#I want to rewrite it better and in second person
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luna-azzurra · 3 days ago
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Tips on how to Write Two Characters Stuck in a Car After a Fight
⊹ The silence hits hard, like, instantly. Not a thoughtful silence, Neither the quiet that comes from mutual processing, no, it’s the kind that wraps around your throat and makes the air feel heavier. The music’s either turned off completely or left on just low enough to be awkward. And suddenly, the blink of the turn signal is the loudest sound in the universe. Tick. Tick. Tick. Like a countdown to who’s going to break first.
⊹ One of them is clenching the steering wheel like it’s responsible for the fight. The other is staring so intently out the window it’s like they expect a tree to swoop in and rescue them. No one’s talking, but they’re both internally monologuing the fight like it’s a courtroom drama... Replaying every word, every look. Mentally rewriting it to win.
⊹ Petty starts small. The A/C is mysteriously switched off or suddenly freezing. The music changes to something annoying. Someone opens snacks and doesn't offer. Gum? Forgotten. There’s no yelling, but the passive aggression is practically humming, like, it's not a fight anymore, it’s a vibe war.
⊹ Someone always cracks first. Not with an apology. No, it’s a neutral lifeline, something like “We’re almost out of gas.” It’s code for please say something, I hate this, I don’t want to do this anymore, but we’re all too emotionally constipated to say that out loud.
⊹ Apologies are rarely clean. It’s not “I’m sorry” with big dramatic weight. It’s a muttered “I just…” followed by a sigh, a glance, a half-hearted attempt to explain. And sometimes it’s too soon, and the other person’s still too mad to accept it. Sometimes it’s too late, and sometimes it never comes at all, and that silence says everything.
⊹ The body language tells the whole story = Crossed arms, tense shoulders, avoiding eye contact like it’s contagious. One of them shifts a little closer, not sure if they’re allowed to. The other leans further away without realizing. It’s like watching magnets almost click, and then pull apart.
⊹ At some point, one of them thinks about just… getting out. Not even angrily, just… the fantasy of walking away mid-red-light. Imagining opening the door and stepping out into somewhere else, because anywhere feels better than this. Even if it’s just for a second.
⊹ The rearview mirror becomes a gut-punch. They glance into it without meaning to, and suddenly it’s all flashbacks...what was just said, or who they were before it, or maybe even what they’re trying not to lose.
⊹ And if the car breaks down mid-fight? That’s not a plot twist, no dear writer, that’s a breakdown of everything. Now they’re stuck with no escape, no distractions, just the weight of what was said and the sound of their own hearts hammering too loud. It’s the moment where everything either falls apart or finally cracks open.
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dozybeez · 2 days ago
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Practice Makes Imperfect (Pt. Two)
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A perfectionist ballerina struggles to find her rhythm-not just in her mandatory hip hop class, but in life itself. When she turns to Hoshi, a laid back hip hop major, he helps her see there is more to life than just structure and control.
→ part one ... → part three coming soon
pairing: college au! kwon soonyoung x ballerina f!reader
word count: 5.7k
content warnings: slowish burn with eventual smut, internalized perfectionism, performance anxiety, academic and artistic burnout, emotional repression, subtle corruption kink, drugs and alcohol. MDNI
authors note: in no way do I think I'm a good writer. I wrote this a while ago just for self indulgence and decided to post it for fun, so please understand.
songs for this chapter:
- Star Shopping by Lil Peep
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The morning after your shame spiral feels unreal, like maybe you dreamed it.
But you didn’t. Your body remembers.
There’s a soreness in your calves from pushing too hard in your late night rehearsal. A bruise forming low on your shin where you clipped the barre in frustration. Your mind might try to rewrite it as fiction, but your muscles know better. They ache with the truth.
You move on autopilot—again. Coffee, schedule, notes, quiz. You go through the motions like a well-oiled machine, but something’s… off.
Because now there’s a new thought crouched in the corner of your brain. Something raw and humming like feedback in a speaker.
Him.
The boy from the studio. Blonde dyed hair, sweat-drenched tank top, chain catching light. The way he moved—messy, fluid, arrogant as hell. The way his eyes locked onto yours when he caught you watching. That split-second before you bolted.
You haven’t stopped thinking about it. Which is… annoying. Inconvenient. Unacceptable, actually.
You don’t even know his name.
And yet, when you enter the dressing room before class that morning, you’re suddenly hyper-aware of every sound around you. Like your ears are tuned for static. Like some part of you is listening for him even when you’re trying not to.
“Did you see Hoshi’s routine in class yesterday?”
The name catches you mid-sip of your protein shake.
You freeze.
You recognize a few of the girls clustered near the vending machines—one with red hair always seen leaving jazz class, another who shares your math lecture but never bothers with notes. They’re mid-conversation, low and fast.
“I swear to god, he doesn’t even try. It’s disgusting.”
“I know,” one of them groans. “He’s like… terrifyingly good. It’s like watching gravity bend.”
You crouch to adjust your shoelaces, pretending it’s intentional. Your hands are trembling.
Someone laughs. “I heard he doesn’t even choreograph half the time. Just freestyles. Like… pure muscle memory and vibes.”
“God, I’d die for that kind of flow. He just gets music.”
“And don’t even get me started on the face.”
More laughter. A dreamy sigh. “He’s like the final boss of the department. You don’t even challenge him—you just try not to look like an idiot next to him.”
Your throat tightens. The laces slip from your fingers. You already feel like an idiot next to him — especially after being caught creeping on him the night before.
You feel your throat tighten, air catching awkwardly between swallows. Their words sink into you like ink bleeding through paper. Not just the compliments—those sting, yes—but the tone. The awe. The weight behind his name.
Hoshi.
You hadn’t known what to call him. Now you do.
And apparently, everyone else does too.
You knew he was good. One look at him dancing last night and that was obvious. But this? This was something else. He’s not just talented—he’s legend-tier. The kind of person people whisper about. The kind of person you definitely don’t want catching you slack-jawed outside a studio door like some repressed Victorian ghost girl.
You tie your laces too tight and wince.
The bell chimes. Class in ten minutes. You yank your jacket on, zip it up to your chin like armor, and march out without saying a word.
Your heart’s beating a little too fast. You tell yourself it’s just caffeine.
But deep down, you know better.
The studio is hot.
Sweat-slicked air, pulsing bass, the bite of harsh fluorescent lights overhead—everything feels too loud. Too close. You’re in uniform: charcoal gray leggings, a slate-blue wrap top cinched perfectly at the waist, and your warm-up jacket hugging your arms like it was made to hold you together. Soft-looking, but structured. Nothing about it is accidental.
You haven’t taken the jacket off all day.
You need the weight.
It feels like the only thing keeping you from coming undone.
Your bones feel too sharp without it.
The others around you are rolling their shoulders, cracking jokes, warming up with that easy looseness you haven’t felt in your body once this week. You stretch silently against the wall, jaw locked, heart already sprinting even before the music starts.
You’ve practiced this routine. Mapped every count. Studied the instructor’s foot placement, her weight shifts, the shape of her hands as they cut through air.
You know what it’s supposed to look like.
But every time you try, it’s like your body can’t remember how to speak the language.
“From the top!” your professor calls, already clapping the beat into existence.
The music drops heavy. Everyone moves as one—but you can feel yourself lagging before you even start.
You hit the counts, technically. Your arms are sharp, your chest pops when it’s supposed to. You pivot cleanly on beat, land with control. But it’s wrong.
It’s all wrong.
Where the others melt into the rhythm, you punch through it.
Where they ripple, you snap.
Where they glide, you grind your joints into the floor like you’re trying to force the groove into submission.
You’re not off-time. You’re just… tight. Artificial. Like a machine doing an impression of something human.
And it shows.
You see it in the mirror—the way your movements pull focus for the wrong reasons. You don’t look cool. You don’t look confident. You look terrified.
The music stops.
Silence stretches, and you feel the moment gather around you like a storm.
Your professor steps forward, hands on her hips. Her mouth is tight. Not cruel, exactly. Just tired. Like she’s done trying to find a gentler way to say this.
“Okay,” she says. “Let’s cut the music.”
You freeze. Everyone else does too.
She looks at the group, but her eyes settle on you.
“You’re not getting it.”
Your throat tightens.
“You’ve had a week. And I know you’re trying. But at a certain point, effort doesn’t matter if it doesn’t translate.”
You blink hard. Swallow it.
She keeps going.
“You’re holding tension in every limb. You’re not listening to the rhythm—you’re fighting it. There’s no soul in your movement. It’s just… choreography.”
Something behind your ribs twists.
“You’re technically clean, sure. But this isn’t ballet. This style needs release. Personality. Groove. And right now? You look like you're bracing for impact the entire time.”
Someone shifts their weight behind you. The sound makes you flinch.
The professor sighs. “Honestly? I don’t think hip-hop is for you.”
The words split the floor beneath you.
“I don’t say that lightly,” she adds. “Some people just don’t have the body language for it. That doesn’t mean you’re not talented—it just means you need to play to your strengths.”
Your spine straightens like it might hold back the heat crawling up your throat. You nod once, sharp and tiny.
She claps her hands again. “Alright, everyone else, back to position.”
You step out of the line.
No one says anything, but you can feel their eyes grazing over you like stray knives.
You walk to the back wall, crouch down, pretend to retie your shoe.
You don’t trust your face.
You don’t trust what’s rising inside you.
Because the thing is—you’ve been corrected before. Critiqued. Ballet is criticism. It’s pain. It’s sharpening your body into something useful.
But this feels different.
This feels like rejection.
You’ve never been told you didn’t belong in a style. Never been told outright to give up. And not in front of a full room.
You stare at the scuffed rubber on your sneaker. Try to blink away the sting building behind your eyes.
You should walk out. Shake it off. Prove her wrong next week.
But you can’t stop replaying it.
You’re not getting it. You look like you’re bracing for impact. I don’t think hip-hop is for you.
A part of you wants to be angry. To dig in your heels and overtrain until your knees give out.
But another part—smaller, quieter—is tired.
Tired of forcing it. Tired of failing in private and pretending it’s growth. Tired of dancing like you’re scared of being seen.
And that’s when it happens.
A flicker behind your eyelids. A memory you didn’t invite.
A boy alone in a studio.
Sweat on his jaw. Shirt clinging to his back. Limbs loose, music pouring through him like he trusted it. Like his body wasn’t a cage—it was a current.
You hadn’t realized, last night, what exactly you were watching.
But now?
Now you think maybe it was freedom.
The kind you’ve never felt. Not in your choreography. Not in your skin.
You don’t want to ask for help. You never do.
But the words from your professor are still ringing in your ears like bruises.
And suddenly, swallowing your pride feels easier than drowning in it.
You don’t know what you’re doing here.
The hallway hums with the kind of midnight stillness that makes every fluorescent light buzz louder than it should. Your shadow follows you in pieces—fractured by the low glow bleeding from under Studio C’s door.
You’re wearing what you always wear when you need to feel in control.
High-waisted black leggings, freshly laundered. A fitted ribbed tank top. Your sleek zip-up jacket, zipped halfway and snug across your ribs, sleeves pushed to your elbows with deliberate symmetry. There’s a tiny monogram stitched near the collar—just your initials, delicate and silver, like even your clothes are expected to perform.
Your ballet teacher once said sweatpants were for people who had already given up. That if you looked relaxed, you were relaxed. That discipline wasn’t just about how you danced—it was how you entered a room. How you carried your body. How you never looked uncertain. Never looked soft.
You believed her. You still do. Which is why being here—like this—feels like a betrayal.
You’re standing outside the one place you swore you wouldn’t come back to. Studio C.
You stare at the door. Music pulses faintly behind it—muffled bass, a steady rhythm. It’s looser than last time. Less aggressive. Still, it makes something tighten behind your ribs.
You open the door.
The hinges creak.
He’s already dancing.
Back turned. Shirt darkened with sweat. Blonde hair a mess. His shoulders are moving in slow, syrupy pops that melt into a glide, like his body is chewing on the beat before swallowing it whole. You almost lose your nerve.
Then he turns.
He doesn’t stop.
Just meets your gaze like he expected you.
A smirk tugs at his mouth as he hits one last move, lets the music carry his body into a final spin, and hits pause with a smooth flick of his fingers.
Silence falls.
“Didn’t think I’d see you again,” he says, breathless but amused.
You ignore the comment. “Can I talk to you?”
He tilts his head, studying you like he’s trying to figure out what changed.
You don’t wait. “I need help.”
He blinks. A pause.
“With…?”
You exhale. “Hip-hop.”
The smirk sharpens. “You?”
You cross your arms. “Yes.”
He wipes his forehead with the hem of his shirt, revealing a flash of toned stomach, then lets it fall back into place.
“Didn’t peg you for the type to ask.”
“I’m not,” you admit, jaw tight. “But I need to get better. And I don’t have time to figure it out on my own.”
His eyes narrow slightly, considering.
You press on. “I’ll pay you.”
That gets a reaction.
He scoffs, laughing once—short and disbelieving. “You’re offering me money?”
“Yes.”
“You serious?”
You shift your weight. “I don’t expect you to do it for free.”
He walks toward you slowly, water bottle in hand, expression unreadable.
“Let me get this straight,” he says. “You snuck in here last night, watched me like I was an exhibit, ran off like your hair was on fire—then show up again tonight, ask for help, and throw cash at me like it’s a tutoring session?”
You bite the inside of your cheek. “I’m not trying to insult you.”
“Too late.”
You square your shoulders. “I just—don’t usually ask people for things. And I wasn’t sure if you’d say yes.”
He watches you for a long moment. Something in his face softens—not enough to be obvious. Just enough to feel it.
“You’re used to earning things,” he says quietly. “Not being given them.”
You don’t answer.
He sets the water bottle down. “Keep your money.”
“But—”
“I don’t want it.”
“Why not?”
He shrugs. “Because it’s way more fun messing with you for free.”
Your eyes narrow. “You’re enjoying this.”
“Wildly.”
Another beat passes between you—tense, sharp.
Then his tone shifts.
“You really want help?”
“Yes.”
“Then lose the attitude.”
Your arms tighten across your chest. “This is my normal tone.”
“Yikes,” he mutters.
You roll your eyes.
He grins, and somehow it makes the space feel smaller.
“Alright,” he says, stepping back. “Let’s see what you’ve got.”
You blink in surprise. “Wait—what? Right now? No. We have to schedule this.”
He shrugs, as if it’s no big deal. “Schedules are boring.”
“I need a plan,” you insist firmly.
He smirks. “Fine. When?”
You glance at your watch, already calculating. “Seven tomorrow night.”
He nods without hesitation. “Seven it is.”
You take a deep breath and turn toward the door.
You try not to flinch when it clicks shut behind you.
You arrive at the studio twenty minutes early, nerves tightening every muscle. The polished floor gleams under the harsh fluorescent lights, reflecting your precise posture. You’re here early because that’s what you do—you prepare, you control, you own every second before anything even starts.
You pace softly near the door, hands clasped tightly in front of you. Your ballet jacket, monogrammed with your initials, feels heavier than usual, like armor against the unknown.
Minutes tick by. You check your watch again, breath shallow, heart pounding with a mix of anticipation and something like dread.
Then, the door creaks open.
He strolls in—ten minutes late—with a lazy grin and an easy confidence. His hair is messier than before, strands falling over his forehead like he just rolled out of bed. He’s wearing a loose black graphic tee and baggy jeans, sneakers slapping softly against the floor. No sense of urgency, no hint of apology.
“Sorry, I’m fashionably late,” he says, flashing you a crooked smile that’s equal parts cocky and disarming.
You narrow your eyes but say nothing.
He drops his bag carelessly by the wall and stretches, cracking his neck as if the day’s been too easy so far.
You clear your throat. “We agreed on seven.”
He shrugs, that trademark smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. “You get here early, I show up late. It’s the perfect balance.”
You bite back a retort and instead set your jaw, stepping forward. “Let’s get started.”
He laughs, pulls out his phone, and taps play. The bass rolls through the room, deep and steady, vibrating in your chest.
He moves first, fluid and unforced, every motion dripping with effortless cool. You try to mirror him, but your body is stiff, bound by years of discipline and control. Your arms don’t flow; your feet hit the floor like you’re following a script you can’t rewrite.
He glances your way, amusement flickering in his eyes. “You look like you’re trying to dance your way out of a straightjacket.”
You flush, cheeks heating, but refuse to break. “I’m just warming up.”
He chuckles, shaking his head. “Alright, Tightwire,” he says, the nickname catching you off guard, “let’s see if you can loosen up.”
“Tightwire?” You blink at him, incredulous. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
He grins, eyes twinkling with mischief. “It means you’re wound tight—like you’re balancing on a wire—but I’m kinda curious to see if you’ll fall or fly.”
You glare, but a reluctant smile tugs at your lips despite yourself.
He shrugs. “Hey, gotta call it like I see it…”
You roll your eyes. “Thanks for the vote of confidence.”
He holds up his hands in mock surrender. “Just trying to keep things interesting.”
The music shifts, a little faster now, and you try again, letting the beat pulse through your limbs. Your movements aren’t perfect, but they’re softer, less mechanical. He watches with that half-grin, like he’s betting on you to surprise him.
“You’re getting there,” he says after a moment. “But don’t think too much. Dance isn’t about thinking. It’s about feeling.”
You nod, biting your lip, trying to absorb the advice even if it goes against everything you’ve been taught.
He steps closer, voice dropping just enough to make you lean in without realizing it. “Come on, tightwire. Show me you can let go.”
And maybe, just maybe, you’re starting to believe you can.
The bass rolls steady through the studio as he steps back, watching you with that laid-back, half-amused expression like this whole thing is just a game to him. You feel the weight of his gaze—not heavy, but definitely there, sizing you up like he’s betting you’ll crack under pressure.
You press your lips together, squaring your shoulders. Precision is your armor, but in this moment, it feels more like a cage.
“Alright, so what now?” you ask, voice sharper than you intend.
He shrugs, leaning against the wall with that easy confidence that drives you nuts. “Now, you stop thinking so much. Feel the music. Let it move you instead of fighting it.”
You glance at him, disbelief flickering across your face. 
A slow grin curls at the corner of his mouth, eyes flickering with that mix of teasing and challenge he wears like a second skin. He leans back against the wall, arms crossed, studying you like you’re a puzzle he’s just starting to solve.
“You’re a ballerina, right?” His voice is low, almost casual, but there’s an edge to it—as if he’s daring you to prove him wrong. “I’m guessing, based on the way you move—tight, deliberate. Ballet’s all about control. Precision in every muscle, every breath, everything locked down like a well-rehearsed script.”
He pushes off the wall, stepping closer, his gaze sharp but not unkind. “Hip hop? It’s a whole different game. It’s about letting go. Feeling the music pulse through you, even if it’s just a crack open—enough to catch the rhythm before it slips away.”
You bite your lip, trying to wrap your mind around what letting go even looks like. The idea feels like a foreign language to your body, which has been trained to hold tight, stay perfect, never falter.
“Look, I don’t expect you to suddenly turn into a free spirit. But maybe just loosen the grip a little? Stop trying to tame the music and ride it instead.”
His casual tone contrasts with the intensity of his gaze, and for a moment, you catch a flicker of something real beneath the playfulness. It’s a challenge, but not a cruel one. More like a dare.
You cross your arms, meeting his eyes steadily. “And if I fall?”
He shrugs again, grinning. “Then I’ll be there to catch you.”
That small, unexpected softness undercuts the smirk, and your chest tightens. You want to push it aside, remind yourself this is just practice, just dance, nothing more.
You nod slowly, taking a breath. “Fine.”
He grins wider. “That’s what I like to hear. Now move.”
He steps back, giving you space, but his eyes never leave you. The music shifts—low bass curling around the edges of the room like smoke, thick and slow. He doesn’t speak again. Doesn’t offer instruction. Just waits, arms loose at his sides, like he’s already read the ending and isn’t in a rush to spoil it.
You plant your feet, pulse ticking in your throat like a second metronome. You know how to move. You’ve moved your whole life. But this? This feels like standing on a ledge with no choreographer telling you when to jump.
Still, you try.
You raise your arms—already wrong. Too rigid, too formal. You catch yourself and lower them again, forcing a breath through your nose. The beat rolls on. You take a step, then another, mirroring what you’ve seen in class. What you’ve seen him do.
It doesn’t work.
You’re too upright. Too precise. Each movement feels like it’s passed through six filters of correction before it even reaches your limbs. You know you’re getting it wrong—can feel it in the resistance of your own body.
You glance up. He’s watching, expression unreadable, one brow arched just slightly, but not mocking. Just… waiting.
“I look stupid,” you mutter.
“No,” he says, arms crossed again, voice lighter now. “You look scared.”
You bristle, heat flaring in your cheeks. “I’m not scared.”
He tilts his head. “Then what are you holding onto so hard you can’t move?”
The question lands harder than you expect. Because you don’t have an answer. Or maybe you have too many.
You look down at your feet. “I don’t know how to be bad at something,” you say quietly.
There’s a beat of silence, and when you lift your gaze, something in his face has shifted—like he sees it now. The pressure. The fear. The weight of always being the best, or at least looking like it.
He steps closer, close enough that the air between you feels warmer, like static before a storm. “That’s the thing, ballerina,” he murmurs. “You’re not supposed to be good yet. You’re supposed to fuck up.”
You blink. “Is that how you learned?”
He laughs under his breath, rubbing the back of his neck. “Are you kidding? I looked like a wind-up toy on a sugar high my first time dancing. Arms everywhere. Legs doing God knows what. It was tragic.”
A startled laugh escapes you before you can stop it. He grins, triumphant.
“There it is,” he says. “You laugh like someone who doesn’t let themselves do it often.”
You roll your eyes, but there’s less bite in it now.
“Okay, again. But this time? Don’t think. Just feel.”
You square up, shifting your weight. Let the bass ripple up from the floor into your spine. Your body still resists—but less than before. You move again. It’s not perfect. Not even close. But for a few seconds, it’s not about perfection.
He watches you closely, not correcting, not stopping you. Just… watching.
And somehow, that’s what makes your hands loosen. Just a little.
You don’t want to stop.
Even when your muscles ache. Even when the sweat is dripping down your spine and your chest rises in sharp, controlled breaths like you’re trying not to let on that you’re gasping. You’ve gone through the combo five times now, and not once has it felt right. Not once have you felt like you deserved to be here.
“I’m good,” you say quickly as he pauses the music. Too quickly. “We can keep going.”
But Hoshi tosses you a look over his shoulder like he’s heard this before. Like he’s not buying it.
“Nah,” he says, already flopping down onto the studio floor like gravity pulled him there. “You’re gonna burn yourself out if you keep chasing the ghost of whatever ‘perfect’ means in your head.”
You hesitate, hovering awkwardly near the center of the floor.
“I’m fine,” you insist, but your voice lacks conviction now.
He props himself up on his elbows, sweat-dampened hair curling at his temples. “You’ve got this edge like you think the world’s gonna end if you take five minutes.”
You bristle. “Some of us don’t have time to waste.”
His eyes narrow slightly—not offended, more curious. “That why you’re always wound so tight? Afraid of losing a second?”
You don’t answer, but you do lower yourself down, slow and stiff, like surrendering is a foreign language. Your limbs ache in protest, and the cold bite of the studio floor against your back makes you shiver.
For a moment, there’s just breathing. The hum of fluorescent lights. The ghost of the bass still buzzing under your skin.
Then, casually, he says, “You know, I just realized—I don’t even know your name. Been calling you Tightwire in my head this whole time.”
You turn your head to look at him. He’s watching you, one arm folded behind his head, that same smirk playing on his lips before you answer with your name.
He nods once, like he’s storing it away somewhere private. “Nice. I’m Hoshi, by the way.”
“I know,” you say, a little too fast.
His brow arches. “Oh?”
You glance away, trying not to let your ears burn. “Some people in the dressing room were talking about you. Said you’re insanely good. A little cocky.”
He laughs—full-bodied and unbothered. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”
You don’t say anything, but your lips twitch like you’re fighting a smile.
He stretches his arms above his head with a groan. “You always this intense?”
You lie back again, letting your gaze fall to the ceiling. “Only when I’m awake.”
He whistles low under his breath. “Damn. What’s it like in that brain of yours?”
You don’t answer. You don’t really know how to. But something about the quiet between you shifts—thickens, softens. Not quite tension. Not quite comfort. Just... awareness.
He breaks it with a chuckle. “Better tighten that bun, Tightwire. We’ve got a long way to go before you stop looking like a ballerina trapped in the wrong movie.”
You sit up slowly, chest still rising fast. “I want to get it right.”
His voice is softer this time. “You will.”
And for the first time tonight, you almost believe him.
Almost.
But belief is a luxury you don’t let yourself touch yet.
You stay quiet, letting the echo of the music and the pounding of your pulse fill the space instead. He doesn’t press. Just leans back on his hands, eyes skating lazily over the ceiling like he’s already half-tuned out.
You rise slowly, every muscle sore, every line of your body aching with the unfamiliarity of it all. The floor feels harder than usual beneath your feet. Or maybe you’re just feeling how far you have to go.
“Same time tomorrow?” he asks, casual, like it doesn’t matter either way.
You pause. “I need an exact time.”
That makes him glance up. He smirks. “7 sharp, then.”
You nod, already halfway to the door, spine straight, jaw locked.
His voice follows just before it closes behind you. “Better stretch tonight, Tightwire. Tomorrow’s worse.”
You don’t answer.
But your fists curl tighter around your jacket sleeve, and your steps are clipped all the way back to your dorm.
This isn’t working yet.
But you’ll make it.
Because you don’t know how not to.
The studio is cooler than last time, lights dimmed low to soften the harshness of the mirrors. Outside, twilight is bleeding into the campus sky—pale pinks and grays washing over the windows like a lullaby the room refuses to listen to. Here, the bass thumps quietly through the speaker in the corner. Not loud. Just enough to vibrate under your skin.
You showed up early again. Of course you did.
This time, Hoshi wasn’t ten minutes late.
Just five.
He strolled in with a Gatorade in hand and his hoodie half-zipped, sleeves pushed up to his elbows like he might start dancing or start a fight—either seemed equally possible. His sweatpants hung low on his hips, worn from use but somehow still stylish, and the tank he wore underneath clung to him in a way that was definitely unfair. His hair was tousled again—purposefully careless, like the rest of him.
He took one look at you pacing, gave a low whistle, and said, “Tightwire’s back.”
You didn’t rise to it. Just uncapped your water bottle and muttered, “We said seven.”
He held up his Gatorade in a mock toast. “And here I am. Growth.”
Now, fifteen minutes in, he hasn’t said much else.
And it’s driving you insane.
He’s been circling the room, hood down now, hands in his pockets, as if this were a museum and you were the exhibit. Every so often he hums or nods with the music, eyes following your movements—noting something. Calculating. You hate how much you want to know what he’s thinking.
You’ve been moving since you got there. Sticking to the choreography he gave you yesterday, step by step, beat by beat. You’ve practiced it in your dorm room, in your head, in your dreams. You thought today would feel better.
It doesn’t.
You’re already sweating.
Not from exertion—but from frustration. Every move sticks. Every beat slips through your fingers like water.
You push through another pass of the routine, jaw clenched, eyes locked on the mirror. You’re on beat. Technically. Your footwork is clean. You hit your marks.
So why does it still feel wrong?
You stop mid-step, breath ragged, palms curling into fists at your sides.
Behind you, Hoshi whistles low under his breath. “That looked painful.”
Your glare shoots straight through the mirror at his reflection. “It wasn’t painful.”
He strolls closer, tapping the volume down on the speaker. “It was like watching someone file their taxes in dance form.”
Your jaw tightens. “I’m doing the steps.”
“Exactly.” He drops into a lazy crouch, arms resting on his knees. “You’re doing them. Not feeling them.”
You exhale sharply and turn to face him. “Not everyone can roll out of bed and move like their bones are made of rubber bands.”
He smirks. “Flattering. But rubber bands don’t have this much charm.”
You don’t laugh. You’re too keyed up. “I just want to get this right.”
“Why?” he asks simply. “Why does it have to be right instead of real?”
You falter.
“I mean, when did you decide hip hop had one right answer? You’re not solving an equation.”
“No, I’m trying not to embarrass myself,” you snap.
He stands again, stretching his arms overhead. “You’re trying to ace it. That’s the problem.”
You fold your arms. “So you’re saying don’t try?”
“I’m saying…” He studies you a beat too long. “You’re dancing like you don’t trust yourself. I wanna see what you do trust.”
You blink. “What?”
He nods toward the center of the room. “Ballet. Show me.”
Your brows knit. “Why would you want to see that?”
“Because,” he says, voice low but sure, “I’ve only seen you in defense mode. I wanna see what you look like when you’re home.”
Your spine straightens instinctively. “I can’t just… do it.”
He raises a brow. “Why not?”
“I need my shoes.” Your voice comes out sharper than you mean. “And I need to warm up. And I haven’t done my back stretches yet. I have rituals y’know… I don’t—”
You stop yourself, but it’s too late. The panic already cracked through.
His head tilts, eyes catching yours. “Hey,” he says, tone gentler now. “Then do that. Do all of it. I’m not going anywhere.”
You swallow hard.
“I didn’t mean—” you start, but he cuts in, not unkind.
“Don’t act like time’s your enemy,” he says. “You’ve got it. Use it. However you need.”
That silences you more than anything else.
Because he’s not wrong.
Time is something you’ve always tried to outrun. To out-schedule. To dominate before it could dominate you. You don’t know how to exist in a moment unless it’s mapped, controlled, checked off.
But right now? There’s no clock dictating your start. Just Hoshi, leaning against the mirror, giving you space.
So you nod slowly. “Okay. I just… give me a second.”
“Take ten,” he says with a shrug. “I’ll be here.”
You move to your bag, fingers finding the soft, worn fabric of your ballet shoes. The satin slips through your hands like breath. You sit down and begin your quiet ritual—each wrap of the ribbons like a thread sewing you back together. He watches, but doesn’t speak, doesn’t rush.
You roll your ankles out, then rise, poised and still.
And finally—when it’s just you and the studio and the silence that lets you breathe—
You dance.
No music. Just the memory of it in your bones. The stretch and pull, the rise and fall. Every movement cut with precision, but this time, there’s something else in it too. A flicker of emotion. A note of defiance. Grace sharpened by something personal.
And Hoshi watches.
He’s quiet now, back pressed to the mirror, arms crossed loosely over his chest. But his usual smirk is gone. Replaced by something still, almost reverent. He watches the way your muscles glide beneath your skin, the way your lines slice through the air with deadly accuracy—like you’re carving out space in the world just by existing in it.
But there’s tension there, too. A tightness at the edge of every perfect landing. Like you’re trying to escape something that’s stitched into your very ribs. He can feel it in his chest as he watches you turn—controlled, contained, clenched.
Like you’re dancing against an invisible wall, not with the room around you.
You finish with a single, poised breath, shoulders lifted, jaw set like a blade.
And still—he doesn’t say anything.
Not right away.
He unfolds his arms slowly, and it takes him a second to find the right words. His gaze stays on you, steady. No teasing, no flash of teeth. Just something deeper now. Almost sad.
“You’re really good,” he says, voice low and a little rough. “But you look like you’re suffocating.”
Tag List: @minafrost @codeinebelle @sojuxxi @bestboileeknow @angelsbitx @socialsymphonies
(Let me know if you would like to be added to the taglist <3)
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maxdibert · 20 hours ago
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I don't get the idea that Severus is "the one character that it's important to keep as a white straight man"... Like, why? What do they mean?
It's important that's he's white so he can be a former death eater? That doesn't make sense, because race isn't the same as blood purity. Also, who says you can't headcanon him as asian or other race?
It's important that he's straight because of his relationship with Lily? But he could love Lily and still be bi/pan. Or asexual. That changes nothing. Not to mention that he's very queer coded, as many people have pointed out.
Who am I kidding, I know what they mean. They want Severus to be a cishet white man so it can "make sense" that he joined the death eaters. So it looks like he is "privileged" compared to everyone else. Which is ridiculous, considering we are talking about someone who grew up in poverty. How is that your average "privileged white man"?
The more I think about it, the more it strikes me how desperately these people cling to that monstrous image they’ve built of Severus and how, in order for it to make sense in their heads, he has to be a white, straight man. Like, that’s not a coincidence. It’s literally the only way they can maintain that flat, one-dimensional, almost propagandistic version of him. Because, of course, if you start adding layers, if you acknowledge that he’s working-class, that he grew up in an abusive home, that he possibly had mental health issues, that he was marginalized and isolated as a teen then suddenly the “pure evil” narrative doesn’t hold up anymore. It doesn’t fit their symbolic scapegoat mold.
And that’s where it gets interesting, because what they’re doing —whether they realize it or not— is reducing the human experience to this hyper-individualistic, neoliberal formula where only certain identity markers matter. In their minds, being white and male automatically means being in a position of power, always, in every context, like race and gender are the only axes of oppression that exist. As if class, poverty, trauma, neglect, or mental illness don’t count. It’s a logic that comes straight out of hegemonic U.S. discourse —the kind of stuff that’s been exported worldwide through social media— where “white man” equals top of the food chain, no questions asked. But that logic doesn’t work everywhere.
Because no, being a white man in liberal US society is not the same as being a white, working-class man in a caste-like society disguised as a democracy, like Britain. The HP world is clearly modeled on British aristocratic structures, where class is everything. Blood status, last name, old money... that’s what determines your place. What good is whiteness if you’ve got no money, if you live in a grimy little house on Spinner’s End, if your dad beats you, and your classmates mock you because your robes are second-hand? Race won’t save you from that. Being a man won’t protect you from public humiliation, loneliness, or social contempt. But these people don’t get it, because they’re viewing everything through the lens of Twitter USA 2020.
And then there’s the most disturbing part: this obsession with “rewriting” characters. Like, giving a character a different ethnicity or sexual orientation isn’t a problem in itself (in fact, it can be interesting in many cases), but here, the subtext is twisted. What they’re doing isn’t reinterpretation, it’s moral laundering. It’s using oppressed identities as moral shields. As if being gay, or racialized, or trans suddenly made your actions immune to criticism. As if belonging to a minority group automatically made you a better person. And that’s not just a childish view of the world, it’s a dangerous one.
Because what are they really saying, deep down? That if the abuser isn’t white or straight, then it’s not abuse? That if someone from a minority attacks someone from the “dominant” group, then it’s fine? Then it’s not violence? And that’s deeply disturbing. Because it implies that they’ve truly internalized the idea that abuse only exists when it comes from above, and never in reverse. That power is only ever structural, never situational, emotional, or interpersonal. But that’s just not true. Abuse is abuse, no matter who commits it. And no, turning the victim into a symbol of dominant hegemony doesn’t make your violence any less violent. Even if that “dominant” victim is a poor, traumatized, working-class teenage boy. Apparently, none of that matters.
The logic is absurd. And the worst part is it’s not innocent. Because behind all this, there’s a desperate need to justify certain symbolic (and sometimes literal) forms of aggression under the excuse that they’re aimed at “the enemy.” But if you need to turn another person into a flattened ideological prop just to feel good about hurting them then you’ve already dehumanized them. And honestly, that’s what’s terrifying. And, certainly, that's so close to fascist mentality. The actual one, the REAL one.
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ladyoflucky · 2 days ago
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Soooo in emps favorite child au.... how is Erda? Was she like second parent to baby perpetual? Big E and she saw mc across the room, liked their vibe and decided to adopt them
And now big E has his huge goal, and he is so godlike, but mc reminds him about times then everything wasn't so grim. They are near him, so he is human. All around him is real, but all that happened to him in the past was just as real. He is just a human and always was, and mc knows it, remembers it, so it was true.
So he had a child normal way(adopting is variation of norm), which is human thing to do. He is definitely normal human. Mc is proof he is not a god
Yeah.... sorry, I wanted to know that happened to Erda. Sorry I wrote a lot
Wait how did I forget Erda wtf
Anyway I’m going to jump through hoops to explain how Erda met MC and how MC sees her before we get to relationship
I’m not entirely sure if Erda and Big E were in a relationship but she has been by the Emperor’s side since he was Neoth, so i guess MC and her met when Big E was pretending to be ‘normal’, with Erda maybe working alongside MC and Big E?? (I need to rewrite this eventually)
lets say she lived with E. Therefore MC could come to the conclusion that E and Erda are in a relationship, and Erda probably has a much better grasp on how to act human than E, so MC likes Erda more than E, because s they can set boundaries with her.
Erda feels motherly in a way to MC, similar to how Big E got attached, but she actually acts like a normal person about it.
Unfortunately after the whole ‘fleeing from the Emperor’ thing, Erda doesn’t get to see MC :( unless MC meets her while cruising around the universe.
Anyway, Big E probably uses MC to fend off his weird worshippers like ‘hey. Look at my child who looks 100% human and has no special powers (ignore the fact you can’t hurt them without hurting yourself) if I was a god could my kid be so normal? No.’
ALSO DWW ABOUT WRITING TOO MUCH I love your asks sm 🌷🌷 shakes you around
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hermitw · 1 year ago
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Complaint that the best thing I've ever written might be this fic where Sukuna's milk-dripping tiddies save us from the shibuya incident
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wings-0f-sorrow · 4 months ago
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'it feels like color only exists when you're here.'
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artisimpossible · 1 year ago
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Saw a fun little conversation on Threads but I don't have a Threads account, so I couldn't reply directly, but I sure can talk about it here!
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I've been wanting to get into this for awhile, so here we go! First and foremost, I wanna say that "Emmaskies" here is really hitting the nail on the head despite having "no insider info". I don't want this post to be read as me shitting on trad pub editors or authors because that is fundamentally not what's happening.
Second, I want to say that this reply from Aaron Aceves is also spot on:
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There are a lot of reviewers who think "I didn't enjoy this" means "no one edited this because if someone edited it, they would have made it something I like". As I talk about nonstop on this account, that is not a legitimate critique. However, as Aaron also mentions, rushed books are a thing that also happens.
As an author with 2 trad pub novels and 2 trad pub anthologies (all with HarperCollins, the 2nd largest trad publisher in the country), let me tell you that if you think books seem less edited lately, you are not making that up! It's true! Obviously, there are still a sizeable number of books that are being edited well, but something I was talking about before is that you can't really know that from picking it up. Unlike where you can generally tell an indie book will be poorly edited if the cover art is unprofessional or there are typoes all over the cover copy, trad is broken up into different departments, so even if editorial was too overworked to get a decent edit letter churned out, that doesn't mean marketing will be weak.
One person said that some publishers put more money into marketing than editorial and that's why this is happening, but I fundamentally disagree because many of these books that are getting rushed out are not getting a whole lot by way of marketing either! And I will say that I think most authors are afraid to admit if their book was rushed out or poorly edited because they don't want to sabotage their books, but guess what? I'm fucking shameless. Café Con Lychee was a rush job! That book was poorly edited! And it shows! Where Meet Cute Diary got 3 drafts from me and my beta readers, another 2 drafts with me and my agent, and then another 2 drafts with me and my editor, Café Con Lychee got a *single* concrete edit round with my editor after I turned in what was essentially a first draft. I had *three weeks* to rewrite the book before we went to copy edits. And the thing is, this wasn't my fault. I knew the book needed more work, but I wasn't allowed more time with it. My editor was so overworked, she was emailing me my edit letter at 1am. The publisher didn't care if the book was good, and then they were upset that its sales weren't as high at MCD's, but bffr. A book that doesn't live up to its potential is not going to sell at the same rate as one that does!
And this may sound like a fluke, but it's not. I'm not naming names because this is a deeply personal thing to share, but I have heard from *many* authors who were not happy with their second books. Not because they didn't love the story but because they felt so rushed either with their initial drafts or their edits that they didn't feel like it lived up to their potential. I also know of authors who demanded extra time because they knew their books weren't there yet only to face big backlash from their publisher or agent.
I literally cannot stress to you enough that publisher's *do not give a fuck* about how good their products are. If they can trick you into buying a poorly edited book with an AI cover that they undercut the author for, that is *better* than wasting time and money paying authors and editors to put together a quality product. And that's before we get into the blatant abuse that happens at these publishers and why there have been mass exoduses from Big 5 publishers lately.
There's also a problem where publishers do not value their experienced staff. They're laying off so many skilled, dedicated, long-term committed editors like their work never meant anything. And as someone who did freelance sensitivity reading for the Big 5, I can tell you that the way they treat freelancers is *also* abysmal. I was almost always given half the time I asked for and paid at less than *half* of my general going rate. Authors publishing out of their own pockets could afford my rate, but apparently multi-billion dollar corporations couldn't. Copy edits and proofreads are often handled by freelancers, meaning these are people who aren't familiar with the author's voice and often give feedback that doesn't account for that, plus they're not people who are gonna be as invested in the book, even before the bad payment and ridiculous timelines.
So, anyway, 1. go easy on authors and editors when you can. Most of us have 0 say in being in this position and authors who are in breech of their contract by refusing to turn in a book on time can face major legal and financial ramifications. 2. Know that this isn't in your head. If you disagree with the choices a book makes, that's probably just a disagreement, but if you feel like it had so much potential but just *didn't reach it*, that's likely because the author didn't have time to revise it or the editor didn't have time to give the sort of thorough edits it needed. 3. READ INDIE!!! Find the indie authors putting in the work the Big 5's won't do and support them! Stop counting on exploitative mega-corporations to do work they have no intention of doing.
Finally, to all my readers who read Café Con Lychee and loved it, thank you. I love y'all, and I appreciate y'all, and I really wish I'd been given the chance to give y'all the book you deserved. I hope I can make it up to you in 2025.
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recordmemes · 13 days ago
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༘⋆。 stirring the pot starters
a mix of arguments, tension, manipulation, gossiping, fighting, & general emotional messiness!
you  weren't  supposed  to  hear  that.
don't  look  at  me  like  i'm  the  only  one  lying.
want  to  tell  them,  or  should  i?
you  think  i  don't  know  what  you  did?
i've  hit  people  for  less.
oh,  i  thought  you  already  knew.
that's  funny,  you  didn't  say  that  last  night.
say  that  again.  i  dare  you.
you  wanna  talk  about  loyalty?
no  offense,  but  if  you're  the  last  to  know,  that's  on  you.
go  ahead  -  pretend  like  it  wasn't  your  idea!
they  deserve  to  know  the  truth.
you  didn't  hear  this  from  me,  but  -
oh,  so  now  you  care?
don't  flatter  yourself.  you  were  just  convenient.
you  crossed  a  line.
we  had  bets  on  how  long  it  would  last.
it's  not  even  a  secret  anymore.
you  don't  get  to  cry  about  it  now.
touch  me  again  and  see  what  happens.
say  it  again.  louder  this  time.
you  really  thought  nobody  would  find  out?
don't  act  so  innocent.
okay,  but  am  i  the  villain  for  laughing?
tell  me  who  else  knows.  right  now.
this  whole  time,  and  you  didn't  say  a  word?
don't  act  brave  now.
you're  really  gonna  do  this  here?
it  wasn't  supposed  to  get  this  far!
you  can't  rewrite  history.
oh,  i'd  never  say  it  to  their  faces.
it  was  supposed  to  stay  between  us.
we're  all  thinking  it,  i  just  said  it.
you're  not  as  untouchable  as  you  act.
do  you  even  feel  guilty?
they  warned  me  about  you.
go  ahead,  make  it  worse.
if  you  repeat  this,  i'll  deny  everything.
the  next  thing  out  of  your  mouth  better  be  an  apology.
you're  about  three  seconds  away  from  regretting  this.
you  keep  pushing,  and  i'll  push  you  back.
they're  going  to  find  out.
one  more  lie,  and  i  walk.
they're  lying  to  you.
you  need  to  back  off.  now.
you're  defending  them?  after  everything?
don't  try  to  hide  it.
tell  me,  was  i  just  a  placeholder?
you  really  think  sorry  fixes  this?
there's  nothing  left  to  say.
don't  act  like  you're  the  one  hurting.
i  don't  owe  you  any  explanation.
whatever  helps  you  sleep  at  night.
you  should've  seen  this  coming.
i  hope  it  was  worth  it.
i  told  the  truth.  just  not  all  of  it.
you'll  miss  me  before  i  miss  you.
smile.  you're  ruining  the  mood.
i'd  watch  that  tone  if  i  were  you.
it's  not  my  fault  you  believed  me.
you  have  such  a  talent  for  pretending  you're  innocent.
we  both  know  this  is  over.
i  never  said  i  was  a  good  person.
i  thought  you  were  different.
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solxamber · 9 months ago
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Trash Novel Chronicles: Love Triangles and Royal Rumbles - Leona Kingscholar x Reader
When you get isekai'd as the male lead in the novel where your favorite character, Leona Kingscholar is the second male lead, all that's left to do is rewrite the romance!
Series Masterlist
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You're just an average person, doing normal human things like eating, sleeping, and, of course, staring at your poster of Leona Kingscholar for three hours straight. Totally healthy behavior. People have hobbies, right? Some knit, some jog, and you…? You defend your fictional lion husband from slander on the internet. You’re practically a digital knight in shining armor.
The story that has consumed your very soul? Oh, just your typical Cliché Villainess Academy Novel: Revenge Edition™. The plot is so by-the-book, it’s basically a war crime against creativity. Female lead? She’s been in love with the male lead since he gave some boring welcome speech that apparently hit her so hard, her brain rewired itself into a romantic mess.
The villainess? Obviously in love with the male lead too, but her one and only goal in life is making the heroine’s existence a never-ending trainwreck of public embarrassment. And the male lead? Sweet summer child. He just wants to get his degree and avoid eye contact with all of these lunatics.
Enter: Leona Kingscholar, the second male lead. The man, the myth, the walking sarcasm machine. He’s there purely to fuel jealousy in everyone else’s love story, but for you? He’s everything. The brooding, lazy, hot second male lead who rolls his eyes at every plot point like he’s just as done with this novel as you are. He has better things to do, like nap, but here he is, dragged into this mess by proximity.
If it were up to you, he and the male lead would run off together, leave the heroine and villainess to start their own hobby club about emotional devastation, and the two guys would live happily ever after in matching beach chairs somewhere.
But no. Instead, you’re stuck reading about her fawning over him while Leona is just… there. Existing. The only thing keeping your interest alive.
And now? Now, your loyalty to Leona Kingscholar is about to pay off. The fan event of the century is just days away. It’s going to be glorious. A whole day dedicated to Leona—merch, fan contests, life-sized cardboard cutouts (which, let’s be honest, you’re ready to risk it all for). You've cleared your schedule, mentally prepared yourself for the inevitable squealing, and created a battle plan for acquiring the best merch before everyone else.
But fate? Fate’s cruel.
You’re casually defending Leona’s honor online as usual, battling some no-name troll who dares to claim that the male lead is "better written." (HA! You laugh in their wrong face.) But then—what’s this? A an likes your tweet about Leona! And not just any author. THE ONE YOU LOVE. The serotonin shoots through you like an adrenaline shot straight to the brain.
Your heart’s racing. You’re vibrating at a frequency only dogs can hear. You leap out of your chair like some majestic gazelle—or at least that’s what you tell yourself as you promptly trip over the plushie army that guards your floor.
Before you know it, you’re tumbling, body flailing like a noodle, bouncing down the stairs in what feels like slow motion. The world spins. Your merch shelves mock you from the distance. You land at the bottom in a heap, your soul floating just above your body.
"Is this… how it ends?" you wheeze, gasping for breath, more in shock than pain. As your vision starts to fade, all you can think is: I never made it to the Leona event….
And with that, you die. Crushed under the weight of fandom.
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You wake up, and your first thought isn’t the usual, “Oh, I’ve been isekai’d into a new world, how fascinating, I’ll have time to adjust in a moment of peace and reflection.” No. You wake up and it hits you like a brick: Oh no. Female lead.
But then, a beam of hope breaks through the clouds of despair and shines down on you like a heavenly spotlight: Wait. Leona Kingscholar is here.
Before you can even revel in the thought of being in the same universe as your broody lion crush, reality smacks you upside the head. Loud voices are pulling you back to the scene unfolding right in front of your very eyes.
You blink. Hold on. This is not a bedroom, and this is definitely not a private moment to gather your thoughts like in every other isekai novel. Oh no, you’ve been thrown directly into the group project scene.
You know, the one where the villainess is sharpening her claws on the heroine while Leona watches from the sidelines like he’s two seconds away from a permanent nap? Yeah, you’re smack in the middle of it.
The villainess, looking as pissed off as usual, is glaring daggers at the trembling heroine, who is staring at you with those wide, teary eyes like you’re supposed to swoop in and save her from this verbal smackdown.
And that’s when it hits you: you’re the male lead. The original goody-two-shoes, justice-loving male lead who always stepped in to defend the heroine. The one who got suckered into every cliché moment, complete with sparkles and heroic speeches about morality and blah blah blah.
Not you, though.
You take one look at the heroine. She’s giving you this look like you’re her knight in shining armor, expecting you to throw yourself in front of her and deliver some dramatic monologue about kindness and decency. And you? You're mentally checking out of this scene faster than the speed of light.
Nah. You’re not about that life.
Your gaze drifts to Leona, sitting on the far side of the room, slouched over like he’s wondering why he’s being subjected to this emotional soap opera when he could be napping. His face screams "done," and honestly? Same. He meets your gaze, eyes half-lidded and bored, probably hoping you’ll do the usual male lead routine and put an end to this nonsense.
But oh no, today’s different.
You casually stroll over to where Leona is sitting, ignoring the drama unfolding behind you. With the swagger of someone who knows exactly what they’re about to do is going to blow some minds, you hold out your hand to him. "So, uh… you want to ditch this disaster and go take a nap? Or maybe raid the kitchens? I’m thinking we play hooky and pretend this never happened."
Leona’s eyes flicker with surprise for half a second. The male lead? The goody-two-shoes-moral-compass of the entire plot? The guy who literally lived to stop drama in its tracks? Is offering to blow off this whole mess? He raises an eyebrow, smirking like the cat who caught the canary.
"Didn’t think you had it in you," Leona drawls, but you can tell he’s already down for this. "Alright. Let’s go. If anyone asks, I’m gonna say you dragged me out."
"Deal," you say, trying not to look too smug. And with that, you turn on your heel, and with Leona at your side, you head for the door, leaving behind a shell-shocked villainess and a teary-eyed heroine who’s probably still processing the fact that her supposed knight in shining armor just dipped.
As you and Leona stroll out, you hear the villainess mutter, “What… just happened?” and you can’t help but grin. You may have just turned the plot upside down, but at least you’re doing it in style.
"Hey, Leona," you say, nudging him, "think we can find some of those fancy desserts in the kitchen? I’m starving."
Leona snorts, shoving his hands into his pockets. "If you’re buying, sure."
And just like that, the male lead and the second male lead walk off into the sunset—or rather, the campus courtyard—hand in hand with a new mission: Avoiding all future plot nonsense at all costs.
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You’re not sure how you got here, staring at the over-the-top ball decorations like you’ve stepped into a bargain bin fairytale, but hey, life has taken a weird turn lately. You, of all people, are living out the plot of a novel so cliché it makes your head hurt.
But you guess that’s what happens when you get isekai’d into a second-rate villainess story. The only thing missing is a glass slipper and some woodland creatures to sing with.
And of course, surprise! The ball isn’t just some casual evening of sipping punch and avoiding the villainess’s death stares. No, if you don’t nail the ball, you don’t graduate. Because nothing says "academic achievement" like knowing how to waltz while dressed like a background character from Bridgerton.
So here you are, in ball lessons, where everyone is nervously pairing off while you’re trying not to roll your eyes into another dimension. The heroine, with her usual doe-eyed sparkle, gets paired with you first. And let’s be real: she’s either terrible at dancing, or she’s using this as an excuse to get you to hold her close.
But you? Oh no. You’ve read enough of this garbage to know where that’s going, and you have zero interest in playing out the “close embrace, sparks flying, almost-kiss” trope. Absolutely not.
As soon as the music starts, you decide it’s time to act. You let your feet stumble—deliberately, of course—and flail around like you’ve never seen a ballroom floor in your life. The heroine, bless her clueless heart, giggles like she thinks you’re just being cute, but you’re not about to humor this. When the instructor’s eyes lock onto you, you seize the opportunity.
"Oh no!" you say dramatically, throwing a hand over your forehead like you’re in some kind of soap opera. "I’m so bad at this. Could someone please teach me how to dance?"
You pause, glance around the room, and then lock eyes with Leona Kingscholar.
"Leona!" you shout, loud enough that the whole room freezes. "You’re the second prince! You must’ve had etiquette lessons, right? Teach me how to dance!"
The room collectively loses its mind. The heroine looks like you’ve just slapped her with a glove and challenged her to a duel. The villainess is staring at you like you’ve lost your marbles. And Leona? Leona’s expression is somewhere between utter confusion and why me.
Leona leans back, crossing his arms, visibly annoyed. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” he mutters, but there’s no denying the faint twitch of a smirk at the corner of his mouth when he sees the heroine and villainess get shoved into an awkward dancing pair together.
Despite his clear irritation, Leona steps forward, because let’s face it, he’s the kind of guy who’ll humor you if it means avoiding worse drama. You slide into position with him, and honestly? You’re in heaven. You can barely focus on your feet, too busy trying to hide your grin while you imagine all the drama this is causing behind you.
Meanwhile, the heroine and the villainess are floundering around, tripping over each other like they’ve got two left feet each. The villainess is grinding her teeth, and the heroine keeps stepping on her toes. It’s a glorious disaster.
Leona, despite his annoyance, is surprisingly good at this. He’s leading with the kind of effortless grace that makes you wonder how someone so lazy can still be so competent at everything. You’re definitely not staring at his sharp features while he dances, not at all.
"You do realize this is a waste of time, right?" Leona grumbles under his breath, his eyes flicking to the chaos unfolding behind you. "Why me, herbivore? You could’ve asked anyone else."
You just shrug, trying not to sound too smug. "What can I say? I have excellent taste in dance partners."
Leona’s brow twitches like he’s torn between smirking and rolling his eyes. "Yeah, sure. Whatever helps you sleep at night." But the smirk wins out, especially when the villainess and heroine fumble yet again, nearly toppling over each other.
You glance up at him, beaming. Leona Kingscholar might be annoyed, but he’s not stopping anytime soon. And you? You’re just here for the ride, watching the heroine and villainess self-destruct from the safety of Leona’s arms.
Ball lessons? Piece of cake.
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You’ve been doing everything humanly possible to avoid the female lead like she’s a carrier of the medieval plague. You thought you’d be safe here, hiding behind your “I’m too busy and mysterious for romance” persona, but no—somehow—the more you avoid her, the more she’s convinced that you’re the dark, brooding, irresistible male lead she’s always dreamed of.
You know, the type who avoids emotional connections but secretly harbors a heart of gold. But the truth is, you’re just a guy trying to get through the day so you can swoon over Leona Kingscholar in peace.
It’s not like you’ve been subtle about it either. You’ve been dropping hints left and right, hoping the universe would give you a break and let the female lead fall in love with literally anyone else. But no. Somehow, everyone is ignoring your very obvious affection for Leona.
It’s like you’re stuck in a tragic comedy where the female lead falls harder for you the more you try to disappear, and Leona just… well, he’s just living his best life, completely unaware of your internal screaming.
Take the latest tea party, for example. You were just trying to enjoy some pastries, maybe steal a glance at Leona from across the table, when the heroine decides to make her move. She picks up a delicate slice of cake and holds it out to you, eyes sparkling with that innocent-yet-hopeful look that says, “This is our moment.”
You? You’re not having any of that. Nope. No way. You’re not about to be part of this rom-com narrative. So, without missing a beat, you casually take the cake from her and, in one smooth motion, turn and offer it to Leona, who’s lounging lazily next to you, looking like he’d rather be anywhere else.
Leona raises an eyebrow at you, clearly baffled by why you’re holding out cake like he’s some sort of royal who expects to be hand-fed. “What are you doing?” he mutters, looking suspiciously between you and the cake.
“Just thought you’d like some,” you say with a straight face, ignoring the heroine’s stunned expression. She’s sitting there, fork still poised in the air, blinking rapidly like you’ve just committed the greatest betrayal of the century.
Leona huffs, looking mildly irritated but mostly confused. After a pause, he shrugs and leans forward, taking a bite of the cake without even bothering to lift his own hand. “Whatever,” he mutters between chews. “Tastes fine.”
You nod, satisfied. Meanwhile, the heroine looks like she’s on the verge of tears, and the villainess is smirking in the background like she’s about to take out popcorn and enjoy the drama.
Later that day, you find a nice, quiet spot under a tree to relax. You’ve managed to avoid any major incidents so far, and for once, you’re not being dragged into some dramatic showdown. You lie back, close your eyes, and just let yourself chill. But, of course, the universe doesn’t want you to have peace.
Enter Leona.
Without a word, he flops down next to you, takes one look at your position, and decides—out of all the places he could sit—that your lap is the best pillow option available. You feel his head plop down on your lap like this is the most normal thing in the world. You stare down at him, completely dumbfounded, while he just closes his eyes and lets out a long, satisfied sigh.
“Leona?” you start, voice half bewildered, half amused. “You good?”
“Shut up,” he mutters without opening his eyes. “You’re more comfortable than the grass.”
You blink at him, not sure whether to laugh or cry. Meanwhile, the villainess strolls by, spots the two of you under the tree, and comes to an immediate halt. Her face contorts into a mix of disbelief and confusion, like she’s just witnessed something unholy. You can almost hear her mental scream of, what the hell is going on here?!
She doesn’t say anything, though. Just stands there, hands clenched, before turning on her heel and storming off. You don’t even care. You’re too busy reveling in the fact that Leona chose your lap as his personal resting place. If that isn’t a win, you don’t know what is.
And then, of course, there’s the infamous hallway incident. The heroine—who, by this point, you’re pretty sure has developed some kind of radar for finding you—comes running toward you. She trips over something (the air? her own foot? you don’t know) and launches herself straight into your arms in what is clearly an attempt to trigger some rom-com, slow-motion embrace.
But you? You’re not here for this.
With the reflexes of a seasoned avoider, you sidestep her dramatic fall, and she goes face-first into the floor. There’s a stunned silence as she lies there, unmoving, probably processing how she ended up eating dirt.
You glance over at Leona, who’s watching the whole thing with a lazy smirk, clearly enjoying the trainwreck. You give him a slight nod of approval, and he just rolls his eyes, a small grin still tugging at his lips.
The villainess, standing a few feet away, is laughing her head off. She’s doubled over, clutching her stomach, while the heroine’s dignity is scattered all over the floor. But you? You’re just staring at Leona, completely ignoring the chaos around you.
Somehow, despite all the madness, you can’t help but think: this is fine.
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The day of the big spelldrive match arrives, and the heroine has never looked more confident in her life. She’s decked out in her team’s colors, standing tall at the edge of the field, waiting for you to join her in your usual spot. You know, like a loyal dog. A loyal, obedient dog who always does what she expects.
But not today.
Today, you roll up to the game decked out head to toe in full Savanaclaw merch. We're talking a custom jersey with Leona’s name on the back, a headband, face paint, and—just to really emphasize the point—a Savanaclaw banner tied around your neck like you’ve decided to cosplay as Captain Lion Fang.
You take your seat in the Savanaclaw section and immediately start hyping up the crowd like you’re getting paid for it. The heroine spots you from across the field and stares like she’s watching a crime scene unfold in real-time. Meanwhile, Leona’s already spotted you, and the smug smirk on his face tells you he’s LOVING the attention.
The game kicks off, and with each goal Leona scores, you’re going feral.
You’re screaming your lungs out, waving your banner around like you’re auditioning for some weird mascot gig. People are looking at you like you’ve lost your mind, but you don’t care. This is YOUR moment.
Leona, on the field, is living for it. Every time he glances your way, he adds a little extra flair to his plays, just to make you scream louder. He scores, and you’re on your feet, jumping up and down like you’ve won the lottery.
At this point, the heroine is practically catatonic. Her world is crumbling before her eyes. You can practically see her brain struggling to process what she’s witnessing: you, her loyal supporter, decked out in Savanaclaw gear and cheering for her rival.
“I... I don’t understand…” she whispers, her voice trembling like she’s been betrayed by the universe itself. “Why aren’t you cheering for us?”
You turn to her with all the nonchalance of someone who’s just ordered fries at a drive-thru. “Uh… Leona’s hot?”
It’s like you slapped her across the face with a wet fish. She stands there, frozen, her eyes wide, like she’s witnessing the fall of an empire. "B-But... you're supposed to support me!"
Before you can reply with another devastating truth bomb, Leona casually strolls over after winning the game, looking like he just walked out of a perfume ad. His hair’s tousled, a thin sheen of sweat making him look even more annoyingly handsome. He stops in front of you, smirking like he’s been planning this moment his entire life.
"Didn’t know you were my biggest fan," he drawls, voice low and lazy. “Gotta say, I’m impressed with your enthusiasm. Screamin’ my name like that… kinda hard to ignore.”
You open your mouth, ready to fire back with something witty, but what comes out is more of a high-pitched squeak, followed by, “Hahaha, Y-Yeah… you’re welcome?”
And then, the words that break you: “How ‘bout we celebrate with a nap?”
Your brain freezes. A nap? You? With Leona? Your heart is doing cartwheels while the rest of your organs are busy melting into a puddle. Your mouth is moving, but all that comes out is an unintelligible “Uhhuhmm.”
Leona chuckles, clearly enjoying how flustered you are. He reaches out, grabbing your wrist, and starts dragging you off with him—right in front of everyone. He doesn’t even care that the entire field is watching. He’s already made up his mind.
The heroine, meanwhile, is standing there in stunned silence, her brain fully blue-screening as she watches you and Leona disappear. She’s still processing the Leona’s comment when the villainess, who has been observing this whole disaster unfold, finally chimes in from the sidelines with a shrug.
“Well, as long as it’s not the heroine,” she says, flicking her hair back with an air of satisfaction. “This is fine.”
And off you go, being dragged to a nap date you’re definitely not mentally prepared for, your face burning hotter than the sun. Leona glances back at you, that smug smirk still plastered on his face. "You’re lookin’ a little red there. You sure you’re up for this?"
You sputter, tripping over your own words. "I-I’m fine! Totally fine! Nap? Cool! Casual napping! No big deal!”
Leona just chuckles again, clearly entertained by how much you're floundering. “If you say so. Just don’t pass out before we get there.”
Yeah. Don’t pass out. Easier said than done when the man of your dreams is casually dragging you off to nap like it's no big deal while your brain screams at you in ten different languages.
This is fine. Totally fine. You’re fine.
Maybe.
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You were sitting with Jack and Ruggie at the cafeteria, chatting about nothing in particular—well, Jack was chatting. Ruggie was there purely because you promised to pay for his lunch. Still, you’d like to think that maybe, just maybe, he stuck around because he actually enjoyed your company. Maybe.
“So, any tips on how to deal with midterms?” Jack asked, ears twitching as he looked at you with that wide-eyed eagerness that only first-years ever had. He was honestly like a giant puppy, trying so hard to be good.
You leaned back in your chair, doing your best impression of a wise and worldly senior, which mostly involved pretending you weren’t sweating about your own midterms. “My advice? Caffeine. And if you have the chance to sleep, take it. Oh, and don’t forget to eat. I learned that one the hard way.”
Jack nodded seriously, committing it all to memory like you were passing down sacred knowledge. Meanwhile, Ruggie was on his third helping of food, barely acknowledging the conversation.
"Hey, if you're handing out wisdom, how ‘bout you tell me how to get free food more often?” Ruggie said between bites, shooting you a cheeky grin.
“Isn’t that already your specialty?” you shot back, eyeing the mountain of food in front of him.
He just laughed. “Can’t argue with that, but having backup plans never hurt.”
Before you could respond, you felt a shadow fall over the table. You looked up, half expecting it to be the heroine or some random classmate, but nope. It was Leona. Leona, who you were 99% sure had skipped class because he always skips class. And he looked… annoyed?
Oh no.
He ignored Jack and Ruggie completely, his sharp gaze zeroing in on you like you’d committed some grave crime. “Oi, herbivore,” he drawled, hands in his pockets like this wasn’t weird at all. “Let’s go.”
“Go where?” you asked, blinking up at him. Leona never approached people unless he wanted something.
“To the tree,” he said flatly, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.
“The tree?” Jack echoed, ears perking up in confusion.
Ruggie, on the other hand, was grinning like the Cheshire Cat. “Oho~ Someone’s in demand.”
Leona shot Ruggie a look that could’ve curdled milk. “Shut it, Ruggie.”
Your brain was still trying to process the situation. You were sitting here, minding your own business, giving sage advice about caffeine and survival, and now Leona was dragging you off to his tree like it was completely normal?
He didn’t wait for an answer. He just grabbed your wrist, yanking you up from your seat as if this was some kind of kidnap situation, and started walking toward the courtyard.
“Uh—Leona? What’s going on?” you asked, doing your best to keep up without tripping over your own feet.
Leona didn’t even look back. “You’re talkin’ too much. Need some peace and quiet.”
You blinked, thoroughly confused but not necessarily mad about being dragged off. It’s just… “Why am I involved in your nap plans?”
“’Cause I said so.”
Wow, cryptic. You were about to ask again when you reached the tree. The infamous Leona nap spot. He plopped down against the trunk and, before you could protest, pulled you down next to him. Without another word, he stretched out and—because apparently boundaries didn’t exist—rested his head on your lap.
This was… This was happening.
You glanced around, half expecting to see a camera crew pop out and tell you this was some elaborate prank, but nope. Leona was lounging on you like it was the most natural thing in the world, eyes already closed, arms crossed behind his head.
“Uh, Leona?”
“Shut up. M’ tryin’ to sleep.”
You stared down at him, your brain short-circuiting. This was the third time this week he’d done this. Just… kidnapped you for a nap. What was his deal? Was your lap particularly comfortable? Did you radiate some kind of sleepy aura? What was going on here?
Meanwhile, from the distance, you spotted her. The villainess. Watching. For the third time in as many days. And you could see it. You could see the moment she put the pieces together. Her eyes widened in slow realization, her lips twitching into a smirk. She knew. She finally knew.
When Leona finally woke up—after what felt like hours of you sitting there, too dazed to move—you were free. For now. He stretched lazily and gave you a casual “Thanks,” as if this wasn’t the most bizarre situation you’d ever been in, and you quickly scrambled away, making your way back to the dorms with your head spinning.
And that’s when the villainess cornered you.
Oh no.
There she was, leaning against the doorframe with a knowing look, her sharp gaze trained on you like a predator sizing up its prey. You swallowed nervously. She was about to confront you about the heroine, wasn’t she? This was it. This was the moment. Was she going to declare some rivalry? Challenge you to a duel? Confess to you? Make this whole thing painfully awkward?
She smiled, and it was not the evil grin you were expecting. “I’m on your side.”
You blinked. “…What?”
She pushed off the wall, stepping closer, her eyes gleaming with a new kind of intensity. “Leona. I know you’re after him.”
Your heart stopped. This was it. She was going to call you out and—wait, what did she just say?
“I’ll help you confess to Leona,” she said, matter-of-factly. “On one condition.”
You were staring at her like she’d just sprouted wings and started speaking in tongues. “You… will?”
She nodded. “Yes. If you help me become more influential than that heroine, I’ll help you get Leona to notice you more.”
You blinked again, processing her words. She wanted your help to outshine the heroine, and in exchange, she’d be your wingwoman? Wingwoman?!
You grinned, holding out your hand for a dramatic shake. “Hell yeah.”
She clasped your hand, her smile mirroring yours. "Consider it a deal."
And just like that, you walked away from the most unexpected alliance of your life, fully equipped with a villainess-turned-wingwoman and a new plan to win over Leona.
Honestly? Life was getting weirder by the day.
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“Okay, so just to confirm,” Ruggie’s eyes glinted with mischief as he leaned back in his chair, arms folded behind his head. “You want us to sit through this poetry reading,” he said, drawing out the word like it was some cursed phrase, “and cheer for the villainess. And in return, I get all the food left over?”
“Yup,” you nodded, trying to keep a straight face.
“And Jack’s here because…?”
“I asked him nicely.”
Jack shrugged, tail flicking behind him. “I’m just here to help.”
Ruggie snorted, glancing at you with a grin. “This better be some damn good poetry then. And the food better be worth it.”
“Oh, trust me,” you said, patting Ruggie on the back. “It will be.”
Little did you know, this was going to be a disaster of epic proportions.
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The poetry reading started as expected—with the heroine striding up to the front of the room, practically glowing under the dim spotlight. She cleared her throat, clasped her hands dramatically, and began.
“It was a night… much like tonight…”
Your first instinct was to cringe, but you held it in, glancing sideways at Jack and Ruggie. Jack was doing his best to stay stoic, but you could see his ears twitching in discomfort. Ruggie had his hand over his mouth, clearly biting back laughter.
The poem continued, painfully dragging on about stars and roses and something about “destiny’s kiss.” By the time she reached the end, there was a collective sigh of relief from the audience. You weren’t even sure what you had just listened to, but you knew it wasn’t good.
Jack… Jack was crying. You stared at him, horrified. “Are you okay?”
“It’s… it’s so bad,” he sniffed, wiping his eyes. “I didn’t know poetry could be this bad.”
Ruggie had his face buried in his hands, shoulders shaking with silent laughter. “This is better than I thought,” he wheezed.
You shot him a look, but even you had to admit, this was pure comedy gold. Poor Jack had no idea what hit him.
The villainess, bless her heart, was watching all of this unfold with a look of shock and confusion, but when it was finally her turn to read, she stepped up like a queen. Her voice was smooth, the words flowing like silk, and you couldn’t help but be genuinely impressed. She absolutely killed it.
The plan was working perfectly. You and your crew started clapping, cheering like you were at a rock concert. Jack, who was still recovering from the emotional trauma of the heroine’s poem, clapped too, albeit more quietly.
But just as you were about to get even louder, you felt a hand on your shoulder. “Oi, sit down,” Leona grumbled, pulling you back into your seat.
“What—?”
He didn’t offer any explanation, just kept you firmly seated next to him, his face set in a bored expression. You blinked in confusion but decided not to argue. It wasn’t like you didn’t enjoy sitting next to Leona… it was just weird.
And by the grin the villainess was sporting, it seems like everything went exactly according to plan. Both for her and you.
After the poetry reading wrapped up, you gathered the leftovers like you promised. Ruggie was already hovering around, practically drooling over the spread.
“Here, take it all,” you said, handing the basket over. “Deal’s a deal.”
Ruggie beamed, clutching the food to his chest like a treasure hoard. “Pleasure doing business with ya!”
Jack was much more polite, bowing his head slightly. “Thanks for the notes. They’ll be a big help.”
“Anytime,” you replied with a smile, watching the two of them head off. Ruggie was already halfway through a sandwich, talking a mile a minute, while Jack followed along, still looking like he might need therapy after the heroine’s performance.
That left you alone… with Leona, who had been standing off to the side, arms crossed, watching you with an unreadable expression.
“What?” you asked, half-expecting him to complain about something. He always had something to complain about.
“You mind explaining what the hell that was?”
“Uh… what do you mean?”
Leona’s tail flicked in irritation, his eyes narrowing. “I’m talking about you, whispering and giggling with that villainess all the time. What, you after her now that you ditched the heroine?”
You blinked at him, utterly baffled. “What? No, of course not. Why would I be after her?”
Leona’s jaw clenched. “You tell me. All I’ve seen is you hangin’ around with her, whispering, plottin’... I’ve seen how you look at her.”
It took a moment for your brain to catch up, but then it hit you like a ton of bricks.
Oh my god. He was jealous.
A slow grin spread across your face as the realization sunk in. Leona, Leona Kingscholar, was jealous. And over you.
Before you could stop yourself, you leaned forward and planted a quick kiss on his cheek. “You’re jealous~.”
Leona froze, his eyes widening for a split second before narrowing dangerously. “What?”
“You’re jealous,” you repeated, giddiness bubbling up inside you. You could barely contain your excitement. “You’re jealous of me hanging out with the villainess!”
Leona’s lips pulled into a thin line. “You’re imagining things.”
“Oh no, no, no,” you grinned even wider, poking him in the chest. “You’re totally jealous!”
Leona growled, looking thoroughly annoyed now, but before he could snap back, you quickly explained. “Look, I made a deal with her. I help her become more influential than the heroine, and she helps me… confess to you.”
Leona blinked, taken aback, his tail flicking behind him as if processing the information. Then, in true Leona fashion, his expression shifted from irritation to smugness in record time.
“Oh?”
You sighed, shaking your head. “Yeah, so you don’t have to worry about me chasing after anyone else.”
Leona stepped closer, his voice dropping low, that usual lazy drawl making your heart do a little flip. “Good. But just so you know, cheek kisses aren’t real kisses.”
Before you could ask what he meant, Leona leaned in and kissed you—properly kissed you. Your eyes went wide for a second before you melted into it, feeling the heat of his lips against yours. He pulled back after what felt like forever, a smirk on his face as he watched you try to catch your breath.
“There. That’s a real kiss,” he murmured, his voice dripping with smug satisfaction.
You stared at him, dazed, and then a sudden realization hit you.
You left your entire life behind, all for this moment.
And you were so, so glad that stupid plushie was on the floor, because this? This was totally worth it.
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The heroine’s voice was as sweet as it was grating, like sugar poured directly into your ears. She fluttered her eyelashes at you, her smile stretched painfully wide. “So, I was thinking,” she began, twirling a lock of hair around her finger. “You would make the perfect knight for my family! Don’t you think so?”
You blinked, trying to figure out a way to escape. “Uh… I’m kind of busy with, you know, my own life?”
“Oh, but imagine!” she gushed, not hearing a word you said. “We’d be so close all the time—like, so close. You could protect me, and maybe… we could have a picnic under the stars? Very romantic, right?”
Your soul was trying to leave your body. You were pretty sure Jack’s ears twitched somewhere nearby, sensing your pain telepathically. And then, like a gift from the heavens, the villainess—your beloved accomplice in all things anti-heroine—made her appearance.
“Sorry to interrupt,” she said, stepping between you and the heroine with the grace of someone who had seen this movie before and knew exactly how to cut to the good parts. “But I need them for an urgent matter. A very important, not-at-all-romantic-but-very-necessary mission.”
You shot her a look of pure gratitude, but before she could fully rescue you from the heroine’s death trap of unwanted flirting, a shadow loomed over the scene. A very familiar shadow.
Leona.
Without saying a word, he strode up behind you and casually wrapped an arm around your waist, pulling you back against his chest with an ease that had your heart skipping a beat. He rested his chin on your shoulder, his sharp green eyes fixed on the heroine.
“Oh no, carry on,” he said lazily, but his tone was anything but. “I’m just here to see what my mate is up to.”
The heroine blinked in shock, her hands hovering mid-air as if she had no idea what to do with this development. “Y-Your mate?”
“Yeah,” Leona said, tightening his grip around you, his smirk downright feral. “So whatever little fantasy you’re cooking up about romantic picnics or whatever—cut it out. This one’s mine.”
You felt Leona’s lips brush against your temple before he leaned in and, in full view of the now-utterly-horrified heroine, kissed the side of your neck. Slowly. Possessively.
You could almost hear the villainess muffling a laugh behind her hand.
The heroine’s face turned several shades of red as she stammered. “B-But I—”
“You,” Leona said, his tone dripping with amusement, “can fuck right off.”
The heroine gasped, her hand flying to her chest like she’d been physically struck. “You can’t just say that to me!”
Leona raised a brow, looking thoroughly unimpressed. “I’m literally the second prince. I can say whatever the hell I want.”
The heroine opened her mouth to argue, but then realized that, no, actually, she couldn’t argue with the literal second prince staking his claim. She sputtered for a moment before storming off, no doubt to sob dramatically about her dashed romantic hopes.
Once she was out of sight, the villainess finally let out a snort of laughter. “That was beautiful.”
Leona ignored her, his grip still firm around you as he leaned down to whisper, “Next time, you won’t need her to help you out. Just say my name, and I’ll be there to deal with the pests.”
You stared at him, a little dazed from the whole whirlwind of possessiveness, public displays of affection, and telling someone to ‘fuck right off.’ “You really went for it, huh?”
Leona smirked, leaning in for another kiss. “Damn right I did. And don’t you forget it.”
Somewhere behind you, the villainess was still giggling. You were pretty sure this was going to be gossip for weeks.
But honestly? Totally worth it.
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Graduation day—the moment where everyone’s future plans would be declared, and all the chess pieces would fall into place. Or, in your case, the moment where you’d cause absolute chaos.
The grand hall was filled with eager anticipation. Everyone was dressed in their formal graduation robes, students buzzing with excitement over their new titles and responsibilities.
Leona, as expected, lounged at the back like a lion who had better things to do, half-asleep. Villainess stood tall and composed, already plotting her return to her family's estate. Heroine was in full glowing mode, ready to take her place as the beloved of the Grand Duchy.
And you? You stood at the podium, trying not to laugh. You knew what you were about to say would flip this graduation upside down.
One by one, people made their announcements.
When it was finally your turn, all eyes turned to you. The entire hall seemed to hold its breath, knowing the original male lead—you—was supposed to be the retainer of the heroine. It was all set, all according to plan, right?
Wrong.
You cleared your throat, glanced briefly at Leona who smirked lazily, and then made the declaration that would throw this script straight out the window. “I’ve decided to serve as Prince Leona’s right-hand man, personal secretary, and...well, whatever he needs.”
The silence that followed was glorious. Pure, dumbfounded silence.
King Falena, sitting in the front row, visibly blinked. Once. Twice. He tilted his head slightly, confusion written all over his usually composed face. “What?” he muttered, looking like someone just told him a desert hyena had enrolled in ballet school.
Leona, however, didn’t even open his eyes. He just smirked, crossing his arms smugly. “Told ya he’d choose me,” he murmured, almost too casually for someone who’d just stolen the original male lead’s entire plotline.
Falena’s gaze flicked between you and Leona, still processing. Then, slowly, realization dawned. He saw that look on Leona’s face—the one that said “mine, and I dare anyone to challenge it.” King Falena’s confusion morphed into surprise and then, with the subtlety of a royal diplomat, resignation. “Oh…” he whispered, finally understanding. “He’s down bad.”
Leona cracked an eye open just to catch his brother’s expression and grinned wider, like a cat who knew exactly what kind of bird it had in its claws.
Your parents, bless them, were in the crowd with expressions of supportive confusion. Your mother was squinting as if trying to work out if this was some sort of royal prank. Your father leaned in toward her, whispering loudly enough for the entire row to hear, “It’s a royal job, right? That’s prestigious?”
“Yeah, but… Leona?” your mom whispered back.
At this point, the heroine stood up, ready to throw a wrench into the works. “Wait! You’re supposed to be my—"
Before she could finish, the villainess, in all her dramatic glory, made her move. With the grace of a queen and the audacity of a mastermind, she stepped right up to the heroine, flipped her luxurious hair, and said, “Actually, I was going to ask you out.”
You blinked. Wait, what?
The entire room gasped. You could almost hear heads snapping toward the villainess like a collective whip crack.
Heroine’s mouth opened and closed like she was a fish drowning in air. “I—what?”
“Dinner. Candlelight. Maybe a picnic. You and me, a date. Sound good?” The villainess winked with such charm that even the professors in the back were wide-eyed.
Heroine blinked rapidly, as if trying to reboot her brain. “Uh… sure?” she squeaked, still reeling from the fact that her entire romantic arc had just gotten hijacked.
You stared at the villainess in pure confusion. “What just happened?” you whispered, looking at her for an explanation.
The villainess simply turned to you with a mischievous grin, giving you a sly thumbs-up like this had been part of her master plan all along.
You were still processing the fact that you were witnessing the greatest plot twist of all time. You returned a half-hearted, bewildered thumbs-up, unsure if this was a win or not.
Meanwhile, the professors up front were clearly on their last thread of patience. The head of the academy rubbed his temples, sighing deeply as if this whole day had aged him a decade. “That’s it,” he said, voice strained with exhaustion. “Everyone’s graduated. Just...leave. Please.”
And with that, the ceremony abruptly ended. You couldn’t help but laugh at the professor’s exasperation as the crowd started to disperse, still buzzing with gossip.
Leona slid up next to you, his hand casually resting on your waist as you walked out of the hall together. “So, my right-hand man, huh?”
You shrugged. “Figured I might as well make it official.”
Leona smirked, leaning down to murmur in your ear, “Just don’t expect me to go easy on you.”
You rolled your eyes, but your smile betrayed you. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”
And then he kissed you. In front of everyone.
King Falena, witnessing this public display of territorial claims, just shook his head with a resigned sigh. “Well, as long as it’s official…” he muttered, casting an approving glance toward you. “Congratulations, I guess.”
Your parents were still in shock, but when they saw that it was a royal seal of approval, they immediately switched gears. “A royal job!” your mom whispered excitedly. “That’s so prestigious!”
With that, Leona tugged you away from the chaos, his arm never leaving your waist as you walked toward the exit. You glanced back one last time to see the heroine still staring blankly at the villainess, who had now looped her arm around her like it was the most normal thing in the world.
The head of the academy, now red in the face, shouted after you as you reached the door, “I SAID EVERYONE GO, FOR THE LOVE OF THE GREAT SEVEN!”
You walked out into the sunlight, trying not to laugh, while Leona leaned in, his lips brushing your ear as he murmured smugly, “Looks like you’re stuck with me.”
And honestly? You wouldn’t have it any other way.
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It was a day like any other, except you were meeting the villainess in her newly acquired estate. She had officially taken over as the head of her family, and the new title suited her all too well. The whole place screamed, I am in charge, with a side of don’t even think about challenging me unless you want to cry in public. You admired the aesthetic.
The villainess greeted you with her usual regal flair, sweeping into the room like she’d been born to dominate it—which, to be fair, she had. She offered you tea, which you politely declined, sensing that this wasn’t just a casual catch-up.
"So, what's new with you, Lady Villainess?” you asked, leaning back, fully expecting some grand declaration about her political conquests or business victories.
She smiled—a dangerous, knowing smile that made you immediately suspicious. "Well, I wanted to tell you something rather... unexpected."
You raised an eyebrow. Unexpected? Coming from her? That had to be good.
"I'm dating the heroine," she said casually, sipping her tea as if she hadn't just dropped the biggest plot twist since the whole 'villainess takes over' arc.
You nearly choked on absolutely nothing, mouth hanging open in sheer disbelief. "Wait. What?"
She smiled serenely, her expression the perfect picture of innocence—which made it all the more ridiculous. “Yes, darling. The heroine and I are officially a couple.”
You blinked. “The same heroine who couldn’t tell a poisoned apple from a regular one if her life depended on it?”
“The very same.”
“The one who gets lost in her own estate if she turns too many corners?”
“Yes, that one.”
You couldn't help it. The sheer absurdity of the situation hit you, and you burst out laughing. "Oh, that is rich. How in the world did that happen?”
The villainess leaned back, looking thoroughly pleased with herself. “Oh, it was simple, really. I realized I was always drawn to her... naiveté. And once I stopped trying to sabotage her every move, well, things just fell into place.”
You were still laughing, shaking your head in disbelief. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m happy for you two, but this is the best thing I’ve heard in weeks.”
The villainess gave you a mock glare. “Don’t act so surprised. I’ve always had impeccable taste.”
“Oh, impeccable taste, huh?” you teased. “I just didn’t expect it to lead you straight to a walking ball of sunshine.”
“Well, someone needs to keep her from wandering into traffic.”
Still snickering, you stood up. “Alright, alright, I get it. You’re a saint for dealing with her.”
“I know,” she sighed dramatically, “but love makes us do ridiculous things.”
"Tell me about it," you muttered, still amused. You waved goodbye and promised to catch up later, your mind reeling from this new, absolutely hilarious development.
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When you got back to the palace, you found Leona lounging in his usual spot, sprawled out on a couch like a lion that had just taken over the whole savannah. He barely glanced up as you walked in, already sensing the amused energy radiating off you.
“You’re grinning like an idiot,” he muttered, rolling his eyes. “What happened?”
You plopped down next to him, barely containing your laughter. “You won’t believe this. The villainess is dating the heroine now.”
Leona’s eyes flicked open, and for a split second, he looked like he didn’t believe you. Then, slowly, a smirk spread across his face as he processed the information. “You’re messing with me.”
“Nope. Dead serious. They’re a couple now. In love.” You leaned in, grinning. “The villainess—ice queen herself—is head over heels for Miss Pure Sunshine.”
Leona actually chuckled, shaking his head in disbelief. “Well, I’ll be damned. Never saw that one coming.”
“I know, right? It’s the most chaotic thing ever, and I am living for it.”
Leona’s smirk turned into a full-on grin, which was rare enough to be considered a national treasure. He shifted, sitting up slightly. “You think we’ll get an invite to the wedding?”
You snorted. “Oh, you bet. I’m going to be front row just to see how she manages to keep the heroine from accidentally setting her own dress on fire.”
Leona’s laugh rumbled low in his chest, and he reached out, grabbing your wrist. “Come here,” he ordered, tugging you toward him.
“What? No, I’ve got work to do,” you protested weakly, but your protests didn’t mean much when he effortlessly pulled you into his lap.
“Work can wait. This is more important,” he grumbled, wrapping his arms around you in a possessive hug that made it very clear you weren’t going anywhere.
You sighed, leaning into him. “You just want to cuddle, don’t you?”
“I want you to stop running around and actually relax for once,” he retorted, resting his chin on top of your head. “Besides, it’s not like the kingdom’s gonna fall apart if we take a break.”
You rolled your eyes, but a smile tugged at your lips. “I should get a promotion. I’m basically doing all the work around here.”
Leona chuckled again, his grip tightening just slightly. “Yeah, well, don’t let Falena hear that. He might actually make you his advisor, and then I’ll never get any alone time with you.”
You snorted. “Oh please, you’d just kidnap me from work if that happened.”
“Damn right,” he muttered, his voice low and satisfied. “You’re mine, remember?”
You felt your heart do that annoying flutter thing as Leona’s possessive tone settled over you. Even when he was being a lazy lion, he made you feel like the most important thing in his life. It was comforting—and kind of hilarious, considering how little he cared about everything else.
The room fell into a comfortable silence, and for once, you actually allowed yourself to relax, leaning into Leona’s warmth. His arms tightened around you again, and you could feel the soft rise and fall of his chest as he started to drift off into a nap, his grip never loosening.
As you closed your eyes, you couldn’t help but think that, despite all the absurdities in your life—from slipping on a plushie to your best friend falling in love with her former rival—you wouldn’t trade any of it. Not for the world.
And as Leona’s breath slowed into the steady rhythm of sleep, you allowed yourself a small, contented smile.
Life was chaotic. But it was also perfect.
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Series Masterlist ; Masterlist
Idia won the previous poll! Now for the next,
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pineapplepr1nc3ss888 · 4 months ago
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HOW TO REVISE:
revision is the thought of rewriting a past event that you wish to have occurred, you immerse yourself in that feeling and you affirm/visualise your desired outcome and act as if it’s true.
do not fear this, you have to remember you are the creator and get yourself out of the victim mentality. revision is changing past events to your desired outcome and it’s nothing to be scared of, whatever you revise will reflect what you have assumed/manifested.
reality as i have said before is completely malleable because it’s fluid. you shift yourself to a state/reality where these events never ever happened. it is extremely easy. you can revise anything you want.
death for example, a loved one died in your reality? you will shift when you immerse yourself in the feeling they’re alive or affirm/visualise they never died then you shift to a reality where this person never died. that is ALL you are doing. revision is shifting your awareness to a reality where it never happened. it can be anything.
these are some success stories from Sammy’s Mermaid Gang, all creds goes to the people who posted them but using these for examples that anything is possible:
I cured my grandpa when he was in his death bed!!!
“So guys I'm so grateful and happy that my grandpa is doing so much better now so what happened was 10 days back my grandpa got very sick everyone around us including my family members n doctors said that he won't survive the day everyone was preparing themselves for his demise but I decided that wasn't fuckin happening i kept revising in my head that he's alright and though he kept getting worse I kept staying positive and I even told my mom to just affirm but she just yelled at me calling me immature and everything so i didn't tell anyone n kept affirming in my mind, even though everyone was so worried at home i kept calm and didn't worry much and now I just went n visited my grandpa after few days n he's almost back to normal he's doing great I'm so happy ❤️”
another:
“I REVISED MY GRANDMOTHER’S PERCEIVED DEATH.
to make a long story short, she was in the ICU on a ventilator and i only had about 3-4 days of rampaging before they would take her off. i persisted and affirmed that she’s healthy and well over 30000 times on the counter app and even more in my head alone. i was anxious and fearful the entire time but persisted anyways. yesterday was the day and there was NO movement or signs that she was doing better. my family and i were in a video chat saying our last goodbyes to her. i was at work and had to hang up, so i was under the impression that she didn’t make it after they took her off the ventilator. i was told that she “lived a long life”. i couldn’t comprehend what happened because i KNEW i was persisting and the law is foolproof, so i affirmed more for her before bed and left it at that.
i woke up to news that she actually survived throughout the night BREATHING ON HER OWN WITH OXYGEN ONLY and that the hospital will be sending her home because there’s nothing they can do for her and she’s completely stable. i called multiple family members CONFUSED saying i thought she died and the responses i got were: no, she didn’t die. who told you that? despite everyone being gathered together in the hospital crying the night before…
the only explanation i have for this is that i shifted realities. because persisted anyways despite the 3d evidence (old story) and perception of her dying, my new assumptions came to pass and everything else before that ceased to exist. i’ve never manifested anything like this before. i’m going to keep affirming until she’s fully healthy.”
this is revising age:
“This is my second time revising my age... First time I did it was I was turning 26 and I wanted to join a certain competition with the age limit of 24! So I revised my age to 23... I kept telling myself that I was born in 1994, even my birthday certificate shows I was born in 1994, and that no body not even my own mother remember my old age...
Here comes the interesting part.. 2weeks before the registration deadline my birthday certificate went missing and I always had it with me... But it disappeared completely, and I couldn't find it so I asked my dad if it was possible to make another for me, since my information was already in the system so it was going to be easy to make a new one so I could finalize my registration... Here comes an interesting part when my new certificate came it said I was born on June 7, 1994.. when in actuality I was born in 1991, I asked my father why is it saying I was born in 1994... He looked at me surprised and told me it's because that's when I was born, I said no dad I was born in 1991, he started laughing and told "are you on drugs or something, I am your father so I Know when you were born"
I swear I couldn't believe it even though I asked for it I was the one who was left surprised
People always love to ask the change of documents... just know If that's what you want your documents will change don't ask how, just know they will change by any means necessary!i The changes can happen naturally just like my school certificate changed on their own, or something will happen that will require the making of new documents with the dates you were affirming”
this one was inspired by someone else who erased a 3p (third party aka someone who interferes in your life” and this 3p was literally her husbands ex wife but she erased them from their reality which meant she shifted to a reality where this person NEVER existed do not ask me about what happens to the old reality stop worrying about it you are the creator what you say fucking goes but anyways:
“So long story short I've been revising to change the past since I saw a comment under Sammy's post, which claims that she erased the 3p like they never even existed in her reality using affirmations. I think well maybe I'll try this shit out with my SP.
The affirmation I used was pretty straightforward:
I am the only person my SP has ever knew online
And guess what happened, after robotically affirming everyday along with some other revision affirmations for some time, my revision has happened. I wavered a lot and the old story kept playing in my mind all the time! But I never gave up, I persisted in my affirmations. My SP got back in contact with me just a few hours ago, when I asked about the 3ps, she said she never knew anyone like those and I'm the only one she has ever knew online.
At this point I was still skeptical about it so I went on Twitter to check about it, to my surprise SP's Twitter account has disappeared into the thin air like she never even on Twitter and all the 3ps' traces are gone too like they never even existed! And SP even confessed her feelings to me saying that she's been wanting me from the moment she saw me (That's my another revision affirmation)
Wow, this revision shit is so powerful, I just get to know loa a couple months back and law of assumption about three or four months and I can still pull this off. I just want to remind y'all we can all make it cuz it's our reality, we literally get to change and delete any shit that doesn't serve us anymore like they never even existed from the first place!”
this is health revision:
“YEAHH! Health revision success story here!
Last week I had my right knee swollen and couldn’t move so that I went to hospital to take a MRI image. The doctor said that there was a tumour in my right knee and in a super deep position, she suggested me to have an operation as soon as possible and gave me cephalosporin for diminishing the inflammation. After I got home, I started repeating affirmations:”My knee works normally, I’m feeling so great, I have never had any health problem.”
Yesterday I took the MRI image for further consultation and turned out that the tumour was GONE and my right knee was fine like nothing happened. The doctor was like:” Your knee is totally fine, why are you here? Maybe inflammation but it’s just fine.”
Revise it if you don’t like the situation! Producing miracles is easy as breathing🪄✨”
and last one, this girl revised being in hospital she shifted from the hospital to her own house:
“I Know I've had my share of big and small manifestations,... But what happened 4 days ago has to be my top tier manifestation, My biggest Manifestation ever! Even as I am writing this, I am shaking! Here we go....
4 days ago I went for a morning walk, on my way back home I was tired and wished someone could offer me a ride to my house, few minutes later a man stopped his bike and offered me a ride and i said sure, as we were about to reach my destination we got into a really bad accident, it was dark really quick and the next thing I know, it's hours later I am in the hospital with a wounded body full of bandages and a fixed broken leg,... I mean now I am so confused, nothing feels right anymore and I started panicking and shouting "this can't be real blah blah blah....." They injected me and I went back to sleep when I work up again, I was about to throw another tantrum but I caught myself and said "Renee(that what I call my Goddess self), You got this, this is just a bad dream, it can't be real how can this be real when you haven't even woken up, you are still home in your bed" I kept telling myself that, with tears in my eyes, deep down I was like I know I can shift realities but can this be possible today... I had doubts but I kept repeating my story to myself till I fall a sleep, I woke up and my mother was there, she was crying 😭💔.. I almost gave up and accept that reality but gathered all my strength and persisted even harder! I went to sleep again and I was awakened by my mom's voice calling me by my name and telling me, "You usually go for a morning walk, why are you asleep till this time"
Now, I think I am loosing my mind like how is it even possible... I asked my mom where are we? She laughed and asked me what do I mean, of course we are home, I asked her surprisingly "not the hospital?" She looked at me confused like "why would we be in the hospital, who is sick?" I hugged her and " No one mom, I just had a nightmare, please just hug me" I am perfectly fine not even a stretch on my body
Happy New Year to me!
Happy New Year to Y'all!”
NOW WAKE TF UP!!
no seriously wake up and fucking learn your own power, absolutely no one can do this except for yourself. stop asking others to shift or manifest for you no one can do this except you! you are the fucking creator of your reality no one else is. YOU ARE A MF GOD!
stop whinging, stop crying, finish your little pity party. you are a god, if you need to cry let those damn emotions out and once you’re done then get your ass back on to affirming.
no more complaining.
no more victim mindset.
if you want something then you need to persist in that assumption that desire is already true, affirm it’s true, visualise its true. this year is yours, you just have to step into your mf power. work on your self concept, affirm you are a master at manifesting, you manifest instantly etc it’s that simple.
stop accepting things you don’t want. you don’t like something that’s happened? revise it. you don’t like this 3p? revise them cos 3p who? 🙄 and no you don’t have to revise they never existed just revise whatever the situation is like they never dated your SP or they were never your friend. whatever you want!! REVISE REVISE REVISE!!!!!!!
ps. stop glorifying the void as the answer to your problems, sure it’s instant but you can also just affirm you manifest instantly you just have to have the concept or belief you manifest instantly and your subconscious will make whatever you manifest instantly happen.
act like a god, be the god you are, claim back your power from the 3d, revise shit you don’t like, work on your self concept. just be the fucking god you are and say this is my reality bitch and make that 3d your fucking bitch💋
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aingeal98 · 1 month ago
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AU where instead of going back to Gotham after the end of her og Batgirl series Cass instead vanishes on a quest to revive Steph from the dead. Because she's died twice and been revived, which means everyone else in the world deserves at least two do overs as well.
Bruce panicks and represses, Babs openly panicks and freaks out, Tim is... Not fine but doing better than the other two, because Cass texted him about it before dropping off the face of the earth, basically letting him know she was going to try and bring Steph back from the dead and asking him if he could look after her rose in the manor. A second text came in ten minutes after that informing him that the rose's name is Bob.
So Cass, like in canon, ends up taking over the League for a bit. Only this time she's doing it to learn more about resurrection. She doesn't kill Nyssa, but she does fake her death in front of Talia, because she can clearly see that something isn't right. Cue Nyssa being locked up, Cass trying to figure out how to unbrainwash Talia, and Damian meeting his future sister absolutely disgusted that someone is daring to usurp his birthright.
Cass: Oh I don't actually want this job, no worries. But uh... You're Batman's son, yes? I will be taking that job later. Sorry.
So Cass uses the League's resources to find out ways to bring Steph back, while also turning the organisation into an entirely nonlethal operation. They do some good work, she's not willing to throw them all out. They're wounded damaged assassins, of course she's going to look at them and go "I can fix them."
She eventually tracks down a device that can warp reality, (personally I'm thinking a Kheran Dream Engine, because Cass would listen to the warnings of it possessing you and the only way to get free being torture and death and be like nice. Let's give it a shot) and uses it to rewrite the universe so that Steph was just recovering with Leslie, undoes Talia's brainwashing fully, and also makes it so that Bludhaven never got nuked. She tells no one that she's planning this of course, so it ends up being a very emotional and confusing day for Leslie and Dick.
She then buries the device in the middle of nowhere. Because wayyyy too much power. Heads back to the League where she gets Talia to torture her to death and then drop her in the Pit so that she's free from the influence of the reality warping device. This is not a pleasant experience for either of them. Damian tries to watch and Talia uses her mom voice for the first time ever to tell him absolutely fucking not.
It works in the end. Talia offers to take the League back from Cass but Cass can tell her heart's not in it and is like nah. You go do your own antihero espionage stuff, you deserve it. And Talia's like that sounds wonderful but what about Damian?
And that's how exactly a year and a half after cutting all contact, Cassandra Wayne, The One Who Is All, head of the League of Assassins, comes strolling into a Wayne gala with Stephanie Brown on her left, Talia Al Ghul on her right and Bruce's unknown biological son in front of her.
Bruce shatters his champagne glass. Babs drops hers on the ground. Tim passes out and Dick is in too much shock to catch him.
"Hi." Cass grins. "I'm home."
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glowettee · 3 months ago
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✧˖° how to stop self-sabotaging your success (and finally commit to doing the work)
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hi angel, mindy here. let’s talk. because i know you want this. you want to be that student who shows up for herself/himself. you want to stop making excuses. you want to feel proud of yourself when this is all over. so why do you keep putting up roadblocks in your own way? why do you keep pulling yourself away from the very thing you know you need to do?
self-sabotage is not laziness. it’s fear, it’s perfectionism, it’s comfort, it’s this deep, quiet resistance that whispers, what if i try and fail? so you never fully try.
but guess what? we’re breaking that cycle today. right now.
✧˖° the illusion of "i’ll do it later"
procrastination is a liar with a pretty voice. it tells you that you’ll do it when you feel more ready, when you’re in a better mood, when the circumstances are just right. but the truth? later is just a hiding place.
so next time you catch yourself saying “i’ll do it tonight” or “tomorrow is better,” stop. ask yourself: what makes later better than now? if you don’t have a solid answer, it’s just fear talking.
✧˖° you’re scared of what happens when you actually succeed
self-sabotage isn’t just about the fear of failure. sometimes, it’s the fear of what happens when you actually get what you’ve been working toward.
because success? means expectations. it means proving that you can do it again. it means stepping into a version of yourself that no longer has excuses. and that can be terrifying.
but here’s the truth: the version of you that’s waiting on the other side of this work? she’s not a stranger. she’s still you, just with more proof of what you’re capable of.
✧˖° your study habits are built around guilt, not discipline
if studying always feels like punishment, if your entire academic routine is built around the feeling of “i should be doing more,” of course you’re going to resist it.
so let’s shift this. instead of studying because you have to, start studying because you deserve to succeed. because you want to feel prepared. because the version of you who walks into that exam room with confidence? deserves to exist.
make studying feel like an investment, not a punishment. romanticize it. find ways to make it an experience you don’t want to run from. pinterest is your best friend, studytok is your motivator and me (@glowettee is your mentor 😉)
✧˖° you wait for motivation instead of creating discipline
motivation is like a guest who shows up unannounced. sometimes, she arrives when you least expect it, and sometimes, she ghosts you for weeks.
discipline, though? discipline is the friend who always shows up. she’s reliable. she doesn’t wait until she “feels like it.” she just does it, because that’s who she is.
so stop waiting for motivation to hit like some kind of magical burst of energy. instead, set up routines that make studying non-negotiable. that make it feel natural. like brushing your teeth, like making your bed, like second nature.
✧˖° self-sabotage is a pattern. patterns can be broken.
if you’ve spent years avoiding hard work, of course your brain is going to resist when you suddenly decide to commit. your instincts are wired to avoid discomfort.
but the good news? self-sabotage is a learned habit. which means you can unlearn it. every time you choose to sit down and do the work, even when you don’t want to, you are rewriting your patterns. you are proving to yourself that you are not the same person who gives up.
and eventually? showing up for yourself won’t feel like a battle anymore. it will feel normal. it will feel like who you are.
✧˖° this is the moment you choose differently
look, you can close this post and keep doing what you’ve always done. you can keep waiting for some magical day when it all feels easy. or you can make a decision, right here, right now.
you can decide that you are done getting in your own way. that you are done letting fear win. that you are done delaying your own success.
because the version of you who is already succeeding? she is not far away. she is right there, waiting for you to step into her shoes.
it’s time, angel. show up.
love you all sooo much <3 i hope this post can help you understand; self-discipline > motivation
with love, mindy
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redroses07 · 11 months ago
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The Umbrella Academy Season 4 Fix It Fic // Five Hargreeves x Reader Edition
WC: 3.1k
CW: Canon accurate violence, swearing, kissing, use of Y/N, Y/N is a bad ass, domestic fluff, angsty af.
Summary: A Five x Fem!Reader rewrite for the end of season four because I absolutely hated the ending. Five and Lila are not a thing in this fic, because that made me literally gag.
A/N: Hey luvs! I worked my ass off writing this fic because I needed to have a better ending for season four. In my mind this fic is canon. I hope y'all like it because I truly love how it turned out! Have an amazing day and enjoy! - Claire ♡
Five sat on the empty train, riding round in aimless circles. He had no intention of ever stopping. Perhaps he would die here, if death was even possible in this endless void. There was no reason for him to continue, they were out of options.
All he wanted to do was save his family, save you, but he couldn't even do that. At least this way he could escape having to witness the end of their lives.
He couldn't help but feel as if this was all his fault, if only he had listened to Reginald when he told him never to time travel. So much pain, so many lost lives, it never would have happened.
Five looked out the window, he didn't know what exactly for. Everything looked the same. Round and Round again, each identical station feels more hopeless than the last.
After an immeasurable amount of time, days? years? who knows. Something caught Five's eye.
He jumped up from his seat, following the dark figure out into the station.
Was that? No.
"Hey, wait!" Five shouted, chasing him down a staircase.
He rounded a corner, seeing a dimly lit cafe filled with all too familiar faces. The place was filled with several alternate versions of Five himself. It was an odd feeling for him to see himself this way.
Nonetheless, he took a seat across from the Five he had followed.
No more than ten seconds later, another Five served up two pastrami sandwiches. Five number two began to complain about the amount of sauerkraut on his sandwich, staring intently at the meal.
"What is this place?" Five asked, reaching for the cup of hot coffee next to him.
"It's a gas station. What the hell does it look like? It's a Deli." He could see that the alternate Five share his love of sarcasm.
He went on to explain how this was a place where all of the Five's from alternate timelines end up while trying to fix the "broken timeline" issue.
"Okay, so what shattered the original timeline?" Five asked.
"Not what. Who? I'll give you three guesses." Alternate Five held up three fingers.
"We did!" Another Five yelled.
Five wasn't surprised, everything always seemed to be caused by him.
"By we, do you mean my siblings?" Five asked.
"Yep, the morons."
Five rolled his eyes.
"When we come into existence, the timeline is shattered, and then we're stuck trying to save the world. How many times was it again?"
"145,412."
The number seemed almost impossible to fathom, but the more alternate realities, the more opportunity for the world to end. Alternate Five pointed at the wall, which was filled with every possible way the world had ended. Viktor's attempt at blowing up the moon was front and center. Seeing it gave Five an unpleasant sense of nostalgia.
Five came to realize that the commission was created by an alternate Five in an attempt to fix the timeline, but it was never successful since the Hargreeves siblings were the root of the problem.
"I have to get back." Five turned, rushing out the door. He heard the alternate versions of himself begin to speak, but his overwhelming thoughts drowned it out.
Five ran as fast as he could, getting back on the train and returning to his rightful place. With his family.
As Five entered the abandoned shell of his former home, the room's occupants turned to look at him.
The first person he noticed was you. You watched him with sad eyes, eyes he thought he would never have to gaze into again. Yet here he was, and undeniably, he had a plan.
You watched Five scan the room. Dark hair hung in front of his eyes, his chest heaved from running, or perhaps from anxiety.
"I didn't think you'd be back." You purse your lips, giving him a sour look. '
Facing your bitterness was the hardest part of all this for Five. Of course you had every right to feel that way, he had just up and left you. Although, in his mind that was better than having to watch you die.
"Yeah, neither did I." Five muttered.
Everyone looked at him, obviously awaiting an explanation.
"We caused this." Five began.
"What the hell are you talking about?" Alison sighed.
You stared at Five intently, wondering what had changed since he decided to ditch you and everyone else.
"The marigold that infected our mothers bringing forth our births had a side effect, it fractured the timeline, bringing forth the end of the world."
Five looked from person to person, attempting to read everyone's emotions. They were unreadable.
"Extracting the marigold from our bodies is the only way to stop the cleanse, and in short, fix the timeline."
Silence settled over the room. You weren't born with marigold as the Hargreeves were, but due to Ben's antics, this now concerns you too.
"Okay, but how exactly do we do that?" Diego asked.
Five looked over to Viktor.
"Viktor, you can use your powers to extract the Marigold from our bodies. Unfortunately Ben and Jennifer are too far gone to be saved, but their sacrifice will have been for the greater good."
Viktor let out an elongated sigh, and with little to no hesitation, he agreed.
"Okay, let's get moving before it's too late." Viktor said, speeding out of the room.
You followed closely behind, trying your hardest to avoid Five's gaze.
"Y/N, I-" You cut him off, this was not the time to be talking about all the mistakes he had made. Even if those mistakes led to the answer for all your troubles, they were still mistakes.
"We can talk about this later, if there is one."
Five sighed and watched you exit the room, not even bothering to look his way. He had fucked up big time.
You watched Viktor head towards the monster that was Ben and Jennifer. The creature growled, as it hurdled towards your group.
You turned back as you felt someone grab your arm, Five was standing behind you. You saw something in him that you had only seen a few times before, fear.
"Please. If we don't make it through this I want to make sure we're okay." Five begged for your forgiveness.
In any other circumstance you would not have given in this easily, but the dire situation has just begun to settle in. This could be it.
Neither of you wanted to leave this world with so many words unsaid.
Your gaze softened, and you followed Five away from the other Hargreeve's.
"I know what I did was wrong. With every bone in my body I feel that it was wrong."
He spoke loudly enough to drown out the oncoming chaos, but softly enough to omit any sort of aggression.
Five reached for your hands, and you reluctantly let him take them.
Five paused for a moment, trying to find the words that would mean the most, considering he was dealing with limited time.
"My worst fear is to see you suffer, and at the time, running away seemed like my only escape. I feel like I've already caused so much hardship in your life, and the thought of any more terrified me." His eyes stayed glued to you.
Five was the whole reason you had joined The Commission to begin with. He helped you to believe in a cause that you otherwise wouldn't have, and the two of you hadn't left each other's side since.
You didn't regret it per say, but you couldn't deny that you often wished for a different life. You would never blame any of your circumstances on Five though, and you hated how he always chose to blame himself.
"Nothing that has happened to me, or to anyone, is your fault. I think all of us share some responsibility, but blaming yourself is just wrong." You squeezed Five's clammy hands.
Five let out a sigh of relief as he was able to recognize forgiveness in your eyes.
"I love you." He said, fighting the tears that began to form in the corners of his eyes. The phrase was reserved only for you, as it is a concept that has always been hard for five.
Growing up with Reginald as a father, and a family that could win an Olympic gold medal in dysfunctionality, Five didn't exactly have a positive outlook on love.
"I love you too. We've been through worse, we'll get through this too."
Five pulled you into a tight hug, breathing you in as if it was the last chance he would ever get to hold you. The two of you were versed in the end of the world, this was not the first final hug you had shared. Five placed a soft kiss on the top of your head, and he didn't miss the small cry that escaped your lips.
You rarely cried, and when you did it was always around Five. He was the only person you felt comfortable enough with to show vulnerability. It was the perfect moment, and the past few days had worn down your patience. You reluctantly let a few tears slip loose.
"Get your asses over here love birds, Ben is here." Diego called from the other side of the room.
You and Five exchanged a look before running over to the center of the room and rejoining your family.
Ben growled ferociously, the red goo that dripped from his body falling around the room.
"Just so you guys know, I have no idea what the hell I'm doing. So if we all die, I apologize in advance." Viktor said, clenching his fists on either side.
His newly improved orange power began to swirl around his body. He squeezed his eyes shut, clearly focusing on the task at hand.
You reached for Five's hand, interlocking your fingers with his. If these were to be your last moments, you wanted to make sure he was with you.
Five gripped your hand with everything he had in him, every bit of strength was to remind you of his presence.
With each moment that passed, the colorful plume of Viktor's powers grew, encasing not only Ben and Jennifer, but all of you.
You and Five watched as the all too familiar gold marigold specks began to float through the air. It felt odd, it didn't hurt, but it wasn't a particularly pleasant feeling. It was like your whole body was being poked by a prickly cactus.
The air turned cold, and all other sounds were overcome by the rumbling of Viktor's power.
An unbearable wave of exhaustion washed over you, and it became hard for you to keep your eyes open.
You looked over at Five, making eye contact with him one last time. He gave you his signature smirk, funny how in spite of everything he could still be himself.
The last thing you saw was Ben falling to the floor, the marigold protruding from him filling the whole room with a deep yellow glow.
And just like that, the world turned black.
· · ─────── ·☂· ─────── · ☂ · ─────── ·☂· ─────── · ·
Five opened his eyes, the bright light of day overwhelming his vision. The ground beneath him was soft, the tall grass tickling his fingertips.
Five sat up slowly, his eyes adjusting to the sun. He looked over next to him, and there you were. Just as you had always been, right by his side. Your chest rose slowly, a thankful sign that you were still alive.
Five looked beyond you, to see his siblings all scattered around the lawn. They were all exactly where they had been before the blackout. The empty patch of grass, of course, was where the Hargreeve's mansion used to stand.
Without the existence of their powers, The Umbrella Academy was never formed. It was strange, to know that what Five remembered, no one else did. It was like waking up from a strange dream.
However, one thing was missing, Ben. And of course Jennifer. Five wasn't surprised that they hadn't made it, considering how their bodies were overtaken.
Five watched as his siblings slowly began to rise from their temporary comas, their eyes heavy and glazed over.
Five nudged you slightly. Unable to wait for you to wake, wanting to share this beautiful moment with you.
You opened your eyes and felt as if you had awoken from a decades long slumber. The first thing you saw was Five next to you, a genuine smile on his face. That was something you had missed.
"Are we in heaven?" Klaus mumbled, rubbing his eyes.
"Well if this was heaven, I'd be awfully disappointed." Lila replied.
You laughed to yourself, and stood up on wobbly legs.
You all had done it.
"Viktor. I think you might have just saved the world." Luther announced.
Viktor smiled and looked down, maybe eventually he'd let himself take the credit.
You began to take in your surroundings. The sound of traffic in the distance, the wind stinging your cheek, the smell of spring air. It was all so normal.
"Guys, where's Ben?" Klaus asked, and your heart dropped.
"Klaus...we all knew he probably wouldn't make it.." Alison said sadly.
Just then, something caught your eye. Something yellow that stuck out in the patch of green.
"Guys, look!" You pointed at the unique plant.
"Marigolds." Five said softly, and you felt his hand close around yours.
Two beautiful yellow flowers sprouted from the earth, a reminder of what was sacrificed. A reminder of what had to happen for all of this to exist, and a symbol of hope.
~~ Two Years Later ~~
You awoke to the sound of birds chirping outside your window, a song that was often your wake-up call. You rolled over to see Five sleeping peacefully next to you. You weren't surprised. He always slept late, after all, he was an old man at heart.
It had been two years of living freely in the new timeline. You and Five now share an apartment next to Lila and Diego and their three kids.
Life wasn't without its challenges, but compared to everything else the two of you had been through this was paradise.
Viktor had started his own Cafe, a small shop on a street corner that had quickly become a local favorite.
Alison had landed a big movie role not long after everything returned to normal. Ever since it hit the big screen, she had no problem with job offers. She didn't even miss her power of persuasion.
Klaus still lives with Alison. He doesn't really do anything specific, he often refers to himself as 'self-employed'. But he was happy, and that was all that really mattered.
Luther had somehow reconnected with Sloane, who had re-appeared after the timeline was fixed. Of course she didn't remember anything, but it must've been fate because they got to fall in love all over again.
Diego decided to put his skills acquired from his power to use and now taught axe throwing classes.
Lila had decided to help people who had ended up in a mental hospital, similar to how she had. She was working on getting her degree in psychology.
As for you and Five. Five kept his CIA job, and you decided to join him in his career. As the two of you had always done everything together, why not this too?
You felt Five stir next to you, letting out a series of groans. He slowly opened his eyes, a smile spreading across his face the moment he saw you.
"Good morning, beautiful." His morning voice is thick and deep.
"I love you." You whispered, pushing his messy hair out of his eyes.
Five leaned up to kiss you but you counteracted it by jumping out of bed. You pulled the blanket off of him and he whined in protest.
"Time to get up, Gramps, Lila wants us to drive the kids to school today."
Five rolled his eyes at the nickname. You snickered and kissed him on the cheek before heading to the bathroom to get ready.
After the two of you grabbed breakfast, you met Lila outside, Grace and the twins behind her.
"Thank you again for helping us out with this, I don't know how I'd ever get to work on time without you." Lila gave you a quick hug.
"Of course, whatever you need." You ushered her away, signaling that you could take it from here.
You were used to driving the kids places, and they always said you were their favorite aunt. Five however, could not surpass Klaus for favorite uncle.
"Alright guys, who's ready for school?" You said as you jumped in the driver's seat.
There was a chorus of enthusiastic cheers from the back, and you laughed.
"I was never that excited about school when I was your age." The kids had no idea how long ago that actually was for you.
You made sure to put on some kid friendly music, anything but Baby Shark. You dropped the kids off and made sure they all got inside safely.
"Anything else on the schedule for today?" Five asked you.
"Nope, we're both off today so I think the rest of our day is free."
"Great, we should do absolutely nothing." Five's eyes lit up with excitement.
You nodded in agreement and drove towards your home.
Once you arrived, the both of you threw on pajamas and cuddled up in bed. Five flung his arms around you and rested his head on your shoulder, simultaneously letting out a big sigh.
"I love you." He mumbled in your ear.
Even after all these years he still made you blush every time he said those three little words.
"I love you more." You pressed a kiss to Five's nose and he scrunched it up before responding with a chaste kiss to your lips.
After breaking apart you and Five settled into each other's arms, excited to spend a calm day together.
He reached for the remote and flicked on the TV. The small kiss he placed on your forehead didn't go unnoticed.
As Five settled into this new life, he found it hard not to expect a new life altering crisis to pop up at any moment. But it never did.
As the day dragged on, nothing out of the ordinary happened; and you could almost say that it was an ordinary day.
Taglist: @xreader-writing @dorkyfangirl24 @dinorawrss @anne-oop @ladynaviamin @i-amtrash @patchesofdreams @sarbear33 @marinalor
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glitchfiles · 2 years ago
Text
only 'til dawn. [ljn]
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pairing ⋆ badboy!jeno x inexperienced/goodgirl!reader
wordcount ⋆ 2.7k+
warnings ⋆ SMUT MINORS DNI!!!, softdom!jeno, smoking, shotgunning, car sex, big dick jeno, corruption, praise, light degradation, oral (m receiving), cowgirl, spanking (once), light choking, creampie...
note ⋆ i had to leave this one in my drafts for some time first because i didn't want to upload two car sex fics in a row then i wanted to rewrite it then i couldn't be asked to do that fully... so yeah, enjoy :D
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"fuck," jeno drawls out as his head lolls to the side, "you're shit at this." he chuckles at your feeble attempt to give him a blowjob.
you look up at him, he seems totally unphased by your attempts to get him off, even going as far as to fish a pack of cigarettes and a lighter out of the inner pocket of his leather jacket. the scowl that forms on your brow shows how much it dents your pride; he smirks down at you tauntingly.
"open your mouth a little more." he places a cigarette between his lips and lights the end. "you don't mind if i smoke, right?" you roll your eyes, he could have asked before. at least he had the courtesy to wind the window down.
there was no reason for you to debase yourself like this, the whole situation is beyond demeaning. you’re on your knees in the back of jeno’s car, struggling to please him and now he’s having a smoke mid-head?!
it felt as if your jaw was about to unhinge at any moment, you didn’t know it could stretch this far. the girls in the videos made it look so easy, compared to them, the way you were slobbering all over his girth was far from sexy. not to mention how you were clumsily pumping the rest of his length. not to toot your own horn, but you picked things up easily, this was a whole different ballpark to academic work. 
"you're too big," you whine. your lack of experience definitely didn't have anything to do with the shoddy head you were giving. how he was still hard was a wonder, you’re sure he’s seconds away from going flaccid.
normally, he would have put an end to the whole thing. it's not like he wasn't one text away from a few girls that could suck the soul out of him. however, considering how unsavoury his reputation was, the fact that you, the university’s golden girl, and much-revered student union president, were so eager to please him behind closed doors inflated his ego more than anything else could.
he couldn’t help but find humour in how ardently you refused to acknowledge him in public at times like this; if you spotted him on campus you looked the other way. but the moment he shot you a text, you were swooning and giggling, begging to meet up. so, here you were, in the dead of night, at the back of an empty parking lot a couple of miles away from campus.
“you’re lucky you have a patient teacher, i’m going to turn you into an expert!” jeno directs you between drags of his cigarette, blowing the smoke out of the windows as he laughs at you being unable to get the hang of it. saying you feel frustrated would be an understatement.
"i don't want to do this anymore," you sit up, finally admitting defeat and letting his heavy cock flop down against his abdomen. if jeno were a better person, he would have stopped you a few minutes ago, but you were so eager to please him and he loved the adorable pout on your lips and how your brows furrowed whenever you were exasperated.
"then what do you want to do?" you can think of a few things, but they would be super embarrassing to say. so, you refused to answer. he sighs before slotting his cigarette between his lips, leaving his hands free to pull you onto his lap.
"wanna try?" you don't know what possesses you, but you nod. 
how bad can it be? 
he taps the burnt end off, letting the ashes fall out the window before setting the cigarette between your lips. it feels childish to admit, but the fact that you had shared an indirect kiss makes you smile. this doesn't last long, though; after a short pull, you end up choking.
"god, that's awful!" you squeak as he belly laughs, only stopping when you hit his chest. all he's done tonight is tease you.
"i thought so too when i first tried." he soothes you, so as to not incur any more of your light-handed wrath. "why don't we start with some baby steps?" 
you're unsure what he means until his large, rough hand is placed gently under your jaw and his thumb brushes over your lower lip, "open up for me, angel."
he takes a long drag before tilting his head to the side and filling your mouth with a thick cloud of smoke. you're not sure what this is, but it feels intimate. it feels as if he’s breathing life into you. your whole body warms and tingles, your head spins, and a fire lights in your core.
once his lungs are empty, he seals it with a kiss. it's slow and passionate. his hand slides round to the back of your neck, pulling you closer. maybe it’s the nicotine running through your veins, you feel lightheaded. you let him slip his tongue past your lips to dance around your own.
the sweet flavour of your strawberry lip balm he was used to intermingled with the bitterness of his cigarette. he can't help but groan at the fact you taste a lot more like him now. 
the cigarette he's momentarily forgotten in his hand gets flicked away to burn to a butt somewhere on the tarmac outside. his now free hand comes to rest on your hip. it guides your body forwards, bringing your clothed centre flush against his bare cock.
you mewl into his mouth, he swallows down the sound. he’s greedy for more and starts rocking against you. grinding out then gulping down your noises, they go straight down to his cock. it’s throbbing, you can feel how painfully hard he is underneath you. only when he’s met with an uncomfortable stickiness due to his precum seeping through his shirt does he put an end to his gluttony.
a begrudging whine fills the car as he pulls your lips away from him. the look in his eyes alone was almost enough to make you cream, it was different to the cocky, yet lewd, eye fucking that seemed to be his default. those dark eyes of his turned into endless pits of boundless desire.
warm hands glide under your sweater, tugging it over your head, off your body to let it land somewhere in the front of his car. he does the same with his own shirt, sitting back to let you admire the rippling muscles on his torso. you delicately placed a hand on his chest, sliding it down to his abdomen; it seems he doesn’t have to have his dick in your mouth to have you drooling over him.
“like what you see, baby?” the smug look on his face makes your stomach twist.
“shut up,” you smash your lips against his again before he can speak again. 
jeno rushes to unclasp your bra, pushing the fabric out of his way so he can knead at your breasts; not before long, his mouth leaves you to pepper kisses down your neck then it encloses around one of your pert nipples. 
“mmm, jeno!” you mewl as his tongue laps at the bud, causing your back to arch in search of more stimulation. a hand weaves itself into his inky, thick locks, pushing him to give attention to the other side. “jeno, more!”
“i love hearing you say my name,” he growls against your chest, “wanted to hear you say it all week, but you don’t even spare me a glance unless i have my cock out.” 
you ignore the slight bitterness in his tone focusing on how he nips at your skin, leaving dark marks he hopes will last until he next sees you. marks that he hopes others will see and know you belong to someone; you’ll probably chastise him later over text but he doesn’t care, anything to keep him on your mind like you're always on his. 
reluctantly, he detaches himself from your chest and sits back, eyeing the drying traces of saliva he left with a dazed smile. 
“what next? tell me.” his hands delicately caress your hips, your cheeks begin to heat up and you avoid his eye contact. “don’t act all coy now, where’s the girl that begged me to drive her out here and fuck her dumb?” 
you were still clinging onto the last dregs of your virtuous good girl persona - the last white spots on a canvas he had first found unsullied. your first sin had been naivety, too easily seduced by a good-looking face and the sweet nothings he whispered in your ears but he had been more than happy to lengthen the list.
you wondered if this was how you had always been - or was he corrupting you. he broke down every conception you had of yourself and no one outside of the car you both sat in would believe this was you - you barely did yourself. some would say he was ruining you, but he’d never make you do something you didn’t want to, this was all you.
“please…” you let your head fall onto the crook of his neck, voice barely above a whisper. “want you inside.”
“a smart girl like you can be more descriptive than that.” he strokes a finger down your back, leaving a trail of heat on your spine, in hopes of prompting lewder vocabulary. you take a moment to chew your bottom lip and swallow down the last bit of dignity you had.
“please, fuck me.” you weep against the shell of his ear, “fill my pussy up, i need you so bad, jeno.” 
“sound so pretty when you tell me what you want.” his low-toned praise makes you shiver as he flips your skirt up and raises your hips. he pushes your panties to the side to position his cock at your dripping entrance. taking a second to tease your slit, making sure to brush over your swollen clit, only to hold you still when your hips jerk forward.
“look at me, angel.” you perk up for him, “so beautiful,” he tucks a stray lock of hair behind your ear. his gaze holds yours firmly as he brings you down on his bulbous tip, stretching you out slowly.
you struggle to keep your eyes from shutting. your mouth hangs open letting out hushed gasps as you sink down an inch at a time. he thinks you’re the prettiest creature he’s ever laid eyes on. 
“keep going... yeah, just like that... so good...” his soft gaze, light touch and encouraging words make things easier. he can feel your walls begin to relax and hungrily accept his girth. 
“‘s so fucking big,” you wail out, not even having taken him fully. you couldn’t quite yet without his help, though you’ll get there eventually - he’d make sure of that. 
“i know, baby, but you take me so well. can you move for me?” you nod shyly, lifting yourself and dropping back down as far as you can with a long whine. up and down, you split yourself open over and over. 
jeno’s hands press into your flesh, silently encouraging you to take more of him. you work your hips faster, earning a deep groan from him as his head falls back. instinctively, your mouth attaches itself to his neck, mimicking the way he had kissed and sucked at your own earlier.
“for such a sweet, innocent girl, you sure do ride like a slut.” he breathily laughs as his hand comes down on your ass with a sounding slap. “like the way my cock stretches this tight cunt out.” there’s no hiding the way your walls clench at the sharp sting. you try to find refuge from your embarrassment by hiding your face in his shoulder, but he quickly takes ahold of your throat, forcing you to sit up straight.
“don’t hide from me,” he tells you warningly and squeezes your neck lightly. once again your eyes lock, his stare as intense as ever. your teeth sink into your bottom lip and you rest your hands on his strong chest, adopting a faster pace. 
he lets out moans which you naturally reciprocate, however, you embellish yours with his name; you feel his cock twitch at the sound of it. the look in his eyes turns wild as his fingers dig deeper into the meat of your ass, forming a nearly bruising grip; with the other hand, he’s careful not to cut off airflow but forms a hold that leaves you feeling dizzy. 
“you know exactly what you do to me.” he chuckles, “you were fucking made for me, made for taking my cock, weren’t you? yeah, so perfect, angel.”
your legs begin to shake, his words and his cock are quickly pushing you towards the pinnacle. you try your very best to work through the overwhelming pleasure and the ache in your thighs, wanting to get him off since you failed at sucking his dick. but you can't seem to power through it, tears well in your eyes as everything becomes too overwhelming, it's far too much.
“need help, baby?” his soft spot for you wins, “did such a good job for me. i’ll take care of you, make you cum all over my cock. want that?”
“please, need to cum so bad.” his hand leaves your neck and places itself and your other asscheek. he plants his feet firmly and then rams up into you.
your brain goes blank in an instant. 
he’s deep. so deep. too deep!
you cry out, nails digging into his broad, muscular shoulders to anchor yourself. the tears that had threatened to leave your eyes before stream down your face, staining your cheeks. your whole body quivers as his cock lays kisses on your cervix with each thrust. 
“jeno, oh my god, right there!” you practically scream. his face screws at the feeling of your walls constricting, getting tighter by the second and making it harder to move; he powers through by jackhammering into you with more force. 
it feels like you could break at any moment, he's bouncing you on his cock like you're a ragdoll and you're too weak to do anything but take and enjoy it. all it takes is a few more thrusts before you’re creaming all over him. your body seizes as your eyes roll back, and his name tumbles from your lips incessantly in pleasured sobs. 
it’s hard to keep you in one place as he continues to fuck you through your orgasm, but he handles your squirming body with ease using his strength. the most ungodly wet squelches fill the car as he races towards his own release, your sticky mess clings to both of your thighs. 
“shit… pussy’s sucking me in so deep, gonna cum.” his chest rises and falls dramatically, he can barely breathe. his thrusts get choppier as he loses himself to the feral urge to paint your insides pearly white.
a heavy groan rips through him as his balls tighten, he nestles his cock nice and deep as he pours hot spurts of cum into you. he fills you with warmth; you feel complete for a moment. unfortunately, all good things must come to an end eventually. 
you could almost start crying again when he pulls you off of him. his praise on how well you took his cum as it dribbles out of your cunt makes up for it, though. his tongue swipes across his lips as he watches it drip all over his cock, unbothered by the fact half of it is soiling his leather car seats too. 
the sound of your wild breathing is all that fills the car for a moment until his lips find yours one last time. breathlessly kissing you, there is less vigour than before but just as much passion. your heart warms for a moment at the almost bashful smile on his face as he rests his forehead against yours and wipes the tears that still cling to your soft skin.
this feels right, perfect even, but it only takes a few words for him to fuck it all up.
“wanna come over to mine?” jeno regrets his words immediately, the expression on your face sour at the thought of someone spotting you walking into his dorm or one of his loud-mouthed roommates blabbering about you spending the night together.
give jeno a hand and he’ll end up taking the whole arm.
you pull away from him suddenly remembering who you are.
“don’t be ridiculous, you know i can’t even be caught dead with you.” you grimace at the mess between your legs as you reposition your panties; then, you search for the clothing he had strewn around the car.
you don’t even look at him when you demand him to. “just drop me off where you usually do.”
jeno grins even at your cold-hearted rejection. not just anyone could say they had a place between your legs; he’s sure he’ll have a place in your heart too soon enough…
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★ thanks for reading! my inbox is open for feedback and requests! :3
© glitchfiles
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sourcherryandsprinkles · 11 months ago
Note
Can you write modern Jace being a blind king? Those glasses looks THICK. Maybe reader come to his dorm and see him with his glasses?
Request: Roommates college au where there’s a mixup with the dorms and they end up in the same dorm. Imagine rooming with Jace? He’d be so cute and maybe a little nerdy idk. She moves out but they become friends…and then more than friends
The second request has been sitting in my ask for a long time (sorry). I watched Insidious: The Red Door the other day and it gave me inspiration for it (I had planned to add smut in this one but it didn't end up fitting and my laptop didn't save a few of the scenes I had written so I had to rewrite them...not as good or cute as the first time)
my taglists are here + you can send requests here at any time
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When you arrived at your assigned dorm, there were already people there. One was a boy with curly hair, and the other a woman with white-blond hair. Their backs were all turned, so they didn’t see you come in with your suitcase. 
‘’No, Mom, you don't have to do that. I can do it myself,’’ he said, trying to stop her from unpacking a box. ‘’Classes don’t start until Monday.’’ 
‘’But I want to help you settle in,’’ she insisted, taking a lamp out of the box and setting it on the nightstand. ‘’My first boy is leaving for college. This is difficult for me, Jace. Let me at least help you with your bed. No one makes a bed better than a mother.’’  
Jace sighed in defeat and moved out of her way so she could make his bed. ‘’Okay. Thanks, Mom.’’ 
She grabbed sheets from another box and began making the bed. ‘’Where are your brothers and father? Taking the last boxes out of the car shouldn’t take so long. I hope they didn’t get lost on campus.’’
You watched them with jealousy, wishing your parents had dropped you off at college too. It was a rite of passage for freshman students. But you understood that your parents had jobs they could not take days off from. 
You stood there for a moment before clearing your throat to announce your presence. ‘’This is room 309?’’
Jace’s mom looked up first, giving you a kind smile. ‘’Oh, hello there. Yes, this is 309. Are you looking for someone?’’ 
‘’No. Eh, this is my dorm,’’ you said with a frown, holding your paper in your hand. ‘’It says 309.’’ 
Jace turned around, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion. ‘’That’s impossible, there must be a mistake. This is a boys hall, and boys and girls aren’t supposed to room together. It’s nothing against you, I personally don’t see a problem rooming with a girl. It’s just…not permitted.’’
‘’I know. But it says here that this is my dorm.’’ 
‘’Let me see that paper, sweetheart.’’ The blond woman looked at your paper, her eyes reading the information slowly. ‘’Oh, no. You’re right. There must be a mistake on the college’s part.’’
‘’You should go to the housing office,’’ Jace suggested with the same kind smile as his mother. ‘’They’ll switch you to another hall.’’
You nodded. ‘’I’m gonna go and see if they can solve this issue. Can I leave my suitcase here?’’ 
‘’Of course.’’ 
☆.。.:*・°☆.。.:*・° 
The line outside the housing office was crazy due to the hoard of students coming back, so you didn't get back to your dorm until well later in the evening. There were no voices coming from inside your dorm, meaning Jace's family must have left. 
You knocked before coming in, not wanting to walk in on something you should not be seeing. But Jace did not hear you, laying on his bed with a book and headphones on. You didn’t take him for a reader, nor a glasses wearer. 
‘’What did they say at housing?’’ he asked, taking down his headphones and shutting his book. 
You walked over to the empty bed and fell down on it, exhausted. ‘’They basically said sorry for the inconvenience and that I gotta sleep here tonight. But I’ll get a new room tomorrow, so it’s not a permanent thing.’’ 
Jace hummed. ‘’Do you need help settling for the night?’’ 
You shook your head, standing. ‘’No. I’m just gonna get my pillow and blanket, and change into pajamas. There’s no point unpacking when I move again tomorrow.’’ 
Your suitcase was heavy, so you lowered it on the floor and grabbed your pillow and blanket, then rummaged through your suitcase for your pajamas. As you held up your shorts and a tee shirt, you remembered that this was a boys' hall, meaning the bathrooms would be full of boys.
Jace seemed to read your mind. ‘’Eh, I can turn around so you can change,’’ he offered. ‘’I promise I’m not gonna look. I can even take off my glasses if you want, I’m blind as a mile without them.’’
You chuckled at his offer. What a gentleman, you noted. Making sure you feel comfortable during this inconvenience. ‘’That's okay. Just turning around is fine."
He nodded and turned his back to you, facing the wall. ‘’You’re in art school?’’ he asked, making conversation as you changed so it would be less awkward. ‘’I've seen your sketchbook and art supplies beside your suitcase. Not that I snooped through your things. I promise I didn’t.’’ 
‘’Yeah,’’ you replied, pulling your shirt over your head and unclasping your bra. It felt daunting to be topless in the same room as an almost-stranger, but you tried to not think too much about it. ‘’And you’re in...?'
''Political science,’’ he finished. ‘’My grandfather went to this university, so I’m following his footsteps. I’m also taking a side class in History for personal pleasure.’’
Political science was not what you expected him to say, but it made sense. With his glasses, he had the politician look — minus the sweats and tee shirt. 
What kind of weirdo takes a history class for fun? 
‘’I know what you’re thinking — history is boring. But I love learning about the past civilisations and how ancient monuments were built, it’s so fascinating. Like the Moai Statues, the Giza pyramids or the Colosseum of Rome.’’
‘’Have you ever visited one of them?’’ You slipped into your pajamas, and threw your dirty clothes on top of your suitcase. 
His lips curled into an excited grin. ‘’I have! Last year, my family and I went to Italy and my dad took me and my brother Luke to see the Colosseum. It was magnificent. I took pictures. Do you want to see?’’ 
‘’Sure.’’ 
You sat back on your bed and Jace turned back around, reaching to grab his ipad to show you the pictures he took. His passion for history could be heard as he talked about the Colosseum, telling you facts you had never heard of. Eventually, the pictures came to an end, and Jace accidentally swiped too far, showing you a picture of his brothers and him making faces in Italy. 
☆.。.:*・°☆.。.:*・° 
You didn’t think so many people would be up early on a Saturday. The queue at the campus café was insane. All for a coffee and a bagel. 
As you walked across the quad, trying to get to the bookstore to get everything you needed for Monday, flyers were being shoved into your face, advertising for clubs, frat parties and sorority houses who were scouting for new members. You were not interested in any, but they were not taking no for answer.
A neon party? What year were they stuck into? 
You threw all the invitations in the trash.  
On your way back from the bookstore, you received an email from the housing office with your new dorm information. You could move in immediately, but needed to stop by for your new key. 
So that's what you did. 
You couldn’t wait to get to your new dorm and finally shower. 
‘’You’re already going?’’ Jace asked, coming in with a paper bag containing lunch from the café you went to this morning. 
You nodded, finishing zipping up your suitcase. ‘’I’m not going too far, though. I’m just a floor up, right above you, so if you jerk off or have a girl over, remember that I can hear all.’’
Jace’s cheeks turned a shade of pink, getting flustered.
☆.。.:*・°☆.。.:*・° 
Although you had moved out, you found yourself standing outside your old dorm a few days later. 
‘’Howdy roomie,’’ you said when Jace opened. ‘’Let’s go out, I’m hungry.’’ 
Before he could say anything, you stepped in as if it was still your dorm and sat on the empty bed that used to be yours. They must not have found him a new roommate. On the desk, you noticed Jace’s laptop was opened along with his textbook. 
The brunet frowned, clearly confused by your presence. ‘’Eh, what are you doing here?’’ 
‘’Taking my roommate out for pizza?’’ you replied. You had not eaten since that granola bar at lunch and your stomach was screaming. 
‘’We’re not roommates anymore.’’ 
You rolled your eyes. It was a minor detail. ‘’I know, but you’re the person I’ve spent the most time with since getting here and I don’t feel like going out to eat alone. Please, Jace,’’ you said, pouting to put all chances on your side. 
He was taken back. This wasn’t a common occurrence for him. A girl knocking on his door and asking him out — platonically or not. 
His frown disappeared, and a small smile tugged at the corner of his lips. ‘’Fine,’’ he sighed. ‘’I’ll put on my shoes.’’
☆.。.:*・°☆.。.:*・° 
Getting pizza after class on Wednesday became a weekly rendez-vous. You sat at the same table, ordered the same toppings — pepperoni with extra cheese and red bell peppers —, and talked about anything but school. You made it an official rule on your fourth date when Jace spent the whole time biting his fingers and worrying about a paper that was due at the end of the week. 
Pizza dates were your special time to unwind and stop thinking of schoolwork.
As you both settled into your usual spot, hair slightly damp from the drizzle outside. Early autumn rain was the worst. The weather was too warm to carry around a jacket, but when you didn’t have one, rain would randomly start pouring. 
You took a second slice of pizza and glanced at Jace. ‘’I’m gonna need your help for a project for my art class.’’ 
His eyes widened slightly, and he quickly swallowed his bite of pizza. ‘’Nope!’’ 
You frowned at his immediate refusal. ‘’You don’t want to help me?’’ 
‘’No! That’s not that,’’ he assured. ‘’Didn’t we make a rule that we would not be speaking of school while eating pizza? You’re breaking your own rule,’’ he pointed out. 
You sighed dramatically, leaning back in the booth. ‘’I know… But Mrs. Rosenberg told us this afternoon that we needed a model for our proportion piece and I didn’t want to forget about it. All you have to do is sit and look pretty while I draw you.’’ 
Jace raised an eyebrow. ‘’Oh, so you think I’m pretty?’’ he teased, stuffing a huge bite of pizza in his mouth before you could swat his arm.
You rolled your eyes and took a bite of your own slice. ‘’So, will you be my model?’’
He thought about it, a slight pout on his lips. ‘’What’s in it for me?’’
‘’Extra time with your favorite roommate?’’ 
☆.。.:*・°☆.。.:*・° 
‘’Is this okay? I have a red polo somewhere. Maybe it would look better?’’ Jace asked as you laid out your art material on the second, unused, desk. 
You shook your head, and started propping up your small easel. ‘’You’re perfect like this.’’ 
He nodded slowly, his cheeks flushing a bit as he settled into position by the desk lamp you had priorly angled. The silence between you was comfortable as you began tracing Jace's features on your canvas, and you took a moment to really look at him — his curly hair, the faint freckles across his aquiline nose, the highlight of his pouty lips, and the way his fingers fidgeted with the hem of his tee shirt.
He was nervous. You immediately picked on it when you came in with your canvas and art supplies. His demeanor was different than usual. 
‘’Can you move your head slightly to the left?’’
Jace complied, the dull yellow light of the lamp hitting exactly where you wanted it. Now, you could see all the angles and edges of his face. 
‘’Yes! That’s perfect!’’
You continued tracing the contrasts and outlines of your model's face, eyebrows knitted together in concentration. Jace found it cute, but he kept it to himself. 
The afternoon passed. You painted and mixed colors on your palette, lost in your creative bubble while Jace was trying his best to keep his posture...which was starting to ache. Sitting completely straight for hours was more difficult than he thought.
As you were working on his complexion, you stole glances at your ex-roommate, trying to get every detail on your canvas, and noticed him shifting slightly, uncomfortable. 
‘’You know,’’ you began, breaking the silence. ‘’You don’t have to stay completely still like a statue. Feel free to move a little or adjust. I'll tell you if it doesn't work for me.’’
Jace gave a small laugh, the sound light and nervous. ‘’I’m not really used to this… Playing the model.’’
‘’I think you're doing good. Just...a bit stiff.’’
You continued painting him until the sun began to set, then called for a much deserved snack break. Jace pulled out a pack of Oreos from the snack box in his closet and your eyes turned into hearts. They were your favorite. 
‘’You really know the way to a girl’s heart,’’ you said as you took a third cookie from the pack. 
Jace smiled at you, pleased to see you enjoying them. He took a fifth one and chewed slowly as crumbs fell on his shirt. Oreos were messy. ‘’My mom sent them to me in a care package last week. I need my sugar to stay focused when I stay up late doing schoolwork.’’ 
Your heart melted at the sweet attention from Jace’s mother.  
‘’How is the painting going?’’  
‘’It’s coming together nicely. But it won’t be finished tonight. Painting takes a while. Especially portraits,’’ you replied. ‘’I need to get every little detail right. From that one curl that’s almost poking you in the eye to the dust of freckles on your nose.’’ 
The brunet’s cheeks flushed a bit at your words. He was not sure what to do with the feeling bubbling up in his stomach. Was this a compliment? Gods, he sucked with girls. 
You stayed in Jace’s dorm until one of you began yawning and it was time to call it a night. He helped you put your painting supplies away and even offered to clean your brushes in the boys’ bathrooms. This guy was a true sweetheart. 
☆.。.:*・°☆.。.:*・°
The following afternoon, you approached Jace's dorm, your painting supplies tucked under your arm. A lot of students used their Sunday to do their laundry, so you hoped he was there. You should have texted him before coming.
You were about to knock, fist raised, when you paused at the door, hearing the faint sound of a facetime conversation coming from inside. 
‘’She’s not my girlfriend. Shut up, Luke,’’ Jace's voice came through, tinged with frustration.
You could imagine his cheeks heating up. 
‘’You go on dates all the time…and you said she was cute, and talented, and funny,'' Luke's voice, younger and teasing, said, recalling everything. 
You should feel ashamed for eavesdropping on a conversation about you, but you couldn’t help but smile to yourself, butterflies filling your stomach. Jace had talked to his brother about you? If Luke assumed you were his girlfriend, he must have talked about you more than once. 
‘’We’re just friends. I don’t have time for a girlfriend anyway. I have a lot of schoolwork,’’ Jace interrupted, his tone firm but slightly defensive.
‘’Nerd,’’ Luke snickered. 
You didn’t meet him on moving day, but you assumed he was the kind of brother who loved to tease his siblings. From what Jace had told you, he was quite the little troublemaker. 
A few doors down, a guy walked out of his dorm with a bag of dirty clothes and sweatpants low on his hips, and stared you down as you stood in the corridor. He was walking your way, so you took this as your cue to knock on Jace’s door. The sound echoed throughout the quiet corridor, louder than you intended.
‘’Ohh is that your girlfriend?’’ 
‘’No, it's...pizza delivery. Tell Mom I’ll call her tonight,’’ he added in a softer tone. 
You heard movement inside and soon Jace opened the door, greeting you with his usual bright smile. He had glasses and gray sweats on, meaning he had likely not left his dorm at all today. 
 ‘’Hey, you’re here! I was starting to think you made other plans…’’ Jace said, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. 
‘’Never,’’ you replied, walking past him and setting your things down like yesterday. ‘’Besides, I need to bring in my final piece Wednesday morning and I still have a lot left to paint. It would have been a poor choice to not come.’’ 
Behind you, Jace nodded. ‘’Eh, should I change into the shirt I had yesterday? Because I slept in and didn’t do laundry.’’ 
You shook your head. ‘’The color of your shirt does not matter. I’m still painting your pretty face.’’ 
Jace smiled and rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly; it was a nervous habit he had, you had discovered. ‘’I’ll go sit at my spot, then.’’ 
‘’Have you taken a peak while I was not there?’’ you asked as you placed the canvas and easel in front of your chair. 
You glanced over at him, half-expecting a guilty grin, but he shook his head, his dark curls bouncing slightly. ‘’No. I want to be surprised.’’ 
You finished setting your stuff up quietly. 
The sky was gray today, clouds hanging heavy as if threatening rain, so you were thankful for the artificial light you chose to use yesterday. Natural light is great, but frustrating as it changes with time and weather. 
When you began mixing colors and painting, you felt Jace’s shy gaze on you. His eyes would dart away when you almost caught him, pretending to be interested in something else, only to glance back at you a moment later. It was a silent game, one that made you smile every time you almost caught him.
☆.。.:*・°☆.。.:*・° 
About an hour into your painting, rain started to fall heavily and the sky began to shake with thunder. It echoed loudly around the room, causing the lights to flash. 
You were used to rain and thunderstorms, so you didn't think this one was strong enough to cause a power outage, but after an especially loud crack of thunder, the whole dorm went dark. 
‘’I guess that’s our cue to stop for today,’’ you said with a small laugh, barely able to see your canvas in front of you. You sighed, slightly frustrated by the interruption, and put your brush down on the easel.
Jace moved to his window, seeing the pouring rain and an impressive lightning flashing in the distance. ''Looks like it's not going to let up anytime soon.'' He glanced at your face, but was blinded by the brightness of your phone’s light. 
You quickly apologized, laughing. ‘’I didn't mean to do that,’’ you promised.
He glared at you and went back to his bed, rubbing his eyes. ‘’It’s worse with my glasses. I can’t see.’’ 
You laughed harder, directing the light to the ceiling so no one would be blinded by it. ‘’Do you think the university has a generator?’’
‘’For the academic buildings, not the residences. It would take a massive one to provide power to the whole campus,’’ Jace explained, finally starting to get his vision back. ‘’We’re stuck in the dark until it gets back.’’ 
You sighed and abandoned your side to move and sit on Jace’s bed. You could have gone back to your dorm, but you would be sitting alone in the dark. He turned his head to look at you, noticing you sitting on the edge of his bed, and moved back to make more room for you. You smiled, a silent ‘thank you’.
Thankfully, it was only mid-November, so it was not that cold. But it will get cold eventually if the power goes out for too long…
After a few hours, the power was not back. And the room had gotten a little cold, so Jace offered you one of his hoodies. It was gray and felt like a blanket on you. And it smelled like him — woodsy and comforting. 
Through this long darkness and silence, you found yourself thinking about the conversation you heard when you came to his dorm. You figured it was heavily influenced by the hoodie enveloping you. 
‘’Jace?’’ 
He hummed, sitting in his corner against his pillows. 
The words vomited out before you could stop them. ‘’Why did you tell your brother that you didn’t have time for a girlfriend when you spend all your free time with me?’’ 
The brunet was taken aback by your question. He looked like a kid caught with his hand in a cookie jar. ‘’W-what?’’ he stammered, his cheeks flaming. ‘’How do you know—’’ 
‘’I heard you on the phone earlier. I didn't mean to listen, I just…did.’’
Jace cleared his throat and spoke quietly, his voice strained and embarrassed. ‘’You weren’t supposed to hear that...’’ He looked away from you, avoiding your gaze. ''What else have you heard?'' 
A lump of guilt knotted inside your stomach for putting him on the spot like this. ''Not much. A guy walked out of his dorm and was staring me down, so I knocked on your door to get away,'' you explained in truth. 
There was a moment of silence as Jace picked at his fingers. He was still embarrassed, but he needed to push it to the side and make something useful out of it. ‘’I told Luke I didn’t have time for a girlfriend because I don’t know how to have a girlfriend. I mean, I do know the principle. I just…don’t know how to talk to girls.’’
You smiled, finding his honesty adorable. ‘’You’re talking to me now,’’ you said with a hint of amusement hiding behind your words.
‘’And it’s exactly the problem. We’re just talking,’’ he muttered more to himself than to you. 
‘’Would you like us to do more than talking?’’ you asked flirtatiously, extending an invisible hand for Jace to grasp. 
Slowly, his gaze shifted back to you. ‘’It depends what you mean by more than talking…’’ 
There was another loud crack of thunder, echoing and shaking the walls. The loud noise made Jace jump slightly, nervous from the proximity between you. He tried to brush it off, but you grinned and inched closer to cup his face. 
''Tell me if you want me to stop.'' 
His eyes found yours and he gripped the blanket, needing something to grab to take his nerves off. ''I don't want you to stop.''
You leaned closer, your hand still on his cheek, and pressed your lips onto his. The touch of your lips sent a jolt of electricity up Jace's spine.  He gasped, having never felt so much from a simple kiss, and kissed you back without hesitation, his lips plush but chapped against yours. 
More lightning pierced the horizon outside the window, but you were too lost in each other's lips to notice. Jace's hand that was not grabbing the blanket came to rest on your hip to pull you a little closer. He was gentle and inexperienced, you could feel it in the way he was touching you. 
You pulled away to catch your breath, but a needy whine left his lips, grabbing your hip with more force and pulling you back in. He was not done kissing you.
When night came and the power finally returned, you didn’t go to your dorm. You borrowed one of Jace’s tee shirts and slid under the covers with him. You both had classes at 8am, so you simply laid together, Jace’s head on your chest while you gently rubbed his back and slowly fell asleep.
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carawenfiction · 3 months ago
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So...remember how I said in that update post how I might MAYBE do a TSS rewrite and post it for free?
"Maybe" quickly turned into "definitely happening". Instead of making it outside of COG, however, the finished product that's already published will be updated with the rewritten files. This means that if you've already purchased TSS through COG, you'll have the rewritten version available. That's how I originally intended to go about things with the old rewrite and is the better option here to avoid potential complications.
I've been in contact with COG and they've let me know that I'd be able to do what I have in mind even if this results in a different wordcount and very different scenes/plot points and a different kind of main story.
I realize that this announcement is probably pretty jarring since my last post stated that I wasn't sure about doing a rewrite but that I wanted to if I had enough time. After making that post, I started creating an outline for the rewrite mostly for fun...and one thing kind of led to another. I want you all to know that I wouldn't be making this post at all if I wasn't sure about this. It's because I've already begun the process and feel incredibly motivated and inspired that I can do this that I'm making this announcement.
This rewrite is not going to be like my old attempt at a rewrite, though. It's an entirely new one that I feel much more confident about.
So far I've written the outline for the rewrite and started reworking already existing scenes from chapter 1 as well some new ones. I'm happy to say that the difference between how the rewrite process felt years ago compared to now is like light and day. It seems like those years I've taken away from TSS were very healthy and helpful in giving me some distance and letting me figure out what kind of story I really want to tell.
My plan is to rewrite book 1 and then make 1 full continuation after that. Instead of a trilogy, it looks like this version of TSS will be 2 volumes, but that doesn't necessarily mean that it'll be shorter than originally intended. I think it's more doable for me to rewrite the first book (starting from scratch while also using some already written scenes, since I've been assured I'm allowed to do so) and then make 1 complete continuation of it rather than trying to fill stuff out over 3 different entries, and I think it'll serve the plot and story as a whole to do it that way.
That being said, I fully understand that some - or most of you - might have trouble trusting my word after me failing to do the rewrite I wanted to years ago and not delivering a second book. That's completely fair. This time I'm not rushing things and I don't feel any pressure to do this. It's not something I do out of dislike for the original, but rather out of love for what it could be and what I could make it into, if that makes sense. I'm taking as much time as I need to and am not putting any pressure on myself to do this.
My other project takes priority right now so I can't dedicate all of my time to the rewrite, but I'm working on it when I have time over or get stuck. It's actually pretty nice to alternate between two different stories that have different settings and has helped a bit in avoiding writer's block.
Here are some differences between TSS and the TSS rewrite (most of the changes I made to the old rewrite no longer apply):
The rewrite will be told in second-person point of view ("you" instead of "I"). The reason for this is that when I first started TSS I was really unused to the second-person POV, but after having spent years in the IF space it's now the other way around. It'll make writing much easier for for me, and I hope it won't feel too jarring for people who are used to the first person POV.
The Shadowman and Jealene (now "J") will both be genderselectable just like the main cast. The Shadowman will be genderselectable later on, though - it might sound strange but I think it makes sense when you have more context. J plays a bigger role than they did in the original and their personality is a bit different in this version.
Some side characters (such as most of the hideout) will be cut. This is because they felt really underdeveloped to me in the full game and didn't serve much of a purpose. Instead I'm focusing more on the main cast + a few key characters to ensure the story plot stays focused and you get more time to develop bonds of various kinds with the main cast instead.
The relationship system will look a bit different. Instead of bars showing a percentage of approval, I'll write a description of each character and what they think of you. The descriptions will shift when the character starts viewing you differently, whether that's due to rivalry, romance or friendship. My hope is that this will allow for a more nuanced relationship system/descriptions. I'll also adjust the options a bit to try and make choices more nuanced and am thinking of including the option of having ex. a heart next to a romantic choice for those who want to know for sure what they're getting into. The different responses (such as shy, flirty etc.) will stay but some of it will probably be reworked. Essentially what I want to do is allow for a wider range of MCs and how the characters respond to the MC.
The MC is going to have more agency in certain ways. I've included something plot-relevant to the main character that can potentially change the dynamic between them and the group a bit, but it all depends on how you play it.
The tone might be somewhat different. Not entirely, of course, but there are some parts of the old TSS where the characters sound a bit younger than they are supposed to be, where tension and seriousness has been sacrificed in favor of humor and where some of the interactions aren't the way I would prefer for them to be. I've gotten older since writing TSS (gasp) and my tastes have changed, as has my writing to some degree. In order to do a rewrite I'd have to write in a way that's most enjoyable for me and that I feel best fits the story I want to tell. That's not to say that there isn't going to be silliness etc., but I'm adjusting the tone somewhat and putting more time and effort into descriptions and the writing overall.
The narrative will be different, even though the overall story itself will mostly stay the same. I'm keeping a lot of elements and also aim to introduce new ones that I believe will strengthen the story and make it a more enjoyable game overall.
I think those are the main differences I can give away right now without spoiling anything. I'll make sure to post updates when I've got more to share! Once the demo for the rewrite is finished, I'll post it on the forums and link it in an intro post on here.
Thank you all for sticking by me throughout the years. I hope you'll find some comfort in returning to this world, as well as new things to ponder and excite you in this new upcoming version of the story <3
The Azuridia and Quaiel chibis are done by the amazing madebysalfi
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