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#they’re raising interest rates as well so like. i will never be able to pay this back but there are a lot of people who will owe this much
raceweek · 2 years
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that's seven times what I pay for my degree how is education in the uk so expensive
i mean it’s bad for me but the international students…..i wince when i see their fees it’s criminal honestly
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“I’m still in love with you but... I needed to learn how to love myself too!”
Fanonwriter2023 on AO3
Where CANON and FANON collide!
New Buddie Multi-Chapter Fanfic
Chapter 1 is now available on AO3.
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By the end of season 6, there were a lot of CANON “implications” about Eddie dating again that didn’t make any narrative sense along with Buck’s 1,001 storylines that weren’t concluded and it made everything about the completion of their arcs feel rushed and discombobulated.  There were too many unanswered questions with regards to Buck and Eddie, Eddie and Chris, Buck and Chris and The Buckley-Diaz Family for me to ignore.  Therefore, I’m writing this multi-chapter fic as a creative way to expound on the implications I found within their unfinished storylines because it’ll help me make sense of whatever the Frick Frack the showrunner(s) epically failed at with their sloppy execution at attempting to close their arcs at the end of 6x18 “Pay it Forward”.  The characters of Buck, Eddie and Chris and the actors OS, RG and GM DESERVE BETTER than a season 4 redux that included one-dimensional love interests for Buck and Eddie combined with unimaginative storylines. My plan for this fic is to give them the Happy Ending they deserve and the one a lot of the audience still hopes to see.
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“I’m still in love with you but... I needed to learn how to love myself too!”
Chapter 1: 12K words Rated: Mature
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Summary:  Months after Buck and Eddie were hit by the same lightning strike, they’re still struggling with the aftermath of it. As they journey through the next several months, they'll start working on themselves separately so they can be better. They've always been in love with each other but they know they'll have to learn how to love themselves first before they can become a couple.
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Here’s a snippet of Buck’s and Eddie’s conversation from Chapter 1.
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“Hey.” Eddie says as he sits down on the other end of the couch.
Buck looks up and responds. “Hey.”
They fall into somewhat of an uncomfortable silence and Buck hates it. He wishes they were able to talk to each other the way they used to but he knows he’s responsible for some of the distance they’ve allowed to keep them away from each other.
Eddie pulls out his cellphone and Buck wonders if they’re just going to keep playing this game of waiting on the other one to speak first.
Buck decides he’ll do it since Eddie hasn’t said anything else.
“I know we haven’t really been hanging out because…” He meets Eddie’s eyes and continues. “Uh, you’ve been dating Marisol and I’ve been dating Natalia but…”
Eddie raises his eyebrows at that since he knows he broke up with Marisol, well he doesn’t like to think of it as a breakup since they weren’t ever really together. They had two dates. Then he remembers he hasn’t told Buck about it since Buck seemed like Natalia seeing him made him happy. They’re not mad at each other but they haven’t been talking.
He responds with a little bit of tightness in his voice. “Buck… I haven’t been dating Marisol. We went on two dates but we both realized it wasn’t going to work out.” He trails off because he’s not sure if he should share the rest but he quickly decides to share it anyway.
A small smile crosses his face and he says, “We’re friends… just platonic friends... that’s all.”
Buck’s voice raises an octave when he responds. “Oh!”
He’s shocked Eddie’s single because he assumed he had been dating her but it turns out he hasn’t. Buck has to replay Eddie’s words in his mind again to make sure he’s not imagining it. Eddie said they’re just friends which means he could have done the same thing with Natalia.
He never thought about just being friends with Natalia but now he wonders if he should have. He leans back against the couch cushion and remembers the way he was the one who pursued for them to be a couple and then he tried to turn it into something more than just her wanting to learn more about his death. She went along with it but he knows in his heart they wouldn’t be dating if he hadn’t called her after their coffee date.
They fall into a long silence but they’re not looking at each other.
After several seconds, Buck finally says, “Well… that’s great.”
Eddie looks up and smiles at him. “Yeah, it has been. Since Chris is at Summer Camp, it’s been nice to have someone to talk to about stuff.”
That comment stabs Buck in the heart because he’s been so wrapped up in everything that he completely forgot Chris left for camp a few days ago and Eddie’s been alone. Well, not alone but he’s been on his own.
“You know you can always talk to me too, right?”
Eddie raises his eyebrows. “I know I could before but now… I’m not so sure.”
“What?” Buck asks with an affronted tone.
“It’s not like you’ve been available since you… never mind.”  Eddie shakes his head in disbelief.
“What Eddie?”
“I don’t want to argue Buck so let’s just drop it, ok?” Eddie exasperatedly responds. He knows he’s been there waiting for Buck to see but instead he chose Natalia and he said she sees him.  So Eddie needed to move on and that’s what he’s been doing.
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Continue reading on AO3
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thessalian · 11 months
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Thess vs Burnout
I should have booked my upcoming week off for next week, not the week after next. When booking at least 50% of my annual leave (which HR demanded we all do by the end of June, possibly to stop Scruffman taking random half-days with no notice whenever he feels like it), I knew I needed a break fairly soon but I wanted to give as much notice as possible. Thus, first week in July. But I underestimated how burned out I currently am and I don’t know how I’m going to get through the rest of this week, never mind next week. Yes, I know tomorrow’s Friday; the point stands.
That whole “Violet does the long typing and Temp does the short typing” deal is still affecting me in unfortunate ways. I mean, it’s bad enough that Violet only takes them one at a time and works at them at a snail’s pace, which means I get a lot of them regardless of the supposed deal. Thing is ... Violet is elderly and a bit fragile, health-wise. She winds up being out sick a fair bit. But when she’s away, does Temp go, “Well, the deal’s moot since Violet isn’t here; I guess I’d better do some of the longer typing”? NOPE. Which is what it looked like today. There were many, many long ones, all by people who have no idea how to format the damn things, who do the “Oh, hey, could you go back to the first bit and add an important thing I forgot?” thing in the middle of the block key, and who also have no idea how to make sure their recording equipment is in working order. Two of the trickier accents in the building and they fucked up a setting so that it was using the built-in mic on their computers rather than their headsets and it sounded like they were talking at me from one end of a long tin pipe half-blocked by a three-week-old athletic sock. The problem is that I know how Scruffman feels about this; he has made it perfectly clear how he feels about it. How he feels about it is, “As long as I don’t have to do anything”. He doesn’t want to have to talk to Temp about this. He doesn’t want to have to police Temp about it. Most of all, he doesn’t want to annoy the one who is actively in the office who might give him dirty looks about it. Meanwhile, I’m the one who can’t take this shit because of a physical disability, but since he doesn’t have to watch me suffer, it’s fine.
Of course, shit continues being shitty in the rest of the world. Turns out the “We’re going to halve inflation by December 2023″ bull Sunak was spewing awhile back is ... well, just that. Interest rates have gone up to 5%, and odds are good that they’ll be raised to 6% come Christmas. But none of this is going to hit up the rich people, because all they’re going to do is protect their bottom lines by fucking the rest of us over. Landlords aren’t going to tighten their belts and pay the extra on their mortgages out of pocket; they’re going to raise rents even higher than they already are. As for supermarkets ... well, since the triple-whammy of Brexit, Covid, and Ukraine, the cost of actually producing the food and getting it from point A to point B has reportedly gone down but the prices in the supermarkets keep going up. They say they’re raising interest rates and risking a recession because inflation is such a bad thing, and I keep wondering ... why are you not pointing at the people who are causing it? People decide what everything is worth, and when that starts going up further than it should, you have to start looking at the people who set the fucking prices. And all of their increases are in the wrong place. If they just paid decent wages, more people would be able to buy the things they’re offering, and ... I mean, selling cheaply to many is a tried and tested way of doing business. It’s not huge profits, but it’s enough to keep going. The problem is that profit is not enough for these people. They not only want HUGE PROFIT, they want HUGE PROFIT now and EVEN HUGER PROFIT next year and ever-increasing. So they feed inflation by raising their prices to insane degrees, particularly if it’s a needful like ...you know, food. Meanwhile, to make their profit margins look even better, they understaff their workplaces, and underpay those few overworked staff they have. So the interest rate shit is all on them. But there’s going to be no windfall tax on the wealthy because apparently “that’ll just make inflation increase more”. Which is actually honest, given that the wealthy would raise their prices even higher and say, “We had to do it because of how much you’re taxing us! We’re losing money!!!”
They’ll lose a lot more when we can no longer afford to buy their stuff.
So the summary is that I am entirely burned out and everything is pretty depressing and I should have booked my week off for next week but I have to get through one more week of Temp’s bullshit before I can get enough rest to face ... well, this mess.
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heated, m | jjk
pairing(s): jungkook x reader
summary: An (innocent?) conversation about D/s dynamics accidentally leads to you confessing that you think about your childhood best friend while getting off. To your childhood best friend, Jeon Jungkook. Erm. This is after he told you that you would be “an awful sub”, btw.
warnings: rated M (18+) for language, discussions about adult topics; reader is bisexual; smut (fem reader, dry humping, fingering, [tiny bit] m-receiving oral, penetrative sex); fluffy af; non-idol!AU; F2L; softdom!Jungkook x softbrat!reader; you kind of have a forearm kink and you never let Jungkook have his lovey-dovey moment, whoops
MMA 2020 ‘ON’ Jungkook? Yeah. That one.
--
“I could never be a sub.”
You clicked rapidly as you spoke, mashing the right button on your mouse. It was quite loud, paired with your mechanical keyboard.
“Why not?”
The music coming from Jeon Jungkook’s smartphone was a rhythm game, nearly as loud as you, since he was grunting angrily at it. It was very obvious when he missed a beat.
“I can’t imagine that being me, you know?”
You, on the other hand, were on your computer, playing with the new items in League of Legends from the latest patch. Using the practice tool, you had loaded up your favorite champion, Jhin, the Virtuoso, and messed with various builds, trying to find the best combination. So far, Lethality was feeling pretty good.
“Like why would I ever let my pleasure be handled by someone else?” you mused, reading the high damage numbers of each shot. Oh, the fourth shot felt nice. “That sounds stupid.”
Jungkook rolled over on your bed, growling in his throat as the level ended. He restarted it, trying to get a better score. “Maybe people like to let go sometimes. You know, not always be in control.”
You snorted. “I could never trust someone else with my body.”
“You got an alien body or something?”
“Shut up, Jungkook.”
“No.”
“Fine.”
“Anyway,” Jungkook continued, ignoring your outburst. “I didn’t ask if you could be a sub, I just asked what you thought of domination and submission as a dynamic in general.”
You shrugged, trying to see if you could do Baron alone. Welp, you needed lifesteal, of course. “I mean, I’ve tried it in various situations. I was never the sub.”
“Kinky.”
“Shut up, Jungkook.”
“No.” Jungkook suddenly sat up, excited that he achieved a higher score. “Look, look. I got ninety-eight.”
You craned your head to look at his phone screen. “Why isn’t it one hundred? You’re a disgrace to this family.”
He bopped you on the nose with his phone. “If I was part of your family, your family would be even more dysfunctional than it is now.”
You rubbed your nose and looked up at him. “How much gel did you use in your hair? You look like a wet dog.”
Jungkook’s eyebrows went up and he touched his long black hair. “It’s not crunchy though.” He grabbed your hand and lowered his head, placing your palm on his slicked back hair. “See?”
You pulled your hand back, staring at your palm. “Still feels weird though. I call sorcery.”
He shrugged, creaking the black leather jacket he was wearing. He wore a black t-shirt under it. The black jeans he had been wearing were on your bed, swapped for the black joggers he kept at your place. You weren’t really sure why he left the jacket on. Maybe he was cold or something. It was pretty cold in your apartment. You were wearing fleece green pajamas with Pikachu all over them.
“You want me to turn the heat up?” you said, gesturing to his jacket.
Jungkook looked down at his chest. “Eh. It’s fine. Saves you money.”
You shrugged, getting up from your chair, leaving the League client open. “You’re only staying a little while, right? Party to go to and all that?”
Jungkook followed you as you left your room. “Told you it was cancelled, so I was just going to sleep over. No reason to go back home.”
You turned around, walking backwards. “When did you say it was cancelled?”
Jungkook raised his dark eyebrows. “Literally when I walked in your apartment.”
“Hah.”
You turned back around and went to your fridge, grabbing an aloe juice. Jungkook went to your water kettle, hunting for hot chocolate among your tea packets.
“You’d make an awful sub anyway,” Jungkook said, returning to the original subject as he filled the kettle with water from your filtered sink faucet. “Like, probably the fucking worst.”
You took a large swig and glared at him. “Alright, first of all, you wouldn’t even–”
“You’re terrible with authority.”
You paused. “Okay, true.”
“You’re angry, twenty-four, seven.”
You walked up to him and slapped him in his very hard pecs. He gestured at his chest, as if to indicate, exhibit A.
“And you’re super uptight.”
“I am not uptight.”
“Control freak.”
“That’s–”
Jungkook turned around and placed the kettle on its stand. You swooped in with a Pikachu-themed kitchen towel and wiped the excess water away, scowling. Jungkook raised his eyebrows at you, brown eyes laughing.
“That’s literally a safety hazard!” you exclaimed, waving the towel at him.
Jungkook rolled his eyes and pressed the button to start heating the water. “Haven’t you ever just… not freaked out over every little thing? Done something spontaneous and stupid?”
You placed the kitchen towel back in its proper place. “No, because that would be spontaneous and stupid, Jeon Jungkook.”
He leaned against the counter, watching you perfectly fold the towel into three parts and hang it on the rail. He scratched his nose, shaking his head. ���You should be more like me.”
“Having the police called on you because you were standing on a lawn chair tooting a party horn at four in the morning?”
“That was one time! Stop bringing it up,” Jungkook groaned.
You raised your hands in innocence. “Well, I was the one called to pick you up because you literally couldn’t remember any other number and I was very disturbed on New Year’s Eve, where I should have been peacefully sleeping and not hauling your drunk ass across town.”
Jungkook sighed exaggeratedly. “I’m sorry, okay? I won’t drink that much again. Jimin made me do shots–”
“You always blame Park Jimin,” you interjected, smiling. “Jimin’s the kind of guy who only wears clothes to take them off.”
“Well, it gets him laid, so I guess it’s working.”
The kettle whistled noisily, cutting through the conversation. You took a sip from your aloe juice as Jungkook grabbed a mug from your cupboard and poured the hot chocolate powder into it.
“You want some milk?”
He looked up. “You have milk?”
You went to the fridge and took out a small carton. “Because you said you were coming.”
“Aw, what a sweetie.”
“Shut up, Jungkook.”
“No.”
That’s how it was with you two. Growing up together was the same conversation over and over of you constantly saying shut up and Jungkook always replying with no. If both your dads hadn’t been such good friends, you probably wouldn’t have been able to tolerate him. Since they were, you were forced to, which turned out to be okay, since it turned out you had similar interests in games and such. It drifted apart a bit when you two entered high school, but you two reconnected once university started.
The dysfunctionality Jungkook was referring to was your two older sisters, who both got pregnant out of wedlock and thus caused a lot of tension between them, your parents, and you, the one who hadn’t actually done that yet. And you were trying to keep it that way.
Jungkook poured half-water and half-milk, stirring it with a silver spoon he found in your drawer. You lived alone, having gotten a full scholarship to be able to pay for tuition, meals, and part of a small apartment. Your parents paid for the rest – another point of strain between you and your sisters. That’s why you kept your grades up and rarely went out.
“When was the last time you fucked a guy?”
You sucked the inside of your cheek. “Dunno. Maybe two years ago.”
Jungkook raised his eyebrows and took a long sip. “So, only girls, huh?”
You tilted your head and sighed. “They don’t get you pregnant.”
“Neither does a condom.”
“That’s a ninety-eight percent chance, not one hundred.”
He licked the excess off his pink lips. He looked like he wanted to say something, but reconsidered, taking another sip before replying. “You don’t miss dick?”
“I mean, a dildo is a dick.”
Jungkook nearly spat out his hot chocolate. You snatched your Pikachu towel again and threatened him with it. He raised a hand, coughing.
“A dildo is not a dick,” he hacked out. “You insult me.”
“Hmph.” You turned back around and placed the Pikachu towel back in its place, making sure the graphic was perfectly centered.
“You tell your parents?”
You narrowed your eyes. ‘Why the fuck would I tell my parents that I fuck girls instead of guys to avoid getting pregnant?”
He shrugged. “Give them peace of mind?”
“You think too highly of the generation before us.”
Jungkook gave you a weird look. “So… you’re just using them?”
“No.” You paused. “Okay, maybe a little, but it’s not because they’re girls. I guess I haven’t found someone who understands me yet.”
He took a long, noisy sip of hot chocolate. You narrowed your eyes at him.
“No one can understand you if you only fuck once and drop them.”
“Wouldn’t you fucking know,” you replied irritably.
“Now, I fuck multiple times before I realize it’s not going to work out,” Jungkook countered.
You shoved your bottle of aloe juice back into your fridge. Suddenly, you weren’t thirsty anymore.
“Is that the only reason?”
You closed the fridge door.
“Reason for what?”
“Is fear of pregnancy the only reason you fuck girls?”
“I don’t know!” you shouted, throwing your hands up. You spun around, blowing hot air. “I don’t fucking know why I do it, Jungkook. I don’t know why I load up dating apps to only hook up with girls, I don’t know why I don’t try to get into relationships with them, I don’t know what is wrong with me and why I can’t give anyone a chance and I don’t know why you pop up in my head every time I try to fucking masturbate! It is annoying and I do not like it, so I try to get off with someone else!”
Your chest was heaving with exertion and annoyance, hand curled onto a fist and planted on your kitchen counter, glaring at the space past Jungkook’s head, muscle twitching in your cheek. Your heart was beating so fast it didn’t feel real.
Silence.
“Fuck you, Jungkook.”
And then you turned around, stalking back to your bedroom.
Or would have, if you didn’t hear the clink of the mug touching the kitchen counter and Jungkook grabbing your upper arm, yanking you back, slamming you against his muscular body. You hissed, staring into his chest.
“Let me go.”
“Hold on a second.” You watched Jungkook take a deep breath, his toned, tan skin rising and falling. The silver necklace on his collarbones flashed as he breathed. “Just hold on a damn second.”
Your eyes were on the low neckline of his black shirt. It felt weird being close to him. Not that you two haven’t been physically close, because you had. But it had never been like this. Since you realized he wouldn’t leave your mind every time you tried to masturbate. Since you started looking to other people to push him out. Since you were sure that it was not just a passing thought, not just your brain playing tricks on you. And being this close to him now, you understood.
And it scared you.
“You cannot dump all that on me and expect me not to react,” Jungkook said quietly.
“Shut up, Jungkook.”
“No,” he snapped. He grabbed both your upper arms and shook you violently, making you jerk your head up to blink at him. Jungkook furrowed his brows, his dark eyes glaring at you, jaw clenched tightly. “I will not shut up. Why should I shut up? I should shut you up.”
And then he kissed you.
Your eyes widened. Jungkook’s pink lips were on you. You. On your lips, pressed firmly against them, gripping you so tight you were losing feeling in your arms. You tore back, stumbling, touching your lips, shoulders shaking, not sure why your heart was beating out of your chest, not sure why your lips tingled and wanted more, not sure why Jungkook slowly opening his eyes and flickering to you made your knees knock together uncomfortably.
“What are you doing?” you sputtered. “You don’t even… what…?”
“I’m kissing you,” he growled, walking up to you and pinning you against the counter. “I’m fucking kissing you because you want me to.”
“I don’t…”
“Just shut up, please.”
And then Jungkook kissed you again, harder this time, pressing you against the kitchen counter, hands coming up and taking you by the waist, pulling you to him and his leather jacket, him and his black shirt, breathing your name into your lips, your hands grabbing his t-shirt and yanking him to you, gasping into his mouth. And you wanted to say, no, no, you weren’t supposed to know, but it was too late because you were shoving his leather jacket off, grasping his shoulders, fingers pressing into his hard muscles, sliding down his biceps.
You yanked your head back and his hand came up to grab it back, kissing you more, more, tongue licking your lips, hissing your name, grinding his hips against yours. Your hand came up in between you two, stopping him, stopping him and his insatiable lips.
“You have to s-say–” You moaned, feeling him harden against your fleece pajamas. “You have to say it.”
“Say what?” Jungkook muttered impatiently, kissing your hand, speaking into your palm.
“Say you’re okay with it,” you gritted out as he rolled his crotch into yours.
“Obviously I’m okay with it,” he grumbled. “Why else am I humping you in your kitchen?”
“You said I’m a c-control freak,” you groaned, throwing your head back as Jungkook slid his hands down to your ass and squeezed it, grinding against you.
“You are,” he grunted. “You can’t let go, you can’t enjoy yourself, you can’t even tell me you like me so I can fucking fuck you already, instead of me cancelling my parties so I can spend time laying on your bed and staring at you playing video games wondering when you’re going to fucking notice that I want to bang you.”
“What?” you replied breathlessly.
Jungkook rolled his eyes. “You’re so busy controlling your own life that you don’t even notice the people around you anymore.”
“What?” you repeated again as Jungkook hoisted you up by your ass and began to walk, forcing you to grab him by the shoulders and stare down his right arm, the fully tattooed one with flowers and script and the tiny circle with angry slits for eyes and a frown on the inside of his elbow, the one Jungkook said was for you and you had slapped him in the chest and told him to shut up.
“Let me take over for once,” he mumbled, placing his chin on your shoulder and nudging you with his head and his non-crispy but still not quite soft dark hair.
“You said I would be an awful sub.”
Jungkook dumped you on the bed, shooing you upwards. You didn’t move, frowning at him. He sighed dramatically.
“You would. You are,” he corrected, planting a hand on your chest and pushing you down, bouncing you against your Pikachu bedsheets. He sandwiched your arms at your sides and straddled your torso. The bed bowed far too low and you almost slid off. Hurriedly, you scooted upwards and Jungkook followed, unbothered.
“You said I’m terrible with authority.”
Jungkook wrestled your arms back down and pinned them with his strong thighs. “You are.”
“You said I’m angry, twenty-four, seven.”
He cocked his head, slowly unbuttoning your pajama shirt. “Still true.”
“And you said I’m uptight,” you added ruefully, pouting.
Jungkook shrugged, reaching in between his legs to unbutton he last few ones. “I’ll fuck it out of you.”
“Jungkook!”
“What?”
He paused, towering above you, eyebrow raised. His black hair curled around his ears, against his silver hoops and base of his neck. His dark eyes pierced down at you, tiny mole under his lips clearly visible from this position. You could see the bottom of his sharp chin, the black t-shirt clinging to his chest, the shape of his tan arms, one tattooed, one not, from below.
“Y-you’re pinching my right arm…”
Jungkook looked down, moving his left leg. “Sorry.”
You winced, pulling out your left arm to rub the other. He tapped your forearm impatiently with his finger.
“You’re ruining the moment,” he scolded.
“You ruined it by bruising me,” you shot back, backing up to your pillows on your elbows, grimacing as you soothed your arm.
“I’m going to bruise you more if you keep being a little brat,” Jungkook growled, following you on hands and knees, the neckline of his t-shirt hanging down, revealing way too much of his skin. Your eyes widened and you slipped, a white plush Poro bonking you in the head. He grabbed it and tossed it aside, the poor guy rolling on the floor.
“That’s very rude,” you muttered, but he was over your body now, breathing hard, staring down your now open shirt and the curve of your breasts into your black bra.
“Why do you get hotter every year?”
You raised an eyebrow. “I… don’t?”
Jungkook shoved the sides of your pajama shirt apart impatiently, reaching under your back and pinching the bra clasp, undoing it with one hand.
“Yes, you do,” he exhaled hotly. “Every year you get prettier and prettier and it pisses me off so much that I have to work out to look half as good as you.”
You felt your ears and cheeks get hot. “Well… you do look very, erm, good.”
“You’re very convincing,” Jungkook chuckled darkly, pushing your bra up and sucking in his lower lip as he revealed your hard, quivering nipples.
Your eyes shifted away from his hungry eyes. “I, uh… am very wet.”
A single, perfectly shaped eyebrow ticked. “Show me.”
“Um…”
He lifted himself off you, pointing down.
“Show me,” Jungkook commanded.
You tried to move your arms and found them tangled in your clothes. You frowned and shrugged out of your pajama shirt, chucking it and your bra aside, before gripping the waistband of your green fleece pants. You hesitated and looked back at Jungkook, who just flapped his hand downwards, giving you a neutral expression.
You puffed your cheeks and raised your hips, yanking your pants and panties down your thighs. You had to bend your legs a bit to fully take them off since Jungkook’s knees were on the outside of your thighs.
Now you were fully naked in front of your childhood best friend. And he was still fully clothed.
“Er, aren’t you going to–”
Jungkook cut you off. “You still haven’t shown me.”
You blinked at him. “What do you want me to do, become a fucking pretzel?”
Jungkook shrugged. “Any way you can prove to me you’re wet.”
You narrowed your eyes. “Fucking…” You bent your right leg and slid it up between his thighs, brushing against his sweatpants and feeling his hard-on for a hot second before you jammed your leg into your chest and lifted it out, pressing your thigh against your torso and raising your calf into the air. You turned your head to the left, letting out an exasperated huff.
“There. You see it?”
Shit, this position was embarrassing for some reason. You could feel cold air on your dripping pussy. Maybe he couldn’t see or something. You lifted your right arm to wrap around your thigh, pressing it down against your breasts since Jungkook wasn’t saying anything.
“That was the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen in my life,” Jungkook breathed.
“Okay, going to put my leg do–”
You gasped, suddenly feeling Jungkook’s fingertips touch your heated core, smearing your juices around the lips, his hot breath against your ear as he touched you. You shuddered as he stroked your folds, your name on his lips, his lips kissing your ear.
“Had to touch you,” he whispered against your neck, tone desperate. “I’m sorry, I just had to touch that beautiful pussy, all wet and slopping for me.”
Your eyelids fluttered as his middle finger found your clit, pressing on it. “J-Jungkook… That’s my…”
He chuckled deep in his throat. “Yeah? That’s your what?”
Slow, lazy circles, pushing it around, moan leaving your lips. “My c-clit…”
“Want me to touch it?” Jungkook purred. “Want me to handle your pleasure?”
But he as already touching it, nursing the sensitive bundle of nerves and rousing your lust, igniting it and setting it on fire.
“Y-yes…”
He kissed down your neck, whispering softly, licking your collarbones. “You trust me? You trust me with this pretty, perfect, hot, sexy, fuckable body?”
You arched your neck, giving him more access as he ran his pink lips all over, rubbing your clit, mouth on your throat. Your whole body shook, hips rolling into his finger.
“Y-yes…”
His breath so electrifying that you could barely focus, barely speak as Jungkook’s other hand came up behind your head, long fingers burying into your hair, holding tight, so tight it almost hurt, teeth nipping at your skin.
“Want to mark you,” he mumbled. “Want to give you a big fat hickey you can’t explain, want to bruise you so bad you’ll be staring at it for weeks, thinking about my lips on you, remembering my teeth gave you that.”
He pressed another finger to your clit, increasing the pace, and all you could do was hiss out a yes, a burning yes, a pleading yes, please, Jungkook, whining as his teeth sank into the spot where your shoulder and neck connected, sucking hard, his tongue licking away the prickling pain. His hips rolled into your thigh, his hard cock pressing against you, straining against his pants.
Jungkook moaned into your skin, so hot, so intense, rubbing your aching clit faster, harder, more urgently. Sucking and humping your leg as the feeling of his teeth and his fingers overwhelmed you, one hand clutching his shirt and one hand curled into your sheets as your thighs shook, trying to close but unable to because Jungkook was so strong, so there, so overpowering that you could only lay there and take it, take it as his name poured out of you in a breathless wail, throwing your head back as you felt your pussy clench around nothing, your juices becoming slicker, thicker, the scent of your orgasm staining the air.
He shoved the two fingers inside you and unlatched his mouth, moaning with you as he felt you squeeze his fingers, pumping you in long, slow strokes, all the way to his knuckles. You whimpered, tightening your core and Jungkook moaned again, eyes closed, his hair in disarray as you fucked his hand, clamping your hands on his right forearm, gasping at the feel of his muscle. Pussy throbbing around his fingers, hips meeting his knuckles over and over.
His eyes opened, watching your fuck yourself with his hand, an almost bored expression on his features, but you didn’t care because you felt him flex his fingers and his arm, telling you to continue, telling you he liked it.
“I thought you were going to let me do it.” Jungkook’s voice was low, trying to stay even despite his shallow breathing. “Have to control everything, don’t you?”
You caught your lower lip in your teeth, eyes moving to his face, his handsome, angular face with his black hair curled around his forehead and his cocked eyebrow, smirk on his lips.
“I’m not in control,” you panted. “Your forearm is…”
Jungkook flexed it under your hand and you moaned pathetically, breath hitching.
His smirk grew wider.
“It’s getting you off touching it.”
You swallowed, close, so close and Jungkook was taunting you and for some reason you couldn’t tell him to shut up, because he kept tensing his arm and it was so fucking hot that you really were going to orgasm.
“Say it,” he purred, breathing your name. “Tell me you like my forearm.”
Your eyes shifted down to his arm in your hands, the tiny angry face tattoo in his inner elbow frowning at you.
“I fucking love it, Jungkook,” you gasped. “Fuck, I love your delicious, sexy-as-fuck forearms.”
He grinned and began to thrust his fingers into you, fast, so fast you couldn’t even fathom how he could be that fast like a fucking vibrator, sending torrents of pleasure through you and his arm was so hard and his skin so soft that your eyes rolled back into your head, moaning his name far too loud. Jungkook placed a hand over your mouth and you screamed into it, liquid gushing down your thighs, but he didn’t stop, he kept going until you felt it again, pussy throbbing, back-to-back, eyelids fluttering, nails digging into his arm as the crescendo slammed into you, taking your breath and senses away, lost only in the feeling of Jungkook’s secure presence above you.
He slowed, breathing hard. Gently, carefully pulling his fingers out of your pulsating pussy, gasping as he removed his hand. You vaguely heard Jungkook place his fingers in his mouth, sighing wantonly at your taste.
“You taste so good,” he whispered around his fingers. “Fuck, so sweet and thick and delicious.”
Your brain could not compute what the fuck was happening. Did Jungkook just give you three mind-blowing orgasms in a row after you exploded at him and admitted to thinking about him while masturbating?
Holy shit.
He pressed his face into your hair, inhaling your scent.
You swallowed thickly.
“Jungkook, do you, ah… want something too?” you asked quietly.
You heard him snicker. “If I take my clothes off, I’m going to want to put my dick in you.”
“… I’m cool with that.”
“I thought a dildo was the same as a dick?”
You cleared your throat. “Ah… Well, I didn’t think you’d want to put a dick in me.”
Jungkook laughed. “If I had five dicks, I’d put them all in you.”
“Erm… mathematically speaking, that doesn’t really work…”
“Shut up.”
Jungkook sat up, looking down at you with a smile. The same smile he always had, but a little different now, because he didn’t have to hide his attraction to you anymore.
“You really let me put it in you?”
You narrowed your eyes. “With a ninety-eight percent chance, only.”
His smile became mischievous. “That’s not one hundred percent.”
You puffed your cheeks.
“I’ll take the two percent chance for you and only you, Jungkook.”
He grinned and turned around, throwing himself to the end of the bed where his jeans were barely holding on. Fishing through the pockets, retrieving the foil packet from the back pocket. You blinked at him.
“How long has that been–”
Jungkook gave you a silencing look. “I bring a new one every time I come over, in hopes you become drunk enough to sit on my dick.”
You blinked at him. “What.” Not a question, just you stating it.
“Because you’re paranoid.”
You frowned. “I’m not–”
He launched himself over the bed and silenced you with a kiss, deep and longing. You leaned into it, breathing softly, tongue against his, pressing back against him. Jungkook drew back slowly, thumb on your cheek. Eyes looking into yours, careful and tender.
“I don’t want you to worry,” he said against your lips. “I’ll do anything you want. I know it’s not easy for you. I know you’re not ready for the million babies I want from you.”
“I can’t have a million babies. It’s not scientifically possible,” you interjected.
Jungkook narrowed his eyes. “Can you just let me have one romantic moment?”
“Erm, sorry.”
“You want me to have a damn vasectomy or something? Because I’ll fucking do it. That shit’s reversible.”
“No, that kind of requires more time and I’m pretty horny for your dick right now. Condom will do.”
He sighed, rolling his eyes. “You are a shitty sub.”
“I will do better after I’ve had the dick.”
Jungkook straightened and yanked his black t-shirt over his head. “No, you won’t.”
Your eyes roamed over his toned chest. Damn, he was ripped. Maybe he was insecure about you being hot or something, but you were certainly benefiting. “You never know?”
Jungkook sent you a pained look and pressed a hand to your chest, shoving you back into your bed. “I’ve known you way too long to believe those words coming out of your mouth.”
You were going to reply, but he ran his hand over your chest, inhaling sharply as he brushed against your nipples. He ran his fingers over them, squeezing a little. You whined, trying to get more, but Jungkook pressed his palm down on your breast, breathing hard.
“Listen, woman, I’m about to explode in my damn underwear. Stop sounding so sexy this instant.”
Your eyes found his, pupils blown wide, lips pursed, and jaw tight. Your lips parted a little, tongue peeking out, a soft moan of his name emitting from your throat. You saw a muscle in his eyebrow twitch. He looked like he wanted to throttle you, at least a little bit.
You grinned.
Jungkook narrowed his eyes.
“You are lucky you’re cute,” he muttered. “And lucky I want to be in this pussy more than I want to be alive.”
“Don’t you ne–”
Jungkook planted his hand on your mouth. “The only words I want to hear out of you are, “Fuck me harder” or my own name, you got that?” he snarled, pressing his hand into your face for emphasis.
You nodded quickly.
He sighed, almost in relief, and yanked his pants and underwear down, wincing. There was a large wet spot on his boxer briefs, strings of pre-cum clinging as he pushed it down his muscular thighs.
“You made me a giant mess,” he muttered, eyes flickering up to you. “What do you have to say?”
You blinked at him and gave him a thumbs up.
He grinned. “You do know how to listen.”
In truth, you couldn’t say anything because you were breathlessly staring at Jungkook’s thick cock, red head glistening with pre-cum, dripping everywhere. You slid down quickly, startling him, and wrapped your lips around the head, moaning as his strong taste invaded your mouth. He hissed, gritting his teeth as your tongue swiped around, licking his length all over, feeling the veins and contours, memorizing them.
“F-fuck,” he gasped. “You wanted to clean me up that bad?”
Your eyes traveled up his abs, his pecs, his neck, to his face, giving him your best imploring look. He smirked, placing a hand on your forehead, and gradually, with great effort, pulled out of your tight mouth. Tight because you sucked in your cheeks, not wanting to let him go, but Jungkook was stronger than you. You frowned, but he shooed you away.
“I allowed it this one time. Now back to your spot.”
You backed up, tsking as you watched him roll down the condom, groaning as it covered him.
“I’m actually glad I have this fucking condom,” Jungkook muttered, glaring at you.
You couldn’t say anything, so you spread your legs. His eyes dropped down and he bit his lower lip, crawling to you, grabbing your thighs. Placing himself right in front of your soaked entrance, staring down at your pussy as he guided himself, sinking into you.
“Holy fuck,” he gasped, squeezing his eyes shut.
You moaned, feeling Jungkook’s cock stretch you out, so different from a silicone dildo or multiple fingers, because it was Jeon Jungkook praying for air as you clenched around his length, his cries of pleasure as he rocked his hips into you. Those long nights with your vibrator and his Instagram open on your phone were incomparable to his cock molding to your walls, his hard hips finally hitting your thighs, all the way in, and it was so good that you throbbed around him, shuddering.
“J-Jungkook…” you pleaded.
“I know,” he panted, hands gripping your knees tight. “I know, but give me a second to appreciate this pussy, holy fuck.”
He jerked his cock inside you and you cried out, definitely crushing your sheets, but Pikachu had seen a lot by now and there was only going to be more.
Jungkook finally began to slide out and push back in, groaning, starting slow and deep because quite frankly he needed to last more than five seconds and your pussy was not letting up. You had too much control over your vaginal muscles and he was too into you to not be hugely turned on by it, shoving your legs up higher so he could go deeper, feel more of you surround him and massage his length.
“H-harder…” you whimpered. “Please, Jungkook, fuck me harder…”
And how could Jungkook say no to that? Begging so perfectly, with just the right amount of desperation, and you didn’t even know it was driving him insane, because he knew normally you were so wound up, always worrying about being perfect, always worrying about doing the right thing, but now you were unraveling on his cock as he bent down and put more force into it, pounded you harder, watching the ecstasy in your eyes, your mouth opening and tongue peeking out, hot breath in his face. Knuckles white as you clutched the sheets, pleasure radiating up his length as you came with a cry, his name, his name on those perfect lips, lips he always watched with envy, wondering who had them, wondering who was so lucky to capture them.
And now it was just him, just him and you, and his hips slapping into your hips, pussy nearly choking his cock, but it felt so good, so fucking euphoric as you fucked him back, raising your hips to meet his, loud, wet, and lewd, probably causing a ruckus next door. But neither of you cared, your names mixing together, your eyes staring to Jungkook’s piercing brown ones, hot pleasure radiating up your stomach, your chest, to your head and there was no one else.
No one else but Jungkook’s name tumbling out of your mouth as the wave soared into you, pussy spasming as you came again, unsure at what number it was, but it was the one Jungkook wasn’t prepared for and he groaned, smacking into you one last time before you felt his cock throb and pulse against your walls, spilling into the condom. You gasped at the feeling, clenching around him, his right hand reaching over to grasp yours and hold it tightly, intertwining your fingers.
“W-wow…” you whispered breathlessly. “Nice cock.”
Jungkook burst out laughing. “You’re unbelievable.” He reached down and gingerly felt around in your dripping folds, finding the end of the condom and pulling out carefully.
“Fuck. It’s so much,” he gulped, brows knitted in worry.
You waved a hand. “It’s fine. I finished my period yesterday. Likelihood of you getting me pregnant is pretty low.”
Jungkook jerked his head towards you.
“Why the fuck didn’t you say that sooner?” he roared, slapping your leg. “I was scared shitless over here!”
You placed your hands over your ears. “So loud. Shut up, Jungkook.”
“No!”
--
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2K notes · View notes
romioneficfest · 3 years
Text
Double Hazelnut Almond Milk Macchiato
Title: Double Hazlenut Almond Milk Macchiato
Prompt: Day 2/Meet-Cute
Tumblr Name: 
Rating: General
Summary: Muggle AU. Hermione Granger is new in town, and she has a pretty complicated coffee order.
Trigger Warnings: N/A
xxx
It’s seven o’clock on a Monday, and the morning rush is in full swing at The Burrow. Forming a line out the door and around the block are dozens of important, yet fidgety business people with complicated coffee orders, and little patience.
Ron Weasley opens every morning, Monday through Friday, and he handles it well. Most customers are regulars, and he’s already memorized their morning joe specifications.
The majority of the morning crowd has been forgiving of the occasional slip-up. Seven years of working the first shift at the family-owned coffee shop means a history of accidental extra-whipped cream, almond milk instead of soy, and finger-slips on the espresso machine, and the customers always return.
Maybe it’s because they’re too tired to notice their Americanos are actually Flat-Whites. Or maybe it’s the hospitable vibe of The Burrow that makes complaining about bad latte art seem as petty as telling Grandma her muffins are dry.
Every now and then, there’s a new customer, and Ron has to whip out his earnest, people-pleasing attitude to assure that the newbie sticks around. He’ll do what it takes to turn them into a regular, and make them thankful that they chose the local joint over the cookie-cutter corporate shop across the street.
‘Take an interest in their day!’ his Mum would say. ‘Validate their order! Then make sure to ask their name, and use it!’
Monday morning, at seven o’clock, is one of those times.
“Double Hazelnut Almond Milk Macchiato.”
“Size?”
“Medium.”
The customer is about Ron’s age, and probably new in town. She doesn’t yet know that at The Burrow, ‘Double Macchiatos’ are simply called ‘Tall Macchiatos’, and instead of ‘small’, ‘medium’, and ‘large’, The Burrow’s sizes go by their family pets in order of mass: Pig, Errol, and Chudley.
“Great,” he says, grinning, “coming right up.”
“Make sure it’s almond milk,” she reminds him.
“Yup.”
“And hazelnut,” she adds.
“Yup.”
“Double-shot—”
“I heard you,” says Ron impatiently. Have a little trust, lady.
“Okay, just making sure!”
“Can I get a name for the order?”
“Hermione.”
Ron stares at the girl. Her brown eyes are round and drowsy, her hair is unkempt and wild, which contradicts the clean lines of the business suit she’s wearing. She looks so normal. “Can you repeat that?”
“Hermione. H-E-R-M-I-O-N-E.”
He hadn’t asked her to spell it, and the way she emphasizes each syllable reminds Ron of how adults would read to him when he was a kid. It’s condescending.
“Coming right up, Hermione.”
“Great.”
Ron resists rolling his eyes. He can handle a double hazelnut almond milk macchiato, and if he screws it up, she probably wouldn’t even know the difference. Most customers wouldn’t.
As Hermione paces by the counter checking her watch, he whips up a medium, double, hazelnut, almond milk ...cappuccino. Just to test his theory, of course.
“Here you go!”
He hands the drink to Hermione and watches as she takes a sip. Her eyes narrow, and for a moment, he’s convinced she can tell…
Then her face melts back to a polite grin. “Thank you!”
Maybe she can’t. Ron shakes his head as she turns and leaves, turning his attention to the next customer’s order.
Hermione returns on Tuesday morning at 7 am sharp. Her hair is pulled back into a stiff, tight ponytail that just barely lassos her wild mane, and she probably checks her watch fifteen times while in line. Ron suppresses a scoff—she can just make coffee at home if she’s in such a rush.
“Morning, Hermione!” he says with a forced smile. “Same as yesterday?”
She looks taken aback at first, clearly not expecting him to remember her name. “Um, yes, same as yesterday.”
“Coming right up.”
“Medium, Double, Hazelnut—“
“Almond Milk Macchiato,” he says. “I got it.”
“Okay,” shrugs Hermione, eyebrows raised. “Then do it.”
What’s her problem? “Are you okay?”
“Yes, I’m fine,” she snaps. “I need coffee, not a counseling session.”
Wow. He wants to retort back, but his mother’s nagging voice in his head stops him.  ‘Always be extra-polite to grumpy customers; remember they haven’t had their coffee fix yet.’
“Of course,” Ron says through gritted teeth, in as polite a tone as he can manage. To satisfy his desire to argue, he whips her up a medium, double, hazelnut soy macchiato, only half-hoping she doesn’t notice.
He doesn’t get a chance to see if she does, because she’s out the door before a single sip.
Her Wednesday return is accompanied by a looming dread in the pit of Ron’s stomach. He hates rude people, especially at 7am. Ron spots her impatiently tapping her foot in line, as usual, and prepares himself for their interaction.
“Hello,” he says politely, stopping himself before the natural ‘how are you?’ escapes his lips. “What can I get for you today?”
“Hi,” she says with a sheepish smile. “The same as yesterday.”
“Which is?”
“Erm,” she stammers, her expression confused, “a medium—“
“I’m kidding,” he laughs, “I know your order.”
“Oh. Thank you.”
She pays, and Ron fixes her a medium double caramel almond milk macchiato.
“Sorry about yesterday,” she says when she picks up her drink. “You were just trying to be nice, and I was rude.”
“Oh,” starts Ron, who isn’t expecting an apology. “That’s okay. Happens a lot during the morning shift.”
She smiles and nods before turning around to leave, taking a sip on her way out the door. Ron watches for her reaction, but doesn’t catch it.
She seems to be in a better mood by Thursday.
“The usual,” is all she says when she arrives at the counter, but this time she’s smiling. She looks different when she smiles—pretty. Something else unidentifiable replaces the dread in his stomach. Ron wonders if it’s the first time he’s seen her smile or if it’s just the first time he’s noticed.
But based on the tired circles under her eyes, she’s exhausted, so Ron prepares her a medium triple hazelnut almond milk macchiato. An extra shot of espresso never hurt anyone, and maybe it’ll help her get through the day. Or maybe, she’ll experience a coffee crash and have to return to The Burrow later.
Both good things.
“Just so you know,” she says as Ron hands over her cup, “it’s been a stressful week. I started a new job, and it’s not going well.”
“I’m—I’m sorry to hear that,” says Ron. He looks into her eyes, and for a moment, they soften. There’s more to her tough and professional exterior.
“These have made the week just a little better,” she adds, holding up her macchiato, before smiling softly and turning to leave.
Of course, Hermione requests her usual on Friday, and Ron is quickly running out of ideas for ways to screw with her order.
In celebration of the weekend, he might be able to pass a large off as a special treat. Other than that, he has to stick to the request—a double hazelnut almond milk macchiato. The first of the week. Better not mess it up.
As soon as he pops the cap onto her cup, it looks empty. He reaches for his marker again and scribbles something else—his phone number.
He’s not sure what compels him to do it. Maybe it’s because the larger size leaves so much white space. It could be because the grumpy brunette has been occupying his thoughts all week — he’s never purposely tried to fuck up someone’s coffee five days in a row.
Or maybe, it’s because when she walked in this morning, he smiled, and he just wants to learn more about the woman who thinks she knows what a double hazelnut almond milk macchiato tastes like.
She’ll probably ignore it anyway.
But later that day, his phone buzzes on the counter, and he scrambles for it faster than he’d run away from a mob of spiders.
The text is from an unknown number, but there’s no mystery. It only took five days, but you finally got my order correct!
Ron scowls at his phone. She knew? She was duping him?
Well, Hermione, why’d you keep coming back?
As soon as the message sends, he’s impatient, tapping his foot, pacing, and jittery. Just like Hermione every morning.
His phone flashes and buzzes, and Ron almost drops it by checking too quickly.
It wasn’t for the coffee…
158 notes · View notes
robinofgothamcity · 3 years
Text
♡ prompt: “i thought you were dead? for years, i thought you were dead! and i hate that i still love you and never moved on!” 
♡ pairing: tim drake (red robin) x fem! reader
♡ lyric inspiration: “you’re riding high in April, shot down in May but I know I’m going to change that tune when I’m back on top in June. I said that’s life and as funny as that may seem, some people get their kicks stomping on a dream.”
♡ note: not checked for grammar or spelling mistakes / please check the pinned tweet please! since i’m very low on inspiration.
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Tim Drake stared at you, mouth wide open, not knowing what to say or do. he felt like he saw a ghost. you were standing across the room, talking amongst others as they instantly crowded around you. everyone had thought the same thing Tim did and only a selective few knew about your whereabouts. 
you were giving Dick a hug, whispering in his ear about how much you missed him as Damian stood there dumbfounded. Jason was not in the room or else you knew that he would be giving you an earful about the entire situation. Jason always did think of you as a sister when you first started dating Tim. 
“what the fuck happened to you?” Damian screamed, finally coming into the realization of the situation, “you were dead! we saw you die! all of us did!” he continued. you bent down, giving him a hug as he didn’t bother to try and deny it. 
“it’s a long story. i was under secrecy for a long time and couldn’t tell or say anything without me getting caught,” you told him. you looked to Dick who still couldn’t believe what was going on, “it must’ve been a monumental mission if you were technically dead for three years and I couldn’t know about it,” he replied. 
you nodded, whispering to him that you’d tell them the details later, “is...he around?” you asked, referencing Tim. Dick moved a bit to the left, revealing the man you were still madly in love with. you felt yourself gulp, scared on his reaction, “oh god, I never realized how bad this is,” Dick whispered to himself, sensing the tension immediately. 
+
you swinging around the Batcave, Batman clearly annoyed with your antics as you finally plopped down next to him, “aww c’mon Bruce! live a little! this Batcave is so depressing and need I say, dark?” you said, hearing the door jingle open. 
“great, the boys are here,” he murmured, realizing that introductions had to happen between you and his sons. Bruce had taken you in a few months ago, under the guise that you needed a better mentor, “you haven’t met them, right?” he asked. 
you shook your head no, “course I haven’t! it’s my first week in Gotham!” you exclaimed happily. you did hero work out of the west coast and happened to finally land in Gotham for the first time ever, “although I did run into Damian earlier in the week so I think he’ll recognize me!” 
Tim and Dick were the ones who walked in, conversing about some Gotham football game. you smiled at the two boys as they stopped dead in their tracks, “uh....Bruce, who is this?” Dick asked, pointing at you. you stood up, shaking their hands, “I’m ( your name )! Bruce’s new apprentice!” you explained. 
the two sighed, Dick’s first thought being if Alfred knew about you. Tim on the other hand didn’t exactly respond as quick. you were oddly excitable, not exactly the personality that ran rampant across the ‘family’, “apprentice or daughter?” Dick asked, a bit playfully. 
“she’s an apprentice. no need to adopt someone who’s already an adult,” he replied as he stood up himself, “she came from the west coast so she doesn’t exactly know her way around here. it’d be helpful if one of you showed her around. I don’t trust Jason or Damian enough,” he said, walking to another one of the computers. 
“Stephanie isn’t around?” Damian asked, walking inside of the cave, “she’s already acquainted with her and she isn’t available to do it right now so it’s up to Dick or you Tim,” Bruce repeated. Dick looked to his brother with his eyebrow lifted up, “well?” he asked Tim. 
the two of them went to look at you who was already not paying attention to what was going on. you were nose deep into a computer with music blaring inside of your headphones, “I swear that girl has ADHD or something,” Damian murmured to his brothers, “but I think Drake should do it! you just love getting to know people, don’t you?” Damian pressured. 
Bruce nodded in agreement, “it’s settled, you’re showing her around!” Tim stared at Damian, ready to attack the gremlin with his bare hands, “appreciate it Tim!” you yelled from your seat, surprising the three who thought you couldn’t hear what they were saying. 
+
it was already a few months into your internship with the Batfamily. you had gotten closer with Jason, Stephanie, and because of your relationship with Dick, you befriended Starfire as well. even though your work was constantly surrounding you around Tim, you weren’t around him much unless it had to do with work. 
“where you heading off too?” Jason asked, seeing you all dressed up, “Star, Barbara, and Steph wanted to go out for the night since we aren’t on duty so we’re going to get drinks up the street,” you told him. he nodded, looking to Tim and seeing the way he was checking you out, “why do you go with them, Tim?” he asked. 
Tim looked at Jason with a bewildered expression, “why would I be the only guy in the group?” he asked sarcastically. you on the other hand jumped up in joy, “you should!” you exclaimed, “come on! it would be amazing! you know you want too!” you poked Tim’s side in anticipation. 
he sighed, slipping a bit on the couch, “fine,” he muttered, making you excited all over again. you gave him a few minutes to get himself together, “you know he likes you, right?” Jason told you. you laughed out of genuine shock, “who? Tim? yeah right!” you let out another laugh, not believing he was lying to your face, “fine, don’t believe me but it’s pretty obvious.” 
you couldn’t say much else as Tim walked out, hair restyled and threw on a different jacket, “ready?” he asked, hands deep in his pockets. you nodded, throwing Jason a scrap piece of paper before heading out the door as Dick walked inside, “meeting the girls?” he asked. 
“yeah and I’m taking your brother as a hostage,” Dick was surprised, “did you finally?” he started to ask before Tim screamed at him to shut up, “how about we leave,” Tim told you, discreetly hitting Dick on the back of his leg as retaliation. 
the two of you walked out as you told Tim that the place you usually went out with the girls was in walking distance, “I think they’re going to be surprised you even decided to leave your apartment,” you joked as he rolled his eyes playfully, “I don’t think they’ll mind. at least Stephanie can stop saying that I never go out,” he said. 
you laughed softly, “yeah you might be going out with a bunch of girls but it sure beats being stuck inside playing video games or doing work,” you replied, “yeah, guess your right,” you two walked inside of the restaurant, already seeing Steph, Starfire, and Barbara sitting at the usual table. 
the three girls had their mouth hanging as they saw you walking in with Tim, “he actually came out?” Barbara screamed, not believing Tim was actually out, “yeah, figured it was better than staying in for the night!” you said excitedly. 
“I couldn’t even get him to come out with me at times and I dated him,” Steph murmured under her breath to Star. she laughed as you pulled chairs for you and Tim, “I’m getting first round of shots!” you told the group excitedly. Star and Barbara had followed you to the bar, leaving Steph and Tim in a small awkward silence 
“you like her don’t you?” she asked. Tim nodded, figuring it was better to just tell the truth than to lie, “that’s cute! she’s a great girl. I’m happy you finally found someone else but I will say one thing, I think you better get a move on with your feels with her because I know a few others who have an interest in her and one might be on your team,” she said, not so subtly hinting at Connor. 
Tim was taken back by what Stephanie was telling her but remained silent, “and I think she’d say yes on Connor so you better be quick,” she laughed, seeing Tim’s slightly jealous eyes. you returned to the table, giving everyone their glass as you raised yours in the air, “to Tim! for actually leaving his house for once!” you screamed as they all raised their glass and took the shot down.
throughout the night, Tim saw the way you were singing and dancing with Steph and Star, your terrible drunk singing voice getting louder as they played ‘poker face’ by lady gaga towards the end of the night. 
+
you stared at Riddler, seeing that he was ready to attack Tim with full intentions to kill him. you debated for a moment, saving a few civilians from getting mildly hurt or seeing your boyfriend get killed? you chose the latter and ran to Tim who was not paying attention in the slightest at what Riddler was doing. 
“Red!” you screamed, your feet moving as fast as they could and pushing him out of the way. you felt the slice of the knife into your stomach as you had successfully pushed Tim to safety, “fuck,” you whispered, seeing the blood already pooling underneath you. 
although you getting hurt was already pre-planned, you had no intentions of getting hurt this badly, “fuck, fuck, fuck,” you continued, trying to grab your cape to stop the bleeding, Tim stared down at you, seeing the blood gushing at a rate too dangerous for his liking, “hold on, please hold on!” he screamed, moving you out of harms way. 
Bruce had saw you giving him the signal, weakly but you still gave it to him. it was your only chance for your pre-planned mission to actually succeed and the start of that plan was to make you die in front of everyone. Bruce had swung down from the stairs, seeing the way your eyes closed. 
“she needs to go to the hospital,” he told Tim, making him rush you to the hospital himself. he knew this was the only time he would be able to say his goodbyes to you and he need to make it count, “go now!” he yelled. 
Tim dragged your almost lifeless body to the nearest hospital, screaming at the staff that you needed help immediately. the nurses grabbed your body, hauling it to the OR as Tim sat there, blood all over his uniform as he watched you get wheeled into the hallway. 
it felt like hours by the time they gave an update to all of them. Bruce, Tim, Dick, Jason, Steph, Barbara, and Damian, were sitting in the waiting area, munching on food nervously as the nurse came out of the hallway, eyes bleary with tears. 
“she didn’t make it out of surgery. she passed.” 
all of them (for the exception of Bruce), immediately bursted into tears. Tim more than anyone had fell to the ground, having no control of his body as he screamed that it couldn’t be true and that you weren’t actually gone. a part of Bruce’s heart broke seeing his son having a mental breakdown but he knew for their safety and yours, he couldn’t say a word. 
the following days were left to plan your funeral as the nurses who relied your wishes stated that you wanted a closed casket for no one, not even Tim, to see your dead body. Tim hadn’t spoken a word to anyone as he only spoke up when it came for him to plan your arrangements. 
they buried your casket with your uniform laying on top of it as they all saw your casket get lower and lower to the ground. Tim was by this point sobbing as he couldn’t have cared who saw and who didn’t. 
+
Dick grabbed Damian, moving themselves to another part of the room as you walked slowly to Tim. he had yet to say anything but as soon as you locked eyes with him, you both let out sobs to each other. Tim grabbed you by the arms, bringing you into a hug as he sobbed into your shoulders. 
“what the fuck is going on?” he yelled, not knowing what to say, “I’m alive Timmy. I didn’t die that night,” you practically sobbed back to him. he released you, now anger and sadness crossing over him, “what the fuck do you mean you didn’t die?” he screamed, scaring Dick and Damian in the process. 
you sat on the ground, trying to compose yourself, “I went on an undercover mission for league. I had to die in order to protect not only myself but all of you and the entire league. which explains why I look different,” you murmured the last part. 
“I thought you were dead. for years, I thought you were dead! and I hate that I still love you and never moved on!” he exclaimed, seeing the way you stared at him heartbrokenly, “you think I wanted this to happen? it was for the betterment of the league if I took on this mission. I never wanted to leave you or Steph, hell I didn’t want to leave any of you but I had too! it broke my heart knowing what I had to do!” you yelled back. 
Tim bent down, taking you into his arms, “what the hell are we going to do?” he whispered in your ear, not knowing how to respond to any of this rationally. you shrugged as the two of you tried to calm yourselves down from the hysterics you both were throwing, “I just need you here with me,” you whispered back. 
Tim nodded, not releasing you from the hug you were giving him. “I won’t. I won’t let you go! not anymore!” he replied. you laughed through your tears as you heard someone else walk into the room. 
“what the fuck.....” you heard Steph and Jason’s voice scream through the Batcave, “what the FUCK is going on?” they screamed in panic. 
hehehe a cliffhanger 
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valdomarx · 3 years
Text
time enough for counting (when the dealing's done)
McShep + Vegas fix-it, requested by @beautifulmonster. 2k, rated M.
Bad beat
John had always known it would end like this. 
Well, the space aliens and the shady government organization had been a surprise. But the bleeding out, alone in the desert - yeah, that was always how he was going to go.
There’s a kind of dark satisfaction in seeing the world turn out exactly as shitty and brutal as you knew it would be. Called it.
His moment of sick vindication is interrupted, though, by a figure standing over him and peering down with cursory interest.
Sharp black suit, spotless even in the heat and the muck. Hands in pockets, head quirked in something that might be amusement. “Should have known you’d pull a stunt like this,” it says, and John would smirk at playing to type but the blood loss pulls him under.
Ante up
He wakes to pain. Vicious, lancing pain and the cloying smell of antiseptic and the beeping of monitors. He tries to sit up and his chest screams until he collapses back onto the bed.
Next to him, a slightly rumpled McKay is tapping furiously at a laptop. “Don’t go dying on me now, Sheppard,” he says without looking up. “I’ve got plans for you.”
Buy-in
The next time he wakes, the light has faded. It must be evening. 
The hospital room - his own private room, he realizes - is nice. Far too nice for the local joint. Must be private. Must have cost someone a pretty penny. He would have told whoever it is to save their cash.
“You’re awake. Good.” McKay strides in, less rumpled now. Neat black suit back in perfect order. “I don’t have much time, so listen up.”
He tells John how they destroyed the Wraith target before he could get a message to his buddies in Pegasus. How this universe is safe, but the spacetime rift has sent that information echoing through other universes. How they’re putting together a team to visit these other universes; warn them, offer to help if they can.
How he’ll be leaving in a few hours to head up the program. How he thinks John might be able to help.
John blinks. His eyelids are sticky and his mouth is full of fluff.
“Why the hell would you bring this to me?”
McKay flashes him an enigmatic smile. “You did save the world. Maybe you’re more of a hero than you realize.”
On the flop
He gets unceremoniously booted out of the hospital a few days later, when it becomes obvious that he’s not going to die and whoever was bankrolling his stay isn’t any more.
His car is totaled. The money inside is gone. He’s got the clothes on his back, a mountain of debt, no job, and -
He sticks a hand into the pocket of his jacket. There’s something in there: a neat rectangle of card which reads, Doctor Rodney McKay, PhD PhD. Don’t call me, I’ll call you. There’s no phone number.
He heads for the nearest motel he can find, picks up two bottles of rotgut whiskey, and drinks until he manages to pass out amid the sounds of yelling and the scuttering of cockroaches. 
Into the muck
Whatever the fuck else might be going on in the world, there is always the constant: 52 cards, 4 suits, the flick of the dealer’s wrist as he lays out your fortunes, the wins and the loses and the ones where you came oh so close.
He’s back at Mikey’s within a week, borrowing more to get out ahead of this debt, even though he knows that’s never going to work.
Maybe it’ll be different this time. Maybe he can win what he needs, pay off the people he has to, and use the rest to make a start somewhere other than here. Anywhere other than this desert full of chips and blood and corpses and filth.
It’s going to be a good night, he tells himself as he settles into a squeaky plastic chair at a low-roller table and looks around at his competition. Tourists and chumps, and he can take these guys no problem.
Pot-committed
He’s woken by a shrill ringing. His head feels like he’s stuck it in a cement mixer and his mouth tastes like cheap whiskey and puke. He rolls over, covers his ears with a ratty pillow, and ignores it.
The ringing continues. What the fuck? It’s a phone. It keeps ringing. He doesn’t own a phone.
Whoever the fuck is calling is still going, so with a groan he sits up and, bleary-eyed, looks for the phone. He finds it in his jacket pocket, and he’s almost certain it wasn’t there last night.
“Yeah?” he says as he answers it. “What do you want?”
“Sheppard,” a crisp, familiar voice says. “I’ve got a job for you.”
Sheppard closes his eyes. The last thing he needs right now is a world-ending crisis. “Can’t,” he says shortly. “I’ve got… business to attend to.”
McKay snorts. “Another fortune to lose at the poker table? I’m sure you do.” John can hear judgement radiating down the phone line. Then McKay sighs and softens. “Tell you what, meet me and hear me out, and I’ll see what I can do about clearing that off-the-books debt for you.”
That pings John’s bullshit meter, for sure, because that much money doesn’t get casually tossed around even in defense circles. But McKay gives him the address of a pancake place to meet for breakfast and what the hell, he does like pancakes.
Check in the dark
“We keep running into you,” McKay says, shoveling maple syrup-covered pancakes into his mouth with great enthusiasm. “Or, well, other versions of you. Practically every universe we’ve visited so far, you’re leading the team.”
John raises an eyebrow. Not much surprises him any more, but parallel realities strain even his credulity.
“It would be easier,” McKay continues, “if you were with us. You could help us explain. People trust you.”
John jerks back like McKay has slipped a knife between his ribs. McKay doesn’t seem to notice, or perhaps he does notice and is tactful or manipulative enough not to acknowledge it.
“Come work with me. We’d need to get you some -” he gestures with a fork, “- training, obviously. But you could be useful. You could do some good.”
John shifts in his seat. “I can’t just leave.”
McKay scowls at him. “Right, because you’ve got so many compelling reasons to stay.”
Gutshot
He ends up in some anonymous Air Force bunker in Colorado, of all places, and being around so much military life has his hackles rising. He’s deposited in a blank, windowless room with a desk covered in stacks of carefully redacted mission reports from the Stargate program which he reads voraciously because this is wild, this is unbelievable, but it’s also all true.
McKay finds him a few days later, lounging in the doorway as impeccable as ever. John is suddenly very aware of the fact he’s been sleeping in his clothes.
“Keeping busy?” McKay asks, voice dripping with condescension and something else John doesn’t want to put his finger on.
John nibbles the pen he’s holding as he considers how to answer that, and he notices the way McKay’s eyes flick to his mouth. Ahh. Interesting.
“Staying out of trouble, at least,” he drawls, letting his posture slacken so he’s lounging against the back of the chair and his knees are spread wide. It’s been a while but he knows how to play this game. 
McKay walks around to his side of the desk, each step measured and precise. Not too fast, no sudden movements, a predator lining up for the kill. John tilts his head back and bares his neck, because he knows how to play the role of prey. McKay perches on the edge of the desk between his legs, looks down his nose, and says, “Somehow I doubt that.”
“I can behave.” He looks up from under his lashes. It’s not exactly subtle, but fuck it, they’re way past that by now. “When properly motivated.”
McKay leans in, all sharp smiles and gleaming edges, and John shudders. McKay notices and the sharp edges of his smile glistens. 
“I know you can, Sheppard,” McKay says in a low voice that has the hairs on the back of his neck standing up. “I told you before. I know everything about you.”
Damn the man, John thinks, and then McKay winds his fingers into John's hair and yanks him in for a hot, messy kiss and John stops thinking altogether. 
Afterwards, as he makes vain attempts to pull up his shirt collar to hide the bite marks and to wipe the come stains off the classified military files, John reflects that he may truly be in over his head this time.
Under the gun
A stack of paperwork drops onto his desk with a dull thud. He looks up to find the scowling face of Major Davis.
“Consultant,” Davis says, chilly as ice. “That’s what the Pentagon is willing to offer. You’ll get a salary and accommodation, and in return you’ll help Doctor McKay with his research while he’s on Earth.”
John opens his mouth, though whether it’s to say thank you, to tell Davis to go fuck himself, or to ask for more money, he isn’t sure. Davis holds up a hand to stop him before he can find out.
“I advised against it, given your record. But McKay is a real pain in the ass when he wants to be. So this is what’s on the table. Take it or leave it.”
Tell
McKay’s brow is furrowed and he’s fiddling with some piece of machinery (probably alien, John thinks, and it seems that sort of thing is part of his life now). It blinks to life for a moment before the lights on the top fade away, and McKay swears and bangs it on the table.
“Hey, easy, Chewie,” John chides.
McKay’s eyes narrow. “I thought you said you didn’t like science fiction.”
“Star Wars isn’t science fiction. It’s science fantasy.”
McKay actually smiles at that, something joyous leaping up in the corners of his mouth.
“Knew you were a nerd,” McKay says under his breath, and John punches him playfully in the shoulder. He’s defending his honor, or something.
McKay ducks his head, and a blush creeps up the back of his neck.
Ace high
“I’ve got a surprise for you.” McKay looks even smugger than usual. 
“Yeah?” John slips a leer into the syllable.
But McKay just rolls his eyes. “Not like that. Come on, there’s something I want you to see.”
He leads him down through the base to a lower level, through endless security checks and into a dark hanger. There’s some technology they’ve acquired from an off-world source, he explains, deliberately vague. He’s trying to make some modifications to it, and he thinks John can help with testing.
John has learned to expect the unexpected in this place, but when the lights of the hanger flicker on his breath still catches. It illuminates a ship unlike anything he’s seen before: slick and cylindrical, rear hatch open to show seats and consoles inside.
“It’s fitted with inertial dampers, weapons, a shield,” McKay says breezily. “Oh, and you’ll like this.” He flicks a button on a control and the ship disappears in a haze like hot air. “It’s got a cloak too.”
It’s like something out of a movie, and John is struck speechless. He follows wide-eyed as McKay decloaks the ship to lead them inside and gestures for him to sit.
And woah, the moment he sits the chair glows and a holographic interface springs up in front of him, and he can feel the ship in his mind. He reaches out with a thought and - ping - the display shows a schematic of the hanger.
“Knew you’d be a natural,” McKay says, managing to sound both condescending and delighted. “Want to take her for a spin?”
Yes, everything in him screams, but he thinks about flames and smoke and the shrill, piercing whine of a tail rotor failing, and he grits his teeth against it and says, “I don’t fly any more,” instead.
McKay gives him a long, cool look. 
“We’ll start small,” McKay says, all business, and it’s so easy to relax and follow his lead. “I need you to activate the inertial dampeners while I adjust the shield field strength.”
Okay. Okay. He can do that.
The ship whirs to life.
Short stack
John stares at the blank white walls of his apartment.
It’s better than most places he’s lived in. No roaches, for a start, and it’s clean and has its own kitchen.
But it’s infuriatingly bland, and Colorado is infuriatingly empty, and there’s not so much as a slot machine within an hour’s drive and he is climbing the walls here.
McKay has disappeared on one of those weeks-long missions he can’t or won’t tell John about, and there’s a restless itching under his skin that’s urging him to drink or gamble or fuck or something, and this whole planet seems too small and too constrictive but he doesn’t want to climb under a blanket of booze and drain it all away.
He wants more.
On the river
“Modifications are done,” McKay announces. “Shall we test her out?”
The we makes something squirm in John’s gut but he dismisses it with a lazy, “It’s your alien spaceship.”
McKay looks for a moment like he’s going to say something, but then he pulls out a radio and talks into that instead. “This is Gate Ship One, ready for initial shield test burst.”
“Gate Ship One?” John scoffs. “That’s the best you could come up with?”
“It’s a ship that goes through the gate,” McKay pouts, and damn, that’s kind of cute. “Why, what would your suggestion be?”
John tilts his head. He’s seen footage of the ship traveling through the stargate, leaping through the event horizon and leaving barely a ripple in its wake. “Seems more like a puddle jumper to me.”
“You have the soul of a poet,” McKay says acerbically. 
And damn if that’s not kind of cute too.
Dealer’s choice
“Come with me,” McKay says, and John is ready to say yes before he’s even finished speaking. “To Pegasus. To Atlantis. I need to get back there, and I’m sure we can find a way to make you useful.” A little smirk at the end there.
“I don’t know how the Pentagon is going to feel about that,” John says, deliberately languid to hide the way his heart is pounding in his chest. Escape, adventure, somewhere new, somewhere he could be a new person, and he wants it so much it aches.
“Eh, fuck them. They can’t say no to me.”
“Okay,” he shrugs. “Not like I’ve got anything better to do here.”
McKay gives him a look that shoots straight through his defenses and down to his sticky innards. “Yeah, okay,” he says, and it’s soft in a way that makes the ache in John’s chest twist into a deep burn.
All in
The jumper hovers in the air in front of the stargate. 
“Nervous?” McKay asks, carefully casual, like he doesn’t already know the answer.
John hums. The inside of the jumper feels as much like home as any place he knows. What’s another galaxy to a man with no ties?
“You’re going to love it there,” McKay says with a smile he can’t hide. He dials up the gate and it engages with a tremendous whoosh and a burst of brilliant blue light.
Here goes nothing, he thinks as McKay deploys the drive pods and fires up the engines. One last new start. 
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azikarue · 2 years
Text
MayBlade 2022 : Day 20 : Wings
All Starz + Mariah (minor Rick/Mariah) | FFN Rating: T | FFN Link ❖ “How the hell did it come to this?”
Rick meant the question, muttered low under his breath, to be rhetorical, but Emily turned to him and said, “I wonder that every time I’m stuck babysitting you three.”
He was going to assume she meant him, Michael, and Eddy, not Mariah whose back they were currently conversing over. He scowled at her and she took a sip of her water with lemon in response. Emily was lucky Mariah was sandwiched between them in the booth, or he might have tipped her cup back while she drank.
“Don’t loop me in with those bozos,” he grumbled, jabbing his thumb across the table.
Michael and Eddy were sharing the other booth. Currently they were leaning over the table, pointing to something on the menu that Mariah was taking a keen interest in. Rick knew better than to think they were giving her a friendly recommendation – he’d been to this restaurant before.
“The Ghost Pepper Wing Challenge,” Michael said with grandeur, enunciating every word for maximum emphasis.
“Complete that baby and we all eat for free,” Eddy added, “if you think you can handle it.”
Rick groaned and massaged the bridge of his nose. He was getting a migraine. It happened a lot when he was around the other All Starz for extended periods of time. It didn’t help that he’d finished his first beer before the waitress had returned to take their food order. Now he had nothing to drown his irritation with until she came back.
“You don’t have to do it, Mariah.” He ignored the way she looked up at him curiously in favor of glaring at Eddy and Michael. “They put everyone up to it because they’re too cheap to pay for their own shit.”
Eddy rolled his eyes, that dumb cocky grin never leaving his face.
Michael scoffed and said, “Please, I own baseball gloves that cost more than all of our lunches combined.”
“We just like to know if people can do it,” Eddy added innocently before Michael could go off on the usual tangent about whether Rawlings or Wilson gloves were better. “None of us have been able to.”
“None of you?” Mariah asked, peering around the table at the rest of them. Rick could tell by the elevation of her eyebrows that her interest officially piqued and fought the urge to groan again. He really wished he had another beer.
“Well, Emily’s never tried,” Eddy amended.
“I have better things to do than wreck my digestive system so you can get a free meal,” she said, not even bothering to look up from her phone. She was probably answering work emails because she had no idea how to take a day off.
“What do you even have to do?” Mariah asked, looking puzzled by Emily’s words.
Michael and Eddy bumped fists victoriously, happy to have claimed another victim. Emily’s gaze snapped up from her phone in disbelief. She probably assumed, like Rick did, that Mariah was smart enough not to be suckered in by their teammates.
“Curiosity killed the fucking cat,” Rick muttered.
“The goal is to eat half a dozen ghost pepper wings in under five minutes,” Michael said, ignoring Rick’s commentary. He was craning his neck in search of a waitress, eager to get the ball rolling.
“That sounds easy.”
“They’re whole wings. And you aren’t allowed to drink anything or throw them up,” Eddy chimed in. He was either pacing himself with his beer or talking too much – Rick was gonna go with the latter – but he took a long swig before continuing. “They’re probably the spiciest wings in the city. I swear they’re hotter than normal ghost peppers.”
“Please. How many ghost peppers have you actually had?” Rick asked skeptically. He was tired of this bullshit already, which was exactly why he didn’t seek out Michael and Eddy for company.
Before Eddy could come up with a good lie for Rick to call him out on, Mariah rested a hand on Rick’s forearm and squeezed. That was a surefire way to get his attention. And to make Eddy waggle his eyebrows like a douche. Rick looked at her hand, then her face, and raised an eyebrow in a silent question.
“How many did you eat?”
“What?”
“How many ghost pepper wings did you eat before you had to throw in the towel?” Mariah asked more specifically. There was a mischievous smirk curling onto her lips and Rick knew there was no way she was backing down now. “I want to know how many I have to eat to beat your record.”
Rick answered “four” at the same time Emily said “three and a half” and Eddy snickered. Michael was too busy kneeling backwards on his seat, flirting his way through the wing order, to notice anything else. Their waitress was blushing and definitely slipped him her phone number before she left. Rick wanted to leave too – so fucking bad.
“Well, I’ll just shoot for all six,” Mariah said. She took a drink of water in preparation and then slid the glass to the other side of the table into Eddy’s waiting hands. “I can handle spice.”
“Famous last words,” Michael laughed. He had his phone out and was plugging in the waitress’s number already.
It didn’t take long for the wings to come. Their waitress delivered them flanked by two other employees. One of them held an extra bottle of ghost pepper sauce marked with a skull and crossbones. Without prompting, he drizzled some on top of Mariah’s already smothered wings.
“Ready?” the other one asked, thumb hovering over the button on a stopwatch.
Mariah nodded and the staff began a countdown. Rick had forgotten how much of a fucking production this was, as several other patrons stood up at their seats or gathered around to watch. Eddy was counting down with the crowd and Michael had already begun filming the challenge on his phone. Emily was the only one who looked as annoyed as Rick felt.
When the count reached zero, Mariah dug in.
She seemed to have a system for breaking and eating the wings, and she left the cleanest bones he’d ever seen. He let himself be a little impressed, even as he watched for signs that the ghost pepper was getting to her. The sauce was making his eyes water from where he was sitting, for crying out loud.
Once she passed wing number four, the crowd started to get even more pumped up. Eddy and Michael were banging their fists on the table and there were people chanting Mariah’s name. This was gonna be all over the internet later and Rick couldn’t even give a fuck because he was too busy staring at her in total disbelief.
When she tossed the last bone from the last wing down on the plate, the crowd roared. Michael and Eddy leapt to their feet to congratulate her with a round of high-fives. Emily looked shell shocked. The waitress was the most helpful of all and set a glass of milk down in front of Mariah, which she accepted gratefully.
Amid all the chaos, she beamed at Rick with eyes rimmed in red and fingers still coated in wing sauce. It was absolute fucking insanity that he had to tamp down the urge to kiss her. He could only laugh and shake his head.
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erin-bo-berin · 4 years
Text
Enemies Closer
MASTERLIST
Happy smutty Spencer Saturday! This fic has been hidden in the depths of my brain for way too long. I knew I wanted to do an enemies to lover fic for a while but didn’t have much more for it until recently. The title comes from the famous saying “keep your friends close and your enemies closer”.
I want to say a big thank you to all of my followers who sent in quips, jabs and bantery remarks. I tried to use them all because they were all so wonderful. Thank you to @dreatine @andiebeaword @sammy-jo1977 @redbullchick and the numerous anons who contributed. Also a big thank you to @multifandommandy for coming up with the idea of the reader interviewing the little girl, it really helped move the story along and add to it. I appreciate all your ideas and help 💕
Okay, enjoy the 10k words of sassy, smutty Spencer Reid. Happy reading!
Spencer Reid/Reader
Rating: M (smut)
Word Count: 10,088
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Spencer was walking back to his desk when he heard JJ’s voice.
“Really? When?”
There was a pause on her end of the phone conversation. She looked up and saw Spencer, immediately waving him over.
Spencer’s interest was piqued. He wondered what was going on, especially since there was a huge grin on her face. He approached her desk just as JJ spoke again.
“That sounds great, mom. I can’t wait.”
Spencer smiled. JJ and her mom were extremely close and he always looked forward to her visits—she made the best triple chocolate chip cookies he’d ever tasted. He opened his mouth to tell her to say hi from him, when she practically read his mind.
“By the way Spencer says hi.” 
JJ shot him a wink, grinning at the fact that she knew him well enough to know exactly what he was about to say. He chuckled to himself. They definitely were close enough to know what one another was thinking.
“Sounds good. See you then. Bye.”
JJ hung up her phone, turning in her chair to face him fully.
“Is your mom coming to visit?”
“She is,” JJ smiled, “And she’s bringing your favorite triple chocolate chip cookies.”
“Bless that woman,” he chuckled.
“There’s also something else,” JJ trailed off nervously, a flicker of worry in her blue eyes.
“What?”
“Y/N’s visiting too...and she’s kinda stuck with me, or well us for the next week. So if we get a case, she’s coming with us.”
Spencer groaned loudly.
“Why?”
“Mom has a business seminar in downtown D.C. and you know Will took the boys to Disney World this week. I’m not going to make her sit at home alone for a week.”
“Why? It would be for the greater good of humanity. I’ll even be willing to chip in for a hotel room for her,” Spencer said, hoping JJ would actually take him up on the offer, “Particularly one across the country.” 
“Spencer,” JJ eyed him warily, “Emily already said it was okay. She knows to stay out of the way while we work.”
“Yet she’s always in my way.”
“Spence, she’s not that bad. Why do you hate her so much?” she asked.
“Last time she visited she “accidentally” spilled an entire pot of coffee on my favorite work shirt!” Spencer protested.
“Just like you “accidentally” locked her in an interrogation room?” JJ raised a brow.
Yeah, that hadn’t been his finest moment. But she had driven him crazy that day.
“She wandered in there on her own. I was just helping the situation along,” he shrugged innocently.
“You’re lucky she didn’t burn the building down,” JJ mumbled.
“Yeah, well, she pushed me to my limit that day. Sorry.”
“What is it with you two? You fight worse than her and I ever did.”
“She’s annoying, rude and drives me crazy. I honestly can’t believe she’s your sister, let alone related to you. JJ, you know I love you, but I just can’t stand her. We’re just two completely different people that probably will never get along.”
“Alright, alright,” JJ held her hands up in defeat, “At least try to be on your best behavior?”
“No promises,” he grumbled.
“Hey, look at it this way. At least you get cookies,” she stood, patting his arm before walking away.
He was positive even cookies wouldn’t make up for this.
“Y/N while you’re here, can you please try to be nice to your sister’s coworkers?”
You suppressed a groan.
You were currently in the elevator with your mother at the FBI in Quantico, riding up the numerous floors to the Behavioral Analysis Unit, where your sister JJ worked. In your arms were a stack of containers, filled with sweets your mom had made for the team.
There were her famous triple chocolate chip cookies made with milk, dark and white chocolate chips, some apple cobbler, cupcakes and even a strawberry pie. JJ’s team were suckers for Sandy Jareau’s delicacies.
“Mom, I love the team. They’re like extended family, you know that.”
“You know what I mean.”
Your mom gave you a look that you swore only mothers could perfect. It was partly calling out your bullshit and part disciplinary all at the same time. It was amazing, really, 29 years old and you were still getting the “you better not act out” look from her. What were you, eight?
“I mean that lovely Dr. Reid. You’re always so mean to him.”
“He starts it.”
Okay, maybe you were eight.
“Y/N.”
The warning tone in her voice was all you needed to keep your mouth shut.
“All I’m saying is I don’t want another call from JJ saying you’ve gotten locked in an interrogation room and almost got arrested for assaulting a FBI agent.”
“Okay that was one time!” you said, exasperated, “Granted, it wasn’t my finest hour. But still. It’s not like I’m that bad all the time.”
“Really?” your mom looked at you, all knowingly, “What about that one time at JJ’s housewarming party?”
“I swear I didn’t glue his shoes to the floor!”
In your defense, that had been Derek Morgan, back when he was still working in the FBI, prior to his resignation. Of course though, no one believed that he had done it, apparently including your mother.
“Whether you did it or not, that’s not the point. You would’ve done it given the opportunity.”
You couldn’t deny that. 
“Just don’t stress JJ out any more than she is. She said when the two of you are fighting it’s like trying to corral two feisty chihuahuas.”
You sighed, defeated.
“I’ll try to be on my best behavior mom.”
“Thank you. That’s all I ask.”
The elevator dinged, alerting you that you’d arrived at your designated floor and the metal doors slid open to reveal your sister and of course, Spencer.
Spencer Reid, the biggest nemesis of your entire life.
He was absolutely infuriating. 
Tall, imposing, three PhDs, IQ of 187, Doctor Spencer Reid. That’s right, he wasn’t just Agent Reid, he was Dr. Reid. It was eye roll inducing.
He was a know-it-all, quite literally. If anyone said something even the slightest bit wrong, he didn’t hesitate to correct them. A person could breathe wrong and he’d probably correct that.
He constantly spewed facts. That was annoying enough in itself. You had no idea how JJ put up with it. But then again she was best friends with the guy. That blew your mind enough in itself.
If he wasn’t so annoying, he might actually be attractive. With a stature of over six feet, he was lean but without being a beanpole. His light brown curls always looked like he’d just rolled out of bed and/or never taken a brush to his hair. His eyes were definitely interesting though. You could never tell if they were brown, green or maybe even hazel.
Not that you’d been paying that close of attention. Nor did you care.
He had significantly more facial hair than the last time you’d seen him. Not a bad look for him, you had to give him that.
JJ once told you that a college class he’d taught for two weeks was filled with nothing but young girls auditing his course. She said it had confused Spencer. It confused you too cause you didn’t see how he was that attractive. He was kinda cute, if you liked the whole snobby, genius who doesn’t brush his hair, smartass type.
Oddly enough, you’d known him for half your life, yet couldn’t recall how or when you started hating him. It just seems like it had been that way all along, when in fact, it hadn’t.
“Mom! Y/N!” JJ exclaimed, grinning wide.
You felt a burst of happiness in your chest. You’d missed your sister. Despite the 11 year age difference, you guys were close growing up.
You were still a baby when your older sister Rosalyn had committed suicide, so you didn’t remember much about her, sadly. It was really hard on JJ as she was the one to find her. But as she’d told you much later, you’d helped her grieve. Reliving memories and keeping Rosalyn’s memory alive in sharing stories with you helped her heal after such a traumatic situation. It was often that you’d wished you’d had the chance to know your oldest sister, but with her death came an impenetrable close bond between you and JJ.
JJ immediately wrapped her arms around your mother, hugging her tight. You gave a nod of your head, your arms too full to be able to hug her at the moment.
“I’ll just go put these in the briefing room,” you said.
You turned, aiming to head through the glass doors of the BAU’s entrance, but instead ran right into Spencer.
“Here, I got it,” he took several of the boxes out of your arms so you could see properly again, “If only to save you from injuring anyone else.”
“My knight in shining armor,” you muttered sarcastically.
“Watch where you’re going next time.”
“You watch where you’re going. Besides, I didn’t need your help,” you retorted.
“Obviously, you did,” Spencer mumbled, following you through the doors.
You hadn’t even made it all the way through the entrance when you heard your mom and JJ sigh in unison. You heard JJ’s words loud and clear, as well.
“They’re already bickering less than five minutes in. Must be a new record.”
It kinda was. Usually, the two of you managed to avoid each other until the inevitable crossing of paths occurred. Today, though, you both had started in, right off the bat.
You placed the numerous arrays of desserts on the round table, knowing by tomorrow they’d pretty much all be gone.
“You’re welcome for the help,” Spencer snarked, setting down the few containers he’d carried.
You couldn’t help it, you rolled your eyes.
“I didn’t ask for it. So there’s no reason to thank you.”
“It’s the polite thing to do. Oh, wait. I forgot you don’t know how to be polite. My bad.”
You glared at him, the hatred stirring in your gut.
“I wish I could say it’s been a pleasure to see you again, Y/N, but it hasn’t,” Spencer said.
“Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go greet your mother who actually deserves and appreciates my kindness.”
“Kindness, my ass,” you muttered as he walked away.
He turned, almost to the door.
“What was that?”
“Nothing,” you smiled in a fake, sweet matter.
He scoffed, turning and walking away.
Only when his back was turned did your fake demeanor drop and you stuck your tongue out at him.
This man would be the death of you yet.
“Penelope just got us a case. Luckily, it’s right here in our backyard so you can just sit in while we work. But please try to control your mouth.”
“JJ, I’m almost 30 years old,” you replied.
“Yes, but you still have a sharp tongue.”
“I promise not to make a scene, cause any trouble or be in the way. I know you have to work Jayj.”
After a round of greetings and hugs from the team and promises to stay longer when she returned from her business seminar, your mom had dashed off, leaving you at the BAU.
You looked up to see Emily Prentiss, JJ’s friend and boss motioning for her to join them in the briefing room.
“The team has to be debriefed about this case. Are you going to be okay here?”
You spun back and forth in her desk chair, motioning to the book you’d brought to read.
“I’ll be fine. Go work,” you shooed her.
JJ bounded off and up the stairs to the meeting and you picked up your book, ready to be entranced by the wonderful fantasy world of your book, far away from your reality.
-
“Why do people read that garbage? It does nothing but fills a person’s head with nonsense. It’s stupid and a waste of time. Although, now that I think of it, that’s probably a perfect fit for you.”
You peered up over the edge of your book.
You’d just gotten to a good part in your book. Your heroine was just getting ready to destroy the enemy and his lair, saving her love interest from the clutches of evil. It was a shame you couldn’t throw Spencer in the cage that your heroine was saving her lover from. Now that would make the book perfect.
“I’m reading. If you don’t mind.”
“Well it offends me. At least read something good. War and Peace is a good recommendation. Good story. I read it at breakfast last weekend,” Spencer said.
You turned up your nose. Leave it to Spencer to brag about his ability to read 20,000 words a minute and offer atrocious book recommendations in the same sentence. That in itself was offensive enough to you.
“This is why you don’t get dates, isn’t it?” you snipped.
He ignored the quip. 
“I’m supposed to ask you for help with the case.”
Now this was interesting. You raised an eyebrow.
“What makes you think I want to help you?”
“You do realize the entire world doesn’t revolve around you, right?” Spencer’s eyes narrowed, “There’s kids that are going missing.”
That sobered you quickly. You dropped any anger you had at him, for the moment, realizing how serious the matter was.
“How? What’s happening?”
“Four kids have gone missing. We can’t figure out how or why. They haven’t shown up yet, so we’re hopeful that they’re still alive,” Spencer said, lips narrowed into a thin line.
“What do you need my help for then?”
“Because to understand what happened to them, we need to profile these kids.”
“Okay so we know from his parents, six year old Erik Yates was incredibly shy,” JJ said, looking at the whiteboard where the pictures of the four missing children were hung.
“He wouldn’t have talked to his own school teacher, let alone a stranger,” David Rossi said.
“But his best friend, Carlos Hoffman also went missing with him. They were having a sleepover, so he’d been at Erik’s house,” Emily added.
“And Carlos was the more outgoing of the two, wasn’t he?” you asked.
“Yup,” Tara said, flipping through her notes, “According to the parents, wherever Carlos went Erik was always close behind. So if they encountered a stranger, if Carlos was willing to go, Erik would likely follow.”
“I don’t know about that,” you piped in, “I’ve seen friendships like that in my class. Even if the kid is quiet, if they know something is wrong, they either say something to their friend or they just don’t do it period. I find it hard to believe that Erik would go along with someone he wasn’t comfortable with.”
“Says the one that’s not a profiler,” Spencer mumbled from where he was standing, examining the evidence board.
JJ shot him a look, before returning to the conversation. You pretended not to hear that one and for once, bit your tongue. You wouldn’t accomplish anything by arguing with Spencer at the moment.
“So let’s go back to the top,” Matt said, “Mrs. Yates went to the door and there was someone there either selling something or had an excuse made up for the unsub to guilt trip money out of her. She leaves to get her purse. The kids are in the living room playing. Then suddenly, by the time she gets back, all three are gone.”
“That’s how her story goes,” Luke said, looking through interview notes.
“What about the other children?” you asked, “How were they taken?”
“One was kidnapped at the park, the other at the grocery store,” Spencer answered.
“What if it’s someone familiar with their routines?” you asked.
You weren’t anywhere close to being a profiler, but you knew enough from JJ to sort of get by in this conversation.
“A lot of my kids and their families have strict routines. Usually because it benefits the child and/or they have other children that they keep on a schedule too. Wouldn’t that mean that it’s someone that they know?”
“It could,” Emily said, “But unfortunately that doesn’t narrow down much because the unsub could also just be stalking these families before the kidnapping. The unsub could potentially be a complete stranger to them.”
“Have you asked the parents of the children if they could think of anyone who could do this? Is there anyone that might overlap with these families?” you inquired.
JJ had opened her mouth to answer you, but of course, Spencer had to add his two cents. 
“Are you an idiot? Of course, we did,” Spencer snapped, “That’s always the first thing we do.”
You bristled. Even when working together, he couldn’t be civil. He had the nerve to try and insult you and make you feel stupid, even though all you were trying to do was help.
“I’m not an idiot, Spencer,” you grit out.
“Oh really? You sure do act like one sometimes,” he retorted, writing something on the board.
Your defenses snapped back into place and you were ready to shoot back a remark when JJ interrupted you.
“Hey, hey, you guys. Quit it before I have to send you both into separate corners for timeout. We’re all on the same team here, trying to accomplish the same thing. Let’s just focus.”
“Matt, Dave, JJ, I want you to go and reinterview the parents. Y/N has a point. We need to make absolutely sure there’s no one in these families lives that connect with one another,” Emily ordered.
“Luke, Tara; both of you go to the schools. See if there’s been any strangers lurking around. We can’t rule out a sexual predator just yet, but it would help vastly if we could.”
“Penelope, you and I are going to work on a deep dive of these families.”
Garcia’s face scrunched at Emily’s order; she hated diving into people’s personal lives, but unfortunately it sometimes came with the job.
“We’re going to make sure that these parents aren’t holding back any secrets that could possibly help us.”
Emily turned towards you and Spencer next.
“Spence, I want you to start on a geo profile, see if we can figure out the vicinity of the unsub’s hunting grounds. Maybe we might even be able to find where he’s holding them.”
“On it.”
Spencer was already grabbing a map, spreading it across the round table.
“Y/N, I want you to help him.”
Spencer’s head snapped up.
“Hell no. Emily please-”
She held up her hand.
“I don’t want to hear it. That’s an order. If you disobey, I will put you behind a desk for a month.”
He relented, but you could tell he wasn’t happy about it. Not like you were pleased at all by it either.
“Try not to burn the room down while you’re working,” she instructed, walking out to meet Garcia in her lair.
Once she left, Spencer spun towards you.
“Let’s get one thing clear. You’re not to bother me while I work. You stay out of my way. I don’t need your help, nor do I want it. I can do my work just fine without you. I’ve been doing it for 15 years,” he snapped.
“Don’t flatter yourself, Spencer. Even I can tell when your IQ gets slashed to 60.”
“That’s the best you got, Y/N? I didn’t realize they let bimbos into the FBI. Oh wait...that’s right. I’m the one that’s the actual agent here. What is it you do again?”
“I’m a kindergarten teacher. You know that, you dumbass or else I wouldn’t be here helping you.”
“Oh, guess there’s no sleeping to the top in that field. Although, I wouldn’t put it past you.”
Your fists clenched. Spencer made you mad like no other could. Not even JJ could ever make you this mad.
“Just sit down and shut up while the adults work, okay?” he sneered at you.
“I’m not a child!”
You crossed your arms defensively. You weren’t about to let him get in all the insults. Ignoring him never worked, he was too obnoxious. So you just played it like he did, by slinging insults like dodgeballs at him.
“Well if you’re going to act like a child, I’m going to treat you like a child!” he threw back.
His eyes were blazing, his cheeks gone pink from his anger. 
“Funny because you act more immature than my kindergartners.”
“WILL YOU TWO CAN IT AND GET TO WORK?!”
You both jumped at the sound of Garcia yelling from the bullpen. She made the motion that she’d be keeping her eyes on you two. You threw one more scowl Spencer’s way before flopping down on the sofa on the other side of the room.
This week was going to last an eternity.
Two days passed with no luck on finding an unsub, but they’d managed to put a profile together based on what little they did know.
The entire team was worried and on edge. Of course, that made the situation between you and Spencer even more volatile.
“Are you sure you’re an actual qualified agent? All you do is stand in front of a room full of police or your team and say smart things and gesture with your hands,” you mimicked Spencer, doing exactly what he was just doing earlier while they gave the profile.
“I do not look like that! You look like a baby dinosaur who doesn’t know how to walk,” he jeered.
“Yes, you do. All I’m saying is these civil service exams must be really easy to pass nowadays, huh?” you smirked.
“You know I’d ask if you could really be any more infuriating, but I’m afraid you’d take that as a challenge,” Spencer huffed, “Besides I’m supposed to be “nice” to you, since you’ve been so helpful.”
“I’m sorry, what was that?” you grinned mischievously, “I’ve been what?”
“I’m just quoting what Emily said. In my opinion you’ve been more like a pain in my ass,” he mumbled, looking through one of the case files.
“Oh sure because without me, would you’ve figured out that the unsub is a woman?”
“Probably. Don’t pat yourself on the back, sweetheart. You’re no match for us real profilers, Y/N.”
“I may not be, but you’ve met your match with me, pretty boy,” the nickname falling from your lips with deep sarcasm, “You can’t help but fight with me. For some reason I get under your skin and frankly, I enjoy it. It’s nice to know you can actually squirm, Spencer Reid.”
His lips pursed and he was about to speak when the phone rang. He answered it, putting it on speaker. Garcia’s excited voice came through it.
“Reid, gather the team. You won’t believe what I’ve found.”
“So it turns out, one of our families did have a secret. Although, it was something we weren’t even looking for,” Penelope said.
“What’s that Garcia?” Tara asked.
“The family of the first missing child: Daisy Rowe, had a nanny once. Her name is Kali Dye.”
Garcia hit the remote button to pull up the woman’s picture on the big screen at the front of the room.
“What does she have to do with our case?” Luke asked.
She stared at him, exasperated.
“If I could finish what I was saying, you’d know,” Penelope griped.
“Okay, okay,” Luke chuckled, “Carry on.”
You lived for Luke and Penelope’s playful banter. It was like the complete opposite of you and Spencer. They liked each other at the end of the day—not to mention everyone knew deep down they were definitely attracted to one another. Their banter was flirty. Yours and Spencer’s was anything but.
“As I was saying,” Penelope continued, “Kali was the nanny to the Rowe family back in 2016 when Daisy was only two years old. There was an incident where apparently she turned her back on little Daisy playing in the backyard. Daisy got too near the pool and almost drowned. She was in the hospital for a few days afterwards. The parents were obviously furious. I’m guessing Mrs. Rowe told all her friends about it because according to my research, Kali’s nannying career was basically ruined.”
“So you think this is an act of revenge? Did she nanny for any of the other kids she kidnapped?” Emily asked.
“No, that’s where it gets weird. She seems to have no connection to these other children,” Garcia said.
“Well we know who our unsub most likely is,” JJ said, “But how are we going to find out where she and the kids are?”
“I checked for that. There’s no significant places that she would take them, her old family house isn’t even in the state and besides it’s been sold years ago,” Penelope answered.
Emily’s phone rang as the team continued to throw around ideas of where to find Kali. 
“Prentiss.”
You watched Emily’s face quickly change expressions, from neutral to shock, to worry, back to businesslike.
“Okay, bring her to Quantico. We’ll need to interview her.”
Emily hung up, turning to the team.
“The second child kidnapped, Eden Jenson just showed up at a police station in D.C. She managed to get away and ran for help. We need to interview her, but she hasn’t spoken yet. The chief of the police station is having one of his detectives drive here so we can interview her,” Emily filled the rest of the team in.
“I’ll talk to her. I’m pretty good at getting kids to talk,” Spencer said.
“Actually, I think we should let Y/N do it,” JJ said, looking at Emily.
“What?! She has no experience interviewing a witness, much less a victim!” Spencer exclaimed.
“I worked in art therapy when I was getting my degree as a teacher. I still use some in my class, plus I’m a teacher,” you said defiantly, “I know how to talk to kids.”
“I agree with JJ,” Emily said, “But Spencer, sit in with her just in case you need to intervene.”
You were sure he was going to do plenty of that.
An hour later, you and Spencer were sitting in front of a little, terrified Eden. Her—what you assumed were once neat—blonde pigtails were in all types of disarray. Pieces stood up everywhere while other strands came loose, hanging around her face. She was clutching her bunny stuffie, which you figured had been with her when she was kidnapped.
She had refused to talk to anyone, shrinking away frightfully at any imposing adults. You had to restrain yourself from literally pushing Spencer out the door when she shrunk even more into herself when she saw Spencer’s tall frame.
She’d been previously asked if she was hungry or thirsty in which she barely nodded. Now, she sat a bit less rigidly as she ate her Goldfish crackers and sipped on her juice box.
“Eden, my name is Y/N and this is my…friend, Spencer.”
You had to admit, you had a rough time getting that one out. 
“We just want to talk to you, okay?” you said.
The little girl just stared back at you, wide eyed.
“Do you like to color?” you asked.
Still no response.
You pulled out some paper and a pack of crayons from a bin next to the desk. You pushed them across towards her.
“Could you draw something for us?”
It took a moment of Eden staring at the items before she opened the box and picked up a crayon.
“Do you mind if we ask you some questions while you color?”
You didn’t expect an answer, so you weren’t surprised when none came.
“Are you six years old? Six is a fun age. Are you in kindergarten or first grade?”
Eden looked up at you, from underneath her lashes, just briefly, before returning to drawing.
“I’m a kindergarten teacher myself. I’m used to seeing kids your age all the time. It’s spring break though and I miss my kids terribly. Do you miss going to school?”
Spencer shifted in his seat. You knew time was a delicate thing right now, but you were trying to get her to trust you.
“Eden?” 
She looked up again. If she was surprised to hear Spencer speak for the first time, she didn’t show it.
“Could you describe the place you were at?”
Fear flashed in her eyes and she dropped her crayon, hugging tightly to her bunny.
You glared at Spencer.
“Just keep drawing, Eden. Okay? We’ll be right back,” you said, standing up, your hand a death grip on his arm.
Once the two of you had stepped out of the room and the door was closed behind you, you whirled on him.
“How can you be so stupid? I thought you were supposed to be a genius!”
“Y/N, you know we’re running on limited time to find those kids. We don’t know if Kali will hurt them or not!”
“I realize that. I’m trying to make her comfortable enough to talk about it.”
“Avoiding it doesn’t seem to be helping either,” he grimaced, hands on his hips.
“You saw what happened when you brought it up! She was terrified!”
“When dealing with a traumatized child you should tell them information about the situation they were in. It’s best they learn it from a trusted adult. Besides, it’s most likely they want to talk about it, but just don’t know how to bring it up.”
“And how would you know all of this, doctor?”
“Because contrary to your beliefs about me, I actually know how to do my job and how to do it well. I’ve dealt with things like this many times before. 60% of adults report being traumatized in childhood. 26% of children in the United States alone will witness or experience a traumatic event before the age of four.”
You blinked, unable to process so much information at once.
“Are you even human?” 
“Are you?” Spencer shot back, eyes narrowed.
“You know, with all things considered, I’d thought you’d gotten the idea that I really hate you.” you sneered.
“Really? And here I thought that was your version of flirting,” he retaliated, sarcastically.
“Moron,” you muttered under your breath.
“Now, if you’re through calling me names, I’ve got work to do,” he said, reaching behind you for the doorknob.
“Wait,” you grabbed his arm, “Just let me try again first? Please? If I get stuck or need you, I’ll let you know.”
It was some of the most civil words you’d said to him in a long time. But you didn’t want to give up on this little girl. You wanted to help her and prove to Spencer and yourself if you were being honest, that you could do it.
He must’ve noticed your serious tone and pleading eyes because he relented. He nodded and you turned to go back in.
Eden was waiting for you when you returned, back to clutching her bunny.
“Don’t you want to finish your picture?” you asked, sitting down in front of her.
She pushed it across to you.
“Oh are you done?”
She nodded.
You picked up the picture, noticing four stick figures. Two seemed to be girls, two seemed to be boys. They looked like they could represent all four missing kids.
“Are these you and your friends?” you asked gently.
She didn’t say anything for a beat, then came a soft, timid voice.
“They aren’t my friends...at least not until a few days ago.”
“My friends here, they found out that you didn’t know these other three children. Is that right?”
Eden nodded again.
“Do you know the woman who took you?”
“No,” she said, equally as quiet as before.
“You’re doing a great job, Eden,” you smiled at her, hoping to encourage her, “Just a few more questions, okay?”
Another nod.
“Can you describe where you were?”
“I...I don’t know,” her voice trembled, as if she were going to cry.
You heard the door open up behind you and you turned to see Spencer. He gave you a terse shake of his head, as if telling you now was not the time to snap at him.
“Eden?” Spencer came around to her side and crouched by her, “You remember me, right? I’m Spencer.”
She nodded hesitantly.
“I want to try to help you help Miss Y/N here. To tell her what the place looked like that you were at.”
“But I don’t remember,” Eden said, frowning.
“I think you do. You know how when you’re afraid, you hide?” Spencer asked gently.
Eden nodded her answer.
“Well, that’s kinda what your brain is doing. It’s scared, so you think you can’t remember. What I want to do is have you to close your eyes and think back to before you were taken.”
“No, I’m scared,” Eden whimpered, hugging the stuffie.
“It’ll be okay. I’m right here,” he offered her his hand, which she took reluctantly, “I’ll be right here the entire time. If things get too scary, just squeeze my hand and we can stop. Alright?”
“Alright.”
She closed her eyes, listening to Spencer’s voice.
You were amazed at how soft and gentle he was with her. It was like seeing all of his razor sharp edges he displayed around you, smoothed out. You couldn’t remember if you’d ever heard him like this.
“Just focus on the sound of my voice,” Spencer whispered, “You were playing at the park. What were you doing?”
“Playing on the swing with my bunny,” she said.
“Okay, that’s good Eden, you’re doing wonderful. What do you hear?”
“Lots of kids playing. They’re very loud.”
“What happens next?”
“There’s a lady behind me. She asks if I would like to play in the sandbox with her. I told her yes but I didn’t want to get bunny dirty.”
Eden is trembling now and you eye Spencer warily. He holds his free hand up and you don’t say anything, just yet.
“Very good Eden. Did you go play in the sandbox?”
“No. She took my hand and led me away from the swings. I asked her where she’s going because the sandbox was the other way.”
“Do you want to stop, Eden?” Spencer asked.
“N-No. I a big girl like mommy always says.”
“Okay. What happened then, sweetheart?”
“She grabbed me and put her hand over my mouth. I tried screaming for my mommy, but I couldn’t. She took me to a car.”
“Can you remember what the car looked like?”
“Um, blue. It was blue. It had a lot of doors. It was long too.”
Spencer looked like he realized what she was describing.
“Did the middle door slide open and closed?”
She nodded, her eyes still closed.
“It was big inside with lots of seats. That’s all I saw before she covered my eyes.”
It sounded like an SUV or family van.
“When you were in the car, did you ride for a really long time? Or a short time?”
“A short time.”
You jotted the note down.
“One last question honey. Do you remember anything about the room you were in? What did it look like?”
“Like...like my bedroom. Only much dirtier. And old looking. There’s...there’s flowers on the wall. There’s a lot of toys, but I don’t want to play. I want to go home. Me and my friends are so scared. She’s coming back, she's coming back!”
“It’s okay, it’s okay! I’m right here.”
Eden’s eyes snapped open and he enveloped her in his arms, holding her tightly as she trembled.
She didn’t let go of him until her parents arrived.
After kicking the information over to Garcia and her being the goddess she is at finding even the most hidden information, she found the house.
The team had found her car, registered to Kali, but with a false last name. From there, Garcia looked for any run down buildings or homes for rent within 10 to 15 minutes of that park. The team agreed that Kali wouldn’t have bought a house for the simple reason of too much work. She didn’t seem to be that dedicated to a well thought out plan. That was when Garcia discovered an old house rented under the name of Kali Rowe, the same last name of the family she had been a nanny for.
You stayed behind while the team went out to rescue the children and hopefully bring Kali Dye into custody. 
They did.
All four kids were now safely reunited with their parents and Kali had been arrested and hopefully was going to get the help she needed.
Since you hadn’t been there, JJ had filled you in afterwards when everybody had gotten back. You were sitting next to one another in the briefing room, talking, while everything settled down. 
Kali Dye had been so distraught over the loss and destruction of her nannying career. Apparently at one point, she had been a wonderful nanny. What had happened with Daisy, truly was an accident. Whether she had had a mental breakdown or suffered from an unknown or untreated mental illness beforehand, they didn’t know. But she soon became desperate to prove she was a good nanny.
She kidnapped Daisy first, to prove her point. Then three other children that she’d followed, learning their schedules. 
She had taken good care of them, at least in her mind. In reality, she hadn’t hurt them or touched them one bit. She fed them, gave them all attention and all the toys they wanted, to play with.
It was a sad situation, really. But you were glad that the families had a happy ending and their children were back safely in their homes tonight.
“You did good little sis,” JJ smiled, “Keep it up and you may just have to think about switching careers.”
“No thanks,” you chuckled, “I’m happy teaching kids, not seeing them in life threatening situations. I don’t have the heart for that.”
“Spence said you did really well getting Eden to open up,” she said.
“I’m surprised he actually knows how to compliment a person, let alone me,” you scoffed.
“Y/N. Come on. What’s your deal with him? This has been going on for years now.”
“I don’t know. I just can’t stand him.”
“That’s a cop out and you know it,” JJ said, “He’s a good guy. Besides, you used to have a crush on him when you were younger.”
“Ew, did I?” 
You wrinkled your nose, trying to remember. JJ had joined the BAU when you were only 14. A lot had happened in high school, let alone the 15 years since she’d first joined. You didn’t visit her very often because of school and all of your other extracurricular activities, so you hadn’t met the team until about a year after she started.
“You don’t mean the summer after my freshman year, do you?” you asked, “Cause back then he was a cute little dweeb and it lasted like two seconds anyway. I had a case of raging hormones to the point I had a crush on just about anything male with two legs.”
You rolled your eyes, disgusted at the fact she’d even think that you’d have a crush on Spencer. Although deep down, deep, deep, deep down, a little part of you knew that she’d hit the nail on the head.
“Why do you hate him though? He’s my best friend. I love him and I want you two to get along.”
You snorted.
“Yeah, I know you love him. Remember, you told me that you told him that you’ve always loved him? That he was your first love?”
You bit your lip, trying hard to keep the jealous edge out of your tone. This is what you’d tried hard to avoid all these years. You hated that you felt like this but you’d been covering up your true feelings for him and the situation, with anger all these years. If you kept yourself at a distance, you were less likely to get hurt.
How wrong you were.
“Is that what this is about? Because I told Spence I loved him?”
“No.”
Maybe.
“Y/N.”
She gave you the same look that your mother had given you in the elevator just days before.
“Jeez, you’ve got mom’s “look” down pat,” you mumbled.
“Please tell me the truth. Is my confession why you hate him?”
Her eyes pleaded with you and you couldn’t help but cave. She was your sister and your best friend and you knew she cared.
“No. I don’t know, maybe partially. But I disliked him way before that anyway. He’s just a know-it-all smartass, that annoys the shit out of me and is just like every other guy to fall head over heels in love with Jennifer Jareau.”
You grimaced, “For a guy that has an IQ of 187, he sure doesn’t know how to be different from other guys.”
“Okay hold up,” JJ held up her hands, “First of all, he is not head over heels in love with me.”
“JJ, please. You’re not an idiot.”
“I’m serious. He may have been once, but he’s not anymore. We’re best friends and that’s it. Besides, we worked out that mess over a year ago. He’s even dated since then.”
“The kid actually dates? I’m shocked,” you said, putting a hand on your chest in mock surprise.
JJ ignored your antics, continuing on.
“Second. He’s actually a really great guy, Y/N. He’s a real sweetheart, really. It’s just a side of him that you don’t see.”
“Yeah like the dark side of the moon,” you muttered.
“Just give him a chance and try to be nice? You know what mom always said. You catch more flies with honey than vinegar. Besides, if you want to go for him, that’s fine.”
You laughed outright at that. As if that would happen.
“On that note, I think I’m gonna head back to your place,” you said standing.
“I have to stay a little later to finish up some work. Can you get home okay on your own?”
You assured her you could and you grabbed your purse. 
“Y/N?” she called, as you were about to the glass doors.
“Yeah?” 
“Just think about what I said, okay?”
If you thought you were gonna get a reprieve after that uncomfortable conversation, you were sorely mistaken.
The moment you stepped out of the BAU, you saw Spencer standing, waiting for the elevator, his hands clutching the strap of his tan satchel as he waited.
“Ah, there she is. The woman who saved the day,” he quipped sarcastically.
“Fuck off Reid. I’m not in the mood.”
“You know, I’m actually shocked that you’re good at something besides bitching.”
You ignored him, your teeth clenching.
“I’m surprised you held your tongue as long as you did earlier. Bet that’s a record for you.”
The elevator doors opened and you got on without a word, Spencer following you.
“What? No comebacks? Amazing. Has Spencer Reid actually won for once?”
You whirled on him, dropping your purse to the elevator floor in the process.
“No because you’re full of shit. You’re the most annoying, stubborn ass, infuriating, egocentric, smart aleck in a fancy suit I’ve ever met!”
His eyes narrowed and his mouth hardened. He pulled his satchel over his head, dropping it too, to the floor. He pushed the emergency button of the elevator with such anger, it was amazing that he didn’t break it. The elevator suddenly came to an abrupt halt.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?!” you screeched.
Your body was thrumming with anger. You could and likely would pummel him at any second.
“You’re not leaving this elevator until you tell me what the fuck your problem is,” Spencer glared.
“My problem?” you huffed.
“Yes because I have to deal with you jumping down my throat every single time I see you. You’re the most stuck up, spoiled, self centered, bitchy little brat I’ve had to deal with!”
“Ha! You sure you’re not talking about yourself?”
“You know what I think your problem is?” he challenged.
“Go ahead, try me. I’d love to hear.”
“I think, you don’t know how to deal with how you’re really feeling. So you hide it under anger. You lash out every time your feelings threaten to surface. It’s become a defense mechanism. It’s all you know. You fight with me because it’s the only way to protect yourself; you throw words as your daggers. Simply because you can’t get me out of your mind. I push you to limits you don’t want to think about. You may swear and declare that you hate me but in reality, you’d be thrilled if I took you right up against this elevator wall.”
His voice grew deeper with every word that tumbled out of his mouth.
“Are you profiling me? Cause that’s one hell of a reach.”
“Is it though? You wanna know how I figure that? You told me the other day that I met my match. That I can’t help but fight with you because you get under my skin. Well you were right. I do enjoy it and I think you do too. Because it turns you on. It does the same thing to me. You get under my skin yet at the same time all I can think about is how I want to fuck you until you’re screaming my name.”
“You think I’m gonna fall for that shit from just another guy who’s crazy about JJ?” you sneered.
For the first time, he actually looked just the tiniest bit surprised.
“You think I have feelings for JJ? If I had feelings for her, do you honestly think I’d spend all my time and attention on you?”
“How the hell am I supposed to know?”
“JJ isn’t the one that occupies my brain, no matter what I try to do, Y/N,” he said through gritted teeth.
His face was mere inches away from yours now. Close enough to see an array of scattered freckles on his face. A few under one eye, a tiny one on the side of his nose, one on his forehead.
His stubble had gotten heavier in the last few days, becoming more scruff than stubble. His lips were naturally plump, an asset that would be the envy of any woman. They were also a natural shade of dark pink, maybe even leaning towards red. 
Anger heated his eyes. Or was it desire? You wondered if you looked the same way. Right now, they looked more green in the brighter light in the elevator, but you could still see rings of brown around the edges of his eyes. They were also filled with mischief as if he were up for a challenge.
“You really think you’re going to distract me by putting your tongue in my mouth and getting my panties wet?” you hissed.
“Is that what you want?” 
A smirk formed on his lips. He was definitely challenging you.
Your legs were trembling now. Although if you were to admit it, you weren’t entirely sure if it was from anger or arousal.
You pressed your lips together, refusing to say anything, almost afraid what would come out of your mouth. He had you cornered up against the wall now.
“Maybe I should just find out for myself,” he said, propping his hands on either side of the wall by your head, “Make you moan in my mouth while I finger you.”
The anger that was coursing your veins earlier had definitely now turned into desire. Your stomach churned with it. You could feel his body mere inches from yours and the heat from it was making your entire body temperature feel that much higher.
“It’s not like I haven’t imagined making you moan my name,” he whispered, his voice gravelly, his tongue moving out over his lips in a quick swipe.
Your breathing had become shallow and you were throbbing with need. Before you could think of what you were doing, you were already unbuttoning your jeans.
“For once in your life I wish you’d shut up and just do it,” you grunted.
He grabbed your face roughly with both hands, his lips colliding with yours. They were hot and rough against yours, this kiss so hungry and animalistic that it was unreal.
His body was pressed against yours as he pressed you against the cool, metal wall. You could feel his arousal pressed against your thigh and you unwittingly moaned into his mouth. You had a difficult time wrapping your head around the fact that you’d gotten him so hard.
Then again, you were having a hard time wrapping your mind around anything that didn’t involve him.
His tongue moved with yours, ironically increasing your desire, making you wetter. Just like you’d voiced earlier. Damn, the guy sure knew what he was doing.
He pulled your jeans roughly down your legs until they were enough out of the way that he was satisfied. His lips attacked your jaw, then neck, being anything but gentle, but it was working you up more than anything.
Your hands gripped his arms, your teeth bearing down into your bottom lip, resisting the urge to give in to what he wanted: hearing you moan.
He pulled away from you making you suddenly desperate for his lips on your skin again. He pried your hands away from him and held them against the wall, his hips pressing into yours.
His suit pants were a lot thinner than your jeans, so you could feel his erection pressing into you, dangerously close to your throbbing core where all of a sudden, you wanted him the most.
Spencer’s fingers ghosted over the fabric of your underwear, causing you to inhale sharply. It felt good and you wanted more.
You reached for his hand, trying to push it against your core, but he pulled it away, shaking his head.
“No. This is all you’re getting until you admit it.”
His finger trailed up the center of your panties, having just enough pressure to slightly feel his touch. You groaned at his teasing. If your past years of banter had been foreplay then you were more than ready for him to have you.
“Admit what?”
“That you want this,” Spencer stated simply.
His fingertip swirled lightly over the fabric, just above your clit. Light enough that you didn’t get any real friction from the touch and you bucked your hips, desperate to feel it.
“I think it’s fucking obvious,” you said through clenched teeth.
“Yes, but I want to hear you say it.”
His smirk was wolfish. You knew he wasn’t going to give in unless you did what he said.
“I want this,” you groaned.
“What’s that?” he tipped his head to the side, “Can’t hear you.”
“I want this,” you said, a notch louder, gripping his wrist.
“This?”
His fingers dipped into your underwear and his thumb pressed hard against your clit.
“Ah, fuck yes,” you moaned.
He grinned, his finger dipping into your wet warmth.
“Seems like my tongue in your mouth did indeed make you wet,” he chuckled lowly, pulling your underwear off with his other hand.
His fingers teased you as you writhed and moaned, clawing at the elevator wall behind you. He had this amazing way of rubbing his knuckles against your walls as his fingers pumped in and out of you.
“Holy shit, fuck Spencer,” you whined.
You were so turned on, you hardly had any recognition of what was tumbling out of your mouth. It sure seemed to please Spencer, though.
He kept you on your toes though, slowing his fingers just when you thought you were reaching the brink of your orgasm, twisting them so gradually, it was almost painfully pleasant. You swore your eyes almost rolled back in your head when his fingers curled inward in his direction, catching that sweet spot at just the right angle.
He was kissing you as you moaned appreciatively in his mouth. His hands were quite literally magical.
His fingers finally sped up, his thumb focusing all its attention on your clit. You could feel your release quickly approaching and you were ready to succumb to it. You wanted Spencer Reid to make you cum so hard you’d be begging for more.
He did just that.
Your high hit you as you released on his fingers. Your eyes screwed shut, your head banging against the wall. You actually think you stopped breathing for a short second before air rushed back into your lungs and you released a long moan.
“Oh my god, Spencer,” you groaned, reaching for the waistband of his pants.
He’d given you one hell of an orgasm and here you were, ready to beg for more. Especially if they came while he was buried to the hilt inside you.
“That was hot as hell,” he muttered, kissing you again, “It’s sexy seeing you spend all your energy on an orgasm instead of yelling at me. It’s healthier for your body, too.”
He smirked, his teeth pulling on your lower lip gently before pulling away. His hands were working with yours to push his pants down and his boxers too.
“Are you willing to admit you want me to fuck you against this wall now?” he growled.
“Yes, yes. Fuck yes, please.”
Man, if he wanted you to be his bitch ages ago, he probably should’ve just fucked you. One orgasm at his hands and you had turned into a writhing, begging and moaning heap.
But still, you couldn’t help but wonder if he could make you feel so good with his hands, that it would most likely be ten times as amazing with his dick.
He lifted you up, holding you against the wall. You wrapped your legs around his waist as he pushed into you. You felt yourself stretching in ways you hadn’t felt in a long time and you couldn’t hold it back; a long, low moan of gratification left your lips.You hated to admit it, but he felt fucking fantastic inside of you.
By his own confirming groan, you could tell he felt the same way as you. At the back of your mind you couldn’t help but wonder why this hadn’t happened years ago. 
His hips rocked against yours, slowly at first as his mouth found yours. He was as ravenous for you as you were for him. 
Your fingers dug into his back as his thrusts became faster and harder. He was quite literally fucking you into this metal wall and you were loving every second of it.
Your emitted moans were coming every few seconds with every slap of your skin against his. His own grunts and groans came from deep in his throat, making you even hotter.
“S-Spencer,” you stuttered, pulling his face back to yours.
You have him a brief kiss before smirking up at him.
“I’m the spoiled little brat that’s got you moaning like a little bitch,” you panted.
Your words made him groan as he gripped your sides. He must have excellent control because he managed to get a hold of himself, slowing his hips to where he was tantalizingly pulling out of you and pushing back in.
“Still hate me, Y/N?”
“Right now, yes,” you groaned, trying to pull him deeper within you, wanting the previous speed and depth back.
“Now?”
“Ye- ahhh,” a breathy moan came from you as he resumed his harsher and faster thrusts.
“I don’t hate you,” you groaned, lost in the pleasure he was giving you.
Maybe voiced thoughts during sex were the truth because you actually didn’t hate him. Especially right now.
“Fuck, Y/N, yes baby,” he groaned.
He was close to his peak, you could tell. His fingers were on your clit, circling furiously. He was going to make sure you got your orgasm, before he got his. Who knew he was actually so decent?
Your whimpers, moans and groans were rising in pitch. You halfway hoped no one could hear, but at the same time didn’t care. Let the whole building hear.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck. Spencer, I’m coming, I’m-”
With that, the coil of pleasure that had been building up snapped like a broken rubber band, shooting through your entire body. 
You may have screeched too, you’re not entirely sure. You were completely lost to the bliss of your orgasm and even more so when he came apart not long after you. If you had thought he was attractive before, he was a hundred times more sexy when he was orgasming above you, all caused by you.
Your movements slowed, your chests both heaving. He held onto you carefully, as if he was afraid to set you down just yet. Probably a good idea considering you felt like you’d lost all function in your legs.
You laughed incredulously, unable to believe what had just happened. That had simultaneously been the craziest yet hottest thing you’d ever done.
Spencer’s smirk was replaced with a more shy, happy smile. It was a better look than the scowl he’d worn for you for so long.
It was like the moment that first orgasm hit you, all the anger, all the hatred, all the negative feelings you’d felt towards him drained from your body. You didn’t have the willpower or the desire to hate him anymore. Not that you ever really had.
“I meant what I said,” you said quietly.
“What’s that? You said a lot of things,” he chuckled.
“That I don’t hate you.”
He took a few moments in silence, parting from you and gently setting your feet on the floor again. He took his time getting decent again, as well. You worried at your bottom lip as you did the same, nervous that you’d said the wrong thing.
“So I was right? About the defensive mechanism and everything?”
“Yeah,” you nodded somberly, “I horribly misjudged you; thinking you were stuck up, full of yourself, better than anyone else, the kind of guy that was like all the others and in love with my sister.”
“If anything, I would think what just happened would prove more than anything that my sights are set on you.”
He had a point.
“Why did you hate me though?”
“I was thrown off by your reaction to me. I thought you were a self entitled, spoiled brat and that you thought you were better than me. Seems like we both vastly misjudged one another.”
“It’s kinda a good thing though,” you said.
Spencer looked at you, baffled.
“It is?”
“Well yeah, cause if none of that happened then that wouldn’t have happened either,” you gestured to the place where moments before the two of you had been a tangle of limbs.
“Good point,” he chuckled.
“Uh, Spencer?”
“Hmm?” he looked at you, eyebrows raised.
“You might want to get the elevator moving again.”
“Oh! Right.”
He laughed, hitting the emergency button to restart the elevator.
“I apologize for giving you so much grief though. I’d do anything to make it up to you,” you said.
“How about letting me take you out then? You’re still here for a few more days, aren’t you?” he asked.
You smiled.
“I think I can make all the time in my schedule for you, Spencer.”
His answering smile was enough to make you smile in return.
Oddly enough, the elevator had gone down and back up without stopping, returning to the floor the BAU was on.
“That’s weird,” Spencer mumbled.
The doors parted to JJ waiting to get on.
“Hey, what are you guys still doing here? I thought you left an hour ago.”
Huh, so it’d been an hour. 
She got on the elevator, standing between the two of you.
“Elevator issues,” Spencer answered, before you could think of what to say.
“So you’ve been stuck in the elevator together this entire time?” JJ asked.
“Yup,” you answered.
“I guess it’s a miracle you two didn’t tear each other apart then,” she muttered, hitting the button for the ground floor.
Yeah, there might’ve been some tearing involved.
Behind her back, you and Spencer shared a secret smile.
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angrylizardjacket · 4 years
Text
fit by my side {Machine Gun Kelly}
@bitchylittleredhead said: Okay I hear your MGK x pastel!reader and I raise you MGK x Mother Nature!reader. Hella plants, strong love for animals, heckin soft, v kind, mom friend, sunshine child. (I just really really love soft paired with him, it’s so damn cute) also I love you I hope you are well 🧡 
Also This Concept
A/N: 3177 words. Gender Neutral Reader (they/them) ! im worried kells is OOC. also there’s no smut but it does get M rated, but there’s no genitals specified. gets quite sappy at times. also @url-under-construction i hope u like it and i hope its good.
----
When you meet Colson, he’s famous, but he’s not, you know, famous famous. You meet on the set of The Dirt; he’s one of the stars, you’re a production assistant and stand-in when they need it, and you don’t think for a second that he’ll even remember your name when this is all over. 
But he does; in rehearsals, you’re the one reading the lines for the characters they haven’t cast yet, and the first time the four main cast members see you, in your floaty, floral top, and your gentle aura, and then to hear you say, with absolute sincerity, ‘your mom’s a cunt’, it has them bursting out laughing. You smile, sweet and kind, and you step gently through the blocking that has the character you’re currently standing in for, stabbing Tommy - Colson - with a pen. 
Maybe the juxtaposition of you taking part in this whole production is what intrigues him.
When filming starts, you’re still around, and something about seeing you, amid this performance of debauchery, and yet you’re still sincere and gentle, your choice of attire making you stick out like a sore thumb amid the leather and grime. At first, he tries to play it off, that you look somewhat out of place and it’s eye-catching, but you bring the cast food and water and whatever they need, you go on coffee runs, and take a genuine interest in each of them, and by the time he realises that his mood lifts every time he walks on set and sees you there, he knows he can’t play it off as you catching his eye for completely platonic reasons.
He asks you out the week after Casie leaves from visiting set, having seen you interact with her, entertain her while Colson was in hair, treating her with just as much kindness and respect as you did everyone else on the production. It convinces him that your intentions are true, and he knows that he can’t finish this production without shooting his shot.
By the time the wrap party comes around, you’re calling him your boyfriend, at first tentative, looking to him for confirmation, but then you see the way he beams at how the words sound when you say them, and you grow more confident each time you say it.
It’s met with... confusion.
Really? 
It seems no-one saw that coming - if anyone, I would have expected Douglas - you hear, and frown. 
“What does that mean?” You ask; a frown is rare to see on your face, but you’re wearing it anyhow, and the woman your speaking to splutters her way around a sentence as she’s trying to backpeddle.
“I just- I mean, well, Kells - Colson - he’s so... Doulgas just seems more... refined? Not that Colson not, you know- you’re just -”
“I’m just what?” You ask, not accusing, more curious than anything else, and the woman’s voice dies in her throat as she looks you over; pale blue jeans and a pastel, patterned button-down that would have looked right at home in the eighties. 
“I’m just concerned for you,” she eventually says, laying her hand on yours like she’s trying to do you a favour, “Colson’s intense, I’m just worried you’ll get hurt.” You see what she’s trying to say, but her tone is so painfully condescending. 
“I’m an adult,” you tell her, tone understanding but firm, “and I appreciate your concern, but I promise I can take care of myself.”
The moment you can get out of the conversation, you find Colson, talking animatedly to one of the makeup artists, and you slot yourself into the space by his side. Automatically, without even stopping the conversation, he wraps his arm around you and pulls you close, and you gratefully take the moment to press your face against him, wrapping your arms around him without saying a word. It’s both strangely intimate and familiar, his thumb rubbing small circles against your side.
As he stops talking, there’s a lull, and you don’t have to look up to know the makeup artist is giving you both a strange look.
“Ignore me,” your voice is muffled against him, using one hand as if to waive off any last bits of hesitation. 
“They’re fine,” Colson assured, tapping you on the hip. He’s still oozing casual confidence
You’ve been together for almost half of filming, which isn’t exactly a short amount of time, but usually you try and keep things professional on set, so it’s nice to be able to be close to him in public. 
The rest of the cast know, of course, you’ve been out with them on several occasions, and they all have come to adore you just as much as you adore them. Something about hearing Daniel drunkenly assure you that if Colson ever hurts you, that there’d be a line of people ready to slap some sense into him. You try to brush him off, endeared by his drunken affection, but he turns suddenly to the rest of the cast.
“Hey, hey, hey - who’d throw down for Y/N?” He asks; without hesitation, Douglas, Iwan, and Colson raise their hands, eyes wide and alert, as if the offer needed to be acted upon immediately. The show of support has your heart swelling in your chest.
You find yourself fitting into his life back in LA easily; while beginning work as an assistant on a Netflix original series, you call into his house in the Hollywood Hills, delighted to be privy to demos and snippets from his next album. 
And you meet his friends, shake their hands and smile and chatter with them. They’re not sure what to make of you at first, no-one really is when you present yourself in conjunction with Colson, but soon they start to see what he sees in you. It’s endearingly genuine and thoughtful and honest and enthusiastic and -
“They’re like sunshine,” it’s Rook’s Instagram live, almost six months into your relationship with Colson, that really cements it to the public. Rook is smoking in Colson’s living room in the middle of the afternoon between recording sessions, and someone asked what your deal was. 
“I’m so sick of - and I know Kells is, and Y/N too, not that they’d ever say anything. ‘ve never heard them say a bad word ‘bout anyone, you know,” Rook hits the blunt again, his face scrunching up, “but everyone ‘round here’s so fuckin’ sick of people talkin’ shit ‘bout ‘em. For real, Y/N is sunshine, nicer than all of you motherfuckers put together,” and he laughs, but it’s clear he isn’t entirely joking, “- you know what?” He asked, eyes lighting up and standing abruptly, grabbing the phone.
“Baze, man, you seen Y/N?” He calls, and Baze responds from somewhere off-camera that you’re outside. The comments are going off, but he pays them no mind, heading out to the backyard, only to see you by the back fence, peering over into the trees, on your tip toes, one hand straining over the fence, in shorts and a singlet in sunshine yellow.
Rook calls your name.
You shush him loudly, and then, without looking at him, slowly wave him over.
As he approaches, he can hear the telltale sound of a bird chirping, and as soon as he gets close, he hears you whisper -
“I think they’re bluebirds,” you murmur, and finally look back at him, lowering yourself, surprised to see his phone held aloft. He tells you he’s live streaming, you wave awkwardly, which is when he sees the slice of banana you’re holding, “I’m not sure what they eat; do bluebirds eat banana?” You ask, a little helpless, looking at Rook, and then to his phone. 
After a moment, you step aside, and gesture for Rook to take a look over the fence, and sure enough there’s a nest with a single, rather sad looking bluebird with it’s wing bent at a strange angle, calling out pathetically, obscuring a few eggs, just out of arm’s reach. While he’s looking over the fence, also trying to reach them, and also trying to get the phone close enough to see if anyone watching the livestream could identify the bird or offer any suggestion, he hears your footsteps retreating.
“Stay there, I’m going to get Kells,” you call out to him, voice bright, “he’s got long arms!” And Rook bursts out laughing; you weren’t wrong. 
While waiting, he sits against the fence and answers a few more questions, until he looks up and sees you, expression concerned, and Colson uncharacteristically fond as he lets you lead him by the hand.
You show him the nest and ask for him to get it, worried the bird was hurt, and he obligingly reaches over the back fence to gently collect the bird nest, trying his best not to jostle the bird. The bird’s wing appeared to be broken, and Rook ends the live when you mention that you’re going to take the bird to the vet.
Already, the fandom is exploding from what had transpired. 
People are making suggestions as to what the birds should be named, people are claiming your caring and sweet personality is completely fake, people in the live managed to screenshot Colson’s expression as you’d lead him to the birds, how smitten he was with his hand in yours, and have started posting ‘get u a man who looks at u like kells looks at y/n’ all over twitter and tumblr.
“Bird update!” Several hours later, Colson posts a series of videos to his instagram story, “for those of y’all who don’t know, Y/N found a bird with a broken wing in a tree out the back of my place, we rescued it and it’s eggs, and took it to the vet,” and with that he flips the camera around, from a close up on his face, to show a large, cardboard box in the corner of the room. 
Peep Davidson was written in large, black letters on the side of the box.
The rest of the videos are outlining what the vet had told you all, and that the bird should only take about seven days to heal before you could put them all back into the wilderness. 
At that, he pauses.
“You worried about putting the birds back when you saw that cat the other day?” And he angles the camera to reveal you, laying with your head in his lap.
“The orange one?” You ask, voice heavy, as if he’d disturbed you when you’d been right about to fall asleep. You yawn, and he confirms, you give a little, lazy shrug and smile, “not sure where that cat is.”
“Fuckin’ hell, babe,” Colson laughs, “you gotta stop finding random animals in my backyard.”
“They find me,” you counter, and shift so you can press your face against his belly, humming contentedly as his free hand begins stroking your back. 
“Snow White-Cinderella-Pied Piper motherfucker,” how that is somehow the softest, most gentle words to ever leave his lips, is utterly baffling, but there’s so much love and adoration but you turn enough for the camera to catch your delighted little smile, “you’re-” he starts, “who’s that dude from that, that My Hero shit we were watching the other night?”
“Koji Koda, you weeb,” you tease him fondly, knowing exactly who he’s referring to, and that’s where the video ends.
That’s the day it’s confirmed for the rest of the world. There’s countless paparazzi photos, and hints, and speculation, but this is the first time he’d called you anything but your name, and they’d all seen you snuggling up to him, your head in his lap.
This also is the day the trend begins on his Instagram story of a photo of you, usually in his backyard, with whatever animal had decided to befriend you that day.
My partner. My backyard. No fucking idea who’s animal that is.
And he still goes out and gets fucked up, and sometimes you’re there, and sometimes you’re not. When you’re out together, it still doesn’t quite make sense; he’s hard partying and over the top, and it seems like it wouldn’t be your scene at all.
But then there’s photos of Colson and a few of his friends standing on the edge of a roof, announcing that they’re Kings, and you’re by his side, smiling and waving at the person taking the photograph. He manages to get himself injured pulling a stunt at a friend’s house party, but you’re in the back of some influencer’s vlog, straddling his lap with tissues in your hand, him holding you secure as you clean up the scrape on his forehead; it’s kind of sickening how in love he looks, as he watches the way you concentrate. When you notice his expression, your own softens, and you lean in to give him a kiss. 
And so you start to make sense, but people still ask why.
So when asked, you tell people that you support each other, and challenge each other, and yeah, that’s absolutely why you’re together, but it’s not the whole reason as to why you make sense.
Because no-one sees the way you hook your finger into his belt loop at the back of his pants at the house party, and you press a kiss between his shoulder blades, and he knows exactly what that means. He’s quick to make some flimsy excuse to leave as you step into place by his side, which everyone he’s speaking to immediately sees through. You play at being flustered, tucking your embarrassed expression against him as he slings his arm around your shoulders, and calls an Uber.
The drive back to his place has you both on edge with anticipation, his hands all over you in the back of the car while you try to hold a civil conversation with the driver. It’s killing you not to give in, but you know it’s worth it. 
“You’re such an idiot!” You announced, grinning from ear to ear the moment you get into the house, before the door’s even closed, and he slams it shut to press you against it. Kissing him feels like a cathartic release, but after a moment you shove him back, loudly admonishing him for taking part of a stunt that got him hurt.
“You could have been seriously hurt!” You keep poking him in the chest to punctuate your words, and he steps back each time, expression alight, pupils blown wide. He keeps reaching out, as if to touch you, to snag your clothes, like it’s a game when you smack his hand back every time. 
“Got a gnarly cut though,” he pointed out, as his ass hits the kitchen island. His legs open, making space for you, and you step into it.
“Gnarly cut,” you murmur, tone surprisingly derisive, and you reach up to push his hair back from his forehead. His head tips back, leaning into your touch, the look on his face almost dreamy even as you’ve got a hand on his hips, pushing him back on the counter. 
Then you’re in his lap on the counter, hand fisted in his hair, lips on his neck, leaving bruises and bite marks. He’s trying to get you naked, efficient and desperate, but the moment he gets your shirt off, you push the fruit bowl behind him onto the floor, and push him back against the granite countertop. 
“You were worried about me,” he smirks up at you, admiring you with your hands planted either side of his head. 
“Because you don’t worry about your damn self!”
“Ooh, breaking out damn tonight? Must be serious,” he teased, deliberately riling you up; he loved this side of you just as much as the sweetness. Instead of responding, you reach up under his shirt and rake your nails harshly down his chest and stomach, delighting in the way he arched up at the sudden sensation, eyes falling closed. 
With one hand still flat against his belly, the other comes up to cup his jaw, gentle at first, before your fingers move to caress his throat, and you press yourself against him. 
“If you get yourself killed, I’ll kick your ass,” you whisper, lips inches from his as you press firmer against his throat. He grins, and sighs, the sound content and syrupy and so fucking into it, leaning up, to meet your lips with his, to feel the pressure on his neck just a little more.
And you bite, and you scratch, and you ride him on the kitchen island. The location is new, but the situation isn’t; once he’d discovered the righteous, sexual fury you’d been bottling up, he’d been more than happy to let you unleash it on him. Not to say that he didn’t give as good as he got; there’s been several times he’s had you swearing a blue streak, seeing stars, desperate and blissed out in equal measure.
But then there’s your dominant moments, the mean streak, and the teasing, the sting of your nails and your teeth and the way you push him around, into the mattress, against the wall without hesitation, and that he covets. No-one else is allowed to see you like that. To be tied up or blindfolded or or punished or pushed around, at your mercy, it’s as close to Heaven as he’s ever felt on Earth, because he knows without a shadow of a doubt that your heart is kind, that you’d never really hurt him in a way he wouldn’t like.
You make him feel safe.
And it’s not just the sex, you’re never dismissive of ideas or suggestions, seemingly always ready to help if he ever needs it, rather than judgmental. It makes him want to be there for you too. 
He wants to be better for you.
Which is kind of terrifying to consider.
“I love you,” he tells you in the shower, in the afterglow, soft, pausing where he had been washing your back where you couldn’t reach. It wasn’t the first time he’d said it, but he felt like he needed you to hear them.
“Love you too,” you say around a yawn, though the words are as genuine as they’d always been coming from you, and you lean back against him, leaning your head against his cheek in a moment of quiet intimacy. You try to kiss him like this, but turns your face directly into the shower, and end up spluttering and breaking the moment.
Colson chuckles softly, stepping back and pulling you with him, out of the stream of water and into his arms so he could kiss you properly. You’re still giggling as you’re wiping the water from your eyes, looking at him with fond adoration. When you settle your arms around him, you quiet down and bask in the moment, his forehead coming to rest against yours, warm and safe in his embrace, sensing that, in that moment, he felt the exact same way.
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mango, m | jjk | 4
pairing(s): jungkook x reader
summary: A love story between bad boy Jeon Jungkook and a strange girl with mango eating obsession.
warnings: rated M (18+) for language; reader has knife scars on her legs (read 2 for explanation); smut (f-receiving oral, penetrative sex); there’s so much fluff you might die; non-idol!AU - university!AU; badboy!Jungkook x sociallyawkward!reader; Jungkook likes his ears being played with hehe
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3.
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You pulled away, breathless. Jungkook blinked rapidly, backing up a little.
“Do you, um… want to come in?”
You tilted your head curiously. Your eyes shifted down and Jungkook slid to the side, closing the door a little, glaring at you.
“Do not pay attention to him.”
You took a step in, clutching your bag tightly. “Why?”
He frowned and took a few steps back, letting you in the apartment. “He doesn’t know time and place.”
You shrugged. “Maybe he does and you don’t.”
Jungkook shot you a quizzical look but you dropped your bag, sliding out of your sneakers. He closed the door, watching you suspiciously as you inspected his furniture. He had a nice black fabric couch, black coffee table, a branded television. A dark blue and black rug.
“Aren’t you a virgin?”
You hummed. “Why would I be a virgin?”
Jungkook narrowed his eyes and stalked over to you. “What fool touched you and left you? I’ll beat him up myself.”
You looed away from his knickknacks and blinked slowly. “Left me? It was only some guy from high school. I wondered what the fuss was all about, but it wasn’t very interesting.”
A muscle in his eyebrow twitched. “Was he drunk?”
You shook your head. “No, but we did it with clothes on, because…” You trailed off. “Anyway, I think we weren’t that interested in each other. We wanted to be able to say we did it, that’s all.” You looked Jungkook up and down, nodding to yourself. “But I think it will be better with you.”
He placed his arms over his chest. “Excuse me, I am not some object. I have feelings.”
“Oh.” You looked away, back to the snow globe on his shelf. You shook it and watched the fake snow swirl around. The base of the globe read ‘Malta.’
You felt Jungkook’s long fingers encase your arm and pull you to him. “Ah, that doesn’t mean ignore me. I meant it as a joke,” he pouted ruefully as your body pressed against his.
You pursed your lips. “You are very confusing.”
Jungkook puffed his cheeks. “No, I’m not.” He sighed, smiling. “We could sit down, watch a movie or something. I have Netflix.”
You pressed your thigh against his crotch and Jungkook hissed at you, jerking his hips away. But you had already felt it.
“Wouldn’t it be reasonable to take advantage of the situation?”
Jungkook narrowed his eyes at you. “If I acted on every single hard-on I had, my life would be a lot more complicated.”
You pointed to your chest, jabbing it a little. “But what about me? I want it.”
His expression changed at your words. He chewed on his lower lip. You watched him, his long messy hair over his eyes. You reached up and tucked some behind his ear, clearing his face from the black curtain. He inhaled a deep breath, letting it out slowly. Dark brown orbs to yours.
“But you didn’t say I love you.”
You paused, hand lingering by his neck. He tried to hide his unease by smirking.
“Is that how it should be?” you inquired. “You can only have sex if you love them?”
“No, but I only want to have sex with you if you love me,” Jungkook replied, chuckling nervously.
His laughter died in his throat as your hand slid down. You stared at his pecs, pressing your palm against the left side of his chest. His heart beat fast against your skin, pulsating rapidly. You reached over with your other hand and took one of his, pressing it against your racing heart, beating in time with him. You lifted your head to his round, doe-like gaze.
“I confess, I don’t know what love is,” you murmured quietly. “But I think we’re on the same wavelength, so if you love me, then it must be love.”
You realized, with every smile Jungkook gave you, something inside you melted a little bit.
“You’re strangely romantic,” he remarked.
You let go of his hand and removed yours from his chest. “Should I just… yank off your pants or something?”
He laughed, richer this time, shaking his head. “You want me to be fully naked and you fully clothed?”
You shrugged. “No, I can get naked.”
“Wait, what–”
You grabbed the bottom of your sweatshirt and pulled it over your head, chucking it aside. Jungkook gawked at you as you reached for the zipper of your leather skirt, unzipping it and stepping out, kicking it away. Now you were in your black bra and black opaque tights. You gripped the top of your pantyhose and pushed it down. His hands suddenly shot out and grabbed yours, stopping you.
“You don’t…” He groped for words. “If you’re uncomfortable or something.”
You blinked at him. “You already saw my scars. Do you not want to see them?”
Jungkook released your hands, swallowing. “I want you to feel okay with not showing me, if that’s what you want. But your battle scars are really cool. I would be happy if you were comfortable enough to show me them again.”
You stared at him for a full thirty seconds. “If you love me like you say you do, you will end up seeing them anyway.” You cleared your throat, packing your nerves away. “I want to… normalize them when I’m around you.”
His brown eyes became indescribable, something between gratitude, relief, and happiness.
“Okay.”
You took a deep breath and pushed the stockings down your legs, taking your feet out of them. Staring down at your ugly knife scars, the memories that came with them, wondering when they would fade, wondering when you would look at them and see something else.
Jungkook knelt, fingertips extended to touch the lines. He traced each one with parted lips, sending sparks up your skin. Features racked with empathy. He pressed his fingers against his lips and then his fingers to your largest scars.
“I think they’re past being kissed better,” you muttered.
“My kisses are magic,” Jungkook answered. “They’ll make you feel beautiful.”
You laughed a little. “Are you sure?”
He stood up, arms slipping around your waist, smiling at you. “Never know unless you keep trying.”
You looked up at Jungkook, him and his mischievous smile, his tiny mole underneath his lower lip, his nose scrunch, his sparkling brown eyes, losing yourself in them and being okay with it, because this wasn’t anything like what you’ve known before. It was much nicer, much more heavenly as you got to your tiptoes and kissed him, arms around his neck. Pulling him close, whispering his name, relishing in the loveliness of his soft pink lips as he pulled you to him and walked you to his bedroom, sighing in satisfaction as you pressed your body against his harder, more muscular one.
“Damn, all that mango must be doing something right,” Jungkook murmured, running his hands down to your ass and squeezing it. “Eat more of it.”
You smiled against his lips. “Are you saying I’m fat?”
“I’m saying you’re juicy and I like it,” he teased, lowering you to the bed.
Your hand reached up and touched his wild hair. He stiffened a little as you ran your fingers through the long strands, dry now from your conversation.
“Why do you always slick your hair back at school?”
The side of his lips quirked upwards, somewhat regretfully. “It’s the hairstyle that gets me the most attention.”
You tilted your head. “It’s kind of nice like this, though.”
“I can’t see that well,” Jungkook laughed.
Your two hands collected his hair into a ponytail. “What about like this? With some in the front? I think I’ve seen this style before.”
How could someone have such a brilliant smile? “I trust you. You can do whatever you want with my hair.”
You brought his face down to yours, kissing Jungkook and that smile. Maybe one day you could smile like that. Maybe one day you could, but for now you settled for smiling into his kisses, fingers tangled in his hair, breathing into his mouth and making him moan. Your skin tingled at his noises, deepening the kisses, lacing your tongue with his. He nudged you up the bed and the two of you crawled back, laying against the sheets. You arched your back, brushing your chest against his and he groaned, teeth sinking into his lower lip.
“What do you want to do?” Jungkook murmured against your lips.
You kissed up his jaw, pushing his hair back. Your tongue traced his earlobe and he sucked in a tight breath, pushing you against him.
“I thought you liked it when I whispered in your ear?” you said softly, pressing your lips against his skin.
He swallowed, deep voice shaking. “Yeah, I do. A little too much.”
You nipped experimentally at his earlobe and he moaned, fingers pressing into your sides, clutching you tight.
“M-more…”
You took it into your mouth and swirled your tongue around his earrings, tugging lightly. He shivered, gasping your name, hands sliding up your back, his breath against your neck. Turning his earlobe in your mouth, sucking softly. Jungkook rolled his hips into your thigh and you felt his hardness. He began to rut against you as you played with his ear, kissing all the way up before nipping your way back down. It made his body shake and moans tumble from his lips.
You were suddenly hit with an epiphany.
“Is this why you always stared at my mouth?” you breathed. “When I was eating dried mango?”
Jungkook let out a trembling chuckle. “You c-caught me.”
“I just thought you were a pervert.”
“Maybe a little bit.” You pulled your head back and raised your eyebrows. Jungkook grinned. “Maybe a lot.” He nudged your chin with his nose, kissing down your neck, dipping his tongue between your collarbones. You reached back and unclasped your bra, sighing softly as the straps fell. His hands came up and cupped your breasts, strong fingers kneading you. Every breath on your skin igniting the fire, whimpering as he pressed his thumbs against your nipples and rubbed them in circles, making out with your cleavage.
“I thought about these tits way too much,” he mumbled. “You never wear anything tight up top.”
You gasped as he kissed your nipples, licking them lightly. “I was trying to… be more okay with my legs. Even if it’s just the shape.”
Jungkook’s large hands slid down your sides and hips, gripping your thighs. “Everything about your legs is fucking fantastic,” he growled hotly. He licked a stripe down your chest, flicking his eyes up to you, forming his words against your skin as he slid down. You felt your chest tighten, seeing his hunger, his want, feeling his palms against your thighs and calves, calluses against your scars.
“Your legs make me so damn horny I have to come up with strategies to hide my erections when I’m around you.”
You laughed a little. “They’re always covered up.”
One of his sculpted eyebrows raised. “Except I remember what they look like,” Jungkook mused, lips travelling down your thighs, running his hands up and down your skin making you breathless. “And maybe I like all the different socks you wear.”
“… Pantyhose?”
“Whatever,” he mumbled, ears turning pink. Jungkook kissed your legs all over and shivers danced up and down your spine as he paid attention to them, soft pecks and light touches. You reached down and gripped the sides of your black panties. His brown eyes shot up to you, squeezing your calf a little.
You smirked and he smirked back.
You pushed them down, gasping as cold air hit your wet warmth. Jungkook’s breathing stuttered, hands reaching down as you got to your thighs, taking them from you and pulling them down your legs, gasping as strings of your juices snapped against your skin.
“Can I eat you out?” he asked breathlessly as your panties were flung into the far side of his room.
You wondered if you would find them again. “I guess. Is it that nice for you?”
Jungkook gave you a surprised look. “Of course. You never had someone eat you out?”
You shrugged. “It wasn’t that special.”
He hummed, a slow smile forming on his lips. “Let me change your mind.”
His head dipped down between your legs. You tilted your head, breath cut short as he gripped your thighs, tipping them up, fingers pressed against your skin. And then your eyes widened as he placed his lips on your dripping slit, tongue licking you all over, moaning into your core. Your hands clutched the sheets, crying out as he thrust his tongue into you, curving it inside your pussy.
“A-ah, Jungkook…”
His brows furrowed, sliding his lips up a little. You moaned as he pressed the tip of his tongue to your clit. Sucking delicately, lapping at the sensitive bundle of nerves. It felt like pleasure was shooting up your body way too fast, like a time-lapsed video of a flower growing. You moaned, back arching and head tipping back as he worked you, one of your hands suddenly gripping his head, nail scratching his ear.
Jungkook whined, muffled by your pussy as he sucked harder, rougher, and somehow your hips were jutting into his face, unsure if it was just your involuntary shudders or your need to orgasm spurring you on, feeling your juices leak out from his lips and paint his cheeks, his intense dark eyes on yours.
You orgasm crashed into you, waves of pleasure torrenting through your chest. Your thighs threatened to snap shut, but Jungkook gripped them open, groaning as you filled his mouth with your taste, shifting down to you opening and sucking it all up. Your eyelids fluttered and your elbows slid out from under you, falling onto the bed with a flump.
Holy shit.
You were panting hard, unsure how Jungkook gave you such a powerful orgasm with his mouth. He licked you lazily and your hips shivered. Satisfied, he got to his knees, licking his lips clean.
“You have to warn me next time,” Jungkook pouted.
“Sorry, I… I wasn’t expecting it…” you wheezed out, pressing your lips together and letting out a long breath. Jungkook suddenly threw himself down on you, mouth to yours, filling your nose with your scent, tasting yourself as he inhaled your breath, moaning in his throat.
“Fuck…” he breathed, nipping at your lips. “Your breath is so fucking wonderful.” He shuddered as you panted into his lips. “You taste so good too, so fucking sweet. I’ve never tasted anything so delicious in my life.”
You chuckled. “Maybe it’s the mango.”
Jungkook kissed you repeatedly in while speaking. “Then I can’t risk it; I have to keep buying it for you.”
You smiled, gently pushing him off you, switching your positions. He blinked up at you, but you pressed his hand against his cheek, moving his head to one side, brushing back his hair, exposing his ear.
“W-wait–”
You bit his ear and his words died in his throat, turning into a moan as you nibbled. You lowered your body onto his, your softness against his muscles. His strong arms wrapped around you, gasping as your hard nipples rubbed against his chest and your lips encircle his earlobe.
“S-suck on it…” he pleaded; hands splayed across your back.
You did, playing with his earrings and Jungkook whined, nails digging into your back. You hummed approvingly and he scratched down your skin, shuddering and crying out. You kissed his ear and his hips bucked into you with a moan. He pushed his sweatpants down impatiently, freeing his hard cock so it rubbed against your thigh. You felt the pre-cum smear onto your skin as you whispered his name into his ear, making his eyes roll back into his head. His hand pressed his cock against your thigh and he began to hump you as you sucked on his ear again, whimpering.
“Please, please, please,” he begged. “More…”
You were breathing hard too, shallow and tight as you felt him rut against your hot skin. “But I want you to fuck me, Jungkook…”
His moan so deep and erotic that you felt your pussy clench with need.
“Okay,” he panted and you freed him from your grasp so he could reach over to the nightstand, fumbling for a condom.
“You really like your ears being played with, huh?” you wondered out loud, noticing how hard he was, the head of his cock a dark red.
His flush on his cheeks deepened. “Yeah, but I don’t like telling people, because I sound pathetic…”
You tilted your head. “I think it’s sexy.”
You saw the blush turn from pink to red. “T-thanks.”
His fingers scrambled with the condom and you took it from him, opening it carefully. You tried not to laugh, but Jungkook puffed his cheeks at you, noticing your contained expression immediately.
“It was only a compliment.”
He frowned and pursed his lips as he put the condom on. “It’s a compliment from you, the one I love.”
Your stomach did that weird floppy thing again. Jungkook shuffled over to you, taking your thighs and positioning himself between you. He looked up at you, chewing on his lower lip.
“Are you prepped enough? I could–”
“Jungkook, just put your cock in me,” you cut him off, smile on your lips.
“I don’t want to hurt you,” he said, gasping as the head rubbed against your wet opening.
“You’re not going to hurt me. I’m tougher than you think.”
He grinned. “That’s true. Okay.”
You snaked your hand between your bodies, putting him into the correct position and he slid in slowly, his eyelids fluttering. Oh. Jungkook was bigger than you thought. Or perhaps you hadn’t had that many dicks in you or something. You sucked in a breath, trying to relax your muscles as he filled you up, leaning back and spreading your legs, chest quivering as he pressed his hips into yours.
“Oh fuck, you feel so fucking good.” His voice was unsteady, gripping your knees hard.
You tensed and tightened your core.
Jungkook yelped, snapping his head down at you. “H-hey!”
Your eyes shifted up to his face, letting the mischief show. “I heard Kegel exercises have many benefits.”
He shot you a pained look. “You’re trying to murder me.”
You pulsed around him again and he hissed, placing your legs on your shoulders and pressing down.
“Stop it or I’ll blow my load in three seconds,” Jungkook warned.
“Maybe two?”
He narrowed his eyes at you. “Let me enjoy your legs pressed against me as I pound your pussy, please.”
You sucked in part of your cheek. “Okay…”
Jungkook slid out a little and sank back in, making both of you moan. You clutched the sheets, breathing hard. He noticed your strained expression.
“Are you okay?”
You nodded. “Never had it this deep before. Keep going.”
He began a slow, deep pace, radiating pleasure all over you. You weren’t aware it was possible to feel this much, your skin prickling with lust, his hips slapping against yours, the feeling in your chest swelling so much that your almost couldn’t breathe. Your gaze locked with his and the way Jungkook was looking at you, like he couldn’t help himself, like he was becoming lost in you, like he wanted all your days and all your nights, taking your breath away because you wanted that too. His curly long hair hung down, pupils blown wide with lust, jaw clenched as he increased his pace, your moans deepening at the sensation.
“You’re so handsome,” you panted between gasps.
Jungkook grinned. “You’re prettier.”
You smiled and his expression softened. “I love it when you smile at me.”
You chuckled awkwardly, tapping his arm. “Faster and harder, please.”
He smacked his hips into yours, earning a pleased gasp and a clenching of your pussy. Jungkook gritted his teeth, fucking your hard and fast like you asked, feeling it build inside you, pushing you to the precipice. You bit your lip, whining, Jungkook so strong and gentle over you, but also giving you what you wanted, watching your face the entire time. You squeezed his cock and he groaned your name.
“Cum for me,” he whispered. “Cum for me and I’ll cum for you.”
Your fingers found his arms, clutching his tense muscles, his tattoos peeking out from your grasp. There was a sharp tautness inside you, so close, so close, and his piercing brown eyes drowning you and, soon enough, the words came, tumbling out of your mouth in wispy gasps.
“J-Jungkook… fuck, I love you so fucking much and I’m going to cum, fuck.”
You threw your head back, moaning his name again as you came, pussy spasming and throbbing around him. Jungkook hissed above you, slamming into your hips one last time, cock jerking against your walls as he followed suit, your orgasm massaging his out, spilling into the condom. You could feel his cock pulsate inside you. He whimpered your name softly, pushing his hips into you a little. You exhaled, legs slipping from his now sweat-covered shoulders.
Jungkook reached down and pulled out gingerly, holding the condom in place.
“Finally got to hear you say I love you,” he chuckled.
You laughed, pressing your head back into his pillows.
“Guess I just needed you to stuff me with your cock.”
Jungkook poked you, pouting. The mole underneath his lower lip winked at you. “I want to hear it normally too.”
You sat up, looking into his eyes. His dark chocolate eyes that stared at you the first time, the eyes that took in every detail about you, the eyes that slowly began to know you and would continue to know you because now you knew there was another feeling that wasn’t nothing, another emotion that wasn’t apathy.
You placed your hand on his cheek, pushing back his long, dark hair, smiling at him.
“I love you, Jeon Jungkook.”
-
“What do you think?”
Jeon Jungkook took the small compact mirror from your hand, inspecting your work.
“Looks kind of funny,” he chuckled. “But I like it.”
He had showed up to Chemistry lecture early, long dark hair brushed but undone. No gel this time. He had sat down in front of you, black leather jacket creaking, folding his jean-clad legs under him. You had arrived with a black hair tie and black nails with tiny pink flowers on them. Combed your fingers through his hair and collected it into a ponytail, revealing his clean undercut. A few strands framed his face, accenting his high cheekbones.
“You wanna be my barber?” he teased, looking up at you.
You shook your head. “I don’t know how to cut hair.”
Jungkook stood up. “That’s okay. You can learn. Then I can spend more time with you and remember you every time I look in the mirror.”
You looked at your nails, remembering Hoseok’s smile as he painted them.
“I guess I would have to look up some YouTube videos.”
-
fin. haircut drabble. 2021.09.01 - birthday drabble
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masterpost
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kjhmyg · 4 years
Text
rough edges pt. 6 (m)
pairing: jungkook | (f) reader genre: college!au, badboy!jk, fluffy too :(  warnings: mentions of drugs, unprotected sex, cursing, violence, alcohol, drinking, death, manhandling, college parties, boys lol  word count: 10.7K
1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / part 6 / 6.5
author’s note: hello i love u. first of all welcome to  ♡ libra season ♡ sorry this took so long; it feels kinda short so maybe i’ll post a short 1k chapter next week (part 6.5). i wrote the last half of the last part like an hour ago i hope i didnt make any big grammatical errors or typos lol. also dedicating this to my friend haru who i miss loads.
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What was a red mark on Jungkook’s cheek, has now turned purple-ish. He promises it doesn’t hurt anymore but you notice him mindlessly touching it at times. So you kiss it very gently each time you say goodbye and he doesn’t stop you.
With one arm around over the back of your chair, he’s feeding himself fries with the other. You lean against his shoulder, watching as he nibbles away. “Can’t keep your eyes off me huh?” He mutters.
“You know I can’t.” You admit, giggling into quick, continuous pecks. He lingers on a little longer on the last one like he always does.
“Will you guys save it for the bedroom?” Jimin asks, face twisted in disgust. He doesn’t really care, but it’s fun to tease Jungkook. “Gross.”
“Gross is you dipping fries in your coke.” Hana shakes her head at the soaked fry between his thumb and index finger.
"Don't be mad you don't have refined taste in food like me." He shoots back. “A soaked fry has equal parts sweet and salty.”
“You’re just gross.”
Hana’s realised it doesn’t take much to get under his skin and is enjoying every bit of it. The irony is that it always starts with Jimin trying to get under Jungkook’s skin. Next to Jimin, Taehyung’s phone has his undivided attention. In fact, he’s been rather quiet today, spending the last five minutes or so frowning at his screen.
“Tae, you alright?”
“No.” He sighs, finally looking up. “I have to get a job.”
“...And?”
“Well I don’t want to.” He says simply. “Can’t believe my parents are cutting off my allowance because I spend too much.” He uses air quotes.
Except for Jimin, the rest of you only manage blank stares, unable to sympathise with his first world problem. "Yeah, I’m sure those thousand dollar Balenciaga sneakers you got last week have nothing to do with it.” Jungkook says.
“Jungkook. They were limited edition.”
“A thousand dollars?” You say. “What the hell dude.”
“Okay can we stop talking about the past and focus on the present?” Leaning back against his chair and looking into the distance, Jimin places a comforting hand on his shoulder
“Don’t worry, we’ll find you a nice job.” Jimin says and he lets out a tiny whine, throwing his head back.
That’s when it hits you. You have no idea how, but it does. And you have no idea if it’ll work but you’re doing it anyway.
A clueless Hana raises a brow in question at the sudden look of mischief you give her. She braces herself for whatever you’re about to do, equally curious and worried. “Actually, you should apply at our café.” You say to Taehyung.
“They’re hiring?”
“Well not yet.” Turning back to her, you widen your eyes slightly, prompting Hana to play along. She quickly does, noticing Jungkook watching her over your shoulder. “I’m leaving soon so they’ll definitely need a replacement.”
“You’re quitting?” Jungkook asks, sitting up straight. “What happened?”
“Nothing.” The little head shake you give isn’t enough to convince him. “I just wanna work somewhere else. Anyway, you’d like working there Tae. It’s nice.” The other boy perks up, seemingly interested.
Hana agrees, explaining the details of your work and what it’s like there. While they talk, Jungkook squeezes your shoulder to get your attention, “Are you sure nothing happened? Creeps harassing you again?”
“No, really.” You say, hand over his cheek. “I just want a change of environment. The job’s getting boring.”
The worry in his eyes gradually disappears as he seems to accept it. He gives a soft okay for now. Looking away, you let out a silent sigh of relief. On the inside, the rational side of you is yelling her head off. What possessed you to decide to quit your job for no good reason? This plan is banking on the chance that Jungkook will let you join him at the club. Which when you think about it, is very unlikely to happen.
Yet, another part of you is excited. Your mind is in a frenzy. Convincing yourself you’ll figure the details out later, you silently thank Taehyung and his Balenciagas for handing you this opportunity.
"Oh hey, we better get going." Jimin says, looking at the time on his phone. "We'll see you guys tonight?"
The girls of Eta Iota are hosting a party tonight. Naturally, the boys get invited and by association, you too. Sunhee’s cashing in on your promise of taking her to one, so you have to go even if it’s just to hang around for a while then leave. You part ways with Jimin and Tae as Jungkook gives Hana and you a ride back. He walks with you to the lobby of your place, where you tell Hana to head up first.
Right by the stairwell, he leans against the wall and holds you in his arms, between his legs. “Are you sure you wanna quit your job?”
"Yessss, I’m sure. I wanna work somewhere else." Resting your chin on his chest, you look up at him. "It's cute that you're worried about me."
“Of course I am.” He kisses the top of your head. “I’ll help you keep a lookout for places that are hiring.”
You smile gleefully up at him. Oh, he’s going to help you get a new job alright. Just not in the way he’s thinking. Already, you feel bad for lying to him. But you keep telling yourself you’re doing this for him.
He doesn’t let you go so easily when you try and remove yourself, not giving up his hold on you. When you pry his hands off, he tugs you right back in, locking you in his arms as kisses land all over your face. “Stop,” you laugh, “someone might see us.” But you don’t look around to check for anyone. He doesn’t care either.
He lifts you up easily, wrapping your legs around him. Switching positions, you now feel the cool wall against your back. “Should we skip the party tonight?” He asks, a hopeful look in his eyes.
“You have to go. It’s part of your fraternity sorority socialising thingy thing.” He rolls his eyes at that. “Plus, I promised Sunhee I’d go with her.”
"Fine. But I’m only going ‘cause you’re going."
“So I’ll see you there, okay?” He nods in response as his hold on you loosens. A peck on the cheek and you’re going up the stairs, one step at a time, hand still holding on to his. As it slips away, he squeezes his chest with his other hand and groans in mock pain.
“Silly,” you mutter between giggles. He breaks character and skips up the steps to get another kiss from you. At this rate he would never leave.
“Jungkook seriously,” you say against his lips, leaning back to separate yourself from him, “you should go now. I’ll see you later anyway.”
He complies and lets you go, but not without releasing a very dramatic sigh. You hurry up the steps before he changes his mind, looking down over the railing as you go, waving your goodbye.
𝄖𝄖
Purple, purple everywhere. The Etas had decided to do their rush party while celebrating their anniversary. Which explains why the decorations are of their ‘official’ colour. Purple balloons, cups, banners, napkins.
“This is so fun!” Sunhee squeals, coming up to hug you from behind. “I’ve made a bunch of new friends!” She squeals again and hurries off elsewhere, leaving you and Hana once again.
“I’m glad she’s enjoying herself.” Hana comments, taking a sip of her drink.
“Aren’t you?” You nudge her side. “You’ve had like four guys come up and give you their number. Don’t act like you’re not having fun.”
“I guess I’m havin’ a lil’ fun…” she mumbles towards the end, sipping on her drink with a tiny smile. She’s holding up much better than you thought she would. Much better than you at least, she doesn’t seem too bothered by the constant yelling.
There’s no reason to worry about Sunhee. She’d clung on to you earlier when you arrived together as promised, like you’re her ticket in. As soon as you passed through the doors, a couple of girls from the host house came up to greet you. While it was a little awkward for you, Sunhee saw her chance and took it. She’s been hanging out with them since.
“Where’s Jungkook?” Hana asks. She’s still unsure about your plan. You had gotten an earful from her earlier on, back at the apartment. Only after you promised, pinky promised and swore you’d be safe, did she finally calm down.
“Somewhere.” It’s crowded enough to not be able to see the other end of the room. You crane your neck to see better. “Don’t know if I can find him with all these people around.”
“Go.” Her pretty, long eyelashes flutter over her eyes as she looks at you. “Don’t worry about me.”
You’re hesitant to leave, but she reiterates that she’d be fine and you finally nod, much to her relief. She has Jimin and Taehyung with her anyway, she says, nodding over to the pair a few feet away.
Before disappearing into the crowd, you turn back to let her know you might not see her for the rest of the night. But she’s read your mind, waving her hands at you. “You’ll be with Jungkook, I know.”
“Text me when you get home. I love you.” You blow her a kiss and watch her roll her eyes, then push through bodies of people to get to a different part of the house. There’s way too many people here. Most of them tower at least a head over you, disrupting your view. Your phone vibrates just as you enter the biggest room of the house which gives you a little more maneuvering space than the previous one.
Jungkook: u look great
Slowly, you turn in the spot you’re in, paying close attention to each section of the room.
Jungkook: i like pink
Jungkook: ur ass looks great in those jeans btw
You: reveal yourself  
He doesn’t respond and you continue to wander around, until you reach a short hallway separating the kitchen area from the previous room. With more room to breathe, you decide to stay put knowing Jungkook won’t keep this up for long anyway. And you’re right.
"Looking for me?" His hot breath tickles your ear.
Spinning around, you're greeted by his wide grin and immediately hate how good he looks in a simple white tee with his house name, Kappa Sigma embedded on the left chest, and tucked into black jeans, "Hey you." He tastes like fruit punch when you kiss him.
Your bodies sway slightly to the music with his hands on your hips and your arms around his neck. He reaches behind, pulling something out of his back pocket and holds it up in front of you. “Lollipop?”
“It’s...purple.” You take it from him, observing its odd colour, wondering if this was even necessary.
“I know.” He chuckles. “They really go all out.”
You shrug, unwrapping the sweet and pop it in your mouth. “So, you wanna get out of here?” He asks.
“But I thought you liked parties,” you blink, “socialising, hooking up.”
“I know you’re making fun of me but it’s kinda hot when you talk like that.” He eyes the way your lips wrap around the lollipop, unconsciously mirroring the movement of your tongue licking the layer of sugar off your lips, suddenly going thirsty.
You shove him in the chest and he laughs, stepping back. “I’ve been here less than an hour.” You say. Although, it’s not like you were planning to stay long anyway. You know that, he knows that.
“You won’t miss a thing, trust me.” He hooks an arm over your shoulder. “Besides, we can get started on the hooking up part.” He winks.
You leave through the back, avoiding the large crowd up front. You quickly send a text to Hana to let her know you’re leaving. Out on the lawn, you walk past a group of guys drunkenly singing to their heart's content and you flash them a thumbs up despite how horrible they sound.
The Eta Iota house is just a few houses down from the boys’ and you walk back hand in hand, swinging your arms as you go. Jungkook watches your smile, and the way you laugh when your arms swing so far back that it throws you off balance and you almost fall. “You look good.” He says, softly.
“I know, you told me.” You say without sparing him a glance. “I look good in pink. And these jeans are good for my ass.”
“No.” His voice is as soft as his smile. Looking at him then, you notice the tender look in his eyes. “I mean you look good when you’re happy. It’s nice. Does that make sense? I don’t know.”
Your heart leaps at the way he looks away almost shyly, focusing entirely on the ground as he walks, his other hand in his pocket. You close the gap between you and kiss him on the cheek. “I’m always happy when I’m with you.”
“I’m happy when I’m with you too.”
The rest of the short walk back goes in comfortable silence, you still lightly swinging your arms. But as you reach the front of the house, Jungkook pauses. It surprises you when he decides to take a walk in the park instead. You give him curious glances along the way, wondering what’s gotten into him. It’s a ten minute walk from his place to a park that’s your go-to for impromptu date nights.
You walk past groups of people hanging around, laughing with food on large picnic mats. Finally you opt for an empty space on the grass, not too far away from others there but secluded enough to have some privacy.
“Oh my god, look at the clouds.” They’re big and fluffy, floating through the dark sky. “I wish we could see the stars. That’d be perfect.”
Jungkook follows your gaze. “There are places where you can do that you know.”
“Yeah, I’d love to go one day.” You say with a heavy sigh.
“We could go together.” Jungkook says, making you look at him. “Like a vacation.”
“Aw. I’d love that.”
He smiles sweetly, then turns in place to face you. “I went to look for places which were hiring earlier.”
“You did? Why?”
“Aren’t you...quitting your job?” He looks at you confused. “Unless you’ve changed your mind.”
“Yeah but, there’s no rush.”
“Just wanna make sure you have something to fall back on.” He says, checking his phone. “So, the bakery right next to the cafe is hiring.”
“Jungkook,” you laugh, “I can’t quit and then take up a job next door!”
“I know but, just in case.” He goes on, looking upwards as he recalls. “The school’s also looking for a part-time librarian⎼”
“Baby no, that’s so boring.” You groan. “I thought I’d look for something more...exciting. Like a routesetter maybe?”
“I didn’t know you rock climb?”
“Oh I don’t.” He looks at you with a blank expression on his face. “What? I can learn to!”
"You're weird." He shakes his head and taps your nose. "Why would you wanna go out of your way for a part time job?"
"Cause...it's fun?"
"Even you don't believe that."
"You're right." The wheels in your head turn at full speed, trying to make this as natural as possible. You have to be careful, Jungkook's way too attentive when it comes to you. "Okay, I'll be honest."
He perks up. Face filled with curiosity, as if ready to say I knew it, that something was up, and that you wouldn't leave your job over nothing.
"I'm quitting because…" You gulp. "I want to spend more time with you."
"What?"
"Don't be mad." You add in quickly. "I just thought that I'd get to have more time to spare for you if I wasn't always working."
Eyes closed, he lets out a sigh and drops his head with a little shake. The small smile and amused look in his eyes makes you smile too. “Are you serious? Are you running a fever?” He places the back of his palm against your forehead and then checks the pulse on your wrist.
“I’m fine.” You snatch your hand back.
“The Y/N I know wouldn’t make impulsive decisions like this.” He quirks a brow, “You know you need that job. How else will you pay rent? Get groceries? You don’t ever let me pay for anything.”
“I’ll find a job with less hours.”
“Less hours, less pay.” He lifts your chin up, pouty lips calling him in. “Don’t be silly baby, you’re not leaving your job.”
“Too late.”
“What d’you mean?”
“I...may have...emailed my resignation...earlier on.”
He groans and you cringe when he shoots you a look of disapproval. You give your best kicked puppy look which doesn’t work. “This doesn’t happen often but I’m really mad at you right now.”
“Don’t be.” You scoot closer and when he turns his head away, you move onto his lap, forcing him in an embrace. “I’ll find something.”
“Like what?”
“I don’t know yet.”
“Go back to work tomorrow and speak to your manager. Tell him you’ve changed your mind.” He asks seriously. “I’ll go and have coffee during every one of your shifts so we’re technically spending time together.”
“Don’t be silly.”
“I’m the silly one?”
“Okay fine, I’m sorry.” You sigh. “I didn’t think things through…”
“You’re damn right you didn’t.” He rests his head in his palm. “So, what are you gonna do now?”
“Spend more time with you?” You inch even closer, if it’s even possible with how you’re already sticking to him like glue. He doesn’t reply right away but squeezes you in his hold, resting his cheek on your head. “Are you still angry?”
“Yes.”
You lift your head off him for a kiss. When he sighs this time, he feels the anger dissipating. At the same time he curses the way his body betrays him when it comes to you. You can barely tell he’s upset with the way he responds so eagerly. The pleased look you give him after has him rolling his eyes. “You can’t be mad at me. I’m cute.”
“True.” He leans back, hands on the grass behind him. “But, we are going to look for job postings online tonight.”
“But mom!” You whine, folding your arms in front of you.
“No buts.”
“Not even my butt?” Blinking innocently at him, you add in a little head tilt until he breaks and starts grinning. “Thought you liked my butt.”
He falls onto the grass, laughing in disbelief and you steady yourself on his chest. “What has gotten into you?” He says, watching as you hover over him. “You’re acting so weird.”
“No I’m not. I’m just happy, like you said.” You kiss him on the nose. “You’re the weird one. Nagging at me about getting a job. Being a responsible adult and stuff.”
He flips over, switching your positions so that he’s hovering over you now. Almost immediately, you’re distracted by how dreamy he looks with the view of the night sky behind him. You run your thumb over one side of his cheek. “You did this to me. Plus I’m just looking out for you.”
“I know. Thank you.”
“Don’t worry. I can pull some strings and get you a job somewhere fun.”
He rolls over to your side and lets you rest your head under his arm, both of you watching the sky. You shift even closer, slinging one leg over his and draw circles on his chest. “Hey I mean, worse comes to worst, I could always come and work for you.”
Surprisingly, he laughs. Really hard. You lift yourself up and rest on your elbow to watch him. “Nice one.” He sighs. Then he notices the way you’re looking at him, face void of expression and brows up in question. “What? You were serious?”
“Slightly offended that you thought it was that funny but yes, I was.”
He raises a brow at you. “You? Want to work at a club? Doing what?”
“Bartender? Cleaner?”
“Don’t even joke about that, our cleaners are our most valuable staff. They clean, sanitise, then double sanitise, wipe up vomit, make sure the booths aren’t lined with nasty fluids.”
Your face twists in horror and he nods, proving his point. “Okay...fine so I’m not qualified enough for that. But bartending? I can do that.”
“No.”
“Why?”
He gets up and you follow. He ruffles the back of his head and dusts of the grains on his hands. “Baby, you’re not working there. I won’t allow it.”
“But𝄖”
“Y/N, I said no.” There was no room to argue, not even cheekily. He didn't raise his voice, but the tone he took was enough. Easing the firm stare he gave you as he said it, he turns his attention to his phone as it beeps.
𝄖𝄖
"Lucky for you, I told the manager you just needed a break to focus on school," Hana yawns, pulling up the blanket to her face, "you can come back anytime."
"You want me to give up?"
"Only because your plan is dangerous."
"Hana, I'm not giving up."
She sighs, turning over to the other side. “Let’s talk tomorrow. I’m tired.”
You push yourself off her bed and sit on the edge, thinking. Quietly, you pull open the drawer by her bed, fumbling around until you feel what you’re looking for. The little paper you tore out of Jungkook’s notebook. When he started sleeping over, you had asked Hana to keep it safe for you. You stare at the address. You hadn’t gotten round to visiting the place, especially since you don’t even know what you’re looking for.
“Turn off the light when you leave, will you?” Hana mumbles half-asleep.
You leave the piece of paper and close the drawer.
𝄖𝄖
Two days later, you’re back at his place. The guys are all over, making sure the house is ready for a party tonight. Each of them were assigned different tasks to settle to save time. When you arrived, Hoseok made sure to separate Jungkook from you, for the sake of efficiency, so you’re stuck in the kitchen with Jimin. Helping him with the cleaning, you listen mindlessly as he rambles on about something. He yells at every guy that enters and tries to steal some snacks but sneaks some into his mouth when no one’s looking.
Just as you’re done wiping down the chip bowls, Jungkook walks in with dark stains all over his shirt and face. He chugs down half a bottle of orange juice from the fridge before opening a bag of gummies placed on the table for the party which has Jimin groaning.
“What happened to you?”
“Car oil needed changing. Cleaned up under the hood too.”
“What?” Jimin shrieks. “You were working on your car this entire time?”
“Yeah?”
“While the rest of us were preparing for the party? Unbelievable!” He huffs, “You were supposed to fix the first floor bathroom⎼”
Jungkook signals for him to stop, holding up a palm. “Fine, I’ll go do it now.” He reaches out for your hand and continues to nod at everything Jimin says as he tags you along, the nagging fading away as you run upstairs.
“You should really go and help out.” You say, plopping down on his bed with a bounce.
Jungkook hums, “I will. Later.”
Sniffing the shirt he has on, he lets out a disapproving grunt. He removes it in one swoop and tosses it into a basket. You watch quietly as he steps closer, eyes fixed on yours. He leans forward and your hands grip the sheets as you lean back, looking at him expectantly. Then his arm moves past your head and reaches for another shirt on the bed, behind you. He snickers and you slap his shoulder.
“I’m leaving.”
“Aw, come on, don’t go.” He jumps into bed and grabs you. He leans on his side, propped up on his elbow, hand on your middle.
“I have to get some groceries.” You play with his hair. “Then I’m gonna freshen up and come back here in time for the party.”
“Great, I’ll drive you.”
“No, you stay. Fix the bathroom.”
“But I don’t want to.” He groans, and rolls over onto you. Almost naturally, your legs wrap around him and he starts kissing your neck, moving down to your chest, pulling down your shirt. You stop him, giggling. “Why do you always wanna leave when we kiss?” He frowns.
“Why do you always kiss me when I’m leaving?”
“‘Cause I don’t want you to leave."
The smell of your skin makes him smile. It smells like...home.
You feel his weight slowly get heavier on you as his body relaxes and melts into yours, nestling his face into your neck. He almost drifts to sleep with the way you’re rubbing his back. When you ruffle his hair, he lifts his head and claims a kiss. “I love you.”
“Love you too. Kookie.”
You giggle as he drops his face in the space between your neck and shoulder. Groaning, he recalls the night Suga found out about the nickname. He has since, constantly used it on Jungkook whenever he can. “He’s never letting that go. Thanks a lot.”
“I’m sorry.” You laugh, chest moving under him. “I was drunk. I didn’t know what I was saying.”
Supporting his weight on one arm, he hovers above you while his free hand brushes past the side of your face. “You don’t remember anything you said that night?”
“No.” That can’t be good. You scan his face. “Why? Did I say something weird?”
“No. Just wondering.” He says gently, expression slowly changing into a smile that makes you forget you were even worried a second ago. “Don’t get drunk anymore. Suga likes you way too much when you’re drunk.”
“Does he?” You laugh, cupping his face. If Suga likes you, you can use this to your advantage. You can’t wait to tell Hana your plan worked.
When Jungkook hears the sound of his name being called from somewhere around the house, he groans and sinks into you again. You push him off you with much difficulty, laughing as he keeps plopping back down into you.
“Okay, they need you. I’m leaving so you can focus. I’ll come back later.” You say, when you finally manage to escape. Reluctantly, he follows behind as you walk down the stairs.
Just as you reach the bottom of the steps, you’re being pulled to the side, against the wall where he corners you into, hands on either side. “I’ll be waiting, so you better show up.” Down your back, up your front, his hands run over your body till they rest just under your jaw, making you lift your chin towards him. Breath hitching in your throat, he carefully brings his lips to yours, teasing a soft touch. Then he lets go.
He smiles like nothing happened and you catch your breath before racing to the front door. You hear a soft chuckle and turn to see him winking at you as he goes in the other direction. Hearing voices from the kitchen where the meeting has started, you quickly close the door behind you, ignoring the pulsing between your thighs.
𝄖𝄖
With a basketful of groceries, you stroll through the store, looking for anything you might have missed out. As you walk, you notice from afar, standing right in front of the refrigerated section your new friend Namjoon. You head straight for him, a little bounce in your step. When you stop right next to him, he turns slowly and carefully.
“Oh. It’s you.” He says as he realises.
“Getting some groceries?” You ask, looking at the shelf then back at him.
“Oh just,” he lifts up a bottle of juice, “getting my orange juice. I see you’re getting your monthly supply. You alone?”
“Yeah I am.” You nod, “My roommate’s busy with school stuff.”
“Right.” He smiles, then it seems like a thought comes to him. “Hey, you’re going for the party tonight right?”
“What? How’d you know about that?” You look at him confused.
“I have friends too you know.”
“But, you can’t come. You’re technically faculty.” You say, putting down your basket to fold your arms in front of you and stare him down. “Are you trying to get us in trouble?”
He chuckles, then points and holds up a finger in front of you. “Actually, I’m an external instructor. So technically, I’m not faculty.”
“How convenient.” You eye him down.
“Fine, fine.” He sighs. “It’s been a while since I’ve been to a party, okay? I just wanna mingle.”
“Hm.” You chew on your bottom lip. Seems genuine enough. You can’t help but wonder if he’s there for something else. How will that go down with Jungkook? “An instructor looking to mingle with his students...definitely no red flags there.”
He rolls his eyes at you. “Come on, I’m not that much older than you. And I’m not that kinda person.”
“That’s what they all say.” You shrug. “Well, I’ll be keeping an eye on you.”
“Cool.” He winks. “I’ll see you tonight.”
He walks off way too quickly, like he’s avoiding something and heads straight for the checkout counter. Of course you know why he’d go to a college party; the perfect place to sell his drugs. You can’t figure out if you should let Jungkook know about Namjoon. But then again, he almost always knows what’s going on. And he’d be uneasy knowing you know so much.
You pick up your basket off the floor and head for checkout yourself. Barely making ten steps, you notice someone leaning against the side of a shelf, watching you with his arms crossed, mischievous smile on his face. Your other new friend. How coincidental.
“Suga.” You say, a tone way too excited for his liking but he nods anyway. You walk over to him and stand awkwardly before him, holding your basket with both hands in front of you. “Hi.”
“Hey cutie.” He searches for someone behind you. “Where’s Jungkook?”
“Oh he’s back at home.” You smile. “They’re getting ready for rush week. And the party tonight.”
“Am I invited?”
“Oh, um…” You can tell he’s joking, but you can’t be too sure. How interesting would it be to have Jungkook, Namjoon and Suga in one place. You wonder what would happen if they met.
You chuckle nervously without giving an answer and he shrugs it off. “I was kidding.”
“I guess you can come if you want to.” You say with a tiny shrug. “I’m sure Jungkook won’t mind.”
He changes the subject almost immediately, offering to help you carry your basket, which you politely decline. He walks with you to the counter. “So who was that guy you were talking to?”
Oh, he’s an instructor from school and also the new drug dealer in town. “Oh him? He’s the new self-defense instructor on campus.”
“Really?” He looks amused, and bites his bottom lip in a half-smile. “Cool. And you guys are friends?”
“Yeah. Kinda.” You place your basket on the counter and help the cashier to unload the items to scan. You don’t notice the way Suga laughs silently to himself, shaking his head.
“You know what, I gotta go.” Suga says, walking backwards towards the exit. You don’t even manage to reply to him before he takes off. “Let’s drink again sometime soon!”
𝄖𝄖
Hana is less than pleased to know about your run-ins. She looks at you with daggers in her eyes. “You have to stop this. He obviously knows your plan."
"Stop overreacting. How could he possibly know that?"
She shrugs. The loud music drowns out your voices from being overheard by those around you. "It's hard to believe it was a coincidence running into him.” She says and you sigh, choosing to ignore her.
The last you saw Jungkook, he was laughing away with a group of people. You didn’t want to bother him, he’d be busy anyway trying to get freshies on his side. But it’s been a while and now you don’t see him anywhere.
While Hana mingles, you go off to look for him. In the kitchen, you find Jimin doing shots of something that doesn’t look edible with a bunch of guys cheering him on. But no Jungkook. You peek out on the deck out back but he’s not there either. A hand on the sliding doors, you sigh and step out into the courtyard, breathing in air that doesn’t smell like sweat.
You pause when you step down the stairs and spot something, squinting at the sight of two guys in the far end of the backyard, right by the bush-lined fence. Recognising that jacket, you realise one of them is Jungkook. He then pulls something out of his pocket and shakes hands with the other guy. You turn back before he spots you. Probably just a polite handshake. Maybe with an old friend. Yup.
Step back inside, you’re being stopped by a hand on your arm. “You look flustered.” He says.
“Hi Hoseok.” You force a smile. “It’s warm in here.”
His eyes flicker over to the backyard and back at you. “This is what he does at parties. It’s how he distributes them.”
“So?” You look around uncomfortably.
“I know you don’t like it either.” He stops you before you can reply. “Can you meet me outside in ten minutes? It’s important.”
“You’re already here, what is it? No one’s paying any attention to us anyway.”
“I can’t.”
The sceptical look you give him has him feeling restless. “Trust me, it’s very important.”
From the tone of his voice, he sounds sincere. You don’t want to, but do you want to risk not knowing something that could help you help Jungkook? You hate this. After a long pause, you nod reluctantly. “Fine.”
Neither of you realised the two figures approaching until they’re walking up the steps. Hoseok and you share a look, as if pleading to the other to act normal. As they reach the door, you see now that Jae is the other guy. He greets you as he walks past, then blends into the crowd. Behind him, Jungkook spares you a curious look at the little exchange. He then notices Hoseok’s presence.
“What’s going on?” He looks back and forth at the two of you. “You look upset.”
“Hm? Oh no, I’m fine.” You muster up your best smile. “We were just talking about the guy who puked in the sink earlier.”
“Speaking of which, I should go make sure he’s not puking elsewhere.” Hoseok says, taking his leave.
You can’t tell if Jungkook bought that but he doesn’t question it. His demeanour changes as soon as Hoseok leaves, directing his attention on you. “He wasn’t bothering you, was he?”
“No.” You smile. “I ran into him while looking for some food.”
“Oh⎼”
He doesn’t get a chance to continue when someone he knows slaps him on the back. They chat for a while as he keeps you close next to him, even when you try to pry his fingers off. The other guy drags him somewhere but before he goes, he turns to you. “Grab some food and meet me upstairs, I’ll just be a second.” He winks, stealing a kiss.
“You don’t have to. I’ll just come find you later on it’s fine𝄖”
“You’re not getting rid of me babe.” He jokes and you let out an awkward laugh as he goes.
You haven’t mastered being in two places at once, you’re not a ninja. And in a few minutes, Hoseok will be waiting for you outside. And Jungkook upstairs. You groan, searching the cabinets for some snacks before heading up to Jungkook’s room.
That’s when you notice a familiar blond head among the crowd you. It distracts you. You could’ve sworn that was Suga. But too many people are blocking your line of sight. As you reach the spot you had possibly seen him, he’s gone. You don’t have time to think about this. Swiftly, you run up the steps and head right for Jungkook’s door. And of course, a familiar face exits the washroom on the same floor.
“Namjoon.”
“Why do you look so surprised to see me?” He raises a brow with a playful smile on his face. “I told you I was coming.
You shake your head and look behind you. “Nothing I was just⎼”
“Hogging all the snacks?” He gestures towards the food you’re cradling in your arms and you laugh.
“There’s more downstairs.” You reassure him.
As if on cue, footsteps move swiftly up the stairs and you glance behind to find Jungkook halfway up, a cautious look on his face as he approaches you. Namjoon nods politely. For a moment it’s like you can no longer hear the music blasting, enveloped by the awkward silence.
“Uh, Jungkook this is Namjoon.” You notice the way his jaw clenches as he takes Namjoon’s outstretched hand in his. “And this is Jungkook.”
“The boyfriend. Nice to meet you.” He flashes a blinding smile Jungkook’s way.
“Likewise.”
Namjoon reads the room well and you’re thankful for it. He excuses himself, saving you from having to grease the conversation any further. “See you guys around.” He says, leaving.
Jungkook opens the door for you and you drop the snacks on his table. His fingers immediately wrap around you, lifting you up and throwing you onto the bed. “Finally." He mutters pulling you in.
You giggle nervously as he kisses you all over, pulling away from him. He shoots you a confused look. "Wait I...need the toilet."
He throws his head back but moves aside to let you go. "Okay. I'll wait."
Hurrying out, you close the door and run downstairs, rushing past the sea of bodies to the front door. Once outside, you look around scanning the few faces there for him. Hoseok stands around the corner at the side of the house and calls out your name.
The front and back of the house is well lit, but not the sides. Both of you stand in the shadows by the wall, waiting for him to speak. But he doesn't, instead, he looks around anxiously.
"Hoseok, what is it? You said this is important!" You hiss. "I can't be too long, Jungkook's waiting for me."
"Just give him a second, he'll be here."
"Who?"
"He's here." His eyes focus on a man wearing a navy sweatshirt, hoodie pulled up so you can't really see who it is. He only pulls it down when he joins you in the shadows.
"Hi."
"Y/N, this is Seokjin. He works with my friend."
"Oh. Hello." You watch him curiously. If you could describe a smile as being trustworthy, it would be his.
"Thanks for meeting me," he starts, "I’ll make it quick. It's about a case I'm sure the two of you are familiar with. Actually, I'm here to speak to you, Y/N."
"Me?" You ask, worrying.
"As you know we have an agent working undercover. He's seen you around and since you know about this operation, he’s worried you might get too close, given your relationship with one of the suspects involved. We want to make sure you stay out of it as much as possible."
"But I'm not doing anything to jeopardise the operation."
"We know." He nods, "But still, we have to emphasise that these people are dangerous. You do not want to get involved. You shouldn’t know about this operation in the first place, but nothing we can do about that now.”
Hoseok’s eyes downcast and hands hide in his pockets, knowing he wasn’t supposed to reveal anything to you. “He’s okay right?” He asks softly.
“He’s fine. He personally contacted me to speak with you. And he’s sorry he hasn’t answered his phone, it’s too risky.”
“Who’s this guy again? Do I know him?” You ask.
“You already know too much as it is. I can’t reveal the name of our agent. We can’t risk him getting exposed, it could cost him his life.”
Silence ensues. It’s uncomfortable to think about how someone could literally die from an unfortunate slip of the tongue. You wait for someone to diffuse the tension. Hoseok looks like he’s in thought, opening his mouth to speak then stopping. Seokjin beats him to it. “In case it’s not clear enough, your plan ends here Y/N.”
How does he⎼ oh. So that’s why Hoseok looks troubled. You stare him down and mutter through clenched teeth. “You told him.”  
“I didn’t mean to!” He spits out. “When Seokjin called me earlier, I got reminded of you. I had to tell him. And I know you wouldn’t listen to me anyway, so I got him to come here.”
“Listen. I just want to help Jungkook, that’s all.” You sigh. “I promise I won’t get in the way.”
“I get it. Hoseok’s explained it to me.” It’s Seokjin’s turn to sigh. “Doesn’t matter what your intentions are, it’s best if you stay away.”
You look helplessly over at Hoseok, then reluctantly agree with a nod. “I’ll try.”
“No, you see, this isn’t a request. It’s an order. There is a chance you’ll get convicted as part of the group if you don’t keep your distance. Is that what you want?”
“No. But𝄖”
“Good, so we’re on the same page.”
“No, we’re not.” Huffing, you step closer to him. “I’m not doing this for fun. I’m trying to get my boyfriend out of there.”
“I understand. But there’s no telling what could happen. Let us handle it. If he’s innocent, then you don’t have anything to worry about. The most important thing here is that you don’t end up getting caught up in the mess. Do you really want to be associated with criminals?”
“Jungkook’s not a criminal.”
Seokjin holds up his hands in a surrender. “That’s not what I meant.”
Hoseok gulps, gently touching your arm. “Y/N please. Let them handle it.”
“I am letting them handle it.” You say stubbornly before turning back to Seokjin. “Look, I’m just here for Jungkook. Tell that to your guy. I won’t stand in the way of the operation.”
“You do know that this is all off the record?” Seokjin starts, “That means even though our undercover, as well as I, am aware that you’re not involved, if by any chance you’re caught with drugs or anything illegal at the time of the raid, you might get convicted. There will be no records to show that you’re innocent.”
“I understand.”
“Alright.” Seokjin pulls his hoodie back up. Now you can only faintly see the bottom half of his face. “Take care. Remember, no one else can know about this.”
He takes off in quick steps, round the corner and down the street. Hoseok fidgets in his spot, trying to find the right words. “I didn’t make him do this to scare you or anything. Promise.”
“I know, Hoseok.” You smile softly. “But you get it right? Why I’m doing this?”
“Yeah...” he trails off for a moment, then continues. “You saw him earlier didn’t you?”
“I did.” You shake your head with a sigh, “Trust me okay? I’m doing everything I can to help Jungkook, like you wanted me to.”
“I never wanted this. I don’t want you to get hurt if things don’t go as planned.”
“Whatever happens after, I’ll deal with it then.”
𝄖𝄖
Feeling numb, the walk back upstairs feels like you’re on autopilot, barely hearing the buzzing of the crowd. You take a deep breath before turning the knob of Jungkook’s door, willing yourself to forget the last ten minutes ever happened. He’d read you like a book in this state.
But your bright smile is wasted on an empty room.
“Jungkook?”
𝄖𝄖
The next day, you're sitting on the running track, soaked in sweat after a long session of track and field. The coach bids his goodbye as the team continues their cooling down stretches. Hana plops down next to you. “So?”
“What?”
“You wanna talk about it?” She asks, picking dirt off of your cheek with her thumb. “You seemed really out of it last night. Barely spoke the whole day today…”
“I’m sorry.” You shake your head. “Just thinking.”
You decided not to tell her about Seokjin and everything that was said last night. For now at least. She already has reservations about your plan as it is, telling her about Seokjin would just freak her out even more.
“Jungkook called you yet?”
“Mhm.” Technically it was a text, wishing you good morning with a kissy face emoji. Not wanting to make a big deal out of the night before, you reply as you normally would. “Don’t worry about me, I’m just tired actually.”
She hangs an arm over your shoulder and gives you a side hug. “No more parties for you.”
“Yeah they’re kinda lame aren’t they?” You laugh.
After grabbing your stuff, you’re headed for the locker room. You're too deep in thought to realise the girls on your team giggling around you. It isn't until Hana nudges you then nods to bleachers that you realise your boyfriend is waiting for you. He salutes the other ladies with a winning smile as they walk off, before getting off his butt.
The girls mutter quietly, and you hear the words lucky and they're so cute as they leave you. Hana waves to Jungkook before walking ahead. Jungkook trots down the steps and lifts you in a hug.
“Sorry, I’m sweaty.”
“That’s okay,” he smiles, swaying you side to side, “not the first time I have you all sweaty in my arms.”
“Shut up.”
He laughs, then starts swinging your hands as you walk back. “Hey sorry about last night."
"Oh it’s fine. Don't worry about it." You say, with a shake of your head, looking at the ground. "You're a busy man, I know."
"Can I make it up to you? Tonight?"
"Alright." You nod. "I gotta shower first though. And you have to give me a ride back to get some fresh clothes."
"No need to dress up."
"But I want to." You pout and he chuckles.
The sound of whistling and yelling coming from the field gets your attention. It's the soccer team, practice still ongoing. It only just occurred to you that you haven't seen Jungkook there in a while.
"Why aren't you practicing with them anymore? Did you quit?"
Jungkook looks at you with an amused look on his face. "Y/N, I was never part of the team."
"Huh?" You stop in your tracks. "I'm pretty sure I've seen you on that field running after the ball."
"Yeah but I was never really on the team." He reiterates. Now you're confused. "I only practiced with them so I could watch you during track and field."
"What?"
"Have you forgotten? I'm on the basketball team."
Honestly, you hadn’t made the connection that it’s impossible for him to be on both the soccer and basketball teams until now. "No wait, you joined them just to watch me?"
"Yes and no?" He shrugs proudly. "At first it was because I got kicked off the basketball team. Then we started dating. I got to see you every practice. Then I got reinstated on the basketball team. And I didn't wanna stop seeing you during practice so I kept going. Until now."
"Jungkook that is𝄖"
"Sweet?"
"Lowkey creepy."
He lets out a tiny gasp with a look of betrayal on his face. "But...I wanted to see you."
You laugh at the utter disappointment he shows and pat his face, though it feels like a light slap, before running off making him chase after you.
𝄖𝄖
Laying on the hood of his car, with his arm under your neck, Jungkook listens to you talk about anything and everything. In your favourite spot, parked by the beach so you get the cool breeze and the gentle sound of waves crashing onto the shore.
He enjoys listening to you talk about your life; what your childhood was like, what kind of trouble you used to get into, your family. It’s like peeling off a new layer every time. Who knew you used to bully the bully as a kid? And let’s not forget that time you got detention for smoking in school but you only did it to get your dad’s attention so that he would stop dating the evil girlfriend who threatened to send you off to boarding school.
“Baby are you...a troublemaker?” He muses and you laugh.
“Well I was. I grew out of it.” You shrug and look up at him. “Kinda.”
“Would’ve never guessed. You’re so shy. And good.”
“Yeah. Once I realised how my behaviour was affecting people’s liking towards me, I changed.”
He smiles tenderly at you, always so full of surprises. You play with the hem of his sweater, then look up at him. “What about you? You haven’t told me anything about your past.”
Not once has he shared his own stories. You never asked because you didn’t want to pressure him. But you’re almost out of stories yourself.
Jungkook looks up at the sky for a while. You sense the hesitance. “There’s nothing much to say.”
“What about...your family? Do you have any siblings?”
There’s no reply, only the sound of the waves crashing and a distant laughter from a group of friends on the beach. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Okay.” Propping yourself up on your elbow, you see now the faint sparkle in his eyes. Could be the cool breeze making his eyes water. He blinks it away when you stare. “We can talk about other things.”
He smiles as his eyes scan your face before you’re snuggling into his side again. “I like hearing your stories.”
“But I’ve told you everything.”
“What about your first kiss?”
You groan. “I’ve told you that one. It was during camp. He pushed me into the lake after that because it was all a dare.”
“Oh right and then you threw all his clothes into the lake as revenge.”
“Yeah.” You laugh. “It was pretty funny.”
He laughs thinking about tiny Y/N lugging a big bag full of clothes and dumping it into a lake as the owner yells in horror. Who knew you had it in you. You’re always so calm and by the book, it’s almost like a whole other person.
“Can you tell me about your tattoo?” You look up at him.
He smirks, turning his head to the side towards the arm it’s on. It’s a tiger head on the upper bicep of his right arm. Made up of shapes, lines, squiggles, it has sharp piercing eyes. It’s beautiful, really. “It’s just something to represent my loyalty towards my brothers.”  
You’ve never seen this mark on the other frat boys, so you assume he’s talking about his other group of brothers. “It’s nice. I like it.”
“Mhm.” It’s tough to crack him. He never reveals more than what he thinks you need to know.
After a while, you pluck up the courage to ask him about the job. “Have you thought about what we discussed?” You ask softly, playing with his fingers.
“What did we discuss?”
“About the job,” you remove yourself from him again and this time get on your knees, “about me working at the club?”
He sighs, looking at you like the stubborn teenager in your stories. “I already told you no.”
“You won’t even consider it.” You pout.
He smiles, surprisingly. “After careful consideration, I regret to inform you that you’ve been rejected. You don't have what it takes.”
“Rude!” You huff, “I have all that it takes.”
“No, you don��t.”
“Yes I do! I’m tough.” You spit out. You strike an awkward pose, doing something weird with your arms. “I have swag.”
It makes him laugh so hard he starts tearing and almost choke on his saliva. Embarrassed, you laugh along, hitting him on his chest. Cheeks hurting from all that, he opens his arms. “Come here you.”
You drop into him, mostly to hide your face in his shoulder. He holds you tight, a content sigh escapes him as he does. “I love you so much.” He says into your ear.
Lifting your head up to face him, he smiles tenderly at you, softly tracing a finger over your face, the lulling movement making your eyes flutter shut.
𝄖𝄖
“You got a problem with me?” Namjoon says to the smaller guy.
Suga smirks bitterly, unimpressed by how the new guy has no respect whatsoever towards him. “I do actually. What’s your deal?”
“What d’you mean?”
“You appear out nowhere, get dispatched to our district. Same area as Jungkook no less...are you trying to replace us?”
“Hey, I didn’t choose the location.” Namjoon shrugs. “Maybe if you guys didn’t suck so bad they wouldn’t have asked me to secure the bags.”
He braces himself as Suga lunges forward, shoving him against the wall, his collar bunched up in clenched fists. Surprisingly strong for a small dude. “You don’t come work for us and talk shit about us to my face.”
Namjoon tugs on his clothes, pulling them out of Suga’s grip. He clears his throat and tries to calm himself. “My bad. Next time I’ll do it behind your back.”
“What are you up to? You took a job on campus, why? Jungkook’s already got that covered.”
“Like I said, I didn’t choose to. I was sent there.” He steps forward, making Suga take a few steps back.
“Liar.”
“Look if you have a problem with it, take it up with the lieutenant.” Namjoon walks off, angering the other guy even more. The nerve of this new kid makes his blood boil. There’s something off about him, there’s no way the bosses would send a new guy in for no reason.
He stomps his way into Kyun’s office, slamming the door behind him. Kyun looks up, sees him, and goes back to his laptop. “What?”
“Don’t you think there’s something wrong with that RM guy?” Suga says, pulling up a chair.
“No. Why?”
“He’s so full of himself.”
“Name one person working here that isn’t,” Kyun says, “besides, you should be thankful I assigned him to you. Jungkook’s been slacking.”
“I told you, the school’s keeping an eye on him. He’s taking it slow.”
Suga can’t remember how many times he’s used that excuse. He can’t come right out and admit that Jungkook has in fact been slacking. Or rather, distracted. Not to mention the time Jungkook considered leaving all of this behind. It’s no surprise the lieutenant’s picked up on it.
“Whatever.” Kyun mutters, obviously tired of having this conversation.
“Wait,” the wheels in Suga’s head turn and he looks curiously at his lieutenant, “you’re not doubting Jungkook are you? Did you send RM in to replace him?”
“If Jungkook’s doing a good job like you seem to think he is, why would you be worried about this?”
Suga purses his lips, “He’s fine. He hasn’t missed any of his shifts. I couldn’t have gotten shit done at the club without him.”
“Numbers are still low though.”
“That’s because you’ve got the new kid stealing all his buyers.”
“RM’s good and the staff there seem to trust him. He stays.”
“Fine. Then get off Jungkook’s back about his numbers. He can’t sell drugs the same as before if you have another dealer there competing with him.”
Kyun thinks about it for a minute, then nods. “Alright fine. Anyway, it’s good that you’re here now. I can run through what boss wants you to get up and running at the club.”
It hits Suga that Kyun having doubts about Jungkook is bad news, at least, if word travels up the hierarchy. While Jungkook had promised to keep up, Suga intends to make sure he actually does. He can’t afford anymore slip-ups. Or distractions, in the form of you. He can’t let anything happen to Jungkook.
𝄖𝄖
Sneaking back into the house at such an ungodly hour, you guide Jungkook in the dark, careful not to make a sound.
Back in your room, his jacket and shirt are the first to go. He lifts you up and carries you to the bed, lips not parting from each other.
Slipping under your shirt, he unhooks your bra and pulls your shirt with it over your head. Lips smiling on yours, his hands knead your breasts and you feel your nerves reacting. He trails wet kisses down your front, fingers undoing your jeans and pulling them off in a single swoop.
He removes his own pair of jeans, leaving him in his boxers. Then, kneeling by your legs, he gently peels your panties off, taking in the view of your naked body, lighted up by the warm yellow of your nightlight. If he could, he’d engrave this image of you in his head.
His eyes wide and lustful, they trail over you. “You’re so beautiful.” He whispers.
Hovering above you, he strokes the side of your face, before pressing his body to yours in a soft gentle kiss. He moves so gently, like you could break at any moment. When your hands wrap around his neck, he grabs hold of your wrists, pinning them above your head. You let out a soft whimper.
Jungkook takes his time, showering your skin with kisses. Starting from your neck down to your navel. He licks one side of your breast, teasingly drawing circles with his tongue along the nipple, then gives the same attention to the other. Your breathing gets hitched in your throat, feeling the blood rush down south.
He brings his mouth lower, hands now occupying your breasts where his mouth was. It sends you butterflies the way his hot breath brushes against your skin. There’s something different about the way he’s touching you tonight.
He spares some kisses down your inner thighs and watches the way goosebumps appear as they try to clam up reflexively.
Hands on your thighs, he pushes them apart and runs a teasing lick over your folds. Then his tongue finds its way to your clit, flicking it gently before his lips wrap around it and he starts gently sucking. You jolt and take in a sharp breath grabbing a fishful of the sheets.
His fingers delicately touch your folds, running a teasing finger over your entrance. Looking up from between your thighs, he watches the way you steady your breaths, eyes closed, brows furrowed.
It doesn’t last long and when you open your eyes, he’s hovering over you, licking his lips. Very eagerly you pull down the hem of his boxers, exposing his hard cock. His own fingers wrap around it, stroking himself gently as he reaches for a bottle of lube. He stares at you with a look you can’t read.
“Something on your mind?” You voice out.
He shakes his head with a gentle smile and takes his position between your legs, your thighs over his. Aligning himself with your entrance, he grips your ankles on either side. Slowly, he enters and you will yourself not to make a sound at the initial stretch.
Jungkook keeps a steady pace, watching intently the way he moves in and out of you. You can’t help but to stare at him and the way his abs clench every time he moves his hips into you. The flexing of his arms every now and then, keeping your legs steady. And the way the warm light casts shadows dancing over his body as he moves.
“Jungkook.” You call out for him, so softly.
He releases your ankles and leans forward, resting his body on yours. Pressing his forehead to you, he admires the look of lust in your eyes and the way you’re biting your bottom lip. “Yes, my love?”
Your fingers run over his face. You’re too occupied with the pleasure of him inside you that your brain refuses to put your thoughts into words. He chuckles when you only manage a breathy smile instead.
Your wrists get pinned over your head once again, and he watches you from above. Every thrust is deep and filling, his hips moving expertly to give you just the right amount of pleasure, leaving you a hot mess beneath him.
You look absolutely breathtaking to him; the parting of your lips, eyes shut and shaky breaths. Your breasts bounce with every thrust and your chest rises and falls with every breath you take. He lets out a low guttural sound and presses his body to yours, devouring your lips in a passionate kiss.
His hips pick up speed, grinding into you with calculated moves. You get lost in each other, a mixture of your quick breaths filling the room. The look in his eyes is mirrored in yours, waves of emotions flowing between both your bodies and soul.
Jungkook can’t describe his feelings for you. It’s something he hasn’t felt in a long time; warmth, love, trust, acceptance. All he knows is to tell you he loves you and hopes you get it.
Your eyes get misty as you let your own emotions get to you, feeling the twinge in your chest when you look at him.
Arms wrapping around his waist, your tongues dance between your lips. He knows all the right spots to leave you breathless. You feel it building in the pit of your stomach, and pull away from the kiss, no longer in control of your actions.
Jungkook feels it too, sensing the pressure between your hips as they wrap tightly around him. He steadies himself and gives you long, deep strokes, as he watches your breaths get quicker. The euphoric look on your face earns a grunt of approval from him.
Not wanting to hold back any longer, his hips grind into yours at a quicker pace, feeling himself reaching his release. His mouth latches on to your nipple, sucking it for a second before he hears small whines leaving you, signalling you’re close.
Willing yourself to keep your eyes open, you place a hand on the side of his face, making sure his eyes stay on yours. It gets blurrier with the way tears start to fill your eyes. “I love you.” You blurt out in a whisper and he rests his forehead on yours as he thrusts hard, one which makes your insides squirm.
Jungkook’s breath hitches in his throat as he watches you. A single tear rolls down the side of your face as you start to reach your high. “I love you Y/N.”  He breathes out against your lips before capturing you in a kiss. With one hard thrust, you find yourself succumbing to the pressure in your middle, unravelling a wave of pleasure that courses through your entire body, chest rising towards him and hands keeping him close.
Watching you, he reaches his own climax, hips bucking wildly into yours, and you feel his warm release spilling inside you, his moans lost in the kiss. It takes a while before his hips slow down into a gentle rhythm. Your body goes limp as you ride it out, drained of energy.
He catches his breath with his head on yours and when you finally catch each other’s eyes, you share a giggle. He shines in his afterglow, a look of pure bliss on his face. But he could say the same for you, thumb running over your cheek to wipe off the tear stains.
In that moment, it feels as if you’re staring right into his soul. He stares back at you, as if trying to say something more than what’s been said, worrying once again about conveying what’s in his heart. But you just smile back.
“I know, Jungkook. I know. I love you too.”
479 notes · View notes
Part two of three. Izuku has a new goal for this tournament, and Shouto’s getting a vibe check.
[No. 39 - Todoroki Shouto: Origin]
We start off with a brief flashback from a younger Shouto’s POV, ith Rei saying that that’s fine, he’s not…
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Shouto’s narration wonders when he forgot what came after that. In the present, Shouto demands to know what Izuku is planning. Everything he’s got… did his bastard of a father pay him off or something? Shouto is pissed, and dashes forward, thinking that Izuku won’t be able to deal with him at close range. Izuku reacts by dashing forward as well, ducking low as he gets close. 
In the stands, Katsuki has also notices Shouto’s slowed down, likely because of the frost covering his body. It’s different than Katsuki’s limits - kind of like magic points in a video game. The scale of that attack against Sero was probably the most he could muster.
Shouto panics just a bit, realizing Izuku had moved the instant he raised his left leg. Izuku himself is furiously muttering to himself about imagining the microwave, don’t let it explode, even as his powered-up right arm comes swinging, landing right in Shouto’s stomach. 
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Of course, Izuku isn’t entirely unscathed, Shouto managing to get some ice on Izuku’s left arm at the elbow before being flung away by the force of the punch. Present Mic makes a comment on things heating up, while both Izuku and Shouto take a moment to recover from the backlash of that punch. The crowds are shocked at Izuku landing a blow, but also note that he’s the one who can barely stand. 
Shouto coughs, commenting on how now Izuku is on the offensive. He’s wondering how (I’m guessing on how Izuku finds the strength to keep going?), sending out another weak burst of ice that Izuku leaps over. Izuku comments on how Shouto’s not just slowing down, but his ice is weakening too. 
Cementoss asks Midnight if he should stop the match. It seems like Izuku’s going all out because he knows he can be healed no matter what. And he’s not feeling all the pain he’s in because his adrenaline’s pumping. But those injuries… a single healing session won’t be enough for a full recovery. Even if he wins here, he’ll be in no shape for the next match. Midnight has no reply.
Aizawa thinks back to the quirk assessment, where he told Izuku to learn to control his quirk. In the present, he notes that that control is starting to come, even if it means weaker attacks. He’s not just blindly going wild out there. In order to win, this is the best strategy for him at this point. But… even if he does know he can be healed, putting himself through all that pain takes a hell of a lot of guts.
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Toshinori, however, has caught on to what the others have not, wondering what it is that’s motivating his successor. Which is a small little thing that I find neat! Toshinori’s known this kid for just over a year at this point, while the rest of the staff have only known him a few weeks.
Izuku can’t make a fist with his right hand anymore. So when Shouto sends another up-close ice attack, he puts his thumb in his mouth and uses that to flick it, destroying the ice with a crack that is equally likely to be from the thumb as it is from the ice. During all that, Shouto (or Izuku?) thinks back to Izuku’s words, about wanting to be like All Might, and for that, he has to be number one, he has to be the strongest. It might seem like a lame motivation compared to Shouto’s, but.
Shouto asks Izuku why he’s going this far. Izuku dashes in, saying he’s just trying to meet expectations. A smiling, dependable, cool hero - that’s what he wants to be. 
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Shouto flashes back again for a brief instant, providing enough distraction that Izuku gets in another hit. Izuku states that that’s why he’s giving it everything! For everyone! Shouto’s experiences, his determination - Izuku can’t even begin to imagine what all that is like. But if he becomes number one without giving it his all, then Izuku doesn’t think he’s serious about denying Endeavor everything. 
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A longer flashback. Endeavor tells his son to get up. He won’t even be able to defeat third-rate villains, let alone All Might, if he gets knocked down by a hit like that. Rei begs Endeavor to stop, that Shouto’s only five years old. Shouto looks up from where he’s kneeling on the floor in his own vomit, just in time to see Endeavor slap Rei out of the way while stating that Shouto is already five, and to get out of his way.
Present Shouto tells Izuku to shut up, his right side absolutely coated in frost. 
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More flashback. Young Shouto is curled up in his mother’s lap, saying that he hates his father, he doesn’t want to be like him. Someone who bullies mommy - he doesn’t wanna be like that. She rests a hand on his head, noting that he wants to be a hero, right? That’s fine, he’s not… 
In the present, Izuku takes another swing, thinking back to… someone’s words about if you have a future you’re striving for, while out loud declaring that that’s why he has to win. Which I guess clarifies the earlier reasons that everyone might think this is about winning the match. Toshinori, however, is cottoning on to what’s actually happening, thinking back to his talk with Endeavor, and how Shouto won’t use his left side because of his conflict with his father, which means Izuku is…
Izuku lands his hit while stating he has to surpass Shouto. 
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While the other Todoroki children play soccer under the supervision of an elderly lady, Shouto watches on from the window. Endeavor grabs him by the arm and yanks him away, telling him not to look, that his siblings belong to a different world than him. 
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Shouto stumbles across his mom talking on the phone to her own mother. She states that she knows it’s not right, but she can’t do it anymore. The children, they’re like him more and more everyday. And Shouto, his left side - sometimes she looks at him and hates what she sees. She can’t raise him anymore; she shouldn’t raise him. The kettle rattles as Shouto peeks into the kitchen, nervous and overwhelmed by what he’s hearing. Rei… does not react well.
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Shouto, a bandage over his left eye, asks Endeavor where his mom is. Endeavor states that she hurt him, so he had her put away. He calls her a fool, during this crucial time in Shouto’s development, no less. Shouto weeps, furious and upset, stating that he’ll show Endeavor, that it’s all Endeavor’s fault. 
In the present, he starts to talk about how he’ll show his father, only for Izuku to interrupt - 
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Not quite the same line as the anime! Which I was surprised by, to be honest. Like, I get why the line was changed up for that, and both have the same meaning, but there’s… something interesting in the original version of those words as well. 
We flash back again, to an All Might interview Shouto is watching with his mother. All Might states that quirks are naturally passed from parent to child. However, that’s not the only thing that matters. It’s not just blood ties - instead, one must recognize and appreciate oneself! That’s what he means when he says it - when he says ‘I am here!’
(Not gonna lie, that bit of All Might interview actually has me thinking. That comment on blood ties makes me wonder whether he’s thinking about Nana, and that line about how one must recognize and appreciate oneself seems like a lesson both Toshinori and Izuku are needing to internalize in the current manga.)
Rei notes that Shouto wants to be a hero, right? That’s fine. Shouto isn’t bound by Endeavor’s blood. He can decide who he wants to become.
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Shouto is practically in tears as he wonders when he forgot that. Flames lick at the corner of his eye and cheek, right before his entire left side goes ablaze with great force.
Everyone spectating is in shock. Tenya thinks on how Shouto had stated he’d never use his left side in battle, remarking on how he’s using it now. Toshinori realizes Izuku was trying to save Shouto. Endeavor is elated by this development. 
As Izuku flinches back from the heat, Shouto comments on how he thought Izuku wanted to win. So why is he trying to inspire him? Which one of them isn’t taking this seriously now? But he wants to be a hero too. Shouto and Izuku grin at each other, and so this chapter ends.
Not gonna lie, I kind of vibe with this version of The Line. It’s still similar to the more popular anime version, but it’s also just different enough that I am. Thinking. Mayhaps it shall be used one day in a fic somewhere.
Anywho, character sheet incoming. Rest of the Izuku vs Shouto match on Friday. See y’all then.
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digital-corruption · 3 years
Text
Sorry, I'm a bit later because I rewrote a couple of sections to tighten it up.
My subconscious decided to screw with me last night by having me dream about surprise bonus content from Everbyte, which included a clean voice clip of Jake’s voice. I was all "I'm going to replay the shit out of this clip." Then I woke up.
At any rate, here's the next part. :)
Haunted by the Past Part 7
Putting the groceries away was easier said than done. I had to quickly exorcise whatever was living at the back of the fridge. Jake had no memory of what it once was. At some point I lost his interest and he went back up stairs. Confident that the fridge was in a usable condition, I finished putting everything away.
I went back upstairs to find Jake cleaning off a desk chair, “Where did you find that?”
“The next room down has a lot of forgotten office equipment,” Jake said nonchalantly.
“You mean you could've gotten one earlier?” I raised an eyebrow.
“I didn’t have anything clean it with then,” Jake pointed out.
Jake finished cleaning it off then rolled it to the far end of his desk, where he had made some space for my tablet. I burst out laughing and he gave me a confused look.
“My tablet looks so insignificant next to your monitors!” I remarked.
“What, you want a large monitor for your tablet?” asked Jake in disbelief.
“You’re not going to share? You have eight! You could let me have one,” I teased.
“I need them,” Jake said defensively.
“It’s fine, I’m joking,” I walked up to Jake. “I’m not going to take one of your monitors.”
“You better not mess with the set-up,” Jake threatened playfully.
“Or what?” I smirked.
“I'll have to break up with you. It’s a deal breaker,” Jake tried to say seriously, til I poked him in the gut.
“Thank you for finding me a chair,” I smiled.
“I want you by my side,” Jake smiled back, kissing me softly. “Now I just have to get you a proper bed.”
“A washing machine would be nicer,” I teased.
“What? Are you saying my clothes smell?” Jake took a whiff inside his hoodie.
“Well, no, I only have a few sets of clothes. I’m going to run out of clean clothes soon. Something tells me you’re against going to laundry mats,” I explained.
“Laundry day is tomorrow. You can wear some of my clothes if you’re desperate,” Jake was still bewildered by the conversation.
“Laundry day?”
“Oh I haven’t told you. The building down the block has industrial machines as they're a professional laundry service. They get contracted to clean the linen for businesses that can’t be bothered doing it themselves. Anyway, no one is there on Sundays so that’s when I wash my clothes,” explained Jake.
“And they never notice?” I questioned.
“They’re a cleaning service. They don’t have much in the way of security,” Jake laughed. “Besides, they use so much electricity that it barely makes a blip.”
“Speaking of electricity, I have been meaning to ask you-"
Jake interrupted, “I was hoping you wouldn’t. Do you really want to know?”
“I suppose that response tells me everything I needed to know,” I responded annoyed.
“Look, there are things I do that are not ‘legal'. MC, my accounts were all seized by the government. So as much as I would like to pay for services legally, I can’t,” explained Jake.
“And the groceries?” I raised an eyebrow. He had used the digital wallet on his phone to pay.
“Will my answer bring you comfort?” Jake questioned. He put his hands on my upper arms and looked at me intensely, “Know that I am very selective when I have to commit a crime. It’s either that or I have to sell my skills to the black market and clean jobs are hard to come by.”
Suddenly my phone rang with the personalised ringtone for my mom, marking an end to the discussion. “I um get it. Sorry I shouldn’t have put you on the spot.”
“You are inquisitive and questioning. It is part of your charm,” Jake smiled. He peeked at the caller ID as I pulled my phone out. Jake realised he wouldn’t be able to stop me from answering it, “Keep it short and vague. They’ll have her phone tapped by now.” He stepped away and went back to his desk.
I let out a big sigh to get myself back in the right frame of mind. Then I accepted the call, “Mom, sorry, I was in the ladies room. What’s up?”
“Oh, MC, have you forgotten? Your brother’s birthday is next weekend!” My mom sounded shocked that I didn’t already know. As expected her booming voice meant Jake could hear every word.
“Yes, of course. Are we doing something next weekend? I kept my schedule clear,” I said honestly.
“Well, unfortunately your brother has been rostered for the weekend and couldn’t get anyone to swap so we’re thinking of having a dinner Thursday night here,” my mom explained.
Jake shook his head furiously. I searched for an excuse quickly, “Ok, I am going to have to get back to you. I know there’s a work meeting planned for late Thursday. It might run late.”
“Ugh, you kids and your busy work schedules! Fine, let me know as soon as you can. I hate having to go back and forth between you two just to schedule a family dinner together!” my mom whined.
“I am really sorry, I will check and back to you ASAP! Sorry, I gotta go. Someone’s at my door. Love you!” I said hanging up.
“You can’t go,” Jake insisted.
“I know that! I'm just not ready for that conversation yet,” I rubbed my forehead. “’Sorry guys, can’t make it. My new boyfriend is wanted by the government.’ That just doesn’t have the right ring to it, you know. And to express it over the phone like that knowing there is someone else listening.”
“You'll think of something,” Jake said confidently.
“What about my extended family? They won’t be watching everyone, right? I could get a message through one of my aunts, maybe?” I thought out loud.
“Hmm, if sending message means that much to you, I could hack in and try to determine where they have diverted their resources. An entire extended family would not have full surveillance for a low level target,” Jake offered. “Favorite aunts will be compromised though.”
“If it isn’t too much trouble? I don’t want them to think I have been kidnapped. We both know what that does to family,” I pointed out.
Jake sighed, “Sure, it’s going to take me a while though, to break through their firewalls without being detected.”
I pecked his cheek. “I’ll let you do Jake things. I'll go finish cleaning up downstairs and then start preparing dinner. Thank you, Jake.”
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vincess-princess · 3 years
Text
war?
Fandom: Motley Crue Characters, pairings: minor Nikki Sixx\Vince Neil, Nikki Sixx, Vince Neil, Tommy Lee, Mick Mars Rating: Teen so far, may change in the future Warnings: displays of extreme radiation poisoning, violence, unreality (so far) Summary: The boys go into a post-nuclear war-themed quest room, but is it really just a quest room?
idea by @dopefreshprincess, thank you so much for giving me inspiration <3
Chapter 1/?
Word count: 8059
“Wow!” Tommy looked around, eyes sparkling with excitement. “This is sick!”
Nikki did not reply, as did the others were gaping silently at the landscape extending in front of them. Escape room managers always tried to assure them of the reality of the experience, but the layout of all the escape rooms they visited before could be usually proved fake, sometimes by smallest of details. Not this one, though: the desolate, ravaged, post-nuclear war landscape looked uncannily real. They could even feel the hot breeze in their hair, bits of sand carried by it scraping their skin.
A desert sprawled in front of them, the ceiling that imitated the sky painted pale orange, no clouds, the lamp replacing the sun emitting so much heat Nikki could already feel droplets of sweat sliding down his back. Here and there bare, skeletal-looking trees stretched their branches up towards the sky – they barely reach the group’s waists, but trailed along the ground for meters. The only other plant around was spiky grey grass with frail stems. Nikki kneeled in front of one of them, trying to understand how it managed to grow through a completely dry, hardened soil. Wait, that’s a fake, he reminded himself. It was probably made of rubber and just stuck into the ground, it didn’t need no water.
Nikki reached out and tried to tear the plant out of the ground, but quickly drew his hand back with a hiss. The stem had little hair-thin thorns, sharper than needles. A few of them pierced through his skin and got stuck in his finger. Fuck, those sure as hell weren’t rubber.
“Huh?” Vince turned his head, distracted from fascinatedly observing the location by Nikki’s hiss. “What’s up?”
“Nothing,” Nikki said quickly, knowing how sharp-tongued Vince was. “Just got a splinter.”
“Are you gonna survive?” Vince inquired in a serious tone, but with a sly smile on his lips.
“I hope so,” Nikki muttered, trying to be angry at the mocking smile Vince shot him and failing miserably. “Careful with these things. They’re damn realistic.”
“Told you, these guys make the best escape rooms I’ve ever been in,” Mick said. He was the only one to remain relatively unimpressed, though his gaze lingered on the sand dunes a little bit longer than needed. “It’s gonna be a real survival quest, so buckle up.”
“Ain’t no quest too hard for us,” Tommy grinned. “Let’s set a world record on this one, lads.”
“Hell yeah!” Vince joined him, eyes sparkling. “The harder, the more fun!”
Mick rolled his eyes in exasperation. “That’s why you two absolutely can’t have nice things. You’re on a thin fucking ice, Sixx,” he added, side-eyeing Nikki.
“Hey, I haven’t even said anything!”
“I know you well enough.”
Nikki huffed with annoyance, but purely to keep face. He knew, of course, that Mick was right.
“Are we setting off at last?” Tommy was practically jumping with excitement. “Come on, come on, you snails!” he waved his hands in an inviting gesture. “Could you speed up a little?”
“We ain’t in a hurry,” Mick cut him down, but carefully stepped off the platform that took them to the location. The platform rose up swiftly and disappeared in the sky. Nikki traced it with his eyes. They would not be able to call it back, only in an extreme emergency, and the level of emergency was going to be decided by the quest room staff, who were supposed to watch the travelers constantly. In reality, though, when Nikki peeked into the security room half of the cameras weren’t working, and the only guard there was too busy playing his new Nintendo switch. So they couldn’t really count on staff; from now on they had to complete the quest to get out. Usually it added to the thrill, but now Nikki’s guts felt uneasy at the thought.
“Hm.” Mick stomped his foot on the ground. “The sand is very thin. We shouldn’t have any problem walking.”
“Then let’s walk!” Vince called, fidgeting in his place. “I wanna see the destroyed city replica! Is it gonna have real radiation there?”
“You ask me? Boy, I’ve never been here. I can only tell you what Chris told me, and he never mentioned it. Everything is possible. Do you even know where the city is?”
“It’s gonna show up eventually anyway, no?” Vince tilted his head. “The quest zone is not that big.”
“Why are you so sure?” Mick raised an eyebrow. Nikki could feel frustration radiating off him. He probably wanted to make every second of this adventure worthwhile instead of speedrunning it. “Besides, you ain’t getting to no goddamn city without supplies and gear.”
“Aren’t they in the backpacks?” Vince frowned, then pulled his backpack off his back. The easiness with which Vince tossed it around was suspicious, like it carried no weight whatsoever.
Nikki weighed his own backpack with his arm and a cold shiver ran down his spine. How could he not notice how light it was?
Meanwhile, Vince had already opened his bag, and his eyebrows arched in surprise.
“There ain’t nothing there!”
“The hell-“ Nikki pulled at the zip and tore the backpack open. His bad feeling proved right - it was empty.
“Mine too!” Tommy shoved his hand inside, feeling the material up as if trying to find secret pockets there. The thin, chip fabric of the backpack couldn’t hide any pockets within it even with the most intricate design.
“Same thing”, Mick pursed his lips, having checked his. “Shit’s getting interesting.”
“The hell we’re gonna do without supplies? We are in a desert!” Tommy exclaimed, throwing his backpack to the ground with frustration. “We paid for an empty backpack?!”
“What, the quest suddenly too tough for ya?” Mick snorted, but then his face softened at Tommy’s helpless expression. “Relax, kid. They ain’t gonna let their clients die. We’ll probably find supplies along the way.”
“They probably aren’t gonna just lie there in the middle of a desert, though,” Nikki said. He could understand Tommy’s disappointment – the quest from the average difficulty just switched to expert, and Tommy was never the one to enjoy meticulous resource-gathering instead of fighting and cracking codes. He, however, didn’t seem to share Tommy’s feelings – instead, he could feel anticipation building up in his chest. This was gonna be a real test of character, and he was gonna show everyone he could pass it. Especially Vince.
“No shit, Sixx,” Tommy murmured, still worked-up, but relaxing slightly. “Then where the hell are we supposed to find them? We don’t even have a map.”
“Hey, quit whining,” Vince joined in. He didn’t seem to be upset in a slightest, though his flippant smile disappeared from his lips. “Nikki is right. We gotta find a city or some settlements. They must be full of lost stuff. And we’ll get a shelter from the heat.” He wiped sweat off his forehead, caught Nikki’s gaze and smiled with corners of his mouth. When he turned away, Nikki smiled back.
“Well, I’ll look at y’all after a couple of hours walking through the desert,” Tommy muttered indignantly, but didn’t continue his rant. He went to a big rock a few feet away and plopped onto it with a grim expression. Mick, Nikki and Vince exchanged looks.
“Okay, so what are we doing now?” Vince asked in a low voice. “I’m already thirsty. Where’s that city of theirs? Mick?”
“Don’t ask me,” Mick waved his hand. “I haven’t been here before, remember? I just know that it exists. I don’t think it’s that far away, though. The zone can’t be bigger than a day or two of walking. The building didn’t look that big to me from the outside, at least.”
“These plants probably have some water in them, like cactuses,” Nikki nodded at the grey spiky grass. “You could try sucking on them-“
“No, thanks, I’m not that desperate,” Vince interrupted him, rolling his eyes. “So what, we’re looking for a city?”
“Well, you’d rather stay here?” Mick raised his eyebrow. “No? Good. I swear, a little bit more of this senseless talk and I’m leaving without you.” He turned his back to them and headed forward, not sparing them a single look.
“Why is he so pissy?” Vince muttered to Nikki.
“Angry because of the supplies?” Nikki shrugged in response and looked back at Tommy, who was still sitting on the rock with his back turned to the rest of the world. He seemed to hunch, looking at something on the ground. “Hey, T-bone! We’re leaving!”
“Uh-huh,” Tommy murmured, not paying them any attention. What, was he refusing to come with them?
Well, that was getting ridiculous.
“T-bone!” Nikki approached him and not so gently slapped him on the shoulder. “Are you coming?”
“Yeah,” Tommy looked up at Nikki distractedly. “Nik, do you think this map is supposed to have enemies?”
“I’m gonna be disappointed if it doesn’t” Nikki grinned. “But probably not in the middle of a desert. Maybe in the city. But we’d be supposed to find weapons for them, wouldn’t we?”
“Yeah,” Tommy nodded and rose up from his rock. “Where we going?”
“Looking for the city,” Vince said from behind Nikki’s back. “We’re pretty sure it’s somewhere close.”
“You’re sure,” Tommy made a dissatisfied face. “Okay, if you’re so sure, let’s go there.”
“You’re such a pain in the ass today,” Vince told him, but with no malice in his voice. “How’d you survive in a real apocalypse? Y’know, when there are no supplies lying around, prepared specifically for you?”
“Well, there ain’t gonna be no apocalypse in my lifetime,” Tommy shook his head, picked up his backpack and headed after Mick, who was already a tiny silhouette against the orange skies and seemingly had no intention of waiting for them.
The thin layer of sand was easy to walk on, and their heavy boots prevented them from getting sand between their toes. What they weren’t preventing them from, however, was the heat. The lamp imitated the sun a little bit too well; as it traveled across the sky (Nikki wondered if it was fixed on a rope or if some mechanism did the moving), it became hotter and hotter. Soon their jackets were off, and their t-shirts were soaking wet.
“How long has it been? Two hours?” Vince asked, fanning himself with his stupid cowboy hat that Nikki hadn’t managed to talk him out of wearing. “I swear, if we don’t find water soon, I’m gonna drink my own piss.”
“I can offer you another, much more nutritious fluid-“ Nikki was interrupted by a backpack flung at his face and barely managed to duck in time. “Hey, you could’ve just said no!”
“I’d rather die of thirst,” Vince promised gloomily, but before he turned away, Nikki caught a glimpse of a smile on his face. He sped up to catch up with Mick. Nikki didn’t want to march forward alone, so he slowed his pace, waiting for Tommy.
“What kind of enemies do you think we’re gonna encounter?” Tommy asked him, somewhat anxious.
“No clue, dude,” Nikki said carelessly. “Some mutated rabid rats? Mad scavengers? I hope it’ll be mad scavengers. The robots we were shooting last time were too predictable.”
“And the weapons?” Tommy didn’t seem relieved by his words in a slightest.
“I hope paintball guns – so you can see when you hit someone, y’know. Laser guns are too glitchy.”
“You think it will be just actors?” Tommy shot him a glance. Nikki frowned. Why was he so worked-up anyway? They were on a quest, they were supposed to have fun, not worry.
“Of course. Do you think they’re gonna release actual animals on us or something? That’s just a game.” Nikki shook his head at Tommy when he opened his mouth again, no longer willing to answer weird questions. “Come on, let’s catch up with those two. Or they’ll find loot earlier than us and will take all the alcohol.” He grabbed Tommy’s arm and pulled him forward. Tommy followed, like a puppet obeying every twitch of its master’s fingers.
Half an hour later, literally nothing changed. The sky was the same sickish orange; the sand was crumpling under their boots with barely audible crunching sounds. The tension was hanging in the air like fog, enveloping their little group whole, getting more and more thick. The frown on Mick’s face deepened with every their step.
“I swear, if I knew how fucking big it would be…” he began.
“Hey, hey, no need to apologize,” Nikki interrupted him.
“I wasn’t,” Mick flashed him an irritated glance. “I wanted to say I’d tell Chris to stuff his recommendations up his ass. I fucking knew he’s a survival games junkie. He gets a kick out of harsh conditions. Unlike me.” He stopped so suddenly Tommy almost collided with him. “That’s it. We’re making camp here.”
“Not that we have anything to make that camp with,” Tommy murmured, but wilted under Mick’s stern gaze. “You can sit on your backpack,” he suggested hastily. “Or on that rock over there-“
“Um, guys,” Vince, who wandered away during their conversation, spoke up from where he was bending over to the rock Tommy offered Mick to sit on, “you need to see this.”
“What’s that?” Mick shuffled towards him. When his gaze landed on the rock, his eyebrows flew up. “Holy shit.”
Mick and Vince’s troubled faces evoked a bad feeling in Nikki’s gut. The feeling of wrongness that hatched in his stomach ever since they discovered the backpacks were empty raised its head again, making him shiver. He almost didn’t step forward to look at the rock, almost turned away. Almost.
Run, the rock said in uneven, shaky handwriting, probably done with chalk, probably in a hurry. Run.
“What the hell?.. Nikki raised his head to meet Mick’s gaze, knowing he had no explanation for this, but still nurturing a stupid little spring of hope that the smartest of them, the oldest of them would be able to explain it. But Mick’s face showed nothing but bewilderment. And… what was that?
Tommy approached them quietly from the back, read the inscription and inhaled sharply through his teeth with a hiss. He said nothing. It was weird, but not weirder than this entire fucking thing.
“It’s a joke, right?” Vince said in a shaky voice. “It must be a joke.”
“I’d love to tear off the arms of whoever wrote this and shove them up their ass,” Mick muttered disgruntledly. “Not funny at all.”
Nikki just nodded, kneeling in front of the rock. He rubbed the word with his thumb, wanting to see if it could be erased easily. His thumb got a little dirty, but the writing remained intact. Nikki licked his finger and tried again, to no avail.
“That’s not chalk,” Mick said, frowning. “It would erase. Why the hell didn’t Chris tell me about this shit? Maybe he did it?..”
“I don’t think so,” Tommy said suddenly. “It looks old.”
“And the sky is orange here, do you think it really is in real life?” Mick cut him off angrily. Tommy bit his lip and stared at the ground, fidgeting with something in his hands. “It’s probably just a prank by another visitor. Well, good job, asshole, now you’ve got everyone worked up.” He turned his back to the rock. “Dunno about you, but I’m not gonna stand around this goddamn rock all day. We still need to get supplies somehow.”
“Yeah, right,” Nikki nodded, getting up and lining up with Mick. “Let’s go, guys. It’s getting late.”
“I’ve heard deserts get super cold at night,” Vince remarked. “We better find a shelter by the time the sun sets.”
They set off again, but the decisiveness that floated in the air when they just entered faded. Instead the tension and frustration returned, and there was a new one now - fear. The latter was completely illogical, Nikki tried to persuade himself, but all in vain – the icky cold lump in his stomach remained, gaining more thorns the more Nikki thought about the writing on the rock. Fuck, he definitely needed a drink. He could only hope the supplies would have alcohol – they usually did, allegedly for medical purposes.
Nikki didn’t know how much time passed. Maybe half an hour, maybe more. It was hard to determine with the sky the same orange color, the “sun” invisible behind thick clouds. Eventually, though, it began to get colder – Nikki only realized that when he caught Tommy shiver. Already sulky, Tommy now looked like a ruffled chick that just fell out of the nest.
Nikki was already thinking about suggesting calling it a night and making camp where they were when Vince broke the gloomy silence.
“There’s something ahead.”
Nikki squinted, staring forward. Against the sky, now reddish as the “sun” was setting, was a group of silhouettes.
“Those might be just mountains,” Mick said, barely trying to cover the exhaustion in his voice.
“They’re too upright for mountains,” Vince shook his head. “The sides are too flat. And anyway, that would be better than spending the night in the middle of a fucking desert. My throat is dry as a fucking sandpaper.”
“Whatever,” Mick threw his hands up. “We ain’t got nowhere else to go anyway.”
They headed towards the shadows in the distance. Although none of them was ready to say it, reaching something after an entire day full of sand already felt like a small victory. They might even find a cave to sleep in there, Nikki mused. Now even a rough rocky mountain soil was better than getting sand in their asses.
But as they drew closer it became clear those were no mountains. Though destroyed and decayed, those were buildings. Soon they reached a road – battered and covered in sand, but a road nevertheless.
“Hell yeah!” Vince smiled triumphantly. “Told ya we’re getting there!”
“Okay, okay, don’t forget to mark this date down. It’s not often that you turn out to be right,” Mick grumbled, but relief in his voice was obvious. Vince rolled his eyes, but did not say anything in return – maybe didn’t want to spoil the mood. Even Tommy cheered up. They sped up to reach the city before the night set.
It turned out to be farther than they imagined, and when they did reach the city, it was already night. Just as Vince said, the heat was soon replaced by freezing wind, so they weren’t feeling picky and headed to the first building on their way. The left half of it lay in ruins, concrete mixed with metal, crooked metal rods sticking out of the walls that were still standing. Nikki touched the concrete – it was cold and coated his fingertips in dust. The right half, though, remained relatively unharmed, apart from shattered windows. It even still had a door intact.
“With our luck, I won’t be surprised if the door is locked,” Mick muttered as he touched the door handle with uncertainty. It easily yielded under his touch. He carefully pushed the door.
A musty smell enveloped them, the dust in the air making them cough. It was dark inside, and the windows didn’t provide enough light to make out details – the night was moonless, and there were no stars in the sky, - but this just made the image more uncannily real. How did they make the dust covering the floor look like it hasn’t been touched in ages while the building probably had visitors the very night before them?
“I can’t fucking see anything,” Mick grumbled somewhere ahead. “Should’ve brought headlights.”
“There must be at least some loot in here,” Nikki tried to cheer him up. “Maybe there’ll be flashlights.”
“There might just as likely not be any,” Mick sighed. “But at least we won’t have to sleep in a freezing wind. Though it’s not much warmer here either, those goddamn windows-“
A loud crash followed by a yelp interrupted him. Mick and Nikki shot each other alerted looks and sprinted towards the source of the sound. In the corner of the room, there was a hole covered by a thin sheet of metal – apparently not strong enough to hold a man’s- Vince burst into the room, waving around a metal rod in his hand that he probably pulled out of a broken wall, - not strong enough to hold Tommy’s body weight. Nikki plopped onto his knees and peered into the hole. Vince grabbed him by the collar, to make sure he wouldn’t fall. It was so dark down there they couldn’t even see the floor.
“Drummer, you alright?” Mick called out anxiously, staring into the darkness of the hole intensely. A second of silence felt like an hour, Nikki’s heart skipped a bit. Then Tommy spoke from down there.
“Yeah… I think.” They listened intently to the rustling and creaking from down there as Tommy tried to get on his own two feet. “I’m al- oh, shit!” something heavy fell onto a metal sheet with a loud clatter.
“T-bone?” Nikki called again, but received no response. A little lump of anxiety in his stomach reminded of itself again as it began to unravel. “Tom, fucking say something!”
“Fuck,” Tommy finally hissed. “My knee hurts as shit.”
“Broken?” Vince tried to catch a look of Tommy, but the view of the hole was obstructed by two dark messy heads.
A few pained breaths later, Tommy replied. “No, I don’t… think so.”
“Can you stand?” Nikki jumped up, looking around the room for a ladder, or a rope, or, at least, a wooden bar to put into the hole. But the room was barren, apart from a few chairs looking like they would turn to dust the moment they’re touched, ruined bookshelves with burned black books scattered across the floor, and a broken computer standing on the only remaining desk.
The desk had three drawers and a cabinet. The cabinet was locked. The drawers were mostly empty, one even had a couple of dead cockroaches in it. Nikki almost overlooked a little cylindrical object in the corner of the lowest drawer. He carefully touched it. The surface felt like cheap plastic.
Upon closer inspection it turned out to be a flashlight. Nikki fidgeted with it for a bit and found a button, which he carefully pressed. The first couple of seconds it wasn’t lighting up Nikki’s heart skipped a bit; but then a weak ray of light shone through the dirty glass.
“Guys! Look what I found!” He dashed back to the hole, where Mick and Vince still stood, quietly discussing something. Tommy’s voice from down there joined them occasionally.
“A flashlight?” Mick raised an eyebrow. “And that’s all?”
“Well, do you want a stage projector instead?” Nikki snapped back. “This is better than nothing. Tommy, can you walk?”
“Not sure,” came a muffled reply. “Gimme a sec… Ouch.”
“So no?” Nikki frowned.
“Well, I can stand, but it hurtsб” Tommy reported. “Not sure about walking. I can’t see a thing, and there’s so much debris here, I don’t wanna break a leg on one of them.”
“Well, then I’ve got you covered, pal.” Nikki showed him a flashlight. Tommy squeezed his eyes, trying to make out what Nikki was holding. Then he beamed.
“Man, that’s great! It’s definitely a part of the quest, so we’re on the right track! Give it to me, I’ll try to look around.” He caught the flashlight thrown by Nikki. “Eh, man, they could have put better props here. This one looks like it’s from a gas station.”
“What, you think they would give you top-tier gear here?” Mick raised his eyebrow. “Be thankful for what you have.”
“Hey, don’t be so bitter,” Vince stood up for Tommy. “For all the money they get, they could have bought better props as well. This thing looks like it may kick the bucket at any moment.”
Nikki decided not to listen to their banter anymore. “Look for a ladder, or at least a rope,” he told Tommy and moved away from the hole to walk one more time around the room in case he missed something. He tried to sit in a chair, but it cracked so threateningly under him he decided not to tempt fate. Then he turned to bookshelves. Books were often used to hide clues; maybe that was the case here as well?
However, most books were burnt and battered. Nikki opened one, but the pages were so dark the text was unintelligible. Some of them were glued together, others torn. It was just another fucking prop, Nikki realized, flinging the book into the wall in frustration. Just a waste of a good book-
The book crashed into the wall and fell onto the floor, pages flying around. One of them was significantly lighter than the others. It landed right next to Nikki’s feet, as though inviting him to pick it up.
Well, Nikki rolled his eyes, for sure that wasn’t supposed to be a clue or something like that, not at all.
He picked up the piece of paper and turned it upside down. On it a few numbers were written, in ornate, neat handwriting. Must be a password or something. But for what?
Nikki turned around, and his gaze fell on a seemingly dysfunctional computer. Why did he assume it was dysfunctional first hand?
Nikki carefully touched the keyboard sprinkled with dust. They really did a good job making everything look old and abandoned. He pressed the space key, then ran his fingers along the keys, pressing many at once – no reaction. Then he reached out for the turn-on button. Also no reaction.
Oh well, it wasn’t going to be as easy as this, after all. Nikki stuffed the paper piece in his pocket and returned to the hole, where Mick and Vince conversed lazily. Judging by the occasional streaks of light landing on the walls, Tommy was exploring down there.
“Oh, hey, guys, it’s pretty nice in here!” he shouted, attracting their attention. “Is that a fucking potbelly stove?”
“What? Are you sure?”
“Well, I’ve only seen those in movies but it does look like one. And what are those…” his voice quietened for a few seconds as he was fussing with something. “Guys! There are sleeping bags here!”
“Really?!” Vince would have dove into the hole headfirst if not for Mick who grabbed him unceremoniously by the collar. “Hey, what the fuck, man?!”
“Who the fuck is gonna drag you two up then? My back won’t let me, you want Sixx alone to do it?”
“Well, if there are sleeping bags, then there must also be a ladder or something,” Vince muttered, ashamed. “Isn’t it clear that’s a checkpoint?”
“No, it isn’t,” Mick cut him off. “Not until we find a lad-“
“I found rope!” Tommy’s jubilant voice rang through the building. Mick, stopped mid-sentence, pursed his lips.
“Hey, Mick, do you think I should start a notebook to mark down when I’m being right?” Vince patted his shoulder, grinning. Mick shook his hand off.
“Bring it here,” Nikki said, looking around for something to fix the rope on. The table seemed sturdy and heavy enough, but they all were grown adult men as well. Nikki headed over to the table and tried to move it, to no avail. Maybe it was screwed to the floor for this very purpose.
“Hey, we can fix the rope to the table over here, if it’s long enough,” he suggested.
“Might work.” Mick glanced towards it and nodded. “Though I’m not a keen rope-climber…”
“Me neither,” Nikki tried to reassure him. “I always failed at it on the P.E. lessons”
“You had rope climbing on your P.E. lessons?” Mick raised an eyebrow. “Wow. Schools sure have geared up since I graduated.”
“We also jumped a bench,” Nikki recalled, “and did pull-ups on a bar. Oh how I hated it.”
“Y’all are spoiled,” Mick murmured. “All we had were a ball and the teacher’s whistle. A volleyball net, if the school was fancy.”
“Hate to interrupt your sweet chatter.” Vince suddenly appeared behind their backs. He already held the end of the rope in his hands. “But if I don’t get into a sleeping bag within five minutes, I’m gonna riot. You checked the table?”
“Yep, seems trustworthy.”
“Mick, your time to shine,” Vince offered him, the only one among them knowing how to tie a reliable knot, the end of the rope.
“You forgot a magic word,” Mick grumbled but kneeled in front of the table. “There are rope traces on this table leg already, so it must be the right way.”
“Are all clients supposed to hurt themselves falling through the floor?” Nikki wondered, kneeling beside Mick. He loved watching his rope work, though never managed to do it quite like him.
“You wanted adventure, you got it,” Mick replied, his fingers quickly working.
“Well, yeah, we all know it’s just an imitation,” Nikki shrugged. “A pretty good one, but still.”
“There wouldn’t be one if all those people didn’t actually want it to come true, even in part.”
“Well, I don’t,” Nikki resented. “I don’t want the world to fucking burn to the ground. And all those people don’t, too. They just want to… I dunno. Feel like movie protagonists for a while?”
“Movie protagonists always have a purpose. They don’t go out into the wild just because they love the wild that much.” Mick finished the knot and got up, cutting their conversation short. Nikki tried to follow him but hit his head on the tabletop.
“Ouch!” he fell back on his knees, checking his head for damage. Just as he reached for the sore spot on his head, he noticed a wire that was running along the wall of the cabinet and sliding into a hole on the floor. The wire was connected to the computer. Oh, so they need to fix it in the basement for the computer to start working, Nikki realized. That the computer was supposed to be turned on he had no doubt, or there wouldn’t be a password in the book.
“You alright?” Vince asked when Nikki crawled from under the table and got up. “We don’t need any more injuries here.”
“I’ll survive,” Nikki promised. They headed towards the hole where Tommy already stood with the flashlight, waiting for them.
“Wait a sec, I’m gonna move all those debris away,” he hurried to clear the floor under the hole, stumbled on something and hissed in pain. “Shit! I hope there’s a first aid kit somewhere here.”
“If you still can walk, then it’s not that serious,” Mick told him. “Not a fracture or a broken bone at least. Gonna heal in a couple of days.”
“Yeah, but where are we gonna get these couple of days?” Nikki murmured so that Tommy wouldn’t hear him. “Our time here is limited. We can’t just waste it waiting for him to recover.”
“What are you gonna do then, send him back?” Mick snapped. “Let him hobble through the desert alone, with no supplies?”
“Well, no, of course not,” Nikki mumbled ashamedly. “But we could… I dunno… investigate the location while he heals his ankle?”
“Yeah, and he totally won’t jump after us on one leg the whole way,” Mick said sarcastically, diminishing Nikki to a puddle on the floor. He didn’t bring the topic up anymore.
Vince was the first to descend, carefully sliding down the rope. Tommy, beaming, waved the flashlight around, demonstrating the room so proudly he as though had decorated it himself. A smile slowly widened on Vince’s face.
“Come look!” he called them. Nikki climbed down the rope so fast he burned the skin on his palms. Mick wasn’t that eager to follow; quite on the contrary, he stood up there looking around for a few seconds and then hurried out of sight.
“The hell he went to-“ Tommy began, but Mick was already back, dragging something clanging with him.
“We are gonna attract the entire local wildlife with the light and the voices,” he explained, breathing heavily. “Better cover up.”
“Oh, Mick, c’mon!” Vince laughed. “Who are we gonna attract? Actors are all at home sleeping at this time.”
“Some of them work night shifts,” Mick reminded as he carefully lowered his legs into the hole and wrapped them around the rope. He grasped the metal sheet he brought and drew it over the hole, leaving only a small crack. “And some of them aren’t people,” he finished once his feet were firmly on the ground.
Vince huffed, but did not continue the argument. And Nikki was thankful to him for that.
The shelter they accidentally discovered was small but neat. It was a little bit warmer here, without the wind, but the walls still couldn’t really protect from the cold. They were probably drywall, but they did look appropriate for the location - like old, weathered-down concrete. Even the smell was authentic, dusty and heavy. Four sleeping bags were laid out around the potbelly stove in the center, looking old but functioning. A pipe ran down one of the walls with a very convenient tap in the middle. Every now and then a drop of water fell down from the tap onto a small wet spot on the floor. In the corner there were some boxes piled up on top of one another, and in the other – wooden crate. The entire location was poorly lit by groups of green, toxic-looking mushrooms in the corners and on the ceiling. They looked so real Nikki had to grab and feel the material of one to confirm it was rubber.
“Were you in a real apocalyptic setting, this one could have burned off the skin on your fingers,” Mick muttered.
“Glad we aren’t,” Nikki said, words coming out a little bit strained. “Though there probably wouldn’t really be mushrooms glowing with radiation. Is that even possible? Won’t it just kill them, like any other living thing?”
“Nature always finds a way,” Mick said, kneeling on front of the potbelly stove and peeping inside. “Jeez, this one belongs in a museum. And we need coal or wood to light it up.”
“There were carton boxes in the corner,” Nikki nodded towards them. “What about a lighter? I hope we won’t have to use a flint or something.”
“I have one,” Tommy said from the corner where he examined the crate, fingers carefully running over the lid. He “I had to take out my sigs, but they didn’t notice the lighter.”
“That’s technically cheating,” Vince said lazily, already sprawled on a sleeping bag. “But practically you just saved us a lot of trouble.” He sat up, his shoulders twitching from cold. “Damn, it’s freezing here. Gimme the lighter.”
Tommy threw it over his shoulder in Vince’s direction, missing by a few feet at least. Vince caught it nevertheless – probably the only time his baseball school team skills were put to use.
“Don’t burn the entire basement,” Mick advised half-heartedly as Vince trudged to the boxes in the corner. Vince grumbled something unintelligible in reply.
The cracking sound from the other corner distracted them.
“Guys, I think I found supplies,” Tommy said, holding up the lid of the crate that he had just opened.
“What’s there?” Mick and Nikki rushed towards him. Vince looked at the box he held in his hands for a second, dropped it and joined them. “Any food?!”
“Well, those feel grainy,” Tommy brought a plain fabric bag to his eyes, dug his fingers into its sides. “Cereals, probably.” He put it back, picked up some other package and shook it. “Those sound like crackers.”
“Three cans with corn,” Nikki reported, rummaging in the other end of the crate. “And, uh, ramen,” He dug out a familiar-looking box. At least they removed the plastic wrapping that they have on in stores.
“Any fruit, veggies?” Vince peered over their shoulders. “No? Well, we aren’t gonna last long on such a diet.”
“We aren’t gonna stay here long either,” Nikki reminded him. “What did you expect from a post-apocalyptic setting, an all-you-can-eat buffet?”
“Nothing, man,” Vince retreated, “I’m just saying, we’ve seen plants and trees on our way here, some edible plants could as well survive too- uh, nevermind.”
“That’s all good and stuff, but where are we supposed to put them? I haven’t seen any plates here.”
“Over there, in the corner,” Mick headed to the farthest, most poorly lit corner of the basement, which Nikki overlooked at first, and with a clang pulled out a pot, rather old and battered, but seemingly without any holes. “But these need to be washed first, or we all will get poisoned.”
“I’m busy with the fire,” Vince immediately said, grabbing the box he dropped and holding it in front of himself in a protective gesture. “Tommy can do it. Or Nikki.”
“Guys, there’s something else beneath the food,” Tommy said, pulling out a yellow box with a black wire. “Some device?”
“Oh!” Mick’s face lit up for the first time during the day. “That’s a Geiger counter, if I’m not mistaken. Since we’re in a post-nuclear war wasteland, it’s gonna prove useful.”
“Does it work from the batteries?” Tommy turned it over in search of a switch. “Because there might be problems with electricity here.”
“It’s supposed to,” Mick took the box and examined it as well. “The limit for this one is 5000 mSv – uh, what are mSv? – and I have literally zero idea how dangerous it actually is. Did anyone read up on the theory before the quest?”
He received only confused mumbling in response.
“Do you think anyone else who completed this quest did?” Vince finally said defensively. “I’m pretty sure they weren’t experts on radiation either.”
“That does not excuse our ignorance,” Mick sighed. “Well, 5000 is a big number so if there is this much radiation, it’s not safe.”
They fell silent for a second, only Tommy kept rummaging in the crate. Finally, he fished out something with a victorious yell.
“Knew it would be here!” He waved a piece of paper in front of their faces. “Vince is right – they wouldn’t have given us this thing without explaining how it works. There are some numbers here – I guess radiation levels, but I can’t see them, it’s too dark.”
“Gimme,” Mick immediately snatched it from Tommy’s hands, receiving an indignant yelp in response. “Shit, I can’t see a thing either. Vince, what’s up with the fire?”
“This damn carton doesn’t want to burn,” Vince said from where he was kneeling in front of the potbelly stove. “It just chars.”
“Lord, why do I have to do everything myself,” Mick raised his eyes to the moldy ceiling. “Hold this and don’t let go for dear life,” he handed Vince the piece of paper. Vince pressed it to his chest in an overplayed protective gesture. A few curses later the carton finally caught fire from the lighter, and the flame started strengthening slowly but surely.
“Now, gimme.” Mick grabbed the paper and brought it closer to the fire, maybe a little bit too dangerously close. “Yeah, drummer was right. So, 2 mSv is what a person receives daily, 100 is what radiation workers receive in 5 years, 1000 causes cancer in 5% of people exposed… doesn’t sound too dangerous to me. 5000, though… kills a half.”
“Shit,” Vince commented laconically. “So anything above 1000 is a big no-no, we get it.”
“Pretty much,” Mick nodded. “How much is here, I wonder. Turn this thing on.”
Nikki reached out and pulled the switch. The arrow wandered a little over the bar, but never ventured into even remotely dangerous areas and finally stopped on 12 mSv.
“Well, that’s a little more than usual but still not much,” Mick concluded. “But we should be careful when advancing into the city. It’s supposed to have suffered a nuclear blast, and radiation will go up the closer we are to the center.”
“You think it will ever reach the limit on the counter?” Tommy asked, anxious.
“Don’t think so.” Mick waved his hand in the air. “But we gotta check it frequently, just in case.”
Nikki, who was silent all this time, finally spoke.
“I mean, it’s nice that y’all are enjoying yourself so much, but can we at least stop pretending that there’s actually radiation? This thing just shows what it’s programmed to show. There ain’t no radiation neither here nor in the city center. Where the hell would they get it from?”
Mick raised his eyes, examining Nikki with his piercing gaze. He wasn’t angry or disappointed – thoughtful, rather.
“Well,” he finally said a few seconds later, “there are two things to this. First – when in Rome, do as Romans do. Second – how do you know the radiation isn’t real?”
“How?” Nikki frowned, surprised by Mick’s answer. Mick’s, who was the most sensible of them all and the least prone to stupid illusions. “Because this ain’t real post-apocalyptic wasteland, and these walls are built out of drywall, the sun is a lamp and the mushrooms are made of rubber!”
“And what is radiation made of?” Mick asked. “No, really, how can you fake radiation well enough to deceive a Geiger counter? Because the counter is very real, we’ve been given those at school”.
“Well, then it’s programmed to show what it shows,” Nikki retorted. “And we can’t actually prove it’s not lying.”
“Nor that it is,” Mick replied. “Of course, this is all just a big game of pretend, Sixx. But it doesn’t matter that everything here is fake. We’re gonna take the counter with us anyway; even if it’s lying, its data will show us what places to avoid, since it’s been programmed, as you’re claiming. It was left here for a reason.”
“I guess,” Nikki sighed, turning away. He didn’t know how to explain that their interest and excitement was a little bit too fake in its genuineness. He knew how quests worked. He has completed them many times. A couple of riddles to solve, a couple of actors dressed as zombies to “kill” with laser guns. The ultimate satisfaction upon reaching the end – and after that, all-encompassing boredom again, again, until the next dose of adrenaline.
And this one is going to be just the same. Should be just the same.
Oh god, please let it be just the same.
“Anyway,” Mick broke the silence first. “I’m putting this thing in my backpack, but we’re gonna take it out regularly to check radiation level. Now, I don’t know what about you, but I’m hungry as hell, and the dishes question still stands.”
“Nikki should do it,” Vince said immediately, receiving an “et tu, Brute” look from Nikki. “Since he’s such a wet blanket.”
“Yep,” Tommy quickly counted the odds and sided with the right people. Nikki shot him a death glance. Tommy smiled sheepishly, but didn’t take his words back.
“Well, then go on, Sixx,” Mick handed him the pot, and Nikki wanted to put it on his friend’s head. With a loud bang. “We’ll sort out the rest of equipment while you’re busy.”
The water from the tap was cold, but seemed clean and only smelt a little of metal. Nikki rinsed the pot and the plates he was handed, not quite thoroughly, but the others were too hungry to notice. Meanwhile, Vince and Tommy dug out of the corner three empty plastic bottles, tastefully rumpled to look old, but nevertheless functional. As hard as they tried, they couldn’t find any cutlery, though. Apparently, desert rogues in a post-apocalyptic landscape were too down-to-earth to eat with spoons.
Soon they were sitting around the potbelly stove watching the water heat up terribly, terribly slowly. Nikki never paid attention to how much time it takes to heat a liter or two of water. This fire was no match to his electric kettle back in his apartment. But that was probably why kettles were made anyway.
“So, what do we have?” Mick spoke again. He didn’t seem to like the role of a leader much, but this quest was like no other – without him, the other three would have probably given up by now. “Three packages of cereals, four packs of crackers, three cans of corn which we’re gonna eat right now, a pack of noodles, the Geiger counter, a flashlight, sleeping bags, a pot and four plates and three water bottles.” He sighed. “And not a single medical item. That’s not much. Drummer, how’s your leg?”
“Hurts,” Tommy said honestly. “But like, more in a dull, pulsating way. I can bear it. I can walk even. I won’t make you wait, I promise.” He was nervous, his eyes darting between the other three, checking their reactions. “Just don’t send me back. This quest is so much fun, I don’t wanna miss it.”
“Okay, okay,” Mick raised his hand in a calming gesture. “Nobody was going to leave you behind anyway, right?” His eyes stopped on Nikki, and a frown was sent his way. Nikki huffed and turned away.
“Thanks, guys,” Tommy said with visible relief. “I took one for the team to find this amazing place, after all.”
“Yeah, yeah, you’re a hero,” Nikki reassured him distractedly. He was getting cold: he could feel how icy the floor was even through the fabric of the sleeping bag. “D’ya wanna light up the fire a little bit? It’s freezing here.”
“You can try, but I tell you, that won’t be enough,” Mick shook his head. He was sitting hugging himself on the sleeping bag, his feet propped up right against the stove for more warmth. “These boxes don’t burn hot enough. We’re gonna need coal or lighter fluid. Which we don’t have.”
“Sucks,” Vince murmured, for the first time in a while. That was strange – he was usually the most talkative one of the bunch, challenged only by Tommy.
Nikki leaned in to him, examining his face anxiously. Vince looked at him tiredly from under his eyelashes, but didn’t move back. His lips were of sickly bluish color, his fingers grappling the folds of his jacket, fruitlessly squeezing them together, unnaturally white.
“Are you alright?” Nikki whispered to him. Vince jerked his head towards him, a sarcastic retort ready to drop from his lips – but then, a tired sigh replaced it.
“Is that really so noticeable?” he whispered back. “I mean, you guys don’t seem to be bothered by it much. But Nikki, man, I’m gonna turn into an ice statue soon. I can’t feel my toes already.”
“Shit,” Nikki ran his gaze across the room again, hoping to find something, anything that could help. But, apart from the trash in the corners, discovered nothing new.
“Get in the sleeping bag,” he said finally. “At least put your feet in it. And take my jacket. Corn’s gonna be done soon, a nice hot meal will warm you up. And we’ll put together some kind of tea after that-”
“Hey, chill, man,” Vince smiled slightly. Nikki felt the tips of his ears warm up. “I ain’t taking your jacket, I don’t want you to freeze to death. Just… I dunno. My hands are so cold…”
“Here,” Nikki moved so close to him their knees bumped together, gently wrapped his hands over Vince’s wrists and guided his hands under his jacket, where his body warmth collected. They felt like ice chunks even through his t-shirt. Vince sighed with pleasure and closed his eyes. Nikki caught Tommy chuckle quietly and made a scary face towards him. Tommy raised his hands in pretended surrender.
Everything was okay. Everything was going to be okay.
The corn was consumed in tired silence. Thanks to the potbelly stove, the room did warm up slightly after a while, and a meal after a long day of walking made them all drowsy. By the rules, they should have left a guard up, but none of them dared to suggest it, afraid of being the one picked to watch. And what could get them in a basement of a destroyed building in the middle of a desert?
A lot, it turned out later, but that night they slept soundly, still happy in their ignorance.
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jaskiersvalley · 3 years
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Please (Don’t) Leave
Psst @lamberts! You asked for canon angst with Geralt feeling he’s an unlovable monster for your @thewitchersecretsanta. Hopefully this ticks those boxes :D
Rating: Teen and Up Relationship: Geralt/Jaskier Summary: There were so many reasons Geralt could reel off for not allowing a bard to travel with him. They're all lies. There is only one true reason and it's one he knows he can't change. Bards shouldn't travel with monsters.
Please (Don’t) Leave
There were very good reasons Geralt didn’t want a bard following him around. He couldn’t afford to feed another mouth, didn’t have the energy to protect another person when, inadvertently they got too close - worrying about Roach was enough of a distraction already. That wasn’t even considering that Geralt wouldn’t be able to protect a bard from the vitriol that followed a Witcher around. Deep down, Geralt knew there was one more reason, the real reason. Because he knew that he could go hungry to feed a bard in leaner times. And a bard could earn his keep so it wasn’t like Geralt was the sole provider for a limpet. Humans were pretty good at self-preservation and, if Geralt told said bard to stay with Roach, they were less likely to get injured. As for the open hatred, that was part of the real reason but not the whole thing. If a bard didn’t like it, they wouldn’t stick around, moving on to better and nicer muses. As if Geralt could actually be a muse - that was a ridiculous thought in itself.
The real problem was much more personal. Blaviken was still a raw nerve, not far enough in the past for Geralt to be able to move on. He couldn’t let himself forget either, because if he did, nobody would remember Renfri and her suffering. Sure, people would remember Geralt and the massacre but they didn’t care beyond the gory parts of the story. A Witcher had gone feral, butchered humans. That made for a good tale, one that scared children and adults alike. Nobody cared about the truth, the reality that was behind what had happened. In a way, it didn’t matter because Geralt had still killed all those people. He didn’t have much choice but he was still a murderer, a monster. To have a bard come along and decide that the Butcher of Blaviken was a worthy companion was beyond the realms of reality. Nobody should want to willingly follow a Witcher around, let alone one with a reputation like Geralt. Yet there was this young fool, smiling and scurrying after him. He hadn’t even introduced himself.
What Geralt couldn’t face was the idea of the naive, well meaning optimism fading into bitter disdain. Without a doubt it would because nobody liked, let alone respected, Witchers. This bard would quickly see the error of his ways. Despite Geralt’s seeming peace with what had happened at Blaviken, the truth wasn’t quite what he projected. He could recall Marilka’s disgust, the villagers and their cruel words, could feel each stone and rotten vegetable that had thudded into his body. Rightly so too. The only thing that set him aside from a hunting dog was the fact that he got paid in coin rather than food and shelter. In fact, a dog was probably more valued than a Witcher because it was easier to keep and definitely more welcome in a home. Geralt couldn’t remember the last time he was invited into a home and allowed to stay. An abandoned hut was no home, there was no secondhand comfort to bask in.
The problem was, Geralt knew all of this yet he still craved the bard’s affection. Not his heart, nobody in their right mind would give a Witcher their heart. But, maybe, the bard’s kindness would soothe some old hurts. Or at least until he realised just what a monster Geralt truly was and ripped it all away. That was what Geralt wasn’t prepared to deal with, to be offered a glimpse into what could have been, a glimmer of normalcy, only to have it snatched away. Especially because Geralt knew himself well enough to know that the slightest hint of someone being nice and he was like a stray dog with scraps. Marilka was one such example, she had shown interest and a lack of fear in Blaviken. Her rejection alone had hurt more than the rest of the village put together.
So now, Geralt was left with a choice, run the bard off or accept that his heart was going to get trampled once again. Mind made up, he punched the bard and tried to leave him in the dirt. It didn’t work. Which one left the other option and Geralt tried everything in his power to hide what he truly was. He didn’t say much for fear of showing off sharper than natural teeth. He didn’t fight as hard for his pay when an alderman or minor nobility only handed over half his promised coin, in case it scared the bard and he ran off. Because, despite himself, Geralt had grown to care about the man. After a few weeks together, he’d even learned his name when he announced himself to a tavern of bawdy drinkers: Jaskier.
There was one constant battle between them though: Geralt wouldn’t let him tag along for contracts. No matter how much Jaskier wheedled and promised he wouldn’t be but a silent backup, Geralt resisted. He couldn’t risk Jaskier seeing him killing creatures, covered in their entrails while his eyes and skin turned ghastly from potions. Everyone had their limits and Jaskier frowned in disgust when Geralt gutted a rabbit for their dinner. There was no way he could deal with Geralt in all his Witcher-y, well, it wasn’t glory that was for sure.
All of Geralt’s careful plans were for naught though. He’d managed to slay a cockatriace and was snarling in rage and victory, breathing hard. The next step was to harvest the bodyparts when there was a crack of a branch behind him. Twirling, sword raised and ready to fight, Geralt froze as his eyes locked with Jaskier’s. They stared at each other, Geralt heaving for breath and knowing he could do nothing to hide his true nature while Jaskier went wide eyed.
“Oh.” With that, Jaskier turned and he was gone.
Just like he’d always known it would happen, Geralt’s world shrank back to the cold grey of loneliness. He knew Jaskier would leave but had hoped to bask in his colourful warmth for a little longer yet. It hurt to have him gone, fleeing at the sight of Geralt’s true form. Sword slowly lowering, Geralt hung his head. The cockatrice could wait, the dead didn’t go anywhere. He was allowed a moment to mourn the loss of his not so silent shadow.
Another snap of branches and the sound of feet rushing closer filled his senses. Geralt was almost tempted to not turn and allow whoever it was to do whatever they wished with a seemingly unawares Witcher.
“Here.”
A familiar voice and slowly Geralt turned. Blackened eyes met brilliant blue ones. His own satchel was being held out towards him in one hand and a rag in another. Not understanding, Geralt stared.
“I figured you might want to clean up a litte. There’s a bit of-” Jaskier gestured with the rag towards Geralt’s cheek. “-oh never mind, here.”
As if it was the most natural thing in the world, Jaskier wiped the cockatrice remains from Geralt’s cheek, fingers lightly tracing the darker veins around his eyes. Once done, Jaskier smiled.
“I’ll get a bath ordered when we’re back at the inn.”
Words weren’t Geralt’s preferred mode of expression. Rage and anger were better conveyed with swords and fists. It left him with the unfortunate issue of not knowing what to say. However, his body knew what to do. Reaching for Jaskier, he pulled him into a tight hug. Hope wasn’t something that really factored into a Witcher’s life but Geralt found he finally and some. And that hope? It went by the name of Jaskier.
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