#so it was just the two of us taking orders taking payments making food and serving orders

[elibeeline]

whos brilliant idea was it to schedule ONE opener on a goddamn Saturday.

[holylulusworld]

Stuck in the middle (2)

Summary: Your best friend and his husband got this.

Pairing: Stucky x fem!Reader, former ??? x fem!Reader

Warnings: angst, abandonment, relationship problems, hurt & comfort, bisexual Stucky, hinted grey/dark Stucky

Catch up here: Stuck in the middle (1)

Stuck in the middle masterlist

As promised, Steve and Bucky took good care of you. After enjoying a warm bath with you in the huge, luxurious bathtub, they wrapped you in a soft, fluffy towel.

You didn’t have to wear one of Steve’s old shirts. Bucky made one call, and not twenty minutes later, Chatrice, the owner of one of the most expensive boutiques, stood in front of their door, delivering the clothes the brunette ordered.

“I hope you’ll like it.” She was kind enough to show you every piece of clothing and helped you try on a few dresses before you settled for a comfortable pajama. “Just enjoy.” She whispered. “Mr. Barnes is a very nice man, but he never put so much effort into making someone happy.”

“Oh,” you didn’t know how to react. Did she genuinely mean it, or was this merely a tactic to sell more clothes to Bucky?

“I know he’s happily married, but believe me, you must mean a lot to them if they ask me to come here at that time of the day, offering a chauffeur to drive me. These two are a keeper.”

You were stunned at her words. Why would Bucky put so much effort into making his husband’s best friend happy?

“All done?” Steve asked, poking his head into the guest room they prepared for you. “Does she like the clothes?”

“We found something she likes,” Chatrice answered honestly. You chose a few clothes, nothing too fancy. That’s not your style. “If you need anything else, give me a call.”

She talked about the payment and more orders with Bucky as you nervously shifted on your feet. “How about we choose the food while Bucky handles this?” Steve was quick to distract you. He always knew when you were closing yourself off. “What do you want to eat tonight?”

“Why are you doing all this for me?” You murmured, ashamed you let your boyfriend ruin your friendship with Steve. “I mistreated you for another man.”

He shook his head. “Baby doll, you did nothing wrong. He gaslighted you and made you believe I’m a bad friend. If the one you love threatens to break up with you, you’ll do anything to keep them.”

“Still, I’m sorry.” You grabbed his hand, squeezing it. “You were my best friend and didn’t deserve how I treated you.”

“We will forget about this,” Steve said, and cupped your face. He smiled and pressed a soft kiss on your forehead. “If you allow Buck and me to help you and take care of you, all is forgiven.”

“I don’t know what to do now,” you sniffled. “I  have everything I own at his house, and all of my money is… I gave it to him to pay for the roof and such.”

“We will get all your belongings first thing in the morning,” Bucky casually said, as if your boyfriend would let you back inside his house. “Don’t worry, Y/N. I have my way with words to make people…compliant.”

Bucky smirked darkly for a second before walking off to make a few calls. You shuddered for a second but brushed your gut feeling off. Steve and Bucky were your haven in this time of need.

“She’s finally asleep,” Steve whispered as he watched you sleep on one of the monitors hanging on one of the walls at their office. “We need to get her things and make sure that piece of shit stays away from her.”

“Hmm…” Bucky nodded thoughtfully. He looked at the monitor, already planning their next steps. “We have her here, at our home. She’ll need us, Steve. What he did is unforgivable. How can he choose that woman over our doll?”

“He was always a bitchy boy,” Steve huffed and crossed his arms over his chest. “He manipulates and schemes to get what he wants.”

“In other words, an utter asshole,” Bucky concluded. “We will do whatever it takes to keep her, right?”

“Right,” Steve confirmed. “He never deserved her. All this time, he was lusting over that woman while having Y/N in his life.”

“Do you want me to break his face?” Bucky dipped his head, his smirk deepening. “You know, I get all hot and bothered after punching some asshole’s face.”

“Buck,” Steve purred his husband’s name, already grasping for him. His hands ended up in Bucky’s hair, and his lips hungrily claimed Bucky’s. He moaned into his mouth. “How about we lead this to the bedroom? She’s asleep…”

“Lead the way, sexy man…”

Morning came much too soon. You weren’t prepared to see your boyfriend, or now ex-boyfriend, again. He hurt you so deeply by siding with Penelope that there is no coming back from this.

“Morning, beautiful,” Bucky cooed and plopped down on the sofa next to you. He was wearing nothing but a pair of boxers and a smirk. His hair looked like someone was having a blast messing it up last night. “How do you feel? Are you ready to rip that asshole a new one?”

You took a deep breath and shook your head. “Not really. I don’t know what to say or how to act when I see him today.”

“Let Stevie and me handle this.” Bucky wrapped one arm around your shoulders and softly whispered your name. “You can make a list and stay here if you want to.”

You leaned in his embrace, enjoying the little comfort Bucky offered. You knew it was all because his husband was your best friend. Still, you didn’t take his kindness for granted.

“I’d like to come with you,” you sleepily murmured. “I must face him before I can even think of moving on, one day.”

“We will be with you the whole time, Y/N.” Steve looked at his husband, having one of their silent conversations. “If he only breathes wrong, he’ll need new teeth.”

Steve was never openly violent around you, and you wondered if he’d hurt your boyfriend for you.

Steve wouldn’t let you leave the house without breakfast. He made you your favorite pancakes while his husband brewed tea and coffee for the three of you.

You chatted with them and ate, feeling relaxed for the first time since Penelope came back into the picture.

Bucky wanted to leave earlier to strike fast and hard. – His words, not yours.

“Ah, she's finally crawling back home,” Penelope snapped at you the moment you wanted to unlock the door. She ripped the door open to belittle you once again.

“A good morning to you too,” you replied, feeling the anger resurface. “I came here for my belongings. If you’d step out of my way, I’ll be quick to leave you and your slutty cunt to your conspiracy to get my boyfriend.”

“Bitch!” She snapped at you, but you only laughed. Because this time, you weren’t alone. “What? Who are you?” She hissed as Bucky and Steve stood next to you.

“Oh, these are my friends. They are here to help me.” You shoved her aside, entering your former home to get everything packed. “Get out of my way, and you can have him all for yourself. I’m done here.”

Steve and Bucky silently followed you inside. “Here, put a sticker on everything belonging to you. Our moving team will pack it up.” Steve handed you the stickers, little kittens playing with yarn.

You giggled when you looked at the stickers. “Okay…thank you.”

Things went smoothly. You put stickers on everything you owned and wanted to take with you. One angry look from Bucky kept Penelope away, and the moving team was able to carry everything out of the house before noon.

One last time, you looked around the house that was your home until yesterday, but somehow, you didn’t feel sad anymore.

A new feeling took the sadness's place. Hope? Freedom? No, it was relief. It felt like a heavy weight lifted off your chest when you realized you didn’t have to endure Penelope’s cruelty any longer.

“All done?” Steve asked. He placed his hand on your shoulder. “Do you want to have a look around again?”

“No…” You looked at the mug in your hand, the one you bought for your boyfriend for Valentine’s Day. You snorted and threw it against the wall. “Best boyfriend, my ass!”

“You go, girl!” Bucky cheered while his husband watched you with amusement. “Do you want to destroy more?”

“No.” You confidently said, looking at Bucky. “I’m done here for good.” Crouching down, you grabbed your cat. “Sorry for leaving you alone last night.”

Steve offered his hand to you, smiling as you took it without hesitation. “Good. Let’s head out then.”

“Alright, let’s have lunch,” Bucky added, and followed you outside the house. He looked at the cat in your arms. “That's your cat?”

“Uh—I brought her home a few days ago. She’s from a shelter, and…uh…he wasn’t too happy.” You sniffed. “If you don’t like cats, I can ask a friend to take her for the time being. I’ll look up apartments next thing today.”

“No…” Both said in unison. “There’s no hurry, and we like cats. Let’s bring you both home.”

“What’s their name?” Bucky took the white cat out of your hands. “That’s a pretty cat.”

“Alpine.”

“Well, hello there, Alpine. You and your mommy are our best girls from now on…”

Part 3

[guksfairy]

melonpan | JJK

SERIES MASTERLIST | MAIN MASTERLIST | PLAYLIST

☆: in which everyone seems to have their eyes on you and Jungkook

wc: 1.3k

notes: fluff, barista hits on jk... :), unbothered y/n <3

enjoy ! <3

“We could go to that new cafe that just opened up?” You suggest. Jungkook’s eyes are on the road, his left hand on the steering wheel, and his right on your thigh.

You had both planned to spend the day together as neither you nor Jungkook had any classes and there was a gentle breeze of cold. The sky was filled with clouds daring to rain or snow. It was weather you didn’t mind much. In fact, you welcomed it. It made you want to lay in bed wrapped around blankets with Jungkook watching a movie.

There was only a problem. Neither one of you had anything planned for the day. You both just knew you wanted to spend the day with one another.

“Sure, didn’t they open it last month?”

“Yeah but I was waiting for it to die down a bit so it’s not too crowded when you and I go,” you say and when he stops at a red light he hands you his phone to put the directions.

Perhaps you didn’t wait long enough. The cafe was still somewhat crowded with only a table or two available for customers.

Your arm was wrapped around Jungkook’s as you take notice of the space and area. They had already placed a couple Christmas decorations here and there. Finally, your eyes land on the pastries displayed near the front counter.

Gasping you tap Jungkook’s shoulder as you wait in line for your turn, “Koo look they have melonpan!” You say pointing to a pastry you loved.

You had first tasted it a couple years back when you, Jimin, Eunwoo, and Areum had visited Japan for your high school graduation trip. Remembering how delicious it tasted then, you wondered if it would still be just as good.

“If you want I can place our order and you just worry about securing us a table,” Jungkook suggests and you nod thinking it’s for the best. Realizing that there was now only one table open.

“Okay I’ll be over at that one,” you point to the empty table next to the window and he nods, taking your hand and giving it a kiss before you walk away to the table.

After two others in front of Jungkook had placed their order, it’s finally his turn.

“Hi-oh,” the barista seems to be taken back but Jungkook gives it no thought as she tries her rehearsed introduction again, “Sorry-my name is Jieun. Can I get your name for this order?” Jungkook replies with his name and she continues, “What can I get for you today?” with giggles sprinkled throughout the sentence Jungkook, again, gives it no thought and orders what you wanted along with his order.

“Can I also get a melonpan-the pink rabbit shaped one,” he points to the pastry knowing you’d love that one, “Of course. Anything else?” and Jungkook shakes his head no.

“Your total is ₩7,000,” that is what gets Jungkook’s attention.

“Woah this cafe’s prices are cheap,” he says and looks down at the card reader ready to scan his phone for payment.

“Well the total is ₩14,200 but I thought I’d give you half and some off. On the house,” Jungkook looks up at her. Her face is flushed and she’s smiling as wide as she can, she takes a strand of her hair and places it behind her ear.

“Excuse me?”

“I just thought you were cute and I’d pay for your food. Sort of shooting my shot here,” she giggles and covers her mouth in shyness.

Jungkook looks in your direction, the light from outside is hitting you so pretty you look like an angel, but your focused on your phone that’s on its side. He assumes you’re playing that game where you care for cats or something. He doesn’t remember the details of your game but he knows you put his name down as your significant other in it.

“Just because you’re cute doesn’t mean I’ll let you hold up the line,” the voice takes him out of his train of thought and he’s back at staring at the girl in front of him.

“Can I just pay for the full amount?”

“You don’t want my discount?”

“I just think it would make my gorgeous girlfriend uncomfortable,” Jungkook’s finger points to you, your eyebrows furrowed in concentration at your game and he can’t help but smile.

“Girlfriend?”

“Can I pay?”

The girl doesn’t say anything else as she removes the discount from his order and allows him to pay for everything. She avoids speaking and eye contact as the transaction is approved and his receipt comes out of the register.

“Next!” she yells and looks right behind him.

Jungkook laughs to himself as he walks towards you and pulls out the chair in front of you.

“You won’t believe what happened,”

“The barista hit on you?” you say and turn your phone off giving him your full attention.

Did you hear the conversation? Regardless, you didn’t look upset nor jealous, in fact you had a smirk on your face and a slight wiggle to your eyebrows, teasing him.

He couldn’t help but laugh at your actions.

“Yes actually,”

“I was just guessing but I wouldn’t have doubted it. Look at you,” you lean forward and cup his face, gently rubbing his cheeks with you thumb. Jungkook’s heart melted on the spot.

You didn’t notice the way the barista at the front counter rolled her eyes when she turned to look for Jungkook and saw you cupping his face.

“She offered me half off on my total but I denied it,” he says and you gasp.

“We could have gotten half off?”

“Y/N~,” he says and you giggle when you see his semi-serious expression.

“I’m kidding my love,” you kiss his nose and lean back into your chair.

“What’d she say when you told her you had a super cute hot girlfriend?” you playfully ask and his arm goes across the table to hold your hand in his.

“Nothing. She sort of stayed quiet and didn’t even look at me anymore,” Jungkook recalls and you let out a small laugh.

Serves her right for trying to get with your man.

After about 5 minutes of you showing Jungkook your 12 cats and how you named them all, your order was finally called.

“For Jungkook!”

“I’ll be right back,” Jungkook gets up from his seat and you watch as he walks to the side counter where your yummy bread and warm beverages were sitting.

“Would you like any straws or stirring sticks?” the male barista asks and Jungkook shakes his head no.

“By the way man, your friend is really pretty. Is she seeing anyone?” the guy says looking directly at you. Your starring back, at Jungkook, with a smile.

“Yeah. Me,” this time Jungkook wasn’t trying to be polite. He stared at the guy with intensity as his smile faded and he apologized to Jungkook.

Jungkook grabs your drinks and the little paper bag holding your pastry before rolling his eyes and turning to walk back to you.

He doesn’t hesitate in his actions.

He sets the three items down on the table and takes the seat next to you this time.

He grabs you gently by your chin and kisses you. You don’t mind it. Considering that the girl was still starring at Jungkook when he was talking with the guy up front, you more than welcomed his public display affection.

As he pulls away he makes sure to kiss your nose before properly sitting and displaying your food and beverage in front of you.

“Everything okay?” you giggle.

“I just think I need to let everybody in this goddamn cafe know that we’re together,” he replies and you laugh before tearing off a piece of your melonpan and feeding it to him.

[cloverrwritess]

Title: Number One Fanboy | Part One

Spencer Agnew x Kpop Idol! Fem! Reader

Request: Yes | No

authors note: I can finally get into the requests! I have a month off to visit my home town so I have time to write fics ♡ job was kicking my ass 🥲

Words in italics font are supposed to be in korean! I do know a bit (had to learn for my job) but not enough to be fluent, translating takes a lot of time so I’m using Italics to make it easier for me 🤧

☆☆☆

After days since the finalization of a certain meeting with your management, you were able to go to LA and start your new series ‘[Name] in LA’, a series where you navigate the area by yourself and experience the so-called ‘LA lifestyle’.

You landed around one in the morning to avoid paparazzi and fans, your place to stay for the month was a Suite in one of the expensive hotels in the area that only celebrities can get access to, a private driver that was one call away, as well as a tiny, rotating camera.

Flying from Korea to LA was no joke, hours of just sitting down and sitting, limiting what you can do inside a plane is exhausting.

☆☆☆

You turned on your camera and started filming.

"Welcome to the first episode of [name] in LA, it's actually so late right now around two am and I need to wake up early to film. Before I go to bed, I'm doing my skincare"

You started washing your face and applied skincare, sometimes giving out the benefits of using certain products. You grabbed the camera and placed it on your nightstand, making sure you were in frame.

"Before sleeping I do like to check my schedule to see if everything is in order, it keeps me from overthinking"

Checking your phone to see if nothing was changed and did a little pep talk on why you should never stay up late at night even though that’s what you’re doing currently.

“My eyes are getting droopy, I need to sleep before it’s 5am, goodnight everyone, see you tomorrow or is it good morning? i'll see you later” You chuckled, turning the camera off and getting comfy before finally closing your eyes.

☆☆☆

You adjust your mask and hat before speaking to the camera.

"Good morning! It's now the next day and my first stop is a trendy cafe I saw online, the pastries and coffee looked so good, let's go"

You were looking at your phone to see if you’re going in the right direction. Still holding the mini camera, doing some small talk to make sure you’re not filming a boring clip that might get cut.

Seeing the sign and name of the cafe, you felt relieved. "Hopefully the food is yummy” You opened the door and got hit by the smell of freshly brewed coffee and the sweet smell of bread, you got in line and looked at the menu from above. Struggling to choose between caramel or vanilla iced coffee. "This is difficult"

Then a voice spoke up behind you.

"If I were you, I would buy the caramel iced coffee." You looked at the direction of the voice, a man with curly hair and wired glasses.

"You looked like you were struggling to decide on what to order”

Immediately turning off the camera and hiding it inside your purse, you replied.

"Yes, I was having trouble"

I've never been good at striking up a conversation with strangers without getting recognized or having people approach me to take pictures. "Are you new to this place? I've been here for years and I don't recognize you"

"Yeah, I’m here for work so I’m just exploring the area" You lied, technically you are here for work, but not in a way other people would understand.

"LA is a big city, and you'll wind up walking in circles at the end of the day” He joked.

Noticing it was your turn in line, You ordered a pastry with coffee, you took your wallet out of your bag to make the payment. "Your total is $11.50" Suddenly the man you were speaking to handed his card to the cashier "I'll pay for her order and get a caramel iced coffee as well"

He looked at me and grinned—my goodness, he had the cutest smile I've ever seen. "You didn't have to do that, umm" Realizing you never asked for his name.

"My name is Spencer" He said

"Want to take a seat together? If you're uncomfortable or simply want to be by yourself, I can leave you alone, No hard feelings" he said.

I didn't have my security with me, so I knew it was a bad idea to sit with a complete stranger, but this is the first time I've felt normal (as in with no cameras in front of me, flashing lights, and no screaming my name)in a long time. It's exhausting to walk around with bodyguards; I haven't experienced this in years. Spencer doesn't give me any creep vibes.

"I'll pick a good spot."

☆☆☆

I chose a window seat that was somewhat out of sight of the large window. I couldn't pass a nice seat with good lighting, even though I knew this place was a bad spot, paranoid being caught by crazy fans

"You weren't kidding when you said you'd pick a good spot, this seat is usually occupied around this time" He said and set our food and drinks on the table.

"Just telling you know, my lunch ends in like 20 minutes so we have 20 minutes to chat" He sat down in front of me and took a sip of his coffee.

"Is your workplace close by?"

"Yeah, this coffee shop is only a few blocks away from where I work, I work as the director and editor for this YouTube channel"

"Really? That's so cool" Not only was he cute, he was also a media nerd.

"The channel is called Smosh, and I occasionally appear on camera as a cast member” he chuckled, adding "I do kind of the weirdest things on camera for people to see”

"How about you? My heart fell out of my chest. I can't just say, ‘I'm an Idol from Korea’ out in the open Although he doesn't appear to be a K-pop fan, looks can be deceiving these days.

He was waiting for me to respond "Well, I work in the entertainment industry" I replied fast.

"Private, got it, don't worry, I'm not going to ask more questions" He assured me.

Who knew that meeting a guy at a coffee shop would turn out to be the funniest guy I've ever met? We chatted for a while and laughed at jokes. Spencer checked his watch, he saw that it was well past his lunch break. He got up and straightened his clothes. "Shit, I have to direct a video and I'm thirty minutes late”

"It was nice meeting you—"

"[Name] is my name." I grinned at him.

"Hopefully, You and I will cross paths again" Before I knew it, I was the only person at the table. I moved Spencer's cup out of the way so it wouldn't be visible on camera as I recorded a clip of me at the coffee shop, acting as if I just had a snack by myself. I adjusted my hat and put on my face mask.

"It's time to make my day productive”

☆☆☆

Spencer ran toward the Smosh games set looking unkempt.

"What took you so long?" Angela questioned, dramatically motioning with her hands.

"We were going to go hire a search party for you." Amanda joked.

"Sorry, I just lost track of time," I lied, I knew they would make fun of me for weeks if they found out the real reason why I was late.

Watching Spencer intently, Shayne interrupted both Amanda and Angela "Come on, let him sit down and film the video."

After filming a new Bored AF video, Shayne decided to confront Spencer.

"Spence, are you alright? Shayne jokes, "You look like you're constipated throughout directing the video" but his voice was laced with concern.

"I think I just met the love of my life" The confession caused Shayne's eyes to widen a little. "You met them at the coffee shop you always go to?”

I ruffled my hair out of nervousness and said, "Yeah man, She said she is new here in LA, and I'm telling you, she's fucking gorgeous"

"Whoa, I've never heard someone speak like that before”

"I know it's really cheesy, but I'm not kidding—her appearance made her look like an idol or even a celebrity"

Thinking, Shayne rubbed his chin. "You say a celebrity? What's her name? He said, "We can look her up"

"What? Dude, I don't want to Google her and pry into her life; that's creep behavior" I remembered her expression when I asked about her work. It seemed confidential, and I didn't want to break her trust that fast.

"Yeah you're right, what I said just now was a stupid idea"

"Just keep this a secret from everyone, especially Courtney” To show that he was going to keep this a secret, Shayne drew an "X" on his chest and zipped his mouth for dramatic effects.

☆☆☆

note: 🫣

[nakahras]

᯽ mr. loverman • chuuya nakahara

synopsis • you have a terrible, horrible, no good very bad day and to top it off you can’t even go to the one person you’d want to since he’s out of town. or, at least, you thought so.

warnings • intentional lower case, reader has a nightmare of a roommate, cursing, the use of the pet names doll/baby, chuuya being the gossip he is, fem!reader, nsfw, oral (m -> f), nipple/breast play, some nasty shit is said, masturbation (m), fingering, teasing, slight overstim, idk this is some depraved shit honestly

wc • 4k

a/n • i started this when i was having the worst day ever and just wanted boyfriend chuuya :( i cannot be blamed for the smut idk who wrote that but it wasn’t me

you want to scream — to be more accurate you want to off someone, yourself or someone else, either would suffice. unfortunately you stick to screaming, it would cause you less issues. you lift one of the many pillows on your bed and promptly screech your throat raw into the expensive pillow. your head feels as though it’s going to explode just thinking about how your day has gone.

you thought february 29th was supposed to be a lucky day? an extra day in a leap year meant luck, didn’t it? well in your case it didn’t feel very lucky. not at all, actually. in fact you were sure today was a curse. you woke up late, so, your day was off to a bad start from the beginning. your roommate forgot to pay the electricity bill, again, so you had to take a cold shower and couldn’t even make coffee. you stopped at your favorite coffee shop and not only did they get your order wrong but someone bumped into you on your rush to the train station. there was coffee everywhere. every. where.

thanks to the coffee spill you missed your morning train. which normally wouldn’t be a huge deal, except for the fact that you had an early staff meeting. you try to text your coworker that you were running behind but because your roommate forgot to put the payment in for electricity, your phone didn’t charge and died. you don’t even get your message out. you wanted to cry. luckily the train was early and you made it to work just in time.

you thought maybe you had seen the worst of it. your karma surely couldn’t be that bad, right?

wrong.

you work as a nurse in cardiology. you had not one, not two, but three people code on you. it always came in threes. three emergency services calls. three rounds of performing cpr. three separate incident reports to type out. you were exhausted by the end of the day.

you almost cried again when your favorite coworker offers you a ride home. he was a saint in disguise and you told him so. a literal gift from heaven. you promise him a homemade lunch in return and he waves you off as you climb out of the car. when you get to your apartment you’re pleasantly surprised to see your roommate cleaning. a rare occasion.

the electricity is back on too so you take the opportunity to enjoy a relaxing bath and some wine. you thought, once again, maybe the worst was over.

wrong. again.

when you got out of the bathroom you thought you vaguely heard chatter but chalked it up to a show your roommate was probably watching. you change into a t-shirt, skipping a bra because it’s just you and your roommate at home, and a pair of sleeping shorts that barely cover anything. when you walk out with your headphones on you’re stunned to see 3 strangers in your home.

your roommate looks at you like you’re the crazy one. like she isn’t the one that didn’t warn you about the company. you double check then triple check your phone. nope, not a single text for warning. you awkwardly wave and consider digging a hole and living in it when she introduces one of the strangers as her new boyfriend. in that moment you want to perish, cease from existing altogether.

you don’t even get a chance to grab your food before you’re making a half assed excuse to step away and run back to your room.

you’re now laying on your bed, letting tears of frustration stream down your face. you can’t even call the one person who would make it all better. your boyfriend was away for a business trip. you didn’t want to accidentally interrupt something important. you knew he would drop everything

your boyfriend also has this freaky 6th sense, like he can always tell when you’re thinking of him. so, you’re not surprised when your phone begins to ring and you’re met with his contact photo. you let out a sigh and pick up.

“chuuya…” you breathe out. you sound terrible, you know you do, but you can’t bring yourself to even care to mask it.

you can hear vague rustling in the background before chuuya is speaking. “you don’t sound okay. what’s wrong?”

you start crying again. how does he do that? he always seems to know when you need him most. right now was definitely one of those times. you wish he could actually be there. you missed his warm and safe embrace.

“i’m not. i had a really shitty day and i feel so ridiculous about how much it’s getting to me…” you let out a humorless laugh at how pathetic you feel saying that out loud. you’re throwing a fit over a bad day. who does that?

and all you wanted was for chuuya to be here. but you couldn’t tell him that, if you did he would dismiss everything and come running. then you would feel bad about coming between him and his work. you let out a frustrated sigh.

you can practically hear the frown on chuuya’s face when he speaks. “you wanna tell me ‘bout it? i’ll listen. or is there something else i can do to make you feel better?”

you don’t deserve him. you think to yourself.

moments like this make you really think about how chuuya deserves way more than what you can give him. you go days at a time without talking to him because of school and work. you lock yourself in your room and ignore the world outside just to keep up with your school work. you know it’s unfair to chuuya even if you always do give him a warning. he is always incredibly understanding over it that you almost cry out of guilt. he even brings you meals and hydration packs to make sure you’re taking care of yourself.

things like this remind you just how selfish you can be when it comes to him. all you want is him. but are you allowed to even feel like that when he’s away for work — a good reason by the way, much better than your own. he never complains when you need space so why would you? to you the answer is simple, you won’t complain.

of course, chuuya sees it differently. he knows that if you didn’t have to cut everyone off to focus on your work you wouldn’t. but your mind doesn’t work like that and he gets it. does he miss you when you have to take a break from reality? absolutely, but he doesn’t complain because he already knows how bad you feel about it.

so instead of saying ‘yes, i need you’ like you want to you let out another sigh. “how much work do you have left today?”

”funny you ask me that, doll. i finished everything early today.” chuuya chuckles when he can practically see the way you perk up.

you still hesitate when you ask, “does that mean you're coming back to yokohama early?”

the port mafia executive smiles widely at just how adorable he finds you. the way you still get so shy to ask him things that should be a given. chuuya adores you and couldn’t imagine spending his now free time with anyone other than you. so, of course he took the opportunity to get back as soon as possible. apparently his timing was impeccable because from the sound of it, you could use a break.

chuuya was already on his way to your apartment. it was supposed to be a surprise, but he figures since he’s already almost there…

“why don’t you pack a bag and come down to find out for yourself, hm?” he lets out another chuckle when your excited squeal finds it’s way onto his side of the phone.

you quickly grab your small duffle and stuff some essentials into it. you have a drawer at chuuyas jam packed with clothing already and a whole second set of your favorite hygiene products so you only need to grab a few things. you pack your laptop and a couple articles of your comfier clothing. you change quickly, stuffing your legs into some jeans and actually putting on a bra underneath your t-shirt.

you grab your phone where chuuya is still on the line. “okay, all packed. should i come down now?”

“yeah, your surprise should be there any minute.” chuuya pulls up to the front of your building as he says those words and can’t help the pleased smile on his face.

you chuckle and shake your head. “my surprise, huh wonder what it could-“ you’re cut off when your roommate calls out your name questioningly in your rush to get out of the door. your eye twitches when you’re reminded of the randoms in your apartment but put on a smile anyways. “it was so nice meeting you guys, sorry i can’t stay but my boyfriend came back into town early so i’m gonna go see him. bye.”

you don’t miss the way your roommate perks up at the mention of chuuya. “oh? chuuya is here? you should invite him up. i would love to see him.

“i’m sure you would. he’s tired though. maybe some other time.” you grit your teeth and smile sweetly. you don’t wait for a response as you practically run out the door and lock it behind you.

you huff and then remember chuuya is on the other side of the phone still, you grimace realizing he heard the whole thing. “sorry…”

“didn’t know i was so tired.” chuuya laughs as you let out a groan.

you catch the elevator before the doors close from someone just getting out and stab at the button to the ground floor. “i’m tired of their shit, therefore, you’re tired too. plus did you really wanna sit through another awkward meal where my roommate dotes on you. god and her new boyfriend was there. can you imagine how uncomfortable that would be? gross. i don’t wanna think about it anymore.”

“someone’s actually insane enough to agree to date her? condolences to whoever that guy is.” chuuya’s voice drips with genuine surprise.

you let out a giggle at how scandalized your boyfriend sounds. “you’re telling me she doesn’t pique your interest, sunshine?”

he chuckles and you can practically hear the eye roll from his end of the line. “nah, my girl is the only one for me.”

you’re walking out of the elevator when you stop in your tracks for a moment. it doesn’t matter how long you’ve been with him, when chuuya calls you his girl it makes you melt. your brain malfunctions a little and it makes you really think about how you truly are all his.

without hesitation you breathe out an “i love you.” before moving forward to the entrance of your building.

“i love you.” it’s instantaneous, his answer.

chuuya never has to think twice about telling you how much he adores you. he is immutably in love with you. there was no doubt in his mind and, even though it took some time for you to believe so, there was no longer a single doubt in your mind either. chuuya had made certain that you would never question it.

you make it to the entrance. the moment you open the door you’re welcomed with the sight of chuuya leaning against his car. his phone is still up to his ear as his grin widens upon seeing you.

you drop your hand and phone from your ear and hang up before rushing over to the ginger. you drop your duffle bag near the car before jumping into the executive's arms. he was anticipating the impact and caught you with ease.

the bicolor eyed man holds you tightly and you bury your face in his neck. his soft hair tickles your face but you couldn’t care less. you take in a deep breath and his scent envelopes you and all the tension your body had been previously holding completely dissipates.

your voice is muffled when you say, “i missed you, so much.”

“i missed you too.”

you both stand there in each other’s arms for a few more seconds before chuuya sets you down. he grabs your bag from the ground and opens the passenger door for you. you thank him and climb in. your boyfriend wastes no time placing your bag on the backseat and slipping into the drivers side.

the ginger takes you to your favorite take out restaurant and you order all of your favorites. when you get back to his penthouse you set up his couch into a lounge bed and get ready to watch one of your favorite movies. while you’re doing that, chuuya is pouring you both a glass of wine.

you’re happily munching on your food and sipping on your wine when chuuya hits you with. “you should move in.”

your head snaps back to look up at him, your brow is furrowed and you give him a confused look. “we haven’t talked about it before. are you being serious right now?”

“completely.” he doesn’t even look at you, his tone so nonchalant and you’re just gaping at him.

you set your drink and food aside and shift off of chuuya. he’s about to complain until you sit yourself on his lap straddling his waist and wrapping your arms around his shoulders. you pluck the remote from his hand and turn over your shoulder to pause the movie. you wanted to make sure you had his undivided attention (you always did).

you study him for a moment before responding. “are you sure?”

“yes. i have 2 extra rooms that aren’t being used. we don’t have to share a bedroom yet and you would still have a separate office space. c’mon, doll, let me get you out of that nightmare of an apartment.” chuuya reaches up and tucks a stray hair behind your ear.

he did that on purpose. you know he did. the way he caresses your face with his always surprisingly soft fingers is unfair. he knows how distracting it is to you.

you try to process what he says but it takes you quite a bit longer than it should have but it doesn’t take you long to make your decision. “…okay.” it comes out whispered.

“okay?” chuuya asks you incredulously like he was actually expecting you to reject his offer.

you nod your head with a blush creeping up your face. “yes, okay. i’ll move in with you.

chuuya can’t help himself and presses his hands across your back to bring you into him. his lips crash into yours and you share a moment of pure bliss. his lips meld perfectly with yours. he tastes of peppermint and grapes. the taste increases as his tongue slips past your lips and tangles with your own. you let out a short gasp at the sudden intrusion but melt into him anyways.

you both stay like that for a few minutes. your hips begin to stutter on their own. your breaths and gasps and quiet moans fill the atmosphere. chuuya’s hands have found their way under your shirt and he’s already playing with the band of your bra. his fingers expertly undo the clasps and hands glide across your now naked back.

your lungs scream at you. you want more of him but you have to oblige your body’s need for air. you part from his lips and rest your forehead on his own, breath mixing together as you both pant for air.

chuuya only gives you a moment, hips still moving into his when he grabs at your hair and gently pulls your head back so he can trail kisses down your neck. it takes all of his self control to not bite your soft skin. per your request, he’s always careful not to leave marks on areas that would be visible in your scrubs. this is the one instance where his need to please you outweighs his need to be possessive.

if chuuya had it his way, he would make everyone aware of just how much you are his. for your sake, though, he reigns in that side of himself. he supposes he’ll just have to show the world you’re his in different ways. like in the form of a key, and in the form of a ring he has stashed away in the far corners of his closet, and maybe even some day in the form of his child.

chuuya’s brought back to reality by the sound of your voice. he hadn’t even realized that your positions had switched. you were panting underneath him, face flushed, and — fuck — you look so gorgeous like this. you were always beautiful. but having you like this, something only he got to see always made something primal in him stir.

you huff and grab ahold of the ginger’s face. his mind was obviously elsewhere. “chuuya. listen to me. what are you doing?”

chuuya’s eyes, which had glazed over, somewhat clear from the fog. he smiles at you as he lowers himself further down your body and lifts your shirt to press kisses to your stomach. you let out a whine, ready to complain about him still not listening.

“relax, baby, i’m helping you relieve some stress.” chuuya draws soothing circles into your skin then, without waiting for your response his hands travel to your pajama pants to untie them.

your hand shoots out to stop him, still panting and slightly dazed. “what about you?”

“don’t worry about me. i can take care of myself while i take care of you.” he says it so unabashedly you can’t bring yourself to question him.

then your head starts spinning. the thought of him touching himself while taking care of you is so incredibly hot it ignites your entire body on fire. there’s no longer a single thought in your head that doesn’t involve chuuya’s mouth, his lips, his tongue, his hands, his fingers. you need it all.

you reach out and card your fingers through the gravity manipulator’s silky hair. he hums at the action and takes it as his sign to continue. his fingers work quickly, undoing the ribbon and hooking around both the elastic of the pants and your panties. his movements are so fluid and fast you can hardly keep up. your bottom half is completely bare but he’s not satisfied there.

his hand slides up underneath your shirt and through the valley of your breasts. he watches intently as your shirt slowly rides up to expose your breasts. his fingers ghost over each mound briefly before they’re sliding down your body again and gripping at your thighs, holding them open.

“so damn pretty.” chuuya hums and his eyes flit up to gaze up at your flushed face. “do me a favor, baby? play with those perfect tits of yours for me, won’t you?”

his voice is sickly sweet and smooth like honey. you’re so enamored by the sound that you almost don’t hear him. his expectant look is what starts up the wheels in your head to turn. his words process and your hands move on their own accord. you start kneading at your chest while maintaining eye contact with his bicolored eyes.

chuuya groans. “god, doll. look at you. playin’ with yourself like that. ‘s sexy as hell- you’re sexy as hell.”

“chuuya…” you let out a whine. your patience thinning by the second as you wiggle your ass for any chance at friction.

your boyfriend lets out a chuckle. “okay, okay. think i’ve made you wait long enough, hm? deserve a reward for all the hell you were put through today.”

chuuya, once again, doesn’t give you a chance to answer before he’s dipping his head down to get face to face with your already slick cunt. his tongue is quick as he runs it up and down your folds. you feel him sigh in relief against you, like this is the first meal he’s had in days. it might as well be with how much he craved you when he was away.

although, he was focused on you — focused on making this all about you — chuuya knows if he doesn’t make good on his word of relieving himself you’ll never let him hear the end of it. who is he to deny himself the added pleasure when you’re demanding it of him. so, chuuya lets go of one of your thighs to fumble with his belt and free his strained cock from its confines.

you vaguely watch his arm move. your attention wavering as his lips wrap around your clit and he sucks. your back arches and hands squeeze at your breasts in surprise as you moan out his name.

chuuya smirks, absolutely pleased by the reactions he elicits from you. his hand that freed his cock moves to collect some of the wetness that’s steadily dripping out of you. once he’s satisfied with the amount he lowers his hand and uses your slick as lube to touch himself.

you try to comment on it but your mouth isn’t working right. the only thing that comes out is, “chuuya~ so good. ‘s so- fuck- so good…”

chuuya groans, clearly enjoying this as much as you are. his hips start to stutter as he lets go of your other thigh to gather more of your juices in that hand. his mouth it still making expert work of your clit while his fingers are closing in on your entrance. he teases you a little, circling the hole a few times before slowly pushing in two of his lithe fingers.

your head is thrown back as a slew of cursed moans falls from your lips. this time chuuya lets out a moan of his own when he feels your walls fluttering around his fingers already. his hand being used on himself starts pumping faster, his cheeks hollowing more frequently and fingers start sliding in and out of you at an alarming rate.

he’s close, you realize. he’s close and wants you to cum before him. you aid him in his endeavor by rolling your nipples between your fingers then squeezing slightly to pinch them. the added sensation makes your whole body twitch.

“f-fuck, fuck, fuck. chuuya, gonna cum~ ‘s too much. gonna-“ a euphoric wave crashes over you and you let out an embarrassing squeal like moan as your vision spots and ears rings.

chuuya’s slurps while lapping up at your orgasm are insanely lewd and the noise alone is enough to send him crashing as well. what really does him in is the sight before him. your eyes rolling back into your head and mouth hanging open. he moans deeply, from his chest, and spills into his hand. he pumps himself a few more times until he’s twitching from the overstimulation.

chuuya laps up every last drop your cunt has to offer while you come down from that amazing high and catch your breath. when he’s happy with his clean up he rests his cheek on your thigh. you prop yourself up to look at him. he looks so angelic, hair slightly tousled from your fingers running through it earlier, face glistening from your juices and face flushed. chuuya smiles at you then turns his head to leave sweet kisses on your inner thigh.

you let your head hang back before groaning. he was going to be the death of you. you knew he wasn’t finished with you by a long shot.

“we have plenty of time to do this when i move in.” you whine.

chuuya lets out an elated laugh. “so, when are we moving you in? tomorrow?”

you let out a genuinely amused laugh, shaking your head at his eagerness.

[nekofromanotherworld]

Dragon's nest

Some people get to know that Ludex of Fontaine has family.

______________________________________________________________

“Traveler! Paimon!”

“Oh, hello again Katheryne. How can I help you?” Lumine asked, coming closer to Adventurer’s Guild with Paimon. They wanted already to go to eat something but seems like their plans decided to change.

“There is request from Palais Mermonia, do you accept it?” Black-haired women asked.

“I think we should take it Lumine! We will get more mora for food. But what kind of quest is it?” Paimon asked this time, curious what we will get this time to do.

“You have to delivery this package, but carefully, there is glass bottle with some liquid.” Katheryne said before reaching for small package, which was green box with some herbs drawn on it.

“Thank you very much for informing us about it, where can we get our payment later? And to who we have to deliver it?” Paimon asked, and gave few more questions to women. Of course she has answered on all of them.

“Now take it and go, before the person that ordered this becomes irritated for not receiving their package.” The receptionist said before waving at girls to go already. On the way to the building they started planning on what they wanted to eat after delivery, suddenly it started raining. Girl and flying creature started walking faster to not get soaked with water. After they got to the elevator and got to the right floor, rain was not as intensive as at the beginning. But it was still raining, making their clothes soak with water.

Two girls entered big building, in which they were welcomed by no one else but Melusine- Sedene. 

“Hello there Traveler and Paimon! Do you have maybe package for Monsieur Neuvillette?” Melusine asked two girls.

“So Ludex of Fontaine has ordered something?! I thought he would send someone to order something, but I didn’t think he could order something for himself personally!” Paimon said shocked. She couldn’t believe that someone as important as him could order something personally.

“Why he didn’t send someone? I think he could have done that, and it would probably be easier for not only him but for person making order, to not stress so much about package.” Paimon talked with shock written on her face. Lumine and Seden were just looking at her and listening to her talk with herself mostly.

“Let me lead you to his office, he has guest now but I think he won’t mind a delivery and another person to talk to.” Melusine said with smile on her face. She turned around and started going to the main hall which leaden to the turns, left and right. Turquoise creature turned left, Lumine and Paimon followed behind her. Light-brown haired Melusine knocked on the door. After waiting few minutes, they hear someone screaming something behind the door.

“Ah! Package already came! Neuvillette! Come here! It has already came!” Lady Furina screamed after opening the door, she snatched the package from Lumine’s hands and run back to the Neuvillette’s office.

“I guess she is Monsieur’s Neuvillette guest, that you talked about” Paimon said to Sedene.

“Ah! Yes she is the guest, but she is there only to help him. Since Monsieur Neuvillette has small problems with his family, so someone has to help him with looking after them” Melusine said with worried look one the face.

“Wait, Neuvillette has family!? He didn’t tell us anything!” Flying creature said shocked. “Lumine! We have to get more information about this!” Paimon said and flew to the office through the open door.

“Paimon! Wait! We cannot just enter like that. We didn’t get permission!” Lumine said and ran after her friend, to stop her from making something dumb. The first thing blond-haired girl saw was Lady Furina with her back turned to office’s entrance. She was showing something with her hands to somebody sitting in front of her. Probably Ludex of Fontaine, why did Furina run to him with parcel?

“Can I give her that? Can I? Can I? Please! Let me give her that!” Furina asked while jumping in front of long wooden desk. She nearly knocked down candlestick.

“No. You cannot, you know perfectly how she will react if it won’t be me who enters lair.” Neuvillette said calmly, with green box in hand. There were some plants drawn on it.

“Hey! What are you arguing about? We want to know too!” Paimon flew closer to them.

“Can I at least tell them what happened?” Furina looked excited at Traveler and Paimon.

“Yes, you can.” Neuvillette sighed.

“So, as you can see, you delivered package to us, or Neuvillette. He ordered to calm down his wife.”

“Wait, what do you exactly mean by “calm down���?” Paimon asked.

“You see-“ Furina started.

“My wife has given birth to ten , healthy, dragon eggs. And she is exhausted, which contributed to the fact that she is not calm. She is very nervous that someone will hurt our hatchlings. Unfortunately my scent didn’t help her. That’s why I ordered some calming bath oils to help her.” Neuvillette explained, like it was oblivious.

“Okey, but still why haven’t you told us that you have wife and you have family?!” Paimon yelled.

“Because if I told anyone someone could get them hurt or worse, kidnap them.” Neuvillette said while walking to matte glass door. He opened it and entered another room. Furina ran after him

“Hey wait for us! I want to see her too!” Paimon yelled angry.

“If you all want to see her I suggest you to be quiet and seat on the sofa.” Neuvillette said. Room which they all entered was spacious, as every other place in Palais Mermonia it had high walls and many windows. Mostly white and blue colours were there. On both sides of the entrance there were two light blue sofa’s and four big pots with big pink flowers. On the right there were standing two white armchairs, next to them there were many bookshelves, and big coffee table. On the left, of entrance, one would expect a bed to stand there, instead there were many blankets and pillows thrown there. On top of that there was something long and big laying, curled in circle, with space inside.

“There she is” Furina whispered while pointing with her finger big creature.

“Woah! It is so long, how is it even possible? Wait, what do you mean by ”she”?! Is it Neuvillette’s lover?! She is dragon too?! I thought that he is the only hydro dragon!” Paimon yelled and asked many questions.

“Shhh, you have to be silent. You just entered dragon’s den. You can’t act like that, you have just disrespected her.” Furina whispered, meanwhile Neuvillette walked closer to sleeping dragon.

“Dear, please wake up. It’s me, Neuvillette. I came with something for you.” He said while touching bluish scales to wake up his lover. To the touch, dragon growled.

“See, that’s why only he can enter room, when she is in this state. Even her husband is not welcomed. That’s why we ordered calming bath oils.” Furina said to Paimon.

“But why she is so nervous?” Lumine asked.

“Because she is still in shock after birth. If you are curious it was not her first pregnancy. If I’m not wrong it’s her third.” Furina explained.

“Wait, third pregnancy?! How many kids they have? Thirty?” Paimon asked.

“No, they have around nine kids, not all hatchlings are ready to hatch, some of them never do it. That’s second reason why she is so nervous, she doesn’t want to lose another. She is too scared, that’s why she doesn’t let anyone near her, especially people who she doesn’t know.” Furina explained. Finally Neuvillette woke up his dragon lover.

“Love you have to get up, I have something what will help you. You have to eat too, you won’t be strong enough to take care of hatchlings.” Neuvillette said while petting dragon’s back.

“But I don’t want to, I have to stay beside them. I cannot lose more. If I do I will be horrible mother” Dragon finally said something.

“My dearest, you are wonderful mother of nine children. All of them are strong and know how to take care of themselves. If any of those hatchlings will die, every member of family will cry after them. Beside I ordered this specially for you.” Ludex of Fontaine said, and put green box next to laying dragon. Dragon opened its blue-white eyes and looked at the box.

“Are those bathing oils? The ones which I love? From my favourite herbarium?” Dragon asked, while looking at white-haired man.

“Yes. Do you need help with getting up and taking bath or do I have to carry you to the bathroom?” Neuvillette asked.

“No you don’t have to, but can you take care of hatchlings? I don’t trust those two on sofa’s, only Furina.” Dragon said.

“Hey! Don’t say things like that! We are worth your trust!” Paimon screamed.

“I don’t think so, I see you first time” Dragon said while raising up and untangling its body. Dragon had fur from head to the end of the long neck, scales were in some places dark blue, blue, or even white. On the top of head it had, same as Neuvillette, long horns. Its four paws had fins and torso was vey long, same with tail which was ended with two big fins. Dragoness walked out of bet and took parcel from Neuvillette to its mouth and walked to the other end of room. There were another doors which led to the bathroom. She opened them and entered, after she did that she used her tail to close door.

“Woah! She is so big, but not nice.” Paimon said.

“She is like that because she is nervous that you two can harm her children! Don’t be shocked” Furina said after pointing her finger at Paimon.

“Furina is right, Paimon. She is still in shock after birth, you should be understanding.” Lumine said, trying to calm down her flying friend.

“While we wait for her why don’t we make some tea and bring some biscuits and other food, so we can chat with two hydro dragons about everything and nothing? You can gain some of her trust!” Furina proposed.

“That’s good idea! I’m in!” Paimon agreed with Furina.

“Then let’s go and grab some food.” Furina said and run out of room, Paimon and Lumine after her. Rest of the day was spent with pair of dragon’s, their family and three other people, all drinking tea and eating whatever three girls brought.

______________________________________________________________

Don't copy my work

[icysnails]

The Blade's Daughter story was so good ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ Can I request a continuation, either directly or years after the incident, where reader meets and befriends Yanqing? No romance, just two tired kids ranting about their respective father figures.

A New Friend.

A/n: Hello!! Thank you so much, I’m so happy you liked it! (>v<) I decided to do bullet points for this one- I hope you enjoy, and I hope you have a wonderful day!

Warnings: reader is a teen/around yanqing's age, mentions of anxiety/grief, mentions of family struggles/arguments, takes place directly after the Blade fic

Word count: 1.3k

Genre: fluff, a tiny bit of angst

Pairing: Yanqing x gn!reader (PLATONIC)

After fleeing the Stellaron Hunters’ ship, you began your old travel routines and quickly got transportation to a separate planet. You found a train that would take you directly off your current planet, which was a relief. But you were an anxious, fidgety mess for the entire ride, so much so that one of the other passengers in your car stopped by to ensure you were alright. You quickly nodded and looked back down at your lap, feeling too stressed out to try and make small talk. All that had happened over the last few months was playing again and again in your head, and you found yourself having second thoughts. Had you really made the right decision? Would you ever see your old family again? But even more, you wondered, were they ever really family to you in the first place? 

You hadn’t gotten any news about the Stellaron Hunters, and no signs of them searching for you either. Maybe this was it. Maybe they truly wanted you gone. You sighed and suffered in silence, the rumbling of the train you were on making the pang of grief in your stomach far worse. However, you were headed for the Xianzhou Luofu, a planet that was generally regarded as peaceful. Perhaps staying there for a while would calm your nerves. A relaxed schedule might be a nice change of pace, as well as a perfect way to plan your next moves. And, there would be a ton of new food for you to try- not a bad way to close off a horrifically stressful week.

Once the train had stopped, you grabbed your few belongings and trudged onto the platform. Using your expertise in navigation, you deciphered a tourist map on a nearby wall and made your way to the closest hotel you could find. You practically ran to your room once you paid for it, falling asleep on the bed almost immediately upon arrival. Unfortunately, your mind couldn’t rest even as sleep overtook you. Nightmares plagued your unconscious mind, shaking you awake no more than an hour after you had dozed off.

It all seemed hopeless, and all you wanted to do was cry. But you couldn’t do that either. You were too exhausted to tap into your own emotions, but too distraught to sleep. So, you concluded that there was only one thing left to do- eat. 

Soon enough, you found yourself at a nearby food stall, gulping down a few Berrypheasant skewers. Once you had finished, you went back to order a tea, but you realized that you didn’t have enough credits. You knew you had grown rusty when it came to traveling and budgeting, but you didn’t think you’d need to start taking commissions again so soon. However, before you could turn away from the stall, a blonde boy dressed in intricate blue and white robes handed you a bottle of the tea you wanted. Your eyes widened in confusion, and you tried to protest, but it was no use. The boy beat you to it entirely.

You offered him a seat at your table as thanks, stating that you could absolutely pay him back in a day or so. He just smiled softly and refused payment, but accepted the seat you offered him. 

You learned that his name was Yanqing, the prodigal swordsman who was training under Jing Yuan, the general for the entire planet. Your mouth fell open at his confession, apologies spilling from your mouth for treating him so casually, causing Yanqing to shake his head sheepishly and deny your apologies. He was only the General’s student after all. He had no greater status, and all he really wanted to do was learn and fight. 

Though you weren’t inclined to get attached to anyone anytime soon, you had to admit that he seemed kind, while still being honest and a little blunt. He was around your age as well, which was a plus. It was rare that you ran into anyone your age who was this composed and kind. You sort of admired him for that, even having just met him.

As you spoke, you revealed more about yourself to him. You mentioned that you had a hard time with family, even going as far as telling him a vague description of what had just taken place between you and Blade. It was out of character for you, but you were just so overwhelmed. This was the one time anyone had stopped to listen to you, and everything that had taken place just ended up rushing out. You never mentioned Blade’s true identity though- you didn’t want to get yourself into more trouble, and for some reason, you didn’t want to harm the Stellaron Hunters.

Yanqing’s gaze softened as you spoke. His situation wasn’t exactly the same, but he knew what it felt like to fight with family members. The closest family he had was Jing Yuan, who had been like a father to him ever since he was little. But the fact that the General was technically his boss complicated things quite a bit. Jing Yuan got protective over him often and was irritably calm most of the time. Yanqing wanted to learn, but Jing Yuan tried to keep him out of trouble as much as possible. As a young swordsman, Yanqing often felt inadequate or useless when idle, which led to him getting upset with the General for keeping him out of harm’s way. He wanted to be just like his father figure, to be of use to him. But the General wanted him to stay safe, even if he knew that was an impossible wish. It was inevitable, and the only way for Yanqing to grow and improve his skills.

You smiled for the first time that night, your own pleasant memories of Blade misting over your mind. Blade used to treat you that way too, in his typical discrete fashion. You used to look up to him so deeply and worked as hard as possible for his approval. Your situation practically mirrored Yanqing’s, save for a few circumstantial differences. Blade treated you like his own kin before everything fell apart. As closed off and brooding as he was, he still took care of you for a while. He still acted like he wanted to protect you. He was a crucial part of your life, and even if you hated him now, you couldn’t deny that he helped you grow into the person you were in the present.

Golden memories drifted from your lips in response to Yanqing’s bittersweet words, each syllable painting pictures of happier times. Times when you would train alongside Blade, or when you and the Stellaron Hunters would gather and go out to do something fun together. An unfamiliar light returned to your eyes as you spoke, and Yanqing found himself smiling as well. Though your old family went unnamed in the conversation, he could immediately tell how much they meant to you. Despite just meeting you, he couldn’t help but feel happy that you had such memories to look back on, even if it all ended in tragedy. He continued to listen attentively to you, sharing his own stories in between. Turns out both Blade and Jing Yuan were just as serious when it came to protecting their family, almost comically so, which made for some interesting stories.

But it was over now. None of it was real in the end. The light seemed to die in your eyes as you trailed off, your chest tensing up in anguish. Yanqing smiled sympathetically, letting the atmosphere fall awkwardly silent for a moment. But only a few minutes passed before a sudden chime came from Yanqing’s phone, breaking the heavy atmosphere that had fallen over you two. Yanqing’s wilted expression changed into one of frantic determination as he read over the text he got. He stood up and rambled apologetically, stating that he had to go because the General needed his help. 

However, before he rushed off to go help with his duties, he scribbled his number on the receipt for your tea, along with a little note.

Number: (xxx) xxx - xxxx 

Please reach out soon!! I’m sorry to cut things short- I’m not always occupied, so please don’t hesitate to call me if you're in need of a companion. I enjoyed speaking with you, and I really want to hear more about your travels! Good night!

- Yanqing

[squad-724]

Oof I’ve had a couple rough weeks at uni, have padmecker artwork I’ve been slowly working on. It’s an illustration for a short fic of the two of them, a twin piece to @electrikworm ’s fic

“There.” Padmé sighed as she put down the stylus, a moment ago used to correct the few words of her next speech on the Senatorial Ball she was organizing with Bail and Riyo to warm her colleagues up to the clones. A small tactic to make them look more sentient and humanoid than what they officially were written as in the law. One step closer to the bill that would recognise them as citizens of the Republic.

She straightened up in her seat, her back cracking in a few places, making her wince. No matter how much the chair cost, five hours of no movement will make her body ache. And because of the non-stop debates in the rotunda she had no time to prepare it earlier; the ball was the next day.

Padmé took her time, finishing sipping the cold caf she got delivered back when there was still sunlight, watching the lights of the Planet That Never Slept flicker in the distance. She knew how they looked up close, both on the triple zero and in lower levels she so rarely visited; only going there for her rare dates that she still had to hide from the public. If the media learned about her relationship with a clone, the whole rights bill could be compromised.

Sometimes she didn't care, wishing to be able to take Wrecker to one of the fancy restaurants, let him taste all the amazing foods she could get him, to walk around in broad daylight, visit museums and opera. She wished she could spoil him as much as he deserved.

But it would have to wait. Padmé knew she would make sure he and his brothers could soon walk around as fully free citizens.

“You done?” The senator almost jumped out of her seat as a male voice came from the doors to her office space.

“On the moons Anakin you scared me,” Padmé let out a sigh of relief, and the jedi laughed at her reaction. “What are you still doing here, you were supposed to leave hours ago.”

“Eeeh, I think I should give Rex a little room to breathe. He almost strangled me after I threw him down that hole two days ago.”

“And you don't want to spend the night on observation with Kix.”

“And I don't want to spend the night on observation with Kix, and Rex WILL rat me out in an act of revenge.” He walked over to her balcony doors, grabbing one of the donuts she kept on her desk, her favorite one she kept for last. “I'll sleep at Snip’s new apartment, apparently she got a great deal from the landlady that had a good family history with the Order, and didn't need a down payment. I'll see you at the ball.” He waved her goodbye and jumped down the balcony. Padmé knew he called R2 to come pick him up, just as all the times he decided to have that dramatic of an exit. One day he would fall and break his neck, and that would be karma for stealing the best donuts.

There was nothing more Padmé wanted than to sleep. But she desperately needed to shower, and knew Clone Force 99 was about to enter the Coruscanti atmosphere in a few moments.

She met the squad only a few months back, the four clones called as her escort during a mission. At first she was surprised at the differences from normal troopers, but soon learned about their mutations and special enhancements that were made to them.

Each one of them was unique and interesting, but it was Wrecker who caught her eye, his eyes that kept looking at her with awe when he thought she didn't notice, but also the difference between his pure show of power in opposition of how gentle he was with her.

He had that charm and authenticity that all her previous suitors lacked, speaking his mind and not carefully picking lines of dialogue they practiced before each meeting. He was himself at all times, and who he was was a man of big heart. And Padmé couldn't deny him the beautiful musculature and tanned skin.

And now, after three weeks of a comms-out mission, he and his brothers were coming for a personal debrief with commander Cody, and to crash at her flat for a few days.

She already stocked her fridge with food, readied her three guest rooms with a fresh set of beddings and towels. Yeah maybe she was playing favorites with that, but no one deserved being pampered like these four. Especially Wrecker.

As she waited for the clones to arrive she took a quick shower and brushed her teeth, finally getting rid of the acidic aftertaste of caf on an empty stomach. Once she put on her face mask, she got a ping on her datapad reading “Be there in 5 ;)”.

Padmé got her droid to brew some tea when the doorbell rang out. All of her sleepiness evaporates in an instance when she runs to the door.

She isn't done opening them properly before a massive set of hands hauls her off the floor and into a spinning hug that ends with a keldabe kiss.

“Hi sweetheart,” Padmé breathes out, looking into Wrecker's mismatched eyes. She locks her hands around his neck, pulling him close into a proper kiss. Oh how she missed it.

“Ekhm, we're still in the doorway love doves,” a snarky voice brings them back into reality, Wrecker laughing as he moves deeper into the apartment, letting his brothers in. “Great. I'm taking the bathtub first.” A few voices of protest ring out as Crosshair bolts to the refresher.

“Sorry for the wait, there were some issues with the docking system and they didn’ want to let us down to the planet.” Wrecker finally let Padmé down, putting his bag down soon after.

“Not your fault, I just barely finished my job anyways, didn't have to wait for long.” She stood on her tiptoes to land another kiss on her boyfriend’s scarred cheek, making him blush. No matter how many times she did it, the giant clone got red after signs of any affection.

“Thanks for letting us stay,” Hunter all but collapsed on the couch, cup of freshly brewed tea in hand. He looked a little roughed up, his cheek covered in a fresh dressing, left eye sporting a bruise. “I don't think I could survive another night bunking on the ship with those three idiots.”

Padmé laughed as a choir of three voices raised up with a complaint. She sipped her herbal tea. She had missed this.

Not just Wrecker, but his whole family. How much life they brought to this otherwise empty apartment. The sound of bickering during breakfast preparation, doors opening and closing when they left for the town, repetitive whirring coming from Tech's room, muted music from Crosshair's.

“I am completely exhausted, so I'll be waiting for you in bed. I don't want to smell ANY grease or pickled feet when you join, so take a bath beforehand.” Padmé smooched Wrecker one last time, putting down her cup next to the dishwasher, before she wished the clones goodnight and retreated into her own bedroom.

As much as she complained about the costs of her sheets to Sabé, in moments like these every single credit spent on them seemed worth it. She slipped under the covers, sighing softly as the pain in her back quieted down just a little bit. She had to wake up in the morning for the last dress try on, and then get her hair done before the ball. How lucky she was that a highly experienced squad of troopers was available as her security for the event.

Padmé felt herself fall asleep just as the mattress next to her dipped significantly. Wrecker put his calloused hand on her back, sneaking it under her shirt and drawing slow circles in between her shoulder blades.

“Mmm I really need to sleep my dear, we will have the whole night to ourselves tomorrow.” she murmured into her pillow, relaxing her back under the soft pressure of his palm.

“Then sleep cyar’ika.” The trooper whispered, drawing his thumb up and down her spine, kneading the locked up muscles into relaxation. Padmé knew how firm they must have felt, and let her boyfriend smooth them out as they slowly fell into a rhythm.

“Does anything else hurt?” Padmé could feel his warm breath on her cheek. She could deny it, let him lay down next to her. But, it felt so nice to be taken care of like that.

“Right arm, think I was holding my stylus too tightly.” She didn't even open her eyes as she turned on her side, reaching out the hurting limb.

With a gentleness a man of his frame seemed incapable of, Wrecker took it, moving it to face the palm up, and began massaging it too.

He started with her finger, so delicate and small in the embrace of his giant ones. Each one was delicately pinched in between his pointer finger and thumb, joints muscles and tendons kneaded into relaxation.

Then came the palm, painfully wiry, with the muscles tensed and coiled from the long hours of no rest. Wrecker's fingers carefully massaged them, and Padmé let out a few hisses of pain before these too relaxed into comfy hums as her boyfriend helped her with the pain.

She thought it would be it, but he continued the comforting movements on her forearm, now his actions bringing her more of a relaxing effect rather than purely pain relivement.

Wrecker arms continuously moved his hands up and down her forearm, drawing circles with his thumbs, making her back shiver with pleasure. She didn't even realize how wiry her muscles got until he made them relax, his fingers digging into knots deep into her limb.

“How did you learn to do this?” She murmured, her voice partially muted by the pillow she was laying on. Wrecker’s mismatched eyes didn't leave her arm, but she definitely saw the slight smirk under his nose.

“All of us got some pains a massage helps with. I was the first to need them, my growing pains making my whole body ache until I couldn't move. That's when Tech found some texts on holonet to teach me so I could do them before sleep. Then it turned out that Hunter's migraines can be lessened if you relieve the pressure on the neck,” Wrecker's pressure on Padmé's arm became weaker and weaker, his body slowly sumping to the side. “Tech tends to fall asleep on the pilot seat and next to his workbench, and I deal with his back afterwards.”

The senator gently pulled her boyfriend to lay down, his heavy body hitting the mattress. He didn't say anything, but let out a hum of comfort, wriggling closer to her, wrapping his arms around her much smaller waist. He was very warm, making Padmé shiver.

“Mmm, I'm glad you're here.” she settled her forehead just above his heart, taking comfort in the sound of the beat. Strong, just like him.

“Wish I could stay,” one of his arms moved to the base of her skull, gently scratching her hair bulbs, often sore from the extravagant hairstyles she wore on a daily basis. The hair and dresses, what she was most known for. A beauty of Naboo, queen and senator Amidala whose spirit never yielded. Just like her looks she never did anything halfway, giving her everything into how she presented herself as how she protected the innocents of the Republic.

But there she was, her hair in disarray, wearing an old t-shirt and underwear that has been for sweet release of the trash bin for months, and Wrecker was here, calling her beautiful in the pure darkness, his arms a comforting weight. Here, she was Padmé Naberrie, spending one of her rare moments with a man that found her beauty not in the make-up, dresses or jewelry, but her genuine laugh, lacking cooking skills, and the ability to stand her ground to help him and his brothers become people in the eyes of law.

He would protect her planet, while she secured his future.

Thank you Manhattan for edits and beta reading!

[jerseyluck]

Batman: No Man's Land: Fruit of the Earth (Story #19)

Back to No Man's Land with the next big arc of the saga! This time with Poison Ivy!

The comic opens with a flashback to the first month of No Man's Land. Clayface comes to Ivy's territory with a terrible plan: the two use Ivy's powers and some child labor of the kids she is watching over to corner the food market of the destroyed city. Ivy tries to kill Clayface for this disrespect, but the clay monster captures her instead.

Cut to the current time of No Man's Land where Oracle is giving Batman an update about what is going on in Ivy's territory, but she lacks information. So, Batman goes to Penguin to ask him for information. And the gang boss lets Batman know while he is getting fruit from Robinson Park, he has been paying Clayface for the resources. Batman leaves and Penguin tells his henchman to cancel the next payment to Clayface predicting what is about to happen.

In a GCPD interlude, there is a major breaking point. Sergeant Pettit has decided to shoot some gangsters that are threatening the officers. He convinces some of the fellow officers that this is a warzone and Gordon's method will kill them all. Commissioner Gordon is left with his wife Sarah, Harvey Bullock, and Renee Montaya on his side, with a large force of officers following Pettit.

Batman and Robin (Tim Drake) go to Robinson Park, not just looking for Ivy. It turns out Bruce build a Batcave under the park during that time he briefly let Dick take over the Bat-cowl. And Batman needs something that was left in that cave.

When the dynamic duo enter the hideout, they discover Ivy and some orphans captured in clay. It turns out that Clayface has imprisoned Ivy since that meeting and has been using the kids as slave labor. Bruce angry at this abuse kids (and needing the box from the Bat-Cave) agrees to stop Clayface...somehow.

This is a reminder that Clayface is a clay monster that can shape his body into different forms including mud and brick. And Batman is lacking the tech that can help him overcome this superpowered foe. So, Batman has Robin take the orphans above ground while he stays with to fight the villain.

Meanwhile, Huntress is still angry at Batman's dickery, and she goes to confront Pettit's goons about the murder he has done as a cop. But Pettit convinces Helena that they are the same side as soldiers in a war.

Back to the A-plot, Bruce can't free Ivy from her clay prison while Ivy is weak from months of Clayface's abuse. Batman and Ivy realize that she needs water and sunlight to get back to fighting shape; so Bruce comes up with a plan. In more personal moments, Robin realizes that the captured kids were orphaned from the quake and have nowhere else to go. Ivy is the only one who can care for these kids.

But big bad Clayface comes down to the Bat-Cave to harass Ivy, and man Basil is such an asshole in this story. Good writing Rucka! Anyway, Clayface starts to overpower Batman, but out hero uses strategy to electrocute the villain with a rod and a powerline.

With Clayface shocked, Batman orders to Robin to use a bomb above ground in the lake in Robinson Park. The bomb breaks through the roof of the Bat-Cave, flooding it with water and letting some sunlight in. And this small amount of nutrients is all that is needed to get Ivy to break free and fight!

With Ivy free, she first uses some plants to make a new costume. Just want to say Dan Jurgens and Bill Sienkiewicz make some spectacular art in this issue, but this costume is a real highlight. Oh, also she beats up Clayface pretty easily.

With Clayface defeated Ivy goes in for the final (lethal) move. Batman and Robin try to save the monster, but Ivy's powers/wards manage to stop them. Clayface is melted down to soil, but he is still alive (somehow) and the superpowered monster will fight on in post-NML Gotham, so no harm no foul. But Ivy remarks at this point that the first day of summer has come.

Continuing the symbolizing of the fact that we are at the halfway point of the saga, we get to see things go from bad to worse with Gordon. The commissioner sends Renee to negotiate with Two-Face (on the account that Harvey did hire an assassin to kill him), but she is forced to stay in his territory.

Also, in Cental America, a woman offers a man an exorbitant amount of money to enter Gotham and cause trouble. That's right Bane, the Man Who Broke the Bat, is coming to No Man's Land!

But in rap-up to this story, Batman finds out that Ivy destroyed the thing that he entered Robinson Park for. Annoyed, Bruce realizes Ivy serves a purpose in No Man's Land, and agrees to leave her alone, as long as she keeps watching over the kids and gives fruit to starving Gothamites twice a week. The story ends with Batman realizing that there is still a way to get the thing he needs, but only Catwoman can get it!

And that was the end of what is currently the best story in No Man's Land. It introduces some new problems in the ongoing saga, but the main story is incredible. This story features what is the continuation of the modern Ivy! Previous Ivys would have been down with the child slavery angle Clayface did, but this establishes her soft spot for children. It's nice to have a less-evil rouge in Batman's gallery of foes! And the art is incredible. A classic story for everyone to read.

9.5/10

[fuck-customers]

Last year I worked at a small student led handicraft store run by my university and it was originally supposed to be a temporary pop-up run by the lecturers who led the events management course. It was the best job I’d ever had - which isn’t saying much because every other job I’ve had has been horrendous and traumatising in ways I can’t even describe - so of course I was overjoyed when they told us they were extending our temporary contracts by a year and keeping the shop open indefinitely.

At that point things started going downhill. The uni stopped promoting the shop at all so our customer numbers dropped dramatically, and the uni’s PR department refused to let us utilise the shop’s social media page despite asking one of the employees to manage the social media and making her take on extra hours. They refused to make the necessary changes in order to make it the permanent storefront they envisioned - All our bookkeeping for every single purchase had to be written in a paper ledger and then copied and reformatted into a dozen different stock and accounting spreadsheets on a laptop, for every single individual item in each sale, before we could take payment, because they refused to pay for software that would automate it, so a single transaction could take anywhere between 5-20 minutes depending on what the person was buying. Many customers ended up getting frustrated and just walked off.

We started haemorrhaging stockists as the uni didn’t pay them fairly or on time, despite pestering from both stockists and floor staff. Even now, nearly 6 months after the whole thing shut down, some stockists still haven’t been paid. The uni took such a huge amount of commission from each sale (nearly 3 times the industry standard!) that the stockists making products couldn’t afford to pay themselves fairly without doubling or tripling the prices of their work, which fucked up their sales. Most people didn’t even earn enough to cover production costs for their work.

I was maybe the only person on the entire staff who actually had any significant retail and customer facing experience, having worked in the fast food and retail industries for ~4 years before I started at the shop, and it was abysmal. The events management faculty who were supposed to be running it had no customer facing experience and did nothing to help when problems came up - they treated it like a temporary event rather than a permanent shopfront and we had so little support and oversight it was awful. We had to take on full management responsibility despite it being well above our pay grade because they refused to hire an experienced manager or supervisor - while trying to man the store we would also have to do admin, liaise with clients and stockists, accounting, stock input, paying for essential supplies with our own money because the Uni refused to approve them, organising our own shifts and pay, making social media content, and arranging cover for if someone was ill or had an emergency. Instead of any reasonable support they sent us a horribly overworked postgrad intern who was working between 5-6 different departments and could only actually be in the store maybe one hour a month, had no idea what she was doing, and was so overworked that she eventually had a breakdown and quit.

This issue was compounded because they’d only ever let us put two employees on each shift - they refused to pay enough for staff numbers above that despite being so busy in the first few months that we couldn’t keep up, and told us that for safety reasons both employees had to be there to open the shop- so if somebody was late or didn’t show up the other person wouldn’t be able to work either. If one person was on a double shift and the second person’s replacement for second shift wasn’t on time, the person on the double wouldn’t be able to leave for a lunch break, and the person on the single would have to stay extra time. There were several employees that would spend the entire shift doing fuck all - one guy was at least two hours late every single shift, and bought his XBOX with him every time, and spent the entire time he was working with his feet propped up on the counter playing GTA. The university genuinely didn’t care about the shop or its success enough to even give him a disciplinary.

It was awful, especially because there were a small group of us who were both stockists and floor staff, and were genuinely invested in the shop’s success. But our contracts ran till the end of the academic year, and the pay was really decent compared to a lot of jobs in the area, and it was stable and above minimum wage, so we (the staff) really did try to make it work, but we were set up to fail. Eventually we were barely making a sale a day, and then it dropped to a sale a week.

When they closed the shop, right before the end of the semester when people’s rent would be due, they gave us 10 days’ notice - which went against our contract - and no redundancy pay. Most people had had shifts for the next 8-9 weeks already scheduled, which we never got to work. We never got our holiday pay or the Christmas bonus they’d promised us 9 months prior. It was such short notice that several people couldn’t find new jobs in time, couldn’t scrape enough together to pay their bills and rent on time, and they didn’t even have the decency to tell us we were losing our jobs in person - they sent out a single email to one of the girls who helped organise shifts, and she had to post it in the staff group chat.

And the sad thing? It was still the best, least stressful job I’ve ever had. It was the only job I’ve had that didnt actually make me want to die. I miss it like hell. It was the only job I’ve had that paid me above the legal minimum wage. I’m physically disabled, and it was the only job I’ve ever had that actually followed through on the reasonable adjustments and disability accommodations they’d promised me.

But the way it was run it wasn’t fair or sustainable , and it shouldn’t have ended the way it did.

Posted by admin Rodney

[gatitties]

Heyyy, I was wondering if you could do Dad! Sanzu x teen! Daughter! Reader where she has an eating disorder due to not feeling any control over anything that happens in her life since Sanzu is addicted and stuff and Sanzu finding out and how he reacts and what he does to help her! Tyy

─Dad!Sanzu x teen!daughter!reader (platonic)

─Summary: your life begins to fall apart because of your father's addictions, but it's never too late to get back on track.

─Warnings: drugs, alcoholism, a little angst?

Part two

─ Your bad eating habits began just as Sanzu began with his addiction, a spiral of unfavorable events in which you found yourself dragged.

─ At first it wasn't that noticeable, since you were able to control some aspects of your life without a father present, however, it was too much pressure for a teenager.

─ You didn't have to be the one to pay attention to payroll and housing payments, to electricity, water, and food expenses, even though Sanzu brought an exaggerated amount of money, if he didn't know how to distribute it it wouldn't be of any use.

─ Not to mention that you had to take care of cleaning the house and the studies, counting on helping your father whenever he came home drunk.

─ Stress and lack of attention made you change all your life patterns, insomnia and nutritional deficiencies, you felt that you were only living so that your only family would not fade away, since despite everything you loved your father and you always tried to get him to at least leave the world of drugs, it was too late to leave crime, especially if it was his main source of income.

─ And honestly, Sanzu wouldn't have realized how emaciated you looked until some of your uncles, more specifically, the Haitani brothers, pointed it out.

─ It was a slap in the face for your father, all the drunkenness left his body when he came home and saw you awake just a couple of hours before your classes started, you were doing the homework that you had not been able to do because you were busy with other things.

─ You were scared when you felt him hug you, crying on your shoulder while he apologized between incomprehensible babbling due to his condition.

─ You consoled him with a few pats on the head, making it clear that you didn't hate him but the bad habits and environments he moved through.

─ He promised you to control himself, he promised you to take care of all those things that you shouldn't take care of at this age, he promised you to be a better father for you.

─ Although the change did not happen immediately, and the absence was still noticeable in the house, you did not have to control the money again to keep everything in order, you did not have to make the purchase on your own.

─ Sanzu began to leave notes around the house, since because of his work he couldn't always be with you, he made sure that you were well fed, if he had time before leaving, he would leave you breakfast or lunch prepared, if he couldn't, he would ask Kakucho to stop by the house to give you some food and ask you how you are doing in class.

─ He cut short his time in brothels and cut off some bad relationships to spend more quality time with you.

─ He made sure you rested properly, even forbidding you from doing tasks as simple as washing the dishes.

─ He doesn't want to see you as bad as that time again, it seemed like you didn't even think, that you were an automated robot to do essential things, the drug was not only consuming him, but also his loved ones and he didn't want to experience that again.

─ Of course, quitting an addiction is not something he can do overnight, but he would take the time he needed so that at least you could live a normal adolescence and life, away from all the shit he had at his back.

[wonyrs]

rainbird

enha maknaes x fmr gnr fluff, est. relationship warnings cursing, food wc 711 + library #

‘ school life with the enha maknaes! headcanon style

kim sunoo

somehow u two manage to make the uniforms a tad cuter than anyone else

never getting ur work done in any class fs (but u still pass? its the dawg in u) u two sit in the back of the room and have a whole station just for cute instagram posts

"aww babe u look so pretty today" "really? i should say that to u, love :3" cue the deadpanning from anyone in a mile radius of u

LITERAL GODS OF PHYSICAL TOUCH AND EVERYONE HATES IT. on the way to lunch? holding hands. dodgeball in pe? holding on to each other like ur lives depend on it. the weather a little chilly? "let me warm u up schnookums :>"

half of ur friendgroup think of u two as an ideal couple while the other half is done w ur shit (dw they love u)

when exams are coming up, u two hang out at each others houses to help each other with whatever u guys are struggling with

he has full faith in u passing the exams but still offers to calm u down by singing a song, giving u a massage, ordering ur favourite takeout, or anything that eases ur nerves :(

"don't be scared, y/n. ure the smartest girl i know, so theres absolutely zero chances of u failing this test, believe me!"

yang jungwon

ur boyfriend being a former class president and u being the current class president is either a blessing or karma for something u did in ur past life

"oh my gosh there's so many papers to send off, wonnie can you help me?" "nope, i stopped doing this type of work 3 years ago" before getting up and carrying all the stacks himself

when u mess up during a speech, be prepared for endless teasing while being reassured that u still deserve a spot in the council (thank u for fake tears and ur bf's soft heart)

if u have to stay after school to work on council duties, jungwon stays behind w u and uses the excuse that he needs help on his hw to be by ur side

he still takes the chance to lovingly bully ur ass

"u know, if u just refused the offer of being class prez we could be in my room rn watching the mlb movie" "babe be quiet before i actually lose it and start crying"

however, the longer he's with u, the more concerned he gets when he realizes that u leave school (alone) around 7 pm when the sky is getting dark and all sorts of creeps are walking around

he knows ure capable of protecting urself but his 'spiderman' bf instincts tell him to walk u home everyday no matter how late it is and tune out the fact that he'll get spanked by his mama for returning so late at night

"u forgot something, love. i need 10 kisses minimum for walking u this late, uberjungwon needs his payment!"

nishimura riki

fully believing in the 'hates almost everyone at school but has a soft spot for u' + the rest of enha trope for u two

yes he acts nonchalant to anyone's attempts at flirting w him but the moment u compliment his skills in soccer bro startings twirling his hair and encourages u to say more

"ki u did so good! ure like blue lock fr" "really? i did so good guarding right? and making that goal? and dribbling? right?" yappa yappa yapping /j

during free period, he drags u to the court and has u play a 1v1 with him

uses the excuse of 'fixing ur form' to get as close to u as possible and hes not ashamed of it

"yeah so u just position ur arm right here and-" "ok but can u loosen ur grip on my hips please, focus on the training babe " "shhhh"

OMFG i imagine him asking u out after winning a really important game with enha cheering him on at the back (big bros)

it'll be when u congratulate the team outside of the locker rooms when he just grabs u by the shoulders and professes a whole shakespeare typa love confession

his fangirls drop down sobbing the next day when u two walk in holding hands and he's carrying ur bag for u with the dopiest smile on his face

@ wonyrs 2023

note me when i dissappear for a month after my first post, come back with the trashiest post ever and a new layout LESGOOO anyways i hope u guys enjoy this and REMEMBER my requests are open so feel free to ask anything :>

[c-u-c-koo-4-40k]

12 Angry Space Marines or Lullaby's No Good Very Bad Only a Little Good Day - Part 3

(AKA Can we Skip to the Good Part?)

First! A big thanks to @gallifreyianrosearkytiorsusan for helping write this beast of a piece. And to @sleepyfan-blog , @kit-williams and @egrets-not-regrets for use of their various characters!

Warning: Not much besides descriptions of various spa and self care procedures. We finally get to have FLUFF!

Previous Here

Next One (Under Construction) It's Here!

The First of the Horde

Tags! I Hope you all enjoy!: @kit-williams @sleepyfan-blog @egrets-not-regrets @felinisnoctis @bispecsual

@passionofthesith @beckyninja @bleedingichorhearts @barn-anon @gallifreyianrosearkytiorsusan

@jaghatai-khock @virozero @angronsjewelbeetle

Summary

Now at the end of a long day our charming gaggle of characters Finally! Get to eat and relax and enjoy some mutual bonding time. Lullaby shows some of the Primaris the wonders of bubble tea and the ultimate relaxation tool, Warm Towels.

…

“Uhhh…11 Boba Teas for…Lullaby?” The delivery person stammers a bit nervously as they hold out bags laden with sweet drinks of various flavors. They seem a bit nervous with the company you have looming behind you.

They also might be nervous because there is another individual making a delivery for your group. He is far more taciturn, and his packages are full of food.

And big, as he's an Astarte, and not one from a group you immediately recognize given he's not in armor. But he's got a rather grisly warped looking face, possibly Chaos inclined. “Food Delivery, Order name's Khopesh.” He grunts. 

You smile, and nod. “Yep, that's me-well Us.” Khopesh carefully (but a bit swiftly) takes the bags as you dig out your wallet and produce two twenties. The payments had been handled digitally as you were placing the order. This was for something else. “Your tips.”

The Astarte accepts the money with a muted. “Thanks.”

The courier's face immediately lights up. “Oh! Ah…thank you. Have a nice day?”

“Same to you.” You smile, and nudge Khopesh with a. “Let's get these back to the spa room.” 

But as you two begin to leave the lobby,, you notice something…interesting. 

The Astarte courier is eyeing the Boba courier, who seems a bit taken by social anxiety at the moment, but they're also not making any attempt to distance themselves from the Astarte. And you in turn feel this odd…compulsion. 

Without even fully thinking about it, you push your mycelium out through your feet, letting the shimmering creepers reach across the floor to both parties. You make sure they barely touch each. 

“Eep!”

You come back to lucidity, only to see the Chaos Astarte now wrapping a gnarled clawed hand around the trembling Boba delivery person's shoulder. 

Oh dear. Shit shit shit shit! Why did you Do That!?

“Lullaby?” Khopesh asks, probably hearing the sudden thundering of your panicking heart. 

“Oh ah…wow…” Okay they're more flushed than panicking, that's a good sign right?

“You, I, bonded.” The Chaos Astarte grunts.

“Oh…OH! That's…”

You feel your teeth on edge.

“Nice! Actually it's ah…Wow. I never thought I'd be- But it's a good thing! You ah, you seem nice.” They say nervously but, with a far more positive tone. Dare you dream to say, they seem even just a little bit…smitten?

The Chaos Astarte responds by actually cracking a small smile.

You let yourself breathe again with a Phew, as the newly bonded pair start conversing. 

“Lullaby…what was that about?” Khopesh asks pointedly. 

Okaaaaay, you will have A Lot to report to Anrir. “I'll tell you later.” You respond and shake your head. You also mildly pick up your pace to get back to the soothing room. 

Now in much more comfortable (and not alcohol sodden) clothes you feel so much more at ease. In fact everyone in your group had taken a moment to change into more comfy civilian wear. Combined with your clothes technically being the pajamas you kept at the base it makes your gathering feel almost like a sleep over.

“We return bearing gifts!” You say proudly, but still quietly with your damaged voice. 

“And make sure you each grab a drink too. I grabbed a few different flavors and types. They're listed on the cups and they all have Boba pearls added.”

You grab the Honeydew tea you'd bought for yourself, and the Whole Fruits Tropical sweet tea you knew was Khopesh's favorite. Then you pass the Boba bag along so the Scouts could have their picks.

While they debate the drink flavors you start rifling through the bags of Astarte sized food. “Okay, so we've got two bloody rare tar-tar sandwiches, one with a fruit cup the other with onion rings.” You pass the bags to Jophiel and Nanael. 

“Ah yes,” “Thank you dear.” The Blood Angels respond as they take their items. 

“Grilled chicken sandwiches plain with curly fries for Rami, and with Ketchup and Onion Rings for Ced.” 

“Thank you.” “Many thanks.” The Black Templars accept their packages carefully.

“Thressl's Venison burger, extra sauce and pepperjack cheese, with seasoned steak fries.” 

“Ah Yes!” The Space Wolf snatches up the food and immediately starts tucking in. 

“Then we've got two crispy fish sandwiches, one with malt vinegar and the other plain. Both with regular salty fries.” 

Claude accepts his sandwich with a kind “Thank You Lullaby.” Kerubiel's acceptance is much more brief with a “Thanks.”

“And finally three double cheeseburgers, one with ketchup and a fruit cup, one with mustard and curlies, the last plain with regular fries.”

“The ketchup one is mine Lullaby.” Khopesh chirps, happily grabbing his meal. 

“Mustard for me Kiddo, pass it here.” Karlsor pipes up which you do. 

“And the last is for me right?” Olly asks politely to which you nod and pass him his food. 

And truly last is yours. A human sized spicy chicken sandwich with ketchup and curly fries. Soon you're all sitting and tucking into the food graciously bought by Khopesh using his kitchen duty pay.

Honestly a chicken sandwich has Never tasted so amazing. You also stab your straw into your Boba and have to hold yourself back from downing it in one gulp. 

Thressl eyes you curiously. “Is that how we're meant to drink this thing?” He swishes the sealed Mango Milk Tea he'd chosen, almost like a child watching a snow globe. 

You nod. “Yep, you drink the tea and suck up the pearls at the bottom. Watch.” You demonstrate, vacuuming up a few pearls and eating them. 

Thressl copies your example, he seems unsure until the drink hits his tongue and-

“MM! Tha's good! Real good!” He howls. “But's a bit inefficient. I think I'll just-”

“Thressl wait it's not meant to-”

Too late. The space wolf rips through the plastic lid before dumping the remainder of the drink into his waiting mouth all at once. Chewing and slobbering like a mastiff as he devours the whole thing in less than a minute. 

“Mmm! Got any more?” Thressl asks eagerly bouncing on his heels, wiping his face with the back of his hand as looks around, he scrunches the cup and tosses it into the trash can easily.

You…didn't know how to respond to that. “Ah…you're really supposed to Sip it…but I'm glad you liked it? And no other full ones.” You explain, as you'd bought exactly 11 and tried to get two of most flavors. “Maybe someone else would share…as long as you don't do that to their drink.”

Thressl turns his eyes to Kerubiel, who had grabbed a brown sugar flavor called Tiger Stripe Tea. “Don't Even Think About it!” He hisses. 

Claude sips his Taro tea, pointedly avoiding the begging space wolf's eyes. And Karlsor goes as far as to snarl over his own Honeydew milk tea. “Not a fuckin chance pup!”

Thressl looks at Cedric and Ramiel. Cedric had grabbed the other Taro, while Ramiel grabbed the other Mango. “I am afraid I don't want to part with this brother.” Ramiel explains. 

“Mm-it is quite good though. Perhaps next time you should try and savor the flavor given to you, instead of downing it all in one gulp.” Cedric posits with juuuuust a hint of sass. 

Thressl huffs, before turning to the other Primaris blood angels; both sipping on Clear Dragon Fruit teas, and clearly enjoying the deep pink drinks with pink fruit chunks. 

Nanael responds politely, but his is another denial.  “Cedric is right Thressl, you've brought this on yourself.”

Jophiel takes a Little more pity, but is also firm. “You may have A Sip.”

If Thressl'd had an actual tail it'd be wagging as he bounds over for his promised sip. 

Khopesh, as one of two older brothers in the room, finds the exchange cute. But he is grateful because if Thressl had asked for his drink…he'd probably have had the same response as Karlsor. 

Meanwhile Olly mulls over his, it's the other Tiger Stripe tea and he seems to be enjoying it. Though he's having to adjust to both drinking and chewing the pearls. It's such an odd combination of sensations, not bad, truly just…strange. Marvelously sweet and milky, but almost too much so, given how little of such delights he'd had access to in his life. 

He certainly didn't think he could finish it all at once like Thressl had, but he enjoys the idea of being able to take a few sips here and there till the drink is depleted. The flavors and textures are nice- he’d almost been caught off guard by the texture of the boba pearls, but they tasted good he had decided.

“I'm glad you all like the flavors.” You say, genuinely.

“The drinks are sweet and good. Astarte may not be picky eaters, but we do still appreciate good tastes.” Cedric assures you. 

“And it would be sacrilege to snuff food offered in kindness.” Ramiel adds, sipping his own tea with a smile. 

“Speaking of offering…” Thressl gives you a cheeky smile and points to Your Honeydew Tea now.

You in turn raise an eyebrow, but Thressl counters with….puppy eyes. 

“Puppy eyes didn't work on my mother, they're not going to work on me.” You respond matter of fact. 

Thressl Actually turns his lip down and juts it out a little more, he's pouting. Full on sad pouting to try and get a bit of your drink. 

You almost feel like giving in just because of the effort. 

“Thressl…” Khopesh warns, firm but not mean…yet. He places a claw-like hand on your shoulder. The Scouts may be Cute but you're his mate, and even cute loyal little brother Scouts don't get to steal food from You. 

“Pleeeeeease?” No matter How Cute they are. 

You decide to avoid the possible incoming conflict, and Thressl did ask nicely. “Go ahead and take a sip.” You peel back the plastic so he doesn't have to use your straw. 

“Ah thank ya Lullab-Y!” Thressl is suddenly yanked back by none other than Kerubiel, your shock alleviates when you hear the Dark Angel growl at his brother. 

“Idiot! Your mouth is probably still full of acid! If it back washes into their drink it could make them ill!”

Kerubiel isn't wrong, all Astarte have some amount of acidic saliva they could produce, namely while eating. Hence why they could kiss without melting off their partner's faces. But it does surprise you to see him…care? 

“D-don't look at me like that! I just don't want to deal with you getting sick! You'd be more annoying if you're belly aching.” Kerubiel hisses. 

“Awwww! My sour puss brother is learn'n to be nice!” Thressl cheers. 

“I am Not a Sour Puss!” Kerubiel hisses now looking like he wants to strangle Thressl. Instead he huffs and turns away from his Wolf brother. 

“Awwww, come on Keru, I'll rub your back and shoulders the way you like?” Thressl offers. 

This seems to make Kerubiel perk up a bit, but he quickly goes back to scowling. “Fine.” 

The exchange makes you smile. And you decide to set your drink to the side. Maybe you could cross the aisle, so to speak. 

“What's going through your Wicked little mind, my love?” Khopesh purrs, bringing his lips down to your cheek. 

You don't respond with words, instead giving your love a nuzzle and a wink before getting up. 

When you'd first come to the soothing room, you'd marveled at the coziness and amenities. It really feels like a weird combo of a small cosmetic store, and a personal spa, but with comfy floors. The chairs are low and similarly shaped for Maximum comfort. Around the perimeter are shelves and drawers (some even temperature controlled!) with a number of travel sized products; individually packaged and ready for use. 

The list includes lotions, cloth face masks, clay masks, sliced cucumbers, massage oils, mineral water, brushes, combs, body and hair spray, and several dozen more things you had no Clear idea how to use, but given the days you've had you want to try it all!

There's even a wall of nail polish colors, which is one of the first things you'd all picked out while waiting for the food. 

You approached the Dark Angel currently having his shoulders massaged…kinda violently if the cracks and pops were anything to go by but he doesn't seem bothered. 

Keru notices your presence, and cracks open an eye. “What do you want?” He growls. 

You tamp down on your first instinct to flinch. But before you can respond Claude pipes up, as he's tending to Khopesh's nails. 

“Be nice, Keru. They want to participate in preening you.” He growls. “So you better appreciate that, and Do Not make them upset.” You kinda have to marvel at how astute Claude is. 

Kerubiel doesn't seem to believe him, and snorts. “Really?” 

You smile and nod, Yes, Yes you do. And you point to the dark green nail polish he'd picked out.

Kerubiel bites his lip, before he responds. “Fine! I will allow you to paint my nails! Will you stop looking at me like that!?”

You smile, and quickly get up to gather some other items. A bowl of warm water, some cuticle oil, and some lotion. 

You motion for him to place his hand in the warm water for a little bit. While that hand sits, you turn to the other, slather some lotion on your hands and begin massaging the hand and forearm. 

As you work, the Dark Angel chews on his lip. As if he's trying to chew his words into shape. “Uh.. I.. should not..Have gone after. Khopesh…that day.”

That- That does surprise you. And apparently Thressl too as he's staring harder at Kerubiel, rather than continuing his massage. 

Kerubiel continues stiltedly “I... aaaa-pologizze for being an. Ass. hole.” He grits out. 

You actually feel a sincere warmth spread in your chest, and you respond in your still raspy voice. “You're right...and I believe you. But I'm not the only one you hurt. How do you feel sweetness?” 

Khopesh hums as he's now painting Claude's nails a dark but shimmery blue, dare you say it looks very much like Nightlord blue. “...Hmm I rate it a 3 out of 5. An effort was made.”

Keru's face takes on an embarrassed red tint as he scowls. 

But Khopesh follows up with. “And I will accept it. But growl at my Lullaby again like you did that day, and I will rip your vocal cords out and string a cello with them.” He snarls, and emphasizes with a threatening point of the nail polish brush. 

Kerubiel's eyes go wide, he can tell the Night lord isn't kidding. “...noted.” He agrees 

Despite the rocky start at this point…you can't find it in yourself to hold a grudge. You and the boys toppled a real bastard together so as long as he doesn't go after your Khopesh with real malice again, you're happy to treat him like a friend.

Which naturally includes pulling his soaking hand from the bowl, drying it with a towel, and proceeding to gently push back his cuticles with an appropriate tool so you can start painting his nails. 

Delicately you apply the shiny heather green nail polish, to each finger on each hand while Thressl continues massaging his brothers back and shoulders. 

By the end Kerubiel looks distinctly more relaxed, and his nails are glistening green. Dare you say you've done a good job. But you await his judgment. 

Kerubiel looks over his painted nails with an unreadable expression, though honestly his neutral really did always have a grumpy edge. Claude is also looking over, seemingly waiting on his response.

“It is, acceptable. Thank You for your time.” He says.

Awwwww! That really does make you feel happy, and it must be showing on your face because he turns away with a hint of blush on his cheeks.

“Oi! Me next. Move Keru!” Thressl huffs, sitting down with a thump, which causes Keru to hiss a little. But he does oblige. 

Only to snag one of Thressl's braids in one hand, his arm in the other, and haul him up to start giving him the mutual massage by…wrestling him. You suddenly feel the need to move. 

“This is what you get for being pushy!” Keru hisses. 

“Ack! Git offa me I want my nails done ya Git!” Thressl growls back. 

“I'M GONNA SKIN BOTH YOU IDIOTS IF YOU DAMAGE ANYTHING!” Karlsor snarls, jumping up from his massage, and moving to separate the bickering Astarte. 

You clamber back only to feel yourself getting swooped back out of the fray. And swooped is the right word and you land near a pair of large wings. Actually two pairs, you're not sure which Blood Angel grabbed you but you're grateful. 

“Thank You.” You rasp, righting yourself. 

“I'm so sorry Lullaby.” Jophiel fusses, looking you over. 

“It seems Keru and Thressl haven't learned how to mind humans in their trampling range.” Nanael comments dryly as he watches Karlsor and now Khopesh get involved. 

You'll have to get back to Thressl it seems. For now there's no reason you can't do something nice for Jophiel and Nanael. 

But…it seems their nails are already done. And Jophiel is currently getting back to  running a brush through Nanael’s blond and red streaked hair. Hmm..

You pick up a nearby brush, and point to Jophiel's hair. 

“You…want to brush my hair?” Jophiel asks, to which you nod eagerly. And you also remember something. 

You run over to a nearby drawer and root around, pulling out a few “flavors” of hair cologne, which you then present to Jophie. 

“Hmm…I think I would like…the Strawberry scent.” You smile and nod. You also grab some massage oil for his neck and shoulders. 

It takes a moment for Jophiel to adjust himself so he's sitting behind Nanael, and you can reach his short hair. 

First you take your hands, and massage the scalp from which you hear a light trilling. Jophiel even flutters his wings a little, and you hold yourself back from touching them. You had not been given permission and you're not going to assume. 

Then you apply the hair cologne to the brush and begin running it through the short strands. The trilling becomes a little louder, and you…remember the conversation you'd wanted to have. 

“I ah…I wanted to say sorry too.” You mumble, as you continue brushing. 

You see Jophiel's wings twitch a bit, and he glances back at you. “For what?”

You take a moment to gather your thoughts. Things had calmed down, and Thressl and Kerubiel had now properly swapped places, and Khopesh was handling the slightly pouty Space Wolf's nails. 

“For yesterday,” You reply, now grabbing the massage oil, and beginning to press on the Blood Angel's shoulders. “I didn't help soon enough and when I did…I ended up…I'm so sorry you had to do that. With the…scream.” 

Jophiel doesn't know how to respond for a moment. ��...I don't regret helping you. If I hadn't you might've…” He trails off. 

“But that's not all.” You say. “Given what happened…I'm clearly not your first experience with…someone who has…” Now you trail off, you decide to not risk going into detail, instead you wiggle your fingers to imply magic. “I should have realized. But I just…kinda wrote you off. I could've reached out or talked or done…something to help you feel more at ease around me but I-”

Jophiel interrupts with insistence.“But I shouldn't have been so cold to y-”

“Lullaby, Jophiel…”

You both perk up, at Nanael saying your names. “Rest assured you are Nothing like that…individual.”

I mean, that's obvious but still your power conceivably came from a similar place. And if you put your hand in front of a dog and got bitten would you stick your hand in front of a different dog?

And did the different dog have Any right to feel offended when the bitten was shy from them? No that dog would seem like an ass. Which you kind of felt like. 

“And Jophiel you said yourself that you would not make the mistake of coldness to Lullaby again.” Nanael continued. “Your actions saved us yesterday. And Jophiel's actions saved you. We cannot change the past…but we can forge our future. And I think you've both demonstrated a Desire to make it a better future together.”

“Let us leave blame to the past. Now is the time to focus on reaffirming connections. And move forward with better communication. Do you think you can both do that?”

Wow that was…really profound. You glance at Jophiel, who locks eyes with you. You smile. And he does the same. “I'd like that.” You say, quiet but genuine. 

Jophiel nods. “I would like that as well.” He affirms, and goes back to brushing and styling Nanael's hair. 

Communication, with that in mind you look to the area where his wings meet his back. “Jophie, are you alright with me massaging the base of your wings?”

Jophiel hums. “You may, just be careful not to bend the larger feathers back too much.” 

You smile and do as Jophiel asks. The trilling comes back as you carefully work your hands to the muscles that split from his back.

“What about you Nanael? Are you okay with wing touching?”

Nanael thinks for a moment. Normally he'd only feel secure letting other Primaris touch his wings. Karlsor and Khopesh are trusted by Claude, but they are also firstborn, and some scars from those kinds of older Brothers are still too Fresh in his mind but you…

A slew of memories drift to the front of his mind. He recalls times on the battlefield and in conflict, when he would swoop down and fly human civilians to safety. 

They would often marvel at his wings with a mix of wonder and reverence. Especially the children, the children of the imperium loved his wings, he remembers the way they'd burrow their faces and hands in as he spirited them away from danger. 

How they'd plead for him to pick them up again, and hold them in his wings even after they'd been rescued. He’d occasionally given them loose feathers as a gift, the awe and joy on their faces. How some of his kinder older brothers would preen his wings gently after those little children and rescue missions had ruffled and even sometimes bent those feathers out of place. 

He…he almost feels tears come to his eyes. He didn't realize…how much he misses those times. 

“I would like you to groom my wings,” Nanael says blinking his eyes rapidly, “It would be very kind of you if you did, don’t tug on them too harshly. Please.”

You nod. “Of course.” But while you could fumble through massaging the muscles at the base, you felt less confident tackling the larger structure. “Jophie can you show me how to preen properly on his right wing, and I'll try to mimic it on the left.”

“Of course,” The younger Blood Angel affirms, soon you're both resettled behind Nanael. 

Jophiels points out pin feathers that need to be handled gently on his side and you mimic it on yours. He shows you how to run your fingers through the feathers like you might run them through hair to make them more neat, and he shows you how to stretch, scratch and massage the tissue underneath. 

 

Nanael trills, and you take extra care to not tug too harshly. 

As you and Jophiel work for a while, another approaches. It's Olly and he seems like he needs something. 

“What's up Olly?” You ask, pausing your literal preening for a moment. 

The Ultramarine grins sheepishly. “I wanted to ask for your aid with the machine in the corner. I'm uncertain how to make it work, or what it is supposed to dispense.”

You glance curiously in the direction Olly mentions and indeed there is a small metal…box? It has buttons and dials and you'd also admit you hadn't really paid much attention to it when you'd come in. 

“One sec. Jophiel, are you okay taking over?”

The Blood Angel nods. “I can handle this from here.” And Nanael encourages you to  “Go ahead and help Olly.”

You get up and approach the machine, which Cedric and Ramiel are also looking over.

“This is not a device I am familiar with.” Cedric hums. 

Ramiel chimes in as well “I am still rusty with the written symbols and language from this instance of Terra. And I do not wish to break anything. Do you know what they say?”

You don't immediately recognize the use for the dials though one seems to be temperature related, but you know an open switch when you see it. So you press it and the lid pops open revealing.

“Towels?” You ponder, pulling one out to inspect it. It's actually a little warm to the touch. Then it hits. “OOh! Warm Towels!”

You place the towel back in, set the temperature dial, and press what you assume is the start button. The machine clicks on, and you hear a sound similar to a microwave. 

“In just a few minutes we'll have warm towels!” You clap happily. 

“Oh alright…what shall we do until then?” Olly asks. 

You motion for Olly, Cedric and Rami to sit down and they do. You then retrieve a few other items. Another hairbrush, the hair colognes, a few cloth face masks, and a small pot full of exfoliating clay mask paste. 

“I have a feeling y'all might like one of these.” You offer the mask items to the Astartes, who seem a little lost on what to do. 

“Oh here. One sec.” You rip open the cloth mask packaging, and hold up the item so he can see the eye and mouth holes. “You place it over your face. It's good for your skin.”

Cedric and Ramiel take their own cloth masks and apply them. Olly doesn't seem convinced. Or maybe something else is turning him off of it. Of course Lullaby doesn't need to nor will he tell you of the…things he's seen done with human face skin back in his time. He suppresses a shudder and reaches for the mask. 

The texture on his fingers makes a visible shudder get through. He…he does Not want this on his face. You do pick up his discomfort. 

“Is something wrong?” Cedric asks, beating you to asking. 

Olly shakes his head. He is Stronger than this. He's not going to let the disgusting, slimy, thin, wet ugly thing-

“Olly, if you don't like it, you don't have to use it.” You assure him. 

“But…you offered it- It would be b-bad manners.” You take the mask from his trembling hand and toss it into the trash. 

“I'm honestly not the biggest fan of them either.” You shrug. “But some like them, see?” You gesture over to where Khopesh has placed a cloth mask on his face and is making a show of getting into other's peripheral visions. Which is causing some merry annoyance. Thressl is peeling out his own face mask to have a face off. 

“But,” You say, bringing Olly's attention back to you. “It's perfectly okay to not like something, even if it's offered to you.” You pop open the small pot of clay exfoliating mask with the small gritty beads and hold it out to Olly. “See if you like this kind better.”

Oleanderos does like this one's scent and appearance better already. He dips in a finger, and the grit reminds him of Tiiiiny pieces of gravel. 

And now in a moment of a completely different kind of weakness-

“Homf.” He places his fingers in his mouth. The soapy taste is Not the best to his pallette, even with the nice earthy clay beneath. “Bleh…”

“Olly! You're not supposed to do that!” Ramiel says frantically. 

“Hmm? Oh right…how am I meant to apply this?” He asks honestly. 

You smile, and scoop up some of the mask onto your hand. “Here, like this.” You gently paint the Ultramarine's face with the gritty mask, until the surface is green save for his eyelids and mouth. 

Ramiel watches and then remarks. “I think I would like to try that as well.” You nod and help Rami apply the mask after you finish with Olly and he removes the cloth one he'd tried. 

He hums as you go about your work. Him and Olly have the same thoughts that indeed the cool, rough, sweet smelling mask is a blissful combo of sensations. Just as you finish his face, the timer on the towel machine dings. 

You hop up and pull out the several towels that had been heated, and the heat is a bit much on your fingers, just for the moment though. 

Olly feels his eyes drifting closed and purrs rumble in his chest as the warm but not wet cloth is placed gently over the back of his neck. 

“Ah thank You Lullaby.” “Indeed, thank you.” The two Black Templars sigh happily, and you can actually hear their slight purring in response. 

Next is Karlsor who lets out an equally relaxed sound. “Ah thanks Kiddo. That feels amazing.”

Khopesh follows, which you give an additional kiss to the cheek as you lay the towel over his shoulders. “Rrrrrrr, lovely my lovely.”

Then Claude, who chirps. “Thank you Lullaby.” And gives you a quick squeeze. And on you go until you make it back to Olly, Cedric and Rami. 

Then you pick up some massage oil, rub it over your hands, and begin working the Ultramarine's neck and shoulders.

Your strength wasn't exceptional so your attempts to massage felt more like a kitten pushing its paws in, but he still appreciates the gesture. 

It was more for affirmation. All this. Did Astarte need oils and lotions and warm towels (oh throne the warm towels were amazing...he was so glad he asked for your help with the machine) no...

But they did need to collaborate and reaffirm bonds when there was conflict. It made their lives of constant battle even Slightly easier. Cedric and Ramiel clearly have their own rhythm established from years spent together. Even the popping and stretching of the mutual massage currently taking place seems well practiced. 

Olleanderos realizes in that moment he'd become...complacent. This world- Terra (throne he still couldn't fully believe he was here) is so peaceful. So wonderful, despite the presence of annoyances like Algeret. 

But there is Still Danger. He cannot let himself become even less vigilant. Especially not now. His eyes shift back towards you, now picking up a brush and a nice smelling hair cologne he'd picked out. 

He would not be Complacent again.

You brush Olly's short hair, and spritz a bit of the blueberry cologne he'd picked. A  warm pride fills your heart as Olly purrs quietly. 

You're about to reach for more massage oil when-

"Hold on you." 

"OOop!" You're suddenly snatched at the waist and hauled into a familiar lap. You glance up to see your cheeky Khopesh grinning down at you with his mirthful black eyes. 

"You are also meant to be getting soothed, my Lullaby. But you've buzzed around caring for each of us and not held a spot of time for yourself." He purrs, petting you softly. "Claudy please get my Lullaby's preferred nail polish. And younger cousin Olly please fetch another warm towel."

"On it." "Yes brother,"

"But I want to - ulp!" Your unfinished Boba tea was placed to your mouth by none other than Nanael. 

"You should relax and focus on finishing your drink. You've been running around all day and only just properly nourished yourself."

I mean you couldn't argue but you Liked caring for others. Khopesh takes the drink, and angles it so you can still sip. 

"Here is a hairbrush Brother Cousin Khopesh, and they mentioned enjoying the hair cologne." Jophiel said bringing those items as well. "Which scent would you prefer?"

"...Mango sounds good." You say reaching for the hairbrush on habit. 

Only for Khopesh to gently take your arm and direct it back to Claude who's grabbed the massage oil and the nail polish you picked out earlier. 

"Ah ah ah. Soothing time Lullaby. Why don't you let Brother Cousin Jophiel brush your hair instead? I am sure he'd like to return the favor you did for him."

You feel a bit like pouting but...if letting Jophie care for you would make him happy you'd oblige. "Alright." You accept your fate of being cared for. 

Soon a warm towel is placed over your shoulders, and it's now, finally sitting down without a task that you realize. 

You are So Damn Tired. 

And lying against Khopesh like this, like you've done so many times before but also not…because you're part of an even bigger family now then you ever could've hoped for…

You feel yourself beginning to drift. Even while Jophiel gently brushes your hair on one side while Nanael handles the other. Claude does one hand of nails, while Thressl massages the other arm. Olly uses his height and reach to carefully apply the clay mask to your face. Once that's done you let yourself completely slump against Khopesh, laying your head on his collarbone more or less. As you doze you hear Kerubiel, Cedric, Ramiel and Karlsor tidying up and putting things away. 

Then the room dims, and the urge to rest pulls you even further down. You feel…

Warm…

Cared for…

Safe…

“I love you as well my sweet little Lullaby.” You feel Khopesh's lips pressing gently to the bridge of your nose, you feel his body shift to lay back, effectively serving as a mattress. While the others get into their own sleeping positions in the pile. 

You snuggle in closer, mumbling a similar message back before finally giving yourself permission to rest. 

You've never felt more loved. 

…

The door to the soothing room creaks open and from the hallway silently steps an ancient creature of darkness, a proprietor of fear and terror and.. 

“Mmm? Father?” Claude mumbles, waking slightly. 

Ah yes, his most prized title. “Shhhh, it is alright Claude.” He hushes. “Go back to sleep, my son. I merely need to converse with Khopesh and Karlsor.”

The latter of which responds with a growl under his breath. “I was having a Damn good sleep so make it quick old man.” He grouses quietly, carefully getting up so as not to disturb the Scouts piled around him. 

Khopesh almost considers feigning deep sleep, but…

“Khopesh…”

Yeah, better to handle this now. Khopesh lets out a long huff, but carefully shifts you, and indeed you must be very knocked out because you barely twitch as he lays you down in the spot he was just in. 

“Mrmfm…hmm…” You mumble, shifting in your sleep. 

Khopesh's mind almost short circuits. You're so damn Cute so So So fucking Cuuuute arghgkstjebrhr! He takes a deep breath and Forces himself to turn to Anrir. 

Anrir motions for them to move to the hallway which they do. “What is it you need from us?” He asks his father. 

“In all the excitement, we neglected to properly count your vote, my son.”Anrir clarifies. “Despite your original statement on the matter I did not want to assume.”

Ah right…the vote. If he's to be fully honest. The preening and mutual care session had been so relaxing he'd actually forgotten about the Silver Bastard rotting in chains somewhere. He'd immersed himself so completely in the affirmation of his found family of Battle Brothers, and the tender affection given by you. 

He glances back to the room where you're still sleeping, through the tinted glass door. He might have continued if not for Claude suddenly twitching in his sleep. 

“Ah shit, that looks like a vision coming.” Karlsor spits quietly. “I'll get-”

“No,” Anrir says, putting an arm on Karlsor's shoulder. “Examine, but do not interfere.”

“Seriously!?” Karlsor hisses, in response. Only to balk when Anrir gives him the ‘don't argue’ look. “Fine! Geez.”

As instructed Karlsor pulls on his warp sight. He sees the Scouts auras, as well as yours as he's become accustomed to seeing and…

“Mmr-mph!” He bites his lip as he sees Claude shiver and twitch in his sleep. His Aura is flaring brighter, tell tale signs of a vision coming on hard and fast. He wants to help his Scout younger brother, but Anrir's hand on his shoulder holds him back. 

But what happens next does surprise him. 

“Mm…hrf…” He sees your brows furrow, and you turn on your side, almost like…you can sense Claude's distress. Your arm and your mycelium actually reach toward the Ravenguard Primaris and when your hand makes contact with Claude's…

“Mmph!…hrm…mmmm…zZz…” His twitching calms, his aura fades back to its usual brightness, and he turns toward your still sleeping form. Your mycelium grow brighter as they usually do when absorbing power. 

“Well shit…” Karlsor swears. “No wonder I've been sleeping so well…speaking of which…” Before he can be stopped Karlsor swiftly steps back into the soothing room and retakes his place in the sleeping arrangement. 

Anrir is not pleased with the display. “Karlsor! I require your findings.” He hisses

The shade wearing Night lord promptly ignores his father and mouths “Report Later. Fuck you it's nap time.” Before laying back amidst the comfy pile. 

He Knows he's gonna get scolded later for that, but being that he's very cozy, comfortable and Not in massive amounts of warp pain he doesn't really care. He’ll take his lumps from Anrir later, but nap time now.

Khopesh suppresses a chuckle at his father's misfortune, and his brother's antics. 

He…he loves them all so much. And he especially loves you of course. And of course…that means his answer is simple.

“Live” …But not easy. 

Anrir raises an eyebrow, and seems legitimately surprised. “Are you certain?”

“If the fool decides to cross us we can always kill him later.” Khopesh says with a shrug. “And right now…I have more important things to care for than dealing with his transgressions.”

“I am…impressed, my son.” Anrir says and he Does mean it. In the field Khopesh was like a living avatar of vengeance, his proclivity for hunts proved time and again his devotions. 

But love…it does change devotions. Anrir knew this himself. He'd burn down entire star systems for his Draga, but he also understood that to have her and her love forever as his, the opposite may also need to be true. 

It was a sincere act of maturity from his son, and for that… “Then I shall alter my vote as well.” Anrir says proudly. “The half point I put towards death will be moved to life. This way we need not worry about finding a tie breaker.” The old Nightlord explains. 

Khopesh smiles, and feels a warmth in his chest. Vada and Muti are his bonded, his adopted parents, you are his love and mate. But part of him will Never abandon his original father. The Night lord who first cut and stitched him back into being. 

Anrir gently gestures back to the room. “Go, enjoy your rest.” He says kindly. “You'll no doubt need it for what comes next.”

“Will you not join us?” Khopesh asks. 

Anrir smiles, beneath the blood and viscera truly is a sweet child in Khopesh. “Perhaps another time, there is work to be done and not all the Primaris trust me as they do you and Karlsor.”

Khopesh nods in understanding. Then he silently creeps back into the dimmed room, and lays himself next to you again, enfolding you into his embrace from behind while still letting you comfort Claude. 

He purrs as he feels your heartbeat, he hears your breath rise and fall, he listens to the similar sounds of his Battle Brothers and cousins around him. He thinks of his Vada and Muti, and feels in the comforting warmth of his bond that they are safe and sound at his other nest. Out of sight, but never out of mind. 

He is home.

[jamiesfootball]

Whumptober Day 11

Prompt: convenience store

Here on ao3

Sometimes how it goes is this:

When Jamie was really little, his mummy used to work the swing shift.

In the mornings, she had a part-time job, which he thought had something to do with cleaning although he couldn't remember for sure. After that, she would pick him up from daycare, and they'd stop home for a quick meal. Then she'd take him, his little backpack, and his kid-sized football down the street to the old woman who watched him when mummy was at work. After making him promise not to cause trouble, his mum would kiss his cheeks and wrap him in a hug so tight for so long that Jamie would grow fidgety, wriggling around in her grasp until with one final kiss she let him go.

Watching her leave, he'd instantly regret the wriggling. He'd swear to himself that next time he'd do better, and his mummy would hug him forever and never have to go to work.

Then she would leave and he'd get caught up playing footie and he'd forget all the promises he ever made his mum.

At least then he'd had the excuse of not being any older than four.

Jamie would play long into the dusk, kicking the ball repeatedly under a sign he couldn't read but that he'd been told meant that he wasn't supposed to have any fun. Once it got dark, he'd retreat inside, where his stomach would growl but he wouldn't ask for a snack because it's rude to ask for something that someone hasn't offered you, especially when they can't afford to share.

So he'd sit next to the old woman, chewing on his tongue because he also wasn't supposed to talk – "Baby, please give Moira a break for Mummy? She's doing us a favour." – and while Moira watched her shows, which were all a lot of other people talking, Jamie would daydream about where his mummy worked.

The swing shift had nothing to do with the playground – Mummy had promised – but in his imagination, it was right next to the park. In his imagination, Mummy had a chair that looked like one from their kitchen, and the chair faced the swing set and the slide Jamie wasn't allowed to go down backwards. She wasn't technically in the park, because his mummy wouldn't lie to him, but in his head, she was right along the edge by the trees. There, she'd sit in her chair, and people who looked like the talking people on TV would come up to her and order food – juice boxes and snacks, he assumed – and his mum would whip them out of her purse with the same little flourish she used when she made Jamie's toys magically reappear from behind her back.

It made him happy to think about mummy giving juice and snacks away. It made him less happy when she actually got home, when she was tired and her smile broke. When she wiped her eyes against her uniform, smearing makeup like wet soot across the floor.

"I'm fine, baby. I'm just tired."

"It's alright, love, it was only a bit of a cry. Mummy must have stubbed her toe, is all. Clumsy me."

Clutching tightly to the picture in his head of his mum smiling, Jamie would eventually fall asleep, curled up next to Moira on her smelly settee that stunk of ash and perfume and nothing like home.

Really late, once all the news people finally shut up, he'd wake up to his mummy whispering at the front door. Half-asleep with dreams clouding his eyes, he'd stumble across the floor and into her legs, burying his face against her thigh with desperate eagerness. She'd take his shoes and his bag and his ball from Moira, and with one big heft, she'd add Jamie to her armful of burdens. With his slight but growing form balanced against her hip, his socked feet swaying in the wind, his mum would start them down the short, dark road to their house.

Unless it was payday. Payday was always special, but first it was awful.

On payday, he'd spring awake the second he heard his mum giggling at the door. With two bags of groceries at her feet, she'd pass over a red and grey carton of cigarettes – her payment to Moira for taking Jamie off her hands.

The old woman would rip open the carton and slide her one of the packs right back.

"Jam? You good, baby? We'll be right outside. Moira and I are just going to chat for a few minutes."

A few minutes, but to him it seemed to last a few days or weeks or even centuries, maybe. Restless after his nap, Jamie would lie on the settee, poking his fingers through the holes of the crochet blanket. Sometimes he'd gnaw on his football, still covered in dirt and grit from the road, dragging his teeth across the surface until it caught against the seams. Mummy didn't like it when he did that, but to catch him doing it she'd have to come inside and find him. He wasn't allowed outside when they were smoking, so he'd wait, antsy and bored, while his mum and Moira caught up, the occasional peal of hysterical laughter erupting from the other side of the door.

Sometimes Jamie fell back asleep, and his mum would have to wake him with a gentle shake of the shoulders to tell him it was time to go.

This was the special part.

First, Jamie would put on his backpack. Then, his mum would grab his shoes, too resigned to her son's insistence that his feet were the strongest feet in the world – or, in retrospect, too exhausted at the prospect of trying to show Jamie how to tie his shoes twice in one day.

They would each take a grocery bag. Her, the heavy stuff; mostly cans and eggs and milk, but sometimes sliced meats, cold from Moira's fridge if the chats ran long. For Jamie, his bag was light; a few boxes and bread and the bag of crisps mummy swore she couldn't live without. Nothing breakable. Nothing fragile arms could make more fragile.

Together, they'd walk home. This was the part Jamie loved.

Cold nights; warm nights; foggy nights. Empty nights; nights with cheering from the houses they passed. Nights with noises, figures in the dark that'd stop talking when they saw him and mummy walk by.

Sometimes, the figures were scary. He didn't like the way his mum would fall into step behind him, the hand holding his shoes wrapped around his shoulders and her low whisper to drop his stuff and run ahead if she told him to.

But he was roughly, maybe, four years old, still a few years away from understanding the sort of danger his mum feared, only understanding that when they got home, they had to call Moira; and if mummy wasn't with him, he had to knock on their neighbour's door and ask them to call Moira.

None of that mattered when he was four. When he was four, what mattered was this: for a few minutes, him and his mum would walk home together in a world made of mostly dark. With his precious responsibility clutched to his chest – a paper bag at risk from childishly careless arms – he would dance circles around his mummy, filling the air with his own one-sided chat about everything he hadn't had the chance to tell her before, in the short shuffle between daycare, home, and Moira's. Thinking himself very clever, he'd insist on circling every lamppost they passed, just to stretch out the night a little longer.

For that five minute walk that took ten minutes, he had his mummy all to himself.

He was four years old, give or take.

He'd not had any reason to think of it from her point of view. To wonder if maybe, having gone from one job to another with only a small break between, she might be tired. He didn't think much of the scary voices, not once they were out of earshot. He didn't even wonder at the groceries, or that she'd gone directly from work to the store. Hours on her feet, and then she'd gone and done the shopping. That the only store still open at that hour was the corner shop.

Jamie is twenty-five now.

He's standing in a convenience store at 4am and wondering how, after all of that, his mother could bring herself to love him.

Shopping alone at night when no one else is up is a lonely business.

Jamie eyes his choices. Juice boxes and snacks.

The refrigerated case in front of him has juice, but Jamie's not allowed it, so he grabs a bottled water instead.

He was already at the park, waiting along the edge by the benches, when Roy texted him that he had to cancel their morning training. Something to do with his niece and his sister, who's either in hospital or works at the hospital, Jamie doesn't know. He doesn't know what's too personal. He doesn't know where the line is.

He'll run his mouth through training – chattering and running circles around Roy up until the point he physically can't – but sometimes this truce they've struck with Roy coaching him feels like it's balanced on a knife's edge. Like they're both just waiting for Jamie to be the one to tip it over, even though he's not the one who starts it half the time. Even though Roy's the old, grouchy bastard full of mixed signals, the signs that Jamie couldn't read that he'd been told meant he wasn't supposed to have any fun. That's never stopped him before.

But given his situation with the team, with the coaches, with Zava–

Jamie needs to do better.

So he's walking past the snack displays, past his mum's favourite brand of crisps, and he's grabbing a couple energy bars that barely scrape over the line of his nutrition requirements, because he's still going to train this morning. Usually his coach brings his snacks. That, or he let's Jamie trail home after him for breakfast. Jamie never asked him to do that. It's rude to ask people to share more than they're willing to offer.

Looking down at his energy bars while the cashier rings him up, Jamie resigns himself to the fact that they're not going to taste as good as the ones Roy shares from his pockets. He didn't used to understand why his mum would hand over the entire carton of cigarettes instead of taking a pack out for herself first, but he gets it now.

The cashier doesn't offer him a bag, paper or otherwise. Jamie stuffs his bottled water and his energy bars into his hoodie pocket, and when he pushes his way out through the door, the chill from the glass isn't enough to prepare him for the brittle cold that greets him outside.

The chill isn't colder in London, the same way he knows the dark isn't darker. The opposite, if anything. But London bites worse than Manchester, probably because it isn't as cold. If it were, Jamie could simply layer up; less, and he wouldn't need layers at all. He's used to being frostbitten a certain way. Anything less, and it's hard to tell if he's being gnawed on at all.

He bounces on his feet, trying to get his blood pumping as he considers which direction to take off in first. Lampposts beckon in either direction; beyond that, trees teeth along the edge of the park.

The only scary voice shouting at him from the dark these days is the one Jamie willingly jogs out to meet each morning. That doesn't stop him from looking over his shoulder as he takes off in a light sprint.

The bottled water bounces in his pocket. His shoes drum out a steady thump-thump-thump on the pavement as he settles into a familiar beat. It's the same route he's run a hundred times, and with every stride, a dense certainty builds in him like a fog – that all he's done is found a way to tread the same path over the ghostly footprints of the old one.

He's four and he's waiting to go home. He's twenty-five and he's never learned how to settle the hunger in his chest. He has a foot stuck on either side, straddling the small kid with the backpack and the grown adult who can carry his own burdens.

He's staring at his life through the holes of a crochet blanket, unable to see the whole picture for what it is. Like there's some piece hiding in the middle, some piece of him that's been here the whole time, and if he could just find it, then the two halves would finally snap into one picture.

Until then, he's stuck in a life constantly looping back in a circle.

Until then, he'll run as man laps as he has to, until he's tired and aching and sore on his feet.

He wishes Roy would be there on the bench waiting for him after training. He wishes he'd slide him over a snack.

The way it goes is sometimes you're small and the world is endlessly big and impossible to grasp and you're Jamie Tartt, telling yourself bedtime stories about a mother while you wait for her to come home.

Sometimes you're big and the world is endlessly big and impossible to grasp and you're Jamie Tartt, and you thought something would be different by now, but instead somehow somehow you're still waiting, caught between then and now, two images layered over the other, because the past is the thing you're always carrying with you, and you can't help gnawing on the seams, waiting for the day to break open and all the light floods in.

Or maybe you’re Jamie Tartt, and it’s 4am, and your life hasn’t turned out exactly the way you wanted yet. There's nothing for it now except to jog into the ready darkness; keep his chattering in his chest and an eye towards the shadows at his back; and, when he passes them by, circle every lamppost.

[wooahaes]

out for delivery

pairing: none? non-idol!svt with a mention of gn!reader

prompt: that one post i made about reader asking for them to send their cutest delivery guy

genre: comedy. this is just silly stuff teehee

word count: 1.4k~

warnings: food mentions. svt arguing about who is the cutest. i didnt proofread this at all btw its just supposed to be silly goofy fun.

daisy’s notes: this has been in my drafts for over two months.

Junhui was the one who read off your order to the others, only to stop when he saw the special instruction in the delivery spot: send ur cutest guy, pls. 

Of course, being someone with access to the internet, Jun had heard of this kind of thing before. People who throw in instructions like that for fun, or people who ask for things to be drawn on their to-go boxes (he always did those when they popped up--his art skills might not be perfect, but he can draw a little cat saying ‘enjoy your food!’ any day), or sometimes the occasional message from someone to another (the ‘person loves you’ or ‘person says to get well soon’ kind of deal). But this? Here? Well...

“Which one of us is the cutest?” He mused aloud, catching Jeonghan’s attention as he stepped away from the kitchen to wipe the sweat off his brow.

“What?”

Jun nodded toward the screen and your specific instruction. “They asked for a cute delivery guy. Who’s working today?”

Jeonghan paused, musing on the question. “Soonyoung, Wonwoo, Vernon,” he listed off, although he continued to wrack his brain to see if that Namjoon guy was in as well. Nah--Maybe on the weekend when they’re busier and need the extra hands, but three already is kind of overkill as it is.

(Not that any of them are complaining, that is: they’re still getting some sort of payment for all of this.)

“It doesn’t say cutest delivery guy,” Jeonghan said. “Just our cutest guy.”

Seungcheol looked up from his clipboard as he came back, brow raised. “Me?”

Jeonghan scoffed, rolling his eyes. “Obviously, I’m the cutest one here. I’ll make it.”

It was at this point that they’d started gathering the attention of everyone currently in (which, today, had been everyone except for Soonyoung, who was still out on a delivery across the city).

Seungcheol stared at him, “You don’t work delivery--”

“So?” Jeonghan said. “I don’t mind going--”

“You don’t, either,” Jun piped up. “I could run if I need to--”

Seungkwan was finally the one to speak up, “What are you talking about?”

For a moment, the three said nothing. If everyone got into this conversation, it’d be an all-out bloodbath, especially with Seungkwan taking part. Yet Wonwoo, who had been sitting nearby, enjoying his few minutes of rest after his own series of deliveries, looked up.

“Someone asked for a cute delivery guy, and they’re debating about it,” he shrugged, looking back at his phone--although the tiny smile on his face was still evident. The rotten fucker--

“I can go,” Joshua spoke up, as if he wasn’t literally working on your order alongside Mingyu. “Just gimme a sec, I’ll change shirts.”

Seokmin, who had been busy rolling out pizza dough, looked up. “Is this really a debate? I think we all know I’m the cutest one here...”

“Both of you work in the kitchens,” Seungcheol said, “you can’t leave.”

“All of us are in today, and it’s slow right now,” Chan said, already washing his hands of flour, ready to remove his apron in a moment. “You guys won’t miss me.”

“Who said you were going?!” Seungkwan whipped around, “If anyone goes, it should be me! Everyone who comes in tells points out how cute I am!”

Mingyu looked up, a cocky smile tugging at his lips. “Who gets asked out the most here?”

Silence. The motherfucker...

And then Minghao looked up. “They said cutest. Not hottest. Which eliminates all of you--”

“I’m very cute!” Seungkwan huffed, “That’s why it should be me.”

Vernon looked up from his phone, yet another delivery boy who probably should just take the order when it’s ready. “I dunno. I think I’m pretty cute. I could do it. Plus,” he shrugged, “kind of my job--”

“You’re hot and you know it,” Jeonghan spoke up. “Hao has a point. They requested the cutest guy--which means it’s down to Seungkwan, Chan, and I.”

Minghao scoffed, rolling up his sleeves. “Just you three?”

Mingyu had thrown an arm around Jihoon’s shoulders, dragging him from his quiet spot of observation straight into the conversation. “Jihoon should be included, too.”

“Oh? What if this person flirts with him?” Jeonghan chuckled. “They’re paying in cash and Jihoon would probably walk off without it.”

Jihoon’s face turned red. “I’m not that bad--”

“You almost did it last time you had to work the window.”

“They were too upfront!” Jihoon huffed, his face slowly turning red. “If they had said to you what they said to me, you’d run, too! That’s why Jun had to take over!”

“They said you had pretty eyes!”

Jihoon’s face burned with embarrassment. “It was the way they said it...”

As if in his own world, Jun quietly mused aloud, “I think I’m pretty cute,” as he continued looking over the order again.

“And if Jun’s cute, then I’m cute.” Joshua wiped his hands down his apron, turning back. “Jun, does the order say anything else?”

He shook his head. The only note you had put in was the note they were debating about now: send ur cutest guy, pls. Nothing more, nothing less. Hell, none of them even knew why you’d asked for their cutest guy. Was it a joke? Were you kind of desperate for something? Was this going to be the really bad intro to a porno? The questions persisted.

Seungcheol had been the one who pulled your pizza from the oven when it was time, boxing it up and carefully sealing it. “Who’s delivering it?”

Immediately, several people had volunteered.

He rolled his eyes. “Wonwoo, Vernon--”

“I’ll do it,” Seungkwan insisted further. “They asked for someone cute!”

Vernon raised his brows. “Dude, what the hell--”

“You know you’re hot, shut up.” Seungkwan turned. “If they want someone cute, then it’s only between a few of us. Not including Jeonghan.”

Jeonghan gasped, turning around as he pressed a hand to his chest. “I’m angelic--”

“That’s a lie and you know it!”

The bell chimed as Soonyoung made his way in, going completely ungreeted as the conversation continued. He looked to Wonwoo, who merely shrugged in exchange before watching as Minghao began to make the very well formulated argument that he was the cutest (his fairy-like giggle was direct proof, in his own words--the others called him cute all the time for it). Which caused Seungcheol to argue back that if he was including laughs as evidence, then his own could count because plenty of people found it endearing. Soonyoung said nothing, walking over to where the orders were as he began looking through them for another delivery since his break would come later tonight.

“I’m not saying your laugh isn’t cute,” Seungcheol said, “I’m saying you can’t use it as proof when all of us have cute laughs!”

“Some of you sound like a hyena,” Minghao rolled his eyes, “and some of you are too ‘hot’ to be cute! You talk about how handsome you are all the time--”

“Stop, you’ll make him pout,” Jeonghan chuckled from nearby, “and then he’ll really start insisting he’s the cutest of us.”

The bell chimed again, and Jun merely glanced up to see that it was only Soonyoung leaving. He turned back. “People tell me I’m cute. I’m carefree.”

“Childish cute doesn’t count,” Seungkwan said, lips pursed. “I’m cute because of my mannerisms.”

“The same mannerisms you get mad at Soonyoung for imitating,” Seokmin muttered under his breath, only to earn a deadly glare from Seungkwan. “You do!”

Wonwoo looked back down at his phone, wondering if he should have been recording this entire conversation. “I think I’m cute.”

“One of us has to go,” Joshua spoke up, “before their food gets cold. And I think I should do it because I’ll be the fastest--”

“Dude,” Vernon looked up. “I’m pretty fast on my bike.”

“It’s a bike, we’d all be fast  on it,” Minghao scoffed. “Why aren’t one of them doing it?” Minghao gestured toward Wonwoo and Vernon. “They’re the delivery boys!”

“Still on break,” Wonwoo said without looking up, “for another few minutes.” 

Seungcheol opened his mouth to say something--probably about how one of their breaks had already ended by now.

“Also, Soonyoung just left with it,” Wonwoo added casually enough.

Immediately, several pairs of eyes went to where the order had been left... and sure enough, it was gone.

And then chaos ensued, and Wonwoo hid yet another smile as he listened to several people bemoan that little factoid. Yet Soonyoung was pedaling away, completely lost as to what had gone down while he was gone.

(And when he showed up, bragging about the huge tip that you had given him while laughing about the fact the others had been arguing... Well. They knew what was going to happen the next time you threw in that special request.)

taglist: @twancingyunhao​ @synthetickitsune​ @gyulbabie​ @wonuziex​

[staytinyville]

OUTLAW (7)

ATEEZ ot8 X Reader

Cowboy AU / Wild West

Series Masterlist

Warnings: None

A/N Double update for the day because I didn't get to it yesterday. Chapter 8 will be posted later today (for me). I didn't get to writing a chapter and it bothers me when I don't have one ready on time. I like to have a few chapters written for just in case.

It was rather quick that your parents seemed to have hired the boys. They didn’t really question much of where they came from or why they were looking for work in your establishment. The only person they did question was you. 

Why didn’t you say anything? How did you meet them? How long have you known them? Do they have someone waiting for them at home? That was from your mother. 

You worked with Soenghwa for the most part. Yeosang was too busy in the backroom going over inventory and the money the hotel makes during the day. He also kept tabs of the guests list and their payments. Seonghwa worked at the bar in the saloon, occasionally making food the guests ordered. However with it being Friday, the bar was packed with people laughing and de-stressing from the week. 

“Thank you, (Y/N).” Seonghwa’s fingers grazed your hand as you handed him some empty glasses that needed to be washed. 

“You're welcome, Seonghwa.” You smiled. “Table three wants more whiskey.”

“Coming right up.” His dazzling grin made you blush, if only for the fact that he was a good looking man. He would make any woman flustered. 

“You've been such a great help, boy!” Your father patted him on the back. “Weekends are usually packed with travelers or the townsfolk who claim we have the best drinks. You're really making us stand out!”

“You got yourself one hell of a looker!” A man at the bar praised Seonghwa. “All the women would be lining up to take a glimpse at your new hire, (F/N)!”

“Thank you.” Seonghwa bashfully told him. 

The room went quiet for just a moment, some of the patrons had stopped talking to look towards the entrance of the bar. Yunho and Jongho both walked in, casually making their way over to the seats open at the bar. 

“Officers.” The man who was complimenting Seonghwa greeted, tipping his glass. 

The two men greeted the other back, moving to look over the available drinks. It was the first time they had ever gone down to the bar to sit and have a drink. You would assume it was because it was Seonghwa’s first day working there. Maybe they felt a bit more at ease with someone they knew. 

“Say, do you guys know how long you're going to be here?” The man continued. “All the people are wondering why officers from the big city are snooping in our area.”

You paused your washing of cups, but quickly went back so as to not seem like you were eavesdropping. However, looking around the bar it seemed you weren’t the only one who was interested in the conversation. 

Jongho and Yunho took a moment to look at each other before moving to take the glasses that Seonghwa had put in front of them. You realized that they didn’t even vocalize their preference of alcohol but no one else did. Seonghwa probably didn’t even realize he had given them something to drink subconsciously. 

“There have been sightings of outlaws nearby.” You took a glance at Seonghwa. “We've been sent to investigate.”

Yunho answered the man. “With that being said, should you come across any wanted man. Please be sure to tell us. We have orders from the higher ups to catch them ourselves.” He turned to the rest of the bar, calling out to those who were watching him. 

“What if we want the reward!?” Someone slurred from the crowd. 

“You can have a try but just know you will be considered a criminal as well for obstructing the law.” Jongho shrugged, looking over the area.

No one dared to make another statement after that. However there was a lot of talk about the outlaws. People would whisper about how they needed to buy more ammunition for their weapons just in case these outlaws were to come into town. How they needed to keep their wives and daughters from going out so late in the night to prevent something terrible. 

As the night progressed, the bar slowly grew to be less packed. However you would conclude that it was rather late at night when the bar dwindled down to cleaning up. The men were sure worried about their wives and daughters but they didn’t seem to mind if they left drunk at 3 in the morning. You would work around the two men who had passed out on their tables, knowing that your father would be the one to deal with them in the end. 

Yeosang had come in earlier in the night to tell Seonghwa that he was leaving. You wanted to question where it was they were staying but you knew better. Curiosity kills the cat, you know the saying. In your case, you knew it would most definitely kill you. 

The only people left in the bar, aside from the two men passed out drunk, were Seonghwa, Jongho, Yunho and you. Your father had gone to take the empty bottles out back, leaving you alone with the three men. 

“You keep staring at the piano.” You told Seonghwa as you placed the last of the glasses where they went. “Do you play?”

“Not since I was a teen. It's been a while.” The man told you.

You moved things to the side, looking over at Seonghwa for a moment. “Could you play something?” You asked him, giving him a small smile. “I'd like to hear.”

You heard a snort come from Yunho and when you glanced at the two officers, you could see the large grins they were sporting. They looked at Seonghwa expectantly, just the tad bit tipsy from nursing their drinks for so long. 

“Sure.” Seonghwa moved around the bar, making his way to the upright piano.

You and the boys moved to stand behind the man, watching as he seemed to look over the keys for a moment before touching the instrument. You had been so used to listening to your grandfather play such uptempo songs that it felt like something had been lifted off your shoulders the moment Seonghwa started playing. 

It was some classical song, one that didn’t fit the theme of the bar. It soothed others to sleep and brought a light headed feeling. It made you smile, taking a seat to listen more carefully to the man playing. You felt the song wasn’t long enough when Seonghwa played the last of the notes. 

“It's been a while since I've heard you play.” Yunho told his friend.

“It's been a while since we've heard any kind of music.” Jongho explained, taking the last sip of the beer he was holding. 

“Wish the others were here.” Seonghwa smiled sadly.

It had been a while since you had seen the others all together, but it seemed to you like they were starting to let their guards down. At least, enough to relax and enjoy where they are. Yunho and Jongho didn’t seem to be as stiff as when they came in. The example of them coming down to the bar for the first time came to mind. While Yeosang and Seonghwa were already the calm two of the group, they too looked like they weren’t struggling as much as when you met them a week ago. 

“Do you all enjoy music?” You asked, scooting in closer to the piano.

“It’s what brought us together.” Soenghwa answered. “Captain was the one who started everything.”

“We weren’t always a group of criminals.” Seonghwa sighed, fingers drifting over the keys.

Your eyes drifted over the three, watching as Yunho and Jongho seemed to be laughing to themselves, the alcohol getting to them. Well to Yunho because it seemed as though Jongho had a great handle on himself. If you didn’t know about their occupation you would assume they were like all the other men your age who came and went through the hotel. 

They looked like they were stress free as though they weren’t going around causing trouble for a lot of people. You didn’t know their stories, but hearing from Seonghwa that they weren’t who everyone claimed to be, you wanted to know all about them. 

“I couldn’t imagine.” You calmly told him.

“Us not being criminals?” Yunho called out.

“Being criminals. None of you look like you want to be.” You confessed.

 “Because we aren’t. Not when we help the less fortunate.” Jongho crossed his arms, leaning back in the chair.

Your mind began to wander around his words. You remembered the story about the robbery that took place in the town over with Harthorne. Everyone knew he wasn’t the kindest of people and was really stingy with his money. He hoarded it, not daring to spend more than he needed to. Everyone knew he was a spoiled man who didn’t lift a finger to help those who needed it. 

You figured it was them who had taken the money from Harthorne. The men at the bar didn’t tell you more about what the gang did with the money but if they claim to not be criminals you wouldn’t be off put to know where it must have gone. There was a story about a man who knew how to use a bow and arrow. He would take from the rich and give to the poor. You wondered if they had read it as well.

“You take from the rich-”

“And give to the poor.” Seonghwa ended.

“That changes things, doesn’t it?” You grinned.

“You scared?” Seonghwa teased.

He gave you a grin, which made you flush again. Yunho had leaned closer to you while Jongho waited for you to speak. There was a time when you would glare back at men who made you so flustered. You would often retort with something stupid that would cause them offense for how unladylike you spoke. However you weren’t there to make them like you. They weren’t people you needed to impress.

“Of the Park Seonghwa?” You chuckled. “Not anymore. Not after that beautiful display you just put on.”

“You should hear Yeosang play the violin. He is a master.” Seonghwa praised his friend.

They cared deeply for each other, that much was noticeable. Maybe looking at them from afar they did look like hoodlums who would shiv you because you looked at them wrong. Or in most of their cases would seduce you into their beds and leave you the next day. 

But within themselves they held each other in high regards. You saw it in the way they spoke about their captain. How they cared about each other when two of them were injured. You knew they were all they had, with being in a gang. Not many people would open their arms for them. They were a family. And it brought a smile to your face to know they weren’t the criminals people claimed they were. 

You smiled brightly. “I’ll hold him to that.”

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