he thought about what Peter said. He could only imagine what he looked like. Some strange kid running around the hospital, breaking into rooms, and then running away again. But Tony wasn’t treating him like he was delicate. There was concern in his eyes but a curious glint to get to know the truth as well.  

“Easy there. I’m sorry. That totally sucks. It must have been scary, too. Do you…” Tony swallowed. “Where are your parents?”

“They’re dead.” He said flatly.

The questions were enough to trigger a cacophony of memories. He was back in the hospital standing in the waiting room. Hospital staff rushed by but he was left there surrounded by empty chairs. His aunt and uncle arrived and though they smiled at him, their eyes were filled with tears. Their arms wrapped around him so tight, like they thought he wouldn’t crack under any amount of pressure. Little did they know their embrace was the only thing keeping him from falling apart. It was the last time he saw his parents before the funeral and the first day he went to live with his extended family.

And now in some warped twist of time he was back in a hospital.

“I’m sorry. Mine, too.”

Tony shrugged and quickly looked down at the blankets but not before Peter saw the hurt in his eyes. They held the same dull expression Peter saw for months in his new bathroom of his aunt and uncle’s apartment.

“You’re pretty young, aren’t you?” 



“I’m sixteen. You?”

Peter yawned and Tony frowned again. The restless energy from before his second escape attempt had faded leaving a vague unrest in his stomach and heavy eyes.

“Hey, it’s late. Why don’t you try and get some sleep? Don’t worry,” He said addressing Peter’s glance at the door. “I’ll keep watch if someone comes. They won’t bother you in here.”


At least this evenings toll on his brain was consistent. Peter didn’t even spare another glance at the door when he nodded. Tony tossed down a pillow and Peter curled up along the bottom half of the bed. The room was warmer than his room, his limbs were sore, and this would be the perfect place to hid from everyone. The CPS and any other appointments never would think to find him here. Maybe he wasn’t so bad at escaping, he thought with a small smile. All he had to do was leave in the morning and his escape was complete.

Tony must have turned the TV on and Peter listened half asleep as the news played.

“President Clinton, who is Gennifer Flowers?”

Something tugged at his consciousness. Something important but the sandman had spun his sand too well that night and Peter fell asleep with a revelation tugging at his mind - at the tip of his tongue.

-

“Holy Shit.”

Peter sat up without regard for anything around him. His head was spinning and he planted both hands on the blankets surrounding him. The morning sun filtered into the room. The bed as bigger than the one in his room and the room itself had a more spacious design while looking fancier too. These were all things Peter would have noticed if his mind, miraculously recovered from last night’s vacation of his brain, hadn’t been putting together everything from the past couple days.

President Clinton.

Shrek rocking out to Queen.

The sweater vests.

Tony!

He was, somehow and inexplicably, not in 2017 anymore. It was insane and unthinkable, but he was convinced. Peter had traveled to the past.

He started to hyperventilate. The short bursts of air sent his head spinning dizzy. Too many questions and not enough answers raged in his mind. Peter tried to remember every detail that could prove him wrong. He stared at his clenched fists with a scowl. This was all wrong. How was this real? Surely, there was a reasonable explanation. Surely, he would wake up tomorrow in the blue room.

Peter began crying. The large tears dripped down his face onto the blankets staining them with flecks of dark grey. Loneliness was often a plague he dealt with. It found him in the silent waiting room and followed him, dogging his steps. When Ben was gone it was there. When May died it was there, waiting like an old companion. He’d grown fond of the weariness in some way. It was a familiar comfort to have. The ache in his stomach gave him a place in the world, a feeling to hold onto. All of that was gone. There was an absence now where the ache was. He clenched his fists tighter and couldn’t feel the sting of his nails against his palms. It was all wrong. He didn’t belong here.

Something wrapped around his shoulder.

Tony’s hand.

“Hey there, it’s going to be okay.”



“No.” Peter moaned and fell forward. His head hit the soft bedding. He almost wished it hit him harder. “I can’t… I can’t…”



“It’s going to be okay, Peter. Trust me.”

Peter screamed into his pillow, pounding his fist onto the bed again and again.

“No!” he yelled sitting up to stare at Tony who was standing beside the bed in a hospital gown and socks. He looked so young and Peter knew why. Tears began anew. He heaved a breath. It caught in his throat and ignited a coughing fit. Tony was there in an instant with tissues. He rubbed his hand up and down Peter’s back, hesitant and awkward in his comfort.

Somehow, he ended up leaning boneless against Tony. His breathing was deep but uneven as he came to grips of his new reality. He felt incredibly fragile after his outburst. Like the only thing keeping him together were the rigid arms around him. Tony’s back was stiff and Peter could tell from his body language how uncomfortable he was but it didn’t matter. He was still there trying to help him.

“Are you worried about CPS?” Tony said quietly. “I, don’t be mad but I tried to look you up last night and couldn’t find anything on you. Are you hiding from the people who tried to attack you?”



Peter was so damn tired. The movies taught him the rules of time travel but the problem was each movie had its own rules. He didn’t know what was the correct thing to say so he nodded. Tony squeezed their hands together. His eyes calculated observed him and Peter watched as he came to some conclusion. Tony nodded at him before getting up.

“Alright, I’ll help. You stay here and don’t leave. I’ve got this room to myself without any interference. I’ve got an appointment later today but I will be back with all the paperwork. Stay here, Peter. I promise it will be okay.”

With one last searching look, Tony turned and left the room. Peter barely noticed he was still in the hospital gown for his expression was so similar to the one from old Tony. He was alone again. The sounds of the TV played on but he didn’t pay attention. All of his plans went out the window when he found this room and its occupant. Determination and hope all rolled into one could be a scary and effective combination.

He rolled onto his side to stare out the window. His eyes wilted shut and the room faded from view. The last thought he had was at least he didn’t have to worry about running into his past self as he had not yet been born. Peter hiccuped and wondered what he’d gotten himself into.

Thank you all for reading.

Next Chapter Thirteen: Trust in me

#whumptober 2020 #whumptober2020 #no. 11 #day 11 #whumptober day eleven #crying #struggling #defiance #Spider man #Marvel #Avengers #Peter parker #tony stark #irondad #irondad fic #time travel #marvel time travel #fic #ao3

[jiminniethemarshmallow]

Unresolved Issues (M)

Pairing: Taehyung x OC

Genre: Smut, angst I guess? 

Word count: about 27k

Warnings: dom!Tae, bratty reader, a tiny bit of spanking, light choking, Tae fingering reader with his gorgeous hands, dirty talk

(A/N): This is for the BSC summer project! Thanks so much to @ironicarmy @jhspetitegf and @sugadrms for being amazing group members, I really had fun brainstorming and working with you guys. I suggest reading all 4 of our scenarios for this project because they overlap and connect quite a bit and it might be confusing if you don’t! Happy reading 😊

Project Masterlist

Summary: Kim Taehyung has always been the insufferable idiot who you can barely tolerate, even as one of his friends. Due to some meddling from your friends, you end up rooming with him on the trip and bonding with him in a way you’ve failed to do in the years you’ve known him, but what happens when you accidentally discover his feelings toward you?

Coffee shops are one of your favorite places to be. The scent of ground beans and baked goods, soft music playing in the background, the general quietness, it’s all so calming to you, and the soothing atmosphere is enough to pull you out of your groggy, disgruntled mood this morning as you push open the door and greet your friends with a silent smile and a wave. After stopping by the counter to order the usual: a medium mocha frappe with extra chocolate sauce on top (you’re a simple girl), you head over and take a seat next to Namjoon and Hoseok, accepting their greetings and small talk.

“You’re late.” You look up to find Taehyung and Jimin sitting across from you with their arms crossed over their chests, eyes narrowed in your direction— though Taehyung’s eyes aim a little lower than your face.

“It’s not my fault that my mother decided to have a rare “parenting moment” and give me a 20 minute speech on safety and boys on my way out the door. And I’m not late.” Your eyebrow arches in defiance, basically having a staring contest with Taehyung as he holds his stance, Jimin having already dropped the act.

“You’re not late, Faye, you’re right on time!” Zoe, Jin’s girlfriend and the mother figure of the group, checks the time on her phone for what you will guess is the hundredth time in the last 10 minutes. She can be a bit neurotic at times, always needing to plan everything to the very last detail, but you love her regardless and honestly admire her dedication and effort with those types of things. It seems like a lot of work. “Now we’re just waiting on Jungkook.”

At the mention of his name, Sooyun shifts in her seat uncomfortably, playing with the sleeve on her cup. You note the way she nibbles on her lip in thought as she glances repeatedly at the door. You know her well enough to find it obvious that something happened between the two of them, but you won’t say anything unless she wants to tell you. Sooyun is one of the first real friends you made in high school, one of the first people who didn’t treat you like an asshole and actually approached you with kindness instead of passing you off as the quiet, weird, artsy girl that always seemed to lurk on the sidelines. She’s the main reason you’re in this friend group, her generally social personality led to her making many acquaintances and friends, which in turn led to you befriending those people as well since you mainly only hung out with her. These friends include Namjoon and his boyfriend Hoseok, Jungkook, Jin, Zoe, Jimin, and his best friend Taehyung.

Kim Taehyung. The clumsy, air-headed, childish asshole that you begrudgingly call your friend. When you first met him, you absolutely despised him. He was the class clown in your 9th grade gym class and never took a single thing seriously, cracking jokes at every convenience and disrupting the class with his obnoxious behavior. It’s a wonder how you haven’t killed him yet. He seems to take pleasure in pressing your buttons, which you have a quite a few of, and even though you know he does it on purpose, you can never seem to control your temper with him. The only reason you even attempt to tolerate him is because you have a soft spot for Jimin and his manggae cheeks, therefore, you are obligated to accept his best friend. Don’t get me wrong, Tae is one of your closest... “friends”... and you know a lot about each other, but that doesn’t mean that your annoyance toward him has lessened at all.

You sit back and watch as conversation continues among your group, everyone listening to Zoe as she briefs you all on what she has planned for the trip— apparently she printed out a schedule with possible group activities and events. You try your hardest to ignore Taehyung as he spreads himself out across from you, manspreading beyond belief and spewing nonsense as usual. Jimin agrees with nearly every stupid idea that he comes up with and you can’t help but roll your eyes at the pair of them, not missing the wink Taehyung sends your way when he catches your annoyance. At some point Zoe starts to freak out about Jungkook not being here and Jin comforts and reassures her with strong arms wrapped around her waist. You’ve never been big on sappy couples, but you have to admit, they are absolutely, undeniably adorable together. It’s amazing to you how they’ve been together for so long already and have stayed virgins. You aren’t even a virgin and you can hardly say that you’ve had any “real” boyfriends, but you digress. That’s honestly none of your business.

“I’m here!” Jungkook bursts through the door clumsily and Zoe takes the time to scold him while you gather your suitcase and prepare to stand up. A man at the front counter appears with a cup and calls out your name and you depart the table abruptly to claim it, bag in tow. Leaning on the counter, you address the man with a smile, and take the drink with you name on it.

“Finally got my name right.” You beam, grabbing a straw from the dispenser and opening it with your teeth.

“Oh! Let me fix that for you,” He grabs his marker and crosses out your name, rewriting it as “Fade” instead, laughing when you blow the paper straw wrapper at him. “I’m gonna miss not seeing you here every week, Faye.”

“Yeah, me too. I always had the best times here, I’m going to miss hanging out here with my friends.” You frown. Recently, you’ve been feeling rather nostalgic and now everywhere you go you feel a rush of memories and then a brief sadness. Yes, you are moving on to bigger and better things, but you’re going to miss this life. As you share saddened looks with the barista, a sudden presence slides up beside you and your face hardens. “I definitely won’t miss this one, though.” You point with your thumb.

“Hello, Kai.” Taehyung’s voice deepens the way it does when he’s trying to seem intimidating, his eyes staring back and forth between you and your acquaintance.

“Hello, Taehyung.” He responds with the same energy and you feel Taehyung shift an inch closer to you causing you to move your arm so they don’t touch.

“Flirting with customers again, are we?” Taehyung’s thick eyebrow raises quizzically and Kai blushes, though he holds his ground.

“Invading other’s personal space again, are we?” You snort at this, earning a smirk from the man across the counter.

“Is it illegal for a guy to talk to a woman without having an ulterior motive? Not everyone is like you, Tae.” You cut him a steely look and he sucks his teeth.

“You don’t know what his motives are, the guy clearly likes you.”

“I’m standing right here...” Kai mentions, heat radiating off of his face from your lack of reaction.

“Yeah, but at least he’s not a dickhead like you.” Before he can open his mouth to say anything, you grab your luggage and turn away. “Everyone’s about to leave without us, let’s go. Bye, Kai! I promise I’ll visit again before I go off to school!” You wave back at him, noticing how his eyes follow you all the way out of the door and how Taehyung looks back at him menacingly once more before he exits the building. You throw your bag into the trunk of Jin’s car and plop down in the back seat, groaning when Taehyung slides in on the other side of Jimin. “Why can’t you go in the other car?”

“I want to sit with my best friend.” He pats Jimin’s shoulder with a toothy grin. “What, is it illegal for me to ride in the same car as you?” He mimics your voice from earlier and you choose not to say anything back, turning your head toward the window to hold your tongue. Instead, you just shake your head and slip on your headphones, turning on your road trip playlist and pulling out your notebook. It wasn’t too long of a ride to the lake house by your standards, maybe an hour or two, and you planned on occupying yourself the entire way to avoid having to actually engage in conversation this early in the morning. Once everyone is in place, Jin pulls out of the lot and leads the way, Jungkook’s car following closely behind as your journey begins.

Taehyung stares at you in intrigue, thick eyebrows knit as he studies you. Your lilac, chin-length hair shifts in the wind around your soft face, pushed behind one ear when it threatens to obstruct your view. Your deep eyes are cast down, focused on the pencil that strokes fluidly across your notepad before flicking upward to take in the scenery, drawing lines that will magically connect into a beautiful masterpiece. He’s seen you do it many times, completely relaxed in your hunched over posture as you look on objectively at your surroundings, copying down everything that you see at a glance. You’re a pretty girl— not that that determines your value— and you’ve got talent and intelligence that will take you far in life and he admires that about you, always so observant and collected. Never cocky, but still confident, yet quiet at the same time. And you just look so peaceful and natural right now.

“The fuck are you looking at?” You hiss. Behind your deceivingly calm demeanor is a sharp tongue. Your whip-like wit is something to behold and it’s almost always targeted at him. You could feel him looking at you before you even looked up, he’s not very subtle. You suspect that most of the reason his eyes have landed on you is because of the strapless top you’ve elected to wear that shows off the slightest bit of cleavage, and now he can’t take his eyes off you. Pervert. He looks completely unbothered when you catch him, barely batting an eye.

“You have a booger in your nose.” He points across Jimin, and you smack his hand out of the way, not even needing to take off your headphones to know what he’s said. “What are you even drawing? There’s no way you can see anything long enough to draw it.”

When you don’t reply, he leans closer to see, nearly smashing the poor boy stuck between you two. “Tae, Jesus, let me breathe.” Jimin whines, pushing him away. “If you’re going to be like this then maybe we should switch seats so I don’t have to be in the middle of whatever’s going on here.”

“No!” You say a little too loudly, causing Zoe to turn around in the passengers seat.

“You two better not argue the whole way up here.” She frowns, glaring at the two of you.

“I’m literally just sitting here in silence, trying my best to ignore him and draw, why am I being yelled at?” You sigh, increasing the volume of your music to increase your skills at ignoring him.

“Don’t worry, I’m sure they’ll have plenty of time to talk out their problems on the trip.” Jin snickers, receiving another striking look from Zoe and a high pitched giggle from Jimin. Taehyung looks around, clearly lost (as always), but no one says anything further, so he asks.

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?”

“Jin, we weren’t supposed to tell them until we got there!” Zoe says through her teeth, as though the two of you couldn’t hear her.

“Can someone please tell me what’s going on?” At Taehyung’s second attempt, you pause your music and listen in, intrigued with what was so important that they felt the need to hide it from the two of you. “Jimin?”

“Don’t ask me, I wasn’t the one who spilled the beans.” Jimin holds his hands up in defense, not willing to get his head bitten off by Mother Hen in the front seat who seems to avoid your eyes at all costs. This time, you’re the one to ask and she finally gives, sighing before sinking into her chair.

“We all decided who wants to room together at the coffee house and everyone agreed that you and Tae should stay in the same room.” When she breaks the devastating news, the whole car is silent for just a split second before you erupt.

“I’m sorry, what?! You didn’t. You did not. You. Did. Not.” Zoe simply nods at your disbelief, folding her hands in her lap innocently as Jin chuckles beside her. The longer you stare at her, however, the more nervous she becomes until she feels like the air should be broken somehow.

“Don’t look at me, it was Jin’s idea!” She immediately throws him under the bus, his jaw dropping in shock.

“Babe!”

“It was! And you’re the one who brought it up! We weren’t even supposed to tell them.” As they fuss about blame and who said what, you’re left in the back, shell-shocked. You and Taehyung. Spending a weekend in the same room. Together. You think you’re going to be sick.

“You guys decided rooms without us?” Tae finally speaks up, not looking nearly as disturbed as you thought he should be.

“Because they were plotting against us, that’s why.” Breaking out of your trance, you point an accusatory finger at Jin’s seat in front of you, wishing you could shoot lasers out of your eyes. Then you turn to the man beside you who finds the whole situation funny. “Jimin, why aren’t you rooming with Taehyung? I thought you were best friends!”

“We are, but I don’t think we make good roommates.”

“But we do?!” An immediate headache forms behind your eyes and you rub at your face. You’re ready to jump out of your seat, but then you remember that you are currently in a moving vehicle. You hate that you’re this flustered over such a small detail, but you can’t think of a worse torture than spending your nights in the same room as that buffoon. And when you look over at the dumb look he has on his face, you start to regret this trip before it’s even begun.

“We are not changing rooms now, it’s already been decided. You guys need to learn how to get along at some point and this is the perfect way to do it. I don’t know why you hate each other, but I’m tired of you arguing all the time, so you either talk it out, or I’m excluding you from all of the fun activities I planned. C’mon, this should be easy. No one bonds faster than roommates!” Not even you can argue with her after Zoe puts her foot down. You can tell she’ll be a great mother when the time comes, if she ever gets around to doing the deed with Jin. She ends with a tight, demanding smile and you resist the urge to dry heave at the thought of what’s to come.

“So, what you’re telling me is that this was all a set up?” She doesn’t reply to your question and you close your notebook in despair. “Why are you trying to ruin my life?”

“I live for the drama,” Jin gloats once you’ve given up, chancing a glance in the rear view mirror to see your expression. “I thought this trip could use a little excitement. You’re welcome.” He shrugs, chaotic as always.

“I’m glad you find this entertaining.” You’re absolutely drained, feeling like the life has been sucked from your face. You can’t even draw anymore, all of your previous energy and high spirits going straight to Hell, the same place you hope Jin ends up. For the rest of the ride up you sit in misery, listening to your music and wallowing in your misfortune as you tune out the other conversations. You don’t know how Taehyung is taking the news, but what you do know is that if you see his face at all before you get to the lake house, you might just jump out the window.

The lake house is right on the water, beautiful wood and stone architecture that blends in nicely with the nature and trees that surround it. This house is huge, easily able to accommodate your group, and you admire the details when you pull up into the driveway. The first thing you notice are the windows, large and numerous, exposing many parts of the house to natural light. It’s beautiful and if you weren’t so angry right now you would definitely draw it. You’ll have to come out here one day and sketch this in your notebook.

Zoe spends an entire 5 minutes talking about house rules and going over her precious schedule so “everyone knows what we’ll be doing this weekend.” Your take away from her speech is that drunk swimming is strictly prohibited, no one is allowed to go off into the woods alone without telling anyone, and to basically not destroy Jin’s family’s nice vacation home or you’ll be paying for damages. Half of you aren’t even listening— including Jimin, who is too enraptured in the task of taking selfies in front of the house, and Taehyung, who is zoned the fuck out and probably has no clue what is going on— and the few of you who are paying attention only nod silently in agreement to everything she says. As soon as she stops talking, you’re on the move, wanting nothing more than to relax inside.

“What’s up with her?” Jungkook comments in passing when you snatch your bag from Jin’s trunk and stomp past him.

“We told them about the rooms.” Jimin answers, nodding in confirmation at the boy’s wide eyes before pushing past to make a run for the bathroom inside.

“Guys, wait here, I have something to show you.” Jin runs inside the house without further context, leaving the rest of you standing outside in confusion.

“Hurry up!” Taehyung calls, leaning against the closed trunk of the car. The sound of his voice makes you want to punch him just to relieve your frustration.

A minute later, Jin emerges from the house, followed by another man whom you had never seen before. He stands a little bit shorter than Jin, handsome face blank behind his black bangs, yet he looks friendly enough. “This is Yoongi! He’s my parents’ new android, he’s gonna be helping us out this weekend.”

You stare for a few seconds, taking in his words. An android? You had no idea that people were actually purchasing those. You’ve seen ads on tv for them, everyone going crazy over the newest innovations in A.I. and android tech, but those things cost a fortune so you assumed nobody had them. On second thought, it makes perfect sense that Jin’s parents would buy such a costly... appliance... person-thing. They’re certainly rich enough. Yoongi greets each of you individually, shaking your hands and asking for everyone’s names. He looks so life-like, you could forget he wasn’t made of real flesh and bone. Jin explains the details of how Yoongi functions, how he takes commands because his job is essentially to be the groundskeeper for the lake house, but that he is fully conscious and self aware, which means that he can function socially.

“That’s so cool!” Namjoon gushes, his nerdy side coming out as he moves to inspect the “man” in front of you. After the novelty of the introduction wears off, you are the first to head inside, too hot and irritated to listen to Taehyung complain about not wanting to carry Jimin’s bag in for him. You walk in to find Jimin walking around the spacious bottom floor, jaw hanging low as he looks at all the fancy decorations and appliances that fill the home. You could tell him that he missed Yoongi’s introduction, but you’re still pissed off at him.

“Wow, I can’t believe we’re staying here!” He sounds like an excited puppy, making it a point not to miss a single detail in his path.

“I can’t believe you’re making me stay in the same room as Taehyung.” You say bitterly, pressing the button to the elevator even though the stairs are right there. He doesn’t even spare you a glance.

“I’m gonna make sure we make good use of the bar back there,” You roll your eyes as he continues making plans by himself, mostly talking about getting drunk and doing stupid things around all of this expensive furniture. You can only shake your head at him.

Everyone moves their bags into your agreed upon rooms, Jin with Zoe, Hoseok, Jimin, and Jungkook staying together, Sooyun with Namjoon, and Yoongi getting his room by himself. And of course, you and Taehyung. You plead with Jin to switch you with Yoongi and let you have the single room, to no avail, and spend the rest of the time unpacking and sulking, avoiding Taehyung at all costs. You’ll be over it in a couple of hours, you’re sure, but for now, you just want to sit and wallow in your gloom.

“Hey, it’s not that bad, we can-“

“Stop. I don’t want to hear it.” You shut him down immediately, back facing him and jaw clenched as you stuff clothing into the drawers of your dresser. You aren’t particularly upset with him, this isn’t his fault, but he definitely isn’t making the situation any better.

“What the fuck are these?” Walking over, Taehyung reaches into your small luggage bag, pulling out a pair of your most comfortable panties, a pair of boy shorts with cute little bears on them. “Aw, you act all tough, but you’re really just a big softy, huh?” He pouts, doing his famous aegyo that makes you want to throw your shoe at him, so you do.

“Put those down! Not all girls wear lingerie all the time, Tae, some of us actually like to be comfortable.”

“No, I like them. Bears suit you: cute and fluffy on the outside, mean and vicious once you get close to them.” He easily dodges the other shoe you throw.

“I am not mean.” How dare he say that about you, of all people. He’s the one who deliberately tries to piss you off, so much so that it’s gotten to the point that you get irritated if he even breathes in your direction.

“Oh yeah? Says the girl that just threw her shoes at my head.” A cocky little smirk crawls on his lips when you fume, ready to stand up and just say ‘fuck it’ and fight him. But you won’t. And you never will. He knows this, and that’s what makes him that much more insufferable.

“Fuck off.”

“See! Why can’t you be nice for once? We’re going to be sharing this room whether you like it or not, so we might as well try to be cordial with each other.” He looks on as you stare at him in silence, considering his offer shortly before scoffing and turning back to continue filing away your clothes.

When Taehyung leaves to go to the bathroom, you quickly dig into your bag for the embarrassing amount of condoms your mother stuffed into the side pocket, gathering them in one of your caps and stepping out into the hall. Everyone’s doors are open thankfully, so you walk down the hall like a flower girl and throw handfuls of condoms into each doorway.

“What the hell?” Namjoon sticks his head out of the door to find you walking back down the hall nonchalantly, holding the last few in one hand. “Umm?” You turn, shrugging.

“I don’t need ‘em.”

Hoseok pops his head out of the room across from his boyfriend, carrying a bunch of them in his arms. “Thank you!”

Yoongi’s door is at the end of the hall and you knock before entering, finding him opening the curtains a little wider to let in the sunlight. You stand there silently for a moment, taking in his appearance. He truly looks like a human, it’s crazy. He stands at the window, watching the birds and the leaves and the breeze and you wait a few long moments before disturbing him. “Yoongi?” He turns quickly at attention, as if waiting for instruction. “Do you want some condoms?”

“Condoms?” He questions, and you’re not sure if he knows what those are.

“Yes?” You hold them out and he approaches, picking up a package to inspect it. Can androids even have sex? You wouldn’t know.

“Yes, of course I’ll take some condoms because I’ll definitely need them.” He says with a completely straight face, adding an eye roll at the end. Did he just give you sarcasm? Jin did say he’s advanced, maybe you should try to be more comfortable around him. You’ve never met anyone rich enough to own an android so this is your first interaction with one aside from what you’ve seen on tv.

“Well I don’t need them. I was just offering.” Despite his comment, he takes them from your hand with a smile.

“I appreciate your thoughtfulness. You should keep one, too. Never know what might happen.” You nod at his advice, keeping one for yourself even though you highly doubt you’ll be needing it.

It’s later now, the sun nearly all the way set, casting the most lovely shades of orange, pink, and even purple across the sky, the water reflecting it so beautifully. You couldn’t imagine a prettier sight and you wish that you had your paints with you so you could capture this landscape, but a simple photo will have to suffice. Looking out over the water, you stand alone on the patio as everyone gets ready inside, preparing food and other snacks and necessities for your movie night under the stars. Zoe’s idea of course, but you have no complains about her plans. Just then, Tae walks up and stands beside you, hands in the pockets of his shorts as he takes in the view.

“I saw this exact thing in a dream once,” He starts, and you’re already shaking your head for him to stop, mentally begging him not to ruin this perfect moment. “It looked just like this, except I was on a boat and I was getting my dick sucked by that girl in our history class.” You take in a deep breath, eyes shut while you collect yourself, and then you decide it’s not worth saying anything to that and simply walk back inside to help the others. “I don’t know why she was there, I didn’t even like her like that!” He tries to justify, but you’re already gone.

“Faye! Come help me at the grill!” Sooyun waves you over, standing over the fancy appliance after Jin helps her turn it on, heading back into the kitchen. It looks like something you would see on a cooking show, top notch equipment and cooking utensils, cleaned spotlessly.

“That rich motherfucker,” You shake your head in disbelief. “Who even owns stuff like this? I bet this one grill is worth enough to pay my college tuition.” You laugh, helping her place food on the racks.

“Forget the grill, I’m surprised his parents own this whole place, it’s like a freaking resort! Actually, no I’m not, they already live in a mansion, this is probably nothing to them. But I didn’t expect them to let all of us stay here without adult supervision.”

“Sooyun, we are adults. Technically.” As a group of 18 year olds fresh out of high school, legally, you all could be considered adults. But you’re far from responsible. Jin’s parents must have a lot of faith in you all to let you stay here with a fully stocked refrigerator and bar— your parents would never let you do such a thing, even with supervision.

“Yeah, ‘adults’. You said your mom gave you a lecture this morning? What about?” Sooyun is a really great listener and you’ve confided in her multiple times throughout the period of time you’ve known her, so naturally she knows the most about your private life. Jimin is another great listener in the group— on the rare occasions when you can get him alone— but he has the tendency to say a lot of things he’s not supposed to when he gets drunk, so you kinda stopped sharing secrets with him. Plus, he’s already Taehyung’s secret holder, you wouldn’t want to overburden him.

You sigh. “She basically gave me a rundown of how to survive in the wilderness and what to do if we see a bear. I tried to tell her we’re not camping outside or anything, but of course she wouldn’t listen to me and kept talking anyway. Then she shoved a handful of condoms into my bag because she “couldn’t trust that a horny group of teenagers will be able to keep their hands to themselves”, so she gave them to me “just in case” and then proceeded to lecture me about getting pregnant and STDs.”

“Is that why there was a pile of condoms left on my floor? I thought someone was pulling a prank.” She mumbles, looking a little relieved, closing the lid of the grill to let the food cook properly. “But at least she cares, right?”

“Yeah I guess...” Your mother has never been good at the parenting thing. At times you felt as if she were too lenient, giving you more freedom than you needed and letting certain things go unpunished. You aren’t a bad child, you rarely do things that deserve punishment, but growing up you wished she were a little more involved in your life or at least showed that she gave a crap about what you did, and now that you’re going away to college she’s finally stepping in to be the parent that you needed a long time ago. “I think she realized how much time she wasted not acting like a parent and now she’s trying to make up for it. But it’s too late, I grew up already and she missed it. I appreciate her effort, but at this point it’s just annoying and unwanted.” She nods, taking in your words silently. “She did say something that I agreed with, though. Stay away from Kim Taehyung.”

Both of you look toward the glass patio door where you can hear Taehyung and Jimin either laughing or arguing over at the bar, most likely trying to decide how drunk they want to get tonight. Tae is the loudest, shouting something about vodka and sexy bartenders and the two of you just shake your heads. The only times Tae actually drinks are when he’s with Jimin or there’s a threat of him being the only sober one. He told you once that he hates alcohol and how it tastes, yet you somehow find him drunk at almost every social gathering you’ve attended in your high school career. And drunk Tae is not something you want to deal with, ever, especially since you’ll be sharing a room with him tonight.

“What’s your problem with him? Don’t take this the wrong way, but I don’t get why you have such a vendetta against him when he’s literally done nothing wrong.” Leave it to her to always speak her mind. It’s something you’ve always admired her for and that’s probably why you get along so well.

“He’s an idiot and I don’t understand him. I feel like he doesn’t think about the words that come out of his mouth 97% of the time and that irritates the hell out of me.”

“Yeah, but neither does Jimin. They’re stupid as a pair, it’s not just Taehyungie, but you like Jimin just fine.” She does have a point there. Jimin isn’t the bad influence that causes Tae to do stupid things— he’s capable of that all on his own— but for some reason when they’re together, Tae just gets exponentially worse. You have a theory that the two of them actually share one collective brain cell, except Jimin holds it most of the time and Tae only uses it when he needs to swindle someone into getting something he’s not supposed to have.

“I don’t have a problem with Jimin, he’s had a tough life and I know most of the time his behavior is just a coping mechanism for the shit he’s going through. I actually think he’s really strong and has a great personality, and if he wasn’t gay I probably would have jumped his bones by now.” It’s no secret that you are attracted to Jimin. I mean, have you seen him? When you first met, you couldn’t stop blushing and drooling over him, despite his questionable behavior and moods at times, and when you learned of his background as a boy whose only home has been an orphanage and the other children that live in it, you completely fell for him. You swear you were obsessed with him for at least a month after your first introduction, you were even nicer to Taehyung to get closer to him. But then one day you heard him talking about his crush on a boy in one of his classes and your hopes were shattered. He claims he’s bi, but you have yet to witness him actually having a crush on a girl. Either way, you quickly discovered that he certainly does not have feelings for you. “Taehyung, on the other hand, doesn’t have an excuse for the shit he does. And it doesn’t help that he’s always purposely doing things to pick on me.”

“Maybe he does have a reason.”

“I doubt it. He’s just an asshole.” You conclude there at the sound of the door opening, Jungkook walking out to rearrange the seats to face the screening wall. Sooyun tenses when he enters, but plays it off quickly. Not before you notice, however.

“He’s not the worst of them, though. We’ve met some pretty horrible guys.” She jokes, trying to speak a little quieter now that Jungkook is within earshot.

“Maybe we’ll have better luck with guys in college. Maybe I’ll like someone who is actually into girls and maybe you’ll find someone who isn’t-“ your best friend. Not that it’s a bad thing. You stop yourself from saying it out loud, remembering how you weren’t going to say anything about the two of them unless she decided to bring it up. She doesn’t seem to notice your slip up. “I heard that most people meet their soulmate in college.”

“Please, I’d be lucky if I find 1 guy that’s interested in me. I have terrible luck with men.” Jungkook looks up from behind her, quickly looking away once he catches your gaze. Yup, something definitely went down between the two of them. You haven’t figured out if it was a good or bad thing yet.

“You’re a smart girl with an amazing smile, I’m sure there will be men falling over you once you get there in the fall.” There’s still uncertainty in her eyes and she avoids yours by opening the hood of the grill again and checking on the food. It looks mostly done so you grab a plate and wait for her to pile them on. You keep looking back at Jungkook over her shoulder, he seems distracted and that’s probably because he’s been listening in on your conversation. The idea of Sooyun going away to college and meeting other people seems to bother him and you wish she would just turn around and see that. But she doesn’t.

“Sure, I might be pretty for high school standards, but I doubt I’ll look all that special to anyone in my first year. I’ll have to wait for my ‘glow up’ before anyone even looks at me.”

“Shut up, you’re beautiful.” Before you can even open your mouth to reassure her, Jungkook’s voice sounds from behind. He says it so confidently, like it’s the only thing he’s certain of in his life, and when you both turn to look at him, he meets her eyes as if to say that what he’s just spoken is the truth. And then his eyes return back to his work.

Sooyun looks frozen in place, no longer looking at him but staring off into space, her hand still holding firmly onto the poker she was using to remove the food. “Hello?” You wave a hand over her face, concerned by how it looks like she’s having war flashbacks behind her eyes, teeth biting down hard on her bottom lip and chest heaving. What on earth was she thinking about? “Sooyun, are you in there? The food is burning!”

“Huh?” This seems to snap her out of it and she blinks rapidly a few times before turning back to the grill and cursing at the sight of burning food. You want to ask her about it, but telling from the mortified look on her face, she probably doesn’t want to talk.

A few minutes later, everyone is settled in a seat, snacks distributed along the coffee table for convenience within everyone’s reach. You reach for a bag of snacks, after the first 10 minutes of the movie after eyeing them since they got there, and since nobody claimed them yet, you decided it was yours for the taking. You lean forward slowly, as not to cause too much of a distraction, but just before your fingers reach the wrapper, a longer pair close around it and pull them out of reach. You lock eyes with none other than Kim Taehyung, who seems to freeze when he realizes his mistake, but he doesn’t offer them to you like any of your other friends would. Instead, he slowly begins to open the bag while making eye contact with you through the darkness.

“Don’t you dare.” You mouth at him, watching as he reaches his fingers into the bag and pulls out a large handful of the treats, shoving them into his mouth and crunching loudly. “You bastard, those were mine!” You try to whisper your rage as quietly as possible, but everyone hears you anyway.

He holds the bag up to his face, inspecting it from all angles before looking at you with an innocent look on his face. “I don’t see your name on it.”

“You saw me reaching for them.”

“You should have moved a little faster, I couldn’t tell what you were reaching for.”

“Not everyone has alien fingers like you.”

“Well, not everyone has baby hands like you.”

“Guys!” Namjoon interjects, cuddled up with Hoseok between you two. “Why can’t you just share?”

“I don’t think he knows what the word “share” means.” You narrow your eyes at Taehyung, who is still munching on your snacks.

“Why don’t you just take the bigger bag?” Someone suggests, directing your attention to the large family sized bag of the same snack in the middle of the table. If you open that bag, you’ll eat until it’s empty and you’ve gained 10 pounds. No thanks.

“I don’t want that one. It’s too big,”

“That’s what she said.” Tae snickers, pleased by the flames that flare up behind your eyes. “Fine, I’ll give it back.” After sinking his hands into the small bag for 2 more enormous handfuls, he tosses it back to you across the table and watches with a mischievous glow as you pick it up and peek inside.

“It’s empty.” As expected. You’re seething, though, speaking through your teeth as you try to get your rage under control. You sit the bag down gently, reaching for a bag of candy instead, and out of the corner of your eye you see him lean forward too, but this time there’s a deadliness in your gaze that makes him retreat with a boxy, almost sheepish grin.

Your attitude continues throughout most of the movie, angrily stuffing gummies into your mouth as you try to get over how petty Taehyung is. He’s so childish, taking a snack that you were clearly going for and eating it in front of you, adding insult to injury by handing you an empty bag. How old is he anyway: 6? He’s so frustrating sometimes, you just want to go over there and slap some sense into him.

“Are you still pouting over those snacks?” Hobi asks once he looks over and sees your bent up expression. “It’s not that big of a deal.” He laughs.

He’s right, it’s not that much of a problem. You’re just making it into one. Upon closer reflection, you realize how childish you must look to all of your other friends. Sure, Tae purposely tried to get on your nerves and it worked, but it always works. You always argue and throw a fit when things don’t go your way, and the more you watch the movie, the more clearly you see that. A character in the film started off as the annoying girl who complained about everything and thought the world was out to get her, when really, it was just her outlook on things and reactions to minor inconveniences that made situations worse. Everyone could see it, it was painfully obvious, and you begin to see a similarity to her in yourself. Did you act like this with Taehyung? Were you the petty one who exploded over the smallest inconveniences or discomfort around him? Yes, he can be an asshole sometimes, but there is a more adult way to deal with him. You were just talking to Sooyun about being adults, yet here you are, pouting over a bag of snacks that you could literally get in a bigger size across the table all because you wanted that specific one and now you’re upset because somebody else took it. When you look at it from an outside point of view, you’re the one that looks silly here. This is the type of argument you would have to settle if you were babysitting a group of elementary schoolers— not one involving almost college students. And thinking back to previous arguments you’ve had with him over the years, it’s always been like that. That’s not to say that Tae wasn’t also in the wrong, but maybe you could handle his immaturity in a different way other than bringing out your own.

You feel like your underlying issues stem from the lack of reinforcement and consequences you received for your behavior as a child when you would act out around other children, and it is your parents’ fault for not teaching you the appropriate way to deal with things like this, but that’s too deep of an introspection for you at this point in the story. And you can’t be your own therapist. Self reflection and awareness doesn’t happen all at once, people. That shit takes time.

The rest of movie night is surprisingly enjoyable. The movie you all agreed on is corny and definitely not your usual genre, but you enjoy it no less and find yourself fully engaged by the end of it. A cool breeze blows by and you burrow into a blanket, shifting to be comfortable during the last few scenes of the movie. When it ends, you’re the first one to offer to clean up, not even realizing that Yoongi had already started. It’s pretty late, almost midnight actually, so as soon as everything is back in it’s rightful place, everyone heads up to their rooms for the first night at the lake house.

Your rooms each hold one (1) unreasonably comfortable King sized bed, in which you were expected to share with your roommate. Great. Taehyung skips out on clean up a little early and you walk into the room to find him sprawled out in nothing but loose shorts and a t-shirt. It’s clear he’s going commando, you can see the outline of his dick all the way from where you stand on the other side of the room— not that you were looking. If you took the time to really look at him, he’s actually pretty hot. His pretty, brown, slightly wavy hair swoops down to cover his intense eyebrows, partially concealing his expression as he stares down at the phone in his large hands. The profile of his face is gorgeous, beautifully shaped nose, pillowy lips, and a sharp jawline his defining features, even his eye shape is endearing. Objectively, some people would say he’s very attractive, you’ve heard many girls refer to him as the most handsome man they’ve ever seen, but you don’t think you’d go as far as saying such bold statements. Not when his personality overshadows his looks.

“Why are you taking up most of the bed already?” You huff, walking over to your luggage to gather your pajamas. “Do I have to fight you for bed space too?”

“No, I’ll respect your half of the bed.” He gives in easily, scooting over a bit to demonstrate his honesty. You look up at him.

“You better, I can get pretty aggressive at night in bed.”

“Mm, kinky.” He winks, not missing the opportunity to be inappropriate.

“That’s not how I meant it.” You’re flustered slightly for some reason, hating how he always knows just what to say to get a reaction out of you. Then you pause and take a look at yourself. A mature person would just brush him off and mind their business instead of encouraging him. So that’s what you try to do. “Whatever, I’m going to go take a shower.”

Without another word, you strut into the bathroom, ready to wash away this day. While under the warm stream of water, you think about the day and how you acted. Nothing bad happened to you. The only thing is that you were paired with an idiot, and from what you gathered, it was because everyone wanted you to talk out your problems and actually get along for once. But you dragged that one little “issue” with you all day and it prevented you from enjoying yourself to the fullest on your first day of this short vacation. You wouldn’t have done anything differently if you weren’t as upset, you’re still pretty reserved, but your negative mood certainly put a damper on things. And Taehyung really didn’t do anything wrong either. Maybe you’ve been treating him harshly for no reason. He acts the same around everyone, you’re the only one who takes it personally. Maybe you owe him an apology.

“Hey,” You start softly, stepping out of the steamy bathroom fully clothed and ready for bed. “Are you okay with me not wearing a bra? I don’t want you to be uncomfortable or anything.” You weren’t really asking him because even if he said “no” you still wouldn’t sleep with a bra on, but you just wanted to be courteous. He seems surprised by your sudden consideration of his comfort level.

“Oh. Um, y-yeah that’s fine.” His brows shoot up behind his bangs when he looks at you, clearly struggling to keep his eyes on your face. You sport a loose t-shirt and a small pair of shorts, short enough to hide under the hem of your shirt and show off the curve of your ass. You weren’t expecting to room with him, or any of the other guys for that matter, so you weren’t very mindful when packing your sleepwear.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” You hide a smirk behind an inquisitive purse of your lips.

“Yes, what you wear does not matter to me.” He stresses with a straight face, but you see through it.

“Yeah? Cuz your thin shorts say otherwise.” His hands immediately shoot to his crotch, hiding the snake in his pants that only seems to grow the longer you’re in front of him. You would find it flattering if you didn’t find him completely repulsive.

“I think you know by now that it doesn’t take much for me to get hard. It’ll go away in a minute.” He doesn’t look the slightest bit embarrassed when you climb into bed beside him, using the mountains of pillows provided to build a fort down the center of the bed to clarify your individual sides. “Wow, you have zero trust in me.” He laughs. But his laugh dies down you you look up at him seriously, probably anticipating you to throw a snarky, kinda offensive comment his way.

“I owe you an apology.”

“...For what?” He looks very confused and startled, not at all expecting those words to come out of your mouth.

“For being such a bitch to you. Not just today, but basically every day since we met.” You feel like you should go on, but you don’t know what else to say. “You’re a prick but you’re not as terrible as I make you out to be.”

“Thanks, I guess.” Taehyung doesn’t seem convinced, waiting for you to do or say something mean, but your words end there. “Is that it?”

“Yes, that’s it. Were you expecting me to write a whole essay on how badly I treat and misjudge you?” He’s taken aback, but not shocked by the edge in your voice. “Zoe said she wants me to try to get along with you, so I’m trying. Earlier you asked me for a truce over the weekend and I didn’t say anything. Well, this is me formally telling you that I accept; I will attempt to tolerate you and hold my tongue as much as I can for the sake of the others.”

“How do I know you’re being serious right now?”

“I wouldn’t say it if I wasn’t serious. I don’t talk out of my ass like you tend to do; if I said it, I meant it.” You reel yourself back in when you hear how harsh you sound. “Sorry.” Did you always sound like this when you spoke to him? It’s like you’re a completely different person.

“Hmm,” He considers, eyeing you up and down. “Yeah, okay. But in order for this to work, you actually have to be nice to me for once. Do you think you’re capable of that?”

Biting your tongue, you force yourself not to roll your eyes. “I said I’ll try.”

“Good enough!” The boxy smile that crosses his lips is absolutely adorable, but you push that thought aside as soon as it enters your mind to avoid cooing at him. “Well, if you’re trying to be nicer, I guess I’ll try not to tease you so much. Usually I just do it because it’s fun, but sometimes I do feel bad about irritating you so much. You’re just so easy to pick on.”

“You have a conscience? Who would’ve thought.” You giggle, pushing pastel hair out of your eyes, and he stares at you wide eyed until you stop laughing. “I get it, I’m not funny.”

“No, no, it’s not that.” He quickly says, raising a hand defensively. “I’ve just never seen you giggle... at me before.”

“Because you’re not funny.”

“Others would beg to differ.”

“Like who?”

“Jimin. Jungkook. Jin.” He lists off a few others from school, names that you’d rather forget, and you stop him after a short while.

“Okay, I get it. But they don’t count, they’ll laugh at anything.” You lean against one of the pillows between you two, elbow supporting your weight as you move a little closer to him. His phone is forgotten now, cast aside now that your full attention is on him.

“Do you remember that one time me and Jin did that comedy skit in the talent show last year?” He’s already laughing at the memory, the melodious sound bringing a smile to your face when you think back to that cringeworthy performance. “Everyone thought we were funny then.”

“Yeah, because you’re both wannabe actors and failed comedians.”

“I wouldn’t say we failed. Doesn’t matter how terrible we were— got everyone to laugh didn’t we?” He has a point, one that you can only shake your head to in disbelief. This is weird— having a conversation with him that doesn’t involve yelling, arguing, or personal insults. You could even say that you sound like friends reminiscing about the past. The conversation continues on like this, bringing up the few good memories you’ve made that involve him, which, as it turns out, aren’t as few as you thought, and you begin to realize that you don’t hate him. It feels like you’re getting to know each other for the first time, you’re learning things about him that you hadn’t picked up even in the 4 years of knowing him. But he seems to know a lot about you. Now you truly feel like a terrible friend.

“It’s getting late.” You say with a yawn, checking your phone lazily from its spot on the charger. You’ve been talking to him for over an hour already.

“Yeah, we should probably go to sleep.” Tae says, voice even deeper than normal. The bass sends chills up your spine and you tell yourself it’s because you can feel the vibrations through the air and mattress. “Wait, I have something to give you.”

“What is it?” You look at him skeptically as he hops off the bed and rummages through his bag. You can’t imagine what it would be, but there’s a pit of anxiety in your stomach. It could be anything.

“These. I felt bad about earlier.” He sheepishly scratches the back of his neck as he returns to his side of the bed after handing you the snack you wanted during the movie. It’s a small bag, one meant for a single person and not a whole house of people like the one left out on the coffee table for the group, and you take it gingerly, almost too shy to thank him. The fact that he thought of you enough to get another bag for you blew your mind, especially since he didn’t know that you were going to apologize to him tonight. You could have kept acting like a complete asshole to him and he probably would have still felt bad and gave them to you. You most likely wouldn’t have done the same for him if the roles were switched. God, how shallow are you? Maybe there’s a reason people actually choose to be his friend.

“You didn’t have to.” You place them on the bedside table next to you, for a later time, and he acknowledges this.

“Yeah, but that was a dick move on my part and I wanted to make up for it. If you don’t want them, I’ll gladly eat them in front of you again.” His signature grin plasters itself to his face once more and you feel a little more comfortable now that he isn’t being genuine anymore. That’s uncharted territory between the two of you and you’re still a bit rocky with the friendly exchanges. But you’ll get there. For now, though, you roll your eyes at him and turn out the light, sinking into the cozy mattress and high thread count sheets.

Waking up next to Taehyung wasn’t as bad as you thought it would be. The sun is barely up, not yet above the trees but high enough to brighten the sky, and the wide-set windows let in as much light as possible. It wakes you and brings your attention to the glowing man next to you, all messy hair and wrapped around most of your pillow fort, but you aren’t filled with resentment at the sight of him. You find it kind of cute actually. You’ve never seen him asleep before— he looks so peaceful— and you don’t want to disturb that peace, so you crawl out of bed slowly and silently, pull on some real clothes and make your way out of the house.

The lake is absolutely stunning. The water reflects every ray of light present to give off a shimmering, glittery effect that nothing else could replicate. You sit at the edge of the water on a lawn chair you pulled over from the patio, back facing the lake house as you look off into the distance, recreating the image of the landscape across from you in your notebook with a steady hand. You wish you had brought your paints with you and an easel, the colors that seep into the sky over the trees is absolutely indescribable and you want nothing more than to capture it with your own hands on paper. You don’t even have your colored pencils, so you are left with a black and white rendition of the scene, your imagination, and a reference picture for later.

The nature is perfect for your creative mind, you’ve never felt more inspired in your life. When you first woke up, you tried your hardest to fall asleep, but after one glance out of the window, your mind started buzzing with inspiration to make art and you could no longer rest, that’s how you ended up out here, fighting tiredness to be present in the moment and capture it forever. Being out here alone doesn’t feel dangerous, Yoongi was awake and in the kitchen when you were leaving and you told him where you would be in case anything happened. You wanted to ask if he slept well or if he even needed to sleep at all, but you weren’t sure how he would react to your questioning and it seemed rude so you kept your mouth shut. Out here in the partial darkness, you feel totally comfortable and at peace. It’s silent aside from the leaves and wildlife shifting around you, birds chirping their morning song, and it’s such a nice soundtrack that you don’t even need the music in your headphones to focus on your art.

On the other hand, though, now you are alone with your thoughts and the guilt that’s been building ever since your self revelation last night. Talking to Taehyung really made you realize something: that you are probably the most stubborn person you’ve ever met. You’ve carried your first impression of him throughout your entire friendship— if you can even call it that— and no matter how much he’s shown you that he isn’t the person you made him out to be, you refused to believe it and give him a chance. You told Sooyun that the reason you didn’t like Tae was because you didn’t understand him, but now you see that it was because you never attempted to understand him in the first place. You gave Jimin a chance, after hearing about his hardships, but you weren’t willing to do the same for Taehyung. You knew nothing about him. And you ignored every good thing he’s ever done and instead highlighted all of his stupid decisions that any other teenage boy would make.

Sitting here alone, you decide this is the perfect time to continue your introspection and self evaluation. Most things that you’ve experienced negatively are a consequence of your own actions. Taehyung is always a boisterous, playful soul, even when you aren’t around, and you used to think that the reason why you didn’t get along was because your personalities were incompatible. But you’re starting to notice that it was your own attitude toward him that made you think that way. You saw him in your first year in high school goofing off during P.E. and assumed that he was always like this, which is not entirely untrue. Then he made one somewhat offensive comment and that set the tone for how you would see him up until this point.

“Why do you always stand off to the side and just watch? I think the game would be much more fun if you actually participated in it.” He said this with a goofy smile directed at you, who was placed firmly at the sidelines and quite content with your lack of involvement. In hindsight, he wasn’t even trying to be mean, it was an honest observation, but you took it the wrong way. He was probably trying to nicely convince you to join the action, yet your previous assumptions about him caused you to take offense to everything that came out of his mouth, and your spectators didn’t make it any better.

Everyone around you chuckled at his little comment, adding in their own judgements of you, like how you’re just the weird girl who likes to draw people or how you rarely even spoke so he shouldn’t expect you to willingly physically play with others, and those comments hurt. Not that you cared about what anyone thought of you anyway, that’s why you continue to be the way you are, but the fact that all eyes were on you, that everyone noticed you and thought negatively of your character, was like a stab in the heart. You had never done anything wrong to any of them, yet that’s how they felt about you.

“Yeah? Well at least I’m not a ball hog. Maybe you should let other players have a chance to score, you’re not even that good. And I’m seeing that off the bench.” Your sassy remark earns a collective “ooooh” from the teens who have since stopped the game. Taehyung didn’t seem fazed though.

“Says the person who has yet to step foot on the court. Maybe we would be able to score more points if all of the players on our team were actually present.” You flip him off and the gym teacher sees, breaking the two of you up before you cause any more of a disturbance than you already have. Up until this point, the people in your class hadn’t even heard you speak before, but this one altercation earned you a reputation of being the weird art kid with a bad attitude, and people steered clear of you. And you blamed it all on Tae, even if it was buried in your subconscious mind. 

What you didn’t know was that behind the scenes he defended you when others would talk behind your back. He always invited you to play or picked you to be on his team and you just assumed it was because he wanted you nearby so he could pick on you, but it never once crossed your mind that he actually wanted to befriend you. Even when you did become friends, you always thought he had the worst intentions in mind whenever he interacted with you. In reality, you’re always the one that starts arguments, he’s just returning your energy. His own actions, however, show a different side of him that you forced yourself to ignore. Taehyung always made sure that you weren’t being left out and that you were comfortable, even when you cursed at him and told him to go away or leave you alone. It was always him that looked out for you.

“You’re up early.” A deep voice sounds behind you among the rustling summer leaves and you turn to face a sleepy looking Taehyung, who drags another lawn chair behind him as he walks. His hair is messy and there are bags under his eyes, but the light hits him in a way that makes him look almost angelic. You shake that thought away almost immediately.

“So are you.”

“The sun woke me up. And then I realized you weren’t in bed anymore, so I got up and went looking for you. Yoongi told me you were out here.” He sits a respectable distance away from you, far enough where you won’t complain, and he gazes out at the scenery you’re more than halfway done sketching. You sit in silence for a while, surprised that he even has the capability to be quiet for longer than a minute, and you watch the sun rise together. “What are you doing out here so early?”

“Drawing.” You lift your notebook up slightly and he acknowledges with a nod, although it was pretty obvious. “And thinking.”

“You’re drawing the sunrise? But you only have a pencil.” He points out, leaning over the side of his chair to see your artwork better. You shift it away from his line of sight out of habit, but correct yourself quickly.

“I’ll draw the shadows and outlines here and color it once I get back home.” By the short answers you give him, he can tell you’re not in a talking mood, but he’s never deterred by something like that so he keeps questioning.

“Hm. What were you thinking about? You seem rather... pensive.”

“Do you even know what that word means?” You snort, looking at him for the first time since he sat down.

“In fact, I do. I heard it in a movie once and used context clues to figure it out.” He seems proud of himself so you humor him. “So, what’s on your mind?”

“I was thinking about you.” Your eyes meet for a moment before you turn away, but it’s enough to see the shock on his face.

“Me?”

“Well, kinda. I realized something last night— that I’m a judgy, stuck-up bitch when it comes to you and I severely underestimated your character.” Running a hand through your pastel hair, you sigh, looking over the water. “I created this entirely different image of you in my head based on a few first impressions, and I was too stubborn to change that image after we became friends. I always treated you like you were some inconsiderate fool that did whatever, whenever, and didn’t give a damn about anyone else-“

“Gee, thanks.”

“-But now I realize that I had absolutely no evidence that you were that type of person and that I just pretended you were an like that to justify being rude to you. Which makes me the monster.” Bringing your eyes back down to your paper, you try to distract yourself by finishing your piece, but you feel lost. “It’s gotten to the point where I don’t even know how to talk to you anymore without being mean.”

“You’re not a monster.” Taehyung’s voice is gentle now, though still deeper than usual, and it sends shivers up your spine. “I totally get that you don’t really like me, not everyone does. It’s my fault for always bothering you,”

“No, you’re not supposed to be the one apologizing. You’re playful and you make an effort to have fun with me like you do with everyone else, I’m the one that always took it too seriously.”

“Faye, it’s fine. Really. You don’t have to explain yourself to me.”

“Yes, I do, Tae. I’m sorry for being a horrible friend.”

“You really don’t need to apologize.”

“Okay, but I’m still sorry that I treated you like that.”

“It doesn’t matter, stop apologizing.”

“It does matter, I’m a terrible person.”

“You’re not! You are literally one of the nicest people I have met.”

“Except for the fact that I’m terrible to you.”

“You meant well.”

“I really didn’t. I actually hated you for the longest time. I’m so sorry.”

“Stop saying you’re sorry!”

“I’m sorry!”

“Stop!”

“No! Just let me feel bad about myself for once and accept that I’m the bad guy!” Both of you are silent for a minute, frowning at each other. “See, I can’t even apologize properly without arguing with you.” You bring a palm to your face tiredly, frustrated with yourself.

“I’ll accept your apology if that’s what you need to hear. But I honestly don’t think you did anything wrong. Sure, we might bicker like a married couple, but we’re still close, and that’s what I value the most.” He resolves and you both stare back out into the calm water until you speak up again.

“...Did you just compare us to a married couple?” In the brightening daylight, you can see the faint traces of a blush crawl onto his cheeks, his eyes widening slightly paired with a boxy smile.

“You know what I mean. I didn’t want to say we are like preschoolers because I thought that was a little offensive.”

“I’m more offended by the married couple analogy and its implications. I’d rather be a toddler.” You joke. Something weird crosses Taehyung’s face for a split second, but before you can address it, it’s gone.

“So are we good now?” He asks, sighing in his seat. You close your notebook, making a move to stand and turn to the lake house.

“I don’t know. That’s up to you.” He looks up at you before standing as well, folding his chair.

“Yeah, I think we’re okay- as long as you don’t try to apologize again.” He’s grinning now, looking a little more awake than before, and you try not to stare into his glowing eyes. What has gotten into you? You nod in agreement.

“Let’s head inside, it looks like some of the others are up for breakfast.” A large window leading into the dining room is in full view from your spot by the lake and you can clearly see Zoe, Jin, and Hobi sitting around the table. You assume Jimin, Jungkook, and Namjoon are still asleep, where you currently long to be, and make a decision as you walk back up to the house. Food or sleep? You choose the latter and head back up to your room to catch a few more winks of sleep, requesting to Yoongi that he save you a plate. Taehyung takes a seat at the table.

“Morning.” He greets, resting his head on the table once Yoongi informs him that breakfast is almost ready.

“Spending some extra time with your girl, Tae? Was last night not enough?” Hoseok nudges him in the side, grinning hard at his own teasing.

“You and Faye are dating?” Yoongi comes into the room with hot plates filled with delicious food, setting them down in front of everyone.

“No. We were just talking like normal human beings. Nothing happened last night and she is not my girl.” He clarifies sternly, fearful that you might be able to hear the conversation and will come running for his throat if he even implied something like that.

“You and Faye, talking, not screaming at each other? That’s new.” Jin comments, already digging into his food. He calls Yoongi to join them at the table, patting the empty seat on the other side of him.

“Yeah, last night it looked like she was about to rip his head off.” Hobi laughs, shoveling food into his mouth like he hasn’t eaten in years.

“See, I told you being roommates would help you work out your differences.” Zoe seems proud, smiling at Taehyung like a mother would after she has just been proven right.

“First of all, that was my idea.” Jin pouts, but she just keeps eating. The smell of food must have pulled Jimin out of his slumber and lured him to the dining room because a moment later he stumbles in, eyes still half closed and face still puffy with sleep. He doesn’t even greet anyone, just sits and asks where the food is. Yoongi brings him his plate before anyone can even answer and Jimin stares a little longer than normal as the android gracefully makes his way back over to his spot across the table.

“Are you the chef or something?” He asks, confused, but nobody pays attention to him.

“So, what did you guys talk about?” Zoe pries at Taehyung, interested in how you’ve bonded.

“Wait, what’s going on?” Jimin turns to his best friend, eyeing the tired, yet happy look on his face.

“Faye and I talked last night and this morning.” He smiles.

“Talked? Not argued?”

“That’s what I said!” Jin exclaims, though he quiets down to let Tae speak.

“I think we really got a lot closer.” He explains how you apologized out of the blue last night and actually held a real conversation with him, and also how you opened up about why you always were mean to him this morning. The whole time he spoke, everyone paid close attention, astonished by how much progress the two of you made in less than 12 hours.

“Wow, I’m so proud of you guys.” Hobi claps. “When I didn’t hear you arguing last night, I assumed she either killed you, or you were fucking.”

“Fucking? She would never.” Tae refutes immediately.

“But you would?” Jimin questions with a raise of his eyebrow, catching his friend off guard.

“W-What?”

“The sexual tension is there. All that anger and frustration must make for some amazing sex.” Jimin leans back in his chair, cheeks full and glowing.

“Angry sex is the best, right Jin and Zoe? Oh right, you two wouldn’t know.” Hoseok teases cruelly, both of their faces burning bright red. Just then, Namjoon and Sooyun walk down, Sooyun glancing quickly around the table before sighing in relief at a certain boy’s absence. “Right babe?”

“Huh?” Namjoon takes a seat next to his boyfriend, waiting to be filled in.

“Angry sex is the best, right?”

“Absolutely.” Namjoon winks, his dimples coming out when the others just shake their heads.

“You should try it sometime, Tae. Might clear up some of those unresolved issues between the two of you.” Jimin points his chopsticks at him and Tae looks away in embarrassment. “You can’t tell me you’ve never thought about it before.”

“Can we just- not talk about this right now.” For the first time, your group of friends see a bashful side of the infamously carefree Taehyung. Sooyun and Namjoon want to ask what’s going on, but Tae pleads to end the conversation there, so the topic changes to something else and the day moves forward.

The sun scorches down on you as you sit by the lakeside in your bikini, applying sunscreen to protect from what seems like an inevitable sunburn. The boys are already in the water, jumping from the dock into the surprisingly clean lake— one of the wonders of privately own property. Sooyun can’t swim and you don’t really feel like getting in the water just yet, so the two of you chill where it’s dry and have a little chat. You catch her up on what’s been going on between you and Tae, she was still curious from breakfast, and she applauds your maturity.

“Wow, it seems like you really had a self-growth moment. Does this mean that you and Tae are cool now?”

“I guess? It still feels weird though. I spent so much time ignoring him, you know, and now it’s hard to change my view on him so suddenly.” You’re used to listening to other people’s drama and not saying or doing much, always the spectator, but now that something is actually going on in your life, it’s a bit awkward being the center of attention.

“He seemed really happy about your bonding time this morning, I think it was really unexpected for him when you opened up like that. Usually you only really open up to me.”

“He was talking about it at breakfast?” For some reason you’re irritated by this, or embarrassed, you can’t really tell the difference anymore.

“Yeah,” She laughs when you glare at him in the water. “He didn’t say anything bad though, don’t worry. Looks like he’s been waiting for a chance to prove himself to you for a very long time.” Your eyebrows scrunch up as you think about what she could mean by that. Was he really trying that hard to be your friend and you were the only one who misinterpreted his actions? It seems like it.

“I need your opinion on something.” You start a little quieter, making sure that no one will overhear. “Why do you think he picks on me so much? I know that’s how he usually is, but he does it so much more when I’m around.” You know she’ll give you a straight answer, she never minces her words.

“I believe he originally started doing it because that’s the only way he could get you to pay any attention to him and he wanted you to notice him. If he isn’t saying or doing anything dumb, you pretend like he’s not even there. He probably just wanted to catch your eye and then build from there but you never let him, and then he eventually got used to playing that role with you.”

“Okay, so why do you think it bothers me so much?” It sounds stupid to ask someone else about how you feel about something or why you feel a certain way, but you honestly don’t know what to make of the situation.

“Simple. I think when you first met, you saw him and expected him to be someone you could befriend and trust, but he hurt your feelings one time so you just went full defensive and decided to hate everything that comes out of his pretty little mouth. I’ve seen you do it before, Faye. Remember that kid in history? The one we did the project with?”

“Ugh, her.”

“You thought she was going to be the nicest person, but when we started working with her, you realized she was-“

“A bossy, know-it-all, who had a stick up her ass 24/7 and put in minimal effort to the group project. And then had the nerve to take all the credit for it.”

“Right. Well, she didn’t live up to your expectations and now you hate her, it’s as easy as that. That’s kind of a thing you do.”

You grimace, hearing this for the first time. She’s right, you do have a history of shunning people because they weren’t as great as you expected them to be, and Taehyung is a primary case of that. “Damn, I really am terrible.” You mumble with a frown.

“No, I think that’s actually a good defense mechanism because you’re obviously better at avoiding people that might hurt you in the future. But Taehyung is good, he didn’t do anything wrong, you should take a chance on him. I can tell he means a lot to you, only people you care about have the ability to get to you like this.”

She really does know you better than you know yourself. “You’re so wise.”

She takes a sip of her cold drink, eyes following your other friends as they splash around in the water. Yoongi stands with his feet in the water, something you weren’t aware that he could do, and he seems to enjoy watching the antics of the others. Taehyung is smiling wildly as Jimin splashes him and attempts to show off his swimming skills. You catch sight of Jungkook who stands at the top of a small hill where a rope is connected to a tree over the water. He waits until Sooyun is looking before he jumps, making Tarzan noises as he swings gracefully in the air, making his landing with a big splash in the water. She giggles beside you silently, straightening her face again when he resurfaces.

“What was going on with you last night during the movie?” You bring up, suddenly reminded of her odd behavior the night before.

“What do you mean?”

“You seemed really jumpy and zoned out, like, the entire time, then you suddenly got up and went to the kitchen with Jungkook and never came back.”

“Correction, he followed me into the kitchen, we did not go ‘together’.” You roll your eyes at her.

“Whatever. I just wanna know if anything went down while you were in there. Jungkook seemed pretty flustered when he came back out.” Imitating one of Taehyung’s signature moves, you wiggle your eyebrows suggestively, laughing when she pushes your shoulder.

“Stop it! Nothing happened, we just talked a little and then I went to bed after Taehyung came in.”

“Ah, the original cock blocker.” You shake your head, not even surprised that his air-headed ass barged in and ruined a possible moment. “Are you going to tell me why you’re being so awkward with him?”

“I’m n-“

“OH! Can I guess what happened?” You seem excited so she entertains you.

“I will neither confirm nor deny anything you say.”

“I don’t care, I just think it’s fun to guess.” She sighs and you move on. “Hmm, let’s see. He forgot your birthday and now you hate him?” No... “He walked in on you naked?” No reaction. “You got drunk and played a game of strip poker and accidentally gave him a boner?”

“Oddly specific...”

“Hey, you never know,” You shrug. “It definitely has to be something sexual though, I don’t think anything else would make you this awkward around each other.” Her face remains blank. “You kissed?” Nothing. “Did you guys fuck or something?” The tiniest muscle in her bottom eyelid twitches and you’re sharp enough to detect it, gasping loudly in shock. “That’s it, isn’t it?”

“I will neither confirm nor deny.” She repeats in a steady voice, but you can feel the heat coming off of her face from here.

“I know you better than that, you don’t have to say anything. Whatever it is, I won’t judge you, but I can see there’s something going on between you two. We don’t have to talk about it, I don’t mean to make you uncomfortable, I’ll just take satisfaction in the fact that I figured it out before anybody else.” The pleased smile on your face let’s her know that she can’t even try to convince you that you’re wrong. You’re smarter than that and she might end up digging a hole for herself if she says anything further, so she just sighs deeply and looks off into the water. Her and Jungkook would definitely make a cute couple.

“I think Taehyung is calling you.” She elbows your arm, pointing at said man emerging from the water, hair dripping and feet slapping the cool ground with every approaching step. He comes to stand right in front of you and you feel it’s a compromising position— with your face eye level with his dick and all— so you lift your foot and push him away with a gentle heel to the gut.

“You’re dripping on me.” You complain when he shakes his hair like a wet dog. “What do you want?”

“Come swim for a little while, the water is perfect.” You look over at Sooyun, who pretends like she’s not paying attention to your conversation, but you can see her eyes are alight with interest. “Don’t look at her, she can’t save you from this one.” He grins when your eyes snap back to him.

“I don’t want to get in the water today, I’m perfectly fine here in the shade.”

“If you don’t do something, I’m going to pick you up and throw you off the dock.”

“Only if you want to die tonight,” You threaten.

“Come on, please?” He whines, giving you his best aegyo. You wan to vomit. “You always sit on the side and watch, I really think you’ll have more fun if you actually participate.”

“This is giving me deja vu.” You groan under your breath as he continues to pout. “Let’s make a deal. I’ll get in the lake with you if you do the rope swing.” You point to where Namjoon and Jimin are now fooling around, pushing each other to get more momentum on the swing and make a bigger splash. Jimin’s light body carries him high, it seems like he’s flying before he comes crashing down over the water. Taehyung gulps. You know he’s afraid of heights, it’s one of the only things you can tease him about, so you know it’s very likely that he won’t go through with it and you get to stay dry.

“Okay, deal.” He says before he can talk himself out of it, holding out his hand for you to shake. Staring at him skeptically, you hesitate to take his hand, allowing him to pull you to your feet and head over to the hill. He holds your hand a second longer than necessary before letting go, but of course you notice.

“Yah, Taehyungie! Are you going on the swing?” Jimin calls out to him as you approach the hill, climbing up the slope until you stand at the top. If Taehyung goes through with it, you’ll jump in from here too.

“Y-Yeah.” Tae sounds uneasy as he stands near the edge, looking down at the water below. It isn’t too high up, but it’s enough to catch some height with a swing or two, and it probably looks like you’re hanging on a ledge of a massive cliff from Taehyung’s perspective.

“You don’t have to do it,” You remind, trying to hide your cocky smirk. “It’s okay if you’re too afraid.”

“No, I can do it!” He grabs onto the rope, but makes no move closer to the edge.

“You can do it! Yell out into the distance!” Jimin encourages, laughing at the worried look on his best friend’s face as he stares down at the lake. The others gather around to watch, yelling a mixture of encouragement and teasing at him.

“He’s shaking like a leaf.” Jungkook chuckles, sitting on the edge of the dock with his phone recording it all. You stand alone up there, feeling obliged to coach him through it, but at the same time not wanting to end up in the water if he succeeds.

“It’s not that bad, Tae, just swing and let go. You just watched Jimin do it.” Your hand comes up to pat his shoulder, stopping short of his skin in hesitation. Instead, you offer to give him a push.

“N-no, I can do it.” Quivering voice and all, he grips onto the rope tighter, taking one step closer to the ledge.

You all cheer for him, holding in your chuckles at the visible shaking in his knees as he bends down in preparation to jump. And then he leaves the hill with a baby hop that makes everyone snort in laughter. You watch with wide eyes as he makes it to the top of his swing and-

“ahhHHHH!” His terror rings clear in his voice, hands refusing to let go as he misses his opportunity and comes back toward you, dangling from the rope with his eyes closed. Everyone bursts into laughter, Jimin nearly drowning as he locks up in joy, holding onto the pier for support. Tae is still swinging and screaming, waiting until the rope is barely moving anymore before finally letting go and landing in a shallower part of the lake. All he hears is Hoseok’s cackling and clapping when he resurfaces, everyone on their knees with glee, including you. Your eyes are blurry with tears of laughter, an ache in your ab muscles forming as you gasp for breath. He’s embarrassed, but seeing you laugh so hard is worth it.

“That was so wimpy,” Hoseok re-enacts his screams, causing a resurgence of laughter.

“You refused to go on the rope swing too, I don’t think you’re in any position to make fun of him.” His boyfriend points out, splashing him with water.

“Yeah, but I’m not the one who’s trying to impress the girl I like.” He sticks out his tongue, earning a deadly look from Taehyung, who glances your way to make sure you hadn’t heard. Luckily, you’re just making it over to the shore and heard nothing.

“That was adorable.” You smile, feeling victorious that your plans had succeeded. “But you did lose the bet, so I’m not going swimming.”

Pouting, Tae whines his objection. “But I put in so much effort! I don’t get anything for that?”

“Alright. I’m willing to make a compromise because you did try,” You say after a second of thinking. “I won’t go swimming, but I guess I’ll get on a canoe with you, if you really want me to.” While you were getting changed in the bathroom earlier, you heard Taehyung talking about wanting to try out the canoes. He seemed so excited to get on one, you feel like you should at least grant him one wish.

Out on the water, things are more peaceful. It takes teamwork to paddle together on the small boat, steering your way around the sizable lake, and most of your journey is spent in silence. You sit in the front, back facing him and looking over at the beautiful view of everything around you. One of the reasons you agreed to do this is because you really wanted a different perspective of this place, of the lake house, to draw in your sketchbook. You want to be able to remember how pretty this place is, how close you all are right now, these times that you won’t ever get back. From the other side of the lake, you can see all of your friends having fun for probably one of the last times all together, enjoying the beautiful weather and making the most of it, and you start to feel sentimental again.

“You look pensive again, what’s up?” Taehyung’s baritone once again saves you from your thoughts, and you resume paddling slowly, refusing to look at him with your watery eyes.

“This is one of the last times that we’ll all be together as close friends like this. After this weekend, we’ll all be packing to leave for school, each in different places, and I don’t think I’m ready for this to end yet.” The sound of your paddles gliding smoothly through the water is soothing, and you allow it to calm you down a little, composing yourself enough not to sound choked up. “I can’t help but think of all the time I wasted, all the time I spent worrying about things that are basically irrelevant now, and that’s time that I can never get back.”

“You’re a pretty deep person, aren’t you?” Taehyung asks, still getting used to you talking about real things to him. It’s not unexpected, he’s just not used to being on the receiving side of your sentiments. You place your paddle beside you when you reach the middle of the lake, turning in your seat to finally face him.

“I am. I like to pretend that I’m not, but I’m starting to realize that it’s pointless. I need to learn how to be more genuine, like you.” He blinks at this, wondering where all of this is coming from. “And thank you for always forcing me to participate. I would have missed out on a lot of things if you weren’t the one to convince me to live a little more. So thanks.”

He pauses for a long time, internalizing it all. “What’s going on with you lately? This morning you wanted to apologize and now you’re thanking me? Why do I feel like there’s some type of ulterior motive behind all this?”

“I’m trying to make amends with you,” You just barely hide the harsh tone of your words. “All of this is long overdue and I wanted to get it off my chest before the end of this weekend. Do you have a problem with that?”

Tae laughs at your temper, shaking his head and looking off into the distance. “Nope, I’m sorry. Keep going.”

“No, you ruined it, it’s over now.” You huff. And just like that, your sentimental moment is cut short.

“Like I said, you didn’t do anything wrong to me, so stop apologizing and thanking me. We’re all just trying our best here, we’re in the same boat.” A goofy smirk crosses his face. “Or should I say, same canoe.”

“God, you’re worse than Jin.” You groan. A king of lightening the mood. “Uh oh, looks like Jin and Zoe are sneaking off.” The two head over to the boathouse hand in hand, looking around suspiciously for any witnesses. You notice immediately and point them out, to which Taehyung just chuckles.

“You don’t miss much, do you?”

“Some people are just incredibly easy to read.”

“Am I easy to read?” He asks, staring straight into your soul.

Apparently not, because I was wrong about you this entire time. You think, frowning at him. When you take too long to answer, he begins rocking the boat playfully while repeating his question over and over, causing you to grab onto the sides for balance. “Taehyung, stop it before we flip over! I said I didn’t want to get wet.” He stops abruptly.

“I can make you wet in a different way if you want.” His wink is what sends you, reflexively grabbing your paddle and pretending to hit him with it.

“You’re unbearable.” But you can’t stop giggling. Or blushing. Ew.

“OH MY GOD, NO, WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” You hear Jungkook’s screech echo throughout the entire lake, bringing your attention to him and Sooyun backing out of the boathouse with tomato red cheeks and disgusted looks on their faces. A few moments later, Jin and Zoe follow, equally embarrassed with their heads hanging low and scowls on their lips. With that image fresh in your mind, you quickly sketch it in your notebook, creating a less detailed drawing of the lake house in just a few minutes as you float idly. Timeless memories. Tae doesn’t say anything, watching your hand work diligently at the paper with amazing accuracy, and when you’re finished, you close the book and sit it back down, looking up at him.

“We should probably head back, it’s getting hot out here.” You grab your paddle again, prompting him to turn his body the other way and begin making your way back to the dock. The attention isn’t on you when you get back, nobody is there to ask what you were talking about or make any ridiculous comments to Tae, and you’re thankful for this. You’d much rather get the tea on Jin and Zoe.

The bonfire rages in front of you, the group wrapping up the night after dinner with drinks around the fire pit. With full stomachs, all of you just sit and talk for a while, sharing laughs and stories into the night. The scent of burning wood wafts through the air and is almost enough to overpower the smell of alcohol in the cup that is handed to you.

“You’ve never been drunk before?” Jimin is relaxed in his corner of the sofa, arms spread along the top behind your shoulders. This is probably one of the first times you’ve willingly sat next to Taehyung and Jimin, sandwiching yourself between the two men to get comfortable. Taehyung was following you, who was following Jimin, who was stalking Yoongi, so the four of you found yourselves lined up on the long couch built into the fire pit area, equipped with materials for s’mores and cup holders.

“I don’t drink at all, actually.” You correct, swirling around the liquid in your glass. It looks like regular fruit juice, and you would have been fooled if you hadn’t seen Jimin spike it with vodka. “I prefer to be in control of my actions most of the time.”

“You don’t have to drink if you’re uncomfortable.” Taking a seat with her own drink in hand, Zoe gently reassures you that there is no pressure to drink tonight— everyone is just trying to have fun. Regardless of what she says, however, you’ve already decided that you want this to be your first experience with alcohol, surrounded by friends and away from anyone you might embarrass yourself in front of.

“I’m not uncomfortable.” Everyone situates themselves, music playing in the background from one of the built in patio speakers, and you feel eyes on you as you sit there, suddenly realizing that they are waiting for you to take a sip.

“I dare you to chug that whole glass.” Jimin snickers from his spot next to you, already taking swigs from his own cup. He makes eye contact with Namjoon and Hoseok, who stare at you intently. “You won’t.”

“Is that a challenge?” You pose, fire lighting up your eyes.

“Do you accept?” You’re locked in a staring contest with Jimin, his expression playful as he studies you for any signs that you’ll back out. But you stay strong.

“Hell Yeah, I do.”

“Then drink up.” He clinks glasses with you and you throw it back, opening your throat to the liquid and gulping it down as painlessly as possible. What you don’t expect is the burn, and it hurts all the way going down, stinging your throat and warming your belly as it sits heavily in your stomach. The taste is what hits you next, and your throat almost closes up when you take a breath through your nose and taste just how strong the liquor is. Your friends cheer for you as you attempt to empty the glass, eyes watering because of the burn, and when the last drop disappears into your mouth, you pull the cup away to cough and sputter.

“I gotta admit, the girl’s got heart.” Namjoon claps slowly in awe of your feat. “Me and Hoseok bet Jimin that you wouldn’t drink at all tonight, and boy were we wrong.” He digs in his pocket for cash, each of them handing the younger boy the money in disbelief.

“It hurts,” You rasp, clutching your chest. “And it tastes terrible.”

“That’s the alcohol cleansing you,” Jin raises his glass toward you over the flames. “As I always say, alcohol is the best way to disinfect yourself of a sickness.”

“I believe it; it feels like I just chugged a bottle of bleach.” Taehyung hands you a bottle of water to rinse your mouth with, trying to get rid of the rubbing alcohol aftertaste. The night moves on from here, everyone splitting off into separate conversations, and you return to your original position of sitting and silently observing. Tae hasn’t said much to you tonight, though you do notice him staring a lot. You also notice the tension building on the other couch, Zoe and Jin looking apprehensive about something and Jungkook and Sooyun awkwardly trying to talk before deciding to sneak away and go somewhere more private. You wonder if anything will happen between them while they’re away, but they still can’t look each other in the eye so it’s probably unlikely. Jin and Zoe are the next to get up and leave. The drinks keep coming and you keep drinking, even joining in on a drinking game Hoseok came up with, and soon enough your body is feeling warm and your head is light and everything seems just a little bit better.

“Are you drunk?” Taehyung asks, mood as bright as the fire that still flickers wildly in front of you.

“I don’t know, you tell me.” Everything looks slightly warped in your vision and you aren’t even sure if you’re speaking properly anymore. You aren’t blackout drunk— though slightly more than tipsy— but Taehyung keeps a watchful eye on you because you’re starting to act a little funny. Your entire face is flushed up to your ears, eyes droopy and dazed expression plastered to your cheeks. This is exactly why you don’t drink. You hate looking sloppy and acting out of character, but with Taehyung looking so amused by your easy-going side and Jimin’s arm still wrapped around your shoulders, you don’t care about being judged. The dizziness doesn’t get better with your subsequent sips and you find yourself leaning to the side, resting your head on Taehyung’s broad shoulder. Jimin removes his arm when he sees you snuggling up to him, trying his absolute best not to bring attention to it in case you come to your senses and try to fix yourself.

“Yeah, you’re definitely drunk.” Tae’s deep voice murmurs, sounding far away. All you can do is groan. “I think you’re done for tonight, I’ll go get you some more water. Jimin, do you need anything?” His friend shakes his head, turning his attention back to the android beside him, who is in the middle of telling a story you assume, and then Tae is up and walking back into the house. You frown, instead moving to lay your head on one of Jimin’s thick thighs.

As soon as Yoongi finishes telling his story, you look up to both of them and smile. “What are you smiling at?” Jimin returns your grin, eyes equally as heavy and cheeks shiny and flushed. Even though you are drunk, you can tell that he is too.

“None of your business, thickums.” Nice to see you still have your quick tongue even in your current state.

“I saw you getting cozy with Taehyung just now. I thought he said you weren’t a couple?” Yoongi’s face is upside down and curious when you look up at it from your position on Jimin’s lap, craning your head back to get a view of him, and the odd sight makes you giggle like a little girl.

“We aren’t.”

“Oh. It just seemed like you were.” He processes this for a moment before nodding.

“You’re very handsome, Yoongi, you know that?” You blurt, catching him a little off guard. You’re sure that if he could blush, he would. “It’s no wonder Jimin’s been following you around and flirting this whole time.”

“No I haven’t!” He protests loudly, glancing over at the android, who still wears a blank expression. “I just think Yoongi is interesting and I want to get to know him.”

“Yeah right, pig.” You snort, trying to hold in your laughter.

“Pig? But he’s a human. Or is that another figure of speech?”

“Nope, he’s a pig in disguise, don’t trust him.” The android seems confused by your words, but picks up on your laughing and tone of voice, eventually laughing along. You are amazed both by his ability to pick up on social queues and learn quickly and by the fact that Jimin still hasn’t realized that he isn’t a human. You could tell him the truth about Yoongi, but that would ruin the fun.

“Anyway,” Jimin chuckles nervously, trying to change the subject back to you. “You and Tae must be getting along better, I haven’t heard you cuss each other out in a while.”

“I’ve turned a new leaf and I’m trying to be nicer to him. Apparently being nice is a lot easier than acting like a jerk all the time.”

“Aw, now we can all be friends and get along again, like old times.” He pinches your cheek and your smack his hand away.

“Like old times? The only reason I was nice to him back then is because I had a crush on you, dork. Don’t you remember?” This is common knowledge, it’s a well known fact among your friends that you had a crush on him, so you aren’t embarrassed by your blabbering mouth. You are, however, shocked by his.

“Of course I remember, but what kind of person would I be if I flirted back with the girl my best friend likes?”

“What?” You sit up abruptly, almost bumping heads in your haste to return to a sitting position.

“He was crushing on you so hard back then, it was almost painful to watch. I guess you didn’t notice because you were too busy falling over me. But I can’t blame you for that.” He adds with a flirty smirk, running a hand through his hair in the way you used to love. He isn’t important right now though. All you can focus on is what he has just said to you.

“He had a crush on me? Past tense?” You want to clarify this before you go jumping to conclusions like a lunatic.

“Past, present, and future. Don’t tell me you haven’t seen the way he’s been looking at you this entire time— you of all people, who possesses all-seeing eyes and notices practically everything.” There’s a doubtful look on his face, obviously too drunk to realize he’s just spilled one of the biggest secrets Taehyung has probably ever told him. You take into account the fact that your source is pretty intoxicated, most things that come out of his mouth will probably be unreliable, but you also know that alcohol leads to #NoFilterJimin, which means that what he’s saying is most likely all true. Taehyung likes you. You open your mouth to say more, even if you haven’t thought of a question to vocalize yet, but before you can get a syllable out, a weight plops down behind you on the couch, holding out a water bottle for you to take.

“For you, m’lady.” Your hand closes around it gingerly, careful not to touch fingers with him, and he offers you a bubbly smile, your stomach doing flips. Thinking back on it— the jealousy towards barista Kai, his clinginess to you, the boner he was sporting last night— they could all be signs that he likes you. Maybe. You don’t particularly believe it, but Taehyung is a pretty good actor and you imagine it wouldn’t be hard to hide his feelings, especially since he sealed them behind the pretense of living to annoy you. And now that you realize the possibility of it, you don’t really know how to feel. Jimin offers no support, he barely knows what he’s just done, and Yoongi doesn’t know anything about your dynamic with Tae apart from what he’s seen in the past two days, so you’re on your own now, with Sooyun and Zoe nowhere in sight, most likely sorting out their own problems, and Namjoon and Hoseok making out drunkenly on the other side of the fire.

Jimin, Taehyung, and Yoongi pick up conversation easily as if nothing happened, but you can’t bring yourself to engage. Taehyung sits just a little bit closer to you, now feeling confident enough to be clingy with you like he is with the others, but your brain is still overthinking each one of his actions to determine if you should believe it or not. If you should believe that he really has feelings for you. It’s hard for you to imagine that someone you have mistreated for so long could like you in any way, but Taehyung is a stubborn one and he’s certainly persistent. If he did feel this way, you are at least thankful that he hasn’t tried to make a move on you yet. Zoe and Sooyun return, talking about their own set of problems on the far end of the other couch, and you decide not to bother them tonight.

“I think I’m gonna head in for the night. I can feel a bad headache coming and I’d rather be in bed by the time it hits.” You feel nearly sobered by now, the bottle of water and interesting news helping to pull you back to your senses.

“You’ll probably feel a little nauseous too, try not to throw up in the house or else Jin’s mom will kill you.” Jimin jokes, and you let out a fake laugh.

The man beside you seems a bit suspicious by your shift in mood— just a few minutes ago you were feeling fine, but he can’t quite put his finger on it. The guys let you leave, Tae offering to help you get to the room if you’re too drunk, but you assure him that you’re fine and leave alone. He watches you until you disappear into the house, eyes staring longingly in your direction. A heavy sinking feeling digs into his chest, sensing that something is wrong, and although he knows he didn’t do anything, it still feels like it’s his fault. Personally, he was looking to spend a few more hours with you like this, having fun and completely laid back, not yelling at him or apologizing about anything, just hanging out like real friends. The spot where your head was resting on his shoulder and chest feels empty without you and he regrets running away, wishing he would have stayed like that for a few more minutes, but he was surprised and didn’t know what to do about you touching him, so he had to remove himself from the situation. He even gave himself a little pep talk in the kitchen in preparation to deal with your snuggly drunk persona, but now the opportunity is long gone and he fears it might be gone forever.

Sleep finds you easily tonight, but your worries follow you into slumber, dreams plagued by a plot line that makes you toss and turn. In your dream, you are still drunk, but Taehyung takes care of you like a loving boyfriend would. He brings you water and snacks, helps you walk around and holds you by the hips to keep you steady, and even sits with you in the bathroom while you vomit your guts out, wiping your mouth and forehead and holding back your hair. At one point, you and him leave the lake house, walking all the way to a nearby town and ending up in a high school gymnasium where you pin him to the wall and demand that he take you right there on the bleachers. When you go to kiss him, he stops you and reveals that he put poison in all of your drinks tonight and you collapse to the floor, coughing and trying to force yourself to throw it all up. You wake up dry heaving, tumbling out of bed and into the bathroom where you empty your stomach into the toilet loudly and attempt to catch your breath. It’s the middle of the night now, so Taehyung is in bed already, and he gets up to check if you’re okay, only to be sent away from the door when he offers his help. When you emerge after a few long minutes, you find a cold glass of water on your bedside table and a sleepy boy on the other side of the pillow fort.

“Can you stop bringing it up please?” Zoe groans from her spot at the picnic table, looking like she just wants to curl up underneath it.

“There’s nothing to be ashamed of, babe, own it.” Jin states proudly, shoulders looking extra high this afternoon. Today is your last full day at the lake house, a gorgeous Sunday afternoon, and just as planned, you’ve set up a picnic outside by the lakeside. All day Hoseok and Namjoon have been teasing Jin and Zoe about their morning exploits, which they could hear from the other side of these thin walls. Seems like they finally found the time to consummate their relationship and get the deed done. They both seem satisfied and happy, but you’re starting to feel embarrassed for them with all the teasing.

“Okay everyone, stop targeting them, let them be happy for once.” You announce, tired of hearing about it while you’re eating. Zoe gives you a grateful look. Despite sporting a hangover, you find yourself in a pleasant mood for the most part. Last night is a little fuzzy, though not totally forgotten, but you have no negative feelings about what happened. That was a really weird dream though. There is one person that doesn’t seem to be as high spirited as usual today, however. He sits there quietly picking at his food looking quite thoughtful, if that was possible.

“What’s wrong, Tae? Hungover?” Jimin pats him on the back and this startles him. Shaking his head lightly, the taller man clears his throat, glancing at you before lowering his gaze back to his food shyly. “Did something happen?”

It’s almost funny how Jimin doesn’t realize that he was the one who caused all of this by sharing a secret to the wrong person. You hoped Taehyung wouldn’t catch on to how distant you were being this morning, keeping away from him conveniently so you could have more time to interpret your dream and dispel the awkwardness of knowing he saw you vomiting late last night, but it appears that he did notice and was taking it the wrong way. You aren’t upset with him— he wasn’t the one who did anything wrong— you just don’t know how to feel about him now. Your own feelings are jumbled up in your head and you don’t know how to sort them or even how to describe what they are. For some reason, finding out Taehyung likes you isn’t as revolting as you thought, and you’re starting to notice the little twinge you get in your heart whenever he looks at you. Do you like him? It’s starting to get ridiculous how much you’ve discovered about yourself in just one weekend. And there’s that feeling again.

You catch him staring at you, studying your body language to see if he can figure out what’s different. The weird feeling comes back the longer you look at each other, so you open your mouth to dispel the tension. “Is there something on my face or something?” Dammit, you didn’t mean for it to come out like that, and now everyone is looking at you in disappointment.

“No.” Taehyung drops his head again, and you turn to the girl beside you to find her glaring at you heatedly. Sooyun speaks with her eyes, expressing how she’s disappointed in you because she thought you were making progress- they all did. And now you have to apologize.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to say it like that.” You reply meekly, not even looking at him.

“I told you to stop apologizing to me.” He mumbles, and you roll your eyes. Your friends look between the two of you, unable to figure out what exactly is happening right now. Were you upset? Was he upset? Should they be worried?

“Did something bad happen last night? You two were doing so well yesterday.” Zoe asks in a hurt voice, almost as if the turbulence between you is her own fault and failure. Taehyung lets you answer because, frankly, he’s wondering the same thing.

“Nothing bad happened, everything is fine.” You don’t sound the least bit convincing and even you cringe when you hear yourself.

“Doesn’t seem like it.” Zoe crosses her arms over her chest, pursing her lips in that motherly way that forces you to talk.

“I-It’s just a little weird now because he saw me puking last night. It was kind of embarrassing.” You scratch the back of your neck when you feel it prickle with color, probably because of the partial lie you’ve just told.

“Is that really it?” Tae doesn’t believe you. He straightens up, narrowing his eyes to catch every change in your expression.

“Yes?” The entire table bursts into complaints, calling you out on lying, saying that they can read you like an open book, some of them defending Taehyung and arguing that you owe him an explanation for your behavior. You’ve never seen them so invested in your drama, but then again, you’ve never really had any drama before. Jin stops everyone and addresses you.

“As much as I’d love for you to spill the tea to us right here, I think you and Tae need to go somewhere private and talk it out. Seriously.” With that, you’re kicked out of the table and sent away, told not to come back until you’ve worked out your issues.

“Faye,” Twigs crunch beneath your shoes as you walk along the lake near the tree line, hands crossed at your front and eyes scanning everywhere but him. When he calls your name again, you turn to look at him, feeling your heart skip a beat once more. Why does he have to look so good at a time like this— when you’re confused and conflicted, still processing everything that you’ve learned both about him and yourself in the past few days? “Are you going to say something?”

“I don’t know what to say.” At least you’re honest.

“Okay, then I’ll start.” He takes a deep breath, eyes looking up at the sky and leaves above as he speaks. “Are you upset about something that happened last night? Did I do something? Did Jimin say something to offend you?”

“I told you, I’m just embarrassed about the whole bathroom incident,” So much for honesty. But what else are you supposed to do? Rat out his best friend for having a big mouth and accidentally confessing for him?

“But you started acting weird way before that happened. It was when I left to get water while we were at the fire pit, I know it. I just don’t know why.” You stay silent, swallowing the lump of anxiety in your throat. You don’t want to tell him, but you really want to ask if what Jimin said is true.

“I... found out that you possibly have a crush on me.” You admit slowly, looking up at his face. It contorts into confusion, then slight realization, then a mixture of humiliation and... relief? So many emotions flash across his face that you can barely keep up.

“How did you ‘find out?’” He’s stopped walking by now.

“That doesn’t matter. Is it true?” You must look somewhere between desperate and hopeful because Taehyung pauses for what seems like an eternity before bursting into laughter.

“Are you kidding?” Usually his laugh can lighten a mood, but all it does is make you more tense.

“I’m completely serious right now.”

“So am I.” The wind blows between your bodies, sounding almost deafening in the silence. “Of course I have a crush on you, how could I not? You’re everything I want in a girl from looks to charm and attitude, and no matter what you do, that’s not going to change.”

“Oh.” For one of the first times ever, Taehyung has made you speechless. There is no witty comeback or confident response to counter his attack and you truly stand at a loss for words.

“I never tried to confess to you because it was pretty clear that you didn’t even like me as a friend that much, so I spent most of my energy just trying to get you to pay attention to me in any way I could. In hindsight, I probably didn’t choose the best method.”

“So you did all that just to get my attention?”

“Well, yeah. You wouldn’t even look at me if I didn’t.” Sooyun was right, and so were all the movies. Boys really do do stupid things when they like someone. “So?”

“So, what?”

“So, how do you feel about all of this? I just admitted my feelings to you, the least you can do is give me a reaction.” His eyebrows are furrowed intensely, worry floating around the irises of his eyes. Any trace of confidence he once had has disappeared and all that’s left is anxiety that eats him from the inside.

“I don’t know how I feel. I don’t usually do this.”

“Do what?”

“Talk about... feelings.” Judging by the way you still hold a mostly neutral face, he can tell that deep down you do know. And considering how you haven’t run away in completely and utter disdain, disgust, and repulsion, he assumes that he still has a chance. “Tae, this is a lot. We only just became close yesterday.”

“But we’ve known each other way longer than that. Be honest with me, I can handle if you tell me you don’t feel the same, but I need to know.”

“I...” Fuck, why can’t you reject him? You’re immune to puppy eyes and pouting, there’s no way he could guilt you into anything this time, but you’re starting to think that you really don’t want to reject him. It’s only now that you realize how fast your heart is beating, practically leaping out of your chest in a way that’s uncharacteristic for you.

“Do you need convincing?” It sounds like a genuine question from him, but his eyes are locked on to your lips with a thirst that makes your insides quiver. You think back to the dream you had last night and how realistic your need to kiss him felt, and how badly you want to experience his kiss in real life.

“Convincing?”

“Just a little something to make your decision a little easier.” He doesn’t even realize he’s leaning in to you, tongue peeking out to wet his lips in anticipation, and you find yourself unconsciously following his lead. You should push him away now, tell him no and reject him like he’s expecting you to before this goes too far. Deep down, however, you know you can’t do that because you can feel those butterflies in your stomach the closer he gets. He stops a hair away from your lips, eyes looking down at you for confirmation— he wants you to give him a definite answer and you know he probably won’t move until he gets that from you, so you do the only thing you know will show your certainty, and dive in and kiss him.

Even though you’re the one that kissed him first, you still hesitate against his lips when he responds, but wow this feels good. It feels better than good. It feels like you’re finally doing the one thing you never knew you needed and now that it’s happening, you are filled with an inconceivable amount of gratification. His lips melt into yours, moving at the perfect rhythm and keeping you engaged, one of his hands creeping up to hold gently onto the back your neck. He’s a much better kisser than you expected— not that you’ve thought about it before— and it’s almost hard for you to pull yourself away when you feel it getting a little too heated.

“Did that help at all?” He asks with a sly grin when your eyes remain closed. They snap open, realizing that this is real life this time and not a dream, and a panic creeps up into your chest.

“No.” You’re sure he can see how heavy your breathing is, trying your best to convince yourself not to run away from him. But you do anyway. “I need- um, c-can you give me some time to think about it?”

“Oh, uh, sure.” You don’t wait up for him, giving a few nervous glances before starting off in the direction of the lake house. He doesn’t follow immediately, standing there scratching the back of his neck awkwardly. No matter what you say, you’re still the one that kissed him and he takes solace in that. Even if you don’t have the guts to face it, he now knows that you’re attracted to him in some way, and if you don’t talk ever again after this he’s fine with having kissed you at least once.

When you get back to the picnic, you don’t have an appetite anymore, so you make up an excuse and head into the woods somewhere for some privacy. You bring your sketchbook, yet you don’t draw and instead sit alone with your thoughts just staring off into space. You return about 15 minutes later feeling a little less confused, but you steer clear of Taehyung and Jimin, not wanting to talk to either of them just yet because you know Jimin will ask a million questions. Sooyun leaves you alone too, offering you the same courtesy you gave her when you didn’t force her to talk about Jungkook. This weekend has been full of uncharacteristic behavior for you but it seems like you’ve finally come to your senses and reverted back to normal. The rest of the day is spent silently observing everyone and not really engaging in anything. A few people go swimming in the lake again, but this time you decide to stay inside and watch a bit of tv to take your mind off things. Plus, you were tired of getting bug bites out by the water.

In the middle of your period of solitude, while mindlessly watching reruns of Family Feud, you come across a problem that presents itself as an eight legged creature that crawls in front of you on the coffee table, right next to your can of soda. It’s so big that you can see almost every detail of its body from where you sit on the sofa, and the scream you let out shakes the whole house. But there’s no one there to hear it. So now you’re standing on the expensive piece of furniture, yelling your lungs out while trying to get your brain to function again in order to figure out what to do. Obviously, you need to kill it. But you’re too afraid to get anywhere near that thing— let alone put your hand down there— so that’s out of the question. Your nerve completely dissolves when it starts crawling again, this time towards you, prompting you to jump off the couch and hide all the way across the room on shaky limbs. Then the solution enters.

Just then, Taehyung steps through the front door, brows knit in concern from hearing your screams. “Faye?” Despite your better judgement, you rush over to him and pull him deeper inside, clinging to his arm like he was your life line. All you can do is point to the table where the bug resides with its can of soda— there’s no way you’re going to drink out of it after this, it can have it. “Is that what all the noise is about? A spider?” He chuckles, loving the way you still hold onto him even when he steps in to get a closer look.

“Can you take care of it, please?” Almost in tears, you beg him to help, not caring about anything that’s happened before this moment. You just want it gone. And he’s the right person for the job because Taehyung has never been afraid of bugs.

He moves quickly, grabbing an empty cup and a napkin, and swiftly sweeps the spider up, walking over to the door to free it outside in the grass. It’s precious how he values life like that, although you also wouldn’t mind if he took a hammer to that thing. You thank him with red cheeks, wiping your eyes and attempting to look less like a mess. It’s quiet up until he leaves, pausing at the door after getting water from the kitchen before deciding against talking to you and leaving. You appreciate that he’s giving you space. You also appreciate how he came to your rescue even after you ran away from him earlier, that little stunt just made him a tiny bit more attractive in your eyes, much to your regret. Things seem to feel a bit lighter after that and the night ends with you making more of an effort to be casual with him.

“I call the shower,” He announces to you as you settle yourself in bed. He must be really good at acting because it appears that everything is fine to him, even though you know your indecisiveness is eating away at him on the inside. “Do you need me to check the room for spiders before I go?” He teases, eyes crinkling when you scowl at him.

“That was a moment of weakness, you can’t tease me for that.”

“I think it’s completely fair after you teased me for being scared of the rope swing yesterday.” He shuffles through his bag looking for his bathroom things, long fingers searching for the items languidly. They catch your attention, looking so long and beautiful and a sudden ache forms between you legs when you think of how they would feel deep inside you. What? Where did that come from?

“I didn’t tease you, that was Jimin and Hobi. All I did was laugh.” Your eyes follow his arms as they close his bag, a hint of a muscle peeking out under his sleeve when he lifts it to move it out of the way. And then the shirt comes off.

“Same thing.” Your mouth goes dry when you see his bare torso again, something feeling different about it from when you saw it yesterday at the lake when you were with the others. “I won’t tell anyone else about it, but if you ever see another bug while we’re here, you know who to call.” He winks, sending your stomach fluttering.

“My hero.” You disguise the heat pooling in your stomach with sarcasm, focusing hard on not letting your eyes linger on his bare skin. At the same time, Taehyung peers at you in the same way, neither of you looking at the other’s face as you lose track of what you were even talking about. If he had been looking, he probably would have seen the lust and longing in your stare. He clears his throat before you can work up the nerve to address the elephant in the room and enters the bathroom without another word, escaping the heat that engulfs the room slowly.

That kiss earlier had a bigger effect on you than you had originally anticipated. Just the sight of him shirtless is now enough to short circuit the rational part of your brain and you finally come to terms with the fact that there’s something here. You feel something towards him— something that isn’t annoyance or hate, but more like lust and deep emotion. Sooyun was right, you care about him more than you let on, and you now acknowledge that you’ve been in denial. As soon as you push through that denial, though, you feel an intense need for him to be close to you. It felt so good standing close and kissing him, it sent tingles down your body and to your core that you’ve never experienced before. And now that you know how stupid you’ve been, the sexual tension within you has reached its boiling point. You need to come clean to him.

As soon as he walks out of the steamy bathroom, he finds you staring at the door, pillow barrier now disassembled in the middle of the bed where you crawl over to the edge to sit on your knees. Your face is serious, demanding his attention because you must have something important to say. He drops his dirty clothes on his bag, turning his body and full attention to you.

“Taehyung,”

“Faye.”

“I’ve thought about what you said all day today and I know where I stand now.” Your fingers fumble in your lap but the nervousness doesn’t reach your face. “I maybe... possibly...” His eyes narrow at you and you stop yourself. “I have feelings for you. And even though you’re still an idiot and this realization is distressing for me, I have to come to terms with it.”

“That has to be the worst confession I’ve ever heard.” He chuckles, not at all taking this as seriously as you’d want him to.

“I’m not done yet.” You put up a hand, surprising him with your attitude. “I also realized that I’m horny as fuck and that this is our last night together, so I don’t want to have any regrets.”

“What are you saying?” He shifts his weight and crosses his arms, trying to control the twitch of his lips that signify his cockiness. You want to slap him.

“I’m saying that I want you to fuck me. Right now.” His sly expression no longer fazes you, his tongue poking into his cheek coyly almost as if he knows just how sexy you find it. Your thighs press together slightly at the way he eats you up with his eyes.

“One kiss got you this hot and bothered?” He attempts to dial down his amusement, but it’s radiating off of him.

“A few dirty sentences got you hard?” You counter, looking pointedly at the hand that has dropped to his crotch to palm himself over his sleep shorts. “You know, I could take care of that for you.”

“You sure you could handle it?” He smirks, stalking toward you with an ease that sets your heart racing. His nose brushes yours when he plants his hands on your bare thighs, goosebumps erupting all over from the contact. You stare intensely at each other for a few breathless seconds, testing each other for who will flinch first, eyes alight with challenge. You’ve never seen his pupils so blown, a dominance taking over them that you haven’t yet experienced, but you aren’t one to back down easily. He claims your mouth roughly, gripping your chin to tilt your head to meet him at a better angle so he can infiltrate your mouth with his tongue the moment you part your lips with his. A fire burns in your core, liquefying your insides and causing them to seep into the crotch of your panties with every movement of his tongue against yours. “Don’t start things you can’t finish, princess.”

Your teeth bite down on his bottom lip at the pet name, not hard enough to hurt but enough to send a message that he receives clearly. “Don’t.” Your shy murmur causes him to grow ten times more confident, a mischievous grin finding his lips at the way it’s affected you.

“You like that? I would’ve never guessed.” The dark chuckle that escapes him is cut off by his own lips, pressing quickly against yours before dragging down your jaw to mouth at your neck. The fluttering in your chest makes your head spin, breaths coming out as short huffs against the side of his face as he works his lips on your pulse point. Your eyes close for a split second and the next thing you know, your back is crashing down onto the mattress, Taehyung’s firm body squeezing between the gap of your thighs and large hands pressed in the sheets beside your head. The wet of his tongue slides down your collarbone, pulling gasps from you with the beautiful patterns they create, trailing all the way down to the beginning of your shirt. The garment comes off in a blur, bare chest and hard nipples now exposed to the open air and Taehyung’s awed gaze.

“Touch them, please.” Whiny and desperate, you arch your chest into him to encourage the kisses to continue, your nipples literally tingling in anticipation. He gawks at the sight, collecting your wrists in one hand to pull your arms above your head.

“Fuck,” He breathes, grinding his hips into yours and alerting you to the growing bulge pressed to your thigh. His tongue darts out to lick over a nipple, circling the bud lightly before sucking it into his mouth, and you bite down on your lips to keep your noises at bay. There’s never been a more perfect sight than witnessing Taehyung peer up at you with smoldering eyes and a boob in his mouth, nibbling on it and studying your face for reactions. Your other breast is given the same treatment, and when he pulls away, you’re left with cold, wet marks that reach from the underside of your tits to the top of your chest. “You don’t have to be quiet, you know. I don’t give a fuck who hears.”

“Neither do I.” You purse your lips at him, defying him in a way that makes him growl deep in his throat, eyebrows shooting up. He’s already established his dominance over you, with your hands immobilized above your head and all, but that doesn’t change the fact that you’re still stubborn. If he wanted you to scream, he would have to earn it.

“That’s how you want to play this? We’ll see about that.” The pressure on your wrists disappears when he reaches down to grip your hips, flipping you over like you weigh nothing and moving you to the middle of the bed. “On your knees, ass up.” His voice is thick and deep, leaving no room for negotiation as you scramble to follow his orders, limbs trembling with excitement. Your panties are absolutely soaked by now and he can tell just by running his fingers over the material that if it weren’t for them, you’d be dripping down your thighs. Your shorts and panties slide down to your knees with ease, restricting you when you try to spread your legs wider for him as he inspects you. “Look how you’ve ruined your cute bear panties,” He coos, running a finger up your slit to collect your juices. They’re the same ones he found in your suitcase on Friday. “All from a few kisses and getting you’re titties sucked. You’re a horny little one, aren’t you, princess?”

You don’t say anything— can’t— because you’re too busy holding back the moans in your throat. His smooth fingers trace your lower lips, spreading you apart so he can get a view of you in all your glory. “Mmm,” You whine lowly, curving your hips backward toward his face to get him to stop staring and do something.

“You look so good bent over like this for me. That pussy looks so sweet.” He’s watering at the mouth just looking at you, your tight hole clenching around nothing at his words. His eyes roam from your dripping essence to your throbbing clit to the roundness of your ass, all of it looking so delicious that he doesn’t know what he wants to touch more. The tips of his fingers are right there, teasing your entrance just to watch you squirm before finally pushing in, slipping two digits in easily without any discomfort. The wetness engulfs him, making lewd sounds when he moves them in and out slowly, mesmerized by the sight of you sucking him in. He dips down for a taste, licking his way upwards from your clit to where his fingers push inside you, catching everything that spills out. “You taste sweet too.” He groans.

“Faster,” You whisper, only to receive a hard slap on the ass with his free hand. You moan for the first time tonight, surprised yet still fairly quiet, your walls clamping down around the two fingers he still pumps into you.

“You’re in no position to make demands, princess. You already pissed me off, you’re lucky I’m even giving you this.” His hand comes down on the other cheek, a loud smack echoing through the room, and you bet everyone in the house could hear it. He doesn’t increase his pace, but he does go deeper, working his way into your depths with a few deep strokes before adding another finger, making your eyes roll back.

“Oh, fuck..”

“You like that, huh? What did you say to me the other night? I have alien fingers?” The edge in his voice makes him seem angry, but you can tell by the way his free hand keeps massaging your ass that he’s just turned on. “Answer me.”

“Yes,” You whimper, barely able to control your own voice with how deeply he reaches inside you.

“Bet you appreciate them now,” He goads, curling upwards intentionally at just the right spot. You buck your hips back, gasping when he does it again and lowers his mouth back to your clit, tongue flicking and swirling around the bud with skills you didn’t think he possessed. Guess all the porn he’s been watching has finally paid off. He slurps at your juices, making obscene noises that make you feel light headed, the combination of his fingers and tongue driving you to the point of madness.

Having started off on your elbows, you now lay on your chest, arms splayed out and gripping onto the sheets for mercy, teeth biting into the material as a last ditch effort to contain your noises. Moans muffle into the mattress leaving a wet spot from your saliva, and it’s all you can do not to scream out. He doesn’t deserve to hear you moan yet, you don’t want to give him the satisfaction, but your body doesn’t care about your stubborn agenda, it only cares about how good it feels to have Taehyung spread you with his gorgeous fingers in preparation for his cock that is undoubtedly straining in his shorts.

“T-Tae,” You gape, feeling your approaching high.

“I’m not gonna stop until I hear you moan for me— which means I’m not going to give you this dick as long as you decide to keep up this game of yours.” He’s stern, strict about his rules no matter how badly he wants to feel your tight pussy wrapped around him. But you’ve made him wait this long for it, what’s 5 more minutes when he’ll finally get to hear your angelic voice cry out for him? He adds a twist to his wrist, your insides quivering uncontrollably around the digits. You’ve never had fingers this long before and the sensation is heavenly, you can’t wait to feel how big his cock is. Dick jokes aside, you’ve seen his imprint on several occasions and tried not to look, but now you’ll finally get to see it uncovered and your core throbs at the thought. His tongue adds more pressure to your clit when he feels this, fingers prodding with more force and speed until you can no longer hold it in and let loose the noises that were chocked up in your chest.

“Oh my god,” You claw, voice projecting out from your diaphragm at full volume. Taehyung lets out a pleased hum on your lips and you can feel his cheeks lift into a smile. “Don’t stop, don’t stop, please!” Boiling, building heat swirls in your stomach, threatening to throw you off of your knees the closer it gets to bubbling over, but his hand is wrapped tightly around your thigh to keep you upright, digging his face in your cunt the more you try to slip away. Your wetness is dripping down his chin and wrist by now, coating everything in its path with never ending lube that sloshes around the incessant thrusting of his hand. The heat is too much, you can’t take it anymore, and with a series of high pitched moans and cries of his name, you cum, quaking and grinding into his palm with every wave that crashes through you.

“Good girl,” Taehyung praises, sounding short of breath himself. His damp lips kiss up your thighs, leaving a trail of wetness in the few places that were untouched by your juices. He retracts his fingers from you gingerly, mindful of your sensitivity, and finally lets you collapse to the bed in a heaving, boneless heap. “I knew you’d sound hot when you came, but damn,” He chuckles, relieving you of your shorts and underwear entirely, pulling off his own offending garments while he’s at it. “I almost came just listening to you. Are you going to be good from now on?”

When you turn yourself onto your side and look at him, you catch sight of his angry erection, colored red and shiny with precum and pressure. He tugs at it impatiently, eyes boring into yours just daring you to disobey him again. “Yes, Sir.” You don’t miss how his cock twitches at the name.

He’s demonstrated his patience with things like this, but you can tell it’s wearing thin as he squeezes himself at the base, a long drop of precum oozing down onto your hip. His length is the longest you’ve seen, not slacking in the thickness department either, and you just know he’s going to tear you apart— but in the best way possible. You’re wet enough to take him right now, though the stretch might be a little uncomfortable, but you’re tired of waiting to feel him.

“Sure you can take it?” He asks one more time, tapping it on your ass a few times.

“I don’t care, I want you to fuck me open either way.” At this he grins, biting his lip because he always knew you had a dirty mouth, but then he pauses. “What are you waiting for?” You ask, worry creeping up on you that for some reason he could be backing out. He shuts his eyes as if thinking hard, gears grinding like he knows he’s forgotten something, and then he opens them and looks at you in realization.

“Condom.” In your haste, you had forgotten everything you’ve leaned about safety in health class, not even thinking about protection up until now. He seems a little panicked and you assume that means he doesn’t have one, but you remember the one condom you kept “just in case” that you threw into the beside drawer without a care. Thank goodness for Yoongi. You point and Taehyung nearly lunges over you to get to it, tearing open the package faster than you can even blink and sliding it on with a deep moan. “Ready?”

“Absolutely.” With a hand on your ass to spread you open for him, Tae lines up his tip with your entrance, running it along your slit for lubrication before thrusting inside languidly. He almost goes all the way in on the first stroke, the stretch feeling better than expected as you take him in inch by inch, trying to relax your muscles to welcome his entrance. The small sounds you make every time he pushes deeper makes his head spin with a rush of adrenaline, fueling every subsequent movement until he’s as deep as he can go without forcing himself.

“God, you feel so good, princess.” He pants. It’s a snug fit, to say the least, and it takes everything in him to keep calm and give you time to adjust. “Can I move?” As soon as you nod, he retracts his hips, snapping them a bit more shallowly but enough to have you moaning out. Your sensitive walls massage him so well that it’s hard for him to even keep up a steady rhythm, let alone focus on not going too hard, but that’s not what you want.

“Taehyung,” You call, meeting his eyes. “Fuck me.”

“Yeah?” He seems strained, unsure if he should or not, but you’re well adjusted now and want nothing more than for him to let go of all restraint and pound into you.

“Yeah. I can take it, please,” You beg. A purposeful squeeze around his length is all it takes for him to give in. He growls as he repositions you back on your knees, one hand pressing down your lower back and the other sliding a fluffy pillow under your hips to keep you up.

“Just say ‘stop’ if it gets too much, okay princess?” He murmurs into your ear, leaning forward to kiss tenderly along your shoulder blades. Gripping at your waist again, he straightens up and watches his first few strokes, cock covered in your wet sheen thoroughly. Seeing this makes him snap, and suddenly you’re being catapulted face first into the bed as he pounds roughly inside of you, hands digging into your hips to keep you up.

Your moans cut through the air along with the sound of his rapid thrusting, hips meeting your ass so hard that you can feel shockwaves traveling up your spine. The pace is fast and rough, so fast that you can barely catch a breath in between thrusts— but you don’t need oxygen anymore. You only need Taehyung’s cock fucking inside of you right now, so good that you’d trade breathing for this feeling anytime.

“You’re so... fucking... tight.” He groans loudly, reaching for your hair with one hand. It pulls on your roots, forcing your head to crane back and back to arch wildly. He hits differently this way, going deeper and harder in the new angle, tip nudging at your cervix in a mixture of pain and pleasure that makes your toes curl in the sheets, wetness gushing out of you and adding to the cacophony of noises that fill the room. Rocking back towards him, you meet him thrust for thrust on your shaky legs, begging for him to pull your hair harder. “Look at you, acting like a dirty little slut for me. I would have fucked this tight pussy ages ago if I knew how freaky you were.” He grins, holding onto your makeshift ponytail harshly and riding you like the reigns on a horse. “You like it rough don’t you? Want me plow you with my big cock until you’re screaming, huh?”

“Fuck yes, give me more!” The high pitch whininess of your voice contrasts with his bass, both of you moaning in sync when he lets go of your hair and splays his hands across your back, using his weight to move faster inside of you.

“Stay still and take this cock,” He grunts when you jolt forward, caught between wanting to move away from him and rocking yourself back to feel everything he has to offer. His moans get louder and more frequent above you, his eyes squeezed shut and mouth agape as he gets lost in how high he feels while he’s inside you. Every little whimper and moan you make just edges him on and he has to slow himself down before he finishes too early. Shoving himself in deep, he grinds against you, removing his hands from your back to lean over your body. You can feel the sweat dripping off of him onto your back, your own skin feeling so hot you thought the liquid would evaporate on first contact. The reprieve from his hardcore pace doesn’t offer you any relief, his grinding allowing you to feel all the points where his skin rubs against yours, a sticky mixture of sweat and your arousal binding you together in a way that feels sinfully good. His hand slaps your ass a few times, watching it jiggle from the impact, and you tighten around him a little more each time he hits. “Your cunt is so good you almost made me cum early.” He admits, sitting back on his haunches and pulling you up by your arms.

You let out a breathless chuckle, the noise quickly replaced by a gasp when he starts pounding into you again, your head thrown back on his shoulder and one arm reaching up into his hair. His hands roam on their own accord, skimming up your front and sides to squeeze at your bouncing breasts, thumbs circling your nipples to pull drawn out moans from you. One of his hands slides a little further, teasing the skin at the base of your neck as if asking for permission, and when you moan his name, he takes that as his cue and wraps his long fingers around your throat. It’s light at first, but he slowly constricts around you, cutting off your airflow just the slightest bit, just enough to give your head a slight buzz and heighten the feeling of his touch.

“Tae, it feels so good.” You mewl, your free hand coming up to grab onto your abandoned breast as he steadily picks up pace again. Hearing him pant and grunt and groan into your ear is hotter than you could have imagined, and he’s not afraid to vocalize how amazing you feel around him. He’s louder than you at this point, still being drowned out by the sloppy sounds of your pussy and his thighs slapping together, and you almost want to silence yourself just to listen to the sounds he makes for you. He moans your name, holding you up by the throat as he once again loses himself in the rhythmic tightening of your core. You’re close, he can feel it, and he can’t think of anything he wants to feel more than you cumming while he’s deep within you.

“Play with yourself, princess. Rub that pretty clit.” He whispers into your ear, nibbling onto the lobe and kissing down your neck. As soon as your fingers touch the swollen nub, your cries get exponentially louder, curses tumbling from your lips as you chase your high. A tightness forms in your lower abdomen, coiling and winding like a spring that’s ready to snap. For the moments leading up to your orgasm, you think you stop breathing, face stuck in a silent scream from the building pleasure. “I want you to cum on my cock, baby. Cum for me now.” He demands lowly, eyes focused on the side of your face as you follow his command, spring unfurling in your core and sending you flying into ecstasy. You take in a broken gasp, eventually letting out a strangled cry of his name into the open air, walls fluttering and pulsating around his member. “Shit,”

Taehyung releases your neck, letting you fall into the mattress, your clenching walls dislodging him from your heat. But he’s quick to clamber over you, straddling your thighs and adjusting the pillow under you to lift your hips up. He spreads your ass cheeks with his palms, inserting himself back into you swiftly and starting an easy speed. His fingertips are gentle when they reach to push your hair away from your face, neck craning down to connect your lips.

“You did so well for me, princess.” His lips mumble against your own. You can feel his cock throbbing with every thrust he delivers. “I’m gonna cum so hard.” He rasps, looping his arms under your own to immobilize you, his grunts getting louder and more aggressive with the slap of his hips. You wish you could see what he looks like right now, muscles flexing and skin dewy with the sweat he’s worked up, entire body flushed with effort to bring him to his high. You offer help, grinding up against him when his pace falters a little, lacing your fingers with his own. “Keep grinding your hips on me, princess. Yeah, just like that. I love how tight you squeeze me.”

“Your cock made me feel so good, Tae.” You squeak, bending your legs to rest your heels on his ass to feel his strong muscles.

“Yeah? You want me to cum for you?” He asks, face tucked into the crook of your shoulder.

“Please,” You whine. “Give it to me.”

His hips pick up at your words, pounding you hard and fast to get him there. He locks his feet around your calves and pulls your legs straight, pushing up onto his hands to get maximum power, letting out long, drawn out moans that rumble throughout the room, shaking you to your center as you lay there and take it. “I’m gonna cum, fuck!” His breathing is loud, knuckles white as he grips onto the sheets, giving his all into the last couple of thrusts before his loudest moan yet rips through the air. Cock pushing deeply as he cums, he drops down to his elbows on top of you and continues thrusting, softer now. You let him ride out his high, loving the feeling of him throbbing against your walls, spilling into the condom while he’s inside you.

When he comes down, you let him pull out and flop down beside you, both of you too weak to move for the moment. You feel empty without him and almost want to go over and sit on his dick before it’s fully soft again, but you refrain, letting your eyes fall shut.

“How was that for you?” He questions hesitantly while pulling off the condom, barely having enough energy to walk over and throw it in the trash.

“Holy shit,” Is all you can respond and the both of you laugh.

“It was good for me too...” A silence falls over the room and you fear what comes next, hoping it won’t be awkward, but it actually feels quite comfortable. He maneuvers your bodies so that you’re up against the pillows and turns out the light, neither of you wanting to do anything other than sleep.

Ugh, Monday mornings. Well, at least you hope it’s still morning. You and Taehyung were exhausted after your night together, passing out while still naked and barely under the covers. His cuddling habit hadn’t changed last night— and you didn’t expect it to— so you wake up wrapped tightly in his embrace, arms and legs both coiled around you like some sort of snake. It’s comfortable enough that you stay there, trying to ignore the fact that you’re literally both buck ass naked and tangled together, and watch his face for a minute. Last night he absolutely destroyed you. Your back feels stiff and your throat is sore and you aren’t really sure if your legs work anymore. Considering that no one has knocked on your door yet to wake you up, you assume that your friends haven’t left without you, but it’s probably a good idea to get ready to leave anyway.

Somehow, you manage to get Taehyung up and pull him to the shower, fighting away the shyness of him seeing you naked again to wash yourself properly. He smiles to himself when he sees the marks he left on your chest, the little bites and kisses will probably be visible in any tank top you decide to wear, so he hopes you have one decent shirt to conceal your upper half. You scold him for them, smacking him on the shoulder with your soapy hand, and things seem to be normal. You want them to be normal.

“There they are,” Jimin claps, eyes glittering with mischief. “The heroes of the night. The ones that kept us up until 3am.” You ignore everyone’s stares in favor of grabbing a bowl in the kitchen and choosing a cereal, hunger greatly outweighing humiliation. Actually, you’re not even embarrassed. You had some great sex last night and you’re happy about it, and they should be too.

“Tae seems to have a special glow this morning,” Hoseok adds, grinning. “Was it good?”

“Sounds like it was.” Namjoon snickers, pretending like he doesn’t notice your glare.

“Shut up you two, don’t act like we didn’t hear you breaking the bed last night way after us.” You snap, sticking your tongue out at both men. Their eyebrows shoot up. “And you can’t talk either Jimin, I know you spent the night in Yoongi’s room.”

“So now you’re defending him? Jesus, Tae, what did you do to her?” Jimin snorts, elbowing his friend playfully. Neither you nor Taehyung have a reaction to the further teasing, eating your food in silence and sharing looks with each other.

You’re saved from the teasing a few minutes later when Jungkook and Sooyun walk in hand in hand, hair mused and crust under their eyes. It’s clear they had an eventful night and sorted out their issues, much like you and Tae, and you wonder if they’re a couple now. You’ll ask Sooyun later for all the details. Zoe questions them with a raised eyebrow, looking them up and down when they stand embarrassed in the middle of the dining room. Jimin yells out the obvious, stating that they had sex and their faces explode into color. You don’t have enough energy to scold him again.

Leaving the lake house is almost peaceful for you, you feel like this is a suitable conclusion to your high school life, like you’ve found closure after your resolution, and that everyone is leaving happier than when they came. In the shower this morning, Tae asked if anything would change between you, expressing that he didn’t particularly expect anything to come out of this since you were about to leave for college. You told him the truth, that there’s no point in trying to develop your relationship this late in the game and that it’s better off if you just stay friends. He smiles at your rationality, easily agreeing and pulling you in for one more kiss. Your heart aches a little because you’ve missed possibly having a strong relationship with him during your high school years, but you’re ready to mature away from him. And besides, there’s always breaks and summer vacations to see each other, and plenty of chances to catch up with each other ;).

#taehyung smut #bscproject #btssmutclub #taehyung angst