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[critter-creature-or-beast]

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[waylamia]

Fears (Crash and Collapse)

recommended listening: Spiracle by Flower Face

"Hey." He interjects, voice the same sort of steady and soft he uses on the street cats. "Yeah?" You cut the ignition. "Come sit down." He braces for freefall. "...Why?" And still, you fight for a controlled descent. "Just cuz." He shrugs, less an effort to be nonchalant and more an admission that, really, he thinks it should be obvious.

--> You're struggling to keep it together. Caleb has to make it worse before you'll let him make it better.

reader experience notes: reader is MC, and is waiting on the results of the hunter exam (20-22? probably?), MC/reader is gender neutral and not physically described.

content: hurt/comfort. spoilers and significant discussion of Skyline tender moment. manipulative Caleb because it makes me hard who said that. erm. I cried while writing this so just. warning for that. could very well be a skill issue. very much projecting my personal inability to let anyone help me until im at the very end of my rope onto MC (and. by extension. YOU. 🫵) pipsqueak usage as per usual.

Last fic I gave you MC being a little shit. This fic I give you Caleb being a little shit. Next fic? More of that probably. tbh. Lots of life going on in my life at the moment. Lots of uncertainty and insecurity. Caleb to cope. You know how it is. peace sign emoji.

approx. 7k words (me try to be brief challenge. failed. as per usual.)

also on AO3 (available to registered users only.)

You got really into horror sometime in your early teens.

The first time you suggest an old slasher for your weekly movie night Caleb is...mildly surprised. He's always known you to be someone who picks up their pace juuust a little when passing by a party store animatronic. The type of person who jumped when approached from behind.

It's not that you're a big baby-much as he teases you for it, much as he'd like it-it's just that you've always been a little... sensitive. Easy to startle, with a wildly active imagination. Still, he doesn't need to puzzle long over your newfound interest to figure it out. You'd been on a kick, for a while by then, trying to prove yourself. It was one of those things you didn't talk about. One of those things he just knew. Same way he knew this film choice of yours was gonna be a problem for you.

He just didn't anticipate the problem it was going to be for him, too.

-

You only just beat him to the punch suggesting you visit him at the DAA before your hunter exam. He'd already been planning on coming home after the fact, knowing in exact terms how wrapped up in your own head you could get, the damage you could do to yourself in complete quiet. Were his schedule not so tight he would've taken the week of and before to be with you, too. To help you study and prep your meals and keep you from spinning out. But he couldn't, not with back to back missions from the administration. As it stood he could hardly find the time to call or text or order you delivery. Honestly it'd been making him twitch.

He's had to settle for hoping that, in the single day he would see you before the exam, he'd be able to instill enough confidence in you to make up for the absence. Remind you that you've always been able to carve yourself a flight path through the wind shear.

He had thought that, with it being your suggestion to make the trip, you'd be willing to let him help.

That quickly proves not to be the case.

All day you've avoided the problem, all day he's let you. Ever ready and willing to bend to your desires, to meet your needs. That, unfortunately, is the crux of the issue. He could see it on your face. That the thought of the exam never really left you, yes, but more importantly that you had something you desperately wanted to say. You've been playing it very cool and he's sure, under the scrutiny of any other's gaze you would come across as completely composed. But Caleb knows every single one of your tells. Bags under your eyes, the way your gaze would drift, go distant, fall to nothing along with your falling expression. That minuscule catching of your breath at any mention of it, your fidgety fingers, your too fast talking.

All tells and no telling.

For all the plain-as-day he can see you, you still adamantly refuse to acknowledge it. To let him in. To let him help. It's a recurring problem between you two, and he knows he's every bit as guilty.

'More guilty!' your voice, in the back of his head. 'More guilty and way, way worse!'

He chooses to write it off as shyness. Not with him, never with him, but from being out in the open, at his place of work, under the observation of his colleagues. Surely that is what is responsible the staying of your tongue.

But when he draws you away, not into any real privacy-you have an uncanny ability to sense when you are being cornered-but onto the landing strip-and into your shared memory-and you still won't reveal your fears aloud? He can't help but to rake through every missed call, every too short text, every day not spent with you, and wonder which was responsible for cauterizing the vein that pumps blood from your heart to his. Which of his failures saw the knot tying your brain stems together untangling?

It's all backwards, he thinks. These things are supposed to get easier with age. But the older he gets, the older you get, the more distance between you, the more he knows something's coming-

Every separation feels final. He thought he had more time.

He does, at least today. He's finally able to coax it out of you, in the midst of reminiscing, on the runway. Even though he can still see the undercurrent of anxiety in your eyes, he's able to settle with your exclamation of belief in yourself as a landing plane roars overhead. He shakes his thoughts loose, leaves them out in the air to be consumed by the jet engine, breathes.

'I'll make you proud, too!'

'You already have.'

Breathes only for you to scream out a wish that steals the air from his lungs again. The one thing that he's found increasingly intolerable to grant you.

He's spent a whole life bargaining, with himself, and with you, and so he raises his wish to your own.

The land and the sky, and the horizon line where they meet.

'Little seagull in my next life, promise me you won't disappear again.'

You're going to be just fine. He'd decided it years ago. So even when he...

You're going to be fine.

And, you'll pass your exam on the first try, too. Truthfully, he's never had any doubt.

-

That first, daring movie night goes exactly how he expects it to. Your 13 year old, impulsive self sits through the entirety of it trying very hard not to look tense at his side. Suppressing startled movements at jumpscares and playing off every escaping jolt with a laugh about aging effects. He's impressed by the show you put on, even with his ability to see so clearly behind the curtain of it. He would love to tell you that he's always impressed with you, that you're plenty tough, because its true. And he would tell you, if it weren't for the part of him that didn't want you to know. The part of him that maybe wishes you weren't.

That... sounds bad doesn't it?

He doesn't... not want you to be tough. He doesn't wish you weren't strong. Proves it every day by helping you get stronger. Mentally, physically, emotionally. He knows he won't always be there to protect you. It's that he takes issue with. Every day you push yourself, to the extent he encourages and then beyond that. He wishes you wouldn't. Wishes you didn't have to.

All his life trying to be big enough for the both of you to fit in. All of yours trying to wriggle out of the cavity in his chest. To hold his hand, to match his pace... fundamentally, he understands.

He's just... trying to find a way to be ok with it.

Certainly hasn't made it there yet by the time the credits roll. He looks you over, equal parts curious and concerned for your state of mind, and is unsurprised to see his original assumption proven right. Instead of your usual, post-film, deep-into-the-night exhaustion he's met with wide awake eyes, flickering glances around the room, and fidgeting fingers.

Yuuup. You're scared. It's a matter of course that he knows.

So he stays up with you. Doesn’t call it what it is and doesn't bother to make you either, just claims he’s craving apple cider before dragging you into the kitchen to help him make it. By the time you're finished with the preparing and consuming of the beverage late-in-the-night has turned to early-in-the-morning. Your eyes now blinking shut at increasing intervals, head drooping only to shoot quickly upright. Caleb is sure to see you tucked into bed before making for his own. He figures that'll be the end of it. That next week will find the pair of you back to family friendly flicks and the odd action film, and the memory of warm apple cider and poorly covered laughter will overwrite that of the gore and fear.

It wouldn't be the first time you've forgotten.

-

When Caleb finally makes it home you're in a worse state than he left you.

Your exam has come and passed. All that's left is your hoping that you will too.

...He knows it's bad when you start in on the rambling. Knows that the mile a minute your mouth is running is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what is rumbling and roiling in your head. Glacial mass primed to be overturned. So he's careful, in the way he works around you, all movement steady and slow. Every step intentional, focused. A counterbalance to your pacing, your waving arms and sudden stops. The calm and the storm, equal in their challenge of each other.

"-honestly I think she'd be making the right call. I mean we'll be busy-or, well, hopefully we'll be busy and she's really not going to have time to be dealing with a side job anyways. She likes it well enough, obviously, but being a hunter is more important to her so as soon as she-if- ugh, no. It's Tara. She's so smart, she's going to pass, of course. And she's stubborn. So when-" You nudge a glass off of the side table as you continue your march back and forth in front of the couch.

Caleb catches it with his evol without even turning to look. Ushers the narrowly spared thing to the distant dining room table, as he drapes the big, cozy leopard print blanket over the couch cushions. He hums along as you continue speaking.

"-and anyways I know the corner store owner likes to treat the neighborhood kids to free ice cream on the weekends it just like, and this sucks obviously, but from a business standpoint I'm worried that-"

The big apple pillow, that calming tea you like steaming on the coffee table, that terrible animated movie you loved as a kid endlessly repeating its menu music on the tv screen. He nods, satisfied with his work, and plops down on the far end of the couch. Fluffing the empty space beside him as you press singlemindedly, obliviously on.

"-Gran has been working too much, again. I don't know why she works at all really. I mean I know why I guess. I just hoped that maybe- Well, when I- If. I mean. Or if not, then- next year at least, hopefully-"

Ok. That's enough.

"Hey." He interjects, voice the same sort of steady and soft he uses on the street cats.

"Yeah?" You cut the ignition.

"Come sit down." He braces for freefall.

"...Why?" And still, you fight for a controlled descent.

"Just cuz." He shrugs, less an effort to be nonchalant and more an admission that, really, he thinks it should be obvious.

It feels every bit like coaxing a cornered animal. Some frightened little thing that doesn't know that you mean well, all raised hair and hissing and averse to surrendering to open, waiting arms. Unknowing that a moment of stillness and calm is all that stands between it and warmth, shelter, and care.

But you aren't a cornered animal and you know exactly how well he means. Which leaves your peace, or lack thereof, to be determined entirely by your own whims and will. In this matter, you seem to be particularly unwilling.

Usually it's enough for him just to ask. For him to just softly say the words. Not today.

"I'm fine." You say. Liar.

"I didn't say you weren't." His brows raise, he's never liked it when you get defensive, it makes him anxious. Ground proximity warning. Missed call. 'Evol Monitoring Experiment will now commence'. Your bedroom door slamming shut.

Tolling bell.

"You're implying it." You cross your arms over your chest, defiant and irritated. He blinks, in lieu of rolling his eyes.

"I'm not implying anything, just come sit." He pats the space beside him on the sofa, brushes over the plush blanket encouragingly. You remain unmoved. "pips, sit down."

"I do not need you to tell me what to do." You bite out, bristling at his insistence. "You're stressing me out." You're losing altitude. His gaze cuts to meet yours.

"I think you're stressing yourself out." And he's going down with you.

You look like you're trying not to say something mean, and he hates it. How many times has he told you to tell him exactly what you're thinking? He can take it. He wants to.

"You need to sit down and try to stop thinking for a few minutes. The exam results will be posted on schedule. You won't speed up the clock by talking faster." He's teasing, and he knows it's the wrong call, even before he starts to say it. But he's desperate, and he knows you.

And so, he knows, with you like this...

"Obviously I know that! If you're tired of listening to me just say that. I'm not trying to ruin your time home by being a complete fucking mess." Tail spin. Good. Now, you can release the controls, and let him stabilize you.

"Woah woah hold on, hey. I'm not tired of listening to you. I'm never tired of listening to you." He shoots up, speaking in a gentle, if not a little frantic, tone, covers the distance between you in two sweeping steps. "I'm never tired of you, period. And you aren't ruining anything-" He grasps at your hands, only for you to jerk violently away. Breathing heavy and ragged.

"...Pips." You won't raise your head, completely refusing to look at him. Your arms are folded over your chest, hands shaking where they dig into the meat of you. He knows you're blinking back tears, he just knows.

"Pips, come on, come sit and we can talk about it, okay?" Why won't you just let go.

"I... think I'm gonna go lay down, actually." With the sentence barely choked out, you turn tail to your room, each of your echoing steps away a blade digging into the parts of him he always, and only, leaves exposed to you.

Caleb sits alone in the living room for a long while, steadying the knife as it twists. He knows you want to cry. And now, he knows you won't. Not when you know he's around to hear.

You want to do this, to get through this, alone.

The thought makes something bubble up in him. Like tar. Dark and wretched and thick. He'd left you on your own too long, left you with too much time to idle and fester, and he's being punished for it.

Its only a little bit past noon, but he's sure he won't see you again until dinner. So he might as well get started on it.

-

Caleb is on alert the moment he hears the quiet creak of you slowly pulling open your bedroom door. Doesn’t matter how late it is, how deep he is into sleep, he is always hyperaware of your presence in the house. Sometimes, he’d swear he could hear you breathing beyond the barrier of the door, the walls. Many times he’s come running to your bedside at an imagined hitch in your breath, only to find you peacefully asleep. He worries that you have nightmares. That somewhere, inside, your brain or your heart remembers. Tonight, at least, he’s certain that that isn’t what’s gotten you up. Your little feet pad across the floor of the hall, sound dampened by fuzzy socks and considerate caution, they stop just outside his door. Everything is silent and still. You’ve always been a polite kid. He wishes you wouldn’t be, with him. He’s tried to lead by example, barging into your room unannounced just to pester you and then go again, door open. The lesson never seems to stick. Because here you are, terrified and in the dark and still just standing outside the door, trying to figure out if he's still awake. In his mind’s eye he sees you with your ear leaned into it, careful not to brace your hands against it, lest the cracked thing fall the rest of the way open. It's always left a little bit open for you. In case you need him.

You should know better, by now, than to bother listening for any signs of activity. He can imagine your brow all furrowed, mouth curved into a frown at the silence beyond his door. He suppresses a grumble of irritation. He knows you feel guilty for how late movie night kept you both up-despite the fact that the extension of it was all his idea and-as far as you know-in service of his own desires-and that you don’t want to risk disturbing his rest further. He's yet to figure out how to make you stop thinking about stupid things like that. Caleb sits up in his bed, grabs a book off of his nightstand, flips it open, and summons his evol to pluck a pen out of the cup on his desk to drop on the floor. The clatter of it just audible enough for you to hear from beyond the barrier of the door. Only then do you press it open and speak. "...Caleb? Are you awake?"

He hums an affirmative and you push through the gap in the door, closing it behind you just as quietly as you’d entered, before turning back to him. "...why are you reading in the dark?" You ask accusingly. "What are you still doin up? don't you have an early day tomorrow?" He pokes at you. Hoping to distract you from scrutinizing his actions with an interrogation into your own. It’s proven effective, in the past. "Don't you?" You ask back, whip quick. And really he only has himself to blame for your mastery of redirection. Regardless, he tries again. “Movie scare you a little too bad pips?” His look is knowing, not questioning. Even in the dark, he knows you can hear it in his voice. You scoff. “No. I just wanted to-“ He turns on his nightstand light, and your present state comes out of the dark with it. Your jaw is tensed like you're biting your tongue, a bad habit you've had since you were little, and your arms are wrapped tight around the stuffed toy you’ve recently taken to insisting you didn’t need anymore. Your gaze falls to your feet.

"Uh huh?" It's a challenge, if you choose to take it. Or an observation, if you feel like being honest. Your voice comes out small, breaks a little on the words.“…Don’t make fun of me?” And he is genuinely a little hurt by that. “When do I ever?” His voice breaks too.

-

Dinner draws you out, as expected, and thankfully you're too wound up to call him on the early hour of it.

But the bridge between you is hardly crossed.

In an almost perfect inversion of your earlier verbosity, now its impossible for him to get a response of more than two words out of you. You do that. Explode and then collapse in on yourself. Go to some dark corner in your mind and decide everything you think and say is ridiculous and wrong and try to shrink yourself down into nothing. He's spent years getting good at bringing you back into the light.

And, failing that, bringing the light to you.

The problem being, currently, that he's tried most of his old tricks already. Tried being calm-and-comforting Caleb, and teasing-big-dummy Caleb, and bossy-older-brother Caleb. All he'd gotten was ignored, yelled at, and shut out... nothing was working.

He left you alone too long.

And really, what were they teaching you at school? What kind of stress testing did they put hunters through? If it's anything like the Aerospace Academy-

Thought cut off at the root. Rabbit hole not worth going down. He doesn't have the time for it. You've got four and a half bites left.

Chopsticks raised to your mouth. Three and a half, now.

Forget it. Full suppression fire.

"...You're definitely right about Tara. If she hasn't quit her job by the next time you two talk you really should encourage her to." He puts his own utensils down, focuses all his attention on you, on speaking steady and slow.

"Huh?" You look at him like he just said the sky is chartreuse.

"You'll both be busy, and the work will be demanding, especially to start, I know you know that-"

"Caleb what are you even talking abou-" You cut your own question off, brain catching up to his sudden topic change. He watches your face as you process it.

You hate it when he does this, reminds you that he remembers every little thing you say, recites it back to you. Your eyes widen in realization, and then embarrassment.

Normally, this is the part where he'd comfort you, tell you there's no reason to feel shy around him.

Not tonight.

"You said she likes the job 'well enough' but if it isn't her dream there's really no good reason for her to pursue anything else when what she really wants is right in front of her." Tonight, he just keeps pressing.

You, for your part, attempt to ignore him, just take the commentary for what it is. You raise another bite to your mouth.

Ah, he gets it. If his game is to get let in, your game is to get gone.

Two and a half.

"The extra money would be nice, sure. But not at the cost of her sanity."

"Caleb-" You push back.

"Also, if you ask me, I think the corner store owner has been wanting to close up shop for awhile now. He's getting older and, like you said, he's clearly more passionate about community care than running a business. I guess it's just a matter of letting go." His gaze is fixed on you, pointedly.

"Caleb, seriously. Stop."

"You have to trust that he knows what he's doing pip. He's been in the game for a long time. Longer than you remember probably."

"I don't want to have this-"

"-and I don't think either of us could get Gran to stop working if we tried. She'd die of boredom sitting in this house all day, with or without either of us in it. 'S got nothing to do with how much money you do or don't make, you should know that. That I've got you and I've got her too. Have the whole time."

"I know. I know, I wasn't trying to say-" You respond rapidly. Both of your voices picking up speed. "-none of which is going to matter anyway because you are the smartest person I know, and the most stubborn. If by some insane, unprecedented, cosmic fluke you didn't pass-"

"You don't listen to me!" You shout over him.

Do you hear yourself?

He isn't sure if he says it out loud, if he does, he didn't mean to. Either way you shake your head.

"You're not listening to me right. now." You take another bite, give yourself a second to think, before speaking again. "...I don't want to talk about right now, I don't want to think about it..."

"But you are." He stops you, matter of fact.

"I-I'm trying-"

"Stop. Stop trying." Change in tone, eyes softening. You have a soft spot for kicked dogs. "Give it to me." Not a question. Not a request.

You push your plate towards hims, half a bite, untouched.

"Thank you for dinner. I'm going to bed."

Mission failure.

Your door is shut and locked, this time, behind you. Like you don't trust him not to come in saying 'And another thing-'. And maybe you're smart for it, and maybe you're right, but its frustrating nonetheless. He doesn't know how to get through to you. It's so obvious that you need a reset. An emotional release before you take to the air again. There's no shot you'd pass a systems check like this.

He ruminates over it while he cleans up dinner, lifting a plate from the filled, soapy half of the basin to scrub. You can't stop the flood from coming. You've tried, it always comes. And he knows you'll hate yourself if it happens out there. In front of your friends, or the corner store owner, or a barista, or some other perfect stranger. It should happen here, needs to happen here, and soon. While Grandma's not home and no one but him can see you. Where no one else can get their hands on you when you're all raw and vulnerable. He runs water over the dish. Places it on the rack to dry.

The thought strikes him with the clink of the ceramic.

'I'm not trying to ruin your time home by being a complete fucking mess.'

...Yeah. He knows what he has to do.

-

He curls himself around you in his bed, blanket covering all but the very top of your head, you've always been close, impossibly close. Both physically and otherwise.

But this is different, feels different.

Sure, you'd shared a bed before, regularly, even. But sleeping together was only ever about comfort, about ease. Too tired to haul yourselves off the couch. Late afternoon study sessions in summer heat drawing your eyes closed. Muffled giggles settling to silence under the flashlit borders of a blanket fort. But this?

Since the research center, you've never curled into him like this, like you were hiding, like he could hide you. You aren't just sleeping next to Caleb, your brother and best friend and confidant. No, you needed to sleep with Caleb, your shield. You're protector. Your home. Your safest place. Not this house, not your room, not your bed. Caleb's. Caleb.

Your breathing went steady so fast, arms sagging where they wrapped gently around him. You fell asleep so fast.

It's good, he thinks, that you did. You can't say anything about his hammering heart if you aren't awake to hear it.

-

He replays the memory, over and over. The image, the feel of you curled up against him in the dark and quiet, all safe and warm, consumes him like fire. Fuels the furnace that pushes the machine of him to action.

He's carefully tilting and adjusting the stacked ceramic plates in the cupboard when he hears the resounding click of your door opening. He purses his lips, calls on his evol to hold the plates still and steady as he quietly, firmly, closes the cupboard. He has only just enough time to fling an apple from the bowl on the far counter into his waiting hand before you turn the corner. You blink up at him like you're surprised to see him there. It's been about an hour since dinner, and you know it only takes him minutes to do the dishes. So it would make sense for him to have retreated to his room, by now. With how quiet he'd been, in his focus, you were surely expecting him to be scarce. He fights not to roll his eyes, you only emerged because you thought he'd be long gone, then.

He disregards the thought, the game of cat and mouse will be a nonissue by this time tomorrow. For now, he's just glad he caught you. Can't have you setting things in motion too soon. He knows your guard is still up from earlier, can see it in the curve of your shoulders.

"D'ya need somethin pip?"

"No. I'm just..." You shuffle in place.

"...About... half a bite hungry?" He asks with a tilt of his head, gestures at the apple cradled in his palm.

He's already got a paring knife in hand by the time you nod. Is already cutting bunny ears into apple slices by the time you're sat on the counter.

-

It quickly becomes a pattern. Even as you continue to get older, distance yourself from him in myriad other ways. Became more and more independent, self-assured, self-reliant. All through your middle and high school years, if you watched a horror movie, you'd sleep in his room, in his arms, where nothing else could get you.

So when he came home to visit on your 18th and you queued up some jumpscare laden gorefest, he'd had an expectation for how the rest of the night would go.

It didn't. You didn't come to his room.

...Not on your own, at least.

-

Normally, on a morning like this, with both of you home, you'd wake to Caleb already making breakfast. Especially when you'd fought the night before. This morning, as he sat awake and waiting in his room, he'd run through the series of actions and reactions he expected from you.

You wake with a yawn, stretch your limbs, sit up only to fall immediately back with a groan. It takes you at least six tries, unchecked on, to make it out of bed. You'll stay there, barely awake in bed for anywhere from 3-35 minutes. Deciding whether or not you are going to go right back to sleep. Actually getting out of bed only if your stomach grumbles, or you hear Caleb in the kitchen.

You must've woken up hungry. He'd heard you step out of your room and down the hall, bright, early, and unprovoked.

You'll step into the kitchen, grumble an expletive and any combination of mean, dummy, idiot Caleb that comes immediately to mind, and then make yourself a piece of toast. It's the easiest way to get something in your belly without having to think, and its way, waay too early to be thinking. So you'll pop a slice of bread into the toaster, and reach up to grab a plate-

He's on his feet three seconds before the crash comes. Exact awareness of its source and cause hardly stopping the wave of panic that hits him, the immediate, pressing need to get to you.

He rounds the corner to the kitchen, inspects the damage. He wouldn't have done it at all, if he didn't trust your reflexes, and its clear that you did dodge. You're standing just a few small steps back from the pile of shattered ceramic at your feet. Your bare feet, he scolds himself internally, he had been counting on you to have your hard-soled slippers on. Your arms are raised, elbows tucked tight into your sides, hands floating in front of you like they are trying to figure out some way to be of use. Aside from your dropped jaw, your face is flat, still processing the mess on the floor before you, where it came from, the loud, sudden sounds of it.

"Pip-squeak..." He speaks low, endeavoring not to startle you into moving. You must have heard him rush down the hall. Or, you just know him well enough to know he'd be there. He takes a step toward you, already using his evol to push the nearest shards of ceramic away from your feet.

"I don't even know what happened..." You barely speak, like its hard to get the words out at all. An automatic response, no defense mechanism, no guard.

It's what he's been looking for.

"...are you okay?" He asks, voice coated in concern.

It's a trigger phrase. It serves it's purpose.

A gasped intake of breath, tears welling up in your eyes. You take a step back just in time for him to get his arms around you, stop you from slipping on something sharp, from sinking down to the floor.

"I-I don't even know- w-what I did!" You don't fight him, just let him hold you. Rub your arms while you shake and cry and sputter.

"I'm so... So tired. I don't- Caleb I'm so scared!" Now, everything bursts from you. The dam cracks, the flood comes. Any relief Caleb might have felt is overshadowed by his heart dropping at your words.

"Why're you scared, pip?" he squeezes you in tighter, one arm wrapped high around your back, hand cradling your head as he presses it into his chest. The other arm at your waist, ready at any time to move lower and lift you, whenever standing gets to be too much. He sways a little where he stands, an effort to soothe you, if only enough to keep you talking to him. Anyone but him would struggle to understand you through your blubbering.

"I'm-I'm afraid I'll fail. And I can't I just can't." You furiously shake your head in his chest. "I was so anxious during the exam-I know they could see my hands shaking during the written portion-and. AND I went down during the combat simulation. I mean I got up-I got up quick-but I went down, Caleb!" You're fully yelling now, every word sounds like its being punched out of you. He stays through it, same firm grip, same gentle movement. "I know there's next year, and the year after that, and the year after that. But what if it is that? What do I do if it's 'next year' forever?!" You stop abruptly at that. Left with nothing but to loudly cry against him, fists gripping harshly at the fabric of his shirt. The way he's wrapped himself around you, you can't see his jaw clench.

It's everything he expected to hear, everything he was afraid you would say. He takes deep, slow breaths, tightens and loosens his arms around you in time with them, encouraging you to do the same. Your staccato breathing starts to level out, sobbing reduces to sniffles.

"What... what if I'm just not good enough?" You sound wounded, cut open broken. Already devastated over something that hasn't happened. Something that won't happen.

Caleb lifts you up, gets your legs around his middle, steps over and through the mess on the floor like he couldn't care less about it, because its true.

"You're too hard on yourself..." He carries you to the living room, to the couch. "You're hardly the first person to have test anxiety, hardly the first hunter to trip up in combat." He flops down, takes you with him, rubs circles into your back, uses his free hand to massage your neck, the space just behind your ears.

"You're going to pass." He says it with certainty. In part because you need to hear it, but mostly because he believes it, without a shadow of a doubt. You whimper, squeeze your arms where they are wrapped around him.

"...what if-" You start to mutter.

"Nope." He cuts you off.

"But-"

"You're going to pass." He should've figured it out sooner. You're smart enough to reason the facts out without his help. You didn't need him to tell you there's always next year, that he's got you covered if something goes wrong, that there's nothing to be afraid of. At your core you know that. You didn't need a reality check.

"You're going to pass." A statement of fact, made with no room for argument.

You needed an anchor.

For a long time, you're silent in his lap. Pin-drop quiet interrupted only by the odd sniffle. Until, eventually, fight and fury and fear finally exhausted, your shoulders sag. Your body goes lax.

"Okay..." Delayed replay so quiet it almost goes unheard.

When you tuck your head into the side of his neck, he drops his own to nuzzle over you.

-

Caleb knew it was unfair, and that it maybe made him a bad person. But when the movie ended and all you did was yawn and waltz off to bed without a care in the world, something in him snapped a little. And truthfully, he thinks he's allowed. Routines are made to be stuck to. You're the one breaking rank here. He's been at the Academy, away from you, for months now. Heavens forbid he wants to cash in on his allotted snuggle time.

And so, he didn't feel bad when hooked Josephine's old landline back up to the power. Didn't feel bad when he called you back into the kitchen to help him do dishes.

"Uuugh... you know I'll just slow you down."

"Been doing your laundry all week pips, you owe me. Really, I should be making you do this aaall by yourself."

Continues, to not feel bad, as he thumbs his phone in his pocket to call the number.

"You might as well, if you're gonna be such a diva about-"

The landline rings. You jump at the sudden noise, face quickly warping in confusion, as you both stare at the offending machine.

"What the fuck?"

"Language, pip." He nudges your shoulder as the ringing stops, is careful to speak over the sound of him using his evol to disconnect the line once more. "Didn't grandma unplug that thing ages ago?"

"I... yeah, I mean. I thought so..." You take several cautious steps towards the phone, crouching down to inspect the line. "...It's definitely unplugged."

Caleb offers his most convincing, confused hum. "Well... that's weird." He shrugs his shoulders. "Anyways, if you want to do the dishes by yourself that's fine with me."

You keep your wary gaze locked on the phone. "No... no you should stay."

It's a fight to keep his grin down.

"Whatever you say pips."

-

You were lucid just long enough to agree to his idea of watching that old cartoon you love. To crawl mostly off of his lap and curl into his side, under the big leopard blanket, with the apple pillow in your arms. He thinks about getting up to make you tea but ultimately decides against it. Choosing instead to keep massaging your scalp. His gaze directed at the screen but unfocused, far away. He listens to your breathing change, feels your lashes flutter against his collarbone as your head droops, soaks in the warmth of you at his right side. A breath shutters out of him, his body goes lax.

It was all necessary. It was all worth it.

You fell asleep so fast.

-

By the time dishes are done and your teeth have been brushed you've settled back down. Seeming perfectly content to call it a night and go your separate ways. In any other circumstance, he'd commend your resolve.

As it stands, you're kind of killing him.

He knows he has to be careful. If his cards aren't played exactly right, you'll catch on, remember exactly how his evol works, and accuse him of messing with you. Seriously, you're so smart, too smart for his own good. So he has to think of something else. Something you can't trace back to him, something you can't excuse.

If, and only if, he offers Gideon a couple hundred bucks to make the late trip from Skyhaven to Linkon and-without being caught-knock at the front door, wait thirty minutes and then knock again...

Well. That's nobody's business but his.

He's brushing his teeth when the first set of knocks comes. Perfect. You pad from your bedroom over to the bathroom, poke your head in. "Caleb?"

"Mmph?" He muffles through a mouth full of toothpaste.

"Someone just knocked on the door."

He furrows his brow, spits into the sink. "You sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure." 'Go look!!' goes unspoken.

He moves casually through the house, with you all but clinging to him, his good little tail. He swings the front door open, looks around, ignores the rustling where he can see Gideon climbing up a nearby tree.

"Pips. There's nothing there." He looks at you seriously, face a mask of concern.

Your eyes go wide. "But- are you sure?" You move to push past him. He takes several steps out onto the porch, makes a show of looking around.

"Seriously pip, there's nothing." He looks you up and down, a performative study of you. "...think maybe the movie freaked you out a little?"

"No! Well.. ugh. Maybe, I guess." You rub your arm self consciously. "...Lets just call it a night."

He breaks into a smile. "Sure thing." He's about to call Gideon off, as you make your way back into the house.

...Right up until you shout 'Goodnight!' from down the hallway and shut yourself in your room.

Alright then, one last push.

And it comes, thirty minutes later on the dot. Four sturdy knocks at the front door. Caleb smiles to himself from where he lays flat on his back in bed. He hears it all. Your door being carefully cracked open, the silence that follows. Your feet down the hallway, toward the entryway, toward the door, the silence that follows that. The way your pace picks up as you race back to your room.

His phone lights up.

'Caleb.'

A typing bubble appears and fades again.

'Did you hear that??'

He stares at the screen, stone-faced, already getting into character.

'Hear what?' And really, he isn't being cruel. He's just righting the balance.

[gh0stcav3]

ep 6 wonderlust quotes 🎊

[rexwrendraws]

Sandcastles: Year One, A Sandman Fan-Fic Anthology ⏳

To celebrate The Sandman's one year anniversary this past weekend (how has it been a year already!?), I started a self-indulgent project and decided I wanted to take a crack at typesetting for the very first time.

So, I'm very proud to present: Sandcastles, an 180-page digital anthology that celebrates some of my favorite Sandman fics from the past year! Sandcastle collects shorter fics ranging from gen to mature, and is print-ready and available to be downloaded for free. Through this anthology, I hope others can get the same joy from these fics the same way I did over the past year (think of it as a glorified fic rec list)! (And, if anyone's interested, the print-ready files are available for download as well, if anyone wanted to print their own copy of Sandcastles!)

✨ Download Sandcastles here!

Thank you to all the authors for giving me permission to include their work in this anthology! This is my love letter to all of your work! Please check them out and leave a kind word or two!

The fics included in Sandcastles, in order of the Table of Contents, are the following:

Companions - Picture_Yourself (@anthrossandman)

Fridays - hardly_an_escape (@hardly-an-escape)

Warning Sign - issylra (@issylra)

Snacktime - fishydwarrows (@fishfingersandscarves)

Stray - softestpunk (@softest-punk)

Aulon Raid - moorishflower (@moorishflower)

Unbidden Miracles - mostlybuddingthoughts (@mostlybuddingthoughts)

Available - softestpunk (@softest-punk)

Points of View - cuubism (@cuubism)

Fern-Fevered - notallsandmen (notallmaenads) (@notallsandmen)

The Last - secondjulia (@secondjulia)

Scratch a Little Itch - sanyumi (@valeriianz)

Simple Dreams of Comfort - softestpunk (@softest-punk)

The Apocalypse is Nigh! - cuubism (@cuubism)

To Those Who Dare Wonder - Astrophel_Hireath (@mentallyinvernation)

The Perils of Inebriation - Lilibet (@the-slow-arrow)

Touch - softestpunk (@softest-punk)

Passing the Time - Anonymous

I'm Stuck on You (I'm Mighty Glad You Stayed) - hardly_an_escape (@hardly-an-escape)

Hob Gadling vs. The British Museum (Unknown Artist, c. 2022, Oil on Canvas) - TheAllKnowingOwl (@theallknowingowl)

This also counts as my submission for Day 1 of @mr-sadman 's Sandmanniversary 2023 prompts (Collection) :)

_ _ _ _ _ (Post & files updated — 29.08.2023)

[pigdemonart]

LOS BRUJOS PLOT AND CHARACTERS [ENG & SPA]

A brief introduction (re-introduction for some) of my story Los Brujos. All the comic pages will be shared on Patreon first! As well as any wips, timelapses, and other behind the scene stuff. Any support is appreciated as it will help me tell these stories to the best of my ability!! <3

As for tumblr, I'll be sharing the pages here too! And I hope you all enjoy my spooky ghosts stories and unhinged latino brothers. Patreon | Ko-FI

[svtfoe-archives]

"You don't have to pretend to be strong around me. I'm your best friend." // Starco study

"All because I thought that if I didn't have Marco's hoodie, I wouldn't have any piece of him left, which just isn't true." "I'll always have Marco." "We'll always be friends."

-Scent of a Hoodie, s3

unknown // Lisel Mueller // inanotherunivrse on tumblr // Can We Always Be Friends - Oh Wonder // Sylvia Plath, the unabridged journals of sylvia plath // balthazar, losers // Soren - Beabadobee // Nebraska - Oh Wonder // Friedrich Nietzche // godlyrot on twitter // casey reiland, my boss informs me that moose are dying // sayaka saeki, bloom into you // Free - Florence and the Machine // yunawinter on twitter // adrienne rich // jules ryan gravecleaner, bloodwater

[babydollbuck]

look ok i know it just came out but i am def proposing the new chappell roan single as the next seblainer anthem like (not-so) casual FWB seblaine in the worst situationship in the entire midwest especially with commitment issues seb throughout

i mean just check out the excerpts

✨AND THIS BRIDGE!!!✨tell me its not giving miserable klaine engagement <3

c'mon this is IT!!! its also bouncy and danceable as hell so it fits!!!!

[birchbow]

Chapter 39: What Time Is It?

Summary:

The smell of the drones is a hammer to the horns, a demand.  Your empress keeps your pusher, your will and your thinkpan, but the animal that you call your body belongs to the Mother Grub.  When she calls, you’re brought to your motherfucking knees.

[yesyourstalker]

Makeup artist:.......... Are you nervous?

Baja: a little bit.... This isn't like in front of a studio audience right

Makeup artist: No sweetie, it's just a one-on-one interview.

Baja: that's good. Who are we interviewing?

Makeup artist: You're going to have to ask the show-runner, Mickey.

Mickey: let's go. Let's go. Let's go what takes so long putting powder on a face. He has perfect skin anyway. We had to get him to the dressing room. We start filming in a couple minutes

Makeup artist: I'm finished. Just need to map down some scales and he's...... All done. You're free to go sweetie

Baja: thank you

Mickey: So you must be then host of the show. Sorry I wasn't able to meet you sooner. I was on vacation. Oshi told me you're a really good candidate for this show. You seem to be competent you know your way around music....*sip* ..... Coffee?

Baja: I don't really drink that much coffee. I like tea though

Mickey: Green tea! *Snap*. .*snap*

Assistant: your green tea

Baja: thank you

Mickey: Well I know one thing for sure. She was right about the pretty face. Now as you get dressed head to the studio so we start filming promotional material Ramon should be there with you. After your interview which will count as the pilot

Tammy: Mickey listen I really think you should reconsider about not casting me for the show

Mickey: No....*sip*

Tammy: but I really think you should I mean I can at least be co-host. I'm great to be around! Tell him, baba

Baja: it's Baja

Mickey: No, we need to bring up the sea slug viewership

Tammy: I can be the second co-host

Mickey:....*sigh*...... Tammy listen to me. You didn't get the job all right. You just don't fit the criteria we need for this show and this channel. But hey you have other opportunities for other networks alright. You're pretty, you're bubbly and you have a nice rack. You can get a job anywhere with those qualities around here.... You're just not going to find it at this station

Tammy: but-

Mickey: goooooood byyyyyyyyyyyyyeeee Tammy!!

Security guard: Right this way ma'am

Tammy: Mickey!!! I'll have your fucking job!!

Mickey: we'll see you next week Tammy we're filming the season finale

Baja: she seemed pretty upset

Mickey: eh she'll get over it ... She's been in a couple of shows here and there on the network. She plays Kate the baby sitter on 'dock and dingy' ......*sip* ..... She'll be fine. Here Is your dressing room your clothes should be folded

Baja: alright... and I just head to set after

Mickey: yep your's and Ramon's chairs will be the brown arm chairs. The musician or celebrity will be sitting on the loveseat and will perform on the stage behind you

Baja: they're going to perform?

Mickey: yeah.. yeah they're starting their Solo career

_______________________________________________

Ramon: hey... You look good. They spruced up your wardrobe too

Baja: yeah. I wonder if we're able to take this home with us

Ramon: probably. I think it'd be easier just to keep in our dressing rooms for now. Keep our work clothes separate from our regular clothes. Feels like bad energy to mix them together.

Baja: how so?

Ramon: I mean this nice brand name stuff fancy designs, colors and a hefty price on it. It's nice but it isn't really me. It's what the studio and the producers want me to be and I rather keep that at work when. I go home I wear my regular off-brand jeans, my 8-year-old sweater and a pair of kicks with a hole in it. That's me. That's who I am. A regular person, I'm not above anyone and I don't want to feel like I am. Get what I'm saying

Baja: yeah... I get it. You don't want the job to change you

Ramon: exactly

Mickey: All right! Hitch you got the shot?

Hitch: Yeah I got it. We can use this for commercials

Baja: you were filming?

Mickey: Yeah yeah no worries. We just wanted to film you guys interacting. We didn't tell you cuz we wanted to look natural.

Hitch: we didn't have any mics on so we couldn't hear what you were saying so don't worry about it. I'm the director by the way names Hitch. Nice to meet you..

Baja: hello

Ramon: hey

Mickey: alright so we're going to start filming the show in 30 minutes. Kikura is their dressing room.

Ramon: Kikura from C-side?

Mickey: yeah

Kikura: sorry I'm late.. I tend to procrastinate when I'm getting ready for these types of things...... Not a good excuse but... yeah

Mick: Well that's perfectly fine. We'll be filming in a couple minutes this is Ramon and this is Baja. They're going to be the ones interviewing you

Kikura: hey

Hitch: while we wait for that, let's do some more advertisements

______________________________________________

Assistant: alright..... Advertisement 2 take one...[clap]

Baja: Hi my name is baja and I'm the new host of the inklab's new show 'music at midnight'.... Me and my new co-host Ramon

Ramon: sup

Baja: we're going to be interviewing musicians from all walks of life

Ramon: and different genres.

Baja: We're going to have nice conversations getting to know them, telling us some really cool stories.

Ramon: a show airs Thursdays at 11:30 p.m. can't wait to see you there!

Hitch: CUT!.... Great! We're going to do some more editing and maybe some reshoots on that but here is your intro You're going to do this during every episode you introduce yourself. You tell them what show they're watching and then you tell the current news what's going on in the music world..... You're also going to have to do that when you start writing articles for the blog, but we'll get to that later. ... Here's the monologue script. If you want to go off script feel free... Go over it, memorize We'll film in 15...... Oshi! Good to see you..*mwah mwah* how are you baby

Oshi: Hitch! Hope everything is going well I just wanted to check in on everyone

Hitch: yes... You're going to start filming soon so have a seat....(Pat...Pat)

Oshi: alright..... I'm getting a call.....*ugh*..............[inhale].....[exhale]...... Hi Shimi! How are you doing dear?... Are you having fun on the farm? I saw some pictures warabie posted on squidder. You look cute riding the tracker hehhe....... Well you only have one week left honey..... yes I've enjoyed my break..... The church? If that works for you honey I guess it gives you a purpose.........*sigh*...(Eye roll)....acting is also your purpose I know...how's warabie is he having fun?......well tell him to try to enjoy himself..............yes ...... alright good bye hun.............

_______________________________________________

Shimi: hm.....

Merv: Shimi it's your turn to take the manatees out to graze, take your son with you. Noiji start up the tractor I need you to harvest the octoberries, ikkan pack up squidmelons and head into town. Koi would you help me harvest some of the squid lemons

Koi-koi: I'd love to

Merv: Cirrina sweetheart you said you're going into the city for a school project?

Cirrina: Yeah just for 2 hours. When I get back I'll feed the krill and clean out their coop

Merv: All right, be safe

Shimi: warabie help me load up the manatees

Warabie: yeah..... What were you calling Mom about?

Shimi: It's none of your concern she didn't let me talk anyway............

Warabie:... All right, the manatees are in (bump...bump).....

Shimi: alright...................

Warabie:............so what's mom up to at home?

Shimi: she's working on project O.E.T network

Warabie: that's nice she's been working on that for years

Shimi: *humpf*.... We've been working on for years.... Typical of her to go behind my back and do things without my permission or opinion

Warabie:...... Oooookkkaaay...........hm.................hey mahi

_______________________________________________

Mahi: hey dude

Warabie: what's going on at home?

Mahi: nothing much. Baja got a new job...... stop!........ Yeah, he's going to be on TV now. That's pretty neat

Warabie: tv?!

Mahi: some talk show.... Midnight music...... Music at midnight something.....neta stop spawn camping!

Neta: I'm not spawn camping

Warabie: he got the job!? How did he get the job?!

Mahi: I don't know, I really haven't had time to talk to him. He's been in and out of the apartment for like days now..... cod damn it!.... Let me leave the base at least...... fuck!

Neta:hehehehehehehe... I'm sorry .hehehe

Mahi: sorry... Neta's being an asshole...uhhhhh...Baja honestly hasn't been here and when he is here he's just there to get dressed and then leave.

Warabie:*sigh*....... good for him... Guess he's going to be the new breadwinner

Mahi: hey so when are you coming home?

Warabie: end of the week I should be home

Mahi: great apartments too quiet and-Neta!

Neta: what?! What am I doing wrong? I'm just playing the game. It's not my fault you always end up in my range of sight. Get good at the game

Mahi:*huff*... Can you come home faster? I miss you

Warabie: aww I miss you too mahi.. I honestly want to go home too. This place sucks ......I'm tired of scooping Manatee shit and hauling crates of squidmatoes

Neta: ask him the question

Mahi: *ugh*........are you able to bring home fresh produce and milk

Warabie: I....... I'm going to have to ask ikkan's dad that

Shimi: we're here unload the manatees

Warabie: I got to go.... text you later..........

Mahi: bye..... I'm not playing with you anymore! I'm done with this game....

Neta: One more round. I want to get a gold badge on this weapon I'm two games away. You can be on my team this time

_______________________________________________

Cirrina: .......this must be the address..........(Knock knock)

Bayou: Cirrina! You showed up!

Cirrina: yeah....hehehe sorry if I'm a little early ...

Bayou: no worries. Come in, come in you can use your shoes on the shelf right here. So what do you want to know about krillarney?

Cirrina: I'm just you know the origins and the history of krillarney...... You lived on the surface for most of your life, right? Is that true for most octolings here?

Bayou: yeah... Most of us here spent their whole lives on the surface though there are some who moved here who previously lived underground

Cirrina: Interesting......so... And did your family move here?

Bayou:...... I think you might get more information from my nan.... Nana!!....... You remember my Nana. from church?

Nana: yes!? Bayou? What is it love?.....oh... Dear the little girl from church. Nice to see you again sweetie

Cirrina: hello..

Bayou: Nan do you mind if she asks you a few questions?

Nana: I have no problems sweetie

Cirrina: It's just a couple questions .. . I'm doing a five-page essay on octarian history in other countries

Nana: wasn't that nice? Well what do you want to know dear?

Cirrina: uhhhh .... When did you move here

Nana: oh I have no idea sweetie It's been years...... The war started when I was around......10 of 11 years old. I lived with my two sisters in a small village My mother was a School teacher and my father passed away years ago.

Cirrina: *writing*

Nana at the time my village was not affected by the high tides but it was targeted with conflict over land and resources. Next thing you know, I was being drafted for the war along with my two sisters. They just turned 13. They never held a weapon before. My mother couldn't even imagine them going to war, it was only after the first bomb we decided to leave. We had to leave quickly so we weren't able to bring a lot. All we had to pack was whatever we could fit in our backpacks. I packed two dresses, pair of pants, three shirts and one skirt. I also packed my Adva doll she's the only toy I played with for years.

Cirrina: *writing*

Nana: My mother was good friends with a man who moved to our village before the war happened. He was a nice inkling man Mr. Doal he offered to help us leave. His son got drafted and passed away early in the midst of combat. He told us about a developing sovereign country called krillarney that was currently taking in anyone and everyone across the world who wanted to get away from the war

Cirrina: *write*..... So how did you get to krillarney

Nana: we were informed that there were fairies and ships offering to help people leave. We set our trip in the middle of the night and met up with Mr. Dole and other people who wanted to leave as well. The walk was 3 hours straight. No brakes, no rest until we made it to the coast and we got onto a ship. It was a squid beak ship if I remember, The S. S. Escargot. We sailed for a week to krillarney making several stops picking others in similar situations.

Cirrina: was it just inkfish who were escaping?

Nana: oh no there were so many people from so many walks of life on the ship. Urchins, fish, cephalopods, Crustaceans. So many were affected by this war. I remember seeing some still wearing their military uniforms. It was their only chance to leave and they took it

Cirrina: when you got to krillarney what was it like? Was different from how it is today.

Nana: Well I can tell you one thing we didn't have these malls, outlets or a nice studio apartment like I have now hehehe. .... When I first got here My mother could only afford a nice small house with two bedrooms. Our neighbor was young octoling and his wife was a bass. They were enlisted in the military for years. When the war started they were completely against it. They were planning on having kids at the time they couldn't do that if they were at war. Unfortunately they weren't able to have kids but they watched me and my sister so many times that they kind of saw us as their kids hehehe

Cirrina: *writing*...... Do you ever think about your old village? What happened to it?

Nana:............. Well....um..... Like I said at the time the high tides didn't affect my home but.............. Soon enough it was............. Everything was wiped out and everyone......... From what I know now....... The water levels have subsided and it is inhabitable but............ I just never went back. Everything I know about that place is gone. My home my toys.....some of my old friends

Cirrina:.... I'm sorry.......

Nana: it's alright love

Cirrina: ....... I think I asked enough questions

Nana: are you sure? I could tell you more

Cirrina: oh that's ok really.... I have enough to write my paper. I have to get home to do my chores

Bayou: alright..... Do you want me to walk you to the fairy dock?

Cirrina: (blush).... well........ok...

Bayou: great..... I'll be right back Nana

Nana: Come back safe

Cirrina:..........................

Bayou:...........................

Cirrina:..................

Bayou:..............you know we have tons of historical sites here if you ever want to check them out..... Add some photos for extra credit

Cirrina: that would be nice but I really need to get home

Bayou: we don't have to do it today.

Cirrina: I leave at the end of the week

Bayou: Well you can plan something for this week maybe Tomorrow maybe?....

Cirrina: I can see.... Yeah I think tomorrow would be good yeah..

Bayou: All right so why don't we meet up here again at 2:00 and I can take you to the lighthouse, The bridge of new beginnings and I can even take you to the museum

Cirrina: Great! It's a date! I mean....uh... No! It's not a date..... it's a day out....an outing yeah it's it's it's an outing we're going out......for the day! We're going out for the day

Bayou:..heheheheheh... Here's my number....... I'll text you tomorrow. See ya Cirrina!

Cirrina: bye..hehehehehe........*sigh*..........

_______________________________________________

Assistant director: 'music at midnight'.... Introduction take three!.....(CLAP)

Hitch:go!

Baja: welcome, welcome! Welcome my name is Baja! And this is my co-host Ramon

Ramon: hey!

Baja: I'm very excited to say that this is the first episode of our very new show called 'music at midnight'. What is music at midnight? Well as the names in the title says we're going to be talking about music and it's going to be airing during midnight.

Roman: yep so while we sit here and talk and do interviews. You're going to be sitting on your couch or in your bed and your nice warm jammies.....

Baja: I wish we could wear pajamas

Ramon: Right? We should ask the exacts for a pajama day

Baja: hahahaha...(CLAP)..... All right, let's get started.... Today's music news....... But before we do that, who's who's with us today

Ramon: today we have Kikura sitting in our guest seat

Kikura: hey everyone

Baja: so we Kikura here today and there the guitarist for the band c-side and she's a part of another group riot act.....now Kikura is it true that riot act actually came before the band C-side?

Kikura: uh....oh my cod.......uh wow..... Yeah actually that is true. It did come before C-side... Technically yes but at the time it was not called riot act.... It was actually called 'no boys allowed' uhhehe.... We were in high school that was our original band.... We were in an all-girls school. We were just a couple of weird kids just screwing around... We were all in theater together and we used to hang out under the bleachers and I don't remember who mentioned it but one of us said "wouldn't be funny if we started a band and we had no idea how to play the instruments"....and heh That's how it really started

Baja: it started out as a bit?

Kikura: Yeah it started out as a bit. We started to borrow instruments from The music room and we started to play, used to write music together like we had our own group chat and everything ... It started to get serious during second year of school. It started out as a joke and then just kind of started to really get into it and we really just stopped seeing it as a joke and started seeing it as more of a hobby and soon after we started to book gigs, shows and sets in people's basements. It just kind of took off after that.

Ramon: so what made you join C-side?

Kikura: so C-side started after I met Beika it was a small underground club. He recognized me from my band and he was really excited to see me! He told me that he was a bass player and his old roommate was a drummer and they needed a guitar player. He had a couple songs that he's written and he wanted my opinion on it. He wanted to see if I was able to do a demo track for him.

Baja: *nods*

Kikura: a couple weeks of talking I went to the studio and I met Uotora... He's such a sweetheart oh my cod.... We did rewrites and we wrote some more music. We did some test tracks and 5 hours later I was officially a part of the band...

Baja: what was your first concert like.... You played in sesame hall as the opener for wet floor

Kikura: I was surprisingly calm during the whole show. Really thought I was going to panic and freeze up because this is the first actual concert like a concert concert like it wasn't just a group of people hehehe in a backyard. I remember the crowd wasn't that enthusiastic when we came up but after playing 'click bate' people really just started to really get into it and we just formed a fan base after that.

Ramon: are you still a part of that band? After you released your new album with riot act

Kikura: oh yeah definitely. I'm still a part of the band I'm not going anywhere. This ain't that kind of band. Do we treat each other with respect...hehehe...hm... But no this is just a side project. We all just started talking again and it's just a passion project we're just doing really

Baja: and speaking of passion projects, let's get to the news....Nami one of the members of beloved yet controversial bands front roe has enough that branching off and starting a solo career. Today on Inkstagram she announced that she's working on a new album and writing her own songs she even took a selfie of herself in the studio showing in the recording booth.

Ramon: I think nami's very underrated in the band. It's good to see she's getting out there

Kikura: I'm so happy that she is. I only met her two times. It was during the black square music festival and the seashore awards she is so nice, she's so kind and so pretty. We were talking and I brought up keeping my music in a notebook and she did the same thing too. She has several notebooks of music that she really wants to make but it doesn't really fit the sound of 'squid squad'..... Well I guess it's front roe now but she's kept those book for years... I truly hope she's putting those to good use

Baja: You know this actually isn't her first solo work. She worked on a soundtrack for 'high-rise falling 4'. It was a video game for the gamer boy x system.

Kikura: really?

Raman: Yeah I know that she composed background music for the menu and she also made The third boss Battle song. Man If they ever make the movie of high-rise falling

Baja: they are never going to make that movie.... It's always in production hell for years now

Kikura: I've only played the second and third game in that series, but I heard the movie is going to be starting off with The fifth installment and going backwards which doesn't make any sense

Hitch: what is high-rise falling? I don't know what that is. What are they talking about?

Oshi: It's just a game that these kids play. The audience will know what they're talking about

Ramon: they should bring her back for the movie. It would be really cool if she remixed her original tracks. I love that for him. I'm happy that she's making music. I'm really excited..... What else we have for the news

Baja: SashiMori are no longer doing fall tours or winter tours like they used to

Raman: oh?

Baja: So one of the members, Paul. He's no longer able to travel because he has school so they're going to have to do summer tours

Ramon: that makes sense.... I remember their last tour was during fall during spook fest. Everyone dressed up in costumes and during their last set, people were giving out candy.... Folks was handed a bucket before they got into the arena. it was good candy too like people were getting full size candy bars..... What type of candy do you like? I like gum.... You could never go wrong with gum..... Good flavor, good texture... And you can blow bubbles with it. What about you?

Baja: I enjoy chocolate... I love a good piece of chocolate..... Especially if it has a filling in it like marshmallow or something.....Kikura?

Kikura: I would say I'm a hard candy type of person.... I enjoy jawbreakers

Baja: really

Kikura: Yes, it lasts longer than most candies and..... Besides lollipops It is the only candy that is socially acceptable to take out of your mouth

Hitch: do we have any chocolate sponsors?

Oshi: no but I can get with the marketing team and see what we can do

[one hour of banter later]

Baja: Well folks that's our show! Thank you for being here for our first ever episode. The riot act album will be released on the 22 so make sure you check your local stores for it....now enjoy one of their debut songs 'No planned survivors'

[riot act performing in the back ground]

Mickey: what are the viewerships right now?

Assistant: Right now the viewerships are sitting at 89.4 million...and online..... only 20k views... But that number might rise in the next week

Mickey: [inhale].....[exhale]...... What do you estimate the viewership for ink lab plus?

Assistant: Well..... Judging from the viewership on TV and the viewership on the app we might be able to gain..................... 100 million first episode maybe even more...

Executive: I don't understand it! they talked about video games and then candy, went on a tangent about handbags and backpacks. How is this popular?! This is supposed to be about music and celebrities.

Oshi: Kids today aren't really all that interested in celebrities showing off their fancy cars, expensive clothes and lifestyle. They're bored at that and so are the newer artists. They just want to know who they are as a person....if knowing about their favorite candy and opinions on games keeps them engaged and interested in their music and our show I see no problem with it

Mickey: hmmmm.....

Hitch: I think we might need a meeting for this. I have an idea

Oshi: what's the idea

Hitch: we haven't had that much traction on the app for a while. instead of making a recorded video the next time we film we do a live stream and have the audience involved with the conversation

Mickey: I like that. Keeps the audience engaged and keeps the viewerships high. it saves money on editing

Hitch:......... These kids are going to make us a lot of money

_______________________________________________

Neta had 12 kills in one match and 6 of them were mahi

lmao fish was fighting for their life @fish-at-fish-fish-resort

[rivkae-winters]

‘Ello!! Hope you’re having a lovely day!!! ❤️

4 and 9 for asks plz?? <33

Thank you for the ask! My day has been a roller coaster but I have gotten things done.

Refers to this snippet ask set.

4. With dialogue I’m proud of:

This is from the wip stash- it’s a post canon fic for a very awesome person and one of my favorite WIPs of late ����

The static grew louder around him. It buzzed and rang out in chittering calls incessant and infantile in its desire to bombard him with noise. One voice cleaved through the rest of them and pushed its poison into his ears.

“It’s such a shame,” The older woman directly in front of him crooned as she turned to the person beside her. “We don’t even know what date he died.” The other woman hissed at her to quiet down with a shove.

“He was a young thing,” The muted whisper passed through the second woman's near still lips. “And ShinRa was always so controlling,” The words were said like some sort of heretical secret, Genesis supposed to the general public they might as well have been. His body was only just starting to fall directly under his mind's sway of shock and horror. The pitying sigh that fell from the second woman’s lips was a dagger in his already bloody wounds. “It could have been seven months or more before they announced it.”

Genesis’s heart stood still. His breath did not move in his lungs. His body sat there frozen behind a schooled expression as the world moved on around him.

9. With characters I love:

This is from Interstitial, my Reunion bond mind link fic, which is on Ao3;

This had the unfortunate side effect of alerting the people monitoring Genesis that he, their glass walled oddity, was in fact awake.

Oh joys.

He had little patience for scientists right now.

Turns out he is smiled upon by the Goddess once more since she has deigned he wake. Cloud, who made the all black look work with light hair in an eerily familiar way, strode into the room and stood next to one of the few men not in coats. It takes Genesis a second to recognize the aged man Cloud stood by as Reeve Tuesti . Someone sane in this mess at least and Genesis knows at the very least he's not in ShinRa now. Or not in what's left of ShinRa... His time in the waking world again was very limited but he's nothing if not good at gathering information when he needed to.

Cloud looked down at him and Genesis nudged at his mind far more gently than before in a peace offering. Comfort, safety, you are free to choose all slowly and gently wept down the link. Cloud's eyes widened and Genesis inclined his head to illustrate that this is him and his doing to the not-SOLDIER’s inexperienced mind. Privacy - knowledge - not here all slide across in vague impressions. Cloud’s presence twitched in response, clearly he had expected Genesis to mentally garrotte or gouge at him and had been left unsure when the blow never arrived. Genesis pulls the thread of himself from where it was wound around Cloud’s own and backed off slow and careful.

Is it not Genesis’s lot in life to be left with things broken and bleeding long after the damage is done? Is it not his lot in life to be left with the ugliness of the recovery with no control over the cause? The amount of cases and situations piling up had long been damning in that regard.

No one had decided to approach him yet so Genesis let himself get lost in his thoughts, eyes drifting shut with one ear on the room. Appearances to keep and all of that.

[reivun]

Ship Bias for Ivan 🤔

send me ship bias and a muse of mine and I will reveal any ship biases I have ! / @lightrallies & @heavnsblade also wanted to know abt Mr Dreyar 🤭

— when it comes to Ivan and Romantic ships, I obviously have a thing for oc x Ivan aka Leona and Ivan. My tragic duo 🥺💔. There’s also the crack ship Jana and I have discussed is JudexIvanxLayla which I also enjoy and the less crack of cymbie and Ivan. And I’d be remiss if I forgot about gildvan! And the fun part of all of these is that I also like the non romantic sides, too!

Tbh im more than down to ship anything as long as the muns and I are on the same page about it. He’s an interesting guy with a complicated relationship with his sense of self and family.

Overall: In my head Ivan is a goth bi dad who is also demisexual. He doesn’t think it’s at all relevant to himself as 99% of the time he considers the romance chapter of his life closed (lmao) so there’s no reason for him to mention it. The only time the fact he’s bi comes up is when he’s asked or if someone calls him straight. He doesn’t like people just assuming things about him.

[glass-clown]

[FIRST ID: A screenshot of a Facebook post by Jane Friedman that says, "As of today, there are about half a dozen books being sold on Amazon, with my name on them, that I did not write or publish. Some huckster generated them using AI, hoping to make a quick buck from people who don't realize I'm not the author. Unforuntately, these scam books were also added to my official Goodreads profile. I don't think the larger public understands that author don't directly control what books appear on their profile. They are automatically added via Amazon and/or submitted by users. To get them removed is not an easy process. [in all caps] A brief update [end caps]: After going back and forth a few times with Amazon on this issue, I was notified these junk books would not be removed based on the information I provided. Since I do not own copyright in these AI works and since my name is not trademarked, I'm not sure what can be done." Attached is an image of a rusty dumpster with fire and smoke coming out of it. Above the screenshot is a Tweet by Gabe Hudson @ gabehudson.bsky.social that says, "Dear god what fresh hell is this for writers?" /END OF FIRST ID]

[SECOND ID: A screenshot of a message conversation between @jenovacomplete and an Amazon customer service member whose name has been blocked out. The first message is by jenovacomplete, set at 10:49 pm, that says, "Ah, I haven't ordered from them. I just wanted to see if there was any way to report their fraudulent reproduction. If there isn't, that's fine! Thank you for your time!" At 10:54 pm the customer service member replies, "Okay. Thank you for been on online, The product from Amazon are genuine and correct . You can order from Amazon. No worries from shopping amazon." /END OF ALL IDS]

-

I found an interesting excerpt in an article about this case:

""All this time, public outcry over the case from other authors and observers mounted on Twitter. Finally, on Tuesday morning, Amazon reversed its decision and removed the titles from its platform. A company spokesperson sent Gizmodo a statement explaining its decision.

"We have clear content guidelines governing which books can be listed for sale and promptly investigate any book when a concern is raised," Amazon spokesperson Ashley Vanicek told Gizmodo. "We welcome author feedback and work directly with authors to address any issues they raise and where we have made an error, we correct it. We invest heavily to provide a trustworthy shopping experience and protect customers and authors from misuse of our service."

Amazon declined to comment further when asked to elaborate on what particular rule or policy was violated that led to the AI-generated content being removed. Friedman said she's confident the growing backlash on social media contributed to the ecommerce's reversal. That's good news for her, but will come as little solace to other, smaller writers who lack her same level of prominence.

"I do think it was the public outcry," the author said. "Obviously you shouldn’t have to raise a shitstorm in order to get them to do the right thing."" — "Amazon Removes AI-Generated Books That Spoofed an Author's Byline" by Mark DeGeurin on Gizmodo

[hoonjayke]

Lee Heeseung — REASONS TO (HATE) LOVE YOU

Your makeup is always intact, your hair is perfectly brushed, your clothes are always well-ironed and tidy, and your admirable grades are always on top. Many in the law course envy how you seem so perfect, unlike Lee Heeseung, who thinks everything about you is completely irritating. On the other hand, you can't stand Heeseung's arrogance. The way he always acts so pretentiously gets on your nerves, however, when you are forced to do a project together, you'll discover that this tension between you is much more than just hatred.

PAIRING: — Law Students - Heeseung x Reader (f)

GENRE: Academic rivals to lovers - (lower middle class) heeseung x (upper middle class) reader, fluffy, smut (mdni), a bit of angst - if you squint, super suggestive, slowburn.

WARNINGS: - lots of heavy making out (two in a bedroom and one in a storage room), lots of skinship, dirty talking, mutual pining, heavy sexual tension, yearning Heeseung, foreplay, soft dom Heeseung, teasing, petnames (baby, princess, pretty), skin marking (f receiving), cursing, a few mentions of difficult family dynamics, miscommunication at the beginning, bickering, jealousy, Heeseung is kinda mean in the beginning but he becomes a loser and a simp (sorry not sorry), mentions of alcohol, cursing, a very brief mention of a man touching reader's shoulder in a non consensual way. + IVE's gaeul is reader's best friend. [reblogs and comments are always welcome]

WC: 28k — masterlist - perm taglist (open)

— Author Note: Guys, I'm back after a few months <3 It's finallyyyy hereee, I know it's big (I don't know how to write little when I get excited lmaooo sorry!!!) but I can guarantee you that it's fun since I wanted the story to give off rom-com vibes!! There are some specific legal concepts, but nothing too complicated to understand (I hope). I know that each country has its own legal system, so I used my country's legal system as a guide. Even though I proofread, it might have some typos. Anyways, I hope you guys like it ♡ If there are any errors pls lmk!!!

Since the beginning of human existence and during the formation of societies, law has been present. The norms and principles that governed ancient social groups were an archaic type of representation of what is known today as law. With the reformulation of how these laws should be formed after numerous social revolutions, law is still evolving, being considered one of the tools that keep human beings under control.

For some, the law itself is something to be feared, for others, something to be admired or somehow foreign. However, when it comes to law school, opinions differ.

For many laypeople, law school is a distant world, something unattainable and bureaucratic, that only forged and trained minds can reach. After all, dealing with the daily problems of human beings, but also understanding their treacherous nature requires a lot of vocation.

For Lee Heeseung, law is fascinating.

He finds it amazing the possibility to reach deep into society and cause a stir with some well-founded arguments. For Heeseung, there was a kind of freedom in knowing how the legal system in his country worked that fascinated him intrinsically. Heeseung has always been curious, especially because he wanted to understand why so many injustices could not be easily resolved. What was stopping a country from truly delivering justice?

But despite being an idealist, Heeseung learned that people can be hypocritical, cold, fake and especially selfish when it comes to something that is about their own interests. And perhaps that is the main reason why the system is so flawed.

Personally, Heeseung can't stand hypocrisy and in his opinion, everything about you screamed 'hypocrisy'. From the way you dressed and carried yourself to the way you spoke – everything irritated him. Initially, he didn't have this curious aversion towards you. He didn't really care about your presence, despite noticing that you drew attention wherever you went.

The hypnotized looks around you and the sneaky approaches trying to create some kind of bond with you demonstrated a clear situation: you were from an important family, or your beauty was a factor that contributed to that. This type of approach was expected within the law school, which was full of people who only cared about other people's backgrounds.

However, Heeseung only confirmed his suspicions when your surname began to be whispered in the hallways. Y/N Park, the famous daughter of a renowned attorney with a giant office in the city center.

Heeseung laughed at the irony: Of course, you are just another privileged rich girl who is only in college as a rite of passage with a ready and perfect pass to a job already premeditated by your father.

There were many people like this in law school, but for some unknown reason you affected Heeseung differently. The way you presented yourself perfectly, without any flaws, almost theatrically bothered him.

But even though he knew you were the type of girl he wouldn't want to get close to, his disdain began to increase after a specific episode. It all started when you were in Criminology class and there was a free debate going on about the ‘Historical Development of Criminology' and what impact it had on law in the modern world.

You were explaining about the evolution of the concept of crime, and how Cesare Beccaria had contributed to the Classical School of Criminology, in which the concept of crime is based on what is in the law with a focus on restoring social order and the criminal justice system, given that the free and conscious choice of a delinquent to commit a crime affected not only the victim, but the entire society.

According to your train of thought, there are social factors that influence people to commit petty crimes and that would eventually be appreciated in other modern schools. But even with your impeccable contribution, Heeseung couldn't take you seriously when he saw you using an overpriced bag while criticizing the dry theory of the classical school.

Heeseung was no fool, he knew that life wasn't fair and there would be people in better financial situations than him. In fact, he had fought hard to get into a good university and study law, so he had a pride about his academic achievements, but there was something about you that drove him crazy. He couldn't put it into words, but you triggered specific emotions in his brain — and the main one was agitation.

So, for every argument you brought up, he inevitably countered with something new. What was supposed to be just a friendly debate between classmates turned into a heated argument between you and him.

“I agree, however, if you allow me to make a brief criticism, we know that even with social issues involved, the key point of free will and the delinquent’s conscious choice to commit a crime – an argument that came from the classical school – is taken into consideration today as well.” Heeseung countered, making you sigh for having cut off your train of thought.

“Of course, but it doesn’t change the fact that social issues have a great weight in this matter.” You leaned over the table and he chuckled “Yes, I agree that they do have an influence, but you must admit that even with all the influence in the world, we know that it's not that simple to understand the conscience of an individual who commits crimes.”

Even though he didn't say much, Heeseung saw how irritated you were: you seemed out of breath, your eyebrows were furrowed, and your gaze was fixed on him. And it was at that exact moment — when your eyes locked for a few seconds and he smirked — that he knew that irritating you would be his new entertainment.

For the first time in his life, he had seen you make an expression other than your serious one or the one with that meticulously adjusted smile you gave when you wanted to appear overly polite. Seeing how he pressed the specific buttons to irritate you was the new entertainment that was missing in Heeseung's college life, and it made him more elated than it should have been.

And this brief rivalry that was born unexpectedly in a debate, continued to extend to test scores, projects and final evaluations in the following semesters. Heeseung couldn't deny that you were very intelligent because he had lost 1st place in many situations, but that didn't discourage him and instead motivated him even more, because each perfect 100 that he achieved and threw in your face was absolutely satisfying.

So Heeseung's college life became hectic, as he was the famous student brave enough to face the "queen" of the course.

The one and only— Lee Heeseung —the reason for your extra study sessions, as you swore you would never let yourself lose to Heeseung in any aspect of academic life.

After all, nothing was better than the feeling of beating Heeseung at the very game he created.

☆

Your reflection in the bedroom mirror seemed to show that everything was in perfect order. Your hair was neat, your clothes were well-ironed, and the hydrated glow of your skin was even more noticeable that late afternoon. But in reality, you were distracted, reflecting on your past.

When you were in high school, your father gave you two options for college:

1) Med school or 2) Law school. That's it.

Unfortunately, you had no choice or desire of your own regarding your future, because according to your father, all that mattered was studying something with a “financial return”. In a way, you understood your father's vision, because he was a man who had suffered from poverty and hunger in the past, and became who he is with a lot of pain and sacrifice. However, the pressure and responsibility that came with being his daughter were very heavy.

A man who had been brutalized by the hard life he had led could not think of other realities in life. Your father didn’t believe in “talents” or “gifts” that couldn’t pay the bills. It didn't matter how good you were at some sport or art-related hobby. If it didn’t bring money home it shouldn’t be pursued – or worse, desired and dreamed of.

When he wanted to talk to you about something specific, he would always call you to his personal office. The same office that you found terrifying because it was so impersonal. The dark gray walls, the low lighting, and the plain furniture, without any memorabilia, photos, or any kind of decoration that would indicate any personality trait — everything gave off a cold, indifferent, distant air.

Since work had consumed his life, you knew you had to take advantage of these minutes of interaction with your father. He would often sit there, typing and reading cases on the computer, with his attention 100% focused on the screen that must have contained sensitive information (that was what your curious mind used to believe).

“You understand, right sweetie? I only want the best for you.” Your father would often take your hand and squeeze it gently as wrinkles crept into the corners of his eyes with the small smile he gave you “Yes, father. I understand.” You would respond like a perfect little doll who obeyed without questioning his ideas.

But even though you’d done everything your father had told you to do up until now, you knew that this wasn't the path you wanted to follow forever.

You wanted options. Options for what to do with your future that didn’t involve working in your father’s office. This expectation that everyone around you has that you will become the next face of your father's office is like a weight that you have to carry, but you’ve already decided that your path will be different.

But no one besides your best friend knows about it.

Luckily, you had always liked law, so you had delved deeper into the careers you could pursue over time. The prosecutor's office seemed interesting, after all, criminal law is a passion of yours. Unlike your father, who liked corporate and civil law, which is why he had all kinds of demands in his office.

However, you could try to become an attorney at another firm and gain experience in another area of law. There were certainly many options for you to explore, and fortunately there was still time for you to figure out what you really wanted to do, and the next steps to take.

As you wandered through thoughts about your future, your best friend and roommate, Gaeul, snapped you out of your prolonged reverie.

“Are you going out?” she was holding a bag of potato chips when she appeared at your bedroom door “I’m going to another extra study session.” You gave her a delicate smile and picked up your bag before heading towards Gaeul who looked at you suspiciously “Again?”

“Sure, why not?” Gaeul sighed “You know you don’t have to do all of this to beat Heeseung.” she followed you through the small dorm “You’re already too good, I don’t understand this rivalry between you two.”

“Gaeul, it’s much more than rivalry.” You took out your keys to open the front door “It’s a matter of honor! I can’t lose to that prick.”

“Yeah, yeah. Sure...” she laughed before taking another bite of the potato chip “Have fun babe!” You blew an air kiss that made Gaeul make a funny face “I will!”

☆

The library was quiet, with the perfect atmosphere for a late afternoon study session. This time of day was always your favorite, the sun setting through the window and the tranquility of the place made the environment completely cozy, even if you had to read something grueling.

You were reading the work of a famous criminal law scholar when your peace was interrupted by the soft tapping of fingers on the table in front of you. “Busy?” Heeseung’s unmistakable ironic voice made you take a deep breath, trying not to get irritated by his mocking manner.

One of the rules you strictly follow is that you won’t interact with Lee Heeseung unless it is absolutely necessary. Even though you are a calm and reserved person, the slightest interaction with Heeseung somehow stresses you out.

“Can’t you see I’m obviously studying?” Heeseung felt the vein in his neck throb in irritation and clicked his tongue when he saw how you didn’t even look at his face to answer him.

“Well, I think you need to see this.” he placed the paper in front of your eyes. Reluctantly you placed the book on the table and held the sheet up, looking at the contents of what was there “What is this?” You asked in disbelief as you saw your name paired next to Heeseung’s under a title that said ‘international law project’.

“Are you surprised?” You turned to Heeseung with wide eyes “As you can see, we are partners in Mrs. Jung’s project.” for the first time that day, all of your focus faded in a matter of seconds.

'No. No. No. This couldn't be happening. Me and Lee Heeseung together? In a project?'

“What do you mean? How the hell did this happen?” Heeseung took the liberty of sitting next to you. He leaned back in his chair and ran his hand through his hair “I don’t know either. Earlier I was leaving an extracurricular activity when Jay called me to look at the bulletin board because the pairings for the new project in the international law class had been announced.”

You stopped for a moment and began to remember that in the last international law class, Mrs. Jung had said that there would be a new project for that semester and that she didn't like to draw pairs, so she would choose the pairs herself.

And with the immense luck you had, she decided that the partner who would suit you best would be Lee Heeseung, out of the entire class.

“When I got close to the mural, Jay was staring at me with a hilarious face.” Heeseung gave a clearly frustrated sigh as he ran his hand over his face “I just didn’t expect it to be because of this.”

“This has to be a mistake.” It couldn’t be true. You couldn’t believe this was happening.

“Unfortunately, it’s true, and there’s nothing you can do about it.” Your eyebrows furrowed at Heeseung, who seemed too resigned for your liking “I’m not going to do this project with you, I– we have to talk to the teacher.”

Heeseung gave you a wry laugh “You can try talking to her, but it won’t work.” he picked up the paper from the table and analyzed the names again as if to confirm that it was real “The seniors already told me that Mrs. Jung is strict and doesn’t make exceptions. She never changes her plan.”

Your stomach began to feel heavy with the anxiety that was building up. You also heard these rumors from a senior who had given you tips about the worst teachers she had to deal with.

“I don’t care, I’ll talk to her.”

“Do whatever you want, I warned you.” Heeseung gave you one last pitiful look and got up from his chair “Are you going to leave like that? We need to talk about this.” he looked at you and shrugged his shoulders putting his hands in his coat pockets “The teacher isn’t here right now, we’ll look into this tomorrow.”

If there was something about Heeseung that really stressed you out, it was his attitude like he knew everything and had everything under control. As if he was better than everyone else.

“But we need to align what should be said!” You countered and Heeseung sighed, running his thumb and index finger over his furrowed eyebrows “God, you’re so annoying.”

Your breath stopped for a moment. How could Lee Heeseung have the audacity to call you annoying? Him of all people? The most insufferable person of all?

“What did you say?!” You stood up from your chair “Say that again!”

He smirked and took a step closer to you “You’re annoying.” Your blood was boiling as his face was just above yours “Everything about you irritates me.”

“Look who’s talking.” You scoffed and pointed at Heeseung with your index finger “You’re completely unbearable and you want to talk about me?”

Heeseung's jaw clenched, and you smirked, seeing how he was also clearly irritated by your response "Heeseung, I'm gonna be honest with you. I think you're just an arrogant prick, and I have no interest in working with you." You gave him a false smile while he frowned.

"Well, I feel the same." he said through gritted teeth and walked away "We'll sort this out tomorrow."

"Great." You took the paper and put it inside your book and closed it. Your desire to study had completely disappeared, and now you needed to think about how to talk to Mrs. Jung, because no way in hell you are going to pair up with Heeseung.

No way.

☆

The international law class was lasting longer than usual that Wednesday.

Your legs were shaking as anxiety corroded your entire body. Heeseung looked calm, his head resting on his right hand as he sat a few chairs in front of you. He had no idea of the storm that was happening inside you.

You had to convince the teacher that she needed to choose another partner for you. Anyone would do, even the slowest human being you could handle, except Lee Heeseung. Not him. Doing a project with him would be extremely stressful. You even felt a pang in your head when you imagined the stupid arguments you would have over simple things.

The truth is that initially you didn't care much for Heeseung, but you started to notice that since the beginning of college he did everything he could to talk back to you. He could never agree with you 100%, no matter the topic. So over time you started to nurture these feelings of rivalry and irritation towards him.

It was unbearable how he acted as if he was better than you and tried to prove it at all costs. That's why you made the decision to never let him surpass you, even in simple college activities. You would beat Lee Heeseung, even if it cost you a few more hours of studying.

However, now with this shared project this would certainly be a problem.

When class ended and the students left one by one, Heeseung calmly put his materials in his bag, as if he knew that his stoicism would irritate you. Mrs. Jung was sitting in her chair as she finished organizing some papers when you slowly approached.

“Uh, excuse me, Mrs. Jung. Can I have a few words with you?” Your soft voice drew the teacher’s attention away from her papers, who smiled back at you “Oh, miss Park, of course. How can I help you?”

You bit your lower lip hesitantly as the teacher looked at you carefully “It’s about the recent international law project; I saw that it’s going to be in pairs.” the teacher’s smile widened “Yes, I think it will be a great project for you.” she stood up from her chair holding the sheets “Is there a problem?”

“Actually, there is.” You were hoping internally that your nervousness wouldn’t show too much “I noticed that you chose Heeseung to be my partner, but since we’re not very close, I don’t think it’ll work out.” the teacher’s eyes seemed attentive to you “Then I’d like to ask about the possibility of changing partners.”

Mrs. Jung gave you a small sigh before offering you a gentle smile “Unfortunately, that won’t be possible, miss Park. Since I’ve already separated all the pairs, they’ve already started their research. Besides, it would be problematic to disrupt this entire system because of a request.” You started to feel despair set in your bones “I understand, Mrs. Jung, but it really will be difficult to work with Hees–”

“Miss Park, I chose Heeseung to be your partner because I think you two would be a great pair.” she interrupted you, leaving you speechless “What do you mean?”

The teacher seemed to think for a moment “I think you are a good match. You bring out the best in each other, and I think you will do a fabulous job with this research.”

Heeseung had arrived at exactly this time and stood frozen beside you.

“But—” You were cut off again by the teacher “The pairings will not be changed and this is final, miss Park. Okay?”

“Alright… Thank you for listening to me, Mrs. Jung.” she smiled before grabbing her bag “You’re welcome. I’m looking forward to seeing what you guys come up with.”

Heeseung watched you from the corner of his eye as the teacher left first. You were paralyzed as if a lightning had struck you.

“I told you she wouldn’t change her mind.” he broke the silence and you grimaced in pain.

“Oh, shut up.” You left first trying to accept the idea that you would have to put up with Heeseung as your partner for the rest of the semester.

Heeseung was having an internal debate as he waited for class to end. He didn't know whether he should talk to you and decide to start this research right away or wait for you to say something.

He had sat a few chairs behind you and saw how focused you seemed in class. For the first time this semester, he couldn't pay attention to what was being taught. How was he going to work with the girl he couldn't stand? And worse: for an entire semester? Not even in his worst dreams did he imagine something like this would happen.

As he pondered what to do, Jake glared at him with the corner of his eye “Dude, you’re making a scary face.”

Heeseung looked away and ran his hand through his dark hair “Sorry, I was distracted.”

“Distracted?” Jake smirked “You looked like a creepy staring at her.” Heeseung sighed “I  have to do the international law project with her.”

Jake put his hand over his mouth to contain the laugh that was threatening to escape “Oh man, you’re screwed.”

“I know.” Heeseung leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, trying to calm himself “I need to talk to her.”

“Good luck.” Jake gave him a side smile and shook his head as Heeseung remained with his eyes closed.

When class ended, Heeseung gathered all the courage he had and walked towards you. You also looked haggard. Although your clothes were perfect and your hair was as shiny as ever, the circles under your eyes showed your tiredness as you put your materials in your bag.

A small smile began to form on Heeseung’s face, but he held it back. He couldn’t laugh at your face when he knew that he also had to accept the reality that you would have to put up with each other for the next few months.

“Hey.” that was all Heeseung could say as he watched you approach him “Hi.” Your dry response made the atmosphere heavy.

“I need your phone number to schedule the meetings about our project.” he was trying to be civil, no one could complain about that.

You sighed, showing your clear lack of interest in any conversation with him “Okay.”

Heeseung was really holding back his sharp mouth, but you weren't making it easy.

The way your hand handed your phone while you looked away irritated Heeseung deeply “Do you always have to be this petty?”

“What?” You asked confused as he finished putting his number into your phone “Can’t you interact for 5 minutes without being petty? Is it that hard?”

In your mind you couldn't believe what you were hearing. Lee Heeseung wanting to lecture you about pettiness?

“What the hell are you talking about? You’re the one who can’t go 5 minutes without criticizing anything I do.” Heeseung bit his lower lip, trying to hold his tongue. He was already upset, and you weren’t helping.

“Probably because you don’t make it easier?” he sighed and ran his fingertips over his temples, trying to regain his former calm state “You know what, forget about it. Have you saved my number?” his patience was running out, and so was yours.

“Yes, unfortunately.” You whispered the last part, which didn’t go unnoticed by Heeseung.

“See you after class.” he put his phone in his pocket and his backpack on his right shoulder.

You just nodded and left first.

'Yeah, this is really going to be difficult.' Heeseung thought before leaving the room with his mind messed up by the simple interaction you two had.

☆

The library was relatively crowded, but since you previously arranged with Heeseung, you managed to arrive together at the same time.

“Well, look at that. Lee Heeseung isn’t late, I'm surprised.” You teased as you sat down and took your laptop out of your bag.

“Tsk.” Heeseung clicked his tongue as he placed his notebooks on the table “Of course. The sooner we start, the sooner I can leave.” he replied, thinking about how he wanted this torture to end once and for all.

“Finally you said something I agree with.” You retorted as you opened a blank Word document and began sorting through your materials.

Heeseung had already noticed that you liked everything organized. Your materials were always organized in the same way: pens, laptop and a notebook lined up.

“Well, do you have any ideas or suggestions on what we can do?” Heeseung was a little surprised by your question, after all, he expected you to decide everything at once and create a big fight if he disagreed.

“I think this subject is too extensive, we can’t do a generic theme.” You nodded as you stared at the laptop screen “That makes sense. I think we should dive deeper into some specific subjects.”

“I usually research and read about the subject superficially before diving into complicated concepts.” Heeseung showed the sheet of paper from his notebook that had some sketches of past summaries he had done in other subjects.

“International law is a pain because if we read about everything, we’ll waste a lot of time.” You commented, scratching your head, feeling frustrated “Let’s choose some subjects we like and see which ones are the best.”

“Fine.” Heeseung just wanted to get it over with.

For the next 10 minutes you were in complete silence. As if it was a silent mutual agreement that you would only speak if it was absolutely necessary.

Interestingly, the discomfort was bearable. Was it strange that you were sitting side by side without saying anything? Yes, but at least when you didn't say anything, you didn't fight, and that was enough for the moment.

“These are my suggestions.” You looked at the list Heeseung had made, but one suggestion in particular caught your eye.

“Post-war law?” You tilted your head to the side “It’s too generic and complicated, we need to think about it.” Heeseung sighed “How can this be too generic? It’s literally about the law after wars.”

You mockingly laughed “Exactly. What kind of wars are you talking about? Because we can’t talk about every war in existence.” Heeseung felt a stab of anger in his head.

“So, what are your suggestions, genius?” Heeseung’s pejorative tone wasn’t enough to make you lose your patience, so you turned the laptop screen to show your contribution.

“We can talk about certain differences in the legal system in some countries and filter out only the most interesting ones.” Heeseung snorted and pointed at your laptop screen “That’s as generic as my suggestion!”

“Of course not!” clearly the discussion would not end there “We can only choose a few countries.”

“And we could talk about a few wars, for example the most famous ones? Like World War I or World War II?” his ironic tone gave you the creeps, in a bad way.

“It’s still a very simple theme, we should do something more elaborated.” You turned your laptop screen towards you and Heeseung took a deep breath.

“And isn’t your topic simple?” he approached you and looked into your eyes “You just want to do what’s convenient for you, as always.”

“What do you mean by that?” The tone of your voice clearly showed that you were now very mad. How could Heeseung make a single task so difficult?

“Forget it, you wouldn’t understand.” he whispered, clearly irritated.

Another 10 minutes of complete silence. Neither you nor Heeseung wanted to say anything else. It was clear that this would be a difficult task, but you tried to be rational and calm down.

What was at stake here was your grade, your academic record, and your future. You couldn't let Heeseung be an obstacle in your path.

“Look, let’s get one thing straight.” You turned to Heeseung who gave you a lazy look “It’s clear we don’t like each other.”

“Hm.” Heeseung nodded and waved his hands in the air as if he wanted you to get to the point quickly.

“But I don’t care about that. What I really care about is my grades, so if I have to do this damn project with you, I’ll do it.” Heeseung kept looking at you, waiting for you to finish “So, if you put your childishness aside for a moment and really help me, we’ll be able to finish this today.”

You were clearly nervous and out of patience.

“Then, can you please cooperate with me?” Heeseung somehow felt a bit remorseful, thinking that perhaps he had overreacted with the way you seemed to beg for the two of you to end this quickly.

“Okay, we clearly can’t reach a consensus, so let’s use another method.” he pulled his chair closer to you “What are you doing?”

“What do you like?” his bright, dark eyes stared into yours with intensity “What are you most comfortable with in international law?”

“I like the criminal part.” You whispered a little shyly as he got closer to you “Good.” Heeseung began to write in his notebook “I like the human rights part, especially the Post-World War II issue.”

You watched as he outlined the topics you both liked.

“Let’s research these themes and at the next meeting we’ll decide what to do.” he said and leaned back in his chair, looking at you.

“Okay. This might work.” You nodded, thinking it might be a good idea.

“It’ll work.” There it was. The tone of absolute certainty in Heeseung’s voice that usually irritated you, but this time you were satisfied that you had managed to reach a consensus.

“Okay, I’ll start now.” You stood up and headed towards some books in the international law section of the library, while Heeseung decided to research on the internet.

The rest of the meeting you were silent, researching the topics, but this time it wasn't awkward or heavy. You were just two students focusing on what you needed to do.

And that was enough for now.

“So, how is your international law project going?” Jay brought up the topic while he, Jake, and Heeseung were gathered in the campus cafeteria.

“Don’t remind me of that.” he sighed as he sipped on a soda “We managed to have a fight before the first meeting.”

“Damn, you guys are too complicated.” Jake commented with a smile “Luckily my partner on the project is Jay.” he fist bumped Jay.

“You guys are lucky. We’re trying to be civil, but sometimes it’s unavoidable not to get angry.” Jay narrowed his eyes as he studied his friend trying to understand why Heeseung seemed so reactive to you “You guys should see the way she acts. It’s like she does this on purpose to irritate me!”

“Can you believe the Mrs. Jung said she put us together because she thought we were a good match?” Heeseung gave a wry smile while Jake and Jay looked at each other with a knowing look and mocking smiles “She said I brought out the best in her, some shit like that.”

“Well, I somewhat agree.” Jay countered Heeseung “Since you two started interacting, you’ve become more dedicated to your studies.”

“Real, brother. You worry more about her than yourself when exam week comes.” Jake blurted out, and Jay laughed, making Heeseung stunned by his friend's confession.

“I can’t believe I’m hearing this.” Heeseung sighed “I don’t care about her. I just like being the best in the class! That’s all.”

Jay smirked and put his arm around his friend's shoulder “Sure, sure… but you can't deny she's hot.”

Heeseung stood frozen in place at what Jay had said. He wasn't blind, he knew you were a beautiful woman, but that didn't change the fact that you were annoying to him.

“None of that changes the fact that she’s annoying.” Heeseung looked away as Jake and Jay chuckled.

“In my opinion, I think you lowkey admire her, but you can’t admit it and that’s why you act like that.” Jake teased Heeseung who was stunned “Just admit you’re into her man, it’s okay.” Jay said and Jake snickered “Huh? You guys are crazy.” he got up from his chair and decided to leave while Jay and Jake laughed.

“C'mon Heeseung! Don't run away like that!” Jake and Jay stood up and decided to follow him while Heeseung went ahead.

So what if you were pretty and attractive? That didn't change anything.

You were still the rich girl he couldn't stand.

☆

After a few days of research, you and Heeseung decided to have a meeting to decide on the final theme for your project.

It was already 16:24 in the afternoon and he still hadn't arrived, which was strange because Heeseung was always on time. Being late for more than 20 minutes wasn't like him.

Before you could text him, Heeseung hurried into the library. He was more casual than ever, wearing a dark gray sweater and a beanie, and you noticed that he was pale with slightly red cheeks and nose.

“Sorry for the delay, something’s got in the way.” he sounded haggard and strangely tired. His voice was hoarser than usual and you could tell he wasn’t doing very well.

“Are you okay?” You asked worriedly. Even though he was annoying, he clearly didn’t look okay “If you’re not okay, we can postpone it and–”

“I'm fine.” he cut you off in a harsh tone “Let's get this over with.” You stared at him in disbelief at the way he was acting.

“Wow.” You spoke ironically and didn’t hold back “Heeseung, what the hell is wrong with you?”

He closed his eyes temporarily, trying not to say anything. As if any noise would hurt like hell inside his head.

“I was just worried because you’re clearly not okay. If you want to be a jerk, then you can be by yourself.” You got up from the chair trying to leave and Heeseung grabbed your wrist “Let go of me.” You looked at his hand around your wrist and felt tortured by how soft and large his hand was compared to yours.

“I’m sorry.” Heeseung opened his eyes slightly and looked at you in a way that you swore you almost saw some kind of affection “Don’t go, please.”

You swallowed hard and sat back down on the chair, seeing how regretful Heeseung looked. “I didn’t mean to be rude, it’s just…” he sighed as if he didn’t want to admit his weakness “The truth is, I caught a cold and I’m not feeling very well, but I didn’t want to postpone our meeting.”

“Heeseung, you’re sick! We can do this in a few days, we still have time.” You looked at Heeseung with pity, who coughed a little “You need to recover, come on.”

He let go of your wrist, turning his gaze to you, who stood up again “But what about choosing the theme for our project?” he clearly seemed worried about the project, and you sighed.

“You’re not in a position to study, you need to prioritize your health.” Heeseung watched you grab your bag “We’ll decide that after you recover.”

Heeseung just nodded. At that moment he didn't want to argue or study, he just wanted his bed and sleep for the next 10 hours straight.

“Come on, I’ll accompany you.” You waited for Heeseung to leave first and followed him, after all, how could you trust a guy who was clearly sick.

Before he could leave campus, you bought a warm drink from a vending machine that was right next to the door.

“Here.” You handed the can to Heeseung “It’s good for you, it’s orange juice so it must have vitamin C.”

“Okay, thanks mom.” he replied and your eyes widened at his audacity “Hey!”

“I was joking, silly.” Heeseung gave you a smirk that disconcerted you.

It was the first time he had ever genuinely smiled at you. It wasn't a mocking smile or a fake smile after he said the most passive-aggressive thing possible. He was actually giving you a genuine, real smile.

And you definitely didn't want to admit that he had a very beautiful smile.

“Well, uh… anyways, take your medicine and recover. We’ll reschedule the meeting.” he looked down at the hot drink and gave you another smile before looking back at you. “Okay, see you later.” He – shockingly – kindly said “Thank you.” his gaze was fixed on yours, and for some reason, it made you feel embarrassed.

“It’s nothing.” You looked away “See you later.”

He gave you one last smile before leaving first. As you watched him walk away you began to wonder what kind of man Lee Heeseung was, who insisted on going to your meeting even though he was sick.

☆

You were choosing a movie to watch with Gaeul when your phone vibrated. Gaeul was putting the freshly popped popcorn in the bowl when you saw on your phone that surprisingly Heeseung had texted you.

[Lee Heestupid] — Hey

[Lee Heestupid] — Just wanted to say thank you for the orange juice.

21:46 pm

You smiled a little, seeing that he had the courage to send you a message about something that isn’t your project.

[You] — It's nothing. Are you feeling better?

21:48 pm

[Lee Heestupid] — Yeah, I'm way better now.

[Lee Heestupid] — If you're free, let's meet tomorrow for our project.

21:51 pm

[You] — Sure, it works for me.

21:52 pm

[Lee Heestupid] — Great

[Lee Heestupid] — See you then

21:53pm

[You] — See you.

21:53pm

“Who are you talking to?” Gaeul asked suspiciously as she approached your couch “I was just rescheduling the project meeting with Heeseung.” You locked your phone and tapped the fabric of the couch next to you indicating that you wanted her to sit there.

She stopped in her tracks and gave you a mischievous smile, looking at you. “I can’t believe you were smiling like that while you were texting Heeseung.” You rolled your eyes at Gaeul's suggestive tone “What do you mean? I was normal.” You looked away to the TV “Nuh-uh.” She was clearly enjoying the whole thing “I think you’re starting to like him after all this time.”

“Girl, you’re crazy.” You sighed thinking about Gaeul’s fertile mind and she sat next to you hugging your arm “Come on, admit that you changed your conception of him. Even if it’s just a little.”

You paused for a moment and thought “He’s still insufferable, but this time he was polite.” Gaeul chuckled, taking a handful of popcorn. “Oh, this is going to be interesting.”

“Babe, let’s just watch the movie.” You changed the subject and Gaeul was laughing beside you “Okaaaay.”

☆

As much as you didn't want to admit it, the atmosphere between you and Heeseung had certainly changed a bit. It was noticeable that although his thoughtless sarcasm hadn't changed, you two fought less about your project. Heeseung's posture was still as confident as ever, but a part of you had gotten used to this eccentric trait of his. Maybe he was naturally like this in any area of his life, or maybe he was forced to be like this.

“While I was recovering, I thought about how to combine our interests in our project.” Heeseung looked much better. His face had a healthy glow, his lips were pinker and, curiously, you noticed how his nose was perfectly shaped. Did he always have this insane profile?

“What’s your suggestion?” You asked, adjusting your seat, trying to dispel the strange thoughts that were distracting you “We can talk about criminal accountability and the evolution of post-war human rights within international law.”

You thought for a moment “That might work.” The smile that formed on your face didn’t go unnoticed by Heeseung who was taken aback “It’s just going to be harder than expected, since it’s a topic that we’re going to have to delve into in depth so we can’t leave any gaps.”

“I accept the challenge.” He smirked while looking into your eyes “And what about you? Are you scared?” You rolled your eyes, seeing how he never misses an opportunity to tease you.

“Of course not.” You snorted “You know I never run away from a challenge. After all, I’m the best in the class.” Heeseung’s eyebrow twitched slightly at your insinuation “Actually, we’re tied and you know it.”

“Fine, maybe you’re right.” You sighed “But it doesn’t change the fact that we’ll have to work hard with this topic.” Heeseung gave an airy laugh through his nose seeing how excited you were “Indeed, but at least we were able to officially set the theme of our project.”

“Now we need to define the next steps.” You stretched your arms and Heeseung couldn’t help but see part of your waist when your shirt rose slightly “I guess that’s a good idea, because we also have to study for that civil law presentation in three weeks.” He looked away to the screen of his laptop.

You widened your eyes and turned to Heeseung “Oh my God, I thought it would be in a month!” Opening your tablet's calendar you came across the date marked on a Tuesday in three weeks “I was so worried about our project that I lost track of time.”

“You're welcome.” Heeseung said without looking at you as he researched the subjects he needed to study for your project “It seems like I’m taking up too much of your mind for you to forget a presentation.” He snickered and you grimaced.

“Ugh, you wish.” You sighed as you typed on your laptop causing Heeseung to give you an enigmatic smile.

Yeah. As you thought, Lee Heeseung was still a pain in the ass.

Miraculously, after weeks of not going out, Heeseung was at a party. Contrary to what many people think, Heeseung doesn't go out to many parties. Since he has a scholarship to take care of, his main focus is on studying. However, when he has some free time, he allows himself the luxury of enjoying some kind of fun.

Today was no different as Jake managed to convince him that he needed to clear his head after being sick.

Since part of the international law project was well underway and he had made progress on his civil law assignment, he allowed himself to relax for a few hours at that random party on a Friday. Jake and Jay seemed more lively, taking advantage of the opportunity to play beer pong with boys from other courses.

Heeseung had been drinking for a while now, but nothing seemed very interesting. The music was great, but he was still feeling tired from working twice as hard during the week, so he decided to sit on an old couch that was empty. As he slowly drank, he began to analyze his surroundings, and noticed that he was surrounded by couples or people who were there with the aim of flirting and hooking up with someone.

Personally, Heeseung didn't have many girlfriends. He had gone on a few dates, talked to a few girls, and even had a serious girlfriend for a year and a few months during high school, but nothing had lasted that long. Life hadn't been easy for Heeseung's family, so all he could think about was how he needed to help out at home with the money from tiring part-time jobs and how to pay for his upcoming college expenses.

Love was a distant topic for Heeseung.

Most of the time he was worried about his future and the reality he wanted to improve. That's why love and relationships were foreign subjects on his mind. Jake used to say that he needed to relax a bit and at least try to meet someone during college, but he was too busy.

Too busy studying, working and self-improving but mainly busy thinking about you.

The amount of times you wandered through his mind seemed unhealthy. It was as if you were always there unconsciously, terrorizing the corners of Heeseung's mind. Like a presence he couldn't get rid of, like you were a sticker glued in the album of his thoughts.

He always swore he didn't care much about your appearance, but his breath caught for a moment when from afar he saw you with a short black skirt and a brown turtleneck blouse clinging to your torso. Heeseung felt his body sober up in an instant and he leaned over his knees so he could confirm his suspicion.

That shiny hair and that unique smile were unmistakable in his eyes. Yes, it was you.

Heeseung swallowed hard and felt strange for not being able to take his eyes off you. “Sure, sure… but you can't deny she's hot.” Jay's sentence from that day kept echoing in Heeseung's mind as he tried to convince himself that this was no big deal.

You've always been beautiful. No, you're always impeccable. As if you never had a bad day, you're always well-tied up, wearing a sweet perfume, unbeatable, gorgeous... stunning. Not that that's necessarily a bad thing. In a way, your determination to always show your best version is impressive, especially in the world of law where Heeseung knows how much appearances matter.

But he never really stopped to look at you. Heeseung’s judgment was always clouded by his anger at what you represented. At the spoiled, privileged girl who would never experience what it was like to suffer from not having enough money for leisure or having every penny counted to pay the bills.

Your existence was almost an affront to him—even though you had never done anything to him.

But even though he knew all of this. Even though he had convinced himself that you were his rival, his eyes couldn't take their eyes off your figure. Maybe it was the alcohol in his system, or the fatigue, but your legs seemed even more toned under the dark blue light of the place.

He swallowed hard, seeing how your eyes seemed to sparkle as you talked to a girl beside you that he assumed it was your best friend. Have you always had an outfit that adorned your waist flawlessly like that?

'It's okay, I can admire a beautiful woman.' Heeseung argued in his own mind as if he needed to justify himself for the thoughts he was having at that moment.

Thoughts of how hauntingly attractive you are.

Heeseung bent the cup he was holding a little from squeezing it so hard and ran his hand over his face. He was wondering if he should talk to you or just let it go. Even if he decided to go to you, what would he say? 'Hi, good to see you project partner.'? Absolutely not. That would be too pathetic of him.

After a few seconds of struggling, he decided to stay still. It could have been really awkward if he tried to say something out of the blue. Besides, you were with your friend, so he decided he wouldn't bother you.

However, as if life was playing tricks on Heeseung, he saw a weird man approaching you. A guy he had seen before at the party, and who was clearly not feeling well after drinking way past his limits. From afar Heeseung watched with his eyes as the clueless guy approached and tried to say something to you, which showed instant discomfort.

When the guy dared to touch your shoulder, Heeseung stood up at the same time, feeling his blood boil. You had a frown on your face and were obviously saying no. Even with the loud music, he could tell that you weren't enjoying that approach by the gestures you were making as you got away from the guy.

As he couldn't contain himself, Heeseung stomped towards him and pushed the guy back hard with his forearm. In a single movement he hugged your waist and pulled you towards him, slamming your back into his chest.

“Hey! Are you stupid? She said no!” Heeseung spoke harshly and you turned your face to him, shocked by the situation “Get the hell out of here, son of a bitch!”

“Ahh shi–” before the guy could finish his sentence Heeseung pushed him hard and the guy staggered back while cursing some swear words. The people around started staring at the guy who was clearly drunk and out of his mind.

“Let’s get out of here.” He whispered in your ear, sending a shiver down your spine. You just nodded and turned around with Heeseung as the other guy walked away aimlessly, bumping into other people.

As Heeseung led you through the crowd, your heart was racing. In less than 10 minutes of partying, Gaeul had gone to the bathroom, a drunk man disturbed you, Heeseung had saved you and now had his arm behind your back and his right hand firmly gripped on your waist while the other made room for you to pass.

It was almost like a scene from a movie where the security guard makes room for the protagonist to pass without touching anyone.

Your mind was spiraling when you arrived at the backyard near the kitchen that didn't have many people and had a bench for you to sit on. Heeseung let go of you and closed the kitchen door behind him seeing how shocked you looked at everything that happened.

“Are you okay?” Heeseung’s gentle tone made you finally look at him that night.

Your breath hitched and your mouth hung open seeing that he was wearing a white tank top showing his collarbone, a silver chain over it, an open dark gray jacket and dark jeans.

“Yes...” You felt your cheeks heat up as you noticed how his intense dark eyes didn’t look away from yours “Thank you, Heeseung.” You shyly mumbled feeling your stomach stir as he sighed, running his hand through his hair which was slightly messy, showing a bit of his forehead.

Even if you wanted to deny it, it would be an obvious lie, because clearly Lee Heeseung was so hot that you were at a loss for words.

“Are you sure you’re okay? I can get you a water or something.” He looked genuinely concerned and didn't know what to do to make you feel better, but you smiled gently. “It’s okay, really.” You sighed in relief “You really helped me out back there. Thank you.”

“It’s nothing, as a man it’s what I should do.” He sat down next to you “That guy is an idiot; I should’ve kicked his ass.” You laughed and propped your face on the back of your hand looking at Heeseung “It would have been great entertainment, but you don’t need to harm yourself because of a drunk idiot.”

Heeseung allowed himself to relax after what happened “I guess you’re right… but what really matters is that you’re okay.”

“I am, thanks to you who saved me.” Heeseung gave an almost imperceptible smile, slightly embarrassed by the tone of your voice, but he calmed down when he saw how you looked fine and out of danger. You continued to observe Heeseung's face thinking how curious it was how different he looked when he genuinely smiled.

Heeseung's smile is splendid, like the perfect complement to his handsome profile.

He turned to you and suddenly you felt aware of his gaze.

“To be honest, I was surprised to see you here.” Heeseung confessed “I don’t remember seeing you at the parties I went to.”

He noticed how you gave a weak smile and looked up at the starry sky “It’s because I’ve only been to a few parties since I came to college.”

“Because of studies?” He asked and you nodded “That’s all I care about honestly.”

He gave an empathetic side smile “I know how it is… I can’t fail my grades.”

“You gotta be on top of the class, don’t you?” You teased him with your sarcastic tone and he rolled his eyes smiling “It’s not just that.”

“So, what’s the reason?” You turned and asked him, feeling curious, as he looked at you for a few brief seconds.

Heeseung hesitated for a moment as he didn't know what your stance would be towards his answer, but a part of him wanted to be honest.

“It’s because I need to keep my scholarship.” He confessed and looked at you hesitantly, expecting some kind of exaggerated reaction. Maybe a joke, disdain or humiliation, but he was surprised by your bright face.

“A scholarship?! Wow, that’s impressive!” You were surprised and your face showed it “I had no idea you were a scholarship holder, that’s amazing! Only the best students get a scholarship in our course.”

Heeseung was stunned by your reaction. Maybe he had misjudged you for expecting the worst, but your relationship wasn't the best, so he didn't know what to expect.

"I mean, it's not that impressive. I just worked my ass off to get this scholarship, so yeah... I need to keep it.” Heeseung scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. He didn’t know how to react to being praised, especially a compliment coming from you. His rival.

For Heeseung, the feeling of receiving recognition from someone who doesn't like him very much is more real and impactful than anyone else. Especially because you have all the weapons to criticize him, so receiving a praise from you hits different.

“It’s just the truth.” You moved a little closer to Heeseung, adjusting your skirt, making him glance at your smooth thighs “You know, I just realized something.”

Heeseung’s eyes rose and met yours again “What?”

“I think this is the first time we’ve talked about something that doesn’t have to do with our project.” You laughed and he noticed the gloss you were wearing. Your lips were shining in a mesmerizing way.

“You’re right…” He smiled “I mean, you haven’t cursed at me yet, so I say it’s an improvement.”

“Huh?” You dramatically let out a breath of air and pointed at him. “Heeseung, drop the act. You’re the one who always provokes me and starts bickering.”

Without letting go of eye contact, he brought his face closer to yours and you suddenly felt butterflies in your stomach “You’re not innocent either, you’re always teasing me.” He whispered, making you snort and look away.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Heeseung laughed and you noticed how warm the sound of his laugh was “Yeah, let’s pretend you don’t know.”

You were surprised. He seemed different that night, as if he wasn't the Heeseung you knew. The rival you felt so much despise for.

Beneath that serene air he looked like just a normal college boy. And you liked that — but you wouldn’t admit it to him.

“I need a drink.” You suddenly commented and he looked at you “Me too.” Heeseung got up from the bench and stood in front of you “Let’s go inside, the party isn’t over yet.”

“I know and Gaeul must be worried about me.” You stood up sighing thinking about how you’ll have to find your best friend in the middle of the crowd.

“Ladies first.” Heeseung opened the kitchen door and made room for you to go in first.

You rolled your eyes with a smile and walked through the door with your arms crossed “Who would have thought… Lee Heeseung is such a gentleman.”

Heeseung smiled and whispered as you stood beside him “There are still many things about me that you don’t know.”

Heeseung's deep voice was like sweet poison that seemed to penetrate your skin with ease. You swallowed hard, feeling your body heat up slightly, and just walked in without saying anything.

Normally you hated losing any kind of argument with Heeseung, but tonight you would let it slide.

As the night unfolded and you entered the venue together again, Gaeul watched the interaction from afar with a satisfied smile on her face.

Heeseung and you together? Without fighting? You guys would definitely talk about it later.

☆

“Okay girl, spill.” Gaeul leaned against the doorway of your room as you changed the sheets on your bed “What the hell happened between you and Heeseung?”

“What do you mean?” You pretended not to understand her insinuation as you finished fluffing the pillows so you could lie down.

“You know what I'm talking about.” Gaeul came in and sat on your bed, looking at you with that look she only did when she wanted to tease you “I saw you and Heeseung interacting at the party.”

“And what about it?” Gaeul sighed at your stubbornness “I thanked him for helping me with a drunk idiot there who tried to hit on me.”

“What do you mean? Did something happen?” Your best friend looked at you worriedly and you sat down next to her “It was nothing big. When you went to the bathroom a guy was completely wasted and tried to hit on me, but Heeseung helped me.”

Gaeul put her hands over her mouth in shock and her eyebrows furrowed “Babeee, I didn’t know! I’m sorry I left you alone, I never imagined something like this would happen.” She touched your hand and you smiled.

“It’s okay Gaeul, I’m fine.” You squeezed your best friend’s hand, and she smiled sweetly.

“Sooo, you were saying Heeseung saved you?” She looked at you with a teasing face and you laughed “He helped me, like a good human being, okay?”

“Girl, there’s no point in hiding it. I know something has changed between you two.” She seemed 100% convinced and you just rolled your eyes “You’re very creative Gaeul.”

“Come on, don’t tell me you didn’t feel anything different after he saved you.” She approached you, watching you ponder her question for a moment.

In fact, since that event and the brief conversation in the backyard, you started to see Heeseung in a different light. Not to mention how much more attractive he seemed.

“Okay, maybe he’s not that bad.” You confessed and Gaeul’s eyes widened, and her mouth opened in shock.

“Oh. My. God. You totally like Lee Heeseung!!!!” Gaeul stood up excitedly and you made a face “And don’t try to deny it! Your eyes don’t lie! You’re falling for your rival!”

You chuckled and shook your head “Gaeul, I don’t like him, I just think he’s improved as a person… that’s all.”

Before leaving your room, she turned and looked at you with affection and a sweet smile on her lips “Okay, you can keep denying it. But just know that when you are ready to admit your feelings, I’ll be here for you.”

You sighed knowing that Gaeul wouldn't change her mind about this.

But you couldn't help but feel that strange feeling deep in your chest when you remembered how he had held your waist tightly and protected you. The way his eyebrows were furrowed showing the anger he was feeling against that idiot on your behalf. How protective he was at that moment…

His strong hands, along with the bright smile he gave you and how his dark hair seemed to fall perfectly over his forehead.

Okay, you can admit that Lee Heeseung is attractive, but that doesn't mean you like him.

Right?

Heeseung was walking down the halls while Jay was talking about some random basketball topic when he saw your beautiful figure from afar grabbing his attention. You were stunning, as always, but you looked different.

You were smiling as you watched something interesting a boy was showing you on his phone. He recognized the boy as Jungwon, the president of one of the clubs you were a part of. Heeseung couldn't help but feel awkward about the scene. You looked so comfortable and relaxed as you talked to the boy who was undeniably handsome and put together.

A wave of sour feelings flooded Heeseung's chest. His throat tightened, and he swallowed hard, trying not to make it too obvious how much he was staring at you. Heeseung, who had always had this chill aura, felt insanely bothered when he saw how excited the boy seemed while he was making you smile so easily.

It was nothing special. Even he could make you smile if he wanted to, there was nothing special about this guy.

“Hey man, are you listening?” Jay asked and Heeseung looked away trying to ignore the dissatisfaction bubbling inside him “Sorry, can you repeat?” He ran his hand through his hair and Jay sighed “Dude, if you’re going to be jealous of her, please be more discreet, you look like a creepy staring at her like that.” Heeseung dumbfounded stared at his friend “I don’t know what you’re talking about, and I’m certainly not jealous.”

“Give me a break man, you were practically staring at the girl.” Jay gave a smirk and Heeseung kept walking trying to resist the urge to look back and see your smile one last time “I'm fine. Let's go.” Jay shook his head and continued walking alongside Heeseung who remained silent for the rest of the way.

He wasn't jealous, was he?

☆

Civil Law was fun until you had to do a detailed essay and slides on dispossession in your bedroom on a Wednesday night. It was already past 11pm and you were still halfway through the paper. Your presentation was due next week, and you were still going over the details of the requirements for reinstatement of possession.

Being a perfectionist was a characteristic of yours that hindered you more than it helped you most of the time. You wanted your work to be perfect and meticulous to the point of not leaving any room for questions. The problem was that this cost you precious nights that you could have been having fun and enjoying life like a young university student.

You were stretching your arms when you were surprised by the sound of your phone ringing on the table. Your heart skipped a beat when you saw Heeseung's name on the screen. What was he doing? He had never called you before.

'Is this an emergency?' You instantly thought and worriedly answered the phone.

“Hello? Heeseung?” The hesitation in your voice was clear “Hm—” Heeseung’s deep voice and breathing suddenly startled you “Yeah, it’s me. Sorry for calling you so late.”

“It’s okay. Did something happen?” Your heart was suddenly racing, and you couldn’t explain why. His laughter on the other end warmed your ear “No silly, I wanted to talk about our project.” The way his voice sounded deeper over the phone made you swallow hard and cross your legs instinctively.

This was pathetic. How could you feel nervous about a phone conversation? And worst of all — with Heeseung?

“Oh, right.” You gave an awkward chuckle “What is it?” It was like you could feel his smile through his breathing on the phone call.

“I was just thinking… maybe it would be interesting to talk about criminal liability for crimes committed during the Second World War with the creation of the Nuremberg Tribunal.” Heeseung said in a calm and soft voice. As if he was flirting, but you knew that couldn’t be possible. He had no reason to flirt with you “Ah, you mean the International Military Tribunal?”

“Exactly.” Was his voice always this sexy? “I think it would be a good topic, and I know you like the criminal side of things, so it could be interesting for us to address this.” Your stomach turned as you realized that Heeseung had paid attention to what you had said weeks ago and thought of this idea based on your personal taste.

“I think that’s a great idea!” You gave him an excited smile as if he could see it “I think it would be wonderful to include this part.”

“Yeah.” He laughed in a way that made you feel like a little girl interacting with her crush “I’m glad you liked it, we can work on that at our next meeting.”

God, you were hating yourself mentally. How could you let yourself be affected and have impure thoughts while Heeseung was talking about the Nuremberg Tribunal?

“Sure!” Was all you could manage to say before he interrupted you “Speaking of which, are you free in the afternoon on Friday? We can start right away.”

“Wait, I’ll check my schedule.” He laughed at your answer and said playfully “Of course you have a schedule.” You usually can’t stand it when Heeseung answers you sarcastically, but this time it was different. It was like he was teasing you, but not with the intention of irritating you, but just joking with you. “I’m an organized person, of course I’ll schedule my appointments in advance.”

“Alright, Miss Organized. Are you free?” You could hardly believe that you were having a friendly conversation with Heeseung over the phone “Yes, we can schedule it at our usual time.”

“Great, it's a date then.” The way he said it was normal, you know that, but the butterflies that invaded your stomach made you feel like a loser. He wasn't asking you out on a date, it was just the work meeting you always had, but you couldn't stay calm like before.

“Uh– Heeseung can I ask you something?” You gathered the courage to continue the conversation “Sure. What is it?” He seemed curious and you bit your lower lip trying to get the courage to ask what was eating you up inside “Why did you call me? You could have texted me…”

Your anxiety reached its peak when he was silent for about 5 seconds and all you could hear was his breathing “I guess I just wanted to talk to you directly about the subject.” He broke the silence and you let out an ironic chuckle “Woah?! I never thought I would hear those words from Lee Heeseung.” Unbeknownst to you on the other end of the line Heeseung had slightly pink cheeks while he had his hand over his eyes “Seriously, this topic is quite detailed so I wanted to get my point across as easily as possible, and over text it would be a hassle.”

“And why didn’t you Facetimed me?” You argued as you jumped onto your fluffy bed “I can’t.” He replied seriously and you hugged your pillow “Why not?”

Heeseung stopped for a second and laughed through his nose, which you could hear through the phone “Because I’m already in bed and I’m shirtless.” You froze, feeling your cheeks heat up at what he said and blamed yourself for imagining him shirtless calling you in the middle of the night “So… it would be a little complicated for me to have to get up, put on a shirt and turn on the lights just to say that.”

“I see… that makes sense.” You swallowed, feeling like an idiot for not knowing how to react with this bombastic information. Shirtless Lee Heeseung calling you at night is something you never expected to happen to you.

'I hope he doesn't think I'm weird.'

“And you? What are you doing up so late?” He asked and you laughed seeing how you needed to turn off your laptop and organize your materials “I was doing my civil law essay.”

“Yeah, this essay is really tiring. It took me a long time to research my topic, but you’ll finish it soon.” He said with that usual confidence with absolute certainty that you would kill the subject “Well, unfortunately I had the misfortune of getting the subject of dispossession, so it's more complicated than it seems.”

“Damn, dispossession is full of details.” He sighed, feeling his eyes grow heavy “My topic is about inheritance law. Heirs and shit like that.” You laughed, noticing how his voice was getting slightly choked with sleep “Are you sleepy?”

“Hmhum.” He nodded even though he knew you wouldn’t see it “I’m tired, I had a lot of work today.” Your legs were swinging in the air as you listened to Heeseung “Well then, I guess it’s time for you to sleep.”

He laughed and agreed “Yeah, you're right. Good night, Y/N.” His sleepy voice tickled your ear and you smirked “Good night, Heeseung.”

With one click he hung up the call and you buried your face in the pillow, giving a liberating scream after the unexpected call.

'Damn it, Lee Heeseung, what did you do to me?'

☆

Despite your good mood, this civil law essay was taking up a lot of your free time and it was tiring you out. You had been reviewing your paper and making slides for your presentation for 3 hours straight.

The civil law professor was known to be strict and detail-oriented, so you wanted everything to be perfect. As you were finishing your slides to clear your mind, your phone vibrated and you felt your body freeze when you saw that Heeseung had sent you a message.

[Lee Heeseung] — Hey

[Lee Heeseung] — Are you busy?

16:47 pm

Your heart jumped into your throat and with slightly trembling hands you picked up your phone and quickly thought about what to say.

[You] — Kinda.

[You] — Finishing the slides for my Civil Law presentation.

16:48 pm

While you were trying to calm down, Heeseung was already answering you at the speed of light.

[Lee Heeseung] — Oh.

[Lee Heeseung] — Want some help?

16:48 pm

The smile that appeared on your face was automatic. How could such a simple message affect you so much?

[You] — Really?

[You] — I mean, it would be nice if it doesn't bother you though

16:49 pm

[Lee Heeseung] — Yeah, it doesn't bother me.

[Lee Heeseung] — Where are you now?

16:49 pm

You took a deep breath, feeling your stomach churn at the excited feelings that were rising from the tone of his messages.

[You] — I'm at the library rn

16:49 pm

[Lee Heeseung] — Alright

[Lee Heeseung] — I'll be there in a few

16:50 pm

[You] — Okay

16:50 pm

Your hands went straight to the front camera of your phone to see how you looked. You started to despair because you hadn't done a more elaborate makeup that afternoon, but you didn't expect to see Heeseung.

Luckily, you had some blush and a reddish gloss in your bag. You touched up your makeup and checked your teeth for any signs of something between them but smiled in relief when you saw that they were perfect.

You adjusted your posture, your blouse, and ran your hand through the strands of your hair to comb them carefully. After feeling that you were minimally tidy, you tried to focus on your slides before Heeseung arrived.

Within 10 minutes Heeseung was already walking past the library door looking for you. When he found you, your eyes met in a second and he smiled. Your anxiety increased considerably as you watched Heeseung walk towards you. With each step he took, you were afraid that your face would show how anxious you were.

It was insane how Lee Heeseung could look so hot wearing a simple black shirt and dark jeans.

“Hey.” He pulled out the chair next to you and sat down while keeping his gaze on yours “It's been a while.”

“Yeah…” You let out the air you were holding “I've been busy with this essay and presentation.”

“I see.” he smiled and leaned forward "What do you need? I'm here to help you."

You hated yourself for not being able to look at Heeseung for so long, so you looked away to your laptop screen.

“I just need to review a few points.” You showed the summary of what you were going to present and the main points “Everything is ready, so I’m editing the slides now because I feel like I need to improve the design of them.”

Heeseung had spent so long without hearing your voice that he was almost grateful to hear you talk so much, even if it was about a stupid presentation.

“If you want, I can show you what I do on my slides.” He moved his chair closer to yours and looked at you. “Okay.” You nodded and made him comfortable so he could do whatever he wanted.

Heeseung placed his left arm behind your chair and brought his face closer to yours coincidentally as he pulled his laptop closer to him.

You felt your heart race when you smelled Heeseung's perfume. That mixed scent of chamomile shampoo married perfectly with his woody scent. It was a soft, punctual and addictive blend. A perfect masculine scent that caught your attention.

“Do you still use PowerPoint?” He mockingly smiled and you raised an eyebrow at him “What’s wrong with it?”

“Nothing, but I personally think it’s hard to work with.” he opened a website in his browser “Try this site, it has easy designs for quick slides.”

“Okay.” You were trying to focus on what he was saying, but his face was distracting you.

His forehead was more exposed than before. His hair was parted in the middle so you could see how perfectly defined his eyebrows were.

How had you not noticed before how handsome he was?

“Look… you can put these dots in a different font so that they are more readable and don’t clutter the view of the slide.” he leaned in closer and spoke close to your ear, making you swallow hard “See?”

“Yes.” You replied, trying to ignore how much Heeseung’s velvety voice tickled your ear.

“Your slides are excellent, they just need some polishing.” Heeseung’s voice was gentle and he seemed focused on the task at hand. A warm feeling filled your heart at the brief compliment he gave you.

“I just want to get this over with.” You sighed “I’m tired and I want to sleep.” Heeseung chuckled and looked at you “You’ll be fine.” Your gaze met his and his eyes gently fixed on your mouth.

Crazy thoughts ran through his mind as he roamed his gaze over your mouth and eyes.

“Thank you for helping me.” You whispered and Heeseung smirked “Of course. I'm your partner after all.”

He looked away from your laptop screen, trying to control himself. You both were in a public space, but he was there to help you, so he would control himself for now.

“What else do you need?” He asked looking at the rest of his slides “I'm all yours today.”

You bit your lips trying not to smile too much at the way he said it.

“We can move forward with our project after I finish my slides.” You suggested and he glanced at you with an amused face “If you have time, of course.”

“Sure.” he smiled and scratched the back of his neck “I have all the time in the world.”

You smiled and decided that it would be perfect to work in something with Heeseung on that peaceful afternoon.

And suddenly you realized that Heeseung's presence had become comfortable to you.

☆

The day was cloudy, with an atmosphere that made you feel lazy and do not want to study at all. However, contrary to the statistics, you were dressed up with your hair brushed, a light pink button-up blouse, a gray ruffled skirt and lots of perfume.

You knew you were dressing up more than usual for a simple work date with Heeseung, but you couldn't help it.

It was as if your body moved on its own when it came to seeing Heeseung.

Without you realizing it, your personal opinion of him gradually changed. Lee Heeseung was extremely complex. At first, he seemed like a jerk who did everything he could to irritate you, but suddenly he showed a different side with his actions. He could actually be an interesting and nice guy when he talked to you like a normal human being and didn't argue for no reason.

He was smart too. Not that you didn't know that before, but the way he was punctual, organized and focused on what he wanted was your type. You couldn't stand people who didn't keep their commitments, and surprisingly Heeseung never missed a meeting you made — to the point of him going to one of your meetings even when he was sick.

It was impossible to ignore the signs that yes, Lee Heeseung could be a nice guy, but that you couldn't see it because you couldn't stand each other for some inexplicable reason.

However, you knew it wasn’t totally your fault for your previously bad relationship. You started to feel a bit resentful ever since he started picking on you. Your theory was that maybe he felt threatened by your academic performance, or maybe there was something more to it. After all, he was now keen to work well with you and didn't care if you also got top marks.

Maybe you misjudged him, or you spent too much time not liking each other for such superficial reasons that you didn't give yourself a chance to get to know each other better.

In any case, you had already come to the conclusion that despite your differences, you had finally managed to understand each other — to the point where you began to feel an undeniable and overwhelming attraction to him.

As you looked at your reflection in the mirror you felt slightly embarrassed. Deep down, it was embarrassing to admit that you were feeling so shaken by Heeseung, the guy you swore you couldn't stand, but so many things had happened that you couldn't deny your forbidden feelings.

And you had already decided that this would stay in your mind and that was fine. It was okay to feel a slight attraction to a man, even if that man was Lee Heeseung.

The difficult part was not showing what you felt when he seemed to be staring at you so deeply whenever you were together. Or when he smiled in a way that made your legs feel weak.

You grabbed your things and left the apartment, trying to distract your mind from those deep thoughts. Today would be a good day, especially since your work was progressing nicely and it was one less thing to worry about.

On your way to the library you decided to buy some juice from a vending machine and came across Heeseung in front of the machine. Suddenly you felt a strange chill in your stomach and tried to give a soft smile to him — one that didn't look forced.

Heeseung turned around and saw you approaching. He looked up and down before giving a smirk that warmed your body. “Hey, came to buy a drink too?” Heeseung kept looking at you intently as he grabbed his soda.

“Yeah, I think we had the same idea.” You awkwardly laughed as he pulled away slightly, grabbing a juice as well “You can't kick your soda addiction, huh?”

“You know caffeine is a must before studying.” He laughingly replied as he opened the can and handed you the orange juice you liked the most “For you.”

Automatically your eyes opened in surprise and you felt your heart warm at Heeseung's sudden action. “What?! Are you serious?”

“Yeah. I can buy some juice for my project partner.” You took the juice feeling your cheeks warm by his action “Thank you…” you replied giving a small smile that didn’t go unnoticed by Heeseung.

“So, are you done with your civil law essay?” he asked, leading the way to the library. His company was no longer strange, and you had to admit that you were really enjoying talking and spending time with him.

“Yeah, but I struggled to finish it all. I was tired of reading about property invasion.” Heeseung laughed and took a sip of his soda “I know how it is. I’ve read so many cases about wills that I don’t want to hear about it any time soon.”

As Heeseung told you about an interesting story he had seen on social media, you analyzed his profile. The way he smiled without realizing it when he told you something he was interested in made you lose focus on the subject.

The way his lips moved was as if they were inviting you. They looked silky, soft and shiny. You barely realized you were staring when he turned slightly to look at you and smiled, waiting for you to answer what he asked. “Sorry, what did you say?” he sighed and smiled ironically “You weren’t listening to me, were you?” You felt your face burn with embarrassment “Sorry, I got distracted for a moment.”

“Damn, what’s so important that made you distracted like that?” He teased you and you gave him an awkward smile.

'Your lips'

“Nothing much, just worried about some things.” Heeseung narrowed his eyes, analyzing you. He knew it was nothing like that, but he wasn’t going to pressure you to talk.

“Okay…” He took one last sip of his soda before throwing it in the trash. From afar, the library door was wide open, revealing that on that afternoon, the flow of students was way bigger than on other days.

When you finally entered the library and found the place completely packed, you felt defeated. There were practically no free tables for you to work at.

“What the hell? Why is the library so crowded?” You whispered and Heeseung scratched the back of his neck “I have no idea, maybe it’s because of upcoming exams?”

You tried to think about something, but nothing came to mind. “Well, I think it’s going to be impossible for us to do our work here.” You said seeing how there was no free space and Heeseung sighed trying to think of a solution.

“What are we going to do now?” You asked, turning to Heeseung, waiting for some suggestion.

Suddenly an idea popped into Heeseung's mind, but it was a dangerous idea and he didn't know if you would accept it.

You bit your lower lip, feeling anxiety hit you with the thoughts that were coming into your mind as you saw how deeply he seemed to be thinking. “I have an idea.” You noticed his cautious tone, as if he wasn’t sure what he was going to say.

“What is it?” He turned to face you fully and you noticed how tall he was. Your insides were churning as he tightened his grip on the strap of his black backpack. There were plenty of places near college that you could go to study, but it might be more difficult and complicated.

“We can go to a nearby cafe, or somewhere else that’s quiet, like my room.” You felt the air catch in your throat and he pursed his lips without taking his eyes off your figure “You can choose whatever’s most comfortable for you.”

You bit your lower lip quickly thinking about his suggestion “But we can go somewhere else if you want.” He reinforced the other option, feeling embarrassed by the sudden suggestion he made.

“No, it’s fine.” You replied almost instantly as you ran your hand through your hair “If your room is quiet and has enough space, then it’s fine.”

“Are you sure?” He didn’t want to pressure you into doing anything you didn’t want to do, so he decided to ask again to confirm “Yeah… the most important thing right now is going to a quiet place to work.”

“Alright, I’ll show you the way.”

You and Heeseung always spent time together, so being alone in his room wouldn't be a big deal.

That's what you were trying to convince yourselves.

☆

There is nothing as unexpected as feelings. This is a fact that Heeseung knows. He understands that human beings are endowed with emotions, thoughts and decisions. Yes, human beings are complex by nature and it is possible for them to evolve and change their thoughts and beliefs over time.

But even knowing all this, he couldn't understand why you were messing with him so much.

He had already rationally decided that he would not get too involved with you. You would do this project and each of you would go on with your lives as normal. However, lately Heeseung realized that his rationality wasn't connected to the things he felt whenever he saw you.

Suddenly he started to feel strange butterflies in his stomach when you smiled at him. The way you spoke was no longer so annoying and he started to find some of your jokes funny.

And the most worrying part was that he no longer felt stressed at the thought of working with you. A part of him was already used to your presence and not only that — he felt excited at the idea of seeing you.

You who didn't used to talk much before, now are sending articles, posts and messages about work and things related to law. Including funny and random things. Someone from outside would say that you seem like friends. Talking, laughing and being seen walking down the hallway together when you meet from time to time.

He knew he no longer felt the same anger as before, but he didn't understand what kind of relationship you had. You weren't really friends, but there was clearly an inexplicable chemistry between you, a kind of invisible tension that was created whenever your eyes met for a few seconds.

It was obvious that you had changed with him. In Heeseung's old vision, you were rude, inconvenient, and completely annoying.

Now you're nice, kind, and helpful whenever he asks you anything. But what scares Heeseung the most is the undeniable attraction he's feeling for you. He's always considered himself a man of values and respect, but his eyes can't help but wander to the curve of your neck when your hair is loosely tied back.

It was impossible not to notice your torso being hugged perfectly by your pink long-sleeved blouse, the smell of your sweet perfume and your shiny mouth; and ever since the party he couldn't stop thinking about your waist and how it felt between his fingers.

It was becoming mental torture to see your mouth almost every day and think about how soft it must be but not being able to do anything about it. It was scary how he seemed to not think straight when it came to you, but what was even scarier was that you agreed to go study in his room.

Even though he was the one who had suggested studying in his room, the fact that you accepted was surprisingly exciting. Yes, you would study as usual, but this time you would be at his desk and in his environment. It was inevitable not to feel nervous about the situation.

He tried to talk about anything random on the way and you even laughed a few times, but both of you were clearly tense. Maybe you just needed to start studying and this would pass.

Heeseung stopped at the door of his dorm, opening it slightly, feeling aware of your presence there. He entered first and took off his shoes, making room for you to pass. “Come in.”

You smiled and left your shoes at the door, feeling slightly shy as you entered his place “Thank you.”

The place was simple, tidy, and decorated differently than you’d expect. Even though he has an eccentric personality, there wasn’t much decor. Heeseung and his roommate were surprisingly minimalists, except for a few pizza boxes on the kitchen counter that Heeseung picked up to throw in the trash. “Don’t mind the mess, Jake and I had pizza yesterday and we passed out after we ate it.”

You chuckled looking at your surroundings “It’s okay, everyone has those days.”

He gave you a side smile, guiding you to the door of his room. Surprisingly, the dorm was bigger than you expected, seeing as he still managed to have a room just for himself.

“This is my room.” He walked into his room, making space for you to observe everything while he grabbed another chair so you could sit at his table.

“It’s really cool.” You felt like you were entering a forbidden and very exclusive place. You never imagined that you would get the chance to see Lee Heeseung’s room. The decor was peculiar, with a framed basketball player’s jersey on the wall and minimalist posters about sports and music.

Interestingly, he liked rock music. You noticed after seeing that he had a few music CDs together on the table, giving it a sophisticated and personal air. You smiled when you saw that there was a photo of him as a child with his parents on the nightstand next to his bed.

But surprisingly, what shocked you the most was seeing the amount of books he had in the place. Yes, Lee Heeseung really liked reading, and especially doctrines of law from the library.

Obviously, he worked hard to be one of the best on the course along with you, but seeing this reality up close was even more impressive.

His bed was tidy, but the books scattered on top of it gave the final touch to what truly meant to be in Heeseung's environment.

“You have a lot of books.” You commented when you saw Heeseung placing the other chair next to his at the table and he mischievously smiled “Of course I do. I want to be an attorney, so I need to read a lot.”

“Attorney?” You raised an eyebrow. “I think it’s cool if you want to follow that path… You’d probably enjoy talking to my dad.” You spoke softly at the last part, but Heeseung heard it anyway.

He noticed that the way you spoke insinuated that you didn't want to follow that path and curiously, as if your father was a distant figure for you.

“Don’t you want to be an attorney?” Heeseung asked you, seeing you going towards his desk and sitting down with a serious expression. “To be honest, I don't know… it’s not my dream.”

He sat down next to you and came closer, trying to make you comfortable. “Do you have an idea of what you want to do?”

“Maybe a prosecutor?” You confessed and smiled shyly. It was the first time you had talked about this dream with anyone other than Gaeul. “It’s still a distant idea, I guess I’ll become an attorney first. That’s what everyone expects of me anyway.”

“Everyone?” He asked gently. “It’s complicated.” You sighed and he realized it was still a sensitive subject that you might not want to explain, and he wasn’t going to pressure you into doing so. He also had things to deal with that he didn’t open up about easily.

“Well, regardless of what you choose, I know you’ll do well.” He commented as he placed his notebooks and laptop on the table. “You’re the only one who’s managed to beat me sometimes, and I know very well that not just anyone can defeat me easily.”

You gave Heeseung a smile, realizing he was trying to cheer you up in his own way. “I’ll take that as a compliment.”

He smiled and watched you placing your materials on the table, noticing the post-it notes with legal concepts on the wall in front of the table.

“Your room is… interesting.” You commented as you analyzed all the mnemonics and tips he had written on a post-it that was almost falling on the table. “Are you trying to start a fight?” Heeseung looked at you suspiciously and you laughed.

“No, I just think this room suits you.” You grinned “It’s cute.”

“Are you calling me cute?” Heeseung smirked, bringing his face closer to yours. “I’m talking about the room.” You replied, swallowing hard, opening your laptop.

“Well, that's a pity then.” You felt your cheeks burn and your body fizz at the suggestive tone of his comment.

Maybe you were seeing things, but it looked a lot like Lee Heeseung was flirting with you right now.

“So, before we start,” He continued to look at you while you tried to pretend that you weren’t feeling weak with his presence so close “I’m going to the kitchen to drink some water. Do you want something to drink?” He asked and you shook your head “No, I’ll drink the juice you gave me later.”

He gave a little smile of pride seeing that you actually accepted the juice he bought for you.

“Alright then, I’ll be right back.” Heeseung nodded and stood up as you tried to calm down.

'It's okay, he was just teasing me. I just need to calm down and focus on my studies.' You thought as you tried to convince yourself that the tension in the air was just some kind of illusion and not the harsh reality.

☆

Heeseung was in the kitchen getting a glass of water trying to understand the situation he was in. You were there, in his room, with your beauty shining like the morning breeze.

It felt like a dream. At first he didn't even know how to explain why he suggested it, but his intrusive thoughts were faster, shockingly you had accepted. In a way, you were there to study like you always do in the library, but this time he was feeling strange.

He wanted something to happen and this wasn’t good.

Because it meant that Heeseung had finally accepted his feelings of attraction towards you and was considering doing something about it.

He took a deep breath and decided to control himself for the sake of your project. However, as much as he tried to focus on his studies, the moment he walked past his bedroom door and saw you sitting cross-legged, your hair loose showing your neck, and the way you were biting the tip of your pen while focused on your laptop screen, all his common sense went straight out the window.

“So, can we start?” Heeseung asked, swallowing hard and scratching the back of his neck, feeling nervous. “Sure, where do you want to start?” You asked, looking at him with the sexiest eyes he swore he had ever seen in his life. “We can read the article you suggested.”

“Alright.” He smiled seeing how excited you seemed about the project. “By the way, I saw your CDs and posters.” You changed the subject as he opened the file on his computer “You’re quite… eclectic.” He chuckled and turned to you “Why? Did you think I only listened to one type of music?”

You shook your head and gave him a side smile. “I thought you were more into the classics.”

“I like a little bit of everything, you know? I can appreciate different types of art.” He noticed the way your skirt seemed to have ridden up the moment you adjusted yourself in your chair.

“I’m surprised.” He looked away, trying to control his thoughts. But it was hard when you looked like a goddess next to him. “Every day I discover something new about you.”

“Well, I told you that there are a lot of things about me that you don’t know.” He replied as he locked gazes with you. Heeseung definitely had a unique charm.

“Fair enough.” You replied and he gave you that smile that made your legs lose strength. “I think I made too many assumptions about you.” You confessed, leaning against the table and he brought his face closer to yours “Yeah? Maybe you should get to know me better then.”

You felt your body catch fire at the way he whispered an octave lower than normal and smirked “Yeah, maybe I should.”

Heeseung felt his face and ears heat up at the way you were looking at him.

He knew something had changed between you and the tension was so intense you could cut it with a knife.

His eyes dropped to your exposed neck. Your sweet scent was intoxicating the air and the necklace you were wearing was shinier than usual. It adorned your collarbone magnificently.

Did you have to look this good for a measly study date?

He didn't know if he could cross that invisible line between you, so he slowly approached you, lowering his gaze to your mouth. Since he was sitting on your left side, his right hand went up to your face and tucked a single strand of your hair behind your ear.

You felt a shiver run through your body as his fingertips lightly touched your ear.

His face moved closer to yours agonizingly slowly, and you felt his sweet minty breath fan your face.

Heeseung instinctively wet his lower lip with his tongue and you felt your breath catch as he lowered his right hand to the corner of your neck, touching you gently.

Your eyes locked into Heeseung's intense, dark eyes, and you felt your body fizz at the way he was staring at you. It was intense, serious, deep, as if he wanted to convey a message that only you would understand. You didn't need to say anything. The way you looked at each other was the answer to the unspoken question that floated implicitly in the air.

The desire you both feel is mutual.

He moved closer and pulled your neck towards him, pressing the spot with his long fingers. You closed your eyes when you felt his mouth brush against yours as if he was testing your reactions.

Heeseung kissed you, gently pressing his lips against yours, sending a dose of pleasure through your body. He gave you a long peck and quickly pulled away to make sure that this was really happening.

He was kissing you. This is real.

He smiled over your lips and kissed you again, with more intensity, making you pull him by the collar. Heeseung's left hand landed on your left thigh, squeezing the skin there and you felt your stomach churn.

Heeseung bit your lower lip and you moaned, making him feel a wave of pride invade his body. Your arms wrapped around his neck, while your hands went straight to his soft hair.

All you wanted to feel was the soft strands of his gorgeous hair between your fingers and you finally knew what that felt like. Heeseung groaned into your mouth as you pulled his hair and scratched the back of his neck with your nails.

Heeseung felt like he had ascended to heaven as he felt your soft lips moving over his. You were like water on a dry day that he couldn't get enough of.

Not even his deepest thoughts could recreate the exultant feeling he felt when he finally kissed you. He was thirsty and wanted more. As much as he tried to hold it in, his deep desire was stronger and he happily gave in to its sweet taste.

You separated for a brief second to catch your breath and he licked your lower lip making you open your mouth slightly sighing as he deepened the kiss with his tongue.

The kiss that started soft was now intense, passionate and more desperate. You ran your hands down Heeseung's neck until they stopped on his chest. Heeseung intertwined his right hand in your hair while his left rested on your lower back.

Heeseung kissed you intensely, as if he couldn't stop. You lost track of time as you let yourself be numbed by the feeling of Heeseung's tongue exploring your mouth.

He sucked on your bottom lip before attacking your neck with longing open-mouthed kisses. “You're so beautiful.” He whispered against the skin of your neck as he brushed it with his lips making you press your thighs together and sigh in pleasure “So fucking beautiful.”

You held onto Heeseung’s hair and his left shoulder as he got closer “Heeseung.” You whispered but were interrupted by his mouth kissing the column of your neck with desire.

“You drive me crazy.” He whispered in your ear making you roll your eyes back and moan embarrassingly. Heeseung felt his pants tighten at the reactions and sounds you made.

His left hand went to the buttons of your pink blouse with slight desperation. He was panting and you were spaced out with so many things happening at the same time.

You knew you wanted Heeseung, but you didn't know it would be this intense.

“Baby” He trailed kisses from your throat to your collarbone, allowing the scent of your perfume to sweetly intoxicate his senses “It’s hard to contain myself when you’re like this.” He whispered over your mouth, kissing you again.

You couldn't form a coherent sentence. Your heart was racing, your breathing was short, and even though you were sitting down, you felt all the strength in your legs evaporate.

His hands went to your thighs, smoothing them up under your skirt. You reached out to take off the denim jacket he was wearing and he smirked over your mouth.

"So eager, huh?” he teased you and you sighed, frowning “Look who's talking.” You whispered wryly trying not to be embarrassed at how breathless and needy you sounded.

“Thought you liked it when I teased you, babe.” Heeseung’s sensual tone as he took off his coat made you lose the last of your breath. His shoulders looked even bigger up close.

“Just shut up and kiss me.” You whispered and pulled Heeseung by the collar of his shirt, making him give you several kisses and smile on your lips “So bossy…”

The way Heeseung's mouth seemed to fit perfectly into yours was impressive.

Heeseung's hands went under your shirt, squeezing the bare skin of your waist, giving you goosebumps and making you moan into Heeseung's mouth.

He was relentless. Heeseung's mouth devoured you with fervor and desperation, leaving you breathless. You held onto the hem of Heeseung's shirt as he pulled away slightly, turning his head for a moment.

“What’s wrong?” You asked, feeling your entire body tremble.

“Wait.” Heeseung reluctantly moved away a little more, hearing noises from outside “Do you hear that?” He turned to the door and you breathlessly tried to focus on what he was saying.

Until you noticed – the sound of keys moving near the principal door latch. You adjusted your skirt down and buttoned the first few buttons of your blouse that Heeseung had unbuttoned.

Suddenly you were paralyzed and stared at each other when you heard the key opening the main door in the room.

“Man, I'm dead, I want to sleep the rest of the afternoon.” Jake spoke loudly and you and Heeseung quickly separated from each other as he tried to fix his hair and appear as natural as possible.

You adjusted your seats as if you were studying your computer screen intently.

“Heeseung, are you there?” Jake knocked on his friend’s bedroom door and opened it at once “I need to tell you what happened to me at the coffee shop—” Jake’s eyes widened and he froze when he saw that you were in Heeseung’s room.

Heeseung glared at him with a menacing look. That look that implicitly said 'get the hell out of here'.

“I’m kind of busy right now, Jake.” He said through gritted teeth and his friend gave an awkward smile and scratched his head “Oh sorry to disturb you guys. I didn’t know you were studying … but it’s good to see you y/n.” He greeted you and you nodded politely “Hi.” Your voice came out soft and thin with fright.

“Well then, we’ll talk later.” Jake said to Heeseung with a teasing look making Heeseung want to kill him at that moment.

He closed the door to Heeseung's room and you were left in absolute, awkward silence.

Your heart was racing and your breath was still coming in short gasps. What the hell had happened?

“Sorry, I forgot Jake could come back earlier today.” Heeseung sighed as he ran his hand over his face, trying not to feel embarrassed by the awkward situation you both found yourselves in.

“It’s okay.” You gave a small laugh through your nose “We can try studying now… if you want.” Heeseung looked at you and mischievously smiled “Honestly, I don’t know if I’m in the mood to study right now.” He confessed looking into your eyes, hitting you like an electrifying lightning bolt.

You nodded and smiled, feeling your insides stir at Heeseung’s gentle tone “Yeah, me too.”

So, in silent agreement, you decided to organize the table and put away the materials. Even though the tension was still there, Jake cut the mood, so all that was left was the weird tension and the end of this unsuccessful study session.

After you packed your things, Heeseung walked you to the door and looked at you apologetically “Are you sure you don’t want me to walk you back?”

“No, it’s okay.” You smiled and felt embarrassed remembering what happened moments before trying to calm your heart.

“Okay.” He leaned against the side of the door, crossing his arms and smiling at you “We’ll schedule the next meeting later.” He whispered as he tried to contain a smile with his teeth biting his own lip.

You nodded and slowly turned around “Bye, Heeseung.” He gave you that shy smile that only he knew how to do “Bye, y/n.”

After he closed the door and you walked out into the hallway, all you could think about was what had happened that afternoon.

You kissed. No, you had made out intensely and passionately, but the scariest thing is to think of what would have happened if Jake hadn't interrupted you.

And the worst part is that you wanted more.

Heeseung was still awake, staring at his ceiling as he remembered what had happened that afternoon.

After you left, Jake tried to talk to Heeseung but he went off to clear his head — which clearly didn't work out very well. Even though he tried to occupy himself and do other things he was still numb to the feeling of your mouth on his.

Heeseung couldn't sleep. Every time he closed his eyes, you appeared in his mind. He couldn't forget the feel of your soft skin under his fingers, your bright, pleading eyes, and how soft your mouth was.

He ran his hand over his face trying to control himself, but he couldn't help but feel hot when he remembered your kiss. He had taken the risk of kissing you, but he didn't expect your response to be as intense as his.

Heeseung couldn't pinpoint when everything changed, because 3 months ago he couldn't stand you, but now he couldn't wait to see you.

He picked up his phone and saw that it was almost 1 am and he couldn't get you out of his head. Your scent was tattooed on his mind and he knew he wanted to smell it again.

Heeseung wanted to see you, touch you, kiss you again.

But a doubt hovered over his mind: what about you? What did you want? Do you regret it? Or did you also like it and want more?

Heeseung knew there was no way to guess that now, but he would do whatever it took to find out.

☆

It's been 3 days since you and Heeseung were in complete silence.

After what had happened in his room, you were still in shock. But the fact that you and he didn't talk anymore was worrying and it irritated you.

You guys made out in his room and he couldn't send you at least a good morning text? Or anything else? How would you communicate and behave when you had to meet for your project after this?

Deep down, you didn’t know whether you regretted it or not. You don’t want to mess up your – finally – good relationship, but at the same time, you want to kiss him again. You don't know how this will impact the two of you, but you know you don't want to get ghosted by Heeseung or get weird by it.

Like a mature adult, you tried to occupy your mind with your civil law presentation, but the worst part was that nothing could get the vision of Heeseung out of your head. The words he whispered and how he kissed you like he’s been longing for it for a long time… it was too much.

The day of the presentation had already arrived, and even though you were confident in your knowledge, you were afraid to see Heeseung again.

You don't know how to behave or what to say when you see him. You could barely translate the things you were feeling at that moment when he intensively kissed you. In the end, all you knew was that even though you were irritated, you could barely see him without feeling your stomach twist and your body heat up.

On the other hand, for the first time in his life, Heeseung was excited to see your performance.

You were already at the front of the class with your slides turned on and waiting for the professor to give the go-ahead for you to start presenting.

Heeseung was sitting a little further forward so he wouldn't miss any details. His gaze met your and he gave a smile that made your insides melt.

It was different to feel that this time Heeseung's presence made you more nervous than usual.

When you started your presentation, everyone stopped and hung on every word.

Mainly Heeseung.

It was curious how you didn't look nervous while you clicked on the slides to explain your topic. Your confidence exudes how much you had prepared for the presentation, making him admire you even more. He eyed you attentively, not wanting to miss any of your moves. Your hands weren't shaking, and the way you presented yourself was so delicate and so fierce at the same time. He smirked watching how you pointed to the topics on the slide.

You really used his idea for your slides.

'Such pretty hands.' He thought about how it would feel them touching his face, his skin, him. The horde of forbidden thoughts filling his mind.

He swore he was really paying attention to what you were saying, but he got distracted so easily that even he couldn't explain why.

Suddenly he realized that he was thinking about things that definitely had nothing to do with possessory dispossession but had to do with what it must be like to see you on top of him while his hands roamed over your body.

His thoughts were interrupted when you finished your presentation perfectly making the sound of claps fill the room.

Once again you had outdone yourself in a presentation, but this time Heeseung wasn't analyzing the way you explained or trying to see if you would make mistakes in your diction. Now he could only think about how admirable your effort was.

Especially how he wanted you so bad.

However, when class ended, you had disappeared without giving him a chance to talk to you, leaving Heeseung even more anxious. What did he have to do to finally be able to talk to you again?

The ballroom was adorned with bright lights and chandeliers with sparkling stones that could blind you if you stare at them for too long. The buffet tables were extravagant (as always) and contained every type of food you could imagine. Seafood, pasta, and a variety of drinks. The exaggerated extravagance mixed with the forced, discreet laughter was a known sound that made your ears itch.

People were dressed in all the elegance that the event required, and everyone seemed polite and well-behaved. However, even from a distance you could capture several fake smiles, carefully placed on the faces of poor university students who were trying to survive in this environment by flattering more well-known and experienced attorneys in search of a possible internship or job at a renowned firm.

The P&J Foundation event was one of the only ones open to university students and law school graduates looking to meet future work partners or new opportunities in the job market.

And of course you would be there, “enjoying” the extravagant decorations, the lectures and the valuable advice from several experienced professionals — that’s the main reason why people go there anyway. But one of the biggest reasons was that your father was one of the sponsors, so missing out was not an option.

Even though it was a beneficial event for several college students, you felt slightly uncomfortable due to the judging looks people gave you when they saw you standing there drinking whatever was on the table without talking to anyone.

You were silent, observing the environment. Since you arrived, you had only greeted a few attorneys who approached to ask about your father, and not about you. It was as if you weren't even an option, but just the daughter of the great attorney Park.

In a way, it was comforting to know that the event wouldn't last long and maybe someone you knew would show up to relieve your boredom.

Someone like Heeseung.

“You look lonely.” Heeseung’s unmistakable voice behind you stole your attention, making you turn around at once “Maybe you need some company?”

Your breath caught in your throat and your eyes widened at the sight of Heeseung in a black suit and parted hair in front of you.

Your eyes shamelessly roamed over Heeseung's entire body seeing how the suit was intricately molded to his torso and waist. The black dress shirt he was wearing underneath was plain and was slightly open to reveal a bit of Heeseung's collarbone and his thin silver necklace.

“Oh, it’s you.” You swallowed hard and kept your face straight, nonchalant at seeing him. After 3 days of not talking to you, this is how he shows up?

He had his hands in his pants pockets and approached you with that smirk that drove you crazy “You look beautiful.” He took your hand and gave it a soft kiss on your knuckles while piercing through you with his intense eyes.

You felt butterflies in the pit of your stomach and a shiver ran down your spine seeing Heeseung's delicacy. Even if you wanted to be angry at him, it would be difficult to remain that way when he acted like this, it’s like he knew exactly what to do to disarm you.

“Thank you.” Heeseung’s eyes couldn’t move away from your figure, making your neck heat up.

“Your suit looks good.” You spoke sincerely and Heeseung chuckled “Just my suit?” He whispered, bringing his face closer to yours and firmly held your waist making you look away.

“What do you want, Heeseung?” Your cheeks were burning and your lips puckered in a cute pout that Heeseung found adorable even if you were speaking in a harsh way.

“Can we talk?” You felt weak at his gentle tone combined with the way he sweetly stared at you “Talk about what?” He chuckled through his nose and tilted his head so he could whisper in your ear “Stop pretending like you don't know.” The way his warm breath tickled your ear made you dizzy.

“Fine.” You sighed and crossed your arms trying to maintain your posture “Let's go somewhere.” You weren't going to talk about this in front of everyone, so you decided to lead the way to some secluded place where you would have the privacy you needed while you struggled to organize your thoughts. What was he going to talk to you about? The kiss? What did it really mean?

Your anxiety was already at its peak, but you felt a sense of deja vu when he placed his hand behind your back as you walked down the hall.

“So, are you enjoying the event?” He asked in a whisper and you snickered “’Enjoying’ is a strong word...” Your sigh made Heeseung raise an eyebrow “It’s boring.”

“I thought these parties were your thing.” He confessed and you mockingly glanced at him “I’m just used to them, but they’re usually a drag.”

“Yeah, it must be hard growing up going to rich people’s parties and eating the best of the best.” He said ironically and you pushed him lightly, giving him a sour smile “It’s not that fun when you have to flatter others so they don’t talk bad about you or your father.”

Your confession made him stare at you for a moment and go silent. Heeseung knew that you were a layered person and that in the past he had a lot of bad impressions of you, so maybe he needed to admit that he was wrong and try to see things from your point of view.

Suddenly you left the main hall and managed to find an empty room in an isolated corridor away from everyone. You entered and realized that it was a small storage room full of folders on dark grey shelves, a table and a locked cabinet.

After you both entered the room, Heeseung locked the door behind him, and you stood in front of the table with your arms crossed, impatiently staring at him. Unfortunately for your heart, it seemed like his addictive scent was even more evident in this closed room.

“So?” Your tone was impatient “What do you want?” He slowly smirked and approached you cautiously.

“You seem angry.” he stood in front of you making you scoff and put your hands on your hips “You didn't answer my question, Heeseung.”

Heeseung took a deep breath and looked away for a moment. He spent the whole afternoon mentally rehearsing what he was going to say, but now that he was in front of you it was different. Your red dress was making him lose his mind.

He needed to be honest, and he wouldn't run away anymore.

“I'm sorry.” your face softened at the sincerity in his voice “I’m sorry for disappearing, I know I should have said something.” Heeseung looked at you tenderly and touched your cheek “But ever since we kissed, I got crazy, like I genuinely couldn’t sleep, study or do anything without you showing on my mind” he breathed out “So… I needed to understand what I was feeling.”

You swallowed hard as you waited for him to finish.

“The truth is that I can’t stop thinking about you.” he whispered, moving closer to you “I know that since we met, we haven’t gotten along, and maybe I’m at fault at this because I’ve been an idiot to you several times, but there’s just… something about you…” he slid his fingertips under your jaw “You drive me crazy.”

Your heartbeat was already going crazy, while your breath was caught in your throat. The closer he got, the more you felt your feelings stir.

“What do you mean by that?” you frowned and crossed your arms, trying not to be shaken by Heeseung’s words and scent invading your senses.

He sighed and closed his eyes for a moment. “What I mean is that I’m here admitting that I want you.” he spoke directly making your legs weak.

Heeseung came closer and you felt your back touch the table behind you. His hands went straight to your waist as he pressed your body against his. Your back arched slightly and Heeseung brought his face closer to yours. “Do you really want me?” you asked shakily under the atmosphere pressure, and he smiled.

"Yes, I want you." he whispered against your mouth as he gripped the corner of your neck with the long fingers of his right hand "Isn't it obvious?"

His body radiated a unique heat that destroyed all your sanity. His dark eyes looked at you with intensity, breaking down all the defenses you swore you had put up against him.

“You’re all I have on my mind.” his smooth lips brushed against yours and your breathing became heavy “Can I kiss you?” his question was like an arrow being pierced through your heart “Yes.” you whispered, holding onto Heeseung’s forearms.

He smiled and kissed you passionately, pressing his body against yours. An electrifying current ran through your entire body when you felt his lips move intensely and passionately.

Heeseung kissed you with an insatiable desire. He couldn't get enough of your taste. He always wanted more and more. Suddenly, you groaned when you felt his tongue slide over yours and his hands grip your hips.

You couldn't deny it. Heeseung knew exactly what he was doing, and it was so hot that you pulled him by his collar wanting more.

Heeseung moved his kisses down to your jaw and you gasped when you felt him grab your body by your thighs and place you on the table behind you.

“Did you dress up for me?” he whispered as he attacked your neck with desire “No, I always dress well.” you tried to answer feeling your breath quicken. Your hands went straight to Heeseung’s hair and he smiled against your skin “Aw, it’s a shame. I thought you wanted to impress me.”

Heeseung kissed your sensitive spot below your ear and you moaned making him smile against your skin “Why? Are you impressed?” you teased Heeseung and he moved his hands up your thigh under your red dress.

“Yeah.” he placed a lingering kiss on the center of your throat making your body tremble with desire “You're looking so fucking beautiful in this dress.” he kissed you again as you pulled him towards you with your legs. This time he kissed you slowly and deeply while holding onto your loose hair.

Heeseung was on cloud nine. How much he had missed feeling your lips on his, clashing in perfect harmony. When you pulled away from his mouth to breathe and began to kiss the length of his neck, he moaned, making you close your legs around him.

“You should see me when I'm not wearing it, then.” you whispered sensually before biting Heeseung's ear making his breath shaky as he squeezed your thighs tightly “Fuck — stop teasing me, baby.” The way he called you made your stomach turn.

“Why? What are you going to do if I don't stop?” You looked into his eyes, faking innocence, and began to slowly open the buttons of his suit, teasing him with your fingertips “You don't wanna know.” he smirked holding your neck tightly “I'm going to ruin you.” he bit your lower lip making you moan and squeeze his hips with your legs pulling him closer, seeking any kind of contact.

When you finished unbuttoning his suit, you ran your hands over his black dress shirt, sliding down his chest to his stomach, noticing how surprisingly defined he was. Heeseung instinctively groaned into the kiss and pulled your hair back to attack your neck and collarbone, making you gasp.

All of your reactions were like fuel that further fueled the fire inside Heeseung. He knew he couldn't go all the way in this storage, but the way you moaned and squeezed him with your thighs was making it difficult to control himself.

“You're making it hard for me to stop.” Heeseung said in a broken sigh with his forehead pressed against yours as his hands explored you beneath your dress “I want to touch you.” You could see the longing in his glossy eyes, especially by the way his cheeks and ears were burning red.

How beautiful he looked in that state of despair. A sight that only you had the privilege of having: seeing Lee Heeseung completely surrendered to you begging to touch you.

“Okay.” You whispered and cupped your hands around his cheeks, pulling his face to yours in a kiss, making him melt inside. It was insane how his mouth fit perfectly on yours, as if it was made especially for you.

Your entire body was on fire. The butterflies danced deep in your stomach when he slowly pulled the sides of your panties down as he ravished your mouth with his desperate kiss.

Heeseung's bangs were already losing their definition from all the movement and small beads of sweat accumulating on both of your foreheads making you think that your clothes were a big impediment.

With trembling hands, you began to open the buttons of his blouse, feeling the soft skin of his neck and collarbone under your fingers making him let out low grunts that shuddered your mind and body.

He forcefully pulled your legs closer to the edge of the table, making your body arch slightly. Your breathing became uneven as he removed your panties completely, letting them fall to the floor.

In a brief moment of sanity, you couldn’t believe you were doing this with Heeseung inside a storage room. This was dangerous, insane, lewd, and unfortunately, you liked it. It’s like your brain shuts out whenever you get involved with Heeseung.

As his hands began to roam the inside of your thigh you began to feel more desperate. “Heeseung, p–please.” Your stutter made Heeseung smile as his fingers slid across your skin teasingly.

“What?” he asked as he left a trail of kisses on your cheek “Please. Touch me.” You were on edge and he wasn’t helping.

He smiled against your skin, taking small bites on your jaw as his right hand slowly rose, as if to test your patience.

“Heeseung.” You dug your fingers into his shoulder, whispering, like a plea.

But before he could give you what you wanted, your phone started ringing madly. You were startled by the sound, and he pulled away for a moment so you could find your phone in the middle of the table.

You looked at the screen and your body stiffened when you saw that it was your father calling you. Heeseung instantly noticed the change in your body language and distanced himself enough to look at your face.

“Damn it.” You tried to steady your breathing “It’s my father.”

Heeseung stood up straight and reluctantly let go of your body, trying to catch his breath. He felt irritated. Why did it seem like someone always managed to ruin the mood between you two whenever you were alone?

He soon noticed that you were hesitating, so he grabbed your panties and gently pulled them up over your legs and touched your cheek with his knuckles “You need to take this call, don't you?” he asked in a tender whisper and you nodded, feeling suddenly ashamed of the situation you found yourself in.

“I'll give you some space.” he stepped away, closing the buttons on his shirt that you undone and straightening his suit again.

As Heeseung fixed his hair, you closed your legs, feeling completely frustrated at the interruption, and jumped off the table, adjusting your dress.

With a cough to regulate your voice, you answered your phone trying to sound normal.

“Hello? Father?” Heeseung leaned against the wall and stared at you from afar as you lowered the fabric of your dress.

Your face showed an expression of defeat, feeling like this situation is more complicated than it seemed.

Suddenly Heeseung began to reflect on how easily he lost control when he was with you. It seemed like it was too easy to lose himself in you, as if there were no consequences.

“What?” You felt your heart stop at what you just heard “Are you here at the event?”

Heeseung and you looked at each other at the same time, knowing what that meant.

You would have to face your father that night.

☆

Heeseung had helped you adjust your dress before you left the storage room first. Since he didn't want to draw attention, Heeseung had the idea of you going first and then he would leave.

You were clearly upset, frustrated, and tired. Why did your father have to come to this event now? Your mind could barely think straight after what had happened in the storage room.

Your heart calmed down, but you couldn’t forget Heeseung’s confession. How sincere and desperate he sounded. Your mind constantly went back to the way he talked, touched you, acted. He was addictive.

As you mingled through the crowd looking for your father, Heeseung watched you from afar, analyzing your behavior. Apart from the fact that you were a begging mess minutes earlier, the way you tensed every time your father was mentioned made him think there was something more about you that he needed to uncover.

You randomly wandered through the main ballroom and Heeseung approached your figure again “You seem lost.” he commented and you laughed lightly hearted “I’m just looking for my father.”

“What’s he like?” Heeseung asked looking at the crowd with you “Serious? A bit scary, I guess...” you whispered the last part, and he arched his eyebrow “I’ll be right by your side then.”

The way Heeseung showed he cared for you made you smile slightly “What a gentleman…” he smiled feeling the irony of your voice “Of course, I know how to treat a woman.”

You glanced at him, seeing how he was giving that naughty smile that meant he was thinking about things that had nothing to do with chivalry.

“Sweetie, I'm glad you came.” before you could say anything, your conversation was interrupted by your father's voice.

Heeseung turned to the side and saw how unusual your posture was. You suddenly looked more rigid, serious and with a monotonous expression.

You turned to your father and gave him that weak smile that Heeseung knew wasn’t genuine. “Hello, father.” Heeseung noticed how you called your father in a distant and formal way. As if you didn’t have the freedom to call him whatever you wanted.

“I didn’t expect you to come.” As always, you communicated only what was necessary with your father. Nothing less and nothing more. “I managed to get some free time to come see you and see my event.”

Heeseung realized what that meant. He was the famous Attorney Park who sponsored events and ways for people from difficult backgrounds like himself to have a chance in the legal field.

He was a legend in his field and his intentions seemed good, so why did you seem so distant?

“And who is this fine gentleman?” He turned his gaze to Heeseung who instantly bowed and extended his hand in a polite way “I'm Lee Heeseung, sir. Pleased to meet you.” He friendly smiled and your father shook his hand while he analyzed his figure.

“He’s my friend from college.” You replied, surprised at your father’s friendly interaction with Heeseung.

Heeseung didn't miss how you had called him friend and how strange it sounded. He didn't want to be your friend, he wanted much more.

“I didn’t know you had such a polite friend.” Your father seemed to be in a good mood while you felt a little more comfortable seeing that your father had taken a liking to him.

Then suddenly you started to realize how important this had become to you. His opinion of Heeseung was important because you really cared about him.

“I feel honored, sir.” Heeseung smiled gently “So, Heeseung.” Your father's attention was solely focused on Heeseung “Tell me, what do you think of this event?” Your father asked Heeseung, who swallowed hard and gave a gentle smile, feeling his gaze fixed on him.

“I think it is a terrific opportunity, sir. I had the chance to have a fruitful conversation with a few attorneys along with a friend and we had some great legal advice.” he was sincere and you bit your lower lip trying to contain your smile at how his vocabulary suddenly went back to being completely formal compared to the way he normally speaks to you.

It was hilarious to see him chatting calmly and composed as if he hadn't been absolutely ravishing you just minutes ago in a storage room.

“That’s great.” Your father gave a satisfied smile with his answer “Me and a few other colleagues sponsored this kind of event because life wasn’t easy for us, so we want to help the next generation in the best way possible.” Heeseung looked away to see Jake seemed more well-behaved than usual as he chatted with two older attorneys from afar.

“It’s an amazing event, sir. We are really grateful for this unique opportunity.” Heeseung smiled sincerely as your father seemed pleased with the conversation “What do you plan to do in the future, son?” Heeseung was left speechless for a moment “I want to be an attorney, sir.” You noticed how his voice trembled a little and you noticed how this was a big deal to him. This is his dream for real.

“That’s wonderful.” Your father gave a smile that left him stunned. It had been a long time since you had seen your father smile like that. “Since I became an attorney, I’ve been able to change my family’s lives, so I would say it’s worth it.” Heeseung felt an instant sense of identification with the sentence your father said.

“That’s why I have high expectations for my daughter.” He looked at you and you gave a tense smile that Heeseung instantly noticed “She’s the best in the class so she would indeed be a sensational attorney, but if I may say this, sir, I believe that regardless of the career she decides to pursue in law, I know she will be successful, because she’s brilliant in everything she decides to do.” Heeseung spoke seriously and you looked away from him, feeling your heart melt completely with his praise.

He could have promoted himself or just kept quiet. But he decided to risk it all by praising you to that degree, even without knowing your father.

And just like lightning strikes a tree and burns it, you realized the obvious truth: you were in love with Lee Heeseung and would accept the consequences that would come with that reality.

Your father looked at the two of you making it obvious he was analyzing the situation and understanding what was happening right there. The way Heeseung firmly said that, and you got shy made it obvious that you two were more than friends.

“It’s true.” Your father’s answer surprised you “If I’m being honest, I wish she could be an attorney like me, without the sufferings I had to go through, but I know her path can change, so I want her to be successful in any field.” You felt your body stiff. It was the first time your father had said something like that about you.

He didn't open up about his feelings very much, so you always thought that being an attorney in his office was everything he dreamed of and determined for you. "That’s why I’m strict with you.”  He looked at you with that stoic look you never understood “Well, you know I want the best for you, my dear." You nodded, feeling a whirlwind of sensations.

This interaction was different from what you expected. Your father was a mysterious man, of few words and curious actions, but you knew he was trying his best, despite being terrible atcommunicating his own feelings.

You may need more time to talk until you finally understand what kind of person your father is, but this brief, unexpected interaction is enough for now.

“Since you want to be an attorney, then come visit my office someday.” he turned to Heeseung who was stunned by the proposal “I can give you some advice when I have time.”

“It would be an honor, sir.” He showed your father an excited smile and you held back the urge to tease him right there. He was so cute when he got excited about a subject that interested him, especially about law.

“Father, you’re going to take all his time.” You said, smiling with your eyes, and your father laughed out loud “That’s right, I came here to stop by quickly and ended up talking too much.”

Your father shook Heeseung's hand and turned to you “Come visit me later, sweetie. It's been a while since we had dinner together.” You gave a slight smile and nodded “Of course, father.”

With one last greeting he took one last look at you and Heeseung before leaving without saying anything.

A part of you felt relieved, because for the first time in years you didn't feel so awkward after interacting with your father.

“Who would have thought, I'm alive to see Lee Heeseung wanting to go to my father's office.” You mocked Heeseung and he laughed, running his hand through his hair.

“Is that how you learned to give that fake passive-aggressive smile of yours?” he asked in a comical tone looking into your eyes and you smiled gently “It’s a basic prerequisite for survival in this environment.”

“It seems like a complicated cycle.” he said gently, turning to you “It is. You need to be perfect, always.” You glanced at Heeseung, seeing how stunning he was that all you could think about was how you wanted to attack him again “But I learned to deal with it.”

He looked at you again and felt a wave of remorse hit him. Ever since you met, he had been completely stupid and unbearable with you because of assumptions he made in his mind, but the more he got to know you, the more he realized that you were completely different.

“You know, I think I’ve been misjudging you all this time.” Heeseung confessed and you were surprised by his revelation “I thought you were the kind of insufferable rich girl who had no sense of reality, but I guess I was an idiot for thinking that without getting to know you first.”

“Heeseung—” “No, let me finish.” He looked into your eyes and touched your cheek with his hand as gently as possible “I’m really sorry for being such an ass to you for so long.”

Your heart seemed to explode as you heard Heeseung's sincere words.

“In a way I judged you because you seemed like you had an easy life, while I had to fight for a lot of things.” he sighed and closed his eyes for a moment “I know this is no excuse and I was immature and stupid, but I want to start over with you. Can we?” You gave him a mischievous smile “How can I deny it when Lee Heeseung is admitting his own defeat before me?”

He smiled, taking your hand between his knuckles “I'm serious. I'm sorry for the way I acted. I think you messed with me in some way since the beginning and I didn't know how to deal with those feelings.” the way he was finally opening up and confessing why he was so unbearable made everything fit together in your mind “So that’s why you were so annoying?” your suspicious look drew a hearty laugh from Heeseung “Yes, that too, but to be honest… it's actually really fun to tease you.”

You looked at each other for a moment, making him give that damn smirk that reminded you why you get lost in Heeseung every time you get alone. “I'm really trying to contain myself here, but you're not cooperating.” He whispered and looked away, making you give a discreet laugh.

“Oh, I didn't know you got so worked up because of me.” You whispered holding his arm innocently “I’m sorry mr. Lee, it's my fault.”

Heeseung looked at you like you were the most magnificent thing on the face of the earth. Suddenly he smiled and offered his arm so you could wrap your hands around it. “You better stop, or we won’t get to enjoy the rest of this event.”

You held his arm and smiled excitedly “Why? What are you going to do?” Heeseung sighed and gave one last whisper in your ear “Or we’ll have to finish what we started in that storage room.”

And with a few words Lee Heeseung made the nervousness boil in the pit of your stomach, making you excited about the idea of doing lewd things with him.

If someone had told you at the beginning of the semester that you would now be dating Lee Heeseung and walking hand in hand around campus, you would have thought they were crazy and needed to be hospitalized. But here you were, walking with a wide smile and bright eyes, your hand intertwined with Heeseung's soft fingers.

Gaeul was the first to know and she let out such an excited scream that you swore the entire building heard it. Yes, she was clearly loving the news and repeated several times about how 'she already knew' and 'it was obvious and only you didn't realize it' , but either way it was wonderful to feel like you had your best friend's support and to see how excited she was for your happiness.

Yes, indeed you were very happy, and this was unexpected since it was something you hadn't planned, it just happened. Heeseung had taken you out to dinner, given you roses and a necklace that officially symbolized that you were together. And of course, this was much more than you expected.

Ever since you and Heeseung were chosen as project partners, your mood was constantly tested, and you swore it was the worst thing that could have happened to you this semester. However, despite the initial disagreements, you ended up seeing another side of each other and you were surprised by the person Heeseung revealed himself to be.

A wonderful and passionate man in everything he does.

“Ugh, you guys are disgustingly cute.” Jake commented as Heeseung ate his lunch after putting more tomato on your plate because one day you said you loved the cafeteria salad.

“Thanks? I guess…” Heeseung laughed at his friend’s reaction while you ate your lunch calmly.

After you started dating Heeseung, you got to know more of his friends, and because of that, you realized that you didn't interact as much with people from college, so it's good to feel that your circle of friends has increased significantly.

“I always knew you two were a good match.” Jay said, taking a drink of juice, and Gaeul agreed with him “Oh my God, yes!!! I said the same thing! But she didn’t believe me.”

“Hey, why is our relationship being a topic at lunch?” You replied and they laughed, amused by the situation.

Heeseung was in a good mood. The atmosphere was lively, comfortable, and ideal. It was as if everything was going very well.

Just one thing that was making him nervous: The lack of time for you two to be alone.

Aside from the times you needed to meet up to study and work on your project, his activities and work were cutting into your time together and it was driving him crazy. He simply wanted to spend quality time with you without having to leave quickly because of some appointment or because someone interrupted you.

That's why he had decided that that day would be just for the two of you. He had already told Jake that he wouldn't talk to anyone and that he needed to be at peace with his girlfriend. So, after much debating, he decided that he needed to be alone with you and that was the day you would finally be together.

☆

“Babe, I can't believe we finally have some free time.” Heeseung was lying on his bed completely satisfied while you were lying flat on top of him. His right hand was firmly on your waist while his left rested on your cheek. His thumb drew patterns on your skin while you played with the buttons on the collar of his shirt “I know right? I guess our project and your job took a lot of our time.”

“I was dying to be like this with you.” He confessed, sliding his hand down your back “Just you and me.” You giggled, suddenly feeling shy “Me too.” Your confession made Heeseung smile mischievously.

How good it was to know that no one would interrupt you.

“Yeah?” He smiled, giving you a kiss on the cheek, another on your nose and finally on your mouth, making you smile gently.

Heeseung knew that you had become his calm place. Where he could rest and most importantly, stay.

It was curious how you had snatched his heart completely in just 4 months.

Because despite canceling himself out daily for the goals he felt he needed to accomplish, your presence came like a thunderbolt, changing his reality and allowing Heeseung to feel things he no longer remembered how they were.

He remembered what it was like to feel genuine desire for someone. What it really meant to genuinely care for someone.

“Hmhum.” You murmured in agreement with him, feeling his hands slide gently down to your behind squeezing the skin there making you sigh with pleasure.

“Is this okay?” he asked, acting innocent as he lifted the fabric of your skirt to touch your bare skin. His wet lips slid down your cheek, heading towards your neck.

Heeseung wasn’t in a hurry. He had all the time in the world, and he was going to enjoy most of it.

“Yes.” You replied trying not to lose your senses, as Heeseung kissed your neck at the slowest pace possible “You're so pretty, baby. Did you choose this skirt just to see me?” He asked and you smiled, nodding your head.

He smiled over your skin and nibbled, making your breath tremble and moan softly. Heeseung wanted to show you how desired you were, and he would take as much time as necessary to do so.

The afternoon was calm, silent, just like the afternoon of the day you kissed for the first time. He still remembers your subtle hesitation, as if you didn't know what to do at that moment but still responded to his kiss in a way he never imagined.

With his left hand Heeseung moved up the velvety skin of your back beneath your blouse. Your skin was soft, delicate, with a velvety touch that he loved to feel.

He couldn't get enough of the contrast of how soft your skin was compared to the hardness of his hands. He kissed your jaw slowly in a way that made you close your eyes and surrender completely.

When he finally reached your lips you intertwined your fingers in his hair, pulling him towards you. How you had missed this.

Heeseung kissed you slowly, taking his time as he enjoyed the softness of your lips moving against his. He could taste a faint strawberry from the lip gloss you were wearing.

The damn lip gloss that always caught his attention.

The kiss quickly sped up as Heeseung licked your bottom lip, making you gasp and moan as his tongue entered your mouth. He was no longer patient, after all, it was very easy to lose all control when it came to you. His hands went down under your skirt and grabbed your skin, making your desperate moans be swallowed by Heeseung's mouth.

Heeseung's handprints were left on the skin of your thighs, as if they were a tattoo of his deep desire that you wanted to keep it. He kissed you eagerly, thirsty, wanting to taste every inch of your body and touch you as you deserve.

He pulled your body up tightly, holding onto your hips, making him grunt at the sensation of your body pressing over his pants. He was breathless, but he didn't want to stop kissing you. He moved away slightly to adjust himself on the bed and you felt your head spin with all the action.

Your lips were already bruised from the desperate kiss, and you felt a chill in your stomach seeing how Heeseung's mouth was red and swollen and he still wanted more. He wasn't satisfied, he wanted to taste your entire body and mark it with everything he had: his hands, his lips and his teeth.

He grabbed the hem of your shirt and his breath hitched as you sat lightly on top of him and took off your own shirt “Are you blushing Heeseung? How cute…” You teased him by holding his cheeks, seeing how red they were along with his ears. Heeseung was feeling sick at the sight of you topless, wearing only a delicate pink lace bra and your short skirt that was already rolled up.

“Yeah.” Your hands rested on his chest, feeling his heartbeat at a frantic pace. He was so mesmerized by you that he could barely respond. His eyes roamed over your curves and he swallowed hard as he ran his hands up the skin of your torso, sending shivers down your spine.

“You're so beautiful, baby.” He whispered into your neck as he marked your skin with his teeth making you weak “Want to see more of you.” You pulled Heeseung’s face towards you, kissing him intensely. The mixture of your breaths with the suffocating encounter of your tongues made the air around you heat up.

Your hands pulled Heeseung's black shirt up as he helped you by giving you desperate kisses. Your body heated up at the sight of Heeseung's defined abs and you slid your fingertips across his skin, making Heeseung moan.

Heeseung wrapped his arms around you and turned you around, placing your body on the mattress and climbing on top of you.

He was absolutely breathtaking.

The strands of his bangs tickled your nose as he kissed you passionately. Your fingers gripped the back of his neck and your nails scratched the skin there, making him let out low grunts that made you even hotter.

Your hands slid down Heeseung's toned back as he trailed kisses along your jaw, down the line of your throat, kissing over the skin of your chest.

Heeseung made it his personal goal to mark all the skin on your body with his mouth if that was possible. He kissed and marked with hickeys whatever was possible while his hand squeezed the skin of your chest under your bra making you whimper.

With his right hand he moved up your back touching the clasp of your bra, opening it as he kissed the skin of your belly going lower and lower.

Amidst your sighs, Heeseung in one action took off your skirt and underwear, leaving you a little embarrassed and shocked with his dexterity.

Instinctively you closed your legs as he looked at you, feeling that his self-control had already disappeared. You were completely perfect.

But he wanted more.

Your soft skin seemed to glow with the small beams of light that escaped from his bedroom window. You were there, beneath him without clothes, and he was sure that you were the most beautiful woman in the world.

No one would ever compare to you.

“Don't be shy, I want to taste you.” he got on his knees, touched the top of your knees and slid down your legs looking at you between his messy bangs as you felt your heart explode inside your chest “Spread your legs for me, baby.”

Your insides churned with agitation, and you obeyed him slowly, feeling your cheeks heat up at the bold way he spoke.

Heeseung's gaze changed. He looked determined, insatiable, and desperate to taste every part of your skin.

He stood between your legs, kissing down your belly to the lower part of your stomach, holding onto your thighs, making you place your hand on his face, caressing him lightly. He felt his heart melt at your affection.

Heeseung placed his face in the palm of your hand, placing a tender kiss on the inside of your skin. He nuzzled into the warmth of your hand before giving you a lewd look that made your breath catch.

He kissed your thighs, making you anxious. His dark brown hair revealed reddish highlights from the light and you noticed the small mole he had on his forehead.

There was no denying that Heeseung was beautiful. And he was all yours.

Every time you felt Heeseung's mouth marking your skin, your breath hitched, and you closed your eyes at the overwhelming sensation. He didn't fail to notice how soaked you were already, making his pants tighten.

Heeseung devoured you with desire. He was relentless, savoring and sucking on your skin at an insane pace, as if he was starving. At times, he looked at you, taking it your reactions and feeling a sense of pride fill his chest at how desperate you looked by his marks. Your hands pulled his dark locks, making him grunt as you became numb with pleasure.

Your legs were wobbly, but Heeseung held on tightly while he marked more spots on your skin. You noticed how the veins on his forearms ran up to the back of his hands.

At that moment he was incredibly sexy.

You could not form comprehensible words, only broken moans and loud sighs that couldn't be translated.

“Feels so good, Hee.” You almost cried and Heeseung felt his heart clench at the way you called him “More.”

Heeseung on the other hand loved it all. He loved losing himself in you and seeing how desperate you became as he skillfully worked your body.

“Shi—” He took a deep breath and gave a shaky sigh before sucking another spot at your inner thigh “Say that again, princess.”

“More, Hee—” Your voice could barely finish his name while Heeseung felt his pressure rise at the sound of your voice and panting moans.

As you melted under Heeseung's mouth, he held your hips so they wouldn't move up while he continued to kiss your bare skin from your lower stomach up to your mouth.

He gave you a tender peck on the corner of your mouth “You taste so good baby.” He whispered in your ear, sending shivers down your spine as you felt his hands roam over your body possessively “I want to make you mine.”

“Please.” You nodded with your eyes closed “I need you.” He smiled and kissed you once more as his right hand combed through your hair, intertwining his fingers in the strands on your scalp.

You wrapped your arms around his neck, kissing him madly, hoping he would understand all the feelings you wanted to deliver intrinsically with your kiss.

With ragged breathing he got to his knees, undoing his belt, while you tried to recover from everything that happened.

His forehead was wet with sweat and some strands of his bangs stuck to his skin. You felt your body tremble with anticipation, biting your lower lip at the sight of Heeseung giving a mocking smirk while not taking his eyes off you.

“How do you want it?” he teased you as he took off his pants, seeing how completely needy you were for his touch “Slow?” he took off his piece of clothing, hovering over you “or rough?”

A shiver ran down your spine at the question and he smiled watching as you closed your legs lightly around his hips at the last suggestion.

“Rough, huh?” He pulled your body closer by your hips and straddled you again “Is that right?”

That afternoon would be all about you. Heeseung decided that making you feel good would be his top priority and nothing else mattered. If you wanted it rough, he would give you exactly that.

“Yes.” You replied in a low whisper feeling your chest heave with excitement and Heeseung brushed his lips over yours “Yeah? You're so naughty, baby.” he bit his lower lip holding your wrists beside your head “You have this innocent pretty face, but you like it rough, huh?”

He crashed his lips into you with a deep kiss again, exploring your entire mouth violently with his tongue. He came to the conclusion that he would never get tired of your lips.

It was a messy, wet, intense and completely overwhelming kiss. Heeseung released your wrists, wrapping you in his arms, pulling your body into him, making your stomach knot with his aggression.

Your moans were swallowed by Heeseung's mouth as the pressure of his body on yours drove you crazy. He began attacking your neck with open kisses as he positioned himself between your legs.

“Please, Hee.” Heeseung smiled seeing how you begged for him. Just like the way he always dreamed of “I want you so bad.”

Your hands grabbed his strong shoulders, and he sucked in a breath, trying to control himself with the ecstatic sensation of your body enveloping him completely “You want me, baby?” Heeseung members were shaking as he heard your delirious whimpers in anticipation “So, be good for me and wait like a good girl.”

Heeseung's heartbeat was already racing in an insane rhythm as he held onto your hips tightly, sinking it into the mattress, but not giving what you wanted. “S-Stop teasing, Hee.” You whispered in despair, and he breathlessly moaned, feeling your nails scratching the back of his head between your choking whimpers.

“Sorry baby, I just wanna take my time with you.” While you felt Heeseung’s body completely over yours, your nails sank down the length of his beautiful, toned back, scratching his skin, and your forehead rested on his shoulder, hiding your face. Heeseung grabbed your jaw and pulled your face to him, kissing you, making your eyes water slightly “Look at me.” he whispered with a shaky breath over your mouth “I want to see your pretty face.”

“Hah—” You opened your slightly blurry eyes and could barely respond to Heeseung, who was breathing irregularly, adjusting himself at the perfect position “C'mon baby, you can take it.” he whispered, wrecking you completely.

Heeseung felt butterflies in his stomach seeing the sight of you beneath him writhing in pleasure. It was lewd, sexy and scorching. It was everything he wanted: to see you completely surrendered under him while he roughly handled you.

He finally realized that every day he discovered more reasons to love you, and he was happy that your love story was just starting.

At that moment, nothing else crossed your mind other than his name: Heeseung. So, you allowed yourself to give yourself completely to Heeseung and fall apart under his touch and the intoxicating feeling of his body on top of yours, giving you everything you wanted most.

☆

After a long bath and more stolen kisses, you were cuddling on Heeseung's bed while he stroked your hair.

“I'm so tired.” He said, smelling his shampoo on your damp hair “I need to sleep for about 10 hours straight to recover.”

You laughed and gave him a kiss on the cheek “How a college student would find time to sleep for 10 hours?”

“I don’t know, but I’ll find a way.” he touched your cheek with the back of his fingers, caressing the spot “And you? Are you tired?” You nodded as you let yourself be numbed by the smell of Heeseung’s perfume “This semester killed me.”

“I know right? It feels like we didn’t even have a break.” He stroked your hair affectionately “And speaking of breaks… my dad wants you to have dinner with us next time.” You spoke in an uncertain tone, afraid of Heeseung’s reaction to the sudden invitation “Really?” He smiled at the corner of his mouth and looked at you, noticing how shy you were “Yes, at the last dinner we had he mentioned that he wanted me to invite you. I think deep down he realized that there was something between us since the day of the foundation event.” Heeseung chuckled remembering the interaction they had.

You felt more comfortable seeing how excited Heeseung seemed with the invitation “Sure, I’ll go.” he looked at you with a loving look that filled your chest “And how was dinner?”

“It was kinda weird… but nice.” Heeseung noticed a slight smile on your face. You usually had a strange relationship with your father, but ever since the day of the foundation event it seemed like your father had shown a new side. “We didn’t talk much, but I think I’m finally understanding a bit how my father’s mind works.”

Heeseung remained silent, leaving you comfortable to vent “Did you talk about your plans of not working on his office after graduation?” you smiled a bit “Kinda... I talked about the informal invitations I received from other offices, and he seemed neutral. He said I should analyze the opportunities that will come my way very carefully.”

“That sounds like a good answer.” Heeseung commented and you nodded “I feel like since my dad spent most of his time working to give me the best, we never really talked much, but now I think he’s trying, in his own way.”

“Maybe he’s not good with words, but he seems to care about you.” Heeseung stroked your cheek with his thumb “It was always like that, he never said much, but he tried his best.”

“Well, at least you had the courage to tell him about the proposals you received and now you can rest easy.” You smiled and gave Heeseung a long kiss that melted his heart “Yes, thank you for listening to me, baby.”

“Of course, love.” He gave you a long kiss on the cheek and looked into your eyes with an amused look “So… does that mean your father likes me?” Heeseung wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, giving you that confident smile that made you push his face away as he laughed “Oh, here you go again...”

“What? It's true.” He watched you run your fingers through his hair “I’m the best son-in-law he could ask for.”

You gave a mocking smile seeing Heeseung's confidence “And to think that I'm dating you... maybe I've gone crazy.” He pulled you by the waist, giving you a hug from behind and a kiss on the back of your neck “Yes... crazy about me.”

Yes, you had to admit that he was right.

You were crazy about Heeseung.

Mrs. Jung was attentive with a serene and calm expression as she watched you present your project. The entire class seemed impacted by the union of the best students in the course creating an impeccable synchronization. It was impressive how you were able to complement each other on the points where each of you had difficulty.

You and Heeseung were a duo that seemed to be perfect for chaos, but right now, everything seemed to fall into place as you showcased your incredible project with unique nuances. From the beginning, you overcame many barriers to give your best, and finally you could reap the fruits of your hard work.

“In conclusion, we must recognize that this evolution of human rights within international law is of utmost importance. In short, International States are not only composed of power and sovereignty, but also of individuals who need to be protected and guarded.” Heeseung naturally confidently ended his part by introducing the final conclusion of the project. It was clear that this was the environment in which he felt comfortable, presenting something he had the authority to speak about.

“And therefore, the protection of human rights is not just a mere internal concern of each Internacional State, but also of the entire global legal system.” You finish the presentation to the sound of polite applause filling the room. Mrs. Jung gave a satisfied smile and stood up from her chair holding the evaluation clipboard she was holding.

“I must say, when I paired you up I knew you had potential, but I’m immensely surprised.” You swallowed hard, fearing her assessment, since she was known as a strict teacher. “You decided to approach a complex topic, but the way you both explored and conducted the research was very interesting. It was a pleasant surprise, I’m very satisfied.”

Heeseung and you looked at each other, feeling flattered by the teacher’s praise. “Thank you very much, Mrs. Jung.” You thanked her and went to sit in your seats with smiles on your faces.

As Mrs. Jung called the next pair, Heeseung was feeling elated. You had finally finished this project and you had definitely gotten top marks, but the best part was knowing that he had won the best prize: you.

Heeseung's hand touched your thigh discreetly under the table and you turned to him trying not to smile. "Hee! What are you doing? We're in class!” You whispered in his ear and he gave a small smile “Relax, I'm just recovering my energy.”

You gave an airy laugh and placed your hand over his, intertwining your fingers “Can't believe I'm dating you.” He gave a closed-mouth smile and leaned down to your ear “I know, right? You're so lucky…” Heeseung whispered in an ironic tone and you held back from laughing.

“Oh, please.” You commented playfully “I’m trying to concentrate here, Hee.” Heeseung sighed and squeezed your hand before placing an affectionate kiss on your palm “My bad, baby. You're so pretty I lost my focus.” You rolled your eyes but felt your heart flutter “So cheesy…”

“But you love it.” He smiled and turned to the front.

You really loved the antics of Lee Heeseung, your former rival, project partner and best boyfriend you could ask for.

☆

1 YEAR LATER

Lying in your bed while reading a doctrine was Heeseung's guilty pleasure. Your mattress was much softer than his, your pillows were super comfortable, and the sweet smell of the bamboo air freshener you bought was chef's kiss.

He was calm, reading one of your favorite criminal law books that you had recommended due to the author's impeccable didactics. Your eyes scanned his figure, admiring his concentration.

He was wearing glasses, with messy hair and a black tank top that definitely wasn't cooperating with your thoughts. He looked too perfect, too good for someone who was just reading.

You usually loved doing your makeup or any other kind of activity while Heeseung read something in your room. Even the silence was comfortable between you because of his warm presence.

But today you couldn't concentrate properly. Heeseung was too handsome, and it was disturbing your mind. How dare he be so sexy like that without even trying?

It was unfair how he was so mesmerized by his book that he didn't realize how needy you were just by the sight of Heeseung in your bed.

You climbed onto your bed and crawled towards him, who seemed more focused than ever. When Heeseung felt your weight on his lap, he looked up from his book and stared at your angelic face. “What are you doing?” You smiled, pulling the book down “You need a break.”

“Babe, I was finally getting the grip of The Fruit of the Poisonous Tree theory!” He groaned feeling your body rub against the fabric of his pants “I’m just getting rid of your stress.” You said innocently as you placed the book on another corner of the bed “My stress? I think you are getting rid of your stress, miss.”

He held onto your waist, watching you hold onto his chubby cheeks. It was disconcerting how he could be cute and sexy at the same time. “Okay, maybe you’re right, but I still think a break would be good to you.” You gave him a peck on the lips that made him smile over your mouth.

“Yeah?” he asked, fitting his face into your neck “I guess I need a break then.” You sighed, feeling him run his lips along the length of your neck and smiled against your skin “Great.” your fingers intertwined in Heeseung’s soft hair, making him grunt and attack your mouth.

With your left hand you took off Heeseung's glasses and threw them on the bed as you deepened the kiss. His hands slid down your torso, eliciting broken moans from you.

As your senses were lost in Heeseung, your cell phone vibrated with the notification of your email.

We are pleased to inform you that you have been selected for an internship position at our law firm. We look forward to receiving your answer as soon as possible. — Jung & Taylor Legal Advisors

Perhaps your and Heeseung's journey into the legal world was just in the beginning.

☆

☆

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[salamifuposey]

Orange Juice - Chapter 9 - A Ride of Emotions (Alternate title: A Rollercoaster of Emotions)

Orange Juice - Chapter 9 - A Ride of Emotions (Alternate title: A Rollercoaster of Emotions)

As our heroes finally take a time to process the events that had previously happened and meeting up with new acquaintances, the shimmer of the daylight shining across the whole of Intile City, as a day begins anew.

As the sun rises and shines atop the building of the V.I.V headquarters, the activity of the citizens piles up as the day develops, Lady Miriam already set on working on quite a few more projects while the crew was already set on some particular plans.

As the crew meets up and gangs together, it was nothing more than modest smiles as Dayley finally approaches everyone together.

"... Oh hey, what's everyone gathered here for?" Dayley stood upon a quite very excited group as Lemmy looks up towards him.

"Oh hey, you're finally here!" Lemmy then felt relief upon finding him thinking he was taking a little longer than usual. "Took you long enough! We were dying to see you!"

"We were just waiting for you here." Jayt then spoke about everyone gathering in the main lobby.

"Hey, you guys planning something?" Dayley had wondered if he had missed some reunion with them as quite a few of the gang were quite excited.

As the main crew snickered with Hector and Jayt hoping to surprise him, Lemmy then came upfront about what they were really planning.

"Well, today will be the day we'll finally take you!" Lemmy grinned through his teeth hoping to uplift Dayley.

"Huh?" Dayley seemed quite caught offguard by this as Lemmy tried to explain through his own companions.

"You know how last time, we went to the Honey Sun amusement park without you? I was even bummed I left you out of it!" He shortly mentioned how they had gone with Daisuki previously to the park while Dayley was left at the headquarters, all while they were out.

"Yeah, we were even hoping we could bring you to that place some day." Hector unmistakably did felt like he owed to Dayley that much.

"Well, today's the day!" Lemmy then finally cheered hoping to bring him so he could enjoy the attractions along with everyone with him.

"And this time, we ain't forgetting no one!" Hector then tried to prove by Adven, Vonderv, Jayt, Naddy, even Roberta, along with Daisuki.

"I know, I'm so happy about it!" Vonderv suddenly reacted surprisingly chipper about the whole situation, more cheerful than usual.

"... Huh? What got you so excited about it?" Lemmy wondered if Vonderv's behavior was any normal coming from him as he watched over his shoulder towards him.

"... Heh! As if I'd tell!" Vonderv merely grinned with a wide smile showing his iconic teeth gap as it extended through his cheeks.

"... Alright then. Keep your secrets, heheh." While Lemmy wasn't quite sure just what Vonderv was having in store for him, he merely assumed he was just excited for the amusement park trip. "Besides, I already know you quite well enough your secrets are sleazy but well-intended."

"... Huh? Are you guys just not aware of it?" Vonderv seemed almost as if Lemmy was making a mockery out of Von. "I guess you guys are just different from me..." He merely side-eyed, trying to keep the mood afloat.

"Are you trying to play dumb with me?..." Lemmy could barely comprehend Vonderv and his own line of thought.

"... Hey, I really appreciate the thought, but are you guys sure I even deserve this?" Dayley then felt a bit conscious about hopefully not ruining their fun. "Besides, I'm not even sure if I should be out there today..." He seemed quite rather constrainted.

"Nonsense! Besides, my mom already pretty much told I could bring you! She really wanted to make sure to take advantage of this just so you could have your very own vacation!" Lemmy shared those thoughts, as Lady Miriam made it her duty to let a off-day for him.

"I-I guess..." He felt rather surprised that they'd go such lengths for him as a friend. "I feel like I owe so much..."

"Besides, we're your friends! We'll do anything so you feel like you're in the group!" Lemmy at the very least wanted that much for him.

"Not that you weren't already a friend to begin with for us!" Hector rested on his hip knowing how much he meant well.

"Thanks, guys, I really mean it, I guess I'm just afraid of something..." Dayley seemed quite rather shy, but willing to go for them.

"I never was able to be very much in amusement parks, given past a point, I almost entirely devoted my life being an hero..." He sadly admitted, despite the fact of very much being extremely fond of those times when he went with his own parents as a kid.

"It almost even feels like I've barely been able to experience much in my life... so I guess going to an attraction won't hurt..." He admitted, hoping to see if he could try anything new or even just being there for them.

"Well, lucky for you, you've got us all as friends!" Lemmy grinned while hoping to bring a smile to Dayley.

"I keep hearing about cotton candy and how it looks like me... so you guys better not be associating me with something weird!" Adven felt a little bit provoked about hearing such thought coming from one of them and how she supposedly resembled it.

"I just said your hair merely looked like cotton candy!" Hector rubbed the back of his head. "I can't help it if seeing you always makes me want to eat cotton candy!..." He felt a bit embarrassed reminiscing that as Adven eyed on him.

Jayt then suddenly remembered about something as he tried to rub his very own face pondering about it.

"So, how are you going to do it about the pig?" He asked Lemmy, remembering Lemmy about the slight peculiarities about bringing Vonderv, Adven and Roberta to the amusement park. "And I'm not even addressing the rest of your friends. Good luck getting them past the security."

"Ehh, I'll just say they work for the park as mascots." Lemmy tried to solve. "Besides, they already look like big giant animal costumes."

"I can't wait to see all the goods in store for us! Maybe there's some unique delicacy your earth has compared to our dimension!" Roberta pondered about what sort of treats they'd be able to get from the park. "Pop corn certainly is quite tasty..."

"I never get tired of those!" Vonderv fully himself admitted having already eaten some particular snacks on their dimension as he patted himself on the belly, having quite scavenged quite a few pantries around the headquarters. "Heheh..."

"So, well then, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Lemmy then exclaimed as they tried pepping up Dayley to bring him alongside with them.

"Thanks, guys, I really can't appreciate it enough..." Dayley even seemed quite taken aback by his friends' own hospitality towards him.

As everyone then cheered to prepare themselves for the amusement park, they then tried to let Lady Miriam know as she quietly waved them off and the rest of their own team kept their headquarters' safety on check. She seemed really quite thrilled to see her son and everyone hoping for them to have a nice time together, all while making sure everything was safe and well kept in order. She also let them know that, just in case she ever had a spare time left, she'd go on and checking on them.

As the setting then changes to that of streets with sidewalks, our crew rambuctiously walk their way toward the amusement park, all while chatting amongst themselves of the possibilities that could cross in their mind to achieve once they're in the park.

The people were actually quite astonished at the fact that they were presencing what seemed to be people in costumes, as they mired and stared back at Vonderv, Adven and Roberta alongside with our very own crew, with Dayley right on front walking.

"Oh I can't wait to see what the fuss is about, all those spinny wheels and those long, snake-like paths with carts on 'em!" Roberta then enjoyed speaking about such little unknown thrills as she tried musing about those images she saw from the pamphlet Lemmy and her friends showed to her.

"And the tents, the treats and snacks they got on sale! Ohh, I can't way to get my hands into some of those crisps, ice creams, hamburgers, all that sweety goodness in my mouth!" Vonderv even drooled just thinking about that thought alone.

"Hey hey, how come you guys also have different looking species walking in this park?" Adven was referring to the people dressed as mascots.

"Hey guys, I know you guys are excited and all but you really don't have to keep pushing me!" Dayley said while walking hesitant on front.

"Huh? But no one's pushing you, Dayley." Lemmy then pointed while walking right next to Naddy while everyone was only a bit distant from Dayley as he suddenly looks behind his own back.

"Huh? But I could have sworn..." Dayley then keeps looking back and forth wondering what that was.

"... Maybe I'm just imagining things..." He merely tried to snap back into reality.

"Can you guys move a little faster? I'm almost out of patience!" Vonderv then tried to at least speed up everyone's pace.

"Von, the amusement park ain't going nowhere." Lemmy then tried to at least calm down his buddy's behavior.

"You guys are way more excited than I am considering I've only just been here some time back!" Hector then smiled as he found Lemmy's new friends to be quite amusing in their own particular ways. "But nothing like hitting back on memories again." He said while escorting Daisuki alongside next to him being quite coy and acting very interested.

"You can say that again." Jayt felt kind of happy he could see himself back on the amusement park again with everyone around.

"Speaking of which... have you talked him about that yet?" Jayt then brought to mention the whole conundrum behind Daisuki.

"Ehh, not yet." Hector then tried to keep it shut at least for now. "And besides, he's not dumb, he'll probably figure out eventually, I hope." Hector merely assumed his childhood friend to at least have the proper smarts in order to be able to realize who Daisuki is eventually.

"Even so, I wanna make sure he knows it sooner or later, I guess I just don't want to shock him too early or anything." Hector still wanted the best for his friend and so he'd be able to be friends properly with Garter.

Just as he was talking to Jayt about the situation, Lemmy was actually trying to abord Daisuki who was surprisingly chipper to get in back again on some of the park's rides once more.

"Hey, you excited to get back at those roller coasters? You really enjoyed them last time we visited the park." Lemmy was hoping he'd get to know Daisuki even more even though he doesn't want to involve with her, given he was with Naddy.

Daisuki then merely appropriately tried to nod in accordance, merely slightly bouncing and hoping to take more advantage of the park.

"Ya know, you do remind me of someone... maybe it's just me." Lemmy then felt a bit curious as to how she really looked despite the fact she never shown her face towards Lemmy. "You remind me of someone with a lot of energy... I could be mistaken." He slightly held his chin curious.

"That's Garter, Lemmy." Jayt then out of nowhere just non-chalantly spoke the truth out there.

"Oh..." Lemmy then merely accepted it almost as second nature before realizing.

"... wait, WHAT?!" He then promptly gets bewildered before such claim. "NO WAY! THAT CAN'T BE HIM, ARE YOU MAKING FUN OF HER?!" He even thought Jayt was making a fool out of him.

Lemmy then tried to properly defend her and finding Jayt's accusations ludicrous before Daisuki, slowly tried to lower her sun hat in front of him, being able to now properly show her face before Lemmy.

Before realizing it, Garter, as Daisuki, then smiled towards Lemmy as he tried to process Garter's familiar face just as the same tried to show the real truth underneath.

As Lemmy mired back at Daisuki presumably being Garter, he then tried to think things through.

"I have several questions." Lemmy couldn't even begin to grasp where he could even begin as she chuckled.

But just before Lemmy could even properly react, Henrick tried to approach them, which caused Daisuki trying to swiftly hide her hair and appearance as fast as possible in order not to get caught.

"Hey guys, what's all the fuss about?" Henrick wondered especially since he was seeing them quite crowded together and didn't catch anything.

"Eh, nothing you'd be interested in any way." Jayt then tried to not anything more about it as if it never happened.

"Hey, Henr, have you met Daisuki? She's a really friendly gal!" Lemmy tried to introduce her to Henrick, while Garter underneath was constraining and feeling incredibly nervous against Lemmy even suggesting the idea.

"Meh, I'm not really interested in meeting a random broad." Henrick surprisingly mumbled and not thinking much about her, even despite the dainty dress, simply because he didn't know her from anywhere. "I was just wondering why you guys were making so much noise."

"Eh, she seems cool at least, I just have my head in other things..." Henrick then suddenly tried to think about his gym workout routine and possibly getting a few more couple of weights for his own dumbbells. "You were awesome for remembering bringing me along with you!"

"Garter could have come with us but knowing him - he for some reason doesn't wanna attract attention to himself that might be detrimental to our band, it being a underground one." Henrick only mused. "I could be like him but I'm far more lenient and try just behaving myself."

"What's your definition of behaving?" Jayt pondered such intricacies.

"Not blowing stuff up!" Henrick then quickly snapped back at Jayt with that comeback. "Heheh!"

"Well, at least we don't have to owe you anything just so you can have some fun around the park!" Lemmy then smiled while Daisuki calmed down and tried to slowly distance a slight bit from them, thinking about learning a bit and how Henrick really doesn't mind.

"I'm sure he would have fun in a place like this! He never really been to an amusement park, I think." Henrick thought about the consequences of being in a crowded place while being a well known underground idol. "But maybe some day he'll figure something out to sneak himself in."

"It'd be far more scandalous if someone like Garter were to be in a amusement park instead of me, which I guess might explain him not wanting to be a bother for me and our own band." Henrick thought hopefuly Garter could break out from the media reporters and that stress.

"Heheh, yeah, maybe some day." Lemmy then smiled knowing Garter had his very own reasons for it, while Daisuki stood not too far from them.

As Henrick then tried to keep himself high-spirited, Vonderv was still in quite a high about something, snickering and smiling.

"Man, I can't wait to see the look on everyone's faces!" He seemed rather gleeful and joyful as he laughed.

"What are you talking about?" Lemmy almost exasperated that sentence. "And why are you so excited about it?"

"Ohh, let's just say I have some tricks up my sleeve for something!" He seemed particularly entranced by happiness.

"... Of course, nothing will exactly happen if I don't happen to be around!" He seemed almost to suggest something.

"You getting all mysterious is getting on my nerves..." Lemmy wasn't sure whether something bad was coming.

"Aww, don't worry! Nothing bad is going to happen!" Vonderv tried to ease his spirit as he waved his paw hand off.

"In any case, I really can't wait to see what's waiting for us at the park and finally see all those images becoming real!" Roberta then tried lifting up the mood as she clasped her round soft mitten-like hands together. "It must be so wondrous to witness!"

As they slowly approach their own destination, the setting once again shifts, this time our group finally having reached, the Honey Sun Amusement Park quite incredibly looming in, as Lemmy's friends could only watch and stare at awe, all while the main attractions watched over them from afar and from above the park's colorful, boastful high fences all circling around the entire park's area, with cheerful crowds and with a whole world to see inside, as Roberta, Vonderv and Adven's eyes glittered in awe.

"Wahhhh!"

As they mired all together, the quirky group of Lemmy's friend then quickly became smitten by the park's lovely sight, escorted by a melodious triumphant fanfare blasting off from some of the park's sound columns sneakily hidden in corners to wrap the area all around them.

"This is so amazing!! I've never seen this much excitement in one place!" Roberta then even became ecstatic over what she could run into.

"I didn't think something this big could exist!" Adven definitely felt quite impressed over the view she was getting from underneath all of it, making it even more grandiose for someone as petite as her. "Look at those ferris... wheels! Is that how you call 'em?"

"And the snake-like paths!" Roberta was quite excited to see the rollercoaster paths that seemed to peek from above and some areas. "Look look! People are in tiny carts riding that!" She seemed quite rather impressed over its architecture and the excitement oozing.

"Oh heck yeah, I can practically smell the food stalls already, I can taste the sweets!" Even Vonderv was beyond thrilled to begin the binge and indulge himself on the amusement park's own sweets and pastry.

"Hahah, it even feels a bit wrong to be here..." Dayley then felt a bit guilty from the possible fun that he thought they deserved more.

"I'm just glad you guys are having fun even being around here." Lemmy pointed out their excitement and how Adven seemed starry eyed towards the sight of the amusement park. "I can see the security... but haha, let's see if I can sneak you guys in!" He happily smiled.

"Ohh, I can't wait to get myself on front! Race you guys to the boxing attraction!" Henrick then immediately tried scurrying away before anyone could even get inside the park. "And I'll make sure to raise my highscore as much I can!" He gloated off to them.

"Don't worry, Henrick, we'll catch up to you..." Lemmy then tried to reassure Henrick, even though he probably wouldn't break his record.

As each and everyone was trying to advance further to approach the entrance, Lemmy couldn't help but catch something with his eye, as he stared at a sudden slight sound of people coming from it, that of a building not too far from the amusement park's vicinity.

It seemed quite wide, surrounded by several assortments of flowers, including some dandelions that were only slightly distanced from the windows, briskly waving with the soft wind that was grazing our friends softly. The coloring of the building was quite vivid.

It seemed like people were crowding up right at the mysterious building's entrance, all while they seemed they were celebrating something.

"... Huh, was that always there?" Lemmy wondered as it always seemed like the building was mostly vacant and during construction.

"Oh, you're also staring at it?" Jayt then watched over the people, looking somewhat in curiosity.

"Apparently it's going to be an orphanage, one to replace the previous that was originally burnt down." Jayt then recalled.

"Looks like they finally found the funds for it." Jayt seemed rather pleased, if just because to house any new orphans.

As the people cheered even more, a ribbon was then cut at the entrance to announce the orphanage's opening, as a sound of applause came from them, clapping their hands to congratulate the grand opening, with Intile City's mayor around to offer even more support.

"Actually, from what I could hear, the orphanage's funding had already concluded quite a long time ago." Lemmy added, supposedly having heard from his own mother given she was involved in several organizations and associations that help around the civilians.

"Huh, I wasn't aware of it." Jayt seemed quite rather surprised, right as the people in the entrance seemed to be enjoying each others' company, all while getting ready to foster new children and hoping to them get new homes and families. "I did hear this one is going to be quite humble with very nice assistants and caretakers and they even let adopted ones meet up with their friends so they don't wind up distanced." Jayt honestly really enjoyed that thought and the reassurance of looking through each family's background to make sure the orphans would be rightfully adopted.

"Ah well, at the very least, it was really nice of your mother having helped funding this orphanage." Jayt then thought Lady Miriam was the one behind it, especially due to her caring nature.

"... Huh?" Lemmy then looked back at him in confusion.

"But my mom wasn't the one funding this orphanage. I know that because if she did, she would talk to me about it." Lemmy then corrected him.

"What are you talking about, how could it have been anyone other than your mother? Do you even know how ludicrous the amount of money they were asking for the funding? How could anyone other than her even have the money for it?" Jayt seemed rather baffled and wasn't exactly trusting Lammy's own words.

"I keep telling you, it wasn't my mother! I know that because every time I'd talk to her about the orphanage, she kept saying this time she wasn't involved, merely because of the fact that it had already been funded even before she could support it!"

"Huh, I didn't realize it. They were still asking a lot of money for it, so whoever it was had a lot of money." Jayt wasn't quite sure how someone could have managed to pull something like that off.

As the people cheered and applauded the construction workers' efforts, the work had seemingly come to an end.

As Lemmy and Jayt then vacantly stared at the prospering new orphanage, a strange blow of wind then came, one that was actually blowing upwards, that slightly caught everyone's attention with a strong gust.

"... Hey, what's going on here?" Adven seemed almost miffed given she herself was wearing a stout green skirt and slightly pulled it down, including Naddy and alongside Daisuki, who tried pulling down her dress. "Why is it so windy he-?"

As they strangely stared at it, the dandelions that were not too far from the windows just seemingly started floating upwards its seeds, catching the small crowd offguard, with but a very few women also caught by the sudden wind gust and their dresses getting blown.

"Well, would you look at that!" One of the elders in the crowd then brought to attention.

As the dandelion seeds kept drifting off upwards, all of the crowd then stared as Lemmy and friends looked back at awe over the dandelion seeds floating above, waving ever so slightly in accordance with the wind and flying up towards the sky, as their soft presence slowly leaves the grassy meadow that was next to the new building, the little particles of them wavering off and slowly dispersing from the dandelions.

With the dandelion seeds floating above them, light then started shimmering off from the dandelion seeds, particles of it also passing above and floating towards the sky alongside with the seeds, a sight that definitely caught the attention from them.

"Ahh! It's so pretty!" Roberta then couldn't help but feel happy over such a sight, almost feeling blessed by it.

The amusement park was sounding off an impressive orchestra music that you could hear coming off from it, accompanying the remarkable sight.

"Haha! The time has finally come!" Vonderv then all of a sudden exclaimed, all while shouting towards the sky and raising his tubby arms alongside with the dandelions going high and above.

"Hahahahahaha!" He laughed, he smirked and grinned, with an unmistakeable smile you could never erase plastered through his face.

As this smile was for years to come.

As the dandelion seeds flew more and more, the light beaming from them with a soft glow, Vonderv could barely contain his unbridled happiness, all while his friends witnessed his strange behavior and his pure bliss, the music from the amusement park sounding triumphant alongside with this strange occurrence, leaving people impressed.

As he waved back at those dandelion seeds, the seeds then slowly and unevocally seemed as if it had reached the skies, always floating up.

"Byee! See ya!" He tried to speak back, almost as if it was implied he'd see it soon, everyone slightly shocked over the upwards drifting.

As the multitude of people seemingly quieted down and seemed quite impressed at the dandelion seeds drifting, the music was feeling quite warm to those around him, the people slowly coming in and inside the building, as they had presenced quite a cute scenery coming off from the gardens.

With Vonderv having finally relaxed himself and feeling content, he then slowly and happily lowered his own arms, looking above him with a strikingly heartwarming smile, as if something nice would soon to come for his own life.

"Man.... Ain't that a sight..." He warmly spoke out, almost as if it felt natural for him.

Unexplained however, was the whole entire phenomenon, as Adven was now incredibly quite dubious out of Vonderv's own actions.

"Von! What did you do?" She wondered completely astonished, as if she didn't know what had exactly happened. "What was that?!"

"Nothing! I didn't do anything at all!" Vonderv then tried to ease everyone's spirits as they all quieted down.

"Von, what was that about? Was that all your own doing?" Lemmy then immediately became struck with chills as he wasn't sure if it was good.

"Lemm, relax! And besides, I did say it wouldn't happen if I wasn't around!" He was still sounding incredibly vague.

"Long story short, let's just say a lot of good will come for the Aurea dimension!" Vonderv ended it at that.

"Wait, do you mean the Aurea dimension and ours are connected?" Lemmy felt incredibly quite puzzled.

"... I didn't say that!" Vonderv then felt very flustered about Lemmy's incessant questioning while slightly scowling.

"Our dimensions are far apart! We can barely access yours only with that teletransporting machine of yours!" Vonderv tried to suggest that.

"You'd at least understand something if you guys were like me!" He then tried keeping things a secret.

"But we just got our own ways of our own dimensions being intertwined." Vonderv at least tried to clarify it a bit more.

"I guess..." Lemmy didn't really seem like wanting to have even more of an headache trying to understand.

"It sure really was a sight to behold though... It really was amazing!" Roberta then added, thinking just how Lemmy's dimension difered from theirs and how much there was left to explore in this world. "I've been really enjoying my time in your dimension so far."

"I wonder what that was all about though..." Dayley felt quite a bit surprised over what had just happened.

"Well, there's still plenty more to enjoy! How about we finally make a move and get ourselves a well deserved time in the park?" Lemmy then looked back at Roberta feeling quite happy with her, feeling like he's starting to get to know her a bit more.

"Oh! And maybe there even might be some hand-made scarves being sold in the park! You like those, don't you?" Lemmy merely tried assuming since she always liked wrapping herself around with them. "I've gotten quite a few for Naddy, I'm sure they've got something for you."

"Oh!" Roberta then became quite interested. "Yeah! I've always adored wearing them since they feel so nice and comfortable around my neck... It also helps wrap around my wings and keep 'em nice and tucked whenever I don't need them." She warmly smiled responding.

"Well, what are we waiting for, let's go!" Lemmy then tried to cheerfully lead the way towards the parks' own entrance, as they all still tried accompanying Lemmy and eagerly awaiting for the main attractions and interesting stalls around them.

"And maybe this time, I'll get around to finally figure out just what on earth is cotton candy!..." Adven then slightly stormed along with them, just as her bountiful hair sprung and bobbed back and forth along with her small stature.

As they each tried paying for their own tickets, Lemmy felt a bit obliged telling at the entrance he was paying for everyone's tickets, referring to his oddly shaped unusual friends as merely park workers who have decided to bring their costumes along with them. The security, while they were quite amused, then simply let them be able to get inside, all while enjoying their bright animal costumes.

As the scenery then changes once more, this time the setting shifts to that of a sproutful amusement park and bursting with excitement from within the park, as our friends each looked around and finally felt immersed inside the park, the hollering marching music blasting from the park's very own sound columns hidden in every nook and cranny, along with it, the main attractions beaming with people, as thousands of people walked around close to their very own vicinity, some very slightly mistaking some of our friends as costumed workers from the park, mistaking Adven for a very small plush pink dog mascot, Vonderv as a very large pig and Roberta as a very bright colorful ladybug.

"Wahhhh! This all looks so amazing!" Roberta felt quite astonished by how much was happening all around her. "Look at all these rides!" She then suddenly felt like she wanted to give at least a few of them a try as she never rode an attraction.

"Look at all the people in here! It didn't even cross me to think to be this crowded!" Adven was almost frightened being dragged along with the crowd, what with barely being able to compare to everyone's stature, minus the children close to her height.

"Heheh, I knew you guys would like this place!" Lemmy then smiled through his teeth. "And there's plenty to enjoy here!"

"Ohh, that sweet smell! Sweet candy, here I come!" Vonderv was quite excited to be able to ravage through the food and snack stalls.

"Before we take a bite and dig in - why don't we go and enjoy some of the rides first!" Lemmy then tried to suggest first, if only they don't want them too full for what was about to come for them. "And then we can finally take a break!" He seemed quite thrilled.

"Sounds like a cool idea!" Vonderv then agreed before everyone else tried to comply with how Lemmy wanted to decide things for them and nodded accordingly with him. "Oh and weren't you supposed to meet with that redhead big guy?" Vonderv asked.

"Nah, we've got all the time in the world, he'll soon catch up to us. Besides, don't wanna make him mad or stealing his own priority on what he wants to do for his own self." Lemmy merely didn't want to steal Henrick's thunder. "That 800+ highscore ain't going nowhere."

"Aye, got it!" Vonderv then followed along with Lemmy's idea. "How about we hit up the spinning attractions first?"

"Yeah, I could go for a dizzifying experience." It wasn't exactly Lemmy's favorite, but he seemed happy to tag along with.

Just as the setting slightly changes, our friends were soon meeting up with several attractions where they were feeling like they were in the top of the world, some more daunting than others for some of them. Still, they were having fun going through them, enjoying the scenery and the upside down experiences of quite a few of the rides.

"Wahaaaa!" Roberta yelled as she felt the thrill of them going in a rollercoaster, the wind blowing on her cheeks and her smile beaming through her cheeks as her fuzzy ponytailed hair fluttered with the wind. "The wind's blowing so much in my face!"

"I haven't had this much fun!" Adven was also quite finding it a thrill seek, Lemmy right behind her while he was accompanying Naddy.

"Hahahah! This still kind of makes my heart come out of my mouth!!" Lemmy was quite certainly finding it quite amusing, all while his girlfriend was finding it far more fun than him.

Everyone else was also tagging along, with Dayley feeling like he had already grown accostumed to the fast wind in his face but still finding it quite thrilling, his face feeling quite blushed and genuinely smiling as he stared all around, laughing his heart. Hector and Jayt were also put together, as they also enjoyed the fast-paced ride.

Trying to ride other rides, they also managed to accomplish seeing other attractions, the spinning ones making Adven a slight more delirious, but also still asking to do it again. The boat and 4D cinema ones were some of Vonderv's most favorite, some of them also enjoying the electric go-karts, one of which Vonderv wasn't exactly able to fit quite in due to his own size.

Daisuki also enjoyed coming back to her favorite ride, the Loops of Arc roller coaster. Besides that, she also was able to try out many new ones she hadn't tried yet. Every so often, she would see his own brother just being genuinely happy enjoying and blasting through each of the park's attractions one by one, all while enjoying how cool Hector and Lemmy really were along with their friends despite anything.

They cheered and laughed, each trying even hotspot areas such as the haunted house, everyone getting unfortunately frightened by Vonderv sneaking in to the house to frolick and cause some panic, which caused some confusion as to whether that was from the haunted house.

They went through different areas, exploring each nook and cranny around the park, experimenting with all sorts of stalls and Roberta even being able to find herself a pastel yellow scarf she was smitten with.

They each have also went to experiment with different machinery such as the toys' claw machines and even Henrick's own beloved boxing machine.

When Henrick asked whether Dayley wanted to give it a try, he seized from doing anything with it, as that meant it seizing to exist and merely wanted to respect Henrick's own highscore record. Hector and Lemmy still tried to compete but got nowhere even near.

Carousels were also very much enjoyed by Roberta, Naddy and Adven, after enjoying the brisk pace after the thrill rides.

With the scene changing one more time, this time everyone had decided to finally take a nice rest and enjoy some purchased meals alongside some snacks, those of which Vonderv was extremely excited for. They each got a snack for their suited tastes, having a time to picker some of it as they walked throughout the park and trying to look up a location where they could all remain sitted.

But as they explored the avenue stretching as the crowd seemed to dissipate for quite a bit, they were fond sharing their own opinions about what they thought about it so far and finally getting to eat.

"Man, these fries are to die for." Lemmy was quite running through his mouth munching on them.

"Yeah, the food in here is really great, although nothing still quite beats my mom's Appi pie..." Adven fondly remembered her mom's cooking.

"I really like this thing called cotton candy!..." Roberta shared. "Now I can kinda get why Adven reminds you guys of it..." She smiled as she felt the cloudy sweet reach the top of her own mouth, cherishing every fluffy bite of it.

"Man, I'm so full and yet, I feel like I could go for seconds!..." Vonderv rejoiced as he felt pretty content with what he managed to get ahold of, enjoying a haven of treats he thought he never saw before in his own life.

"You went for fourths and fifths!" Lemmy then felt his eyes almost coming out of his face while he saw Vonderv's own binge.

"Hey, I can't help it if your world's food is so tasty!..." Vonderv then praised Lemmy's dimension own food as he brushed Lemmy's comment off.

Just as Lemmy was about to shut Vonderv off and hoping he wouldn't get too carried away, they then come across a view of a young girl completely on its own and alone, the group suddenly miring due to her own behavior.

As they stared slightly caught by surprise, the young girl, seemingly around either seven or eight years old, was crying, as she tried to pad and dry her eyes with her own tiny hands, saddened by something that had occurred. She hiccupped as she tried controlling her tears.

She had a very sad expression, as if something had been taken from her, her mouth slightly quivering from her sadness.

As the group stared, Roberta then felt like she had to wonder and ask, as she felt like she had to do something for her.

"I wonder what that little girl is crying about..." Roberta looked even misty eyed, although she was afraid she might frighten her even further due to her very own unusual ladybug and cockroach appearance mixture, the group slightly at trouble.

Just as the little girl kept quietly sobbing in her own place, Dayley, who had also accidentally caught sight of this, then stared up above in the skies, wondering why the girl was slightly looking above as she cried.

"... Oh."

It became almost instinct.

From there, he immediately witnessed a balloon, flying and drifting up towards the sky.

His sight slightly quivered upon seeing it, the balloon about to go off.

Almost effortless, Dayley then, slightly leaped and started flying towards the skies, without a second thought. He tried to slowly approach the balloon, a bit afraid it would drift due to the slight wind of him closing in.

As the gang suddenly saw him flying off and trying to reach the balloon, Dayley then was just so slightly under the balloon, gently clasping his hand to its very gentle rope. As he stared at the balloon, he couldn't help a slight sensation of him having almost lost it.

Just as he got ahold of this lone balloon flying, he then looked slightly below him to mire over his friends and the lost girl, hoping to go down and trying to carefully address the young girl, slowly drifting down towards them.

As Dayley tried to slowly reach down in order to be able to reach her, the little girl then yelped out as the gang try to slightly catch up with him.

"Dayley!" The little girl instantly recognized the moon symbol of his own soft bright pastel outfit and the little lock on his head.

As the little girl then tried to reach and get closer to Dayley, he then tried to ask without scaring her too much.

"Is this yours?" He tried to calmly speak with her, hoping for her to answer.

"... Yup!" She proudly confessed, having reunited with her balloon. "Thank you so much, I almost thought I had lost it!"

Dayley then tried giving even more questions, wondering if she was hurt or misplaced. "Where are your parents? Are you lost?"

"... Nnnnope! I'm not lost or anything! I can take care of my own!" The little girl then proudly said.

Just as Dayley was about to hopefully sigh out of relief, a young pack of kids then fastly approached, miring and trying to grab the superhero's attention just as he barely raised his head up.

"Wah! Is that Dayley?! Dayley just like from TV?! That is so unreal! Look at his cape!"

As the wild pack of kids quickly tried to reach Dayley, our crew of villains then tried slightly approaching him not too much from afar.

"Hey, Dayley! This was supposed to be your day-off!" Lemmy then immediately tried to call him out.

"Oh! Sorry about that!..." He felt genuinely embarrassed but otherwise very heartwarmed by the very energetic young kids who were trying to get him to show himself off for them.

"Is it true you can shoot white laser beams off from your own eyes?! I remember seeing you punch debris and it'd explode with a huge white light!" One of the kids kept rambling. "I couldn't believe my eyes you lifting off a train and a giant cruise boat!"

"He can even sing and he was helping calm down some people in peril! He looked a bit anxious and wanting to do so much!"

"I heard his songs! They're really bright and soft! My mom has a album from him and keeps saying it's one of her favorites!"

Just as he was trying to muster a solution, the kids seemed absolutely thrilled, cheering for him as his size loomed over them.

"... Oh! Would you guys like to meet my friends over there?" Dayley then tried hoping they'd get along with Lemmy and friends, since it seemed for him they'd be far more interesting than his own self.

"... Friends?" Just as the kids tried looking after to their right, their sight suddenly stumbled upon Lemmy and their lively crew.

Just as they were watching him, Lemmy felt quite rather proud and tried diverting some attention for himself.

"... Yo!" He poisantly points towards himself while making himself look as cool as he possibly can, with Hector and Jayt waving just behind him and not minding the small tykes even though they thought they'd probably be a bad influence due to being villains on them.

But just as the little girl stared at Vonderv, all of those efforts were thrown out the window.

"... Piggy!!!" She then excitedly shouts and tries scurrying right next to Vonderv, just as the kids tried circling all around Lemmy's quite rather animalesque partners he had met from the Aurea dimension.

"Hahaaa! I like this girl's taste, I'm all they want!" Vonderv then couldn't help but laugh and smile to himself.

"... Is that a GIANT PIG?" One of the kids then tried asking towards Vonderv.

"Well, if you guys are really curious about me, I'm what you guys might call a ghost pig entity!" He tried at least to adjust himself to Lemmy's dimensions' terms more properly adequated for him. "I have a little bit of electricity and a bit of psychic powers!"

"Yoooo, a ghost!" Some of the kids felt impressed. "Does that mean you're a dead person?"

Lemmy couldn't help feel his thunder getting quite stolen. "Show hogger..." He slightly pouted although he wasn't actually mad at Vonderv.

Just as they searched around, some of the kids also couldn't help awing at Adven and Roberta.

"So cute! She looks so much like a stuffed toy!" One of the kids tried to make out of what Adven was.

"Am I supposed to be taking that as a compliment?" Adven was hoping someone would answer her.

"A lot, in fact. Take it, I'd feel very proud of it!" Lemmy tried to at least be nice towards her. "You do look like a plushie..." Lemmy always felt like Adven was very gentle-looking appearance wise and a partner who was always there for him.

"Are we sure we should be trusting these guys?" One of the kids pointed out as he kept staring at the unusual gang.

"Don't worry! We're really trustworthy!" Lemmy pointed out to himself as he kept grinning out despite the fact he was a thief.

Just as Lemmy finished, Hector then tried to take a little bit of attention from Vonderv to get back to the subject.

"Hey kids, I'm sure the pig is awfully entertaining, but don't you guys want to know us a bit better?" He was trying to make an offer towards the kids, hopefully not coming off creepy towards them. "We're really cool thieves! And I'm a mercenary! I've even got my very own axe to get back at my own enemies!"

As the kids kept staring at him not very impressed, one that was licking a popsicle kept staring back at him and paused for a moment.

"... Aren't you that man who was singing towards a lady, stole a entertainers' outfit and got yourself banned?" The tiny brat then pointed out, Hector's eyes almost coming right out of his own sockets, not even considering the chance of them having watched it.

"... HOW ABOUT WE DON'T TALK ABOUT THAT RIGHT NOW?" Hector suddenly felt very startled as he tried to hush the young child from shelling out more details right before Lemmy could barely understand the sentence that came out from the kid out of shock.

"Seriously, Hector, what even happened in that live entertainment show?!" Lemmy could only muse what in the world Hector had put himself through that event. "STEALING AN OUTFIT FROM AN ENTERTAINER?!"

As Jayt kept giggling to himself over what could have possibly sprouted such a situation, Hector then tried to create a chance for him to change the subject before anyone would get to find out more about him.

"O-oh, HEY! I GOT A GREAT IDEA, WHY DON'T WE ALL JUST GET TOGETHER AND ENJOY THE REST OF THE AMUSEMENT PARK!" Hector then haplessly tried to save what was left out of his very own dignity. "That way, we can enjoy the rest of the day together!"

"Sure, sure, change the subject out entirely. Definitely doesn't make me want to learn more about it." Jayt merely tried to poke back at Hector even though he wasn't exactly against the idea all while Daisuki merely looked sideways as if to feign ignorance.

The kids seemed thrilled, being already at least familiar with the amusement park as to not get lost and they could get back to their parents right after they'd have their fun taking advantage of the rogue group they happened to bump against.

"I'll even offer a treat! All candy and food's on me!" Hector even tried to offer just so they'd behave normally.

"Sure, a bribe seems reasonable." Lemmy then tried to squint his eyes back at Hector.

"Don't you look funny at me!" Hector tried to reason with Lemmy. "Besides, I just want everyone to have fun, right?"

"Yeah, I guess we can't argue with that." Jayt then politely smiled. "That way you can get to keep your secrets."

"Heheh." Hector merely tried to laugh it out.

"Honestly, I'm fine with it! That way, we get to keep the kids happy!" Dayley never found himself to be a guardian of children but nonetheless found it as his job to at least keep them safe around them until they get back to their parents.

"You could learn a thing or two from him, Lemmy!" Naddy had suggested having Lemmy learn from Hector getting to be better with kids.

"That way we get to keep them in a safe group!" Roberta concured as she slightly buzzed her antennae in a little excitement. Vonderv and Adven seemed, for the most part, also fine with the situation, despite Adven wanting to enjoy a leisure day.

"Well, ya heard the cockroach! Time to get this fun day on the go!" Hector then bellowed, right before a kid questioned him, "that's a cockroach?"

"I thought it was a ladybug!"

As Hector became thrilled to get the day going with more attraction exploring, he and the kids then collaborated by putting their open palms one on top of another to agree upon and cheer for the rest of a fun day, even Lemmy and the crew slightly collaborating with Hector's sudden change of plans to provide some fun (and food) for the beaming group of children.

"Yeah!" They all cheered, the kids all joining up forces and deciding to share this day with the rambuctious group of villains.

As the wild amusement park day kept going, the sly group and their little group of curious little children that followed then tried to explore the day they got left, allowing the younger generation having a chance at the kid attractions, some of them Adven was somehow also able to take advantage of thanks to her petite frame. She tried not to think much of it since it also allowed for her fun times. Carousels, electric go-kart rides and smaller rollercoaster rides were visited, all while Lemmy and Naddy also enjoyed a nice evening at the tunnel of love the amusement park happened to have.

They even visited more haunted mansions, of which the children were already bold for and not afraid of. It was a quite big amusement park with plenty to visit and take a ride on.

After a bit, the children then left, happily coming back towards their parents and trying to tell them they got to meet Dayley Sparks, of which they were astonished to hear about but nonetheless very happy, after having their children come back safe and sound. As expected, they also told they had also met funny creatures and a largely funny, but cool group of people who they associated as being very Robin Hood-ish.

As they partook even more around the amusement park now that the children were no longer around, our feisty group ran across the ferris wheel, of which Dayley was mildly curious about, having already enjoyed so much of the park and having taken a quite nice portion of time exploring it.

"Oh! A ferris wheel!" Dayley then became quite astonished with it.

"Ever rode on one of those?" Lemmy had wondered.

"... Some times, I think, but not too many times." Dayley pondered. "It's been a really long time since I've been in them though."

"Come to think about it, don't you already see the top view of the city just because you can fly?" Lemmy begged for the question.

"Kinda, yeah! But at the same time, it's nice being able to actually sit." Dayley replied back in a pleasant tone. "I mostly hover about watching from above. It feels kinda strange but pleasant to watch the city I try to protect, a slight breeze every now and then."

"It can get kinda chilly up there." He slightly chuckled joking about how cold it gets during certain seasons.

"Hah, yeah! I never once considered how cold it can get up there in the sky!" Lemmy laughed for quite a bit.

As they approached one of the ferris wheels' passenger cars, Lemmy and the crew tried to cheer Dayley into getting into one of them first as they all grouped together near the passenger cars' entrance to get in as much they could.

"Well now you'll have the chance to ride on one!" Lemmy was hoping at least to make up to Dayley after he hadn't brought Dayley previously.

"Man, it's been so long," Dayley watched as he tried step inside, "it's a nice change of pace for-"

Hector then abruptly tried to warn him. "D-Dayley, watch your head, WATCH YOUR HEAD-!"

"... Don't worry, I'm fine!" Dayley then tried calming him to let him know. "Don't worry, I won't hit my head in the frame!"

Dayley then looked around as he then tries to calmly sit. "Man, I really appreciate the higher ceilings in this one." He felt nice in knowing how accommodated tall people were for this particular ferris wheel. "I feel like I've already had enough sore head as it is!"

"... Good thing these guys thought of everything while making this ride!" Hector then scratched the back of his head in ease of knowing.

As Dayley sat around in his own bench, the security from the ferris wheel then instantly came in and tried to stop them. "Woah! That's as far as you go, mates!" The guard tried telling all those who were just about to get in.

"Huh, why not?!" Lemmy then yelped in response as they all stared slightly surprised.

"I'm afraid your buddy here's a bit TOO hefty for this one passenger car alone! Each of these cars has a limit, ya know!"

"Wait, just Dayley weighs that much?!" Lemmy was quite astonished but not surprised given their friend was quite bulky.

"It's usually a two to three passenger car limit! Your friend here weighs enough for two people!" The guard tried explaining.

"You can see it right here - the limit is calculated on the car itself." The guard tapped on the visible scale counter as everyone peeked.

"... Dayley weighs THAT MUCH?!" Lemmy then scratched his head in disbelief.

"Oops! I'm sorry guys, guess I'm too bulky in size and height alone..." Dayley felt a bit pressured but didn't mind going in alone.

"Oh! I can actually go just fine." Jayt then noticed the missing gap and the weight that remained for anyone else. "I know my weight and I can comfortably reach under the limit."

"Wait, Jayt?!" Hector then was surprised. "Jayt, what are you going to do with Dayley?!"

"Nothing much." Jayt then had a connivingly sly expression on his face as he tried to smirk that sentence out of his mouth.

"That is NOT a look I should be feeling calm about! JAYT!" Hector seemed rather unnerved by him and the fear of the passenger car falling.

"Don't worry, relax!" Jayt was looking quite composed. "Nothing's going to happen."

"Guess I'll be seeing ya on the way down!" Jayt then tries standing by the entrance to which the passenger car easily handles.

The scale then shifts and the guard swiftly notices it barely even reaching or tipping the limit.

"... Huh, guess that also works." The slightly broad-framed guard was rather pleased as Dayley gets surprised by Jayt's own presence.

"You're lucky you're featherweight!" The scowl faced guard felt like giving Jayt a pass just because of that.

"... Jayt?!" Dayley even blurted out as due to his sudden entrance.

"Heya bud, just giving ya a little company until we get back down." He put his hand on his hip and poised as Dayley looked at him.

As the passenger car then closes his entrance and Jayt waves back and Hector, the passenger car then slowly shifts to spin around to make way for the next one over for the remaining group.

"... Aw man and I was looking to spend some alone quality time with Jayt!" Hector then grumbled under his breath as Dayley and Jayt then made their own leave.

"Don't worry, Hec." Lemmy then tried to at least uplift his own friend alongside with everyone else. "We can still hang around together!"

"Heh, I guess." Hector then simply admitted defeat and went alongside with the main gang, as they all have split into smaller groups for the next passenger cars. "Now come on! We gotta get in the next passenger car if I wanna be able to watch over Jayt!"

"That's the spirit!" Lemmy couldn't help but make him feel energized. "Besides, they'll be fine!"

As our comrades tried to divide themselves for each passenger car, everyone was able to evenly distribute their weight across all group without being too apart or alone, Lemmy even getting the chance of being with Naddy, Vonderv having dodged by a hair the limit by having Adven alongside with him. Luckily, Hector and Henrick were able to forge their friendship even further, with Daisuki right next to Roberta preferring not to intertwine too much in between the others and preferring Roberta's fashionable shyness.

As the ferris wheel spun around, everyone was able to catch a sight of the whole city as they mired from above, each and every single one of them appreciating the view from above.

As they all stared and saw the view from above, the ferris wheel spun slowly as Dayley and Jayt were almost at the top of the ferris wheel.

With Dayley right next to the window, he feels at ease seeing the city from above from this method.

"The view is really great here from above... I used to be in such hard times... seeing it now that I'm way more relaxed makes me see things from a whole other perspective..." Even so, he was trying to stay quiet just letting it all sink in.

Feeling almost lulled by the warmth of the sun coming inside the passenger car, there was quite a bit of silence as Jayt appreciated the view, seeing it while the palm of his hands wrapped around the bar just before the glass window door showcasing it.

Jayt let it all sink in for definitely quite a bit before he had decided to break the ice a little, him feeling quite sure of himself and certain, the cheery music of the amusement park faded in the background.

He then, without turning his face, then came a question from Jayt.

"... You're the one who donated for that orphanage, didn't you?" He merely begged the question.

As Jayt calmly asked that question, Dayley's eyes suddenly widened in shock as he turned his head towards Jayt.

"... How did you?!-" Dayley then felt alarmed for quite a bit before he realized.

"Oh..." Dayley then paused. "I really should have realized it by now..."

"You're really smart so that's why..." He merely assumed Jayt to be more clever than he ever was.

"... I'm gonna admit, it took me a bit!..." Jayt then professed.

"... But learning that it was presumably from an anonymous donor and that it needed to be someone wealthy enough and with a reason strong enough to do it..."

"It really couldn't have been anyone other than you." Jayt admitted he had felt a bit tricked by the small unexpected twists and turns Lemmy had given out to him in that his mother hadn't collaborated for the orphanage.

Dayley then merely looked sideways as he felt embarrassed and held his hands together slightly out of fright.

"So you pretty much used at least a pretty big portion of your income as a singer to help support and donate for the orphanage."

Dayley merely kept shut, further admitting to Jayt's own theory, continuing to look away before he finally admitted.

"... I can't undo the things I've done." Dayley felt disheartened even just saying that. "But if it means to aid the newest generations, then at the very least that." He wasn't already quite sure what he was saying at this point.

"I always keep feeling bad for those I can't protect and I just wanna make sure to help..." He felt almost a pain in his chest.

There was then a slight pause before Dayley realized his own mistakes and before he finally opened up.

"... And another thing. I did so many awful things to you and I never even properly said anything..." He didn't exactly feel like he deserved to be anywhere near Jayt, Jayt having already forgiven him some times.

"Jayt, I'm sorry for everything I've done to you... you deserve far more than what I can possibly give..."

"You deserve to be happy with Hector and everyone around you..." He merely wished to respect Jayts' own wishes.

After a slight pause, Jayt then tried to humble himself and think throughout those thoughts.

"... Dayley, I don't think it was all your fault." Jayt merely admitted to Dayley being merely a pawn in someone's game.

"... Besides, you only burned me." Jayt even felt a bit proud rising from it. "The rest was indirect. Your men were only protecting you and you fell under a harsh environment."

"... And besides, you can't just say being happy with everyone and exclude yourself out from it." Jayt even chuckled a bit.

"I really do look up to you, I really do..." He professed his admiration for him.

"... And besides, you're the one who made me slightly immortal, heheh." Jayt couldn't help let slip that.

"I'm the same as you now. When the Aurea's dimension God summoned the role of God of Fire upon me, he also just so happened to give me quite a bit of immortality and the powers that came with it." Jayt elaborated further, knowing a slight bit how much that changed him.

"Knowing that, I really wanna make sure to make the best out of everything and being with everyone all around." He brought mention of Hector and everyone else, knowing he was quite a bit different from the rest now.

"And that also includes you." Jayt didn't want to lose that with Dayley not involved.

"So no matter how much time passes by, I also wanna make sure to be with everyone as much as I can and stand by your side."

"I really want to regain your trust back as a friend." Jayt wanted to make sure of that. "You're not the only one guilty about things."

"It was wrong of me to do that and we all did our mistakes." He himself had admitted to that.

There was then a slight pause before Dayley solemnly tried to respect Jayt out of his own wishes as he remained sitting on his bench.

"You haven't done anything wrong. I just hope you realize that." Dayley clearly wanted to mean that deep within him.

He made another slight pause before he kept going, as the sun slightly lighted inside the passenger car.

"I still see you as a comfort person... someone I cherish... someone I really trust... and we barely even knew each other so... if you can't even be happy as a person..."

"... then what's the point of me ever being happy?" He simply asked, not wanting Jayt to ever be jeopardized.

After a slight bit of silence, Jayt then tried uttering these words.

"..."

"If it makes you feel a little better...

I'd say seeing you happy is what makes me feel happy."

After hearing those words, Dayley, for the lack of a better word, then suddenly looked upon Jayt, who seemed quite eager to get to know him better, as the light slightly cast on him, merely wanting to get to be with Dayley as a friend and being with him until the end of time.

"... And maybe perhaps more than that!"

As Dayley's sight slightly adjusted to the outside light and witnessing Jayt saying those words, he felt a bit comforted in hearing that and suddenly thought he was being silly questioning Jayt on that.

"... Thank you, Jayt." He then warmly smiled hoping to make Jayt happy. "For just... even being around me. You're like the friend I never even had. You always seem to make my days brighter." He was calmly saying the truth, as he held together and how much he cherished Jayt.

"Don't ever forget you can always count on me for anything... You mean the world to me and if anything ever happened to you, I'd be anguished... but I won't ever feel let down, especially not after hearing those words..." Dayley meant every single one of those words.

"... No problem to it." Jayt then tried to say in a composed, calm demeanor. "If you knew how much you meant to me, you wouldn't even be questioning our relation." He tried to tattle, making just a small joke out of it.

"Besides, it wouldn't be fun not having you around with us." Jayt then smiled warmly towards him with cheerfulness.

"... I'd say you mean just as much for me as well." He finished it at that, hoping to console Dayley's lonely heart.

As they locked their stare, Dayley actually being able to stare at Jayt's eyes for once due to his own issues of eye contact, the ferris wheel then slowly started for a stop, just as their passenger car was about to finish their ride and lock itself near the ground level.

"... Oh! Guess that's our cue to leave. You sure you're fine stepping out on your own?" Dayley then offered to help just in case he was afraid to let Jayt fall on a stair level or from a sudden slight height.

"... No, I'm good!" Jayt then happily appreciated that offer. "Just be careful out the door frame." He smiled hoping to guide Dayley.

"I know, I know!..." Dayley then slowly tried to get near by the exit also.

As they finally pitter pattered and came down from the passenger car as the sun was setting and distanced themselves to make way, the remaining passenger cars were also starting to unload the other passengers and Lemmy and the gang.

"Oh, hey! You guys made it! So, how did it go? I totally saw you guys from the passenger car just behind you, did you enjoy the sight?" Hector was just glad there was no issues given a lot can happen during a ferris wheel ride while he was with Henrick discussing workout routines while peeking from their passenger car every now and then.

"Honestly, I thoroughly enjoyed it." Jayt genuinely said. "Strangely enough, it never gets old for me. Just enjoying the warmth of the day."

"Yeah, same!" Dayley was also quite pleased with the view and not having to dodge birds for once. "It feels nice feeling the beams of light from above... The way the city feels so lively and jampacked!... it's definitely quite something." Dayley shared.

"That's great! I also really enjoyed being able to see the old forest and places I would go to when I was a child!" Hector then happily admitted. "Man, you really can see a lot of the city from afar! Even your parents' dairy farm!"

"Yeah, it's still quite a distance from here, but they just feel homely in there." Dayley fondly remembered.

As Lemmy escorted Naddy while she was with a cute little smile, he then came towards them.

"Hey guys! It was really nice being able to be in there with Naddy, she really enjoyed that." He happily said as she stayed snug right next by his side. "We oughta do this more often, it's just really nice seeing the sun setting... Brings me a sense of nostalgia..."

As they all grouped well together, Vonderv, Adven, Roberta and Daisuki all joined up alongside with them.

Vonderv and Adven seemed also to enjoy their ride, despite entering into a few funny arguments while Roberta and Daisuki surprisingly hit it off well, Daisuki mostly nodding to Roberta's conversations and Roberta enjoying her gentle clothing.

"We didn't really talk much, but Daisuki's been really nice to hang out with." Roberta thought of her as pleasant. "We've been talking about clothing styles and how I got to meet with you guys! She's really shy but I really enjoy her company!"

Daisuki merely shyed off, merely being compliant to how Roberta spoke about taking care of her little sister.

"Glad to know even you got to know Roberta a little better!" Hector felt glad someone like Garter could have it in him to be able to appreciate her personality. "I was afraid you wouldn't really get together, heh!..."

"Yeah, I've just been with Von and he's a really nice calm dude to hang with..." Adven had grown accostumed to Vonderv since quite some time now ever since their adventures. "There's just so much I never learned about our own dimension and the entities we are often told about..." She seemed interested in learning more about the folklore and the real truths behind the mysteries of the Aurea dimension.

"Yeah, I know the Aurea dimension like the palm of my hand!" Vonderv then gloated off as if he were a prestiged explorer who knew every corner of their land. Really, it was just because he had to know it all and learned it from experience.

"Figures you'd be bragging about it." Lemmy then rolled his eyes but honestly appreciated Vonderv having given Adven a polite company.

"Well, if you ever feel like knowing our lands a little better, you can just hit up the Vonderv encyclopaedia!" He pointed the thumb towards himself as he knew how to fill in the details about certain mysteries.

"Really putting the "don't judge a book by its cover" phrase to a test." Lemmy merely pointed that out.

"Wha, you think I'm a dubious source of information? Who helped you get across the valley and get towards the Anagi village, hm?" Vonderv couldn't help point that out given he was the one who knew most of the land to explore.

"A map." Lemmy scolded him.

"You're welcome by the way, because otherwise, you'd still be reading that map upside down!" Vonderv then made a jab towards his unawareness.

"... Pfff, I guess." Lemmy then couldn't help admit defeat if only because Vonderv was still a great friend in the end.

"It's been a really nice day together nonetheless." Lemmy then tried to think of this day as neatly wrapped as possible, given some of them had to go back to their places. "Hope you guys still had a blast together, I feel like I practically ran this park four times now!"

"Yeah, same! It's been really super thrilling being able to come back and enjoy so many attractions!" Naddy still felt like she could come back to it a few more couple of times, even if just alone with Lemmy.

"How about you, Dayl? Enjoyed your day as much you could?" Lemmy then tried to humbly ask Dayley.

"Oh, it's been wonderful!" Dayley had a plastered smile on his face. "To be able to enjoy so many attractions, I really couldn't have asked for anything more and I even got to ride on the ferris wheel!" He admitted.

"It really did wash all my cares away, heh." Dayley really felt happy he was able to relax for once and conclude all his worries.

"Nothing to it, Dayley!" Lemm appreciated he helped doing that for him. "That's what we're all here for!"

"I think it's about time we also call it a day." Jayt merely recommended if just because Lemmy's friends seemed a bit tired. "Your friends seem like they could use some rest back at their dimension or ours. Of course it's their call."

"Yeah, I also gotta bring Naddy back home, right?"

As Lemmy tried to politely ask her own reply, Naddy merely replied with a "hmm-hm!" and started stretching her figure out of a slight soreness over having explored the park so much, trying to flick her hair so it wouldn't be too unkept.

"Yeah, I'm also pooped!" Henrick then himself had admitted after spending a lot of his time hanging at the punching bag machines and basketball arcades. "It was quite a workout day. I still wanna catch up to my guitar practice with my bro."

"I also gotta bring Daisuki to some place." Hector tried not to say exactly where. "She also looks kinda worn."

She merely nodded off, trying to slightly grab the drabs of her dress slightly tired, trying not to give away herself too much.

As they all tried to stretch and begging to be back home to rest from a nice amusement park break, as the cold already started to settle and you could already feel a slight gentle breeze brushing through your skin, Vonderv then slightly surprises some of them begging for a request.

"Hey guys, would you mind then coming to our dimension for a visit?" Vonderv suddenly made a unexpected offer.

"Already this late?" Lemmy scratched the back of his head for a second. "What for? Some of us is already a bit tired."

"Actually, Maravi and Magnifi wanted to show you something." Vonderv was actually in ploy with them.

"Maravi and Magnifi?" Hector had wondered about such names.

"Yeah, they're the rest of the remaining Guardians." Adven pointed out towards Hector as she looked up towards him. "They're guardian entities similar to Vonderv, in that they help safeguard a special amulet."

"Guardians, eh?" Hector then reminisced something. "Oh yeah, I think I remember something told about that back in one pub."

"Yeah, I think I remember learning about them back in the dimension back when we were still trailing for Brightburn Tower." Jayt then slightly recalled such a thing and even some guards from the Underground City had made mention call of something like that.

"So, what about them? You know I can't exactly bring Naddy along, most of us have to go back home." Lemmy then shared back towards Vonderv.

"No biggie, not everyone's forced to come but you guys are still welcome to come." Vonderv then tried not forcing them to the dimension.

"I don't mind coming along just to make sure you guys are all safe." Dayley then tried to offer his presence.

"Yeah, same here." Jayt then stepped into Vonderv's own plan. "I can also come along, it's been a while since I've last visited."

"I can also come along, just to check what that's all about." Hector merely thought they just wanted to make a welcome back party of sorts.

"Then I guess we got some extra time to spend back in your place, Von." Lemmy concurred that the rest didn't have to tag and come along.

"Adven and Roberta are pretty much guaranteed to at least make the travel to check back on things." Lemmy then reassured and tried to confirm the group that was packing in for travel.

"Good thing you're all excited then!" Vonderv was enthusiastic to say the least.

As the scenery the shifts to that of a underground lab underneath the V.I.V headquarters, our crew then prepares to make a leap by using a more advanced interdimensional teletransporter that can instantly take a snapshot frame and immediately connect to their dimension without fear of it overlapping or creating sudden negative impacts that might affect theirs or the Aurea dimensions'.

"Ayup! Using this has been as easy as blinking." Hector was quite frightened how far its technology had advanced thanks to the hardworking researchers and engineers Lady Miriam had under her wing. "Who'd think we'd have easy access to your dimension."

"The Miss knows how to keep these things a secret as to not let it fall in any wrong hands. Of all people, she's the one who least wants to take advantage of it for her own monetary or power needs. She can find it awfully complex for her so she'd rather just leave it for the researchers and confide to them the trust of not betraying her." Jayt felt like they had no need to do such given she already tried to make sure they were well rewarded for it. "If anything, I think she just finds it a extra method to hopefully meet new friends across dimensions."

"... Awfully innocent, isn't she?" Adven didn't really mind it as she felt Lady Miriam has been incredibly kind towards her.

"She might seem cold, but her heart is anything but cold." Jayt elaborated on her peculiar personality. "She's a very amiable person."

"Well, what are we waiting for, let's go!"

As Vonderv then tried cheering for them to keep going, the quite already familiar group then prepares to sit on the more spatious interdimensional teletransporter, with Lemmy, Hector, Jayt, Adven, Roberta, Vonderv and Dayley to cruise along.

As Hector prepares and pushes a button with slight ease, the interdimensional telestransporter then began making shifts towards reality itself, already projecting itself towards a leap for the Aurea dimension, them remaining sit and frozen, in a similar state as to how Lemmy, Naddy and Dayley had first began being transported into the dimension at first.

As the setting changes once more to something akin next to a large white familiar mansion, that being, the mayor's mansion that resided within Glass City, the interdimensional teletransporter then, not very far from the mansion's main entrance, immediately arrived at its destination with relative ease, as they all began coming out of the teletransporter.

"... The city's been really well cared ever since Susanna took over." Lemmy definitely noticed a few changes and its citizens getting accostumed to even being out in the open, accepting those around them. "They don't seem to be in any peril."

"Susanna must've had a lot of work to deal with considering the state the city was before." Adven was quite shocked to even find its citizens waving hello at one another.

"Good thing we've grown accostumed to visiting her to really get to know her better." Hector had already met her a couple times, seeming like a sensible person with a finger for running the city. "I'm surprised she wasn't a mayor before! She seems to know her deal."

"Susanna wasn't from this city originally." Jayt tried slipping some details. "Some folks say she came out of nowhere, almost as if she had somehow found a way to connect her dimension to this very city."

"The chances of her being human are actually drastically high. Who knows from where she could have possibly fallen from." Jayt then pondered the mysterious fate that had been appointed towards this peculiar woman.

"Better not to think about it too much." Hector decided not to tire his head over it. "What matters is, these folks were lucky to even find someone to run as mayor for their city. They don't seem too human, but their appearance is peculiar."

"Yeah, they seem human, but they're really quite different from us." Lemmy was shocked to find out.

As they stared at the horizon of the city, a slight chorus then repeated, slightly repeating and faded. Some of the citizens had adopted a quite funny rhyme in the form of a very short singing song.

As the quite reserved city folk, but slowly coming out of the depths of the city, they commuted and hung around together chiming to this one quiet humble song, coming every now and then from the citizens.

"Mayor of the city, mayor of the city, Glass City,

Don't be so blue, we come for you

Mayor of the city, mayor of the city, Glass City

Brighter happy days will come for you,

Mayor of the city, mayor of the city, Susanna

We'll make brighter days and cheer for you~"

"Don't let your tears, don't let your tears cry for you

Here's an umbrella, a lovely one just for you

Don't let your tears, don't let your tears rain on your parade

And we'll sing you a song, sing you a song and your house neatly decorate!"

This relatively short song was barely even a song and yet, it echoed throughout the city, every now and then, transpiring from the citizens.

"Funny city folk, aren't they?" Hector seemed quite amused by how they were hanging together.

Even a slight fanfare would come seeming to come from the back parts of the city, peculiarly coming from the Falosa Streets, previously infamous over how rowdy it used to be. It seemed having quieted down, as the folks were now with little to no aggression.

A melody seemed to waver around throughout the streets, some of the houses fixed and still quite in building stages.

As they all stared at the looming mansion, the glimmer of it still seemed the same as usual, even if somewhat neatly decorated by Susanna and the citizens who'd try and help every now and then, a strange prop just above its own roof.

"... Is that a giant white umbrella?" Lemmy told, as he stared up from below while everyone stood baffled over the size of the mansion.

As it loomed, the umbrella, seemed to be quite engraved in the mansion's roof, working similarly as a shade for the mansion in the form of a statue. Next to the mansion, however, what seemed to be the most noticable were the rows of flowers throughout the sides of the mansion.

As they stood by the front of the mansions' entrance, a young woman in pigtails and a white and blue dress however then humbly came, carrying with her a lovely actual white umbrella as her high heel shoes approached the friendly group.

"Hello, welcome!" Susanna finally made her prestiged bow. "How have you been?"

"Heya, Suz, been a bit!" Lemmy then casually received her as if she was already a very close acquaintance. "Wow, you really worked here."

"I like to think it wasn't just all my doing!" She politely complimented her own citizens. "They have been wonderful and they would come visit me whenever I felt sad! I thought I was all alone with Maravi when quite frankly, the citizens also tried to help make this city prosper."

"Can't make a house with just one person!" Lemmy then suddenly remembered that phrase.

"But that's not why we're all here! Maravi really wanted to show you something alongside with Magnifi inside our mansion." Susanna then politely talked about Maravi, who still resided within her, their contract still unbreakable as they both still lived in the mansion alongside the faceless butlers, who were in fact, a devoted shapeshifter species that adjust to their environment.

They were a species that actually helped Susanna survive as one of them as the previous mayor's butler took her in.

"Gregory is actually taking care of them while I wanted to bring you guys in." She spoke, while Maravi and Magnifi awaited for them inside with somewhat of a surprise. "They are waiting for you in the mansion."

"A surprise? I really can't think of what could possibly be." Lemmy merely confided to her, as he wasn't quite sure what possible unresolved situations could there be coming from the dimension.

"So you're the lady who Lemmy talked about," Hector suddenly spoke, "I heard nice things about you, despite the fact you gave a hard battle to Lemmy!" He had previously learned about how his misadventures had led to him eventually learning about the Guardians.

"Battling with a fan suddenly feels far more threatening than meets the eyes..." Jayt referred to Lemmy talking about her weapon of choice.

"We some times have to be able to surprise every now and then!..." She teased with a tiny laugh.

"But that's in the past - come - I'll bring you to Maravi and let you in on the details."

As she tries to guide them inside the mansion's entrance, she tries helping them get along in the way.

"Come along! Don't mind them, Gregory is remarkable and the rest of them are trying their best." She was in fact referring to the shapeshifting butlers and stewards so they wouldn't frighten the guests. "If not for them, I couldn't possibly even be here."

As the group tried to shortly follow her moderate pace, they then made their way across the halls of the mansion, in order to be able to reach the mansion's wide living room, where Maravi and Magnifi were eagerly awaiting for them.

"It's been a while since I've last been here!" Adven then spoke remembering her slight memories about this place.

"It sure is wide... Kinda reminds me of King Tiramisu's place..." Roberta remembered their past visit to the royal family's mansion.

"It's a neat place, just not sure if I'd ever got accostumed to living in a house like this..." Hector felt quite daunted.

"It's been a wild ride since then, that's for sure!" Vonderv then recalled how much he had to go through with Lemmy.

As they finally made their way near the entrance of the living room, Susanna then approaches and humbly tries to open the doors before them. "No need to cumber my butlers with always opening the door, right?"

As the group quickly approaches, the doors are then spread wide open and the group's eyes are met with the sight of the reddened pig Maravi and the pink dressed yellow pig Magnifi, sitting around a wide glass counter in specially soft sky blue sofas and a little something more that remarkably overwhelmed them. Even Mocha was right there just beside them, given she was Magnifi's own host.

"... Huh?!"

As Lemmy stares quite breath taken, he just so happened to stumble across not just Maravi and Magnifi, but several, other similarly looking guardians who were also frolicking around in the very same living room, all while a few of them were telling tales towards Maravi and Magnifi, brandishing several tones of color and styles of clothing.

"Holy gadzooks, where did all these Guardians come from?!" Lemmy then felt incredibly overwhelmed by the severe number of them.

"They were really having fun what with Maravi and Magnifi around in the mansion!" Susanna giggled as she enjoyed their company.

Just as they turned, they quickly glimpsed upon the lively group and decided to tackle Dayley and single him out of everyone.

Their frenetic stubby piglet arms then slowly tried to even almost climb upon Dayley himself as he was caught offguard.

"Guys, help! I'm being attacked!" Dayley could do but nothing as the stout piglets then tried reaching for him for a hug.

"... Bahahahahaha!" Vonderv couldn't help but just laugh it out loud, as he cackled upon the sight of seeing Dayley almost being taken.

"... Oh, I guess they just want to give me a hug?" As Dayley tried to process this, the piglets then quickly fled across the living room and got towards Maravi and Magnifi enthusiastically as Mocha heartily laughed.

"And another thing, why are these Guardians smaller than you guys?" Adven then quickly pointed out how small and stout these guardians were.

"I'm counting at least one, two, three... man, that's a lot!" Hector even lost count.

"About 18 of them!" The yellow blue-haired Magnifi then confirmed how many they were.

"18?... Huh, I wonder..." Jayt then became peculiarly curious about something.

"Of course they are small, they're just kids!" Vonderv then felt it was too annoying even having to explain himself. "Me, Maravi and Magnifi are just here trying to take care of them, geez..."

"They seemed quite thrilled once they got here..." Vonderv merely stared blank-faced thinking how excited they were for the job.

"Children? You mean children can be guardians?" Lemmy was astonished to say the least.

"Of course they can!" Vonderv really didn't want to repeat twice. "I'm a completely matured adult Guardian, the size easily tells us apart!" Vonderv then tried to explain how he, Maravi and Magnifi were already grown up. "These are completely new guardians that got accepted."

As Vonderv was discussing that, three of the small guardians were actually sharing a strange tale towards Magnifi during the time they were waiting for them, as the yellow piglet perked up her own little piggy ears with her beady astonished eyes.

"... And then he just went bam! Boosh, skabadam! And then his friends came and kicked his hiney!" A light green guardian tried to narrate excitedly trying to catch up on their story. "His friends were trying to protect him!"

"And how were you all able to see that?" Magnifi pondered all that commotion with a hand in her chin.

"Well duh! We've seen it from above! We were floating up above in the sky!" A violet guardian then tried to explain it.

"But then he tried follow this guy after all that..." The pink guardian tried to tell the story alongside them.

"And now we won't be feeling so lonely while watching over our dimension and the Half-Faced Charm!" Vonderv then exclaimed his enthusiasm. "It's like we got a few little prodigies so they can help us protect the balance of the dimension, now that Inacredi's gone."

"Oh yea, I'm still not over that." Lemmy still couldn't help hardly believing Vonderv had once lost a friend of his.

"I'm still sad that had to happen... but now, hopefully, I won't feel so lonely now that I can be like a big brother to them..." Vonderv couldn't help feeling a bit misty-eyed, while not ignoring the fact that Maravi and Magnifi could also teach them a lot as well.

"I'm not sure if being a parent is really my thing, so I think I'll give that role to Maravi and Magnifi, just in case they think I might be a bad influence upon them, heheh!" He then jested all while Maravi and Magnifi stared upon him with a steel-cold stare of discipline.

"Hey, by the way... Hey Mocha, is everything cool with the king?" Lemmy then fondly remembered that the king once helped in his aid, wanting to catch up on how King Tiramisu was doing since then from her. "It's been a while since I've last heard of him."

"He's been really well in fact!" Mocha warmly smiled towards Lemmy and his friends. "He seems far more mature now, a bit more gruff... but at the same time, more sweeter with Chocola and making sure to provide everything needed for her."

"He had to sacrifice a lot of gold from our mansion for the sake of the Kochala village... but he doesn't really seem to mind it!" Mocha thought it took a lot from him to be able to give that away from his own father. "If anything, he's making sure to prioritize his family and the village no matter the cost. And making sure to protect Chocola and those around her..."

"He seems far more resilient now... but also stronger!" Mocha felt a bit proud of her father alongside her own twin brother.

As Mocha having finished discussing about her father, Hector's eyes then slowly shifted to something just a bit peculiar.

"What's with those ones over there?" Hector then pointed out to some particular three guardians that in fact, were more faded in color and bigger, as they waved back at him shyly, as if to show support for all of them.

"Oh, those ones are already adults! That's why their colors are more faded and pastel-like. The tones of our colors depends from when we died." Magnifi then remarked their maturity. "They're more akin to us, I guess they came alongside with them!" She appreciated their maturity and how they seemed to know the small guardians.

"They really seem to know what they're doing!" Maravi then appreciated their softer side. "I dig their style!"

"They seem alright..." Vonderv crossed his arms behind his own head, thinking they would be helpful to help the situation at hand.

"This really is quite a lot to take in..." Lemmy tried to follow their intended surprise. "There's a lot going on here... so I'll just go and assume this is a good thing?"

"It's a GREAT thing! It's totally the chance we all wanted for our dimension!" Vonderv felt thrilled. "This'll make protecting the dimension easier on us and there's more of us to help protect the Half-Faced Charm from ill-intended threats!"

"Wow, I didn't even think that! Yeah, you were all alone with just Maravi and Magnifi by your side." Lemmy realized by now that, had it not been for this miracle, Vonderv would probably have struggled with maintaining both the relations on Lemmy's and the Aurea dimension all while trying to fend those who bore greed from the Half-Faced Charm.

"There's nothing else we can show you here and it is pretty late for you guys..." Vonderv then realized their tight schedule. "Now skedaddle! We got business to care for!" Vonderv was in fact, just referring to taking care of what he thought, were brats.

"I think that's for the best, I'm already tired from them all trying to pile up and piggy ride on my back and hug me... That's a lot of pigs... They sure really like me for some reason..." Dayley then gave a small sigh of relief after a valiant effort to make them happy.

"They almost made me fall to the ground, hahah..." He apologetically tried to finish off for today as Roberta tried to help him.

"The weary warrior must rest his tired body..." Jayt then teasingly tried to honor him as if he fought a strenuous battle.

"Yeah, I think I'll about call it quits for today," Lemmy concured, "I think that's already enough lollygagging for the day, as Garter would say."

And so, just as they finally bid adieu to Susanna once more, and this time towards Maravi and Magnifi who were fostering all these new guardians of the Aurea dimension across the mayor's mansion and King Tiramisu's own grand mansion housing, it was really up for Lemmy and the crew to finally return back home safe and sound.

As they finally made themselves back home, the stars were already twinkling up in the skies right above Intile City, the crew having had even more than enough to rest their tired eyes and go right back to their own accomodations.

With Jayt and Hector back in their homes and Dayley tending back to his reports and finishing up workload for Lady Miriam and the V.I.V headquarters before just soundly going to bed, Adven, Vonderv and Roberta were also going to rest with peace in their mind knowing that their dimension would be more protected of strange individuals, as well as new guardians fostered safe and sound, to which Vonderv even promised to make any wish he could find possible to realize within the V.I.V's own grasp and within his very own limitations.

Pretty much everyone went back home, including Lemmy, who was, for the most part, knocked right out of the park and having already had his fill with amusement parks - at least for the time being.

With Lady Miriam finally being able to put her head down to a rest, a lot of her worries were now even seeming like they were dwindling away, as she thought one thing. How her son made her feel proud of him and how united he could accomplish everyone feel.

It's not often a child that makes a parent proud but at least in this very case, Lady Miriam's own standards were already pretty easy to accomplish, Lemmy having somehow accomplished even surpassing them.

With Naddy back in her cozy room after her parents had visited her, she was hoping to visit the amusement park once more, maybe perhaps just all on her own with him this time, thinking riding along with groups to be tiring for him. A humble surprise, she thought, hoping it'd make him happy somehow, as she hugged her comically large seal plushie that Lemmy got for her from the amusement park.

Buloke was in his humble wooden house once more, as the same was for the Strength brothers who resided back in their apartment.

Woe are their neighbors, as their slumbering snores echoed and pierced through the apartment walls, Henrick drooling on his own pillow snoring and covered by a very worn sheet on his own bed with Garter on the other opposite room, his body flat out denying to get up as he was worn and tired, his very ruffled frizzy hair spread out throughout his own smaller bed, as he laid like a discarded ragged doll and trying to sleep through Henrick's loud snores to wake up the next day looking as if he slept on a dumpster.

Thus concludes this quite big, exciting adventure, with our villains taking a rest, new acquaintances being unexpected, but still warmly accepted, bonds being reforged and new hopes for what lies ahead into the future, as Lemmy tries making most of the night to get right back to sleep from a quite exhausting thrill.

As Lemmy tries lulling himself back into his sleep, he then suddenly receives a notification on his own cellphone with a flicking light.

"... Huh? Who could it possibly be during this time of the night?"

"Oh... it's Naddy. I wonder what she wants."

He receives a message notification wondering she was going to say.

"..."

"..."

"... She wants to go back to the park AGAIN?!" He slightly got shocked and began twisting and tossing around his body around his bed.

"Why can't she pick something else?! Just anything besides the amusement park!"

But as he tries processing this, he then feels accostumed to her wish.

"... Although. I guess we did have fun today."

"..."

"... Yeah sure."

"You win, Naddy...."

He then tries typing out something as a message for her as his tired eyes begin closing out of drowsyness.

"We can go back to the park if you'd like. And maybe even go somewhere else you might find cool."

"Catch you tomorrow!"

~The End~

[anisespice]

“ baby steps ” || tokyo rev.

continuation of this post.

pairing: bonten x fem!reader [ mikey, ran, sanzu ]

warnings: mature content ahead. MDI. mature language, crude humor, ANGST w/ comfort (mostly in mikey's), deadbeat!bonten (unintentionally), not proof-read so there may be A LOT of errors :// mikey's is LONG, ran + sanzu's are silly goofy, mikey + sanzu's are a lil unhinged lol and i think that’s it :))

notes: can i just say thank y'all so much for showing "accidents happen" the love that i didn't think it would get, it was made on a whim so i'm so so so happy y'all enjoyed! i tagged as many as i could (or that tumblr would allow) sorry if i missed some of you :( thank you for your patience and let me know how you feel about this continuation format :) !! notes ii: also also, pt. 2 for "accidents happen" coming soon! notes iii: MY COMPUTER CRASHED AND I THOUGHT I LOST EVERYTHING BUT IT'S OKAY IT'S OKAY :'))))

tagged: @fantasycantasy , @illegalspacecow , @captaincyberqueen , @cherryblossiren , @niragiswhore , @awkwardaardvarkforever , @valentsoup , @lovely212 , @miffysoo , @yandere-kouhai , @i-am-just-a-girl-ur-honor , @wisteriarose214 , @kindadolly , @yuwaimo , @sweetbella1221 , @simpingfor-wakasa , @sirachano0dles , @yutahg , @slowlikehonee , @blurpleuni-squid , @haruchiyoreen , @istanstraykidss , @loyard176 , @msluccapotato , @luv444lay , @backgroundcharactera , @jegelskeranime

Ever since you picked up your daughter, there’s been a hovering presence that wouldn’t go away no matter where you went. From the park, to the grocery store, all the way home it clung to you like a bad itch. Despite looking over your shoulder and being met without any sort of threat, that didn’t stop the uneasy feeling. And it only intensified when you received a knock on your front door.

You made a confused hum, checking the time on the microwave to confirm that it was indeed past the reasonable hour for potential visitors. Not to mention, you weren’t expecting anyone.

The hairs on the back of your neck stood up, instincts telling you that something wasn’t right, that your best option was to pretend you weren’t home. However, the person on the other side knew otherwise as they knocked on the door again, this time with more fervor. You inhaled sharply, taking hesitant steps towards the door until you were mere feet away from it. Eventually, you worked up the courage to look through the peephole, your brows furrowing in distress when all you could see was black—They were covering it. All the more reason not to open the door…

What if it’s a robber? Ridiculous, they don’t knock.

What if it’s just the neighbor? Why cover the peephole?

More and more did your mind swirl with endless possibilities, each one becoming less and less believable. Taking a long, deep breath, you doubled-checked the door-chain was on before slowly cracking it open. And as you attempted to peek through the sliver, nothing could’ve prepared you for the arm that forced its way through, startling you as you yelped, stumbling back as it made a grab at you.

Before you had the thought of shoving the door closed on the offender’s arm they grabbed the little chain, then yanked it clean out of the wall. To your terror, a dark hooded figure entered your home, head hung low, concealing their identity.

You began to hyperventilate, backing up to keep distance as they staggered further into your home before kicking the door closed behind them, effectively blocking you from the exit. Surely, someone heard your scream and would check in, or call the police. But, how long did you have before the intruder decided to make a move? Not to mention, your sleeping child just down the hall…

With that last thought in mind, you immediately steeled your nerves.

Even if you had to use your bare hands, you were going to do whatever it took to keep your baby out of harms way.

You reached for the closest weapon without taking your eyes off the figure, hands clasping onto a discarded umbrella that was leaned up against a closet door. It wasn’t ideal, but it would have to do. Taking a defensive stance, you prepared for what you assumed to be the inevitable.

“I-I don’t know who you are, or what you want…b-but if you don’t leave…my..my boyfriend will be home any minute! H-He knows how to fight, and he’ll fuck you up if you try anything!”

Your means of intimation fall on deaf ears. It were as if you hadn’t spoken at all. They just…stood there. Watching you from the darkness. That feeling, that hovering presence you’d been weary about all evening…there was no doubt in your mind it was because of this individual. Suddenly, they gave a watery chuckle, hand coming up to rub the lower half of their face as the chilling noise dissipated into soft snickers.

You sweatdropped. “I mean it! He’ll be here real soon, so you better get out of here before-”

“[_____]…” the figure finally rasped, voice heavy with an emotion you couldn’t decipher in the moment. You froze, eyes widening.

“…How the hell do you know my name?”

Without much urgency, they stepped forward into the light. Beneath the warm glow, it took you mere seconds to recognize the person standing before you. You gasped, trembling hands dropping the umbrella, it landing with a harsh clatter. Soft, mortified hitches in your breath echoed through the small space, memories flashing before your eyes as you covered your gaping mouth.

“M.. Ma..” you whimpered, throat tightening. A shell of a man, who gazed upon you with stormy eyes flooded with tears at the mere sight of you.

He gave another strained laugh, muttering to himself as he soaked you all in. “Needed to know.. Needed to know it was really you…”

Mikey eyed you up, intensely, eerily silent as he did so. Then, he took in the surroundings, the warmth, the interior, the smell of dinner—It truly felt like a home. A bitter pill to swallow once he reminded himself that you built it without him.

His sharp gaze returned to your stunned expression. He sneered.

“Must’ve been easy for you. To forget me and move on, just like that. Like I was nothing.”

You blinked, taken aback. All you could do was remain speechless, cemented to the ground with thoughts and questions racing in your head. Now matter how many times you opened your mouth, no sound would come out aside from choked whimpers.

“Do you know…how long I’d been searching for you? Been mourning for you?” He hissed through clenched teeth. “When you left, I thought… I thought someone had taken you. That I lost you all because I was too stubborn to say I’m sorry…”

As he spoke, Mikey slowly closed the space between you. The more he came into the light, the more you could see how the years had treated him. His cheekbones were more pronounced, the dark circles under his eyes as well. His lips were dry, cracked, his fair skin now ghoulishly pale. If not for the black hoodie you would’ve mistaken him as such; ghost of your past.

Your shoulders shook, hands hovering over your face as you gaped in disbelief. He’d been looking for you?

That night, that stupid fight you could barely remember…he made it crystal clear that he wanted nothing to do with you. He pushed you away. Pushed so hard that you almost believed he really wouldn’t have cared if you dropped dead. You knew he didn’t mean it, knew it was just another dark impulse…but none of that mattered when all your pregnancy tests came back positive just hours prior.

That night, you made the decision for the sake of your daughter. And also, for his sake. At the time, you were certain he wasn’t ready to be a father. He was quick to rage, merciless, losing himself to the darkness you tried to protect him from. If you had stayed, you were certain Mikey would’ve never forgiven himself if he lost control in front of his own flesh and blood, if the child grew to resent him for something he struggled to control.

You thought you were doing him a favor…but it appears to have done the opposite.

“And this whole time…you’ve been here, alive. Playing fucking house with someone else.”

You stiffened. Someone else? Your visible confusion only irritated him further.

He scoffed. “Don’t play dumb. You said it yourself. Too bad he won’t be coming home anytime soon. I’ve already got Sanzu and the Haitanis looking around for the bastard. And when they find him, I’ll make him regret sticking his filthy dick inside you.”

Confusion morphed into realization. You did threaten him with said hypothetical boyfriend…But, that was before you knew it was him!

“Oh, Manjiro…” you whispered. He glared, scorned.

“Don’t you dare pity me. I mean, you got the family you always wanted, right? So who cares who it was with, right? Congratu-fucking-lations.”

You shook your head, exhaling deeply as you held your face in your hands. For years, he thought you dead. Then, when he received word of your appearance, he finds you with child. And not once did he consider that child to be his? It’s like…he couldn’t fathom the thought.

If only he had looked just a little bit closer, he would’ve seen that she had his eyes. How they resembled those pools of ink that used to shine with so much hope back in his youth, so playful and full of love…those same eyes that now gazed upon you with contempt.

It stung.

He thought so low, not only of himself, but of you as well.

Taking a deep breath to reel in your emotions, tears began to well up in your eyes. He assumed they were tears for your doomed lover, further breaking his heart as Mikey clenched his fists to the point of nearly drawing blood. Luckily, even though you struggled to find the right words, someone else happily found them for you.

“Papa..?”

Both of you instantly drew your attention on the toddler standing near the kitchen, one fist clutching her blanket while the other rubbed the sleep from her eye. You glanced at Mikey, and he was stiller than stone. His once dead-stare had morphed into what could only be described as incredulous. Surely, he heard her incorrectly…

With a sniffle, you crouched down to address her, offering a soft grin as you nodded earnestly. “That’s right, sweetheart. Papa’s finally come home.”

The little girl blinked sleepily, taking a second to reboot. But, as soon as the words registered, a bright smile stretched across her face as she excitedly rushed towards Mikey, throwing herself onto his legs and hugging them like a koala as she chirped, “Papa, home!”

Said man hobbled a bit at the force, arms windmilling as he caught himself to keep from falling backwards. He didn’t know what to do with himself, especially when those big, round pools of ink opened and stared right up into his soul. Mikey’s heart nearly stopped. With a hitch in his breath, the gangster did everything he could to hold his composure, looking between you and the child as you both gazed at him with so much warmth…it was suffocating.

Sensing he was overwhelmed, you reached down to scoop up the bubbly bundle, holding her close as you eyed Mikey, apprehensively.

He resembled a cornered animal—Muscles stiff, jaw tight, eyes wild. After a moment, Mikey began to slowly back away into the shadows of your home, conflicted, devastated. It wasn’t until his back hit the door did he eventually fall to his ass, of which caused your child to giggle at how silly he was being. However, all you could do was hold back tears, watching as the reality started to weigh down on a man who just discovered he was a father.

Nervous, you gently explained. “I didn’t leave you because of our spat, Jiro…and I never moved on. I just…thought that I’d be doing more harm than good sticking around when I found out I was pregnant…I didn’t want to add any more stress on your plate, so I…”

Mikey didn’t respond. He sat there, stare vast and unfocused. But, you knew he hung on to every word. So you continued. “I wanted to tell you. But…I wasn’t sure how. At the time, I believed you had stopped caring about me altogether. And to hear you’d been looking for me, I-I’m…I’m so sorry. I’m sorry you harbored all that guilt. I didn’t mean for any of that to happen.”

Your daughter wiggled around in your hold, making small grunts in complaint. Her eyes were trained on his figure huddled in the dark, wanting to be acknowledged, wanting his attention. “Papa!”

Mikey flinched. He focused his gaze on the two you, haloed by the light emitting from the living room. You both were like salvation, reaching down to a broken sinner…How could she want anything to do with him? When he had missed so much already…

To keep from accidentally dropping her, you placed your daughter back on the ground, watching wearily as she wobbled all the way to Mikey, blanket in tow. You weren’t worried about him hurting her, far from it…if anything, he appeared to be the fragile one.

Eventually, she made it to her destination, standing before him with a curious, but eager expression as she rested a hand on his knee. Mikey watched her, took in all of her features, every last detail as he engraved it to memory. She was beautiful, just like her mother. One would think his genes didn’t stand a chance. But the eyes. That was all him. From his mother to his older brother to himself, there was no doubt in his mind that those were Sano eyes.

His lower lip quivered, reaching out hesitantly to caress her cheek. She didn’t cower away, merely babbled as she began patting his knee, allowing his thumb to rub over her chubby cheek. You clasped your hands over your mouth, growing even more emotional at the delicate moment. Mikey looked enamored already, eyes subtly sparkling from what you could see as they interacted.

“I-I told her stories, about you. And I made sure to show her photos, too. Old ones, but still you nonetheless. I wanted her to know who her father truly was. Despite everything else…”

Your daughter cooed, then placed her blanket in Mikey’s lap before climbing into it. Mikey didn’t dare move, rigid as she made herself comfortable. He looked up at you, looking for guidance, for reassurance. Your encouraging smile was enough for him to hesitantly place his hands on her small back for support, carefully adjusting so that she was stable. She laid her head on his chest and stuck her thumb in her mouth, sighing contentedly.

And, for the first time in years, he smiled.

When you hadn’t seen her familiar pigtails bobbing around, or heard any of her excited chatter with the receptionist up front, worry couldn’t even begin to describe what you felt the moment you realize…your daughter wasn’t here.

As soon as the meeting looked like it was wrapping up, you politely excused yourself from the room. Masking your worry wasn't too difficult, but there's no doubt a couple people might've noticed the spring in your step as you exited. One of them being Rindou Haitani. He watched you speed down the hall with mild interest, corner of his mouth ticking up ever so slightly as he thumbed around on his phone beneath the table. Having been updating his older brother during the meeting while he was on his smoke break, he was more than eager to inform him of the storm that was no doubt heading his way.

Little did the younger Haitani know, he was already dealing with one.

"And then, Haruka-kun tries to take Momo-kun's bento box because she had cuter animal shapes, but Momo-kun already said no, and so Haruka-kun pushes Momo-kun, and then tries to take it! But I pushed him and hit him with my fist, like this," she clenched up her tiny fist and held it up to Ran before striking down on his forearm with all her might. It didn't even pitch. "Like that."

The lavender-eyed man merely gazed upon her with mirth. "Did you now?"

"Mmhm! And teacher got so mad, and said that she would tell Ma about me fighting, but she's stupid because Ma didn't pick me up today, and I told Haruka-kun if he snitches, I'll beat 'em up!"

Ran lowly whistled. "Quite the little menace, ain'tcha?"

She pumped her fists. "Yeah!" Then, she paused, holding a finger to her chin in thought. "Wait...what's a menace?"

"Ah, something you inherited from your old man." He ruffled her hair, much to her displeasure. Though her innocent jab earlier regarding his age still hit a sore spot, he was starting to like the sound of it. She, on the other hand, wasn't convinced.

"I already told you; Ma was on her happy juice when she said that. She said not to believe anything she says when she's on happy juice. It makes her do silly things."

Ran chuckled. He knew that all too well. The little girl wouldn't be in this world if not for your inability to hold your liquor. But judging based on how you've raised her so far, clearly you made the right decision keeping him in the dark.

He'll admit, he wasn't the best in terms of commitment. Throughout his day to day, Ran just didn't have the energy. With being in Bonten, keeping an eye out for his younger brother, handling business, dealing with numbskulls and disposing of their bodies, there was never a time to even consider settling down. One-night stands and on and off flings were the easiest choice. At least, until he stumbled upon you.

You were the whole package and more. Classy, independent, witty, and a looker to top it all off. When Bonten started collaborating with the organization you worked in, he couldn't help but to be drawn to you—Like a moth to a flame. It started out as the occasional bantering, trying to one-up the other, catch them off guard. Ran was smooth with his words but could never quite beat your sharp tongue. Thus, things escalated to something more flirtatious. Harmless, but it didn't take long before the months of tension between the both of you began boiling over...and throwing alcohol into the mix, it was the first time Ran finally felt like he had the upper hand. Seeing how poorly you handled just a few glasses of wine, it endeared him. Seeing a piece of you that no one else had the privilege to witness. Your sloppy side, the clumsy, whiny, touchy side. After that long, passionate night beneath the sheets, the one time you and Ran allowed yourselves the space to be vulnerable with one another...you found yourself pregnant. And Ran found himself being nonethewiser.

He wonders, if he hadn't left the next morning and completely ghosted you...would you have kept him in the picture?

Suddenly, his phone dings. Reaching back to pull it from his back pocket, Ran half expected it to just be another update on the meeting or Rindou cursing at him to hurry his ass back inside. But, it wasn't that at all. And at the sound of your kitten heels rushing out of the building and halting at the top of the steps, Ran didn't even need to look up to know who was glowering down from them.

"Hey, Ma! Guess what, the purple man isn't such a meanie after all!"

Ran snorted, finally looking up from his phone to greet the woman who not only still had his heart, but evidently his first child. You, on the other hand, weren't so thrilled to see him.

"Rika. Wait inside. Ma's got some words for the purple man."

He smirked. "Wanna say 'em over a glass of wine?"

"You son of a-!"

"Bad word!" Your daughter covered her ears. You flushed, your composure nearly slipping just by being in his prescence. Ran, immediately seeing the opportunity, teasingly pouts at you whilst covering her tiny hands with his larger ones, shielding her.

"Honey, please, not in front of the child. Can't have her repeating those dirty words at school, can we?"

You fumed, speaking through clenched teeth. "Haitani, as soon as I get her in this building, away from you, I swear to God, I'm gonna wring your neck."

He hummed, amused. "Well. Guess she didn't get her violent side from me after all. Speaking of which, did you know at school today-"

"Hey! No snitching!"

“...What did you say?” 

You were hoping you heard the teacher wrong. Surely it was just your exhaustion taking the wheel. But, when her kind smile didn’t falter, nor did her gushes for the supposed “adorable display”, you immediately grew suspicious.

While heading home from work, you went to pick up your children from daycare. And when you arrived, the teacher merely informed you that it was already taken care of by your very handsome and very devoted husband. 

“I-I think you’re mistaken. My boyfriend and I aren’t married…”

The teacher, finally coming back down to earth, tilted her head in confusion. “Eh? You aren’t?” 

“Did he…say we were?” 

“Well, no. I just assumed since it was easy to tell who he was here for. Hikaru and Kaoru look so much like their daddy.”

You choked on your spit.  Hikaru and Kaoru look so much like their daddy. Hikaru and Kaoru look so much like their daddy.

You did everything in your power to keep from strangling the poor woman. Sure, she didn’t do anything wrong per say…but she sure did make a grave error. And your struggle to restrain your intrusive thoughts must’ve shown on your face from the way she placed a concerned hand on your arm. “Are you alright, miss? You look like you’re about to faint.”

“M-Mhm, yep, great, just peachy.” You squeaked through clenched teeth, sweatdrop on your forehead. “Could you um…confirm something for me?”

“Uh.? Er, sure. I’ll try my best.”

With tense shoulders and a tight smile, you asked, “Their…father…did his mouth have two scars in the corners?”

The teacher blinked, confused. Shouldn’t you already know that answer yourself?, she was probably thinking. And she would be right; you did know. But her simple, hesitant nod was the final nail in the coffin that was your delusion—Haruchiyo Sanzu had found you. And to make matters worse, he had the children.

Your smile faltered, twitching ever so slightly. Covering it with a forced chuckle, you cried, “Oh, that’s..wonderful! He’s always been self conscious about them, and I’m j-just.. beaming with joy that he’s embracing them more. Have a nice evening, Ms. Yuki.”

The teacher didn’t get a chance to respond as you quickly turned on your heel and began speed walking home. You’d apologize for your abrupt exit another day…right now there were more important matters to worry about. For instance—How on earth did Sanzu find you? How did he know about the twins and where they were? Oh, God…did he know about Satoru?

Dialing him up a few times only for the calls to go straight to voicemail weren’t reassuring in the slightest, having you rush across oncoming traffic just so you could avoid any further delays for your fraying nerves. You could see your apartment complex up ahead, heart thumping in your throat at the familiar, black SUV parked a couple blocks down. Had it not been for the heavily tinted windows and no license plates, you probably would’ve overlooked it. He knew where you lived. Stomach in knots, muscles stiff, nerves shot. You didn’t know whether to feel relieved or devastated. Your kids were safe at home, but at what cost? You stood in front of the building, rooted to the ground. Despite mentally preparing for this exact scenario for years, it all went down the drain the second you went to that daycare and discovered your children were missing.

It wasn’t until your phone vibrated did you snap out of your thoughts, shakily pulling the device out of your back pocket to check the notification.

from : unknown 1:06 pm     “ hi, mama.~ ”

Your stomach twisted. Attached to the message were two photos.

The first photo was of your kids eating McDonald's in the kitchen, happily cheesing and waving at the camera. You couldn't hold your choked gasp, hand coming up to hold your quivering lower lip—They were safe.

The second photo...was of Satoru. Tied to a chair, gagged, and beaten senseless. And standing behind him, holding him by his hair so that he could pose for the camera, grinning like a cheshire cat...

Another message pops up. Your grip tightened around your phone.

from : unknown 1:09 pm " daddy's home.~ "

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