#or ask for a check-in when he has time or SOMETHING

[kannady]

Genuinely love the Ever, Ever After series. Reading every paragraph of it has me clutching to my pearls <3 I LOVE IT SO MUCHH SHIWJEIEJW

ever, ever after

pairing: sylus x non-mc reader

summary: sylus didn't love you. how could he when she was around? but would he come look for you if you willingly step into EVER's boundaries?

word count: 4k

a/n: okay so! an early update cus ill be super busy and tired tomorrow, then squid game s3 will be coming out AND a lads update is coming out on friday with fans heavily speculating we'll get a sneak peak of the sixth li. so im guessing we'll all be super busy. i really hope ur enjoying this series and TYSM ANON you literally made my day!! i hope you enjoy this chapter as well. lemme know your thoughts!

read rest of the chapters here!

III

Your heart sank like a stone in water as Dr. Voss’s expression shifted. A slow, chilling transformation from  curiosity to something far more dangerous. His cold eyes flicked from you to Sylus, still restrained behind the glass, then back to you, and in that split second, you knew. 

Oh, shit. I’m done for.

But survival instincts kicked in, sharp and automatic. You straightened your spine, forcing your voice into something resembling professionalism.

"I was just checking his vitals before lunch," you said, gesturing to the monitors with a steadiness you didn’t feel. "His levels plateaued. The serum isn’t affecting his Evol anymore. I thought-" A breath, calculated. "I should ask if he was experiencing any side effects. Protocol 9-D, right? Patient-reported data?"

The lie slithered out smoother than you expected. Voss’s eyebrow arched, his gaze lingering on you for a heartbeat too long before he stepped closer to the observation window. The silence stretched, suffocating, as he scrutinized the vitals himself. You could almost hear the gears turning in his head, the suspicion coiling tighter.

Then, miraculously, he nodded. "You’re right." His voice was clipped, but the tension in your shoulders eased a fraction. "We’ll halt administration. Clearly, this batch isn’t potent enough." He turned to you, and for the first time in your two years at EVER, something resembling approval flickered in his expression. "Good catch, Dr. (Y/N)."

The praise should’ve felt like a victory. Instead, it sat heavy in your chest. You nodded stiffly, avoiding Sylus’s gaze, but you could feel it, burning into you like a brand. Even now, even half-drugged and strapped to a chair, he was watching. Waiting.

You mumbled an excuse about lunch and all but bolted from the lab, the doors hissing shut behind you. The hallway was deserted, the fluorescent lights humming softly overhead. For a moment, you just stood there, pressing your palms to your eyes until stars burst behind your lids. 

What the hell am I doing?

Your phone was in your hand before you could second-guess it. Luke’s number rang once, twice, then disconnected. Kieran’s didn’t even go through. You stared at the screen, your reflection warped in the black glass. A new, ugly thought slithered into your mind. What if he didn’t come alone?

Sylus didn’t do anything without a plan. And if he was here, in EVER’s clutches, then where was she? The woman whose laughter had haunted you long after you’d left. The woman he’d loved in some other life, maybe even in this one.

Your fingers tightened around the phone. What if this was all part of some elaborate scheme, and you were just a pawn again? A distraction. What if she was waiting in the shadows, ready to step in the moment EVER’s defenses crumbled?

The idea should’ve infuriated you. Instead, it just made you tired. Two years of running, of building a life where you were finally someone else, and here you were, right back where you started. Caught between Sylus’s games and EVER’s cruelty, with no idea which side would destroy you first.

You shoved your phone back into your pocket and started walking, your heels clicking a sharp, staccato rhythm against the tile. It didn’t matter. None of it did. Because whether this was a trap or some twisted reunion, one thing was certain. You were already in too deep to walk away now.

Your lungs burned with the breath you hadn’t realized you were holding. The immediate crisis was over, Voss had bought your lie, at least for now. But the relief was temporary, fragile as glass. You knew what came next. A stronger serum. A more aggressive extraction. And Sylus, proud, untouchable Sylus, wouldn’t survive it.

The thought sent a fresh wave of panic crashing through you, your pulse hammering so loudly you were half-convinced the entire lab could hear it. What do I do?

Luke and Kieran weren’t answering. That left only one option.

Her.

Her very presence had been like a blade pressed to your ribs, a constant reminder that no matter how close you stood to him, you would never be the one he truly saw.

You swallowed hard, your fingers twitching at your sides. She worked at the Hunters Association, you remembered that much. But you couldn’t go now. Not in broad daylight, not when you didn’t even know her name. The realization was a bitter pill. Two years of resentment, of stolen glances and silent comparisons, and you’d never even learned what her name was.

No, you’d have to wait. Slip away after hours, linger near the building’s exits like some kind of stalker, and hope to catch her leaving. The idea made your skin crawl, but what other choice did you have?

For now, you forced yourself to move, to slip back into the rhythm of your day like nothing was wrong. Mara had mentioned a new restaurant, some place with dumplings she’d been raving about. You went, more out of obligation than hunger, sliding into a seat just as the lunch rush began to thin.

The food arrived, steam curling off the plates in fragrant spirals. You picked up your chopsticks, took a single bite, and then just stopped. The flavors blurred together, tasteless as ash. Your mind was elsewhere, spinning in frantic circles.

What if she doesn’t help? What if she laughs in your face? What if she’s the reason he’s here in the first place?

You pushed the food around your plate, your appetite long gone. Around you, the restaurant buzzed with conversation, the clatter of dishes, the occasional burst of laughter. None of it reached you. You were trapped in your own head, drowning in scenarios that all ended the same way, with Sylus’s lifeless body on an exam table, and your hands stained with the consequences.

By the time you made it back to the facility, lunch had bled into the afternoon, the sky outside the windows already darkening toward evening. You barely had time to stash your bag at your workstation before the alert chimed on your tablet.

“Emergency meeting. Conference Room A. 5 minutes.”

Your stomach dropped.

You knew, even before you stepped through the doors, what this was about. The room was already half-full, researchers murmuring to each other in hushed, excited tones. Voss stood at the front, his expression unreadable as he tapped something into a holoscreen.

Then he looked up, and his gaze landed squarely on you.

“Now that we’re all here,” he said, his voice cool and precise, “let’s discuss Phase Two.”

The screen behind him flickered to life, revealing a new formula, twice as complex as the last, with a list of side effects that made your blood run cold.

Cardiac arrest. Cerebral hemorrhage. Ischemic stroke.

Voss’s lips curved into something that wasn’t quite a smile. “We begin testing tomorrow.”

Across the room, Mara caught your eye, her brows furrowed in concern. You realized, distantly, that your hands were shaking.

You curled them into fists.

The meeting passed in a blur of muffled voices and flickering holoscreens. Words like "enhanced serum" and "immediate testing" caught your attention once in a while, meaningless noises against the roaring in your skull. You sat stiff-backed in your chair, fingers clenched around your tablet hard enough to leave imprints, your mind a thousand miles away, trapped behind that observation glass, watching Sylus’s body convulse under the serum’s assault.

When the meeting ended, you stood mechanically, following the stream of researchers out the door like a robot rehearsing actions. Your footsteps echoed down the hallway, perfectly measured, your body moving on autopilot while your thoughts spiraled.

What were you going to do?

The question looped in your head, but there was no answer. No plan. Just the crushing weight of what was coming, the knowledge that tomorrow, they would strap Sylus back into that chair and pump him full of something even worse. And you would have to watch.

A hand closed around your wrist, yanking you sideways into a dim storage room. The door hissed shut behind you, and you blinked, momentarily disoriented, as Mara’s face swam into focus. Her usual playful smirk was gone, replaced by something sharp and searching.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” she demanded, voice low. “You’ve been zoning out all day. And in there?” She jerked her chin toward the conference room. “You looked like you were about to vomit.”

Your throat tightened. I can’t tell her. The truth was a grenade in your hands, pull the pin, and everything would blow apart. Mara was your friend, maybe the closest thing you had to one in this place, but this? This was too big. Too dangerous.

“It’s just…” You swallowed, scrambling for something, anything, that wasn’t a lie but wasn’t the whole truth either. “This is serious stuff we’re doing now. I can’t- I don’t know if I can take it.”

Mara’s eyebrow arched. “Excuse me?” She crossed her arms, leaning back against a shelf of sterile supplies. “What about the other experiments you performed? The neural overwrites? The memory wipes?” Her voice dropped, almost mocking. “Those didn’t bother you?”

The words hit like a slap.

She was right. You had done worse. Writen protocols that scraped a person’s mind clean, designed machines that could drain the blood out of the subjects with a few clicks. But those subjects had been monsters, rapists, murderers, traffickers from the N109 Zone’s darkest corners. You’d seen their files. Known what they’d done. It had been easy, then, to tell yourself you were making the world better.

But Sylus? Sylus was different.

What exactly was he to you?

The question lodged in your chest like a bullet.

Mara sighed when you didn’t answer, pushing off the shelf. “Look, I won’t push. But get it together.” Her gaze flicked to the door, then back to you, uncharacteristically serious. “I noticed first because we’re friends. The moment someone else does? You’re in trouble.”

She left without another word, the door clicking shut behind her, and just like that, you were alone.

The silence pressed in, thick and suffocating. You slumped against the wall, your legs suddenly unsteady, the cold metal biting through your lab coat. Your tablet slipped from your fingers, clattering to the floor, but you didn’t bother picking it up.

You couldn’t walk away now. Couldn’t pretend you hadn’t seen him. Couldn’t let them kill him.

But helping him? That meant betraying EVER. Meant throwing away everything you’d built, your career, your safety, the fragile peace you’d carved out for yourself.

And for what?

For the man who’d watched you walk away two years ago and hadn’t followed?

Your hands trembled. You pressed them to your face, your breath coming too fast, too shallow.

Somewhere, in the back of your mind, a voice whispered. You already know the answer.

You’d known it the moment you saw him behind that glass.

You were going to burn your life to the ground for him.

And the worst part was you didn’t even know why.

You slipped out of the storage room with measured steps. The hallway was empty, the hum of distant conversations and clicking keyboards the only sounds. Okay, you’ve got this. 

The plan formed in your mind like a lifeline. After work, you’d go to the Hunter’s Association. Even if Sylus had some grand scheme in motion, you needed to know. And then? Then you’d step away. Wash your hands of this mess.

You took a deep breath, steadying yourself before pushing open the lab doors. Inside, the scene was exactly as you’d left it, researchers hunched over glowing screens, fingers flying across tablets, the air thick with the sterile scent of ozone and disinfectant. No one looked up as you entered. No one except Mara.

Her gaze met yours for a brief moment before she deliberately turned back to her work. The unspoken "get it together" was evident on her face. You forced yourself to move, crossing the room to your workstation.

The observation window drew your attention like a magnet. Empty, of course. Sylus wasn’t there, why would he be? The serum testing was done for the day, and EVER had no reason to keep him in the lab when they could stash him in some high-security cell instead.

You sank into your chair, fingers hovering over the holoscreen as your thoughts churned. None of this made sense. If Sylus was here, it had to be part of a plan. That’s how he operated. So where was the cavalry? Where were Luke and Kieran, bursting through the doors with guns blazing? Where was the distraction, the sabotage, the anything that would explain why the most dangerous man you’d ever known was sitting in a cell instead of burning this place to the ground?

Unless he wanted to be here.

The thought sent a chill down your spine. You shook your head, as if you could physically dislodge it. No. That was a rabbit hole you couldn’t afford to go down right now.

You threw yourself into your work, losing hours to data streams and prototype schematics, your hands moving on autopilot while your mind raced. The second your shift ended, you were out the door, your coat barely shrugged on as you all but sprinted for the transit station.

The Hunter’s Association loomed ahead, its sleek facade lit by the dying light of the sunset. You hesitated at the entrance, suddenly unsure. Were you too late? Too early? Would she even still be here?

You planted yourself across the street, leaning against a lamppost like you had every right to be there, your pulse thundering in your ears. Minutes ticked by. Ten. Twenty. Just as you were about to give up, to turn and walk away, you saw her.

There she was.

She stepped out of the building beside a coworker, a tall man with silver hair and piercing blue eyes, his posture relaxed, his laugh carrying across the street. And her. Even now, after all this time, the sight of her hit like a punch to the gut.

She was beautiful. Effortlessly so, her hair catching the golden light, her smile easy as she listened to something the man said. You’d spent years trying to forget the exact curve of her lips, the way her eyes crinkled at the corners when she laughed.

Your feet moved before you could stop yourself, carrying you across the street. The man noticed you first, his gaze sharpening as he subtly shifted his stance, one hand drifting toward his hip. A weapon. Of course. Hunters were never unarmed.

She followed his line of sight, and her eyes locked onto yours.

For a heartbeat, the world stopped. Her smile froze, her breath catching audibly. You saw the exact moment recognition dawned, the way her eyes widened, her lips parting in something like shock. Then she  turned to the man, murmuring something too low for you to hear. 

He hesitated, his gaze flicking between the two of you before nodding and walking away, though not without a final, lingering glance in your direction.

And then she was walking toward you, her steps measured, her expression unreadable. Up close, she was even more striking. The scent of her perfume hit you like a memory. The last time you’d been this close to her, you’d been standing in Sylus’s study, your hands clenched at your sides as they stood side by side. 

Now, she studied you with an intensity that made your skin prickle.

"You," she said finally, her voice softer than you remembered. "I wondered if I’d ever see you again."

The words settled between you, heavy with unspoken questions.

You opened your mouth. Closed it.

What the hell were you even supposed to say?

Your mouth went dry. The words tumbled out before you could stop them, awkward, stilted, painfully inadequate. "Um… hi?"

Her expression softened, something unreadable flickering in her eyes. Then, to your absolute shock, she stepped forward and pulled you into a hug.

You froze.

Her arms were warm, her perfume dizzyingly familiar, something floral and expensive, the same scent that had lingered in Sylus’s study long after she’d left. Your hands hovered uselessly at your sides, your brain short-circuiting. What the hell was happening?

She pulled back first, her smile small but genuine. "Where have you been?"

The question threw you. You blinked, scrambling for words. "I just… left. For work."

"Work?" Her brow furrowed. "You worked for Sylus."

"Well, yeah. And then I left."

She studied you for a long moment, her gaze sharp in a way that made your skin prickle. Then she gestured across the street to a dimly lit coffee shop. "Let’s talk there."

You followed her numbly. This wasn’t how you’d imagined this going. You’d braced for hostility, for cold indifference, not this. Not soft smiles and casual hugs and a conversation you had no idea how to navigate.

The coffee shop was nearly empty, the air thick with the scent of roasted beans and burnt sugar. You slid into a booth by the window, the vinyl seat creaking under your weight. Silence stretched between you, heavy and suffocating. You couldn’t stop staring at her, the way her fingers tapped absently against the table, the way the dim light caught on her hair.

Finally, you couldn’t take it anymore. "Have you been in contact with Sylus?"

She raised an eyebrow and then laughed.

The sound was bright, effortless, just like you remembered. It sent a sharp pang through your chest. You frowned. "What’s funny?"

She wiped at her eyes, still grinning. "I haven’t talked to him in, let’s see, over a year now. And the last time we did talk?" She leaned forward, her voice dropping. "He called me in the middle of the night asking if I knew where you were."

Your heart stuttered.

The world narrowed to the sound of your own pulse roaring in your ears. He’d asked about you. Not just in passing, not just as an afterthought. He’d called her. In the middle of the night.

Your voice came out strangled. "What did he say?"

She shrugged, stirring her coffee idly. "Like I said, he wanted to know if I’d seen you. And honestly? We never talked, so I was no help. But I have contacts, so I tried looking for you anyway." A pause. Her expression shifted, something almost wistful creeping in. 

"It was like you’d vanished. The last I heard, Sylus ransacked the entire N109 Zone trying to find you."

Your stomach twisted. You’d known, on some level, that he’d searched. But hearing it out loud, hearing her say it, made it real in a way you weren’t prepared for.

"I’m sorry," you said automatically. "I had to go away."

She waved a hand dismissively. "Not my business. But what does catch my attention…" She tilted her head, studying you with renewed interest. "is why you’re asking if we’re in touch."

You stiffened. She laughed again, softer this time. "Why would we be? We’re hardly friends. He just helped me out when I needed assistance, and that was it."

Something fragile and hopeful fluttered in your chest. You crushed it immediately. "Aren’t you two…" You trailed off, gesturing vaguely. "A couple or something?"

This time, her laughter was outright delighted. "Oh, come on." She leaned back, shaking her head. "He’s a criminal. The most wanted man in Linkon City. Not exactly my type." A smirk. 

"Besides, why would we be a thing when he always had eyes for someone else?"

The words hit like a runaway train. Your breath caught.

Someone else.

The implication hung in the air between you, thick and undeniable. You opened your mouth to say something, but words were lost to you.

She took pity on you then, her expression softening. "You really didn’t know?"

You couldn’t answer. 

After all this time?

You sat there, stunned, the words "he always had eyes for someone else" ringing in your skull like a gunshot. The coffee in front of you had gone cold, untouched. She watched you with something between amusement and pity, her fingers idly tracing the rim of her cup.

You stood abruptly, the chair scraping against the floor. "I have to go."

She didn’t stop you. Just arched a brow as you fumbled for your bag, your movements jerky and uncoordinated. "Sure," she said lightly. "But he did find you, didn’t he?"

You didn’t answer. You couldn’t. Your throat had closed up, your pulse hammering so violently you were half-convinced she could hear it.

The walk home was a blur. The city lights smeared into streaks of gold and neon, the sounds of traffic and chatter fading into white noise. Your mind was a storm, thoughts crashing into each other with brutal, unrelenting force.

Sylus had eyes for you.

The idea was laughable. Absurd. And yet not so impossible to imagine.

Memories surfaced. The way he’d linger just a little too close when reviewing your work, his breath warm against your temple. The way he’d leave notes in his precise, elegant handwriting, notes you’d saved, tucked away like some pathetic secret. The way he’d asked you to live with him, for fuck’s sake, as if that was a normal thing a boss would do.

You let out a shaky breath, your fingers tightening around the strap of your bag.

There was a time, a time when you would’ve begged for this. When the mere possibility that he might feel the same would’ve sent you spiraling into dizzy, reckless hope. But now?

Now you didn’t know what to feel.

Because it didn’t matter. Not really.

You’d help him. Of course you would. You’d get him out of EVER’s clutches, and then you’d move on. Both of you. That was the plan. That was the only plan.

So why did that thought make your chest ache?

A gust of wind cut through you, sharp and biting. You barely felt it.

Why the hell is he even here?

The question gnawed at you. If Sylus had orchestrated this, if this was some elaborate scheme, why wasn’t he doing anything? Why wasn’t he fighting? Why weren’t Luke and Kieran kicking down doors? Why was he just sitting there, letting them pump him full of serums that would kill him?

You scoffed, raking a hand through your hair. Hypothetically speaking, if you didn’t help him, if you walked away and let EVER do what they did best, he’d die. Just like that. No grand escape. No last-minute rescue. Just a cold, clinical death on an exam table, his body discarded like faulty machinery.

The idea was so wrong it made your teeth hurt.

Sylus shouldn’t die quietly. Sylus shouldn't have to die at all. He was a force of nature, a storm given human form. He didn’t just let things happen to him.

Unless he was here for you.

But no. That was insane. That was pathetic.

You shook your head, but the idea stuck, stubborn and insidious.

Because if he had come for you, if he’d let himself get captured, knowing you worked here, knowing you’d see him, then he’d gambled everything on the hope that you’d help him. And that meant he’d gambled on you caring. Did he not think of the possibility that you might not? That you might walk away? That after two years of silence, you might look him in the eye and let them take everything from him?

A bitter laugh escaped you.

Of course he had. Sylus thought of everything. That was the problem. Which meant maybe this wasn’t a gamble at all. Maybe it was a test.

The realization settled over you like a cloud.

Tomorrow, they’d give him the stronger serum. Tomorrow, he’d die, unless you did something. And he’d known that. He’d known. But why was he putting you on the spot like that?

You stopped walking, your apartment building looming ahead, its windows dark and empty.

What the hell am I supposed to do now?

She wasn’t involved. You couldn’t and wouldn’t drag her into this. But that left you with exactly zero allies, zero resources, and zero time.

You exhaled sharply, your breath fogging in the cold air.

Things weren’t any better than they’d been this morning. If anything, they were worse. Because now you knew and that changed everything.

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[kiplex]

You hated parties. They were loud, overstimulating, and there were too many strangers. So when Gideon invited you and Caleb to a party he was having you were hesitant to say the least. You thought having your boyfriend there, your emotional support Caleb, you would be fine; especially once you had a little bit of alcohol in your system. But alas, the universe has a different plan for tonight.

You're three cups of something deep, probably some vodka and a splash of juice, and glued to the side of the wall which were vibrating with how loud the music was, the hum of people yelling over the music certainly wasn't helping. Caleb was god knows where, the second you guys got to the party Gideon whisked him away to go take shots with him and some of the guys they went to college with. Your finger drums a consistent beat against your red plastic cup, your eyes scan the room for any sign of him. Sure, you could go and talk to people, mingle a bit but… Something in your stomach lurches at the thought of doing that.

You take another small sip. You pull out your phone check to the time. “You're Colonel Xia's girlfriend right?" Someone shouts to your left. He looked about the same age as Caleb. “Ah! Yeah! Yeah I am." Your voice wobbles, slightly startled. “Man, he is one lucky guy. I was assigned to his fleet shortly after he took over." The man extends his hand offering his name, that you definitely don't catch. Instead you politely smile, shaking his hand and yelling your name back over the music.

He starts going on and on about fleet stuff, with the amount of liquor in your body you really can't make heads or tails of it, you just politely nod. He wasn't a bad guy or anything, you just clearly were uncomfortable and didn't want to be there. When you feel a hand wrap around your waist, you nearly jump ten feet in the air. “Woah woah! Pips, it's me." Caleb's voice is soft in your ear. Your whole body immediately relaxes into his touch. “Oh Colonel! Good to see you off duty." The man you're talking to acknowledges his superior. “Good to see you too, if you don't mind I'm gonna steal her away for a bit." Caleb smiles at the man. You are always in awe of how charming and charismatic Caleb is naturally. He makes it look effortless.

The man nods, and Caleb grabs your wrist taking you to a free spot farther down the wall. His body blocks your view of the crowd, his cologne flooding your senses calming your nervous system down exponentially. " You okay pretty girl?” He asks, his hands cupping your cheeks intentionally making you maintain eye contact with him. Regardless you down cast your eyes. " I'm fine.” You answer, not wanting to ruin this night for him.

He rarely gets time off, let alone gets to spend it with his friends. His eyebrows furrow. " No you aren't.” He sighs, pulling you against his chest before wrapping his arms around you. " Pips, I've known you, your whole life. I know when you're lying to me.” He kisses the top of your head. " Let me ask you again. Are you okay?” He repeats gently. You shake your head no into his chest. "Not really, it's loud and I'm a little tipsy and… I'm sorry Caleb." Your eyes gloss over slightly, tears threatening to spill over.

He pulls you back a bit so he can look at you. “Aw you sweet girl, don't apologize. You've never really been big on this stuff. I'm proud of you for even tagging along with me. Even Gideon was singing praises about you being here tonight… I mean I did shove him for talking about my girlfriend like that, but semantics.” You giggle slightly.

Caleb kisses your forehead. " Do you wanna get the hell out of here?" He asks, grinning at you. “Are you sure? I know you don't get to do this often…" You mumble. He smiles, shaking his head. “I already got to hang out with Gideon for a while, besides my girlfriend is clearly overstimulated and trying to be brave for me. That's my job Pips, how dare you steal my thunder." He squeezes you slightly. You lean up kissing him gently. “Let's go home." He grabs your hand again, leading you through the sea of people out the door. “Oh also, if I see you talking to another man at a party again I won't be so kind next time, I can promise you that. " You roll your eyes, a dumb smile on your face. If you're being honest, you wouldn't have it any other way.

You can find my master list here

[sabrina-senpai]

Saja boys w/ fem manager reader who explains periods to them;

Character/s: Jinu, Romance, Abby, Baby & Mystery

Character pairings: Jinu/you, Romance/you, Abby/you, Baby/you & Mystery/you

A/N: Characters may be ooc, writing style might be messy and just me rambling really

Jinu:

─ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──── ♡ ─── ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──

• “So the uterus just... peels??”

• simply short circuits, he's kinda loser coded from how flustered he gets tbh-

• has to sit down and process what you just said

• will try to act nonchalant and tease you but when you glare at him he's sat there like- 🫥

• he's not sure how to react, bc on one hand he's absolutely baffled by how the female human body works but pretty impressed at how you're not dying on the spot

• (spoiler alert- you are)

• does not know what to do or how to help

• will try to lower your work load just a little by keeping the boys in check and not disturbing you

• for the sake of your sanity and their safety and world domination he will try to help you the best he can

• when you snap at him he just rolls his eyes at you, but hands you a heat compress when he passes by you again.

• you eventually snap at someone else and threaten to throw their stuff out the window

• he walks on eggshells around you from then on

─ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──── ♡ ─── ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──

Romance:

• “Wait… you bleed every month and don’t die?”

• "that's kinda hot"

• the man who looks like he's Wattpad cringey men incarnate find out what happens during your period? ('m kidding he's one of my faves)

• cue the disbelief.

• he thought bleeding meant fatal injury — now you’re telling him it happens on purpose?

• "you are one strong woman manager-nim.."

• wait till he finds out about your hormonal spikes..😟

• he's genuinely confused and lowk worried at how you endure cramps based on your description of them

• a little sht through and through tho, will not stop teasing and flirting with you either way

• "Would you like me to kiss it better-" *smack* "-worth it"

• you snap at him? He's quiet for a second but smirks and says

• "that's kinky.. scream at me more-"

• but when you physically have to lean on something bc your cramps are that bad, he will show a lil bit of empathy and rub your back for comfort

• and holds back on teasing until you feel better (almost fails like separate 3 times)

─ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──── ♡ ─── ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──

Abby:

• “You okay? Need me to fight your uterus?”

• no bc he would if he could

• actually tries- until you smack him upside the head

• does zero damage to him but stops trying for now

• curious as to how painful cramps actually are

• still thinks you're over exaggerating abt the pain but won't push you (you threaten him with smth. what you ask? no clue either.. but he stops so a win is a win ig)

• respects u a little more bc of it

• honestly..lemme get a nibble of those shoulders and then we'll talk-

• for real tho- with enough pain induced persuasion (from you obv) he will reluctantly happily let you bite him if the cramps get too bad

• again no damage done to him whatsoever;-;

• "Is this an excuse to get a taste of my beautiful muscles? If so.. manager-nim there's no need for one"

• offers you his abs to use as a pillow

─ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──── ♡ ─── ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──

Baby:

• “I’m just gonna... not think about that.”

• does not wanna think about it

• fails

• will plug his ears and just la-la-la his way out

• definitely judges you and your cravings

• side eyes you when they're particularly weird

• he's not necessarily cruel abt it but is either immature or embarrassed.. or both

• does slowly evolve into sympathy with the right education (manager-nim? More like seonsaengnim teacher)

• eventually gets curious at how you function normally

• “manager-nim can't you just plug it? Like a cork? Using those tampoon thingies?"

• "how bout I put a cork in your mouth instead-"

• cue you mid-breakdown trying to explain how tampons work and how they can't just be shoved inside forever

─ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──── ♡ ─── ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──

Mystery:

• “How do you not get mad at your own uterus..?”

• will stare at you with the most bewildered frown you can imagine from just seeing his mouth bro is almost impossible to read..💔

• immediately goes into a spiral of mental questions and stands there like 🧍

• frown deepens as he thinks about how much energy you have to use to do day to day activities while in constant pain..

• most likely imagining how painful it feels and his hair physically deflates at the thought..

• pokes at your lower abdomen like he's trying to decipher ancient text

• will growl at you if you try to sass him bro literally barked at a fan wdym he doesn't have undiscovered anger issues??

• he apologizes by massaging your hand later on

• will lay on your lap if you ask beg and become your personal heating pad

• the listener to your yapper frfr

• probably falls asleep mid yap but you wouldn't know, his eyes are literally nonexistent to you..

─ ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──── ♡ ─── ⋅ ⋅ ⋅ ──

Sorry if it's not that good it's my first time writing headcannons for these gremlins so m sorry if they're pretty ooc, specially since we (I) don't know much in general abt them at all.

But I'm tryna improve with every fic:^

Constructive criticism is appreciated.

And asks/requests are open:)

Thanks for reading!!!

(credits for the original divider post bc idk if it's F2U)

[sidequestobserver]

“What will you give, my dear?” The fae smiles, knowing she’s won. I need this deal.

I slump and turn away. My mind races through what I can sacrifice. My firstborn? I can’t give her Emma. She’s my daughter, my treasure. She just entered preschool. My name? I would forget who I am, and who knows what kind of damage that could do. No. No. I need to think of something else.

“Hurry darling, I can find someone else.”

“Give me a second,” I snarl. Come on Warren, think. What can you give. I smack my head with my hand. Think think think. My head hurts. Gosh I need a cigarette. I fumble in my pocket. Pull out a pack of Camels. Cancer sticks, my mum calls them. She’s not wrong. I stick one in my mouth, grab the plastic Bic lighter from my jeans. Sorry mum, I’m a lost cause, but I promise I don’t smoke around Emma.

I pause, cigarette unlit between my lips. Turn back to the fae, who is tapping her fingers idly on one cheek. I pull the cigarette out and study it. The thin white and brown cylinder rolls on my palm.

I’ve been a smoking cigarettes for a while. Tried them in high school, thought they looked cool. A few tries later I was gone. The corner store knows my face because I buy them there, have been buying them there, for years. I smoke with friends, smoke when I’m taking a break at work. They’re part of routine, part of life.

I look at the fae, who is looking at my face with a bored expression. I don’t know what she sees. I don’t know what is showing on my face, because I don’t know what I am feeling as I lift my hand and offer it to her.

“I will give you my addiction.” I whisper.

Her eyes flick to my palm. Back to my face. Back to my palm. I start to tremble. I grab my forearm with my other hand, lighter dropping on the ground. Steadying my open palm, my offering.

The fae’s smile returns, brighter and sharper than before. “Deal.”

And just like that she’s gone. The air before me is empty.

My hands are empty as well. So are my pockets. The cheap plastic lighter and pack of cigarettes erased, as if they’d never existed at all.

I wipe my hands on my jeans, check around to make sure the fae is gone. I rub my temple. My head hurts. I should drink some water, I think I’m dehydrated.

I grab a Gatorade from the fridge and a pack of mentos for Emma, then step up to the corner store register. The clerk rings me up. When it comes time to tell me the total, he hesitates. Waiting for me to say something.

I prompt him. “How much?”

“Will that be all?” he asks.

I look at him, a bit confused. “Yes.”

“Just Gatorade?”

“And the Mentos.”

“You sure?”

I stare at him. “Yes, I’m sure.”

The clerk wavers for a moment longer. His mouth opens and closes like a goldfish, wanting to ask something. I can’t think of what. Instead he says, “That’ll be $4.31.”

I pay. I walk out the door. Time to pick up Emma.

Jason stared as Warren exited the corner store. Five years he’s worked here, and Warren has come by at least once every week in those five years, usually more. Sometimes he bought Mentos, sometimes not. But he never left without buying a pack.

A finger tapping on the glass counter brought Jason’s attention to a customer at the register. He hadn’t noticed her come in. A woman dressed in a fancy dress, with ethereal beauty and a razor sharp smile. Many men would have stared. Jason didn’t. Jason was a professional. Professionals don’t stare at customers. He hadn’t stared when that guy wearing macaroni briefs and nothing else had came in for chips, he was not going to stare at the pretty lady.

“How may I help you?” Jason asked politely.

“A pack of Camel, please.”

In a deal with a fae, you must give up something you hold dear. Whether it be your name, your first born, or something else, it must be held dear. You, gave up your addiction. It worked.

[soulgazingwithbucky]

why bucky has a blowout

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Wife!Reader

Summary: bucky would never take advice from valentina or any of the thunderbolts, let alone hair advice. but the love of his life? a different story

Warnings: fluffy ig?

Word count: 750

A/N: i never thought i would miss the unbearable itch to write, and yet!!! so happy i was able to make something, so i hope ya enjoy! If you find yourself enjoying this, feel free to check out my other works here <3

"Stay still, Buck," you murmur softly.

Bucky stifles a huff. He could stay still for hours--if he wasn't in front of the bathroom mirror, forced to stare at his reflection. Behind him, you cup a strand of his hair in your hand.

You release the strand, pleased at the slight curl that has formed.

"I'm not doin' anymore of these things, doll," Bucky says. "M'telling Valentina she can put Walker up there from now on."

"You tell her, love," you encourage, though you're a bit distracted wrapping the next strand of hair around the thermal brush. You've never met your husband's "boss," but you've heard enough to get a sense of her character. You doubted Bucky was going to be able to get himself out of press conferences.

"After this hairstyle, though? You'll be first in line for any media coverage," you tease.

This time, Bucky can't hold back a grumble at the thought. You giggle, but it's quickly stifled by a yawn. Bucky softens at the sight of your sleepiness.

"Thank you, sweetheart," he says sheepishly.

Valentina is a blur as she rushes past Bucky. But she pauses abruptly, taking a few steps back until she's planted in front of him. Bucky does his best to ignore her, staring straight ahead, but he eventually puts down his sandwich and slowly meets her eyes.

"This won't do," Valentina says, gesturing at his head. Bucky doesn't care much about what "won't do," but he has a meeting with Agent Taylor in twenty minutes. He very much likes the idea of enjoying his sandwich on the couch, sans the Contessa.

"What, Valentina?" Bucky says slowly.

"This hair," she responds, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"I have been telling him that!" Alexei declares. Bucky pinches the bridge of his nose as the Red Guardian emerges from the kitchen. "I told him, my sponsorship with Drybar is at risk if--"

"Oh, Drybar? That's pretty good. Listen, Bucky, if there's one thing I know, it's hair. Wish you could ask that guy, am I right?" Valentina gestures in Bob's general direction in the next room.

"No," Bucky responds.

"I tell him, so flat," Alexei continues, "so lifeless! Bucky, hair care is so important--"

"Great talk, everybody," Bucky declares, scooping up his sandwich and taking it into the other room.

When Bucky recalled the conversation to you, he thought you'd laugh it off with him. Instead, he saw a glint in your eye that made him worried. Afterwards, he came home one too many times to you binge watching hair tutorials. Foolishly, he held out hope that you would lose interest, but then packages of hair tools started arriving at your door.

"You know," you said, holding back another yawn, "if we lived closer to the Tower, we wouldn't have to wake up so early."

"Not yet, doll," is Bucky's gruff response. Living far away meant that it would be harder for people to link you two. It wasn't that he would get relentlessly teased by his coworkers about being married--that was a given. But if they were on a mission, and one of them became compromised? He couldn't imagine what would happen if the wrong people found out about his life. About you. He already had to live with the fact that Sam helped you both find this house, and now--

"He's our friend, Buck." You recognize the distraught look on your husband's face, and you place a gentle hand on his shoulder, breaking him out of his spell. "He would never do anything to hurt us."

Bucky moves to place a kiss on your hand, grateful that he doesn't always have to talk for you to understand him. He opens his mouth to express his appreciation, but you interrupt him.

"All done," you say proudly. The wide grin on your face is almost enough to make Bucky forget that he is going to be sitting in a room full of journalists in a few hours. You comb your fingers through his hair to loosen the curls, then apply hairspray. Bucky makes a show of sputtering. He never makes a show of anything, but he loves the way you giggle at his antics.

He turns to face you, wrapping his arms around your waist. You wrap your hands around his neck, trying your best to avoid your hard work.

"My wife," he says, a phrase he will never get tired of saying. He plants a kiss on your lips before you respond:

"My hero."

[sinsxo]

excuse me. —blue lock

ft. isagi yoichi, itoshi rin, itoshi sae, nagi seishiro.

synopsis. you were checking yourself out in the mirror, completely unaware that they were also waiting to use it.

note. idk guys i’m in a writing slump

cw. drabble, lighthearted fic.

wc. 0.7k words, not proofread.

context:

the fitting room at this clothing store was ridiculously far away, a long walk from the section with good clothes.

isagi yoichi ୭ ˚. ᵎᵎ

he spots the mirror from across the aisle and beelines for it, hoodie in hand, ready to see if the color suits him. but then, you’re already there.

you were checking yourself out, not even a single piece of clothing in hand. turning side to side. tugging your own shirt up slightly to see how it falls on your waist. he stops dead in his tracks like he just walked into a crime scene.

“oh, sorry. you go ahead!” he said, way too politely.

you glance at him through the mirror.

“it’s okay, you can use it.”

“no! it’s fine! take your time! you were here first!” he says, way too fast.

you pull him by the arm to the mirror.

“it’s big enough for us both,” you say, resuming your inspection like nothing happened.

he panics for half a second, but then holds up the hoodie to see how it fits on him. he looked unsure and awkward.

“that looks good!” you said, giving him a thumbs up. “the design suits you.”

“really? i’ll get this one then,” he smiles. “thank you!”

he leaves with the hoodie and a brain permanently engraved with the moment your hand touched his arm.

itoshi rin ୭ ˚. ᵎᵎ

you’re trying to figure out a million ways to style the piece of clothing you’re holding, too concentrated to notice anything else.

rin is already standing behind you. has been for like a full minute.

he’s holding a jacket, one hand in his pocket, and staring directly into the mirror like he’s trying to set it on fire. it’s not intentional. he just looks naturally pissed off at all times.

you finally catch his eyes through the mirror, and got a little surprised.

“...do you wanna use it?”

“not in a rush.”

“you’ve been standing there for a while. we can share.”

“it’s fine.” he said, politely gesturing for you to continue.

you move to the side, making space for him, but he doesn’t move.

“...you can use it now,” you say, maybe a little bit intimidated by his stare.

he exhales. “thank you.”

then steps forward exactly half an inch. still unintentionally glaring. still scowling. still terrifying. you eventually leave him there in front of the mirror like a mirror demon.

itoshi sae ୭ ˚. ᵎᵎ

you’re holding a pair of jeans up to your legs, trying to imagine the fit, when he appears beside you. not behind you. not waiting politely. just there.

he’s holding up a puffer jacket, already looking into the mirror like you don’t exist.

you pause. blink.

“…hello?” you say, eyebrow raised.

you knew it was a public mirror, but an “excuse me” would’ve been appreciated.

“you’re not using the top half,” he says casually.

“…what?”

he gestures lazily. “you’re looking at your pants. i’m looking at the jacket. we can share.”

you don’t even know how to argue with that level of entitlement.

you stare at him.

“...right. obviously.”

you both looked at your reflections for a while.

“those don’t look that good,” he says, nodding at the jeans.

“neither does that jacket,” you reply.

he huffs a dry response, “okay.”

you go back to comparing colours and he was right, it didn’t look that good. he frowns at the jacket again. it really didn’t look good either.

“do these mirrors make everyone look weird, or just me?” he mutters.

you shrug. “probably just you.”

he turns, finally catching your eye in the mirror.

“you done?” you ask.

“no.”

after a moment of silence, you both walked away at the same time. it’s not friendly. it’s not hostile. it’s something in between, and way more interesting than it should’ve been.

nagi seishiro ୭ ˚. ᵎᵎ

he’s behind you. not quietly. he’s leaning against a nearby rack, yawning loudly like he’s seconds away from falling asleep.

he’s holding a hoodie by the hanger, looking like he wandered into the store by accident.

you’re too focused on checking your reflection to notice. until…

“wonder how long this’ll take…” he mumbles.

you turn. he’s looking straight at you. or past you. hard to tell with half-lidded eyes.

“oh— were you waiting?”

“…mm. maybe.”

“you can use it.”

he yawns again. “nah. too far. i’ll just ask. does this look good?”

he holds up the hoodie, barely even lifting his arm.

you stare. “...it’s fine.”

“cool.” he tosses it over his shoulder like that’s all the confirmation he needs.

he doesn’t even try it on.

did he come here to shop or nap?

you’ll never know.

© all written works are created and owned by @sinsxo. do not plagiarise, modify, repost or translate any of my content on other platforms under any circumstances.

all images, aside from the dividers, do not belong to me. credit belongs to their original creators on pinterest & xhs.

[rawme-price]

Marine biologist!reader and merfolk!141 who absolutely adore you.

sandbar shark!gaz who is much more eager to hold still for check-ups when ur leading the group. he makes rumbling purs everytime you pass a hand over to check his skin for damaged scales. he has a shallow area of his tank that mimics sandy shallows. this ofc means any chance he gets hes dragging u over to the shallows so he can circle u possessively. you always wear a wetsuit anyways, so the only thing hes careful about is not getting ur hair too wet.

he uh, maybe gets a bit aggressive during the warmer months when you have to check his reproductive capabilities. you wear a specially designed arm guard for him to bite and sooth his instincts, and while thats happening you reach below. you need to be quick abt it or else he tries to drag u to his den lol.

pacific white-sided dolphin!soap who does flips and jumps from the water whenever u pass his tank, hoping to impress you. he needs alot of mental stimulation or he gets bored and lathargic, so you tend to see him often just to play games. his favourites are ones where you swim with him, but he has to be extra careful. often forgets his own strength lol. likes to be fed in the free roam tank so he can hunt with his friends, but also enjoys when u hand him food. it makes him feel special that you pick his favourites before he has to do uncomfortable exams.

definitely the most open abt his blatant desire for u. literally chirps and clicks excitedly whenever you walk in with just ur fellow biologist. shes there to make sure soap doesnt get carried away, and if its just you and her that means ur about to let soap get very physical with you. usually mers would be allowed to pair off with other mers, but soap has only shown interest in you, and its better for his health if he gets off regularly.

orca!ghost who was rescued from captivity after losing his pod to poachers. as such, he has alot more scars and requires alot more check-up than others. he can be irritable and downright agressive to some of the biologists, only allowing you to touch him and even that is iffy. he tends towards staying in one the others tanks, so you hes usually around while they get their check-ups. extra protective over his new pod.

he actually doesnt initially make advances on you until he swims into soaps tank while ur letting him get off. you arent all too embarrassed, its just part of the job. ur next check-up, ghost asks if maybe you would let him feel u too, and ur more than happy to comply. hes gentle about it, aware of how much larger he is, and even offers you some of his food afterwars. (you gently remind him that no, you cannot eat raw eel.)

giant pacific octopus!price who is a nuisance to the sanctuary. im serious, if he wants to be somewhere or have something then he will. hes not trapped in the tanks like his men are, and has on multiple occasions escaped to go find the good oysters in storage. hes a bit gruff and definitely grumpy during check-ups. doesnt like strangers touching him or asking him questions. only really obeys because it makes you happy lol.

his tendency to leave his tank also means he is very much aware of the special time you give his men. lowkey jealous and makes it very much known. you are no fool though, and anticipate a full day when you finally get clearance. thank god you did, bc once he got his tenacles on you he did not let go until well into the afternoon feeding time lol.

[saetiate]

call it what it is. (or, the five times sae and you are "just friends". and the one time it stops being possible to deny what this really is.)

itoshi sae x f!reader fluff. friends to lovers, first kiss, how love happens, reader goes by she/her pronouns and has some personality (sorry, i couldn't get around it bc of The Plot but i kept it as minimal as possible) word count: 2.3k author's note: you both have a whole dinner date, go to events together, take care of each other, and then get surprised when people think you're dating??? okay so the sound of fireworks are less obvious than whatever yall have going on

Bitterness churns at the back of your throat. Is it from the roasted beans of the coffee you've been slamming into your system for the last few days, or from the lack of sleep?

Not that it matters. You've worked OT, both your team and your clients are unhappy, and according to your Excel worksheet, you're on your 85th job application. So really, it doesn't get worse than —

The doorbell rings.

Who the actual —

You breathe out the biggest sigh at the pretty face standing before you. It's definitely the lack of sleep, isn't it? Either you really should've checked the peephole and put on something a little more flattering, or he's a hallucination.

Let's hope it's the latter. You move to close the door, and his hand reaches out lightning-quick, holding it still. In a spark of annoying rebellion, you press all of your body weight against the door, and it doesn't budge an inch.

Right. Athletes and their stupid, stupid strength.

"You didn't answer my calls."

They say sighing is a necessary part of your lungs, that one of the struggles of artificial lungs was getting them to sigh. You wonder if it meant this many times in a day. "Sae, I'm busy. Wait, I didn't answer your calls? You don't answer my texts 90% of the time."

Then he's in your entryway, because of course you can't argue where your neighbors can hear, that's rude. But then he's in your kitchen, washing his hands, opening your fridge.

"There's nothing in here. When's the last time you took a shower?"

"You come here just to insult me?"

A towel hits your face with an oof before it falls into your arms.

"Sae," you try again, as the towel slides down your cheek, "You can't just barge in here and —"

20 minutes later, there's two steaming bowls of katsu curry rice on your now-clean desk. Sae opens up the little ziplock of togarashi, leans it against your bento box with more care than you'd expect.

"Itakadimasu."

~

It's the strangest thing, walking into your place only for someone to already be in there. How the noise cuts through, something unbelonging but welcomed.

"You know, giving you the key wasn't so you could just walk in here whenever you want. It was for emergencies only."

The only answer you get is the smell of onions being caramelized, crackled sparks of savory in the air.

"I answered your call," you continue, undressing behind a half-open door. "So this can't be an emergency. And you have a much nicer place than this."

Sae barely glances at you as your head peeks into the kitchen. "You could stay there."

"What, with you? Like we're roommates? Nah, you'd see what a mess I am."

"I'm already seeing it."

A spatula waves in little circles around the pan.

“What are you doing here, Sae?”

Like he's already braced for the question, the refrigerator light beacons out into the descending night. Your favorite wine passes from his hand to yours.

"Got gifted it," he responds before you can even ask. You could've caught him looking at you, but the gold label glints with stars in your eyes.

"How'd you get gifted icewine? You've never talked about it in an interview."

He doesn't tell you he asked his manager for recommendations, that he knows they let it slip to someone looking for a brand deal with him. Instead, he watches as you struggle to pop the cork open, the xylophone clink of ice into twin wine glasses.

"So you do like sweet things," you comment as the nectared drink meets your tongue with a smile. There's a reverence to it: how he watches you chop the vegetables before sliding them into the pan, how the last remnants of today's sunlight filter through the window and past your hair.

Sweet things. He supposes he does like something like that.

~

"This event, is it a big deal?"

He vaguely hears a ruffle of clothing behind the half-shut bathroom door, lightstream swept across the floor. He offered you what he knows his teammates get their wives for these events — stylist, makeup artists — but he watched you stand in his bathroom layering on eyeshadow for yourself anyways.

I don't trust anyone else to touch me. A simple statement made stark.

"Sorry, Sae. Could you help zip me up please?"

Maybe it's that implication, that hidden trust you place in him, that makes his exhale a little shaky as one of his hands wraps around your waist to hold the dress down, the other carefully pulling up metal piece up.

You've often thought athletes would naturally be aggressive. You've seen Sae make a fast pass across the entire field without breaking a sweat. But when his hands are on you, they're always light. You think of the falling of snow, its soft and silent touch that comes unexpected, the easy descent it makes before it melts into the ground.

Love is a little like that, maybe.

~

It's a common feeling, to feel as if you're completely alone in this world. Easy to get into your own head, to see only yourself within four walls again and again and forget that there is a whole world outside. It's logical, well-researched, known. It's because of that that you can factor out the feelings when it hits you.

The four walls has never felt as striking as now, coughing into the hollow quiet. The morbid thought strikes that if you died here, no one would know. They'd find your body days later, after the smell starts to waft out.

But you chose this. To move and to fight and to create a life worth living. You, with your ambitions and heavy heart and endless survival faith that makes you somehow believe you can still make it. Sometimes you have to force a door close before wrenching another one open with nothing but your bare hands. Sometimes you have to swallow all your pride and roll up your sleeves and pray to no higher gods you worship that the decision you made is worth it.

You think you hear something click as your mind fogs back and forth into sleep. You hope whoever's burgling you will at least leave you alone and only take what they need. You hear your name, and then a shuffle, and god this is really the worst time to have a stalker.

The back of a hand over your forehead is cool to the touch, the night's breeze still pressed between the molecules.

"You're sick."

Thank you, intruder, for pointing out the obvious is what you want to say. But instead, your head lulls heavily to the side. "I just need to rest for a bit."

"You need a hospital."

"I'm fine. I'm just- being dramatic. But I'm fine."

Your world tips on its axis, warmth blooming into your side. He lifts you into his arms soundlessly. You almost envy how effortless it is for him; the weight you carry is so heavy when you're carrying it yourself.

It's only halfway towards his car that you find yourself processing, finally speaking, "Thank you, Sae."

There's a sharp intake of breath from him, the hard line of his body protecting you from the night's chilled-sweet air. His heartbeat against your ear is as steady as the shore, the way it waits for the kiss of the tide.

"Just call me next time."

~

Sae's not sure how he feels about this.

It's his first time being late when he's meant to be taking you to this event. He moves fast through the crowd, searches with keen eyes. Chandeliers flicker and crystal-light dances —

Only to find you propped up against the wall, Rin leaning down close.

Sae might be less confused if Rin didn't look — for what might be the first time at an event ever — like he actually wanted to be there. He's listening to you with all his attention, has no problem being in your space.

Sae only approaches once you've been whisked away by Bachira.

"Why were you talking to her?"

Rin whips around, and instead of looking guilty, he's in wide-eyed shock, and then narrow-eyed annoyance. "Ha? She's your girlfriend, isn't she?"

Sae blinks. Did he say that? He would've remembered, wouldn't he?

"You good-for-nothing older brother," Rin's voice is a grunt, nothing like the sweetness he gave you. "You didn't even introduce me. I had to fucking find out through Isagi."

"How does Isagi know?"

"Oliver."

"How does Oliver know?"

Rin gives him an begrudged, deadpan look. "He's your teammate?"

That explains nothing. Actually, Sae is even more confused. He has about a dozen more questions.

"She's nice." Rin mumbles low, playing with the stem of his wine glass, watches as it almost tips before swooping it back up.

"You like her?"

"I think she's nice." Rin grits, and Sae really doesn't know how Rin gets away with faux passes on the field when his reactions are this obvious, because he watches how his eyes grow with realization as another thought passes through his brain. "You don't like her?"

"I like her." Sae accepts quickly.

"Ha??? Then what are you asking me for?!"

~

If Sae's being honest, he knows he has more than enough. He wonders what this thing is that he's had since he was born, never satiated even as he reaches the top. He thinks about how Bachira describes his 'monster', a childlike wonder, whether this is his own version of something like that.

But even the blackhole-depths of his greed doesn't anticipate wanting you. Like remembering the sea upon the drink of an oyster. A second breath, heart soaked with knowing.

What am I doing, sleeping in his bed? The night grows darker with every step, so the invite was innocuous enough. You sink into the mattress and the blanket of night muffles the fear, the thought that love is never so easy. There will be complications and contracts —

You turn to him and all the braveheart strength seeps out of you. Maybe you can put it down here, just for a moment.

He looks at you love-first, in a thousand colors, something he can't find with anyone else. He brushes the hair from your face so delicately, you find yourself stuck between watching his relaxed expression and fluttering your eyes shut to absorb the feeling. The back of his fingers caress your cheek, a butterfly's wing.

"Are you happy? Satisfied?"

Sae is not abstract. It's a vague but concrete question. You understand him at first glance.

"Not yet," you exhale honestly. "I have more to do. I'm gonna get there."

I'm gonna be the person I want to be. And by that time, I'll also be —

I'll also be the kind of girl you'd consider worth dating.

"Just wanna be worth it," you smile weakly instead.

He looks at you with a tenderness that feels dangerous. You think of a bird's first flight, the swoop of the fall. The crackle of a flame before it eats the firewood.

"People are worth something the moment they're born," he recites with no inflections.

"I know that."

"You're the one who said that." It's not accusatory, it's a reminder: your own truth, a perception of love you've been made the exception of. It's too heavy with degradation for him to feel comfortable focusing on, so instead he asks something he knows.

"If you had everything you want now, would it be enough?"

You sit up, his eyes following you. Your body heat no longer pressed against his feels like a loss, something he's sure to correct.

"No. You know that's not how it works." You should know, better than anyone.

He does know. That greed is a bottomless abyss, ambition an infinite sky. There is no amount of good enough that could ever make it all feel worth it.

His hand circles around your wrist, pulls you in on top of him until you're chest to chest.

Love is not your right. Shattered somethings cradle your heart. Trees can grow around items. You wonder if your heart is the same — muscle grown strong around fractured glass, a whisper of a cutting edge with every beat.

If you're always going to want more, be better, go further —

Could you have a little something in the now?

He's so close to you now that it fills your mind completely. He's not naked but he feels so bare under you, your hands framing his cheeks, soft skin brushing against your fingertips. One of his hands skates up your back, the other slides up your jaw, cups the back of your neck.

You wonder when you started letting him touch you like that.

He treats you so gently, so unlike the overwhelming emotion that crashes into you. Both lightweight and heavy, you feel swept under, you just want to anchor onto something —

His lips touch yours and everything falls into place.

~

"How'd you know about her?"

Oliver could make it easy for him. He won't, because getting a reaction out of Sae is much more fun. Instead, he tries and fails to feign ignorance. "Who?"

"My girlfriend."

Oliver leans his head back against the wall, a playful smile over his face. "So she is your girlfriend. Loyal too."

Sae narrows his eyes.

"Relax. I just talked to her at one of those events you brought her to."

"You talked to her?"

Oliver gets the sense that Sae is trying to make it sound like a normal question, but all it sounds is exactly how annoyed he feels.

"She just said she's waiting for you."

notes: unbelonging is not a word, i used it anyways on purpose to strengthen the idea of something not belonging. nectared and lightstream are also not real words, but i like them. twin wine glasses is kind of a reference to twin flames, though i do think you and sae are actually soulmates. i wonder if people can be both. "the weight you carry is so heavy when you're carrying it yourself" is a double meaning, not just your body weight but everything else you carry too.

call it what it is: / a love created, hand-sculpted to fit. / a silent reprieve, / to be seen, / constellations bursting at the seams. / unfounded heart, / a tepid start,/ an easy, soft-sweet thing. / say what this really is. / place it on the justice scales of the abyss. / what you're meant to be / versus what you choose / you can decide you have a right to this.

[revelboo]

Hi, I'm the one that sent the 'attempting to calm myself down' ask, please ignore it. I've actually calmed down enough to feel really embarrassed by it haha!

Nah, you’re fine- I tend to like routines and things in a certain place. When they get moved, it makes me feel off balance or I’ll forget to do something. I know sometimes when stuff isn’t where I expect it to be, it’s like a misstep and I’m more likely to repeat things. Locking the door, then checking it again, maybe even unlocking it and going back in to make sure the lights are out, because I know something’s off but can’t figure out what. But I understand being frustrated and needing an outlet for it

Stress Relief

Prowl x Reader

• Staring at the crap he’s spread out on his berth, you’re not sure if he’s raided a Goodwill donation drop off or some elderly person’s yard sale. Ugly, floral lamps and vases, mismatched plates and cups, a boxy old TV set. Maybe he’d decided you’d like some human stuff? “I know you. Know you’re a lot like me and I thought, maybe, you’d like this,” he says, gesturing at the stuff as you raise your brows at him in question. And he hands you an aluminum bat.

• Watches you blink slowly, hands sliding on the bat as you find your grip and swing it like you’re testing the weight. “You want me to smash this crap? That’s the deal?” You ask, sounding suspicious like you think it’s a trick. But you are a lot like him. And sometimes he’s so frustrated, so angry he wants to destroy something and he has to bottle it up. Pretend nothing bothers him and hide the anger. Because he’s not allowed yo show his true face, to let his anger show.

• “That’s right,” he says, door wings lifting and falling in a shrug. And you swing the bat, the crack of it connecting with that ugly lamp a shock, the thing coming apart with the first blow. It’s stupid. You know it’s stupid, but it feels strangely good to lose control and just destroy things, pour your frustration out. The green vase is next. A glass. Aware of him watching you and that you’re grinning like a psycho as you bend to grab a plate and throw it.

• Huffing through his vents as you bare your teeth in a slightly frightening little smile as you smash everything until you’re breathing hard. Until you’re laughing. Angry and frustrated like he is, but unlike him, you’re allowed to lash out, to scream and get angry, so he’s living vicariously through you. Letting you do what he can’t because of his position.

• Embarrassed after it’s over, you feel good. Lighter somehow. All you’ve done is make a mess, broken ceramic and glass everywhere and you’re out of breath, hair slicked with sweat to your face and neck. “Thanks,” you mutter, hands aching from gripping the bat too hard. Fingers almost numb where you missed a few times and hit the berth instead. And he’s leaning to cup the back of your head and press a kiss against your temple. ‘Any time.’

[kuidore]

random ZoeYstery HCs 3 ✧ KPOP demon hunters ✧ Zoey x Mystery

✧ They’re the worst couple ever when it comes to PDA

✧ Once they’re together and he has her by his side almost all the time, Mystery is just. constantly touching her. mostly without even realizing it.

✧ His hand finds hers to link their hands or wrap his fingers around her wrist, he wraps his arm around her shoulders or her waist, he slouches and walks behind her with his chin resting on top of her head

✧ He doesn’t particularily care if it makes walking weird, as long as he’s holding her. She doesn’t seem to mind either.

✧ It feels natural, so he just does it. That was how he was accustomed to living beforehand. He’s still not used to having desires, let alone pushing them down

✧ Mystery would literally carry her everywhere if she would let him.

✧ If she ever mentions her feet hurt, or her legs are tired, or even asks how much longer they had to walk, he’s already crouched down on the ground and silently gesturing for her to get on his back before she even finishes her sentence

✧ He walks extra slow when he’s giving her a piggy back. Sometimes he even purposefully takes a wrong turn so they have to take a longer route

✧ On his back was like being in a car for Zoey. She barely paid attention to the surroundings, resting her chin on his shoulder and talking at him about whatever came to mind

✧ When she does realize it, she doesn’t particularily care. It just makes her squeeze him tighter and hide her face in his shoulder to try and keep her blush in check

✧ If Mystery isn’t carrying Zoey then he’s carrying her purse, her drink, her bag, whatever she has with her.

✧ He really wants to be helpful to her, the way she was always being with him

✧ She feels really guilty in the beginning for making him be her mule, carrying around her and her stuff. But every time she asked if he minded, he shook his head no without any hesitation

✧ She’s finally convinced that it’s fine when she looks over at Mystery’s face one day while on his back and caught him smiling with his teeth. It was the first time she was even seeing them.

✧ From then on she was more than happy to accept his offer or even purposefully complain about walking just so he’d do it even more

✧ If Zoey comes into a room when he’s doing something and has his back to her, she immediately thinks of ways to be a menace

✧ Among Zoey’s arsenal was; coming up and sticking a wet finger in his ear, tiptoe really close and try to scare him (which she keeps trying even though it never works), and breaking into a sprint to throw herself on his back

✧ Sure she could go up and hug him or give him a kiss, but she saved that for when he noticed her.

✧ Mystery could actually always hear her footsteps when she came into the room.

✧ Originally he always turned around, but as soon as he realized that she was attempting to sneak up on him, he started keeping his back to her and pretending he didn’t notice her presence

✧ Every single time she grins at him and smugly says that she ‘got him’

✧ Oh she’s got him alright. Got him wrapped around her finger, whipped, ready to kill or die for her. he was pretty sure she wouldn’t let him do that last one a second time, but he’s still willing and that’s what matters

✧ Yeah, she did in fact still date him even after telling him he was her type and then slitting his throat and sending him back to hell (briefly). Don’t worry about it. He thought it was hot.

✧ He physically cannot stop himself from glaring at anyone who looks at Zoey for too long or gets in her personal space. For the latter, if they weren’t in an excessively public place, he’d still bark

✧ Mystery’s jealousy is much more about being the direct object of Zoey’s attention at a given moment, rather than some sort of fear of her leaving him for someone else or being ‘taken’

✧ He wants her to always be looking at him, paying attention to him, noticing him. The way he always was doing the same with her.

✧ It takes a lot of time for him to understand the way she expresses herself and her emotions, but Zoey is patient and happy to explain it to someone so eager to actually listen

✧ One day it’s like it clicks, when she points in a store window bouncing with excitement at a dessert he knew full well she hated and he loved

✧ He passes the entire night just looking back through their memories together, picking out what had initially seemed like minor moments and finding traces of Zoey’s adoration around every corner

✧ She wakes up to him staring at her intently. She jumps a bit and almost falls out of bed, he manages to hold her tight enough to stop her

✧ He didn’t even wish her good morning, didn’t even give her the time to wake up properly. The first words out of his mouth once he was sure she was conscious enough to be aware of him were “I love you”

✧ She can’t stop herself from burying her face in a pillow and kicking her feet, muffled giggles making her shoulders shake

[wobblingjello]

aughhh the spencer angst <\\3 I adore the way you write ur fics…if ur reqs r open could I possibly recommend spencer x reader who’s father is very very VERY similar to house md.

basically reader decides to take a very different career than her father, and would become a lawyer that often worked with the bau.

spencer and reader have been in a relationship for quite some time, so reader invited him to meet their father

OR

spencer is in the hospital for whatever reason and happens to meet their father

Hey! This is definitely not exactly like your request, but I actually already had a WIP about Spencer in the hospital situation even before the request, then I just added your suggestion on meeting the reader’s father part. I hope you like this! ^^

— Bloodline & Bullet Wound

Summary: You’ve been dating Spencer for quite some time, and it was only natural for your parents to start asking when they’d get to meet your “mysterious” boyfriend. However, you never expected that the first encounter between your dad and Spencer would be in the operating room. OR Spencer was shot, and your dad was the surgeon who led the surgery.

Genre: General, with a bit of humor (?)

Pairing: Spencer Reid/Fem!Reader

Word Count: 3011

Dating Dr. Spencer Reid was not for the weak. He was very clear about how important his job was for him since the second date, as if he was giving you an out before things got serious between the two of you. Your job might not be as significant as his was, but as someone who was also passionate about your job, you understood where the concerns came from.

On top of his unpredictable work schedule that would take him miles away from you most of the time, the very same job made you live in constant fear that something terrible could happen to him at any time. So, no, it wasn’t the work schedule that worried you the most, but the awfulness that came with the job.

In the span of 7 months you’ve been dating him, every so often, you’d spot new bruises and scars on his body. Spencer knew how you felt whenever you saw those wounds. He’d tell you those were minor wounds, and the most important part was he made it home safe.

He rarely talked about the cases they worked on, however, he always insisted that having you in his apartment when he came back helped a lot. Like the current case they were working on, for example. Three days ago, Spencer had informed you that it was a local case, in which he could go back to his own apartment every night. So, you’ve been staying at his place for the last three days.

Even when working on a local case, there was no guarantee that he’d come home at normal hours. Yesterday, he was back around 11 PM, and went back to work so early in the morning. He apologized for disturbing your sleep whenever he went in and out of his apartment, but of course you never held it against him.

Early this evening he texted you that he’d most likely stay late at the office again, and you didn’t have to wait up for him. You two texted each other a few more times before Spencer was needed to go back to the case. Then you once again fell asleep in his bed alone.

A loud ringing from your phone woke you up in the middle of the night. You blindly reached your phone on the bedside table, and answered it without even bothering to check the ID. JJ’s voice on the other side of the line woke you up instantly.

“Hey. I’m so sorry for calling you this late.”

You could feel the tightness in your chest. “JJ, what’s going on?”

“Spence was shot. I haven’t heard further details since the MET brought him to the hospital. All I know is that they need to do surgery on him.”

Your heart sank to the bottom of your stomach at her statement.

Spencer.

Hospital.

Surgery.

Oh, God. Your worst nightmare has become reality. Your brain tried to remember the last thing you two talked about before you went to bed. Nothing. You couldn’t remember anything. What if you said something bad to him?

“Hello? Are you still there?”

“Yeah, sorry.” If she caught the shakiness in your voice, then she didn’t mention it.

“I’ll send you the details of the hospital. Garcia and Matt are already on their way there. You should contact them when you arrive. The rest of us will meet you at the hospital once we wrap things up in the crime scene. Please be careful.”

You threw on the sweatpants and hoodie, grabbed your purse and key, then rushed out of his apartment.

As you turned on the engine of your car, you keyed in the address of the hospital to the GPS. It would only take you approximately an hour to get there. If you drove close to the speed limit, while adding the probability of how vacant the street was at almost 1 AM, you could definitely make it less than an hour. 

Once your car hit the road, thankfully, there was almost no other car anywhere in sight. You dared yourself to drive as fast as you could while still being careful. The last thing you wanted was to be in an accident while Spencer was fighting for his life in the operating room.

Just like you had predicted, you made it to the hospital in under an hour. You immediately called Penelope as you walked out of the parking lot. She waited for you at the lobby, and as soon as she saw you, she was all over you — trying to assure you that Spencer would be alright, that he’d make it out alive. You appreciated her kindness, really, but right now, your mind was incapable of forming positive thoughts. No, your mind went completely blank after that phone call with JJ. Honestly, it was a miracle that you managed to get to the hospital safely.

Once the two of you walked to the waiting area, you saw Matt facing the operating room. As if he sensed another presence in the room, perhaps he did, he was an agent after all, he turned around. He looked relieved when he saw you made it to the hospital just fine. He gestured to you and Penelope to sit on the nearest 3-seat chair. 

On your left, Matt briefed you the situation as best as he could given how shaken you currently were. Penelope, sitting on your right, tried to comfort you by squeezing your hands.

It was a horrible situation. The team had figured out there were two UnSubs in this case. By the time the team cornered one of the UnSub in their hiding place, they were still trying to talk him out of the situation — hopefully they could take both UnSubs alive. As they tried to make him surrender with no violence, in some sick twisted way, the partner walked right to that situation. Not very clever of him, honestly. The team also had figured out that one of the UnSubs was messier than the other. Once the partner realized there was no way out for both of them, he started shooting. Unfortunately, Spencer, who stood the closest to the other UnSub, was shot. Eventually, both UnSubs were dead.

It all happened in a blink of an eye. Once the situation was cleared, Rossi immediately instructed the EMT to get into the crime scene. The EMT left to bring Spencer to the hospital as fast as they got in. Tara called Matt, who stayed in the office with Penelope at that time, and told them to go to the hospital. At the same time, JJ called you, and basically said the same thing.

For a split second, you selfishly wished Spencer had stayed at the office too, so none of this would have happened to him.

The rest of the team arrived at the hospital almost 30 minutes later. They all look exhausted, like they all could crash out any time soon. You spotted dried blood on Emily’s shirt — wondering if that was Spencer’s. You felt a twist in the bottom of your stomach just from the thought of it.

In the waiting area, the BAU team took turns to take a quick rest. It seemed uncomfortable given how small the 3-seat chairs were. At some point, Matt and JJ excused themselves to go home, which understandable since they had their own families.

The waiting time felt like eternity for you. Some of Spencer’s team members had told you to take some rest, but you refused to do so. You were afraid you wouldn’t be awake by the time the surgery was done. 

What was exactly happening inside the operating room? How long would it take for them to finish the surgery?

By the time it marked the 3 hours, someone walked out of the operating room. Everyone in the waiting area instantly got on their feet. The moment the surgeon took off his mask, your mouth was wide open.

“Dad!?”

He was equally surprised at the sight of you. “Muffin? What are you doing here?”

Your nose scrunched at his term of endearment. “Um, I’m Spencer’s emergency contact?” That came out more like a question than an answer.

“That —” He dramatically pointed out to the direction of the operating room. “— is your boyfriend?”

The BAU team was simultaneously shocked and amused at the unexpected family reunion. They intently listened to the exchange while looking back and forth at the father-daughter duo. Your mind was solely focused on Spencer the entire time, you completely forgot this was also the hospital your dad worked at.

You heard Emily cleared her throat at your right. “As much as I enjoy this little family reunion, can you please give us an update on Reid’s condition?” She addressed your dad.

“Right. We’ll circle back to this later, Muffin.” Then he turned to face Emily. “He lost a lot of blood. It was touch and go there for a while. If he was shot one millimeter to the left, he probably wouldn’t make it. It was a miracle, really. He still needs to recover for another few days, but he’ll be able to walk out of here just fine.”

“Can we see him?” This time, it was Luke who asked the question.

“Not right now. I’ll recommend you to see him later in the next few hours.” Then he looked directly at you. “That applies to you too.” You were about to complain when he stopped you. “Go home. Get some rest. I’ll personally call you when he wakes up.”

One by one the members of the BAU said their thank you to your dad, then left the hospital. They deserved that rest. You lingered in the waiting area a bit longer, wanting to have a private conversation with your dad. It seemed he also had the same thought, because he hadn’t moved from his position.

You walked up to your dad, and immediately hugged him. The moment he hugged you back, it felt like you finally could breathe again. Without you even realizing it, the tears started falling down your cheeks.

“You saved his life. Thank you, Dad.” Your voice was barely audible.

“I can’t believe I just performed a surgery on your boyfriend. Your mom will probably be mad at me if she finds out that I had met him without her.”

You knew the last part was him trying to lighten up your mood. “She’ll live. But I’m sure she’ll ask again for that dinner sooner than later.”

He chuckled at that. “That she will.” He released you from the hug, but put his hands on your shoulders. “Seriously, go home. I promise I’ll call you.”

You hugged your dad one more time before leaving the hospital.

If there was one thing that you felt grateful for today, it was the fact that it was Sunday. You didn’t even realize how tired you were until you were back to Spencer’s apartment. You couldn’t imagine if you had to go to work after what just happened. God, imagine how exhausted his colleagues were right now. You were sure you would fall asleep straight away the moment you touched the bed.

The ringing from your phone once again woke you up. This time, you checked the caller before answering. Your dad.

“Hey, Muffin. Did you actually get some sleep?” His don’t-lie-to-me tone was as clear as the sky outside.

You chuckled at his question. “I did, thank you for asking, Dad. Is he awake?” Now, you hesitantly asked him.

“Yes. He just woke up. The nurses are checking on him, but he can have visitors now. I’m pretty sure someone from the administration had contacted one of his colleagues, but maybe you want to inform them as well.” 

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll do that.” You went quiet for a beat or two, then continued. “Thank you, again, Dad. I love you. I’ll see you later at the hospital.”

“I love you too, kiddo. Drive safely.”

You checked the time on your phone, past 10 AM. Well, you definitely had better sleep before, but considering the circumstances, it wasn’t that bad. This time around, you took your time to get ready before leaving. You knew Spencer wouldn’t mind if you came to the hospital looking like someone who just rolled out of the bed, but you intended to spend some time with your dad too, so you wanted to look at least decent enough. The hospital was still his workplace after all.

As you grabbed your purse and key, your stomach let out an embarrassing loud noise. Alright, making a quick pit stop to the patisserie wouldn’t hurt. Perhaps bought something for your dad too while you were at it.

Before you left the apartment, you sent a message to Emily, updating her on Spencer’s condition, while also informing her that you were on the way to the hospital. You were sure she’d pass along the information to the rest of the team.

When you arrived at the hospital, you didn’t go to Spencer’s room immediately. Instead, you called your dad and asked where he was. You wanted to give him a bag full of freshly baked pastries you bought at your favorite patisserie on the way.

Once the pastries were safely delivered to your dad, and spent a decent amount of time catching up with him, you marched your way to Spencer’s room.

Even from the hallway, you could tell which one his room was. You already heard the laughter of the people in his team you started becoming familiar with. You felt the warm fuzzy feeling spreading in your chest from knowing how much he was cherished by those people and vice versa.

You knocked on the door to announce your presence, and all heads turned towards your direction. You noticed how his eyes lit up from the sight of you entering his room. Everyone made some room for you, so you could sit on his bed. Your hand instantly found his — caressing the back of his hand while still being mindful of the IV.

You all shared stories and laughter in the tiny hospital room. Grateful that Spencer survived this horrifying event. JJ showed you the drawing her sons made for Spencer. Even the little ones adored your boyfriend. Through all of this, not even once you two let each other’s hands go.

Eventually, his colleagues bid their farewell, but not before wishing him a speedy recovery.

“Hey, angel.” He flashed you a smile.

“Hey. I want to ask how you are, but that sounds silly. I mean, of course you’re not fine.” You let out a shaky breath. “You scared me, you know?”

“I’m better now.” He gave your hand a squeeze. “So… Your dad was the one who performed the surgery on me…”

“Yeah. That was… Wild. I’m pretty sure half his soul left his body when he realized you’re the mysterious boyfriend.” You giggled at the memory of your dad’s reaction. “He said he’d check up on you later.”

Not even 5 minutes later, your dad knocked on the door. As if you had summoned him. He checked up on Spencer, notified the two of you on your boyfriend’s latest condition, etcetera, while keeping a straight face. He deserved to be applauded for his professionalism.

However, the spell broke once your dad was done with his examination.

“So, I heard you’re dating my daughter.” Your dad casually said while staring at Spencer dead in the eye.

Your boyfriend, clearly nervous, cleared his throat. “Yes, sir. It’s unfortunate that our first encounter is under such an awful circumstance.” He tried to straighten up his position as best as he could. “My name is Dr. Spencer Reid… But surely you already know that since you’re currently holding my medical chart.” 

“Doctor, huh? I thought he’s with the FBI?” His eyebrow went up as he looked at you now.

“Not a doctor like you, Dad.”

“Um, I have 3 PhDs.”

“That’s impressive. Well, I’m not interested in giving you any fatherly speeches for dating my daughter. At least not while you’re still recovering. I guess I’ll see you around, but hopefully not at the hospital again.” Your dad fully turned to face you this time. “My shift is about to end. Why don’t you come home with me? I’m sure your mom will be thrilled to see you. Especially if she finds out what just happened in less than 24 hours.”

Your dad gave the two of you one last look before he was leaving the room.

“I guess it went well.”

“Yeah, it could’ve been worse. Like, you know, he could secretly dose me with something that might kill me.”

“And why would he do that?”

“Because I’m dating his daughter?”

You burst out laughing at his answer. “Oh, babe. You’re as dramatic as he is. You two will be best buddies before you know it.”

“You should spend some time with your family. I’ll still be here until your dad deems me healthy enough to go home.”

“Alright. I’ll be back tomorrow. I love you.”

“I love you too, sweetheart.”

You glanced at your boyfriend one last time, then closed the door to his room.

You saw your dad waiting for you at the end of the hallway — his white coat was long gone. Now that he knew about Spencer, and your mom would soon know too, it didn’t really sound like a bad thing at all. It wasn’t like you didn’t want to introduce him to your parents, it just felt too soon. Plus, between Spencer’s unpredictable work schedule and your dad’s long hour shift at the hospital, it was quite a challenge to set up a dinner with your parents.

Now that the cat was out of the bag, you were just happy that the most important people in your life would finally get to know each other. You were sure your mom would be more than happy to help you arrange the dinner, and you couldn’t wait for it to happen.

[bewitched-hours]

ANGST IDEA: (if you write it uh.. he/they pronouns for reader)

Two-Time gets so enamored with y/n, they start following them around, until they get the idea,, that y/n would be the best sacrifice for The Spawn. And stabs them mid round (it could be anything, just as long as Two-Time or any other sentinel ends up killing y/n)

And 1x ends up being the killer..

While casting Necromancy, She summons y/n without realizing it, and while they’re checking their minions, he senses a new being under their control.

Revealing Y/n as a minion, somewhat still aware, like a sleepy person, kinda wobbling around and whatnot.. and feels a bit .. bad..

I don't do he/they but I can offer They/Them as the closest to male pronouns as stated in my ruleset(again, nothing against guys but I honestly write a bit more on relatability and for my fellow gals because I see mostly AMAB reader fics-) Also I may have misunderstood the request, I apologize if this isn't what you wanted-

Reader has They/Them-

It wasn't supposed to be even possible... But the Spectre seemed to have been bored.

And by the stars, Two Time's infatuation with you gave it an idea.

You thought it was innocent at first and that you could handle them despite not reciprocating their feelings. You were just kind like that, not wanting to hurt anyone's feelings.

Hell, you even went out of your way to apologize to killers and make sure they didn't feel discouraged by a missed attack... Even though they wouldn't be in the first place...

But what no one could've seen coming was Two Time suddenly backstabbing you and successfully killing you..?

That wasn't right. Something was up, especially when you were nowhere to be found after that round. Even your cabin was completely destroyed which only meant...

You were actually dead dead. Gone from existence entirely.

Obviously, the blame was on Two Time. They stabbed you after all and all they could talk about was the Spawn possibly giving them a third life to better protect everyone.

It left a sour taste in their mouths but the Spectre did grant them a third life to keep them insane.

The next round was when things got interesting.

1x1x1x1 was chosen as the killer and in the middle of it, she chose to use necromancy. Raising minions from the dead to help him with taking care of the pesky survivors.

Although you horrified the survivors with your appearance, 1x failed to realise it until much later while checking on the minions because she felt a new presence among them.

And there you stood. Not entirely stable as you looked more like someone fighting off exhaustion and being on the edge of collapsing. It looked pitiful enough.

So when the round ended and you were taken to the killer's cabin with them, 1x merely picked you up and explained what happened quickly before hauling you off with them.

Did you even know what was happening? You didn't show any resistance but the vengeance she could feel from you when you spotted Two Time was enough to allow you to be a true minion.

There would just need to be a few modifications...

Anything you'd like to request/ask? Check out my pinned post first and I'll be happy to write up whatever you want!

[nogutsnogloria]

summary: there’s always someone to believe in you when you don’t believe in yourself.

a/n: this is just strictly platonic all around-family telling you you can do something even when you don’t think you can.

michael robinavich x jack abbot x dana evans x reader

your standing at the nurses station getting your cases ready for handover when you are brought out of your work by your favourite drink being waved in-front of your face. you look up to see dr. abbot leaning over the counter with the drink in his hand looking like he needs to ask you something.

“what’s that for?” you ask with eyebrows raised, because even if he’s brought you a treat for no reason before the look on his face screams this one comes at a price.

“we’ve been called up” he’s extending the drink in his hand so you finally decide to take it. “called up?” you’re at the end of your shift and you know if you thought about the sports reference long enough it would maybe click but you need him to spell it out for you.

“robby and gloria are conducting interviews for dana’s replacement with the dayshift nurses who are on this morning, they need some backup until about noon. that’s us. we are the backup. it will only be five extra hours and yours have been pre approved for double time. the job is just covering the nurse having their interview, like a floater.” you nod at what he is telling you and answer “okay no problem, you didn’t need the drink to ask that but i do appreciate it”

you’re honestly shocked at the news that they haven’t picked a replacement yet. any nurse you talked to about the posting had applied as soon as they heard about it, and it feels like said posting went up forever ago.

dana’s final days as a contracted charge nurse are coming to an end. she has decided not to fully retire, but to be given casual privileges so that she can choose when she wants to work and be with her family more. you are happy for her, if anyone deserves to slow down it’s dana. she has been there for you since your first days in your practicum as a nurse, and she is the reason why you picked emergency medicine when you finished nursing school almost ten years ago. however the first line you got was for night shift and you never looked back, you occasionally covered days when asked, but you were comfortable on the night shift.

the raise becoming a charge nurse would be nice, but you decided to not apply because dana will have some unbelievable scary, huge shoes to fill.

your standing at handover listening to the doctors speak on the cases you’ve been working with all night. when night shift breaks off and day shift can have a pre-shift meeting. it’s the usual updates on the standard of care that upstairs is really pushing down here. robby finishes up the meeting with “and remember we have the outdoor patio reserved at the pub down the road after shift today. i hope everyone can stop by and enjoy time with each other away from the hospital.”

you hang back to check in with dana. “anywhere specific you need me?” she smiles at you over her glasses. “nah kid i know you know what your doing. hop in wherever you see fit, we do have some baby nurses on today who might approach with questions, and if you tell any of the other nurses here i will deny it-but you give the most approachable energy so i am just warning you in advance with that one. oh and i really appreciate your help here, if you want to stay even later than they told you be my guest.” she looks at you to let you know that she’s kidding she doesn’t expect you to stay after an extended shift “oh, thanks for the offer dana but no thank you, i am taking my five hours of double time and im running” you both laugh at that.

you’re finishing up checking on vitals on an intubated patient waiting on an icu bed when one of the aforementioned baby nurses is approaching you looking like someone stole her puppy. “are you available to help me? the patient is a bit agitated and is making it really difficult to get an iv started.” you completely understand being in the emergency room stinks but you aren’t going to let some asshole ruin a new nurse’s whimsy. “of course! lead the way. i will just be there as back up okay? you know how to do the job you wouldn’t be here if you didn’t. don’t let some grump tell you how you should be doing it.” you say to her as she leads you to the exam room.

she opens the curtain and the guy looks less than impressed to see you with her and raises his voice at you. “look i already told the little bitch, unless there’s a painkiller in that drip no one is coming near me with a needle, she didn’t need to call mommy to come help.” you see jack and robby making their way over to the commotion. you put your hand up to signal that you’ve got it. the other nurse turns to you a bit shaken. “dr. mohan didn’t prescribe a painkiller. it’s just fluids, he was brought in by the police unconscious and inebriated-he can’t leave until care is done.” you now feel the need to protect the younger nurse after his little outburst so you step in between her and the hospital bed and look at the patient in the bed with a raised eyebrow.

“mr. roberts you really shouldn’t speak to my nurse like that. she’s just trying to help you. your doctor didn’t prescribe a painkiller but she did prescribe a bag of fluids that will help with the headache. now you can cooperate and let her do her job or i can get someone in here to restrain you, and she still does her job, either way she’s giving you the fluids. one of the ways doesn’t give you mobility to get up and use a bathroom when the fluids start working. you give him a bit of a screw you smile to tie the whole thing together. the patient sits back and grumbles but ultimately lets the nurse start the iv, you spend extra time with her to show her the easiest way to stick a dehydrated vein and both of you leave the exam room.

“thank you for that, honestly i was losing the battle in there.” you look at her “it takes time to stick up for yourself, we can’t make everyone happy, some people just enjoy being miserable.” that makes the new nurse relax a bit. “well thank you again for helping.” you pat her shoulder and head in the opposite direction.

next couple of hours pass and you just float where needed. noon is approaching which means your long awaited shower and bedtime is also approaching. “hey we need your help on an incoming gsw to the abdomen, four minutes out. surgery is meeting us down here.” dr. langdon rushes past you with dr. santos and dr. king following behind.

you meet dr. abbot at the trauma bays and get gloved and gowned up. you do your job while langdon, santos and garcia bicker. you watch as they do, but you can tell its becoming a bit much for dr. king so you tell her she’s doing a great job, once the patient is stable enough they are still puffing their chests with one another battling over who actually stabilized the patient so you finally pipe up. “what does everyone need? gold stars? applause? we’re backed up enough as it is down here can you get this guy upstairs and into surgery please?” that gets everyone moving. you didn’t notice robby sneak in and stand with jack to observe at the end so when your turning around and disposing of your gown you bump right into him. he’s biting back a laugh at your comment to the duelling doctors. “oh dr. robby sorry i didn’t see you there.” he catches you so you don’t bounce right off him. “no worries kid, just came to let you and jack know you’re free to go. interviews are all finished, thanks for the help today.” you walk towards the locker room to grab your things.

jack and you live pretty close together so you usually walk to and from work with one another when you can. while waiting for him by the desk you pull on your hoodie pulling your ponytail out from the neckline. “are you coming to the pub later?” dana asks you. “oh that seemed like a dayshift thing.” you say non committal. jack walks up behind you “and what shift exactly are you getting off of?” you raise your eyebrow and grab your bag putting it over your shoulder. “an extended night shift.” you give him a look you hope conveys you absolute dummy. that makes everyone laugh including robby. “no the invite was extended to everyone in the team huddle, abbot seems to think he was included, that means you are more than included as well.” you nod “yeah, sure i can come for a bit after i take a nap, i guess i will see you all later.” with that you head home.

its about eight when you find yourself heading to the pub. you are quickly greeted by jack “i owe you a drink for today” you roll your eyes at that “you really don’t, but i won’t say no” he gets you a beer and you two head over to where robby is sitting and take a seat. “how were the interviews today man? you have someone lined up yet?” jack asks as you both sit down. “well we actually had 56 out of the qualified 57 nurses at the hospital apply so it took a bit to get through it all.”

you can feel both their eyes on you as you take a pull of beer from your bottle trying to look anywhere else but at either of them. abbot has argued with you every time you told him you weren’t applying, and now you are starting to suspect that he went behind your back to throw your hat in the ring anyways. “well lucky you that’s a huge pool to choose from, i’m sure someone fits.” your kind of afraid to look at robby because now you think the two attendings are about to interrogate you about your choices so you decide to get ahead of it.

“was today some weird audition. jack was telling you lies about how i could be a charge nurse so you set this up to see me in action. did you even have interviews today?” you take another stressed pull of your beer.

“see robby i told you she was smart.” jack can’t help himself. he put a hand on your shoulder “and i’m not kidding or lying when i say you could do the job and you could do it well.” you turn to look at him “you really don’t want to work with me anymore?” he shakes his head at you “that’s not it, just can’t stand to see you waste your potential.” you groan and lay your head on the table. “who are you? my dad?” you can now here dana laughing behind you too. “oh great! were you in on this too? is there no one i can trust?” dana sits on your other side and rubs your shoulders. “kid i hand picked you years ago when i first met you, you can blame jack and robby but i am being the difficult one here.”

you lift your head up from the hiding spot. “there is seriously no one else? i don’t believe for a second that watching me work for a handful of hours made up your mind about me” robby shakes his head. “we could offer it to someone else but from all the stories i have heard about you from these two, you just picked up the extra hours today without complaining about it, the way you helped anyone who asked and kept everyone on track that is exactly what i am looking for in a charge nurse. the job is yours.” you sigh. “what if i crash and burn? can i go back to my old job?” robby nods. “all of us just want you to succeed, and if you try and it doesn’t work-which i don’t see happening by the way, you are more than welcome back to your old job.” you bite your lip and then release it, thinking. “okay so do i need to officially apply? or is hr going to reach out with the contract?”

[svnscape]

40 - i don’t know

it’s been almost three months. three months since those sad pathetic texts of yours were looking back at you like they were mocking you.

three months of you looking frantically at any notification that settles into your phone, in hopes that it would be him. that it would be haechan texting you back.

but all you got was a sad small “delivered” under your very idiotic texts for three long and dreadful months.

you had managed to move, settle down in an apartment barely five minutes way from your new campus, go on summer vacation with lara renjun and jeno, have jeno come visit you multiple times and nag you about the horrible plumping system in your new apartment and yet, nothing had changed.

you had managed to do so many things during those months but none of which calmed down your anxiety and your need to get in contact with haechan.

to be honest you could’ve done more if you wanted, for example, by reaching out to his friends or finding another mean of communication.

but you were scared.

you were scared of looking stupid now that the tables have turned and you were on the receiving end of this frustrating silent treatment. the same one you were giving to haechan.

but his lasted way longer than yours and you were slowly getting worried that something has happened to him.

you checked his socials so many times only to find that the last time he’s been active was during graduation.

his abandoned instagram account was still dead silent and what worried you the most is that his friends were equally as silent.

even zhong chenle the oversharer.

you asked jeno and nagged him to ask jaemin but all he gave you was a questionable nose scrunch and a side eye.

not even lara, a master in stalking, was able to find haechan’s whereabouts.

and it killed you, specially since you had no right to complain about this or victimize yourself since this was absolutely your own doing.

a consequence of your many unsolved traumas, fears and unshakable avoidance, all which mark had a huge molding hand in.

but that was not the point right now.

the point is that you were ten minutes away from starting a new chapter of your life without properly ending and neatly folding the page of the previous one.

how could you start again when all you were thinking about was the last line of that chapter?

a line that was smudged and ruined because of your own fears and doubts. the suspense of “what could’ve happened” gnawing away at your comfort.

sweat was slowly forming on your neck right below your now long hair, as you stood very still in front of the big and glossy wooden door of your designated classroom.

first day of this masters program and you already wanted to go home and get on your phone to spend your day stalking haechan’s unwavering socials without daring to send him another next.

but that wasn’t an option as you hear a deep and husky voice emerging from inside the classroom, signaling that this introduction presentation had already started whilst you’ve been daydreaming in front of this poor harmless door.

with a huge sigh and a silent mantra, you open the door and wince when you notice how everybody was now looking at you as you obviously interrupted the now aggravated old and evil looking professor.

you quietly apologize and jog up the small stairs inside the room to take place in the furthest seat you could find, hoping that it’ll make people forget about you already.

the professor clears his throat and continues introducing the program and you were now slowly regretting choosing it seeing how much work and effort you needed to pour into it. something you obviously didn’t have at the moment as you felt yourself slowly starting to yawn, sliding down the chair and putting a hand over your mouth in an attempt to hide it.

you almost started dreaming, deep in sleep, when the main door of the classroom opened, jolting you awake from your nap with the way it sound echoed in the rather big classroom.

so much for KwangyaU being a prestigious university in comparison to NCTU, you thought with a small smirk, eyes still sleepy and closed.

“now this is getting annoying and disrespectful! the presentation started almost twenty minutes ago” you hear the professor growl into the small black microphone positioned right below his chin.

“i’m sorry i got lost”

no way.

you almost stood up upon hearing that familiar sultry and velvety voice.

a voice you were begging the universe to let you hear again.

you straighten your back and gulp multiples times in a row before you made a slight effort to look at the silhouette standing a hundred seats away from yours.

he slowly turns away from the professor to face everyone and bows again. a hand clutching at his familiar black backpack.

it was him.

it was haechan.

but you barely recognized him as he was slowly going up the stairs, looking for a vacant seat.

he looked wrecked and you wondered if it was solely because of you or because of something else.

you needed to stop thinking that the whole world revolved around you, you thought, watching him stand for a few minutes, waiting for the person to give him space so he could sit down in the middle of the row that was two lines ahead of yours.

but he looked so different. his whole demeanor was different.

again, you had barely recognized him.

the cheeky haechan with the rosy cheeks and the mischievous smile and glint in his eyes.

that haechan was gone.

this haechan though looked pale, eyes dimmed and dark which made them seem like they were black when in reality you knew were a dark shade of brown, a brown you memorized whenever you looked straight into his eyes.

that brown hair of his was now long gone and replaced with jet black hair, longer than you’ve left it a few months ago.

he settles down in his seat and his head immediately hits the table for a rest.

no wonder. he looked exhausted.

everything about him felt dark and it almost bruised you in a way that angered you.

you were deeply and still very much infatuated.

it was time to make peace with it maybe .

maybe, because the anger and frustration towards him were now long gone after those horrible excruciating weeks of silent treatment.

it was now replaced with pure worry and care.

care that made you eye haechan for the whole hour that was left of this never ending presentation.

every inhale and exhale. every sigh. every slight movement of his fingers touching the back of his other hand.

everything.

you were itching to talk to him. to catch up. to watch him and analyze him and his changed behavior.

to hug him. to kiss him.

your thoughts were going so fast, your leg bouncing up and down, restless, as you were watching every move of his.

to be honest you had no clue how to talk to him and how to start a conversation. at the end of the day, you were the one who left him stranded and ghosted him after a good fuck.

a good fuck in which he tried to confess to you during it.

then the multiple confessions of his, bullying your phone’s notification and your subconscious, that was yelling at you to finally unleash it all.

you knew it very well.

that was not goodbye.

at least not to your heart.

that whole thing made it worse as you felt like you left a piece of yourself beside him that night.

it was during that night when you’ve found out that your feelings for haechan weren’t just simple and fun.

they went so deep inside the layers of your heart and laced themselves with complication and doubt.

maybe even guilt.

because why would you fall so deeply for someone so fucked? someone who fucked you over so bad.

you didn’t know how to answer that question to this day and frankly, you didn’t want to because hell, do we really choose the people we fall in love with?

absolutely not.

no, because as soon as the professor gave his thanks and started gathering his stuff, you found yourself bolting out of that room, your eyes fixed on haechan’s bouncing hair and fast smooth legs, visible, as he was wearing black simple shorts.

your voice betrayed you and you couldn’t even call for him but you were so close behind him.

so close you could smell his signature fresh orangey smell. so close you could see his silky black hair and the faint visible brown strands that were slowly appearing.

“h-haechan!”

finally.

you watch him abruptly stop walking. his whole body froze in place as the hand that was clutching the strap of his backpack fell down next to his hips.

but he doesn’t turn around and that makes your heartbeat grow faster, if that was even possible.

you couldn’t even move your body but your eyes were moving like crazy, going from left to right waiting for his reaction.

but nothing.

absolutely nothing.

“hae-”

he turns around.

and you see it.

the exhaustion. the disappointment. the happiness. the memories.

you see it in his beautiful face and it makes you smile.

he’s starting to look like the haechan you knew.

he carefully steps forward, making his way to you, his eyes never leaving yours, making you swallow in nervousness.

his face was now in front of yours, his eyes scanning your whole body before they land right back on yours, a small smile gracing his face.

“how have you been?”

his voice was now huskier than usual. it kind of takes you by surprise even though you’ve heard it an hour ago.

“uh i-i’m fine, fine thank you, and you? how have you- ho-how are you?”

you were so fucking nervous and the way he was looking at you, body absolutely still in confidence, was making you loose your words.

it was kind of reminding you of the first few days of your rivalry-filled endeavors with him.

and man were you so close to crying when he nodded softly, eyes closing for a second before opening again, a small soft glint reflecting in them.

“i’m alright. i’ve been mentally preparing myself to start a new life with new people and new experiences. never really thought i’d see you here, or anywhere actually”

new people?

“i- i see, okay and me too”

he nods again, playing with the gathering dust right below his feet as he gazed down there, finally giving you a break so you could gather some fathomable words and thoughts.

“h-” “y/n?”

fuck. he beat you to it.

“yes?”

“don’t beat yourself up. i can see it” he chuckles.

you bite your lip so hard you were sure you bruised it, all of that to prevent yourself from bursting out in sobs in the middle of this packed hallway and in front of him.

how the fuck was he able to read you like an open book when he didn’t even know you for that long.

it made it all worse. it made your feelings for him even stronger, so, worse.

“i- no, i’m not beating myself up” you blatantly lie.

“y/n… don’t. i can see it” he repeats, softer this time.

“haechan i-”

“don’t”

this time you felt a single tear make its way down your cheek and right to the corner of your lips, the saltiness of it giving you whiplash as you finally realize you were now crying.

“don’t apologize to me. it’s gonna make me feel like shit”

“haechan let me finish” you sniffle, wiping away your tears as you get closer to him.

he looks down and you almost catch the way his eyes turned glossy and the way his lips quivered.

“i-i missed you so much. so fucking much” he looks up to the ceiling, barely whispering those words to you, making that ache nestled in the middle of your chest even worse, you could almost swear you heard yourself groan in pain.

you watch him look back at you again but this time it was completely different, different with the way he was biting his quivering lips, eyes all shiny with tears as he was obviously struggling to keep it all inside.

“then why did you never answer my texts. i mean i know they’re not that informative but you- you could’ve at least replied, or called, like i asked you to”

“i couldn’t” he says after clearing his throat, not making eye contact with you.

“what do you mean?”

“i- i just couldn’t. i was hurt and tired and before you say it, i know i had no right to be feeling that sort of way with the way i treated you but y/n- i- it fucking hurt”

“w-what hurt?”

he chuckled and it was harmless.

harmless to him but not to you because your knees got weaker when you saw his whole face twist and twitch, tears threatening to fall down.

he was not okay and not that you wanted to make everything about yourself, but you obviously played a part in the way his exhaustion was beyond visible on his face.

“i told you i love you. so many times i lost count. and you never replied. i think i would’ve rather you’d curse me and tell me to fuck off then completely ignore me and make me feel like my feelings didn’t amount to anything. y/n you had sex with me and told me it was over then completely dipped out of my life, not even sparing me a second chance or even a second glance. y/n i tried telling you i love you that night but y-”

“i love you. i love you haechan”

haechan looks at you, eyes wide and mouth agape. his round eyes were so wide open and fixed of you it almost looked like time froze.

“i lo-”

“not like this” he cuts you off.

“what”

“that’s pity not love”

you almost stumble back.

“haechan- oh my god no! i love you! i do i- okay this looks horrible but oh my god haechan i was dying during those few months. i know that i’ve been mean and cold to you at the end and i’m so sorry. i’m sorry but haechan i was scared. i was scared because i realized how much i love you and it didn’t make sense to my brain even though it made perfect sense to my heart. i almost felt bad for myself and told myself i’d never let it happen but god did i try and god did it feel like ass” you laugh taking a breath “it felt horrible to not have you in my life anymore”

he blinks away his tears and gets closer to you.

“i’ve been miserable y/n. doubting myself and my surroundings. i thought i’d never hear those words from you. this feels m- it feels unreal”

“it’s real”

haehcan gulps and stays silent for a few minutes, making you stir in anxiety.

“but y/n. do you think we could ever be in a normal relationship? because i don’t think so. nothing about this” he moves his index finger in the air separating you both “nothing about this is typical. i know you said you love me and i said i love you but would we ever overcome the circumstances?”

you blink like a confused toddler.

why was he saying this?

he sees the way you were looking at him and he steps even closer to you, taking your hands in his.

“i’m scared i’ll hurt you again. i’m scared you’ll ignore me again when you realize i’m not what you want. would you actually be willing to give me another chance y/n? to do this properly? take you on dates, actually get to know you, kiss you properly, ask you out, make love to you properly, would you?” you saw the way his dry lips were slightly shaking and the way the corner of his eyes turned glossy again.

you ponder and think for what seems like forever but haechan wasn’t bothered.

he was standing still, eyes, as usual, never leaving yours, as he patiently waits for your answer.

this was absolutely tormenting the both of you.

so you speak. anticlimactically.

“i don’t know” you respond out loud.

“what?”

“i don’t know haechan”

you truly didn’t know.

you didn’t know much about all of that.

but you knew one thing.

so you say it, again.

“all i know is that i love you. isn’t that enough?” you grip his hands tighter in yours.

haechan smiles at you sadly.

“when did we get so serious with eachother?”

that made you giggle through the tears and you now put your hands on his shoulders.

“i don’t know about that either”

“this is going in a totally different direction than i thought it would, not that i ever thought i’d see you again and talk to you like this ” he blows out an airy chuckle, gripping your hips “i feel dizzy and confused. it’s weird”

“nothing about us is usual. you’ve said it yourself haechan”

he nods and nods again when he sees you smile.

“i- i just feel happy to see you again. guess we’re meant to be academic rivals forever” he says in awe, looking at the high ceilings of this KWU hallway.

you snort, digging your nails in his shoulders.

“at least that’s clear about us. it’s like a sign”

“a sign?”

“a sign that no matter what, we’re meant to be close to each other someway somehow”

“and that’s enough for you to know if you’d like to try this out for real?”

“try out? the rivalry again or the relationship?”

he pulls you closer to him, face barely a few inches away from yours as he whispers in your ear.

“both? since we don’t know. maybe we should try and see where it takes us”

“you know you can’t resist me”

“then why didn’t you say it from the beginning. why say you don’t know” he whines loudly.

you laugh.

“i like to keep you on edge” you say, like old times.

“so you do know!” he giggles “you know! you know that you’ll give me another chance, even if there’s a possibility that it won’t work”

“i don’t know lee haechan. i just love you. so i’ll love you”

you feel him nod in the crook of your neck, pulling you impossibly closer as he hugs you, a sigh of content leaving the both of you in absolute sync, making you both giggle.

after a few silent moments, he pulls you away to finally look at you.

and then he finally says.

“okay…. and i’ll love you too y/n”

so that is what you do, for now.

i hate u? i love u? season one — THE END.

prev — m.list — epilogue

taglist: @bbykaixx @alwayswonbinning @weepingsweep @dudekiss3r @kukkurookkoo @hoeingthefuckup @gomdoleemyson @haeclips @luvvhaechan @hsified @heegyuwrld @lubunnii @firydst @daengiez @nahyuckers @httpsxnox @n0hyuck @hi00000234567 @scoobysnackszoo @minkyuncutie @yuthabitz @haechology @neogotmysam @sanniekook @kisseokiss @nqyzhuo @kooookie @lovenha7 @andassortedkpop @jising-jisang-jisung @markleesleftpinky @ourbeautifulaffair @dilflover44 @nctdreamchaser @leehaechie @nosungluv

a/n: oh my god it’s over….

i can’t believe i hate u i love u is done. there’s an epilogue still but the official chapters are over!!!!

i’ll leave my sincere and long thanks for the a/n of the epilogue but seriously thank you so much for tuning in. it’s been an absolute joy to write this and interact with you while you react to whatever i post. can’t believe we’ve been doing this for over a month!!!!

i wanna hear ALL your thoughts about this chapter and well the whole smau since it’s over (maybe you’ll have more things to say after the epilogue).

so please come to my replies and asks and talk to me, how was it? what did you like the most about the smau? feedback? questions? more backstory? ANYTHING!! just tell me cause i wanna hear your thoughts and everything you have to say.

i hope this ending was satiating enough for you. and that the last few texts didn’t leave you uneasy hehehe

again, tysm!!! i’ll be waiting for you guys in my asks. mwah and i love you.

[bitteriekitten]

yeehaw. (1/2)

synopsis — save a horse, ride a cowboy or whatever it is that they're saying out there in the wild west. OR the l&ds boys as cowboys. (1/2)

contents — fem!reader, fluff, terrible attempts at writing crack ??????, weak attempts at banter el oh el, reader has a dad who runs a ranch and she works at the ranch alongside the l&ds boys, vague descriptions of ranch life (all source material i have for the ranch lifestyle are all from the cowboy romances i've read. sry), farmhand!xavier, livestock veterinarian!zayne, (brief descriptions of) riding instructor!rafayel, sweaty stinky and shirtless l&ds cowboys, swearing, suggestive content and language, and probably so many more that i've overlooked. lmk if i missed anything !!!

featuring — xavier, zayne, & rafayel (separate fics)

notes — if infold comes out with a cowboy AU multibanner best believe i'm spending half of my life savings just to get all of them 😍 but fr, this was rly fun to make!! i've been referring to the cowboy romances that i read during my hiatus to write this, so i apologize if this isn't an exact replica of the cowboy lifestyle. u can catch sylus and caleb in part 2 <3 i had to separate them bc their AUs are different from what i cooked up for xav zayne and raf (hint: they're bull-riders eheheheh). feedback is most appreciated and if u have any more requests (or jus want to scream abt l&ds with me), you can drop them down in my ask box - no matter how unhinged or wholeseome they may be <3

check out my other stuff here ❤️‍🔥

you stumbled out of your room yawning, startled awake by multiple loud crashes down at the ranch, which was conveniently right outside your window. laughter sounded outside, followed right after by something being dropped and some colorful swearing. you vaguely remembered snoring through your father telling you that he had hired some extra hands, three or so men he’d met at a bar in town. so you couldn’t really be mad at them for being rowdy so early in the morning – they were cowboys. plus it was so early in the morning, you didn't have the energy yet to be pissed. “looks like the princess is finally awake.” your father called from the dining table. he quickly poured orange juice in an empty glass for you. “i don’t wanna hear anything about how fuckin’ loud they are down at the ranch. you should’ve been used to waking up early by now anyway.” “i wasn’t going to.” you said with an eye roll, but thanked him for the orange juice anyway. you then stepped outside, haphazardly putting on shoes to go around the back to see what the new help were doing.

Xavier stuck out like a sore thumb at the ranch, with his light hair and youthful face, but he was definitely still a sight for sore eyes out on the field. when he wasn't handling the livestock, he was moving around bales of hay and other heavy equipment, his biceps bulging and his jaw tense from the effort.

you'd spot him out on the field wearing nothing but grimy jeans, a white hat, a pair of boots, and a pair of leather gloves as he moved a new shipment of hay. it was why you were grateful for a window by your bed; you had full free access to ogle at anything and everything he did out there.

but it was also why you hated it. xavier somehow knew when you'd be watching him, like it was instinctual for him (or you were just staring too much that it bordered on creepiness). he'd catch your eye through the window just as he hauled another bale into the back of his truck, and smile when you'd quickly turn away in embarrassment.

he was a hit with the kids and the chickens, handling them their milk and feed in record time and effectively shutting them up for the next five hours. the horses were a different story with xavier, though. you often had to help him out with them, as they sometimes get a bit picky on who gets to feed and generally care for them.

you couldn't help but find it hilarious that both xavier and the horses flinch whenever they see and come into any kind of contact with each other. he's had a few extremely close calls with their back legs, but they eventually managed to warm up enough for xavier to finally begin sensitivity training for them.

speaking of sensitivity training, you were surprised to spot him outside your home about to knock on your door.

"xavier?" you called, opening the door for him before he could rap his fist on the wood.

"hey, y/n." xavier greeted you as he placed his hand over at the top of your doorframe, leaning over you with his entire height. you gulped at how he was basically towering over you, his shadow covering most of your figure.

"do you think i can borrow your dresses for the horses?" he asked, in the same tone he would use when he would ask for a basket of eggs.

you blanched, taken aback from his request as your flustered state immediately broke. "um. i don't think my dresses will fit the horses." you replied with an eyebrow raised.

"no, it's for me." xavier quickly reassured you, pointing to himself, but it did little to actually reassure you. "i'm starting to do sensitivity training on the new horses we're fostering, and i forgot to bring my usual stuff from my apartment." he said.

you scoffed at his ridiculousness, and how serious he was taking his ridiculousness. "uh... i don't think my dresses will fit you either." you replied, this time with a chuckle you couldn't hold back. your eyes flitted over his figure subconsciously, and he caught you in the act with a smirk.

"how would you know that, y/n?" he asked, tilting his head to the side, his hat tilting along with the movement.

your cheeks burned in embarrassment and you turned away from him, avoiding his eyes that were suddenly very interested in you. "what color did you want that dress, xavier?" you asked instead, walking to your bedroom with him following behind with a chuckle.

xavier in a bright yellow dress over his jeans that barely zipped up his back still managed to look good. he also decided to ditch his hat for one of your ribbon headbands, and also snatched up your father's old new year's glasses from 2006. you held back a laugh behind the palm of your hand as you watched him, wanting to keep it professional for his sake at least.

armed with a folding umbrella, xavier stood by one of the brown horses, who refused to make eye contact with him. he quickly tightened his grip around the rope holding the horse, then clicked open the umbrella, to which the horse flinched back and pulling xavier with him.

you couldn't hold back your laugh when xavier stumbled at the force of the horse's movements. he looked back at you with a grin of his own.

"enjoying yourself, y/n?" he asked.

"very much so," you replied, still laughing.

it continued on for several hours, with xavier getting up to anything just to startle the poor horse. there truly was no wrong way to go about desensitizing a horse - dropping things accidentally and mixing up words managed to work anyway.

by the end of the session, the horse still flinched at the slightest of sudden sounds and movement, but it was less violent now - that's a win in xavier's book. you retired back to your front porch with a book and a pitcher of iced tea after xavier's antics got boring by the 30-minute mark.

you snorted when the cowboy walked up your porch still in your dress and other accessories in hand. he had his hat on this time instead of your headband, which contrasted greatly against the yellow dress he still had on. the dress had dirt on the edges of the skirt and mud splatters over the torso, which also splattered over the side of his neck.

it was infuriating how he still managed to look so fucking good.

"you're doing the laundry for that one." you told him instead, laughing loudly as he approached you. he took your half-empty glass of iced tea and drank all of it in one go.

"i think i managed to zip this thing up completely after i crawled in between shane's legs." xavier said as he poured himself another glass.

you snorted, "why'd you give the horse a human name?"

xavier shrugged, "he looked like a shane."

you laughed again, and xavier smiled to himself as he finished drinking up his second glass of iced tea. he set down the glass back on its coaster and turned his back to you, "can you unzip me? i cant reach the zipper now that it's zipped all the way up."

you laughed as your hands reach up to undo the zipper. it only zipped up to his lower back, right below where his hard chest couldn't be squeezed into the fabric. but miraculously it managed to zip all the way up.

"never thought i'd be the one unzipping my dress from another person." you joked. xavier turned his head to you with a raised eyebrow and one corner of his lips upturned into a smirk.

"oh? did you want me to unzip your dress for you, then?" he teased as the zipper finally opened up enough for him to take his arms out of the dress's sleeves.

"i- xavier!" you exclaimed, face slowly heating up again like he did earlier in the day.

you stared at his glistening back as he stepped out of the dress through the skirt. xavier turned to face you this time, folding your dress neatly into one hand. his head tilted to the side and a deceivingly innocent smile appeared on his face as he held out his hand for you to take.

"come on. show me where you do your laundry." he said, back to his innocent antics like he didn't just give you a heart attack.

Zayne looked like he should be the last person working at a ranch. he showed up like he stumbled upon the wrong place at the wrong time, his eyes unsure and uneasy.

but then your father quickly steered him to the heavily pregnant goat inside the barn, whose leg was sprained after it got knocked over during the night. zayne quickly got to work to bandaging up the poor mom, managing to get its leg healed and working in no time.

you often just stood by the veterinarian in astonishment, just watching zayne work his magic onto the other livestock. he was probably the only rancher you've seen who never gets plucked at by the chickens, or be head-butted by the goats, or have the horses flinch away from his touch. you've had your fair share of veterinarians at the ranch, but they were never as young and efficient (and honestly, handsome) as he was.

when he wasn't out checking up on the livestock, zayne was moving around bales of hay and heavy equipment. you didn't know why you were surprised that a man as handsome and capable as zayne had a toned body of his own - walking around the ranch with just a oil-stained wife-beater, muddy jeans, and a pair of worn down boots.

zayne was quiet, kept to himself most of the time, and did his job quickly and orderly. he was practically every rancher's wet dream in terms of being responsible. you had to give it to him for being passionate about his work; it was clear as day that your father loved having him out at the field.

safe to say, you had grown a little fond of the stoic doctor, despite his apparent disinterest in you. he only ever spared you hums and nods of acknowledgement whenever you'd assist him, and preferred to reply to you in monosyllabic sentences.

it was hilarious to think that this was literally all you had to gain your silly crush on him - just assisting him whenever he needed it and being at arm's length from him.

still, it was enough for you to have your cheeks flushing whenever you saw him, or stand beside him as he worked. because at least you had something to look forward to when waking up for another grueling day at the field. you've long accepted that he will never realistically be interested in you at all, and that everything between the two of you was to be kept strictly professional.

but if you were being honest with yourself, a tiny bit of hope was still clinging onto the tendrils of your heart - that maybe, maybe he feels the same way as you do.

it was the little things he did; it might as well be a figment of your imagination with how seldom it happens. but you know that his eyes following you from across the barn means something, or that the way his hand guides you out of the way from a fussy horse isn't just a thing he does all the time. you know, deep down in your heart, there's something there.

however, each time it happens, as you lay down on your bed every night, staring up at your ceiling in the dark, you remind yourself once more - everything between the two of you was to be kept strictly professional.

but it was on a friday evening that you and zayne were alone out on the field. the little bonfire he made crackled and popped, mixing in with the sounds of the quiet night at the countryside. you walked out of the house with candied fruits and iced tea, a small reward for the hard work done for the day. zayne accepted the fruit enthusiastically - he seemed to have a sweet tooth.

"any plans for the weekend, dr. zayne?" you asked. zayne shook his head and sipped on his iced tea.

"no - i'd rather be here." he replied.

"ah..." you nodded, a little embarrassed at how quickly he shot down your attempt in small talk. "...well, me too. the bar down town's a little grungy, anyway." you said, a feeble crack at filling up the silence between the both of you.

zayne hummed and nodded, taking another sip of his drink. "i'd rather be here with you."

the hairs on the back of your neck stood up as you tried to process his words, his voice, his everything. you turned to him, unsure of what to say - what to do, "wh- what?"

zayne, to your horror, looked completely serious. what a bad time to remember that he rarely ever joked around, especially with you. "i like your company, y/n." he said, a hint of a smile on his lips. "i'd rather stay here in the quiet with you after a long day of work than to go anywhere else for the weekend."

your heartbeat quickening, you tried to think of something to say, something smart or witty to reply to his sudden confession. but you were helplessly blanking out. "o-oh. um... i wasn't expecting you to say that."

zayne cocked his head to the side, still keeping his gaze on you. "what did you expect me to say, y/n?"

you shrug with a singular shoulder, squirming helplessly underneath his gaze. "i dunno - that you're busy. or have to work overnight." literally anything else that doesn't make me hope that i have a chance for you.

"i managed to finish the day's work in record time, and i don't like working outside my work hours." zayne replied matter-of-factly, adjusting the watch on his wrist. "and that's because of your help. you help me maintain my work that i don't see the need to work overtime. at this rate, you must be sick of seeing me."

"what? no, i don't." you replied in shock.

"really?" zayne asked, his lips forming a wide smile this time. "you're by my side almost 24/7 down at the ranch at work. wouldn't you be appalled that i still want to spend my time with you after work?"

you scoffed in disbelief, frazzled by his sudden confessions coming at you from all sides. you avoid his eyes, still intently staring at you, burning holes into your skin at this point. "i'm more surprised that you want to see me all the time." you said softly.

"why, do you want to see me all the time?"

you hadn't noticed that zayne had moved to sit right beside you. you flinched at the warm shoulder that bumped against yours, rendering you breathless as you faced him, your eyes finally meeting his.

no words were exchanged. you hoped your your hammering heartbeat was enough of an answer for him. no words were actually exchanged, as you were too busy leaning in to kiss him while the bonfire slowly burned out into the starry night.

Rafayel liked to show up at the ranch early in the morning. while you were still busy catching up on sleep, he's already working on a few stuff around the barn. you were often not-so-rudely woken up by some drilling and hammering down at the ranch, and more often than not it was because rafayel saw something wrong with the equipment and thought that it needed some quick fixing.

it quickly became part of your routine to cuss him out through your window.

"can't you keep that shit down?! it's ass crack o'clock!" you yelled with your eyes still struggling to open all the way. rafayel paused from hammering at the fence he just fixed and turned to you with one eye closed and a delighted grin.

"sorry that i'm trying to fix the squeaking fence you were complaining about the other day, cutie!" he replied sarcastically, then proceeded to ignore your demands to continue hammering on the wood.

it went on like that as he got around the ranch. you'd complain about how loud he was being, and he'd have a witty quip for you already locked and loaded. you did your best to have as little interaction with him at the ranch as possible, but with how often your tasks coincided with his, it was almost impossible not to run into him.

he always had that exasperating, devastatingly handsome smile on his face whenever you cross paths at the ranch. with your eyes downcast, you always tried to pretend you hadn't even noticed him, doing something on your phone or checking if you'd stepped on something as he passed by you. you'd let out a sigh of relief as he just leaves without saying anything else to you, but you don't miss the cheeky laugh that trails after you.

"honestly cutie, you're like, my favorite co-worker." rafayel declared after hauling the trash out on the back. you scoffed at his words, appalled that he'd even say that out loud. "i'm the only lunatic who's crazy enough to work the same shifts as you." you replied.

"exactly. great minds think alike, no?" rafayel winked at you, lurching your heart to your throat in surprise.

"you're a dumbass."

your father quickly got rafayel to do horseback riding lessons for visitors and tourists at the ranch - he was young and had a boyish charm to him that hollywood liked to give cowboys in their movies. children loved the friendly cowboy with the winning smile, who has a steady hand over their backs and another on the horse's reins.

but he was especially a hit with the women, who bat their eyelashes at the cowboy and squirm in delight when he tells them to hold onto the reins tighter with a firm voice. either rafayel was clueless to their blatant flirting, or he just didn't care. the amount of filth these women had spewing out their mouths was honestly laughable.

and you don't blame them at all. rafayel was indeed gorgeous, despite how infuriating he was to talk to most of the time. but you don't go around telling that kind of information to anybody else; he'd have a field day if he finds out that his "favorite co-worker" thought he had pretty eyes and soft hair that she'd like to touch.

nothing ever really comes out of the flirting, though. unlike the average cowboy, rafayel didn't care much about attracting the most amount of admirers. he's always hard at work, like he's got something to prove. he fixes leaking pipes, screws and unscrews things, and can paint murals on the back of barns like nothing. he has his eyes set on something else, it seemed.

"cutie! wait up!"

just as you were about to climb up into your truck, rafayel caught up with you. he was sweating all over, his clothes stained with oil and mud, and a part of his cheek covered in streaks of mud. he furiously wiped away the dirt on his face with a damp towel as he approached you. despite all the grime that covered him, he still managed to smell like expensive perfume.

"you stink, rafayel." you said despite that, moving away from him. rafayel gave you a little shrug and swept a hand through his hair, slicking it back with his sweat.

"some twin boys almost fell off a horse. somebody had to hold them away from the mud." he replied. he pointed to your truck with his thumb, grinning widely. "can i drive us to dinner?"

you raised an eyebrow at him, suspicious of his motives, to which he pouted and pulled out his ridiculous puppy-dog face at you. "please, y/n? i want that steak you told me to get last time i went with your dad." he pleaded.

"you want to go get steak without your boss?" you asked with a humorless laugh, turning away from him to open the door the driver's seat. "you asking me out on a date, rafayel?"

"duh." rafayel said, leaning on your truck with one arm against the side. he held out on hand and began listing down things with his fingers, "i'll pay for our meal, i'll be the best gentleman, and i'll take you home back home before 10. promise!"

you blanched at his insistence - you were truly only joking with him about the date, but whatever he's offering sounded really good. this was one of the many times he's tried to take you out somewhere, and you've only ever brushed him off every time he did so.

you glanced at rafayel's face, whose smile grew wider the more the silence stretched on. he leaned in closer, giving you a closer look at his handsome smile. you felt your resolve slowly crack away; you truly couldn't stand this cowboy...

"if you stop touching my radio, we'll get steak." you deadpanned.

"i'll skip only one song, cutie. just one, then i'll never judge your music taste again." rafayel bargained with his hands clasping together. you rolled your eyes at his ridiculousness, then tilted your head to your truck, signaling him to get in.

rafayel cheered as he quickly climbed up the driver's seat. you walked around to get to the front seat, shivering at the cold air gusting from the air-conditioning. rafayel slumped back into his seat, relieved to be away from the heat of the afternoon sun.

"your truck's soooo nice, y/n." he groaned in satisfaction, "you've got functioning air-conditioning, soft cushions, little to no scratches on the truck. you're a wonderful driver."

you snorted as you grabbed your box of CDs, looking through your selection. "if you actually know how to take care of your truck, you wouldn't be complimenting it like this." you said.

"but how else am i going to have a chance to be this close to you, cutie?" rafayel teased, sitting up straight this time and turning the truck on. dumbstruck at his response, you turned to him with your mouth agape. "are you dumb?" you asked.

rafayel shook his head. "nope, just think you're pretty."

you choked on a gasp. "rafayel!"

he laughed out loud as he put the truck in drive. "what?" he asked, pretending to look innocent.

you scoffed, "you're ridiculous."

"you like it."

you didn't respond, afraid that you'll say that you do.

taglist 𓂃۶ৎ jus tagging random users <3 hope u enjoy!!!

@berrryparfait @lioria @babypetri @hyunlixwife @zuhaeri @c9tnoos @sylusbigapples @dollyswishingwell @sixeyedgodswife @celestialforce @syxlx @dana-nite @lacejinnie @thearynn @feralkuromi @destinysrequiem @thesrtuggleisveryreal @orange-stars @mocha-the-muse @usertala @kpop-and-otome @serendididy @zephilyr @ywnzn @a-jynx @elitheidiot1 @almondtofuus @goldenroses @esspeon @froleineeeee

[ihni]

What if Billy didn't get the job at the pool, but still needed to earn money over the summer? So he takes every odd job that people ask of him, as long as they can pay.

And unfortunately for Steve, his mother both wants the house repainted AND can pay, so she hires Billy to do it.

It's a pretty big house, but Billy assures her that he can do it alone, as well as buy the paint and tools needed as long as she picks a shade she likes.

And then of course Steve's parents fuck off to some tropical island or something, and leaves Steve to deal with Billy.

And deal with him, Steve does. Because despite how Billy assured Steve's mom that it wasn't going to be a problem, he still finds any and all reasons to bother Steve about every little thing. Where do they keep their ladder? Do they have a bucket? Where can he fill it with water, and is there a bathroom with a sink he can use to wash the tools?

One would think that Steve would be able to avoid him, as Steve has landed his own summer job at the new mall, but oh no. Billy is a morning person. Steve finds this out on the second day, when he is awoken by some terrible noise and almost falls out of his bed in fright, and looks out the window only to see Billy's grinning face right outside his second story window. The noise comes again, and Steve fumbles to get the window open to ask what the fuck Billy is doing?? And Billy just smiled and holds up a paint scraper. "Yesterday was washing the facade. Today I start scraping off all the old paint."

Which Steve is pretty sure is a made-up step of the process designed to annoy him, specifically, but whatever.

It takes a long time. Steve thought the whole thing would take a couple of days, tops, but boy was he mistaken. "Your mom is paying for this to be done PROPERLY", Billy says. Which apparently includes washing, then scraping, then one coat of some kind of oil, one coat of a white paint, and two coats of the shade Steve's mom picked. And even though Billy is actually quite handy and (Steve hates to admit it) pretty fast, it is a big house. Steve starts to despair, thinking he'll never get rid of him. The guy is there when he leaves for work, and he's often there when Steve gets home, too. And that's not even mentioning the times when Steve has a day off.

The thing is, though, that even though Steve wants to keep being annoyed, it's difficult to keep it up. Because although Billy loves to annoy him, he actually keeps their interactions short before going back to work. And while Steve adamantly refuses to help in any way (there was nothing wrong with the previous shade on the house, and also he's not getting paid!), he finds himself watching Billy work more often than not.

He watches him climb up and down the ladder, refilling the bucket; he watches him work the brush up and down and from side to side with confident strokes (and it's frankly unfair the way his biceps look when he's doing that), and he watches him get more and more tanned as the days go by.

Even while wearing a paint-stained simple T-shirt (which started off white) and a pair of cut-off jeans, even after shoving a goddamn cap on his hair to protect it against the sun or the paint or whatever, Billy looks good. Hell, even with paint smears on his face and hands and arms, and droplets of gray on his clothes and legs, he looks goddamn good.

It is so unfair.

Billy brought a Walkman with him one day, and is often found with the headphones covering his ears while he works. Which on the one hand is bad, because he'll hum whatever song he's listening to, off-key, which is annoying when Steve is home ... But on the other hand it's also good, because it means that Billy doesn't notice whenever Steve creeps up on him just to ... watch him.

One Wednesday when Steve is off work, it starts to rain. Steve doesn't think of it at first, because he's inside; he doesn't notice until ten minutes later when he hears a clang from the garage, and runs to check.

He finds Billy there, busy shoving things into the open garage to get them out of the rain - the buckets of paint have already been closed and carried inside, the brushes are wrapped in plastic, and the clang was probably the ladder that Billy has dragged inside and deposited on the concrete floor.

"Sorry," he says when he sees Steve there. "That rain came out of nowhere, I may have to redo the part I was working on today." He stands in the open doorway to the garage and looks out at the rain, making no move to walk inside where it's warm and dry (and why should he? Steve made it clear on day one that while Billy was hired to paint the outside of the house, he was NOT allowed inside under any circumstances - he could use the sink in the garage, thank you very much).

Steve is barely listening, because Billy is drenched from head to toe. The shorts have gone dark with water and the T-shirt is clinging to him like a second (slightly see-through) skin. Steve's mouth is dry.

"It doesn't look like it'll stop any time soon", Steve says, haltingly.

Billy glances at him from where he's standing, arms crossed over his chest, prickles on his wet arms. "Don't worry, your mom doesn't pay me by the hour."

Fuck it. Fuck it all to hell.

"No, I mean," Steve starts, and knows he's going to regret this. "You can come inside and wait, if you want. I can get you a ... towel."

This time, Billy turns his entire body to Steve. His hands fall down to his sides, and - Steve can see his nipples through the fabric. Billy's face splits in a slow grin when he sees where Steve is looking.

"And some dry clothes!" Steve hurries to add. "To borrow."

Billy keeps grinning, like he's figured something out. "You're too kind." He motions to the door that Steve came from, that leads into the house. Because Steve just invited Billy Hargrove into his house. "After you."

Steve is so fucked.